Mozenrath looked up as the door to his lab was pulled open, and Hannah entered leading the team of Agrabanians to retrieve the chest.
Traitor, he thought.
She had clearly lost her magic but the tattoos were still there, and she flinched when her eyes landed on him.
He really must be a sight, with the obvious sweat and pain from the loss of the genie magic, he hadn't moved all that much sense as if it would cause more pain.
Aladdin snatched the chest from the far wall, as Razul and Radu kept an eye on the dark wizard.
"Why are you watching him?" Iago snapped at them, "Al's got the treasure-let's go!"
They followed without question, and even his former cacptive turned to leave.
"Hero wins?" Xerxes asked with question.
Hannah stopped, last to follow the street rat, and turned slowly as if watching for anyone to notice her, and walked over to the wizard.
"Hero didn't win, nor did he lose either, Xerxes," Hannah said, drawing a wet cloth from a nearby basin near Mozenrath.
"What are you doing?" Mozenrath asked his mind drawing a blank, but he was too skittish from his the rejection of genie power to move.
In truth, she had no idea what she was doing, but for some odd reason, she felt like she owed him for letting her live. She took the small cloth, squeezed out a majority of the water, and coming almost too close for comfort, wiped the sweat from his brow.
Their eyes barely srayed from one another.
"Savage," he muttered in an almost teasing tone.
"Mad man,"
He smirked, "You'll be the first to have escaped my madness so easily,"
"And probably the last; no mad man makes the same mistake twice."
"Nor does a savage,"
She blinked, Was that a complement?
She heard footsteps coming back, and stepped away barely noticing that he had taken her hand in his.
"You do still owe me one wish,"
Her brow rose, "I am not a genie,"
He seemed to pick up on the coming footsteps and released her hand, "You should go," he looked away, and Hannah knew to leave now, and left closing the door behind her, and with Razul there to escort her back to the good-guy party, returned to Agrabah.
"That's it?" Xerxes looked at his master.
Mozenrath looked up at his familiar and down to the wash basin, his not so evil heart having a small change. "Not quite," he inhaled a cool breath of air, "Our dealings with Agrabah will never be over."
"Revenge?"
"Not today-I want time to re-adjust to how I used to be before gaining cosmic powers,"
"You were cosmic," Xerxes tried to sound supportive.
"But if I had taken all of her power there's a strong chance that I would have become a slave to the will of another,"
"Genie slave?" Xerxes clarified.
"Yes, Xerxes, a slave," he paused, and looked at his hand.
Why had I snatched her hand? Did I really want a non-magical being in my presence? Or . . .
He knew the answer, but pondered the other options absently.
He wanted his last wish.
He wanted the genie to stay and serve him until death took him.
Besides they'd be useful lab assistants, if not already drained of power.
But Hannah's not a genie anymore; just a savage serving Agrabah.
Hannah sat in her quarters, back in Agrabah staring out into the cosmos of the night sky. The balcony was not elegant, but it made for a good view of the city and the palace. Her eyes could see everything from the lights in various homes to the silk drapes dance at the royal apartment windows. Hannah stared at the stars though what she was to do now.
Her squire had been promoted by the real sultan when they returned to Agrabah, and she and the elite brothers shared a drink at a local pub, and she had turned in early. Everyone involved had been awarded handsomly for their troubles, including Iago. She had met up with Sadira and Jasmine and determined that there was no more real magic within. Only a small flicker of what she used to be, but that had been declared as part of what remained with her tattoos.
Perhaps she did really owe Mozenrath that one wish, whatever it was.
She slept restlessly her thoughts reflecting on her cruel treatment, yet she had been fed, and served him as he desired.
Was that not so different than here in Agrabah?
I get paid for what I do here, she told herself, when she awoke once and stared at her bruised hands where she had clung to the catwalk railing.
But she felt still tied to her slave life.
Her eyes lingered on her bruised yet flawless hands for a moment longer, and closed her eyes again to make another attempt to sleep.
It had been a couple of weeks since the fight against Mozenrath, when a letter was delivered to Hannah while training the new recruits. She stared at the black wax, and the serpant emblem stamped into it and felt a tiny grin flicker on her face. She slid it into her quiver having no where else to place it, and continued her duty, teaching her trainees how to aim an arrow.
That night as she sat in her quarters, she carefully pealed the seal away, and unfolded the parchment.
"Hannah DuBoius, knight of Agrabah;
"Hopefully this will reach you untampered. I have been doing a lot of thinging recently about mundane things and considered sharing some with you, because I have no wish to press them upon Xerxes a second or third time.
"You must be wondering why I am trusting you with such . . . ponderings. Let's be clear in that I will never trust you after your stunt with the lamp, but the fact that you didn't execute me when given the chance tells me that there is perhaps something between us. Be warned; I prefer myself and my work over a relationship so don't think that is why I am writing.
"I was considering offering you a new life. With me and Xerxes. I have never been beaten by a woman more capable than you, besides the royal princess who had more luck on her side than you.
"I am not asking for a guardian, or a slave. I was thinking an apprentice-ship was more in order. Assist me with my work, and my magic. Despite being without any power you are more knowledgable than the magicians I have conquered.
"This was going to be my last wish DuBoius, that you would stay and serve as an assistant. Free of any fees, save for whatever you break, but you would never be paying for anything again. But I don't pay either; payment is the gift of knowledge and wisdom.
"If you are interested, you know where to find me.
"Sincerely in your debt,
"Mozenrath, Lord of the Land of the Black Sand".
Hannah sat still re-reading the words carefully, considering his offer.
How would I inform my superiors here? She bit her lip, shocked that she was actually considering this offer.
She slept on the offer for now, making certain the letter was in a place no one would be found. She would think on it for a while, then make her decision.