Chapter one: Memories From the Past

Sarah was surrounded by destruction and death. The whole world that she was standing in seemed to have lost it's vibrancy and life. A place that had once been filled with a magic music and strange, but interesting, creatures, was totally different and dead. It hurt to look about her. However, she knew that she would be forced to endure the pain of the destruction of the Underground. It always happened that way in dreams. Sarah was quite sure that she was dreaming. She hadn't wished to be taken by the goblins, at least not to her memory. The grand wall that had stood ominously before her when she entered the Labyrinth, had toppled down and covered the plants that the biting fairies had inhabited. She scanned the area with intent eyes. There had to be something that was left whole and alive. She almost expected Hoggle to hobble out towards her with his fairy repellent in one hand. However, it was no to be.

She stepped carefully over the ruins of the walls. Her destination was not clear to her, but she had a feeling about where she was going to end up. She knew that she had to see if the castle still stood in all its monstrosity and glory. She had to know if everything had been destroyed. Sarah passed through the doors that had been guarded six long years ago by Alph and Ralph. She gazed into the pit where she had fallen. There were no helping hands in there to greet her. Sarah continued past the doors.

As she walked she began to realize that the distance between her starting point and the castle had been greatly shortened. At one time it had loomed ahead of her for hours. Now, in the ruins it took her a few short minutes to come up to the collapsed iron doors. Her mind drifted back to a time when Ludo had easily thrust open the shut doors. His powerful strength had come in handy with the difficult passages. The sight of the powerful castle in shambles tugged at her heart. It was not her world, but she had done so much maturing there. The Underground had become a very real part of her past.

Her eyes wandered over the castle. It too was close to ruins, but had faired better than the rest of the Labyrinth. She glanced around at the open courtyard that had once been bustling with goblin guards and odd little homes. There wasn't even a single structure left.

A flash of white caught her eye. Sarah quickly spun and gazed up into the dark and stormy sky. Had she seen the white owl? Her eyes scanned the sky, but she only saw the clouds. A roar of thunder rolled from nearby and the sky was briefly lit by a flash of lightening. Sarah wrapped her arms around herself and shivered slightly at the ominous surroundings. The storm would hit shortly and she certainly didn't feel like getting drenched. The only sanctuary was in the castle. Sarah looked behind herself one last time and took a deep breath to prepare herself. She knew that He was watching her and that He would be in the castle, waiting.

Sarah stepped gently into the castle. The walls looked beaten down and very close to collapsing in on the castle. She felt as if one false step and a sudden sharp noise could send the whole thing falling in on her. However, this was only a dream and people are never harmed in their dreams.

"Is it really a dream?" Sarah asked herself. It soothed her frazzled nerves to hear a noise in this silent tomb.

Sarah stood in the middle of the throne room with a shocked expression on her lovely face. The mighty throne that had been the center of leadership for the infamous Goblin King stood before her. It had split neatly in two. It was almost like an earthquake had ravaged through the Underground and destroyed everything with it. Sarah knew that it was much worse than that.

She stepped on to the stairs that led towards the room that had housed her final confrontation with Jareth nearly six years ago. She was only able to move on the stairs for a few feet. They abruptly ended at a deep chasm. Sarah peered down and realized that she could not see the bottom.

"Sarah," an accented voice stated from behind her.

Sarah nearly fell into the gorge from her startle. She quickly stood straight and turned to face the man who had spoken to her. Jareth stood in front of her. His wispy blonde hair was free to lay on his shoulders. He had a cocky grin on his face in spite of the destruction his world had endured. He was dressed as he had been when he had first come to take Toby away from her. His eyes burned with a blue light that acted almost like lightening against his dark pupils.

As if cued, thunder erupted closer and sent a chill through Sarah's body. The lightening followed shortly after and highlighted both of them with it's eerie white light. The next second the rain burst from the clouds and attacked the weakened castle with fury. A coarse of emotions surged through Sarah's body. She was relieved to see something had lasted through the downfall off the Underground. If Jareth had been defeated as well, it would mean the end of this magical place. However, Jareth being there also caused an intense hatred to light up again within her. She had tried so hard to stifle the anger for so many years. It seemed that it would take much longer to rid herself of the useless emotion. She had defeated Jareth and had been rid of him. There was a knowledge inside of herself that she would never be really free of him and the hatred would never be totally gone. It's fire would continue to burn in her for the rest of her life.

Jareth walked closer to her with the same air of confidence as he had used many times before. His long black cape drifted behind him and caught in a gust of air from a near window. He smiled again and then looked out the window in the castle wall. His good spirits seemed to droop slightly as he saw what was left of his kingdom.

"Why do you bring me here?" Sarah demanded.

Her jaw tightened and she had to repress an urge to place her fists on her hips. Her question brought no response from the Goblin King. He simply gazed out the window, as if in a trance. He turned to her and the fire in his eyes flicked off suddenly and revealed a pain so deep that Sarah was barely able to keep from breaking into tears. In the next second the cold fire was back and he straightened himself up and glared down at her with a teasing manner.

"You ask why I have brought you here?" he asked her.

Sarah was still trying to understand what the emotion deep in his eyes had been. His answer caught her off guard. She could only stammer for a few moments and then she fought to regain control. The worst mistake would be to let him frighten her into submission. She knew that she would lose if that ever should happen.

"You didn't answer me, Jareth." she replied.

Her own eyes had grown cold and cruel with hatred towards the man. Sarah knew that she had boundaries that she couldn't overstep. She had to be careful with her taunts. Jareth knew how to hurt very well. He knew how to take whatever was most precious. He especially knew how to get what he wanted.

"You have no reason to talk with such venom. I am not the one responsible for you being here," Jareth said.

He stepped up closer to her. His eyes were only inches away from hers and she could feel his warm breath on her neck. The memory of her dance with him when she was fifteen flitted through her mind. He was a handsome man, but she was not a teenager anymore. The childish crush on him had vanished a long time ago.

"You have lost, Jareth, and I'm not part of this world anymore. The problems here don't involve me," she said viciously.

Jareth glared into her eyes fiercely and then spun around. His cape hit against her legs as he rushed down the stairs. He turned and looked at her. His eyes flashed with dangerous fury. Sarah knew she had gone too far. She also knew that there was no taking back her words after they had exited her mouth.

He pointed a gloved finger at her and scowled.

"I wouldn't be so cocky, little girl!"