Behind Sanity

Chapter Forty-Three

Behind Sanity

Chapter Forty-Three

1

                Alice crept on through the silent Wonderland night with new determination.  The threat of the rumbling gone, it was finally safe to return and continue with her quest.   The cat had retired – or at least that was what he’d said when he’d disappeared – leaving Alice on her own.  The Gryphon had directed her towards the Hatter and then taken off, just as he’d said he would, lying low as he scanned for the Jabberwock in the woodland area.  He hadn’t wanted to give Alice away with his large size.            

                There were no real clues as to where the Jabberwocky would be, but Gryphon knew that chaos would follow the beast across the land – so it was predicted.  Gryphon’s intent was to keep the Jabberwock as far from Alice as possible for the time, taking him down himself if he could, though he knew it would be peril to try.  Still, it was for the greater good.  Alice had other things to deal with now.

               There were a few lights ahead in the region where the Hatter had set up camp, so Alice had no trouble moving quietly into the area, yet strangely there was no noise.  She at least had expected to be drawn on by metallic clanking or the sounds of test missiles being fired, but all was silent in the Wonderland Woods, like an empty table at teatime.

                She kept her weapons close, wondering what sort of trouble she would encounter ahead.  The Hatter had many tricks it seemed.  Was he already aware of her presence?  She searched around herself as she walked, making sure her footfalls fell silently on the soft grass.

                She had come upon the designated spot before she had realized it.  There was a clearing in the woods where they stood, hundreds of them, maybe even the thousands he had prepared.  The automatons stood still in straight lines in an orderly, unmoving fashion, while other automatons bustled around, cleaning and prepping the others.

                They were all polished to a gleaming shine, their guns proudly displayed.  Perfect.  There was no surprise here.

                What did surprise her though was the sight of a large cage to the side.  As she watched, two automatons went over to the cage, opened it wide, and pulled something out.  It took Alice a moment, but with all the screaming and yelling it was not hard for her to distinguish the small, insane child that the automatons carried.

                Watching closely, she saw them carry it in front of another seemingly unanimated automaton, open the chest plate, and set the child inside.  Alice’s curiosity was roused for this.  Why did they need a child inside?  The child was then strapped in and two clamps were attached to steel rods coming out of the child’s head.  The chest plate was then closed, and the automaton stood still.

                What?

                Was the child controlling the machine?  So, it wasn’t entirely mechanical.  It seemed that the Hatter had developed some good use for the Queen’s extra souls after all.  The machines headed back for another child, but this one struggled so irately that they dropped him, and he scampered off into the woods, screaming horridly.

                Alice then heard his voice.  He was there.  She couldn’t see him, but she could hear the Hatter’s angry shouts as he ordered the machines to not lose the children.  They were of utmost importance.  She needed to find that lanky wretch.  Where was he?