The Sapphire Sorceress
Disclaimer: The rights to Kingdom Hearts belong to Disney and Square Enix.
Act 35: Arabian Dream
"Fool! You don't stand a chance against the King of Thieves!"
The World That Never Was: Grey Area ( Aqua's POV )
- Days 95-96 - Xion's Keyblade
I opened my eyes as I moved around in my personal bed back in my normal outfit, the black cloak was hanging up in the closet of this room. For a moment I'd forgotten that I was granted a day off after what I just observed in the Chamber of Repose with Xemnas. So many images ran through my head, and for a moment I was with Ven again in that moment away from all of this emptiness.
'He's waiting for me back in that castle...I will find him again!'
My dreams could be motivation to become stronger than I already was before, so why did I have the vision of Xion...absorbing me with the creepy smile on her face. It couldn't be a sign of something to come in the future, Xion is a good partner and possibly friend of mine. I also began to suspect my superior knew more about what was going on than he was letting on to us. Even so, I could not just run away if the answers I seek remain with Organization XIII plus my other friends, Axel and Roxas.
'My duty will be to uncover the truth about this place, but for now, I will remain the loyal soldier of this group.' Speaking of that a Dusk was awaiting my orders about what to do with the recent heartless roaming around the lower sections of this castle, and Saix believed there were being lured to find Kingdom Hearts or the artificial one hanging in the sky. Beings of darkness would seek out a source of light to fill their hollowness much like us nobodies. It stared up at me awaiting orders about defending this castle just like my Oracle nobodies.
'What shall we do, your highness?'
"Saix explained to me we need to calm down the heartless in the other worlds, and draw them away from the castle. We will have to use the keyblade warriors to handle the crowd, so we will help them out with that...even if I had planned on doing this much later."
I suppose the concept of time matters not to a Dusk, but I wanted to at least freshen up before starting my next mission. Stepping into the shower I let the cold water touch my bare skin, the liquid refreshing my skin even if I could not enjoy the water despite the setting being on the hottest point. As I walked out of the room in my white towel I combed my hair, feeling the uncut locks through my fingers and I saw the blue lines still glowing on my body. I can't remember how long it's been since my eyes first noticed this change to myself.
'Is this part of being a nobody as well? A physical representation of becoming a shell of my former self?' Do all nobodies have this kind of trait about themselves as well, the small change that makes us different from when we had been a somebody? It might explain why Xion reminds me of some many faces I've seen before...
After I finished preparing myself my cloak was put into place over my body, and I was ready to handle this new situation or at least that what I figured would be the case when I opened my doorway, the body of Axel was standing in my way instead of Saix ready to tell me about what I already knew.
"There ya are dollface, so it looks like we're gonna be partners for the day. Apparently, the higher-ups need us to investigate something going down in Agrabah." Agrabah? That means I won't be able to help deal with the heartless that are migrating here...
"Don't worry Roxas and Xion will join us after they harvest the heartless in the lower area of this castle."
"Hold on a minute me and the lesser nobodies can help out with this problem as well!" Something was not sitting right with me, and I figured Xemnas was behind this sudden change in orders for me. Axel must have felt my annoyance as he explained what the reasoning was...the answer didn't make me feel better.
"Xemnas wants us to get along better, and he needs the keyblade users to get into sync meaning work together by themselves. Meaning they handle the heartless without someone to monitor their progress or that's what Ziggy and Saix thought anyway."
At least there was a reason even if it was not a very satisfying one for me. Shaking my head I thought about if this could have been someone going against orders like perhaps Saix wanted me to stay here, Xemnas disagreed with that, and maybe Xigbar offered up this change of plans.
"Auxaq, you're not the only one bummed out about this, however, I think it's the perfect chance to resolve any issues left between us both, and why can't we both take a nice vacation in the desert while doing that!"
"Vacation? Are you sure is really a mission, Axel?" The look of smugness on his face suggested he just wanted to act like a bad boy again as if we were still in Castle Oblivion and he was acting like an unfeeling assassin...no he wasn't acting, in fact, I'm still not sure who Axel really is underneath the surface.
"Believe me I'm glad to know you will be my partner dollface. Out of all the nobodies that went to that castle you're the one who intrigued me the most, and the one who never betrayed this organization. Plus you're kind of hot too so..."
"How subtle coming out of a firestarter, but at least you're being honest with me." I quipped hoping to ease my friend's disappointed look. While I couldn't say we were anything besides friends I'm sure Axel can find himself someone when he-no we regain our hearts back with the help of Kingdom Hearts.
"Anyway while the kids will be doing heartless hunting we've got someone important to find in the desert, the guy goes by the nickname "King of Thieves" apparently. Saix explained that this guy managed to find something that freezes anything including heartless turning them completely solid." Something was capable of doing that, and it was not a keyblade? If we could get our hands on this things might go much easier our organization in the future.
"The Hand of Midas or that's what the guys from the local market called it, but no one knows exactly where it is beside the fact it's hidden somewhere in Agrabah."
"Another mission with a mystery, which at this point does not surprise me. Axel, do you think you can show me this contact you got this information from so we can interrogate him further." That's when I got disappointing news about the man being captured by some thieves who worked for their new "king" in the market area. Naturally, this meant he was being silenced in case someone else wanted to find this hand as well, so it means we'll need to find this "King of Thieves" since he's already on the hunt for this thing. As a portal for our exit was made Axel had to get in the last word about this place.
"The one good thing about having no emotions will be never getting hot because man this place will give you quite the tan."
Agrabah: Plaza Bazaar
Compared to the gloomy atmosphere of the World That Never Was the sun flashing down on the both of us almost hurt my eyes. This occasion was perfect to use our hoods to conceal ourselves from the crowd gathered around us today. A lot of settlers in clothing similar to our own brushed past us without showing a polite excuse me, but I knew not all somebodies cared much the people around them. Axel took note of whispers about there being a special sale going on in the middle of town, and the item was a unique kind of perfume on sale.
"Do you think it can really charm people along with animals like the man said it would?"
"I don't know, but unlike Aladdin, I am unlike with the opposite gender so I have to try anything to fix that."
"I've got to have it especially if it might lead me to that Vanishing Isle, the fabled Hand of Midas is said to have been placed there years ago."
'How do they know about that?' I was shocked that information already leaked up to random civilians as well considering it was considered a folk tale by many. Before they could say more a man dressed in purple began shouting at the top of his lungs, his expression was filled with fear as was his voice in its tone.
"People of Agrabah! As you might know, one of us has been taken by the King of Thieves and this man was only passing along information about this place! That is why I've come with a special gift in order to find him, the very item that you've all been curious about, but this is not meant for the reasons you believe it is. This item is meant to discover the location of the Vanishing Isle!"
"How the hell did he get his hands on that?!" Axel shared my sentiments about this ordeal, it seemed like whatever this bottle was contained the secret to finding the Hand of Midas. We would need to take it out of his hands, but I wanted to know how it can uncover this place so we waited to learn more.
"How can you be sure this perfume is supposed to work like that, you know?"
"Yeah, and how did you manage to find it in the first place?!"
"Simple, it can release a special scent that creates a trail to where it originally was discovered in the Vanishing Isle right here in the desert of Agrabah. Of course, the reason I'm telling you this is not what you think, the only person who should know about this item and have it is none other than Princess Jasmine and Prince Aladdin."
"He's not even a real prince, and why should he get to have the Hand of Midas!"
"Again that is an obvious answer considering the kind of man Aladdin is; unlike most of us, his heart along with Jasmine's intelligence would understand how dangerous such a treasure like this Hand of Midas really be to someone and consider the alternative option. Aladdin and Jasmine would make sure it does not get used for devious intentions: in the hands of someone like this "King of Thieves" who knows what will happen!"
"What makes you think we can trust Aladdin with this treasure?!"
"He didn't fail in bringing back Princess Jasmine with Sora's help now did he?"
Was Sora here before as well? How many worlds did this keyblade wielder visit exactly, and how many people must he have come across during his journey? This also meant Aladdin managed to become associated with one of the Seven Princess of Heart, which meant she was once used by Maleficent and Ansem for their plan to unlock Kingdom Hearts. I wonder if they will be in danger again...
"H-Heartless! They must know about that perfume since they've been following the orders of the King of Thieves!" Our attention was drawn toward heartless holding swords with turbans over their heads. The comment about them following the command of a somebody also made me wonder who this person they've referred about besides that moniker of his.
"Sounds like our cue!" Always trying to make a big entrance aren't we, Axel the showoff! My inner voice laughed at the sight of Axel moving around like he was a hero, but I knew he was putting on a show of pretending not only for the civilians for himself to believe he was really having fun. Removing the hood over my head I charged into battle fending off the heartless going after the speaker who held the key to our mission's success.
"Burn into ash small fries!"
"Get to safety everyone, and don't let these creatures touch you!"
With most of the crowd scattered except for the purple-haired man clutching the perfume, we went to work scaring off the heartless around us with our attacks, the beasts quickly fled once we had the upper hand. I happened to look back at the man whom we saved, his hands were clapping as he laughed rather suddenly.
"I never thought people like you would come to my rescue! I suppose introductions are in order then my name is Sinbad, the traveler of the seven seas, and now the holder of the secret to finding the Vanishing Isle." He certainly had the appearance of someone who wanted attention, the amount of jewelry around his clothing helped out the image not to mention his smile which looked rather bright despite what just happened here.
"Anyway thanks to your efforts I can provide this give to Aladdin and Jasmine...for a considerable fee in exchange, so farewell str-"
"Not so fast pal! We haven't introduced ourselves yet, and besides we might be interested in that bottle you have there..." I stood behind Sinbad while Axel took hold of the man's arm in a friendly gesture despite the underlining threat made. We couldn't let this kind man run off that easily without getting to "learn more" about our new buddy now, can we...
"Wow, so you guys are travelers just like me! Do you also ride in a ship like my crew, the sea can be cruel and yet quite calm to swim through as I've learned over the years."
"Err not exactly we do travel but not by sea more like by another means of-" I had to interrupt with some excuse for Sinbad so why, not this one.
"By air! Yes, we can travel around through the air." Axel wondered if I was crazy, but that was the best thing I could think of considering we do go through the thin air once we enter a portal of darkness, the comment was not a complete lie. We went to a small table after introducing ourselves to earn more of this man's trust.
"Amazing! You must have discovered a way to travel across the land on a magic carpet just like Aladdin!"
"Well something like that yeah, so about that perfume you got Sin which we know means a lot to you and Aladdin..."
"It's just we wanted to claim the Hand of Midas for our own needs." Sinbad placed his hands on his chin as I decided to get to the point rather than beating around the bush. He took in the tea he asked to drink while we sat down in a spot with some cover blocking the bright sun. I wondered if being honest was a mistake this time, and if I should have lied about our reason for coming here like Axel was suggesting. Sinbad's eyes came open with the expression of understanding.
"I see then Auxaq, this must be important enough for travelers like yourselves to put your lives at stake to save mine; still your goals are unclear not to mention it could have just as much greedy intent like the King of Thieves has for this treasure."
"Don't compare us to this guy everyone's been speaking about Sinbad, the man sounds like a greedy tyrant while we just want to stop the heartless."
"Heartless?" Ahh so he doesn't know what he was almost killed by a few moments ago or he never saw those kinds of heartless before now. After giving a short summary of those creatures Sinbad realized what we were talking about, and after snapping his fingers he began to comment about Aladdin and Sora.
"So, those were the monsters Aladdin and Sora fought during their adventure to save Jasmine. Naturally I myself would risk losing my soul to ensure the safety of a beautiful maiden like Jasmine." Wonderful another man who reminds me of the guy I'm sitting next to, and I wouldn't be surprised if they started getting along shortly.
"Anyway it sounds like you want to keep the heartless away like you said, but I still can't trust you with this bottle. That being said I could use a few hands like yours to protect me during my trip to the Vanishing Isle."
"Let me guess Sinbad, you also need us to handle this King of Thieves for your own sake as well right?"
"I did hear that man has found a way to control the heartless for his own purposes, so I could use some bodyguards like yourselves to deal with such a threat, and without Aladdin around lately I've been looking for some help during this trip." It does make sense he's simply extorting us for protection in exchange for letting us travel with him.
"You want assassins you got them deal!" Even if I knew this somebody acted like a manipulator we didn't have many other options since we were out in public, had no clue where to begin looking for this isle where the Hand of Midas was, and most of all someone to guide us around the world.
"Excellent, the crew will need time to prepare the ship, however, we will ride the shores of the sea to our destination in one day!"
Agrabah: Vanishing Isle
I will say one thing going through a pathway made out of darkness seems rather boring compared to riding on a ship through a vast ocean of water. Axel was very much out of his element which made Sinbad laugh when Axel almost fell into the water by accident when a careless crewmate dropped some logs on the main deck. Thankfully the situation did not result in a poor somebody getting burnt up from my partner's hot streak. Once that was over with I could enjoy the sight of the birds flying in the sky, the sounds of the waters splashing on the ship, and the sky around us not full of sand making everything easier to see.
"Alright, my crew let's get some spirit going with a good old song for the road!"
"He's Sinbad the Sailor, so hardy and hale! He's going to an island on the back of a whale! It's a whale of an island! It's whale and it's master will belong to this handsome bloke! Oh, Who's the most remarkable extraordinary fellow? Sinbad the Sailor!" WHY! The mood quickly changed from enjoying the voyage of the sea to trying to get this music out of my head, and my friend decided to join in with the singing to my dismay. I could only hope this travel would not run into any more problems...like a storm which seemed to be happening right before my eyes.
"I'm assuming that gathering of gray clouds is not a good sign right? Hello? Oh for heaven's sake..." The idiots are still singing, dancing, and drinking like nothing is going on in the background. Grumbling in annoyance my hand took hold of a single beer jug, lunging it right at one of the inhibited morons hoping to catch their attention to the issue now at hand. Sinbad finally realized the issue and got back into his role as captain ordering his men to steer the ship...into the storm?
"At last we are one step closer to the fabled island of legend. Onto the next step with the scent that will lure out the creature we seek."
"How is that supposed to work in this kind of weather!" Axel said what I was thinking considering how nasty the winds suddenly have become around us. Sinbad answered the question with the streak of pink suddenly moving around the air, the trail of perfume being sucked into the middle of the storm which we could not even see because of the bad weather. Sinbad walked back to me and Axel dragging us near him to whisper something in our ear.
"I know the king is a stowaway on this ship. He likely followed us yesterday taking one of my men captive whom I can't see on the bridge now, but I knew that this voyage needed to happen regardless."
"You let this guy on your ship on purpose? He might try using your shipmates to get his hands on the treasure!"
"I know, but my crew is too loyal to not follow me down the path I choose during my life. These men have gone with me through a lot worse than whatever this man is plotting, and besides, I plan on becoming a king myself one day meaning this other fellow will fall before me!" Quite a prideful man, the throne might not do you well, in the end, Sinbad. That was not our concern however as we observed a sudden break in the clouds revealing something approaching us slowly, and for a moment I along with Axel believed it was another ship.
"Ahh, there she is! There she is! I never thought I would get to see the legend of the Vanishing Isle come to life: the first sign would be the island that can move and become unseen, next would be the giant sea turtle which carries the land containing the lost palace, and finally this creature which is meant to carry the traveler into the depths of the sea to uncover the Hand of Midas."
"You mean we're going in the water!?" Axel would be rendered helpless in this element, but I knew Sinbad was not going to let himself get killed so there had to be some trick about this turtle we could not observing sniffing the pink cloud around its nose.
"The creatures must love the smell of cherries why else would it come this way? Still, it was not easy to find this kind of perfume on the market, so at least the treasure buried under this ocean will be worth the risks I've taken thus far!" I began to wonder when this king would make his appearance considering we've uncovered the Vanishing Isle; if he wanted to get to the Hand of Midas the time was now to strike yet everything seemed normal or rather the sight of a bunch of sailors making their way onto a giant swimming turtle would be in this situation.
"All hands prepare to bridge this new land! Bring all the equipment, man, your weapons, and keep out for anyone who looks different than the rest of you...well besides my two bodyguards of course." I couldn't help rolling my eyes with that remark considering our duty was not to help this guy out in finding the Hand of Midas. Axel began to inspect the crew to find something out of place, but I followed the others inspecting the fortress we've disembarked on.
'It seems pretty old, and yet the structure looks like it was just made a few years ago.' I also took notice of the pathways around the building which reminded me of how confusing Castle Oblivion could be with its labyrinth-like design, the purpose likely being similar to that castle of sending travelers down the wrong path. Without the right guide, most of our crew here would end up lost.
"It's beautiful isn't it darling. Without my trusted guiding map we would have never gotten this far, to begin with, but the trials put in this place won't stop me from getting my hands on the treasure. The next step will be finding the right room in this fortress, so we can force this place into the water."
"Sounds fair so where does the map say to go first then?"
"Let's see...umm give me a moment please Auxaq." I tapped my foot on the floor while Sinbad started digging through his personal bag, looking around for this "map" that was meant to guide this crew through this fortress. That's when I noticed a guy in a blue outfit giving Sinbad a burnt piece of paper.
"I believe you're looking for this correct?"
"Yes thank you ver-AHHH the paper has been ruined who has done this! Was this the work of your fire-flinging friend! I knew you two couldn't be trusted!" How dare you assume that when we've done nothing besides help you out! I was ready to fight if he threatened Axel with another plank like Hook, brushing aside my hair when this guy in blue waved his hand up in the air.
"Actually if you want to blame someone it should be me considering I'm not exactly part of your crew Sinbad."
"It's you...the King of Thieves himself...Cassim."
"Impressive Sinbad, not many people know about my real name and not even my own son, Aladdin." Aladdin? That man traveled with Sora to the Cave of Wonders just a few years ago, the father of that man was the self-proclaimed king of thieves?
"Believe me I'm not that much of a fool to not put two and two together, the both of you have a similar appearance, love of stealing valuable treasure, and you both enjoy the thrills of the opposite gender. By the way, have you even seen him lately?"
"Actually yes I did before coming here the boy I knew has now become a real man, but that does not concern me right now...what does it whatever you're planning to do with the Hand of Midas." Before I could question anything a pack of heartless appeared around us with more sword-wielders in tow and giant ones with small turbans on their heads. Great with Axel still on the ship I had to protect Sinbad all by myself.
"I should be asking you that question! Considering you're the master of all thieves the assumption would be that you would lock up this treasure in your vault just to spite the world."
"Another correct answer you've really done your homework Sinbad, but I've also studied a guy who uses his crew to amass any kind of power in this world." I narrowed my eyes with that comment, looking at the expression on Sinbad's face change up for a moment. I couldn't press the question on my mind as the heartless suddenly began attacking my charge for this mission, and I had to keep him safe no matter what!
My barrier kept Sinbad safe, but I knew there were too many numbers on Cassim's side to go on the offensive, and I wondered how this man could tame these beasts thinking about my next move to make. I deflect the blades and fireballs that came in the direction of Sinbad knowing the barrier could not hold up against this much resistance, Cassim clapped his hands in a sarcastic manner.
"My my, so you're one of the fools he's managed to con into working under him."
"I don't care what your problem is with this guy I'm only trying to find the Hand of Midas."
"To use the power for selfish desires I'm sure, the truth is all men who seek out these valuables have no good intentions for them only wanting a new weapon in their hands to-"
"No! I and Axel just want something to stop the heartless in their tracks. I know it won't freeze all of them, but if this treasure can ensure more innocents won't lose themselves to these monsters then I'll hunt this item down!" His eyes widened likely not suspecting that answer from someone like me, and yet this is the sole purpose I've come to this land along with my partner.
"You wish to tame the beasts I've managed to control with the Staff of Arba, which happens to be another legend that would have been used by greedy men to amass control of the population of Agrabah."
"I see that staff has been said to allure the minds of beings with little instinct into following the holder of the treasure, and all of this time the secret of controlling the heartless lied in your hands...how funny!" Sinbad? Why...are you laughing about that it's not a funny joke at all. I suddenly felt a fireball connect with my leg causing my body to kneel down...how could I get distracted that easily?!
"Everything is very clear to me now, and thanks to you Cassim I've gained a new inspiration! I could claim all the world's riches for myself, but that is nothing compared to having the power to build an entire kingdom of my own making." Hold on a minute? Why is he going on about a kingdom if he just wanted the treasure for gold or munny...unless something's changed in his mind. I noticed Sinbad pulled out some kind of weapon that shot a ball at Cassim which I couldn't stop in time before it knocked him back, the rod hidden in his clothing fell out from his backside.
"Thank you Auxaq for giving me this new power, the ability to control beings of darkness will making building my new kingdom that much easier, and with fools like this out of my way things will move that easier."
I felt my body twitch in suspense; all this time I've been helping this man in hopes of doing the right only to find out this individual is no different than a man like Captain Hook. I threw my weapon at Sinbad's hand running at Cassim to grab the weapon until two giant heartless stood in my way.
"I guess you now realize that I don't need your protection anymore, which means you should be asking me to save you from these beasts. I'll give you until the count of three. One...two..."
"Three strikes and you're out pal!" Right on time Axel not a moment too soon, but better now than never with this situation. Axel was more experienced with fire than these bandits, his Chakrams knocked the two large ones back on the floor while I attacked the ones going after Cassim who was in danger without the Staff of Arba.
"Now both of my bodyguards have turned against me! No matter I'll just build a better crew with these heartless. Speaking of which I think it's time for their meal so..." His hand pointed in the direction of...his ship? No! He's going to feed his own crew to these monsters!
"I thought we had no heart what exactly happened while I was away, Auxaq?"
"No time for a long-winded explanation. We can't let Sinbad control the heartless or get his hands on the treasure!"
"Righto, that's all I needed to hear let's get to work then!"
Cassim was confused about the sudden change in our actions, but if his words were true then I doubted he had greedy ambitions like Sinbad has revealed with his true colors. Once more my trust in people has ended up failing me considering how quickly Sinbad showed his real nature with the chance of gaining more power now in his grasp. While I was still not at my full strength my body could withstand the hits from these creature's blades, and dish out equal amounts of pain right back.
"This won't do much to stop the heartless trying to go after those poor guys on the ship you know."
"That does not matter! I won't let this manipulator get his way no matter what!" Axel was right of course yet that didn't stop my will to continue fighting. Something about this battle was reminding me of the old days when I used to fight against evil such as this simply because it was the right thing to do and nothing else. Parrying the blades aimed at my direction I knocked more of the bandit heartless back with magical mines while Axel sparked some fire to scare off some of the other bandits.
"Very nice work, but a waste since my new crew will now be harvesting their first meal! Now my servants help make this sailor a king!" I was ready to deal with more of these monsters, but nothing seemed to happen despite Sinbad calling out his minions with the staff.
"Perhaps you broke it such a shame those legendary treasures can be so fragile." Axel remarked which made me smile.
"Silence you hot-headed fool I am the one who will rule over the land of Agrabah! Heartless! I summon you forth!" A lone bandit heartless ran up toward us only to end up being sliced down by a keyblade! It seemed our back-up has finally shown up here and she not with Roxas.
"Xion!"
"Impossible! How could one girl take down all of those heartless by herself? Hmph, it does not matter since I will just bring out more, and with the Hand of Midas none of you can stop me!"
"Wrong, the three of us will stop you, Sinbad. Axel, myself, and Xion our second keyblade warrior."
"Keyblade? Hehehe! What luck to now gain my own keyblade warrior, and if Sora was strong then your friend must be pretty good as well."
"You don't know how right you are..." Xion? I've never heard that level of confidence out of her before, the look in her eyes showed a different attitude, and the hold she had on her keyblade was much tighter than last time. Axel was cheering her on while I was marveling at this change to Xion. I felt like I was being a hero once more with my comrades fighting alongside me...
[ Yes this Sinbad indeed has the appearance of the one from Magi anime/manga however his role is not as grand in this story. I figured that I should flesh out this world since I don't know if it will come back in KH3, and since Magi is apparently ending soon. I hope the anime comes back for it since I really enjoyed the first two seasons if it things were kinda rushed.
This show along with Seven Deadly Sins have that same issue with pacing which is funny considering A-1, the studio for both series also does the Fairy Tail anime. Expect more Kairi stuff next time along with the conclusion of this mission in Agrabah. ]