He looked down proudly at his mechanical creation. At nearly eight feet tall, it was shaped like a man but built entirely of metal gears and clockwork, all in shades of metal—silver, bronze, copper, gold, and darker tones like gunmetal and iron. It was strangely beautiful, like something that hadn’t been made but had been dreamed into being. Around the chest, shoulders, and joints were plates that resembled armor but with intricate, graceful curves. The face and head were simply shaped, yet had a handsomeness that recalled a finely made toy. One slim silver key protruded from the area over the heart—that’s how North intended to wind up the djinni, he’d explained to the children.
All told, there was a wondrous quality about it that surprised them all, especially North. He’d built weapons and shields before. But the robot djinni was designed to do only good, and it looked the part.
North fastened the last chest plate over the treasure box, then turned the silver key five, six, seven times. There was a soft, almost musical whir of sound, then the robot djinni sat up. It looked at them with a curious expression, not of surprise, but as if it had been expecting to see them, and appeared to smile. North and the children erupted in cheers.
