Chronicles of Eden - Season II - Act II Read online

  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Artwork

  Author's Thank You

  Copyright

  Chronicles of Eden: Season II

  Author:

  Alexander Gordon

  Illustrations:

  AniCrys

  Copyright © 2019

  All rights are reserved to the author. No part of this ebook may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  www.agordonpublishing.com

  Special thanks to elite subscribers of my Patreon for their contributions and support!

  Mike M

  Chapter 1

  We Need To Talk

  In the world of Eden chaos ran rampant. Monsters raped and killed humans in an effort to continue their races, humans fought and slayed the lustful creatures to preserve themselves, and even between their own races and the many others that resided in Eden there was always conflict to be found. It was only a matter of time before everyone perished from the eternal struggle, as the great imbalance threatened to throw everyone into oblivion in the end. To prevent this, there would come a time when alliances would need to be forged, when those that once fought and detested each other would need to join together for a common goal.

  To survive, and prevail against those that threatened to end them all.

  *****

  Having lived most of his life in the secluded village of Edgewood, nestled deep in the corner of Koskaysil and far away from the reach of monsters in the wild, Daniel could seldom remember any cases of having received affection or even general interest from the opposite sex. That wasn’t to say the men of his village were friendly with him either, as he was considered a bit of an outcast and advocate of dangerously radical ideas, and pretty much everyone kept their distance from him because of that. Only Triska had ever shown any understanding towards him, much to the ire of her mother and the councilwomen of Edgewood, and not once could he recall a time when any other girl ever treated him with respect or even a hint of flirtatious veneration. All the time he spent in that village, following his ideas and universally criticized beliefs that he never lost faith in, with only one friend to call his own while the prospect of having a girlfriend or even a loving wife in his life having been pushed out of his mind long ago due to the overwhelming odds that it would never come to be. The mere prospect of a woman wanting to be with him, choosing him over stronger, smarter, and richer men, it seemed more like a fairytale than the idea of monsters and humans living together in harmony to Daniel.

  “Have some of this venison! I prepared it myself!” an elven woman eagerly proclaimed, struggling to hold out a wooden plate of the freshly seared meat towards Daniel.

  “No, try some of my braised rabbit wraps,” another argued, also vying for Daniel’s attention with a bowl of steamed delicacies.

  “You have to try my mushroom stew!” another growled as she was held back by her face. “I know it smells like shit but it’s really good!”

  “You’ll love my steamed mutton balls. Please allow me the honor of feeding them to you!” a fourth elf desperately begged as she too was held at bay just as all the other women were by an impenetrable wall of Daniel’s loving mates.

  “For the last time, get back already!” Alyssa cried out, pushing away an elf by her face while pressed against Daniel’s side.

  “You’re crowding him! Please stop!” Specca begged, struggling to hold another elf away while her tail was securely wrapped around Daniel’s arm.

  “Don’t smoosh Daniel! Please don’t smoosh him!” Pip whined, holding onto Daniel’s head with quickly fluttering wings.

  “Could you all please back up a bit? Please?” Luna nervously asked while trying to hold off elves from behind Daniel alongside her sister.

  “If anyone is going to feed our man it’s going to be us! Knock it off!” Falla yelled, herself and her sister bumping back against Daniel from the wall of elves rushing them.

  “Should we do something?” Rolian asked curiously from nearby. She and Felucia watched as Daniel was seated on a long log before a burning fire, the man almost entirely blanketed by his mates while the elves of Green Haven were gathering ever closer with growing excitement.

  “We can hope they crush him to death,” Felucia flatly muttered, crossing her arms with a dull scowl on her face.

  “Please, everyone, calm down,” Doku urged while holding onto Daniel along with Cindy. “Please give my husband some room to breathe.”

  “Stop it, you’re getting too close to him!” Cindy whined, having her arms wrapped around Daniel’s neck and his head smothered against her sandy bosom. In his lap Snapper was chomping her teeth with eager growls as she looked around at the delicious smelling food that was having trouble being brought closer to her. Daniel merely held the youngling in his arms while gently brushing her hair, showing remarkable patience with what was happening to him while at the same time comparing his life now to how it was back in Edgewood. And yes, there were some glaring discrepancies between the two.

  The elves grew in number around them, threatening to swallow up Daniel and his mates whole as many of them were brandishing dishes of food, displaying rising enthusiasm for nearing their hero, and a few were even starting to undress as they had other intentions besides feeding the lone man in the herd of women.

  Without warning a large torrent of fire ripped through the air before Daniel, billowing into a fireball that swirled upward near the campfire and quickly scattered the elves nearby as everyone gasped in surprise. Cindy and Felucia slowly slumped back with unease from the fire, the same that Snapper did as she pushed herself back into Daniel’s lap as far as she could go with a small gurgle, all while Daniel was now able to see through the cluster of girls crowding him as they parted.

  “That’s enough,” Sheal raspingly scolded, the salamander woman standing before the campfire with cinders floating around her. Her glowing eyes slowly moved across the elves while theirs were focused on the wisps of smoke and fire coming out of the woman’s mouth.

  “My master would appreciate you not being so… clingy with him,” Sheal spoke in a slightly threatening manner. “As would I. Please allow him some space so he may properly speak with you.”

  The elves slowly withdrew, allowing Daniel’s girls to relax while climbing off their mate as he was no longer in danger of being swarmed by the overzealous crowd. Sheal casually flicked some cinders off her skirt while keeping a sharp eye on the surrounding women and children before bowing to Daniel with a timid smile.

  “Thank you, Sheal,” Daniel finally said.

  “I’m at your service, master.”

  “Why are you calling me your master?” Daniel wondered. “In fact, why are dressed like that?”

  “I’ve been assigned to be your new maid,” Sheal proudly answered.

  “Assigned to be my new… what?” Daniel asked in confusion. “What are you talking about? Why are you, Felucia, and Rolian dressed like maids?”

&nb
sp; “It’s Alyssa’s fault,” Specca flatly interjected.

  “Hey, I didn’t mean for them to become Daniel’s maids!” Alyssa argued. “I wanted them to serve the elves as penance for their mistakes, not serve my man!”

  “They’re going to be good girls for you now, Daniel,” Cindy happily told Daniel, much to his further bafflement. “They were mean before and did lots of bad things, but now they can learn to be good girls just like you taught us to be. You can teach them to be nice and be loved just like you did with me.”

  Daniel slowly looked over to Rolian who was waving at him with a bashful smile and happy giggle, then over to Felucia who was glaring at him with a flinching scowl, and then to Sheal who slowly approached to kneel before him.

  “This is my punishment for my sins,” Sheal humbly spoke. “I was part of something truly horrible, I did terrible things all in the name of something that was hollow and wretched. But you saved me just as you did these elves. Your mate rescued me. Your family has been nothing but merciful towards me. And you have the ambition to bring true change to this world, change my fellow sisters would love to see come true. Change that I will gladly aid you in achieving. My own family served the worst of all evils with The Sisterhood, a mistake that cost them and me dearly. I shall redeem myself by serving my savior and the one who I believe can truly bring a peaceful future to Eden for all of us. A future where my kind… aren’t seen as monsters, but as equals. A future that is in your hands.”

  Daniel stared at her in silence as the salamander bowed her head in respect to him, with his mates watching her curiously while the elves around them were looking at Daniel in awe still. After a pause Sheal peeked up at Daniel, seeing him showing a quizzical look for a moment before he shook his head a little.

  “But why are you going to be my maid? Where did you even get that outfit anyway?”

  “Alyssa made them for us,” Sheal answered. “She asked the elves if we could serve them in atonement for what we did, but they all agreed that we should serve you instead. Personally, I’m absolutely delighted for the opportunity to do so. If there is any hope for me to move ahead with my life, it’s with you.”

  “But…” Daniel started to say, stopping himself afterwards as he saw the salamander showing a nervous frown to his rebuttal.

  “Please,” Sheal begged. “Let me do this. I want to do this. I need to do this. I have to make things right, I have to pay the price for my misguided ways. If this arrangement does not suit you, then I beseech you, unsheathe your sword from its scabbard and sheath it into me. I don’t wish to live my life like my fallen sisters who remain with The Sisterhood. I want to live for a true purpose, one that benefits my people, not damns them to hell. Please, help me walk a better path. My life and future are at your mercy.”

  Daniel sighed while holding a hand to his face, taking a moment to understand her adamant decision on the matter before turning to Alyssa.

  “This isn’t what I had in mind when I told you to handle the situation with her,” he dryly reminded the witch.

  “Believe me, this isn’t what I had in mind either,” Alyssa muttered. Noticing Sheal’s worried grimace the witch reluctantly deliberated the arrangement and then turned back to Daniel with a small smile. “But… I don’t think it’s the end of the world. They just want to help out and make amends for their past mistakes.”

  “I don’t want to do that at all!” Felucia shouted out. “For the record I think this whole idea is total horseshit!”

  “You’re going to be Daniel’s maid and you’re going to like it!” Cindy yelled back. “You’ve been a very bad girl mother, you need him to teach you a lesson!”

  The elves around them started giggling and pointing at Felucia who was now noticeably fuming with rage and embarrassment.

  “Watch your words, Cindy,” Felucia snapped back. “I swear, you have no idea how hard it is for me to agree to this nonsense all for your sake. I mean seriously, who in their right mind would ever want to be that bastard’s maid? They would have to be a total idiot.”

  “I want to be his maid!” Rolian cheered, holding her arm up and hopping on her legs. She quickly skittered over to Daniel and smiled sweetly at him with eager giggling. “I want to stay here when Kroanette comes back, I really like living here with you and your family. And I want to be a good girl too, I don’t want to be like those mean jerks from The Sisterhood. I really don’t. I want to stay with you as your new maid. I do.”

  “This proves my point,” Felucia flatly mentioned.

  “But, Rolian,” Daniel started to say before the arachne yelped and quickly skittered side to side.

  “I can help out too, I really can!” she insisted. “Kroanette will be so happy to see me again, and even more happy to see that I’m helping her family as their new maid! Just give me a chance, I promise I’ll do a good job! You’ve been so nice and caring towards me ever since I came here, it’s the least I can do!”

  Daniel started to open his mouth to speak before Rolian quickly rushed forward and snatched Snapper up into her arms.

  “Look, I can help watch the baby, see? I’m really good with kids. I mean I never had any of my own, or watched over anyone else’s before, and I’ve actually never really seen a baby before, but I know I can do a good job with feeding her, playing with her, and… um… what’s she doing?”

  Snapper was of course now cawing loudly and waving her arms around in a panic as she thrashed and struggled to get away from the large spider that was holding her.

  “What’s wrong, little baby?” Rolian asked as she got her many red eyes really close to Snapper’s face, something that only seemed to frighten the child further as she started shaking her head wildly and buzzing her wings frantically.

  “I don’t believe she likes that, Rolian!” Doku nervously called out.

  “Stop it, you’re scaring her!” Falla cried out.

  “Don’t scare the baby!” Cindy whined as she quickly rushed over and took Snapper back. The young swarm quickly buried her face in the wraith’s bosom and started burrowing into her sandy chest with loud whines and feverish clawing.

  “Is she okay?” Luna asked rushing over.

  “Snapper,” Cindy cooed as she gently cradled the child and rubbed her back. “It’s okay. It’s okay, you’re safe. I have you now. Snapper? Oh, Snapper.”

  “You can’t just pick her up like that,” Specca scolded the arachne. “She may be a swarm but she can still be frightened by such quick motions like that. And forgive me for being so blunt, but you have to understand that any baby would be understandably terrified of an arachne snatching them up without warning like you did and holding them right up to their face.”

  “I’m sorry,” Rolian whimpered. “I was just trying to be helpful. I didn’t mean to scare her. I’m really sorry.”

  “You didn’t scare her,” Luna tried to reason with as she gently brushed Snapper’s hair. “You just… um… really surprised her… in a way she didn’t like.”

  “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry,” Rolian sniveled, slinking back and lowering down with a remorseful frown. “I just… wanted to help. I really did.”

  “Perhaps we should discuss the idea of having them be our maids more carefully,” Specca spoke up. “There is the possibility of this being a rather bad idea.”

  “Yeah, listen to her!” Felucia demanded, pointing to Specca with a stern look aimed at Daniel. “This isn’t right! I mean, none of this shit is right! We’re not even supposed to be here like this, this isn’t normal at all! Listen, I get that you’re out here to try to bring peace between our races and all that crap, and that’s crazy enough as it is, but the idea that an arachne can be a handmaid for a human, or a salamander woman whose sisters were the gemini’s personal guards, or even a sand wraith… that’s just fucking insane!”

  “Bring peace between our races?” an elven ranger repeated, with the crowd of women and children then whispering and talking amongst each other while watching Daniel and his family w
ith growing curiosity.

  “I’m not a bad monster!” Rolian whined, dropping onto her abdomen and sobbing. “I just wanted to be nice to the cute little baby. That’s all. I’m sorry. I never wanted to scare her. Honest.”

  “I’m not like my fallen kin who sided with The Sisterhood,” Sheal insisted. “I promise, I do wish for there to be peace for my people. I want them to be respected, not feared. That’s all we ever are, feared. Loathed. Hated. I want that to stop. I want my people not to be treated like abominations or devils from the pits of hell, I want them to be treated… like… like…”

  “Equals,” Daniel finished. He slowly stood up from his seat, with everyone quickly taking notice and quieting down as he motioned for Sheal to stand. The salamander carefully rose to her feet, her worried eyes remaining fixated on Daniel who calmly walked over to Cindy and Luna. He gently brushed Snapper’s hair as she continued digging into Cindy’s chest in her fear, the young swarm feeling his hand touching her wings then halting and turning to him with rapid breathing and quiet clicks of her teeth. To everyone’s marvel he carefully took Snapper from Cindy and held her close, the swarm quickly holding onto his shoulders and pressing herself close to him as he cradled her.

  “There there,” he softly spoke, with Snapper squirming in his arms and clacking her teeth before she looked at him with a wide smile and breathing that slowly began to calm. He gave her a gentle kiss on the nose, something the elves watched in amazement from seeing as the child then licked his chin and cheek before cawing at him.

  “Have you ever known a swarm to behave like that?” an elven woman whispered.

  “Have you ever known a man like that?” another countered.

  Daniel smiled at his daughter, moved his head back just in time to avoid a hard chomp of her teeth that aimed for his nose, then chuckled and cradled the child in one arm while using the other to gently bat her hands with his. As the child giggled and purred while clawing at his glove, Daniel walked over to Rolian, the arachne whimpering and slouching back as he drew near. Snapper saw the spider getting closer and stopped moving, her eyes darting from the arachne back up to Daniel who showed her a warm smile as she became noticeably uneasy again.