Author's Note: A new fanfiction of my Worgen mage, this one is open to critique and examination, since I might have missed some grammar or spelling. Also the brief interaction at the beginning is the only marysueish thing that should be in this story, and I apologize in advance if people disapprove of it.
Chapter One
The Curse
Church bells rang out in the distance as light rain continued to soak the ground of the large dark city. Horse hooves were heard clopping down a cobble stone path, the large beast towing behind it a hearse with a few men inside it, holding a casket in place. A few more carriages rode behind it, their dim lanterns lighting the way around them. Soon the carts came to a stop, a freshly dug grave covered by a makeshift tent to keep the dirt somewhat dry from the constant rain.
The men soon got out of the hearse, carefully bringing the casket out with them and hoisting it between them. The occupants of the other carriages began to pour out, among them was a small girl with black hair and blue eyes hidden behind a pair of round glasses, no older then thirteen. She looked almost unaffected by what was going on around her, the rain however was a steady reminder of what had happened today. Umbrellas were lifted to give shelter, two were held in front of a rather fancy looking carriage as the door opened.
Stepping lightly from the cart, King Genn Greymane gently accepted one of the umbrellas, holding it over his head as he looked over the occupants of the group. Slowly the casket was placed beside the hole it was to be lowered into, the king stepping in front of the coffin as he looked it over. The crowd was silent as they watched their king, the girl's attention locked onto the coffin while gentle hands held her in place within the front of the crowd.
"Today we lay the body of Alice Lambelle to rest, her long battle against her illness is finally at an end, and she may rest peacefully in the afterlife. Alice was a wonderful woman, a ray of sunshine in our city, and an loving mother. May her work never be forgotten, may her memory live on forever within the poems she wrote. It is unfortunate that she has left behind her only daughter, but may she rest assured that she will be properly taken care of."
Genn's eyes glanced over to the young girl as he spoke, then offered his hand to her. The girl looked at it, the hands that were once on her shoulders now ushered her forward towards her king. She stumbled lightly as she approached him, he offering her a smile as he took her hand and held it within his own.
"Dear Ceralena, is there anything you wish to say to your mother before she leaves?" The king spoke to her in a gentle tone, trying to offer what comfort he could. Cera looked to him before back to the casket. She couldn't think of anything to say, everything she wanted couldn't return, no matter how she wished it. Slowly the child's head lifted to look at her king, shaking her head slowly with her answer. Genn smiled to her, nodding his head in acceptance of her choice.
"There is no harm in telling her goodbye Cera, if you so wish." He spoke softly to her. "Nor is there any harm in crying."
Cera looked at the man before her, deep blue eyes locked with his. The young girl's bottom lip began to quiver, as if given permission to cry tears began to well up in her eyes before overflowing. It was finally starting to hit her, her mother was gone and was never coming back. She was alone now, no parents like all the other children had. Cera erupted into tears, sobbing into her hands.
Genn knelt and took the child into his arms, offering her comfort as he signaled for the men to lower the casket into it's rightful place. He knew what it meant for someone to be there for her, he had a son of his own he would do the same with, Light forbid it ever happened. With delicate work, the casket was lowered into the grave, the men getting to work on filling it as people bowed their heads in respect and prayer.
"Poor child, what of her father? He's certainly around isn't he?" One of the people within the crowd spoke in a whisper to another.
"Heavens no, didn't you hear? He went missing! Some say he was abducted by Worgen!" Another answered, leaning closer to whisper. The burial was soon finished, the men patting down the dirt with their shovels, while two others took four candles and placed them within the opening of the gravestone, lighting them with small torches.
The king allowed Cera to cry for a while longer before pulling away, allowing for one of his servants to hold the umbrella over his head while he placed both his hands on her shoulders. He spoke to her, words that were meant to offer comfort but only fell on deaf ears. Her heart was shattered and no amount of talking would fix it. With a heavy sigh the king stood, gently placing a hand on her head before she was taken in by one of the crowd.
The ringing of the church bell signaled another soul's passing, each strike rung hard in Cera's ears. One by one everyone was herded back to the carriages, the young girl was escorted into the first one behind the king's own. With a snap of the reins the carriages were off, returning to the city. Again the sound of horse's hooves clopping against the cobblestone hung in the air, the deep blue eyes of the child staring out the window as she took one final look at the grave her mother rested in.
Five years later...
"Cera we're closing up for the night, and for Light's sake would you stop eating the apples? You're devouring them faster then we can pick them out of the orchard!" The shop keep of the local grocer called out from the open front door, causing the young woman they were addressing to look up, cheeks filled with half eaten apple while she held the core in her hands. Quickly she swallowed, depositing the core into the trash bin as she reached over a few of the apple bins, pulling on the leather strap tied to a Gilnean satchel.
She pulled it over her shoulder, rushing out the front door of the shop just as the keeper closed it. He turned the key in the lock, locking the door for the night as the lamp lighter passed them, giving them a small tip of his hat as he walked past them to light the rest of the lamps on the street. Cera gave the man a light wave of her own, a soft smile accompanying it. She bid the shop keep farewell as they went their separate ways, the young woman heading out of the city to a small house that was just beyond the limits.
Sheep bleated as they crossed the road in front of her, Cera's hand grasping the strap of her bag as it rested on her shoulder. She waited from the animals to pass before heading on, looking up the the dark house ahead. Approaching the door she withdrew her key, unlocking it and stepping in and shutting the door behind her. The house was dark, empty, lonely, something Ceralena had to face every day, every day for the past five years.
When her mother passed on she had no relatives to stay with, no one could take her in. With the king's approval she was granted permission to live on her own so long as she maintained a job and kept up with the taxes. She had managed to do just that, and keeping up with this promise she was able to keep the house her and her mother had lived on to live in on her own. Dropping her key into her bag she took the satchel off, resting it in an empty chair before wandering around the house, lighting the lamps along the walls. Once the house was pleasantly lit Cera collapsed into a chair, looking up to the ceiling.
Even with what little light there was, the house still felt dark, of course that was her mood talking. She never liked staying home for too long, during the day when she wasn't working she was within the streets of Gilneas, brightening everyone's day. She was the kind of person who would forfeit her own happiness for the sake of others. The house reminded her too much of her mother, the years she had gone without her, without her guidance.
Littered around the house were several books, some of them blank, others printed, some were hand written and half finished. Cera had decided to try her hand at her mother's work, writing poems, stories that inspired hope and happiness. While she knew she'd never be as talented as her, she still had a knack for writing. With a little effort she got to her feet, moving around the piles of books towards the stairs that lead up to the sleeping quarters of the house.
Along the way she dimmed some of the lights, wondering why she lit them in the first place as she licked her fingers and snuffed out the wicks. She sat on the end of her bed, reaching down and taking off her socks and shoes, working off her day clothing as she slipped her dress up over her head. Her figure had grown into that of a young woman in the past years, making for her to grab most of the attention of men. Of course with her limited experience of the opposite gender, she didn't get the whole dating thing, and instead would erupt in a blush if any man got near her.
With arms thrown back behind her head she laid on her bed, focused on the ceiling in silence. This silence was odd though, she had spent many nights in it but this was disturbing. It was too silent. Cera's eyes closed, trying to ignore the odd feeling it gave her and to catch some sleep. Slowly she began drifting to sleep, a few hours of peaceful slumber was given to her.
Sounds of explosions caused Cera to jerk up from her bed, she quickly feeling around for her glasses before she realized they were still on her face. She got up from her bed in a panic as more explosions were heard, rushing to her window to look out towards the city. She didn't see anything, but heard the sounds of people screaming, howling in the night. Tripping out of her bed she grabbed her clothes, putting them on as she rushed down stairs. She fell at the last step, causing her to collide with the chair her satchel was rested on.
The screams continued as she threw open her front door, the strap of her bag in her hand as she rushed out towards the city. Whatever was going on she knew she needed to help. Just outside the city she slid to a stop, her eyes going wide as she took in what was before her. Worgen were running rampant in the city, people fleeing in terror as the beasts made chase after them. Cera took in a large gulp and quickly ran head first into the chaos.
Left and right Worgen were being shot down in the streets, people being attacked, hunted down. Cera quietly made her way through the city streets, hiding behind walls, around corners to avoid the sights of the beasts along her path. She kept her back against the wall, holding onto the leather strap over her chest as she looked to the side, waiting as two Worgen ran past. She slid her back against the wall, slipping into an alleyway and letting out a sigh of relief once she was out of sight. She needed to stop and think what she was going to do now that she had just run head first into what looked like a battle between man and beast.
"Okay … what to do … there are Worgen running rampant though the city, killing people, and I was stupid enough to come running in here without a plan." Ceralena spoke to herself, looking down at the ground. She let out a puff of air, but stopped short as she heard something click against the cobblestone ground. Cera held her breath, flattening herself against the wall of the alley as a Worgen slowly walked past the entrance. The beast sniffed the air, growling low as his yellow eyes looked around. Cera did her best to hide herself within the shadows of the boxes occupying the area, it seemed to work as the beast growled again and lumbered off.
She waited a long time before withdrawing her breath, slowly standing to her feet. Hand curled into a fist at her chest, she decided she knew what to do. Over the cries of people and the gunshots she could hear the voice of her prince, the king's son was taking action, guiding his people and ordering a rebellion. Cera stuck her head out of the alley, looking both ways before making a dash out and toward the sound of his voice.
A howl ripped through the air as the wind was knocked out of her, Cera hit the ground in a daze as she felt the full weight of a body on her. She cried out, flailing before a hand was placed over her mouth to quiet her.
"Shh! Do you want to draw their attention?" A voice of a man whispered against her ear, her eyes darting up to the male that was pushed against her. Instantly her face flared up in a blush, going silent as she looked off in the other direction.
"Mister Johnathan! Don't scare me like that!" Cera managed to sputter out once she squirmed out from underneath him. John stood up, quickly taking her hand and dragging her off through the streets. Cera stumbled behind him, trying to keep up while her other hand reached to keep her glasses on her face. He pulled her along, avoiding the sights and snouts of the Worgen among the streets before they arrived at a large group of people.
In the middle of the group was Prince Liam Greymane, shouting words of encouragement to his people as the terrified citizens tried to pay attention to his words. John held Cera's hand tightly as he looked on over the crowd, the guards handing men and women willing to fight weapons of their choice. She looked over at him, flinching as she tried to pry her hand from his.
" Mister Johnathan what's going on? W-Why are there Worgen everywhere?" She whined lightly too him, jerking forward as he pulled her downward to make sure she knew he wasn't letting go.
"Worgen have decided to overrun the city, they're infecting nearly everyone with the curse. Those that have managed to get away are going to take up arms against them. Do you think you can do that Ceralena?"
"I uh … I'll try." Cera lowered her head, listening to the shouts of the rallied people. The grip on her hand was released when John was handed a weapon, a shot gun. Cera was handed a weapon next, but it wasn't what she had expected to be given.
"A stick?" She asked, head tilting as she was given a staff to work with. The man handing out the weapons simply gave her a shrug and continued on. Her attention turned to John as he loaded the gun, she frowning a little as she lazily swung the staff about in lame practice.
"Come on Cera, everyone's heading out." John motioned to her to follow him, and with quick strides to avoid getting left behind she followed, holding the staff in both hands. The two walked along the streets, where John would make quick ease of the worgen by shooting them in the head, Cera wasn't as lucky and any she had come across were quickly beaten to death by the staff she was given. She wasn't too built so it was either she finally killed them, or they had come down with massive bruises and a headache and ran off to recover from her beating.
After a few hours of fending off the worgen in the city the two were left on their own in the empty streets. Most people had evacuated and John had made sure of that. Cera slumped to the ground, tossing the bloody staff to the side as she let out a sigh of relief. Her companion turned to her after reloading the gun with the last bullets he had on him.
"Feeling alright Cera? I think we're in the clear to head with the others." He smiled at her, kneeling as he looked her over to make sure she was alright. She blushed as she looked up at him, sliding back against the wall behind her as she tried to keep the distance between them.
"I'm fine, really." She squeaked out. John smiled, nodding before looking his body over for any missed wounds. Watching him, Cera felt to do the same thing, making sure she managed to slip thought the claws of any of those beasts without harm. John stood, explaining to Cera that he was going to check the way back to make sure they could get through and in return she was to stay safe, hidden in the shadows. She nodded her head in understanding an with that he left her alone as he headed out.
Cera knew it was a bad idea, neither of them should have been left alone. Even the worgen knew it was much better and safer to travel in packs. Thirty minutes had passed as Cera sat alone in the darkness of the alley. She had remained silent, something she was good at and certainly didn't need reminders of how to do so. Cera was growing bored, eyes glaring at the brick wall across from her through dirty glasses. Foolishly she stood, exposing herself from the shadows as she headed to the entrance of the alley.
"Mister Johnathan?" No answer. Cera stuck her head out and glanced around the corner. Suddenly her face was covered by a large, furry hand as her head was slammed back into the opposite wall. She shrieked out at the impact, the pain in the back of her head was splitting. Vision blurred, it took time for her eyes to adjust before she saw the snarling face of a worgen in front of her. Eyes widened in fear as the beast's yellow eyes glared into her own, causing a distracting chill to run down her spine.
The worgen's large hand released her face, causing her to slide down the wall, hitting the ground with a thud. Steam from the cold air meeting the breath of the beast rose into the air as his head lowered, glaring at her, eying her with hunger. Cera was scared beyond movement, paralyzed in fear. Of course she had to deal with these creatures not hours ago, but she was now cornered by one, and her mind had gone blank.
The worgen closed in and suddenly snapped at her, and out of pure instinct did Cera manage to move her head out of the way. Suddenly she found the adrenaline to move, and quickly crawled out from underneath him, standing and running off as quickly as she could. The worgen gave chase, much stronger and faster then she was he easily tracked her down, digging his feet into her back as he threw her to the ground.
Cera whined helplessly as her arms flailed out to the sides, hands digging at the cobblestone under her. Powerful hands gripped her shoulders and flipped her over, the beast grinning at her with malicious intent. It was then that she noticed something different, the shredded remains of the clothing the worgen wore. This beast … was Johnathan. Her eyes looked up into the worgen's own as she was pinned to the street, her hand reaching up to touch his cheek.
"Mister Johnathan … please … snap out of this. It's me, Ceralena!" Cera pleaded with him, John glaring at her hand before smacking it away. She yelped and before she could react he drew down, snapping his teeth around her neck. Fangs sinking deep into the skin, Cera only managed to cough out once before blood followed. Her eyes rolled into the back of her head as the circulation of air was cut, and her vision faded, the last thing she heard was the sound of a gun being shot.
"I don't think she's going to wake up."
"Give her time, she's still breathing so it's a good sign she's still alive."
"Of course she's alive, no one dies if they're still breathing. That doesn't mean she'll wake up though. What does it matter anyway? She's one of them now, should be put down like the rest of them."
"She's responding well to the treatment, there's no need to exterminate her."
"How can you tell? She's not even awake!"
The bickering going on in the background caused her eyes to shift open. Her vision was blurred, due to both her grogginess and her missing glasses. The two voices continued to talk, Cera's eyes straining to see. She managed to make out two figures across a room, and yet it sounded like they were close to her. She tried shifting her arms, finding that they were restrained. The sounds of chains clanking against her caught her attention, her neck also felt a little restricted.
Cera could smell the ocean, feel the ground beneath her alter slightly. From what she could tell she was on boat, but where said boat was she didn't know. Her body had been chained to the wall of the room she was in, arms and legs bound with shackles while around her neck was a loosely present one, giving her limited movement.
For whatever reason she didn't wish to be where ever she was. She started resenting the feeling, the presence of people around her. She was quickly growing irritated an soon began to growl low, pulling against her restraints. This caught the attention of the people across the room, one of them was tall and lanky, their skin a fair shade of blue and their ears long. She wasn't sure what this creature was, it was obviously female judging from what she could make of it, and this woman had long, flowing green hair.
"Looks like your mongrel is awake." The female scowled at Cera, and for some reason this outraged her. Cera growled low, very canine like before a snarl of anger escaped. She lunged forward, causing the chains holding her to the wall to tighten and keep her in place. The other person, who looked like an aging man wearing white robes calmly walked to her, but still kept his distance.
"Easy Ceralena, you are among friends, the Night Elves here have rescued us from certain doom." The man spoke calmly, and his words oddly soothed her. The chains slacked as she relaxed, but her eyes still remained locked on this being that the man had called a Night Elf.
"Where … am I? What happened?" Cera managed to speak, but was surprise to find that her voice sounded gruff and hoarse.
"I'm afraid you were … infected with the curse when you were attacked." The man regretfully held out a small hand mirror to her. "However since you are able to speak, it means that the antidote has worked and you are fully capable of hanging on to your humanity, er hopefully."
Cera looked at him for a long moment before lifting up the mirror. Bloodshot eyes stared back at her, a face she was unfamiliar with. It was extremely canine, wolf snout, timber colored fur over her face. This man was right, she had become one of them, she was a worgen. She let out a howl of anguish, throwing the mirror across the room as she buried her face in her hands. Ugh, her hands, disfigured and awkward, only four fingers instead of the normal human five and long claws which just didn't belong.. She hated herself, hated what she had become.
The green haired Night Elf watched her before looking over to the man. "The boats are docking soon, you may have the honor of unhooking her from the wall. Judging by her reaction to her looks, I think she would be more suited to the human lifestyles of Stormwind."
"Right, we'll get her on the boat to Stormwind right away." The old man sighed, looking to the hystarical Cera as she cried, or what sounded like crying. "Well then girl, let's get these chains off you then, hmm?"