"Three Wishes"

By

Ronin Fox

"Now," The Genie said. "How about that third wish?"

Fame and fortune, money and power, Malcolm had everything he ever dreamed of wishing it all true overnight and the high-fueled lifestyle led to addictions and substance abuse that quickly took their toll on a soft body unaccustomed to hard drugs and alcohol-filled nights. Plastered in his own vomit and vital organs failing, he lay wheezing on the floor in his expensive downtown apartment.

"How did it go so wrong?" Malcolm sputtered.

"You are no different than everybody else." The Genie said. "They all use their first wish to check if it is real. The second is always for things they do not have the foresight to unburden themselves from."

"I wish this all away."

The Genie snapped his fingers and Malcolm was undone, his life force seeping out from its fleshy prison. The same life force that powered the darkest of magics and turned sorcerers into gods. The Genie reached out to take in the precious essence but had ignored the ancient warnings and was far over the limits and it would not flow into him.

“No!” He shouted “I will not be denied my destiny!”  

The Genie cast an unholy spell and forced the life essence inside himself. He screeched as something deep within his core burst and he collapsed to his knees. Wretched, inky blood spilling from his nose.

"Now," a voice behind him said. "How about that third wish?"