This story is turning out to have a rather slowish start. Hopefully enough people like it though, despite that.

Doremishine itsuko - thanks for the review. And thanks to anyone who have followered/ favourited so far!

Chapter 2

In all his years of tenuous dealings with Kou, Sinbad knew he was yet to meet the Emperor's wife. And as such early the next morning, on the beginning of a colourful day lacking any noticeable breeze, he along with his two most trusted generals were taken to a small hut annexed to the palace. The moment that he laid eyes on Gyokuen Ren, he was grateful that both Jafar and Musrur kept close to him. The woman proved...unsettling to say the least.

"I wanted to talk to you about Balbadd," she had said immediately, both calmly and abruptly, not long after the three men had entered. She sat with the illusion of patience in the rose-hued hut as she sipped tea and left her attendants outside. She didn't seem to be all patient to him; if anything it seemed almost calmly aggressive for any ruler – let alone a woman – to be so confident.

"Alright; I think your Lord Priests seem to be running late. So we might have time to discuss that," he agreed. Even if to Sinbad it seemed a rather rude observation, he couldn't help notice Gyokuen appeared a lot younger than a nearing fifty year old woman would look like. Her face was pleasant, her features sweet and with that etched and kind smile that seemed to be almost a mask. She had been the wife of two emperors, two brothers, and had mothered four children with the second.

She watched him curiously, serene and soft light blue eyes locked to him and seemingly as guarded as he was. To him it seemed they were unsuccessfully attempting to gauge each other. Her painted lips, like frozen petals caught in endless winter, were poised and seemed to be wondering what to say. They also offered him something that was either a polite smile or a condescending sneer. "They will be here soon, their training is very important. But I did hear that you were in Balbadd recently from Abhmad Saluja – is that true?"

"I was there," he nodded. "I actually passed through the capital Sram on my way here. As I wasn't there long I didn't notice much. There was an uprising there, and it looked fairly horrible. I chose to leave many of my best men to deal with their – Fog Troupe was it?" He looked over to Jafar questioningly, and his general nodded silently. "Hence I'm here with these two – but they're more than enough, fighting wise..." he watched Gyokuen look over the two men, one petite and fair and the other tall and muscular, standing rigidly behind their sitting king. "They were offering help to any he needed. If you're sending armies there, it seems you're doing the same thing."

"Of course..." the Empress agreed. There had been no immediate sign of Kou intruding on Balbadd, which had surprised him. However they had been surprisingly quick to occupy it once the country had fallen. Instead he knew what he had heard, that there had been some other involvement. It seemed to be a shadowy, unnamed organisation that had supplied the rebels with strange magical weapons and had dealings with the king there. Sinbad hadn't been there long however; he just knew this organisation had some link to Kou. He just knew the Empress was unlikely to verify the hushed whispers of a darkness stirring under the empire's veneer of calm.

"There was something interesting however," he continued levelly. This was a little of a white lie, but seeing that demonic-like black djinn yesterday had him curious of something."I heard rumours even in the little time I spend there. The citizens spoke of monsters appearing – I think they talked of something like giant, dark demons? I've never heard anything like it of course; have you? Perhaps someone was interfering in Balbadd, or the usurpers had some kind of strange magic. I wasn't sure what to think about something like that."

Gyokuen's eyes widened ever so slightly; which he took as her mask slipping and the woman was nervous. She paused for several long moments. "Indeed, I've never heard of anything like that." Which was strange, Sinbad thought, seeing as Kou had one black djinn which they gave to a particular reckless Magi of theirs. "But you do have a good eye for noticing that much. Abhmad did say the thieves there used strange devices so that could be it – how strange. He also writes that their leader was some bastard prince originating from the slums. A common bastard, seeing to spill royal blood – can you imagine such a heinous act?"

Sinbad smiled slightly; of course, the Empress would care little for bastard princes such as Alibaba Saluja. The odds are, she didn't see her present company as a worthy king, either. He had simply taken a country which he worked hard for, united a seven nation alliance far to the south and had not been born to such things. Sinbad really cared little for people like her. "No, it's fairly outrageous. But I'm curious; Abhmad you say is a good king; he graciously allowed your armies to enter his country after all that trouble after all. But I'm curious why your niece broke off their engagement. Surely it would have been quite the match."

"Kougyoku is very young, and has the blood of a common whore in her. Having said that, it seems a different suitor caught her eye," she gave Sinbad a pointed look, who chose not to respond and wish for this topic to pass. Quickly. "Marrying her would help the empire trust you a lot more. And she is very lovely – but then they always are," she cleared her throat. "You say you left many men in Balbadd, which I'm thankful for. Did you take any refugees back to Sindria? I know you tend to do that."

"It's very possible," he admitted. "Many people lost their homes there; I did what any good king would do."

Gyokuen nodded, seemingly relaxing and assured he was not so much of a proverbial thorn in her side. In comparison, he felt the opposite. "I wondered if that bastard is there; if he is I'd be grateful if you let us know. We're helping Balbadd and its king now, after all. Abhmad assured me he had all of those thieves executed, but not that man. He has caused poor Abhmad so much trouble; and he hasn't been eating since..." Sinbad had seen the man, and doubted a few missed meals would matter much. Her voice trailed and was lost on the airless breeze. He had, of course, rescued and saved Alibaba himself even if the young man had been unconscious.

Right now, it seemed he was unfortunately right. That darkness continued to seep to the east, and was gradually poisoning Balbadd now. Sinbad was more and more grateful he had chosen for Sindria to be in the middle of the oceans, isolated from such things. For now, at least. He nodded, but had no intention of giving up Alibaba for execution. Instead he was thinking to find out more about Kou and that strange shadowy organisation; as there was no point doing much else until he knew more.

They sat in silence, and the Empress continued to watch him silently, even if Sinbad thought the painted, ornate hut seemed friendlier now. Her game was one of etiquette rather than manners; and he felt such things insufferable. He had however gotten used to those trivialities of gestures and timing over the years – it was unfortunate but much needed. Not long later he heard the all too familiar bickering voices and the panelled, painted door slid open. Gyokuen lowered her cup, and smiled. Sinbad indicated for his generals to relax.

"Here I thought I told you two not to spar too late..." he commented lightly.

"We did..." the two brothers replied, in complete union, before glancing awkwardly at once another. They then took to opposite corners of the small room to stand in.

The hut was getting rather crowed now. The Empress looked between Judal and Aladdin, and then to Jafar and Musrur, and finally back to Sinbad himself. She smiled gently. "We were beginning to miss both of you. You see, we wanted you to be here as we made an arrangement with Sindria concerning you both. About your training..." she looked over at the dark twin, who slouched against the wall, arms folded, and seemed indifferent to such an important thing.

"Ah...Sinbad ran a hand carelessly through his long, violet ponytail. "I might have already told them about what you asked of me. I did run into them sparring last night you see."

He watched Gyokuen flinch very slightly at that; and had some idea why. "They have always trusted you, even if you interrupted them several times helping our candidates through dungeons but...that is in the past. I doubt you'd do anything harmful to either of them – not that you could."

"Harm something as precious as the legacy of Solomon himself? Magi are what he left behind in this world..." he pondered as he looked between the two young men who had burst in not so long ago. Looking at them, it just seemed remarkable how much power they had. "And I want us to trust each other and strengthen our alliance – it was a good idea to have Yamaraiha teach one of them."

"Having someone as talented as that in your country...she's a genius beyond equal. It just really seems Sindria and its alliances are somewhat...impressive, it's commendable. Enough to interest me; she'll be invaluable in teaching him."

He nodded. "If you'd like, I think I could persuade her to teach them both. She was enthusiastic enough to have the privilege to teach one of them – two would make her say. And would help you a lot I think."

Very quickly, and he felt predictable, she shook her head. "I can't risk having neither of them to help with our defences for a full year. People would think we're weakened and they might attack. You might not be able to understand this, but possessing two Magi as we do has an immense impact on how we're seen."

"I know, but they've always been together haven't they? I was thinking it would be harsh to have them separated so suddenly. Kou has more than enough men and is still powerful. You could even send whoever you wanted to Sindria to guard them if you wish."

"I know you might not be a proper king or used to having a country, but still..." she snapped, before stopping and reaching a small hand to cover her mouth apologetically. Sinbad noticed Judal smirk from out the corner of his eye. "My deepest apologies, I didn't mean to offend you. I got ahead of myself. But you know they are a vital part of our empire, more so than anything else. It was a tough decision agreeing to have one go, but I admit having Yamaraiha leave Sindria after all that happened to make her leave Magnostadt isn't a good idea. We can't be without them for that long so; I'll send Judal back with you,"

"Actually, onii-san decided I'd go instead," Aladdin piped up enthusiastically, instantly seeming to still the growingly hostile atmosphere. Sinbad looked between the twins curiously. "It sounds like fun."

"It will be a lot of fun, but my friend's magic would suit your brother's magic more than you. It's why I asked him to come back with me."

Judal yawned widely and stretched a bored and glazed expression on his face. "Chibi wants to go; it's not a big deal. It's not like she can't teach him powerful magic; a true magician can use all types. Anyone knows that."

Sinbad met his eyes curiously. "It's not a big deal, no. I just remember you saying countless times you wanted to see my country. I thought you'd like that I asked you."

"Eh, I guess. But chibi's so useless. He hasn't even named a king yet, so he should do something for a change."

"...I'm not useless, I beat you twice yesterday."

"No, you cheated twice yesterday..."

Gyokuen cleared her throat again, and the brothers stopped quarrelling. She stood gracefully, fussing over smoothing her rose toned skirts and the rest of the room straightened with her."Very well, maybe Judal is better off staying here. Aladdin, if you would be sure to be ready to leave first thing tomorrow." She watched the two brothers' bow, and then leave. "How odd for them to come to such a random decision."

"They're young; and they might just feel it's better for the stronger of them to stay here."

"Aladdin is the stronger of them two. Surely you noticed that," Gyokuen gave him a soft, perhaps condescending smile. Sinbad waited patiently as the Empress left that small, overly elaborate and vividly painted hut and met with her attendants in the hushed and suspicious whispers of women. He exchanged glances with his men before they, too, extracted themselves from what had proven to be a troublesome meeting.

For not the first time he had been in Kou, Sinbad felt himself compelled to be alone and to have time to think. That evening saw celebration and its accompanying fires over the palace's skyline as the foreign king stole himself away. He moved from the sway of dancers and heard the collision of timed drum beats and soft whimsical tones of accompanying wind pipes quieten as he moved away. The palace was lit up and grown noisy it's bid of farewell to Aladdin and the last night he would spend there for a year. It never surprised him just how much the empire was dedicated to their twin oracles, although it was not all that surprising. It did, however, succeed in doing the dangerous thing of making Sinbad see Kou in a more favourable light; it was almost as colourful, loud and carefree as Sindria's celebrations after all.

His bare feet traced over the grass and crushed over the petals of the delicate flowers residing there. He made his way through the numerous pale gardens until he met with a fringe of cherry blossom trees, and turned into the expanse of a lavish and scarlet hued courtyard nearby. There, and speculated at last, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Sake was still, as usual, veiled heavily on his senses, and to the extent he didn't notice the slender figure in black perched on the roof behind him. The same, and troublesome, figure which seemed to enjoy following and spying on him.

"So did you take in that bastard prince or not?" Judal had finally called down to him impatiently, in a tone suggesting he had been dying to ask that.

He jumped down, landing with a graceful, almost feline-like grace before turning to face the other man. The king of a somewhat-rivalling country, and the oracle of another, sized each other up silently. Even though not entirely sober, Sinbad knew this was once battle of patience he was certain to win. "You're not enjoying the celebration to say farewell to your little brother?"

"Sure I am – who wouldn't?"

The dark Magi took to leaning next to the vivid wall beside him, tossing a peach casually from one palm to the next. Sinbad turned to him. "I don't see how it's a good idea to tell you about anything that Sindria – or I – get up to."

"Huh – for you that's as good as a 'yes' though," the rose and creamy toned fruit soared into the air before being caught, and Sinbad took to watching that instead of paying attention to him. "Ah, you're so annoying! Come on. What, are you scared I'm going to tell that old witch or something? I won't."

"She's your Empress, and you're meant to be loyal and respectful for your country. Whilst we're at it, you need to start addressing royalty more kindly, you don't want to end up in trouble one of these days."

Judal smirked. "Funny that you know who I was referring to though. And you know, it's not my country. They just brought chibi and I here."

"Yes of course...I forgot that," Sinbad admitted. Given that the twins had always lived there, and how much the empire prized them, it would seem otherwise. "But it's not like us gossiping back from when I was stealing a dungeon from one of your candidates. I can't tell you anything."

"You know, you were more fun before you were a king," Judal signed, peach remaining in his hand for the time being. "Whatever, fine – I'll tell you something instead. You know all that stuff going on in Balbadd?" Sinbad nodded slowly, eyeing him but trying not to seem too curious. "Things are going on here too. I keep hearing nobles talk about some shadowy organisation when I eavesdrop on them. That those speaking out against the empire go missing and –"

It wasn't a good habit, but then Sinbad couldn't say much as it tended to be a good source of information for him as well, instead he gave him a sharp look. "Is any of that true?" Judal shrugged. "Hm, that's troubling. Why are you telling me this?"

"Who knows? I've just wanted to tell someone for ages. It might as well be you."

It seemed to always be him. Sinbad caught sight of two guards out of the corner of his eye – or at least what he thought were guards. They were tall, dressed in long black robes. Their faces were covered with white cloth and vine-like thorns were threaded around their foreheads. Not liking the look of them he gripped Judal's arm gently, watching as ruby eyes fixed on him before he was pulled round the corner away from them as they passed by. "Listen, you shouldn't talk about that with anyone else. I guessed it was more than some simple revolt over there. But, that djinn you have..."

"Kassim, you mean?" Judal indicated the sceptre he kept stashed in his black top.

"Kassim?" Sinbad asked curiously. For some reason, and a reason he couldn't remember, the name seemed oddly familiar to him. For some reason it made him feel uncomfortable. "You didn't enter an agreement or become his master like Aladdin did with Ugo?" Judal shook his head, still passing the peach back and forth silently. "I figured you wouldn't know, and they just gave him to you. You didn't ask them about it?"

"No, why would I? They just said it's powerful so where's the problem?"

"That is so...typical of you. You go out of your way to spy on people and listen to rumours, but the moment someone gives you something powerful you just take it," even so, Sinbad knew right now there was little to be done about it. He didn't know enough of the situation, and he knew Judal wouldn't give up something like that if he simply asked nicely for it.

"Although...it's a bit weird. Yesterday I brought him out and I saw..."

"You saw...what?"

Judal went to say something, then smiled and seemed to think better of it. "Ah nothing, just my imagination. Stuff like that doesn't exist."

He laughed slightly, and Sinbad raised an eyebrow before working out there was no point pursuing that topic. "So you're really not coming back with me, then. I was surprised with that, a bit disappointed too."

"Huh, really? Yeah well..." he trailed off, "Did you know chibi's stronger than I am now?"

"Gyokuen said as much, yes."

"It just seems a better idea to have him go there instead. I want to find out if there's any more rumours; ha, even a complete idiot like you can see something wrong's going on here."

"You might be a little smarter than I thought you were," Sinbad commented quietly. Watching the peach as it continued on its ill-advised journey. "If you find out anything, let me know. But be careful."

"Huh? Are you kidding me? It's not like you'd actually be worried about me," his eyes widened as Sinbad grew irritated enough to swipe the fruit from him mid air.

Sinbad took a bite of the peach before grinning back at the frustrated look on the other man's face. "Of course, didn't you know? You two are so special even your enemy watches out for you."

He had begun to laugh, he remembered that much. In the very next moment he had been pushed against the cool, hard wall and had felt either too drunk or too surprised to really react. More than likely it was both of those. Sinbad remembered closing his eyes, and felt a tickle of warm breath against his cheek as Judal leaned up against him. Soft lips traced tentatively over his, as if the younger man was seeking to reclaim what had been taken from him. And, without really thinking, Sinbad left himself leaning that light and somewhat inexperienced kiss, persuading Judal's lips to part and to have a better taste. He had pulled the young Magi in; his slightly intoxicated mind telling him not to as his fingertips lightly ran over the smooth and subtle curve of Judal's waist. It was then he convinced himself the sweet kiss and tangy fruit were a bad idea, and gently pushed the other man from him.

"What are you...?" Sinbad began to ask, even if he felt that was partially his fault. Violent and painted eyelids opened slowly as Judal licked softly at his own lips curiously, yet had something of a mischievous grin playing over them. He reached out, taking his peach back with no real resistance.

"...Doing? Not much," a bangle laden hand caught the light, drawing teasingly over Sinbad's chest before Judal span round and went to leave, as though victorious. The king went to catch his hand, missed, and heard him laugh. The shock remained with Sinbad, both that he couldn't see him living this one down and...that it had been oddly enjoyable. "Haha! And I just stole a kiss from an idiot king this empire might someday crush underfoot. What are you going to do about it?"

Sinbad's mouth opened, closed, but he knew he wasn't all that amused. "...Not much. Hey!"

A dark blue of long hair and black clothing took to the rooftops and ran from sight; Judal laughing as he went. Even if Sinbad could have followed, he had the feeling he really wouldn't want to. Fingers running over his lips and frowning, he knew either way the dark Magi was already long gone.