Chronicles of Eden - Season II - Act II

by Alexander Gordon

  “Now, how many elves here have a husband?” he called out, with the elves showing startled confusion to his words. “You heard me. Raise your hand if you have a man for a husband.”

  All the hands went down while the elves stared at Daniel in puzzlement.

  “Don’t be shy,” Daniel urged. “If any elf here has a man for a husband, one who loves you, cares for you, stands by your side through the good times and the bad, one who is always around to help you and raise your daughter with together, one who loves you for who you are and doesn’t care at all that you’re an elf and not a human; if you have that in your life please raise your hand.”

  Not a single elf raised her hand, much to the surprise of nobody. Daniel nodded slowly to what he easily expected to be true, and then proposed another question.

  “How many of you want that in your life?” he asked, earning troubled looks from the elves while Daniel’s family observed their reactions closely. “I want every elven woman here who would want a husband in their life to raise their hand. I want every elven child here who would want a father in their life to raise their hand. Be honest, be truthful to yourself and all of us. You all know what husbands and fathers are, you’ve surely heard how human women and daughters have those in their lives. What about you, do you want that as well? Raise your hand if that’s something you want, something that you would love to have in your life.”

  A long pause ensued with the elves quietly glancing around at their kin for anyone’s answer. Daniel surveyed the crowd as silence filled the air, his gaze going over many women and children who seemed taken aback by such a question and feeling uneasy with how to respond. Finally a hand was seen in the air, with all eyes turning to see an elven woman standing amidst the crowd with her daughter held close. The child looked up at her mother with worried eyes before raising her hand with a small smile at Daniel.

  “I’ve always wanted that,” the woman admitted. “I know it’s impossible, I know it’ll never happen, but… I’ve always dreamed of having a husband of my own. The last man I had sex with… broke my arm and gave me a black eye during it. I hear husbands are more… loving with having sex. I think… I think I would prefer that… if given the chance to have it.”

  “I’ve wondered what it would be like having a father,” the daughter added. “Human girls have one. I… I want that too… I think. I do… if it’ll ever be possible, that is.”

  “Does anyone else want a husband and father in their lives?” Daniel asked. “Be honest. If you’ve ever dreamed of having such a thing, please raise your hand.”

  One by one more elves began to raise their hands, a knowing smirk coming across Daniel’s face as he saw the entire elven community around him cast their vote which soon became unanimous.

  “Keep your hands raised if you want any of the following,” Daniel called out. “To be loved and respected for who you are, and not to be shamed or despised simply because of what you are.”

  Not a single elf withdrew her vote.

  “To be able to walk down the street of any city, human or otherwise, either by yourself or with your husband and child, and not be chastised, ridiculed, or even hated, but instead treated as an equal by all.”

  The elves continued to hold their hands up while Daniel’s mates joined as they stood and raised theirs.

  “To be truly loved by a man, a mate, a caring husband. To mate with them not in a harmful or disgraceful way, but because the man genuinely loves and wants to be with you, because he wants you to be his mate. To be able to say ‘I have a boyfriend’, or ‘I have a husband’, and know those words to be as true as the sun is bright.”

  The elves kept their hands up while a few were seen hopping to reach even higher. Sheal and Rolian also held theirs up while Felucia merely looked away with a dull grimace.

  “To not be known as monsters or vile abominations, but instead women and daughters of Eden just as it is with humans. To never again be grouped together with the likes of The Sisterhood or any of those bloodthirsty monsters who only want to rape and kill.”

  All of the elves kept their hands up while nodding at him, their eyes conveying hope that was swiftly building within them as they clung to his every word.

  “To never be alone in times of crisis, to have humans as allies who would gladly pick up their swords and shields to help protect you and your people against real monsters. To be considered as friends to humans, so that they not only take solace in knowing you are just as beautiful and compassionate as our women but also so that our children can sleep better at night knowing we have the most gifted and talented archers in all of Eden standing with us as our allies.”

  The elves kept their hands raised while a few shouted out proudly to that last part.

  “Now answer me this,” Daniel called out. “How many of you will stand with me, so that such a dream can become a reality, not just for you but all races who would choose to join us and work together? How many of you are willing to help bring great change to Eden, to all who live within it, and to forever separate yourselves from the horrid title of monster in this world once and for all? Answer me, elves of Green Haven; crazy or not, impossible or not, who will stand with me as proof of my beliefs; proof that our races can coexist peacefully with each other, that we will stand together against the true monsters of Eden, that we are all equals in this world? Tell me now, let your voice be heard by all; who’s with me?”

  Without pause the crowd of elves cheered loudly in agreement, all of them smiling brightly at Daniel and rallying for his beliefs with renewed energy and faith. His mates began jumping with joy as they could easily feel the positive vibes completely drowning out the negative clouds from earlier, with Rolian cheering in celebration before heavily drinking from her jug, and Sheal who stared with unblinking eyes at Daniel while faint wisps of smoke were coming out of the corners of her smile. Felucia watched the surrounding elves unanimously siding with Daniel before she slowly shook her head with a roll of her eyes.

  “You’re all idiots,” she muttered, right before Rolian hugged her with a giddy laugh and drank more from her jug with large gulps. As the sand wraith shouted and tried pushing her away Pip flew out of her cleavage and over to Daniel, landing on his shoulder and giving him a kiss on the cheek with a flutter of her wings. Smiling at his littlest mate Daniel gave her a small kiss, or a big one given her size, and then turned to see his mates cheering with excitement as were all the elves around them.

  “I think the elves like us again, Daniel,” Pip giggled.

  “I think you’re right, Pip,” Daniel had to agree with. “I think you’re right.”

  “You did it, Daniel!” Specca squealed as she and the girls ran over to grab onto him. His mates quickly surrounded and hugged their man while Cindy was busy scolding her mother again about a rather nasty remark she made about Daniel.

  “You did it, just like I knew you would!” the nixie praised with her tail quickly wrapping around his leg.

  “You got the elves to see reason,” Luna beamed as she hugged him close with fluttering wings. “You got them to listen just like you did with my people. You’re the greatest, Daniel!”

  “I knew you could do it from the start,” Falla boasted. “Never had a doubt you couldn’t persuade them.”

  “You were worried he was losing them earlier,” Alyssa teased.

  “You were the one who was worried!” Falla shouted back in a fluster. “I never lost faith in him for a second!”

  Alyssa growled at her as the two got in each other’s faces before Daniel lifted the witch up into his arm, the little spellcaster yelping at first then smiling curiously at her man as he surveyed the crowd of elves with a proud smile.

  “Easy, girls,” he said, holding Specca with his other arm. “Save your energy for what comes next.”

  “What comes next?” Pip asked. “What’s coming next?”

  “Talking to the elves about becoming peaceful allies to humans was the easy part,” Daniel explained. Looking
around at his mates he saw their confused smiles. “Now comes the hard part; convincing the world that the elves are not monsters. The elves want things to change just like we do, and things aren’t going to change unless we enforce that change ourselves. We need to improve their image in the eyes of humans. Not just theirs, but all of your races as well. Talking about it isn’t enough, we need to make things change in Koskaysil, and soon.”

  “It’s time that everyone started practicing what we’re preaching,” Specca recognized. “If we’re going to rally allies before the queen of Rockhelm, the humans need to know we’re on their side.”

  “We have to start showing the humans we’re not monsters like The Sisterhood,” Alyssa agreed. “Those bitches are going to make Daniel’s ideas seem impossible to them unless we demonstrate we’re better than that first.”

  “So what do we do now?” Falla asked with a shrug. “What’s our next move?”

  “For now,” Daniel mused as he gazed at the excited elven crowd. “We enjoy this small victory tonight and pray all is going well with Triska’s group. If things continue to go our way, hopefully we’ll have the rest of our family returning to us very soon.”

  “I hope so,” Alyssa worried, looking down with a small worried smile. She then squeaked with a blush forming on her cheeks before turning to Daniel in surprise, along with Specca who also shared a similar reaction to Daniel caressing each of their rears with his hands.

  “Daniel,” Specca purred with a sultry smile.

  “Like I said, try to save some energy until then,” Daniel mentioned before looking around at the girls, all of them showing growing wonder as he had a much different looking grin on his face now, one that conveyed quite well what he was thinking of doing with his beloved family.

  “Once my family returns to me, I’m going to make up for lost time with each and every one of you,” he promised, with the girls smiling brightly to that as they huddled closer to him. Holding Alyssa and Specca by their rears Daniel winked at the girls before noticing Doku shyly looking away with a deep blush on her face.

  “Every one of you,” Daniel repeated, with Doku jumping a bit before slowly turning back to him. “Unless there are any objections from you girls.”

  “I’m okay with Doku joining us,” Specca dreamily said as she rested her head on Daniel’s shoulder.

  “I’m fine with it,” Alyssa giggled.

  “I want her to join us too,” Luna agreed.

  “No complaints here,” Falla chimed in with a wink.

  “More boobies!” Pip cheered with waving arms. “Yes please!”

  “Wh… wh… what?” Doku stammered, turning bright red and trembling with ruffling feathers. “M-M-Me? You w-want m-m-m-me to j-j-join you? You mean… I… and… Daniel… we… we’re going to… to…”

  She opened her mouth to speak, let out a small whine as she wavered on her feet, and then dropped forward, being caught by Luna and Falla as the harpy fainted and went limp.

  “Oh, Doku,” Specca sighed in amusement. “You cute, fragile little thing.”

  “Go easy on her, Daniel,” Alyssa snickered. “She really is delicate.”

  “I’m not so sure about that, Alyssa,” Daniel chuckled, watching as Falla and Luna held Doku up by the shoulders and tried shaking her to wake the bird up. He shook his head a bit then looked around at the newest supporters of his crusade that certainly helped bolster his hopes for success.

  “How we are on the outside isn’t always how we are on the inside.”

  *****

  All was nearly quiet in Shadow’s Refuge as night befell the peaceful sanctuary. The hallways were lit with a warm celestial glow as moonlight glistened through the old windows without any clouds above to impede it. The residents had retired to their rooms to rest, with only a few caregivers still roaming the manor with their nightly duties, with one of them again mumbling to herself in a shaky stutter as her hooves clopping along the floor below accompanied her all the way.

  “This is- I just can’t- why is she here- what is she doing here and- oh d-d-d-dear,” Syliandanchevas fretted while steadily pacing forward. In her arms were a stack of papers that she sifted through now and again before always looking around in a nervous panic as she continued worrying to herself.

  “C-C-Calm down, calm down,” she urged herself while taking a few deep breaths. “It’s g-g-going to b-be o-okay. It’s going to b-b-b-b-be… be okay. This isn’t a b-b-b-bad omen or anything. It’s n-n-not.”

  Fumbling through her paperwork she rounded a corner before suddenly coming to a halt. Ahead of her she saw VelRyan slowly closing a door with a small wave to someone on the other side, the man taking a moment to fondly hold a hand against the door before noticing Syliandanchevas watching him.

  “Still working even at this hour?” he asked with a curious smile.

  “Master VelRyan,” the fey quickly spoke with a small curtsey. She mishandled the papers in her arms with a yelp before snatching them all close, a shaky whine being made while her tail wagged behind her as she attempted to catch her breath. Looking up she saw VelRyan walking up before her, his hands gently reaching out and taking the stack of papers from the woman which he carefully organized into a neat pile.

  “How many times have I told you to stop working yourself so hard?” he chuckled with an amused grin. “It’s late, you should have retired to bed long ago.”

  “I’m s-s-sorry, Mas-” Syliandanchevas whined, her hands reaching out to take back the paperwork before he rested a hand on her head. The fey locked up with a small whine and bright blush as VelRyan lightly pet her, her eyes anxiously glancing up to him then back down again while her tail started wagging quickly behind her.

  “And how many times have I asked you to stop calling me master?” he playfully asked. “Please, just call me by my name, I insist.”

  “S-S-Sorry,” Syliandanchevas moped. She took a few slow breaths before taking off her glasses and rubbing them with her blouse. “I’m just a little… stressed is all.”

  “The new resident?” VelRyan mused as he looked through the papers.

  “Yes,” the fey agreed looking behind her and putting her glasses back on. “Her arrival has caused quite a stir around here.”

  “Splendid,” VelRyan reasoned with a shrug, earning a puzzled look from the woman. “If everyone’s focused on her then that should make it easier for Max and Lelu to spend some more time in the sanctuary and not my observatory like they’ve been doing for the past three days straight.”

  “I’m sorry about them,” Syliandanchevas apologized. “If they’ve been bothering you I should have removed them from your study sooner.”

  “They haven’t been bothering me. I just think it would be better for them to explore more of this place and meet some new faces. I know Max and Lelu have been a little uneasy about meeting the monsters we have living here, and I can’t blame them for feeling that way. Max has already shown remarkable patience with being around monsters as it is, the fact he can smile and be happy with his new friends is proof of his growth. And Lelu’s home was destroyed by some of the same monster classes we have living here, I didn’t imagine she would be eager to attempt befriending any of them right away.”

  “At least Grace is comfortable enough to leave their room during the day,” Syliandanchevas said. “I know you’re a patient man, but I do question if even she would grow tiresome for your nerves if she were to spend a day in your observatory.”

  “Oh, I don’t think I would be too hard on her if she acted out in front of me,” VelRyan smirked. “Bermuda went through a rebellious phase when she was little, but I managed to stave off that difficult side of her and help her blossom into a proper woman.”

  “Yes, you certainly did manage to scare that troublesome side of her away,” Syliandanchevas giggled. “How many times did little Bermuda come running to Lylyian after her dad scolded her? She never skitters as fast as she does after you reprimand her.”

  “You speak as if my own lovin
g daughter was scared of me,” VelRyan pointed out with a hurt expression.

  “I’ve seen you when your patience is at its end,” the fey reminded him with a smirk. “Should Grace ever see such a side of you I believe wholeheartedly she would run to Max for safety in tears.”

  “Ouch. That hurts to hear such cold words. I for one think I’m rather great with children.”

  “My apologies,” Syliandanchevas kindly replied with a nod. “I meant no disrespect. The strict father you are is what likely helped steer Bermuda towards a promising future. She respects you like no other and constantly looks up to you. She’s even grasped the art of magic in order to follow in her father’s footsteps. You may be rather intimidating when upset, but the kindhearted and loving man you are is always seen clear as day.”

  “Stop, you’re going to make me blush,” VelRyan jested shaking his head. Looking back to the door of his daughter’s room he smiled affectionately at the thought of the young girl falling asleep inside. “Still, I’m happy Bermuda turned out as wonderfully as she did. She’s just like her mother.”

  “Yes, she is,” the fey softly agreed. Her eyes however were locked onto VelRyan from behind her glasses, the woman’s hands fidgeting together in front of her while her tail was sharply wagging behind. Turning his gaze over onto the fey VelRyan saw her staring adoringly at him with a soft blush on her cheeks, a look he had seen on her many times before that he could only respond with a small, empathetic smile before averting his eyes to the papers in his hands.

  “Anyway, back to the matter of our newest resident, how is she doing with-”

  “Master VelRyan,” Syliandanchevas suddenly blurted out. She stammered with her words before tensing up as she used great willpower to speak clearly. “I’m sorry, but… may I please ask you something?”

  “Just call me VelRyan, and what is it?”

  “Would it be possible… for me… to sleep with you tonight? I would gain a much better night’s rest if… you were close to me.”

  “I’m sorry, but you know my answer is going to be no.”