Lord Moldar quickly made his way through the forest with the rest of
his demon soldiers following. It had been 2 days since he had sent the
first group in to retrieve the human and he was concerned that they had
failed him.
"Sire," a scout called out, running fast to his lord. "The Goblin King himself is ahead. They were following the trail of the first group."
"How far ahead is he?" the Demon King asked, a smile spreading on his face.
"About an hour. I followed them for a couple of miles until they suddenly started running back towards the Labyrinth," the demon scout reported.
"Excellent! Maybe the first team didn't fail in their task. Let's double our pace and catch the Goblin King at his most vulnerable!" the Demon King said, motioning for the scout to lead the way.
*******
Lorien fluttered her wings as she looked at their army; the noise that everyone was making was deafening. She flew up and down the line of creatures trying to get them to tread lightly. "You're making too much noise! The demons will hear us coming if they don't know already," she scowled, hovering before Hoggle's face.
"Well what do ya want me to do about it?" Hoggle huffed.
"Try to get them to quiet down or else we might as well abandon this quest."
They've been traveling for several hours now but weren't making much progress. The short legs of the many creatures just couldn't keep up with the long strides of the demons. Lorien gathered a group of fairies.
"We need to go ahead of this group." She looked over her shoulder at the racket that one goblin just created. "Let's go!" she announced, flying quickly through the trees.
*******
Sarah's stomach ached from all the bouncing and jostling she was receiving from the demons. They finally stopped for a break after what seemed like several hours to her. The demon tossed Sarah not too gently on the ground and leered at her.
"The king is going to have a lot of fun with you little mortal," he said, laughing.
Sarah glared at the ugly beast, doing her best not to show the fear that was welling up inside of her. As the demon turned away, Sarah looked around and noticed that the others were occupied with eating. She quickly went to work on the shackles around her wrists, trying to loosen them up. She glanced up to make sure no one was watching when she caught another glimpse of something red flashing through the trees.
Something tickled her mind as Sarah gave up on the shackles. Concentrating on the sensation she heard a whisper on the wind.
"Sarah..." Sarah looked around, trying to locate the source. Looking over her shoulder she gasped at what was there. Glancing back at the demons to make sure they were still busy with their meals Sarah whispered to her little friend.
"What are you doing here Lorien? You could get hurt by these nasty things," Sarah admonished.
"We are here to help you Lady," Lorien whispered back as she made a motion to something behind her. Sarah looked and noticed quite a few little fairies hovering in the underbrush. She shook her head and suppressed a smile.
"What are your plans then?" Sarah asked, sneaking glances at the demons.
Lorien eyed the shackles binding Sarah's wrists. "First we have to rid you of those," she pointed out.
"Yes that would be good," Sarah replied a little sarcastically.
"We are waiting for a distraction then we will take care of your bindings Lady," Lorien replied, looking ahead at the trees.
Sarah followed her gaze, searching the forest for what Lorien could be talking about. Suddenly a burst of red fuzz jumped out, squealing in a high pitch tone.
"What the..." the demon leader said before another screech came from behind. He ran up to Sarah and grabbed her roughly by the arms, tossing her over his shoulder. "Let's go!"
Lorien gasped as the demon grabbed Sarah. Thinking quickly she flew up behind the beast and snuck into Sarah's shirt. Sarah glanced down and smiled briefly before being jostled around by the demon's quick steps. Her stomach ached terribly. The demons followed their leader closely, keeping an eye on the forest.
Lorien worked her way down the sleeve of Sarah's shirt to her wrist and examined the shackles. Keeping an eye on the demons around her she reached in with her little hands and started working on the lock.
Before the demons could go any further several Fireys jumped out of the bushes and trees. They started throwing rocks and sticks at the beasts, distracting them.
"Kill them!" roared the leader, his grip tightening on Sarah.
With a loud battle cry, the demons charged after the Fireys. They swung their swords at the little creatures, trying with all their might to do as their leader told them. The Fireys dodged the blows, laughing and taunting the lumbering beasts.
Sarah watched as the demons tried to kill her little friends. She felt something give on her wrist and looked down in suprise as one of the shackles fell away. Lorien swiftly went to work on the other one, ignoring the battle raging around her.
*******
Jareth halted, hearing the sounds of battle ahead. He motioned for Jacen to go ahead and find out what was going on.
After several minutes Jacen reappeared. "Sire, your not going to believe this!"
Jareth stood up. "What is happening?"
"The demons are fighting with the Fireys. One particularly large demon has Sarah slung over his shoulder."
"Let's go!" Jareth announced, drawing his sword. They charged in amongst the demons, cutting down a few that were distracted by the Fireys.
Sarah heard Jareth as Lorien finished picking the lock on the last shackle. She quickly started to pummel the back of the demon carrying her, causing him to grunt in pain. He tightened his grip on her while drawing his sword.
Jareth spotted the demon that had Sarah. He charged at the creature, bringing his sword down in an arc. The demon blocked Jareth's sword, frantically looking around for assistance. A grin broke out on the demon's face as he saw his Lord charge out of the trees.
Jareth took the momentary distraction and thrusted his sword deep withing the demon's gut. As the creature sank before him, Jareth grabbed Sarah from it's grasp and wrapped her in his arms.
"Are you alright?" he asked, releasing her from his embrace.
"Yeah, I think so." Sarah smiled up at him, but before she could say anything more she was pushed to the side by Jareth.
"So Goblin King! We meet yet again."
"Lord Moldar, how convenient for you to drop by in my Kingdom," Jareth sneered, his grip tightening on his sword.
The Demon King looked over at Sarah, his eyes traveling over her. "What a beauty she is indeed." His eyes locked with hers. "After I take care of the Goblin King here, my dear, we are going to have some fun," he said, leering at her.
Jareth raised his sword and charged at the Demon King. Their swords clashed, sparks flying from the impact. Sarah watched in horror as Jareth staggered under a blow from Moldar.
"Seems like your fighting skills are not as sharp as they use to be Goblin King," Moldar replied, smirking.
Sarah frantically searched the area for something she could use as a weapon to assist Jareth. She noticed that the Fae Guards were outnumbered two to one and were quickly being overtaken by the demons. She spotted a discarded spear and lunged for it, grasping it in a tight grip.
Several shouts came from the trees as Fireys, Goblins, and other creatures came pouring out. Sarah smiled when she saw Hoggle amongst the throng. She glanced over her shoulder and noticed that Jareth was still battling with the Demon King. She screamed when she saw another demon attack Jareth from behind, distracting him. The Demon King laughed as he plunged his sword deep within Jareth's stomach.
Jacen saw his king fall. He hurriedly finished off his opponent and ran towards Jareth, blocking and slicing as he went. He watched as the Demon King raised his sword again to finish Jareth off.
Sarah reacted instantly. She ran as fast as she could and raised the spear in her hand. An anguished cry left her lips as she thrusted with all her strength.
Lord Moldar looked down at the spear piercing his body. A look of disbelief crossed his face as he saw who it was that attacked him. Slowly he sank his knees, his breathing coming in ragged gulps. A sigh left his lips as he slumped face down to the ground.
Sarah knelt beside Jareth, cradling his head in her lap. Tears filled her eyes and slipped down her cheeks as his breathing became more ragged.
"Jareth, open your eyes...please," Sarah whispered, brushing the hair from his face.
Jacen slid to a halt and landed heavily on his knees by his king. Taking a knife he started cutting the shirt away from the wound. He closed his eyes at what he saw.
Sarah watched as Jacen tended to Jareth's wound. She gasped at the gaping hole that was revealed when Jacen cut the clothing away. Noticing Jacen's expression, fresh tears coursed down her cheeks.
Jacen looked at Sarah with anguish. "It was an iron sword..." he mumbled, slowly shaking his head.
"NO!" Sarah shouted, grasping Jareth's hand and bringing it to her cheek. "Jareth wake up, please! You can't die on me."
Jareth moaned, his eyes slowly opening to lock on Sarah's. His hand tightened slightly on hers and a smile caressed his lips. "I'm happy...to see you're...safe," he whispered. He let out a shuddering breath, pain etched on his face.
"I love you Jareth," Sarah whispered close to his ear. "You can't die on me," she said, leaning her forehead on his.
"I...love you...too Sarah," Jareth replied as his hand slowly fell away from hers.
Sarah sobbed as she saw the light slowly dimming in Jareth's eyes. Then as she watched her love dying before her she recalled their conversation they had about her becoming Fae but retaining some of her human qualities. Looking over at Jacen, Sarah glanced at the knife in his hand. She reached over and snatched it from his grasp.
"Sarah what are you doing?" Jacen asked, concerned.
Sarah didn't answer him but instead grasped the blade in her hand and pulled with all her strength. Blood flowed heavily from the deep cut as she quickly placed her hand over the wound in Jareth's stomach.
Jacen watched as a brilliant white light started to spread from her hand, slowly enveloping the pair. He saw Jareth take a hitching breath, and then another. A smile spread on his face as he realized what Sarah was doing.
Sarah's head fell against her chest as she focused on all the feelings she felt for this Fae King. She felt the white hot magic emit from her hand and seep into the wound along with her iron-immune blood.
The remaining inhabitants of the Labyrinth had finished off the rest of the demons and gathered around their king. They watched on solemnly as Sarah and Jareth were engulfed with the bright light. Slowly they sank to their knees as they saw their Lord take a breath.
Sarah slowly slumped over Jareth, too weak to hold herself up. She smiled as she felt a strong heartbeat beneath her. Her eyes closed as she whispered, "I love you."
Jacen examined Jareth and then Sarah. "They will live," he announced to the crowd. Relief washed through them and cheers came from their mouths. They quickly built platforms to carry the wounded back to the Labyrinth. The long journey home began as the sun slowly slipped beyond the horizon.
*******
A/N: I hope this came out as powerful as I wanted it to. Seems like something was missing but I've been working on this chapter so long now that it was time for me to move on. I hope you all enjoyed it.
Jessica White: LOL I know it was quite evil of me to do so but I was a little stuck as to where to go from where I left off and I was a little concerned about falling into the rut of saying too much and not elaborating enough (hurrying the story along). I'm glad you really enjoyed it, Thank You.
Lady Shadowlight: I've enjoyed writing the new characters in. It isn't easy to get everyone playing their part. I can picture in my mind's eye what's happening but to write it down is something else. It is quite enjoyable though to think of different ways to interpret actions between characters and their environment. Thank you for your review, I'm happy you are enjoying my little story.
kili-2: Awww....sorry to hear you were down with something. *blushes* your review made my day. It wasn't easy to squeeze this chapter out because there's just so much happening and it was very difficult to explain the battle. Thank you for your review, I'm happy you're enjoying it.
Desdemona321: *ducks the swinging frying pan* whoa! LOL I laughed so hard when I got your review. That was too funny. Thank you for your review. It wasn't easy to leave that chapter like that but I wasn't too sure where I was going to go with the story. I had most of this chapter already in my head but it was just getting through the battle scene that had me stumped. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
draegon-fire: You were right. I'm a sucker for teary-eyed stories. I wanted something dramatic to bring out everyone's feelings. I hope I achieved that in this chapter. Thank you for your review, I'm glad you are enjoying my story so far.
Orphelia-Rose: Aw...Thank you very much for your review. Cliffies are quite aggravating sometimes aren't they? LOL but I find sometimes they are very necessary.
Sarah: *waves* Thank you for your review. I'm happy that you are enjoying it so far.
Once again, thank you all for reading and commenting on my little story. It means a lot when you give me your thoughts and opinions; it helps me better understand what I need to work on and where to go.
"Sire," a scout called out, running fast to his lord. "The Goblin King himself is ahead. They were following the trail of the first group."
"How far ahead is he?" the Demon King asked, a smile spreading on his face.
"About an hour. I followed them for a couple of miles until they suddenly started running back towards the Labyrinth," the demon scout reported.
"Excellent! Maybe the first team didn't fail in their task. Let's double our pace and catch the Goblin King at his most vulnerable!" the Demon King said, motioning for the scout to lead the way.
*******
Lorien fluttered her wings as she looked at their army; the noise that everyone was making was deafening. She flew up and down the line of creatures trying to get them to tread lightly. "You're making too much noise! The demons will hear us coming if they don't know already," she scowled, hovering before Hoggle's face.
"Well what do ya want me to do about it?" Hoggle huffed.
"Try to get them to quiet down or else we might as well abandon this quest."
They've been traveling for several hours now but weren't making much progress. The short legs of the many creatures just couldn't keep up with the long strides of the demons. Lorien gathered a group of fairies.
"We need to go ahead of this group." She looked over her shoulder at the racket that one goblin just created. "Let's go!" she announced, flying quickly through the trees.
*******
Sarah's stomach ached from all the bouncing and jostling she was receiving from the demons. They finally stopped for a break after what seemed like several hours to her. The demon tossed Sarah not too gently on the ground and leered at her.
"The king is going to have a lot of fun with you little mortal," he said, laughing.
Sarah glared at the ugly beast, doing her best not to show the fear that was welling up inside of her. As the demon turned away, Sarah looked around and noticed that the others were occupied with eating. She quickly went to work on the shackles around her wrists, trying to loosen them up. She glanced up to make sure no one was watching when she caught another glimpse of something red flashing through the trees.
Something tickled her mind as Sarah gave up on the shackles. Concentrating on the sensation she heard a whisper on the wind.
"Sarah..." Sarah looked around, trying to locate the source. Looking over her shoulder she gasped at what was there. Glancing back at the demons to make sure they were still busy with their meals Sarah whispered to her little friend.
"What are you doing here Lorien? You could get hurt by these nasty things," Sarah admonished.
"We are here to help you Lady," Lorien whispered back as she made a motion to something behind her. Sarah looked and noticed quite a few little fairies hovering in the underbrush. She shook her head and suppressed a smile.
"What are your plans then?" Sarah asked, sneaking glances at the demons.
Lorien eyed the shackles binding Sarah's wrists. "First we have to rid you of those," she pointed out.
"Yes that would be good," Sarah replied a little sarcastically.
"We are waiting for a distraction then we will take care of your bindings Lady," Lorien replied, looking ahead at the trees.
Sarah followed her gaze, searching the forest for what Lorien could be talking about. Suddenly a burst of red fuzz jumped out, squealing in a high pitch tone.
"What the..." the demon leader said before another screech came from behind. He ran up to Sarah and grabbed her roughly by the arms, tossing her over his shoulder. "Let's go!"
Lorien gasped as the demon grabbed Sarah. Thinking quickly she flew up behind the beast and snuck into Sarah's shirt. Sarah glanced down and smiled briefly before being jostled around by the demon's quick steps. Her stomach ached terribly. The demons followed their leader closely, keeping an eye on the forest.
Lorien worked her way down the sleeve of Sarah's shirt to her wrist and examined the shackles. Keeping an eye on the demons around her she reached in with her little hands and started working on the lock.
Before the demons could go any further several Fireys jumped out of the bushes and trees. They started throwing rocks and sticks at the beasts, distracting them.
"Kill them!" roared the leader, his grip tightening on Sarah.
With a loud battle cry, the demons charged after the Fireys. They swung their swords at the little creatures, trying with all their might to do as their leader told them. The Fireys dodged the blows, laughing and taunting the lumbering beasts.
Sarah watched as the demons tried to kill her little friends. She felt something give on her wrist and looked down in suprise as one of the shackles fell away. Lorien swiftly went to work on the other one, ignoring the battle raging around her.
*******
Jareth halted, hearing the sounds of battle ahead. He motioned for Jacen to go ahead and find out what was going on.
After several minutes Jacen reappeared. "Sire, your not going to believe this!"
Jareth stood up. "What is happening?"
"The demons are fighting with the Fireys. One particularly large demon has Sarah slung over his shoulder."
"Let's go!" Jareth announced, drawing his sword. They charged in amongst the demons, cutting down a few that were distracted by the Fireys.
Sarah heard Jareth as Lorien finished picking the lock on the last shackle. She quickly started to pummel the back of the demon carrying her, causing him to grunt in pain. He tightened his grip on her while drawing his sword.
Jareth spotted the demon that had Sarah. He charged at the creature, bringing his sword down in an arc. The demon blocked Jareth's sword, frantically looking around for assistance. A grin broke out on the demon's face as he saw his Lord charge out of the trees.
Jareth took the momentary distraction and thrusted his sword deep withing the demon's gut. As the creature sank before him, Jareth grabbed Sarah from it's grasp and wrapped her in his arms.
"Are you alright?" he asked, releasing her from his embrace.
"Yeah, I think so." Sarah smiled up at him, but before she could say anything more she was pushed to the side by Jareth.
"So Goblin King! We meet yet again."
"Lord Moldar, how convenient for you to drop by in my Kingdom," Jareth sneered, his grip tightening on his sword.
The Demon King looked over at Sarah, his eyes traveling over her. "What a beauty she is indeed." His eyes locked with hers. "After I take care of the Goblin King here, my dear, we are going to have some fun," he said, leering at her.
Jareth raised his sword and charged at the Demon King. Their swords clashed, sparks flying from the impact. Sarah watched in horror as Jareth staggered under a blow from Moldar.
"Seems like your fighting skills are not as sharp as they use to be Goblin King," Moldar replied, smirking.
Sarah frantically searched the area for something she could use as a weapon to assist Jareth. She noticed that the Fae Guards were outnumbered two to one and were quickly being overtaken by the demons. She spotted a discarded spear and lunged for it, grasping it in a tight grip.
Several shouts came from the trees as Fireys, Goblins, and other creatures came pouring out. Sarah smiled when she saw Hoggle amongst the throng. She glanced over her shoulder and noticed that Jareth was still battling with the Demon King. She screamed when she saw another demon attack Jareth from behind, distracting him. The Demon King laughed as he plunged his sword deep within Jareth's stomach.
Jacen saw his king fall. He hurriedly finished off his opponent and ran towards Jareth, blocking and slicing as he went. He watched as the Demon King raised his sword again to finish Jareth off.
Sarah reacted instantly. She ran as fast as she could and raised the spear in her hand. An anguished cry left her lips as she thrusted with all her strength.
Lord Moldar looked down at the spear piercing his body. A look of disbelief crossed his face as he saw who it was that attacked him. Slowly he sank his knees, his breathing coming in ragged gulps. A sigh left his lips as he slumped face down to the ground.
Sarah knelt beside Jareth, cradling his head in her lap. Tears filled her eyes and slipped down her cheeks as his breathing became more ragged.
"Jareth, open your eyes...please," Sarah whispered, brushing the hair from his face.
Jacen slid to a halt and landed heavily on his knees by his king. Taking a knife he started cutting the shirt away from the wound. He closed his eyes at what he saw.
Sarah watched as Jacen tended to Jareth's wound. She gasped at the gaping hole that was revealed when Jacen cut the clothing away. Noticing Jacen's expression, fresh tears coursed down her cheeks.
Jacen looked at Sarah with anguish. "It was an iron sword..." he mumbled, slowly shaking his head.
"NO!" Sarah shouted, grasping Jareth's hand and bringing it to her cheek. "Jareth wake up, please! You can't die on me."
Jareth moaned, his eyes slowly opening to lock on Sarah's. His hand tightened slightly on hers and a smile caressed his lips. "I'm happy...to see you're...safe," he whispered. He let out a shuddering breath, pain etched on his face.
"I love you Jareth," Sarah whispered close to his ear. "You can't die on me," she said, leaning her forehead on his.
"I...love you...too Sarah," Jareth replied as his hand slowly fell away from hers.
Sarah sobbed as she saw the light slowly dimming in Jareth's eyes. Then as she watched her love dying before her she recalled their conversation they had about her becoming Fae but retaining some of her human qualities. Looking over at Jacen, Sarah glanced at the knife in his hand. She reached over and snatched it from his grasp.
"Sarah what are you doing?" Jacen asked, concerned.
Sarah didn't answer him but instead grasped the blade in her hand and pulled with all her strength. Blood flowed heavily from the deep cut as she quickly placed her hand over the wound in Jareth's stomach.
Jacen watched as a brilliant white light started to spread from her hand, slowly enveloping the pair. He saw Jareth take a hitching breath, and then another. A smile spread on his face as he realized what Sarah was doing.
Sarah's head fell against her chest as she focused on all the feelings she felt for this Fae King. She felt the white hot magic emit from her hand and seep into the wound along with her iron-immune blood.
The remaining inhabitants of the Labyrinth had finished off the rest of the demons and gathered around their king. They watched on solemnly as Sarah and Jareth were engulfed with the bright light. Slowly they sank to their knees as they saw their Lord take a breath.
Sarah slowly slumped over Jareth, too weak to hold herself up. She smiled as she felt a strong heartbeat beneath her. Her eyes closed as she whispered, "I love you."
Jacen examined Jareth and then Sarah. "They will live," he announced to the crowd. Relief washed through them and cheers came from their mouths. They quickly built platforms to carry the wounded back to the Labyrinth. The long journey home began as the sun slowly slipped beyond the horizon.
*******
A/N: I hope this came out as powerful as I wanted it to. Seems like something was missing but I've been working on this chapter so long now that it was time for me to move on. I hope you all enjoyed it.
Jessica White: LOL I know it was quite evil of me to do so but I was a little stuck as to where to go from where I left off and I was a little concerned about falling into the rut of saying too much and not elaborating enough (hurrying the story along). I'm glad you really enjoyed it, Thank You.
Lady Shadowlight: I've enjoyed writing the new characters in. It isn't easy to get everyone playing their part. I can picture in my mind's eye what's happening but to write it down is something else. It is quite enjoyable though to think of different ways to interpret actions between characters and their environment. Thank you for your review, I'm happy you are enjoying my little story.
kili-2: Awww....sorry to hear you were down with something. *blushes* your review made my day. It wasn't easy to squeeze this chapter out because there's just so much happening and it was very difficult to explain the battle. Thank you for your review, I'm happy you're enjoying it.
Desdemona321: *ducks the swinging frying pan* whoa! LOL I laughed so hard when I got your review. That was too funny. Thank you for your review. It wasn't easy to leave that chapter like that but I wasn't too sure where I was going to go with the story. I had most of this chapter already in my head but it was just getting through the battle scene that had me stumped. I hope you enjoy this chapter.
draegon-fire: You were right. I'm a sucker for teary-eyed stories. I wanted something dramatic to bring out everyone's feelings. I hope I achieved that in this chapter. Thank you for your review, I'm glad you are enjoying my story so far.
Orphelia-Rose: Aw...Thank you very much for your review. Cliffies are quite aggravating sometimes aren't they? LOL but I find sometimes they are very necessary.
Sarah: *waves* Thank you for your review. I'm happy that you are enjoying it so far.
Once again, thank you all for reading and commenting on my little story. It means a lot when you give me your thoughts and opinions; it helps me better understand what I need to work on and where to go.
