CHAPTER 17

Aladdin looked at Eric. "Where's Ariel?" he asked. "And Dad and Phil?"

Eric closed his eyes, and opened them a second later. "Just down the hall. Come on!"

Eric unlocked the door. When it hissed open, Phil turned, ready to fight, but stopped when he saw them. "Al," he exclaimed happily.

Aladdin grinned. "Dad! Phil! You're all right!"

Shang stepped forward. "Where's Ariel?" he asked worriedly.

Aladdin's heart sank. "She's not here?"

Shang shook his head. "No."

Eric spoke up, "She's underground, in a tank."

Cinderella sighed. "At least they were that thoughtful."

"Not really," Jim told her. "They just wanted to keep her alive for something worse. They only experiment with one 'freak' at a time."

Aladdin clenched his fists in fury. "Figures," he said through his teeth.

Phil turned to Eric. "Where is she?" he asked.

"Not far," Eric answered. "Come on."

He led them down several hallways, soon stopping over a trap door in the floor. "She's down there."

"Well, open it!" Phil nearly yelled.

Eric tried to open it with his mind, but then was surprised. "It's been sealed by magic; it has to be opened by brute force."

"Step aside," Jim told him, and began pulling on the handle. He blinked in surprise when it didn't budge. Looking up at Eric, he asked, "Well, are you just gonna stand there?"

Eric quickly leaned over and helped pull. Grunting from the strain, they began to lift the trap door little by little. When it finally opened, Jim turned to Eric and nodded. "Thanks."

"No problem," Eric answered, a little out of breath. And in that second, Eric knew he was finally forgiven.

From below, a voice called, "Eric? Is that you?"

"Ariel!" Aladdin cried. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Ariel answered shakily," but you've got to get me out of here!"

"In progress," Aladdin called to her, then looked at Eric. "Eric, any ideas?"

"Is there anything down there you could use as a ladder?" Eric asked her.

"No," she answered. "They threw me in. The only one that ever came down was the witch, and she used her powers."

Eric nodded, thinking, then turned to Aladdin. "Al, is there any type of flying animal you could use?"

Aladdin shook his head. "None strong enough to carry her."

Eric sighed. "Shoot. There's got to be something." Then a thought hit him. Turning to Cinderella, he asked, "You can't fly, can you?"

Cinderella was surprised. "I don't know; I don't think so."

"Have you tried?" Eric pressed.

"No," she admitted.

"Well, try," Aladdin spoke up. "Maybe you can. Most fairies do."

Cinderella nodded nervously. Closing her eyes, she spread her arms. For a moment, her back sparkled, then suddenly beautiful transparent wings appeared. She slowly began to lift off the ground.

"Cindy, you're flying!" Phil blurted.

Cinderella's eyes flew open. "What?" Then her eyes went wide. "I am flying! I can fly!"

"Well, fly on down," Aladdin reminded her. "Ariel needs out, now!"

"Right, sorry," Cinderella apologized. She flew down and hovered over the water. "Here, grab on," she told Ariel. Ariel swam over and wrapped her arms around Cinderella.

"Hold on tight," Cinderella told her, then flew out to where the others were waiting. Hovering over Shang, she gently let Ariel down on his back. Ariel threw her arms around him, glad to be back with her husband again.

Aladdin spoke up. "Let's get out of here."

"Wait!" Jim stopped them. "Eric, can you locate my parents? The guards said that they were arrested too."

Eric closed his eyes and searched for a minute, then responded, "They're at the station back home."Jim nodded, a little relieved.

"Back home it is, then," Phil rushed them. "Come on, let's get moving!"

Shang nodded in agreement. "Jim, ride with Ariel. Make sure she doesn't fall," he ordered.

"You got it," Jim answered, hopping on Shang's back behind Ariel.

Then Shang turned to the others. "Eric, Phil, you two ride on Aladdin."

"Ok," Phil agreed. Aladdin turned into a horse, and Eric climbed onto his back, pulling Phil up with him.

"Cinderella," Shang said, looking at her. "I want you to fly on ahead. Make sure Kida is ready when we get there."

"All right," she agreed nervously, hoping she would be able to fly fast enough.

"Let's move then, come on!" Phil urged. Then he remembered something. "Wait, how are we getting out of here?"

"We can't use the same tactic we used coming in," Eric admitted. "They'll know something's off by now. We'll have to make a run for it."

They headed over to the same door they had entered in hours before. "Ready?" Eric asked. Everyone nodded. Shang and Aladdin got ready to run. Cinderella took a deep breath, her wings out.

Eric unlocked the door, and they ran as fast as they could, startling the already confused guards. They could hear shouting behind them, and suddenly gunshots were fired. But the bullets simply bounced off them, causing no damage. "Keep running, I've got this," Eric assured them.

So Shang and Aladdin ran straight towards the stream. Cinderella, however, outdistanced both of them in a flash. She was surprised at just how fast she could fly. In no time, she reached the stream, and landed beside a startled Kida.

"Quick, make your whirlpool!" Cinderella said urgently. "We have to get out of here!"

"Are the others coming?" Kida asked, getting it started.

Cinderella nodded. "Any second now."

Sure enough, they began to hear hoofbeats coming toward them at a very fast pace. When they appeared a second later, the whirlpool was ready.

"Hurry, or you'll be left behind!" Kida called. Everyone crowded around her, and the whirlpool whisked them away, the sound of gunfire quickly fading to nothing.

...

Sorry for the slow updates, life is crazy. A special thank you for SLHGOUATTLKFAN for your continued support; if it wasn't for you, I probably would have given up long before now.