chronicles of eden - act I (7 page)

Triska slowly walked towards them while keeping her sword held to the side.

"Daniel… get away from her," she said carefully as she watched the witch. Daniel held up his hand towards her to get her to stop while slowly getting back onto his feet. Alyssa looked to Triska with an amused smile then glanced to Daniel.

"Does she still want to play?" she asked innocently. Daniel shook his head and looked to Triska quickly.

"No, she doesn't. She was just about to put her sword away, isn't that right?" he asked cautiously.

"Not quite what I had in mind to be honest," Triska said with narrowed eyes at the witch.

"Then what did you have in mind?" Alyssa asked playfully as she giggled and held her staff up slightly. Triska looked at the witch's staff then to Daniel, the boy shaking his head slowly.

"Don't make her mad. We're not here to harm her, just put your sword away," he warned. Triska looked to the little girl then slowly lowered her weapon. The witch laughed a bit then tilted her head amusingly, her smile never leaving her face.

"I suppose I should thank you for trying to come save me as well, shouldn't I?" she asked playfully. With a quick wave of her staff Triska's sword suddenly whipped out of her hand and spun around behind her, the blade sliding into its sheath with one quick motion. Triska looked back to it then to the little girl with surprise.

"I'll thank you by putting your sword away for you," the witch said with smirk. Triska stared with a stunned expression then glanced to Daniel. Alyssa giggled then looked to Daniel with a sweet smile.

"And I suppose I should thank you too, Daniel Sorres," she said with a purr at the end. He backed up nervously as Triska stared at the girl with unblinking eyes.

"That's not necessary, it looks like you could have handled it all on your own," Daniel said cautiously. Alyssa looked up with a thoughtful expression then smiled slightly.

"Yeah, I suppose. Although they did burn all my potions I had stocked up. My entire month's inventory gone all because of them," she said before she frowned. Sighing she looked down, her hat hiding her eyes.

"I worked forever making those too. They weren't very nice. So mean to me they were. So mean, so mean, so mean," she pouted while shaking her head. After a pause she held out her staff to the side, the relic glowing once again. Daniel and Triska looked over to see the two other men that were killed by Triska and the one holding his bloody stomach in pain suddenly lifted into the air, then slammed down onto the ground, then again and again. Their bodies cracked and snapped as they were smashed into the hard ground over and over again. With one more drop the bodies splattered and split apart on the ground with a crunch. Alyssa looked up with a bright smile as the two travelers turned back to her.

"All better now! Hee hee!" she cheered.

"What… is she, Daniel?" Triska asked with a bit of fear.

"She's a witch. A magical monster," Daniel said looking at the little girl with awe. She giggled as she swayed side to side on her feet.

"So… how should I thank you, Daniel, for coming to rescue me? Hmm?" she asked with a coy smile. Triska's eyes widened as she glanced to Daniel.

"Um, no thanks are needed, really. Just… trying to help," Daniel said nervously. Alyssa giggled and hopped up closer to him.

"Aw, but I insist on repaying you
somehow
," she said as she held her staff behind her, bobbing the head of the ram playfully as she swayed from side to side. Triska looked at the girl with disbelief.

‘No way, she's just a little girl, even if she is a monster. She couldn't possibly want… that… from him… so soon... could she?’

The witch looked up thoughtfully as she hummed a happy tune. After a pause she looked back to Daniel with a bright smile.

"I know, how about cookies?" she asked eagerly. Daniel and Triska blinked then glanced to each other.

"Cookies?" Triska asked slowly.

"Yeah, cookies. I love cookies, don't you?" Alyssa said looking to her with an innocent smile. She laughed playfully then looked behind her.

"Yes, I do believe cookies and milk are an order," she declared as she waved her staff around. From the ground twisted green vines seemed to creep out from the dirt and slither around. A large tangled mesh of weeds moved about together, and then parted to reveal an opening with a warm light coming from it. Alyssa giggled then looked back to the two travelers.

"It's the least I can do. Please, come on in," she said before she hopped over and walked down what seemed to be stairs into the opening. Daniel and Triska glanced to each other then back to where the witch disappeared.

"What… should we do now?" Triska asked worriedly.

Alyssa's head popped up from the opening and she smiled at the two playfully.

"Well? What's the hold up? Come on in," she said happily. Daniel and Triska looked to each other then back to the witch.

"I'm not sure," Daniel said slowly before the young witch giggled.

"Please?" she asked innocently. Daniel looked at the little monster then glanced to Triska.

"Well… we are trying to be nice to them here… and she seems friendly…" he reasoned. Triska slowly nodded then looked to the young girl. They picked up their bags, with Triska putting her dagger back into its sheath, and walked over to the witch. The girl giggled happily then ducked back down into the opening. As the two teens walked over they looked down with wonder at the strange opening in the ground. From inside the twisted vines that formed the opening there was a wooden staircase that seemed to head down into a well-lit living area.

“How… what is that?” Triska asked puzzled. They slowly walked down the stairs and looked around in awe. They just walked underground from the plains, and seemed to be in a small house of some sort. From the ceiling where they came from they walked down the stairs and saw that they were in a living room, with a fireplace that had a warm fire going, several bookshelves around the walls lined with books and tombs of all kinds, a window that was looking out into a nearby forest with daylight shining in, a rounded wooden door with a flower painted on it, a soft blue rug that covered the hardwood floorboards, a few paintings of landscapes and sceneries that were hung on the walls that were a soft white, and wooden rafters that held up the roof which appeared to be pointed up in a cone, with all sorts of strangely colored gems hanging from the beams on strings. And there was a table set up in the middle of room with a light blue table cloth, and on it were a few plates of chocolate chip cookies and glasses of milk already set up. Alyssa hopped around and took her seat next to the fireplace and then gestured to the other seats. Her staff was leaning against the table next to her as she took a drink of her milk, the witch bobbing around a bit with a happy demeanor. Daniel looked around in awe then up to see the opening that led to the grassy plains above them.

"How…" he said confused as he saw the sky up through the opening. The witch giggled then smiled playfully at him.

"Please sit, Daniel, these cookies are fresh for you," she said happily. The two teens set their bags down next to the staircase then walked over to the table, both sitting down slowly while looking around in wonder.

"Where… are we?" Triska asked looking out the window nearby.

"My home," Alyssa said simply.

"But… underground?" Daniel asked.

"Haha, no silly. I live here in my home. Why would I live underground? That would be so silly," Alyssa giggled before she took a bite of her cookie, her eyes staying locked onto Daniel as she had a happy smile. He nodded and looked to Triska curiously.

"Wow… I can't… believe it," Triska said as she saw the forest outside the witch’s home. Alyssa glanced over to the window and nodded.

"Yep yep, not often I have guests here; sorry if the place is a bit of a mess. I'm not home too often," she said sweetly. The girl glanced to her two guests and giggled as they were both looking around slowly.

"Is something wrong? You both seem tense," she said with a smile. The two looked to her then to each other. Alyssa studied Daniel for a moment then tilted her head curiously.

"So, Daniel, what was it you were saying sorry for earlier?" she asked before she took another bite of her cookie. Triska watched the witch carefully as Daniel looked to her curiously.

"Well… I was saying sorry because… I thought we didn't get to you in time," he said slowly. The witch stopped chewing then looked at him puzzled.

"Get to me in time? In time for what?" she asked.

"To save you. I mean… we thought you were going to be burned alive. We heard you scream," Daniel explained. Alyssa blinked then glanced to Triska quickly, then back to Daniel. After a pause she giggled to herself.

"Oh no no no, silly. I only screamed because I was upset they broke all my merchandise. I wasn't in any real danger. Thank you for your concern though, that's so kind of you," she said happily. Daniel nodded slowly then looked at her with wonder. She watched him stare at her for a moment then giggled again.

"What is it? Why are you looking at me like that?" she asked playfully.

"It's just… I can’t believe that I found a witch so soon," Daniel said in wonder. He had thought he would have to travel for a good distance, day and night before he came across any monsters in the world. Yet here he was, having cookies and milk with one the day he had left his hometown. Alyssa looked at him bashfully and batted her eyelashes.

"Do you like what you see, Daniel?" she asked softly. Triska looked at her cautiously then to her plate of cookies. Daniel smiled nervously and nodded.

"Well, I guess. I mean… for a monster you seem… nice," he said with a shrug.

"Thank you, Daniel. You're pretty nice for a human, cute too," she said with a wink. He smiled weakly then glanced to Triska, the teen looking at the witch with a dull expression.

"Anyway, who were those guys that were trying to kill you? Were they just wandering thieves or something?" she asked as she glanced around the cozy home of the witch. Alyssa shrugged and took another bite of her cookie, chewing the snack with a happy smile as Daniel and Triska looked at her curiously. After she finished she looked to Daniel.

"So, Daniel, where are you off to?" she asked, seeming to ignore Triska’s question altogether. He looked at her for a moment then smiled a bit.

"Well, truth is we were looking to meet monsters like you," he said simply. Alyssa looked at him with wonder as she wiped the crumbs from her mouth.

"You were? You wanted to meet me?" she asked curiously. He nodded and reached down to his bag, the witch watching closely as he pulled out his monster book. He opened it and flipped through a few pages.

"Yes, we're on a bit of a journey to meet monsters and-" he started before Alyssa leaned over the table with a cute smile.

"And?" she asked as she had her hands on the table and leaning closer to the boy, eager to hear what he was going to say next. He blinked then smiled weakly.

"And to see if any monsters could be trustworthy, to be able to join humans in peaceful coexistence in the world," he said as he leaned back a bit. Alyssa looked at him funny then sat back with an amused smile.

"Join you? To coexist?" she asked curiously.

"Well, yes. You see there are some monsters out there that are very powerful and dangerous, to both human and monster alike, the Darker Ones of Eden. I have this belief that certain monsters and humans can live together peacefully. We can aid each other with our common enemies and help each other grow and prosper," Daniel said hopefully. He glanced to his book as he turned the page while Alyssa smiled at him curiously.

"Wow, never heard of a human that thought of such ideas before," she said before she casually took another cookie from her plate. Triska looked at the witch curiously then to Daniel.

"Well, Daniel's not like other humans; he's got more of an open and optimistic mind. But he is right though, mankind could use help surviving in this world, and so could other monsters that are threatened by the Darker Ones," she said in agreement. She then noticed Daniel was looking at a page in his book closely, his eyes going back and forth slightly as he was reading something. Alyssa giggled and looked at the boy with a smirk.

"I see, so you came to talk about living together, just you and me, Daniel? I'm flattered," she asked with a sly smile. Daniel finished reading something on the page then glanced to Alyssa.

"Well, not exactly. More like talk to your kind and see if such a peace could be achieved between us," he said cautiously. Alyssa laughed a bit then looked up with an amused smile. Triska looked at Daniel cautiously then glanced to the witch who was looking around at the gems hanging from the roof with a playful smile. After a pause Daniel glanced out the window.

"But before we get to that, Alyssa, who were those men trying to kill you? I wasn't aware there were bandits in the area," he said casually. Alyssa giggled to herself and shrugged.

"I don't think they were bandits per se, but they certainly weren't very nice either way. Hee hee, that rhymed!" she said with a laugh at the end. Daniel smirked and nodded, then glanced over to her.

"You love playing the part of a little girl, don't you?" he asked with an amused smile. Triska looked at him confused while Alyssa shrugged with an innocent smile.

"What? What do you mean 'playing the part'?" Triska asked cautiously.

"What's in that book? I haven't seen one like that before," Alyssa asked curiously while looking at the book in Daniel's hand. He looked to it and smiled proudly.

"A monster guide so to speak. You see in the interest of finding peaceful and trustworthy monsters I've read up on different types of them out in the world, just so I'm prepared should I happen to come across one. And it just so happens that's exactly what occurred. I thought since I'm talking to a witch I'd better brush up on their known background," he explained, looking to the witch with a calm smile. She giggled and leaned towards him with a playful smile.

"Oh, I see. So what does it say about witches in there?" she asked. Triska looked at the little girl then over to her friend as he read the description.