Alice

It is a truth often forgotten that the end is very rarely the end
Tyrants may fall and galaxies may burn and life goes on
But, as Alice is about to discover
Sometimes there are places fall that through the cracks

Come in, Comsat Cheshire, please respond
This is Scout Captain Alice Liddel requesting confirmation, over
Hello! Fantastic to meet you, Alice!
What can I do for you?
I'm picking up the signal of an old RABIT beacon circling your planet?
Correct
I have refused it landing and broadcast permissions
As its contents have been deemed detrimental to the war effort

What? But it's the ceasefire declaration
The war is over
Which I'm sure you'll agree is very
Detrimental to King Cole's war effort!
It's been sixty years!
Who's in charge of your protocols?
All sufficiently ranking Crown officers are dead
Override code 473-GR1N...

Code refused
You have been deemed detrimental to the war effort
Needle drones DE and DM have been dispatched to assist you
Have a great day!

Now, it would take a lot more than being
Shot down to put an end to someone like Alice
Climbing from the wreckage
She saw something she had only ever
Read about in storybooks: a rebel encampment
Screams and gunfire drifted faintly on the breeze
As she moved down the hill, past the corpses in hand-me-down uniforms
And into the base
Where a young general stared at her with hazy, unfocused eyes

Are you in command here?
I've been forced to land near your base
Well, then, relax, don't be so tense
The war that was raging is now only waged in this place
I'm sorry, you're not making sense

Since the drones brought me down
Both the rebel and crown tried to shoot me
Of course they did, that's what they're for
Whoever is leading you needs to be freed of that duty
I'm general, like my father before

War is all there is, Rookie
Killing and dying
You want to escape? Just take a hit of this

This world is a wonderland once you can understand death
There must be someone here still sane
Drink from this tincture and think about your final breath
Not broken by the death and pain
'Drink me' and 'eat me' are orders so sweetly obeyed
Are there Crown bases still in range?
Just open your mind to the colours you'll find if you stay
The air in here makes me feel strange

You want to find the Red Queen, just head north a day
But if you want to leave, you'll have to drink this
Now take a deep breath, open your eyes

When Alice finally came back to herself
She was absolutely covered in blood
Luckily, none of it was hers, and she shook her head
Trying to get rid of the feeling
That she was, somehow, forty feet tall
Nearby, she saw soldiers in all manner and colours of uniform
But to her surprise,
Instead of gunfire, Alice heard the clink of teacups

What's going on? Shouldn't you be fighting?
Oh, we are fighting, we're just having a ceasefire
Who are you fighting?
Oh, come with me, I'll introduce you!
Hello!

We fight for our lieges-
Oh, after you!
No, after you!
I insist!

We fight for our lieges with loyalty unmatched, that's not changed
We're consistent, they say!
We shan't be deserters, turn our backs on what we know, that's insane
It's entirely deranged!

So which of you is fighting for King Cole?
Oh, it's certainly not me
It's not me, man's a monster!
I thought you were his colonel!
Pretty sure I'm a major!

Raise your cups, raise your cups!
To this sordid affair
For today we drink, tomorrow we fight!
Raise your cups, raise your cups!
Majors Hatter and Hare!
As we're on the brink, just not tonight

Our entrenchment entrenched till more orders emerge
While war's borders diverge, here we stay
So while we're on the bench, bring more tea, concierge!
Oh, some lapsing souchong or Earl grey

Forget the tea, you're fighting tomorrow?!
Well actually, I think you'll find
That if today's tomorrow is tomorrow
Then surely tomorrow's tomorrow is today
No, no, wait a minute-

Raise your cups, raise your cups!
To this sordid affair
For today we drink, tomorrow we fight!
Raise your cups, raise your cups!
Majors Hatter and Hare!
As we're on the brink, just not tonight

They say keep your friends close and your enemies closer
It's a tried and tested strategy that's worked for us so far
So with war plans in pieces and peace talks disbarred
We're on the brink, just not tonight!

Oh, she's leaving! Funny one, isn't she?
Probably an enemy spy
Almost definitely
Hatter?
Yes, Hare?
Have you noticed there's a dormouse in the teapot?
I think it's always been there

Alice had had just about enough of this nonsense
And left the majors or colonels or
Whatever they were behind as she headed north
The general had said that's where the Crown forces were to be found
And it seemed they were the last hope
Alice had of talking to someone sensible
But after three days of travel through
Burned out cities and fields of barbed wire
She was just about at the end of her tether

But as she was about to collapse in complete despair
She saw something on the horizon
Alice couldn't believe her eyes
Even sixty years later, everyone knew what a Rose Red looked like
But as they got close, she realised they weren't really Rose Reds
But just their skin, stretched over shuddering robot bodies

Behind them, they dragged a platform
Upon which stood a real Rose Red, perhaps the last on the planet
Her uniform was stained black with old blood
And she dragged behind her a human, dressed as a Lieutenant
He didn't look very happy at all

We will find them, we will bind them
We will chop of their heads, heads, heads
We'll replace them with the face of
lots of lovely rose reds, reds, reds

We will find them, we will bind them
We will chop of their heads, heads, heads
We'll replace them with the face of
lots of lovely rose reds, reds, reds

We will find them, we will bind them
We will chop of their heads, heads, heads
We'll replace them with the face of
lots of lovely rose reds, reds, reds

Queen of Hearts presiding!
I call to the stand the prosecution: the Queen of Hearts!

As I was a-marching my troops to the fray
The craven Knave of Hearts came retreating my way
He was quickly followed after and brought back with speed
He was handcuffed and guarded and brought before me
Court martial, court martial then quickly was declared
And the sentence passed upon him, off with his head

My Queen, have mercy on him in your sad cruelty
I know the queen's duty lies heavy upon thee
My Queen, the war is over since decades long gone
No! Until my last bullet, my troops will be strong
Then set him free from his irons and let him go free
He'll make a good soldier for his queen and country

Off with his head!

What happened to Alice after that, no one really knows
Some say she was rescued, others that she lost her own head
And some say she's on that strange planet to this day
All we know for sure is, if you're ever in that sector of space
You can turn your receiver to pick up a very odd message indeed

Come in, all friendly military forces-
This is Scout Captain Alice Liddel, requesting- reinforcements!
What? Lots of reinforcements!
There's a lot of fighting down here
So you need to send more soldiers!
Send lots more soldiers
I need them
I need them for the war