Azra’s Guardian
A Djinn must protect his newborn half-human daughter by getting her safely through a gateway out of the land of Faerie and into to the human world.
Hello My Readers!
Welcome to another issue of The Boom Room! Here’s a short fairy tale that takes you to the world of Faerie, where all types of magical creatures live.
Enjoy!
Ali
Once upon a time a Djinn named Ahmar “the Red” fell in love with a human woman who died while giving birth to their child. Ahmar named his daughter Azra, for she was the purest creature he had ever laid eyes upon. But Ahmar had neither the time to admire his daughter nor the emotional space to mourn his wife before he heard a distant howling. Zawba and his wolves would be upon them soon. They hunted Azra, the first half-human, half-Djinn child to be born in a century, for her blood and the power it held. Without hesitation Ahmar wrapped up Azra to keep the rain off and fled for the Hud-Hud market. He had to find the border crossing into the human world before it shut and vanished. Ahmar felt a tightness in the pit of his stomach at the thought of giving up his child. Fathering a precious gem surely came at a price, he told himself.
Djinn were made of smokeless, scorching fire and they were amongst the strongest creatures of the Faerie world. Their power ranked just below that of the immortal gods. They could move swiftly when they wanted, and some could even fly. According to legend, the Djinn could grant wishes, a power possessed by no other creature. Although Djinn lived for hundreds and thousands of years, they could be killed like any other mortal. Most humans remained clueless as to the existence of the world of Faerie and of the Djinn, who tended to live amongst themselves in dark, desolate places like forests. Ahmar had enjoyed the solitude of the Sawad Forest until fate, and now duty, drove him from it. He already longed to return.
He arrived at the Hud-Hud market, tired and frantic with worry. He had to find the gateway, which was never in the same place twice. The day’s last light faded, and the bazaar began waking from its slumber. Three dirt roads, at present a mess from the rain, converged into a sprawling maze of shops brimming with all manner of magical goods and merchants offering exotic services. Ahmar’s curly black hair, still wet from the rain, dripped down his bronze cheeks and pointy goatee onto his suede jacket. He sloshed through mud and water towards the market center, where blue-grey wagons crowded the streets around a purple stone building. He shuddered, recognizing it as the slave auction house.
Ahmar looked down at Azra. Born of ethereal fire and earthen clay, Azra had stark silver hair and olive brown skin like her human mother, but eyes of burning flames like her Djinni father. He touched her chin and smiled as she cooed. Ahmar wondered what shape she would eventually settle upon. Dog or owl, or even snake? Or perhaps a phoenix, like her father? Although the Djinn’s corporeal bodies resembled that of humans, the subtle nature of their fiery essence enabled them to shapeshift into other creatures and even turn themselves invisible. Most Djinn could shapeshift into a single creature, usually an animal. But some could transform into elements of air or water, and a rare few could take on any shape they chose. Djinn who crossed into the human world often kept their human appearance except upon necessity.
But Ahmar had no time to think about Azra’s shape now. The gateways shifted locations and only remained open for short periods of time to prevent unbridled migration between the worlds. Ahmar believed that Azra would be safe in the human world, for now, where Zawba could not immediately follow. She had to be. Humans and Djinn could cross over between their worlds at gateways found on both sides, but only together. No Djinn could cross into the human world without human blood. A child like Azra would be valuable to any of the Djinni tribes, for one such as she could pass freely between both worlds.
Zawba was one of the oldest, most feared, and powerful Djinn, the offspring of a goddess. Four horned animal heads sat atop his brownish, yellow shoulders, displaying his ability to shapeshift into whatever he chose. He was known as the Cyclone Djinn because he travelled inside a black whirlwind that sucked up and destroyed whatever stood in its path. Once a Djinni king long ago, Zawba had been punished by the gods for his treachery against the Fae. The gods sealed him in an ornate golden flask as a spirit and forced him to grant wishes of any who possessed the vessel. After centuries of imprisonment, Zawba tricked one of his masters into freeing him. Without a kingdom or subjects to rule, he vowed to regain his power and sought dominion over the human world, which he believed would pave the way for him to rule Faerie. A half-Djinn, half-human child would allow him to cross into the human world without the aid of a human. A drop of Azra’s blood on the tip of Zawba’s finger was all he needed. And he would not stop until he captured her.
Azra began to cry. Ahmar didn’t know what to do. Was she hurt? Maybe hungry? It occurred to him for the first time that he was now a father. And fathers got things for their children, like food. But what to feed a half-Djinn, half-human child? Like other creatures, Djinn ate, drank, slept, copulated, and produced offspring, even with humans. Although they could digest human food with difficulty, they preferred bones or dried meat. But what about a hybrid like Azra? Ahmar felt overwhelmed, struggling to focus on the task at hand. He couldn’t find the gateway if she continued crying and several Djinn had already noticed Azra’s squeals. He did not have much time and he needed to quiet her.
“This will calm the child,” said a hoarse voice nearby. Ahmar turned to face a stall draped in color-changing cloth that appeared bigger on the inside than the outside. An elderly Djineeri, a female Djinn, sat on a pile of blue scaly fabric that he quickly recognized as dragon scales.
“Don’t be shy,” she said extending a thin bony hand. Ahmar could see her amber face under a frayed, mauve hood. Like tree rings, the wrinkles on her face revealed the Djineeri’s old age.
“What is it?” asked Ahmar. Fear and worry still swelled inside him, and he hesitated to trust the old Djineeri now that Zawba was after them. Anyone who aided and abetted their flight could suffer the Cyclone Djinn’s wrath. There were few who could stand up to him. But the old Djineeri smiled through layers of wrinkles and Ahmar felt a calm come over him.
“A soothing toy to ease the child’s pain,” she said, motioning for Ahmar to take it. It was a thin metallic cylinder with decorative orbs hanging from its sides and a short rod of swirling white stone protruding on top.
“Mother of pearl,” continued the Djineeri, grasping the object in an outstretched hand. “Hard and resilient, yet smooth and comforting.”
Ahmar look confused as he took the object.
“A pacifier,” said the Djineeri impatiently, motioning her hand towards her mouth. “This must be your first.”
Ahmar placed it in Azra’s mouth, who eagerly began sucking. The child felt the smooth stone against her toothless gums. She kicked and stretched her tiny newborn legs beneath the soft, woolen wrapping. Her eyelids slowly began to close.
“She likes it,” he said smiling. “Thank you.”’
“Most welcome my dear,” replied the Djineeri, who stared at Azra. “What is her name?”
“Azra,” he replied and mustered up a momentary smile.
“This child. She has human blood. How did she come to be?” the Djineeri asked. It came as no surprise to Ahmar that the Djineeri knew Azra was both Djinn and human. Fear and doubt immediately grabbed him, but he checked his mind and his heart. The old Djineeri would not have given Azra a pacifier if she intended to harm the child. When it came to people, Ahmar trusted his gut, which never led him astray.
Ahmar’s eyes widened, and he looked up. “A long time ago I travelled to the human world, where I spent many decades,” Ahmar said. He sighed and felt sadness in the pit of his stomach at the thought that the life he had before now was over. “I wanted to experience life as something, or perhaps someone, other than who I was. I met a human woman. Her name was Naomi. We fell in love and married. Then she became pregnant. I heard the stories of humans who gave birth to Djinn. Some did not survive. So, I brought her to Faerie and the Sawad woods, hoping that the power and magic of our people would preserve her life.”
Ahmar’s head sunk and he fell silent as he recalled Naomi’s face, her smooth dark-skinned cheeks and a smile that accentuated her dimples. He had never seen any creature as beautiful as she.
“Ah, I see,” said the Djaneeri. “You loved this woman. It is clear to me. Djinn and humans have crossed between the two worlds since the beginning of time. For just as long there have been those like you and your wife who defied social convention. But there are always consequences for copulation between the species. You know the stories. She did not survive, then?” she asked.
Ahmar nodded his head, yes. He knew that children of both worlds were hunted for their blood. But he was in love, and he wasn’t thinking about the consequences.
“Do you have any food?” Ahmar asked, recalling his desperation.
The Djineeri placed a hand into a box near her feet and rummaged about. A few seconds later her hand emerged with a little red and gold package.
“Hareesa,” she said, handing it to Ahmar. “Give her this, only a few bites, no more. She won’t need more than that a few times a day to nourish her.”
Inside Ahmar found a brown sticky pudding with glittering specks of blues and purples. It smelled of bone and sugar. He removed the pacifier from Azra’s mouth and shoved in a small piece. She mashed the pudding with her toothless gums and swallowed eagerly, grabbing Ahmar’s fingers for more.
Ahmar looked up to the Djineeri, who nodded approvingly.
“You must get to the gateway young one,” the Djineeri said. “I could smell her from before you even arrived. A child like her will not survive the market. Zawba and his wolves are coming for her already. She will only be safe in the human world. You know this. You must make haste.”
Ahmar nodded. “Yes. Though I did not expect to do so alone.”
“But you are not alone,” she said, pointing to Azra. The Djineeri saw the fear dimming the flames in Ahmar’s eye sockets. “Do not fear the sacrifice, my son. It’s what we give up that gives meaning to our lives and the lives of others,” she said looking down at Azra. “Your first job is to be her protector. You will find the gateway near where the purple stone meets the crystal mouth. Go now. I believe in you.”
The slave market, Ahmar thought. He needed to be anywhere but there. Worry overcame him, and his mind raced as he considered alternatives. He had to find the gateway. Azra’s uncle would be waiting for her on the other side. Ahmar bowed his head in gratitude to the Djineeri, then ran towards the auction house.
At the market center stood a wide wooden platform ahead of a hollow building made of purple stone. It extended for at least a hundred feet back, followed by a cavern, where Djinn mined crystals used in ceremonial rituals. Ahmar made it to the mouth of the cavern when he heard them. Zawba emerged from his black cloud with five gray wolves the size of bears. The Cyclone Djinn’s lips turned up in a wicked grin and he charged, his whirlwind and wolves howling a cruel symphony of impending death.
Ahmar laid Azra down upon the floor then touched the nearest crystal. Within moments an opening in the cave wall appeared, showing Ahmar the human world and Azra’s uncle waiting for her. Ahmar looked at her, his daughter, trying to contain himself. He did not want to let her go, though he knew he must. Love was not a feeling of joy, Ahmar realized, but a willingness to sacrifice. With sweaty plans he put her pacifier back in her mouth and prayed over her.
“See you soon little one,” Ahmar said after he finished the prayer. “God-willing,” he added. Ahmar felt the turbulence of Zawba’s whirlwind hit the back of his neck. His heart raced. He wondered if he’d have enough time to escape, even as the phoenix. One life for another, he thought. A fair trade. He kissed Azra’s forehead and gently sent her through the gateway. Ahmar did not realize how much he cared about this little creature until he was forced to relinquish her. As the portal closed and vanished, he now understood the Djineeri’s words. His first job was being Azra’s guardian.
So good, I hope there's more in the works!
"Love was not a feeling of joy, Ahmar realized, but a willingness to sacrifice." A powerful quote! This is an amazing story with vivid world-building. One of my favorite scenes was the contentment of Azra after Ahmar gave her the pacifier. This moment highlighted the nurturing ways of a father to a child and really puts into perspective the extent of Ahmar's sacrifice and how little time he had to be with his daughter before giving her up to protect her.