A knock resonated through the Throne Room.
Jareth answered it with a commanding “Enter.”
Two goblins entered frog marching a human girl between them. The goblins armor made a cacophony of metallic chinks and clunks as they marched. In their hands they clutched short staffs topped by sharp lethal spikes. The goblins themselves might have been comical with their oversized armor and mismatched weaponry but Jareth knew better. Goblins by nature were vicious, barbaric creatures prone to drunkenness and fits of rage. It made ruling over their species tedious, with the endless bickering and in-fighting. But Jareth endured all the headaches. The benefits of his subjects’ obedience far outweighed any annoyances Jareth might be forced to endure. Goblins men were fierce fighters that never questioned or disobeyed an order. Their loyalty was absolute. The women made able and energetic servants and served Jareth in most aspects of his life. Goblins themselves had no magic save one ability. They could hear wishes. Jareth had made ample use of their one talent over the years. Goblins were extremely susceptible to magic. In particular, his, magic. Jareth smiled to himself as these two approached his throne. Their armor continuing to creak and groan until the goblins came to a halt grabbing the girl roughly by the arm and forcing her to stop as well.
“The 4th maid of the chambers as you requested M’Lord.” The goblin to Jareth’s right heralded. His oversized lips making the goblin’s words come out soft and babyish.
“Yes, yes.” Jareth said waving his hand. “You may leave.”
The goblins quickly turned and double time marched from the room.
“All of you.” Jareth commanded. From every corner of the room there were hushed whispers and the sounds of small bodies shuffling. The noise ended abruptly with the sound of a small door shutting.
Sitting on his throne Jareth regarded the girl. Though girl was hardly the right term. Without the wig up close she looked at least 20 years older. He couldn’t believe he had been fooled. When first he realized the maid’s duplicity he had thought the girl might have tricked him with a minor glamour or a charm but one look at her and it was easy to surmise that the maid had no more magic than his subjects. Was it simply his own desire that had fooled his eyes? It was possible, Jareth concluded, but not probable.
The maid stood head bowed, eyes appropriately downcast. Her expression full of anxiety. Jareth studied the woman. Her hands fidgeted with her apron. He saw the crease on her forehead. The tilt of her head. She exuded nervous energy. It really was quite convincing. However Jareth could just make out the ever so slight smile at the corners of mouth. Had her life taken a different course Jareth had no difficulty in imagining her upon the stage and he her patron.
So apparently she was pleased with herself. Perhaps she though he had called her here to apologize. To grovel before her and beg her for absolution. In that little glint of a smile Jareth could see her plan laid out before her. It disturbed him that this woman had a plan at all. She was supposed to be a maid. Who was she?
“What is your name?” Jareth asked. His eyes continued to roam across her form.
The maid hesitated ever so slightly before answering. The effect was wasted upon Jareth. He heard the deliberateness of that hesitation. “Maggie sire.” Her voice quavered delicately.
“Don’t lie to me.” Jareth warned her.
“S..sire?” The maid seemed confused.
“What is your name?” Jareth asked again.
“I’m sorry sire. I told you. Me names Maggie.” The confusion in her voice was so genuine as was the gentle tremble of her chin. Jareth felt it tug at his heart. So she wasn’t just some scheming maid. She was a skilled liar indeed.
Jareth let out a sigh. “And I told you. You are lying.”
“I’m not m’lord. Me name’s Maggie. On me mother’s bones sire.”
“If you insist, Maggie, but I will hold you to that oath.” Jareth saw fear cloud the maid’s eyes but the next instant they were clear again. “Maggie, I have a problem.” Jareth said.
The maid’s eyes darted towards his face for a fraction of a second. “What’s that m’lord?”
“I have come across a situation that I simply don’t know how to handle. I’ve been mulling it over all day and I just can’t figure it out. I was hoping you might help me.”
The maids face shifted from innocent confusion to bewilderment. Almost rehearsed. “Me, sire?”
“Yes, you Maggie. You’re good at helping people when they need it, aren’t you?” Jareth tilted his head slightly to the side and smiled at the maid.
The maid stammered “I.. I try, m’lord.”
Jareth sank back into his throne. He threw an arm over one side of the giant curved arm of the throne and he let his leg dangle over the other side. “Oh you need not convince me of that. I know how very… helpful… you can be.” He laid delicate emphasis on the word ‘helpful’. The maid’s gaze followed the line of his body, flashing hungrily when her eyes rested on his crotch. “Which is, of course, why I wanted your opinion.”
This time true confusion showed plainly upon the maid’s face.
Jareth pushed himself up from his throne and approached the maid. “You see, I have been deceived.”
“Deceived?” The maid seemed to have blurted it out without thinking because for a brief second she looked angry with herself. But in a flash her face was rearranged into a somber and curious expression. “I mean. Deceived sire?
So she had a script and she hadn’t stuck to it. That was interesting. Jareth had closed the distance between them and began walking in a slow deliberate circle around her.
“Yes, deceived, dear… Maggie. See I try to be a just and fair ruler, not only to the goblins in my charge, but also the humans whom I allow so graciously to live within my kingdom. I want them to feel like the realm of the Labyrinth is their home. That they are safe within its walls. I want them to feel like I keep them safe. I want every subject to feel a personal connection to me. I want to be more than just their King, Lord and Master. I want to be their protector too. That each night they sleep easy because they feel my presence, my arms, wrapped around them, making sure that no harm befalls them.” As he described the sensations he focused upon the maid so that she might feel what he was describing. “I want them to hear my voice whispering in their ears telling them ‘You are safe.’” She had felt his arms around her, his breath on her ear. “Do you know what I mean?” Jareth came to a halt before the maid. Her mouth hung open and her eyes were slightly out of focus. After a lingering second the maid shook her head and her eyes cleared.
“I uh..I do…sire.” The maid said. Her tone was not that of a girl coming out of the light trance Jareth had wound through her brain with his words. Her tone was that of a soldier who had been caught neglecting their duties. How interesting. What had he caught? He could see her muscles were rigid. She would fight his influence and resist his trance. But she was too slow to hide her weakness from him. Jareth had already seen her undoing. Her desire. The unformed wish upon her lips. He had power over her and her flimsy will would not stand before him. He began circling her again.
“You see… Maggie, how hard I try. You see how my every thought and every action are for no other purpose than to protect my subjects. It is difficult. A life full of unfulfillment. A life of denying my wants and my desires for the sake of others. A life of loneliness and longing. To forever be tormented by that which is just beyond your fingertips. I know you understand me. I know you understand longing. I feel it within you.”
Jareth poured more than enough power into his words. This time when he stopped in front of her, her eyes remained slightly out of focus and her mouth hung limp. Jareth waved his hand in front of the woman’s face. Her eyes remained relaxed and unfocused. Jareth regarded the woman. She had made an effort to fight his magic. That took special training.
“Tell me your name.” Jareth commanded.
Without hesitation the maid said “Michelle.”
“Who do you work for Michelle?” Jareth asked. Discovering a spy within his castle walls was disconcerting but Jareth had many enemies. He must know who had been able to slip this past his watch.
“Lilith.” Michelle said. The words came out thickly, as if her tongue had fought revealing the truth even if her brain was his.
“Show me your wrist.” Jareth commanded. Michelle held her hand up. Jareth grabbed the sleeve of her dress and yanked it roughly down revealing the inside of her wrist. There, raised from the skin, was a small spiral brand. Jareth ran his finger slowly over the scarred skin.
“Ahh. And did you report our last encounter to her?” Jareth was both relieved and annoyed by this turn of events.
The girl’s voice was as distant as her eyes. “No.”
“Good. That makes things much simpler.” Jareth said and he clapped his hands. The woman blinked her eyes trying to bring them back into focus. At the same moment the Throne Room’s doors pushed open and the two goblin guards rushed in resuming their positions on either side of the woman. Jareth turned from the woman and returned to his throne. The woman blinked her eyes a few more times and closed her mouth as if she had just become aware that it was hanging open. After a second her eyes began darting around the room suspiciously. She knew something had happened but she didn’t know what. She could not remember. Jareth’s trance had been too strong.
Jareth smiled languorously at the woman as he seated himself. “You have proven most helpful Michelle.” At the mention of her name fear was plainly readable upon her face.
“S.sire?”
Jareth held up his hand. “Spare me your act. You have been caught. I will not kill you. It’s not worth the headache Lilith would inflict upon me. However I do not suffer spies in my land. Even if they are my sister’s property.” Jareth clapped his hands again and the goblins grabbed each of her arms. Michelle struggled to throw off the goblins hands, but they held her firm in their vice-like grip.
Jareth stood and walked to the balcony window that overlooked his kingdom. The goblin guards dragged the woman behind him. She began resisting, trying to pull away from her captors but their hands were like iron and could not be budged.
Jareth raised his hands to the world beyond his window and the world fell silent. The goblins below felt his influence. They stopped what they were doing and gazed upwards at their King. Once the square below his window fell still Jareth addressed his subjects.
“This woman,” Jareth reached behind him and grabbed the woman by her hair pulling her forward. The goblins released her but stayed immediately behind her. Once her arms were released she began grasping at her hair where Jareth held it firm. Jareth continued “has been discovered to be a spy.”
Below him the crowd of goblins jeered. Goblins especially hated disloyalty.
“She seeks to undermine our kingdom and destabilize my throne.” Jareth paused to allow his words to permeate the crowd. Anger quickly rose to the surface. The goblins grew louder in their indignation. Jareth heard one yell ‘Gut her!’ and another screamed ‘Rip her arms off!’. A few brandished what they were holding: brooms, sticks, a cat.
Jareth continued “I have decided to be merciful and spare her life.” As one the goblins groaned showing their displeasure. There was very little they liked more than a good execution. Jareth raised his free hand again and the crowd’s disappointment quieted. “No death would be too easy a punishment. To quickly finished. Instead I have decided upon torture.”
Below him the goblins screamed in delight. Jareth pushed the woman back into the goblin guards standing behind her. They grabbed her before she had time to struggle. Jareth bent down and pulled from his boot a dagger. He straightened up and held it above his head. The light reflected off the blade and the crowd yelled in excitement. Jareth turned to face the spy. Her eyes darted between his face and the dagger’s blade. She no longer fought the guards holding her tight. The sight of the blade had paralyzed her. She had obviously been threatened with a knife before. She began stammering “You…you..you pr..prom..promised..Youu…”
Jareth took a step forward and rested the tip of the blade on her lips. “Shhhh..” Jareth was mere inches from her. He could feel her whole form quivering. He looked deeply into her eyes, her pupils wide with terror. Jareth breathed her terror in and felt it strengthening him. With a wicked smile he moved the dagger from her lips to her chest, pressing the point of the blade into her skin. He pressed only for her to feel the pressure. It was not her skin he sought to cut. In a quick, fluid motion Jareth brought the dagger down. Plunging it down the length of her body. He moved too fast for her to see. Instead she had felt the sensation as the blade cut through every layer of clothing she had on. She felt the tip of the blade pressing into her skin just before the point of cutting, dragging down between her breasts, the length of her stomach, and past her swollen pussy. Jareth’s blade had plunged all the way to the floor leaving no part of her clothing connected. Her dress fell open, exposing her entire front to the gaping crowd of goblins below who cheered, screeched, and wolf whistled.
“Strip her.” Jareth commanded. Roughly the goblin guards yanked on her sleeves and the remnants of her dress fell to the floor. Jareth watched Michelle blush from head to toe as she tried in vain to cross her legs and cover her breasts with her hands. Jareth raised his hand towards her, fingertips together. As Jareth spread his fingertips the limbs of Michelle’s body began spreading and straightening. Michelle screamed as the invisible bonds stretched her tight while the vines that clung to the side of the castle began to grow towards her. Jareth willed the vines to ensnare her wrists and ankles. The vines continued to grow until their stalks were thick and tough as leather.
Jareth dropped his hand and admired his handiwork. The vines held Michelle stretched across the entire arched window. Her arms secure against the marble arch and her feet spread wide across the 4’ base of the window. Below the goblins surged with fresh enthusiasm. Even those across the square could see the slit between her spread legs.
Michelle’s skin began blotching bright red across her face and stomach. In her humiliation her entire breast had turned the most marvelous shade of magenta. Jareth slapped her tit. She cried out and the crowd’s excitement swelled again. Jareth watched where he had smacked turn white and then burn an even brighter red.
“You know, something isn’t quite right.” Jareth said as he raised his hand to the level of her eyes. Resting lightly on his fingertips was a bubble. Michelle raised her eyes and tried to look at the bubble but before she could clearly see the image within Jareth had dropped it at her feet. It smashed on the rock floor like glass. The fractured bubble did not dissolve into mist but remained jagged splinters on the rock. However most were obscured by the deep brunette wig that now lay upon the floor. Jareth bent down and picked up the wig. He then placed it gently on her head. Her eyes remained locked on him as he straightened the wig and tucked her blonde hair in. When he finished he said “There. You have no idea how cathartic this will be for me.” He smiled and then quickly climbed between her arm and leg to stand behind her.
Jareth extended his hand and a bubble fell lightly into his palm. Jareth closed his hand around the bubble and it transformed. Lengthening into a heavy leather flogger. Jareth hefted the flogger and began bringing its’ falls down across her back and ass. She screamed and tried to throw herself forward, away from the stinging leather but the vines held her tight. There was no escape. Jareth let the falls rain down until her back was as red as her front.
Jareth stepped into her body and ran his hand along her back, feeling the heat radiating from her skin. He spoke into her ear “This is only the beginning.” He then stepped back from her and squeezed the handle of the flogger. Immediately the flays stiffened and came together. They wound themselves and lengthened until they formed a 4’ long bullwhip. Jareth took a few more steps backward and without remorse let the whips tip bite across her back, bringing up red welts. Where his whip marks overlapped the redness of the skin took on a wetter sheen and streaks of red began following the whip. Each time the lash fell Michelle screamed with fresh pain. And each scream brought forth a cheer from the goblins. They were salivating in the sight of the human woman being whipped. Every time Jareth brought down the single tail the woman’s whole body took the impact causing her chest to lunge and her breasts bounced constantly. They loved how helpless she was to keep the lash from coming up between her legs, striking at her unprotected pussy. They cheered and screamed and stomped their approval.
Jareth continued to squeeze the handle and the instrument he was holding would begin to squirm in his hand until it took on another shape: A paddle, a cane, a ruler, rope. He brought down each instrument with acute precision. Again and again and again until Michelle stopped resisting. Until she hung limply from the vines. Only then did Jareth let the whip fall from his hand. It dissolved into mist before it hit the floor.
Jareth climbed back from her limp arms to stand in front of her. He faced his subjects who continued their tumultuous approval. Jareth yelled above the chaos “And thus to all spies in my kingdom.” The crowd went wild.
Jareth turned back to Michelle. When he had stopped she had hung loosely by the vines. Now she was unsteadily supported by her feet. To Jareth’s surprise she raised her head. Jareth could tell it took most of her strength but she held her head high and looked him directly in the face.
“You have had your fun.” Her voice trembled slightly from the beating she just received but it was stronger than Jareth would have imagined possible. “You don’t dare kill me. So send me back to you sister so I can tell her what you did to me, yesterday AND today.”
Jareth laughed and his laughter felt like nails raking across all the fresh wounds upon her back. “Ahh.” Jareth said, the laughter clearly evident in his voice. “The arrogance of humanity. You think that my sister will care what I have done to you. She will not.” To illustrate his point Jareth punched the woman in the stomach. Her body lurched forward. This time it took her a minute to regain her unsteady footing.
Jareth was surprised to hear a choked laugh coming from the woman. “She will. Do you think that you are the only one I tricked into my bed. You assume I am nothing but a spy to your sister. But you’re wrong. So send me back and let me tell her what you have done.”
Jareth laughed at the defiant look on her face half covered by the wig that had come loose and had shifted. Jareth reached out and pulled the wig free and let it drop. It dissolved into mist as it touched the floor. He then ran his finger along Michelle’s chin. “Oh Michelle. You assume I am done with you.”
Jareth turned back to his subjects who had grown restless during their exchange. “The spy will be taken from here to the Bog of Eternal Stench. She will be there shackled in the stockade and available for use by all loyal to their King. Let’s show her what we do to spies in the Labyrinth, shall we?”
The goblins went into hysterics, shrieking, throwing themselves and others around. They threw what they were holding in the air in jubilation. Spears, bread and chickens rained down upon the crowd now surging towards the eastern gate which led to the Bog.
Jareth clapped his hands and the two guard goblins reappeared on either side of the woman. They clamped their hands on her arms and Jareth waved his hands. The vines released her and began retreating. The woman’s face showed her shock.
“You..You wouldn’t dare.”
Jareth simply smiled as the guards turned her away from him. She began struggling and the guards began pulling her from the Throne Room. Jareth watched as she screamed and cursed him, trying to throw off the goblin’s hands. Jareth waved his hand and her scream ceased.
“Save your voice. You’ll need it. The boys love a good screamer, don’t you boys?” Jareth asked the goblin guards. They began chuckling darkly by way of answer.
Tears poured down the woman’s cheeks as she continued to struggle mutely. Jareth studied her for a moment. “Take her.” He said as he walked passed her to his throne.
The goblins began dragging the thrashing woman away. Just before they reached the door Jareth said “And boys. Make sure you tell the lads that she likes it rough. Trust me.”
The guards chuckled again and then pulled her from the room. Jareth saw her body buck one last time before she was pulled out of sight. Once the door closed Jareth released her and he heard her screams growing fainter and fainter as she was removed from the castle.
When at last her screams died out Jareth sat on his throne. He took a deep breath. Above him Jareth heard a muffled shuffle. With slight annoyance he called out “Come out, come out, wherever you are.” All around him was a flurry of movement as small goblins crowded back into the room. They returned to their usual positions and quickly the room was filled with their din. Jareth was in no mood for his subjects antics at the moment though. He stood up. Immediately one of the goblins asked him “Where are you going sire?”
Jareth sighed. “To see my sister.” And he disappeared.
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