Agrabah was at a standstill; ever since the Empire’s arrival things had not gotten better, nor worse than they already were. Small groups patrolled the streets, claiming to maintain peace and order while hands clutched tightly to the hilt of their blades. To a young man who had grown up in Agrabah, to Alem, things were not very different. 

The young man guided his horse, a beautiful horse named Aseela, from the market district towards the slums of the city. It was considered a blight on an otherwise gorgeous city, a place where those both desperate and depraved had retreated to. This was no different from the previous status quo where all who are poor and without an easy means of existing are swept under. If people ignored it then it no longer existed, nor did the population that had no choice but to take residence within it. The sultan was under their power and all but vanished from the public, as did his daughter Jasmine. The well-being of the princess and the sultan both did not cause him to fret in the slightest, but the general public were concerned. A statement was made to assure the public that both the father and daughter were alive, as well as the former street rat that had married into royalty and fulfilled a dream others could only dream of. A beautiful young wife, the largest domicile in the city where he would no longer be harassed, and the ability to sleep at night and no longer concern himself with how he would survive another week on these streets.

A small bag in hands contained several apples and pears recently acquired in the market district. Though the Empire swore to keeping order, there were the occasional bad sort that would harass honest merchants. Selling consumables such as fruit and bread at respectable prices, they were considered easy targets for those who enforced their will. The patrols were the order, and the order in the streets was kept with unease. Crime was reduced only due to ‘examples’ being made of those who were the most desperate, some of which brutal and bloody. Offering to help keep the harassment at a minimum, Alem had made deals with several shopkeepers in the marketplace; He would be allowed to acquire a reasonable amount of items from them without question at no charge, and in return the tension between the Empire and themselves would be drastically reduced. It had taken a little time to get the message through to the Empire, but when man after man kept disappearing who were known to harass the people of this city, they got the message soon enough. Those who harassed the people did not live long in this city, as there was still someone within it who would fight to ensure they could prosper in spite of the conditions they were placed in. Business was business, as Okal would say, a traveling merchant who had more than enough cause to want this occupation over with. 

Just ahead of him rested a woman who appeared in her late fifties, dressed in a tattered purple robe with noticeable patchwork done around the knees. Her hair was a little strewn out, but Alem recognized her as Salima, a new acquaintance he had met two weeks prior to this moment. The children of Agrabah who had no homes, the ‘street rats’, were under her care. She had done her best to forage and steal, but after a close call with a patrol he had narrowly saved her from he had requested she keep safe. An aging figure of goodness, the children who’s ages ranged between as young as five to as old as eleven knew her as a mother figure. Her weary brown eyes had taken notice of Alem approaching immediately, a smile forming on her lips. 

[b]“Alem, it is good to see you again. I was afraid you might have—“[/b]Salima lowered her voice, eyes averted to the ground. [b]“Might have gotten in trouble.”[/b]

Extending the bag of fruits to Salima, Alem kept his voice low so as to not alert the children that might be nearby. [b]“More food. The merchants hope this could help get you and the kids get by for a little while. Things are easier in the market these days, they could offer this much.”[/b]

Salima smiled warmly, looking back up at him and reluctantly taking the bag he held for her. [b]“I imagine you’ve had a hand in that. You know, if it weren’t for you helping us I don’t believe we'd do so well. The merchants did not care about us until you stepped in.”[/b]

[b]“Working together is how we’ll survive. Keep them fed, please. I’ll check up on you again soon.”[/b] Without a response, moved to depart until Salima had spoken again. 

[b]“Alem …thank you.”[/b] Salima said warmly. Alem had proceeded to walk again, but Salima had made no effort to stop him. Looking at the bag of full fruit in good condition, one more gaze was given to the back of himself and his beautiful horse before she had entered the dilapidated building. 

It had been at the exact moment Salima had gone inside that two frightened residents of the slums had turned the corner screaming at the top of their lungs. Upon seeing Alem they had waved their hands and abruptly stopped in front of him, breathing harshly. The young man examined their demeanors carefully, seeing the panic, and his ears still ringing from it as well. One had caught their breath sooner and had begun to explain, the other soon joining in. Alem was helpful to the people here, both young and old. If anyone could confront that monster, it was him. A brief but enthusiastic fearful description was given.

Horrifying darkened skin, the most eerie yellow eyes that they’d seen in their entire lives, and a loud scream. They were greeted by something truly fearful; here you had to fend for yourself. The Sultan’s guards might have investigated but the Empire did not care for the ramblings of people in rags and running in shambles. While people would be skeptical by description alone, Alem nodded his head only once. [b]“I’ll check it out. In the meantime, keep it to yourselves. If what you say is true, and I believe it is, we don’t want a full-scale panic.”[/b]

[b]“R-right.”[/b] Muttered one.

[b]“That’s a good point, sorry.”[/b] Said the other.

They had stepped out of his way, Aseela following closely beside him. He knew of the building they resided in, decrepit and weak like much of this part of Agrabah. Having gotten to know the population and who stayed here, he knew that these two kept to a certain building farther to the east, near the true outskirts of the city.

[b]“What are you going to do?”[/b] one call out.

[b]“What I must.”[/b] Alem responded immediately, and after that point they had put full trust in him. The travel time was a few short minutes, but he had arrived outside of the building the two had stayed in. Placing a hand onto Aseela’s neck and rubbing it gently, Alem had moved inside, parting the worn sheet that covered the doorway. Stepping inside, it was dim and tense with silence. Only when he had slowly gone further inside did his ears pick up the sound of what he believed to be a woman’s voice. It was low and moaning irregularly, something he could identify closely related to sobbing. The entire home was dim with the exception of light flooding in from a few windows, but the back room which was concealed by another hanging cloth was slightly dimmer. He could make out the light from the floor, which would grant him some level of vision. Taking care when it came to the unknown, Alem slowly crept forward and quietly parted the cloth, bearing witness to a peculiar sight. The figure of a woman with darkened hair that hovered in an unsettling fashion, bright yellow eyes, and a voice he would call distorted. Whatever this being was Alem could readily recognize it as a potential threat, yet the more he stared at that form the more he realized that she was not seeking to intimidate, but to shield herself. She was curled up in a far corner and shivering, retreating from the light of the window beside her as though it might burn if she touched it. 

[i]‘More a victim than one who creates them.’[/i] He determined peacefully, stepping backwards and returning outside to Aseela. What he was choosing was a risk, but as he reached in one of the bags Aseela carried to retrieve an apple, pear and water Alem grew more confident in his action. Stepping back inside, this time he had not made the effort to hush his steps, instead giving that feminine being a warning. [b]“I am entering the room slowly. I do not intend to cause you harm, but should you make a sudden move towards me I promise the result will not be in your favor.”[/b] He had slowly parted the curtain once again, fruit in his left hand, large canteen of water in his right. Stepping into the room this otherworldly creature resided in, Alem did not respond to fear. The reality of the situation was that she was likely much more afraid of him, than he was of her. Slowly he crept forward and knelt, setting the canteen down first, and then the apple and pear beside it. Gently nudging them towards the feminine being, Alem had taken a step backwards. The option of food and drink were hers, the gesture was to speak for itself; He wasn’t here to fight, or condemn. 

[b]“You’re crying. Why?”[/b] Cutting to the chase, understanding her pain more than her condition was an ideal way to establish a connection between them. Had she not been shivering in a far corner, he’d have believed she was threatening. The language of her darkened body told a different story.