There was a big commotion at the palace gates later that day. A throng of people lined up on the streets to see several camels, donkey drawn wagons, and even an elephant carrying forty golden jars that were nearly as tall as a man. Leading the parade on horseback was Razoul with a permanent grin on his face. He looked down to see the former merchant Abis Mal being dragged away in chains to be sent into the dungeon.
"I didn't know those were there!" he pleaded again and again. "Those are not mine!"
Razoul only ignored him and continued to stare at the treasure. It was quite impressive to see. The lids were sealed shut but not for long. He figured that the thief had put more treasure into the jars and vases. Valuables he had swindled from customers before he sealed them in gold. Yes, it was a good day.
The treasure room was set underneath the throne room. It was enormous, spanning across two rooms. Red and black banners hung from pillars, walls, and balconies. The floor was covered with a vast hoard: all types of gems from the size of a fingernail to as big as a tangerine were scattered, scepters of gold and silver had gems topping them, gold coins were heaped in mounds topped with gold bars, necklaces made up of gold, pearls, and precious stones were everywhere, statues that could be held in a palm of a hand was also amongst the piles, while their far larger brothers were set all around the room.
The gold jars were set aside from the rest of the mound. A few seconds after the guards were gone a shadow seemed to peel away from the balcony and climbed down one of the banners to them.
Cassim glanced around. His senses were focused on every disturbance no matter how minuscule. Once he determined that he was alone he crept to the loot and pulled out his knife, prying open the first jar. One of the thieves came out gasping for air, but Cassim quickly shushed him. He did the same thing to the rest of the vases until they were all open. Forty thieves were now standing idly by, their eyes focused on the treasure hoard that lay around them. Cassim did one last check at the door to see two guards that used to be standing erect at the door were now knocked out. Rumpelstiltskin stood in their place and nodded at the King of the Forty Thieves. With a signal to his second in command, the forty thieves began grabbing at whatever they could get their hands on. They were kids in a candy store that never seemed to end. No one noticed Cassim slipping away through the door.
Whatever satchels, pouches, or leather bags the thieves had brought with them they had quickly overflowed. Several of the thieves went to the stables and made the elephants there stampede causing them to crash into the palace. Other thieves started leaving the room trying to find larger bags or ways to transport the loot.
It was evident that the guards were quickly overwhelmed by the amount of chaos that was happening. If they cornered one thief, five more would arrive to aid their comrade. In some cases they would leave the guards utterly humiliated. If one guard managed to calm an elephant, within a few minutes the amount of chaos would frighten it and make it stampede again.
However, the mayhem didn't last for too long. Jafar appeared and began wielding his sorcery at anything that displeased him. Elephants were shrunk to miniature size, thieves were encased in glass, and their gold out of reach, and structures were reinforced with a mere swing of his serpent staff. Within minutes all of the thieves were captured and the elephants brought to a more controlled size.
"Well, well, well," he said slowly, with a slight smile. "The legendary Forty Thieves. Such bravery. Such determination. Such greed. People after my own heart. If I ever had one that is. Now I'm only going to say this once: where is your fearless leader?"
"Will you let us go if we tell you?" said a thief from Turkish descent.
Jafar shook his head, the smile still on his face.
"Dear, oh dear. Is there any honor among thieves? No, suppose not. Why don't you come out and reveal yourself, my spy."
He motioned over to the shadows of an entryway and a figure strode out into the light. The thieves that could see in that direction gasped at the betrayal of one of their own.