WIS #3.3: An Evil Goddess, a Formerly Evil Ghost, and a Cursed One

Hooray, the WISes are back! For all you new people who don't know what a WIS is, it is a Weekly Illustrated Story (well, it's certainly not so weekly anymore, but I DON'T WANT TO CHANGE THE NAME OKAY), in other words, short stories accompanied by illustrations drawn by yours truly on Paint. The WISes were originally intended to be separate, unconnected stories, but WIS#1 inspired a sequel to be made out of WIS#2, and WIS #2 inspired a sequel out of WIS#3. I'm probably not going to make WIS#4 a sequel to this WIS, but we'll see. Maybe I will and maybe I won't. I most likely won't, though, since I have a good idea for a WIS that I want to write soon!
To catch up on the previous WISes, click the links to the right under "Weekly Illustrated Stories." They look like this:

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Priya and Maddie dashed off to catch up with the others, who were headed to the boat at Datwun Lake. "OHCRAPOHCRAPOHCRAP," yelped Maddie. "I hope we don't end up being to late--" They reached Anita's boat before Maddie could finish her sentence.
"Hey, um, Science, Feathers, Zella, Amarantha. Can we talk?" asked Priya.
"In private?" added Maddie.
"Why am I not invited?" asked Scott, not sounding threatening but rather just confused.
"Um..." stammered Maddie.
"...Well, don't worry! We're not trying to keep it private from you, if that's what you're wondering. We're trying to keep this private from someone else, but we don't want that person to suspect anything, so we need you and Ellie and Hannah to stay on this boat. We'll tell you everything later!" said Priya.
"Yeah, what she said!" said Maddie.
"Oh. Okay," said Scott, "As long as you're not lying..."
"D-don't be ridiculous!" said Priya.
The original six went some ways away from the river before beginning their private conversation.
"This place seems secluded enough. So, what is this really important thing you needed to tell us about?" asked Science Nerdess.
"Yeah, what is it?" asked Feathers, worried. "Is it bad? It sure seemed like it was something bad, since you guys looked really concerned."
"I-it's pretty bad," said Priya, sadly.
"Well, spill already! It's best we know now, rather than later," said Amarantha, nodding sagely.
"It's about Annie and Anita...we can't trust them," said Maddie.
"What did they do?" gasped Feathers.
"Do? Well, they didn't do anything..." said Maddie. The phoenix's look of shock turned into one of confusion. "Well, if they didn't do anything, then how do you know we can't trust them?" asked Feathers.
Priya pulled out the book of names and flipped to the page that said "Annie" (as well as a whole lot of other names). "See? It's the Chosen Mortal Name of Anilokalmosia!" she said.
"...So?" asked Amarantha.
"'So?' What do you mean, 'So?' That's bad, that's very bad! It means the girl named Annie can--no, will become evil, and then there's no changing her back to good!" said Priya. "She'll be a seductress, just like the evil goddess, and with not an ounce of good in her soul!"
"But...there's still a chance that she is still good now," mused Zella. "I mean, she's but a child. And what little I know about Theology [Author's note: There is only one religion in this land, and it's called Theology. I'm not sure whether the land is on Earth or not.] dictates that, in order for a person Cursed with the CMN (or a derivative) of an evil goddess to become evil, something has to happen to him or her to motivate him or her to turn to the dark side. Children as young as our Annie can't have experienced something so traumatic."
"But we can't take a chance!" said Priya.
"But we also can't be mean to a poor young girl whose only crime was to be born an 'Annie!'" said Zella.
"Her parents must have done something terrible, though, to have a child named Annie! Maybe they're Anilokalmosia's slaves! Maybe this Annie is already corrupted by her evil parents and is only seeking to take advantage of our generosity! Maybe--"
Science Nerdess interrupted Priya. "Yes, yes, okay. But enough about your speculations on Annie. What about Anita? I'm sorry, I'm not very educated when it comes to religion. Dragons don't have time for that stuff. The gods just leave us to our own devices, so we don't have to know too much about religious rituals and names, since they don't name us, anyhow. As long as we're good, the gods don't intervene. And they (usually) make sure the evil ones among us are punished."
"It's the same for us phoenixes, too," said Feathers.
"Scott never taught Theology to his children around me," said Amarantha. "That is, if he taught it at all."
"Okay, then. The name 'Anita' is a derivative of the CMN--that's 'Chosen Mortal Name'--of the goddess Annie. Her parents must not have done something as bad as our Annie's parents must have, but it still must have been pretty bad. Anitas are more easily lead into the wrong path, but they can stop being evil if they have enough willpower," said Priya.
"But are they able to relapse into evil just as easily as they went into it?" asked Science Nerdess.
"No, they resist evil as well as any other person," said Priya.
"Oh. So there's still a chance that she could be good, then," said Feathers.
"Yeah, but--we shouldn't chance it. Please, guys," said Priya.
"I don't see any other way to get to Annie's lair," said Feathers. "Besides, we shouldn't just not trust Anita because of her name! Geez, you're being really paranoid! And that coming from me, probably the most paranoid person ever, really says something."
Priya sighed. "I...guess you have a point," she said. "About the getting to Annie's lair part, I mean."
"So, let's go then!" said Amarantha.
"But wait!" said Zella. "I think we should get Annie off the boat. There's a big chance that she could already be evil, and we don't exactly need her on the boat or anything. She might sabotage our mission!"
"I guess," said Feathers. "And Anita knows about the mission and she sounded very sincere when she said that she wanted to help. I suppose she could be trying to sabotage our mission, too, but we won't get anywhere without a few risks and a boat that she has!"
"Right. So first, we get rid of Annie. And next, we go to Anilokalmosia's lair! Done and done!" said Zella. "Let's go."
The group walked off, relieved that their quandary was solved. But little did they know that someone else had been listening in on their little private conversation.

Scott and Ellie were later told what was discussed, and then Science Nerdess told Annie, "I'm sorry, Annie, but we don't know how many people this boat can hold, so we'll row across and everyone will get off, and then I'll row back to get you, okay?"

Annie looked up with watery eyes. "You mean...you're gonna leave me all alone here? I thought...I thought I could go back to my mommy..." Large tears fell down her cheeks. Science couldn't bear to look, but at the same time, she couldn't look away. Annie's eyes were almost hypnotic. "W-well...um..." Science was at a loss for words.

"Oh...um...well, I guess we could take you..." sighed Feathers. Everyone agreed, much to Priya's alarm. "But guys!" she whispered. "We can't..." Then she looked at Annie's sobbing face and relented. "Fine. We can take her," she said.

They all rowed across the river. No one said anything, and everyone was anxious to get to the lair. Suddenly, Annie said, softly, "You wanted me to not come because you were afraid, right?" 

Everyone was silent, not wanting to answer that question (and Anita and Hannah didn't really know what was going on). "You think I'm bad, right? Because my name is Annie?" Silence. "Because all Annies are bad?" 

"N-no, it's nothing like that..." said Feathers.

Annie shook her head. "No, you all think that. But you all are...absolutely right." And she gave a demonic grin. Suddenly, dark storm clouds emerged in the sky and surrounded Annie, as she floated higher and higher. And then, she turned into none other than...ANILOKALMOSIA! "Oh...I kind of forgot about the fact that if someone named Annie is a little girl with glasses and some musical instrument, then it is very likely that she is Anilokalmosia, since that's her favorite mortal-looking form..." muttered Priya.

"Ya THINK?" said Scott.

"I know what you are trying to do," boomed the goddess Annie, "BUT YOU WILL NEVER BE SUCCESSFUL!"

(So, I finally got around to using the picture from the preview of WIS #3. YAY!)

Annie stirred up a bigger storm, and lightning struck at the ocean. "YOU'LL NEVER GET OUT OF THIS ALIVE! MWAHAHAHAHAHA!" Then she made a flute appear and played a note on it. The shores of the lake suddenly filled with people who were in zombie-like stances. "SLAVES!" boomed Annie. "YOU MUSTN'T LET THESE FOOLS REACH LAND!" Then she disappeared, leaving our heroes stranded in the middle of Datwun Lake, with a storm raging over their heads.

"Holy...holy crap..." gasped Feathers. "Oh, Priya, I'm so sorry for calling you paranoid!"

"Oh no! We can't have this at all! Annie knows everything!" sobbed Ellie.
"Well, now we know that we can't risk anything," said Priya. She looked at Anita, and Anita twitched uncomfortably. "Which means, we can't trust her, either!" she said.
"But...but...why would I break your trust?!" exclaimed Anita. "I already told you, I'd have to be an idiot to mess with you guys! Sure, I'm Cursed, but--"
"Yeah, we can't," said Science Nerdess, ignoring Anita. "So, here's what we'll do: Priya and Maddie can ride either me, Amarantha, or Feathers, and we'll all fly to the island--the storm seems to have subsided now--and Scott will stay here with Anita. Wow, that was a fast storm." The clouds had cleared up, and it was sunny again.
"What? Are you saying that you still don't trust me?!" asked Scott.
"No, but we need someone on the boat to watch this...this criminal-to-be (if she isn't a criminal already)," said Feathers. "Let's go, guys." And they flew off.
"So, uh...anything ya wanna talk about...?" asked Scott.
"This crap always happens," grumbled Anita.
"Huh?" asked Scott.
"You know, the whole deal with my name and all. Just because of some shit my parents did. Why the hell do I have to be Cursed? They're the ones who made the fucking [and now this post is officially rated PG-13!] mistake...why should I be punished?" Anita sighed. "No one trusts me. I've always been a good-for-nothing...and I always will be, in everyone's eyes."

"Seriously! I know good from bad, and even before I became evil, I--"

"Wait...you're saying that you actually are evil?" gasped Scott. "Geez, did you fail Villain 101 or something? You had a great sympathy act going for you there, but then you blew it and said you were actually evil! Take it from me, a retired bad guy--"

"No, no, no! I'm not evil anymore! I just gave up and succumbed to my 'destiny' when I was 13...my best friend had already turned evil, everyone was treating me like a criminal, and I was getting visions of the goddess Annie persuading me to turn to the dark side..."

"Yeesh, that's a lot of pressure!"

"Yeah, the friggin' Cursed punishment system just makes more people bad! The gods, though, don't realize it." Anita sighed. "It's just frustrating. At least I'm not evil anymore, and I don't have to worry about my cruddy 'destiny'...but I do have to worry about other judgemental people." She paused. "Wait, what did you mean by saying that you were a 'retired bad guy'?"

Now it was Scott's turn to sigh. "I was greedy. Really, really greedy. I killed off people when my coffin-making business slowed, and tried to stop Science Nerdess and Feathers and Zella from curing people with their little clinic. I got knighted by the king so that I could slay Science."

"But they trust you. Why?"

"Oh, believe me, they didn't at first. In fact, I came back to exact revenge, and they tried to get rid of me by making my own wife get rid of me...it's a long story."

Anita shrugged. "We've got all day. I mean, I'm not going anywhere." She laughed bitterly.

Scott explained everything that happened in the previous WISes, and you all know what happened then, so we'll just skip that part.
Meanwhile, Science Nerdess, Feathers, Amarantha, Priya, Maddie, Ellie, and Hannah had landed on the island. The slaves had dispersed, seeing that they couldn't block people who were already on the island from going onto the island, and the group walked through a peaceful neighborhood. "Where would a key be?" asked Ellie.
"Undew the sofa?" suggested Hannah.
"No, no, sweetheart, not our keys...the key to Scadoosh's cage," said Ellie.
"Oh," said Hannah.
"Where does Annie live?" asked Science.
"At that creepy looking house-mansion thing with all the hypnotized people blocking the entrance?" suggested Amarantha.
"Ha! That's got to be it!" said Maddie. "Anilokalmosia can hypnotize people with her flute, and those people look like people who have been hypnotized by her."
"Let's go then!" said Feathers. And the group walked towards the mansion. Feathers almost rang the doorbell, but then stopped herself. "How do we get inside?" asked Feathers. "Sorry, I'm no good at the whole 'busting into stranger's houses' thing. I am a phoenix who lives in a land that hasn't progressed since the medieval times. I think if I did bust into a house, people would try to capture me just to see if they can get good luck."
"Haven't you watched any movies? We bust in through the window!" said Priya.
"Um, what part of 'I live in a land that hasn't progressed since the Medieval Times' don't you understand?" asked Feathers.
"Oh...I, uh, forgot about that part," said Priya.
"Besides, aren't we supposed to be secretive? A window breaking is pretty loud," said Amarantha.
"But...I want a cool entrance!" whined Priya.
"Sorry, Priya, but we're going to have to sneak in," said Science Nerdess. Amarantha nudged the window pane with her horn. "Whoa, it's loose!" she exclaimed.
"SHHHH!" said everyone else.
"Oops...sorry," said Amarantha. "But, the window's loose. Should I open it?"
"Of course," said Feathers.
Amarantha wiggled the window with her horn, and Zella pulled it off. Everyone crawled into the window and walked into a living room with threadbare furniture and cobwebs everywhere. "Huh. Looks like no one's home..." said Amarantha.
"...Or has been for a long time," said Zella, anxiously. "Where is Annie?"
"A portal! Where's a portal? Or an elevator, at least?" asked Priya. "There's got to be a portal in this home to her lair." Everyone looked around, and as Science Nerdess turned, her unwieldy tail knocked into a bookcase, which slid open to reveal an elevator.

"That must be the elevator that leads to Annie's lair!" gasped Priya. Hannah giggled. "I wanna push the button!" she shrieked, and she...pushed the button, obviously, before anyone could stop her. (Not that anyone wanted to.) The elevator opened, and the group walked inside. The elevator was surprisingly roomy enough that the whole group could fit comfortably in their natural sizes. There were only two buttons: One that said "Ground Floor" and another that said "Lair." Amarantha pushed the button that said "Lair," and the elevator whooshed up.

***

"I think that cloud looks like...a dinosaur with a hammer," said a bored Anita.

"That cloud looks like a coffin!" said Scott.

"And that cloud looks like a car."

"Ooh, that cloud looks like another coffin!"

"And that cloud is a flying elephant."

"And that cloud is also a coffin!"

"...Scott. Those clouds don't look anything like coffins!"

"They do to me!"

Anita laughed. "Gosh, you see coffins everywhere, don't you?"

Scott shrugged. "Hey, I'm--er, was--a coffin maker. What more do you expect?"

"You've got a point," said Anita, as she turned to look out at the lake. Then, she saw a figure sail closer and closer until she could see that the figure was a rather chubby, dark-skinned, curly-haired girl who was fishing.

(Ack, she actually looks like another, curlier and longer haired version of Anita with square-ish glasses! Ugh...I'm not good at varying facial structures, especially on Paint.)

"So, why are you fishing then?" asked Anita. The girl turned and looked surprised. "Oh! I didn't notice you there," she said. "I'm fishing because it seemed like fun, and my dad forced me, too. Of course, he didn't come with me...and now I'm stuck doing this stupid sport that's so primitive! Why fish when you can get perfectly good fish at the market?!" She suddenly interrupted herself. "Ack, where are my manners? Lost with my patience, I bet. Heh. Anyway, my name's Jessica. What's yours?"

Scott said, "I'm Scott! The coffin maker!"

"Ex-coffin maker," reminded Anita.

"Don't be ludicrous, dear Anita!" said Scott. "I'm still a coffin maker in spirit!"

"You're a coffin maker? Cool!" said Jessica. "How about you?" she asked Anita. Anita stared at her, suspiciously. "Is your name really Jessica?"

"Yeah...why?"

"Well, you have the CMN of a good goddess, and people with CMNs of good goddesses aren't usually so snarky about their parents...and people like that. And they don't complain. They're practically angels."

"Damn...you're good!" said Jessica. 

"Heh, thanks," said Anita. "So, what's your name, really?"

"I never said I was lying about my name," said Jessica. Anita and Scott looked at Jessica, perplexed. Jessica leaned forward and whispered, "I'm the Goddess of Wisdom. Don't believe me? Here's my business card."

"Why in heck do gods have business cards?" asked Scott.

Jessica shrugged. "It comes with the job. Oh, and it's legit, too. Just ask it a question and it will say the answer."

"Um, okay," said Anita. "What's my name?"

"Anita," said the card. "Derivative of the Chosen Mortal Name of--"

"Yes, yes, I know that!" said Anita. "I don't need to hear it!"

"Heh. The card does tend to give too much info a lot of the time," said Jessica.

"So you really are Jesiackazysofiarti!" said Scott.

"SHHH! Not so loud!" said Jessica. "I don't want other gods knowing I'm here."

"What, you can't interact with lowly ghosts who have sinned and Cursed people?" asked Scott.

"No, it's just that the gods have this stupid rule in their rulebook that says that gods can't interact with mortals for casual conversation," said Jessica. "It's really stupid. Sometimes, I want to escape my godly responsibilities and just act like a mortal!"

"Wait...gods have rules?" asked Scott.

"Yup," sighed Jessica. "I didn't make 'em. They were made eons before I was born! And I'm pretty old."

"Do gods get...punished?" asked Anita.

"Naw, just shunned for a bit, excluded from Godly Meetings, stuff like that," said Jessica. "Though I suppose it wouldn't make much of a difference if I was excluded from the meetings...no one listens to me, anyhow."

"But you're the Goddess of Wisdom!" said Anita. "Why wouldn't they listen to you?"

"They're a lot of old farts, the lot of them," shrugged Jessica. "I'm too young, apparently--why are you guys looking at me as if I've said something blasphemous?"

"It's weird that you talk about your...colleagues?...that way," said Scott.

"Meh. This mortal incarnation is so different from my godly form that no one would pay attention to me talking, anyhow," shrugged Jessica. "That's why I'm using this incarnation, by the way." She sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just bitter. I suggested for the ten millionth time for the gods to trash the whole Blessed-Cursed reward-punishment system--because, seriously, parents who are good only have their children rewarded and bad parents only have their children punished through the system--but they're all like, 'It's tradition! We can't get rid of it! You're young, Jessica. You don't understand.' But I'm, like, fifteen million years old--no, that's not an exaggeration--and I think I know unfairness when I see it!"

"I, for one, completely agree with you," said Anita. "Wow, I thought no gods thought to get rid of the system! My faith in you guys is restored!"

"But...they're good gods! They're supposed to be good and fair!" said Scott.

"Oh, they try their hardest," said Jessica. "But they aren't perfect. They screw up. And they're real pigheaded. I swear, sometimes it seems like the only difference between them and the bad gods is that bad gods treat each other and mortals way worse!" She cleared her throat. "But that's enough about me. What about you guys?"

"Oh, nothing but the usual," sighed Anita. 

"Science Nerdess, Feathers, Amarantha, Zella, and the others decided not to trust her after they found out that Priya was right about suspecting Annie. They figured she was right about Anita, too," said Scott.

"Ack, why are we gods only allowed to help people by giving cryptic hints?!" sighed Jessica. 

"Oh, speaking of cryptic hints, what did you mean when you said we'd get help from an unexpected place?" asked Scott.

"Oh! Well, that's easy enough to explain. I meant--" Jessica was interrupted by a rustle in the bushes. A brown haired woman darted away. Jessica became uneasy. She whispered, "Um...I can't say. Ya know, rulebook and all. I'm already risking a lot just by talking to you guys. I think that girl that just rushed out was a certain goddess...Hopefully, she and the rest of the gods will be none the wiser."

"Who made those rules, anyway?" asked Anita.

"I wonder what the others are up to..." thought Scott, aloud.

"I have a feeling they'll be just fine," said Jessica. Then she added, ominously, "For now."

***

The elevator halted. "We're...here?" asked Amarantha. "That was fast."

Priya shuddered. "I'm not looking forward to seeing her lair," she said. "I've heard it's absolutely creepy!"

"Well, Annie is evil," said Science Nerdess.

"What the...it's not ugly at all!" gasped Maddie, seeing the lair after the elevator doors opened. "It's...it's beautiful!" Everyone turned and gaped at the soft, pink cloud floor and the rainbow sky and the chocolate water fountains and the pretty pink bunnies that leapt about. "A-are we in the right place?" asked Feathers.

"It's possible that the button labeled 'Lair' lead us to the wrong lair..." suggested Science. "This place looks too much like...like heaven!" 

"I wouldn't put that past a goddess of deception..." Zella started, but then interrupted herself. "Goddess of Deception! Of course!"

"What are you talking about, Zella?" asked Feathers.

"Oh! I think I know!" said Ellie. "Annie is the Goddess of Deception...so maybe the heavenly look of her lair is a deception?"

"Exactly!" said Zella. 

"Do you know any spells that dispel illusions, Zella?" asked Priya.

"Do I?" said Zella. "I know plenty!" She then took out her wand and chanted, "Let what is false be gone and let what is true be revealed, while letting no acid rain fall and no apples be peeled!"

"'Let...no apples be peeled'? The hell?" said Amarantha.

"It's not the strangest spell in existence, believe it or not," said Zella.

"Now that's what I thought Annie's lair would look like!" said Feathers.

"Oh, no! The bunnies awe aww big, mean monstews!" cried Hannah.

"Ew! A river of blood!" said Maddie.

Suddenly, the group heard an angry, booming voice. "FOOLS! What do you think you're doing in my lair?"

Everyone looked up to see Anilokalmosia sauntering up towards them. She snapped her fingers and the flames died down, and then she beckoned her rabbit-monster...thing over while she sat down away from the blood river.

"S-so what if we are?" stuttered Amarantha.

"All I'm saying is that it's totally fruitless," said Annie. "You have all the right intentions, I'm sure, but it'll never work. Just...trust...me..." Her voice became slower and sweeter, and the group found themselves relaxing. "You should--all go--back--since--it's--useless--try-ing to--res-cue--"

"WAIT! SHE'S TRYING TO HYPNOTIZE US!" yelled Priya, snapping everyone out of their daze.

"Holy smokes, batman! You're right!" gasped Feathers. 

"Who's Batman?" asked Amarantha.

"I...don't know, I just heard the phrase 'Holy smokes, Batman' used before, so I decided to use it," said Feathers.

"You guys don't know who Batman is?" gasped Priya. "How do you not know--"

"SILENCE!" boomed Annie. "Why you're all talking about a fictional man who goes around at night dressed as a bat is beyond me. BUT ANYWAY. Yes, I was trying to hypnotize you...damn your theology classes. If only we didn't have mandatory schooling...then I can rule the world! MWAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"Heyyy...the deal was that we would rule the world together!" said a voice.

Everyone turned to see a scowling muscular woman in blood-spattered armor with arrows and guns.

"Of course we'll rule the world together, Jen...that's what I meant!" said Annie.

"Oh? Then why did you say I rather than we?" asked the very angry Jennifer.

"Slip of the tongue," said Annie. "I apologize. But we won't get to rule anything if these insolent mortals get the key to Scadoosh's cave!"

"Pfft. Why didn't you ask for me before? I'll show these little twerps who's boss around here." Jennifer cracked her knuckles, a vile, atrocious sound to Science's dragon ears. "ZOMBIE SLAVES! GATHER AROUND!"

"Why didn't I think of calling my slaves?" muttered Annie, as zombies surrounded our unfortunate heroes.

"But we're immortal!" said Amarantha. "You can't kill us!"

"Maybe I can't," said Jennifer. "But I can hurt you. ZOMBIE SLAVES! TRY TO KILL THEM!"

"Braiiiins..." said the zombie slaves.

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Goodness, at this rate, I'll be finished with college and not have this WIS finished! (I hope that's not the case...college and graduate school are a loooong eight years.) Anyway, I figured you all would want to see the progress of this WIS, so here it is!

Another note: I'm probably not going to be blogging again until December or January. It's not that I don't love you all, it's that I'm going through the arduous process of COLLEGE APPS and I will not have time at ALL. I've heard that the first semester of senior year is hell (even more so than junior year!) so there's no way I'm going to be able to blog! :(

See you in December! :)

WIS #3.2: Goddesses, the Land of Nowhere, and to Trust or Not to Trust?

And now I have brought myself to continue the last WIS!
(Sorry about the weird name, by the way. I just couldn't think of a better title.)
BUT BEFORE THAT! The Goddess of Wisdom, Sheilsophinacaneia, has had a name change because...I wanted her too. Her new name is Jesiackazysofiarti. (Isn't that a mouthful? Or ten?)
And all the goddesses have colloquial nicknames that the goddesses use to address each other. (Lower beings also use these nicknames, but never to address the goddesses.) The names (mostly) come from their real names. The parts of their names that contain their nicknames (or something close to their nicknames) are italicized.
Scadoosh = Scadoosh, because it's not that hard or tiring to say. But goddesses like to get creative. So she's called Bruce, Alaura, or Lola.
Jesiackazysofiarti = Jessica or Sophia
Anilokalmosia = Annie
Jenisifiodincneiwa = Jennifer or Jenny
Marryahlagumpideya (she's a new goddess) = Maria or Mary
Crisstareenaywebdermotti (also a new goddess) = Christina or Christi or Christine
Now that that's settled, happy reading!
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"I can't believe we actually helped punish you for something you didn't do, Scott!" exclaimed Priya when she found out about what the group had learned about Scott from Scott and Scadoosh.
"It's not your fault. It's that girl who I thought was my very sweet daughter..." fumed Scott.
"Don't worry, Scott! We'll find Emily and make her pay! And we'll free Scadoosh, too!" promised Feathers.
"I sure hope we know where we're going..." mumbled Zella. The group looked at where they were. But it definitely was not the island below Annie's lair, which was where the old map said they were.

"Um, you're in the middle of Nowhere, to be precise," said a strange voice.

"Well, we can see that," said Maddie, "but where? And who are you?"

"I just told you where. You're in the land of Nowhere. Nothing happens here. What I'd like to know is what all of you are doing down here?"

"We're, um..." "Uh..." "I think..." "Why do you want to know anyway?" Everyone tried to answer at once, but no one was sure whether to say where they were really going. "I'm just curious, that's all! No need to get all worried or anything. If you don't want to talk about something, you don't have to! By the way, that looks like a really old map..." noted the girl, the owner of the voice.

"Oh, that's the map that the Gwate Goddess of White Magic Scadoosh gave us! We'we going to Aniwokaw...Annie's home to twy and get the keys to set the the goddess fwee!" explained Hannah, before anyone could stop her.

"Oh, I see. But what are you guys doing here? Annie's lair is to the east of here," said the girl. "And Scadoosh is imprisoned? That's...bad," said the girl, surprised.

"Why are you so calm?" asked Feathers.

"The only way to solve this problem is to be calm," replied the girl, coolly. "You ended up in this place because you panicked." She took the map. "You probably got lost because you were so worried about getting to the lair on time. But, honestly, time hasn't got much to do with your rate of success anyway. It doesn't matter when you get to the lair; you've got to get there."

"What do you mean, 'it's wrong'? And how would you know where the lair is, anyway?" asked Feathers.

"Well, I've been invited there by Annie because she wanted to lure me over to the dark side. Intelligence can be used for evil...Oh, and I forgot to introduce myself! Where are my manners?! Anyway, I'm Jessica, the Goddess of Intelligence."

"JESIACKAZYSOFIARTI?" exclaimed everyone, as they bowed.

"Oh, there's no need for that," said the goddess. "Just call me Jessica. It's easier."

"Are you going to help us?" asked Maddie.

"Oh, I'd love to, but I can't. But I can tell you one thing. You will get help from a person you wouldn't expect help from. Sorry I can't help anymore than that. There's so much stuff to do, including another Good Goddess Convention, where we ponder about what to do about poor Bruce. I think I should just be allowed to help you guys, but I've got to attend another pointless meeting." She sighed. "So, yeah. I've got to go, now! And I'll correct this old map for you." She waved her hand, and sparkles flew onto the paper. "There. It's all fixed. So, bye!"

"BYE!" everyone exclaimed, as Jessica disappeared with a flash of light.

"Why do all the goddesses get such cool exits?" complained Priya. "I wish we could have cool exits." 

Amarantha agreed. "I, for one, would love to be able to disappear like the Cheshire Cat, except my cool new horn would be the last to disappear. Having the grin be the last to disappear would be just creepy."

"I wonder what Jessica meant by 'You will get help from a person you wouldn't expect help from,'" mused Ellie.

"Maybe she's referring to Scott?" suggested Feathers.

"ARE YOU SUGGESTING THAT I'M UNEXPECTED HELP?" boomed Scott. "I am upset at this revelation."

"Exactly! Why would she tell us about Scott's help? We know that already. That's not new information," said Science Nerdess.

"Meh...we'll find out later, I guess. Now let's go!" said Priya, and the group valiantly trekked [I like that word. Though I have no idea if I'm using it right.] on to find Anilokalmosia's lair.

Soon, the group found that they were running out of supplies, namely food. They stopped by a port city to restock. "According to the revised map," noted Science Nerdess, "we have to get to the middle of Datwun Lake to get to the island of Anilokalmosia."

"What a very specific name," snorted Scott. "'That One Lake'? Any lake could be called that!"

"Not 'That One Lake,' Scott. Datwun Lake. D-A-T-W-U-N. Datwun," explained Science Nerdess.

"The two are too close for my liking," said Scott. "It could be a respelling for all I know."

"Well, now we've got to get some boat...and someone to steer it. Do any of you people know how to steer boats?" asked Feathers. Everyone said "no" in some way. "Let's get food first," suggested Zella, and the group headed to the General Store of the port city (disguising first, of course). While the others went off in search of supplies, Priya and Feathers stayed behind. "So, what do you want to do?" asked Priya.

"I dunno. Hey, let's check out those books over there--" Feathers was interrupted by a yell.

"AAAAUUUGHH!"

Priya and Feathers looked to see the source of the noise.

Priya helped the girl put the books back on the bookshelf. "Thank you!" said the girl, smiling. "I don't know how it happened. I was just pulling out books and then WHAM! All of these books were on top of me! Gosh, I'm such a klutz."

"Haha, so am I," said Priya. "So, do you like to read?"

"Do I?! I love reading!" said the girl.

"What's your name, by the way?" asked Priya. "I'm Priya."

"Hi Priya," she replied. "I'm...my name is..." She hesitated, then added in a whisper, "Anita." Priya wasn't sure why the girl was whispering her name or why she hesitated before saying it. Maybe that was a fake name, thought Priya, suspiciously. But that didn't matter. She just needed something to call the girl by, and "Anita" would just have to do. But there was something about the name that didn't feel quite right...

"So, what are you getting?" asked Anita.

"Huh?"

"You know, from the store?"

"Oh! Right." Priya grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. I was kind of lost in my own thoughts."

Anita laughed. "It's fine."

"My friends and I are getting supplies for our, uh, journey."

"A journey? How fun! Where to?"

"Um..." Priya paused. "To a friend's relative's place. It's on an island in Datwun Lake."

"Gee, that relative must be really brave! Or maybe one of Annie's slaves--but I hope that's not true!" said Anita.

"Yeah, my friend has, uh, been trying to get her to move out, you see, but she doesn't listen. That's why we're all going together...yeah. Yeah, that's it." 

Anita looked at her suspiciously. "You know, you suck at lying."

(That was my attempt at a "Well, crap" face. It failed.)

"Hi, there," said Anita to Feathers. Talking animals were quite common on the island and pretty much everywhere in the planet, so Feathers didn't shock Anita. "Hi, I'm Feathers!" said Feathers.

"Nice to meet you!" grinned Anita. She then turned to Priya and said, "So, can you tell me the real reason now?"

"Okay, fine. The thing is...we have to free Scadoosh from a prison that Anilokalmosia made with the help of Jenisifidincneiwa..."

"Oh, wow! Dangit, why didn't you tell that the first time? What time did this happen?"

"Um...in the...morning? Why?"

"Don't you know that if a god or goddess cannot go to his or her lair within four hours, he or she loses his or her powers and becomes mortal?"

"Oh, yeah! Gosh, I forgot! Gah...it's been so long since I've taken a theology class...oh, darn these budget cuts!" 

"...I thought they were still teaching theology? At least, they still are at my school."

"Well, um..." Priya lowered her voice. "I'm an elf from Renardiyet, and--"

"Oh, I see what you mean. I've heard the budget cuts are pretty bad. But what are we waiting around here for? Don't you have to get to Annie's lair?"

"The problem is we don't have a boat or anything!"

"I have a boat...I guess I could row you there."

"Well, then, what are we waiting for? We've got a goddess to save!"

The rest of the group gathered together as Priya introduced Anita to everyone. "She has a boat that can take us to Annie's lair!"

"That's great!" said Science Nerdess. "Let's go, then!"

"Whoa, hooold up a sec," said Scott. "How do we know we can trust her? My own daughter wasn't worthy of my trust; how can we be sure she is?"
"You're forgetting who she'd be messing with if she was to break our trust," said Zella, menacingly.

"Seriously. She's dealing with phoenixes (yours truly), witches, dragons, unicorns, and elves...she'd be a fool if she wanted to mess with us!" said Feathers.

"Whoa, so you guys are magical creatures?" gasped Anita. "Heh, I wasn't going to mess with you guys anyway, but that would give me much less incentive to try and trick you!"

"Well put," said Amarantha.

As the group strolled out, Zella saw a young, forlorn, bespectacled elementary school girl holding a clarinet case. 

"What's the matter, little girl?" asked Zella. "You look sad."

"W-well," blubbered the girl, "My mommy didn't come to pick me up a-and it's been two hours...and n-now I'm sc-scared!"

"Aw, don't worry, we'll take you home!" said Amarantha. "Where do you live?"

"There," said the girl, pointing one chubby finger to the island of Anilokalmosia's lair. "I don't understand why people live there," whispered Priya. "Are you sure we can trust a girl whose parents are probably Anilokalmosia's slaves?"

Ignoring Priya, Zella asked, "And what's your name?"

"I'm Annie," said the girl. "But can you really take me home?"

"Sure! Why not?" said Science Nerdess. As the group walked on toward Anita's boat, Maddie stayed behind and told Priya to do the same. "What happened?" asked Priya.

Maddie took out a book of names. "There's something really weird about the name 'Annie' that just makes me worried. Gods, if only I could remember theology class..."

"What does theology class have to--"

"Oh gods, I was right! Listen here," said Maddie as she read aloud, "Annie: The Chosen Mortal Name of the Goddess of Seduction, Deceit, and Hypnotism. Persons cursed with this name are doomed to a life of evil."

"Aw, fudge nuts! I forgot all about the curses!" said Priya. "How did I forget that people can be cursed or blessed depending on whether they are named the CMN or a derivative [math, yay!] of the CMN of a god or goddess?!"

"I think we'd better warn the others," said Maddie.

"Wait, can I see that book?"

"Um, sure," said Maddie, handing the book over to Priya. Priya flipped through and suddenly said, "Oh, crap! Maddie, look what I found!" 

Maddie looked at what Priya was pointing at and gasped.

Anita: A derivative of the Chosen Mortal Name of Anilokalmosia, the Goddess of Seduction, Deceit, and Hypnotism. Persons cursed with this name are doomed to become evil at some point in their lives, but they can become good again with much effort.

"Crud," said Maddie. "We've really got to warn the others!"

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Oh no! Will Maddie and Priya warn the others in time? Or will something terrible happen first? Stay tuned, and please, do comment!

WIS #2: The Return of the Greedy Knight's Ghost

Hello, all! I'M SO SORRY FOR BEING AWOL...again! I was in Houston for the International Space Settlement Design Competition, and my school WON!!! YAYYYYYYYY! AND I GOT MY BRACES OFF! PLUS IT'S MY BIRTHDAY! So, in honor of my birthday, I bring to you my next WIS! Consider this a gift from me to you on my birthday--wait, something's not right here. I thought it was supposed to be the other way around...*scratches head*
Anyway, for those of you who do not know, a WIS is a Weekly Illustrated Story. Today's story is a continuation of the last WIS. Scott's ghost has returned!
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It was an ordinary day in Science Nerdess's cave. Science Nerdess, Feathers, Amarantha, and Zella were enjoying themselves. "I love days like this," sighed Zella. "Days when we can just kick back, relax, and do absolutely nothing."
"Isn't it just great?" grinned Feathers.
"Ahhhhh," said Science Nerdess.
"Um, you guys, I have a really bad feeling..." warned Amarantha.
"About what?" asked Science Nerdess.
"I dunno," said Amarantha. "But something bad's going to happen. I can feel it."
"Oh, Amar, you're just being paranoid!" laughed Feathers. "What could go wrong?" Whoosh! All of a sudden, the four felt a draft. "I shouldn't have said that, right?" asked Feathers.
"I believe so," agreed Science Nerdess.
"Oh dear," said Feathers.
"AUUUUUGGGGHHH OMIGOD IT'S A GHOST!!!" Zella shrieked. Everyone else stared at what Zella was pointing to. It was indeed a ghost, a ghost of --
"Scott? B-b-but...you're supposed to be dead!" gasped Amarantha.

(He's not supposed to have legs. I know.)

"Well, I am here...to seek my revenge!" yelled the ghost of Scott, the coffin maker. "AND I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!!!" The foursome gasped in unison as Scott whipped out his blade, and Scott proceeded to try and stab Science Nerdess. He drove the sword into her heart and then...
Nothing.
Science Nerdess was still alive. Not a drop of blood leaked out. "Uhhh, can someone explain what just happened?" asked Feathers.
"Of course!" exclaimed Science Nerdess. "He's using a ghost sword, so it, like other ghostly objects and, well, ghosts in general, passed right through me because it's not solid!"
"FINE THEN!" yelled Scott, exasperated. "I'll use a real sword!" But there wasn't a real sword around. "Well," sputtered Scott,"I'll just...annoy you?"
So, in that short while, Scott was upgraded on the foursome's Mental Threat List from "Eliminated" to "Major Threat" and then downgraded to "Minor Threat/Annoyance."  But being annoyed is never fun, so Science Nerdess asked Zella, "Do you know how to get rid of ghosts?"
Zella checked her spell book. "Oh, there's a spell for that! But it's got weird ingredients that I don't have!"
"Oh no!" sighed Feathers.
"Let's hear them," said Amarantha.
Zella read the ingredients:

"Oh, why do spell books have to be so...so equivocal about their ingredients?!" said Science Nerdess.

"I guess we'd better get a move on if we're going to get rid of Scott..." noted Amarantha.

"YOU'LL NEVER GET RID OF ME!!! NEV--" Scott was then encased in a glass cylinder that he couldn't seem to get out of. "It's a Temporary Ghost-Holding Container," explained Zella. "It won't work after 24 hours, though. And now, we'll all need disguises!"

"I can disguise as a bird," said Feathers.

"I can be a lizard," said Science Nerdess.

"I can disguise as a normal, non-magic bearing 20-year-old," said Zella.
"And I...will be a non-talking horse!" said Amarantha.
"Okay, we're set. Let's go!" said Zella.

Meanwhile, at Av Ruj High, Priya walked over to the cafeteria. But she stopped and looked around worriedly. All clear. She continued to advance toward the eating hall. 

"Hey, look! Here comes the shorty!" sneered Gary the bully. His posse laughed as Gary singlehandedly pinned Priya against the wall. "Let me go! Leave me alone!" But Priya knew her cries were in vain. It was at times like this when Priya wondered where the H E double hockey sticks the teachers were when stuff like this happened. "I think that money is a little heavy for you, shrimp," remarked Gary, fishing Priya's lunch money out of her pocket. How childish. You'd think they'd have advanced from stealing lunch money after graduating from elementary school, but NOOOO. Still, Priya was glad that Gary stole her lunch money as opposed to stealing her hat. Her hat was very important to her.

Gary dropped Priya with a thud. "Time to find other shrimps to fry," smirked Gary, and he and his posse went away. Priya sighed and slunk off to the cafeteria where she saw her friend Maddie waiting for her. "Hi Priya!" said Maddie, cheerfully.

"Hey."

"Did Gary and his gang get to your lunch money again?"

"Yup."

"Here, I bought an extra lunch for you!" Maddie gestured at the lunch. Priya grinned. Maddie was so thoughtful. "I'm glad I didn't run into those guys today. Yesterday was a nightmare," remarked Maddie. Maddie had been locked into her locker for an hour before the janitor got her out. Priya wished she could have been at school to help Maddie, but she had been sick. 

Finally half-an-hour passed, and lunch ended. Priya and Maddie walked back to school.

...

Maddie and Priya were walking home three hours later. "I hope we get home before--" Priya was interrupted by Gary the bully. "Do you shrimps need me to help you carry some of your stuff?" He pointed at Maddie's hat. "How about that hat?" He reached for it, and Maddie held her hat down with her hands. Priya then kicked Gary in his, uh...groin. "YOU LITTLE...OOOH,YOU'RE GONNA GET IT!," yelled a reddened Gary. 

"Hey, pick on someone your own size, you bully!" Gary, Priya, and Maddie  turned towards the voice and saw that it came from a female human on a horse with a purple lizard and a red sparrow and a peculiar container. "Oh, yeah? What are ya gonna do if I don't, huh?" said Gary. All of a sudden, the sparrow turned into a phoenix and the lizard turned into a dragon, and the lady turned into a witch. Gary gasped. "OH MY...IT'S A DRAGON AND A PHOENIX AND A WITCH!!! MOMMYYYY!" He ran all the way home.

"Thank you! That hat is very important to me," said Maddie, after everyone introduced themselves.

"But what's so important about a hat?" asked Amarantha.

"Well, it..." Priya lowered her voice. "It disguises us. Makes us look human, albeit short humans."

"So...what are you really?" asked Zella, whispering as well.

"We're elves, from Renadiyet--Elflandia in English."

"But, doesn't Renadiyet have schools of its own?" asked Feathers.

"Well, yes, but the school districts have a paucity of money," said Maddie.

"Eh?" asked Amarantha.

"You know...budget cuts! So only Elfish and Magics can be taught there. So all the elf students go to human schools. One to three elfs go to each human school that's nearby so that we're not conspicuous." Maddie sighed. "I miss having school in Renadiyet. The humans are so mean."

"Well, humans can be mean," admitted Science Nerdess.

"Hey! I'd like to think that I'm not mean," objected Zella.

"But, uh, you don't count," stammered Maddie.

"I'm still human..."

"But don't humans treat you like you're different, even though you're human?"

"Humans who don't have magical abilities, yes."

"Yeah. So I meant humans without magical abilities. Yeah, um, exactly. SOOO...why are you guys here? Dragons, witches, phoenixes and talking horses aren't all that common in this part of the human land."

"We have to collect items for a spell to get rid of that ghost." Feathers pointed to the jar with Scott in it. "And we need 'a flower as light as the lightest day.'"

"How about the Olyreatixsoliz? It's Elfish for 'light flower.' Not only is it light in color, but it also glows in the dark! You can use it as a flashlight," suggested Priya. "We can take you there!"

"That would be wonderful!" said Zella. "Would you?"

"Of course!" grinned Priya, and the now sextet ventured off to Renadiyet.

...

"HALT!" The sextet were stopped by muscular guardselves. "Non-elves may not enter! Send the non-elves to the place of the Beast!"

Zella gasped. "Not the Beast!"

"What's the Beast?" asked Feathers and Science Nerdess at the same time.

"It's a terrifying creature that eats everything in its path!" Feathers and Science Nerdess gulped. 

"No! They're with us!" Priya stepped in from of Feathers, Science Nerdess, Zella, and Amarantha. The guardself sighed. "Drat, I wanted to feed someone to the beast. Maybe some other day..." The guards grumbled and walked away. 

"Phew, that was close! I thought we were goners!" breathed Science Nerdess.

"Well, you're safe now," grinned Priya. 

"Thank you!" said a grateful Feathers.

"D'aw, it was the least we could do. Now let's go!" Maddie ran, and the rest of the sextet followed. Maddie stopped at a meadow full of yellow and white flowers. "How many do you need?" asked Maddie. There was no answer. Everyone was too busy gawking at the beautiful flowers.

(Okay, they don't look fantastic...but just use your imagination, okay? Okay. Moving on...)

"We need just one," said Zella, breaking the silence. "Would there happen to be a feather as dark as the darkest night?"

"I just remembered something!" grinned Feathers. "If you shine one of those...O-lee-ree-a-thingies on a phoenix's feather, it turns completely black!" She plucked out a feather and squeezed the Olyreatixsoliz, which then glowed with a bright white light. The feather darkened. "Our second ingredient," Feathers declared.

"Well, that was convenient," remarked Zella, slipping the feather and the flower into her pocket.

"Unfortunately, the next ingredient isn't going to be so easy to come across," remarked Science Nerdess, worriedly clutching a map. "We're going to be confronted by a troll, who guards the volcano full of lava, the hot liquid we seek!"

"Since we don't have anything to do, can we come with you?" asked Priya. "Pleeeeease?"

Science Nerdess, Amarantha, Feathers, and Zella looked at each other and shrugged. "Sure," said Feathers. "We'd love to have you!"

And so the sextet ventured off to the troll's volcano. And when they got there, the troll jumped right up and said, "You can't cross this bridge across the volcano or get the lava...unless you answer a riddle!"

"Awww, do we have to?" asked Amarantha, before anyone could shush her.

"Ya know what? I don't really feel like asking a riddle today. You can grab as much lava as you like!" 

"Wow! That's...great, and awful generous of you, Mr. Troll," remarked Amarantha. But suddenly, the troll pushed her in! "OOPS. Heh heh," snickered the troll as he walked away.

Zella pinned the troll down as Priya and Maddie punched him and Feathers swooped down to catch her. The volcano then started to rumble. "Oh gosh, where's Feathers?!!" exclaimed somebody.

"SHE'S IN THE VOLCANO!!!"

"Save yourselves!" yelled Feathers. "Save yourselves!" And the volcano exploded and sent everyone running/flying.

(Not drawn to scale)

The volcano finally settled and Science Nerdess collected some of the lava. "Oh, I feel so horrible!" sighed Amarantha. "Had I not complained about the troll's challenge, Feathers wouldn't have had to sacrifice her life for mine! OH, I'M SO SELFISH!!!" And she sobbed. Everyone else mourned the loss of Feathers and comforted Amarantha. "It wasn't your fault," said Science Nerdess. "It's because of troll. How do such evil monsters exist?!" She sighed. "Feathers was a great creature."

"Alas, yes," agreed Zella. "She was very noble and brave." Even Priya and Maddie, who barely knew Feathers, shed some tears. "She was so kind!" exclaimed Priya.

"Huh. This isn't quite watching my own funeral, but it's pretty close. It's nice to know that I have friends who care."

"FEATHERS???" Everyone turned around to see Feathers, looking like herself except, well, younger. "Yup, it's me," she grinned. "That volcano explosion takes care of my spontaneous combustion problem for another 1000 years." Amarantha jumped onto Feathers and everyone else followed suit, hugging and laughing and crying, all at once.

"Okay, guys, it's time to get the final ingredient," said Feathers. "What was it, again?"

"'A powerful specter to mix them all together' apparently," said Zella. "But what powerful specter would help us kill a fellow ghost?!"

"Well, ghosts are already dead...so we wouldn't be killing him, really..." volunteered Amarantha. 

"AHAHAHAHAHA! It's not going to be so easy eliminating me, is it now?" jeered Scott.

"Shaddup, Scott," said Feathers. "But let's go to the graveyard. Maybe if we beg enough..." And the sextet went off to the local graveyard. "It's creepy here," shuddered Priya.

"Well, it's a graveyard. I'd be worried if it wasn't creepy," remarked Zella. "Anyway, let's find us a powerful ghost."

(She's bored, not angry.)

Everyone turned to face the ghost. "Well, um..." stammered Science Nerdess.

"What makes you think we want the services of the ghost? Maybe we just want to...talk to her?" said Zella, somewhat defiantly.

"Yeah, what she said," agreed Feathers.

"Hah! As if any of you would care to talk to a ghost!" scoffed the ghost. "All you care about is yourselves! Particularly you, a pitiful human!" She pointed at Zella.

"Well, there have been a lot of anti-human-species-ism around here, and I have to say, we're not all like that!" yelled Zella.

"Uh, guys..." started Amarantha.

"So, if that's the case, what would you want to talk to a powerful ghost about?" asked the ghost.

"Okay, fine, yeah, we wanted something," admitted Zella.

"My point exactly!" exclaimed the ghost.

"Guys?" asked Amarantha.

"So, uh...would you know a powerful ghost?" asked Priya hopefully.

"Yes, but why should I tell you? You all are just selfish, selfish mortals!" exclaimed the ghost.

"I think you're being a hypocrite," said Feathers, quietly. "You were a mortal once, you know. And you should know that not all mortals are bad."

"True," said the ghost. "But most are bad." Feathers saw that there was no point in arguing with the ghost, so she instead asked, "What's your name?"

"None of your beeswax," said the ghost. Science Nerdess looked at the tombstone the ghost was sitting on, and said, "Is your name Emily?"

"Yeah. Quite a boring name, if I do say so myself..." remarked the ghost.

"Emily...that sounds familiar..." remarked Amarantha.

"Emily?!" gasped Scott from the container. Emily looked confused for a moment. "DAD?!" she asked.

"Crud," cursed Zella, reflecting the thoughts of the rest of the sextet.

"I knew it!" exclaimed Amarantha.

"Who killed him?" asked Emily. No one dared answer. "WHO?"

"Um...technically, I did, because I created a bomb and disguised it as gold to...kill him..." said Science Nerdess.

"But we all helped!" yelled Feathers. "I helped heal Science Nerdess..."

"And I tried to cast spells to eliminate him..." continued Zella.

"And I ditched Scott and informed everybody!" said Amarantha. "And I bit his hand!"

"And I...uh, didn't do anything. I didn't know them then," said Priya.

"Me, neither," said Maddie.

"So, what you're saying is...you killed my dad?" asked Emily, testily.

"MWAHAHAHA, I KNEW I'D BE AVENGED! YOU'LL ALL BE SORRY!" yelled Scott, as he attempted to do a victory dance.

"How can I thank you???" grinned Emily. "No, I'm serious," she added, when everyone looked confused. "Oh, right. MOOOOOOM!" Another ghost came in with a toddler clinging on to her hand. "Look, Mom, there's Dad's ghost in that container, and these guys killed him!" exclaimed Emily.

"Ellie?" asked Scott.

"Hello, Scott," said the ghost. "Yes, it is me, your wife, who you ruthlessly killed." 

"Whoa, this is getting interesting..." remarked Feathers.

"Oh yeah, Scott did kill Ellie! I didn't see it because I was at the stables, being tended to by the stable boy," remarked Amarantha.

"Yes, he killed me, while I was pregnant with Hannah!" Ellie gestured at the toddler ghost who was holding her hand.

"Hi! I'm Hannah, and I'm thwee yeaws old!" said the little ghost, smiling.

"Waiiiit...how could you give birth to a three-year-old?" asked Science Nerdess. "I thought ghosts didn't age...?"

"Well, ghosts over the age of 13 can choose whether to age or not. But ghosts under the age of 13 at the time of their death have to age, and they stop at age 13," explained Ellie.

"Yeah. Just like how I'm not going to grow anymore now that I'm 13," added Emily.

"Anyway, going on with the story," continued Ellie. "I never wanted to marry Scott, but my parents were suffering financially, so they asked me to marry Scott because his business was lucrative. I despised coffin makers--and still do--but I agreed. I married Scott, even though I knew of his greed. But I never realized the extent of his greed until it was too late...

"It was three years ago. I was, as I mentioned, pregnant, and Emily was sick and missed school."

"I wish I had gone, even though I was sick," interrupted Emily. "Sorry for interrupting, Mom," she added, quickly.

"That's all right, dear," smiled Ellie. "Scott wasn't earning as much because not so many people died. We still had plenty of money, though, for the whole family and even for the incoming member." She smiled at Hannah. "Well, it wasn't enough for Scott, though, apparently. So, while I was sitting on the sofa, reading a book--and it was a good book, too--Scott...Scott killed me. He stabbed me on the back of the neck! Later he killed Emily. I'm not sure how. Emily, would you mind explaining...?"

"Sure. I mean no. I mean...I'll explain," said Emily. "Well, I was sick that day. So I was in bed. My dad came up to my room to bring me soup. I drank it, gratefully. But it was poisoned."

Everyone gasped. "That's terrible! How could Scott sink so low?" asked Science Nerdess. "I mean, I knew he was bad, but that...that's unthinkable! Unspeakable!"

"Well, that's what he did," said Ellie. "And he made my parents pay for the coffins and burial service. That's when they realized how terrible Scott was. But by then it was too late, too late." She sobbed. Hannah bawled upon seeing her mom's sadness. Emily shed a tear. Priya sniffled and Maddie cried. Feathers cried and collected her tears in a bottle for future use. Zella looked forlorn, and Science Nerdess blew her nose. Amarantha borrowed the handkerchief from Science Nerdess and wiped her tears.

"I'm eternally grateful to all of you," said Ellie. "However can I thank you?"

"Well...we do need a powerful specter to help us with this spell to eliminate Scott's ghost..." said Science Nerdess.

"I'm a powerful ghost, thanks to the great goddess Scadoosh," said Ellie. "Upon hearing of my tragic death, she granted me powers. I'll help you. Besides, I'd love to exact revenge on Scott!"

"NO, ELLIE, YOU WOULDN'T!" cried Scott.

"Yes, Scott, I would, and I will," answered Ellie. So everyone went back to Science Nerdess's cave, and Zella put all the ingredients in her cauldron. Ellie used her powers to zap the ingredients into a mixture, and Zella recited the incantation, "Hum, drum, frogs and toads. I do desire to eliminate this ghost!" She pointed at Scott. Suddenly, the potion hit Scott's container and broke the glass into a million pieces.

And Scott was gone. Cheers broke out. 

Suddenly, an intense light shone in the cave. The light was emanating from a woman in robes.

 

"IT'S THE GREAT GODDESS SCADOOSH!" exclaimed Feathers, and everybody bowed.

"Oh, no, that's not necessary," chuckled Scadoosh, as she gestured for everyone to rise. "I just want to thank everyone who helped Ellie and her children with their plea. So, I give Science Nerdess the power of an icedrake as well as a firedrake's. [Fire drakes blow fire; ice drakes have water powers and can blow ice.] Feathers shall be rid of her spontaneous combustion problem and both she and Science Nerdess have more forms of disguise. Science Nerdess can disguise as any reptile, and Feathers can disguise as any bird." And a light fell upon Science Nerdess and Feathers and enveloped them. When they emerged, Science Nerdess had blue and red patches. Feathers looked the same.

Scadoosh continued. "Zella, you shall get more spells and you aren't limited to potion spells anymore. And I grant you a better wand. Ah, and I grant immortality to all of you. As for Priya and Maddie, your magic will be enhanced and you can disguise as taller humans to avoid being picked on. And Amarantha, you shall become a unicorn as opposed to just a talking horse." A light enveloped the sextet and then disappeared. "Thank you," breathed Priya and Feathers, at the same time.

"No, thank you," said Scadoosh, and she disappeared.

"Well, I guess it's time to go," said Ellie. "It's been nice knowing you all."

"Awww, do we have to go? The gwaveyawd is cweepy!" said Hannah, sadly.

"You can stay with us!" grinned Feathers.

"Of course," said Amarantha, Science Nerdess, and Zella.

"Oh, you guys are too nice!" said Emily. "I'm sorry about all the mean things I said about mortals before. You guys are great!"

"We all have our own prejudices," said Science Nerdess. "It's okay."

"It's time for us to go back," remarked Priya, "before our parents get worried." So everyone headed out to Renadiyet, but they saw UFOs!

"We are going to take over this planet!" exclaimed an alien. "And no one can stop us!"

"You can't do that!" exclaimed Priya. "We can rule ourselves!"

"Yeah!" agreed Science Nerdess. "Go away, unless you come in peace!"

"Wait, what? That isn't what I heard..." said the alien.

"Yeah, we thought you wanted us to take over the planet!" said another alien. "That's what every other planet we conquered wanted us to do, anyway..." No one could detect sarcasm in their voices, but no one wanted to take chances. "Yeah, right," scoffed Emily. "Next, you'll be saying that you didn't want to take over the planets in the first place!"

"That is true," said another alien, apparently unable to detect the sarcasm in Emily's voice. "We never wanted to take them over, but, alas! we were forced to!"

"Are you guys being sarcastic?" asked Amarantha.

"If we were, we'd be raising our sarcasm hands," shrugged the second alien. "Come on, Obb, let's go. We're not needed here." And the aliens contacted the other UFOs. "Call off the operation! We're leaving!" They hopped into their UFOs and left.

"That was weird," said Feathers. And everyone continued going to Renadiyet.

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A big thank you goes out to Feathers, Scott, Zella, Amarantha, Priya, Maddie, Ellie, Hannah, Emily and Bruce for being in my WIS! 

So, what do you guys think? And what suggestions do you have for my next WIS? Do you have any presents for my birthday? *looks hopefully*