Here's the latest chapter! Now we'll really get into the action of Agrabah. I gotta say though. I think King of Thieves was one of my favourite Disney Sequels, it was really well done. *Sniff* Rest in peace, Robin Williams, you brought such life to Genie. Also, magical fan18 suggested that I dedicate the Agrabah arc to him and I thought that was a really sweet idea. So, wherever you are, Robin Williams, I dedicate these next few chapters to you and your amazingness as Genie!
Chapter 55: The King of Thieves
The news from the Oracle had certainly been a shock for Aladdin. Once he'd regained his composure, the groom had taken off to his old hovel, saying that he wanted some time alone to think. But, that was in the morning and now the sun was just starting to set. Jasmine had gotten worried and had left with Carpet to go talk to him.
In the meantime, Sora and his team were resting on Jasmine's balcony back in their normal clothes. The Sultan was generous enough to let them stay at the palace for as long as long as they needed since they were friends with Aladdin and Jasmine and that three of them were part of the wedding party.
Sora and Kairi stood leaning over the balcony, looking over the city, West, Lea, Donald and Goofy were sitting at a nearby table scarfing down leftover food from the wedding. And Riku, Max and Mickey were laying on the floor playing cards. Sora released a sigh as he turned to look at Kairi.
"It's been awhile, I hope Aladdin's okay." He said with worry on his face.
Kairi simply smiled and put a hand on his shoulder. "He'll be alright. Based on what you told me, Aladdin isn't the type to just sulk forever. He'll come around."
Donald nodded in agreement from his position on the table. "She's right! If not on his own, then Jasmine will snap him out of it for sure!"
And then, at that moment, the group noticed Carpet flying towards them, carrying Aladdin, Jasmine and Abu. They had changed out of their wedding attire and into more comfortable clothes. Aladdin was dressed in the clothing he was wearing when he first met up with Sora and the boys, Abu was dressed in his usual purple vest and fez and Jasmine was dressed in a pink, long-sleeved version of her normal outfit. In Aladdin's hands was the Oracle's staff while Abu rested on his shoulder.
Slowly, Carpet descended upon the balcony, allowing Aladdin and Jasmine to climb off. Immediately, the group stopped what they were doing and gathered around Aladdin.
"You doin' okay there, Aladdin?" Goofy asked with concern.
The former street rat nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm feeling much better now. Jasmine snapped me out of it."
Jasmine smiled at her fiancé, a comforting hand on his shoulder. "We're going to put the wedding on hold for now. I think it's worth the delay if Aladdin is able to find his father."
"That's good." Said Riku, "So, do you know what you're going to do now?"
Aladdin glanced down at the oracle staff he had in his hand and nodded. "I do. I'm going to ask. I have to know."
Sora gave him an encouraging smile. "Okay, do what you have to. We're here for you."
Taking a deep breath, Aladdin stepped up to th edge of the balcony and raised the staff into the air. Almost instantly, the staff began to glow and rise up into the air, allowing the Oracle to appear. Immediately, her eyes centred on Aladdin.
"Have you chosen your question?" She asked.
Aladdin gave a single nod. "I have."
"Then ask." The Oracle spoke as though she knew what he was going to say.
Taking one mor deep breath, Aladdin worked up his courage to ask. "Where is my father?"
The Oracle looked out to the distance and pointed out to the horizon. "Follow the trail of the Forty Thieves. Your father is trapped within their world." She responded simply while Aladdin's jaw dropped.
"The Forty Thieves?!" Aladdin exclaimed with worry "Is he hurt?! How long has he been their prisoner?!"
The Oracle shook her head. "I am sorry. I can only answer one question." She spoke as she vanished into the staff as it flew back to Aladdin's had. A newfound determination was upon his face as he turned to Sora.
"I've got to go. Sora, will you come with me? The forty thieves were controlling the heartless and I could really use the support." He asked his friend.
Sora smiled in response. "Like you even have to ask."
Jasmine gave an encouraging nod. "Take as long as you need." She smiled at him.
"I'll be back in time for our wedding, I promise." Aladdin told her as he pulled her into a long, tight embrace. After all this time, he would finally get some answers, he would finally learn where he he came from.
~*KHIII*~
Sometime later, Aladdin, Sora, Lea, Max, Goofy, Abu and Iago were flying through the air on Carpet, following the trail the Forty thieves' horses left behind. Unfortunately, they couldn't have fit everyone on Carpet, so Riku, Kairi, West, Mickey and Donald chose to stay back at the castle with Jasmine, Genie and the Sultan to look out for heartless and help clean up the mess from the wedding. However, Iago was anything but pleased with this arrangement.
"I should have stayed with the Genie!" Iago wined as he clinged to Goofy's shoulder in fear of falling off. "Manual labor beats danger any day!" He cried.
"Oh, come on, Iago." Laughed Goofy. "Where's your sense of adventure?"
"My idea of adventure is lounging around in the palace where it's safe!" Wined the parrot.
While Goofy, Max and Lea laughed at Iago's expense, Carpet had flown down near the sandy ground so they could get a better look at the trail of horse tracks they were following. It looked as though their target had been there quite recently.
"Good, the trail's still fresh." Aladdin stated.
"Sure makes our job easier." Agreed Sora. "I think I see them from here." The spiky-haired teenager pointed straight ahead where he saw a few thieves on horseback turning a cliffside corner.
"Definitely should have stayed with the Genie..." Cried Iago as Carpet sped up to catch up with the horses. But, just as they turned the same corner, Carpet skidded to a stop. When Sora looked up again, he realized why; Carpet had nearly rammed into the theives on horseback since they had stopped right in front of the sea.
Aladdin turned to the group and put a finger over his lips, signalling for them to be quiet. Slowly, Carpet backed away until they were hidden behind the cliff.
"...Phew." Aladdin released a sigh of relief once they were hidden. "Well they have nowhere to go, we have them trapped." He smiled confidently at the group. Lea, Max, Goofy, Sora, Abu and Capet looked pumped and ready for action, but Iago's jaw dropped.
"We?!" The parrot exclaimed. "They are Forty Thieves! We are you, a rug, a monkey, two dogs, a fire-obsessed maniac, a kid with a key and me... Wait, don't count me."
"Fire-obsessed maniac?" Lea questioned with a small laugh. "I think that's going a little too far."
Max shook his head. "No, I actually think that's pretty accurate."
Aladdin quickly shushed his companions as he peeked out from behind the cliffside. "They're just standing there..." He spoke with a confused tone to his voice. Sora came up to look with him and discovered that Aladdin was right, the forty thieves upon their forty horses just remained where they were, completely silent.
But, after a few moments of silence, the man in the blue cloack who had fought Aladdin and Sora back at the wedding moved to the front of the group on his horse; the King of Thieves. He looked out to the water, raised his arm into the air and shouted,
"Open Sesame!" All at once, the ground began to shake and the waters of the sea began to grow rough and wild. Then, the water split in half, revealing a stone path that lead all the way across the large body of water to another cliffside. On the cliff face across the sea, an opening appeared leading straight to the lair of the forty thieves.
Without another moment to waste, the group of thieves rushed across the path and straight into the the cliff's opening. Once all forty of the thieves had made it into the lair, Aladdin and his team jumped right back on to Carpet.
"Let's move. Hang on!" Aladdin exclaimed. Once Carpet knew the others were secured, he sped like lightning towards the opening of the lair. But, the moment they began to cross the sea, the water began to rapidly fill back up behind them while at the same time the cliff's opening slowly started to close. Carpet moved as fast as he cound, luckily making it inside the lair's entrance just before it closed on them, tossing the group onto the dusty ground.
Sora groaned and shook his head as he rose to his feet. The young Keyblade master looked behind at his companions, reprieved to find that they'd all made it through. Iago had somehow gotten his tail feathers stuck in the door but luckily Abu had pulled him out.
He then looked out to where they'd ended up; it looked to be the ruins of a forgotten city. The buildings were golden and semi-collapsed with a thin layer of mist surrounding the ground of the lair.
"Woah, this place is incredible." Stated Aladdin in awe as he stood by Sora's side. "Now I know how the Forty Thieves managed to avoid capture for so long." Abu released a small "ooh" while he climbed on to Aladdin's shoulder.
Lea nodded in agreement. "Gotta admit, this secret lair's pretty cool. But not as cool-looking as the Castle that never was."
"You sure you don't miss being a bad guy?" Laughed Max.
Lea shook his head and laughed. "No way! Just comparing lairs, geez cut me some slack."
"Yeah, yeah. Very interesting, but enough with the sightseeing!" Iago exclaimed as he flew onto Sora's shoulder. "Let's just get this over with! I want to get in, get out and go home! Actually, I wouldn't mind skipping straight to the go home." The parot's voice cracked in fear.
Aladdin shook his head in amusement at Iago's cowardice. "Come on." He beconed the group as they ventured further into the lair, searching for any sign of the Forty Thieves or Aladdin's missing father. So far the group hadn't encountered any heartless yet, which was unusual for a typical villain's lair. Maybe with forty of them, they were feeling overconfident.
As they wandered further, a familiar voice grew louder and louder. Finally, the group looked around a nearby corner, finding all forty of the thieves standing in the centre of a large space in the middle of the lair.
One of the thieves, the grey-skinned man who had fought West, Kairi and Razoul with golden claws was pacing in front of the thieves angrily and Rampling about their defeat.
"-We could have had all the loot from the wedding. But we followed the king's plan." The group heard the man growl angrily. "This is what we have to show for our trouble in Agrabah: NOTHING!" And with that, he slammed his clawed fist down on a nearby wooden table, destroying it instantly.
The rest of the thieves chattered excitedly as he approached another man dressed in a long blue cape with a gold hand symbol pin and a face that looked just like the image the oracle had showed them back at the palace. It had to be Aladdin's father.
The grey-skinned man slowly approached Aladdin's father, the scowl unmoving from his lips. "Your time draws to a close, Cassim."
"Cassim? My father..." Aladdin murmured, his eyes wide at the sight of the oracle's image right in front of him. But Sora barely heard him as he intently watched the scene before him.
Cassim simply raised an eyebrow at the man who was threatening him, seemingly unaffected. "If you're talking about spilling my blood Sa'luk, well, I just don't see that happening." He spoke as he crossed his arms and smirked defiantly while the grey-skinned man, Sa'luk growled.
"Then let me open your eyes!" Sa'luk snarled angrily as he raised his golden claws and swung down at Cassim. Time seemed to slow down as Aladdin lept away from their hiding place and tackled Sa'luk to the ground, preventing him from attacking his father. Sora and the others didn't even have a chance to react.
Aladdin struggled to hold Sa'luk down as he looked up at Cassin. "Run, I've got him! I'm Aladdin, you're my father!"
"Aladdin!" Sora exclaimed as he, Lea, Goofy and Max rushed out of their hiding place. But, before they could get anywhere near Aladdin, a group of the thieves and bandit heartless surrounded them, pointing their swords at them.
Lea slumped in defeat. "Oh, come on! How did you guys summon the heartless so fast?!"
"Gawash, they must be better with the heartless than we thought." Said Goofy.
"So you brought more intruders, have you boy?" Growled Sa'luk as he pinned Aladdin to the ground, causing the Midas dagger to fall out of Aladdin's sash. "I'm impressed that so many of you made it this far, but you won't live to tell the tale! So sorry that I don't know about your father boy, but I'll send you to meet your other ancestors!"
Aladdin's eyes widened in fear as Sal'uk raised his claws. But, before he could do anything, Cassim grabbed his hand. "Let him go." The heroes and thieves all looked towards him to see that he was holding the Midas dagger. "The boy... is my son." The forty thieves gasped in surprise as Sa'luk backed away from Aladdin. Cassim raised the dagger, showing it to the other thieves. "I gave this dagger to my wife years ago. I told her to give it to our new born son... Aladdin."
Everyone in the lair gasped in surprise, even the heroes who weren't expecting the reveal so soon.
"The boy is the son of the King of Thieves?!" Sa'luk gasped.
"Wait, what?!" Exclaimed Sora. "We fought Aladdin's dad at the wedding and didn't even know it?!"
Aladdin's eyes widened as he stood up. "You are the King of Thieves?"
"Like it or not boy, we're blood." Cassim nodded, throwing the Midas dagger back into Aladdin's hands. Then, he approached Aladdin and placed his hands on his shoulders. "Look at you. I'd thought I'd never see you again. Has it been so long?"
Aladdin started to smile in joy, but he was then shoved out of the way by Sa'luk who stepped between him and Cassim. "Blood or mud, the boy is an intruder. And we have rules about intruders." He grinned darkly. Around them, the forty thieves roughly seized Carpet, Abu and Iago and the thieves and heartless surrounding the world-traveling heroes moved in closer with their blades. The rest of the thieves growled angrily about how much they hated intruders.
Sa'luk's dark grin grew. "He has found our secret lair. He has seen too much. He must die. They must all die!"
"Die?!" Iago cried from his position in the grasp of one of the thieves. "But he's your son. I'm his friend! At least save poor little defenceless me!" Abu rolled his eyes in the grasp of the thieves other fist.
"He's your son, ya can't just get rid of him!" Protested Goofy.
Sora could hardly believe what was happening. "Especially since he came all this way just to find you and you've been separated for so long!"
"Have a little mercy here!" Iago pleaded.
Sa'luk smirked at Cassim. "Yes, Cassim, mercy would be so like you. Soft and weak."
The thieves softly chattered among themselves about the strength of their leader and it was setting both Sora and Aladdin on edge. The silence was bone-chilling and seemed to go on forever until Cassim finally spoke again.
"Kill them." He said. The thieves started immediate cheering in excitement while Sora dropped his jaw in surprise. The other heroes were just as speechless.
Sa'luk grabbed Aladdin and raised his clawned hand anew raised his clawed hand into the air, ready to strike him down right then and there. However, he stopped when a voice stopped him in his tracks.
"-Or the boy could." Cassim spoke thoughtfully. "Yes the boy and his friends could... no."
"What?! Was it?" Questioned Lea.
Cassim shook his head. "Nothing, probably a bad idea."
"Come on, let's hear it." Max pleaded.
Cassim held his chin in thought. "Well, it seems to me that... oh never mind."
Even Sa'luk was curious. "What?"
The king of thieves seemed to enjoy keeping the entire room in suspense. It felt like ages before he spoke again. "The boy and his friends could face 'the challenge.'" The thieves all grinned in excitement as Cassim approached his son. "That's that, my son and his friends shall face 'the challenge.'" He smiled.
"And I shall be the one to test him." Sa'luk grinned.
Iago released a sigh of relief as he landed on Aladdin's shoulder. "A test, huh? Ah, that's not so bad. Maybe it will be multiple choice?"
~*KHIII*~
Lightning flashed outside the lair. The entirety of the forty thieves were gathered at the top of the cliff, circling around a stone battle arena. Abu and Iago were trapped in a locked cage and Carpet was pinned down by a heavy, overweight thief. Lea, Max and Goofy had their wrists chained to the rock wall, keeping them prisoner. Lastly, standing in the arena was Sa'luk, Cassim, Aladdin and Sora. For this "challenge" Cassim and Sa'luk had allowed Aladdin to have one of his friends help him and Sora had been chosen as his partner.
"Gawrsh, we gotta find some way out of here!" Exclaimed Goofy with worry.
"That's not looking very likely right now." Lea grunted as he pulled against his chains, but they just wouldn't budge. "I can't even use my fire with these stupid things on!"
"Especially since our ride home is grounded." Stated Iago, pointing to a struggling Carpet. "And Al? Well... it's been nice knowin' him."
In the meantime, Aladdin and Sora stood with Cassim across from Sa'luk. Aladdin himself looked more on edge than the rest of the heroes. "What's goin' on, Dad?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.
"This challenge looks like some kind of battle." Said Sora.
"That's correct, it's simple enough... only one man survives." Cassim confirmed. Sora looked back to Sa'luk and started to feel a little nervous. He looked much stronger than most opponents he faced, and that was saying something. Then, Cassim put a hand on Aladdin's shoulder and offered him a smile. "But you're my son. You'll be that man. Knock 'em dead kid, seriously." He spoke to Aladdin as he placed the Midas dagger in his hand, then walked back into the crowd of thieves.
Sora and Aladdin drew their weapons and watched as Sa'luk adjusted his claws. "You nervous?" Aladdin asked.
"You kidding?" Smiled Sora. "After Kurt Ziza and Jafar, there's nothing we can't handle together. We're a team."
"Yeah, you're right." Aladdin nodded, holding the Midas dagger in one hand and his old curved thief sword in the other.
Finally, it was time for the battle to begin. Not even a second had pased before Sa'luk rushed towards the two boys with his claws raised. Aladdin and Sora dodged out of the way, but Sora still managed to get a scratch on his arm, luckily not too deep. Aladdin had stumbled into the arms of some thieves, only to be shoved right back into the arena.
Sa'luk was seemingly ignoring Sora and heading straight for Aladdin with a full intent to destroy. Aladdin could barely even block his attacks with his sword and dagger. Sora quickly cast cure on himself before rushing back into battle. He and Aladdin fought side by side but the one suffering the most damage was Aladdin.
The burly thief swung his claws again, this time landing a devastating, deep blow to Aladdin's shoulder, causing him to collapse to his knees. Sora didn't waste any time in pulling out a potion but Sa'luk knocked it out of his hands before he ever had a chance to toss it to Aladdin. Then, Sa'luk violently kicked Sora in the stomach, sending him flying into a nearby cliff wall. Just from that blow alone, Sora felt all of his energy had been depleted. He could just barely manage to keep his eyes open. Looking into the crowd of thieves, he noticed that Cassim had a worried look on his face.
In the meantime, Sa'luk was ready to deliver Aladdin's finishing blow. But before he could, Aladdin dropped his sword and used the Midas dagger to deflect. Their power struggle went back and forth as they began wandering closer and closer to the cliff's edge. Seeing an opportunity to get rid of Aladdin for good, Sa'luk pushed Aladdin to the edge, but the former street rat refused to give in that easily. Thinking quickly, Aladdin used all his strength to push Sa'luk towards the cliff edge instead. But, he hadn't counted on Sa'luk loosing his footing. The older man stumbled with a panicked look on his face until he slipped and fell off the cliff.
Aladdin reached out a hand to help him but it was already too late. Sa'luk fell into the deep ocean and jagged rocks below. For what felt like ages, Aladdin couldn't move due to the shock. Until he felt Sora's hand on his shoulder. The young keyblade master had managed to heal himself just as the battle ended but he hadn't been quick enough.
He helped Aladdin up to his feet and as they both spun around, they were greeted with the angry faces of the forty thieves.
"I thought our side won?" Wimpered Iago when he noticed the thieves looked lest than pleased with the outcome of the battle.
"Look, I...I... I didn't mean... " Aladdin started to say when he was interrupted by Cassim stepping up in front of the thieves.
"You killed Sa'luk. The code of the Forty Thieves is very clear on this point. You're in!" With that, the forty thieves roared into thunderous applause.
Thanks for reading you guys! Be sure to leave a review! I couldn't decide what weapon to give Aladdin so I thought it might be cool to give him both the Midas dagger and his old sword. I still claim no ownership over anything belonging to Square Enix and/or Disney. I only own the plot and my OCs.
Anonymous reviews;
-Guest(Jan 10); I'm actually not sure if I'll bring it up again or not. If I do it'll be really brief.
-Guest(Jan 12); seriously, please stop asking me this. I can't just post chapters whenever you want. I have to take the time to write them and usually it takes me a long time.
-Guest(Feb 22); ok I'll consider that :)
-Tashasaurous; thanks a bunch for the suggestions! I didn't even know you had an account on here. Is it the same name?
-Mysterygirl145; yes it was!
-Guest(Feb 24); I brobably won't bring it up, since we don't know much about her her cannonly.
-Guest(Feb 25); I'm pretty busy so I don't think I'll get around to it.
-Guest(Mar 16); thank you very much! I'm really glad you like the story and my artwork. We have about 6 more Disney worlds including this one to go through so hang in there! Thanks so much for all the support. You're writing your own KH story? Good luck!