Chronicles of Eden - Act XII

by Alexander Gordon

  “Can’t we just give her a mercy killing and put her out of everyone’s misery?” Rulo whined. “I mean, c’mon, she’s absolutely worthless and will only slow us down. She’s a complete weakling.”

  “She beat the crap out of all of us earlier,” Hollia reminded her.

  “No she didn’t!” Rulo raged at her.

  “Well, I say we give her a chance to make amends for all the trouble she caused us,” Hollia proposed with a raised eyebrow at the sorceress. “She certainly owes us and the world a great deal of effort for her blunders. Serving my knight with his duties would be a good start for her.”

  Saffron turned her head away with a scoff, taking a second to blow her bangs away with a puff before rolling her eyes and crossing her arms as she squeaked quietly a few times and gave a small shrug.

  “At least she’s proved herself capable in a real fight,” Sasha admitted. “If my master deems her worthy of another chance to redeem herself I say we let her try. Though one more chance is all I’m willing to give her at this point.”

  Daemon looked down to where the human’s sword was struck into the dirt, the cambion pulling it out and tossing it over in front of the woman. Mika stared at the blade in silence before slowly looking up to Daemon as he watched her with his cold blue eyes that only seemed to draw her closer towards him.

  “If you’re going to come with us, Mika, I expect to see the real monster hunter you’re renowned to be. You said before you wouldn’t hold back anymore. Show us the real strength you have inside and stand with noble purpose in life.”

  Mika slowly reached out and grabbed hold of her sword, lifting it up and distantly gazing at the glinting steel as she gently held the blade in hand.

  “I’m not a monster hunter,” she conceded shaking her head. “Not anymore. If anything, I’m more of a monster than any of you standing around me, a walking hypocrite to everything I vowed to defend the world from. I’m just a sorceress now. A sorceress seeking redemption.”

  Mika gripped her sword with a focused expression, her eye then turning to Daemon as he remained silent while watching her.

  “Guide me, so that I never stray down that darkened path again, and my sword and magic shall be yours to command.”

  “The only one who commands you is your queen in Rockhelm.”

  “Queen Leanna commanded a monster hunter, one who is no longer available for hire. The monster you see kneeled here before you only answers to you, Daemon Warrick.”

  “So long as you don’t start calling me master I don’t care what you choose to believe,” Daemon said with a hint of exhaustion. “You know what will be expected of you should you follow us, make your choice and do your best with whatever you decide. It’s your life, your choice what to do with it.”

  Mika nodded slowly before she held the blade down in front of her and lowered her head in respect of the one who gave her hope for atonement in the face of her sins, and the one she knew would keep her from falling into darkness again.

  “Yes, sire.”

  Chapter 10

  Champions of Green Haven

  In the world of Eden not all battles could be won by fighting. Sometimes a strategic retreat would be the only way to survive and prevail another day. This wasn’t to say giving up was the way to victory, rather it was important to pick what battles were needed in order to win the war. A single or small group of warriors would be utterly foolhardy to challenge the likes of an entire army all on their own, even if their cause was right. Of course, there were times when having greater numbers didn’t always ensure victory in the end.

  Even if the enemy was outnumbered they could still hold the advantage.

  *****

  A tremor rolled through Eden, the rumbling quake emanating from Green Haven as smoke was steadily building above the once peaceful elven forest that was now burning brightly against the night sky. The shaking ground ruptured and swayed tall fields of grass in every direction from the crumbling elven grove, reaching far away from the burning woodland past a small knoll where two kitsunes were keeping a close eye not on the forest itself but rather what was happening within it. Or rather one of them was doing so while the younger of the two was steadily growing anxious as she fidgeted with all her tails shaking behind her.

  “This is crazy!” Kindra cried out. “That whole place is falling apart! How am I supposed to believe Daniel Sorres will survive this? The gemini are in there, dozens of lustful monsters are in there, and thanks to you a fucking volcano is about to erupt beneath his feet! He’s as good as dead, he could be dead as we speak!”

  “He’s not dead,” Flarah said shaking her head. “He’s still quite alive in his fight against the gemini.”

  “Okay, seriously, how the hell are you seeing that? I can’t see anything from way over here except the sight of an elven forest burning to the ground! Where are you even looking, big sister? I swear if you’re just pulling my tails I’m going to fucking kill you!”

  “Calm down, Kindra.”

  “Don’t you dare tell me to be calm!” Kindra raged at her. “None of this sits with me at all! It’s bad enough to trust your words that Daniel will be fine, but how can we even begin to trust Aeon with hers? She was probably just saying Daniel was going to summon Ragnarok in order to keep us from helping him, she wants him to perish in there! This is all part of her plan to have him die right in front of me and then laugh in my face about it! Isn’t that right, chrono wench?”

  Turning to the side Kindra snarled furiously at someone before showing a puzzled expression. Glancing back with a raised eyebrow Flarah saw along with her sister Aeon appearing to be growing flustered and enraged as she was looking down at the ground with clenched fists.

  “You idiots,” she hissed looking away over her shoulder. “I can’t believe you allowed them to beat you like that. I told you both exactly what to do, we had them right where we wanted them. Your job was so simple a child could have done it, so explain why exactly this was so hard for you.”

  Flarah and Kindra looked to each other in question then back to Aeon as she growled furiously with fluttering wings.

  “What do you mean he transformed right away?” Aeon demanded. “That wasn’t supposed to-… that accursed man, how dare he change fate like that. He thinks he’s so smart, that little fucking-… oh shut up, you useless weed. Nobody cares if you got hurt. If anything you deserve it for failing your queen!”

  “Um, Aeon?” Flarah asked. Aeon merely held a hand out to silence her while fuming with rage.

  “You morons. I saw your victory clear as day. That was your chance to kill them all, so how the hell could you fuck that up so easily? …I don’t want to hear excuses! You miserable little-… shut up! Because of your failure he’s… and now she’s… arrg… STOP CRYING, YOU BITCH!”

  “What is she talking about?” Kindra slowly asked. “Who is she talking to?”

  “Your queen is not happy, not happy at all,” Aeon hissed as she turned and walked away from the confused kitsunes. “Now I have to work these changes into the final design, so much needs to be accounted for and reevaluated thanks to you failing me. And if there’s one thing I hate its dealing with GODDAMN UNCERTAINTY!”

  The Dark Queen stomped her foot on the ground and spoke in a muttered tone, stopped and briefly looked back to see the kitsunes watching her with bewilderment, then lowered her head and struggled to calm herself.

  “I will deal with you later. Just… just retreat and pull yourself together. …no, do not chase them. You’re in no condition to fight. Besides, he’s clearly going to behave unpredictably when confronting us, I’m in no mood to deal with more uncertainty on this night. Leave them be for now. …never mind her, leave her with him. I’ll deal with her later as well. …stop your incessant yammering, I don’t care if you’re sorry for your failure. Pull back, I’ll meet with you when I’m done here. Then you can start begging for mercy.”

  Holding a hand over her face Aeon took a few slow breaths, her glowing eyes
peeking between her fingers and peering into the unseen while a growing migraine began forming.

  “Her fate always pulls her back,” she quietly mused to herself. “Every path I could push her down, and she always winds up back with him. I swear that human is such a pest, even her fate is as stubborn and troublesome as she is.”

  “Aeon?” Flarah called over. “Everything alright, dear?”

  “Why are you talking to yourself?” Kindra asked.

  Aeon slowly breathed out and straightened her dress before walking back towards the kitsunes with a dull stare aimed at the burning forest ahead and neither woman who watched her closely.

  “Nothing that concerns either of you,” she muttered as she walked past them. “Just dealing with some… deviations of fate. Nothing of importance.”

  “I see,” Flarah carefully replied.

  “Anyway, let’s get going,” Aeon said waving them after her.

  “Going?” Kindra asked. “Where are we going?”

  “The main event is about to start,” Aeon mentioned with a sly glance back at her. “Personally, I don’t want it ruined with your constant nagging of not being able to see anything from back here. That and I wouldn’t mind a closer seat for the show. So we’re going to head into the village for a better view.”

  “The main event?” Flarah questioned.

  “You mean…” Kindra wondered with stars in her eyes.

  “You’ll see soon enough,” Aeon chuckled, taking flight with her wings and hovering off the ground. “Follow me, I’ll take us closer so we can observe the finale. And remember, no matter what you see before you, do not interfere with anyone’s fate. Otherwise Daniel Sorres won’t be the only one who will perish because of your actions. Now keep quiet and let’s go, I don’t want to miss anything.”

  The Dark Queen fluttered off towards the forest while keeping low to the ground, with Flarah and Kindra exchanging cautious looks before quickly following after as they made their way towards the burning elven forest.

  *****

  Fire and smoke was steadily building throughout the falling elven village, being accompanied by numerous quakes that ruptured and even dropped more of the forest floor into bottomless chasms or pools of glowing magma. Grunts of The Sisterhood were scrambling to evacuate, many of them running in circles within the burning forest while others were sprinting out of the northern side of the woods towards the endless sea of campsites and tents that lay stretched out behind Green Haven. Of those that were retreating towards stable ground and alarmed members of The Sisterhood, so too were many elves that were dragged kicking and screaming with the horde while others clad in darker apparel ran alongside their savage comrades on their own free will.

  “What the hell is happening in there?” a witch asked as many of her fellow frightened and burned monsters ran past her camp. “Hey, what’s going on? What’s doing that?”

  “Lots of fire!” a goblin whined as she held her burnt arm. “Lots of fire! Too much fire! Too hot!”

  “Goddamn,” a gremlin cursed, dropping down against a weathered tree stump alongside her sister. “What the fuck happened? Nobody said anything about that place resting on top of a volcanic vent. Why would anyone want to live there? What is wrong with those elves?”

  “It’s your fault!” an elf shouted at her. Other monsters watched as the woman struggled in the hands of a troll while glaring at the gremlin with teary eyes. “You fucking assholes destroyed the Aquarius Gateway! That was the only thing bringing in fresh water to our forest, and the only thing that kept Eden sleeping beneath our feet!”

  “You stupid bitches built your home over a volcano and you’re mad at us for this shit happening? Are you serious?”

  “Why would you do such a thing?” the other gremlin demanded. “This has to be the worst place to choose for a home. Do you have a death wish or something?”

  “The magical seal kept Eden dormant below the forest,” the elf protested. “Our ancestors had that seal erected so we could cultivate the fertile land here, all we needed was to bring in water and it was perfect! The soil couldn’t have been richer, our forest bloomed with more life than anyone could have imagined! We grew the healthiest crops and the strongest trees in this land, we had everything we ever needed! We did until you fucking cunts came here and ruined everything!”

  “Are you serious?” a witch panicked. “We’re standing on top of a… for crying out loud, nobody ever said anything about this place being built on top of boiling lava! That wasn’t explained at all when we came here! What is wrong with you elves? Why would you want to live here when it was ready to erupt all this time?”

  “It was sealed!” a dark ranger yelled at her. “The Aquarius Gateway kept this place from erupting. It enchanted this land and nullified any high-level sources of fire energy from coming near, including Eden’s fiery wrath from below!”

  “But it didn’t stop them from coming here,” the witch whined as she pointed to a group of salamander women nearby. “It’s horrible having those pests nearby, breathing fire and cackling the stupidest crap you can think of. Why didn’t it keep their filthy hides out as well?”

  “Pests?” one of the salamanders hissed while the others snarled with fire coming from their mouths. “Filthy? You little runt, how dare you speak about us with such disrespect.”

  “I said high-level sources of fire energy,” the dark ranger scoffed. “Those stupid wenches are too weak to be suppressed by the seal. The Aquarius Gateway wouldn’t prohibit normal fires being used for the village or your measly little smoke spewers over there from coming near.”

  “Hey, try saying that to my face, you fucking tree rat!” the salamander shouted with her sisters growling and brandishing their teeth with cinders floating out of their mouths.

  The land shook violently once again, knocking many of the monsters onto the ground while some stumbled into their tents and even campfires. As monsters screamed from the commotion or being set on fire those near the edge of the gathering watched another burst of lava erupting from within Green Haven, setting more trees ablaze while the echoing rumble of the outburst carried on through the air.

  “So what happens now?” a troll demanded as she shook one of the dark rangers. “With that seal gone what’s going to happen? What was your plan for when this occurred?”

  “Whatever disturbed Eden, it’s too late to stop it,” the ranger worried. “There’s no sealing it now. Something has woken the beast up, and there’s no putting it back to sleep.”

  “What are you talking about? Speak normal words, you blithering idiot!”

  “The forest is going to blow!” an elf cried out while in the hands of gremlins. “We need to get out of here, Eden’s going to unleash hell upon this land thanks to you!”

  “We didn’t cause this,” a gremlin protested with a snarl.

  “Who cares?” a witch cried out. “I’m not staying here a minute longer! Me and my sisters are getting out of here right now!”

  “Me first, me first!” a goblin screamed as she quickly hopped away through the crowd.

  “Everyone, move your asses!” a troll called out as monsters began taking off in a panic. “Retreat to the northern bluffs, get all our forces to pull back from Green Haven! Run!”

  A few dark rangers stood together alongside a troll and gremlin as they witnessed everyone taking off for the distant highlands with growing alarm spreading through the crowds.

  “What of our leaders?” the troll asked.

  “We haven’t seen Sivil yet,” a ranger answered shaking her head.

  “I don’t care about your pathetic little priestess. I meant where are our leaders, the gemini?”

  “We don’t know. They’re probably still in there, if they’re alive.”

  “Of course they’re alive,” the troll scorned, backhanding the ranger and sending her to the ground. The elf growled as she held her jaw, eyes glaring at the troll while her sisters knelt down to help her. Holding in her grunt the troll turned he
r eyes towards the burning forest.

  “Nothing can defeat our leaders. Not even Eden itself.”

  “What about the elves?” the gremlin asked. “They’re going to try to escape now. What about our plan?”

  “Gather our sisters and lead a group around Green Haven to recapture them,” the troll ordered. “We’re not letting our archers scurry away that easily. The forest may be lost, our new friends will not be.”

  *****

  From the southern edge of Green Haven elves were quickly rushing out of the burning woodland in haste, many of them carrying their young and elderly while others were keeping a sharp watch behind them for pursuing hostiles. A few goblins and mites chased down a mother and her three daughters, the fiends being struck down by arrows as rangers kept firing at those that hounded them from behind. Arachne were shot out of the trees while trolls and salamander women were pelted with arrows as they tried to pull back the screaming elves, gremlins threw their alchemic pouches that burst into flames and noxious gas that the elves frantically evaded as they kept running, and a few witches tried to stop fleeing women and children with magical binds before they too were struck with a hailstorm of arrows.

  “Keep running!” a ranger called out before taking another shot. “Rangers, keep those fucking assholes away from our people!”

  “Everyone, head to the southern fields! Now!” another yelled as she fired arrow after arrow at monsters that leapt towards her kin from the shadows.

  “Keep going!” an elf urged, pushing her sister forward as they stumbled in their steps. She was quickly pounced on and dragged away by the feet with two trolls hauling the screaming elf back. One was jumped on from behind by a young elf who berated the monster with sharp words and an even sharper dagger, the other being struck down with an arrow going through her eye from a nearby ranger. An ogre crashed through the trees and charged towards the elves while swinging its mighty club. A few rangers landed their arrows in its bulbous belly, with another going into the brute’s head and dropping the lumbering monster with a heavy thud. Goblins leapt onto and over the downed beast while mites buzzed through the air towards the screaming elves.