chronicles of eden - act I (64 page)

And to his great dismay, he had come face to face with one of those monsters, one of the legendary 'Darker Ones' of Eden.

"A succubus," he breathed out while the monster stood casually before them.

"It can't be, what's a Darker One doing way out here?" Triska asked nervously. Squeak looked at the demon with worry and backed up a step, sensing a very dark presence from the monster. The Ashwood guard held her sword tightly in her hand as she looked at the demon, knowing full well that a Darker One would be the gravest of dangers for her city. Alyssa's mouth quivered a bit before she glanced to Tora, the dark witch smiling arrogantly at her.

"You… you're traveling… with a Darker One?" Alyssa asked with disbelief.

"I'm serving the great Kathryn Lrya Ellionatia with the highest of honors, something you could only dream about doing, Alyssa," Tora said with a hiss.

"Alyssa?" Katie asked, glancing to the other witch. Alyssa looked at her fearfully as the demon held a finger to her chin and smiled amusingly.

"Oh yes, Tora's little playmate. So you're the one she keeps talking about," she said with an intrigued tone. Alyssa backed up a step as she felt her legs wobble.

"What are you doing here? Why have you attacked our city?" the Ashwood guard demanded. Katie glanced to her with a dull expression then walked towards the woman.

"I was merely dropping by for a visit. This is a monster-neutral city, is it not?" she asked casually as she approached the guard, the human holding her sword out towards her still. The demon glanced down to the blade as she stopped in front of the human then looked back to her with a smirk.

"You'll need more than that to threaten me, my dear," she said simply. The guard narrowed her eyes as the group watched them carefully. Katie chuckled then looked over towards Tora.

"Tora, quit playing around with them, we have more important things to-"

"Hellspawn!" the Ashwood guard yelled as she dove forward with her blade. Katie grabbed the sword with one hand before the tip reached her and stopped the human's charge instantly, the woman staring with wide eyes as the demon was holding the blade without a care while looking down at the bound witch. Katie glanced back to her with a raised eyebrow as the human trembled with fear.

"Tsk tsk, calling a woman such names. How very rude," she said with a slight bite. The demon snapped off the sword's blade with a flick of the wrist, the human staring with shock as the succubus tossed the broken blade off to the side. Katie smirked and held out a hand towards the woman's face while the human stared with an open mouth.

"I tried to be nice and avoid having to deal with you humans while here, and you still get in my way. How very annoying," Katie scoffed as the group stared with wide eyes. A burst of purple and green light erupted around the demon's hand and flowed out in front of her against the woman, the human letting out a hoarse cry before being pulverized and splattered back across the street with a sharp screeching sound. The group stared with shock as the bloody fragments of the woman's armor flew back and skidded across the street while the remains of the human coated the ground.

"Holy shit!" Triska cried out.

"What kind of magic is that?" Daniel exclaimed with a shocked expression.

"It's the power of the netherworld; a succubus has an extremely high magical affinity with the dark magics," Specca explained shakily, her eyes staring at the remains of the human that lay strewn about. Tora laughed amusingly as Katie casually flicked her hair back behind her.

"That's right; a succubus has far greater magical capacity and reserves than even us witches, more so than nearly any other monster. My mistress is the most powerful Darker One in all of Eden," Tora declared proudly. Katie chuckled and glanced down to the witch as she held a finger out casually.

"Tora, dear, you're far too kind," she said simply before swiping her finger to the side. The green vines holding the witch ripped apart in the front violently as the group watched with surprise. Tora got back to her feet and held her staff at her side while smiling arrogantly at Alyssa.

"I told you I was here for a greater purpose. Such a shame you won't live to see what it is,” she taunted with a glare. Alyssa looked at her fearfully then to the succubus, the woman walking up and then leaning over to look at her with a curious smile.

"So, you're the famous Wildfire Witch. That was quite a display of power you revealed, burning that entire forest down to the ground along with many witches. I must say it did catch my eye, not bad for a lesser monster," she said softly. Alyssa stared at her with fright while holding her staff out towards her. Katie giggled softly then held out a hand and nudged the relic aside, then reached towards the witch. She gently stroked Alyssa’s cheek who stared at the demon with fear.

"So what's this I hear about you and my little helper here not getting along? Have you been mean to her?" she asked sweetly. Alyssa made a choking sound as the demon slowly stood up and held her hand in front of the witch, the girl being lifted into the air in front of the demon by a magical force while trembling.

"Alyssa!" Daniel cried out.

"Put her down now!" Triska yelled as she readied her blade. Squeak showed a fearful expression and shakily held her pickaxe at the ready, still leery about provoking the demon. Katie looked over towards Triska with a curious smile as Alyssa's staff dropped to the ground, the witch feeling her body trembling as a powerful energy ran through her. Her arms and legs twitched slightly as she felt her muscles straining from the stress, her body feeling like it was about to explode violently from within.

"My my, such bold words for a human," Katie commented with a raised eyebrow.

"Pop her like a bubble, mistress, I want to see her blood splatter everywhere," Tora said with a glare at Alyssa. Katie looked back to the struggling witch with a smug smile, her fingers flinching slightly causing the witch to let out a hoarse cry and look up with wide eyes. Alyssa felt a surge of searing hot energy flowing up through her body and into her head, her mind going blank as she felt like she was burning up from the inside. Being naturally immune to fire the sensation was both shocking and frightening to her, her voice falling quiet as she struggled to even cry out in pain.

"I don't see why you had trouble with this one, Tora dear, she seems rather weak," Katie said, tilting her head curiously.

"She used cheap tricks to elude me, my mistress, she's just a cowering rat that needs to be put down for good," Tora hissed with anger. Katie chuckled as she extended one finger out and held it against Alyssa’s forehead. A blue flame ignited at the tip and a burst of black electrical arcs raced around the witch as she screamed.

"Stop, don't hurt her!" Daniel shouted out.

"I said put her down now!" Triska yelled as she ran forward and swung with her blade. Katie's wing arched to the side and blocked the strike, the sword clashing against the upper spines of the wing as the demon merely glanced over to her. Triska growled as she struggled to push through, her sword's edge sparking while being held back with ease.

"Oh my, a human girl fighting to protect a witch? How very interesting, does this monster have some importance to you?" Katie asked curiously. She glanced to Squeak, who jumped a bit with a frustrated and fearful expression at being the demon's focus, then back to Triska.

"That's right, I remember you. You were the one that stood up for that ant girl when all the other humans were picking on her," she said with a smirk. Triska glanced to Squeak then back to Katie as the demon looked at her with an intrigued smile.

"Yes, I remember you now. Such fire in you, such loyalty to your friend, even though she's a monster who could steal away your male companion from you," she said glancing to Daniel.

"I'll show you fire if you don't put Alyssa down right now!" Triska yelled as she struggled to push back against the demon's wing. Katie chuckled in amusement as her tail whipped around and grabbed Alyssa by the neck, the witch screaming before falling limp in the tail's grip. Katie lowered her hand while her tail brought the witch back around behind her, the girl choking and kicking weakly as Tora glared at her. Triska yelled and swung at the demon again and again, the blade being blocked each time as the monster's wing arched and moved about effortlessly to stop the attack.

"Let her go right now! Let Alyssa go or I'll hack you into pieces!" Triska yelled out with fury. Katie smirked at the human with an amused expression then glanced back to Alyssa, the demon jerking the witch up a bit in the air as the girl kicked and choked loudly.

"You certainly are full of energy, girl, and all to save a monster. Not many of your kind would show such spirit like that," she said before looking back to Triska. Specca looked at Triska worriedly as Daniel was watching with frustration, knowing that he wouldn't be able to get anywhere near Alyssa to help her right now. Squeak watched as Alyssa kicked around while choking, the witch struggling to pry the tail off from around her neck. Tora looked at the struggling witch with a scowl then swung her staff, striking Alyssa in the face with a whack.

"Hold her up higher, I always wanted to break open a party favor," she said with a hiss. Katie laughed and dangled the choking witch up above the ground. Tora swung again and smacked the witch in the head with her staff, the bound girl crying out hoarsely as she struggled to pull the demon's tail off of her neck.

"Alyssa!" Daniel cried out.

"Let her go, you bitch!" Triska yelled as she swung at the demon again. Squeak narrowed her eyes and squeaked sternly, then rushed forward and struck down with her pickaxe. Katie reached out and caught the digging tool while looking at the ant girl with a calm smile, with Squeak staring with wide eyes as her attack was halted instantly.

"What's this? Somebody got a bit of a confidence boost, and here I thought you were going to soil yourself in fear of me," Katie jested. Squeak looked at her with discontent as she kept trying to push her digging tool down, squeaking with a stern tone. The demon smirked then shoved Squeak away with one hand, the ant girl skidding back only a few feet before running forward and striking down again. Katie looked at her curiously as she grabbed the strike, pushed Squeak back once more, then watched as the ant girl quickly regained her footing and ran forward again with another swing. Katie once again caught the digging tool and looked over the ant girl with a raised eyebrow.

"She's persistent, I'll give her that," she said simply. Her other wing snapped to the side and struck the ant girl across the face with a sharp swing. Squeak flew back into a tumble and collapsed down twitching a bit as her digging tool bounced nearby.

"Squeak!" Daniel cried out as he and Specca ran over to her, the two kneeling down next to the ant girl as she struggled to move.

"Oh my, are you alright?" Specca asked worriedly. Katie laughed with amusement at the sight, placing a hand at her hip while shaking her head with a raised eyebrow.

"She's still alive? Well, that girl certainly is stronger than I thought," she said with a smirk. Triska glanced over to her injured friend then growled loudly.

"Goddamn you!" she yelled with energy as she geared back for another swing of her sword. As she swung at the demon Katie grabbed Triska's hand and yanked her forward, the girl dropping her sword as the demon held her close. Triska looked at her with surprise as the monster's eyes emitted a faint greenish glow.

"Such energy in you, tell me, what's your name?" she asked she slipped her arm around Triska and held her close. Triska trembled as she struggled to move, her body seeming to be frozen in place. Her hand flinched as she stared at the demon, her breathing falling short as she couldn't look away.

'I can't move… I can't move my body, what the hell is this?'

Katie chuckled as she leaned in closer to her.

"You my dear are very fascinating. Such energy and passion, such a strong will to fight with no fear, you have a wondrous spirit within you," she said softly.

"What are you doing to Triska? Let her go!" Daniel yelled out looking over at seeing his other friend staring at the demon with a dazed look in her eye. Katie glanced to him with a sly smile then looked back into Triska's eyes.

"Triska, such a lovely name. You have so much potential inside of you. I can see it in your eyes, all that raw energy just waiting to be put to good use," she said with a gleam in her eye. Triska felt her mind starting to go hazy, her eyes feeling heavy while she felt weaker.

"Don't look into her eyes, get away from her!" Specca cried out as she held Squeak in her lap, the ant girl watching with a strained expression as Triska kept staring into the demon's eyes.

"What are you doing to her, let her go right now!" Daniel yelled out. Tora smacked Alyssa again with her staff then looked at Triska with a sly smile.

"Why, mistress, are you thinking of keeping this one?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. Katie chuckled and held Triska's chin up to her, the human breathing softly while in a trance.

"I was thinking about it actually, this girl seems like a promising one," she said softly. Triska tried to move, her body remaining unresponsive as she stood there with the demon. She couldn't look away from the succubus, her mind going blank as the demon held her.

"Stop… it," she breathed out. Katie leaned in closer to her and smiled gently, her warm breath being felt on the girl’s lips.

"Now now, my dear, just relax and embrace the-"

"Mistress, they're here!" Tora called out as she turned around and held her staff out with a glare. Katie slowly looked back to seeing Rulo, Sasha, and Daemon standing there staring at the succubus with cold expressions. Daniel and Specca looked over to them as Squeak started to slowly get up, being helped to her feet by the human and nixie.

"Who are they?" Specca asked softly.

"More monsters," Daniel said as he saw the reptile girl holding her large broadsword while the orc was holding a giant stone hammer over her shoulder. The human was holding a sword in his hand while his cold blue eyes were locked onto the succubus.