Chapter One #2
Helping others, righting wrongs, things of that sort that didn’t involve my current owner, I could manage.
All of which I learned over time, through trial and error as I tested the magical limits within me.
Granting a master eternal life, bringing back another who’d died, or taking a life were hard limits and ones I didn’t regret having bestowed upon me.
While those who controlled the lamp considered the three wishes they were granted as wins, they neglected to realize a balance was necessary with each.
If they were given infinite money per a single wish, something else was taken from them, whether it be a tangible item or a living, breathing entity.
I didn’t control any of that, the fates did.
Things at the time they’d think nothing of asking for, unable to see past what they craved, only to be haunted by what was lost in the end.
Or driven mad with greed. Not sure which was the lesser of two evils, though I’d seen it happen far too many times.
Selfish. That’s what their wishes were, and it saddened me to see that.
I’d say it had worsened over the years, but that would be a lie.
Greed had been prevalent since the beginning of time.
As we evolved, so did desire and a general lack of care for fellow humans.
My hope for humanity rapidly dwindled, and though I was trapped here and had to watch it all unfold, there were times I begged whoever listened to my silent pleas to grant my wish to end it all.
Fear enslaved the soul and drove men to madness.
As did solitary confinement.
Not long after the Maharajah and his family finished their morning meal, I was summoned to his side. Good thing my existence wasn’t hinged on rest as it was for humans. Sleep and food weren’t anything I required to survive.
No rest for the wicked they say.
Which was how I considered myself, given I was forced to grant undeserving wishes when so many others cried for help. Real help, real need, yet this was the life chosen for me.
“Yes, my Master?” I addressed him as I appeared.
His hand firmly gripped my lamp and I wished with all my might he’d make his final wish so I could be done with him.
Many tried to force me to grant them another set of wishes, using their last to ask for more.
Never would that happen. At that point they lost their last wish and the lamp was returned to me, and my time served whilst under their thumb came to an end.
Each time I hid the lamp in the deepest, darkest of places I could find.
I’d be free for centuries until the next hunter located it.
With the increasing population on earth, safe places to hide it were fewer and farther between.
Somehow, it’d even disappeared from a private residence I owned hidden and tucked away from other humans.
“Genie. How was your walk amongst the commoners yesterday?” The weight his question held wasn’t missed by me. His true ask was had I seen anything worth taking. More treasure to add to his trove. “Anything new to add to the collection?”
A barely contained snarl nearly escaped. “No. You’ve all but bled them dry.” While in his presence, my wicked tongue was meant to be controlled, though I’d long since lost the ability to care for his worthless rules.
“How dare you speak to me in that insolent tone. I’ll have you…”
“You’ll have me what, Master?” There was nothing he could do to me. I couldn’t be killed or harmed in any way. Yet I was held at bay when it came to doing the same to whomever had control of the lamp and was forced to appear when beckoned. Such a pity.
“You’re of no use to me. Be on your way.”
“Don’t you want to make your last wish, Master? Maybe one for world peace?” Like that would ever happen. “Maybe for a twelfth wife?” As though eleven weren’t enough. Oh, let’s not forget the twenty-three kids they bore for him.
His face reddened to a dangerous shade as he approached me. “You may not care for me or my life, but I control yours.”
In my human form I towered over him, and yet he had zero fear. He may intimidate the commoners, but not me.
“You’re right, which is sad. Though I know many who live far better than you do.
” And with those final words I left him to ponder what they meant.
A final jab as we parted, a potential checkmate to try and push him to make that final wish.
All the gold in the world wouldn’t right his wrongs nor make him whole. He’d do well to realize that.
Silently, I appeared at the edge of the marketplace, and my senses immediately led me to Raj as he strolled through, picking out a loaf of freshly baked bread and fruits from the stalls as he planned his meals for the day.
He reached into his pocket and retrieved more coins than he remembered having.
How did I know this? Because I was the one who had slipped them in there.
His head turned from side to side but found no one near enough to have been able to pull off such a maneuver.
He shook it off and continued perusing the vendors’ wares.
“Always.” My voice was but a whisper as it ghosted through the air. Always I would be there, the one to ensure Raj never had to beg, borrow, or steal. He wouldn’t meet the same fate his parents had. Not whilst I roamed this earth.
I kept a better distance than I had before, clocking his every move as he’d pick up an item only to decide against it and set it back down.
I’d gathered quite the collection of gifts to spoil him with someday.
Odds and ends I’d watched him eye only to decide against them.
Dreams of dressing him as his sun-kissed flesh peeked from beneath sheer fabrics.
Jesus, how many times had I come from those very thoughts?
The only problem with all of this was, what if he never felt the same for me?
Would fate be so cruel?
Don’t answer that.
“Follow me.”
Shit, this was the second time in just as many days Raj had snuck up on me. I bowed my head and followed him between the stalls and up the stairs to his room.
“Sit.” Raj was full of surprises today, though I was inches away from turning him over my knee and tanning that gorgeous ass of his for this bossy attitude. When I glared at him and made no move, he softened his request. “Please.”
I glanced around the tight room, which held two twin beds, a small table with two chairs along with a makeshift kitchenette of sorts and did my best to school my features.
Giving away the fact I was intimately familiar with this space would take us down a path Raj wasn’t ready for.
I took a seat while he stood in front of the open window and patiently awaited his next move.