Labyrinth: Coronation 4

Solicitation: "Maria finds allies willing to help guide her to the center of the Labyrinth and to her son, Jareth. But how much can she really trust them?"
==Story==
* Written by Simon Spurrier
* Illustrated by Daniel Bayliss with Irene Flores
* Colors by Dan Jackson
* Letters by Jim Campbell
* Character Designs by Kyla Vanderklugt
===Synopsis===
Jareth observes Sarah in his crystal, who is currently speaking to the door knockers accompanied by Ludo. Jareth has taken a liking to Toby, and comments that he’s thinking of renaming him “Jareth”. This prompts Beetleglum to ask if Jareth was the name given to him by Maria. Jareth avoids answering the question and instead orders Beetleglum to take care of Toby while he leaves to enact a new plan to stop Sarah. 
Maria is being held prisoner on a flying wooden ship, which is being held aloft by hundreds of fairies tied to its masts. Maria is in the middle of building a bed sheet ladder when she is interrupted by the guards bringing another prisoner to her cell, who turns out to be Sir Skubbin. Sir Skubbin reveals that he has a skeleton key that the guards failed to confiscate, which they use to unlock the prison room door. Waiting for them behind the door is Septimus, who bursts into the room and begins wreaking havoc. 
Thinking that the other prisoners may be able to help them, Maria instructs Sir Skubbin to unlock their cages. One of the prisoners is a talking, sentient rose bush. Although very confused, the rose bush is willing to help, and they very easily send Septimus flying with their powerful thorny branches. Septimus is flung so hard that he bursts out of the hull and into the ropes tethering the fairies to the ship. Many of the ropes snap,freeing some of the fairies and sending the ship plummeting out of the sky. Maria, Skubbin, and the rose bush jump from the ship, landing safely in a body of water. 
The Owl King, having observed all this, begins to worry that Maria may actually be able to solve his labyrinth. While tending to Maria’s baby the young Beetleglum asks the Owl King what he’s going to do, to which the Owl King declares “I’m going to cheat”. 
As his ship is crossing the ocean, Albert is awoken by a voice whispering his name. Albert initially tries to attribute the voice to a fevered hallucination, but it becomes clear that the voice is the Owl King speaking to him through the shadows. The Owl King reminds Albert of the scandal and disgrace that would be caused if anyone found out about Maria and their baby, focusing on how Albert’s Father would react to the news. Albert, terrified of disappointing his Father, tells the Owl King that he would do anything to avoid tarnishing his family’s legacy. 
Having safely swam to shore, Maria and Skubbin are deciding what to do next. The rose bush, who Maria begins calling Tangle, is infested with goblin flies that constantly bite at their branches. The bites of the flies cause Tangle to lose their focus, and so Tangle is in a near-permanent state of confusion. Maria asks Tangle if they have any family who can help them, which makes Skubbin cry out in pain. Without explaining his outburst, Skubbin declares that he is once again departing for the Great Howling Wastes, having seen the exit to the labyrinth while they were escaping the ship. Skubbin attempts to leave, but finds that the route to the exit now leads to a dead end. Seeing this makes Maria realise that the labyrinth is constantly changing around them. 
Tangle suggests that by working together they can all help each other out, that rather than splitting up “You get everyone together to do one thing at a time”. Maria is shocked to hear this advice, as it was something her Mother used to tell her. 
This moment is seen by the young Beetleglum through one of the Owl King’s crystals. The old Beetleglum describes what he saw to Toby, that at that moment Maria almost understood the labyrinth: 
:“I was watching y’know? You could almost see her think it… How come a walking rosebush has the same motto as her own Venetian Laundry family? How come the scenery’s kinda… Venice-y?”. 
Maria closes her eyes and concentrates, trying to exert some control over the labyrinth as it appears to be drawing inspiration from her memories. After walking blindly around the next corner Maria opens her eyes and is seemingly proven wrong when she finds an unfamiliar sight: an expansive graveyard, filled with giant tombstones and mausoleums. 
Back aboard his ship, Albert speaks to the Owl King. He recounts the time he was forced to visit the family tomb by his Father as a small child, and how much the experience frightened him. The Owl King tells Albert to concentrate, as he uses a crystal to draw the memories from Albert’s mind. 
==Covers==
Labyrinth Coronation textless cover 04 Fiona Staples.jpg|Fiona Staples cover
Labyrinth Coronation 04 Rebekah Isaacs.jpg|Rebekah Isaacs cover
==External links==
* Comic Book Roundup Review Aggregator
__NOWYSIWYG__
Category:Labyrinth Coronation