Minecraft Kingdoms AU

Chapter One:

Bread Flavored Bread

-....-

The Lands of Minecraftia is a long stretch of land surrounded by mountains and water. It is one of three odd realms in existence, the other two being The Nether and The Anti-Nether. The Lands of Minecraftia, which we'll call Minecraft for short, can be split into two halves due to a war. But not just any way: The Sky War. The Sky War is fought between The Sky Army and The Squid Army, each holding claim to half of Minecraft. Within each half, sub-rulers, called kingdoms, existed. The Sky Army protected all the kingdoms on it's side, such as Melon Kingdom, Bacca Forest, and Pumpkin Caverns. Each side also has a capital kingdom. The Sky Army's capital Kingdom was the Kingdom of Minecraftia: The oldest kingdom in all three realms. The Kingdom of Minecraftia was home to thousands of citizens, as well as the Sky Army's leader, King Sky.

For a short history lesson, this war was started not long after Sky became a prince. An argument that grew and grew, but what over? At the start of the war, only King Sky and The Squid King, King S, were involved. However, battles into the war, other kingdoms were threatened and peace was broken. Minecraft was split into two, and a wall was built to divide the sides, splitting up a kingdom called Atlantica, now two kingdoms called North Atlantis and South Atlantis.

Atlantica was not the only kingdom altered by The Sky War. The Emerald Empire, a large kingdom next to The Kingdom of Minecraftia, was the closest ally to King Sky. Emerald City, as it was also called, was ruled by a prince by the name of Deadlox, and protected by an independent army called The Dead Army. A young prince, he was, and an easy target for the Squids. Emerald City was attacked and burned to the ground, and only the prince and a few lucky civilians made it out alive.

Years later, Sky became a King, and the Ex-Prince of Emerald City and The Dead Army, Deadlox, was well into the studies of magic and potion making. As the war continues, battles are planned by strong generals and wise mages, such as General GoldSolace and SetoSorcerer, The King's royal mage. The latest attack was by the Sky Army on South Atlantis. The battle ended in retreat, but nobody won that fight that night. 3 weeks passed, and still the squids have not counteracted...

-...-

Tyler ran past the barrels and stacks of hay as he ran away from his annoying aunt, Janet. It was early in the morning and she wanted him to do this and that and he really wasn't in the mood. Instead of doing work, he grabbed his breakfast and ran out the door. Once he reached the center of town, he stopped by the round fountain to rest and eat. Sitting down on the ledge, he pulled out a small baguette from his stretched out pocket and focused on devouring it. Crumbs fell onto his lap and the stone ground. Birds eyed the food, yet were hesitant to come near.

"Tyler!"

Tyler looked up to see Kyle, his best friend, and Shelby, his girlfriend, walking towards him. He gobbled the last pieces of baguette up and stood up, brushing the crumbs off his pants. He walked towards them, leaving the birds the chance to attack the scattered bread crumbs.

"What's up!?" Tyler grinned, stopping in front of the two.

"Good morning!" Shelby greeted back.

"You're up early." Kyle noted.

"I wake up and the first thing that happens to me is a pile of work gets shoved at me. Yeah, the kitchen is dirty, but I didn't do that and I'm not the only cleaning it." Tyler complained.

"I can see you had your breakfast already. What was it?" Kyle asked, looking past Tyler at the crowd of birds picking at crumbs.

"Bread flavored bread with a side of bread and bread tea?" Shelby suggested.

"Just about." Tyler chuckled.

There was a pause before Kyle looked back at Tyler.

"Well, before we got here, we were planning to all go together to the diner for breakfast. It seems you've already eaten though." Kyle said. "So how about we all go together for dinner? Heather can come, you can escape Janet once again, and it's all on the house since my mom runs the place."

"And you don't have to spend your morning in town with us, because we all know you want to go hang out with The King." Shelby sighed, however with a smile.

"Hehe, sure." Tyler felt sort of bad the way Shelby put it, but it was the truth. He had planned to visit the castle today since he didn't get to yesterday.

"6:30? Hows that sound?" Kyle suggested.

"I can make it 6 if that's better." Tyler offered, shoving his hands into his pants pocket.

"Just don't be late." Shelby said and giggled.

The group parted ways, as their conversation did not last very long. Tyler walked away from the fountain, heading north, towards the castle. He could see it as he walked on, being only a few blocks away from it. The castle was three stories tall with gold sparkling from it's bricks. Some of the windows were surrounded in a gold frame, and the tips of the iron fencing even had small balls of gold. The King was known to adore gold, even when it was one of the weakest ores in Minecraft. The King was also known for giving the gold it's nickname, Butter.

Tyler stopped when he reached the bridge that connected the castle with the rest of the town. It was about 25 yards from end to end, and it was built above a river that comes through the kingdom from the mountains farther north. On the other side of the bridge was the castle's golden gate, currently open with guards on duty. Tyler turned his attention to the water, however, and sat on the ledge of the bridge, looking down.

The water was clean and somewhat clear, and long, thin boats could be seen hitched to the side. In one of the boats, two 10-year-olds were laughing and splashing at the water. Many believed small fish thrive in the river, but since fishing is done in the lakes outside the kingdom, nobody really has proof. Tyler sighed and looked away from the water. He saw a couple at the other side of the bridge, facing the river and talking and laughing. They were both women, one with brown and purple hair, and one with black hair pulled into a ponytail. They reminded Tyler of him and Shelby.

Tyler smirked. "I really need to plan another date. Haven't hung out together for a while, huh?" He said aloud to himself.

Suddenly Tyler heard louder voices from down the bridge. He turned his head to see two guards standing with another, shorter guard. It seemed to be an argument. As Tyler watched on, he noticed the two taller guards were upset at the smaller guard, and one of the guards had their arms crossed against their chest.

"Damn. Hope that's nothing important." Tyler muttered, getting up and continuing to walk towards the castle, passing the group of guards.

Tyler passed the golden gate, the two guards on duty nodding to him. They knew him and knew he was a friend of The King. Tyler smiled back before walking up a few steps to the front door of the castle. There, a single guard was on duty. He stopped for the guard to open the door, since that was basically his job for the morning.

"Whom are you visiting today, young sir?" The guard asked, in hopes to lighten the silent awkwardness.

"The one, the only." Tyler grinned, taking a deep breath between the break.

"The King, huh? Must be great being a personal friend." The guard said as he opened the door.

"It's got it's pros and cons." Tyler joked and the guard gave a small laugh.

Tyler walked inside and the guard nodded him off. Tyler looked around at the inside of the castle, as the walls and ceiling were decorated with magnificent art, done by the most amazing artists. There was gold , diamond, and emerald encrusted into the art, making it shimmer when the sun from the windows hit it. To Tyler's sides were two long hallways, and in front of the boy was another big doorway. The right door was opened slightly, and talking could be heard echoing from the room. The Throne Room.

Tyler pushed open the large door, walking in to see the large Throne Room. At the end of the room were three, beautiful seats. Sadly, even the King didn't sit much on them, and the other two, made for a queen and son/daughter, were left empty since the king who put them there died a century ago. Chairs were placed at both sides of the room, and the ceiling held a beautiful glass chandelier. Other then that, the room was pretty much empty. A few guards were on duty here and there, and a maid was at work dusting the chairs. To the other side of the room, standing next to the door on the left of the throne, was The King. Tyler grinned and approached.

"Sky!" Tyler said, getting The King's attention.

"Tyler!" The King, Sky, smiled, unfolding his arms. He was leaned against the wall.

"I came to visit again! I couldn't yesterday because of Janet." Tyler explained, looking up at the taller man.

"Ah, really? It seemed pretty quiet yesterday. I saw Sub sitting against the wall up stairs knocked out, he was so bored." Sky chuckled. "How is Janet, anyway?"

"She's still as cranky and pestering as normal." Tyler answered. "So! Nothing happened yesterday, huh?"

Sky rolled his eyes. "It's starting to worry me."

"Three weeks, huh? Three weeks and still no reaction?" Tyler asked, tilting his head. "That's a new record, I swear."

Sky leaned back off the wall, balancing out the weight on his feet.

"I'm not sure if I should do something or wait a bit longer. Brice suggested we send Sub on a spying mission, however I feel like it's been far too long." Sky admitted.

"Well, maybe Brice is right. We can't just stand around and wait for the TNT to go off!" Tyler said, in part to lift The King's spirits. "Maybe the Squids aren't sure what to do next?"

"But by now they must have got something. I mean honestly. They're ugly, rude, nasty squids, but they are not slow." Sky sighed.

"Hmm..." Tyler agreed.

"Anyway!" Sky changed the subject. "It's 8:30. Have you had breakfast yet?"

Tyler wasn't sure if he should say yes or no. Sure, he had his breakfast bread flavored bread with a side of bread and bread tea, but the last time Tyler was invited to a meal at the castle, he considered sneaking in for every meal with The King. Everything was so much better then Ol' Janet's cooking, and was even fresher and tastier then the food served at the diner, which was saying a lot.

"And no, one small loaf of bread does not count as breakfast." Sky noticed the silence from Tyler, and crossed his arms with a smirk.

"In that case, I have not eaten at all today." Tyler smiled, then patted his stomach. "Pretty starved, if you ask me."

"Your thin, but not that thin." Sky laughed and Tyler joined in.

"MY KING!"

The two turned to see a guard run up to them. He went straight to the king, looking a bit troubled. Sky went from carefree to serious in a matter of moments. Tyler watched as the guard reported.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, however an argument was started outside by a few guards. I'm not sure what it's about, but I was asked to fetch you." The guard said.

Sky sighed and replied. "I will be there in a second. Return to your post."

Then Sky turned to Tyler. "Sorry, but I've got to check it out. You could go ahead and meet me at the dining hall. Or go find Sub."

"Okay! Thanks!" Tyler replied and watched as Sky walked off, out the door Tyler came in from.

Tyler turned to the door he was in front of. Pushing through, he found himself in a hallway. He began to walk one way, putting his hands in his pockets. It seemed that argument, assuming it was the same one he saw at the bridge, really was important. That or the three just annoyed everyone else.

Tyler walked until he reached the end of the hallway. Looking out the windows, he could see the castle's garden. Another hallway ran down the back side of the castle, and at his end, a stair well upwards to the next floor was there. The dining room was just down the hallway, but Tyler wanted to find Sub, and he wasn't quite sure where the mysterious one was.

"Chances are he's upstairs." Tyler sighed to himself and headed up the stair well.

Tyler found himself walking around the second floor, peeking into empty meeting rooms and lonely storage rooms. Sky was right when he said it was quiet In the castle. Other then guards, everyone else who lived in the castle seemed to be out in the town. But Tyler kept looking for Sub. He ended up having to go up to the third floor, a floor filled with offices and bedrooms. The Enchantment room was also on this floor, if Tyler remembered correctly.

"God, where is everyone?" Tyler spoke aloud, looking out the windows that gave him a perfect view of the gates and the river.

Turning the corner, now walking down the right side of the third floor, Tyler noticed that this hallway was darker then the others. For one, there was no windows, and some of the torches seemed to be off. But as the boy walked down the hallway, he began to notice something else odd. Down the hall was a door to a room, and a lime green light was coming from it.

Tyler adjusted his glassed, finally reaching the door. The glow came from under the door. Tyler looked at the sign on the door, wondering who could possibly be in there. It became clear when he read "Office of Deadlox" on the sign. Curious, Tyler stepped forward to knock. Deadlox, also known as Ty, was another close friend.

Tyler knocked and stepped back, waiting patiently for the door to open. The glow continued on for a few more seconds before disappearing. Then, footsteps were heard. Then the door opened with a small grunt, and before Tyler stood Deadlox. A light from down the hall reflected off the purple and yellow magic-based necklace Ty wore, being intensified and hitting the glasses Tyler wore. Tyler flinched, moving out of the light.

"Oh. Hello there, Tyler." Ty smiled, greeting the younger teen.

"Hey." Tyler replied. "Just taken a walk around, lookin' for Sub."

"Ah." Ty nodded his head.

"I noticed a green glow coming from here. What sort of magic are you pulling off this time?" Tyler asked, smirking.

Ty stepped aside so he could see the all too familiar pair of headphones sitting on the desk, one side of it half way opened with strange wires poking out. Tyler looked back at Ty.

"You're not wearing your headphones!?" Tyler asked. Ty had on a hood, so Tyler couldn't see just was or was not on Ty's head. Tyler attempted to look through the hood, making Ty laugh.

"H-hey! Stop that! " Ty answered, smiling a bit. "It's not like they were glued to my head or anything."

"Well for awhile it seemed like it. You wear them so often it seems like a life support system! What are you doing to them anyway? Giving them magical powers?" Tyler asked, half joking.

"In a way." Ty tilted his head, shifting a bit.

"Cool." Tyler nodded his head.

"I think i'm gonna take a break in a little and head down for breakfast. You were looking for Sub, right? He might be down in the dining room or the kitchen." Ty changed the subject.

"Ah. Thanks." Tyler said. Stepping back to continue on.

"You're welcome." Ty said and watched the boy. "Save me a seat in the dining room!"

Tyler laughed. "Don't save you a seat in the dining room!? Gotcha!"

Ty chuckled to himself as the teen ran off. He was about to turn back to his work and close the door, but as his head turned, he noticed another figure walking down the hallway. It was the Royal Mage, Seto. Ty stopped to notice Seto was walking towards him. Ty left the door open and turned back into his room. Sitting down on his bed, which was against the right wall, he waited for Seto. Seto walked in, almost closing the door behind him.

"Sorry for intruding, I guess. I just something to ask of you." Seto sighed, standing there.

"A favor?" Ty asked, curious.

"You see, I was thinking about your progress in your magic studies..." seto began, pausing.

"And?" Ty felt asked.

Seto seemed hesitant to say. He looked around the room, gazing at all the different potions on shelves and the books Ty had, most of which were written in Standard Galactic. Notes and papers had been taped to the wall, and tools scattered a desk, of which Ty's headphones also rested. Seto's eyes stopped at the piece of paper next to the headphones. A list of actions for a spell. A spell based on technology, something Seto wasn't a master in. However, Seto still could figure out what the spell was supposed to do. He took a deep breath and turned back to Ty.

"I'm worried. I think you should take a break with your potion making and technology-based tinkering to study at least something of general magic. " Seto said.

"Standard, general, boring magic ?" Ty asked. "And why are you worried?"

Seto looked back at the notes. "With you giving up your royal blood and turning to magic with no real occupation on hand, I feel that if anything were to ever happen to me, you'd be next in like for taking the job as The Royal Mage."

"I.....I see..." Ty turned away. He had never actually thought about that.

Ty looked back at Seto, to see the man still gazing at his notes and headphones.

"Is there something wrong?" Ty asked.

"Ah. Well, i'm not sure, to tell the truth." Seto looked back at Ty.

Ty motioned towards the notes and headphones. "No, I was talking about them."

"Oh."

Seto slowly walked over to the chair at the desk and sat down.

"Well. A spell such as that brings me to worry more about you then myself. Why would you need it?" Seto asked.

Ty sat up and grabbed the notes off the desk, folding the paper and shoving it onto a shelf with books on it. Ty then leaned against the door, and Seto turned in the chair to face Ty.

"I've always been one of their greatest fears." Ty began, but Seto interrupted.

"You're worried about them and what they're planning. I understand." Seto dipped his head slightly. "But they've known for years that you made it out alive. You just don't believe they've ignored you, huh?"

Ty's hand clenched.

"I'm almost certain they still want me gone forever."

Seto sighed. "A powerful ally you were. A powerful ally you still are."

Ty walked back over to the bed, laying down on it with half his body over the side. He stared at the ceiling. He wasn't studying magic just to consume his time. He needed a new defense. They needed some sort of fight.

"Anyway. About what I really came here for." Seto turned to watch Ty. Ty hardly moved.

"My magic has been losing it's power, it's energy, and i'm not sure why." Seto said and Ty slowly began to sit back up. "Part of me is scared, for I don't know why. I'm not getting old or sick and my memory is still as perfect as it was years ago."

Seto paused before continuing.

"I noticed it about a month ago. I was practicing a spell in the garden, one that would take a lot of power to successfully pull off. I was prepared and ready. When casted, I noticed it wasn't as effective as before. Ever since, i've noticed all my spells have been losing their umphf. I did the math, and at the rate it's going, I could lose all ability to cast spells within 4 years."

Seto's eyes met Ty's eyes.

"And anybody our age would know how short 4 years is."

Ty felt himself twitch. 4 years ago....was it really?

"Anyway," Seto broke the silence, "I'm trying my best to find out the cause of this. If I do in time, there is a possibility I could stop it. I wanted to speak to the king about this, however I felt like I should have your opinion on it first."

Seto walked towards the door, and Ty stood back up.

"I see." Ty said. "Do what you must. And don't give up on yourself, alright?"

Seto nodded his head.

"A-and I guess I could start learning general magic." Ty sighed.

"Thank you for listening." Seto smiled and began to walk out.

"Oh! And one more thing, Seto!" Ty spoke up, stopping the other man.

"Yes?" Seto asked, looking back.

"The notes you saw." Ty began, but Seto beat him there again.

"I won't tell anyone. Forget I ever even saw it."

"Thank you." Ty nodded.

"My pleasure."

Seto left, closing the door behind him. Ty let out a breath of relief. He then walked over to the book shelf and pulled back out the notes. He sat in his chair and set the notes back down on the desk. Gently touching the headphones, he flicked a switch and the lime green light came back on to light up the room. He went back to work. He would haft to skip breakfast if he wanted to finish this today.

-...-

Pushing through another big, wooden door, Tyler found himself in the dining room at last. A few maids were walking around, coming from the kitchen as well. A few people were at the table, including GoldSolace, aka Brice, the Sky Army General, and Sub, the King's personal assassin. The two sat across from each other, and Brice was talking to the silent one. In front of Sub was also a plate full of food, which he chowed down. How odd it was to see him eat, considering Sub still managed to keep his mask on. Tyler walked over and sat in a chair next to Sub, the two turning to see him.

"Ah. Look who's joining us this morning." Brice greeted.

"I went up stairs looking for you, Sub." Tyler grinned, poking Sub with his elbow. "Had to come back down stairs just to find you here, chowing down on food."

Sub pushed back against Tyler's elbow and Tyler laughed, turning to Brice. Tyler and Brice were also good friends. They were more like teacher and student, though. Brice would sometimes give small lessons to Tyler, however Tyler would need to wait until later to get any real good training from Brice.

"So did you sneak in for a meal or did you see Sky before you went searching for Sub?" Brice asked.

"I did in fact see Sky. He told me bread flavored bread with a side of bread and bread tea was not considered breakfast, and that I shall join him for breakfast!" Tyler smiled. "Though that was a few minutes ago."

"Where is he anyway?" Brice asked. "Since you saw him last."

"He got pulled away to settle an argument. Told me to come here. Didn't think it would take him that long." Tyler sighed, crossing his arms.

"Ah. Well. He should be back any time now." Brice said.

"So! What's for breakfast today!?" Tyler asked, grinning.

"Slices of pork cooked with maple syrup, as well as eggs and sliced apples. And to drink you can have milk." Brice answered.

Suddenly the two heard a loud slurping sound, and turned to see Sub slurping up the last of the food on his plate. Then Sub made a motion, with a fork and knife in his hands, of wanting more food. Tyler laughed and Brice chuckled.

"Sounds good!"

-....-

Somewhere on the other side of Minecraftia, a group hide in the shadows of a forest, making their way towards ground that they, themselves, have never personally traveled to. On the back of their necks, hidden by their hoods, were small green boxes. A technology unfamiliar to most of Minecraft.

"Hey! Shut up! We're getting close to area one!" One angrily hissed back at two that were fighting behind him.

"He started it!" One pointed to the other, hissing back at the first.

"I swear, why did he haft to pick the two of you idiots?" A forth one groaned, following behind the two arguing ones.

"All of you! Just Shhhhh!" The first one glared back at the rest of the group. "Don't forget how important this mission is. If we don't report back with the prize, our King shall not be pleased."

The three behind him nodded their heads.

"Alright. Now hurry up. We're behind schedule."

-...-