The Heart of the Labyrinth Part 1

Chapter 1: Underground

Chapter 1    Underground

            “In a castle beyond a particular goblin city, The Goblin City, surrounded by an immense Labyrinth, lived a Fae. He was both beautiful and frightening to behold; cruel yet just to his subjects. It was incredible that he still had what little sanity he possessed left after centuries of living with goblins, who are childish, most acting no more than a five or six years old. They were of wild magic, as was the Labyrinth itself, and were not to be trifled with; especially because of their King. At one point in time the Labyrinth had many ‘visitors’ from the Above, as those Underground call the human world. There were two kinds of ‘visitors’, Wishers and Wished.

            Being the Goblin King didn’t stop at ruling the magical things, he was charged in the care of all children who were wished away from home by a loved one. Some were sent away because they could not be taken care of by their parents or because they were not wanted, no matter the reason somehow they always seemed to end up in the Underground.

            After many lonely years the King made a game out of the wishing because he found most Wishers asked for the children back as soon as he took them and then would wish them away again a few months later. To keep it from happening all the time, because he would occasionally become fond of the little children, he forced the Wishers to play a game with him. A game against the Labyrinth. Wishers had to get to his castle at the center of the Labyrinth, beyond the Goblin City, and find their child before the thirteenth hour. If they could not he would keep the child, who would become a goblin, and he would also take the Wisher’s memories of the child. It wasn’t fair, but neither was being wished away. Many years later the King met a girl, a Wisher, and fell in love with her. The feelings were not mutual and his heart became hard once she left the Labyrinth.

            Years passed and still he remembered her. Finally, one day, he heard the voice of another girl and he was intrigued but reluctant to draw near.” Juliet said slowly to her little brother, who sat on the park bench next to her. They had been at the park all day playing, now she was exhausted so she somehow wrangled him into sitting to listen to part of a story she had heard once; with a little added to it. Nothing like a little creative liberty. It was apparent that Johnny, her little brother, couldn’t comprehend all the words, but he understood enough to get what she was saying to him to ask.

            “Did he love her too?” His sister smiled down at him, replying with.

            “No one knows. Perhaps even the Goblin King doesn’t know. But maybe, just maybe, if they ever met, they would find out.” A white barn owl landed on a fallen tree a little ways away from where they sat in the park. Juliet smiled at the bird, giving her best impersonation of a barn owl call, to which it only cocked its head to one side. She laughed at the quizzical look on the bird’s face.

            “Jewls?” Johnny asked with a big smile.

            “Yes?”

            “Are you the girl?” She returned a smaller version of his smile as she looked away for a moment, blushing slightly.

            “Perhaps.” she replied.

            “You mean you don’t know? Can’t you just make up the rest?” Shaking her head Juliet stood up, extending her hand to him and saying.

            “This is more than a story; and besides, this is love, you can’t force someone into it. Otherwise it isn’t real. Love that is not true or only one sided is the worse feeling.” A glance down reminded her that he was only a child. With a smile she added. “Sorry. Forget what I said. Let’s go back home. Dinner will be soon.”