Shifting Sands
By: CrystallicSky
Disclaimer: I don't own Xiaolin Showdown, or any of the characters in it, which also holds true for Aladdin the Series.
Warning(s):Well, let's see, generally mild cursing, violence of a bloody nature, and future romance between male characters. If any of these three bother you...go away. Just go. Right now. I don't want to deal with someone's whining because they didn't read this blatantly stated warning on content here.
Notes: The only reason this even floated through my mind is because I'm weird. As far as I know, this crossover has never before been attempted, much less the idea I'm going to use in it, and so...well, just be aware that this story is a little different than my others, being that I've never even ATTEMPTED a crossover, and I hope that at least one person enjoys it regardless. :D
The afternoon of the next day found Jack on his knees scrubbing the built up grime off of a hard stone floor, something he was sure without a doubt would take all day. Now that the citadel's torches were lit, the place looked awful, dirty, and dusty, and being completely honest, it was shocking that there wasn't mold and fungi growing everywhere by now! Jack didn't quite know what Destane's freaking problem was to allow it to get this bad, but it was like he didn't even live here, because if he really lived here, he'd have probably choked on the dust by now!
Earlier in the day, the crack of dawn to be exact, Jack had been rudely awakened to a jab in the throat for disobeying his master's order to wake up by...well, being asleep. It wasn't as vicious as it had been the night before since it was apparently not a high-priority order and a minor offense, but still, definitely not the most fun way to wake up.
In any case, after he had basically fallen out of bed at Destane's feet, he had been hit in the face with his new wardrobe, a plain and simple black outfit, and then instructed to get dressed and meet him back in the throne room when he had done so.
He had, with no complaint other than a few grumbles and muttering once Destane had left, and when Jack had arrived at the throne on which his master sat so rigidly, he had been ordered to have the whole palace cleaned by the time he returned from whatever outing he had then left on.
Needless to say, his first thought was a particularly nasty curse-word. Regardless, he had gotten started immediately knowing it would take quite awhile, and he was now actually halfway done already. But that, Jack figured, might've had something to do with his borderline-psychotic need for all things around him to be in order.
Sitting back on his heels, he paused to inspect his current task's overall progress, happily noting that the floor in this room was nearly done. And surely, he thought, he deserved a quick break, at least to get the kinks out of his spine, right? He set down the worn rag he had been using and sighed deeply, running a hand tiredly through his hair, that is, until he felt the familiar digging of metal into his neck. Oh, well, so much for his break, then.
--
Chase glared angrily at the pyramid in his hand, no longer crystal, but inexplicably clouded by a sort of fog. He had to admit it wasn't his style to outright steal a Shen Gong Wu from even Hannibal Bean, but then it wasn't his style to steal one with the intent of helping Jack Spicer, either, now was it?
But there was a problem: the Wu wouldn't show him where Jack had been sent, and there was only one reason that could explain why, one Chase had been dreading.
Jack had been sent somewhere or when in which he was needed, had some explicit purpose in, and since this particular Wu was unable to interfere with what fate had set into motion, it would not reveal his whereabouts until that purpose was fulfilled.
Chase then dropped his glare, for only a moment, but in that brief second, his face showed concern, concern for Jack's safety. But then the expression returned as quick as it had gone, leaving no trace of what had been only a moment ago.
He couldn't believe he was even thinking about helping Jack! The boy acted like a complete idiot almost constantly so why would he want to...No. He may have been an idiot, but he was...
"My idiot..."
--
When the hour began to draw late, and Jack was in the middle of organizing the books in the study, Destane returned home.
"Still not finished, I see."
The teen gasped, nearly dropping the books in surprise as he turned to face his master and his master's winged familiar. "Master Destane! I-I'm sorry I haven't finished, I'll-I'll keep cleaning all night if I have t-"
"No."
"Huh?" Jack was baffled at the curt answer, and even more so that his collar hadn't skewered him yet for being unable to complete his task.
"You've done enough for today; you shall finish the rest tomorrow."
"Oh..." the younger lay the books down, shuffling his feet awkwardly. "Then, can I-"
"You are free to return to your room."
"Thank you, Master Destane." he bowed to the man respectfully before quickly leaving the room.
For the next year, that was Jack's life: Destane would leave somewhere for the better part of the day(the specifics of where Jack didn't know; he wasn't told, and he didn't ask), and he would be expected to do all sorts of domestic tasks until his master returned. During that year, after he completed the initial disinfecting of the citadel, it was left to him to maintain it; laundry, cooking(mainly for Destane, it was rare he got a meal, and when he did, it was relatively minuscule), tidying up, the list of menial chores went on. By far, though, his favorite task had become reorganizing Destane's laboratory, something required daily because of the man's haphazard use of the area. Why was it his favorite? Because it was during those hours when he had learned magic.
Not a lot, mind you, just bits and pieces, and Destane obviously had no idea, but it was the only outlet that had thus far kept him from withdrawing into a living Mamluk. You see, his master had a tendency to leave his many tomes and scrolls open when he abandoned them, and Jack just couldn't resist such an open invitation to learn something new. From the little he had gotten to read, he had learned many things, ranging from griffin biology to the ingredients necessary for a love potion and even high-level offensive spells, the latter of which he had tested and finally perfected on his master's mutated failed experiments; Destane had so many of them anyway that he didn't even notice or care when they 'suddenly' dropped dead. Yes, it had been difficult at first to cope with the murder of helpless, sickened animals and he felt horrible about it for a long time, but when a raccoon with a lizard tail and a fish-eye, to say nothing of how mismatched it's internal organs must've been, had wheezed out a 'thank you' in it's last moments, Jack had seen that this was a mercy for the poor creatures, almost a godsend. These things had been captured, sliced open and changed by magic and chemicals until their entire existence was nothing but pain and caged misery. Even if the were freed, they would never be accepted back into a normal life and, due to their new physical detractions, would be easily caught and killed by vicious predators; more than half of the sickly things couldn't even move of their own power any more.
In any case, though, Jack had finally gotten a chance to feel useful through his minor practice of magic, despite the unfortunate physically-draining aspect of it. Of course, it wouldn't be draining him if he had what was known in the sorcerer's circle as a 'conduit', that is to say, a base source and conductor for magic. Like Destane's staff, a conduit was basically a never-ending pool of magic, from which any practitioner of such could draw on as the driving force behind spells of any means, whether an attack or something as simple as summoning a trinket from across the room, without the need to fuel it with their own lifeforce.
In short, using magic without a conduit could be a dangerous thing, deadly, even, and from the research he had managed, Jack knew this well enough. But he didn't care; so long as he didn't tax his body too badly, he would at least live, if not in the best of spiritual health.
And so it was that by the end of his first year with Destane, Jack had fallen so completely into the dull routine of his new life that only what happened one dreary, dark day had enough force to shock him out of it.
It was an otherwise usual day, several hours after Destane had left and he had finished all his chores, when Jack had headed to the lab with full intent to read up on basilisks, a subject he felt he wouldn't know enough about in case of an unavoidable confrontation. Although, because he hadn't left the citadel since he had first arrived, it was likely he wouldn't need the information unless a basilisk actually crashed through the wall, but then, is it not best to err on the side of caution?
He hadn't gotten far, though, when he paused, hearing a strange noise, stranger than usual, from the cages where the failed experiments were kept. Curiosity getting the better of him, Jack decided to investigate, and was shocked at what he saw.
A specimen was not only more than half-conscious, but was struggling in it's small cage so spiritedly and vivaciously that it seemed impossible that there was anything wrong with it! From the way it was fighting at the iron bars, it was hard for Jack to make out details but for a few things about the creature: it seemed to be elongated in the manner of a snake, and it's whipcord body writhed and thrashed almost constantly, a rosy taupe blur to Jack's eyes as he watched it. The tip of it's tail apparently wouldn't fit in the too-small confinement, and the dark indigo frills, possibly fins, at the end of it twitched with every movement the thing made. The same kind of frill trailed along the back and possibly the sides(Jack couldn't be sure what it was along the sides, only that it was the same deep purple as the rest of the membrane-like material he had seen) of the creature, and it's teeth were jagged and sharp, though useless in their current effort, as they gnawed without success at the cage.
This thing...it was different than the others, Jack could feel it. It was stronger, more determined, better than the other failed mutatees. This was not a failure at all, it couldn't be! No, this was a success, but because it was here, Destane must not have realized it. Jack couldn't let this spunky little thing die here, he just couldn't, not this one!
Raising a hand towards the trapped animal, Jack, over the noises and snarls it made as it attempted to free itself, spoke a spell he had never actually seen himself needing, "Fumeo!"
The cold iron encasement then vanished in a puff of smoke, dissipating into the air as Jack, though almost what he would qualify as dizzy from the use of magic, snatched up the no-longer captive experiment. With the way the lithe thing had been about to dart away, it was shocking that the youth had caught it at all, but then, you'd be surprised at what catching certain bats in the kitchen did for one's reflexes.
Of course, it was then that Destane had chosen to return, and, from the throne room, to bellow for his slave-boy.
"Jack!"
The teenager gasped in surprise before becoming resolute in his intent, forcing the wriggling critter he held into his long black sleeve as he hissed the command, "Be quiet!" at it, internally praying it understood what he said for both of their sakes. It seemed to comprehend, because it dropped completely silent before coiling it's body around Jack's arm, as if it knew that it would minimize it's chance of being discovered under the loose sleeve of cloth, which was more than a slight possibility that it did know; the gothic slave had known there was something special about this one, and it's instant comprehension of his words and the nature of the situation was already proving his instincts right.
Within minutes, Jack was in the throne room, kneeling at his master's feet. "Yes, Master Destane?"
"You may stand, boy." He did so, noting with relief that the experiment around his arm hadn't so much as twitched so far. "Have you finished your duties, yet?"
"Yes, master."
"Good. You have two hours to yourself before you will begin cooking dinner, understand?"
"Of course, master."
"Then begone with you!"
Not wanting to agitate his master and thus his collar, Jack bowed to the man before taking his leave.
Once the door to his room was shut, he spoke calmly but not without relief, "It's alright now, you can come out."
It was now completely obvious to the teenager that what he had just rescued understood him when it slipped from his sleeve to hover in front of his face without any hesitation once the words were said. Wait a minute...hover? So the thing could apparently float in the air, then; Jack had seen weirder. Now that it was mostly still, it was easier for him to make out some of the more intricate details of it.
It was apparently an eel of some sort, complete with gills that must have only been able to filter air now, or else it would have suffocated long ago without water. The dark purplish color along it's back had been a frill, but the two on it's left and right were fins, another mutation obviously, because no eel he could think of had such fins, and from the motion of them, they could move to the same effect of a human arm and hand, although gripping and holding things would be impossible with no muscle-strength or fingers to the flimsy appendage. It's underbelly was a pale tan color that stretched from tail to what was most likely the neck before it petered back into the brownish color the rest of the thing was. It's face, though, really drew his attention; human-like lips and mouth, potentially capable of speech, along with two eyes, one small and bloodshot with a beady black pupil, and the other at least twice the size of it's match, giving a lopsided appearance to the eel, with a visible iris around the pupil(something the opposite eye couldn't boast) colored just barely too pink to be called red.
Jack figured he'd finally lost it when his mind labeled the thing as 'cute'.
Well, crazy or not, he decided to attempt conversation with the odd-looking eel.
"Are you okay?"
It only nodded, staring suspiciously at the white-haired teenager as if he recognized him.
"Well...can you talk then?" he tried.
"I talk..." the speech was a bit choppy, not to mention raspy, but being that this eel, male from the sound of it, shouldn't have even been able to speak at all, Jack counted it as a win for the thing. He suddenly raised a fin, snapping it in a parody of human fingers. "You slave-boy for wizard!"
"You've seen me?" Jack was astonished that he apparently recognized him from somewhere, when he himself had only just discovered the eel minutes before.
He nodded, verifying the other's statement before going on to clarify, "Reading. Saw you from cage."
"So then, why didn't you talk to me or something?"
"Couldn't, gagged. Chewed free, though!"
"Oh. So, do you have a name, then?" the slave asked, honestly curious.
The eel's expression drooped at the query, saddened. "No name."
"What about a family?"
"No family."
"Oh, it's alright," Jack brushed his fingers over the eel's smooth body, "we're in the same boat on that one."
"Slave-boy...no have family?"
"Not anymore, and my name is Jack. You should probably have a name, too, now that I think of it. I can't just call you 'Eel-thing'...Hey, would you want me to name you?"
His eyes lit up and he curled and twisted around in the air excitedly. "Name! Name! Yes!"
Jack laughed. "Alright, alright, calm down, I'm thinking. Hmm...Seif? No...Reyhan? No..." He suddenly gasped, exclaiming, "I've got it! How do you like Xerxes?"
The eel giggled with a sharp-toothed grin. "Xerxes like! Xerxes like!"
"I'm glad," the teen smiled, "but I have to go make dinner, now."
"Hm?" Xerxes tilted his head in confusion. "But wizard say two hours; can't have been more than two minutes!"
"That's true, but the sooner I do it for him, the sooner it's out of the way, and I have the rest of the night off, right? Besides, I'll sneak something back for you to eat." Jack moved closer to the door, laying his palm on the handle. "Just stay here until I come back, and Destane will be none the wiser." He was about to leave for the kitchen when Xerxes stopped him.
"Wait, Jack!"
Turning, he saw the eel with his head bowed to him. "You gave Xerxes name, saved life! Xerxes promise loyalty to you...master."
Jack was shocked into silence for a moment until his mind could actually process the statement, at which point he burst out laughing. "A slave as a master; what a stupid irony!"
"Xerxes serious!" he insisted vehemently. "Always be loyal to you, master!"
"Well, alright," Jack consented to the eel, "if you really mean it then, I'll be your master, but right now, your master has to go do some grunt work for his master, so...just don't eat my bed or anything."
He snickered devilishly, showing off his pointed fangs. "Xerxes good, promise!"
From that moment on, the two had become quite close, Xerxes being one who shared in Jack's mildly disturbing sense of humor, yet didn't mind being the target of his temper when he was displeased. Xerxes had actually gotten to know his master so well that he tended to finish some of his sentences, and after roughly two weeks of knowing each other, they had only had one confrontation. All that had really happened was Jack using a few choice words on Xerxes after Destane had made a particularly foamy mess in his lab, and left the young slave to clean it up. He had apologized to the eel afterwards, explaining that he had a tendency of getting mean when frustrated by something, and if he had taken it out on Destane, he might've been blasted by some kind of magic or worse. He had acknowledged that it was no excuse and that he was sorry if he had hurt Xerxes's feelings too badly, to which the eel simply accepted the apology with a smile and curled himself around his master's shoulders as he often did.
Things could have continued on in this manner easily until Destane would have died of old age, that is, of course, had fate not once again intervened in the life of Jack Spicer.
It was an unheard of event since Jack's arrival that Destane got visitors of any sort, but nonetheless, one was dragged in by the Mamluks out of nowhere one day.
Jack had watched from the sidelines as the figure was thrown to the ground in front of his master, and the hood of the cloak they were wearing pulled back to reveal a dark-haired, tan woman wearing a bejewelled crown and very expensive looking earrings. It was obvious she was of some kind of high-standing, only confirmed more so as Destane addressed her.
"Well, well, the Sultana of Agrabah! To what do I owe this visit?"
The woman sneered, "Don't play the fool, Destane, it doesn't suit you! You know well why I have come here: to eliminate the threat you have become to my people."
She pulled a sword from her cloak and rushed at Destane, who raised his staff to counter her with his magic. Although, the sorcerer had not been counting on the Sultana to knock him over with a solid strike to his knees using a hidden staff of her own, then throwing his conduit halfway across the room.
As the woman stood over him, sword poised to deliver the man's death, Jack's mind went into shock, forcing his every thought into saving his master from this fate. His body reacted on it's own, raising a hand at the woman and instinctively calling out, "Incendium mortuus!"
The woman's body had convulsed violently as it was engulfed in black flames, her pained screech echoing throughout the citadel until there was nothing left of the poor woman but badly scorched bones.
Destane stood, giving the remains of the Sultana an uncaring glance before retrieving his staff and standing menacingly over Jack. "Well, it looks like someone has been getting into things he shouldn't have."
Jack, having come back to himself when he had been hit with the massive drain of the spell he had just used, dropped to his knees in front of his master, pleading, "I'm sorry, master, I was just-"
"Sorry for what, boy?"
"I-well-For using magic?"
Destane was silent for a moment, until he began, "You know, Jack, I am an evil sorcerer, in case you haven't yet guessed. That out in the open, I'd like to know if you were aware of the use of that spell when you cast it? Did you know it would kill her?"
The youth nodded halfheartedly, too fatigued from his abrupt loss of spiritual energy to do much of anything else.
"Well, then, I'm going to miss my slave, if only a bit."
Jack closed his eyes, waiting for death to come, only to jump, surprised, as he felt the weight around his neck that came from his collar disappear.
"But I believe I will like my new apprentice even better."
"Apprentice?! But-I-Master, I don't understand."
Destane then smiled possibly the most sincere smile he had ever smiled in his life, laying a strong hand on Jack's shoulder. "You, as a beginner, performed one of the most advanced spells there is without the aid of a conduit, and you're still conscious. Though it's true I am displeased that you went behind my back to learn what you did, I am not so foolish as to ignore such potential when I see it. Go to your room for now and rest, because tomorrow I will begin your training...my apprentice..."
A/N: Well, that's Ch. 3 for you, right there! Hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing that one. :D Just for those of you that guessed, yes, this is a crossover with Aladdin the Series, congrats for getting it right! Um...yeah, I think Xerxes is cute, and thus force my ideals onto Jack because I want to. XD Also, yes, that was Jasmine's mother that was killed. Yeah, think about that for a while. Ahem, really though, I hope you liked this chapter, and I do not support the killing of animals, because I just know someone will bitch me out for that if I don't write it here. -.-