Chapter Five

A sleeping Tony Jr. lay on Jeannie's bed in her room at Haji's palace in Djinnistan.

Jeannie sat on a cushion at Tony Jr.'s bedside. Today, she was wearing a silver beaded harem outfit.

"Hello, Anthony," said a male voice.

Tony Jr. turned around. Standing before him was a man in his mid-fifties who had a dark brown beard and mustache. He wore a brown robe and hood that partially obscured his face.

"Who are you?" Tony Jr. asked.

"I am Selos," Selos replied. He then added, "We have already met."

The Eye of Selos appeared in Selos's palm.

"The Eye of Selos," exclaimed Tony Jr. "You and The Eye ..."

" ... Are One and the Same," said Selos, completing Tony Jr.'s sentence. He then stretched out his arms and announced, "Welcome … to the Inner Planes."

"Who are you?" Tony Jr. asked. "How do you know my name?"

"I know quite a bit about you," Selos replied. "You are a genie who is convinced that he cannot do magic."

"I've tried doing magic," Tony Jr. replied. "When I do, I get in trouble."

"Correction ..." Selos interjected. "When you have tried doing magic THEIR way, you have gotten into trouble."

Tony Jr. looked at Selos quizzically. "You mean there's another way?" he asked.

"Is this your idea of magic, Anthony?" Selos asked. "Harnessing the power of the universe to give people … STUFF? Toys?

"You seem to think that you are not a magician unless you can produce a ski lodge in Vail just by folding your arms and blinking your eyes."

Selos sighed and said, "Given that your mother is a genie, I suppose that it is understandable that you would think that way.

"Up until now, that is the only magic you have ever known."

"Why are you here?" Tony Jr. asked. "What do you want with ME?"

"For millennia, I have sought out a pupil," Selos replied. "I am seeking someone who is teachable."

"And I am that person?"

"You CAN be," Selos replied, his voice now barely above a whisper. He then added, "What have you got to lose? The genies' ways clearly have not worked."

"Your mother is a powerful being in her own right," Selos continued. "That said, she has her own way of doing things. To her, I was but a mere tool … a blunt instrument that she used to extract information from captured prisoners."

"What can you teach me?" Tony Jr. asked.

"A higher magic," Selos replied. He then dropped his voice to a conspiratorial whisper a,d added, "A GREATER magic."

"You have a mind, a will, a soul, and a spirit, Anthony," Selos continued. "You have everything you need to be a magician.

"Summon the Eye, Anthony."

"WHAT?"

"You heard me," said Selos. "Summon the Eye."

"How?" Tony Jr. asked.

"Command it to come to you," Selos replied calmly.

"Will it obey me?" Tony Jr. asked.

"It is bound to you. It has no CHOICE but to come to you." Selos replied.

Tony Jr. closed his eyes, let out a breath, and cried, "EYE OF SELOS! COME TO ME!" All at once, the Eye appeared in the palm of Tony Jr.'s right hand.

Tony Jr. stared at the Eye, its sole green eye staring back at him. I can't believe I DID that, he thought.

"You know, you DO have the option of summoning it MENTALLY," Selos said with a chuckle.