"It seems we're not," he said gently. Alyssa looked down with a timid smile as Triska looked at her curiously, the teen then shrugging in response.
"Well, I guess that makes sense. Squeak's queen did mention that her race traded with other monster races," she said simply. She blinked then glanced over to the ant girl who was looking at her curiously.
"Speaking of her, do they allow ant girls into cities too?" she asked. Squeak tilted her head curiously as the group watched Alyssa merely shrug.
"I don't know, again, she's probably the first ant girl ever to go near a human city. I'm not sure what they'll say about her, but odds are she would be allowed in with me. She looks rather harmless," she reasoned, eyeing the ant girl carefully. Squeak looked at Alyssa curiously as the witch showed a cautious expression at her.
"Still, you need to be on your best behavior in there, Squeak. You may be allowed in as a traveler, but you need to be very careful about what you do and say… well, not so much what you say," she cautioned, raising an eyebrow at the ant girl. Squeak merely made a soft squeaking sound as her antennae twitched a bit. She then looked to Daniel as he nodded with a small smile.
"Just stay close to me, ok?" he asked. Squeak nodded with a smile and a soft squeak, then quickly walked over to him and held onto his arm with a timid smile. Daniel smiled weakly at the gesture while Triska and Alyssa stared at the ant girl with dull expressions.
"Squeak, not that close to him," Triska said with a hint of anger. Squeak glanced to her then down to see Daniel's arm being held close to her, so much that her breasts were enveloping his arm slightly. She smiled timidly and looked at Daniel, who was trying not to look at what his arm was being held in. Squeak made a soft squeaking sound before she was yanked away by a magical force, skidding back on her boots as her arms were held to either side of her. She looked around puzzled before the group turned to Alyssa as she was holding her staff towards the ant girl.
"And especially don't hold onto Daniel in there, Squeak, or else," Alyssa warned, shaking her head. Squeak gave Alyssa a dull glare before showing a curious expression, seeing the witch looking at her worriedly.
"I'm not just saying that, Squeak. All monsters in these cities are never to touch a human male like that, ever," she said firmly.
"Never?" Daniel asked. Alyssa looked at him worriedly and nodded.
"If any monster attempts to seduce or even hold onto a man it's considered an attempt to steal him away. If Squeak holds onto you like that in the city they'll try to kill her on the spot," she said looking back to Squeak worriedly. The ant girl jumped a bit and squeaked with fear.
"They'll try to kill her, for just holding onto Daniel's arm?" Triska asked glancing back to the witch.
"There's no tolerance for such behavior in these cities. Monsters are only allowed in to sell their wares, and that's it. We can't get involved in a fight, we can't use our magic, we can't make any suspicious movements or else we'll be killed. We're only allowed entry during the day to sell our stuff, and then we have to leave before nightfall. Those are the rules, and there are no exceptions," Alyssa stated as she looked back towards the city.
"Wow… very strict policy," Daniel said softly. Triska looked at Alyssa carefully then over towards the city in the distance.
"So wait a minute, you mean to tell me that once inside the city neither you nor Squeak can touch Daniel at all?" she asked curiously. Alyssa looked down with a frown and nodded.
"Yeah," she said softly.
"And you can't use your magic at all… and Squeak can't get involved in any fights," Triska asked carefully.
"That's right," Alyssa said closing her eyes. Triska looked at the two monster girls then towards the city with a slight smile.
"Really," she said quietly to herself. Daniel gazed around at the large city then looked back over to Alyssa, seeing her having a saddened expression. She glanced to him then looked back down worriedly.
"I'll be good though, Daniel, I swear. I won't blow this for you. I've been in human cities before, I know how to behave," she said softly.
"It's alright, Alyssa, I trust you outside of those city walls, so of course I would trust you inside them as well. I know you'll be on your best behavior," Daniel reassured gently. Alyssa looked to him with a small smile as he looked over to Squeak, the ant girl having a concerned expression while she was looking ahead at Ashwood. She glanced over to Daniel and made a soft squeaking sound as she pointed to the human city.
"It'll be alright, Squeak. Just don't do anything to draw more attention to yourself, and stay close to Alyssa and Triska. You'll be fine," he said assuredly. She nodded slowly then looked back ahead at the city.
"Alright then, let's get going. We've got some shopping to do before we head out into the outerlands," Triska said, motioning the group forward. As they started making their way down the hill along the dirt road she glanced to Daniel with an eager smile.
'This is my chance. Alyssa can't use her magic to interfere with me and neither she nor Squeak can touch Daniel inside those city walls. All I need to do is wait for my moment to get him alone, and then he's all mine.'
*****
The travelers headed towards the city of Ashwood, all watching with wonder while they approached the large stone walls as they saw just how big the place really was. The walls stretched out for quite a ways towards both forests on opposite sides of the city, with the main gate ahead open for travelers to enter freely. The dirt road from outside shifted into a smooth cobblestone street that headed into the city and branched out between districts. People were seen walking around inside the city while a few female guards were scattered amongst the populace, with the citizens dressed in casual and simple clothing. The guards of Ashwood however all wore steel armor plating on their chests and arms as well as their leggings, along with steel and leather boots with white undershirts and pants under their armor. Their swords were sheathed at their hips as they patrolled the inside of the city, with the women either having their hair held back in long ponytails or in short cut hairstyles.
"So any advice for newcomers here?" Daniel asked Alyssa as the group neared the entrance into the city.
"The people should be friendly with you, though I doubt Squeak and I are going to make any friends here. Just don't make any suspicious movements in front of them," Alyssa said glancing up towards the top of the wall. The group looked up to see a few armed guards walking along the top of the barrier, the women having crossbows armed as they kept a lookout around the area. A few of them pointed down to Daniel and his companions as they saw them approaching the city. Triska glanced around curiously then looked back to Alyssa who was riding atop Lucky still.
"Keep Lucky calm then, we don't want to make a scene," she cautioned.
"I know what I'm doing, Triska, I was here before I met you, remember? I'll keep a close watch over Lucky just like last time," Alyssa said dryly as she glanced to Triska. The teen nodded with a slight smile then looked back ahead with a smirk.
'Good, you watch over the horse, and I'll watch over Daniel.'
The group of travelers walked through the open gate and into the city, all of them looking around curiously at the human city. The houses that were built next to each other lined the street while men and women were walking around casually. Of course people were beginning to stop and stare at the travelers, or at least two of them.
"What is that thing?" a woman asked worriedly as she saw Squeak's abdomen and antennae.
"Those things are monsters," a man grunted as he saw Alyssa riding on Lucky, the young girl dressed in clothing that could easily be assumed to be a witch’s apparel.
"Oh god, there's more of them," another man muttered as he watched the monster girls in the group with a glare. A woman held back her children as they all watched the travelers worriedly while nearby guards were keeping a close eye on them.
"Everybody's staring at us," Daniel said glancing around carefully.
"No, they're staring at us, Daniel," Aly
ssa corrected quietly. She then glanced to Squeak with a firm expression.
"Remember, Squeak, do not touch Daniel in here under any circumstances. Got it?" she asked carefully. Squeak glanced to her and nodded then looked back around as nearly every human nearby was staring at her.
From the crowd of spectators to the side two guards walked out and in front of the travelers, both women holding out a hand and looking at the two monsters in the group cautiously.
"Hold it," one of them ordered. Daniel glanced to Triska then back to the women as they were keeping one hand on their swords.
"Um, is there a problem?" he asked worriedly.
"Are these… monsters with you?" one of the guards asked glancing to Triska carefully.
"Yeah, it's ok, they're not here to cause any trouble," Triska assured holding up a hand defensively.
"We're just passing through to purchase supplies, we'll be leaving shortly," Daniel said with a slight smile.
"What… is that one?" one of the guards asked pointing to Squeak. Daniel glanced back to her then to the guard with a small smile.
"She's an ant girl, her name is Squeak. She's friendly, I assure you," he said gently. The two guards glanced to each other then looked at Alyssa carefully. The witch smiled and held up her hands defensively.
"Yeah, I'm a witch, no hiding that. I was actually just here a few days ago selling my potions," she said happily.
"Really, and where is your merchandise then? Are you here to sell more?" a guard asked raising an eyebrow. Alyssa shook her head and looked over to Daniel.
"No, like he mentioned we're only here to purchase supplies before leaving," she said casually. The two guards looked at the monsters carefully then over to Daniel.
"Why are you traveling with this witch and… bug?" one of the women asked inquisitively. Squeak raised an eyebrow in question as Daniel smiled weakly at that comment.
"Well, I have my reasons. And she's not a bug, she's an ant girl," he said shaking his head.
"An ant's a bug, what's the difference?" the other guard asked flatly looking over to Squeak. The ant girl looked at the guard cautiously then glanced to the side to see people pointing at her and whispering amongst themselves. Men were looking at the monster girls cautiously while the women were giving the girls small glares. A few children around the area were pointing at the strange monsters while their parents were holding them back with cautious expressions. Triska looked around at the crowd of spectators then over to the guards, both women watching the monsters in the group closely.
"Well for one, she saved my life. A bug couldn't do that," Triska said with a wave to the ant girl. The guards looked at her cautiously as Squeak showed her a curious expression.
"She saved your life?" one of the guards asked flatly. Triska nodded and smiled at the ant girl.
"Yeah, she did. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for her," she said gently. Squeak smiled softly as the guards looked back over to her carefully. They then glanced to the witch, the girl smiling nervously and nodding a bit.
"It's true, she and I have helped these two with their travels, we've done nothing wrong," she claimed innocently. Triska glanced to the witch with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, you did try to rape Daniel to death when we first met you," she commented before looking away carelessly. Alyssa jumped with a surprised expression as the guards narrowed their eyes at her, clutching their swords tightly.
"And you do keep throwing me around with your magic whenever I merely try to talk to him, I got hurt pretty badly last time," Triska continued, looking up thoughtfully. Daniel looked at Triska with surprise then to Alyssa as the witch was stuttering something nervously.
"And you even tried to kill me with my own sword as well," Triska said looking down with a hand held to her chin.
"Triska, shut up!" Alyssa yelled out at her as the guards unsheathed their swords.
"Wait, stop! It's not what it sounds like, really!" Daniel pleaded as he waved his hands around nervously.
"It sounds to me like she's just like every other witch out there, dangerous and untrustworthy," one of the guards accused firmly. Daniel looked at the guards worriedly as Alyssa glanced around to seeing a few other armed guards nearby, all of them watching the scene closely. A few of them unsheathed their swords while atop the stone wall a few were taking aim with their arrows. Alyssa showed a nervous expression, looking around at all the guardians fearfully. Her magic may be able to handle a few villagers, but she was pretty sure she wouldn’t be able to defend against so many well-armed humans at once. Triska glanced to Alyssa and smirked slightly, watching the witch tremble with a frightened expression, then looked back over to the guards with a calm smile.
"Actually, she's the most trustworthy witch you'll ever find," she said simply. Everybody stopped and looked at her as she nodded.
"W-What?" Alyssa asked carefully.
"How is this witch trustworthy at all, you said it yourself that she tried to rape your friend and kill you," one of the guards questioned as they both watched Alyssa with narrowed eyes. Daniel and Squeak glanced to Triska worriedly as the teen smiled at the witch.
"Because if she were truly evil, she would have killed me and have taken Daniel away already. But she didn't, she chose not to take him by force, and she chose not to kill me. She did so because she wants to help us with our journey, she's remained in control of herself despite her inner nature," she said gently. Alyssa stared at Triska with wonder as the guards watched her carefully. Triska looked back to the guards with a confident smile and waved towards Squeak.
"The same goes for her. She saved my life from another monster, and even helped keep Daniel here safe when others were going to take him away as well," she stated proudly. Squeak looked at Triska with wonder then over to the guards, both eyeing the two monsters carefully. Alyssa glanced around worriedly as Daniel was watching Triska with a curious eye, surprised to hear her speak so highly in both of the monster girls’ defense. After a long uneasy silence the guards slowly sheathed their swords, and in doing so the surrounding ones did the same.
"You're really going to trust such things with your lives?" one of the guards asked cautiously.
"They're not things. Their names are Alyssa and Squeak. And yes, we do trust them with our lives," Triska declared firmly. Daniel looked at her with a curious expression then smiled as Alyssa and Squeak just stared at the girl with wonder. The guards merely raised an eyebrow at her before looking back to Alyssa and Squeak. After a moment they glanced to each other and merely shrugged.
"Your choice," one of them said simply. Daniel smiled at his companions while Alyssa and Squeak were staring at Triska with wonder still, and then looked to the guards.
"May we please go then? We have a bit of shopping to do in your city before we depart," he requested politely. The guards looked at the two monster girls carefully then nodded slowly before turning back at him.
"Very well. Witches are allowed in the city during the day, and I suppose we can let your… ant girl in as well," one of them said reluctantly. The other guard glanced to the monsters and nodded, then looked to Daniel with a calm expression.
"Welcome to Ashwood, you and your human friend are welcome here of course. However your two monster… companions should know that this place is a monster-neutral zone. That means no magic of any kind, and no fighting. And above all, they are never to touch a single man or boy in this city, is that clear?" she stated firmly. The group nodded as the surrounding people were talking in hushed whispers about the newcomers and their two monster companions.
"Alright. You're free to go. Keep those two in line while you're here, we'll be watching," the other guard said as they stepped aside for the group. The travelers moved along past them into the city while the guards watched the two monsters in the group carefully. The people around the area watched as the travelers made their way into the city, with the ant girl and witch looking around curiously as all eyes were on them still. They then looked over to Triska as
the teen was walking along with a calm smile.
"Triska… thank you," Alyssa said softly. Squeak nodded with a soft squeak while Daniel looked over to his friend with a curious smile. She smirked and shrugged with a smug expression.
"It was no problem, just standing up for Daniel's proof," she said casually. Daniel chuckled as Alyssa looked at the girl with a raised eyebrow.
"But did you have to mention how I was with Daniel like that? They were getting ready to kill me, you didn't need to point out those things," she said worriedly. Triska held in her laughter and glanced to the witch.
"I thought it was worth it, especially seeing as how you did nearly rape Daniel and tried to kill me before. You had that coming for a long time now. Seeing you cowering in fear like that was suitable payback for all the times you threw me out of Lucky's carriage and all the times you threw me around with your magic," she said smugly. Alyssa blinked then growled loudly at the girl.
"Hey!" she yelled out. Triska laughed and looked ahead with an arrogant smile.
"Nothing wrong with evening the score, Alyssa, you had that coming for how you treated me before," she reasoned. Alyssa growled as she clutched her staff, and then looked away with a scoff. Daniel smiled weakly and looked down as Squeak glanced to Alyssa with a raised eyebrow.
"Well anyway, now that we're here we should get the essentials for our trip. We won't be coming across another human city for quite a while," Daniel said looking around at the large surrounding cityscape. People were walking through the streets while a few horse drawn carriages were seen passing by ahead. Of course nearly everyone they passed stopped and watched the two monster girls cautiously while the group made their way through the streets.
"What do we need to get first?" Alyssa asked curiously.
"I hate to point out the obvious, but if we're all going to be traveling together then we'll need a new carriage for Lucky," Triska said shaking her head.
chronicles of eden - act I Page 37
