A/N: Some other points I missed: The seemingly random capitalization of the Labyrinth is not as random as it at first seems. Certain characters know things that give the Labyrinth it's uppercase status, while others do not. I swear it's intentional!

Gilibrithel (And the future mention of his lover, Isilas) are indeed names taken pretty much directly from the Quenyan or Sindarin dialects of Mr. Tolkien's fabulous world. However, while they are elves, they are NOT Tolkien elves. I have my very own "original" (such as they can ever be) form of elves, but I didn't want to bring them into this already over-complex Laby-world. So, I'm afraid there isn't much depth to these folk… I made them up on the spot because I'm infatuated with Craig Parker's smirk and visually modeled Gilibrithel after his Bellerphon (sp?) from Xena...

Enter the bad guy. Poor Sarah's children. They're always and forever fainting….

A/N2: Updated! Been revised by my loverly beta, Genesis Grey. Much thanks to her! The others will be along shortly. Chapter 11's ready, too. 12's halfway there.. Ah, moving right along.

And special thanks to Solain Rhyo for her encouragement.


Chapter 08: Song of the Nixes

The sun must have begun to set, because the brilliant orange sky had started to fade to a light and fiery umber. This worried Joshua. The labyrinth was creepy enough with its eyeball lichen, its Loch-Ness monsters roaming a maze made of misshapen stone buildings, and goblins scurrying to and fro chasing chickens. The boy didn't even want to imagine what the place would feel like in the dark of night.

Groeg was leading him stealthily through Goblin Town, telling him when to stay and when to crawl. He did everything the commanding goblin told him to, not thinking too much about any one thing. Had anyone asked, Joshua would never have been able to tell them how he got from the castle wall to the gates of the city.

Slowly, Sarah's son began to regain his awareness. At first in was just a wonder in the back of his mind at the strange feeling on his face, like the tapping of tiny fingers. It broadened to the smell of sea-breeze, and then to the sound of softly falling waves. Eventually, Joshua blinked and realized that it was raining quite heavily on a dense forest. He and Groeg were in the forest, the goblin having led him there without preamble.

"It rains here," he said aloud, half in wonder, half in question.

Groeg stopped, glancing back at the human boy with a shake of his hairy head. "It's a real place, like anywhere else. What were you expecting?"

"Magic," Joshua answered without hesitation.

The goblin continued walking, talking to Joshua over its shoulder. "Well, there's plenty o' that. You don't want to be tangled up in it, trust me."

"Trust you?"

"Yeah," snorted Groeg, "Who else're ya gonna put your faith in?"

"Me, most sensibly," Joshua bantered back. He was following Groeg out of a lack of anywhere else to be. The blond boy shook his head. No, the truth was that he was following the goblin because the Gloamy Sprite had more or less told him too, by having him bring Groeg along. He trusted the glowing lady, owl… creature.

"What is the Gloamy Sprite," he asked the goblin leading him along a forest path fallen into disrepair.

Groeg shrugged. "A warning. She only shows up when something bad is about to happen." He crawled under a fallen tree, catching one horn on a loose knot. It sprang back into place with a, 'sproing!' as he tugged it free.

Joshua stepped over the rotting tree. "So, what was she warning about?"

"You probably," the goblin sneered. "Why do you think I got you out of the castle?"

Up ahead, the forest was beginning to thin. The rain was still strong and distracting, but Joshua was pretty sure he saw a stone walkway through the trees. "Gloamy got us out of the castle," the boy corrected, not really caring.

Groeg stopped in the middle of the path, not even flinching as Joshua nearly tripped over him. "Aren't you going to ask where I'm taking you or why?"

Joshua stared down at the goblin with a half-smirk. He shook his head a moment, then asked, "Oh, of course. Where are we going?"

"I don't want to tell you," snorted Groeg.

"Then why'd you make me waste the time to ask," the boy returned. He was upset, but still too separated from his own senses to really show it. Without waiting for a response, he continued through the foliage into the streaming rain.

They toppled rather unexpectedly onto the beige brick road from the middle of the forest. Joshua pulled his glasses out to look back the way they'd come. Before landing unceremoniously on his rump, he'd been walking in the middle of the forest with Groeg. In the next moment, he'd been falling onto the soaked stone. The glasses didn't help, either. In the rain, they just became a blurry window directly in front of his eyes, so he pushed them atop his head to see as best he could naturally.

"What in the name of the sun, just happened?"

The small goblin had landed on his head, lodging one horn in the soft stone. He was engaged in pulling it out again with all of his strength as he answered. "We are not… err!.. the focus of the Labyrinth. Gaaah! So when it shifts around for your sister… erup!.. so do we. Gahrr!" Groeg toppled backwards, his horns wobbling in opposite ways. They made a strange sound, like thick plastic being waggled. Joshua tried to keep from laughing, but soon discovered that he never had a chance.

Groeg glared at him for a while, then gave up and started looking around. "Think we're on the edge of the Wide Tract of Rottenness," the goblin murmured, half to himself.

"Are you asking me," Joshua jested. He brushed himself off as he stood, straightening his shirt. He wished he'd worn a different colour. In the pouring rain, the white had become transparent. If no one looked closely, though, they might mistake him for a bit of the stone wall. That thought in mind, he threw his arms out and laughed. "Look, I'm a chameleon!"

Groeg looked at the human boy with a long suffering sigh. Then he cocked one horn to the side as he noticed that Joshua was right. The top of the wall was a faded gold-brown like the boy's hair, and then the natural tan colouring of the wall lightened toward the middle, becoming almost white, before fading to a dark olive shade. The goblin grinned, reminding Joshua of a certain Cheshire Cat.

"What," asked the boy warily. He spun around to examine the wall, but caught his heel on a wet pebble. Falling again, Joshua reached out to steady himself, only to discover that the wall wasn't really there.

The blond boy was able to rescue his glasses, but not his face. Joshua landed on his shoulder, but rolled knocking forehead and nose against the cobblestones rather fiercely. Warily, he ran his fingers over his nose. It didn't seem broken, but it was definitely bleeding. The rain made it run in rivulets down his arm as he tried to stifle the thin flow and stand at the same time.

"Are you always this clumsy?"

Joshua glowered at the goblin. "Funny, really funny. Aren't you supposed to be leading me somewhere?"

"Of course. Right back to the castle," Groeg spat. "Come on, then!"

The boy stared in bewilderment over his hand. "What?"

"Where else did you think I'd take you?"

Honestly, he didn't know. Joshua frowned at the goblin, not moving. The Gloamy Sprite had told him to take Groeg along, and he trusted her. But he wasn't going back to the castle. "I'm leading then," he announced on a whim, turning to look back at the wall he'd fallen through.

It was just an illusion, Joshua surmised. The actual wall was about four feet farther back, cleverly disguised to look like it was even with the nearer wall. The white stripe made the illusion work. Willing his nose to stop bleeding even as it began to stain his shirt, Joshua stepped into the new corridor.

Glancing over his shoulder, he asked, "Are you coming?"

Groeg shook his head. "You'll never make it out. The Labyrinth can find you anywhere."

Joshua shrugged, looking to his left and right. Both ways of the corridor looked alike. "I'm not worried about the labyrinth, just it's King." The blond boy looked back at the goblin. "At least tell me which way to go."

Groeg shrugged. "It doesn't matter. His majesty has too much at stake to let you loose, and you're too easy to find."

"My mother did it, so can I," Joshua challenged.

"Sarah didn't have Eric's blood tainting her like a signal beacon," Groeg snapped. "Do what you want. My way is safer."

"What do you care?"

"I don't." And that was it. Groeg disappeared along the far side of the wall, directly for the castle in the distance. Joshua stomped down the right fork, away from the castle.

Joshua didn't notice that he was pressing the bridge of his nose hard enough to bruise. He was too busy fuming. Confused and angry, he didn't notice the eyeball lichen that watched him pass, or the dark shadow that circled overhead.

What did his father have to do with any of this, anyway? He was only five when his parents had left him, but he was certain he'd remember if his dad had ever been to the labyrinth. He would have told him, right? His father had taught him stupid little spell-words and colours, and never mentioned the labyrinth like his mother had. Someone would have told him.

They would have.

He stopped his storming as the corridor emptied out onto a vast and empty beach. Four entirely different environments surrounded him. The stone maze behind him, which seemed to be receding the longer he stood still. Far in the distance lay a forest that sparkled like emeralds. To his left, a massive yard of junk piles and garbage. To his right, a dreary beach, ripped with abuse from the crashing torrent. The tide seemed to be coming in. "Great," he muttered. "Now where am I?"

Unconsciously, Joshua walked toward the water. The rain pelted against the surging waves without a care, melting the beach as surely as the waves eroded it. He was standing in the middle of an alcove, the shore curving around the forest and maze, even as water covered the horizon. An horizon which was becoming clearer as the rain began to thin.

Just as the last drops seemed to fall, Joshua caught the opening strains of an unfamiliar melody. Nothing more than a shapeless set of notes in the distance, it grew to a mesmerizing crescendo. He forgot to move in its gentle lull, forgot everything but the music. He could make out neither word nor intent, but the syllables were beautiful beyond his wildest dreams. The song was expressed by a female voice, soft and breathy. She sang in a rainbow of notes, smoothly blending the haunting tune with sounds both alluring and frightening.

As the song trailed off, Joshua saw a massive wave had risen over him. He didn't have time to be afraid. The wall of water fell straight to the ground, not toppling over as it should have. The music stopped.

In place of the unnatural wave, stood two tall human figures. One dark, the other shining, they were both possessed of such ethereal beauty that Joshua's jaw dropped.

The shining woman was toned a deep bronze colour, which made the white of her clothing blinding bright. Her dress seemed to be little more than a length of cloth draped over one shoulder. Two slim gold belts held the thin material in place, the lower one hefting a flute-like instrument. She had long blond curls and piercing green eyes between which sat a thin circlet of gold with a strange trident shaped symbol in the middle. She was also particularly well-endowed, forcing Joshua to blush as he tore his gaze away from her.

The darker figure was swathed in metal from neck to toe; thick armor tinted black by age. A long gray cape attached at the shoulder-points flickered in the wind of the sea, hampered by a sword strapped to her back. Surprisingly, the boy found the close cropped dark hair oddly fitting on the radiant warrior. He blushed much deeper as he realized that the dark one was, in fact, male. With rather pointy ears.

"The Ruined Shore." Swallowing, Joshua blinked and realized mere seconds had passed and that the blond was speaking to him. He desperately tried to figure out what she was talking about, but couldn't form words. All of his concentration lay in trying to keep his eyes politely on her face.

"What," he finally asked.

"You asked where you were, did you not?" When he nodded numbly, the radiant royal continued. "Unfortunately for you, the shore of the Seas of Silence is more dangerous than wherever that little cretin was taking you," she smiled. The curve of her lips was brilliant and charming, but it made Joshua feel uneasy.

Without his noticing, the Lady was at Joshua's side. She walked a circle around him, murmuring comments to her companion in another language. When she stood again in front of him, her superior smile was still in place.

"What have we here, Gilibrithel," she asked without looking back at her guardian. It was clear that he protected her, as he examined the horizons before arriving at her side a moment later. His imposing presence pulled Joshua's frozen gaze from the Lady to stare into dark blue eyes.

Joshua swallowed under the dual scrutiny. His mind screamed at him to flee, to turn heel and run until he fell unconscious from exhaustion. The boy had no chance, though. He couldn't even make a finger twitch from where he stood.

"He appears to be human, my Liege," Gilibrithel said, nearly toppling Joshua to the ground with his voice alone. Whatever the guardian was, his voice was deep and even more musical than the Lady's.

"That's what I thought." Her semblance was pleased, but it was the sort of vocalized pleasure one might expect after learning what was for dinner.

Joshua finally found his voice, stammering several times before saying, "Please don't kill me."

The Lady laughed, her head thrown back and her silver lips parted in delight. Her whole body shook with the laughter that seemed less sinister the longer she laughed. She calmed and smiled at him again. This time, it was a gentle look. The blond trailed one finger down Joshua's cheek. "I would never harm such a pretty thing as you," she promised, her eyes half lidded. She took Joshua's hand slowly, as if waiting for him to pull away. It was unnecessary; he was still too terrified to move anywhere.

"Be calm," the Lady coerced, stoking the back of his hand.

He felt calm. He felt his tension and fear draining away at her touch, and welcomed it. "Who are you," he ventured quietly, uncertain of which to look at first.

"I am Calypso Es't-Innen, Queen of the Nixes Kingdoms. You may call me, 'My Lady.'" His hand firmly atop hers, the Lady began to lead Joshua up the shore, back the way he had come. She gestured at her guardian, "He is Gilibrithel, Captain of my personal guard." Queen Calypso eased the charming smile on to her lips again, surprising Joshua when he didn't feel threatened. Her other hand strayed again to the back of his, petting his flesh like the fur of a cat. "Who might you be?"

"Joshua," was all he could manage.

Calypso smiled in reward. "Good. Why are you here, Joshua?"

He felt a blush colouring his cheeks again, and managed to look away from her captivating green eyes. He got no further than the interested expression of Gilibrithel. "Er.. Uh, My sister... She wished me away, I guess."

The Queen laughed softly. "Ah. That does happen a lot around here. Doesn't it, Gilibrithel?"

The guardian smiled, looking away from them both to watch the inner shore instead.

"I thought Jareth was the King," Joshua asked abruptly. He regretted it in the next breath, as Calypso's eyes clouded with an acid look. The devastating gaze vanished a moment later, replaced by her soothing smile.

"King Jareth is lord of the Labyrinth and of the goblins," Queen Calypso explained sweetly. "Yet this is just one of many Nixes kingdoms, over which I rule all." She emphasized her words with equal helpings of pride and vice.

Joshua's eyes widened in awe. This seemed to please the Queen, as she returned to the companionable smile she'd had before the mention of the Goblin King. They walked in silence, giving the boy time to marvel at how the castle seemed to move about. It loomed in the distance, much nearer than it had been the last time he'd looked for it. Yet, the forest stretched beside them, little red lights dancing in it. It wasn't fair. He was trying to get away from all that weirdness.

Calypso followed his gaze, then beamed with a genuine delight he had not yet seen on her face. She dropped his hand and danced to the forest edge, calling out in the language she had sung with. The red lights dimmed, then surged from the cover of the forest. In truth, they were the twelve eyes of some sort of goblin beasts that closely resembled dogs. Four gargantuan teeth hung from each open maw, even as the green, forked tongued flicked out to lick the hands of the Queen. Calypso ran her hands down each of the three beast's flanks, then checked all four of each of their eyes. It was when she was murmuring to them in the foreign tongue that Gilibrithel cursed quietly.

Glancing up at the guardian, Joshua felt paralyzed again. Gilibrithel offered him a quick but disarming smile before holding out his hand. Somehow, the dark Captain had gotten hold of his glasses. He slapped a hand to the top of his head, confirming that they were, indeed, missing.

When Joshua only stared at him, Gilibrithel restrained a laugh. Opting instead for a smirk, the guardian took Joshua's hand, putting the glasses onto it. Hands free once more, the guardian crossed his arms behind himself, letting his cape continue to sway in the wind over them.

Hands shaking, he managed to place the frames back on his nose, wincing as they landed on the bruised appendage. He remembered the blood, and wiped his face with the still-sopping tee-shirt. Clean again, Joshua licked his lips, then said, "You have pointed ears."

Gilibrithel looked down, smiling to himself. "Yes," he said with his lyrical voice. "I am an elf, not a nix." He cast a sidelong glance at the boy. If Joshua's staring bothered him, he didn't show it. "We are also ruled by her majesty Calypso, if you are curious."

The Queen returned to them then, the three beasts at her heels. She stopped in front of them, standing very close to Joshua. There was a dark look in her eyes when Joshua turned to her. It was gone in the next heartbeat, leaving the boy to wonder if it had ever really been. The blond Queen rested her hand on the head of a goblin-beast who sat next to her leg, scratching its scalp absent-mindedly.

"So your sister wished you away," Calypso said, her tone concerned and apologetic, while her face held nothing of the sort. "How awful you must feel."

"She didn't mean it," the boy croaked. He knew she didn't mean it. She couldn't have. Faryn liked him...

"Of course not," the Queen conceded. "I am curious, though."

Joshua looked at the blond royal, willing her on, but afraid of what she would ask.

"Even with the innate magic you possess, and having escaped from the castle," she paused and looked at him from the corner of her eyes, as though expecting him to understand her question. At his quizzical expression, the Lady sighed.

"You should be a goblin by now, Joshua," the Queen explained. "Your special situation in mind, the goblin transformation spell takes effect in no more than a week after a girl has failed to best the Labyrinth."

Joshua frowned in confusion. "But my sister just entered the labyrinth."

As if his words confirmed something the queen already knew, her gaze grew guarded and cruel. "What is your surname, Joshua?"

"Talenka," the boy answered, still very lost.

"Such a pity," Queen Calypso said emptily. "You would have made a fine guardian knight." Her words dripped acid, and her eyes threw daggers, paralyzing the human boy once more. She held her palm out, then brought her fingers together to form a pedestal. The air around her hand seemed to rush inward, creating a blue globe on her fingertips. She smiled sardonically, commanding, "Gilibrithel." She tossed the orb at her guardian.

The elf caught it easily, but it was no longer a blue ball. Instead, a dagger that seemed made of blue glass lay in the guardian's hand. "My Liege," Gilibrithel protested.

"The Ogthropes are ample protection, Captain. Triste will join me later, if you still fret," she stated with an icy note before turning up the beach and stalking away.

It wasn't until Gilibrithel turned to him, that Joshua realized he should have been running away. Of course, it was too late now. The elf guardian snaked his arm around Joshua, the blue dagger in his other hand. Sarah's son had just enough time to realize that the elf's eyes matched the colour of the happy, sunny sky behind him, before he fainted.