Yazzoo opened his eyes to look at the young girl's face. Hours had passed since he had started healing her and there was still no sign of her regaining consciousness. He sighed, worried that his efforts were in vain. He feared to tell Sairexanaris that he had been too late in getting to her. Yazzoo shook his head, banishing the thought. He had seen too much death, lost too much. Two loves, taken by the Alliance. An aunt and uncle and two cousins, gone. He couldn't save them, and the anger of that knowledge had ignited something dark within him; turning Yazzoo from the light and to the shadow.
He had donned the hood of flames as penance for his sins. Though Zorrion, Sairexanaris and Traylon had told him countless times that he had done nothing wrong, Yazzoo still believed that he had sinned for not being able to save his loved ones. Maybe he could change that by saving this girl's life. He owed it to Sairexanaris.
Yazzoo shifted in his seat and closed his eyes again, concentrating on the healing spell. There was still so much damage left to repair. If the Worgen she spoke of before she lost consciousness was the same one Sairexanaris was hunting, her knowledge was invaluable.
Yazzoo was brought out of his thoughts when he heard a soft moan. He opened his eyes and looked at the girl's face. It was slightly twisted in pain. Yazzoo breathed in relief. She was finally coming around. The more he healed, the more animated the girl became. Finally, the last of the wounds were healed and the girl was beginning to wake up. Yazzoo stood up and bent over her.
"Miss? Can you hear me?" he asked.
The girl's eyes flickered open. However, upon seeing a flaming, hooded skull for a face, her eyes grew wide with fear and she let out a scream. Yazzoo grunted and fell back as she delivered a hard blow to his face. He clutched his now bleeding nose as he pulled back the hood, revealing his true features. The girl was taken aback, gasping a little.
"By the light," she whispered. "You're a blood elf."
Yazzoo groaned. "More like a bloodied elf," he said.
He moved away from the bed and headed for the door. At the same time, Sairexanaris was just entering the barracks. He frowned when he saw Yazzoo's bloody face.
"What happened to you?" the hunter asked.
Yazzoo pointed over his shoulder. "She's awake," he said. "She's all yours."
He moved past his cousin, casting a healing spell over himself. Sairexanaris looked over to see the girl begin to sit up in bed. He made his way over to the bed. The girl looked up at him with fearful eyes.
"Where am I?" she asked, her voice quivering.
"Frostwall," Sairexanaris replied. "You're in my Garrison."
"How did I get here?" the girl wanted to know.
Sairexanaris sat down in the chair beside the bed. "I found you out on The Cracking Plains," he explained. "I brought you here. Yazzoo healed you."
The girl pointed towards the door. "The guy I just punched?" she asked.
Sairexanaris nodded. "Yeah," he replied, a ghost of a smile crossing his lips.
The girl looked down at her hands. "I have to give him my thanks and my apologizes," she said, embarrassed.
"I don't blame you. If I woke up to see a flaming skull looking down at me, I'd hit it, too," the hunter said.
The girl glanced up at him. "Thank you for saving me," she told him.
"If you don't mind my asking," Sairexanaris said. "Where were you coming from?"
The girl thought for a moment before answering. "Gorgrond." She looked down at her tattered robes. "How am I still alive?" she asked quietly, more to herself than to Sairexanaris.
"What happened?" Sairexanaris asked gently.
"I was leading a caravan back to my Garrison. We were passing through Gorgrond, through the forest." The girl's eyes became haunted. "We were ambushed...by a Worgen." She shivered. "She had more than just magic on her side. She also had fangs and claws to work with."
"This Worgen, what was she? A shadow priest?" Sairexanaris asked.
The girl shook her head.
"A mage?" the hunter guessed.
Again, the girl shook her head. "A warlock," she replied, voice shaking. "We never stood a chance. I asked her what she wanted, and all she said was, 'The one who got away'."
A chill shot down Sairexanaris' spine. Who's hunting whom? he asked himself.
"I don't know why she left me alive," the girl spoke, breaking the hunter out of his thoughts.
"Miss," Sairexanaris began.
"Nyxidora," the girl said. "My name is Nyxidora."
"Sairexanaris. Nyxidora, did she say anything else?" the hunter asked.
Nyxidora shook her head. "No. That's all she said before she attacked."
Before Sairexanaris could say anything else, the door of the barracks opened and Zorrion, Traylon and Yazzoo walked in. Yazzoo was once again wearing his flaming hood. Zorrion's face brightened into a wide smile when he saw Nyxidora sitting up in bed.
"You're awake!" he cheered happily, hurrying over to the bed. "Yazzy's still got the touch."
"Zor, I've told you many times to stop calling me that," Yazzoo said.
"But, it's such a cute name," Zorrion told him.
Nyxidora's face turned a light shade of red when she saw Yazzoo. "Um...Commander Yazzoo?"
The shadow priest looked at her. "Yes?" he asked.
"Thank you...for saving my life," Nyxidora said. "And...um...sorry about punching you earlier."
Zorrion chuckled. "You've got a nasty right hook. My name's Zorrion, by the way. Yazzy's my brother. And the brooding one is Traylon."
"I don't brood," Traylon argued.
"Then why are you always so serious?" Zorrion asked, turning to face the mage.
Traylon crossed his arms. "Why aren't you more serious?" he asked. "Honestly, Zorrion. You're the guild master."
Zorrion waved his hand dismissively. "You can't take things too seriously, Tray. That's why I started Velvet Nightmare."
"Here we go again," Sairexanaris muttered under his breath.
"And while you two are discussing that, I'm going to ask our guest what her name is," Yazzoo cut in.
Nyxidora's blush deepened. "I'm Nyxidora," she said. "I'm sorry if I caused you all any trouble."
Zorrion looked at her, eyes wide with surprise. "Trouble? You're no trouble. We were happy to help."
"Who's 'we'? Yazzoo did all the work," Traylon said.
"We were emotional support," Zorrion replied, without missing a beat.
Sairexanaris put a hand over his eyes as Yazzoo shook his head. Traylon gave Zorrion an unimpressed look, which Zorrion returned with a grin. Nyxidora chuckled softly. The memories of the attack began to fade as she enjoyed the company of her own people. She hoped that she would never have to face off against the Worgen again. But, if her path ever crossed with the warlock again, Nyxidora hoped that she wouldn't be facing her alone.