by E E Rawls
Alice’s eyebrows drew together and she shrugged with a question, as if wondering why he was staring at her.
Madnes opened and closed his mouth, shook his head and diverted his attention elsewhere, patting Ugly as the goose perched on his shoulder.
Armor creaked and the dragon knight, who had been waiting patiently all this time, raised a hand lazily to interrupt the group’s chatter. “Are you planning on living here?” he asked them.
“What? No, no. We’ll leave your grass, yard, living space or whatever it is. But we can’t go back home the same way we came—not unless we want to meet our end in the Sacred Pond’s waters.” Madnes combed a hand through his drying hair. “Is there another way to Oswick?”
The dragon knight nodded. “There are a few other portals,” he drawled. “It will be faster if I take you there, Madness Solver.” His head inclined. “Pardon for my earlier ignorance in not recognizing you for who you are.”
Madnes waved his hands that all was fine. “You help guard the portals I’m supposed to manage. In a way, we’re sort of colleagues.”
The knight blushed lazily. “You honor me, Sir Madnes.”
“Do you have a name?”
“I am the purple knight.”
“...Yes, you are a knight with purple armor, who becomes a purple dragon. I get that. But your name?”
“Purple dragon knight.”
Madnes stared at him levelly. “Do dragons not have names?” The knight tilted his head. Madnes sighed. “We’ll get nowhere with this, will we? How about this: I come up with a name for you using purple.”
The knight’s face perked, suddenly intrigued.
“Oo-oo! A game! Let me play!” Harrey chimed in. “Pleur! Prepul? Lepur. Purlep? Pelrup?”
Madnes rubbed his forehead. “How about Pelur?” he said, before Harrey could continue. “We’ll call you Knight Pelur. How’s that?”
Stars sparkled in the knight’s eyes. “A true name. My life has meaning.”
“Eh...didn’t it have meaning before?” Madnes stalled his reply with a raised hand. “Anyways, will you take us to the portal now?”
Pelur dipped his head, dark purple hair falling forward. “It’s after lunchtime, but I’ll manage. For you, Sir Madnes.”
“Um, thank you.”
A swirl of smoke lifted from the ground around the knight as he backed away, obscuring him from view, and a deep growl rumbled the ground.
They took cautionary steps back, and a hot breath of air cleared the smoke away in one giant puff—almost clearing Madnes and the group away in the process.
There stood the fearsome dragon in Pelur’s place. He swept a webbed wing down for them to climb onto his back.
They tried to find a seat, avoiding the long, curved spikes that lined Pelur’s spine. It worked better sitting sideways and using the spikes as safety bars—something to cling to as the massive dragon shifted, stood on hide legs, and launched into the air with all the force of a giant spring.
“Gwaaah!” Harrey’s mouth flapped wildly in the rush of air, and Alice’s arms found their way around Madnes’s chest, clinging tightly—he blushed and didn’t mind.
Once the dragon leveled out in the air, things calmed down, and they could peer over Pelur’s sides down at Wonderland below.
The coast was under them, a sea of blue crashing upon colorfully striped cliffs. The portal and Pelur’s cave lay situated on a jut of land attached to the mainland by a narrow strip, which they soon left behind, coming over a landscape so bizarre that no sense could be made of it.
It was beautiful. It was mysterious. Colors painted portions of Wonderland like a canvas, while other portions simmered dark and secretive. In the rolling landscape’s center rose a castle. Red as blood, its towers and domes reached for the sky in gothic wonder.
“The Red King’s palace,” rumbled dragon Pelur.
Madnes focused on the palace as they drew nearer and nearer. He squinted against the wind. “Oz, so this is where you’ve been living? All this time?” he whispered.
CHESHIRE CROSSED THE blue-green lawn as he exited the palace library. An odd smudge up in the sky caught his attention.
Shielding against the sun with a paw, he spotted the purple dragon.
And on the dragon was...
“Madnes? Alice and Harrey?!”
Chapter 21:
Confrontation
“WHAT IN WONDERLAND is going on?” Cheshire exclaimed, once dragon Pelur had landed on a patch of ground near the palace, the trees and soil trembling underpaw.
The cat eyed the gosling perched on Madnes’s shoulder. “Do I want to know what happened since I left? Do I want to know what Harrey and Alice are doing here, in the first place?”
“Um...probably not.” Madnes chewed his thumb nail, glancing away.
“Stop chewing your nail—that’s a bad habit,” ordered Cheshire. Madnes lowered his thumb. “So, you brought Earthians to Wonderland,” the cat stated with an accusing tone. “Did I not warn you that our world must be kept a secret?”
Madnes crossed his arms. “There are humans—erm, Earthians—who know about Wonderland already. You’ve said so.”
“Yes, a very select few—and them mostly by accident.” Cheshire’s furry brow creased. “I understand that they’re your closest friends, and that it’s difficult keeping secrets from them. But now that they’ve seen Wonderland, their lives back on Earth won’t be the same.”
Madnes glanced down at the grass.
“Hey now, there’s no reason to be upset,” Harrey interjected. “I’m glad I know! This place is awesome!” He hooked an arm around Madnes’s neck playfully, and Ugly flapped out of the way, honking. “Plus, we get to help support our buddy in his world peacekeeping job, now.”
The cat huffed, still irked, tail twitching.
A loud ripping sound brought their heads around to see Pelur’s large paw grab and yank up tree after tree, stuffing the leafy tops into his jaws and munching like a human would on celery.
“Purple dragon!” Cheshire waved pleading paws. “Please mind the palace grounds—those trees are not meant for eating!”
“It’s Pelur, now, Sir Cheshire.”
“Pardon?”
“Sir Madnes gave me a proper name.” The dragon flashed a sleepy grin that showed many pointy teeth.
The cat gave him a look and Madnes shrugged nonchalantly.
Cheshire rubbed his paw over his brow. “We’ll discuss this more, later. But now that you’re here...” He pulled out a large book from the crook of his small arm. “I did some research, as I said I would, and I found some curious—”
“So fluffy!”
Cheshire was suddenly whisked up into arms and held against a human face and chest, as Alice picked him up and hugged him.
“M-miss! Please—restrain yourself! I’m losing my dignity!”
He heard Madnes snicker and glared in his direction. Madnes covered his mouth with a hand and pretended to whistle.
“Sorry, Cheshire.” Alice stroked the soft cat fur peeking out from his suit vest before reluctantly releasing him. “I can’t resist cute animals, especially ones that play dress-up.”
“I don’t play dress up,” he tried to say. He straightened his bowtie and once more lifted the book and plopped it into Madnes’s hands.
Munch, munch.
“Stop eating those trees! Oh no, you’ve gone and ruined the royal orchid patch too,” the cat moaned.
“Orchids are bitter. I wondered what that taste was,” drawled Pelur.
“Stop eating them, then! Those are prized orchids!”
Madnes hefted the book. It was heavy and leather, and had a painting stamped on the cover: a woman bursting from a pool of water, with flowing green hair and fairy-like wings. “Tales & Mythology. You think the answer lies in here?”
Cheshire turned from berating the dragon. “More of a guess,” he admitted. “An answer to a question, though not to all of them.”
A dark speck moved a
cross the sky, making Madnes look up from the tabby cat. Flying overhead from the palace was a person—a person with large black wings. Wings like a crow.
“Oz!”
The prince hadn’t spotted him yet. Now was his chance!
Madnes broke into a run after him, as the prince drifted higher and higher. Gathering speed and momentum, and using just a touch of power, he caught up to Oz from below, and then—with one giant, knee-bursting leap—he launched himself into the air, hands outstretched to catch Oz by the ankles.
The sudden grab and extra weight caught Oz by surprise.
“I’ve got a few bones to pick with you, Oz! We’re gonna have a talk, just you and me!” shouted Madnes.
Oz’s eyes went wide for a second, no doubt shocked that someone had caught him mid-flight—and that that someone was Madnes, here in Wonderland.
“Madnes!” Cheshire screeched from the ground, waving his arms in a panic. “What in blazes are you doing? That’s the prince you’re assaulting!”
“Fight! Fight!” Harrey chanted. “Wait a minute, Oz is a prince here?” The exuberant boy gaped, then he shouted, “Kick his princely hindquarters, Madnes!!”
“Stop encouraging him!” Cheshire reprimanded. But something in Harrey’s words made him pause. “Hold on, do you know Oz?”
“He and Madnes used to be besties when they were kids,” Harrey said. “What, you didn’t know?”
Madnes battled to keep his grip on Oz’s ankles while the prince kicked, dove, and spiraled through the air.
“Have a talk with you? As if,” Oz snarled. Blue cape flapping in the wind, he reached down and grabbed one of Madnes’s arms to yank it off. But Madnes was stronger than he used to be, and he clung to him in a tight grip.
“I understand if you hate me, resent me,” Madnes shouted against the rushing air as they flew, “but you put Alice’s life in danger, and then Ugly Duckling’s. I can’t so easily forgive that, Oz!”
“I’m not seeking your forgiveness.” Oz’s hand morphed into crow talons digging into his arm. Madnes bit down a yelp. “If you weren’t so pathetic and inadequate at using that power, you would have sensed the danger in time and stopped me!”
Madnes opened his mouth to shout back, but nothing came out. Yes, he was inadequate; he’d known that from the start. But even so...
“It wasn’t my fault that the power wanted me instead of you. So stop being a selfish crybaby about it!” Madnes finally said.
Oz’s jaw dropped. “Selfish what?” In all his life, nobody had ever dared say such a thing! No, that wasn’t true. During his time on Earth, bullies had said plenty, and it was child Madnes who had chased them off—Madnes who used to mean the world to him.
“You are lower than a worm,” Oz growled. “Traitors like you deserve every pain the worlds have to offer!”
“I didn’t betray you! It wasn’t like that—” Madnes tried to say.
Claws dug deeper, and the pain made Madnes’s hand jerk back involuntarily.
Oz seized the moment, taloned hands grabbing both Madnes’s wrists in a grip that drew blood and finally yanked Madnes free of his ankles. Oz then flapped his wings into a spin—spinning Madnes round and round, before throwing him with all his might.
Madnes flung away like a ragdoll across the sky, disappearing into the tree-lined horizon.
Chapter 22:
That Distant Memory
“THINK YOU’RE FANCY because you’ve got nice clothes, do you?”
“You rich types don’t belong in Oswick.”
“Get lost. We don’t want you here!”
Three boys surrounded a child: a blond boy, clutching a book to his chest as if it could save him from their taunts.
“What’s that book you’ve got there?” One reached to steal it away.
The child turned, blocking with his back, but another boy yanked the book free from his arms.
“No! Give it back!”
“Likes to read, does he?” The second bully dangled the book just out of reach. “I bet he does it to make himself feel smarter than everybody else. Heheh, we should beat that pride out of you.”
“I don’t! Please.” Tears rolled down the child’s cheeks. “It’s just a book. Give it back!”
A fist to the stomach brought him to his knees, gasping for air. The child resisted the urge to clutch his painful belly and instead covered his head protectively, knowing more blows would come.
He waited for the pain to begin.
“Oi!”
The three older boys turned at a shout, and child Oz peeked from under his shielding arms.
A boy with a quirky top hat approached, not much taller than himself, with violet eyes that now blazed anger.
“Give that book back, and go do something useful with your lives. I’m not gonna let bullies do as they please!”
“Huh?” The bully with the book made a rude face at him. “Why the heck would we listen to you?”
A fist suddenly knocked the older kid down, and the top hat boy moved faster than any of them could follow. He snatched up the fallen book and grabbed Oz by the wrist, pulling him into a run with him. Together, they fled the scene before the bullies could recover their wits.
The strange boy laughed, glancing at the finely dressed Oz who he pulled in tow. “You’re new around here, aren’t you? You can stick with me, if you like!”
Oz’s mouth hung open, his legs struggling to keep up. Something inside him lit up with newfound hope. “Y-yes, I would like that. I’m Oz,” he said between breaths. “Who are you?”
The boy grinned back at him. “Madnes Hatter!”
...
The Present
PAIN. HIS ARMS. MADNES forced his eyelids to open and see the cause—then he regretted the effort as a headache split his head in two. Groggy and feeling like he’d been hit by a truck, he let his eyes drift closed again. He recalled being flung mercilessly through the air, the sensation of falling.
‘Where am I?’
The ghost image of a blond child smiled in his mind.
“Oz!” Madnes reached out with a shout, grasping for that image, that distant memory.
A loud snapping noise woke his senses, and the image vanished. Taking in a breath, he carefully shifted his torso and glanced about to find that his body was sprawled across a tangle of branches many stories above the ground.
A flashback recalled his fight with Oz, how he fell through sky and into a swath of dangling blue vines. A group of miniature purple monkeys watched him curiously now through the canopy.
‘I can’t move. Every part of me aches...’
Stupid human. You forced me to heal you, or else you’d be an invalid with a broken spine by now. A familiar voice spoke inside his head: the fairy of the Madness Solver power.
That healing cost you a bit of life, just so you know. Her elfin face spoke haughtily. Tick-tock! Her arm motioned the ticking movement of a clock’s hand.
His wrist. He didn’t dare look at the inked clock on his skin. Whether it was months or a year of life lost, he didn’t want to know.
‘You’ve been silent all this time, fairy. Why?’ he demanded, barely keeping his anger in check.
Hm. She shrugged white opal shoulders. You didn’t need me. You just thought you did. And besides, it was entertaining to watch. A giggle echoed through his head.
“More like an evil imp than a fairy...” Madnes muttered under his breath.
Voices were calling out. He could hear people searching for him, and a wash of relief swept through. It wasn’t long before Pelur’s dragon claw lifted him out of the tangled vine canopy—attempting to do so gently, but quite a few twigs and vines still slapped Madnes in the face. He was soon set on the blessed ground and felt Alice’s comforting embrace around his neck.
“Dude, you gotta be smarter when facing Oz. He’s tough!” Harrey slapped his shoulder. “You sure went soaring like a rocket! Must’ve been one heck of a flight, eh?”
Madnes didn’t have the energy to
respond.
Paws shoved Harrey and Alice aside. “You should have told me about this, Madnes! I had no idea things were so bitter between you and Oz.” Cheshire’s furious cat face filled his vision and he winced. “How am I supposed to help you when you’re keeping secrets from me?”
Madnes looked away. Alice held out his top hat for him, having found it, and he patted the hat securely on his head. “I didn’t think it was relevant. I’m sorry, okay?”
Cheshire huffed but relented. “It’s getting late,” he said. “We can’t stay here in the woods.”
They looked around at the pressing trees and curling blue vines, purple monkey eyes peeking out at them from every crevice. The fading light made Madnes wonder what night was like in Wonderland.
“Where did Oz go? I’m not done knocking sense into his brain yet.”
Harrey guffawed. “Who knows? Princely duties and new evil schemes, probably.”
A paw motioned at them, “Come on, I’ll take you to my place for some refreshments.” The cat patted the leather book hooked under his arm. “And I’ll tell you an interesting old tale I found.”
AT THE EDGE OF THE woods, close to a village, sat Cheshire’s cottage. A quaint little house with a vegetable and flower garden, and a white-picket fence.
“It’s like a fantasy cottage,” swooned Alice.
“Yeah, a real shocker.”
Cheshire unlocked the wooden arched door and eyed Madnes. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Madnes smirked. “It’s not a giant mushroom or something else ridiculous.”
Cheshire rolled his eyes and let them inside the polished wood interior.
Soon, a pot of tea was set on a tablecloth, and cups shaped like tulips were served. The group took seats around a small table, and Ugly Duckling busied himself with a biscuit.
“Now then.” The cat sighed after taking a deep, calming sip of spicy tea. “Now that we’re all settled, let me share with you a tale I found in this book of mythology...”
