Chapter 2: The goble-uns'll getcha ef you don't watch out!

Elaine settled into her bed with a contented sigh. The July night outside was cool, and the sea murmured in the distance.

I want to stay here forever. She thought, listening to the distant rumblings of thunder forever. This is such an adventurous place. She opened her eyes and sighed at the darkness. Adventure, or so it seemed, was always just out of her grasp.

From the moment she learned to read, Elaine had devoured books; all kinds of books, but mostly fairy stories, fantasy, poetry. Books had been her only friends through grade school, and great friends the y had been, whispering to her at night, their stories of dragons and wizards and princesses. She lived with her mother over a dusty antique shop that did a brisk business in coins, furniture and antique leather books, but she had lived her life among the dusty columns of books in the shop, in the library, in her room. When she entered high school she made friends with surprising ease, and the summer of her junior year she had met Rhiannon, a Welsh exchange student with a flair for the dramatic and a thirst for life. Elaine felt that thirst burn in her own heart, that fire in her own veins, but it had been settled by the books she read, quieted by her contemplative and often absent-minded mother.

"Rhiannon?"

"Yeah?"

"You awake?"

"Yeah, now I am. You?"

"No, I'm talking in my sleep." Elaine smiled at the darkness. "Thank there'll be a storm?"

"Sounds like a big one." The sea was complaining on the shore, moaning in the wind, "Did you have a good time today?"

"Of course!" Elaine thought of the myriads of clothes she had bought, but her hand went around her throat, touching the cool stone around it. Even after hours of contact with her skin, the stone was still as cool and heavy as when she had first picked it up. "It was an adventure."

"You're thinking about that kooky shop guy, aren't you?" said Rhiannon said, after a moment of silence.

"Yeah."

"Ooh, goblins." Rhiannon laughed. "Scary, right? The could take you away beneath the hill because you have their magic stone!"

"Yeah." Elaine tried to sound lighthearted. "That'd be a lark, right?"

"Suuure." Rhiannon sighed. "Well, I wish the goblins would come take you away. You're keeping me awake."

"Meanie!" Elaine giggled, then flopped back on her pillows, suddenly tired. "you don't think they will, do you?"

"Ohhh laws-a-mighty-yes." Rhiannon mocked, yawning. "you could have that marvelous adventure you're always talking about. Goblins." she yawned again

"Yes." Elaine felt very sleepy, suddenly. She realized the window was open, and was about to ask Rhiannon to shut it, when she heard the thunder, low, ominous.

"Goblins..." Rhiannon yawned hugely and settled down in her bed. "Goblin glass, green grass...what was that you said about goblins?"

"Green glass, goblin." Elaine's head was fuzzy warm, the feelings around her were beginning to fade. "Green glass..."

And everything went black.

"She's waking up!"

"Silly little child. So young, too. He'll be pleased."

"Go faster, you lot! He wanted her hours ago!"

"Go steady, go steady—he's been waiting near two hundred years for this, i reckon he might

wait a few more minutes..."

Elaine passed a hand over her eyes and groaned lightly.

I wonder what kind of dream this is. She thought, keeping her eyes closed. It certainly is a dark one. i seem to be floating—no, suspended on something, a litter of some sort...

"She's right heavy!"

"That's just 'cause your arms are so scrawny, Rorybran!"

whose voices are those? Elaine wondered, idly. They were strange voices, nasal and accented , some of them, high and snobbish, others.

"Well, Jareth won't have to wait long. We're well night there now, chums!"

"Jareth? He'll be in for a treat."

There was laughter all around, and it wasn't pleasant laughter. Elaine stiffened. Perhaps it is time to wake up. After all, this might be turning into a nightmare. She stifled her curiosity and pried her eyes open.

She was very sorry she had.

Elaine had never been one to fear things needlessly. She had never feared anything, really, except the monsters she found in her books, but even that fear was tinged with happiness, for it made the experience all the more real, somehow. But this time—this time it was real, no beating about the bush, no hot chocolate mug chattering in her hand, no mother to run to. She was rushing down a dark tunnel, the cold biting her skin, and all around her were goblins.

Goblins. Somehow she knew without a doubt they were goblins—some enormous, some tiny, all grotesque and deformed in the half-light, carrying torches, their dark little hands scrabbling all over the litter beneath her, their horrible little eyes lit with with the torch flames, claws, fangs, teeth, fur, scales, bristles. They were leering at her, some with three eyes, some with only one, others with none at all, only an enormous mouth set in sickly green faces.

Now, as mentioned before, Elaine was not an easily frightened young woman. She might even be considered quite brave. And Elaine did what any brave young woman would do in such a circumstance. She screamed.

"'Ey now!"

"What's that?"

Elaine leapt off the litter and felt her bare feet hit cold stone. They were in her way, clawing her,all around—she could feel their horrid, scaly arms around her ankles, their terrible, rasping claws touching her. She shook them off and began to run. The tunnel was dark and slippery, and they followed hard on her heels, but Elaine ran as she never ran before. It wasn't until a few moments later that she realized she was still screaming bloody murder, shrieking for all she was worth, as the creatures scrabbled after her, yelling things in their strange, nasal accents. She turned a corner.

Suddenly she hit a spot of slime on the floor. Her bare feet flew up in front of her, and she came crashing to the floor. She felt something small and cold and hard bounce up and hit her in the mouth, as she rolled to diffuse the impact. Luckily, there was a branching-off of the tunnel right then, and she conveniently tumbled right off the beaten path. The goblins turned the corner and rushed past her, leaving her in the dust, breathing hard and clutching at her heart.

As their noise died away in the tunnel, so did the light, and she was left in utter darkness. She felt something warm and wet in her mouth; blood. She felt around for what could have hit her, and her hands touched something cold and smooth.

The necklace!

Trembling, Elaine rose to her feet. She was shaking all over, and dirt and blood covered her face, she could feel the grime. She dusted off her pajamas—loose black shorts and a black camisole—and leaned against the wall, trying to catch her breath.

Okay, Okay. This might be a dream. She could feel her rib cage pumping up and down. The darkness around her was all-encroaching, panic inducing. She pinched herself just to make sure. She nearly yelped at the pain.

Oh GOD. It's not a dream!

Her mind raced wildly. Where am I? What is going on? What happened? She touched the necklace at her throat, heart thudding beneath it. Suddenly it grew white-hot, burning her fingers and she dropped it with a yelp that echoed all over the tunnel

This isn't a dream. She closed her eyes and tried to breath normally. This isn't a dream!

"No indeed it is not." a voice floated towards her. "It is no dream."

for some strange reason she didn't scream, though the voice startled her. She opened her eyes and saw the tunnels lit by an eerie half-glow. Standing in front of her was a man.

At least, she thought he was a man, but he looked so strange, so otherworldly, as different from any of the men she had known as peacock is different from sparrows. He was too tall, for one thing, too tall and whippet-thin, wearing a black cloak that blew around him in the wind that suddenly swept through the tunnels. He had pale golden hair that was a bird's nest, long and disarranged, that framed along, almost inhuman face with a long nose and thin lips. Above his high cheekbones, mismatched eyes glimmered, one blue, the other nearly black, tattooed outlandishly around with designs of blue and black

Elaine parted her lips, and found that she was unable to breath. She felt a curious burning on her breast, and looked down. The necklace was burning like green fire, as though the aquamarine drop of glass had suddenly been set aflame. It was hot against her bare skin. She looked over at the man again.

Around his neck, burning just as brightly as her own, was a red jewel set on a silver chain, like a single eye on his breast, glaring at her.

"Hello, Elaine." his voice was exotic, accented and cold.

Elaine did the only thing a reasonably brave girl could do in such a situation. With one last look at the burning eyes and the flaming jewel, she spun around once on her heel and fainted dead away.