Chronicles of Eden - Act IV (32 page)

“You saw what being told no to by Charlotte did to them. It crushed their morale, it made Alyssa feel like she was at fault for everything, it made them all lose faith in this and start to fight with each other all over again. We need this. We have to have something to show that what we’re trying to do, what we’re fighting for, isn’t just a fool’s dream. That it
can
be achieved.”

“Daniel,” Kroanette said with a worried smile. “If you wish to speak to monsters about your beliefs so badly then I’ll take you to my mother. You can talk to her all you want and you won’t be at risk of being raped to death. You don’t have to go to Rystone anymore, it’s not worth it.”

“No, I have to go there,” Daniel insisted. “I can’t take no for an answer, especially with the witches. We need this victory, to bring on a powerful monster race for support. It’ll help keep everyone going with our journey, especially Alyssa. She blames herself for Charlotte saying no to me, she thinks she can’t help me at all anymore because of this loss, that witches will never help us now because of her. I need to show her that she’s wrong, that she hasn’t cost us anything.”

“But, Daniel,” Kroanette protested. “You’ll be in the middle of a village full of witches, along with an alpha witch. My bracelets surely won’t protect either of us from all of them for long.”

“Then just drop me off at the outskirts of the village,” Daniel countered. “I’ll walk from there. You don’t have to lay your life on the line for this, but I do. This is my quest, the reason I’m out here in the first place. I’m not going to just walk away and accept defeat. Charlotte needs to listen to me, she needs to understand, and I’m not leaving until I make my case with her in full.”

“You walk into that village alone and you certainly will never leave again, you are correct,” Kroanette replied dryly. She looked over to the knoll then to Daniel with concern.

“Those kisses you gave the girls… those were in case you didn’t come back, weren’t they?”

Daniel nodded and glanced to her with worried smile.

“Just in case.”

Kroanette looked at him with sympathy then towards the forest that led to Rystone.

“Are you really prepared to die so soon in your life? A human walking right into a village full of witches, that’s suicide no matter how you look at it.”

Daniel nodded and looked to the forest with a distant gaze.

“We need this. I have to try with everything I have to win their favor with us, I can’t just accept no for an answer.”

Kroanette sighed then glanced to him with a dull expression.

“You won’t last five seconds there,” she mentioned flatly.

“So if I break five do I get a reward?” Daniel quipped with a glance to her.

The centaur smiled slightly and shook her head before slowly turning to face the forest.

“If you make it longer than five seconds I’ll be sure to speak highly of you to my mother while you remain in Rystone as the witches’ pet.”

Daniel smiled lightly to that comment then held onto her waist.

“Just let me try to talk to them, it’s the whole reason I’m out here in the first place. If this idea really is impossible and if I really am just a fool in this world, then whatever happens to me in that village is what I have coming in life for dreaming about this.”

Kroanette hesitated then sighed with annoyance while shaking her head.

“Fine,” she reluctantly agreed. “I’ll take you to the village. But if things don’t go well I’m getting the hell out of there, with or without you, understand?”

Daniel nodded with a gentle smile as she turned to look at him with an accusing eye.

“I mean it,” she stressed. “You’d better speak well to those witches in the short time you’ll have before they try and rape you to death. I’m not in the mood to relay your final act in life to your friends back there.”

“I’ll do my very best, you have my word,” Daniel assured.

Kroanette looked back ahead while breathing out slowly.

“Here’s hoping that word isn’t your last,” she said before taking off along the road towards the forest. As they traveled towards the village of Rystone further ahead Daniel glanced back to seeing the knoll his friends were on drawing further away, the fire from their camp disappearing from view before they entered the forest together.

‘And I hope those kisses I gave them weren’t the last as well.’

In the world of Eden there were many visionaries that saw different futures for their people. To grow and survive in the world, to prosper and become stronger as a whole, these were the goals of those that became leaders and philosophers for their kind. Whether it be to call for war in order to protect their land, or perhaps appeal for change to be made in their community for the better, these were the ones that wanted what was best for their people, and weren’t afraid to speak out loud to do so. However, sometimes they would be met with criticism, doubt, or possibly resentment if their ideas seemed too senseless or risky, with some even being treated like outcasts because of it. When faced with ridicule, rejection, and possibly even death, this is when true visionaries would stand out from the rest.

Only they would be willing to die for their beliefs.

*****

Under the night sky a group of travelers were gathered around a campfire, with their white horse standing near their broken caravan while casually looking around at the surrounding landscape and nearby village of Eston which was on fire still. Sitting near the campfire Specca was going through Daniel’s monster book with a sharp eye, trying to unravel the mystery of what Jovian and Jacqueline really were. Going through the book there were plenty of entries of monsters that could be found in the world, however nothing about a monster that couldn’t be killed. Next to her Falla was sitting down with Luna laying on her lap, watching her sister with distress while Luna continued to sleep. Beside them Squeak was watching the sleeping butterfly girl with gentle eyes, waiting for her to wake up along with Falla.

And across from them Triska and Alyssa were cooking a stew together, with the pot being hung over the fire by a twisted green root that appeared to grow straight up out of the ground then hook back down to hold the container in place perfectly by its handle. Triska rummaged through her duffel bag she had next to her while Alyssa stirred the stew with a wooden spoon, the witch just staring at it with a distant gaze as she wasn’t really focused too much on cooking.

“Alright,” Triska said before she started to put some seasonings in the stew. “Let’s see here, this should help give it some nice flair.”

She smiled in content at seeing it bubble slightly in the pot then glanced to Alyssa with worried eyes as the witch continued to just slowly stir without saying a word.

“Alyssa?”

“Hm?” Alyssa merely replied with without even looking to the girl.

Triska showed a worried smile and laughed a little.

“I hope this stew isn’t too ‘boring’ for your tastes,” she mentioned playfully, then watched as Alyssa just kept slowly stirring the food while not responding or even glancing to the girl.

“Alyssa?”

After that got no response she turned to Specca and Squeak, the two looking to her with concern as well while Falla continued to watch her sister still.

“Alyssa,” Triska gently said. “What happened in Eston with Charlotte wasn’t your fault.”

“Yes it was,” Alyssa quietly replied.

“No, it wasn’t. Charlotte didn’t want to talk to Daniel because she thought his idea was crazy, not because you were with us.”

“If I wasn’t there he might have gotten their help,” Alyssa said before closing her eyes. “He might have gotten all witches in Eden to help him. Instead he’s told to never return again, and all because I’m with him. I cost him so much just by being near him.”

“That’s not true,” Specca defended. “If it wasn’t for you being there she might have killed all of us and took Daniel away to rape him. It was because of you and your horse that Charlotte had a change of heart.”

“Daniel could have reasoned with her,” Alyssa whimpered. “He could have talked her down, he could have gotten her to help, I know he could have. But now he’ll never get the chance to because of me!”

Alyssa cried out in sorrow before she threw the spoon down to the ground and started sobbing with her hands held to her face.

“Alyssa,” Triska said worriedly, the teen then looking to the others with a shrug as she couldn’t think of what to say. Alyssa whimpered and dropped down to her knees as she hid her face in her hands.

“I don’t deserve to have a night with him, I don’t deserve to be with him at all. I ruined everything for him and now there’s no fixing it!”

Triska watched the witch cry with remorse then knelt down next to her and held the girl close, with Alyssa sobbing still while Triska rested a hand on her back.

“Please don’t cry,” Triska softly consoled. “We can still fix this, I know we can.”

“There’s no fixing this,” Alyssa whimpered. “As long as I’m with Daniel he’ll never be taken seriously by any witch in Eden. All the alphas are just going to laugh at him if I’m anywhere near him.”

“That’s not true,” Triska argued hopefully. “We can still talk to them again, with you by our side.”

“No we can’t!” Alyssa cried out as she pushed Triska away. “Aren’t you listening to me? No alpha will ever want anything to do with this as long as I’m a part of it!”

The teen looked at her friend with growing concern then slowly shook her head.

“Alyssa, we’re not doing this without you,” she said sincerely, with Alyssa looking to her with frustration and teary eyes. Triska smiled a little and reached out to wipe a tear off of the witch’s cheek, with Alyssa sniffling and then wiping her tears away with her sleeves.

“You’re just as much a part of this as we all are,” Triska reminded with a small shrug. “And I know I speak on Daniel’s behalf when I say that we’re not abandoning you over this. We’re going to do what we set out here to do, with the Wildfire Witch helping us. That’s all there is to it.”

“Dammit, I can’t help you!” Alyssa shouted before looking down with eyes shut tight. “I can’t help Daniel, I can’t help anyone with this. Don’t you understand? My name is a curse word in the witch world,
I’m
a curse!”

“That’s not true, you’re famous amongst witches,” Triska defended.

“I’m
infamous
!” Alyssa screamed out at her. “There’s a difference! I’m hated, not loved! Any witch out there wouldn’t hesitate to rip my heart out if they knew who I really was! I killed so many of my own kind, I’m a mass murderer of witches; I’m a
letchyask
!”

“Don’t you dare say that!” Triska shouted back desperately. “You are not a vile abomination, you are not beyond redemption. Dammit, Alyssa, there’s nothing wrong with you!” Alyssa looked at her with a jump as the teen grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her lightly.

“You made a mistake; you tried to get rid of the wolves in your home and couldn’t handle your magic, that doesn’t mean you’re the devil! You helped all of us survive out here, you helped us get this far, you’re not a bad witch at all. You’re not some nameless monster of Eden or some uncontrollable lustful creature. You’re Alyssa the Wildfire Witch; you’re a good soul!”

“I’m not a good soul!” Alyssa argued. “I’m a murderer and a monster, I’m a
letchyask
and there’s no changing that! I thought I could hide it from Daniel, I thought I could avoid facing it again with him, I thought he could talk to the witches without me being near him and win their favor, but I was just fooling myself. I cost him everything!”

At this point the other girls, including Falla, were just watching them as the two went back and forth with their argument. Triska shook her head while holding onto her friend, feeling horrible for how Alyssa was feeling herself.

“You’re wrong, you haven’t cost him anything. And stop saying you’re a
letchyask
, you aren’t like that at all!”

“But I am!” Alyssa sobbed with tears dripping from her cheeks. “As long as I’m with him he’ll be ostracized in every witch village he comes across. Every witch he meets will despise him for merely traveling with me! I don’t deserve to be with him, all I’m doing is holding him back! I don’t even deserve to have his love!”

“That’s not true!” Triska argued.

“Yes it is! I’m nothing but a curse to him, he could never love somebody like me! Nobody could ever love me with how much of a
letchyask
I am!”

“That’s not true!” Triska shouted out louder.

“Yes it is, nobody could ever love me!” Alyssa shouted back.

“Dammit, Alyssa,
I
love you!” Triska yelled out, with Alyssa falling silent and looking at her with surprise while the other girls watched her with wonder. The crackling of the fire and bubbling of the stew was all that was heard as silence filled the campsite, with Alyssa blinking then looking at Triska with confusion.

“What?” she asked softly.

Triska let out a frustrated yell then quickly hugged the witch close, with Alyssa looking over her shoulder with wonder as the teen held her and lowered her head.

“Do I have to say it again?” she tenderly asked. “I love you. You’re like a sister to me, doesn’t that count for anything?”

“You… you love me?” Alyssa asked quietly.

“Yes, I do,” Triska admitted while holding her close. “I couldn’t bear it if something happened to you, or if I lost you. I don’t care about your past, I don’t care that we used to fight so much before, or that we still do from time to time. I know you’re a good soul. I trust you with Daniel’s life, with my life even. Alyssa, you mean so much to me.”

“Triska,” Alyssa whimpered.

“I’m a human,” Triska said before leaning back and looking at Alyssa with a worried smile. “A girl even. And if I can feel this way towards you then surely Daniel can love you too, or any other man that would give a monster in this world a chance. So don’t go and say nobody could ever love you, because somebody already does.”

“You really… love me?” Alyssa asked softly.

Triska nodded slowly before looking down.