The small magical town of Striva was in the midst of an election. The candidates in the race were the Crystal Angel, who sought humane treatment for the people, and the Lava Stone Being, who wanted the population to work with an iron fist. All the magical folk were finishing their voting in the city center; but at one point, the count froze: it was 10,001 to 10,002, with the Stone Being in the lead.
The Crystal Angel’s supporters looked everywhere with worried faces and beads of sweat on their foreheads, searching for whoever was still left to vote. Stephany and Stiward were twins who also supported the Angel. At that moment, Stiward was watching the news on his floating light screen. Seeing the results, his jaw dropped, and he rushed to find his sister in her room. When he returned with her to the living room, her eyes widened at the sight of the hologram. She immediately decided to contact her cousin through the same screen to request a small carriage to take them to the center.
What they didn't realize was that a Rooftop Ogre was watching them through the window. He worked for the Lava Being and was determined to ensure, at all costs, that they wouldn't arrive in time to vote, so his leader could win the town’s governorship.
"Hi, Sofia. How are you? Can you hire a carriage to take us to Striva’s center to vote?"
"Yes, of course, I'll send one right away."
Just after hanging up, Sofia received another call: it was the Rooftop Ogre. He offered her dresses and jewelry to delay the carriage. Sofia immediately imagined herself with emeralds shining on her chest and arms while trying on beautiful dresses in the mirror, so she accepted out of greed. She contacted the driver and canceled the trip.
Five minutes passed, and they saw no carriage arriving. It was nearly 3:30 p.m.; the polls closed at 4:00 p.m., and they were at the edge of the city. They called their cousin again:
"Sofia, no carriage has arrived; we won't be able to vote in time."
"I'm sorry, the driver had to pick someone else up, but he's on his way to your house."
They turned off the light screen and kept waiting. However, three more minutes passed, and still nothing. They decided not to waste any more time and headed out to the street. Reaching the corner, they began waiting for transport. Usually, they didn't wait long, but this time, for some strange reason, every carriage passed by full. It was odd, as their area was not as populated as the center.
Suddenly, a carriage pulled up, driven by a man they didn't know, but Stephany had a hunch she had seen him among the Crystal Angel’s group. He looked at them with a wide smile:
"I bet you're heading to the center. Hop in, I'll take you."
The youths got in, and the journey began. Suddenly, the carriage was stopped by a traffic jam. This was unheard of in Striva, as there was no overpopulation of vehicles, but it was happening precisely on that day of haste. They could only hear the sound of horses' hooves striking the ground in desperation as they neighed, filling them with anxiety.
What they didn't know was that the ogre was monitoring them from a rooftop with his own hologram; he was the cause of the delays through a spell. But in a blink, a light began to shine over the street. Traffic started moving quickly, and in no time, the flow normalized. Suddenly, the ogre became stressed, searching everywhere only to see that the twins' location marker had vanished from his screen.
They reached the center with less than a minute to spare. Stiward handed the man some glowing coins in Striva’s magical hue, and they sprinted toward the polls. People watched them in silence, their faces tense as they weren't sure what was happening. They marked their ballots over the Angel's face and dropped them into the boxes seconds before the deadline.
At that instant, the marker reappeared on the ogre's hologram, showing the location of the polls; he turned red and clenched his teeth. The tally updated: 10,003 for the Crystal Angel and 10,002 for the Lava Stone Being. The Angel won!
A massive euphoria erupted among the voters. The twins embraced the crowd. The Stone Being vanished into thin air, while the Rooftop Ogres stretched into beams of light and ascended.
Once the celebration ended, the mysterious driver appeared before them again: "Need a lift?" and they looked at him with a great smile. Sofia, the cousin, was captured by the new government for being an accomplice to evil. Stephany and Stiward held a grand dinner in their backyard with their friends and lived with humanity for a long time.
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