Cain was positive that the princess had red puffy eyes when she came back from taking a bath, and he yearned to go see what was wrong. Unfortunately, when he had approached her, her guard had glared him off with a shake of her head.
It wasn't so much of a surprise to him that she was moody and withdrawn all the rest of the way to where Azkadellia was being held captive.
That day dawned bright and cloudless, but as they rode northeast, the sky became overcast and grey.
The night before, DG had made up her mind about something: she wouldn't let the memories of what never was and never would be affect how she approached Cain. She was going to try to befriend him and develop the relationship that she remembered having in the dark non-future the Labyrinth revealed to her.
The princess nudged her horse to trot beside the Colonel, deciding now was as good a time as any to apologize for her mood the past few days.
He gave her a look, "Don't worry about it, Princess. You're under a lot of pressure - you're sister is in enemy hands, anyone would be upset."
DG felt extremely guilty for using Az as the excuse for her moodiness, but she had no desire for Wyatt Cain to have the memories that were now hers to keep. She turned her head slightly, "It's the most horrifying feeling to know that someone that close to you is in pain. Because of our bond …" she took a ragged breath before she continued, "my body took on a life of its own and started reacting violently to her terror."
Wyatt winced in sympathy. He was a little surprised by her next words as the conversation took a shift, "Do you have any family?"
"A son. He's about four annuals younger than you - name's Jeb."
The conversation turned to more pleasant things while the group approached Azkadellia's prison.
DG pulled her horse up short in front of the mountains that separated the two kingdoms. She pointed to the north, "She's over there."
Wyatt didn't question how she knew this time, instead he motioned for one of the soldiers to approach. "I want you and three other men to go search those foothills for the Princess Azkadellia."
"Yes, sir," the soldier replied.
DG addressed him, "Three goblins will go with you - their noses are much more sensitive than humans' and they'll be able to smell magick if it's cloaking the cave." She motioned for three of the smallest goblins Wyatt and the soldier had ever seen to come forward. "This is Ding, Bing, and Ring. They have the best tracking skills in the Goblin Kingdom."
The little goblins puffed up at the praise of their princess. The one called Bing bowed slightly to the humans, "It would be our honor to hunt with you."
The soldier smirked in a bloodthirsty manner - no one touched a crown princess and came out unscathed. "We'll get along fabulously, I'm sure."
The princess dismounted and whispered some words to her subjects, passing them an object Wyatt couldn't see, and they replied with solemn nods before she straightened her back. DG inclined her head to the three goblins she knew to be mischievous and very good at their job, knowing that they would follow her orders out to the best of their abilities, "Good hunting, my brothers."
After the group of six had disappeared into the shadows surrounding the foothills, Wyatt asked her, "What did you give them?"
She smiled coldly, "I told them to give a message to Azkadellia's kidnappers. A message they will not be able to ignore."
--
As DG and the troops moved closer, Azkadellia felt calmer and more collected, despite the grave danger she was in. She knew what happened to her in the next few hours wouldn't matter all that much once DG got a hold on the bastards.
Despite any threats they made, and the crude gestures they tormented Az with, none of her kidnappers had set a finger on her. Yet. She wasn't sure how long her good fortune would last.
When the crystal ball rolled into the cave, stopping in front of Azkadellia, she knew it was no accident. As the hologram appeared, the kidnappers turned with their guns trained on the image of DG. She looked imposing in her dark, royal garb, a horse whip in one hand.
"This is Crown Princess Dorothia of the Goblin Kingdom," the recorded message ran, her eyes cold, "You have in your possession, my sister, Crown Princess Azkadellia of the O.Z. This will serve as your only warning: Release her now, unharmed, into the custody of the soldiers now waiting at the entrance of your hideout or suffer the wrath of not only the O.Z. but the Goblin Kingdom as well.
"Kidnapping a princess is an act of war and will be treated as such. You have been warned. Release her, or suffer the consequences. I will personally see each and every one of you castrated before being drawn and quartered - alive."
The hologram went dark. Azkadellia would have laughed at her sister's tone of voice and facial expression if it hadn't been so serious a situation. The kidnappers looked at each other before looking at the now silent, still crystal ball. One of them took his gun and shot the crystal into a thousand fragments.
That would serve as their answer, then. Ding watched from the shadows, keeping one eye on the princess and the other on the men as his brothers went to report back to Princess DG. Now his services would be required to make sure the enemy soldiers didn't lay a single hand on Princess Azkadellia. He would lay down his life to keep her safe.
--
DG was waiting in the recently set up command tent with Wyatt when the scouts returned. She turned her head to look at them, noting distinctly the absence of Ding.
Resolutely, she turned back to face Wyatt, "We have their answer. Prepare your men to give them ours."
"And what would that answer be?" the colonel asked.
"Ding had explicit instructions to stay with my sister and keep her safe if the kidnappers refused to set her free directly. Now, we show them that it wasn't just an empty threat." DG rose to her feet, intent on spending a moment alone in conference with her uncle before all hell broke loose.
Her companion rose to his feet with her, "Where are you going? It's not safe to go off alone."
DG stopped and looked at the older man, his concern causing her heart to beat even faster. "I'm not going to be alone, Mr. Cain, Coriander will be with me - and I'm going to go ask my uncle his advice on a certain … matter," she responded.
Wyatt raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to elaborate. When she didn't he asked testily, "What matter?"
"The proper way to castrate a man while inflicting the most pain possible," she replied with a blank face. At the surprised look on his face she continued, "I don't make empty threats, Colonel, and those men down there with my sister were all warned that castration would be the result if she was not freed immediately."
"Then by all means," he nodded once to her before shouting out orders to his underlings. This looked like it could end up being very interesting.
Wyatt just hoped that none of his men pissed off the princess too much.
--
Jareth and Sarah were enjoying a friendly game of chess when he heard a snort from behind him.
"You let her box you in quite nicely, Uncle," DG said from her vantage point of the mirror overlooking the table where the couple played.
Sarah turned with Jareth, a smile on her face, "How goes the sibling retrieval?" she asked good naturedly.
DG shook her head, "Not well, I'm afraid. The kidnappers have chosen to disregard my warning that they release Azkadellia immediately." Her eyes met her uncle's, "I need your help, Uncle."
"I'll just go make sure the goblins haven't burned the throne room down," Sarah said as she left, sensing that her presence wouldn't help matters that needed discussed between the niece and uncle.
Jareth also rose and approached the mirror, "What do you need, child?"
DG looked away, unable to face the concern that she found in her uncle's gaze, "I've found out who my bond mate is, Uncle." Her eyes filled with tears as she looked back at him and whispered, "And he's wonderful. More than I could ever have hoped for."
"Then why tears?"
She took a ragged breath before replying, "I asked the Labyrinth why he was chosen."
"And?" Jareth prodded when she fell silent. "The response?"
"She told me, 'Because of the past that never was and the future that never shall be.' I … made her explain further." The tears started falling down her face as she forced her eyes to hold her uncle's powerful gaze, "There was so much evil in those memories. So much destruction."
Silence reigned for a few moments after her statement before Jareth finally repeated, "What do you need of me, child?"
DG took in a deep, cleansing breath before she answered, "I need your advice on what to do about him." Before he could answer she added, "I can handle the kidnappers just fine - even if Le Monté was among them I could still be able to carry out my threat without blinking an eye. He'd be a casualty of war. But what in the name of Ozma am I supposed to do about this?"
Jareth felt his mouth twitch into a smirk despite the severity of the situation. When he had his mirth under control he replied, "Do you remember your first lesson in formal court dancing when you had to wear full court dress?"
DG nodded, her cheeks tinting pink at the embarrassing memory of tripping over feet and sore bottoms. It was a day she didn't anticipate forgetting any time soon.
Her uncle nodded once at her reaction, "Let him lead."
--
It was nearly sundown when Cain was finally able to track down the princess and get her to eat something.
"It wouldn't do to have you collapsing from exhaustion and lack of food," he chided.
DG rolled her eyes, eating the fruit he offered her slowly. "True, but I have no intention of collapsing before I get my sister back."
Wyatt raised an eyebrow at her statement. "You're so sure you'll get her back?"
The princess nodded adamantly, "Whole and unharmed. Ding knows what to do to keep her safe."
"And what will you do?"
Her blue eyes met his and she spoke while she held his gaze, "For now, we wait. General Dugan told me there's a number of enemy soldiers moving towards us from the east - Le Monté's men. Azkadellia will be out of there before they reach the mountain pass."
He wanted to believe her - to trust in her - but his instinct as a soldier won out. "You have to accept the possibility that that may not happen, Princess."
"It's DG, and no I don't." Her gaze was laced with sparks of magick, both light and dark. "I'd pull her out right now if any good would come of it."
"Then why don't you?" He wasn't sure why, but Wyatt got a thrill each time he questioned her and forced her to think more strategically.
"Because there's a collar around Az's neck that's controlling her ability to use magick. I cannot pull her out without causing her great pain unless she helps."
"How much pain?"
DG set down the piece of fruit in her hand and raised an eyebrow, "I'm told it feels something like having your intestines ripped out of you while a thousand needles poke them before setting them on fire."
"Ah. So, not an option, then."
--
It was nightfall when the reinforcements arrived. Az pretended to be disinterested, but she knew that the commander could probably see straight through her façade.
She heard the commander dismount form his horse and bark some orders to his lackeys as his heavy footfalls approached where she sat bound. Azkadellia made sure that the first look he had of her showed a straight back and little to no fear. She refused to cower before a terrorist.
A pair of black combat boots entered her line of vision, followed by a chuckle sounding in her ears as one of the boots lightly kicked her leg. "So this is the Gale bitch that's been causing such a commotion."
Az knew that voice. Her eyes remained trained in the distance as she replied, "You will eat those words, King Jackson."
King Jackson Le Monté smiled sinisterly as he bent down to yank at the princess's hair, forcing her to look at him. "Your mother is in no position to make me do so," he replied in a whisper.
The captive's eyes blazed with hate, "As I've told your men - it's not my mother you have to fear."
He chuckled again, letting go of her hair and stepping back to examine the cave. "I did notice that there were goblin standards out there among your mother's troops. Your sister, with her connection to the dark side of things, will make a lovely addition to my collection of war-brides."
To his great surprise Az started laughing at his boast. She shook her head at him as her eyes danced with a dark sort of mirth, "You will suffer the same punishment as your men, your highness. My sister has more power than you'd ever know what to do with. You cannot control her, let alone capture her."
Jackson's cool façade hid the fear that shot down his spine. "I have heard of how the two of you melted the Evil Witch of the Dark. But there are ways even to control a witch of extraordinary power."
Az cocked her head to one side as if she was judging his character. At long last she simply replied, "A witch is flesh and blood, but the Land can never be destroyed. How do you intend to destroy the Labyrinth that protects her? Stab it to death like you did your father?"
She was expecting the slap that stung her cheek, but she was not expecting him to yank her hair back again and force her mouth open in a brutal kiss.
"Watch your mouth, bitch," he spat at her, backing up. He turned to his men, "Tomorrow we take the Goblin Bitch."
A/N: Oh dearest readers, please honor me with a review ... or I might just make something terrible happen that no one wants to happen ... or I could just - no - no I won't do that.