Minecraft: Mob Squad: Never Say Nether: An Official Minecraft Novel

Other than Krog, we’ve never been in a fight with actual humans before, but I’m not about to start taking orders from this guy. He’s got to be one of the people who kidnapped Tok, which means he doesn’t have our best interests at heart. Whatever this “portal” is, it’s important.

“How about no?” Chug replies.

The man’s sword looks old and worn and stained—by blood?—and that’s when it hits me—

The brigands.

The ones who once stopped us on our way to this very woodland mansion, who ambushed us at the river crossing and stole my llamas and all our loot and tried to take Chug’s pig. We found out later that they were working with Krog, but they abandoned him when he decided to attack our town directly. I guess we thought they would go back to roaming the wilds without Krog’s leadership, but instead, it looks like they took advantage of our town’s newly opened walls.

This isn’t the brigands’ leader, but he’s definitely one of the minions. I recognize his braided beard and potbelly and the vacant, stupid sneer on his face.

He doesn’t look any nicer than he did back then, but at least he’s alone.

I glance at Jarro, hoping he takes the hint and stays out of our way, because we’re not about to trust this guy.

“I don’t want to hurt you,” the brigand warns us, but he’s grinning.

“We don’t mind hurting you,” Chug snarks back. “What’s with the portal?”

The brigand’s eyes shoot to the portal and back as he aims his sword at Chug and shuffles forward menacingly. “Nothing you need to worry about, kid. Just drop your weapons, and we’ll get all this sorted out.”

Chug holds up his sword, mirroring the brigand. Lenna has her arrow nocked, and I have my sword in one hand and my pickaxe in the other. Jarro has sort of backed into the corner nearest the window, hiding behind his shield, which is fine. We don’t need to get him involved. This is a very small room, and things could get nasty.

“Put the sword down before you get hurt,” the brigand says, more sharply than before, pointing his sword toward Chug’s chest.

Chug smacks the sword away easily. “Here’s a hint: If you say you don’t want to hurt people, maybe don’t point weapons at their tender bits.”

The brigand smacks Chug’s sword back, and the tension in the room goes up a notch. Lenna’s bow creaks as she pulls back her arrow.

“I’m serious. You kids don’t know what you’re getting tangled up in. You could really get hurt. Drop the weapons and I’ll get you somewhere safe. Just stay away from the portal. It’s dangerous.”

“Says the guy threatening us with a sword,” I say, drawing his attention away from Chug. “What kind of person does that? Who threatens kids?”

“You’re trespassing. This is none of your business.”

“If you took my brother, it’s my business,” Chug barks.

The brigand chuckles. “The little skinny one in the cat pajamas?”

Chug meets my gaze, furious, and his eyes flick to the floor. I immediately know what he has in mind, and I stand by his side, facing the brigand. We both take a step forward, and the man has no choice but to take a step back.

“You kids really think you can fight an adult and win?”

“It wouldn’t be the first time,” Chug says. I can tell he’s doing his absolute best to hold back his anger, now that we know for certain that they have Tok. He takes an experimental slash with his sword, causing the brigand to defend himself as Lenna edges around behind him.

The brigand slashes back, and then they’re fighting, almost halfheartedly. This guy doesn’t actually want to hurt us, it seems, but he’s also not willing to let us take control. Chug is being very careful, not really aiming for eyes or heart, and I have my sword up, too, should the man suddenly go berserk and decide he’s done playing around.

“Look, I’m warning you for the last time. This is serious business. If Orlok finds out—”

We don’t get to learn what happens if Orlok finds out, because Lenna sticks out her leg and Chug advances and the brigand has to shuffle away, and he trips and falls backward through the trapdoor.

Chug is ready, diamond block in hand, and he fits it to the hole in the floor, making it that much harder for the brigand to mine his way back into the room.

“We’re going through the portal, right?” Chug asks me.

I can see the desperation in his eyes, hear the begging in his voice.

Because I know he’s thinking the same thing I’m thinking: These brigands took Tok, and if they’re working this hard to keep us from going through the portal, it’s because Tok is on the other side.

“I’m surprised we’re not already through the portal,” I respond with a grin.

Lenna frowns at the diamond block in the floor. “I wish we knew where it leads.”

But something is scratching at the back of my brain. We’ve heard the word “portal” recently, although it didn’t make sense at the time…

“A Nether portal?” I say. “That’s what Krog was trying to build. He had one almost finished under the town, but the Elders dismantled it. It was made of these same black blocks, remember?”

Lenna nods. “Right! I asked Nan about it, and she said it led to a horrible place filled with riches. Which didn’t make sense to me, because how can it be both horrible and full of riches? But she wouldn’t say anything else except…” Lenna’s brow rumples, her lips jutting out just like Nan as she speaks with a gruff tone. “ ‘You stay away from the Nether, you hear? It’s not safe.’ ” Her face goes from Nan-grouch to normal. “I asked her if she’d ever been there, and she said no. Two of the town founders were experts on it, and it was so dangerous that they didn’t risk going often. One of them died there.” She looks to Jarro. “Your great-great-great-grandfather, I think. Anyway, I guess Nan used to have a book about it, but she lost it.” Her whole face brightens. “So maybe I can write a new book about it! If that’s where we’re going.”

“Just keep your bow ready,” I warn. “We don’t know anything about this place.”

“We know Tok is probably there,” Chug says.

“But why?” It’s the first time Jarro has spoken in quite some time. “Why would someone go to the trouble of kidnapping your brother, just to drag him to some weird place?”

The thing is…I think I understand now. “Krog wanted to go to the Nether to get potion ingredients. The brigands knew his plan, because they were working with him for a while. So they must know what’s so valuable on the other side of the portal. It has to be potion ingredients. They took Tok because he’s really good at making things, and he’s been trying to figure out potions.”

“That’s why Elder Gabe was so upset,” Lenna says as all the pieces come together. “He said without his potions and ingredients, we were doomed. The town founders must have left behind a stockpile of ingredients from the Nether for his potions, and when the brigands stole them, there was no way to replace them. The Nether must be the only place you can get certain things. Our Elders probably don’t even know it exists. And Elder Gabe is too old and grumpy to kidnap. So they took Tok to make their potions.”

Chug’s shoulders sag in relief. “So that means the brigands must be treating Tok well, right? Because when you need someone, you’re good to them.”

I shrug. “It would make sense. He couldn’t craft if he was hungry and hurt. And potions are really valuable.”

Emotions flash over Chug’s face at the thought of his brother suffering—rage, worry, determination. “So we know that on the other side of this portal is a horrible place that Nan—who encouraged us to go out into the Overworld alone—is scared of. And my brother is there with the brigands who threatened us and wanted to eat my pig. And we know literally nothing about it. Fantastic.”

I look at my friends—and Jarro. Lenna looks ready, maybe even a little eager, now that she realizes she’ll get to take notes on a new place. Jarro looks just as scared and doubtful as he has been all along. But Chug is in the Chug Zone, when he’s like a shaken bottle full of emotions and he needs someone to either settle him down or point him in the right direction and pop the top.

“We’re so close,” I tell my best friend. “Tok is on the other side of this portal. Think of how far we’ve come, and how much our skills have progressed since last time. If this Nether place is new to us, it’s got to be new to the brigands, too. I bet they needed Tok’s help to build the portal in the first place. I mean, what even is this stone? So they’re going to be just as unsteady as we are. And they’re not expecting us. If Beardo down there didn’t call for help when he saw us, it’s because there wasn’t any help.”

Chug nods, warming to my words. “Yeah. They don’t know we’re here.”

“So we’re armed, we’re ready, and we’re unexpected. And we’re together.”

I put my hand out. “Mob Squad?”

Chug puts his hand on mine, and Lenna puts her hand on his. I look over to Jarro, who has crept out of his corner and is staring at us like a starving cow looking at a big pile of wheat. “Come on, Jarro. Are you in or are you out?”

It’s a tense moment. It could go either way. Jarro could stay here, alone, knowing Beardo might come back, possibly with reinforcements. He’s not a great fighter, and an experienced adult with a sword would definitely have an advantage over a scared kid with an axe, even if Jarro is taller than that adult, which he is. I’m guessing Jarro doesn’t know much about mining, but he has to understand that Beardo can hack into this room pretty easily and overpower him. If he stays here, he stays here alone and with the knowledge that sooner or later, an enemy is going to take advantage of that fact.

On the other hand, if he goes with us, he has no idea what he’ll find. The Overworld isn’t all that different from the town inside Cornucopia’s walls—there are new animals, villagers, mobs, and illagers, but the terrain is pretty similar. Judging by the swirling purple miasma within this portal and the sinister black blocks framing it, whatever’s in the Nether is going to be drastically different. We’ve never seen it before, either. I mean, this kid thought a horse was a cow; how’s he going to handle something so new he can’t even imagine it?

He’s inexperienced and scared, and I realize that he can’t get through this moment alone, much less what comes after.

“You should come with us,” I say, and Chug’s eyes shoot to me, doubtful, so I push on. “If you stay here, that guy is coming back, and you’re going to be blindfolded and gagged and tied to a tree again. And if you try to go home, you could get lost and wander forever or come up against all kinds of enemies. But if you come with us, you won’t be alone. Whatever is on the other side of that portal, we can face it together. We have weapons, we have food, we have one another. So do you want to be alone, or do you want to be part of something bigger?”

Jarro’s mouth is open, his eyes flicking back and forth as he runs the calculations. I always thought he was stupid, but I’m beginning to understand that he just has a different kind of intelligence. When he’s not scared, he’s steady. Maybe he’s not great in a fight, but he tamed those horses, and he’s had other little victories along the way. I’ve felt incomplete without Tok—we all have. And Jarro can’t complete that circle. But maybe he’s ready to try.

“But what if—we don’t know—” He exhales, and in a smaller voice than I’ve ever heard out of him, Jarro says two words I never thought I’d hear. “I’m scared.”

Chug snorts, and I’m about to interrupt him before he can get into trouble, but then he, too, surprises me.

“Yeah, bud. I’m scared, too. Like, all the time. The world is straight-up scary, even when you have my rugged good looks and muscly sword arm. But you just have to get used to the idea of doing it anyway. Believe me: It’s a lot easier with friends. Real friends, not toadies who agree with everything you say. Because real friends tell the truth, and the truth is that we’re probably all on the verge of peeing ourselves when it comes to going through the scary purple portal, but we’re going to do it anyway.”

“I’m scared, too,” Lenna admits. “I hate being hurt. I hate knowing we don’t have any Potions of Healing. I hate fighting adults. I hate not having Poppy with me. But more than that, I hate that Tok is in trouble and probably a lot more scared than I am.” Her mouth quirks up. “And, hey. We’re about to see something no one in town has ever seen before.”

“Think of the bragging rights, Jarro,” I add. “No one back home will be able to say a word against you if you go on a successful rescue mission through the Overworld to the Nether.”

“That’s not true,” he starts. “When you guys came home, people still made fun of you—”

“Well, you did,” Chug reminds him, stepping close and poking him in the chest.

Jarro grimaces. “Okay, good point.”

And then Chug does the unthinkable: He slings his arm around Jarro’s neck.

“And if anyone tries to make fun of you, they’ll have to face us, too. If you’re with us, you’re with us.”

“So I’m a Bad Apple?” Jarro asks.

“No way,” I tell him. “We’re the Mob Squad.”

I put my hand back in the center. Chug and Lenna pile on. Jarro takes his time, considering. My arm is starting to hurt. I can tell that Chug is nervous about how much time is passing. Down below us, we hear someone start hacking away at the diamond block we’ve used to plug the trap door.

I look Jarro dead in the eyes. “Do you want to be a hero or not, Jarro? It’s now or never.”

Jarro stands tall, nods, and puts his hand on top of the pile.