The Underground Sun
Goblin King Gone -- And What It Means for Underground
The Labyrinthine Kingdom has been elevated to the level of Xanadu in recent years. All of Underground knows it as a place of sin and sun. This is where people go to let their hair down, to party, and do other things, without fear of ridicule or repercussions. The Labyrinth itself has a serene beauty often ignored by the raucous partiers, and has been featured in some of Underground's most celebrated works of art. La Cruz showed how stunning a sunrise over the maze can be in his painting The Sun's Favorite Place, and Jehanney set his epic poem The Traveler within the Labyrinth's sandstone walls.
This kingdom is also a place of danger, however. It serves as a prison for fairy and elf exiles, and everyone knows the goblins have a horrific reputation for a reason. Parents often refer to the Labyrinth as the place bad children are sent to -- and haunting cries within the tunnels here lend truth to the fable. Its king, Jareth (also known as the Goblin King, although he is very much Fae) has managed to keep the hazards in check for the past hundred years, since his father died and passed rule onto him.
According to recent news the perils of this place might be unleashed on Underground. Less than eight hours ago, a subtle change occurred in Underground's landscape: the infamous Goblin King is nowhere to be found. His faithful (and not so faithful) goblin servants are canvassing the Labyrinth, but not a trace of him can be located. The Goblin King has an understated hand in Underground affairs, and has a starring role in the conference at Capitol coming up. Without the knowledge this man possesses, the conference cannot continue.
Essentially, the nobles of Underground are in a panic. Jareth knows more about the High King's plans than the king does -- it's obvious he's getting rather senile as he continues to age more rapidly than a Fae should -- and without Jareth, several important trials in the High Court must be called to a halt. Slowly, little by little, Underground is shutting down. Unfortunately The only thing we can do is wait, and ask: Where has Jareth gone?
If you have any information on this matter, the Capitol Investigators strongly urge you to contact them. We all know how reliable they are, don't we? This reporter suggests any witnesses call up the Labyrinth's watchman, Malferz. Even half-breeds are more competent than the CI these days.
--- Javelin Reels, investigative reporter
"Just your girlfriends, huh?" Seth asked, rolling up the newspaper. The article was on the front page, below the fold. It was the first thing he'd seen as they pulled onto the Main Street of Capitol. All around them, people were grabbing up the afternoon editions and Jareth's name was on everyone's lips. "I wanted this quiet, Rida," Seth hissed. "Do you have any idea what you've done?"
"It's just an article," Rida said, making a face. "Who cares about old Jareth anyway?"
"The entire dimension, Rida!"
Karleigh was hanging onto Seth's arm. Capitol was flushed with Fae, and since most of the race was about six feet tall, she felt very short and vulnerable at the moment. She didn't really care about the article. It hadn't mentioned the incidents at the Labyrinth before Jareth disappeared, so she wasn't upset. As long as her name stayed out of ink, she was happy. "Come on, let's go," she said, pulling on Seth's sleeve.
"Rida, I'm going to kill you," he hissed, hitting his sister with the rolled-up newspaper.
Rida whimpered and covered her head with her hands. She stuck her tongue out at her brother. "Listen, how was I supposed to know it'd get blabbed to Javelin? I'd never tell her, she's got the loosest lips in Underground." She rubbed the back of her skull where Seth had hit her. She could already feel a bump forming. "Listen, we'll just go down to the newspaper, and we'll talk Javelin into typing up a reprint, all right?" She launched into a brisk walk in the direction of the Underground Sun's headquarters.
"How exactly are we supposed to do that? Javelin never gets front page work -- she's not going to give this up," Seth said, hurrying after Rida. He slid his fingers through Karleigh's and pulled the girl in tow.
"Well, I'm guessing you haven't put that body of yours to good use lately--"
"Rida!"
"Well," she said, huffing. "Javelin appreciates you."
"She wants to get in my pants," Seth snapped. Karleigh's face got very red, and she looked down at the ground while they group continued walking, simmering. Seth pulled the girl against him as a group of rowdy elf children passed by, all staring at the human in their midst. Seth didn't notice, but Karleigh did. She stuck her tongue out at the kids and they all giggled amongst themselves and ran after their teacher. She was beginning to wish, not for the first time, that she'd never come to Underground.
Rida grinned lasciviously. "That's what I meant." She turned a corner and pointed up at a tall building at the end of the street. It had a glass front, and a giant quill pen made of iron in its yard. "There's the Sun's building," Rida said, looking over her shoulder. "Javelin's on the eighth floor." She waited and watched her brother closely.
Seth looked suspiciously at the building. "Can't you go?" he asked, frowning. He wasn't too eager to go striding into the headquarters of the Underground Sun. It would be front-page news that Jareth's best friend was yelling for reporters to hush up his disappearance, and Seth definitely didn't want that. The situation was already out of hand. He was never going to get to show Karleigh around. Sighing inwardly, he ran his hand through his hair. "Listen," he said. Explaining his reservations to his sister would be a task, all right.
"Aren't you going to teleport us?" Rida asked.
"I don't think this is a good idea," Seth said.
"Oh you never do," his sister muttered. "You're no fun. That's why Rachelle dumped you."
"She didn't dump me," Seth protested. "She put me into court and tried to get me the death penalty! For stealing!"
Rida narrowed her eyes at him, suddenly serious. "You've done worse," she said darkly.
A cloud moved in front of the sun. I closed my eyes and crossed my arms over my chest. Rida, who I already found slightly annoying, had said something to make Seth get all dark and broody. I sighed to myself. The magic in Underground made my head feel clogged and foggy. And everyone was staring at me. I shivered and wrapped my arms further around me. The clothes Seth had given me didn't stand out, from what I could see. The other girls who weren't in dresses had on the kind of pants and shirt I did. Of course, the other girls had elfin ears, lupine eyes, hooked claws, and the pointed canines of Fae.
I wondered if this Javelin person was a Fae. I'd had enough of Seth's female companions, really. The last one had tried to kill me. The other was a reporter. I ground my teeth together. Reporters in Aboveground could be absolutely brutal to people. It hadn't even been a day, and from the snatches of the report Seth read aloud, they were already biting into Jareth. It just didn't seem fair.
I pulled on Seth's arm. "Make a decision already. I'm bored."
He glared at me, and I shrunk. I could've left out the bored part, it probably made me sound like an idiot. Maybe that was why he made the decision he did. "Rida, take Karleigh shopping, will you? She needs some clothes." He pushed my hand off his arm and took out his coin purse. I was wounded, and I let it show on my face. Not that it touched Seth any. "Here, take these. It should be enough." He handed the money to his sister, and I stuck my tongue out at him. He rolled his eyes, he actually rolled his eyes, and bent to kiss me. I turned my face and he ended up laying a wet peck on my cheek. When he pulled back his blue eye was like ice, and his green eye darkened close to black. "Have a good time," he said frigidly.
I waved at him and hurried after Rida, who was a good five inches taller than me and had long legs. "Where're we going?" I asked, panting slightly. It seemed to me like she was jogging.
She grinned. "My favorite store. Seth'll hate it," she said, stopping abruptly. She held out her arm so I wouldn't fall, and hailed down a carriage pulled by two heavy-coated ponies. "He can be such a bastard sometimes," she said, smiling brightly at the footman who opened the door for us. He had narrow, yellow eyes, and hairy arms, and he glared at me while I climbed in. "Close to full moon," Rida whispered to me. "Keep your hands away from his paws," she warned. I immediately jerked my hands into my lap and was very nervous when we pulled away. We could see the footman through the window of the carriage, which didn't have a curtain on it. Werewolf, I thought, shivering. Underground certainly had a diverse population.
"Um… I can pick out my own clothes, right?" Not that Rida had bad taste. Her tastes would just never look good on me. I'd look like a teenage hooker, a bad one, if I wore the miniskirt she had on. Plus I didn't have her… um… measurements, and that v-necked vest showed a lot of those measurements.
Rida made a face at the coins in her hand before slipping them into a purse, which she tucked into her… vest. "Sure honey. Just so long as you don't pick anything Seth would like." She seemed determined on this point.
"I don't think it'll be a problem," I said, sighing. I rested my chin in my hands and glanced sideways. The footman was pressed up against the window, and I could see that his ears were pointed, and had tufts of fur on the tips. I tried not to flinch. I'm the weird one here, I reminded myself. "Seth says I'm always dressed to scrub floors."
She laughed. "Seth didn't ever hang around our servants, then." She had a tiny smirk on her face.
"So… what's this Javelin like?" I asked.
"Jealous?"
"No!" I said, too quickly.
Rida raised her dark, dainty eyebrows. "She's like Jareth in female form," she said, humorless.
Great.
Author's Note: Sorry it took so long, I had an AP exam to study for and take. I won't know how I did till the third week of July. Fun.
I already have next chapter planned, so hopefully it won't take too long to write. And there's only 10 days of school left, whoo-hoo! Summer vacation is just wonderful.
Princess-RainbowRose: Hehe sorry about the wait. You may be wise, taking a second look at your alternate ending. Thanks for reviewing!
BlueyChan: How'd you like Rida? Hehe I just love her name. Thanks for the review!
Moonjava: Thanks for the compliment, and the review!
sych77: Well, I'm only six days off from updating 'now,' that's not that big of a time gap right? Haha thanks for reviewing!
