And hardships unnumbered
I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City
To take back the child you have stolen
For my will is as strong as yours
And my kingdom as great
You have no power over me
Lina stopped listening to the storyteller in the inn. She�d hoped that the end of the tale would contain a fragment of some spell, maybe something she could adapt, but all the storyteller recited was a typical hero-speech. Amelia and Gourry leaned forward, still fascinated by the tale, though Zelgadis seemed to have ignored all the entertainment.
The no-name little inn within this no-name little town had been full of diners earlier, but the crowd had thinned until only those people staying the night were left. The aged storyteller had entertained the listeners for hours.
Lina sighed and stared into space over her multitude of empty plates. They�d defeated Dark Star, and saw Filia safely to a nice city where she intended to live as a human, raising the reborn Valgaav as her son. Now Lina and the others traveled overland back to their home peninsula. They hadn�t seen Xellos since the finale of that escapade. Suddenly she came to herself as Zelgadis waved a hand in front of her face. Blinking, she turned to him.
�Bored?� he asked quietly.
Lina shrugged. The journey so far had been relatively peaceful, though long. They were less than half of the way home. Stretching, she glanced at Gourry and Amelia. Then, to Zelgadis, she said, �Silly little story, huh?�
Zelgadis shrugged. �Typical children�s tale. Irresponsible young girl does something, has to endure trials to make up for it, and learns a lesson. It�s all morality teachings.�
Lina smiled to herself. Zel was never anything less than cynical. She tried to remember the last time he genuinely smiled. Hmm. He�d been smiling up at her when she returned from being possessed by the Lord of Nightmares. After that, all she could recall were half-smiles, unconscious quirks of the lips, and his trademark �evil smirk� when taking on an enemy. She suspected that Zel was becoming more bitter than ever.
�Wow,� sighed Amelia, �What a wonderful story! Atoning for her sins, the princess fights for justice and defeats the evil king!�
Zelgadis just rolled his eyes.
�Yeah, but why didn�t she just blast him?� asked Gourry. �I mean, she had magic, right?�
�No, Mr. Gourry, she didn�t.�
�But I thought all princesses could do magic.�
�No, Mr. Gourry. Remember Miss Martina? She couldn�t do magic.�
�Who?�
�Nevermind.�
Lina stood. �Enough. Ready for bed?� she asked them all. The others all nodded, though Zelgadis grimaced a bit. They were doubled up in rooms, and Lina knew very well that Gourry both snored and talked in his sleep.
In their room, Amelia continued to prattle on about the storyteller�s tale. Finally, in an effort to shut her up, Lina said �Amelia, there are no such things as goblins! And no Goblin Kings! I would know � I�ve studied every creature in the world.�
�But Miss Lina, all legends have some basis in fact, don�t they?�
�Not always. Sometimes people just make things up.�
�But, everyone said the Clair Bible was a legend, and we found it. We found two!�
Lina sighed. �Amelia, just let it go and go to sleep!� She nestled into her bed, pulling the covers tight. �Don�t forget to blow out the candles.�
�But Miss Lina�.�
Finally frustrated, Lina snapped, �Amelia! If you don�t shut up�.�
In a whisper, Amelia said, �I�m sorry, Miss Lina.�
Grumbling, as she rolled over and away from Amelia, Lina muttered, �Heh, I wish the Goblin King would come and take you away right now. Then I could get some sleep!�
Suddenly, the window banged open. Amelia squealed, but her voice was cut off mid-noise. A gust of wind blew out every candle in the room simultaneously as Lina sat up in surprise. The pale light of the moon barely illuminated the room as a white owl suddenly flew in. It circled Lina�s head, causing her to duck, and headed back towards the window. But as she looked again, the owl suddenly transformed into a tall man, dressed in rich clothing of midnight blue and black.
�What the hell!� Lina yelled, jumping to her feet. Just then, the door to her room banged open as Zelgadis, still masked and fully clothed, came running in. Zelgadis had his sword drawn, ready for a confrontation.
The tall man never so much as flinched. Lina quickly cast �Lighting!�
He was tall and blond, his hair flowing in every direction without regard to any breeze. His mismatched eyes locked on her own, reminding her uncomfortably of Copy Rezo. His voice was smooth and calm, with an unusual accent, as he said, �Hello, Lina.�
�Where�s Amelia?� Zelgadis demanded, but Lina held out her hand to stop him.
�You�re the Goblin King, aren�t you?�
�Jareth, at your service,� replied the man in a mocking tone.
�What have you done with Amelia? Where is she?� Lina asked.
�You know very well where she is, Lina.�
�Bring her back,� growled Zelgadis.
Ignoring Zelgadis, Jareth smiled charmingly at Lina. �I�ve brought you a gift.� Out of thin air, he conjured a perfectly spherical crystal. �It will show you treasures beyond your imagining. But this is no ordinary gift. It�s not for a young woman who watches over a clumsy, obsessive little girl.� Lina�s eyes flicked to the crystal. �Do you want it?� Jareth asked. �Then forget about the princess.�
�Give Amelia back!� Lina insisted, drawing together power for a Fireball.
With a disappointed expression, Jareth said, �Don�t defy me, Lina.� With a turn of his hand, the crystal became a hissing snake, which he flung at Lina. Before it landed on her, a quick flash of Zelgadis�s sword sliced it in two. As Zel placed himself in front of Lina, two pieces of a silken scarf fluttered to the ground.
�Such a pity,� observed Jareth.
�Illusion,� Zel scoffed.
�Excuse me,� Lina said sweetly, right before she elbowed Zelgadis in the ribs. He did move back, but Lina hissed in pain and clutched her elbow. Addressing Jareth again, disregarding his expression of amusement, Lina repeated, �Give Amelia back.�
Turning suddenly, Jareth pointed out the window. �She�s there, in my castle.� The view from the window had changed to show an ornate and gloomy castle in the distance, surrounded by a maze of epic proportions.
�It�s not that far,� Lina observed.
Suddenly Jareth was whispering in her ear. �It�s further than you think.� Lina started, finding herself on a barren hill. Zelgadis stood nearby, looking about in surprise. He still had his sword gripped firmly in his hand, ready for action. There was no sign of the inn room.
�If you still want the princess back, you have thirteen hours to solve the Labyrinth and reach the castle beyond the goblin city. If you fail, the princess will become one of us, forever,� stated Jareth, his voice fading as he slowly disappeared. �Such a pity.� And he was gone.
�Lina, what the hell is going on?� said Zel, in an overly calm voice. Lina turned to him to see a grim expression on his face.
�The tale, Zel. We�re in the tale the storyteller told. I wished Amelia away in anger, and he took her. Now we�ve got to get her back.�
Zelgadis nodded, sheathing his sword now that there was no immediate threat.
�I�m sorry, Zel.�
�Huh? Well, it was a pretty stupid thing to do, but who knew the story was true.�
Lina blinked. She�d thought Zel would be angrier than this. After all, he and Amelia�� She watched as he started walking towards the Labyrinth.
�Come on, Lina. We do have a time limit.�
Suddenly, Jareth�s voice echoed over them. �One last thing, my dear. Your abilities are�. limited here. You wouldn�t want to waste all your skills in one place, now would you?�
Glancing at each other, Lina and Zelgadis considered Jareth�s words. Lina hated the implications, but pragmatic Zelgadis just shrugged and continued walking.
* * * * *
The wall before them was tall and apparently seamless. Though there were points along it that would suggest a gateway, they were unable to open any doorways into the Labyrinth.
Suddenly, coming around a scraggly hedge, Lina spotted a small person next to a dead fountain, his back to her. Blushing, she realized he was pissing into the fountain.
Clearing her throat, she called, �Hey you!�
Startled, the little man jumped, stuffing himself back into his trousers. �Oh! Excuse me�� But when he spotted her, he seemed to deflate. �Oh, lord, not another one!�
�Not another one what?� Lina asked, insulted.
�Lemme guess � got to get into the Labyrinth, have you? Got to get to the castle?�
Coming up behind Lina, Zelgadis asked, �This happens a lot?�
Blinking, the little man exclaimed, �Two this time? Bending the rules a bit, aren�t you, Jareth?� He bent over, grabbing some sort of tool on the ground. Straightening, he walked away from them.
�Hey!� Lina chased after him. �How do you get into the Labyrinth?�
The man just shook his head, making a tsk�ing sound.
Zelgadis got in his way, forcing him to look up. The man did a brief double-take, for Zelgadis had removed his habitual hood and mask. Now that he had the little man�s attention, Zelgadis demanded, �Your name!�
Cowed, the man replied, �Hoggle!�
�Hoggle, we have to get into the Labyrinth. Where do we get in?�
Hoggle blinked again, then with a sly smile, he pointed. �You gets in there!� As he pointed, a formerly seamless wall under one of the gate structures began to rumble, door panes of stone rumbling open.
�Yahoo!� cried Lina, bolting for the opening. Zel charged after her.
�Lina, wait! There could be traps!� But he came to a sudden stop just behind her.
Before them was another seamless wall, but the passageway they found themselves in stretched to the left and the right for what looked like miles. They stared in dumbfounded shock.
�So!� rasped Hoggle, suddenly beside them. Lina squealed in startlement, leaping into Zelgadis�s arms. He looked at her in surprise as she jumped down again, just as fast. Hoggle snickered. �So, which way? Left or right?�
�Which way would you go?� Zel asked.
�Oh no. I wouldn�t go at all! And I�m not, y�hear me? I�m not!� With that, he turned on his heel and walked out. At a gesture, the doors slammed shut behind him, closing Lina and Zelgadis into the endless passageway.
Shrugging, Lina asked Zelgadis, �What do you think?�
He considered the wall before them a moment, then said, �If you climb up on my shoulders, you should be able to see over.�
�Why not just levitate?�
With a scornful look, Zelgadis said, �Our powers are limited, remember? Why use magic when you don�t have to?�
Piqued, Lina just huffed and motioned Zelgadis to the wall. He braced himself, and she clambered up his back. But once she stood on his shoulders, the wall was still too tall. �I can�t see over it!� Lina exclaimed.
�What? It�s only a couple meters.�
�Zel, it�s way more than a couple meters!� Jumping down, she looked back up at the wall in time to see it shrink back to its original height. �It shrunk! I mean, it must have gotten taller when I climbed up!�
Zelgadis stood back and examined the wall. Then he tried climbing it himself. But when he got about two meters up, the top of the wall seemed to have receded away from him. Letting himself fall, he cursed under his breath. �No cheating, it seems.�
Lina sighed. �Well, c�mon then.� She started walking.
A few minutes later, she noticed Zelgadis was not immediately behind her. Turning back to look, she saw him examining some moss on the wall.
�What is it?� she asked.
�It moved. And look � eyes.�
Lina looked closer, then stepped back. �Ewww!�
Zelgadis nodded. �It appears to be sentient, but no mouth to talk.�
�Yeah, yeah, enough botany, let�s get going.�
After a few more moments:
�Do you think that maybe there�s a turn ahead, but so far we can�t see it yet?�
Zelgadis shrugged. �One way to find out. Wait here.� And with that, he started running. After a few steps, he turned on the demon speed, something Lina had only seen a few times. Within seconds he was just a beige blur in the distance. Sighing, Lina sat and leaned against the wall.
��Allo!� came a tiny voice.
Lina glanced down at the ledge next to her arm. Her brain registered a tiny pinkish thing, and went into overload.
�SLUG!� She shrieked and leapt up and away from the thing. But where part of her brain expected to run into the other wall, she continued staggering backwards. �SLUG!� she screamed again. �ZEL!�
A mile away, Zelgadis�s sensitive hearing caught her voice. Little did Lina know quite how attuned to her voice he was, for in a feat no creature other than a demon could accomplish, he�d pivoted and sprinted back. He�d only been running before, but concern for Lina lent him such speed that the eye-moss couldn�t even register his passing. He skidded to a halt where he�d left Lina, sword drawn, but with his back to her.
Leaping onto his back, wrapping her arm around him, Lina pointed at the pink thing and wailed, �Slug! Slug! KILL IT!!�
Looking in the direction she pointed, all Zelgadis saw was a strange little worm on a stone.
�I�m not a slug! I�m a worm!� the worm exclaimed, insulted by the girl�s reaction. But Lina wasn�t listening.
Totally surprised by Lina�s fright, amazed by her shivering and crying, Zelgadis carefully sheathed his sword and put his arm around her. �Lina, Lina, it�s NOT a slug. It�s a worm. Not a slug. Lina, are you listening to me?�
After another moment, Lina calmed down. Then she blushed to the roots of her hair to find herself in Zelgadis�s arms. Stepping away, she giggled a bit hysterically, and said, �Yeah. Yeah. A worm, right. Sorry.�
Judging she was calming down, Zelgadis turned back to the worm, and knelt down.
�Bit of a nervous thing, ain�t she?� asked the worm.
Nonplussed, Zelgadis asked, �Do you know the way through the Labyrinth?�
�Nope, sorry. I�m just a worm. But there�s an opening behind you. The young lady found it just a moment ago, while she was screaming.�
Zelgadis turned back to Lina. Carefully reaching a hand out, he walked forward more paces than he knew the corridor was wide. Sure enough, when he looked left and right, he saw that this new passage turned almost immediately into the Labyrinth.
�Would you like to come in for a spot of tea?� asked the worm as Zelgadis looked about. Lina kept her distance from the talking worm.
�No, but thank you.� Zelgadis said absently, starting to the left.
�Whoa, don�t go that way!� cried the worm. �Never go that way!�
Pausing, Zelgadis asked, �Why not?�
�You go that way, and you�ll go straight to that castle,� explained the worm.
Lina and Zelgadis froze. They spared a moment to stare at each other, processing the worm�s words.
�YES!� yelled Lina. �Thanks!� She grabbed Zelgadis�s wrist and started running, dragging him along.
* * * * *
High above the Goblin City, in a tower with views over the entire Labyrinth, Jareth sat on his throne and stared at the girl bound to a chair in the center of the room. Goblins edged as far away from her as possible as she ranted on and on.
�This is UNJUST! It�s EVIL to kidnap people and take them away from the friends! I demand that you release me and return me at once! And another thing�this place is FILTHY! No true royalty would allow their castle to become like this! And the goblins need a good bath!�
At the last word, goblins began sneaking out of the throne room.
�Life should be bright and sunny and colorful! This place is a BAD and EVIL place, and you�re a HORRIBLE man!�
Finally, Jareth couldn�t take anymore. �ENOUGH!� he thundered, rising, sending goblins running in panic, and shaking dust down from the roof. Glancing at a clock on the way, he continued, �In another nine hours, you�re going to BE a goblin, my dear, so I suggest you get used to this place.�
Amelia huffed cutely. �Miss Lina and the others will save me! They fight for Justice and Love, and they can never be defeated!�
Groaning in frustration, Jareth gestured to two of the biggest goblins. �Take her to the dungeon!� Listening to Amelia�s strident voice as the goblins carried her off, Jareth sighed. She won�t make much of a goblin, he thought, but no wonder Lina wished her away.
Just then, a short goblin came running into the throne room. �Your Highness!� it shrieked, �They�re in the Express Passage!�
�What?� snarled Jareth. Immediately conjuring a crystal, he looked in it to see Lina and Zelgadis running down the one passage that led straight to the castle. �Oh no you don�t, lovely Lina!� Using a touch of his power, Jareth opens a pit in the ground ahead of them. Smiling slightly, he watched as the two questers fell down the hole. �There. They�re in the oubliette.� Cackles rose from the goblins surrounding him. �That was too close,� he snapped, silencing them with a glare. Allowing the crystal to dissolve, he pondered the best way to get rid of them.
Sitting back down on his throne, he considered his options. One, he could let them sit in the oubliette until time was up. However, Lina did not seem the type to give up easily. Jareth knew that despite the limits on her power, she could still do a lot of damage before she collapsed. Two, he could give them a hint. The tunnel out of the oubliette would lead them far away from the Express Passage and into the main part of the Labyrinth. Three, he could send them some �help� to take them back to the beginning of the Labyrinth. But not Hoggle � the dwarf had betrayed Jareth before. Fortunately, the dwarf seemed uninclined to help these two conquer the maze. So who?
Coming to a decision, he conjured another crystal. In it, he watched as Lina complained, and Zelgadis made a careful survey of the oubliette. So, the part-demon apparently had excellent night-vision. Jareth saw the chimera discover the magic door. Fascinating, this demon-boy. So clever, so powerful. For the first time, Jareth considered making his offer to Zelgadis rather than Lina. The power of glamourie could change his appearance as he wished, and the boy had the makings of an excellent Goblin King. Not that Jareth had any plans of retiring soon, but having an intelligent second-in-command would be refreshing.
Jareth smiled slightly as the chimera lifted the magic door. He watched as Zelgadis put it against the wall to get it out of the way, unknowingly triggering the magic. Yes, letting them figure it out for themselves was the right choice, Jareth congratulated himself.
Unable to hear them talk, he recognized Lina�s expression as one of humor as she reached for the door and grabbed the knob. She got the right one on the first try, and her expression of shock was priceless as she stared into the access tunnel.
�Knock!� Jareth called, summoning a goblin. Knock bowed nervously before him. �Notify the Cleaners to get going. And call out the Glass Spiders, just in case.�
As Knock bowed again and hurried off, Jareth returned his gaze to the crystal in time to see Zelgadis produce a flint and light a torch. �So clever,� Jareth murmured.
* * * * *
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