❋ Army of the Twisted

It is an immediate response— so immediate that the young boy twisted his head to greet the familiar voice which he so delightedly was happy to hear (after all, being in an unfamiliar venue without seeing any familiar faces would be terrifying to any twelve year old boy). A bad decision on his part, for he fails to realise that the prince of Kou has held steadfast into the little braid of his. With the sharp turn of his head and the tight grasp of his braid, Aladdin stops himself before tears begin to well up in his eyes. 

     “Ow…” comes his feeble response, his hands gently massaging the area in which his braid begins. He, the mighty Aladdin taken down by a single pull of a braid—

   The male felt a smidgen of guilt for the boy's suffering. Perhaps handling the Magi's hair so abruptly wasn't the best initial greeting, especially with someone so spirited and sprightly. But just as Kouha was about to apologize, Aladdin bounced back with a smile.

   "Yeah, well, it's not like I had a choice." he responds, releasing his braid as his eyes sought out the few loose strands where his hand had held tighter than expected. Clicking his tongue, Kouha placed his hands on the kid's shoulder and would have immediately started to mend the incident he caused by fixing his hair. However, Aladdin's gut protested. And soon after so did his own. Therefore, instead of holding the child steady, he patted the shoulder reassuringly and grinned. 

How could it be? He didn’t use much Magoi, yet he felt absolutely exhausted. His body was trembling and he dispelled his Djinn Equip, which made him feel a bit lighter. It took a little to react to the other. “I… can’t explain this. I should be able to use Amon’s powers without any restrictions, and yet—!” Annoyed, he tried to stand on his own, leaning himself on Amon’s sword which was still on his hand.

Slowly his condition got better and he jumped over the realization that it was Kouha beside him. “W-Wait! What are you doing here?!”

Another Kou prince had been taken to this place. And they happened to cross paths in this terrible situation. This was the greatest person he could run into. Fair enough, it was still better than Kouen, he guessed.

Contemplating his situation, he also saw the other creatures around him slowly coming closer. They were human-like, yet there were visible differences and they didn’t look like friendly guests as well. Alibaba’s body was still exhausted, but he didn’t want another Kou prince to steal his show again, let alone show weakness in front of him.

"Why else? To save your sorry ass from getting torn to shreds!" 

The Candidate's inquiry was either meant for Kouha being another social experiment victim or having showed up out of the blue to rescue the poor bastard. Let's just go with the latter. No time to chitchat in the middle of a crisis. Plus, the prince had no patience for a simpleton who meddled in the Kou Empire's affairs. What were his brothers thinking!

"Tch. Asshole." Not that Kouha had much to show other than an over-sized plank of wood with a naggy voice. Honing his skills in the Reim Empire filled Alibaba's head with lead, apparently. Clash swords with gladiators and combat snarling beasts and he's suddenly got flare. Please. 

❋   "He's all buddy-buddy with my siblings, and that ain't settling so well in my gut." Alibaba was quite an asset against The Medium. But without warning, the Kou Empire entrusted themselves to him. Perhaps it was his ignorance that bested him as the youngest and most inferior to his eldest brothers.  

     In order for him to get his fill, without hesitation he yells into a crowded street: 

Alibaba woke up with a terrible headache. He had spent days or even weeks within his apartment. A hand reached up to his forehead as he slowly opened his eyes beneath him. The bed was as comfy as always. Everything was always. Except that some persons were missing, and he still needed to get home. He had been trapped here for what felt like years now. Although he had regained his powers, there was still no way to get out of this. He slammed his fist against the mattress. How could he spent so long within this hole without doing anything?!

Trying to distract himself from the unsettling thoughts, he turned around only to notice that the clock said that it was midday, yet everything was dark outside. His senses awoke and with his bed clothes on he stormed outside.

Masses of confused people were in front of him. “Oh no… not again.” For a short moment the scientists’ voices could be heard, yet he couldn’t believe them anymore. This was just another joke of them. He was sick of it. Sick of playing along with them.

Driven by a wave of negative emotions, his temper broke out in a hot flame when he arose with his Djinn Equip. With Amon’s sword pointed forward and a loud voice screaming out of anger, he tried to surpass the surface, but was soon catapulted back by an invisible force. Alibaba could stop mid-air and prevented the clash onto the ground, but the throwback was still disappointing. Angered, he attempted it another time, however this time he couldn’t make it far before the pain in his head worsened and took him down onto the street.

He landed soft, yet the pain he experienced was immense. On all four he pushed himself up, with a hand reaching up to his forehead once again. His eyes were twitching in pain, and noises of agony could be heard from Alibaba as well. Meanwhile he mumbled in his pain.

"… damn it…"

Sirens blared, nearly deafening and numbing perception of surroundings while the prince lie in wait in a dank alley when Pariah paraded the suburb, not a moment's rest. Immediately, Kouha would have to move since remaining idle would amount to being spotted. Hatred for these monsters prepared to boil over in his belly, though Leraje's wooden body warmed in response to tight squeezing, coaxing him in a maternal way so his temper would't best him in the end. Heavy breathing through the nostrils and a piercing glare could also give away his position, but constant screams of terror drowned it all out. 

Eyes darted this way and that, finding yet another crevice for a petite frame such as his. Just as he was prepared to crawl from his hiding place, an explosion of flame momentarily blinded focus when recoiling back into safety only to curiously find this source of light. 

Could fatigue be fooling his eyes? Only that foolish excuse of a King's Candidate would fall desperately to his knees, in his Djinn Equip no less! If only he, too, were to equip his servant then Kouha wouldn't be cowering in this shabby little rabbit hole. But Leraje protests of this poor first impression of this Alibaba fellow.

"Amon's flames quiver with his wielder, brat. Can you not perceive this with your own two eyes?" 

"Okay, fine," he sharply whispered. "I'm not blind, old hag. I can't contemplate my actions with you nagging." This flare of Magoi was certain to draw unnecessary attention. And Kouha's body was already moving on its own, hooking limb with limb to ensure Alibaba wouldn't crumple to the ground.