David sits cross-legged against a wall, his feet aching from what felt like miles of walking. As one hand massages his burning toes, the other finishes a verse...

"I hope it's enough..." David sighs.
***************************************
Meanwhile, Aladdin wades knee deep in a shallow black pool, dragging Major Tom's body to the pavement. His pale ashen face is already marked with Pierrot's distintive make-up. Just as he is about to reach the edge, his foot catches on something heavy and he falls hard, face down into the water. Aladdin, weary and tired and anguished, crawls back to the edge, dumps Major's body on the ground, turns around and pulls out a heavy canvas bag out of the water.

Aladdin unties the bag. There--bound and gagged like a Houdini trick gone wrong--was Monti's body.

Jareth, within Aladdin's head, clicks his tongue, "They really ought to leave magic to the experts."

Aladdin screams, "That's not funny, Jareth!!" He absorbs Monti and Major Tom's body into himself. "Only Celliers, Halloween Jack and Dory are out there now. They're going to die, too, and there's nothing I can do to save them."

Jareth: "I'm glad you've finally got a grip on reality, Aladdin."
********************************************
Major Celliers, looking down his rifle, stalks the corridors, finger resting on the trigger. He approaches a four-way intersection.

Then, two distinct howls could be heard coming from one direction. One a Diamond Dog's howl, another a sphinx's yelp.

"JACK!! DORY!!" Major Celliers calls out. A blur of yellow fur shoots across Jacques from right to left, followed by another red and black furry blur.

"Come now! This is no time for your 'dog-and-cat' chase!!" Celliers runs after the two, down a long path of twisting corridors. The howls grow louder and more menacing. Celliers is running as fast as his army boots and gun can allow him.

At a dead end, a large dog-like creature has its jaws buried deep into Dory's neck. The cat mews helplessly as it slips away into oblivion.

"NO!!" Celliers aims his gun and fires a round into the dog's back.

PING! The sound of lead hitting metal resounds in the halls. Just before the bullet hit the creature, the dog's skin turned into thick metal, deflecting the shot!

The dog slowly stands up, and morphs into its true form...

"The Duke!!" Celliers' clenches his teeth. He pulls his trigger a few more times, but the Dukes raises his hand, creating a protective wall in front of him. None of the bullets even touch him!

"How anti-climatic that my last opponent before Aladdin must be a mere 'movie Bowie'," the Duke sneered. Major Celliers was frozen in place.

"What are you going to do now, Major," the Duke arched his eyebrows, "kiss me? Unlike before, it won't save your friends. Like before, it won't save YOU!"

"I can still crack your head wide open with the butt of my rifle!" Major Celliers swings it over his shoulder.

"Then come at me," the Duke wiggles his finger, "if you're stupid enough to think you'll kill me!"

Major makes a lunge at the Duke, but his foot sinks into something soft. The sand-colored floors of the maze suddenly turn into...

"Quicksand!" Celliers drops the gun and tries to pry his legs free, but he sinks further and quicker.

The Duke: "At least Hunky Dory was good for something..." He coldly watches as the soldier desperately sinks into the sand. Every nightmare Celliers ever had--being buried alive, slowly suffocating, his childhood failures--all rushed back as he made one last gasp of air. Then, just as he got neck deep, he stopped sinking. Major Celliers looked up, as the Duke stooped down, grabbing a fistful of hair.

"Since I know you enjoy this," the Duke kissed the Major's left cheek. Then his right. Then his pulled his head back and sank in his teeth....

To be continued...

Don't understand me, just love me