Chapter 2: Prologue: A Beginning

Vithi paced inside of her prison, as always. It wasn’t actually a prison as such, but to her it might as well have been. She didn’t look like anything special, barely over five feet tall, shoulder length red hair kept into a ponytail, wearing just a t-shirt and jeans. Of course, appearances can be deceiving, and Vithi was happy to keep it that way. She was a djinn, and she was tired of doing everything according to expectations.

And, for the last thousand or so years, she hadn’t needed to. She’d been sitting inside of her lamp, waiting. Her current master, Tunem, was an old mage, and one of the leaders of the Protectorate. He was one of the leaders of the magical world, and, as such, had a large collection of magical items, including her lamp.

In his defense, he wasn’t just a hoarder, he oversaw the Protectorate’s magical armory, but he was still keeping her here for an indeterminate amount of time. He told her that he was never going to make wishes, never going to do any of that, that he would let her free when the threat had passed, whenever that would be.

At the very least, he provided some sort of entertainment for her. He let her work on her own hobbies, but you can only do so much within the confines of a lamp. The TV was a particularly generous allowance. She wasn’t able to get any sort of internet or cable in here, but DVD players worked, and she had a rather large collection of movies and shows to watch. She was considering taking up video games too, but she wanted to finish up her current projects before she opened that can of worms.

Her reverie was interrupted by Tunem’s voice, made slightly echoey by the transition into the lamp. “Vithi, are you decent? We need to talk.”

She frowned. He often came to talk with her, but this felt…different. His voice lacked its normal casual, confident tone, a nervous edge uncharacteristic to the man creeping into his voice. This couldn’t possibly mean anything good. “Yeah, be out in a moment.” She said, mentally willing herself out of the lamp, another one of the small freedoms allowed to her. She couldn’t venture outside of a small radius around the lamp itself, but it allowed for easier conversation, at the least.

“Alright, let’s cut to the chase. What’s going on?” She asked, folding her arms impatiently.

Tunem sighed, the briefest of frowns flashing across his face. “I’m going to be honest, Vithi, the Protectorate’s going through a tough time. We’re already struggling to keep the cities of Haven secure, and the Society’s getting more and more active every year. We’ve lost several important artifacts in the recent decades, and we’re starting to run out of options.”

Vithi dropped down into the chair next to her lamp. She wasn’t stupid, she knew where this was going. He may have promised not to make any wishes, but that had been just words. There had been no actual bindings done to enforce that, no contract, nothing. “And so, you need to make a wish.” She said flatly.

Tunem shook his head. “I won’t be making any wishes. I told you I wouldn’t.”

Vithi rolled her eyes. “Even if you do keep your word, you could just have someone else do it for you. It’s all the same in the end.”

Tunem’s gaze remained steady, but the way his finger was tapping against his leg gave away his anxiety. “I…well, I want to say that’s not what’s going to happen, but technically, it is. I’ve been looking through the timelines, and I found someone that I think will make both of our lives better.”

“Not interested.” Vithi said, moving to return to her lamp.

“Stop.” Tunem ordered, and Vithi found her re-entry blocked.

He grimaced. “Sorry, but you need to hear this. This man would not only make some wishes that are favorable to the Protectorate as a whole, but over 99 percent of the time it ends with your freedom.”

Vithi’s heart raced as she heard that, but something was nagging at the back of her mind. “And the remaining possibilities?”

For the first time in their conversation, Tunem looked away from her. “Both of you are captured and enslaved by the Society. It’s only one in or two of the thousands of possible outcomes, but the fact remains that the chance exists.”

Vithi was silent as she weighed her choices. On the one hand, it was nearly a sure-fire shot at freedom. But, the other…she didn’t want to think about it. She had had enough of being passed around like an object, cruel master after cruel master using her however they wished.

“Yeah, not going to happen, sorry. I’m content enough with this life, and I’m not willing to take that risk.” She said. It hurt to deny this tantalizing chance at freedom, but the alternatives were too horrible to even consider.

“I’m…sorry.” Tunem said. “But this wasn’t a choice. I was merely informing you of what would happen. I thought you would react this way, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t tell you. I’ve been passive for too long, merely guiding people away from the worst outcomes. No, it’s time I actively set out to make things better.”

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Vithi tried to glare at him, but she was sure that any effect it had was negated by the tears she could already feel coming. “Please…don’t make me.” She whimpered.

“I’m really sorry.” Tunem replied. “Please, give him a chance. I promise you’ll thank me for this later.” He cleared his throat, straightening up as he spoke. “I, Tunem, of my own free will, officially renounce my position as master of the djinn Vithi.”

And with those words, the ties binding the two were severed, and Vithi found herself pulled into the lamp once again.

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“Yes, mom, I’m working on being more assertive.” Lucas said. “I know, I know, I’m always saying that, but I mean it this time! But, I gotta get going, it’s really starting to come down and my phone’s getting wet. Love you!”

“Call us when you get home then, we can talk about this later. Love you, sweetie.” His mom said, then hung up.

Lucas huddled into his jacket as he put his phone away, trying to keep it from getting wetter than it already was. It had been a long day, up early to work at a local fast food place, then going straight from there to the college it paid for, and now he walking back home and getting rained on. The weather forecast hadn’t called for rain in the morning, but it was fall and the weather was in a constant state of flux anyway, so it wasn’t too out of the norm.

So, he was stuck walking home without an umbrella. Still, he wasn’t one to complain – a lot of people had it a lot worse than he did. He had a job, had a roof over his head, and the future was looking promising. Long days and rain were minor complaints, really.

“Sir, do you have any change?” A man asked, snapping Lucas out of his trance.

Lucas looked around the street for anyone else the man might have been referring to, but the streets were empty. “Me?” He asked hesitantly.

The man, haggard and dirty, nodded. “Yes. I…just need something to buy food with. Even a dollar or two would be plenty.”

This struck Lucas as odd. To begin with, he lived in a small college town, so beggars tended to steer clear of the area, favoring some of the larger cities nearby. Beyond that, nothing about Lucas indicated that he’d have much of anything to spare. He still had his backpack on, so most people would assume he was in college, and his clothes were pretty cheap, so he wasn’t exactly the picture of wealth.

But he was the only person around, and there was a chance that the beggar was just in town on his way over to the city. So, Lucas put it out of his mind and reached into his wallet, pulling out the couple of dollars he had made from tips that day, handing them to the man. “It’s not much, but it’s all the cash I have on me. It should be enough for something quick to eat while you wait for the rain to stop.”

The man broke into a toothy grin, taking the money. “Thank you very much, sir!” He crouched down, reaching into an overflowing backpack on the ground. He rummaged around a second before taking out a grimy lamp – an oil lamp, by the looks of it – and an equally grimy book. He presented them to Lucas. “Here, take these. I’ve been looking for a good home for them, and I think you’re a perfect fit.”

Lucas shook his head. “I really can’t take those! You could get something for that at a pawn shop or something, so if you’re going to give them away, at least get some more money for food from them!”

The man gave Lucas a small smile. “They have a lot of sentimental value to me, and I would really prefer they end up with a good person.”

“Then why me? You don’t even know me!”

“I know enough about you. Someone who’s willing to give to others even when they don’t have much to give can’t be that bad of a person. It’s better than letting them end up with someone completely random. I’m sure you’ll take good care of them.” He placed the items on a relatively dry spot of ground and put on the backpack, turning away from Lucas.

“Wait!” Lucas cried, but the man didn’t listen, turning down a side street and vanishing from sight. Lucas sighed, tucked the lamp and book into his backpack, and hurried home.