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There's Something About the Amulet... [Dragonsong]

Started by emeraldknight, February 16, 2018, 06:34:29 PM

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emeraldknight

"Then that makes my job a fair bit easier, doesn't it?" Bartley smirked, realizing just how easy this would be. "My- No, our wish, is for you to get back in the damned..." Before he could finish, he bit his tongue, angry at what a fool he'd almost been. "Actually, my wish is for you to tell me all about that jewelry hanging off of you! How old is it? What's it made of?"

The smirk returned, although it was quickly replaced by embarrassment as he noticed the sort of smirking contest he was entering with the Djinn. "Never try to outsmirk a djinn, it's their resting face". He was sure he's heard that from somewhere.

DragonSong

Zahir's smirk turned to a snarl as the little man started making that wish. He had a few contingency plans, but they certainly didn't make his life a whole lot easier.

The snarl morphed back into a smirk and he tilted his head. "Is that an official wish, then? You have to use my name." He cleared his throat and pitched his voice in a mocking copy of Bartley's. "Zahir, I wish for... bla bla bla."

Lapis, shaking slightly, glanced toward the door again. If she could just...edge...back.

"Easy, darling." Zahir's hand shot out and the door slammed closed, lock sliding into place. Lapis squeaked and froze, eyes wide.

emeraldknight

Now that the thing was definitely confirmed to be subservient, Bartley's confidence soared, as did his brashness. His only concern now was for the safety of the customer. "If someone dies here, no-one will buy anything ever again!" He glanced over at a shelf, and located a small piece of charcoal with a white tag attached to it. He reached over to the shelf, grabbing it, before lifting his foot up to the counter and inserting it into a gap between the front and sole of his shoe. He read the message on the tag and smiled, briefly reliving fond memories of times when the charcoal had come in handy.

"You don't like to make things simple, do you?", he taunted. Stepping out from behind his desk, he paced around the room. As he did so, he nervously dragged his charcoaled foot in a circle around Lapis, knowing she'd probably still be annoyed that he tried to lie about her earlier. "Zahir, I wish for you to tell me about the jewelry you're wearing!"

As he completed his stroll around the shop, the smugness drained from his face completely, replaced with the face of someone who just realized their one key mistake, something he had completely taken for granted. "Shit!"

"I- I get more than one wish, right?", he stuttered nervously.

DragonSong

Zahir watched all his antics, bored, then sighed in a long suffering sort of manner.

"Yes," he replied with a roll of his eyes. "You get more than one wish."

The compulsion from that first one was already tugging at him. Well, if he wanted the history of the jewelry, he'd get it. With another sigh, the djinn raised on arm and touched the bracelet on his wrist. "This is from the first dynasty of Essyrn, a gift from a younger daughter of the Shah of the time." He pointed at a ring. "This is from..."

As he droned on, Lapis shot the shopkeeper a sour look, eyebrows raised. What the hell are you doing?

emeraldknight

Bartley hung on to every word, fascinated by the stories. "Such a rich history would be incredible for my collection!" He couldn't help but lean in closer as he drowned out everything but the words of Zahir, who weaved the tales of ancient gold like a bard. At least that's how it felt to Bartley. Eventually, he found the presence of mind to check on Lapis. She certainly didn't seem happy with this. "I suppose I did drag her into this..."

Deciding to do her a small favor, he raised a hand. "Zahir, I wish for you to stop talking." He then shot a smile at Lapis, hoping he'd receive some kind of approval. It was painful, ceasing the beautiful history lesson, but the thought of actually receiving the riches gave him gold fever. "Zahir, I wish for your jewelry."

DragonSong

Lapis tolled her eyes, and the djinn tilted his head with a small frown. He couldn't respond. He had been wished into speechless.

Luckily, the scholar seemed to realize what was happening. Voice shaking slightly, she murmured, "Zahir, I wish for you to speak as you like."

His shoulders relaxed slightly and he nodded to her, polite. "Thank you, Lapis Lazuli." He returned his attention to Bartley as the girl gaped at him. "You wish for my jewelry to do what, exactly?"

emeraldknight

"Oh, you're one of those djinns", he said dryly. Clearly, this was going to be difficult. Sighing, he spoke again. "Zahir, we could go back and forth all day, but I believe it may be in the best interests of my customer if we wrap this up with due speed. Actually... Zahir, I wish for you to let Lapis go, and name me as your sole master." Without even waiting for a response, Bartley approached Lapis and attempted to usher her out the door. However, it seemed that she would not budge. pushing his hand out, he realized she was stuck against a solid surface. He looked around, and saw that this invisible barrier was from the charcoal he'd laid earlier, but he was sure it wasn't supposed to work like that. Then he recalled the text on the label:

QuoteShielding Charcoal: Draw circle clockwise to shield all within. Draw counterclockwise to trap all that enters

Well, crap.

DragonSong

Lapis yelped as she found herself coming up against an invisible surface that she was sure hadn't been there before. "Ow- ow!" She scowled at Bartley. "What the hells is going on?"

As she spoke, Zahir was rolling his eyes. "It doesn't work like that. If I could choose my master, I wouldn't have any," the djinn snapped. He paused, watching the two humans struggle, and his lip curled in a smirk that was more of a snarl.

"Idiots," he hissed, and snapped his fingers. Lapis, who had been shoving against the invisible wall, cried out as she suddenly tumbled toward the ground.

Strong, lean arms caught her, lifting her easily and bracing her against a solid, mostly bare chest. She raised her eyes slowly and blushed. "Um...th-thanks."

"Don't thank me," the djinn replied stiffly. He was glaring at Bartley. "If it weren't for the laws that bound me, more powerful than any petty magics you my cling to, old man, you would be dead," he said coolly. Any trace of the playfulness had gone from his eyes. His voice vibrated with power, skin giving off a soft golden light. "Let me say this one. Last. Time."

His voice rose, echoing off the walls unnaturally, though the volume didn't seem to actually change. Bartley's goods rattled in their places, the door shuddered as though in a gale. Pressed against the djinn, Lapis gasped as raw power wracked her body in waves. She stared at the shop owner, lips parted in a soundless cry.

"You cannot trick me, you cannot trap me, you cannot slay me, and you cannot bind me beyond the bonds that already enchain me," Zahir proclaimed in that whispered-thunder voice. "As much as you are my master, I am your curse, and I swear to you if you do not change your methods very quickly, I will become your personal poltergeist."

emeraldknight

"Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap. crap!" Bartley almost soiled himself as Zahir revealed just how powerful he could be. Now he had a choice: Risk going for the gold again, or get this over and done with before things turned bad. He'd always been hungry for ancient artifacts, and seeing so many in front of him, worn by such a deadly creature, was almost torture to his greed. Eventually, he gave in. "Zahir..." He drew a long, shaky breath. "I wish for you to hand over your adornments to me".

He stepped back, almost shielding his eyes. Of course, he didn't think Zahir would actually kill him, but the power radiating from his body was enough to plant a very large seed of doubt in Bartley's mind. Then he realized something: He'd been taking charge the entire time, but Lapis was Zahir's master just as much as Bartley himself, and if things got difficult, he always had her vote to consider. Turning to her, he spoke quietly, but still loud enough for the djinn to know he wasn't attempting to hide the conversation. "Lapis, what do we do after this? There must be some way to seal this thing back up, right?"

DragonSong

"What-?" Lapis started, still held against the djinn's chest, and just gaped at Bartley. Was he really this stupid? Or was it just greed?

Zahir's eyes were like thunderclouds as he began stripping off bracelets and rings, shoving the girl away from him to do so. Glaring at the shopkeeper, Lapis snapped out, "Zahir, I wish for you to keep your adornments, and to do so as long as you see fit."

The djinn stopped. His eyes widened slightly as he blinked at her. Slowly, he began putting the jewelry back on.

Lapis turned to Bartley, hands on her hips and mouth drawn in a tight line. "Now you listen here, both of you," she snapped, glaring between the two men. She honestly wasn't sure where the sudden boldness came from- probably just frustration. " I have had just about enough of this. If we're all going to be stuck together, there will be no- no squabbling! You."

She rounded on Bartley, eyes flashing. "Do you really think a djinn won't find a way to make every wish that leaves your lips turn sour if you aren't careful? Are you just that greedy that your life means nothing? That's all well and good if you'd like to get yourself killed, but I'm dragged into this too, and I won't have any part in that, no sir. And you!"

She whirled to face Zahir- who actually jumped a bit, eyes rather wide and lips slightly parted in speechlessness. No one had ever addressed him that way. "I'm sure you're not exactly happy with the situation, but neither am I! There's no call to go throwing tantrums that could bring down hurricanes, so just bloody relax."

Panting gently, the scholar fell silent, still glaring at the two men. "Now." In a softer voice, she hissed, "I have no godsdamned idea what to do from here on out, but I do know that a djinn cannot be sealed once he has been invoked. Not without some very specific components. So I believe we are all just going to have to learn to live with this, for the moment."

emeraldknight

Bartley fell silent. He tried to think of something to say, anything, but words failed him. The outburst had truly been phenomenal. After a while, he rather timidly spoke up. "So, are you suggesting we just... Keep him like a pet until we find what we need to reseal him?"

Sighing, he realized it was pointless to argue with the plan, and it was best to just let her cool down.

DragonSong

Zahir snarled. "I am no pet-"

"What did I just say?!"

The djinn fell silent, eyes wide as he actually shrank back from Lapis. She glared at him. "No. More. Bloody. Tantrums."

With a huff, the young scholar turned back to Bartley. "And look. You've gotta stop talking about him like he's some sort of artifact or spell or something. He's a person, the least we can do is treat him like one."

emeraldknight

Lapis was scary. Very scary. "I suppose he is fairly close to human", Bartley thought as he stepped to the side, not wanting to move directly backwards as if he was a coward, but definitely wanting to get further away. "You have a point. Zahir, I'm sorry for all the trouble. Let's just put all this behind us, right? Enjoy each others' company for a bit?" He wasn't exactly expecting rainbows and friendship, but at least maybe he could rest without fear of being stabbed by the two.

Choosing his next words rather carefully, he spoke in a tentative manner. "Now, although I would like us to all be friends here, I am afraid that I cannot quite handle the... Responsibility of having a permanent djinn companion. Assuming that Lapis cannot practically take you in either, as is most likely the case, we may need to figure out how to... Make you portable again at some point. Lapis, would you agree?"

DragonSong

Both djinn and girl seemed to relax slightly, if for different reasons. Zahir was all smiles again, and he nodded before Lapis would answer.

"Of course, that I completely understand. Although if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I'd like to stay out a bit longer," he said with a shrugged. "I think it's been at least a century since I was summoned."

Lapis's eyes widened. A hundred years in that tiny locket?! "Well..." She chewed at her bottom lip. "For the moment, at least, I suppose he could come with me?" she offered. "I could find a library, try to do some research...we could return when we find something?"

emeraldknight

"Well, that turned out well". Bartley sighed with relief, his mind filled with thoughts of all the sleep he would get once they left. "You know what? That sounds like a fine idea". He smiled and extended a hand. "And... Sorry for earlier". That was the hard part. Apologizing. And though that one may have been half-assed, it was there, and Bartley was more or less content with that for now.

DragonSong

Zahir inclined his head once, briefly. The he turned to the young scholar. "Well then. Lead the way."

Lapis swallowed. She had no idea what she'd just gotten herself into. She glanced toward Bartely. "I...suppose we'll see you soon, then."

emeraldknight

More than content to let the two leave him in peace, Bartley nodded his head, exhausted. "See me when you've found something". Yawning, he stretched his hands in the air, and stood up, ready to close the shop the instant they left. The issue wasn't resolved yet, but at least it wouldn't be staring him right in the face anymore.

DragonSong

Lapis resisted the urge to say something rude, cast Zahir another nervous glance, then led the djinn from the shop.

As he left, Zahir muttered something under her breath and sent a small zap of electricity to sting the back of the shopkeeper's neck. He smirked.

emeraldknight

"Ow!"

Once the strange pair were out of sight, he closed up shop, 'Tidied' things, and went upstairs to sleep. "Hope they find something soonish", he thought as he drifted off. It had been a long day.

DragonSong

Lapis and the djinn were gone most of the day. By the time they made it back to the shop, the young scholar was obviously exhausted, and though Zahir showed no outward signs of strain, his eyes were a little duller than they had been.

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