Night 27- The Rebellion

Magi © Shinobu Ohtaka

Shahra © Me

Alozza © Darkdarling98

At last, Alibaba had done it. He had finally mastered his Weapon Equip, and is now holding the Sword of Amon in his very hands. Having defeated Entai the Elephant Monster, the Third Prince of Balbadd began to feel his confidence return…and now, he had to hurry and get to the throne room, where Abhmad waits.

"The elephant man is down!" Abhmad shouted in disbelief as he watched from the balcony. "Argh! How utterly useless! Somebody clean up that trash!"

"Not to worry, King Abhmad," Markkio reassured. "You still have two more guards for him to deal with."

Shahra groaned as she lied on the ground. Once the adrenaline rush began to subside, the pain from her injuries that Entai dealt her began to sink in. She had at least 3 cracked ribs, was bleeding from several places, and her right front paw was fractured from when she got slammed into the wall. Alibaba approached her calmly and gently pet her head.

"Thanks for helping me back there, Shahra," Alibaba said. "I couldn't have beat him without you."

Shahra brushed her head against Alibaba's chest, purring.

"You stay here and rest," the prince told her. "I'll take care of this as fast as I can, and then I'll treat your wounds."

With that, Alibaba charged onward, leaving Shahra to rest from her injures. As he ran, he spotted a troop of monkeys wearing some sort of armor and multiple red eyes on their faces, sitting outside the inner gate that led to the inside of the palace.

"Huh?" Alibaba muttered. "It's those monkeys from the other night! Well, they're gonna get in my way! HAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Wildly slashing his sword, Alibaba quickly cut the monkeys as they leapt at him, and at first, it seemed he made quick work of them, but then, the monkeys that had been cleaved suddenly began to regenerate their lost parts, even their heads. Soon, there were twice as many as there were before!

"What the hell!?" Alibaba questioned. "What kind of monkeys are these things?!"

"They can regenerate, over and over," Markkio explained. "They are dungeon monsters with human intelligence!"

"What they are is ANNOYING!" Alibaba shouted as the monkeys began to tackling him with lightning, giving him little to no time to dodge their attack.

"Amon!" Alibaba shouted as he raised his sword, which suddenly burst into large flames. With multiple swings, Alibaba quickly cut the beastly primates down, completely obliterating some of them!

'Whoa!' Alibaba thought, amazed as he looked at his blade. 'It's both light and hot! So this is the Sword of Amon!'

THOMP! A larger monkey soon dropped to the ground before Alibaba and removed his veil.

"I am Enshin," the giant monkey growled. "Prepare to die here!"

"So he's the big boss, huh?" Alibaba surmised. "Bring it on!"

The remaining monkeys soon charged at Alibaba, who tried his best to hold his own against them. However, he knew he couldn't take too long fighting these things off. He remembered what Sinbad said about the magoi in his weapon. If he stayed fighting for too long, he could run out, and then he'd be a sitting duck.

"I'll take you down before then!" Alibaba declared as he charged at Enshin, who roared at him and prepared to attack, but then…

"HEY, UGLY!"

Enshin turned…only to be kneed right in the mouth by Morgiana!

"Morgiana?!" Alibaba questioned.

"You dumb-ass!"

THUNK! Alozza, seemingly appearing out of nowhere, punched Alibaba in the back of his head, leaving a large bump.

"OW!" Alibaba cried as he held his head. "A-Alozza?! Wait, what are you and Morgiana doing here?!"

"Uh, hello~!" Alozza exclaimed. "Helping you, of course! You reckless knucklehead, what were you thinking, running off on your own?!"

"That's why I didn't tell you!" Alibaba shouted. "I need to this on my own!"

"We know, Alibaba," Morgiana answered. "We know that you're engaged in a battle that only you can fight."

"But who said it included these ugly-ass apes?" asked Alozza with a grin. "Your real battle's in the palace, right?"

Alibaba gasped before he looked at the palace…as he put on a determined visage.

"We'll handle them," said Morgiana. "You get inside!"

"But you can't face them all by yourselves!" Alibaba argued.

"Hey, I'm a shape-shifter, she's a Fanalis," Alozza said. "I think we can handle ourselves just fine…right, Morgiana?"

Morgiana took in a deep breath…and then let out a piercing scream, so high-pitched that only the monkeys could hear it, causing them to tremble and cover their ears in pain. Even Shahra, who was still in the courtyard, was forced to cover her ears from the sound.

"Alibaba!" Morgiana shouted. "Get going!"

"We can handle this!" Alozza said, drawing her sword. "Just go!"

"Y-yeah, but-" Alibaba started, but then Morgiana grabbed.

"You heard her!" the Fanalis girl shouted. "GET GOING!"

WHOOSH! Morgiana easily threw Alibaba over the wall!

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGH!" he screamed as he was sent hurtling through the air, but he soon landed on the other side, safe and sound (surprisingly).

"Don't you think throwing him was a little much?!" Alozza asked in shock. "He could've been hurt!"

"I'm sure he's fine," Morgiana said. "Right now, we have a bigger problem."

Alozza looked up and glared at Enshin and his monkey army.

"A couple of girls, eh?" Enshin asked. "Try and cut us down as much as you want, but you won't defeat us!"

"Tch!" Alozza scoffed as her pendant flashed. "You think you've seen what we can do?"

"When we get serious," Morgiana said, taking a fighting stance, "you don't know WHAT we can do!"

XXX

Meanwhile, Alibaba had made it inside and is now racing to the throne room.

'Morgiana…Shahra…Alozza!' he thought. 'Forgive me…but I promise…I'll finish this fight as soon as possible! I have to find Abhmad!'

Just then, THOMP! Another creature soon jumped in front of Alibaba's path.

"At last!" Engi exclaimed as he pulled his veil, revealing the face of a leopard.

"Get the hell outta my way!" Alibaba barked. "RAAAAAAAAAAAARRGH!"

KLANG! The two swordsmen soon clashed blades!

XXX

Outside, the guards are having a hard time keeping the slowly growing crowd at bay.

"This isn't good!" said the guard on the right. "The crowd's getting bigger!"

"But it doesn't look like they're doing anything," said the guard on the left.

"Prince Alibaba said that things would change in this country!" said an old man in the crowd. "We're just standing out here, waiting to see what happens!"

"What's going on?" asked a woman as she held her infant daughter. "Why does it feel like he's taking so long?!"

XXX

At the Fog Troop hideout…

"WHAT?!" Sinbad questioned as he stood up with a start. "Alibaba is storming the palace, alone?!"

"That's right," Ja'Far answered. "What should we do, Sin?"

"Damn," Sinbad cursed. "My allies' envoys are arriving soon, but now diplomatic solution seems unlikely. Maybe there's still time. I'm going to the palace!"

With that, he walked out.

'Alibaba…what are you thinking?!' he thought.

"I'm going with him," Ja'Far said. "The Fog Troop will only make matters worse! Please, everyone wait here!"

"What?!" asked a Fog Troop member.

"Dammit, this is so frustrating!" cried another. "Doesn't the boss think we can do anything?!"

"Hey!"

Everyone turned to look at one of the Fog Troop's female members.

"I went to go check on that little blue-haired boy," she said, "but when I opened the door…his body was glowing!"

"Glowing?" Ja'Far repeated in concern.

XXX

In Aladdin's room, the boy in question is still sleeping. However, for some strange reason, his body, as well as his flute…are both bathed in a golden white light.

XXX

Alibaba growled as he tried to push Engi back, and before long, his sword actually managed to cut through the leopard man's own blade!

'No way!' Alibaba thought, even more amazed. 'The Sword of Amon even cuts through steel!'

He then glared at Engi and lunged at him, preparing to deliver the final blow, but then, his sword shrank back into its regular size in a burst of flames!

"Huh?!" Alibaba questioned.

"It looks like you're out of magoi," Engi growled before he drew his other sword. "Now you cannot use your Djinn, so now, we duel with swords, only!"

He then charged at Alibaba, preparing to cut him to pieces!

"At last!" the cat-like monster shouted. "A battle of swordsmanship!"

Alibaba glared before he grabbed the barrel on his back and threw them at Engi, which burst open, spilling a yellow, slippery substance. Engi sniffed before he took on a perplexed look.

'Oil?' Engi thought.

Then, Alibaba pulled out a metal kindle rod, grinding it against his knife before the friction caused the oil to burst into flames!

"Hmph!" Engi scoffed. "Playing with fire won't hurt me, boy!"

"Amon!" Alibaba shouted, and suddenly, the flames gathered into the blade of his knife, transforming it back into the Sword of Amon, once more!

"WHAT?!" Engi questioned before SLASH! Alibaba cut him completely in half!

"Sorry," he hissed, "but I'm NOT playing."

With that, he kept running, and as he did, he remembered something important Sinbad told him during training.

"There are other ways to use powers. One is to use natural elements, like flame or water. It must be akin to the power of the Djinn. In your case, Alibaba, it's flames! Unlike magoi, that will only last about a second."

As Alibaba kept running, the Sword of Amon disappeared, shrinking back to its regular form.

'Thanks to Sinbad, I managed to win,' Alibaba thought as he approached the door to the throne room. 'Those monsters are all gone, now! Besides…they aren't my real enemy, anyway! My real fight…is with Abhmad!'

XXX

SLAM! The doors to the throne room, causing everyone to turn around and gasp in shock upon seeing Alibaba, who panted heavily as he stood in the doorway. Then, he took in a deep breath.

"ABHMAD!" he shouted. "YOU AND I ARE GONNA SETTLE THINGS, RIGHT HERE AND NOW!"

Abhmad sat on his throne, glowering at his younger half-brother. Alibaba then noticed the large crater and the dead bodies in the middle of the room.

'What in the hell happened here?!' he thought. 'Did those monsters do this?!'

"Banker, those useless guards failed me," said Abhmad.

"True," Markkio agreed. "However, the boy has exhausted his magoi. He can no longer use his Djinn."

"I don't need my Djinn's power for this battle!" shouted Alibaba. "Everyone one here is a citizen of Balbadd. I have no intention of killing them…but Abhmad…I'm here to give you and your reign final notice!"

Upon hearing that, the guards began murmuring amongst themselves.

"Final notice?"

"What's he talking about?"

"No clue."

"Kill him," Abhmad ordered the guards. "This one is a traitor, so execute! The banker says he's powerless, so hop to it!"

The guards seemed to hesitate, but then they moved in to apprehend Alibaba.

"Stay back! All of you!" Alibaba ordered. "I'm here as the Third Prince of Balbadd to speak with King Abhmad! Balbadd can't keep going like this and you all know it!"

Upon hearing that, the guards started to hesitate again.

"Kill him!" Abhmad ordered. "He's trash from the backstreets! Don't listen to a word he says! Kill him, now!"

"No! Please!" Alibaba shouted as he struggled against the guards' spears. "Let go of me!"

'Dammit!' Alibaba thought. 'Not again! I'm trying to put up a front, but Abhmad still won't acknowledge me! CAN'T ANYTHING GO RIGHT FOR ME, FOR A CHANGE?!'

"L-let Alibaba go, right now!"

Alibaba and the guards gasped before they looked up…to see Sabhmad, standing beside the throne.

"S…Sabhmad…?!" Alibaba whispered in surprise.

"Sabhmad?!" Abhmad questioned before he laughed. "You startled me, there…now you just stand back."

"N…no…!" Sabhmad stammered, his fists shaking.

"What was that?" Abhmad asked, glaring.

"Abhmad…I…I…!" Sabhmad stammered.

"Hmph!" Abhmad scoffed. "Ignore this one. Obey my order and kill the backstreets dog!"

The guards glanced at their king before they prepared to subdue Alibaba.

"B-BALKIRK!" Sabhmad shouted. "SUBDUE THE GUARDS, AT ONCE!"

"Yes, viceroy!" Balkirk exclaimed as he pushed the guards back, joined by several other soldiers in his command.

"The former king's dog!" Abhmad hissed. "Have you gone mad, Balkirk?!" He then pointed his scepter at Sabhmad. "Don't listen to this worthless fool! He's merely for show! He's a coward with no say in the government! You all know that, right?!"

Sabhmad trembled violently before he looked back at Alibaba, who kept struggling against the guards, even in spite of Balkirk's help.

'Alibaba's here,' he thought, 'and he's fighting so hard. I…I must take responsibility! If I don't do it now…then when will I?!'

Without warning, he snatched Abhmad's scepter out of his hands!

"Hey!" Abhmad cried. "What do you think you're doing, Sabhmad?!"

WHAM! Sabhmad slammed the scepter against the floor, gaining everyone's attention.

"In the name of the Viceroy of Balbadd," he declared, "I forbid you all to interfere with the talks between Prince Alibaba and the reigning king! LOWER YOUR SPEARS, AT ONCE!"

The guards all gasped in shock at Sabhmad's order.

"V-viceroy…?!"

"What do we do?!"

"How should I know?! Why are you asking me?!"

"Sabhmad…!" Abhmad growled. "Don't tell me…you've been siding with the rebels, this whole time! Are you attempting a coup d'etat?!"

XXX

Meanwhile, back outside, Morgiana lets out a roar as she kicked one last monkey in the face before she landed on the ground while Alozza stabbed one more in the heart before throwing its dead body to the ground.

"Anyone else want some?!" Alozza asked. "HUH?!"

The remaining monkeys cowered in fear. Some of them even went over to Enshin…who lied on the ground with a gaping hole in his chest.

"That's what I thought," Alozza hissed as she sheathed her blade and looked at Morgiana. "Not too shabby, Morgiana! Then again, I'd expect no less from a Fanalis."

"Thank you," Morgiana said. "I tried that Masrur did with the Fog Troop. It wasn't as powerful, but it was enough to finish him off."

Just then, Alozza spotted Shahra limping up to the two.

"Hey, Shahra," Alozza said, petting her. "You okay, girl?"

Shahra just purred as she rubbed her head against Alozza's hip.

"…We've done what we can," Morgiana said. "Now…it's up to Alibaba."

"…Whatever idea that idiot has in his head," Alozza began, "it better work."

XXX

Back in the palace, everyone glared up at Abhmad, who was seething with rage…mostly at Sabhmad, who had finally racked up the nerve to stand up to him and admit his allegiance with the Fog Troop.

"So," Abhmad said, "you really are in league with the rebels, then?! You were the one who leaked military information to the Fog Troop…am I wrong, Sabhmad?!"

"…No," Sabhmad admitted.

Hearing that caused Abhmad to laugh almost in disbelief.

"Are you insane?!" he asked. "A royal, abetting treason!?"

"No," Sabhmad answered. "As a matter of fact, I'm quite sane. In all honesty, I believe you are the one who's gone mad, Abhmad! That's why I cooperated with the rebels! I told Alibaba about your plan to sell the citizens, and that's why he's here today! There's only one thing I must say before the signing ceremony."

"And what would that be?" Abhmad asked with a sneer.

"My brother…" Sabhmad said. "No…King Abhmad…right here and now, I ask that you relinquish the throne!"

Abhmad and the guards all gasped at Sabhmad's request, but Alibaba just stood by, silently.

"Everyone knows Balbadd has nearly reached the point of no return," Sabhmad continued, "and tomorrow, you intend to sign a treaty that will enslave the people! To save this country…I must ask that you step down!"

A pause…but then Abhmad's sneer turned into a grin.

"So that's it," he said. "You plan on becoming king, don't you, Sabhmad?!"

"N-no," Sabhmad answered, stammering. "That's not what I-"

"Kill him!" Abhmad ordered. "This traitor plotted to assassinate the king! OFF WITH HIS HEAD!"

The guards hesitated, once again before they prepared to apprehend Sabhmad, but then, Alibaba leapt in their way.

"Hold it!" he shouted. "Let's think about this! It's our last chance! Don't you see?! The treaty enslaving the citizens will affect every single one of us! Your friends…your family…even future generations! All of them will be sold as slaves! Can you honestly face tomorrow, knowing what's going to happen?! CAN YOU?!"

The guards all looked down at the floor, guiltily, while Abhmad seethed with growing irritation at Alibaba.

"General of the Left!" he shouted. "Soldiers! Obey your king!"

"…Your Highness," the General of the Left said, solemnly. "We…we can no longer obey your orders. The soldiers slain by the Kou Empire's monsters were my dear comrades…and sure, we would've been next."

Soon, there was silence.

"W…what's going on?!" Abhmad asked, looking around. "Why are you all so quiet?!"

"It's no use, Abhmad," Sabhmad told him. "Just give up, already. The moment you decided to sell out your own people…they withdrew their hearts from you. This was all over, a long time ago."

Abhmad gasped in shock and horror at what his brother had said, and at first, it almost seemed like he was about to give up…but then he started to snicker.

"What's wrong with you people?" he asked as he gestured to Sabhmad. "Don't let this sniveling idiot fool you! Think about it! If I stepped down, what would you do?! Make Sabhmad king?!"

"Th-that's not what I want, Abhmad," Sabhmad argued. "I'm not worthy of-"

"Oh, is that right?!" Abhmad questioned. "And yet, you lead a coup d'etat! Therefore, you have to take responsibility!"

He then forced Sabhmad to stand up and shoved his scepter into his hands.

"Here!" he shouted. "You see how it feels to look out from the throne!"

As Sabhmad looked, he gasped upon seeing all the guards, eyeing him…almost glowering at him. It made him start to break out in a cold sweat and tears begin to well up in his eyes. Then, he began to shake like a leaf.

"So, how does it feel, Sabhmad?" Abhmad asked with a smirk. "They all depend on you! They'll obey you! And not just them, but the citizens will also expect a great deal from you! They will hang upon your every word! So…what do you think, Sabhmad?!"

Sabhmad whimpered as he began to fall to his knees, imagining a large crowd of people, watching him, waiting for him to say something.

"You see?!" Abhmad asked with a grin. "You can't do it! You get scared, even when someone so much as looks at you! You're nothing more than a worthless coward, Sabhmad, and you always will be!"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Abhmad turned to see Alibaba, who glared at him as he stood in between him and the trembling Sabhmad.

"Sabhmad's no coward," Alibaba said. "He risked his life, coming to the Fog Troop's hideout."

The guards all gasped and began chattering at this.

"Viceroy…is this true?!" asked one of them.

"Y…yes," Sabhmad answered. "Alibaba…thank you…but Abhmad's right. I am a coward. Without you here…I couldn't have acted today."

"…I guess you could say the same for me," Alibaba acknowledged, turning to face him. "Without your help, this would have ended with me being thrown out of the palace, again…or worse, my head skewered on a spear. It was reckless of me to plunge in alone, but now it's working…because you finally found your feet and inspired everyone!"

Sabhmad gasped as he looked at Alibaba, who smiled and put his hands on his shoulders.

"So don't worry!" the Third Prince of Balbadd told him. "You're not a coward at all! You're a brave man! I promise you!"

A pause…but then Sabhmad smiled and pulled Alibaba into his embrace, sobbing happily.

"Thank you, Alibaba," Sabhmad whispered. "Solomon bless you!"

Alibaba chuckled as he pat his half-brother on the back. However, he didn't notice Abhmad glaring as he grabbed a soldier's sword.

"Enough of this!" he shouted as he ran at Alibaba. "YOU PIECE OF TRAAAAAAAAAAASH!"

Alibaba soon whipped around and caught the sword between his palm, then he easily yanked it out of Abhmad's hands.

"W-what are you-?!" Abhmad started before SMACK! Alibaba slapped him right across the face! The fat king fell to the floor, rubbing his bruised cheek, more out of surprise than pain.

'He…he struck me…!' Abhmad thought. 'Just like Father…!'

"Abhmad," Alibaba said, with Balkirk, Sabhmad, and all the other guards standing behind him, all of them glowering down at Abhmad. "Use this chance…to relinquish the throne."

"W…what?!" Abhmad questioned. "You can't be serious! Guards! Seize him!"

However, some of the guards soon walked out.

"W-where do you think you're going?!" Abhmad asked as they let. "I am the king! I am Abhmad Saluja, 23rd King of Balbadd! I…I'm…"

He soon fell to his knees, dismayed and defeated.

"Well, what's all this then?" a voice asked.

Everyone turned around, and Sabhmad gasped in horror.

"Oh, no…!" Sabhmad whispered. "It's her!"

Yes…Kougyoku, Ka Koubun, as well as group of Kou soldiers, had entered the throne room.

"Alibaba…that woman is Abhmad's betrothed…!" Sabhmad whispered.

"…Perfect," Alibaba said.

"Huh?!" Sabhmad muttered.

"I've been waiting for her," Alibaba said.

'It's time for me…to do what I must,' he thought. 'I'm this country's last hope!'

Until Next Night…

Review, please!