Dance of the Meepits: The Neovian Attack - Part One

     Every Halloween, something goes terrible. So far, the day has been like any other, which can only mean that something absolutely horrible was happening to Neopia. But what? The day was full of thoughts and ideas of what might happen, but this day, oh yes, this day... this day was going to be different.

     Ilere jotted down a few notes onto her lovely Rainbow Notebook that she had kept for hundreds of years. She sighed and stared around her home in the trees, looking at one root in particular. She raised her hand and the root sank into dirt. The reason? She didn't like it.

     "Meep!" said her ghost Meepit, sitting next to her wooden desk, which was covered in vines.

     "Yes, dear one. I know exactly what you mean," Ilere said to the Meepit. "Lassy, you are so intelligent."

     "Meep!" cried another ghost Meepit, on the other side of her desk. "Meep, meep, meep!"

     Ilere was pleased; a pleasant smile was on her face. For once, that is. "That's a grand idea, Kassy!" She immediately jotted down the idea in her notebook.

     A knock on her door interrupted her entry. "Who could that be?" she asked herself, unsure.

     As Ilere walked to the door, an old Lupe with a staff in hand appeared before her. "Ilere, nice to see you again."

     "Spirit of Slumber, what brings you here? I thought I was no further use to you."

     "You are now. You see, Ilere, a little Meepit told me that you plan on bringing the Meepits to war."

     "Curse that Tassy! She can never keep a secret! So what? You’re a spirit, remember? The fate of Neopia no longer applies to you!"

     "Ah, but don't you see? We could make a little bargain, you know, so this will stay a secret." An evil grin fell on the Spirit's face. He erected his staff, making the red ball glow.

     Ilere's eyes narrowed into slits. "Blackmail!" she cried. "You wouldn't dare!" Her angry tone in her voice shook the entire tree; fallen leaves showed through her window.

     "Ah, it's not blackmail! You see, I have no mail, so therefore it cannot be black." The Spirit's evil grin turned sarcastic. His eyes showed Ilere's reflection, full of anger.

     "Very funny, Spirit. What do you want? If it's reasonable, then I will consider it. If it isn’t, let's just say life won't be pleasant for you."

     "Don't send the Meepits out yet. I have ideas of my own that I would love to carry out against small towns such as Neovia. I'll make sure that the Haunted Woods will stay haunted... forever." His tone was serious, with a hint of evil. "If you don't cooperate, Neopia will be ready for your little attack. If not sooner."

     Ilere's anger passed the boiling point. "THAT'S ENOUGH!" she cried out, raising both of her hands. Green magic burst out of her fingernails going right through the Spirit of Slumber.

     The Spirit walked out of the blazing magic inferno. "Ilere, Ilere." He shook his head. "I'm a spirit, remember? You or any other mortal can do no harm to me."

     "I'm giving it thought," she said, thinking about an idea. "But don't count on it."

     "You have two hours to think about it, and two hours only," Spirit said, stepping backwards to the door.

     "Meepit Enlarge!" she cried out. A rumbling sound came from the ground, and a large ghost Meepit appeared. At least nine feet tall, he grabbed the Spirit by his hair, and dragged him towards the door.

     "What?" the Spirit cried out. "I'm supposed to be invincible! This is impossible!"

     "The Meepit is ghost as well, Spirit. Two spirits act as two physical mortals," Ilere said, an evil grin formed on her dark green lips.

     "Destroy!" cried the Spirit, raising his staff. A blast of red light came from it, and the overgrown Meepit disappeared in a puff of gray smoke.

     "Clever, but not unexpected, especially from one of your kind," Ilere said. Turning to the left, she quickly grabbed a potion from her cabinet and put some of the orange liquid on her hands. "Be gone, unwanted visitor!" she cried, and orange magic formed around the Spirit. He, as well, disappeared.

     "Lassy, Kassy!" Ilere cried to the ghost Meepits, now on top of her desk. "Bring out the troops. We have two hours before the Spirit returns. We should have just enough time to form our army. If anything goes wrong, we still have Plan B."

     The Meepits nodded and exited through the door, escaping Ilere's sight. "The time has come," she said to herself. "The Meepits will finally dominate Neopia."

     ***

     Across the Haunted Woods stood a single shack, the swamp water shining through the moonlight. The faint howl of a Werelupe was heard throughout the Haunted Woods. Sophie, at her cauldron near the window at the front of the shack, reached over to her potion cabinet and grabbed a few potions. Her Meowclops followed her every move impatiently, waiting for her to drop some yummy goodies.

     "No, Clopsy dear, you already had your daily potion. More begging and you'll be facing that Bearog head again!" Sophie said angrily. The Meowclops whimpered in a soft and sympathetic tone.

     "No!" Sophie responded, in a harsh tone. Then her expression changed: she heard noises. "Who is out there at this time of night? Whoever it is was definitely not raised well!" Then she groaned - the stupid unfortunate soul probably wanted to stay over for the night.

     "If he or she disturbs me, they will experience a tough jolt from this wand!" she said angrily, clutching her wand with a throbbing eyeball at the top.

     The noises came closer as splashes of the swamp water were heard from the hut. The mysterious figure was coming closer. Ripples of the water formed in the swamp, outstretching for miles. Green Slorgs awoken by the sudden splashes slithered away slowly to a safer place.

     Within a few seconds, the mysterious figure started pounding on the wooden door with great force, shaking the entire shack.

     Startled, Sophie dropped her green hand-made shawl to the floor, revealing a faded white tattered top and a dark brown skirt with patches on the front. Her green hair flowed in the wind as she whirled her head to the door. Almost tripping over her Meowclops, she ran towards the door. Twisting the wooden doorknob with her paw, she opened the door, revealing a familiar face.

     "Bruno!" she said, staring at the half soaked blue Gelert, still deformed from their previous adventure. He was breathing heavily, revealing a large cloud of condensation with every breath. He spoke with water splattering over Sophie.

     "Sophie!" he said, grasping her paws with his. "It's been so long!"

     "It has been, Bruno. What brings you here? You look troubled."

     Sophie led him inside, walking towards the fireplace. Picking up her shawl from the floor, she draped it over her shoulders.

     Drying off by the warmth of the hot fire, he said, "Sophie, it's Halloween! Something terrible happens every year!"

     "Well, what if nothing is happening this year?" she asked.

     "No, something happens every year. This idea means lots of preparation. It's terrible. We need your magic to help us, no matter what it is." Bruno put his paws up next to the fire, warming them up and rubbing them together.

     Sophie frowned. All she wanted to do today was to mix up her concoction. "Oops!" she cried, rushing over to the boiling cauldron. She picked up a box that said "Slorg Flakes", and tossed it into mixture, causing it to turn from dark green to a bright red.

     She walked towards Bruno, once again frowning. "I don't know, Bruno," she started.

     "We need your help, Sophie! Do it for the Woods, do it for Neovia! Your family... me!" he said, a worried look appeared on his face.

     "Fine, fine," she replied, finally giving in. "Let's get out of here." Grabbing her coat from the coat rack, she put it on. She offered a coat to Bruno, but he refused.

     "Won't fit," he replied, stepping out to the front porch.

     Sophie smiled at him as she grabbed a key under the mat on the porch. She then closed the door, and locked it.

To be continued...