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Surely, Jack thinks, the Emerald Guardian’s magic is no match for a Potion of Haste!

Spellcasting takes time; gesturing, chanting, crumbling material components in hand … by the time she has a spell prepared, he will already be gone!

Jack pops the cork, swigs, leaps – and in a fraction of an eyeblink, the Emerald Guardian strikes him dead-center with a withering bolt of green energy. At first, he thinks her magic must have been a growth spell, for she suddenly appears so much larger, blotting out his sight. Then he realizes the terrible truth – he has been shrunk to a fraction of his size! He skids to a halt at the edge of the block on which he stands, realizing that there is no way he can make the leap across the now-dizzying gulf to the next block – where waits a Crimson Slime bigger than he is!

The Emerald Guardian drifts near, a gleeful smirk on her giant face. “Perhaps I’ll find a jar to keep you in,” she says. “Or outfit you with a harness and leash and make a pet of you.”

Jack looks yearning over his shoulder. If he can just make the leap back to the Green Pipe, perhaps he can escape and find a way to reverse his plight. The Emerald Guardian catches the drift of his eyes and, moving faster even than potion-augmented Jack, snatches up the warrior in a huge hand.

“No rescuing princesses now Jack,” she hisses. “The spell is permanent.”

Jack knows she is right. Whether he can find a way to escape or remains forever her pet, Jack knows that for Princess Vasilisa at least, this is …

THE END.

Return to 1 and begin again or continue the adventure in Perilous Jack in the Land of Tololollyloo.