The Looking Glass Looking Back
Posted on Tue Aug 30th, 2022 @ 7:25pm by Captain Maia Sterling & Lieutenant Commander Sheena Toran-Blake & Lieutenant Isabelle Raal & Lieutenant Commander Rick Gibbs
Mission:
Shore Leave
Location: Confinement Quarters
Timeline: Current
James lead Isabelle out of the turbolift once they stopped at the destination deck. Walking down towards the quarters with the two security guards placed outside of it. Turning to her a moment, "Got everything you need?"
Isabelle nodded. “I think so, right now it’s mainly my senses, and my witts!” She grinned. “I’m fascinated to meet Alice, I’ve never met a living playing card before. I want to find out what this is all about.”
Alice sat in her holding cell reading a book on the viewer. It was a children's novel Anne of the Green Gables. She was eating crumpets and drinking tea. She had been there since the adults had led her there when she was originally transported to this ship from the Rutledge.
It had been several hours so far...
"I wouldn't particularly call her a playing card per say. I'm curious also, it couldn't be the facsimiles from Omicron Delta.
All the way out here. I mean on the ship. I was unaware the being that was reported there could project into space." Rick gave a little shrug and nod to the guards. Stepping inside with Isabelle. The guards securing the room again behind them.
Alice put the viewer aside and stood up and curtsied.
"Hello, my name is Alice have you seen the white rabbit around here?" the girl asked.
His hands clasped together at the small of his own back, "Hello Alice. My name is Rick, and this is Isabelle. I'm afraid that I've not seen Mister Hare as of late. Surely he's not been late." It was worth a shot, Rick gathered. See how this Alice would take to what he said, and how he said it.
Isabelle simply stood watching the interaction between Alice and Rick, it was fascinating the way she referred to the white rabbit. She had to wonder where the reference to Alice in Wonderland came in, why copy a children’s story in such a manner?
*Curtsies*
It's ever so nice to meet you both. The white rabbit continues to elude me, I chased him through a portal and ended up on that other spaceship. Then somehow I ended up here. It's all very perplexing. Would you like some tea and crumpets they are both very good"? The girl asked politely.
“Tea would be lovely, thank you” Isabelle smiled warmly. “I’m Isabelle by the way.”
"It's nice to meet you, Isabelle," Alice said getting up and pouring her visitors some tea.
"I have some yummy crumpets too., would you like some," Alice asked.
Isabelle shook her head. “No, thank you. Tea is just fine for me.”
"Maybe in a little bit," Gibbs just smiled at Alice still. "Do you know where you are, and how you got here, Alice?"
"Someone told me I was on the Leto, I do know I came with the other crew of the Rutledge after following the white rabbit through a portal. I don't know what the Leto is exactly, but I assume it's some sort of vessel and that we are somehow in space," Alice said nibbling on a crumpet.
He gave a glance down a moment, then dropped his arms to his side. "You are on a ship, in space. The Leto. Do you remember of another ship than the Rutledge? The Enterprise."
Isabelle sipped her tea simply observing the interaction with Alice. She seemed to show no surprise at the fact she was aboard a ship, though she was waiting to see her reaction to the news she'd just had.
"No Sir, I have no recollection of a Ship called Enterprise, is it a clipper ship or a ship like this?" Alice said.
Rick raised an eyebrow, "It's like this, but not as new. Also as far as I remember from the reports, you were limited to being on the planet."
Alice sipped her cup of tea.
"What are you going to do with me? Where are you taking me?"
"Well, we haven't quite established that yet, Alice," Rick said.
Isabelle offered a polite smile as she looked at Alice. “What can you tell us about the others? What do you remember about your life on the planet?”
"I remember chasing the white rabbit through a portal and that's how I ended up on the Rutledge, before that, I was asleep and dreaming," Alice said.
Isabelle looked at Rick curiously, before looking back at Alice. “This portal you just mentioned, where did it bring you from? I know you said you were sleeping, but where?”
"I was in a garden napping. The white rabbit woke me and said he was late, then ran off, I gave chase. He then went through a portal and I followed him. Somehow I ended up here." Alice said.
“Curiouser and Curiouser” Isabelle looked to Rick to see what other questions he had.
"He always says he's late. Could you draw the portal you saw and went through?" Rick got her stuff to draw with.
"Sure!" Alice said.
Alice drew a child's version of a rabbit hole.
"Here you go," Alice said.
"And the rabbit?" Rick gave it back once he looked at it.
"The rabbit gave me the slip on the Rutledge," Alice said.
"I mean would you try to draw him for me," Gibbs asked.
"Okay, he's taller than I am and wears a paisley vest and he has a pocket watch. He's covered in white fur and also wears a derby and spectacles." Alice said.
She drew a crude picture of him as well as any child could.
"Fascinating," Sheena said watching the two interact with a similicron if you could call Alice that. She was, for all intense and purposes a child with manners and this fascination with a white rabbit. Sheena knew of the story of Alice in Wonderland and wondered herself if this portal was some sort of entryway to what made the planet tick.
Isabelle looked toward Sheena and Rick. “I have a lot more questions than answers right now.”
"We all have questions. It's why I came down here." Rick looked back to Alice, "Do you remember anything before waking up?"
"I was playing in the garden at my parent's house," Alice said
"Were they with you? Anyone else around lately there also?" Rick kneeled down.
Isabelle was listening carefully, monitoring the emotions from Alice as she spoke. Which up until now had felt pretty steady.
"No, my daddy is a ship's captain for the merchant marines, and my mother was entertaining some of her friends, I was told to go play in the garden. She didn't want me bothering her or her friends," Alice said.
"My governess told me children should be seen but not heard, so I went to play," Alice added.
“I see” Isabelle nodded. “So what happened after you went to play Alice?”
"I saw the white rabbit and chased him through the portal and ended up on the Rutledge, and then here somehow," Alice said.
Standing back up, Rick took a half step back, "Hmm..this line of questioning isn't really getting us anywhere." Raising an eyebrow and back to Alice, "What all did they ask you and show you on the Rutledge?"
"No one asked me anything, I was ignored like I always am. hardly anyone ever talks to children." Alice replied.
Sheena sat there utterly speechless as she listened to Alice recount her whereabouts and how she got here. How did she get here? From her own understanding, this was a little girl from a work of fiction who was alive somehow and could quite possibly travel through time portals. The idea was absolutely ludicrous, yet here she was and talking!?
"Do you have any tea? It's tea time." Alice said.
“I can arrange something for you Alice” Isabelle smiled. “What would you like?”
"A nice hot cup of camomile would be delightful," Alice stated.
Isabelle nodded and walked over to the replicator to order the chamomile tea. Returning she gently placed it down on the table by Alice. “Your tea.”
"Thank you," Alice said.
"Well, we're not ignoring you. We wanna help." Rick smiled to her.
"You can help me find the white rabbit," Alice replied.
"That's a little more complicated than it sounds. Which is why I was asking where you came from and how you got on the Rutledge. We know of a planet that you may have been seen on before." Sitting down, Rick crossed his legs.
"Is that where we are going now?" Alice asked.
He nodded, "Yes, we are."
[OFF]
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A post by:
Captain Maia A Sterling
Commanding Officer
USS Leto NCC-80916
&
Lieutenant jg Marina Tanger
Asst Chief Intelligence Officer
USS Leto NCC-80916
&
