“I hate violence,” Doku shakily continued. “Please, stop all of your fighting. I can’t stand to see any of it.”
“I’m sorry,” Triska softly said, with Doku slowly lowering her wing and turning her head towards the girl. “Please, I’m not trying to make you upset. I just want to be free, I want to have my body back, I want to be with my family. Can you help me?”
“No, I can’t,” Doku replied shaking her head. Triska trembled and whimpered with despair before the harpy smiled at her. “You don’t need my help. Triska, just get up if you want to.”
“How? I’m tied down, I can hardly move.”
“Tied down with what?” Doku asked amusedly. “Triska, I said before that there are no physical limitations in this plane. You can’t be tied down by anything here. Those chains aren’t real, they’re simply from your mind.”
“What?” Triska said looking down to the links with confusion.
“You feel trapped,” Doku explained as she knelt down before the girl. “You think you can’t move, that you’ve lost control. Triska, you’re doing this to yourself. You need to understand that in this state, and even in your own mind, you’re in control.”
“But… but what do I do?” Triska asked her desperately.
“Get up,” Doku giggled. “That’s all there is to it. As I’ve said you’re only as strong as your spirit while here. You feel isolated, confined, you don’t have faith that you can get up from this. That is all that’s holding you down.”
“So… she’s not tied down?” Luna asked looking down at Triska curiously.
“Not at all. Triska, if you want to get up, then do so. There is literally nothing but your own doubt holding you back,” Doku assured before she backed away from the girl.
Triska looked around at the group then to Daniel, his eyes going over the chains that were wrapped around her body then to her as he wondered the same thing she was.
“Get up, Triska,” Doku kindly requested while Cilia landed on her shoulder with a giddy smile. “In this place, in your own mind even, nothing can stop you.”
Triska looked at the heavy chains holding her in place. They were tightly bound around her body, with no locks or open links that could be seen to undo them with. The weight on her felt real, the chains constricting her figure while appearing to be unbreakable.
‘They’re not real. I’m not tied down. I’m not a prisoner here.’
With a slow breath she closed her eyes and tried to believe those words in her head, struggling to convince herself that the weight she felt wasn’t real, that the chains she saw were nothing but her mind manifesting her doubts and fears against her.
“She’s not getting up,” Kitten hissed with a scowl at the girl. “It’s already over for her. I own that body now, I’m going to be the only one with this mind. No matter what I’m not losing to some weak little human!”
Triska flinched and looked down with sorrow from those words, seeming to be hurt by them as she trembled a bit in her chains. Daniel slowly stepped forward and knelt down next to her, catching a fleeting glance from her as she whimpered with tears welling up in her eyes.
“Triska? What’s wrong?” he asked with concern.
“What she said… it’s not true,” Triska quietly spoke while shaking her head. “I’m… I’m not human anymore. I’m not human, Daniel.”
Daniel watched with wonder as she sniffled and lowered her head with shame. He glanced around at the links holding her in place then to her with a careful eye as she took a shaky breath and whimpered again.
“I’m a monster now,” she softly admitted. “That succubus changed me into something horrible. Even… even if I do come back… I won’t be-”
“Stop it,” Daniel ordered her. Triska jumped and turned to him with surprise as he showed a stern smile at her. “Is that what all this is about? Is that why you’re letting some demon get the best of you? You can’t be serious.”
“What do you mean?”
“Triska Raylight, don’t you dare tell me you think I would love you any less after all this. And don’t you even think for a moment that your mates would either,” Daniel scolded her before looking to the other girls.
“Is that where your doubt is coming from?” Specca asked as they stepped closer, with Clover and Doku staying back and watching Triska curiously. “Do you honestly believe that we would turn you away now that you’re a monster?”
“We don’t care if you’re a monster,” Alyssa promised with a hopeful smile. “You love us even though we’re monsters, what’s so wrong about us loving you when you’re one too?”
“But I’m… I’m part demon now,” Triska admitted with remorse. “Part succubus even. How can you all look at me the same now that I’m like this?”
Squeak slowly stepped forward and knelt down in front of Triska, gently holding the girl’s cheeks with her hands and showing a saddened smile.
“Squeak, I’m not… the same now,” Triska softly said.
The ant girl shook her head slowly then kissed Triska. There was no euphoric kick behind it this time, however the gesture still made Triska’s heart warmer as Squeak gently kissed her then leaned back.
“Come back, Triska,” Squeak kindly said, with everyone staring at her with complete shock.
“What… the…” Daniel shakily got out.
“Did she… she just spoke!” Alyssa exclaimed pointing to Squeak.
“How did she do that? She can only squeak everything she says,” Specca questioned with wonder.
“How did…” Kroanette mused before everyone looked to Doku, the harpy watching them curiously along with Cilia. “Wait, you said we’re not bound by physical limitations here, correct?”
“That’s right,” Doku agreed with a nod.
“You can speak here,” Falla marveled while the group stared at Squeak with awe. “We can understand you now. You actually have a voice.”
The ant girl looked around at everyone with a curious smile and merely shrugged before turning to Triska again as she seemed stunned from hearing the ant girl’s spirit talk normally.
“Please, Triska,” Squeak gently spoke. “Come back to us. We don’t want to lose you, no matter what you’ve become. You’re my mate too, not just Daniel’s, and I’ll be heartbroken if you don’t return.”
“Squeak… I…” Triska managed to get out, feeling speechless from both hearing Squeak talk and what she was saying.
“We all love you, and still do,” Squeak assured her. “Please, for all of us, get up. Nothing can keep you down, I know because I’ve seen you rise above everything you faced since we’ve been together. You taught me to be strong and to overcome my fears, I would still be a frightened worker in my nest if you hadn’t shown me how to fight. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for you and your unbreakable spirit.”
“Okay, this is all nice. This is really touching,” Doku mentioned as she wiped a tear away from her hidden eyes with her wing.
“Get up, Triska,” Squeak implored. “You’re still you, and we want you back. Please get up.”
Triska trembled with a shaky breath then looked to Daniel, the boy still staring at Squeak with wonder from hearing her gentle voice. He blinked then smiled proudly at Triska and nodded in agreement.
“She’s right. I love you, Triska, and that will never change. We all do, and we all want you back, however you are. Please, don’t give up the fight now, that’s not like you at all.”
“You would really love me still? Even though I’m like this?”
“I’ve never stopped loving you, Triska. And I never will,” Daniel promised her before kissing the girl. She closed her eyes and shed a single tear as Daniel held her close with the same loving gesture he had always shown her. After the kiss ended Daniel leaned back and smiled at her, the girl gazing into his eyes and feeling his love as strong as ever.
“Now get up. I know damned well nothing can keep you down.”
Triska gazed at him with a quickly beating heart before
she lowered her head and closed her eyes, feeling rekindled warmth within her growing.
“Get up, Triska. You can do it,” Alyssa urged with a few hops.
“You can beat this, we know you can,” Specca voiced with a smile.
“Please get up, Triska,” Luna said hopefully.
“We’re not going on without you,” Kroanette assured her.
“Quit worrying us already and get up,” Falla insisted with a concerned smile.
“Please come back to us, we miss you,” Pip begged.
“Don’t let some demon keep you down. Get the fuck up,” Clover ordered while pointing to her.
“She’s not getting up,” Kitten scorned, with Daniel and the girls turning to her with discontent as she glared at them. “It’s over! I’m here now, and I’m here to stay! Triska’s history! That’s my body now, this is my mind, I’m not going anywhere! Do you hear me! I’m never going away!”
Doku watched her with wonder, noticing that the cambion’s words sounded forced and shaky towards the end while her eyes weren’t just showing rage but also fear in them as well. Before she could speak on the matter Daniel stood up and stepped closer towards Kitten while feeling his anger rising again. Kitten looked around at all the girls then to him with frustration as she grabbed and tugged on her hair.
“Why, master?” she cried out. “Why do you want her? Why do you want any of them? Dammit, I’m your slave now, I’m the only woman you’ll ever need! I can do everything they can do better! I’ll do whatever you say without question! Tell me, why aren’t I enough for you?”
“Because I love them!” Daniel shouted at her. “You don’t get it, do you? You just can’t understand, can you? Each and every one of these girls means the world to me, and I would even go so far as to say I’m more in favor of Clover’s company than your own!”
“The fuck are you talking about?” Clover scoffed while crossing her arms, only to get shushed by all the other girls as they watched Daniel with wonder.
“I love them all, Kitten,” Daniel declared proudly, with the cambion staring at him in disbelief. “You can’t replace any of my mates, and certainly not Triska. They all make me happy, they all make me feel loved, and I feel truly alive when I’m with them. I would rather die than forsake any of them, to have any of them hurt or even cry.”
“You love… all of these girls?” Doku asked softly. “They’re all your mates?”
“He chose to love monsters?” Cilia said tilting her head in puzzlement. “And so many all at once too?”
“That’s right, I did,” Daniel admitted boldly. “I love them all for who they are. What they are doesn’t change that at all. And not just that, but they care for each other as well. Like we’ve said, we’re a family. We belong together.”
“But… I’m more powerful than any of them!” Kitten roared out. “Take us back to the real world and I’ll prove it, I’ll kill anyone who tries to get close to you! I’ll be the only girl you’ll ever need, master!”
“I need Alyssa,” Daniel stated, with the witch smiling with a blush forming on her cheeks. “I need her laughter and innocent charm to bring a smile to my face, and I’m damn grateful to have such a powerful witch who loves me as I love her.”
Kitten yanked on her hair out of frustration while Alyssa held a hand over her heart and smiled timidly at Daniel.
“I need Squeak,” Daniel continued. “She’s as loyal and dependable as they come, and is as gentle and caring as she is strong and brave. If I can’t hear her squeaks every day then life won’t be the same ever again.”
“Daniel,” Squeak softly said with a bashful smile. “My word, you’re going to make my heart leap out of my chest with such striking words. I’m nearly breathless hearing you say such things.”
“Since when are you such a whimsical speaker?” Clover asked the ant girl.
“I’ve always been,” Squeak retorted while crossing her arms with a dull glance at the elf. “Not my fault you don’t speak ant.”
“I need Specca,” Daniel said as he started to feel the girls’ auras behind him tugging in his mind. “She’s as beautiful as she is intelligent, and I know I can make this journey and any other that comes our way without fail as long as she’s by my side.”
“Daniel,” Specca breathed out while holding a hand over her heart.
“I need Kroanette,” Daniel spoke, with the centaur watching him with a growing blush. “She’s a beautiful woman on the inside just as she is on the outside-”
“She’s a fucking horse!” Kitten shouted out while pointing to Kroanette.
“She’s a beautiful woman from head to hoof!” Daniel asserted loudly. “I wouldn’t change a thing about her, because who she is inside and out is perfect! To all those who can’t see that they have my pity, because she is a lovely woman and I cherish everything about her!”
Kroanette smiled brightly at that while Kitten stared at Daniel with shock and an open mouth. He clenched his fists as he could almost picture the girls’ stars in his mind behind him as their lights began to grow brighter.
“I need Falla and Luna,” Daniel declared, with the sisters smiling eagerly and holding hands. “They’re kindhearted girls who chose to come on this dangerous journey because they believe in me, because they love me. And I love them. Not just because they’re beautiful, but because they are exactly the kind of girls who can make me feel happy and alive just by having them near. Falla’s razor-sharp wit, Luna’s endless joy, I’m blessed to have such mates as them in my life.”
“You really love monsters?” Doku asked with wonder. “You really feel that way about so many of them?”
“I do,” Daniel boldly replied. In his mind he felt the star from Alyssa burning brightly with great energy, the star from Specca helping to calm and focus his thoughts, the star from Squeak making him stand proudly without fear, the star from Kroanette powering him to move quickly, the stars from Falla and Luna boosting his confidence in speaking towards Kitten as well as making him so happy inside for everything he had in life.
And he also felt the star from Pip, something that caught his attention as now the strange words it was saying became clear just as Squeak’s dialect did in the ethereal plane. Daniel paused for a moment as he heard the fairy’s aura speaking to him, saying the same phrase over and over again with words that sounded so wise yet kind.
‘I want to be with my family, for there is nothing more in life that I need.’
“I need Pip,” Daniel spoke with a small smile forming. “She’s a Darker One, capable of great power and could easily kill us all if she had the mind to. Yet she’s as gentle and loving as anyone can be, she only wants to be with her family, and she’s chosen us to be that family. Her heart is far greater in size than she is, and for that I would give my very life to keep her safe.”
Kitten looked around at all the girls with frustration and a deep growl, seeing all of them except for Clover watching Daniel with adoring eyes. Clover merely glanced to him with a raised eyebrow while Doku and Cilia looked around at them with wonder then to Daniel as they questioned what they were hearing.
“And I need-” Daniel started to say before freezing in place. In his mind he felt seven auras behind him from the girls who were entranced by his words and rendered speechless with quickly beating hearts. He could sense each one, knowing which star in his mind belonged to who as he could almost picture their radiant colors shining onto him.
And he also felt an eighth one, a star that began to glow with a bright white light. It resonated both in his mind and in the ethereal plane as all the girls slowly turned to notice something behind Daniel. Facing towards Kitten Daniel clearly felt eight auras behind him, with the newest one’s light flowing into him just as the others did, and a new insignia flashing before his eyes from it.
“What the?” Kitten breathed out as a metal creaking sound was heard.
It was the image of a sword, standing upright with etchings driven away from the blade on both sides.
“Do you feel that?” Cilia quietly asked as Doku lifted her wing and pushed up her bangs to stare at something in surprise with her yellow eyes.
And along with the emblem and white light he saw in his mind Daniel felt something else, a unique sensation that surged through his body.
“No… no,” Kitten said shaking her head as cracking sounds were heard.
Suddenly he felt more than ready to fight, even with his bare hands if he had to. The image of all his mates flashed before his eyes, his desire to protect them from anything became overwhelming as he felt without a doubt that he would fight with his all to keep them safe. Even the thought of the dreaded gemini coming for them, the possibility of another succubus turning her dark magic on them, or even Kitten herself standing between him and his loved ones, it didn’t bring any fear to his mind. Rather it only made him yearn to fend off any danger that came near his girls, knowing that he would be the first to leap into battle and protect those he held dear with all the power he had.
Just like a fighter from Edgewood would do.
“No!” Kitten shouted before Daniel spun around, the boy and all those around him watching in surprise as Triska slowly stood up with her chains cracking and breaking. The fierce glare she was giving Kitten, the sheer power of her spirit which could actually be felt by those around her, the shining white aura she gave in Daniel’s mind, all became the focus for everyone as the girl stood up and started to move her arms. The links cracked and twisted with loud snaps as Triska growled heavily while keeping Kitten in her sights.
“You can’t get up!” Kitten cried out in disbelief. “You can’t! That’s not possible!”
“Triska,” Daniel breathed out as he could easily sense the raw power of Triska’s spirit rippling away from her.
“Her spirit… it’s incredible,” Doku marveled with eyes that were locked onto Triska.
With a loud snap the chains around Triska shattered and fell to the ground in pieces, the broken links clanking together on the dirt before fading away, leaving Triska standing with her fists clenched and her eyes set in a fierce glare towards Kitten.
Chronicles of Eden - Act VII Page 15