Note: today’s story was inspired by a prompt from
: Write about a desert hideout.He’d been walking for a long time. It had been days since he’d seen any water, and his supplies were low. Worryingly so. He was sweating more than usual.
Then he saw the cave. He ran towards it, relief giving him new strength. Inside there were two things: a little pool of water, and a battered old lamp half-buried in the ground. He didn’t even notice the lamp; he fell on his knees and drank in the gloriously cool water. In so doing, his right foot brushed against the lamp.
There was a pop. “Oh, sure,” a voice said, startling him so much he nearly fell in the pool. “I try and hide all the way out here in the middle of the world’s biggest desert, and still the wishing. Always the wishing! It never ends, does it? All right, pal, whaddya want?”
“What?” said the man.
“You need the spiel? Okay, fine. It’s the usual thing, three wishes, that’s it, I’ve thought of all the loopholes so no extras, okay? I don’t murder people, I don’t make people fall in love for you, I don’t do necromancy. You need me to define that for you?”
“Necromance-no!” the man spluttered. “I don’t want dead people! I want out of here! Out of this blasted endless desert!”
“Okay, that’s a start, where d’you want to go?”
“Anywhere!” the man shouted. He really had been walking for a long time, and he was quite done up; also, he was hungry. “Send me to the moon if you want, just get me out-”
“Okay, Mac, you want the Moon? You got it. See you!” There was a flash.
The genie settled back into his lamp, glad finally to be left alone.
"YOU WANT THE MOON MARY" has suddenly become the best threat ever.
A CURMUDGEONLY LAMP that's fantastic. This is great, well done!