We set up camp quickly, choosing a spot just off the river's wide branch, far enough that the wind wouldn't scatter the fire, but close enough that the smoke wouldn't draw too much attention. Jideon quietly cleared the brush while Gareth gathered wood. Despite my fatigue, I kept my eyes on the Djinn.
It never strayed far from me. It seemed to be measuring the distance between us, never drawing too close nor drifting too far. From time to time, its seemingly absent gaze would slide my way, and in the depths of its golden eyes, I would catch that fleeting spark of black.
When the fire was lit, the four of us sat around it. Gareth was as far from the Djinn as possible, practically pressed against the opposite side of the flames. Jideon sat directly across, his spear still in hand. His shoulders were stiff as stone, his gaze never leaving the creature for a second.
The Djinn tilted its head toward him with a faint smile. "Don't be afraid. I won't harm you. If I wanted to, I'd have done so already."
Jideon's lips tightened, but he didn't answer.
"Words like that," I said over the crackle of the fire, "aren't exactly helping us relax. Why don't you tell us where your real body is, where that cave is?"
The Djinn turned its head slightly, its face breaking into fragments of shadow under the firelight. It was silent for a moment before speaking. "Not too far," it said at last. "But not too near, either. North of here… four, maybe five days' travel."
I raised my brows. "Why walk that distance at all?"
It shrugged. "At first, I didn't notice. I was… content with my freedom. But then I noticed you." It paused, as though weighing its words.
Its gaze locked on mine. The fire's heat was on my skin, yet its eyes carried a different kind of warmth. "You know," it said softly, "Djinns… by nature, are inclined to fall in love with humans."
The only sound was the crackle of the flames. Gareth's eyebrow rose slightly, and Jideon's grip tightened.
"And…" the Djinn continued, its voice almost a whisper, "though it may unsettle you… I think I've fallen in love with you."
The word hung in the air.
Mnex muttered in the back of my mind. "Wonderful. Our lord is flirting with a Djinn. What could possibly go wrong?"
Gareth cleared his throat. "I think this is… very wrong," he said carefully. "A Djinn… in love."
Jideon's eyes never left me. "I think it's just another game," he said flatly. "Something to make us drop our guard."
The Djinn looked at him, unfazed by the spearpoint aimed its way. "Trust… comes with time. But some things… happen at first sight." The last part was aimed squarely at me.
I drew in a slow breath. "First sight… or first opportunity?"
It smiled. "Either works."
The firelight shifted across its face. The gold and black shimmer was there again, and I found it hard to look away. A part of me dismissed the words as nonsense, but another part… was dangerously curious.
Mnex stayed silent, but I could feel its watchful presence in my mind.
And I knew then, sleep would not come as easily tonight.
The day's long march had left everyone quiet. After a short meal by the fire, we discussed the watch order. Gareth was quick to excuse himself…"me keeping watch would do more harm than good; I can't fight." Jideon volunteered for the first shift, leaving the second to me. I didn't admit it, but the thought made me uneasy. Sleep wouldn't come, so I relieved Jideon earlier than planned.
Night had settled in. The fire's embers glowed faintly, shadows around the camp stretching into long, twisting shapes. Gareth was already deep in sleep, his breathing heavy with the occasional rasp. Jideon had placed his spear beside him, half-sitting with his eyes closed.
I couldn't deny the unease curling in my chest. Every faint rustle, every whisper of wind seemed to remind me of the Djinn's presence.
"Oh, our little lord is afraid," Mnex whispered in my mind, dripping with mockery. "Even if you won't admit it, I can hear your hormones screaming."
I didn't answer. I just sat at my post, staring into the darkness beyond the firelight.
After a while, Jideon stirred and lifted his head. "My turn, I'll take over," he said plainly.
"You had it yesterday," I replied. "Rest tonight."
Our eyes met; his still carried the same unease at leaving me on watch. But he finally shrugged and lay back down.
The camp was quiet. Only the soft crackle of the fire and the distant murmur of the river broke the silence.
Then came the sound of slow, deliberate steps through the shadows. The Djinn rose, tossing aside the rough blanket it had been using. Even in the dark, its eyes held a faint glow.
"You're awake?" it asked, voice low but every word clear.
"Can't you tell?" I kept my gaze locked on it.
It drew closer, its towering shadow stretching in the firelight. "If you don't like this body… you only have to say so. Release me, and I can take any form you desire. All you have to do is tell me."
I didn't respond immediately. It wasn't just an offer, it carried a strange pull, a faint threat, and a sly promise all at once.
Its gaze lingered on me. That flicker of gold and black was there again, as if it were trying to read me from the inside out.
I thought for a while. Even Mnex's silence felt heavy; I could sense it waiting to hear my answer.
Finally, I spoke. "Why were you sealed in the first place?"
The Djinn's expression didn't change, but a shadow passed through its eyes.
"What happened? Who did it?" I pressed.
Silence fell. The murmur of the river, the whispering trees, and the crackle of the fire all seemed to pause, waiting.
The Djinn simply looked at me. Its lips moved, but no words came. This time, the glint in its eyes was different, as if it were hiding something… or testing me.
And I realized, if the answer ever came, our situation might grow far more complicated.
The Djinn's eyes drifted to the fire's sparks. The light deepened the shadows across its face, making it look, just for a moment, as if it belonged to another time entirely.
"To tell you that… I'd have to start from the beginning."
"If you're not sleepy," I said with a slight shrug, "my watch, my time. We've got plenty of it."
A faint glimmer lit its gaze. "Remembering the past… no matter how painful… I'll do it for you."
The fire's crackle began to blend, at least in my mind, with the distant roar of winds from centuries ago.
"Thousands of years ago," it began, "I was just a grain of wind. Free. I roamed seas, deserts, and forests. And in those days… I fell in love three times."
It paused, drawing a deep breath.
"The first," it said softly, "was the son of the sea. Hair like moonlight, eyes the grey just before a storm. I saw him in a harbor town. Every day he brought me seashells, some so rare they must have come from beyond hundreds of waves. I wrapped the town in wind each night to protect him. But people never knew he loved me. One day… he fell ill. No magic, no wind, no rain could save him. When he died, I went silent for the first time in my life."
The Djinn's voice cracked here. Whether it was truth or a performance, I couldn't tell.
"The second," it went on, "was the son of the north. The only man who walked through a snowstorm without flinching. Brave. The first time we spoke, there was no fear in his eyes. He told me, 'I'm with you'… and I believed him. We spent our days on frozen lakes in winter, and in flowered valleys in summer. But one morning, I woke to find him gone. No letter. No trace. Only his footprints in the snow. And before the wind could erase them, they were already gone. He ran. Maybe he was afraid. Maybe he learned the cost of staying with me. But his silence… was worse than the first loss."
The fire dimmed, then flared again. Shadows danced across the Djinn's face.
"The third…" This time its voice hardened. "The third was the daughter of fire. Her words were sharp, her smile a spell. I thought she loved me. I thought the hands that freed me from centuries of prison were hers. But one night, I saw her with another. And that 'other'… was someone who meant to harm me. In that moment… the wind stilled, and the fire spoke. I don't remember exactly what I did. Only that… I killed them both."
Silence fell. Even the fire's crackle seemed distant now.
The Djinn lifted its gaze, eyes darker than before. "That was when they sealed me. 'Djinns are unworthy of love,' they said. They bound me in stone and spell. Centuries passed. No warmth of love, no taste of freedom. Only waiting…"
It looked into my eyes. "Until, one day… a troll stepped into my prison."
The fairytale tone cracked in that last line, carrying something rooted in the present, a living intent, stretching toward now.
Mnex stirred in my mind. "Great storyteller, isn't it? But no tale is ever the whole truth."
I had to agree. Every word I'd heard stirred two things in me: curiosity… and doubt.
"Three loves," I said quietly. "And three losses."
The Djinn smiled faintly. "Three unfinished stories. Perhaps the fourth will end differently."
"And that fourth…" I began, but left the sentence hanging.
The gold-and-black spark flashed again in its eyes. "Time will tell."
In the firelight, I studied its face. Was the story true? Or just a snare, meant to draw me in, to loosen the chains between us?
I didn't know.
But I did know one thing, sleep wasn't coming tonight, watch or no watch.
The Djinn gazed at the flames a while longer before breathing out. "Anyway… I should rest," it said, the fairy-tale cadence still woven into its voice. Slowly, it rose, stepped beyond the fire, and lay down in its corner. Pulling the coarse blanket over itself, it turned its back to us.
I didn't move. My eyes stayed on its silhouette, following the rise and fall of its breath. Mnex said nothing; maybe it was waiting, same as me. The shrinking fire made the shadows stretch and contract across its form.
Hours passed. The river's murmur and the faint crack of the last embers were the only sounds. I never looked away, not once. Whether it was truly asleep or not… didn't matter.
When the sky began to pale, the bite of the morning air sank into my bones. Gareth stirred in his blanket, and Jideon sat up, scanning the camp without a word.
Inwardly, I whispered to Mnex: Maybe… they were telling the truth.
Mnex was quiet for a few seconds before replying, "Or maybe… it just wants you to think that."
My gaze stayed fixed on the Djinn, still lying there. Inside me, mercy and suspicion stood side by side, and I had no idea which one would win.