Town Chapter Nine The Doll

 The Return Home 

The sun was rising and Melinda and the rest of the group were high in their spirits, apart from Danté, who was a little down. They took a quick trip to the hospital, where Doctor Stephiene saw to her wounds personally, and there they took a quick nap. Which Melinda found strange. After all she had been through there, the place seemed slightly empty and eerie. However, even though part of her was afraid to fall asleep so she grabbed Jaden and Matilda’s hands. Just in case something happened.

Afterwards, they felt extremely hungry so went to the nearest local restaurant. It was in the style of a mediaeval tavern with the walls covered in ivy. It looked very cosy and quaint. With the windows, doors and rooms very clean.

That looks cool.

Fair Folk Tales

It said on a plank above the front crimson door. With a sign of a fairy with pointed ears with the head of a Roswell alien. The crystal blue eyes were that of a woman. With hair the colour of fire and dressed in leaves of all kinds of trees and green and yellow. Knelt on a bed of dead leaves.

She looks beautiful.

When they walked in they took their seats and ordered a full English breakfast and Melinda had pineapple juice, Matilda had lemonade with chocolate ice cream, Jaden had pomegranate juice, Doctor Stephiene had apple cider and Danté had a glass of wine.

“So! Now that the witch’s dead, I suppose that you all can leave this place?” Danté asked with a sad smile.

The food came, all of them had a full English breakfast on navy blue plates.

“Yes. Sooner we do, the better. After all, this town is no place for a child. So I want my daughter and sister to grow up safe.”

“Will you ever come back?”

“Will you come with me?”

“I can’t. I have to manage all the vampires here.”

Jaden nodded with narrow eyes.

“Right.” 

Soon they finished their food and celebrations and left the restaurant. They all followed the path to their houses as children walked to and fro. Making their way to school. Yet all of them would soon know without a shadow of a doubt that them and their parents were all free.

“Goodbye Danté!”

“See you later!” Melinda and Matilda both sang.

This caused the adults to shiver.

“What?” They both remarked.

“Nothing.”

“It's just it takes me back to the twins. I mean you actually look like each other!”

Melinda and Matilda looked at each other and frowned.

“We do?”

“Anyway! We all need to get to bed. It's not good to pull an all-nighter and only have a nap. So we all need a good sleep.”

“Alright.”

So they all separated and walked in. When they closed the door they looked back to see a woman that looked identical to the doll Wendy gave her. Melinda knew what was going on and this was going to be a long day. This was going to be the final bizarre threat that she would face in this town and she was determined to make sure of it.

Doll’s Game

“Who are you?”

The woman let out a child-like giggle.

“What? Don’t you recognise me? Oh, I’m disappointed! Especially with you Matty!” She sang bowing slightly.

She frowned as the light of the sun rested upon the woman’s face. At this she let out a scream.

“Alice!” Matilda screamed as she took a step backwards.

Then the door slammed behind them.

She let out another giggle.

“About time, Matty!”

Melinda looked at Matilda in confusion.

“What?”

Alice’s face dropped. 

“Please no! Don’t? Haven’t you had enough?”

Melinda took a step in front of Matilda, looking at her closely and carefully.

“What are you doing here and how did you get in my house?”

She let out a moan.

“No. Not yet Matty! Although I must admit I am really disappointed in you Melly! After all those times I watched over you in this past year. Yes! I followed you to the Magician, when Danté took you in, when you became Matty’s prisoner, when that doctor and nurse experimented on you, when you became the prisoner of the vampires, when you killed the clown, I saw all your nasty killings by your dark side even when they were putting you back together again and when you were plotting to kill that nasty, nasty Wendy Wonderlust, which I have to say congratulations!”

Her eyes widened.

“How!?”

“Oh? I thought that you were smarter than that!”

Melinda let out a huff. She was far too tired for this.

“Not what I meant. How are you-”

“Back human?”

She nodded.

“Oh! Well, you should have been more specific! Well I’m human ‘cause you won! Ding, dong the witch is dead! Ding, dong the witch is dead! The witch is dead! The witch is dead! Ding, dong the witch is dead! Ding, dong the witch is dead! Dead, dead, dead!” She sang clapping and dancing childishly. “Oh, but Dorothy! You only killed one witch! For here in Oz there are two! There are two! One is killed, the other shows up! No ruby slippers or silver slippers, if you like the movie or book. Tell me, as it's been so long since I was human, have they adapted the other fourteen books yet?”

“‘Other forteen’? There are fifteen Oz books? I thought that there was only one!”

“Ohhh!”

That was when Jaden went to the doorknob. She went to pull it down but it would not budge! She pushed and pushed but it still did not budge a single inch! She looked at the gap in the door to see that it was locked! She went to pull the keys out only to notice that they were gone!

“Are you looking for something Jey, Jey?”

“Where are the keys?”

“What! These keys?” She sang, shaking them like a glass bell.

“How did you get those?”

She chuckled like a child.

“Silly Jey, Jey! I’m magic!” She sang, pulling a hair from her head and turning it in her fingertips. “See!”

“Let us out!” Snapped Melinda, with a warning and stern look in her eyes.

“Make me!”

“A, a, ahh! How about you play with me first? If you don’t I’ll magic them in a land far, far away! Then I’ll seal you all in here ‘n’ watch you starve. Unless you eat yourselves first!”

“No!”

“Ohh! It’s only hide ‘n’ seek? The one that I find last, wins!”

“No! Mel, no! Please, no! That’s one of the ways she got me! She-”

Suddenly, her voice box shut down.

“Shhh! Matty. Remember I have something that you do-ohn’t. Also I think that playing along is the only way out!”

“But-”

Melinda turned to Matilda with a warning look.

“Do you want to get out of here or not?”

“Yes, I do but-”

She turned to Alice.

“I accept.”

“Alright! Then I’ll count you hide!”

Knowing that they had no other option, they all got ready.

“Then get to the door. It’ll not be fair, where you are. After all, you are cutting off half of our hiding spots.” Melinda pointed out. 

“Alright! Good thinking. You know, you’re smarter than Matty, she thought that she could talk me out of it! And I must admit that I like that!”

She walked to the door and Melinda tried to use her fire against her, but suddenly the atmosphere became colder rather than hotter. She suddenly felt a pressure on her, blocking her powers like a plug.

“Oh! Silly Melly! You can’t use your powers yet! Not until this little game of ours is over!”

She, to cover her emotions, let out a sigh as she shrugged.

“Worth a try.”

“Alright. I’ll let it slide.” She said as she faced the door as Jaden ran to the kitchen to get a knife but she found the drawer was also sealed. She looked back to see that they were at this witch’s mercy.

“One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight!”

The three split and Jaden ran into the front room and hid under the table. Meanwhile Melinda and Matilda ran to Melinda’s room. They looked out of the window to see nothing but a black void.

“So we have to count Danté out.”

“Seems so.”

“Right, Mel, you hide in the attic. I have a hunch I want to check out.”

She looked at her, feeling worried.

“But-”

“Do it now!” She snapped, harsher than she wanted to. 

She looked at her scared. She grabbed her hands. 

“Don’t die Mel. Promise me that you will not do anything that will get you killed!”

“As long as you don’t!”

She nodded as she ran to the trap door. She opened it and the ladders came down and raced up them. She pulled them up and hid among the clothes stored there.

Meanwhile, Melinda pulled open the wardrobe and slipped into it and closed it behind her.

Right. If I’m right, regardless of how easy it is to find me, she will go for the others first and save me until last. After all, if this is about isolating me, this would be the easiest way. Honestly, it’s quite genius.

Yet despite all of this, she felt her heartbeat rapidly and became as loud as a drum in her ear. She felt herself shaking. Which, at first, she passed off as fear. However the smile on her face told her otherwise. No it was completely contrary. Yet she knew that this feeling that she was experiencing was something between fear and excitement.

Why am I excited? No, I’m just afraid, that’s all. Why would I be afraid? I have fighting skills! Then it must be nerves.

She heard a scream. She snapped out of it and tried to open the wardrobe but something was jamming the door. She felt around the edge to feel that the gap between the door and the frame had been sealed together! 

So I can’t get out of here. Which must mean that once we all have hidden we can’t leave or hide anywhere else. That is until Alice has found us.

She let out a deep breath to calm herself down. Knowing that she had to save as much air as she could.

I want her to find me next. I hope that I am wrong about my theory. Truly, I am. I want her to find me first. So that I can face her. I want to fight her.

Why? Since when did I want to fight people like this? Is this the Alex side of me coming out? Or Malice? Or both? Either way, this new sensation is far more frightening than that witch. 

That was when she heard the footsteps of the witch. She closed her eyes as heard them coming closer and closer and closer. Then she felt her smiling twitching at the corners of her mouth.

Please, come closer, come closer!

Then the footsteps passed her room. She heard the sound of the ladders. This was followed by the second scream.

Finally, my turn.

She did not have to wait long.

“Found you!” She sang a moment later. 

The Quiz

“About time! What took you so long?” Melinda taunted.

She smiled widely as she giggled.

“Ain’t you the cocky one! Gooood! I like that!”

“So what happens now?” She asked, smirking and  eager for a fight.

“Well you get to play a quiz!”

Suddenly she felt a jab of disappointment.

“You win, you can do whatever you want and you get your family back!”

She pressed her lips together for a moment, feeling a jab of anger for a moment, yet she soon smiled. After all, she knew that she would get them back. She knew exactly what she was going to do afterwards and how she could prevent this witch from hurting anyone else again. She could tell that Alice was not the kind of person she should let loose on the town or all her work would be for nothing.

“Alright then! If you win you can do whatever you want to me and I’ll do whatever you want.”

“‘Key!”

“Although I do have to ask, how many others did you do what you did to Mat?”

“I dunno! Didn’t count!”

She nodded.

“Right! Then let’s get this over with!”

“I agree Melly!”

Then she took hold of her hand and suddenly everything went black. When everything became light again, she noticed that she was in the middle of the circus stage. The next thing that she noticed was that it was completely empty.

“Your first question; do you know where we are?”

“The circus.”

“Second question; do you remember the Magician’s name?”

“Mohan Nakpana.”

That was when the lights turned green and blue.

“Good, you’re right! Jaden has been returned. Third question; before she became one again what were the names of the twins she was split into?”

“Dorothy and Victoria.” She said as she could feel her heart becoming a touch faster as her mind flicked through all that they did to her.

Green and blue flashed.

“Fifth question; how did you know that there was something scary about them?”

She could feel herself staring to become cold as her skin lightened slightly. She could feel a jab of anger flicker within her.

Green and blue flashed. 

“I used the Magician’s power to see the people getting killed by them.”

“Sixth question; what did Dorothy and Victoria do to you that led to you going to hospital?”

Melinda felt her heart become caught in her throat as she realised what this was all about. This quiz was nothing more than a repeat of the Magician’s game, just using different methods. She has a gut feeling that once she broke, she would lose and lose everything. So she knew that was the last thing that she could do. So she forced herself to calm down and looked at Alice, dead in the eye.

“They broke my legs and tortured me.”

The green and blue lights flashed.

“Seventh question; how did you get out of that situation?”

The green and blue flashed. 

“Danté Dracula saved me and used my body to kill them so that they would become whole again.”

The green and blue flashed.

“Eighth question; when you were in the hospital, what did the Doctor and Nurse try to do to you?”

She clenched her hands beside her. She felt her anger turn to rage as the room became hotter.

“They tried to kill me.”

The green and blue flashed.

“Ninth question, why?”

“To kill my father, which doesn’t make sense. He’s dead after all!”

The green and blue flashed and the room became hotter and hotter.

“Tenth question; what else?”

“They experimented on me.”

The green and blue flashed and the room started to feel like Florida.

“Eleventh question, what did that lead to?”

“Me having pyrokinesis.”

The green and blue flashed and it felt like getting closer to the equator.

“Good. You pay attention. Twelveth question; the vampires that captured you, what were their names?”

“Vytautas and Valli.”

The green and blue lights flashed. 

“Good. Thirteenth question; when Vytuatas captured you, what did he say regarding you and vampires?”

She closed her eyes, feeling rage built as she remembered the time she was his prisoner.

Calm down. Don’t let it get to you. 

“That I looked like one and, if I impressed him, he would turn me.”

The lights flashed as she nodded, she started to feel herself calming down.

“You know, he did have a point. Fourteenth question; how did you get away from them both?”

“Danté Dracula saved me both times.”

The green and blue flashed.

“Fifteenth question; what did it expose?”

This made her anger flared up greater this time as her heart became engulfed by a mad and wild rage. This made the whole tent feel like Texas.

“My weakness.”

The green and blue flashed.

“Sixteenth question; where did you go to address this weakness?”

“The clown Morki.”

The green and blue flashed.

“Seventeenth question; how many personalities did he split you into?”

“Three.”

Green and blue flashed.

“Eighteenth question; what was the first thing that you did as one of them?”

“Killed the clown.” She said, feeling her heartbeat quicken and her breathing became faster and deeper.

The green and blue flashed.

“Nineteenth question; what were their names?”

“Alice, Alex and… Malice.”

The green and blue flashed.

“Good girl.”

She nodded, getting both angry and bored of these seemingly endless questions.

“Twentieth question; when did they come out?”

“In the morning Alice, afternoon Alex and midnight, Malice. Speaking of which, out of curiosity, don’t you find it interesting that the morning personality, the pretty princesses, has the exact same name as you?”

The green and blue flashed.

She giggled.

“Yes, I do! Now the twenty-first question; do you know how many people Malice killed?”

Remember, keep calm. Don’t let her questions get to you! So, she closed her eyes and forced herself to calm down. This led to the temperature of the room to cool down.

“A teacher, a group of girls, who were bullying Alice, Dillon and his gang, a man, a vampire, a woman that falsely accused her husband of wrongdoing, a group of people and a couple of doctors.” She replied, trying to keep herself steady and not focusing on the blood on her hands.

“Twenty-second question; how did you come back together again?”

“Alex and Malice wanted a battle so they did.”

“Twenty-third question; who won?”

“Malice.”

She nodded as her eyes widened.

“Twenty-fourth question; did you kill little old Wendy Wonderlust?”

“Yes.” She said, trying not to show her tightening throat. 

“Twenty-fifth question; what form did she trap me in?”

“A doll.”

She clapped and clapped.

“Good girl! Now all your friends and family have been returned. Now, what do you want for your reward?”

The Battle

“A fight.” Melinda snapped.

Alice smiled slyly.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. If you win you can do whatever you want to me and I will obey all your orders, even if it is to kill the Queen Of Hearts herself! However, if I win, I will take your life.”

“Sure.” 

Alice then sent a shard of ice at her. She dodged. She sent another and another and another in a row. Yet as she had a jolt of energy sprout up inside of her, she was able to dodge every single one of them. Then she sentore shards of ice at her but, as she dodged, she sent one to where she was dodging to. This hit. The next thing that she knew was crashing into the seats.

She went to get up only to see Alice above her. She was hit by a blast of purple light. The next moment she was feeling her foot, hitting her in the side again and again and again. Melinda had to endure the pain as she waited, as patiently as a snake. She focused all their mind up on the pattern of the foot. When her moment came, her hand whipped out like a snake and gripped her ankle. 

With her other hand she thrust her palm into her chin. This sud nothing. She did this again and again and again and still nothing! Yet she could tell, by the wobbling, that she was on the verge of losing consciousness. So she hammered again and again and again and still nothing! She looked down to see that she had fused her foot with the wooden planks below. 

So she dropped and squeezed her ankle. Then pushed it down as she rose up. She then thrust her fist into the witch’s chin as hard as she could. This forced the witch to release her foot and she fell into the planks.

Melinda ran to her and dived into her body. She was about to punch her when she was hit by another purple blast. The next moment, she was being hit from behind. She looked back to see Alice just as she saw another blast. She dived out of the way. She then landed upon a group of chairs. She looked back to see that there was a large and deep hole where she was. She looked down to see a pool of plastic. She looked up to see another one was coming to her. She dived out of the way. They did this again and again and again. 

She could feel a rush of adrenaline. She had to go faster and faster and her mind fully woke up. Almost like it had been climbing until this moment where her mind and body reached their peak.

Then she raised her hand and a blast of fire shot out of her hand which hit the magic blast. Cancelling out both. This shocked her as she looked at her hand. Then she saw another come at her bringing her back into reality. She then repeated the action and sent out another. Which was not as powerful as the first but did the trick. She then saw another coming at her and she repeated this action again and again and again. Soon she was able to master this move. Yet they continued this dance again and again and again. However this was getting both parties nowhere.

So Melinda walked forward and picked up a plank of wood as she climbed on a chair. She sent fire blast after fire blast as she climbed on and on. She got closer and closer. Then the blast came and she sent a blast of fire at it. This caused her to have an opening. She threw the wood at her. When it became close she sent a blast of fire at her.

She was soon rolling on the stage. Then her back hit the wall behind. She staggered as she got to her feet. She let out a deep breath.

“That was good! You’re good! Never had a fight like that before. Wonder what I’ve been missing out on?”

“As are you and I'm thinking of the same thing!”

Then she felt something yank her from behind. Soon her wrists were pinned to the wall. She looked up behind her to see a vine. She flipped her legs back and pushed on. Yet this did nothing. She put more and more power behind it. She felt her arms and chest strain. Then she felt the vines snap. When she landed, she went to throw another blast at her. Then she saw another blast. She pulled her hand away and jumped to her feet.

She saw vines grow beside her feet. She jumped back. Then another set grew by her ankles again. She dived to the left. More grew. She dived to the right, more grew. This caused her to perform a strange dance as she moved from one spot to another. She then jumped and pushed herself on and on. She then jumped and pulled herself on top of the wall. She then threw her leg over the other side.

Alice took hold of it and soon pain flared up and eclipsed her body. She pushed on and yet she still lost her balance and crashed on top of the stage. The next moment her body was wrapped in vines. Alice was soon on top of her.

“You know, I must say, you’re a good fighter! I think that I like this game!” She then leaned in close to her ear. “I want more!”

She placed a hand on her head.

“Now let’s forsake the limitations of reality!”

Then her mind erupted in pain. The next moment she found herself in a field. She looked around and soon recognised that it was the field that she used to spend time playing in her own games, spending hours and hours, pretending to run away from monsters her mind controlled. 

“Why are we here?”

“We are in your Dreamworld. So this is the place that you associate with your imagination?”

“Yes. Why?”

“Who are they?” 

She pointed behind her. She looked back to see her parents.

“Mom and dad!”

She tilted her head as she frowned. Her left eye squinted.

“Yeah. I can see her as your mummy. But him, no.”

“Whatever!”

Then an asteroid hit the ground in front of her. That was when she saw a bird diving at her. She dodged out of the way. She saw another and another and another. She felt a group pecking her in the back. She could feel their beaks digging into her back, painfully pulling chunks out of it. She pushed past the pain and imagined that her hand was a sword. Soon it turned into one. She spun and lobbed off the heads of crows. She swung down to a group in front of her. She slashed and slashed and soon there was a ring of blood and feathers around her.

She looked up at Alice. She ignited the field and turned it into a field of fire. Then the whole field turned into a sea of fire. She looks around.

“Wow!”

Then more and more and more asteroids hit Alice again and again. Next moment she had to retract her hand from her head. The moment that Melinda saw her fingers, she bit into them. Melinda pulled her back and Alice fell upon her. She headbutted her in the nose again and again and again. Then she sent a blast of fire at her and she was soon off her.

Then she turned to the vines and set them alight. She soon climbed to her feet. She then blasted a wave of fire at her as powerful and as hot as she could. Soon the fight was over. 

The Free Town

The town has heard the noise coming from the carnival. Some passed on, fearing that it was one of the many bizarre freaks that lived there. Yet others, that still had a bit of curiosity in them, walked up to it. They saw Amber and purple flashes coming from the circus. So they walked to it. When they opened the plastic curtain they saw Melinda and a woman in battle. Those older than twelve soon recognised her with ice cold blood as the witch Alice. Wendy Wonderlust’s rival. Who had traumatised them as children. Yet the last thing that they heard of her was that Wendy had trapped her in the form of a doll. Soon the smarter ones of the group quickly figured out what it meant that she was free.

Then they all saw the witch become eclipsed by fire. All of them saw her scream as she burnt. They all felt shocked as they saw the flames consumed her flesh. They felt slightly joyful as they knew that Wendy Wonderlust was dead and her rival was burning and was soon a pile of ash. Then they turned to the girl, all of them looked at her in even more shock and horror. Still, their fear kept them still and unmoving. They could do nothing but look at her.

She looked up at the group. She was shocked too, almost like she was seeing them for the first time. The only audible thing was her panting as they saw her body start to shake. She was covered in cuts and bruises and parts of her body were swollen and covered in plasters and bandages. Her eyes dropped in exhaustion as they all could see that there were bags under her eyes. She took several steps away before falling. One of them ran up to her and caught her.

“What do we do?” He asked. 

“Go to Miss Wonderlust’s house.”

They all looked around with pale faces. They all looked at the man as if he was mad. Yet they all knew that it needed to be done, however they were afraid to.

“Maybe we should buy some chocolate?” A woman asked.

They all looked at her horrified. She shrugged with an uncomfortable look on her face.

“Just in case!” She said with a scared smile on her face.

This was enough to get them all to the shop and bought chocolate, cakes, sausages, chicken wings, sticky ribs and beacon. Then they walked up to the ashes of Wendy Wonderlust's house. Which had places that were still burning. They knew by this that she was dead. 

They were all free! This took an hour to sink in. They were now all able to do what they wanted and go where they wanted. They could even leave this messed up town!

Upon this moment, the men brought out a grill and started a BBQ. Soon they were celebrating. 

Meanwhile the man held Melinda and walked away and took her to the hospital. There he met Jaden, Matilda, Danté and Doctor Stephiene. 

Leaving The Town

Melinda woke up. The first thing that her eyes met was the white ceiling. Her body hurt all over and she felt like stone. She could feel her wounds itching all over. She would have scratched them but she felt something was covering them. Her heartbeat was steady as her mind was still asleep.

Then the one thing that woke her mind was the smell. It was the smell of a hospital. The sound of beeping increased as fear rippled throughout her body. She shot up as all that she went through in the hospital rushed throughout her mind.

Then she saw a hand on her shoulder. She  threw a punch at the one that the hand belonged to. 

“Aw!” Growned Danté. 

“Danté?”

“Yes.”

“Sorry.”

“It’s alright. I should have expected that!”

She looked around to see that she was in a hospital room. 

“Do not worry. Me and Doctor Stephiene have been guarding you the entire time.”

“How long?”

“A weak. Only half the town is still here. The other half have left to who knows where.”

Melinda felt a weak smile rest up on her lips.

“That’s good.”

“So what’s next for you?” Doctor Stephiene asked.

“Food. I’m hungry.”

They all laughed.

“Thought so.”

The next moment she was eating a good full English breakfast. She ate slowly. She wanted to savour each and every taste of the food. She took small bites and closed her eyes as she wanted to focus upon the flavour of the beacon and vegetables. When she finished, she drank her hot chocolate and went back to sleep. 

✴️

Three days later; Jaden, Melinda and Matilda were at the entrance of Manchester Airport.

“Will you ever come back to visit?” 

Jaden apologetically shook her head. Danté looked down to the side.

“I don’t think so.”

Melinda looked at Danté, knowing that he was upset, she wanted to give him something to keep him going.

“Why don’t you visit us?”

“I can’t. I’m the vampire king now. So I can’t afford to leave the rest of the vampires of this world or they might get some ideas in their head as to what to do with the remaining residents.”

“And we can’t have that can we?” Melinda laughed as she covered the scars on the bend of her neck.

She could hear the ghost of Vyteuatas whispering in her ear about how well she would do as a vampire. Yet thinking back on it, though she did not feel comfortable with admitting it, she started to agree.

“No.”

“Not at all!”

“So is this goodbye?”

“I guess so.”

He looked down incapable of masking his upset. He nodded as he looked back at her. He wrapped his arms around her and closed his eyes. Before opening them when he pulled away.

“Alright. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye.”

“Goodbye.”

“Goodbye.”

They walked away and into the airport and, after a very long time, they got on the plane and left England and the strange particular bizarre town behind.