Aladdin: The Thief of Aisha

Chapter 16

ALADDIN

A shrill cry that seemed to last forever pierced the silence. Within seconds, something had covered the hole and clumps of soil rained on me. What was going on? I raised my hand and shielded my face from the falling debris.

"Kassim?" I whispered. Something landed on my head and clattered to the floor. "Ouch!" I rubbed my head and reached down. The lamp lay on its side. "What the...? He dropped the lamp?" Astonished, I looked up, and darkness with a few streaks of light engulfed me.

"Kassim, are you there?" Silence. Then I heard slithering sounds. The little streaks of light coming in disappeared. With my torch raised, I saw the roots of the tree grow larger and larger, weaving themselves and penetrating into the soil around the entrance to the cave. A scream got stuck in my throat. Trapped.

"Kassim! Kassim!" I cried. Just as it had started, everything settled down. All around me was silence. Had he intended to leave me behind?

I walked around the cave with my torch raised and looked for an opening that could lead outside. Heaps and heaps of precious stones sparkled all around me. I walked across to the end of the cave and found no exit.

I explored the garden with the trees that grew precious stones for flowers and fruits. As I continued to look around, I even saw more treasures. Like a madman, I roamed about every nook and cranny of the cave. After an hour and drenched in sweat, I sat on the floor with nowhere to go. Worst of all, my torch would run out at any moment.

What did I do wrong this time? As I looked around, pondering on how to save myself, my eyes fell on the skeleton, and I jerked up. I leaned closer and examined the bones. Who was he? A cluster of black hair lay close to the skull. I couldn't find any clothes, perhaps eaten up by the elements over the years. I shuddered. The bone has been there for many years. It took a long time for clothing to disintegrate. A small heap of precious stones lay on each side of the hip bone.

The realization hit me. I touched the gems in my pocket. Whoever laid there had also stolen from the cave. Was that why he didn't make it out? With shaking hands, I emptied my pockets and stumbled away. I'd sworn never to go back to stealing. No gems would be found around my bones many years from now.

The flame on my torch flickered and drew my attention. I stared at it in disbelief. What would I do when the light failed? The thought of staying in the darkness terrified me. I looked up at the mouth of the cave. The roots had grown more and had formed a solid meshwork of roots.

I looked down and saw the lamp on its side. Maybe it had oil in it. I picked it up and brought the flame close to the mouth and realized it had no wick.

I looked around. Propped up against the cave wall stood something that looked like a piece of carpet. Feet trembling, I unrolled it; a Persian rug, worn and old. I sat on it, and my mind shifted back to the lamp.

Would the lamp light up? I ran the flame a few times over the mouth of the lamp. The metal of the lamp glowed red but didn't catch fire. I stopped.

"Foolish, foolish, foolish," I said out loud. "How could it contain oil? It would have dried up like the bones of that skeleton." I laughed. I laughed and laughed, then my laughter turned into sobs. The tears stung my eyes. My shoulders slumped; I would die here.

A tear fell on the lamp, then another. Crying doesn't solve any problems. I wiped my eyes and dug the handle of the dying flaming torch into a heap of glittering stones. I might as well do something worthwhile before the light goes out. With trembling hands, I picked up the lamp and wiped off my tears with the hem of my tunic. The lamp was old, but it gleamed in the light after I wiped it. I rubbed the dust off the larger surface of the lamp with my tunic, then burnished it. As I rubbed as fast as I could to make it shine, the lamp shook.

"What the...?" I let go of the lamp, and it dropped on the rug. I jumped to my feet. The lamp shook and rumbled. Blueish white smoke spewed from the mouth. I took a step back. The smoke got larger and larger, and I took a step back. The smoke continued toward me, and I continued to move again. My foot caught on something behind me, and I stumbled. As I scrambled to my feet, I heard a cough.

I froze. My pulse raced. Was my mind playing tricks on me? Then someone or something went into a coughing fit. I froze. A figure stood in the smoke.

"Who's there?" I asked in a shaky voice. The sound of my heartbeat thrashed in my ears.

"Who smoked me out of my home!" a deep voice bellowed.

My body shook like a leaf. In front of me, the smoke cleared as something waved in front of me. I shuffled back, tripped and fell again. This time I remained on the ground, frozen with fear.

In front of me stood the tallest and biggest man I'd ever seen. His bald head glistened with sweat. On his chin, he had a black goatee. A big smile stretched across his lips. His skin, blue as the sky, wrapped around arm muscles as big as a man's thighs. He wore a white vest and his legs seemed to be part of the smoke that flowed out of the lamp.

"I'm free! Free! Free at last!" said the man.

I looked in horror as the giant's eyes fell on me. I tried to move back, nowhere to go. The sacks of precious stones blocked my escape. "Who...who are you?" I stammered.

The giant spun around and glared at me. "I am the genie, servant of the lamp, and I am here to obey and grant you three wishes. Someone trapped me in that lamp for a thousand years," said the genie.

"You will not hurt me?" I asked.

"On the contrary. I'm sworn to provide three wishes to anyone that rubbed that lamp and released me."

"You've been inside that lamp for a thousand years?" I asked as I got to my feet. I'd only been in this cave a few hours and felt hemmed in. "It must have been claustrophobic."

"Tell me about it," said the genie.

"Who trapped you in the lamp?" I asked.

"The Sorcerer who must not be named," said the genie. "Now, what can I do for you? Remember, you're allowed only three wishes, use it wisely."

"What happens after my third wish?" I asked.

"Well, I'll go back into the lamp and wait for the next person who is lucky enough to find the lamp and figure out how to summon me. But, if you are already a great sorcerer, having the lamp in your possession can amplify powers you already have."

I rubbed my chin. "I am not a sorcerer and don't have any powers to amplify. You'll grant me anything?"

"Your wish is my command," said the genie.

"Hmmm, take me back home." The rug rose into the air, and my heart dropped into my stomach.

In a flash, I was outside the cave, floating in the air, and sitting on the rug. I glanced around. No sign of Kassim or the camels. At the place where the entrance to the cave had been stood a big tree. Its branches spread out far and wide. No way anyone could put their back into it and uproot that tree.

"Hold on tight!" said the genie.

The rug rose into the air and flew fast, high above the desert. In a flash, the rug landed in front of my home. The genie turned into smoke and returned into the lamp.

"Praise the almighty." I looked around. Empty. I leaped to my feet and rolled up the rug with the lamp inside it. Then someone screamed.