The Watchers' Revenge

Chapter 1: The Calm Before The Storm

----| Mumbo's POV |----

It was a beautiful day on Hermitcraft. Everything was perfect. Everyone was safe, happy, and back to normal.

So why did Mumbo feel nervous? 

He should have been happy. But after the last few months, he couldn't help but feel that something would go wrong. 

First, Grian had gotten sick. Mumbo had had to go through the portal with what he now knew to be a Watcher and endure intense pain to get the miracle dust to save him. Then, peace. 

But it hadn't lasedt long. Grian had gotten himself stuck in a stronghold and nearly killed himself. A few days of peace, then the builder had been kidnapped and tortured. 

Then Mumbo himself had been tortured, although not badly; the other hemits had managed to save him before the Watchers had really harmed him. Mumbo had been more worried about Grian. He knew the others had been concerned about the blood on the table Mumbo had been chained to when he was rescued. He hadn't told the others, but it wasn't his. They hadn't hurt him very badly. They hadn't gotten the chance to. But Grian...

There had been bloodstains everywhere Mumbo went. The table? Dyed maroon with blood. Mumbo tried to tell himself that it was from other victims, but he knew the truth.

The blood was Grian's. They'd tortured Grian so badly... Mumbo was terrified of losing Grian. The most traumatic part of the experience for Mumbo wasn't being taken by the Watchers, although that had been painful. No, the worst part was seeing what they'd done to Grian.

As if that wasn't bad enough, Grian refused to take care of himself. He'd stayed awake for a week, then gotten swarmed by phantoms and mobs until he'd nearly died. He'd managed to re-break both wings. 

Then, after Grian recovered from that, he'd gone and overworked himself again. That time, he'd relapsed into not believing anything was real. He also hadn't eaten or rested in a week, again.

Now, Grian was safe, although with anxiety and PTSD. Luckily, they had Joe to help him, but Grian was still paranoid and jumpy.

After all that, could you really blame Mumbo if he had a hard time believing that the peace would last?

As if he had been summoned by Mumbo thinking about him, Grian swooped into Mumbo's base and perched on top of a stalk of bamboo. Mumbo looked up when he heard his friend enter.

"How do you do that?" Mumbo asked in astonishment.

"Do what?" Grian replied.

"Balance one-footed on top of a stalk of bamboo!" Mumbo exclaimed.

"I'm talented," Grian grinned.

"So, did you need anything or you just here to hang out?" Mumbo changed the subject.

"I just wanted to hang out," Grian jumped off his perch atop the bamboo. He flew over to an overhanging bit of stone and hooked his legs on it, then flipped around so he was now hanging upside down, looking at Mumbo.

"Well, you do what you wanna do," Mumbo chucked.

Grian released his hold on the stone and flipped midair, flying up and doing a few loops around the central "heart" of Mumbo's base before landing next to the restoner.

"Whatcha workin' on today?" Grian asked cheerfully.

"Nothing much, really. I can't find any more projects to do to keep me occupied," Mumbo told him.

"I can fix that," Grian giggled.

"Huh? Wait a second... no! Come back here!" Mumbo realized a second too late what Grian was thinking. By the time he figured it out, Grian was already in Mumbo's redstone.

"Grian!" Mumbo called exasperatedly as he went around, re-adjusting comparators and flipping repeaters.

"You said you needed something to do!" Grian called back.

"I did not say that! I definitely did not say I needed you to break my redstone!" Mumbo replied.

"Alright, Mumbo! I've given you things to do!" Grian appeared from behind a piston.

"Okay, freeze. Stay right there until I tell you to move," Mumbo said.

"Why would I do that?" inquired Grian, although they both knew why.

"If you do, I'll play a game with you right after this," Mumbo promised.

"Ooh, what kind of game?" Grian stopped messing with the redstone and stood still, which was quite a feat for the hyperactive gremlin.

"How about... I'm gonna regret this... but you choose the game? Maybe a minigame?" Mumbo walked around the redstone, following Grian's trail and fixing the damage as he went. 

Grian stayed quiet until Mumbo finished, thinking. The duo got out of the redstone and went back into the main part of Mumbo's base. 

"I know what game we should play!" Grian announced.

"Okay, what is it?" asked Mumbo in a resigned tone.

"It's called you help me prank people!" Grian bounced up and down.

"No," Mumbo said.

"You said I choose!" Grian replied.

"I didn't say I would agree to the first game you chose, only that you got to choose," Mumbo said.

"Pleeeease?" Grian looked up at him with wide eyes and a pleading expression.

"Don't try the puppy eyes on me... okay, fine," Mumbo gave in.

"Yay!" The gremlin shot up into the air and did loop-de-loops in the sky, then bounced from bamboo to bamboo in excitement.

"Come down here," Mumbo laughed.

"Alright, Mumbo!" Grian landed next to his friend and giggled, "This is gonna be so much fun!"

"Where are we heading?" Mumbo asked.

"Follow me, you'll see!" Grian flew up and waited for Mumbo to follow, then headed off. Mumbo trailed behind. To be honest, he didn't mind pranking people. Grian was a hyperactive, chaotic, childish gremlin, but he wasn't mean. He never did pranks that would seriously hurt or anger others, and if he did, he would make sure he paid them back. 

So Mumbo was looking forward to an afternoon spent with his favorite winged builder.