The wizard knew he was in a bind. There was a large army on the outskirts of the company's territory, led by an irredeemably good paladin. That army was going to invade his lands, and put an end to the reign of tyranny he and his companions had enjoyed the last few months.
He stared at the item before him, knowing it might be his best chance. Finally, he took a deep breath and activated the item. A djinn appeared before him.
"Hello wizard, I have been called from ancient home to fulfill a bargain struck long ago. What is it you desire, for I will grant you one wish", the djinn told him.
The wizard pondered the question carefully, before he began talking to himself, thinking out loud all the possible terror he could unleash with his wish. Finally, he decided to get more information before explaining what he wanted. He looked at the djinn.
"First, I wish to ask you a question...", the wizard started to speak.
"Granted!", the djinn replied.
"Ok, so if I were to..."
The wizard rambled on, explaining his incredibly complex plan and how the djinn thought the consequences of the plan might play out.
The djinn thought for a minute, before answering that indeed, the plan was well thought out and would most likely succeed. After answering, the djinn thanked the wizard, wished him luck and then disappeared in a puff of smoke.
"Wait, what happened to the djinn?", the player whose character had initiated the wish asked his DM.
"He disappeared, his bargain was fulfilled.", was the answer.
"How? I never got my wish", the player insisted.
"Yes, you did", replied the DM, laughing. "You said 'I WISH to ask you a question', and your wish was granted".
A stream of expletives flew from the player's mouth as the rest of the group exploded in laughter. For he had, indeed, used a WISH, one of the most powerful spells in the multi-verse, to ask the djinn what he thought of the wizard's plan.
So when gaming, as in real life, always be careful of what you wish for.