Chapter 12. He is his father.
The sky was filled with a sea of glittering stars; the night air perfectly cool and quiet. Sora,Naruto and Aladdin rode on Carpet through the deserts, following the direction the Oracle had pointed to, almost a day away from Agrabah.
I shouldve stayed with the Genie, Iago whined, perched on Soras shoulder. Manual labor beats danger any day.
"Too late to turn back now," said Sora, looking downwards, and the saw something. Aladdin, look there. He pointed down along a rising tide beach where laid a heavy group of tracks. Carpet descended a few feet above the ground, giving them a better look.
"Good, the trails still fresh." said Aladdin.
"We must be pretty close by now." said Sora. Abu pointed ahead, chittering excitedly. Aladdin and Sora looked ahead and saw the rear of the Forty Thieves, riding fast behind a cliff.
"There they are." said Aladdin. Carpet stopped behind a cliff base and they hid behind it. Sora and Aladdin looked passed it and saw the Forty Thieves grouped together by the beach. Well, they got nowhere to go. "We got em trapped."
"We?" Iago shouted, but not raising his voice to be heard. "They are forty thieves. We are you two guys, a monkey, and me. Wait, wait, dont count me." Aladdin just shrugged his shoulders as Sora peaked out again.
"There just standing there." said Sora. Aladdin looked above him and saw Sora was right. Neither of them were sure why, but as the King of Thieves rode his horse into the water, they could not help but move a bit further, filled with curiosity what he was going to do.
"What are doing?" Asked Naruto.
"Open Sesame!!"
the King of Thieves howled, his hand reaching out to the cliff side far before them,
his voice echoing in the air like a god. Nothing happened at first, but then the ground began to shake as the surface of the water boiled; a burning light rising from beneath it. The cliff face began to crack down the center, the light emitting from within it. The crack burst open to a wide doorway, shooting a powerful gust of energy down the water, creating a wide-open path, the water walled on the sides.
The King led his men down the path with all haste. As they rode halfway through, Sora and Aladdin quickly hopped on Carpet, Abu and Iago grabbing their collars, and soared down the path as the walls began to close in inches behind while the doorway began to close. Iago was screaming with death-defying terror, believing they wouldnt make it. Like a mouse to its hole, they dove right in just before the doorway closed.
Carpet suddenly lost balance and threw Sora, Naruto, Aladdin, and Abu against a wall of debris, but were unharmed. After they shook the headaches away, their eyes saw a grand marvel unlike they had ever seen in their world. To them, an aged old palace was built inside the cliff, though ruined, standing pristine with wonder. Carpet then taped on Aladdin and Soras shoulder.
"I know, Carpet." said Aladdin. "Its amazing."
You can say that again, said Sora. Carpet then pulled on their collars, turning them around and pointed at the closed entrance, only to find Iago standing on the ground with his hands over his eyes.
"How bad is it?" Iago whimpered. They looked behind him and saw that his tail had gotten caught. Abu dashed up to Iago, spat in his hands, rubbed them together, and grabbed Iago in a big hug, pulling him with all his strength and were shot back, with Iago yelping. When he got on his feet, he looked over his shoulder and saw a naked stub.
"Oh this is attactive." He said sarcasticlly. He walked over to the entrance, snapped his tail feathers from the crack and stuck them back on. Aladdin and Sora just shrugged. Naruto guffawed at the bird who glared at him.
They quietly followed a trail over debris and creeks that led them to the Forty Thieves camping ground. It was well lit with torches and oil lamps, tents pitched up all around, and the thieves gathered together in a circle, listening to Saluks rant on about todays job.
"We couldve had all the loot from the wedding, but we followed the Kings plan." said Saluk. "This is what we have to show for our trouble in Agrabah: NOTHING!!" His heavy fist slammed down and shattered a perfectly good table. The thieves muttered amongst one another, most in agreement while others began to bet what was gong to happen, who was going die, and how long they had to live. Saluk reeled in his fist and walked up to the King, holding his gold claws up shoulder level, the edged faintly glittering in the light.
"Your time draws to a close." Cassim, said Saluk.
"Cassim?" Sora asked.
"My father." said Aladdin, taking a step further out of hiding.
"If youre talking about spilling my blood, well, I just dont see that happening." said Cassim, his arms folded across his chest, taking Saluks remark as a mere jest.
"Then me open your eyes!!" Saluk shouted, raising his claw high above his head as Cassim took his stance, preparing for the coming blow. Though thats not how Aladdin saw it. He jumped out of hiding and ran at Saluk, before Sora, Naruto and Aladdin had the chance to reach grab a hold of him to stop him.
"Run, I got him," said Aladdin, struggling to keep Saluk down. Cassim just looked at him with a raised eyebrow, not knowing who this boy was, or what he was doing when his gaze was met with his. "I'm Aladdin. Youre my father."
With those words, Cassim gasped with surprise, along with the Forty Thieves, conversing amongst themselves of this impossibility. Saluk then threw Aladdin off him, making him drop his dagger. Sora came at him with pulled right fist, but Saluk grabbed his coming punch and threw him aside with Aladdin, during which Cassim picked up the fallen dagger and stared at the hilt.
"I dont know about your father, boy." said Saluk, walking over to Aladdin and Sora, adjusting the grip on his claw. "But I'll send you to meet your other ancestors. Both Aladdin and Sora gasped with fear as Saluk raised his claw and drove it down, only to be stopped by Cassims grasp.
"Let him go," said Cassim. "The boy is my son." He looked down at Aladdin with a smile on his face, met with Aladdins own. He then looked out to his men, showing off the dagger. "I gave this dagger to my wife years ago. I told her to give to our newborn son Aladdin."
"It's true?" a thief asked.
"So the boy is the son of the King of Thieves." said another thief. Sora helped Aladdin up to his feet.
"Youre the King of Thieves?" Aladdin asked, unsure to take the truth so easily.
"Like it or not, boy, were blood." said Cassim, tossing the dagger back to Aladdin. He walked up to his and held his arms. "Look at you, I never thought I see you again. Has it been so long?"
"From the looks of it." said Sora. Cassim let go of Aladdin and looked at Sora and Naruto.
"And who are these boys?" Cassim asked.
"This is my friend Sora and his cousin Naruto." said Aladdin.
"Blood or mud," Saluk boasted, pushing Cassim aside, threatening Sora and Aladdin with his claw. "The boys are intruders, and we have rules about intruders." The thieves muttered in agreement, and by the sinister look in their eyes, Aladdin , Sora and Naruto knew that things didnt look too good for them. At first, they thought theyd make a bee-line out of there, but they saw that Carpet, Abu, and Iago was caught and bound
"They have found our secret lair." Saluk shouted. They have seen too much. "They must all die!"
"Die?" Iago screamed. "Oh, come on! Cast a vote for mercy here!"
"Yes, Cassim, mercy would be so like you," said Saluk, looking at Cassim over his shoulder. "Soft, and weak." Cassim only scowled and glanced around to his men, then back at Aladdin and Sora.
"Kill em," said Cassim, and the Forty Thieves cheered, shouting out to Saluk what he should do as he bored his sinister grin, pulling his claw back to make the deadly, fatal blow, but all went silent when Cassim spoke again, as he paced around, scratching his beard in thought. "Or the boys could yes, the boys could nah."
Now the thieves were interested, asking him to tell.
"What? They boys could what?"
"Nothing." said Cassim, smiling with a shrug of his shoulders. "Probably just a bad idea."
"Lets here it!" they cried.
"Well, it seems to me oh, never mind." said Cassim.
"What?" asked Saluk, tired of being kept in the dark. Cassim walked in between two thieves and placed his arms around them, holding their shoulders. "The boys could face the Challenge."
The thieves agreed with one another and with Cassims idea, though Aladdin and Sora and Naruto had no idea what they were talking about. Cassim walked up to them and placed his hand on Aladdins shoulder.
Thats that, said Cassim. "My son, and his friends, shall face the Challenge."
"And I will be the one to test them." said Saluk, holding his claws out at them, level to their stomachs, as if to gut them like a pig.
"Okay, so, will it be math or gym class?" asked Sora. "Cause I got a "D" during Math class."
A/N So I'm done for now. Will Sora and his friends defeat Salluk? We'll find out next time.
Edited by NaruSaku fan in Kentucky, 10 November 2014 - 08:26 PM.