Blood Wonderland.
Chapter Three.
I stumbled after Chess, following the numerous trails of red smoke. It clawed it's way into my lungs and dispersed around my body. The effects? I wasn't too sure. I did know that it made me feel different. Light-headed, almost. Soon, I heard a glorious mix of smashing and singing, sounds which strangely collaborate well together. A large table lay before me, with the Hatter sitting at the head. A hare, a mouse and a large spider were tucking into the feast which lay before them. A putrid smell made me want to gag, a smell that I couldn't quite put my finger on...
The Hatter stood. He was wearing a large hat (that, I figured, was why he was called 'the Hatter'), and a black suit. His face was white. Not pale, but pure white. His eyes were greenish-purple, with thick eye-liner surrounding them. His hair was black, and his fringe swept down one side of his face. One the opposite side to his fringe, he had a gaping hole in his cheek, through which I could see into his mouth.
"Alice! Join us, join us." He beckoned for me to sit down, but I refused.
"How do you know my name?" I asked, trying to look as domineering as possible. At this, the hare stopped eating and let out a loud laugh. As he was laughing, I noticed that one of his eyes was missing, and instead there was just an eye socket. In which were hundreds – no, thousands, of bugs crawling and eating at his skin. You'd have thought that the sight would make me feel ill, but I felt... nothing. It seemed normal, somehow.
"Oh, dear Alice, do you not remember me?" I shook my head.
"She doesn't remember me!" The Hatter exclaimed, directed at the mouse.
"Ignorant, horrid girl." Was her response.
"Excuse me, but I am not ignorant, nor am I horrid." I couldn't help but be defiant.
"You are Alice, aren't you?" The Hatter questioned, leaning towards me.
"Yes."
"Then why do you not remember us?"
"I don't know, I don't remember any of this! I don't know where I am or how I got here!" I exclaimed. It was an outburst that was just waiting to happen, let's face it.
"Why, you're in Wonderland!" The Hatter spread his arms out wide, "Well, Blood Wonderland to be precise..."
"Blood Wonderland?"
"Yes. You come here when you die." The Hatter said, playing with a coin. He flicked it through his fingers, watching the light dazzle off it. It took a few seconds for the information to sink in. I had thought that I was dead all this time, yes, but to hear it confirmed was... odd.
"So – so I'm really dead, then?" The hare laughed at my question once more.
"Will you stop laughing at me?" My voice was laced with venom. It made a few clicking/groaning noises with it's throat in response.
"Yes, you are. Quite dead. Stone-cold. Sleeping with the fishes. Six feet under. Not breathing. A corpse. Brown bread. Dead. Lifeless-"
"Okay, I get the idea." I replied tartly, interrupting the Hatter's speech. I saw the thought grow smaller in his eyes. He placed the coin flat on the table.
"What is Blood Wonderland, then? It seems awfully... different."
"It's name-sake comes from the Red Queen. The Blood Queen." The spider finally spoke. It's voice clicked, and sounded like nothing more than a whisper being carried by the wind, "Every year the Queen sounds her Card-guards to grab prisoners across the land to harvest them. She drains their blood, and keeps them as empty vessels." I was shocked into silence. What kind of woman would do that to people, dead or not?
"That's horrible." I said, breaking the awkward silence between us all.
"It is. Now sit down and eat, Alice. Dinner is served." The Hatter said. I hesitantly sat down, and removed the silver food cover. Beneath it was a head. A human head, with intestines for dressing, and blood for a dip. Suddenly I wasn't very hungry. I pushed the plate away.
"Suit yourself." The Hatter said, and shrugged, before taking a large bite of the rotting flesh. This was the stench I could smell.
"Shouldn't we tell her about the test?" The mouse whispered to the Hatter, although I could still hear her.
"Yes, the test!" The Hatter shouted, displaying his mouthful of flesh. Nice.
"What test?"
"Every resident of Blood Wonderland has to undergo three tests before they set up residence here. Three tests. All must be passed." The spider explained.
"And what if I fail?"
"Your soul disappears."