Chapter 16

It wasn't too long before the Ringleader managed to reach the market town on the edge of the city. It was a small and cosy little village, almost big enough to be called a town but just not quite. It was known as simply 'the market town' because the main reason people went there was to sell and buy things at the weekly market. It did pretty decent buisness, but if you wanted your money's worth then most people trekked up to the bazaar in the middle of the city by the Queen's palace.

It was in this cosy village that Akefia decided to stop for a drink at the local bar. He was still pretty furious with his 'loyal' pet and knew that if he was to find him and get him home then he needed to be a lot calmer than he currently was. The best way to fix that was with some wonderful Heartbreaker cocktails, made to soothe and calm down the emotions of whoever drank it. It was named Heartbreaker because of the people who ordered one were poor souls who had suffered some form of heartbreak and needed to setlle their emotions and simply calm down. It worked, somehow. Akefia never thought to ask what was in it, and to be honest he didn't want to know either.

The bar he ventured into was called 'The Poison Rose', which to the white-haired ring master sounded more like a seedy pub rather than the modern (by Wonderland standards) and youth orientated bar that it was. But he didn't complain and just sat himself down at the bar and ordered a Heartbreaker cocktail. The barwoman who served him eyed him almost hungrily but he ignored her. He wasn't in the mood to deal with anyone at that moment.

"Here you are, darlin'." She smiled, sliding the spiral glass over to him, which he took and sipped at through the curly straw. Her common British accent annoyed him and grated his ears, so he paid more attention to the music the band on stage was playing rather than what she said.

The red liquid in the glass burned his throat in a pleasant way as he drank it. He had to thank whoever the hell in Wonderland made all their alcohol. It was a welcome difference from the multitude of boring drinks back home. Sometimes the Ringleader thought about taking some back, but always thought better of it because some of his employees were just too damn curious for their own good. Case in point: Marik.

Someone took a seat next to him and ordered a Vodka Tea, which Akefia had to laugh at a little. Everyone in the whole damn land was obsessed with tea. It was almost impossible to get coffee, which he craved quite a lot, especially when he needed the caffeine boost. He studied his neighbour out of the corner of his eye and recognised him straight away as the infamous Caterpillar; what you could call the drug supplier of Wonderland. He grew shrooms, to put it bluntly.

But shrooms in this land had a different meaning. Some could turn the most dominant of people into submissive little kittens, and could also do the other way around. Some could kill a person with a single bite while others could cause endless suffering and make you end your own life to end your suffering. And the green suit wearing man next to him was the main supplier of such things. His name was Seto, or more commonly known as the Caterpillar.

He'd met the man only once, and that was when the Duchess wanted something to subdue the Cheshire Cat with when he was in heat. There was a rare type of shroom that deterred such a thing, and the blonde Queen of Diamonds had to get some at least once a year lest the Cheshire Cat become unbareable. Akefia didn't blame her one bit. He did admit that something about the Caterpillar was unlikeable, but he figured that was because he didn't like most people who were as dominant or more-so than him.

So the Ringleader took to ignoring the man next to him and instead kept on sipping at his crimson red beverage. Eventually the Caterpillar moved over to a sofa in the corner, apparently meeting someone. Akefia cast a subtle eye over at the table, and had to smile at the sight of a disguised Queen of Hearts sat there. He wondered what on earth the Queen could want with the Caterpillar so badly that he had to leave the comforts of his palace to make an appearance in a dingy little village like this.

He doused his curiousity, lest it get him into trouble, and downed the rest of his drink. He called the barwoman over after she'd finished talking to what appeared to be a solider, and ordered another Heartbreaker. She smiled at him and happily brought him another drink, taking a little longer to prepare this one for some reason. Akefia glared at her slightly when she slid his drink over, wondering what the hell she was doing with it, but asked no questions. He really didn't want to talk to her in case she thought he was flirting.

With a sudden decision to keep moving onwards, as the Queen's presence had put him on edge slightly, the Ringleader downed his drink in one gulp, a little proud of himself as the strong alcohol burned his throat. He could've sworn he tasted a little more than the strawberries, alcohol and vanilla that usually presented themselves in the cocktail but dismissed it.

Akefia stood from his seat and made to walk over to the door, but after two steps he swayed and fell to the floor. No way could that small amount of booze make him drunk so quickly.

"You're mine now." He heard a laugh, and the blurred image of the Queen of Hearts appeared standing over him before his vision blacked out completely, and he fell into the realms of unconciousness.