Zoe grabbed her mail and went straight to her room, not even saying hello to her mom. Usually, she wouldn't anyway, but since her grandfather died ...
She hopped into bed and just crashed there for a moment. That was one crappy day that she had at school. She just wanted to forget about it. If she had to put up with the popular crowd (Paige McMillan and all her cronies) one more time ...
Zoe turned and looked at the package she got in the mail. Curious, she grabbed it and opened it. Maybe this was the inheritance from her grandfather.
Inside the package was a wood box. It was fairly unimpressive, about one inch by four and an inch deep, made of plain dark wood with a few obscure markings carved into it.
She opened the wood box, seeing that it only contained two things - a crumpled piece of paper and a rather unusual, if plain-looking, stone. The stone was slightly metallic, kind of like hematite, but with a reddish hue to its surface, rounded, flattish and about an inch across.
"What the hell is this?" she asked, picking up the piece of paper and flattening it out so she could read it.
*Dear Zoe,
If you are reading this, it means I have passed on. Do not mourn my leaving; although we shall no longer be able to spend time together, be happy knowing that where I am now is just a new start and a different perspective than before and that I shall just look at it as my next great adventure.
The stone you find in this box is my legacy to you. Treat it with care, it does not look much, but has immense power. I have entrusted it to you, as my only granddaughter, to be its keeper and guardian now that I am gone.
I found the stone on my latest expedition to South America and I believe it to be of Incan origin. How it works, or where it came from beyond that, I have no idea. All I can tell you is how it works and trust you to use it wisely.
Bear with me on this next bit; I know it sounds fantastic, but trust me when I tell you that I am telling the truth. All I say is real and it will not take much experimentation for you to prove it.
While holding the stone against your flesh (I recommend just holding it in your hand as the simplest approach), simply use the words "I wish" followed by whatever it is you want the stone to do. There is no limit to the number of times you can do this, as far as I can divine, but beware for the words of a wish can be reinterpreted but not changed once the breath is over. The stone has great power, but is not unlimited. Changes made will be as if it has always been so, apart from those within earshot of the wish or out of the range of influence of the stone. This range I estimate at several miles, but I fear I have not been able to determine an exact figure.
I must go now. Use the gift I have given you wisely, and think of me often.
Your friend, always,
Grandpa*
"A wishing stone? What the ..." Zoe trailed off as she took the stone in question out of the box. It just looked like a normal smooth stone. It was such a dark gray, it was almost black, with very faint indentations in it. As if ancient writing carved in it had been long since worn away. Maybe this really was a magic artifact.
Zoe set the stone in front of her on the bed and stared at it for a long while. She often thought about what she would do if she had three wishes. Now she had infinite wishes! Where would she begin?
