AJ hadn't counted on just breaking down and crying in front of her Wonderland friends the way she did, but as a result of her crying fit, she felt a little stronger on the inside for it. There was still a large nagging concern that she might not be able to do anything that may be of a help to save the Jester, but she ignored it in favor of strengthening her resolve to do so. Leaving out of the King and Queen's rose garden, AJ and the others followed a path that lead to a large amphitheater that was filling with people there to watch the execution. Looking around, AJ started to notice that some of the other Wonderland residents in attendance started to faintly resemble some of her fellow WWE roster members. Thinking she was seeing things, AJ shook her head and walked along with her newfound friends to where they took their seats.
"Still feeling nervous about this?" John asked.
"A little bit. I still don't know what I'm going to do as far as helping you guys out, but I promise I'll do something," AJ said, wiping her palms on her shorts.
"Don't worry. You'll know when to help us. Just wait for it," John said.
As AJ sat in wait, she couldn't help but get curious about what John meant when he said that she would know when to help them. Before she could try to ask him what it was that he meant, she was cut off by the sounds of trumpet fanfare coming from on the stage area. All around AJ, voices stopped as a person, who AJ guessed was a member of the royal court, emerged onto the stage dressed in a pair of red and black tights, a long-sleeved white shirt with a heart embroidered over the person's left pectoral, and a pair of black and red boots.
With a timidity that seemed familiar to AJ, the person said "We shall now commence with the execution of the Jester. Please stand for your highnesses, the King and Queen of Wonderland."
Standing along with the others, AJ kept her eyes on the stage as she watched the King and Queen make their way to their thrones. However, once AJ saw the King and Queen, she fought back the urge to slap herself to make sure she wasn't seeing things: the King and Queen were Dolph Ziggler and Vickie Guerrero; however, like everyone else she had run into in Wonderland, they didn't quite look like themselves. Dolph, or rather the King, was dressed in a white waist-length petticoat that was buttoned together with a heart embroidered on the left side, black trousers, a flowing red cloak, and a pair of white shoes. Vickie, or the Queen, was dressed in a long, sweeping, floor-length sleeveless red dress with a white section of material hanging down the middle that had three hearts going down, and a high-necked black jacket over the dress. Also, in Vickie's right hand was a jewel-encrusted scepter. Looking on as the two walked to their thrones, AJ watched on in shock, mainly because back in her world, Dolph and Vickie were the two people that made up the heel side of her upcoming feud. Just the fact that there were incarnations of them here in Wonderland had AJ feeling a new level of nervousness. Feeling the urge to leave, AJ was reminded of her promise to help her new friends, so going against this feeling, AJ stayed planted in her seat and watched on.
Once the King and Queen took their seats, everyone in attendance took their seats as well. After everyone was seated, the same person from before who called for silence came onstage again and said "The royal execution shall now begin. Bring the accused onto the stage."
Two guards dressed in nothing but a pair of black leather pants with suspenders adorned with hearts, a pair of black boots, and black hoods with a single red heart covering their heads walked out onto the stage, dragging along a chain. At the end of the chain, handcuffed, was the Jester, who AJ was shocked to recognize that it was Santino Marella. He was dressed in a pair of blue tights, black shoes, a multicolored shirt with puffy sleeves, and a blue vest over the top. As he walked forward, he didn't show a single sign of fear or sadness at his impending death. AJ, on the other hand, was silently panicking. She was honestly in shock that the Jester was marching forward to his death, yet he was showing that he was not afraid at all.
Stopping in front of the King and Queen, the Jester looked up until his eyes were level with those of the King and Queen.
Banging her scepter on the ground, Vickie said "Jester. Are you aware of why it is that you are here today?"
"Why, yes, I am, your Highness. Apparently, I have failed in my job as your royal entertainment, so now I am to be executed," said Santino.
"That is correct. Now, how do you think your execution will go? Slowly or swiftly?" Vickie asked, a sinister smile starting to cross her face.
"Well, I can say that it'll probably go faster than you can run, your Highness," Santino said, which earned a few laughs and many shocked gasps of horror from those in attendance.
Enraged as an unsightly blush colored her cheeks, Vickie banged her scepter on the ground again and screeched "Enough! Jester, for the crime of failing at your duties, your sentence is death by beheading! Guards, place him on the chopping block!"
Roughly, the guards grabbed Santino and took him over to the chopping block. One of the guards slammed him down on the block while the other went to get a large and wicked looking axe. Rising from her throne, Vickie walked over to Santino and said "I will give you a chance to repent, Jester. Apologize for those insults and I will be lenient by making you serve time in prison."
Looking up at Vickie, Santino said "I'm sorry. I'm sorry that you are a pathetic Queen of this world."
Enraged even further, Vickie stepped back and yelled "Guards! Rid me of this annoyance! Off with his head!"
Soon the crowd erupted into a chant of 'Off with his head!' as AJ watched in complete horror as this happened. Before she could think better of it, AJ leapt to her feet and yelled "Stop this! Stop this please!" The guard with the axe stopped inches away from Santino's neck. One by one, heads turned to look in AJ's direction. Even those on the stage turned to look up at the person that yelled out at the events that were going on. Looking up into the crowd, Vickie asked "Who dares to stop the royal execution of this incompetent fool?"
In disbelief at first that she did that, AJ stood up even higher and said "I did. I dare to stop this."
"And who might you be?" Vickie asked, casting a confused glance in AJ's direction.
"I am but a stranger to this world. I may not know much about how things are supposed to be here, but I don't quite think that this is right," AJ said, asserting herself. "My friends here don't quite agree with this either."
"Friends?" Vickie laughed. "Who could quite possibly be friends with an impudent brat like you?"
"I am, for one," John said, rising to his feet.
"We are too," said Cody and Ted, rising to their feet as well.
Soon the others in the group AJ had met were following suit. AJ felt a swell of pride that she was being backed by all of her friends. But, down on the stage, Vickie was fuming over this. Shrieking she yelled "Hatters! Dormice! Tweedles! Cats! You mean to say that you're actually going to take this girl's side?"
"Well, with all due respect your Highness, the grounds for the execution of our friend are nonsensical," John said.
"You say that he has failed at being your royal entertainment, but that doesn't sound quite right to us," Alicia said.
"Also, what right does it give you to execute people just because they don't satisfy your wants?" Cody asked.
"It just doesn't seem right that you would just kill our friend for a reason as childish as that," Ted said.
The resounding arguments coming from her friends almost had AJ in tears. She was so overcome with joy over her friends arguing for the life of their friend, who she noticed had his head down on the block. AJ was on the verge of saying something else when Vickie's voice cut through the arguments from those trying to save Santino.
"Enough of this! Guards, seize that girl and her friends and bring them to me!" Vickie said.
At her command, guards surrounded AJ and the group and marched them down to the stage as the others in attendance watched on with expressions of amazement clear on their faces. Once they were on the stage, Vickie looked down into AJ's eyes and said "Since you were the cause of all of this, I feel that it will only be fitting that you get a front row seat to the show." Grabbing hold of AJ's arm, Vickie dragged AJ over to the block and, keeping her grasp on AJ's arm, Vickie said "Now, we can pick up where we left off. Guard, off with his head!"
The sun glinted off of the blade of the axe as the guard proceeded to bring it down. AJ fought to keep the tears that were now in her eyes from rolling down her cheeks until she saw a sight that she wasn't expecting: familiar looking smiles split across the faces of the Jester and, from where the hood had risen up, the guard with the axe. AJ was confused until the guard wielding the axe brought the weapon down onto the chopping block, only, to the surprise of everyone, the Jester was gone. Outraged, Vickie looked around and asked "Where is he? Where did that fool go?" She was still looking around until she heard whistling. Following the sound, Vickie saw Santino and Kaitlyn standing in the aisle waving at her with smiles on their faces. "But, how did you do that? When did you do that?"
"You should really have better security for your prisoners. Because, you never know when one of them might get sprung," Kaitlyn said, smiling.
Vickie almost opened her mouth to say something else until she heard a thud. Turning around, she saw that the other guard at the chopping block was lying on the ground in a pool of his own blood with the same axe sticking out of his chest. Looking over, Vickie saw that the other guard had burst into a fit of laughter. "You! I don't know who you are, but I have a feeling that you were behind this. Take off that hood and reveal yourself now!"
Instead of lifting their hood, the guard snapped his fingers and, in a cloud of purple and pink smoke, changed into Alex. "Oh, I'm sorry. Were you expecting someone else?" Alex asked, smiling herself.
Hearing the others behind her cheering, Vickie banged her scepter on the ground with a new level of fury. "Silence! Silence, all of you!" As soon as there was a lull in the cheering, Vickie looked down at AJ and said "I don't know how you were able to do this, but I can assure you, little girl, you won't get off scot-free for this." Casting her glance out over the crowd, Vickie dragged AJ forward and, raising her scepter, said "Residents of Wonderland, there is to be a change in ceremony today. Our little guest here seems to have the courage to stand against me and my ways. So, I say, we put her on trial for her life. If she can prove herself innocent, then I will let her go. But, if she can't, then it will be off with her head."
Murmurs arose from the crowd, as well as AJ's friends. As this happened around her, AJ just couldn't believe that her display of trying to save someone was going to possibly lead to her death. At this point, all she could hope was that she'd be able to get out of this mess.