Author's Note
This story is based on the events and character's of Blizzard Entertainment's World of Warcraft(WoW) video game, and all expansions. the story line and characters are originated from a sessions of play using the WoW pen and paper rpg. i do not own any of the material that is cannon to the games. this story does alter the lore of the series slightly, so be prepared, also this one entry is the first several chapters. enjoy, i and my game partners believe this to be a good story, and it isn't close to being done. please leave comments with praise and constructive criticism, this is the first story i have contributed, and i would like to know how to make it better. and now, the story.
Chapter one
The dust rose around Cyclonia's hooves as she came to a halt outside of the gates to the city of Orgrimmar. This was the capital of the Horde, and the home of their leader Thrall. If she were going to join them, she would have to speak with him first, and that meant traveling into this city filled with Orcs, with whom the Draenei shared much animosity. But this is what she felt she had to do.
"Halt!" called one of the guards
"I come with peaceful intentions." She replied
"State your name and your Business."
"I have come to speak with Thrall about joining the Horde."
"Join the Horde, a Draenei? I will let you pass, just to watch you leave rejected. Or dead. Open the gates!"
"We'll see." Cyclonia replied as she walked through the archway.
The city was designed in the usual Orcish style, a stone base and a tent like roof, very basic buildings. Good for a race of warriors. The citizens stared at her as she walked by; it had been a long time since any of them had seen one of her kind. And there were several races that had ever seen anything like her before, or she them. She ignored all the attention that she was receiving, and kept focused on finding the main hall.
Some time later, she found herself at the Valley of Wisdom. She descended into the area looking for someone to give her directions to the Warchief's dwelling. As she approached a older guard, he stared back in bewilderment.
"I never thought to see one of you on Azeroth. I had only heard of you in stories from my parents."
"Well, we are here now, and this one requires directions to the Warchief."
"Go that way down the path, there is a large building called Grammash Hold, you will know it by the Kor'kron, Thrall's personal guard."
"I thank you for your guidance."
She followed her directions, and came upon a large single-story stone building, surrounded by impressively intimidating Orcs in thick armor. As Cyclonia approached the main entrance, two of them barred her path. Cyclonia explained her intentions, and reluctantly they let her pass, but not without an escort.
Together they entered the first room of the hold. They passed through, Cyclonia taking in all of the different races standing about. She guessed them to be shamans, but they all looked so strange to her. There were Orcs, which were normal enough, but also there were large beasts covered in hair, topped with horns, and a long snout like face, as well as tall thin beings with tusks and pointed noses, which wore no shoes. She put this aside trying to make herself accustomed to their appearance. They entered another room, which was lined with Kor'kron along the walls, and in the middle was a large Orc of commanding presence, Cyclonia assumed that this could only be Thrall.
"Warchief, this Draenei has come to speak with you." The escort called to him.
"Leave us." Thrall answered him. The guard left and Thrall looked at her inquisitively. "If I weren't seeing it with my own eyes, I would not believe it were true. A Draenei on Azeroth."
"IT is true my lord, and I am not alone. What is left of our race has crashed on this planet, due to Blood Elf trickery. We were attacked in our assent from Draenor, and now our remains are in the Azuremyst Isle, with some scattered parts in Bloodmyst."
"That is near Darkshore, Alliance territory. How is it that you have come to be here? From your story, I would assume that you would have joined the Alliance."
"Its proximity to the Alliance is exactly why I am here."
"Explain."
"I am a paladin of the Holy Light, and that means that I work continuously towards peace."
"Then why have you come to join the Horde?"
"Before my arrival in Orgrimmar, I went to Darkshore. The Night Elves were happy to take my companions and myself in. They told us of the Alliance, a conglomerate of races that sounded good, but then they told us of the Horde. The way that they described you it sounded as if you were all brutal savages, but they also told of their plans to make things difficult for you. They said that they would intentionally fight with your races just because of your differences of opinion. I asked if the horde had done anything to provoke this antagonism, and they answered that there have been unforgettable actions in the past that justify their current actions." Cyclonia explained, as Thrall listened intently.
"That certainly sounds like the Alliance, never able to forgive. Continue please."
"I am of the mind that past differences should be put aside, and certainly should not evoke violence. Violent action should not be taken unless it is necessary, or the target is evil. After learning of this, I returned to our capital, and spoke to our leader, the Prophet Velen, and told him of this. He said that he and a council of the elders had decided to join the Alliance eventually. I told him that my path told me that this was wrong, and that I was going to join the Horde. He was displeased, but my path comes before my master."
"I believe your tale, although it is strange for a paladin of the Holy Light to come to the Horde, we are primarily shamanistic and war like, but we do strive for peace with the Alliance, so I understand your decision."
"I ask you now formally, may I join your ranks?"
"You may, but you must take the Blood Oath of the Horde."
"Then I shall."
"Repeat after me. Lok'tar ogar! Victory or death-it is these words that bind me to the Horde. For they are the most sacred and fundamental of truths to any warrior of the Horde. I give my flesh and blood freely to the Warchief. I am the instrument of my Warchief's desire. I am a weapon of my Warchief's command. From this moment till the end of days I live and die-For the Horde!"
Cyclonia repeated these words, and thus was the first Draenei to be welcomed into the Horde. At this time no one could foretell that she would be destined for the life of a great hero.
Chapter two
"Now that you are a member of the Horde, you must earn your keep. Go to the Valley of Trials, they may have a job for you to do." Thrall spoke to Cyclonia now as a servant rather than a guest
"Yes, Warchief." She replied smartly
"Take this Tabard, others may not be as welcoming as myself."
Receiving the tabard, Cyclonia left Grammash Hold to locate somewhere to purchase items for her journey. Once equipped she left for the Valley of Trials. She now carried with her a small hammer, a light steel shield, and armor made of leather, among other traveling supplies. Cyclonia obtained directions to her destination, and set out to find her first quest for the Horde.
The journey was uneventful, but she could tell that it would be dark soon and that she was nowhere near the Valley of Trials. There was, in the distance, a small town stop a hill. It seemed that even though it was still early in the evening, she might not find another town later. So, Cyclonia decided that she would stop there for the night.
She found that the town was called Razor Hill. It was an Orcish town, and rather peaceful. Though in the midst of all the peace, there seemed to be a sort of domestic disturbance. Two Trolls, as she had found them called, were standing in the street hurling spells at each other. Cyclonia, dismissed this as being one of the customs that she yet did not understand, until, after having a blast of green light thrown in his direction, one of the Trolls dodged to the right, avoiding the blast, but putting it on course with an Orc child. The blast hit the child, and it fell to the ground. At this point Cyclonia was headed to the center of the action. She came between the two of them, and raised her hands.
"Stop, the both of you!" she shouted
The trolls looked at her awkwardly, and then proceeded to throw their spells. Cyclonia tried to get them to subside twice more, explaining that child had been caught in the cross fire, but to no avail. Seeing no other way to stop the battle, she came to the Troll closest to her, pulled back her right arm, and threw it forward as hard as she could towards the Troll's head. The hit connected with thunderous force, sending the troll reeling back a few steps. Both of them stopped and looked at her, as did the rest of the town. She felt small, being the center of attention, but she knew that she had to stand her ground, so stand she did. The Trolls looked at each other, and recognizing a common foe began to descend on her. Cyclonia braced for combat, but suddenly her attackers changed into sheep. Cyclonia stopped and stared bewildered, she had just seen two creatures change into two different creatures. She looked about to see if anyone else had seen what she had, but the others were already turning away, as if this was an everyday event. She spotted a town guard coming in her direction.
"I did what needed to be done. They hit a child during their scuffle." She said defensively
"I know", the guard said "I saw what happened. I wasn't going to do anything, but then they hit that kid. You stepped in, and so I changed them into harmless sheep. We're fine with magic duels here, but not with street brawls." The guard explained
"Are you going to arrest me then?" Cyclonia asked
"No I will let you go because you seem to have meant good. But don't make a habit of it."
"Thank you, that is very generous of you. Fare well."
The paladin then turned to her next order of affairs. She strode promptly over to the Orc child, whose mother was emerging from a nearby house.
"What happened to my child?" the worried mother called
"He was hit by a Troll spell, he doesn't seem to be hurt though." Cyclonia answered
At that moment the child opened it's eyes, and rose to embrace it's mother. It then turned to look at the Draenei. He stared amazedly at her, having seen nothing of her kind in is life, and was naturally curious as to what she was. And so the boy in his innocence asked
"What are you? Are you some kind of hairless Tauren?"
"Thorung, mind yourself about strangers." His mother chided
"It is alright", Cyclonia said to his mother, then to the boy "I am a Draenei, I and my race have come to Azeroth from Draenor. Once, long ago, our races lived together there."
"Ohhh." With that the boy left to do whatever it is that Orc children do.
"The boy has the curiosity of a goblin, and the respect of an ogre" the mother said
"Don't mind me. I did not expect him to know of our kind."
"I remember my parents telling me about you. How did you get here?"
"The demons came for us on Draenor, and we had to leave."
"I see, well good luck with whatever you may do."
"You as well"
By this time Cyclonia had began to tire from the day, and was seeking lodging. She came to an inn, and booked lodging for night, hoping to rest for the travels of the next day. She ascended to her room and drew a bath as she removed her armor. Later she meditated on her actions throughout the day, and thanked the light that she had safe passage. She then cracked the window to feel the breeze of her new home world as she fell asleep.
Chapter Three
The sun was low when Cyclonia set out for the Valley of Trials. The wind blew hard and raised clouds of dust in her wake. It was bound to be a long hot day. As she walked she thought about what might be waiting for her when she reached the valley. What could be considered a trial for a league of races so preoccupied with combat? With that thought she began wondering if she had made the right decision, if she had interpreted the Naaru's plan for her correctly.
"No", she thought, "I can not second guess myself. Your first instinct is usually right. I know what I'm doing is right."
After several hours of walking she saw something in the distance off the side of the road. She strained her eyes to try and see what it was, and she found out. All she could see was a group of humanoid shapes standing in a circle hitting what seemed to be another person, and that was all she needed. She left the road and headed in the direction of the group. Upon her arrival she could tell that they were all Orcs of a young age, possibly teenagers. They stood around another Orc, who looked younger than them; he was bleeding profusely from several places.
"What's happening here?" Cyclonia called to them
The boys turned to look at her. They seemed to be confused.
"What do you mean?" one of the boys asked
"What do I mean? You are ganging up on this boy. If you're going to fight you should fight like real men and go one at a time."
"Leave us, you have no idea as to what we are doing here." The boy said haughtily
"My idea is that the lot of you are fighting like cowards." She snapped back
"Grongor here has reached the age of maturity, that means he gets beaten."
"What?" Cyclonia was taken aback
"When an Orc reaches the age of maturity they are taken in to the wilds and beaten severely. When the beating is done, they are left alone, without supplies for the night. They must find there way back to the city. Then they are considered to be a man."
"Why would you do this to your own kind?"
The boy replied, "So that he can know true pain. After that he can live through anything. It has been that way forever."
"You must forgive me." Cyclonia apologized, "To an outsider this seems as though you are just attacking a defenseless enemy."
"You are forgiven. I can understand, since you are not an Orc. Whatever you are, your obviously part of the Horde, so we won't give you any trouble."
"I appreciate that. Before I take my leave, do you know how much further till the Valley of Trials?"
"Yes, the valley lies just over that hill. Make your way back to the road, and keep heading in that direction." Said the Orc boy, motioning with his hand
"Thank you." Cyclonia said turning
As she left she heard the boys start again with the ritual beating. This seemed like such a barbaric custom. But if she were going to make it in the Horde, she would have to come to terms with many different ways of life.
"What have I gotten into?" she thought again, as she made it to the road
Chapter four
Cyclonia stood at the top of a hill; the Valley of Trials lay before her. She started on her way to the settlement located in the valley. As she came close to the city, a guard nearby shouted.
"Hey you! Stop where you are."
The paladin held her place till the guard was within speaking distance.
"I am here on a quest for the Horde. I have work orders from the Warchief himself."
Inspecting the papers, the guard looked back at Cyclonia, noticed her tabard and waving his hand said, "Go on then."
As she entered the small collection of huts, she spotted the man that matched the description that Thrall had given her. He was an Orc of considerable age, with hair of gray where it still remained. He was bent over a small counter in the corner of a section of stalls. Proceeding towards him she asked
"Are you the Horde official here in the Valley of Trials?"
"Why yes, and you are?"
"I'm Cyclonia. I am new to the Horde and Thrall has sent me here to help with whatever it is that you may need done."
"Well, at the moment there isn't a lot to do."
"I shall do anything to help."
"Hmm" he pondered for a moment, "I guess I could have you go pick cactus fruit."
"Just tell me how many."
The Orc thought for a moment, using his hands as if they were scales loaded with the fruit that he sought, "How about, oh say, fifteen to twenty."
"It shall be done. Where may I find these fruit bearing cacti?" she said inquisitively
"Down yonder in the desert just outside of the settlement." He replied
"I shall return shortly." She said as she turned to leave
"Look out for demons." He called after her
Turning back to look at him, "Demons? Did you say demons?"
"Oh yes" he answered, "we get a few that come out of that cave there. Someone ought to purify that thing."
Turning once more, "I will deal with that when I am done."
Soon she found herself nearing the desert that she had been told of. As she passed Cyclonia noticed on her left, an opening to a cave. It stood maybe twenty feet high, and in the dark recesses, she could make out the figures of some small creatures.
"I'll get you soon enough" she said to herself, "I'll get you."
Once in the dessert, she found the cacti very easily, as they littered the landscape. She immediately began picking the fruit very vigorously. She wanted to be done with this menial task so that she could move on to the demon slaying. Upon thinking this, she caught herself.
"Now Cyclonia, any task that will help your master, no matter how small, is important. You cannot allow your hatred of those cursed things cloud your vision. You are a paladin; you are meant to be able to overcome such impulses. But how I do hate them!"
Soon after, she had gathered all of the fruit requested of her and was making her way back to the settlement. She looked again towards the cave; her blood began to surge within her. With much self-control she forced her head back in front of her, continuing onward. When she was once again among the buildings, she located the quest-giver. She covered the distance between them as quickly as she could, without losing her composure.
"Here you are sir." Cyclonia said as she came within range of the Orc
"Ah, I see you have collected all the fruit already. That was surprisingly fast." He answered back brightly
"Yes, I did it quick, because now I have a better reason for being here." The paladin stated boldly
"Oh, is that so? I certainly hope that your rush didn't cause you to foolishly gather bad fruit," he said carefully
"You bounty is of the best quality. A paladin does every job to the best of their ability." She stated proudly
"Alright then, you have fun with that cave. But do be careful now, we don't wish to lose any good Horde members to the likes of them." The elder advised
"Don't worry about me," Cyclonia said confidently, " I have the Holy Light of Creation on my side."
A few moments later, Cyclonia stood purposefully in view of the caves mouth. She wore a smile.
"The Light's will be done."
Chapter five
Cyclonia fell to her knees as she looked upon the ashes of her home. Tears welled in her eyes as she saw the town where she had grown up, falling down around her in flames. In the rubble and debris, she could make-out the charred remains of what had been her family. Her parents had been trapped within their house when the demons attacked. The whole village had been surprised by the sudden surge of demonic warriors; they had all been defenseless. Cyclonia herself was unable to battle the wave of enemies, for she had been deep in the forest with Drayuun, training in her paladin abilities. Neither of them would have known of the attack, accept for the raid party passed within hearing distance of their location. The two of them returned as quickly as possible, but do to their distance, they could not make it. And now Cyclonia was staring at the remnants of her only family, her sister being kidnapped shortly after birth. She was now alone in this world.
"This is a horrible thing that the demons have done, " Drayuun said, laying a hand on her shoulder, "but do not mourn too greatly, they have gone to rejoin the Holy Light."
She was too mortified to try and respond. She only stared and wept silently, unable to process her surroundings. All she could feel was a great pain rising in her, followed by a dull hollowness. Shortly, the pain grew to large within her; it pushed itself up through her lungs and out of her mouth. All of the emotions that she held ripped from her body in a great roar that broke and gave way to a thick sobbing. She was no longer able to hold herself upright, and toppled to the ground as unabated as her wail of pain. She now lay on the ground, her tears forming small puddles of mud beneath her face.
"Now you know first hand why we do what we do." Drayuun said introspectively, "You are not the first to have this happen to you, and you won't be the last."
He moved over to where she lay on the ground, and sliding his hands under her shoulders, lifted her up to a sitting position
"Let this give meaning to your quest for good in the world." He said to her as she gazed blankly into the distance
After some time she said to her teacher, "The last time I saw them, we were fighting. We were arguing about my becoming a paladin, instead of a shaman."
"Don't let this bother you young one. I am sure that they held nothing but good thoughts for you in the end." He said sympathetically
She threw herself into his arms, and shed her tears onto his shoulder, "Our family has been shamans for generations. My name is even shamanistic; it is in remembrance of a great storm that slew one of our ancestors. Now it will forever be a reminder of how I disappointed my parents, and then they di…" her words shifted into sobs again
"Now listen to me young one. There is no way that your parents would have been disappointed in you, you are a very bright and clever girl. You are strong willed and firm in your beliefs. You will bring honor to your family no doubt." Drayuun said comfortingly
"I only wish I could have been here to protect them. I just wish I could have seen them once more." She said weakly into his shoulder
"The Light compelled you to a different place when this attack happened. This is a blessing from the Naaru. You must be destined for something great."
Cyclonia was now proceeding towards the mouth of the cave. Shaking these terrible memories from her head. Her convictions set on killing whatever evil waited in this mound of earth. Her family gone. Drayuun, her teacher and friend had passed in the crash of the Exodar. There was no one left but her. And all that was important was the extermination of evil.
Chapter Six
A cold fire burned inside of her chest as she picked up a rock on her way to the cave mouth. Once she was within throwing distance, she hurled the stone into the entrance, gaining the attention of several shapes inside. Bustling into the sunlight came six small imps. Cyclonia gave a small growl, feeling the evil coming from them as they advanced on her position.
The first came in striking distance, and the paladin brought her hammer down on the fiend's head, sending it reeling back into the others. The rest of the beasts cackled their displeasure at her. Standing her ground Cyclonia readied herself for the next attack.
Suddenly from her left, an imp sprung at her with its claws outstretched. She shifted to block with the shield on her left arm, and catching the demon's hands on the steel, she swung her hammer downward over her arm, crushing the imp's head in the air before spiking it to the ground.
"That was close" she thought to herself, "I got careless, can't afford to do that again."
At that moment she heard the dirt shift behind her. Cyclonia spun to her right with her weapon out; she landed a powerful blow on another imp with the action. Then without losing time, she sprung to her left, and smashed one more in the skull with the face of the mallet.
The paladin looked up in time to see the others running back for the cave. She hefted her mace and shield and began to run after them, only to stop in her tracks in shock. From the mouth of the cave came twenty more of the wicked creatures. Cyclonia was confident in her abilities, but she was not headstrong, there was no way that she could stop this many imps by herself.
She looked around for someone that could possibly help. There was no one to be seen. Her mind was drawing blank, and the small army was advancing slowly. At that moment, a thought came into her mind. She reached into her bag and retrieved a small whistle that she had purchased in Orgrimmar. She put it to her lips and let out a loud and piercing screech. If her plan worked someone would hear that and come to her aid. Until then she would have to make do by herself.
Bracing herself for the wave of oppressors, she raised her shield and hammer. Charging the lines of demons, she leapt at the ranks, landing in the middle of the group. She struck out in all directions, not conscious of whether she was doing any real damage or not, just counting ever hit as a small victory. Clubbing one imp in the head she saw in the corner of her eye another advancing. Bashing that one down with her shield, she would here one behind her. Rupturing the stomach of her would be assassin with her hoof in a hind kick, she noticed another coming in close, to close for her to strike with her mallet, so a well placed elbow would have to do in the mean time. Coming off of the previous strike, she saw one of the craven beasts coming in at her headfirst. Rearing back Cyclonia threw her cranium forward with all the force she could gather. She was surprised that she was doing so well, but she knew that she couldn't keep this pace up for much longer. It was at that instant that she felt three shorts of pain fly up her side. Letting out a gasp, she turned and saw one of the evil beasts with its hand lodged in her torso. She swung her hammer horizontally at its face, but as it collided, she felt more pain fly across her shoulder. Now there were to many for her to fight off, having lost her stride she was taking hits every time she turned around. Cyclonia continued to attack at every angle, refusing to die without a fight, but there were too many. She fell to the ground under their weight. She could feel them all clawing and biting her as she went down, some trapped underneath her.
She was beginning to lose sight of the sky as the imps pilled onto her, but something made their attention shift. She could hear someone shouting, but the noise was so muffled that she couldn't make out what they were saying. She continued to struggle against the weight of the fiends, even as it lessened and she could see the face of an Orc standing over her.
"Come on now, stop your screaming." He said as he pulled her to her feet
"There were too many of them," she said and added embarrassedly, "Was I screaming?"
"Oh yes, quite so. But nothing to be ashamed of, this here cave is filled with those buggars."
"That is why I am here. I came to purify this cavern."
"I see, well I'm not about to let a fellow Horde member get them selves killed when I can prevent it."
"I thank you" Cyclonia said sincerely as they made for the entrance, "by the way how did you know I was there?"
"Oh, I heard a whistle from this direction, and I remembered seeing you pass this way earlier. So I thought that maybe you got into some trouble with this cave of imps. Looks like I was right."
"I'm glad that you came, I thought I was a goner." She said relived, and added to herself, "and I happy that my whistle worked."
After healing herself, they made their way over to the cave. Once inside, they saw scattered bones and remains of travelers and careless adventurers. Cyclonia noticed a small tunnel heading further into the cave, motioning for the Orc to follow her; they made their way down through the passage. It eventually let out into a wider hallway that seemed to have been carved out by intelligent beings. They continued to follow the path until they came to another pack of the foul imps that had been stationed at the entrance.
The combined efforts of Cyclonia and the Orc stranger were more than enough to push the forces back. With the length of the Orc's spear, and the paladin taking the lead, the fiends were no threat in the narrow passage. They continued to press forward in the same manner for what seemed like hours. Crushing imps with the hammer, skewering imps with the spear, trampling imps underfoot, always pushing forward; they made their way down the hall.
Soon they came to a separation of paths. One path went to the left and seemed to turn, while the other went to the right and appeared to let out into a large area. There was also a small alcove in front of them. Upon further investigation, the alcove held a chest, worn rough with time. Stepping over bodies and stones Cyclonia made for the box. She lifted open the lid, and removed from it, a large headed mace adorned with spikes. Looking down the length of the haft she noticed words that read Mace of the Morning dawn.
"What did you find?" the Orc called to her
"Something to better kill demons with." Cyclonia answered
Chapter Seven
"Well, we can see where this tunnel opens," Cyclonia said motioning to the ramp on the right, "or we can go that way and see what happens."
"I would just as soon go that way as the other." Commented the Orc
"Yeah. What is your name by the way?"
"I am Bromash, a guard here in the Valley."
"I see, well good to know. Why don't we head down that way then, if it doesn't make any difference to you."
"Let's go then."
The two ventured down the short path until they reached the cavern at the end. The ceiling was several meters high, Cyclonia assumed about fifteen to twenty. Along one wall near the top was a sort of balcony, that had a door that led into another room, but there was no visible way to reach it. Suddenly a figure appeared on the ledge. It looked to be a man, he was garbed in red robes, and he carried a staff. The figure raised his hands and an unmistakably arcane aura surrounded them, followed by a bolt of energy.
Bromash and Cyclonia dodged out of the way as the bolt crashed against the ground. Looking back Cyclonia saw a crater that would have been them had they not moved.
"LEAVE MY CAVE!" the hooded figure proclaimed, "OR FACE YOUR DEATH!"
Shouting back, "This cave belongs to the Horde, and it shall be cleansed by the Holy Light through I, the paladin Cyclonia!"
"IT IS APPERANT THAT YOU HAVE MADE YOUR CHOICE" the hooded one answered, "GO MY MINIONS!"
At this command four more hooded men leapt over the balcony with three imps in toe, for each. Landing on the floor surrounding Bromash and Cyclonia they drew daggers and prepared to attack them. The Horde members now stood back to back, their weapons at the ready.
"This leaves eight for me and eight for you." Cyclonia whispered over her shoulder
"Sounds like fair odds to me, unless you want me to take some of yours for you." Bromash joked back
"Oh how sweet of you. Too bad my honor as a paladin won't allow it."
"Have it your way. We break on three. One… two… three!" as he sounded the last number, they threw themselves forward into their enemies.
Cyclonia came in close to her first target, and caught them in the stomach with the haft of her new mace. The mage doubled over, as she slid her weapon free, and raised it over her head.
"Time to break you in." she said to the club in her head
No sooner had she thought that, she heard the air crackle behind her head. Instinctively she ducked down in time to avoid a blast of arcane magic flung from the balcony. Turning she could see the head mage powering up another spell. She then felt a familiar pain in her thigh, she returned her gaze to see one of the imps with its claws in her leg. Angling her hand she brought down the butt of the mace on to the crown of the imp's head. As the creature toppled over, blood seeping from the wound, she wound her arm back and let lose a powerful strike against another of the servant imps. She caught a glimpse of one of the mages coming at her with his dagger. Cyclonia brought up her shield to block, and as she heard the ting of the blade futilely crashing against the steel, she saw another bolt coming from the balcony, aimed this time at her partner. Pushing back her shield, she knocked her attacked off balance. Taking advantage of this opportunity, she stepped forward and swung the Morning Dawn downward as she did so; audibly crushing the mages collar bone.
"Something needs to be done about that leader mage." She thought to herself as she used her foot to hold her downed opponent's head in place, "How am I going to get him, I don't have any distance attacks, and I can't cli… I can climb!" swinging her mace down in a wide arc, ignoring the spray on her legs, she called to her teammate, "Bromash. Cover me."
The Draenei ran towards the wall under the balcony, pushing several imps out of her way. The second mage made a start in her direction, but was clubbed I the back of the head by the Orcish spear. Giving an appreciative nod in Bromash's direction, Cyclonia retrieved from her sack, a length of rope, and a grappling hook. Quickly she began to circulate her wrist, building momentum at the end of the rope. When it seemed to have enough force behind it the paladin let the rope fly up towards the ledge. The hook climbed into the air, but lacked the power to reach the top. Looking around, no one had seen her yet, so she started again, and failed once more. At this time all of the imps were staying out of the battle between Bromash and the mages, and they had caught sight of Cyclonia and her grappling hook. They all began to converge on her position. Noticing this she sped up her pace, and threw the hook once more. This time it stuck to the ledge, and after testing its hold, Cyclonia began to climb. She needed to be quick so as not to attract the head mage's attention. It was probably about ten meters to the ledge; it was going to be close.
When she was about half way up, she felt the rope begin to give. She looked up, the hook was starting to shake free. Looking down, she found the cause; the imps that she had avoided had begun to climb after her; and at a startling pace. Shortly they were at her feet, she had to struggle to hold on, kicking at them to try and gain some distance. Whilst climbing one of the beasts grabbed her ankle and dug its claws into her skin. Stifling a cry of pain, Cyclonia looked down and met the creature's gaze and stomped her hoof down into the middle of its face. This blow sent the demon falling from the rope screaming, which made the lead mage turn his attention towards the climbers.
"YOU DARE APPROACH ME?" he called out as he filled his hands with evil magic.
Seeing this Cyclonia began to climb faster. She could tell that she wasn't going to reach the top before he could cast his spell. She braced her feet against the wall, and waited. The blast came hurtling towards her and the rope still she waited. Closer it came and still she waited. Then at the last moment before the arcane blast would hit her, she pushed against the wall with all of her might, sending her and everyone else on the rope flying into the empty air. The magic passed by and after landing against the wall, Cyclonia resumed her climbing pace.
Once she reached the top, she clambered over the ledge. The mage looked at her in fear. He turned to run, but the paladin, with the fury of the Light, was to fast. Grabbing hold of the crimson robes, Cyclonia pulled him back to her. Under the hood she could see the tell tale green eyes of a Blood Elf, green after generations of arcane sustenance. The Elf had given up on trying to resist, and was now pleading to be released. Ignoring his pleas, Cyclonia brought him to the ledge with her.
"Watch as your leader is slain." She called to the others, and then looking back at him, "you aren't very mighty when your magic can't help you."
She hefted the Elf mage over the edge of the balcony.
"What are you doing?" he asked
"By the Light, you shall be judged!"
Drawing out her mace, she used all of her strength to throw the mage into the air, and then in a single motion, she swung down hard with the Morning Dawn. The spiking action sent the Elf's body hurtling to the ground, ended with a satisfying thud. Cyclonia smiled to herself as she listened, but not for long as she noticed the imps had made it up the rope.
As they ran at her she moved to the side, and began to systematically hammer them against the wall with her mace. Some splattered, others went flying through the air, and others simply had their ribs collapse on their lungs. When she was done, she made to check with Bromash.
"How are things down there?" she called to him
"All done," he answered back, "and you?"
"Finished as well. There's another room up here, I'm going to see where it leads."
"Alright, but be careful."
"I'll call if I need you."
As she moved into the other room, she noticed that there was a path that moved down towards the left in a sloping fashion. As she followed the path, she eventually got the idea that she knew where she was going. After reaching the bottom of the ramp, she found a path leading off to the right and one going straight with a small alcove on her left. She proceeded straight, and found herself in a large room filled with dead bodies, and an Orc male standing in the middle.
"I think we should have gone left." She called out in a joking voice
"I see. It would seem so." Bromash answered back
A few moments later, the two stood outside, as Cyclonia purified the cave of all its demonic energies. Once the area had been cleansed the made their way back to the settlement. Cyclonia told the old Orc that the cave was free of demons, gave everyone her thanks and was headed back towards Orgrimmar.