Introduction
As you open your eyes to see bright sunlight, you realise you have no idea of where you are.
Of course, your brain tells you soon enough that you are in some sort of a great hall. A hall so large and high that you can't see its walls or ceiling no matter how much you try. You get up carefully and venture around the place, walking aimlessly, trying to understand where you are, not just your location, but some sort of recognition...
None is forthcoming.
You realise with some trepidation that its not just the hall, you can't even remember anything else. For example, how you ended up here, what you were doing before this or even who the hell you are.
Somehow, the only sensation you remember is that of falling down, down, down an endless dark hole.
As you stare at the darkness, a voice seems to whisper in your ears. You look around only to find you are alone.
The voice is calming, though. You can't tell if its male or female. Its not that its androgynous, its just that it feels as if you are sensing the voice, not hearing it.
"You are better off not knowing." it whispers in your ears. "Its better for you to not know."
And suddenly, you have the strangest feeling. Its as if someone is reaching out to you, waiting for you to take their hand. You don't know why or who - again, its more of a sensing than seeing.
"Come with me." it says. "I will make you forget. I will help you. Don't you want my help?"
Hey, I wonder what you will do now? What will you do?
Will you take the hand offered to you?
Will you try to run and see if you can escape the hall? What then?
You are whisked into a strange land, stranded without any memories. This decision might be the most important one you will ever make - the difference between life and death. And what's worse? You don't have a clue as to what you should do.
Ten will be guided to become that which is sought the most by the denizens of Wonderland.
Only one will become Alice.
Only one will go home.
Will you accept the challenge? Will you be the one to become Alice and go back where you belong? Or will you search for your memories despite being repeatedly warned not to? Will you endure the unknown, or will you risk the forgotten?
You will decide.
But then, do you really have a choice?
Plot:
Wonderland is more of a prison, under the dictatorial reign of the Queen of Hearts. Any and all dissenters are executed immediately.
There aren't any clear cut 'factions' in this RP. The residents of Wonderland are beings that can form a contract with a human and lend them certain powers. The terms of the contract are mostly up to the Chain (since really, the human beings are hopelessly lost and confused), but the apparent reason for the contract and why the Chains help the humans is because of a game ordered by the Queen of Hearts, where each of the ten major Chains are required to find a human to become 'Alice'.
The Chain whose human will become Alice as well as Alice will be granted freedom from Wonderland.
Or that is what the Queen of Hearts says.
Chains may have hidden motives other than this, the Queen herself might have deeper motives - or maybe she just wants to amuse herself. At any rate, they really have no choice but to go along with this 'game' and offer their contract to one of the Alice candidates.
Characters Needed:
● Ten Alice candidates. Ages should be 16+ and lower than 20. Can be of any gender you want. - 9/10 taken.
● Mad Hatter - Open
● March Hare - taken
● Queen of Hearts - taken by Bani
● White Rabbit - a servant to the Queen, but considerably powerful - as much as the Mad Hatter and the others - taken by Lukipyon
● Knave of Hearts - servant to the Queen, but powerful. Not as powerful as normal Wonderlanders, though. - Open
● Queen of Spades - Can be of any gender. As powerful as the Queen of Hearts, and holds the power to the mystery. But take note, she/he is NOT going to be a 'good' character, either. Better than the Queen of Hearts, maybe, but not without their shades. - Open
● Cheshire Cat - taken by NotSoHeartless
● White Knight - Open
● Red Knight - Open
● Dormouse - taken by Bashie L. Craft
●Caterpillar - taken by Ikuto Tsukiyomi Fan
● Tweedle Dee - taken by Orbweaver
● Tweedle Dum - taken by Orbweaver
[These two are siblings and at loggerheads with each other]
● The Duchess - taken by Orbweaver
Contractors:
● Eve V. Kimberly
● Rhiannon Jakalyn Pierce - Contracted to Cheshire
● Ariana Storm
● Belca - Contracted to Duchess
● Isaiah Grey Gris - Contracted to Caterpillar/Absolem
● Yumika Ivory Rae - Contracted to White Rabbit
Chains:
● Queen of Hearts
● Cheshire - Contracted to Rhiannon Jakalyn Pierce
● White Rabbit - Contracted to Yumika Ivory Rae
● Dormouse
● Caterpillar - Contracted to Isaiah Grey Gris
● Tweedle Dee
● Tweedle Dum
● Duchess - Contracted to Belca
Do Read:
● Chains can NOT participate directly in a fight between Contractors. Only Chains can compete against other Chains, and even then they put physical and mental strain on their contractors.
● The only Chains not required to take part in the game are the White Rabbit, Knave of Hearts, and the two Queens. But the Queen of Hearts does anyway.
● A command from the Queen of Hearts can't be directly defied by the Chains. If they do, it results in them getting their powers as a Chain and consequently their roles taken away. However, there are always loopholes, and roundabout ways, right? Also, Chains choose their own loyalty, alliances or lack thereof.
● The only requirement for the candidates to become Alice is to eliminate the other nine Candidates, through fighting or other means. You can surrender if you want, but in that case you'll be kept a prisoner by the Queen of Hearts.
● This is a player-driven RP. The basic plot is there, as well as the basic 'rules' that govern Wonderland, but that's really all there will be from my part. You can go straight into the action and attack other Candidates and Chains, or you can take it slow, look around and 'explore' Wonderland (by which I mean create new places in Wonderland, run into a few NPCs and do what you want!). As long as you don't contradict what someone already said about a certain place or say something ridiculous ( "The Palace of Hearts is made of cheese." = wut? ), you can basically do anything! On that note, feel free to add new areas and your own interpretations of Wonderland. Build upon the world. Its the most fun that way, right?
●Speaking of which, please leave the addition and basic description of a Chain's 'territory', so to speak, up to them. The Hatter will add his own mansion/ garden/ room/ whatever it is, and so on. Not to say you shouldn't build upon them, but do remember that a Chain's territory basically, like a person's room, represents their own quirks and characteristics, and you should give them the freedom to make it as they want.
● On the same note, this is more of a request, really, try to be descriptive. Details add the flavour to a post! Of course, I understand if that's not really your cup of tea, but I would be much obliged if you at least tried ^^
Post in the OOC reserving your character before posting up a profile, please ( because I'd hate it if I accepted someone's profile before looking at the OOC and then find out someone else already asked to reserve it ^^""")
Note: Your character won't remember any of their history, or even their own real names at first. Quite a few of the fields can be updated as you go along to provide for greater character development (because development is always fun!) and freedom. When all has been said and done, its entirely up to you.
Character Skeleton: Humans
- Code: Select all
[left][size=190][b][Give a quote that describes your character] [/b][/size][/left]
[left][img][Anime Image Here][/img][/left]
[b]Full Name[/b]: [The REAL name that your character has forgotten, for reference only and ONLY at the top of your post, just to identify them in OOC - you can either fill this or leave this blank.]
[b]Nick Name[/b]: [The name your character came up/ will come up at some point randomly to refer to themselves by]
[b]Age[/b]: [16-20]
[b]Gender[/b]:
[b]Personality[/b]:
[b]Hair Colour[/b]:
[b]Eye Colour[/b]:
[b]Quirks[/b]: (if any)
●
●
●
[b]Appearance Description[/b]: Extra information? Build? Height? Preferred apparel?
[b]Quotes[/b]:
[To be updated later, after RP-ing a little]
[b]Likes[/b]:
●
●
●
●
●
[b]Dislikes[/b]:
●
●
●
●
●
[b]Powers[/b]: [To Be Updated Later]
[b]Chain:[/b] [You might update this after RP-ing and finding out a suitable partner]
[b]Weapons/ Things They Are Carrying:[/b]
[b]Back Story:[/b] : [You can either make a rough guideline for your own use and update it later through RP-ing, or stick to one specific story you like, or just leave this to be updated later as you go along. I personally would recommend the first because its fun but you don't deviate too much from what you wanted your character to be, but its entirely up to you!]
Chains:
- Code: Select all
[left][size=190][b][Give a quote that describes your character] [/b][/size][/left]
[left][img][Anime Image Here][/img][/left]
[b]Full Name[/b]: [Does your Chain have a real name? Do they remember after so long of being in the Wonderland?]
[b]Role:[/b] [Mad Hatter/ Cheshire Cat / Duchess and so on...]
[b]Age[/b]: [Apparent and Real]
[b]Gender[/b]:
[b]Personality[/b]:
[b]Hair Colour[/b]:
[b]Eye Colour[/b]:
[b]Quirks[/b]: (if any)
●
●
●
[b]Appearance Description[/b]: Extra information? Build? Height? Preferred apparel?
[b]Quotes[/b]:
[b]Likes[/b]:
●
●
●
●
●
[b]Dislikes[/b]:
●
●
●
●
●
[b]Powers[/b]: [Choose something even remotely connected to the role you are playing. Like, the Dormouse can make opponents fall asleep or something.]
[b]Contractor:[/b] [You might update this after RP-ing and finding out a suitable partner]
[b]Weapons/ Things They Are Carrying:[/b]
[b]Back Story:[/b] : [You should update this slowly, revelaing a little bit of your story in the course of the RP, because that would make it interesting. But you might not want to do that, in which case you can write it out.]
The Story So Far... Write a Post » as written by 11 authors
For the first time Grey could see the people he was trying to help, two girls, three boys, two of which were twins and a very large lady who was growing larger still. The group had run into a massive beast but the woman was soon the same size.
"Well now, I guess one side really does make you larger," he muttered, climbing down from the roof at Cheshire's request.
Both Cheshire and Absolem seemed to be kind of snappy at the moment but he couldn't really blame them, he himself was feeling stressed at the thought of people being in trouble and he didn't even know them, he couldn't imagine what it would feel like if he actually knew the eople he was trying to save.
Watching Cheshire and Rhia ride off he walked to the armoured vehicle to await the signal. Hopping inside he took note that there was no steering wheel.
"Well that's going to provided a problem, I'm just going to have to hope it will move when it needs too," he thought to himself.
Carefully making sure his hair was all tied back he set to watching for an opening. The truth was, he needed everyone together if they were all going to get away.
With nothing to do but watch and wait his mind turned to Absolem. The man had seemed distracted and had been rubbing his temples a lot. All Grey wanted to do was go to the man and tell him that everything was going to be ok, that at the very least he was not alone.
But Absolem had told him to stay here, hidden and that was what he was going to do. Absolem was trusting him to get everyone away safely and Grey intended to do everything in his power to make that happen.
Should Duchess not release the weapon she would take the knee to the chest, smashing her backwards and damaging her chest. Even should she release however she would still need to evade the knee's path, or take damage(Lesser based on distance). Tibbs retained it's grip on the mallet's head, as with the knee's launch it spreads it's arms back slightly- setting up it's next action based on Duchess' counter, and adding force to the jerk against her grip.
The more fear that saturated the air, the more power the monster had. The more power the monster had, the more fear it could create. Tibbs was setting up a terrible cycle. Already the group's terror had caused the monster to swell with energy, a vibrating glow coalescing about Tibb's mass. As the fear build the glow will thicken, forming a thin barrier of force- thick enough to absorb the brunt of most attacks, while slowing projectiles and robbing them of inertia. Not a perfect shield by any means, but one that would grow stronger over time.
----------------------------------------------------------------
The clan continued it's harassment of Jabberwocky, whooping and carrying on as the beast raged. They avoided it's strikes, making distractions for one another to draw it's attention constantly astray. Knowing their guns would be of little help against something this powerful the kept them slung, the barrels though...they might sting a bit. Having planned this strike out and setting traps through the woods, the cloaked creatures begin herding the Jabberwocky through a clearing..one laced with buried barrels.
With no trees left to hide in, or use as cover, the Bandersnatch males had no choice but to reveal themselves as the darted across the clearing, avoiding memorized earthen lumps- to help confuse the Jabberwocky they had dug up the clearing fully and made a whole bunch of false lumps; only they knew which were explosive, and which were not.
As expected, some were hurt, two were killed..Jabberwocky's rage let it sling those bone spears pretty hard- those hurt would be treated as best they could, and observed for corruption, those slain would be burned in a moment, as soon as the monster triggers the trap. Luckily most make it to the far side, moving as fast as they can, and blend into the trees once again...much to the monster's frustration.
Then the beast stepped on the wrong spot.
Flamed bloomed up suddenly, coating the monster in a burning sheet. The sudden blast of heat and pain cause the monster to stumble to the left, an onto another blasting cap. The screech of pain splits the air like a thunderclap, as a third barrel blasts from the first two's shockwaves. Soon all the buried barrels are kicking off, waves and waves of fire pelting the monster. The smoke is so thick that it blots out the sky over the area, visible for miles. Jabberwocky was out of the fight for a bit.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Gina screamed, the flames had gotten through the black coating of Jabberwocky some, burning her face and chest. She had no idea what was going on, only that she was in so much pain! Thinking fast, and acting on instinct, she pulled power from her pain and allowed her gift to flow over her and Jabberwocky. Instantly she and the monster were covered in a black cocoon, sealing out the heat and flames. They were still hurt, and would take time to heal, but they were safe now.
The monster was so angry, Gina understood, because those odd lizard looking guys had tricked it. They didn't run like everyone else, they stood and fought- or they played tricks. The Bandersnatch were a solitary race, they must have felt dire need to come to the aid of the others- they must have seen the potential the Jabberwocky had this time. They would be a foe worth watching.
Moonlight backed off and plucked at Destra's sleeve. She couldn't understand why they chose to ignore her. "Please," she whispered, "help me. I can't stay here, I won't!" Slowly, her voice rose in pitch. "Don't ignore me, I can't be here, it's too much!" Sinking to the ground, she covered her face and wept. Though it was cowardly, while the Duchess and the rest were fighting, but she couldn't help it. The fear was too much, the battlefield too terrifying.
The Duchess glared at the creature as it plucked that mallet from her hand only to widen her eyes again in surprised as she was forced to lean back as fast and low as she could in an amazing feat of flexibility to narrowly avoid the thing's flying knee strike. Her head almost toughed the ground and as the thing passed over her she snapped her leg up to kick it in the back. One couldn't tell how effective this move would be or if it would even connect, given her position it was hard to control aim accurately.
"So, do you have a name?" she asked, turning round as she straightened up into a pose she called the scarecrow, "I'd at least like to know who I'm fighting."
There was something off about the creature, she could almost see some sort of glow wavering around its form, almost like it was building up power. An idea began to form in her head as she spared a glance at the rest of her group. She recalled how scared she had been when she had first looked into her opponent's face and now seeing how the twins cowered behind a tree, too afraid to help, what if their fear was what fed the beast, the thing that made it strong.
"Destra, give me one of your knives and then get everyone out of here," she called out, concentrating on the beast again, "Try and find Absolem."
Once she caught the knife it would be enlarged just like she was. After she was armed she'd leap towards her opponent and attempt a flying roundhouse kick to it's face and then thrust up with the knife when she landed. Chances were that the thing would block her thrust but perhaps it would distract the beast, in any case it would give her the chance to work out if sending the group away had weakened it in any way. One thing was certain though.
She needed to end this soon.
Sinistra/Tweedle Dee & Destra/Teedle Dum
Destra was terrified but he obeyed the Duchess, throwing the knife to her as fast as he could before turning to look at Moonlight who was plucking at his sleeve. The girl was just as terrified as he was, if not more so. The Duchess had asked them all to leave and considering what she was fighting, he didn't need to be asked twice.
"Everything is going to be ok Moonlight," he said as calmly as he could manage, taking the girl's hand gently, "But right now we all need to get out of here."
With that he pulled Moonlight to her feet and dragged her after him as he ran off, his fear giving him speed. Sinistra soon followed, leading France by the hand and hoping that Belca would follow.
Setting
0.00 INK
She couldn't help snorting at the Duchess' words. Never to speak that way? Oh, the poor woman hadn't heard her speak yet. The term 'a sailor's mouth' was probably invented [i]for[/i] Belca.
Belca had followed the others behind the tree, but only because the Duchess had said so. She still believed that somehow the Duchess could defeat this little welcoming party Jabberwocky had left behind for them, and they would possibly only get in her way even more.
And suddenly she was a child again, hands clapped over her ears, trembling as a female voice screamed at her, telling her just how much of a bother she was, had always been.
"Always getting in everyone's way, a right little bundle of joy, you are. Why can't you do us all a favour and just get lost somewhere?" It snarled, the words winding around her like thorny vines, cutting and slicing.
Words like a thorny vine......
Watching the mallet be ripped off the Duchess' hands, Belca gritted her teeth, darting anxious glances at Sinistra and Destra, wishing they would just join the fray already. But she still couldn't work up the courage to jump in where she might be unwanted.
The little shapeless mass, indistinguishable from a heap of clothes, sobbed pitifully in the corner of her dark room. WHy didn't anybody want her?
Maybe, just maybe, it would be better if she did go away, if she just .... disappeared...
Belca scowled. To be regaining parts of her memory, bad, horrible parts that she must have wanted to forget anyway, and that too at a time like this, what perfect timing.
Hearing the Duchess shout, she sprang up, already running towards the other woman. She would never admit it, but even though their interactions had been short, and they had next to nothing in common whatsoever, Belca was beginning to feel fond of the other. She sounded so much like the mother she either - judging by the little bits of memory she had managed to recover - never had or couldn't remember.
It wasn't that she wasn't afraid of the Beast, she was, but she knew that simply cowering in one's boots wouldn't achieve anything. If they didn't fight, they would be killed whether or not they were afraid or not. Besides, what she felt towards Jabberwocky and its minions was more of a repulsion than fear. Closer to utter hatred and disgust, but not complete, overwhelming fear, though fear did make up a part of it. She might be reckless at times, but she wasn't stupid.
"As if you would come by for that. Surely you have had time for sisterly visits and would have utilized it had you wanted to before."
Hearing Aria's voice, his mouth narrowed to a line. This was the worst timing for her to be waking up. Alice wasn't known for her gentleness or subtlety, and Fiore was powerless to stop her if she decided to do something to Aria - for absolutely no other purpose than to demonstrate that she could, and keep the other Chains under her thumb with the fear that knowledge would produce.
However, when he turned to the girl, his lips were smiling. Not his eyes though, they were frozen and cold.
"Would you be so kind as to step outside for a moment, Aria? We have certain matters to discuss."[/size]
A flicker of irritation played over Alice's face before she carefully arranged them into a sweet smile again,catching Aria's arm.
"Stay." she breathed, before turning to Fiore, "How rude of you, little brother. You hurt me."
Pausing for a moment, she offered them her most dazzling smile, though she knew it would probably be a lost cause on Fiore. The girl, on the other hand....... she looked smart, but innocent, untouched by Wonderlandian politics and therefore an easy person to bend to her will. Stubborn, but with the right words, she could be directed to what Alice wanted.
"The Jabberwocky's returned. With your handy little purification power, you might want to go visit Wonderland and see the state of things for yourself. Now, how about we put all these Politics aside? How is your stay in Wonderland going, Aria, was it? I hope you're enjoying yourself?" she smiled, ignoring Fiore, who looked like he was fuming on the inside but was perfectly arranged on the outside.
The setting changes from Down the Rabbit-Hole to Wonderland
An earth-shaking boom filled the air, fueling the surrounding chaos. It came repetitively, seemingly growing in size and ferocity as it neared closer. The tank was closing in. Cheshire stood back and looked on as creatures of all sorts crashed and threw themselves at one another, creating a mixing pot of blood and screams. To those who knew battle, the sight was both glorious and terrifying and it left the cat grinning wildly from ear to ear. She danced lightly in place, unable to remain still or satisfied with the viewpoint. She yearned to follow suit with the creatures she had changed, to battle besides them and partake in the small victories. Watching the battle from afar, seeing allies fall seemed wrong.
So much was going on. Jabberwockey couldn't be seen, the smoke and fire made everything that much harder to decipher. She could make out two large masses moving about behind the heat. Her eyes widened somewhat upon realizing one of them was Duchess. Is she mad? At least she held the same size to the newly improved dog-beast, but she had to be insane to take on the creature alone. This train of thought sparked her interest. Where was everyone? Cheshire would be fuming if all this was for already infected Chains and contractors. Her fears were dampened, however, upon hearing the whoops and cheers after several explosions. Whatever was going on was working. She just needed to keep focused on the change which held each creature.
The effort was tiring, so much of her Change was spread thin. It had taken a lot to match up to Jabberwockey's corrupted army. Little bits of it returned when a changed creature fell, but it was immediately thrust back into other plant life and beings. She panted watching her glorious creations battle. It was like watching life versus death. Those which formed the harder exo-skeletons push forward, destroying and absorbing all they could. Those weaker gathered together, their roots and vines merging beneath the ground. They snaked their way towards the battling giants and would unleash themselves from the earth when the time was right. The Tank-Mushroom was on its way, hopefully Absolem was be able to keep it out of sight. It was far from inaudible, however it could still hold some surprise if it remained unseen.
The setting changes from Wonderland to Down the Rabbit-Hole
Tibbs let itself lunge forward, the knee passing over the Duchess' form...but the bent knee held a special trick.
Duchess bent backwards, her dodge perfect for the attack she knew of, but leaving her vulnerable to the one she never saw coming. The bent leg snaps down, a combination step/stomp, driving the heel down towards the hyper-extended abdomen. The slight impact, her kick snapping up and striking it's lower back, would simply serve to aid the beast's move- the push would aid Tibbs as it would push him slightly from the impact, the stepping/stomping foot pushed that much harder. The end result would drop Tibbs down onto Duchess' mass- the stepping foot impacting and carrying the weight of Tibbs mass down onto the Duchess driving her painfully to the ground and pining her under the monster's foot.
Should she find a way to escape, as unlikely as it may be, she would still have a massive taloned foot driving down towards her abdomen and torso, the claws potentially ripping her clothes and flesh, depending on her evasive route. Her actions would decide her own fate, but there was only a split second to choose- Infection by the talon's slash, or crushing impact possibly breaking bones or driving her air out from her lungs.
Her question unasked, her actions interrupted, Duchess needed to recover- if she manages to evade the strike, before she could ask her questions or tell the Twins to flee. The fear still fed the beast, making it faster and stronger...it's actions coming in a blur of pure speed. The timing of the chain of events would flow like lightning- The knee sailing over the dodging Duchess, turning into an extending step/stomp that would drive the weight of the beast down and onto the bent form, as the Duchess' own kick would bump into it's back. In the blink of an eye Tibbs had carried it's offensive through, it's mind working through possible actions faster than one could blink.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Burnt leaves, scorched trees...melted sand. The clearing was a holocaust. Blast craters, scattered shards of blackness...and a twisted thing in it's center. The Jabberwocky stood, a black shriveled thing, arms extended head tilted back in a grimace of pain and fear. The monster was frozen in a pose of agony, to the eyes of the Bandersnatch Clan the beast was done. One, a younger member stalked to the edge of the clearing, raising it's rifle.
"Looks to be dead, wuzn da tough." He calls out, taking aim.
"C'askn, you git 'way now, hear?!" another calls out, moving towards the youth. One step too late, as a shot sounds, shattering most of the Jabberwocky's form into ash- ash that mixes with the melted sand, leaving behind a smaller form, that shaped like a small girl. She stood, arms wrapped about herself sobbing softly.
"Woah! Hold yer fire! Idgit, you done it now...da hell is goin on? Who is she?" the elder calls out, motioning a few of the others to join him, moving into the clearing. "Easy youngin, none of us is gonna hurt ya."
Gina stood, her dress filthy and torn, her body bloody and covered in ash, but otherwise unharmed. Her sobs continue, eyes closed with her small fists clenched at her sides. She said nothing, just cried softly. The clan moved closer, stepping around some of the still hot pools of melted sand- most of it already cooling from the addition of the smothering ash. A few members remained waiting at the edge, among them the clan's leader- Rhylea, though not the eldest of the tribe he had shown suspiring mastery in combat. His instincts were respected, and his word taken seriously...right now he had a bad feeling.
"Something is wrong. Something don't add up, this..girl. Where did she come from?" his head was running at it's best, but it wasn't quite quick enough to avoid the shit storm on the way. "Hey, maybe we sh-"
The rest is lost in the sound of breaking glass- and moments later, screams.
The sand had melted, forming large pools of molten glass- the heat from the blasts and resulting fire easily reaching the sand's melting point, while the rain of ash served to smother out the glass' heat. The ash mixing with the liquid as it cooled. The resulting black glass sat in sheets and spatters, until the clan moved into position. SHattering upward, the shards ripping through flesh muscle and bone with ease...but rather than falling back down afterwards it gathers, swirling like a cloud of death. The surviving clan members could only watch in horror as the cloud slashes through the air towards them.
"RUN YOU FOOLS! To the trees!" Rhylea calls, shoving a few members towards the forest. Those who entered the clearing were out of reach, and out of time..the cloud descending upon them like an upside-down blender. Blood and flesh scatter as five members are turned into pulp. Rhy manages to save seven of his brothers, though two more will likely perish before the day is out. They scatter, blending in with the trees as they can, the sound of laughter sounding behind them in booms.
Gina stands, untouched by the deadly swarm, her sobs ended, a smile on her face. "I did like you said, how did I do?"
Jabberwocky, in it's new form chuckles softly, a few shards caressing along the girl's cheek, "You did Pͪ̋͜Ȩ͂͑͋̐ͮ̐R̆ͪFÈC̆̉ͭ̈́ͦ́͝T̾̅͐ͦ̐̕." it whispers in her head. SHe grins wider, the skin of her lips splitting once more to create a mad smile of black gums and sharp teeth. Eyes of pure blackness. She was one with the beast now. "Now, let's go P̍̊͛ͦ̎͛͌͌̿͛ͬ̔͟͞҉̝͎͖̘̤̫L̷̢̞̲̩̰̹ͦͨ̏̽̏ͯ͂͆͛̾̎̈̓̕͟Ą̸͎̦̩̲͉̜̦͉̞͕̥̟͓͔̜̝̜̋ͯͯ̍͗ͥ̾͋͘͘͡Y̨̫̮̘̱̘̞͍ͧͨͦ̏ͬ̓̄ͥ̄́͂̚̕ͅ." Together they exit the clearing, following the trail left by the fleeing Bandersnatch Clan..towards the rest of the Wonderlanders. Things were going to be messy.
As soon as the Duchess flexed out of the way of the creatures attack she saw her mistake. She had foolishly left herself open to an attack that could end the fight and to make matters worse, she was shrinking. It appeared that her time of being a giant had come to an end. By the time the creatures attack landed she would be her regular size again and would end up crushed.
"I'm sorry Belca," she murmured, resigning herself to her fate.
As her opponent's foot descended she felt herself sent flying out of the way at the last minute with enough force to crash into a tree a short distance from the fight, knocking the breath out of her.
Disoriented, the Duchess picked herself up and tried to focus even though her vision was swimming. With a gasp she gazed at the scene before her.
It had been Belca that had pushed her out of the way, adrenaline giving her the strength she needed for the task and it was Belca that was now in the place that she herself would have been in had the girl not intervened.
As the Duchess looked at Belca's lifeless body a cold numbness washed over her. The girl had been rude and didn't seem to understand the concept of respect or manners but the Duchess had still liked her. Somehow Belca had made her feel like a mother in ways that her son never had.
"Why?" she whispered, wincing from all the newly forming bruises, "She didn't deserve to die and I had so much to teach her."
Fiercely she glared at the creature, her numbness giving way to a blazing fury.
"Monster!" shouted the Duchess, preparing to attack again.
She was hurt and it would be a while before she could make herself large again but that didn't mean that her ability was completely useless, there were still plenty of things she could do, all it took was a little imagination.
As fast as she could manage she picked up a handful of dirt and threw it into the air, concentrating on making it into a shower of flaming arrows to hail down on her enemy. As unlikely as this assault was to kill the thing she hoped it would hurt the creature in some way and slow it down long enough for her to put some distance between her and it. She'd need the space for what she had in mind. One thing was for certain, she couldn't leave without Belca.
Sparing a second to check on the twins she saw that they had left even without her having the chance to tell them to do so.
"Good," thought the Duchess, "It wouldn't do to have them around for the finale."
Sinistra/Tweedle Dee & Destra/Tweedle Dum
Sinistra and Destra felt wretched for leaving the Duchess behind but they both knew they'd only be a hinderence to her if they'd stayed behind, especially in their current state. The group was too fixated on running to speak and both of the twins knew they had to find Absolem. There was a problem though, neither twin had ever been to Absolem's house before. The Caterpillar had never gone out of his way to invite the two so they'd simply not bothered but now it was proving to be a difficulty. They really had no choice but to keep moving forward and hope that they were going in the right direction.
Suddenly Destra felt a tug on his hand. Looking down he saw the Duchess's son, France, running along beside him and pointing a little to the left of where they were heading. Confusion gave way to understanding as Destra realised what the boy meant. The Duchess knew where Absolem's house was and obviously her son had been with her when she'd been there. He mentally kicked himself for not thinking of that sooner. Now they wouldn't have to run blindly.
"Just a little further Moonlight," said Sinistra, working it out at almost exactly the same time as his brother, "We should be there soon."
The setting changes from Down the Rabbit-Hole to Wonderland
Absolem knew that he had made a touchy decision in leaving Gray behind, but he didn't know how long he could keep something like that chariot hidden for very long. His gaze was stone cold, but when wasn't it? Unless something he loved was in obvious peril.. He didn't blame Cheshire for taking matters into her own hands, but at this point, his thoughts were moving thousands of miles per second. It had been a long time since the world of Wonderland had to prepare for an enemy of this magnitude. Absolem kept close behind after Cheshire despite his thoughts keeping his mind rather occupied, not to mention he now had his mind and abilities prepared to take on the burden of keeping his home invisible. He already felt the twinge of the first wave, but at most the first wave of flowers was only a good fifty percent of the work load. When the other two sets of flowers were breached, when that finally happened, he knew he was in for a world of pain. He'd never taken such a task upon himself, he wasn't sure exactly what it would do to him.
He watched as Cheshire began her army, eyebrows raising a bit. Now he'd learnt something interesting about his friend that he'd never known before. He decided not to comment, but rather to focus on what he soon would have to endure more of. He would know exactly when the second wave of the flowers were destroyed thankfully, but the method would be painful. All the energy needed to conceal the house they once took the obligation of managing would be drawing from his mental capacity almost instantly.
Absolem couldn't help but mourn his house a little, even if it wasn't obvious. He'd taken so much time, so much of getting familiar with his powers while building that house. All by himself. He made everything inside it. Befriended all the plants. Even one as stubborn as Absolem couldn't help but feel a twinge of sadness as something that personal was practically already gone. Though it was stuck alone to his thoughts, and he wasn't letting it do anything otherwise.
His pursuit stopped for a moment, not even noticing that Cheshire had stopped moving as well, he watched the battles. He felt a wave of familiarity cross up his spine in the form of a shiver. He did his best to conceal it.. but he yearned to be out there. He yearned to release his anger, to rip things apart. Piece by fleshym or the lack there of, piece. When it came to a battle, Absolem held very little remorse for his enemy. Anyone marked as an enemy was just a casualty.
Absolem blinked when the second wave of flowers died, collapsing slowly where he stood. Keeping such a large mobile object invisable.. easier said than done. He'd only lost the first two waves of flowers, the stronger ones, and the moderate level. He wasn't even taking full obligation of quenching the energy thirst, but the pain was like snorting razorblades. His brain felt like it had been stuck into a blender. He didn't scream, he didn't make a single sound. He was far too accustomed to pain. He just sat there, holding his head, gripping extremely tight at his minty locks. He was incapable of going anywhere. He couldn't move himself, He couldn't even warn Destra or Sinistra that no one but Gray was where his house once stood.. but he assumed Gray could fill them in and he hoped, just hoped Gray would be safe with those two.. Two.. Ugh, I'll think about what those two are later..
----
Rhia calmed when Cheshire seemed to take her opinion at least into consideration, giving a small sigh. She wasn't used to herself yet, let alone the attitude of those around her. She was glad no one had a problem with her outbursts as of yet, she wasn't sure who she was herself, someone asking her to change would only make it that much harder in finding something like that out. She was incredibly grateful to Cheshire, she..he..it.. put up with all of her changes, but also seemed to enjoy a lot of it. They both changed like mood rings, or day and night.
Rhia went wide eyed when Absolem decided to leave Gray alone, and she turned around to look back at him, careful to not let go of Cheshire. Was he going to be alright? Was this the best decision? She assumed Absolem knew what he was doing.. but being away from Cheshire already frightened her.. she couldn't understand how brave Gray was.. how could he feel safe this way? In a world he was so unaccustomed to? Or was he more accustomed it already than her? Is it just me that's freaking out in this world, afraid to be left alone? Am I the only weak one? She tried to ignore it. Then she was completely distracted from her thoughts, taken aback as she watched what her contractor could do. She leaned into Cheshire, closing her eyes. She heard all of Absolem's torn thoughts, his manic want to be fighting, and even his sadistic wish to tear people, creatures..something apart until it was unrecognizable. Is this what war did to Absolem or what Absolem did to war? She couldn't tell if this was a result of what the first fight with Jabberwocky did to the man, or if this was his natural self. It scared her, but she refused to relay the information over to Cheshire. They seemed to be close friends. She wasn't going to plant doubt in Cheshire's mind over a creepily sadistic nature the closest thing to a friend to her seemed to possess.
She returned her thoughts to the amazing things Cheshire was doing with the plants, the mushrooms, everything. She was awed, yet at the same time she felt a bit tired. Was this because of the contract? She remembered Gray reacting an entirely different way, but perhaps that was because his required a lot of mental strain.. maybe everyone was effected differently based on their contractors?
She decided to break the silence, but not by asking her stupid question. She wanted to know what a bandersnatch was, but she didn't feel like asking, that would just be too embarrassing to be worth the trouble, "That's so cool, are all of those going to help fight?" she asked tilting her head against Cheshire's back. She watched the battling as well, cringing a bit. She'd never seen so much fighting, heard so much screaming. It was frigtening, but at the same time.. it made her curious. She wondered how long she would last in an atmosphere like that. How long she would last.. if she had to fight for her own life in such a manner. It worried and excited her at the same time.
She watched as Absolem dropped, her golden eyes going wide and she got up from Cheshire for the moment, seeing as she was merely just twirling and swirling around in place anyhow, "Absolem!" she called out. She didn't really know him, but he took care of her simularly to how Cheshire did, so she helped him sit steadily, "He's doing it again.. he's overexerting himself. How long do you think until the Mushroom house reaches Jabberwocky?" She asked Cheshire questioningly. She didn't want to express how dangerous it was, she wasn't even sure how dangerous it was for Cheshire to be using her powers.. but she had to consider Gray. This was going to effect him sooner or later as well.. and his mind wasn't as accustomed to this as Absolem.. for all she knew it could kill him.
Amidst the chaos, Cheshire had nearly forgotten about her contractor and started when Rhia's voice piped up amidst the battle. "That's so cool, are all of those going to help fight?" Cheshire turned her head slightly and caught sight of the girl's amazement and smiled in acknowledgement. Despite the horror and the fact that this may very well be their last moments alive..or in control, the girl managed to squeeze in a bit of amusement and hope to the cat. Just as she had begun to think they had the edge, the battle took a turn for the worst. What hope and joy Cheshire had blossoming suddenly withered. Everything was suddenly going wrong. Screams could be heard a distance away, where the Bandersnatch were charging the Plague itself and Duchess had regained her natural size. Though Cheshire couldn't clearly make out what had happened the woman's screams revealed all. She stood alone, neither her contractor, 'son', nor the Tweedles remained in her company. Either they fled or had perished. Though Cheshire didn't hold any real sentimentality towards the missing creatures, her mind reignited in rage. The weakness she was slowly gaining, burned out with new intent. The others were too far away and hidden amongst the burning brush, but Duchess was at least visible. If the woman had no back-up Cheshire would step up to the plate. Thankfully, she could feel the Mushroom-house's entrance into the battlefield. Absolem had kept it hidden thus far, so she held onto that bit of surprise. Regardless if the thing became visible was soon to be irrelevant. Though, having an invisible weapon would serve an advantage, it wouldn't be too much of a let down if Absolem couldn't pull it off. He made it this far, which was impressive. If he could keep it up-
"Absolem!" Dammit. "He's doing it again..he's overexerting himself. How long do you think until the Mushroom house reaches Jabberwocky?" Cheshire groaned and followed the girl as she ran to the Caterpillar's side. She could see his turmoil and cursed aloud. Why was this happening now? She turned her back to the girl and Chain to keep an eye out for any other creatures that may happen to come this way. With Absolem in his current state, she'd have to serve as both offense and defense. "Hell of a time to do this, Abs." She grumbled, making sure he heard her. If anything, maybe anger would keep him in the game. "Keep conscious. I don't want to lug your useless corpse around."
Meanwhile, the gathering roots pushed themselves beneath Mr. Tibbs and Duchess, coating nearly the entire underground area in a network of roots and vines. Seeing that the beast was preoccupied with the woman Cheshire took her chance to strike. The tank-shroom made it's presence known by striking it's enlarged roots upon the boar-beast. First to deflect it's attack at the woman, then to entangle. Hopefully, Absolem would be able to push through and keep it hidden, at least enough for the Duchess to get clear.
The setting changes from Wonderland to Down the Rabbit-Hole
Grey had been watching the group of people get closer when the pain began. At first it was barely noticeable but then it grew. Clutching his head he looked in the direction Absolem had gone, his vision blurring. If he was feeling this much pain then what was Absolem feeling? The man wouldn't even be able to walk.
"I have to help him," said Grey in a pained whisper.
But that was the problem, if he went to go help Absolem now, there would be nobody to help the approaching group. Breathing deeply he reached a decision. He'd just have to hope that the vehicle would move fast enough.
"Go!" he thought, gesturing forward wildly.
To his amazement the vehicle started moving forward towards the group of people and at a pleasingly fast pace. Very soon he had reached the group. He spared a moment to take in the appearence of the red haired twins and their two companions but then he felt more pain coming from Absolem.
"Get in quickly and don't say a word," he hissed at the group.
Making sure that everyone was inside he got the vehicle moving again, this time in the direction of Absolem. It took a while but eventually he saw the man's form slumped on the ground, his fingers intwined tightly in his mint coloured hair.
As the vehicle drew closer, Grey leapt from the moving vehicle, not caring if he got hurt, all that mattered was that he got to Absolem. Bruised and battered from his tumble out of the car he limped as fast as he could towards the man.
"Absolem," he called out, his voice breaking a little, "Absolem."
Could he even hear him? The pain was a lot for Grey to handle but knowing that Absolem was going through even more almost made him cry. Was there even anything he could do to help the man? Desperately he gripped Absolem's hands the way he'd done the first time, willing for everything to be ok, hoping that his presence there would help even in the slightest because at least Absolem would then know that he wasn't alone.
"Please hold on Absolem, please be ok, just a little longer, everyone needs you," he said.
Surely this was going to kill Absolem? He was trying to accomplish a task alone that normally took the strength of who knew how many flowers. Had everybody not been relying on the man Grey would have made him stop instantly. Not knowing what else to do he wrapped his arms around the mans waist and buried his head in his chest, needing to believe that at least it would give Absolem some comfort.
Sinistra/Tweedle Dee & Destra/Tweedle Dum
Wordlessly they had been following the Duchess's son when seemingly out of nowhere some sort of vehicle had appeared in front of them, operated by yet another girl.
"No wait, that's no girl, it's a boy," thought Destra.
Sinistra and Destra had shared a brief look before following the boy's instructions and piling everyone inside. Each twin had a multitude of questions they wanted to ask the boy but he seemed distracted and considering that he was the one in control of the vehicle they thought it best to wait.
Some things seemed to be certain though, the boy was most likely another candidate but who he was contracted to remained to be seen. Having said that, neither twin had been aware that there were male candidates in the game.
Their train of thought was disrupted by the boy throwing himself out of the vehicle. Destra watched in alarm as the boy rolled away while Sinistra panicked as the vehicle kept moving at speed towards a group of trees. Had this all been a trap?
"Umm...I think we have a problem," said Destra.
The setting changes from Down the Rabbit-Hole to Wonderland
Setting
0.00 INK
Rhia went wide eyed when she heard it, the screams and upon further inspection she could see it too, “They left her!?” she asked in amazement, but not in the same fashion as before. This was disbelief. This was.. unbelievable. She couldn’t believe that they would leave her like that. Why the hell- Then she thought back to when Cheshire faced the Jabberwocky.. how they were forced to leave, and she felt tears forming in her eyes. She understood, but she didn’t really agree. All for one and one for all..right? Why should one person go down for everyone else? It doesn't seem fair.. she looked up to Cheshire, trying to be reassuring, although she was sure she was trying to reassure herself as well, “That woman, she’ll be okay..” won’t she..? She continued her sentence inside her head. It didn’t look too great.
Rhia bit her bottom lip, “I’m sure he’s trying his best..” and she touched her hands to Absolem’s head, noticing that his facial expression seemed to change a bit. It seemed to calm and soothe slightly and her head began to hurt, her mouth opening in shock and from the pain. Was she.. taking some of his pain? Is this some of what he was feeling? It was..terribly painful and she wasn’t even taking all of it, just a fraction. “I want to do something too..” she mumbled to herself. She stayed kneeled by him, holding his head, watching his hands relax as she took on a little more, “We’ll do this together Absolem.” She smiled a bit, then to Cheshire, “I’m tired of sitting around and being for show.” She told her after closing her eyes and focusing back on the task at hand. So.. she did have powers. It just took her to feel incredibly scared and cornered for her to be able to channel them.
She blinked when she noticed Grey, “I’m doing the best I can..” she mumbled, “But he’s still going to feel a lot of pain..” she replied in a tired tone. She smiled a bit when Grey began giving him physical comfort. “Glad to see things are becoming more..” She trailed off, closing and opening her eyes as her own vision blurred, “Under control..” she finished her sentence.
She knew Grey had to be wondering what she was doing, “I’m not sure how.. but somehow I can take away some of the pain he’s feeling and share it from him to myself.. but my tolerance isn’t near as great as his.. I can’t take on much more of it..I’m taking only about fifteen percent of what he was managing on his own..” Rhia was obviously in a lot of pain now as well, her first time REALLY testing her powers was absorbing Absolem’s pain, not to mention the original pain of using them.
---
Absolem focused on keeping the house hidden, thankful that he still had the weakest set of flowers to aid him in feeding the energy needed to conceal the house. Just a little longer Absolem.. He told himself, eyes closed as he focused on his task, and breathing, His hands never let go of his hair, not for a second. He could hear those around him, but every time he opened his eyes was was seeing double and they were spinning in odd circles.. He tried to force a smile, “I am alright Rhia.” He forced out in a struggled tone. “It’s not like I can control which of my defenses get destroyed..” He retorted back to Cheshire in an exhausted tone, “I’m far from falling unconscious, I promise you.” He mumbled back, “I just need to sit here undisturbed if you want this behemoth to remain hidden.”
With that, he went back to remaining silent. He didn't want them to know just how much it pained him to be doing all of this, but he decided to remain a trooper. He was not going to let go and show the house yet. Not yet. He needed to give Duchess a chance to escape.. then he could release it. Then he could rest. “Like hell I’m letting something like this get the best of me.” He mumbled more to himself than to anyone in particular. Absolem heard Grey’s voice, eyes opening and seeing a bit clearer. What was Rhia doing to him, and why did it feel like some of the pain was being washed away. It was an.. odd feeling, “Hey..” He smirked to Grey, “I knew you could handle yourself without me.” He blinked when he felt Grey grab his hands, closing his eyes. He merely nodded, not appreciating how weak everyone was seeing him, but everyone knew how much strain overexerting himself put on his body. He barely felt the boy hug him, but he acknowledged him, letting go of his own hair with one hand to pat Grey on the head, “Good job.” He stated as kind as possible despite feeling exasperated by the pain in his head.
Ivory wasn’t exactly assured as to her location. Honestly, she didn’t know where she was at all. In fact, the last thing she could summon up from her memory was Rabbit doing something with the clocks. She was in the woodlands when she stirred, her skull ringing painfully. She looked around, but at first her sight was blurry and everything looked mushed together in an array of color and disfigured shape. She knew she was in the woods however based off the surrounding sounds and the way the earth felt underneath her hands. She wasn’t aware of what she was intended to do with herself and she was left questioning how she got here in the first place. This is not Rabbit’s house.. What happened to me? Not to mention what happened to Rabbit?! They hadn’t even been properly contracted yet.. She shook her head, she didn’t have time to sort this out, Wonderland was a dangerous place. She was torn from her thoughts when she instinctively scrambled to her feet when she saw a plant move, feeling herself begin to tremble in fright. She wasn’t the bravest of the humans, that much was for sure. Being abandoned wasn’t improving her uneasiness either. Ivory ran the instant the plant shifted again, screaming out in terror.
She was darting between foliage, over Wonderland wildlife, doing her best to not step on anything. Even a mouse could prove fatal in a place such as this! She was pretty agile, evading the trees well considering the momentum she obtained from the downward dash. Her usual skill at sprinting like this normally wasn’t proficient, so she was merely waiting to crash into someone or something. Half of the girl wanted to find someone, yet then again, half of her did not. She found a group, well sort of. She heard them, so she hid behind a group of trees. There was a green haired male clutching his head and a blue haired girl..boy? Uhm, she wasn’t sure trying to help him somehow and a slightly intimidating girl near both of them, barking angrily. She clutched the tree nervously. She wasn’t sure she wanted to show herself, but she needed to make herself known soon. She then noticed another group approach a blonde girl..boy? Why are so many of them confusing about their gender!? She noticed more people in what looked to be a carriage or chariot. She moved from her tree, closer towards the people in the chariot, peeking from behind it to get a better look. There was a set of twins, a girl, and a boy. Who were they? More Wonderland inhabitants? Contractors? She wanted to make herself known, but she felt her fingers tremble against the bark of the tree. She was… scared. She wouldn’t have been, had she been with Rabbit, but she was on her own again. She quickly hid behind the tree again when she realized they’d possibly see her. She was really pale and in all white clothing with long white hair. She stuck out against the dark colors like a sore thumb. She turned her back to them leaning on the tree, drumming her fingers quietly on the bark in attempt to concentrate and comfort herself as she tried to come to a conclusion on how to act. Violent or safe, you’ve got to decide quickly Ivory! If I show myself..will they kill me?
The setting changes from Wonderland to Down the Rabbit-Hole
Tibbs felt the ground shake, but was unable to see anything wrong, so as the roots snapped out they caught the huge beast unawares. Struggle. Fight. Thrash. Fail. The monster was caught tight in the constricting bands, no matter how it struggled, no matter how many roots it snapped, there were far too many. The monster was pissed. Bellowing it's anger, as the flaming arrows plunked off of it's hide- a few finding purchase in it's skin, but not enough to do more than further anger the monster. This was going wrong, and fast.
But that was fine.
A whisper pulled at Tibbs, it spoke slow and softly, letting him know he was a good boy. Things were fine. It was a familiar voice.
"Rest. It's all ok. We will take it from here. Sleep now." the voice said, Tibbs' motions slowing, it's struggles stopping. The beast was still, and relaxed, and it's eyes cleared. For just a moment it was a dog again, it's mind that of a simple hound. It had no idea what was going on...then it exploded into ash.
Tibbs' death was so sudden, the roots still held a rough shape of the beast's mass for a moment, as the ash fell away into the wind. It was not the only surprise.
Suddenly, without warning, the rest of the Jabberwocky's forces meet the same fate...all exploding into a dense cloud of ash. If seen from high above, say from a mile or two up, one would see similar events happening all over Wonderland. Some unexplained force was causing all of the infected areas to disintegrate into ash. The trees of the infected forests, the random animals filled with darkness, even the Generals in the Jabberwocky's army- Cook, Doormouse and the others, all poofing into ash...and blowing away.
What those on the ground could see however was the effects- Tons of ash were filling the sky. The sun was eclipsed, the moon blotted out. Not a star would be seen. Wonderland had been cast in darkness. The how and the why were less important than the effect, soon the days would be cold and the nights colder..the remaining vegetation would die, animals would starve...an endless winter, with ash instead of snow.
But what had happened?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jabberwocky halted, it's glass form whirling in a death dance over one of the fallen Bandersnatch clan members, the others had escaped into the forest. Chasing them would be pointless. Instead the being would make inquires, information would be gleaned from this wounded specimen. A single shard of black glass slides into the Bandersnatch's wound, drawing forth a scream.
"Glad I have your A̴̴̬̮̪̰͓T̡̕͏̴̲̰̠̮̦͇̗̹̜̰̟̼͉̼̝̱̘͜ͅT̨̛̪̭͕͕́̀E̸̡̯̱̘̥͔̞͡N̷̢̦̖͉͇̖̫̗͚͙̮̠͎̣̯͍͟T̡̕͝͏̭̪͈͔̞͡I̷̷͉̫̲̬̤̮͈̪͎̪̖͘͘͢O̶̡̢̮̼̟͎̮͖̟͖̟͈̝͔͍̩͎̘̥̕͝ͅͅṆ̣͈̖̦͍͇̘̹̪̖͕̺̹͟͜͡ I have some questions. Answer them and you die. Failure will be W͏̸͇̩͉͔̠̬̘̭̘͢O̸̺̬̰̮̫̹̲̖̣̩͍̟͘͜R̸͏̛̭̻͉͖̘͔͕͠S̴̰̝̲͚̻͖̼̟̬͢E̡̥͍͍̫̣̩̗͈̞̰͡." the being spoke in the sound of scattering leaves.
Gina's giggles bubble over, as the girl watches, playing with a small fragment of the glass. She felt odd, no longer a single entity with the Jabberwocky, but she could feel the being's essence flow through her still. They were one, even separated. She leaned on a tree, listening to the Bandersnatch babble answers to her friend's questions. It seemed the clan knew how to fight the infection...flames would purge the taint from Wonderland. Jabberwocky's defeat was at hand. Already news was racing to the survivors in the form of the clan's leader. Together they would burn away the plague.
"Hmm. Can't let that happen. You think by striping me of my army you D̳͙͓̟̲̭̼̻͚͟͠E̡̱͉̼̬̜͕̱̺̝̥̯̩͈͖̯͈͝͠͠ͅC̷̢͙͙̗̰̘̖̮̗̕L͢͠҉̨̯͎̰̪̜͇̩Ą̪͉̦͔̝͍̟̰̳̜̖̗̟͞W̖͈̺͎̼̳͓̥͎̜͎͓̯͎͡ me? You think you win when I stand alone? I will show you despair...by granting your wish. Behold. I stand A̢̪̗͍̪͓̝͔̤̙͔̹̹̺͚ͬ͑̉͛͛̓͛ͩ̈̉͊ͯͭ̐ͮL̄̓̓ͣ͐ͨͭ̽̐ͮ̓͏͍̥͕͍̞̬̙̠̞̭͓̠̤͉̼̣͕͟O̶̹̘͇̦̰͉̜ͧͤ͌̽͑̒ͫ̑̃̋̔͛ͨͩ̔͋̀Nͬ̔̍͗̿̏̓̽̍͌ͦ̐̓ͦͩ͒́͏̞̲̺̞̣̥͓̭̖̰̳͇̬̮̜͚̮͇Ȩ̶̧̭͔̮̗͕ͪ̄̐ͩ̌͋͛͆ͩ̊̃̈́!"
The final word marked the end of the war.
That single spoken word did what the assembled forces could not- it halted the plague. It also stole the sun, the moon and the sky. In one instant the war was over...and a new one began. The sky was lost- Birds died in droves, falling to the ground in piles. The ash was pervasive. No matter what one did...it was always there. A reminder...Wonderlan was a wasteland in the making.
That day Jabberwocky robbed Alice of her power...Wonderland was hers....but where the ash fell it muted her. The red mist could not leave the protection of the castle. It was the only place left untouched. It would be the only place the survivors could go...
And time would pass....until the war began again.
--------------------------------------
Jabberwocky and Gina ended the life of the Bandersnatch, then set off, towards The Pit. The sole survivors of Jabberwocky's army, the trio of guards posted there waited guidance, they were of a different strain than the newer infection, they had been spared instant death. They would be hard at work by the time the duo arrived- Already the foundations of a castle were taking shape, a black tower of obsidian blocks. Whispers of Charm Tower would circulate, it's odd name without explanation. Dark beings were sighted there, figures cloaked in shadows, working day and night to place stone and lay mortar.
The Vorpal Blade would be kept safe...it's unknown power held in check by the tower's foundations. To kill Jabberwocky one would need to defeat the tower. A daunting task.
Wonderland would wither. Wonderland would die. Time was limited...but the survivors would need every second to build a force. Jabberwocky needed to die if there was a chance of restoring Wonderland. An army would be needed. Alliances would be needed. But would it all be enough?
Time would also let Jabberwocky prepare for the eventual battle- though denied it's plauge army..the being was not without tricks. The ash granted the being an unknown edge, would Jabberwocky still retain a form of control over the ash? Only time would tell. With Tibbs and the rest removed from the picture the survivors would quickly discover a power void...with the Jabberwocky removed from the picture...what would happen to the alliances gained thus far? Would they stay united enough to stand together against the comming storm?
Time passes.
Water sleeps, but Enemy never rests.
The setting changes from Down the Rabbit-Hole to Wonderland
The roots had lashed out just as planned, trapping the Dog-Beast within a living web. Cheshire's toothed grin split across her face and she let loose a growl of pleasure. It was working! The roots were strong, numerous and large. The few unlucky vines torn by the Beast were quickly replaced and set forth towards immoblizing the infected creature within a root-cocoon. Seeing her foe struggle, Cheshire dared herself closer, hopping a few meters ahead, just enough so she could get her message across to the Duchess. She roared, her sound echoing in the air, bringing with it handfuls of leaves, stones and flowers. They whipped and thrashed frantically through the wind before finally sorting themselves out into a spelled message: Get over here, woman! She wasn't aware of the other General's exact locations, but the fact that they had fled and she had her plant-army surrounding, she was very confident..that and she was anxious to gather the Chains and Contractors together. She left the floating message to disperse and guide the Duchess towards the group. She watched for a moment, enjoying the Beast's struggle then as if it's body was under too much pressure, it died. She wasn't sure whether to be overjoyed at the defeat or wary. It all seemed too easy.
Slowly, she crept back towards the others, her gaze remaining upon the blackened corpse, her eyes furrowing as the body seemingly drifts away. Her uneasiness began to spread as not only the Dog-Beast turned to ash, but as everything else did too. All around her, the infected creatures were blowing away, creating a rather confusingly, peaceful victory; but was it truly a victory? The sky was darkening with the ashes of the infected and though she couldn't see it, she could feel what everything Jaberwockey had kept living within an infectious Hell was now dead. She collapsed, her claws helpless digging into the earth, not only out of the sudden shock of so much death, but of the overwhelming sadness which came with it. She gasped, unable to bring forth the anguish she suddenly felt. Though no longer imprisoned within their own bodies, all those which had hope of freedom once the Plague was destroyed had perished and now what was left of Wonderland was becoming a much darker place, in both the literal and spiritual sense. The Plague still lived. This was no victory.
With what little strength she had left, she slowly stood and stumbled back towards the others. Her vision blurred as she swayed in her steps, almost stopping a few times as not to tread on the ash. However seeing as it was a wasted effort, she trudged solemnly, almost lethargically back to the group. They were still there, Rhia, Absolem, now Grey. They all looked worse for wear, but that was something she had quickly become used to. She stopped, her unseeing eyes locking upon the girl before looking down to the blanketed earth. "Be careful where you step," She spoke monotonously, "The dead coat the floor.."
View All »Arcs
Arcs are bundles of posts that you can organize on your own. They're useful for telling a story that might span long periods of time or space.
There are no arcs in this roleplay.
View All » Create New » Quests
There are no quests in this roleplay.
Add Group » View All » 0 Factions to align with
Here's the current leaderboard.
There are no groups in this roleplay!
Game Master Controls
Welcome home, Promethean. Here, you can manage your universe.
Arcs
Arcs are bundles of posts from any location, allowing you to easily capture sub-plots which might be spread out across multiple locations.
Add Quest » Quests
You can create Quests with various rewards, encouraging your players to engage with specific plot lines.
Add Setting » 5 Settings for your players to play in
Settings are the backdrop for the characters in your universe, giving meaning and context to their existence. By creating a number of well-written locations, you can organize your universe into areas and regions.
Navigation
While not required, locations can be organized onto a map. More information soon!
Add Group » 0 Factions to align with
There are no groups in this roleplay!
Collectibles
By creating Collectibles, you can reward your players with unique items that accentuate their character sheets.
Once an Item has been created, it can be spawned in the IC using /spawn Item Name
(case-sensitive, as usual) — this can be followed with /take Item Name
to retrieve the item into the current character's inventory.
Mobs
Give your Universe life by adding a Mob, which are auto-replenishing NPCs your players can interact with. Useful for some quick hack-and-slash fun!
Mobs can be automated spawns, like rats and bats, or full-on NPCs complete with conversation menus. Use them to enhance your player experience!
Current Mobs
No mobs have been created yet.
Spawns
Locations where Mobs and Items might appear.
Events
You can schedule events for your players to create notifications and schedule times for everyone to plan around.
Orphanage
By marking a character as abandoned, you can offer them to your players as pre-made character sheets.
The Forge
Use your INK to craft new artifacts in On the Wings of a Dream. Once created, Items cannot be changed, but they can be bought and sold in the marketplace.
Notable Items
No items have been created yet!
The Market
Buy, sell, and even craft your own items in this universe.
Market DataMarket conditions are Quick Buy (Items Most Recently Listed for Sale) |
Open Stores
View All » Add Character » 23 Characters to follow in this universe
Newest
[Lacey 'Alice' Liddell] Creator of Wonderland
Imaginary is a word to denote things that don't exist in your Reality.
Duchess Sophie Vespre
"Sit down and enjoy the pepper"
Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato
"Being twins does not make us the same person"
Sinistra "Tweedle Dee" Lato
"I'm innocent, I swear!"
Isaiah "Grey" Gris
"Still painting flowers"
Belca
You wanna take this shit outside, brat?
Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars
Who are you? I can't help you if you don't even know who you are, stupid.
Dormouse
"We've been waiting,"
The White Rabbit
"Well, you've taken your sweet time!"
Trending
Duchess Sophie Vespre
"Sit down and enjoy the pepper"
Dormouse
"We've been waiting,"
The White Rabbit
"Well, you've taken your sweet time!"
Isaiah "Grey" Gris
"Still painting flowers"
[Lacey 'Alice' Liddell] Creator of Wonderland
Imaginary is a word to denote things that don't exist in your Reality.
Ariana Storm
Try not to you lose your head, things aren't always what they seem
Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars
Who are you? I can't help you if you don't even know who you are, stupid.
Belca
You wanna take this shit outside, brat?
The Mad Hatter
"A very merry unbirthday to you, and you as well!"
Most Followed
The White Rabbit
"Well, you've taken your sweet time!"
Duchess Sophie Vespre
"Sit down and enjoy the pepper"
Sinistra "Tweedle Dee" Lato
"I'm innocent, I swear!"
Absolem "Caterpillar" Pillars
Who are you? I can't help you if you don't even know who you are, stupid.
Isaiah "Grey" Gris
"Still painting flowers"
Ariana Storm
Try not to you lose your head, things aren't always what they seem
[Lacey 'Alice' Liddell] Creator of Wonderland
Imaginary is a word to denote things that don't exist in your Reality.
Destra "Tweedle Dum" Lato
"Being twins does not make us the same person"
View All » Places
96 posts · 19 characters present · last post 2012-07-28 05:32:07 »
Wonderland Owner: RolePlayGateway
Anywhere in Wonderland outside the places already specified in the rp.
171 posts · 3 characters present · last post 2012-07-28 03:47:21 »
You are standing in a large hall, so large you can't see the walls or the ceiling.
12 posts · 0 characters present · last post 2012-03-14 06:34:19 »
Palace of Hearts ↪ Tea Garden Owner: RolePlayGateway
"Isn't it just a beautiful day for tea?"
9 posts · 0 characters present · last post 2012-03-12 13:47:46 »
Lake Lacie ↪ Palace of Hearts Owner: RolePlayGateway
Abandon All Hope, Ye Who Enter Here
5 posts · 1 characters present · last post 2012-03-08 04:34:34 »
Lake Lacie Owner: RolePlayGateway
A lake surrounded by mountains, filled with tranquility, infested with monsters ... perfect spot for a vacation, or a survival trip!
Fullscreen Chat » Create Topic » On the Wings of a Dream: Out of Character
Discussions
-
- Topics
- Replies
- Views
- Last post
-
-
On the Wings of a Dream
1 ... 16, 17, 18by Bani on Wed Feb 15, 2012 12:05 pm
- 349 Replies
- 8470 Views
- Last post by NotSoHeartless
on Tue Aug 14, 2012 12:40 am
-
On the Wings of a Dream
-
-
Plot Discussion
1, 2by Bani on Thu Feb 23, 2012 4:25 am
- 33 Replies
- 1684 Views
- Last post by Bani
on Thu May 24, 2012 8:44 am
-
Plot Discussion
Most recent OOC posts in On the Wings of a Dream
There have been no posts in the OOC topic for this roleplay!