Once Upon a Time...

... in the kingdom of Miradero lived a wonderful king and queen named Antonio and Lucia. They were very proud to have such wonderful subjects. Being king and queen wasn't easy, but it was worth the results of any royal duty performed. The king and queen were especially thankful to have two sons: Verago and Milagro.

As the firstborn child, Verago is heir to the throne. When he isn't training to become king, he enjoyed spending time with his family, especially his younger brother, Milagro.

Milagro enjoyed participating in sports, and he dreamed of traveling the world. But that dream didn't come true the way he wanted it to.

It was Milagro's 16th birthday, and he was happy to have his family together for the party. When he blew out his candles, Verago had a special gift for him.

"Milagro, I think it's time I passed this down to you," Verago declared. His gift to his brother was a red amulet that he had worn, and he put it on Milagro. This was no ordinary amulet—it was the Amulet of Miradero. "This magical amulet will protect you from any harm that comes your way."

"Wow, thanks, Verago," Milagro smiled. He hugged his older brother tightly.

Milagro felt lucky to have such a wonderful family. His new amulet may be magical, but he felt like life in Miradero was magical enough. The pure joy of music and love filled life in the kingdom—but even the brightest days can be darkened by an unseen tempest.

A year later, Milagro was out for a ride with his flying horse, Fortuna. He had so much fun that he was really dirty. Suddenly, dark clouds began to gather.

"Fortuna, it looks like a storm is rolling in," Milagro said. "We'd better get back to the Palacio Rosado." He hopped back on Fortuna, and they flew away.

Milagro and Fortuna kept flying to the palace when something caught Milagro's eye. There was green mist flying around.

"Whoa, what kind of weather is this?" Milagro asked.

But that was no weather—the green mist turned into an ugly woman who was wearing a green dress, and her hair was green, too. This sight shocked Milagro very much. The woman looked at him with an evil smile.

"Who are you?" Milagro asked.

"I am Ursula, and I have come to take over your kingdom," Ursula smirked. "It looks like the first thing I have to do is eliminate you!"

Milagro was horrified—he flicked the reigns, and Fortuna flew faster.

"Fortuna, we have to go faster—we have to warn my family about Ursula!" Milagro urged.

Milagro flew as fast as he could on Fortuna with Ursula chasing him. Once Milagro made it to the Palacio Rosado, Verago, Lucia, and Antonio came out on the balcony to greet them.

"Milagro, bienvendio!" Antonio called.

Milagro put Fortuna in the stable safely, and he rushed to try and warn his family. But Ursula made it to the palace, too. Verago, Antonio, and Lucia were shocked to see her, but nobody was more shocked than Milagro.

Ursula waved her wand at Milagro and shouted, "Vadisima!" The spell hit Milagro, and there was a flash of blue light. Milagro had disappeared, but his amulet stayed. It seemed as though Milagro had been murdered.

"Milagro!" Verago cried.

"Who is that?" Lucia gasped.

The royal wizard, Raul, showed up. "That's Ursula—she's an evil, power-hungry sorceress from the Western Islands," he explained. "She's always looking for a kingdom to take over—and it looks like she's found it."

"Well, she's already claimed my baby brother's life," Verago growled.

"And we have to make sure she doesn't do the same to you," Raul declared.

Raul gathered the rest of the royal family in the throne room. There were Lucia's parents Maria and Victorino. Antonio's younger brother, Francisco, and their parents Rita and Victor joined in.

"I know a spell that can put you all inside this enchanted painting and keep you secure," Raul declared.

"If you say so," Antonio declared.

The royal family got into position, and when Raul recited the spell, the whole family was inside the painting.

Raul went outside without Ursula catching him. He found Milagro's amulet, but now the jewel is sapphire blue. Seeing the change in color, Raul felt like he knew what happened to Milagro, so he fled the kingdom.

In the meantime, with the royal family gone, Ursula had taken over the kingdom and made very unfair laws: no music, dancing, parties—no fun at all. The kingdom was really quiet and miserable.