Elayra sighed heavily at Ghent’s apparent disdain at being called a component and lowered her sword. “We’re [i]all[/i] components in a grander picture, Ghent. You, me, Drust… You’re just a new one being added to ours, and vice versa. What kind of results that’ll have isn’t predictable. [i]Nothing[/i] from today has been.” She ran a stressed hand through her hair as she looked to the ground.
	“I know we told you that you had that long. But…” She glanced behind her to the street where the last shadowmire had disappeared. As she turned her attention back to Ghent, the corpses began to dissolve into a black, red, and gray mist. It swirled upward in a glittering spiral, then dispersed like a firework before disappearing, leaving only a dark stain where the black cat had fallen.
	“Those things are basically [i]her[/i] spies. They heard us, Ghent. They know who you are, that you’re alive, and have a good enough idea about me. We killed most of them,” a grin pulled at the corner of her lips, before slipping away as she continued, “but one of them got away. It’d be [i]unwise[/i] to wait that long now.”
	[b]“I’m no longer interested.”[/b]
	“What?” she breathed, dumbfounded, as Ghent brushed past her. “Ask your…” She spun and stepped toward him to grip his arm, so easily forgetting he knew nothing about the events of Wonderland. “Ghent.” She took a deep breath, unsure how to tell him about Hatter. “When the Sorceress attacked Heart Castle, Hatter wouldn’t abandon the White Queen. They were both too loyal to the duty to do everything in their power to stop her.” She hesitated. Her expression hardened and her own hatred and bitterness for the Sorceress shone through her gray eyes. “That night, [i]only[/i] three people escaped the siege. The lucky ones, like my mother, were killed. The rest, including your father, are suffering a far worse fate. Your ‘old man’ needs a hero just as much as our worlds do.”