Cassim.
Living with Alibaba is hard. Really hard. Not that he make thing hard for you, it's the opposite. He was –are- kind. If you don't have enough coin for water, you'll find a pitcher of water near your door. If your children being especially tiring that day, you'll find they easily distracted for few hour by him. Here and there, small thing that not enough to make you knell in gratitude but still enough to make you heave a sigh of relief. And Cassim hate it. Called him petty and small person but it grated on his nerve how even when they lived at the same place, with the same amount of difficulty, Alibaba still shine.
It hurt, thinking that maybe –just maybe- that there is something wrong with you. That no matter what effort you take, you could never ever stand at the same level as Alibaba. If that the case, then there is must be something is wrong in you, in your heart and in your blood. Hassan and Zaynab would not understand, there do not spend time in close proximity, day in, day out around Alibaba. To them, Alibaba is good and kind person.
They are wrong. Alibaba not a kind or good person. He shines. If the slum they lived in is the mass of black feeling, then Alibaba is the sun that shine without any regards whether you are scum or just someone just tried to make a living or you just someone who born at the wrong place and just tried to make the best out of what the world thrown to you.
As the sun, he illuminate the thing all around him. The good, the bad, the shadowy and the thing you do not want others to see. The thing you do not want to know. It's bad to the point that Cassim just want to yank Alibaba to the side of life that he saw, to corrupt him, to dim that light just a little bit. Or just follow Alibaba, so that he can curl around that warm and safe only Alibaba able to radiate.
It especially was getting unbearable after Aunt Anise's death. Alibaba lost his kind mother, right? He had to fend for himself, right? He had to put up with Mariam too, right? He had to come back empty handed after a day of work just because someone big think you owed them right? Yet, why, why, whywhywhywhy, he still shines?
Ah, he is the blood of royal. He carried inside him the sacred blood of the king. That makes perfect sense. Of course he won't be the same as Cassim, who have his scum of father's blood. Off he went to the big palace, with servants on their knees in front of him. Never to be starved again, never to be looked down as the thrash. To the place of sunshine and rainbow, it suits him better that this slums. Cassim tried to convince himself that's why he let Alibaba left. In the truth he just feel relieved, no more the earnest golden eyes judging him after the days robber. No more warm smile that makes him feel like horse manure stuck on the sole of shoes. Good.
Then the plague comes, then Mariam died, and then the royal burn the slums and Cassim just want to make someone pay. He hurt and there's no Alibaba to that the sting away. Its okay, Cassim will make the noble pay even if he has to shake hand with shady character that just walked out of nowhere. Even if he had to betray his own brother, even if he had to plunge this country into bigger mess than its already in.
It didn't actually went the way he hopes for. For all intent and purpose, The Fog Troupe is still regards as nothing more than a thief group. One of many on this vast desert. They struggle for few years after the ransacked of Royal Palace with no end in the line that they grasped with their two dirty hands. And of course, then Alibaba came. As if it nobody business, a little bit mature, a little bit older but still him. And the Metal Vessel. At first Cassim don't really know how that dagger could do anything big for their cause, but Alibaba is the Prince of Ballbad. He can rally the peoples behind their cause and make friendly mayhem before Cassim can dump the mother of storm on top of those fucking noble.
Alibaba is the leader, but in name only. There is no way Cassim going to let that spineless fucker take the end glory. The first and second operation with Alibaba as the head, it went smoothly,- to smoothly in Cassim opinion- and the bounty was distribute to the people. Alibaba said it to make people saw Fog Troupe as good thief, we are on their side.( As if, it might be few years since they last meet each other but Alibaba still soft hearted as he was before he left the slum)
It won't do for Cassim to undermine Alibaba's authority right after making him the leader. So he let Alibaba do as he please, which in hindsight are Cassim first mistake. Cassim had plans to use Alibaba position to rally the people. Three month and Alibaba manage to rally the people behind him without using a lick of that position. Not even a single rumor about his birth. The things that Cassim couldn't even accomplice in three years, Alibaba do it in three months only.
Whywhywhywhywhyitsonlyhim.
It's getting hard to breathe around him one night and Cassim take the opportunity to walk around since Alibaba was busy with armful of brats running around him. Asking for battle stories and stories of far off country that he went when Alibaba exiled himself from Ballbad. The meeting on the bridge with a man who tower over him that Cassim recognized as part of fucking army. Another one, Cassim would laugh out loud if he is not choked with why and envy thicker than slums sludge. No more, Alibaba had too much support as it is no need to make peoples to be on awe that he able to drag the Army into his circle warmth.
They trade position after that. The raid for gold and treasure run by Cassim, while the raid for medicine and food run by Alibaba. Food that enough for everyone so that they sleep with full stomach. A luxury that most of the slums never lived with. Its okay let Alibaba feed the people, Cassim need money to fuel their revolution, money for weapon. He going to gorge the noble and royal if that the last thing he will do.
Alibaba are getting suspicious, where did you get the information, he asked on day. Where the gold is, when there so many people starving each day? Well, no one ever accuse Alibaba as idiot, just a little bit naïve. He wants to believe Cassim, his brother and it's so easy to maneuver around him when there is always someone needs help. All Cassim had to do is point them to Alibaba, and off he go to help.
But the information not always reliable. Sometimes, someday thing just didn't worked the way Cassim plan. He remembers one particular raid, where they were box in from every angle with no escaped route. Even the special weapon can't do much in front of numbers. Cassim had grit his teeth and curse the noble to the high heaven so that they can fall that hard to the hell. Alibaba didn't even bat an eyelash, because half of the curse he learn from Alibaba. It seem like, being a caravan driver teach you more than route and which fruit last the longest in the desert heat. Alibaba order them to get behind him, take out his dagger and he burned.
There are so many thing running amok in Cassim's head,- how to utilizes the weapon, how could Alibaba did not burn while he burned, ow it's hot, is that a freaking monster – but the most prominent is that Alibaba singed clothes and burned finger suddenly make sense. And the explosion, do not forget the explosion. Few nights that Alibaba went missing and come back next morning as if he just braved the burning house. So, that Metal Vessel. The weapon dealer words echo back to him.
Dungeon Capturer, King's Candidate, Fate Chosen One. Yeah, it's Alibaba all over again.
Yes, with this those nobles don't stand a chance at all. His grin is all teeth.
Not that every day with Alibaba is hard. There is time when they smirked at each other across the battle field – oh, yeah. We got this,- getting drunk on cheap wine talking nonsense till dawn, fighting over the last stripe of jerky, showing off in front of the brats, watching Alibaba trying the cigar, making fun of him with Hassan and Zynab when Alibaba flustered in front of beautiful girl.
There are also calm moments, like polishing their weapon in silent, back to back taking the night watch, visiting Mariam's grave, getting rope in listening to the old storyteller song, watching the moon together when there is no one around to demand their attention.
Now Cassim are one with the flow, he understands so much more. How petty he is and how wrong he is thinking that he is the one who got the short hand of the stick. The rukh around him whisper, as they tend to do around here. Alma Toran, Magi, Solomon, David, Arba, Al-Thamen, and the whole world gone wrong or two. Alibaba are at the thick of all this. Why does that didn't surprise Cassim at all? Yeah, this is Alibaba.
The worlds tend to throw the problems they cannot solve to him or throw Alibaba to the problems. Same different. That why one memory stands stark to Cassim, one night when all around them is silent and moon hung round in the sky. It's not as if they are doing anything particular profound that night. The Fog Troupe gathering around the big fire, eating, talking, joking, playing card betting stick and stone.
Alibaba taking the night watch over the crumbling stone pillar, smiling at the antic of the scums and thieves that he called brothers. He stand suddenly, eyes alert over to the port and silently commenting that the night will be foggier than last night and how they need to get the extra blanket to distribute to the elderly with bad joint. They all sitting down on the amphitheater looking up to Alibaba, with the moon in the background, he looked strangely translucent. The air around him are simmering, as if at that moment he does not even belong to this world, that he is just here because someone borrowing him to the world. The next night, blue haired boy with blue giant show up and Cassim have nobles to kill.
Here, the words that whisper to him are King Alibaba, World's Chosen.
One particular rukh, who bossily told Cassim –how on earth and Alma Toran can rukh sound bossy –that World's Chosen is what happen when even Chosen One fail. If that don't sound ominous, Cassim will eat his dreadlock.
Well, since the worlds are so intent to throw the end of the world to Alibaba –he had enough trouble as it is –then Cassim are going to cheat. The same bossy rukh whispering to Cassim, since the worlds want Alibaba to win they will allow Cassim to cheat –within bound of course –the rukh said all prim and proper. No conspiracy here, just move along.
Dam hell, Cassim are not just going to cheat, he going to do much more than that. Right after Alibaba stop grieving and start listening to him. Of course, Cassim have to admit even he is impress on how much trouble that Alibaba seem to attract just by breathing.
Reim, Maghostad, Sindria, KOU EMPIRE.
Cassim really wish that he had physical form so that he can smack Alibaba where it hurts. Or he could stab the Kou's Brother. Repeatedly, with something sharp and lots of teeth. Then of course, mother of all fuckers Sinbad had to add to the problem.
Oh, how Cassim gleefully rubbing his hand for when that brat Hakuryuu will join the flow. He had Aunt Anise, Rashid Saluja, Scheherazade, half of Balbad population and knick knack of people that meet Alibaba, waiting in line to smack that stupid brat. Don't matter that he regret for killing Alibaba. There is still long waiting line.
So, Alibaba dead. The flow are strangely quiet, Cassim thought that when their Chosen dead they will be in uproar or something. Unless there is something sinister going on. Well time to track the bossy rukh.
The rukh said, whispering lower that they used to, the Great Evil are coming and it won't be for the good of all to inform the Great Evil of the condition of World Chosen. They need to be sly and advise Cassim to stay low for the moment. Alibaba even without the power of djin and the backup of a Magi, is till the light in the darkness. He will be fine, if not better.
So he lay low, what is few years compare to the great flow of the rukh, and Cassim in part of the flow.
"Oh, well its fine. Beside I owe a debt to Princess Kougyoku. We'll let him do whatever he wants for the time being"
Yes, famous last words. Cassim can't help but snicker.