The Knave and the Champion : Alice and Stayne

Chapter Ten - The Beheading

 In the early hours of the next morning, Stayne was making his way down to the dingy and dusty prison celled dungeon. Today was the date of the execution of the White Queen’s followers; the Hatter, and the dormouse. No matter how hard he tried, he begged and pleaded, Iracebeth was not changing her mind.

 There was no way to save them. He couldn’t rescue the two by letting them escape; he might as well of place his neck on the beheading stone. The only person he’d willingly let himself die for was Alice. But did this not come under the subject of Alice? As they were her associates. Her companions.

 Either way, he couldn’t let them go. But, he wasn’t that cold hearted. The majority of the Red Knights were in, or observing the courtyard from high above, and also; Stayne was the only one with the permission to ready the prisoners for their fates.

 When he was younger and foolish, when he was first led down the wrong path, he used to enjoy tormenting the prisoners, feeding them with horrific un-true tales of past beheadings. This no longer interested nor entertained him. This time, it was his duty to help them. Not the duty ordered to him by his Queen, but to rest the nerves of the woman he loved.

 Stayne had to think, and think fast. When he found himself stood in front of the cell containing the lunatic hatter, he saw a cloud of blue smoke quickly vanishing. The Knave made his sigh of despair quite obvious. The Hatter looked up at him, but had his hat tipped over his eyes. He took his key and used it to loosen the cuffs on the mad man’s wrists. The Hatter was confused, and then Stayne whispered something that shocked him immensely; ‘Down with the bloody big head.’

 A smile edged on his face. ‘There is no need.’ The Hatter replied. Stayne tipped his head slightly to the right. ‘Have you found a way?’

‘Oh, most certainly.’ The Hatter finally allowed the Knave to see his eyes. They were bizarre; huge and a tropical blue colour, grinning widely. The sight made Stayne jump slightly.

 To save time, Stayne just nodded his head and stood up, peering into the cage which held the dormouse. ‘It’s time.’

‘Oi!’ The mouse ordered. ‘What were you telling ‘im?!’ Stayne rolled his eyes. It was still just an irritating little rodent. He didn’t bother to loosen Mallyumkun’s cuffs, they could deal with that back in Marmoreal.

 He let them out and guided them to the hallway leading to the beheading courtyard. He stopped just before the entrance, calling two Red Knights through. ‘You know the drill.’  They nodded, and waited for him to give the signal in the courtyard. Stayne waited in the courtyard for a few moments, before removing one of his leather gloves and giving the signal for the execution to take place.

 The prisoners slowly and depressingly walked out, almost dragging their feet, the Hatter, with the dormouse closely following behind. The Queen peered over her balcony. ‘Off with their heads!’ She called out. Stayne quickly glanced up at Iracebeth. Never before had he felt such hate towards her. The turned his focus back to the Hatter and the dormouse.

 The Hatter was now knelt over the beheading stone. The executioner went to remove his hat before taking off his head. ‘I’d like to keep it on.’ He said proudly.

‘Suit yourself,’ the execution said, pushing the hat’s ribbons to one side. ‘just so long as I can get at your neck.’ He said in an everyday tone.

 Stayne looked the executioner up and down, including his axe. Never in his life would Stayne be able to fulfil the requirements to be an executioner. All that blood on one person’s hands. He wouldn’t be able to handle it.

 The executioner raised his axe, ready to swing and decapitate Underland’s most beloved Hatter. Mallyumkun looked away. Even Stayne looked away. Practically all those viewing, except for the Queen and the executioner, looked away.

 They heard the whooshing sound of the axe fall, and waiting for the disgusting sound of the metal piercing his flesh. He felt his heart pounding with nerves, until he heard an odd sound. They all looked up, after hearing the un-expected sound of metal colliding with stone. The Hatter had disappeared!

 The only thing remaining that proved he had once existed there was his shabby hat floating through the air. Everybody in the court and on the balcony looked up at it, expressing a rather puzzled look on their faces.

 Today’s weather was not to be breezy, so this confused all those witnessing it. Then, the hat tumbled in mid-air, before the head a cat appeared to be wearing it. It was grinning, widely, and Stayne recognised the eyes; the same of those that stared at him in the prison cells.

 A commotion was brewing on Iracebeth’s balcony, and so Stayne ran up to join her, spotting the real Hatter stood beside her. When he arrived, her courtiers had gone, and the Hatter was stood in the courtyard, telling the ‘‘abused and enslaved of the Red Queen’s court’’ to rise up against her. Topping it off with ‘Downal wyth the Bluddy Bigh Hid!’

 The Queen shot up from her thrown, exclaiming at the top of her voice ‘RELEASE THE JUBJUB BIRD!’ Stayne looked to the tower where the Jubjub bird was locked up in a cage with a blind-fold on. The bird cried out an irritating squawk before zooming downwards, aiming for anyone to become its victim, by being dropped from a great height.

 Stayne winced at the sound of screams and wails and the terror of the event bellowed. ‘You were right, Stayne.’ Iracebeth said, not calm, but raging angry, but not belting her voice out. ‘It is far better to be feared than loved.’ She just stared down at the scene, not a care in the world.

 ‘Prepare the Jabberwocky for battle. We’re going to visit my little sister.’ The Red Queen hissed. The Knave nodded, although, he had no intention of preparing the hideous beast for battle. He was going straight to warn Alice.