Chapter Four: In Which the Foreboding Continues

The next day dawned with a smiling sun, but Apkallus's letter still weighed heavily on our minds. After Sundara left for school, Arwen began a workout in the kitchen, hoping to become prepared to fight at any moment. This correspondence would probably be the last from any of our kind for a long time and that meant our challenge was of even more importance. There would be none else to guide us.

 After her morning exercise, Arwen traveled to the alchemy shop in town to build her own skill and later that of her supernatural offspring. There she found a new sator, and in no time he was under her spell. She brought him back home where they had a bit of fun, hopefully bringing us farther along on our journey. Sundara brought a friend home from school and they had a snack before starting their homework. Neither Sundara nor Cordelia have yet shown signs of jinn abilities, though Arwen must only pass down the gene for her children to count towards the ultimate one hundred. Even her non-magical must be able to defend themselves against the dark forces of the Scorpions.

 While Arwen waited to confirm whether or not she was with child, she decided to put him to good use. All he would do was to lie around in bed and think about leaving. I think not! Soon he was digging through trash for valuables, tending to the garden, and feeding our new additions -- a turtle and a snake.

Don't think you're getting away that
easily, Bub. We have work for you!

On the left is our Spotted Turtle named Mike, and on the right is our
Yellow Chondro Python named Samandriel.

I've done worse for a lesser cause.

Yes, well, moving on. With all the funds from all of the books Arwen  has published we were able to add a whole story to the house. Now there is a space for the teaching of the children, for their skills and their entertainment. As soon as Arwen discovered she was pregant she itched to see this man go; he'd been hanging around too long. Betty refused to eat him. Every time he was almost done for she'd spit him back up in disgust. After hours of repeated ensorcellment, the man finally succumbed to the power of the magic beans. All that remained was a pile of ashes on the bathroom floor. Pity.

At least he didn't burn down anything.

 Except himself, I suppose. Too bad Grimmy doesn't do a cleanup job.

As her baby bump grew, Arwen taught Cordelia her toddler skills, painted, continued her work on another novel, and tended to the flourishing garden. Suddenly it was Sundara's birthday. Arwen's firstborn was growing up. He became a great kisser and finally began his martial arts training in accordance to our task.

Only a few days before she is due, a specter visits the household. It is the ghost of Nawwaf Zayat, Sundara's father. At first he seems content to see his son, who has just been painting on the front porch, but when he sees Arwen his eyes flash an ominous shade of red. Her arms wrapped around herself protectively, Arwen walks up to Nawwaf and asks why he has returned.

"What in Hassan's name are you doing here?" she whispers fiercely. Sundara knows nothing of our task or that this man is his sator. She had planned on telling him tonight, since he had only now become a teenager so that he may begin his training.

"As angry as I may feel towards you for what you have done, I will do nothing to harm my son. I have come to offer you a warning. Dark creatures of the Netherworld are gathering forces. They mean to wipe out all tribes of the Order of Light -- meaning any being with a will of goodness. Every species has their evil, even the fairies, and an attack has already been made on Lord Fereydoun and his advisers; this I have guessed you are already aware of."

"Yes," she replied, "but I don't understand. Are these creatures all Scorpions? And there is no way I can help. I must complete my task and it has only just begun. Should I stop and return to what people of mine are left?"

 "No! The Scorpions are only a leading evil for one even greater.Your journey is of the utmost importance. We must strengthen our numbers in any way possible, the more magical the better, though training can mean more than blood. I am here not just to give you this warning of danger, but also to show you the path to assistance. You are a fortune teller, no? You must be able to see beyond the veil even farther than your own kind. The spiritual guide is the key."

"Please, Nawwaf, what do you mean? Do you speak of... Galadriel? None were to even know of her existence."

"Then the matter is even more dire than I feared," he responded. "You must leave this place; there are most likely spies in this town as we speak. If they knew where you lived you would already be dead so great is their power.Do not tell me where you go. Only protect the little ones and trust no one."

And with that he vanished. All of these warnings and we have hardly begun. My time to return is approaching faster than I'd thought. 

"Arwen." I say.

Yes.

"There is hardly any time left, but we cannot leave this place just yet. Little Cordelia has only just learned to walk and you are due any day. We must wait, and while we wait we will prepare. Once the babe has left to go on its own, we will be ready to flee, but remember, our challenge will not end. We will just have to continue while we run. I have a plan, or at least the formings of one."

Galadriel, I have lived over nine centuries but I am scared. I have something to live for now, many somethings. Tell me what to do and I will do it. We must prepare, but not just to hide, but also to fight. 

"Precisely, and you will need me to do it. I may be close to useless now, but I know a way. A way for me to truly return after all these millennium, for us to work as sisters. First things first, you need to master the ways of alchemy, then, we're going to Egypt."

Egypt!!! (She shrieks)

Yes, well, you've been there plenty of times before. No need to freak out.

No... Galadriel... the baby is coming!

 Oh! Well you might have said something. I'll be right here. I hope it's a girl. You know the male gender is just simply repulsive. Did you know that...

SHUT UP! shutupshutupshutup Leave me be, or at least be quiet.

Fine. 

 And thus was born tiny Kartik.

And as soon as he is grown we will continue our challenge in a new place, far from the eyes of the Netherworld's evil. Arwen must develop her skills; grow in alchemy, fitness, logic, and mastery of her jinn magic for us to survive.

Kartik is born and Cordelia has become a child. Arwen has begun her mastery over the old arts and soon everything will change.

She will be a beautiful lady, I am sure of it.

I hope this ends well, Galadriel, for all of our sakes.

As do I.

Chapter Three: In Which We Receive News

The next day began like any other, but Arwen new that she must continue her quest. It was time to find a new "sator." Arwen prefers me to use this term. She says it makes the whole situation sound less like a science experiment and more... formal. Besides, Latin is her favorite language; it was always that of the most educated and well-traveled in her time.

It means "sire," "founder," or "father." I think it's appropriate. And besides, I knew you were uncomfortable about what to call them anyway. We needed some continuity.

Of course. Now, back to the story. Arwen made breakfast for little Sundara and herself and left for work soon after. She hoped the next sator would be found soon after.

Isn't he just adorable? It must be his genie heritage.

The babysitter arrived almost instantly; they must have some kind of sixth-sense about these things.

Maybe she's just posing as a babysitter, but she's really a Scorpion.. Maybe she's been waiting in the woods for me to leave just so she can sabotage my mission! She could hurt my baby!

Arwen, calm down. You're just being paranoid. No-one in this town really even knows you.

Fine. But if something happens I'm blaming you.

I don't care. This is childish. Just let me tell the jinn story! As I was saying, the babysitter arrived soon after Arwen left for work. Immediately enthralled by Betty, our adorable cow-plant, the babysitter tried playing with her. Maybe she was just senile, but one does not simply play with a stranger's cow-plant. Unfortunately for her, Betty has a sweet-tooth for humans.

I didn't like her anyway. She was probably part of the Order.

Strangely enough, her calling of caring for infants lived on, and Sundara enjoyed floating through the air in the arms of her spirit. I found this amusing; Arwen not so much after I told her about it.

Granted my existence is supernatural, but this is just creepy. I hope  Grimm keeps her  once she leaves

again.

When Arwen got out of work, she happened to find this stud right outside and proceeded to charm him. His name is Xiabo Shen; he's a tourist from China and was easily ensorcelled.

I suppose his name was Xiabo Shen, and he was a tourist from China, because shortly after canoodling, Betty... had her dinner.

I think it's strange that his spirit became so skinny. I feel, slightly, bad for him.

Shortly after her new baby bump appeared, Arwen began construction of a garden. During the full moon zombies had continuously ravaged the plants, so a fence was definitely in order.

Sundara eventually aged up into a healthy child. His school days were upon him. He most enjoyed to paint, and when he wasn't doing schoolwork he could always be found at the easel on the porch. Arwen's pregnancy slowly progressed and she spent most of her time on her latest novel. To prevent any publicity, she had been writing under a pseudonym. The less attention the better.

As it happens, it was when Arwen was finishing her latest work that the labor pains hit. Later that evening, tiny Cordelia Von Hellse was born. Our family was growing, and so was the hope for the genie race. 

The next day a letter arrived in the mail- the energy from its materialization still sparkling. It read as follows:

Lady Arwen Von Hellse,

                  It is more urgent now than ever that your mission succeed. The Order of the Scorpion has stricken again- this time on the White Palace itself. Lord Fereydoun, our Third King from the time of Emperor Hassan, ruler of the Unseen World for five-hundred years, was flown to his hall in the seventh corner of the world. Dire times are made ever darker by this attack. No further communication will be possible until the Order has retreated. Only two of your comrades remain active in their duties; our fate is in your hands and we pray for the future of powers of Light. Tell Lady Galadriel to seek out the lost knowledge of her ancestors, for that may be one of the few weapons we still have at our disposal. You cannot let this information be know by the Order. Memorise it, then destroy it. We all pray for the best, but you must always be prepared for the worst. Remember your duty and follow your instincts.

                                                                         ~Lord Apkallus

As Arwen burned the note, we both realized that we were on our own. If something went wrong there would be no-one to help us. We had to prepare as quickly as possible. Training for the children would begin as soon as they became teenagers. Our family must become formidable to the forces of Darkness. So far, well... let's just say we had a long way to go.

Our family is beautiful. We mustn't lose hope.

Apkallus, an old friend of mine, had told me before we left the palace to search for my ancestor's knowledge in times of great peril. I knew where to begin, but I also knew I couldn't get there on my own. My spiritual form harnesses a great deal of power; through the millennium I have become the oldest of my kind. Long ago, I had given up my corporeal form to devote myself to the Tree of Life. Assur, my own sator, was the first genie to have ever abandoned his somatic existence. Strange that I would then be the first to try to do the opposite.

Chapter Two: In Which Arwen Ensorcells

When we last left off Arwen had just ended her first day in Moonlight Falls. Completely uneventful, she looked for her first, um, sire. But first came the great ordeal that is breakfast.

Who makes waffles in the oven anyway?

After the fireman came and left us with a ruined stove, we searched for fairies in the arbetorium without any luck.



Shortly thereafter, Arwen managed to catch this little critter: a rare snake who we named Lunete. Lunete was worth a good deal of simoleons, but escaped before we could sell her. I think she new our plan. You won't be lonely soon enough. 

I actually wanted to keep her for a pet. Life with only you as company is pretty lonesome.

By the end of this challenge, I bet you'll never want to be around another living being again. After that little adventure, we headed to the library with it's comforting smells of knowledge and dust. We found some stairs by the side of the building that led to the basement, and after a bit more exploring we found a small room containing a magic jellybean bush! This having been the first time she'd ever seen one before, Arwen swallowed about five with varying side-effects before bursting into flames. How lucky that she would die on our second day. That was sarcasm. Plus it's also ironic to know that one of Arwen's traits is to be lucky.


Are you making fun of me? I don't think this is funny in any regard! Genies may be immortal, but burning to a crisp and meeting the Grim Reaper is definitely not a pleasant experience. He even had to check his rule book to make sure it was the law to bring me back into corporeal form. What a neophyte; I'm only 937 years old and I know more than he does. If he could die, I'd spit on his grave!

 

Sheesh. Calm down. Look on the bright side. You met your first fella when you went back into the library. Plus he was a tourist, so no-one will notice his absence, at least no-one here. Arwen used her super-duper genie ensorcellment magicks to control the guy, and then led him to the house where she worked a different kind magic.

 I was getting restless; it's my duty to complete this assignment, and I hadn't even had a single child!

 So, yeah, after that, what's-his-name was compelled to eat a bunch of jellybeans on our newly-bought bush, and met the same fate Arwen had the previously day. This time it was more permanent, though. Arwen found the whole ordeal taxing and soon went back to bed.

 Luckily he had two laptops in his bag, so at least we now have a place for Arwen to write novels and a bit more cash in our coffers. A bit later Arwen was rudely awakened by an unpleasant feeling: the first symptoms of her pregnancy. It's a well-known truth that all magical beings have a heightened sense of being, so Arwen was aware of her pregnancy well before a human would have been.

 

That extra-special sense may be useful in knowing when it's okay to eliminate the donor, but it sure as heck doesn't eleviate my nausea.

 

 The days wore on and Arwen's pregnancy soon make obvious. Arwen spent her time finishing a few novels and trying her hand at the painting easel.

 Plus I also remembered this nifty trick my mother taught me before the Scorpions attacked. I can summon any kind of food whenever I please. It'll definitely come in handy once there's more mouths to feed. Great Djinn, I wish she were here to help me now.

 We all do. When the time finally came for the delivery, Arwen toughed it out in the newly decorated kid's room. We couldn't go to the hospital; genie births can be a bit... strange, usually involving a lot sparks and glitter. Hopefully it's a sign of his genie powers.

So now enters little Sundara Von Hellse into this crazy world.

 Sundara means beautiful, as he is in my eyes.

Soon enough Arwen realizes just how tiresome motherhood can be. Sundara is adorable, but too loud for my tastes.

I'm beginning to question my acceptance of this arduous task. I don't think I'm going to be getting a full night's rest for the next millenium.

 

At least he's cute. In any case, time continued to continue. The trashcan gets knocked over by a mischevious raccoon every night, our cow plant devours some poor stray and Arwen collects the precious milk, Sundara grew into an adorable toddler, and Arwen searches for a second fellow.

 Don't be fooled. He just ate a booger.

I guess cow plant milk doesn't have to be pasteurized.

 

And so ends this chapter. We will continue our tale in the future. Ask Arwen when; she got a raise and I'm sure she can tell the future by now. Or not. I think she just fell asleep.

 

 

 I did, but then Sundara woke up and was hungry. I've heard of other genies having to perform this task in the past but I simply can't comprehend how they managed. Hopefully I'll get the hang of this soon. I think the stray cat gets more rest than I do. Too bad Galadriel can't take care of anything.

 

I do plenty! Recording all of this for future genie generations is hard work. Of course if you don't succeed in finishing this challenge, there may not be any genies to hear about it. No pressure.

 

 

The cat is mocking your lack of sleep. I can feel it.