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Nova stood in the alley, her heart pounding. Her eyes darted around, but the crowd was too busy to notice her. She took a deep breath and stepped forward.

The world shifted.

Nova stumbled and caught herself on a wall. When she looked up, she gasped.

She was standing in a field of flowers as tall as trees, their petals glowing with every color of the rainbow. Butterflies flitted through the air, leaving trails of sparkling dust behind them. In the distance, a waterfall cascaded down into a crystal-clear lake.

Nova's fingers itched for her spray can. She'd never seen anything so beautiful in all her life.

She reached into her backpack and pulled out her sketchbook instead. The pages were filled with drawings of cityscapes and graffiti tags, but there was one page left blank at the back. Nova tore it out and began to draw.

The spray can felt heavy in her hand as she drew each line and curve. Her fingers tingled with energy as colors leaped from the page and swirled around her.

When she finished, Nova stepped back to admire her work. A portal shimmered in front of her—a swirling vortex that led back to Neo-Eden.

Her heart sank. She didn't want to go back to that gray city full of rules and restrictions. She wanted to stay here forever, surrounded by magic and beauty.

But then Nova thought about what would happen if she stayed—how much she'd miss her friends, how worried they'd be when they couldn't find her—and sighed. Reluctantly, she stepped toward the portal.

A rustling sound stopped her in mid-step. The flowers parted to reveal a small creature with wings like dragonfly gossamer and skin like emerald leaves: a fairy.

"Wait!" it said in a tiny voice that tinkled like wind chimes. "Don't go!"

Nova hesitated. She'd never seen a real fairy before. They were supposed to be extinct.

The fairy flew closer and landed on Nova's outstretched hand. "You're an artist," it said, looking at the drawing in her other hand. "A very powerful one."

Nova blushed. "I'm just a street artist."

The fairy shook its head. "No, you're more than that. You have the power to save my world."

Nova frowned. "Your world?"

The fairy nodded. "Enchantara. It's dying, and we need your help to save it."

Nova's heart raced with excitement. This was what she'd always dreamed of—a chance to use her art for something important.

"How can I help?" she asked.

The fairy pointed toward the waterfall in the distance. "There's a cave behind the falls where an ancient curse is hidden," it said. "To break the curse, you must find the key: a paintbrush made from a unicorn's tail."

Nova's eyes widened. A unicorn? She'd heard stories about them but never thought they were real.

"Where can I find one?" she asked.

The fairy smiled mischievously and pointed in another direction—toward a dark forest full of twisted trees and glowing red eyes.

"In there," it said.

Nova took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. She was ready for anything.