A Whole New World (Disney Twisted Tales) - Liz Braswell Page 0,26

were rubbed raw and the inside of his mouth felt like the sand he dug through.

On the end of the second day—or maybe it was the middle of the third; it was hard to tell—Aladdin began to hallucinate.

He imagined there was a tiny monkey with him that wore a tiny vest just like him. He imagined there was a magic carpet helping him and waving its tassels around like a worried mother hen.

Aladdin decided to keep his eyes forward and continue digging. Things that weren’t real would just distract him.

Some undetermined amount of time after that he began to hallucinate that there was light coming in from somewhere. Yellow light. Clean light.

A few minutes of pushing rocks aside and scraping away sand revealed that this, at least, was not a hallucination. A tiny pinhole, no larger than an ant tunnel, was filtering in sunlight that the cave greedily sucked in.

“I see the sun!” Aladdin croaked excitedly to his friends, forgetting for a moment that they weren’t real. “I see it!”

He scrabbled faster, pulling away loose stones and trying not to get so overexcited that he caused an avalanche. If he imagined that the carpet and monkey helped him, so much the better.

After tearing off several more fingernails in desperation, Aladdin finally managed to force open a hole large enough to fit his head and shoulders into. When the stones refused to budge any farther, he croaked in frustration. He would not be stuck in the cave until he died. That wasn’t going to happen.

With a final push that used all of his remaining strength, he shot through and into the daylight.

He lay there for a moment, blinking into the blindingly blue-white sky.

Then Aladdin laughed like a madman under the deadly desert sun. Its heat on his face felt alive. Far more natural than the searing flames of the lava. At least if he were to die, it would be outside, looking up at the heavens.

But he wasn’t going to die.…

Tumbling into the sunshine next to him were Abu and the magic carpet.

How could he ever have doubted their existence?

“Guys!” he cried happily, gathering them both into his arms. “You’re real! We’re all real! And alive! C’mon—let’s go home!”

The carpet spread itself out and Aladdin rolled on, barely able to keep his head from spinning. “Agrabah. Take me to Agrabah.”

The carpet rose into the air and headed east.

Although exhaustion threatened to claim him, Aladdin kept his eyes open and forced himself to acknowledge the appearance of Agrabah on the horizon. The walls were too decrepit, the scene too dusty to be imagined. This wasn’t a dream.

They covered the distance through the desert air far faster than he and the evil old man had on foot and hoof. Soothing wind lapped at Aladdin’s face, and golden sand skimmed just below them like water. He wished he was feeling better and up to enjoying it. He bet that with a little nudging he could get the carpet to take some of the curves faster and the dives harder. It was like riding an eagle.…

The carpet stopped in front of the camel watering station perhaps a little harder than it needed to, causing Aladdin—with a bit of a flourish—to tumble into one of the troughs with a splash.

“What are you trying to tell me, Carpet?” Aladdin said with a grin, glorious water trickling down his neck. Abu was already guzzling it down, but Aladdin waited until he got out and made his way to the well itself. He pulled up the bucket and ignored the ladle, pouring the sweet liquid directly down his throat.

It was only after he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand that he suddenly noticed they were still alone. He looked around suspiciously. There were no caravans arriving and watering their camels after the long, dusty road through the desert. There were no caravans leaving after filling up their water skins and letting their camels prepare for the journey. There were no vendors selling pastries to hungry and weary travelers. There were no hawkers trying to get the newly arrived to stay at their inn, or to pitch their tents at their property. There were no children offering to carry things or guide people through the city for a tip.

“Huh,” Aladdin said slowly. “All right…let’s go grab a bite to eat. But, subtle-like.” He twirled his finger and the magic carpet neatly rolled itself up. It flew over and positioned itself comfortably on Aladdin’s left shoulder. Abu hopped