I've been trying to get a few story ideas straightened out in my head, mostly about what my characters have been up to recently, as well as possible reasons for them to make the journey to a Certain Place (no spoilers!) when the expansion comes out. Kel's is the first, hopefully with the rest of my 'RP mains' to follow soon. Enjoy!
********
Kel stared at the dark waters of the lake, oblivious to the adventurers flying past over her head, on their way to or from the island of portals in the center. She only reacted with a slight twitch of one ear when her sister joined her. Jahira settled next to her eldest sibling, and both elves sat in companionable silence for several long moments.
Finally, Kel shifted her seat slightly, turning just enough so that she could see Jahira out of the corner of her eye. “I’m worried,” she confessed.
Jahira raised one eyebrow questioningly. “Mind elaborating on that a little? I’m a druid, not a priest.” That prompted a brief chuckle from her all-too-serious sister, but it quickly faded. “I haven’t seen or heard from Drac in several months. His last letter said somethin’ about goin’ into The Dream.” Kel frowned. “I know it’s supposedly settlin’ down, with the main source of the corruption taken care of, but still...”
Jahira frowned as well, tilting her head slightly in thought. “Hmm... Most of the Elders seem to think it’s safe enough now, but they are making a point of telling the younger ones to be cautious. I’m not sure what I might be able to find out, but I’ll keep my ears open for you.”
Kel nodded and gave her a warm smile. “That’s all I was goin’ to ask. Thanks in advance, hon.” Jahira smiled back and leaned over to give Kel an affectionate hug. She then stood and took two steps away before shifting into a large stormcrow. With a loud ‘squawk’, she took off and headed in the direction of the small cottage she shared with Windstar.
Kel watched her flap away, then turned back to her silent contemplation. After a moment, a large shaggy head nudged it’s way under her arm. She absently stroked Sabre’s forehead, and he made the soft, whining rumble that he made only for her, when he knew she wasn’t happy. Kel sighed quietly, and leaned onto the strong, furry shoulder beside her. “I hope he’s alright, my friend. Aessina watch over him, and may she bring him back to me soon.”
Showing posts with label RP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RP. Show all posts
Aug 18, 2012
Sep 14, 2011
Storytime: "How long?"
Random story inspiration FTW?
Little bit of backstory for this one- Jahira was the mother of twin boys, who both grew up to become druids. In the War of Shifting Sands, one of them was killed. The surviving twin went a little berserk, and when the war was over, he disappeared. Jahira thought he was dead as well for a few years, then she began hearing tales of a very intelligent cat, hunting the remaining Qiraji. She finally found her son, but he had gone completely feral, and it took days for him to even let her approach. Over the years, she has kept an ear out, and will periodically seek him out, to check on him and try to make sure he's doing alright. He roams over various places in Kalimdor, hunting not only the Qiraji, but anything he considers a threat to his people. This story is current in-game, after Jahira heard rumors of something killing orcs, which led her to Ashenvale.
++ ++ ++
Ashenvale, east of Silverwind Refuge
The white panther entered the clearing slowly, dragging her offering by the neck. Setting her burden down in the center of the glade, she looked carefully around, sniffing the evening air. After making a complete circle around the dead stag, she gave up and settled down next to it, waiting.
The cat woke to the predawn darkness, instinct holding her perfectly still until she could identify what had disturbed her. It took a few seconds for her to make out the darker shape sitting among the trees at the edge of the tiny clearing. Slowly, carefully, she sat up, unsure of his mood, but grew hopeful when he didn't turn and run. A moment later, the cat shifted into a female Kaldorei, long white hair shining faintly in the darkness. "Hello, Rath."
The shadowy shape didn't move for the first minute, then slowly stood and approached, revealing another cat. His dark, ash-grey fur blended almost perfectly in the darkness, the white-ish Elune markings across his shoulders barely visible. Other pale lines criss-crossed his coat, marking far too many scars. Jahira felt her heart clench at the sight of him. He was starting to grow his winter coat already, and that plus the darkness made it hard to see how thin he was. He was also favoring his right hind leg. Jahira bit her lip as he came up to her, sitting just out of arm's reach.
Jahira gestured at the dead stag. "I don't know if you're hungry or not, but.." she offered. Rath looked at her for a moment longer, then turned his head to inspect the deer. After a sniffing the carcass over, he began picking bites off of his favorite parts, pausing every so often to glance back at the druid. She simply sat still, watching him.
Several minutes passed, then, apparently satisfied, the cat turned back to the elf, sitting a bit closer. Jahira looked him in the eyes, and slowly raised one hand, fingers glowing a faint green. His expression hardened, and he moved as if to draw away from her. Her hand went still in midair. "Please, Rathiel," she asked softly, her voice catching in the middle of his name. He froze, staring at her, then laid his ears back and inched closer. She gently rested her hand on his head, and the glow intensified. He stiffened, then drew back as it faded, rumbling softly deep in his chest. Jahira let her hand fall back into her lap, and watched him as he paced around the clearing, testing his healed leg.
Jahira finally shifted back into her cat and stretched out on the grass, next to the stag's remains. Rath stopped his pacing, and for a moment he glanced back and forth between her and the forrest. After several tense seconds, which felt like hours to Jahira, he slowly walked over to her and laid down at her side. She turned her head to gently wash his face, as he grumbled quietly, shutting his eyes. They stayed like that for almost an hour, the white cat lovingly grooming the grey, while he eventually dozed for a little while. As the eastern sky slowly brightened, he abruptly raised his head. Jahira left off her grooming with a quiet sigh, causing him to turn his head to look at her. She shifted back into her elven form and returned his gaze sadly.
"How much longer, Rath? You can't keep this up forever, can you?" she asked, her tone pleading. His expression went stone hard again, and he looked away. Jahira bit her lip again, wondering of she should have kept silent. Finally...
"Nothing will bring Fauren back, but making our enemies suffer helps the pain." His voice rasped painfully, so hoarse from disuse that she could barely understand him. She looked down at her hands, clenched together in her lap, and closed her eyes. Then something gently wiped away the single tear that had escaped to roll down her cheek. She opened her eyes to look at the dark golden ones of her son, catching his hand and holding it up to her cheek. He allowed her for a brief moment, then gently pulled away, turned, and started towards the trees, shifting back into a cat as he went. Jahira could only sit and watch him vanish into the gloom. She finally pulled her gaze away from where he had disappeared, wiping her eyes and taking a deep, ragged breath. She stood and looked up at the sky for a moment, then fumbled her hearthstone out of her belt pouch, only to put it away again. She shifted into a stormcrow and took off into the air, turning northwest, towards Lor'danel.
She wanted nothing more at that moment than for Windstar to hold and comfort her, but she needed to be alone for just a little longer.
Little bit of backstory for this one- Jahira was the mother of twin boys, who both grew up to become druids. In the War of Shifting Sands, one of them was killed. The surviving twin went a little berserk, and when the war was over, he disappeared. Jahira thought he was dead as well for a few years, then she began hearing tales of a very intelligent cat, hunting the remaining Qiraji. She finally found her son, but he had gone completely feral, and it took days for him to even let her approach. Over the years, she has kept an ear out, and will periodically seek him out, to check on him and try to make sure he's doing alright. He roams over various places in Kalimdor, hunting not only the Qiraji, but anything he considers a threat to his people. This story is current in-game, after Jahira heard rumors of something killing orcs, which led her to Ashenvale.
++ ++ ++
Ashenvale, east of Silverwind Refuge
The white panther entered the clearing slowly, dragging her offering by the neck. Setting her burden down in the center of the glade, she looked carefully around, sniffing the evening air. After making a complete circle around the dead stag, she gave up and settled down next to it, waiting.
The cat woke to the predawn darkness, instinct holding her perfectly still until she could identify what had disturbed her. It took a few seconds for her to make out the darker shape sitting among the trees at the edge of the tiny clearing. Slowly, carefully, she sat up, unsure of his mood, but grew hopeful when he didn't turn and run. A moment later, the cat shifted into a female Kaldorei, long white hair shining faintly in the darkness. "Hello, Rath."
The shadowy shape didn't move for the first minute, then slowly stood and approached, revealing another cat. His dark, ash-grey fur blended almost perfectly in the darkness, the white-ish Elune markings across his shoulders barely visible. Other pale lines criss-crossed his coat, marking far too many scars. Jahira felt her heart clench at the sight of him. He was starting to grow his winter coat already, and that plus the darkness made it hard to see how thin he was. He was also favoring his right hind leg. Jahira bit her lip as he came up to her, sitting just out of arm's reach.
Jahira gestured at the dead stag. "I don't know if you're hungry or not, but.." she offered. Rath looked at her for a moment longer, then turned his head to inspect the deer. After a sniffing the carcass over, he began picking bites off of his favorite parts, pausing every so often to glance back at the druid. She simply sat still, watching him.
Several minutes passed, then, apparently satisfied, the cat turned back to the elf, sitting a bit closer. Jahira looked him in the eyes, and slowly raised one hand, fingers glowing a faint green. His expression hardened, and he moved as if to draw away from her. Her hand went still in midair. "Please, Rathiel," she asked softly, her voice catching in the middle of his name. He froze, staring at her, then laid his ears back and inched closer. She gently rested her hand on his head, and the glow intensified. He stiffened, then drew back as it faded, rumbling softly deep in his chest. Jahira let her hand fall back into her lap, and watched him as he paced around the clearing, testing his healed leg.
Jahira finally shifted back into her cat and stretched out on the grass, next to the stag's remains. Rath stopped his pacing, and for a moment he glanced back and forth between her and the forrest. After several tense seconds, which felt like hours to Jahira, he slowly walked over to her and laid down at her side. She turned her head to gently wash his face, as he grumbled quietly, shutting his eyes. They stayed like that for almost an hour, the white cat lovingly grooming the grey, while he eventually dozed for a little while. As the eastern sky slowly brightened, he abruptly raised his head. Jahira left off her grooming with a quiet sigh, causing him to turn his head to look at her. She shifted back into her elven form and returned his gaze sadly.
"How much longer, Rath? You can't keep this up forever, can you?" she asked, her tone pleading. His expression went stone hard again, and he looked away. Jahira bit her lip again, wondering of she should have kept silent. Finally...
"Nothing will bring Fauren back, but making our enemies suffer helps the pain." His voice rasped painfully, so hoarse from disuse that she could barely understand him. She looked down at her hands, clenched together in her lap, and closed her eyes. Then something gently wiped away the single tear that had escaped to roll down her cheek. She opened her eyes to look at the dark golden ones of her son, catching his hand and holding it up to her cheek. He allowed her for a brief moment, then gently pulled away, turned, and started towards the trees, shifting back into a cat as he went. Jahira could only sit and watch him vanish into the gloom. She finally pulled her gaze away from where he had disappeared, wiping her eyes and taking a deep, ragged breath. She stood and looked up at the sky for a moment, then fumbled her hearthstone out of her belt pouch, only to put it away again. She shifted into a stormcrow and took off into the air, turning northwest, towards Lor'danel.
She wanted nothing more at that moment than for Windstar to hold and comfort her, but she needed to be alone for just a little longer.
Jan 29, 2011
Max- Awakening
(Meet my worgen hunter, Max.
P.S. This took forever to write. :\ )
Fear. Confusion. Anger. Pain.
He regained awareness to find himself in the center of a mob. Men surrounded him, muttering and glaring, while in the background, he could hear dogs barking. As his awareness grew, he could feel something biting into his leg, just above the ankle. A bear trap. Every movement made the steel teeth sink further into his flesh, so he tried to remain still. Then one man stepped forward and aimed a rifle at his head. Before he could react, another quickly grabbed the gun barrel and shoved it skyward. Yelling and gesturing, the two men argued for several minutes, while the rest of the crowd grew more and more restless. The barking grew louder, one dog's voice beginning to rise over it's packmates'.
The second man finally seemed to make his point to his comrade, releasing the gun and turning towards him. He tensed, sending another jolt of agony through his leg, baring his fangs in fear and pain. The man made soothing noises, slowly reaching a hand towards him. The mob around them had quieted, except for the dogs barking. He fixed his eyes on the approaching hand. No! Don't touch me! He felt the tension within him building, about to snap. Just as he was about to lunge for the threatening hand, someone behind the crowd yelled, and suddenly a gap appeared through the men. He glanced over for a bare second, then froze at the site of a huge tan mastiff charging at him. He managed to jerk himself back, the trap sinking even deeper into his leg, then the dog was on him.
The mastiff didn't so much as open his jaws. Instead, he simply leaped on top of the trapped creature, pinning him underneath his body. The dog glared challengingly at the crowd, the deep rumbling growl in his chest clearly aimed at them. The pinned worgen, half-mad with fear and pain, struggled, and the dog lowered his head to gently grip the scruff of his neck, like a parent scolding a pup. The man simply stood there watching, his expression changing from fear, to surprise, to something like amusement. The worgen finally went still, exhausted from his ordeal, and the dog released his scruff to gently snuffle, then lick, his face. The worgen blinked his eyes a few times, then looked up at the dog. His expression was visibly changing, as if he was waking up from a nightmare. His nose twitched slightly, and recognition slowly grew in his eyes. Then, faintly, ".....Jax?"
Crowly grinned triumphantly at the servant Godfrey had sent with him, then knelt down next to the pinned worgen. He carefully laid a hand on his shoulder, and told him, "Welcome back, Max."
P.S. This took forever to write. :\ )
Fear. Confusion. Anger. Pain.
He regained awareness to find himself in the center of a mob. Men surrounded him, muttering and glaring, while in the background, he could hear dogs barking. As his awareness grew, he could feel something biting into his leg, just above the ankle. A bear trap. Every movement made the steel teeth sink further into his flesh, so he tried to remain still. Then one man stepped forward and aimed a rifle at his head. Before he could react, another quickly grabbed the gun barrel and shoved it skyward. Yelling and gesturing, the two men argued for several minutes, while the rest of the crowd grew more and more restless. The barking grew louder, one dog's voice beginning to rise over it's packmates'.
The second man finally seemed to make his point to his comrade, releasing the gun and turning towards him. He tensed, sending another jolt of agony through his leg, baring his fangs in fear and pain. The man made soothing noises, slowly reaching a hand towards him. The mob around them had quieted, except for the dogs barking. He fixed his eyes on the approaching hand. No! Don't touch me! He felt the tension within him building, about to snap. Just as he was about to lunge for the threatening hand, someone behind the crowd yelled, and suddenly a gap appeared through the men. He glanced over for a bare second, then froze at the site of a huge tan mastiff charging at him. He managed to jerk himself back, the trap sinking even deeper into his leg, then the dog was on him.
The mastiff didn't so much as open his jaws. Instead, he simply leaped on top of the trapped creature, pinning him underneath his body. The dog glared challengingly at the crowd, the deep rumbling growl in his chest clearly aimed at them. The pinned worgen, half-mad with fear and pain, struggled, and the dog lowered his head to gently grip the scruff of his neck, like a parent scolding a pup. The man simply stood there watching, his expression changing from fear, to surprise, to something like amusement. The worgen finally went still, exhausted from his ordeal, and the dog released his scruff to gently snuffle, then lick, his face. The worgen blinked his eyes a few times, then looked up at the dog. His expression was visibly changing, as if he was waking up from a nightmare. His nose twitched slightly, and recognition slowly grew in his eyes. Then, faintly, ".....Jax?"
Crowly grinned triumphantly at the servant Godfrey had sent with him, then knelt down next to the pinned worgen. He carefully laid a hand on his shoulder, and told him, "Welcome back, Max."
Jan 20, 2011
Malorne
The stormcrow glided into the shrine, landing on the column next to the newly restored statue. It looked over the white marble stag for several awestruck seconds, then, with a single flap of it's wings, it swooped down to land before it. The bird disappeared in a puff of thick smoke, a slender Kaldorei female standing in it's place after the smoke cleared.
Windstar knelt reverently before the image of her patron. So many thoughts were racing through her head, she couldn't speak for several minutes. Finally, she stood and shifted into her cat form. Slowly she crept up to the statue, and settled between the huge stone hoofs. A soft rumble began in her chest as she basked in the peaceful quiet of the shrine.
"They all still say that you're dead," Star thought to the silent presence she felt hovering over her. "And perhaps they are right. But I know your spirit is still watching over us all. And maybe... perhaps one day... Aviana may not be the only Ancient that can be reborn." She gazed upwards at the stag's proud head, so far above her own. A gentle breeze blew softly through the shrine, ruffling her fur. She smiled, feeling as if her patron was answering.
Star lost track of how long she sat there, but finally the need to continue her missions for the druids of Hyjal brought her out of her trance. She looked at the setting sun and sighed, knowing it was too late for her to return that day. She stood, turned towards the statue, and placed one paw on a massive hoof. "I'll be back," she said quietly, "I promise." Switching shape quickly from cat to stormcrow, she leaped into the air, circled once over the shrine, and then turned in the direction of Nordrassil.
* * * *
Windstar has been a follower of Malorne ever since she felt the druidic calling. Seeing his shrine restored was pretty darn emotional for her.
More info on Malorne can be found here.
Dec 1, 2010
Storytime: Cataclysm pt.2
Have a sad-Kal-rant. Enjoy!
Elf and human sat next to each other on the edge of the canal, their feet dangling just above the waterline. Kal was slightly hunched, staring at her hands, amost as if she was deliberately trying to keep from looking at the wreckage across from them. Arien finally reached over to place a hand on her friend's shoulder.
"At least not many died, and none of our friends or family have been hurt, that we know of. And I can make you a new motorbike in a few days." Kal just gave a faint shake of her head. "I'm not really worried about the bike. And I am grateful nobody we know got hurt. It's just..." She finally raised her head to gaze over the still-smoking pit across the canal.
"We were there when I first met Windstar. It's where we first-." Kal cut herself off when she noticed Arien's faint blush, then after a moment she continued. "It's where that blasted thing attacked Channi. Which was awful, but it happening helped me realize how much I was falling in love with her. It's where she first kissed me. Where we first..." She paused again, glancing sidelong at her friend. "Yes, Kal, I know." Arien sighed quietly, her blush deepening slightly. Kal gave a very faint smirk. She quickly sobered, however.
"It feels like those memories have been violated. Like, with the place wrecked, they might just fade from my mind like...." She quickly glanced away, rubbing at her eyes for a moment. Arien simply sat and watched her, then finally reached over to gently brush the long scar running across her cheek with one finger. Kal's hand came up and caught Arien's, quickly lowering it back to the paladin's lap. Her voice was so quiet Arien could barely hear, and was slightly hoarse with long-suppressed grief. "Yes, that. And Alli. And Kira. And all of the short flings and one-nighters that I can't even remember the names of. I keep hoping and telling myself, this time it's different. That neither me or Channi are going anywhere. That this time it's gonna last. But all the others, they had messes like this screw everything up, too, and then boom it's over and we all move on. And gods, I'm getting sick of it." She abruptly stood and stalked off, in the direction of the Harbor. Arien was left sitting, watching her leave. After a moment, the paladin sighed again, rubbed briefly at her stinging eyes, then stood and followed.
I promise, this mood is going to be temporary for Kal. To be continued...
Elf and human sat next to each other on the edge of the canal, their feet dangling just above the waterline. Kal was slightly hunched, staring at her hands, amost as if she was deliberately trying to keep from looking at the wreckage across from them. Arien finally reached over to place a hand on her friend's shoulder.
"At least not many died, and none of our friends or family have been hurt, that we know of. And I can make you a new motorbike in a few days." Kal just gave a faint shake of her head. "I'm not really worried about the bike. And I am grateful nobody we know got hurt. It's just..." She finally raised her head to gaze over the still-smoking pit across the canal.
"We were there when I first met Windstar. It's where we first-." Kal cut herself off when she noticed Arien's faint blush, then after a moment she continued. "It's where that blasted thing attacked Channi. Which was awful, but it happening helped me realize how much I was falling in love with her. It's where she first kissed me. Where we first..." She paused again, glancing sidelong at her friend. "Yes, Kal, I know." Arien sighed quietly, her blush deepening slightly. Kal gave a very faint smirk. She quickly sobered, however.
"It feels like those memories have been violated. Like, with the place wrecked, they might just fade from my mind like...." She quickly glanced away, rubbing at her eyes for a moment. Arien simply sat and watched her, then finally reached over to gently brush the long scar running across her cheek with one finger. Kal's hand came up and caught Arien's, quickly lowering it back to the paladin's lap. Her voice was so quiet Arien could barely hear, and was slightly hoarse with long-suppressed grief. "Yes, that. And Alli. And Kira. And all of the short flings and one-nighters that I can't even remember the names of. I keep hoping and telling myself, this time it's different. That neither me or Channi are going anywhere. That this time it's gonna last. But all the others, they had messes like this screw everything up, too, and then boom it's over and we all move on. And gods, I'm getting sick of it." She abruptly stood and stalked off, in the direction of the Harbor. Arien was left sitting, watching her leave. After a moment, the paladin sighed again, rubbed briefly at her stinging eyes, then stood and followed.
I promise, this mood is going to be temporary for Kal. To be continued...
Jun 23, 2010
Kalenedral - Scars
((So this took forever (darn you writer's block), but hopefully it will be worth the wait. I think I should apologize for the Massive Wall o'Text, but what started as just a simple story behind one of Kal's more prominent scars sort of turned into an important part of her backstory. This happened roughly 100 years before present-game-time, give or take a decade or so. PG-13 warning))
Kalenedral yawned as she nudged Nyte back towards the caravan. The start of the route was always the hardest, when leaving the comforts of a town for the rocky beds and dull trail rations of the road. Doesn't help when you stay up half the day, either, she thought, glancing at the guard commander. As if sensing her gaze, Tal looked back at her, and winked. Glancing around to make sure no one else was looking, he mimed a yawn at Kal, then grinned. Kal grinned back, shaking her head, as she approached.
"All clear to the road, sir." she reported. Tal nodded, and turned to signal the drivers to begin the journey.
The trade route between Astranaar and Feathermoon Stronghold was fairly easy most of the time, but it was long, the trail switching back and forth and detouring around mountainous regions most of the way. There were several places along the route where centaurs could attack, and a few points near where tauren tribes gathered, but enough guards usually deterred any attackers. The caravan was currently departing from Feathermoon, heading home to Astranaar, taking with it furs, ore, gems, and several old relics found in the ruins scattered across the mainland. It did pay very well, which mostly made up for the length and possible boredom of the trip.
Kal had dismounted briefly, to give Nyte a snack from the pouch on her saddle. When the drivers called out their readiness to start, she swung up onto his back and prepared to take her usual place, at the point. As she trotted her saber along the train of wagons, Tal watched her closely. She glanced back as she passed the leading wagon, and he caught her eye, giving her a slow wink. She flashed him a warm smile, and urged Nyte into a lope, as Tal called for the drivers to start.
- - - -
Talathian had joined the caravan route about a year after Kal. Within the next year, he was in charge of the guards. Calm, quiet, but forceful when necessary, he was a good commander, never asking any of his fighters to do anything that he was not willing to do himself. Kal wasn't sure exactly when she had fallen in love with him, but when the first tentative attempts at flirting began, she was quick to respond. The other guards found it amusing, and never said anything about the pairing to any of their superiors, at either end of the route. The drivers, of course, kept to themselves mostly, and hardly seemed to notice.
They were an unlikely pair, their personalities so different that some were surprised that they didn't drive each other crazy. Tal was quiet, level-headed, and didn't like drawing attention to himself unless it was necessary. Kal, on the other hand, was cocky, self-confidant, and could be hot-tempered at times. The two of them were practically inseperable, however, at least when they were on the road. Their differences seemed to balance each other, rather than cause problems. The level of respect they had for each other made sure there were no problems on the job, either. Kal had no trouble taking orders from her lover, and Tal always made sure she knew the reasons for those orders. All in all, it was as close to a perfect relationship that either of them could have asked for.
- - - -
The journey was looking to be completely uneventful, for the first couple days. The weather stayed reasonable, the road hadn't had any recent rockfalls or other obstructions. As they passed the border between Feralas and the land known as the Desolace, however, Kal began seeing some disturbing signs. At first she thought the hoofprints were just from random hunting parties, but over the next few days, she saw more and more of them, always in the same direction as the caravan route. Centaurs appeared to be stalking them. Or leading them, Kal couldn't tell which. And leading them could only mean one thing: a possible trap or ambush. As they neared the border of Stonetalon Mountains, she began spotting the tracks more often, and in even larger numbers.
"Tal," she called, reporting her from her latest scouting trip as camp was being set up for the day. "I found more hoofprints. Same as the last few times, fresh, leading our trail, and way too many of the urfes for a simple hunting party." She looked at him nervously as he watched the caravan, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Alright, m'love, maybe this is something serious, but what can we do about it? We're going as fast as we can now. Any faster and the horses will start wearing out, then we will be in trouble." He shrugged in frustration. Kal rubbed a hand over her face, her own frustration matching his.
"I still think we could try pushing on through at least part of the day. Maybe start a bit later so everyone gets some extra rest first. It will be unexpected, and might throw these bloody centaurs off our track," she responded, with a slight grumbling tone. The helplessness and uncertainty of feeling like they were being hunted was finally beginning to wear on her nerves. Tal finally turned towards her, as the last tent went up, and the cooking fires were all lit. He carefully looked her over, noticing the faint signs of stress she was starting to show. He stepped closer, putting his arms around her waist and pulling her body close against his own.
"I know, and it just might work, but I would like to see you convince all these people to change their habits. You know how set in their ways most of them are. Night has always been the time we are strongest, and it just seems to make the most sense for them if we are moving then. Please, just try to stop worrying about it? Just for a little while." He raised one hand to gently brush some stray hair out of her face. "I can think of something I'd much rather be doing than arguing over this..."
Kal looked up at him, and gave a slow, wolfish smile. Tal leaned down to give her a kiss, and slowly guided her towards his tent. Any thoughts of food or rest were quickly shoved to the back of their minds, as they tried very hard to make each other forget their troubles. At least for the next hour or so.
- - - -
Tal carefully untangled himself from Kal, settling down next to her close enough so their bodies were still touching. "Sweet holy Elune, Kal..." he whispered, panting slightly. She chuckled softly, curling close against him and nuzzling his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer and murmuring in her ear, "Love you." "Love you too," she whispered back. They were silent for several long seconds, then, "You know.." Tal began, thoughtfully, "When this trip is done, we should take off for a bit, just us two." Kal raised her head to look at him, one eyebrow raised. Tal grinned at her, a glint of mischief in his eyes. "It would be nice to really be alone for a few weeks. I've been saving for a long time, and I know you have too, so we can miss the next trip, if we wanted to." Kal nodded, a thoughtful smile on her face. They both suddenly looked at each other, identical grins on their faces. Tal voiced the thought they both had first. "Your mother is gonna be so scandalized." They both chuckled at the thought, then Kal settled back down again, her head resting on Tal's shoulder. She lay still for a long time after that, just listening to him breathe as he fell asleep.
- - - -
Tal watched Kal for several seconds, trying to make sure she really was still asleep and not just pretending. He leaned down to kiss her shoulder, only to have her eyes open before he had touched her. He completed the motion anyways, and she gave him a slightly-sleepy smile. "Someday," he whispered, "I'm going to wake up first and surprise you." "Keep dreaming, love," was her reply. She started to say something else, but then he kissed her again, and they quickly forgot about everything except each other for a while.
After the conversation, and the things she had found while scouting the previous day, Kal's lovemaking might have had a bit of desperation in it. Tal gave no indication of noticing, but he did hold her for a bit longer than usual, when they were done. Eventually, however, they had to get up and face the long night on the road.
Kal tried to ignore the vague sense of dread she was feeling, which slowly got stronger as the night passed. Finally, she was getting so jumpy, she came back to the caravan and sent two other scouts ahead to the point. She rode Nyte up and down the line of wagons, watching the sides of the trail for anything threatening, but seeing nothing. Tal stopped her only once, as the pre-dawn light began brightening the eastern sky. "Kal, I know you're nervous, but please, try not to do anything crazy?" he told her, looking at her worriedly. She could only look back at him, and then offer a sort of half-nod, half-shrug, then she went back to her 'pacing'. She began wondering if she should ride out to check on the scouts.
- - - -
The attack, beginning at dawn as the drivers were starting to look for a likely camping spot, was sudden and vicious. With no warning from the scouts, the centaurs opened fire on the wagons, aiming for drivers and horses alike. The drivers tried to make a run for it, but when the lead horse of the first wagon went down, it started a hopeless tangle. Kal choked back a cry of mingled anger and frustration, and turned Nyte back to the caravan, urging him into a flat run. She charged past the line of wagons, straight at where the arrows were coming from. She barely heard Tal's yell of "Kal! DON'T!!" as she flew past, pulling her sword from it's scabbard. The dim-witted creatures didn't even notice her, so intent on the wagons, until she was close enough to see them through the rows of bushes they were using for cover. There was only enough time for a couple arrows to bounce off her breastplate, then she was crashing through their cover, sword swinging. Nyte struck out as well as he could without losing his stride, and several of the beast-men fell.
As she swept past the line of archers, however, she looked up and saw just how much trouble they were in. A huge, milling mass of the centaurs were forming ranks for a charge, and she could see at least three clan banners. Several dozen centaurs, at least, perhaps close to a hundred, were about to overrun the caravan. Nyte stopped and spun without any guidance, and they charged back through the archer ranks, taking several more out as they rushed back to the caravan. As the warrior broke free of the bushes, she felt an impact in her left shoulder. A moment later, burning pain raced down her arm. Her adrenaline quickly dulled it, and since it wasn't her sword-arm, she decided it wasn't important. Kal headed straight for Tal, and quickly gasped out her warning, "They're gonna charge. Three clans at least." He stared at her for a single second, then his eyes widened and he spun, shouting orders. The wagons that could still be moved were pulled into a defensive half-circle, and the horses were cut free, with the idea that anyone that survived could track them down later.
Kal finally took a second to look at her shoulder, and angrily tore out the crude arrow she found buried in the muscle. She dropped from Nyte's back, letting him loose to wreak what damage he could, and began trying to help Tal get the drivers away from the wagons and running for (hopefully) safety. A pair of Sentinels followed them, for protection. The rest, along with the mercenary guards, began preparing to buy the drivers as much time as possible to get away. She then suddenly heard a loud roar, followed by what sounded like a stampede, and realized they had just run out of time.
The following battle was a chaotic mess. Kal lost track of how many centaurs she hacked, slashed, or stabbed. Her sword arm grew tired, then sore, then went numb, and still she fought. When her sword was too heavy to lift, she switched hands, fighting left-handed and ignoring the stabbing pain from the arrow-wound in her shoulder. She caught occasional glimpses of Tal, either fighting the beast-men, or perched on some part of a wagon, feathering them with arrows. He always seemed to be alright, so she quickly turned her attention back to her next target.
A mistake was inevitable, as tired as she was. She was holding off two centaurs, and didn't see the third come up behind her. A split-second flash was her only warning, and her automatic reflexes saved her when her body was too fatigued to respond on it's own. The descending axe, which had been aiming to split her skull, instead only sliced down her cheek. She spun, disemboweling the centaur, then suddenly the two in front of her were down as well, one with an arrow through it's eye, the other choking it's life out through it's gaping throat. She looked past the bodies and saw Tal, panting heavily and covered in blood, most of it not his. She barely registered that fact, then realized the fighting was slowing down. A look at the sky showed it was almost noon. As battle rage faded, exhaustion began setting in.
Tal caught her good shoulder as she staggered slightly. "It's over. There's too many, and most of the fighters are dead," he told her, a grim expression on his face. "C'mon, we have to get away while they're picking over the loot." Kal looked over his shoulder and saw that he was right. With most of the fighters dead or run off, most of the centaurs were breaking into the wagons, pulling out crates and sacks to look through for.... whatever it was they had wanted. She shook her head slightly, looked at Tal, and nodded. They took off, running as fast as their weary bodies could manage, then suddenly they heard a shout. Several centaurs had trapped three drivers against a wagon, and were toying with them. The two warriors reacted instinctively, charging the beast-men from behind, and each cut down one before the rest realized they were being attacked. Most of the rest were quickly dispatched, but one broke free and ran back to the other wagons, calling an alarm. Tal turned to Kal, a desperate light in his eyes.
"Go, get them out of here." he told her, in his do-not-argue voice. She tried anyway, "No, come on, we both can. You-" He cut her off. "There's more elves stuck back there. I'm going to try to help, then we'll muddle the trail as we catch up, in case the urfes try to track us. Now go. GO ON! I'll see you again soon." She stared at him helplessly for a brief moment, then grabbed the front of his armor and pulled him into a quick, hard kiss. She pressed her cheek against his, and breathed into his ear, "You'd better." She then released him, turned to the terrified drivers, and herded them off, following the faint trail of the other escapees.
The bedraggled group finally caught up with the rest of what was left of the caravan. All but two drivers had gotten away, but only four of the twenty guards, mercenaries and Sentinels both, had survived, including Kal. She surveyed the little group for a few moments, then, when no one made any move to take charge, she called out, "We need to move. We need shelter, and a hiding place, in case any of those things try to hunt us down." At the alarmed looks most of them gave her, she quickly assured them, "I don't think they will, they seemed like they were happy to loot everything and go their way, but better safe than sorry, eh?" The other guards, and two of the drivers that seemed to be in better shape than the others, began guiding the group towards a boulder-strewn ravine, with plenty of shade and hiding places.
Kal stood still, staring back down the trail. A worried expression was crinkling her forehead, and she didn't even notice when one of the drivers, a tall slender female, approached. The driver cleared her throat slightly, making Kal jump. "You coming? These people need someone steady to watch over them. I think anything bigger than a bug is going to set them all into a panic, right now." She gave a weak attempt at a chuckle, then gave Kal a curious look when the warrior didn't move. Kal shook her head. "I gotta go back and check things. Tal should be coming soon, and I want to meet him. He may need help with any injured with him." The other elf looked at her carefully for a long moment, then nodded. "I guess I can try to keep everyone settled for a little while. You just hurry back now, okay?" Kal nodded absently as she spun on her heel and strode back the way they had come, worry giving her a small spurt of new energy.
She hadn't gotten very far when a familiar "Whuff" made her pause. Nyte trotted up to her and rubbed his massive head against her, carefully. She gratefully rubbed his ears as she inspected him. He had a few minor cuts, but seemed mostly unscathed, so she swung up onto his back, guiding him back towards the caravan. She mentally cursed Tal and his sense of responsibility the entire way back, keeping an eye out for any sign of him or any other stragglers, but finding nothing.
The sun was beginning it's westward descent as she approached the ruined wagons. Everything was still, no sign of the centaurs, but no sign of any elves either. Kal felt her heart clench in her chest with fear. She urged Nyte into a cautious trot, then slid off as they reached the nearest wagon. Before she could even begin searching, a quiet cough guided her to him.
Tal was lying, half on his back and half on his side, next to a pile of centaur bodies. The bodies of several other elves were mixed in with the beast-men, but Kal had eyes only for the fallen warrior. She thought he was already dead at first, but when she knelt next to him, he opened his eyes. Kal choked back a sob at the sight of the wounds that covered his body, and the gritty dirt she was kneeling in was saturated with his blood. He blinked a couple times, as though not sure if he was really seeing her, then reached a hand weakly towards her face. She caught it and held it up to her unmarred cheek, as he tried to speak. He coughed again, lightly, then cleared his throat, spat out a small glob of blood, then tried again.
"I'm so sorry, Kal," he whispered hoarsely. Her eyes stung with tears as she understood. She didn't even try to say that everything would be alright, because he knew better, and they had never been less than completely honest with each other. She softly replied around the knot forming in her throat, "I know, love. You tried." "Love you so much," he whispered. A sob broke free from Kal's tight control, as she answered him, "I love you too..." Tal's fingers moved slightly, as he tried to stroke her cheek, then his eyes rolled back and he went limp, his last breath rattling in his throat. Kal pressed her face against his hand as she let go of her control, and she cried brokenly over his body for what seemed like hours.
Finally, Nyte interrupted her mourning by coming behind her and gently nudging her back. She looked at the saber through sore, red eyes, then looked back at Tal. She slowly lowered the hand she had been holding, resting it on his chest, and stood shakily, leaning against her mount. A shout got her attention, and she looked up at the small group of elves approaching, all on sabers and several leading horses. The female driver from earlier led the way over to her. The elf looked down at the mess of bodies, and grimaced, shaking her head sadly. "I was afraid of this, when you were taking so long," she said quietly. She looked at Kal, saw the condition she was in, and slid off her saber. "You okay?" she asked, then quickly answered herself. "No, of course not." She sighed, then motioned towards the others. "We were starting to get worried, and then a bunch of our sabers found us. We found the horses on the way back here. We figured that if the vermin left anything, we could hitch them up and go collect the rest of us." She looked around at the wagons. Several had been broken into so badly that they would be useless as shelter, but a few were still in good enough condition to use. She pointed this out to Kal, who nodded, took a deep breath, and began directing a couple of the drivers to start hitching up. The rest of the group helped Kal with sorting bodies, and building two pyres with the remains of the useless wagons. The centaurs were mass-piled onto one, set ablaze, then ignored. The dead elves, except for one, were laid out neatly and respectfully, then set on fire as the Sentinel guard that had come with the group spoke the last rites.
Kal took Tal's body a short distance apart from the rest. The look she gave anyone who approached told them all that she didn't need, or want, any help. She built a small pyre, laid Tal on it, then piled the weapons of several centaur at his feet. Before lighting it, she took a moment look look at him one last time, gently stroking his hair and then bending down to kiss his forehead. She then took a step back, and set her torch to the base of the wood. As it caught, she turned away, not able to bear the sight of her love burning. When she turned, she found the rest of the elves waiting, ready to go. She looked at them all, then gave a nod, mounted Nyte, and led them away. She did not look back.
- - - -
Kal made them all press on, instead of turning back. When someone tried to argue, she merely looked at him, and asked, "Do you really want to go back through that place?" That shut everyone up, and she had no trouble for the rest of the nightmare journey, even when she forced them to reverse their schedule, traveling by day and camping at night. She drove them mercilessly through Stonetalon and the Barrens. Then, finally, almost a week behind their normal schedule, they crossed the border into Ashenvale.
- - - -
The remains of the caravan slowly limped into Astranaar, among the shocked stares of the town's inhabitants. Nyte strode over to the town's elder, and Kal leaned wearily over his shoulder, to look the elf in the eye. "Get your people to help. Now." she ordered hoarsely. He blinked at her for a brief second, then spun around and began shouting. Sentinels and various others were quickly helping the drivers unhitch the half-foundered horses, and the local priests began looking after the all-too-few remaining guards, and the few drivers that had been hurt in the escape. One priest finally gathered the courage to approach Kal, who was still sitting on Nyte's back, watching the proceedings impassively. "Warrior, I need to look at that cut on your cheek," he said, his tone making it a request rather than an order. Kal stared at him blankly for several long seconds, then slowly slid off Nyte's back. The priest had to catch and steady her as her knees buckled, but then she regained her balance, and walked unaided into a nearby building, which was being set up as a temporary healer's station.
Inside, the priest washed away the dried blood crusting Kal's face, and winced at the long slash running from just above her ear, across her cheek, all the way down to her jaw. "Much deeper and you wouldn't be able to chew on this side," he muttered quietly to her. "Hold still, this might burn a bit. And will most likely leave a pretty impressive scar." He held his hands towards her, hands already glowing softly with Elune's light. There was a very slight burning sensation, as Elune's powers cleaned the wound and sealed the skin and muscle, but it was less than what Kal expected. Her mask slipped just enough to give the healer a faint, grateful smile, then the blank expression returned, as he bent his attention to the arrow wound in her shoulder. He was able to heal that perfectly, leaving only the barest trace of a scar, which would likely fade completely with time. Now if only the scars on the inside would fade, as well, she thought to herself, as the lump in her throat threatened to choke her yet again.
Kalenedral yawned as she nudged Nyte back towards the caravan. The start of the route was always the hardest, when leaving the comforts of a town for the rocky beds and dull trail rations of the road. Doesn't help when you stay up half the day, either, she thought, glancing at the guard commander. As if sensing her gaze, Tal looked back at her, and winked. Glancing around to make sure no one else was looking, he mimed a yawn at Kal, then grinned. Kal grinned back, shaking her head, as she approached.
"All clear to the road, sir." she reported. Tal nodded, and turned to signal the drivers to begin the journey.
The trade route between Astranaar and Feathermoon Stronghold was fairly easy most of the time, but it was long, the trail switching back and forth and detouring around mountainous regions most of the way. There were several places along the route where centaurs could attack, and a few points near where tauren tribes gathered, but enough guards usually deterred any attackers. The caravan was currently departing from Feathermoon, heading home to Astranaar, taking with it furs, ore, gems, and several old relics found in the ruins scattered across the mainland. It did pay very well, which mostly made up for the length and possible boredom of the trip.
Kal had dismounted briefly, to give Nyte a snack from the pouch on her saddle. When the drivers called out their readiness to start, she swung up onto his back and prepared to take her usual place, at the point. As she trotted her saber along the train of wagons, Tal watched her closely. She glanced back as she passed the leading wagon, and he caught her eye, giving her a slow wink. She flashed him a warm smile, and urged Nyte into a lope, as Tal called for the drivers to start.
- - - -
Talathian had joined the caravan route about a year after Kal. Within the next year, he was in charge of the guards. Calm, quiet, but forceful when necessary, he was a good commander, never asking any of his fighters to do anything that he was not willing to do himself. Kal wasn't sure exactly when she had fallen in love with him, but when the first tentative attempts at flirting began, she was quick to respond. The other guards found it amusing, and never said anything about the pairing to any of their superiors, at either end of the route. The drivers, of course, kept to themselves mostly, and hardly seemed to notice.
They were an unlikely pair, their personalities so different that some were surprised that they didn't drive each other crazy. Tal was quiet, level-headed, and didn't like drawing attention to himself unless it was necessary. Kal, on the other hand, was cocky, self-confidant, and could be hot-tempered at times. The two of them were practically inseperable, however, at least when they were on the road. Their differences seemed to balance each other, rather than cause problems. The level of respect they had for each other made sure there were no problems on the job, either. Kal had no trouble taking orders from her lover, and Tal always made sure she knew the reasons for those orders. All in all, it was as close to a perfect relationship that either of them could have asked for.
- - - -
The journey was looking to be completely uneventful, for the first couple days. The weather stayed reasonable, the road hadn't had any recent rockfalls or other obstructions. As they passed the border between Feralas and the land known as the Desolace, however, Kal began seeing some disturbing signs. At first she thought the hoofprints were just from random hunting parties, but over the next few days, she saw more and more of them, always in the same direction as the caravan route. Centaurs appeared to be stalking them. Or leading them, Kal couldn't tell which. And leading them could only mean one thing: a possible trap or ambush. As they neared the border of Stonetalon Mountains, she began spotting the tracks more often, and in even larger numbers.
"Tal," she called, reporting her from her latest scouting trip as camp was being set up for the day. "I found more hoofprints. Same as the last few times, fresh, leading our trail, and way too many of the urfes for a simple hunting party." She looked at him nervously as he watched the caravan, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Alright, m'love, maybe this is something serious, but what can we do about it? We're going as fast as we can now. Any faster and the horses will start wearing out, then we will be in trouble." He shrugged in frustration. Kal rubbed a hand over her face, her own frustration matching his.
"I still think we could try pushing on through at least part of the day. Maybe start a bit later so everyone gets some extra rest first. It will be unexpected, and might throw these bloody centaurs off our track," she responded, with a slight grumbling tone. The helplessness and uncertainty of feeling like they were being hunted was finally beginning to wear on her nerves. Tal finally turned towards her, as the last tent went up, and the cooking fires were all lit. He carefully looked her over, noticing the faint signs of stress she was starting to show. He stepped closer, putting his arms around her waist and pulling her body close against his own.
"I know, and it just might work, but I would like to see you convince all these people to change their habits. You know how set in their ways most of them are. Night has always been the time we are strongest, and it just seems to make the most sense for them if we are moving then. Please, just try to stop worrying about it? Just for a little while." He raised one hand to gently brush some stray hair out of her face. "I can think of something I'd much rather be doing than arguing over this..."
Kal looked up at him, and gave a slow, wolfish smile. Tal leaned down to give her a kiss, and slowly guided her towards his tent. Any thoughts of food or rest were quickly shoved to the back of their minds, as they tried very hard to make each other forget their troubles. At least for the next hour or so.
- - - -
Tal carefully untangled himself from Kal, settling down next to her close enough so their bodies were still touching. "Sweet holy Elune, Kal..." he whispered, panting slightly. She chuckled softly, curling close against him and nuzzling his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer and murmuring in her ear, "Love you." "Love you too," she whispered back. They were silent for several long seconds, then, "You know.." Tal began, thoughtfully, "When this trip is done, we should take off for a bit, just us two." Kal raised her head to look at him, one eyebrow raised. Tal grinned at her, a glint of mischief in his eyes. "It would be nice to really be alone for a few weeks. I've been saving for a long time, and I know you have too, so we can miss the next trip, if we wanted to." Kal nodded, a thoughtful smile on her face. They both suddenly looked at each other, identical grins on their faces. Tal voiced the thought they both had first. "Your mother is gonna be so scandalized." They both chuckled at the thought, then Kal settled back down again, her head resting on Tal's shoulder. She lay still for a long time after that, just listening to him breathe as he fell asleep.
- - - -
Tal watched Kal for several seconds, trying to make sure she really was still asleep and not just pretending. He leaned down to kiss her shoulder, only to have her eyes open before he had touched her. He completed the motion anyways, and she gave him a slightly-sleepy smile. "Someday," he whispered, "I'm going to wake up first and surprise you." "Keep dreaming, love," was her reply. She started to say something else, but then he kissed her again, and they quickly forgot about everything except each other for a while.
After the conversation, and the things she had found while scouting the previous day, Kal's lovemaking might have had a bit of desperation in it. Tal gave no indication of noticing, but he did hold her for a bit longer than usual, when they were done. Eventually, however, they had to get up and face the long night on the road.
Kal tried to ignore the vague sense of dread she was feeling, which slowly got stronger as the night passed. Finally, she was getting so jumpy, she came back to the caravan and sent two other scouts ahead to the point. She rode Nyte up and down the line of wagons, watching the sides of the trail for anything threatening, but seeing nothing. Tal stopped her only once, as the pre-dawn light began brightening the eastern sky. "Kal, I know you're nervous, but please, try not to do anything crazy?" he told her, looking at her worriedly. She could only look back at him, and then offer a sort of half-nod, half-shrug, then she went back to her 'pacing'. She began wondering if she should ride out to check on the scouts.
- - - -
The attack, beginning at dawn as the drivers were starting to look for a likely camping spot, was sudden and vicious. With no warning from the scouts, the centaurs opened fire on the wagons, aiming for drivers and horses alike. The drivers tried to make a run for it, but when the lead horse of the first wagon went down, it started a hopeless tangle. Kal choked back a cry of mingled anger and frustration, and turned Nyte back to the caravan, urging him into a flat run. She charged past the line of wagons, straight at where the arrows were coming from. She barely heard Tal's yell of "Kal! DON'T!!" as she flew past, pulling her sword from it's scabbard. The dim-witted creatures didn't even notice her, so intent on the wagons, until she was close enough to see them through the rows of bushes they were using for cover. There was only enough time for a couple arrows to bounce off her breastplate, then she was crashing through their cover, sword swinging. Nyte struck out as well as he could without losing his stride, and several of the beast-men fell.
As she swept past the line of archers, however, she looked up and saw just how much trouble they were in. A huge, milling mass of the centaurs were forming ranks for a charge, and she could see at least three clan banners. Several dozen centaurs, at least, perhaps close to a hundred, were about to overrun the caravan. Nyte stopped and spun without any guidance, and they charged back through the archer ranks, taking several more out as they rushed back to the caravan. As the warrior broke free of the bushes, she felt an impact in her left shoulder. A moment later, burning pain raced down her arm. Her adrenaline quickly dulled it, and since it wasn't her sword-arm, she decided it wasn't important. Kal headed straight for Tal, and quickly gasped out her warning, "They're gonna charge. Three clans at least." He stared at her for a single second, then his eyes widened and he spun, shouting orders. The wagons that could still be moved were pulled into a defensive half-circle, and the horses were cut free, with the idea that anyone that survived could track them down later.
Kal finally took a second to look at her shoulder, and angrily tore out the crude arrow she found buried in the muscle. She dropped from Nyte's back, letting him loose to wreak what damage he could, and began trying to help Tal get the drivers away from the wagons and running for (hopefully) safety. A pair of Sentinels followed them, for protection. The rest, along with the mercenary guards, began preparing to buy the drivers as much time as possible to get away. She then suddenly heard a loud roar, followed by what sounded like a stampede, and realized they had just run out of time.
The following battle was a chaotic mess. Kal lost track of how many centaurs she hacked, slashed, or stabbed. Her sword arm grew tired, then sore, then went numb, and still she fought. When her sword was too heavy to lift, she switched hands, fighting left-handed and ignoring the stabbing pain from the arrow-wound in her shoulder. She caught occasional glimpses of Tal, either fighting the beast-men, or perched on some part of a wagon, feathering them with arrows. He always seemed to be alright, so she quickly turned her attention back to her next target.
A mistake was inevitable, as tired as she was. She was holding off two centaurs, and didn't see the third come up behind her. A split-second flash was her only warning, and her automatic reflexes saved her when her body was too fatigued to respond on it's own. The descending axe, which had been aiming to split her skull, instead only sliced down her cheek. She spun, disemboweling the centaur, then suddenly the two in front of her were down as well, one with an arrow through it's eye, the other choking it's life out through it's gaping throat. She looked past the bodies and saw Tal, panting heavily and covered in blood, most of it not his. She barely registered that fact, then realized the fighting was slowing down. A look at the sky showed it was almost noon. As battle rage faded, exhaustion began setting in.
Tal caught her good shoulder as she staggered slightly. "It's over. There's too many, and most of the fighters are dead," he told her, a grim expression on his face. "C'mon, we have to get away while they're picking over the loot." Kal looked over his shoulder and saw that he was right. With most of the fighters dead or run off, most of the centaurs were breaking into the wagons, pulling out crates and sacks to look through for.... whatever it was they had wanted. She shook her head slightly, looked at Tal, and nodded. They took off, running as fast as their weary bodies could manage, then suddenly they heard a shout. Several centaurs had trapped three drivers against a wagon, and were toying with them. The two warriors reacted instinctively, charging the beast-men from behind, and each cut down one before the rest realized they were being attacked. Most of the rest were quickly dispatched, but one broke free and ran back to the other wagons, calling an alarm. Tal turned to Kal, a desperate light in his eyes.
"Go, get them out of here." he told her, in his do-not-argue voice. She tried anyway, "No, come on, we both can. You-" He cut her off. "There's more elves stuck back there. I'm going to try to help, then we'll muddle the trail as we catch up, in case the urfes try to track us. Now go. GO ON! I'll see you again soon." She stared at him helplessly for a brief moment, then grabbed the front of his armor and pulled him into a quick, hard kiss. She pressed her cheek against his, and breathed into his ear, "You'd better." She then released him, turned to the terrified drivers, and herded them off, following the faint trail of the other escapees.
The bedraggled group finally caught up with the rest of what was left of the caravan. All but two drivers had gotten away, but only four of the twenty guards, mercenaries and Sentinels both, had survived, including Kal. She surveyed the little group for a few moments, then, when no one made any move to take charge, she called out, "We need to move. We need shelter, and a hiding place, in case any of those things try to hunt us down." At the alarmed looks most of them gave her, she quickly assured them, "I don't think they will, they seemed like they were happy to loot everything and go their way, but better safe than sorry, eh?" The other guards, and two of the drivers that seemed to be in better shape than the others, began guiding the group towards a boulder-strewn ravine, with plenty of shade and hiding places.
Kal stood still, staring back down the trail. A worried expression was crinkling her forehead, and she didn't even notice when one of the drivers, a tall slender female, approached. The driver cleared her throat slightly, making Kal jump. "You coming? These people need someone steady to watch over them. I think anything bigger than a bug is going to set them all into a panic, right now." She gave a weak attempt at a chuckle, then gave Kal a curious look when the warrior didn't move. Kal shook her head. "I gotta go back and check things. Tal should be coming soon, and I want to meet him. He may need help with any injured with him." The other elf looked at her carefully for a long moment, then nodded. "I guess I can try to keep everyone settled for a little while. You just hurry back now, okay?" Kal nodded absently as she spun on her heel and strode back the way they had come, worry giving her a small spurt of new energy.
She hadn't gotten very far when a familiar "Whuff" made her pause. Nyte trotted up to her and rubbed his massive head against her, carefully. She gratefully rubbed his ears as she inspected him. He had a few minor cuts, but seemed mostly unscathed, so she swung up onto his back, guiding him back towards the caravan. She mentally cursed Tal and his sense of responsibility the entire way back, keeping an eye out for any sign of him or any other stragglers, but finding nothing.
The sun was beginning it's westward descent as she approached the ruined wagons. Everything was still, no sign of the centaurs, but no sign of any elves either. Kal felt her heart clench in her chest with fear. She urged Nyte into a cautious trot, then slid off as they reached the nearest wagon. Before she could even begin searching, a quiet cough guided her to him.
Tal was lying, half on his back and half on his side, next to a pile of centaur bodies. The bodies of several other elves were mixed in with the beast-men, but Kal had eyes only for the fallen warrior. She thought he was already dead at first, but when she knelt next to him, he opened his eyes. Kal choked back a sob at the sight of the wounds that covered his body, and the gritty dirt she was kneeling in was saturated with his blood. He blinked a couple times, as though not sure if he was really seeing her, then reached a hand weakly towards her face. She caught it and held it up to her unmarred cheek, as he tried to speak. He coughed again, lightly, then cleared his throat, spat out a small glob of blood, then tried again.
"I'm so sorry, Kal," he whispered hoarsely. Her eyes stung with tears as she understood. She didn't even try to say that everything would be alright, because he knew better, and they had never been less than completely honest with each other. She softly replied around the knot forming in her throat, "I know, love. You tried." "Love you so much," he whispered. A sob broke free from Kal's tight control, as she answered him, "I love you too..." Tal's fingers moved slightly, as he tried to stroke her cheek, then his eyes rolled back and he went limp, his last breath rattling in his throat. Kal pressed her face against his hand as she let go of her control, and she cried brokenly over his body for what seemed like hours.
Finally, Nyte interrupted her mourning by coming behind her and gently nudging her back. She looked at the saber through sore, red eyes, then looked back at Tal. She slowly lowered the hand she had been holding, resting it on his chest, and stood shakily, leaning against her mount. A shout got her attention, and she looked up at the small group of elves approaching, all on sabers and several leading horses. The female driver from earlier led the way over to her. The elf looked down at the mess of bodies, and grimaced, shaking her head sadly. "I was afraid of this, when you were taking so long," she said quietly. She looked at Kal, saw the condition she was in, and slid off her saber. "You okay?" she asked, then quickly answered herself. "No, of course not." She sighed, then motioned towards the others. "We were starting to get worried, and then a bunch of our sabers found us. We found the horses on the way back here. We figured that if the vermin left anything, we could hitch them up and go collect the rest of us." She looked around at the wagons. Several had been broken into so badly that they would be useless as shelter, but a few were still in good enough condition to use. She pointed this out to Kal, who nodded, took a deep breath, and began directing a couple of the drivers to start hitching up. The rest of the group helped Kal with sorting bodies, and building two pyres with the remains of the useless wagons. The centaurs were mass-piled onto one, set ablaze, then ignored. The dead elves, except for one, were laid out neatly and respectfully, then set on fire as the Sentinel guard that had come with the group spoke the last rites.
Kal took Tal's body a short distance apart from the rest. The look she gave anyone who approached told them all that she didn't need, or want, any help. She built a small pyre, laid Tal on it, then piled the weapons of several centaur at his feet. Before lighting it, she took a moment look look at him one last time, gently stroking his hair and then bending down to kiss his forehead. She then took a step back, and set her torch to the base of the wood. As it caught, she turned away, not able to bear the sight of her love burning. When she turned, she found the rest of the elves waiting, ready to go. She looked at them all, then gave a nod, mounted Nyte, and led them away. She did not look back.
- - - -
Kal made them all press on, instead of turning back. When someone tried to argue, she merely looked at him, and asked, "Do you really want to go back through that place?" That shut everyone up, and she had no trouble for the rest of the nightmare journey, even when she forced them to reverse their schedule, traveling by day and camping at night. She drove them mercilessly through Stonetalon and the Barrens. Then, finally, almost a week behind their normal schedule, they crossed the border into Ashenvale.
- - - -
The remains of the caravan slowly limped into Astranaar, among the shocked stares of the town's inhabitants. Nyte strode over to the town's elder, and Kal leaned wearily over his shoulder, to look the elf in the eye. "Get your people to help. Now." she ordered hoarsely. He blinked at her for a brief second, then spun around and began shouting. Sentinels and various others were quickly helping the drivers unhitch the half-foundered horses, and the local priests began looking after the all-too-few remaining guards, and the few drivers that had been hurt in the escape. One priest finally gathered the courage to approach Kal, who was still sitting on Nyte's back, watching the proceedings impassively. "Warrior, I need to look at that cut on your cheek," he said, his tone making it a request rather than an order. Kal stared at him blankly for several long seconds, then slowly slid off Nyte's back. The priest had to catch and steady her as her knees buckled, but then she regained her balance, and walked unaided into a nearby building, which was being set up as a temporary healer's station.
Inside, the priest washed away the dried blood crusting Kal's face, and winced at the long slash running from just above her ear, across her cheek, all the way down to her jaw. "Much deeper and you wouldn't be able to chew on this side," he muttered quietly to her. "Hold still, this might burn a bit. And will most likely leave a pretty impressive scar." He held his hands towards her, hands already glowing softly with Elune's light. There was a very slight burning sensation, as Elune's powers cleaned the wound and sealed the skin and muscle, but it was less than what Kal expected. Her mask slipped just enough to give the healer a faint, grateful smile, then the blank expression returned, as he bent his attention to the arrow wound in her shoulder. He was able to heal that perfectly, leaving only the barest trace of a scar, which would likely fade completely with time. Now if only the scars on the inside would fade, as well, she thought to herself, as the lump in her throat threatened to choke her yet again.
Jun 21, 2010
"Me? A hero? Nah..."
((*Ahem* So, Windstar has been very quiet lately, but all of a sudden today, she decided that she wants to say something. She's been MIA for a while, and for anyone that doesn't know, it's because she's been trying to help in Icecrown. Since work makes it hard for me to commit to a raiding schedule (even if I could find a raid with a opening for a kitty DPS), she can't really be in ICC with her friends, so she's finding her own way to fight the Scourge. She would say that it's not much, but it's the best she can do.))
My friends are all in Icecrown, actually in the Citidel. This... actually scares me. A lot. I know they can all take care of themselves, and they'll watch each other's backs, but I still worry about them all. I mean, Bricu and Threnn have a little one, and Aely is getting married sometime soon. And Feliche... he may say he's just a big dumb warrior, but he still gives the best back-scratches.*purrs*
...I'm not a hero. I'm just a cat that wants to help. My friends are the heroes. And by Malfurion's antlers, I'm going to make sure nothing sneaks up and tries to get them from behind.
So, Riders. Go do what you do best. I'll be out here, doing my own small part. And hopefully, when it's all over, and the Bloody Prince is taken care of for good, we'll get to have our own family celebration in the Pig. That's what's important, you know. Family and friends. That's what we're fighting for.
Never again, my friends...
My friends are all in Icecrown, actually in the Citidel. This... actually scares me. A lot. I know they can all take care of themselves, and they'll watch each other's backs, but I still worry about them all. I mean, Bricu and Threnn have a little one, and Aely is getting married sometime soon. And Feliche... he may say he's just a big dumb warrior, but he still gives the best back-scratches.*purrs*
...I'm not a hero. I'm just a cat that wants to help. My friends are the heroes. And by Malfurion's antlers, I'm going to make sure nothing sneaks up and tries to get them from behind.
So, Riders. Go do what you do best. I'll be out here, doing my own small part. And hopefully, when it's all over, and the Bloody Prince is taken care of for good, we'll get to have our own family celebration in the Pig. That's what's important, you know. Family and friends. That's what we're fighting for.
Never again, my friends...
Apr 29, 2010
Random stuff..
First of all, my raiding guild on Gilneas is back to a schedule that works better for me and my sister. They had been raiding Tuesday night, which is RP night on Feathermoon. Since right now, RP > raiding, we were both missing on day 1 of ICC stuff. (Guess what? The bow dropped on the first night I missed. Our rogue got it because he was the only person there that could use it. /sadface) They did this because that night worked better for the other guild we raided with (because we don't have enough core people to run even 10-mans right now). Well, there was some drama with the other guild, so now we're back to raiding Wednesday nights. We have to PUG a spot or 2, but last night went pretty well. Festergut still eats our faces though. :\ And the blasted bow did NOT drop. Again. *grumble*
Feathermoon has been tons of fun. Between RP stuff with Kal, and leveling her, I haven't even played on any other server for a couple weeks, other than occasional raids. And I'm actually pretty happy about it. Heck, I haven't even played any other character for several days. I never thought warriors were so much fun to play. :D Oh, and the biggest news for Kal:
(Look, it's not the Hodir quest chain! ;)) This makes, um, (counts on fingers)6 lvl 80s for me. I think this means I officially have no life. :D
After dinging, I went through her bank and the AH, and she is ready to start tanking stuff. I will still be very wary of PUGs until she has better gear, but she is defense capped, with decent HP for just starting out. I will probably be going through the armory and looking at other tanks, to adjust her spec, but since I'm not sure of her ever getting in a raid, I'm not going to worry if it's not 'perfect'.
On the RP side, she is a lot happier now than the last few days. The haunting mess has been taken care of, and her friends are safe.(Right here has all the awesomeness of Maggie Maunt's ending) So now, she and Channi have more time to relax together. We are planning more mischief for them to get into, but for now Kal is happy to just be able to hold Channi without worrying if an invisible leper gnome is going to attack either one of them again.
And that's all I can think of for now. WoW is calling me, and Kal has dailies to do before her first trip into heroicing. /Waves
Feathermoon has been tons of fun. Between RP stuff with Kal, and leveling her, I haven't even played on any other server for a couple weeks, other than occasional raids. And I'm actually pretty happy about it. Heck, I haven't even played any other character for several days. I never thought warriors were so much fun to play. :D Oh, and the biggest news for Kal:
(Look, it's not the Hodir quest chain! ;)) This makes, um, (counts on fingers)6 lvl 80s for me. I think this means I officially have no life. :D
After dinging, I went through her bank and the AH, and she is ready to start tanking stuff. I will still be very wary of PUGs until she has better gear, but she is defense capped, with decent HP for just starting out. I will probably be going through the armory and looking at other tanks, to adjust her spec, but since I'm not sure of her ever getting in a raid, I'm not going to worry if it's not 'perfect'.
On the RP side, she is a lot happier now than the last few days. The haunting mess has been taken care of, and her friends are safe.(Right here has all the awesomeness of Maggie Maunt's ending) So now, she and Channi have more time to relax together. We are planning more mischief for them to get into, but for now Kal is happy to just be able to hold Channi without worrying if an invisible leper gnome is going to attack either one of them again.
And that's all I can think of for now. WoW is calling me, and Kal has dailies to do before her first trip into heroicing. /Waves
Apr 25, 2010
Storytime: Hauntings
(Brief intro: The Wildfire Riders seriously ticked off a powerful Cult of the Damned member, so she sent ghosts to several Riders as well as a few associates. One of the people being haunted is Channi, a young Death Knight, who Kal has become quite attached to. This takes place a day or two after Channi is attacked by her ghost.
Links: The Riders' hauntings are here, and Channi's latest gnome attack is here.)
Kal worriedly watched over the still form on the infirmary bed. Channi was sleeping again, after the University's healers were done looking her over after her move from the Cathedral. With her closed eyes hiding the blue Death Knight glow, she looked so small and helpless. Kal swallowed hard, and reached out to carefully take Channi's nearest hand, simply holding it. Bloody Elune, how did I let this happen..., she thought guiltily. When she had suggested the girl stay the night at her apartment, she had been hoping that Arien's presence might keep the ghost at bay, but she had been proven wrong. And although Channi was doing fine, just needing to rest from the ordeal, and the healing afterward, Kal still felt like she shouldn't have had to go through it. She sighed quietly, rubbing a hand over her face.
A gentle bump from a feline nose on her arm brought her out of her gloomy thoughts. Windstar seemed to be reading her mind, and was staring at her disapprovingly. "You had no way of knowing this would happen, and the nature of these hauntings means you couldn't have done anything more than what you did. Stop moping about it, or Channi might wake up, see your face, and think she did something wrong," the druid scolded. Kal blinked at her, then looked back at Channi and nodded, realizing she was right. Her free hand reached over and began rubbing Star's ears gratefully. She chuckled softly. "You know, Arien has been telling me the same thing. I guess, if both of you think that, maybe I should listen." Star just twitched her ears, but her expression looked amused. And perhaps slightly smug. A minute later, two of the University healers headed in their direction. Kal saw them coming and grimaced. "Guess visiting hours are over," she said to Star. She gave Channi's hand a slight squeeze before letting go, and waved placatingly at the healers as she slowly stood up. "I know, I know, I'll go quietly this time."
Kal and Star left the infirmary and headed towards the canals. Once out of the mage district, they both paused. Star looked up at Kal. "Um, my brother is here for a few days, and I think I'm going to see him for a while. He doesn't come around very much, and I've missed him. I'll meet you at home later?" Kal nodded. "Okay, Star," she replied. Star unshifted, hugged Kal, then shifted back to a cat and trotted towards the Park. Kal watched her go, then turned and headed for the Pig. Dear Elune, I wish this 'haunting' mess was over with, she thought wearily.
Links: The Riders' hauntings are here, and Channi's latest gnome attack is here.)
Kal worriedly watched over the still form on the infirmary bed. Channi was sleeping again, after the University's healers were done looking her over after her move from the Cathedral. With her closed eyes hiding the blue Death Knight glow, she looked so small and helpless. Kal swallowed hard, and reached out to carefully take Channi's nearest hand, simply holding it. Bloody Elune, how did I let this happen..., she thought guiltily. When she had suggested the girl stay the night at her apartment, she had been hoping that Arien's presence might keep the ghost at bay, but she had been proven wrong. And although Channi was doing fine, just needing to rest from the ordeal, and the healing afterward, Kal still felt like she shouldn't have had to go through it. She sighed quietly, rubbing a hand over her face.
A gentle bump from a feline nose on her arm brought her out of her gloomy thoughts. Windstar seemed to be reading her mind, and was staring at her disapprovingly. "You had no way of knowing this would happen, and the nature of these hauntings means you couldn't have done anything more than what you did. Stop moping about it, or Channi might wake up, see your face, and think she did something wrong," the druid scolded. Kal blinked at her, then looked back at Channi and nodded, realizing she was right. Her free hand reached over and began rubbing Star's ears gratefully. She chuckled softly. "You know, Arien has been telling me the same thing. I guess, if both of you think that, maybe I should listen." Star just twitched her ears, but her expression looked amused. And perhaps slightly smug. A minute later, two of the University healers headed in their direction. Kal saw them coming and grimaced. "Guess visiting hours are over," she said to Star. She gave Channi's hand a slight squeeze before letting go, and waved placatingly at the healers as she slowly stood up. "I know, I know, I'll go quietly this time."
Kal and Star left the infirmary and headed towards the canals. Once out of the mage district, they both paused. Star looked up at Kal. "Um, my brother is here for a few days, and I think I'm going to see him for a while. He doesn't come around very much, and I've missed him. I'll meet you at home later?" Kal nodded. "Okay, Star," she replied. Star unshifted, hugged Kal, then shifted back to a cat and trotted towards the Park. Kal watched her go, then turned and headed for the Pig. Dear Elune, I wish this 'haunting' mess was over with, she thought wearily.
Apr 8, 2010
Updates 'n' stuff
Bad blogger is bad. Neglected blog is...yea.
Anyways!
Work schedule is being crazy right now, so I've been half-asleep most of the time lately. I am so NOT a morning person. -.-
I have been on a huge leveling binge with Kalenedral, my warrior. She is currently 64. She will not be 64 for long. >.> A few thoughts PVE-wise: Revenge is hax. I love warrior tanking. Death grip should be taken out of the game, or at least become a lvl 80 skill. I hate PuG fail groups. Seriously, if you jerk dps'ers think I'm going too slow, feel free to leave. AND STOP PULLING FOR ME!!!.../rant off
Where was I? Oh yea.
In between leveling, I have been RPing with her a lot too, and she seems to be making friends. She has also met Windstar, ICly, and, well, I may be posting snippets of how they're getting along soon-ish. >.> (It is also kind of frustrating, because I would love to have them together in-game, but I would need a second account, which is out of my budget right now. /sadface)
I have also been doing Noblegarden holiday stuff on Star. I did it all on Kelesaria last year, and it was pretty easy and fun. It's her in-game title, in fact. Last night I made a very important discovery....
Bunnies can ride mammoths. This is just too darn cute.(That is actually Kal, doing some holiday RP. Fun times :D)
And on that note, time to get another level or 3 on Kal. /Waves
Anyways!
Work schedule is being crazy right now, so I've been half-asleep most of the time lately. I am so NOT a morning person. -.-
I have been on a huge leveling binge with Kalenedral, my warrior. She is currently 64. She will not be 64 for long. >.> A few thoughts PVE-wise: Revenge is hax. I love warrior tanking. Death grip should be taken out of the game, or at least become a lvl 80 skill. I hate PuG fail groups. Seriously, if you jerk dps'ers think I'm going too slow, feel free to leave. AND STOP PULLING FOR ME!!!.../rant off
Where was I? Oh yea.
In between leveling, I have been RPing with her a lot too, and she seems to be making friends. She has also met Windstar, ICly, and, well, I may be posting snippets of how they're getting along soon-ish. >.> (It is also kind of frustrating, because I would love to have them together in-game, but I would need a second account, which is out of my budget right now. /sadface)
I have also been doing Noblegarden holiday stuff on Star. I did it all on Kelesaria last year, and it was pretty easy and fun. It's her in-game title, in fact. Last night I made a very important discovery....
Bunnies can ride mammoths. This is just too darn cute.(That is actually Kal, doing some holiday RP. Fun times :D)
And on that note, time to get another level or 3 on Kal. /Waves
Mar 30, 2010
Storytime
(Uh, think I ought to give a PG warning for this :P Also, intro is quoted from the Great Bear Spirit, in Moonglade, and is the very first lesson young druids learn, when starting their training down the feral path. It is the closest thing to a life-motto that Windstar has.)
Strength of the body is the power and swiftness of action. You must keep yourself fit at all times, both physically and mentally. The bear's girth highlights it's strength, as it is a ferocious foe in combat. The bear's girth, however, belies it's agility and sharp mind. These are surprises you will use to your advantage.
You must rely on the strength of the bear's body in order to master the way of the Claw.
Strength of the heart is what gives you the resolve to take action... action that is rooted in intents that are pure and forthright. To keep the balance is not to be complacent or banal.
You must show resolve for that which you believe in, and you must be willing to fight for it. The mother bear shows endless conviction in protecting her young, as does the elder bear protecting his den. It is this resolve, this strength of heart, which you must come to know if you are to master the way of the Claw.
- - - - -
Windstar stood before the large stone, the pouch of powder in her hand. She took deep breath, preparing to face the powerful moonkin known as Lunaclaw. The words of the Bear Spirit ran through her mind again. Muscles tensed, as ready as she could get, Star turned the pouch upside down over the stone. The dust glittered in the perpetual dusk that shrouded the moonkins' territory, then faded as it touched the rock's surface. Everything seemed to go still for a moment, then the air rang with the bellow of an enraged moonkin. Star whirled towards the entrance of the cave, as a huge creature charged down on her. The following fight was furious and chaotic, but finally Lunaclaw fell. Star approached cautiously, to make sure it was dead, when it suddenly lunged at her with a final desperate cry. One massive claw slammed into Star's side, and the world went dark with the pain. She barely held on, and managed to call down a strike of moonfire on the beast, which finally dropped dead.
Star fell as well, but then looked up as a dim light glowed in the small cave. Lunaclaw's spirit looked down at her, almost apologetically. It stoood, waiting, as she gathered what little strength she had left, and dragged herself nearer. At the spirit's feet, she collapsed again, rested for a moment, and then somehow managed to stand. She held one hand to her side, feeling the blood running through her fingers and down her side. The spirit looked her in the eyes, and she could hear it's voice in her head, commending her on the fight. As the spirit faded, she managed somehow to focus well enough to cast the spell to teleport herself back to Moonglade.
Remulos was meditating in his grove, when two of the wardens came, half-dragging a limp, bloody Night elf. They carefully set her on the ground, then one responded to his unasked question. "Lunaclaw. She won." He waved them away, then lifted the elf's head, to look at her face. He gave a small start as he realized it was Windstar. His forehead furrowed with concern as he looked her over to find the source of the blood that covered almost her entire left side. He finally had to peel her soaked shirt away from where it was sticking to her skin, and found the long gash on her ribcage. He grimaced at the sight. The gash went from just under her shoulderblade, along one of her ribs (which was badly fractured), and finally ended directly underneath her left breast. White bone showed through the raggedly torn skin and muscles. Remulos sighed, realizing that he couldn't leave her to her heal on her own. Even if she didn't bleed to death, an injury like this would leave her semi-crippled for the rest of her life. He closed his eyes, bent over her, and began casting his healing spells.
- - - -
Star slowly regained conciousness. She managed to open her eyes, and looked around, disoriented. Eventually, she recognized the room, and realized she was still in Moonglade. She was lying on her back, in a bed in one of the inns. She began to sit up, then stopped with a strangled gasp as pain lanced through her side. She forced herself to relax and slow her breathing, and gradually the pain receded to a bearable level. Slowly, she looked around, trying to not move anything besides her head. On a table near her right side, she spotted a small note. Carefully, Star reached for it, and managed to open it one-handed. It was from Remulos.
Windstar,
I healed enough to keep you alive and prevent you from becoming crippled. The rest is up to you.
She couldn't help a small wry grin. Honestly, she was surprised he had let her be taken into Nighthaven, but she supposed he didn't want her taking up space in his beloved glade. She dropped the note back onto the table, closed her eyes, and tried to rest.
Two days later, Windstar stood in front of a mirror in her room, left arm carefully raised so she could inspect the gash on her side. Most of the torn muscles had been knitted back together, but the skin was still a mess, with a long and painful scab running along her rib, and there was an enourmous blue and purple bruise that covered her side, from armpit to just above her hipbone. Her fractured rib was mostly healed, as well, but she still had to be careful about taking deep breaths. She looked soberly at the wound for another moment, then turned away from the mirror and allowed the nearby warden to wrap a bandage around it. She then grabbed her shirt, pulled it on, and hobbled out towards Remulos' shrine.
Star paused at the archway of the shrine, waiting until the Keeper noticed her. He was meditating, as usual, so it was several minutes before he looked up at her. Remulos nodded slowly, and said, "Good to see you up again, Windstar. I supose you will be departing soon?" She nodded back. "I was heading to the wind master now. I just wanted to say thank you." Remulos waved a hand absently, but Star could see the affectionate gleam in his eyes. "It was nothing," he told her. "Although, you may want to remain at home and rest for a few weeks. Maybe find a hobby to work on. It would be a pity to reinjure yourself, after I had to put you back together." Star grinned. "I may just do that. Malorne's blessings, my friend." He waved again, smiling at her this time, and she turned and walked slowly to the flight masters.
- - -
About two weeks later, in Stormwind:
Tad winced as he examined the still-raw scar running across Star's side, careful not to touch the blue-green bruises. "You know, sometimes you make me glad I wasn't called to be a druid." he told her, jokingly. Star chuckled, pulling her shirt back down. "I don't think I'll be going anywhere for a few more weeks. I think I'm going to go visit that old scribe near the canals. It seems like an interesting proffession. At least it will keep me from going out of my mind with boredom, while I finish healing." Tad looked at her incedulously. "You have a mind?" he asked in feigned shock. She swatted his shoulder, and he laughed as Keenath barked in protest. Star laughed too, then suddenly sobered as she remembered. "Tad," she began hesitantly, "something went wrong, after Lunaclaw hit me. I couldn't heal myself. I don't know why, but I couldn't." Tad looked at her, concerned. "Uh, that is not a good thing to hear. If you can't heal yourself when you're hurt that bad, what good is being able to heal in the first place?" He winced again. "That probably didn't sound right, but you know what I mean." Star nodded. "I do, and you're right. Perhaps it's just a block I have to work through. I just need to practice enough." "Uh," Tad said worriedly. "I hope that doesn't mean you're gonna go get yourself hurt again. Can't have my sister getting more impressive scars than me, you know." He ducked, laughing, as Star swatted at him again.
Strength of the body is the power and swiftness of action. You must keep yourself fit at all times, both physically and mentally. The bear's girth highlights it's strength, as it is a ferocious foe in combat. The bear's girth, however, belies it's agility and sharp mind. These are surprises you will use to your advantage.
You must rely on the strength of the bear's body in order to master the way of the Claw.
Strength of the heart is what gives you the resolve to take action... action that is rooted in intents that are pure and forthright. To keep the balance is not to be complacent or banal.
You must show resolve for that which you believe in, and you must be willing to fight for it. The mother bear shows endless conviction in protecting her young, as does the elder bear protecting his den. It is this resolve, this strength of heart, which you must come to know if you are to master the way of the Claw.
- - - - -
Windstar stood before the large stone, the pouch of powder in her hand. She took deep breath, preparing to face the powerful moonkin known as Lunaclaw. The words of the Bear Spirit ran through her mind again. Muscles tensed, as ready as she could get, Star turned the pouch upside down over the stone. The dust glittered in the perpetual dusk that shrouded the moonkins' territory, then faded as it touched the rock's surface. Everything seemed to go still for a moment, then the air rang with the bellow of an enraged moonkin. Star whirled towards the entrance of the cave, as a huge creature charged down on her. The following fight was furious and chaotic, but finally Lunaclaw fell. Star approached cautiously, to make sure it was dead, when it suddenly lunged at her with a final desperate cry. One massive claw slammed into Star's side, and the world went dark with the pain. She barely held on, and managed to call down a strike of moonfire on the beast, which finally dropped dead.
Star fell as well, but then looked up as a dim light glowed in the small cave. Lunaclaw's spirit looked down at her, almost apologetically. It stoood, waiting, as she gathered what little strength she had left, and dragged herself nearer. At the spirit's feet, she collapsed again, rested for a moment, and then somehow managed to stand. She held one hand to her side, feeling the blood running through her fingers and down her side. The spirit looked her in the eyes, and she could hear it's voice in her head, commending her on the fight. As the spirit faded, she managed somehow to focus well enough to cast the spell to teleport herself back to Moonglade.
Remulos was meditating in his grove, when two of the wardens came, half-dragging a limp, bloody Night elf. They carefully set her on the ground, then one responded to his unasked question. "Lunaclaw. She won." He waved them away, then lifted the elf's head, to look at her face. He gave a small start as he realized it was Windstar. His forehead furrowed with concern as he looked her over to find the source of the blood that covered almost her entire left side. He finally had to peel her soaked shirt away from where it was sticking to her skin, and found the long gash on her ribcage. He grimaced at the sight. The gash went from just under her shoulderblade, along one of her ribs (which was badly fractured), and finally ended directly underneath her left breast. White bone showed through the raggedly torn skin and muscles. Remulos sighed, realizing that he couldn't leave her to her heal on her own. Even if she didn't bleed to death, an injury like this would leave her semi-crippled for the rest of her life. He closed his eyes, bent over her, and began casting his healing spells.
- - - -
Star slowly regained conciousness. She managed to open her eyes, and looked around, disoriented. Eventually, she recognized the room, and realized she was still in Moonglade. She was lying on her back, in a bed in one of the inns. She began to sit up, then stopped with a strangled gasp as pain lanced through her side. She forced herself to relax and slow her breathing, and gradually the pain receded to a bearable level. Slowly, she looked around, trying to not move anything besides her head. On a table near her right side, she spotted a small note. Carefully, Star reached for it, and managed to open it one-handed. It was from Remulos.
Windstar,
I healed enough to keep you alive and prevent you from becoming crippled. The rest is up to you.
She couldn't help a small wry grin. Honestly, she was surprised he had let her be taken into Nighthaven, but she supposed he didn't want her taking up space in his beloved glade. She dropped the note back onto the table, closed her eyes, and tried to rest.
Two days later, Windstar stood in front of a mirror in her room, left arm carefully raised so she could inspect the gash on her side. Most of the torn muscles had been knitted back together, but the skin was still a mess, with a long and painful scab running along her rib, and there was an enourmous blue and purple bruise that covered her side, from armpit to just above her hipbone. Her fractured rib was mostly healed, as well, but she still had to be careful about taking deep breaths. She looked soberly at the wound for another moment, then turned away from the mirror and allowed the nearby warden to wrap a bandage around it. She then grabbed her shirt, pulled it on, and hobbled out towards Remulos' shrine.
Star paused at the archway of the shrine, waiting until the Keeper noticed her. He was meditating, as usual, so it was several minutes before he looked up at her. Remulos nodded slowly, and said, "Good to see you up again, Windstar. I supose you will be departing soon?" She nodded back. "I was heading to the wind master now. I just wanted to say thank you." Remulos waved a hand absently, but Star could see the affectionate gleam in his eyes. "It was nothing," he told her. "Although, you may want to remain at home and rest for a few weeks. Maybe find a hobby to work on. It would be a pity to reinjure yourself, after I had to put you back together." Star grinned. "I may just do that. Malorne's blessings, my friend." He waved again, smiling at her this time, and she turned and walked slowly to the flight masters.
- - -
About two weeks later, in Stormwind:
Tad winced as he examined the still-raw scar running across Star's side, careful not to touch the blue-green bruises. "You know, sometimes you make me glad I wasn't called to be a druid." he told her, jokingly. Star chuckled, pulling her shirt back down. "I don't think I'll be going anywhere for a few more weeks. I think I'm going to go visit that old scribe near the canals. It seems like an interesting proffession. At least it will keep me from going out of my mind with boredom, while I finish healing." Tad looked at her incedulously. "You have a mind?" he asked in feigned shock. She swatted his shoulder, and he laughed as Keenath barked in protest. Star laughed too, then suddenly sobered as she remembered. "Tad," she began hesitantly, "something went wrong, after Lunaclaw hit me. I couldn't heal myself. I don't know why, but I couldn't." Tad looked at her, concerned. "Uh, that is not a good thing to hear. If you can't heal yourself when you're hurt that bad, what good is being able to heal in the first place?" He winced again. "That probably didn't sound right, but you know what I mean." Star nodded. "I do, and you're right. Perhaps it's just a block I have to work through. I just need to practice enough." "Uh," Tad said worriedly. "I hope that doesn't mean you're gonna go get yourself hurt again. Can't have my sister getting more impressive scars than me, you know." He ducked, laughing, as Star swatted at him again.
Jan 20, 2010
Catching Up
Sorry about the blog silence lately, but I've been having a lot of RL junk lately. Plus, I haven't been doing much to blog about, and I really prefer to put interesting stuff in here, rather than just tossing up a filler post about more heroics or something. But here's a little of what I've been up to:
My baby rogue on WA is now level 20, with her mount. I have also discovered that the quest line for her poisons and stuff is borked for blood elves, which annoys me. It's no longer necessary for poisons, but the recipe for thistle tea is a really nice reward, and now to get it, I have to put a ticket in and wait for Blizz to send me the quest items. At least, according to Wowhead, they will. Anyways, still need to finish with my DK's proffesions so I can level her and grab some heirlooms for Kalirra and my druid Skypaw. Yay for having 2 leather wearing dps-type classes.
I have also been spending time on Durotan, with my tauren shaman Taarren. My sister has finally gotten her druid Taurros to 80, so I wanted Taarren (a.k.a. LT, bit of a story there) to be able to join in the heroics. Finally, yesterday:
I have lost track of how many toons I have gotten to 80 while doing the Hodir questline. Kind of funny, actually. So now I have an 80 shammy, and in the quest grind, she is revered with Sons of Hodir already. I'm pretty sure they did something with the rep gain of the quests, since she hit honored turning in Thorim's armor, and iirc, that used to only get to friendly. Not that I'm complaining, just feels like I'm out of the loop or something. Her gear is still pretty wimpy right now, though I did buy her the giantmaim pants and new weapons from the Hodir vendor. She's still going to be running some normal level 80 dungeons for a while though. I have heard so many stories about dps being 'carried' through heroics, and I don't want to add to them. Maybe I'll get lucky with some ToC runs or something.
On Feathermoon, Tadrith is 72 now, and has a new pet. I got a chimaera, since Kel had one for a while and I like them, but all my other BM hunters' stables are full. Tad's is too, now, so I don't know what I'll do when he hits 76 and starts Loque camping. Keenath is still sitting in there, so he might finally be going bye-bye. There is Aubri the dragonhawk too, but I really like d'hawks too, so I really don't want to let him go. Argh.
I'm kind of in a RP slump right now. Between job issues, and my sleeping schedule becoming a bit more normal (so I'm usually starting to doze at my keyboard when other people are just starting to show up in the Pig), I just can't get into it very much right now. So poor Windstar usually just sits in her little 'den' under the stairs and watches people. It doesn't help much when the characters that have become her friends are moving along with their own story arcs, which Star doesn't really have a part in. It's actually rather frustrating, because I really like being around the Riders, but it gets boring and slightly depressing watching everyone else doing their thing, while Star just sits on the side. Lonely druid-cat is lonely.
So, that's my main reason for my alt'ing right now, I think. Just trying to find stuff to do. I'm actually trying to work out what to do with Star, while I try to get my own frustrations taken care of. We'll have to see what happens.
Anyways, enough with my boring personal issues. :P Off to find something to do til time for work.
/wave
My baby rogue on WA is now level 20, with her mount. I have also discovered that the quest line for her poisons and stuff is borked for blood elves, which annoys me. It's no longer necessary for poisons, but the recipe for thistle tea is a really nice reward, and now to get it, I have to put a ticket in and wait for Blizz to send me the quest items. At least, according to Wowhead, they will. Anyways, still need to finish with my DK's proffesions so I can level her and grab some heirlooms for Kalirra and my druid Skypaw. Yay for having 2 leather wearing dps-type classes.
I have also been spending time on Durotan, with my tauren shaman Taarren. My sister has finally gotten her druid Taurros to 80, so I wanted Taarren (a.k.a. LT, bit of a story there) to be able to join in the heroics. Finally, yesterday:
I have lost track of how many toons I have gotten to 80 while doing the Hodir questline. Kind of funny, actually. So now I have an 80 shammy, and in the quest grind, she is revered with Sons of Hodir already. I'm pretty sure they did something with the rep gain of the quests, since she hit honored turning in Thorim's armor, and iirc, that used to only get to friendly. Not that I'm complaining, just feels like I'm out of the loop or something. Her gear is still pretty wimpy right now, though I did buy her the giantmaim pants and new weapons from the Hodir vendor. She's still going to be running some normal level 80 dungeons for a while though. I have heard so many stories about dps being 'carried' through heroics, and I don't want to add to them. Maybe I'll get lucky with some ToC runs or something.
On Feathermoon, Tadrith is 72 now, and has a new pet. I got a chimaera, since Kel had one for a while and I like them, but all my other BM hunters' stables are full. Tad's is too, now, so I don't know what I'll do when he hits 76 and starts Loque camping. Keenath is still sitting in there, so he might finally be going bye-bye. There is Aubri the dragonhawk too, but I really like d'hawks too, so I really don't want to let him go. Argh.
I'm kind of in a RP slump right now. Between job issues, and my sleeping schedule becoming a bit more normal (so I'm usually starting to doze at my keyboard when other people are just starting to show up in the Pig), I just can't get into it very much right now. So poor Windstar usually just sits in her little 'den' under the stairs and watches people. It doesn't help much when the characters that have become her friends are moving along with their own story arcs, which Star doesn't really have a part in. It's actually rather frustrating, because I really like being around the Riders, but it gets boring and slightly depressing watching everyone else doing their thing, while Star just sits on the side. Lonely druid-cat is lonely.
So, that's my main reason for my alt'ing right now, I think. Just trying to find stuff to do. I'm actually trying to work out what to do with Star, while I try to get my own frustrations taken care of. We'll have to see what happens.
Anyways, enough with my boring personal issues. :P Off to find something to do til time for work.
/wave
Dec 25, 2009
Arien and Alanon - Underbog
As promised (sort of), here's a quick story of when Alanon came to help Arien find a couple lost druids in the Underbog. We did most of it in character, though this was before I got my chatlogger addon, so I wrote it afterward from memory. It happens right after this. (Also, please forgive the rather rushed editing job. :P)
Shortly after noon, Arien met Alanon at the draenei post of Telredor. The druid and paladin set off. They soon reached the mass of pipes in Coilfang Reservoir, marking the drain-entrance, and Arien slid off Snow's back into the water. Alanon dropped out of his bird form and splashed in with her, where he promptly turned into a sea lion. Arien was a bit startled, but quickly got used to it, and even thought to herself that it was almost rather cute. They swam quickly, and soon were through the water-filled tunnel, entering a large cavern. There they found the contact for the missing scouts, Watcher Jhang, kneeling on the shore holding her leg. "I twisted my ankle, or else I would be with the others. Don't worry about me, the others are in trouble. Can you please go find them?" she pleaded. "Rayge and Claw are somewhere in the Underbog, and Bite and Greenthumb got lost in the Slave Pens." They agreed, though Arien hated to leave the scout without healing, even for a simple twisted ankle. They slipped down one of the huge branching tunnels into a place the scout had called the Underbog. Aggressive sporebats greeted them, and Alanon quickly changed to a bear and charged them. Arien gave him a moment to grab the attention of all of them, then came up behind and began swinging her axe. With just two of them, and Alanon being very skilled at this kind of thing, Arien felt more comfortable helping him to bring their enemies down, rather than just sitting back and healing him. They progressed relatively quickly through the damp muggy caves, to the point where Alanon mentioned that they made a good team. Arien felt a small flush of warmth at that, and agreed.
After a while, they left the crude tunnels full of sporebats and elementals, and found some constructions rough-made of metal. Arien felt a very different flush at the familiar sight, this time of anger. Sure enough, a pair of naga guards came down the narrow ramp, where Alanon surprised them and, with Arien's help, quickly dispatched them. As they stepped past the bodies, Arien quietly grunted in disgust. "Hm? You ok?" Alanon asked. "Yea," she replied. "Just hate nagas." She wondered briefly what he would think, of a paladin admitting to hating something, but he just shrugged and went on. As they fought on through the hallway, they found a huge room, with a ramp leading to a platform with a enormous hydra. Alanon and Arien looked at each other, and Alanon switched to bear form. They charged the 'guard dog', Alanon giving Arien a warning to watch out for it's tail. She quickly discovered that the creature gave off a toxic sort of aura, which was making her too nauseated to fight, so she backed off and worked on just keeping Alanon healed. The aura didn't seem to bother him, and the thing was quickly dead.
They both moved to the edge of the platform afterward. Arien looked down at the water below, then glanced back at Alanon. "Guess we're jumping?" she asked. He nodded, and they both plunged in. The drop wasn't as bad as it looked, and Arien got a surprise when she hit the water. It was warm, almost hot. Alanon shifted into a sea lion, and lead her to the small niche in the surrounding wall that allowed them to climb out. From there it was another drop, into more of the crude tunnels. Different creatures lurked there, vicious nether rays and huge glowing insects. Arien was kept busy, using the Light to cleanse the bugs' poisonous spit, as well as helping out with her axe. At the end of the first stretch of tunnel, Alanon, in bear form, suddenly stopped and started sniffing the air. Arien heard a faint rustle almost immediately after, and slowly moved to investigate. She jumped and almost tripped over herself when a Night Elf suddenly appeared right in front of her. It was one of the missing scouts, Rayge, and he thanked them profusely for clearing the monsters out of his escape route. He too was slightly injured, but assured them that he was only resting before healing himself and escaping. He had a warning before they left him and continued, however. "There is a hunter up ahead, and he has somehow managed to trap my comrade Claw in his bear form, and is treating him like a pet!" he told them indignantly. "I'm afraid you might have to fight Claw in order to free him." The druid and paladin nodded to him, promised to be careful, and continued.
Down a few more bends of the tunnel, they found the pair. A broken hunter was sitting by a small fire, with a large bear with the typical markings that druids have on his shoulders and face. The smallish horns he sported marked him as a tauren, but druids held themselves mostly apart from the Alliance/Horde squabbles, and Alanon and Arien had no hesitation about helping him. "He's in the wrong shape for me to hold him still much," Arien whispered, as they tried to figure how to not hurt the bear. Alanon looked unhappy, but all he could say was, "We'll just have to try not to beat him up too much." She nodded, Alanon shifted again, and he trotted out to challenge the hunter. It called the bear to attack them at once, and Arien had to pull back her axe-swing more than once to avoid him, but after a long, dancing battle, the hunter fell. The bear continued his attack, however, and finally the two were forced to fight back to defend themselves. Before too long, the bear's angry red eyes seemed to clear, and he suddenly broke off his attack. He stood panting for a few seconds, then shifted into his tauren form and walked to the campfire, plopping down next to it, still looking confused. Arien slowly approached, Alanon right behind her, and she told him about his friend they had already discovered, as well as the two still unaccounted for. Alanon looked him over for any major injuries, as he thought for a moment. "Well, now that I'm free of that hunter, I can get out of here fine. Perhaps I will collect my companion on the way out," the tauren finally decided. Alanon nodded, having found nothing more serious than some small cuts and bruises, and the two of them continued, hearing some strange noises ahead.
Around another bend in the tunnel, Arien noticed some dark shapes on the ground. As they neared, she saw they were more nether rays, dead. She shuddered a bit at the sight of so many, and Alanon, a bear once again, remarked wryly, "You should be glad you can't smell as well as me right now." They turned the last corner, and saw a huge, strange creature moving about the piles of ray bodies. It was similar to the tall marsh walkers that roamed the waterways of the marsh, but much bigger, and solid black. It made low hissing noises as it fed on several of the half-rotted rays, and Arien began feeling slightly ill, watching it. Alanon was looking at her, and seemed to pick up on it. "Let's get it," he growled. She nodded and tightened her grip on her axe. Once again Alanon led, Arien letting him grab the monster's attention. As she moved in to join the battle though, it started casting magic, throwing chains of lightning around the cavern. Arien got too close on one blast, and was knocked back, lightning crackling around her hands as she stood back up. She stayed back after that, throwing healing spells on Alanon, and as the creature weakened, she called a hammer made of holy energy and threw it as hard as she could. The monster fell, leaving a small opening in the back of the cave clear. Bear-Alanon backed a few steps from the body and sat down, breathing hard, and Arien came up beside him, checking to see if he needed more healing. He was fine, though, if slightly out of breath, and they went to inspect the small doorway, finding it dropped into the same tunnel they had started from. They both looked at each other and shook their heads. "How convenient," Alanon said, with an ironic tone. They dropped down together, and wearily backtracked to the entrance.
+ + +
The two of them sat around in the instance for a while afterwards, chatting and such, but I'm gonna end the story there, because I don't have the entire dialog, and I don't want to wind up forgetting anything important. Hope you enjoyed it!
And now to go finish setting up my new laptop that I just got for Christmas. :D
Hope everyone else had a good holiday! /Waves
Shortly after noon, Arien met Alanon at the draenei post of Telredor. The druid and paladin set off. They soon reached the mass of pipes in Coilfang Reservoir, marking the drain-entrance, and Arien slid off Snow's back into the water. Alanon dropped out of his bird form and splashed in with her, where he promptly turned into a sea lion. Arien was a bit startled, but quickly got used to it, and even thought to herself that it was almost rather cute. They swam quickly, and soon were through the water-filled tunnel, entering a large cavern. There they found the contact for the missing scouts, Watcher Jhang, kneeling on the shore holding her leg. "I twisted my ankle, or else I would be with the others. Don't worry about me, the others are in trouble. Can you please go find them?" she pleaded. "Rayge and Claw are somewhere in the Underbog, and Bite and Greenthumb got lost in the Slave Pens." They agreed, though Arien hated to leave the scout without healing, even for a simple twisted ankle. They slipped down one of the huge branching tunnels into a place the scout had called the Underbog. Aggressive sporebats greeted them, and Alanon quickly changed to a bear and charged them. Arien gave him a moment to grab the attention of all of them, then came up behind and began swinging her axe. With just two of them, and Alanon being very skilled at this kind of thing, Arien felt more comfortable helping him to bring their enemies down, rather than just sitting back and healing him. They progressed relatively quickly through the damp muggy caves, to the point where Alanon mentioned that they made a good team. Arien felt a small flush of warmth at that, and agreed.
After a while, they left the crude tunnels full of sporebats and elementals, and found some constructions rough-made of metal. Arien felt a very different flush at the familiar sight, this time of anger. Sure enough, a pair of naga guards came down the narrow ramp, where Alanon surprised them and, with Arien's help, quickly dispatched them. As they stepped past the bodies, Arien quietly grunted in disgust. "Hm? You ok?" Alanon asked. "Yea," she replied. "Just hate nagas." She wondered briefly what he would think, of a paladin admitting to hating something, but he just shrugged and went on. As they fought on through the hallway, they found a huge room, with a ramp leading to a platform with a enormous hydra. Alanon and Arien looked at each other, and Alanon switched to bear form. They charged the 'guard dog', Alanon giving Arien a warning to watch out for it's tail. She quickly discovered that the creature gave off a toxic sort of aura, which was making her too nauseated to fight, so she backed off and worked on just keeping Alanon healed. The aura didn't seem to bother him, and the thing was quickly dead.
They both moved to the edge of the platform afterward. Arien looked down at the water below, then glanced back at Alanon. "Guess we're jumping?" she asked. He nodded, and they both plunged in. The drop wasn't as bad as it looked, and Arien got a surprise when she hit the water. It was warm, almost hot. Alanon shifted into a sea lion, and lead her to the small niche in the surrounding wall that allowed them to climb out. From there it was another drop, into more of the crude tunnels. Different creatures lurked there, vicious nether rays and huge glowing insects. Arien was kept busy, using the Light to cleanse the bugs' poisonous spit, as well as helping out with her axe. At the end of the first stretch of tunnel, Alanon, in bear form, suddenly stopped and started sniffing the air. Arien heard a faint rustle almost immediately after, and slowly moved to investigate. She jumped and almost tripped over herself when a Night Elf suddenly appeared right in front of her. It was one of the missing scouts, Rayge, and he thanked them profusely for clearing the monsters out of his escape route. He too was slightly injured, but assured them that he was only resting before healing himself and escaping. He had a warning before they left him and continued, however. "There is a hunter up ahead, and he has somehow managed to trap my comrade Claw in his bear form, and is treating him like a pet!" he told them indignantly. "I'm afraid you might have to fight Claw in order to free him." The druid and paladin nodded to him, promised to be careful, and continued.
Down a few more bends of the tunnel, they found the pair. A broken hunter was sitting by a small fire, with a large bear with the typical markings that druids have on his shoulders and face. The smallish horns he sported marked him as a tauren, but druids held themselves mostly apart from the Alliance/Horde squabbles, and Alanon and Arien had no hesitation about helping him. "He's in the wrong shape for me to hold him still much," Arien whispered, as they tried to figure how to not hurt the bear. Alanon looked unhappy, but all he could say was, "We'll just have to try not to beat him up too much." She nodded, Alanon shifted again, and he trotted out to challenge the hunter. It called the bear to attack them at once, and Arien had to pull back her axe-swing more than once to avoid him, but after a long, dancing battle, the hunter fell. The bear continued his attack, however, and finally the two were forced to fight back to defend themselves. Before too long, the bear's angry red eyes seemed to clear, and he suddenly broke off his attack. He stood panting for a few seconds, then shifted into his tauren form and walked to the campfire, plopping down next to it, still looking confused. Arien slowly approached, Alanon right behind her, and she told him about his friend they had already discovered, as well as the two still unaccounted for. Alanon looked him over for any major injuries, as he thought for a moment. "Well, now that I'm free of that hunter, I can get out of here fine. Perhaps I will collect my companion on the way out," the tauren finally decided. Alanon nodded, having found nothing more serious than some small cuts and bruises, and the two of them continued, hearing some strange noises ahead.
Around another bend in the tunnel, Arien noticed some dark shapes on the ground. As they neared, she saw they were more nether rays, dead. She shuddered a bit at the sight of so many, and Alanon, a bear once again, remarked wryly, "You should be glad you can't smell as well as me right now." They turned the last corner, and saw a huge, strange creature moving about the piles of ray bodies. It was similar to the tall marsh walkers that roamed the waterways of the marsh, but much bigger, and solid black. It made low hissing noises as it fed on several of the half-rotted rays, and Arien began feeling slightly ill, watching it. Alanon was looking at her, and seemed to pick up on it. "Let's get it," he growled. She nodded and tightened her grip on her axe. Once again Alanon led, Arien letting him grab the monster's attention. As she moved in to join the battle though, it started casting magic, throwing chains of lightning around the cavern. Arien got too close on one blast, and was knocked back, lightning crackling around her hands as she stood back up. She stayed back after that, throwing healing spells on Alanon, and as the creature weakened, she called a hammer made of holy energy and threw it as hard as she could. The monster fell, leaving a small opening in the back of the cave clear. Bear-Alanon backed a few steps from the body and sat down, breathing hard, and Arien came up beside him, checking to see if he needed more healing. He was fine, though, if slightly out of breath, and they went to inspect the small doorway, finding it dropped into the same tunnel they had started from. They both looked at each other and shook their heads. "How convenient," Alanon said, with an ironic tone. They dropped down together, and wearily backtracked to the entrance.
+ + +
The two of them sat around in the instance for a while afterwards, chatting and such, but I'm gonna end the story there, because I don't have the entire dialog, and I don't want to wind up forgetting anything important. Hope you enjoyed it!
And now to go finish setting up my new laptop that I just got for Christmas. :D
Hope everyone else had a good holiday! /Waves
Dec 1, 2009
Pilgrim's Bounty Shenanigens
Massive Wall o' Text alert :D And some hunter/druid mischief. >.>
Enjoy!
Tadrith was sprawled on his chair, at the table in front of Stormwind, completely bored. Shaurria lay under the table, equally bored. Tad was actually starting to doze off, when a voice hissed in his ear, "Nice lil spread they got 'ere, 'ey mate?" Tad jumped slightly, opening one eye to look at the seat next to him. A dirty, rogue-ish looking man, almost certainly one of Old Town's less reputable citizens, was looking at him, while filching bits of turkey and chunks of sweet potato in napkins into his pockets. He grinned, showing at least three missing teeth. "Course, the Horde gots tables too. They get real mad when you try 'n snitch stuff from 'em, tho'." Tad simply stared at him, slowly raising one eyebrow. The vagabond finally shifted uncomfortably in his seat, then abrubtly got up and went to another table, where he began grabbing handfuls of stuffing. Tad sighed and looked down at Shaur, sprawled half-alseep under the table. An idea began to grow slowly in the back of his mind. Reaching down, he gently tugged her tail. "Heya Fuzzy, just exactly how bored are you?"
Not much later, Tad and Shaur were getting on the boat that travelled to the goblin town, Ratchet. As soon as the boat landed, they mounted their sabers and headed to Orgrimmar. They found the feasting tables outside the city, far enough that the guards at the entrance didn't even notice them. The locals at the tables, however gave them several dirty looks, and a few muttered what Tad assumed were threats. They weren't attacked, however, though Tad noticed a blood elf watching them, and especially Shaur, closely. They left after only a couple minutes, deciding to travel to Thunder Bluff.
It was a long ride, but their mounts were in good condition, and they set a good pace, steady and not too fast, and soon entered the green rolling mesas of Mulgore. Tad entertained Shaur with the story of travelling here and finding Keenath, and before too long, they saw the towering bluffs in the distance. As they neared it, they saw more Horde gathered, looking far more agressive and angry than at Orgrimmar. The two elves slowed their mounts, finally stopping and leaving them tethered a safe distance away. With Shaur in her catform, they approached the bluff leading to the lifts to the town. A shower of stones, arrows, and curses drove them back, however. They withdrew a short distance away, and decided on a plan. Shaur, still in kitty form, slunk into the grass, sneaking her way up the front of the slope, while Tad snuck around the back. A Tauren druid found Shaur, and chased her away, but the commotion let Tad get near enough to a table to grab a turkey drumstick and a couple potatoes. The two then withdrew again, and Tad shared his snack. Shaur, naturally, took most of the turkey.
As they sat there, the same blood elf from Ogrimmar came up to them. Tad tensed, expecting trouble, but suddenly he noticed her very round belly. The fact that Skan was sitting calmly, eyeing the black lion at the Sin'dorei's side, only helped Tad relax further. She stopped several steps away, and simply stood there until Shaur looked up and noticed her. With a curious "Mrrow", she went over to the blood elf, who knelt and appeared to be talking to her. Tad watched, his wariness beginning to fade and a smile starting on his face. After a few minutes, Shaur stood, rubbed her head against the elf's leg, and walked back to Tad, looking up at him. He nodded to her, and swung back up on Fog's back, giving the blood elf a respectful nod.
They travelled back to the Eastern Kingdoms, taking gryphons to the Plaguelands. From there they got on their sabers again and headed towards Tirisfal. They reached the Lordearon ruins, only to find more horde fighters outside. They halted a safe distance away, and Shaur hopped off her mount and shifted to catform again. She snuck through the shadowy bushes, until she got to the doorway, where she was spotted. She came high-tailing back, curses and a couple arrows following her. "Tad! They're really mad," she reported, unnecessarily, after shifting back to her elf form. She then looked back, and Tad saw a brief smile on her face, before she turned cat again. Following her gaze, he saw the exact same blood elf that had been at the other cities. Shaur went up to her, purring, and got an earrub. Then the two elves stood looking at each other, while each one's cat imitated their masters. The Sin'dorei tried speaking in Thalassian, but even that was too different for Tad to understand her. He shrugged at her, apologizing in Darnassian, which he knew she couldn't understand, though he hoped it would show his appreciation of her efforts. After a few more minutes of trying to converse with gestures and a few simple words, Tad suddenly realized Shaur had vanished. Almost as soon as he noticed, there was a commotion at the Undercity's gate. Shaur came tearing back down the road, eyes huge and with a large turkey drumstick in her mouth. Tad gaped at her for a second, then almost fell over laughing. He quickly mounted Fog, and followed the frightened but triumphant druid back towards the Plaguelands. Looking back, he saw the blood elf waving at them, and waved back.
Reaching the Bulwark, the three companions shared Shaur's prize, with Skan getting most of it this time. Shaur was too excited to eat much, and Tad was, as usual, more concerned for his friend than himself. They then mounted once more, and headed for Silvermoon City, by way of the Ghostlands. The trip was uneventful, and when they arrived, they found less hostile Horde members, and guards posted far enough away that they were hardly noticed. And, sure enough, the blood elf hunter was there again. She approached them as they sat at the furthest table, when suddenly there was a small commotion. Shaur stared wide-eyed at the patrolling guard running towards her, and sprang out of her chair, shifting to cat in mid-leap. She took off at a dead sprint. Tad and the blood elf looked at each other, and followed.
Tad hopped on Fog to check the road in the direction Shaur had taken, then backtracked down it when he didn't see her. He soon caught up, finding her not far from the feast tables, in her swift cheetah form. She suddenly shifted back into her usual smoky blue-gray cat form, and Tad noticed the blood elf walking up to her. She sat, and Shaur came up and lay down in front of her, with her head in the hunter's lap (what little lap she had). Tad walked up carefully, trying not to startle them, but they heard him coming easily. The elf gave him a small smile, as she stroked Shaur and rubbed her ears. The black lion sat nearby, looking decidedly jealous. Tad stood a few feet away, watching for a bit, then noticed the sun sitting on the horizon. "Fuzzy?" he called quietly. "Getting late now, we best head back before Star and Arvoss start worrying." Shaur sighed, raising her head to look at him. The blood elf seemed to know what he was saying, because she gently pushed Shaur up to her feet, gave her one last scratch, and began motioning for her to go. Shaur sighed again, but then trotted to Tad's side. The elves waved goodbye to each other, as the Kal'dorei mounted their sabers and started back the way they had come. They rode in companionable silence for most of the way, but finally Shaur spoke up, "That other elf? She was nice." "Yes, she was," Tad replied. Shaur sat on her saber quietly for several minutes, then she stirred, turned to Tad, and asked, "Tad, why was she so fat?"
Sorry it took so long to get this down. I now understand why my sis complains about writer's block so much. Also, cross-faction RP is fun.
Goodnight! /waves
Enjoy!
Tadrith was sprawled on his chair, at the table in front of Stormwind, completely bored. Shaurria lay under the table, equally bored. Tad was actually starting to doze off, when a voice hissed in his ear, "Nice lil spread they got 'ere, 'ey mate?" Tad jumped slightly, opening one eye to look at the seat next to him. A dirty, rogue-ish looking man, almost certainly one of Old Town's less reputable citizens, was looking at him, while filching bits of turkey and chunks of sweet potato in napkins into his pockets. He grinned, showing at least three missing teeth. "Course, the Horde gots tables too. They get real mad when you try 'n snitch stuff from 'em, tho'." Tad simply stared at him, slowly raising one eyebrow. The vagabond finally shifted uncomfortably in his seat, then abrubtly got up and went to another table, where he began grabbing handfuls of stuffing. Tad sighed and looked down at Shaur, sprawled half-alseep under the table. An idea began to grow slowly in the back of his mind. Reaching down, he gently tugged her tail. "Heya Fuzzy, just exactly how bored are you?"
Not much later, Tad and Shaur were getting on the boat that travelled to the goblin town, Ratchet. As soon as the boat landed, they mounted their sabers and headed to Orgrimmar. They found the feasting tables outside the city, far enough that the guards at the entrance didn't even notice them. The locals at the tables, however gave them several dirty looks, and a few muttered what Tad assumed were threats. They weren't attacked, however, though Tad noticed a blood elf watching them, and especially Shaur, closely. They left after only a couple minutes, deciding to travel to Thunder Bluff.
It was a long ride, but their mounts were in good condition, and they set a good pace, steady and not too fast, and soon entered the green rolling mesas of Mulgore. Tad entertained Shaur with the story of travelling here and finding Keenath, and before too long, they saw the towering bluffs in the distance. As they neared it, they saw more Horde gathered, looking far more agressive and angry than at Orgrimmar. The two elves slowed their mounts, finally stopping and leaving them tethered a safe distance away. With Shaur in her catform, they approached the bluff leading to the lifts to the town. A shower of stones, arrows, and curses drove them back, however. They withdrew a short distance away, and decided on a plan. Shaur, still in kitty form, slunk into the grass, sneaking her way up the front of the slope, while Tad snuck around the back. A Tauren druid found Shaur, and chased her away, but the commotion let Tad get near enough to a table to grab a turkey drumstick and a couple potatoes. The two then withdrew again, and Tad shared his snack. Shaur, naturally, took most of the turkey.
As they sat there, the same blood elf from Ogrimmar came up to them. Tad tensed, expecting trouble, but suddenly he noticed her very round belly. The fact that Skan was sitting calmly, eyeing the black lion at the Sin'dorei's side, only helped Tad relax further. She stopped several steps away, and simply stood there until Shaur looked up and noticed her. With a curious "Mrrow", she went over to the blood elf, who knelt and appeared to be talking to her. Tad watched, his wariness beginning to fade and a smile starting on his face. After a few minutes, Shaur stood, rubbed her head against the elf's leg, and walked back to Tad, looking up at him. He nodded to her, and swung back up on Fog's back, giving the blood elf a respectful nod.
They travelled back to the Eastern Kingdoms, taking gryphons to the Plaguelands. From there they got on their sabers again and headed towards Tirisfal. They reached the Lordearon ruins, only to find more horde fighters outside. They halted a safe distance away, and Shaur hopped off her mount and shifted to catform again. She snuck through the shadowy bushes, until she got to the doorway, where she was spotted. She came high-tailing back, curses and a couple arrows following her. "Tad! They're really mad," she reported, unnecessarily, after shifting back to her elf form. She then looked back, and Tad saw a brief smile on her face, before she turned cat again. Following her gaze, he saw the exact same blood elf that had been at the other cities. Shaur went up to her, purring, and got an earrub. Then the two elves stood looking at each other, while each one's cat imitated their masters. The Sin'dorei tried speaking in Thalassian, but even that was too different for Tad to understand her. He shrugged at her, apologizing in Darnassian, which he knew she couldn't understand, though he hoped it would show his appreciation of her efforts. After a few more minutes of trying to converse with gestures and a few simple words, Tad suddenly realized Shaur had vanished. Almost as soon as he noticed, there was a commotion at the Undercity's gate. Shaur came tearing back down the road, eyes huge and with a large turkey drumstick in her mouth. Tad gaped at her for a second, then almost fell over laughing. He quickly mounted Fog, and followed the frightened but triumphant druid back towards the Plaguelands. Looking back, he saw the blood elf waving at them, and waved back.
Reaching the Bulwark, the three companions shared Shaur's prize, with Skan getting most of it this time. Shaur was too excited to eat much, and Tad was, as usual, more concerned for his friend than himself. They then mounted once more, and headed for Silvermoon City, by way of the Ghostlands. The trip was uneventful, and when they arrived, they found less hostile Horde members, and guards posted far enough away that they were hardly noticed. And, sure enough, the blood elf hunter was there again. She approached them as they sat at the furthest table, when suddenly there was a small commotion. Shaur stared wide-eyed at the patrolling guard running towards her, and sprang out of her chair, shifting to cat in mid-leap. She took off at a dead sprint. Tad and the blood elf looked at each other, and followed.
Tad hopped on Fog to check the road in the direction Shaur had taken, then backtracked down it when he didn't see her. He soon caught up, finding her not far from the feast tables, in her swift cheetah form. She suddenly shifted back into her usual smoky blue-gray cat form, and Tad noticed the blood elf walking up to her. She sat, and Shaur came up and lay down in front of her, with her head in the hunter's lap (what little lap she had). Tad walked up carefully, trying not to startle them, but they heard him coming easily. The elf gave him a small smile, as she stroked Shaur and rubbed her ears. The black lion sat nearby, looking decidedly jealous. Tad stood a few feet away, watching for a bit, then noticed the sun sitting on the horizon. "Fuzzy?" he called quietly. "Getting late now, we best head back before Star and Arvoss start worrying." Shaur sighed, raising her head to look at him. The blood elf seemed to know what he was saying, because she gently pushed Shaur up to her feet, gave her one last scratch, and began motioning for her to go. Shaur sighed again, but then trotted to Tad's side. The elves waved goodbye to each other, as the Kal'dorei mounted their sabers and started back the way they had come. They rode in companionable silence for most of the way, but finally Shaur spoke up, "That other elf? She was nice." "Yes, she was," Tad replied. Shaur sat on her saber quietly for several minutes, then she stirred, turned to Tad, and asked, "Tad, why was she so fat?"
Sorry it took so long to get this down. I now understand why my sis complains about writer's block so much. Also, cross-faction RP is fun.
Goodnight! /waves
Nov 16, 2009
Overtime for Therapy Cat
(Sleepy-rambling alert :P)
Windstar slowly padded into her room in the Gilded Rose. She shifted out of cat form, and changed out of her slightly-damp shirt into a clean one. She paused, holding the tear-stained shirt for a moment, playing the evening over again in her head. It had started when she and Shaurria went to Faldir's Cove, in Arathi, where her friend Arrens was hiding. Aely had been there visiting him too, and as the druids settled, the humans began discussing a subject that made them both sad, lost loves. Something someone said seemed to hit a nerve with Shaur, because by the time Aely, Star and Takani said goodbye to Arrens, she had vanished. Star followed her trail, and eventually caught up to the depressed druid, who finally had the breakdown that she had needed for so long. Star held and comforted her friend, and when Shaur had cried herself out and asked to go home, and to Arvoss, Star was relieved to head home to Stormwind.
Star shifted back into cat form, and softly padded out of her room, into the one Arvoss kept. She could see him on the bed, with Shaur a dark, exhausted huddle next to him. Arvoss gave her a small, sad smile as she settled on a corner rug. Almost immediately, she heard something that made her jump back to her feet. The smile Arvoss gave her, as she quickly trotted back to her own room, was much bigger than the previous one. Star re-entered her room, and quickly shifted out of cat form to throw herself into her brother's arms. Tad caught her, wrapping his strong steady arms around her. Skan came over to sniff her hand, then went back to the thick pad in the corner. "It is so good to see you, Tad. It's been such a long day." "Well, come relax, and you can tell me all about it."
- - -
Poor Star hardly knows what to do with herself right now. Tonight was apparently sad RP night, first with a friend of the Riders getting out of SI:7's custody, but being quite worse for wear, then Arrens and Aely having their little talk, then Shaur finally bursting the dam she had been hiding behind for so long. After all that, I just had to think of something that would let my little druid feel better and get some comfort of her own. This reminds me of a line in a book I read, that kind of got stuck in my head. "Who heals the healer?" So many of Star's friends are having a bad time right now, she's wearing herself out a bit worrying about them, and has no one she can turn to, to 'recharge' herself. Don't get me wrong, it is fun RP, it just gets a little emotionally tiring sometimes, especially when I'm having problems with Lack of Sleep.
Windstar slowly padded into her room in the Gilded Rose. She shifted out of cat form, and changed out of her slightly-damp shirt into a clean one. She paused, holding the tear-stained shirt for a moment, playing the evening over again in her head. It had started when she and Shaurria went to Faldir's Cove, in Arathi, where her friend Arrens was hiding. Aely had been there visiting him too, and as the druids settled, the humans began discussing a subject that made them both sad, lost loves. Something someone said seemed to hit a nerve with Shaur, because by the time Aely, Star and Takani said goodbye to Arrens, she had vanished. Star followed her trail, and eventually caught up to the depressed druid, who finally had the breakdown that she had needed for so long. Star held and comforted her friend, and when Shaur had cried herself out and asked to go home, and to Arvoss, Star was relieved to head home to Stormwind.
Star shifted back into cat form, and softly padded out of her room, into the one Arvoss kept. She could see him on the bed, with Shaur a dark, exhausted huddle next to him. Arvoss gave her a small, sad smile as she settled on a corner rug. Almost immediately, she heard something that made her jump back to her feet. The smile Arvoss gave her, as she quickly trotted back to her own room, was much bigger than the previous one. Star re-entered her room, and quickly shifted out of cat form to throw herself into her brother's arms. Tad caught her, wrapping his strong steady arms around her. Skan came over to sniff her hand, then went back to the thick pad in the corner. "It is so good to see you, Tad. It's been such a long day." "Well, come relax, and you can tell me all about it."
- - -
Poor Star hardly knows what to do with herself right now. Tonight was apparently sad RP night, first with a friend of the Riders getting out of SI:7's custody, but being quite worse for wear, then Arrens and Aely having their little talk, then Shaur finally bursting the dam she had been hiding behind for so long. After all that, I just had to think of something that would let my little druid feel better and get some comfort of her own. This reminds me of a line in a book I read, that kind of got stuck in my head. "Who heals the healer?" So many of Star's friends are having a bad time right now, she's wearing herself out a bit worrying about them, and has no one she can turn to, to 'recharge' herself. Don't get me wrong, it is fun RP, it just gets a little emotionally tiring sometimes, especially when I'm having problems with Lack of Sleep.
And about the story? Shaurria's player will have a better detailed version in a day or so, on her blog, so anyone curious can read it there.
Back to work tomorrow, after 4 days off in a row. Mini-vacations are nice, but the longer I'm away from my job, the more I don't want to go back. Time to find a new job? Maybe. :(
/Waves
Nov 11, 2009
Too Much Awesome!
Just had the best RP night ever. I should be going to bed now, but I'm not quite ready for sleep yet. Besides, I'll forget half of it by morning if I wait. It all started in Moonglade. You can read the prelude here on my sister's blog. Since she had to wait for me to get off work, we just started from where the story ended. Aelflaed and Feliche came in response to Arvoss' request for some company/assistance, and we all finally got Shaurria settled enough to finally tell her story.
After a lot of talking and Shaur-comforting, she was ok enough to go back to Stormwind and the Pig.
We then had a mostly normal night of hanging out in our kitty forms, begging earrubs, until someone came and (I'm guessing) gave Tarquin, the Wildfire Riders' leader, a warning. He left the Pig in a hurry. Soon after, several of the Stormwind Guard came with a warrant for Tarq's arrest. What followed was one of the awesomest RP I have ever gotten to participate in. The guards appropriated some stuff, the Captain demanded Tarq's location, threatened everyone in the room with arrest, almost did arrest 3 different Riders, and finally had her guards arrest the npcs Christoph and Aedis. For making a disturbance (rofl). ICly, it was a very tense, and rather scary, situation. In the OOC channel, we were all having a blast. Finally everything settled, and then Aely went up the spokesman of the Riders, and totally chewed him out, for using the recent passing of one of their members as a way to put a halt to the situation. Windstar, who had stood near Aely and Arvoss the whole time the guard was there, and Shaur, who had stealthed and hid when Arvoss told her to, then spent the rest of the evening with Aely, trying to comfort and help calm her after the rough night. Finally, after most everyone else had left the Pig, we just sat on the front steps and talked, with our friend on his pally Fastrada (a.k.a. Frazle), til afks sort of broke up the conversation. I was too tired to concentrate by then anyways, and me and Fastrada logged soon after.
Stuff like this is why I love Feathermoon, and I consider myself lucky as heck to have met the Riders. I have never gotten such a welcoming feeling on any other server, not even Gilneas, where my first, best friends are. Honestly, now, regular PVE servers have just gotten boring. RP > raiding any day, IMO.
(Edit, just to clarify: I do enjoy raiding, and it can be very fun, it's just when raid leaders start to stress more on how many times we wipe when learning a fight, and who is not doing something right, and just whining in general, it takes the fun totally out of the raid, and makes it seem more like work. And srsly, hanging with friends beats work anyday, amirite?)
Gonna end there, cause I have a headache now and really need sleep. I've been thinking up more hunter and/or druid stuff to write about, so will probably have something on that subject soon-ish (if I can stop playing the game long enough to post something >.<).
Goodnight! /waves
After a lot of talking and Shaur-comforting, she was ok enough to go back to Stormwind and the Pig.
We then had a mostly normal night of hanging out in our kitty forms, begging earrubs, until someone came and (I'm guessing) gave Tarquin, the Wildfire Riders' leader, a warning. He left the Pig in a hurry. Soon after, several of the Stormwind Guard came with a warrant for Tarq's arrest. What followed was one of the awesomest RP I have ever gotten to participate in. The guards appropriated some stuff, the Captain demanded Tarq's location, threatened everyone in the room with arrest, almost did arrest 3 different Riders, and finally had her guards arrest the npcs Christoph and Aedis. For making a disturbance (rofl). ICly, it was a very tense, and rather scary, situation. In the OOC channel, we were all having a blast. Finally everything settled, and then Aely went up the spokesman of the Riders, and totally chewed him out, for using the recent passing of one of their members as a way to put a halt to the situation. Windstar, who had stood near Aely and Arvoss the whole time the guard was there, and Shaur, who had stealthed and hid when Arvoss told her to, then spent the rest of the evening with Aely, trying to comfort and help calm her after the rough night. Finally, after most everyone else had left the Pig, we just sat on the front steps and talked, with our friend on his pally Fastrada (a.k.a. Frazle), til afks sort of broke up the conversation. I was too tired to concentrate by then anyways, and me and Fastrada logged soon after.
Stuff like this is why I love Feathermoon, and I consider myself lucky as heck to have met the Riders. I have never gotten such a welcoming feeling on any other server, not even Gilneas, where my first, best friends are. Honestly, now, regular PVE servers have just gotten boring. RP > raiding any day, IMO.
(Edit, just to clarify: I do enjoy raiding, and it can be very fun, it's just when raid leaders start to stress more on how many times we wipe when learning a fight, and who is not doing something right, and just whining in general, it takes the fun totally out of the raid, and makes it seem more like work. And srsly, hanging with friends beats work anyday, amirite?)
Gonna end there, cause I have a headache now and really need sleep. I've been thinking up more hunter and/or druid stuff to write about, so will probably have something on that subject soon-ish (if I can stop playing the game long enough to post something >.<).
Goodnight! /waves
Nov 8, 2009
Windstar meets Arvoss
A little bit I wrote about my druid meeting my sister's DK. Enjoy!
The young druid Windstar walked aimlessly towards the front gates of Stormwind City. She was feeling a bit lonely and confused, and hadn't found many among the humans in the city that were willing to help her out. Her mentor in Darnassus had told her to 'go out and see the world', but it wasn't easy when her Common was just good enough to hold a decent conversation, and she didn't know any good areas to pick up some kind of work. A sudden commotion brought her out of her thoughts, and she looked ahead to the gates. It looked like another Death Knight was on his way to get his official pardon from the King. 'Their' pardons, she corrected herself; she hadn't seen the Gnome at first, half-hidden in the tall human's shadow. She stood aside, watching absently at first. Then she began noticing something about the human; he wasn't responding like all the other Death Knights she had seen. They had all responded to the guards' resentment with either anger or disdain, but this man simply walked stoicly through the spits, curses, and flung vegatables, his head held high, like they weren't even there. Star was intrigued.
Shifting to her bear form, Star began tagging along, a safe distance behind. The more she saw of this human, the more her respect for him grew. He never even looked at the people that were cursing him, never moved from his path to avoid anyone. On the bridge between the Trade District and Old Town, though, he paused. Star stopped too, and nervously stepped behind a wall. After looking in her direction for a minute, he turned and continued. "Arvoss? What is it?" the gnome asked. "Nothin'. Though' Ah saw somethin'," the human replied, in a thick northern accent. Star let them get a little farther ahead before continuing to follow. Around a corner, almost at the Keep, the Death Knights stopped again. Star hopped behind a handy tree, but it didn't hide her very well, and she was afraid she had been too slow anyway. Sure enough, the human, Arvoss, looked right at her. When the gnome questioned him again, he replied,"Theah's a druid followin' us." Star began backing away, keeping behind the tree, but the Knights just looked at her for a moment, then the gnome tugged on the human's belt, being unable to reach higher. They both continued again, and Star still followed, unable to help herself. At the entrance of the Keep, however, she paused. After watching them walk up the long hallway, she turned to the side, and sat down to wait.
It didn't take long before King Wrynn's voice bellowed through the city, and not long after that the two Death Knights came back out. Star came out of the corner she had been sitting in, and stood waiting to be noticed. Almost immediately, the human looked right at her, and nudged his companion. "'S th' druid tha' was followin' us," he said softly. The gnome followed his gaze and nodded. Star nervously approached them, then shifted out of bear form, offering a small bow as greeting. "Hello," she said. They nodded back, silent, but she saw a friendly glint in both sets of blue-glowing eyes. Taking some courage from that, she continued, "I saw you walking through the city. Those guards... that wasn't right." The gnome shrugged it off, but the human just stood watching her. Finally he answered, "They jus' doan' ken any better, eh? 'S not really theah faul'." Windstar shrugged slightly, not entirely convinced, but let it go. "My name is Windstar," she told them. "Arvoss," the human replied. "I'm Frazle, do you know any good engineering shops in the city?" the gnome asked. Star couldn't resist a chuckle. "I'm afraid I don't have much interest in engineering, but there's a few gnomes in the Dwarven District that you can talk to," she told him. He gave her a bright grin and headed in the direction she indicated, practically rubbing his hands together in glee. "Ah'm more int'rested in a good tavern, m'self," Arvoss said. Star looked at him, and said, "That I might be able to help with. There's one called the Pig and Whistle not far from here, in Old Town." "Well then, lead oan, lass," he replied with a bow.
(Hope I got Arvoss' accent right, if not I'll have to edit it later :P)
The young druid Windstar walked aimlessly towards the front gates of Stormwind City. She was feeling a bit lonely and confused, and hadn't found many among the humans in the city that were willing to help her out. Her mentor in Darnassus had told her to 'go out and see the world', but it wasn't easy when her Common was just good enough to hold a decent conversation, and she didn't know any good areas to pick up some kind of work. A sudden commotion brought her out of her thoughts, and she looked ahead to the gates. It looked like another Death Knight was on his way to get his official pardon from the King. 'Their' pardons, she corrected herself; she hadn't seen the Gnome at first, half-hidden in the tall human's shadow. She stood aside, watching absently at first. Then she began noticing something about the human; he wasn't responding like all the other Death Knights she had seen. They had all responded to the guards' resentment with either anger or disdain, but this man simply walked stoicly through the spits, curses, and flung vegatables, his head held high, like they weren't even there. Star was intrigued.
Shifting to her bear form, Star began tagging along, a safe distance behind. The more she saw of this human, the more her respect for him grew. He never even looked at the people that were cursing him, never moved from his path to avoid anyone. On the bridge between the Trade District and Old Town, though, he paused. Star stopped too, and nervously stepped behind a wall. After looking in her direction for a minute, he turned and continued. "Arvoss? What is it?" the gnome asked. "Nothin'. Though' Ah saw somethin'," the human replied, in a thick northern accent. Star let them get a little farther ahead before continuing to follow. Around a corner, almost at the Keep, the Death Knights stopped again. Star hopped behind a handy tree, but it didn't hide her very well, and she was afraid she had been too slow anyway. Sure enough, the human, Arvoss, looked right at her. When the gnome questioned him again, he replied,"Theah's a druid followin' us." Star began backing away, keeping behind the tree, but the Knights just looked at her for a moment, then the gnome tugged on the human's belt, being unable to reach higher. They both continued again, and Star still followed, unable to help herself. At the entrance of the Keep, however, she paused. After watching them walk up the long hallway, she turned to the side, and sat down to wait.
It didn't take long before King Wrynn's voice bellowed through the city, and not long after that the two Death Knights came back out. Star came out of the corner she had been sitting in, and stood waiting to be noticed. Almost immediately, the human looked right at her, and nudged his companion. "'S th' druid tha' was followin' us," he said softly. The gnome followed his gaze and nodded. Star nervously approached them, then shifted out of bear form, offering a small bow as greeting. "Hello," she said. They nodded back, silent, but she saw a friendly glint in both sets of blue-glowing eyes. Taking some courage from that, she continued, "I saw you walking through the city. Those guards... that wasn't right." The gnome shrugged it off, but the human just stood watching her. Finally he answered, "They jus' doan' ken any better, eh? 'S not really theah faul'." Windstar shrugged slightly, not entirely convinced, but let it go. "My name is Windstar," she told them. "Arvoss," the human replied. "I'm Frazle, do you know any good engineering shops in the city?" the gnome asked. Star couldn't resist a chuckle. "I'm afraid I don't have much interest in engineering, but there's a few gnomes in the Dwarven District that you can talk to," she told him. He gave her a bright grin and headed in the direction she indicated, practically rubbing his hands together in glee. "Ah'm more int'rested in a good tavern, m'self," Arvoss said. Star looked at him, and said, "That I might be able to help with. There's one called the Pig and Whistle not far from here, in Old Town." "Well then, lead oan, lass," he replied with a bow.
(Hope I got Arvoss' accent right, if not I'll have to edit it later :P)
Oct 28, 2009
Background Bits...
... because I'm bored and tired but not ready to sleep yet.
My Treng and my sister's Gwynifar have an interesting little story. They met almost by accident. Gwyn had gotten a reputation for being a prankster in her home of Silvermoon, so her parents sent her to Durotar, to see if the orcs could help her settle down some. Her mentor there sent her to track a boar, after sending a young orc to do the same thing a few minutes before. The two met on the trail, and immediately hit it off. They became such good friends that Treng asked her if she would like to be adopted into his Icefang Clan, a small Frostwolf subclan. Most of the pets they have gotten were Gwyn's ideas. Treng has learned to just go along with it. :) My sister and I created a guild for them on Moon Guard named Shano nor Balah, which means Blood and Honor in Thalassian. The orcish phrase (Treng's personal motto as well) in the Blood Elf language is another symbol of the bond these two have. Treng would literally do anything to protect his 'sister'.
My paladin Arien, on Gilneas, has two very close, important relationships. One is her best friend, my Night Elf warrior Kalenedral. The other is my sister's Nelf druid Alanon. Arien and Kal's friendship is unfortunately all in my head, and in stories I've written (WTB second account?). They met while Arien was in Stormwind, training to be a paladin. Kal had just learned that her older sister had been lost in a failed excursion into Northrend. Arien found her crying in the Cathedral grounds, and comforted her. They continued meeting whenever Arien could get away from her studies, and moved into a small place together when Arien 'graduated'. They are closer than sisters, and almost literally share everything. Later on, Arien met Kal's cousins, which are all my sister's and my elf toons. Alanon, the second oldest in the family, began noticing her, and she soon started noticing him back. He began helping her out with stuff (aka, instances and group quests), and then they began hanging out just because they liked each others' company. He comforted her through the rough time after the Wrathgate, and then the rest of the family began noticing the two's growing relationship. It took forever, as Arien was rather shy, and Alanon had been through a rough relationship with a human a few centuries before, and didn't want to rush with Arien, because he was afraid of messing something up. Long story short, they have finally confessed their feelings to each other, and are very happy now. More detailed posts on Arien's story will be posted in the future, I promise.
And now I am about to doze off on my keyboard, so I'm ending it here, for now. May have to post Arien stuff soon, now that I've started thinking about her again. Goodnight!
My Treng and my sister's Gwynifar have an interesting little story. They met almost by accident. Gwyn had gotten a reputation for being a prankster in her home of Silvermoon, so her parents sent her to Durotar, to see if the orcs could help her settle down some. Her mentor there sent her to track a boar, after sending a young orc to do the same thing a few minutes before. The two met on the trail, and immediately hit it off. They became such good friends that Treng asked her if she would like to be adopted into his Icefang Clan, a small Frostwolf subclan. Most of the pets they have gotten were Gwyn's ideas. Treng has learned to just go along with it. :) My sister and I created a guild for them on Moon Guard named Shano nor Balah, which means Blood and Honor in Thalassian. The orcish phrase (Treng's personal motto as well) in the Blood Elf language is another symbol of the bond these two have. Treng would literally do anything to protect his 'sister'.
My paladin Arien, on Gilneas, has two very close, important relationships. One is her best friend, my Night Elf warrior Kalenedral. The other is my sister's Nelf druid Alanon. Arien and Kal's friendship is unfortunately all in my head, and in stories I've written (WTB second account?). They met while Arien was in Stormwind, training to be a paladin. Kal had just learned that her older sister had been lost in a failed excursion into Northrend. Arien found her crying in the Cathedral grounds, and comforted her. They continued meeting whenever Arien could get away from her studies, and moved into a small place together when Arien 'graduated'. They are closer than sisters, and almost literally share everything. Later on, Arien met Kal's cousins, which are all my sister's and my elf toons. Alanon, the second oldest in the family, began noticing her, and she soon started noticing him back. He began helping her out with stuff (aka, instances and group quests), and then they began hanging out just because they liked each others' company. He comforted her through the rough time after the Wrathgate, and then the rest of the family began noticing the two's growing relationship. It took forever, as Arien was rather shy, and Alanon had been through a rough relationship with a human a few centuries before, and didn't want to rush with Arien, because he was afraid of messing something up. Long story short, they have finally confessed their feelings to each other, and are very happy now. More detailed posts on Arien's story will be posted in the future, I promise.
And now I am about to doze off on my keyboard, so I'm ending it here, for now. May have to post Arien stuff soon, now that I've started thinking about her again. Goodnight!
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