"Come now. I know you can say it. It's really not that hard".
Somehow Habogi had gotten a bit of cold feet.
"It's hard for me. I've never wished for...myself before."
"I'm sure you have. It's just been too long since the last you wished for yourself. You're just a bit rusty."
"I wish...no,no,no. I wish you...I wish...oh fuck it! I don't know how to wish for myself. Dammit! Why don't you just wish for me?"
"Okay very well. I'll go first. Calm down now. There's no need to be angry."
I took ahold of his green weathered hands and I interlocked my fingers with his.
"I wish you could have your freedom".
At first nothing happened but then the sands of the desert began to swirl and twist like water in a whirlpool.
"Oh dammit.Now What have you done child?"
He hollered above the roaring of the sands.
Then the sound of the winds went silent and a voice spoke that nearly tore through the ground below us.
"You have violated the sacred rule of the Djinn. No Djinn regardless of race or tribe shall wish for the freedom of another that is bound by the blood of the Djinn. Djinn cannot release Djinn. Djinn cannot free another Djinn. It is forbidden by the law decreed by the Sorcerer Salutan. If this action is attempted again that Djinn shall be bound by the same blood."
"What If the bound djinn asks for a wish from the free Djinn?"
Habogi asked of the voice.
The sands had formed the image of a woman who was sitting down on her knees.
"Then the wish shall be granted but be warned if the wish is requesting freedom the granter of that wish shall be drained of all power."
"So they will die?"
"No. The fire of the Djinn will be taken and the granter then shall become powerless".
"So the granter becomes human in other words?"
"Correct. You have been warned if either action is attempted the consequences will be dire and irreversible. Heed my words or the face the consequences".
"Tell me Guardian of the sands, Does an heir of Salutan still exist upon the earth?"
"Salutan is not yet devoid of an heir. There remains still one that can wield the power of the gem".
"If the granter wishes freedom to the blood Bound what exactly occurs to the granter?"
"The First attempt is void, the second requires a exchange."
"A exchange for what?"
"The exchange for freedom. The granter must give their freedom in exchange for the freedom of the blood Bound. There is no escaping this consequence."
"What then can free the blood Bound?"
"The torment and agony of souls combined with the wishes of the 3rd decree. The void must be opened in order for the blood Bound to be free. The blood Bound must then enter the void once more. Once the void has been opened there is no power that will shut it's gates. Only the Ivory Goddess can command the doors to be shut but she must enter the void herself and sit upon her throne first and then the doors can be closed. Yet be very cautious. The heir of Salutan still lives. There are others beside Salutan that can say the cursed words. There are those that still have the power of the sorcerers of old."
"Who are they?"
Habogi snarled challengingly.
"I can say no more. My knowledge is wide and it goes very far but it is beyond my power to know your future. I am merely a messenger sent by the ancient Sorcerer Salutan.
I am blood Bound as you are Oh great master of wishes. Heed my warming. Stay safe and do not cross the power of Salutan."
"I'm afraid that it is already too late. I crossed the power of Salutan long ago and I am still paying for it. Salutan has no power. He is dead and shall make sure his heir is dead as well. I will sniff out the blood of Salutan. Salutan blood courses through the opal gem. I shall crush every power that threatens my power".
He roared back at the sand guradian.
"May the wishes of your enemies grant that to you. If you open the void you will free us all. I wish you every success. For now I must go. Farewell fellow djinn".
"i told you this wasn't going to work!!"
I could feel fire in my chest and i felt the fire spread throughout my body.
The fire travelled through my blood, making its way to my hands, my feet, my brain and my eyes.
The fire consumed me and i liked it.
I was angry but my mind was clear.
"Don't you dare get angry at me. All i was trying to do was help".
I surprised myself because my voice had taken on a unnatural resonance. It was lower than my usual voice and was intimidating, harsh and hoarse.
Instead of angering him further all he did was exspose his teeth to show his amusement.
"Anger is nice color on you. It really brings out your eyes. It's such a pity that you're not angry more often because you know i rather like it. You know you're actually very powerful. I don't think you're aware the magnitude if your power. Your power is very much like my own unlimited and eternal. All you need now is to learn how to channel that energy and how to bring this power to good use. It's really too bad that you weren't able to free me. I know you meant well sweet Anna. Yet if you want to be angry with me you're more than welcome to. I love it when people are angry with me. I really get a kick out it".
He squeezed his eyes in hilarity and his eyes nearly bled with joy.
I could feel the fire within me fade. There was no sense in being angry especially if he was enjoying it.
"Who is the Ivory Godess?"
His smile dropped and his human eyes widened with somber seriousness.
"It's depicted in the ancient books of the Djinn. Those books are so well kept that no human eyes have ever seen them. The pages are so pure that no human has ever touched them. These books and the pages that these books contain are as eternal as the Djinn themselves. The history that is written in these pages are so magificent and so absolutely captivating that no human is fit read the words. The stories tell of our ancestors. Thry name every single Djinn that has ever existed even those that were exiled."
"Have you seen these books for yourself?"
"Oh yes many times. I grew up with them. Even before i could read my mother told me these stories of old. It was my heritage. I used to pour myself over these books. I read them so often that they became a part of me. Before i reached my 100th birthday i had every word memorized. It is said to take 1000 years to learn every word. These books speak of a ivory Goddess, One who was raised amongst humans for a time until she returned to the deserts of her origin. She is said to have not only the blood of shaitan but the blood every Djinn that has ever existed. When she returns to the sands she shall shed her skin and she shall be reborn and in this new form she has the name of every Djinn shall be written on her skin and scales.
It is said that her human form shall die and when he old form has died she shall enter the void that I hopefully have opened and she shall take her place on the throne and rule all the Djinn. In time eventually she shall join all the Djinn together. There shall be no tribes, there shall be no race, no boundaries, no prejudice and discrimination. All shall become one, of one mind and of one body.
It is my job and my duty to guarentee that she makes it to the throne. I must open the void and then the Ivory Goddess will come. Once that is completed if she wishes I shall rule along side her. I am a Ruler where I come from. Many Djinn especially those bound to humanity say that I was exiled. That is untrue. I was never exiled. I left to go in search for one of my subjects. The sorcerer Salutan had kidnapped her and tortured her. She was nearly dead when I found her. I thought that the Djinn were eternal but there are ways of hurting us. Silver, iron, steel and salt can be used to subdue us. We have weaknesses but you must never tell anyone what those are. You must never reveal what breaks you. You break them first do you understand me?"
"Yes of course. I was always allergic to salt even as a small girl. It would burn mouth and my throat. Then I would get so sick I couldn't move. I never knew why but now it makes perfect sense. If I'm not human why was I raised by humans?"
"There's isn't time for us to get into that just now. I still need to find the gem. Once I find the gem it will quite easy for me to find who awakened me from my opal prison. I suddenly have a feeling that this Alexandra knows where that gem is".
"So if we find her we find the gem".
"Precisely. You are quite correct. If she doesn't know where the gem is she will be sure to track down it's whereabouts. Her knowledge and her investigative skills will prove to be useful.Yet the trick is that we need to get to that gem before she does."
"Why? What happens if she gets there first?"
"She will be sure to make things difficult. She's very determined, stubborn and iron willed. She will do everything in her power to stop us from using that gem. She knows what will happen if I get my hands on that gem."
"Complete World domination".
"Correct. That is not something she wants to have happen. Yet the tables have changed. I now have something I did not have before, something she will not be expecting. I have a free Djinn on my side. Now I have not only my power but I have yours that is of course if you want to join forces with me."
"I will help you and I will aid you; my power is at your disposal. I will do everything in my power to help free you and your people."
I of course meant this. He had my loyalty after all had grown rather fond of him.
I had a sinking feeling in my gut that told me that eventually he would ask me to dispose of this Alexandra Amberson.
He couldn't kill her at least not directly but since he had my loyalty he could very request I use my free Djinni powers to kill her. All I had to do was wish her dead. I had the ability not to just give wishes to others but I could grant wishes for myself as well.
What if I grew to like this Alexandra? What if she wasn't as bad as he said she was? What if I didn't have it in me to kill her when the time was right?
What would happen if I refused to kill her?
I'd never killed anyone before especially a human.
I wasn't very eager to try.