Alice teetered on the edge of a black void. One more step forward and she would have plunged¹ into an infinite abyss. At the thought, her skin broke out in goose bumps, and she rubbed her arms to try to warm herself. 

Far across the void, the black spires² of a Gothic castle stretched upward. But there was no way to get there. Then she heard something—a rhythmic³ beat, like a drum ... or a clock. 

Tick. 

Tick. 

Peering down, Alice saw a stone walkway yards beneath her and twenty feet away, but it was ticking its way toward her. The length of it reached all the way across the chasm⁴ to the castle, and it seemed to shift closer every second. It looked like it was the second hand to an enormous clock with the castle sitting at its center! 

Tick. 

Tick. 

Alice shifted her stance and bent⁵ her knees. Ten feet away, then five, four, three ... 

Tick. 

Tick. 

As the stone hand ticked into place below her, Alice leapt forward. She swayed for a moment, but her years aboard the Wonder had given her superb balance, even on moving objects. Brushing her palms together, she strode confidently along the two-foot-wide path toward the castle. 

DONG! Out of nowhere, a thunderous clang rolled across the void, vibrating the walkway beneath her. It felt like an earthquake, and Alice stumbled, her feet slipping off the stone path. Her fingers scrabbled furiously at the gritty surface as she slid over the edge. 

At the last second, just when Alice thought time (or rather Time) would be the death of her, her hands found the cool stone. Whew, that was too close, she thought. 

Shifting her weight, Alice started to pull herself up, but the second hand ticked just as she reached forward. She lost her grip, sliding backward until she was dangling⁶ from just one hand.Her eyes swept her surroundings as she looked for an escape. 

There! 

Far below her, she spotted⁷ what must be the minute hand. The second hand was ticking her closer to it, second by second. She just had to hang on a bit longer .... 

Tick. 

Her palm holding the stone edge began to sweat. 

Tick. 

She dug her fingers in, focusing all her energy on holding on tight. She'd never clung to time as desperately⁸ as she did then. 

Tick. 

Alice unfurled her fingers and let go as the second hand lined up with the minute hand. For a breathless second—she knew it was a second exactly, because the hand above ticked the time—she hung almost weightless in the air. Then she smacked⁹ down onto the rocky pebbles¹⁰ of the minute hand, landing hard on her bottom. 

After taking another few seconds (tick, tick, tick) to catch her breath, she slowly got to her feet. Moving more carefully, she resumed her journey to the castle. Luckily, the minute hand was more stable and a good deal wider, and no more gongs rang out. 

At the end of the walkway, she clambered up a set of steps that looked like melted black stone. Soon the huge gates of the castle stood before her. 

Alice stepped up to the door and leaned her body into it. 

CRRREEEEEAAAAAAK. With a groan¹¹ of protest from the hinges, the door swung open. 

Beyond it lay a massive hallway with gigantic carved columns soaring toward an arched ceiling. Staring in wonder, Alice passed through them. There were stairways and walkways all over the place. 

Letting out a loud squeal¹², the columns next to her turned. Their bases were actually cogs! The movement set off a chain reaction, rotating enormous gears that sank halfway¹³ into the floor. 

All around her, the tools of time wound and turned like parts of a well-oiled machine. At the end of the hallway, another immense door loomed¹⁴. Alice pushed her way into the next room. 

Built on the same grandiose¹⁵ scale as the rest of Time's castle, the throne room was a vast obsidian¹⁶ chamber¹⁷. Straight in front of her, a large staircase led up to a raised pedestal with a throne. A shaft¹⁸ of light pierced down from directly above the throne. 

The man of the hour—and day, and week, and year—was sprawled¹⁹ on the throne. Dark, bushy mutton chops stood out against his pale skin, and a tall black headpiece rose majestically²⁰ from the top of his head. Sticking out from both sides of his fur-lined cloak were enormous sculpted²¹ shoulder pads, almost like wings, which gave his torso an hourglass shape. One of his gloved hands clutched a black scepter, and his eyes were shut tight. 

Alice had not expected to find Time sleeping on the job, but then again, it wasn't like he was ever really off the clock. And he had to sleep some time, she supposed. 

Then, out of nowhere, Time seemed to jolt²² awake. Alice practically heard a boing of springs and coils jerking his body upright. She took an involuntary step back as his silver eyes fixed²³ on her. Gathering²⁴ her confidence, she cleared her throat and swept forward. 

"Good day, sir," she said, choosing her words carefully. "I'm so sorry to bother you, but I was wondering if you might have time to speak with me?" 

Time chuckled²⁵ to himself. "Time?" he said. "I have all the time in the world, young lady." He waved his hand languidly in the air. His leather vest creaked as he leaned forward with sudden intensity²⁶. "The question is ... will I spare any for you?" 

"That is the question, sir," Alice replied politely. 

"Do you promise to be amusing?" Time asked. 

"I don't know." Alice's eyebrows²⁷ furrowed²⁸. "It's rather a serious subject." 

"Well, I am a rather serious person. For I am Time. The Infinite." His eyes focused on something above Alice's head, as though he was imagining a crowd of admirers. "The Immort—Wait ... what time is it?" 

Bringing her hand to her mouth, Alice muffled²⁹ a laugh. It was a rather odd question coming from Time himself. Luckily, Time was busy and didn't notice her reaction. 

He flung open his vest and peered downward to where, in place of a heart, a beautiful clock ticked in his chest. Time tsked to himself. 

"Hang it all! How infinitely³⁰ ironic³¹! I'm going to be late!" he cried. 

Without a second glance at Alice, he bounced out of his throne and charged toward a door, his long cloak flowing behind him. She ran after him, not wanting to lose Time. 

"Keep up," Time barked. "You have precisely³² sixty seconds in eighty-five seconds' time." He squinted³³ at her and nodded in the direction of her pocket. "Why do you carry that fallen soldier?" he asked. 

Puzzled, Alice patted her pocket and drew out her father's broken pocket watch. How had he known it was there? "This? It was my father's," she explained. 

Time studied it briefly³⁴, then turned away. "A fine-looking instrument. Though I'm afraid its time has expired." 

She raised her chin. "My father was a great man. His watch reminds me that nothing is impossible. I wouldn't part with it for anything in the world." 

"Everyone parts with everything eventually, my dear," Time drawled. 

Before she could respond, he spun³⁵ and pushed through an intricately carved set of doors into yet another immense room. 

"Behold³⁶! The Grand Clock of All Time!" he said proudly, stepping onto a balcony overlooking the chamber. 

TICKTOCK, boomed the room, which was itself the clock. Gears and cogs of all sizes covered the floor. In the center of it all, sparks of light surrounded a spinning white orb³⁷. Without knowing how she knew, Alice recognized it as the Chronosphere. 

As she watched, several small mechanical men clambered among the wheels below. Dressed in similar overalls³⁸, with various tools hanging around their waists, they seemed interchangeable—except for one, whose spectacles twinkled as he looked up at them. That specific tinkerer hustled³⁹ up the stairs to reach them. 

Coming to a halt in front of Time, the man saluted⁴⁰ crisply. 

Time clapped his hands together. "Jolly good. Well done, Wilkins! Keep it up." 

Alice returned her gaze to the chamber below, where the Chronosphere crackled with energy. 

Time noticed Alice looking but misinterpreted the direction of her gaze. He waved at the other men. "Oh, and these fine chaps with Wilkins here are my Seconds." 

Alice nodded, but Time was already moving toward the door. Lingering behind for a moment, she gazed over the Grand Clock, silently studying the Chronosphere. She had found it. Now Alice just had to persuade Time to let her borrow it for a while. 

Weaving through a maze⁴¹ of corridors and stairways, she followed Time to a comfortable sitting room. Time plopped down into the tallest armchair. "Now," he said. "Ask your question. You have one minute exactly." 

Alice dove in. "It's about the Hatter, Tarrant Hightopp. You see, the Jabberwocky killed—" 

Time's eyes began to glaze⁴² over. He opened his vest and wound the second hand of his heart clock forward. As he did so, Alice almost tripped over her words as they poured out of her. 

"—his family on the Horunvendush Day. And I'd like your permission If you please to borrow the Chronosphere—" 

Alice fell silent as Time tensed and held up a commanding hand. 

"How do you know about the Chronosphere?" Time asked. His face grave, he leaned in toward her. 

"That wasn't a minute!" Alice protested. 

"What do you know of the Chronosphere?" Time's voice rose and his eyebrows drew together menacingly. 

"I'd like to borrow it," Alice said. She clasped her fingers together in front of her to keep her hands still ... and to remind herself to stay polite. 

"Borrow it? Borrow it?!" He leapt to his feet with a cry of outrage⁴³, and his moustache bristled⁴⁴, as though it, too, were offended. "The Chronosphere powers Time oneself! It is not something to be ‘borrowed,' like a croquet mallet⁴⁵ or a pair of hedge clippers!" 

"But—" Alice began. 

Time whirled and stalked to the door. He jerked it open and pointed⁴⁶ imperiously to the hall. 

"You are asking me to violate the logic⁴⁷ of the Universe," he hissed⁴⁸. "The answer is no." 

"But—" Alice tried again. 

"You are not amusing," Time said. "Good day." 

It was as useless as arguing with the bullheaded Hamish, yet Alice persisted. "But I need the Chronosphere, sir! I need to save my friend!" Couldn't he see how important this was? 

"Wilkins!" Time bellowed⁴⁹. The foreman hurried up. "Escort this trespasser⁵⁰ out, if you'd be so kind." 

Alice pressed her lips together to hold back what she wanted to say. Instead, she bowed politely and said, "Yes, sir. Sorry to bother you." 

As she passed in front of him, Time addressed her once more. "Young lady." She paused to look at him. "You cannot change the past," he said in a gentler tone. "It always was. It always will be. Although, I daresay, you might learn something from it." 

"Thank you for your time, sir," Alice said simply. Ducking her head, she turned to follow Wilkins before Time could see the spark of defiance⁵¹ in her eyes. 

 

爱丽丝在黑洞的边缘摇摇欲坠。再向前一步，她就会坠入无底的深渊。一想到这个，她就浑身起鸡皮疙瘩。她上下摸了摸手臂，想让自己暖和一些。 

在黑洞的另一边，一座哥特式城堡的黑色尖顶高高地耸立着，但爱丽丝没法过去。接着，她听到了一点儿动静——一种有节奏的敲击声，像鼓声……又像钟声。 

嘀嗒。 

嘀嗒。 

爱丽丝向下望去，发现在她下方大概20英尺处有一条石廊，正嘀嗒嘀嗒地向她靠近。这条走廊从峡谷一路延伸到城堡，而且似乎每一秒钟都在向她靠近。它就像一个巨型钟的秒针，而城堡就坐落在钟表的中心。 

嘀嗒。 

嘀嗒。 

爱丽丝换了一个姿势，让膝盖弯曲。还有10英尺，5英尺，4英尺，3英尺…… 

嘀嗒。 

嘀嗒。 

当这根石头指针转到她下方时，爱丽丝猛地向前跳去。她晃动了一下就站住了——这几年在“仙境号”上的出海经历给了她很强的平衡能力，哪怕是在移动的物体上。她搓了搓手掌，然后充满自信地沿着这条两英尺宽的小道大步向城堡走去。 

铛！不知从哪儿发出了雷鸣般的撞击声，这声音响彻了整个黑洞，就连爱丽丝脚下的走道也震动起来，整个黑洞就好像是发生了地震。爱丽丝一下子摔倒了，双脚滑出石廊。在她滑出石廊边缘时，双手拼命在石廊粗糙的表面乱扒一通。 

爱丽丝以为自己就要丧命于时间（或者说“时间”）手中，但千钧一发之际，她的双手摸到了冰冷的石头。哎呀，刚才太险了，她想着。 

爱丽丝调整了一下重心，开始向上拉动身体。正要爬上去，秒针又一次嘀嗒嘀嗒地转动了。爱丽丝抓不住石廊边缘了，只能向后滑去。最后，她一只手勉强攀住石廊，身体悬挂在空中。她扫视着四周，寻找逃生的方法。 

那里！ 

在她下方很远的地方，爱丽丝发现了分针。秒针拽着她向分针靠近，一秒又一秒。她只要再坚持一小会儿…… 

嘀嗒。 

她那只攀住石廊边缘的手开始冒汗了。 

嘀嗒。 

她用手指扣住路面，使出全身的力气紧紧抓住石廊。她从未像现在这样拼命地“坚守”时间。 

嘀嗒。 

爱丽丝松开手指，让身体坠落，此时秒针正好和分针对齐。这是扣人心弦的一秒——爱丽丝确信就是一秒，因为上方指针嘀嗒了一声——她几乎失重般悬在空中，然后屁股重重地落到地上，整个人跌在分针凹凸不平的鹅卵石路面上。 

爱丽丝花了几秒钟（嘀嗒、嘀嗒、嘀嗒）来平缓呼吸，然后慢慢地站起身。她小心翼翼地走着，重新开始前往城堡的旅程。幸运的是，分针更加稳定，路面更宽，也没有再听到咣的 声音。 

爱丽丝来到了走道尽头，攀上一组台阶，那台阶看起来就像融化的黑色岩石。城堡的大门很快就出现在了她的面前。 

爱丽丝走到门前，身体探了进去。 

嘎——吱——铰链发出了抗议的声音，门摇摇晃晃地打 开了。 

门背后是一条宽阔的走廊，走廊两旁伫立着巨大的石刻圆柱，直入穹顶。爱丽丝一边惊讶地观察着，一边向前走去。这地方到处都是楼梯和走廊。 

突然，靠近爱丽丝的那根石柱发出了尖锐的声响，开始转动起来。圆柱的基座其实都是齿轮！圆柱的转动引发了连锁反应，它带动着有一半陷入地面的巨大齿轮旋转起来。 

爱丽丝的四周都是时间的工具，它们就像一台运转良好的机器的零件，不停转动。走廊的尽头是另一扇巨大的门。爱丽丝走进了下一个房间。 

和“时间”城堡的其他部分一样，这间正殿建得非常雄伟，是一间巨大的黑曜石室。爱丽丝的正前方是一段巨型台阶，台阶一直通向王座的浮雕底座。一束光线从王座上方直射而下。 

那位时辰的主宰——同时也是日期的、星期的、年份的主宰，正伸展着四肢，半躺在王位上。他苍白的脸上长着浓密的黑色络腮胡，头上戴着一顶黑色高帽，看起来非常威严。巨大的雕花垫肩从皮毛内衬的斗篷两侧伸展出来，像一对翅膀。这让他的身体看起来像个沙漏。他戴着手套，一只手紧握着一根黑色权杖，双眼紧闭。 

爱丽丝没想到自己会看见“时间”在工作时睡着，但这不表示他真的停止了工作。爱丽丝猜测，有的时候，“时间”也需要睡觉。 

然后不知怎么的，“时间”似乎一下子醒了过来。爱丽丝几乎听到了弹簧和线圈拉直他身体时发出的嘣的一声。她不自觉地向后退了一步，因为“时间”那双银色的眼睛已经盯上了她。爱丽丝重整旗鼓，清清嗓子，向前走去。 

“您好，先生，”爱丽丝谨慎地说，“很抱歉打扰您了，请问您有时间和我谈谈吗？” 

“时间”轻声笑了起来。“时间？”他说。“我拥有这个世界上所有的时间，年轻的小姐。”他慵懒地挥了挥手。突然，他猛地向前俯下身，皮马甲咯吱作响。“问题是……我愿意为你抽出时间吗？” 

“这就是问题所在，先生。”爱丽丝礼貌地回答。 

“你能保证聊天很有趣吗？”“时间”问道。 

“我无法保证。”爱丽丝皱了皱眉，“这是个非常严肃的话题。” 

“好吧，我是个相当严肃的人。因为我是‘时间’，是主宰。”他凝视着爱丽丝头顶上方的某个东西，仿佛在想象自己有一群崇拜者。“是永恒的存在——等等……现在几点了？” 

爱丽丝用手捂住嘴巴，让自己不要笑出声来。“时间”自己问几点钟，这真是匪夷所思。幸好他很忙，没有注意到自己的反应。 

他解开马甲，低头盯着心脏的位置：一只精美的时钟正在他胸中转动。“时间”咂咂嘴。 

“该死！太讽刺了！我竟然要迟到了！”他大声叫道。 

“时间”不再理会爱丽丝，从王座上一下子蹦起来，朝一扇门冲去，长长的大斗篷在身后飞舞。爱丽丝追着“时间”跑去，她可不想把他跟丢。 

“快点。”“时间”吼道。“在八十五秒的时间中，你只有六十秒。”他斜视着爱丽丝，朝她口袋的方向点点头问道：“你怎么还带着那个倒下的士兵？” 

爱丽丝不明白他的意思。她摸摸口袋，掏出了她父亲那只坏了的怀表。他怎么知道这里有块表？“这个？这是我父亲的。”她解释说。 

“时间”稍稍看了一下怀表，然后转过身：“真是一只漂亮的怀表。但是我想它已经寿终正寝了。” 

爱丽丝抬起下巴说：“我父亲是个了不起的人。他的怀表时刻提醒着我，世上没有什么事是不可能的。我也不会为了任何东西而和它分开。” 

“最终，每个人都会和所有的东西分开，亲爱的。”“时间”缓缓地说。 

没等爱丽丝回答，“时间”就转过身，穿过一组精雕细刻的门，进入了另一个巨型房间。 

“看呀！主宰所有时间的大钟！”他一边骄傲地说，一边走到阳台上，俯瞰整个房间。 

嘀嗒声响彻了整个房间，而这个房间本身就是个时钟。大小各异的齿轮铺满了地面。房间中央，一束束光围绕着一个旋转的白色圆球。爱丽丝认出这就是时空传送仪，就连她自己也不知道是怎么认出来的。 

爱丽丝看着时空传送仪，几个机械小人正在下面的齿轮间攀爬。他们穿着相似的工装裤，腰间都挂着各式各样的工具，似乎可以相互替换——只有一个人除外。他抬头看着爱丽丝和“时间”，眼镜闪闪发光。这位特别的修补匠匆匆上楼去追赶他们俩。 

他在“时间”面前停下来，干净利落地向他致敬。 

“时间”鼓着掌说：“非常好。干得不错，威尔金斯，继续保持。” 

爱丽丝的目光转回到下面的房间，时空传送仪在那里噼啪作响，能量十足。 

“时间”注意到爱丽丝在看着什么，但是弄错了她目光的方向。他朝着其他小人挥挥手说：“哦，这些和威尔金斯一起工作的优秀小家伙们是我的秒针。” 

爱丽丝点点头，而“时间”早已向门口走去。她又逗留了一会儿，目光越过大钟，沉默地观察着时空传送仪。她已经找到它了。现在，爱丽丝只需要说服“时间”把时空传送仪借给她一会儿。 

爱丽丝跟着“时间”穿过迷宫般的走廊和楼梯，来到一间舒适的起居室。“时间”一屁股坐在最高的那把扶手椅上。“现在，说你的问题吧。你只有一分钟。”他说。 

爱丽丝开始和“时间”商量：“这与疯帽子有关，就是塔兰特·高帽子。你知道的，炸脖龙杀死了——” 

“时间”的目光开始变得呆滞起来。他解开马甲，给他心钟的秒针上了发条。这时，所有的话都涌到了爱丽丝嘴边，她的舌头差点打结。 

“——他的家人，就在厄朗温达石日那天。如果您愿意，我想向您借用时空传送仪——” 

“时间”突然变得紧张起来，他举起手，示意爱丽丝不用说了，爱丽丝立刻安静下来。 

“你是怎么知道时空传送仪的？”“时间”问道。他一脸严肃，向着爱丽丝倾了倾身子。 

“还没到一分钟。”爱丽丝抗议道。 

“你对时空传送仪了解多少？”“时间”提高了嗓音，紧皱着眉头，语气中充满了威胁。 

“我只想借用一下。”爱丽丝说。她将十指紧握在胸前，以此来稳定双手……同时提醒自己要保持礼貌。 

“借用？借用？”“时间”跳了起来，愤怒地大喊着，胡子竖了起来，似乎连胡子都受到了冒犯。“时空传送仪是时间的动力！它不是可以‘借用’的东西，不像门球杆或者树篱修 剪器！” 

“但是——”爱丽丝想说下去。 

“时间”快速转身，阔步走到门口。他猛地拉开门，傲慢地指着走廊。 

“你这是让我违背宇宙的规律，”他生气地低声说道，“我的答案是，不行。” 

“但是——”爱丽丝再次尝试。 

“你并不有趣。”“时间”说，“再见。” 

这就跟与固执的哈米什争论一样毫无用处，但是爱丽丝坚持说了下去：“可是先生，我需要时空传送仪！我需要去救我的朋友！”难道他看不出这有多么重要吗？ 

“威尔金斯！”“时间”吼道。那位工头急忙赶来。“请你护送这位不速之客离开，有劳你了。” 

爱丽丝紧闭双唇，咽回了自己想说的话，然后有礼貌地鞠了一躬说：“我明白了，先生。很抱歉打扰您。” 

爱丽丝从“时间”面前走过时，“时间”再一次对她说：“年轻的小姐。”爱丽丝停下来看着他。“你永远无法改变过去，”“时间”用缓和的语气说道，“过去无法改变。将来也无法改变。但是我敢说，你会从中学到些东西的。” 

“感谢您抽出时间，先生。”爱丽丝简短地说道。没等“时间”看出她眼中的反抗，爱丽丝就迅速低下头，转身跟着威尔金斯离去。 

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