Chapter Fifteen: The Silent Ones

Toby looked far better the following morning than Sarah could have hoped for. She had a suspicion that this was, in some way, thanks to Jareth, but as he was absent from their morning meal she reserved her thanks for Delaine. It was, in fact, almost midday by the time Toby and Sarah emerged: Toby remarkably serene, Sarah's face pale and tired. He had stayed close to her as they walked, largely in silence, through the castle's winding corridors.

'You should try to eat something,' Delaine told her, looking pointedly at Sarah's barely-touched food.

'I know. Just not really hungry.' Delaine looked a little pale herself, Sarah thought; her long blonde hair was pulled back from her face, emphasising the shadows under her eyes. Sarah contented herself with a large cup of hot chocolate, finding its dense, almost bitter flavour very comforting. 'Where's Jareth today?' She tried to sound casual.

'Oh,' Delaine waved a hand, 'doing kingly things.'

As though on cue, they heard a muted roar emanating from the castle. A moment later, two Goblins came soaring out of a window. Toby and Sarah followed their trajectory with mild interest until they crashed to earth in the shrubbery a short distance away.

'There has to be a better way of ruling than that,' Sarah stated, watching as the pair crawled out of the bushes, staggered in a circle, bumped into each other and fell over backwards.

'I dunno,' Toby supplied, watching as the unfortunate twosome hauled themselves up again. It sounded as though they were giggling. 'They kinda seem to like it.'

'Toby!' The imperious tone rang across the garden. Jareth appeared on a terrace across from theirs, his hands on his hips and his eyes blazing.

'Sarah, can I-' He was already half-off his seat.

'Go ahead.'

'Thanks!' He ran off, stopped, ran back and gave her a quick, hard hug before racing over to Jareth. They both disappeared back into the castle.

Delaine turned back to the table and observed her companion, taking in Sarah's drawn face and lacklustre eyes.

'How are you holding up?'

Sarah stared into her cup for a moment. 'Not too bad, I guess. I just feel a bit numb; and like I'm going to be sick.' Sarah replaced her cup clumsily and ran her hands through her hair. 'I should be seeing to funeral arrangements. That's what you're supposed to do, isn't it? I don't have a clue where to begin.'

'There will be time for that, Sarah.'

'I don't really know what I'm doing here. I don't even know if I was right to bring Toby here... Although he seems okay this morning... I just feel so lost.'

'When our people pass, it is not their friends or families who arrange anything. The human custom of expecting so many decisions and responsibilities from the grieving seems very strange to us. If you wish it, all the arrangements could be taken care of for you. Jareth and I could easily see to it.'

'You make everything sound so simple. Just wave a hand and it's done.' A pause. 'I just need a little time to work out what I'm going to do.'

Delaine nodded but said nothing. She offered no platitudes or empty phrases and for that Sarah was grateful. 'Toby wasn't entirely wrong about the Goblins, you know,' she said after a while. 'They are not the most intelligent of creatures and... Well, you might find their ways rather ... unconventional.'

'I'll be the first to admit that I don't know much about Goblins,' Sarah replied, glad of the change of topic, 'but Jareth's command style does seem a bit brutal. I mean, don't they ever complain about that?'

Delaine leaned back in her chair, amusement alleviating the stress in her face. 'I don't suppose you've ever heard of the Great Goblin Rebellion?'

'I must have missed that day in history class.'

'Well, for a start, the rebellion wasn't headed by a Goblin. It was a young boy who thought that maybe the Goblins ought to have more of a say about how they were ruled.'

Sarah nodded. 'That sounds fair.'

'The boy brought a small delegation of Goblins to the castle to put the case to the King-'

'I bet Jareth just loved that!'

Delaine's lips curved into a smile. 'Hmmm. The King was willing to listen, but on one condition: the Goblins had to speak for themselves, without any input from their new leader. He explained to them that they would have to rule themselves, they would have to build homes and provide food and clothing and work together.'

'What happened?'

'As I recall, much shuffling of feet and shoving of smaller Goblins. You see, Goblin law - such as it is - is very straightforward: all disputes are settled by a fight and whoever is the biggest, strongest Goblin wins. Goblins have a lot of disputes, so they are always fighting. Therefore, nothing ever gets done, which is why they were given a king in the first place. Someone wiser and stronger then they, someone who would look after them and make sure that they did not harm themselves or each other.

'So, once the King had explained all of this, he asked them how they wanted to be ruled - by anarchy, or by a king. And he also pointed out that for the rebellion to succeed they would have to fight him and win.' Delaine drank a little more of her juice. 'Goblins are rather stupid, but they aren't that stupid. They knew that they were better off being ruled by a king. And the King knew that in order to maintain control he had to conduct himself in a way that the Goblins would understand, in the manner that they would expect and admire in a leader.'

'You mean throwing them around? They admire physical domination?'

'Precisely. I did say that their ways are strange. They see such treatment as a sign of affection and respect; they are not reasonable creatures and so if their leader tried to reason with them, they would think that he or she did not care about them enough to lead them properly.'

Sarah shook her head. 'Unbelievable. What happened to the kid? The boy who led this great uprising?'

Again that amused smile. 'The Prince learnt what his duty to the Goblins was and that he had to respect their culture when he came to rule them.'

It was still moments before Sarah realised who the juvenile revolutionary in Delaine's tale was. 'Jareth led the rebellion?'

The Princess nodded. 'Oh yes. He planned it for weeks. And even then he had to bully the Goblins into going along with it - you would have thought that that would have given him a clue that it was never going to work; but once he gets an idea into his head, that's it.'

Even though Jareth had talked about his father, it was still difficult to imagine him as a child, playing games and mounting an attack on his father's authority. She smiled slightly and then met Delaine's watchful eyes. 'Jareth told me a little about your father; he was very ill for a long time, wasn't he?'

'Yes.' Delaine's eyes softened. 'He passed when Jareth was, oh, the equivalent of about sixteen, seventeen, maybe. That's very young - even for us. He wasn't of age, but he had all the responsibilities of kingship. So you see, in some ways he had to grow up too fast and in other ways he's still a child himself.'

Sarah's thoughts turned to her own brother, with the sinking feeling that she would not be enough. How much of Toby's childhood would be lost if she wasn't able to look after him properly?

'As long as Toby has you, Sarah, he'll be fine.'

Pulled out of her reverie, Sarah looked up at Delaine's sympathetic face, no longer surprised at the uncanny ability to read her mind that she seemed to share with Jareth. 'Neither of you mention your mother. Is she still ... with you?'

'Our mother was a Wood Nymph.'

Sarah felt her stomach contract. 'That-that spell...'

The shadows had gathered in Delaine's face again. 'It was the only way. I don't think my father ever forgave himself. She was very beautiful...' Delaine conjured a crystal with a graceful flourish; in its depths, Sarah saw the figure of a woman. Her hair was dark, yet shone like silver at the same time; her eyes were the familiar shifting two-tone orbs that Sarah knew so well. 'Our father used to say that looking into her eyes was like seeing the sky filtered through leaves.' The image faded and both women were silent for a while.

'Do you know where Jareth has taken Toby?'

'No. But he'll be safe with Jareth.'

'I know that.'

'I think that he wanted us to spend a little time together today.'

'You mean like he thought it might help me?'

'Did it?'

Sarah considered this for a moment. 'A little.'

'Good.'

ooOoo

Toby stared down at the disembodied head lying at their feet and felt slightly queasy. The head - wild eyed and covered in tufts of wispy red-gold fur - seemed unconcerned that it was no longer attached to its own neck.

'Hey, your Majesty! And what have we got here?' It squinted up at Toby. 'Whoa! It looks like a little Jareth.'

'Maybe it is a little Jareth!' Another of the creatures - this time with all its limbs present and correct - joined in.

'Yeah, maybe we're all stuck in one of those time loop things!' Yet another, hanging upside down from a tree branch, stared into Toby's face.

'That's enough,' Jareth snapped.

A series of whoops greeted this comment.

'Ooh! I think he's getting angry!'

'I think he is, man!'

'Just one more word...' Jareth drew his foot back as though to kick the laughing head; it promptly flew up into the air and landed on its body. 'Now, get back to where you are supposed to be and stay there.'

The Fireys retreated amidst snatches of raucous song and appeared to be using one their own arms in an impromptu game of catch.

'What are they exactly?'

'Annoying,' Jareth replied between gritted teeth; he glanced down at Toby and his features relaxed. 'They call themselves the Fire Gang.'

'I saw them when Sarah was going through the Labyrinth.' The pair started walking slowly out of the woodland, arriving at the entrance to a formal, walled garden. 'They don't seem as much fun as they think they are. They tried to pull her head off.'

Jareth chuckled. 'Yes, Sarah did run the gamut of our residents, didn't she?'

'Uh, isn't that because you planned it that way?'

The King sniffed. 'Yes, well...'

Toby trotted along next to him, trying to keep up with Jareth's long, easy strides. He liked spending time with Jareth; he liked the fact that Jareth didn't talk to him as though he were a child or stupid, the way most adults did; he liked learning about this amazing realm from the man who ruled it. He just wished that Jareth wouldn't walk quite so fast.

Jareth had also not asked him how he felt, which Toby found was a great relief as he wasn't sure how he was feeling. Every now and again he remembered what had happened the night before and each time it came as something of a shock. His life was now divided into two distinct timelines: the one his parents were in and the one they weren't. Here, in the Underground, that seemed easier to deal with. Memories of Saturday mornings when he would crawl into his parents' bed and they would all read the papers - Dad the sports section, Mom the main paper and Toby the funnies - or playing catch in the backyard superseded the knowledge that they were no longer in the world.

'Jareth?'

A long pause.

'Yes? Well?'

'Why do I have your eyes?'

Jareth stopped abruptly and Toby was glad of the break. He looked up at the King expectantly. Jareth stared down at him thoughtfully. 'Why, don't you like them?'

'No, I do! I just... I just don't get it, is all. I mean, it's not like we're related or anything. Are we?'

One corner of Jareth's mouth twitched. 'I'm fairly confident I would have remembered if we were.' Toby's appealing stare remained fixed; Jareth shrugged lightly. 'Vanity on my part, perhaps.'

'What's that supposed to mean?'

'You reminded me a little of myself when I was your age. Or, I should say, about your age. I liked the idea of a child with my eyes. And I thought it would be nice if you had something to remember me by.' With that he stalked across the gravelled enclosure and Toby, groaning, followed after him. They had turned into a shaded passageway when Jareth stopped again.

Toby's latest question died on his lips.

The Goblin King staggered, stretching out one gloved hand to support himself. It was though an invisible weapon had struck him and for a moment he was almost doubled over, his eyes tight shut, his lips bloodless.

Toby gazed about wildly, but they were alone - there was no help to be had. He heard his own name muttered: Jareth's eyes were open but they were unfocused and he was groping blindly, searching for something. Toby caught hold of the wandering hand and everything shivered around him.

ooOoo

Sarah had reacted without thinking.

One moment they had been sitting and chatting quite normally; the next, Delaine had let out a cry, her body jerking and fallen, taking most of the crockery with her. Sarah had flung herself at her, only just reaching her as Delaine hit the ground. Sarah pulled her into her lap and found Delaine staring back up at her, her pupils so dilated her eyes looked entirely black. And then she had heard Jareth's voice. Sarah rose mechanically when he ordered her aside and saw Toby standing close by. He looked pale and frightened, his eyes fixed on Jareth. She crossed to him and he put his arms around her waist; she rested one hand on his unruly blonde head and felt him trembling slightly. 'What happened?' she asked softly.

He shook his head without looking up at her. 'I dunno. Are-are they okay?'

'I think so.'

Delaine was sitting up, supported by her brother. She gripped his shoulder. 'You felt it?'

'Yes.'

'He's coming.'

'Yes.'

She lowered her eyes. 'You were right. We should have consulted them earlier.'

'We can do it now.' Jareth raised Delaine to her feet, keeping one arm firmly around her.

'He's so much stronger,' she murmured. 'I had such terrible dreams last night, Jareth...'

'I know.'

She gripped him again, her fingers digging into his arms. 'But that's not supposed to happen! Not here!'

His face was remote and drawn. 'We shall speak with the Quaternion, and then we shall see.' He caught sight of Sarah and Toby and for a moment looked faintly surprised, as though he had forgotten they were there.

'Are you all right?' Sarah directed her question to Delaine. The Princess attempted a smile; the result was more of a grimace. 'I've been better.'

Toby had turned to face them, but Sarah's arm was still around him, holding him to her. 'What's going on?'

Jareth's eyes flickered between them. 'There is something that we have to do.' He looked beyond them. 'Your friends will look after you. Stay with them.'

Sarah looked over her shoulder and saw Ludo, Ambrosius, Hoggle and Sir Didymus standing in a huddle. Ambrosius looked grim, the others looked puzzled and apprehensive. Sarah felt her mouth go very dry. When she turned back to Jareth and Delaine, they had both gone.

ooOoo

The chamber was clad in black granite polished so highly the surfaces were like mirrors. Their breath frosted on the frigid air. Delaine met Jareth's eyes and, without need for words, they both set about their tasks. She moved to one side of the room and passed her hand through the solid wall; when she drew it back she was holding a small phial. It was so icy she could feel the pain of cold shooting up her arm. A blue flame flared up across from her. Jareth walked towards the centre of the room bearing the torch, his face was waxen in its electric blue flames and he looked almost demonic. Delaine shuddered. She removed the stopper from the phial as she joined him and then poured the contents in a small circle on the floor. Jareth lowered the torch until the flames licked the polished stone. The liquid caught and the circle ignited in a ring of black flames. Jareth took hold of her hand and they stepped into the circle. The flames climbed higher, engulfing them, and then died away.

The chamber was empty.

ooOoo

Sarah and Toby walked with Ambrosius; the other three lagged behind a little but Sarah could hear the low murmur of their conversation.

'What's going on, Ambrosius? What happened to Delaine?'

The sorcerer stopped and looked down at Toby. 'Toby-'

'I'm not going,' he stated flatly. Ignoring Sarah's reproach he continued, 'Jareth already told me all about Khazad - that's what's going on, isn't it? I was there before when Jareth ... when he looked all sick and stuff.'

'When was that?'

'When you were away.' Toby looked up at her. 'It was the first night I was here. And it happened again today when we were in the Labyrinth, but it was worse this time.' He looked back at Ambrosius. 'I know who you are, by the way.'

Ambrosius' black eyes twinkled. 'Oh, do you now?'

'Yeah. Jareth told me.'

'Jareth seems to tell you many things.'

'I guess. So I figure I have as much right to know what's going on as Sarah has.'

Ambrosius' beard twitched; Sarah hazarded a guess that this meant he was amused. 'He has a point,' Ambrosius said to her mildly.

She looked from Ambrosius' lined, wise face to her brother's defiant eyes and then back to where her friends were lurking a few paces behind them. She blew out a breath. 'Well, looks like we're in this together, kiddo.'

Toby grinned at her and Sarah reflected ruefully that life had been much simpler when his affection could be bought with a comic book and a stick of gum.

'You were correct, Toby, when you mentioned Khazad in all of this.' They started walking again. 'His strength has grown considerably in a very short space of time.'

'Is that because of me?' Sarah asked.

'I doubt it. You did not give him what he wanted.' His heavy brows drew together. 'If only I could see more clearly... If this matter could be settled without a fight, it would be so much the better for everyone, but I doubt that Khazad will back down if he has gained so much power.'

'What did Delaine mean when she said she shouldn't be having bad dreams here?'

'Just that. Nightmares cannot happen in the Underground.'

Sarah pursed her lips, remembering aspects of her own journey through the Labyrinth. 'That sort of depends on what you call a nightmare.'

Ambrosius' sober face lightened a little. 'Careful, my dear: you are starting to sound rather like Jareth.'

'Isn't-' Toby cleared his throat. 'Isn't Khazad a nightmare? That's what Jareth told me, anyway.'

The old man's face darkened again. 'In a way, yes. He draws out joy and hope and leaves behind his poison. What is it you mortals say... For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction?'

Sarah nodded.

'That is what Khazad is to us. Where we are light, he is darkness. If he is able to affect Delaine and Jareth directly, then he has grown powerful indeed. He will be trying to find a way into the Underground and when he does...'

'When?' Sarah looked at him sharply. You make it sound like he's already won.'

Ambrosius halted again, sighing heavily. 'A battle, I'm afraid, is inevitable. Sooner or later. It may be averted today, if the Quaternion rules in Jareth's favour.'

'The Quaternion,' Sarah repeated the word slowly. 'What is that?'

'Our final authority.'

ooOoo

Jareth had only seen the Quaternion twice before: once after his father died and once to dissolve Delaine's ill-fated marriage to an Elf lord. He found the journey there as unpleasant as he had the first time - it felt like being passed through a very tight vice and just at the point he was certain he would squeezed out of existence, he emerged into... nothingness. It was neither hot nor cold, dark nor light. He sensed Delaine next to him and found her hand. Even through his gloves he could feel that her fingers were freezing; she was breathing hard. Together they moved forward, pushing against the heavy air and feeling wisps like mist brush against their faces.

Then they saw it: the massive door flanked by great, solemn pillars. The Halls of Stone. And within sat the Quaternion: the four beings that embodied the elements, that held dominion over all the realms of the Fae.

Jareth raised his hand and struck three times. The sound reverberated and died away.

A dull thud sounded within and the doors swung open

ooOoo

'So, are they your gods?'

'They are not the originators of creation, but they were there when all worlds - including your own - were made; and they will be there when the last of them comes to an end.'

Sarah ran a hand through her hair. 'But you said that they are the final authority. They can end this.'

'Yes.' Ambrosius found a convenient tree stump and rested against it. 'But the Quaternion are neutral observers: very rarely do they intervene in the day-to-day business of our realms.'

Toby sat near the sorcerer's feet, plucking blades of grass and mangling them between his fingers; after some moments Sarah settled next to him, her skirts billowing across the ground.

'Jareth hopes that they will arbitrate in this matter. If they decree that Khazad has flouted the laws of our worlds, then the matter will come to an end.'

'How can there be an "if"?' Sarah demanded. 'He's attacking you! Khazad is the bad guy in this.'

Ambrosius smiled sadly. 'I'm afraid that good and evil are irrelevant terms to the Quaternion. They may feel that conflict between the Underground and the Darklands is necessary. Even beneficial.'

She stared at him incredulously.

'There are some kingdoms who think that a change of rule in the Underground would be a good thing - they very well may welcome a challenge to Jareth's authority.'

'But Khazad wants to destroy the Underground,' Sarah said, her voice tight. 'He'll ruin everything. I saw it - you saw it.'

'He wishes to harness its magic: doing so would undo most of what Jareth and his ancestors have achieved here. The Underground would survive, but it would be very different from what it is now.'

Sarah looked across the Labyrinth, remembering the first time she had seen it, the way it had looked when she had flown over it and the residual images of Jareth's memories of it that still remained with her. 'How could anyone think that that would be a good thing?'

'Not everyone thinks that Jareth's affection for the mortals is a desirable attribute.' Ambrosius' eyes glittered like chips of obsidian in his weathered face. 'The links between the Underground and the Aboveground are far stronger than any in other Fae realm. Some of our kind see this as a threat. Others view it as maintaining the tradition of when all our worlds were less removed from one another.' He stared into the distance before lowering his head and looking at them again. 'I do not know the outcome of this particular situation, but I do know one thing: if Khazad defeats Jareth, the whole of the Fae realm will be drawn into a war.'

ooOoo

'Goblin King. Why do you seek us?'

The voices reverberated in his head. It was not a pleasant experience, more as though some entity had crawled inside his skin and was burrowing through his mind. Four seats were arranged in a semicircle. Their occupiers had faces, of a sort. Sightless eyes stared over his and Delaine's heads; they had no mouths.

'You know why I have come, you who see all and know all. I seek arbitration.'

'This matter is not for us. You have the answer, Goblin King. Surrender, or fight.'

Jareth remained silent for a moment, swallowing his anger. 'Khazad has no right to invade my lands-'

'He was once one of you.'

'That was a long time ago. He no longer has any legitimate claim. Your judgement could avert a war.'

'Perhaps. But you invited him in.'

Jareth stared at the motionless beings before him. 'Invited?'

'You accepted him into your kingdom. By doing so, you gave legitimacy to his claim. Therefore, his challenge is just.'

'I did not extend any invitation to Khazad! I have done everything to defend my land and my people from him!'

Their voices were relentless, remorseless. 'You accepted pain. You accepted despair.'

Delaine heard his sharp intake of breath and her heart sank. A suspicion crept into her mind and she hoped that she was wrong.

'You allowed him into your realm. Now you must face him, Goblin King.'

ooOoo

Toby looked up from his unhappy little mound of grass and looked between Sarah and Ambrosius. The wizard's face, half hidden by his beard and heavy eyebrows was impossible to read; his sister's face wore a hard, remote look that he found even more frightening.

'Jareth will win, won't he? This Khazad guy can't really beat him, can he? I mean, Jareth can do anything - he's really powerful.'

Ambrosius let out a long breath, speaking before Sarah could say anything. 'Jareth is powerful, Toby, that is true. But so is Khazad. And I just don't know.'

Toby turned to his sister. 'You always said that dreams are stronger than nightmares. You can make all the bad stuff go away if you believe enough.'

Her eyes glittered. 'Let's hope that's true.'

ooOoo

Their dismissal from the Halls was peremptory: one moment they had stood before the seats, the next they were in the castle once again. The gleaming black walls seemed to press in on them, but neither moved for some moments.

'What happened last night?' Delaine asked quietly. Jareth remained with his back to her; he did not reply. 'Was it Sarah? Did you try to ... comfort her?'

'It was Toby.' He turned to her eventually; the shadows under his eyes were like purple bruises. 'He looked so small, Delaine. Too small for so much pain, and...'

'You took it from him.' She laughed mirthlessly and rubbed her eyes. 'The mortals have a saying: the road to hell is paved with good intentions.'

'Do you think I don't realise how much I have let everyone down? Do you think I don't hate myself for that?'

'I'm sorry.' She crossed over to him and rested her small hands on his shoulders. 'We have allies. Help will come, Jareth.'

'Perhaps.' He looked into her face. 'It's all been for nothing, hasn't it? Everything we've tried to do to protect ourselves over the years - and then I go and give Khazad the opening he's been looking for. I may as well have flung open the castle and told him to make himself at home. They always said my fondness for mortals would be the undoing of us all, maybe they were right.'

'Self-pity is not one of your most attractive characteristics,' Delaine informed him coolly. 'It really doesn't suit you. And "they" are idiots, by the way.'

A sardonic smile flitted across his face. 'You look truly terrifying when you're pretending to be fierce, little sister.'

'I'm not pretending.' She sighed. 'What about Sarah?'

'What about her?'

'She's involved in this, you know.' After a moment she raised her eyebrows. 'Hesitancy doesn't suit you, either.'

'Sarah has a right to know what's happening and how we came to this,' he admitted. 'Toby as well, I suppose. I will tell them - in my own way, Delaine,' he raised his voice slightly, drowning out whatever comment she was attempting to make.

She stepped back from him, inspecting him as dispassionately as she would a tool or a weapon. 'I know you blame yourself for this, Jareth, but you cannot fix this on your own. I can help you, but you have to trust me. You have to trust all of us.'

'I do. I need you, Delaine. Ambrosius, too. And-and Sarah. But I refuse to endanger any of you more than is necessary.'

Delaine slipped her arm through his and started to lead him out of the claustrophobic chamber. 'Allow us to make our own decisions, at least.'

They walked in silence through the castle's winding passageways until they emerged onto the battlements and stood, looking out across the Labyrinth and the land beyond it. Below them on a stretch of grass surrounded by trees and wild flowers were Sarah and her companions.

'Tell them now.'

Jareth turned to his sister. 'That they should prepare for war?'

'It is the truth.'

'Yes.' He turned back to watch the small gathering: what they were discussing he did not know, although he could guess; from this distance they looked content, however, and he wanted to hold onto that illusion. 'Let's give them a little longer,' he said. 'A few hours, at least.'

To be continued...