Page 26 of Knot My Wonderland, Part Two (Fairytale Omegaverse #2)

Chapter

Fifteen

ALICE

I t has been three days since we entered the pocket, during that time I was just getting to know the pattern and how it feels to use it.

The pattern and I had developed something resembling a friendship during those first three days.

Instead of forcing silver and gold light to bend to my will, I found myself having wordless conversations with the ancient consciousness that lived beneath my skin.

It would show me glimpses of other pattern bearers throughout history—moments of triumph and sorrow, creation and healing—while I shared my own memories of Earth, of the ordinary world I'd left behind.

Though, with each bearer of the pattern I glimpsed…

none were able to fully grasp it and ended up either dead… .or something else entirely.

Today, Vee had announced we would move beyond simple communication to actual partnership—letting the pattern guide my movements instead of me directing its energy.

"The difference is subtle but profound," he explained as we stood in the center of the meadow, silver grass rippling around our feet. "Instead of telling the pattern what to do, you allow it to show you what's possible."

I nodded, though uncertainty flickered through me.

The past few days had been revelatory—learning to listen to the ancient consciousness that flowed beneath my skin, understanding its preferences and moods.

But actively surrendering control still felt terrifying after everything the Red Queen had done to strip away my agency.

"I can feel your hesitation," Chi observed, his form solidifying beside me. "The fear of losing control is natural after what you endured."

"But this is different," Heart added, his golden patterns pulsing gently as he approached. "My mother tried to control you completely. The pattern wants to work with you." His ruby eyes met mine with understanding. "Trust isn't rebuilt overnight, Alice. Even trust in yourself."

I took a deep breath, feeling the silver and gold light beneath my skin respond to my emotional state with gentle warmth. The pattern had been nothing but supportive these past days, never pushing, never demanding—simply offering possibilities when I was ready to see them.

"What do I need to do?" I asked, looking between the four faces surrounding me.

"Start small," Dee suggested, his temporal devices humming softly as he monitored the pocket's stability. "Ask the pattern to show you how to create something useful. Not commanding it to make what you want, but letting it suggest what might be needed."

I closed my eyes, centering myself within the silver meadow. The pattern's presence felt warm and attentive, like a friend waiting patiently for conversation. Instead of visualizing what I wanted to create, I opened my awareness to what might be useful in this moment.

"Show me what would serve us now," I whispered, not a command but an invitation.

The response was immediate—silver and gold light flowing up my arms in spiraling patterns that felt both familiar and new. Unlike previous times when I'd directed the energy, this time I surrendered to its guidance, letting my hands move as the pattern suggested rather than as I dictated.

My fingers traced intricate geometries in the air, weaving light into substance with movements I'd never consciously learned. The pattern's joy was palpable, its consciousness practically singing with pleasure at being truly partnered with rather than merely wielded.

When I opened my eyes, floating before me was a crystal sphere filled with swirling mist that showed glimpses of the outside world.

Through its surface, I could see Martha and Varik maintaining their vigil, Seth's shadows monitoring the sanctuary's perimeter, and disturbingly, groups of card soldiers searching the surrounding forests.

"A scrying sphere," Vee said with approval, his silver eyes reflecting the crystal's opalescent glow. "The pattern anticipated our need for surveillance."

I reached toward the sphere, gasping as images shifted within the mist. The Red Queen paced her throne room in a fury, crimson energy crackling around her as she screamed orders at cowering servants.

Her perfect features were twisted with rage, ruby eyes blazing with an intensity that made the crystal itself seem to recoil.

"She's mobilized her entire court," Chi observed, his tail lashing as he watched card soldiers spreading across Wonderland like spilled ink.

The sphere flickered, showing more disturbing scenes—blood golems marching through villages, interrogating terrified citizens with questions about a "kidnapped princess.

" Bounty notices nailed to trees bearing my face, promising rewards for information leading to my "rescue.

" The Queen's propaganda machine was working overtime, painting me as her beloved adopted daughter stolen away by rebels and criminals.

"This is worse than we anticipated," Heart murmured, his ruby eyes darkening as he watched a family being dragged from their home for questioning. "She's using you as an excuse to tighten her control over all of Wonderland."

I stared at the sphere, guilt washing through me as I witnessed the consequences of my escape.

The pattern sensed my distress, the crystal clouding briefly before showing a different scene—Seth confronting a squad of card soldiers who had cornered a young woman selling flowers in the market.

His shadows dispatched them with ruthless efficiency, whisking the terrified woman to safety before the Queen's reinforcements could arrive.

"Seth is protecting people," I whispered, relief tempering my guilt as the sphere showed similar scenes throughout Wonderland—members of the resistance countering the Queen's forces, creating safe passages for those targeted by her rage.

"The Void Court has always operated in opposition to the Red Queen," Dee explained, adjusting something on his temporal devices. "Seth's network runs deeper than even we realized."

The crystal sphere pulsed once before dissolving back into streams of silver and gold light that flowed beneath my skin. The pattern's satisfaction hummed through our connection—it had shown me exactly what I needed to see, both the danger and the hope.

"You did well," Heart said, his hand finding mine as the last wisps of light disappeared. "That was a true partnership with the pattern."

I nodded, though the spark of guilt flickered into my chest at what people were going though because of me…because I escaped.

“Your escape didn't cause this," Dee said quietly, noting my expression. "The Queen was always going to escalate her control. You simply provided the pretext she needed."

I touched the crystal sphere gently, watching as the images shifted once more—showing the Queen in a private moment, staring at a portrait of a young woman with features similar to mine. Her perfect mask had slipped, revealing something raw and desperate beneath the calculated cruelty.

The sphere clouded again before clearing to show the Queen mixing tonics in her private laboratory, crimson energy swirling around her fingers as she worked.

But these weren't the same sedatives she'd used on me—these glowed with a different kind of malevolence, pulsing with corrupted magic that made my skin crawl even through the scrying sphere.

"Control serums," Vee said grimly, recognizing the magical signature. "She's preparing to dose entire populations if necessary."

My blood ran cold as the implications hit me.

The Queen wasn't just hunting me anymore—she was preparing to chemically subjugate anyone who might harbor sympathy for my cause.

The pattern beneath my skin recoiled from the images, silver and gold light flickering with distress at witnessing such perversion of magical arts.

"How long before she can mass-produce those serums?" I asked, my voice tight with horror as the sphere showed vats of the glowing liquid being prepared in underground laboratories.

"Days, not weeks," Chi replied, his form flickering with agitation. "The Queen has been preparing for this possibility for decades. She just needed the right catalyst."

Heart's golden patterns flared with protective fury. "We can't let her poison half of Wonderland because of me—because of us."

"Which is why your training must accelerate," Vee said, his silver eyes calculating temporal possibilities. "The pattern chose you not just to escape the Queen, but to stop her. We have eleven more days left here…and during those days we will make sure you are ready if needed.”

I stared at the dissolving remnants of the scrying sphere, feeling the weight of responsibility settle on my shoulders. Through our bond, the pattern pulsed with something that felt like encouragement—not pressure, but gentle support for whatever decision I might make.

"Then let's not waste any more time," I said, surprising myself with the steadiness in my voice. The pattern responded to my resolve, silver and gold light spiraling beneath my skin with renewed purpose. "If the Queen is escalating this quickly, I need to be ready to face her."

Heart's ruby eyes searched my face, concern warring with pride. "Alice, you've only been training for three days?—"

"And I have eleven more," I interrupted, the pattern's confidence flowing through me like liquid courage. "The pattern is showing me things, Heart. Possibilities I never imagined. I think... I think it's been waiting a long time for someone who could truly partner with it."

Chi's tail lashed thoughtfully. "The pattern does seem more responsive to you than any previous bearer we've witnessed. But partnership requires understanding both your capabilities and your limits."