Chapter 1: Cold Sweat
"Stone cold sober and stone cold sweat
Running down the back of my neck.
To lose means trouble, to win pays double,
And I got me a heavy bet."
-Thin Lizzy
The rhythmic footsteps echoed in the corridor. A steady beat accompanied by a hushed conversation.
"So, the child?"
The Goblin King waited for his companion to provide an answer.
"A goblin, sire." Replied the goblin servant, a short and spotty goblin called Meck. "As we had no requests come in, he became one of us immediately after the thirteenth hour."
"I see." Said Jareth calmly. "Any other business to discuss?"
"You have some letters, sire." Meck handed him a couple of envelopes. Jareth took them, flicking through them one by one without any evident interest. "I know we should send them to the Letter room, but Charlic said these ones were urgent."
"Hmmm…" That servant was not wrong. Unlike the majority of letters that were left in a room somewhere in the Castle to be sorted, urgent ones came straight to the King. And it wouldn't do if these letters in question were left in a dusty pile to gather even more dust.
Jareth opened the first one, and his eyes widened as he read the letter.
"…She's really going through with it?"
Meck stayed silent. He watched the King shake his head in disbelief. Curiosity washed over Meck. At the same time, he restrained himself. It wouldn't do to overstep the line.
"They've actually settled on a date. Oh my." He said in amusement. "I thought Larissa would have broken off the engagement long ago."
They walked for another moment as Jareth opened another letter. Meck wondered who that Larissa person was supposed to be. He didn't notice that the King had stopped his pace until he heard him exclaim in surprise again.
"Oh? Another wedding? Tsk, oh, I definitely can't skip this one, can't I?"
"Is all well, your majesty?" Meck asked nervously.
"Well, I'll have to redo my schedule, Meck. Another cousin is getting married."
"Is it due to conflict with something, sire?"
"Yes." Sighed the King. "I shan't be able to get away during the summer. Not if my attendance is required for Larissa's wedding to that Elf Prince, Alfons, and King Peredur's wedding to…" Jareth looked back at the second invitation. "…this Lady Mariella Elitzkar. Whoever she is." The Goblin King groaned, crumpling the letters in his hands. "Why on earth did they feel the need to schedule them so close to each other's wedding? I'll probably be obliged to stay with someone in the Fae Lands rather than return home and then go out to Peredur's wedding."
"Well, I'll inform Deena of these changes and she can organise transport and whatnot for you." Said Meck. "If your majesty wishes to have his holiday some other time…."
Jareth pushed open an oak door that led into his private quarters. "I shall talk to Deena, but at a later time. I need to rest."
"Oh, of course your majesty." Meck bowed respectfully, "I'll take my leave then."
With that done, Jareth closed the door and sighed. It had been a long day, a long busy day. There was nothing he wished for more than a peaceful and deep sleep. The King began to walk over in the direction of his bedroom, with his soft bed waiting for him. So, when a goblin guard came running from the opposite direction, straight towards him, Jareth had a slight inkling that all may not go as planned.
"My King, please stop!"
"What on earth is going on?" Jareth snapped, sidestepping the guard with ease. "If some goblin has spilled something on my bed, he or she is going straight to the Bog."
"No, you can't!" The guard did his best to block access to the other end of the corridor but the King was having none of it.
"If it was you, Dennik, you can say goodbye to-"
The sight of a crystal ball outside the door of his bed chambers stopped him in his tracks.
"…That's not one of mine."
Indeed, it wasn't one of the Goblin King's infamous crystal glass balls. For one, Jareth didn't remember leaving one in his private quarters. Why would he do that when he could generate one at will? Secondly, it wasn't like the clear crystal balls he could create. This one didn't seem transparent at all. To Jareth's eyes, it seems as if there was smoke inside it….
"Get down." He commanded Dennik, who did so without question. "How did that get there?"
"Someone entered here around five minutes ago." Replied the guard. "An orange furry thing. Not your size, sire. It was closer to my height. It dropped that thing before we even realised it. Frink chased it out of here, but it slipped his grasp before he could catch it. Went out a window. He's out in the gardens looking for it."
"Damn… Orange and furry, you said?" As basic as it was, there was at least one person who fit the short description. Was it a Firey? Perhaps. Certainly not that monster Ludo. No, he was too large. But it could be…
Before Jareth could ponder over what Dennik had said any more, the sound of a crack rang out in the corridor. As both their eye's shot over in that direction, smoke of a greyish-green colour began to rise out of the new crack in the glass. The look of it alone was enough to tell Jareth that the gas was not harmless.
"Stand back, and cover your mouth." He barked swiftly. Jareth raised his hands and focused on keeping the gas back. Luckily for him, his magic was stronger than whoever created this poison. Having no resistance against the King's shield barrier, the smoke retreated back away from Jareth, until it was forced into a corner. It was almost amusing to see the sight of a ball of gas forced up against the wall.
"Let's cleanse the air of this." The King muttered, making a few subtle movements with his hands. The smoky gas gradually lost its colour. After a few minutes of concentration, the gas became transparent, with its poison eradicated.
"My King." Dennik had not moved from the spot he had left him at. There was a quiver in his voice, and rightfully so. "The danger is not over."
Jareth's eyes turned back over to the broken glass crystal. In the middle of the cracked glass parts was another ball, one that was mostly black. After a second or two of looking at it, Jareth realised what that little surprise was.
"Iron." The word stuck in his throat. If that thing exploded out, that would only spell bad news for both the Goblin King and Dennik.
Immediately, Jareth generated a protective sphere of magic and encased the strange black ball in it. Before Dennik could blink, the ball of iron detonated within the confines of the sphere. Piece of iron of varying sizes flew about in it. Despite the safety of the magic sphere, both goblin and King caught a slight whiff of iron in the air. To those of a weaker disposition, they would have felt an uncomfortable burn up their nostrils.
Both of them watched the sphere for a few minutes as the contents burned in a sickly green fire. Nothing was said as the flames flickered around the toxic metal. After some time, the sphere disappeared into thin air.
"…Is it safe now?" asked Dennik softy.
"I am not certain." Said the King wearily. "That ball of iron piece has been transported to a place far from here. But I cannot be sure that the gas is completely neutralized, nor that there are no effects of the burning."
"Sire, there are other rooms for you to rest in for the time being. If you …"
"No."
Dennik raised his head in uncertainty.
"There is no time to rest." The Goblin King marched out of his quarters, with Dennik rushing after him. As he made his way to the Throne Room, he started to issue commands left and right.
"All entrances in and out of the Goblin Kingdom and the Labyrinth are to be blocked for the time being. Get me Frink, I need an image of this assailant from him and from you, Dennik. Tell the head of the guards to report to me once that it done. And someone get me a cup of coffee. It's going to be a long evening"
Xoxoxox
"I do say, what a lovely apartment, my lady!"
"Thank you, Didymus. Would you like some more tea? How about you, Hoggle?"
"I dare say I could use a top up, Sarah. Ah, thank you!"
The dwarf sipped his cup delicately, taking a shortbread biscuit to compliment it. He sat back comfortably on the chair. Next to him, Ludo sat on the floor with Ambrosius, wagging his tail happily. Didymus sat with Sarah on the comfy sofa, adding a spoon or two of sugar to his tea.
"Certainly better than the last place you were at." Mused Hoggle, "Nice and bright. Will you be staying here long?"
Sarah looked over her head, glancing around her apartment. Having just moved in, it was basic enough in appearance. Standard Ikea furniture, bright curtains, and plain walls. But it was warm, not too small, and was in a safe area. Those factors alone would be reason enough for her to stay where she was.
"Well, I can't say for sure." She admitted. "I'd like to. This company is better than the old newspaper job I was at. The co-workers are actually competent. I've been doing well with my work so far, like I feel more motivated here. There's more opportunities for me, you see. So, yeah. If things keep going the way they've been going, then I don't see the harm in staying."
"Good idea." Said Ludo, "Sarah happy."
Sarah nodded. There was no reason not to be happier than she had been a few months ago. She enjoyed (slightly) higher wages, better work to do, and didn't have that strict boss who seemed allergic to innovation. That same boss who treated her as well as an unpaid intern, and whose first reaction to her work was to find any kind of criticism.
Yes, anything was better than working for that trashy tabloid.
"So, that's enough about me." She said, "What have you guys been up to?"
Didymus leaned back on his chair with a content smile, "To be perfectly honest, my life is quite normal. I guard the Bog with the noble Ambrosius by my side, visit my good friends and duel on occasion with the local goblins. I also engage in the odd game of Scrabble here and there when I've the time. All in all, harmless fun!"
"Ludo visits friends. Also explores and fights with brother Didymus. Can't complain."
"Remember when you got that cold, brother?" Chuckled Didymus, bending over to take another biscuit, "Thou were in a most miserable state. But fear not, my dear Sarah, he got better, as you can clearly see!"
"Good to hear…And Hoggle?" asked Sarah, catching her friend off guard.
"Oh, uh…no, nothing new with me." He said quickly, "Just the usual things, nothing new."
"Now, come, come, friend Hoggle!" chirped Didymus, slapping the dwarf on his back, "Didn't you not receive a promotion recently? And I heard you got into a fight with one of the guards in the Goblin City the other day. What fun!"
"That bloody worm put me up to it!" Hoggle nearly shouted, but kept a lid on his annoyance. "…That is to say, he misled me. It's not important. Next time I see him, I may feed him to a fairy." He trailed off.
Sarah gave him an interested look, "And what's this about a promotion?"
Hoggle sighed, "Not so much a promotion as a relocation. King Glitter Rat decided I wasn't to be trusted in my old spot. So, I got shoved off eastwards along the wall, where the fairy infestation is the worst. It figures. Just when I had my house just right, and now I've to live in that bloody hovel."
"I do sympathise with you, dear Hoggle, it certainly doesn't smell very pleasant."
Hoggle shot a dry look at Didymus.
"Like you can complain."
"Hmm…What do you mean?" Didymus appear genuinely puzzled by Hoggle's comment.
"Did I tell you guys that Toby entered an art competition recently?" Interrupted Sarah quickly.
"Ah, when was this?" Asked Didymus, "Last time we spoke, you said he didn't intend to go public with his works. Being only eleven and all that."
"Oh, no. He's still not comfortable with that." Sarah face fell a bit. "To be honest, my dad kind of pushed him into doing it. He noticed this one painting Toby did, and slightly nagged him into submitting it into this contest some company was sponsoring. Unfortunately, Toby didn't win."
"Well, can't win all the time." Shrugged Hoggle. Ludo nodded in agreement.
"I would agree with you, Hoggle. However, Dad got Toby really hyped up about in, told him he would definitely win. So, you can imagine how that all went down when he got the letter saying he didn't win anything."
"Ah. Well, that's just a bit silly on yer dad's part. Like, support him but don't go over the top."
"You can say that again. Dad did the same with me…" For all of Robert William's best intentions of inspiring confidence in his children, it all too often set both Sarah and Toby up for disappointment. Not the worst trait a parent could have, but Sarah knew her father could go about it in a more constructive manner.
"Anyway, aside from that, how fares young Toby?" inquired Didymus.
"Oh you know, the usual passive aggressive Toby behavior." Sarah rolled her eyes as she recalled her last visit to the Williams house up the state. "Acting like Dad and Karen don't care about him, muttering about how his friends Paul and Evan get Xboxes or those PlayStation things in their rooms and how, in his words, 'it's just a little unfair that we won't even allow him a decent colour scheme for his room'. Although, I can't blame him on that. That shade of green just shouts vomit."
Ludo smiled. "Toby is difficult?"
Sarah took an intake of breath. "Well, he's at that age."
Despite the humour in the situation, Sarah couldn't help feeling unnerved of Toby's small signs of rebellion. Even at the age of eleven, Toby was not all that far off of adolescence. From what Sarah could tell, he was already beginning to seem conscious about what his friends thought of him. It wasn't so much peer pressure, if truth be told. But it was obvious to Sarah that Toby didn't want to be labelled as a 'weirdo' or seen as too different. It could be understandable that Toby hid any differences he had from his peers, just as Sarah didn't let on how big she was into fantasy fiction and theatre when she was fifteen. Of course, after that incident, that previous obsession became less consuming. That was something positive she could take from her time in the Labyrinth, it had helped her to grow up...
Her mind turned away from that topic. It was best not get caught up in those memories at that moment. Sarah focused her thoughts back on the conversation, where she learned of the various exploits of the Ambrosius and Didymus, and Ludo's wanderings around the Kingdom.
After another hour of chat and stories, their visit came to an end. For one thing, it was late and everyone had jobs and places to be in the morning. Hugging each of her friends individually before they departed for the Underground realm, Sarah promised them that they would see each other soon.
It felt somewhat odd, to be alone after such a pleasant evening with her friends. It must have been the silence. Her last apartment tended to be a little livelier than her current place, as one would expect with a bass player, a tone deaf aspiring singer and an Irish dance instructor as neighbours. Since her TV wasn't fully set up, Sarah rooted around some boxes of her stuff she had yet to unpack in the hopes of finding a particular book to read in bed. In the middle of digging around the boxes, a moderately loud thump noise interrupted Sarah.
"Huh?" She got off her hands and knees, and looked around. From the sound of it, Sarah thought something must have fallen over. Yet, nothing was out of place on her shelves, which didn't have all that much up to begin with. Checking around the other rooms, there were no signs of anything unusual, nothing had fallen over. Puzzling to say the least.
Sarah double checked the front door's locks, along with those of the windows. She waited another moment, in case the same noise was made again. Sarah was met with as much silence one could expect in a city. But no strange thumping noises.
"Hmm… must be someone else. Or building creaks." She muttered. Neighbours could always make sudden noises, that wasn't exactly news to anyone. Safe in the knowledge that all was well in the apartment, Sarah set off for bed. At least, she intended to when she heard a familiar voice behind her.
"Hello, Sarah."
Disclaimer: I don't own Labyrinth- The Henson Company owns it. Cold Sweat is by Thin Lizzy. The title, 'If Not Now When?', is by a band called Fred from their album 'Leaving My Empire'.
A/N. So I have been trying to write a long multi chapter Labyrinth fic for a while. I first started the first version of this story a while ago, not too long after i first saw Labyrinth. So this story has been rewritten a number of times but Im happy enough with what I've written of the story so far. Anyway, hope people like it! BTW, hope people like the vague IASIP reference ;)