Minor genies

One day you find yourself lost in the desert, with no food and no water. The scorching sun is burning your skin and you are just about one hour away from dying of dehydration. Suddenly, something shiny flickers among some rocks and you gather your last reserves of strength to make a last effort and see what is going on there.

When you get close, you see a half-buried magic lamp. You rub it knowing that this is your last chance of getting out alive. And then the unlikeliest thing happens (or the obvious thing, depending on how much credibility you give to common movie/literature tropes). A genie of the lamp comes out of it and stares at you from the top of a blue cloud of smoke.

— Greetings, my lord. I am a genie of the lamp and I am your servant. I will grant you wishes. Not unlimited, but not three either. I am a Minor Genie. Please do not believe those things you have seen in movies. There are things I cannot do, though. It is up to you to discover my limits.

Still a bit startled by your sheer luck, you decide to put the Genie’s word to the test. And here comes your first wish. Knowing that he is not almighty, you decide not to be too ambitious just in case.

— Genie… I want… some water! Something like half a glass!

The Genie looks a bit perplexed at first but he does not question your life choices. He is not there for that. He simply snaps his fingers and before you realize it, you are holding a small glass, half full of water.

You gulp the water, which gives you just enough strength to take the lamp with you and continue your walk in the desert. That was close! A bit more wandering and you would have just collapsed!

After two more hours of walking, you are still completely lost. It has been hours since you saw any signs of civilization. So then you decide to rub the lamp again. Maybe the Genie can help a bit again.

— Genie… I want a compass!

The genie snaps his fingers and a compass appears in your hands. Excellent! Now you can still walk in a straight line. You just keep walking east because you think it is the shortest path out of this seemingly unending desert. How did you get so lost? you wonder. After 2 more hours, almost exhausted, you need to take a break. You sit on a rock and rub the lamp again.

— Genie… I want some more water!

The genie produces a bottle of water this time. Oh, this is pretty good.

— Genie… can you also maybe give me some sunscreen?

Another finger snap, and sunscreen falls into your hands.

— What about a map, Genie?

A map appears out of thin air.

That is when you realize that the genie might not be a minor genie after all. Or maybe your definition of minor does not match what you had in mind. So then you become bolder.

— Genie… can you point out to me on the map where we are? And also, can you give me not only water but a can of Coke? Can you make it cold?

Genie does everything. The freezing Coke going down your throat is the most pleasant feeling you can remember in a long time. You are still quite far from any other human being, though. Then suddenly you have an idea:

— Genie, what about… giving me a bike so that I can get out of the desert?

Genie makes one. But before you start pedalling, you decide you could make it better.

— Genie… could you make a car instead?

Genie makes one. It is a bit shabby, though. But hey, it took him like 20 seconds to make one. You are about to get inside when a sudden thought stops you:

— Genie, this is not the car I want… I want a [insert expensive car well prepared for the desert]. And add air conditioning, please!

Genie then takes a bit longer. Maybe a minute longer. But you are given the car. Then everything changes. You go inside and you start driving in your new car, protected from the sun and enjoying a pleasant temperature.

It is only after 30 minutes or so that you realize that you might be doing better. So you pull over, rub the lamp and ask the Genie again.

— Genie, maybe this is a lot but could you just take me out of here and take me back to civilization?

Genie does it. It takes about 2 minutes. You still hold the lamp.

You keep asking for wishes. Days pass, weeks pass, and you still have the genie. And you keep updating your wishes, making them more and more ambitious. Very rarely are you refused. But the ceiling of what the genie can do is not clear to you just yet.