Intro

The ghoul was crouched low in the woods outside of the small town. Her breath was heavy as she swayed in anticipation. This is where the voice had driven her along with what looked like hundreds of others. It was maddening, that voice. A constant jumble of disconnected and angry thoughts which whispered into her mind. She thought she could see things out of the corner of her eye sometimes: Great pyramids floating in the sky. Spiders as large a small cottage. Vast frozen wastelands covered with soldiers and always it felt as though there was someone just over her shoulder.

They hid in these woods, drooling and panting. Those around her occasionally belched up great globs of thick green fluid along the forest floor. She distantly felt a pain in her gut and retched up a bit of the bright green mess as well. It splashed onto the bush she hid near and it began to smoke. A white mist rose from the places where the fluid had touched the plant and moments later it began to wilt. The bush shriveled and died in a matter of minutes as she gasped for air.

She waited crouched and ready to spring on the town her muscles thrumming in her legs. There had been a time before this, when she hadn't been killing driven by a voice in her mind. She tried to think of her family, her country, when a blinding white pain swept across her mind. She screamed silently inside her own head. Suddenly from the center of her head came the voice. "Go now. Kill."

She didn't want to kill the people in this town, she didn't even know them but her body went into action immediately. She leapt into a sprint her knees cracking loudly and rushed through the trees and across the open field between her and the small town. The others around her were running out as well, drooling mindlessly and gnashing their teeth. She looked around at those around her, she could at least do that much she noticed. Men and women of all ages and dress, wide eyed and frothing mad. Many were missing appendages, an arm here, a leg there. Those without two legs ran on all three of their remaining limbs keeping pace with the others undeterred by their handicaps.

She heard a horn sound from the town. The sounds of terrified rushing people came then, as women and children were locked into houses. Men with fire and swords rushed from the town to meet them. She welcomed their resistance. They lined up between herself and the town and began shouting at one another making ready for her fury. Her jaw swung wide and her body let loose an inhumane roar.

"Right." said the voice in the center of her mind. Her body bared right at a frightening pace, kicking up dirt and grass as she dug her hands and feet into the ground for traction. Others followed her on this new course but, the majority it seemed, still rushed head on towards the defenders.

Her body ran tirelessly in that direction until the voice spoke again. "To the town. Kill the women and children." She bolted left towards the town. The woman and the children? This was no war, it was a slaughter. The sound of fighting came from the side of the town that faced the woods but this side was quiet and deserted. They approached the town in a group and then she split off as the voice commanded: "That house."

She had no idea what house it was referring to but it seemed her body knew, as it instantly changed course and rushed towards a two story house to her left. She ran full tilt at a first story window of the house. She was going too fast, she'd hit the wall at this rate. She tried to slow down but her legs wouldn't listen, they only pounded relentlessly and drove her towards the window. Her body jumped then and drove her through the window landing sprawled on the wooden floor of the house. Glass tinkled as it fell all around her. She got to her feat and her head snapped left then right. She knew there were people here, she could smell them. Their fear and stinking living bodies permeated the air.

She listened for a moment standing very still and heaving her chest as she took in great rattling gasps of air. She heard nothing and then, thunk. A knock on the second floor. She growled and rushed up the wooden staircase on all fours launching her body four or five steps at a time. She skidded to a halt at the top and cocked her head and listened again. A soft sound from behind the door on her right. Crying? No. Sobbing, that was the word for it she thought as her body threw itself at the door. Not quite weeping not quite sniffling. Her body pounded into the door again. It splintered slightly and bent in it's frame. This was a fair home she saw as her body pounded furiously at the door. Again she was smashed into the door. It split at the center and she grabbed the lower half and tore it away with a splintery crack.

She heard the sound was louder now as she crawled on all fours and skittered under what remained of the door. A child crying. She heard it clearly along with the pounding heartbeats of three, no four people. Their smell was strong here, piss yellow with fear. Her body's drive to kill and feed overrode her mind's emotion and will. She descended fully into the beast her body had become. She gasped for air and stood still again listening hard, they knew she was here. They'd try to be quiet but she'd find them. Rustling from the wardrobe in the corner. She bolted over to the large wooden doors and ripped one off. It fell to the floor with a thud and the woman inside shrieked. She screamed back at her a great roar that flecked the woman's face with drool. She was saying something, screaming it and holding up her hands in a warding gesture. The ghoul reached out and grabbed the woman's shoulders and brought the woman face towards her own.

She buried her jaws in the woman's neck bringing up a great gush of blood into her mouth. It tasted wonderful. The woman flailed weakly at her with her arms as she began to die. She drew her head back and then took another enormous bite out of the woman's chest tearing into her right breast. The heart, that's what she wanted. That was where the soul was, wasn't it?

"Mommy!"

She snapped her head away from the woman's dying heart spraying blood and taking part of the blouse with her. The voice had come from further inside the wardrobe. She thrust her head inside and peered around. Two children, a boy and a girl were curled in the corner. The shook as they looked up at her, they had both wet themselves. The acrid stench of their urine complimented the smell of their fear quite nicely. The ghoul dropped the woman and reached out for the boy. He tried to draw back further into the corner but there was no where left to go. "No!" He shouted as tears ran from his eyes.

"Yesssss." the ghoul growled as she reached for his arm. She grabbed hold of it with her claw-like hand and pulled. Perhaps too hard she thought as the child's arm came free of it's socket and he was drawn out of his hiding place. She held him up by his now distended arm and looked at him kicking and screaming. What a fine boy. His sister yelled something from the wardrobe. Paying her no mind the ghoul lurched her head forward and bit the boy in the midsection. The blood was there again in her throat, it tasted even better than the woman's. The boy bled out quickly and she dropped his corpse to the floor.

She was turning for the girl when she heard foot steps behind her. She reached out and grasped at the air behind her. She caught the girl by her long blonde hair. The girl screamed again and bolted for the door. A great chunk of hair came loose from her head with a sick shredding sound and she sprawled forward onto the floor. She fumbled to get up as the ghoul bared down on her. She scrambled backwards on her rear until she hit the wall. Thud. No where left to go.

The ghoul advanced slowly. The girls tear filled eyes dashed past her to stare at something behind her. The ghoul turned quickly and saw what the girl was looking at, a locker at the foot of the bed. Turning back the ghoul took the last step towards the girl and grabbed her by the throat. The girl wheezed and her eyes bulged as the ghoul's clawed hand bore down on her throat. The girl shook spastically and reached her tiny hand towards her neck. It never made it there. She went limp as the life left her body.

The ghoul dropped the girl and turned to the footlocker. What was so important that the girl would be more concerned for it than her own life? She'd find out. She went to open the locker and found her hands to clumsy for the job. She raised her arms above her head and brought them down with a crash atop the locker. It shook and a baby cried from inside. Ah, that's what she'd been afraid for. A baby would make a fine meal she supposed and bashed the locker again and again.

Voices came from outside then: Men. She snapped her head towards the stairs and growled. This was her meal she thought, they'd not have it. She grabbed the ring on the side of the foot locker and dragged it behind her as she bolted down the stairs. It knocked each stair and the baby thumped and squealed inside. She reached the bottom of the stairs and listened again. Yes, there were men all right, at least six or seven of them. She'd never survive them but her body remained motionless. It wanted to kill these men as well, it seemed as though it's thirst for blood would never be sated.

"Now!" yelled the men behind the door and it gave in with a crash. A holy man in full armor stepped in. The ghoul took a step back hissing. She'd seen this man before in her other life. Uther the paladin. Uther the Lightbringer. A powerful man wielding the Light with all it's glory. His wide plate-sheathed shoulders crested the doors and he brought his hammer to bear.

"Monster!" He shouted his grey hair falling across his face. The ghoul postured and let go the locker. The hiss her body let out was not enough to cover the sound of the child crying out in surprise as the trunk dropped to the floor. The baby cried out again terrified in the dark. Uther's face lit up in surprise. He stood a moment not quite sure what he had just heard. He realized what was happening then and his brow furrowed in rage.

"Foul abomination! I'd not let you claim another!" He shouted, his voiced deep and powerful. He rushed towards her then. She didn't even have a chance to move before he had cleared the distance between them and struck her with the hammer. It burned her flesh and she flew across the room smashing against the wall. Her body convulsed and attempted to get up. She didn't want to fight anymore, she wanted to be done. Still her body tried to get up, to lunge at the holy man. He stepped to the trunk and brought his hand to the lock. He spoke words which hurt the ghoul to even hear and the lock sprung open with a golden light. The baby inside cried out as the light hit it's eyes and Uther reached down. "There child, you are safe now." He said and cradled the baby to his armored chest.

He looked then at the ghoul his mouth turned down in a hard frown beneath his beard. "Now monster. You'll meet your fate." He said, rage boiling under his cold words. He stepped to her and her body lashed out at him from the ground. He stomped on her arm and pinned it to the rough wood. He holstered his hammer slowly then and reached for the book that hung at his thigh. He flipped it open and scanned down a page. He found what he was looking for and snapped the book shut.

He let the book drop and the chains that held it jingled as it fell to his thigh again. "By the power of the Light I banish you from this land." He said to her and brought his hand up his first two fingers extended. It glowed bright with the golden light. He held it there like a beacon and it's radiance fell down on her. Every part of her was on fire now, her body cringed and pulled at the arm which he held in place. "Be gone, ye spoiled! Ye lost! Let your soul be tossed to the Nether and left there, forsaken by all!" He boomed and brought his hand down. There was a flash of golden light, a burning in the very pits of her ravaged soul and then it departed. The ghoul was stilled.

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[Disclaimer] I don't own Warcraft, World of Warcraft or any of the characters. It would be fruitless to sue me anyway, I have less money then you pay your lawyers on retainer.

Author Notes:I greatly apriciate any feedback. I've done my best to weed out the spelling, grammatical and lore based errors but I have no disillusions of perfection. If you find anything please tell me.