Hinn Ch. 04-06

"We have not used quills in a long time save for ornamental, symbolic or similar reasons. Instead we have these -- pens. I think you'll be pleased how well pens work compared to quills."

And she was.

Chapter 6

As Tauriz filled in line after line on a legal pad, they continued their discussion.

"So. Wishes."

"Yes, Master. Wishes."

"What do I need to know about them, Tauriz?"

She paused her writing to think for a second before returning to her task. "They are almost always subjective, Master. From my experience and from what I've gathered reading about or talking to other genie, neither Jinn nor humans seem to be particularly good at making them truly objective."

He interrupted gently, "What precisely is a genie, Tauriz?"

"Any mortal who has been bound to grant wishes to a Master is a genie. The changes to their rwh tie the two attributes closely, and the few attempts various intellects have tried over the millennia to split the two -- slavery and granting wishes, that is -- have all ended badly for the partial-genie and the intellect attempting to alter the nature of the world."

"Thank you, Tauriz."

She nodded and continued. "The subjectivity of wishes means that the genie who fulfills them typically has the ability and the need to interpret them as they will within the bounds of the wish they were ordered to fill."

"Hence that prior Master's attempt to constrain you to only objective wishes."

"Exactly, Master. Except it did not end well for her, as you know. Another thing you need to be aware of is that I am limited in what I can grant wishes to accomplish. Almost all the other genies I've learned of or met have been sex genies."

Ray sputtered for a second, "SEX genies?"

"Yes, Master. They were created for and empowered to augment sex and sexual experiences for their Masters. As I understand it, they have considerable latitude in affecting emotion, in illusion, in sensing things both present and due to happen soon, and in material goods intended to augment their primary purpose -- sex.

"I am a weapon, however, Master. Unlike the sex genies, I am limited to conflict, to combat, and the preparation for and recovery from the same."

"So, you couldn't use your samum to seduce someone, but you could destroy them?"

"In part, Master. This is why I mentioned that wishes are subjective. If I honestly believe there is a purpose in support of War, I may grant a wish. If I doubt or disbelieve, the same wording for a wish will not occur."

"Can you address the likelihood of your ability to grant hypothetical wishes?"

"Hypothetically? Yes, Master."

Sure enough, she was grinning. He chuckled and nodded. "Well played, m'dear. Well played!

"So were I to wish for a physically perfect body for the sexual attraction of those I desired, the sex genies could grant that, but you cannot."

"As I understand the sex genies' capabilities, yes, Master. And no, I would be unable to grant that wish."

"I see a couple options here, Tauriz. First, hypothetically, I could make a result identical were I to wish for a physically perfect body for combat. Comments?"

"You are correct, Master, but the goal affects the result. A body that is physically perfect for sexual attraction would likely perform suboptimally for conflict, and vice versa. Thus, weapons like myself or sex genie can both grant abnormally high levels of stamina. How that stamina applies will differ though between what they and I can grant."

"OK, that makes sense. Let's look at a different hypothetical. Say that I have to retrieve a key from a safe to eventually remove the bulk of a foe's army. I can fight my way in, crack the safe, extract the key, and fight my way back out, right?"

"Yes, Master."

"Or, I could be subtle about it. If I learned there was a person who had access to the key, and I was able to subvert them, seduce them, make them mine, they could bring me the key and the rest of the foe would be none the wiser, right?"

"I suppose so, Master?"

"Well, which is it? Would that be a tactic used in a conflict or not?"

"Oh! I see! Yes, Master, that would be a part of a conflict, would it not?"

"Yes, Tauriz, it would. Thus, to support my conquest of this foe, you could use a wish to seduce this person, correct?"

"Unfortunately no, Master. I do not have that type of mind control ability available via wish. I can cause unconsciousness or rage. I can remove or cause great pain. But I cannot seduce, even in a conflict."

"Hrmm. OK, if you cannot, you cannot. Could a hypothetical wish be used to allow me to seduce them?"

"How would you word it, Master?"

"Hypothetically, something like wishing that I would appear to the victim as the penultimate in sex appeal. You wouldn't need to alter the target's mind. Instead, you'd need to read their mind, find that overwhelming image, and change me to fit that appearance."

"Perhaps, Master, which is much closer to 'yes' than I would have expected. Please try another hypothetical, perhaps with more detail, Master? I can only respond to what you instruct me. I am unable to wish myself, or even evaluate hypothetical wishes I may choose to consider."

"Very well. Then, hypothetically, I'd wish that you would read the target's mind and, finding the most appealing form to the target, make me look like that form."

"That I could do, Master, but that's perhaps not a guaranteed seduction. You'd be missing mannerisms, pheromones, sound, touch, taste, and probably mental reactions as well. It might well work, but it might not, either."

"Interesting. Thank you, Tauriz. I appreciate your help with this quite a bit."

"Of course, Master."

"Tauriz, would you hypothetically be able to fulfill a wish I make along the lines of wishing to provide you with an ideal reward?"

She blinked. Her eyes glistened in the artificial light in the office, and said, "Yes, Master, I could fulfill that wish."

"Tauriz, I wish to reward you with an ideal reward for all the assistance you've granted me to date."

She blinked, a single tear falling from the corner of her eye, and said, "Thank you, Master. I do not know what else to say, but -- thank you so much."

"Won't be the last one, either. I strongly believe in rewards being better motivation than punishments."

"I appreciate that sentiment, Master."

"Let's check the next one here, please. Hypothetically, could you fulfill a wish allowing you to choose between calling me Ray or Master, as appropriate to the circumstance, and knowing that your Master prefers to be called Ray?"

"Yes, Master, I could fulfill that wish to better deal with urgent communications in conflict situations."

"Excellent, my dear. I wish you were able to choose between calling me either Ray or Master as appropriate to the circumstance, knowing that I prefer to be called Ray."

"Yes, Ray."

Smiling, he swept her up off his desk into a hug and spun her around the room. She was surprisingly heavy, but not beyond his ability to hold. "Thank you, Tauriz, that will help me a lot."

"Of course, Ray. Of course, my Master."