Hello, everyone! Here's another chapter before the school year officially starts! I know I've been a bit slow with the updates lately, but I've been having a little issue with the pacing since I want to properly wrap this arc up. No worries. I'll get out of this minor funk soon enough. Thanks for being so patient with me, though. You are all so wonderful!

(Also: Thank you, Guest Reviewer for introducing Fanfic Author Appreciation Day. You're so sweet! I never knew it even existed!)

Questions:

is Foras' sand powers based on Gaara from Naruto?: Yes, it is. I'm glad that you noticed!

Did Kouha get all angry like he did in the manga and anime right before he transformed?: Of course. Yasmine was beaten up in front of his eyes and his men were killed. I'd even say that he was even more pissed than he was in cannon.

who was nonexistent-future Titus's unrequited love?: Sphintus.

Say, what does Kougyoku see when she looks at the other Blessed Children?: Ooooh! Good question! I like this question! So, since you're all aware of how Sai looks through Kougyoku's eyes, I'll focus on Amani and Yasmine. Amani's representation of her feelings, like Sai's, are a little ambiguous. Though they come in forms of weather. It took a while for Kougyoku to realize that the sleet and rain represented very different things (irritation and relief respectively). Yasmine is a bit more simple. Like Ka Koubun, her emotions are represented by an animal. While a tiger might've been more fitting, Yasmine's animal is Hawk with bloodied claws. It easily displays emotions like annoyance and an eagerness to fight. Despite the violence of her animal, Yasmine has Jasmine flowers constantly growing around her feet during her more peaceful moods.

Compare to manga/anime, how many of Kouha's armies died. Was the number of soldiers in this story less than canon or was it just the same amount?: Thankfully, it was less men than in cannon. But still, people died.

Onwards!


Children of Solomon

Chapter 48: Flies in the Web


Death, Sai found, was usually sudden, unexpected, and unfair. It brought unfairness and an end to those who experience it and it brought pain and confusion to the ones left behind. Marius had taught him that. Sai knew death. He even died. He knew what to expect.

So why, why did he feel so numb?

Sai's good eye did not leave the empty space where Titus stood just seconds ago. There in one moment and gone in the next. It was almost easy to pretend that it didn't – no, bad Sai. Thinking thoughts like that led to deep, horrible denial that would only make everything worse than it already was. No. Titus was dead. He died right in front of Sai's eyes. He's dead. Dust. Gone.

('Gone,' a little part of him wails. But Sai was still too numb to process that part properly.)

'Well, not completely gone,' the numb part of Sai's brain pointed out rather practically when his good eye landed on the small, fragile skeleton curled up on the ground where Titus – Nononononono that's not him that couldn't be him – used to be.

"That worked better than I expected."

And that voice was all it took for Sai to tear his attention from his numbness and latch onto the new person in the room.

The other magician smiled widely and wiggled his fingers in greeting.

"Why hello there – Sai, is it?" The man waited for a few seconds for a nod. When Sai didn't give it to him, he shrugged and continued his introduction. "Now, I'm not sure that you know of me – I was in such a hurry to confirm your existences, I apologize – but I would like to introduce myself. My name is Raul and I am your father."

It was almost impressive how quickly Sai's emotions jumped from completely stagnant to outright furious. He almost allowed himself to outwardly snarl at the man across from him before catching himself. No. Losing his temper now wouldn't do any good, would it? Despite the – rage, anger, denial, grief, pain – not so positive emotions this man was pulling from him, Sai was well aware of how dangerous this man was.

He should approach this carefully.

And yet, despite knowing better, a significantly more hysterical part of Sai screamed at him to fuck that plan and slaughterthe madman for touching Selene and possibly manipulating Titus into martyring himself.

(Gone.)

Before Sai could debate on which part of himself to listen to, he felt a tug at his magoi. He searched for the source and found himself staring upwards to the ceiling. His eye widened at the sight of the brewing magoi furnace above him. Sai immediately threw a viciously accusatory look at the crumpled form of Mogamett. "Oi, old man, you should stop whatever you're trying to do with that thing. I don't take kindly to having my magoi messed with."

Raul chuckled knowingly. "Oh, he can't control it anymore, Sai. He's dead. The incubation stage of the plan is complete. Since Scheherazade's little clone generously donated his magoi to the medium, Matal's magic is no longer necessary." He gestured at the borg surrounding his body. "If it's your magoi you're worried about, just form a borg. But even that solution is only temporary against the power of this medium. I think it's our cue to leave this area."

"Our cue?"

"Why of course!" Raul exclaimed, appearing genuinely confused by Sai's reaction. "I don't want my own son to get caught up in this sort of mess!" He held a hand out. "I know I wasn't in you or your sister's life and I'm sorry for that. I'm going to try my best to make it up to both of you. But we need to get out of here first. Trust me."

Sai took a moment to stare at Raul's hand thoughtfully. Then, with a bright smile, he took it. Raul grinned broadly and turned towards the exit. "Now, let's –

"Ainfijar jahannam."

The spell was spoken too casually, too calmly for Raul to process that it was a threatening one before it was too late. He was thrown across the room by a great, burst of fire that ate at his borg and his skin. By the time he hit the wall, his shield had weakened enough for the impact to knock him out.

After a beat of silence, Sai's smile curled into a snarl. "Trust you? Not in any life, you fucking bastard."

He turned from the crumpled form and stared up at the direction where the 'medium' took off with a dark look on his face.

"And now, I have you to take care of." Sai's whole body shimmered and shifted until it settled on the image of what many perceived as the "Blessed Child, Sai". Both eyes narrowed in concentration as he took out his chakrams, which were glowing fiercely through the marks of Solomon in reaction to the medium. "Time to get rid of the pest."

Sai's body shimmered again, but this time, it was through the aid of his djinn vessels.

"Oh spirit of thieves, aid me in my battles with your cunning and deception! Take everything that is desired and leave nothing at your wake! Barbas, I summon thee!"

Sai wasted no time after the transformation was complete. With a flash of bright red and orange, he was out of Magnostadt and into the sky.


The moment Yasmine's feet touched the ground, she released her djinn equip and collapsed. It was only thanks to Alibaba's steady grip when he caught her that she was able to remain standing.

She patted his arm. "Great job, Alibaba."

"Yasmine-sensei, your arm…."

Yasmine glanced at her limp, wrangled arm before looking away dismissively. "It's just an injury. I get them all the time during fights. And even if it can't be fixed, I have another one, Alibaba."

"Still…you should have Aladdin or a healer check it out."

Before Yasmine could retort, she was tackled away from Alibaba by (surprise, surprise) Kouha. "Yasmine! Let me look at your arm! How bad is it?" When the prince managed to forcibly turn the Blessed Child to see the mangled appearance of her right arm, he hissed sympathetically. "I knew it was bad, but I didn't know that it was this bad."

Annoyed, Yasmine tore herself from her friend's grip. "Thank you for pointing out the obvious, Kouha." She said dryly, averting her eyes self-consciously. "But can we focus on the situation at hand?"

"Screw the situation! You're my first priority, Yasmine!" Kouha insisted vehemently before loudly calling for JunJun, JinJin, and ReiRei to come over and fix her arm. Yasmine flushed brightly at the words and turned her face out of sheer embarrassment. Alibaba began shuffling away from the pair awkwardly. "You know what? I think I'll leave you two be. I'll only get in the way if I stay. Anyways, it seems you have some things to talk about –

"Alibaba?"

He stiffened. "…Yes, Yasmine-sensei?"

"Leave me alone and I'll rip your spine out."

"U-Understood, ma'am! Staying right here!"

Kouha turned to the pale Alibaba and the flustered Yasmine after he finished shouting for his servants. He gave them a strange look. "Hey, did something happen here? What did you say to her?" Kouha demanded Alibaba accusingly.

"It's fine." Yasmine assured smoothly, saving her student from an otherwise violent fate. "Just a student-teacher thing."

Kouha looked between the two doubtfully but had no time to voice his reservations when a green-eyed woman swooped into the conversation, greeting Yasmine and Alibaba enthusiastically. "Hello! My name is Seishin. You must be Alibaba and Yasmine! Amani told me so much about both of you. Pleasure to finally meet you!"

Alibaba was all too eager to grab the opportunity to escape from the current conversation. "Ah! Is that so? Amani spoke of you too, Miss Seishin. How is she?" He asked the last part eagerly.

Seishin's eyes softened at the blonde's inquiry. "Amani is healthy and happy. She misses you too. I admit that it's cruel and unfair that we're keeping you from her and your nephew. I'll speak about this with Kouen at a later time." Her eyes caught sight of the state of Yasmine's arm. "Ach! That looks painful! How are you still moving? Kouen! Come over here and fix this girl's arm with your fancy magic healing thing!"

"I told you not to call it that, woman." Kouen groused from his position but still came over at her call. When he caught sight of Yasmine, he quickened his pace. "What's broken?" He asked professionally. When Seishin pointed at Yasmine's limp arm, he began unsheathing his sword.

Naturally, Yasmine reared back.

"I do not want my arm amputated in the middle of a battlefield thank you very much!" She hissed defensively. Kouha took her shoulders and tried to calm her down. "No, no, En-nii isn't trying to do anything like that. Look at my arm. It used to be broken but it's all better now because of Phenix, see? He's only trying to use his djinn. Please don't freak out. It'll only be a moment."

After Kouha made it clear that Kouen wasn't trying to maim her, Yasmine forced herself to relax and watched with wide eyes as Kouen's djinn healed her mangled arm within seconds upon its summoning.

Tentatively, Yasmine tested her arm. When she realized that it was working perfectly fine, she closed her eyes in relief and tilted her head in acknowledgement to the eldest prince. "Thank you, Prince Kouen."

Kouha sighed in relief and pulled Yasmine closer. "Thank you, En-nii. Thank you!"

Yasmine jumped at Kouha's closeness and moved away from him a little too quickly. Though the pink-haired prince appeared confused by her reaction, Kouen and Seishin shared a look.

A large, black blast shot towards the sky, disrupting the clouds above it. A shudder ran down Yasmine's spine as she was able to see it clearly with her uncovered eyes.

'That's the medium Shion warned us about. Sai wasn't able to stop it. He wasn't able to bend the rubber band in time.' She realized with growing horror. 'Sai…what happened?!'


Kohaku almost stopped mid-flight when she saw the sky around her darken significantly.

'The medium.' She noted with growing fear. 'Sai wasn't able to prevent it.'

"Princess Kohaku, how unexpected! What are you doing so far from Magnostadt?"

Mismatched eyes widened at the unexpected voice. Kohaku looked down to see a pleasantly smiling Ming Hua. Ming Hua the Cursed Child. Just like that, she felt her stomach drop. Kohaku tried not to regard the woman wearily as she remained floating. 'She doesn't know you know yet.' She reminded herself quietly. 'Keep calm and be ready for any attacks.'

"I-I-I was looking for Papa and Mama." Kohaku made herself stammer nervously. "The Chancellor said that he had something planned for the Kou Troops so I came out to warn them."

Ming Hua stared up at Kohaku with an unreadable look before smiling sweetly.

"Princess Kohaku, please do not worry. Your mother and father are perfectly safe. They were able to drive the dark djinn away without any problems. Why don't you come down here and let me bring you to them?"

Kohaku slowly floated backwards. "I…think I'm fine, Ming Hua. It'll be faster if I find them in the air."

"…I'm afraid that you misunderstand me, Princess."

Ming Hua's eyes narrowed dangerously, which was enough of a warning for Kohaku to move far away from the woman as quickly as she could. Her decision ended up saving her life when a black, worm-like creature attacked her out of nowhere. It was three times her size with a mouth that would undoubtedly swallow her whole if she let it. Its teeth snapped shut on thin air where Kohaku's arm used to be seconds before. The Kou Princess had no time to relax when she was attacked by three more of the same monster.

"It wasn't a request." Ming Hua continued with a sigh. "You really must come down. I need to find someone, you see, and I feel that your presence will help me immensely, Princess Kohaku."

'What are these things?! They don't look like any normal dark djinn.'

Kohaku glanced down at Ming Hua. The woman smiled sweetly once again before pointing a finger at her direction. To the young girl's horror and disgust, multiple mouths and dark patches appeared all over Ming Hua's skin. Then, eerily similar to the way Doron's plants grew from the earth, black worms detached themselves from her skin and fell onto the ground where they quickly grew into monstrous sizes.

"Though you are needed, it does not necessarily mean that I have to catch you unscathed. Just alive. Do try your best in dodging my pets, young Princess."

Kohaku barely had any time to react when the next set of dark worms were sent at her way.


When the dark djinn suddenly ceased their attacks towards the Reim Fleets, everyone was understandably confused.

Maya couldn't help but feel anxious at the eerie quiet that filled the once-chaotic waters upon the absence of their enemies. Despite the reprieve the disappearance of the dark djinn gave her and her comrades, her instincts screamed at her to flee the site immediately.

"Do you feel it too?" She heard Muu inquire quietly. Maya nodded at her husband shortly and shifted into a defensive position. "Something is horribly wrong. Why did they leave so suddenly? It was almost as if they were fleeing from something dangerous."

Just as the words left her mouth, every hair on Maya's body stood on its end as she sensed a foreboding presence.

"How surprisingly astute of you! Though, I shouldn't have underestimated how in touch with your feral side you are!"

And just like that, all of Maya's muscles tensed and she whirled around to face the owner of the voice. There, right above all of them, was a beautiful woman garbed in black. She smiled prettily at her audience, but her eyes were only on one person.

"Hello, pet. I see that you've escaped your collar." She noted with a slight sneer in her voice. The taunt was met with a cold glare.

Maya swallowed a growl. Though her temper had mellowed through her years as a mother, the memory of the one who had placed her in those horrible chains never failed to bring back her old anger. It did not help that this woman tried to kill her Hel.

"And who might you be?" Muu asked politely, stepping beside Maya.

"Well, well, aren't you darling? Stepping up and defending the girl like one of those gallant knights in Sasan!" Eirenne tittered as she regarded Muu with an upturned nose. "It seems that Maya got herself a half-blooded dog as a replacement to my dear husband. How fitting. He matches nicely with that feral mutt of yours."

Muu's expression became colder and colder as Eirenne continued to speak. Myron, Lo'Lo, and the rest of the Finalis Corps didn't appreciate the beautiful woman's words either, growling under their breaths and cracking their knuckles in preparation.

"Captain?" One of Muu's men asked, patiently waiting for the order to bring down 'threat'. It never did well for any aggressor who had or attempted to harm one of their own. And Maya was definitely that and more to them.

"Not yet." Muu murmured. His eyes were still trained on the stranger. "I won't ask again, Miss. Who are you?"

Eirenne giggled, eyes dancing with cruel mirth that made Maya's blood run cold. "A Queen. But for now? Your executioner." She replied sweetly before she attacked. It suddenly struck Maya at that moment that there was something very, very wrong with this situation. Eirenne was somehow able to fly, for one, and Maya explicitly remembered that the woman was not the type to dungeon-dive. There was also no regard, no fear towards the Finalis soldiers as she swooped down to their level. When Maya realized all of this, it was too late.

The Finalis warrior who intercepted Eirenne's attack had been a good man. He was a loyal soldier and an attentive listener and a friend.

And now, he was reduced to a bloody stain on the ship deck.

(Maya always, always viewed Finalis as indestructible. How could she not when her own father had been a pureblood who dominated the Colosseum?)

Eirenne looked at the blood under her feet and grimaced in disgust. "How dirty."

"CATO!"

When she heard a woman's voice shriek out in agony, Maya remembered with a heavy heart that the fallen warrior had also been a very loved husband and a father of two. Maya's mournful mood was quick to shift over to rage as she watched her husband barely meet Eirenne's attack with his own. It was only through the protection of his djinn that he was able to remain in one piece, though he was not without injuries.

Eirenne, on the other hand, was completely unscathed. What Maya had assumed to be her clothing turned out to be something completely different. Eirenne's 'dress' shifted around her skin as if it were alive and absorbed any attacks with ease. It was like some sort of impenetrable armor.

"Oh dear, oh dear!" Eirenne tittered as she threw herself right into Muu's attacks with a smug smile of a victor. "You won't be able to get through defense. I have thick skin, so hurting me is impossible!" She sighed and turned her attention to Maya. "I wanted to make this battle quick so I could move on to my original target, but it seems that I underestimated your husband's tenacity! Djinn equips are powerful as they are beautiful, aren't they?" She commented wistfully, almost enviously. Then, she brightened as a thought hit her. "But wait! Doesn't he have a time limit?"

Just as she said this, Muu's eyes began to tear up with blood and his breaths became labored. Maya's golden eyes widened at the sight.

"He's a half-breed, isn't he? I wonder how much of him would be left when I crush him? There wasn't much left when I took care of the other one. If that's the case, there will be nothing left of that son of yours once I finish him off too, right?" Eirenne taunted. Her intent was clear. She wanted Maya to come into the battle and fight.

She wanted to crush Maya's strength.

She wanted to destroy Maya's happiness.

She wanted Maya dead.

(As always, Maya thought cynically, Eirenne is petty as she is cruel.)

And yet, even as she knew this, Maya wasn't one to stand by idly when everything important to her was threatened. Her sacrifice of her freedom for Armakan had nothing to do with the present.

"Everyone, move back!" Maya barked harshly as she activated her own djinn weapon. She moved to join her husband in battle.

"Ronove!"

She already lost her freedom to this woman. She wasn't about to lose Muu and Hel too.


"You know, maybe we should've waited for your dad to give us the 'okay' before we up and decided to use one of Jamal's teleportation devices." Kikiriku pointed out quite reasonably as the pair stepped into a particularly dark djinn-invested area. When they were immediately attacked at, Shion couldn't help but agree. "Yeah…I sort of didn't think this one through…"

Kikiriku shot multiple ice blasts from his household vessel to keep their supernatural enemies at bay. "You think?" He asked sarcastically.

"Oi! Just be happy that I left a note! That should encourage Father into coming over earlier!" Shion snapped mulishly, taking down and defending himself from the hordes of dark djinn. "It's not my fault he's all reluctant to come over to Magnostadt! And I told him everything!"

"Remember, he's a king. He needs to consider how it'll look for Sindria if he came barging into the battlefield with his awesome djinn equip blazing." Kikiriku reminded his king patiently. Shion sighed. "Yeah, I know. But we really need him here, you know? And I gave him a great excuse by coming here all on my own. As a responsible parent, he obviously has to come here to make sure I didn't do anything stupid."

The Imuchakk teen shook his head. "You would do something stupid, wouldn't you?"

"…Yeah."

Kikiriku rolled his eyes while shooting another dark djinn down. "Don't sound so disappointed. Everyone knows that crazy things happen around you at this point. It's not like it's news."

Shion made a face. Kikiriku rolled his eyes again. "Oh, come off it, Shion. It's practically common knowledge now. Just accept it."

Shion opened his mouth to argue, but was suddenly cut off by a sharp shove to the side. Kikiriku yelped in pain as black thorns bursted free from the ground and wrapped around his legs. Despite his situation, the Imuchakk teen still positioned himself defensively around Shion and looked around for the threat. "Come out!" He challenged loudly. "Come out a face us, you coward!"

The ground began to shake. The dark djinn that had attacked both Kikiriku and Shion with so much fervor suddenly ceased their attacks and fled the area. More thorns sprung from the ground, accompanied by a large rosebud. It unfurled, revealing a smug and triumphant Camilla. "Welcome, Prince Shion, to Magnostadt. Your presence in Magnostadt is unexpected, but not unwelcome."

All humor and confidence that remained between Kikiriku and Shion evaporated instantly, replaced by the extreme focus to survive and a little bit of panic.

"Camilla." Shion spoke her name slowly, almost numbly. "You…I thought that Kougyoku's description on you was only a metaphor about your true feelings."

"That's what you're worried about?!" Kikiriku half-screamed as he hacked at the thorns at his feet. "Priorities, Shion! Priorities!"

Shion winced apologetically. "Sorry, Kikiriku. You're right." He turned his metal vessel into a sword and sliced through the dark plants. He then turned to Camilla with a hard look in his eyes. "So I guess you're here to kill me again, huh?"

"Kill you?" Camilla sighed wistfully. "If only I could. But I have my orders, little prince. You being alive and whole are necessary for our success. Thankfully, this arrangement would only be temporary." She stepped out of her giant rose. "Now, be a good little boy and come with me."

Shion grimaced and raised his sword.

"Yeah…how about no?"


Back in Magnostadt, Selene sat back, completely exhausted. Beside her, Marga shivered and clutched at the older girl's sleeves.

"Is Sphintus going to be okay?" She asked fearfully, looking down at the still form of Sphintus Carmen. "Is he…?"

The blonde did not answer.

Marga's lips trembled. Everything was suddenly so wrong ever since the war started. People were scared, Titus was distressed, and Sai was either angry or sad. Now, Marga's important people were getting hurt and her guardians were nowhere to be seen. "When is Sai coming back? He left to save Titus from that bad man."

Selene tore her gaze from Sphintus' neck at the little girl's statement. She stared at Marga, willing the little girl to explain further with her eyes.

"Sai left to find Titus." Marga repeated.

Comprehension slowly filled the blonde's eyes. Then, the panic began to set in, scaring the little girl even more.

"Selene?"

Selene didn't react to Marga's tentative inquiries. She was too busy reaching over Sphintus' neck and hissing quietly to him almost as if in apology. Selene then did something that confused Marga, but she didn't voice anything. She just watched.

After she was done, Selene was on her feet instantly. She gestured the little girl to stay where she was.

'I will be back.' She signed. Though limited with her understanding of sign language, the hand signs were ones she already knew by heart. Selene always used it when she left and she never failed to keep that promise. It was something that Marga held onto.

"Okay. Please come back safely." She said, trying to sound brave.

Selene looked back down at Sphintus with a sad look in her eyes. She mouthed something to the still healer, but Marga didn't know what it was.

(But it looked very much like 'I'm sorry.')

Then, the blonde left.


"Tell me everything! Right now!"

Yasmine was well aware of Kouha's eldest brother's obsession with gathering knowledge. She even foresaw his reaction far before the idea of grabbing Aladdin and interrogating the little boy crossed the man's mind. But, instead of feeling amusement towards Aladdin's plight (since she knew that Kouen wouldn't have roughed Aladdin up that badly), she only felt heavy resignation as another of Shion's predictions came true in front of her eyes. Shion had confided to her of the agreement between the Crown Prince and the Magi to reveal the secrets of Alma Toran.

And he also spoke of the events that followed after Aladdin's reveal to the rest of the world.

"I think everything turned for the worse after that." Shion had spoken miserably, trying to scrounge up everything he knew from the nonexistent future. "I know nothing of the details but Uncle told me that whatever Aladdin revealed that day…it changed everything."

That event might have done more damage than good, but Yasmine knew an opportunity when she saw it. This was a perfect event to change and bend.

But that could only happen if she was in control of the information.

"Prince Kouen." Yasmine called out loudly, interrupting Alibaba from his vocal defense for his friend. "Drop Aladdin. Please. He only knows of Alma Toran because of me. It's useless to try and squeeze any more out of him."

Which was a lie, of course, but her straight face was flawless and everyone was too busy staring at her to see Aladdin's expression of completely disbelief.

'What are you doing?' His eyes seemed to ask. Yasmine hoped that the brief but sharp glare she sent him was enough to shut him up for the time being.

Kouen, despite his initial surprise at Yasmine's announcement, looked absolutely gleeful. He dropped Aladdin like a hot potato and prowled toward Yasmine. Seishin was quick to swoop in and check on the young magi. She sent one, baleful glare at her husband's back before returning to her motherly ministrations.

"Tell me." Kouen was quick to demand when he was finally up at her face.

"I refuse."

It was shocking how that simple phrase could bring out so many appalled expressions. But, then again, when was the last time a person so blatantly refused Kou Royalty?

"Y-Y-Y-Yasmine, what are you doing?!" Kouha nearly shrieked, trying to get her attention. Yasmine didn't dare break her little staring match with the eldest prince.

While Kouen's expression was quick to turn thunderous, Yasmine didn't back down. What did he really have that would scare her at this point? Her eyes were uncovered, the end of the world was neigh, and the best and maybe only opportunity to prevent the apocalyptic future was hanging right in front of her.

She would not fuck this up.

"You owe me." Kouen said almost childishly. Yasmine had to concede to that point. He did restore her arm. "Yes, and thank you for your generosity, Prince Kouen." She thanked, stressing on the fact that he did it by his own choice. "But, this information is worth far more than my arm, my body, and yes, even my eyes. I'm sorry, but you would have to offer me something far more than that for me to tell you anything."

Miffed by her attitude, Kouen loomed over Yasmine threateningly. "I am Kou's Crown Prince."

"And?"

"I could have you tortured and killed."

Yasmine shrugged. "A pity. I guess I'll have to take the information to the grave, then."

"…What do you want?"

Yasmine suppressed the urge to smile. Instead, she cleared her throat and pointed at the direction of the medium. "First, please send away your soldiers. Though I am confident that Kou's strength is great, what the Chancellor of Magnostadt unleashed upon the battlefield would leave close to no survivors if they remain here. Second, I would greatly appreciate it if you helped destroy the 'medium' that our djinn kindly explained about. It might seem a bit insignificant to you, but it's important for the survival of this entire world that this thing is gone."

Gamigin, who had been summoned by Aladdin's magic, turned to his wielder with a concerned expression. "Blessed Child…perhaps it would be wise if you didn't –"

"I'm negotiating, Gamigin. Please stay out of this." She interrupted her djinn blithely. "Well?" She questioned Kouen lightly, not taking her intimidating eyes off of him. "Do you agree to my terms?"

"Fine, then." Kouen conceded. Despite his minor defeat, the man looked pleased with the arrangement. He appraised Yasmine. "It seems that Kouha has chosen well. I approve." He mused, making her flush bright red.

"Excuse me?!" Yasmine shouted. It was accompanied by a strange, garbling sound that came from a paling Kouha. But her embarrassed shout was completely drowned out by Kouen's loud and demanding summons.

"KOUMEI! HAKURYUU, HAKUEI, KOUGYOKU, AMANI! COME FORTH IMMEDIATELY!"


Kougyoku and Amani were ready for the call.

Both princess stood up from their quiet conversation as maids and guards alike stiffened in surprise before bowing in respect at the voice of their imperial prince. Kougyoku was out of the door first. Her lips were spread into a wide, fierce smile – the trademark blood-lusting Ren smile. She paid no attention to how wild she appeared as she ran to find Koumei.

Amani, on the other hand, was far more graceful in her exit – Fatima had drilled it in her head that grace was most important in a princess' mannerisms – and gave her personal servants enough time to dutifully follow after her.

"Leah, would you do me a favor?" Amani inquired softly. Leah nodded sharply. "Anything, Princess Amani."

"There is a man who is currently standing as Princess Hakuei's bodyguard. Do you remember Tao?" At the blonde maid's nod, Amani continued. "It is important that he is kept away from the queen and the priests who trail after her. I can't tell you why his safety is vital at the moment, but it is essential that he is kept safe and unnoticed. Can you watch after him for me, Leah?"

There was no hesitation.

"Of course, my lady. He will be safe upon your return." And then, in a lower voice, she added, "And please, take care of yourself."

Warmth flooded Amani as she heard the concern in her most loyal maid's words.

But still, she could make no promises.

"I will do my best, Leah."

And that was all. Leah made no other statement other than a heartfelt farewell as she and the rest of the Ren Family – Hakuryuu and Tiare included – were transported into the magician's land where the battlefield lay.

On the other side, Alibaba was there – completely donned in his djinn equip – waiting for her arrival anxiously. His back went ramrod straight when he caught sight of her.

"Amani?"

Amani wished that their reunion was heartfelt and meaningful, but it was cut short by the situation at hand. There was a dark medium on the loose, the Cursed Children were threatening to come out at any moment, and Sai was strangely absent.

Now was not the time.

So, with an apologetic glance at her twin's way, Amani left with Yasmine and Kougyoku to find their wayward member. Solomon knew that they needed him for this battle.


Sai never was fond of equipping into Barbas' form.

That didn't mean that he hated his djinn. No, not at all. The being was actually one of the few who understood the Blessed Child and vice versa with their shared talent in deception. Sai was fond of Barbas.

The djinn equip, on the other hand, was something that Sai could do without.

Unlike Yasmine's super-cool Shinigami djinn equip, Barbas was neither ominous nor intimidating. Sai was surprised when he found out since the djinn's ability to 'steal' was a bit macabre. But alas, Barbas much preferred to hide his true nature when it came to the form he gave his wielders, so Sai was cursed with the form of an insultingly adorable kitsune – ears, tail, claws and all.

That form elicited absolutely no respect or fear to Sai's eternal grief. It was nice to look at, yes – youkai in anime were popular for a reason – but since Sai wasn't the one looking, it was humiliating. (Not that he ever confessed this to Shion and the other Blessed Children.)

Both Amani and Kougyoku thought that the form looked cute. They were especially fond of his ears when he took to the form. Sensitive to the touch and sound, the animal appendages were more of a bother than they were helpful. They were also horribly expressive for anyone who owned a cat or dog, which repulsed Sai from the appearance even further. Aside from certain emergencies, Sai never really bothered to don his fox-eared form.

But this…this was an emergency. And honestly? Sai didn't give a flying fuck about his appearance at this point. All that mattered was that this form gave him the most power to destroy.

With a snarl, Sai ripped apart his twenty-sixth dark djinn monster as he tried to reach the round medium. To his frustration, the thing seemed to sense his intent to harm it and was smart enough to send out many dark djinn creatures at his way. Sai could only count it as a blessing that the vibrant red and orange colors of his pants drew the creatures' attention towards him instead of the screaming citizens below him.

"Just. Let. Me. Kill. You. Already!" Sai gritted out under his breath as he hacked away at the next wave of dark djinn. Frustration mounting quickly at the repetitiveness of the medium's attacks, he finally gave up on his approach to destroy his enemies barehanded and summoned his djinn weapon.

Unlike his chakrams, Sai's weapon in his djinn form was not as exotic or frightening, another reason to hate this form. But, as loathe he was to admit, there were some clear advantages to his seemingly innocuous 'weapon'.

Well, if anyone could call a pair of armor gloves a 'weapon'. Sai personally thought that they looked like useless pieces of accessory to make his djinn equip look pretty and all that, but, again, it had its advantages.

Like its ability to exaggerate Barbas' ability to 'steal'.

Sai stretched out his left hand.

"Steal."

In moments, his left hand turned black and multiple djinn monsters ceased their attacks abruptly. Or, it was more like their physical attacks had no longer had any affect. Lowering his darkened hand, Sai raised his right hand and clenched it into a fist.

"Die."

In a flash, Sai flew through every single dark djinn that were affected by his 'steal'. He punched through the whole lot of them in one go with his stolen strength and watched with satisfaction as the dark djinn shattered.

Sai's ears then twitched when he heard the faint sound of many somethings flying toward him. He turned to face whatever was coming in preparation only to almost drop from the sky in surprise.

Three smiling faces filled his vision.

"Sai," Amani greeted warmly, looking radiant and so happy to see him, "I see that you've decided to join us in defeating the medium."

"Who's joining who? I've been trying to destroy this thing ever since it was created." Sai jabbed back with as much humor as he could muster in his current emotional state. Kougyoku grinned and Yasmine snorted.

"What happened anyways? Weren't you supposed to stop this thing?"

Sai's smile wavered at Yasmine's question. "Something…came up. I sort of ran into my old man. Bad luck, I know. Sorry."

Kougyoku, ever so insightful, was quick to catch onto the things that Sai didn't say.

"Hey…it's fine that you didn't stop this thing's creation. That plan was a long shot anyways. More importantly, are you all right? There's something else that's wrong, isn't there?"

Sai didn't answer.

"Sai?" Amani asked gently. "If you have a problem, you can tell us. We're all here for you."

Yasmine grunted in agreement.

Sai was filled with the sudden urge to tell them everything. He wanted someone else to know. He wanted to cry. He wanted to properly mourn, dammit. And who else were better to help him than the three people in front of him?

"…Mou, let's not waste any more time here. We have that big, bad medium to destroy, remember? Let's focus on that."

But…now was not the time.

(You coward.)

"If you're sure…" Kougyoku trailed off uncertainly. Amani raised her hand and shook her head. "No. He's right. The others are waiting for us. Now is not the time. We need to go." She turned to Sai. "We'll talk later, won't we?"

Right. He'll tell them all about it later.

Sai smiled reassuringly. "Of course, Bee-chan. Why wouldn't I?"

"Then let's go and help out the others."

…Later.


"Ah, that hurt." Raul whined to himself as he came to. He rubbed at his head absentmindedly as he struggled back onto his feet. "I underestimated him. Sai was far more powerful than I thought. And it used all that power on me! What a rebellious son."

Despite how angry the words seemed, Raul's tone showed none of that. Instead, his tone and actions seemed pleased with the new development.

"He'll be a menace one day." Raul concluded, sounding a little proud. "But not yet."

He paused at his musings when he heard the shift of the rocks. The magician scientist tilted his head to the side as he waited patiently for the newcomer to walk into the light. To his utmost glee, a familiar blonde stepped into the light, blowing away any previous thoughts about his son's recent attack.

"Selene! I was wondering where you were!" Raul greeted her with a wide smile. He stretched his arms open welcomingly as she walked over to him. "I just lost your brother – but don't worry! I'll find him and then we can leave this place."

Selene stared at Raul with blank, dispassionate eyes. Raul took no mind to this. Many of his test subjects had a similar look. And they managed to serve their purpose just fine, didn't they? But still, Raul knew that it was necessary to emotionally comfort his daughter since he needed her functional, not any more broken than she already was.

"Is there something wrong?" He tried. "Was it because of what I did to your companion back there? I'm sorry if my actions scared you." His brow furrowed as a thought hit him. "Were you attached to the boy?"

His last question seemed to hit a very sore spot. Selene swiped at Raul, her fingers revealing a small needle. The man barely managed to avoid the small weapon, jumping away with grace.

"Ah, ah, your brother already pulled something similar on me, Selene. I won't be easily tricked this time." Raul warned her with a humoring smile. Selene glared back coldly, brandishing her small weapon threateningly. "And as much as I'd love to see how talented you are, your father is a bit busy. I need to be prepared, you see."

He glanced up at the darkened sky.

"My prey has flown into my little trap. I think that it's time for it to spring right about…now."

Selene's eyes widened as the ground began to glow with Toran symbols, stretching like a ribbon through and beyond the room in a right angle. Raul laughed, delighted by the recent turn of events. "My friends should be keeping ahold of the other corners. Those Blessed Children won't even stand a chance against this."

Raul was cut of by a powerful tremor on the ground. The glow of the Toran symbols dimmed a little as he attempted to realign his balance.

Selene took advantage of his distraction and lunged.


'No way…'

Kougyoku stared with blank terror as she witnessed the recently turned medium doll strip Kouen from his djinn equip with one swipe. And then, with its other arm, it caught Alibaba too.

'No way no way no way no way!'

Kougyoku shakily raised Vinea as she stared at the face of…of…she didn't know what it was. The last time she witnessed something this atrocious was when she spoke with Queen Gyokuen.

"Tiare, leave and help any citizen or soldier evacuate from this area," Hakuryuu ordered his household member strictly as his eyes took in the scene with horror, "I want you away from here. This is a command."

Tiare, though reluctant to abandon her master, was well aware of how dangerous the situation was. She had learned her lesson back in the dungeon after her unique transformation. She knew she wouldn't be as fortunate now.

With a single sweep of her wings, Tiare shot away from the battlefield, much to Hakuryuu's visible relief.

Kougyoku honestly felt relieved too. As powerful

"Dammit. It already turned into its doll form." Yasmine growled from Kougyoku's side. Her words came out in short, sharp breaths. Despite her efforts in eliminating the dark djinn, her previous battle had worn her down to the point that she struggled to keep up with the others. Then, she winced. "Holy shit, what did that thing do to them?"

Kougyoku's eyes might not have been far-reaching as Yasmine's, but she could see well enough to realize that her eldest brother no longer wore his djinn equip. He was also significantly…less of himself than he was before.

Kougyoku felt a familiar rush of burning anger as she witnessed the wounds. Her grip tightened on her weapon before she let out an enraged shriek, summoning many, many water spears into the air as she did so.

"I'll destroy you for that, you monster!"

She barraged her water weapons onto the wretched creature relentlessly, eager to use her anger to at least graze the thing in front of her.

Much to her surprise, and to the surprise of everyone else, some of her attacks managed to break through whatever defense the creature was putting up. Her water spears ripped through the creature's skin, injuring it significantly.

Hope and satisfaction trilled at her core as she lifted Vinea to repeat her attack. "Again!"

The sound of skin giving way to her water spears was music to Kougyoku's ears.

"Everyone! It's the hands!" Yasmine barked as her eyes caught sight of everything, "As long as those freakish hands don't block your attacks, it'll hit!"

"Don't move around recklessly." Kouen warned them all from the ground. Much to Kougyoku's relief, he had already used Phenix to knit up most of his wounds. "Koumei! Direct them!"

Everything from there was like an overpowered, lethal game of hot potato. Thanks to Koumei's direction, every dungeon conqueror managed to get a hit onto the doll.

And yet, despite the powerful attacks that everyone piled onto the creature, Kougyoku's sight told her that it did not make the thing falter even the slightest bit. The threat still remained and everyone was getting tired.

"Again." Kougyoku chanted under her breath as she summoned a tsunami, which was followed by her signature water spears. "Again. Again. I need to destroy that thing before it…before it…"

'Before it sucks the life out of everything that I care about.'

(Because she knew that once the medium started taking the rukh – the essence of life itself – it would never ever stop until there was nothing left. And the certainty of that very fact scared her.)

But how? Kouen, who was arguably the strongest out of everyone, was beginning to falter. Seishin, who had faced many hopeless situations in the past and survived, looked desperate. Hakuryuu, who pushed himself harder than anyone Kougyoku knew, sent attacks that grew weaker and weaker in succession. Koumei was tiring out. Hakuei was already defeated. Amani was running out of ideas. Yasmine and Kouha were barely holding onto their djinn equip. And Sai…he was…

…What was he doing?

Unlike the others, who smelled of metallic desperation, Sai appeared and was calm. Kougyoku realized that he hadn't done a thing throughout the whole battle.

"Sai, why aren't you doing anything?! Can't you see that we're all about to die?" Kougyoku nearly shrieked. She felt like crying or throwing up at the sheer hopelessness of the situation. Or both. And here Sai was, fooling around like nothing was wrong. "We need your help!"

"Shhh," Sai had the gal to hush her as if she was some unruly child in the library. His foxlike ears flicked back in annoyance. Kougyoku nearly went over to the shape shifter to punch him for how lightly he was treating the situation. Any other time, she would've accepted his attitude as part of his personality, but not this time. "I'm trying to focus, Kou-chan. I almost got it. This thing's power isn't the easiest to 'steal', you know."

Kougyoku's eyes widened as Sai, with some difficulty, grabbed at some invisible force with his hand and pulled.

"Extreme Magic."

And then, a miracle happened:

The medium buckled. The land under its grotesque feet ceased its slow death and trembled only slightly in celebration before falling silent.

With a smug smirk Sai lazily drifted over to the doll and placed his hand on it. With a great, horrible shudder, the magoi that it stole slowly began transferring over to the Blessed Child. The medium's many hands began swarming around Sai, trying to pry him off only to quicken the magoi-transferring process.

"No…way…" Kouha muttered in disbelief when he came over to Kougyoku's side. Awe and reluctant respect poured from her brother's body language. "Is Shambal really taking that thing down all on his own?"

"Yeah."

"Wow."

Kougyoku had to give it to him. Sai was pretty damn impressive when he wanted to be. It was easy for even her to forget that Barbas had the most frightening ability out of all four of them. Amani could copy a djinn equip, yes, but having the ability to steal any power? Any ability?

It was both a blessing and a curse that Sai decided to use this ability sparingly.

"Thank goodness." Aladdin sighed in relief. "It's almost over."

But he spoke too soon.

At the corner of Kougyoku's vision, a line of bright symbols lit up on the ground, boxing around the medium and the djinn users. Before she could understand what it was, she heard someone shout.

No, she heard Sai shout.

She turned around in alarm as she saw the medium's hands attacking Sai with fervor, stripping him of his djinn equip. Or…was it that it had fallen away on its own? Whichever it was, the lack of armor inconvenienced Sai since he no longer had the ability to protect himself or fly. Kougyoku let out a shout as she flew into the crowd of hands – which appeared less nightmarish and scary for some reason – and grabbed Sai.

The touch of the hands burned as they blindly touched her. The lack of visions around Sai was alarming despite the stuttering heartbeat that she felt as she held onto her friend.

Actually, the lack of visions in general was beginning to freak her out. Even more than the horrible pain those magoi-sucking hands were causing her. She forced herself to fly out of their grasps and into the open. Right at the moment she was out, Kougyoku's djinn equip fell away.

They fell.

Koumei was quick to spirit the falling pair away from the creature before it stripped them completely of their skin.

Someone caught her – she didn't know who – but she didn't really care. Everything hurt and something was very, very wrong. Why couldn't she see the ghostly representations of everyone's feelings? Why did the medium appear less frightening than Kougyoku knew it was?

Then, a horrible thought hit the Kou Princess.

Mustering up the remaining energy that she had, Kougyoku reached out for the thoughts of someone, anyone, so she could put her worries to rest. She waited for a moment, stomach sinking lower and lower as the seconds passed.

Nothing

Kougyoku vainly tilted her head as if that movement alone would shatter the silence.

Nothing


In one moment, everything was under control. It was almost fine, even.

Kouha should've known that 'fine' never happened that easily.

Within a span of a minute, everything was sent back into hell right after Shambal managed to achieve something that made him hope that the end of the battle was near. Now, Shambal and his sister were in critical condition and the freaky monster was back at sucking the magoi from everything it could reach.

And Yasmine was acting strangely. Her flight, which used to be smooth and purposeful, now looked unsteady as an expression of pure panic filled her face. She paid the rampaging creature no mind as she aimlessly flitted around the sky, grabbing at thin air as if searching for something.

Kouha was at her side in an instant. He grabbed her hands, making her flinch almost fearfully. Her surprised reaction would've made him feel successful in the past, but now it only made him even more worried.

"Yasmine?"

She reacted to his voice. "Kouha?"

"What's wrong?" Kouha moved his hands to her shoulders, even daring to make eye contact with her. But, no matter how much he tried, she refused. "Yasmine?"

"Kouha," Yasmine trembled, "I don't know what happened. Everything suddenly went dark and now I can't see."

Kouha stared, horror slowly sinking into his mind as Yasmine's refusal to look at him in the eye made sense.

"I can't see."


And here I leave all of you until the next chapter. I apologize for the cliffhanger, but it is necessary for the story. I think we're two chapters away from finishing this arc! Yay!

Now, some Clarifications:

The Cursed Children's Abilities: As I said before, they're both very similar and very different to the dark djinn equip users. Unlike them, they don't need to stab themselves to achieve their power. Raul found an alternative way to control the dark rukh to his favor. Each ability shown in this chapter are just a little taste of their actual power, so the Blessed Children have a lot to go against!

Jamal, Hel, Opal, and Askan?: They're having a bit of a technical difficulty with the rowboat. But they'll appear in the next chapter to save the day!

Yasmine's Deal: To be clear, Yasmine knows nothing about Alma Torran. Actually, she probably knows the least about that place compared to the rest. But, since she's well aware that stretching the rubber band is a priority, she reacted. How she'll deal with the consequences of her rash actions is to be seen in the future chapters.

Sai's Djinn Equip: Finally! This description was actually the main reason why this chapter took so long. Barbas was originally supposed to be a hyena, but I thought that it was better fitting to use a fox instead since the appearance gives Sai a reason not to use the djinn equip so much. His appearance is very similar to Sinbad's Folacor Djinn Equip. (Ah, Inuyasha references.) The ability, on the other hand, was planned long before. Barbas, though cuddly looking, is not a djinn to be messed with. The ability has its weaknesses, like everything else, which will be revealed in a future date.

Shion and Kohaku?: Both need to be kept alive for Al Thamen's plans.

Raul's Web: Raul created this 'web' with the help of science, magic, and deciphering Toran. He's a genius for a reason. Since the Cursed Children knew that the Blessed Children would be anywhere near the rampant medium, the plan was to "cage" them in Raul's spell while all four members keep hold of the corners of the magical square. The affects of the "cage"...well, you're all smart. You can make a guess.

Now that everything is clarified, I have a couple questions for all of YOU:

1. First, which of my characters do you most relate to and which do you want to be like? (Could be same character.)

2. Though I didn't make an Omake for this chapter, I'm thinking of making another mini-series called "Mirror, Mirror", which centers around the idea of Aladdin finding a mirror that links to an alternate universe ("Children of Solomon" to canon) and the characters talk to their alternate selves. Should I do this or focus on others things? And which character should I do first?

3. After I finish "Children of Solomon" (or if I can find the time, really) I'm considering making a Hogwarts AU and a Modern AU. If I do this, which should I work on first?

Here are the summaries:

Blame It on the Wrackspurts
Hogwarts AU: Amani, Yasmine, Kougyoku, and Sai didn't have time for prophecies, let alone defeating Dark Lords. It was better to leave that to someone else. Their plates were full enough with the upcoming N.E.W.T exams and winning the Quidditch Cup.

Magiverse
A modern take on "Children of Solomon". In the digital world, Shion is the youngest gamer in the popular game 'Magiverse' to earn the title of 'Dungeon Conquerer'. In the real world, he's just a child trying to win money to pay for his mother's hospital fees. But to do that, he'd need to become 'King', a title that is currently being fought over by two very powerful players.

I'll be waiting eagerly for your responses!

Thank you for your support and patience! I love you all!

Until next time!