"Thank you all." "That's it for tonight." "See you Tuesday." "Mr. Chase, I believe we have a private lesson." "How many classes have you taken so far, Mr. Chase?" "Ten in six weeks, but I could always do with more." "You know I'm only part-time." "You'll have to see another instructor." "Who would you recommend?" "Tim Roberts is a very good instructor." "I heard he has a mean streak." "What about Jenny Morris?" "She's no good for you." "Why not?" "She's too..." "Pretty." "Alice, that really hurt." "l'm sorry, honey." "Where?" "Everywhere." "Should I kiss it better?" "Better?" "The pain is lower down." "No, don't get up. I need medical attention." "Come on." "So, tonight." "7:00." "My mother is so looking forward to it." "Good for your mom. I am, too." "What have you told her about me?" "Just that your leg kicks need work." "That's true." "Spare some change, ma'am?" "No, but I've got these." "No." "Nope." "Absolutely no." "Where are these from?" "Kokatahi." "Where's that?" "is that Hawaii?" "New Zealand." "Oh, nice. lf Daddy's in New Zealand, maybe I'll go looking for him myself." "Well, he's not in Kokatahi." "Should I bring out the fine china?" "I thought you were excited to meet him." "I am. I only hope it's not the kiss of death again." "What are you talking about?" "Alice, you know it's true." "You no sooner bring a guy home than you come up with a million reasons why he should never come back." "This one's different." "Good evening." "The roses, please." "Thank you." "Hey, you." "We were just talking about you." "Need more time?" "No, I think we covered it." "Come in." "For me?" "For both of you." "How lovely." "This is my mom, Carol." "And Jack." "Jack, wonderful to meet you at last." "Same here." "I'm gonna put these in water." "Hang on." "This one is for you." "Dinner's gonna be 20 minutes, so you two entertain yourselves." "Thank you." "And then we'll redo the floors sometime this fall." "Well, you have a beautiful home." "Thank you." "It feels like we've been here forever, because we have." "It's been the two of us for, what?" "I guess almost 1 0 years now." "Ten years, March 23rd." "Alice is meticulous with dates." "Yeah." "Well, that one." "That's when..." "Her father disappeared on us." "Yes, of course." "Listen, my show is about to start, and I think the two of you can handle being without me for a little while, so I'm going to say good night." "Thank you for dinner. lt was a treat." "You're very welcome." "All right, sweetheart." "You can just leave everything on the table." "Good night, Mom." "Good night." "I didn't mean to do the family baggage thing." "No, it's fine. I want to know all about you." "What's up?" "How would you like to meet my family?" "Are they coming to town?" "No, we'd have to go there." "Okay, when?" "How about tonight?" "Are you crazy?" "lt'll be an adventure." "Some things are more exciting on the spur of the moment, don't you think?" "No." "Not when they involve meeting your parents." "Jack, I would have to get myself together..." "Alice, you're perfect as you are, and we could be back by Monday morning." "But I know nothing about them. I'm..." "What if they don't approve of me?" "They'll..." "They'll approve of you when they see you with this." "It's got a hidden catch." "Wow, it looks really old." "lt's been in my family a very long time." "Are you giving me this?" "Would you like to try it on?" "Jack, a ring means something." "This is too fast." "No, it's way too fast." "Okay. I'm sorry I got the wrong idea." "Maybe after you've seen my home, met my friends..." "No, I can't come with you, Jack." "Not tonight." "Maybe we should just take it easy for a while." "See how we feel in a few days and..." "Alice, I..." "Just give me some time." "Goodbye, Jack." "Was it a diamond ring?" "No." "But it looked incredibly valuable." "So after weighing all the possible cons with the all the unlikely pros," "you just kicked him out?" "l don't need the lecture." "Alice." "Honey, listen." "Just because Daddy left doesn't mean they all will." "The ring!" "He slipped it in my pocket." "There's no way." "Jack." "Jack!" "I'm afraid he's gone." "Who are you?" "A friend of Jack's." "l'm here to help him." "Then why didn't you?" "Who are those guys?" "Jack took something that didn't belong to him." "We need it back." "What are you talking about?" "The ring, Alice." "How do you know my name?" "Where have you taken Jack?" "He's quite safe." "Then bring him back, and let him tell me himself." "I'm afraid he's got to go back with me to face charges." "So, you do have it." "No!" "Where have you taken Jack?" "Wait!" "Hey!" "Stop!" "Hello?" "Hey!" "Wait!" "What is this place?" "Hey." "Wait!" "Jack?" "Come on." "Oh, my God." "Spare some change, ma'am?" "No, but I've got these." "What's happened to you?" "Hey!" "Stop!" "Good." "We have her." "Take them away." "Let me out of this thing!" "Temper, temper." "What the hell is this place?" "You shouldn't have come after me, little Oyster." "Hey!" "Come back here!" "Must dash." "Running late." "Don't even think about it, buddy." "You're an Oyster." "Just put the knife away." "I don't want nothing to do with you." "You hear?" "I'm a working man. I don't want no trouble." "Suits see us together, we both be dead." "Wait. I need directions, sir." "Go away. I can't help no Oyster." "But I'll pay you." "Look, I have some money." "What's that?" "Twenty bucks." "Bucks?" "I'm looking for a man who was kidnapped and brought here." "If you help me find him, it's yours." "An Oyster like you?" "Yeah." "l'm Alice." "The Alice?" "The Alice of legend?" "Look, you're kind of freaking me out." "The guy that I'm looking for, he's probably locked inside that flying beetle thing." "Do you know where it's headed?" "You, come with me." "Quick, quick." "Thanks, but no." "No, I'm good." "They see you, Oyster, you dead." "They?" "Who's they?" "First, I go." "Count 1 0, then follow." "Okay?" "No, what's in there?" "A man who knows." "Knows what?" "Wait!" "Ten for Beauty." "Beauty, Beauty!" "I have an important announcement." "A new tea has just come on the market." "Ever get that guilty feeling?" "Maybe you?" "Abandoned the wife and kids and left them without a crumb to split between them?" "Or maybe you killed someone." "A relative, or a neighbor?" "And it's left that niggling feeling in the pit of your stomach that's growing, little by little, into a dull, throbbing pain." "Gnawing away at you." "Undermining your confidence, and making you feel sick and worthless and fearful." "Well, fear no longer, because Clear Conscience has finally arrived." "The latest wonder of wonders from that remarkable wonder of all wonders, the Hearts Casino." "This way." "Would you like a cup of tea?" "No, thank you." "Who are you?" "A friend, I hope." "l run the tea shop." "See?" "How did you break out of the Scarab?" "What, the beetle thing?" "l used my hairpin and..." "Fell." "As you can see, I'm drenched." "This place." "Where..." "What is it?" "Wonderland." "That's a story in a kid's book." "Does this look like a kid's story to you?" "No." "lt's changed a lot since then." "So you're saying that it was real?" "You Oysters don't know how to find us, so..." "Excuse me." "You tell yourself that we don't exist, and quite frankly, I'd like to keep it that way." "Why am I an Oyster?" "This?" "That's not gonna come off." "Sorry." "Only people from your world turn green when burnt by the light." "It's the Suits' way of branding their catch." "And they call you "Oysters"" "because of the shiny, little pearls that you all carry inside." "What do you mean, pearls?" "She's Alice." "Tell him who you are." "Wow." "Really?" "Ratty here thinks you're Alice of legend." "Who?" "The last time a girl called Alice came here from your world," "she brought down the whole house of cards." "Oh, yeah." "Made quite an impression." "Although it was 1 50 years ago." "It can't be the same girl." "Oysters don't even live that long." "l still want a good price." "Wait a minute. I am not for sale." "Not on the grass." "Right." "Here we are." "Pink nectar." "Filled with the thrill of human excitement." "Fifty Oysters were drained of every last drop of hullabaloo so that you, Ratty, can taste what it feels like to win just once." "Warning, don't take it on an empty stomach and only one tiny, little drop at a time, otherwise the experience might burst your shriveled-up, little heart." "Got it?" "Got it." "Good." "Go." "He really smells." "Oysters were drained?" "What do you mean, "drained"?" "Ratty tells me you're looking for someone." "His name is Jack Chase." "He was taken by a man with a white rabbit on his lapel." "I see." "The White Rabbit is an organization controlled by the Suits." "They travel back and forth through the Looking Glass and vanish people from your world to ours." "Why?" "To use in the casino." "Use?" "Did I say "use"?" "Slip of the tongue." "They're fine." "You know, they keep them alive and moderately happy." "How do I get to this casino?" "That's the thing." "You don't." "Way too dangerous." "But I know some people who know some, well, other people." "If you know what I mean." "It's one of the privileges of running a tea shop." "Lighten up." "You should wear this." "It'll cover the glow and stop you from catching a cold." "I have a little money," "but I understand you don't use that here." "Pieces of paper." "Pointless." "Then why would you help me?" "Do I need a reason to help a pretty girl in a very wet dress?" "I see." "You don't trust me." "Fine. I'm genuinely hurt." "Do you know why they call me Hatter?" "Because you wear a hat?" "No, because I'm always there when they pass the hat, so to speak." "Philanthropy." "Generosity." "I mean, you can call it what you will." "It's who I am, and right now, looking at you there, there's nothing I want more than to help you find..." "Jack." "Jack!" "And return you both to your charming world of children's stories." "l don't believe you." "l know what you're thinking." "If I'm the frying pan, then that out there is the fire." "I'll be square with you." "I know people who like to help your kind." "And if every once in a while I scratch their back..." "They'll scratch yours." "Precisely." "A lot of scratching." "Do try to keep up." "You're late." "l know." "I'm sorry." "Blackjack." "Blackjack." "Blackjack." "Everyone's a winner." "The time has come, Walrus, old friend, to test our many stills." "The oohs, the ahs, the healing drops, the passions, the thrills, and see howjoy and awe and lust" "can all be turned" "to pills." "What is it?" "The King requests your presence, Carpenter." "Thank you." "What's the matter?" "Got a thing about heights." "Why couldn't you guys build the city on the ground?" "Look at me." "Alice." "Try not to look down, okay?" "The Scarab just brought in the last shipment of Oysters." "How many?" "Twenty." "Make the most of them." "We won't be getting any more until we find that ring and restart the Looking Glass." "There was just enough juice left in it for the last sortie." "And the Queen would like you to harvest more unusual emotions." "It's difficult enough getting the simple ones." "You know it takes 1 ,000 thrills to make just the tiniest drop." "People want to experience more exotic wonders." "Surprise." "Adoration." "Ecstasy." "Calm." "Elation." "Now, keeping the masses happy is a very great responsibility, Carpenter, and one that weighs heavy on my shoulders." "If our people don't feel what they want to feel, when they want to feel it, the whole system breaks down." "Instant gratification is a very complex business." "That's why we have to keep moving forward." "Forever discovering more exotic wonders." "There you are." "Oh, joy!" "Oh, bright day!" "Finally, and at last." "How do you open this thing?" "l don't know, Majesty." "Well, there's a hidden catch somewhere, but I can never remember." "Here." "Summon the Queen." "Twenty-three, 1 7, 54, and 1 0." "Everyone's a winner!" "This is such a rush." "That one talked." "Oh, my God, what's the time?" "I gotta pick up my kids." "We have a conscious one here." "l better see if I can find the car." "I can't move my..." "What's going on here?" "Ma'am." "Hello." "My feet seem to be stuck." "There's nothing wrong with your feet, ma'am." "I'll tell you what, why don't you come with us?" "We'll help you find what you're looking for." "My kids. I think I have kids, family." "I'm pretty sure my husband's a Taurus." "Do you know my name?" "I can't remember my name for some reason." "You don't need to bother with technical things like that, ma'am." "Okay." "What's wrong?" "She's regaining her faculties." "Do you know my name?" "Something beginning with a "B," l think." "Take her to the waiting room." "Come with us." "Did you talk?" "You shouldn't have talked." "l was worried about my kids." "We all have family somewhere." "l gotta find my car." "You can't leave." "None of us can." "I'm returning a library book." "It's a work of Edwin and Morcar." "How does the little crocodile improve his shining tail?" "He pours water of the Nile on every golden scale." "Go on, be quick." "Hello, Duck." "It's all right." "Wait." "Why don't we just put these things away?" "Come on, you know me well enough." "We have our orders." "Keep that right hand where we can see it." "lt's just flesh and blood." "Right." "We've all seen what you can do with that sledgehammer." "Did you like the box of confits I brought you guys last week?" "The cured meats and the cheese?" "They're all gone." "Well, if you don't treat me with a little respect, you won't get another crumb." "Sorry, Hatter." "Everyone's a little jumpy." "Everyone's always a little jumpy." "Where are we?" "The Great Library." "There's 5,000 years of history hidden here." "Art, literature, law." "Rescued when the Queen of Hearts seized power." "She'd like nothing more than to see this burned to nothing." "Who are those poor people?" "Refugees." "Those who don't want to be a part of the Queen's world of instant gratification." "Just another drop." "We give them shelter and try to feed them the best we can, but it is dangerous. lf the Queen found out, they wouldn't stand a chance." "Why does she want to destroy all of this?" "Wisdom's her biggest threat." "She controls people with a quick fix." "How are all my lovely Suits today?" "We are very happy, ma'am." "How nice." "You're all so clever and pretty." "We found the Stone of Wonderland." "Where is it?" "We'll have the Looking Glass up and running in no time." "This time we'll pull in 50 or 1 00 Oysters a day." "What a charming practical joke." "My dear?" "Why am I not surprised?" "The girl." "The ring, Alice." "Girl?" "Agent White took the box from a girl, an Oyster." "She must have the ring." "Yes." "Where is she now?" "She escaped." "What exactly do you mean, "escaped"?" "Some of the honeycomb containers are getting a little old." "We have renovations planned in next year's budget, but..." "An Oyster is running around Wonderland with my ring?" "We'll find her." "We'll find her, all right." "But you, Agent White, will take no further part." "His head, ma'am?" "Yes, of course, what else?" "His foot?" "l'll put all Suits on standby." "No. lt will only alert the resistance." "The last thing we want is to feed that riffraff a grain of encouragement." "No, we need someone who can work quietly behind the scenes." "Someone cold-blooded, ruthless, criminally insane." "is Mad March alive, yet?" "She's looking for her boyfriend, a Jack Chance." "Chase." "His name is Jack Chase." "She needs help. I thought of you, Dodo." "Really?" "And why would I want to help your Oyster, when you know that bringing her here puts us all at risk?" "Oh, please." "I've spent years smuggling more dangerous things than this down here." "You know what rankles most about blood-sucking carpetbaggers like you, Hatter?" "Your gall." "While we risk our lives trying to bring freedom to ungrateful leeches like you, you swan about" "living the good life." "Stop your crowing." "You know I'm on your side." "l'm sure you say that to all your enemies." "l do what's necessary." "I kiss what butts need kissing so your machine stays oiled." "Look, if you can't help me, I'll just leave." "Headstrong, isn't she?" "Can you help me get Jack out of the casino?" "I don't see how." "The resistance has contacts inside the casino, right?" "No comment." "Use them to find her guy." "She can pay you." "But I want my usual cut, upfront." "Pay me?" "Pay me with what?" "Show him the rock, Alice." "What?" "The ring on your finger." "Look, that is off-limits." "lt's all you have, Alice." "No." "It's not possible." "Where did you get it?" "lt's none of your business. lt's not for sale." "Where did you get it?" "What is it?" "Your Oyster is wearing the Stone of Wonderland." "That's impossible." "l'm never wrong." "Where did you get it, Alice?" "Jack gave it to me." "Jack?" "Jack Chase, the guy we're looking for." "Well, where did he get it?" "l don't know." "Give it to me." "No." "Take her out." "Are you crazy?" "Stop." "Just wait." "You're in way over your head, Hatter." "Just give me one second to talk to her, okay?" "It controls the Looking Glass." "You know that." "Calm down." "Put the gun away." "I'm sure we can all get what we want here." "Look, no one is getting this ring." "We've been waiting for years for a break like this," "and now it falls into our laps." "Stop waving that thing around." "You're scaring everyone." "If we can return the Oysters back to their world," "maybe we can save ours." "Just put the gun down!" "Think about it, the Queen reduced to mopping floors." "It will be just like the old days." "Justice, reason, and the rule of law." "Stop this." "No!" "You've shot Hatter!" "We don't need him anymore." "The ring is our ticket out of here." "Leave her alone, or believe me, the next one will be aimed at your head." "Look, Hatter, this is a game changer." "I'll give you three times your price..." "Five, 1 0, you name it." "Back off!" "If you let her leave with the ring, I'll have every member of the resistance hunting you down." "You'll be dead before teatime." "And that's the thanks I get for keeping you bums fed and watered all these years?" "Hatter!" "It's the blue button." "Go, Alice." "Hurry up and push the blue button." "Lucky?" "Come on, Hatter." "How did you do that?" "No!" "How bad is it?" "Body armor?" "You're not even wounded." "You lied to me!" "l was trying to help you." "By selling my ring." "I didn't know it was the Stone of Wonderland, did I?" "Well, you could have asked me before bringing me here." "You wouldn't have come." "You're damn right, I wouldn't." "He almost killed me." "Yeah, well, he actually shot me!" "Tell me the truth." "What is the Stone of Wonderland?" "It's a big deal." "It was mined by the ancient knights to power the Looking Glass, the door that connects our world to yours." "Knights?" "They were wiped out a long time ago by the Queen." "She took the Looking Glass and, of course, the Stone." "How did Jack get hold of it?" "What now?" "The Queen wishes to know whether you have revived Mad March." "The Queen's favorite assassin." "Yes, of course." "No, I'm still working on it." "Where is he?" "Where's his head?" "That's the part I'm still working on." "Well, I'll try to arrange an extension of, say, an hour." "Are you kidding?" "This will take weeks." "Well, the Queen wants him now." "Tough." "Biomolecular trans-dystrophia is a delicate and complex process, which requires time." "Besides which, the subject is dead." "is that what you'd like me to tell the Queen? "Tough."" "No, but..." "Good, then have him ready in an hour." "Where do you think you're going?" "Anywhere but here." "There are no-go areas in this town." "I don't believe this is happening." "I mean, this place, you people..." "This is all too weird." "Listen, calm down." "I'm gonna try and get you home, okay?" "Really?" "Yes." "Really, I could..." "Could you just keep still?" "And what's in it for you?" "Let me guess, you want your usual cut upfront?" "I don't blame you for being angry." "I acted impetuously." "No, selfishly." "You acted selfishly." "Whatever word you wanna use." "Let me make it up to you." "Alice, this is a dangerous place." "Trust me, you're gonna need my help." "Well, where is he?" "I don't see him." "Before I present Mad March, I feel I should warn..." "Prepare you..." "What?" "In the interest of expediency, I've had to make some technical adjustments." "What are you talking about?" "Shortcuts." "How short?" "What on earth have you done to him?" "Think of him as a hybrid, Majesty." "In many ways he is better than before." "We don't need a user manual, do we?" "I hate user manuals." "Not too close." "He's still finding his way." "Does he have all his old skills?" "Forensics?" "Tracking?" "Homicidal mania?" "l believe so." "Believe so?" "There wasn't much time for testing." "Does he speak?" "Let's try him out then." "Mad March, how are you today?" "Piss off, you cow." "Excellent." "He's good as new." "Now then, Marchy, I need you to find someone." "A girl." "Not interested." "I see." "How disappointing." "Well, in that case, we'll just have to find another use for you." "Let's put him in the gaming room, where the geeks can have fun with him." "What?" "What else am I to do with you?" "I'm devastated, truly." "That's too bad." "Take him away." "He's obviously passed his prime." "Okay." "Okay." "Tell me about this broad." "The Looking Glass is the only way to get you back home." "And it is here in the city, but it's the most heavily guarded piece of kit in Wonderland." "l've got to find Jack first." "Have you not heard a word I've said?" "I don't know how he got mixed up in this, but I know that he's not a thief." "He was trying to surprise me, or sweep me off my feet, and so, somehow, he got a hold of this ring, and it has landed him in a pile of trouble." "If it wasn't for me, he would be home safe." "How did he get hold of it?" "Well, I don't know." "The point is, I'm the only one who can get him out of this mess." "How'd you figure that out?" "Well, I've got the ring." "I can use it to negotiate his release." "Oh, no." "No." "You..." "No?" "No, you can't negotiate with the Queen." "She's crazy." "You have to cut your losses." "You get the hell out of here" "while you still can." "No, I can't just abandon Jack." "I mean, he's innocent." "And besides, I like him." "Oh, you like him?" "Yes." "A lot!" "Trust me, I know a thing or two about liking people, and, in time, after much chocolate and cream cake," "like turns into "What was his name again?"" "No, not in my world." "Look, I have a bad record with liking guys..." "There's a shock." "And this is the first one that has meant anything." "There's no way that I'm going to give him up now." "Stay close." "Hey." "Hey!" "Look at me!" "Did you see her?" "Get out of here!" "Hey." "You!" "What about you?" "Did you see her?" "Wait, wait, wait, wait." "So, I ask her..." "She told you she was Alice?" "Yeah." "You work with rats long enough and you turn into one, eh?" "What is that?" "Nothing I've ever seen before." "Wait... lt can't be." "Sir?" "Sir?" "Suits!" "Sir?" "What?" "We should run." "Run!" "Quickly!" "Come on!" "That way." "Down here!" "My smuggling boat." "Quickly!" "Hang on." "There's a knack to this." "Which, apparently, I've never learned." "Come on!" "Blast." "I'll call for a Scarab." "Where is the casino?" "l've already told you, you can't negotiate with the Queen." "But..." "The White Rabbit is a different kettle of onions." "Perhaps they'll do a deal. lt's a long shot, but it's the only one we've got." "We?" "I don't know if you noticed, Alice, but my shop was ransacked. I'm homeless." "I am a target not only for the Suits, but for the resistance as well, and there's only so many places in Wonderland I can hide." "The way I see it, I've only got one option." "Which is?" "Go back with you to your world." "Before we do anything, we have to shake that royal flush." "They are heading for the shore." "I don't know who that weirdo is leading the posse, but he's got one hell of a nose for blood." "And this is the place to find it." "What was that?" "There's things in these woods that defy imagination." "Come on, we haven't got much time." "Look, we can't shake the posse." "We can't fight them, either." "There's only one thing left to try." "What's that?" "Lead them into a trap." "Keep your breathing shallow." "Did you hear that?" "Yep, you should find a tree that you can climb." "What?" "Why?" "The trap we talked about?" "This is it." "I'm the bait." "Go." "Wait!" "What is it?" "Tell me!" "lt's a Jabberwock." "What?" "Alice, less of the questions." "Just get going." "You're going to lead this thing back to the posse?" "Yes, after he gets a good look at me." "Now, could you just please go?" "That's your plan?" "lf you don't..." "Run." "Not that way!" "Alice!" "Come on!" "You okay?" "Yeah." "Good." "Come on!" "You okay?" "Just about." "Stay still." "Vermin!" "Saboteurs!" "Anarchists!" "I was this close to catching him." "This close." "Degenerate bag-heads." "That's it." "This way." "Subverters!" "Pig-pushing..." "Bug-bashers!" "Who the hell are you?" "I am a knight." "The White Knight, to be precise." "Sir Charles Eustace Fotheringhay Le Malvoy the Third." "Who are you?" "I'm Alice." "Alice?" "The Alice?" "The Alice?" "No." "Just Alice." "Just Alice." "I thought all you guys were wiped out years ago." "Well, you thought wrong." "As you can see, I'm as fit as a butcher's dog." "Are there any others like you?" "Certainly not!" "I'm a one-off." "My nan used to say that if I was the only eligible bachelor left in the world, there wasn't a warthog or wallflower who'd polish my escutcheon." "No, I meant, are there any other knights in these woods?" "Your comrades in arms?" "Heavens, no." "Are you mad?" "We were all wiped out years ago." "You dug that pit on your own?" "You think I'm too old?" "Well, let me tell you something, nugface." "Youth is vastly overrated." "I may have put on a few years, but I'm crafty." "I have a very inventive and calculating mind, stacked high with groundbreaking, state of the art ideas." "I invent all sorts of things." "The beehive mousetrap, for instance." "This here pit, as you so rudely call it, is in fact my third attempt at the gravity-assisted snare, Mark 4." "He's mad as a box of frogs." "How the hell have you survived?" "Oh, yes!" "I am a knight." "And I'm an inventor, as I said, although, if I'm honest, it's strictly on a part-time basis." "You don't say." "And I dabble in the black arts, now and then." "Soothsaying, toenail readings, that sort of thing." "Here, let me show you!" "Give me your palm." "Get off." "What's that on your finger?" "Nothing." "lt's the sacred ring." "The Stone of Wonderland." "Our ring." "Don't get too excited, Granddad." "The ring stays on the lady's finger, okay?" "It is meant to be!" "This time, this place, this meeting in the woods..." "Okay, we need to get away from him before he gets us killed." "But maybe he can help us." "Have you forgotten about the weirdo that's tailing us?" "This freak show is going to draw his attention for sure." "If this knight has survived out here for this long, maybe he knows a thing or two." "Listen, Charlie, we have some very bad men following us who want to kill us and steal the ring." "Do you know anywhere we could lay low for a while?" "The stars are aligned in a cosmic ray of hope." "And you want to put your faith in him?" "Yes." "He might be nuts and 1 50 years old and dressed like a car crash, but he's a survivor." "And I'm not deaf." "Just Alice... will be honored to escort you, your goods and vassal to my sacred kingdom." "Did he just call me a vassal?" "Even works over mud." "It's wiping the tracks clean away." "Maybe Senile Sam does have a trick or two up his escutcheon." "Welcome to the Kingdom of the Knights." "Well, well, what do you know." "Before the war with the Queen of Hearts, this was once the greatest city in the realm." "The Red King and his elected council ruled Wonderland with the wisdom of the ages." "And the Hearts destroyed everything?" "We lived in harmony for 1 ,000 years, but when the Queen came to power, she just wanted to feel the good, not the bad." "Believe it or not, this was once the throne room." "Sadly, all that's left now is the throne." "That was good, Charlie." "What was it?" "A barbecued borogove." "They are the devil to catch, but well worth the trouble." "Don't you think?" "When in Rome..." "Shan't be long." "What I want to know is how we're going to cut a deal with the White Rabbit." "I did say it was a long shot, but as long as you got that ring, you've got a chance." "You?" "What happened to "we"?" "I can't leave, Alice." "Wonderland's my home." "I can't just abandon it, despite what I said." "I have to stay and fight." "What?" "Seeing all this..." "Look!" "This great kingdom and what's become of it." "It's a wake-up call, to be honest." "My people, I mean the hundreds of refugees that are all hiding underground, they're all counting on me." "Didn't that Dodo guy say that he was going to have you hunted down and killed?" "Yep." "But I'm thinking if I turn up with the ring, he might forgive me." "So that's what this is about." "Don't worry, I'll get you home safe and sound first." "And Jack?" "You have to forget about Jack." "We'll never get him out of the casino alive, and trying is only going to set off alarm bells." "It will make your escape impossible!" "Okay, so you were just leading me on, back there?" "Just believe me. lt will be suicide." "Jack's a lucky guy." "What?" "Nothing." "Look, it's late, and we all need our rest." "We can argue about this tomorrow." "Yeah?" "Dinah?" "Dinah." "You're alive." "What are you doing here?" "Dinah." "Dad?" "Daddy?" "Dad?" "What was that?" "That's the Early Warning System!" "Someone has broken through the perimeter!" "Where is Alice?" "Battle stations!" "Sound the Order of the Seraphim!" "Drum!" "No." "No!" "I need a horse." "Which way should we go?" "You don't have to come, Charlie." "This isn't your fight." "You couldn't be more wrong!" "You led the Alice of legend to me for a reason." "Call it what you will, divinity, fate, an alignment of forces beyond mortal understanding." "In time, you'll see that I am the true paladin here and you are merely a harbinger." "Besides, you'll never find her without my help." "Remember, I'm also well-versed in the black arts." "We shall be guided by my psychic connection to the mysterious sinews that bind mankind to the outer realm." "You're going the wrong way, harbinger." "We should go west." "You go west. I'm going east." "Why?" "She's going to the Hearts Casino." "But that's certain death." "Why would she go there?" "Hello, Alice." "You look like you can use a little company." "She's lying, of course." "We could search her again, of course." "More thoroughly." "lt won't do any good." "Oh, I don't know about that." "Winston!" "Where did you hide it, girl?" "I told you, I don't know what you're talking about." "I've never worn a ring in my life." "We know Jack gave you the ring, Alice." "The White Rabbit told us, heaven rest his soul." "But the question is, did you leave it in your world?" "Winston, you idiot!" "Now she knows we don't know whether she brought it with her." "That's right." "Sorry, dearest." "This interrogation business is very tricky." "Wait!" "is she really that clever?" "Oh, yes. I think she just may be." "You walked into Mad March's trap on purpose, didn't you?" "You wanted him to catch you because you didn't know your way here." "You'd only do that, of course, if you'd hidden the ring first." "Somewhere very discreet." "Am I right?" "Your plan was to cut a deal with one of my cohorts, make your demands, and return the ring only when they'd been met." "But suddenly you find yourself face to face with the Queen of Hearts herself, the most powerful woman in the history of literature, and you don't know whether you can go through with it." "You've lost your nerve." "That about sums it up, doesn't it?" "No." "No?" "I haven't lost my nerve." "Now we've got her where we want her." "So, then, Alice, my dear, what are your demands?" "I want you to free my boyfriend, Jack Chase, and send us both home." "When we're certain that we're safe, I'll tell you where the ring is." "I see." "Number 9, go fetch this Jack Chase." "But, ma'am." "Do as you're told." "What a coincidence." "It appears that Jack Chase was waiting just outside the door." "Me wonders why." "Jack!" "Are you all right?" "l'm fine." "What are you doing here?" "We found her running around the forest all on her tod, so I brought her here." "I was very curious to see what sort of tart my son is hanging around with these days." "Son?" "You're her son?" "His real name is Jack Heart." "He lied to you about that, too." "Mother..." "Don't "Mother" me, you odious quisling." "Your girlfriend has hidden the Stone of Wonderland out there in the bushes somewhere." "She's not my girlfriend." "She's nothing to me." "Jack?" "So why did you give her my ring?" "As I've said a thousand times before, I didn't give it to her." "She took it." "She was an affair, that's all." "Someone to pass the time with while I explored her world." "I took the ring so as to be certain I'd have the power to return." "Little did I know she'd go through my things while I slept." "Alice, tell us where you hid the ring." "What?" "l didn't ask you to come here." "I certainly didn't ask you to hide the ring, so, come on, tell everyone where it is." "I won't tell anyone where it is until you've taken me home." "Perhaps that's not such a bad idea." "If I take her home, you'll be sure to get it back." "Brilliant." "The only little niggle is..." "Well, I wouldn't trust you if you told me the sun was round." "Sadly, we've had to shut the Looking Glass altogether now." "I'm sure we can win over the lovely girl without having to go all the way back to smelly old home-sweet-home." "Look who's here." "Duchess." "Majesty." "Jack, have you nothing to say to your fiancee?" "What?" "Don't tell me Jack forgot to mention his life-long love, his wildly romantic engagement and upcoming wedding?" "So this is..." "l'm afraid so." "Really?" "I'm starting to wonder about your taste, Jack." "I mean, if you think she's pretty, what must you think of me?" "He thinks you're the most gorgeous creature in the world." "That's why he's marrying you." "You see, Alice, dear, Jack's been engaged for months now." "His flight through the Looking Glass was no more than a diversion, a stag spree, a wave goodbye to his mischievous youth." "You're going to tell us where you hid the ring, and then you're going to wish you had never laid eyes on my son." "Well, I'd better run." "Goodbye, Alice." "I forgive you for taking the ring." "I know you're upset with me." "And I don't blame you." "He's here." "Goodbye." "Duchess." "Take her to the Truth Room." "Yes, ma'am." "Dad." "Daddy!" "Keep moving." "He's here." "Who is she, Jack?" "Jealous?" "Of course I am." "Then help get me out of here." "You know I can't do that." "Maybe if you tell me what you're up to." "l'm not up to anything." "Darling, we really shouldn't have any secrets between us." "I know what you're thinking, but it isn't so, know how." "Contrariwise, if it was so, it might be, and if were so, it would be." "But as it isn't, it ain't." "That's logic." "I am Dr. Dee, and this is my brother..." "Dr. Dum." "Ourjob is to open you up, pull everything out..." "Until we find the very thing we're looking for." "Relax." "Let your mind go." "Allow yourself to fall into a deep sleep." "Dad?" "How old are you?" "1 0." "But you are alone in the house." "Why have you been left alone?" "Dad's left." "Mom's asking the neighbor to take care of me so that she can look for him." "Did he say goodbye?" "No." "Why don't you see if he's left you something in his study?" "No." "Why not?" "I'm scared to go in there." "Nonsense." "Humpty Dumpty sat on the wall," "Humpty Dumpty had a great fall." "All the King's horses and all the King's men couldn't put Humpty together again." "Now it's time for a battle." "Let's see if we can find a little lever..." "And prize the tasty Oyster open." "No!" "Please, no!" "Well, now, it looks like Daddy left you with a fear of heights." "This isn't happening. lt's all in my head." "It's just a dream." "I just have to wake up." "It's real!" "Of course it's real." "But I'll die!" "Undoubtedly." "But don't you want to know where l've hidden the ring?" "Not really." "This is much more fun." "Are you crazy?" "Cynically insane." "She's back up." "If you kill me, the Queen won't get her ring." "So, tell us where it is." "Not until you get me out of here." "If you don't tell us, we may as well kill you." "And then we'll just have to tell the Queen it was an accident." "It happens all the time." "So, who is this girl?" "Who's Alice?" "Have another little sip of Honesty, Jack." "Tell me everything about her." "Alice?" "Yes." "Alice is innocent." "Of course she is." "So why did you choose her, Jack?" "I..." "What?" "l..." "Yes?" "I mean, you went there for a reason, didn't you?" "Come on." "l needed her." "To?" "What?" "What?" "What?" "The Queen wants you." "Now." "I almost had it, you idiot." "The board's holding her up." "So it is." "What would happen if it disappeared, I wonder?" "Stop!" ""We're awfully sorry, Your Majesty, but the girl just wouldn't cooperate." ""We tried everything," ""shrunk her down to size, tickled her darkest fear..."" "Wait!" "I'll tell you where it is." "You'd better be quick!" "It has a mind of its own." "I have to write it down. lt's complicated." "l need to draw a map." "A map?" "lt's the only way you'll find it." "Ho-hum." "Very well. lf you must." "Hi." "Who the hell are you?" "We're the new act." "Robinson and Duckworth." "He's Robinson, I'm Duckworth." "We're guardians to the mesmeric portals of the cosmos." "Stage hypnotists." "This is good fun." "He means the act." "It's good fun, when we do it." "You got clearance for stage hypnotists?" "You've had Jack for three days now and got nothing out of him." "The whole point of having you marry the rebellious toad is so that I can keep an eye on him." "If you can't handle him, I'll marry him to someone who can." "Your son has a very strong heart, and if I didn't know any better, I think he just fell in love with this Alice." "No." "He singled her out for a reason." "He wouldn't have spent so much time wooing her unless she was useful to him." "I'm certain of it." "You have until morning, Duchess." "We're in, but we don't have much time." "We should split up and search intermediate floors." "Why?" "Why?" "Because we don't know where she is." "I shall reach into the mist to lift the heavy veil that shrouds the oracle." "What are you doing?" "Down here!" "Take the second left at the stairs that lead up to the third floor, then after the double doors, take the third walkway on the right, over the fitness center to Reception B, and ask Sheila!" "Sheila?" "Maybe it's Shakena." "Come on!" "Hatter!" "Who's that?" "Go away!" "This is a private session!" "Jump!" "Get rid of him!" "How did you get in here?" "l don't know." "Ask Charlie." "Believe it or not, we're in your head." "What?" "Don't ask." "Sound the alarm!" "Call the guard!" "We have it!" "Come on!" "This way!" "Up?" "Why up?" "Do we have a choice?" "Alice of legend, your presence in this world is no accident." "You are here for a reason." "Please, Charlie, it's just plain Alice." "Just Plain Alice, I will stand at your side, shoulder-to-shoulder," "knee-to..." "Charlie..." "...wobbly knee." "Now's not such a good time." "You guys shouldn't have come." "You could get yourselves killed." "Did you give the ring up, Alice?" "Look, I have things under control." "You tried to cut a deal with the Queen, didn't you?" "l was getting close." ""Getting close"?" "Maybe I'm wrong, but negotiations didn't appear to be going so well." "Well, I need more time." "For what?" "Do you really think the Queen's just gonna send you and your boyfriend home?" "No." "No, of course not!" "Because he's her son." "The Prince?" "Jack Heart?" "Jack Heart is your boyfriend?" "Behind me, Alice." "Bow to the hand of Diocles!" "What now?" "We get on one of those." "Get on." "Articulated birds of the Empyrean!" "What genius!" "These things fly?" "We don't have time to think, Alice." "Just get on." "l am not getting on that." "You don't have another choice." "You don't understand." "I'm not getting on that." "It's perfectly safe." "Safe-ish." "No, I have a thing about flying." "Yeah, I've got a thing about bullets." "Look, I'll do the flying." "All you have to do is hold on." "Look at me. I wouldn't let you do it if I didn't think you'd be okay." "How do you get it to fly?" "Like that, I suppose." "That's fast!" "Oh, yeah." "Hold on." "A knight?" "Alice?" "I suppose it's his lofty airs and graces, huh?" "He doesn't have "airs and graces."" "Really?" "Well, what then?" "Just shut up and drive!" "We are angels!" "The wind and clouds at our command!" "Oh, heavenly joy!" "I'm going down." "No!" "Charlie!" "Alice, hold on!" "Jack." "Jack!" "Jack!" "Jack!" "is he poisoned?" "Darling, I'm afraid I'm going to have to tie you up." "I have Alice's confession." "Confession?" "The whereabouts of the ring." "Hurry." "Hurry." "My reading glasses." "My reading glasses." "My reading glasses!" "l'll get them." "You read it, Winston." "Hurry up." ""Locker 208, Central Station, Fourth Avenue," ""across the road from Plush Platforms and Pumps."" "What?" ""Locker 208," ""Central Station..."" "She left it in her world." "Why would she do that?" "Well, now we'll never get it back." "The Looking Glass won't work without it." "Bring her here immediately." "What have you done?" "She sort of escaped." "A crack team of commandoes, 70 at least, overwhelmed our valiant Suits, and then fled from the roof on flamingoes." "Find her." "Bring her back if she's alive." "And in the meantime, summon Jack so I can ask him about this Central Station." "What now?" "Number 1 0, you explain." "No, but Your Majesty is so good at explaining things." "Number 1 0!" "Well, you see, Jack appears to have disappeared." "How?" "No, don't tell me." "I don't want to know." "Pigmy commandoes, hobgoblins, whatever..." "Ma'am." "Now look what you've done." "You clumsy club." "Off with his head." "No, no, no." "No." "Bring him back." "Tomorrow she'll have forgotten she killed him." "And summon Mad March." "If Alice and Jack are alive, he'll find them." "Charlie!" "If he's made it, there should be some tracks." "Charlie!" "We're sitting ducks on this beach." "Where's the ring?" "Safe." "Where?" "You still don't trust me after I just..." "I risked my neck getting you out of there." "Why did you risk your neck?" "Unbelievable." "Why are you being so ungrateful?" "I don't blame you." "Your people need you, and the ring may make all the difference." "is that why you think I did this?" "So I could get my hands on the ring?" "No, I respect that." "It shows you're a man of integrity after all." "But first I need to use it to get my father out." "Your father?" "He's here." "l don't understand." "Jack slipped me his watch." ""R.H." Robert Hamilton." "I remember this watch." "It's his for sure." "Look, it is stuck on the exact date and time that he disappeared." "Look, March 23rd." "He's in the casino somewhere." "He's lying." "Jack took a big risk passing this to me." "And you believe him?" "Why wouldn't I?" "Because he's lied to you about everything." "He had his reasons." "l'm stunned." "Why are you even defending him?" "Because he's trying to help me." "Really?" "Well, let's just think about that." "He took the ring from his mother." "He gave it to you." "Why?" "It made you a target, Alice." "Well, he wasn't expecting me to follow him." "I screwed up bringing the ring here." "And he blames you for that?" "No." "Not exactly." "Why is he even going around pretending to be someone else, anyway?" "Well, he's hiding from them." "Why?" "I don't know!" "He's engaged" "to a duchess." "So he's two-timing you?" "I don't think it's like that." "And now, all of a sudden, he tells you that your father has been in the casino all this time." "Does that not seem a little bit fishy?" "What do you mean?" "lt's not a coincidence." "You hear that?" "I don't believe it." "Charlie!" "Thank goodness!" "I was just about to go back in the water and look for you again." "All right." "Yeah." "Okay." "How did you get ashore with all that armor on?" "I'm a knight." "We should get off this beach before we get spotted." "No." "No?" "Listen, guys, I'm really grateful for what you did, getting me out of the casino, but I have to go back." "Why are you still hooked on Jack?" "l told you, he was trying to help me." "Really?" "'Cause it sounds to me like he was using you." "And you're not?" "Don't you care what's happening here?" "All the people's lives who are getting ripped apart by the Queen." "Of course I do. I'm one of them." "Then give the resistance a chance." "l met those guys already." "One arm of the organization, that was." "If we get to the top man, he'll help us." "You know him?" "Yes." "No." "Not exactly." "Nobody knows his true identity, but he goes by a code name," "Caterpillar." "Give me a few hours. I'll slip back into the city and I'll make contact." "You can..." "You can stay with Charlie in the fortress." "You'll be safe there." "If I'm not back by nightfall, do it your way." "Not the face." "Not the..." "Hatter, what do you want?" "Just keep your voice down, Dormie." "I need you to get a message to Caterpillar." ""We still have what they want." "We're ready to make a deal."" "How old were you when your father disappeared?" "Ten." "Must have been quite a shock." "You know how kids are, blame themselves for stuff like that." "You okay?" "I was 1 0 once." "I was 1 0 when the armies came." "One of three squires to the real White Knight." "My job was to carry the great lance." "And when it mattered, when I was needed most," "I lost my nerve and I ran." "I hid for three days." "And when I came out, everyone was dead." "Even the magnificent Red King up there on his throne." "At first I wished that I'd died with them, but after a while a deeper feeling took over." "I wanted a second chance." "I wanted to avenge them." "So, I stole the White Knight's armor," "his name," "his courage," "and I waited for the right time." "When you showed up, I knew the right time had finally arrived." "Do your feet feel weird?" "My sole really hurts." "What is your name?" "Stan." "No, Sam." "Wait, Stuart." "I'm pretty sure it's Stuart." "What is your name?" "What have you done to him?" "Take these Oysters back to the gaming rooms." "Charlie!" "You're supposed to be looking after Alice." "l know what you're thinking, but I wasn't really asleep." "I simply let my soul lift out of its mortal shell to stand sentry on a higher plain." "Where's Alice?" "It's good news." "The resistance wants to help." "They're sending a special agent who will take us to see Caterpillar." "It's quite a steep hill." "You okay?" "I was beginning to think you weren't coming back." "You still don't trust me?" "How soon till he gets here?" "Those guys can move pretty fast when they need to." "You're going to join them, aren't you?" "Fight alongside them?" "l have to try." "As Dodo said, I have lived my life playing both sides of the court." "The only way I could stay alive." "I made the Hearts think that I was working for them, while I fed their enemies." "Those days are over." "That's the West Wall." "What's the matter?" "What will I do if I get stuck here?" "Then I'll make sure you're okay." "I think your luck is finally changing." "That's right. lt is." "Hello, Alice." "I'm not interrupting anything, am I?" "I know what you're thinking." "How could anyone sneak up on me, of all people?" "And in my own manor, too." "You think you can take me on with that?" "l'm not an old man." "Look, nobody is fighting unless it is me, and I am a black belt, remember?" "Who's your friend?" "He's just a friend." "Yes." "You two look pretty friendly." "You jealous, Jack?" "A little." "Did I hear that right?" "The guy who's engaged to a duchess is worried about me?" "You know that was just an act." "No, I don't." "Come, I've brought you a horse." "Let's get out of here." "She's not going anywhere with you." "You know she can't stay here." "Look, stop it, both of you." "I need to know about my dad." "ls he here?" "Yes, he's alive and well, and if you let me, I'll take you to him." "Really?" "But we better get going." "You don't have much time." "Where is he?" "We're moving him into the city." "And if we hurry, you can see him by nightfall." "What do you mean, "moving him"?" "l have people helping me." "What people?" "Do you want to see him or not?" "Yes, of course." "Right." "Wow." "Okay." "Don't tell me you trust this guy." "He knows where my dad is." "He'll say anything to get his hands on the ring." "No, he hasn't asked for the ring." "He doesn't want the ring, do you, Jack?" "Yes, I do." "You do?" "lt's just all an act." "We need the ring to get you home." "The Looking Glass won't work without it." "Yes, of course." "Don't be fooled by this, Alice." "He's working for his mother." "Blood and water, you remember?" "Then why am I alone?" "Why aren't there 500 Suits at my back?" "And how did I find you here, in the middle of the forest?" "Do you think I just followed my nose?" "How did you find us?" "You sent for me." "Come again?" "l'm the agent who's supposed to escort you to Caterpillar." "You know Caterpillar?" "Very well." "Caterpillar recruited me into the resistance." "So I stole the ring, and escaped to your world." "It was supposed to trigger a coup." "Unfortunately..." "Well, you saw what happened." "But if you give us back the ring, we can give it another try." "You want to overthrow your mother?" "l've seen what she's done in close-up, and I know, perhaps better than anyone, if I don't stop her she'll destroy Wonderland." "So, who are you going to trust to get you and your father back home?" "A resistance insider and future king who's already scheduled your return trip through the Looking Glass, who cares for you more than anyone else in the world," "or this man?" "Where's the ring, Alice?" "It's where it belongs." "Well, well." "Under my very nose." "I wish you all the luck in the world, Alice." "You're coming with us, Hatter." "I don't think I figure in the future king's plans." "He's coming with us." "Caterpillar was very clear." "The resistance will only help you on their terms." "You must come alone." "But Hatter stood by me." "lt's for your own safety," "and for your father's." "Hey." "I wouldn't want to go with this guy anyway." "What will you do?" "Me?" "Are you kidding?" "I'll be fine." "Believe me, you're better off with this guy." "Go." "l'm going after her." "No." "l am sworn to protect her." "Your work here is done, brave knight." "But you should be proud." "You've done one hell of a job." "But she's in safe hands now." "So who's the duchess?" "My mother's creature." "An arrangement." "I have no feelings for her, nor she for me." "My heart belongs to you, Alice, completely." "You believe that, don't you?" "Charlie!" "Thetan's ghost, you nearly scared me half to death." "You're following them." "So are you." "Don't you shake your head at me." "When I gave you Guinevere, you said you were going to hide out in the hills." "Well, these are not the hills." "Come on, then." "This way." "What is this place?" "The Hospital of Dreams." "Just stay close by me." "Keep your mark covered." "If the inmates realize what you are, I won't be able to help you." "He's on the third floor." "You have the ring?" "Yes." "No, no, no, no." "No." "Should the moment arise, I must be able to swear under oath that I have never laid eyes on it." "Ask the girl to come closer." "Alice, come closer." "You're not as tall as I imagined." "Ask her if she's scared." "Alice, are you..." "l heard him." "You can ask me yourself, you know, I'm right here." "When did you last see your father?" "When I was 1 0." "Ten." "A long time ago." "Where is he?" "Your father is a very difficult man to reach." "We've been tracking him for a long time, but never got close enough to pop the question." "Never once." "And do you know what it is we want to ask him?" "No." "Not even ready to hazard a little guess?" "What are you talking about?" "Horizons, my dear." "I'm talking about bright new horizons." "And that's where you come in." "Where I come in?" "Yes." "When you first met Jack, did you think it was a happy accident?" "The fickle finger of fate?" "Wasn't it?" "You see, the effects of your powerful emotions on our frail senses are devastating." "Patient 243 couldn't get the precious high of flying high out of her system, so we're bringing her back down to earth in a controlled environment." "Patient 671 drank too much Self-lmportance, so we're shrinking his considerable ego, little by little, back to its original size." "We're all vulnerable." "Mix the wrong feelings together, the right kind of bad with the wrong kind of good, and you'll wind up with a total breakdown." "The Oysters, your people, are contaminating our world." "They must go back, dead or alive, before it's too late." "What does my dad have to do with that?" "He's the only one who can release them." "Why?" "Our undercover operatives successively smuggled him here earlier today." "It's the most dangerous operation we've ever mounted." "They're brave men." "But, I must warn you, he's not the same person you knew as a child." "What do you mean?" "He's..." "How can I put it?" "Stuck." "We're hoping that you can help clear away his cobwebs." "l don't understand." "l came to your world to find you, Alice," "because we need your help." "Only you can wake him, Alice." "So everything that we had was about my dad?" "It wasn't an act, Alice. I really do love you." "But you have to understand, your father holds the key to our future." "I don't believe this." "So you have been lying to me this entire time?" "Well, would you have believed him if he had told you the truth?" "l don't know." "Maybe." "You're right, I should have been more honest, but I can't turn back the clock." "Please, Alice, will you help us?" "Alice, our world depends on it." "Daddy." "Who's this?" "lt's me, Daddy." "Another one of your tricks, Jack Heart?" "Don't you know your own daughter?" "Daughter?" "You left when I was a kid." "The White Rabbit kidnapped you many years ago, and the doctors adjusted you to work in the laboratory." "We've missed you so much." "Mom tries not to show it, but..." "Mom?" "Carol, your wife." "You really think this charade is going to turn me against the Queen?" "Don't you remember anything?" "l remember my work at the institute, bioreductive enzymes, chemically-induced synesthesia," "shadow theory..." "What about your family?" "Our little yellow house?" "l lived... I lived alone in an apartment." "Ray." "You remember him." "Your friend with the boat." "What is the point of all this?" "Grapefruit and wheat germ." "That's what you liked for breakfast." "And on Sundays, sometimes we would go to that brunch place in Waverley, and you would throw chickpeas at the ducks." "Your mother will be very upset when she hears about this, Jack." "You don't even know who I am." "Don't cry, Jellybean." "Jellybean?" "is that your special name for Alice?" "That's what you used to call me." "And when our cat Dinah died, you held me in your arms for a whole hour, remember?" "Rocking me." "Remember this?" "What is it?" "It's your watch." "You always wore it." "I've never worn a watch." "We don't need them here." "It's kind of broken, but it never really kept good time anyway, and you didn't seem to mind." "There." "Hold it right there." "Stop right there." "Don't make a move." "There he is." "Go on, freeze." "I'm a little disappointed." "I expected a bit more of a struggle." "Where's Hatter?" "I don't know." "Picked up your trail outside the city." "Excuse me, you weren't that difficult to track." "Are you all right?" "They kidnapped me." "Tried to turn me against the Queen with some hogwash about being this girl's father." "You're going to break your mother's heart." "Well, well, well." "The mysterious Caterpillar." "Apprehended at last." "You realize this brings an end to the resistance." "Finally, and forever." "Black day." "Okay." "Okay." "I know there are a lot of Suits out there, but if we let them get to the casino, there's going to be a whole lot more." "We have to take them now." "Are you serious?" "Yes." "We've got surprise on our side, and we've got horses." "You see the bottleneck over there?" "If I go in swinging and keep the Suits busy for a few seconds that might give you just enough time to get in there, grab Alice, and gallop away." "Bottleneck?" "Swinging?" "l'm going to need a sword." "No. I can't..." "Okay, show me what knights are made of." "Yes..." "This is it." "You're ready?" "One, two..." "Charlie!" "What the..." "No!" "You get off him." "Hatter." "What a nice surprise." "May I?" "The mouse that stole the cheese." "What a..." "The cat that's got the canary." "Oh, you look radiant, my peach." "Dare I say younger, too." "I'm going to wear it for at least an hour before you clever Suits whisk it away to reopen the glorious Looking Glass and kick-start that wonderful economy of ours." "Then I want it back right away, you hear?" "Loud and clear, ma'am." "Loud and crystal clear." "What is she doing in that thing?" "She's a contaminant." "A what?" "Jack discovered that she's Carpenter's daughter." "Went to fetch her so that she could turn him against you." "You know, wake him up." "So that's why he wanted the awful creature." "Evil boy." "Dad." "Dad!" "What did she say?" "Mad. I think she said she's mad." "Quite right." "But if I'm to consider her evidence, I must hear her clearly." "But Carpenter would hear, as well." "It's too risky." "Good heavens, Winston, you're paranoid." "Recognize that girl over there?" "Dearest, please." "She's an actress Jack brought here with some story about being my daughter." "Do you have a daughter?" "Of course not." "But the resistance will try anything." "Go there and take a good look at her." "Darling, please, I don't..." "Shut up, Winston." "I'm the one that wears the crown around here." "Why did Jack pick her, do you think?" "Because she is his daughter." "Quiet, ungrateful child." "Well?" "Look, I have no idea." "Perhaps because she is a very good actress." "I'm going to have her executed, you know." "So?" "Doesn't that bother you, even a little?" "Why should it?" "Excellent." "You may go." "My own son." "Blackest of all black sheep." "I carried you for nine painful months, suffered eight hours of agonizing labor, suckled you day and night, your sharp, little teeth gnawing at my breast, and now here you are, a grown man, with nothing but hatred and deceit in your heart." "It's unnatural." "Have you nothing to say before I pass sentence?" "Send Alice home." "She doesn't deserve this." "Carpenter may seem well-adjusted now, but if he sees his daughter executed, he'll wake up for sure." "Nonsense." "She can't hurt you if she's back in her world." "Besides, you've crushed the resistance." "Their leader is dead, and the ring is back on your finger." "What more do you want?" "There is some logic to what he says." "Don't let him manipulate you, Winston." "Go ahead, then." "Risk it." "A word in your ear." "Leniency is not an option." "Heavens no!" "We're going to get rid of her, naturally." "The question is, how?" "l've always liked a good drowning." "Yes, but again, that may be the slap in the face that wakes Carpenter up." "It's too risky." "You're not falling for that, are you?" "Yes." "No!" "I mean, no." "No." "But we will have to tread warily." "This denial is a tricky business." "What do you suggest?" "Well, there's banishment." "Banishment?" "Yeah, some people even say it's worse than execution." "Banishment." "I have decided that the harsher sentence of banishment is more appropriate." "Escort her to the Looking Glass and have her dispatched as quickly as possible." "It is with a heavy heart and a clear conscience that I, Mary Elizabeth Constance Devillious Heart," "Queen of Wonderland, do sentence you, Jack Frederick Heart, to be held in the Eyeron overnight, so that all of Wonderland may see you for who you really are." "And tomorrow morning, you shall be taken to the grand hall to face the executioner's axe." "We couldn't possibly have got away." "There were too many of them." "Yes." "It'd be suicide." "I know what you're thinking." "Of all the knights to survive, it had to be me." "The gutless one." "I'm not even a knight. I'm a charlatan." "An imposter." "A big, fat fraud." "While Just Plain Alice and her harbinger are tortured to death at the casino, you sit around here eating borogove cutlets and dreaming of the good old days." "Well, it's about time you stopped fantasizing and did something for real." "Something useful, something brave." "Something like..." "Yes." "Leave us." "But..." "l said leave!" "When is a raven like a writing desk?" "The clockwork's not ticking properly." "Maybe crumbs in the butter." "Tell me where the Great Library is." "I didn't think you'd crack." "In that case, there's no need to keep you alive." "Twinkle, twinkle little bat, how I wonder what you're at." "Goodbye, Hatter." "This one's gotta go back right away." "She'll have to wait." "A raiding party is returning with fresh Oysters." "The Queen's getting impatient." "She wants the ring." "We'll need it back." "The Looking Glass will only work for a short time without it." "No." "After her!" "No!" "Okay." "Okay." "Okay." "Come on, Alice." "You can do this." "Okay." "Save the ring. I'll deal with her." "Alice, pull this thing up!" "New emotions, distilled from our most recent harvest." "What's this one? "Empathy" Whoever heard of such a thing?" "That." "That is my favorite." "Pure innocence." "Taken from the first flush of youth." "That's more like it." "This is our secret weapon." "That will do more to keep the rabble in check than anything else." "At last, my ring." "This is the only tonic I need." "Majesty, we're under attack." "Attack?" "From whom?" "Outside." "There must be a thousand of them." "Well, who are they?" "Knights, Majesty." "The knights." "lmpossible." "Come out, you cowards!" "Come and taste the wrath of Asclepius!" "It's as if they've risen from the dead." "Hit them with everything we've got." "Hold your positions, men." "Don't fire until you see the whites of their beaks." "All Suits report immediately to Central Command." "Wow!" "Where did you get the army, Charlie?" "There." "Go, go." "Hurry up." "Another wave." "I have in onions!" "Hold the perimeter." "Make sure we're ready for them when they attack." "Easy." "Easy, Jack." "l'm here to help." "Duchess." "We have to hurry." "I bribed the guards, and the blackout only lasts a few seconds." "Put this on." "Quickly." "Why are you doing this?" "lsn't it obvious?" "I care about you, Jack." "l always have." "Come on." "You're working for my mother." "l did what I had to do to survive." "This way." "Out of the way." "Come on." "Where you think you're going?" "Get down." "Hatter, you're okay." "Yeah." "Through here." "Come on!" "Oh, my God." "lt's a few cuts and bruises. I'm fine." "I thought you were dead." "Oh, that feels good." "We should save that until we're safe." "l'm sorry I didn't trust you." "You trust me now?" "Completely." "Good." "Follow me. I'm getting us out of here." "No!" "No?" "I have an idea." "Do you see any more Suits in here?" "l don't think so, no." "Let's seal the other exit." "Where the hell's security?" "Everyone's been called to defend the perimeter." "Through here." "Hurry up." "Find something to brace the doors." "Okay." "Something Caterpillar said," ""Mix the wrong feelings together, you wind up with a complete breakdown."" "And Charlie." "Charlie said the Queen only wanted to feel the good, not the bad, remember?" "So?" "We're gonna stir up some emotions." "What should we do?" "Deal another hand, spin another roulette wheel, and it will be your last." "Where the hell's security?" "Defending the outer wall." "Sir, we have a problem." "Hey!" "Everyone, wake up!" "This isn't a dream." "This is really happening." "Look at me." "Think." "Where are your families?" "Your kids?" "Your husbands and your wives and your mothers and your fathers?" "Where did I leave my keys?" "You were taken from them and brought here." "Try to think." "Your name." "What's your name?" "Taylor." "No, that's my son." "My son..." "Look down at your feet." "Try to walk away from the tables." "It's stuck. I can't move my feet." "We're getting some very negative emotions coming through." "I don't believe it." "lt's that girl again." "Wake up." "Wake up." "Wake up, Daddy!" "You're late." "Wake up!" "Alice." "Oh, dear God." "What have I done?" "Keep your head, man." "Keep your head." "Three, two, one..." "Take that, you evil..." "Robert!" "Come back." "Look, they're trying to break down the door." "Do you know why?" "Because they don't want you to wake up." "Confusion, fear, panic." "This isn't good." "Stop!" "You're frightening the Oysters." "l'll deal with this." "What do you want?" "Put the gun down." "You stay right there." "It's me, Alice. lt's your father." "You don't remember me." "You don't remember anything." "I do." "Thanks to you, I remember everything." "I don't believe you." "This is just another trick." "You see this guy?" "He's the one who brought you here." "He hooked you up." "And when he's done with you..." "When he's done with you, he'll get rid of you. lsn't that right?" "Daddy, isn't that right?" "It was a Sunday, and we'd just come back from the movies," "and you were wearing your yellow dress and those black shoes that always hurt your feet." "And Carol met us in the driveway and told us" "Dinah had been hit by a car." "And you ran into the yard and hid, and I came and found you, and held you for hours while you wept." "I should've known you the moment I saw you." "I've been a fool, Alice." "I've missed so much." "I've wasted so much time." "Please forgive me." "I'm so sorry." "No!" "All of that emotion's getting through." "Okay, I'm cutting them loose." "Stop!" "Wait!" "Stop!" "l'll go find help." "Please stay." "Please." "Oh, my God. I'm sorry, Daddy." "Daddy, it's my fault." "You did good. I'm proud of you." "I kind of messed things up, though, didn't I?" "We'll make it right." "l'm sorry, Jellybean." "You're on your own." "No!" "Alice." "We've got to get out of here." "Please." "I'm sorry." "Come on, Winston. it's time to evacuate." "You go ahead." "Don't be ridiculous." "You'll die if you stay here." "Don't you see?" "I did all this for you." "There never was anyone else." "I would've conquered the world for one smile." "Don't be so sentimental." "Have I ever said no to you?" "Stop this." "Come along now." "No." "Come on, Charlie." "One last shot." "Bull's-eye!" "I don't suppose I could get that hug now, huh?" "There." "She's there." "Get her." "Touch the lady, and I'll shuffle your deck." "Don't just stand there, idiots." "Arrest her." "Take a good look at your Queen first." "Make sure she's really worth fighting for." "How dare you look at me?" "She's the one you should be looking at." "l'm not the problem." "You are." "Off with her head!" "And it looks like everyone is waking up to that." "Don't listen to her." "She's just an insolent girl." "No one is frightened of you anymore." "You're just one of us now." "This is my kingdom and I am still Queen." "Look around." "No one is listening." "Your power's gone." "Jack, thank heavens you're here." "Get everyone to fall in line." "Me?" "Didn't you sentence me to death?" "Don't be so sensitive." "I was just doing my job." "Come on, now, and rally the troops." "No, Mother." "It's over." "The ring." "Are you mad?" "I'd sooner have you cut off my finger." "That can be arranged." "Do you have a knife?" "Thank you." "Make sure it's a clean cut." "We don't want any blood on the ring." "Who's this?" "My sister, Cassie." "l bet you're glad you're going home." "Yep." "This place is freaky." "Alice!" "I'm so glad you came." "You really showed them, Charlie." "Thanks to you, Alice." "I shall miss you, Alice of legend." "Thank you, Charlie." "Your Majesty." "Alice." "I tried to come and say goodbye, but I guess you have a lot on your plate now that you're King." "I owe you my life, my kingdom, everything." "I tried to give this to you once before, but you didn't know what it meant." "This time I ask you to wear it as my Queen." "Will you be my Queen, Alice?" "No, Jack." "I've changed." "I'm not the same girl you knew." "I want something else." "Goodbye, Jack." "Would you at least do me the honor of restarting the Looking Glass?" "Wow." "Okay." "What do I do?" "Here." "Place it in there." "Hatter!" "Alice." "Hey." "Excuse me." "Sorry. I was..." "l was afraid I might've missed you." "Yeah, well, you cut it a little close." "Yeah, I was..." "Guess I was trying not to think about it." "Anyways, I wanted to say goodbye." "Goodbye?" "And if you, you know, ever fancy coming back..." "You want me to stay?" "Hell no!" "No, you should go home." "Yeah." "Yeah, I've had enough of Wonderland for a lifetime." "Yes. I'm sure you have, right?" "Still, we had a laugh." "You know, had some good times." "Obviously among all the bad times." "Yeah." "Yeah, we did." "Yeah, right." "You don't have to." "Brilliant." "Thank you." "That's good." "So, we should..." "Yeah." "You know, you could always visit my world." "You might like it." "Yeah." "We could do pizza." "And lots of other things." "Alice, please." "Ready?" "l was just..." "Just force yourself to breathe." "She's over here." "Alice?" "Hey!" "He's gone." "Who's gone?" "Dad." "Sweetie, come here." "It's all right, sweetie. I'm here." "You gave me such a fright." "How long was I there?" "Almost an hour." "An hour?" "You were lucky." "A construction worker saw you run into the building." "What's this about?" "l don't need to look for Dad anymore." "It's time to move on." "I almost forgot." "Construction worker who found you." "He wanted to stop by to see how you were." "Very sweet." "Alice, come meet David." "Hatter!" "Finally." "You have no idea how happy I am to see you." "I missed you."