I see it...
Were in Underland, except everything looks different. Everything looks brighter and there's more homes then I've seen before. It's then I realize we're not in the current Underland. We're in the past.
I remember this past. I've been here when I stole Times chromosphere. This is before Mirana official became next in line to be Queen. Maybe even before Mirana ate the tarts.
"Yes, Alice. Beautiful, Alice. Your getting it," I hear Emiliza whisper into my head. I can't move, only see so I can't look around to find out where she is. "Time for us to go into a little story of mine. I must warn you, it's not a very good story."
That's when the village vanished. I was now in the room that was owned by Mirana and Iracebeth. But I didn't see Iracebeth. I saw young Mirana and... Emiliza?
"Yes! Little tight I was, but that is me and that is Mirana."
There both sitting on the ground shuffling and playing with toys. Mirana looks like her same white smiling self but younger. This is when she was a child. Emiliza looks... sane? She's wearing a lilac fluffed out dress, her hair is dark blond and in a high bun. She has a white pair of gloves on and few shinning rings to match her dress. She maybe very young here, but her real eyes are the same. And from now and again I see them flash a little red in them.
"Emili, I have a question?" Young Mirana asks her companion.
"Yes, Princess Mirana."
Mirana rolls her eyes at the title, "You know I don't like you calling me that. We're friends remember."
Young Emiliza looks ashamed. Her checks blush and she shyly replies, "I-I know you don't, but I'm your future hand madden when I come of age. I must call you that."
"No you don't. If you are to become my future hand madden, my first order is for you to only ever call me Mirana." Mirana never did like titles. She only prefers to be called your majesty when she's in her castle.
Emiliza blushes even more deeply. She starts twirling a piece of her hair that fell out of her bun. "Yes Mirana," she replies shyly. But she is not ashamed this time. She smiles a girly, happy smile. One I never thought I would see on Emiliza's face.
All of the smiles Emiliza has shown me were mad and cruel. This one is different. More like, fondness?
"THAT IS NOT THE POINT!" Emiliza, the present one, yells in my head. "Pay attention, Alice. The good parts coming up~"
Emiliza, the younger version, looks back up to Mirana. She stares at her for a few seconds then breaths out, "Now. What was it you were going to ask me?"
"Oh!" Mirana shakes her head like she was in a daydream. "Your right, I was going to ask you a question." Mirana shuffles closer to Emiliza to be just in her ear shot, "Can you-" Emiliza holds her breath, "Let me see what it would be like if I were queen?"
Emiliza is frozen for awhile. She blinks a few times then shakes her head. "Princess, I mean Mirana, no. You know someone like me should never have permission to be inside their head of someone like you."
"But were best friends! I trust you, and if anything i'll never be queen. My sister is next in line, anyway."
Emiliza stares at Mirana for a fews seconds contemplating, "Why do you want to see that anyway?"
Mirana lets out a annoyed huff but answers promptly, "Because I would just like to know. I know it won't be real, but it's still something I wish for."
Emiliza nods her head in understanding. She pokes a wooden block a fews times to stale her answer. After a few more pleading looks from Mirana, she finally gives in, "Alright Mirana."
Mirana hops up in pure joy. The smile she shows is so bright. Just claps her hands and cheers. Emiliza just watches her with pure fondness. Fondness, that she made this reaction in her young friend.
When Mirana finally settles down, she says the words she'll one day regret, "Okay, Emili. I give you permission."
Permission.
Permission...
The scene whirls away again. I continue to see black and white shapes swirling until a new scene presents itself.
We're in a new room now, but still in a part of the castle. It looks to be the throne room like present Mirana has. The throne room I once went to when I went back in time. After a few seconds of quiet, I start to hear running heals against the marble flooring. Then, Mirana appears. Not young or present Mariana though.
"Younger then the present, but older then the young," Emiliza answers in my head.
That reminds me of the time I tried to explain myself to Hatter, when I went back in time. Oh the Hatter, I hope he's alright.
"Don't worry, dear. Will get to him soon enough~"
Before I could question her comment, past Mirana shouts, "Please! Stop!" She falls to the ground and holds her hands up. Blocking herself from a strike she presumes will happen.
Then a man comes into the room. A man that reminds me a lot like present Emiliza. He has short grayed hair that looks like it once was blond. He has red eyes and black veined under eyes. He's wearing all black and his smile is maddening.
"Mirana. Mirana. Mirana. Little Princess, Mirana." He walks closer to her until he's in her personal space. She tries to crawl away, but the man kicks her in the side. I hear her wale out in pain.
I try to move to stop him, but remember I'm only seeing the memory, not being apart of it. "Please! Stop this. I'll give you anything you want!"
He grabs her hair and lift her up. He whispers a uncomfortably, shilling whisper into her ear, "But you already gave what I want away."
Mirana eyes widen. Mine do too. He's talking about the permission into her mind. The permission he already gave Emiliza. He throws her hard against the ground. Mirana curls herself into a ball and begins to cry.
"You, my dear white toothed Mirana have given away something I should of got. I should of taken. Now that you are next in line, my sister is the one that has what I should have taken." What he said was really confusing, but what I did clearly understand was the word sister.
He's Emiliza's sister.
"Yes, Alice. Your getting it. Your getting it," present Emiliza says into my mind.
"Stop, Ericiza!" That wasn't present Emiliza though. It was past Emiliza. She looks more like her present self now, but instead of the dark clothing, hair, and veins, she match's Mirana. She wears another lilac dress and her hair is down. She has a few scratches on her arms that are no longer covered. It looks like the arms of her dress were ripped off.
Past Emiliza stomps into the room and flicks her wrist. The dark dressed man, who I now presume is Ericiza, gets flown across the room. She runs over to Mirana and starts to lift her onto her feet. She whispers something into her ear, but I can't hear it. Mirana freezes and shakes her head rapidly.
"No! You can't Emili! That will make you just like him!" Mirana tries to shout at Emiliza, but from the kick Ericiza hit her with her voice is weak.
"I have to Mirana. It's the only way."
Mirana just continues to shake her head. Emiliza sits Mirana down more comfortably and then walks to where Ericiza was thrown. He was thrown into the benches, so he was just starting to stand. He dusts himself off and says, "Well that was a fun ride, but I best be on to my plan. Give me Mirana's mind Emiliza. NOW!"
Emiliza stares down her brother. She has nothing but determination written all over her face. "I'll give you something better, brother."
This intrigues Ericiza, "Oh? Will you, sister?"
"Yes." She walks up to him. She starts to raise her hand to put them onto his head, but at the last second plunges her hands into his chest.
"No! NO, YOU CAN'T! I will not let YOU!" Ericiza screams.
"You don't have a choice now."
The connection of Ericiza's chest and Emiliza's hands start to glow. A bright, white glow. Slowly the red in Ericiza's eyes lifts away and with that Emiliza's eyes turn red.
After a few moments of unbearable light, Emiliza rips her hands out of her brothers chest. He drops to the floor on his hands and knees. His back is arching with each big breath he takes. "What... have you... done?"
"NO!" Mirana cries from her spot on the ground. Emiliza looks over to her, but starts doubling over in pain. Mirana runs to her, picking up her torn dress along the way. She slides down next to her and embraces her closely. She places Emiliza's head onto her lap and begins he ball her eyes out. Asking her, "why" over, and over again.
But Emiliza only has one answer, "For you."
This doesn't stop Mirana from crying. This also doesn't stop Ericiza from being filled with rage by the second. He tries to lunge himself at the pair helpless on the floor, but before he could crash into them, Emiliza raises her hand and freezes him mid-air.
She lifts herself up enough to sit up. "Ericiza Pondering, you are sentenced by Emiliza Pondering to be locked away. Locked away where no one will ever come looking for you. You will never see Underland again." And with that, he disappears leaving behind a faint scream.
The second he vanished away, a silver key was dropped into Emiliza's hand. She held onto that key for dear life.
"Now you see Alice," Present Emiliza speaking made me blink a few times. I was watching the scene like it was a play at the old opera house my father used to bring me to when I was a child.
"I understand you sacrificed yourself for Mirana... but what I still don't understand is what you sacrificed yourself for." It was the truth. After watching this whole memory play out, I still don't get why this is telling me anything.
"Keep watching Alice," Was Emiliza's only answer.
I start paying attention to the scene in front of me again. Mirana is still holding Emiliza's head in her lap. She's crying buckets of tears all over Emiliza, but she doesn't care. She's to focused on looking over every inch of Mirana's face. After a moment, Emiliza arch's her back in pain. It's then I see her eyes have become bright red like they are today. Her hair begins to fade into a gray. All while she changes, Mirana is screaming at her, "Stop changing!"
"Mirana. Beautiful, Mirana." Emiliza rubs Mirana's cheek and looks like it's the most softest thing she ever felt. "I have to go," She says softly and forces the key into Mirana's hands.
Mirana looks at it quickly then back to her friend, "What? Where? Why?"
Emiliza laughs at her friends sporadic mumbling. "I can't tell you the where. But I will tell you the why. If I stay here, I'll become just like Ericiza. And since I have permission into your head, when you become Queen of Underland, I'll be able read everyone's minds. Now that my lights gone, if I get strong enough..." This the part I mentally lean in for, "I can break everyone's minds beyond repair. Break everyone past madness."
"But, you wouldn't do that! You wouldn't!"
"She won't want to now, but she will eventually." Mirana and Emiliza both turn to the front of the room. Their I see a older lady wearing a green and yellow embroidered dress. Her hair is grayed out, but I can still see the hints of blonde coming through.
"Mother?" Emiliza calls out.
"You were very brave my child-" She kneels down in front of Emiliza, "But you know what you must do. It won't hold you forever, but just until there's a way to bring back your light."
Mirana asks the same question I would ask, "What light?"
"Every person has a light in them, but also a darkness. Her brother was born without his light. And with no happy dreams or thoughts in mind, all he wanted to do was destroy everything. We kept him in a prison world as long as we could, but just like I said to Emiliza, she won't be able to get out till there's a way for her to be stopped. Emiliza put her light into him-" That explains the unbearable light, "-And now he is not as powerful as he once was. You know what you must do, my child. Before the darkness fully overcomes your fading light."
Emiliza nods her head while Mirana just continues to cry in suffering. Suffering for her dearest friend having to go. Emiliza slowly sits up and puts her hand out facing the floor. The castle floors start to open up and a hole, like a rabbit hole, opens. Emiliza starts to wiggle her way into the hole. She looks over at her dearest friend one last time.
She opens her mouth to say something, but then thinks differently. She decides on the right words to us after a few seconds, "Goodbye Mirana... I'll always watch after you." With those final words she goes down, down the rabbit hole she goes. And with that the swirls take up my vision once again.
Instead of a new scene, I see we're back in the place that I now know is Emiliza's world. A world she created to keep herself from hurting the people she cares for. The people she is now out to destroy.
"You see, Alice. I wasn't always this bad," She spins around like I'll be able to magically see the difference in this Emiliza and the past one.
Even after her showing me everything, I still had so many questions. "If you brought yourself here to not hurt the people of Underland, then why are you doing it now?"
She cackles a couple times then speaks to me like it's obvious, "Come on Alice. You did see my brother right? It comes with the telekinetic gene. If we don't have your light, all you want to do is destroy, well, Everything." She slaps her knee like she just mad a hilarious joke.
I didn't think it was funny at all. I think that's the worst thing I could have ever heard come out of someone's mouth. My anger bubbles up to the surface, "IF YOU WANT TO HURT UNDERLAND SO BAD, then WHY drag me here and keep me captive? Can't you just get it over with one flick of the wrist? Or are not that powerful?"
I knew I was playing with fire, but this mad lady was driving me over the edge of sanity. I think she's going to have a come back of her own, but she doesn't say anything. Just stands there and smiles her wicked smile.
The awkward silence goes on so long, I start to hear my breathing. Then...Emiliza starts to laugh. Laugh, and laugh she went until she doubled over onto the ground. She was holding her stomach and cackling the whole time. After about about 5 minutes of just hearing her laugh, she jumps up and runs over to me. Right back to invading my personal space. "Oh, Alice. Beautiful, Alice. Youuu! Ho, ho! Still don't get it!"
What is there to get?
"I'll tell you what there is to get! Why break the people of Underland's minds alone, when I can break the minds of the people of Underland's with the person who started this."
Oh no.
She doesn't mean...
"YES! I do mean it." I close my eyes because I can't close my ears. I know what she's about to say, but don't want to hear it. "I want Ericiza back... And you'll be the way I get him."