Maddie Shirkoff: World of Odds

by Danit Knishinsky

  “Of course. Why did the portal appear? The portal will only appear when summoned. I will let Rose cover this for you since she is the reason you are here.” Doobi said, his shimmering body now facing Rose the Enchantress.

  The Enchantress let out a sigh and began to explain, “I heard a mortal with a special ability would come to this land to solve a problem. I can’t tell you what the problem is because I don’t know if you are The One. I had been watching you carefully, checking to see any extra good features. You seemed to be normal. You were brave and athletic. You crossed through this land even in the hardest conditions. You were chased and fought a battle against QUEEN LIILITH. That right there deserves praise. You were kind to those who surrounded you and wouldn’t let anyone cruel cross your path. This is a quality that will serve you well in our world. Though you didn’t seem to have any special abilities, you did seem to act brave and strong. Even before you coming here, I had sensed you would be a good candidate for this land. I wanted to see how you behaved in our world, so I summoned the portal. It was a risk, doing it so close to other houses, but you walked right in. I shut the portal as soon as you entered. That’s why it disappeared. However, though it doesn’t seem you have magic, I believe you don’t really know what you are truly capable of.”

  “You knew where I lived?!”

  “I had to track you down. It wasn’t to harm you. Just to check if you were The One. Which, with further exploration, you could be. You are the first in many years to have almost all the qualities The One should have. And about me knowing where you live…it’s better than Lilith knowing,” the enchantress huffed.

  “Oh,” Maddie shivered at the thought.

  Doobi began to speak once more, “For the third question. How to save your dying dog? Darkness fang poison can be incredibly deadly. Sadly, the rose petals are the only way,” Maddie’s face fell, “but I have been here for many years answering questions for travelers. The only way to get into this room however, is with your key. The keys only merged because of one trait. Each key you used to assemble this dog key, was made from the founding stones of Enchanted. As soon as your grandfather left with the other key, nobody had been able to visit this palace. People would arrive, only to realize they could not enter. And, I love the people that look up to me, but I feel that it is time that I have eternal peace. You may use the petals on Sparky. The enchantress can finally put me to rest with her magic.”

  Maddie stood there, shocked at the kind deed this dog was willing to perform, “Thank you,” she whispered with tears in her eyes. “You don’t understand how much this means to me,” Maddie approached Doobi, giving him a hug, “your family loves you so much,” she added.

  Maddie grabbed a handful of petals and sprinkled them on top of Sparky. Slowly, Sparky’s cuts began to close. His broken bones began to mend. After about a minute, Sparky was a healthy dog again. Whimpers could no longer be heard. Maddie cried out in happiness as Sparky sweetly licked her face. “I’m ready,” came Doobi’s voice, “tell my father, Caimal, my mother, Rosa, and my sisters, Kara and Luna, that I love them all. That I wish I could've been able to be alive with them one more day,” the enchantress waved her hand over Doobi’s spirit. Maddie looked at Doobi. He looked happy and healthy. His smile was the best thing a girl could ask for.

  “Rest well, baby boy,” came four voices. It was the Royal Family. After being notified by the enchantress that Doobi had been summoned, they had magically left the castle and appeared in Doobi’s hallway. They entered easily since the door had been left open. Maddie didn’t even hear them enter. “We’d give anything to spend one more day with you as well. We love you too.” The Royal Family all gave Doobi one big hug. After the hug, Doobi disappeared. Not one person in the room didn't have watery eyes.

  After everyone had calmed their emotions, the king spoke, “We have your house ready. A big mansion by the Enchanted beach. And Maddie, you may keep the key, for I do feel that you are the chosen one.”

  “Thank you so much!” all three goblins practically yelled at the same time.

  “Th-thank you!” Maddie said, obviously very behind with the timing. “Ma’am,” Maddie asked the enchantress, “do you think you can send me home now?”

  “Of course. But wait,” the Enchantress said as Maddie turned around, “take this,” the lady handed Maddie a necklace with a shell on it. A white conch shell. These were the same type of shells that Maddie used to listen to the waves with her mother in California.

  “What’s this for?” Maddie asked.

  “This will allow you communicate with the goblins. You need to voice the name of the goblin you want to speak to. Or you can say that you want to talk to them all. You must say this into the shell, and it will allow you to speak directly to them. In order to pick up, just hold the shell to your ear. It will create a vibration on your chest to let you know if someone is calling you. You will always know when to pick up. Be careful. If it breaks or is even gets scratched one bit, the magic will drain from it and it will become a normal shell.” The enchantress added this last point as she gave one shell necklace to each of the goblins.

  “Well, thank you so much. But, how are you planning to send me home?” Maddie followed up.

  “I will summon the portal. I am also planning to keep an eye on you. You have potential to be the chosen one,” The enchantress said, smiling. Maddie watched as the enchantress waved her hand, and the swirling ball of light was in front of Maddie once again. Maddie handed the enchantress the dog key and smiled. She knew she had the opportunity to keep it…but, it just didn’t feel right. Enchanted was a place that she would never really come back to. It felt better to leave it with the people who loved and cared for the land more than she ever could. The portal’s winds blew Maddie’s hair as she stared into it. She hadn’t seen this ball of light in what felt like months. It baffled Maddie to know it had been at least two weeks she had spent in this crazy world. She recalled the day she was transported. It had been a different time, and she had been a different person. Maddie looked at the goblins and gave them each hugs.

  “Thank you for making this trip entertaining. And I forgive you.” Maddie smiled the biggest grin the goblins had seen since they met her.

  “Well, goodbye then,” Samara whispered in Maddie’s ear.

  “Don’t forget to keep in touch,” Brido reminded her, gesturing to the necklace around each of their necks.

  “We’ll miss you,” a voice from behind Maddie whispered. It was Ragon.

  “I’ll miss you all! I promise to keep in touch! And Doobi,” Maddie said as she began to tear up, “if you can hear me… thank you. Words can’t describe how much I appreciate what you did.”

  Maddie looked at them for one second, then leaped into the portal with Sparky. And in a flash, they were gone.

  Chapter 15

  Coming Back!

  Maddie felt the familiar sensation of heat. She smiled to herself. She was back in Arizona. She thought of the faces of the goblins who had been so kind to her. Her heart ached with a longing to give them all one more goodbye hug. She looked at Sparky, who was happily wagging his tail and running around in the dirt. She thought of Doobi’s generous offer and hoped he was happy. Maybe he is at the rainbow bridge where dogs are supposed to cross once they pass from this world?

  She thought of the battle against Lilith and Medusa…and for a split second, she never wanted to step foot in that land ever again. But after the second passed, the longing to return appeared. She wanted to be near the goblins and thank the enchantress. She had spent weeks in that world, so she couldn’t help but miss it. She immediately remembered her mother, father, and sister. Darting toward her house, panic filled her mind. How long had her mother been searching for her? Would her parents be mad or relieved? Were they worried?

  She ran in through the front door with Sparky trotting by her side, “Mom! I missed you so much! You must have been so wor-”

  “Dear lord, Maddie,” her mother cried, accepting the
hug from her daughter, “I was just calling you to get you out of your room for figure skating! What has gotten into you? You pretend like you have been gone for two weeks and then sneak up on me like that! Maybe you are doing too much ice-skating,” her mother replied, laughing. Maddie’s mother’s smile seemed to light up the room.

  “You mean, no time has passed at all?” Maddie’s smile turned to a frown. Was time in this world much slower? Well, she shouldn’t have been surprised. That’s what Doobi had said, after all. She just didn’t know it was THAT slow.

  “Maddie, you just saw me thirty minutes ago. Why would you even think like this? And, what are you wearing? You get changed then head out the door for practice. We are going to be so late. Thirty minutes and you haven’t gotten dressed!” she sighed, “I’ll drive you there. Daddy is coming home from work and Avery has just gone to her friend’s house. She left fifteen minutes ago. Remember? Anyway, go get dressed. And when you get into the car, get ready for the longest lecture you’ve ever had!” Maddie’s mother laughed, then gave Maddie a kiss. Yep, Maddie thought, home sweet home.

  Epilogue

  One Year Later

  Maddie turned twelve and had worn the necklace every day. She liked to talk to the goblins before bed just to hear how things were going in Enchanted. Apparently, the Royal Family had made a new city in honor of the goblins and Maddie. Maddie wished she could be back there with them in Enchanted. Maybe, just maybe…she liked to think, a problem would arise, and they would call her back.

  She knew that it was a bad thing to think about, but she couldn't help it. She desperately wanted another adventure that was as magnificent as The One that she had faced the year before.

  As she tucked herself into bed, she couldn't help but think…

  About the Author

  Danit Knishinsky is a thirteen-year-old girl who was born in New Jersey and spent most of her life in Arizona. She has been ice-skating since she was five years old and has always wanted to be an actress. She runs the YouTube channel, “Danit K”, and has been writing stories her entire life. The story you just read was inspired by a tale which Danit wrote when she was only eight years old. Her writing has improved since this book, and she is working on many more novels.

  If you enjoyed this book, make sure to follow Danit on her website, DanitBooks.com, Instagram, and YouTube channel so you can be notified whenever her latest books are released!

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