“You won’t keep me from Daniel,” Triska growled with fury.
“How can you stand up?” Kitten demanded loudly. “This isn’t supposed to happen! This is my body now, this is my mind, you can’t take that back from me!”
“You won’t keep me from my family,” Triska sternly declared before she started walking towards the cambion.
“She looks really mad,” Luna nervously said.
“She feels really mad,” Falla commented as all the girls backed away from the furious fighter.
“It’s not a good idea to make Triska angry like this,” Alyssa taunted with a mean smile towards Kitten.
“Why is that?” Doku worriedly asked as she stepped back as well.
“Because she will break you,” Specca answered with a glare towards Kitten. “If you push her to the edge, you’ve dug your own grave.”
Triska took another step then dashed towards Kitten, racing past a stunned Daniel at a surprised cambion who watched with wide eyes and growing fright as the teen’s spirit seemed to be giving off a powerful aura.
“Oh hell no!” Kitten shouted before shooting up into the air, her wings flapping quickly as she propelled herself up away from the enraged teen.
“Get back here so I can SLAUGHTER YOU!” Triska roared as she raced towards where the demon was. She then jumped up into the air after Kitten, her ascension causing a small forceful shockwave that erupted below her. The group watched with wonder as Triska flew up and grabbed onto Kitten’s foot, the demon staring with shock at seeing the girl leaping high into the air and catching her.
“You’re not getting away!” Triska yelled before she threw the cambion down towards the ground.
Kitten screamed and spiraled downward before slamming onto the dirt with a loud impact. She gasped in pain as she felt the unbreakable ground greet her back, her wings twitching at her sides as her eyes widened in shock. Her vision slowly focused again to show Triska soaring down at her, the teen then bashing her knee into the cambion’s stomach with a thunderous boom. Kitten arched her head back and tried to scream however nothing but a hoarse whine came out, her arms and legs flinching from the hit then lying motionless on the ground as the cambion struggled to draw a breath.
“You fucking bitch!” Triska scorned as she sat atop the cambion’s stomach and started punching the demon’s head repeatedly. “You tried to take away Daniel, to take away everyone I care about, and you trapped me inside my own head! You think you can take me away from my family? You think you can push me around inside my own mind? I’ll kill you!”
Everyone stared with amazement as Triska mercilessly beat down Kitten, the demon’s head jerking back and to the sides from each powerful hit while her hands weakly thrashed about next to her.
“Stop!” Doku cried out as she ran over to them. “Stop it, you’re killing her!”
Triska looked up to her with a fierce glare and a heavy growl before sending another punch to Kitten’s face. Although the cambion’s body showed no signs of being hurt or bruised her weak groan of pain and the dazed look in her eyes proved she was feeling the onslaught very clearly.
“Stop it?” Triska demanded with fury. “Do you have any idea what this bitch did to me? What she did to all of us? She’s nothing but a horrible demon! I’m sending her down to hell and taking my body and my life back!”
“The only one here acting as a demon is you!” Doku condemned while pointing her wing towards Triska.
“Me? How can you say that?”
“Because only a demon would try to kill a frightened soul,” Doku reasoned before kneeling down and gently brushing Kitten’s hair away from her face. “Don’t you see how scared she is? She’s terrified and powerless, yet you’re all ganging up on her. You’re horrible.”
“Horrible?” Alyssa repeated with disbelief. “That demon is the horrible one! How can you possibly defend her after all she’s done?”
“Look at her,” Doku whimpered.
Triska looked down to Kitten while struggling not to finish her off, seeing the cambion watching her with weary eyes and a quivering lip. Slowly Triska showed a look of wonder as Kitten started to cry, her glowing eyes showing nothing but fear in them while she was pinned down by the teen.
“She’s terrified,” Doku explained. “That’s why she’s so weak here. Her soul, it’s afraid, it’s losing hope. She has the strength of a young child in this state; her spirit is weakened with all her doubt and fear.”
“Doubt and fear?” Triska questioned. “What is it she has to be afraid of? She’s been the one tormenting all of us, what is it she has doubts about? What’s she so scared of?”
“I don’t want to die,” Kitten shakily breathed out. Triska watched her curiously as the demon struggled to catch her breath. “I don’t want to go away. If you come back… I’ll disappear. I don’t want to die.”
“Just finish her off so we can go back into our bodies,” Clover scoffed while crossing her arms.
“Yeah, why did you stop?” Falla asked with confusion. “Kill her and let’s be rid of her once and for all.”
“Don’t show mercy towards her, she doesn’t deserve it,” Specca hissed at the demon.
Daniel walked over and looked down at Kitten with a dull glare, seeing the cambion cowering in fear of Triska before she turned her eyes towards him.
“Master… please…” Kitten wept out. “Help me. Help me, master.”
“You’re killing her,” Doku softly warned Triska. “Spirits cannot bleed or bruise in this state; however they can only take so much before they die. If you keep going as you are her spirit will perish, you’ll have murdered her.”
“Do you have any idea what she did to us?” Triska demanded at her.
“Do you have any idea what you’re about to do to her?” Doku countered. “You’re going to take the life of a frightened girl. How can you wish for such a thing?”
“Yeah, stop already,” Cilia agreed while watching Kitten sniffling and shaking. “You’re being so mean to her. This is too much.”
“Too much?” Triska repeated with ire. “It’s not enough for what she did, for what she tried to do, and for what she was planning to do with me. I’m taking back my body and mind, nothing will keep me from being with Daniel!”
She looked back down to Kitten and brought back a fist to strike at her head with, teeth bared and eyes glaring as she watched the cambion tremble in fear while bringing her up her hands next to her head.
“Please… I’m just following my nature!” Kitten pleaded.
“You were going to kill me and steal my body away!”
“It’s how I live,” Kitten shakily reasoned. “This is how I was born into this world, you can’t hate me because of that.”
“You hexed all of my friends and tried to rape Daniel to death!”
“I was just following my nature, what else was I supposed to do?”
Triska’s fist trembled as she prepared to finish off the cambion before Daniel slowly knelt down next to them, his eyes watching Kitten with a discontent as she glanced to him with a whimper.
“Master, please, don’t be rid of me,” she begged. “Don’t let it end like this for me.”
“You tried to rape me, to kill me,” Daniel recalled as Kitten sniveled and let out a small squeak. “You charmed everyone and turned them against me, planned on taking them away as your slaves against their will. You’ve been cruel and disrespectful to them, you’ve shown no heart at all, and now you beg for mercy after all you’ve done?”
“Please,” Kitten breathed out. “I don’t want to die. I just want to live.”
“Don’t hurt her, I’m begging you,” Doku pleaded as Triska remained poised to strike down the demon.
“If she goes back she’ll try to kill you,” Triska warned her. “She’ll stuff me back into the corner of her mind until I dissolve completely, she’ll torment everyone around her and never leave Daniel alone. Do you honestly wish for this monster to be spared after all the pain she
caused and what she plans to do with her stolen life?”
“You have such a powerful spirit,” Doku said as she turned her head towards Triska. “You must have a great heart in you, a strong will to live and care for those around you. Don’t become a demon yourself and taint your soul by striking down a frightened girl. Have you no heart for those who are afraid and lost in this world?”
Triska glanced to her then down to Kitten as the demon closed her eyes and prepared to face annihilation, a shaky whimper escaping her lips while her tail slowly swayed to the side atop the grass. Slowly Triska lowered her fist as she watched the demon softly cry to herself.
“What are you doing?” Clover demanded. “Kill her and be done with it.”
“Triska,” Kroanette spoke with growing concern. “You’re not honestly having second thoughts about being rid of this demon, are you?”
“She tried to kill Daniel,” Alyssa reminded her. “She’s killing you right now by keeping your body away from you. Let her have what she’s got coming and lets all go back together.”
Kitten opened her eyes a peek and watched through her tears as Triska glared down at her while keeping her pinned to the ground.
“I don’t want to die…”
“But you’re alright killing me?” Triska questioned sharply. “Killing Daniel? Killing everyone else around you?”
“I’m just following my nature. I don’t have a choice but to live the only way I can.”
“That’s not true,” Triska said shaking her head. “You can choose to live however you want. You can fight your inner nature, you can control yourself. All of my mates do. None of them are raping Daniel or killing everyone else around him to keep him for themselves. They’ve gone against their inner nature and proved they are kindhearted girls inside.”
Doku and Cilia looked around at the other girls curiously as they all watched Kitten with discontent still. Daniel slowly breathed out and stood up, with Kitten turning to him desperately with a shaky whimper.
“Master, please help me.”
“Help you?” he asked while looking down and away from her. “I’m quite tolerant of monsters following their nature; I understand they are compelled to do what they think they need to do. But after all that you’ve done and what you took away from me, I don’t feel so forgiving towards you. I can’t, not when you’re keeping Triska away from me.”
“What can I do?” Kitten shakily asked. “Please, I don’t know what I can do to make you happy, master.”
“Give Triska back to me,” Daniel ordered her. “Give her back her body and mind, return her to her family.”
“What will happen to me then?” Kitten whimpered. “If she comes back I’ll… I’ll disappear, won’t I? It’s not fair. Why does she get to live and I don’t? I want to live. Please let me live.”
Daniel held a hand over his face and took a slow breath, seeming to be thinking hard about deciding the demon’s fate, then looked to Triska and shook his head.
“It’s your call what to do, Triska,” he reasoned solemnly. “I can’t make this decision. Her life is in your hands.”
Triska looked down at Kitten with a deep glare, the demon trembling and shaking her head while everyone watched them carefully. Slowly Triska brought up her fist to strike, causing Kitten to whimper and breathe sharply.
“Wait, don’t!” Kitten pleaded. “Please! You can’t!”
“Please don’t kill her!” Doku begged while Cilia covered her eyes with her hands.
With a furious yell Triska struck her fist down, a loud impact sounding out from her hitting the ground next to Kitten’s head. The demon froze in place with a squeak as Triska glared at her through gritted teeth. Everyone watched with wonder as the teen slowly brought back her fist then pointed a finger at Kitten’s stunned face.
“Now you listen closely,” Triska hissed with anger. “You are going to apologize sincerely to Daniel and everyone here for the hell you’ve put us through, you are going to give me back my body when we return from this place, and you are never going to lay a hand on my mates again. Do that… and I’ll let you live inside my head for the time being.”
“You… will?” Kitten nervously asked.
“I’ve seen monsters that followed their inner nature and put Daniel at risk,” Triska explained. “The same ones that now stand next to us as family. They fought their nature and proved they could be kindhearted girls, ones that could be trusted near Daniel. Either you show us that there’s a glimmer of a heart within your soul and set things right, or I’ll destroy you and protect my family from a truly horrible demon.”
Doku looked around at the other girls curiously, with Alyssa, Squeak, Falla, Luna, and Kroanette lowering their heads in shame while Clover scoffed and turned her head away from everyone. Specca and Pip glanced around at their co-mates then at Triska with concern as she slowly stood up over Kitten.
“Right now,” Triska ordered.
“But,” Kitten whimpered. “I don’t… I don’t know how to give you back your body.”
“Right now!”
Kitten jumped with a yelp and quickly sat up, nervously watching Triska with her glowing eyes then looking to Daniel as he kept gazing off into the distance while thinking about their options. After a while he sighed then turned to her with discontent.
“She’s giving you a chance. If you wish to continue living I suggest you take it.”
Slowly Kitten stood up and looked at Triska with a troubled frown. The teen pointed towards the other girls with a stern expression, the demon then glancing to them and seeing all of their harsh glares towards her.
“I… um, I…” Kitten stuttered, pausing for a moment before lowering her head and closing her eyes. “I’m… sorry.”
“To them, not the ground!” Triska yelled, causing Kitten, Doku, and Cilia to jump from the outburst.
Kitten nodded then turned to the other girls, opening her mouth to speak before halting as she tried to force the words to come out. She growled and frustration with eyes shut tight and yanked on her hair before groaning and looking at the girls with defeat.
“I’m sorry.”
“Apology not accepted,” they all said shaking their heads.
Kitten twitched at that then nervously turned to Triska as she crossed her arms and shrugged.
“I never said they had to accept it,” Triska pointed out, with Kitten nodding slowly then turning her eyes toward Daniel.
“I’m sorry, master. I… I don’t want to lose you. Please forgive me.”
“Give Triska back her body peacefully, and then perhaps I can,” Daniel replied while gesturing towards Triska with his hand.
“How can I?” Kitten asked looking around at everyone. “You all keep telling me to give it back, but I don’t know how! How can I obey that request if I don’t know how to?”
“I still say we should just kill her and be done with it,” Clover scoffed with a glare at Kitten.
“Triska, are you certain you wish to allow this demon to exist within you?” Specca carefully asked.
“This is our chance to be rid of her for good,” Alyssa reminded her. “You don’t have to be nice to her at all.”
“What did you do when you first met Daniel?” Triska inquired as she glanced to the witch. “What kind of witch were you with Daniel and even myself?”
“But… I… she…” Alyssa stuttered nervously.
“What did Squeak’s sisters do to Daniel when they first met him?”
“Please don’t remind me about that again,” Squeak insisted with a sigh. “They didn’t know better, and were only doing their trusted duty for our queen at the time.”
“What about Falla and Luna?” Triska said glancing to the butterfly sisters. “What they wanted to do to Daniel when they first met him.”
“Hey, we weren’t going to kill any of you to rape him,” Falla defended raising her hands up. “We would never have gone that far.”
“You wanted to let that nightmare take their souls
away so they couldn’t stop you from going after Daniel,” Luna remorsefully pointed out.
“But… I… they… I wasn’t… that’s not…” Falla nervously stuttered shaking her head.
“Kroanette,” Triska said looking over to the centaur. “Do you remember what you were going to do when you returned home before you met us?”
“Now hold on a minute,” Kroanette insisted while holding her hands up defensively. “I admit my view of humans was misguided in the past, but I’m not like that now. I’m a changed centaur, honest.”
Triska sighed with annoyance then pointed to Kitten with a stern glare.
“You’ve caused way more trouble for all of us than any of my family has in the past, I have every right to beat your spirit into dust right here and now for the pain you’ve put us through. It’s only because I would find myself to be a hypocrite for condemning a monster for following her nature that I’m even talking to you right now. However even so that’s no excuse for what you’ve done to us, and your apology to everyone isn’t enough, despite how little it means to them coming from you to begin with. Give me back my body, or else you will never be forgiven at all.”
“And just how can I do that?” Kitten desperately asked.
Everyone looked to each other as they failed to think of an answer then to Doku as the harpy was watching Kitten with a curious expression.
“Doku, can you help us?” Daniel gently implored. “We want to bring Triska back and give her the body that was stolen from her. Is there anything you can do with your magic to help? You know more about dealing with spirits using your magic, is there any way we can give Triska back her body from Kitten?”
Doku slowly walked up towards Kitten and tilted her head, seeming to be examining the demon with her hidden eyes while atop her shoulder Cilia was looking at Kitten curiously.
“There’s nothing I can do,” Doku reasoned with a shrug. “They will both be going back into the same body. I would imagine it will be a matter of which spirit is more dominant to take control between the two of them. That’s something they’ll have to work out on their own.”
Chronicles of Eden - Act VII Page 16