“Finish helping her best you can, then we’ll go look for Cilia,” Daniel promised her. “I’m sure we’ll find her close to here.”
“Um, Daniel?” Alyssa asked him with an adorable smile. “We still need to have a ‘talk’ with Doku about her thinking you’re her mate. I think that takes precedence over Cilia being missing, don’t you?”
“We’ll all talk about that and get it cleared up together,” Daniel assured her. “First we’re going to get dressed, then we’re going to find our missing fairy friend and make sure she’s alright, and then we’re going to calmly sit down as a group and sort out any misunderstandings in a peaceful way.”
“When you say peaceful…” Alyssa questioned with a finger held to her lip.
“No punishing anyone,” Daniel clarified, with Alyssa pouting to that. “There’s been enough violence already this morning. You’re out here for peace as well, Alyssa, time to use your words and not your magic to reason with others.”
“But, Daniel,” Alyssa whined shaking her arms around in a fit.
“You heard him,” Triska ordered. “We’ve already had one us of get hurt this morning, we’re not adding to that with another. I’m sure Cilia’s fine too, but we’d better find her to make sure. Everyone get dressed and then we’ll go searching for her. After that we’ll all have a chat about our other issues.”
The other girls nodded, with Alyssa doing so reluctantly, then headed over to the wardrobe to get changed for the day. Pip landed on Daniel’s shoulder and watched Clover with a worried eye as the elf slept quietly in his arms, seeing the girl’s wound vanishing completely now as Doku’s magic radiated from it before the glow faded away.
“Is she going to be alright now?” Triska asked from beside the harpy.
“She’s going to be a little sore when she wakes up,” Doku replied with a shrug. “That was a very deep injury, however she has healed nicely.”
She wavered then dropped back onto her rear with a heavy breath, the other girls stopping and noticing her becoming fatigued from expending so much of her power.
“This is the best I can do for now. I’m sorry but I’m growing very weak from using this much magic to help her. She’ll be fine from here, but she’s going to need to rest for a while to fully recover. She’s not going to be able to move about when she wakes up. Not yet.”
“You really saved her from that attack,” Daniel softly said in wonder. “Doku, that’s incredible how you were able to help her like this.”
“I would stay and continue with healing her, but I need to find Cilia,” Doku reasoned as she slowly got back onto her feet. “I’m sorry, but I have to find her right now.”
Triska helped her stand by holding her wing then slowly guided the harpy over to her clothing on the couch.
“Are you sure you can go out right now?” Triska asked as Doku began putting on her skirt with her feet and wings. “You look pretty exhausted. Maybe you should stay here. You don’t have to use more of your magic on Clover right now, just rest and let us find Cilia.”
“I need to find her and make sure she’s alright,” Doku insisted. “I don’t like not knowing where she is, and she knows this. She knows how much I worry about her.”
“She’s a fairy,” Specca pointed out with a hopeful smile. “She’s very powerful, I’m quite certain she can protect herself if need be.”
“A single bird could be her end out there,” Doku morbidly pointed out. “And Cilia is a very kindhearted girl, she knows hurting others is wrong. She would likely try to fly away from something rather than use her magic to attack it. And if she couldn’t run away… she might not know what to do.”
“Cilia,” Pip whimpered.
Daniel lifted Clover up and carried her over to the bed, resting her down and gently brushing the few strands of hair in her face around her ear, then walked over to the wardrobe to fetch new clothing for himself.
“Squeak, please stay here and help tend to Clover when she wakes up,” he requested with a glance to the ant girl. “She’s going to be sore and in pain when she comes to, you could help her get through it and make her more comfortable.”
Squeak nodded and started getting changed into her tunic as Daniel glanced over to Triska and Doku. The harpy had somehow gotten her skirt on and fastened again and was now putting on her shawl with her mouth and wings while Triska was watching Daniel with a curious eye.
“Triska, stay here with Clover and Squeak,” Daniel ordered with a quick gesture to the sleeping elf. “Make sure they stay safe, and when Clover wakes up I want Kitten to offer her the deepest and most sincere apology she can muster.”
“She’s going to beg, Daniel,” Triska mentioned with a stern glance to the side, seeing Kitten watching Daniel with a nervous whimper and low drooping wings. “She’s going to beg and grovel for Clover’s forgiveness, and I’m willing to bet Clover isn’t going to make it easy for her.”
“Don’t be so harsh on Kitten,” Doku softly said as she finished getting dressed. “I’m not angry with her at all.”
“You’re not?” Alyssa asked in disbelief as she was in the middle of getting her skirt on. “She nearly killed you, she almost killed Clover. How can you not be angry with her?”
“She’s protective of Daniel,” Doku reasoned to Triska. “She had every right to be angry with me for what I did, I crossed a line getting into bed with him like that. You have to see that she’s not attacking others for no reason, she only acted the way she did because she’s protective of her master. She loves him.”
“You are the most forgiving person I know,” Kroanette mentioned as she put on her shirt and adjusted her huge bosom in it. “The demon nearly hacks your head off and you still want to be friends with her.”
“Kitten, I forgive you,” Doku said, with Triska and Kitten both watching her in wonder. “I understand why you got upset, and I hope you can accept my apology. You’re not a bad demon, at least not in my eyes. You’re very dedicated to Daniel and put his safety and wellbeing before anything else, that’s very commendable of you.”
“You’re serious,” Triska realized in awe. “You don’t hate her at all for what she nearly did to you? For what she did to Clover?”
“She acted on instinct, she wanted to protect Daniel and got carried away, that’s all. Remember, she’s still learning to be good, Triska. These things aren’t as black and white to her as they are to us. Don’t give up on her, you are helping her become a good person, she needs you to guide her further.”
Triska stared at her in stunned silence then glanced to the side to see Kitten watching Doku with the same expression. The demon opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out, words failing her as she saw the harpy baring no anger towards her in the slightest after what she did to her.
“If she can’t hear me,” Doku spoke up. “Please tell her I still believe in her becoming a good person. I know there’s a good soul in her, and I have faith she can show it to the world someday.”
Triska watched as Kitten was rendered speechless of the harpy’s words then slowly nodded and smiled a little at Doku.
“I’ll be sure to tell her that.”
Daniel finished getting changed into a new clean set of clothes and vest while the girls got dressed in their outfits again, with the butterfly sisters adjusting their petal bras and Specca patting down her skirt with her tail swaying about behind her. Squeak slipped into her boots and gloves then gathered Clover’s clothes to bring over to the elf, walking past the girls and Alyssa as the witch finished putting on her hat and focuser necklace. Triska walked over and started clothing herself while Kroanette looked towards the entryway as she slipped on her bracelets, eyeing the small opening with the black curtain ruffling gently in the breeze before turning to the others with a nervous frown.
“Um, how am I going to get out of here?”
“I don’t think she’ll fit through there at all,” Specca mentioned with a glance to the entryway while adjusting her tie.
; “I think she can,” Luna said tilting her head curiously.
“I think she can’t,” Falla dryly corrected her.
“Well she can’t stay in here forever,” Alyssa reasoned with a shrug. She walked over to the curtain and brushed it aside, looking around at the wooden frame of the opening that certainly didn’t look big enough for a centaur to pass through as she backed up a step and scratched her head as she tried to solve this problem.
“How in Eden am I supposed to fit through there?” Kroanette fretted.
“Just crouch down and crawl through,” Pip suggested as she fluttered in front of her.
“I don’t think that will work,” Doku worriedly pointed out.
“I have an idea,” Alyssa said waving the centaur over. “Kroanette, come here and kneel down. Let me measure this up.”
Kroanette carefully trotted over towards the entryway then got down on her legs as low as she could get in front of it, with her human body rising up above the opening frame and her horse body obviously being too wide for it.
“Alright, this is going to work,” Alyssa assured, almost as if to convince herself, as she eyed the opening carefully and summoned her staff over into her hands.
“No, I don’t believe it will,” Kroanette protested shaking her head.
“Sure it will,” Alyssa said as she hopped out onto the front seat of the ride. She examined the area in front of the caravan then turned to Kroanette with a hopeful smile that did nothing to quell the centaur’s concerns about her plan.
“Okay, this will be easy,” Alyssa promised before jumping back onto the ground. “First, lean down and out through the opening.”
“Alyssa, are you sure about this?” Kroanette worried as she reluctantly stuck her human half out from doorway as much as she could. “I can’t get through here, this isn’t going to-”
“Nonsense,” Alyssa argued shaking a finger at her. “Now, get your two front feet out and onto the seat.”
Kroanette looked down at the driver’s seat of the ride then shifted her body side to side as she just managed to squeeze out her front legs out from under her. She rested her hooves on the seat then turned to Alyssa questionably while everyone inside the cabin saw Kroanette’s body wedged into the entryway as far as it would go.
“Alyssa, I cannot move through here,” Kroanette insisted as she held her hands against the front wall of the ride and fidgeted around. “This is not going to work.”
“Okay,” Alyssa called out. “Now somebody get behind her and push.”
“What?” Kroanette barked out. “Are you not listening to me? I cannot fit through here.”
“That’s your plan?” Falla called out from in the ride. “To just push her through? That’s a horrible plan.”
“I’m telling you it’s going to work,” Alyssa promised with a few hops. “Listen, somebody get behind her and gently push to help her through. I’ll use my magic out here and keep her steady and gently lower her down as she comes out.”
“I can’t get through here though,” Kroanette whined. “Are you not listening to anything I’m saying, or even seeing that I’m unable to fit through here with your own eyes?”
“Yes you can,” Alyssa insisted. “Just suck in your gut all you can, and then we’ll get you through there in no time. I’ll catch you when you drop down with my magic, you’ll be fine.”
“I don’t think this is a good idea,” Luna said shaking her head.
Squeak shook her head with a squeak in agreement while Daniel eyed over Kroanette’s body and tried to imagine how this could possibly work.
Triska finished getting dressed in her shirt and pants, slipped on her boots and bracelet, then walked over to Kroanette’s rear and rested her hands on it.
“Alright, ready when you are.”
“Wait, what?” Kroanette cried back at her. “You can’t possibly believe this will work.”
“Do you have a better idea?” Triska questioned her. “Does anyone have a better idea than this? Because this is the only way out of here, Kroanette, so one way or another you’re going through.”
The group looked to each other then back to her and shook their heads, all of them fearing this wouldn’t work but unable to come up with any alternative solutions. Kroanette fidgeted and looked around at the small opening she was poking out from then sighed and hung her head in defeat.
“Fine, just… be gentle with me.”
“You’re going to be okay,” Alyssa assured her. “We’ll do this nice and slow, no worries. Just take a deep breath and Triska will give you a little push from behind to help you out.”
Kroanette nodded then took a few quick breaths before taking a big one and trying to pull herself through the opening. Alyssa watched the centaur squirming slightly as she tried to inch her way through the small entryway then tapped her staff in hand as she nodded a few times.
“Alright, Triska,” the witch called out. “Just give her a small-”
The centaur was promptly shoved through the wall with a loud crash, tearing through the wood and frame of the cabin as she was pushed with incredible force from behind. Kroanette didn’t even have time to scream before she dropped down and slammed onto the ground along with bits of debris with a heavy thump, her rear sticking up in the air with legs twitching slightly while Triska stared at her with wide eyes and hands held out from her push. Everyone in the caravan fell silent as they saw the large opening in the front of the room with broken planks dropping down around the edges. Alyssa stared at Kroanette with an open mouth then looked to Triska as the teen set her hands at her hips with a scoff at the witch.
“Nice catch, Alyssa,” Triska mocked shaking her head.
“Are you kidding me?” Alyssa yelled back. “I wasn’t expecting you to push her straight through the wall like that!”
“Oh no, Kroanette?” Daniel called out as the group rushed towards the new opening and saw the centaur face first down in the dirt.
“Triska!” Specca scolded her. “The plan was for you to push her gently. Gently!”
“I did push her gently,” Triska defended. “I hardly used any strength at all.”
“You’re not human anymore!” Alyssa shouted with frustration. “You’re stronger than you were before, remember?”
Triska looked to her hands curiously then to Kitten as the demon was standing next to her in her mind with a curious eye on the centaur below them. The demon glanced to her and shrugged with a weak smile before looking down and away with remorse. Triska sighed and rubbed a hand down her face before smiling nervously at Kroanette.
“Um… sorry, Kroanette.”
“Are you okay?” Pip called out.
Kroanette wavered then dropped down onto her side with a thump, the group watching as she groaned weakly with dirt and grass covering her face before they turned to Triska who cringed slightly at seeing the centaur lying on the ground dazed with broken pieces of wooden boards around her.
“Well,” Doku hesitantly spoke up. “You were right. She went through, one way or another.”
*****
Inside the cabin Squeak was gently dressing Clover in her elven tunic and skirt, being very careful not to touch where the elf was recently healed from her mortal injury. She gave the sleeping girl a small smile then looked to Triska as the teen brought her duffel bag over towards the very large opening they had in the front of the cabin now. Triska set the bag down and sighed as she examined the damage she caused then looked to the group outside as they were getting ready to head out.
“I’m sorry again, Kroanette,” she apologized sincerely. “I didn’t mean to push you that hard.”
“It’s alright,” Kroanette said as she brushed off the grass and dirt from her shirt and stomach. “Honestly, me getting out of there wouldn’t have happened any other way.”
“I’m so glad you’re okay,” Pip whined as she was nestled in the centaur’s bosom and holding her chest dearly. “I was so worried. Don’t ever scare me like that again.”
“Is she talking about me or my boobs?” Kroanette dryly asked as she holstered her whip at her side next to her saddlebag.
“Your boobs,” Falla answered with a shrug as she and her sister sat on the edge of the caravan’s roof.
“Don’t worry about this, I’ll get it taken care of,” Triska promised as she eyed over the broken wall before looking to the group again. “Just find Cilia and make sure she’s alright.”
“We’ll need to split up to find her quickly,” Daniel suggested. “Specca, go with Doku that way and see if you can find her, maybe she flew off near the river to get a drink. Kroanette, you and Pip head that way and check over the hillside for her, she could be flying around and maybe got lost. Alyssa and I will ride Lucky that way; she’s bound to be close by in one of these directions.”
“She’s probably just flying around aimlessly or something,” Alyssa reasoned before heading over towards Lucky.
“She wouldn’t have left without telling me first,” Doku fretted. “Something bad happened, I just know it.”
“Don’t worry,” Specca assured her as she took hold of the harpy’s wing. “I’m sure she’s fine. Let’s go for a little walk to the river, perhaps she only wanted to get a drink after a nice morning flight.”
Doku whimpered and nodded before the two headed off together in search of the missing fairy.
“And no swimming, Specca,” Triska called out to them, with the nixie flinching and quickly looking back to her with a nervous smile. “Not until Cilia is back here safe and sound. Understood?”
“I know, I know,” Specca insisted with a few nods before looking away sheepishly and walking alongside Doku again.
“We’ll check this way quickly then report back,” Kroanette said, with Pip turning around and showing the group a determined expression.
“We’ll find her. Let’s ride, my boobies!”
“I knew it…” Kroanette sighed before she took off running with the fairy riding in her chest.
“Falla, Luna,” Daniel called up to the sisters. “See if you can spot Cilia moving about from the air. If you catch a glimpse of her signal us to head that way.”
Chronicles of Eden - Act VII Page 50