Chronicles of Eden - Act 2 (40 page)

“To prevent the end of the world.”

In the world of Eden, tragedy could strike at any moment. Many who traveled the world would unfortunately come across such misfortune, either to themselves or others who have lost so much. Bandits would take the opportunity to raid and kill those who were down on their luck, monsters would use the moment to strike and steal away men to breed with, and the world around them would do nothing but watch in silence as the unlucky ones coped with their loss, if they lived to do so. However, sometimes those with kind and noble hearts would lend a hand to those who were lost, afraid, and alone. Those who chose to aid the unfortunate were chivalrous indeed, but would need to exercise caution, even if the ones they wished to help appeared completely defenseless.

After all, you never knew for sure who, or what, you were saving.

*****

Alyssa was standing next to a large tree while having a dull expression on her face, her fingers drumming on her staff she held at her side impatiently while watching something with growing ire. Next to her Daniel was leaning back against the tree with a hand over his eyes while he was looking down tiredly, a stance and appearance that was starting to become common for him during his travels with the girls. Standing beside him Falla was eating an apple with a bored expression, antennae twitching slightly while she slowly shook her head chewing the fruit, while next to her Triska had her arms crossed and drumming her fingers on her arm with a dull expression on her face.

“Where did you learn to drive anyway?” Falla asked flatly before taking another bite.

“Just be quiet, Falla! It was an honest mistake!” Specca yelled out as she was sitting at the front of the caravan at the reins with a flustered expression. Lucky was trying to move forward with frustrated grunts while the caravan was tipped over on an angle, tilting to the side away from the others and leaning against a small bent tree which was keeping it from sliding down a steep incline. The group had traveled up along a winding path that was alongside a large hill before the caravan slid off the narrow trail and wedged itself against a tree, the lumber both keeping the ride in place as the rear wheel couldn’t get over it while at the same time kept the caravan from falling off the overhang. On the other side of the caravan Squeak was pushing with all her might against the ride while standing on a small boulder sticking out of the ground, having her pickaxe slung behind her while she squeaked with a stern expression as she tried to get the ride off of the tree.

“That’s it, you’re done driving for the rest of the day, Specca,” Alyssa said shaking her head.

“What? Why? This isn’t my fault!” Specca frantically defended.

“You steered Lucky towards this path when we should have just kept on the trail in the direction we came from before, we shouldn’t have even come this way!” Alyssa argued.

“But Triska said we should take the left turn!” Specca whined.

“No, I said
don’t
take the left turn!
Don’t
!” Triska yelled out. Alyssa scoffed and walked over to the ride, hopping up onto the seat and leaning over the other side to seeing the steep drop-off that led down towards a rocky gorge. She then watched Squeak pushing with her hands and all her might, budging the caravan slightly yet not enough to get it away from the trunk of the tree.

“Don’t worry, Luna, help is on the way,” Falla said dryly before taking another bite of her apple.

“Oh shut up, Falla. If it wasn’t for you we wouldn’t even be in this mess,” Triska barked out at her.

“Yeah, that’s right, this is all her fault!” Specca shouted out as she watched Lucky trying in vain to pull the caravan forward, his feet digging up the dirt and grass below him as the ride rocked slightly back and forth.

“My fault? I wasn’t the one driving that thing, don’t blame me!” Falla shouted back with a full mouth. Specca huffed with a flustered expression then looked to Alyssa who was watching Squeak with worried eyes.

“Alyssa, can’t you lift the caravan up and back onto the trail with your magic?” Specca asked quickly. The tree budged a bit more, with Squeak letting out a high squeak as she kept trying to push with the little footing she had. Alyssa quickly grabbed onto the side of the ride as it rocked more while the tree cracked slightly.

“Are you kidding me? I can’t lift the whole thing with my magic, let alone pull it away from here. Why do you think we use Lucky to pull the caravan for us in the first place?” Alyssa barked out at the nixie. Again the tree moved with a cracking sound, the ground under it shifting slightly with a few roots popping up through the dirt. The others watched the ride slowly slide more off the edge while Alyssa and Specca quickly grabbed hold of the front seat.

“Hey, get off of there, right now,” Triska called out. Daniel ran over behind the caravan and saw Squeak straining herself to push the wagon back, her boots sliding on the boulder as she kept trying to keep the ride from going over the edge.

“Squeak, get over here, it’s going to fall,” he called out urgently. Again the tree budged again, with the caravan sliding more before the two side wheels dropped down suddenly as the ground under them gave away. Specca and Alyssa looked to each other then over to the side as they saw the gorge far down below slowly coming into view over the seat.

“Oh my god, it’s going to go over,” Specca said nervously.

“Cut Lucky loose, now!” Alyssa cried out. Triska yanked her sword out and ran over to the horse while Falla watched the scene with caution, seeing the caravan rocking as the tree holding it cracked apart more. Squeak started to slip on the boulder before she quickly grabbed onto a wheel for support, the girl looking back to seeing the steep incline the caravan would be going down soon right behind her.

“Squeak!” Daniel called out as he held his out towards her while holding onto the corner of the wagon, trying to reach for the ant girl as she stumbled with her footing.

Triska swung her blade and hacked the leather straps at the front of the caravan, the girl then quickly jumping onto the front seat near the other two girls and hacking off the other straps holding the horse. Lucky scampered ahead with a neigh before Triska quickly tossed her sword over onto the trail and grabbed Specca and Alyssa, the girl then throwing them over onto the grass as well. The two tumbled onto the ground while Falla watched with wonder as the caravan started to budge even more with rocks and dirt giving away at the edge of the drop-off. Triska wavered from the shaking ride then quickly looked over the side while holding onto the frame tightly, watching as Squeak was still on the edge and about to be knocked off of her small footing.

“Squeak, get out of there!” Triska called out.

“Squeak, take my hand!” Daniel shouted out. The ant girl squeaked and shook her head as she tried in vain to push the ride back, her feet unable to get any traction on the boulder as she inched towards its edge. Suddenly the caravan rocked as Alyssa held her staff out towards it, the witch creating a tangled mess of green vines that quickly tried to latch onto the wheels and undercarriage of the wagon. A few of the vines snapped while the witch focused her magic to try to keep the ride from rolling over with her friend, with Triska struggling to hold on as the caravan rocked to the side again.

“Forget it, Squeak, it’s going over!” Triska called out.

“It’s not going to hold,” Falla said shaking her head as the vines started snapping away. Alyssa and Specca watched with wide eyes as Daniel kept trying to reach for the ant girl.

“Squeak! Please, come back!” he cried out. The ant girl shook her head while trying to push back on the ride still, struggling to get a footing on the boulder before the tree next to her cracked apart. The trunk snapped and bent outward while the roots under the caravan tore apart the ground as they were ripped up from the ground.

“Get away from it!” Specca yelled as she grabbed Daniel and yanked him back, the two stumbling away from the caravan that dropped down over the edge with the ground under it giving away. Alyssa swung her staff back and yanked Triska off of the front seat with a magical force before it went over the edge, the teen flying over and tumbling onto the trail as the wagon dropped out of view over the incline with a loud rumble.

“Squeak!” Daniel yelled out. The group rushed over to the edge of the cliff to see the caravan sliding down the slope with dirt and rocks rolling along with it like a wave.

“Oh god, Squeak!” Triska cried out.

Slowly the ride stopped moving as the loose debris rolled down and off a steeper cliff towards the rocks further below. The group stared with surprise as the caravan rocked to the side on two wheels away from them, and then slowly touched back down on all four before remaining in place.

“What happened?” Falla asked.

The wagon rocked forward slightly, then again, and then again. Everyone watched as the caravan slowly started rolling up at an angle along the slope, the wheels moving very slowly as the ride seemed to drive itself gradually up the incline.

“Alyssa?” Specca asked glancing to the witch. Alyssa merely shook her head as she watched her caravan slowly moving by itself and inch by inch making its way up towards the trail further ahead of them.

“I’m… not doing that,” she said softly. Triska looked at the ride with disbelief then glanced to where the rolling dirt and debris had dropped down into the gorge.

“How…” she said quietly. Falla watched the sight with a confused expression then fluttered her wings before taking off into the air, flying over towards the caravan and seeing it actually rolling up the hill at a very slow pace without a horse pulling it. When she flew over it however she then saw how it was moving, an impressed smile coming across her face as she saw Squeak pushing the caravan from its side, the ant girl’s hands having dug into the wooden boards to give her a grip while she showed a focused expression, using all her strength to bring the ride back up. Falla tilted her head then looked to the others with a wave.

“Holy crap, what are you feeding this girl?” she called out with a laugh. The others looked at her bewilderedly then to the caravan as it started to get closer to the trail again. Daniel blinked then jumped a bit with surprise.

“Squeak?” he asked with disbelief.

“No way, she couldn’t be doing this. All by herself?” Specca said shaking her head. The group ran over to where the caravan slowly rolled up onto the level ground, first with its front corner wheel, then two more, then the last as everyone stared at the sight with wonder. Falla flew over and landed down next to them as they all then saw Squeak slowly moving step by step to push the ride.

“I don’t believe it,” Triska said with awe.

“She… she
stopped
the caravan and then
pushed
it uphill? All on her own?” Specca asked with wonder.

Daniel stared at Squeak with amazement, watching as the ant girl pushed along the caravan with a focused expression on her face. As he did he saw the raw determination in her eyes, the sheer strength she really had, and her thighs which although were using more muscle power than any human he knew still looked slender and fit like a young woman’s. He then noticed that he couldn’t take his eyes off her legs or rear, which he could see what with her leaning forward and pushing along the ride and her abdomen sticking out which pulled her tunic up behind her. Her ass cheeks were taught with each step she took, with Daniel seeing her hips swaying gently each time as the ant girl’s well-toned body didn’t give enough credit to the mighty strength she had. If it wasn’t for her dark panties which were pulled up between her cheeks Daniel knew he would be staring at her bare ass regardless like this, since even though he realized he was ogling her he couldn’t stop himself. The girls however didn’t notice that he was as they too were watching Squeak with amazement as she singlehandedly pushed the caravan back onto the trail before she dropped down next to it breathing and squeaking heavily.

“Squeak!” Alyssa called out as the girls ran over to her, with Daniel then snapping back to reality before running after. Squeak slowly stood up and leaned against the caravan while trying to catch her breath as everyone rushed over to her.

“I don’t believe it, that was amazing, Squeak!” Triska cheered with a bright smile.

“I had no idea ant girls were
that
strong, that was simply unbelievable,” Specca agreed with a curious smile.

“You had us worried to death about you,” Alyssa said hugging the ant girl. Squeak held her with one hand and a weak smile before looking to seeing Daniel smiling at her with awe.

“Squeak, that… I don’t know what to say, you really saved the day there,” he said looking to the caravan. Squeak nodded with a squeak as Falla looked at the ant girl curiously.

“That was impressive and all, but why would you risk your life all for this thing?” she asked. Squeak looked to her with a small smile and squeaked something to the girl, with everyone just staring at her as she gestured to the caravan then waved her hands around. After she finished her speech the group looked to Falla.

“What’s she saying?” Daniel asked.

“Gee, I don’t know, she could have been saying anything while I’m standing
over here
,” Falla said expectantly at the ant girl while holding her hands out at her sides. Squeak glanced around at the group then smiled weakly and shrugged before Falla walked over to her.

“I don’t understand squeaks, remember?” Falla said dryly as she held the ant girl’s head and touched their antennae together. Squeak started squeaking again while the group watched them curiously, with Falla listening with a blank expression as the ant girl gestured to the caravan then over to Daniel. After Squeak finished Falla just looked at her with confusion.

“That’s seriously worth risking your life for?” she asked skeptically. Squeak merely nodded at her, with Falla then looking over to Daniel curiously.