Sorcerer's Wish

Chapter 7: The Deal

Jafar looked up at Hades, a deity so formidable that the Greeks who worshiped him feared his very name.

The first son of time, god of the dead, and king of the underworld had burning blue flames for hair, fangs for teeth, skin a ghostly gray, and wore robes made of ashes and decay, but it was his eyes that unsettled the sorcerer.

They were death itself.

With them, the god studied the sorcerer like he was a puzzle to be solved. "And what will you give me, Jaffy?" Hades asked. "Don't tell me your soul. I'll get that anyway...with time."

"See," the genie hissed into Jafar's ear, "I told you this was a bad idea. Let's go back."

"I offer its soul," the sorcerer said pointing at the genie.

"Me!" it yelped. "You can't just—"

"I can and I have, Genie," the sorcerer coldly proclaimed. "Lest you forget, you are bound to me through the lamp's magic and your own. Your soul and your freedom are mine to give."

The genie's look of dawning comprehension and horror at the true scope of the sorcerer's first wish and desires was delectable.

Jafar had...inconvenienced many through the years and still, few things were more satisfying than outwitting an over-confident immortal. He could almost imagine what quip Iago might—

Hades interrupted the show, saying thoughtfully, "You'd give up your genie and your humanity for a woman? Must be some woman."

Brought back to the present and his mission, Jafar said with more force than necessary, "Do we have a deal?"

"No!" The genie exclaimed, appearing between the two of them. It seemed to have recovered.

"There's a catch," Hades said to himself. "There always is. No mortal ever accepts death."

"Yes, a catch!" the genie grasped onto the notion. "Don't believe this snake. He's a born liar."

"I am not lying," Jafar said icily. "I told you what I seek. Lord Hades, surely a natural-born genie is worth delaying the death of a mere woman."

"Yes, but what about you?" Hades asked, unconvinced.

"I'll be freed eventually and I'm mortal. As you said, you will get me in time."

Hades frowned and began to mutter to himself again. "A conditionally-immortal being for a sorceress. Humans do all die eventually. Natural-born genies on the other hand..."

"I'm just a minor djinni," the genie lied desperately. "You don't want me."

Jafar knew better than to argue. He had said everything worth saying, now all that was required was patience and silence. He waited, trying to ignore the sweat pricking his palms, the same wetness dripping down his neck, and the renewed twisting of his middle. He had known from the beginning that this would be the riskiest part of his quest. There was simply no way to predict a god's whims.

"Alright, Jaffy," Hades drolled, after what felt like an eternity, "I'll bite."

"No," the genie moaned.

"Yes!" Jafar hissed.

"I'll give you your precious sorceress if you can fish her out—" Hades began.

Jafar was already stepping forward to the ledge that overlooked the swirling green pool of damned souls with his staff ready to cast the perfect spell, when the god added, "—by using the tools you brought and nothing else. That means no uppity incantations or getting help from big blue over there."

Jafar whirled on the god. "What!" he started to bluster, "The scrolls...they never..."

Hades just shrugged. "Don't believe everything you read, Jaffy. You heard my offer. Take it or leave it," the god finished with a selachian smile.

Jafar forced himself to return his attention to the green pool before he said something fatal. The tide was high. The waters were within reach and she was in there. He could see her.

But how on earth would he get her out without the spell for just that purpose?

The sorcerer had planned his entire journey down to the last artifact and arcane enchantment. He had the genie's assistance to deal with unexpected problems, but now...

"This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Hades taunted. "So, don't you think of scampering off to another wizard tower in the hopes of trying your luck another time. The only way you're getting back in here again is the good old-fashioned one. So, are you in, or out?"

Jafar refused to meet the god's cold dead eyes.

Hades was mocking him. That much was clear. This might well be the most important and last decision Jafar ever made, but to the god, Jafar was just another mortal plaything and this, another semi-amusing game.

"Just say you're out," the genie pleaded. More entreaties spilled out of it, more promises, bribes, and dire predictions. Every word dripped with fear.

Jafar could feel it and despite all he had done and everything he had sacrificed to get here, doubt grew.

"What'll it be, Jaffy?" Hades asked blithely.

The sorcerer could see no other option. He had known for years, decades, that Hades was not a boastful genie, ignorant sultana, or petty witch to be coerced through his craft. No mortal magic would work on a god as powerful as this one and the sorcerer knew of no argument worth trying to alter this choice, so he was forced to yield.

Palms sweaty, neck wet, stomach churning, and teeth gritted, he turned and stiffly offered the god a hand. "I accept your terms," Jafar ground out. "We have a deal."