Author's note: So, here's a little story that I've had floating around in my head for some time. And I finally got off my lazy butt and wrote it out. But this time I decided to do things properly and got myself a beta reader. So, many many thanks to Uli for agreeing to work with me.

As for the title, don't you just love my creativity? :D

Chapter One: Land of the Black Sand

It was night-time in the city of Agrabah. The sun had set a few hours ago and the sweltering heat of the day had been replaced by the biting chill of dusk. It was quiet. There were no crickets chirping, no snakes slithering and no scorpions scurrying across the sand. The people of Agrabah had long ago put out their lamps and retired to their beds. Not a sound could be heard from critters and creatures of any kind. Everything and everyone had settled down for their nocturnal slumber. Everyone – save one.

"Thief!"

"Quick! She went around that corner!"

"Don't let her get away!"

These shouts came from a group of palace guards as they chased closely after a fleeing hooded figure. They continued their shouting as the figure ducked through alleyways (not too bothered that the noise they were making woke the people who lived in the houses they passed). The thief was quick and agile, moving swiftly and silently through the night but the guards were right on her tail, determined to not let her escape.

At seeing the guards' relentless pursuit, the bandit inwardly cursed her amateurish mistake in not only being detected but also in allowing her hood to fall in her hasty getaway. Now the guards had an idea of what she looked like and were sure to keep an eye out for her if she ever had to return. If only that loud-mouthed bird hadn't been there, her robbery would have been a quick and easy one. What was a parrot doing in the treasure room anyway?

The dark clothing she wore blended well with the shadowy backdrop of the city. A cloth made of the same material as her clothes covered the lower half of her face while the old cloak she had on covered her head, leaving only dark brown eyes visible. The heavy, brown satchel that was draped over her shoulder thumped against her side.

The young girl made a sharp turn and then another and another in an anticipative attempt to confuse and lose her pursuers. She wasn't entirely sure of where she was going; she just knew she had to get out of the city. And fast. With a rueful smile, she realized just how foolish not planning out an escape route would be. Particularly foolish when the reason for no such route was because she thought she wouldn't need one. Cockiness would be the death of her.

She slipped into another alleyway, temporarily losing sight of the guards. Looking back, she grinned triumphantly. But her happiness was short-lived, because she soon collided painfully with a brick wall. It knocked the wind out of her but she managed to stay on her feet.

'Dead end,' she thought, looking up at the tall obstacle with a frown.

"Split up. You check that way, we'll look over here."

The sound of approaching footsteps caused her heart to drop. Fear crept up in the corners of her mind but she shook her head to dispel the thoughts of what would happen to her if she were caught. Scanning her surroundings, she looked for something, anything that would aid in her escape. She checked behind her to see the shadows of the guards sliding along the nearby walls. They were getting closer.

With a gulp and a quick prayer to Allah, she jumped on top of a few abandoned crates. As quickly as she could manage, she made her way up the wall using whatever was available to climb to the top. When the guards finally reached the spot where she was, the thief was already sitting atop the wall.

Pulling down her veil, she looked down at them with a smirk. "Well boys," she started, swinging her legs over to the other side of the wall. "It's been fun but I'm afraid I have to go," And with that, she jumped down.

She landed silently on her feet on the ground below and quickly made her way to the outskirts of the city. She soon reached a small, isolated hut where a dark grey stallion – one she used to travel to Agrabah – was tied up. She hurriedly untied it and set off towards the city's exit. Once safely outside of the city, the girl urged the horse into a gallop, away from Agrabah and away from its guards.

When she was sure she was a safe distance away from the city the girl slowed the horse down to a steady trot. She patted the satchel that was still hung over her shoulder, pleased with herself. Despite her little slipup, her burglary was still successful. Now all she had to do was return to the city of Makkah and find Aadil. It would take a day's travel but would be worth it to acquire the considerably large bag of gold that she was promised. It didn't hurt that she also picked up a few gold coins during her robbery either.

'You can never have too much gold,' she thought.

She was so caught up in her musings that the young woman didn't notice the change in the desert's scenery. She didn't notice the dark, rolling clouds overhead or the heavy, oppressive sense of impending doom that saturated the air. She also didn't notice that, as she went along, the sands were changing from its usual sandy brown colour to an ominous black. But when she finally did get out of her thoughts long enough to look up, she immediately realized that she was lost.

She sighed in annoyance and pulled on the horse's reins, slowing it to a stop so that she could pull a map from her bag. But of course with it being night, the pale silvery light of the moon overhead was hardly enough to be able to read the map. So with another sigh she put the map away.

"There seems to be a city over there on the horizon," She stated, looking off in the distance where the beginnings of buildings could be made out. "I'll stop there and ask for directions. C'mon, let's go," She motioned for the horse to move forward but it wouldn't. "I said, 'let's go'," She repeated, this time more forcefully. But still the horse wouldn't budge.

"Stupid animal," She muttered, jumping off its back. She began pulling on its reins to get it to move but the horse snorted and pulled back, also pulling the reins out of her hands.

It seemed as though she would have to continue her journey on foot.

She gave the horse an "are-you-serious?" look, turned with an annoyed grunt and began walking towards the city. The horse's scared whinny caused her look back; she saw that it had already turned tail and was racing off in the opposite direction. Its strange behaviour puzzled her but she shrugged it off. She also didn't mind that the stallion had carried a few of her provisions with it; she figured she would pick up a few supplies from the town.

Once the young woman finally reached the city, she noticed something very odd: it was completely deserted and looked as though no one had lived there in years. This was made obvious by the empty streets and derelict buildings. It was clear to her that she was not going to get the help she needed.

"Oh, this is just great."

She knew she needed to continue her journey but she also knew that she couldn't. Not without knowing where she was or where she was going. So – reluctantly – she decided she would have to stay the night, look over her map in the morning and find another way to get to her destination.

She searched around the abandoned city for shelter and eventually found an empty house that wasn't too rundown. It wasn't much but was better than sleeping outside and being exposed to the elements. So she found a comfortable enough spot in the far corner of the small room and settled down, taking off her satchel and veil in the process. Lastly, her hood came off to reveal her curly mass of black hair. It was tied up atop her head and away from her face, although a few strands still managed to escape and fell over her forehead.

She used her satchel as a makeshift pillow and reached into one of the pockets of her cloak to pull out a dagger. It was for protection, in case the city wasn't as deserted as she thought. She placed the weapon on the ground well within arm's reach. It was only when the girl lied down did she realize just how tired she was and soon drifted off to sleep.

She was abruptly woken up by the sound of the door opening and immediately sat up, her hand reaching for the dagger at her side. But the sight before her compelled her to freeze. What looked like two animated corpses stood over her; gazing down with yellow, unblinking eyes. But what really caught her attention was the light brown eel hovering above their heads. Her eyebrows shot up in confusion and alarm and for a moment she forgot how to breathe. She was used to seeing eels swimming in water, not floating in air! It was an ugly thing and the girl flinched when it slithered towards her, coming uncomfortably close to her face.

She swiftly picked up her dagger and swung her arm out. Luckily for the eel (but unluckily for her) it recoiled just in time for the dagger's sharp point to narrowly miss its throat. It slithered further away from the girl, giving her a glare and baring jagged, pointed teeth.

"We find intruder," It hissed in a nasally voice, turning towards the other two. "Take her to Mozenrath."

At hearing the eel speak, she let out a shocked gasp. It was one thing to see a normally flightless animal floating in mid-air but it was another to hear it talk as well! In her stunned state, the two un-dead guards shuffled over to her and each took one of her arms in a vice-like grip. The eel picked up her bag in its mouth and lead the way out of the house.

The first thing that came to her mind was to scream. And so she did. It was a loud, piercing shriek that made the floating eel wince and put its fins over what would be its ears. But the un-dead guards seemed completely unaffected and after a moment's pause, continued to carry her out. She silently cursed. 'Of course that wouldn't achieve anything,' she reprimanded herself. 'Who do you think is going to hear you and come dashing to your rescue?'

The girl tried to twist out of their hold. She struggled and fought, kicking out her legs in a vain attempt to injure her captors but it was no use; the only thing the struggle managed to do was knock the dagger out of her hand. And so she was dragged outside – tired and unarmed – towards a black stone tower settled on top of a precarious cliff.

In her final and desperate attempt at freedom, she tried to persuade her captors to let her go. "I really didn't know this place was off limits. If I had known no intruders were allowed I wouldn't have come…here.… Really, I was just looking for a place to stay the night."

But she stopped talking after noticing that her pleas were falling on deaf ears.

The unnecessarily large doors of the tower opened to reveal that the tower was just as cold and unwelcoming on the inside as it was on the outside. Once the doors were shut behind them, the girl was thrown ungracefully to the floor and landed (rather painfully) in front of a pair of shoes. Her eyes followed the path up dark robes until her gaze rested on the face of a young man. Unsettled by his harsh gaze and pale face, she sat up and backed away from him.

"Xerxes, are you sure this is what set off the alarms?" The man asked in a low voice.

The eel's nod was slightly hindered by the weight of the bag in his mouth.

"Hmmm… She doesn't look very magical."

Xerxes then proceeded to drop the bag onto the floor and wriggled his way into it. He slid back out with a small ring clutched between his teeth and dropped it into Mozenrath's open palm.

The man named Mozenrath looked over the ring, disinterested at first. But his eyes widened the moment he recognized the symbols carved into the ring's band. The Seal of Solomon. It was a powerful artefact, allowing its wearer the power to command demons.

Mozenrath strode over to where the young girl was sitting on the floor and without warning, grabbed her by the front of her tunic. He roughly dragged her up so that they were at eye level. The girl had to stand on the tips of her toes.

"Where did you get this?" He growled, holding up the ring.

"I-I stole it. From the palace…i-in Agrabah," she replied quietly. The intense glare that he was giving her made her uncomfortable and from it she guessed he was not one who took kindly to being lied to.

His eyes narrowed further in suspicion; scepticism was practically written all over his face.

"I did!" She pressed on. "It was a task I am being paid to do."

"Who are you?" he snapped, ignoring her obvious discomfort. "Who sent you?"

The young girl hesitated but the look he gave her prompted her to answer. She swallowed the lump of fear in her throat with some difficulty. And although she tried to appear calm, her voice came out shakier than she wanted. "I-Isra'. My name is Isra'. And no one sent me here. I was just travelling and needed somewhere to rest. I came across your –" she looked around. "–fine city...by accident."

He pushed her backwards and lifted his right hand, which Isra' could see was covered by a gauntlet that started to glow a menacing red. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't destroy you right now for trespassing."

The young girl racked her brain for something that would interest him and spare her life. "I'm a thief for hire. I steal valuable items and I'm paid in return. Not the noblest of professions…" she shrugged. "But it's a living. Anything you need? I can get it for you."

"What makes you think you could be of any use to me?" He sneered, lowering his arm. Isra' noted with a silent sigh of relief that the gauntlet had stopped glowing. "I've had rather unsuccessful attempts with hiring common thieves to do my bidding." His voice was dripping with condescendence; he obviously didn't think too much of her kind.

"I am no common thief!" Isra' huffed. For a second she forgot the danger she was in.

He folded his arms over his chest and lifted a dark eyebrow. "Really now."

Isra' held up her hand to show a golden amulet resting in her palm. Mozenrath instantly recognized it as his and searched the pocket that he had secured the amulet in, only to find that the pocket was empty.

"She good," Xerxes said with an impressed tone in his voice.

Mozenrath glared at his familiar and snatched the amulet out of the young woman's hand. Isra' shrank back, fearing the worst that could happen.

"Take her to the dungeons," Mozenrath ordered, turning and walking away. "I'll deal with her tomorrow."

"What?" Isra's heart and stomach dropped at the mention of the word 'dungeon'. "No!"

The two un-dead servants that brought her there grabbed her before she could make a run for it. And once again, Isra' found herself being dragged, this time down a passageway towards a door. It was opened to reveal a stone staircase descending into gloomy, foreboding shadows but she didn't have time to feel afraid before she was lead down deep into the dungeon. One of the many cells was unlocked and she was roughly pushed inside. The caged door slammed behind her and locked.

'What have I gotten myself into?' She thought with dread as she watched her captors disappear into the darkness.