Chapter Four
Jareth cradled Renersa's head in his hands, the blood staining through his gloves and onto his smooth white fingers. He leapt up and ran to the balcony, an idea forming in his mind. Knowing the Underground law, he had to act quickly. "A mortal will not be my downfall!" He clenched his blood covered fist, crimson drops falling to the cold stone floor. He waved a hand and all of the personal affects from the room vanished. Then he ran through the shattered balcony doors and dove over the side.
On white wings he flew to the pond where the sweet water of innocence lay. The full moon reflected onto the gaunt figure of the Goblin King. Jareth plunged his hands into the water, rinsing off the blood of the murdered woman. His nose twitched as a smell rose up to his finely sculpted nostrils. He coughed hoping to clear the air. The stench continued to rise, Jareth looked down at his hands, the clear sweet water was rancid and green, he stumbled back, pulling his hands back from the water. Slowly the entire pond was turning into a putrid bog. The Goblin King looked on in horror as a small fox cub lapped up the water from the far end, the green bog water slowly reached the fox, the magic of Renersa's blood was lapped up by a small pink tongue. The fox began to change, it took on the stature of a man almost, standing on two legs, but still in animal form.
The Goblin King was horrified it seemed that he now had a witness, something he did not wish to have. Frenzied he walked over to the fox.
"Your Majesty," the small fox bowed low. Jareth grinned, perhaps this would work to his advantage.
"Arise, sir?"
"Didymus, your highness."
"Very well, Sir Didymus, I have a task for you."
"Name it and it shall be done, I have longed to serve you, my mother told me the stories of all the valiant knights and how they served their kings, I wished I might do so as well." The fox spoke in hushed reverent tones.
"I have a most important task for you." Jareth threw a crystal at the smallest width of the bog, placing a small bridge across it." Let none pass without your permission."
"With my life sir, for it is yours!"
"One other thing, Sir Didymus, let none know I have been here tonight."
"Yes, Highness." Jareth waved his hand again and the small fox was dressed as a squire. With that he jumped back onto his wings and flew to his palace, keeping a keen eye out for the wolf as he traversed his kingdom. Arriving at the balcony of the ballroom he transformed, taking a moment to catch his breath he strode back into the room and danced with the first woman that was near by.
Frightened people flashed by Ferdinand's vision. Never had he felt such power, he licked his lips, tasting some of Renersa's still fresh blood, the magic of it tingled on his tongue. He ran faster and into the woods where the darkness seemed to draw him. The moon over head hummed in wicked delight.
A memory flashed as the first tree passed him.
Ferdinand strode down the stairs of the Roman palace with a letter clenched in his fist, his clothing was disheveled and he was rubbing his hand through his hair. "I have this night dug up a mandrake." He addressed his brother who was sitting in a chair thumbing through the Bible.
"Say you?"
"And I am grown mad with't."
"What's the monstrous occasion?"
"Read there," he thrust the letter under his brother's nose, "A sister damned, she is a whore, and this proves it."
"Speak lower, man!" Ferdinand was silenced by his brother, having a whorish sister was not something that was announced.
"Lower, you say? Tramps and rogues don't whisper it now, but seek to proclaim it. She is a whore and they that would, will capitalize on it."
"Are you certain?"
"Oh curse this day! It will forever plague my memory, until I can make a sponge of her bleeding heart to wipe it from my brain."
"Why does this put you in such a wild frenzy?"
"I would do to her what she has done to our honor; ripped up and shredded beyond recognition."
(Act 2 Scene 5)
Ferdinand ran and ran until he came to a panting stop in the middle of a clearing, the huge dark trees of the forest caging him in. Laying down on the bed of pine needles he slept, memories of his sister and her death, that bloodied his hands plaguing his dreams.
Raiel felt her soul bonding to this seeming stranger as the night wore on, she reached a small hand up and caressed Raef's face. He looked down into her hazel eyes with his own brown ones and smiled, her eyes were drawn from his when she felt a slight tugging at her skirt.
"Excuse me, My Lady, " a small goblin bowed to Raeil, "I have a message from the Lord Ferdinand for you."
"Very well, what is it?"
"He asks you to meet him in his chambers' M'Lady, about a matter most urgent."
"Is that it, Goblin?"
"Yes, M'Lady," the goblin bowed low again, fidgeting with his paige's uniform.
"You are dismissed then." She turned to Raef, ignoring the goblin, "I wonder what he could want, shall we go?"
"I wouldn't mind meeting this mortal of the Goblin King's." With that the couple exited as the Goblin King done moments before.
Jareth had everything set up, it only awaited Raiel's arrival and he would be safe again.
Sniff had been petrified that he would mess up the message the Goblin King had given him for the Lady Undula. He had been a little confused why he had to say it was from Lord Ferdinand. Giving a little skip he rounded the corner to the passage that lead to the scullery, it was dinner time after all and an important page such as himself needed all the energy he could muster. Sniff squealed in pain as a hand reached out from the dark to still his body as another slit a silver blade across his throat. Two small yellow eyes blinked from behind one of the passageway openings, trembling behind an arm load of flowers.
Jareth dropped the body of the now dead goblin. One of the few useless (for the most part) powers he had inherited as the Goblin King was the ability to kill goblins, they were practically indestructible. His plan was simple really, make Ferdinand look as dangerous as possible, not only could he kill a Sidhe but a goblin.
By Underground law, not only would Ferdinand be banished to the Black Lands but also the Sidhe who was responsible for his presence in this world. Jareth was now planning to avoid this little snaufoo by making it seem as if he had transferred responsibility for the earthling to Lady Raiel Undula. He hated to loose such a close friend, but really he had to come first and she was the best candidate. He walked back to the ball room and cozied himself with a pretty red haired girl, she wouldn't be too hard to bed, he grinned down at her, licking his lips as her green eyes looked back up at him adoringly. Not hard at all.
Raeil knocked on the door, no sounds were coming from within so she opened the door slowly she didn't even notice the bracelet drop onto her wrist. Raef was walking behind her. Something crunched beneath her shoe, looking down she saw glass shards, opening the door widely, she took in the carnage before her and screamed. Raef's ear burst at the sound, stepping in front of Raeil to protect her from any danger he saw what had illicited the scream, he took her in his arms and made soothing sounds. Never in his immortal life would he be able to clear the image of the bloodied Dunnei sisters from his mind. Renersa's naked body lay on the ground her large silver eyes wide open, giving a chilling stare to all who entered the room, her neck was completely shredded, the flesh torn away to expose muscle and bone. Elsia was cradling one half of her face in her hands, blood ran down from her empty eye socket and the claw marks onto her bare limbs. Lendara had slumped against the wall, her legs were spread apart and blood was dripping down between them, her silver hair had taken on a blood red tinge at the ends, from laying in the puddle of Renersa's blood, she too was silent, and only the ragged movement of her chest gave any indication of life.
Jareth pulled the body of the naked woman tighter to him, burying his face in her red hair when he heard Raeil's scream echo down the stone corridors of his castle. He let out his own scream a hair's breadth later, in union with hers, as he educated yet another woman on the 'book of love.'
Jareth cradled Renersa's head in his hands, the blood staining through his gloves and onto his smooth white fingers. He leapt up and ran to the balcony, an idea forming in his mind. Knowing the Underground law, he had to act quickly. "A mortal will not be my downfall!" He clenched his blood covered fist, crimson drops falling to the cold stone floor. He waved a hand and all of the personal affects from the room vanished. Then he ran through the shattered balcony doors and dove over the side.
On white wings he flew to the pond where the sweet water of innocence lay. The full moon reflected onto the gaunt figure of the Goblin King. Jareth plunged his hands into the water, rinsing off the blood of the murdered woman. His nose twitched as a smell rose up to his finely sculpted nostrils. He coughed hoping to clear the air. The stench continued to rise, Jareth looked down at his hands, the clear sweet water was rancid and green, he stumbled back, pulling his hands back from the water. Slowly the entire pond was turning into a putrid bog. The Goblin King looked on in horror as a small fox cub lapped up the water from the far end, the green bog water slowly reached the fox, the magic of Renersa's blood was lapped up by a small pink tongue. The fox began to change, it took on the stature of a man almost, standing on two legs, but still in animal form.
The Goblin King was horrified it seemed that he now had a witness, something he did not wish to have. Frenzied he walked over to the fox.
"Your Majesty," the small fox bowed low. Jareth grinned, perhaps this would work to his advantage.
"Arise, sir?"
"Didymus, your highness."
"Very well, Sir Didymus, I have a task for you."
"Name it and it shall be done, I have longed to serve you, my mother told me the stories of all the valiant knights and how they served their kings, I wished I might do so as well." The fox spoke in hushed reverent tones.
"I have a most important task for you." Jareth threw a crystal at the smallest width of the bog, placing a small bridge across it." Let none pass without your permission."
"With my life sir, for it is yours!"
"One other thing, Sir Didymus, let none know I have been here tonight."
"Yes, Highness." Jareth waved his hand again and the small fox was dressed as a squire. With that he jumped back onto his wings and flew to his palace, keeping a keen eye out for the wolf as he traversed his kingdom. Arriving at the balcony of the ballroom he transformed, taking a moment to catch his breath he strode back into the room and danced with the first woman that was near by.
Frightened people flashed by Ferdinand's vision. Never had he felt such power, he licked his lips, tasting some of Renersa's still fresh blood, the magic of it tingled on his tongue. He ran faster and into the woods where the darkness seemed to draw him. The moon over head hummed in wicked delight.
A memory flashed as the first tree passed him.
Ferdinand strode down the stairs of the Roman palace with a letter clenched in his fist, his clothing was disheveled and he was rubbing his hand through his hair. "I have this night dug up a mandrake." He addressed his brother who was sitting in a chair thumbing through the Bible.
"Say you?"
"And I am grown mad with't."
"What's the monstrous occasion?"
"Read there," he thrust the letter under his brother's nose, "A sister damned, she is a whore, and this proves it."
"Speak lower, man!" Ferdinand was silenced by his brother, having a whorish sister was not something that was announced.
"Lower, you say? Tramps and rogues don't whisper it now, but seek to proclaim it. She is a whore and they that would, will capitalize on it."
"Are you certain?"
"Oh curse this day! It will forever plague my memory, until I can make a sponge of her bleeding heart to wipe it from my brain."
"Why does this put you in such a wild frenzy?"
"I would do to her what she has done to our honor; ripped up and shredded beyond recognition."
(Act 2 Scene 5)
Ferdinand ran and ran until he came to a panting stop in the middle of a clearing, the huge dark trees of the forest caging him in. Laying down on the bed of pine needles he slept, memories of his sister and her death, that bloodied his hands plaguing his dreams.
Raiel felt her soul bonding to this seeming stranger as the night wore on, she reached a small hand up and caressed Raef's face. He looked down into her hazel eyes with his own brown ones and smiled, her eyes were drawn from his when she felt a slight tugging at her skirt.
"Excuse me, My Lady, " a small goblin bowed to Raeil, "I have a message from the Lord Ferdinand for you."
"Very well, what is it?"
"He asks you to meet him in his chambers' M'Lady, about a matter most urgent."
"Is that it, Goblin?"
"Yes, M'Lady," the goblin bowed low again, fidgeting with his paige's uniform.
"You are dismissed then." She turned to Raef, ignoring the goblin, "I wonder what he could want, shall we go?"
"I wouldn't mind meeting this mortal of the Goblin King's." With that the couple exited as the Goblin King done moments before.
Jareth had everything set up, it only awaited Raiel's arrival and he would be safe again.
Sniff had been petrified that he would mess up the message the Goblin King had given him for the Lady Undula. He had been a little confused why he had to say it was from Lord Ferdinand. Giving a little skip he rounded the corner to the passage that lead to the scullery, it was dinner time after all and an important page such as himself needed all the energy he could muster. Sniff squealed in pain as a hand reached out from the dark to still his body as another slit a silver blade across his throat. Two small yellow eyes blinked from behind one of the passageway openings, trembling behind an arm load of flowers.
Jareth dropped the body of the now dead goblin. One of the few useless (for the most part) powers he had inherited as the Goblin King was the ability to kill goblins, they were practically indestructible. His plan was simple really, make Ferdinand look as dangerous as possible, not only could he kill a Sidhe but a goblin.
By Underground law, not only would Ferdinand be banished to the Black Lands but also the Sidhe who was responsible for his presence in this world. Jareth was now planning to avoid this little snaufoo by making it seem as if he had transferred responsibility for the earthling to Lady Raiel Undula. He hated to loose such a close friend, but really he had to come first and she was the best candidate. He walked back to the ball room and cozied himself with a pretty red haired girl, she wouldn't be too hard to bed, he grinned down at her, licking his lips as her green eyes looked back up at him adoringly. Not hard at all.
Raeil knocked on the door, no sounds were coming from within so she opened the door slowly she didn't even notice the bracelet drop onto her wrist. Raef was walking behind her. Something crunched beneath her shoe, looking down she saw glass shards, opening the door widely, she took in the carnage before her and screamed. Raef's ear burst at the sound, stepping in front of Raeil to protect her from any danger he saw what had illicited the scream, he took her in his arms and made soothing sounds. Never in his immortal life would he be able to clear the image of the bloodied Dunnei sisters from his mind. Renersa's naked body lay on the ground her large silver eyes wide open, giving a chilling stare to all who entered the room, her neck was completely shredded, the flesh torn away to expose muscle and bone. Elsia was cradling one half of her face in her hands, blood ran down from her empty eye socket and the claw marks onto her bare limbs. Lendara had slumped against the wall, her legs were spread apart and blood was dripping down between them, her silver hair had taken on a blood red tinge at the ends, from laying in the puddle of Renersa's blood, she too was silent, and only the ragged movement of her chest gave any indication of life.
Jareth pulled the body of the naked woman tighter to him, burying his face in her red hair when he heard Raeil's scream echo down the stone corridors of his castle. He let out his own scream a hair's breadth later, in union with hers, as he educated yet another woman on the 'book of love.'