Chapter Five- Counterspell
As Carpet flew toward Mozenrath's kingdom, Genie gave Aladdin a lesson on werewolves. The descriptions, how one becomes a werewolf, and the various powers one could have. He tried to stress that no cure has been found, but the hero refused to listen
"If a spell was used, then there is a counterspell," he stated.
The group flew to the borderline of the Land of the Black Sand. Genie and Carpet stayed behind to avoid setting off the magic detectors while the others bravely entered the decaying city. Mamluks patrolled every block but they avoided them. Once or twice, it looked as if they had been spotted. A minute or two would pass before they would continue on.
After ten to fifteen minutes, they reached the Citadel. As Aladdin reached out to open the front doors, they creaked open to reveal...blackness. There was no one or thing waiting for them. Odd, considering Mozenrath usually didn't bother with doors, preferring to magically transport himself.
"Why no traps or guardians?" he asked. "Why leave it unguarded?"
"Maybe he thought a werewolf was all the protection needed?" Iago suggested. "In any case, it appears he got careless and we shouldn't question it."
"Right. Let's go." Leading the way, Aladdin entered the building, still wary of any traps. There didn't appear to be any. Maybe Iago was right.
The trio glanced into every room and corridor they came to. Nothing seemed to resemble a place to use or store a spell. It was Iago who rediscovered the lab they saw when they first met the dark sorcerer. Scattered on the desks among bubbling beakers and stopped test tubes were books and scrolls of various sizes and lengths.
Aladdin immediately began looking through the books while Abu and Iago searched the scrolls. When an hour had passed, the only thing they had found was a tome on magical objects. Aladdin promptly burned that. Another hour yielded the scroll they were looking for. Abu held it up, chattering excitedly. Aladdin took it and unrolled it halfway down. He scanned the objects used and the purpose of each one.
"Well, what' cha find?" Iago demanded.
"There's no counterspell."
"I hate to say I told you so, but I told you so."
"There is a way to break Mozenrath's control, though. A cross was used in the spell and it's a way of controlling the werewolf. If we remove and destroy it, Jasmine won't be under his control."
"Well, let's go and free the princess."
"We can't. The beginning of the scroll says removing the control can only be done during the full moon.
"WHAT! That's a week and a half away!"
"I know. But we don't have a choice. Besides, getting the cross from Mozenrath won't be easy. We can use the time to plan.
"And we'll take this scroll with us, so Mozenrath can't use it on anyone else." Clutching the scroll, the young hero marched out of the lab and toward the exit.
Suddenly something hard and rough slammed Aladdin when he was feet from the exit. He hit the floor hard. Looking up, they saw a trio of stone figures. 'So much for the lack of guardians,' he thought.
One of the giants' fists came down, but Aladdin dodged quickly. Another giant tried to pluck the scroll from Aladdin. Two more such attempts clued him in to the strategy.
"Iago, fly to the exit and catch." Aladdin threw the scroll to Iago, who caught it and split. Aladdin and Abu followed, the former clutching a bruised arm. One dodge caused him to land badly. By the time they got to the border, the bruise was black and blue.
"Al! Your arm!" Genie nursed Aladdin's arm as they boarded Carpet and took flight.
"We got some answers though. Mozenrath�s controlling Jasmine with a cross. If we remove and destroy it, Jasmine will be free from his control."
"She'll still be a werewolf though."
"Yeah. I wish there was a cure."
"Who knows, Al? Maybe one day there will be."
"Yeah. But, in the meantime, we need to plan. We have to wait for the full moon to destroy the cross."
"You got a point. That demented wizard boy isn't going to hand over his control willingly."
"So, let's start planning."
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A Week and a Half Later
Jasmine was miserable. Yes, things did get better. Well, for her anyway. She got to sleep in her room. However, when Mozenrath ordered her to transform (which was quite often), she was to lay on the pillow beside the throne. Another unfortunate thing was that Rajah had been put in the dungeon with her father. Speaking of her father, she saw to it that he nor the guards or Rajah starved.
But, these conditions, she knew would be better if Mozenrath wasn't ruling. She followed Sultan's wishes and obeyed Mozenrath's every word. It wasn't hard. His control had grown stronger and she found it difficult to resist. She was acting more and more like an obedient werewolf and during those times, she nearly forgot that she was human and not a wolf.
However, tonight was the first full moon of the month. Mozenrath's rule of Agrabah and his control on her would end tonight. Tonight, he would die. That one thought gave her the will to endure this past week. It also helped her remember her humanity.
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"So, everyone understands the plan?"
"Yeah, we got it, Al."
"Okay. Let's recap. I'll distract Mozenrath so Abu can slip the gauntlet off. If he orders Jasmine to attack, don't help me Genie. I know Jasmine won't kill me. Once the gauntlet�s off, we'll be able the remove the cross much more easily."
"Okay, Al. The rest of us will stay here and watch in case things don't go according to plan."
"Understood. Come on, Abu." Gathering up his friend, Aladdin slipped off Carpet and onto the throne room balcony. Peering around a column, he saw the sorcerer on the throne. He made out the edge of a black nose on the other side. That was Jasmine. Letting Abu off, he was about to sneak into the room when his nemesis said, "Come in and greet me properly, Aladdin."
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Jasmine kept a close eye on the sky, waiting for the moon to come into perfect position and shine on Mozenrath. That would be when she would make her move. With her positioned on her master's left, she'd be able to reach up and quickly bite before he realized what had happened. She breathed softly at that pleasant thought. The scent of a human (aside from Mozenrath) reached her nose. She didn't recognize who it was and she didn't care. She was a protective wolf and Mozenrath was her master. She softly growled and that alerted Mozenrath. He looked in the direction the she-wolf was looking and smirked. "Come in and greet me properly, Aladdin."
The young man emerged and looked at Mozenrath with furious eyes. Mozenrath could tell from those eyes that Aladdin knew everything.
"How dare you curse my girlfriend," Aladdin said in a soft, yet angry tone.
The sorcerer laughed. "But, isn't she better this way?"
"She was fine the way she was."
"Oh, is that so? Well, allow me to change your mind. Jasmine, attack and destroy him."
To Aladdin's surprise and horror, Jasmine pounced with glowing eyes and bared teeth and claws. She pushed him to the floor and growled in his face. Aladdin tried to see a hint of his girlfriend in this vicious face, but he couldn't. It was as if Jasmine had completely become a wolf! The she-wolf's mouth opened a little bit more and lowered toward Aladdin's throat. The hero pushed on her lower jaw to prevent her from tearing out his throat.
"Jasmine, please, don't do this. You don't have to listen to him."
"Don't you get it, Aladdin? My control on her grew stronger over the past week. She can't resist. I wouldn't be surprised if her humanity no longer exists."
Suddenly, Jasmine's eyes flashed brown. When she spoke, it was as if she was speaking from the bottom of a deep well. "Aladdin, help me," she said softly, before her wolf half took hold again.
"I will help you," he answered just as softly. "We just need to give Abu more time."