“Whoa, where am I?” The boy thought to himself as he looked around at his surroundings, extremely puzzled. It was very hot outside, probably around eighty degrees, but it was snowing. It wasn’t white snow either, it was bright orange. What was even stranger was that when this bright orange snow touched the ground it turned bright pink. The trees that surrounded the boy were also different. The leaves weren’t green, they were a light purple. The boy didn’t see any houses around either.

The boy was young, probably about ten years old. He had short, light brown hair, and the prettiest green eyes that you have ever seen. He was average height for his age. He was also very smart.

The boy started walking to find out if there was anybody around that could help him find his way back home. He was walking for a while when he heard a noise beside him. He looked to see what it was and screamed so loud that it could pop your eardrums. “Whoa, whoa, whoa, calm down. I’m not going to hurt you. My name is Swik. What’s yours?” The creature asked. “M-M-Max,” the boy said, trembling. “Well Max, what brings you to Shumocer?” “Shumocer?” Max was puzzled. He didn’t even know what a Shumocer was. “Yeah, Shumocer, the land of the fairies and elves. What brings you here?” “Well, I’m not really sure. I was just kind of here. What are you anyway, a fairy or an elf?” Replied Max. “Why, neither! I’m a genie! Can’t you tell? I get picked on here because I am the only one of my kind in this world full of fairies and elves.” “Oh I am very sad that you get picked on but will you help me to find my way back home?” “I will only help you find your way home if you help me with something,” answered Swik. “Well, I guess, as long as you promise that I can go back home,” was Max’s reply.

“Really? Great! I promise that you will be able to go back home. First though, I have to tell you the story. You see, the elves and the fairies here don’t like each other. They are fighting all the time. This time they are fighting over Princess Sactara. Princess Sactara is half fairy and half elf. I was summoned by King Srewkley to keep Princess Sactara safe. I don’t like the elves and fairies fighting all the time. I need you to help the fairies beat the elves so that this fight will be over.” Swik finally took a breath, finishing his story. “Why the fairies? Why can’t I help the elves?” Max asked. “I don’t really like the elves. They are rude and mean. They make fun of me even more than the fairies,” was Swik’s answer. “I guess as long as I get to go back home,” Max said, debating whether he should really help Swik or not. “Alright! But I should warn you, the fairies and the elves do not fight like others do. You see, they are magical. They use magic, and magic wands, and potions to fight. They are very tricky creatures. I will give you a shield and make you a warrior so that you will stay protected.” “Wow! I don’t know if I can do this. I just want to go home. I am scared of fighting. What if the fairies don’t like me and make fun of me just like you?” Asked Max. “You will be just fine. The fairies will like your help and be glad to have you,” Swik replied. “Well, where do these fairies live? I don’t see any houses around here,” Max asked. “They live over those mountains over there. Way off in the distance. Their houses are in a forest. All of the houses look alike, they are very small. They are so small that you can’t even see them. If you want to go into a fairy’s house you have to stand next to it. Then, you shrink down to their size and go in to visit.” “Aren’t we going to be walking all over the houses and shrinking all the time then? And won’t it take us forever to get over those mountains?” Max asked confused. “Their houses are magical. You can only shrink down to their size if they ask you to come inside and visit. It won’t take us that long to get there. Remember, I am a genie. I have magical powers too. One of my powers is that I can fly. So, I can fly over there and you can ride on my back,” Swik said happily.

The boy hopped on the genie’s back. He fit comfortably right in the middle and rode with him over the mountain tops. It was different than flying in an airplane back home he observed. Not only was he getting the wind in his face, but the scenery was different. With the purple leaves and the orange snow and pink ground, it was beautiful. He never wanted to land. He was really starting to like it here but he still wanted to go home really bad. He just hoped that these fairies weren’t mean to him.

After flying for a while, Swik finally landed on the ground. Max got off of his back and they started walking into another forest. Swik yelled for someone that Max had no idea how to pronounce his name. In no time at all there was a little person flicking around in front of them. He reminded Max of a hummingbird because of his size. “Max this is Skikle, he is a fairy. Skikle, this is Max, he is here to help us defeat those horrible elves,” Swik said joyfully. “Great! We could always use more help to defeat those terrible creatures. Come with me Max and we will get you ready for battle,” Skikle replied. “Okay,” said Max. He followed Skikle as they made their way through another purple leaved forest. At last Skikle stopped flying and Max stopped walking. Skikle asked him into his house. Max agreed, shrunk, and went into the house. Skikle explained to Max that he was the leader of the fairies. “Everybody is helping to fight the elves because nobody likes them. We are going to get you suited up so that you can fight and not get hurt by any magic. Then, we will put you out on the battlefield right away. You are going to fly with me and Swik to the king’s castle. You see, whoever makes it there first gets the princess. The elves do not know that we have you fighting with us so they will not know what is going on when we get to the castle and win!” “Okay, I will try my best. I just want to go back home. I really like it here, but I like it more at home,” Max sighed.

Max put on some armor that actually fit him. Skikle explained that it was fairy armor, but it had magic in it, so it grew to fit Max comfortably. He liked this armor. It was gold and had beautiful jewels all over it. He really felt like he was a warrior when it was on him. Skikle then handed him a shield so that he did not get hit with any magical spells. When he was all ready Max walked and Skikle flew back to where Swik was waiting for them. “Ready to defeat those evil little elves?” Swik asked anxiously. “Ready!” Max replied enthusiastically. He hopped on Swik’s back again and they all flew over some more mountains. It was all beautiful until they got to this one mountain. This, Max knew, was where the battle was going on. It just looked different than the other mountains. Instead of being bright and beautiful it was dark and dreary. Off in the distance Max could see the most beautiful castle that he had ever seen. “That’s where we have to fly to?” Max pondered. “Yup, but it won’t be as easy as you think,” Skikle replied. “We have to fly right over the battle. There are going to be magic spells flying everywhere, along with fairies and elves. We have to be careful and take our time.” “Why can’t you just do a magic spell where we become invisible?” Max wondered. “There are rules for our fights. One of them is that you cannot become invisible because it would be too easy for someone to make it to the castle.”

“Alright let’s go then,” said Swik. It was still snowing that bright orange snow. It was pretty, Max thought, but it was hard to see where they were going. Skikle said a magical spell and became larger. He hopped on Swik’s back and they were ready to take off toward the castle. Max kept looking from left to right and behind him just to make sure that there were no elves around. Skikle kept talking to Swik to tell him where to go to miss the magic spells. “Up! Right! Straight down! Good job Swik, way to dodge those spells.” When they got half way there an elf came up right behind Swik and tried to shoot Skikle with a spell. Max threw his shield in front of Skikle so that the spell would not hit him. The elf glared at Max and darted away. “Great job Max, way to be ready for that!” Swik yelled. A fairy flew up and told Skikle an update about what was going on below them. She told him that the battle was going well but it was still pretty evenly matched. When she got done talking to the three of them they kept flying and dodging spells. Max observed that they were almost to the castle. “Down! Down!” Max heard Skikle screech. Swik was too late and flew right into a spell. He stopped flying and just hovered in the air. Skikle examined Swik and said that he would be alright. He explained to Max that the spell that hit Swik was a spell that slowed down how fast he could fly. Swik was still able to fly and they would get to the castle alright but it would just take longer. They kept flying but at a much slower pace, Max observed. He also noticed that it was easier for the spells to find them. He just kept his shield up and ready just in case he needed to use it. Another elf flew by them. He was hideous Max thought. He tried to hit Max with a spell but his armor shielded him from the harm that the spell held. The elf also tried to hit Swik and Skikle with many spells but Max kept putting his shield in the way. The elf just kept throwing these spells towards them. Skikle helped Max out and hit the elf with one of his own spells. The elf froze in mid-air and started swirling towards the ground. Before he knew it, Max, Skikle, and Swik were at the castle. Skikle and Max jumped off of Swik’s back onto the ground in front of the castle.

As soon as they stepped on the first step a beeping noise went off. Max’s eyes stirred and he realized that it was all just a dream and it was time to get up and go to school. He had to remember this dream to tell his two best friends Sam and Steven.