The Adventures of Alice and Max
Chapter 34: Alice Fights for Her Life

Alice fought Rapture with all her might. She deflected his deadly blows. Stepping forward and moving ahead, dodging this way and that, she evaded his deadly swings.
He guffawed as he fought like a beast, his face angered, twisting into a hideous monster, it seemed to Alice. It pierced her heart with fear because he was stronger and more cruel than she had ever known the heart of mankind to be.
Slicing and thrusting with his contorted sword, Rapture had cut her calf as blood dripped down. He laughed, proud of himself finally finding some weakness in her. It was the Achilles heel, the Trojan horse, that he had found.
Alice then went on the offensive and tried hitting him but he deflected her blows and then finally punched her in the mouth. She dropped to the ground but regained her footing and rose only to find he came at her faster.
But metal clanked with metal and Rapture was instantly immobilized.
All of a sudden, the other sword swung around and struck wickedly at Rapture. The man who stepped in front of Alice was Winston.
Fighting and stepping in, Winston struggled for power as they clutched their swords, breaking their backs to win the awful duel. Breathing vengeance, Rapture and Winston glowed murderous glares, deep set in their eyes.
Struggling, Rapture eventually swung his sword around and hit Winston’s chest. Flying through the air, Winston was flung down.
Cackling, Rapture then kicked Winston in the face.
“You fool! You dare defy the Queen? She will hang you all! You and your pathetic King will die! For what? Nothing!”
Winston tried rising, but he was punched in the face twice as he fell again.
“Stay down, you peasant,” Rapture spat, cruelly. “A mere man with everything to lose. What’re you and the King gonna do? The Queen is law. If she wants it, it’ll happen. No matter if I’m here or not. When you get to her, Oooh, you’ll be sorry. She’ll make sure your death is a slow and painful one.” Raising his sword to Winston’s throat, he laughed triumphantly.
Gurgling in his throat from the blood swimming in his mouth, Winston tried to make a sound. Rapture asked, amused by his suffering, “What? What is it?”
“Turn around.” As he did, Alice impaled Captain Rapture, striking him in the stomach. He struggled and fell to his knees. Alice let it remain in his stomach as she watched him in agony. Twisting it, she hated it but loved it. He violently screamed.
“You dumb blond,” Rapture said, moaning. “You… will die,” he whispered and slumped his head down, breathing his last. “You’ll never be able to defeat her.”
Then she released the blade and his body grew cold.
Rising, she went to Winston and asked, “Are you hurt?”
He groaned and said, “Just a little. I’ll live, child.” He felt his lip and looked at the blood on his hand.
“Thank you, Mr. R.”
“R? Who’s-”
“Winston. I mean, Winston. Thank you,” she said quickly, almost crying from grief.
“You’re welcome, Alice. You did good.” Just then Ferdinand and Douglass came racing over to Winston.
“Winston, fella,” Douglass said. “We gotcha!”
“Live, man! Live!” Ferdinand screamed.
“I’m not dying, you fools,” he said chuckling. “I’ll be OK, tend to the actual wounded and maimed.”
“Nonsense!” Douglass shrieked.
“Off we go!” Ferdinand shouted as they lifted him on either side and carried him to safety.
Then Alice saw Max sitting in the grass. Running to meet him, Alice saw the mayhem surrounding them: Flames grew and flickered. Corpses lay on the green grass and red splattered everywhere. But the fighting had ceased.
“Max, are you-”
“I’m fine. Just got the wind knocked out of me,” Max said holding himself up by his elbows. “Are you OK?”
“Yeah, I just need another way up on the roof is all.” Looking up on the roof where the rope was snapped, Alice gazed and then saw the Transfigurans flying in a group from afar. But they were headed straight for the Gardens.
“Look! The Transfigurans are coming this way! I’ll jump on one and have ‘em take me up there!”
“Alice wait!” He held his ribs and tried rising, holding onto a tree for support. “Wait! Alice!”
But she was gone. Climbing a tree, she hid until the bat-winged monsters flew towards the Gardens, hissing and cackling to support the Queen’s guards against the King and his men. But Alice waited for a lone imp and pounced.
Grabbing hold of its slimy neck, she pulled herself up and rode it as she used its bat ears like reins, controlling it to where she needed. She headed towards the roof but other ghouls swarmed Alice. Trying to knock her off, they guffawed gleefully, but she struck them with her golden sword and killed two, finally jumping off and rolling onto the roof of the Palace.
She grabbed the hook she had thrown earlier and threw it down to Max, “Catch!”
He did and called back, “I’ll find some rope.” Abe and Pig were already on it. Pig stood with a large rope and handed it to Max.
“I think you’ll need this more than me,” he said winking at Max as they both ran and started shooting again at the dark ghouls in the sky.
The three tanks came hurtling now. Firing at the castle, an invisible force prevented it from being touched. Miss Rose shot many guards from behind a street lamp.
Then three guards came to Miss Rose and started to beat her. Alice saw and called out to her, “Hey stop them! Those cowards!”
But someone was already on it. Edward slit one’s throat. Then the other two held their swords high and taunted him, “O Great king, what would you have us do? Bow? No, we will not!” He sliced the one’s thigh as he fell and bled out, holding his injured leg. Then swinging ferociously, he cut the last one’s hand clean off and chopped off his head quickly.
King Edward went to the fallen Miss Rose, “Miss, miss? You OK?” He held her soft, red hair.
She said, “I’m fine, I’m just weak.” Helped her up. “Thank you. You’re the king that everyone is talking about, right?”
“I am,” Edward said smiling broadly. “My father was King Lucius the Grand.”
“I’ve only heard stories. Maybe you can tell me some more sometime.”
Blushing, Edward said, “I, uh… what’s your name, Miss?”
“My name is Rose.”
“Like the flower?”
She nodded and smiled at him.
“They’re beautiful. They were my mother’s favorite.”
“That’s wonderful,” Miss Rose said, blushing.
“Would you like to - well you know… Uh… get together and talk, uh… Some more?”
“Yeah, that’d be the best thing yet.”
“Ah, well, yes. If you want, of course.”
“Yes, I would like that very much,” Rose said smiling.
Blushing endlessly, Edward suddenly realized how beautiful Rose actually was. Clearing his throat, he said, “Well, best to get you to safety, eh?” Edward nodded to Alice up above the roof.
Alice nodded back and saw Max fling the hook up but it missed. Then another try and missed. “Try swinging it and hurtling it by the rope so you have more leverage.”
“I know what to do,” Max said angrily and twirled it as it flew up and snapped on the edge fittingly.
“Nice one,” Alice said. Max climbed up hastily, trying to climb faster.
Alice saw the destruction and desolation among the King’s People but they were going to be triumphant. She just knew.
The last Transfiguran, she could see, was slain in the dark air. The endless darkness spiraled around the entire City, ready to devour any living thing in its deadly grip.
Finally, Max made it up on the large flat roof. Nodding to one another, the friends ran across the long roof towards an open doorway. But shots fired up above as a spaceship hovered over them and a massive turret let loose at them. Dodging them skillfully, they lunged and barged through the door at the end of the platform, diving and shutting the door behind them, being eaten by the Queen’s castle.
To Be Continued…