Chapter 2: Wanted Dead or Alive

"Mail call! Ugh, I hate doing that." Iago groaned, bringing in several scrolls between his claws into the Sultan's quarters. "Seriously, you guys don't know how to let a grudge go."

"The Sultan's still making you bring in his personal scrolls, Iago?" Aladdin said, a sly grin crossing his features.

"Don't look at me like that! I'd like to see you be the Sultan's personal lap pet."

Aladdin shrugged. "I wasn't the one who racked up that bill. And you're still paying him back, last time I checked."

"Oh go ahead, rub it in. Next time I catch you plucking something from the palace, don't expect me to vouch for ya."

"I don't think you'll have to worry about that. Don't need to steal to eat anymore." Aladdin leaned his body against one of the palace columns, when something soared over his head in a golden stream of light that zipped through the room.

"What the..." Aladdin started, but Iago seemed equally as taken by the sight, dropping some of the scrolls to the floor.

"What the heck is THAT?" Iago shouted. "Is Genie messing around with his magic or somethin'?"

"Doesn't seem like his style," Aladdin said, making a grab for the stream of light that passed him. It zipped just beyond his grasp for a time, until he was able to finally grab it. He opened his hands long enough to realize it was a small bird made of a stream of golden magic, and in the bird's claws was a rolled up note. Before Aladdin could touch the bird, it disappeared, leaving behind the note.

Iago perched on Aladdin's shoulder. "Tell me somethin' good's coming outta this."

"Hang on. It looks like it's a note from...let's see." Aladdin studied it, and recognition made his brows lift. "Hey! It's from Safir! We haven't heard from him and Daleel in a while."

Aladdin took the time to read the note, and the more he read, the more his expression turned from surprise, to concern, to anger.

"What's it say, already?!"

Aladdin clutched the note in his hands. "Daleel's been attacked by the U-serpents, and it looks like Safir needs our help. I've gotta tell the others what happened."

Iago cringed. "Does this mean we're going on a field trip? At the very least, please say it means a detour to Getzistan."

Aladdin shook his head. "We need to get there as soon as we can, no detours. Safir says if we don't, Daleel's only gonna get worse. Much worse."


"I'm very glad all of you were able to come. He's getting more ill by the hour," Safir said with a long sigh. "I was able to get Daleel to tell me who attacked him, but he has a high fever, and is slipping in and out of consciousness. Worse also, I believe the effects of the toxin are causing Daleel to go blind."

Aladdin, Jasmine, Iago, Abu, Genie and Carpet all were taken aback, standing in the middle of Safir magic quarters. Daleel was in a room close by, resting with his door partially closed.

"Is there anything we can do?" Jasmine asked.

"That's one of the reasons why I summoned all of you here," Safir said, his brows drawn together. "I am within means of curing him, but I need specific materials to give him the potion that will dissolve the toxin. But I would need those materials quickly, otherwise Daleel will be taken by either permanent blindness or succumb to the fever he's under."

"Oh no!" Abu cried.

"That's horrible!" Aladdin said, clenching his fists at his sides. "Why would the U-serpents do something like this?"

"Well," Safir said, running his fingers through his hair beneath his turban. "I can only imagine that Daleel either saw or heard something he wasn't supposed to. All I got out of him when he was last awake was that he encountered the U-serpents discussing you with a sorcerer of some kind, but he never told me the name."

"Uh..." Genie scratched his head. "That sorcerer could be anybody, as far as we know. Al's got a lot of enemies."

"Genie!" Aladdin and Jasmine warned, speaking at the same time.

"I wasn't saying that in a bad way," Genie said, wincing. "I mean who could we think of as far as sorcerers go that would wanna willingly work with the U-serpents? Minus the ones with supersized egos."

Aladdin groaned, running his fingers through his hair. "We can't worry about that right now as much as what we can do for Daleel. That should be our priority."

"Aladdin's right, we can't really know what the U-serpents are planning. That doesn't mean we shouldn't be cautious, but I think we'd better focus on Daleel and worry about what the U-serpents are doing later," Jasmine said.

Safir nodded, opening a book of different herbs and flora which seemed to be contained in a spell book. "What I need are some special plants that are located in three separate places. One at the Top of the World, one in the Cave of Wonders, and one in that underground tower where we were once imprisoned by the U-serpents."

"So, lemme get this straight," Iago said. "Two out of the three places we gotta go are U-serpent territory, and you want us to go get stuff from there? No way, I'm hightailing out of here back to Agrabah. Too much risk, not enough benefit."

Genie grabbed Iago's tailfeathers before he could fly too far, frowning at the parrot. "Come on, Iago, you can't have that much of a chip on your shoulder. We're talkin' about a sick kid here."

"Yeah, and the fact I'm stretchin' out my neck for this is making ME sick. Hello? We're talkin' about the U-serpents, here," Iago protested. "Besides, maybe the kid can sleep it off and be better in the morning?"

Genie frowned, but carried Iago into the room where Daleel lay resting upon a makeshift bed, a cloth over his brow. His face was slightly flushed, and his eyes were closed. A low groan emerged from his tiny frame.

"How can you say no to that?" Genie asked gently, his shoulders slumping.

Iago looked guilty, even as Genie released him onto a nearby table. "Geez, the kid's really sick, isn't he? The U-serpents did somethin' like that? That doesn't seem like their style."

"I think it's a lingering effect of one of their bites." Safir said, his voice coming from the doorway where he'd followed Genie and Iago. Aladdin stood not far away with Abu perched on his shoulder. Jasmine and Carpet lingered close behind them.

"I remember when I was bitten. I was almost turned into one of them, " Aladdin said, recalling his first encounter with the U-serpents. They'd captured and bit him, trying to turn him into a member of their team, a presence called Versat. But Versat hadn't been able to take over Aladdin's body because of the Agrabah Prince's strength of will, and he was easily defeated. "Are you saying Daleel's turning into one of them too?"

Safir shook his head. "Garan was the one who bit you Aladdin, yes? Daleel told me Ajan bit him. I think each have their own individual magicks in their bites. Regardless, there isn't much time. I need to have enough time to make the anecdote before he gets any worse."

Aladdin nodded. "It might be faster if we split up into teams to get the stuff you need."

"That's the spirit, Al," Genie said, snapping his fingers. "How bout I go to the Top of the World, since that's the farthest place from here?"

"You sure you don't want any of us to go with you, Genie?" Aladdin asked.

"Nah, I'll be fine. It's a little chilly up there, but I think I can stay warm enough." Genie accidentally transformed into a bowl of chilli, which got him funny looks from everyone in the room. He sheepishly smiled before transforming again, into his usual form while wearing wool clothing.

"Abu and Iago could probably go to the tower," Aladdin suggested. "It's not that far from here and they could be right back with whatever you're looking for."

"Hey, I'm liking your thinking, Al," Iago said, though Aladdin gave the bird a side eye glance. "Less distance, less work. We'll be outta there in two shakes."

"Okay!" Abu agreed, giving an "OK" symbol with his paw.

"That just leaves the both of us and Carpet to go to the Cave of Wonders," Jasmine finished. "Are you sure that's a good idea, Aladdin?"

Aladdin nodded with confidence. "I think we can do it. Only thing all of us have to worry about is not letting the U-serpents on to what we're doing, and getting back here in time."

"Easier said than done," Genie said, pulling at the end of his curved beard. "But not to worry, if you get in a pinch, you can always wear a disguise." He used his magic to give Aladdin a large fluffy mustache, which it was clear by Aladdin's expression, the prince didn't approve.

Genie laughed nervously. "Heh, just a suggestion."


"So it's only a matter of time before Aladdin and the rest of them come flying to that boy's aid, and while they're dealing with that, Agrabah will be left to our devices," Mozenrath said as he was back in his domain of the Black Sand kingdom.

"What is master planning?" Xerxes asked, floating just over Mozenrath's shoulder.

"For now, we're the foxes following the hares." Mozenrath's lip tipped up in a corner. "Soon they'll be caught in a trap they can't get out of, and I'll be able to make my move."

Xerxes chuckled. "Master make his move. Aladdin be weary!"

"Yes," Mozenrath affirmed, looking into a mirror ball where he saw a vision of Aladdin and Jasmine taking off across the desert on Carpet. "Be very weary, Aladdin, because when I catch up to you, I will finally taste the sweetness of destroying all of you."

Mozenrath's laugh echoed through the halls of his palace, startling a few of his undead guardsmen as they clumsily tumbled over their feet and staggered away.