It was cold.

Having grown used to the lack of warmth and mercy in my life lately, the exposure to the cool temperature wasn't something that bothered me. Not anymore. All I wanted to do was get more sleep. But a few minutes of trying to drown myself in the dark oblivion of sleep and then eventually giving up when it refused to consume my consciousness, I realized that something was off. The ground under me tickled and slightly irritated my skin and it was also a lot softer than I remembered. I had slept on the floor for so long that I was familiar with every bump, crack, and crevice that always greeted me when I woke up. Realizing this, I could tell immediately that I was definitely not lying on a stone floor any more.

So that meant...

Where was I?

My eyes snapped open and I lifted my head, ignoring the intense throbbing pain that resulted. Being wary and cautious was something that had been ingrained into my mind out of necessity, but any attempt in keeping my guard up had been nearly shattered by the sight that greeted me. Despite the pain, the protests of my aching muscles and the rising nausea of my situation in general, I forced myself off of the ground and into a standing position to get a better view of what I had originally seen, using the structure in front of me as a support to remain upright.

Rather than a small, roughly carved out space that would have induced claustrophobia into any person, I found myself in an open field that seemed to stretch out for miles. An open field that was full of tombstones lined side by side with only the green grass and and a few trees to provide a scenery. I would have said that my surroundings were almost peaceful if I didn't know what carefully carved up stones sticking out of the ground meant.

I had been to a place very much like where I was in the past. I couldn't remember how long it had been, but the wild emotions and pain of having to go there never left me and forever burned the images into my mind.

Apparently I was in a cemetery.

Wonderful.

"Seriously?" I muttered to myself as I made a face at the depressing scene in front of me. "If I'm dead, couldn't you have gotten rid of the pain as well since I'm no longer bound to my physical body?"

Unless I was actually still alive and just in a lot of pain. Though it was more plausible that I died and woke up next to my grave and was now a ghost haunting the area my body had been buried in. But if that were the case, shouldn't I have been unable to touch the tombstone I was using as a support for the moment? Ghosts usually phased through things, didn't they?

Ugh. I had to get my thoughts together. I couldn't afford to let my mind wander off. Not when I had no idea where I was and if I was still alive (thought it was seeming less and less likely with each passing moment that I was dead).

Though how I ended up in this graveyard was a was another mystery in and of itself. One didn't suddenly find themselves in a whole other place for no reason. Not unless there was summoning or teleportation involved and I didn't think that had happened at all. At the very least I would have seen the traces of either acts, but there was nothing in this place. Just graves, myself, and the dead.

At the same time, it meant I had finally escaped that hellish nightmare.

The metallic scent of blood...

The screams of both the innocent and the judged...

The roars for more bloodshed...

The twisted laughter of those who saw death as a means of entertainment...

Closing my eyes I tried to remember what had happened before I woke up in this place. I forced my mind to delve deep into my memories to try and figure out the questions that were now plaguing my mind ever since I regained consciousness: where was I? Where was here in the first place? How the hell did I even end up in a cemetery and the final questions was who was-

Okay. I didn't have amnesia. There was no need to finish or answer that last one.

Focusing on the two questions that my mind came up with, I decided that now was a good time to start figuring things out. The first question was easy enough: I was in a cemetery/graveyard/the final resting place of the dead.

Now the second question was a little more difficult: where the heck was cemetery in the first place? I wracked my brain heavily for answers to this one. This cemetery had to be located somewhere. I mean... it couldn't have just been a standalone world filled with nothing but graves, right? Someone had to be burying these people because as far as my knowledge went, dead people couldn't bury themselves.

(Unless they were zombies, but a zombie had about as much intelligence as a pebble on the account of their deteriorated brain.)

I considered slamming my head against a tombstone, desperate for any burst of inspiration even if it was induced by giving myself a concussion. But then thought better of it several seconds later, deciding that my brain and scrambled memories were better off deciphered if I wasn't trying to deal with my thoughts being completely all over the place either.

After several more seconds of my brain engaging in civil warfare as my mind went through theory after theory on where I was exactly, I gave up on the second question for now and moved on to the third question. Maybe I would be able to answer the third question better.

Third question: How did I even end up here in the first place?

Logically, someone took me while I was unconscious and just decided to dump me here. Why? Maybe they wanted to bury me alive just for kicks. On a more supernatural note... magic. Rather two possible magic options: teleportation or summoning.

I immediately discounted the theories since I've had experience in dealing with both those things and other than a pounding headache, I couldn't feel either of the after effects.

The most common after effect of teleportation was that you felt as if you had been taken on one hell of a ride on a roller coaster. Your stomach would be doing flip flops for about ten minutes after wards and you would either have to have a stomach made of steel to not lose your lunch or just lose your stomach contents entirely. Also depending on where you ended up teleporting to, broken bones and bruises were very likely as well.

Summoning was out of the question as well. One look at the ground and the surrounding air me told that. Spells often left residue and it was near impossible to erase ALL traces of it, no matter how much anyone tried. My first instinct would have been to look for a signature magic circle, but that kind of thing dispelled not too soon after the person (or being) in question was summoned. I had no idea how long I'd been out, but I suspected it was for over more than a few minutes- the life span of a magic summoning circle after the spell was completed.

And now after rejecting those two theories, that left me precisely back where I started. Which was basically I had no idea how I got here and where even 'here' was in the first place.

Great.

All that thinking for pretty much nothing.

I would have slid on to the ground with my back against a tombstone to bang the back of my head against it when I realized that I wasn't alone with just my thoughts any more. I don't know if it was because I was distracted by my thoughts and theories or because these guys were really quiet, but at some point I had been snuck up on and now I was surrounded by a bunch of guys wearing helmets.

I was sure that if I hadn't been through so much these past few months, I would have had a heart attack right here and now. Vaguely, I couldn't help but think that they looked a hell of a lot like the underground miners you see on television from their uniforms right down to the helmets that they were wearing.

What would a bunch of miners want with me in the first place?

And what were they doing in a cemetery rather than an underground mine?

And... most damning of all... their eyes weren't visible. Just like all those people I killed in that bloodstained arena that reeked of madness, despair and death.

...Hope had been something I gave up on a long time ago, but I was hoping that I had escaped that horrific-

"When I felt a disturbance in the Cemetery, I thought it would be a couple of grave robbers trying to make off with some possessions to sell in the black market." A voice said behind me, adding a muttered 'again' at the end of that statement. "But... you aren't a grave robber, are you? You're something much rarer and very unexpected."

There was a pause followed by boisterous laughter.

"Much better you end up here rather than the territory of the Castle of Diamonds! If the little Queen saw you, you would have been frozen and added to her collection before you even knew what hit you!"

I glanced over my shoulder at the mention of "Queen" and being frozen by her only to whirl around completely and fully face the person when I saw a pair of brown eyes staring back at me. Despite the relaxed stance of the owner of the eyes and the fatherly warmth they gave off, I felt anything but reassured. The exact opposite, in fact. I felt my blood boiling through my veins and my adrenaline kicked into overdrive. I automatically made a motion with my right arm that had practically become second nature to me.

The sound of a couple of clicks brought me back to reality and I realized that the 'miners' I had been wondering about earlier were all holding guns and aiming them at me. By the sudden weight in my right hand, I also realized that I had instinctively summoned my sword.

Crap. I had summoned my weapon without really thinking about it and now these guys were on the defensive. Either way I was confident I could get out of this mess with a couple of bruises and maybe a few cuts here and there. If I was unlucky a couple of stab wounds, but I still didn't like the odds of being surrounded one to about ten people.

"Who are you?" I demanded, not taking my eyes off the man with brown eyes and being well aware that I had A LOT of guns trained on me. But it was blatantly obvious who the leader of the group was. Unlike the men around him, he had eyes. But if there was anything I have learned at all in this hell, it was that people who had eyes were the... leaders. The more powerful and the more dangerous.

And insane.

In this kind of situation, I should probably raise my hands up in surrender or a gesture. But considering that I already had my sword out without provocation, it was kind of too late for that.

He raised an eye at my question and I took the moment to study him. The obvious leader of the (miners?) was a gruff looking man who looked to be in his thirties. His dark hair was slicked back, but also managed to looked ruffled and messy at the same time. He was wearing what looked like a modified army uniform of some sorts with a plunging furred neckline that showed off his chest. Around his neck were a pair of orange tinted goggles.

And he was carrying a shovel.

At a first glance most people would assume he was a friendly, boisterous man who was always smiling. The kind of guy who always listened to your sob story if you needed a shoulder to cry on. But at a much deeper observation, that friendly aura also concealed a darker aspect of him. An aspect that told any potential attacker that he was not a man to be fucked with if you valued your health, life and sanity. Though in my case that observation was probably biased by the fact that his subordinates were surrounding me with their weapons aimed and trained at my person.

"You're demanding answers from me while intruding in my territory? Brave girl."

"Yes?" I didn't bother hiding my annoyance. "Well, I didn't mean to. I just woke up here, wondered what the hell I was doing here and then you came up to me and started chatting me up."

The-man-whose-identity-I-still-didn't-know started chuckling again. "You're a little young for my tastes. Maybe if you were a little older, I'd be interested."

I stared at him. What did he mean-

I paused. I reflected back on my words and then resisted the urge to slap myself in the face. The way I phrased the last part of my sentence made it sound as if I was accusing the man of hitting on me.

Ew.

I mentioned that the guy was somewhere in his thirties and while I was a couple years out of high school and able to date whoever the hell I wanted, I wasn't exactly interested in guys who were about a decade older than me.

"That wasn't what I was getting at." I felt my cheeks burn a little. "And by the way, you aren't my type."

Even if he was good-looking in a rugged sort of way.

"Anyways," I said quickly as I changed the subject. Anything to get away from that line of questioning. "You still haven't answered my question. Who are you?"

I made sure to visibly tighten my grip to show that I was serious about getting answers. The men on his side tightened their grips on their own weapons, probably to reinforce that I was the one in no position to be demanding anything at all. I could see their point, but unfortunately I was feeling less than cooperative and I wouldn't hesitate to kill them if it came to that.

Much to my surprise the man held up a hand and addressed the 'miners'. "Stand down."

The men look startled at the order. I was surprised at what he said as well, but I was careful not to let it show on my face.

"L-lord Bermuda!" One of the 'miners' stammered. "But-!"

He cut himself off when the leader who I now knew as 'Lord Bermuda' shot him a look that said 'don't-fucking-question-and-do-as-I-say'. He looked abashed and very reluctantly lowered his weapon and somehow vanquished it with his grip (magic?). Following the silently chastised miner, the others did the same just as reluctantly. Seeing that all of the men had lowered their weapons as well and weren't questioning his orders, the bonafide leader of the group turned to me.

"I'm going to have to ask you to lower your weapon as well."

My eyes narrowed. "How do I know that you aren't going to shoot me the minute I let my guard down?"

Bermuda smirked. "That's a very good question. Just how do you know that I don't plan on shooting you the minute you vanish your weapon?"

If that was supposed to be a joke it wasn't very funny.

I didn't even trust him. The only reason I hadn't attacked him yet was because he had asked his men to lower their weapons and while it was a relief to not have so many gun muzzles pointed at various points of my body, I didn't so easily forget that just moments ago we were having a Mexican showdown with the other side having the advantage in numbers.

"If that was your way in getting me to trust you at all, I'm sad to say that you completely failed in that aspect."

The leader of the group shrugged. "Well, I'm certainly not letting you run around in the heart of my territory wielding a weapon. And from what I can see in your stance and grip, you can wield it well." He paused and then added, "bet Julius' kid would love to spar with you. He's been complaining about how none of his opponents can match up to him, though that isn't a surprise since he's a Roleholder."

Roleholder?

That term rattled around in my head. This term wasn't new to me... and from his words, I could determine that a Roleholder was a powerful person. Or figure.

The image of a silver haired man wearing an eye patch flashed through my mind and my heart sank. I had heard that term in association with him.

But before I could plunge into the depths of despair or angst, the leader's voice interrupted my thoughts before they could wander off to darker places.

"Well?" He prodded, probably because he hadn't received an answer to his ultimatum yet.

"And what would you do if I said I couldn't agree to your terms? I'm not a mindless killing machine who would kill without a second thought, but I'm not letting go of my weapon either." I looked up at him and glared straight into his eyes just to convey how serious I was. "And I will fight you to get out of this place. I won't get away unscathed, but I promise you that none of you will survive."

The miners looked appalled, either because I refused their boss' terms or because I threatened to kill them all I couldn't tell, but the man known as Lord Bermuda threw back his head and laughed. It was surprisingly... one of amusement.

"You certainly know what you want, girl!" He finally said after he calmed down. His men on the other hand looked as if they wanted to murder me on the spot. "How about this then; I'll let you leave the Cemetery as long as you promise not to cause any trouble in my territory."

Now his men looked downright horrified; not that I could blame them. I'm pretty sure that I wasn't even attempting to hide my own thoughts on THAT.

"L-lord Bermuda!" Someone choked out. "Th-that's-!"

The leader held up his hand. "She's not going to agree to my original terms and I can tell she's serious about her threat if she doesn't get her way."

"B-but-!"

"Not sure if she would be able to manage killing us, but the look in her eyes tells me that she's an experienced fighter. I'd rather not see just how experienced through her slaughtering us." He said this while keeping an eye on me. "You can go, but had you agreed to my terms I would have told you all you needed to know about Wonderland."

And by that he meant that I was now on my own. Any answers he would have given me was something that I now had to discover by myself since I refused his invitation.

Wonderland.

Was that what this place was called?

Funny... to me 'Wonderland' was anything but wonderful if the last few months for me was a sneak preview.

"Fine." I said in a flat tone. "Just point me to the exit and I'll see my way out. I don't plan on staying here for long."

As soon as I found my sister, I planned on getting us out of here as fast as my limits would allow me. The sooner, the better. I wanted nothing more to do with this place.

This hell on Earth where life was nothing but a game where no one won and death was the only way to escape.

Disclaimer: If Angelic Trinity and I owned HNKA, then I doubt we'd write fanfiction.

And this chapter is completed. Angelic Trinity wrote the entire thing, so be sure to review and tell her how amazing she is.