“It… can’t be… right?” Clover shakily asked. “That’s not…”
“Is it really…” Falla prayed. “Is it…”
“But… how?” Triska breathed out. “There’s… no way…”
“Squeak?” Daniel softly asked. Stepping forward into the court his footsteps echoed slightly amidst the silence, his eyes solely fixated on what was before him and not the loud cursing of Felucia from behind them.
Standing in the court in front of everyone was an ant girl. Her boots were brown with golden buckles fastened around them, her tunic shaded like snow while having golden embroidery swirling around her shoulders and down her sides towards her fluttering petal skirt, it being just as stark white and cut very short over her thighs. Her abdomen was the color of silver, her hair being dark gold and cut short atop her head. She wore gloves of white, had bug antennae that twitched slightly over her short and messy locks, and blue eyes that watched Pip fluttering in front of her while she displayed a calm smile on her face.
“Squeak?” Pip whimpered. “Is that you? Did you come back from the dead? Is that really you?”
The ant girl showed a puzzled smile and slowly shook her head, with Pip sniffling and looking her over with tiny tears dropping from her cheeks.
“You’re not Squeak? But you look like her. Did you forget who you are? Did you forget about us?”
The ant girl softly giggled and shook her head before holding a hand out for the fairy to sit down upon. She showed the sniffling fairy a warm smile then glanced over to see the others watching her from the archway, with Daniel slowly approaching the ant girl that, despite the different wardrobe and abdomen color, resembled his fallen mate so closely.
“Who… who are you?” he asked short of breath. Taking a moment to compose himself he then noticed the open doors to their home before carefully observing the newcomer. “Who are you? Why are you here?”
The ant girl slowly walked over to Daniel, her footsteps soft and nearly silent as she eyed him over with a curious smile. Hopping Pip into the air the ant girl then pointed at Daniel, with him showing only a confused look while the girls behind him kept a close watch on her.
“Me?” he asked, with her nodding at him. “You came here… to see me?”
“Who is that?” Triska called out. The ant girl stopped and watched the girls quickly approaching, all of them getting behind Daniel while eyeing her over. “You… that’s not Squeak… is it?”
“She sort of looks like her,” Alyssa admitted. “But Squeak’s dead. This can’t be her.”
“I thought it was her ghost or something,” Sheal admitted. “I’m sorry, I couldn’t help but blurt out her name when I noticed her. She… she just looks so much like her.”
“Who are you, dear?” Doku asked. “How did you get in here?”
“A very good question,” Clover said aloud as she marched over to the doorway. “Hey! What the fuck? You just let this girl into our home without checking with me first? We were in the middle of something you know!”
“What girl?” an elf outside asked. “We’ve been standing guard ever since you went inside, nobody has entered your magical residence at all besides you.”
“Yeah,” another chimed in. “I’m sitting right above the doors, I would have seen anyone if they tried. Nobody gets past me after all.”
“She got past you!” Clover yelled waving back to the ant girl. Elves quickly gathered in front of the doorway in a hurry, all of them gasping in surprise at seeing the white-clad monster standing inside.
“An ant girl? But… how?”
“Where did she come from?”
“Clover, we swear, nobody was ever out here. We’ve never let our guard down once, honest!”
“Did she dig her way in there or something? How the fuck did she get past us?”
“That’s what I want to know,” Clover said turning back towards the newcomer. “Hey, who are you? How did you sneak in like that?”
“Not even Kitten could sneak up on the elves outside,” Triska commented as she kept on guard. “How did this ant girl achieve that?”
“Please explain,” Daniel requested. “Who are you and what are you doing here? It’s okay, you can speak freely. Our friend Reiko here can understand you, so please tell us what the meaning of this is.”
“She’s not the only one who can understand me, I’m sure,” the ant girl giggled, much to everyone’s amazement. “My speech isn’t that horrendous to understand, or at least I hope it’s not.”
“She… she can talk,” Specca shakily stammered as she pointed to her. “She can talk!”
“Does that surprise you?”
“Very much so, yes!” Falla exclaimed. “Ant girls don’t talk, they only squeak! How… how did you do that?”
“Get the fuck back here!” Felucia yelled, with everyone turning to see her barging her way through the crowd of girls and grabbing Daniel by the shoulder. “I’m not done with you yet!”
She spun him around and threw a punch towards his head, her fist quickly smashing into a translucent crystalline barrier that glowed with a soft white and blue light. Everyone watched in surprise, especially Felucia, as her hand shattered into sand against the magical light, the loose clumps of grit dropping to the ground before all eyes took notice of the ant girl having a hand held up with a golden casting ring slowly circling in front of it.
“I’m sorry,” she said with a calm smile. “I don’t mean to interrupt any personal affairs you may be dealing with at the moment, but I’m afraid I cannot allow you to harm him right now. I must insist that he listens to me first before settling matters with you. I hope you don’t mind.”
“What the fuck?” Felucia blurted out. “Wha… what is this? Did you do that?”
“Magic,” Alyssa marveled. “You… you can use magic. You’re using magic.”
“Yes, that’s right,” the ant girl modestly replied.
“And you can talk,” Specca repeated.
“That is also true. Though to be honest the two are one and the same. Magic is how I’m able to speak to you and have my words understood. So it’s not really fair for you to praise me for both feats when in fact they’re one in the same.”
“Is that how you got in here as well?” Falla asked.
“Guilty as charged,” the ant girl admitted with a shrug. “It wasn’t my intention to be rude by inviting myself in like I did, however I find it best to avoid confrontation unless absolutely necessary, and those elves outside seemed like they would have tried to stop me from entering. Sorry, but I simply had to come here, and couldn’t risk being told no after coming all this way.”
“Who the fuck are you?” Clover asked shaking her head. “Where did you come from?”
“My name is Calam,” the ant girl said with a small curtsey. “I’ve been sent here to relay a message to Daniel Sorres. Am I correct in assuming you are him?”
“Yes, that’s me,” Daniel answered. “Um, just so you know, you could have told the elves outside you wanted an audience with me, that wouldn’t have been an issue.”
“Sorry again for the trouble,” Calam apologized with a bow. “I don’t wish to be rude, I was just looking forward to completing my task as swiftly as possible. Please forgive me.”
“It’s alright, no harm done. Although, if I may ask, how exactly did you get by the elves?”
“Yeah, no shit,” Clover mentioned. “What did you do, just teleport inside or something?”
“Teleport?” Calam wondered. “No, I don’t know such magic. I just turned invisible and walked right in. I’m quite light on my feet actually. As good of hearing the elves may have I didn’t think they would have heard me tiptoeing my way inside.”
“You just walked right by them,” Clover summed up, then turned to the elves with a dull stare. “She just walked right by you. What kind of guards are you?”
“We’re so sorry!” an elf whined, all of them dropping to their knees and bowing before her while frantically apologi
zing. Clover sighed heavily then turned to Daniel with a shrug, getting a small chuckle out of him before he returned his focus to Calam as the ant girl was smiling curiously at him.
“Alright. Well, here I am, Calam. Would you mind telling us what you’re here for and how exactly you know my name?”
“Of course,” Calam happily replied. “The answer is one and the same. I come bearing a message from your mate, Kroanette.”
“Kroanette?” Daniel exclaimed, himself and all the girls showing further surprise while the ant girl nodded and winked at him.
“Yes, she’s one I’m relaying this message for. She’s been talking non-stop about you actually, she never ceases speaking about her beloved mate every chance she gets. I can see you really are as handsome as she’s so often portrayed you.”
“You know where Kroanette is?” Triska quickly asked. “Is she okay? Where is she? What happened to her?”
“Where’s my mate?” Daniel eagerly asked as he stepped closer to Calam. “Where is she? Please, tell me right now!”
“Her message is clear and will answer your question,” Calam announced. She cleared her throat then smiled calmly at Daniel as everyone eagerly awaited to hear what the message was.
“Please come see me in Stonegate as soon as you can.”
Chapter 3
Vale of Loss
In the world of Eden it was possible to make friends just as quickly as it was enemies. Sharing similar interests or personalities could help bonds to form, and striving towards mutual goals would often unite likeminded individuals. It could also be said that conflicting views or aims would drive them to become adversaries, with those possessing penchants for blood often being labeled as such and quickly earning animosity from those around them. Friendships and rivals would come and go for everyone during their lives.
With some being far too quick or far too short.
*****
It was once said that Green Haven stood as both a lush, overflowing woodland, home to many forest creatures and fauna that exemplified what a serene and wondrous garden Eden was capable of displaying, and also served as home to many elves in the land of Koskaysil. The priestess that acted as a holy sovereign to her people resided there, the elves living amongst the reclusive timberland known to craft the finest bows in all the land, and renowned archers who were never to be trifled with unless one prayed for painful retaliation from these mysterious and beautiful women.
Now it seemed Green Haven only remained as a mere shadow of its former glory. Where there once stood ample, healthy trees now rested a mountain of solidified molten rock. Where there used to be elves living in peace and quiet now only skeletons could be found buried within the ash and rubble. The surrounding landscape was burnt and covered in soot. What few trees remained near the sleeping volcano stood bare and clearly having lost all life in them from the fiery tragedy that befell the landscape. Nothing moved but smoke slowly drifting off the top of the rocky mound, the sky holding gloomy clouds and haze that continued to linger overhead, and a quiet breeze made its way across the newly created wasteland of Eden with very little to block its path.
All was quiet.
All was still.
All was peaceful in the land formally known as Green Haven.
“Holy crap!” Vale cried out, her tiny voice echoing through the night sky. Up above the smoldering remains of an elven paradise was a little pixie hovering in place while staring at the sight below with horrible shock.
“What… the… hell?” she blurted out, eyes shakily going over the ruined landscape while she trembled in disbelief. “This… this isn’t… it can’t be. What the heck happened here? What in the Creator’s name happened here?”
She zipped straight down in a blue blur then raced off in ridged dashes towards the smoking mountain, her angular flight patterns traveling all the way around the desolate mound before she flew down and landed on a fallen log resting on the edge of a cliff near the outskirts of what was supposed to have been an elven village.
“Wow,” she breathed out in amazement at the sight. “Someone up there really had it out for those elves. I mean… damn. What did they do to piss off their gods like this? First an army invades their home and then Eden blows up beneath them. No wonder I smell death on Grace all the time, elves are doombringers. There’s no doubt about it now.”
Sitting down on the log Vale groaned in exhaustion, her saddened eyes going over the mountain of death and volcanic ash before her as she rested her cheeks in her hands.
“Oh, Grace is not going to like hearing about this. For crying out loud, how could so much tragedy befall that girl? This is going to be painful to relay, and possibly painful for us when she blows her top. Oh… I can see the bloodshed already. This is not going to be pretty.”
She plopped back on the charred wood and gazed up at the sky, catching only faint glimpses of stars behind the endless veil of clouds above.
“This is just too weird!” she complained thrashing her arms in a fit. “First that human settlement is mysteriously erased, and now Green Haven has been utterly destroyed from the ground up. Something strange is going on out here, I just know it!”
“Yes, I think you might be right about that,” a woman’s voice spoke up.
Vale blinked, slowly got up onto her feet, kept her hand resting on her blade’s handle, then carefully turned around and lowered her gaze towards the sound of the voice. Behind and beneath the log she stood atop was a small overhang that had formed from the land breaking apart and dropping down, and gathered around a campfire at the base of the gulch sat a group of individuals that were looking up at the tiny woman.
“This is most strange to see,” Sasha continued while keeping a sharp eye on the pixie. “And we’ve seen some very strange things lately.”
“What is that?” Hollia asked, sitting near the fire with her spear resting against the rocky wall.
“It’s a… strange… bug?” Tabitha guessed with a shrug.
“Never seen a bug like that before,” Forrus mentioned.
“She’s so tiny,” Scay giggled. “And cute.”
Saffron squeaked and tilted her head, giving a small puff to blow away her bangs while she carefully studied the unique monster.
“I’ve never seen a monster like that before either,” Mika chimed in. “And I’ve read up on a lot of different monster classes too.”
“Master?” Rulo asked as the girls all turned to Daemon. He was resting back against a slab of rock while watching Vale with a sharp eye, his new armored shoulder guard glinting in the fire’s light while his dark shirt traditionally worn was now ragged towards the bottom, as was the condition of it when offered by Saffron’s nest as a replacement for his old one. Slowly he stood up and matched the pixie’s gaze, his hand lightly drumming the handle of his sword while the quiet popping of the firewood was all that could be heard during the silent standoff.
“What do we have here?” Vale questioned. “Say, would any of you happen to know what occurred here? There was supposed to be an elven forest standing here last I checked, but it seems to be gone now.”
“That’s what we want to know,” Sasha replied. “When we got here we found the place to have been reclaimed by Eden.”
“Been searching the surrounding area for any clues,” Forrus added. “Not a soul to be found anywhere who can tell us what happened.”
“Is that so?” Vale mused. Glancing back to the volcanic mountain she grumbled to herself before looking down at them again. “That’s not good to hear. But why were you coming here in the first place? You’re not elves. The only ones who weren’t elves who were here before shouldn’t have been here. You wouldn’t happen to be part of that particular group of troublemakers that was causing problems for them, would you?”
“If you’re referring to The Sisterhood, that’s who we came here looking to find,” Hollia cursed. “Though I assure you we’re not part of their legion. We were more interested in spilling their blood more than anything
.”
“Their leaders are our prey,” Forrus growled. “And their twisted followers will pay for their crimes.”
“I see,” Vale slowly said, eyeing Hollia, then Mika, and then Daemon. “So you’re not with them then. I suppose your story checks out. I didn’t think they would have humans among their ranks, and I really doubted a centaur would want to help them after what they did to Ruhelia.”
“You know what happened to my home?” Hollia asked.
“I do,” Vale sympathized. “We’ve recently taken in a young centaur who hailed from your home. The poor thing, she’s lucky to be alive after what The Sisterhood did. I am sorry for your grave loss.”
“Is that so?” Hollia wondered. “I’m sorry, but I’m a bit confused here. Who exactly are you and what are you doing here? What business do you have with Green Haven or The Sisterhood?”
“Just doing some reconnaissance,” Vale cryptically answered. “There’s been lots of strange things happening out here. Also lots of bad things. Actually, I think more bad things than strange ones. I’m just trying to get to the bottom of it. That being the case, is there anything you can tell me that might be helpful? Seen anything… odd around here?”
“Besides you?” Tabitha commented.
“I’m not odd,” Vale flatly replied. “Have you seen anything else lately?”
“We’ve seen some things, yes,” Forrus admitted. “Quite a lot of unsettling things to be honest.”
“Could you be more specific?”
Saffron squeaked a few times and waved her hand about in slow motions, with Vale staring at her for a while before rolling her eyes with a sigh.
“Well that’s not very helpful, but thanks anyway,” she retorted. She then turned to Mika with a scrutinizing look, pausing for a moment before zipping straight out into the air then down in front of the startled woman.
“What… what are you doing?” Mika carefully asked as the pixie examined her relentlessly.
Chronicles of Eden: Season II - Act I Page 7
