Chapter 47
The Genie Trap
"I'm sorry, but we still don't know what Asgard is," Sora said bluntly. "Could you elaborate a little, maybe?"
Loki gritted his teeth, then took a deep breath to calm himself down. "Very well. My father is the All-Father of Asgard, one of the Nine Realms which include this realm Midgard."
The audience traded glances with one another. "So, by 'Midgard', do you mean just Agrabah or all of the worlds?" Goofy asked.
Loki sighed. "I was but a child when your World became divided, and my people have included it in that count then. So yes, I mean all of the worlds."
"All-Father? So, you're like the prince? Shouldn't you be leading your own world's army?" Sora asked.
Loki shifted his gaze. "Actually, no… I'm in exile because my father and brother did not approve of my recent actions and my attempt to wipe out the enemy."
Sora smirked. "Oh, so you never even had claim to the throne and you don't even have any of your royal resources," he taunted.
Donald chuckled mockingly. "Yeah, not even a real army!" he added.
"SILENCE!" he shouted. "You dare to make a mockery of me? I am a god! And I do have an army, one the likes of which you have never seen."
Unfazed, Sora crossed his arms and gave him a cocky smirk. "Really? Then why didn't you bring them?" he asked.
Kairi giggled. "Yeah. They might be a bit more intimidating than some ceramic jars."
"It's… not their time yet," was all Loki could say.
Aladdin raised his eyebrow. "It doesn't look like you came here with enough to start an invasion, so you're not here to pick a fight," he observed. "What are you after?"
"Astute deduction, commoner," Loki commended. "No, I'm here for something that would waste less effort for all of us. I hope you would be willing to cooperate and offer me what I seek."
Jasmine clenched her fists. "How dare you come in here uninvited, attack our guards with your Heartless and make demands of us?! If you know what is good for you, you will leave and never return!" she challenged.
Loki let out a small chuckle. "Oh, I like her," he said.
Mickey stared him down. "Tell us what you're after!" he demanded.
"Oh, I don't think that's how we play this game. If you try to do things by force, then you may force my hand."
"Then what game would you like to play?" Kairi asked with a thin layer of derision in her voice.
"He's stalling," Riku interjected. Everyone turned to face him. Loki's expression went blank as he realized that the young man had seen right through him. "He's buying time while one of his buddies looks for something. What is it?" He entered his battle stance but did not summon his Keyblade, choosing instead to threaten action before outright interrogation.
The answer came in the form of a flying brown moray eel. Riku and Kairi eyed it curiously, unsure what to make of it. Sora, Donald and Goofy glared at it, remembering Ursula's pets Flotsam and Jetsam, and guessing that this one filled a similar purpose. Aladdin and Jasmine gasped. Abu and Iago screamed. The others in the party quickly realized that the people of Agrabah were quite familiar with this creature.
Loki smiled when he saw the eel. "Why, hello, Xerxes. Have you found it?" he asked.
His smile faded when the eel shook his head. "No luck, no luck," he said apologetically. "The lamp is nowhere to be found."
Aladdin let out a laugh. "You want Genie? Good luck!" he mocked. "Even if you did find him, he's not going to do what you want. He's free. He has no master!"
Loki smirked. "Oh, but I don't want his wishes, boy. I want his power!" He studied Aladdin for a moment. "And I believe I know where I can get it. He has the lamp! Attack!"
The Heartless rushed forward. Everyone who had a weapon took it out. Sora raised his Keyblade above his head and shouted "Magnega!" A vortex appeared a few feet above his head. All of the Pot Spiders were lifted up and pulled into it. A third of them shattered against each other and vanished. Mickey shot Pearl at a few while Donald cast Thundaga, and soon they were all vanquished.
The Neoshadows remained, but Riku, Goofy, Kairi, and Razoul engaged them. In spite of the Heartless using gymnastic maneuvers to attack and dodge their opponents' strikes, it was clear that they stood no chance.
Aladdin swung his scimitar at Loki, but the trickster god blocked it with his scepter. Loki ducked out of the way and sidestepped around him. Aladdin spun around and slashed back at him, though Loki dodged that as well.
"Shame," Loki said, confusing Aladdin. "I would have thought that a thief would think to keep his pockets secured." He pulled his hand out from behind him, a golden oil lamp dangling by the handle from his little finger.
Aladdin did a double take and felt his pockets. He sighed and shook his head. "Man, I really need to keep a better grip on that thing," he grumbled. He threw himself at Loki and swung his hand out to grab the lamp, but Loki stepped away, letting him stumble forward.
Loki dismissed his staff and swung the lamp up and caught the base of it in his now-free hand. He cleared his throat. "Spirit of the lamp, come forth!" he shouted, fiercely rubbing the smooth metal.
The gold began emanating a bright aura. The lamp shook violently in his hands. Blue smoke poured out of the spout, lightning flashing around the clouds. The clouds took shape and solidified into a humanoid form. The being had a pear-shaped head that was entirely bald save for a black ponytail of hair and a beard. It wore a golden band on either wrist and a red belt sash around its waist. Below the sash, legs did not form, it had a wispy tail that was a slightly darker shade of blue than the rest of the body.
The Genie of the Lamp stretched his arms and yawned. "Woo, Al, you just woke me from quite the nap," he said. He looked around at the group that was gathered. "Hey, Sora! My man! Keyblade master extraordinaire! How go things?"
"Well, I must say he is more talkative than I was told," Loki commented.
Genie leaned down to study the stranger. "Well, if it isn't one of the Norse gods or whatever people call you," he said. Sora crossed his arms and shared a knowing grin with Mickey. He might actually have been onto something with his hunch.
"How nice of you to grace us with your presence, spirit of the lamp," Loki greeted with a flourish. "I shall be taking your power now."
"Oh, yeah?! Well, here's a taste of some power!" Genie shouted. He spun around and transformed so that he was now dressed like a 1920's-era gangster and carried a Tommy gun. Gripping the handle and trigger with one hand and holding the barrel up with the other, Genie pointed it at the trickster god. "What do you have to say to this, see?"
Unfazed, Loki pulled out an emerald crystal and held it up for all to see.
Genie gasped in horror and changed back to his normal appearance. "The Crystal of Ix!" he exclaimed.
Donald ran in and shot a Firaga spell at Loki, but the trickster god held the crystal in the spell's path. As soon as the fireball hit the crystal, it was absorbed into the reflecting surfaces. Donald, Sora and Mickey gasped when they saw this.
"Ah, yes. The Crystal of Ix. A loan from an acquaintance. Ensnares any being, magical or otherwise, though it certainly works better with magical entities." The fire burned within the crystal for a few seconds before fizzling out. "Not even a genie can escape it. Shall I show you?" He pointed the crystal at Genie, who was trying to back away. The crystal glowed with a bright green light and a laser shot out of the tip.
Genie covered his face as he realized that there was no escaping the crystal's magic. Almost everyone else watched helplessly, aware that there was nothing they could do to stop the crystal from imprisoning Genie.
Almost everyone. That same amount of people watched in shock as the one other person present jumped in the way of the laser just before it reached Genie. King Mickey was hit square in the chest with the magic beam. The spell enveloped him in green light and slowly pulled him toward Loki. The laser wrapped around him into a sphere, which then shrank and zipped right into the crystal. When the Crystal of Ix stopped glowing, it showed Mickey trapped inside.
"Mickey!" Riku called out.
"Your Majesty!" Sora shouted at the same time.
Loki examined his catch. "Not quite what I was hoping for, but that should do," he said.
He was thrown back when a large red spring-loaded boxing glove hit him in the face. When he got up and regained his bearings, he saw said boxing glove change back into Genie's hand, which launched a series of fireworks all over the place.
"Oh, no you don't! I have had enough of that Crystal for an immortal lifetime! Now, let him go or taste the rainbow!" Genie shouted, launching fireworks blasts of multiple colors all around him, as well as a few Fire and Gravity spells directed specifically at Loki.
The trickster god danced around to avoid the attacks, only to see Sora, Riku, Goofy, and Aladdin running straight at him, all of them baring their weapons to attack. Understanding that he had to retreat, he threw the crystal into the air. Xerxes air-swam in and caught it between his teeth.
"Go bring that to your master, worm," Loki ordered. Xerxes nodded and sailed away. "I'm afraid this is where we part ways. May we meet again." With that, he conjured a Corridor of Darkness and backed into it.
Abu screeched and leapt at Xerxes, but he could not go high enough. Iago could and soared right for the eel, but Xerxes ducked out of the way. Rajah lunged and swiped at him, but the eel narrowly avoided that. Making off with only a scratch across his tail, Xerxes flew out the window.
"Tch!" Riku cursed. "We have to follow the eel!" Sora and Kairi nodded in agreement.
Donald had already started running for the door. "Hurry, before it gets away!" he shouted. Goofy began to follow him.
"No need," Aladdin said, causing the wizard and knight to stop and all eyes to turn on him. "I know exactly where he's going."