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Ali's Tale

Ali like most wanted to be rich, but unfortunately all his get rich quick schemes never seem to pan out. Indeed he was more like one of the 40 thieves than who he was named after. While all this scamming and scheming was enough to keep him from being a beggar, Ali obviously wanted more out of life than just surviving. He had always heard tales of wondrous treasures from far away lands that could solve all his problems.

Not wishing to get a real job as usual, Ali decided that he would travel the world in search of these treasures. If he succeeded perhaps he would even use this wealth to check off some other goals on his wish list.

Alright, so you’re just wandering about until you find a treasure outside of Arabia. Once you get your treasure, you complete your quest. It’s going to be a random one, but who knows, you might find it on your first encounter.

You’re currently in Baghdad, you can head towards Europe, Asia, India or Africa

Current Quest: Seek Treasure
Destiny: 0
Story: 0
Wealth: Poor

Quests to be completed: Purchase Slave, The Pull of the Sea
Quests completed:

Skills
Bargaining & Evaluation
Luck
Seamanship

Statuses
None

Treasures
None

Ali feels a strange calling to travel to Asia, where (hopefully) troves of treasure and riches await him.

What is that?

Ali made his way toward Asia in the hopes of finding treasure. His first stop was the city of Yalta.

The city itself wasn’t particularly notable other than it being on the coast of the Black Sea, not that it mattered since he wasn’t planning on heading to Constantinople at this time.

While looking for a place to stay before moving on, something caught his eye while passing through a less urban part of the city.

What a majestic creature!

At first Ali couldn’t believe what he was seeing for he had never seen such a Fine Beast such as this before. He half wondered if he was imagining it and he looked around to see if anyone else was nearby, but he was alone other than the Fine Beast before him.

As for the beast itself it took no notice of him or if it did, it didn’t make any signs of doing so. It just sat there peacefully enjoying the warm sun.

Ali pondered his next move.

Choices are Pray, Study, Capture, Attack, Follow, Aid, Seek aid, or Hide

Marvelous! Ali sits a few paces behind the Fine Beast, intently studying its every move. Such a beast must hold some secrets that he hopes to observe.

What are you looking at?

Not wanting to spook the magnificent creature, Ali found a hiding spot to watch it, feeling that it would uncover some sort of secret.

Ali began to watch. 

And watch.

And watch.

AND watch.

Much time had passed, but the beast hadn’t even moved, in seemed perfectly fine just sitting in the same position for hours. Which is more that could be said for Ali, who started to cramp up on more than one occasion until he shifted his body a few times.

Still he wasn’t deterred and continued to watch.

And watch.

And watch.

AND watch…until he’d fallen asleep.

At some point during the night he felt a kick to his side. He opened his eyes and saw a man in amour standing over him.

“Hey, you want to sleep, go find an inn! Don’t flop out here in the park. We’re keeping this place free of beggars! You’re lucky some of the other guards didn’t find you, they would have thrown you in a cell.” the guard said.
“Huh? Wha? I’m no beggar, I was just watching that fine beast over…there. Wait, it’s gone! Did you see it?” Ali asked standing up.
“See what?”
“The animal! It was wonderful! It was sitting right over there!”

Ali began to explain what the beast looked like, but the guard only said it sounded like an oversized rat. Ali however insisted that it wasn’t a rat, but the more he explained, the less the guard was listening, chalking Ali up as having a bad hookah trip. He let Ali off with a warning and said he should leave the city as soon as possible if he was going to be going around hopped up on hashish and making up lies.

“But…” 

Ali stopped before he got into more trouble and made his way out of the city. He even started to wonder himself if he’d seen the beast. 

No, he knew what he saw even if nobody else would believe it.

Gain 1 Story

Only to the worthy does the majestic beast reveal itself, Ali concludes. Clearly, its intent was to teach him the virtue of patience, Ali thinks, nodding to himself in satisfaction.

Ali doesn't look back upon the city of unworthy scum as he sets out on the road toward the Bulgars.

I can get it for you wholesale!

Ali decided to stick to the cities for his journey so far and his next stop was Bulgars which was a bit more impressive in terms of size. Lots going on, though he wasn’t sure if he’d necessarily find what he was looking for here.

While wandering through the market place, a loud merchant called him over.

“You! You over there! You look like a man that’s seeking something, come over! I have many things that will surely catch your eye and only for a few coins!” 

The merchant’s stall certainly did look filled with many unusual looking items. Ali wasn’t sure, but it didn’t hurt to look and hear the merchant out, even if he did look a bit shady.

Yep, probably on an ADL list now, but fuck it, it’s a perfect image to use for a Cheating Merchant, especially for this game.

The merchant quickly went over his many many items and going into great detail on each, but speaking so fast that Ali could barely keep up with what might be true and what was definitely bullshit.

After it was all said and done, Ali was almost dizzy with the overload of information and oddly convincing sale pitch by the merchant who obviously had some sort of genetic gift for such a thing.

Ali pondered his next move: Attack, Aid, Rob, Avoid, Barter, Honor, Abduct or Hire

It's so easy, the items are just right there on his table...

Ali ATTACKS the merchant!

You always lose with Jews

Ali was sick of hearing the merchant attempt to double talk and trick him into making a bad purchase. He must have thought he was some sort of idiot, well Ali would show exactly who the idiot was. 

All of the merchant’s wares were just out in the open and the merchant himself was certainly no fighter. It would be an easy matter of roughing him up and taking what he wanted.

However, the merchant could already tell Ali had ill intent towards him. In fact one might say that he also had a genetic predisposition of sensing such things, especially in this line of work. 

Ali took one aggressive step towards the merchant who pulled on a nearby rope which dropped a net down on him. He hadn’t even noticed that it was part of the canvas roof of the stall. 

“Ahah! You think this is my first time dealing with hostile customers Ishmaelite? My people must ALWAYS be wary of those that would harm us, especially by your kind! Amaros! Nugud! Deal with our unruly guest will you?”

Through the holes of the net, Ali looked up and saw two of the biggest Nubians he had ever saw. The pair of them grabbed Ali and gave him an unpleasant beating before throwing him in a nearby alley.

Eventually Ali collected himself, sore and bloody from his beating, but combined with his goal of finding treasure and this incident, he now had become obsessed with his task at hand.

Lose 1 Destiny. Gain 1 Story. Gain the Wounded status. Gain the Envious status

Well you're the first one to get not one but TWO statuses, congrats. A pity they aren't positive ones.

So the Wounded status is going to hamper your skills. Or at least some of them. (Stealth & Stealing, Magic, Weapon Use, Seduction, and Appearance) Basically you won't be able to use them. However, currently you don't have any of the skills where Wounded would affect them, but if you happen to gain any of those skills, I'll let you know.

If you want to get rid of the Wounded status you're going to have to not move for a turn (You don't get an encounter) and discard either a story or destiny point to heal up. Alternatively you can seek out a player with the scholarship skill and give them money (Lose a wealth level) to heal you up, though only Mizal has that right now.

The Envious status is probably worse however since you can't win with this obsession AND whenever you have the option to Rob someone you ALWAYS take it. (Klepto!)

In order to lose this status you need to discard 3 destiny points and then go on a pilgrimage to Mecca.

The alternative is probably in your favor since you can also lose this status if you gain two wealth levels or a treasure which you're looking for anyway.

"Damn!" Ali spat at the ground where the merchant stood, nursing his bruised and bloodied legs.

Unsure of where to next, he decides to move east, where he could find treasure and heal his wounded ego.

No, the statuses are results of encounters. Peng just picked a really bad choice.

I'm also automatically incorporating skills into results. For example when TCat aided the mad wizard, there were two results, one if you had quick thinking and one if you didn't. Fortunately for her she had it, otherwise it would have been a less positive result.

Could this be it?

Ali wandered eastward, always eastward all the while rambling to himself like a madman of how he deserves the world and everything in it. He couldn’t rest until he obtained what he desired. 

Ali traveled for days, barely eating or sleeping. He somehow convinced himself that he would find what he was looking for in this direction. He didn’t even stop at any cities, just endless wilderness. 

Just as his body was going to shut itself down from exhaustion, Ali saw something in the distance. A small chest, just siting there in the middle of nowhere! 

Was this it? Was this what he was looking for at last? 

Ali collected himself for a moment and pondered how to approach this: Examine, Take, Use, Open, Avoid, Sneak, Hire Help, or Enter

As if guided by an invisible force, Ali suddenly feels the urge to enter the little chest. In a moment of delirium, he begins stumbling toward it.

This is the end, isn't it?

Land of the Lost

Ali made his way towards the chest. Perhaps it would only be a Minor Treasure, but it would be his!

There was something very strange happening however, Ali never got any closer to the chest despite running towards it. He began to get frustrated and curse, but no progress was made.

Eventually however it was all too much and he collapsed face first into the ground. The world went dark.

Time passed and eventually Ali woke up. However he found his surroundings very different than before. In fact he was surrounded by endless wasteland. Well, perhaps not ALL wasteland, as he was actually fortunate enough to have collapsed in an oasis. No sign of the chest at all, but the nearby water sure looked inviting. Ali was certainly very parched after all the wandering, running and collapsing and all.

As Ali drank his fill, he started to wonder if he’d hallucinated everything and if so, when exactly did he start? Everything had started to blur together.

As Ali took another drink, he noticed a glint of metal in the water. Was he imagining shit again? 

It didn’t matter, he had to reach for it. It looked like a ring. Perhaps this was the treasure he sought. He grabbed it and it was real! He hadn’t gone mad. As he greedily picked up the ring, this was followed by a loud popping noise. The water in the oasis began to drain away and to Ali’s disappointment, the “ring” was worthless plug that he tossed aside. 

However after all the water was gone, a sandy door was revealed. He couldn’t even be sure of reality anymore, so he tried the door. It opened and he entered.

“Where the fuck am I?”

Ali still couldn’t be sure that he wasn’t still hallucinating that he’d some how found a Hidden City, but he was going to treat this as reality for now.

He had no idea where the hell he was, but he tried to gather his wits for his next action.

Examine, Take, Use, Avoid, Sneak, Hire Help, and Enter (Lol)

Oh and you’ve also gained the Lost status, but that won’t come into play until you take care of this encounter first.

City? City means treasure. Ali wasn't even sure what the city is about, but he only had treasure on his mind. He'll take... the city?

Sandstorm

Still suffering from his mental obsession, Ali’s mind touched on the idea that the WHOLE city was now his! He would take THIS as his treasure!

As Ali made his way towards one of the buildings, an unnatural howling wind whipped up and while he might have been underground, there was still plenty of sand around and now there was a storm of it brewing up. 

Before he knew it, Ali was in the middle of a sandstorm. Several times he felt like he was being choked to death as it went into his mouth and nearly blinded him. As always, Ali stumbled about until he managed to get into one of the buildings which apparently was just a one room shack of sorts.

He wasn’t sure how long he stayed in the building, but it was a sobering experience. He didn’t think the storm would ever let up and he could see the sand build up outside the front door. He wondered if he’d be buried alive, but fortunately the storm stopped before that happened. 

Ali got up with a slightly new mindset. He realized that while he was still seeking his treasure, he should remember that his life is much more important. He sort of lost that obvious thought in his obsession. 

Ali wanted to get out of this place before any other weird magical stuff happened. However, before he did, he did notice that the building he was taking shelter in was built from a material he wasn’t familiar with. It probably was valuable if only to a scholar who would be interested in things from such places. 

With his mind right again, Ali exited the hidden city and back to the now empty oasis. All he had to do now is figure out how to get back to civilization because now he REALLY didn't know where he was.

Gain 2 Destiny. Gain 2 Story. Gain 3 Wealth. Lose Envious (Due to gaining at least two level in Wealth)

So you’ll be going one space per turn until you become “unlost”

You can get an encounter which will get rid of this status. You can also have an encounter on the “Badly Lost” matrix instead of having a normal turn, which MIGHT get rid of the status.

You’re also currently in Africa now somehow.

Ali, suddenly calm and level-headed, decides to rest in place for a moment, consuming a story to heal his wounds (if that's how it works).

Alright you lost 1 Story and you're no longer Wounded.

Oh right, story format...

Ali decided to heal up before figuring out where the hell he was. As he rested, he talked to himself a lot, mostly about old shit that happened to him before, but then he started questioning if he was remembering the events correctly. After it was all said and done, he'd forgotten what the hell the event was altogether and he was healed up and ready to take on more immediate concerns rather than living in the past.

Ali scratches his head, looking at the vast, roiling sands all around him. While there were no landmarks in sight, he was determined to become unlost, whatever it takes.

Badly Lost

It was looking pretty hopeless, sure Ali could just wander and hope he found civilization eventually, but he was pretty sure he wasn’t even in Asia anymore given the terrain he was seeing. 

Ali pondered another plan of action: Pray for Guidance, Wait for Help, Cry out for Help, Examine Surroundings, Set Forth, or Hide Safely

Ali will Set Forth, as he's keen to reorient himself. To stay in place would mean certain death, he reasoned.

People are strange when you’re a stranger

Ali decide his best course of action was to just keep traveling in a straight line, he had to bump into some place familiar eventually.

After passing through territory that was still unknown to him, he spotted something in the distance. Huts! He also saw figures walking around.

And they also noticed him and a group of them began to walk towards him. They had very dark skin and didn’t wear too much clothing either. While this wasn’t too much to go on, Ali thought now he might be in Africa, though how he got there he’d wonder for another time, because right now the tribals were now upon him and speaking to him in a strange language and performing weird gestures. 

Yep, you definitely know this is a CYS game.

Despite being mildly “excited” they didn’t seem necessarily hostile and lead Ali back to their village.

Ali was introduced to their chieftain who spoke a little of Ali’s language. It was broken and few words, but thanks to this exchange, Ali now had a better idea of where he was in Africa, even if he was still a long way from a major center of civilization.

Ali was just about to thank the chieftain and leave, when the villagers began to do a strange dance along with strange chanting. The chieftain seemed to gesture that Ali should join in and a few of the other villagers were even pulling at him to join.

Ali had to decide what he wanted to do quickly.

(Gain 1 Destiny and no longer Lost)

Honor, Attack, Avoid, Aid, Rob, Follow, Question or Pray

Ali cared little about their strange customs, but they were many and he was but one. He will honor their traditions by joining in on the dance.

And, like Mizal, it would be great if you could give me a quick summary of stats, quests, and whatnot.

Shot Spear Wedding

No wishing to anger these people that helped him, Ali joined in their strange customs and tried to keep up with their dancing even if he didn’t quite have the same rhythm they all had by natural design.

It wasn’t long before a woman with a large plate in her lower lip began dancing with Ali. Again Ali attempted to fit in and went along with it.

After the music stopped, there was loud cheering and many of the tribals began to pat him on the back and smile at him. Ali figured he must have really gotten on their good side, however he may have gotten too much on their good side. The plate lipped woman he was dancing with all of a sudden wrapped her arms around him tightly.

The chieftain then announced that his daughter and Ali were to be married! Ali was horrified. He didn’t ask for this. He didn’t choose this, yet there it was. He was married.

Ali attempted to protest that he couldn’t marry an infidel as it was against his religion, but the chieftain refused to hear such things and said the official ceremony would proceed with or without him breathing if necessary. This was backed up by several large tribals now pointing their spears at him.

There little to be done, Ali had to go through with the ceremony which was performed by the local witch doctor. Worse still was the tribal magic which had now officially bonded them together, so he would be compelled to come back and visit Imani from time to time wherever they made their home. (He was of course expected to provide a better living arrangement for her now, she couldn't just live in the village any more.)

After an “interesting” wedding night, Ali took his leave of the village with Imani the next morning feeling much worse than he did when he was just wandering around lost or even when he was driven mad by greed.

Gain 1 Destiny. Gain Married. Gain Grief Stricken.

Okay, so let’s get Grief Sticken out of the way first.

This status basically makes it so all your skills are unusable. (You’re too sad) Now if you manage to get any of them up to master level, you can use them at the basic level though (Fight through that shit)

You can get rid of this status if you gain 8 story points

On to Married…lol.

Alright, so the next city you want to stop to have an encounter in is going to be your “home with Imani” so make sure you pick the one you want because that’s the city you’re going to have to keep returning to.

Now normally in the game, you have to keep returning to the city every time you visit another city. However, just to keep things less “back and forth” I’ll say you only have to return if you visit a city in a different region than where you made your home with Imani. So if you decided to make your home in Bilma in Africa for example, you won’t actually have to travel back there again if you’re visiting other cities in Africa.

Also whenever you visit your wife, you’ll have to roll the dice to see what happens and you gain a story point.

That’s it for that status.

You also Gain 1 Story for being Married which raised your current story points to five, making you eligible to gain another skill or improve an existing one to Master class. (See, you’re already getting used to married life)

To put it simply, Ali does not like his wife, or his current life for that matter. When he set out on this journey, he yearned for freedom and riches - being tied down to a woman forced upon him wasn't exactly according to plan. In a bout of frustration, he will attempt to become luckier in hopes that it would somehow remedy his situation. Meanwhile, Ali will have to decide on a location to settle his wife in. Alexandria, he concluded, was probably the closest and most reasonable city to stop by, so he will begin travelling Northward.

Peng - Ali Baba

Current Quest: Seek Treasure
Destiny: 3
Story: 5
Wealth: Princely

Quests to be completed: Purchase Slave, The Pull of the Sea
Quests completed:

Skills
Bargaining & Evaluation
Luck
Seamanship

Statuses
Grief Stricken
Married (Imani)

Treasures
None

Battle Brothers

Aruf set off for Alexandria, he knew there might be a cheap place for him to get there since the prices of a real estate had gone down for some reason.

As he travelled Imani mostly kept quiet, though it was a bit hard to talk with a plate lip anyway. She only interacted with him to request something like water which mostly just resorted to tugging on his clothing rather than actual speaking.

Well he supposed the upside to all this is she didn’t talk much. She didn’t even demand much, so maybe his luck was improving.

And then he saw a large group of warriors approaching over the horizon.

“Shit, this probably won’t be good.”

Imani held close to him for protection, but Ali had no idea who the hell was going to protect him if this didn’t go well. He didn’t know if these were raiders or what. Though they looked a bit too well equipped to be normal raiders.

Didn’t take long before the leader of this group to step ahead of his men and approach Ali first. Obviously he didn’t think Ali was a threat and given his armor and weapons, he was definitely right.

“Well what have we here? Strange couple of travelers on this lonely road. You coming from Bantus? Looks like it from the company you’re keeping.” the leader asked.
“Eh, somewhere around there I guess. I sort of got lost. It’s a long story.” Ali remarked.
“Must be if you’re traveling with such a creature. You a slaver or something?”

Ali at this point figured it would be better for Imani to appear as his slave rather than his wife. Though given the area and time period, there wasn’t much difference anyway.

“Uh, yeah. I actually had more than this, but like I said, long story. Now I just got this one and hoping to sell as a curiosity to make up for my losses.” Ali said.
“Hm. Well given your appearance you don’t look like you’re hurting too much as far as coin is concerned. Maybe I should have went into that profession instead of being a mercenary.”
“Mercenary?”
“Yes! Have you not heard of Abdullah’s Butchers? This is my company, I’m the captain!” the leader exclaimed proudly. Ali guessed he’s probably Abdullah.

“Um, can’t say I have, though you certainly look impressive.”
“Oh we definitely are! We just came from Tripoli where we put down a rebellion!”
“Didn’t know there had been trouble there, but I’ve been out of the loop for awhile.”
“Yeah, but there isn’t anymore. We killed all the trouble makers.”
“That’s good to hear.”
“Then we chopped up their bodies.”
“Had to make sure I guess.”
“And put their heads on stakes in the middle of the city square.”
“As a warning to others of course.”
“We then strung up their entrails on the arches of the governor’s palace.”
“Wait, what? He let you do that?”
“We assured him it was necessary and that it was ALSO necessary that he pay us extra for our trouble. After all, those unruly teenagers could have spread sedition with their crazy talk of old decadent Greek boy loving philosophy!”
“Um…yeah…I suppose that’s the dangers of a port city where anyone could just sail in, well anyway, I’ll be on my way…”

The captain however physically stopped him and now sized him up, obviously looking to get coin out of him.

“Hold on, this desert is dangerous friend and I don’t just mean the elements. Why someone traveling alone could just be murdered by a gang of thugs. You’ve obviously been lucky to survive so far, but I think if you had a little protection with you, you’d be much safer. I could have a few of my men escort you to the next city you’re traveling to.”
“I don’t think that’s necessary.”
“Oh but I do…I think it’s VERY necessary…”

Abdullah patted his sword to emphasize this point.

Ali thought VERY carefully about how to deal with this Greedy Captain.

Honor, Attack, Avoid, Aid, Rob, Follow, Question, Pray

Once again, they were many and he was but one (two, counting Imani).

And once again, he resigns himself to their orders.

"Fine, how much are you guys charging?"

Wait is that the Question choice?

I was just curious how much they charged.

I mean as I said, I'm sort of having to weave the storyline, theme and game altogether so I'm doing a lot of improvising on the course of events other than the actual outcomes of the choices.

Of course if you're using this line as the "Question" choice I can certain accomodate. The "hire" option isn't available (unfortunately) for this to write in neatly.

Gotcha.

For the sake of having fun, I'll try the PRAY option.

Lol, that's the spirit.

Allah has spoken

Ali tried to plead with Abdullah that this attempt at blackmail would not be how Allah would want fellow Muslims to treat each other.

Abdullah was not moved by this plea and instead drew his sword.

“Bah! The governor of Tripoli tried to peddle that same nonsense to me. Didn’t work then and certainly won’t work now! Now give me everything you got or you’ll be meeting Allah very soon.”
“I don’t have anything! Except…this slave! Here! It’s the only valuable thing I have!” Aruf exclaimed pointing at Imani.

Abdullah looked at Imani who didn’t quite understand everything about this situation not really knowing the language, but was obviously distressed with Abdullah’s sword out.

However, Abdullah took one look at Imani and began to laugh.

“You want me to take THAT as payment?! She wouldn’t even make a good camp follower! Ugh, that plate is disgusting. I KNOW you got something slaver and I’m gonna take it from your corpse if need be…” 

Ali began to silently pray to Allah to save him as Abdullah approached closer. This was it, he knew it. 

Then he heard a whizzing noise followed by a “Thunk!” sound. Abdullah’s face now had a shocked look on it. He struggled to take a breath and then another “Thunk!” sound was heard and an arrow head was now sticking from his eye socket with bits of the bloody orb still on it.

Abdullah fell to his knees and this face first into the sand. One arrow sticking in his back and another through his skull.

Ali looked up and now saw a few of Abdullah’s men approaching, one with a bow in his hand.

“Yeah, I’d say you got him.” one remarked.
“Thank Allah. I dunno what I was thinking with this mercenary business. I never want to do those awful things we did in Tripoli again.” the bowman remarked.
“Neither do I. In fact I’m heading to Mecca right now to atone.” another added.
“Good idea. You. You and your…traveling companion alright?” the first one said addressing Ali.
“Uh yeah! Yeah, I’m just glad you acted when you did, it really looked grim there for a moment. Thank Allah for your sure aim.” Ali said.
“Thank Allah in all things brother.”

With this last exchange Ali was left to continue his journey to Alexandria. He vowed to visit the nearest mosque when he arrived.

Gain 2 Destiny

As an example of what I was talking about, this result actually involved a greedy ship captain trying to overcharge his passengers midway through the voyage. You beg the captain to not do this, but he doesn’t listen and if you choose pray, you end up praying to Allah in your cabin to make the captain see the error of his ways. This actually results in the passengers and crew throwing the captain overboard, stating that Allah has spoken.

Praise Allah. Ali prays silently on the spot, and spits on Abdullah's unmoving corpse.

"Onwards, to Alexandria!" He cries to Imani.

Kitty City

It was dawn and at last Ali had reached Alexandria. Ali knew he had to find a home to settle Imani, but he did make a mental promise to Allah to visit the mosque when he reached Alexandria, so he headed to one of those first.

Along the way he noticed were the large amounts of stray cats all over the place. He knew Egypt liked its felines, but he didn’t realize it was this much. The citizens of the city seemed to be very enamored with them. Imani made some remark, but since Ali didn’t understand her language, let alone with a lip plate, he didn’t know what she said.

He got to the mosque which was almost covered with cats lounging about in front of it. Just as he was about to step over them, a voice called out from a corner. Ali spotted who said it and was a little surprised to see it was a hunchback.

“Hey wait! Are you trying to get executed? You can’t go in there, it’s illegal!”

Ali as usual had been out of the loop and asked why would it be illegal to go into a mosque.

“This city is now under control of Princess Nadia, who is also the High Priestess of Bast. She’s completely deposed her father and made any religion other than praying to Bast illegal upon penalty of death! You go in that mosque and you’ll be next. She’s got eyes everywhere.” the hunchback said.
“But what if I want to pray to Allah?” Ali asked.
“Well I suggest you do it in another city or very quietly in the privacy of your own home, but even that might be risky.”
“I was actually just looking for a new home.”
“Well you sure picked an interesting time for it. Still, there’s probably a lot of empty homes now due to executions. I can lead you to where some might be and fill you in on the city, but we can’t really stay out here in front of a mosque talking like this. We’ll start arousing suspicion.”

This Hunchback seemed Friendly enough, but Ali had already encountered a few people already that were initially friendly and things went south really quick. He had to consider his options.

Beat, Enrich, Rob, Avoid, Question, Attack, Follow, or Hire

If Ali was to frequent the city heavily in the future, he would have to find someone who knows his way around here. Ali will attempt to hire the hunchback.

Sweet Home Alexandria

Ali followed the hunchback away from the mosque. Imani however of visibly unsure of following the hunchback, but she followed Ali and stayed close to him. Along the way, the hunchback filled Ali in on all the latest news and pointed out where Ali could get a cheap home and mentioned all he had to do was hand over the coin to the bean counter at town hall where all the important records are kept.

“So you seem knowledgable about everything here, you looking for a job? I might need your ongoing assistance, I can of course pay.” Ali remarked.

The Hunchback’s eyes lit up at the offer. Wasn’t every day he had the opportunity to earn an steady source of income. Still, he noticed something that Ali hadn’t.

“Sure! But…uh…I think you need to take care of your lady first. She looks distressed and it might be my appearance doing it. Not a big deal, I’m used to it. Meet me later when you handle all your other business first. I’ll be by the cat statue.” the hunchback said.
“Uh, okay. Wait, which cat statue?” Ali asked.
“Oh right. Uh, the black one with jade eyes close to the new library being built. You really can’t miss it even in this city full of them.”

When the hunchback left, Ali turned to Imani who was now a lot more at ease. First thing he did was find the town hall which was filled with cats and tired looking bureaucrats.

“I would like one of the homes on Mau street please. It was the one with the miniature sphinxes on either side of the door.” Ali remarked.
“Very well, that’ll be 3000 dinar.” the clerk remarked, pushing a cat out of the way of his scrolls.
“Here you go.”

Ali put a large bag of coin on the desk and after weighing it, the clerk accepted the payment and shoved a bunch of scrolls at him.

“Sign here. Here. Here. And here.”
“Right here?”
“Yes.”
“Okay.”
“Alright, let me get the scrolls for your cat insurance.”
“Wait, what?”
“Cat insurance. Your new home comes with five of them, which comes to 5000 dinar for full coverage sir.”
“WHAT?! I didn’t want any cats at…”

Ali’s outburst caused a dead silence as now all eyes were on him and he realized that his anti-feline words may get him into deep trouble. Even the cats seemed to give him a perturbed stare.

“at…any risk of danger! But that’s a little high, isn’t there something that can be done about the price?” Ali said.
“This isn’t a bazaar sir, you can’t haggle the price and why would you not want the best protection you could afford for your kitties?” the clerk remarked.
“Well…isn’t there a home with less cats?”
“Less cats? Why would you want that?”

This was useless. Ali had no choice but to fork over 5000 more dinar. After signing several more scrolls, he was given the deed and the keys.

“Enjoy your new home and cats.”

Ali’s coin pouches were so much lighter now. Granted he wasn’t hurting for money, but it really was the principle of the thing.

When he finally arrived at the home and opened the door, one of his new cats ran out. He saw two others lounging about in the front room barely looking up their comfortable position. The rest of the home looked fine. Bedroom, a kitchen area with an oven, there was even an indoor bathroom. This place really would have been a steal if not for all the cats here.

Imani herself was in great awe of the place. Then again given her tribal village, this must have seemed like a palace to her.

“Well this is your new home Imani.” Ali said, but Imani just stared at him.
“Imani?”

Suddenly she leapt on him, wrapping both legs around his waist. This sudden affection caught Ali off guard and her removal of her plate even more so.

“Ba…Bay…Bay…N..Now!” she managed to utter in what little she understood of his language in-between the struggle of a deformed lower lip.

Ali hadn’t planned it, but buying a new home for his wife was a major turn on and she was eager to express her love long time.

(Two more cats ran out from under the bed, when it really started going)

Gain 2 Destiny. Gain 1 Story. Gain Seduction skill.

Much later…

Ali left his cathouse and wife and took the opportunity to leave this crazy city. He’d forgotten all about his meeting with the hunchback who called out to him as he passed by without realizing it.

“Hey!” the hunchback called out.
“Huh? Oh, you. Right. Completely forgot. It’s been a eventful day.” Ali said.
“Yep, I’ll bet. So did you get everything taken care of? You still hiring?”
“…I almost want to say no, after paying the insane price of cat insurance, but I did promise. Look, I’m not going to be in this city for long periods of time and I’ll need someone to look after the house…and my wife I guess. You think you can do that?”
“Sure. Though again I don’t think your wife will like me obviously hanging around.”
“Well I dunno, she’ll have to just deal with it, or I guess stay out of her sight or something. I don’t care, I’ll deal with it whenever I come back, right now I just want out of this damn city. Here’s your first payment.”

Ali threw another bag of coins at the hunchback and quickly made his way out of Alexandria.

Out of the city, finally alone, Ali felt relief for the first time in days. While he did not dislike cats, there comes a point where too much is too much.

Following roads (for once), he will continue his journey to Damascus.

One Jar One Djinn

Ali entered Damascus, though he was just passing through since he had to find a treasure OUTSIDE of Arabia after all.

It was also odd, but he already missed Imani. After traveling with her for so long, her not being around seemed strange. Maybe he’d just nip back to Alexandria to check on her.

In the meantime, he was just sort of enjoying being back in the holy lands again after being away for so long. Everything seemed to be normal here at least. 

There did seem to be a man loudly shouting to anyone who would listen, a small crowd had gathered and Ali decided to check out what all the fuss was about.

“My brothers and sisters in Allah, I tell you that we are heading for times of strife and we MUST be prepared! True, that our faith in Allah will serve us, but Allah also values those who help themselves. The efreet conquests in the east will not stop at India or Asia. They are an evil race who want to set the world on fire and rule the flames! They have powerful magic under their control, but we can fight their magic with our own! Behold!”

The man whipped out a clear container with a red wisp inside rapidly flying about in it. Every once in awhile an angry face appeared and there was fire inside the container. This was obviously a Trapped Efreet who was none to happy about it.

Some of the crowd was fascinated, a lot of them were scared, a few were angry themselves. 

“What are you doing bringing a creature like that into our lands?! Don’t you know the damage it could do?!” one person remarked.
“Do not fear this one my friend, for I have trapped it and it will remain forever sealed inside. It is just like the old stories of genies in lamps, except we can trap them in magical containers on a permanent basis. No amount of rubbing is going to ever free them! Nor should they ever be free! All their promises of wishes always backfire on the wisher and only serve the efreet in the long run!” the wizard remarked.
“Are you suggesting we dabble in dark magic to fight the efreet?”
“Magic is not evil, it is just another tool we can use to serve Allah and protect ourselves from evil! I can teach all those that are willing to learn!”

The wizard was losing the crowd. This might have worked in some place less pious like Samarkand, but here in Arabia, the use of magic was looked upon with great suspicion and thought to be used only by pagans and the like. Faith in Allah was all the “magic” one needed in the mind of the average Muslim.

The wizard placed the trapped efreet on the ground as he began to argue with some of the more zealous Muslims who were more likely to have him executed for practicing magic to begin with. Ali himself was about to leave before things got worse, but then he heard a voice in his head.

“Hey. Yeah you. You don’t seem like the rest of these stupid humans, how about you free me and I give you a reward? Riches, women, treasure, whatever you want.” the efreet asks.

Ali wasn’t exactly sure how to respond to the efreet talking in his head, especially since he wasn’t exactly used to this telepathy thing. Ali tried to give it a go though and concentrated.

“How would I even go about doing that? Aren’t you magically sealed in?”
“Yeah, but the container is just glass. The old fool didn’t exactly trap me in Damascus steel. Just grab the jar and give it a good throw against one of the stone walls or road. Should work.”
“And I’m supposed to just trust you? Especially after the wizard just said you lot are conquering the east?”
“What, you’re going to listen to that fear mongering? He's probably pissed off a lot of us and is looking for more bodies to hide behind. We'll get him eventually, however we efreet aren’t going to push any further westward than we already are, besides YOU lot seem to be intent on conquering more than we have what with you spreading Islam everywhere.”
“That’s different.”
“Oh how so? You’re ruled by a sultan. We’re ruled by a sultan. You allow slavery, we allow slavery. If anything we probably treat our women more equal…though maybe that was a mistake. Hah! Anyway, we got way more in common than we do with the Asians or Indians, so there’s no real reason why we’d be enemies. Besides, if we WERE planning to invade Arabia, wouldn’t it be in YOUR best interest if you helped one of us out?”

Ali pondered the efreet’s words and his next move.

Grovel, Aid, Avoid, Bargain, Attack or Trick

Ali, faith strong in Allah, immediately violently rejected the foul creature's attempts to tempt him.

He will TRICK the efreet.

Trick No Treat

Ali decided he wasn’t going to free the efreet, but he was still going to try to get something out of the efreet for nothing.

Which might have worked if the efreet wasn’t currently talking to him inside his head and thus completely privy to the trickery that Ali was trying to come up with.

“You do realize I can currently read your mind right?” the efreet remarked.
“Oh shit.” Ali said, not just in his head, but out loud too. 

Ali felt like an idiot.

“And very well you should feel foolish. You should also be ashamed of yourself trying to take advantage of a trapped being in need of help! The deal’s off, and you better hope we don’t bump into each other when I do get free!” 

There was little else to be done. Ali walked away from the crowd and the wizard who was still arguing with zealots. Oh well, could have been worse. Time to head back to Alexandria. Maybe he could draw up a better plan of action than just wandering the world randomly to find treasure when he got back home.

Gain 1 Story

Back to Alexandria. Ali wasn't too concerned with escaping with only a tale to tell - more stories, he surmised, could help relieve his disinterest in life.

Back so soon?

Considering Ali had barely traveled very far from home, it didn’t take long for him to get back to Alexandria. His hunchback spotted him and was surprised to see him back already.

“Ali, from the last time you left you seemed like you would be gone a long time.” the hunchback said.
“Hey Hunch. Yeah I dunno guess I just had to clear my head. Still do really. Uh, how have things been here?” Ali asked.
“Well fine for the most part. Your wife seems to be settling in well.”
“Good, glad to hear it.”

The hunchback gave Ali a quick rundown of things going on in the city too. Rumors that High Priestess Nadia’s brother was still alive in exile and raising an army to retake the city were abound, but there was no real proof of this yet. Ali thanked him for the news and took his leave. Oddly now that he was back home he started to feel a little better about his situation which wasn’t as dire as he initially thought.

Gain 1 story, Lose Grief Stricken status

Ali headed to his house stepping over cats the entire time. When he got home, he found that Imani was asleep which was good since he had to figure out where his travels should take him next. He went over all the rumors and tales he’d heard during his journeys and pondered if any were worth following up on.

After thinking about it, he really didn’t have much other than two major leads, and only one that seemed promising. That one would be Herat. A city on the Indian Asian border. Ali heard there was a lot of skirmishes and the city itself was in a constant state of being taken and retaken by opposing forces. Sometimes it doesn’t have anyone controlling it at all, during those times the city can be even more dangerous than Samarkand.

However, given all the battles over the place it also isn’t surprising that valuable objects can pop up there from time to time. Might be difficult to obtain such items depending on who is in charge at the time though.

His only other lead was Bantus which was in Africa and not too far from where he original “met” his wife. Though given where he met his wife, he didn’t hold out much hope that Bantus despite being much larger than his wife’s village, was going to have any treasure, though he might be surprised.

And remember ANYTIME you visit a city outside of Africa, you MUST make your way back home to Alexandria. Just a reminder since I think you forgot this when you went to Damascus.

With renewed vigor and interest, Ali suddenly felt that life wasn't so bad anymore.

In this bout of confidence, he decides to try his luck in Herat. No risk, no reward.

Wait, there it is again!

Ali made his way to Herat figuring it was his best chance to accomplish his mission. Once again he made his trek through Arabia which was going to take longer since he was deliberately avoiding cities until he reached his destination.

Fortunately as a native of these lands and all his time spent in Africa, he was at least somewhat knowledgable about finding water in the desert.

More or less anyway.

After miscalculating the distance to the next oasis, when Ali finally reached it, he drank like he was dying of thirst (well that’s because he was for a moment) and decided to take a long rest before continuing on.

And then that’s when he saw it.

“What a magnificent animal!”

It was the Beast from before sleeping peacefully in the sun. However this time he saw it, he could have swore he saw it glow briefly. Ali rubbed his eyes wondering if it was the sun or maybe his mind was playing tricks on him, but no he saw it faintly glow again. Obviously this was an Enchanted Beast.

He had to decide what he was going to do.

Pray, Study, Capture, Attack, Follow, Aid, Seek aid, or Hide

By Allah, there it is again! Ali knew that he'd seen the fine beast that night, even if the guard laughed at him. This time, he won't lose sight of it again. Ali gingerly follows the beast.

Oh well maybe next time

Ali watched as the Enchanted Beast slowly started to stir from its sleep. After stretching a bit, it looked at Ali as if to acknowledge his existence. As it started to leave the oasis, it looked back at Ali almost beckoning him to follow which Ali had every intention of doing so.

So Ali followed the beast into the desert. 

And followed

And followed

AND followed

In the meantime the sun seemed to beating down even hotter than it normally was. Granted it was the Arabian desert but this like a whole level of hot. Ali was definitely feeling it.

The beast on the other hand didn’t seem to be bothered at all. Maybe it stored water like a camel? Ali still didn’t know what the hell this animal was except that it was glowing every now and then…or maybe that really was the sun?

Boy it was hot. Felt like the crotch of a lustful Efreetah. Not that Ali had any sort of relations with such a creature, but he imagined that if he had, this is exactly how hot it would be.

"Why in Allah's name am I thinking such thoughts?"

Ali started to feel dizzy and now the beast was starting to get blurry.

He just had to rest a moment and get a drink. The beast was still within his sight. 

He was out of water.

“That’s not good.” Ali said and passed out from the heat.

Time passes and Ali woke up to find that night had fallen. He was back at the oasis and a group of nomads had a camp nearby. One noticed he was awake and walked over to him.

“Ah, you’re alive. We wondered if bringing you here had been pointless.” the nomad said.
“What happen? Who are you?” Ali asked.
“We’re just simple simple nomads making our way to Mecca. We saw you laying in the sand and after checking to see if you were alive, we assumed you’d passed out from heat stroke. We brought you here. You really should be carrying more water when traveling the desert friend. Here.”

The nomad gave Ali a flask which he downed immediately.

“I was following a beast!”
“Eh? You were hunting in the desert?”
“No! I was following a magical animal! Did you see it?”
“Can’t say we’ve seen anything other than you in this desert. Well maybe a few snakes and scorpions I suppose.”

Ali proceeded to explain what the creature looked like.

“Sounds like a very large rat. Though there are such pests that live in the desert, I don’t think this environment really allows for them to grow as large as they might in the cities. Never seen one glow regardless of size.” the nomad said.
“No, I’m not crazy, I know I saw it… I…”
“Calm down. The desert sun can really play tricks on someone’s mind. You see all sorts of strange things. Just rest. I’m going to leave a couple extra flasks for you and you just remember to fill them all up before you leave here okay?”

The nomad dropped a few water flasks near Ali and took his leave to be with the rest of his fellows. Ali was still bewildered by his experience. Again, did he really see what he saw? Was it the heat? 

No, he was sure of what he saw. He just didn’t have the endurance to keep up. 

But NEXT time, he will succeed.

Gain 1 Story

GODDAMMIT

...on to Herat, I guess.

Burning Love

Ali put aside the thoughts of the majestic creature that kept eluding him and continued to his destination.

He made pretty good time and figured he probably should be there in a few days or so.

Just as he was making his way out of Arabia, he heard a string of curses mixed with what sounded like sobbing in the distance. Ali looked in the direction it was coming from and could make what looked to be a large hole in the ground. Never missing a chance to explore strange holes in the ground, Ali went over to investigate.

He thought at first that maybe it was someone who fell inside it and was hurt and needed help, though when Ali started hearing “That fucking bitch, doesn’t she know I love her so much?!” he was just was a little confused, though obviously someone was having a bad time.

Still, he’d already made his choice to go investigate, though he sort of wished he hadn’t given what he saw down there.

“I was so nice to her, why is she treating me this way?”

It was an efreet, though a little different than they normally look since this one wasn’t red or even burning that much. Though obviously this one was having problems in the relationship area, so maybe that was why he looked like this. He had no idea what the giant heart was from, maybe an elephant? Another efreet? Maybe it was the heart of this girl he was upset about? If that was the case, Ali assumed her death would make it a bit hard for her to show any sort of affection.

Ali’s curiosity didn’t go unnoticed as the Lovesick Efreet realized someone was spying on him from above.

“HUMAN! WHY DO YOU INTRUDE UPON MY MISERY?!” the efreet bellowed.

Ali only had a moment to react.

Grovel, Aid, Avoid, Bargain, Attack or Trick

Ali had to think quickly, and in that moment he remembered that he himself was married, for better or for worse.

"Don't be angry! I, who have courted and wooed many fine women in my life, can help you with whatever romantic trouble you're finding yourself in!" He lied, hoping to trick the lovesick Efreet.

Playing with fire

As the efreet came flying out of the hole, Ali began to go on about how being married and having a relationship isn’t all its cracked up to be. However, the efreet isn’t convinced and just seems to get angrier.

“You think your words of minor marital troubles will ease my pain human? How little you know of the fiery emotions of us efreet. Our feelings burn ten times greater than any humans!” the efreet said.
“I apologize, you’re right. However, I do know how to get over a woman and that’s to get another one!” Ali remarked.
“That won’t work, my thoughts and feelings are only for Riaza who is as wickedly cruel as she is beautiful. Indeed that is what makes her so attractive…and unobtainable. She claimed if I killed one of her other suitors she would bond with me, but alas she merely tricked me into killing a political rival of her brother. Now I have made more enemies than I needed to, she still laughs at my attempts to woo her and all I got to show for it is the heart of the fool I killed!”

The efreet at this point throws the large heart across the sands in frustration. Well that explains the oversized heart Ali wondered about. He still needed to find a way to calm the efreet down if he didn’t want to get thrown next.

“Well, I may be out of line in saying this, but you efreet gave your females too much freedom. We might not be as powerful as you, but there’s still a few things you could learn from us.” Ali said.

The efreet was so taken by surprise by this remark that he actually stopped being angry and upset for a moment.

“If this is your strange way of trying to make me laugh, you’ve almost succeeded. What would you know about it? You were just saying how you’ve got a wife that you have to appease all the time. Doesn’t sound like you humans have it any better.”
“Well those marital problems are still very minor since I was just about resolve them with this special slave being sold in Shiraz. I saw her once being auctioned in Tripoli, but I didn’t have the money at the time and fortunately nobody else did either. She is an exotic beauty from some unknown land. She is so beautiful that she would even put out that lovesickness that burns within you.”
“Hah! No human woman could hope to match that of an efreet!”
“Maybe not in most ways. But this slave has been trained from birth to be completely obedient and loving to her master. She will NEVER treat you wrong and will submit to your every whim! While I had my eyes on this slave, I can tell that YOU might need her more. I can get her for you.”
“…a generous offer human. I will admit, there is a certain appeal to having a woman that would do everything and anything for you. However, I still cannot believe this female would be as beautiful as an efreet woman.”
“Well, maybe not and it may be an old saying, but looks aren’t everything. You say this Riaza that you’ve been pining for is very beautiful. She may be, but what good is it doing you if she is unobtainable? This slave may very well not have the same unearthly beauty of an efreet, but I guarantee she’ll know how to make you happy AND be pleased to do so.”

The efreet’s mood had changed a bit. He wasn’t looking quite as gray anymore and had a bit more red returning to his skin.

“Alright human, I suppose there’s no harm in looking. Let’s go.”
“Okay…wait, you’re coming with me?”
“Well yeah, I’m not going to just sit in a hole while you go disappearing with your slave. I’m not an idiot. You said you were going to give her to me, so let’s go get her.”
“Yeah…let’s go.”

Ali managed to prevent getting killed, but it might only be temporary if he didn’t figure out how he was going to accomplish this task he just lied about.

Ali remained relatively quiet, trying to think his way out of this until he and the efreet eventually got to Shiraz. They got a few looks, but nobody was going to tell an efreet to leave, especially with all the conquering they were doing on this part of the world.

The first thing Ali did was head to the slave market, but it was just his luck that pickings were slim today. None of the slaves available were remotely looking like anything he described.

“Is there a problem?” the efreet asked.

“Yeah, I thought the guy was going to meet me at the slave market, but I just remembered he wanted to meet me in a private location since he didn’t want to risk a riot breaking out when the public saw the slave without her veil. I gotta meet him alone though, he’s really paranoid.” Ali answered which caused the efreet to give him a suspicious look.

“Alright. I’m going to wait here, but you do realize if you’ve been lying to me the whole time, it’s going to be very bad for you. I WILL find you if you run off.”
“Hey, I completely understand. Your new slave will be here soon.”

Ali quickly walked off and left the efreet at the slave market. This was bad. This was really bad.

Ali at first attempted to see if there was a secondary slave market in town or maybe someone else selling them, but he didn’t have any luck there. His next attempt was a brothel, but when he mentioned they had to meet up with an efreet, all of them immediately backed out regardless of how much money he offered them.

Finally his last stop was an opium den. He looked around until he found at least one woman who looked like she had most of her teeth.

“Hey come on, let’s go.” Ali said to her.
“Huh? Wha? Where? Who?” she uttered in her drug addled haze.
“I’m taking you shopping. Here’s some coin.”
“Oooooh….”

Ali took the woman by the hand and she willingly followed not really understanding what was going on, but going completely with the flow.

Ali made a quick stop at a clothing stall and purchased a face covering hijab and put it on her.

“Huh? What’s this? But I’m not Muslim…I’m Hindu…I think…”
“You’re Muslim today. Here put this abaya on as well.”

Ali then bought some clothing for himself. With the addict covered up well and still confused, Ali handed her more coins which continued to make her agreeable.

“You know where the slave market is?”
“Yeah…I think…”
“It’s right up that road. Now there’s a big man who wants to see you. He’ll look a little scary, but don’t worry he’s just got gigantism. He’s definitely not an efreet or anything. Go up to him and be very friendly and he’ll take you to your brand new mansion.”
“Ohhh, a mansion! Wait…why?”
“It’s yours, why ask why?”
“Oh. Yay! Praise Ahriman!”

Ali had no idea who that was, but he gently pushed the addict in the direction of the slave market and watched for a moment to make sure she didn’t wander elsewhere. When he was satisfied, Ali quickly ran into a nearby alley and changed his clothes, then he ran to the nearest stable and threw a bag of coin at the handler and rode off with one of the horses. As Ali raced as fast as he could, he just hoped he could put enough space between him and the efreet before the addict ceased being a distraction. Ali thought when he got far enough a way, he might take the time to shave just to hide even better.

He just hoped this all would be enough.

Gain Acting and Disguise

Ali felt worried for a moment about the retribution from the Efreet, but figured that it wouldn't be a problem until a while into the future. He only hoped that the poor opium addict could talk as well as he did.

So he sets off toward Herat.

Did you really think you were going to get away with it?

Ali stopped very little on his way to Herat. He didn’t even eat or sleep much. Eventually he’d rode the horse so hard that it collapsed, forcing Ali to make the rest of the way on foot. Every now and then Ali looked behind him thinking the efreet would there chasing him.

A few more days passed and soon the city outline of Herat was within sight. It would only be there he could at least relax a bit. Still, seeing the city gave him renewed hope and he confidently made his way towards it.

Ali took one step and a blast of heat as hot as the sun and flames erupted in front of him.

And it was at this moment Ali knew, he fucked up.

“WHATEVER GOD YOU ACKNOWLEDGE START PRAYING NOW.”

Unfortunately for Ali, praying wasn’t an option for this.

Grovel, Aid, Avoid, Bargain, Attack, or Trick (lol)

In case you’re wondering, an encounter a Vengeful Efreet as your next one was actually the results of the last encounter you just did. I figured I’d keep it a "surprise" though.

"Well, shit."

Ali stands bravely and deftly, deciding to avoid the Efreet.

No Escape

Ali immediately tried to run, but he was in open ground and there wasn’t really anywhere to even hide. The efreet probably could have instantly incinerated him at any time, but instead merely kept blocking Ali’s escape attempts with columns of flame and strategically thrown fireballs.

Eventually Ali could see that his efforts to avoid the efreet were in vain so he did the only thing he could and that was pitifully beg for mercy.

“Look I’m sorry that the slave I bought couldn’t please you, the slave I was originally supposed to get had already been sold. I was lied to as well!” Ali said.
“Slave? You sent me an opium addict who barely even knew where the fuck she was! Was there even a so called most beautiful slave girl in the world at all?” the efreet remarked.
“Yes! I just…um…look please, don’t kill me! I got a wife!”
“Oh, yes, you LOVE reminding me of how you got someone in your life! I HAVE NOBODY and yet you, a lowly piece of lying shit has a wife. HOW IS THAT FUCKING FAIR?”
“I don’t know! I mean my wife’s not perfect, like I said it’s not all that it’s cracked up to be.”
“Glad to hear it, then I’ll be giving you release from your torment…”

The efreet started emanating greater heat and raised one of his arms up as a large ball of fire appeared in his hand. This was it Ali thought, but in a last minute decision, he decided he’d at least salvage some of his dignity.

“Alright! Fine! Go ahead and incinerate me, I’ll go to my 72 virgins and still be getting laid way more than you ever will!” Ali shouted.

The efreet’s anger only grew as now Ali could feel the heat coming from him to a point that it was starting to burn. However, his mockery put the efreet off from killing him for the moment.

“WHAT?!” the efreet replied.
“You heard me, you overgrown lighthouse flame! What sort of efreet can’t get a woman? You realize if I had your powers how many wives I would have? And they sure wouldn’t look like the one I currently have! Yet here you are chasing after some…whore that plays you for a fool! I might be dead soon, but it’ll sure be better than living the lonely existence YOU have.”

These words probably did more damage to the efreet than anything Ali could have done with an actual weapon. And yet, instead immolating Ali, the efreet now lowered his arm and the heat coming from him dissipated a bit.

Ali stood there anxiously while the efreet had his moment of contemplation.

“Hmmm, perhaps you’re right human. I’ve been a fool for too long, I need to re-direct my focus. I’m angry about my own situation more than I am at you I suppose.” the efreet remarked.
“Well…we’ve all been there. It happens to the best of us. We’re all kings just looking for that perfect queen.” Ali added trying to appear sympathetic and keep the efreet from killing him.
“Indeed. You wouldn’t believe the amount of wealth I wasted on chasing Riaza and didn’t even get anywhere. I deserve better.”
“Of course you do.”
“I’m going to start looking for other efreetahs, ones that will appreciate my efforts.”
“Sounds like a good plan.”
“And YOU are going to help me.”
“Um…what?”

Ali suddenly felt a burning sensation on his neck. He thought he was being set on fire and getting decapitated at the same time. When he grabbed at his neck though, there were no flames.

“There. That branding should do.” the efreet remarked.
“Wha…what did you do?” Ali asked.
“It’s a chain of sorts so I know where you are at all times. As I said, I spent a lot of my wealth trying to woo the wrong girl. I’m going to need to rebuild some of that if I’m going to start over. And you’re going to assist in gathering said wealth.”
“But…I thought you were looking for a different kind of girl that was going to accept and appreciate you!”
“I am, but I still need money to do that! I’m just not going to spend it all on one now. Besides, I haven’t forgotten that YOU tried to trick me with your talk of beautiful slaves and such. You being a slave seems a bit like justice no?”
“Hold on! I already have a lot of wealth of my own! I can pay you now! In fact I can pay you ALL of it!”
“Oh no, I’m not taking something that you already have. You’re going to work for this. Even better if you stumble upon any potential treasures too. Consider this the mercy that you begged for earlier and just be glad I’m not making you do something like clean out privy pots or something similar. I think that’s it. I got a lot of work to do and seems like you do as well. I suppose I’ll see you when you accomplish your task. Good bye human.”

Ali’s heart sank as he realized there was no way out of this situation. He was just going to have to raise the money.

Gain 1 Destiny. Gain Enslaved Status

Once again, much like Mizal you won’t gain any Destiny points (Other than this last one) OR any treasure until you gain wealth to buy off your enslavement.