11

Jay made his way carefully across the Bog of Eternal Stench jumping from stepping stone to stepping stone. He was starting to wonder what the big deal was about this place. Sure it was a bit scary at first but it wasn't that hard to find your way. And some thoughtful person had even left stepping stones on the infamous bog! He supposed it would have been harder for Aunt Sarah having Uncle Jareth chasing her and tormenting her the whole time but really, this champion thing wasn't that hard. He could see Goblin City much closer now. He wondered if there was a prize at the end of the road.

"I tell yer this place brings back bad memories." Hoggle said shaking his head.

"Dost thou mean when thou turnest traitor and poisoned our fair maiden?" Sir Didymus inquired.

"Shut up you overgrown furball." Hoggle growled. Jay frowned. He thought he heard voices other than those of his friends.

"Shhh!" he hissed.

"Furball? How darest thou insult me. I, who cometh from a long line of warriors committed to the protection of..."

"Shhh!" Jay hissed again and motioned for them to be quiet. Sure enough, there were the voices again.

"I don't know what happened! We were supposed to appear in the castle."

"Dammit you fool! Next time I'm in charge of the powder."

"What's that smell anyway? I thought it was one of you two but that is a whole new level of bad..." Jay peered around a tree trunk and saw three creatures who looked like something between a human and a goblin. One was standing, two were sitting. All looked lost.

"We must be in the Labyrinth. It's the only explanation."

"Why the hell would we be in there?"

"I don't know. Do you have a better explanation?" Jay watched them unsure of what to do. Sir Didymus would shout 'CHARGE!' and fight to the death. Hoggle would run and hide. Jay wondered what his father would do.

He walked out to meet the creatures.

"Hi." He said. All three jumped up and grabbed for their weapons.

"What is it?"

"Careful. It looks like it's quick. It could be dangerous!" Jay giggled. One, a braver one who wore some sort of medal on his chest and was bigger than the other two, stepped forward.

"Just who are you then?" it asked.

"I'm Jay. Who are you?" he asked. Most children would be afraid of these creatures. Jay was considered definitely not 'most children' by his father, his teachers, his mother (wherever she was now) and that doctor who argued with his dad about giving him something called Ritalin. He stared the creature down. It was interrupting his quest.

"You're a small human aren't you?" it asked. Jay glared.

"I'm bigger than the other kids at my school." He crossed his arms.

"No names for you then. Names only for the Nameless Ones." It said. Jay blinked.

"That made no sense." He said. The big weird goblin-man turned to his friends.

"What do I do with it? It's not the King. The Princess won't want another wrong human."

"Leave it alone. We need to find the King."

"What do you want the King for?" Jay asked.

"Our Princess wants a word with him." One of the seated goblin-men answered. The others laughed.

"Why isn't she here then?" Jay asked.

"Because that's not how things are done, young human." The standing one answered. "Now, do you know the way to Goblin City?" he asked. Jay shrugged.

"Not really. But I'm running the Labyrinth so I guess I'll find it soon." Failure was not something Jay considered as a possibility. The goblin-men glanced at each other.

"Mind if we follow you? We're lost." Jay shrugged.

"Okay. You're not going to hurt my uncle, are you? He's the King."

"Of course not. As I said, our Princess just wants... a word with him."

"All right then. This way I think." Jay walked off along a dirt path that looked as though it were leading into a garbage heap.

"Jay." Hoggle said. Jay was surprised he had come out from behind the tree. "Jay you can't trust these creatures. They're from the South. They're the enemy." Sir Didymus growled in agreement. Ambrosius whimpered.

"Relax. They're going the same way as us. Anyway, my uncle could beat these guys any day." He said. Hoggle looked back at the three hulking creatures.

"Never thought I'd be looking to King Jareth to save me." He muttered.