Page 9 of Knot My Wonderland: Part Two
Seth shook his head, “You know they will be waiting for Heart and Chi. I think having you go in with people as the main diversion and another to get Alice would be the best thing.”
"We know my mother's obsession with me," I said, wincing as I adjusted my stance. "She'll expect me to come charging in like some heroic fool to save Alice. That expectation gives us an advantage."
"Two teams," Martha suggested, her tactical mind already mapping possibilities. "Heart leads the frontal assault with our strongest fighters. Creates maximum chaos, draws attention, makes them believe it's a desperate, emotional rescue attempt."
Seth nodded, shadows coiling thoughtfully. "While a second team slips in through an unexpected route. Smaller, faster, less detectable."
"I'll lead the second team," Chi said immediately, his form solidifying with determination. "I can still phase between realities at the edges of her domain, even if my abilities diminish closer to the center."
"No," Seth countered, his voice carrying quiet authority. "You and Heart share the strongest bonds with Alice so you are going to need to be the distraction or the Queen will know something is wrong.”
I stared at Seth, recognizing the cold logic in his words even as everything in me rebelled against the idea of leaving Alice's rescue to anyone else. The golden bond pulsed weakly, carrying fresh waves of Alice's disorientation—whatever ritual my mother had begun was progressing rapidly.
"Then who leads the infiltration team?" I demanded, golden blood still seeping through my bandages as I forced myself to remain upright. "Alice needs someone who can navigate the Red Court's defenses."
Seth's shadows coiled tighter, his form becoming more solid as he prepared for what he was about to reveal. "The Tweedles. They exist partially outside linear time—your mother's temporal distortions won't affect them the same way they would normal infiltrators."
Chi's form flickered with surprise. "Vee and Dee? They're brilliant, but they're not fighters.”
Seth chuckled, “You have never seen them fight. They can fight and very well, they just prefer not too. I also will go with them as a precaution.”
"You?" I couldn't hide my shock. "The King of Spades personally joining a rescue mission?"
Seth's shadows rippled with something that might have been amusement, though his eyes remained serious. "I have my reasons."
"The Void bond," Chi said softly, understanding dawning in his teal eyes. "You're worried about what happens if the Queen manages to sever Alice's connection to it."
Seth didn't confirm or deny this, his shadows merely coiling tighter around his feet. "The Void Court has always maintained certain... interests in preserving the pattern's integrity. This goes beyond personal considerations."
I studied him through narrowed eyes, suspicion warring with desperation. The golden bond in my chest flickered weakly, carrying fresh waves of Alice's growing confusion. Whatever my mother was doing to her was working—the connection between us felt increasingly stretched, thinning with each passing hour.
"Fine," I growled, knowing we were running out of time to debate. "But if this is some elaborate scheme to claim Alice for yourself?—"
"If I wanted to claim Alice, I wouldn't need to rescue her from your mother," Seth interrupted, his shadows rippling with dark amusement. "I'd simply wait for the pattern transfer to fail and collect the pieces."
Chi's form flickered with alarm. "Fail? You think the ritual won't work?"
"Pattern transference has been attempted before," Seth replied, his voice carrying the weight of ancient knowledge. "It requires perfect synchronization between the donor and recipient. Any resistance, any emotional attachment that survives the cleansing process..." He paused, shadows coiling meaningfully. "The backlash typically destroys both parties."
The implications hit me like a physical blow. My mother wasn't just trying to steal Alice's power—she was gambling both of their lives.
"She's willing to die for this," I breathed, the realization sending ice through my veins. "My mother would risk everything—her own life, Alice's life—just to possess the pattern."
Seth's shadows writhed with what might have been sympathy. "Grief makes monsters of us all, Heart. Your mother lost her daughter centuries ago, but she never accepted that loss. In her mind, Alice isn't just a vessel for the pattern—she's a replacement for what was taken from her."
Chi's form flickered with barely contained rage. "Which makes her even more dangerous. A desperate mother with nothing left to lose won't hesitate to destroy everything if she can't have what she wants.”
I pressed a hand against my chest, feeling the golden bond pulse weakly beneath my palm. Through our connection, I sensed Alice fighting against whatever sedatives they weregiving her, her consciousness struggling to surface through layers of magical suppression.
"We move at dawn," I decided, forcing my wounded body to stand straighter. "My mother will expect us to rush in immediately, driven by panic. The slight delay gives us time to prepare properly while maintaining the element of surprise."
Seth nodded, his shadows forming intricate patterns as he calculated variables. "The Tweedles will need time to synchronize their temporal perception with the Red Court's distortions. And you..." His dark eyes assessed my wounded state with clinical precision. "You need at least a few hours for that wound to stabilize, or you'll be worse than useless in battle."
I wanted to argue, to insist we move immediately, but the golden blood still seeping through my bandages betrayed the truth of his words. If I collapsed during the assault, I'd endanger not just myself but everyone involved in the rescue.
"Fine," I conceded, teeth gritted against the pain. "But not a moment longer than necessary. Every hour gives my mother more time to break Alice's bonds with us."
Chi's form flickered anxiously, his tail lashing as he processed the delay. "I'll monitor our connection with her. If it weakens significantly before dawn, we move immediately."
