I am still noticing a distinct lack of Labyrinth ownership in my life.... Jim Henson 3,817; Reese 0


Chapter 8

The Goblin King's eyes widened in alarm as he all but ripped the seal off the second parchment and hurriedly began to read. The elegant handwriting of the Elvenqueen, so similar to Nivienne's, was blurred and scratchy, as tho' the letter had been written in great haste and agitation.

"To the Goblin King, Greetings and Apologies.

I know this letter must disturb your rest, my dear son-in-law,
but this news is too urgent to wait for the coming of Dawn.

Darkness has suddenly begun spreading from the Deep Forest
at an alarming rate. My husband and I have called an emergency
meeting of the Council, but we felt it would only be right to warn
you since the Deep borders your lands as well as ours. As we speak,

our Rangers have set up a constant patrol of the Boundary in hopes
of checking the Darkness' spread.

More will be revealed at the Meeting.

Stay well and safe,

Lessa Wyldfae,
Elvenqueen of the Moonglade."

Jareth let out a startled string of curses. If the Darkness had returned and was spreading, something was terribly wrong. A soft sigh interrupted his thoughts.

A sleep-tousled Nivienne stood in the doorway that connected their two chambers. Clad only in a long white nightdress and blue silk dressing gown, the sleepy Goblin Queen padded over to Jareth's bed, rubbing her eyes, trying to clear the drowsiness from her mind.

"Jareth… what's wrong?" she mumbled. "Why are you up and cursing at this hour? It's too early for the goblins to have done anything stupid…"

Jareth gently pulled her onto the bed and turned her so her back was against his chest. Sighing, he rested his chin on the top of her head and showed her the scrolls. He felt her gasp as she read her mother's letter. She looked up at him, eyes frantic, all drowsiness gone from her countenance.

"Is that all she says? Nothing about whether or not everyone is alright?"

Jareth groaned. He remembered all too late that all of his wife's brothers were in the Rangers, and her cousin was the Captain. Of course she would be worried about them. Mentally he cursed himself for not giving her some warning to soften the blow.

"I'm sure that they are all fine… your mother would have told us if they were hurt. "

"But—"

"No 'buts'… they are fine, Pet. Don't start worrying now. We'll find out more at the Meeting."

Jareth gently rocked his wife back and forth, resting his head in her dark hair. Only his mismatched eyes showed over the back of her head; he was glad she couldn't see how worried they were.

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By the time the sun rose, Jareth and his queen were in their carriage, traveling East to the Great Palace of the Fae, located at the center of the Underground.

It was a huge structure located in the heart of the Underground. Its shimmering white spires overlooked marble terraces and well-tended grounds full of trees and flowers while beautifully carved statues of every powerful Lord stood scattered throughout the entire palace. Inside, wonderously detailed murals of each battle and each great moment in time ornamented almost every wall. Enormous windows of colored crystal sparkled in the bright noon sun, while the banners of all the thirteen Fae Lords rippled majestically in the breeze. It served as a monument to all the great things the Fae had accomplished over the millennia that they had existed and also as a witness to the many terrible tragedies that had swept the lands.

There, all the meetings were held, presided over by the Oracle, the wisest of the Fae and said to be as old as the stars themselves. Under his wise rule, the Fae lands had known peace and prosperity for the last thousand years as his sage advice stopped many a war between the various Fae Lords. It broke everyone's hearts that this long peace might soon come to a very abrupt and painful end.

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Despite the urgency that both Jareth and Nivienne felt, they knew that they had to follow protocol. Unless someone had proof of high treason, it was tradition that all the Fae Lords traveled to any Meeting in their carriages and arrived with much pomp and ceremony. In the Old Days, this had been a sign of respect between the monarchs, now it was just used as an excuse to spend as little time with the other Lords as possible.

The carriage journey took the better part of four days. Jareth and Nivienne arrived at the Great Palace at high noon on the fourth day, their shimmering white carriage glinting in the light. Unlike some of the other Fae Lords, their entourage was rather small, consisting only of the Royal Guard, a group of eight highly trained Hobgoblins, in glittering steel chain mail. Wert and Snerb rode with the dwarven coachman (he used to work in the gardens, as a pest control agent with the Biting Faeries, but was given a position in Jareth's stables after an incident with a runner) on the roof of the carriage. Behind them were three groups of six goblins, each carrying large trunks of clothes and jewels.

Just behind the Goblin Monarchs, came the Merking, Aegir, his wife, Ariadne, and their eldest daughter, Sedna. The Merfolk came in a splendid array, dressed in sheer, shimmering silk robes, with strings of deep-sea pearls wound through their long green hair and bands of gold glittering on their arms. Their coach was a giant gleaming shell from some deep-sea beast and it was pulled by half a dozen pure white aughiskies. Behind them was a lengthy procession of slaves, each carrying a large trunk or chest overflowing with deep-sea jewels or elaborately embroidered silks.

Aegir and the Goblin King clasped arms and bowed while Nivienne dropped a slight curtsy, dipping her head in polite acknowledgment, from behind her husband. Jareth placed his hand on her arm and ushered her forward, politely taking leave of the Merfolk. With all appropriate arrogance, the two Goblin monarchs passed under the great archway that overlooked the courtyard, walked up the grand outer staircase, and passed through two giant oak doors that led to the main foyer.

As soon as Jareth and Nivienne stepped under the great arch that covered the entrance to the grand foyer, a servant rushed to greet them. Jareth couldn't help but smirk when the servant stopped short, having caught sight of Wert perched on his king's shoulder, followed by two of the more burly Hobgoblins. The servant's eyes widened as he stammered out his greeting to the Goblin Monarchs.

"You are welcome here, your Majesties… as are… your… subjects…"

Here, the servant again lost the momentum of his speech as Snerb trundled out from behind Nivienne's skirts and calmly reached up to clutch her hand. Shaking his head quickly, the flustered servant continued, eying the little goblin (who grinned innocently back) all the while.

"If you and your… entourage…"

(Here, Wert had nonchalantly pulled a smushed biscuit from under his grubby frilly green beret and began to eat it while staring curiously at the stuttering Fae before him.)

"… will follow me, I'll show you to your rooms." The flustered servant hurried off down one of the corridors, wanting only to be rid of those odd little creatures.

When they reached the guest chambers permanently assigned to the Goblin Kingdom (no one else would take them after the unfortunate Frog Incident that happened with Jareth's great-grandfather), the servant fumbled with the keys for a few moments before successfully unlocking the door. Jareth merely looked down his nose at him as he regally swept by. Nivienne followed close behind, eyes twinkling with suppressed mirth as she tried to hide her amusement at the servant's obvious discomfort with the goblins.

"The meeting will commence in two hours." After this failed attempt to gather the remaining shreds of his dignity, the Fae hurried off, casting nervous glances behind him as he went.

Nivienne peered down the corridor after him, a mock-bewildered look on her face.

"Whatever was the matter with him?" The Goblin Queen's voice dripped innocence.

Jareth's smug smirk widened as he nonchalantly shrugged one shoulder.

"Must be new."

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After unpacking and leaving strict instructions with both Wert and Snerb, and the Hobgoblins (no chickens, nothing squishy or slimy, no singing, and NO ale), the Goblin King and Queen emerged and made their way to the large foyer where the rest of the Lords were assembling and watching the latest arrivals while playing politics with each other.

This didn't go on for too long, for almost as soon as the Goblin Monarchs entered the room, one of the many servants lifted a long shining trumpet to his lips and sounded three shrill blasts. The large double doors that led to the Council Chamber slowly swung open and a deep, mellow voice from within echoed through the hall.

"I bid you welcome, Fae Lords, one and all. Come, enter and let us discuss what is to be done to quell the threat of this rising Darkness."

All the Fae Lords and their Ladies slowly filed into the chamber and respectfully took their seats around the long oval table that took up most of the room. A mural depicting the blindfolded goddess of Justice and her golden scales meting out rulings over the lands of the Underground stretched across all the walls of the Chamber, encompassing the Lords in a blatant reminder of their sworn duty to their peoples.

A hollow 'thock-thocking' sound alerted everyone to the Oracle's immanent arrival. They all gracefully rose to their feet and turned towards the shadowed entrance that stood directly at the head of the table.

Out of the dim light emerged an ancient Centaur, his flanks completely gray with age. His long white hair was pulled back in the ornate braids of a warrior of his people and two simple gold bands set with sapphires adorned his wiry arms. His lean human torso had lost none of the toned musclulature of his youth. In one knarled hand he held a tall oaken staff, the head of which was shaped into a rising phoenix made out of pure white gold and inlaid with rubies.

Despite his obvious age, the Oracle's bright blue eyes had lost none of their intensity over the many centuries. He fixed all of them with his piercing stare as he moved to his seat. A warm smile spread across his weathered features as he gestured for them to resume their seats.

"Again, welcome, my friends. Let us begin our Council."

Gwidon and Lessa stood and told everyone of the dilemma.

"The sightings began a few months ago, as all of you know, for we reported them immediately to the Council. It was not until right before our daughter's marriage that the first attack occurred. Since then, the ensuing conflicts with Fiends and other creatures of the Dark have been steadily increasing. We have called Alec, our eldest son, and second-in-command of the Rangers, to tell you of what he and the men have seen."

As her husband finished speaking, Lessa gestured for Alec, who had been sitting quietly behind them, to come forward. The elf rose swiftly and bowed grimly to all the Fae Lords, shooting a small smile at Jareth and Nivienne.

"The soldiers and I have never encountered beasts like these before… and we have been patrolling the Border for years. In the beginning, the creatures couldn't come past the silver trees… we just heard them… only the very strongest were ever even visible. Now even the weakest ones can be seen at any time."

Alec paused and looked around.

"We fought off our first Hellhound two days ago. Its head was as big as my torso and its shoulders were as high as my hips…" Alec shuddered as he recalled the horrendous creature. "Its breath was so noxious that two of our men passed out from the poison and lack of clean oxygen. It tore them apart before we could get them out of there." Seeing his little sister's tormented look, Alec hastened to reassure her. "The entire Royal Family is fine, Lass – I mean, Your Majesty… none of us were not hurt too badly."

He turned back to the Fae Lords.

"The blood of a Hellhound is acidic… we found that out when we killed it."

The elven prince pulled something out of a pouch on his belt and tossed it down on the table. It took everyone a moment before they recognized it as a steel bracer, so warped was its shape. The once bright silvery metal was now pitted and blackened, worn completely through in some places.

All the Fae Lords looked grim.

"Fiends have become commonplace to us all," Alec continued. "And in the shadows, we have seen worse things… things I thought only existed in our legends… This Darkness is spreading, my Lords, and whatever it touches becomes twisted and warped and eventually dies."

Alec sat down. Nivienne could see his hands shaking. Sadly she gripped her husband's hand as she mourned the loss of the two Rangers and the slow defilement of her forest home.

For the next few hours, each of the Fae Lords proposed their ideas for stopping the ever-hastening spread of the Darkness. Each idea was successively shot down, until everyone was so frustrated that the Oracle called a halt to the Council.

"We shall reconvene tomorrow and hear the remaining Lords' solutions, once we are calmer."

Nodding their agreement, all the Fae began to walk out. Joining their brother and parents, Jareth and Nivienne escorted the elves from the hall, deriving comfort from the presence of their family. Even then, Nivienne could not shake the growing dread in her belly. She knew, without a doubt, that everything in her life was going to unravel before this nightmare ended.


A/N: Just want to thank notwritten for all the kind reviews and Michi Yuy for favoriting my story. You guys rock! Just for you, I will post another chapter!

- Reese