Swamp Biome, OverWorld
Dusk
Stanley and Amelia had arrived back at her house. She was residing far off in the middle of the Swamp Biome, far away from King Miraz's Kingdom and far away from any other danger besides Slime and Zombies every here and there. She was also under the constant threat of being attacked by other witches, ones that weren't so good and only exist to harm others. But she could manage by herself. Her staff looks mighty and powerful. Stanley could only wonder what her staff was capable of doing.
"No need to worry Stanley," Amelia said as she looked back over her left shoulder at Stanley.
The two of them were walking the rest of the way to the house. It was in sight and not too much further ahead. The murky green water smelled unpleasant, the creaking of the trees as they rocked back and forth in the wind was eerie sounding. The rustling of the leaves and vines were eerie sounds as well. For Stanley, he's never ventured to this biome before. He's never had to until now.
MMMEEEOOOOWWWW!
Stanley jumped as he grabbed his wooden stick out of his inventory, holding it tightly in his hands. He jumped in the air and yelped like a little scared child. He turned around to only see a small black cat sitting behind him on the ground. Amelia turned around and peaked her head out from behind Stanley to look at the small black kitty cat. She giggled a couple of times as looked down at the black cat.
MEOW!
"Oh hush Linda," Amelia said as she waved her hand down at the cat.
MEOW, MEOW!
Amelia rolled her eyes and sighed sarcastically. Stanley looked back at Amelia over his right shoulder. He tilted his head slightly.
"Is she--a--a witch too?" Stanley asked.
Amelia looked over at him and smiled brightly. Everything around them was beginning to get dark. The sun was just starting to set behind the mountains in the near distance. Stars were beginning to populate the transitioning night sky as it got darker. A bright green light shined bright behind Stanley. When he turned his head to look back at where the small black cat once was, he was blinded by the bright green light. As the light faded and dimmed, a woman dressed in all black appeared. Curly black hair, green eyes, and a long black dress. She was also wearing a hood sweater over her dress to keep her warm. It was just like the hood sweater that Amelia was wearing when Stanley had seen her earlier this morning. Stanley chuckled as he slowly put his right hand behind his back. That was the hand he was holding the stick in.
"A stick? Really?" Linda said, followed by her chuckling. She covered her mouth to hide her smile.
"It's a work in progress," Stanley said, "I'm working on carving this into a weapon."
Linda's interest was suddenly peaked. The first thing that came to mind was a bow. But then she thought of him saying that it was a "work in progress" and stopped herself from thinking of the bad things that could mean.
"He's a good blockhead," Amelia mentioned as Linda quickly turned her head over to her right to look at Amelia. Amelia nodded her head once. "He has no affiliation with the King or his Kingdom. He's just a farmboy is all. What's so bad about a farm boy, hmm?"
Linda looked back over at Stanley and stared at him for a moment. She remained silent while doing so. She squinted her eyes, making herself appear suspicious of him. Which she was, but she wasn't afraid of him. She'd never seen him before.
"Where are you from, boy?" Linda asked.
"My name is Stanley!" He responded, "I live in the Plains Biome with my parents Frederick and Carlily. They're both farmers as well. Let me ask you this--where are you from?"
Linda chuckled once. Amelia slammed her staff down onto the ground. Bright white veins began pulsing in the ground, glowing a bright white color. But just as they appeared, they disappeared. Linda froze, slowly turning her head to look back over at Amelia.
"Honey, we don't have visitors often. Be nice, would you? Remember the last blockhead you scared off because of your arrogance?" Amelia said.
Linda rolled her eyes and waved her hand once at Amelia.
"I'm just being protective dear, that's all," Linda responded. "We've had a lot of bad things happen to us in the past. I don't want those things happening again."
"I understand that my love," Amelia said, "why don't we head inside and talk over a cup of tea, hmm?"
"Tea sounds good," Stanley said.
After that brief chat, they all began walking back over to the house. Amelia and Stanley were walking in front, while Linda was walking in back behind them.
"Just a heads up," Linda said, "if he tries anything, I'll turn him into a fly."
"Oh, hush Linda," Amelia said as she glanced over to her left at Stanley. He gulped once as he looked back over at her. "Mustn't worry dear, she won't do that. I promise."
"Phew," Stanley responded as he wiped his forehead clean of sweat. "That's a relief, I guess."
King Miraz's Kingdom
Night
"Where is she?" King Miraz asked as he stormed down the corridor. Quintin, his eldest son, was walking by his side. Three guards were following close behind them. As they came upon a door where another two guards were standing by, King Miraz rushed over to them. He demanded they let him into the room.
"My King," one of the guards said as they both quickly bowed before him. The guard that was standing on the right side of the door turned the handle and opened the door. King Miraz and Quintin both waited for the door to fully open before entering. After the guard opened the door, he immediately bowed as they walked by him.
Inside the room, Queen Mileena was lying on her back on a long wooden table. She was conscious thankfully, but visibility injured. King Miraz held his golden staff out in front of Quintin. He grabbed the staff out of his father's hand and held it in his hand. As he stood in place and held his father's golden staff, his father rushed over to the wooden table to check up on his Queen, his significant other.
Queen Mileena turned her head to her left and looked up at him. She faintly smiled at him as she slowly raised her right arm up off of the table. She set her hand on his cheek. He set his hand down on her cheek.
"Don't worry my love," Mileena mumbled, "it was only an arrow."
Miraz leaned over to get closer to her face. He faintly smiled down at her and shook his head. Her right upper arm was wrapped in white cloth. The cloth was covering up her injury from the arrow. Before Miraz and Quintin arrived in this very room, there were three other women in the room. All of them were working together to treat Mileena's wound. A wound that could've been fatal if it hit anywhere else on her body.
"When did this happen?" Miraz asked as he lifted his head up to look over at the three other female blockheads in the room. They all stood next to each other, remaining completely quiet. Not daring to speak until their King said they could. Speaking while in the presence of their King was strictly forbidden. Doing so would result in harsh consequences. Nobody, not even themselves, wanted that to happen to them.
They were all wearing thin, white dresses. They all had their hair in braids. Covering their feet, they were wearing white slip-on shoes. Their dresses were long enough to where their knees were covered. All of them had names. Minnie, Ramona, and Sylvie were their names.
Miraz was anxiously awaiting for one of them to answer his only question. As he waited, he glanced back down at Mileena. She was still looking up and into his eyes. When she noticed the mysterious infection on her husband's right arm, she frowned.
"Darling," she mumbled, "it's getting worse."
Miraz glanced down at his right arm, noticing that the mysterious infection. Since this morning, it has spread up past his elbow. But only yesterday it was only his hand that was infected. His hand and lower arm were black. The infected area was pulsating purple. Small purple particles fluttered out of his arm. He wasn't worried about that right now. Mileena's well-being was more important. She meant the world to him. Losing her would devastate him. His right eye looked like it was swollen and bruised, but that wasn't the case. That wasn't important to him right now anyway.
"She fell to the ground from a portal that had opened up in midair. Upon hitting the ground, she was unconscious and still in her falcon form. Two villagers had brought her to us, lying her down on the table. She was still breathing thankfully. But, we noticed that there was an arrow lodged in her right-wing. Without hesitating, we began doing anything and everything we could to help her."
"All that matters is that you three helped her. I'm not a blockhead who says "thank you" often. But, right now, that's all I can say. If it weren't for you three, she probably wouldn't have made it out of this situation alive. So for that, I thank you."
Minnie smiled as she put her hands behind her back. She nodded her head once with a bright smile on her face. It felt weird that King Miraz would thank them. Like he said before, he's not one to say "thank you" very often. It was rare to hear him say those words.
"No need to thank us, your majesty," Minnie stated, "situations like this are what we do best."
King Miraz lifted his head so that he could glance over at Minnie and the two others who were standing behind her. A faint but noticeable smile appeared on his face. Seeing that made them feel appreciated.
"Thank you, all of you," King Miraz said.
Minnie, Ramona, and Sylvie all stared at their King and their Queen. They felt a huge sigh of relief knowing that their King was satisfied with their care. They were shocked to hear him thank them for helping their Queen. She meant the world to him. Without her, he would be devastated and heartbroken.
In the past, he would've never thanked anyone for anything. He always made everything about himself. He was a ruthless, cruel King. His people feared him but were still loyal to him. Over the years, he's been changing. Changing in many ways. From appearances to how he acts. Everything about him has been changing.
"Your thanks isn't necessary my King," Minnie said, "we're just doing our part around the Kingdom. That's all."
King Miraz looked back down at his Queen. He faintly smiled at her. She smiled back up at him. He set his hand down on her cheek and rubbed it gently up and down. He then leaned down closer to her face to give her a kiss on her cheek. When he finished kissing her, he lifted his head up and away from her.
"I'll be back to check on you later my Queen," King Miraz said as he smiled down at her once more. He took a step back from her and turned around. As he walked away from the table where she lied, purple particles floated in midair briefly before disappearing entirely. That was something that has never happened when he left or walked away from someone before. He was, indeed, changing. But into what is still unknown. Only time will tell how and who he'll turn out to be. Bad? Good? Unclear.
"Father, the resistance must pay for what they've done to her!" Quintin said, "every minute we're standing around, is another minute given to the resistance."
King Miraz turned his head quickly and sharply. He looked over at his son. He was still holding his staff in his hand. Miraz's right eye twitches uncontrollably as he stares at his son.
"Choose your next words wisely boy!" He said as he gritted his teeth in frustration and intimidation. "I don't recall you being a King."
"We're losing the war," Quintin mentioned, "we almost lost the desert garrison. If mother wasn't there…"
"The Desert Garrison would've fallen to the Resistance," Miraz said, "without her, our strength in the Desert biome would've been crippled; weakened! My only son, whose one day to be my successor, you're not thinking like a king would."
"And that's where you're wrong father," Quintin said, "I'm more concerned about the people than I am the War. We've lost dozens of noble, capable men. What are they dying for? Do their deaths mean anything to you? They do to me! How are we going to honor them if we win this War, hmm? A memorial? A plaque? What?"
"They're dying for a good cause. Our Kingdom wouldn't still be standing if it weren't for them," Miraz stated, "their deaths aren't going unnoticed and will NEVER be forgotten!"
Quintin rolled his eyes. He walked over to where his father was standing and held his right hand out. Miraz looked down at his hand, holding his left hand out to grab his staff back from his son. When he did that, Quintin sighed and shook his head. He then turned around and stormed out of the room, slamming the doors open. Once he was gone, King Miraz turned around to look back at the others who were in the room.
His wife, his Queen, Millena, was still lying on the table. She had fallen back asleep, being overly tired from the medicine the girls had given her a little while longer. Minnie, Ramona, and Sylvie were all staring silently over at their King, wondering what he might say or do next. He made direct eye contact with them.
"Just keep her pain free, is that understood?" King Miraz questioned.
Minnie, Ramona, and Sylvie all nodded their heads once and faintly smiled. They all had their hands behind their backs.
"We will do our best, your majesty," Minnie answered.
He huffed and puffed as he turned around and stormed out of the room too. Purple particles floated around in the air in his wake of where he walked. They soon disappeared into thin air. Once he was gone, all three of them sighed a huge sigh of relief.
"I'm worried about him," Ramona said, "something's not right with him. But I can't quite wrap by square head around it."
"Neither can we," Minnie said as she suddenly came up with an idea, "keep an eye on him. He hasn't been himself for weeks now. Closely monitor his whereabouts, actions, and anything else that stands out. Keep your distance. Don't make it obvious. We must figure out a way to save our King before it's too late. Not just for him, but for the entire Kingdom as well."
Stanley, Melinda, and Amelia were all inside the house. There were paintings on one side of the wall. A fireplace, with an active fire burning in it, was in the left corner of the house, and a small table in the center of the home. There was a double pink bed up against the wall in the other corner of the room. It was a small spacious house.
"So my wife tells me you're looking to learn more about your grandfather?" Melinda said as she turned around to look back over at Stanley. He was standing over by the wall of pictures, staring at one particular picture. It was a long narrow picture of a younger-looking male blockhead. He looked back over his left shoulder at Melinda and Amelia. They were standing by one another. Amelia's magical staff was leaning up against the side of the brick fireplace. She had her right arm wrapped around Melinda.
"Yes," Stanley said as he quickly glanced back over at the long narrow picture of the male blockhead. He raised his arm and pointed over at it. While doing that, he turned his head to look back over at them. "Was that--was that him? In that picture?"
Amelia and Melinda both smiled and nodded their heads in unison.
"His name was Jack," Amelia answered in a soft, somber-sounding tone.
"What was he like? Do you know how he disappeared?" Stanley asked.
Amelia and Melinda both looked at each other before looking back over at Stanley. They turned around to where their backs were facing him. He stood there wondering why and what it was they were whispering about. He crossed his arms and started tapping his foot on the floor.
"He's the grandson of Jack?" Melinda whispered to Amelia. Amelia faintly smiled and nodded.
"He is," she answered, "I've kept a close eye on him over the years. That was one thing Jack had wanted us to do for him. Oh, how he would've loved to meet his grandson."
"So that's what kept you occupied all these years?" Melinda asked.
"Yes, I thought you would've known by now," Amelia said.
Melinda turned around, looking back over her right shoulder at Stanley. He had his back facing them, gazing at the many pictures and paintings they had of their lives before him. Some paintings depicted the realities of what conflicts looked like. War, battles, fighting. Blockheads shooting arrows, launching large boulders from catapults at one another, hunting live animals, and much more. There were only two paintings that depicted how peaceful and beautiful the OverWorld really was. From the tall, mighty mountains, to the animals and plant life there were around the World. Alongside the painting of his grandfather Jack, there was a single much smaller painting of Amelia and Melinda together. They both had bright smiles on their faces.
In Jack's painting, he was wearing a black vest with a brown shirt underneath it. He wore blue pants and black leather shoes. Wrapped in a circular form around his right arm was a long, brown rope. He also had two brown leather straps over his shoulders too, with an arrow quiver hanging down his back from behind. Dark brown hair, bright blue eyes, and a big, cheesy smile on his face.
Stanley began tapping his chin as he continued to examine his grandfather's portrait painting. For not ever meeting him in person, he really did seem like a friendly and caring blockhead.
"From what my ma and pa told me, you were the kindest, most caring blockhead they knew. They never really told me much about you. To be fair though, I was just a little boy back then."
The wooden floor creaked and groaned. Stanley suddenly stopped talking to himself as he turned around. When he did, Amelia and Melinda both were staring over at him.
"You have your grandfather's looks. Your eyes, your hair, and your face. If he were here now, you'd understand what I'm saying," Amelia said.
"I do?" Stanley asked, "huh. No one has ever told me that before. Up until now at least."
Melinda walked over to Stanley. Amelia approached Stanley too. Together, they both wrapped their arms around him, hugging him tightly.
"Well meeting him you shall do then," Amelia said as she raised her right arm, holding it straight out to her side. Her staff began wiggling as it suddenly flew over to her hand.
SHING!
"Wait! What's happening? Where are we going?" Stanley said as Amelia slammed her staff down onto the floor.
BANG!
A bright white haze appeared on the floor, slowly making its way up their bodies. Their entire bodies were being engulfed in the bright white haze.
"You're not turning me into a fly are you?" Stanley asked.
"Nope," Amelia giggled.
"We're going back in time," Melinda said.
"To the past!" Amelia mentioned