Chapter 13: Hatter's Core
There was the sound of something being stirred, gurgling. And then came the filthy sound of something being sucked up.
Those were the clanking noises of forks and knives. Alice watched the scene with a puzzled look on her face.
At a large, long, rectangular table, oddly shaped "things" of various sizes were gathered around, devouring something. On top of the table, there was a lump of what resembled a piece of meat. Illuminated by a dim candlelight, it dripped bright red blood… from the plate.
"…"
She couldn't move her body. Not even her line of sight could budge.
In the darkness, the faces of those who were devouring something were obscured. Yet each of them had strange, glowing red eyes that were visible.
Munching, one of them scooped up something from his plate and brought it to his mouth. Alice gasped when she witnessed this.
That was an arm. A child's arm. The human child's arm, torn off from the middle and snapped in a peculiar direction.
He brought it to his mouth as if it were livestock meat, crunching the bones. Her gaze was being shifted to another.
That one was feasting on a leg. Upon closer inspection, the plate was loaded with a soggy mass of internal organs. Her heart started palpitating.
That is… That couldn't be…
The hair was drenched in golden blood.
Lying in a puddle of blood.
It was a neck.
… Neck.
Neck?
Cold sweat trickled down Alice's cheeks.
That was…
Perhaps it's…
A pair of brown eyes, dead as fish, were staring vacantly at her. The instant she recognized it, Alice let out a screeching scream.
That is me.
That one is me.
They're devouring me, those things.
◇
Her eyes sluggishly opened. She gagged and spat out the black drops that had settled in her mouth. It was bitter and tasted like poison. As Alice was lying face down on the ground, Raffi licked her cheek.
"Alice, pull yourself together. It's reckless to be exposed for long periods of time under this rain, regardless of how good you are." He said in her ear, and she coughed and raised her upper body. Alice glanced around, seeing that her clothes and everything else had been covered in a sludge of black liquid, as she slumped to the ground in dismay.
There was black rain pouring down. It was hell.
Scattered pieces of human beings. The gouged ground. Fallen trees. A pile of sludge-like lumps.
And… The Hatter's severed head was right in front of her. She squealed and backed away.
"From the looks of it, you're back to being half-awake again. Good. Do you recognize me?"
When Raffi asked her, Alice shiveringly lifted up her clothes and held herself in her arms.
"What… is…?"
I hurled a rock at the Hatter. And then… After that, I can't recall the rest of the chaos that followed.
But he was dead. With a decisive dread seared on his ugly face, the Hatter was indeed dead.
His eyes were half popped out. The right eye was out of the eye socket and rolling on the ground. His tongue was hanging long and slack and was stuck to the ground. Rather than being creepy… it was physiologically detestable.
"T-This guy here…"
"It's okay. He's already dead."
Raffi said at her feet. Alice suppressed her chest and let out a yelp.
"He's dead…? Dead…?"
"You killed him minutes ago. Even the rabbits destroyed themselves because of the death of their creator, the Hatter."
"I did that…?"
As she said this, Alice felt a throbbing pain in the side of her head. Seeing her restraining her head, Raffi stepped forward.
"You're overusing the Seventh. Plus, the contaminated water is hitting you too much. Let's take that elevator into the underground passage."
"W-Wait…"
Alice said, rushing over to the fallen Jack. Then she examined his face behind the helmet. Although it was white and cloudy from the steam, his chest was moving up and down. He was still alive. The air in his protective suit seemed to have been released, and it was clinging to his body tightly.
"A… Alice…?"
Jack said in a hoarse voice. Tears formed in both of Alice's eyes.
"Jack…! Thank goodness!"
"Is the Nightmare… dead…?"
"He's dead… They're all dead. I don't remember anything… What exactly happened…?"
Jack swallowed down the words he was about to say to Alice when she said them in a soft voice. He tried to stand up but failed.
"You need to get out of here alone… This is the keycard to the door that leads to the underground passage…"
Pulling a card out of his pocket, Jack let Alice take hold of it. But Alice pushed it back into Jack's hand and said forcefully.
"No! We have to escape together!"
"But…"
"Hold on to me!" Alice said briefly, then supported him with her small body and lifted him up, wincing under Jack's weight. Then, carrying him on her shoulders, she struggled to walk away, dragging one adult with her.
"Alice, ditch that human and be on your way," Raffi remarked dismissively. Alice shook her head and dragged Jack along, a large bead of sweat showing on her face. Raffi heaved a single sigh and poked the Hatter's right eye, which was lying on the ground, with his foot.
"Okay. You've never been one to change your mind once you've made a decision." The black cat said, then stared up at Alice. "Then I won't make things difficult for you. Instead, take this core with you."
"Core…?"
She asked back, drawing a rough breath. Raffi nodded and answered.
"This contains the Hatter's Seventh. A time will eventually arise when you will need it."
After hesitating for a moment, Alice nodded and squatted down, grabbing the Hatter's right eye and putting it in her pocket. Then she walked towards the elevator, dragging Jack with her.
The only person who survived was Jack. The rest of them were scattered all over the place in a mass of lifeless flesh. Suppressing her nausea, Alice stomped on the muddy ground and gnashed her teeth
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone