1The sound of marching feet pounded his ears. His face riddled with sweat. The sun beat down on them as if torturing them to work. "Paladin training" he thought to himself, "since when do paladins march in line and fight in masses." Randasan was one of twenty men in observance of Blood Knight Lorden.
Silvermoon City, the home of the high elves of Azeroth, now known as the horde's Blood Elves. This session of training was the usual, nothing special, routine marching, basic weapons and mastery of the light maneuvers. They still wear the leather trainee light armor, to dawn the armor of the Sunfury Elite would mean the end of one's training. Only one recruit dawned a piece of the armor, the elite's sword, Tetsaiga, a gifted young initiate who excelled in all fields of combat, first-aid, and tactics. He stood behind the instructor surveying the "newby's moves" as he called them. To Tetsaiga, one recruit stood out, Randasan, "Pick up your feet worm!" Tetsaiga barked.
"Yes sir!" the twenty yelled.
Arcane energies flower through her graceful hands, she focused only on the target. Archmagistrate Velamus watched in awe at her long-time pupil displaying the arts of arcane magic with ease. Her body relaxed and flowing until it tensed and her eyes focused intensely. With nothing but a flick of the wrists a large banquet dinner was conjured for the Regent lord, "Bravo young Xenaa, bravo!" The hungry eye s of the regent lord and his honored quests looked on the now bursting table covered with exotic meats and candies, wines and ales, cheeses and pastries. Xenaa took a seat next to the Archmagistrate, her teacher and her long time friend and mentor. As they began to eat the Archmagistrate heard a voice ring into her head, "That pupil of yours velamus," the Archmagistrate's eyes shot to the regent lord, "she is quite the impressive one, that power and how to control her abilities with ease. She reminds me a lot of you when you were her age my love."
"You are quite correct," the Archmagistrate smiled, "She is almost ready to take her place as the Sunspire Mistress."
"But then Archmagistrate and Regent Lord Morun, you've put trust into a mere pupil, therefore letting most know you are easily trustworthy," a small voice shot through the regent lord's and the Archmagistrate's minds, "a thousand pardons, but I am flatterd." Xenaa smiled.
Later that evening when all left the Regent Lord's chambers, Xenaa proceeded to walk home. The night sky was beautiful, her emerald eyes darted to all the stars. She wore the traditional garb of the magi apprentice that fit well over her slender body. Her dark brown hair still managed to glisten as she walked down the ramp to the cities renown fountain. She stopped suddenly, she heard a sound in the distance. There in the distance, Randasan stood training on a training dummy and an arcane healing gauge, one made obviously by goblins. She kept walking to get a better look. She was stunned by him, to her he was like the night sky, captivating and amazing. "It's nearly two in the sunrise. Why is this paladin still training... It's amazing!"
Beads of sweat tickled down his brow. He took a breath and calmed himself for another run through of the training. He felt eyes on him, but he wasn't one to delve into people's lives. Suddenly his break was startled by a splashing sound, he turned to see a sight of the apprentice's robes falling head first into the fountain of Silvermoon. He quickly ran over to see if someone needs help, "You ok?" he said to Xenaa trying not to laugh.
"I'm fine." Xenaa said embarrassed, she flicked her wrists and she dried instantly, " Why are you still training paladin? Trying to become a barbarian." She laughed as she fixed her gown.
"Trying isn't enough in what we do young mage." Randasan stated, "It's either do it or die trying," He smiled, "Little effort, however, separates death and glory."
"But rest energized the body for more effort," Xenaa smiled back, noticing his eyes and smile for the first time, as if hypnotized by them for a second.
"Come, I'll walk you home, its too late to walk home by yourself." Randasan held is arm out, "And its my duty as a paladin." He grinned.
"Oh a gentleman!" Xenaa said sarcastically, blushing as well.
Swords clashed, commands threw themselves into the minds of the paladin trainees. Tetsaiga took his usual spot next to Lorden and observed his lowers. Randasan out showed his fellow trainees and caught Tetsaiga's attention. "You!" Tetsaiga pointed at Randasan, "Yea you!" Randasan Shrugged as Tetsaiga walked up to him, " You have skills soldier, what's your name?"
"'Trainee', just like your's." Randasan slyly replied, the trainees laughed.
"Funny guy eh?" Tetsaiga smiled at his spunk, "but really, how good are you paladin?"
"Apparently good enough to attract the attention of a pampered soldier like you." Again Randasan's comment sent the troops roaring with laughter.
"Your inability to follow orders will be your downfall you arrogant-!" Tetsaiga began.
"Tetsaiga! Hold your tongue!" Lorden intervened, "Perhaps you and Tet here should have a duel to train, prove who's better, and shut the hell up!" Lorden said to Randasan.
"No dueling," Randasan said turning and crossing his arms, "I hate the sound of babies crying." That sent the troops roaring again, including Lorden.
"Cry!? Me!?" Tetsaiga howled, "No one's gonna cry here boy! Your dead!"
"Fine then," Lorden intervened once more, "Make him bleed Tet."
The troop's cheer in anticipation as they encircled the paladins giving enough room for a fair fight. Tetsaiga and Randasan both smirked at the other as they gripped their weapons anxious to prove themselves in the presence of Lorden. "Ha!" Tetsaiga shouted as he pounced for his newfound prey, "Got you!"
"Heh," Randasan smiled at Tetsaiga's lack of skill, Sliding underneath him, "Too slow!" Randasan kicked Tetsaiga forward. "So you went off to learn to fly rather than train with the rest of us apparently." Randasan remarked, the troops snickering.
"Shut up!" Tetsaiga roared as he shot a bolt of light knocking Randasan back a step.
"So that's the mighty Tetsaiga only mastery of the light move?" Randasan laughed as the area around the shot of light glowed red. "Apparently someone never went to day one of training!"
"Wha-!" Tetsaiga's chest felt a sharp stabbing sensation in the same spot as Randasan's armor glowed red. Roaring Tetsaiga endured the pain and went after Randasan, each blow to Randasan hurt both of them, until blinding rage consumed Tetsaiga and his eyes glowed bloodlust red. Randasan, meanwhile, had been laughing at every blow from Tetsaiga knowing how it hurt him just as equal to himself. But soon laughter turned to fear as the blows came harder and faster. "Tetsaiga control yourself or you will lose yourself to-!"
"Shut up!" Tetsaiga roared, "I want you dead!" Tetsaiga reared back on his sword and surging light through the blade he cut clean up Randasan's body proving leather armor couldn't protect a paladin from anything. Blood spew into the air, Randasan's now unconscious body flew to the ground.
"Randasan!" Lorden shouted as he rushed to the wounded paladin's side. "Quick call for the medical teams, you call for the Archmagistrate! Hurry up!"
"Yes Blood Knight!" Two paladins hurried off.
"I-I-I-I didn't want to.." Tetsaiga quivered.
"You didn't want to what?" Lorden barked, "to hurt him! To kill him!?" Randasan moaned, " Look sharp Tet, Destiny calls!" Lorden motioned to the Archmagistrate heading their way.
"Lorden If I hear one word out of your pathetic mouth I will take some glue and make you completely air tight!" the Archmagistrate shouted, "Where is the Medical team!"
Tetsaiga stared at the now unconscious body of Randasan, the fearful stares of the other recruits, "What have I done?" thought Tetsaiga, "Why does this feel so..." he smiled under his breath, "Good? Why do I not want to stop?"
"That Blood Knight Lorden is an incompetent old Fool!" the Archmagistrate's voice could be heard outside the spire. Xenaa had been reading and studying up for her final test, the histories and mysteries of Azeroth when suddenly the doors burst open and the Archmagistrate and the medical team guided the bed to a room with Randasan wounded atop its feathered structure. Xenaa's eyes widened, "Randasan!" she ran over to the bed as they laid it down in a room over looking the square where the paladins trained.
"You know this recruit?" the Archmagistrate asked.
"Y-yeah we bumped into each other not long ago." Xenaa said embarrassed about the "encounter" with the fountain.
"Good, then Xenaa you watch over him, I need to go discipline a very unorthodox Blood Knight." the Archmagistrate frowned at the annoying task before her.
"Yes, Velamus." Xenaa said as the Archmagistrate left the spire in a flash of light follow by the crest of the Sunfury Spire. Xenaa took in a breath as she removed his armor, blushing as she removed his shirt. She knelt down and concentrated as the arcane energies flowing around the room were concentrated in helping Xenaa perform the task of tending to Randasan's wounds. Moments later the Cities Medical Priest arrived.
"Afternoon Xenaa." The priest said with a smile.
"Hello Noesus!" Xenaa said hugging her longtime friend, the magics behind her still tending to Randasan.
"So this is the 'Randasan' you spoke of, hm?" Noesus said smiling, she examined the situation, then looked at Xenaa, " Quite the looker... Sure you didn't do this on purpose?"
"Noe!" Xenaa shouted smiling.
"I kid, I kid. Ok you've done really everything that can be done at the moment Xen, The burn from the light forged in the blade can only heal over time."
Meanwhile as Noesus and Xenaa tended to Randasan, the Archmagistrate arrived in the square, "Lorden!" she shouted.
"Yes Archmagistrate?" He appeared.
"What was this 'test' you had these two endure?"
"Nothing more than mere sparring milady." Lorden said hoping to end it there as an accident.
"Where was your judgement?" the Archmagistrate said after a pause, "Why didn't you stop the fight when the boy lost his temper!?"
"I thought it would prove useful as means for real, live training."
"Live training?" Lorden nodded in response, " How's this for live training!?" the Archmagistrate shouted as she moved her hand throwing him into a nearby wall, pinning him there, "That! Is live training Fool! If you couldn't defend that then why are you teaching our future soldiers? You pathetic sack of nothing!" Lorden began to cry as he slowing drifted off to slumber...eternally.
Randasan's condition grew worse with every passing second, "Only he himself can bring him out of this," Xenaa thought, "I hope this naaru's light is strong enough." She began to pray as tears formed behind her closed eyes. Hours passed with no signs of improvement, and throughout the night Xenaa stayed at his side. The paladins of Lorden's troops were assigned a different instructor the following day, to Blood Knigh Kranmal. Xenaa stood on the balcony taking note so as to tell Randasan when he woke. Days passed and Randasan still remained unconscious. During that time, the court believed Randasan to be a lost cause, throwing Tetsaiga into prison shortly after receiving the honor of graduating training and dawning the armor of the Blood Knight.
Xenaa lifted the violet shroud over the window and stepped into the room with Randasan. "How is he Noe?" Xenaa sat next to Noesus who was searching Randasan's mind, checking for any mental scarring.
"Oh!" Noesus exclaimed as if she found something interesting, followed by a small giggle.
"What's so funny?" Xenaa had a very disgusted tone in her voice, " He is on the brink of death and your giggling?!"
"Nothing, its nothing." Noesus smiled as she stopped laughing. "His mind is complicated but fine, just physical damage is done, which is easily healed. He is completely unaware of the state he is in. I am willing and able to operate at the moments notice at your command Spire Mistress." Noesus bowed.
"Do it. And be quick, your methods are a tad...how should I say... Unorthodox?" Xenaa smiled.
"Unorthodox you say mistress?" Noesus said grinning to Xenaa, "And what makes my methods unorthodox?" She playfully pouted.
"The fact that those same hand movement can kill a dragon 400 yards away possibly" Xenaa put her hands on her hips making a point. "And if you do that here and fail you will be punished by me personally"
"Ok, ok gees. Don't make this such a personal thing. It's almost as if u like this paladin." Noesus stuck out her tongue at Xenaa. The day turned to night and the dark glow of Noesus' hands emitted across the spire floor. Her hands enclosed into Randasan's chest as she killed all germs my concentrating careful shots of shadow energies into every wound in his body. "At this rate I'll be here for another month or two. Have to focus more of else I get my clothes fire bolted off again."
The morning was warm, everyone had woken up and the paladin squad under the new commander Kranmal was already up and running. The air this day was thin and the light from the beloved sun was murky and orange. The dew was just drying and the stars were just out of sight, this day seemed to hold many promises as Xenaa walked to the room, "Still the light emits?" She thought to herself, "surely Noesus completed her task." She walked more briskly to the room, she pulled back the curtain to see Noesus collapse from exhaustion. "Noe!?" Xenaa shouted as she ran to her.
"It's done mistress, give him time to rest, and preferably some time for me as well?" Noesus' eye shut as she drifted off to an exhausted dreamworld.
"Sleep now Noe, you did great." She laid the priest down and gave her comfort, and said a blessing to allow her sleep to continue unharmed. "Now this paladin, what shall we do with you?" Xenaa began to walk to the window to see the paladins of Randasan's old troop training, "What is it with you paladins?" She began to talk to the unconscious paladin, "Why do you wish to use brute force rather than the arcane energies the Sunwell has given us?" She kneeled next to Randasan examining him from head to toe. "Why are you such prideful beings, that worry me half to death?" She said running her fingers through his hair, "Why do you have me entangled like you do Paladin?"
"Milady?" A servant beckoned.
"What is it now?" Xenaa asked as she shot up from Randasan's side.
"The Blood Knight Tetsaiga has asked for your appearance milady." The servant bowed and continued in his duties.
"Tetsaiga?" Xenaa sat down, "Why does he want to see me? Wasn't he the one who nearly killed my..." She stood nobly and made her way to the Blood Knight's Barracks. The rest of the city now knew about Xenaa, of her beauty and skill as a Magistrate of Silvermoon's Sunfury Spire. Five days had passed since that day the paladins fought each other for what seemed to be pride and selfishness. But really Xenaa thought it had more to do with something bigger. She delved herself in studies to find the truth behind the light drained from the Naaru, a giant godlike creature made of pure crystallis. "Does he keep some of his memories in the light he gives to us?" Xenaa often wondered.
Tetsaiga stood up as the magistrate of the Spire entered the room, "Evening milady I am honored for your presence."
"Leave us." Xenaa said to the guards.
"Do you finally trust me magi? Or is it you've come to kill me?"
"Why paladin, what caused you to bloodlust like the orcs that we so informally call our allies?"
"Rage is caused by pain magi! Like the last time we spoke, blind rage from pain caused me to blindly fight, no matter the cost!" Tetsaiga slammed his black and blood red colored grieves onto the table, "And I don't want to hurt anyone!"
"Interesting.." Xenaa sat down politely, "so you're alibi is that you succumbed to blind temptation which is taught to be ignored in day one of training!" Xenaa fired back.
"I.." Tetsaiga shuddered in fear, "The blood knight Losrden allowed me to skip days one through fifteen in training, mistress." He hung his head in shame.
"So what the report said of you was true then, you were pampered because of your natural gift to wield the light." Xenaa laughed to herself, "So this rage, this pain, anything else in your mind paladin?"
"White light is all I see magistrate. But beg your pardon mistress."
"Hm?" Xenaa doesn't look at him.
"What is to happen to the city after it burns?"
"What?" Xenaa is stunned by the question. "What did you say naive?" Xenaa began to tense up and her blood began to boil.
"It's a vision I had milady. One of this city being burnt to the ground, what are we to become after the chaos has ended?"
"I do not forsee such implications such as your blind eyes do naive!" Xenaa spat back, "But I will take into mind these visions that you have told me paladin, as a fellow blood elf, that is the least I will do."
"Thank you mistress that is all I ask." Tetsaiga bowed graceously.
Xenaa packed up her documents and left the prison motioning for the guards to return to their posts. The night was the same as the one she met Randasan. It was clear and beautiful, the stars still amazed her, only difference was she knows what those stars are, "Amazing how the arcane powers of the elder magi can reach up to the heavens. I will one day make Azeroth a star too." She smiled to herself. She entered the spire and felt the ground tremble. "What's this?!" She forced a levitation and began to make her way to the top of the spire, " Randasan!" She quickly blinked her way up the staircase and found Randasan and Noesus still asleep where she had left them, she left out a sigh of relief and looked out the balcony window.
The sky had turned red, the stars disappeared and a large black twisting nether appeared in the sky above Silvermoon. "Is this?" Xenaa thought. Meteors made of green fire rained down on the city. The bells sounded of an invasion as the meteors landed and sprung out infernals from their cores. "To arms Blood Knights let this night be your final test every surviving member of their troop will be promoted! Onward brothers!" The paladins of Silvermoon came pouring out of the barracks, hundreds of them to defend their home. Among the ranks, Tetsaiga flew onto the battlefield eager to redeem himself.
The battlefield was large, "This is an invasion..." thought Xenaa, "Just like he said."
"So is this the end?" Noesus said rubbing her eyes.
"No, this is the beginning." Xenaa said looking at Randasan still unconscious.
Tetsaiga slain many that night, he still needed to show the Blood Knights he can use his rage and use it for good. Infernals appeared to his left and to his right, he grinned, "So this is what he trains us for?" he thought. He shot a giant burst of light at the infernal to his left and rushed his right and cut the infernal in two. He smiled, he loved the smell of blood now. He raged as he killed demons and infernals. The battle began to look one sided as the silvermoon guards lost control of the situation, the infernals at the gate broke through allowing siege weapons to pour into the city throwing boulders filled with fel energy into buildings destroying them instantly. "Send an emissary to Undercity immediately!" the Archmagistratecommanded as she imploded infernal after infernal. "The spire needs to be defended!" she thought, "No! Xenaa!" She rushed for the Spire.
Xenaa and Noesus looked out onto the battlefield as most of the battle raged off in the distance. "What do you think will happen, Xen?" Noesus said shaking.
"Only one person knows Noe. And he's fighting for something more than strength or pride. But something more." Xenaa's gaze didn't move from the battle until she senced something enter the room. Quickly focusing behind her she shot a wave of fire blazing all that stood within its range. A demon, cloaked, fell dead to the ground. Noesus screamed, as a priest they were never put through any combat training, and for some that's a good idea, seeing as shadow powers can destroy worlds.
"This is going to be interesting... Noesus take the back way out and find the Archmagistrate I will hold 'em off!" Xenaa said grabbing her stave, Noesus just nodded and ran out. "Ok little paladin, I think its about time to wake up!" She said as she readied herself for anything.
