Gamelover41592: All I'm going to say is...be careful what you wish for. Both girls have wanted to know what that lamp did all this time and well...they are about to find out.

I think the answer to this question should set the tone for the story. If you played the game you know what is going to happen, so I'm going to waste your time.

Upon returning to Scuttle Town, the girls quickly noticed that Mimic was gone. They wrote it off as him just going on another expedition, until they saw a worried Sky and Bolo waiting for them at the lighthouse.

"There you two are!" Sky exclaimed.

"We were looking all over for you," Bolo added in.

"What's wrong?" Jasmine asked. She was growing more concerned by the second.

"Where's Uncle Mimic?' Shantae asked.

"You're not going to like this," Sky said with a sigh.

"We found a ransom note in his workshop," Bolo revealed. Jasmine and Shantae gasped.

"Oh no…" Shantae trailed off, worried.

"Take a look," Sky said as she held it out for the girls. They were at a loss of words. They didn't know what to say. "Maybe you should sit down,"

"No, read it," Jasmine said, tightening her grip around her boomerang. "We want to hear it."

"Risky Boots says she took your uncle, and will trade his life for the three magic seals you got," Sky read. "She's hiding out in the lamp's original resting place, somewhere east of here."

"How poetic," Jasmine snarked as she crossed her arms.

"Do you know what she is talking about?" Sky asked.

"Poor uncle...this is all my fault," Shantae said. "If I had just let you guys handle this, maybe this wouldn't have happened." Jasmine put her hand on Shantae's shoulder.

"East?" Bolo wondered. "That means he's over by the Mayor's private retreat?" Sky promptly facepalmed.

"Don't be stupid! This would put him near the old boat house! What kind of moron doesn't know east from west?" Sky scolded him.

"Just shut up!" Jasmine exclaimed.

"We need help coming up with a plan!" Shantae pointed out.

"I can help!" Someone called from off screen. Everyone was more then a little surprised when Squid Baron scooted up to them.

"Who's this guy?" Bolo asked as he scratched his head.

"One of the barons we fought," Jasmine said quickly before turning back to the baron.

"You got it all wrong! Risky Boots didn't take your old friend. It was that zombie gal!" Squid Baron revealed.

"Rottytops?" Shantae asked. "She'd never!"

"I knew we couldn't trust her!" Jasmine exclaimed, even if she didn't fully believe Squid Baron.

"Besides, why should we believe you?" Shantae asked.

"Yeah, didn't you explode earlier?" Jasmine pointed out. "How are you still alive?"

"Hey! Don't blame me for putting up a fight!" Squid Baron protested. "The pirate lady was threatening me and my babies if I didn't hand over my magic seal. She really shook things up, and now my kids have run off! Whether you want to believe me or not, that zombie and pirate are in cahoots, and that's a fact!"

"That sounds fishy," Jasmine noted. "Why did you come here to tell us this?"

"Why, to strike a deal, naturally!" Squid Baron replied. "Miss Boots will be expecting to fight you on her terms. But there's a back door to her hideout that might just give you an advantage. If you two agree to save my three golden babies, I'll show you how to open the path to Risky's hideout,"

"Either way, she knows we're coming," Jasmine pointed out. The offer could be useful for a sneak attack though.

"What do you guys think?" Shantae asked Sky and Bolo.

"If Risky's hideout is under water, my birds can't do squat for you guys," Sky admitted. "You might have to trust this guy."

"He might be a stinker, but I think he's telling the truth," Bolo said. Shantae looked at Jasmine, who sighed. She might not trust this guy, but everyone else was telling her to go for it, then she was going to go for it.

"Fine, we'll save your kids," Jasmine said.

"Where do we start?" Shantae asked.

"My babies are probably hiding in the undersea caverns close by," Squid Baron explained. "Oh! And one of them has an artifact that will help you enter the back door to Risky's lair."

"Let's hurry, I don't think Risky is going to want to wait very long," Jasmine said.

"Yeah, Uncle Mimic needs us!" Shantae agreed. Thankfully, the entrances to the caverns weren't too hard to find. Shantae put her new mermaid dance to good use, while Jasmine used her necklace to transform into a sea turtle, deciding a shark would be too scary for little squidlings. They were able to find all three rather quickly and made their way back to town.

"You've done it!" Squid Baron cheered when the girls gave the kids back to him. "You found all three of my babies! I'm fit to burst! Well, a deal's a deal. C'mon kiddos! Whoever has the artifact, give it to the nice ladies!" One of them handed Shantae a new way to attack as a mermaid. "Risky's lair is east of here, just outside of town in the deepest part of sea,"

"Well, what are you two waiting for?" Sky asked. "Kick her butt! Take her down hard!"

"Yeah, I know you two can handle anything!" Bolo agreed. Jasmine and Shantae nodded.

"It's time for a showdown!" Both cried before rushing off. "Hold on, Uncle! We're coming/on our way!"

Finding the back door was the easy part. Risky had made sure to prepare for the girls. The place was full of Tinkerbats, darkness and other traps, but the girls powered through, making it to Risky. They arrived just in time to see Rottytops run off. Jasmine scowled at that, but focused on Risky.

"Risky! This is a new low!" Shantae exclaimed. "Turning my friends against each other. It's sick!"

Risky barely paid that any mind. "Ah, you've arrived. It could have gone differently, you know. Maybe you should have just handed over those seals in the beginning and saved your friends from such grief! The outcome would have been the same!"

"Hand over our uncle or I smash these to pieces!" Jasmine threatened, even dropping one to the ground and placing her foot over it. Risky flinched. She wasn't not expecting this, but she couldn't risk it screwing up her plan.

"Very well," Risky said as she shoved Mimic forward.

"You should have taken them and ran!" Mimic exclaimed.

"We can't," Jasmine admitted as she helped her uncle to his feet.

"Risky wins this time. You guys were dragged into this because I was too weak to do my job," Shantae added in. "It's my responsibility as a guardian genie to face this on my own,"

"I wouldn't have let you!" Jasmine replied. "In case you forgot, we are partners and sisters," Shantae gave her a smile, but steeled herself as she handed Risky the magic seals.

"The magic seals are mine!" Risky cackled.

"Uncle, get out of here!" Jasmine ordered.

"But…" Mimic protested.

"We can handle Risky!" Shantae assured him. "Get going!" With a solemn nod, Mimic fled.

"Ho ho ho!" Risky laughed, turning the girls' attention back to her. "In a few moments, the lamp will be restored to full strength! And it's dark power will be mine!"

"It's not over yet!" Jasmine pointed out as she pulled out her boomerang.

"There's still time to stop you!" Shantae added as she got into a battle stance.

"You're certainly welcome to try!" Risky scoffed. "Ho ho ho!" A repaired Tinkertub stomped forward. "Men! Throw the Steam Powered Oceanic Tinkertub into overdrive! Let's see what this bad can really do! While it had new attacks, it was still nothing to what Jasmine and Shantae could do now and the ship quickly fell.

"You're finished, Risky!" Shantae boasted.

"Tsk tsk!" Risky scoffed. "Gotta keep your eyes on the prize! You see?" She then held up the magic lamp. "The magic lamp is back in action and ready to rock! If you two still want to know the secret of the magic lamp, I'll show you!" She then turned to Shantae. "Open wide and say AHHHHH!" Suddenly, Shantae began to scream in pain as the lamp sucked something out of her.

"Shantae!" Jasmine exclaimed. Shantae then collapsed to her knees, causing Jasmine to help her back to her feet. "What did she do to you!?"

"What...what have you done?!" Shantae exclaimed.

"Hah!" Risky cackled. "Do you understand now? This lamp has the power to suck up and ENSLAVE genies! Once captured, the genie must grant every wish her master desires, no matter how evil! That is what your uncle has been hiding from you!"

"He was trying to protect me…" Shantae said, still leaning on her sister.

"With this, I can turn a genie into a weapon of total destruction! No one will dare defy me!" Risky boasted.

"But how could it work on Shantae?" Jasmine questioned.

"Yeah, I'm only half-genie!" Shantae pointed out.

"I'll admit at first glance it seems pretty useless," Risky explained. "After all, there aren't any real genies left to enslave. But since you're a Half-Genie, I figured why not use the lamp to strip you of your powers!"

"She's right!" Shantae exclaimed, now strong enough to stand up on her own again. "My magical half is gone! What's left is…"

"You're a full human!" Jasmine exclaimed. Suddenly, she found herself flashing back to something she had told her sister a year ago.

"I don't think the people care if you are a full genie, a half genie or a full human."

She felt herself wobble. She never wanted to see her sister lose her powers. She only said that to make her feel better.

"Now let's see how you fare when one half of you is stuck without your special powers!" Risky taunted. "Here me Genie of the Lamp, I command you to appear!" A version of Shantae with red hair, pale skin and a darker outfit appeared. "Do not hesitate! Destroy these two! Don't stop until they are both stains on the floor!"

"I can't transform!" Shantae exclaimed.

"Well, you're going to have to make do without it!" Jasmine said as she readied her boomerang.

"You're right!" Shantae said as she readied herself for a fight. "Risky will use my magic for evil! And all I have to fight with are these items I've found along the way! Please be enough!"

"I'll pick up the slack, I promise!" Jasmine assured her. Shantae's magic was quick on the attack. She could jump into the air and fire rapid fire bullets, dash around as a monkey and rapidly drop down from the ceiling. Much to everyone's surprise, Shantae could still use her hair as a weapon, which quickly proved helpful. Jasmine felt like she was fighting harder then she ever had. Whether it was from grief or rage, she couldn't tell. But in the end, the deed was done and Shantae's magic was destroyed.

"It's over," Jasmine said, her emotions completely drained.

"You fools!" Risky exclaimed. "You would destroy easily the most powerful part from both of you combined in exchange for this town full of simpletons!?...then enjoy your victory! It's only temporary! The last laugh will be mine! Ho ho ho!" With that, Risky took off. Jasmine tried to give chase, but lost sight of her. When she returned, she found Mimic had returned as well.

"Girls! You've won!" Mimic cheered.

"Uncle...my magic…" Shantae said, her voice cracking.

"Gone," Mimic said, finishing the thought. "You're human now." Shantae just broke down, sobbing into Mimic's chest. "There, there,"

"Everything is going to be okay," Jasmine said as she hugged her sister from behind. After a few minutes, Shantae calmed down.

"Uncle, what about my hair? I could use it in the fight.." Shantae revealed.

"I don't know why it chooses to obey," Mimic admitted. "Perhaps it's not genie magic as I once suspected. Perhaps that part of you doesn't come from your mother. Your mother...I've let her, and everyone else down all because of my foolishness,"

"It's not your fault uncle," Shantae assured him. "The danger was always out there. Jas and I were the ones who rushed in unprepared,"

"For the love of- how about we just say it was Risky's fault so we can stop with this?" Jasmine offered. Shantae and Mimic both laughed.

"Sounds good to me," Mimic agreed.

"Anyways, let's get out of here. The others will want to know you're safe," Shantae told him.

"...And that's everything that happened," Jasmine finished. Bolo, Sky and strangely enough, Squid Baron and his kids, were all by the lighthouse when everything was finished.

"So all along Risky had us thinking that the lamp was the weapon," Sky summarized. "When her real scheme was to get her grubby mits on your magic! It took nerves of steel to do what you did. Destroying your magical half is pretty gusty."

"Bah!" Bolo scoffed. "Who needs magic!? First thing tomorrow we'll start training again. And this time, Jasmine and I'll teach you some human moves!"

"You got that right!" Jasmine agreed as she and Bolo shared a high five.

"Thanks everyone. But still… I feel farther from my mother, from my true home then ever before," Shantae said as she rubbed her arm. "Deep down, I want to keep trying, but I'm useless without my magic."

"That is the biggest lie I have ever heard in my life!" Jasmine exclaimed. "Listen Shantae. You are not useless, far from it. Plus, some of the best things about you never had anything to do with your magic!"

"Like your determination," Sky chimed in.

"Your bravery!" Mimic added.

"The fact that you are nice to everyone! Even guys like me that everyone thinks is a screw up," Bolo said.

"All things I couldn't have said better myself," Jasmine said with an earnest smile. Shantae felt herself tearing up again as she pulled everyone into a group hug. Then the Mayor arrived.

"Oh what do you want!?" Sky demanded. She and Bolo knew how he treated Jasmine and Shantae.

"I'm ashamed of myself for behaving so badly. It is clear that you both love this town and will defend it to the end," Scuttlebutt sheepishly admitted. "That's why I would like you both to return as Scuttle Town's guardians. Will you take the job?"

"Heck yes!" Jasmine cheered. She still hated his guts, but if she was giving her her job back, who was she to say no?

"You'd take me back too, even without my genie magic?" Shantae asked.

"Absolutely!" Scuttlebutt replied. "I'm going to have a talk with the Ammo Baron and get our town back to normal lickety split!"

"You will? Yes! Yes, I will do it!" Shantae replied. "We'll protect this place with everything we've got! But we won't do it alone anymore,"

"We won't?" Jasmine asked even if she knew where this train of thought was going.

"We all love this place and will defend it together! As a team!" Shantae said. Sky and Bolo's smiles only grew wider. "And I promise that from now on I won't be too proud to take help from others. Especially you guys!"

"Evil never rests," Sky said. "Risky Boots and her Tinkerbats are still out there,"

"And Rottytops and her brothers, too," Bolo added in.

"Things will be different from now on," Mimic promised.

"Sounds great to me," Jasmine said. These new changes would hopefully make life easier.

"Yeah. But as long as we stick together…" Shantae began. Jasmine already knew what she was going to say.

"Evil won't stand a chance!" She finished. Everyone grinned, things were going to be different, alright. Different in the best way possible.

So Shantae is now a human, but everyone is supporting her to the end. Before I jump into Pirate's Curse, I have a few extra chapters I want to write. They will be smaller, but will help me tie things together better. See you then.