The transport was unusual in the aspect that it was inert. Normally, the process from point A to point B had a certain flair with mesmerizing lights, tingling pressures, dissolves and reconfigurations. This teleport however, was a simple on-off process and in a blink it was over.

Wherever I was, the bottle was within the confines of a little box. The bottle itself, a smoky brown type of glass. The contents were toxic and my nose tingled with disgust. The bottle was no larger than four inches and there was a bigger squeeze bottle next to me. A white sheet of paper was folded and positioned overhead like a manmade rainbow.

I didn't understand, nor did I attempt to shift from the bottle. I felt it best to maintain my position. As it was, I was not in good favor in the eyes of Granny and the elders. My only intention now was to do my job and to do it well. I could not afford another mistake since I would be released from all responsibilities as Jeanne Wishgiven.

My mind kept returning to Robert. Just knowing he went to my defense warmed my spirit. My love, my one true ally in the after life.

My heart filled with an emotional smile that teetered me up, as the guilt from the Missy Bland mishap tottered me back. Needless to say, I remained an emotional mess, eager to put it all behind me.

For countless days I held fixed like this, waiting, watching, anticipating.

During the daytime there was chaos about me. "Clean up in aisle nine," resounded in a husky voice. Chatter filtered in as humans passed. The sound of unruly children engaged in horseplay usually resulted in toppling crashes or shouts of complaint.

In the background, a whisper of music in the form of an instrumental blend. Although the melodies were different, there was something painfully similar with every song. It was as if only one orchestra was choice. By the second week I realized that the same sequence was played from day to day and the monotony began to tug at my sanity.

One night after the familiar chatter had dispersed, a new sound resonated throughout my surroundings. To my relief, it was fast and a sure beat filled the air. Unlike the music from the daytime, this seemed to have a single source.

Voices then appeared as clanks of physical movements echoed in every direction. I heard a woman as I was lifted from my resting position. "How do you think I'd look as a blonde?" She asked chuckling.

"Like a pale fish." A monotone voice responded.

"Ouch! I've always heard how blondes have more fun, is it true?" The woman asked.

"I'll never tell." Monotone voice answered.

"Can you believe all of this restocking waited for this week?"

"The manager, ol cheapskate should really have us in every four days instead of seven. This is ridiculous! We'll never be through before morning."

I was then replaced into position and I envisioned my surroundings as a store of some sort, where blue lights were somehow special.

After two complete days of monotonous melody, my box was lifted and I was on my way. After a quick exchange of money, cigarette smoke wafted in through the folds of the box. A loud stereo with an overpowering beat polluted the world. Lyrics, twisted and obscene brought embarrassment to my innocent ears.

The automobile swung in a wild drive. Swerves and abrupt stops reminded me of the drunk driver and intercepting the boy on the bike. I couldn't help but wonder what sort of challenge I had now transported into.

The rattle of the grocery bag was noticeable as I was carried from the automobile. Not catching a glimpse of my surroundings was distressing.

Moments later, I could feel the quick stride of footsteps as I was carried to my next position. I was then lifted onto a cool, stable resting spot.

The sound of spraying water was near and I soon realized the human was about to shower. Everything about the world aside from the movements of the person remained silent. I assumed the human to be home alone.

A voice, a female's voice began to sing in a shrill burst off key. "Oh baby, oh baby, ba-by......I play guitar...do, do, do.... Oh baby, oh baby, baby, ba-by I play guitar!"

Over and over again she sang and if there was any way to manage, I would have plugged my ears. The voice had a bite like fingernails on a chalk board.

Several minutes later, the box opened and I was lifted out. The woman had short hair, butchered spines bordering on a masculine cut. There was a tiny studded ear ring at one nostril and a chain that connected from that point to a matching post attached at her ear.

She unfolded the paper and studied the sheet of tiny words. "Bla, bla, bla, bla, bla!" She said crinkling the paper and flinging it across the room. It ricocheted off the wall and landed amongst a collection of rubble on the damp tile near the trash bin.

A wrinkled tee shirt with shredded slits of material barely concealed her. The young woman proceeded to untwist the lid and pour the contents of toxins into the plastic bottle. After pulling on rubber gloves, she began to shake the contents swinging her hips in an amusing way as she mixed the chemicals.

Her eyes kept falling on the mirror above and she grinned knowing full well that she was attractive in her own right. Everything about the young woman was opposite of what I had been taught about modesty and being a lady.

The young woman proceeded to squeeze the mixture onto her hair dampening every strand.

"Hello?" I attempted several times, but remained unnoticed.

Once completed, I watched with interest as she fiddled with a kitchen timer that rested among the clutter at the rim of the sink.

"The natural blonde of a bottle." She said chuckling as she hurried from the room.

A moment later the melody that she had been singing became audible from the next room in stereo. The entire home rattled from the volume. The young woman was dancing now. Twirling about and hopping up and down to the beat. She hit the wall twice and the pattern from her hair dye soiled the wall.

"Mom is going to kill me!" She said, finishing with an uncaring giggle.

The accident did not deter her from the dance. When the tune was finished, she swung her leg about and toppled the large speaker, knocking an overflowing ash tray onto the carpet. Everything about the young woman led me to believe she was way out of control.

It was several songs later that the timer chimed. Chain link hurried into the shower and rinsed the globs of chemical from her hair. After she towel dried her locks, I was forced to witness the styling with toothpaste, rendering a very bizarre hairstyle that appeared as blonde spikes. She resembled a porcupine with a haircut.

The young woman then outlined her eyes in black and once completed, was a human cross between a raccoon and scruffy dog.

Chain link kept gazing at her watch as she hurriedly dressed in clothes resembling rags. Her denims had gaping holes throughout and Chain Link did not seem concerned that her bloomers as well as her complete kneecaps were exposed.

Between the folds of the bottom towel in the linen closet, Chain Link retrieved a silver flask and took several greedy swallows. After re-corking the flask, she pitched it back into place, not caring that the entire row toppled to the floor. "Thanks for the drink!" She managed with obvious hatred as she slammed the door wedging in the thick obstructions.

A young man suddenly appeared. Although his hair more lengthy, it was a mirrored style of Chain Link. The only difference being that his spikes were colored in fire engine red. In fact, I had never imagined a hair color in that particular hue.

I couldn't help but laugh at the appearance of Chain Link and Fire Red.

It caused me to wonder what year and planet I had mistakenly teleported to.

"Are you ready?" Fire Red asked.

"You bet 'cha!" Chain Link responded brushing her lips onto his with force.

As she pulled away, she smirked with an air of superiority.

"Did you bring it?" She asked.

"It's in my coat."

"Cool!" She said bobbing her head in an odd way.

"Let's rock then!" Chain Link said pulling the jacket from the chair.

As they headed to the doorway, a very large revolver came into view. It was silver and futuristic. It reminded me of what a ray gun would look like except this had a chord and several switches.

"Shouldn't you leave a note for your mother?" Fire Red asked.

"She'll be too exhausted to even care."

"Let's go to it then!" The boy exclaimed.

The car engine backfired in three sudden bursts as they drove off. The house fell silent and I found everything about the situation bizarre. Chain Link left the house as if a whirlwind had snapped alive within, but I couldn't help wonder if the whirlwind was actually a force known to the rest of us as evil.

No matter which direction I squirmed, I could not slither from the bottle. My objective was to study my surroundings for clues on what to do. Chain Link obviously needed an intervention and it seemed the sooner I granted a wish, the sooner I'd be on my way.

Sometime after the sun descended behind the trees, a haggard woman appeared. From my point on the sink, the adjoining room and the attached kitchen were in plain view. The home was narrow and there was something about the construction that appeared inexpensive and temporary.

The woman was wearing a service uniform of some sort. The name Beth was embossed on a pink jumper and by the food stains about the center, I assumed she worked in a restaurant.

Beth gazed about the room and shook her head in disapproval. Her aura was shaded and I could not read her inner spirit. She perched herself on the sofa and lifted her feet onto the small coffee table. With a certain amount of grace, she kicked her shoes to the floor and sighed.

Beth pulled her purse and fumbled around for something. A moment later a white stick was tucked between her lips and a match illuminated the world for a brief moment. There was something in the firelight, a flicker about her eyes that seemed familiar to me. The problem was, I could not put my finger on the specifics.

After her cigarette, Beth began to clean the home. She worked from one end to the next, vacuuming the ash that Chain Link kicked to the floor and finally her attention fell to the mess about the bathroom.

There was something unnatural about the way Beth moved. It was somewhat like robotics, stiff. Several minutes later, her hand fell onto the smoky brown enclosure.

In an immediate point of contact, I felt a surge of unbearable heat throughout.

"Hello?" I tried as a crooked smile animated Beth's face.

"Well, hello!" She said grinning from ear to ear revealing coffee stained teeth.

I braced myself for the exit. At any moment my ears would pop and the world about me would spin in rotation. I waited, but nothing happened.

"Having some trouble in there?" Beth asked in a gravel tone bordering mannish.

"As a matter of fact....I'm supposed to appear and offer a single wish. I'm not certain exactly what's happening here, but I'm having some technical difficulties."

Beth began to chuckle.

"Technical difficulties, that's a good one!" She said as the world about Beth and the house dissolved away. Her hand was no longer human, but more along the lines of a massive beast.

The Sizzle House nightclub was overflowing with club members as we took center stage. Lucas had reconfigured himself and his appearance although dark, was handsome and charming.

Everyone cheered as he held the smoky bottle of hair dye above. The song "Another One Bites the Dust" began to blare. The demons began a genie toss as I was passed from one side of the club to the next. Oh, how I hated to be the football in such a twisted game. In the swing of flight, faces, frozen moments of laughter, quick glimpses of the enemy relishing in their triumph flickered about. An overwhelming fear overpowered my senses.

The entire process was intended to exhaust my spirit. Somehow within my instincts, I realized this fact and gripped onto hope. Was escape somehow possible?

After the warped sense of ceremony, Lucas carried me to his office. Everything from the club was cut off as if a mute button were depressed.

His face was distorted within the bottle creases. White fang-like teeth appeared on his twisted grin and for the first time I saw the frightful truth hidden below the surface of his perfect good looks. Skin, bubbling pustules fueled by greed and hatred burst forth. It reminded me of a frog's complexion, the only difference the intense crimson tone. His sculpted nose grew to a point, sharp at the tip and deformed in many ways. Tiny horns elevated from his crown. Several snaps like knuckles popping echoed throughout the office. His brown eyes suddenly mirrored the torture of souls, generations of misery. Loosing courage, I averted my gaze. His appearance was so frightful, I felt a surge of nausea.

"Here is your last chance Ms. Wishgiven. Either you agree to switch teams or else you will be neutralized indefinitely."

Without hesitation, I replied. "I will accept my fate as Jeanne Wishgiven. At least I can leave my post knowing that I did my best to help those that needed it. Neutralize me if that is your intention....but remember, you can hold me for eternity, but you will never lay claim to my spirit!"
Lucas began to laugh and it tore into an earth rattling tremor. "You are a warrior, now aren't you." The amusement soon shifted to annoyance as he announced, "Well, I suppose I should take you to your final resting place." Lucas pinched the tiny bottle between his talons.

He placed his opposite hand into an outlined mold along the wall and a thick wedge of a vault door parted. As we headed down a spiral staircase into the depths of rotten dimension, Lucas began to laugh.

"You won't last but a few hours before your soul will melt. In fact, no other genie has ever made it beyond the fourth hour."

We entered a dank cellar. Thousands of bottles appeared stacked in all directions. It was a wine cellar except within the confines of the various bottles were miniature objects, various travel ports of wishgivers.

"Each and every one of you has a physical weakness. Yours my friend is brown glass. It took my team a great many hours of research to realize this fact. I'm so glad they were able to break through your strength. Now Ms. Fenmore, welcome to cubbyhole 2232 of my elaborate collection."

Lucas pulled a dusty bottle and threw my entire glass enclosure within.

"This casing is made from a combination of re-molded lava and diamond chips. It's the only material known to sever the connection with your after world. NO one will ever find you, so you might as well give up."

He carried my dual enclosures to the far wall and plopped me into the only slot available, 2232.

"Last chance now, ready for a trade off?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No. I'd rather rot in here with the rest of them, then join the likes of you."

"Have a nice meltdown Ms. Fenmore."

He turned on his heels and the burning torches dimmed to blackness. Silence and death surrounded me, but instead of surrendering to the hopelessness of the situation, I focused. Two kind eyes and a wonderful smile came to mind, Robert. From within the enclosure a warm illumination radiated. The light was no more than a firefly, but it radiated from my heart. I realized the source of energy was my connection to Robert. Neutralized maybe, but my heart full of love would never be extinguished.

________________

"It's been seventeen weeks Lucas. The genie in 2232 has not given up."

Wendy said, as she placed the bottle cleaner into the cabinet.

"I'm not worried, she'll succumb to her fate." Lucas responded, waving his hand in dismissal.

"What do you suppose is so different about this one?" Wendy asked turning to face the beast.

"That is the question, now isn't it?" Lucas snapped with annoyance.

"What if she never releases herself?"

"I'm not concerned, after all, she's not going anywhere." Lucas spat.

"Wendy, I'd like those files on the remaining genie's. It's time to snuff them out, once and for all."

"You're the boss." Wendy said, placing a mountain of scrolls onto his desk.

"Never forget it either." Lucas announced as his chuckle melded into a roar that shook to the center of their dimension.