Chapter Twenty-Four: To Make This Moment Feel So Right
Sarah found herself all too soon at the castle gates. She swallowed hard, clenching and unclenching her fists. The tall doors, heavy and ominous, waited patiently. Come on, Sarah. You've come too far to turn back. She gathered her courage and stared up at the doors. Ludo wasn't here this time to lend his strength in forcing open the doors. Timidly, she raised a hand to knock. The doors opened just before her knuckles hit it, and she stood frozen as the gate swung open to reveal an army of goblins awaiting her.
And an army indeed they were. There was no evidence of the chaos she'd encountered her first round through. They were arranged into three sections of straight rows and columns, weapons at the ready, each still and quiet and intent on her. Sarah felt faint. This was an army entirely unlike the one she'd managed to outthink last time. This was a serious army, a force to be reckoned with. Worse still, she didn't have Ludo and his rocks this time, nor Didymus' psychotic valor. She wasn't expected to fight her way through, was she?
She took a tentative step forward, and stiffened when the Goblins, as one, raised their weapons in one swift motion. They took no further action as she planted her feet and considered the living barrier. Perhaps if she asked... "Please," she said softly,"I need to see the king."
"No, you don't," said one deep voice, ringing through the otherwise silent ranks.
"He doesn't want to see you," said another, more shrilly voice. The air was sharp with tension. Each voice could be heard clearly in the heavy silence.
"You may belong to the Labyrinth, but our King does not belong to you," added a third.
"Begone! You are not welcome here!" chorused the first line of each battalion.
"Trespasser," yelled three voices in unison.
"Traitor!" hissed another.
They fell silent as they lowered their weapons, ready to block her again if need be. Sarah stared at them helplessly. "Look, I really, really need to talk to your king." She bit her lower lip. "I came to make peace with him," she offered timidly. She took another step forward.
They raised arms again. "The only peace you'll find here is the peace of death," a single, gravelly voice snarled.
"That's enough!" Sarah cried angrily. "Let me through!" She walked recklessly forward, towards all the sharp points and knife edges and cannons. The goblins waited for her to come to them, neither retreating nor advancing. "I'm not going to run this time! I need to talk with him, and you're not going to stand in my way!" Her mind raced, frantically trying to think of a way through this mess. If she belonged to the Labyrinth and thereby the Labyrinth belonged to her, and the goblins were a part of the Labyrinth, then didn't they have to answer to her? She raised her eyes to meet the army. "I want you out of my way," she commanded in what she hoped was an authoritative voice.
"You commit foolish actions, woman-child," warned one goblin.
"Our king's Labyrinth is not your Labyrinth," seconded another.
"Two different spheres of reality," whispered a third.
"One land," added two goblins in the wings.
"Two minds," roared a goblin behind a cannon.
"Two territories," hissed another.
"Begone! This territory welcomes you not!" they yelled in unison.
Sarah surged forward. "I don't care! I've got to talk to him! Let me through!" She closed her eyes, not wanting to watch as the spears skewered her flesh. When she didn't feel anything, she opened her eyes cautiously, and stumbled backwards.
The three groups had split right down the middle, lining a path to the castle in neat formation. They were silent, their eyes staring straight ahead, ignoring the confused and frightened girl as she summoned her courage and walked down the cleared path.
Sarah frequently checked to see if the goblins would attack her, but they remained still as statues. She was amazed to see them so organized, but felt little surprise. The Goblin King had granted her the last victory, the last journey to self discovery. One girl against such an army was not likely to succeed, and so he'd changed his world for her in yet another way. She finally came to the gates of the castle itself, and they opened of their own accord. Sarah stared at them, her feet firmly planted in the ground. Was this an invitation or a trap? She shook her head. She didn't think trickery would be involved this time. It was just him, her, and, maybe, the right words.
Sarah swallowed hard and entered.
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A/N: Tada! This was a fun chapter to write. Is the whole Labyrinth-property thing making some twisted sense to people now? If not, please let me know. I don't want to explain it away, but confusion isn't my purpose either.