Page 75 of Knot My Wonderland

"The other three," I said, forcing my voice to remain steady. "Who are they?"

The King of Spades' smile widened, revealing teeth that seemed sharper than they should be. "Patience, Prince. The pattern will reveal its needs in time." He gestured toward the survivors gathering around Martha. "For now, you have more immediate concerns. My mother will not take this defeat lightly. Her next attack will come directly from the Court of Hearts itself—no proxy forces, no restraint."

I glanced back at my battered fighters, their faces smudged with ash and blood but alive. We had won against impossible odds, but only because of this shadow king's intervention.

"What do you want from me?" I asked, knowing there would be a price for his assistance. There always was with the King of Spades.

"Continue as you have been," he replied, shadows coiling around his shoulders like living cloaks. "Lead your resistance. Fight your mother's tyranny. When the time comes, stand with Alice as she needs you to."

"And when will that be?" I bit out, not liking being told to do by this man.

The King's dark eyes glittered with knowledge that spanned centuries. "Sooner than you might expect. The pattern accelerates within her—Chi's bond will only hasten the process."

I opened my mouth to make another comment but a portal opened and out walked The hatter.

"Heart," Varik called, his wild green eyes finding me immediately among the ruins. "The Tweedles can only maintain this connection for moments—gather your people quickly."

I turned back to the King of Spades, but he had already melted into the shadows, leaving nothing but a lingering chill in the air where he'd stood. The Heart Stone pulsed against my chest, warm with Alice's distant presence, now layered with Chi's signature like an unwelcome watermark.

"Martha," I called, forcing my attention back to the immediate crisis. "Get everyone through the portal—wounded first."

As my fighters hurried the survivors toward the shimmering doorway Varik had opened, I scanned the burning outpost one last time. This had been our strongest position in the neutral territories—a symbol of resistance that had stood for nearly a decade. Now it was ash and rubble, another casualty in my mother's campaign to force the realm into submission.

"Prince," Thomas called, supporting one of the wounded garrison defenders. "We're ready."

I took one final look at the destruction, memorizing the cost of this small victory. The shadows where the King of Spades had stood seemed to whisper promises and threats in equal measure. Whatever game he was playing, Alice was at the center of it—and through our bond, so was I.

"Move out," I commanded, following my people through the portal.

The transition back to the Sanctuary was jarring after the chaos of battle. One moment I stood amid burning ruins and the acrid smell of blood magic, the next I was breathing the crystalline air of the palace's main hall. The Observatory's living map showed the Crimson Valley outpost as a blackened scar on the miniature landscape.

My fighters stumbled through the portal behind me, their expressions shifting from battle-ready tension to wonder as they took in the impossible architecture of the Sanctuary. The wounded gasped as the palace's magic flowed over them, accelerating healing and soothing pain. Even Martha, who had seen more of Wonderland's mysteries than most, looked around with wide eyes.

"Welcome to the Sanctuary of Hours," Varik said, his hat tilted at a jaunty angle despite the gravity of our situation. "The temporal fields here will stabilize your injuries better than any conventional healing."

“Your timing was impeccable," I told Varik as the last of my fighters made it through, followed by the Tweedles who moved to stand off to the side away from everyone. "Another hour and the Red Queen would have sent reinforcements."

Varik adjusted his hat, those wild green eyes studying me with unsettling intensity. "The Tweedles sensed the shift in the battle. They insisted we open the path immediately, despite their exhaustion."

I nodded, scanning the great hall for any sign of Alice. Through our connection, I could feel her presence somewhere in the Sanctuary—sleeping now, her consciousness wrapped in layers of silver light and Chi's protective energy. The knowledge that they had bonded burned like acid in my veins.

"She's resting," Varik said, reading my expression with infuriating accuracy. "The transition to the Sanctuary was... intense for her. The pattern within her is evolving rapidly."

I bit back the questions burning on my tongue, aware of my fighters watching me with curious eyes. They'd followed me into battle without hesitation, risked their lives on my command. The last thing they needed was to see their leader distracted by personal entanglements.

"My people need food and rest," I said instead, gesturing to the survivors who stood uncertainty in the vast hall. "And information about what happens next."

Varik nodded, his expression softening slightly. "The residential wing will accommodate everyone. The Sanctuary provides for its guests."

As if responding to his words, doorways around the hall began to glow with warm, inviting light. My fighters exchanged nervous glances before Martha stepped forward, her scarred face set with determination. "Come on, everyone. You heard the Prince—we need rest before we can plan our next move." She gestured toward the glowing doorways. "And after what we've been through, I'm not questioning magical hospitality."

Her pragmatic acceptance broke the spell of uncertainty. My fighters began moving toward the residential wing, supporting the wounded and murmuring among themselves about the impossible architecture surrounding them. Thomas paused beside me, his young face still bearing traces of the temporal displacement he'd experienced in the Forgotten Lands. I could see the Tweedles glance at one another before disappearing as well.

"Prince," he said quietly, his voice carrying the weight of someone who'd seen too much in too short a time. "What the King of Spades said back there—about patterns and bonds. Is Alice really that important to ending this war?"

I felt the Heart Stone pulse against my chest, warm with her distant presence. Through our connection, I could sense her dreams—silver light dancing through landscapes that shifted between memory and possibility. Chi's presence wrapped around her consciousness like protective armor, their bond creating harmonies I could feel but not fully understand.

"More important than any of us realized," I answered Thomas honestly. "The pattern she carries... it's not just magic. It'sWonderland's original blueprint, the foundation that existed before the courts divided everything into territories."

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