How to Find the Wish Seed (Sequel to "The Goddess of Bad Luck")

Back on Track

     I let out the longest breath that I had ever held in my entire life and leaned back, my head lowering all the way to the ground and sticking out of the bush. I would have stayed like that for a second longer if my face hadn't met a certain fluff-ball's face. "BLUE!?"

     I climbed out of the bush and squeezed the cat in my arms as I examined his sickly body. The light in Blue's eyes seemed to dim the longer he was sick. His body was more scrawny than usual, and I couldn't help but flip out at finally seeing him again. The cat purred and limply lay in my arms. That's when a voice broke the silence.

     "Excuse me- Miss Atë?" I turned my head upward to see who was speaking to me, to see none other than the prince I met at my underworld welcome back party. A.K.A. Ichor, the god of blood. He ran a hand through his midnight-colored hair and extended a hand to my body, now covered in leaves and dirt. I never thought I would see him after the ball in Skyworld, but hear he was in the middle of the forest.

     "W-what are you doing here?!" I freaked out, but it was safe to say that I was plenty happy.

     "Oh, I was just taking an afternoon stroll when I came across this cat," he smiled. "I was almost certain it was yours, so I started looking around for you."

     A smile spread across my face as fast as melted chocolate spilling from a mixing bowl. "You're a lifesaver! I'm so glad you came along!"

     "Oh, of course. It was no trouble, really. But your cat had something odd in its clutches when I found it." Ichor's expression looked concerned at least. He then handed me a tall staff with a large glowing orb at the top. "Is this of any significance to you?"

     I almost cried at the sight of the dimension staff, the thing that was practically my lifeline at that point. My brain couldn't process what Ichor had said for a minute. "The DIMENSION STAFF!?"

     "You do recognize it! Good, I was afraid we would have to go around Mt. Olympus, asking who it belonged to," the god of blood laughed in relief. "That can be quite the hassle."

     "Hey, Ichor?" I quickly changed the subject. "We have to talk. Would you mind coming with me?"

-

     Back in Phosphora's cave, we explained I was not in fact the old Atë as we sat on the ground.

     "Wait, to keep it straight one last time, you were not acting authentically at the Skyworld ball or at your welcome back party at all?" the god of blood's eyes widened a bit at the news.

     "I'm sorry for lying to you, but it was a kind of life or death situation," I scratched my cheek.

     "Well, I think I like non-crazy Atë better," Ichor smiled, and I about lost it. Why did I ever let Pandora set us up at the party? He obviously didn't find it, or anything awkward, but I was freaking out at how cool he was.

     "Aw, thanks," I felt my face heat up as Phosphora gave me 'the look.' The look that your friends give you when they see you, the person you like, and you pray to Lady Palutena on high that they wouldn't ruin your entire day with some horrible comment loud enough for your crush to hear. I hoped that this wasn't the same thing. "But, apart from me only having Atë's memories... you heard about Zeus's birthday party, didn't you?"

     "Oh yes! I was there, actually," he mused until the gears turned in his head. "You didn't shoot that arrow, did you?"

     "Yep, that was me," I sighed, accepting the fact that he wouldn't want to be around me after that. "Bad luck 100%."

     "Wow! You're like a fugitive now!" his eyes sparked at realizing Phosphora and I were outlaws. "That's SO COOL!"

     "Thanks?" I replied, dumbfounded about why he could find that amazing. "Are you feeling alright?"

     "Oh, excuse my odd interests," Ichor excused himself. "I'm stuck taking care of my realm all the time, and it gets exhausting."

     "I get that. Commanding Viridi's army was such a bother," Phosphora sighed, still salty from Viridi firing her. I wanted to pretend to understand their struggles, but my exhausting life came from unpredictable circumstances that I didn't have an army to fight.

     "Anyway, Ichor, we need your help with something!" I changed the subject to get back on track as soon as possible.

     "Thant's right," his eyes filled with remembrance. "You needed something. Go on, ask."

     "Blue here is sick and he won't get better if he stays where I was living," I confided.

     "What? Where in Skyworld were you living?" Ichor asked in concern.

     "Um... Pandora's dimension," I swallowed. "It's making Blue sick because it's messing with his powers, or whatever Lady Bastet said."

     "I know her! She let me take care of one of her cats one time," Ichor laughed before returning to the serious part of the conversation. "I assume you want me to help nurse him back to health."

     "Something like that. I was thinking you could help us retrieve what we need to help Blue," I corrected, realizing a second later that the description of the task was a little vague.

     "What is the remedy we need to find?" Oh, Ichor, poor innocent Ichor wouldn't have any way to prepare for my answer.

     "We need the Wish Seed," I could tell Ichor was just about to freak out at such a claim.

     "WHO- WHO TOLD YOU!" Phosphora, and I looked at each other, questioning looks on our faces.

     "You know about the wish seed?" Phosphora asked excitedly. We both knew that this was going to be quite the story.

     "Well... I only ever saw it once... before Medusa hid it away," confessed the god of blood. "You see, I used to be a friend of hers. Her best friend, even, before she became a pawn of Hades and turned from a neutral goddess to an evil one."

     "Oh, you were friends with Pandora too, right?" I asked, already knowing the answer. I had talked to her (as she was in my head) the night before I went to Mt. Olympus, where I was chased into the woods. "She told me you had her box."

     "That's right, I have it somewhere safe in my realm," he replied.

     "Oh, you know where the wish seed is too, right?" I asked.

     We leaned in a bit, signaling him to continue. "I don't know where it is."

     Phosphora groaned loud enough to scare the birds outside the cave. "OH, COME ON!"

     "Heh, sorry about that," he apologized sheepishly. "But I'm sure it is somewhere."

     "Wait!" I jumped up from where I was sitting. "You guys won't believe the plan I just thought of!"