It would take far too long to explain how she got to Wonderland. Most of the faceless just assumed that she followed the White Rabbit, others claimed that she accidentally tripped and fell after the rabbit retrieved Alice, however a few more claimed that she had done it after getting a deal with the Nightmare. How could they not suspect such a thing when she was seen constantly leaving that terrifying tower or in his company on the rare occasions that he went into the outside world?
However the truth was far less interesting and something that would take far too long to explain, so Mary never actually explained it to anyone. Not even the people that she worked with at a small pottery shop in town. Instead she kept herself quiet and busy with work, and as soon as she was done with her shift she would go home to Clover Tower after a quick chat with her co-workers.
The people she worked with, which were really just an old man and his recently widowed daughter, only knew the basic things that most people knew about a person after small talk. Her favorite thing to eat was red-velvet cake, she wasn't fond of bright sunny days, and she had chosen to work at the pottery shop because she liked to make small beads and paint them. Aside from that they knew nothing about her and she never seemed inclined to give up anything extra.
Of course our story isn't based on pointless rumors and the opinions of a person through small talk. Our story is about Mary and why she happens to be the person that this tale is all about. So please take a seat and don't forget to bring a snack with you because this tale is long. The road is bumpy and few have been brave enough to actually finish it. It's a story of deceit, hate, blood, sex, and plenty of misunderstandings.
Does this intrigue you?
Good.
Then let us begin the tale of an incubus and demon hunter.
Her hazel eyes watched his attempts at paper work with a blank expression. It didn't even look like he was trying; he would make a mark here and there before dropping his pen entirely and drinking luke-warm coffee that his aide had brought an hour ago. He would then pick up his pen again and twirl it around a few times before repeating the process described above. "I honestly cannot believe that you're supposed to be the Lord of this place."
The man glanced up from his paper. "And why's that?"
"Your work ethic for one." She shifted in her uncomfortable chair. "I've never seen you in battle either; your aide protects you from everything, even yourself. You're sickly, make stupid statements, brag far too often-"
"It's not my fault you have such a low opinion on me." He interrupted, putting down his pen eager to ignore the leaning pile of paper work on his ornate desk. "Your opinion was doomed before we even met."
Her left canine tooth sunk into her lips, a strange habit she got from her childhood, as she mulled over his statement. She supposed that the man was correct to a certain degree. Before coming to this place she was once a demon hunter, sworn by the church to kill all those who would harm and seduce the innocent. After a series of mysterious kidnappings the head priest had asked for a few of the hunters to search for the source of it when a tip claimed demons were involved. However her search had led her to go to a necromancer to bring up the spirit of the first victim...Just for nothing to appear and instead open up a doorway that she had traversed to get to this place called Wonderland.
"Whatever the case may be you still have to get the work done, Nightmare." Mary said. "Gray asked for you to finish it over a cycle ago."
Nightmare grunted and picked up his pen again, his one gray eye looking over his document in a lazy manner that made pissed Mary off. Standing up from her chair she then proceeded to leave the demon to whatever it was he was supposed to be doing. Leaving the office she shut the door behind her before going into the long stone walls of the tower. This place was large and had many secrets hidden away in there boring halls and elaborate room, the most impressive was the demon she had just been speaking with. He was an incubus class and could read minds, something that she was prepared to deal with, however it was far too dangerous to just kill him like she would any other case. This world had so many rules and mysteries surrounding it, and then there was the kidnapped girls she still had to find, and of course killing Nightmare.
She paused outside a massive oak door that had a clover symbol engraved into it. She had gotten into a fight with dozens of demons before, but none of them had been so pathetic as this. It almost seemed cruel to get rid of him, the lack of challenge would certainly leave a bad after taste and dampen her victory. Sighing she opened up the door and walked into a bustling kitchen full of, mostly, young men. They were idly talking to each other while working, a few of them only looking up when she walked by. However, unlike most people, these lacked eyes in their heads. She vaguely recalled Nightmare telling her that these were faceless and because they lacked a significant role they lacked a face, thus the name. Getting to the very back of the kitchen she opened up one of the oak cabinets and looked through the stocked shelves until she spotted a bright blue package. Taking it down she shut it and turned around, just to nearly topple into a young faceless man.
His arm reached out to grip the counter so he wouldn't fall, his legs askew under him. "S-sorry, Miss Foreigner! I didn't see you with that door in the way!"
"It's fine." She tucked the bag under her arm and helped him into a proper standing position. "Are you alright now?"
The boy nodded. "Y-yes, Miss."
She let his hand go and held her package properly now. She then began to walk past him, her shoulders bumping with his in her hurry to move on. Leaving the kitchen she went through the halls and up several flights of stairs until she finally made it to her own bedroom. Like most rooms within the tower this one was luxurious. It had a four poster bed with soft and warm blankets, a bedside table that had clover etches in the deep rich wood, a lamp that had a gold design on the bright green bottom piece, and a desk that also had a comfortable chair. All of these furnishings reminded her of the chambers of the priests back in her own world, gotten as gifts of thanks by the townspeople. I wonder if anyone else has filled my position...
Time was almost non existent in this strange world. If she had lived here for at least twenty time cycles, it could have been that many days back home. Slots within the demon hunting factions were competitive, she wouldn't be surprised if she went back home just to find her spot as captain of the Ignus Divinium was taken over. Going over to the desk she pulled out the chair and then sat down before taking opening up the bag. Reaching in she soon pulled out a loaf of dark red velvet cake with a creamy white icing top. Splitting it in half she revealed bronze hinges and a small notebook that had a black ink pen stuck in the thin mental spiraling. It seemed like a strange place to hide a notebook, but when she was younger she quickly learned that you never hid things you loved or couldn't have in obvious places. Living with forty-five other children who all desperately wanted the attention of the Abbess and would do anything to get it taught her that much.
Pulling out the notebook she opened it up and the first entry caught her eye. The text was small and scrunched up yet as messy as a six year old's handwriting. She had been tired the day she stole it and had been kneeling in between a whore house and a bar, trying to keep warm during the night she had dropped into this strange world. All of her worry, fears, and suspicions were recorded in nearly eight pages, front and back, of the little notebook. Yes, her first time cycle in Wonderland had been no picnic, but it had quickly taught her that not everything in this world was what it seemed.
Flipping through a few more pages she soon found a blank one. Pulling the pen out of the metal spirals she stared at the page for a moment as she got her thoughts together before clicking the pen open and writing.
The day has been mostly uneventful. I am steadily working on gaining the incubus's trust, but it seems that he is off put by the fact that I conceal my thoughts and think ill of demons. I cannot allow myself to put my guard down completely, but I'm sure that there are other ways to gain his trust with time. I am on better terms with his main aide, Gray Ringmarc, who is more than happy to have me help with the paperwork that his boss shoves off. Recently I have heard chatter of movement in the other territories; however my exploration of them is halted until I can fix my weaponry which I have hidden in THAT location. My job in the pottery shop gives me access to the gossip of the town's folk and I have recently heard whisper of foreigners, however I am not sure if this is directed towards me or the other girls that have gone missing. I must figure it out in order to go back home, my position there and my reputation are all on the line...
She looked over her writing again before giving a sharp nod and shutting the book. She traced her fingers over her lip, pressing a finger nail into the skin. A drop of blood welled up and dripped onto her fingers before she held it over the notebook. She muttered something in a foreign language, the words curling in the air and sparking. Small red lines began forming over the notebook created by much smaller runes, they slid and curled over the cover before a glow and intense heat blasted from it. Once everything died down there was still the covered displayed a softly glowing glyph that looked like a snake eating a heart. Within seconds it all disappeared in a flurry of sparks.
She felt drained but accomplished, so she put the pen away she then proceeded to fit her notebook back into the cake box and shutting it. Stuffing that in the bag she began making her way back into the kitchen to put her notebook away, just to be stopped by a deep masculine voice. "Miss, Mary."
She paused and glanced behind her. The man was rather tall and had dark blue hair that contrasted with his abnormal gold eyes. "Did you need something, Gray?"
The man waved a yellow folder that was bulging with papers. "This is the last of this time change's quota, do you mind mailing it out while I give Lord Nightmare his medicine? Unless you'd rather do it, I know you're not fond of going into town.
It wasn't that she wasn't fond of going into town; she didn't have the proper weaponry. Going anywhere unarmed set her on edge and would force her to rely on her other skills which weren't nearly as strong. The only reason she bothered to get a job in town was because she had to gather information that came from people outside the tower. "I'll give your master his medication. Besides, I'm sure even you could use some time away from him."
Gray sighed and nodded. "Yeah...Well, the medication is in its usual spot, just give him one teaspoon full and then two of those small pills."
She nodded and continued on her way to the kitchen, stowing her things away before making her way to the office. Opening the door she found Nightmare who seemed to have just bolted off the brown satin couch in favor of his desk chair. However his panic quickly faded away when he noticed that it was Mary. "Came back to talk some more?"
"No." She went over to his desk and opened it revealing the many medications there. "I was told to give you your medicine."
The man blanched and shook his head. "No! I hate medicine it tastes like Gray's cooking and comes from doctors, they're the route of all evil! Please don't make me take it, Mary!"
The woman scoffed and opened up the cap to an orange pill bottle. "Don't be such a child and just take them."
"No!"
Mary's eyes narrowed and her dark hands gripped the bottle a little tighter. "I grew up knowing that I had to obey the every command of those over me and I have never failed before. Take these pills before I force them down your throat with a red hot fork."
Nightmare leaned back in his chair. "You wouldn't."
"Try me."
The air was tense for several seconds before Nightmare bolted up. Seeing the movement Mary reached out with her free hand and grabbed his forearm and dragged him closer to her. Bringing her knee up she forced Nightmare into the ground, her knee barely making contact with his stomach as she crouched over the wide eyed incubus. Letting go of his arm she measure out two pills in her palm before dumping them into his mouth, not giving him a chance to spit them out she covered his mouth with one hand and dropped the pills in order to squeeze his nose. The man squirmed under her for several moments, doing his best to hold out, but soon his face turned red and his throat contracted as he swallowed the dreaded pills. Sighing Mary released her hands off of him her eyes catching a glimpse of his one for a moment.
They were deep and mysterious, all of that panic gone and left with annoyance. Yet behind all of that there was something deeper that drew her in and made her body warm. She knew an incubus could make someone feel more at ease when they looked you in the eye, hence why it was the golden rule to never do so. Yet, like most, she was only human and had made the mistake. It had taken Nightmare's awkward shifting to break her out of the trance. Shaking her head she quickly stood up and straightened out her clothes. "Now then, that wasn't so bad, was it?"
The incubus huffed and sat up. "I'm not becoming healthy, I just feel worse."
"Too bad, maybe the next medicine will ease that."
"No!"
A/N: Don't get used to the length of this chapter, these are supposed to get longer. If you liked this chapter then please leave your two sense in the review box, if not please click out with a good impression of this story.