It was the first of September, Mint Schwartzwald's 16th birthday, and like her father before her, she was cut up, leaving home, and following a strangely visible dirt path in the lightless void between universes.

Fortunately, *she* wasn't fleeing monsters, with only a magical staff to her name, and never expecting to return.

Unfortunately, her love life was on a timelimit, she didn't know where she was going, and she didn't know how to return home.

But, she had a path to walk on, a guarantee of safety, and a plan, and that changed everything.

Armed with her cat at her side, a magical staff, a credit card, and supply of sweets, not to mention the clothes on her back, she was well on her way to finding her missing twin, once she arrived at whereever the path was taking her.

At least the magical bond she had with her twin, was steadily growing stronger, as she walked down the path.

Having always had someone to talk to until being constantly alone for the first time in her 16 years, Mint had been struck by loneliness, and started talking aloud, and to her cat, Bianca, in turns.

"Okay, let's remember the plan. Walk to the end, and you, my kitty, will lead us to Amethyst, then we can walk back home together and wake Obsidian up. Easy. Easy. ... Actually, make sure to eat something before walking back home..."

"Oh, I wish I knew when this path would end! I'm sure I've been walking for hours!"

Suddenly, Mint's skin flashed a soft pink, and a transparent pink rectangle appeared in front of her face. Using purple writing, it said: "Remaining Distance: 362 Meters".

"AH!"

Mint hadn't noticed her skin flash in the excitement, but when she jumped back from the sign's sudden appearance, she could very well tell that it was deliberately staying a little bit in front of her face.

"Wha... What is this? ... Why am I asking? It's not like you could talk, Bianca..."

The startling appearance of the pane of information, broke Mint's calm facade, shattered by the flaws in her plan.

"Oh, how I wish you could talk! I'm walking to who knows where to find someone who ran away, and so, doesn't want to be found, and I'm trusting in magic to fix all this! Magic! Magic that was given by a drunk woman, to a baby, and is now corrupting Obsidian into some thing! Daddy tried to hide it, bless him, but I could feel it! Obsidian is dying, and Amethyst is not what's going to come out of that black coffin!"

As Mint sat on the path and cried into her red cloak, Bianca walked back to Mint and nuzzled her.

"There, there..."

Mint's head shot up.

"Who's there?"

A soft "Me, Bianca.", came out of Bianca's mouth.

"What... How...", Mint struggled to parse this new development, and then, "Hahaha... Ha...ha... Haaa..."

And then Mint stuck her arm in her robe, pulled out her black credit card, and intoned. "I wish to buy information, on what in the world is going on!"

And so, Mint's skin flashed a third time. And her credit card glowed white.

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Mint's Quest Log:

Cure Obsidian:

Cure Obsidian from the corrupted Amethyst magic that's turning him into Amethyst something.

[X]: Get on the dirt path between worlds.
[ ]: Exit the dirt path to a new world.
[ ]: Use Bianca to get Amethyst's location.
[ ]: Travel to Amethyst.
[ ]: Get back on the dirt path, with Amethyst.
[ ]: Walk back home with Amethyst.
[ ]: Have Amethyst take her corrupted magic out of Obsidian.

[First Person] [Second Person] [Third Person]
[Rough] [Coarse] [1:1] [Fine] [Very Fine]


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Hi again, readers! I'm back, with a new story, for a new contest!

This might actually become a pattern... Only writing for contests... Hope not, and I don't think it will be, if I finish writing the first chapter of the Apple Orchard War, before I learn about yet another contest I want to enter...