Eduardo's Tales
Story 10: The Warlock's Conquest of Funny-Coat
Chapter 1
(Rated T for adult content, alcohol content, brief nudity, and mild language)
(DISCLAIMER: No, I do not own Eduardo Rivera and Kylie Griffin from Extreme Ghostbusters, nor do I have the right to copy the anime series, Mushi-Shi, which has inspired me to bring our favorite slacker and Goth girl into a strange world that exists beyond time. So, enjoy the show!)
It had been over a week since the Festival of the Spirits as everyone in Ryuzaki was busy tending to their gardens. The drought was over as the rains came and went. The Muah were welcome once again as the dryness had faded into memory. As for Eduardo and Kylie, however, they were busy looking for a new home to call their own for the time being until they got back on the Roads again. With only a few cottages that were up for grabs, only one caught their eyes as it was nestling by the river. It was a house with a water mill that hasn't been used in years as it was ready to be housed in such a temporary position.
"Looks like that this is the only one left," said Kylie as she went inside.
"This place hasn't been used in ages," said Eduardo as he followed afterwards.
"Tell me about it! As soon as we get it cleaned up, we'll make it a temporary home for the time being."
"Kylie..."
Eduardo began to examine the surroundings thoroughly as he was about to do some cleaning. With some cleaning supplies donated by some of the villagers, he began to use some soapy water in a bucket as he was scrubbing the floors. He always loved cleanliness since he was working at the inn in the west. He remembered Eothain and his cavalry talking about how weary they were of their battles as they even talked about bedding their own women. With the floor all cleaned up, he went to do some dusting as he saw Kylie helping out with the housework. They became more connected with each other since the Festival as they were still cleaning the house from top to bottom.
After the house was cleaned, they sat down on the porch as they were tired from their work. They made their new house a temporary home as they would also find it necessary to seek out the paranormal along with looking out for the dreaded witchsmellers, who were motivated by one thing: to kill the Muah. Even their friends couldn't let that happen as they were on full alert back in Chagum. Eduardo and Kylie had heard from Tsukino and Tohru back in that city as they were managing the inn in their stead. They even missed Valeria and Yashakune, who travelled with them to Chagum. It had been over a week since they came to Ryuzaki as they were ready to make themselves at home.
"I wonder how our friends are doing?" asked Kylie.
"They're fine," said Eduardo as he scooped her up and walked back inside of the house.
"Eduardo..., that night during the Festival... was more than just our love to each other. It's as if we knew each other for a very long time despite our quarrels and hopes for each other."
Kylie was carried into a bedroom that had red blankets on the bed as she was placed down on it. The bed itself was comfortable as she was starting to get drowsy. Even Eduardo was also tired as he laid down beside her. After many hours of cleaning, they began to drift off to sleep as they were dreaming of many things yet to come.
Yashakune was managing the inn back in Chagum as he was busy helping out the customers. His dad, Shikakune was busy cooking some beef brisket as he was an excellent cook at times. Both father and son were busy round the clock as they even missed the company of Eduardo and Kylie. They even hoped that they were okay as they even got letters from them. After many hours of tending to the inn, they were all tired as they went to bed. Yashakune was lounging in his bed as he looked at the half-moon that was present in the sky. It wasn't long until he saw a kodama sitting in his window as it was shaking its head.
"Hey, don't you have anything better to do than stare at me?" he said.
"Yashakune," said the kodama. "There is a witchsmeller coming towards Ryuzaki."
"What? Are you serious? Didn't we defeat the witchsmeller and the forces of King Gothmog a month ago?"
"King Gothmog and his attack dog may have been defeated, but the battle is still going on, for Eduardo and Kylie are not safe in Ryuzaki."
Yashakune was horrified at the kodama's warning as he was worried about Eduardo and Kylie, who were still in Ryuzaki. He had to go over there as he was busy thinking of a strategy to foil the witchsmeller's plans. It may take a while to think it over, but he had to warn them before it was too late for them. Eduardo and Kylie may have evaded the wrath of the witchsmellers, but their lives needed to be protected as well.
The next morning, Yashakune was busy serving the customers some cinnamon rolls as he was on a start to do something useful. As one of the managers of the inn, he was also being supervised by his father, Shikakune, as he was busy preparing a lot of food for breakfast. He may have stayed behind here in Chagum, but he was worried about Eduardo and Kylie's safety as he still remembered the kodama's terrible warning. He had to go to Ryuzaki as soon as possible as he was aware of the danger that was coming over there.
"What's eating you, son?" asked Shikakune.
"There's a witchsmeller coming to Ryuzaki, Dad," answered Yashakune.
"I'm well aware of that, son. I've even had the ability to cast a confusion spell on the guy as he went into the wrong direction."
"You never told me that you casted spells before, but you did Eduardo and Kylie a favor."
"Son, you and your sister have the same witching powers as the man who helped bring you guys forward from the cannon. Sooner or later, your powers will come into fruition when we all go up against King Gothmog again."
"Dad, you've gotta lay off the root beer floats!"
Shikakune grabbed Yashakune as he rubbed the top of his head. Both father and son were on the same level when it came to concern about dealing with the witchsmellers. The day was more than a simple start as Yashakune was still worried about the witchsmeller's intentions. He couldn't let it slide until he later saw Dr. Naegino coming into the inn as he was welcomed by the inn's patrons. Everyone welcomed the good doctor as he was sitting down to have a cup of coffee.
"How's it going, Doc?" asked Shikakune.
"It's like a kick in the pants," answered Dr. Naegino,
"Tell me about it! It's been over a month since we kicked King Gothmog's ass. By the way, Yashakune's trying to skip out on work because he thinks that Eduardo and Kylie are in grave danger."
"I've heard about the witchsmeller who went the wrong way when he got stopped by the Lavian army on their way home. That confusion spell may have worked, but the witchsmeller has the means to flee from whoever captures him or her in order of elusion."
"I did pretty well when I cast the confusion spell, but as for Eduardo and Kylie, I hope that they are alright for now."
Eduardo woke up as he got up out of bed and went straight towards the bathroom. It was very clean after spending many hours cleaning every room in the whole house. To his shock, he saw Kylie sitting in the bathtub as she was cleaning herself up. The thought of her taking a bath in the soapy water had enticed Eduardo as he was keeping her distance. He remembered the last time that he saw her naked in the lake as he was about to leave the bathroom. He didn't want to get another scolding from her as he was also remembering the time that she stole his blanket after taking a bath in the river. He decided to wait his turn as he was standing outside the doorway.
"You shouldn't be ashamed now, Eduardo," said Kylie.
"And get another scolding? I don't think so!" he answered sheepishly.
"We're a couple now! You should get used to coming in and seeing me more often."
"Are you sure about this?"
Eduardo returned to the bathroom as he began to strip off his clothes as he decided to climb into the bathtub with Kylie. Normally in the past, she always got mad at him for stuff like that, but now in this lifetime, they both got used to each other as they were relaxing in the soapy water. It has been a very long time since they saw each other in the nude as they were also the destined rulers of the Muah Realm. Eduardo was the slacker, the scientist, the warlock as he was now part of a destiny to not only protect the Muah, but the rest of the human, animal, and plant population as well. Kylie was the intellect, the Goth girl, the servant boy known as Funny-Coat as she was there to not only guard Eduardo and herself, but the rest of everything that has been under the yoke of the dreaded Nagini Empire and their attack dogs, the witchsmellers.
"Eduardo, I was thinking about something," said Kylie.
"And what was that?" he asked.
"I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen..."
"I sensed the same feeling, too, but the dread has passed when a witchsmeller went into the wrong direction."
"You didn't cast a confusion spell on him, didn't you?"
"No, I'm forbidden to confuse people, but I think that Shikakune did it."
"That guy who goes for the root beer floats? How could he cast a spell like that?"
"Shikakune knows how to cast incantations from far away. That's what I heard while we were both still in Chagum. He is the Bandit King, after all."
Eduardo spotted Kylie's foot as he grabbed it and stroked it. She had dainty feet as he remembered in the past about something like this. After going up against a bride and her clones, he felt that the need to massage her feet as they were tired and worn out. She never liked it at first, but got used to it afterwards as she was in the far future reborn and wanting Eduardo's gentle touch. The toes were very nice and soft to Eduardo's touch as he continued to massage them in the water.
"Maybe we should do this some other time," he said.
"Don't forget, we should also focus on the heir to the Muah Realm," said Kylie.
"It can wait for the time being. Right now, we need to focus on what we have now."
Kylie giggled as she spotted Eduardo's foot and grabbed it. His foot was worn out from all the travelling and cleaning as she returned the favor in massaging it. He loved the touch as he began to feel such comfort in his feet. Both he and Kylie were together at last as they were here in Ryuzaki for the time being.
Yashakune was all packed up with his sword and senbon as he was ready to get on his horse. He couldn't shake off the fact that the witchsmeller was coming to Ryuzaki as he even had some food and clothes in his saddlebags. He couldn't wait anymore as he also had some coins in his pouch. To his shock, he saw Valeria on her horse as she was ready to go alongside him. She had heard of the danger about the witchsmeller from Shikakune and Dr. Naegino as they were almost at the city gate.
"I'm coming with you," she said.
"Valeria...," said Yashakune. "You're going to Ryuzaki with me?"
"I can't let you go alone. Your father would be devastated if he saw his son and heir to the Bandit King's position get killed by a witchsmeller in broad daylight."
"I've been capable of such things like that before, but—"
"We need to get going."
"By the way, I've written Dad a note just in case that I left. I can't abandon Eduardo and Kylie to such trouble after travelling towards Ryuzaki. It just wouldn't be right at all."
"You are such a rake, Yashakune Tomiyori!"
Both Yashakune and Valeria left the city as they were headed towards Ryuzaki. They were fully aware of what was going to happen next as they left Chagum on horseback. They both travelled with Eduardo and Kylie before as they were going towards to wherever they needed to go. The threat of the witchsmellers was growing and they had to stop them regardless. It wasn't long until they saw Dr. Naegino on his horse as he was following them to their destination.
"Mind if I tag along?" he asked.
"Dr. Naegino!" cried Valeria. "What are you doing here?"
"If there's a witchsmeller threat looming, I'm coming along for the ride."
"It's good to see you, Dr. Naegino," said Yashakune.
"We should all get going to Ryuzaki sooner or later."
And so, all three had rode off into the night as they were far away from Chagum. Their mission was clear as they had to deal with a witchsmeller threat. Eduardo and Kylie were the targets as the three travellers were ready to go to Ryuzaki to protect them regardless...
To be continued...