Kite: Well you'll see soon enough....provided I update soon ;
Kat23a: O.o um...thanks? I kinda' understood that ; And the cat is...um...jealous....;
Jormundgand: Ah, thank you very much.
This chapter is dedicated to Andy, for getting me the game! Yayayayayayay!
--- --- ---
Chapter 7: Fixed Dice
"Niar of the heart guard?"
Niar, sat polishing his spear, looked up at the visitor. Another heart guard.
"You can't fool me Dice. Show yourself."
The heart guard smiled and changed, it's plain red hood changing to a mass of coloured diamonds, the hood itself splitting into three parts like a jester's cap.
The hearts on his chest and arms disappeared, leaving a joker emblazoned on his chest.
"Why does the fabled harlequin grace me with his presence?" Niar asked with mock formality. He and Dice were old friends.
"The one and only joker card guard my friend." Dice smiled again.
"Orders from the Queen of Hearts Niar. She wants you to test Alice's skills, estimate how much of a threat she is."
"And if she is a threat?"
"If she is then my orders are to join you in battle to eliminate her."
Niar nodded slowly.
"She is a worthy adversary, but at this moment in time defeating her should not be a problem."
"Well then." Dice made a complicated motion with his hand and a portal appeared, "No time like the present."
--- --- ---
Alice and Lewis endered the next, and last, floor of the ant's fort.
"Look up." Alice said flatly.
Lewis did as she said, there was the Eel's head, hanging from the ceiling.
"Well, now all we need to do is grab the head and get out of here." Lewis took a step forwards.
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that."
Lewis jumped back as an ant landed in front of him, the queen ant.
She was about four or five times the size of the ants they had previously fought, and had a huge pair of glistning, silvery wings on her back.
"Out of my way!" Alice rushed at the queen and slashed at it with her knife. She left a long gash in the queen's body, and green meta-essence seeped out of it for a moment, before the wound healed in front of their eyes.
The queen began hovering and darted towards alice, grabbing her with it's six pairs of legs.
Alice found herself face to face with the queen, who lowered her head so that her pincer like jaws were around Alice's neck.
"You have murdered my children! You will not leave here alive!"
The queen stopped, shrieking in pain as she felt a card thuding into her back. Alice broke free while she was distracted, running out of the way.
"Very well. If you want a fight, that's what you'll get."
The queen held out one hand and a sceptre appeared in it.
"I will not let your crimes remain unpunished."
The queen rose into the air again, the scepter in hand. She pointed it at Alice and a flame burst from the end of it.
Alice jumped aside just in time, looking back at the scorched floor.
She got back up and ran closer to the queen, hoping to get close enough to throw the knife. As she ran she crossed the blackened floor, which cracked underneath her feet. She carried on running but yelled to Lewis.
"That burned patch it weak. Try to avoid walking on it!"
He nodded, before firing a few cards up at the queen, she dodged them easily.
"You'll never hit me while I'm flying little one."
"We'll just have to clip your wings then!" Alice threw a handful of cards at the queen, but she dodged every one.
"You can't stay up there forever! You'll get tired and have to come down sooner or later!" Alice put the cards away and pulled out the knife, running the tongue along the blade.
"Maybe so Alice, but will you have anything left to stand on by then?" The queen swung the sceptre again, flames springing up all around the room.
"No...not...fire.." Alice shook her head, shivering even though the room had become a furnace. Lewis had reacted in a similar way, and was stuck huddled against a corner surrounded by a sea of flames.
Alice glared at the queen, her eyes reflecting the light of the fire.
"I wont die like this!! Not now! Not ever!!"
She drew a die from her dress and swung it around in her hand for a moment.
"Roll the demon dice and heads will roll." The cat's voice was nearby.
"Off with her head!" Alice threw the dice, it rolled along the floor for a moment, it was stopping. Six dots.
Six balls of light burst out of the dice, a door to the demon world flickered, a tear between two realities, both as demented as the other.
Alice watched, smiling as a demon appeared, cackling madly.
"What?!" The queen stared at the creature in surprise.
"Is this some kind of joke?"
Her eyes widened in horror as the demon flung out it's hands and bolts of lighting began to rain down on them, smashing holes in the fragile floor, each bolt getting closer to the queen. She shrieked as pure electricity burnt a hole through her body, dropping to the floor into a fire of her own creation. The demon looked around for a moment, then spotted Alice and Lewis. It turned and began advancing on them.
"Unreliable little bastard..." Alice rolled aside as lightning crashed into the ground she's just been standing on. She grabbed Lewis and dragged him towards the doorway as the rest of the room collapsed behind them.
"Sorry Alice...I just...froze..."
Alice sighed.
"It's okay...I can understand." That was all she said.
"Ah!" She brightened up. The collapse of the top floor had taken part of the celing with it, and now they had reached the floor below, amongst the wreckage was the Eel's head, still undamaged.
They climbed across the ruins of the room, when the top floor had collapsed the weight of the collapsing floor had caused the floor below to collapse in places too, and the damage probably went all the way down to the bottom of the fort. They picked up the head and navigated their way to the next doorway.
"..S-sToP!"
They turned, looking for the souce of the voice.
A pile of rubble in the centre of the floor began moving, then suddenly burst apart to reveal the ant queen.
Her body was charred and twisted in places, her wings ragged and a couple of legs missing, but she still rose up and fixed her gaze on them, her eyes now literally burning, flames filling their sockets.
"FiRe CaN't DeStRoY mE! yOu'Re GoInG tO pAy FoR tHiS!"
"Oh crap..." Alice turned to Lewis, "There's no way we can handle her like this, we should just made a run for it."
He nodded.
"C-cOmE bAcK!!!" The queen lurched forwards, taking to the skies again.
Alice and Lewis ran back down the tower, jumping unexpected holes in the floor, the queen simply flying down each floor, shooting at them with the scepter as they went.
The reached the ground floor and heard an omnious groaning sound.
"The fort isn't going to take much more of this! It's going to collapse completely!"
Alice's eyes widened, Lewis was right, the whole fort was visibly shaking.
"ThIs WiLl Be YoUr GrAvE!!"
The queen had caught up with them.
"Come on!!" Lewis grabbed Alice by the hand and ran, swerving from side to side to avoid the flames streaming past them. They dived out of the doorway as the whole structure folded in on itself, falling apart behind them, a cloud of dust and a mound of charred clay all that remained.
"That eel had better take us across now!!" Alice growled, she'd never had the chance to pick up her dice and several cards that were now buried beyond her reach.
"Let's just get the hell out of here." Alice muttered.
--- --- ---
"Who's commanding the guards at the skool now that I've been transferred?"
"I wasn't informed. Sorry."
The two guards wandered the area, this was the closest Dice's portal could take them, they'd have to find Alice themselves from here.
"Well. Let's follow the trail of death and destruction."
--- --- ---
"Ayyy?! Wat's this?! I can 'ardly believe me eyes! Ye two lil' ones brough me brother's head back to me? Ay'm in ye debt to be sure. 'Ang on tight and I'll 'ave ye across in no time."
"Wait. What do we do with the head now we've got it for you?"
"Just hold it up lad."
Lewis did as he was asked, holding the Eel's head above his own. It became a mass of flowing light and darted into the water.
"What...happened there?"
"His head's been sent to me family's buriel ground y'see. Now he can rest in piece. I thank ye both from the bottom of me heart."
"Can we go now?" Alice was getting impatient.
"Of course miss. Hang on! Off we gooo!"
The Eel surged forwards, cutting through the water with ease, too fast for the Snarks to even try to bite at him.
They arrived at the shore, the Eel bid them goodbye and dived back into the water.
"Alice? Alice, is that you?"
Alice looked up at the creature greeting them, it took her a moment to recognise him without his shell, then realisation dawned.
"Mock turtle?"
The Mock turtle nodded sadly, tears rolling down his bovine face.
"But...what happened to your shell?"
"Oh Alice...it was horrible...I was just sitting here being no bother to anyone when..."
"Alright, get to the point!" Alice paused as the mock turtle started crying again, then a little more kindly. "Where is your shell old friend?"
"The D-Duchess' manor Alice."
"well then, we'll just have to pay the Duchess a little visit. Won't we Lewis? Lewis?"
He wasn't listning, instead staring across to the center of the pool, at the stone figure whose eyes flowed with neverending tears, Alice.
"Come on Alice." The Mock Turtle's whine grated across Alice's nerves.
A huge leaf drifted down onto the pool, the turtle jumped on and was carried away by the current.
"We could have done with those earlier..." Alice watched another leaf fall.
She grabbed Lewis and dragged him on.
"Try not to fall off or you'll have to learn to swim very, VERY quickly."
The leaf carried them down the narrow streams at high speed, twisting this way and that, dragged along by the current.
Alice jumped as the leaf aproached a low root, Lewis ducking just in time to avoid being knocked off it.
It carried them on further, they spotted a few snarks around, but they were travelling mnuch too fast to be troubled by the scavengers.
"Alice....can you hear a sort of roaring sound ahead?"
"Waterfall...." She replied irratably, "That fool...."
There was no time to prepare, too late to try to jump, they simply fell, the leaf slipping away and sinking into the water, Alice and Lewis hitting the water. Hard.
Lewis opened his eyes, he'd been washed up on the edge of the bank, luckily there didn't seem to be any Snarks around. He looked around, worried, until he spotted Alice sitting further along the bank.
He stood weaily, picking up the spear miraculously beside him and went to join her.
Another leaf drifted down in front of them.
"Time to catch up..." She sighed and stood also.
"Let's hope there are no more little surprises like that."
--- ---- ---
I really didn't know how to end this chapter...--;
Kat23a: O.o um...thanks? I kinda' understood that ; And the cat is...um...jealous....;
Jormundgand: Ah, thank you very much.
This chapter is dedicated to Andy, for getting me the game! Yayayayayayay!
--- --- ---
Chapter 7: Fixed Dice
"Niar of the heart guard?"
Niar, sat polishing his spear, looked up at the visitor. Another heart guard.
"You can't fool me Dice. Show yourself."
The heart guard smiled and changed, it's plain red hood changing to a mass of coloured diamonds, the hood itself splitting into three parts like a jester's cap.
The hearts on his chest and arms disappeared, leaving a joker emblazoned on his chest.
"Why does the fabled harlequin grace me with his presence?" Niar asked with mock formality. He and Dice were old friends.
"The one and only joker card guard my friend." Dice smiled again.
"Orders from the Queen of Hearts Niar. She wants you to test Alice's skills, estimate how much of a threat she is."
"And if she is a threat?"
"If she is then my orders are to join you in battle to eliminate her."
Niar nodded slowly.
"She is a worthy adversary, but at this moment in time defeating her should not be a problem."
"Well then." Dice made a complicated motion with his hand and a portal appeared, "No time like the present."
--- --- ---
Alice and Lewis endered the next, and last, floor of the ant's fort.
"Look up." Alice said flatly.
Lewis did as she said, there was the Eel's head, hanging from the ceiling.
"Well, now all we need to do is grab the head and get out of here." Lewis took a step forwards.
"I'm afraid I can't let you do that."
Lewis jumped back as an ant landed in front of him, the queen ant.
She was about four or five times the size of the ants they had previously fought, and had a huge pair of glistning, silvery wings on her back.
"Out of my way!" Alice rushed at the queen and slashed at it with her knife. She left a long gash in the queen's body, and green meta-essence seeped out of it for a moment, before the wound healed in front of their eyes.
The queen began hovering and darted towards alice, grabbing her with it's six pairs of legs.
Alice found herself face to face with the queen, who lowered her head so that her pincer like jaws were around Alice's neck.
"You have murdered my children! You will not leave here alive!"
The queen stopped, shrieking in pain as she felt a card thuding into her back. Alice broke free while she was distracted, running out of the way.
"Very well. If you want a fight, that's what you'll get."
The queen held out one hand and a sceptre appeared in it.
"I will not let your crimes remain unpunished."
The queen rose into the air again, the scepter in hand. She pointed it at Alice and a flame burst from the end of it.
Alice jumped aside just in time, looking back at the scorched floor.
She got back up and ran closer to the queen, hoping to get close enough to throw the knife. As she ran she crossed the blackened floor, which cracked underneath her feet. She carried on running but yelled to Lewis.
"That burned patch it weak. Try to avoid walking on it!"
He nodded, before firing a few cards up at the queen, she dodged them easily.
"You'll never hit me while I'm flying little one."
"We'll just have to clip your wings then!" Alice threw a handful of cards at the queen, but she dodged every one.
"You can't stay up there forever! You'll get tired and have to come down sooner or later!" Alice put the cards away and pulled out the knife, running the tongue along the blade.
"Maybe so Alice, but will you have anything left to stand on by then?" The queen swung the sceptre again, flames springing up all around the room.
"No...not...fire.." Alice shook her head, shivering even though the room had become a furnace. Lewis had reacted in a similar way, and was stuck huddled against a corner surrounded by a sea of flames.
Alice glared at the queen, her eyes reflecting the light of the fire.
"I wont die like this!! Not now! Not ever!!"
She drew a die from her dress and swung it around in her hand for a moment.
"Roll the demon dice and heads will roll." The cat's voice was nearby.
"Off with her head!" Alice threw the dice, it rolled along the floor for a moment, it was stopping. Six dots.
Six balls of light burst out of the dice, a door to the demon world flickered, a tear between two realities, both as demented as the other.
Alice watched, smiling as a demon appeared, cackling madly.
"What?!" The queen stared at the creature in surprise.
"Is this some kind of joke?"
Her eyes widened in horror as the demon flung out it's hands and bolts of lighting began to rain down on them, smashing holes in the fragile floor, each bolt getting closer to the queen. She shrieked as pure electricity burnt a hole through her body, dropping to the floor into a fire of her own creation. The demon looked around for a moment, then spotted Alice and Lewis. It turned and began advancing on them.
"Unreliable little bastard..." Alice rolled aside as lightning crashed into the ground she's just been standing on. She grabbed Lewis and dragged him towards the doorway as the rest of the room collapsed behind them.
"Sorry Alice...I just...froze..."
Alice sighed.
"It's okay...I can understand." That was all she said.
"Ah!" She brightened up. The collapse of the top floor had taken part of the celing with it, and now they had reached the floor below, amongst the wreckage was the Eel's head, still undamaged.
They climbed across the ruins of the room, when the top floor had collapsed the weight of the collapsing floor had caused the floor below to collapse in places too, and the damage probably went all the way down to the bottom of the fort. They picked up the head and navigated their way to the next doorway.
"..S-sToP!"
They turned, looking for the souce of the voice.
A pile of rubble in the centre of the floor began moving, then suddenly burst apart to reveal the ant queen.
Her body was charred and twisted in places, her wings ragged and a couple of legs missing, but she still rose up and fixed her gaze on them, her eyes now literally burning, flames filling their sockets.
"FiRe CaN't DeStRoY mE! yOu'Re GoInG tO pAy FoR tHiS!"
"Oh crap..." Alice turned to Lewis, "There's no way we can handle her like this, we should just made a run for it."
He nodded.
"C-cOmE bAcK!!!" The queen lurched forwards, taking to the skies again.
Alice and Lewis ran back down the tower, jumping unexpected holes in the floor, the queen simply flying down each floor, shooting at them with the scepter as they went.
The reached the ground floor and heard an omnious groaning sound.
"The fort isn't going to take much more of this! It's going to collapse completely!"
Alice's eyes widened, Lewis was right, the whole fort was visibly shaking.
"ThIs WiLl Be YoUr GrAvE!!"
The queen had caught up with them.
"Come on!!" Lewis grabbed Alice by the hand and ran, swerving from side to side to avoid the flames streaming past them. They dived out of the doorway as the whole structure folded in on itself, falling apart behind them, a cloud of dust and a mound of charred clay all that remained.
"That eel had better take us across now!!" Alice growled, she'd never had the chance to pick up her dice and several cards that were now buried beyond her reach.
"Let's just get the hell out of here." Alice muttered.
--- --- ---
"Who's commanding the guards at the skool now that I've been transferred?"
"I wasn't informed. Sorry."
The two guards wandered the area, this was the closest Dice's portal could take them, they'd have to find Alice themselves from here.
"Well. Let's follow the trail of death and destruction."
--- --- ---
"Ayyy?! Wat's this?! I can 'ardly believe me eyes! Ye two lil' ones brough me brother's head back to me? Ay'm in ye debt to be sure. 'Ang on tight and I'll 'ave ye across in no time."
"Wait. What do we do with the head now we've got it for you?"
"Just hold it up lad."
Lewis did as he was asked, holding the Eel's head above his own. It became a mass of flowing light and darted into the water.
"What...happened there?"
"His head's been sent to me family's buriel ground y'see. Now he can rest in piece. I thank ye both from the bottom of me heart."
"Can we go now?" Alice was getting impatient.
"Of course miss. Hang on! Off we gooo!"
The Eel surged forwards, cutting through the water with ease, too fast for the Snarks to even try to bite at him.
They arrived at the shore, the Eel bid them goodbye and dived back into the water.
"Alice? Alice, is that you?"
Alice looked up at the creature greeting them, it took her a moment to recognise him without his shell, then realisation dawned.
"Mock turtle?"
The Mock turtle nodded sadly, tears rolling down his bovine face.
"But...what happened to your shell?"
"Oh Alice...it was horrible...I was just sitting here being no bother to anyone when..."
"Alright, get to the point!" Alice paused as the mock turtle started crying again, then a little more kindly. "Where is your shell old friend?"
"The D-Duchess' manor Alice."
"well then, we'll just have to pay the Duchess a little visit. Won't we Lewis? Lewis?"
He wasn't listning, instead staring across to the center of the pool, at the stone figure whose eyes flowed with neverending tears, Alice.
"Come on Alice." The Mock Turtle's whine grated across Alice's nerves.
A huge leaf drifted down onto the pool, the turtle jumped on and was carried away by the current.
"We could have done with those earlier..." Alice watched another leaf fall.
She grabbed Lewis and dragged him on.
"Try not to fall off or you'll have to learn to swim very, VERY quickly."
The leaf carried them down the narrow streams at high speed, twisting this way and that, dragged along by the current.
Alice jumped as the leaf aproached a low root, Lewis ducking just in time to avoid being knocked off it.
It carried them on further, they spotted a few snarks around, but they were travelling mnuch too fast to be troubled by the scavengers.
"Alice....can you hear a sort of roaring sound ahead?"
"Waterfall...." She replied irratably, "That fool...."
There was no time to prepare, too late to try to jump, they simply fell, the leaf slipping away and sinking into the water, Alice and Lewis hitting the water. Hard.
Lewis opened his eyes, he'd been washed up on the edge of the bank, luckily there didn't seem to be any Snarks around. He looked around, worried, until he spotted Alice sitting further along the bank.
He stood weaily, picking up the spear miraculously beside him and went to join her.
Another leaf drifted down in front of them.
"Time to catch up..." She sighed and stood also.
"Let's hope there are no more little surprises like that."
--- ---- ---
I really didn't know how to end this chapter...--;