chronicles of eden - act I (19 page)

"She's been the one protecting me ever since I was little, Alyssa, she's the one I trust with my life above all else. If you ever want to hurt her you'll have to go through me, do you hear me?" he said with anger. Alyssa jumped a bit then nodded quickly.

"Know this, Alyssa, I may have said I would consider you as a mate, just as I would consider
any
kindhearted girl out there, but attacking Triska like that does
not
speak highly in your favor," Daniel said with narrowed eyes. Alyssa cringed slightly in hearing that then slowly held out her hand towards him.

"But… I was only trying to…" she said worriedly. Daniel shook his head and then lifted Triska up into his arms, the girl looking at him with wonder as he held her close. She had never once been carried by anybody, always having been the fighter who came to the other's rescue.

"Bring her sword with you while I get her into the carriage. I'm going to tend to her injuries that
you
inflicted with your blind anger," he ordered. Alyssa nodded then looked down with remorse.

"I'm sorry, Daniel," she said softly. He started walking towards the carriage as Alyssa kept her eyes on the ground. She shook her head slowly then looked to Triska's blade that was dug into the dirt. After a pause she waved her staff at it then slowly walked back towards the carriage with her head hung low, with the sword floating along next to her.

*****

Inside the carriage that was once again being pulled by Lucky everybody was silent. Alyssa was sitting close to the front seat while she watched Daniel with remorseful eyes, holding her staff in her hand as the boy tended to his friend. Triska was leaning against her duffel bag as he was putting a bandage over her elbow carefully. She was watching with wonder as he carefully wrapped the bandage, and could feel her heart picking up slightly. Her sword was back in its sheath as it rested against her bag behind her, the blade having been brought back by Alyssa while the witch had remained silent after the incident. Daniel looked over his friend’s arms and legs then at her head carefully while she tried to fight off her blush the best she could.

"Daniel…" she said softly.

"Are you ok now? I only saw your elbow bleeding, but does anywhere else hurt?" he asked gently. She slowly shook her head as her eyes were locked onto him.

"No… I'm ok. Thank you," she said quietly. He nodded then glanced over to Alyssa, the witch jumping a bit then looking down worriedly.

"Alyssa," Daniel said sternly. Alyssa breathed out then slowly looked up to him.

“Yes, Daniel?” she asked quietly, knowing she was in for a scolding.

"I'm still going to trust you with us for now; I haven't given up hope that you and your kind can be our allies. But I hope this is the last time you ever attack Triska like that," he firmly stated. She nodded then looked down again.

"Yes, Daniel," she said softly.

"You wanted me to consider you as a mate, Alyssa. I would only want a kindhearted mate in my future, not somebody who treats my friends like a real monster," Daniel said shaking his head. Alyssa twitched at that then nodded again while looking back up to him.

"Ok, Daniel, it won't happen again. I promise," she assured. Daniel nodded then looked to Triska.

"Are you sure you're ok now?" he asked gently. She looked at him for a moment then slowly nodded.

"Yeah… I'll be ok, Daniel," she said softly before she looked down. She glanced back over to her sword, showing a remorseful expression. Alyssa was right; she and her sword were no match for the witch. Triska knew she couldn't have beaten Alyssa like that, and feared just how useless she would be against other monsters out there. She had always prided herself on being a capable fighter, and had thought she could handle anything if it meant keeping Daniel safe. But now she was worried she wouldn't be able to do anything for him, that his only protection was indeed from the monster that wanted to be his mate.

‘He must think I’m so weak and useless after seeing that display, surely he thinks Alyssa is a more suitable guardian for him now. She really is taking him away from me, now I’ll never be able to get close to him again.’

She then cringed a bit and leaned forward, a streak of pain shooting through her shoulder for a moment.

"Triska?" Daniel asked worriedly.

"I'm fine, really. Just… a little sore," she said shifting her shoulder slightly. Daniel looked at her worriedly then over to Alyssa with a dull stare. Alyssa glanced away nervously then looked down.

"Sorry," she said quietly. Daniel shook his head then looked back to his friend. After a moment he brought out a blanket from his backpack then wrapped it around her, sat against his bag that he propped up against the wall, then gently brought her over and held her against his chest as he lay back. Triska looked down with wide eyes as she was lying back against him, his arms holding her gently above the blanket, and then slowly glanced back to him.

"Is that better?" he asked gently.

"Daniel… what…" Triska said quietly.

"You won't rest properly on the hard floor if you're sore. This should be more comfortable for you. Is it?" Daniel asked kindly. She looked at the boy with wonder then slowly nodded, words failing her. Alyssa looked at the two with saddened eyes then sighed softly. She tapped her staff on the floor and a blanket from the side gently flew over and wrapped around her, the witch then lying down against the front seat of the carriage. A pillow slid over behind her head as she set her staff down next to her.

"Alyssa? What are you doing?" Daniel asked as the two looked over to her. She glanced to Triska then looked away with her hat covering her eyes.

"Getting ready to sleep. Seems she's sleeping next to you tonight," she said softly. Daniel looked at her for a moment then down to see Triska looking up at him with a gentle gaze. After a moment she gently laid against him and smiled softly while looking down at the blanket, feeling much more comfortable being held like this.

*****

Lucky continued to pull the carriage through the night at a brisk pace, trotting over the dirt road that stretched across the rolling plains. Alyssa slept peacefully as she lay curled up in her blanket, appearing just like a normal young girl as she slept next to her staff and hat. Triska was looking out the back of the carriage up at the sky, watching the moon and stars above as the carriage bounced a bit. She glanced back to see Daniel watching the sky quietly, having been silent ever since he had Triska lay against him for comfort. Even though she thought resting on the floor would have been fine for her even with a sore back, she couldn’t complain in the least about Daniel letting her rest against him like this. Triska looked at him with wonder as he stared up at the sky with a calm gaze, his face illuminated by the moon's light.

‘Tell him… now would be perfect. I mean he's holding me… he's protecting me. I still can't believe it; he actually saved me for once. He was so brave to stand up to a witch like that, and all for me… I never knew he had it in him. What am I waiting for? Tell him already.’

"Daniel," she said quietly, half hoping he wouldn't have heard her. He glanced to her and smiled softly.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" he asked quietly. She shook her head and looked at him as she felt her heart pick up more.

"No, I've been awake. Listen… I need to… tell you something," she said softly. He looked at her with a curious smile as she just looked up at him.

"What?" he asked. She opened her mouth to speak then stopped as she struggled to form the words.

"Daniel…" Alyssa murmured. The two looked over to see her smiling softly in her sleep, giggling a bit as she dreamed peacefully. Triska looked at her worriedly then up to Daniel again.

"You're not actually… considering being her mate, are you?" she asked softly. He looked to her for a moment then up at the sky.

"I haven't really given it any thought as to
who
I want to be with like that actually. I mean, I know she's a monster and everything, but if we do make alliances with monsters then it wouldn't be so wrong to actually have them as wives, I think. I don't know, I guess I only really said that because she needed to hear those words to control herself," he reasoned. Triska looked at him curiously then to Alyssa.

"I honestly don't know if I'll pick her to be my wife or anything in the future… I just haven't really thought about it like that. But if we are going to coexist then I can't just discriminate her for being a monster, and she is older than she appears so that wouldn't be an excuse for telling her no either… I think. It's difficult to wrap your head around it given that she looks… so young. I guess I would treat her the same as I would any other girl out there," he said softly. Triska looked at the witch worriedly then up to Daniel.

"Daniel…" she said softly, the boy looking back to her with a calm expression.

"I…" she said before trailing off, struggling to form the words as he waited for her to speak.

‘Tell him, he needs to know. Tell him before that witch steals him away.’

"Triska?" he asked gently. She looked at him with pleading eyes as he held her gently, opening her mouth to speak before freezing up again.

‘Why is this so hard? Tell him! Say it!’

"I…" she said softly. He looked at her curiously as she glanced away. After a pause she looked to him with a timid expression.

"What's on your mind?" he asked. Triska looked at him carefully then downward again. She saw his hands while he gently held her around the waist, feeling her heart beat faster as she felt his chest move slightly with each breath he took. Not once had she ever been held by him before, and was finding it extremely comfortable to be so close to him like this.

She then glanced to the witch who was lying next to them, who was peeking at Triska with one eye half open. Triska's eyes widened a bit as she saw Alyssa was awake and watching her.

"Triska?" Daniel asked looking down at his friend, not noticing Alyssa was awake and watching Triska. Alyssa looked at the girl with narrowed eyes as she waited to hear too, her cold stare causing Triska to hesitate even more with saying what she wanted to.

"Um…" she said softly. He looked at her curiously as she glanced away again.

"I wanted to tell you… that I…" she slowly said, then glancing back over to see Alyssa glaring at her with eyes that were softly glowing purple. Triska looked at her worriedly then back up to Daniel.

"I…" she said quietly.

Suddenly the carriage hit a bump and jumped slightly, the two bouncing up as the horse outside neighed. Triska bounced over and landed onto her duffel bag while Daniel regained himself with a startled expression. They both looked over to see Alyssa sitting up and rubbing her eyes gently.

"Wow. Big bump," she said softly. After looking around with half closed eyes she shook her head lightly then looked over to the two curiously.

"Hey, what are you two talking about?" she asked innocently. Slowly she glanced to Triska then back to Daniel with a smile. He smiled and rubbed the back of his head casually while Triska just watched her carefully. She glanced out the back of the carriage at the road and saw nothing that would have caused the carriage to jump like that. Narrowing her eyes she then looked back to Alyssa.

"Just talking really," Daniel said simply.

"I see. Um, how's your back, Triska?" Alyssa asked curiously. Triska looked at her carefully as the witch smiled calmly at her.

"It's doing better now," she said cautiously.

"That's good to hear. Listen, I'm sorry about what happened earlier, I didn't mean to get so angry. Please accept my apology," Alyssa pleaded softly while bowing her head. Triska watched her carefully as Daniel smiled at the witch. Triska glanced to him then back to the witch.

"Yeah… fine," she said slowly. Alyssa sat up then arched back slightly, holding a hand to her side.

"Ow, this floor is so hard to sleep on. Are you able to sleep on it ok, Daniel? It isn't as comfy as I had thought it would be," said with an annoyed expression. Daniel nodded then looked at her worriedly.

"Yes, I'm ok, but are you alright? Should we just stop and use our blankets outside? It would be easier on your back on the soft grass," he offered. Alyssa shook her head and looked to him with worried eyes.

"No no, don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I just want to get you to the city like you wanted. We don't need to stop on my account," she said softly before stretching out with a slight cringe. Triska narrowed her eyes as the witch glanced up to Daniel.

"Say, Daniel… would it be ok if I rested against you too? If it helped Triska feel better… maybe it would help me," she asked hopefully. He looked at her curiously while Triska growled quietly.

‘So that's your little game, Alyssa.’

"Well…" Daniel said unsurely.

"Please? I promise I won't do anything bad tonight, I swear. I'm sure I would sleep a lot better with you," Alyssa said timidly before she crawled closer to him, having an innocent expression as she looked down. Daniel looked at her with concern for a moment then just nodded.

"Well… ok, if it'll help you sleep, Alyssa," he said softly.

"Really? It's ok? Oh thank you, Daniel," Alyssa said gratefully. She crawled over and sat against him, nuzzling against his chest with an adorable smile.

"Is that alright with you, Triska?" Alyssa asked curiously. Triska looked to Daniel for a moment then back to Alyssa.

"Please? Unless… you don't trust me still because I'm a monster," Alyssa asked softly, then showing a sly smirk. Triska controlled her rage then slowly nodded. Alyssa giggled and narrowed her eyes at the teen while Daniel looked between the two.

"Um… ok then, I guess," he said with a shrug. Triska leaned back against her duffel bag and kept her eyes on Alyssa, crossing her arms as she watched the witch pull the blanket over herself. Daniel smiled weakly as he sat propped up against his backpack while the witch rested her head against his chest and closed her eyes, lying against him while between his legs. Triska held back her growl then pulled a nearby blanket over her, sitting back against her bag with a dull expression. She wanted to grab her sword and try to cut the witch down again, but knew starting another fight would only upset Daniel. That and the odds she actually could strike down Alyssa were pretty low. No, it was more than clear how Alyssa was going to play this. The same way any girl would play when they wanted a man; dirty. After a moment she looked to Daniel who was watching Alyssa sleep.