This is the first time I upload a story, so I hope I did it right. I should also note, that I am not use to write in english, so I am open to critique regarding gramma ect. The story is inspired by a variety of thrillers, movies and science fiction novels, but since one of the main characters is largely inspired by the fairytale of Aladdin and the wonderful lamp (both the original from 1001 nights and Disney's version), I choose to place it here.
Please comment and I will be grateful.

I hope you enjoy it, here it goes:

Chapter 1 – On the run

It had been such a strange day she felt a little dizzy. She leaned her head back and as the car drove through the outstretched woodlands, and summarized the bizarre day. It had begun with her normal morning run, but had soon spiraled into a strange and paranoid world. She enjoyed running in the early hours when the city had not yet woken up. It always put her in a calm meditative state of mind, but she couldn't quite get there this morning. Even though she loved the moist feeling of the rain and the sweet smell of leaf, wood and dirt, she had to stop. She leaned her hands on her knees and tried to slow her breathing. She couldn't let go of the spooky set of events which had plagued her uncle this last month. He was the only family she had and his problems laid heavy on her mind. Beside his other duties and studies as a professor of history and folklore at the university, he had worked on a personal project for the last decade. He kept his cards close to his body, and thus she didn't know much about the details of his research. She did know however that it concerned some sort of energy source described in rare and ancient texts. Lately he had discovered that powerful people wished to acquire his research with any means possible and his situation had got steadily more uncomfortable. When they spoke a few days ago he had been pale with dark rims around the eyes. Her mobile rang and yanked her out of her gloomy thoughts. It was her uncle and he sounded out of breath.

"Jessie! Pack your suitcase right away. We have to leave the country and fast. Don't ask questions, it's serious and i mean it. It's got to do with my work. I can't explain now, but please hurry!".

The naked fear in his voice scared the hell out of her and she sprang towards her home. Her uncle was not the type to panic and she trusted him. He had earned great respect among his colleagues both for his research, intelligences and his calm mind. So when he pulled his car up her driveway, she sprang to it with her suitcase packed. Her uncle wouldn't explain anything until they were on board their airplane and airborne. Then he finally told her about the project he had been working on "off duty" so to speak for the last decade. A good friend of his had sparked his interest and pointed him to the right sources. He had managed through years of hard work, to find rare texts describing a powerful source of energy. He wouldn't tell her anymore details about it other that it was extremely powerful and potentially dangerous. About a month ago he was contacted by a man who claimed to represent a group of wealthy beneficiaries looking to invest in historical research and artifacts. "In order to secure valuable knowledge and conduct important research projects under the best possible conditions." the guy had explained. It had all sounded a bit too good to be true in her uncles ears, especially since he had not published anything about it and the only other person who knew anything about it was his niece who studied theoretical physics at the university. So how did these people know? Apprehensive about the whole thing he politely declined the offer. Only days passed before he realized he was under surveillance and being followed. He wasn't completely sure however. Soon he began to loose fundings and support from the scientific community. His office at the university had been ransacked and that had convinced him to go to the authorities. But when he explained his problems he got the distinct feeling none of the police officers believed a word he said. He got the message that a report would be filed of course, but that resources was limited and they couldn't spare the manpower to conduct a thorough investigation. Early the following morning the representative he had met once before showed up in his home. This time he brought a gun. His study was ransacked and when the man didn't find anything, he pointed the gun to her uncles head. Certain about the gravity and potentially devastating effects his discoveries could have on the world he refused to utter a word to the man holding the gun. Realizing his hostage wouldn't bow down, the representative made it clear in no uncertain terms, that if the professor didn't deliver all his research by the next day his niece would suffer a cruel and violent end. With that threat hanging in the air he left the house. Now the professor finally began to panic. He could not trust the authorities or even his colleagues. He knew only one person he knew he could trust now. So he called his niece, told her to pack her bags, and a few hours later they boarded the airplane to Europe.

"So where are we going?" she had asked him.

He had paused for a moment looking at her. "To the only person I trust under these circumstances, love. You don't know him. It's been quite a few years since we last spoke, but trust me one last time. Not only is he wealthy and lives conveniently isolated, but he is the very person who first inspired my research on the energy source."

So here she was. On a remote mountain road surrounded by endless forest in a country she didn't even knew existed. She took a deep breath and rubbed her temples. She had a mild headache. "This guy must really hate people. Who lives so far away from civilization?" To underline her words they hit a large hole in the road and the rusty rental car creaked in agony.

"Don't judge him, love. He has good reason to want a little privacy and he's been through more than most people can imagine."

She felt a sting of guilty conscience. He laughed a little and smiled at her. "Don't feel bad. I know your tired and we're nearly there."

She looked out the window and yawned. This was turning out great. Followed by some crazy cult and now having to spend god knows how much time at some grumpy old professors house in the middle of nothing.

-o0o-

The djin was looking out the window, and though the sun was setting behind the mountains in a flash of red and orange, he didn't see any of it. His gaze was set on infinity as he was pondering the distant past. His long black hair hang loose and fell down over his broad shoulders and he held a glass of vodka. He was waring worn out jeans and a black sweatshirt. He didn't care much about his appearance these days, since he rarely had any company. It hadn't always been like that though. There was a time, centuries ago, when he had friends, good friends. He had started his life in servitude of whoever had claimed ownership of his prison, the lamp. But then he had got an unusually kindhearted master who had done the unthinkable. He had set him free. The following few decades he was ecstatic about his newly won freedom, and spent most of his time with his new friends. When they settled down and started a family of their own, things slowly but steadily began to change for him. He was of course happy on their behalf for having children and starting a family, but it left himself feeling a bit redundant or imposing. It also made him aware of a growing pain in his heart, though he kept it a well guarded secret. He felt lonely. He had friends and for that he was grateful, but he didn't have any family, and that made him feel alone on a very basic level. As with all humans, his former master grew old and finally died, which left an even bigger void inside him. He finished his drink and went to refill the glass. As he strolled back to the window his thoughts returned to the years after his friends had died. Decades came and went and he began to notice that his magical powers was disappearing. No doubt a process that began when he was granted his freedom. Magical powers always came at a price and he did in no way have any regrets about that, but he did worry anyway. His appearance settled into a fixed and much more "fleshed" form, but in no way human. He was still huge and blue and his facial features hadn't changed much. So he felt left with an appearance that set him greatly apart from everyone else, but with no magical powers. The thought of having a family of his own never seemed further away. As he sipped his drink he looked at his reflection in the window. Though he wasn't left wanting in muscle in any way, he just couldn't delude himself to think any woman would want to be with someone so large and alien. He looked away from his reflection with a sigh. He felt like getting himself drunk, but he was expecting an old friend tonight. Even so, he thought as he straightened his back, self pity wasn't a charming attribute and he refused to surrender to it. At that moment his sharp hearing caught the sound of a car driving up the road to the house.

-o0o-

The cold mountain wind sent shivers through her as she stepped out of the car. Before her was a large house, part wood and part stone. A few stone steps lead to the main entrance. It was a truly desolate place resting on the slopes of the mountains. But it definitely had a raw beauty about it. In the last remains of the disappearing sunlight she got a vague impression of a magnificent view over the valley they had been driving through. As her eyes returned to the house she saw the silhouette of a tall figure in the open door. For a moment a strange sensation ran through her. There was something about the shape she couldn't quite put her finger on. Something … different. They grabbed their sparse luggage and walked up the stairs. "Hi Steven" the man in the door said in a deep voice. "I thought you were coming alone." her uncle put his luggage down and shook the mans hand with both of his own. "Well, hello there to you too Djin. This is my niece Jessie and don't panic, she's properly house trained" he continued with a laugh. Djin took a step back clearing the doorway for them. As they entered a large hall he said in a milder tone: "Sorry, I didn't mean to sound rude, I was just surprised, that's all." She couldn't help but stair at the strange man looking down at her. She felt like a dwarf standing beside him, only reaching him to mid chest. His skin had a strange deep blue color and his face had a slightly unusual quality. High cheekbones, large eyes and strong jawline. His long black hair hang loose over his shoulders and broad chest. He stared at her with a piercing gaze that seemed to look directly into her inner most thoughts. She looked down feeling a bit embarrassed, fingered the buttons of her coat nervously and feelt terrible in the following awkward silence. When she looked back up he was smiling at her. His head slightly tilted and his arms crossed. There was an expression of amusement in his face. He glanced over at her uncle with one eyebrow raised then bowed slightly towards her and said: "Hi Jessie. I'm Djin. Come on in."

-o0o-