Chapter 1: Long Way Home

Rain dropped across the mesa, cooling the usually dry atmosphere.

As the downpour continued, a group of miners ran through the rainfall. Pickaxe was at the front, heading towards a rather familiar location. "WE'RE NOT TOO FAR!" he encouraged, his voice being drowned out by the rain. "OF COURSE!" replied Texik, "I REMEMBER THIS BIOME LIKE THE BACK OF MY HAND!" "BECAUSE THERE'S RICHES?" Madison teased.

Groaaan…; "YOU CAN NOT BE SERIOUS!" cried Sarah.

The group continued to run, as the monsters of the night gave chase. Rosetta had to string her bow in order to take down the zombies. Victor helped as well, brandishing his axe and sword to cut down the spiders, among other things. "Where the heck is the shelter!?" Endre barked, "This is all too much!" Sabrina managed to catch an odd structure in the distance. "Is that it!?" she inquired, turning everyone's direction to the structure. It was a mesa canyon wall… but with torches and a door.

"YEEEES!" shouted Stan, being the first to rush to the shelter.

The minute he opened the door, he was immediately run over by the adventure goers. While Pickaxe managed to dodge him like a respectable person, Texik and Endre made him fall flat on his face, Sarah and Madison simply didn't notice him, his own parents accidentally stepped on his spine, Victor broke his rib cage, and Rosetta nearly cracked his skull. By the time Jewel had walked in, she walked around her brother, dragged his limping body, and slammed the door shut before they were hit with a skeleton arrow.

Everyone let out a unanimous sigh of relief.

"Uggghhh…" Reed groaned, "It's been too long since I last ventured the great unknown…" He collapsed onto the floor, as Sabrina ran to comfort him. Endre started to get to work on some more beds for the next morning; too many monsters were nearby to rest. Victor was busy examining his weapons, not too keen on having them out of shape. "Tonight was more hectic than usual…" he muttered, lying his head against the wall. Rosetta was straightening out her bow as the rain continued to fall.

"Not as hectic as the last time it rained…" Rosetta recalled.

Pickaxe was finally heading home.

He had been packing for several days, finally prepared to make the perilous journey back to his old house. His friends had already discussed that they would follow sometime after, needing to properly prepare themselves before they caught up with him. While Pickaxe wasn't for it at first, he eventually complied, wishing the others luck on their own journeys. The morning that he left, however, he was blissfully unaware of some of his friends' intentions…

"Thanks again!" Blade chirped, walking out of Sarah's house holding several potion bottles. Sarah waved goodbye to him as she closed her door, heading back to her chest. She quickly placed her remaining inventory items into the chest, before proceeding to examine what to bring and what to leave. While her friends had all agreed to meet up with Pickaxe in a few days, she really wanted to go sooner instead of later. Pickaxe couldn't have all the fun!

Besides, she needed to explain herself for earlier events.

At Jewel's house, Sabrina and Reed were dashing about, trying to get this item and that. "Goshdarnit…," Reed grumbled, "where on Earth is my shulker box?" Sabrina sighed, as she grabbed some items from her chest. "You left it here, dear," she told her husband, "right after that one witch expedition…" Reed went pink, awkwardly scratching the back of his head. "I said I had eaten a pufferfish from the swamp…" he muttered.

The both stopped cold when the front door opened.

They immediately hid any and all evidence of their antics behind a painting Reed had put up in his spare time. Reed placed himself in front of a crafting table with a book and quill in hand, making it seem as though he was simply doing redstone experiments. Meanwhile, Sabrina busied herself with a decoy checklist. "Mom!" Jewel yelled from the first floor, "Have you seen my sword?" Both Sabrina and Reed let out a sigh of relief.

"In your room, sweetie!" Sabrina called out.

They heard the sound of footsteps heading up the stairs, as Sabrina started playing with her hair. "Are you sure she'll be sneaking out tonight?" she asked Reed, still worried about their recent activities. Reed put down his book and quill, an extremely self-certain expression on his face. "Of course she will," Reed assured, "I know my daughter! She's probably packing as we speak." Sabrina looked to the side; you may know your daughter, but you still haven't discovered our sunflower house…

"Besides," Reed added, "I hooked up this redstone light and a tripwire to see when she leaves!"

While Jewel was checking her inventory, someone was stalking her from a nearby red mushroom. While Endre was looking through the cleverly disguised windows (aka red glass), Texik was lying on the floor… doing absolutely nothing. While originally an outpost for when Jewel would return from the Nether, Endre had decided to bring it back into commission for… personal reasons. Texik choked on some fish, as his pet parrot Siren squaked in disapproval.

Endre looked at the reformed griefer in disgust.

"What in Notch's name are you doing?" he demanded, clearly annoyed. When Texik finished choking, he yawned as Siren flew on his shoulder. "Wanted to feel important," Texik responded, "though personally, I'm more worried about you. If you keep stalking Jewel, it's only a matter of time before you go full yander-" Texik was cut off with a swift slap to the face. Endre took a deep breath, flailing his hand around before resuming his position, looking into Jewel's room.

"I'm not going to go yandere…" Endre muttered.

"Eh, you couldn't pull it off anyway," Texik remarked, scratching his hair. "I know I'M going to sneak out of the village, but what makes you so sure Jewel will?" he questioned, pulling out a cooked pork chop. Endre gave him a look as though he was stupid. "Remind me again who's known Jewel since childhood?" he mockingly asked, to which Texik could not rebuttal. With that, Endre continued to look through Jewel's window. "Besides," he continued, "if one person isn't going to sneak out, it's Madison. It's not like she's…"

...currently gathering supplies as we speak.

Madison was sharpening her shiny new axes, courtesy of Rosetta. She quivered at the sharpness of them, imagining the sheer amount of carnage she could bring upon the mobs. "Glad you like them," Rosetta stated, "But why do you need them… and the sheer amount of foodstuffs I gave you?" "Eh?" Madison asked, still distantly lost in imagination. She turned to face Rosetta, putting away the axes. "Well," she began, "I was going to sneak out of the village to go find Pickaxe…"

"BUT WE AGREED TO GO SEVERAL DAYS AFTERWARD!" Rosetta interrupted.

"...however, I decided to instead use this stuff for a Nether expedition!" Madison finished, as Rosetta looked at her in awkward silence. "T-the Nether!?" she stammered, still trying to get over her rather embarrassing interjection. "Yup," Madison confirmed, "I plan on going in a few days. Just wanted to make sure I got everything." She headed towards the door, turning back to face Rosetta. "Thank you again!" she thanked, heading out the door.

On the way out, she passed by Blade.

"My lady!" he called out, entering the house with several potions in hand. "Oh, Blade," Rosetta noticed, "Back so soon?" Blade nodded, holding out the potions. "Sarah was more than happy to let me have some," he explained. "Thank you," Rosetta replied, taking the potions, "Father will definitely be pleased." Before Blade could head back back out, Rosetta recalled something. "Did Sarah express any desire to head out tonight?" she asked.

"Nuh-uh," was Blade's reply, as he closed the door.

Rosetta walked to her father's room, carrying the potions in hand. Victor was currently busying himself with a book and quill he was using as a checklist. "Father," announced Rosetta, stating her presence. Victor turned around, noticing the potions. "Ah, Blade managed to come through," he noted, sitting up from beside his bed. Rosetta nodded in conformation, as Victor took the bottles. "Did he find anything else out?"

"Not really," Rosetta admitted, "but it doesn't look like anyone plans to head out tonight."

"Good," Victor approved, "It'll probably be best if we can observe him alone." His demeanor quickly shifted from busy to serious. "He's the first spawn I've seen in a while now," he continued, "He claims to be a recent one at that. We must make sure he is not a threat. If he is…" Victor menacingly pulled out his iron sword, "...he'll be taken care of accordingly."

"Father," Rosetta sighed, "stop being so dramatic; I'm certain he's harmless."

As the sun was several moments away from setting, the miners began turning in for the night. Stan was one of those miners, heading back to his house after a long day harvesting crops. "I'm home," he called out, his voice dialed down from his exhaustion. As he passed by his parents room, he noticed they were acting… rather giddy. Like some group of kids who shared a secret only they knew. He decided not to question it, rubbing his eyes as he continued to walk to his room.

As the curtain of the night was laid across the land, new voyages were slowly rising to the surface…

Pickaxe

A Minecraft FanFiction

Book Three: Fight 'Til The End

Author's Note: The End is near… Just so you guys know, I'm finishing this chapter on January 8, 2018. To those who have read this far, thank you. I appreciate your support; it's probably what kept me going this far. In any case, wish Pickaxe and company luck! They're going to need it! -MathewtonSmashBrawler