Chronicles of Eden - Act VI (18 page)

Daniel slowly stood up and walked towards her, the elf showing growing ire as she bared her teeth slightly with a low growl. The girls all watched as he then hugged Clover, the elf looking over his shoulder with a small amount of surprise as he gently held her in his arms.

“You went after Triska and brought her back to us, to me,” Daniel gratefully praised. “Thank you so much, Clover. That means so much to me.”

He leaned back and smiled at the elf, with her staring at him with wonder as all fell silent. She blinked then grabbed him by the shoulders and kicked her leg straight up between his with a stern grunt. The girls jumped with surprise at seeing Daniel struck in a very painful manner to him, so much so that he dropped to the ground immediately afterwards with a high-pitched whine.

“Who do you think you are touching me like that?” Clover shouted down at him while he was curled into a ball with his hands held down between his legs, straining not to cry in front of so many girls who gasped at seeing him knocked down like that. “You think you can get all handsy with me like you do with all of them? I’m not your little bitch, you have no right to touch me like that! If you expect me to get all weepy and fawn over you like your little harem does then you’ve got another thing coming!”

“Daniel!” Triska cried out.

“Oh my god, are you okay?” Specca urgently asked while holding her hands over her cheeks.

“I’m sorry,” Daniel squeaked out.

Clover growled at him with anger then marched towards the girls and pointed at Triska with a stern expression.

“I brought you back to your friends, I risked my neck saving your ass from a succubus, so you are
going
to take me home no matter what. Got it?”

All the girls watched Daniel whimpering in pain while on the ground then looked to Clover with stunned faces as she crossed her arms with a scowl at them.

“Now let’s move it and find your missing witch or whatever so then you can get me back to my home. Let’s go!” she shouted before walking over towards where the charred crevice was while looking around at the damaged terrain with a frustrated grunt.

“If it wasn’t for the fact she brought Triska back to us I’d be
furious
right now,” Alyssa growled with anger.

“Daniel, are you alright?” Specca called out as she quickly raced over to him. Kroanette and Squeak followed after her while Triska slowly stood up with Pip still nestled in her bosom, the teen’s eyes going from where Daniel was shakily reassuring the girls that he was alright over to Clover before setting into a glare. She held in her voice and closed her eyes, taking a slow breath to try to calm her nerves then walked over towards the elf with Alyssa.

“Clover,” Triska said as the two got closer. “As grateful as I am you came for me,
don’t
you ever touch Daniel like that again.”

“If you hadn’t done that for Triska we would be killing you right now,” Alyssa added with a dull glare.

“Whatever,” Clover scoffed. Triska and Alyssa shook their heads with disdain for the girl before she looked down then jumped with a shocked gasp. “Is that… is… that…”

Looking down the girls saw something in the blackened dirt, with Triska and Alyssa jumping with surprise as they recognized what it was while Pip tilted her head curiously. Lying on the ground where the succubus once was they saw a fragment of Eden, the relic giving off a faint blue glow along its etchings as the trinket seemed to have just appeared where it wasn’t a moment ago.

“Wait a minute,” Triska softly said. “That’s… that’s…”

“What is that?” Pip asked looking up at her.

“The priestess’s treasure!” Clover cheered, for the first time ever sounding excited and joyful. The other girls looked over to seeing the elf quickly dropping to her knees and holding her hands out over the artifact. “Fuck yeah! About time something goes right for me! It’s a fucking miracle!”

“What is she shouting about now?” Specca scoffed while she and Squeak were helping Daniel up onto his feet by an arm each.

“Must she always swear with every sentence she makes?” Kroanette dryly commented.

“Yes!” Clover cried out as she grabbed the relic and held it close to her chest. “I don’t know how the fuck you got here, but I’m never letting you go again!”

“
That’s
your priestess’s treasure?” Alyssa asked pointing to her with surprise. “A fragment of the Key to Eden?”

“Key to Eden?” Specca repeated with a jump as the others watched Clover turn to Alyssa with a puzzled expression.

“What are you talking about?” Clover questioned. “This is my priestess’s divine treasure. What’s a Key to Eden?”

“That is!” Alyssa exclaimed pointing to the artifact.

“Daniel?” Triska called out while staring at the relic in the elf’s hands. “You need to get over here, right now.”

Daniel and the others walked over towards the girls then stared with wonder at seeing the fragment. Clover backed up a step as she saw everyone looking at the relic then held it back from them while tensing up.

“Why are you all staring at it like that? You planning on stealing this from me? Is that it? You lay a single finger on this and I’ll fucking tear your guts out and shove them down your throat!”

“Seriously, are all elves as violent as you are?” Kroanette asked with concern for the answer.

“Clover, we need to talk,” Daniel said carefully, with the elf glancing to him questionably while the others exchanged troubled looks.

*****

Overlooking the village of Rystone from her manor’s balcony Charlotte gazed out at the homes to her fellow witches while leaning forward on the railing, gently bobbing her wand in hand while she watched the local monsters going about their day as usual. Many were skipping merrily about, greeting one another with a tip of the hat or wave of the hand, while others gathered in smaller groups to gossip or show off their magical spells with one another.

Walking out onto the terrace behind her Apoch and Astreal approached their alpha with perfectly mirrored steps before bowing together and lowering their crescent ended staves.

“We have delivered your message to Ms. Alyssa, Ms. Charlotte,” they both reported in unison.

“You’re never going to stop doing that, are you?” Charlotte quietly groaned before glancing back to them questionably. “How did she take the news?”

“She appeared shocked beyond belief,” Apoch recalled.

“She wasn’t aware Ms. Ember was alive still,” Astreal added. “The news of her daughter’s vengeful return caused her much distress.”

“I see,” Charlotte said turning her eyes back onto her village. “So she admitted Ember is her daughter. I’m surprised we never knew about her.”

“Ms. Alyssa kept her a secret from everyone,” Apoch informed her. “It was only after a year of having her child that a sales expedition to the east took her away. Seems a landslide supposedly claimed Ms. Ember’s life then, or as least that’s what Ms. Alyssa believed.”

“She wishes to find her daughter, despite your generous warning,” Astreal mentioned. “She wishes to see her daughter and try to talk her down from her crusade against her life.”

“She’s become quite the pacifist traveling with her human,” Charlotte curiously mused. “Speaking of which, how are they all doing with his little quest?”

“We did not ask,” Apoch said shaking her head. “However they had traveled farther than we expected. They are very close to Flairwood as we speak.”

“I wonder how far they’ll get,” Charlotte distantly replied.

“Ms. Charlotte, is something wrong?” Apoch and Astreal asked together.

“I should have killed her,” Charlotte said looking down with a glimmer of frustration. “I should have killed Ember when I had the chance. Instead she got away. Had I known she would burn my witches as she had, that she would have killed you two like she did, I would have destroyed her upon first laying eyes on her in Ritherwood.”

“It’s not your fault, Ms. Charlotte,” Apoch assured her. “Nobody even knew she was alive at all. You didn’t know what she would be like.”

“Alyssa may be feared amongst this village, but it is Ember who is the true threat,” Charlotte bitterly scorned as she looked at her wand. “The amount of power she wielded, her control over fire, she could cause great pain if she comes back here. I will not allow any more of my subjects to perish from her flames.”

“We will find her, Ms. Charlotte,” Apoch promised. “We will not be taken by surprise again.”

“We’ll make her pay for what she’s done,” Astreal agreed with a nod. “Never mind her killing us, nobody mocks our alpha or touches her subjects and gets away with it.”

Charlotte sighed and turned to face the girls while leaning back on the railing, her eyes going from one witch sister to the other with a small remorseful smile on her face. Each of the twins were smiling calmly at their alpha, holding their staves upright at their sides while they even blinked in unison, and appeared as healthy as ever.

“I’m sorry she did that,” she apologized. “If I had only killed her as I should have she wouldn’t-”

“Please stop blaming yourself,” Apoch kindly insisted.

“Our deaths mean nothing, you know that,” Astreal reminded her.

“They don’t mean nothing,” Charlotte argued shaking her head. “I haven’t let you two die in over 50 years, I don’t want you two to ever go through that again.”

“It makes no difference,” Apoch said with a shrug. “Should we die we shall simply return shortly afterwards.”

“You know this as well as we do, Ms. Charlotte,” Astreal reassured. “Think nothing of what may have happened to us before.”

Charlotte glanced between the two then up at the sky above, seeing a few clouds drifting by while a bird soared through the air.

“Are you ever going to explain to me-” she started before feeling a cold chill run down her back. Slowly she looked back to see the twins watching her with stern smiles on their faces.

“Ms. Charlotte,” they both said with a playful tone. “You know we cannot speak about that, remember?”

“So you’re never going to say, are you?”

“It is of no concern to you,” Apoch assured with a wave of her hand.

“Every time we come back we tell you this,” Astreal reminded the alpha with an expecting tone.

Charlotte nodded and walked between them, passing the twins who watched her with amused smirks before going into her study towards her desk and chair. The sisters followed as the alpha pushed her chair aside and looked down at the fragment of Eden that was resting on the desk surrounded by books and parchments.

“The others will be yours soon, Ms. Charlotte,” Apoch promised her. “It is only a matter of time.”

“And then your dear swordsman will come running, just as you planned,” Astreal giggled. “He’ll have no choice but to give himself to you if he wants them back.”

“Yes, I can’t wait,” Charlotte softly replied as she slowly ran her fingers along the artifact, having a distant gaze in her eyes that Apoch and Astreal took notice of.

“Ms. Charlotte, is something wrong?” the twins asked together.

“I don’t know, is there?” Charlotte said turning to face them while leaning back against her desk. “You two have been my trusted assistants for so long, you’ve always been there when I needed you, and I typically feel as comfortable as can be around you. I don’t ask many questions about you two, and we all know there are many unanswered ones that I’ve been wishing to have answered.”

“Ms. Charlotte,” Apoch spoke while closing her eyes and slowly shaking her head.

“We told you not to ask this again,” Astreal expectedly said while crossing her arms and raising an eyebrow at the alpha.

“Can you blame me for wondering?” Charlotte asked while eyeing the two sisters carefully. “Every time you die you appear again, as good as new, with full memory of what your previous selves had when they died. I don’t understand-”

Apoch and Astreal quickly stepped forward and held the alpha back against her desk, each sister holding onto her arms and leaning close to her ears as she felt the same cold chill run down her spine as before.

“
Shh
,” the sisters gently hushed her. “No more.”

“Please,” Charlotte quietly said while closing her eyes.

“No. More.”

Charlotte was held in place by the sisters for a moment longer before the twins stepped back and smiled calmly at her. The alpha glanced from one to the other, a look of unease on her face as the sisters tilted their heads the same way while keeping the same posture as each other.

“Do you have any other orders for us?” Apoch politely asked.

“Otherwise we shall resume our hunt for Ms. Ember,” Astreal informed in a professional tone.

Charlotte looked between the two sisters then shook her head and waved them off towards the door. The twins bowed to the alpha then walked away together, steps in perfect sync while even their hip movements were identical to each other. When they got to the door they paused then looked back to see Charlotte watching them with a small smile.

“I trust you two,” Charlotte acknowledged. “You have never let me down before, always worked so hard for me, and have cared for the witches of this village just as I have.”

“Thank you, Ms. Charlotte,” the twins replied with happy smiles.

“Do you trust me?” The sisters then watched her with curious eyes as the alpha showed a concerned face for them. “Is knowing what I wish to know a problem for you? Is that why you can’t say? Because you don’t trust me to know?”

“Ms. Charlotte,” Apoch warned while narrowing her eyes. “Do not speak more about this.”

“Then just promise me that if you can tell me one day, that you will,” Charlotte requested. “If the powers that be allow for it, then you’ll say.”

Apoch and Astreal glanced to each other then back to the alpha, both showing solemn expressions while remaining silent. Charlotte sighed then sat down in her chair and eyed the artifact on her desk.

“That will be all then, ladies,” she said waving them off again.

The twins walked out of the study and closed the doors behind them, silence filling the room as Charlotte found herself more interested in a mystery that had been right in front of her for years rather than the prospect of having one of her swordsman’s treasures. With a quiet breath she looked towards the doorway then up at the ceiling, her mind focusing on a question that she had been asking herself for so long now.