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It was a typical day in Peace Valley, Wisconsin—well, as normal as it gets when ghosts from another world lurk just out of sight. The past few weeks had been surprisingly quiet. After the chaos of the multiverse crisis, even a fragile peace felt like a miracle.
But ghosts weren’t the only threats out there.
Jezebel Ramsey got home early from her CPS shift. Her kids were still at school, so she texted her husband, Joel, to grab groceries. She paused in the doorway, glancing at the wooden plaque above it—a Hebrew prayer carved by Jamie’s great-grandparents, who had changed their surname after fleeing Europe during WWII. The name had changed, but their roots had not.
She slipped off her heels, touched the Star of David around her neck, and recited a prayer. “שמע ישראל, ה' אלוהינו, ה' אחד. Baruch Shem Kavod Malchuto Le'olam Va'ed.”
(Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is One. Blessed be the name of His glorious kingdom forever and ever.)
It felt... heavier today. Like a storm brewing under clear skies.
Trying to shake it off, she made a sandwich and poured herself coffee. But before she could sit down, the doorbell rang. She sighed. “Please don’t let it be the ghost mailman again.”
No one was there. Just a small package on the step. No return address. Just her name, in looping script:
"A precious gift for a precious lady. May you capture plenty of miracle moments with me!"
She brought it to the kitchen and opened it slowly. Inside was a camera. Plain. Unremarkable. But it gave her a strange feeling—like déjà vu dipped in dread.
Still, it looked harmless. She shrugged, chuckled nervously, and tucked it away. She was subbing in as the yearbook photographer on Friday; maybe she’d use it then. She wasn’t sure why she hid it from her family. Maybe she didn’t want to disturb their hard-won peace.
That night, not far from the Ramsey home, a portal shimmered open and a teen stepped out. Pink-and-purple hair, lavender eyes, wand in hand. Determined.
“I won’t fail Mother again. Not this time.”
With a flick of their wrist, they cast a locator spell. It locked onto something inside the house—but as they moved closer, the magic fizzled.
“Damn it,” he muttered. “It’s repelling spells again. I hate this thing.” He dug out a pendulum. “Guess we’re doing this the old way.”
After some tense divining, he got a clear answer. The camera was here—and it had chosen its next wielder. But he couldn’t just knock and say, Hey, you’ve got a cursed wizard camera. Mind if I take it?
Even in a ghost-ridden town, that wouldn’t fly. Especially with the Hex Lens watching.
So he walked. Tired, hungry, and drained. He found a park bathroom and locked himself inside. It smelled awful. But he didn’t flinch. This wasn’t about comfort.
By morning, he wasn’t a boy anymore—she was a girl. Same hair. Same eyes. Same stubborn fire. Her skirt now bore the Venus symbol.
She sighed. “Maybe Ceci will listen to me more like this. I just wish I’d woken up for the shift…”
She spotted Ceci walking to school and called out. “Ceci! Hey—Ceci!”
Ceci turned, cautious. “Do I… know you?”
“My name is Aidan. I’m Enchantra’s child—Ancient of Magic.” She added gently, “Also… ghosts like me can change shape. I’m genderfluid. Mostly male, but today I woke up like this.”
“Okay,” Ceci said, still confused but willing to roll with it. “So what’s this about?”
Aidan’s voice dropped. “Short version? A cursed camera with a piece of a wizard’s soul escaped my mom’s vault. It causes disasters—huge ones—when people use it. It’s semi-sentient. Picks its wielder. It’s here. And your friend Jamie’s mom has it.”
Ceci’s breath caught. “Are you serious?”
“She’s not possessed—it just nudges her choices. Makes bad ideas feel good. It’s set to go off today. During school pictures.”
“So how do we stop it?”
“I need your help. You’re half-ghost—it won’t sense you unless you transform. Your friends are fully human. That makes them perfect for the job.”
Ceci’s eyes narrowed. “So we steal the haunted camera. As humans. And bring it back to the vault.”
Aidan nodded. “Exactly. We’ve only got hours.”
They ran.
Minutes later, Jamie and Denise were briefed. They moved fast. Jamie distracted his mom. Denise caused a scene. Ceci swapped the camera for a decoy and zipped it into a sigil-lined bag.
Click.
Too late. The camera fired.
The fire alarm blared. Sprinklers rained chaos. Ceci bolted outside, soaked but triumphant.
Aidan appeared behind the bike racks. “Tell me that’s it.”
Ceci handed over the bag. “It fired once.”
Aidan paled. “That’s enough.”
Just as they spoke, a ring of violet light surged beneath the trio’s feet. They were pulled into the sky and landed—gently, miraculously—on an island in a starlit void.
The Mystic Isles.
Denise gawked at floating castles and glowing rivers. “This place is wild.”
Enchantra awaited them in robes of midnight blue. “You’ve done well. But we must act fast.”
They entered a chamber etched with ancient runes. The camera thrashed inside a containment box, snapping reality in and out of shape.
Enchantra guided them. One by one, the trio added their energy—human strength, half-ghost will, soul-bonded friendship.
Aidan chanted. Magic surged.
The camera screamed.
And then—it went silent.
Aidan slumped in relief. “It’s done. It’ll never hurt anyone again.”
Ceci exhaled. “Next time… let’s just deal with midterms.”