Whatever numbed Rocket’s pain wore off a few hours ago. He began to receive sensations since then. He felt the coldness of the metals that pierced halfway inside him. The fluids that he could only guess that sustained him seared through his veins like acid. One thing he was sure of that the white rabbit wasn’t very good with live subjects.

He failed to secure many things and relied on transporting liquids inside Rocket without minding the loss that constantly escaped through poor attachments. Rocket had been bleeding by dew drops since he was housed inside the glass cylinder. There was already a pool of blood by the very base of his area, soaking his feet.

He couldn’t see anything. When he woke up, everything was black all around. It couldn’t be just because it was dark. He knew when it was the environment or his vision. And he was temporarily blinded.

He quivered through the simplest control of his muscle. He could barely move his head without exerting maximum effort and he found that the only thing he could do was breathe. And so, he did. He counted every breath he pulled, hoping that it wouldn’t be his last. He couldn’t simply just go without extracting vengeance from the one who did this. He wanted to get back.

In his current state, however, it didn’t seem like it was about to happen.

Inside the cylindrical prison, he was completely dry—depraved of the air outside other than the one that’s piped in—which is why he felt surprised when a gust ran against the fur on his face. Rocket’s wheeze of breaths almost turned into hyperventilation.

“W-who’s there?” Rocket asked huskily. He opened his eyes and peered but he didn’t receive any image.

Seconds later, something much compact touched him, cupping his face to look up. No words were spoken. In the silence that dominated the secret lab, he could only hear breaths of a second party.

The weights Rocket carried inside his flesh lessened. And for every weight lost, there was an aftersound of wind swishing by. Eventually, the wires and tubes that supported his entire weight dropped him but someone caught him before he could meet the base of the cylindrical cage.

The sensation was familiar like his first night in the Tulgey woods. He complained so much that a companion offered him a ride on the back. This was it. Exactly like it. There were no ups and downs as if someone stepped on ground. Their pace was constant—a smooth glide in the air.

Grunting, Rocket asked, “I-is that you, s-smug-face?” he needn’t an answer when he fell to relax on Cheshire’s shoulder. How could he forget the cat’s scent which he enjoyed so much just recently?

***

Cheshire carried Rocket all the way back to the hatter’s tea party. He relied so much on Tarrant that he knew the hatter could save Rocket. He only felt so bad at himself that he couldn’t even talk to Rocket. Another promise was broken. And because of that, he didn’t want to face Rocket anymore.

The best he could do is to leave Rocket in the hands of the mad trio and retrieve his spaceship for their escape. He only hoped that by the time he detonates, his friends would be somewhere very far-off the planet.

The long tea-table was cleared in an instant when the trio saw Cheshire carrying a bloodied fellow on his back. The soonest Cheshire placed Rocket on the table the dormouse immediately scanned the patient and checked his vitals as the hatter went under the table to retrieve his tools.

The familiar, guilty-looking rabbit that followed behind Cheshire the whole time sat beside Thackery, shamefully watching the crowd.

“He’s lost quite a lot of blood,” Mallymkun climbed on top of Rocket. He placed his tiny hand just in front of Rocket’s nostrils just to check if he was breathing. “He’s getting weaker.” He remarked before climbing down and calling the hatter’s attention.

“I trust you could fix him,” Cheshire said, stealing a glance from Mctwisp.

The guilty rabbit fiddled his fingers, looking down and up again and again.

Tarrant approached, placing numerous herbs and liquids inside small corked bottles. “What seemed to have caused this familiar anomaly?” he looked at Mctwisp and then back at the patient, “Mally?”

“He seemed to be poisoned, Hatter,” Mally showed him a needle with a sample of purplish liquid, “This came from one of his wounds in the arm.”

Tarrant took the needle and tried to analyze whatever the purple liquid was when the white rabbit joined in.

“Jabberwocky’s venom,” Mctwisp said, “It’s a neurotoxin… that I used to numb him.”

“I r’member one o’ those,” Thackery laughed, oblivious that it was the very source of his madness.

“How could you use something like that on him?” Mallymkun bursts, “Are you trying to repeat what happened to—”

“Mally,” Cheshire intercepted before the dormouse could finish, “We all know what Nivens had done… but please let’s just focus in saving Rocket.”

Mallymkun bit his lip before scurrying towards Tarrant.

The mad hatter gave Mallymkun some herbs to boil which the dormouse prepared in haste. Tarrant then began cleaning the wounds before stitching them closed.

“Is there anything more you’d like to tell us, Nivens?” Hatter said as he ran needles through Rocket’s cuts.

The rabbit nodded sheepishly, “I swear it’s the only thing I used on him.”

Amid the operation, Cheshire kept watch as his beloved clung to life unconsciously. He could only blame himself for what happened and he didn’t even need to assess why. He made promises and he broke them. It was only right that he get Rocket home the soonest.

He took advantage of the rabbit and the hatter’s argument to slowly fall back into the Tulgey woods to retrieve Rocket’s spacecraft when Mallymkun suddenly appeared to ask him.

“You’re leaving, Chess?” the dormouse scurried to the floating cat. “He’s the fellow you talked about, yes? Don’t you want to be here when he wakes up?”

Cheshire heaved in a deep breath and kept it there for some time before letting it out as a long sigh. “I’ve no more time to waste, Mally,” he said, “I’ll send the spacecraft here. Board it and take everyone with you.”

“I won’t stop you,” Mallymkun turned away, “But remember that you, leaving now, are not even the last thing your friend will remember when he wakes up.”

Cheshire looked at Rocket between a haze of reluctance and resolution. “Tell him…” Cheshire paused, “To keep the promise… and make him understand that I don’t want to be apart from him.”

“Promise?” Mallymkun repeated and just agreed knowing that whatever the promise was, was no longer a matter he could infiltrate. “I’ll do my best, Chess.”

Cheshire took off and he stopped before he could exit the gate. “By the way,” he said, “Be very patient with him… he could be quite a little… well a lot actually—”

“Don’t worry, Chess,” Mallymkun interjected with a chortle, “If I could take handling Mctwisp every day, I’m sure I could handle him.”

Cheshire nodded and took off once more. And once more, he stopped to add another reminder but was surprised when he couldn’t give any. Perhaps he just wanted to delay his plan—stretch the fastest seconds into minutes just to savor the last time he’s with Rocket.

***

The first thing Rocket heard was laughter amid muffled conversations. He listened to the sounds as if he was underwater the moment he regained consciousness. He felt much better compared to the last situation he remembered but still, he was in pain. Groaning, he tried getting up and managed to pull himself into a sitting position.

“He’s awake!” shouted a squeaky voice.

Rocket rubbed his eyes and let his blurry vision adjust to get a better view of where he was now. Three figures stared at him: a hare, a dormouse and a cyborg.

“Tea?” the hare offered a cup to Rocket with quivering hands.

It was only when Rocket reached in for the teacup had he realized that there was a needle pierced through his vein, supplying him with liquid. He followed it with his eyes to a small bag of dextrose half-empty.

He panicked for a second, almost ripping off the needle but he was informed immediately by the cyborg.

“It’s an antitoxin,” the cyborg said, “Don’t pull it off lest you become as mad as Thackery over here.” He curt nodded his head to the hare.

Rocket relaxed after knowing that it wasn’t harmful but took it off anyway. He ripped it out of his skin and jumped off the table. His legs were weak and he trembled as he landed on the ground but he still managed to get his balance. He became woozy just seconds after getting up but he felt as strong as before when it passed.

He had a lot of questions going on inside his mind about what happened and how he got here but he had no intention of having them answered. He was much more interested in finding the white rabbit that was responsible for his current state right now.

The cyborg approached Rocket, placing a hand on his back to assist him but the raccoon shook it off aggressively, growling at the helper.

“Don’t touch me!” Rocket snarled and scurried a few feet away from the cyborg. His head throbbed and he needed a moment to relax.

“It’s the neurotoxins,” the hatted cyborg explained, “If you don’t want to finish up that dextrose, you might as well drink this tea.” He walked to the table and poured a large amount in a teacup. He handed it to Rocket.

Rocket sniffed the tea first before turning his head away in disgust.

“It just smells bad but it tastes good,” said the dormouse from the table. “Just try it.”

Rocket swiped the tea from the cyborg’s hand and hesitated to drink. He took a small sip first and when the bitter taste spread inside his mouth, he spat it out immediately, dropping the teacup on the ground.

The cyborg rolled his eyes and went back to the table to fill another cup. He handed it to Rocket.

The raccoon obviously didn’t want to drink the tea but he forced himself to after hearing that neurotoxins were injected inside his system. With one big gulp, he finished the tea and spat out the remains from his mouth.

“Now, would you mind sitting with us?” the cyborg asked.

Rocket declined, “I can’t stay. I have to get going.”

“Oh but you needn’t go anywhere if you plan to return home,” the cyborg seated by the tallest chair at one end of the long table. He poured himself a cup of tea and relaxed.

“Just stay put, sir,” the dormouse added, “If you hate tea, we have kegs of ale—enough for waiting.”

Rocket walked to the table, taking a seat on one of the creaky chairs beside Thackery. “You’re gonna have to put more details, Fancy-hat, if you want me to understand what you’re all saying.”

The cyborg laughed, “Thank you for the compliment. I made this hat myself, you know and it took quite some time since I didn’t have my fashion sense back then.”

Rocket was puzzled and he was given no time to respond when the cyborg spoke again.

“Tarrant Hightopp,” he reached in for a handshake, “If you want tops on top of your head, hats hatted on top, I can make you one. Now wouldn’t that be fun?”

“Sure. I’ll ask you to make me a hat if ever I think of hiding stuff on top of my head,” Rocket replied sourly. “Now let me ask… where—” Rocket was cut short when he was reminded of details about his previous situation. Him getting here wasn’t a mystery at all. He was rescued by the feline he didn’t even think about since he woke up. Instead of asking what he was supposed to, he unconsciously changed it, “…where is Cheshire?”

“He’s off to receive a spaceship,” the little dormouse scuttled toward Rocket, “he’s sending it here which is why we must wait patiently.”

“Sending it?” Rocket repeated, “Don’t you mean bringing it?”

The dormouse and the cyborg looked at each other for who should speak to the raccoon and it was decided that it was the dormouse. “Chess told me that you should keep your promise.”

Rocket lay back grumpily against the backrest of the chair, folding his arms in front of him and murmuring. “I’m just realizing what a douchebag he is for still going on about that lousy thing,” Rocket chortled sarcastically, “And he had it relayed by his tiny friend.”

The dormouse breathed, “Look, I don’t know what promise he made you keep—”

“Then you get no right to say anything about it,” Rocket interjected, “and even if you knew what the promise was you’d still have no say in this.” Rocket leaned on the table to get a face to face view with the dormouse, “Because that promise was between him and me.”

The dormouse stepped back, forming a stance but he was stopped by the hatter. “Mallymkun,” Tarrant looked at him.

Mallymkun calmed himself, thinking that it was for a friend. “Aye, you’re right but you could consider that what I’m doing too is a promise I’ve made for a friend.”

Rocket snorted. “Promises,” he said like it was the most absurd thing ever… which was, as of the moment, really the most absurd thing ever. “It’s just words you have to keep because someone made you to. It’s not that special of a thing it’s just a glorified request.”

“Think about it whatever you like,” Mallymkun replied, “But I’m going to keep my promise.”

“And what if you couldn’t?” Rocket returned.

“I will fulfill it,” Mallymkun retorted.

“Oh yeah, tough guy?” the raccoon challenged, “What if I don’t let you?”

Mallymkun paused and then looked at Rocket. He suddenly wondered how his friend had fallen to this very rude raccoon. “I would still do it,” Mallymkun said, “and if I fail, I’d just have to live bearing the guilt of a last request, unfulfilled.”

Rocket looked away.

Mallymkun continued, “Don’t you feel like you should keep your promise too?” he asked, “It’ll be the last thing you’ll have of him. No matter how bad the promise is, it’s still your last piece of him considering nothing will be left, not even a body to mourn on.”

“Wait a second,” Rocket sat straight up, “What the hell do you mean about that?”

“Chess loves you very much,”

“That I already know,” Rocket said proudly and then got back to the dormouse’s previous statement, “You’re talking as if he’s never coming back.”

“It’s apparent that he doesn’t know,” Mallymkun looked to the hatter. “Should we tell him?”

“Oh you’re telling me alright,” Rocket slammed his hands on the table, “Everything that cat’s never told me. Starting with what he’s about to do.”

It took less than an hour for Rocket to know everything there is to know about Cheshire’s plan. And every bit of it, Rocket found so stupid.

“I’m not letting that happen,” Rocket got up from the table, “Alice is the only one keeping you in here so the key here is to kill her.”

“It’s not that simple, we just told you,” Tarrant massaged his forehead.

“Oh really?” Rocket replied with sarcasm, “Because it sounds pretty simple to me. I get if you’re all cowards or plain idiots but I’m not like you. I have guts.”

“You’re going to get yourself killed,” Mallymkun protested, “Just stay put and we could all get out of here alive just like Cheshire would have wanted.”

“I’m not sitting my ass off here while that cat is getting all heroic,” Rocket replied, “I’m leaving this planet with him whether he likes it or not.” He walked a few steps away and paused, “And if you’re all his friends, you would at least help him.” He continued to walk.

“He’ll vaporize you,” the hatter had his last statements, “The reason why he didn’t want any assistance was because he didn’t want to kill anyone else. If you step inside his radius, you’ll be gone in seconds.”

Rocket remained unconvinced despite everything they’ve told him. “He won’t detonate. I’ll diffuse him myself. And then I’ll kill your warden.”

Rocket headed for the Tulgey woods. By now, he already knew what paths to take and though he was unarmed, he was ready to march by the red queen’s gate in the middle of the day. As he strode through the forest, Nivens Mctwisp revealed himself from hiding behind a tree just ahead. He carried Rocket’s bazooka with some new modifications.

Rocket halted, staring at the white rabbit with intent to attack but he also played smart. This time, he won’t flee. He’ll figure out a way he could take his weapon from him.

“There is no need for that,” Mctwisp hopped towards Rocket and offered him his bazooka. “I’ve heard everything and I couldn’t agree with you more.”

Rocket cautiously took his weapon from the white rabbit and when no threat came after, he relaxed when he possessed his weapon.

“You know, this doesn’t make up to what you did to me,” Rocket said, “If I don’t need you now, I would shoot you.”

Mctwisp chortled sheepishly, fidgeting his fingers, “Nobody knows Wonderland more than I do. I’ll help you with everything I can. I have one question though, how are you going to infiltrate Alice’s defenses?”

Rocket strapped the bazooka on his back, “I’ve got a plan.”