“So how far is Ashwood from here anyway?” Daniel asked curiously, hoping to keep the girls focusing on the task at hand rather than fighting each other.
“At the rate we’re going we should be there in about four days,” Triska said with a shrug.
“Four days huh?” he said looking up at the sky.
“Why don’t we just use a horse and carriage? That would be a lot faster,” Alyssa pointed out.
“We don’t have one,” Triska growled. She then looked to Daniel and smiled slightly.
“Sorry about that as well, mother didn’t have any that I could have taken at the time,” she said with a shrug.
“It’s ok. I was prepared for a long trip. Besides we’ll be doing plenty of walking past Ashwood if we can’t get a ride there,” he said with a shrug. Alyssa glanced to him then down with a raised eyebrow.
“I could help with that… if you would like, Daniel,” she offered. Daniel and Triska looked to her curiously.
“Help?” Daniel asked. Alyssa nodded while glancing away.
“I could fix us up a ride there… if you’d like,” she said softly.
“You could?” Triska asked with surprise. Again Alyssa nodded while looking down still.
“Would that please you?” she asked curiously, slowly looking back up to Daniel.
“Well… yeah. That would be great. But… how could you do that?” he asked curiously.
“I have a carriage at my home, I could bring it here for us to use,” she said happily. The two teens looked at her with surprise then to each other.
“You… can?” Daniel asked looking back to the witch.
“Why didn’t you say so before? We could have been a lot further along by now if you had done that from the start!” Triska yelled out.
“You just love to yell at people don’t you?” Alyssa asked the girl flatly. She smiled and looked to Daniel with a soft giggle.
“I was enjoying the walk with Daniel, but if you need to make better time I can help with that,” she said sweetly. He looked at her with amazement then smiled brightly.
“Yes, of course. Thank you, Alyssa, that would be great,” he said eagerly. She giggled and nodded, then looked to Triska with a smug grin. Triska growled then glanced away as she felt her anger for the witch rising.
“You can help too, Triska, I need you to do something as well,” Alyssa said with a smirk. Triska looked back to her cautiously as the witch tapped her staff on the ground. From nearby green vines started to emerge and swarm around as they did before.
“I need you to find my horse. Those humans yesterday cut it loose and it’s running around the fields here somewhere. Find him and bring him back here for us,” Alyssa said, watching the vines shifting around in the grass.
“What? Find your horse? No way. First off how the hell am I supposed to find it around here, it’s been over a day since we saw it last. Secondly, don’t you just have another to use?” Triska asked, shaking her head in disbelief. Alyssa glanced to her and shook her head.
“Nope, that was my only horse. Find him or else that carriage is useless, unless you want to pull it for us,” she said with a laugh. Triska growled then looked at her cautiously.
“Wait, what are you going to be doing then?” she asked carefully.
“Daniel and I are going to get the carriage silly. It’s a bit big for me to handle on my own without a horse, so an extra hand is needed,” Alyssa said looking to Daniel. Triska shook her head and glared at the witch.
“Nothing doing! You are not sending me on a wild goose chase while you take Daniel back to your home alone!” she shouted out.
“Horse,” Alyssa corrected.
“What?” Triska asked puzzled.
“Horse. You’re going on a wild horse chase, and you’d better find it too or else no ride for Daniel with his quest,” Alyssa said simply.
“No way, I’m not leaving him alone with you. I’ll go with you and Daniel can find the horse,” Triska argued.
“Oh, so you want him all alone out in the fields with nobody to protect him? You can handle a few bandits I’m sure, but can he?” Alyssa asked curiously. Triska jumped a bit then glanced around. Daniel looked around then towards the swarming green vines that parted to reveal the stairs down into the witch’s home.
“What’s wrong, Triska? Don’t you trust Daniel not to take advantage of me when he has me all alone in my home? You’re not thinking he’s going to have his way with me once we’re all alone, are you?” Alyssa asked innocently as she swayed a bit on her feet.
“I don’t trust you with anything, witch,” Triska said with a glare. Daniel sighed and looked around.
“How could we find the horse anyway? It could be long gone by now,” he said worriedly.
“Nope, he’s close by. My horse always follows me around; he’s a loyal horse that way. I’m sure if she searched around the area she’ll find him grazing or something,” Alyssa reasoned. Triska looked around worriedly then to Daniel. She glanced to the vines then to the witch again.
“Ok? Hurry up now, we’ll meet you back here when Daniel and I get the carriage out. It’s in the supply shed next to my house, so I’ll need help getting it out properly. Once that’s done we’ll wait for you out here,” Alyssa said happily. Daniel looked to the entrance of her home then to Triska. The girl growled then dropped her bag down onto the path with a grunt.
“Fine, I’ll find your damn horse. But if you try anything, Alyssa…” she threatened with narrowed eyes.
“I told you I’m here to help Daniel with his quest. Letting him use my carriage and horse is nothing at all. Besides, if he ever does say he needs more from me that’s his call to make,” Alyssa said with a purr while looking to him. Daniel smiled nervously then looked to Triska.
“I’ll be fine, Triska, don’t worry about me. We could really use the ride, just try to find that horse if it’s around here,” he said with a shrug. Triska sighed and nodded then glanced around.
“I just wish I knew where to start,” she said softly.
“His name is Lucky, a fitting name since he never really runs into trouble. Well, except for yesterday, but oh well. Hee hee! Just call out his name and he should respond to you,” Alyssa said casually. She started skipping towards the entrance with Daniel then looked back to Triska.
“Oh, one more thing, Triska. Whatever you do, don’t make him mad,” she added.
“Make him mad?” Triska asked with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah… he’s a very sensitive horse. Trust me, it’s best to be friendly with him,” Alyssa said with a shrug. She hopped over and jumped down into the entrance as Daniel looked back to Triska with a curious expression.
“I guess… good luck,” he said with a smile. Triska smiled and glanced down.
“I’ll be fine, just watch your back with her,” she said carefully. Daniel nodded then walked down into the witch’s home while Triska looked around with a dull expression.
“Great… looking for a horse named Lucky while Daniel’s alone with that lustful witch. That can’t possibly bite me in the ass,” she muttered as she walked off towards a nearby hill.
Inside the witch’s home Alyssa looked around at the messy interior as the outside was still cast into night with the dead forest being seen out the window. She looked around with a disappointed expression and shook her head as Daniel walked down the steps.
“So what do we do first?” he asked.
“First things first, I really need to tidy up this place if I’m going to be gone on a trip,” Alyssa said simply as she tapped her staff down on the floor a few times. Daniel watched in awe as everything started to move and shift around. The table that was broken slid across the floor then hopped up as its four legs snapped back into place under it. As it slid back into place the chairs around the area did the same reassembly act then placed themselves around the table as the tablecloth from the ground seemed to leap up and cover it. Books flew back up into their spots on the shelves as Alyssa walk
ed around, watching everything with a careful eye.
“I really do throw wild parties, don’t I, Daniel?” she asked with a giggle. He glanced to her then continued to look around in awe. The plush red chair slid back against the wall as the fireplace sizzled out quietly. Outside the sky turned to day as the trees seemed to regrow again, their leaves and branches reforming as the ground changed back into a healthy, grass covered floor for the forest. Daniel’s jaw dropped as he looked around with wonder, seeing the glass shards from the window snapping back into place while all the scratches in the paint that were made before seemed to fade away. The broken dishes and glasses leapt back up and reformed as they were placed onto the table. The ceiling rumbled and shifted back to normal as the green vines above retreated into the roof, the wooden beams snapping back into place and looking as good as new again.
“How… wow…” Daniel breathed out.
“It’s nothing special really, just a little housekeeping,” Alyssa said casually as she ran a finger along a table to make sure there wasn’t dust there. She looked around with a calm expression as everything picked itself up properly, the home looking as good as new again. She nodded in approval then looked to Daniel.
“You ok?” she asked curiously. He shook his head to gather his senses then looked to Alyssa with amazement.
“That was incredible, you… how did you… and the forest… wow,” he said with a smile.
“You’re making me blush, Daniel, it was nothing at all, really,” Alyssa said while looking away bashfully.
“How did you change the forest though? It’s… nothing like it was before,” he said looking out the window.
“It’s not really changed; it’s still dead and rotting beyond what you can see. I just like the green look of it, so I keep it that way outside the window. If you were to walk out there you would see the forest for how it really is. Dead and decaying… and filled with wolves,” Alyssa said, her words falling quiet at the end as she trembled slightly. She looked down as she held herself tightly with her arms, breathing heavily as she tried to calm herself. Daniel looked to her with worry then walked over to her.
“Alyssa… are you ok?” he asked gently. She trembled then jumped forward into a hug with him, burying her face into his shirt as she held him tightly. He held her gently as she murmured to herself while shaking her head.
“If they frighten you so much, why live here? Why not live somewhere else?” he asked curiously.
“Because… this was our home,” Alyssa said softly. Daniel looked at the girl then over to the window.
“You and your mom,” he said softly. She nodded slowly then looked up at him with watery eyes. He looked down at the girl as she choked back her sobs. She may have been older on the inside by far, but seeing her like this she resembled a frightened young girl in every way.
“I couldn’t leave it… it was all I had left. I was all alone; this was all I had left of my life,” Alyssa said looking away with a sorrow. Daniel smiled softly at the girl then held her gently. It was true; monsters and humans did have common ground if they looked hard enough. She may be a monster driven by her lustful nature, but she had feelings like a human being did.
“You’re not alone anymore, Alyssa,” he said kindly. The witch looked to him with gentle eyes as he smiled at her. She sniffled and smiled softly at him then looked down before wiping her tears away. After a moment she looked towards the front door.
“C’mon, the shed is out back. Let’s get the carriage out of there and then I’ll bring it out to the field,” she said softly. Daniel nodded then started walking towards the door with her. The witch paused then looked up at Daniel with wonder, licking her lips as her eyes started to glow. She shook her head then quickly looked away.
‘No… fight it… he’ll never forgive me if I put a hex on him.’
*****
Out in the rolling plains Triska was walking around with an annoyed expression. She had been wandering around near the dirt road as she searched for the horse from yesterday. Triska wasn’t too keen on letting Daniel go alone with the witch after she tried to force herself on him already, and was growing more annoyed by the second on having to try to find a missing horse in the middle the endless fields.
“I can’t believe I’m doing this… find a horse named Lucky while Daniel is all alone with that little monster. Yeah, that sounds like a great idea,” she muttered while shaking her head. Walking over past some trees she searched around as the wind gently blew by.
“Lucky!” she called out. Nothing was heard except for her voice echoing out along with the wind. She looked around with a tired expression then walked towards a hill.
“Lucky! Here horsey horsey!” she called out again. Her call sounded out however there was no reply. She climbed to the top of the hill and looked around with annoyance.
“This is crazy, that horse is probably long gone by now. ‘My horse always follows me around; he’s a loyal horse that way’. Give me a break,” Triska said with discontent. She growled then looked back towards the path where Daniel and Alyssa were supposedly going to get the carriage from.
“She just wants him alone with her, I can’t believe I fell for this,” she grunted as she started running back. After a few steps she stopped when the sound of a horse neighing into the air was heard. She looked around curiously as the sound faded away.
“Lucky?” she called out. Again she heard the horse from over the hill.
“No way, really? Lucky!” she called out as she ran back. Reaching the top of the hill she saw a white horse walking around near the base. It still had its shoulder straps on from yesterday and seemed to be in healthy shape. The horse looked around a bit then stopped to eat some tall grass as Triska stared at it with surprise.
“That’s the horse from before. Alyssa was right, it really was staying nearby,” she said in wonder. The horse grunted quietly as it chewed the tall grass, its tail swaying slowly behind it. Triska smiled with relief then started running down the hill towards it. She slowed down then walked up in front of the grazing animal, looking at it curiously.
“Just like Alyssa said. I guess she wasn’t lying after all,” she said softly. Smiling gently she slowly walked towards the horse with her hand held out.
“Hey, Lucky, easy boy. Let’s get you back to your owner, ok?” she said gently. The horse looked up to her as she carefully approached it.
“That’s it, I’m not going to hurt you,” she said kindly. The horse bucked back and let out a small cry then trotted off.
“Hey, where are you going?” Triska asked running over in front of it again.
“I said I’m not going to hurt you. C’mon, boy, easy does it,” she said as she walked up towards it. Again the horse bucked back away from her and cried out before trotting off.
“What the hell? Hey!” Triska said annoyed as she ran over to it again.
“Sorry, I don’t have any food to offer you or anything, but I need you to come with me,” she said as she walked up to it. Again the horse backed up and neighed at her. She looked at it with a scoff and shook her head.
“What the hell is wrong you, stupid horse? Just come with me already,” she said impatiently. Lucky snorted then resumed eating the grass. Triska walked up and grabbed the straps around the horse, then started pulling back on them as the animal bucked back.
“Let’s go, you dumb animal, I don’t have time for your games right now,” she said sternly.
The horse’s eyes glowed red as it snarled at her, the human letting go with surprise and backing up quickly. Its white hair shifted to a deep black as its tail lit on fire. Triska’s eyes widened as skeletal wings ripped out from its back, extending out as the horse snarled at her with smoke coming from its mouth.
“What… the… hell?” Triska said with fright as she backed up.
“Oh, one more thing, Triska. Whatever you do, don’t make him mad.”
Alyssa’s words echoed in her mind as the demonic horse snarled at the girl whi
le slowly walking towards her.
“Right… sensitive horse… my bad,” Triska said worriedly. She gulped then smiled nervously as the horse snarled at her.
“Easy there, Lucky, I didn’t mean it. Really,” she said shakily. The horse’s wings arched back behind it as its tail was ablaze, its red eyes staring at the girl intently while smoke drifted up out of its mouth. Triska glanced to her sword behind her in its sheath then back to the horse.
‘Something tells me that will only piss it off more.’
“I’m sorry. Ok? I didn’t mean to… insult you like that. Ok?” she asked worriedly. The horse bucked back and cried out as the girl watched with wide eyes.
“Yeah… not ok,” she said shaking her head. Quickly turning around she ran back towards the hill as the horse let out a screech, the demonic beast then chasing after her with its flaming tail waving behind it.
*****
Daniel was watching with awe outside the young witch’s home. It was a small rounded house with a storage shed that was built into the side. The shed was slightly smaller than the house and was made with stone and bricks just like the rest of the home. Alyssa had walked outside with him and opened the large double door to the shed, the wooden gates swinging open to show that it had all sorts of woodland and farming equipment hanging from the walls. From saws, to pitchforks, to axes, the shed had all the equipment needed to live out in a forest. And in the center of the shed was a carriage similar to the one that Daniel saw before, with the four wooden wheels along with the white cover top that was slightly rounded. There was a front seat for the driver with the wooden sides of the carriage being white as well with no open windows. The back of the ride was open showing the inside which, aside from the front seat for the driver, was just open space with a wooden floor. It was obviously just used to transport goods or merchandise in back, but had enough room for the three travelers and their belongings.
Daniel stared at it with wonder then to Alyssa, the witch looking at it with a calm smile.
“Wow, it looks just like the other one,” he said looking back to it.
“Yeah, I had this one for a spare so I just kept it in here until needed. It’s pretty much brand new,” Alyssa said happily. She blinked then shook her head a bit, fighting off a blush in doing so. Slowly she glanced to Daniel then quickly back to the carriage.
chronicles of eden - act I Page 11
