Disclaimer: not mine, copyright Labyrinth Enterprises (at least, that's what it says on my copy of the movie), and Monty Python and the Holy Grail', copyright The National Film Trustee Corporation Limited. I guess the Jim Henson Company owns "The Storyteller", please correct me if I am wrong. No copyright infringement intended. Not making money of this. Thank you Mr. Jim Henson way up high for creating such loveliness, thank you Pythons for being so marvelously loony.
Gnome jokes and references either inspired by or pinched from Mr. David Bowie's 1967 song 'The Laughing Gnome". Some lines of the Bette Midler song "The Rose" are quoted. No copyright infringement intended, just being an inspired fan here.
Enjoy
Ramowen
Diamond Tears
Chapter 6. Gnome Sweet Gnome
"Arf." whined Ambrosius. Ludo took some tasty bun with chicken from his knapsack and gave it the dog. They were picnicking at the edge of a forest, still following the old road Sarah's cart had taken . Both the dog and the monster, beings living the moment only, did not realize their search to be hopeless, near unending. Their friends needed them and that was all that mattered. Not the length of the journey, not even the journey itself. They followed their call and moved, ate when they were hungry and would sleep when grown tired. Perhaps at that moment, Ludo and Ambrosius were the most contend beings alive.
A few paces inside the cave's entrance, Sarah, Sir Didymus and Hoggle found themselves blocked by a wooden wall with a small door. One of the Gnome boys knocked on the wood and the door swung open. Sarah had to bend low to enter, but inside the cave she could stand.
And again Sarah was met by a fairytale. Candles everywhere and the scent of old pineapple trees. The hallway of yellow and red stone glittered with silver highlights and Sarah was led to a thick curtain of scarlet velvet, hung with golden rings from a golden rod. Laughter came from behind the curtain and the visitors were pushed and pulled through it by the little people- into an enormous hall deep inside the earth. Being near the top Sarah could touch the roof of the cave, but she could barely make out its floor.
Everywhere around her Sarah saw openings clearly leading to the Gnome's homes, connected with both stone and wooden passageways all along the walls and with several bridges crisscrossing the open space like metropolitan highways. There were thousands of little human-like creatures everywhere. Chubby lady gnomes and bearded male ones with centuries old wrinkled faces-
All dressed in various shades of gray and purple, and all apparently having the time of their lives, laughing and joking with each other. Sarah was asked to climb inside a large wicker basket that was chained to an enormous wooden crane. When inside, the crane swung out into the open space and Sarah was gently lowered via this odd elevator. But it worked smoothly and the ride gave Sarah the chance to take a good look around.
Since there was no daylight coming in, the dwarfs had hung lanterns everywhere, some with colored glass spreading enchanting blue, red and green lights. Under bright yellow lights plants flowered and trees grew from the cave-wall- some had a swing attached to it and there were little Gnome children everywhere. Most stopped with whatever they were doing to smile and wave at Sarah as she passed. Sarah heard the melodious clatter of falling water and saw an opening in the wall through witch it came down and fell into a wooden channel, diverting into an intricate system of pipes leading to the apartments. There were no doors, only brightly colored heavy curtains- and most of them were open. All along the wall were images carved. Portraits of Gnomes, surface animals, elves and insects. It gave the cave an organic feel, vibrant and alive and Sarah could swear that some of the carving's eyes followed her with mischievous stares.
Finally the basket touched the floor. Sarah stepped out and the 'elevator' was lifted, probably to collect her friends. Here, on ground-level so to speak, Sarah saw that the openings in the walls led to workshops of all kinds- But most Gnomes dropped whatever they were busy with and gathered round Sarah who was suddenly knee-deep in tiny people.
She felt like Gulliver.
The little people pulled Sarah to what was apparently the town square, offered her a chair- decided against chairs for gigantic human girls and gathered her a small hill of brightly colored cushions. The Gnomes asked Sarah her name and if she were hungry, promptly serving her a meal of backed toadstools and dandelion wine. Not being used to alcohol, Sarah felt a little giddy when both Hoggle and Didymus finally arrived.
With all of their guests seated and at ease, the curious little people were ready to listen to the why of their visit. When they heard of Sarah's quest, some started to sing something like:
"Ha ha ha, hee hee hee
"I'm a Laughing Gnome and you can't catch me
They told Sarah that Jareth had tried to make the Gnomes work for him, just like the Goblins.
But they had not liked the idea of having to snoop around people's homes to steal children and so they had fled their original village home, about - well, three hundred years ago? At the beginning of the King's reign? Yeah, it had to be something like that. They had been homeless Gnomads for a while, but now they had their own place again. Besides, it didn't really matter where one lived, as long as you were with family and friends. Gnome is where the heart is- you know? A good witch had given them a spell to hide all that lived in the Gnome caves and they were never bothered again.
One Gnome by the name of Fred promised to guide Sarah through the caves to the other side,
where the Bridge of Doom was. But he, and he really tried to do so sternly, warned the travelers not to try to cross the bridge, because then they would be forced to answer the guardians questions and that was near to impossible.
"But Tim the Enchanter has told us already that if we wish to get to the s'Quaerra, whatever it turns out to be, we -have- to cross that bridge."
"You an' you're mates in trouble then' girl. Ye gotta find another way. Tha' bridge, it 'as a magic, ye know? They say tha' if ye cross it ye come where ever ye wanna be. There really isn't another -side-."
"An' noooo coming back from wherever ye're gone too." A lady Gnome tuned in. "Ye see, 'cause there ain't no other side of the bridge, there ain't no bridge on the other side."
"Ooh," moaned Sir Didymus, "how -am- I going to get back to my poor Ambrosius. Milady, if we do continue on this course, we might never see both my steed and brave Sir Ludo again."
Sarah put a comforting arm around Didymus. "I really don't think so. Jareth has asked me to bring back that eye, so there must -be- a way back."
Hoggle shook his head. "But Sarah, couldn't that be Jareth's point? What if we gets trapped and we -really- cant go back. Than you have lost!"
"Look, I -know- he isn't fair", the Gnomes started to applaud and whistle after Sarah had said that. "But if I don't take that chance I'll never make it anyway. But you two don't-"
"Don't say it Sarah- don't even thinks it! Yer not facing His Owlyness himselves, so there is no point in going on your lonesome!" Hoggle stated firmly, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at Sarah, daring her to argue his point.
"Hear hear." Intoned Sir Didymus.
Before Sarah could answer, a delighted cry was heard from the back of the square. A high pitched female voice yelled that everybody had to come look and -see-. So en masse, all the Gnomes did, with Sarah, Hoggle and Didymus in their midst.
Near the back of the cave the Gnomes had made themselves a garden with a few willow trees, a fountain and some potplants. In one of the pots a green seedling shyly pushed it's way to the surface, dark green leaves still hiding whatever it might become. But the Gnomes became greatly exited when they saw it.
Hoggle, Didymus and Sarah stared at each other without understanding. The Gnomes stood there, smiling silly little smiles and Sarah noticed many of them stood in pairs now, hand in hand, looking at their children or deeply into each other's eyes. She could hear a song being murmured, but the most of the words eluded her.
"I say love, it is a flower,
"and you it's only seed.
Fred noticed her confusion and tried to explain, although he himself seemed baffled by the growing bud.
"That's the Flower o' Life we took from our village- The seed was in the pot, bu' it never grew again. It 'as other names- Soul's Shine, Rose 'o Love- Ye know, names like that. But they all died. They all disappeared. An' now it's back! Some kind 'o magic we lost must 'have come back."
"Thou meanest the white flowers that were so abundant in the old days?" Didymus asked.
Fred nodded happily. Sarah scratched her head and looked pensive.
"You know- there -is- some kind of pattern here."
She got some very expectant stares from both her friends and the nearest Gnomes. With typical human logic Sarah did the math.
"Three hundred years ago, Jareth's father was King and I heard Didymus refer to him as the 'Good King'. Three hundred years ago that Good King disappeared and has been presumed dead. Three hundred years ago Jareth became King, drove you Gnomes from your homes, apparently changed a lot because nobody likes him, and this wonderful flower disappeared- So what's the connection between your kings and this flower? And what is changing -right now- that is making it grow again?"
Hoggle and Didymus looked at each other and shrugged and the Gnomes, not all that well known for their powers of reason or deduction, just started to giggle and telling each other that it was
"a good one".
Sarah understood she would not get any answers from this happy crowd. Perhaps the guard of the bridge knew- she was getting rather anxious to meet this mage.
Neither Hoggle nor Didymus felt for any further delay in their journey either. So they said their good-byes to the friendly Gnomes and followed Fred through the dark caves. They walked by the light of their lanterns, followed by their own ghostly shadows grotesquely distorted by the irregular walls.
Apparently in ancient times a river had hollowed out the mountain Fred told them they were now travelling trough. Stalactites hung like stone curtains from the roof of the cave, their mighty tresses flaming dark red and gentle browns when they passed. Stalagmites reached up from the floor to meet their hanging brethren, creating a veiled stone forest where one could easily loose oneself. For like all passageways inside the Labyrinth, Sarah found the caves behind the Gnome City a to be maze inside the larger maze. She would have had a dickens of a time trying to find her way through on her own, even if there were no little Brownies to change her markers.
Suddenly, from deep inside the earth, far deeper than the Gnome City, a clanging was heard.
A dry heat spread through the passageways and the scent of coal and fire and steam drifted towards the travelers. Fred tried to hurry past, but Sarah's curiosity got the better of her.
"Fred- I thought you had a smithy in your village?"
"We do- but those guys are no Gnomes- They Dwarves, an' they live 'ere on their own cause they 'ave a 'obby we don't like very much! Ye see girl, our guys make tools, pickaxes, shovels, you name it. These two are armourers. They came 'ere as fugitives themselves, so we never minded much. But we're not real friendly-like either."
Hoggle frowned. "I thoughts you people were friendly to everybody?"
"Well- we don't -dislike- 'em! An' our ' city is open to 'em. If they just would stop te make those 'orrible things! They serve -no- real purpose except for making people miserable."
"My dear sir Gnome I do not agree!" Sir Didymus rattled his rapier. "This trusted fellow has saved many a helpless maiden or peasant from the dangers of dragons and injustice!"
"No- your rusted fellow was in -your- 'ands and you were it's master. You saved 'em!"
Slightly glowing at those words, Didymus half missed the pun. "My what, good sir?"
"But those guys down there- they don't make 'normal' pointy things- 'Ell no! They're the ones that made Tyrfing!"
"Oh boy." said Sarah. Even she knew the terrible legend. Forced by a power hungry king, the dwarves Durin and Dvalin had been forced to create an unbreakable, invincible ever sharp blade, capable of cutting through both metal and stone. But the dwarves tricked the king and cursed the sword. When drawn, it could never be sheathed again without having tasted the blood of the slain and whom ever would own and fight with it would in the end be destroyed by it.
So had been the fate of the unfortunate king and all the subsequent owners, until the sword disappeared.
Durin and Dvalin had fled and finally ended up with the Laughing Gnomes, for they were in fear of their existence, they said, from Jareth this time. The Gobling King had sought them out to make him a weapon capable of countering Tyrfing. But the dwarfs themselves did not have that kind of magic- they did even not know who would have.
Besides, Tyrfing had disappeared, so why would anyone weld a blade with even more power?
And it would certainly be in the wrong hands with the Goblin King.
To her own surprise, Sarah got really upset over that.
"Oh come on! I have seen how 'well' Jareth handles a sword. He trips over them and embarrasses himself! His power is in his magic and those crystals he is always playing with."
"Yes milady, that is true. However I have seen him beating other Fay in jest and tournament. There was none greater or more elegant a swordsman that he."
For a moment the image of a knightly Jareth bravely winning a tournament for his lady made Sarah giddy- but she quickly came back to reality.
"Has Jareth ever been known to kill anybody like that?"
The Gnome, Dwarf and knight shook their heads in unison.
Sarah pondered her next question and perhaps asked it more too herself than the others.
"Has Jareth ever been known to kill anybody period?"
"Well," said Hoggle, "there was that cow-thing."
"That what thing?"
"Half bull, half man. Completely bonkers. It attacked some of the human folk and tried to eat their children." Hoggle shrugged.
"Sounds like a Minotaur. Jareth saved them?"
"It was a splendorous fight, bravely fought and with great danger to the King himself. Had he not been able to cast a healing spell over himself, he certainly would have perished. The cowardly beast attacked from behind and caught the King on his horns before he called lightning down to strike it and turn it to ashes!" Didymus could not hide the admiration in his voice.
Hoggle nodded. "And I knows he shooed of a dragon once- put out the fire in it's throat by throwing a bucket of water in it's mouth. The poor thing was so embarrassed it tucked it's tail and fled."
Fred chuckled "Yeah- We 'eard the story. We 'ad a good laugh about that one."
Suddenly Sarah was flooded with tales of an unknown King Jareth who with mischief, guile and bravery guarded a kingdom far greater than the land of the Goblin's. He appeared too clever for giants, too fast for dragons, too powerful a mage himself to be thrown by witches, protecting his kingdom with a vengeance.
Yet nobody liked him and everybody was afraid of him. And if he came to ask a favor or a duty, you fled. Leaving the Fay only the company of the mindless goblins.
It sickened Sarah to think of Jareth like this, a lone defender, disliked and misunderstood. Why was she the only one who saw Jareth like that? He had hurt her. He had stolen her brother and made her go through that damnable Labyrinth of his. That wonderful magical place she could not help but fall in love with. Where she had experienced the adventure of a lifetime. Yes, he had -really- wronged her, hadn't he? That man who would rather laugh in a dragon's face than kill it with his magic- Oh how hard he had made her journey- It probably had been a stroll compared to the 'dangers untold' the Labyrinth truly held.
Compared to what she now knew of the King that little stint with those weird horses had been rather uncharacteristic- She had no doubt Jareth was involved. But still, nothing serious had happened. And they had arrived at their destiny fairly easily and quickly. Jareth was -not- making the adventure hard. Not hard at all.
Why?
"Damnation!"
As before, Jareth had planned to make some appearance during Sarah's travels. If only to get on the child's nerves. Yet after visiting Azurmandi he had decided to keep a closer eye on the girl without making himself known. He appeared in his Owl form on the Far Coast where he had instructed the horses to run to, counting on Hoggle or Didymus to recognize the Aughiskies for what they were. Those two should have been able to understand you only had to say where you wanted to go, to make them go. But something had gone very, very wrong.
The Far Coast was a desolate place, a strip of land near the Edge of the World, some sand dunes and a few wind twisted trees the only marks in a land of hard grasses and rocks. Many seagulls nested here, but their lonely cries were the only sounds of life here. Besides the rabbits and these birds, no one came here and nothing dwelled here.
Usually.
Both the sea and the wind were eternal and ever changing shades of gray. In the distance, an isle lay before the coast and Jareth could spot the little craft of the ferryman not braving the waves but gliding over them towards the coast. Mistakenly thinking the Goblin King a weary traveler seeking transport over sea.
Jareth had only found the hay-wagon near the shoreline. The cart was badly damaged, axle broken, horse gear ripped to shreds or chewed through. The ghost horses had freed themselves from both their burden and his spell- And where no-were to be found. They had vanished into the waters as was in their nature. Jareth had lost them.
But the state the cart was in made Jareth terribly worried about the fate of its passengers- it did not look as if they had had the rather comfortable ride he had imagined for them- So where -were- they!
Jareth conjured up a crystal and peered inside- he quickly found Ludo and Ambrosius. Astonished he had to conclude the other three were not with them and when he tried to focus on Sarah, all the powerful magician found were mists. Angrily he threw the crystal to the ground to smash it- but it simply bumped on the sand and lay there half-buried and already forgotten.
"Somebody is working against me-"
Who would dare. Who would have the -power-!
Jareth reached deeply inside himself, concentrating on two green eyes brightly sparkling with a lust for life and wonder. The King felt himself filled with questions and marvel and knew they were the emotions of the child as she experienced them that moment- there also was a sadness and an odd anger he could not place- But the subtle traces where there, undeniably and vibrant. She was alive! Now to find the child! Jareth smiled to himself as he faded into his cloak, preparing to take his owl-form and search the land in flight and with eyes instead of magic. The trouble he -again- had to go through for this girl! It was infuriating. When was the last time he had been truly worried about anything? Had she herself found a way to block him? He would not put it past her. He chuckled and quoted himself mockingly, just before taking to the sky.
"How you turn my world- you precious thing!"
From behind the dunes, belly in the sand, a man and a whimpering old dog lay in hiding. The man had small and very dark twinkling eyes, taking in the Kings inquest with a mighty curiosity. His hair was an unkempt mass of gray strands, falling in an unruly curl over his forehead, his face wrinkled by age and smiles. A rather square nose and ears too big for his head gave him a comical appearance. He was dressed in a shaggy colorful cloak that seemed far too large for the little man.
"Well Dog," he said to the cowering old brown and gray hound beside him. He had a pleasant baritone, schooled and cultured and a little hoarse from overuse.
"Seems we best stick around a while. I just -know- there is a story here!"
Gnome jokes and references either inspired by or pinched from Mr. David Bowie's 1967 song 'The Laughing Gnome". Some lines of the Bette Midler song "The Rose" are quoted. No copyright infringement intended, just being an inspired fan here.
Enjoy
Ramowen
Diamond Tears
Chapter 6. Gnome Sweet Gnome
"Arf." whined Ambrosius. Ludo took some tasty bun with chicken from his knapsack and gave it the dog. They were picnicking at the edge of a forest, still following the old road Sarah's cart had taken . Both the dog and the monster, beings living the moment only, did not realize their search to be hopeless, near unending. Their friends needed them and that was all that mattered. Not the length of the journey, not even the journey itself. They followed their call and moved, ate when they were hungry and would sleep when grown tired. Perhaps at that moment, Ludo and Ambrosius were the most contend beings alive.
A few paces inside the cave's entrance, Sarah, Sir Didymus and Hoggle found themselves blocked by a wooden wall with a small door. One of the Gnome boys knocked on the wood and the door swung open. Sarah had to bend low to enter, but inside the cave she could stand.
And again Sarah was met by a fairytale. Candles everywhere and the scent of old pineapple trees. The hallway of yellow and red stone glittered with silver highlights and Sarah was led to a thick curtain of scarlet velvet, hung with golden rings from a golden rod. Laughter came from behind the curtain and the visitors were pushed and pulled through it by the little people- into an enormous hall deep inside the earth. Being near the top Sarah could touch the roof of the cave, but she could barely make out its floor.
Everywhere around her Sarah saw openings clearly leading to the Gnome's homes, connected with both stone and wooden passageways all along the walls and with several bridges crisscrossing the open space like metropolitan highways. There were thousands of little human-like creatures everywhere. Chubby lady gnomes and bearded male ones with centuries old wrinkled faces-
All dressed in various shades of gray and purple, and all apparently having the time of their lives, laughing and joking with each other. Sarah was asked to climb inside a large wicker basket that was chained to an enormous wooden crane. When inside, the crane swung out into the open space and Sarah was gently lowered via this odd elevator. But it worked smoothly and the ride gave Sarah the chance to take a good look around.
Since there was no daylight coming in, the dwarfs had hung lanterns everywhere, some with colored glass spreading enchanting blue, red and green lights. Under bright yellow lights plants flowered and trees grew from the cave-wall- some had a swing attached to it and there were little Gnome children everywhere. Most stopped with whatever they were doing to smile and wave at Sarah as she passed. Sarah heard the melodious clatter of falling water and saw an opening in the wall through witch it came down and fell into a wooden channel, diverting into an intricate system of pipes leading to the apartments. There were no doors, only brightly colored heavy curtains- and most of them were open. All along the wall were images carved. Portraits of Gnomes, surface animals, elves and insects. It gave the cave an organic feel, vibrant and alive and Sarah could swear that some of the carving's eyes followed her with mischievous stares.
Finally the basket touched the floor. Sarah stepped out and the 'elevator' was lifted, probably to collect her friends. Here, on ground-level so to speak, Sarah saw that the openings in the walls led to workshops of all kinds- But most Gnomes dropped whatever they were busy with and gathered round Sarah who was suddenly knee-deep in tiny people.
She felt like Gulliver.
The little people pulled Sarah to what was apparently the town square, offered her a chair- decided against chairs for gigantic human girls and gathered her a small hill of brightly colored cushions. The Gnomes asked Sarah her name and if she were hungry, promptly serving her a meal of backed toadstools and dandelion wine. Not being used to alcohol, Sarah felt a little giddy when both Hoggle and Didymus finally arrived.
With all of their guests seated and at ease, the curious little people were ready to listen to the why of their visit. When they heard of Sarah's quest, some started to sing something like:
"Ha ha ha, hee hee hee
"I'm a Laughing Gnome and you can't catch me
They told Sarah that Jareth had tried to make the Gnomes work for him, just like the Goblins.
But they had not liked the idea of having to snoop around people's homes to steal children and so they had fled their original village home, about - well, three hundred years ago? At the beginning of the King's reign? Yeah, it had to be something like that. They had been homeless Gnomads for a while, but now they had their own place again. Besides, it didn't really matter where one lived, as long as you were with family and friends. Gnome is where the heart is- you know? A good witch had given them a spell to hide all that lived in the Gnome caves and they were never bothered again.
One Gnome by the name of Fred promised to guide Sarah through the caves to the other side,
where the Bridge of Doom was. But he, and he really tried to do so sternly, warned the travelers not to try to cross the bridge, because then they would be forced to answer the guardians questions and that was near to impossible.
"But Tim the Enchanter has told us already that if we wish to get to the s'Quaerra, whatever it turns out to be, we -have- to cross that bridge."
"You an' you're mates in trouble then' girl. Ye gotta find another way. Tha' bridge, it 'as a magic, ye know? They say tha' if ye cross it ye come where ever ye wanna be. There really isn't another -side-."
"An' noooo coming back from wherever ye're gone too." A lady Gnome tuned in. "Ye see, 'cause there ain't no other side of the bridge, there ain't no bridge on the other side."
"Ooh," moaned Sir Didymus, "how -am- I going to get back to my poor Ambrosius. Milady, if we do continue on this course, we might never see both my steed and brave Sir Ludo again."
Sarah put a comforting arm around Didymus. "I really don't think so. Jareth has asked me to bring back that eye, so there must -be- a way back."
Hoggle shook his head. "But Sarah, couldn't that be Jareth's point? What if we gets trapped and we -really- cant go back. Than you have lost!"
"Look, I -know- he isn't fair", the Gnomes started to applaud and whistle after Sarah had said that. "But if I don't take that chance I'll never make it anyway. But you two don't-"
"Don't say it Sarah- don't even thinks it! Yer not facing His Owlyness himselves, so there is no point in going on your lonesome!" Hoggle stated firmly, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at Sarah, daring her to argue his point.
"Hear hear." Intoned Sir Didymus.
Before Sarah could answer, a delighted cry was heard from the back of the square. A high pitched female voice yelled that everybody had to come look and -see-. So en masse, all the Gnomes did, with Sarah, Hoggle and Didymus in their midst.
Near the back of the cave the Gnomes had made themselves a garden with a few willow trees, a fountain and some potplants. In one of the pots a green seedling shyly pushed it's way to the surface, dark green leaves still hiding whatever it might become. But the Gnomes became greatly exited when they saw it.
Hoggle, Didymus and Sarah stared at each other without understanding. The Gnomes stood there, smiling silly little smiles and Sarah noticed many of them stood in pairs now, hand in hand, looking at their children or deeply into each other's eyes. She could hear a song being murmured, but the most of the words eluded her.
"I say love, it is a flower,
"and you it's only seed.
Fred noticed her confusion and tried to explain, although he himself seemed baffled by the growing bud.
"That's the Flower o' Life we took from our village- The seed was in the pot, bu' it never grew again. It 'as other names- Soul's Shine, Rose 'o Love- Ye know, names like that. But they all died. They all disappeared. An' now it's back! Some kind 'o magic we lost must 'have come back."
"Thou meanest the white flowers that were so abundant in the old days?" Didymus asked.
Fred nodded happily. Sarah scratched her head and looked pensive.
"You know- there -is- some kind of pattern here."
She got some very expectant stares from both her friends and the nearest Gnomes. With typical human logic Sarah did the math.
"Three hundred years ago, Jareth's father was King and I heard Didymus refer to him as the 'Good King'. Three hundred years ago that Good King disappeared and has been presumed dead. Three hundred years ago Jareth became King, drove you Gnomes from your homes, apparently changed a lot because nobody likes him, and this wonderful flower disappeared- So what's the connection between your kings and this flower? And what is changing -right now- that is making it grow again?"
Hoggle and Didymus looked at each other and shrugged and the Gnomes, not all that well known for their powers of reason or deduction, just started to giggle and telling each other that it was
"a good one".
Sarah understood she would not get any answers from this happy crowd. Perhaps the guard of the bridge knew- she was getting rather anxious to meet this mage.
Neither Hoggle nor Didymus felt for any further delay in their journey either. So they said their good-byes to the friendly Gnomes and followed Fred through the dark caves. They walked by the light of their lanterns, followed by their own ghostly shadows grotesquely distorted by the irregular walls.
Apparently in ancient times a river had hollowed out the mountain Fred told them they were now travelling trough. Stalactites hung like stone curtains from the roof of the cave, their mighty tresses flaming dark red and gentle browns when they passed. Stalagmites reached up from the floor to meet their hanging brethren, creating a veiled stone forest where one could easily loose oneself. For like all passageways inside the Labyrinth, Sarah found the caves behind the Gnome City a to be maze inside the larger maze. She would have had a dickens of a time trying to find her way through on her own, even if there were no little Brownies to change her markers.
Suddenly, from deep inside the earth, far deeper than the Gnome City, a clanging was heard.
A dry heat spread through the passageways and the scent of coal and fire and steam drifted towards the travelers. Fred tried to hurry past, but Sarah's curiosity got the better of her.
"Fred- I thought you had a smithy in your village?"
"We do- but those guys are no Gnomes- They Dwarves, an' they live 'ere on their own cause they 'ave a 'obby we don't like very much! Ye see girl, our guys make tools, pickaxes, shovels, you name it. These two are armourers. They came 'ere as fugitives themselves, so we never minded much. But we're not real friendly-like either."
Hoggle frowned. "I thoughts you people were friendly to everybody?"
"Well- we don't -dislike- 'em! An' our ' city is open to 'em. If they just would stop te make those 'orrible things! They serve -no- real purpose except for making people miserable."
"My dear sir Gnome I do not agree!" Sir Didymus rattled his rapier. "This trusted fellow has saved many a helpless maiden or peasant from the dangers of dragons and injustice!"
"No- your rusted fellow was in -your- 'ands and you were it's master. You saved 'em!"
Slightly glowing at those words, Didymus half missed the pun. "My what, good sir?"
"But those guys down there- they don't make 'normal' pointy things- 'Ell no! They're the ones that made Tyrfing!"
"Oh boy." said Sarah. Even she knew the terrible legend. Forced by a power hungry king, the dwarves Durin and Dvalin had been forced to create an unbreakable, invincible ever sharp blade, capable of cutting through both metal and stone. But the dwarves tricked the king and cursed the sword. When drawn, it could never be sheathed again without having tasted the blood of the slain and whom ever would own and fight with it would in the end be destroyed by it.
So had been the fate of the unfortunate king and all the subsequent owners, until the sword disappeared.
Durin and Dvalin had fled and finally ended up with the Laughing Gnomes, for they were in fear of their existence, they said, from Jareth this time. The Gobling King had sought them out to make him a weapon capable of countering Tyrfing. But the dwarfs themselves did not have that kind of magic- they did even not know who would have.
Besides, Tyrfing had disappeared, so why would anyone weld a blade with even more power?
And it would certainly be in the wrong hands with the Goblin King.
To her own surprise, Sarah got really upset over that.
"Oh come on! I have seen how 'well' Jareth handles a sword. He trips over them and embarrasses himself! His power is in his magic and those crystals he is always playing with."
"Yes milady, that is true. However I have seen him beating other Fay in jest and tournament. There was none greater or more elegant a swordsman that he."
For a moment the image of a knightly Jareth bravely winning a tournament for his lady made Sarah giddy- but she quickly came back to reality.
"Has Jareth ever been known to kill anybody like that?"
The Gnome, Dwarf and knight shook their heads in unison.
Sarah pondered her next question and perhaps asked it more too herself than the others.
"Has Jareth ever been known to kill anybody period?"
"Well," said Hoggle, "there was that cow-thing."
"That what thing?"
"Half bull, half man. Completely bonkers. It attacked some of the human folk and tried to eat their children." Hoggle shrugged.
"Sounds like a Minotaur. Jareth saved them?"
"It was a splendorous fight, bravely fought and with great danger to the King himself. Had he not been able to cast a healing spell over himself, he certainly would have perished. The cowardly beast attacked from behind and caught the King on his horns before he called lightning down to strike it and turn it to ashes!" Didymus could not hide the admiration in his voice.
Hoggle nodded. "And I knows he shooed of a dragon once- put out the fire in it's throat by throwing a bucket of water in it's mouth. The poor thing was so embarrassed it tucked it's tail and fled."
Fred chuckled "Yeah- We 'eard the story. We 'ad a good laugh about that one."
Suddenly Sarah was flooded with tales of an unknown King Jareth who with mischief, guile and bravery guarded a kingdom far greater than the land of the Goblin's. He appeared too clever for giants, too fast for dragons, too powerful a mage himself to be thrown by witches, protecting his kingdom with a vengeance.
Yet nobody liked him and everybody was afraid of him. And if he came to ask a favor or a duty, you fled. Leaving the Fay only the company of the mindless goblins.
It sickened Sarah to think of Jareth like this, a lone defender, disliked and misunderstood. Why was she the only one who saw Jareth like that? He had hurt her. He had stolen her brother and made her go through that damnable Labyrinth of his. That wonderful magical place she could not help but fall in love with. Where she had experienced the adventure of a lifetime. Yes, he had -really- wronged her, hadn't he? That man who would rather laugh in a dragon's face than kill it with his magic- Oh how hard he had made her journey- It probably had been a stroll compared to the 'dangers untold' the Labyrinth truly held.
Compared to what she now knew of the King that little stint with those weird horses had been rather uncharacteristic- She had no doubt Jareth was involved. But still, nothing serious had happened. And they had arrived at their destiny fairly easily and quickly. Jareth was -not- making the adventure hard. Not hard at all.
Why?
"Damnation!"
As before, Jareth had planned to make some appearance during Sarah's travels. If only to get on the child's nerves. Yet after visiting Azurmandi he had decided to keep a closer eye on the girl without making himself known. He appeared in his Owl form on the Far Coast where he had instructed the horses to run to, counting on Hoggle or Didymus to recognize the Aughiskies for what they were. Those two should have been able to understand you only had to say where you wanted to go, to make them go. But something had gone very, very wrong.
The Far Coast was a desolate place, a strip of land near the Edge of the World, some sand dunes and a few wind twisted trees the only marks in a land of hard grasses and rocks. Many seagulls nested here, but their lonely cries were the only sounds of life here. Besides the rabbits and these birds, no one came here and nothing dwelled here.
Usually.
Both the sea and the wind were eternal and ever changing shades of gray. In the distance, an isle lay before the coast and Jareth could spot the little craft of the ferryman not braving the waves but gliding over them towards the coast. Mistakenly thinking the Goblin King a weary traveler seeking transport over sea.
Jareth had only found the hay-wagon near the shoreline. The cart was badly damaged, axle broken, horse gear ripped to shreds or chewed through. The ghost horses had freed themselves from both their burden and his spell- And where no-were to be found. They had vanished into the waters as was in their nature. Jareth had lost them.
But the state the cart was in made Jareth terribly worried about the fate of its passengers- it did not look as if they had had the rather comfortable ride he had imagined for them- So where -were- they!
Jareth conjured up a crystal and peered inside- he quickly found Ludo and Ambrosius. Astonished he had to conclude the other three were not with them and when he tried to focus on Sarah, all the powerful magician found were mists. Angrily he threw the crystal to the ground to smash it- but it simply bumped on the sand and lay there half-buried and already forgotten.
"Somebody is working against me-"
Who would dare. Who would have the -power-!
Jareth reached deeply inside himself, concentrating on two green eyes brightly sparkling with a lust for life and wonder. The King felt himself filled with questions and marvel and knew they were the emotions of the child as she experienced them that moment- there also was a sadness and an odd anger he could not place- But the subtle traces where there, undeniably and vibrant. She was alive! Now to find the child! Jareth smiled to himself as he faded into his cloak, preparing to take his owl-form and search the land in flight and with eyes instead of magic. The trouble he -again- had to go through for this girl! It was infuriating. When was the last time he had been truly worried about anything? Had she herself found a way to block him? He would not put it past her. He chuckled and quoted himself mockingly, just before taking to the sky.
"How you turn my world- you precious thing!"
From behind the dunes, belly in the sand, a man and a whimpering old dog lay in hiding. The man had small and very dark twinkling eyes, taking in the Kings inquest with a mighty curiosity. His hair was an unkempt mass of gray strands, falling in an unruly curl over his forehead, his face wrinkled by age and smiles. A rather square nose and ears too big for his head gave him a comical appearance. He was dressed in a shaggy colorful cloak that seemed far too large for the little man.
"Well Dog," he said to the cowering old brown and gray hound beside him. He had a pleasant baritone, schooled and cultured and a little hoarse from overuse.
"Seems we best stick around a while. I just -know- there is a story here!"