The fire that ripped through her right side seared unbearably, Alice biting clean through her lip in order not to scream. The tangy taste of blood coated the inside of her mouth, the sticky warmth also dripping down her skin. She watched horror darken the eyes in front of her, alongside it – something else. The darkness leapt in satisfaction, the act quenching its endless thirst for blood. Triumphant, it seemed to linger for a moment, then as if pleased with having gotten its way, receded to her depths.
"A-alice?" As if at once, Mirana came to her senses, her hands shaking harder than before. Losing her strength, unable to hold her own steady, Alice groaned as the action jarred the sword. The pain in her side flared that much brighter, the result – light-headedness that fogged her thoughts.
"You are precisely insane," Mirana's hands firmed, gently extracting the blade to drop it absentmindedly to the floor. "Even more mad than when you were here before."
Her laugh hysterical, Alice replied, "Well, your majesty, I've heard all the best people tend to be."
"You've spent entirely too long with Hatter," the queen's admonishment appeared almost fond. "You shouldn't listen to what he says."
Seizing her chance, Alice queried, "So you imprison people that you'd rather not hear talk?"
"Imprison?" Miranda appeared bewildered again. "I don't know what you mean. He isn't here, Alice, but I can assure you that Tarrant is alright."
"Then where is he, Mirana? Tell me his location. What tricks has it played upon yourself?"
"It? Alice, I am used to nonsense but not from you. You aren't yourself. Please, you must allow me take care of that wound."
Stepping backwards out of reach as Mirana tentatively stretched her hand toward her, Alice slowly shook her head. "No. I won't let you touch me. Not until we have truly talked." Pushing her hand against her side to stem the flow of blood, she willed herself to carry on.
"Alice, please." Again, the queen appeared to plead. "You're so terribly hurt." Fingers quivering in reflection of the anguish and worry that overshadowed her eyes, Mirana murmured, "I have a potion that -"
"I said no," Alice did her best to infuse her flagging voice with steel. "There is no potion to reverse what you have done."
"What do you mean?"
"I speak about your vows. Do you remember your promise to never kill or harm?"
Again, she saw the darkness flare quietly, "Don't blame me for what you, yourself, have done."
"But it is not today I speak of. Too long you've lingered under its control. How long is it since you've been outside, Mirana? Out of these stone walls, out from its reach? Do you even know what's happening inside your own kingdom? Have you seen what Marmoreal, what you, have now become?"
"I do not need to leave the palace to see what's happening around me. The air in here is just as foul with the stench of lies."
"Come with me, let me show you," Alice begged. "It's truly simple. Here," she trembled now with pain and fatigue, "just take my hand. We can do this together, Mirana. I promise you, you'll never have to bear this burden alone again."
"This isn't something that we can share." Mirana's eyes grew cold, losing any trace of temporary concern. "Don't ever presume that you can hope to understand."
"I know," Alice's voice was ever gentle. "I grasp enough to know it won't end. Let me help you, Mirana, please – the way I've saved you once before. I was your champion, I am still. In more ways than I could've ever truly guessed. We are meant to be together, you and me, I understand now. The years that passed - they were only just a test."
"Just…a test? Regardless of what the years have been to you, they've never been a mere just anything to me. My champion? You slew me as surely as that monstrous creature with your choice to leave. No. The wake of that devastation is something I will not allow again."
"I won't apologise for what had to happen, Mirana. You must know that I needed to grow up. I'm only sorry that I didn't have the foresight to see what I had been to you back then, and what you'd truly meant to me. What you still, and always will be to me, Mirana." Alice looked into the eyes of the withdrawing woman, "I will say this just one more time, please listen to my words." She clutched the queen's pale hand, the movement jarring her wound, coursing another round of pain through her body. "I will not leave you ever again."
The queen bestowed a measured look, calculation gleaming where innocence once reigned. "Then stay," Mirana's tone held only indifference. "If that is what you truly wish, I will not cast you from this place. But you are nothing to me now – not my love, my champion, nor even a prisoner within these walls. I will afford you the kindness you once gave me but more than that? It will be just like all the years that have passed – you simply don't exist. Guards," Mirana waved her hand, "take her to my quarters. Rinse her wound; I will be there shortly to mend it."
Striding away with purpose, Mirana left Alice swaying on her feet, blood seeping out between her hands to stain the dress. Wincing, she turned to lean heavily on the arm of the soldier acting as escort. Her journey to Mirana's chamber passed as a blur, her mind lost in the torment of knowing that she – the key part of her plan – had not proved to be nearly enough.