LITMIR.BIZ

       Prologue

      Once upon a very long time ago, way before the beginning of today’s sort of people, there was a magical kingdom in which everyone lived forever, and anyone of importance was a genie, mostly the friendly kind. The few wicked genies kept out of sight in mountain caves or at the bottoms of rivers. They had no wish to provoke the great Genie King, who ruled very comfortably from an enormous palace with many towers and courtyards, and gardens with reflecting pools.

      The Genie King took a special interest in the genie princes of the kingdom, and was noted for his patience with their high spirits and desire for adventure. The Genie Queen, in fact, thought he was too patient with them, and she said so one morning in the throne room, where the King was studying reports and proposals for new magic spells.

      ‘Training, that’s what they need. Discipline!’ She adjusted the Magic Mirror on the throne-room wall. ‘Florts and collibots! Granting wishes, which is what they’ll be doing one day, is serious work.’

      ‘Florts yourself ! You’re too hard on these lads,’ said the Genie King, and then he frowned. ‘This report here, though, says that one of them has been behaving very badly indeed.’

      ‘Haraz, right?’ said the Queen. ‘He’s the worst. What a smarty!’

      The Genie King sent a thought to summon Prince Haraz, which is all such a ruler has to do when he wants somebody, and a moment later the young genie flew into the throne room, did a triple flip, and hovered in the air before the throne.

      ‘That’s no way to present yourself !’ The Queen was furious. ‘Really!’

      Prince Haraz grinned. ‘What’s up?’

      ‘You are!’ said the King. ‘Come down here!’

      ‘No problem,’ said the Prince, landing.

      ‘It seems you have been playing a great many magical jokes,’ said the King, tapping the reports before him. ‘Very annoying jokes, such as causing the army’s carpets to fly only in circles, which made all my soldiers dizzy.’

      ‘That was a good one!’ laughed the Prince.

      ‘And turning the Chief Wizard’s wand into a sausage while he was casting a major spell, you did that?’

      ‘Ha, ha! You should have seen his face!’ said the Prince.

      ‘Stop laughing!’ cried the Queen. ‘Oh, this is shameful! You should be heavily punished!’

      ‘He’s just a boy, dear, only two hundred years old,’ said the King. ‘But I’ll –’