Chapter 1

     Staring dizzily into the rim of a toilet was the last way Tinz wanted to spend his night, the lantern light swaying above him gently. He had been throwing up due to his illness for the past few minutes (hours?), but to him that was nothing new. Even so, he was frankly sick of it. He was sick of being sick, to put it in simple terms. It’d been so long he’d even tired of holding his long hair back so it wouldn’t get any dirtier. Eventually, he had finally felt like he’d finished and slowly wandered his way back to the living room of his house, lantern following him floating throughout the air. It was already close to 3am and he just wanted to sleep. On his trek back to his room he peered out the window in the direction of the main city. He missed it there, its bright lights reaching even the small town he lived in now. Sleepily, he rubbed his eyes and made it back to his room. The lantern turned itself off as it settled onto a desk. Tinz settled himself similarly into bed, hoping to get some sleep.

     That wasn’t his first mistake of the night, and it wouldn’t necessarily be his last.

     Just as he started to fall asleep, a noise sounded out in his room. Was something knocked over? He rustled in his sleep before remembering he lived alone. Cautiously, he sat up, fear wringing his bones out like a wet cloth. In the corner of his room, he saw glowing blue eyes staring ominously at him. He stared back, fear certainly still there but unable to make him move.

     “I’m too tired for this,” he said finally and flopped back into bed. A quiet cough came from the corner.

     “Aren’t you supposed to react more… I’unno, something?” said the ever mysterious corner being.

     “And now I’m hallucinating voices too,” Tinz groaned, taking one of his many pillows and covering his ears with it. He was shaking, but ultimately figured this had to be a dream of some sort. Just lie back down, it’ll pass…

     There was a sudden hand on his shoulder, and he flipped upright with a screech.

     “That’s a better reaction! Man, I knew you’d get spooked at some point,” the voice said. Tinz shrunk into the corner of his bed. He glared at the lantern on the table, signaling it with what little magic he could muster up to turn it on. With the room lit up, he could properly see the intruder who had disturbed his much needed sleep.

     …A woman? Purple hair and a long purple robe were the first things he’d noticed, but the thing he really cared about was the fact she’d knocked over some of his books. As many emotions blew up within him, the woman stood there looming by his bed.

     “What do you want?” he spit out. “I don’t have much money.”

     The lady crossed her arms. “This may come as a surprise to you, but I’m actually here to give you something,” she mused.

     “What? Give me what, a heart attack? How did you even get in-”

     She held up a hand signaling him to shut up.

     Suddenly, the air in the room chilled as she started to glow. Tinz simply stared, feeling intent on ‘Maybe if I pass out I can wake up sooner’.

     “I, Magnolia, holy Goddess of ancient Flora and Fauna, hear thy call of woe and pity thy circumstances. I bless thee with The Pen of Creation, and hereby ask you to… uh… what was the… ugh,” her speech blew up just as it was getting interesting; in her outstretched hands was a small wooden pen. She looked like she was really struggling to think of the next line. Tinz blinked. He blinked again, and again, and again.

     “What?”

     “I’m giving you this,” Magnolia stated.

     “Yeah, I get that. Why?”

     Her face soured and she threw the pen at Tinz, effectively hitting him in the face.

     “I’m bored out of my mind, okay?!” she began, stomping around his room. “You see this?” she gestured to his computer. “It’s this stuffs fault us Gods are out of business. You folks on Earth are so advanced with your silly little magics and your funny little technology that you don’t need Gods anymore. Do you have any idea how boring it is up in Heaven nowadays?!”

     Tinz was too busy eyeing the pen to give a damn, which only fueled Magnolia’s rant further. “Don’t make me take that back! Ungrateful people these days…”

     “Wh- Listen, I don’t even know what’s going on? The Gods haven’t been heard of in years, how am I supposed to trust you? To know that this isn’t some sort of prank?”

     Magnolia smacked her chest, right above her heart. “Does my pure face not scream trustworthy?”

     “You broke into my house,” Tinz deadpanned. Magnolia coughed.

     “Details, details. The fact of the matter is, I’m giving you that. You’ve been chosen, O wielder of the Holy Pen,” her tone of voice changed again, “Use it wisely, lest I come and snatch it from your greedy little hands.”

     “Geez, alright,” Tinz shrunk into the corner of his bed again. “I don’t even know what it does.”

     At this, Magnolia’s expression lit up. “Simple! You draw or write with it, and it creates whatever you’ve scribbled down!” Her finger waggled in the air, mimicking writing. Tinz raised an eyebrow. “But! You have to have basic knowledge of what you’re making, or if it’s an advanced item, advanced knowledge.”

     “These rules seem a little vague…” Tinz remarked, grabbing a notebook from his bedside table. “I’ll try it out I guess.” He wrote the word ‘notebook’ in the notebook with a grumble. “I’m so very original and creative,” he huffed with a sarcastic grin.

     However, the next thing he knew, the pages lit up with a light glow, and spat out a notebook straight into his face. He was knocked backwards into the wall.

     “Wowww, you actually managed to make something! Its design is even different than the original notebook,” Magnolia whistled, watching Tinz drag himself back up.

     “Yeah,” he wheezed, “A little warning that it would’ve jumped me would have been nice.” Magnolia just shrugged. “Anyways, I still don’t trust you.”

     “Whaaat? Why?”

     “You broke into my house.”

     “Alright! Fine! I’ll stay here for a bit, and you can see if I’m worthy of your mortal trust,” she posed dramatically.

     “...So now you’re inviting yourself into the home your barged your way into. Are all the Gods like this?” he asked with the most tired expression he could manage. Magnolia simply laughed.

     “The other Gods are nowhere near as delightful as I am,” she giggled as she plopped onto his bed, “Anyway, do you have any potato chips?”