With the exception of the plot that is depicted in the story, the author makes absolutely no profit off of this work of fan fiction, and no copyright infringement is intended on the franchise of Heart no Kuni no Alice and Doctor Who. Some of the elements in the story have been incorporated belong to chaos-dark-lord but I have received permission to use them. The song depicted in this chapter is titled "No Volveré" and will be featured as two remix versions, respectfully written by Alejandro Marcovich ["No Volveré" from his 2003 album Nocturnal] and Filippa Giordano ["No Volveré, (En Vivo)" from her 2009 album Con Amor a Mexico].
I would like to profusely thank chaos-dark-lord for all of her help on the final chapter of Carrot Cake since action sequences are not my specialty. Therefore this segment is dedicated to her.
Allon-sy!
As the second foreigner wobbled down from the altar, her shadow continued to swallow the afterimages scattered across the cathedral, configuring them to a blurred form that had more volume than a usual spectrum of Wonderland. Dark tendrils began to emerge from the shadows; some even reached for the tubes that were still firmly connected to the coffin and coiled around the machines, erratically pressing buttons or pulling down levers. But these actions caused Aria to crumble onto the marble floor and gracelessly tumble on all fours like an animal cloaked in darkness as her armor slowly spread like a thick, oily fog. It began reshaping itself and forced its owner to adapt a more bestial visage.
A low growl rumbled in the back of the woman's throat as the inky brume caressed the shadowed armor and amplified each elongated spike, transfiguring to an even gruesome upgrade than the photographs Erin had seen in the dusty tomes of the library.
The college graduate tried to move but she was well restrained. Through the darkness she could see Mister March struggling to be released from the ropes; he had somehow managed to scoot across the floor without being touched by the surrounding miasma to an unconscious Lullaby grunt and taken a pocketknife; however, he was having trouble keeping his hands steady enough to make a cut due to the drug in his system.
When she averted her attention to the other side of the room Erin saw Aria crawl over a fallen faceless and curiously plant a blackened and almost clawed hand over the man's chest. Bright green orbs widened in fascination and terror as the deceased denizen vanished within a few seconds, leaving only a clock behind. Repeating the same cycle that had been bestowed upon the Berceuse at her demise, the afterimage touched its 'heart' and was pulled inside it before the darkness lengthened its tendrils to tear the phantom asunder to mana. The corrupted outsider merely blinked for a moment and resumed her trek towards another cohort as the clock left behind continued to tick steadily even without its human host.
An afterimage trapped in its clock without a body or a life. Perhaps even retaining some of the persona it had once possessed. That was worse than being dead. Could those clocks even be repaired again? But it was as equally horrible as being ripped apart into nothingness and then engulfed by darkness. In a way, Erin could see how the people of this dimension would rather be murdered than become like this. From the corner of her eye she could see Mister March still struggling to get free and the shadows slowly slither towards the man to give him such an ending too.
Erin swallowed the lump in her throat as fear began to bubble in her veins at the sight of the Role Holder. Despite the fact that he still terrifies me…Mister March does not deserve to die. Not in such a manner. The dark-haired woman thought before a scream of pleasure from another faceless pierced her eardrums at the shrill sound. She turned her head to the side and witnessed the lifeless body evaporate to an afterimage. Erin had to do something. And fast.
But what?!
If...if she could distract Lady Aria or what was left of the second foreigner long enough to loosen the barrier around the compound, then Elliot March would get a chance to escape this onslaught, regardless that such an opportunity was slim. But how can I create a diversion when I am tied to the table?! Her heart thrummed rapidly at a memory that just passed through her muddled mind.
Wait a minute! Diversion. Music! Seven time changes ago, one of the technicians said something along the lines that music from Lady Aria's original culture could ease any animosity that she might display upon awakening by creating a connection to the memories of what she held dearest. A connection to herself by her blood heritage and oldest memories. And hadn't another technician said something along those lines before the ritual began? Music was a tactic that has proven to be effective, according to their extensive research on how the pitch of certain sound-waves could carry or channel the mana so it could even tame the most savage beasts that reside in Wonderland!
The college graduate stole another glance at the second foreigner. Lady Aria was practically engulfed by the materialized darkness in a quadruped, predatory form. Once she stretched an inky palm and touched either of them it would be over. At this point Erin knew her death was inevitable. But before she could inhale her last breath, she had to try and sooth Aria. It was her only idea. And she hoped in the name of the planet Gallifrey that it worked.
I have not sing since the final exam for that music class last semester. And I only know a few Spanish songs from learning them over the radio at A Weary Flamingo during my breaks from work. I just hope I can still carry a tune in a bucket!
There was nothing left to lose. Closing her emerald orbs with a focused expression stretched across her mouth she thought and remembered a song that, ironically, sounded like some sort of lullaby. It probably wasn't but at least it had sounded soothing to Erin. Inhaling a deep breath she began to sing in a low voice.
Cuando lejos me encuentre de ti (When you find me away)
Cuando quieras que yo este contigo (When you want me to be with you)
No hayaras un recuerdo de mi (You won't find a memory of me)
Ni tendras mas amores conmigo. (You won't have any romance with me.)
Y te juro que no volvere (And I swear I will not come back)
Aunque me haga pedazos la vida (Even if life tears me to pieces)
Si una ves con locura te ame (If once with madness I loved)
Ya de mi alma estaras despedida. (From my soul you'll be fired)
No volvere (I won't come back)
Te lo juro por Dios que me mira. (I swear to the Gods that look at me.)
Te lo digo llorando de rabia, no volvere. (Take it from my crying rage, I will not come back.)
No parare hasta ver que mi llanto a formado (I will not stop to see that my crying has formed)
Un arroyo de olvido abnegado (A stream of drowned oblivion)
Donde yo tu recuerdo ahogaré. (Where I'll drown the memory of you.)
The echo of Erin's words hit against the silence that had encompassed the cathedral above all other sounds. Her attempt at catching Aria's attention had been met with success. Flickering olive green orbs retracted their glance from an afterimage being ripped apart by the shadows. The mercenary blinked owlishly at the exotic yet familiar melody and slowly descended onto the ground with a hunched back. Aria stopped. She closed her eyes tightly for a second and began to move her mouth, as if trying to remember how words were formed.
Erin saw this and continued her chanting.
Fuimos nubes que el viento aparto (We were clouds that the wind set apart)
Aria shook her head and stretched her amble limbs like a nimble feline before looking around the cathedral for the source of the sound. Once she saw her prey helplessly strapped to a marbled pulpit on the altar, the second outsider began to crawl towards the college graduate with the sinuous grace of a panther.
Gotas de agua que el sol reseco (Drops of water desiccate by the sun)
Once the second foreigner had arrived at the center of the cathedral where Erin was imprisoned, the primal form of the darkness that protected and supported its master through a technically advanced armored suit and integrated AI, retreated; allowing the Master to crawl on top of the college graduate and make eye contact with Erin.
Besides the digital spasms and small shade of olive green, there was no expression on the outsider who had once made Wonderland tremble in awe with her knowledge and vast power as a cut-throat mercenary. The person who had deciphered the programming of this world and created an army of willful cards. Aria Hadron Scherzi no longer existed.
Or did she?
Borrachera que no terminamos (A drinking party that we never concluded)
Even when it was true that at this very moment she was terrified beyond the capacity for any rational thought, Erin she had to try. The petrified woman had resolved to gain time for the Hatters' second-in-command to escape from this place. She inhaled another deep breath and began to sing the next part of the song.
En el tren de la ausencia me voy (On the train of absence I'm going)
Erin's emerald eyes widened in shock when Aria's soft and unsteady voice joined hers.
Mi boleto no tiene regreso (My ticket has no return)
As Aria leaned over and pressed her ear against Erin's chest to listen to the frantic heartbeat hidden beneath the pinstriped suit that the younger outsider wore, her voice became clear and more confident.
Lo que quieras de mi te lo doy (What you may want from me I'll give to you)
The blonde-haired condottiere pulled her head away from the confined prisoner and blankly looked down at Erin, though continued to sing. The words that left Aria Hadron Scherzi's mouth resounded strongly in a voice that was more beautiful than one would think possible for this corrupted creature.
Pero no te devuelvo tus besos (But I do not return your kisses)
xCCx
Mauve orbs widened in surprise as Elliot watched the metal-scented darkness began to recede to the blackened armor. Now's my chance to grab Erin! The Role Holder quickly pulled on the last knot of his restraints loose. Once the rope had fallen onto the ground he ran to the altar and pushed Aria to the side and towards the marble staircase.
Darkness immediately gathered to form a cushion for the mercenary to safely disembark. It was unnecessary. Aria twisted her robust frame in the air and landed onto a kneeling position near the pews with the grace of a provoked beast, and with a ferocious snarl stretched across her pale face, she charged at the March Hare, who unfortunately had only managed to remove three IVs and break the leather strap on Erin's right hand before he was cuffed by Aria with a back leg round kick to the stomach, knocking the air out of him, and sending the orange-haired man flying towards a machine at the base of the altar with a loud 'crack'.
He still had traces of the paralyzing drug in his system. Elliot clumsily stood from the wreckage and took a gun from a fallen faceless before the twitching fanatic dissipated to an afterimage. Elliot raised his head and saw the second foreigner kneel near the marbled table staring at him with an empty expression He felt instinctual fear bubble inside him again when Aria slowly rose from the ground and leap towards him, her massive shadow moving on its own towards a different path; it divided itself into two portions, the first surrounded the woman like a shield while the other disemboweled over the shadows that slithered across the floor. At that moment Elliot knew he was dealing with a primal force beyond his comprehension; caused by whatever wronging failure he and other holders had committed against the second foreigner, that had let to this disastrous horrid abomination.
A blackened short blade, protruding from the suit's forearm came his way as the former foreigner charged at him. Aria was fast, but not as much as him. He rolled over to evade the collision where he had just stood with the blonde-haired woman. The March Hare noticed that the blade retracted on either of her forearms again as her flickering eyes glowed a crimson color. Now on a closer look he saw that the darkness had solidified not only on her armor, but also was transmuting elongated obsidian claws over her inky hands.
What had happened to this woman!?
Meanwhile Erin struggled to loosen the leather strap on her left hand but she was still bound too tightly to achieve it. However, she could distract Lady Aria with another verse of the song.
Cuando quieras que yo este contigo (When you want me to be with you)
When the words permeated through the air Aria stopped her assault and placed her blackened palms on her forehead in distress and confusion.
Elliot did not wait for the mercenary to regain her momentum, and took the chance to reach Erin again to break a few more bounds. But just because the second outsider was not being distracted did not necessarily include her shadow. Inky tendrils that had crawled away from Aria's shadow stretched towards the Role Holder and almost caught him. He jumped to the side though the darkness blanketed over Erin and caused her to emit a scream from her mouth. The melody ceased to echo the cathedral walls and returned Aria's attention back onto the Role Holder. Her left eye remained but a dark shade of red while the other switched from orange and yellow for a couple seconds until both of them returned to olive green.
"PriMAry tARgeT DeTERmINeD. SEcurE ObJECtiVe." The disembodied voice spoke once more but it did not originate from Aria's mouth. It came from her black armor. The very next second Aria jumped towards the marble table where Erin was being held and pushed Elliot away with a tremendous amount of force from both herself and the power of the hovering shadows.
When he ungracefully landed on the last marble stair towards the pews, he looked up to see that the corrupted foreigner did not follow him. Aria was straddling the college graduate on the marble table as darkness threatening to swallow the both of them. "Erin!" Mauve orbs widened in horror before Elliot aimed the gun at Aria's head. He fired five straight rounds, but they were disintegrated upon making impact with multiple dark tendrils hovering protectively over the hunched foreigner.
Olive-green orbs averted their empty gaze from her person of interest to the Role Holder who stood several meters away. A dark crimson color surrounded her corneas once more. The March Hare swallowed as he watched his enemy slowly remove herself from Erin and crawl towards him with an aggressive expression akin to a territorial animal stretched across her face. Another horrible roar echoed across the cathedral.
Elliot pressed a calloused hand against the side of his head with a pained grimace as he watched the darkness caress Aria's robust frame once more. Damn...why does it hurt so much when she does that?! But more importantly, how can I make a clean hit when those shadows act like a shield and without hitting Erin?!
Before his train of thought could venture any further Elliot heard the disembodied voice that chilled his blood. He made eye contact with the second outsider.
"MaIn rIsK deTeCted. SeCuRe PRotOcol AcTivatEd. EliMinaTe tarGet."
He gulped. This couldn't be good. What happened next...the disheveled mafioso could not even comprehend. Aria raised a hand towards him and the shadows below her extended, departing from the countless faceless that remained unconscious on the floor, and transmuted to vectoring tendrils that ran straight to his position at astonishing speed. He jumped away in time to avoid the spikes that came out of the floor aiming for his life and dodged another tendril aimed at his feet. He wanted to flee, but despite the fact that Elliot was convinced that he could get out of the compound in almost one piece if he could get away now, the Role Holder was not going leave without Erin.
More tendrils tried to impale him. He tried jumping aside and run towards the altar with a flanking technique but when he looked up, there was a massive spike poised in the air momentarily until it struck down at him. Then again. And again. It moved like a serpent and attacked him with the speed of a scorpion's tail as the Role Holder danced around it.
It-It's almost like...moving on its own accord! Elliot thought and then he looked at the source of the spike. It was darkness that came out and extended from the tip of the braid that came out of Aria's nape and moved along the shadows of the place. However she wasn't directly attacking him. Her attention had returned to Erin. The younger outsider had began to sing again despite the slimy darkness wriggling over her small frame and threatening to soil her mind as well.
Si una ves con locura te ame (If once with madness I loved)
Erin could only helplessly watch the Role Holder struggling against Aria's shadow as she continued to sing the exotic tune. Her throat was raw from singing. What else can she do to help? It was truly a desperate situation. Bullets would not serve and Erin did not want Lady A dead. There were still questions she had yet to ask the second foreigner. Despite the fact that it looked like any rational thought in Aria did not exist anymore and all that remained was a beast, Erin believed that the mercenary who had turned this dimension upside down was still unconscious and needed to be awakened through a psychological trigger. If only there was a way to stop her. But what?!
Elliot needed a close range weapon, but not one that killed...
A...A weapon that does not kill! Erin's little gray cells buzzed in realization. She had something to fight against the fourth foreigner; ironically, it had been a signature weapon in Lady Aria's arsenal.
The electric baton.
"Elliot! There is an electric baton you can use against her! It is in my coat pocket near the second machine on the altar!" Erin yelled at the bouncing Role Holder as he continued to dodge large black tendrils. That was all she could say before the college student opened her mouth and resumed singing to distract Aria, who began to rub her cheek against hers as the soothing melody echoed through the cathedral once more.
The March Hare had heard what Erin said and ran towards the altar while dodging dark ringlets that were steadily growing faster. It appeared that the shadow was improving its attacks and evasive maneuvers through random coordination, making it even more difficult to dodge.
He found a light, brown faux-suede overcoat on the ground behind the second apparatus and rummaged through it to find a small, but heavy cylindrical object, and just to narrowly avoid being impaled from above. Despite being familiar with many weapons at his disposal as the Hatters' second-in-command Elliot had never used an electric baton because they were useless in assassination. But this particular one felt...strangely far more powerful than any baton he had held in his shaking palm. He knew well enough how to extend it, and in the process of doing so it he raised his arm to hit an inky spike that was about to bury itself in his hip if he did not act quickly.
The effect was instantaneous. All of the tendrils halted their movements as Aria threw her head back with a pained and surprised screech at the stunning discharge that emitted from the baton.
Hope ignited in Elliot's clock and he dashed towards Erin, but not a second later all of the shadows in the monastery that had been protecting the malfunctioning mercenary began to merge on one spot to formulate a massive, scaled dragon-like head with glowing red eyes that seemed to be made from the same material as Aria Hadron Scherzi's suit. Despite the fact that he had never seen, or remember seeing it before, the Role Holder instinctively recognized this ferocious, fruming beast.
It was the Jabberwocky. And it was manifesting from the darkness hovering over the second foreigner and the inky brume that came that been part of her armor and her shadow. Now it was half frayed into thin black threads and partially exposed Aria's gracious and sensuous body, extending almost invisible metallic lines from her pale skin to the creature as silvery veins.
Over Erin, the mercenary was too stunned to compute or react to what was happening to her own equipment, both in shadow and body.
Worried bright green orbs watched the March Hare stiffened in fear at the massive creature that the shadows had formed, except for the willowy tendrils that continued to crawl towards it through the air or across the marble floor. When she desperately looked around for something to loosen the ropes coiled around her belly Erin noticed that there were liquefied shadows still dripping from the casket that the fourth foreigner had emerged from. At that moment she knew what to do.
"Elliot! Hit the coffin with the baton!"
Her panicked voice brought Elliot back to his senses just to narrowly bounce away from the beast's jagged ranges and landed in the center of the cathedral. He whacked each tendril that crossed his route to the altar, gaining precious milliseconds each time the weapon sparkled with electricity. When he reached his destination, the trigger-happy man saw the oozing darkness slowly seep from the melting pieces of ice towards Aria. He smirked at Erin's brilliance and leaped towards the fresco ceiling before raising the baton over his head with his dominant arm.
This girl...she's just as smart as Alice. Maybe...even a little more!
In a single downward sweep the weapon landed in the icy pine-box, immediately igniting bluebell lightning bolts to blitz across its massive frame. Elliot was leaped away from the shock and landed near Aria, but he quickly moved away as an ear-shattering roar erupted from both the Jabberwocky's inky head and its master at the high voltage assault that invaded the voluptuous frame of the resurrected outsider; causing Lady Aria to spasm violently until she collapsed onto the ground.
The March Hare's mauve orbs watched the darkness shakily dissolve the draconian head in an effort to protect the paralyzed woman. Even the shadows that had crawled around the crumbling walls were gathering as fast they could around the fallen foreigner. He could try and finish the mercenary for good, but the Role Holder did not know how long she would remain like this or the barrier would be lifted. And he needed to get Erin out of here before reinforcements from this organization came down with gun a-blazing or the darkness and its Master awakened. So he ran towards the altar and began pulling the rest of restraints off the college graduate.
"Erin, are you all right?!"
Bright green orbs widened slightly at the March Hare before she weakly nodded, too exhausted from everything that had happened to give a verbal answer or even quiver in fear at the sight of him. Erin had just seen something that was much more terrifying than a bloke that sported furred ears akin to a possible rabbit's distant relative.
"We need to get out of here or else that barrier will reappear and keep us trapped until more of these lunatics arrive. With guns." Elliot grunted as he threw the rope on the floor. He didn't know how he had even gotten to this place since that wizened doctor had his henchmen blindfold him as they seized the Role Holder, removing that damned cloth until arriving at the cathedral. For all he knew it could have been a secret passageway that these faceless only knew how to operate. "And we sure as hell can't use the front door!" He looked around the crumbling cathedral as silence reigned over it once more. The cards that had survived were still breathing but unconscious. There were still many alive.
The fourth foreigner then remembered something the faceless bartender had shown her almost five time changes ago on a tour through the facility. "I...believe I know the way." Erin averted her gaze to a bronze figurine of Aria in vibrant blue robes, another idealized version of the lost foreigner that had nothing to do with the crawling darkness concentrating on the floor of the cathedral, that sat on the far right-hand corner of the marble table. "If you turn that statue towards the pulpit a staircase will appear underneath the choir stalls. It leads to an 'underground railroad'."
Elliot stared at Erin for a few seconds and nodded before he gently lifted the dark-haired woman from the table to his arms. She involuntarily twitched ever so lightly when his palm coiled around her shoulders. He raised a leg and kicked the statue towards the wooden platform. Once his ears picked up the sound of gears clanking against each other, the Role Holder leaped towards the choir stalls. But just as he was about to jump down the square-shaped hole, the March Hare raised the gun and shot off the sumptuous statue's head to make sure no one would follow them, as the passage closed behind them.
xCCx
As he trotted down the dimly-lit path forged from materials such as steel rails and reinforced concrete, sturdy plastic intertwined with light-colored wood decorated with elegantly carved musical notes, disbelief raced through Elliot's mind. How could such a passageway go unnoticed from the Hatters until now? It did not make any sense! He glanced down at the tiny outsider in his grasp; the fact that this underground railroad had eluded him and the other Role Holders bothered the March Hare greatly, but not as much as the silence that seemed to follow them like an unsteady cloud. As the lighting fixtures grew steadily stronger the further he traveled down the track, so did the outline of an elongated platform made from polished mahogany. However, the 'train' looked nothing like a dark-colored, clunky steam locomotive that spouted smoke from its chimney he had always seen entering from the Station in the Country of Diamond before the aforementioned province disappeared without a trace. Its elongated frame, around four normal railroad carts in length, was sleek and sported an emerald green color that could easily be blend in with the sparse fields around Clover; and there was not even a door for them to get inside!
But when Erin insisted to be placed on the ground, she toddled to the bizarre monstrosity and stooped down to tap her hand against on its inky edge for a few minutes before a door appeared in front of them, silently sliding to the left. Once they stepped inside, the foreigner ran down the carpeted locomotive and until she reached a corridor that had 'ENGINE ROOM' written in dark blue lettering glowing above the doorway with the Role Holder close to her heels. Elliot could only watch in astonishment as she pulled down three miniature toggle levers on the bone-white console pad prior to placing a pale hand on a bright red lever, slowing pushing it towards the oval-shaped window. The train released a wheezing sound and started to quiver violently until it started to move forward.
"Electricity, Elliot. We'll be arriving at another station in ten minutes. I doubt anyone will be at there since the ritual was supposed to a very important event that required everyone's attendance. And I do not think even half of the Lullaby were in the cathedral. If that had been the case, then there would have posted guards everywhere else. Not to mention this subway was built for transporting supplies, not people." Erin murmured, puffy red eyes glued to the darkened tunnel ahead.
Now that the terrible danger was behind, Erin's thoughts drifted to what she had remembered. The truth about her past before coming into Wonderland. A jolt of pain stung her shattered heart as if someone had just punched in the chest. If only she had been a little more patient with the doctor. If only she found a facility that offered better treatment for Uncle Sal's medical condition. If only...the phrase would not stop dancing through her muddled mind. She blinked, the action causing dulled green orbs to sting and a shudder to crawl down her aching spine. What am I thinking? Even if there had been another alternative, it would have been useless. Uncle Sal could not be saved. It is the doctor had said: he would have had the physical and mental strength of an infant with no memory of the past or sense of the future. The college graduate grimaced at the thought. There was nothing I could have done to help him at that point. Not unless I had a TARDIS to travel back to the day of the accident.
Being logical had been something that she had prided herself in and yet it had become her greatest sin.
Erin shook her head in an attempt to relinquish any hint that she was about to cry again and focused on what lied in front of her. There is no use in shedding any more tears. I have to move forward. Or try to, at least. The dark-haired foreigner contemplated, knowing that there was no going back to her world as the lever inched even further towards the window, slightly accelerating the speed in the train by three miles, or at least according to the black computer screen near her right forearm. A startled gasp left her hoarse mouth when a pair of obsidian arms reached around to coil over her stiffened shoulders. The young woman reclined her head to the side slightly and saw the March Hare's towering frame leaning against hers with the back of the leather chair acting as a barrier between their bodies.
"W-What are you doing, Elliot?"
"..."
The outsider wiggled in the iron-like embrace with an uncomfortable expression on her face when the pressure on her shoulders increased. Albeit a witness to something much more terrifying than a trigger-happy wanker with animal ears, Erin was still not completely at ease in his presence. "Mister March, please loosen your grip or else I will not be able to get us to our destination safely!"
Regrettably though, his fingers dug even further into the fabric of her lined suit as he leaned in to whisper hoarsely in her ear. "How can you drive this train? Why did you cooperate with that organization when you could have destroyed Wonderland by just reviving that...that thing? What are you gonna do now that it's over?"
Erin stopped moving and inhaled a deep breath before she elbowed Elliot in the chest. Ignoring the small hiss of pain, she replied in a curt voice. "To answer your questions: Uncle Sal had worked as a tube or 'subway' operator for the London Underground until he settled down with Aunt Edith and opened his automobile shop. He had taught me the basic safety precautions and controls through a simulation program just in case the business did not do well and have go back to that particular business with a valid license. I agreed to help the Lullaby because I do not trust the Role Holders. Your ilk wouldn't have given me a straight answer at the questions that were floating in my mind since I came to this dimension. However, I did not know that Lady A would wake up in that state. I do not think The Lullaby did either. Now that it is over, I am going to either the Tower of Clover or the town. In that order."
"But was risking your life to bring that broken outsider back to Wonderland worth the pain you had to bear?" Elliot asked as he used a hand to tilt her chin so that their eyes met. While his mouth was contorted in angered expression, royal purple irises danced with anxiety. The college graduate stared at the orange-haired man for a long moment before she turned away from him and averted her attention back onto the tunnel.
"Forgetting pain is convenient. Remembering it...agonizing. But recovering the truth that had been lost is worth the suffering . And knowing what had actually happened is better than being fed with deception." Erin said before she jolted slightly when his hand rested at the edge of her throat, rough fingers caressing the shirt collar.
"You mean to tell me it's okay that you were willing to throw away your life, and endure so much pain I could almost hear your heart about explode?" The Role Holder asked in a soft voice, a subtle indication that he was not satisfied with her answer. But quite frankly, she did not give a damn at this point. All she wanted to do was get off this train and away from Elliot before he decided to take her to Hatter Mansion instead of letting her go to Wonderland's neutral zone.
Lackluster emerald orbs blinked owlishly and looked down at the control panel, deftly pressing a few buttons with one hand as the other started to pull the bright red lever away from the window. "We will be arriving at the station in less than three minutes. Be prepared to get off soon." Erin quietly addressed her companion in a voice that clearly meant the discussion had ended. Though once the train had come to a complete halt at the polished platform, Elliot did not waste a fraction of a second to hoist Erin in his arms again and left the engine room. Upon seeing the surprised expression on her pale face, he explained that they would be making a run for it in case there was anyone around.
"...Very well, but you had better be light on your feet."
As soon as the door opened, Elliot raced out of the apparatus and made a left turn with Erin directing them towards an elevator shaft that would take them from the underground transit system to the surface. Once he had pushed the metal gate of the conveyor to the side and pressed a button that would ascend them from their current predicament, the minutes ticked by at a slow, steady gait while an annoyingly calm music played in the elevator. Plum-colored orbs widened in shock and looked down at the floor. Just how far down were they?! He was starting to get worried, and not just for the young woman in his grasp.
How could these faceless conceal something like this from the whole country, or all of Wonderland? How could such an elaborate structure been built in such little time and without being noticed by the Role Holders? Just how much power and wealth did this organization have? Did they have support from enemies of the Hatters and even those who simply hate the system? Elliot would have contemplated further with a grim frown if it were not for the elevator desisted its jerky movement and a light cough from his small foreigner, reminding him that getting away from this place was the first priority.
When the elevator doors and metal gate opened, the pair entered in what looked like a storage room with every square inch filled with open cardboard boxes and multicolored books still wrapped in plastic. Once the Role Holder had released Erin from his confinement to search for a method to leave the facility, the latter saw another statue of Aria; at that moment she knew it was another hidden mechanism that could either be a lever or a button. When she pulled it towards her with a hesitant jerk, a hidden door opened. The route that they had taken led them to the back of an empty bookstore and its quaint little cafe. It did not take much effort for Elliot to open the door, though would have used his gun instead a pickpocket kit he always carried with him on espionage missions. A half an hour later, they arrived at a desolate area of a public garden near Erin's destination. Its lively foliage and chattering visitors vaguely reminded the foreigner of Green Park.
Upon stepping foot in the aforementioned providence, she knew it was time for them to go their separate ways. Erin exhaled and turned to the Role Holder with a quivering palm raised in his direction. "Thank you for saving me and...take care, all right? Get yourself check out by a doctor and get cleaned up or whatever it is that you do upon returning home."
Elliot stared at her hand in bewilderment for a moment and retracted his attention to the foreigner. "It would much better for both of us if you came with me to Hatter Mansion." She ignored his answer and firmly shook his hand before quickly retracting her hand from him in a clumsy manner. "No thank you, Elliot. I am still going to the Tower of Clover."
The orange-haired man was about to retaliate that she would be safer with him in Blood's territory but bit his tongue. He would not be able to coerce her after what they had just experienced and Erin needed time to herself; to rest and think. "At least let me walk you there, Erin. What if there are more of those lunatics running around looking for us?" Yeah...that's a pretty excuse. They're all probably still at that cathedral or even at the underground train station. But still….He released a small sigh and scratched the back of his head with a sheepish smile. "Well...if that's the case, then can we at least go to the town for some carrot cake after we've...fully recovered from that?"
Erin blinked and stared at him for a few moments until the corners of her chapped mouth tilted up slightly in a small smile. "Carrot cake...that actually sounds…good."
"At least you're calling by my first name and not trying to run away from me. Yet."
"I guess I am not. See you in a little while...whenever that might be since Time is not exactly a straightforward lady in this dimension." The young woman murmured before she turned on the ball of her heel and began to walk towards the only neutral zone in this part of Wonderland.
As Elliot watched the distance between them grow even further, he started to make his own trek to Hatter Mansion despite his desire to pull Erin back to him and right away take her to a restaurant that served the best damned carrot cake in this country. Time was definitely a wayward entity in this wonderful wonder world and he had plenty of work to do when he returned home including reporting to Blood; but for now, that was all right with the March Hare.
I would like to thank everyone who has taken the time out of their busy schedule to read the first tale of Erin Oswald's adventures in Wonderland. It has been quite a journey in itself to write this story, especially with life-changing occurrences happening almost every day and learning more about the world as an adult, though unfortunately writing fan fiction does not help pay for the rent. I have written an epilogue to conclude Carrot Cake on Valentine's Day as well as a special surprise to all of my readers on the aforementioned holiday so please stay tuned for the next update!