CHAPTER FOUR
The light dissipated, and Oz was most definitely not lowered to the floor gently, accompanied by ethereal music. In fact, the fall was quick, painful and shocked all the breath out of him, leaving him gasping like a fish.
Alice was at his side in a flash. Kneeling, she grabbed his shoulders. "OZ! Oz! Are you OK?" she shouted, shaking him hard.
He had stopped gasping, and was now either breathing so faintly that she couldn't tell, or -
"If you're dead I'll kill you!" She paused for a second to wonder how she would do that, then shrugged it off and continued to shake him. "We're not in Abyss! Oz, we're still here! Wake up!" She drew his thin form to her and clung to him. She could feel his breathing, his rapid heartbeat matching her own. He was alive.
She buried her face in his shoulder and pretended she wasn't crying.
"Don't wanna move," Oz's voice said sleepily. She jerked away and wiped her face on her sleeve, but he caught her arm and gently pulled her back.
After a while, she relaxed into the embrace.
She liked it when she could listen to Oz's heartbeat. It was soothing and calming, somehow, always slower than hers, even when he was scared or excited. Must be something to do with the difference between humans and Chains.
She leaned her head against Oz's chest, too tired to care. His hands drifted upwards, to bury themselves in her hair.
And then she jerked away again, eyes wide. "Oz," she said.
"Alice? What did I do this time?"
"Your heartbeat. It's too fast."
His brow furrowed. "Is it? Really? Well, I can promise I'm not taking drugs or any-"
She smacked him. "Of course it is! I can tell these things!"
"Oh."
She crossed her arms, raising a hand to her chin. "That's really strange. It's quite different from normal."
"Crazy girl listens to my heartbeat regularly," Oz stage whispered.
"Shut up! Thinking!"
"Fine, fine…" He yawned and stretched his arms out. "Well, we're not in Abyss. Every day's a good day when you're not in Abyss. I think we should go back to s–"
"Oz, no!" she snapped. "There's no time for sleep. This is really important!" Reaching out, she grabbed his chin and turned it in different directions. Hmm…he looked mostly the same…
But. Right there… something about his appearance was different…something had changed…
"Hey, open your eyes really wide. Do it now."
He complied. (He always complied.) And…yes…
"Have the black bits in the middle of your eyes always been like that?" Alice asked him curiously. "I don't think they have been."
Oz looked at her curiously. "You mean the pupils? What have they been like?"
"Diamond shaped," she said.
"No, of course not!" he said, laughing. "Alice, people have round eyes."
"You don't," she said. His laughter died away.
"You don't either," Oz admitted, frowning. "So, is that all the Unicorn did to me? Change my tattoo, my eyes, of all things, and give us a scare?"
"Idiot." She smacked him lightly. "It changed your heartbeat, too. That must mean it's changed things inside your body, too. What does that heart do, again?" She frowned, concentrating. "The heart…contains the feeling and emotion in the body…and it produces, um, yellow bile? What's bile, again? I forgot…"
Oz stared at her. Alice shrugged.
"I remember studying the processes of the human body once," she explained. "But I've lost my memories, so…"
"Plus, everything you just said about the heart is completely wrong," Oz said. "Science couldn't have been very advanced in the place you studied – OW!"
"Didn't you know that the heart pumps blood around the body?"
Alice's eyes widened. "Seriously?"
"Yep. The faster you're going, the faster it has to pump the blood," Oz explained. "At least, that's what I remember from studying the sciences of the body ten years ago. So if it's increased my heartbeat...to the speed of yours, you said?" He frowned. "This doesn't make sense at all…you know, that kind of means I'm running at the same speed as a –"
"Chain," said Alice. She had sat bolt upright, her face deathly pale. "Oz. The same speed as a Chain."
"Yeah, I was about to say that." He peered at her curiously. "What about it?"
"Oz, use your BRAIN!"
"You're one to talk…"
"Shut up, manservant. The same speed as a Chain."
There was a slight pause.
"…Oh no."
"Oh, yeah."
"Right."
"Yep."
Silence.
"So that…"
"Yes, that means…"
Again, silence.
"It…" No. No no no…WHAT.
"That's…That's not…"
"Oz, you're a Chain!" she yelled, getting to her feet and clenching her fists. "This is completely insane! SAY something, damn it! Freak out! Anything!"
He looked up blankly. Her face was wiped clean of anything but shock, and perhaps terror.
"Oz, it turned you into a –"
"We need to talk to Sharon," he said numbly. He would not think about it. He couldn't. No.
He stood and rushed for the door, not looking at Alice. She padded lightly behind him, and peeked under his arm as he turned the handle.
The door swung silently open.
Oz did not walk onto the balcony. Instead, he remained frozen in the doorway, limbs shaking slightly. Alice growled softly.
Blood was spattered everywhere. Red tinged the table, the chair, mingled with the fragments of china lying in the pool of bloodied tea. It dripped down the wall, richly coated Lotti's dagger, welled bright and scarlet in Sharon's pale throat. Blood trickled down her neck. It seeped into her hair, darkly stained her violet dress.
Her eyes were closed. She was collapsed on the floor, with her back against the wall. She wasn't breathing.
Lotti Baskerville was standing on the balcony with her back to them, next to her lion Chain. "Let's go, Leon," they heard her say. "C'mon." They jumped lightly off the balcony together, vanishing into the night.
Oz dropped to his knees immediately, picking Sharon up and cradling her gently. "Sharon! Sharon, are you awake? Can you hear me? SHARON!"
No response. He felt her wrists, chest and punctured throat, disregarding the blood that covered his hands, trying to find a pulse. There! The faintest, faintest heartbeat as it emptied blood from her body. He let out a breath. She was alive, though only just, and not for long if she didn't get help soon.
"Alice, help me get her inside," he said curtly. She nodded and took up Sharon's legs. Together, they carried her inside the room and onto the couch, then ripped the bottom of her dress into strips and wrapped it around her injuries to help stem the bleeding. Alice grabbed the emergency service bell and rang it loudly. Even though Pandora was probably on red alert because of the Unicorn's escape, that would bring someone running.
"Hey. Alice." Oz's voice was blank, empty of emotion.
"What is it?"
"Look at this."
She crouched next to him. He showed her a strip of Sharon's white petticoat. It had been snipped off neatly, not torn roughly. There was a message written on it in dark red letters.
PANDORA –
THE DARK UNICORN HAS ESCAPED.
WE ARE NOT PLEASED, AS YOU CAN SEE.
BLAME YOURSELVES FOR THIS.
-THE SOUL REAPERS
"Well…she's quite creative in her use of blood," Oz said.
"That…pink lady," Alice said. "That Baskerville. She…did this to Sharon."
"Lotti Baskerville," said Oz. His hands shook as he stuffed the stained cloth into his pocket. "And she's right. We can blame ourselves." He stood, bloodied fists clenched, eyes downcast. "It's our fault that the Dark Unicorn escaped. If we hadn't freed it, Sharon wouldn't have been attacked –"
"Don't talk like that. Don't you dare," Alice snapped, grabbing his arm. "Come on. Let's go."
He looked up, startled. "What? Where?"
"We're going after her," Alice said shortly. "We're going to find this Lotti. We're going to catch her."
Oz nodded slowly. Alice grinned the dark grin of the Bloodstained Black Rabbit.
"And when we catch her…"
She took his hand, and pulled him towards the balcony. Towards Lotti.
"…we're going to kill her. Right, partner?"
Oz thought. Then…
"…I suppose. That sounds about right."
xxx
"Master Break. You must come quickly."
"Oh, must I?" Break glared at his subordinate through one blood-red eye. "Is it, oh, more important than this investigation I'm currently directing, would you say?"
"I think you would judge it so, Master Break. It's Lady Sharon, Master-"
Break's mouth tightened. Pushing past the Pandora agents surrounding him, he caught up with the man. "My quarters, is it?"
"For the moment, Master Break – "
"Good. You take over here." He left the room, and broke into a run. This was most probably definitely not going to be good.
He was right, as it turned out.
Sharon was in too unstable a condition to be moved from the room, so they'd brought up the medical supplies and were treating her on the couch where she'd been left. She had been clumsily bandaged with her own dress, which was, of course, completely ruined.
She would have said that was a shame. It was a Rainsworth family heirloom, after all.
Not a muscle moved in Break's face. The gaggle of doctors surrounding her saluted him nervously , and continued to work, trying not to look at him.
He had been careless. So, so careless. He had left Oz and Alice just lying there, ready to transform at any time. Idiot. More mistakes, killing people close to you. Must be getting old. Must be losing your touch. "Losing your touch! Losing your touch!" Emily chattered.
And that was what the Dark Unicorn did. It sought out illegal contractees, and turned them into Chains. And that meant that you had two Chains in a contract together. Very few people knew that this could happen, which was a good thing, or they'd have Chains popping out of Abyss for a cup of tea left right and centre.
A long time ago, the Unicorn had been free, and destruction had reigned. It had had to be locked up. There had been no other choice.
Two contracted Chains meant power for those involved- so much power. Unfortunately, it also meant incredible instability. Chains who had made a contract together always went insane. The time it took varied. A day. A month. A year. Ten years. But it always happened, in the end…quickly or no…
He hadn't thought that it could be this quick.
"Anything's possible," he said aloud. He stroked Sharon's forehead. This was all his fault.
He turned and left the room. Then he went to talk in private to Oscar Bezarius.
NOTICE OF ARREST WARRANT
TYPE; DANGEROUS CHAINS
READ CAREFULLY AND VOLUNTEER AT OWN RISK
This notice is a warrant for the arrest of the two unstable and extremely dangerous Chains that go by the names of 'Oz' and 'B-Rabbit', thought to have between them caused severe harm to Lady Sharon of Rainsworth, a Senior Officer of Pandora. This is a top level case, though the Dark Unicorn case takes priority. Warning; They prefer to appear like humans, in the shape of a young boy with yellow hair and a young girl with brown. Approach with caution at all times. Wanted alive. Agents will be penalised for excesss harm done to said Chains.
He signed the notice, silently apologising to them both –
-No. Sharon was broken and bleeding. Sharon was fighting for her life. Everything he did, he did for himself…or her. He put her above them. Always.
He had no remorse left to spare for them.
xxx
"I preferred the coach," Oz grumbled.
"Oh, stop whining, slave."
"But I don't like this forest!"
"Neither do I! Suck it up!"
"But Aliiice – OW!"
"Branch in your face?"
"Yes. How'd you know?"
"Psychic."
"Uh huh. Sure you don't have a lamp anywhere?"
"If I did, I – " She stopped walking, standing completely still.
"What is -?"
"THERE!" she hissed, pointing. "Oz! Oz, did you see that?"
He looked closer.
There. A flash of pink. Lotti.
Oz broke into a run.
xxx
Me, I love my cliffhangers. They're wonderful, great, brilliant. I absolutely love writing them.
Actually being on the receiving end of them, not so much. I know the feeling, trust me. I watched the Doctor Who episode 'The Pandorica Opens', and then waited a week for the next instalment. Trust me, that was the biggest cliffhanger IN THE HISTORY OF CLIFFHANGERS. The ones in this story are absolutely puny compared to the ones Doctor Who can throw up…
Anyway, what do you think of this chapter? Like the cliffhanger? What's the worst cliffhanger you've ever come across?
I'm in Queensland right now. Sunny and wonderful!~ It's so much better than Victoria which is SO COLD RIGHT NOW. Ahh, spring.
In advance, thanks for the review you're about to write me!
