HEYYYYYYYYYOOOOOOOO! This is Pastrinator64 with the very first chapter to Hourglass, the long-awaited triquel to finish this series! It is good to be back, everyone! Procrastination, relationships, and school have all gotten in my way, but now I'm finally here!

First, I'd like to thank all of you who've stuck with me since the beginning when The Glitch or VOiD came out, even through those awkward and slow times. Your support is my creative writing fuel. :D

Secondly, I will be accepting OC's for this story. Your original character must have a block power as everyone else does in the series. Examples: Norman Cobweb, Lizzy Cake, Jeff Ironblock, etc. Just slap the name of the block on as a last name. Pick any block you like as a block power, and I greatly encourage you to use technical blocks if you feel like it, such as unlit redstone torch or farmland. Here are the minimum guidelines:

Name

Gender

Height

Weight

Physical Appearance

Personality Traits

Strength(s)

Weakness(es)

Weapon of Choice

Other Notes You Would Like To Add About This Person

That last one is optional. ATTENTION: I WILL LET YOU KNOW WHEN I AM ACCEPTING OC'S AND WHEN I AM NOT. Thanks, it's just that sometimes people ignore that message and hurl in a couple billion OC's at random.

Thirdly, I will be adding bits and pieces of the bonus chapter from before to let that side-story progress slowly. Each snippet will be featured at the end of each chapter, so read on!

Fourthly, I encourage you to ask questions to the characters such as before in VOiD. Here are the minimum guidelines:

To: (insert character name)

Question: (insert question)

Ask away! I'll answer any question that you throw at me.

Finally, I would like to add that I will be answering any regular non-character-question reviews at the beginning of each chapter, so if you have any comments, notes, or questions about the story or about me, feel free to put them into review form. Thanks! :)

Well, now that I'm done with all the explanation, I guess it's time to move on with the story! Grab your popcorn, soda and pickled garlic, because here comes Hourglass!

Chapter 1: Nostalgia

Sitting in the muddied grass were five graves, each eroded by the winds of many years that were now lost in time. Still, though the engravings were no longer legible, Norman knew clearly who they belonged to. Bittersweet memories invaded his mind, clear as crystal, as he let his eyes gaze at each of the seemingly ancient stones.

Beneath the first grave was a man whom he knew all his life as the wisest person alive, someone who gave him much of his current knowledge and understanding, but was now a member of the deceased. Although he had accepted his evident death, he preferred to remain in the moment, doing everything he could to improve the life of himself and of those around him. It was too sudden of a shock when he died.

The second grave held a familiar individual of great beauty. She was once a young, ambitious woman, one who kept everyone from giving up. No matter how much hope had been squashed out of his companions and allies, this woman kept her head held high and her teammates alive with optimism. However, she was still one of many who joined the saints in Heaven.

The third sat atop of the man who he considered to be his greatest friend. Unlike many of the companionships he once had, this man did not decide to end theirs in betrayal. His loyalty failed to waver, remaining true and pure and without fail, letting him maintain a relationship that was not sugar-coated and deceitful like his many others. Still, this man's fate ended in gruesome death such as the others.

The fourth grave marked where one of Mark's greatest friends had been put down to rest for eternity. At first, he did not know her well, but as their mission progressed, he and the girl became close. She had one of the kindest souls of any person he'd met, though her soul was taken away like all the others.

Finally, there was the fifth grave. There were many choice words for the person that lay peacefully beneath the hardened soil. He could pick thousands upon thousands, because he knew her more than anyone; out of all the people he met in his lifetime, she was the one who he grew closest to, the one that he had bound his heart with. This grave belonged to his one and only wife, the love of his life, and his angelic soul mate.

In remembrance of these fallen heroes, Norman removed his cap and lowered his head. Two teardrops fell from his cheeks as a flow of quiet and raspy words escaped his wizened lips.

"In life or in death, I humble myself. My achievements were nothing compared to those that I have seen from you. I take into account what the past once held and that it is forever lost, that the present is soon to end along with its momentary bliss, and that the future's prolonging wonders will be unearthed in only a matter of time, free of any evil that once plagued our history."

He paused for a moment to collect himself. His throat tightened, making it harder for him to swallow than it already was, and he watched as the teardrops from his eyes wet the dry ground. A few seconds later he spoke just five more words.

"I will see you soon."

Then there was silence.

The air was sweet in the garden. There was the echoing chirp of the golden finch that was perched on the branch of the oak. A bit of shade fell over the face of the girl that sat beneath it, who stayed cool and comfortable. There was a light breeze that played across her skin. It was warm outside with blue skies—the perfect weather, in her opinion. She could lie there all day and night if she cared, without a worry in the world, a whole three months of summer ahead of her, and not one person to bother her.

"Hey."

Her eyes opened to see somebody in front of her, standing on the other side of the shade. She grinned upon recognizing him. Okay, she could care less if this guy bothered her, actually.

"Hey." she said back.

He walked over and sat down, lying up against the tree next to her, sharing the welcoming shadow of the oak.

"Anything on your mind?" he asked.

A small sigh escaped her lips as she closed her eyes again.

"Nah. I'm just glad to have company, I guess."

Suddenly, she felt herself lose a bit of breath; she could feel his nimble fingers weaving in between hers.

"Are you alright? You seem tense, Lovelips."

Her eyes opened a second time and she turned her head, smiling at him, the blush present in her cheeks. His head was turned for a moment, his eyes scanning the nearby pond, but as soon as he turned it back to gaze at her, their eyes locked for a moment and her face got ten times redder.

"Sorry." she murmured, glancing away.

He chuckled and said,

"What? You didn't do anything."

"Oh...alright."

"Are you sure you're okay? You really do seem very, well, on edge."

She took a slightly shaky breath and tried to think of what she would say next. She wasn't much of a talker, really, not even to him.

"I just get all jittery when you're here, I guess. That's not bad, though, because otherwise I'd just be all by my lonesome self. Good company, like I said."

There was an awkward silence as they both looked forward at the pond, observing as an array of fish swam through. They appeared to be playing tag or something of the sort. At least, this is what she was picturing, but that was merely to entertain herself until she came up with something reasonably witty to say to her boyfriend.

A sudden jolt went up her spine when she felt his bare feet stroke against hers.

"Your face is really red." he commented, a sly grin on his face.

She looked down again, embarrassed.

"You're such a tease..." she murmured, giggling.

"Can't help it! You've just got such cute feet."

It was as though her cheeks had caught fire, because her blush had somehow gotten worse. Finally, she lifted her head to look at him. He looked back, and for the first time that day his cheeks flushed instead.

"Okay, now you're blushing!" she pointed out.

"Ah, whatever. Anyway, you wanna do something together?"

A new smile spread across her face as she replied,

"We're doing it, aren't we? Here we are, sitting together under the same shade of the oak."

He shrugged, looking like he sort of didn't agree but sort of did.

"Yeah, I just figured we could be out and about, I guess."

"But sometimes isn't it good to just, y'know, slow down and just enjoy each other's company."

He shrugged again, unsure what clever thing to say. He was about to say something interesting when his words were interrupted by her lips. Stomach turning and mind fogging, he forced his eyes closed to keep in the moment. When she let go, his calm gray eyes opened and met her playful green ones. A moment later, his smile returned and he leaned back against the tree.

"Yeah...I guess you're right."

After closing her eyes once more, she rested her head up against his chest. He closed his as well, his breathing slowing down and steadying.

"I really do love you, Kelsey."

"Love you too, Mark."

Kelsey's eyes snapped open. Her breathing was not relaxed. Her head rested against the pillow of her bed and not the chest of her beloved. Her hand was empty, not intertwined with that of Mark. Then she realized that it had been a dream. She was lying in one of the many guest beds of the Palace of 0, not in a luscious garden, and this had been merely a tormenting memory.

This made her sob into her pillow.

She missed those days, those days under the shade of the oak. She missed Mark, most of all. She missed the simplicity and bliss of their relationship when they could just be together without any obstacles in their way.

Crying eventually tired her, and gradually she fell back into a fitful sleep.

Waking back up one short hour later, she rubbed her eyes, dry from the aftereffects of her tears. Her throat was dry as well. Turning her head, she scanned the dresser for her glass, which, when she looked upon it, appeared unfortunately empty. She didn't want to get up out of the comfortable bed for a drink, but her throat screamed to be quenched. Groaning, she sat up in bed and wiped her tears again, sniffing. She threw the covers off of her legs and got up out of bed, taking her empty glass and heading for the door.

She opened it quietly and slipped out of the room. Kelsey walked down the hall in spooky silence, staring at her glass, her legs moving seemingly on their own accord. She eventually reached the large kitchen, which was decked in marbled designs and creamy whitish tiles. The floor was a little cold to her toes, but she ignored the feeling and dragged herself up to the sink. She filled her glass and drank, her throat grateful for the long-awaited refreshment.

Setting down the glass, Kelsey looked through the window that was fixed just above the sink. She could see through it to the palace's wondrous garden, which looked just as the one in her dream. She gazed absentmindedly at it for a moment, skimming the surroundings. Finally, she snapped herself awake again and walked back out of the kitchen, turning left in the hallway and heading down the short walkway. A screen door in front of her was pushed aside and she let herself into the garden.

The grass wasn't cold, thankfully, and she had no trouble in making her way over to the center oak tree next to the pond. Nostalgia plagued her mind as she tried to keep all those memories from making her have another meltdown. She stopped herself underneath the tree and looked up for a moment into the leafy branches. She let her whole body slide down into a lying position, resting her head up against the trunk. Looking to her side, she saw the one thing that mattered to her most in her life.

Sort of...

A gravestone had been placed underneath this oak tree. The words imprinted into it read:

R.I.P.

Markus Cobweb

2419-2433

She sighed heavily and closed her eyes, put her arm around the grave, and attempted to regain her dream. Here she was now, with the one person whom she loved most. With her eyes closed and thoughts of peaceful times in her mind, Kelsey fell asleep beneath the oak tree, Mark alongside her.

Mark, whose heart was also broken in two, felt a suddenly sickening feeling sweep over him. He had been sitting down in the infinite darkness of his cell, which stretched in endless directions all around him. He'd been amongst the crowd in the Plasma Realm for only a small amount of time. Afterwards, he was sent into his own private chamber of neverending darkness. Each and every individual had been done to the same, but only his had been chosen to be immeasurable. It was torturous, being stuck inside of the prison of which he knew he could never escape.

Time was different in the Plasma Realm. He knew neither of what the hour was nor the day. His brain told him that it was nighttime outside of this horrid dimension, but he was unsure. He'd been sent into that prison cell just twenty-four hours ago. It was maddening, though, for in this place of shadows he was not fed or given rest, only his hunger, thirst and need for rest never appeared. It was a strange and unfamiliar change, not to have these feelings, and he certainly didn't like it.

The only thing he was given to do was think to himself, alone in his mind. This nauseating feeling came as soon as he thought of all his friends and whether they'd escaped or not. He hoped dearly that they were safe and that they hadn't perished as he had. He especially was afraid for Kelsey and his dad. The thought of either of them stuck in a pitch-black cell like his gave him shivers besides the ones he received from the cold air around him.

But still, he couldn't help but wonder about other things as well. He thought about all the other people absorbed by the Glitch. Did this mean that Lucas and Gabe were still alive? The REAL ones and not just the puppets of the Glitch and Salutem? And what about Notch, Herobrine and Queen Enderdragon? This must mean that they're all still alive along with everybody else who perished.

"Gosh, I wish I knew for sure! I hate not knowing what's going on..." he thought to himself.

For now, though, he had yet to realize what true horrors were in store for all to fall beneath the Glitch's wrath.

Jeff was in a state of pure sorrow at that moment.

Previously, during the Glitch's assault on the Aether Palace, Jeff had fled the scene frantically, losing a leg to a mutated aechor plant along the way, and plunged himself off of the floating fortress into the clouds below, probably to his certain death. Falling unconscious in midair, that was the last thing he remembered.

Now Jeff had woken up, apparently alive, and floating on his back in the ocean. His entire body was on fire with pain and he couldn't move his arms or legs. Here he was, adrift at sea, missing a limb, and completely without anyone to help him. In these hopeless times, Jeff would attempt to go to a happier place in his mind, but it almost never worked. This time, though, while he remained in his current state, he dozed off into a painful period of sub-consciousness.

He could see Esmeralda above him, smiling down at him with those beautifully blue eyes. Oh how he wished she were here, then maybe he'd die happily. He wouldn't die alone but instead in with her by his side. But no, she had suffered the price of death already, so there really was no person to keep him company. A minute later, Jeff could almost hear her voice calling out to him.

"Jeff, my old friend! 'Tis a wonderful surprise meeting you here!"

Even in his delirious state, Jeff felt a pang of confusion and he strained to listen. That didn't sound much like Esmeralda at all. That sounded more like a very well-fed and hearty middle-aged man with a gruff speaking voice. He knew one thing for sure, and that was that Esmeralda sounded nothing like a lumberjack.

"Good Notch! Jeff, was in the blazes happened to your leg?! Oh dear, this isn't good at all..."

He ignored the voice and just focused on Esmeralda's pretty features. He could still remember her as if they had been with each other yesterday. With these happy memories in his thoughts, Jeff fell back unconscious.

Vanessa too lay awake that night, drifting somewhere between half-asleep and fully-awake. She'd woken up four different times that night, twice around midnight and the second two times around five. Okay, four different times that MORNING, but she didn't notice the difference.

This restlessness was caused by the same as everyone else; she was having difficulties pushing lost memories out of her head. Whenever she would fall back asleep or near to it, the image of Rexum passing his soul into hers and dying away would blast behind her closed eyelids, giving her an upset stomach.

Finally, that fourth time she woke up and gazed fretfully at the clock. 5:24 in the morning was the time. She couldn't keep doing this—constantly waking up over and over again. She wasn't even getting her usual seven hours of sleep; most of the night was spent reading Cantatis in its book form.

She decided to pick up Cantatis that time and opened up to the beginning of chapter 133; this magic book, when it wasn't in the form of another magical creation, remained as Moby Dick; she began to read.

"Stubb saw him pause; and perhaps intending, not vainly, though, to evince his own unabated fortitude, and thus keep up a valiant place in his Captain's mind, he advanced, and eyeing the wreck exclaimed-"The thistle the ass refused; it pricked his mouth too keenly, sir; ha! ha!"

"What soulless thing is this that laughs before a wreck? Man, man! did I not know thee brave as fearless fire (and as mechanical) I could swear thou wert a poltroon. Groan nor laugh should be heard before a wreck."

"Aye, sir," said Starbuck drawing near, "'tis a solemn sight; an omen, and an ill one."

"Omen? omen?-the dictionary! If the gods think to speak outright to man, they will honourably speak outright; not shake their heads, and give an old wives' darkling hint.-Begone! Ye two are the opposite poles of one thing; Starbuck is Stubb reversed, and Stubb is Starbuck; and ye two are all mankind; and Ahab stands alone among the millions of the peopled earth, nor gods nor men his neighbors! Cold, cold-I shiver!-How now? Aloft there! D'ye see him? Sing out for every spout, though he spout ten times a second!""

Cold, cold...now she started shivering. Strange, though, for the room was perfectly warm and cozy. Vanessa instantly recognized that these shivers were not from the absent chill. Even while reading her favorite book, she couldn't keep her mind off of Rexum. Flashbacks of their training kept coming into her mind. She looked down at Cantatis and stared at it, her eyes starting to fill with tears. A quiet sob escaped her mouth as a teardrop fell onto the page.

Suddenly, without warning, Cantatis transformed on its own, turning itself into a handheld mirror of ruby red. She could see her distraught face in the mirror for only a moment, which quickly gained a confused and startled expression mix. Moments later, the mirror shifted and swirled, scattering her reflection and replacing it with a new one that made her gasp. Rexum's face appeared before her, smiling sadly up at her in silence, but not for very long.

"Vanessa, my young mage. It is superb to be speaking with you again."

A small surprised yelp came past her lips and she covered her face with her hands. Her tears increasing, she whispered croakily,

"R-Rexum...! You're...how?!"

Rexum's wrinkled face lightened up a small amount as he replied,

"Our souls have fused together, do you not remember? The power of Cantatis is being channeled into your soul so that you may use it, and therefore we are both connected through it. As long as you hold Cantatis in your hands, I will be with you wherever you travel."

Vanessa tried her hardest to not break down. It would be totally unethical as well as embarassing in front of her idol and mentor. She just had so much to tell him, she couldn't wait!

"Rexum, I have a lot of things to tell you!" she murmured excitedly.

Rexum held up his hand to silence her.

"Vanessa, you need not inform me of the current events; as I said, we have fused souls and so I am able to understand what goes on in your surroundings as well as you can. Now, the real reason I have appeared before you has much importance and you must understand completely, so please, I beg you, listen as well as you possibly can manage, for this is irrevocably imperative."

Vanessa would do anything for Rexum, so she leaned in towards the mirror and said,

"I'm all ears, Rexum."

Notch sat in his pitch-black chamber and meditated, trying to calm himself in the deathtrap of darkness that was the Plasma Realm. Many thoughts plagued his mind—thoughts of the Glitch's diabolic plans, thoughts of which of his colleagues were safe from harm, and primarily thoughts about Herobrine and Queen Enderdragon. Could they be in blackened prisons such as his? Or were they deleted from the game and now just a jumble of code in the dimension's system? For now, he was unable to tell, and it made him think about what horrid things could be happening to them if they were still alive as he was.

He hoped dearly for some information on the Glitch's unearthly intentions, or its killing records, or even just some whereabouts—anything! In the meantime, though, he was being subjected to an experience of lack of knowledge and he utterly despised it. It was mental torture for him when he didn't know about something vitally important.

Then his thoughts went back to Herobrine and Queen Enderdragon. His mind wandered off, relaying all those times spent with his fellow rulers. He would have thought more about Salutem, but he hadn't known the creature for nearly as long and he knew for a fact that Salutem had escaped the Glitch's wicked clutches. In other words, he and Salutem had very few memories spent together.

Instead, he found himself traveling back in time—the debut party for the first Minecraft, Minecraft alpha version, on May 17th, 2009, then the debut party for the huge update for Minecraft's release on December 20th, 2010; at both of which, Herobrine pranked everyone by dropping a thousand balloons filled with garlic powder from the ceiling.

"Ah, that man was a prankster, alright." thought Notch, reminiscing the past with a sigh and a grin.

Then he thought of Queen Enderdragon, who, when she was first added into the game, gave a wonderful first impression by breathing a fireworks display from her mouth. Fire, though, was only a temporarily suggested update before beta 1.9's update, and so the fire-breathing aspect was removed. Still, every year during the Minecraft Dimension's Minecon, she impresses all attendees with her special hand-crafted fireworks.

Good times, good times...

Most surprisingly, even the Mastermind was rather crestfallen. Despite his usually clownish personality and his mischievous mood, our familiar-faced checkered jester was sitting alone in the Clock Chamber where he could manipulate time to his liking. This room was usually used for slowing down time to fit more hours into the day for training, preparation, and various other things. Only thing was, the Mastermind wasn't using it for these purposes; he just wanted a room that was quiet.

The room itself was an endlessly vast space of silver light with only an infinite creamy gray floor in sight. No sound from the outside made its way into the chamber, so he had plenty of time and peace. In the meanwhile, the Mastermind was, in fact, pacing the floor in a depressed state. It was unusual for him and he for certain despised it.

He just could not take his mind off of Notch. Out of all of the rulers, he had been closest with Notch. They'd spent much more time together than even Herobrine and Queen Enderdragon combined! They even went to college together! It was horrid to think that all that was in past for good and hardly worth anything to remember. It sickened him so! If he had his way, the Glitch would have taken him instead, and then Notch would be here to rest up and train up to help save the dimensions of the universe. Notch had the knowledge and he did not; he was merely quick-witted, improvisational, and had magic on his side.

The Mastermind spent much time thinking about Notch's death and all the things he would have said. On the other hand, he spent even more of his time in the Clock Chamber remembering the good ol' days back in college. Oh, the pranks they pulled. He distinctly recalled the time when he and Notch glued fake mustaches all over one of their professor's chalkboards. Of course, this was back when he was still getting used to his magic abilities, so he accidently set the board on fire, which led to the fire alarm going off,

"...and the fire department had to come put out the whole university plus that old hag Mrs. Bigauree's wig. Ahh... I remember it like it was yesterday."

The Mastermind was very tempted to use the Clock Chamber and go back in time to watch the whole thing over, but he stopped himself. There were many troubles on his mind, so he didn't need a temporal paradox to deal with as well.

Unfortunately, although all of our heroes were having pleasant times remembering the golden days, only times of darkness were ahead of them.

Hoorah! The first chapter is complete! Well, what'd you think?

And now for a snippet from the bonus story of Sugar Lords.

Pastrinator64 and the others were already out the door by the time he was finished with his speech. He himself flew side by side with Nwinds and explained what he had missed. When he was finished, Nwinds closed his eyes, thinking hard.

"Wow... A power level of 2,000,000, huh? Interesting and frightening at the same time."

Pastrinator64 looked on ahead, the faint essence of that thing's power still present in his soul. He could feel it even from that far away. Its power was nothing like any other living thing in the universe, making it much different compared to all the others.

"The one thing that worries me is whether the source of power level is friend or foe. If it turns out to be the latter, then we'll have a very dangerous enemy on our hands. Probably one that we won't have even the slightest chance of defeating, not even in combined forces."

Pixelized Pikale and Company heard his statement; both of their heads jerked to look at him to their right.

"What?!" shouted Pikale. "You can't be serious!"

"No way, absolutely no way!" chimed Pixelized.

Pastrinator64 gritted his teeth and muttered,

"Yes way. This thing is nearly four times more powerful than I am. Even if we all teamed up on it if it turned out to be hostile, our attacks would be like the bites of mosquitoes. We'd only annoy him."

Below him, Luvr called out in a mildly ticked tone,

"Or her!"

Pastrinator64 rolled his eyes and continued to think about the upcoming creature, person or entity; he knew not what it was, but he could only be hopeful that he could reason with it, whatever it turned out to be.

Well, there you have it! The first inside look for what the side-story Sugar Lords will hold!

Before I sign out, I'd like to inform you all that I will be gone from Fanfiction this next week because I'm spending it at my grandparents' house, so I have no access to a computer.

This is Pastrinator64, your fellow writer and reader, signing out!

*throws sugar bomb and disappears behind its cloud of fine white sugar*

...Goodbye for now...

~Pastrinator64 [~]