b Chapter 13.

i"Uhm… Genie?..."She whispered over the lamp, "I think I found your friend…"/i

Genie immediately jumped out of the lamp, without giving himself or Lila the time to worry about whether there was anyone around. Luckily, there wasn't.

"Ali! My man!" he jumped at the ragged boy, who barely had the chance to open his eye as he felt the considerably larger creature, practically glomping him. First rush thought in his brain was to punch whoever it was away, throw whatever was close (probably the little kitten) their way, or just pray to his God that he'd have a pleasant afterlife, despite having lived this life as a pirate and thief. The latter was obviously the dominant thought - it's not like he would have time for anything else. He blinked repeatedly as he slowly registered the other one's voice. His eyes were still a bit blurry but it didn't take long for his confused expression to shift to a thoroughly relieved grin.

"Genie!" the dark skinned boy jumped up and hugged the huge blue blob of smoke that was material, of course whenever he chose to be.

"Yes, yes it's me, in the flesh… well, sort of, " Genie chirped, slightly pulling back and clearing his throat. Too much enthusiasm. Ali sat up, still grinning like an idiot, and blinked a couple more times.

"Dammit I was worried… I mean… I didn't know where you ended up, if someone found you, if anyone found you, if you ended up at the bottom of the ocean again…" Genie suddenly smacked the top of Ali's head. And he wasn't gentle about it either.

"Breathe." He ordered. "That was half to prevent you from going into a panic attack and half because you're being an impulsive idiot… Jumping into the river like that…" Genie was really, REALLY worried about Ali, and more than relieved to see his hunch hadn't proven him wrong and the boy was alive, but he was too proud to show it of course. So he, as always in such cases, resorted to theatrics. He morphed into an old lady and leaned over Ali in a "motherly" manner. "You scared me you imbecile," he whimpered in a rough female voice.

"Eh… What else was there to do…" Ali said in an apologetic tone, rubbing the back of his head. It was obviously his fault they had ended up in that mess in the first place. "How did you know where to find me? I thought your navigation skills were limited or something…" he asked puzzled. And of course he was right. Genie wouldn't have been able to tell where he was if he didn't ialready/i have a general location in mind. A huge suggestive grin appeared on the genie's face.

"Well, it was here wasn't it? When we saw her for the last time… Your chocolate skinned iprincess/i," he continued in his suggestive, borderline mocking tone as he once again morphed into a female –he did have a disturbing tendancy to do that, really- that would have been otherwise very attractive, if it wasn't for the facial hair. A soft blush appeared on Ali's cheeks and he looked away with a frustrated expression.

"Shut up Genie…" he mumbled. Little pink hearts started flying from Genie's fluttering eyelids, forming a larger heart around the embarrassed boy.

"Whyyyyy?~~~ Isn't it true? Why were you here in the first place? You thought I'd forget you having me stand here in the cold, day after day for two weeks, waiting for her to appear?" Genie mused as he morphed back to himself again. "Told ya she wasn't from around here man," he finally said with a flat voice.

"Well, I…" Ali started speaking, but the soft giggle that came from a bit far behind them startled him. Up until now Ali had not registered there was another presence in the vicinity. But now he saw her. A pale, white haired girl with a gentle face, standing at the entrance of the alley. The experienced thief's eye caught the little trinket that was hanging from the girl's neck. i A tiny lamp? /i, he thought… It looked exactly like… ihis/i lamp. Could it be though? He remembered Genie tampering with the size of his lamp before. Was this girl?...

"…Genie...?..." The magical creature snapped out of his performance's trance and raised his brows in confusion before he too noticed Lila's laughter.

"Ah yes, yes of course." He jumped up and levitated towards the girl. "Lila, meet Ali, my very impulsive and stubborn previous master. Ali, meet Lila, my…. well… my current one". Last phrase was said in a strange tone. Ali couldn't quite grasp it, or maybe he could but… naaaah. However the girl idid/b blush. He looked at her in an investigative way. She didn't exactly look ordinary. She had really pale skin and whitish hair. Her clothes didn't look like anything too special though. She didn't even look rich. But there was something about her, something… ethereal. He was still not completely functional, given he had just been awaken from the slumber in the freezing cold… Oh wait… And now he registered that he wasn't ithat /i cold. And now he registered the nice smelling fabric that was covering him. Well, that wasn't there before; and in combination with the sight if the white haired girl hugging herself and rubbing her own arms in the cold, his mind finally made the connection.

"Oh man!..." Ali jumped up and found himself next to Lila as well and put the coat around her shoulder in one move. It really wasn't pleasant to feel the chill of the night breeze again. Not at all, but he couldn't let a lady freeze, even more given the fact that the particular lady had been kind enough to cover him when he was asleep. "Theeere you go," he said kind of cheerfully extending his hand for a shake. It was more dirty than words can say, but Lila couldn't refuse and she wouldn't either way.

"Heh… H-hi…" she said a bit self-consciously. She wasn't exactly the social type, especially lately and well this was an awkward situation all the way. However she did grant the kind tanned man a smile. Ali had a bunch of questions for the two, but the little droplets that started falling over them made him reconsider whether this was the time and place to make the question. It was past midnight, it was freezing and they were in a dark alley while it started to rain. So maybe he should leave questions for when they got to a shelter. But wait… there was a magical creature among them.

"Ge-" ZIIING! A lock of Ali's hair flew to the air, after a strange blue light zapped right past him. "What the?..."

"My, my, my… What a lovely gathering. I come for the big blue blob and I find the annoyingly lucky simpleton as well." The voice was sophisticated and full of brilliant irony. And it came from just around the corner. "Hello Aladdin… Or, you probably go by another name these days?~"

"Who on earth?..." Ali was interrupted by another bolt, one he escaped only because Genie grabbed him and moved him from his position just in time.

"Ah…Genie, Genie… Always interfering with my fun. You should know by now I am thoroughly attached to it~" Mozenrath appeared from the other entrance of the alley, looking at his healthy hand's nails "Oh dear, I need a manicure~" he sighed as he waved his other hand on the air. Suddenly, an army of zombie mamluks appeared from behind him and charged towards Ali and Genie. How on earth did he manage to cross half of London with those creatures at his tail was amazing… But after all, he was an all-powerful magician. Creating a few illusions should be nothing to him. Although bringing the mamluks there was an energy consuming procedure on its own, but thanks to his… how to call him, "ally"? "Partner"? Mozenrath wasn't happy with the use of any word that put the other party on the same level as him. A god... sure, but not superior to him. He'd never admit anyone had that quality, let alone someone who actually needed ihim/, so let's just say "co-worker". Yes, that was acceptable for him. Well, he had enabled him to bring his mamluks to this place by granting the wizard the ability to carry some of the energy of the Land of the Black Sand that powered them, with him in the form of, well, sand. That was particularly useful and Mozenrath inwardly cursed himself for not being the one to think of it, although eventually he'd learn the craft of magical energy transportation in the form of matter.

The ugly creatures charged against the two who were both completely unarmed, let alone utterly surprised. Two of them managed to restrain Ali, who got out of their grip soon enough, while a few more were swatted away like flies by Genie. But they kept on coming.

"What in the name of…." Genie mumbled as he fought back the annoying undead mamluks. He trailed off as he faced Mozenrath… That face, that voice… And he called Ali… iAladdin/i. That name… Why did it strike him so much? Dazed images flew through his head, making him lose his focus and fail to see the bolt that the magician unleashed to his direction.

"UGH!" the magical creature gasped in pain as the energy of Mozenrath's ray spread across his body, causing him to collapse on the ground.

"GENIE!" the female cry got Mozenrath's attention. Neither him or his magical pet that was now floating in an investigative way around her, had registered the girl's presence earlier.

"Oh my… What do we have here? A girlfriend already? You don't lose time do you, you little rascal~" he noted amused. However the eel's uneasiness around the girl made Mozenrath suspicious. He narrowed his eyes and glared at the animal. "What is it Xerxes?" his tone suggested that he was not amused by his pet's behavior. Xerxes emitted a sudden red glow.

"It's her, Master…. It's the girl… The girl we're looking for. It's iher/i, Master Mozenrath" he stated excited. Lila felt a cold chill go down her spine. It wasn't the weather. It was another one of Mozenrath's rays. A restraining one this time. The ray became a chain as it wrapped around Lila's waist, trapping her arms within it.

"Ngh! W-what?..." she exclaimed as she struggled to break free. But there was something about that chain. It felt like it was hurting her vital energy. What was this feeling?...

"Lila…N-no…" Genie managed to gasp as he was still squirming under the influence of Mozenrath's magic. The pale man cackled in amusement.

"Well, that was easier than I expected. My skills never fail me it seems", and by 'skills' he meant his luck, for finding those three people at the same place at the same time. But of course he wasn't going to credit it to chance. With his grin always at play, he walked towards Genie.

"W-who…are you?" he gasped again trying to compose himself. The magician stood above him and looked down, with a satisfied, contemptuous expression.

"Now… You're breaking my heart Genie. You don't remember your best frienemy?~" he said with fake disappointment in his tone of voice. "Ah, you lowly creatures are so forgetful…" he shook his head. He loved demeaning the genie, even though he was perfectly aware of the fact that they were probably almost equal. But he wouldn't admit that. Of course. He raised his gauntlet bearing hand and prepared for another strike. His stance was such, that it definitely looked like his intentions were life threatening even though they weren't. Genie was so much more useful to him alive. He had so many secrets to uncover. So many possibilities, still. But what was in Mozenrath's mind completely escaped Lila. All she saw was a dangerous stranger attacking her… well, let's call him her friend. Suddenly her eyes got cloudy… teary even. Was this stranger –whom, we should say, she assumed had come after her, even though he seemed to know the other two, so she already felt guilty and responsible for this- going to… kill him?...

"NO!" she yelled at the top of her lungs, in a desperate attempt to stop him?... Maybe. But it wasn't just that. Her body started glowing. It was a strange white light. Mozenrath's attention was pulled to her at once. He turned and looked at her, bedazzled for a few seconds. That energy… That power. What was it? It had a completely different feeling from his… "co-worker" 's. That one had a dark aura… This one felt like… pure, warm light. But it was equally strong. Lila shut her eyes firmly and clenched her fists.

"N-no!" she exclaimed again. Ali was left there staring as a thin string of light moved his way, another one moved towards Genie, both coming from the light emitted from Lila's body. Genie's eyes widened. That feeling, it was familiar. He hadn't felt it around Lila before though… He remembered, that strange feeling, years ago… When he first met Ali… More hazy images. The more he felt it though, the clearer they became… Memories.

It was in the blink of an eye that the light flashed so strongly, that it made Mozenrath, Xerxes and the mamluks step back and cover their eyes. The energy that came out of that flash was extraordinary. Even for someone like Mozenrath, who had encountered the strongest sources of energy yet, this was a first. When he opened his eyes, they were gone. All three of them had disappeared. The magician clenched his fists… So that was what it was. That girl's magic had opened a portal and transported them. i Such power… Worthy of a goddess/i he thought, smirking. One problem though… He wasn't sure he could track them down. He could try his spells of course, but he probably needed help in this… From ihim/i.

…

"Ugh…" Ali grumbled rubbing his hip and his head at the same time, opening one eye to look around. In a matter of seconds they had been transferred from a dark alley to a bright and sunny forest… What the…? He blinked a few times trying to convince himself he wasn't dreaming. Or was he…dead or something? But he felt really, really alive. His butt on which he had landed felt pretty alive too.

"G-Genie?..." the faint female voice snapped him out of his wondering.

"Lila? Are you ok?" he crawled her way, he couldn't do much else, they were both lying on the ground, looking as if they'd been knocked unconscious… Which was pretty much what they felt like too. The girl rubbed her forehead and opened her eyes.

"I-I think so…" she mumbled looking around as well. They were indeed in a forest, on humid ground, in broad daylight. "Where… are we?..." she wondered. She looked around in reserved agony for Genie. There was no sign of him anywhere.

"I have no idea…" Ali said. " But seems we're safe for now…" before he even finished his phrase, he heard a soft clicking sound right next to his ear and turned around to see the barrel of a gun pointed straight at his forehead.

"I wouldn't bet on that."