Mystery on Mushroom Island

by Winter Morgan

  When Edison heard these words, he knew he was about to embark on another case.

  3

  SEABOUND

  The wind stopped, and the boat slowed down. “You have to help me, Omar,” said Amira. “You’re the only one onboard who has experience navigating a boat.”

  Omar stood by Amira as she tried to move the boat forward to Mushroom Island. “Aren’t you going to help me?” she asked.

  “Yes.” Omar appeared confused. “It’s just been a long time since I’ve helped you at sea. I’ve been so busy building in Verdant Land.”

  “Verdant Land?” questioned Anna. “You mean Verdant Valley?”

  “Yes.” Omar touched his forehead. “I don’t feel that well. Is there a space where I can rest? I think I was injured during the battle. My memory seems to be going on me. Maybe I was poisoned? I had some of your potions to regain my strength, Edison, do you think that one of your potions might have caused this? Maybe you made a mistake.”

  Edison’s mouth gaped open. He couldn’t believe Omar was placing the blame on him. “No, I’ve used all of the potions I’ve brewed. I test each one.”

  “You test every potion?” Omar laughed. “That seems impossible.”

  “I know that I’ve ingested something from all of the batches of potions that you borrowed,” Edison said, defending himself. “Something is different with you, Omar. You keep messing up people’s names, and you don’t remember how to drive a boat. I find it all suspicious.”

  Omar coughed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to blame you. I think I must be sick. I must have come down with something when I was in the cold biome.” He leaned his head against the ship’s railing.

  “Be careful,” Anna advised him. “It’s not good to be so close to the edge. You don’t want to fall overboard.”

  “I’ll be fine,” Omar said. “I just need a few minutes to rest.”

  Billy walked over to Edison and whispered, “Everything isn’t a potential case. Our friend is sick, and you questioned him about his errors. You have to just relax and enjoy the vacation.”

  Edison signaled to Billy that they should move to a quieter part of the ship. “I’m telling you, I have a feeling in my gut that something isn’t right with Omar. It just seems very odd that he forgot people’s names, and he called Verdant Valley ‘Verdant Land.’ I am going to watch him.”

  “That’s fine, but I don’t want it ruining your vacation. I want you to enjoy being on Mushroom Island. Remember, this is Amira’s big birthday celebration. We’ve all worked very hard the last year solving all sorts of cases, and I think we all need a vacation,” said Billy.

  Anna approached them. “What are you guys whispering about?”

  “It’s nothing,” Billy replied.

  “No, it isn’t nothing,” said Edison. “We have to tell her.”

  “Tell me what?” asked Anna.

  “It’s nothing,” said Billy.

  “It’s something.” Edison was angry. “I think there’s something going on with Omar. Remember last night when we heard his voice? When I respawned in my bungalow, Omar was in my bungalow going through my potions. I found it very strange, because we had just heard him in Verdant Valley,” said Edison.

  “That is strange,” said Anna.

  “Let’s not make something out of nothing,” said Billy. “I’m here to enjoy a vacation. I don’t want to play detective. I feel like we’ve done that enough.”

  “Okay,” Anna said. “Why don’t we just watch Omar? If he acts strangely, then we’ll start investigating. For now, we’ll just say he’s sick.”

  Edison agreed. “Okay, but if there is anything that is out of the ordinary, I will start questioning him.”

  Billy walked over to Omar. “Are you feeling better?”

  Omar stared at the ocean as he spoke. “Yes, I do feel a lot better.” He pulled an apple from his inventory and took a bite. “I was feeling sick before, but I think I’ll be fine. I must be working too hard. All of this building is tiring me out.”

  “I get it,” said Billy. “I feel the same way about being a detective. We worked on so many cases, and I just want to focus on my treasure hunting.”

  “Yes,” Omar said. “Ollie, you shouldn’t try to be a detective like your friend over there, the alchemist. Just relax. You’re on vacation.”

  Billy didn’t correct Omar. He didn’t tell him that his name was Billy or let him know that Edison’s name was Edison. He just took note of this odd interaction. He wasn’t going to tell Edison and Anna. He didn’t want to ruin this rare vacation.

  Amira called out, “The boat is moving at a great pace. We’re almost at Mushroom Island.”

  Edison stood next to Amira and looked out at the large, bright-colored mushrooms sprouting from the island. He was intoxicated by the stunning view of the scenic island. He decided that he wouldn’t bother investigating Omar, but would just enjoy his time on vacation.

  “Can you hear the sound of music?” asked Amira. “That’s the festival. It’s going to be so much fun.”

  The sounds of a drum beating vibrated against the boat. Edison’s heart raced as they approached the shore. He hadn’t realized how much he needed a vacation until they approached the lively, peaceful island.

  “I hear there’s a contest where people compete to see who can eat the most mooshroom stew,” said Anna.

  “Really? That’s awesome,” exclaimed Peyton. “I’m totally in.”

  “Me too!” added Erin.

  “I guess we’re going to be competitors.” Peyton smiled.

  “Bring it on!” Erin said.

  “I wonder what you win,” questioned Billy.

  Amira called out to Omar, “Are you feeling better? Can you help me dock the boat?”

  Omar replied, “I’ll try. I am feeling a bit better.”

  Amira and Omar steered the boat toward the dock. There were many people walking around the dock area. Edison could see a group of people dancing by a pasture filled with mooshrooms. Edison watched as Omar carefully helped Amira put down the anchor and dock the boat at Mushroom Island.

  Omar smiled at Amira. “We’re going to have a lot of fun for your birthday.”

  “I hope so!” Amira exclaimed.

  Edison watched this exchange and felt much better about Omar. Maybe he was just feeling sick, or perhaps somebody had injured him and it left his memory impaired. He had heard Omar call for help. Edison wished he was able to see who was hurting Omar when he was screaming for them in Verdant Valley, but it had been so dark, and they couldn’t see anything.

  Edison was distracted from his thoughts when he watched Peyton push Erin out of the way and try to be the first person off the boat.

  “May the best person win,” Peyton said as she climbed down the ladder and sprinted toward the festival.

  “Wait up!” Erin called out to her friend.

  Edison had never seen Erin and Peyton act this way, and he wondered if everyone was just a bit off. He climbed down the ladder. As he reached the ground, he could smell the mooshroom stew.

  “Do you smell that?” he asked Billy.

  “Yes,” said Billy. “It smells lovely. Should we get a bowl, or should we sign up for the competitive eating competition?”

  “I think I’ll pass on the contest. I just want to relax. But we should go and cheer on Peyton and Erin.”

  Billy agreed, and they walked to the center of the festival with Amira and Omar. Amira told them about where they were staying.

  “My friend has a large house, and she invited us to stay with her,” said Amira.

  “Who’s your friend?” asked Billy.

  “Her name is Allyson,” said Amira.

  “Allyson. Does she have red hair?” asked Omar.

  “Yes, do you know her?” asked Amira.

  Omar paused and then fumbled with his words when he said, “Um, I don’t. I thought I heard you mention her.”

  As they entered the festival, Edison looked back for Omar, but he was g
one.

  4

  MOOSHROOM STEW FESTIVAL

  “Where’s Omar?” questioned Edison.

  Amira looked around. “That’s strange. He was just next to me. He must have rushed ahead into the festival.”

  Edison wanted to find Omar, but a woman with pink hair held a megaphone and walked through the crowd announcing the mooshroom stew eating contest was about to begin.

  “Who will be declared the winner?” she asked as she walked around the festival. “Cheer on your friends!”

  Billy pointed to the stage. Peyton and Erin were standing next to each other. In front of them was a long table filled with what seemed like a never-ending supply of bowls filled with mooshroom stew. The woman with the pink hair kept shouting into the megaphone, trying to gather a crowd to watch the contest. When she felt there were enough people paying attention to the upcoming competition, she stepped onto the stage.

  “These brave folks have decided to participate in the mooshroom stew competition. Are there any other people in the audience who would like to join them? There are only nine people up here, and we have room for ten.”

  Billy looked at Amira. “You should do it. You love mooshroom stew.”

  “I don’t like being on stage. I’m very shy,” she confessed. “Can you do it?”

  “You think I should?” Billy asked his friends.

  “Why not?” questioned Edison. “I bet it’s a lot of fun.”

  The woman with the megaphone said, “Doesn’t anybody want to do it? We can’t begin the competition until we have one more person.”

  Billy raised his hand. “I’ll do it!”

  “Great!” exclaimed the woman with the megaphone.

  Billy raced to the stage and walked to the empty space as the woman with the megaphone began to announce the rules.

  “When I say ‘begin,’ you start drinking the bowls of mooshroom stew, and when I say ‘stop,’ you guys stop. The judges will walk by and count the bowls. The person who has the largest number of empty bowls is the winner. Okay, you guys ready?” She looked at the contestants.

  Edison was excited to see his three friends on stage, but he was distracted because he still couldn’t see Omar in the crowd. The Omar he knew would be at the front of the stage cheering them on, but there was something off about Omar. Edison felt like the person they had traveled to Mushroom Island with was not Omar, but an imposter. He didn’t want to confront Omar, but he had to find out if this was true.

  “Ready, set, go!” exclaimed the woman with the megaphone, and the group of ten contestants drank the stew.

  Edison couldn’t imagine gorging himself with mooshroom stew. Yet watching his friend’s compete made him quite hungry. He craved a bowl of mooshroom stew as he cheered his friends. “Go, guys!”

  He watched Billy devour bowls of stew and couldn’t keep track of how many each one of them had eaten. The woman with the megaphone called out, “Stop.” The judges walked the length of the stage, stopping in front of each participant and counting the empty bowls.

  “We have a winner!” exclaimed the woman with pink hair.

  A judge walked over to Peyton. “Congratulations! You’re our first place winner.”

  Peyton smiled. “That’s amazing. I’m so happy.”

  The judge presented Peyton with a golden apple. “This is your prize. I know these come in handy during zombie invasions, but you won’t need it here. There are no hostile mobs on Mushroom Island. So just enjoy yourself and know that you have this in your inventory for your return home. You did a great job!”

  Erin, Peyton, and Billy walked off the stage. Edison congratulated them, “You guys are all winners to me.”

  “You’re so cheesy.” Billy laughed. “That sounds like something a parent would say to a kid.”

  “Well, I was impressed watching you in the competition,” Edison said. “And now I’m in the mood for a bowl of mooshroom stew.”

  Peyton put her hand in front of her mouth. “Please, just thinking about ever eating that again makes me sick. It’s funny, I used to love it, but now I feel like I can never eat it again.”

  “I know how you feel,” said Billy.

  “Me too,” added Erin.

  Anna asked, “So was it worth it?”

  “Yeah, it was fun,” said Erin.

  Amira said, “I was too afraid to go on stage. It was fun watching you guys.”

  Edison’s mind was still focused on food. “Are you guys really that disgusted by the mooshroom stew? If so, I might have to dine alone. I really want a bowl,” he said.

  “I do too,” Amira said.

  “So do I,” added Anna.

  Amira suggested, “Why don’t we get one while you guys explore the rest of the festival? Do you see that big rollercoaster? It looks like so much fun.”

  “I can’t go on a rollercoaster right now.” Erin rubbed her stomach. “It’s hard to walk. I just need to rest.”

  “That competition was very intense, wasn’t it?” asked Amira.

  The competitors nodded their heads in unison.

  Amira pulled out a map from her inventory. “This is the map to Allyson’s house. You guys should go there and rest. My friend Allyson is putting together a feast for tonight, so she should be there now. She has a lot to prepare. We’ll meet you later.”

  Edison, Anna, and Amira walked through the fair. They ate bowls of mooshroom stew and looked at the all of the rides.

  “We should go on the Ferris wheel,” suggested Anna.

  “We have to find Omar,” said Edison.

  “He wasn’t feeling well,” said Anna. “Maybe he went to the beach to rest? I know you’re very suspicious of him, and I do think it’s odd that he called me by the wrong name.”

  They were shocked when Omar walked over to them. “Omar,” Anna said, “we were worried about you.”

  “I was just walking around, Annie. Don’t worry,” Omar replied.

  Anna didn’t correct him, but she caught his error. This was another time he messed up her name. Omar’s behavior was incredibly suspicious.

  “You seem like you’re still not feeling well,” said Amira. “Why don’t you go to my friend Allyson’s house to rest?” She pulled out another map from her inventory and showed Omar the way to get there.

  Omar thanked her and held the map as he walked in the direction of Allyson’s house.

  When he was out of earshot, Anna said, “I agree he’s still acting off. Let’s see if he feels better after resting at Allyson’s house. Right now, I just want to enjoy this festival. We never get to go on rides and eat a bunch of food. I want to have fun.”

  “So do I,” Amira said as she raced toward the line for the Ferris wheel.

  As they each climbed into their own cars on the massive Ferris wheel, Edison looked out and thought he saw Omar, which he found strange, because Omar was supposed to be heading to Allyson’s house. He told himself that he was probably wrong because it was hard to make out the people on the ground. They seemed so small, almost like little toy people. He tried to simply enjoy the view as he reached the top. Mushroom Island was a beautiful place. He could see the shoreline and the boat docked on the peaceful water.

  Red mushrooms dotted the green landscape, and Edison took a deep breath and relaxed as he went around on the Ferris wheel. There was a slight breeze, and the sun shone brightly in the sky. Everything seemed peaceful until the Ferris wheel shook violently as a loud boom thundered through the sky.

  People were screaming as smoke filled the air.

  “What was that?” Anna screamed.

  “I think there was an explosion,” said Amira.

  Edison wanted to get off the ride, but he had to wait for all of the other cars to be emptied. It felt like an eternity as he waited to exit the Ferris wheel. He could see Anna and Amira waiting for him. The smoke was fading a bit, but people were still running away from the festival.

  “What do you think happened?” asked Amira.

  “I don’t know, but
we’re going to find out,” said Edison.

  As he spoke, another explosion shook the ground.

  “Again! What is going on?” Edison screamed.

  He couldn’t hear a reply because a third explosion rocked the festival.

  5

  QUESTIONS AND CURSES

  When the smoke faded and there wasn’t another explosion, people calmed down, and Edison could actually make out passing conversations.

  “I think this island is cursed,” an older woman dressed in a shawl told her friend.

  Her friend, who had dark gray hair and wore a black dress, eagerly remarked, “Yes, I’ve heard about that curse. They said there would be three explosions, and then we’d have lots of trouble.”

  Edison excused himself. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to interrupt, but what is the story behind the curse?”

  The woman in the shawl was more than happy to tell Edison, Anna, and Amira about the curse. “I’ve lived on Mushroom Island my entire life. I’ve never left and never seen a hostile mob. Most of my family hasn’t. When I was younger, I’d tell my parents that I wanted to see the rest of the Overworld, but they would tell me how scary it was and describe zombies with oozing flesh and skeletons that shot arrows at you, and it scared me a lot.

  “I was happy to live on Mushroom Island forever until my brother told me that one day our island would see all of the horrors of the Overworld. There was a curse an old traveler put on our island when he had a fight with a farmer who lived here. Once my brother told me this, I was always worried about the curse. However, a lot of people said it was just a story and it would never happen. I never thought it would until this happened.

  “My brother said that the curse would start with three explosions, and that’s just what happened. There were three explosions.” She let out a small cough and wrapped the shawl around her frail body.

  “What else will happen?” asked Edison.

  “I just told you, we would be attacked by hostile mobs. All of the horrible monsters that live in all of the biomes will spawn here and attack us.”