Zombie Invasion Read online

  This book is not authorized or sponsored by Microsoft Corp., Mojang AB, Notch Development AB or Scholastic Inc., or any other person or entity owning or controlling rights in the Minecraft name, trademark, or copyrights.

  Copyright © 2016 by Hollan Publishing, Inc.

  Minecraft® is a registered trademark of Notch Development AB.

  The Minecraft game is copyright © Mojang AB.

  This book is not authorized or sponsored by Microsoft Corp., Mojang AB, Notch Development AB or Scholastic Inc., or any other person or entity owning or controlling rights in the Minecraft name, trademark, or copyrights.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Sky Pony Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.

  Sky Pony Press books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Sky Pony Press, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or [email protected].

  Sky Pony® is a registered trademark of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.®, a Delaware corporation.

  Minecraft® is a registered trademark of Notch Development AB.

  The Minecraft game is copyright © Mojang AB.

  Visit our website at www.skyponypress.com.

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.

  Cover photo by Megan Miller

  Cover design by Brian Peterson

  Print ISBN: 978-1-5107-0594-4

  Ebook ISBN: 978-1-5107-0604-0

  Printed in Canada

  TABLE OF CONTENTS

  Chapter 1: The Invitation

  Chapter 2: Here Comes Trouble

  Chapter 3: The Trip

  Chapter 4: Survival in the Swamp

  Chapter 5: First Day

  Chapter 6: Orientation

  Chapter 7: Brewing 101

  Chapter 8: Now or Nether

  Chapter 9: Secrets and Lies

  Chapter 10: Big Battles

  Chapter 11: Lost Friends

  Chapter 12: Home Again

  Chapter 13: Zombie Invasion

  Chapter 14: The Overworld Fights Back

  Chapter 15: The Creeper Attack

  Chapter 16: Teach, Don’t Terrorize

  Chapter 17: The Truth

  Chapter 18: Back to School

  Chapter 1

  THE INVITATION

  Lucy couldn’t believe she had been accepted to Minecrafters Academy. She had always dreamt about attending the prestigious school. At Minecrafters Academy, you learned how to build majestic homes, brew special potions, and hunt for resources that were vital for survival in the Overworld. She would be one among the elite students at the academy, and Lucy was thrilled. Although, she had to admit, she was also a little nervous. She wouldn’t have her friends, Max, Henry, and Steve with her. She would have to make new friends.

  Lucy sprinted over to her friends, Max and Henry, who were helping Steve work on his wheat farm. They were working with him to create a new irrigation system so his crops would grow faster.

  Lucy called out, “I just got a letter from Minecrafters Academy!”

  “What does it say?” asked Steve.

  “They want me to study there.”

  “When do you leave?” asked Henry.

  “Tomorrow.” Lucy could barely believe the words coming from her own mouth. She had so little time to prepare. She was beginning to grow quite anxious. There was so much to do. Her inventory needed to be stocked, and she had to make sure she had an enchantment table and the many other tools required for all students at the academy.

  “Tomorrow? That’s so soon.” Henry looked shocked.

  “I know. I feel a bit overwhelmed. There is so much to do to prepare for the trip.” Lucy began to pace.

  “That means you won’t be able to go on the treasure hunt I had planned.” Max was disappointed. They had discussed going on a treasure hunt to the Nether. Someone had told Max about an amazing treasure in a Nether fortress. They had been planning to leave the next day to search for the fortress and unearth the treasure.

  “I know.” Lucy was very disappointed, too. “But when I get back, I’ll be able to help find all sorts of treasures. Just think of the new skills I’ll learn when I’m away.”

  “I know,” said Max. “But we are going to miss you. You’re a part of our team.”

  Henry added, “The treasure hunts aren’t going to be the same without you.”

  Lucy was upset. She didn’t want to make her friends sad, but she knew this was an opportunity that she couldn’t pass up. “I am going to miss you guys a lot. But I bet the time will fly by.”

  Steve said, “Isn’t Minecrafters Academy far from here?’

  “Yes, that’s why I have to leave tomorrow. I want to give myself enough time to make the journey,” Lucy replied.

  Steve suggested, “Can we accompany you on the trip to the academy?”

  “Yes.” Lucy was so happy. She had been worried about traveling there alone. To get there, you had to travel through various biomes, and it would take a few days. Now she would have help crafting homes and battling any hostile mobs or griefers she might encounter on her trip.

  “I’d also like to help you stock up your inventory. As you know, I have a lot of resources, and I want to share them with you,” Steve told Lucy. Steve was a successful wheat farmer and he traded his wheat for various resources.

  “Thanks, Steve!” Lucy was so happy to have such good friends. She knew that despite being far away for a long stretch of time, they would still be friends.

  “It’s getting dark,” Henry remarked. “We should head back to the farmhouse. We don’t want to battle any hostile mobs.”

  “Too late,” Max announced as he watched two lanky Endermen walk past them.

  Lucy reassured Max, “There’s nothing to worry about. If we don’t stare at the Endermen, they won’t attack us.”

  Although this was true, Henry had accidently looked in the direction of one of the two dark block-carrying Endermen, and the purple-eyed beast let out a shriek and teleported toward him.

  Henry stood frozen in terror. He didn’t want to battle the Enderman. It had been a long day, and he had spent a large portion of the day helping Steve tend to his wheat farm.

  “Help!” Henry called out to the others.

  “Sprint toward the water!” Lucy instructed Henry.

  Henry sprinted as fast as he could in the direction of the water. His friends followed him.

  “Jump in!” Max shouted to Henry.

  Henry jumped into the deep, blue water and both of the Endermen followed closely behind.

  “Henry, are you okay?” Lucy called out.

  Henry swam to the shore. “The Endermen were destroyed. It’s going to be okay, but we have to head back to Steve’s house. We need to get inside. It’s getting darker and I fear that we will be attacked again.”

  “Oh no!” Lucy called out. “Zombies!”

  Zombies lumbered toward them. A group of townspeople sprinted behind them, attacking them with swords and arrows. One of the townspeople called out, “We need help! The village is being attacked by hordes of zombies.”

  Henry looked over at Lucy. “I guess this is going to be a memorable last night.”

  “You’re right.” Lucy smiled as she and her friends sprinted toward the village armed with diamond swords and bows and arrows.

  Kaboom!

  An explosion was heard in the distance. />
  Henry cried out, “I think we’re going to be fighting a lot more than zombies.”

  Max clutched his diamond sword. “It sounds like the village is under attack.”

  Kaboom!

  A second explosion was heard throughout the town.

  Lucy shouted to a townsperson, “Do you know who is behind this attack?”

  “No, but I think someone is blowing up all the stores in the town with TNT.”

  “It sounds like a griefer,” said Max.

  “We can’t just make a guess. We have to take action,” Henry called out to his friends as he sprinted toward the town. He was ready to battle the zombies and find out who was behind the explosions.

  Chapter 2

  HERE COMES TROUBLE

  As Lucy sprinted with her friends, she secretly worried that the battle would take too long and she wouldn’t be able to make it to the academy on time. But she had to stop thinking about herself, because there was a village to save. When she entered the town, Lucy noticed her friend Eliot the Blacksmith’s shop had been destroyed by TNT. She looked for Eliot. She feared for his safety. Her heart began to beat quickly.

  “Eliot!” Lucy called out, but there was no response.

  Henry looked over at Lucy. “We have to see if he’s okay.”

  They tried to battle zombies as they searched for their missing friend.

  “Watch out!” Henry cried as a zombie lurked behind Lucy.

  Lucy turned and attacked the zombie with her diamond sword. Two more zombies approached her and she struck them as well. With a few blows from her sword, she was able to destroy the zombies.

  “Oh no!” Steve sounded terrified. “I can’t believe how many zombies are spawning.”

  “Somebody must be behind this attack,” Lucy called out as she struck three more zombies and destroyed them.

  Henry reminded them, “We have to find Eliot.”

  Lucy agreed, but the village was filled with zombies. The vacant-eyed beasts ripped the doors from their hinges and attacked the helpless villagers inside the shops and library. As the villagers were being transformed into zombie villagers, Lucy looked through her inventory for golden apples to help save them. While searching through her inventory, she heard a familiar voice.

  “Lucy!” It was Eliot!

  “Eliot! Are you okay?”

  “Yes, but after my shop was destroyed, I saw someone dressed in a blue suit carrying blocks of TNT. I tried to follow them, but I lost them. They were headed toward Steve’s wheat farm. You have to stop them. They could blow up his house,” Eliot informed his friends.

  Two zombies lumbered toward Eliot. Lucy took out her bow and arrow and aimed at the zombies. “We have to find the griefers and stop them from destroying Steve’s house.” Lucy was upset.

  Steve was in the middle of battling five zombies. He was outnumbered and couldn’t concentrate. He was worried about his home. He had worked so hard to build his farmhouse, and he’d be devastated if zombies destroyed it.

  Kaboom!

  “Oh no!” Lucy called out. “I hope that wasn’t your home, Steve.”

  Steve couldn’t respond. He was battling the zombies with his diamond sword and fighting for his survival. Lucy destroyed a zombie that lunged at her and quickly joined Steve in his battle against the zombies that surrounded him.

  “Why are all of these zombies spawning?” Lucy asked breathlessly as she fought alongside Steve.

  “I’m going to search for the spawner,” Henry alerted his friends.

  “Do you need help?” asked Lucy.

  “Yes, come with me,” Henry replied.

  Lucy and Henry sprinted up the mountain and searched for the zombie spawner, but they couldn’t find it.

  “Ouch!” Lucy cried as an arrow struck her arm.

  “Skeletons!” Henry pointed at four skeletons that were in the distance.

  “We’ll never find the spawner now.” Lucy felt defeated. They had to battle these skeletons, and they were losing energy quickly.

  Lucy leapt at the skeletons with her sword. She used all her might to destroy two skeletons as Henry obliterated the other two bony beasts.

  “We have to help our friends,” said Lucy. “Let’s get out of here.”

  “We have to find the spawner or this zombie invasion will never end.” Henry sprinted away from the town and in the direction of the zombies.

  “I don’t think we’re going to find it.” Lucy could hear the cries from the village. She felt helpless as they traveled further from their town, eventually reaching the jungle biome.

  “I see a jungle temple! I bet the spawner is in the dungeon.” Henry sprinted toward the fortress.

  Three zombies approached them, and a zombie struck Lucy. She was losing energy quickly. “Help!”

  Henry leapt at the zombies and destroyed them with his sword. He quickly gave Lucy some milk to restore her energy.

  “This is a tough battle,” Lucy said and took a sip of milk. “I wanted to spend the night preparing for academy. I didn’t expect to battle zombies.”

  “We’re almost at the jungle temple.” Henry reassured Lucy that it would be okay and the battle was almost over.

  “You’re right. And I couldn’t leave the village in this state. I’d feel too guilty,” Lucy added.

  As the duo approached the jungle temple, they saw an army of zombies walk out. Quickly, they hid behind a large tree.

  “I think we found it,” Henry whispered.

  “We have to go inside.” Lucy sprinted into the temple, narrowly avoiding being attacked by the zombies. Together they raced down the stairs and toward the dungeon.

  “I found the spawner!” Henry called out.

  Lucy grabbed torches from her inventory and set them up around the spawner while Henry built bedrock walls to contain it.

  “It’s done!” Lucy was excited. The zombie invasion would be over. They sprinted back to town to inform their friends of the fantastic news, but their friends were too busy battling the remaining zombies to pay attention to Lucy and Henry.

  Lucy and Henry joined their friends in battle. They used their diamond swords to annihilate a large group of zombies. With each zombie they destroyed, they knew the battle was almost over.

  “We destroyed the final zombie,” Steve called out. Everyone was exhausted, but happy the battle was won.

  “We destroyed the spawner,” Henry told them.

  “Maybe this battle is finally over.” Max sounded hopeful.

  The sun was rising. Lucy wanted to head back to Steve’s farmhouse and prepare for the trip. “We have to go back to the house,” she said.

  Steve said nervously, “I hope my farmhouse wasn’t blown up.”

  They sprinted back to the house. They didn’t know what they would find.

  Chapter 3

  THE TRIP

  As the gang sprinted toward Steve’s house, they saw a large hole in the ground.

  “Your wheat was destroyed.” Max looked down at the crater.

  “That’s awful. After all the work we did. You spent all day helping me build the irrigation system.” Steve inspected the area.

  “I wonder who is behind all of this trouble.” Max stood next to Steve and looked at the damaged crops.

  “We will get to the bottom of this,” said Henry, “but first we have to help Lucy get to Minecrafters Academy. If she doesn’t leave today, she will be late for the first day of school.”

  Lucy thanked them. “I am so happy we will be traveling together.”

  “Let’s go back to my house and help you prepare,” suggested Steve.

  The gang walked into the farmhouse. Steve was relieved the TNT explosion had not destroyed the house. He was upset that his crops were ruined, but they were easier to replace than the home. He had spent a very long time working on his house and had put great effort into the design. Steve’s walls had intricate patterns that he designed with emeralds.

  “What do you need for your first day of school?” aske
d Henry.

  Lucy rattled off a list. “A diamond sword, a bow and arrow, an enchantment table, an anvil, and—”

  “Wait.” Henry stopped Lucy. “What do you already have?”

  Lucy paused and looked through her inventory. “I think I just need a few things. Do you guys have an enchanted book?”

  Steve handed Lucy an enchanted book and said, “We also have to prepare for our trip to Minecrafters Academy. Let’s eat before we go on the trip.”

  The gang sat down and feasted on chicken and apples. They were excited to travel to the academy, but they were also worried about leaving town.

  Steve remarked, “I hope there won’t be any explosions while we’re away.”

  “I’m glad I was able to destroy the spawner,” said Henry. “I wouldn’t have been able to leave if zombies were still roaming the village.”

  Max clarified, “They weren’t roaming the village. They were attacking the village.”

  Lucy looked at her friends. “I’m going to miss you guys so much.”

  “Don’t worry,” Max reminded her. “You aren’t getting rid of us that quickly. We still have to a few days to travel to Minecrafters Academy.”

  The gang finished eating, stocked their inventories with the necessary potions and other supplies, and started their trip to Minecrafters Academy. Lucy led the group. She had a detailed map that the academy had crafted.

  Max studied the map with her. “It looks like we have to travel through the desert. I know we have limited time, but if we pass by any desert temples, I want to search for treasure.”

  “We’ll see how much time we have,” Lucy told Max.

  The group trekked through the village. As they made their way past the village streets and into the grassy biome, Eliot approached them. “Where are you going?”

  “We are traveling to Minecrafters Academy with Lucy,” replied Henry.

  Steve added, “Don’t worry, we won’t be gone too long. We want to protect this town.”

  “Yes,” Eliot said, “I am going to need help rebuilding my shop.”

  “I promise we will help you rebuild when we return from our journey,” Steve reassured him.

  Eliot wished them well on their trip. He was sad to see them go, but he also knew they’d be back to help him rebuild the blacksmith shop.