The next day the Induslani saw a lot of activity in the Iron Man camps. The day after that, the camps emptied as a large army headed north. The Induslani took immediate advantage, overrunning the three weaker camps and forcing the remaining soldiers to gather in the three largest and best situated camps. The original third-in-command, the ranking commander left, negotiated a truce.
And that was the de facto end of the Iron Man attack on Induslan.
For the next year, the Iron Men searched for the genie City of Gold. With that as a prize Induslan became small potatoes—not worth fighting over.
The people of Induslan moved back from Sambi. They rebuilt their village and added fortifications to make it safe even if the Iron Men changed their minds again.
But they did not. Their hearts were too filled with greed. In time the people of Induslan actually sold food and supplies to the searching Iron Men and snickered at them behind their backs.
The day after the truce with the Iron Men was agreed to, the genie had told Aladdin, “Your wish has been fulfilled. The Iron Men will search a long time in vain for my City of Gold. Induslan is safe, and you and your family can go home.”
“What will happen to me? As soon as I sleep, I will no longer be a prince!”
“Perhaps not that soon; you have an army of people now who think of you as a prince. As long as one is thinking of you that way, you will stay a prince. But prince or not, you are now a real hero to your people. You should have a bright future.”
“Thank you, genie. You have truly fulfilled my wish. And for a playground genie you’ve done an awful lot yourself! What will you do now?”
“I will find out what has happened to my people. I have heard humans talking of mirages on the desert. That may be a clue. Mirages sound a lot like genie magic.”
“Farewell, and good luck, genie. And come back for a visit, anytime,” said Aladdin.
The End