Chronicles of Eden - Act IV

by Alexander Gordon

  “Are you sure?”

  “You are the worst courier ever, the absolute worst courier ever!” Alyssa shouted out.

  Kroanette twitched a bit then grabbed her whip and snapped it hard at her side.

  “How dare you mock me, I am the legendary-”

  “Just get out of here, Kroanette,” Triska quickly interrupted. “That succubus over there is looking for your artifact.”

  Kroanette jumped then looked back to the battle as a figure was seen flying up into the air with demonic looking wings, easily assumed to be the Darker One in question.

  “What? She is?” Kroanette asked nervously.

  “Yeah, and not just her,” Daniel mentioned. “That human back there with the magical sword is after that thing too, him and those monster girls that are traveling with him. They’re all after that artifact. They’re going to be coming for you soon to get it.”

  Kroanette gulped and rested a hand back on her traveling bag while Falla kept looking around quickly for any sign of Luna.

  “Oh crap, oh crap oh crap!” Kroanette cried out. “I need to get out of here!”

  “What do you think we’ve been screaming at you to do this whole time?” Alyssa yelled at her. “Get rid of that thing as fast as you can!”

  Kroanette scampered around in circles then looked to the others with desperation.

  “WAAAH! Which way?”

  “It’s to the north, to the north!” Specca shouted out with exasperation.

  “I don’t know which way north is!” Kroanette snapped while shaking her head.

  “Worst! Courier! Ever!” Alyssa shouted out with frustration.

  “I am not! I am not, I am not, I am not!” Kroanette shot back at her.

  “Who cares if she is or not, we have to find my sister!” Falla shouted at them.

  “Just tell me how to get to Rystone, quick!” Kroanette desperately cried out.

  “Why do you want to go there now?” a girl’s voice asked from nearby.

  The group looked over to see Charlotte walking towards them with Apoch and Astreal following after, the twins walking in prefect sync with each other while Charlotte held a finger to her chin with an amused smile.

  “I came all this way to meet you here after all,” Charlotte finished with a giggle.

  “Um, who are you?” Kroanette asked carefully.

  “Witches,” Specca said softly.

  “Charlotte,” Alyssa squeaked out with fear.

  The group looked to her then to Charlotte as the witch turned her gaze towards Alyssa with a bitter smile.

  “Alyssa the Wildfire Witch,” she scorned with a stern tone. “I didn’t expect to find you crawling around here again.”

  “That’s the Wildfire Witch?” Apoch and Astreal questioned together while gripping their staves with both hands.

  “Alyssa? Do you know her?” Daniel asked carefully.

  Alyssa slowly nodded as she got down on one knee and bowed to Charlotte, watching her constantly with frightful eyes.

  “She’s the alpha witch of this region,” she said nervously.

  The group looked to Charlotte with surprise as the witch set her hands on her hips and raised an eyebrow at Alyssa.

  “The infamous Wildfire Witch, once again burning down villages without a care,” Charlotte mused while glancing to the burning buildings down the street. Alyssa opened her mouth to speak before the alpha waved her hand down, causing Alyssa to be thrown forward onto the dirt face first before the witch with a whine.

  “Alyssa!” Triska exclaimed as Charlotte waved her hand to the side, causing Alyssa to roll over onto her back before Apoch and Astreal quickly held their staves down towards her, the crescents on the ends going around Alyssa’s neck as the frightened witch stared up at them with a nervous whimper.

  “Shall we execute her?” Apoch and Astreal asked together while glaring down at the witch.

  “Wait, please don’t hurt her!” Daniel pleaded as he stepped forth.

  Charlotte looked to him as her eyes gave off a warm glow, the boy halting in place as the witch held a hand out towards him.

  “How dare you tell me what to do,” Charlotte hissed. “A simple human ordering me around, the gall you have.”

  She waved her hand down, causing Daniel to drop to his knees while he couldn’t move his body at all.

  “Daniel!” Specca cried out as the boy struggled to budge his arms while he stared at the alpha witch with wide eyes. Charlotte slowly walked towards him, the girl’s movements seeming hypnotic as she suddenly struck him as the most attractive and alluring girl he had ever seen. Thoughts about kissing and rolling around in a bed naked with her flooded his mind, the girl’s eyes seeming to pierce right into his heart as she showed a coy smile at him. He then shut his eyes and shook his head, trying to repel the images of the witch that were boring into his mind. Charlotte smiled amusedly as she approached him, watching as he struggled to keep his eyes closed.

  “Oh my,” she playfully mused. “Are you trying to resist me? How cute.”

  “No, don’t charm him, please!” Alyssa cried out.

  She looked to seeing Squeak and Triska narrowing their eyes at Charlotte, the alpha glancing to them with an amused grin as they both gripped their weapons tightly.

  “No!” Alyssa pleaded loudly. “Don’t attack her, don’t do it! You’ll die!”

  Triska and Squeak glanced to her then back to Charlotte as the alpha slowly turned to look down at the Wildfire Witch.

  “Alyssa, are these friends of yours?” she asked curiously.

  Alyssa whimpered and looked at her with fearful eyes as the alpha walked over to her.

  “Please, I’m begging you, don’t hurt them,” Alyssa desperately pleaded.

  Charlotte looked at her for a moment then over to Kroanette.

  “Before I deal with them, I believe you have something for me.”

  Kroanette glanced to Daniel with a sympathetic look then to Charlotte as she nodded and reached back into her bag.

  “You are the witch I was supposed to deliver this to in Rystone, correct? Well, here you are, as promised,” she said holding out the artifact towards the witch. Charlotte looked at it with a curious eye then took hold of it, tilting the relic around while examining it carefully as a slight smile came across her face.

  “Interesting, so this is a fragment of the fabled Key to Eden.”

  “Key to Eden?” Specca questioned softly.

  Charlotte eyed the artifact closely then glanced to Kroanette with a raised eyebrow as she tossed the relic over to Apoch, the raven haired witch catching it while still holding her staff down to Alyssa.

  “I was supposed to have received this yesterday, what took you so long?” Charlotte questioned sharply.

  Kroanette gulped and glanced to Daniel’s group.

  “Well… I’m truly sorry about that,” she nervously stammered. “First I ran into them, then I got turned around somehow, and now there’s this succubus who’s after that thing, and I didn’t know about that but apparently she is, and… and…”

  “Are you making excuses?” Charlotte asked.

  Kroanette looked to her with a jump and a nervous smile while shaking her head.

  “No, not at all, I… I’m sorry, really.”

  Charlotte stared at her for a moment then shrugged with a calm smile on her face.

  “I was told centaurs never miss a delivery date, this is most unfortunate indeed,” she mentioned expectedly.

  “I do apologize for that, I really do,” Kroanette apologized with a humble bow. “I tried with everything I had to get here on time, please forgive me.”

  Charlotte sighed then snapped her fingers, with Astreal then pulling out a small scroll from her shirt. The paper gently flew over in front of Charlotte before the alpha waved her hand around before it, her movements creating words on the parchment as if she were holding a pen in her hand.

  “Oh well,” she said carelessly. “I got what I wanted, so no matter. Here is m
y receipt for the delivery, take it and go. Your human shall be waiting for you as promised.”

  The scroll rolled up and floated over to Kroanette, the centaur then taking hold of it and smiling graciously at the witch.

  “Thank you, thank you so much,” she said humbly.

  Charlotte waved her off then looked to Triska and Squeak with a curious smile.

  “Now then, as for you two…”

  “Let Daniel go right now,” Triska demanded through bared teeth.

  Charlotte scoffed then waved her hand to the side, with Triska then gasping as her arms moved on their own and angled her sword up at her neck. Squeak let out a loud squeak as her body moved on its own, her hands striking her pickaxe down into the dirt before her legs kneeled down near it. The ant girl squeaked as her head jerked down towards the digging tool, the tip being pointed right towards her face as she struggled to push herself back against her own will.

  “What are you doing?” Falla asked shaking her head.

  “I’m not doing this, I can’t move my body!” Triska exclaimed as her sword was being held by her own hands up at her neck. Squeak shook her head as her body tried to lean down forcibly to impale her own skull on the digging tool.

  “No!” Alyssa cried out. “Please, don’t hurt them! I’m begging you!”

  Specca shook her head and stepped forth while holding her hands out at her sides.

  “Please, you misunderstand, we’re not-” she started before she seemed to choke on something, her words no longer coming out as she dropped to her knees while grabbing her throat. Alyssa watched fearfully as Specca tried to breathe while Charlotte just looked at the nixie with a dull stare.

  “I misunderstand nothing,” Charlotte stated while walking towards Specca. “I know what goes on in my land, nothing escapes my eye.” Kroanette slowly backed up along with Falla as the alpha held a hand out to Specca’s cheek and smiled curiously at her.

  “It is you that doesn’t understand. Here in this land my word is law, my word is truth, and my say is final. Nobody, nobody, tells me what to do or think, do you hear me?”

  Specca choked and shakily nodded before Charlotte held a hand over her throat, the nixie’s arms dropping to her sides as her eyes started to roll back into her head.

  “The next one of you to speak before being spoken to will die, understand?” Charlotte questioned.

  Specca shakily nodded again before Charlotte waved her back, throwing the nixie down to the ground gasping for air. Charlotte breathed out slowly then looked to Triska and Squeak, the two glancing to her nervously as their bodies were under the witch’s control.

  “Now then, what to do with all of you,” she mused softly to herself.

  “My grace,” Daniel said softly, with all eyes turning to him as he looked to Charlotte with a calm expression. Charlotte slowly walked over to him while tilting her head with a playful smile.

  “What did you just call me?”

  “That is the proper greeting for an alpha witch, is it not?”

  “It is, but how is it that you know that?” Charlotte asked while brushing the boy’s hair casually.

  “Because I’ve been researching how to speak to monsters such as yourself, to be able to talk to them formally for when I meet them.”

  Charlotte smiled amusedly at him and shook her head slowly.

  “Really now? And, why is it that you wish to be able to talk to and meet monsters such as myself?”

  “Because I want to speak to monsters such as you about living in peace with humans, to put an end to the fighting and bloodshed between our races once and for all,” Daniel answered.

  Charlotte just stared at him for a moment then tilted her head the other way.

  “Come again?”

  “Just what I said. I wish to instill peace between our races so that we may live together and help each other survive in this world.”

  Charlotte again stared at him for a while before looking to Alyssa.

  “What did you drug this one with? He’s out of his mind,” she laughed while shaking her head.

  “That must have been a real bad potion,” Astreal added before the twins started giggling together.

  “I haven’t given him anything, he speaks the truth,” Alyssa urgently pleaded. “He wants humans and monsters to coexist peacefully with each other, to help each other in this world against real evil like the Darker Ones.”

  Charlotte looked to Daniel for a moment with a blank expression then started laughing, with Apoch and Astreal giggling as well while the alpha witch held her sides.

  “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of!” Charlotte mocked before she keeled over laughing “What manner of trickery is this?”

  “It’s no trick,” Daniel insisted. “You need our help to survive in this world, you know that to be true.”

  Charlotte looked to him with a smug grin and raised an eyebrow.

  “Oh, I know what we need men like you for,” she purred. “And I’m going to show you exactly what that is later on tonight.”

  “Don’t you dare lay a hand on him!” Triska yelled out, and then gasped as Charlotte pointed a finger at her with a cold stare.

  “What did I just say earlier?” the witch questioned before she slowly drew a finger across her throat. Triska’s hands trembled then held the sword against the girl’s throat, with Specca quickly rushing over and grabbing hold of her arms as the teen’s body moved on its own and tried to slice her throat open.

  “No! Don’t!” Specca cried out at Charlotte. “Please, he’s telling the truth, he’s telling the truth!”

  The alpha witch smirked and waved a finger at her, the nixie then freezing in place before one of her hands shakily moved down to grab Triska’s dagger.

  “Again, what did I just tell you?” Charlotte remarked.

  “No, please don’t!” Alyssa cried out as Specca brought the dagger up to her heart and prepared to ram the blade into her with both hands while Triska felt her sword cutting the skin on her neck. They used all their strength to merely keep the weapons from killing themselves as Charlotte giggled amusedly.

  “Nobody tells me what to do or think, nobody,” the alpha declared as she held a hand out towards them. To her surprise Daniel quickly leapt forth and grabbed her hands, holding them down at her sides as he brought the witch closer to him. She stared at him with wonder as the boy shook his head desperately.

  “Please, I speak the truth,” he beseeched her. “We only want there to be peace between our races. I’m begging you, my grace, don’t kill them.”

  “You’re either incredibly brave or incredibly stupid for touching me like this,” Charlotte commented. “Though I do believe I’m going to lean more towards the choice of you being stupid.”

  “I can’t stop myself!” Specca cried out as she shut her eyes, her hands then trying to ram the dagger into her heart before Falla ran over and grabbed onto them, holding them back with all her might as she looked to Charlotte with annoyance.

  “Would you knock it off?” she barked out. “They’re speaking the truth, and I need their help finding my sister!”

  Triska screamed as her head rocked back, her hands angling the sword and trying to slice through her own neck before Kroanette rushed over and grabbed the handle, the centaur trying to wrestle the sword away from the hexed girl’s hands.

  “Don’t you think you’re being a little harsh here?” Kroanette nervously asked the witch. “They haven’t done anything to wrong you.”

  Charlotte rolled her eyes then waved her hand down.

  “They’re annoying me, that’s enough.”

  Squeak let out a loud squeak before her hands reached out to her sides on their own while her body tried to drop down onto the pickaxe, the girl stopping just short of the digging tool going straight through her eye as Alyssa held a hand out towards the ant girl. Alyssa focused her magic to help Squeak fight back against her own body then looked to Charlotte with desperation.

  “I’m b
egging you, my grace, please don’t hurt them!”

  Charlotte looked around at the three hexed girls curiously then to Daniel as he lowered his head humbly to her.

  “Please,” he desperately implored. “What I say is true. I don’t want there to be any more fighting between us. Witches and humans have been at war for so long, raping and killing one another, it needs to stop. You know you’ve lost sisters in this endless battle, how not only humans but other monsters have posed a threat to your kind’s existence. I’m begging you, my grace, we don’t have to be at war with one another. We can live together in peace, I know it’s possible.”

  “You’re serious?” Charlotte scoffed. “You’re all serious about this? Have you truly gone mad? Witches and humans can’t live together in peace, we can’t do such a thing and you know it.”

  “Yes you can,” Daniel insisted. “And so can other monsters, it can be done if we both make the effort to try.”

  Charlotte looked at him with a raised eyebrow then leaned closer to him with an innocent smile.

  “That’s crazy talk, but I know something else we can make a real effort into trying with one another.”

  “My grace!” Apoch and Astreal cried out as they looked up at something with surprise. Charlotte glanced to them then behind her as Katie swooped down and landed on the street near the group, the succubus watching Charlotte with a cold eye while blue and green flames licked off of her hand.

  “I thought I heard my little kitten crying for help over here,” Katie said glancing to Triska. “You may not have known this, but that one belongs to me.”

  The teen looked at her with frustration as she and Kroanette struggled to keep her from committing suicide under the witch’s power.

  “Great, just what I needed to deal with right now,” Triska muttered.

  Katie glanced to Charlotte with a raised eyebrow then over to Apoch as the witch had the artifact in her hand.

  “Oh my,” she mused with a cold smile. “And you have something else that belongs to me as well.”

  Charlotte smirked and glanced behind the succubus as she slowly stood up in front of Daniel.

  “Now now, looks like you already have something else to play with,” she mentioned, with Katie then swinging her hand behind her, casting a fiery bolt of magic into Jacqueline as the blonde raced towards her. The blast of magic struck against her and exploded with a loud bang, causing Jacqueline’s burnt body to tumble back into a wicked roll while trailing smoke. Katie looked back to the charred corpse with annoyance then saw Jovian racing towards them, the raven haired girl then being struck from behind by a bright wave of light. As the girl was splattered onto the road in bloody pieces Daemon was seen walking towards the gathering with the other girls quickly following after.