Actually, I should say it was someone floating in the air, since it was clearly a figure . . . or to be accurate, half a figure. He was bare to the waist, and possibly beyond. I couldn’t tell because the image faded to invisibility below his navel. He was wearing a fez low on his forehead so it hid his eyes, and had his arms folded across his chest. His arms and torso were pretty muscular, and he might have been impressive . . . if he weren’t so small! I had been expecting something between my height and that of a three story building. What I got would have been maybe six to eight inches high if all of him was visible. As it was, head and torso only measured about three inches. Needless to say, I was underwhelmed. Still, he was all I had and if nothing else, over my various trials and adventures, I had learned to make do with what was available.
“Kalvin?” I said, unsure of the proper form of address.
“Like, man, that’s my name. Don’t wear it out,” the figure replied without emerging from under his hat. Now, I wasn’t sure what our exact relationship was supposed to be, but I was pretty sure this wasn’t it, so I tried again.
“Ummm . . . do I have to point out that I am your Master and therefore Ruler of your Destiny?”
“Oh, yeah?”
The figure extended one long finger and used it to push the fez back to a point where he could look at me directly. His eyes were a glowing blood red.
“Do you know what I am?”
The question surprised me, but I rallied gamely. “Ah, I believe you’re a Djin. Specifically a Djin named Kalvin. The Deveel I bought you from said you were the latest thing in Djins.”