The Wishmonger: Origins

The Discovery- Part 2

I was back at Jericho's lab. I had been waiting for them to pick me up from my house, and I had wished I could reach the lab instantly, and when I came to I found myself back here. Jericho said I had been found knocked out.

"So, lets cut to the chase." Jericho said, while setting up some sort of X-ray machine. "You want me to believe that anything that you wish for, happens?"

"I wish you would believe that." I said with a sarcastic smile.

"Huh...all of I sudden I do feel inclined to believe you..." Jericho said, confused.

Ray gesticulated angrily from his computer desk.

"Well, we would need to convince Ray, wouldn't we?" Dr. Jericho said. "What shall you wish for so that he believes...hmmm...tell you what, wish for his computer to turn off."

I did, and it seemed Ray accidentally pressed the shut down button. He threw up his hands, and seemed unconvinced. And angry, really angry.

"Wish for him to calm down, he seems to be going to explode or something." Dr. Jericho said.

I did, and Ray calmed down.

"Oh God..." Jericho stared open-mouthed.

"What is it you have done to me? And how is all this happening?" I asked him.

"Well, the serum was designed to boost your willpower. But it seems that your will can bend reality itself. As much as I'll like to take the credit for that, even I know there are limits to science." Dr. Jericho scratched his forehead. "Most of the serum was made in my lab...but some of the ingredients were outsourced."

"Where did you get it from?" I asked.

"Several of the chemicals were supplied by our centers in Las Vegas."

"Las Vegas?"

"Trust me, its the best place for a secret organization to obtain anything. You'd be surprised at the variety of things people are ready to gamble." 

"I'd rather not know. Can you give me the address?"

"I'll mail it to you." Saying so, Dr. Jericho looked strangely at me.

"I am not signing up for experimentation on my body." I said.

He laughed. "Ah, no, that was not what was on my mind."

"Now that you have such great powers, we must also enforce some safeguards." I shivered.

"If whatever you wish comes true, then you better be careful of what you wish for. For even a passing wish, to say, destroy the world, could actually result in its destruction."

"I never thought of that." Yet.

"And hence, you must wish that you will always be able to undo your wish, even if you lose the power to undo that wish."Dr. Jericho proclaimed pompously.

"Uhh..what?" That was confusing.

"Just repeat after me: I wish that I will always be able to undo my wish, even if I lose the power to undo that wish." I did as he said.

"Second, you must wish to know the outcome of your wish and give a confirmation before executing it. For example, you might just wish to fly in the sky while on top of a mountain, and you would find yourself thrown off the cliff, flying, but to your death."

"That's a very improbable scenario." I replied. 

"Yes, it isn't the best one I could come up with, but just wish it anyway. Also, you could wish for a HUD inside your mind, that tells you about your wish, its consequences and help you decide whether you should go ahead with it or not."

"Yeah, okay, done." This was getting long.

"Lastly, I am sure you would make all the wishes required to make you indestructible. I wouldn't want the WishMonger, if that's what you want to call yourself, to die by a knife in an unsuspecting moment. Don't just make yourself immortal, make yourself resistant to fire, water and everything, even eliminate your basic needs, like sleep, water, food etc. if you wish."

"You got anything else? Or can I go now?" I asked, while wishing myself to be immortal. The rest I could do later.

"I'd like to congratulate you on your newfound...abilities. Don't forget your friends, and don't be petty towards your enemies. All my life, I wished I could do whatever I wanted. Like anybody else. You are getting to live that dream, don't waste it." 

"And also, please wish that we win the chess match." That I did, I guess I owed them that.

We embraced each other, and parted. 

I stepped outside the lab. There were butterflies in my stomach. To do whatever I wanted! But at what cost? What if, like a genie, I could only do 3 wishes, and then would find myself in a bottle? How many wishes I had done already?? Certainly, this power must have a cost... And how did it come about anyway? No one gets anything for free in this world. But what if....no, I couldn't think about it! I sat inside the van in a daze, and traveled back towards my home. I found Dr. Jericho's mail in my phone, and saw that my next stop was at Las Vegas.