20. Down The Hole Alice Goes

Chapter 20

Down The Hole Alice Goes

G reen, lush moss covered the rocks and tree roots. Every color was heightened—the verdant greens, the brilliant yellows, the deep, rich blues. All the flowers and plants were alive in brilliant vivid colors, like something out of a painted storybook.

She appreciated the pleasant flowers. A beautiful sunset. The warmth of a spring day. But the brightness clashed with her main aesthetic. She wore black and loved it. Alice reveled in the night. She stuck out like a sore thumb.

Typical.

Everywhere Alice went, she stuck out. Whether it was her clothes or purple hair or her witchy artifacts, Alice was unique. She had her friends and family, but struggled to find a place in society welcoming to who she was or people who didn't expect something in return.

Until she met Hugo.

Her Hugo. He fully supported her. He defended her. Honored her. Accepted her for who she was, not what she could do.

Their party ventured deep into the woods surrounding the Oaken King's palace. A landscape filled with all sorts of flora. Odd creatures scuttled about in the undergrowth, careful to not be seen. Alice caught a glimpse of a winged creature mixed with blue, yellow, and red. Wood nymphs and sprites played and giggled to themselves.

Alice waved at a few of them. They giggled and disappeared behind the tree. Max barked, but it only drew them closer, no doubt out of curiosity. The Oaken King glanced over at the curious pair, and they sought refuge behind a tree.

"Will any of them hurt us?" Carol asked.

"You are guests in my forest. No beast or creature shall harm you. They are only curious. It's not every day we receive such illustrious guests," the Oaken King replied.

The path was worn, not broken down, but soft and lush like walking on a green carpet laid out before them leading toward their destination. The palace disappeared behind the tree line as they ventured deeper into the woods.

"How much further?" Alice asked.

The Oaken King replied, "Distance and time have no meaning. We are merely enjoying the life-giving nature around us?—"

"Will you shut up with the babbling nonsense?" Ez interrupted. "Where is it?"

The Oaken King emerged into a clearing and turned around. "We have arrived," he said with welcoming arms.

The clearing was more of a shrine than clearing. Twelve trees, their trunks thick with age and encircled in stones, formed a ring in the center of the clearing. Each one was a different type. Pine. Hickory. Ash. Hawthorne. Buckeye. Oak. Others from all around the world. One was a sickly tree, twisted and gnarled, its branches barren and bark cracked with fissures running up the course of the trunk.

"These are the passages to many fairy rings around the mortal realm. They can take you anywhere you desire. Give thanks to the tree, and a passageway shall open before you," the Oaken King said.

Alice moved closer to the sickly tree. "I take it this is the one I seek."

"It is," the Oaken King answered.

Alice examined the tree, circling it a few times, before addressing the crowd. "I want to ensure my friends will find safe passage home if I don't return."

"Of course. We do not kidnap man, woman, or child. They are here of their own free will and accord," the Oaken King said.

"We'll be right here waiting for you when you get back," Oliver said.

"We're not leaving you behind," Carol added.

Tears welled in Alice's eyes. She moved toward her Newbury Grove coven. She said goodbye to each of them, starting with Max.

"Max, you be a good girl. Do everything the Raskins tell you, okay?"

Max nudged her face with her nose and gave her a kiss.

Alice rose and hugged Oliver. "Oliver, I want to say thank you. Thank you for making a dream come true."

Oliver struggled to hold back tears. "You come back, and I'll make sure all the shelves are stocked with The Neighborhood Witch wine."

Alice moved to Carol. "Carol, I'm sorry for what happened to Hugo. We should have told you sooner. He didn't want to worry you. And because of me, we're in this situation."

Carol pursed her lips and paused. A nervous unease came over Alice while waiting for a response. She held her breath. After a moment, Carol wrapped her arms around Alice. She returned the favor, exhaling and burying her head into Carol's shoulder.

"You bring our Hugo back," Carol said. "You bring him back."

"I will," Alice said.

They let go of their embrace and smiled at each other. Carol wiped away a tear. Alice gave her a nod and moved on to her mentor.

Esmerelda Honeydew stood straight, ready for her turn. Her blonde beehive hairdo glistened in the light of the clearing. She carried herself with grace and poise and a sense of fashion. If there was anyone who appeared to belong in the realm of the Oaken King, it was Ez. Her blue eyeliner with a matching dress and yellow scarf contrasted with Alice's black and purple appearance.

"Ez—" Alice started.

"Save it, kiddo," Ez interrupted. "Go do your thing, and bring him back."

They embraced, holding for a moment. Not as mentor and apprentice, but a sisterhood. As a coven of witches. As family.

Alice let go and moved to her final companion. A sacred connection born from the power of her own arcane abilities. The connection between a witch and her riding broom.

Alice lowered her head, placing her forehead on the end of the ash broom handle. The broomstick floated as the two communicated in their own unspoken language. After a moment, Alice tapped the side of the ash handle. She turned and walked toward the sickly tree.

Something bumped into her shoulder. Alice turned back. Guinevere floated right behind her, ready to follow Alice on her journey. Alice gave a half smile, holding back tears.

"I'm sorry, girl. You can't follow me this time. I wish you could, but I promise I'll return." Alice petted the broomstick handle with two fingers, stroking down the ash handle.

Guinevere backed away from Alice, floating in the air. Hovering in silence. Waiting.

Alice turned back to face the sickly tree. She strode toward the tree, her head held high. She placed her hand on the gnarled bark. "I give thanks to this tree and seek passage to the ferryman."

Mushrooms sprung from the ground to form a circle in front of the tree. A hole opened in the middle of the mushrooms. Alice peeked over the side to see a deep hole with stairs spiraling down into an unknown location.

"At the end of the staircase, at the bottom of the hole, you'll find the one you seek," the Oaken King said.

Alice's heart raced and thrummed against her chest. An uneasy energy coursed through her body. This was it. This was how she would rescue Hugo. She gave one last glance to her family and friends, smiled, and stepped down the hole.

Down and down she went. A spiral stone staircase led into the darkness below. As the light from above faded, she summoned a purple arcane ball of energy to light her way. Bathed in the purple glow of the arcane, an uneasiness came over her.

There was no light from below. She had no idea how she was traveling down the stone staircase. She peeked over the side of the stairs. Only a black void greeted her as she traversed downward. Any light from above was gone. Alice was surrounded by darkness.

She paused for a moment. She threw her arcane ball of energy down the hole into the void. It traveled, illuminating the stone steps, but disappeared. It made no contact. It didn't dissipate. It was swallowed up by the darkness.

"Maybe I should have brought Gwennie with me. At least to get down," Alice muttered to herself. "How far does it go?"

With a snap of her finger, Alice summoned another ball of purple arcane energy to light her way. She ventured down the steps, one hand on the wall as she shied away from the edge.

On and on, she descended. It could have been a few minutes. It could have been an hour. Time lost all meaning. Her senses were all off. It wasn't hot. It wasn't cold. It was disorienting, no doubt a design to keep those like Alice away from the place they sought below.

The uneasiness weighed on Alice's mind. Each step down was less sure than the one before. Each step, each lunge down, the thought of losing her footing weighed on her mind. She could tumble all the way down or spill over the side. It would end her trip to rescue Hugo. Her knees grew weak. She stopped.

Alice took a moment to catch her breath. She leaned her shoulder against the stone wall. Her legs burned. Even though she was descending, her legs tired from catching her body on every step. If she took one more, then she would surely fall. She had no choice.

With her free hand, she opened the black satchel she carried. Inside were the remaining potions Sylvia didn't destroy. Three vials of Drink Me Juice in case they needed to sober up quickly from any influence. A flask of Luck because she needed all the luck she could get. And finally, a flask of Air Walk .

The potion helped her out against her fight with the vampires and Savinos. She had hoped it would come in handy if she and Hugo were in a jam. But if she didn't take this potion now, she wouldn't have the leg strength to reach the bottom. She had already traveled for what could have been miles with untold miles to go. Alice had to try. She pulled the cork with her teeth and downed the wine.

Alice took a deep breath and exhaled. She pushed off the wall and fell over the side, down into the dark below. She fell at a controlled rate. The spiral staircase encircled around her.

Down and down, she fell.

She moved faster than walking down the steps. The purple ball of arcane energy lit her way. Deeper into the darkness she fell until the bottom became clear. She controlled her descent, touching down at the bottom with ease onto a stone floor.

An arched doorway greeted her at the bottom. It led to a wooden dock at the side of a river. A lantern bathed the dock in the soft glow of yellowish-orange light. Alice scanned for any signs of life, but there were none. There was no ferryman. No one waiting for her. There was only a post with a hanging bell.

Alice stepped out onto the dock. She dissipated the ball of energy. The thick soles of her boots echoed as she stepped onto the wooden planks. The dock was in pristine condition, not rickety or broken, but well-maintained as if it were brand new.

A stone cavern with high walls encircled the river. Alice could see the ceiling of the cave above the dock. The stalactites above shimmered in the yellowish-orange glow of the lanterns' light. The river disappeared around the bend in both directions. Brackish and dark. No signs of anyone waiting.

Alice approached the bell. A rope hung from the side, worn and weathered. She gripped the rope and pulled. The bell rocked back and forth, calling out for anyone to hear. Over and over, Alice rang the bell. The sound echoed off the stone walls. She stopped and waited.

A boat appeared from out of the shadows to her left. A lantern was fixed to the front of the boat. A cloaked figure stood in the back, its face shrouded in an inky darkness. Its skeletal hands gripped the long oar as it dipped into the water to propel the flat-bottomed gondola forward. The boat maneuvered toward the dock and stopped. The ferryman turned to Alice with its hand out.

Alice gulped. She stood tall and said, "I seek passage to the land of the lost. I do not offer you my soul for this passage. Instead, I offer you my unique gift. My gift of the arcane. My gift of magick."

The ferryman nodded, not uttering a solitary word. He pointed to the seat in front of him with his skeletal finger.

Alice stepped off the dock and into the boat. A shiver ran through her body as if a part of her had peeled away. She snapped her fingers to conjure a ball of arcane energy, but one did not appear. She snapped her fingers again. Still nothing.

She was devoid of magick.

A coldness ran through Alice. For the first time, she was without her magick, without who she was, and it terrified her. She drew her shoulders and arms inward and took her seat.

The ferryman drove the long oar into the water and pushed away from the dock. They ventured into the black darkness, guided only by the light of the ferryman's boat.