Chronicles of Eden - Act VI (26 page)

“Are you Daemon?” Scay asked with an awkward smile, her hand scratching her head a few times before she fidgeted with a strained murmur. “Are you? Is that your
name
?”

“Who do you think you are approaching him like that?” Sasha hissed as she grabbed her sword’s handle.

“Get lost, bitch,” Rulo snapped at the naga.

“Take your filthy neko with you and run while you can,” Forrus growled as she shot Tabitha a death glare before turning her eyes back onto Scay.

“That’s him?” Tabitha asked with surprise. “What’s he doing in a monster village? Is he crazy? Everyone here is going to-” She then froze as she realized something. Slowly she looked around the tavern, seeing magical monsters and brutes, great numbers of lustful creatures all packed into one building with the human, and not a single one of them were trying to rape him.

“Do nothing?” Tabitha quietly finished. “Why are they all staring at him like that? It’s like they’re afraid of him or something.”

“It is you, isn’t it?” Scay said with a wide smile on her face. She giggled and held her hands to her face, in doing so revealing the bloody dagger she had in hand. “We found you, we found you,
we found you
! HAHAHAHAHA!”

Daemon merely set his mug down and glanced to the girl without showing any other reaction to her maniacal laughter. Sasha however snarled as she quickly stood up and grabbed her blade, thrusting the large sword out and aiming it at Scay’s face which turned pale with fright from seeing it so close to her.

“You dare draw a blade towards my master?” Sasha yelled out.

“Um,” Scay said glancing to her dagger then to Sasha with a weak smile. “Maybe?”

Sasha narrowed her eyes at the naga as she hissed with anger before Scay quickly slithered away and hid behind Tabitha. The neko glanced back to the frightened girl as she trembled nervously while holding onto her back then watched as Sasha walked towards them with her sword in hand and a look of anger on her face.

“Oh great,” Tabitha said with a weak smile. “I can see we’re going to get off to a great start.”

In the world of Eden the women of mankind often took up the blade to protect their men from the lustful monsters that sought them. But that wasn’t to say the men were incapable of fighting. They would still protect their loved ones and homes, fight off monsters that tried to take them away, and some hunted the lustful beasts with great skill and courage. There were even those that were feared by the monsters of Eden, being too great of a threat to make the prospect of raping them seem worthwhile. Those particular humans were few and far between of course, rarely being seen by any and often told of merely in stories.

After all for humans to scare monsters that badly, they would be monsters themselves.

*****

All eyes in the monster tavern were set on Sasha as she raised her blade and prepared to slash down at Tabitha and Scay, the two girls sensing a fierce aura coming from the enraged reptile girl which caused the naga to shut her eyes with a fearful whine and Tabitha to grab hold of her swords out of reflex.

“Wait, let’s talk about this!” Tabitha insisted as she stepped back with Scay.

“Silence!” Sasha yelled before she swung down with her broadsword.

“Sasha,” Daemon called out.

The blade raced downward towards Tabitha’s head before halting a hair away from cleaving through the two girls. Slowly Sasha glanced behind her to see Daemon watching them with a calm expression on his face.

“Enough. You’re causing a scene.”

“But, master-”

“Sasha.”

The reptile girl twitched then looked back to the neko before her with frustration. Scay slowly peeked out from behind Tabitha’s shoulder as the two watched Sasha struggling not to finish them off.

“I mean, Daemon,” Sasha said through gritted teeth before glancing back to him again. “These assassins are looking for you, we should kill them now before they-”

“If they wanted to kill me they wouldn’t have exposed themselves as they did,” Daemon reasoned, turning his eyes back down to his drink. “They’re cowering before you, they’re not dangerous. Sit back down.”

Sasha slowly took a steady breath before lowering her sword at her side. She eyed Tabitha and Scay with a vicious glare before walking back towards her table, tail swaying sharply behind her while a quiet hiss escaped her lips. Sitting back down she rested her sword at her side against her chair before lowering her head and remaining silent.

“She obeyed him, just like that,” Tabitha curiously said as she lowered her stance. Glancing around the pub she saw all the other monsters sitting quietly while keeping their eyes on the swordsman. “How could one human instill this much fear in so many monsters?”

“I think he’s safe,” Scay nervously said. “Those scary girls are with him. Job’s done. Let’s go.”

“No, our job isn’t done,” Tabitha corrected her. “I have to help him still. Otherwise we get no gold.”

Scay whined while rubbing her face, her eyes going from Daemon to the girls seated with him that were all glancing to her and Tabitha with obvious discontent.

“But those other girls don’t like us, what do we do?”

“We have to gain their trust,” Tabitha reasoned while stifling her growl as she saw Forrus sitting with her mark. “I wasn’t told of a
lycan
being a part of their little circle, but I suppose I have no choice but to tolerate it. If it wasn’t for the amount of gold I’m being promised for this I would never work with one of those accursed mutts.”

“Want me to stab her?” Scay eagerly asked with a smile returning to her face. “Can I? Please?
Nrrghmmm
please?”

“I’ll think about it,” Tabitha muttered before taking a calm breath. “Follow me, don’t say a word, and don’t stab anyone.”

“
Stab
.”

“No, Scay. Don’t stab.”

“Sad.”

Tabitha rolled her eyes then carefully started walking towards Daemon’s table, keeping her hands down at her sides and away from her swords so not to appear hostile. Scay slithered right behind her, making sure to keep the neko between her and the girls that were showing increasing ire at them approaching. The other patrons all followed the two girls with their eyes, remaining silent and keeping on guard as the newcomers slowly walked up to the table.

“Listen, I think we got off on the wrong foot,” Tabitha reasoned while forcing a smile.

“Get lost!” Forrus yelled at her.

“Forrus,” Daemon said while keeping his eyes down at the table. The lycan snarled and bared her teeth at Tabitha as the neko glanced to her with discontent.

“Look, I don’t want to be here,” Tabitha stated crossing her arms. “And not just because that mongrel is sitting at the table with all of you. I’m here on an assignment, that’s all.”

“So you do wish to kill my master!” Sasha yelled as she quickly stood up and grabbed her blade.

“No, I’m here to protect him,” Tabitha quickly insisted while holding her hands up defensively.

“Protect him?” Rulo scoffed. “He doesn’t need any protection from anyone. Who do you think he is?”

“Who sent you, assassin?” Sasha demanded as she swung her blade over, stopping it right in front of Tabitha’s throat. “What are you really doing here? Explain yourself or else never speak again.”

Tabitha eyed the large blade with a quiet gulp then forced a smile on her face while she saw the reptile girl glaring at her.

“My name is Tabitha-”

“And I’m Scay, nice to meet you!” Scay blurted out with a twisted smile before giggling and twirling her hair around with her hand. Tabitha paused for a moment then continued again.

“My name is Tabitha and she’s Scay. I…
we
were sent to assist Daemon with his quest and also keep him safe by Charlotte, an alpha witch. Perhaps you’ve heard of her?”

“Charlotte?” Sasha questioned. “The alpha witch of Rystone. Why did she send you?”

Tabitha glanced around at them, seeing Rulo and Forrus watching her with sharp eyes while Daemon was still looking down and not seeming to pay attention to them, then noticed a black carrying pouch tied to Sasha’s belt near her hip armor, almost being concealed by the plating.

“He’s looking for those artifacts, like the one you have in your bag,” Tabitha said, keeping her voice low for only the nearby group to hear. Sasha glanced down to her pouch then to the neko with a careful eye as Tabitha smiled knowingly at her. “There are eight in this world, all of which Charlotte wants to see Daemon collect successfully. So she hired me to help him find and secure all the fragments, as well as to keep him safe.”

“Why would she want that?” Sasha questioned.

“No idea,” Tabitha replied with a shrug. “She didn’t say, so I didn’t ask. All I know is that I’m being paid to help him, that’s reason enough for me to be here. I don’t need the specifics about what those things are or why you want them. I was just told to come help him, so that’s what I’m going to do.”

“And we’re to just believe what you said?”

“Is there a problem with it?” Tabitha quipped. “I don’t think you understand what’s happening here. You have a neko, fully paid for and at your service, to help you find all those elusive treasures. My expertise and swords are yours. You don’t have to pay a single coin for my help, it’s already been
given
to you. How can you possibly complain about that?”

“She sent a mercenary-”

“Adventurer,” Tabitha dryly corrected.

“And a
naga
to aid my master?” Sasha finished with a stern glance at Scay.

Tabitha held in her sigh as she saw the girls around Daemon still showing hostility towards her then took a step back while smirking at the reptile girl.

“Tell you what. How about me and my friend here buy you all a round of drinks, our treat, and you talk it over whether or not you want us to assist you for free. Just think about it.”

Sasha quietly hissed at them as Tabitha led Scay over towards the bar, with the other customers watching them for a moment before turning their eyes back onto the swordsman.

“What is that witch up to?” Sasha asked glancing to Daemon. “Why would she send an assassin and a naga to assist us?”

“We don’t need them tagging along, we don’t need their help,” Rulo scoffed before gulping down her drink.

“I’d rather eat my own tail than allow a filthy neko to come near my lord,” Forrus growled while keeping a sharp eye on Tabitha.

Scay looked back to seeing the three girls shooting them harsh stares then turned to Tabitha with worried eyes as they walked up to the counter together. The three robed drinkers to their side paid them no mind while the bartender watched the two newcomers with a careful eye, it being her only one of course. Even though she stood tall and had a muscular build the cyclops seemed on edge, being evident by her single green eye quickly glancing over towards Daemon then back to the girls again as she shakily took a small breath.

“What do you two want?” she asked as she tried to keep her composure and act casual, carelessly brushing her brunette hair away from her eye before glancing away to avoid looking at anyone.

“I thought all cyclopses were blacksmiths in Eden,” Tabitha questioned with a raised eyebrow at the monster. “How come you’re running a tavern?”

“If you must know, not
all
of us are blacksmiths,” the cyclops grunted with annoyance. “If there isn’t enough work with forging weapons then we need to get our gold in other ways. Just so happens many of the monsters in this area are heavy drinkers, so this was a good way to earn some extra money.”

“So… do you also own a weapon’s store in town?”

“…yes, it’s closed right now due to slow business. Now enough about me, you buying anything or not?”

“Yeah, four of whatever you call your finest pint,” Tabitha requested as she took a few gold coins out of her pouch.

“You thinking of getting them for that man over there and his bitches?” the cyclops asked leaning close to her with a narrowed eye. “Best save your gold, you don’t want to get involved with that one.”

“And why do you say that?” Tabitha replied with a grin. “Tell me, why is every monster in here
scared
of one human?”

The bartender scoffed at her then glanced behind the girls and tensed up as something caught her attention.

“Tabitha?” Scay said while tugging on the neko’s hand. “He’s coming this way.”

“What?” Tabitha asked with disbelief. She looked back and saw Daemon walking towards the counter while his companions stayed at their table. Everyone remained silent as the swordsman’s steps on the floor were all that could be heard as he casually walked between the tables and benches towards the bar with a blank expression on his face and an empty mug in his hand.

“Is he crazy?” Tabitha hushed as she turned to see him making his way towards them while all the monsters he passed kept their eyes on him with growing tension. “He’s completely surrounded now, what is he thinking walking through the place like that?”

As Daemon walked by them all the monsters remained on guard, eyes focused on the human as he paid them no mind at all. Tabitha stared at him with disbelief, glanced over to see his companions drinking while watching him out of the corners of their eyes, then noticed a witch with a black hat and blue shawl quietly hop off her seat and trot along behind Daemon. Her eyes started to glow a soft shade of violet while she held her hand out towards the swordsman, her dark green focuser gemstone held in her palm by a golden chain wrapped around her wrist giving off a gleam as it started to glow.

“She’s going to charm him,” Tabitha hissed as she grabbed her swords and tensed up.

“Relax, she won’t get him,” the cyclops reassured her.

“How can you know that? Just what makes this guy so special anyway?”

The witch quietly giggled and waved her hand around, trailing a swirling glow behind her movements with a few glyphs lighting up around her palm. Tabitha watched the monster preparing to cast her spell, hands on her swords tightening as she contemplated her options of how to stop the witch.

‘Dammit, I just found him, I can’t let these monsters rape him right in front of me. What the hell are you doing, human? Why are you so goddamned confident when surrounded by-’