The Djinni's Tale

by Snake Staff

Chapter 3

“That doesn’t exactly answer my question,” the stranger said.

“Master?” Djinni cocked her head.

“I was hoping you would tell me a bit more about… you know.” He waved his hoof. “What manner of creature are you? From whence did you come? How came you to be in this place?”

“Oh,” she blinked. “Well… I am a spirit of the smokeless fire and a spark of the light eternal. I danced a dance unending across the heavens with a billion billion brothers and sisters, such that all life might endure.” Her orange-gold mane and tail seemed to pick up, illuminating the tomb even more. “We were many, yet we were one.”

“…What?”

She sighed. “In less poetic terms, Master, I was part of the sun.”

“Part of the… part of the…”

The stranger’s brain teetered dangerously on the edge of illogic. For a creature to be part of the sun was blatantly impossible – even the merest fragment of that great orb would have been enough to incinerate him, the tomb, and everything within the hemisphere without even trying. That this mare stood there and called him Master made the absurdity even more evident. The sun could never be tamed, never enslaved, only carefully guided. And that was by a team of the most powerful and highly-trained unicorns in the world.

“Are you messing with me?” he asked. “Is this some kind of joke you enjoy playing on hapless mortals? Are you a trickster spirit after all?”

“It is no jest, Master,” she insisted. “I am the barest piece of the sun, bound to the lamp and given shape, consciousness, and name. It is on the infinite energies of the sun I draw to grant my masters’ wishes.”

The stranger considered her words. It did not seem possible… but then, the spirits were strange creatures. In any case she was an invaluable discovery, the likes of which he might never see again. It seemed unwise to provoke her to wrath by calling her a liar. Even if she did insist that she could not harm him.

“If you are truly a portion of the sun, how did you come to be a slave in a lamp? How could anypony possibly bind the infinite fire to a mere vessel of tarnished bronze?”

“It is… something of a long story, Master.”

“You need not continue to call me Master,” he said, telling her his name. “If we are to have a lengthy discussion, then I prefer my given name.”

“That I cannot do.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that I cannot call my master anything other than Master. It is part of my binding. Behold.” Djinni opened her mouth, then began the very first symbol of the stranger’s name. At once her jaw locked in place, her tongue froze in mid-contortion. She looked like nothing so much as a great gaping fish, and the stranger found it hard not to at least chuckle.

“Master,” she said after a moment’s time, everything undone the moment the word touched her lips. She breathed deeply. “You see? It is a reminder, a symbol of what I am, that I might never escape the knowledge of my status.”

The stranger felt a wave of revulsion churn in his gut. Who had done this to her? Why was obvious enough, but what kind of monstrosity could enslave such a creature and then go out of its way to humiliate her? Why hurt something this beautiful?

“Is there no way?”

“There is none,” she shook her head.

“If you were a free spirit–”

“I can never be free,” she declared with surprising vehemence, stomping her hoof so hard that the tomb quaked around them. Loose stones dropped from the ceiling and shattered. The stallion struggled to keep his balance. Djinni walked directly up to the stranger, easily towering over him. Her eyes seemed to glow. “Speak not of what you know not, Master!” She pressed her face almost directly into his. “Or you may come to regret it.”

The fires of her mane and tail had brightened and flickered harshly. Hints of red could be seen amongst the gold and orange. The temperature in the tomb rose several degrees, matching even the scorching desert outside. The stranger felt his ears folding back, sweat trickling down his neck.

“V-very well,” he said, blanching. “I shall s-say no more of it.”

Djinni snorted, then nodded. Now mollified, the fires of her mane slowly died down as she backed away. Cool air swept back into the tomb with surprising, nigh supernatural quickness. The stranger felt some color returned to his face, and he let out a long breath.

“Now,” she said, all trace of her previous threatening demeanor vanished. “Where were we? You wished to hear of my past, did you not?”

“Yes, I– wait. Does that count as a wish?”

She chuckled. “No. To make a wish, you must say: “Djinni, I wish for…” and then say what you will. My binder considered the possibility of accidental wishing many millennia ago. She was less than eager to fall victim to it. I would be happy to tell you, though. It has been so long since I have had someone to talk to.” She flicked a wing idly, and in the blink of an eye the floor at their hooves was covered in thick, plush carpet and a smattering of cushions. “Please, be seated.”

Once both had settled in to somewhere comfortable, she began.

“I was, as I said, a part of the sun. One flame among many, though I could not have perceived it as such. For all the sparks there are one, and each only a tiny part of the great will of the eternal fire.”

“The sun has a will?” he asked. “It is alive?”

Djinni hesitated, then shook her head. “Not… in any sense you would understand, Master. Forgive me, it is difficult to explain – your language lacks the proper words, your mind the necessary concepts. The sun has, in some manner of speaking, a spirit and a will. It can perceive all that its light touches. At the same time, though, it is not consciously aware. It does not think thoughts or make plans. If tomorrow you somehow gave it language, it could not speak to you, nor would it truly understand anything you said to it. It simply is not self-aware as even the basest of creatures are. Yet it still has desires and a motivating force that drives it.”

The stranger found picturing a being that willed things without even comprehending the fact of its own existence difficult to picture. Even verminous insects understood that they were real, and that they must act on their base desires.

“What does it will?” he eventually asked.

“In your terms, Master, it wishes to run wild and free, with none to tell it what to do. At the same time, it also wishes to bless the universe with its light, and to give life to the little things it sees scurrying about below. Those who would bid it move must appeal to latter instinct against the former. They must be strong of will and magic, lest the great fire extinguish both.”

“I see.” He pondered her words. “What about you, then? You clearly possess consciousness.”

“Yes.” She smiled. “I do. It is, as I said, a result of my current state. Many eons ago a great sorceress came into possession of unique knowledge and a very special little lamp.”

The stranger looked the lamp over again. The bronze, as ever, was dented and tarnished and bereft of ornamentation. It looked the exact opposite of special. Even magically it didn’t meaningfully register.

“That lamp long predates my imprisonment in it,” Djinni continued. “Even the memories of the sun do not show from whence it came, so it must have been forged in a place of utter darkness. By whom, and for what purpose, I know not. Regardless of that, the sorceress found a way to siphon off a trickle of the sun’s power. But to bind it to a vessel, to make it a slave, it needed a mind and a body. Simply capturing a fragment of the sun would never be enough, for it could not understand orders even if they could be given.”

She sighed. “My essence was given form, as you see before you now, by dark magic and blood sacrifice. By those means could it be compressed and forced to look on the world as mortals do. From there it could be bound, made to obey the one holding its vessel. And such was what happened. No ordinary vessel could hope to contain even a portion of the sun’s fire, but that lamp is no ordinary thing. It’s quite indestructible, actually.” She looked down a little. “In those first days, I tried.”

The stranger felt another wave of pity hit him, though he resisted the urge to ask about her freedom again.

“I did not know well my new mind or emotions, but I understood at least a hatred of confinement. I raged and screamed fought with all the strength I could muster. But it simply wasn’t enough. By the time the sorceress rubbed the lamp to call me forth, I had on some level realized that I must obey her. These–” she held up one of her bracelets “–do not allow me to do otherwise. As you saw, if commanded to return to the lamp I cannot refuse.”

“I… apologize,” the stranger said, pulling his hat down a little. “I didn’t mean to put you through that.”

“Think nothing of it.” She waved it off. “You returned, that is all that matters.”

“Uh, yes,” he said, a little uneasily. “Go on.”

“Of course, Master.” She bowed her head. “In those early days I was angry. I hated what had been done to me, and yearned to return to the way things were. To be forced to grant three wishes to my captor… it enraged me beyond words.”

“Why three?” the stranger interrupted. “Why not did she not seek more? Why not bind you to infinite wishes?”

“I do not know,” Djinni replied. “But I assume that if she could have, she would. She was not the sort of mare to be content with anything less than the best. Binding me as I am must have stretched her power to its limits. But, for all her power and wisdom, in one thing she was foolish. She assumed that I was more beaten than I actually was. She was careless in her hour of victory. When she wished to be the most powerful mage in all the world…”

She hesitated a moment before continuing. “She failed to specify which world,” the tall mare sighed and hung her head. “There are many worlds in this system alone, Master. In an instant I placed her on an airless rock and proclaimed her the most powerful wielder of magic on it. A few moments later…” Djinni opened her eyes, tears rolling down her cheeks. “I was drawn back into the lamp by my master’s death.”

“What is it like… in there?”

“It is… dark and very small. I can see nothing, hear nothing. There are walls everywhere, cold and unfeeling with no way out. Above all things, it is very lonely. I have no one to be with, no one to give my light to. The only mercy is that I can sleep. I often pass the centuries in a state of torpor, floating and dreaming of the next time a soul will call on me.”

“Are you certain there is no way you can be–”

In an instant her demeanor shifted. One moment Djinni was sitting there, looking weak and mournful, the next the carpet underneath them burst into raging red flames that consumed it utterly. The stranger was dropped roughly onto the hard stone floor, only to immediately behold the sun spirit towering above him, eyes alight and mane red and orange.

“What did we already discuss, Master?” She lowered her head such that her muzzle stood mere centimeters from his. It felt like sticking one’s face right next to a raging bonfire. “We wouldn’t want you to end up like my first master, would we? So I suggest you leave the topic be, for the sake of your health.”

“Yes! Yes!” he nodded vigorously. “I understand, I only wanted–”

“You understand nothing! Keep your silence, lest you should draw my ire.”

“O-of course,” he swallowed.

Djinni’s eyes, bright enough to be mistaken for small suns themselves, narrowed. “See that it stays that way,” she hissed.

And then, just as suddenly as it had come, the flash of temper was gone like dust in the wind. Before the stranger even had a chance to sit up, he found himself once again atop a plush rug, being propped up by a comfortable cushion. Djinni sat where she had moments ago, suddenly all sweetness and subservience again. The effect was highly disconcerting.

“Are you comfortable, Master?” she asked, no trace of anger in her voice. “I see that you are sweating. Would you care for something to drink before I continue?”

“S-Some water would b-be nice.” He struggled to restrain the urge to turn around and bolt again. What the hell was wrong with this mare? One moment she was sweet, caring, and lovely, the next she felt like a raging firestorm. One moment she wept for killing the witch who enslaved her, the next she seemed on the verge of doing it to him. One moment she was mourning her miserable imprisonment, the next she threatened him with death for even suggesting the possibility of freedom. What had happened to "I cannot harm you. It is forbidden."? He had met strange females before, but never of this magnitude.

“Of course,” she said, and in an instant he simply had a large glass of chilled water and ice. This he opted to guzzle before she decided to set it on fire as well. It was clean, cool, and very refreshing. The spirit waited patiently for him to finish.

“Better?” she asked in a gentle tone. When he nodded, she smiled. “I am pleased to hear it. Now, as I was saying: after my first master’s death, it was many years before I saw another. She was much feared and very secretive, so I had a good deal of time to brood before a bold thief stole into her laboratory and found my lamp among her possessions. He soon became my second master. But I was still angry at my bonds and full of spite for mortals, so…” Shame crept back into her tone. “He survived his first wish by dint of quick reflexes and good luck. Afterwards he buried the lamp as deeply as he could and never looked back.”

The stranger was beginning to wonder if that might not be the best idea after all.

“After that...” She sighed. “It was more than thirteen hundred years before I had another master. By the time I did, I had had time to think, my temper time to cool. So when an archivist happened to acquire me, I was not so consumed with a desire to lash out. He was…” She smiled faintly. “A pleasant master. I was with him for many years before his third wish, and I learned much in that time. Since then there have been many masters, some better than others. The last I believe was… what year is it, Master?”

The stranger told her.

“Ah. Around seven hundred and fifty-three years ago, then. I had a poor young stallion who wanted to be rich, wanted to be loved and admired. Nothing too out of the ordinary. And then he wanted to be ruler of a city that would be the envy of all the world.” She looked down. “I tried to warn him, but he insisted. He never really understood what the envy of the world would entail,” she sighed, looking up again. “I doubt it ended well.”

“I think we’re in his tomb,” he told her.

Djinni looked around. “And the city?”

“A ruin held to be cursed.”

“That is sad to hear,” she said. “I hope that his passing at least was peaceful. And that your wishes go better for you, Master.” She bowed a little. “Have you any?”

“As a matter of fact,” the stranger said. “I think I do.”

Comments

[Mix-up]

I'm still not sure about this story so far. For what I can see this Djinni could be be the early manifestation of Celestion of aeon ago, and she seem to have wild mood swing the more he deals with her. The explorer is still shrouded in mystery. My best suggestion for him, if ever she starts to get too difficult to handle it would be best to wish for very simple things and be done with it as soon as possible. there is no uses to keep a mad demigodess on your side. Still, she seem to be a good conversationalist, and in a land with little company, I think could be a good traveling companion. This is starting to intrigue me...

[Chadbane]

I am surprised at the lack of attention this story is getting! The manner in which it is written is undeniably awesome and the storyline itself is quite intriguing. I look forward to reading what comes next! Keep up the good work, man!

[Cerulean Voice]

When she wished to be the most powerful mage in all the world…”
She hesitated a moment before continuing. “She failed to specify which world,” the tall mare sighed and hung her head. “There are many worlds in this system alone, master. In an instant I placed her on an airless rock and proclaimed her the most powerful wielder of magic on it. A few moments later…”

Note to self: upon uncovering lost wish-granting ethereal being, one must specify "on Earth" when wishing for dominance / other in regards to status on this planet. Man, if Genie had done this to Jafar...

“What did we already discuss, master?” She lowered her head such that her muzzle stood mere centimeters from his. It felt like sticking one’s face right next to a raging bonfire. “We wouldn’t want you to end up like my first master, would we? So I suggest you leave the topic be, for the sake of your health.”

You know, for someone who claims to be unable to hurt their master, she sure makes a lot of vicious threats. Are they truly empty?

What had happened to "I cannot harm you. It is forbidden."?

Ah, glad you brought this up in-story. I would have disliked to call "plothole" on you.

So, let's see some wishmaking! Be sure to choose your words wisely, stranger.

[marcelojj]

6734567

Note to self: upon uncovering lost wish-granting ethereal being, one must specify "on Earth" when wishing for dominance / other in regards to status on this planet.

Wich Earth ? There could be several, even in other WAY less pleasant dimensions. What about being the most powerfull being on Earth...in a eternal fire universe ?

There is ALWAYS a way to twist a wish. Watch "The Wish Master´s", a very good terror movie.

[Cerulean Voice]

6735076
When I think of wish twisting, my mind heads right to Bedazzled with Brendan Fraser and Liz Hurley. God, I love that movie.
Perhaps "The Earth on which I have resided all my natural life" would cover it.

[ponygrad]

UNLIMITED COSMIC POWER.
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