Like Never Before by MysticMeg
Summary: Ten thousand years ago, there was a being so evil that no one knew how to defeat it except for one exceptional young man.
Now that evil is back, carried through with Mozenrath's bidding. Agrabah, nor the world, has ever seen an evil quite like this... and it'll be Aladdin's toughest challenge yet as he looses more than he could have ever imagined.
Rating: PG
Categories: Aladdin
Characters: None
Genres: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Dark/Angst, Romance
Warnings: None
Challenges: None
Series: None
Published: 06/22/06
Updated: 06/23/06
Index
Chapter 1: Prologue
Chapter 2: Chapter 1: His Master Plan
Chapter 1: Prologue
Author's Notes: Ayah! I do live, obviously! I know it’s been awhile since y’all heard from me, but I am back… and hopefully better than ever! While this is just the prologue to my rather long upcoming story… I hope that you enjoyed it, and know that the next chapter will be coming out very soon… if not sooner! Lol!
Anyway, keep up with it people… don’t want you to get left behind!
Much Love,
Meg
Ten thousand years ago there was a being so evil that even the holiest of men trembled in its presence. With every movie it would make, destruction would follow and suffering took anyone it laid its eyes on. It wiped out population after population with its demonic ways and sinister games; all the while relishing in the torture it caused. No one was safe it they wondered into its path.
Many sorcerers and holy men were summoned to rid the world of this evil. However, none were successful. Each opponent was wiped out without leaving so much as a mark on the being.
One of the reasons that the evil was never detained was that no one knew what form it had taken. Some say the being had more faces than the devil himself. A merchant one minute, a coyote the next… it could never be traced. Everyone was convinced that all hope was lost.
However, one day the being disappeared. No one knew where or why… of for how long. A rumor generated out of the canyons that a young mad had rid the world of the evil, just by finding its true identity. With its secret out, the demon was banished from whence it came, never to resurface.
All that changed when a young sorcerer decided to summon the demon once again for his own greed purposes; exposing the world to the evil once again…
Chapter 2: Chapter 1: His Master Plan
Author's Notes: CHAPTER 2! Still no action, but at least it leads into the story a bit more, gives a you a little idea about what exactly is going on. Chapter 3 will be out within the next two weeks! Please enjoy!
He had planned it all out. He had went over every detail, and scrutinized every maneuver he would make. He had spent hours on end mastering his next plan of action. In fact, he had not slept in nearly two months as he carefully spun together his next quest for power. It had to be perfect; nothing could go wrong. He would be dealing with more than anyone could imagine… everything had to be precise. If even one thing went wrong… there would be more destruction than even he could handle. No. It had to be perfect, more than perfect… it had to be more clear than crystal.
His aching body told him that he had done all he could to ensure this project to be a success. His back yearned to be rested against something soft, and his neck only pushed this wish even further. His hand had become course and rough and shook even with the slightest of any movement. His legs were like jelly, and he could barely stand upon them to move from one side of the room to another. His eyes burned, and watered constantly from lack of rest. His head began to feel heavier and heavier with each moment that passed without sleep. Dark circles had formed under his eyes, and stood out incredibly against his pale skin. His lips were rough, dry, and cracked from lack of hydration and his voice had turned raspy and almost incoherent. He as a wreck. He seemed to be in almost as bad condition as his servants.
However, none of this mattered to the young sorcerer as he stood upon the greatest break through of his life. He stared down in amazement at his findings that had taken his body such sacrifice to uncover.
Although the rest of his body was dull and weak, his eyes shined magnificently like a young boy receiving a new toy of the greatest importance. He leaned against the desk in front of him on his two hands, and just stared down at the scrolls and books in front of him as if they were the most wondrous things in the world. To the sorcerer, of course, they were.
His heart beating faster than he ever could have imagined, he gathered up the scrolls and books and as quickly as his weak legs could carry him hurried out of the library. Slowly, his shadow moved down the hallways and corridors. His footsteps making barely a sound as he treaded the marble. His hands shook, making it almost impossible for him to hold on to the papers in his grasp, but his eyes never wavered. They were set straight ahead to the large circular room impending on him.
This was it. This was the greatest finding of all time. This was greater than any other sorcerer could have ever accomplished. This was a power of which no one can even have imagined… and he was about to obtain it. He was about to gain control over the most amazing power in the world. Only a few more moments, and the world would be his…
Morning. He could sense it already, even before he opened his eyes. There was a scent of freshness in the air, and a cool breeze came in steadily through out his room. There was a dim light, meaning the sun was just beginning to rise.
Aladdin slowly opened his eyes to greet the new day. He sighed as he took in the breeze, and leaned even further back into the bed and pillows that were strewn around him. He pulled the blanket up a little further onto his chest; just enjoying the peace.
He turned his head slightly to see his wife still sleeping serenely beside him. Her breathing was steady and rich, meaning she was still in a deep slumber. The blanket was pulled up tightly around her and she clutched the ends tightly as if afraid they’d be torn away from her. No doubt they had been a couple times during the night with the tossing and turning he was prone to doing.
Shifting slightly to rest on his arm, Aladdin watched her for a few seconds, just taking in the beauty of her. He smiled to himself as she stirred with his movement, and then went back to lying on his back with his hands resting behind his head. Staring at the ceiling he started to space, just wondering what this new day held for him for a moment.
“Good morning.”
He heard a soft voice offer him greeting. He looked over at Jasmine as she slowly woke up. She stretched a bit before resting her head on his chest and draping her arm across his abdomen. Taking up her hand, he kissed it in return and then rested his arm around her back.
“Sleep alright?” he asked, just as always.
“Mhmm,” Jasmine offered in reply as she yawned and just snuggled closer. It was obvious she had no intentions of getting up, or letting her husband up either. She was lazy in the morning these days, never having the motivation of getting ready to go as soon as her eyes opened. Aladdin had no qualms with it, of course. In fact it was these moments he had to look forward to every day.
“That’s good,” he said softly as he looked down at her. Her eyes were closed again, but she was smiling. “What?” he asked suspiciously as she grinned.
“Nothing…”
“Jasmine… what?”
Jasmine just giggled and moved even closer to him. “Nothing. I just like being like this. No where to, no one to see… it’s nice.”
Aladdin offered a small laugh, and then put his arm even tighter around her, caressing her back a bit. “Yeah.”
“Aladdin?”
“Yeah?” he asked, his eyes closing again as he started to drift off to sleep again.
“Do you remember how you told me that you wouldn’t forget about the meeting my father was holding with the landowners of the center square and all the renovations they were planning?”
Aladdin opened his eyes and peered down at her. “Yeah…”
Jasmine sighed and shifted away from him a bit. “Yes, well, that would be today… remember?”
“Aw… c’mon!” Aladdin exclaimed as he rolled out of bed onto the floor, then jumped up and hurried over to the wardrobe at the far end of the room flinging the doors open and rummaging through.
Jasmine just turned to lie on her back, sprawled out under the covers. “I told you you’d forget,” she said matter-of-factly with a large smile on her face aimed at the ceiling. “When will you ever listen?”
“I didn’t forget… I just… switched around the date,” Aladdin defended as he pulled on his harem pants and tried to smooth them out.
“Father told you about it last night at dinner,” Jasmine said calmly as she turned on her side to look at him as he finished throwing on a vest. “Remember?”
“No.”
“Oh, so you also don’t remember that the meeting isn’t until later this afternoon after the noon sun.”
Aladdin stopped tying the sash around his waist and looked over at his wife looking back at him from her spot on the bed, smiling mischievously.
“Jasmine…”
“What can I say; you’re so cute when you’re all riled up.”
Aladdin sighed and ran a hand through his onyx black hair. He then looked back up at Jasmine with a boyish grin plastered on his features.
“What’s that look for?” Jasmine asked as she sat up and rested on her knees.
“Better move over,” Aladdin said quietly.
“What?”
However, before the princess got an answer, Aladdin dove into her, pushing her back down against the sheets and mattress. She giggled with surprise, and before either of them knew it, they were curled back up in each other’s embrace for another quick period of sleep.
Mozenrath was panting as he leaned up against one of his citadel’s stone walls. He was shaking from head to toe, and his heart was beating so fast that he began to fear that it might explode. There was a deep gash on the side of his face as he stared forward in both horror and wonderment.
He had started the ceremony only a few minutes ago, and it was going all according to plan. There was flashes of light intermediately through out the room, and soft thunder could be heard from the center of the action. Xerxes had swam away just moments ago; fearing for his own mortal life just as any sane creature would have.
A bright flash of lightening came striking down to the center of the circle room, making Mozenrath shield his eyes. It only last a second, and then it was over. Mozenrath lowered his arm, and then brought a book up to read from. He traced the words a moment in his mind before stepping closer to the center of the room.
“Solvo res onto Terra iterum! Addo mihi suus vox! Permissum malum reign quondam iterum!”
After he spoke those last few words; Mozenrath was blasted back by a whirlwind of black wind and sand and light. The thunder began to resonate louder and louder until Mozenrath thought that he would go deaf. His gauntlet began to glow a bright blue as his power was almost extracted from him. He screamed in pain as he tried to keep part of his soul inside of him, the evil around him having other such ideas.
“Release me!” he screamed in agony as he fell to the ground, his heart beating faster and faster. “Release me!”
Suddenly there was a large crash of thunder and then a brief burst of lightening that sent a tremor all through the citadel making it shake. The tremor went out through the Seven Deserts in a wave, and then suddenly all was quiet.
Mozenrath, still sunken down on his knees, held his gauntleted hand within his other, breathing hard and with amazement. He stared down at the pattern on the floor of his home which was now scorched and black. His eyes searched the ground, as if afraid that if he look up, he would be faced with more than what he could deal with. He could tell it was there, however, it was unmistakable. There was so much evil in the room he thought it would swallow him whole.
He had done it though. He had been successful.
“Aladdin…wake up!”
Aladdin jumped to attention as the harsh whisper caught his ear. He quickly straightened himself up from his position of leaning against a wall. He rubbed a hand down his face as he tried to push the fatigue from his eyes where the others could witness it.
How could anyone blame him really? He had been out in the hot sun for nearly three hours now, and he had barely spoken a word, or had a word spoken to him. He was wondering exactly the reason was as to his being there.
Looking over at Jasmine, he smiled sheepishly. Seeing her glare back at him, he just shrugged and grabbed her hand. He was glad that she had decided to come last minute, because if she hadn’t, he wouldn’t have even last this long. That was the sad truth. However, he could see that she was in just as bad condition as he was. Sweat had gathered under their necks, and the heat had made them both fatigued and woozy.
The couple watched as the Sultan and a few merchants gathered under a large tent in the middle of the city around a table that had papers and maps and blue prints sprawled out all across it. They talked in hush tones at times, laughed at others, became harsh every once in awhile; no one showing any one of the royal family any disrespect. Rasoul stood guard right outside the tent and made sure of it.
Aladdin had found himself engaging in mental battles with Rasoul over the three hours he had been stuck out there, but it came boring after he won…every time. Plus, Jasmine had caught on to what was going on, and a look from her instantly ended their rivalry, and now they wouldn’t even make eye contact with each other.
“You alright?” Aladdin asked his wife as she leaned up against one of the columns of the platform.
Jasmine nodded, all the while closing her eyes. “Yes, just ready to go.”
Aladdin nodded and squeezed her hand a little tighter. He was ready to go two and a half hours ago, but he decided against complaining. That would prove to just bring more tension, and it was too hot for tension. It wouldn’t be too much longer until he was out of this. Either the meeting would end… or he would die of heat stroke. Either way, at least it beat the sun. All he wanted to really be doing was be back at the palace with his friends and Jasmine. Just one day without something to do.
Sighing with impatience, Aladdin returned to his stance against the wall with his arms crossed. Jasmine patted his arm gently, and smiled. “I know. But that day will come.”
Aladdin looked down at her with a small smile, acknowledging the fact that she had read his mind. He gave a small laugh before looking out towards the end of the city as people passed by doing their daily business, all trying to beat the heat.
A loud cry came out from the back of the city, and Aladdin’s eyes darted to the scene. Suddenly there were numerous cries and they got closer and closer. Jasmine grabbed Aladdin’s arm as she tried to see what was going on, and so did the occupants of their party.
Suddenly the ground beneath their feet began to shake. The sand moved up and down, and the buildings around them began to shake. Aladdin felt a shadow pass over him and Jasmine, and realized the columns of the platform were coming down and he quickly grabbed Jasmine’s shoulders and got them out of the way.
He stood up quickly and looked inside the platform to see the palace guards quickly pushing and carrying the occupants of the meeting out from under the tent and away from the center temple. The temple came crashing down within seconds from the tremor, which again knocked Aladdin back down on his feet next to Jasmine who was steadying herself with her hands.
Then, only a few seconds later, the tremor ended. It passed through the rest of the city, shook the palace a bit, and then it was gone. Aladdin and Jasmine looked at each other in amazement and then back around them.
“What was that?” Jasmine asked as she took Aladdin’s offered hand and pulled herself to her feet. Before she got an answer, however, she heard her father call her name and quickly went over to survey the damage with him, all the while trying to calm down the occupants of the city.
Aladdin just climbed to the top of one of the city buildings and surveyed his kingdom. There didn’t seem to be too much damage, just the unsteady temples and fruit carts had tipped. But what had that been? He had never experienced that for as long as he could remember back.
A freak accident? That was possible, and the young prince decided to push it out of his mind as he climbed back down and retreated with Jasmine back to the palace to start to put a recovery team out over the city as soon as possible.
If they had only known what they had experienced, and what it signified. If they only knew what was lurking in the same desert as they lived. If they only knew what they were about to face.