Westfall's Contribution
Endless miles of golden prairie surround Kameline as she ducked behind a fallen tree, and watched yet another small Horde raiding party progress toward Sentinel Hill; this is the second attack this week. Sentinel Tower stands on the only hill large enough to see across the prairies in all directions. As far out to the western banks that divide the ocean from prairie and to the eastern borders of the dark forest of Duskwood, where its undead inhabitants stand in eerie silence. King Wrynn's effort to fortify Sentinel Tower has been met with multiple resistances on all sides yet it still stands defiant against horde raiding parties, expanding Riverpaw Gnolls and the scheming Defias, a gang of bandits and thieves whose sole purpose seem to be undermining King Wrynn's efforts to strengthen his forces at Sentinel Tower. According to her father, the wisdom of giving the reins of protection to the experienced and capable hands of Marshal Gryan Stoutmantle is the only thing keeping Sentinel Tower from falling. There are only two roads connecting Westfall to the Eastern Kingdoms, the first most northern road enters Elwynn Forest which continues on to the majestic city of Stormwind. The second road lies darkened and its hushed oppression is felt further south as it pierces Duskwood's forest; truly a road less traveled.
Kam rose to her feet as she listened to the faint sounds of battle echo across the prairie and made her way home as quick as possible. Kameline heard of all the adventures others had at training and in their travels but she still stood anxious to leave her home in Westfall. She was the only daughter born of Merriam and Rogan; her birth had come unexpected and late to the aging couple. Her family's farm has managed to survive despite the Horde and gnoll raids that accompany any alliance territory without a strong military presence in the area. King Wrynn had tried to erect a stronger foothold in Sentinel Hill, but even as the walls were being erected the starving people of Westfall somehow found strength enough to burn it down. Their anger at the King's expedition to the bitter cold reaches of Northrend despite his own people's troubles sparked a resentment that never seemed to be appeased.
Kameline never understood the starving in Westfall just outside of her family's fields and all along the roads to Sentinel Hill, there are massive wild boar running around throughout the fields. Westfall itself is bordered on the ocean. There are fish aplenty if they would build a fishery or just perhaps some boats to fish. Of course, the murlocs and gnolls are a problem they live on the coast too. Kameline's family grew vegetables, and her father would hunt the boars and rabbits that helped keep them fed, but her father was getting old. Vagrants had no problem cleaning up overnight anything Kameline and her mom couldn't manage to harvest. Although she would take meals to help out their hungry neighbors, her parents warned her to stay clear of the desolate town of Moonbrook where bandits commonly hung out near the vacant mine. Kameline is coming of age to where she could help her family in greater ways than in the fields.
Everyone that reached the age of 19 had a chance to develop a special ability they can choose to develop in the service of the king, which paid a lot more than the second option of going your own way and developing the abilities by freelancing to others in need of your skills. Her family's hardship and longstanding tradition to serve the king was all the encouragement she needed when deciding whether or not to join the Alliance. She held no grudge towards the king and the 'laziness and frustration' of Westfall as Kameline saw the situation never changed her mind.
Her family was always certain that Kameline would develop the abilities of the priesthood because of her kind and thoughtful nature. Kameline was hoping for something more striking like a shaman, the thought of creating lightning in her bare hands was fascinating, though unfortunately for her, those abilities have never developed in the human race. Kameline considered the possibility of becoming a paladin. The paladin's reputation is renowned for being a fierce combatant and noble occupation. Their source of strength came from their connection to the Holy Light giving them prestige and great powers; they can heal, create shields and carry large two-handed swords, axes and hammers. Kameline imaged herself carrying a weapon that large and laughed to herself. For there was one trait that everyone could agree upon concerning Kameline and that is that she is very clumsy.
Kameline could see herself now, approaching the throne of King Wrynn and stumbling up the steps…yes that was possible for her…the massive sword flipping out into the air and landing squarely on his big toe. They would arrest her for attempting to assassinate the king, being from the angry Westfall, and she would rot away in the Stockades. Actually assuming the stories are true of King Wrynn, his reflexes would be awesome and he would easily catch the sword before even grazing his big toe where he would inevitably send her to the Barrens to practice walking with a greatsword.
Kameline was small in stature, fair skinned with dark hair like her mother. So a paladin is out, as well as a rogue, no sneaking around for Kameline, perhaps the dark arts of the warlock. She imagined summoning minions and calling dark forces of devastation. Kameline shook her head at the thought of slowly killing someone with a curse that was surely not Kam. She probably would end up being a priest, which is the logical outcome.
"Excited about tomorrow little Kammy?" Her dad approached her in the barn where she sat sorting the harvest for canning and drying.
"Yes, perhaps you will finally stop calling me 'little Kammy' once and for all…" Kameline loved her father dearly but she really wanted to be strong and powerful and 'little Kammy' doesn't seem to fit anything but a gnome.
"Hmmm, perhaps… probably not though, you will always be my little Kammy" Her dad sat next to her and helped her sort, "I remember when I came of age, I thought it had never come, I was so disappointed."
"I thought it was going to be something grand, like I would start glowing and levitate off the ground and with a clash of lightning, then poof!" He clapped his hands loudly, "I would have my ability…" Kameline watched her father reminisce about his moment having heard the story several times. The light coming through the barn door gave his last bit of grey hairs a glowing of their own; though he is older he still had the muscles from his time serving for the king and the farm. She watched his callused hands finish the sorting. She thought to herself, no matter where I am sent or needed I will always come home and check on them.
"… after I had been moping around for a week, pa said to me, 'boy, you're a damn fool warrior, you are! You've cleaved all the grain off the field!' Her father chuckled at the memory, turning to directly look at Kameline.
"You know priestess or not, you are definitely something special, a gift to me and your mom."
"I love you dad" Kameline kissed his forehead while picking up the harvest basket to take indoors to her mom for canning.
"I love you too…little Kammy" He picked up the other basket and set them on the shelf to be dried then held the door open for Kameline as she made her way to the house. Tripping on a clump of dirt she didn't see, the vegies began to tumble out of the basket but somehow her father intervened and kept her from making a mess of it all.
"I still got it, eh?" laughing he said, though a bit winded, he walked alongside her and opened the door where the smell of dinner cooking made her stomach rumble.
"Hurry in before the smell of food brings everybody from Moonbrook over to steal what we have left." Her mother stood at the fire, roasting a haunch of boar on the pit. "You know I hear there are people out there starving enough to eat dirtcakes and wolves tails…I mean really, what kind of nourishment do they get from dirtcakes?!"
Kameline's mom took the harvest basket from Kam and peered inside, "hmmm…" She touched Kam's hands, "My goodness you're cold, is winter coming already? Come sit by the fire while I set the table."
"I'm fine mom, I can help."
Her dark hair almost completely gray now, Merriam stood a little shorter than Kam. She still had a lot of energy for her age; Kameline always wondered if that was the rogue in her. Since the couple met, her dad kept mom on the straight and narrow so her 'rogueing' was limited to spying on Kam's activities and the occasional neighbor would stop by the farm for her to pick a newly discovered locked box. Those moments were rare but their donations to her mother's abilities helped supplement the family income.
Eating dinner with her family, Kameline realized this could be the last time in a long while before she may be able to see them again, this realization suddenly made it hard to swallow her food.
"Well, with you off to who knows where saving the world as we know it, we are thinking of going up to Ironforge and visiting your aunt for the winter." Her mom said as if reading her thoughts.
"That's quite a long trip mom, bet Aunt Alysse will be excited to see you both" Kameline picked at her food, imagining bandits from Moonbrook slowly creeping up on her home towards the smell of food, she went ahead and took a bigger bite of the roasted meat.
"Oh yeah, well the trip is not so bad, once we get to Stormwind it's just a matter of taking the tram that easily zips us off to Ironforge. Unless we get lucky and find a mage to portal us, the price of those portals are so expensive now days; AND they get so snippy when you ask, you'd think we asked them to stand in Westfall and conjure food tables all day or something! " Her father cut another piece of meat off and popped it in his mouth.
She giggled at the idea of mages making a bunch of food tables in the middle of Sentinel Hill which lifted Kameline's mood, "Yeah I forget about the tram. I'm sure you both will have a great time, hanging out in the nice and toasty Ironforge. Just remember Dad, don't drink so much ale this time, Uncle Walden is such a bad influence sometimes."
"Look…I can handle me ale…" Her dad laughed as he spoke in a dwarven accent in which her uncle spoke.
Kameline cleared the table, packed the food for tomorrow and headed to her bed upstairs. Tomorrow she will finally find out what her gift will be, though both fear and excitement kept her awake long after she could hear her parents asleep in the next room, Kameline lay in her bed until sleep finally claimed her.
Kameline walked through the icy caverns lit only by the faint glow of a flickering fire up ahead in the distance. Its light shimmered along the walls of ice as a beacon that Kam hoped was the way out. Somewhere behind her a sound of something large was shuffling its way towards her, hastily looking back she could only make out large, looming shadows and the sound of a low growl bringing her to quicken her pace to what she hoped was the safety of fire and light. Suddenly the overwhelming stench of wet fur and rotted meat gave Kam the realization that this was a yeti cave and with no weapon at hand Kam started running straight to the fire. Behind her the sound of Yeti followed pursuit, she could hear the heavy crunch of ice and snow as it chased down its frightened meal. Rounding yet another corner Kameline came face to face with the fiercest creature she had ever seen. The yeti bared its large, yellowed fangs and roared its triumph at sighting such a morsel. Its clawed hands reached out in an easy attempt to snatch her up, her own feeble reaction was to put her arms out in defense…
The sound of something shattering woke Kameline as she sat up in her bed breathing heavily, her fears ebbing away in relief that she was safe in her bed, no longer in the ice cavern. Jumping up in alarm Kam stood in bare feet as ice and frost covered her bed, floor, her traveling chest and halfway up the walls. It was weird to see misty ice so obviously cold but Kameline stood there unaffected by the frozen wood flooring. The ice was already starting to thaw when her parents burst in the room in alarm.
"What the…"Her dad crossed the room and picked up a broken pottery vase chunk covered in ice.
"You're a Mage! A blooming uppity mage!" Her mom danced with excitement, her eyes wild with imaginings, "there will be food tables and portals…"
"Sheep and blizzards too…"
"I'm a mage?! I don't believe it…a mage." Tiptoeing around the frozen shards Kam stood where her mother was dancing in the doorway. "How do you know mom?"
"There is nothing else where a human can produce ice out of thin air, that's how! Who would have thought our little Kammy would become an all-powerful mage?!"
"I feel so drained though, I can't imagine doing that continuously."
"Well that is what Northshire Abbey is for, to help train you in combat and develop your skills." Her father stated, "You'll meet people with different abilities, make friends and start overcharging for portals like the rest of your peers. My little Kammy…"
Her dad started to tear up as he looked at his little girl, and then glanced quickly through the curtained window as dawn appeared. "I'm going to get the wagon loaded for the trip, we are going to take all we can, I don't think our place will remain standing once we leave the property; not with those vagrants running about."
"What?! We are leaving our home for good?!" Kameline felt she stood in the middle of a vortex of all the changes twisting around her.
"Kammy," her dad spoke, "with everything going on now days, it's better to be safely located within the city's walls. Not to mention, the Furlbrow's haven't been seen in a while and they are the only ones capable of watching the property while we're away."
Kam's mother walked over to where she stood "Being in a city will make it easier for you to pop in and visit us, you will be very busy with whatever duties the king assigns you and your service could last for years, this will be better for us all."
Kameline sighed in defeat, knowing they were right, to be safe in Ironforge than out here in the turmoil of Westfall would at least allow Kameline peace of mind over her parents.