Chapter 1 - The King Didn't Make a Decision (2)
Genius never walked and he never ran. Genius skirted. Genius was a genie, trained at the Continental School of Genies, where he also bought his diploma and became a fully qualified genie. The genie course included a genuine lamp with all the amenities a genie could possibly require. It had a nice cosy sitting room, a slightly cramped bedroom, facing north sometimes, a kitchen with the newest in everything and burglar-proofing all round.
“Oh cavity inside mine tooth…” the Darn Duke Dimwit was saying but no-one was listening.
One glance at Genie’s face told everyone everything. Something extremely unpleasant had happened. Genius, as everyone knew, was responsible for keeping the peace and happiness in the country of Landscape. Everyone still remembered the time Genius outwitted the evil King Incarnate, He Who Nibbles His Toenails From His Toes. The devious King Incarnate had a devilish scheme to overthrow the monarchy (some dissenters called it the ‘monotony’) in Landscape. Luckily Genius’s genius and a few thousand men managed to overpower the King’s agitators who tried to sow discord under the loyal, if somewhat dogged, followers of the good King Blink. Since then everyone had realised that only Genius can save Landscape from the continuous threats posed by the evil King Incarnate.
“What wondrous delights treasure thee. How but I should know the chewy delights in store for me. If but my tongue a compass could be. To guide my quest where no eyes could see…” the Darn Duke Dimwit continued unrelentlessly, apparently unaware of his lack of audience.
His audience, however, had realised that something terrible must have happened to wipe the smile from Genius’s face. For a few moments Genius was quite unable to speak. At last his voice came as a hoarse croak, hollow and most pathetic.
“They have stolen my lamp!” he said and threw an anguished glance at the assembled crowd. For a moment he thought that he had overdone the anguish because some of the listeners started groping for their anti-depressants but then that great monarch, King Blink, better at deeds than words, shouted a few commands, most of them unintelligible.
“Quick! A dozen lamps for Genius! Full-house each of them!”
Genius almost cringed with desperation.
“No! No! You don’t understand! I need my very own lamp, the one I was trained in. Without that lamp I am powerless. Its got a special made to order anti-theft plug where I can recharge my magical powers. No-one but me can use that plug. If anyone else tries to use or override the anti-theft plug, the lamp will self-destruct. If I don’t plug in at least once a month, my magical powers will disappear and eventually I will just fade away into a wisp of strawberry flavoured smoke!”
“Oh cavity inside mine tooth…” the Darn Duke Dimwit was saying but no-one was listening.
One glance at Genie’s face told everyone everything. Something extremely unpleasant had happened. Genius, as everyone knew, was responsible for keeping the peace and happiness in the country of Landscape. Everyone still remembered the time Genius outwitted the evil King Incarnate, He Who Nibbles His Toenails From His Toes. The devious King Incarnate had a devilish scheme to overthrow the monarchy (some dissenters called it the ‘monotony’) in Landscape. Luckily Genius’s genius and a few thousand men managed to overpower the King’s agitators who tried to sow discord under the loyal, if somewhat dogged, followers of the good King Blink. Since then everyone had realised that only Genius can save Landscape from the continuous threats posed by the evil King Incarnate.
“What wondrous delights treasure thee. How but I should know the chewy delights in store for me. If but my tongue a compass could be. To guide my quest where no eyes could see…” the Darn Duke Dimwit continued unrelentlessly, apparently unaware of his lack of audience.
His audience, however, had realised that something terrible must have happened to wipe the smile from Genius’s face. For a few moments Genius was quite unable to speak. At last his voice came as a hoarse croak, hollow and most pathetic.
“They have stolen my lamp!” he said and threw an anguished glance at the assembled crowd. For a moment he thought that he had overdone the anguish because some of the listeners started groping for their anti-depressants but then that great monarch, King Blink, better at deeds than words, shouted a few commands, most of them unintelligible.
“Quick! A dozen lamps for Genius! Full-house each of them!”
Genius almost cringed with desperation.
“No! No! You don’t understand! I need my very own lamp, the one I was trained in. Without that lamp I am powerless. Its got a special made to order anti-theft plug where I can recharge my magical powers. No-one but me can use that plug. If anyone else tries to use or override the anti-theft plug, the lamp will self-destruct. If I don’t plug in at least once a month, my magical powers will disappear and eventually I will just fade away into a wisp of strawberry flavoured smoke!”
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