“Ok, that’s all the more reason we should kill it now! For god’s sake she’s got Daniel trapped inside of her!” Triska cried out looking back at the monster. Alyssa shook her head with a frustrated expression.
“You don’t understand, Triska, green slime women are very temperamental. They anger easily if their victim tries to escape or if they are attacked,” she cautioned. Daniel glanced back to her with a nervous expression.
“Um… what happens if they get angry?” he asked slowly. Alyssa looked at him with worried eyes then to the slime monster. Specca glanced to Triska and Squeak who were looking at her with fear, both wondering the same question.
“In the event that their prey will not cooperate, is not male, or attempts to fight back, the slime woman will…” Specca said before trailing off.
“She’ll what?” Triska asked urgently. Specca paused for a moment then looked back to Daniel.
“They’ll dissolve their victim and absorb them for nutrients. She’ll… eat Daniel.”
Chapter 20
Real Monsters
In the world of Eden there were two types of monsters that roamed the lands. The first type were known as 'feral' monsters, ones that lacked any real intelligence. These were closer to wild animals than others, following their inner nature mindlessly. Some were docile and peaceful while others were savage and dangerous, with most of them unable to speak or form any cognitive thought. The second type were known as 'sentient' monsters. These were capable of higher thinking and often formed clans or communities within their own kind. They could speak the human language and often wore clothing or wielded weaponry like humans did. However, whether they were feral or sentient they were all monsters still, all in the search for mates to use to breed with.
And all were to be treated as dangerous.
*****
"Wait, it'll do what?" Daniel shouted out with surprise, looking back to the other girls as he was being held by a slime woman next to the river's edge. He was suspended in the water as the green gelatinous substance had enveloped his body up to his shoulders, the slime woman watching him with a curious smile while its upper body was above the surface. Although her upper figure was shaped like a woman's, it was semi-transparent as it was made of nothing but green slime.
"If we try to pry Daniel from its grasp or attack it, it will turn hostile to defend itself. A green slime woman’s body becomes like acid as a defense mechanism, it'll dissolve Daniel's body and absorb him for nutrients like food," Specca explained nervously.
"What?" Triska yelled out while Squeak looked at the nixie with wide eyes. Alyssa stared at the slime woman with frustration as she held her staff, franticly trying to think of how to save Daniel before he was either raped or killed, or both.
"Um… so, what… are our options here?" Daniel asked nervously as he looked back at the monster, the creature's pink eyes staring into his while it let out a small ghostly moan. It slowly held its hands around his shoulders and leaned closer to him, the monster's mouth showing a soft smile still.
"How do we get it to let him go?" Triska asked urgently.
"It'll only let him go after she's gotten what she wants from him," Specca said shaking her head. Triska looked at Daniel with fear as he quivered a bit.
"Isn't there any other way?" Daniel asked worriedly.
"Can't we pull him out before she kills him?" Triska asked sheathing her sword.
"Believe me it would take considerable force to pull him out of that monster's grip, it'll kill him long before we get half of his body loose," Alyssa said shaking her head. Squeak held her pickaxe worriedly as she squeaked with a fearful expression.
"She's right, she'll turn completely acidic if angered, Daniel won't survive being stuck inside her like that," Specca said fearfully.
"Ok… so… are you saying the only way I'm getting out of this… is to…" Daniel said before he gulped. Triska's eyes widened as she shook her head.
'No, this isn't happening! I can't let this thing rape him right in front of me!'
Daniel trembled as he struggled to see straight, his eyes losing focus as a tingling sensation was felt along his arms and legs. His body began to feel warm all over, his breathing picking up as felt the slime around his body slithering around. The girls watched as his clothing started to wear and dissolve slowly around the edges.
"It's starting; her body is getting rid of anything that isn't Daniel. She's going to intoxicate him after that… then, use him," Alyssa said with wide eyes.
"What are we supposed to do here? C'mon, Alyssa, Specca! You two are the monster experts here, think of something quick!" Triska cried out. She looked back to Daniel with frightful eyes as Daniel's breathing picked up, his eyes struggling to see straight as his body felt warmer. Triska quickly ran over and dove behind him onto the ground, thrusting her arm into the slime and around Daniel's chest. The monster slowly looked over to her with narrowed eyes as Triska looked at it fearfully.
"What are you doing Triska?" Specca asked with surprise.
"Are you crazy? She'll melt away your arm if you do that!" Alyssa shouted out. Triska held in her scream as she shook her head, her arm starting to show bubbles forming around it as it trembled.
"I can't let her take Daniel!" she yelled out.
"Triska! Triska, pull your arm out, now!" Daniel said as the girl struggled to hold onto him.
"No, I can't let it take you like this!" Triska said with a strained voice. She felt pain searing around her arm as the slime woman let out a ghostly groan. The other girls watched her with surprise as Triska glared at the monster with a strained expression.
"We need to pull him out somehow; we're not letting this thing use him like this!" Triska cried out with a few tears forming, her arm starting to burn from the green slime.
"We can't pull him out fast enough; he's stuck inside of her. If that monster senses Daniel being taken away then her entire body will become acidic. If she turns completely Daniel will die in seconds," Alyssa franticly said.
"Triska, let go, please, don't do this. It's going to take your arm off," Daniel said as he saw his friend struggling not to scream. Specca looked at Triska with worried eyes then to the slime monster with a glare. She took off her glasses and quickly handed them to Alyssa.
"Just hold onto him, Triska, and don't let go," she said before she ran over and dove into the water. The group watched her vanish with a small splash as Triska held onto Daniel's chest with all her might. The slime woman glared at the human while Alyssa and Squeak watched it with frustration.
"Just hang on, Triska; as long as something else is in her body she won't try to breed with Daniel. Just don't try to pull him out otherwise she'll kill him," Alyssa cautioned as she held her staff and the nixie's glasses. Triska let out a small yell as her other hand clutched the grass tightly, straining herself to hold onto Daniel as her arm felt like it was on fire. If she were to let go of him he would be used by the slime monster as a breeding tool, and if she tried to pull him out the monster would kill him.
"I'm… not letting… go…" Triska grunted through bared teeth. She growled heavily as she glared at the monster, the slime woman letting out a ghostly groan as it rose up slightly higher while holding its arms out to its sides. Daniel and Triska looked up at the monster while Alyssa and Squeak watched it with narrowed eyes.
"I'll never… let him go. Never!" Triska shouted out as she struggled to bear through the pain, holding in her screams the best she could as a few tears formed in her eyes.
"Triska…" Daniel said glancing back to her. She glared at the slime monster with a strained expression.
"You hear me, bitch? It'll be a cold day in hell the day you take the boy I lo-"
Suddenly the slime monster swayed to the side with a loud groan as the river started to flow wildly, the group looking to seeing the current speeding up as the monster looked around with a surprised expression.
"What's happening?" Alyssa asked looking around at the water. The group and slim
e woman looked over to seeing a whirlpool forming behind the monster in the river, the funnel speeding up with a growing roar as the river started to violently splash around. The slime monster wavered then fell to the side, its arm falling in and melding back into its base as it flailed around. Daniel and Triska watched with wonder as the whirlpool grew larger and spun faster, the water roaring loudly as the waves crashed over the edges of the river nearby. A large wave rolled around and slammed into the slime woman from the side, splashing against it as it wavered and struggled to float upright again. Triska and Daniel coughed out water as the slime woman held onto Daniel, the boy feeling the current starting to pull on him and the monster that was wrapped around him.
"What's going on?" Triska asked as she held onto Daniel. She felt the slime woman’s acid on her arm receding as the monster was more focused on trying to remain afloat. Another large wave crashed into them, causing Daniel to lurch to the side while the slime monster reached out and grabbed hold of his chest with a sticky hand.
"Squeak, grab him!" Alyssa yelled as she held out her staff, the relic glowing orange as she focused on keeping Daniel from being carried off in the current. Squeak ran over and grabbed hold of Daniel's arm, the ant girl then striking her pickaxe into the ground and anchoring herself as she held onto the boy. The slime monster's body slipped down towards his waist as it looked around with wide eyes, the head wavering as another wave of water crashed against it.
"Wait, is… is this Specca's doing?" Daniel asked looking around.
"Specca? How?" Triska asked with surprise. Alyssa glanced to the water and smiled confidently.
"She's a water spirit, she has full control over the water while in contact with it," she said as another wave slammed into the slime monster, the creature struggling to hold onto its prey as the current constantly pushed and pulled on it. The monster tried to slide back up along Daniel's body but slipped further back down as another wave slammed into them. Daniel and Triska coughed out water while Squeak held onto Daniel with a firm grip. He felt his body caught in the current of water as he looked around at seeing the waves growing larger and larger inside the small river. Another one circled around and slammed into them, causing the slime monster to slide down to Daniel's legs.
"She's using the force of the river to wash the monster off of him, just hold on tight!" Alyssa called out as the girls watched the slime monster struggle to hold onto Daniel's legs. He kicked one foot free as the monster gurgled and screeched weakly while trying to hold onto his other leg. Triska and Squeak held onto Daniel securely as they watched the slime woman’s head and face warp and bend, the monster's body stretching out as it was being pulled along by the powerful current.
"Dammit, just let him go!" Triska yelled out as she held her arm around Daniel's chest while her other hand clutched the ground tightly. The slime monster's hand slowly reached out and stretched towards Daniel's face.
"Alyssa, pull him out now!" Triska called back.
"I'm trying to, the current's too strong!" Alyssa cried out as she focused her power, trying to pull the boy out of the raging water. Squeak let out a loud squeak as the ground cracked around her pickaxe. She looked to it quickly then back to Daniel as Triska's grip on the ground started to give.
"This is crazy, why won't that thing let go?" Triska called out.
"She must really want him badly!" Alyssa said looking at the slime monster that was still wrapped around the boy's leg. Another wave splashed over Daniel as the group braced from the impact. He slid down slightly in Triska's grip while Squeak struggled to hold onto his arm, the ant girl feeling her pickaxe budging slightly from the fierce pull. The whirlpool spun faster still as the water raged out of control. Alyssa looked at the sight with wide eyes as Triska and Squeak glanced to it.
"She really can control the water," Alyssa said with wonder.
"No shit!" Triska yelled out.
From the water nearby Specca shot up and over towards Daniel, grabbing onto his waist as she held him close while glaring over at the slime woman. The group looked at her with wonder as her scales had a faint glow coming from them.
"You may have good taste in humans, but your heart is far from pure enough for him," Specca hissed with discontent, keeping her arms wrapped around Daniel securely. Her tail wrapped around his leg as she held out her hand to the side, the nixie’s eyes narrowing as a large wave behind the group rose up into the air. The slime monster looked up over them towards it with wide eyes that were misshapen while the group looked back to it with surprise. Specca swung her hand fiercely towards the slime monster, in doing so causing the wave to barrel towards them with a roar.
"Hang on!" Triska yelled as she and Squeak held onto Daniel with all their might. Alyssa focused all her power to keep him from being swept away while Specca kept her eyes locked onto the slime monster.
"Now, let go of my Daniel!" Specca yelled out as the wave crashed down on them, blasting past the nixie in a powerful torrent as the other girls struggled to hold onto Daniel. The slime monster shook about in the current before washing off, being swept away by the wave and vanishing into the river with a gurgled groan. Specca smiled confidently as the water slowly started to calm down around them, the nixie then looking over to Daniel with a gentle smile. Although her vision was blurry she was close enough to him that he was seen somewhat clearly.
"Are you ok, Daniel?" she asked softly. He coughed out some water then looked at her with amazement as he floated in place next to the river's edge in her arms.
"Specca… thank you. That was incredible," he said looking around at the river that was calming down and returning to normal. The whirlpool nearby slowly vanished as the river returned to its docile state. Specca smiled softly with a blush and looked down, still holding onto him as her tail swayed behind in the water.
"I just did what I could to save you, I was so worried about you," she said bashfully. Alyssa cleared her throat, causing the nixie to look up to the blurry figures of three girls behind Daniel. Specca's glasses floated over and placed themselves onto the nixie's face, the girl's vision turning clear to reveal the other girls glaring at her while dripping wet. Daniel glanced back to them and smiled nervously as Specca continued to hold onto him.
"What did you just say?" Alyssa demanded, drumming her fingers on her staff.
"Did you just call Daniel yours?" Triska asked through bared teeth. Squeak merely squeaked with a low tone as she watched the nixie hold onto Daniel still. Specca blinked then smiled curiously.
"Oh, did I? I didn't notice, rush of adrenaline and such," she said with a simple giggle. The other girls continued to glare at her as Daniel chuckled weakly.
"Um… anyway, could we get out of the river now? I think I've had enough of being in the water for one day," he said with a nervous laugh. The other girls looked to him then to Specca, the three then pulling him out of the water as Specca climbed up over the river's edge. She smiled curiously as the other girls were still glaring at her while Daniel was back on his feet, the boy having soaking wet clothing as he was looking around at the obvious tension in the group.
"Is something wrong?" Specca asked innocently.
"Who the hell do you think you are calling Daniel yours?" Triska barked out at the girl. Specca looked at her with an amused smile.
"You seem angry, I thought you would be pleased that I saved Daniel from that horrible slime woman," she said simply.
"Saved him? You nearly washed him away! I had to hang onto him for dear life otherwise he would have been swept away!" Triska yelled out. Specca looked at her with a pouty smile and shook her head.
"Well, somebody had to do something to save him, and since we couldn't pull him out without risking him being dissolved into nothing by that monster, I did what I could. I used the power of the river to wash the monster away. It was only because the slime woman couldn't hold onto Daniel with the force of my current against her that she was removed from him safely," she reasoned with a shrug.
"Safely? It
took all three of us to hold onto him from your raging river, you could have killed him!" Alyssa yelled out.
"Easy, Alyssa, she helped save my life. You all did. Thank you, all of you for doing that," Daniel said looking around at the girls. Triska looked back to him with worried eyes.
"But, Daniel, I was the one that tried to save you. Specca nearly killed you by washing you away with that slime woman," she said shaking her head. She flinched a bit then looked to her arm which was reddened and burnt in some places. Daniel looked at her worriedly as he walked up to her.
"Are you ok, Triska?" he asked gently. She nodded slowly as the group looked to her arm.
"Yeah, I'll be alright," she said softly as she slowly flexed her hand. Her skin was slightly burned from the acidic touch of the slime woman, but other than that no serious damage was seen.
"Thank you, Triska," Daniel said gratefully. She glanced to him as he was looking at her arm with concern.
"For trying to save me like that, and for not letting me go," he said with a kind smile. She blushed and nodded with a small smile.
"Of course, Daniel, I would never let another monster take you away like that," she said softly.
"Hey, what about me? I helped keep you from being washed away by Specca too," Alyssa whined with a pout. Squeak nodded with a squeak as well while Specca glanced to them with an annoyed expression. Daniel chuckled and looked over to them.
"My thanks go out to both of you as well, Alyssa, you know that. Thank you all for coming to help me like that," he said with a smile. Alyssa and Squeak smiled softly at him while Specca had a dull expression on her face. She cleared her throat to get their attention then looked at Daniel with a gentle smile.
"Daniel, if you wanted to get cleaned up please feel free to use the caravan. Perhaps a new set of clothing would be more comfortable for you," she suggested pointing to his clothing. The group looked down to the boy's clothes that were dripping wet while it had small holes and tears from the slime woman’s acid. He chuckled and nodded with a weak smile as he examined himself.
chronicles of eden - act I Page 63