Order of the Golden Dawn (Neophyte Series 2)

CHAPTER 17 : OFF WITH HIS HEAD

        We stepped into a perfectly groomed garden; buttercups and roses were in full bloom all around, neatly trimmed hedges grew in a straight and proud manner, and in the distance, the branches of lilac bushes danced gently on the breeze. There was one thing that was off about this place, however; all of this beauty was rendered in shades of grey. There was no color on the blooms or bushes, just the dismal black and white starkness of dismay.

    We walked past small groups of what were obviously well mannered, high society individuals with abnormal faces. All eyes seemed permanently widened and when they weren't eerily smiling with grins that seemed to be unnaturally wide, they simply uttered the word "blah", over and over again with an occasional and obviously fake laugh.

    'What is this?'

    'The world as Lewis Carroll commonly sees it.'

    'Now I see why he felt so out of place at the party in White Chapel.'

    'Yes; well, pay no attention to them, as I'm sure they will pay no attention to you. In Lewis's world — at least when he was a child — no one had time for real world issues. It is much the same now. People are simply too caught up in their world of bullshit. They become heavily engaged in conversations that are trivial; and which matter very little to a person like Lewis.'

    This comment gave me pause to consider and remember what it was like to be so alone in my youth, and how desperately I craved interaction with other people. Now I realized that it mattered not how many friends are present in your life; isolation is inevitable if you simply cannot relate.

    'What is it that we are looking for?'

    'Rabbit tracks.' My eyes locked on the eerie crowd, I didn't even notice Samael searching the ground.

    'Is the White Rabbit easy to spot?'

    'I couldn't tell you. Maybe once upon a time. Now that the demon is in control it may be a bit difficult to find him.' As he finished his sentence, I spotted a trail of bloody animal tracks leading right through the crowd. Within the colorless setting, the vibrant red trail was somewhat easy to spot and Samael began pushing his way between groups of people.

    'Do they not even react?'

    'Of course not. Like I said, too caught up.'

     Though he pushed them aside rudely, they continued to laugh and banter as if we were not even there. Following the trail, we moved away from the crowd and into a well-trimmed maze of shrubbery until the tracks finally ended beneath a tall, extremely dense hedge. It seemed that the rabbit was able to walk through matter, or there was some way through the dense hedge that was not obvious.

    'What now?'

     With a wave of Samael's hand the bushes parted as though their tips were violently strapped to the ground. After stepping over the flattened shrubs and taking a few steps more, I looked back and saw them return to normal. We continued following the bloody tracks.

    'Why are the tracks bloody?'

    'Probably for the same reason we haven't spotted the rabbit yet. Just like the other personas, it has probably been badly wounded; possibly even dead. I guess we'll find out soon enough.'

    Following the tracks further we came to a small courtyard paved in stone and lined with black roses and Samael spoke as we continued in single file.

    'We can at least say that we are safe, for now.'

    'How do you figure?' I asked as I admired the neatly trimmed hedges straight ahead. 'The roses are black... which means the queen has yet to step foot into this part of Carrols mind. The rabbit must have hid this part of his mind from view but was sure to leave a trail for anyone looking to come in after him.'