"Where…?" England blinked, turning around after the light had faded to look at his new surroundings.
"I told you I was giving you a short cut to the capital!" Gilbert was standing beside him, still grinning happily. "So, where do you think we are?"
England sighed looking around one last time. Gilbert had landed them in some kind of dark alley between two houses. Peering out, England could see a road with people who were all dressed in different shades of blue and grey walking down it. There were different shops and houses, one greatly resembling a bakery. Almost every building was proudly hanging a flag showing the spade symbol.
It's obviously not a very industrialised world, England thought. Otherwise, I don't think they would have horse drawn carriages.
"Wait. If you can take me here, why can't you send me home?" England asked, turning back to Gilbert.
"Oh, I can," Gilbert said casually. "But I don't want to."
He then had to quickly duck away from a sudden punch.
"And," England asked coolly, "why the hell not?"
"Calm down, calm down! Look, we need help here, okay? I'm not allowed to say what we need help with, but we really do need help! If you fix what's going on here then Peter and I'll gladly send you and the other queens back, but right now you need to figure out what's going on for yourself!"
England paused. "Other queens? What are you talking about?"
"If I say any more then I'll get in serious trouble," Gilbert explained. "Look, the guys from the castle have probably noticed you're gone by now. If you don't want to get caught then I'd recommend you try and lie low and escape to a different kingdom. Arthur was never a very public figure, so not many civilians should recognise you, but you should still maybe stay away from anywhere too crowded, just in case"
"I… I understand." England nodded. "I suppose I should thank you."
"No problem. It was kind of fun! I've been really bored lately, since my brother and everyone else I usually hang out with have either been too busy or too serious lately… But after this, things might go back to normal." Gilbert grinned again. He jumped into the air and started floating higher, now above England.
"So, what? You're just leaving now?"
"Sorry, but I have to! Oh, and if you are planning to run to another kingdom, then stay away from the Clubs! Things are still kind of bad between the Spades and Clubs, so if you end up there you could be captured on the spot or worse." Gilbert shrugged. "I guess it depends on what kind of mood they're in… Anyway, good luck, and I'll probably see you later!"
There was a flash, and England immediately covered his eyes. Even before it faded he knew the Joker was gone.
Right. I just need to leave this kingdom without getting caught, England told himself. That shouldn't be too hard. It's still rather early in the morning, so not many people are out… But while I'm hiding here, hey, random voice I've been hearing in my head. Do you have anything to say?
"No, not really…"
England jumped slightly at the sound of a very audible voice. "I… I wasn't expecting you to answer!"
"Then why did you ask?"
"It was supposed to be a—… Forget it." England sighed. "Are you sure?"
"I told you in that garden you were dreaming about. I have your memories, which means I know what you know. Since you don't know what to do, neither do I."
"But you knew other things!" England shouted a little louder than necessary. "You told me to climb down the ivy earlier, and in that dream you said—!" He froze, actually thinking back to the odd dream. "Wait… You're Arthur?"
There was no reply. England groaned when he realised 'Arthur' had fallen silent. Fine… I don't need him! I'll escape this place on my own!
That's what England told himself, at least. However, about thirty minutes later, even he had to admit he was lost. He had dodged away whenever he had seen someone, acting as nonchalant as possible when there were no obvious hiding places.
He didn't really know why he was so worried. He was one of the best spies in the world, and he could easily hide in any environment. Well, okay, there had been a few mistakes in the past, but he was generally the best at what he did.
…Although, trying to escape a foreign country was one thing, but leaving another world was completely different. What was he supposed to do, exactly? Gilbert had said they needed his help, but with what? Not only had he been kidnapped by an alternative China, England was now supposed to escape the kingdom and somehow save this strange world.
But how?
Damn… He had such a headache…
-Chapter end (Edited)