The Goblin King's Daughter

By: DemonSaya

Prologue

The eyes of the court were upon him as he moved forward to stand before the dias containing the roughly hewn throne of his father. Once upon a time, the grizzled old man had been one of the most feared rulers of the Underground. He'd garnered power and following that had actually rivaled that of Oberon, the High King of the realm. He had been called the High King of the Unseelie in secret. He'd been as wise as he was ruthless, and had strategically taken over kingdom after kingdom for centuries.

However, that was long ago, before Oberon had discovered the rival and sent his most powerful weapon against them. That weapon was the Goblin King.

He went to his knees before the man, taking an unsteady breath. "You summoned me, King Bram," he said, keeping his voice calm and serious.

"Prince Kieran, I've a mission for you."

He frowned, lifting his face and looking at his father. "A mission?" Did this mean that the senile old bastard had finally discovered that he had use beyond mean tasks that no one else wanted to dirty their hands with? The much older fae was starting to look his age, lines cutting deeply across his darkly tanned face, his dark hair hanging in tangled strands around his face. In those hazel eyes, there was an air of madness that Kieran recognized.

No, he had not been recognized. This would be another menial task.

Kieran felt his heart fall slightly and lowered his head once more. "What is the task you wish me to complete, my lord?" He kept his voice emotionless.

"Spies in the above have located the one who stole the power of the Goblin King," the king said, his face filled with glee. "It is our understanding that she is his one weakness. You will...acquire her, and bring her to me. She will hold the secret to returning the power to our kingdom."

Whispers around the room. Why entrust such an important mission to a child like him? Why give him that much recognition? The child of a commoner, one born out of wedlock. He didn't belong here; he was only useful for mercenary tasks.

He straightened, looking at his father. "It shall be done," he said, then turned, moving out of the room, his face expressionless. He returned to his room, where his current lover was lounging about, wearing nothing but skin. He looked at her, scooped her clothing into one hand and heaved it out of the room, then grabbed her arm in a tight grip. "Get out. Don't come back."

Then she followed her clothing.

He slammed the door shut with a violent shove and threw the lock. He didn't want company right now. He wanted to escape this reality for a short time. Find a place where he would be accepted as something more than he was here. None of these fools ever looked at him for his mind, they didn't see his potential for greatness. All they saw was the king's illegitimate child, heir only because the king had no other surviving children after the Goblin King had struck back from their attacks.

He hadn't been good enough to stand on that field with his brothers – all from Bram's wife – and his mother. His mother had been a woman who'd been the best strategist in the Kingdom and had been the commander of the king's army. She was a woman that men respected and feared. He, however, had only been good enough to slip into the back of the castle and assassinate the king.

Assination was considered a low task to the fae, something dirty, something that was never admitted to. It did not create glory for the assassin, did not increase their status in any way. It made them dirty, for such things were considered heinous. Especially assassinating a king. Only the lowest in society – mercenaries, slaves, and servants – were given such tasks. And yet, he, a prince, had been given this task as well.

Too bad they did not realize the goblin king was the polar opposite of King Bram.

King Jareth of the Goblin Kingdom didn't mind getting his own hands bloodied, and he'd rode the charge into battle, his goblin army holding off the throngs of attacking fae. Meanwhile, Bram had sat safe in his castle, plotting the downfall of the High King, after the Goblin King was out of the way. His task, while important, was fruitless, and he'd quickly gone to join the battle, hoping to be of some use to his family that way. He'd watched his brother's fall before the Goblin King's blade, and his mother – the only family he had that showed even the slightest devotion to him – died trying to protect her only son, and the sole remaining prince.

The Goblin King had stood over him for a long moment, looking down at him and the woman who in her armor appeared to be a man and his sword had lowered. He'd not said anything as he turned and walked away, sparing his life for no reason Kieran would ever know.

The court and his father had lain blame of the loss upon his young shoulders, because he'd failed in killing the other king.

Hell, even he blamed himself. If he'd been successful in his mission then his brothers and mother might still live.

He looked into his mirror, looking at the eyes that proclaimed him pollution in the royal line, those eyes like glittering gold. A stamp of sin. He was also tall, taller than his father at the man's prime. He was just under a century old now, and was on the verge of becoming a man, but his people did not view him as such. They viewed him as nothing more than a bother.

.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.o0o.

It was almost disgusting. It was too easy. Changing his form and flying for a portal in the Goblin Kingdom, finding the portal unguarded. He'd slipped through the portal, wondering if his father's words were true. Had a mere human managed to seal the powers of the Goblin King? Was the older fae going senile and starting to show his age, much like his own father was?

It mattered not.

He slipped through, blending among the ravens that were already there. Granted, his form was slightly larger than the others. His eyes were gold instead of black as well. Still, unless a mortal was right upon him, they'd never notice.

He had been told that Sarah Williams, champion of the Labyrinth, was a girl of fifteen years, however, the one he'd located was no mere child. She was a woman, and she appeared to have a daughter of her own. He knew she had to be the champion- the description he'd been given was too perfect. They were identical. He tried, but failed to focus on the woman, his eyes instead being drawn to the child.

He stared at her, his gaze becoming intense. Those of fae bloodlines could sense the blood in another, and his instincts were screaming at him. That was no mortal child. That girl had the blood of the fairy in her, and judging by her coloring and her mother, he suddenly had an idea of who the child should call father.

Her hair was medium length, honey blonde at the root, lightening to pale gold at the tip. Her eyes were large, almost too large for a human. And her brows...only those of the royal lines had the brows that slanted up like that. Even he, with mixed blood, still had those brows.

That girl was the daughter of the Goblin King, Kieran realized and his interest sharpened. It was the only explanation. He suddenly had a brilliant idea of how to truly gain his position in his father's kingdom, and he was going to have to kidnap that girl to obtain it.