Havok Publishing

Tag - genies/djinn

Wish Come True

“The wedding will be in the morning at the Crystal Pool. Small, with only one or two witnesses.” Aladdin cleared his throat andpushed back the dark curl that always fell onto his forehead. “Would you honor us with your presence?”
Grief grabbed my throat. So the arrangements were complete. Ever since Aladdin’s

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Square Deal

“Our treasury’s woes are over.” King Norbert sauntered into the imperial guest suite. “I just beat the emperor at chess.”
Queen Constance looked up from her official ledger. “Emperor Ulf couldn’t have wagered that much.”
The king kissed her on the forehead. “He didn’t realize he was. I bet him ten pieces of gold

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Screenname: Aladdin

I crush the earpiece under my heel, then look around the dark alleyway, trying to control my breathing.
No sign of pursuit, either from within the sleek building I just exited at nearly a run, or from outside where my employers—whom I have good reason to believe want me dead—are

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The Debt

The shadows of rocky outcroppings stretched across my path as the sun lowered toward evening. It was dangerous to be alone this late—I knew it well. But my feet drew me onward, until the caravan was lost to the hills behind and even their voices and the noise of the camp faded.

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The Irukandji Jellyfish

Jenna breathed in the fresh, salty air, preparing herself for the poisonous quest ahead. Would today be the day she told him?
Professor Herbert sat on the sand with his sturdy legs crossed, scanning their surroundings.
The Australian coast spread out like a strip of grainy brown paint. It banked against the trees…

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What You Wish For

My best friend Zara is convinced she’s part genie. Seriously, I’m sitting here at her sixteenth birthday party watching her twirl around the courtyard tossing pink powder at the guests.
“Your wish is my command!” she exclaims each time she throws a handful, laughing as she spins, colorful puffs glittering around her.

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One Arabian Night

It happened one day toward evening, in the southern deserts of Arabia, that two males of the human race approached a certain oasis where I sat keeping watch.
The sun had just kissed the desert sands in the west when the two humans led their pack mule up to the spring and knelt to drink…

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The Ring

The ring winked in the pale evening light, mocking me for my foolishness. Sure, I didn’t know the difference between a faceted sapphire and a chipped piece of glass, but I’d reasoned such a pretty trinket was worth at least a loaf of bread.
Unfortunately, the baker disagreed. His face was an ugly shade

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An Honest Profession

When the sandstorm dissipated, it left behind only a scattered coating of golden grains on the threadbare furniture.
And a man.
Olive skinned and dressed in a smartly-tailored suit, he carried a worn leather briefcase. His shoes, which, given the circumstances, Susan had expected to turn up at the toes, were instead brightly

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The Genie Heist

Mehdi leaned back to see the top of the sheer cliff rising before him made of the same yellow sand he stood upon. He couldn’t believe it. He was here.
“Never seen a cliff before, kid?” Jasper chuckled behind him.
Correction, they were here.
Jasper shook his head. “Considering that village you come from,

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SS - Staff Saturday featured image

Desperate Junker in Need

Tank had a sixth sense about space junk. He could intuit the difference between a salvageable satellite and orbital debris, a useful skill ever since the collapse of the Sagan-Hawking interstellar gateway had induced collisions and made debris removal a prime concern for space travel. If only his spacey superpower could differentiate

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S2 Thriller Thursday featured image (season 2)

Careful What You Hunt For

Genies don’t like to be called monsters. We monster hunters like to disagree.
Sure, they’re beautiful. Sure, they’ll give you three wishes. But you have to catch them first—before they mess with your head, or turn invisible, or shapeshift into a scorpion so that you don’t want to catch them.

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