Chapter 140: Finalized

{A Maddened Wonderland | 30th, March 2019 | Act 6 | Scene 2 - 5 | Take 3}

Alice ran through Time’s Castle and straight into the open gates that led to the Well of Wonder.

Finding herself mesmerized for a fraction of a second by the undulating hills of kaleidoscopic colors, every single flora of Wonderland present from the massive mushrooms to the great oaks and sparkling waterfalls flowing upwards, she quickly spotted the lone well sitting at the very top of the highest hill.

Making haste, she immediately darted towards it, her heart pounding within the confines of her chest and her breathing coming in ragged heaves.

Nonetheless, her expression reflected her unwavering resolve and determination, her steps pushing her forwards as she kept running with everything she had.

-

As for the fight that ensued between Alistair and The Knave of Hearts?

Well, it went as about one would expect.

An almost one-sided beatdown from the young Hatter.

Not because the Knave of Hearts wasn’t as powerful as he used to be, but because Alistair had been subconsciously forced to truly master Chaos Magic as opposed to the Knave’s pseudo-mastery.

Courtesy of battling the very embodiment of impossible for a century and ultimately coming out on top.

-

{A Maddened Wonderland | 30th, March 2019 | Act 6 | Scene 3 - 5 | Take 1}

The Knave of Hearts found himself blasted backwards by a surge of cards slamming into his torso with the force several sledgehammers, Alistair’s hand controlling their movement.

Clenching his palm into a fist, Alistair jerked his arm backwards!

In sync, the very same cards that had walloped the Knave of Hearts yanked him right back, the cards exerting a powerful suction force that sent him flying straight towards the young Hatter!

No sooner was he within striking range, Alistair executed a perfect Chaos-imbued uppercut that sent the man soaring upwards, his teeth jittering and his brain rattling within the confines of his skull...

... only for an expansive card to bloom into existence right above and below the man, their forces polarizing.

Like a ricocheting bullet, he pinged up and down a couple times like something straight out of a wacky cartoon.

Before he could manage to wrestle back control, Alistair whom was waiting for the right moment his form was at the very middle of the cards had flicked out a new card with a casual air.

Planting a brief kiss on it, he then tossed it out with a theatrical flair.

The little thing spiraled through the air in a blitz, gaining momentum with every spin as it eventually morphed into a massive astral borer that punched at the Knave’s torso!

Once again, he was sent flying backwards, his form spiraling alongside the borer in a dizzy whirl!

Alistair cupped a hand above his head as he watched him vanish into the clouds, whistling in amusement.

Then, when he finally seemed to have vanished beyond the clouds, he slowly removed his hat, placing it to his chest as he squinted in concern at the graying skies.

Then he asked of no one in particular;

"He’s coming back, right?"

No sooner had he said that, he noticed a flicker of violet energy in the sky hurtling downwards in an arc!

Clearly, it was headed straight for Time’s Castle... or more specifically, the gates that led to the Well of Wonder.

"Hey, hey! Get back here! We aren’t done yet!" Alistair called out in annoyance and flicked out both arms!

Multiple cards linked by what seemed like a thin film of Chaos Energy extended outwards and towards Time’s Castle, latching onto its walls from afar!

Pulling back the moment the tension reached its peak, Alistair exclaimed in excitement as he slingshotted himself towards the Knave;

"Geronimo!"

Everything happened in a blur.

The Knave of Heart’s eyes widened. The Young Hatter’s grin widened even more!

A head-on collision ensued, sending both individuals straight into the gates that led to the Well of Wonder!

-

{A Maddened Wonderland | 30th, March 2019 | Act 6 | Scene 4 - 5 | Take 2}

Alice trudged up the hill with her hands and feet, her chest rising and falling in weary breaths.

Nonetheless, she managed to reach the very top, her gaze landing on the Well of Wonder.

Funnily, it was a simple brick-built well, the very stones looking rather weathered.

Yet, deep inside, its very content housed an equally kaleidoscopic liquid that looked ethereal... almost like the rainbow given liquid form.

Staring at it for a brief moment, Alice briefly recalled the memory of her grandmother using the seal to impact the well from her memories.

Tentatively, she placed her palms on the edges of the Well, and closed her eyes to focus.

Slowly, the seal within her reacted, the ethereal waters slowly rising to the top of the well... only for her concentration to be shattered when a sonic boom rippled through the grounds!

Yet, before she could consider imagining what the cause was, she heard a familiar voice declaring from afar, seemingly expanding his voice using Chaos energy;

"Alice! That tour’s still on! Minor scheduling complication, remember?!"

No sooner had the lady heard that, she found herself laughing despite herself.

"Yeah, minor scheduling complication." she muttered and then exhaled a deep breath to steady herself.

Then, once more, she focused on getting the Well of Wonder to respond to her, the waters slowly rising once more.

-

Alistair and Knave had immediately felt it the moment they landed in the kaleidoscopic, undulating hills.

This place, right here, it was the source of Chaos Magic.

It then explained why Alistair and the Knave of Hearts had remained unaffected by the graying thus far as they were both deeply connected to Chaos Magic.

It was also why the Knave of Hearts immediately pounced on the opportunity.

{A Maddened Wonderland | 30th, March 2019 | Act 6 | Scene 5 | Take 1}

Alistair slowly rose to his feet after rag-dolling his way across the kaleidoscopic grounds of flora alongside the Knave of Hearts, the young Hatter staring at the surge of energy enveloping him.

The Knave of Hearts had risen up faster though, the man already thrusting both palms forward, a pained grimace on his face as the violent energy churned within the confines of his palms!

No sooner had Alistair stood to his full height, the Knave immediately fired the most destructive beam he ever had.

Alistair watched it blaze towards him with a reckless abandon.

Yet, there was a deathly-calm to his gaze, none of his usual theatrics at play as he stood ramrod-straight.

Just before it collided with him, the Young Hatter slowly raised his hand and smacked it with a backhand!

Instantly, the energy redirected, surging right back towards the Knave of Hearts whose eyes widened gradually as he was suddenly the recipient of his very own attack!

In a desperate attempt to not be obliterated by something of his own making, he found himself pushing both palms forward, a dome of violet energy enveloping him!

With a visceral roar, he held the dome steady even as fissures began to spider along it’s surface like a fracturing glass.

And though he managed to dissipate most of the attack, he couldn’t cancel it in all its entirety.

Naturally, his dome shattered completely, and he was engulfed in his own attack with a resounding boom!

Through it all, Alistair simply watched with the same deathly-calm, his crooked hat flying off his head and his coat billowing in the aftermath.

Soon enough, the dust settled, the motes clearing out to reveal a charred Knave of Hearts, the man knelt to the ground on both knees, his head dejected and his eyes lifeless.

At the same time, the graying began to creep into the undulating hills, the beautiful flora slowly starting to lose color as well.

Yet, without saying a single thing, Alistair turned and began to make his way up the hill to Alice as he himself gradually began to lose color.

"My... Queen..."

A defeated whisper quietly reached him.

"My... Queen..."

Alistair halted in his steps when he heard it again. Then he turned around to stare at the dying man.

"Forgive... me... My... Queen."

Those were the last words the Knave of Hearts managed to say before he collapsed into the ground, his body slowly withering away.

For a brief moment, Alistair stared at him as he dissolved into flakes.

Then he turned around once more and began making his way up the hill as the last remnants of his being saturated into a complete gray.

Slowly, his head began to droop, his shoulders slumping as his gaze turned hollow.

Yet, he managed to raise it to watch the graying creep up the hill.

Eventually, it reached Alice’s feet, the lady’s eyes shut tightly in focus as the water in the Well steadily rose to the very brink.

As the graying travelled up her being, eventually saturating her in its color, her head equally began to droop as well, leaving the kaleidoscopic waters in the well untouched.

Then, like a glass cup filled to the brim, a drop of water spilled over the edge.

Slowly, it rolled down the side of the well and touched Alice’s foot.

No sooner had it happened, the lady’s color returned for brief moment and her focus came back in full-force as she screamed for everything she was worth;

"Come on!"

Immediately, the water surged from the well, gushing out into the air and spilling over the edge in copious amounts!

No sooner had it touched the ground, graying rapidly began vanishing, color returning to Wonderland in a tidal wave!

"Cut!"

-

Mark didn’t even need to check the shot this time as he declared;

"That was a perfect take. Great work everyone!"

What followed after was a unified applause from the crew as all three actors broke out of their character’s skins, passionate smiles on their features.

And with that, the bulk of the work remained with the onset locations, all of which weren’t particularly complex scenes.

Safe to say, in principle, they were nearing the end of filming.

And in the two months that followed, that was indeed what happened.

Filming for [A Maddened Wonderland] was finalized and it finally moved to post-production.