Caterpillar GrottoThe White Rabbit was stricken nervous by the girl's questions regarding her weapons. ...That's right, the Hatter gave additional orbs to her in the wake of him seeing more humans on his way back to his sanctuary. One of them was meant for Tyler, but he's lost thanks to falling into a tree and there was yet another human that was now among their ranks once more.
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Ah, yes...Here you go." Jill said, reaching into her little pockets and taking out another set of orbs, giving one to Tylissa, one to Mark, one to Jacob, and one to Arthur.
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You have to squeeze them until they break while thinking about what weapons you want, then they'll turn into them. ...You...probably shouldn't do it here though." The White Rabbit said.
Meanwhile, The Caterpillar looked over to the one who asked the first question to him.
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The Personas that you have all acquired are a side of you that manifests as you face the world around you in your daily life. You may think of it as an alter ego, a mask, that manifests itself as you face hardships in your life. They exist within your mind, and is empowered by the strength of your will, your heart. To further enhance them is akin to enhancing yourself, in mind, body, and soul. In layman's terms, you can think of your persona as a limb in addition to your arms and legs, in that the more you use it, the stronger it - and you by extention - will become. Typical training such as this is only half of it, and so would only give you half of the true potential you can wield. The other half is strengthening the soul, the heart, and that can only be done through your bonds with others. To truly strengthen yourselves as individuals, you must also strengthened yourselves as comrades. I understand such a thing may be difficult, you certainly look as if you only just met each other very recently, after all. Bonding is not so simple that we'd expect you to be friends with people you have only ever seen about an hour ago at most. However, you will only be able to overcome what awaits you beyond this point if you work together, and so it is advisable to take the time to get along with each other, and strengthen your heart, your persona, by doing so, as best as you can." The Caterpillar explained to Cronic, and by extension to everyone else. He next turned to Hector, who also gave a good question on the matter regarding this world.
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...For the most part, no, we were not. Aspects of your world are unfamiliar to us in our world. All we knew for certain is that this world shaped itself this way because it is the way you humans collectively desired it to be."
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...Yet another creature that speaks in riddles..."
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...Very well. If you insist, I shall simplify this for you as best as I can." The Caterpillar said upon hearing Adam's annoyance. Immediately, he breathed out a large puff of smoke, dispersing and shaping itself unnaturally into shapes and images conveniantly matching what he has to say next.
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The world you see before you now, this world you know as Wonderland, is a part of the sea of souls, the collective unconsciousness of all living things. Humanity and other species like it are connected via this sea, and so shapes it by the current state of their hearts. In other words, Wonderland was made to be the way it is by the will of humans."
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...So, we are the reason your world is like this?"
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Not you all specifically, but humanity in general. To be precise, the collective populace of the area you were taken from. Wonderland is not all there is to the sea, after all. ...As I am not familiar with your world, or the state of which it is in, I cannot surmise as to why this world and we shadows were shaped into such forms, only how." The caterpillar explained. He then looked towards Luke, and though Luke clearly tried to hide it, it was rather easy for both the Rabbit and the Caterpillar to read his emotions. The Caterpillar went silent for a second, placing his pipe back in his mouth and smoking it with a saddened look on his face before puffing another cloud of smoke.
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I am sorry, but the World Trees and any other forms of transportation within this world, are not capable of such a feat. This world was never meant to be visited by humans, and so a way in or out was never meant to exist naturally. The times in the past where your world interacted with our own occurred by the direct intervention and meddling of others. The circumstance bringing you and the lost children to Wonderland being no different; the Looking Glass was created as a means of bringing humans to this world, and even that is a one-way door for them." The Caterpillar explained.
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...Created by who?" Chase simply asked.
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The Queen, I would imagine."
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'Imagine'? You mean you don't know for certain?"
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...Embarassingly, yes. It is a question I am currently attempting to discover for myself, but the direct cause of this phenomenon is elusive, every attempt at solving this mystery has been met with a proverbial wall erected by hands unknown to my eyes. However, the fact remains that the Queen has made use of the Looking Glass regardless of who truly created it, and that it is catalyst of her goals. Therefore if it is not the queen herself who created it, I believe it is someone or something close to her." The Caterpillar changed his attention back to Luke, knowing he might not have liked the answer he was given to his question.
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I understand you have many anxieties regarding your own world. I may not know or even understand what they are specifically, but I certainly know they are there. You were dragged to this world against your will, it is only natural you feel the way you do. Were there any other way they could have done this, they would have taken it in a heartbeat. The rebels truly have done everything they could to stop what is about to transpire...the lot of you are their last resort. ...If it's any consolation, you may have quite some time before anyone in your world notices you are gone. Time in this world flows differently from time in your own world. Before Wonderland, time used to flow at the same pace as it did in your world, but certain events in the past, combined with the twisted nature of this wonderland, has altered many of the rules to be different and ever-shifting, including time. Time in this world flows faster than it does in your world, and so it may take a day or two in this world before the sun rises in your own. ...However, do not be mistaken, time is running out for us all."
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...What do you mean?" The Caterpillar then took his pipe into his hand and used it to point up, if the others looked up as well, they'd see a moon in the sky, nearly full but not quite there.
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...In Wonderland, whenever it is a full moon in this world, it is midnight in your world. The looking glass opens up, and more children are lured to the Queen's castle. It is past midnight in your world, so the moon's full phase has only recently passed. But in due time, it shall be full again as midnight strikes your world the next night. Our Queen has gathered a number of children and her dominion has further spread with each harvest. This next night will be her largest yet, and most likely her last. If she is not stopped before the next full moon, she will have what she needs to extend her reign beyond Wonderland. Should that happen, the rebellion will fail, and the humans of your world will suffer for it."
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...In other words, we have a Time Limit." Chase said. It was around this point that Jacob decided to ask his own question to the Caterpillar, oddly changing the dreaded subject unknowingly.
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Oh? ...I had thought the Hatter and his comrades already explained this to you all."
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Umm...He wasn't with us during that, he and a few others came with us later on." Jill said to the Caterpillar, pointing towards Jacob, Tylissa, and Arthur.
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...I see, late arrivals then. ...Very well, I will keep this swift and simple. You were all chosen for the power of Persona that you wield. Not all people in your world are capable of wielding the potential for this power that you possess, and so only you stand here before us now. No other human is capable of fighting the Shadows, and no creature, be it human or shadow, can stand against the queen without the capability of persona." The Caterpillar then looked over to everyone else.
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Are there any other questions? ...No? ...Very well. Step into the Pond, and it shall take you back to the Sanctuary, you will likely need some rest and a strategy before stepping into the four realms of Wonderland. ...I shall always be here in this place, so if you have any other questions about this world, about we shadows, or about your personas, do not hesitate to come back and see me. I have opened the way between the sanctuary and here, so you may come and go through this pond as you see fit." The Caterpillar explained to them, as the pond began to glow with a beautiful cyan.
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This world is a haven of many dangers, but do not lose heart. Stay true to yourselves, and you shall succeed." The Caterpillar then said as Alice, Jill, Adam, and Chase jumped into the pond first.
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Hatter's SanctuaryAs soon as they step into the pond, they would immediately find themselves coming out of a giant mirror in the Sanctuary, as if the surface of the pond and the surface of the mirror were the same. There they'd be greeted by the Hatter and his comrades, Sipping tea in a floating and spinning chair non-chalantly.
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...Welcome back. I had recieved word from the Dorm Mouse that you managed to awaken to your personas. I must admit, I'm quite impressed; you adapted faster than I was expecting. ...Ah, and these three must be the ones in the forest I saw a while ago. I'm glad to see you are safe. ...I am the Mad Hatter, as the three of you may have guessed, and we are a rebellion against the Queen of Wonderland." The hatter said, the latter half of his words being focused towards Jacob, Arthur, and Tylissa.
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...There was actually one more, but...he dropped himself in a World Tree on accident."
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I see...Well, there's no need to lose heart. I'll send one of our men to try searching for him. In the meantime, what did the Caterpillar say must be done?" The Hatter asked. Jill hopped forward and explained to him what the Caterpillar explained to the others.
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...Hmmm...There's a great deal of risk with such a plan, you only just awakened to your persona abilities, and those keys are likely very well-guarded in the center of each section." The hatter contemplated aloud.
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Well...we might be able to pull it off if we all work together and go to them one at a time."
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Yeah, no...Not happening." Said the voice of the Dorm Mouse as she came out of the rabbit hole, clearly somewhat injured after her fight with those silhouettes.
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Dorm, are you alright?" Jill asked as she hopped over to the mouse woman.
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Just a scratch here and there, some of those spoiled little brats don't fight fair, that's all. More importantly, they're on high alert now. The whole lot of us sensed you guys getting your personas - good job with that by the way - and they went running, likely heading back to their respective lairs to reinforce security. A good chance at least one of them came running to Daddy Dearest and told him about it already, and if he knows, the Queen probably knows too."
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...Oh dear."
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But why would that stop us from doing what the rabbit here says and attack them one at a time?"
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Because of time. ...Now that they know that you are all awakened, you are an ever-growing problem to them, but we only have until midnight in your world and a full moon in ours, and they know this. They are not protecting themselves from a threat, they are stalling for time."
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...How much time do we have then?"
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Every six hours in your world is 24 in ours. Therefore...we have less than four days before the next full moon."
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Less than 96 hours then, that sounds like a fairly large amount of time, all things considered. We probably could storm them together and get to the castle by then."
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...If only it was so simple. The shadows you all fought in the forest are but mere pests compared to the Queen's soldiers. For as much as I admire your confidence, and have faith in your newfound persona abilities, you have only just awakened to those powers, and the Queen's forces, her Royal house and the card soldiers with them, they shall not show you mercy or relent. Even when you succeed in getting those keys from them, the next step is storming the Queen's Castle, a challenge in and of itself even for us. Focusing on one thing at a time will cost too much of it. It is for the best we save time by focusing on all four lands at once." The Hatter explained.
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But that would mean splitting us all up, right? ...Isn't that even more dangerous?" Alice asked.
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Fear not, None of you will be alone during this. As I mentioned, you are our only hope of fighting the queen, it would be unfortunate should any more of you die by the hands of her minions before you even meet her. Therefore, I will be sending a member of this rebellion to each of the four parties to protect and train you in preparation for what's to come. ...Now then, there is still some time we can use to rest. I suggest you all take the time to do so, and discuss among yourselves who is going where. My only advice is to keep it as even as possible." The Hatter explained.
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