door.

“We don’t know, sir,” Mad Dog finally spoke up.

Karnage threw his sword at the wall, impaling it in the metal. “So what type of good news is this to me?! What good is it knowing that Baloo, my long-time ever-exasperating enemy, has in his possession some precious stones, when I do not even know when or where he is transporting them?!”

Karnage went over and sat down at his desk, rubbing his face in anguish, unsure of what to do. Absently, he picked up the old bottle that the other pirate had given him, idly passing it from hand to hand.

“What if we spied on Baloo?” Dumptruck suggested. “Find out where he has them?”

“Brilliant strategy, dumb one,” Karnage said, without even looking at him. “Just one question I have, and that is… How are we, the Air Pirates, supposed to make it into Cape Suzette, past the patrol guards, remain undetected while we spy on Baloo’s home without being recognised, and most importantly… not getting shot?”

“Ummm, we could wear a disguise?” Mad Dog said.

Karnage snorted. “Even if we got past the guns, I doubt there is a disguise that could fool Baloo. Thanks to all the number of times we have infiltrated him and his friends, he has I fear become immune to our way of… camouflaging ourselves, cunning though it is.” Karnage rested the bottle on his lap, still holding it. “There has got to be a way of finding out all he knows! I will not, repeat, I will NOT allow that shapeless heavy half-wit of a bum have another victory over me.”

“But how…”

“I DO NOT KNOW!” Karnage shouted, as he rubbed the bottle furiously in his hands, wiping off some of the dried grime that it had collected from the sea. And that’s when it happened…

The first time Karnage rubbed the bottle, it had started out with a tiny little tremor, so small that Karnage did not even notice it. Then with the following rubs that continued, the tremors has escalated, and before Karnage even had time to look down on the bottle in question, the bottle had leapt out of his hands.

Karnage looked up in surprise, as the bottle jumped into the air, and Mad Dog and Dumptruck immediately went for their pistols, as all good pirates were trained to do.

The bottle went on shaking and fidgeting in mid-air, and as they stared at it, they saw a strange orange smoke rising out of it.

“What in blue, green, red and purple blazes!” Karnage swore; reaching for his sword, while Dumptruck and Mad Dog kept their guns pointed at the bottle.

The bottle whizzed and twirled, as the orange smoke piled out of it. As the three of them stared at the mist, the orange smoke started to change colour, from orange to blue, and from blue to green.

The now green smoke however did not dissipate, or float away, as all smokes should do. Instead, it stayed where it was, hovering above the top of the bottle, and seemed to be taking shape. As Karnage and his men continued staring at the smoke, they noticed it beginning to take on the form of a man. They could make out the shape of a head, arms and hands, and with each passing moment, more parts took form.

Then, in a single flash of pure gold lightning, Karnage and his men momentarily lost their sight. They blinked their eyes, wiping them until their eyesight slowly returned. When it did, an awesome sight welcomed them…

By Nicholas Killpack

“Make way, the Genie with the sass is back in the house!” an Arabic sounding voice announced.

Karnage, Dumptruck and Mad Dog all blinked their eyes in astonishment, even after their sight had returned. There, in front of them, was some sort of man…

The man was a dark-golden coloured Hyena, with a few black spots along his pelt, and a black goatee around his mouth, which had a little curl at the end of his chin. He was wearing a purple sleeveless jacket of some sort, but no shirt, with a blue cloth tied around his waist, a gold medallion around his neck, and a large blue turban wrapped around his head, along with a large white feather that was sticking out at the front of it. He was also wearing a pair of gold bracelets on each of his arms.

He was wearing no pants or shoes, but that was because he didn’t seem to have any legs. Where his legs and feet should have been, there seemed only to be more of that smoke, which had yet again changed colour from green into gold.

The strange man floated aimlessly through the air, stretching out his arms, and cracking his knuckles and back muscles.

“Ahh, by the seven deserts,” he spoke. “Now that feels good! Nothing like having a good stretch after six thousand years.”

Karnage opened and shut his mouth like a goldfish, in shock, as did his men. Karnage kept opening his mouth to try and speak, but the words just refused to come out.

The floating man finally took notice of them, and did a quick bow in the air. “Ah greetings, my noble sirs,” he greeted them. “May I enquire as to which one of you fine gentlemen was the one who rubbed my bottle?”

“Who... “ Karnage finally found his voice. “ Who in… Who the devil are you?!”

“Ah, forgive me, kind sir,” the stranger bowed yet again. “I am Genie Number 708, level B, Abdul Muhammad Shiraz Rajid Majid Ali Harvinder Aaryan Absi Ghulam Maher Rafi Zamil… Junior. But you can call me Abby.”

Karnage blinked at the name. “I would think it best if I do,” he replied. “So, mister… Genie?”

The Genie bowed again.

“Umm, am I correct in assuming that you are what I assume you to be?”

“Depends,” the Genie said, as he drifted around the room, curiously examining the ornaments and furniture. “What exactly is it that you assume me to be?”

Karnage walked slowly forward, keeping his distance from the supernatural being. “I am believing that… Well, obviously you are not a man per say. And since your name is ‘Genie’, then perchance you are that what you call yourself. A Genie? A being with unworldly powers, with the ability to grant wishes to whomever commands you?”

The Genie shrugged. “You assume correctly, sir. And since we’re all doing a bit of assuming today, might I take a chance in assuming that you are the one who rubbed my bottle, hence released me?”

Karnage just nodded his head.

“Ah, then I commit my services to you, oh master!” the Genie declared, bowing once more. “For whomever holds my bottle in their hand, their every wish is henceforth my command.”

Karnage blinked. “This… is too good to be true,” he said slowly. He circled the Genie, keeping a safe distance. “But if it is… Then I believe I have just, as they say, hit the jack in the pot!”

“That is one way of putting it,” the Genie floated around the room, curiously. “As it is with all Genies, I am bound to grant you anything your heart desires. Whatever you wish is my command, and so shall it be granted.”

Karnage slapped his hands together, rubbing them gleefully. “This is unbelievable… truly beyond coincidence. This is destiny! At last I can exact my revenge against all the enemies who dared to humiliate me. And at the same time, reward myself with all the bounty an honest pirate can imagine!”

The Genie sighed. “Just once,” he muttered. “I would like to serve a master who doesn’t have wealth on the brain.” He then spoke more loudly. “Forgive me, my master. But before we continue, I must inform you that there are a few… protocols that we must discuss.”

“Protocols?” Karnage looked blankly at him. “What in the seven skies are you talking about? You are my Genie, you grant three wishes, I am your master, I get what I want, everybody is happy… except for my foes of course.”

“Yes, no, yes,” the Genie replied. “And as for the last two things you just said, master… Yes and no, and it depends on what wish you make.”

At Karnage’s confused expression, the Genie sighed. “Please, allow me to explain… It is company policy after all.”

“Genies have their own company?” Mad Dog looked at Dumptruck astounded.

Dumptruck just shrugged, deciding to stay back and allow the captain to handle this one.

The Genie floated closer to Don Karnage, crossed his arms, and began to speak. “First of all, master… Be aware that not everything you’ve heard about us Genies is entirely true. I assume you’ve heard all the tales about Genies granting three wishes per master?”

Karnage nodded, and sat down behind his desk, observing the Genie keenly.

The Genie continued. “Well, that part is true, but not for my level of Genies?”

“Genies have levels?” Karnage asked, curious.

The Genie nodded. “There are two types of Genies, types that I affectionately refer to as Levels A and B. The first ones, Level A Genies, are basically everything you have heard