| It happened. He felt it. Jareth stopped for a moment to take his sword. He will definitely need it. Cursing he continued to the underground. For a moment Sarah thought she had made a mistake. But she soon realized that she had not. The labyrinth, the underground one, which had been so still all the time had started to change, too. And her corridor had disappeared. She went to the place where it used to be. She knocked on the wall, but the sound wasn't hollow. Sarah took her lever and tried to move the stones in the wall, but she didn't succeed. OK, so what now? She could try the left corridor... if she's lucky, it would lead her to one of the places she knew. Her heart seemed to beat in her throat. As a goblin she could search these corridors almost forever, but as a human she would need water and food. How long was it going to take her? Did the labyrinth change in such a way, that she'd never escape? She didn't want to think about it. Sarah entered the left corridor. Soon she found another problem: most of the corridors were too narrow for a human being. She couldn't choose at the crossroads, mostly she simply had to take the only possible way. Sharp stones, that goblin would only laugh at, harmed her feet and hands. After several hours she came to a larger room. She hurried inside - and found herself back at the stream. Jareth called her, but she wasn't so close to hear him. He knew too well that her time was running short. Sarah didn't want to be desperate at the beginning, but now she only wanted to be hysterical. Falling down on the floor, shouting, screaming, kicking... sounded like a good idea. She was losing her patience fast. OK. Take the right corridor. And mark the old one. Mark everything. Take a rope. Think. She didn't know what Jareth had done - that she only had thirteen hours to find her way back. At the moment the time was over, the underground labyrinth became alive. Sarah heard a strange noise. Screeching and squeaking and hissing... it was loud and very unpleasant and it was very quickly coming closer. Slimy tentacle appeared around the corner and grabbed at her. She jumped away. Sarah ran away as fast as she could, but another feeler was faster. This time it was also stronger, but she escaped. The third one caught her, but she managed to kick it out and she stepped on a fourth one. Disgusting. But they were like a lightning now. Another one wrapped itself around her foot and this time she fell down. A moment later she felt another around her waist, pulling her closer. She lost the lamp. Then something whizzed past and she was free. The cut end jerked close to her. Jareth was there, sword in hand. He took her hand, quickly helping her to her feet. "Hurry!" She grabbed at the lamp and they both ran away. He didn't bother to explain anything, just dragged her away. They ran through dark corridors, Sarah had lost any sense of direction long ago. Once again they were attacked, by something similar to a griffin, but smaller. Sarah joined the battle a little - she took a strong branch and smacked the animal over its head. But Jareth's fight was much worse. When it was over, for a moment he only rested on the wall, before he could continue. "Why don't you use magic?" she asked. "Do you know where we are? It's dangerous to use it here," he snapped back. He quickly took her hand and they continued their crazy flight. Walls were trembling, stones falling from the ceiling, floor cracking under their feet. At last Jareth turned a panel and they were - not in the cellar, but in one of the upper chambers. Sarah opened her eyes wide. That castle had to be full of secret passages! Now, standing safe on a solid floor, covered with a carpet, in a well-lit room, she started to recall everything. "What... was that?" she asked, trying to find her breath again. "What do you mean," he asked venomously. "Sarah, Sarah. And I warned you not to go there." He fell into an arm-chair. Sarah turned red. "You knew..." "Who do you think I am? I did recognize you, Sarah." "So why didn't you just..." "I didn't want to embarrass you," he sighed. "But you can't say I didn't try to stop you." "I'm sorry. I didn't know..." "Yes, sure. If you knew, you wouldn't," he smiled a little. Then he looked at her. "So, sit down! You need a rest, too." Sarah fell into a nearest chair. "So what was it?" "You found a stream of a true shape. It's been hidden for a long time, and for a good reason. There's another magic down there, a dangerous one. That stream can change things into their true form - depending on your soul, on how you feel. It won't change goblins into human, ‘cause they don't feel like that and they don't wish it. They like to be what they are," he said, looking at her. "At least I hope." "Yes, I know," she whispered. "You're... very nice to them." Then she changed her mood quickly. "But why didn't you simply tell me about the stream?" "There are things that can't be done, even here. And now you know, how dangerous it was." "Yes. If you didn't help me... thank you for saving me," she added quickly. "You're welcome. After all, you're my subject. I'm responsible for you. I would do the same for any other goblin," the answer came. Sarah blushed. Any other goblin. All right. "So... now when I'm not a goblin anymore, what are your plans with me? Can you send me back home, to Earth?" Jareth sized her up. "I think the easiest solution is to change you back." |
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