Kingdom Hearts

Ch. 73

Agrabah

True Friends?

In a dark room with poor lighting the walls and stairs were hardly visible. A caldron containing a illuminating green substance in the middle of the room was the only source of light. Maleficent held Iago over the caldron with a casual face displaying her calmness and confidence. Jafar, Carpet, and Genie watched as the woman lowered Iago in the illuminating caldron causing it to glow brighter. After it faded the woman lifted the bird out of the caldron with him coughing loudly.

"Holy moly. What is this stuff?" The bird flailed with the green liquid dripping off him.

"Iago!" they all shouted. Jafar ran over and picked up Iago with everyone taking part in a group hug.

"Oh, how can I thank you a Miss?" Jafar asked graciously.

"Maleficent," she responded.

"Oh!" Jafar shivered remembering what the girl Cynthia said. "The daughter of Maleficent."

"Mother!" shouted a girl coming downstairs. It was Cynthia who was battered and burnt from head to toe. She shrugged downstairs nearly falling over. "We're under attack. By a tall scrawny man with a destructive and annoying talking bird. We have to do something," she yelled.

"Scrawny?" Jafar replied.

"Destructive sure but annoying?" Iago remarked shaking the liquid off his feathers.

Cynthia screamed out loud starring at her previous advisories. "What the heck are you guys doing here?" The girl shouted with a shocked face. She ran towards Maleficent like an upset child. "Mother these men attacked me and destroyed the chandler and my favorite book."

Maleficent knelt down to her daughter. "Cynthia your shocked and confused."

"Huh?" Cynthia answered back.

Maleficent smiled turning to Jafar "I have to thank you. It seems you sparked a little bit of emotion into my daughter."

"What no Mother!" Cynthia cried.

"From what these men tell me. You're the one who attacked them. They are our guests. How dare you offer them such poor hospitality," Maleficent spoke with a firm and serious tone.

"What no. I was just doing my duty," Cynthia pleaded.

"We will speak of this later," Maleficent said calling upon a portal of darkness behind Cynthia. The girl tripped falling into the dark portal disappearing with it.

"Madame, please tell me how did you do that. This power that you hold," Jafar asked intrigued with Iago perched on his shoulder.

"My friend. This is the power of darkness." She took up her staff and circled her hand around the orb. Green light orbited around her. "Are you aware of the contents of the heart?" she asked.

Jafar brushed his straight beard. "Yes I'm familiar with it. A heart is a person's being."

Maleficent sighed, "No, no. You have no idea. Please come with me." She transported them to a long hall in the top tower of the castle. Jafar saw the same glass sigil that caught his eye when he came to this world.

Maleficent lifted her hands towards the sigil in the building and declared. "We live in the realm of light. Our bodies are conceived here but our hearts come from someplace else. The realm of darkness. You see there is darkness in every heart. But being born here causes light to remain dominant. As we coexist with all the lights of the Earth. People believe that light resembles good and darkness resembles evil. But that is not the truth. Darkness is power and knowledge and if one taps into such a power. He may become more than any hero of light ever could be. With it we can obtain the truth and move beyond our wildest dreams. That is the essence of darkness."

"Darkness is the truth, and the truth is knowledge," Jafar said to himself as the flickers of darkness swirled around his hand.

"Yes, now understand?" she said facing away from him.

"Please teach me in the ways of darkness," Jafar humbly asked.

Maleficent turned her head and grinned back at him. She lifted here free hand as a staff of flames burst into her hands. The fires receded revealing a bronze staff with the head of a cobra planted with red eyes. She then threw the staff at Jafar for him to catch.

"Let's get started," she said. The room went dark with the two figures coercing with each other.

6 months went by as Jafar the Hated Scientist has fully moved passed the days where he treaded the sandy plains of Agrabah. For 6 months, Jafar remained an apprentice to Maleficent as she taught him the ways of darkness. She taught him how to control and summon the heartless. How to use darkness to travel from world to world? But the first and most important lesson was to abandon the Genie claiming that the power of darkness is greater than any wish. Genie pleaded with his friend who seemed to inch farther and farther away every time he lusted after darkness. Iago was also enriched with it. As Jafar was able to use his powers to obtain a substantial living for them. The Carpet stayed in his life but remained distant as the darkness in his heart frightened the fabric. Jafar did not keep his word with the Genie. He trapped him in the lamp and hid it until it was time to use his third wish. Genie became extra lonesome as he again had been stripped of his freedom until the day when Jafar finally desired him. Thanks to the Genies magic, Jafar became a sorcerer surpassing many of Maleficent's allies despite his lack of experience and he eventually became the youngest member of her inner circle. Where he was made aware of all Maleficent's plans and even could contributed to them.

Upon entrance Maleficent revealed the truth of the 7 maidens to Jafar because she'd knew he'd be of use. "Jafar, I tell you this now because through some of our spies we discovered where to find one."

Jafar who has now grown old, and his beard has become twisted spoke straightening his facial hair, "Yes tell me."

Maleficent pointed to a large silver table at the center of the room. The table was a hologram projector displaying a picture showing a 6-year-old girl playing with a Tiger cub. "This girl is one of 7 who has the ability to open the door. You must go there and watch over her making sure nothing happens to the Princess."

"Yes but what world does this girl dwell in?" Jafar asked walking over to the table.

Maleficent humorlessly answered, "Your birth world of course. She is the future Princess of Agrabah." After speaking the current Sultan appeared on the orbs monitor. Picking up his daughter and taking her away.

Jafar's calm grin turned to a foul frown. "Oh know please. You have to be joking."

"You're already a citizen from this world. You wouldn't stand out much," Maleficent explained.

"Madame, I've left that world behind me and vowed never to set my foot on its baron sands again."

Maleficent starred at him intently, "Jafar you are the only one capable of this and you will watch over her until I call upon you to bring her here." Jafar turned the other way in a fit of anger. Maleficent waved her hands calling forth two men to step forward. The men wore cloaks over their bodies and had green eyes. One with a white cloak and the other with a black cloak. "These are my 11th and 12th sons Snake and Sever. They will accompany you on your mission."

"Nice to meet you boss. Mother speaks highly of you," said Sever revealing a snake tongue.

"She also mentioned you should work out more. You're like skin and bones," said Snake bluntly.

"Skin and bones?" remarked Jafar.

Sever bent his neck in annoyance. "What's with you telling everybody things they shouldn't know."

Maleficent came over to Snake bashing him on the head with her staff speaking, "You'd better keep your mouth shut about this operation or I'll cut your tongue out."

Jafar shrugged as a portal of darkness appeared before him. "How long should this take?" he asked.

"Depends on how long it takes till we're ready. But probably more than a few years," Maleficent explained.

He gritted his teeth, "Figures." He slowly but bitterly walked through the door with Snake and Sever as well as Iago and the Carpet following him from behind.

The old man stepped foot on familiar bearing. He saw the cloudless sky and felt the dry hot air on his skin. Jafar the Hated Scientist found himself on top of a building giving him a good look at the Palace in front of him.

Iago flew on his shoulders, "So this is your home. What a dump."

Jafar nodded, "You can say that again."

"What you don't feel a bit nostalgic seeing your childhood home?" Iago asked.

Jafar looked out seeing the merchants sell their goods while their wife's did the laundry. Everyone remained covered by their clothes to avoid the worlds intense sunlight. He saw ordinary men and woman summon water out of jars. He then looked at the giant Palace up high and remarked, "Nothing has changed."

Sever remarked, "Well at least, you didn't miss much then."

Jafar shook his head, "This desolate world only breeds struggle and death. Nothing grows or improves. This world only survived because of the magic of the Genie-e." Jafar then realized something he had forgotten long ago. "Yes, the Genie."

He turned to Sever and Snake and asked them, "Tell me what's the best way to watch over the Princess?"

Snake thought to himself and answered, "Well I think maybe you should become the Sultan's advisor and use that staff Mother gave to hypnotize the ruler. He'd be your puppet and you'd secretly rule the kingdom."

Jafar laughed, "That would be very smart but why settle for the Sultan's advisor when I can go farther up the latter. No the top of the latter." Jafar took off his hat and stuck his hand in it. He then pulled out the magic lamp. The same lamp that gave him the ability to traverse to other worlds. He rubbed the lamp hard summoning the Genie for the first time in years.

Smoke exited the lamp revealing the Genie in a strait jacket. "Get me out of here. I'm not crazy. You're all crazy." Genie stopped realizing he's been released once again. He turned to Jafar after seeing they have returned to Agrabah. "Oh buddy old pal. You came back. For the first couple of months I actually thought you forgot me."

He hugged Jafar whispering in his ear, "And now you just say the word and set me free. It's not hard. Just say Genie I wish for your freedom."

Jafar whispered back into Genie's ear. "I wish to be Sultan."

Genie moved back, "Okay, hold on I think I have something in my ear." He stuck his finger in his ear pulling out a tiny bug that was blocking his hearing. "Know please repeat."

Jafar spoke a little louder, "Genie my third wish. I wish to rule on high as Sultan."

Genie laughed trying to comprehend what his friend just said. "Jafar you're just kidding right. I mean we made a promise."

Jafar grabbed Genie's beard bringing him down to eye level. "Promise with you. Do you think I'd ever waste my wish on someone else? Let alone the very Genie that grants it."

Genie turned sad backing away. "Wow, Jafar you okay? Are you still yourself?"

Jafar smiled, "Of course not. No, I'm something much more. Now do as your told slave. Make me Sultan."

Genie almost began to tear up. "Well your wish is my command master." He lifted his hand while it shook. The Carpet couldn't watch while Iago contemplated what was going on.

He snapped his fingers causing magic to erupt over the Palace.

Inside the walls of the Palace, Jasmine was playing with Raja as her Father watched his daughter on his throne. Clouds soon moved around the castle. This caught the attention of Dust who was walking down a long hall. Jasmine stopped playing as a shiver went down her spine. She quickly ran to the comfort of her Father hugging him. "My what's wrong dearest?" he said humbly.

But before she could answer the Sultan began to float in the air because of magic. "Wa wa oh my." His body lifted off the ground. Someone please help me," he shouted.

"Father," a young Jasmine said frightened looking up to him. The Sultan's special ring that he wore to signal his royal power flew off his finger along with his cape and hat. They levitated up into the air as the Sultan crashed back to the ground. Jasmine then hugged her father again as he looked up to see his royal trinket's fly up to the sky.

The guards became wiry as no one knew what was going on. They panicked running down the halls drawing their swords. The Sultan saw his ring fly up into the hand of Jafar who was floating in the sky as his shadow casted on the two royals. Heartless began to overrun the castle causing the current Immortals to fight them off.

The people of Agrabah all felt something was wrong. People left their houses as they all looked at the clouds circling the Palace. One of which was a young boy wearing a fez with a baby monkey by his side watched from the market place holding a stolen apple.

Back in the Castle, Jasmine too afraid to look up kept her eyes hidden in the shirt of her Father. The Sultan bravely looked up at Jafar with Iago on his shoulder. Both staring down at him smiling. "What's the meaning of this. Who are you?" the Sultan declared.

Jafar opened his mouth, "Why, I'm just a friend."