Chapter 5: Into the Water

Alice, the King, and the Messengers arrived in the town square quite out of breath. Before them, in a cloud of dust, they could dimly make out two figures fighting. The shrill cries coming from the two combatants went something like this:

"Wretched wench!"

"I'll show you how to dress properly, you strumpet!"

"Try to steal my man, will you?"

"He never was yours! He is my champion, and mine alone. You will never know the meaning of courtly love, witch!"

"A witch, am I? Well at least I didn't get my husband through my daddy's land and money."

"Are you accusing me of buying my way into my lord's heart?"

"No, I am accusing you of buying your way to the crown, so that you can turn the land away from its rightful customs. Take your heathen religion away from our country!"

"Never, Fairy-Queen! You will never have my champion knight, either."

"I had him first, you know. You and your simpering blonde beauty! Ha! What will you do without your shining, beautiful hair?"

With this, the Lion lunged for the Unicorn's shimmering mane and attempted to rip it out. The two fell to the ground and continued exchanging slaps and insults, and the White King turned to Alice and spoke:

"They are both too busy fighting all the time to realize that Launcelot hasn't been around for the last few weeks. He left a fortnight ago to fight and slay the Grendlewocky, and hasn't been seen since."

The King's mention of the Grendlewocky stirred some sort of recognition in Alice, but the memory was dim and then a great pounding noise drew her out of her thoughts.

"What is that awful noise?" she asked, her hands over her ears.

"Those are the drums," answered the King: "They play the drums whenever the Great Chain of Being is upset."

"And what upsets it?"

"It gets troubled whenever someone tries to move out of their place in life, or moves really anything in a different direction than was originally intended for it." explained the King: "The Great Chain of Being has horribly bad indigestion when it is upset, you know," he added, thoughtfully.

"But that must happen rather a lot, I would think," Alice pointed out.

"Yes, in this world especially. If we didn't have the Chain, nothing remotely interesting would ever happen around here. Some of us make quite a good living because of that."

The drums grew increasingly louder, and Alice put her hands to her ears. The Messengers had started shouting over the sound of the drums: "I say," said one, "they don't have any right to subject us to this torture! It's high time we left."

"Right...left..."thought Alice slowly. "Why do those words sound so important to me?" She raised one hand to her forehead. "I'm Ophelia!" she exclaimed suddenly, and started swimming toward the surface.

x x x x

The sunlight seemed very far off, and the sound of the drums had been replaced by a rushing in Ophelia's ears. "I must get to the air before the drumming wakes the Red King!" thought Ophelia furiously. "I must, I must!"

x x x x

Back in the forest, the Red King stirred, and muttered grumpily, "mmmph, my kingdom for some earmuffs!"

Footsteps pattered through the forest, and a doleful figure dressed in black entered the clearing, mumbling to himself.

"Oh, why do I lack all courage and gall! Going at this rate, no one shall I kill. Were I not so pigeon-livered...but soft! What figure is this, on the brink of sleep? Shall I allow his slumber to proceed? Or pull him from the shackles of his mind?"

x x x x

"No!" gurgled Ophelia: "Don't stop his dream!"

x x x x

"To wake, or not to wake? That is the question. Whether 'tis nobler to let sleeping poets lie, or take arms to this man and have him help me act?"

x x x x

"Just a few feet more..."

x x x x

"Be still, my lips, for I shall hold my tongue."

x x x x

Ophelia struggled to the surface of the sea;
While the King still slept she had to reach dry ground
But the human voice had woke him, and she drowned.