The star-filled portal swirled around Alfie and Dad like a glittering whirlpool of galaxies, and when they landed, Alfie's feet didn't touch ground—they touched bananas.
"Woah!" Alfie wobbled, his trainers slipping on a massive pile of bright yellow LEGO bananas that stretched in every direction like a fruity mountain range.
Dad landed with a SPLAT right in the middle of banana hill, his legs sticking straight up in the air. "Well," he said, his voice muffled, "this is a-peeling."
Alfie groaned at the dad joke, but he was already looking around in amazement. This wasn't the star dimension at all! Instead, they'd landed in a jungle made entirely of LEGO bricks—thick green vines dangled from blocky trees, waterfalls of transparent blue pieces cascaded down cliffsides, and wooden platforms zigzagged up into the canopy like a massive obstacle course.
"This looks like..." Alfie's eyes went wide. "Donkey Kong Island!"
BOOM.
The ground shook. Somewhere deep in the jungle, something roared—a sound like thunder mixed with crackling fire.
"HELP! SOMEBODY HELP ME!"
The voice was deep and rumbly, coming from the top of a smoking mountain in the distance. Orange light flickered at its peak.
"That's Volcano Mountain!" Alfie gasped, recognising it from his video games. "Someone's in trouble!"
They scrambled through the jungle, bouncing across springy mushroom platforms and swinging on vines that clicked and clacked as they moved. The Infinite Brick in Alfie's pocket hummed warmly, guiding him forward.
Finally, they reached the base of the volcano, and Alfie saw something that made his heart squeeze with worry.
Hanging from a crumbling LEGO ledge, right above a pool of bubbling orange lava bricks, was the biggest, friendliest-looking monkey Alfie had ever seen. He was enormous—made of chunky brown and tan bricks with a kind face, a red bandana tied around his neck, and arms like tree trunks.
"Don't worry!" Alfie called up. "We're coming!"
The monkey looked down with huge, hopeful eyes. "You... you will help Chunky? Chunky is very scared of the Magma Dragon!"
ROOOOAAAAAR!
From the lava below, something massive rose up. It was a dragon made entirely of burning orange, red, and black LEGO pieces, its eyes glowing like hot coals. When it opened its mouth, actual LEGO lava bricks shot out like fiery cannonballs, splattering against the rock and sizzling.
"Oh my," Dad squeaked, pulling Alfie behind a boulder. "That's quite... warm."
Alfie's hands were shaking. The dragon was terrifying—all heat and anger and snapping jaws. Part of him wanted to run away, to hide until someone braver came along.
But then he looked at Chunky King Monkey, clinging to that ledge, trying so hard to be brave even though he was trembling too.
He's just as scared as me, Alfie realised. But that doesn't mean we can't help each other.
"Dad," Alfie whispered, "I have an idea. But I need to be brave."
Dad squeezed his shoulder. "You're already brave, buddy. Brave isn't not being scared—it's being scared and doing the right thing anyway."
Alfie took a deep breath. The Infinite Brick glowed brighter in his pocket, responding to his courage.
"HEY, DRAGON!" Alfie shouted, stepping out from behind the boulder. "Down here!"
The Magma Dragon swung its enormous head toward him, lava dripping from its jaws.
Alfie's heart pounded like a drum, but he stood his ground. "You don't have to be angry! We can help you too—just tell us what you need!"
The dragon paused. Its fiery eyes flickered with something that looked almost like... sadness?
Then it opened its mouth—and instead of lava, out tumbled a small, cracked LEGO egg, smoking at the edges.
"Oh my goodness," Dad breathed. "It's not attacking. It's asking for help."
But before Alfie could move, the volcano rumbled violently. Cracks spread across the mountain like spiderwebs, and Chunky's ledge crumbled completely.
"CHUNKY!" the monkey wailed, falling straight toward the lava below—
And the Infinite Brick exploded with golden light.
To be continued...