Chapter 9

JUNGLE HUNT

“Look at Maya’s bed,” Phoebe called out to Lucy and Jane as the three began to wake up. “It’s empty.”

“Where’s Maya?” asked Lucy.

“I don’t know.” Phoebe walked outside and looked around the swampy biome for Maya.

“Do you think something bad happened to her?” Jane asked Lucy.

“I hope not,” Lucy replied, biting her lip. Lucy had just begun to trust her classmate, and now Maya was back to the same suspicious disappearing acts. But, remembering how Maya had helped her fight the witch the night before, Lucy said, “There has to be some kind of explanation.”

“Well, this can’t hold us up; we have to find Isaac,” Jane said as she offered Lucy some apples for breakfast.

Phoebe walked into the house. “I can’t find her outside, and I don’t want to stick around the swamp biome. It’s so creepy here, with the sun never really coming up! I’m afraid hostile mobs will spawn.”

Everyone nodded. “We were just saying that we need to keep moving, no matter what. Searching for Isaac is the most important thing,” Jane said.

“Maya did say she’s an expert at navigating and surviving in the desert biome. Maybe we’ll find her there,” Lucy said as they walked through the murky biome.

“What is the next biome?” asked Jane.

Phoebe studied the map. “It looks like we’re almost out of the swamp biome. Soon we will be in the jungle.”

Lucy was excited to travel to the jungle. Even though they were focused on finding Isaac, she was hoping they could make a quick stop to look for treasures in a jungle temple, and she’d be able to refill her inventory.

As they entered the lush jungle, Phoebe remarked, “It’s very hard to see with all of the leaves. Let’s stick together.”

Jane called out, “I see a jungle temple!”

She rushed toward it, and Lucy began to follow, but Phoebe stopped them. “I don’t think we have time to search for treasure. It looks like we still have to travel through three more biomes before we reach the desert, and we want to reach the desert before nightfall.”

Lucy agreed, but she really needed the resources from the jungle temple. Before she could utter a word to convince them to make a quick stop, they heard someone call out for help.

“Maybe that was Maya!” Phoebe said. She looked around, but it was hard to see much in the dense jungle.

“Maya? Where are you?” Lucy called out as loudly as she could.

There was silence.

“Maya?” Jane shouted.

Again, there was nothing but silence.

“Where can she be?” Lucy wondered.

“Help!” the voice called out again.

“It sounds like it’s coming from the west,” Phoebe said, looking down at the map. “Follow me.”

The gang hurried down a path that was thick with leaves.

“Help!” The voice grew louder.

“Wait for us, Maya. We’re almost there!” Phoebe called out. “It’s going to be okay.”

Just then, there was a whistling sound in the air around them and Jane cried out, “Ouch! I’ve been hit by an arrow.”

“Ugh!” Phoebe cried as an arrow hit her.

Lucy looked frantically around for their attackers. She saw a flash of orange through the leaves, and then a flash of pink. Her jaw dropped. “It can’t be.”

“What is it?” Phoebe asked as she grabbed a bow and arrow from her inventory.

Lucy replied in amazement, “I think I see a rainbow griefer.”

“What’s that?” asked Jane.

“The rainbow griefers used to cause havoc all over the Overworld. They were an extremely powerful evil army. But I thought we had destroyed them.” As they snuck closer to where Lucy had seen the flashes of color, she saw that she was right: two rainbow griefers, holding bows and arrows, stood between the trees.

Phoebe stood next to Lucy and looked out through the leaves. “You’re right. There are rainbow people.”

“I don’t think they can see us,” Lucy whispered. “We have to be very quiet.”

“Do you see Maya?” asked Jane.

“No, I just see the two griefers. Come over here and take a look,” Phoebe told Jane.

The trio stood close together and looked out from behind the leaves. Lucy’s heart was racing. She had been sure she’d never see a rainbow griefer again. She didn’t know what to do.

“Help!” the voice called out again.

“Are you sure that’s Maya?” asked Lucy.

Phoebe cried, “No, look!”

The girls let out a collective gasp when the rainbow griefers turned, and they saw that they were holding a diamond sword against Isaac’s chest.