Untold Stories: Future Shock by Sindie

Index

Chapter 1: Part 1
Chapter 2: Part 2
Chapter 3: Part 3
Chapter 4: Part 4
Chapter 5: Part 5
Chapter 6: Part 6
Chapter 7: Epilogue

Chapter 1: Part 1

Author's Notes: Disclaimer: Yodda, yodda, yodda. You all know that Aladdin and his friends and Mozenrath are all copyright of Disney and were used without permission by yours truly. Troy and Anna are my creations. Sindie is based on me! You can use any of my characters if you want. I won't curse or bite or anything, really! To better understand this story, I suggest you read Together Forever first!

This story was completed between Jan. 1999 and Feb. 1999 by Sindie. Originally written in Nov.-Dec. 1998.

Part One

It was another hot morning after a cool desert night. The sun had just risen when Troy opened his eyes and immediately leaped out of bed. He left the covers thrown on the floor and didn't bother dressing himself. The eight-year-old boy had so much energy that he didn't know what to do with it all.
Troy ran down a long corridor, each pounding footstep echoing through the palace marble walls. He came to an abrupt stop at the bedroom all the way at the end of the hall and quietly opened the door to his sister's room. He was very cautious on his way to her bed, as to not awaken her too soon. Suddenly, Troy jumped onto his sister while she was sound asleep.
"Aaahhh!" she screamed.
"Good morning, Anna!" Troy happily exclaimed.
"What?! Hey, get off me, Troy!"
"You gotta catch me if I get off."
"Why should I?"
"Because."
And Troy grabbed a hand-full of Anna's long, curly hair and pulled hard.
"Ouch!"
"That's why!"
Troy quickly left Anna and began running down the hall again. Anna was furious at what her brother had done and began chasing after him.
"Get back here, you jerk!"
So, the two ramboncious children neared the end of the hall, and Anna suddenly jerked to a stop and fell on her hands and knees.
"Ow!" she cried.
The children's parents heard them, and they came out of their room to see what was going on. Jasmine walked over to Anna and helped her to her knees.
"Are you okay, Honey?" asked Jasmine.
"What is going on here?" Aladdin questioned in a serious tone. He glared down at Troy. The small boy cautiously looked up at his father and smiled crookedly.
"Ah, nothing, Dad."
"Right. You were chasing your sister again, weren't you?"
Before Troy even had a chance to answer, Aladdin looked over to Jasmine, who shrugged her shoulders. He looked back down at his son.
"Why is it every morning you get up so early and wake up the whole palace?" You will be sultan one day, and you still act like a child."
"But I am a child..."
"Enough! You are to go to your room until lunch. Forget about even asking for breakfast."
"Yes, Dad."
Troy hung his head and slowly walked down to his room. He quietly muttered under his breath and slammed the door shut.
"Anna, Dear," began Aladdin, "are you going to be alright?"
"Yes, Daddy. He came into my room and--"
"I know, Sweetheart. You're Daddy's little girl, and I'm not about to let anything happen to you."
"Thank you, Daddy." Anna smiled and quickly embraced her father.
Aladdin placed his fingers under Anna's chin and gently lifted her head so she was facing his eyes.
"You are looking more and more like your mother every day. You are so beautiful."
Anna shyly smiled, and Aladdin stood up.
"I must go begin preparing for today," he said and walked off.
"You are becoming a young lady, Anna. You shouldn't let your brother get to you so."
"But, Mom...he--"
"No, Dear. I don't need to hear it. You will have to start acting more like a lady from now on, okay?"
"Okay."
"That's my girl."
Jasmine patted Anna on the head and headed in the same direction as Aladdin had gone.
Anna was still angry at her brother. She knew what he did had hurt her, and she felt he should feel pain in turn. Totally ignoring what her mother said, she tip-toed to Troy's room and opened the door. Troy was facing away from her, so she quickly approached him until she was right behind his back. Troy suddenly felt two arms around his body, and when he turned around, he saw Anna.
"Hey, let go of me!"
"No! You hurt me, Troy! Now I'll get you back!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"No!" he yelled and scrambled out of Anna's embrace. Again, he chased his sister down the halls. They came to the end of a hallway that had a door all by itself.
"Wait, stop," Troy said. "Look at this door."
"So?" Anna asked. "It's just a stupid door."
"But don't you wonder what's in there?"
"It's probably just another guest room."
"No, it's not. Why would there be a guest room all the way down here by itself?"
"I don't know."
"I bet there's tons of dead bodies in there, and when I open this door up, they'll all chase you and yell, 'Brains! Brains! Me eat your brains!'"
Troy lifted his arms up and made his hands look like claws.
"Yeah, right! Stop it!"
"Well, I'm gonna see."
"No, Troy. You can't. If you do, I'll tell."
"Too late."
Troy had already opened the door while Anna was speaking. A long set of steps made out of stone led down into darkness. The children curiously looked down.
"Where do you suppose it goes?" asked Anna.
"There's only one way to find out."
"Oh, no. I'm not going down there."
"Oh, yes, you are."
Troy grabbed Anna by her wrist and pulled her down the steps.
"Wow, this is so cool," exclaimed Troy in absolute astonishment. "I wish we would have found this place sooner."
They got to the bottom of the stairs and saw a long, dark corridor ahead of them. The walls, floor, and ceiling were composed of thick, cracked blocks of stone, and the only light was emitted from a few random lit torches on the walls. The whole place was deadly silent and damp. The cold air went inside the little lungs of the children, and Anna felt a creepy chill run down her spine.
"It's the dungeon," whispered Anna.
"Yeah. I've never been down here before."
"Me neither."
"I should have discovered this place long ago."
"You already said that. Now let's go."
"No. Don't you want to look around?"
"Not really."
Troy walked over to one of the thick wooden doors of one of the cells. He jumped up to the barred window and clutched his hands around the bars. He lifted his head up, so he could see over the wood and through the window.
The man in the cell was sitting on a cot of hay with his hand resting in his hands. He looked over to the door and saw Troy.
"Ggggrrr!" he roared and jumped at the window.
"Aaauugghhh!" yelled Troy, releasing his grip from the bars and falling to the floor.
"Ow," he groaned, rubbing his rear side.
"Serves you right. You shouldn't have bothered that man."
"Pardon me, children," said a foreign voice.
"Huh?" Anna and Troy asked in unison.
"Hello, Anna and Troy. What are you doing in the dungeon? It's not exactly the type of place I would expect to find a prince and a princess."
"Well, uh...we were just..." Troy trailed off.
"Hey!" Anna jumped in. "How did you know our names? Who are you?"
"Oh, I guess you could call me an old friend of your father and mother. They have told me all about you."
"Why are you in the dungeon if you're a friend?" inquired Troy. "Shouldn't you have come through the front doors if you're a guest?"
"I live in the palace. I clean the cells and watch the inmates."
"How come I've never seen you?" asked Anna.
"I'm quite busy all the time. I never have time to do anything but work in the dungeon."
"Oh," said Troy rather dumbfounded.
Anna, however, looked at this mysterious man suspiciously, as though he couldn't be trusted.
"Anyway," continued the pale man, "you children seem to be rather bored being in the palace all the time. How would you like to go somewhere fun? I would gladly take you, as your parents seem rather occupied."
"Really?!" Troy's eyes lit up. "Where?"
"I don't think this is a very good idea," Anna trembled. "We had better ask Mom and Dad first."
"Oh, there will be no need for that," began the man. "I already told them. Now come on."
The man held out his left hand and offered it to the children. Troy and Anna looked at each other and back at the man's thin hand. Troy gripped it tightly and smiled excitedly.
"I'm ready!" he exclaimed.
"Excellent," said the man with an unseen malicious smile and led the children out of the dungeon through a secret tunnel.

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Chapter 2: Part 2

Everyone was gathered around the dining room table and ready for breakfast. Everyone but Anna, that was. Aladdin couldn't understand why she hadn't come yet. Troy was the one who had to stay in his room without breakfast. That's it, he thought. Anna must be bothering her brother because of that little incident earlier.
"Where do you suppose Anna is?" asked Jasmine. "I'm sure she would have come by now."
"Something tells me she's is Troy's bedroom," muttered Aladdin.
"Anna wouldn't do something like that," said Genie.
"You'd be surprised what children will do," Aladdin smiled. "I was one what seems not so long ago."
While Aladdin was speaking, he stood up and pushed in his chair. The others got up as well and followed him to Troy's room. When they arrived, the door was wide open, and no one was inside. Anger began to flow through Aladdin's veins as he clentched his fists tightly, trying to control his limited patience.
"Why did he disobey me?!" he suddenly barked. "I specifically told him to remain in his room until lunch! And where is Anna?!"
"They wouldn't leave the palace," Jasmine assured. "They must be around here somewhere."
"You're right, Jasmine."
A long search began. While Aladdin was looking in one of the many guest rooms, one of the guards approached him.
"Your Highness!" he gasped. "I've been looking all over for you! The children, they--"
"What? What is it?"
"They were in the dungeon. I saw them. Then a man with a skeletal right arm approached them and led them away."
"Oh, no!" cried Aladdin.
He had definite fear in his eyes. His normally tan skin turned white, and he stopped breathing for a few seconds.
"Your Highness? What is it?"
"Mozenrath."
Aladdin couldn't believe it. He hadn't seen Mozenrath in nearly a decade. He could be more dangerous than ever, and he had Anna and Troy.
"My children!" yelled Aladdin.
A combination of rage and worries aroused in Aladdin's mind. He was not only worried about his children, but he wondered why Mozenrath had to subject innocent children to his evil. Mozenrath's quarrel was with Aladdin, not his children.
Everyone else heard Aladdin's shout and came running into the room.
"Why did you say Mozenrath's name, Al?" questioned Genie.
"Because," stammered Aladdin, "he, he has my children."
"He what?" Jasmine gasped. "No!"
"I'm afraid so..."
"No..."
Jasmine, instantly overcome with grief, sunk into a slumped-over sitting position on the bed. She put her hand over her heart and then placed it so her fingertips were touching her lips.
"Aladdin--"
I know, Jasmine," he whispered in fright.
"What do we do?" she asked, her voice trembling on each word.
"What choice do we have?" Aladdin asked.
"None but to go to the Land of the Black Sand," she replied.
Aladdin slowly nodded and turned around to his friends. Genie floated in mid-air with a frown spread across his face, and Cassim looked his son directly in the eyes. Iago and Abu sat on Carpet without the slightest movement, looking at their feet.
"Dad," Aladdin said.
"Yes, Aladdin?" Cassim quietly asked and stepped forward toward his son.
"Jasmine and I, we must go to the Land of the Black Sand. Someone needs to look over the kingdom. Can you?"
"Of course. I'll do anything. Is there anything else you need?"
"My children," Aladdin frowned. "They are a part of me."
"I understand completely. After all, I am a father."
"Yes, that you are. Thank you, Dad."
Aladdin smiled the best he could manage in the circumstance and hugged his father. Cassim placed his arms around Aladdin and seemed to renew Aladdin's faith.
"I must find them," Aladdin said in a determined voice.
"We will, Al," Genie reassured his friend. "Don't worry. We will find them."
Aladdin climbed onto Carpet, where Abu and Iago waited. Jasmine quietly seated herself beside her love, and Carpet took off as Genie followed closely behind. Abu climbed onto Aladdin's shoulder and gently hugged him. Iago remained silent, which was quite unusual for him, and he never looked up. Aladdin turned his head to Jasmine to see her staring back with empty eyes and tear-stained cheeks.

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Chapter 3: Part 3

"Where are we?" Troy asked.
The coach was now in the dreary Land of the Black Sand. The sky was clouded over, and it was nearing dusk. A dark palace was seem off in the distance, along with an abandoned city.
"My home," the man said casually.
"What?!" Troy gasped. "But you said you lived in Agrabah."
"I lied."
"You what?!" Anna exclaimed. "Who are you? What do you really want?"
"I am Mozenrath, Lord of the Land of the Black Sand. You two children shall be the perfect bait I need for bringing Aladdin to his doom."
"What did my dad ever do to you?" Troy hastily barked.
"What did he do to me!?" Mozenrath exclaimed. "Why, I can't begin to list all the times he ruined my plans for world domination. You see this?"
Mozenrath held his skeletal right hand up for the children to see. They gasped in pure fright and turned their heads away.
"This hand used to bear my gauntlet, my source of magical power. That is, until your lousy father took it from me and hid it somewhere in that wretched palace of yours! I gave my right hand for power, and he took it from me!"
"You don't deserve such power!" Troy yelled. "You're evil!"
"Troy," whispered Anna. "Be quiet. He could hurt us."
"You had better listen to your sister, you little rat. You don't know what I'm capable of."
Troy glared hatefully at Mozenrath and didn't say anything. He kept silent the whole way through the city. Once they reached the palace, Mozenrath chained the children's hands together behind their backs and led them inside. He tied them to some posts with rope.
"Now we wait for Aladdin."
Troy and Anna waited for their parents to arrive for what seemed to them like forever. Mozenrath grew impatient as he paced back and forth. He finally stopped and glanced over at his table full of papers and books. He casually walked over to the table and snatched one of the papers, holding it closely to his face. After studying the paper, he went over to a strange-looking wooden carriage. It looked like a carriage from the outside, but when Mozenrath opened the door to go inside, a series of gears and cogs lined the inner walls. In the center of the mechanics was a glass sphere with some sort of blue glowing liquid in it, and several glass tubes extended from it in all directions. Studying the interior closely, Mozenrath ran his fingers along the tubes, gears, and cogs. He finally withdrew from the "carriage" just when Aladdin came bursting into the room on Carpet.
Aladdin looked sourly at Mozenrath and yelled, "Mozenrath, I demand that you release my children at once!"
Mozenrath looked at Aladdin with his black eyes and smiled a devilish smile. He took off his turban, exposing his long, black curls of hair.
"Well, well," he casually said, "look who's here: Aladdin, his oh-so-dear wife, and all his little friends. How long had it been since I've seen you?"
"A decade of happiness!" exclaimed Genie. "A whole ten years without you!"
"Mozenrath," Aladdin said as calmly as he could, "give me back my children."
"You are as amusing as ever, Aladdin," Mozenrath laughed. "You still look like a boy, too. A man who is almost thirty years of age, and he hasn't grown up yet!"
"Mozenrath!" Aladdin screamed. "Now!"
"That's enough from you!" Mozenrath snapped. "You must do what I ask, or else your children will be dead in about ten minutes!"
"No!" Jasmine gasped. "Aladdin, we must listen to him."
"You're right," Aladdin said with a frown. "We can't do anything that would result in harming Anna and Troy."
"What would we have to do?" Jasmine asked.
"You see this? This is something I have been working on for ten years," Mozenrath said, pointing at his "carriage."
"This is a time machine. I spent my life investing in its creation, so I could travel back in the past to a time when cities were weak. I could easily rule the Seven Deserts then. I would never use such a dangerous weapon, if you will, to go into the future. I know what happened in the past, but the future is unwritten. Who knows what could happen. No matter, I need to test my machine. You, Aladdin, and your little friends shall be the ones to test it. If it doesn't work, I will be quite angry that I have wasted ten years, but at least you will be destroyed!"
Anna and Troy yelled muffled phrases from their covered mouths. Aladdin looked at them and almost cried. He tried to approach them, but Mozenrath prohibited it by stepping in the way. Aladdin said nothing and slumped back to Jasmine's side.
"Okay," he said. "I'll do it."
"Excellent," Mozenrath replied.
Mozenrath led the group into the time machine and set the date.
"You will wind up in 1998 B.C.," he explained. "You will automatically be transported back a minute later if everything works right."
Mozenrath left the time machine and closed the door. Suddenly, the machine began to shake, and all Aladdin and his friends could see outside was a bright light. The light quickly disappeared, and they found themselves in the middle of a blizzard. Many tall buildings and long roads appeared. Aladdin looked out the window at moving vehicles that he had seen Genie make before.
"Uh, I don't think we're in 1998 B.C.," Aladdin said.

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Chapter 4: Part 4

"What?!" exclaimed Iago after a few moments of silence. "How can that be?"
"I don't know," Aladdin said in an anxiously exaggerated voice.
Aladdin looked over to Jasmine, who shrugged her shoulders. Just as Abu was climbing onto Aladdin's shoulder, Aladdin turned to Genie.
"Genie?"
"Yeah, Al?"
"What do you make of this?"
"Well," said Genie, turning into a scientist, "my hypothetical deduction would be that we appear to be in the future, 1998 A.D. to be exact."
"What? How can this be?" Aladdin questioned frantically.
"Looks like our good friend Mozy made a mistake while setting the date," said Genie, examining the controls.
"Do you think Mozenrath purposely did that to be rid of us for sure?" asked Jasmine.
Before Aladdin even had the time to answer, Iago rudely entered into the conversation.
"Of course he did!" he raucously yelled. "You know that jerk. He's always trying to get revenge on us."
"Iago," Aladdin muttered.
"I don't think Mozenrath would waste ten years building a machine to send us away when he could easily kill us back home. Besides, he said himself that he wouldn't mess with the future," Genie explained.
"You're right, Genie," Aladdin said.
"Oh, goody!" Iago sarcastically yelled. "Now that we've cracked the big mystery, what are you gonna do now, Mr. Hero?"
"Iago!" Aladdin yelled. "Stop that! What's gotten into you? You haven't acted like this in years, and now when you should show more compassion than ever, you act like you don't even care!"
Iago just glared at Aladdin and turned his head away without saying anything. The crew decided to leave the time machine to see what the future was like. It was the middle of winter, and the wind was terribly chilling. As they walked cautiously down a street, they looked a sheer amazement at the tallness of the stone and glass buildings. They saw a young woman walking along the road toward them. Aladdin approached her.
"Hey!" she exclaimed. "What do you think you're doing?"
"Can you help us?"
"Help you? Yeah, you look like you need help. You're wearing summer-like clothes from like a thousand years ago in the dead of winter. I didn't know the circus was in town."
"No, really. We have a problem."
"Which is?"
"Well, uh...Genie?"
"We're from the past, and we came here in a time machine," Genie quickly blurted out.
"Very convincing," the girl laughed. "And said by someone who makes an awfully convincing genie!"
"No, it's true," Jasmine insisted. "A sorceror named Mozenrath sent us here on a time machine that he built. If you don't believe me, it's right over there."
Jasmine pointed to the machine, and the girl's eyes grew huge.
"What did you say the name was of the guy who built that?"
"Mozenrath."
"I thought so. I must be crazy, but you must come with me."
"Where?" asked Aladdin.
"I'll explain later. Just come with me now."
They nodded and followed her. Aladdin whispered to Genie to make the time machine small enough so he could hold it in his hand. After doing so, they continued on. Finally, they arrived at a machine that Genie had called a car. The young woman opened the doors, and everyone got inside. She began to drive and accelerated until the car was going rather fast.
"I'm Sindie," she said. "If you're really from the past, the I guess I'd better explain to you how the world works today. Most of what you see here is the result of science and technology, not magic. Sadly, over the years, less and less people cared to use their magic. Magic had become a thing of the past, and all this science stuff was new. So, many people have lost their sense of magic. You see, everyone has always had the power within themselves. As long as someone is alive, he or she is composed of energy, and if that energy can be first centralized into one part of the body and then tapped, then it can be used by knowing the arts of converting body energy into magic. I still am one of the few people who has magic."
"Magic is nearly done with?" Genie asked sadly.
"Yes, Genie," said Sindie. "You're the only genie I've ever seen. As for you, who are you?"
Sindie glanced at Aladdin.
"I'm Aladdin, Sultan of Agrabah, and--"
"And Mozenrath's enemy," Sindie interrupted.
"Yes, how did you know?"
"I've read many books on magic. Over the years, I've passed my eyes over thousands of words on sorcerors, wizards, and elementals who have come and gone. I remember reading how Mozenrath invented a time machine and how he had a constant foe, Aladdin. I didn't know if it was true or not, though."
"I'm afraid it is," Aladdin frowned. "And he has my children. That's why we must get back home."
"He kidnapped your children? That's terrible! I promise to help you as best as I can."
"Thank you."
Sindie pulled the car up to a rather large builing and stopped.
"This is my home," she said.
"This whole place?" Jasmine asked.
"No, I live in a few rooms in what's called an apartment."
"Oh."
They went inside and felt the warmth. Once inside the apartment, Sindie sat down on the couch in pure exhaustion.
"You guys had better sit down and relax for a while. I'll cook something to eat."
After dinner was over, it was dark. Sindie gave them modern clothes to wear and went into the living room to relax again. Once everyone was too tired to stay awake any longer, Sindie told Aladdin and Jasmine they could sleep on the bed in the guest room. Genie of course went in his lamp, and Abu curled up on Carpet on the couch. Sindie stood in the silent darkness of the living room and saw the figure of a small body all alone in the corner. She went over to the shadow.
"Hey," she softly said. "What are you doing all the way over here?"
"I'm just staying away from everyone, so I don't bother them."
"Why?"
"Aladdin and I had a disagreement earlier today. I've been in a bad mood lately, and this situation isn't helping."
"Come here," Sindie said, holding out her hand to Iago. "I think you just need somebody to talk to."
She led Iago into her room and softly stroked his feathers.
"That feels good," he whispered.
"Then I'll keep doing it."
"As for what happened today, I can only say that there's beeen some stuff in my life that happened before I met Aladdin. I haven't told him, and it's been bothering me. I guess I've been rude lately...and selfish. You see, that's how I used to be all the time, but I've changed a lot the last few years. The thing that annoys everyone the most, though, is my voice."
"Your voice?"
"Yeah. It's screechy and loud. I can change it if I want. See? Now who do I sound like?"
"That's so cool! You sounded exactly like me during that last sentence! But seriously, everyone has things they don't like about themselves. You need to tell your friends what you've been hiding."
"I know, but it's so hard."
"Nothing is ever easy, especially Aladdin being separated from his kids. I don't have any kids, but my heart would be broken if I did and they were taken from me."
"I guess I should stop being so selfish, huh? Aladdin needs my support more than ever. Tomorrow I'll apologize."
"That's better, but don't forget to tell him your secrets soon."
"Yes."
With the end of the conversation, they joined the others in slumber. The night would end eventually to a busy day ahead.

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Chapter 5: Part 5

Aladdin slowly opened his eyes as the sun shone in through the window. He gasped and looked around the room, confused. Then he recalled where he was. He turned to his left to see Jasmine facing his body, still asleep. Aladdin's lips gently touched those of his dear wife, and she fluttered open her eyes. She returned the kiss and smiled contently.
"Good morning, Darling," said Aladdin.
"The same to you, Aladdin."
The happy couple stood up and walked out into the hallway. Everything was still quiet. When they walked into the living room, they could hear Genie's light snoring and Abu's breathing. Turning toward the kitchen, they saw Sindie already awake and sitting at the table eating breakfast.
"Take a seat," she said. "What would you like?"
"Do you have any fresh fruit?" asked Aladdin.
"Well, I have fruit, but I don't know exactly how fresh it is. Here you go," she said, reaching into a large, white box-type thing.
"Thank you. What is that thing you took the fruit out of?" Aladdin questioned.
"It's called a refrigerator. It keeps food cold, so it won't go bad."
"Oh."
Aladdin and Jasmine tried to eat, but they couldn't help but to glance at Sindie with worried looks on their faces. Noticing their discomfort, Sindie looked up from her bowl of cereal. She gave them a questioning stare.
"I just wanted to say thank you...for believing us," said Jasmine.
"Yeah," added Aladdin, "this really means a lot to us."
"It's really no problem. I did what I felt needed to be done. Nobody deserves to have their kids taken from them."
Shortly after Sindie finished, Genie came bouncing into the kitchen, followed closely by Abu and Carpet. They joined in the quiet meal. After nearly a half an hour, Iago finally peeked his head around the corner. He timidly walked over to the table with his eyes on Aladdin. When he got to the side of the table, he spread open his wings and flew up onto the top of the table. He didn't say anything or reach for any food; rather, he just sat there.
Aladdin couldn't help but to notice what was wrong with his friend. He had known Iago for quite a while now, and when he was quiet, something was definitely troubling the poor, little bird.
"Iago?" he asked.
"Huh?" Iago said barely above a whisper.
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, Aladdin!" he suddenly cried rather loudly. "I'm so sorry!"
"About what?"
"You know what. Remember yesterday?"
"Oh, that. It's no big deal. Don't worry about it. It's okay, really."
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Thank you."
"Hey, guys!" exclaimed Genie. "Cheer up!"
"I'm trying, Genie. I really am," said Aladdin, "but Anna and Troy--"
"Al, you've beaten Mozenrath before. You'll do it again," Genie reassured.
"We will find a way to get you back home," said Sindie. "If Mozenrath could work this time machine, surely I can figure it out. We must go to the library, so I can find a book about the history of magic."
With that, they all finished breakfast and headed out to Sindie's car. She drove to a large brick building and pulled into a parking space. It was lightly snowing as the group walked into the library. Sindie led the visitors to a secluded room.
"I've been here before," she said. "This room contains all the books on magic that this library has. I remember reading a book called Dark Magic: The History of Evil Sorcerors. It had the information in it about Mozenrath and his time machine."
The others just looked at her as she ran her fingers along book after book on the shelf. After scanning past many books for five minutes, she stopped her finger. She pulled a black-covered book off the shelf and placed it on a nearby table. Flipping quickly through the pages, she came to one and stopped. Her blue-green eyes focused strongly on the words she read from her mouth:
"In the later half of the eighth century, A.D., perhaps the most powerful sorceror of human history lived. Given the darkest form of magic, concentrated all in a single gauntlet, as a mere child, he soon gained control of the Land of the Black Sand by his twentieth year. He had an arch enemy, Aladdin of Agrabah and the sultan later on, who fought him for many years until nearly a decade after they met. Mozenrath was his feared name, and he took from Aladdin his only two children. Mozenrath was also the first and only known man to invent a time machine, which involved a high-quantum fluid called enegets, making it possible to travel through time. Whatever became of the time machine and Aladdin still remains a mystery. Both suddenly disappeared, and Mozenrath raised Aladdin's children as his own, teaching them all the forms of black magic."
"My children!" Jasmine gasped. She fainted and was caught by Aladdin. She quickly recovered and opened her eyes again, but remained sunken into her husband's clutch.
"Mozenrath made Troy and Anna his?!" Aladdin screamed in complete rage. "My own offspring--evil?!"
"I don't get it," said Sindie in a confused tone. "This book said nothing about your kids becoming evil or you losing before."
"Don't you see?" asked Aladdin hopelessly. "He's altered history. Now it's too late to ever save Troy and Anna...twelve centuries too late."
"If Mozenrath could make a time machine that actually works," began Sindie, "then it must still work somehow. If we can figure out how, we can send you back to a moment after Mozenrath sent you. He wouldn't know the difference."
"You're right," said Genie.
"I hope so," said Aladdin. "I really do."

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Chapter 6: Part 6

With no time to waste, everyone hurried back to Sindie's apartment. Sindie laid the book down on the table in the living room and opened it to the appropriate page. Genie took the miniature time machine out of his pocket and made it large again. Sindie examined the central tube that contained the enegets.
"We need to repower this fluid," she explained. "You see, all that exists is energy and matter. Both are in some way composed of the other. The energy is this fluid is made up of tons of microscopic particles called electrons. Depending on the amount of energy put into the system will inturn yield that same amount of energy, theoretically. We are going to first need a blast of energy strong enough. If I can emit X-rays from my hand, where my magic is tapped, I can provide enough power to cause the electrons to bounce from one energy level to another, called a quantum leap. This machine will cause those particles to jump into the opposite direction, releasing energy and--"
"And taking us through time?" Jasmine hopefully asked.
"Yes."
With that, Sindie closed her eyes and lifted her arm toward the sky. A bright light began to accumulate around her hand, and once it was big enough, she pointed toward the time machine and blasted it. The color of the enegets turned from dull, dark blue into its former glowing blue.
"Will it work now?" asked Aladdin.
"Not yet. Some of the gears need to be repaired, and the date must be correctly set."
Genie's magic easily fixed the broken gears, and they all got into the time machine. Sindie looked at the date panel.
"What should I set it for?" she asked.
"July 12, 798, A.D.," said Aladdin.
"Okay, there we go."
Aladdin looked at make sure the date was correct. It was obvious that he didn't want to wind up in the wrong time again. Everyone looked ready to go, and Aladdin stepped out of the time machine toward Sindie.
"I just want to say thank you for everything you've done for us," he said. "If it wasn't for you, I don't know if we would have ever gotten back home."
"You're welcome," Sindie slowly smiled. "I'm sure going to miss you. One day, I'll have to travel to Agrabah to see your city."
"Will you really?"
"Of course."
Sindie smiled a little grin one last time before Aladdin got into the time machine. They waved good-bye and disappeared into thin air. The same brightness appeared outside for a couple of seconds, and they found themselves in Mozenrath's citadel again. They were in a room right behind Mozenrath's throne room, where he had Troy and Anna still kept hostage.
"Genie," Aladdin whispered, "shrink the time machine again, so Mozenrath doesn't have access to it. I'll sneak up behind Mozenrath and restrain him long enough, so you guys can free Anna and Troy."
With that, Aladdin snuck up behind Mozenrath and tackled him. Jasmine and the others immediately ran to the children's aid.
"What?!" Mozenrath yelled. "Aladdin! How dare you!"
"No, Mozenrath!" Aladdin yelled even louder. "How dare you! Your plan failed, so live with it!"
"My time machine?" he asked frantically. "What have you done with it?"
"You'll never know!"
"Aladdin, that was my invention! Mine! Do you understand me?"
"No, Mozenrath. I don't understand you. Anyone who is as evil and as twisted as you is insane."
Carpet flew by with his children, wife, and friends and scooped Aladdin up. They flew back to Agrabah.
"Oh, Mom...Dad!" Anna exclaimed and hugged her parents.
"I love you so much!" Troy smiled.
They happily returned home and for a while were at peace. Meanwhile, Mozenrath sat alone in his dark palace. He frowned pathetically and drifted off into a deep sleep with the coming of night.

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Chapter 7: Epilogue

Sindie pulled out the book she had never returned to the library. She had not opened it since they left. As she walked down the quiet, desert street that evening, she opened the book to the same and only page she had ever cared about and read:
"Twelve centuries ago, the most powerful sorceror lived, but the greatest hero of all time lived in peace, knowing that he had defeated Mozenrath forever. Aladdin is said to have left a letter in his old hovel for someone he called a blessing, but who knows who it was for."
Sindie stopped and looked up at an ancient building to her right.
"Could it be?" she quietly asked herself.
She ran inside the abandonned building and up the stairs. A brittle, yellowed paper lay face down on a low table. She carefully picked it up and read:
"I knew you would come, Sindie. It seems like we just left, doesn't it? Because of you, history was changed. Now look before you at my great kingdom."
Sindie felt tears coming to her eyes as she folded the letter and placed it over her heart. She cast her eyes out over the great palace that guarded the sleeping city as orange hues from the setting sun shone upon its streets and buildings.
"Agrabah."

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