Genie

Act 1~ Chapter 6 ~ The Piper

Chapter 6

The sun warmed the outside of the Johnathan's eyelids, his body stretched out across the grass. The nearby forest provided sounds of bird singing and the rustle of tree leaves. He hummed to himself, his spirit and happiness beaming from him.

It's been a quiet few months, Johnathan had been enjoying the solitude. He was used to being alone. It has been years since his son passed and even longer since he had been married. And the only times he really felt lonely was when he thought of his son, Cyrus. With time the pain dulls but still beats within.

John's hands rested on the pipe that was on his chest. The pipe was attached to a string that looped around his neck, ensuring that he would never lose it and it would be difficult to steal. His finger mindlessly played different notes on the pipe, following the tune that John hummed. It was subconscious as he brought the pipe up to his lips and started to play the tune. He cracked open an eye when he heard the rustling of the grass around him.

He was incredible at summoning rats to him, but the music also brought other creatures. Rabbits, squirrels, chipmunks, the like. They all sat waiting for him to lead them. That's what this tune did.

"I didn't give you that pipe to fool around." A hand reached out and snagged the pipe from Johnathan's hands.

Johnathan was startled and his eyes snapped open to see Adam Perkins standing above him.

Adam Perkins is an odd man. He is a genius potionmaker and a regular genius. But not only was his mind odd but his appearance was as well.

Half of his body was a regular man's, his head covered in thick dark hair and his body muscular. The right half of his body was twisted and morphed. His bones and skin stuck out at odd angles, awkward and grotesque. Often Adam wasn't referred to by his name but instead was called the crooked man.

Johnathan perked up and smiled up at his long-time friend. "There isn't much to do while you're gone."

Adam smiled as Johnathan climbed up. The two hugged in a joyous reunion.

"So, do you find what you were looking for?" Johnathan held his friend at arm's length and grinned madly. It felt like ages since his dearest friend had left, on a personal quest to which he disclosed none of to John.

"Indeed." Adam had a makeshift satchel that swung by his side and he pulled it forward. Inside were three items, a vial of something akin to sand, an hourglass with a golden base, and a small ruby.

"And what are you going to do with these things?" Johnathan puzzled over the odd objects, his eyebrow-raising.

"Let me show you," Adam then started to hobble toward his shop, John close behind.

The walk was short, the two didn't live too far apart from each other. Every time that John spoke up to try and figure out what Adam was up to, Adam would shut him down and say that it was a surprise.

Adam seemed joyous as he walked, talking about traveling to far off lands, different realms even.

The little shop rose slowly over the horizon as they neared it. The shop was small, two stories but only one room for each story. It was painted a faded yellow and the door was a bright red. Adam had designed the color choices to be a little odd, maybe to match the odd person who resided inside of it. Johnathan had a sadder inclination to what the choices were for. Adam had witnessed too many people walk into the shop and then walk right back out, frightened by the odd appearance of the man inside. Maybe it was a way to deter people who didn't handle oddities well.

Adam cheerily unlocked the door and stepped inside. But as soon as he crossed the threshold, his demeanor immediately changed.

"Have you been in here since I left, Johnathan?"

"No, of course not."

Adam's eyes widened. "Someone's been here."

There was a laugh from the corner of the room, shrouded in shadow. The two men turned to see a woman sitting in a chair there. Her legs were crossed and posture relaxed. She stared at them with bright brown eyes.

Johnathan felt his breath leave his lungs for a moment as he looked at the woman. She looked different from the last time he saw her. Last time her skin was pale and transparent, her eyes baggy, and her skin loose from her rapidly declining weight. Now her skin glowed and her eyes were sharp. It was like she was a completely different woman. But there was no arguing that it was her. She had her striking red cloak tied around her neck, framing her body in the chair.

Her eyes didn't even glance at Johnathan, instead, they were trained directly on Adam.

"My, looks like my job just got a lot easier." Her voice was low, demanding.

"Clarisse?" Johnathan surged forward but Adam's outstretched arm stopped him.

"What do you want, she-devil?" Adam's voice was equally demanding, cold and ruthless.

"The price on your head." She twirled one of the fastening strands for her red cloak.

Adam stiffened, his hand clutching at the satchel around his waist.

In a quick succession of events, Clarisse leaped from the chair, a dagger hidden in her cloak grasped in her hand. Adam noticed a moment too late as she sunk the dagger deep into his crooked, right arm. She ripped the dagger out of his flesh and brought it over her head before she felt the hands of Johnathan grasping her forearm, holding her stab back.

Clarisse, shocked for a moment, glared enraged at Johnathan. Adam took his chance and then grabbed his sleeping potion from the nearby table. He then smashed it over her head. Her body went limp after a few moments and she crumpled to the floor, fast asleep.

Johnathan stunned, took a few moments before he noticed that Adam was making moves toward her dagger. Adam gripped the dagger and readied himself to plunge it into her heart before Johnathan stopped him.

"Wait," John pleaded. "She's my wife."

"Ex-wife," Adam snarled.

"Please," John whispered.

Adam looked back at his friend and then nodded curtly. "Fine, but we can't be here when she wakes."

As if Adam had been preparing for something like this, he quickly moved around his tiny shop, grabbing his potion orbs and strapping them onto his belt. Johnathan stood dumbfounded, looking over his past wife. He couldn't comprehend what was happening. Why was she here? Why had she tried to kill Adam? Most importantly, why hadn't she paid him any mind?

"Adam, what's going on?"

Adam looked back at his friend as he gathered supplies. With his good arm, he opened the satchel and pulled out the hourglass. "I took this from a very powerful mage in a land that magic is secret. I figure he sent her to retrieve this." He put the hourglass back in his satchel.

Adam hobbled toward the back door, Johnathan followed behind. "And why did you steal that?"

"I need it."

"For what," Johnathan hollered.

"I can't explain right now, I promise that I will when we get somewhere safe." Adam hobbled deeper in the woods, as fast as his legs could take him.

"And where is that?"

"With an old friend." Adam paused and scratched his head, looking around him on the ground. "Problem is, I don't know where she is, but I think I know someone who can find her." Adam then spotted what he was looking for. It was a rabbit hole at the base of a tree.

"Where is that friend?" Johnathan felt his head pounding with these new revelations. He wasn't sure why someone would send his ex-wife to hunt down another person. Or why Adam needed this hourglass so badly. But he knew that he could trust Adam and that was what he was going to do for right now.

"Not in this world."