The Wishing Tree [NOT!]

'Woah! Nicky! Check this out!' Christy yelled to her friend Nikhil. The tall blond hair girl was ecstatic! She and her parents moved to India a few months before the pandemic. In small-town Kasauli, there wasn't much hustle like a city, so it was mostly boring.

The girl stared in awe as Nikhil approached her. He was a dark, slim boy. He was used to Christy and thought of her as a sister.

Finally, when Nikhil saw what Christy was looking at, he was spellbound! It was a HUGE Banyan tree, with massive branches sticking out like sun rays.

'Let's climb it!' exclaimed Nikhil.

'A-are you sure about t-that?' murmured Christy.

'Come on scaredy-cat! There's nothing to be afraid of!' Teased Nikhil

As soon as they reached the top [Christy shaking like a tree during a storm] they were completely blown away. Here, they could see huge mountains, vast forests, and...a castle?!

' Christy! Why do I see a castle?' asked Nicky confused.

'Relax! This is a Xertian tree. I read about this in a fantasy science book! It makes us hallucinate, see things we imagine! For example, I imagine a castle, so we see one! Ummm... okay, WHY DO I SEE A GIANT WALKING PENCIL?!'

'Well, I did that. But, we need a cool name! You can do the honors, Christy! After all, you were the one who discovered it!' Nicky suggested.

' I guess we can call it the wishing tree! Even though it doesn't grant wishes... but you get the point.' said Christy

'Sure! So let's imagine a new universe! Where we can get away from the pandemic. Let's call it...Xertia!'

' Sure, so lets dream of an evil giant with a...' Nikhil continued.

'Giant sword! And he tries to turn Xertia into a huge wasteland so he can build a mansion!