The Duchess smiled subtly at Alexander’s questions. “The Guardian is the protector of the Nexus,” she answered, and with a gentle sweep of her hand magically opened the book she held in her other hand, letting the pages fly from cover to cover, as if to emphasize the importance of her words. “You will find her in Penrose. That is all I know. But do not worry: I’m sure she will find you before you find her. Such is life for those chosen by fate.” When he next lifted his manacles up to show to her, she held a hand over her mouth to stifle a giggle.
“Unfortunately, I cannot remove the Magic Muting Manacles of Mild Metal. Only the Queen holds the keys, and I lack the strength to break them. However, if you find the giant, I’m sure he could break them for you. He might break some bones while he’s at it, but you will get better with your own magic afterwards~. Just keep following the road that leads from the Bastille, and you will surely find him. But beware, for he has a temper about him.” 

Finally, she turned her eyes towards Brittany, who had stood up and shuffled towards the bars of her cell after Alex pointed her out. “Oh, the little merchant girl? I suppose I might as well,” the Duchess stated, and with a whisk of her hand her cell door was opened as well. Brittany smiled, and hopped out of the cell with enthusiasm. “Thank you kindly, Miss Duchess! If you come by my shop, I’ll be sure to give you a discount!” The Duchess giggled. “Oh, I would love to. Now then, off you go, you two. Oh, and one last warning: when you enter Tulgey Wood, do not expose your back or let anyone see it~”. And with that the Duchess turned away, and walked off towards the salon, opposite the way from the spiral staircase that led down the Bastille. Brittany took hold of Alex’ shoulder. “Come on, let’s go find this giant.”
[hr]
[Center]
 [img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/200312/bd228c426d0da7459764cb788d45b1cd.png[/img]
[Sub].:⋮At the Meadow, Under the Tree⋮:.[/Sub]
[/center]

[color=9e0039][i]I’ll leave it to you then, Mariette. I’m with Lily at the park, but I detect Ronin, Miko, and others arriving with my sensors. Won’t be long before we’re ready to move out.[/i][/color]

While Penny was still getting used to showing more expression, the others could already tell from her slight smile that the Queen of Penrose had begun shifting towards being more humane and presentable, having placed her hands on her hips instead of keeping them crossed or robotically at her sides like she had often done in the past. However, her posture slightly changed after she received the message from Janet. While she had gotten used to her transformations by now, the latest one had carried an aura about it like none other. Just from a glance, she could tell the self-proclaimed Guardian now equaled or even surpassed her in sheer combat potential. But underneath the bright sparkles, she could tell it was still the same girl she had known all along. Putting that aside, she addressed the new arrivals.

[color=9e0039][u][b]“Hello Alicia,”[/b][/u][/color] she greeted the Paladin Seraph back with a casual raise of her hand, followed by setting her sights on her girlfriend and her friends. However, one friend in particular raised an eyebrow at the Knight of Tomorrow. 
[color=9e0039][u][b]“We’ll be counting on you from now on then,”[/b][/u][/color] she simply stated, and walked over to place a hand around MDP’s shoulder, listening patiently as she recounted her experiences with Alicia. 
[color=9e0039][u][b]“You’ve been busy, huh?”[/b][/u][/color] She commented with a loving smile. 
[color=9e0039][u][b]“Speaking of, notice anything different?”[/b][/u][/color]

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/72bEcUi.png[/img][/center]

[color=fff200]”...”[/color]

As Lily watched Penny and MDP share a lovey-dovey moment, she bit the corner of her lip: as much as she tried to focus, she couldn’t help but be reminded of Alex, and how much she missed him. Fortunately, a distraction soon arrived in the form of a familiar sound of a speeding car, followed by Nefer jumping out of it as Akhenaten speedily parked the car over in the next block. She seemed to be quite pumped up, with a couple of high-tech weapons slung over her shoulders and a manic grin on her face.
“My oh my, so many cuties, all ready to rumble. I can barely contain myself~” She mused to herself, followed by throwing a cybernetic ball device of sorts, and bicycle kicking it.

The moment it reached the center of the park, the ball shattered into countless tiny pieces that began to float around the park, first forming tendrils of energy which then spread into a veil that coated the park. “Made a couple of tweaks to my little invention from last time. Now it only blocks Wonderland surveillance, and lasts three times longer, alongside other features. Ain’t I a genius?” Only the black golem clapped his hands once had arrived, to which the eccentric magical girl bowed in a grandiose manner. Lily nodded, trying to show her appreciation despite her lack of spirit. 
[color=fff200]“You sure are. Thank you for the help, Nefer.”[/color]
The strange magical girl flashed a smile to Lily, before she got distracted by Melisa. “Oh, ain’t you just the cutest cutie in all the world of cuties!” She gushed over the fairy-like girl. “I could just throw whipped cream on you and eat you up!” Lily rolled her eyes at the strange girl, and then walked over to Connie and Mia. 
[color=fff200]“How are you doing? I’m a bit nervous myself, but I won’t let it stop me from going to Wonderland and rescuing Alex!”[/color]

[hr]
Mariette ventured into Wonderland, to the Pea Princess' domain of farmland and endless fields of vegetables and produce. She lived in a small castle, its heraldry and banners decorated with various vegetables like peas, cabbages and so on. Having only detected regular guards wearing green, round helmets, and with no hidden spies or magical surveillance nearby, she entered the Pea Princess’ bedroom. It was a large chamber, with an incredibly tall ceiling. Once Mariette looked at the bed itself, she understood why: twenty mattresses and twenty featherbeds were piled into a tower that subtly wobbled from one direction to the other.

“What the fuck!?” Mariette heard the shrill, tired voice of a girl far above her, before she saw the sheets shift at the very top. No matter how badly the soft stack teetered, it never fell over, even as the Vassal Princess herself leaned over to look at Mariette in surprise. Her frilly pajamas, made of soft silk with gold embroidery, were disheveled, and her brown, regular-length hair was unkempt and frazzled. Her skin was pale and sickly, and her limbs trembled. But what most caught Mariette’s attention were her green, bloodshot eyes that stared as if they were looking past Mariette rather than at her, her head slightly dangling. Alongside her prominent eye bags, she looked completely exhausted.

“Who the fuck are-Oh, it’s you!” Her angry disposition seemed to slightly shift, and she visibly struggled to lift herself up to sit properly. “So you’re Alice, huh? The Queen’s darling daughter. How the fuck did you even get here? Ever heard of doors before? Knock on the door next time! I was trying to sleep, goddammit!” She rubbed her eyes for a moment, and then let out a mix of a sigh, yawn and a groan. “So you got my message. Look, I know how fucked the situation is in Wonderland. Some Vassals get it easy, like Sleeping Beauty, while others get screwed, not to mention the peasants, pigs, the sheep, and so many others. Sure, it would be great if I got to sleep all day.”

She then groaned again, and rubbed her temples with her fingers. “But I gotta see what the fuck is even the point in all this, or if it’s completely hopeless. I’m not going to do shit if it just results in the Queen punishing me for going against her. What can a stupid brat like you even do? How many Vassals are dumb enough to dare to stand against her? How many soldiers do they have? And how many of those bastards are going to whine and demand pea soup? I can’t just give pea soup to everyone, peas don't grow on fucking trees! Well, maybe they do, but you get my fucking point! Argh, I can’t think straight, fuck!” She ended her tirade by punching and tearing her pillow with enough force to cause feathers to burst out. Then, as she violently landed her head back on the pillow, the feathers were magically sucked back in, and the enchanted pillow mended itself.