Hats off

He sat there, legs crossed, at the table. He held the teacup just below his lips, his pinky out. His black overcoat almost touched the grass, which was damp. It did a very good job of covering the rapier that was sheathed at his side. He wore red velvet vest under his coat, and under that a stainless white shirt and red tie. He blinked, for a second concealing his red eyes. His hair was silvery grey and fell to just below his ears, where it turned up slightly. Cresting his head was the one article of clothing that gave his identity away: a large, black top hat with a card tucked into the band. Written on the card was “10/6”.

The clock struck twelve noon; teatime. But then, of course, it was always teatime for him. He took a sip.

“ What a splendid day in Wonderland,” said the Mad Hatter, taking another sip of his tea. “ Wouldn’t you agree Cheshire?” He looked up over the brim of his hat to see the stripped tabby cat that was materializing at its crown. The cat yawned, curled up in a little ball with his tail around his toes. Its eyes were bigger then most cats and as it peered down to look at its companion, it smiled a wide, toothy grin. The Mad Hatter smiled. “ I’m glad you concur,” he said. He took another sip.
The weather changed, quite suddenly. At first it was a drizzle, but then it began to pour. The Mad Hatter had expected this, of course, and had already drawn out an umbrella. “ The Queen must be up to something,” said he. Cheshire purred, as if in agreement. As if to drive home his point, over then crest of a nearby hill, marched a deck of Heartmen, their spears in hand. The Mad Hatter could see the embroidered hearts on the front of the their uniforms. He sighed and took another sip of his tea.
“ They never give up, do they?” said the Hatter. Cheshire shook his head in disappointment. The Hatter didn’t even bother to stand as the Heartment walked right up to his table. The weather had changed once again, clouding over, blocking out the sun.
“ Maddicus Hatter?” inquired, the lead Heartman. His uniform was different, a bright red instead of the normal black. His four-cornered body (for he was a card, after all) was about three feet wide and six feet tall, putting him a foot about Maddicus’s head.
“ Speaking,” said Maddicus, not even looking the card in the eye. On top of his hat, Cheshire purred softly.
“ By order of Her Majesty, The Queen of Hearts, we are to bring you to her…dead or alive,” he said it in such a voice that made it sound like he would prefer him dead, but then again, what does a card know? “ I must ask you to hand over your sword.”
“ Very well then,” sighed Maddicus, setting his teacup down on the table. He reached across his left him, fainting to grasp his blade. His hand, however, never reached the hilt. He jerked his arm upwards, knocking the table violently towards the lead card. It had its desired affect. The card toppled over and was pinned underneath the weight of the table. Maddicus drew his sword as Cheshire leapt from his hat and landed at his feet. Forty stern faced cards faced the duo.
“ Would you like to handle this one, Cheshire?” asked the Hatter. Cheshire’s purr slowly morphed into a growl. Slowly, the cat began to grow larger, his already sharp teeth turning into fangs. Within a few seconds he was about two feet above Maddicus’s head. Maddicus smiled to himself. This Cheshire was just like his father: surprises around every turn. The cat had already gotten to work on the Queen’s guard, slashing them to ribbons with his claws. A few had circled around the gigantic grinning feline, and were now making their way towards the Hatter.
Maddicus moved his sword into a defensive position. His eyes scanned his opponents. There were at least six of them, all surrounding him. He couldn’t try and take them out one by one, or they’d all fall on him at once. He had to wait until the attacked him. Then he could use their numbers against them….
Maddicus grimace, a sharp pain suddenly gripping his chest. No, not now. It couldn’t happen now! Of all the times for the Madness to grip him, why now? His vision began to blur. No! He wouldn’t let this overtake him! He’s use it. He held it back, not wanting to lose himself. He kept his eyes on the cards.
They gave him the opening he was looking for. A four of spades jabbed his spear at him. Maddicus defected it easily, grabbed it by the shaft, and ripped from his hand. He ran the card through with his sword and slashed another with the spear as he spun around. The sharp pain in his chest grew stronger. No! He had to hold it back. He couldn’t let it take him yet. Another card came up behind him, trying to run him through. Maddicus slashed it in two on the backstroke of his spear. A third hit him in the back, right between the shoulder blades. The rage swelled in Maddicus’s bosom till he thought that it would boil over like a cauldron.

Now. This was the time. He gave into the Madness.
If you’ve ever seen a bottle of seltzer explode after its been shaken, you’ll have a pretty good idea of what happened next. Translucent energy seemed to explode from the Maddicus’s body. He dug his fingernails (which by now had turned to claws) into the soft ground. The rain was still falling hard, the droplets running off of the brim of Maddicus’s hat. The affect on his face when you looked at him was rather terrifying. His eyes were wide, letting you see the full vibrancy of his irises. His canines had elongated, growing into fangs, and an insane, mirthless grin spread for ear-to-ear across his face.
The card now closed in on a completely different Maddicus Hatter. He crouched on all fours, an occasional chuckle escaping his lips. All of a sudden, loud cackle that could have belonged to the darkest demon broke from inside the Hatter. It was accompanied by the loud peal of a thunder and a lightning bolt that seemed to split the sky in two! As if this were a que, Maddicus was among the deck. His claws tore into the cards, ripping them to shreds. He still wielded his rapier, slashing at the guards with blade and claw, all the while laughing, gripped by an uncontrollable force of madness.
The rage subsided as quickly as it had started. Maddicus fell to his knees, panting. His hair by now was a wet mess about his face. His held his rapier limply in his hand. He looked up to see Cheshire stalking up to him. The grinning cat was covered in cuts, some deep and others not. He licked a trickle of blood that was running down Maddicus’s cheek with his rough tongue. Behind him, almost a dozen cards still stood, spearheads facing them. Maddicus let out a sigh. The Madness had drained most of his strength. Cheshire was strong, but he couldn’t hold off the cards forever.
The cards were getting closer. Maddicus scooped up Cheshire in his arms and stood up. He had to get out of here. He had to find her. She was the key to all this; the key to the safety of all Wonderland. He had to find Alice, no matter the cost! Slowly, so as not to startled the already alert guards, Maddicus reached into his top hat and, like a magician, pulled out a small, white rabbit. I was hardly bigger then a lunchbox, and a sky blue bowtie was around its neck. Maddicus put his mouth close to the creature’s ear and whispered.

Be the guide for my wondering soul
Be my guide through the Rabbit Hole!
Maddicus let the little creature down onto the wet grass. As soon as its paws touched the ground it began to dig, slowly at first, but with more and more vigor every second. The cards trained their spears on the rabbit, intending to run it though, but before they could even begin to advance towards it, the ground beneath their feet began to give way! The White Rabbit was tunneling a whole right through the bottom of Wonderland! Without skipping a beat, Maddicus Hatter, Cheshire Cat on his shoulder, leapt into the void behind the rabbit, card men flailing their arms helplessly as they tumbled downward.

This has to work, the Hatter thought to himself. If I don’t find Alice…all is lost.