Wow I'm terrible :/ Sorry everyone, once again I took too long to provide you all with your weekly chapter. But I'm back now so that's all taken care of. I'm happy to know I have at least a few followers, I hope to gain more soon but to all of you staying loyal to this story so far, I'm humbled and I thank you all. Here's chapter four, enjoy :)
"Ow!" Jenkins wouldn't stop bumping into every little bit of wilderness he came in contact with. He was so used to the civil life he never took a trip to the woods in his life I presume. At this rate I had my doubts that he would be able to make it out of the Veil of Tears at least.
We crossed giggling streams and marched through the endless grove of aged trees that were shrouding our every step. My footsteps were suddenly growing louder the quieter it became from behind me. I realized Jenkins's constant groans and complaints at the filth around him hushed. I turned to face him and he stopped to look at me.
"Why did we stop?"
"You've grown quiet, is anything wrong?"
He blinked a few times. "No... I'm just trapped in my own psyche with my scatterbrain mistress with no way out in the middle of a mystical forest that's ruining my shoes. You're raggedy cat can talk, and tea time was an hour ago so now I'm behind schedule... I'm peachy-keen." He replied matter-of-factly. That hurt, but I decided to ignore it. I could only feel pity for the poor fool. Wonderland is never merciful with newcomers anyway.
"Hmmp. Well you better get used to it." I replied unfeeling and resumed walking. Upon arrival to the edge of a cliff we saw the other side of the grove distinctly separated from us by ten yards of empty space and an infinite drop down to nowhere.
"Alice how are we going to get across? I don't see a bridge or a rope anywhere!" I smirked. Upon closer inspection I felt a couple gusts of wind softly billowing from the bottom of the chasm.
"Jenkins how far can you jump?"
"What?! Have you gone mad? Do you seriously think we can just jump to the other side?! It's much too far!" He exclaimed.
"No listen, you feel that wind coming from the drop off?" I asked pulling his hand outwards.
"...Y-Yes but.."
"That wind is strong enough to keep us afloat while we jump to the other side. Trust me, this is one of those survival tactics I was talking about. Now how high and far do you think you can jump?" I asked. Jenkins paused for a second and looked at me like I was senile. He then proceeded to hop in place, each time going higher then lower.
"I can jump the equivalent distance of what a normal human being has the capacity to do." He replied coldly.
"Very well, watch me then. Try to follow what I do." I said as I took a step back and ran to the edge.
"Alice no!" he yelled. Just then, my instincts once again won my trust as the gust of wind gently held me up in the air.
"Try it Jenkins! The wind feels great!" I turned to face him as I held my balance with my arms outstretched side to side. His expression was priceless. He looked like he was staring at an animal who's skin turned inside out... he was also blushing incredibly red, like a lady wearing tons of Rogue. I looked down to see my dress was all puffed up like French balloon, but I payed no mind to it.
"I...I-I...I..." he stammered.
"Jump Jenkins!"
"I can't!"
"Do it!"
"NO!"
The screams thrown back and forth threw me off balance and I stumbled out of the range of the wind. I began to feel gravity pull me back down to the endless chasm.
"OH! wah! waaaaaahh!" I screamed. I knew I was going to perish soon...
"ALICE!" Jenkins called out. Just as I was about to drop to the endless drop, I felt a hand grab a hold of mine.
"AH!... huh?.." I looked up to see Jenkins hold onto me as he too was merely floating in the air with the wind barely holding us up.
"This isn't real..." he said as he pulled me up. I jumped and twirled to the next gust just in time to give him his space. He floated awkwardly on his own but he kept his balance well.
"Whoahh whoaa..."
"I told you this would work."
"Oh be quiet..." I rolled my eyes and kept jumping from gust to gust until I finally made it to solid ground. However, when I turned around, I noticed Jenkins was one gust away from landing.
"One more Jenkins! You can do it!" I called out.
"I know that, just hold on!" he called back, and what he did next surprised me greatly... He grunted, twisting his face in force as a red light began to glow all around him, and with one final push, he disappeared in a burst of red energy and reappeared beside me the same way. I stared at him completely dumbfounded.
"...wh...what was that?!"
"I don't know... but it sure beats the physical strain of jumping over and over." He said with a big bright grin.
"Jenkins, I don't mean to out-science you but didn't you just... ugh what was that called?..."
"Teleportation?" he asked. His eyes grew wide and sparkled in the light. I heard all these wise-crack scientists back in London talk about teleportation, including Jenkins which was always fascinated with all these new inventions they were coming up with these days.
"This is Wonderland after all, I suppose it's a possible thing here." I replied. "Come along now, we have to keep going, if we encounter any enemies along the way there would be no way to defend ourselves."
"...e-enemies?..." he said as we came to the entrance to a hidden grove. As we entered, I heard Jenkins gasp, and my eyes lit up at the sight of the giant bottle spewing the endless violet waterfall.
"What is this?" Jenkins stared in awe at the giant glass liquor bottle.
"It's Shrink Sense." Cheshire replied from behind him.
"What are you blabbering about now cat?" he asked him.
"Observe." he purred with his mischievous grin. Jenkins turned around to see me step into the pool as I held up my dress by my fingertips.
"Wh-What in God's name are you doing Alice?! You'll ruin your pretty dress..." he exclaimed as I began to shrink slowly. I turned to face him, and my voice must have sounded small and squeaky to him.
"Hop in Jenkins! The water's fine!" I flailed my arms in the air hoping he could still see me.
"OH FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE ALICE GET THE BLOODY HELL OUT OF THERE THIS INSTANT! YOU'LL DISAPPEAR!" He reached out to grab me, but his foot slipped on some wet moss nearby and he stumbled in. I nonchalantly stepped out of the falls and grew back to my normal size. I turned back to see Jenkins as small as a nut.
"What in the world happened to me?!" he screamed from his small stature, his voice like a squeaking mouse. I smiled and leaned down to pick him up gently.
"You shrunk silly."
"Put me back to normal at once!" he screamed.
"Forest for the trees, just the other way around, shortsighted it's merely a matter of perspective Jenkins." I replied with a sincere smile. I set him back down to the ground.
"Just imagine yourself returning to normal size. Concentrate, and you'll be able to pull it off." I said. He balled his fists and shut his eyes tightly trying to concentrate. Soon after a couple of seconds he began to grow back slowly. Once he grew to his tall stature again, he opened his eyes, his cheeks were flushed red from his high blood pressure. At least I think it was, maybe he was concentrating too hard.
"Phew... don't make me go back in there, I thought I would soon make contact with microscopic organisms and be crowned king." he replied with a big sigh of relief.
"You won't have to Jenkins, but now that we've acquired Shrink Sense, we can shrink down to size to fit in small spaces and reach checkpoints we wouldn't be able to reach in normal size. There are many items in Wonderland we need to find if we want to find the cause of all this calamity."
"All of this is really difficult to control Alice, I could barely grow to normal size, how do you expect me to just Shrink again?" he asked. I smiled and pointed to my temple.
"It's all in here. It's simple and concise, you just have to imagine and make it happen." I replied as I headed for a keyhole shaped opening on the wall of the grove. I shrunk and headed inside like a mouse.
As Alice headed inside the tiny hole, Jenkins stood outside watching.
"Aren't you going to give it a try?" Cheshire asked far off.
"This is very difficult... I don't know if I can find it in me to just... imagine things. As if anything like that was possible in this world." he sighed.
"You're over thinking it Jenkins." he hopped down to from stone pedestal and walked towards him to face him.
"Remember, you're the reason why we're all here, and whatever is causing all this commotion is a fabrication of your own fears and doubts. If you let those things take control, all Wonderland will be lost, and the three of us will never find the way out again. Alice has been mourning reality for longer than any of us, ever since the death of her family. She was lost in her own figments of her imagination for years, and was never able to live life like a normal girl. Wonderland is our last hope for survival. In here, anything is possible, and you can do anything your mind sets out to accomplish. If at some point in time you felt like you couldn't, well now is the time to prove it wrong. Now shrink damn you, we have a Wonderland to save!"
"..." he was left speechless. He stared at the now serious talking cat who's been nagging him this entire trip, and just now he's receiving a good slap of inspirational words.
"You're... You're right..." he stammered. "I'll do my best..." he said as he closed his eyes and began to do what Alice and Cheshire instructed, and when he opened them he was barely five inches tall once again.
"I did it!" he exclaimed with a bright smile. "Cheshire I did... it?.." he turned to see Cheshire gone.
"...well... I sure hope he saw that. Now onward!" he ran into the keyhole that Alice went into and came out the other side to see another part of the Veil.
"Ah, Jenkins! You finally made it!" Alice called out from a hovering platform going up and down. Jenkins grew back to normal size heading towards her.
"It seems you finally got the hang of it." she said.
"Yes... it seems so." he replied with a small smile.
"Now where are we going now?" he asked.
"Up there." she said pointing to up to a large opening in the grove that led to a giant statue of Alice with her hands out in front of her.
"The violet markings indicate to head up there, maybe that's where a lost item is. We can use these moving platforms to get us up there." she said.
"Very well, I'll be following your lead mistress." Jenkins replied with determination. She smiled at him feeling reassured, and they began hopping from one platform to the other, Jenkins teleporting from a low platform to a higher one as Alice quickly caught up.
As they came close to the top, they felt the rays of the sun hitting strongly at this high point of the canopy of the grove. Cheshire reappeared from the stone hands of the statue looking down at them. Alice grabbed a hold of Jenkins's hand.
"Come on. Hyahh!" they both jumped and landed on the stone hands of the giant Alice statue staring ahead with an unfeeling expression.
"Looks like you found your precious companion." Cheshire replied.
"Wh-wh-what are you saying cat?!" Jenkins replied hysterically. Cheshire rolled his eyes and pointed to the pedestal of vines holding up a large shimmering blade.
"I was talking about that..." he replied annoyed. Alice let go of his hand and walked slowly towards it. As she came close to it, she reached down and carefully took it from its resting place. She admired its gleaming glory as the light reflected from it's beautiful shimmering surface, its intricate design displaying marvelously with pride. She slowly waved it around like a sword, the sharp metal humming in tune like an instrument. Jenkins stared in awe at the majestic weapon.
"I never knew a kitchen knife could look so beautiful..." he said quietly to himself. Cheshire watched beside him with a grin.
"The Vorpal Blade is swift and keen and always ready for service." he purred with delight.
"Vorpal Blade?..." he asked looking back at him. Alice walked towards Jenkins holding the Vorpal Blade upwards and sideways defensively, as if about to attack, his eyes widened in fear.
"Wh...what are you doing?... Alice?..." he stammered. She encircled him still holding up the knife, a killer look in her big green fierce eyes. The sight frightened him yet hypnotized him. Just then, she swung the blade in a rapid motion into the air away from Jenkins, her movements flawless and keen.
"It goes Snicker-Snack, leaves them dead." Cheshire purred again grinning bigger. They both observed how beautifully she wielded the weapon. She then finished with one swift stab in the air, making the silver metal shine like a diamond.
"My blade, once again I can feel its magic within my grasp. How I missed this beauty." she said in a lustful tone, making Jenkins hypnotized seeing this unknown side of her.
"It looks wiped clean... no speck of rubies on it whatsoever..." she and Cheshire face each other, smiling mischievously they said in unison, "But not for long."
Jenkins stared at them both feeling mesmerized but terrified.
"M-M-Miss Liddel I don't recall ever seeing you utilize a kitchen knife... d-don't you think it would be better if I held it for you? Why you never cooked a meal for yourself in your life." he said. Her expression turned serious again.
"Don't worry about me Jenkins, I know what I'm doing. This blade has been there for me all my time in Wonderland, it's never failed me, and never will." she smiled gently and placed a hand on Jenkins's shoulder.
"Just trust me. Maybe we can find a weapon for you too."
"..." he stared at her contemplative. Was this young lady for real? Was all this just some crazy dream? Deep down, Jenkins wished it would never end, but he didn't realize it yet. If trusting the instincts of a mad raving woman would bring them back home, then there was nothing left to lose. For the first time since he arrived in this crazy place, he felt sure and secure.
"Very well, lead the way my lady." he replied gently smiling, feeling determined. She smiled back, the red of her lips glimmering with the color that will soon stain that beautiful piece of kitchenware.
I hope my chapters are improving, thank you all so much for reading another segment, and I will try my best to upload more sooner. Copyright to Alice: Madness Returns belongs to American McGee and Spicy Horse, this is for entertainment purposes only. Please leave behind reviews for further improvement, see you all again soon! :D