Alysia in Wonderland (2 page)

Lancert nodded solemnly and looked off through the dark trees. “There’s a small village about five miles in this direction. Look for an old woman named Lenorela. She will be able to give you all the details.”

“Is this Lenorela an Ert, like you?” she asked.

“No, Lenorela is a witch, but once she sees that sword, she will know what to do.”

At first glance the demons of the village looked like regular human beings to Alysia. There were no horns protruding from their heads, and they were all dressed in the way that she assumed people in a village would dress. When Lancert told her that the village would be small, she assumed he meant several blocks scattered around a square, but what she saw was no more than 30 buildings arranged neatly around a tall black monolith.

After her meeting with the Ert she had made her way out of the dark forest and took to the trail that he said would take her to the village. The path was a dirt road bordered by tall, emerald green grass, and there was a soft, sandy texture to the dirt that felt like heaven on her soles. She walked at a brisk pace, admiring the tall mountains that were all around her and the odd rock formations that surrounded the village.

One of the villagers saw her and gave her a wave, and her suspicions softened when she recognized that he was a child. She slowed her pace, wanting a bit more time to think, and thought about everything that had happened prior. She felt sorry for herself. There was nothing in any of the happenings of the last year that was her wish or desire. She had simply been born, trained in martial arts—which she would readily admit to loving—and then thrust into a demon war as soon as she was old enough to be considered an adult.

Were it up to her, she would be in her second or third year of school by now. Learning more about life, journalism, and … she’d have a love life, a prospect that now seemed so far out of the picture that it made her sad. Like most girls who grew up in a household with both parents present, she wanted that ideal for her own future. At no time in her plans for life leading up to her 20
th
year had there been anything about wielding old swords, dodging demons, and saving the earth.

Where was the CeeCee in all of these events that were so darned important and beyond her reasoning? Was it selfish to want at least something for herself? It hurt, and even more so when she considered that even if she could go back home now, no one would know who she was. Her father and mother had separate families, and Jaime wouldn’t know her from any other random girl.

Then there was Tracy. The thought of the redheaded warrior of a cop who had saved her life countless times brought her to the brink of tears. She had been so upset with her for falling in love with her father that she hadn’t taken the time to thank her. She owed her more than she liked to admit and had lashed out at her continuously when she probably should have been nice to her. Now the chance was gone forever, and Tracy McCleay continued her life as the apple of James Knight’s eye, this time without the angry daughter in tow.

She wondered what their baby Destiny looked like. She hoped that she looked a little like her. Life was filled with ironies like that, and she wouldn’t be surprised if Destiny was her exact replica. But unlike her, little Destiny would be able to have a full, mundane life. She wouldn’t have to witness her university be demolished by giant demons, taking out all of its students and faculty. She almost laughed at the thought; it still felt absurd.

Alysia’s thoughts had caused her to lose focus as she walked, and when she drew near the large rocks that held the gate leading into the village she was quite surprised to see a crowd of people waiting for her.

“See!” the boy from before shouted to the people. “I told you that she wasn’t a Mee’ir!”

There was some grumbling from the crowd in response to this but she couldn’t make out what was being said.

More people gathered around to look at her and she forced a smile as she moved closer. Unconsciously, she let her left hand brush against the hilt of Euphoria reassuringly. “Hello,” she intoned, seeing for the first time that they were in fact non-human, due to the variety of extra limbs, tails, and sharpened ears. There were no two quite alike amongst them all, and it made her human features feel inadequate. She ran her tongue across her elongated eye-teeth, which had come as a result of her training with Chaos, and this made her assume that her pupils were still red.

The boy stepped forward and bowed awkwardly. He couldn’t have been any older than ten, and he wore a leather tunic with leggings that ended in a tattered pair of boots. His brown hair was an explosion of spikes, which made her think of the heroes in Japanese anime films, and his large, violet eyes glowed with wisdom that went way beyond his years. “Welcome to Wildemont, traveler,” he said in a voice that was too deep for his age, and he looked as if he was waiting for her to give him something.

“Thank you,” Alysia managed and then scanned the crowd curiously. “Were you all expecting me?” she asked suddenly and many heads nodded while others mumbled as much. “You were expecting someone and you assume it is me,” she decided. “Listen, I am not whomever you were waiting on to show up today. I am just, I don’t know, passing through? I need to get some clothes and hopefully something to eat.”

The disappointed crowd began to break up, but the boy stood in front of Alysia, eyeing her curiously. “So, Will didn’t send you here?” he asked in his odd, deep voice.

“Sorry, I don’t know anyone named Will. Is he one of your villagers, or is he an outsider like me?”

The boy’s kind features grew hard all of a sudden and he reached for the long knife that was strapped to his leg. “Where did you say you were from, stranger?” he announced, and several men fell in behind him, each brandishing a weapon of some sort.

One of them, a large, green orc-like creature, said, “See, Bamba, I told you it was a bad idea to allow her to get close. We should have killed her when she stepped out of the Dor Woods.”

When they were all behind the boy, it made her realize that he was not a boy after all but a tiny demon, very similar to her Isobel. “I didn’t say where I was from … Bamba, is it? I came here for supplies and to find out some information. I don’t have any ill-intent for the citizens of Wildemont, and I am not one of your enemies, whoever they are.”

Bamba shouted, “Lies! Wasn’t it enough that you took our supplies from last week, Mee’ir trash? Now you’re back for what? More? We don’t have anything more to give you.”

Alysia felt sad when she saw his expression; it was one of disappointment and anger. Whoever the Mee’ir was, they had robbed the village, and now they were assuming that she was with them. “Okay, let us calm down and have a reasonable discussion,” she said, brushing her hand against the hilt of Euphoria again as she fought the urge to draw her blade. “Is there anything I can do to prove that I am not one of those people?”

Bamba seemed to consider her proposition and glanced back at his fellows to see if they would help. “Give us your sword,” said the one from before, and Alysia felt her patience beginning to slip.

“The sword stays with me,” she said. “Find another way.”

The group started to mumble things she couldn’t understand, and then Bamba turned back to her and placed his knife back in its sheath. “Wait here with them until I return,” he said. “I am going to get someone who can decide if you’re telling the truth.”

“Okay,” Alysia said, and rested both hands on the sword. The yellow sky had turned into more of a dark mustard color and she knew that it wouldn’t be long before night would snuff out all the light. If things were frightening during the night of her own mundane world, she wondered what sort of horrors Yalem would yield. She was hungry and her stomach was not in agreement with her playing it patient with the demons. Her mind drifted to a bowl of cereal, corn flakes with powdered brown sugar, cold and sweet, a luxury that she would never experience in this rustic demon world.

The orc demon stared at her the way a guard dog watches someone getting too close to its owner’s gate. He bore a hammer, which looked as crude as he did, and the others seemed to give him the space that one would give an important person or a dangerous one. Thoughts of splitting his hammer with a vertical slash came into her mind, and she wondered how he would react to her speed if it ever came down to violence. The thought made her smile despite herself, and he grunted as if he could read her mind.

A commotion brought her attention to the crowd behind the big demon and Bamba emerged with a woman in tow, wearing a robe that had to be the most beautiful fabric Alysia had ever seen. Her hair was white and her skin was the deep pink color of farm-raised salmon. She had silvery pupils with tiny horns next to her eyes, and she was tall and statuesque, her gait and composure the living embodiment of grace. Her small bare feet peeked out from below the silk-like black robe, and in her hands she held a crooked staff, which radiated a dark power of some kind.

Bamba had the look of a child who had tattled on a sibling and was about to witness his punishment. He moved to the side to allow the woman to move forward, and she glided up to Alysia and stopped a few feet from where she stood. “I see that you carry an Ert weapon,” the woman said with a sing-song voice that was extremely soothing to hear.

Alysia said, “It was given to me by a man who claims to be my father. His name is Lancert. Do you know him? He sent me here to find a woman who will help me on my journey.”

“That’s pretty presumptuous. I don’t know this man, but I know that sword. Tell me, girl, have you used it in a fight, or is it an untested relic?”

“I’ve used it extensively, but if you don’t mind me asking are you of Turevila or Ert?” Alysia said, and an audible gasp came from the crowd. Murmurs of displeasure threatened to drown out her thoughts, and the woman in black made an expression that looked as if she were sucking on the sourest of candies. “I’m sorry if I offended you, I—”

The woman in black spoke quietly. “The politics of the ruling classes are not something that we concern ourselves with here in Wildemont, stranger. Lesser beings like us. We are too busy working, hunting for food, and defending our families to care. Is that what you’ve come here for? To recruit bodies for your lord’s army? Tell me now so that I can decide if you’re worthy of any more of my time.”

Alysia felt foolish for asking her earlier question, but she needed to know if Chaos had any influence on the village. “I serve no lord, but I’ve had run-ins with both sides so I felt the need to ask to see if I really wanted access into your little town here.”

“Follow me,” the woman said. She started back through the gates, walking briskly the way she came as if she didn’t notice the people gathered there. Alysia glanced from face to face, and Bamba and his men seemed embarrassed to look at her.
You all are in trouble
, she thought to herself and fought against the smirk that threatened to grow across her face.

She stepped through the gateway of the tall, jagged rock wall, and avoided the cobbled path in lieu of the soft dirt that ran beside it. She looked around at the people and the various stores that bordered the main road. Her eye caught a sign with the image of a shoe, and she immediately wanted to rush over to it and barter for a pair of boots for her feet.

What she did instead was stay close to the tall, dark woman. After twenty minutes of walking, the road split and a smaller walkway led up to a house on a hill that looked like the thing of nightmares. It was three stories high, disheveled and dark. Animals—at least they looked like animals—were running wild on its grounds and above the rooftop flew a number of large winged creatures.

Alysia looked around unconsciously as they walked towards the house, and she noticed that the people that had followed them in had stopped at the split in the path. They got to a tall black fence with a closed gate that lacked a lock for entry. The woman waved her hand in the form of a rainbow and the gate slowly swung inward. Alysia wondered when the woman would turn around and sink vampire fangs into her neck. Following the woman was the type of activity that could bring her sanity into question. She didn’t know who she was; hell, she didn’t even know her name, yet here she was in her personal garden of heavenly delights.

Every creature that was in the yard frolicking, running, or eating looked like something from an acid trip. They just didn’t look right, not like anything that she had ever seen before. The woman knelt down to pet one of them, which looked like a cross between a mongoose and a lamb.

The dark woman looked up from petting the animal to regard Alysia warmly. “Welcome to the mansion,
Isora
, girl. I am the Madame, Lenorela Isora.”

“Pleased to meet you, Lenorela. My name is Alysia Knight, but you can call me CeeCee,” Alysia said. “Thanks for allowing me entry into the town, and for letting me come to your home.”

“Of course, CeeCee, it is only right that we warriors of the Ert help one another out,” she said.

“Ert? Wow, but I thought that—”

She held up a slender hand. “It was a ruse, but let’s hold our tongues until we get inside the house.”

The more Alysia learned about Lenorela, the more she realized that her power dealt more with misdirection than anything else. Like Alysia, she had come to the town as an outsider, but this was over 50 years ago and they weren’t as welcoming back then. She had proven her citizenship by fending off an attack by a group of bandit demons known as the Mee’ir, and due to her brilliance in strategy they eventually made her their leader.

Over time, Lenorela’s legend kept on growing. Although she spent a lot of time traveling beyond the town’s gates, whenever she was there people would be at her doorstep, asking for advice or some other type of help.

She had the mansion erected soon after she moved in and then used her powers to attract wild animals in order to keep people out of her yard. Many still tried to sneak in to glimpse the source of her power, but the end result was always the same—a bloody demise by way of one of her numerous animals.

Lenorela took to Alysia quickly, enjoying her genuine goodness and love of life. She confided in her that she too had been wooed for Chaos’s army and had passed the test when her home world was destroyed by the demon horde. Lancert the Ert had come to her right before the final fight and had switched her red Turevila robes to the black Ert ones she now wore. Since arriving in Yalem she had played the part of mercenary for the Erts and had moved to Wildemont in order to hide out in the open.

It had been three days since Alysia had arrived at Wildemont. Lenorela gave her a set of dark, monk-like robes, a runed scabbard, and the softest, most comfortable red slippers she had ever felt in her life. The two women had quickly become friends and spent the long hours talking about their separate worlds and where they saw the future leading.

On this particular day, they were sitting next to one another at Lenorela’s long dining table, drinking red wine and picking at a roasted creature that looked a little like a pig. Alysia reached up and patted her braids in order to relieve the itch that had come from out of nowhere. Her hair had grown out of control since arriving on Yalem, and during one of the days in Lenorela’s mansion she had straightened it with cream and braided the sides. Lenorela liked it so much that she tied a ribbon at the ends and complemented it by dressing Alysia in a set of red robes.

It was pretty evident that the supposed witch was extremely lonely, and Alysia provided the only real company that she had experienced in years. The mansion felt safe, and she didn’t feel as if she was imposing, so she relaxed and let Lenorela pamper her.

She looked up from her wine, at the tall cathedral windows of the dining hall at the sun that made the yellow sky glow and illuminate everything within the hall.

“You have a beautiful home, Lenny,” she said, using the new moniker that she’d given her friend, since Madame Lenorela Isora was a mouthful. “Outside it looks like a haunted house, but in here it’s a tidy palace. Fit for a beautiful red queen.” She winked.

“Flattery?” Lenorela coughed. “Why, CeeCee, are you trying to make me blush?” The two women laughed with genuine gusto but then Lenorela’s face grew solemn. “I’ve enjoyed these last few days more than any that I have had in the last decade, CeeCee. You are like the little sister I was meant to have, or the daughter I want to spoil rotten. But I cannot keep you here, even though everything within me wants to give it a try.”

“You aren’t keeping me here, Lenny. I love it here. The only thing missing to make this place perfect is a streaming movie collection, a jukebox, and my video game system.” She giggled at the thought, realizing that the wine was extremely strong.

“You are welcome to stay as long as you wish, CeeCee, but Chaos will find you eventually. Not unless we do what is needed to keep him out of Wildemont.”

“I was afraid you would say something like that. What could I possibly do to stop a demon as powerful as Chaos? He can teleport between worlds as easily as I can walk or run, and he seems to have agents everywhere.”

Lenorela leaned in closer so that Alysia could barely hear her. “He is blind to my magic, CeeCee, and I know what to do to stop him once and for all,” she said.

“How is that?” Alysia whispered. “And how can I help to bring this about?”

“Chaos made a big mistake by personally interfering with the taking of your world. He’s added himself to the history and therefore the things he has gained from his Turevila can easily be undone. Lancert, your father, has been trying to right the events of your world for several hundred years. He has tried everything from talking to your mother to placing explosives on the area where the portal opens from Yalem—”

“Wait. Are we talking time travel, Lenny?”

“Yes. But not only time travel.” She gestured helplessly. “I’m trying to find an easy way to explain the mess that we’re all in. His name is Chaos for a reason, CeeCee. Nothing he does can be considered good. He was born to this world during the tidal wars and has had his eyes set on usurping the throne of Yalem. I know it sounds noble, but the people of this world are very happy with the current emperor. None of them consider his system broken, and the last thing they want is a warlord like Chaos.”

“And the Erts are the ones in charge, right?” Alysia asked, and Lenorela nodded her head to confirm.

Lenorela sat back and swallowed the rest of her wine, then looked at Alysia intently. “The missions I do for the Erts are not on this world, CeeCee. We’ve found a bridge between Yalem and the other worlds, and it allows us to silently undo a lot that has been done. This is why Lancert has sent you here, to me. He wants you to find a way to seal the portal that allowed the Turevila to access your world.”

“And if I do this, does it not affect everyone in random ways? The whole ripple in time thing, ruining the future? What will become of me and my family?”

“You have seen Yalem, CeeCee. There is no undoing that. You are here, even if you were to never exist in your world. So sealing this portal would forever stop Chaos from using your world to recruit a future Alysia.”

Alysia thought on this sadly and then looked up at Lenorela. “How many portals have you managed to seal?”

“Only one,” she replied. “The one in my old world, and now I am working on another. But if you can seal your own, it will weaken him significantly, and when the Erts press their attack he will be without a significant number of troops.”

Alysia said, “So sealing the portal will destroy the demon converts?”

“And it will restore your world to its correct timeline.”

“Will it ever get easier?” Alysia asked, and Lenorela inclined her head questioningly. “This whole situation, I mean. The weight of it all. Hearing that ‘you must do this and that CeeCee, or your family and friends are forever screwed.’ I haven’t gotten a break in over a year of fighting, and now here I am, being told that I will be going back to my world—to fight.” She sighed and rolled her eyes.

Lenorela looked genuinely sorry, and she touched her hand as she spoke. “What if I were to tell you that you would earn immortality, and a permanent seat in the court of the Erts?”

“Is that true?” Alysia asked evenly.

“No, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was offered to you once Chaos is sent to the endless plains.”

“While it’s a nice thought, Lenny, it’s not reassuring. What’s immortality if I can’t share it with my mom and dad?”

Lenorela picked up her wine glass and drained a stubborn drop from it. “I see your point, CeeCee, but you will make new friends. Like me, for instance. I would be there with you!”

Alysia smiled at the thought and tried to imagine an eternity of hanging out with Lenorela, joking, trying on new outfits, and discussing the past. It didn’t seem all that terrible when she was in the picture. “It’s not the same, but I know you need me. What do we need to do to get this portal of yours going?”

“Ooh, follow me, my dear,” she sang sweetly, and they got up from the table and walked out of the dining hall and into the library. Lenorela’s library was the most impressive collection of books that Alysia had ever seen. It was a circular room that spiraled up high into a tall tower. CeeCee recalled seeing the tower from the road, but she would never have guessed that it was part of this library.

Books decorated every wall on every floor, broken up by ladders, shelves, and balconies with metal railings. It all ran up to a circular glass ceiling, which shone light down like a magical spotlight.

There was this old, moldy smell of ancient, wet books, but there was also a hint of cinnamon that was so light that it teased at Alysia’s senses, making her think that she was imagining it. A number of catlike creatures scrambled into unseen holes below the lowest shelves of the library, and the light revealed numerous dust particles, which sat in the air frozen, as if they hadn’t been disturbed in over a thousand years.

Once they were inside, Lenorela locked the door, which Alysia noticed had rows of books on it to make it disappear into the other shelves.
A prison of books
, she thought.
Somewhere, on Earth, in a crowded library, reading, is a nerd who dreams about a place like this
.

Lenorela began to climb one of the ladders and motioned for Alysia to follow her. They climbed up to the second floor, walked around the room to the other side, and then ascended another. They continued this until they were near the top. Alysia looked down and was quite surprised at the height to which they had climbed. One slip now would be death, so she gripped the railing just in case Murphy’s Law reared its ugly head.

“Here we are,” Lenorela said. She touched a book that receded automatically, causing a panel of the library to collapse upon itself. Stairs led down through this new portal, and the witch brought her right hand up and it began to glow like the hottest torch. Alysia didn’t bother to ask, choosing instead to follow closely as Lenorela descended into a tight hallway that opened up to a tiny room barely big enough for the two of them. Once they both stepped from the stairs, the library’s door resealed itself, and the stairs moved to form a new wall where their entrance had once been.

“Did you build all this, Lenorela?” Alysia asked, and the witch nodded her head with pride. She lifted her glowing hand and the light seemed to pull in upon itself until it became a glowing orb inside her palm. She dropped the orb and stepped back, then gestured for Alysia to touch it.

Alysia knelt down and touched the ball of light. It reminded her of a plasma globe and reacted very much like one when her warm hands touched it. The light rose from the orb to consume her arms, and then it became a tall column that widened into the form of a door. It was a bright, white rectangle on its end, with hard traces of yellow along its edges to outline the portal.

Alysia, who was still kneeling, looked up at Lenorela with a look of surprise, and the woman held out a hand for her to take it. She was helped up to her feet and Lenorela faced her and held her shoulders. “What I just did, you will be able to do as well, even in my absence. The ball, the portal … all of it. All you need is this room and this ring.” She took one of Alysia’s hands and dropped a black object into it. Alysia looked at her new ring and saw that it was in the shape of an ouroboros, which was a thin, heavily detailed dragon that was snacking on its own tail.

The ring had a weight to it, and when she slipped it onto her right ring finger she realized it was too big for her. Suddenly the ring animated and the dragon writhed a bit and swallowed more of its tail until it was a perfect fit. Alysia stared at it, her eyes wide with horror as she tried not to flinch at the tiny living thing that was on her finger. “Lenny, is this ring alive?” she whispered, and Lenorela threw back her head and laughed.

“It’s just an illusion, sweetheart. He won’t grow and eat you up, or burn your finger, or any other nightmarish thing that you can imagine a tiny dragon would do. It’s Ert magic. See? Pull your sword now, and use the hand that has the ring on it.” She stepped back into the shadows and folded her arms in anticipation.

Alysia pulled Euphoria from its sheath and held the sword out in front of her. The ring made contact with the hilt and began to spread its blackness over her hand and finally her arm. All the way up to her right shoulder spread a beautiful display of ebony scale mail. It was perfect armor, adorned in areas by small, decorative rubies, and at the elbow was a wicked spike that completed the nightmarish gauntlet.

“This is amazing,” Alysia said, moving her arm around to test its mobility. “I had silver armor that would grow from my sword, back when I was fighting the demons. It would cover my whole body though, depending on the level of danger I was in. But this armor feels stronger. Is this a gift of the Erts as well?”

“Ert armor,” Lenorela said. “Made for the commanders—they are the ones who wear black. Actually, the ring that I just gave you is highly coveted. You could use it to buy your own kingdom here in Yalem. That is how valuable it is.”

Alysia looked at her with shock in her eyes. “Why would you give me something this valuable? I mean, we’re cool, but you don’t really know me, Lenny. What if I say, ‘screw the world,’ and use this to get a big house like yours and a handful of demon servants?”

Lenorela laughed again. “A handful? That ring will buy you a legion. I gave you that ring because I do know you. My powers extend beyond what you can see and touch, my dear. I can read into your very nature, and like I’ve said before, you are the daughter or sister I was meant to have. So don’t overthink it. Just enjoy it. The threats that you will be facing inside of that portal will make anything in your past seem like a walk in a flowery park. You will need this armor, and as it evolves, you will grow into a formidable warrior of the Erts.”