![[Backward Magic, by Jean Blashfield]](http://www.geocities.com/zakiyah_99/books/book2/tbackward.gif)
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"I'm so hungry I could eat my shield," Eric grumbles.
"You might as well," says Hank the Ranger. "There's nothing else here
for us to eat."
Your stomach growls in agreement.
"Wherever *here* is," Diana says. Even her light acrobat's steps have
begun to drag as you walk on through the strange orange and blue desert.
"There's not even a fruit tree around!" she adds.
Bobby sighs. "I want to go home."
"Nheeeeee!" The little unicorn nods.
"Even Uni wants to go home, and she's never been there!" Sheila says.
"I'd rather go home than be a magician!" you say, taking off your pointed
green hat and glaring at it. "Stupid hat! Why can't you get us home?"
"Yeah, Presto. Use your silly hat to do something useful for a change,"
Eric sneers.
"Silly!" you exclaim, pushing your glasses back on your nose. “How
dare you call my magic hat 'silly'!"
"Then find us something to eat!" the tall Cavalier challenges you.
Your stomach growls again, and you think, "Well, maybe I'll give the
hat another try."
You take it off, and feeling it tingle with magic, you say,
Fiddle dee, fiddle ree,You close your eyes, certain that *this* time the magic won't work.
Feed us all for all to see.
When you hear Hank whistle in surprise, you open your eyes. Out of your hat has come the biggest hamburger you ever saw!
Eric exclaims, "Presto, you've done it!" He quickly sits down and starts to munch.
"Hey, Eric, how does it taste?" asks Diana. She puts her magic staff behind her and sits down at the hamburger.
"Ish grayh!" mumbles Eric, mouth full.
In a moment, you are all seated and munching on the giant burger.
After eating so much that his stomach swells, Eric leans back against a rock and admits, "Presto, your hat really outdid itself! I didn't think you could do it!"
"Thank you, Eric," you say, surprised.
But then Eric ruins it by saying, "It must have been a fluke."
You feel yourself getting angry. "Oh, yeah? Tell that to Venger! My magic has gotten us out of trouble with him and his evil power lots of times!"
"Oh, come on, Presto," says Sheila. "Eric didn't mean your magic wasn't any good."
"Sure, I did," Eric retorts. "If you're so good, Presto, how come you can't get us home?" Then he sneers, "I bet I could if Dungeon Master had made *me* the magician!"
"Maybe he's right," you think sadly. Then Uni nudges you encouragingly, and you think, "But maybe Eric isn't right! I'll show him!"
Hank says quietly, "Don't try to prove anything with your magic, Presto. You know Dungeon Master has always said that we wouldn't get home until we were ready. Just ignore Eric--he always talks too much!"
If you want to prove Eric's wrong by asking your magic hat to get you home, click here. (page 14)
If you think you'd better take Hank's advice and ignore Eric, click here. (page 12)
Page 12
You know that asking your magic hat for the wrong thing could get you
all into trouble.
"No, Eric," you say. "I'll save the magic for when we really need it."
"You just know you can't do it right," Eric mumbles as he turns away..
You keep walking through the dry land. Soon Bobby wanders off, then
shouts, "Hey, everybody, here's a neat cave!"
Ahead, there's a large opening in a stone cliff. Inside, you see no
sign of anyone--or anything--living there.
"Great!" says Diana. "Let's stop and rest."
Just as you settle down to relax, Eric walks over to you and says,
"Hey, Presto, why--"
His sentence is cut short when something suddenly drops on the two
of you, blocking out all light! All you can tell is that the thing is huge
and heavy--and breathing!
Whatever it is, the creature's cutting off your air. You know Eric's
too scared to fight it, so you've got to use your magic hat to
conjure up some light. Click here. (page 53)
ask for air to breathe. Click here. (page 18)
Page 14
"Eric's a know-it-all!" you think. "Well, I'll just show him!"
You silently say to the green hat, "Okay, hat, now's the time to do
your stuff!"
You pause to think about your spell, and Eric sneers, "Well? Let's
see the great magician at work."
"Leave him alone, Eric," says Hank.
Then suddenly, a spell pops into your head. You say to the magic hat,
Shazertoo, shazertome,For a second, nothing happens. Eric laughs. Then you hear a great whirring sound behind you, and Eric's sneer turns to a look of confused amazement. You spin around and catch your breath.
Give us some air to fly us home!
A white tornado is whirling toward you, stirring up everything in its path! When you look closely, you can just barely see that the spinning column of air has a face!
"It's an air elemental!" shouts Hank.
As you shout, "That's NOT what I meant!" the monster wind picks you up and carries you through the air at great speed!
Strangely enough, you're not whirling with the elemental. Instead, you seem to be riding right in the calm center of the tornado creature.
You're just beginning to enjoy the ride when you are thrown out of the whirlwind and land with a gentle thump! How strange!
You open one eye, then stare in amazement. No wonder the landing was soft--you're lying on a cloud!
"The twerp has done it again!" Groaning at the sound of Eric's voice, you sit up.
Very gently, you move your feet...but nothing bad happens--you don't sink into the cloud. So you stand up and turn toward Eric. He's the only one in sight.
"Where is everyone?" you ask.
"That creature you conjured up took just the two of us," Eric replies in disgust.
"Oh, great!" you cry.
"I don't like it much, either," says the Cavalier. Then he looks around. "I wonder where your stupid hat has brought us."
"You're in the Realm of Light," says a voice.
Page 18
You need air, so you reach up and pull your crushed magic hat off your
head.
Holding the hat open, you mumble,
Shaza-cadar, shaza-cadeed,There's a slight stirring at your feet, and you feel a waft of fresh air. "Ahhh!"
Air to breathe is what we need!
The air continues to stir, then to whirl. A huge tornado of air lifts the monster and picks up you and Eric as well!
Horrified, the two of you are carried inside the calm center of the whirling mass. Opening your eyes, you see a huge spider with the face of an ugly witch spinning above you in the whirlwind.
Then suddenly, PHHHHEOU! you're thrown out and land with a gentle thud. Looking around, you see that you've landed on a cloud! The tornado is spinning away with the terrible spider caught inside.
"Look at that spider!" Eric says, pointing. "That's what fell on us. But where are we?"
"You're in the Realm of Light," a voice says.
Page 21
Before you appears the small figure of the Dungeon Master, red robes
fluttering.
"Even in a cloud you just pop up out of nowhere?" Eric asks.
Dungeon Master ignores the Cavalier. "Well, Magician, you're discovering
that you have to be careful what you ask for."
"I-I guess so, Dungeon Master." Then you ask, "But where are the other
kids?"
"And how do we get out of here?" Eric adds.
"Someone who needs help is just over there. He might get you back to
your friends." You turn to look where Dungeon Master points as he adds,
"But remember, if you get what you want, will you want what you get?"
Seeing nothing but cloud, you turn back. But the little white-haired
wizard is gone.
"Someday I'm going to find out how he disappears like that!" grumbles
Eric.
"Let's go see what's there," you say.
Rounding a great puff of cloud, you see a sight that makes your eyes
open wide.
There, before you, is a large golden-pink creature. "Ohh!" you gasp
in amazement.
He has one spiral horn like a unicorn's, but his handsome face is more
like a noble goat's. A long, golden mane flows out across his back. And
as he rears up, you see that his hooves shimmer with the colors of sunrise.
Even Eric is speechless at the sight.
As you watch the creature trot around you, you realize that you are
inside a large, barely visible, circular fence. The creature stops and
studies you, then gallops toward you. Now all you notice is the sharp horn
and crashing hooves coming at you!
"Fight him!" shouts Eric, hiding behind his shield. "Use your magic,
Presto!"
You grab your hat and quickly say,
Shaza-reedoo, shaza-reeday,Instantly, the huge golden creature zooms through the air toward you. He enters your hat tail first, shrinking as he does.
Send this large beast far away!
"Hey, what happened?" you exclaim. Peeking into the hat, you see a tiny golden creature inside looking back at you. "My spell worked backwards!"
"Who cares? It worked!" says Eric.
"I don't understand why it didn't work better--OOPS!" The little creature leaps out of the hat, growing large again! He trots away but then turns toward you.
"Well, do something!" demands Eric.
"Why? He looked friendly," you reply.
"That's why!" shouts Eric in panic as the golden creature starts to gallop toward you again, his hooves flashing.
Do you want to fight the creature magically? If so, click here. (page 25)
Or do you want to talk to him, hoping he’s friendly? Click here. (page 29)
Page 25
Your fear of being hit by the creature's sharp hooves convinces you
to try magic.
You've got to see if you can trap the animal so that he can't reach
you!
Spitting the words out quickly, you say,
Most, least,Nothing happens! The golden creature is still thundering toward you.
Cage the beast!
Thinking frantically, you remember that the spell worked backwards before! Deciding to take a chance, you quickly say a spell that you hope works backwards, too.
Shaza-reedee,Just before he reaches you, the creature stops in his tracks. Magically, the bars of a black iron cage appear around him. The spell worked--backwards!
Let that beast run free!
An evil laugh echoes across the clouds. "You should have thought of the backward magic first, Magician."
It's Venger!
The huge figure of the power of evil looms above as Eric cowers behind you.
"The ki-rin has powerful magic that I was unable to get by myself. I could only enclose him within a magic fence. But you, Magician, you came along and gave just the added magic I needed to trap him forever."
Gloating, Venger adds, "I have long wanted to rid this land of that good creature."
"Oh, no!" you gasp. Anger and sorrow burn in you at the thought of helping Venger.
"I owe you double thanks, Magician." Venger laughs again. "You've brought me the magic hat and shield. I'll just take them and then go collect your friends' weapons."
Sadly, you shake your head, realizing that you've endangered your friends, too. Venger sweeps his cape in a magical gesture.
For a moment your head is dizzy. Then you tumble onto the ground.
Ground? You're back in the desert! But there's no sign of your friends. Only Eric is near, like you, sent back by Venger.
"Come on," you say sadly. "Let's go look for the others."
THE END
Page 29
You watch the animal as he thunders toward you. You know that magical
creatures can be both beautiful and evil. But there's something about this
one. You look at his violet eyes and know you can't fight him.
Swallowing your fear, you reach your hand out to the creature and say,
"Come on."
"Are you nuts?" shouts Eric as he ducks behind his shield. "It's going
to trample us!"
"No, I'm not," says a voice.
You look up and see that the creature has stopped a few feet from you.
"I will not harm you," he says. "I am a ki-rin, and I need magical
help from you."
"I don't trust him," whispers Eric.
"Be quiet, Eric!" You turn back to the ki-rin and ask, "How can we
help you?"
"Venger has imprisoned me within this magical fence so that I cannot
do any magic."
"Venger!" you exclaim, shivering at the name of that power of evil.
"Do not fear. He is not here now. But I need your help to get away."
"Can we believe this creature?" asks Eric. "Maybe this is one of Venger's
tricks."
"Stop it, Eric!" you exclaim. Then you ask the ki-rin, "What can I
do?"
"We must test your magic. It seemed to work strangely before."
"I'll say," says Eric. "It worked backwards!"
You think a moment, then say,
Bright as the sun, round as pie,Reaching into your hat, you grasp what feels like a star and pull out a Christmas tree!
Fireworks on the Fourth of July!
Eric falls over his feet, laughing.
"I guess Christmas is backward from the Fourth of July," you say sadly.
Then you ask the ki-rin, "Can I just break the magical fence?"
"Perhaps if you could step outside the fence again, you could use magic to get rid of it. But it would have to be strong magic."
"Well, could I turn you into something else? When Venger comes, he might think you escaped somehow."
The creature's eyes light up. "I never thought of that! And perhaps in a different form I could regain my powers and escape. Both plans seem sound. Which will you try?"
You decide to break the magical barrier and let the ki-rin escape. Click here. (page 32)
Page 32
You pause, wondering what to do.
"Come on, Presto. Use that green hat for something!" urges Eric.
Suddenly, you feel very unsure of your magic. Maybe it isn't strong
enough to change the magical ki-rin into something else.
"I'll try to break Venger's magical barrier," you decide.
The ki-rin nods. "All right, Presto. I will be ready to escape the
instant you break the magic fence. Then not even Venger will be able to
stop me."
Holding out the green hat, you say,
Killery canish,Suddenly, a huge stone wall appears where the magic fence had been. It seems to reach up into the sky forever!
Let the wall vanish!
"That's vanishing?" Eric says with a chuckle. "We couldn't get through that in a hundred years! And neither could the ki-rin!"
"Oh, no! I forgot to work it backwards!" you exclaim. Feeling foolish, you say,
Build the wall bigger, thicker, fatter,The great stone wall disappears in a flash! The ki-rin dashes past you and Eric and gallops gaily among the clouds shouting, "I'm free! I'm free!"
Make the wall taller, so we need a ladder!
Finally, he trots back over to your cloud and thanks you and Eric.
"Now I'm safe from Venger!" the ki-rin exclaims. "But you aren't! I must get you out of this Realm of Light right away!"
"How?" you ask, looking around for Venger.
"I can windwalk you wherever you want to go. You see, I can turn into wind and carry you two as my passengers."
"Oh, no, you don't!" exclaims Eric.
"Only if you are willing," the ki-rin adds.
"Hey, Presto...I know I've laughed at your magic hat, but can't you find some way to get us off this cloud?" Eric pleads.
Trying to keep from smiling, you say,
"Please, Ki-rin, windwalk us back to our friends." Click here. (page 35)
"All right, Eric. I'll try my own magic." You thank the ki-rin and click here. (page 38)
Page 35
"I think the ki-rin's magic might be more reliable than mine," you explain.
"Just what we need," Eric sneers, "a creature that turns into wind.
What we really need is one that turns into a--a pizza!"
"You're always hungry!" you exclaim.
"I see no sign of Venger, so perhaps a little nourishment before we
travel..." says the ki-rin. He tosses his head, and suddenly, an entire
banquet appears before you.
The word "thanks" is barely out of Eric's mouth before a steaming potato
is in.
"One-track mouth!" you mumble as you sit.
"Quickly now!" the creature says after a few minutes. "Venger will
be coming soon!" The outline of his golden body starts to shimmer. "Hold
onto me!" he shouts.
You jump onto his back and hold tightly to the silky, golden mane.
Eric grabs a last mouthful of food and jumps on behind you.
Before you can even wonder what will happen, the creature under you
dissolves into a mist...and yet he seems solid to the touch. It's a strange
feeling!
You turn to see if Eric has become mist, too, but a solid-looking Cavalier
is still there.
Then you sail off across the sky. In just an instant or two, the clouds
part, and you see the blue dust of the desert below.
"Th-that's a long way down!" Eric stammers.
You gulp as the ki-rin banks suddenly to the left, then sweeps toward
the ground. He soon lands, and you and Eric slide off his back. As the
mist moves away into the sky, you hear the wind whistle, "Gooood-byeeeee!"
"Thanks!" you call, thinking about the story you have to tell your
friends.
THE END
Page 38
Riding the wind doesn't seem very safe. And right now, too many strange
things are happening to deliberately pick one more.
"Thank you," you tell the ki-rin, "but, no. I'll get us back somehow."
"All right, Presto," says the ki-rin. "But get away quickly now. Venger
might come at any moment." Then the golden ki-rin turns and disappears
into a cloud. You blink in amazement. The ki-rin became the cloud!
"He and the Dungeon Master must be friends!" says Eric. "They both
disappear into thin air!" He turns to you. "Okay, Presto. Now that you've
said you can do it, how are you going to get us back?"
"Let me think!" you say. "Whatever I do, I've got to get the spell
right or we might be stuck in the Realm of Light forever!"
"No, then you've got to get the spell backwards," Eric points out.
"Right," you agree, laughing. You close your eyes and think. Finally,
you sigh and say, "Well, I'll just have to let whatever happens happen."
"What do you mean?" asks Eric, alarmed.
Ignoring him, you hold your hat and say,
We need to go up, not downSuddenly, you feel yourself being picked up by some invisible force. Eric clutches your arm frantically, and the two of you go zooming down a slide you can't see.
To reach the solid ground.
You've barely caught your breath, when the slide disappears from under you, and you tumble onto solid ground, landing upside down. Hearing laughter, familiar laughter, you turn around. Sheila and Diana stand behind you, smiling. Uni nuzzles your arm.
"How did we get here?" you ask.
"Don't ask," says Eric next to you. "We might find we're not really here."
A breeze blows across you, a warm breeze that carries with it desert dust.
"Whew! We're home!" you exclaim.
"Home?!" cries Eric. "We're still in the land the roller coaster tossed us into!"
"Maybe so, but at least we're all back together," you say, smiling.
THE END
Page 42
The thought of making Venger angry by breaking his magical fence scares
you.
"Let's try to trick Venger into thinking you got out by yourself,"
you say to the ki-rin. "I'll turn you into something else. Then, when Venger
comes through the magical fence, he won't even notice you."
"Good idea," says Eric. But then he adds, "Venger would never
believe that you could change the ki-rin with your magic."
Ignoring him, you think for a moment. Soon you come up with three choices.
You can turn the ki-rin into a cat. You could easily hide such a small animal. Click here. (page 43)
Page 43
A cat! It's small, not very noticeable. And when Venger comes, it could
hide behind you until you figure out how to sneak it past the magical fence.
Quickly, the words come to your mind:
This to that,You reach down to touch the cat. But it isn't a cat--it's a mouse! And it has a very surprised look on its face.
Ki-rin to cat!
You forgot to work the magic backwards! Suddenly, a giant black horse thunders into sight. Seated on it is evil Venger!
As the black horse draws near, the mouse skitters across his path. The horse rears up in terror, then bolts, bearing Venger away through the magical fence.
The mouse runs along the path taken by the horse, and as you watch, the mouse turns back into the ki-rin!
"I'm free!" The creature's majestic voice calls out. "The horse broke an opening through the fence. I'm free to use my magic!"
Then he adds, "Come quickly, my friends. As soon as Venger can control his horse, Nightmare, he will return."
"How do we get away from here?" you ask.
"Climb on my back. Ride me back to the land you came from--back to your friends."
You climb onto the creature's back, Eric behind you. Holding tightly to the mane of gold, you see things blur around you.
Before you know it, you're safely on the ground, hugging your friends. The ki-rin calls, "Good-bye!" and turns into a floating cloud that drifts away on the breeze.
THE END
Page 46
"Venger wouldn't think anything's wrong if one of our friends were with
us," you say.
"All right, Presto. But don't forget to make the spell backwards,"
reminds the ki-rin.
"Oh--right!" you exclaim, and then say,
Blistery mysteryThen, reaching into your hat, you bring out, head first--another Eric!
Bring me an enemy!
"Hey, that's me!" the real Eric exclaims.
"Oh, no!" you cry out in dismay.
"Great, Presto! Don't you think Venger will wonder why there are two of--"
An angry, booming voice interrupts Eric.
"WHO DARES DO MAGIC SPELLS HERE?" The huge, black-winged figure of Venger suddenly looms over you.
The two Erics try to hide behind their shields as you cower back.
"I'll take your magical items," Venger commands. He plucks the green hat from your fingers, then turns for Eric's shield.
"Two miserable little worms of Cavaliers?" he thunders. "Well, that gives me two magic shields." He lifts the shields from their twin hands.
"Now, where is my golden captive?" he says, looking around for the ki-rin.
When you don't answer, he says, "Well, if you won't talk, I'll turn you into a rock that can't talk." He raises his hand.
"Wait!" cries the second Eric. "I am the ki-rin. Don't hurt Presto."
Venger lowers his hand, a look of surprise on his evil face. "So, the Magician figured out how to work his magic backwards in this land of clouds. But too late!" The clouds echo with his laughter.
"Now you are all in my power!" he gloats as he moves his finger in a circle. Instantly, you, Eric, and the ki-rin in the form of Eric shrink to the size of mice and find yourselves in a small, round, iron cage.
"Perhaps I will feed you to a hawk," Venger says, cackling. And he tosses your cage up into the air like a ball.
As you fall this way and that against the two Erics, you hope Dungeon Master will find you before you become a hawk's dinner!
THE END
Page 50
The golden mane and coat of the ki-rin remind you of light.
"Light!" you exclaim. "I'll turn you into a beam of light! Venger will
never notice you here in this Realm of Light!"
"Excellent idea, young Magician! But remember the odd behavior of your
hat."
You nod and hold your magic hat in front of you. Tapping it, you say,
Golden ki-rin to darkness black,Suddenly, the prancing ki-rin shimmers into a burst of golden light that gives the clouds around you a brilliant glow. As a stream of light, the ki-rin passes right through the magical fence and out across the sky!
A land of shadows is all we lack!
"It worked right--I mean, wrong!" you exclaim.
"You mean, backwards," says Eric. He slaps you on the back. "All right, Presto!" he cheers.
"AND IT WILL BE WRONG FOR YOU," booms an evil voice.
Looking up, you see the black-winged figure of the evil Venger looming over you.
"You've freed my prisoner, the ki-rin!” he thunders. "And now you shall pay for it!"
You shrink back into your green robe in fear. Eric has ducked behind you, and you can feel him trembling.
"You asked for shadow, so you meddlers shall have shadow!"
Venger passes one hand over another, and there's a blaze of light. It's swallowed up by darkness. Suddenly, you realize that you and Eric have passed into another world--a world that is completely gray and black!
Page 53
The creature presses down on you and Eric, making it hard for you to
breathe and impossible for you to see!
"I've had enough!" you cry out, now more angry than frightened. "Let's
shed some light on our situation."
"Well, d-do something!" Eric stammers.
You try to hold your magic hat out in front of you, but the heaviness
of the huge creature on top of you keeps the hat crushed to your chest.
Pushing hard against the beast, you gasp and quickly say,
Magic hat of power and might,"Oops! I mean, make it light!" you add. But you're too late.
End the darkness, make us light!
You start to feel tingly, and suddenly you're surrounded by light! In fact you *are* light! The big creature is gone, and you and Eric are side by side, zooming through the darkness as streaks of light!
Then you feel yourself slowing down, and you land in a strange place of shadows...
Page 54
"Where are we?" you whisper to Eric. Looking around, all you can see
are shadows shaped like trees and rocks and other things that you'd rather
not make out.
"I don't know," Eric moans from behind his shield. He glows slightly
in the dark.
"I can see you," you say, "but it's hard for me to see anything else."
"I can see you, too," Eric says in a shaky voice, "but I can see something
*else*--it's behind you, and it's glowing!"
Then Eric's eyes widen in fear. "And it's moving! It's coming right
toward us!"
You stand still and whisper, "What does it look like?"
"Kind of like a camel...no, a big bird...no, maybe it's a lion."
"Well, make up your mind," you whisper impatiently. Then very, very
slowly, you turn around and find yourself face to face with a strange creature.
He smiles at you pleasantly.
"Hi," he says. "Have you come to let me out?"
"Out?" you ask, startled that he can talk.
"Yes, out of here," the creature replies.
Eric jabs you in the ribs from behind. "Find out where we are!" he
whispers.
You lean back, away from the grinning face, and notice that the creature
is wearing a wide, glowing collar.
"Where are we?" you ask politely. "And what--I mean--who are you?”
"I'm Opie. I'm an opinicus. And we're in Shadows Edge, though I'd really
rather not be here. It's all shadows and darkness and spooky things."
You introduce yourselves, then ask, "Why are you here if you don't
like it?"
"Venger, that nasty power of evil, has trapped me here with this magical
collar," Opie explains. "He had some shadow demons guarding me, but you
drove them off when you came as light--a neat trick, by the way."
"Shadow demons!" you exclaim. "You mean, Venger's helper? I thought
he had only one."
"Oh, do you know Venger? He certainly isn't a good sport. All I did
was play a little trick on him, and he got angry and trapped me here in
Shadows Edge." Opie frowns and twists his neck inside the heavy magical
collar.
"What did you do?" you ask, curious.
"Well, you know how he has that curved horn on top of his head?" You
and Eric nod.
"One day," Opie continues, "I decided to play ring toss with it and
my magic hoops."
Eric, who had been quiet up until now, hoots with laughter, no longer
afraid.
But suddenly, the opinicus says, "Oh, oh!"
"What's the matter?" you ask.
"The shadow demons are coming back!"
Behind Opie, you see shadowy shapes coming.
In an unusual show of bravery, Eric says, "My shield will take care
of us!"
You look at him in amazement, wondering if all this shadow has gone
to his head. You start to say, "Okay, Eric." But Opie smiles and says,
"You'll do something, won't you, Presto?"
Will you ask your magic hat for light to drive away the demons? Click here. (page 68)
Or will you let Eric use his magic shield? Click here. (page 72)
Page 59
Realizing that you know nothing about this strange opinicus or its magic,
you decide to rely on your own magic.
"I'll use my hat," you tell Opie.
At that moment, Eric shrieks, "Help! My hands are slipping from the
tree branch!"
"Hang on, Eric," you think, still hiding behind the rock. You grab
your hat and say,
Shaza-roo, shaza-ree,Out of the hat comes a giant squirt gun!
Glue him safely to that tree!
"Huh?" you murmur. "Well, maybe it'll do something," you say to Opie, and the two of you start running toward the tree. As you run, you squirt the gun at the shadow demons. A strange white fluid spurts out.
"It's Oil of Slipperiness!" exclaims Opie.
And sure enough, the shadow demons are sliding this way and that, unable to keep their grip on Eric. The Cavalier jumps down and dashes past you into the forest.
The howling shadow demons take off after him. But each time they get near enough to grab, their oil-covered hands slip right off.
You and Opie catch up to Eric, soon leaving the slipping, sliding shadow demons behind.
"I need a bath," says Eric.
"We need to get home!" you say, gasping.
"I can get you there," says Opie. "I just can't get myself out of Shadows Edge. Come on, friends, I'll show you the gate. Maybe you can oil it first, Eric." He chuckles.
And as you go through the gate, your last view of Shadows Edge is of the opinicus laughing heartily.
THE END
Page 62
You look at the strange but friendly beast beside you. He looks as if
he really wants to help, so you say, "Please, Opie, see if you can get
Eric away from the shadow demons."
The opinicus lowers his long camel neck, then stares at the shouting
Eric.
Eric's yell suddenly turns to surprise, and the shadow demons pulling
on him look frantic. Then WHOOSH! Eric comes spinning through the air toward
you, and lands with a THUD! at your feet. Opie's magic worked!
"RUN!" you shout, heading into the forest.
"I'm coming!" says Eric, his voice shaking with surprise. Then he looks
back and adds, "But so are the shadow demons!"
"We need something to stop them," you shout. "I know--how about a wall?"
"Better make it a thick one to keep back those magical creatures,"
Opie reminds you.
Pulling off your hat, you puff,
Block them allYou reach into your hat, grab something, and toss it behind you. Suddenly, you notice the shadows around you turn bright!
With a heavy wall!
"Huh?" You look back. There, behind you is a long wall covered with bright light bulbs!
"Presto strikes again!" says Eric.
"What's going on?" you say, confused.
Opie gasps between giggles. "You asked for a heavy wall and got a 'light' one instead!"
"You mean, my magic worked backwards?"
"Yes, just like Eric's shield when it let the shadow demons through. That's what happens to magic in Shadows Edge."
"But what about the demons?" Eric cries.
"Don't worry--shadow demons can't stand light," the opinicus explains. "Presto's 'light' wall will certainly drive them away."
"But how do we get away?" you ask.
"Follow me," says Opie, running ahead.
He stops at two stone pillars and says, "Here's the gate. You'll be back where you want to be when you step through it."
Eric's pulling you through the opening.
You turn to say good-bye to Opie, but there's no opinicus--and no forest. All you see is a blue and orange desert and your friends running toward you.
THE END
Page 66
Eric shakes his head. "You're not going to be scared of a curse, are
you, Presto?"
"No!" you exclaim. "All that stuff about curses is silly!"
But you stop and think a second--not about the curse, but about the
way your hat worked backwards. You cross your fingers and hope this spell
works as you ask,
Fiddle-me-ree,You reach into your hat, and your fingers pull out a very BIG padlock!
A tiny key!
"Some magician!" says Eric, scornfully.
"I forgot to tell you that magic works backwards in Shadows Edge," Opie explains.
"So that's why the fireworks invited the shadow demons instead of sending them away."
You think a minute, then say,
Riddle-me-rockThis time, you pull out a tiny key.
A giant padlock!
"Way to go, Presto," Eric cheers.
Leaning close to the opinicus, you insert the tiny key into the tiny lock.
Opie murmurs, "Oh, I hope it works!"
As you turn it, there's a popping sound.
"Oh, no!" you cry, for as soon as the glowing collar disappears from around Opie's neck, it reappears around your own!
Feeling panicky, you try to think of a useful magic spell. But when you hold out your hat, you feel nothing--no tingle. All its magic is gone. You're helpless!
THE END
Page 68
"Thanks, Eric," you say, surprised. "Your shield will protect us, but
we still need to drive the shadow demons away. I'll use my hat for that."
Holding your magic hat open, you say,
Abracadabra, abracaday,Out of your hat zooms a small rocket. It soars high overhead and explodes into fireworks that spell out, "WELCOME!" and "IT'S A PARTY!" and "PLEASE COME!"
Send those shadow demons away!
"How pretty!" gasps the opinicus.
"But it worked backwards," you moan. "Those are messages inviting the shadow demons to come, not to send them away!"
"Look! The shadow demons are fleeing anyway!" Opie exclaims. "The light from the fireworks is scaring them away!"
Sure enough, when you look away from the bright lights in the sky, you see the shadow demons disappearing into the forest.
"Hooray for my magic hat!" you cheer.
"Do you think that hat of yours can get this collar off?" Opie asks suddenly.
Looking closely at the collar, you see a tiny keyhole. Around it are the words, "A Curse on He Who Opens Me."
"Who believes in curses? Get a key out of your hat and open it, Presto," urges Eric.
"I'd sure appreciate it," says Opie.
"Well...." You hesitate, thinking about how strange your magic has been working.
If you want to risk the curse and try to open the collar, click here. (page 66)
If you'd rather think of something safer, click here. (page 75)
Page 72
Eric doesn't often volunteer to help. Maybe you should let him try.
"Okay, Eric," you say. "Use your magic shield to protect us from the
shadow demons."
"Right!" The Cavalier steps in front of you and the opinicus. He holds
his shield firmly out before him.
As the shadowy forms come closer, you shiver. You've seen Venger's
messenger before but never a whole group of the tattletales.
"Come on, shield, do your stuff!" Eric says. "Keep the bad guys away--What?"
The shadow demons fly right through Eric's shield and grab hold of
his arms!
"AIIII!" he shrieks as the dark, human shapes yank him away from you.
"His magic shield didn't work!" you gasp. "Hang on!" you shout. "We'll
rescue you."
"We will?" says Opie. "How?"
"I don't know," you confess. "But let's follow and see where they take
him."
You and Opie run through the dark, shadowy woods after the terrified
Cavalier until you reach a clearing in front of a cave. You pull Opie down
behind a rock.
Peeking around the rock, you see the shadow demons trying to pull Eric
into the cave. But he has hold of a tree branch.
"No!" he shrieks as he kicks out at the two shadow demons pulling on
his legs.
"I think I can get him away," offers Opie. "I have some magic power
that hasn't been stopped by this collar."
Do you want to take Opie up on his offer? If so, click here. (page 62)
If you think your magic hat will do the job, click here. (page 59)
Page 75
"I think if it says I'll be cursed if I touch it, I'll believe it!"
you say firmly.
"That's wise, Presto," says the opinicus. "Venger's magic is powerful."
"Presto's isn't," Eric mutters.
Ignoring the Cavalier, you say, "Maybe I can do something else with
my magic hat. What if I try to make the collar larger so that it will slip
off your head, Opie?"
"Great idea!" Opie's camel face smiles.
You hold out your magic hat and say,
Lokee-lig,"I never thought we--EEEEE!"
Collar get big!
Opie's words are choked off by the collar as it starts to shrink!
"First fireworks--now this!" cries Eric.
"The fireworks!" you think. "They invited the shadow demons when I wanted to send them away!"
"I've got to try it backwards!" you exclaim. Quickly, you spit out the words,
Lokee-lall,Opie sighs in relief as the magic collar grows to ten times its original size. He steps out of it as it drops to the ground.
Collar get small!
"It's about time you did something right, Presto," Eric says.
"I'm free!" says the opinicus. "Now I can use my magic." He makes a gesture with his wing, and before you know it, you're back in the desert with your friends.
"Hey! Help!" You hear Eric's voice and laugh with the others when you see Eric, in the bright sunlight, running away from his own shadow!
THE END
