Aladdin - the Arabian Nights

Chapter 26

Aladdin's composure lessened with each step he took towards the palace. What with his arms bound to his sides, and multiple guards escorting him along the streets, and his being dressed like a street rat again, and all the people gathering around to watch and point and whisper – once or twice he was sure he had caught the word "magic" – he was feeling less and less like a prince who needed to clear up some small matter with the Sultan, and more and more like some sort of wanted criminal finally on his way to face justice. Had word gotten out that he was using magic? Did the people who had loved and admired him so much before now think he was unholy and basically irredeemable? What would the Sultan say to him when he reached the palace? The Sultan had always admired Aladdin no matter what he did... Aladdin had been able to persuade him to bend some rules for Jasmine's benefit... Maybe he could talk to the Sultan and get him to change his mind about this too once he found out for sure what it was all about....

But the Sultan said not one word when Aladdin reached the throne room. His eyes looked strange and glassy, as he merely told the guards to continue with their orders, barely acknowledging them otherwise, and almost seeming not to notice Aladdin at all. Aladdin glanced around him with increasing unease, noticing such disturbing details as the man with the axe standing in the corner and the mat spread out on the floor as if someone were anticipating a large spill of some kind.

In the hands of the guard who held him Abu struggled harder than ever. He seemed to have guessed what was coming a second before Aladdin processed it for himself. Oh, no. No, no, no....

He was half-tempted to just run out of the throne room and get as far away from here as possible. But surrounded by guards and without the use of his arms, he knew he wouldn't get very far. Why had he agreed to come with the guards? Why hadn't he escaped when he'd had the chance? "Your Majesty!" pleaded Aladdin, taking one bold step closer to the throne where the Sultan sat unresponsive, barely noticing the boy he had once looked upon as a son standing before him like a prisoner. "Just let me explain...."

There was no response. The Sultan barely reacted, as though deaf to Aladdin's voice. Two of the guards came forward and grabbed Aladdin's arms. He struggled, all while knowing it was no good, as they forced him to his knees on the mat. Another guard came forward with a strip of cloth, which he bound over Aladdin's eyes, turning the throne room to blackness. There was no hope of running away now. A surge of helpless terror rose up inside Aladdin, as he heard the sounds of Abu shrieking in protest, and the heavy footsteps approaching from the corner where the man with the axe had stood, and no word of mercy from the Sultan, no chance for Aladdin to even try and explain himself....

And then suddenly there came another sound, coming from outside the palace walls, the sound of many angry voices shouting at once. Up on his elephant-headed throne, the Sultan gave a jolt and seemed to come to life, as though shaken out of a reverie.

"What is all that noise?" he demanded of the guards.

The head guard turned from the window. There were throngs of people mobbing the palace walls, he reported, and they were demanding their beloved Prince be pardoned and released at once. If he was not, they threatened to storm the palace and kill everyone inside. "We have no choice, Your Majesty; we must release him."

"Yes... release him at once!" ordered the Sultan, his voice growing stronger as he spoke, as if he had started out talking in his sleep and woken up mid-sentence. He shook his head as if to clear it.

Two guards came forward and removed the ropes and blindfold from Aladdin, while the executioner slipped silently out of the room. The guard holding Abu released him, and was treated to his turban being yanked down over his eyes and some jumps on the head before Abu leaped onto Aladdin's shoulder and wrapped himself around him protectively, directing a lot of angry chatter to the room at large, just daring anyone else to try and touch his Aladdin.