'I am the spirit of greed, a lord of theft. I'll burn all your books and the problems they made.
If you can see me, I can see you. If you can see me…'
If You Can See Me- David Bowie, The Next Day, 2013.
It's ironic.
I never believed the Goblin King was real. How could I? That story was for babies. Some princess goes on a quest through a Labyrinth to rescue her younger brother from the Goblin King? I always thought it was soppy and stupid. Just like my little sister who thought the story had a basis in truth. As saying the words allowed him to take away whomever you wanted.
So I said them.
"I wish your stupid Goblin King would take you away, right now!"
He wasn't real to me. I only said it to give her a fright, not certain that she would take any notice of it. But just looking at Jane's face when I said it, you could tell of her dread by the mere mention of his name and what it meant to summon him. She begged me to stop whenever I threatened to say it before. If she had just stopped messing around and done the chores she had to do, she wouldn't have had to worry.
"No! Luke, you horrid, horrid brother! How could you?" She had burst into floods of tears and ran upstairs, sniffling away.
But she's younger than I am. She's not as mature as I can be. Jane wouldn't stop whining, obviously forgetting my threat. And she didn't stop shrieking after I said it. It came to the point that I just let her stay in her room. Even though I would have to do her chores, at least I didn't need to hear her weeping about an imaginary monster. The last thing I yelled up to her was to warn her that our parents would find out about her childish behaviour.
It only occurred to me that something was up when I didn't hear anything coming from her room an hour later. No loud thumps, snivelling, or yelling from her part. So, I went up, expecting her to play the silent treatment.
But she wasn't there.
At first, I thought it was her form of revenge. Hiding somewhere to make me think that she really was taken away by the goblins. I was certain of this, I mean, I could hear some snickering from somewhere in her room. It was typical Jane, so I took little notice of it. Yet, though I looked all over, there was no sign of her. The only other thing out of place was the tawny owl peering in at me from a branch outside.
"…Owls are nocturnal, you stupid bird." I had said to it. "Go away. Our cats deal with the mice here. Clear off."
It didn't go away. It stayed there and stared at me, like I was some sort of interesting oddity. I shook my head and turned to look for Jane in the other room. At this point, I was becoming curious where she had decided to hide herself. She rarely thought up of any good hiding places whenever we played our games of hide and seek.
But before I went out, I turned my head, just to double check if she was there or not. In the split second in between, the window somehow unlatched itself and swung open. As I stepped back, the owl took a chance and flapped into the middle of Jane's bedroom. If the owl's abrupt appearance startled me, then I was astounded to see his form warp into a larger form. In my shock, I fell on the floor, unable to keep my eyes off him.
"Who…who….wha…ah…?"
A tall, thin, blonde man stood in front of me, where the owl had landed. Dressed in pitch black armour like clothing, he pulled an amusing grin at me.
"Well then, let's not dilly dally. We're both busy men."
He said this in some kind of patronising tone. I looked over my shoulder and heard no audible noises from anywhere else in the house, or from outside in the village. Would anyone outside notice something wrong in here? Unsure whether or not it was the case, I swallowed down my fear.
"Where is she?" I asked.
"Who?"
"My sister." I replied, trying to sound as confident as he was. It was pretty much futile. My childish voice couldn't hope to achieve his casual but self-assured tone. "She was here not too long ago. Do you know where Jane is? She's not…"
He gave me a knowing glance. With that, my surety of the Goblin King's non-existence began to crumble away.
"Where else would she be?" He folded his arms, "My goblin subjects have taken her to my kingdom, all the way back to my castle."
"Give her back." The shout surprised me, but the man barely took notice of it.
"And why? You called for me to take him away, and so I did. One could call it a kindness. Me, a noble King, doing you, a snivelling little boy, a favour."
At that point, my heart began to beat like a hammer. I took a deep breath, trying not to focus on that and my sweating palms.
"I didn't mean it. Not really. I've never thought that you actually existed…In fact, I find it hard to imagine that you're actually real. Like right now even."
The Goblin King's already amused grin turned into an entertained smirk.
"How funny." He laughed, "And such a pity."
"Look, I'll get right to it. You have a choice, boy. If you leave your sister with us, you can have your dreams."
"But should you really want her back, then you must win her back."
"…How?"
"You'll find her in my castle in the Goblin City. But you can only get there by making your way through my labyrinth."
He motioned towards the window, where the late afternoon scene of our garden had been replaced by an unfamiliar sigh. I had never felt so small, looking out over the massive maze of stone walls, punctuated by trees here and there. I took a step forward onto rocky, if slightly dusty, ground. In the distance, I could make out some kind of castle.
"But, that'll take ages." I hesitantly looked at the King of the Goblins. He returned the look with smug look. "…All night even."
"Don't fret. You only have thirteen hours, young Luke. If you really want poor Jane back, you'll just have to adventure through my lands."
"Thirteen hours?"
"Well, if you want to be pernickety, then you only have twelve hours and fifty-nine minutes." Replied the King. He began to step back from me. Although he had not made me very comfortable in the little time that we had spent in each other's company, I didn't wish to be left alone in this foreign environment.
"Why?" It burst out of me. That was not wise. I shouldn't have. But then again, I don't think.
"Why?" He repeated. His eyes swept over the land, settling on his far-off castle. The King still looked very amused. "For that is the way things are. That is what they must be."
"You won't give her back."
This time, annoyance crept onto his face. He sighed. "You're not a particularly smart child, are you?"
I furrowed my eyebrows and gave him a sour glare.
"Fine!" I spat out. "I'll go through your stupid labyrinth, and get my stupid sister back. You'll see. You're going to be really sorry that you insulted me!"
The annoyance that has rested on his face washed away as I said that. Instead, the Goblin King took in a deep breath and let out a loud, menacing laugh.
"Oh my, this shall be quite entertaining." As he grinned, his body began to fade out. Confused as I was, I wasn't going to let him get the better off me. His laughter rang in the back off my mind, even after he fully disappeared from the area.
I could do it. 'Surely it couldn't be that bad' is what I thought. All I had to do was get to the end of the Labyrinth in thirteen hours and get my sister. Jane could wait that long. It wasn't like it was forever or anything.
When I turned back around to get a better view of what lay ahead of me, something had changed. Even as I approached to its walls, I got the feeling of danger that I didn't fully sense at first glance. My senses shouted at me to turn back; to go home and abandon Jane to this fate. Yet, though it felt like such a natural thing to do, I ignored those thoughts and strode ahead. I don't think it took long before I found myself outside the Labyrinth's entrance. A door, far larger than myself, loomed in front of me, daring me to open it. To pass through whatever lay ahead.
I didn't immediately march straight in. I paused for a few minutes to get my bearings. Here I was, in some foreign land, with my sister kidnapped. I could see her in my mind's eye, wailing away in her old red dress. For the first time, I felt sorry for her being in this unfortunate predicament. Who knew what that King would do to her if I didn't get there in time.
There were people around- though people is probably the wrong term. A dwarf was minding his own business someplace around the wall. I could hear some rustling over in the bushes. I said no word to any of them. I didn't want to see what his subjects were like, if the King could steal away children as he pleased, then who knew what they could be capable of. Before any of them could get closer to me, I entered the Labyrinth. If I had any thought of returning back to the safety of my house, the slamming of the doors behind me, resonating through the walls, put an end to that.
I had less than thirteen hours to save Jane. And time was ticking.
So, I walked. And walked. And walked.
No matter where I went, the castle continued to appear miles and miles away whenever I could catch a glimpse of it. As I headed forwards, backtracking every so often, I only got myself more and more confused. A cracked stone pathway that seemed to bring me closer turned out to divert me elsewhere. What few living beings I came across – a talking worm, and some strange, dirty small creatures- I bolted away from them as soon as I could.
All the while, time ticked away, though if someone asked me how long I had left at any point during my never-ending journey, I could only hazard a random guess. At some point, when I had come to a crossroads, where no one pathway stood out as being the right way, tears started rolling down my cheeks. My new blue shoes were scuffed, being in such a condition that my mother herself would weep at the sight of them. I shivered as the wind blew roughly, just to emphasise how unsuitable my summer clothes were for this world.
I think it was that point it truly dawned on me that I would never see my sister again.
What would happen to me? When my parents found out their only daughter was gone, lost to them forever?
All at once, anxiety, panic and fear shot through me. I had one chance to get through this. I just ran, not looking at the other options at the crossroads. My legs quicken their pace; leading me past the stone maze, through a green garden and to the edge of what looked like dense forest. I couldn't say how far I had gone, or how long it had taken me. I knew that I was willing to run as fast as I possible could until I reach that castle in the distance. Yet, for a moment, I hoped with all my heart that if I ran fast enough, maybe I could reach my sister.
But time would not be my friend that day.
A gloved hand rested upon my shoulder, throwing me back down to Earth.
It was too late. For me and Jane.
"Well." His voice had a strong undercurrent of satisfaction. "Thirteen hours are up."
"It can't be." It was difficult enough to say anything with me being near winded by the running.
"I must admit, I didn't think you'd make it to the outskirts of the Bog of Eternal Stench." Though he was still behind me, I could picture the scary grin upon the face of the Goblin King. "I had assumed you'd get caught in an oubliette hours ago."
"My sister-" I turned around. Surely there could be hope for her?
"Is being prepared for her new life." He cut in sharply. "I shall bid her adieu on your behalf once you're back in your world. I'll inform her that you send your apologies but I doubt if she'll clearly remember who this Luke fellow is. Funny thing the Labyrinth. Once the runner loses, the child's ties to the former world begin to dissolve. Their memories fade away. Isn't it fascinating?"
I had no answer. I could give no answer. I only wheezed a couple of sobs as my knees buckled from under me. How could I? It was all my fault and Jane had to pay for it. The Goblin King tilted his head back as he watched me sob and sniff to myself.
"Ah, well." The King waved his hand dismissively with a tight-lipped smile. "It's a little much to ask me for your interest in this. But you receive quite a bit out of this. Your parents' sole attention. No more bother from a younger sister. You get what you wanted."
For a moment, his eyes bore into mine. His immense power made itself felt in that brief instant. He was right; I did get what I wanted, what I wished for in that moment of childish anger. There was nothing I could do further to save Jane. As I took a deep breath, I noticed his smile widening, revealing sharp teeth. Suddenly I felt weightless. Squeezing my eyes shut, I tried to pray to whoever would listen. He never said what he'd do with me. My heart beat rapidly. My curiosity got the better of me and my eyes blinked open.
I found myself back home, lying right on top of my bed. My first reaction had been to let out a breath of air. I was alone, no parents, no Goblin King, and no Jane. My room looked the same, from the colour of the walls, the table and chair, as well as the few books and toys I owned. They were all where they had been. Nothing had changed… or at least, nothing appeared to be out of the ordinary. Once I got my bearings, I exited my bedroom, and swung open the door of what was Jane's room.
All that was there was a plain bed, undressed, a chair and a side table. Nothing in the room suggested that this was once the space of a young girl with a love for reading, toys and colouring. It was there load and clear: this was the spare room, for overnight guests or for storing unnecessary things. I slowly backed away from the room, as I caught the sound of flapping of wings from outside the window. Shutting the door closed, flinching at the unoiled creak, I cast my gaze around the landing. I took a deep breath. Perhaps I wouldn't need to explain Jane's disappearance to my mother and father. The Goblin King was so kind, generous even, to remove that problem from me. All I had now was to dwell on my guilt.
One of our few family photographs on the upper landing wall caught my eye. It confirmed what I feared. My father placed behind a chair, upon which my mother sat. I was the only child in the black and white picture, placed at my mother's side. No sign of Jane.
Oh what have I done.
A/N
Anyone who's a fan of 'The Next Day' album from 2013 will recognise references to the song 'If You Can See Me'. When I heard the song for the first couple of times, I felt there was a strong supernatural element to it. Mainly the parts where Bowie says 'I am the Spirit of Greed, a Lord of Theft'. Although some have interpreted to be about a demon, or about Bowie being alienated by being placed on a pedestal, I thought this song was a good fit for Jareth the Goblin King. So, with this song in mind, I decided to write something short about someone who wasn't as lucky as Sarah, someone who fails at the Labyrinth and loses his sister.