Days of Future Past - Part 2: Present Tense

by John Van Stry

  "What? I share you with Sarah and Sarah with you! What do you mean I don't want to share? And what about Sarah? Would she like you being with Marjeera without her?"

  "Wait, what?" Heather looked confused a moment.

  "It was an illusion. Remember what Sarah said about believing them?"

  "But, but why?"

  "Because Luvon wants Sarah, that's why," I growled, "but he can't have her if he doesn't break us up."

  "Or replace her with that tramp," Heather growled suddenly. "I'm gonna kill him!"

  I grabbed her and pulled her back into the shower as she started to leave.

  "Which is why I wouldn't cheat on you, you'd kill me."

  Heather nodded, and then shook her head. "I can't believe he did that and Sarah didn't stop him!"

  "Sarah didn't notice, probably because all of the other stuff going on magically."

  "But why am I so horny for that tramp?"

  "Because I was touching you when she cast her spell on me last night," I shrugged, "I'm used to it now, so I wasn't bothered by it, but it caught you off guard I guess."

  "So what are we going to do? He can't have Sarah! I'm not giving her up!"

  "Me neither. Tomorrow morning we're out of here."

  "Why not now?"

  "Because it's late, and I promised someone I'd help them with something."

  "It's that tramp, isn't it?" Heather growled.

  I smiled down at her, I actually liked how aggressive she was being, Heather definitely considered me to be her property now.

  "She's not exactly here willingly either. So don't go getting into any fights with her just yet. Okay?"

  Heather sighed and nodded.

  "And keep a close eye on Sarah. Now, let's get dressed and see about dinner.

  Dinner went about the same as the previous night, only Heather must have whispered something to Sarah, because when we sat down tonight, Sarah sat besides me and Heather sat on the opposite side. Sarellious seemed to take it in stride, but he had a harder time monopolizing Sarah in conversation while we ate.

  Marjeera was also more engaging tonight, talking to Heather and I quite a bit, and touching my arm or my hand fairly often during the meal, though she didn't use whatever sort of magic she'd been using before, which led to her smiling at me more and even earned me a kick under the table from Sarah at one point.

  Sarellious repeated his invitation for us to stay another day as his guests, but Heather and I made it clear that we really had to leave tomorrow. Sarah looked a little surprised by that, but held her tongue.

  When desert was finished we all adjourned to the same room as the night before to have a drink and relax. This time I let Marjeera steer me towards the couch and sat with her on one side and Heather on the other.

  I couldn't help but notice that Sarellious was looking rather pleased, though Sarah was not. When Heather and I finally got up to go to bed and taking Sarah's hand, Sarellious delayed her a moment, as he was discussing yet another spell with her.

  "I'll be up shortly guys," Sarah said.

  "You have five minutes," Heather yawned, "then I'm coming down to get you!"

  "Fine, five minutes," Sarah nodded.

  "Don't worry, I'll send her up," Sarellious agreed.

  I nodded and yawned as well, "Good night," I said and followed Heather back to our room. I hadn't realized that Marjeera had followed us until I turned to close the door to the room.

  "Why are you here?" I asked her.

  "Master Luvon said to make sure you made it to bed," she said to me.

  "Well, we made it," I said and yawned again.

  "Did you forget your promise to me, Paul?" She asked as I started to close the door.

  I stopped and yawned again, "Oh, yeah. I better look into that, right?" I said and turned around, "Give me a minute."

  I stumbled and almost fell over. Heather was already spread out on the bed, eyes closed and slowly stripping off her clothes rather groggily. I felt another wave of exhaustion pass over me as well.

  "Damn, I need some coffee," I yawned and dropped to my knees.

  "Paul, he drugged you! Come the morning he'll just replace Sarah with me, and have me stage a big fight in the morning! You'll leave without Sarah and I'll still be stuck here!"

  I shook my head, she was right, something was wrong. Putting my hands on my legs I suddenly felt the brass cartridge in from the fight. I'd been holding on to it, more out of habit than for any other reason. Fumbling it out of my pocket I opened it and sticking it up my nose I took a hard sniff while flicking the bottom of it with a finger to kick out any remaining residue.

  I started to keel over then, but just before I hit the floor whatever was left over of the drug kicked in and I was suddenly wide-awake.

  "Ugh, I'm going to hate life in the morning," I groaned and got slowly got back up. I could already feel a headache starting. Apparently whatever Sarellious had drugged me with didn't agree with the epinephrine.

  "What did you just do?" Marjeera asked, peering down at me.

  "Tell me what Luvon's plan is," I grumbled and got shakily to my feet.

  "When Sarah comes up here, she's to find me in bed with the two of you. She gets upset and goes back downstairs and he will seduce her. In the morning I change to look like her, and start a big fight with the two of you, and tell you both off and stay here.

  "By the time Sarah wakes up, you'll both be gone and he'll tell her that you both abandoned her and I went with you."

  "What happens to you?" I asked.

  "He didn't say. I suspect he'll have me change my appearance and just tell her I'm one of his servants."

  "Okay, tell me where his room is."

  "It's all the way at the other end of the manor, on the next floor."

  "Thanks," I said and just then Sarah opened the door and walked in.

  "Just what is going on here!" Sarah exclaimed, "And what is she doing here?"

  I turned to Marjeera, "Change yourself to look like Sarah and go back downstairs and make him think you're her."

  "I'll need her clothes," Marjeera said.

  "What?" Sarah said, looking back and forth between the two of us, then noticed Heather naked on the bed with her clothing spread all over.

  I winced and turned to Sarah, "Strip." Marjeera was already taking her clothes off.

  "I'll do no such thing!" Sarah said rather angrily.

  I kicked the door closed and turned on her. My head was hurting and I was pretty angry at this point.

  "I said strip, and you will strip! Understand? Your lover boy down there set all this up so you'd come up here and find us in bed with his genie here, so you'd come running down to him so he could seduce you and convince you to stay with him in the morning!"

  I pointed to Marjeera who was now nude and was looking more and more like Sarah every second as her body shifted.

  "If you hadn't been so quick to bat your damn eyes at him and kiss up to him and gloss over the fact that I'm your husband and Heather is your wife, maybe he wouldn't be so hot for you that he's doing everything he can to break us up! I mean really, Sarah, don't we mean anything to you? How could you continue to string him along? Or were you stringing us along?"

  I pointed at her, "Now, you either strip and give Marjeera your clothes and stay with us. Or we're leaving in the morning. Without you! We love you, Sarah, but do you love us?"

  Sarah's face went incredibly pale at that moment and she was staring at Marjeera who now looked exactly like her, standing naked in the room.

  "I, he.... I...." She said looking back and forth between me and Marjeera.

  "Do you love us, hon?" I sighed.

  Sarah shook herself and then started to empty her pockets out and strip. When she finally handed her clothes to Marjeera I could see she was crying.

  I sighed and gave her a hug and kissed her.

  "I'm sorry, Hon. I had no idea. I didn't mean anything by it, I, I just didn't realize!"

  "It's okay," I said and patte
d her on the back, "everything will be okay."

  "What about me?" Marjeera said from the doorway, she had her hand on the doorknob.

  "I'll go take care of the lamp. Just play along with Luvon for as long as you can. If you can stall him until we're long gone, that would be great."

  "Then what?"

  "Then find me and I'll set you free, okay?"

  Marjeera smiled then, and it was not a very friendly smile, "No, what do you want me to do to him?"

  I shook my head, which didn't help my headache any. "That is between you and him. Though I'd prefer it if you didn't kill him. You said he used to treat you nice once? Remember that, maybe he just needs to be reminded that you're a person too."

  Marjeera nodded and left the room, I helped Sarah over to the bed.

  "I'm sorry, Paul. I'm sorry."

  "At least you picked us," I smiled and gave her a kiss. "Now excuse me, I have a promise to keep. Set that alarm thing of yours for a few hours before dawn and take care of Heather. We want to be well away from here before breakfast."

  "Yes, Hon."

  I left the two of them in the room and did my best to quietly make my way down the hallway to the stairs, and then started up them to the next floor. I could hear Marjeera downstairs crying to Sarellious who was comforting her, believing that he was talking to Sarah. I seemed to recall that deceit was one of a djinn's specialties.

  I found his room a few minutes after that, and going inside I saw the lamp sitting on the nightstand besides the bed. It looked almost exactly like the kind you'd see in a movie. It wasn't terribly large, but there was no way he'd miss it.

  "Coyote," I said in a soft voice, "a little help, please?"

  "Wow, you actually said please!" he said from right behind me. The only reason I didn't jump was because I felt like complete and utter crap.

  "How do I get the lamp out of here without him immediately noticing?"

  "You don't."

  I groaned, "I promised I'd help her, come on, there has to be a way."

  "Actually, you never promised her anything, Paul."

  I rolled my eyes, "Okay, yes. I didn't promise her anything. But I made a promise to myself to stick it to Luvon for messing with me and my women. Besides, she deserves it. She's helping me."

  "Helping a djinn can be a very tricky affair, Paul. You understand that, don't you?"

  I recalled a line from a movie that had been a hit when I was in high school, "All the power in the world, but really tiny living space?"

  Coyote laughed, "They're not that powerful. Well some are, but this one isn't."

  "So, if I can't take the lamp, how do I free her from it?"

  "Don't you wonder why she's in it, in the first place?"

  I shook my head and groaned, my head was killing me. "I thought that was the way for all genies. Enlighten me, please?"

  Coyote laughed, "She's in the lamp because she's a very sexual djinn. She upset one of the djinn kings by toying with the affections of his son. So he had her trapped in a bottle and sold her off into sex slavery."

  "Kind of a harsh penalty for being a flirt."

  "I just want you to understand what you're letting yourself in for, for when she turns those attentions on you."

  "She's already tried."

  "That was because she was told to, not because she wanted to. A simple bite on the ass won't distract you then."

  "Okay, you warned me. The two of you can fight over me later. Now help me before Luvon catches me here and I have to kill him."

  "Oh, don't worry; she'll have him down there for hours. She knows him intimately and she's playing him like a fine instrument."

  "She must really hate him," I chuckled and then winced. My stomach wasn't feeling all that great now either.

  "Actually she doesn't hate him at all, she's just mad at him for ignoring her feelings all of these years."

  "Great, great. Now, are you going to tell me what to do here? I need to get out of here before I start puking."

  "Fine," Coyote sighed, "go take the lid off of the lamp."

  I walked over to it, and kneeling down on the floor I took off the lid and set it next to the lamp.

  "Look inside."

  I looked inside, in the center of the lamp, there was a small polished stone, it was dark in color and reminded me of the color of Marjeera's skin.

  "Take that out and put it in your pocket. You'll need to use your knife, it's glued in."

  I nodded and carefully pulled out my boot knife and setting the tip inside I started to worry at the edges of the stone. I could see it was set in something, and surprisingly my knife was having very little problems with it. Still it took a minute before the stone popped free.

  "Don't pick up the lamp," Coyote warned, "and don't touch the stone with your fingers."

  "Why not?"

  "If you move it, Luvon will notice. If you touch the stone, you'll instantly summon her to your presence."

  "What is the stone, anyways?" I asked as looked around for a piece of cloth. I ended up pulling off my boot and using a sock, which I pulled over my hand. I made sure to put the stone in an empty pocket.

  "It's her soul."

  "What?" I said looking at him. He was sitting on the floor, looking at me carefully.

  "The stone has her soul trapped in it. Whoever possesses it, owns her soul, and owns her. If you were to destroy the stone, you would destroy her soul and that would be the end of her. That is why she cannot be away from it for more than a day's time. It calls her back."

  I looked around and picking up the lid I put it back on the lamp. Then I carefully got back to my feet, picking up my boot and sock, while making sure the knife was back in its sheath.

  "Did I miss anything?" I asked.

  "No, but you should get going. They'll be on their way up soon."

  I nodded and left the room, moving slowly down the hallway. My head was starting to spin and my guts were definitely staring to rebel.

  "So what do I do with the stone?" I asked Coyote.

  "Well, you could give it to me."

  I looked down at him, "I'm not that cruel."

  "Well, then give it to someone you trust. Whoever possesses the stone possess her, and she will serve them. Just be warned, they can be very tricky and if you aren't careful she will play her tricks on you."

  I nodded and stumbled past the main stairway and took one of the back ones, then quickly made my way to the bathroom and spent a good long time puking my guts out. I'd barely made it back to the bedroom when Marjeera suddenly appeared in the room, kissed me rather soundly, dropped Sarah's neatly folded clothing on the floor and disappeared.

  We woke before dawn, thanks to Sarah's alarm. Heather complained of a splitting headache and I was dizzy and my stomach was still rebelling. Sarah at least was very energetic and a bundle of energy. She got us dressed and packed up in short order, then got us and our gear down and into the barn not long after that.

  "Why does my head hurt?" Heather grumbled as we finally rode out the gate. "I didn't drink that much."

  "Luvon drugged you, and Paul," Sarah said.

  "Oh, so that wasn't a dream?"

  "No, it was not," Sarah said.

  "Good, because now I don't have to repeat what he said last night," Heather motioned towards me. "I mean really, hon, are you trying to out-stupid me? I wouldn't have thought it possible."

  "Well...." Sarah started.

  "Just leave it," I sighed and debated draping myself over the horses back instead of trying to sit upright in the saddle. "I don't want to die listening to my loved ones arguing."

  "Why are you so sick?" Heather asked, "You're worse than me."

  "How did you manage not to pass out?" Sarah also inquired.

  "I had a little bit of that epinephrine left that I was saving for an emergency."

  "What? I thought I told you not to touch that stuff again!"

  "Eh, I've had worse," I sighed and closed my eyes, leaning forward and hoping I didn't fall off.


  - 8 -

  Three hours later we came around a bend in the road and looked out over the central valley as we started our descent down into the central valley.

  And off in the distance I saw water.

  As far as the eye could see to the north, far past the curvature of the horizon, it was definitely a sea.

  I stopped my horse and just stared. It didn't start right at the foot of the hills we were coming down out of; it was definitely off in the distance quite a few miles yet. But it was there, and it was long, and it was wide.

  I pulled out my binoculars to take a look, and I have no idea how long I just spent staring at it. I could make out the remains of what I guessed was Bakersfield. It apparently sat on the end of the sea now.

  "Something wrong?" I heard Sarah ask.

  I put the binoculars down and looked at her and Heather, who were both looking at me with curious expressions on their faces.

  "There really is a sea," I said, a bit bemused still.

  "Well yes, there is a sea. We told you that there was a sea here."

  I shook my head, "You don't understand. I grew up here. The last time I was here, there wasn't a sea. Then when I heard people talking about it, I figured it would be like, right here when we rode down out of the grapevine, but even then I still didn't believe it."

  I shook my head again. "Seeing is believing," I sighed.

  "So, now what?" Heather asked.

  "We can either go around the west side," I said pointing to the northwest, "Or the east side," And I motioned that way next.

  "The stories of the things that live closer to the ocean tell me we should go around the east side," Sarah said.

  I looked at Heather, who nodded, "I agree. Plus there are settlements in the mountains to the east of us that are known to be friendly."

  I looked at Sarah, "Do you know where any of them are?"

  She shook her head, "Not really. We were not expecting to come this way, so I did not think to bring a map of them."

  "Well, I agree. I've spent some time in the mountains to the east so I'm a little familiar with the routes and where the rivers are."

  "Assuming that they haven't moved," Heather grinned.