Thirteen
He stood and stared at himself in the mirror as he adjusted the tiny bow-tie that threatened to choke every last bit of air out of him. Once more he ran the silky cloth back and forth along his antlers to bring them to a complete shine. Softly he ran his hands down his black jacket to smooth it out and tugged on the bottom to make sure it fit snugly.
Before turning away, he noticed the eye patch was slightly off kilter and immediately readjusted it. Everything needed to be perfect this evening no matter what. The first thing he was able to control was his wardrobe, and after having to have a tuxedo specifically made for a Highmountain tauren he was going to make sure it looked fantastic.
His next step was to win the election. He prayed that after everything he would have the votes and become the mayor of the town. Jaina Proudmoore and Calia Menethil would be out of the way, and then the real ordeal would begin.
The tauren sneered at his reflection. It was time for Dalaran to meet Gidora.
Hesitantly she pinned the backs on her dangling diamond earrings and stared down at her feet. Even though her heels were covered in glitter, the shining material wasn't enough to brighten Maiev's mood. The message she received from her brother yesterday still ran rampant through her mind pushing aside every single happy thought about the night that she was trying to have.
Tonight was supposed to be a celebration of the winter holidays and hopefully of Calia Menethil's victory over Jaina to become Dalaran's new mayor, but the only thing she could think of was what corner her brother might come around next to try and ruin her life.
What if he was plotting with Tyrande? What if that's why she went after Illidan because they both knew it was a way to hurt me, she thought.
Part of her wanted that to be true and then it would be so much easier to forgive him. Another part had been hurt and betrayed by too many people for years for her to even begin to think that the answer could be that simple. People weren't known for the kindness, and Illidan Stormrage was in fact infamous for the terrible things he had done over the years.
No. That had to be it. Illidan was at fault. There wasn't some giant conspiracy going on. The only thing going on was that a certain demon hunter had longed for a priestess and in the moment that she was single he ran to her.
Quickly she reached up and started to pull off her earrings in anger just as Calia entered the room with her. "Hey! What are you doing?" she asked.
In an instant she stopped and allowed her shoulders to slump. "I-," Maiev started, "I'm not going." As the warden said the words she began to unzip her dress, but was immediately stopped by Calia's hand on her own.
"What do you mean you're not going? This is a night to celebrate, Maiev," Calia stated.
"I know," she answered turning to face her friend. "At first I was going to celebrate the holiday, then it was going to be to congratulate you on your victory (fingers crossed), and then yesterday I went and met Illidan-"
"You what? Why didn't you tell me? What happened?"
Maiev sighed, "It was all very convoluted. It was the same old stuff you see all the time. He really cared about me, it was all a mistake, oh and the best one was that Tyrande was basically trying to set him up!"
"I said that!" Calia shouted. "That can't be a coincidence that I said that and then he all but confirms it. Maiev, this is great news!"
Calia's face was beaming, but when she noticed Maiev's solemn AND her mood fell and she shook her head, "No, that's not great news. That's bad news. That's the worst news ever. I hate news."
A chuckle escaped Maiev, "I don't know. It just seems all too easy. Tyrande played him. I accept that and I feel like I could move past it, and we could get back to where we were. Something tells me it really is that simple. Another is telling me that Illidan has always been no good, and what exactly is Tyrande's angle?"
"Does she really need an angle?" Calia asked. "I hardly know her, but from the stories I've heard she'd do just about anything for Malfurion. If that means, she has to use Illidan and break him to get him to confess to something I'm sure that she would."
At that moment Maiev wanted to also reveal to her friend that her deranged brother was back in town. She wanted to let her know that he was out for blood, and she believed he and Tyrande were for some reason working together to not only get at her but Illidan as well; however, she didn't. Doing so would implicate her in a secret that went back thousands of years, and also would almost confirm that Illidan was telling the truth something she didn't want to admit to so easily.
Instead she responded, "I really don't know, but don't let me ruin this night for you."
"I want you to be there. Listen just come with Arator and I, leave Illidan at home if you don't want to go with him. At least be there. It would mean a lot to me," Calia insisted.
"I'm not gonna impose on your guys' first date. That's a little ridiculous. I really don't know, Calia, I'll think about it at the very least. I want to be there to celebrate a new beginning, a new season, and hopefully a new mayor, but I also don't know if I want to see him. Yesterday took enough out of me the way it is. The worst part is that I'm the one who invited him. I don't know what I was thinking," Maiev scoffed.
Her friend laughed, "You were thinking with your heart, Maiev. It might be a new concept for you, but you should really go with it." As she laughed she turned around, grabbed her small jacket, and headed for the door.
"Are you walking to it by yourself?" Maiev asked.
Calia answered, "Of course. It's not too far."
"It's also getting dark out," the warden snapped.
"I'll be fine. Most people tend to avoid me anyway," she laughed and swooped out the door before Maiev could argue with her again.
For a few moments she simply stood still contemplating taking her dress completely off and crawling into a pair of sweatpants. All at once, though, she re-zipped and put the earring back in she had taken out. There was no reason that she couldn't enjoy the night. Tonight her life was going to start over with or without Illidan Stormrage, and she owed it to herself to celebrate that milestone.
All at once a renewed sense of determination filled her body as she quickly finished straightening her hair, and brushed out the last few creases in her dress. With one final glance in the mirror she snatched her feathered coat from her bed and headed out the door.
Her entire body shook as she paced the floor, looking back and forth at the clock on the wall. Jaina had been up since the early morning hours as her body had become accustomed to waking her with a bout of sickness each morning. That had simply made the day drag on even longer in the perpetually long day that she already knew she would have simply waiting for the Winter's Veil party to begin.
It had been years since her nerves had even gotten a warm-up during an election. She had always ran unopposed and people seemed to enjoy her. Had they only been complacent because no one else wanted to run? Were her terms some of the worst in the history of any form of government? To her it appeared like the moment that someone else had a different view and finally wanted to go against her, the people of Dalaran jumped on-board with someone new, and it scared her.
As she turned to begin another round of pacing, tiny footsteps and a loud shouting stopped her in her tracks. "Mommy! Mommy!" she heard, spinning around just in time to catch Arza as he hopped up into her arms.
"Look what I drew!" he beamed handing her a large sheet of construction paper. Poorly drawn were three crooked stick figures all made up of a rainbow of colors. A sun beamed down from the upper right corner of the paper, and what Jaina assumed were flowers sprouted up all among the stick people.
"What is this?" she smiled.
"I drew it at school today. It's me, daddy, and you!" he laughed. Instantly she pulled him closer and hugged him as she saw Kalec lagging far behind their son. Having them both in the same room, she could feel the love radiating from everywhere and in an instant her fear and doubts seemed to wash away. Even if she lost the mayoral race, she still had this waiting for her.
She sat Arza on the ground and stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Kalec. Swiftly she leaned forward and kissed him, feeling even more of her fears and doubts melt away. "Did you see what your son drew today?" she asked.
The dragon grasped the picture and peered down at it all while smiling. "I did," he responded, "he couldn't wait to show me when I picked him up from school."
"We had to draw what we love most," Arza interjected.
Kalec leaned down and pulled his son close and kissed the top of his head. "Well that's amazing, Arza, thank you."
"Yes, thank you so much," Jaina added.
"Now go get your back ready. The nanny will be here in a few minutes to pick you up," Kalec ordered.
With a quick hop, Arza took off into the back leaving the two parents alone. He slowly closed the distance between the two of them and wrapped his fingers intermittently with Jaina's. Her heart skipped a beat as they both leaned in and fell into another kiss. The mage's hands cupped his face, then tenderly slid down his chest, and finally wound their way around his lower back until she had grasped ahold of his-
"Whoa! I don't think we have time for this do we?" Kalec choked stepping back.
Jaina sighed, "You're right we probably don't. The nanny is gonna be here any second, and you still have to get ready. Did you set out that white tux I brought home for you?"
"Yeah. It's all ironed and everything. I just have to shower, get dressed, and I'll be ready to go," he informed.
Just as Jaina was about to respond, Arza came bounding out of his room, his tiny backpack swinging excitedly back and forth on his back. As he rejoined them, the nanny announced herself and Arza swiftly ran into her opens arms. She quickly bid them both to have a good evening, and after Jaina and Kalec kissed the boy good-bye, she left leaving the two alone again.
Sneakily he stepped behind Jaina and softly kissed her neck and gingerly ran his hands down her arms" "You know," he said in-between pecks, "I think I just found us some free time."
Jaina laughed and turned around, playfully shoving him. She replied, "No. We actually don't. The party starts in less than an hour. I think I'm actually going to start making my way over there."
"You're not gonna wait for me to get ready," Kalec questioned.
"I'll be fine. I need to be there early anyway. It will look better if I don't walk in right on time, or heaven forbid I'm actually late," she answered. "Plus I would really like to get a good look at this Gidora guy before he loses."
"I love the enthusiasm," he laughed. "Oh! I almost forgot to ask how your morning was? Did you still get sick?"
"Yeah I actually went to see Velen today," Jaina revealed.
"Oh?" Kalec said. "What did you find out?"
She quickly looked at cell phone, and her heart jumped when she realized the time. "Oh wow! I really have to go and you need to go get ready!"
"But Jaina we're having a conversation-"
Without looking back she shouted, "I'll see you tonight, we can talk then!" Instantly she slammed the door behind her and leaned back against it taking in a deep breath. Muffled yells could still be heard, but died away as fast as they had started. Just as it had when thinking about the election, her pulse raced and her heart threatened to burst right out of her chest. Now was not the time to talk to Kalec about what Velen had told her when she had visited him. That needed to wait until after.
Pushing herself off the door, she looked around the Purple Parlor one last time. Within the hour this could all be taken from her, and all at once she would have to start her life somewhere new. If she lost, this was no longer home.
The mage shook her head trying to douse that thought from inside her. She didn't need the Violet Citadel and the Purple Parlor to be home. She knew that all she needed was her son and Kalec around for any place to be like home. They could be happy no matter where they were, she was sure of that.
Cautiously she stepped out of the doorway and was instantly warped down into the Violet Citadel that was already bustling with people. Waiters and caterers hurried to and fro carrying trays of different appetizers, champagne glasses, dirty dishes, and other finger foods. Elegant decorations draped the walls, windows, and doors as well as the marble podium that stood on platform on the far side of the room.
Behind that were three life size posters of each candidate. The mage laughed as hers hadn't changed in years, and it amazed her at how much she hadn't changed. The two other posters made her sick. Seeing the smiling face of Calia Menethil and the one-eyed tauren angered her like none other. It seemed like thing after thing were being sent down from above to break her and destroy her life, but still she was going to hang onto everything with an iron grip.
This is just the beginning of you losing...everything.
Are you kidding me? Now? Of all times for you to parade through our mind, you choose now to show up?
Dreadlord, I told you your time was coming, and I meant it. You'll lose this race, and then slowly everything else will unravel. Once you let your guard down, I'll take control of my body again and make things right.
Right? How have I made anything in your life terrible? We're with Kalec, you're the mayor of a town, you have a beautiful little boy, and soon you'll-
At what cost? You've burned so many bridges to get there. Ever since Theramore fell and I went and became...this thing you have gone on a spree of crazy. I need to atone for that and make up for it.
I did what I had to. Everything was taken from you, so we had to get a little even and take things from others. We are where we are now because of me.
I don't care! I want my own life back! I want to make my own choices! You need to GET OUT!
The voice echoed throughout her head and caused her to stumble and almost run straight into a waiter. She instantly became lightheaded and felt the need to sit down, but noticed the chairs were just being set up around the numerous cocktail tables that had just been placed around the room.
Hurriedly Jaina headed towards the doors outside and pushed them open. A brisk air caressed her body, and she thanked the Titans her dress was long-sleeves. With each step down she took, her head became clearer until all at once the nagging voice of the human was nothing more than a whisper.
She took a deep breath, but was cut short by a shrill-scream that came from down the road. The sound made the hair on the back of her neck stand up, and she made her way towards the noise. A few of the street lights hadn't been lit and left parts of the road completely pitch-black, and most of the Dalaran citizens were either at home or had made their way to the Winter Veil party, but she slinked still down the street, carrying her dress as she did.
Closer and closer she got until she came to a single beam of light from a street lamp that shone on the spot like a spotlight. In a giant group were four or five people dressed head to toe in dark purple garb and were badgering another person dressed in a fine evening gown. She could hear the shouts of "get away from me" and "stop", and finally she caught a glimpse of the woman they were surrounding, and she halted.
"Jaina? Jaina!" she shouted.
"Calia," Jaina breathed silently.
He kissed her hand again and again as he sat next to Yrel's lifeless body, gripping her hand as if it was the only thing keeping her grounded. The only sound in the room came from her shallow breathing and the beeps of the many machines. Each noise was like someone slamming a sledgehammer on the inside of his head. Every breath she took and he watched her chest fall was like someone punching him in his own heart.
Maraad held back the tears the best he could, but every once in awhile one would fall and create a tiny puddle on the terrible hospital sheets that covered the draenei's lifeless body. When it did happen he hoped it would be like in the movies where suddenly a magic curse would be lifted, and she would wake up to him and embrace him with open arms.
Alas that wasn't the case. She laid battered and bruised hooked to too many machines that the fancy lawyer couldn't even name one of. Times had changed drastically since diseases could all be simply cleansed with magic from a healer. The gnomes and goblins had banded together to develop some of the best medical equipment Azeroth had ever seen, and although he hated the world now for the most part he couldn't have been happier that they had made the contraptions.
"I can't believe this happened. If you were still with me none of this would have happened to you," Maraad sighed. "Why did you have to go back to that pathetic boy-king? You and I were destined to be together long before you even met Anduin, yet somehow here we are. Believe me I've been working at it for awhile now, but I will make sure he gets what's coming to him. I promise you that."
He prayed that she couldn't hear him in her coma as he blurted out he had been working against the two of them. That wasn't something she needed to know, and if she did he feared that he would be alone forever. Yrel would leave in an instant.
The dark thoughts didn't last long, though. Maraad knew his plan was working. It had been ages since Yrel and he had first met and their relationship had bloomed, but she had friend-zoned him in an instant and never came back to pick up the pieces. He watched for years as she kept to herself until finally coming across Anduin. In that moment the draenei's life shattered. Somewhere he thought they would find their way back to each other, but here she was gallivanting around with nothing more than a...human.
Quickly his legal skills came into play as he dug around and found the dirt he needed to on Anduin. The boy could never truly be into Yrel if he was secretly rendezvousing with a black dragon, and if he wasn't even into women to begin with. In the end, Anduin would simply end up destroy Yrel's heart and Maraad wouldn't stand for it. If that happened, she may never trust another man again and their love story never could begin.
Simply telling her about Anduin would never work as the boy could deny it again and again. That's when he decided to take it slow and rekindle their friendship, going out for coffee here and there and being the person she told all about her problems with Anduin when they arose. He moved in closer and closer and although the battle over the planet had set him back a bit, the moment it was over, he jumped at the opportunity to be with her and give her what she had said Anduin would not.
Now they were here. Somehow Anduin was still coming between them, and no matter how hard Maraad was trying to keep the boy away and lonely it seemed to be backfiring at every turn. He had to admit, though, despite how terrible he felt about Yrel being in the hospital bed it did help him in his endeavor.
"With Anduin in jail, he'll never be able to be with Wrathion nor be able to meddle in our relationship ever again," Maraad breathed leaning forward and pecking Yrel on the forehead. "And don't worry about him getting out, I've made sure it sticks."
A snap echoed through the upstairs as the latex gloves formed to his hands, and he quickly began to scour the common area and apartment for all of the incriminating pictures of Anduin and Wrathion that laid strewn about. As he gathered the pictures and papers, he laughed to himself how easy it had been to convince the EMTs that he was simply part of the police department and was there to collect evidence. It was funny to him that they even thought the fill-in for Turalyon and Vereesa that night, Kauldor, would have the brain capacity to even come out and look at the crime scene let alone collect evidence to prove a crime was committed.
The mess that was was once an entirely clean apartment looked as if a traumatic storm had hit it. Furniture, drawers, and the pieces of paper he was collecting were tossed here and there; however, his only intent was to collect anything that would enable Anduin to tell anyone that it was a mistake that Yrel fell. Once he had them all in hand, he crept back out and disappeared before anyone even noticed.
Quickly Maraad snapped back to reality hoping to see Yrel's smile shining back up at him. Disappointment flooded him as the same graven, sunken face peered back at him. His insides burned and he longed to take away the state she was in, but the only thing he could do was watch as doctors came in and poked and prodded her. Never before had he felt this way about someone, and he wished almost that he didn't.
"You have to wake up, Yrel. I looked for ways to get Anduin out of our lives, but never thought you would get hurt in doing it. We have so much time to really delve into our relationship, but we can't do that with you lying in this bed," Maraad spoke.
As he continued, the door to the room opened and both Yrel's doctor and her best friend walked in. Instantly he stood up and embraced Mishka in his arms and stepped back to look at her saddened face. "How is she doing?" she asked.
"She's still here, and for that we can be thankful," he answered. "How are you holding up?"
The psychiatrist walked towards Yrel's bedside and grasped ahold of the same hand Maraad had been clenching onto for hours. She sighed, "I don't really know. I had to take the day off work because I can't focus thinking about her lying in this bed. I don't even understand how this happened! Anduin wouldn't even hurt a fly. It doesn't make sense that he would attack Yrel."
Maraad gritted his teeth, "Yeah. We can't possibly know what was going through his mind. Sometimes the nicest people are the ones with the most violent tendencies."
"That's certainly not always true," Velen interjected as he leaned in and listened to Yrel's heartbeat. As he moved towards the heart monitor and IV bag he continued, "Some of our history's most violent people were just that...violent. And I can personally attest to the nicest people doing some of the most splendid things for Azeroth. I also have watched Anduin grow and-"
"Well people tend to change don't they, Velen?" Maraad snapped back.
Velen replaced his stethoscope around his neck and strolled towards the door. "It does appear that way doesn't it? However, I've also come to know that things are certainly not always what they seem."
"How about you just tell us how she's doing and how we can help?" he growled. Maraad could feel his blood begin to boil as he heard Velen trying to defend the boy-king just like everyone else in Azeroth always did, and it sickened him.
"There has been no change. Yrel is still stable, but nothing appears to be improving," Velen answered.
"Is there anything we can do to help?" Mishka reiterated.
"No," Velen sighed. "I wish there was, but at this time it's just a waiting game. Everything is functioning properly, and she appears fine but for some reason or another she's not waking up. The mind is a fickle thing and beings we just really started practicing in medicine instead of using healing magic we barely understand it."
Maraad scoffed, "What does that even mean?"
"It means," Velen pressed, "that from what we have learned is that when going through a traumatic experience such as the one Yrel went through, the brain has certain defense mechanisms it uses to protect the body. This particular one is called a coma and is normally caused by trauma to the head, and while it might seem like a terrible ordeal it's actually very good for her."
"When will she wake up then? Will she wake up? Do you actually have solid answers?" Maraad's voice rose.
"I'm sorry I can't give you more direct answers. For now it will just do her good to have you two by her side," the doctor noted as he then swiftly walked out of the room.
The moment the door closed Maraad began to pace and growled loudly, "How is this happening? I did everything right!"
The instant the words left his mouth regret punched him in the stomach. He had forgotten there was someone else in the room other than himself and Yrel.
"What does that mean, Maraad?" Mishka questioned creeping towards him. "What did you do? Did you have something to do with Yrel being in this bed?"
Calia pulled her jacket tighter to her body as she stepped out into the darkened evening. She hadn't realized it had gotten so late as she made her way down the street towards the Violet Citadel. As darkened street lamps and alleyways passed her by she almost turned around and decided to wait for Maiev to also accompany her. Despite her saying so, Dalaran was quite creepy late at night.
Her fears melted away as she strode closer to the party and more streetlamps were lit and more groups of people were scattered along the sidewalks. It amazed her how so many different races that had once never gotten along were simply now living together in peace, and even more so how a holiday and event such as Winter Veil and the mayoral race could bring up such a crowd. She hoped after tonight that she would be able to help make all of these people feel safer and happier about living in Dalaran.
She took note of how intertwined into conversation each group was except a small group that was huddled in a group peering down at an object. All at once they slinked down an alleyway and out of view. The woman knew that she should keep on her way and head into the party, but she couldn't shake the feeling something was wrong and after she had been accused of not doing anything about the cultist action picking up in town it seemed logical that she check out what they were doing.
With determination, she stepped out of sight and into the darkening alley. For a couple seconds she felt almost blind as her eyes tried to adjust to the lack of light in between the buildings, but once they did she had a much clearer picture of the group. There was a lumbering tauren, two trolls, a human, and a draenei that were dressed head to toe in purple and black garments including hoods that helped to keep their identities hidden.
The moment she neared them, each one of them looked up from what appeared to be a crumbled map and faced her. If she could have seen their faces she knew they would be looking at her with anger or pure stupidity as to why she was cornering them. Calia figured even her face would show that despite wanting to know what they were doing, she was completely terrified at cornering possible cultists on her own.
"W-What are you guys doing? Shouldn't you be heading inside to the Winter V-Veil celebration," Calia stammered.
The tauren responded as he quickly nudged the human with his elbow who then hid the paper behind his back, "We aren't much for celebrations. Tend to keep to ourselves."
"Is that because you're in some sort of cult? Like this one I've been hearing so much about," she questioned.
The draenei scoffed, "Cultists? Why would you ever think we're that? Is it because of what we're wearing? That seems awfully judgmental don't you think. Not quite the quality the town would want in a mayor wouldn't you say?"
Calia shook her head, "No that's not-"
"Ya best be on ya way if ya know wat's good for you, mon," one of the trolls warned.
"Not until you tell me what you guys are doing here. Better yet I want to know what you're hiding there," she demanded.
The Zandalari took a menacing step towards Calia as she attempted to stand her ground. "Perhaps ya didn't 'ere my broter," he growled, "leave."
The woman wasn't about to let them scare her away. The town wanted answers as to what she was going to do about this threat, and confronting them now would give her more of a standing when it came to questions like that.
"I'm not doing that," she snapped talking a step towards the group. "Give me that piece of paper now, or I'm calling the authorities."
"I wouldn't do that if I were you," the human responded.
Without listening to them, Calia opened the clutch at her side and and reached inside for her phone. As she did a furry hand wrapped around her wrist and quickly snatched it out of the bag and held it above her. "Clearly you have poor hearing for a human," the tauren sniffed.
Hard as she tried she couldn't pull her hand away from his grip. As he held her in place the rest of the group slowly made their way towards her. "I guess we'll 'afta make a showing of ya," one of the trolls (she assumed he was Darkspear as he was hunched over) cackled.
"Let go of me," Calia growled pulling back harder and harder put to no avail.
"I think that is a perfect solution," the human agreed strolling forward. "I do have another in mind, but it's not so much a lesson as an enjoyment for me." He leaned towards her and brushed a strand of hair out of her face and sniffed her neck.
Instantly she swung her clutch bag around and felt as it collided with the side of the human's head. He howled in pain and flopped backwards and as he did Calia heaved her heeled foot into the nether regions of the tauren.
The cow dropped like an immense sack of platinum ore and without hesitation she took off out of the alley and back onto the streets. As she stepped onto the cobble, she realized that the streetlamps for whatever reason had gone out. It was almost pitch-black out except for a single street lamp and the lights that were shining from the Violet Citadel.
She started to run towards the party, but after a couple steps she felt her movements stop and all of a sudden she was suspended in the air by her arms. Calia screamed at the top of her lungs as she realized the two trolls and caught up to her and were holding her off the ground.
"Ya should 'af been faster dan dat pretty lady," one of them laughed.
"Get off of me! Let me go!" she struggled to no avail.
From the shadows she heard grunting and then from the lone street lamp she saw the face of the human. Growing up Calia had heard of this man, but he had died a traitor long ago. To see him before her as a mere cultist was confusing and shocking to her.
"Aiden Perenolde," she breathed.
"Knowing my name isn't going to do you any good, girl," he seethed. "I gave up my humanity long ago. Besides apparently you need to be shown how to treat your elders. Your father would never have allowed you to treat me in such a way."
Her scream carried down the road, and she attempted to look around, but no one appeared to be around until her eyes fell upon a woman standing down the road near the Violet Citadel peering back at her.
"Jaina? Jaina!" she yelled.
The trolls and Aiden all stopped, frozen realizing they had been caught. Calia wanted to laugh in their faces and spit at their feet. Despite their differences she knew Jaina still had a heart and would be more than willing to stop these goons from attacking her.
All at once that hope fell away and turned into despair as she watched Jaina look her dead in the eye and head back inside. "Jaina? Jaina! Jaina, come back! Somebody help me!" she shouted to the night as she struggled back and forth in the trolls arms.
"Oh no," Aiden sneered, "apparently someone else has made their fair share of enemies. Don't worry, dear, we'll take real good care of you." The traitorous king stepped closer and as he did he drew a dagger from the sheath at his side. Menacingly he pressed the tip of hit against the nape of her neck as she began to shake. "Sh, don't worry. Once we're done I'm sure the master will have ample opportunities for you," he breathed. Carefully he traced a line from her ear down her neck and to the buttons of her dress.
From the dark a fist jumped out and smashed into the side of Aiden's face tossing him aside. The trolls instinctively dropped Calia out of shock and looked around for the attacker. Before they could even react a body sprang out of the dark and tackled them to the ground.
A few moments of silence followed as Calia crawled backwards more towards the light and suddenly Arator pounced from the darkness and into the beam quickly lifting her to the ground. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you? Oh my god, Calia, I'll kill them," he stammered.
Calia could feel his entire body quivering from anger. He kept shoving his way towards the darkness where the cultists were clamoring to their feet, but she pressed into his chest pushing against him. "No, stop. This won't solve anything. I'm fine. Arator, stop."
"No! How dare they come after you like that! Those sick psychos deserve to rot in the Shadowlands!" he shouted towards them, while relaxing and simply standing still.
"You will pay this dearly," Aiden growled from the darkness. She could feel his eyes beaming into the back of her head from the abyss and a the chill in his voice sent shivers down her back. "I helped to bring about the downfall of an entire human kingdom. An insignificant woman and her boy-toy are nothing that cannot be dealt with. All eventually shall bow to the master's will."
The footsteps disappearing into the distance was all the confirmation Calia needed to quickly leap forward and wrap her arms around Arator's neck. "Thank you so much. I can't tell you how grateful I am you showed up when you did," she thanked.
He stood back and cupped her face in his hands and peered into her eyes. Calia could see the anger and hatred burning deep within them, but she could also see the pain and relief welling up in them on top of that. "I-I just can't even begin to think of what I would have done had something happened to you," he breathed.
"Don't think like that," she sighed.
"I'm serious," he replied, "when I saw them there everything went black. The only thing I could think of was saving you, and if I hadn't gotten there in time-" He shuddered and she placed her hands around his wrists and brought them down from her face to his side where she gripped ever tighter to them.
"It's fine. I'm safe. You're safe, and once I'm elected to that mayoral seat I can bring down the wrath of the world on those bastard cultists; however, in order to know if that happened we have to make our way over to that large building over there," she said motioning towards the Violet Citadel.
"Are you insane? You still want to go to this party? Do you really think now is the time for that? We should be calling the police! We should go see Velen and see if you're okay! We should-"
"Stop. I told you a few times now that I'm fine. If I don't show up, and let those cultists win what does that say about me and the platform I was running in this race? Plus I will not give Jaina the satisfaction of not seeing me there," Calia snapped.
Arator scoffed, "Jaina? What does your little ordeal with her have to do with this? You were attacked and the only things you can think of is how much you hate Jaina and being mayor?"
"That's not it," she retorted.
"Then what is it?" he asked.
"Jaina saw me," Calia answered. "She saw me there with those men and walked away leaving me to fend for myself. I thought despite everything that if something bad like that happened to either of us we would still have each other's back, but clearly that's gone. There is nothing but hate and rage left between us. An endless feud that won't end until one of us is gone obviously."
"She-She just left you there? What the hell is wrong with her?" Arator shouted.
Calia moved past him and pulled his hand towards the Citadel and explained, "I told you. She's who she is, and we can't change that; however, I want to be there in person when she loses the one thing that's keeping her entire life together."
The elf stopped and attempted to pull her back. He sighed, "This feud is getting out of hand. I'm not sure I really want to get into the middle of this."
"No. It's not that I'm going just because of that, Arator. It just so happens to be a big part of it," she responded.
"If that was supposed to make me feel better, it did the exact opposite," he snapped.
"Listen," Calia cooed grabbing his other hand in hers, "I'll make you a deal." Arator's left eyebrow raised in anticipation as she spoke. "Forget about Jaina for the evening. I know it's gonna be hard considering how I feel and what just transpired, but let's go in there because it's a celebration. Let's also go in because it's our first date and I would really like to enjoy it and get to know you more."
"That sounds like an idea I can get behind," he answered. Without another word, Calia led him into one of the most celebrated occasions in Dalaran.
Maiev impatiently tapped her foot as she munched on the different snack mixes that had been placed around the bar and quickly took a sip of her champagne that almost instantly resembled a whole swig. Her nerves were more on edge than they had ever been, and she hated it. Not only had she not yet made contact with Illidan, but there was still no sight of Calia, and the woman had left well before she had. So many factors were building up inside of her threatening to cause her heart to explode at any minute.
Without hesitation, Maiev downed the rest of her champagne and sat her empty flute glass on the bar top and peered around at the hundreds of people that filled the ever shrinking room. It amazed her how many people actually had survived the battle for Azeroth and still resided in the town; even more so how many of them didn't bother to come out of their homes until a special occasion such as this one occurred.
From her position at the bar she could make out Danath Trollbane's twin daughters chatting with some teenage boys, Moira Thaurissan and her husband fake laughing at some story Eldin Sunstrider was telling, and others such as the Bronzebeard brothers, Thalyssra, Oculeth, and even Shandris Feathermoon. So many people finally living in peace and the biggest showing of everyone is during a mayoral election.
"A warden such as yourself cannot simply remain at her post without a drink in her hand," a voice soothed.
Her hand reached out for the glass without paying attention and instantly more of the liquid found it's way cascading down her throat.
"Quite the thirsty one if we can take a drink from a random stranger and not even glance their way," the voice laughed.
The night elf sighed and despite her better judgment was actually okay with the interruption if only to just get her mind of the million things that were driving her insane. As she turned to thank the newcomer, she instantly wished that she could regurgitate the liquid right into the stranger's face.
As she turned she peered up into the face of her friend's opponent. He stood roughly about the same height as her if it weren't for the enormous antlers that sprouted from his head. He was dressed in a tight fitting suit, and as Maiev scanned him over he winked at her in the one eye that wasn't covered by a black leather patch.
"Gidora, is it?" she nodded.
"It is a pleasure to meet you as well, Miss Shadowsong. I have heard many ordeals about you from your years on this planet. I believe we even met once. It was many years ago back in the Cathedral of Eternal Night," the druid introduced.
Maiev laughed taking another drink of the alcohol in her hand, "Ah, you were one of those sorry adventurers following Illidan and I? I rarely kept account of all the people I met through things like that."
"There were a few of us there. I'm sure you didn't keep track of everyone's faces. Especially not during such a dire time as that. Plus I'm sure all of us lesser races don't even get the time of day in your mind."
"I never said-"
Gidora interjected, "You didn't have to. Most of the elves think that they are better than the next race anyway. That's part of the reason you all rebuilt Teldrassil is it not? While some of you can mingle with the other races, at the end of the day you all have your own home regardless."
Maiev scoffed, "That's absurd, but you take me for the type of person I really don't want to get into an argument with as it will get either of us nowhere."
"Who knows? An argument could lead us to getting better acquainted," he smiled.
"Oh you see that's one of the few things on my list of things I never want to do," Maiev sassed. "Shouldn't you be mingling with all the people that clearly felt so sorry for you they may have actually voted for you?"
"Did you vote for me?" the tauren joked.
"Are you actually saying these words? You popped into town out of nowhere and are running against a good friend of mine. Why would I ever vote for you?" she snapped.
"Because I'm clearly the better candidate," he replied. "Those two women's bickering would be their undoing, and they would bring down the entire town doing so. They would bring down the last remaining sanctuary for mortals. I simply want to keep us prosperous."
"I'm sure you won't have to worry about it too long. Calia will win, and you'll see that everything is going to be fine," Maiev mocked.
"For the sake of Dalaran, I hope you're wrong. Now I must go 'mingle' as you so delicately put it. I assure you we'll speak soon," Gidora responded as he began to stroll away into the crowd. Before he disappeared from sight he called back, "By the way you're terribly cute when you're angry."
Maiev could feel her cheeks flaring up, and not from embarrassment but from anger. She despised the audacity on that man to waltz into town and think he knows what is best for everyone and even worse than that he judged her. He knows nothing about me, she thought to herself almost in a reassuring way.
As a server strolled by with a champagne tray in hand she quickly grasped two of them from it and began to guzzle each of them down first drinking from one and then the other. The night was already too much for her, and it had barely began. She still hadn't even seen-
"Whoa, starting a little early and without me aren't you?" a familiar voice called to her.
Goosebumps raced up and down her arms as the voice called to her and in a flash Illidan was standing before her. For a moment she stood in awe at how handsome he looked. From somewhere he had managed to dig up an incredibly fancy tuxedo, his hair was placed into a bun atop his head, and the smile he wore simply from just being able to be in her pretense simply melted her to the core.
However she couldn't be swayed. She still didn't know how to feel about the kiss that Illidan and Tyrande had shared. Part of her (especially in the moment) wanted to wrap her arms around him and never let go, but a bigger part of her wanted to shove him away and tell him how disgusted she was with him. Maiev knew then that she could never be hurt again if she did that.
"I stopped by your place to pick you up like you said, but all the lights were out and everything," he revealed.
"Yeah I decided to just walk over. Less of a hassle," she answered.
"Oh well, not a big deal. I would offer to get you a drink," he laughed pointing at both of the glasses in her hands, "but it seems you got that under control. Maybe we could just t-"
"Listen, Illidan, I don't think this is the best time. I have so much on my mind tonight. I'm sorry," she replied.
For a few seconds, the demon hunter was taken aback. Shock plastered his face, but almost as quickly, it was peeled away and replaced with determination. "No. Maiev you invited me not the other way around. I'm not gonna let you just walk away from this. Tonight was supposed to be a new beginning for us," Illidan yelled.
"It was," she agreed, "but when I think deeply about it I don't know if I'm truly ready for that yet. I don't know if I'm ready to let you back in, or to forgive you for kissing Tyrande."
"For the millionth time, she kissed me. I wanted nothing to do with it. I want you. Only you," he breathed.
Just grab him. Jump into his arms. Pull him close. Do it.
The words pounded against her skull like a jackhammer, but it still wasn't that simple for her. A bond had been broken. A bond that she herself had never thought would be a thing, and then Illidan had came along and created it all to shatter it.
"I know what you've said. I just have a lot on my mind right now. There's this whole party going on, and Calia for some reason isn't here yet-"
"Maiev, there you are!" a voice called from across the room. Instantly Calia appeared, gently shoving between a group of party-goers, her hand pulling Arator quickly behind her.
"Here I am? What about you? I was getting worried! Where have you been? This is literally a party for you!" Maiev answered.
"She was kind of preoccupied with some nasty cultists," Arator growled from behind her.
"What?" Maiev gasped. "Are you okay?"
"I am. Arator got there at right time, thank goodness," Calia replied brushing his hand that she was holding. "Jaina on the other hand had no problem viewing the problem and then walking away from that."
Illidan joined the conversation, "That seems about on point with her character."
"Oh, Illidan! Um, hey, this is Arator Windrunner," Calia introduced, "Arator this is Illidan Stormrage." The two men reached across and shook hands while nodding to one another. "I know it's exactly something she would do, but it's so incredibly aggravating that this is where our relationship has gone. Ugh I just want to-I need a drink. I'll be back." Angrily she spun on her heel and began pushing through people heading to find a beverage.
Embarrassed Arator chuckled, "I should probably go after her before she does something everyone regrets. Although would anyone really regret if she did something to Jaina?"
"It was great to meet you," Illidan waved as Arator took off after his date. After the elf had cleared their view the demon hunter spun back to Maiev, and she knew exactly what was coming her way. "So what-"
"Don't," Maiev interjected. "I really just don't think-"
"Don't," he stopped. Gingerly he reached out and grabbed her hands and pulled her just a little closer. For some reason she allowed it even though her brain was screaming at her to slap him across the face; however, the touch of his hands also felt soothing to her. Despite her friend being terrorized by cultists and a major election being decided on the night, being close to the demon hunter calmed her nerves better than the champagne she had been downing throughout the night.
"Illidan," she murmured.
"Listen," he continued, "I've let you talk and call me all the names in the world, and I just simply let it happen. Not anymore. Maiev, you know me better than this. That kiss with Tyrande meant nothing. I know that. Deep down I'm certain you know that." He peered into her eyes hoping to get a sign from any facial expression she might make. The warden kept solid.
"There is no one at all that I've cared about more than I do for you, Maiev. Everyday I can't wait to wake up and see your beautiful face. I live to see your face scrunch up the way it does when you're desperately trying to figure out something that is confusing to you. The atmosphere you create every time that you walk into a room is absolutely intoxicating. I find myself trying to find every excuse I can to simply leave work early, get out of the boring tree, and spend time with you. In times past there may have been feelings for my brother's wife, I cannot deny that. The tale is as old as time, but this is an entirely new story. It might not have the best beginning, but I pray to Elune that we can make it have one of the most fantastic endings," he spoke.
His words resonated with her on an almost spiritual level. Her defenses melted away and anything nasty or condescending she may have wanted to throw at him erased themselves from her brain. Tenderly she wiggled her hands out of his and moved them up across his firm chest and then up to his face to cup his cheeks. Her thumb brushed back and forth and for a moment the two of them simply stared into the pools of each other's eyes.
"For a demon hunter you certainly have a way with words," she breathed.
He grinned, "So what does that mean? Do we have a chance? Can we work this out?"
When the question hit her, all of her doubts came rushing back and in that instant she didn't have an answer for him. Silence was the only thing came from the warden.
Jaina paced back and forth across the marble floor of the Violet Citadel. The look of terror from Calia still haunted her face, but she quickly swept it away. She had done much worse things, and while it wasn't her job to seek vigilante justice she wouldn't turn it away if it fell into her lap.
Part of her still couldn't help but be upset by the way she had acted. She had clearly seen her ex-best friend in trouble and that part wanted to help her, but so much hatr*ed and rage seemed to cloud those feelings and in that moment she had walked away.
That was clearly your doing wasn't it?
Just because you're a heartless dreadlord, doesn't mean that I am.
Oh? You were the one who took us down this path. The only reason I exist is because you were tired of everything and needed something to get back at everyone that had wronged you. In the end, you ended up killing your best friend and yet here you are trying to defend her. You are so lucky that I'm here.
She could be dead.
Would that be so bad?
Arthas would be devastated.
Lucky for you, you have Kalec. I'm giving that to you. Even though I can barely stand to look at the guy. He makes us as a whole feel good, and it's clearly something you enjoyed.
Silence resonated within her head, but was quickly interrupted by Kalec slinking up behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist and swinging her side to side. "How is my favorite person doing?" he breathed in her ear.
Shivers ran down her neck and she reached up and brushed the side of his face. "I was wondering when you were going to show up. They're getting so close to announcing the winner, and I think I'm going to be sick," she laughed.
Kalec spun her around to face him, a look of concern plastered his face. "Is it the same sickness you've been feeling? Do we need to call the doctor?"
"No I'm fine," she smiled.
"That reminds me," Kalec spoke kissing her quick, "what did Velen say at your appointment?"
"Oh!" Jaina exclaimed. "I forgot about that! Well-"
"Good evening," a voice interrupted her.
The couple turned around to be greeted by a towering tauren. Jaina knew almost immediately from all of the posters she had seen around town that this was Gidora. In that instant she felt even sicker than she had been previously, but refused to get nauseous in front of the man.
"You must be-," Jaina started.
"Gidora," he responded extending his hoof. "I am your running mate."
Jaina scoffed. "Oh? Running mate assumes that you even have a chance to win. Considering you have no friends or roots here in Dalaran I highly doubt there is any chance at all that you'll win. It is a pleasure meeting you, though."
Gidora sneered, "Oh I must insist, Miss Proudmoore, that the pleasure is all mine. See while you've been off on your little crusade to nail Calia Menethil to the cross, I've actually spoken to the people of this town to see what they want. Do you know just how bad you've been doing in this town?"
"How dare you speak to her like that! Jaina has been running this town for years before you even thought about coming to Dalaran! To think that you could just come in here and-"
The druid laughed heartily interrupting Kalec, "You must be Kalecgos. You were the great blue dragon that took up the mantle of the blue dragonflight after dear old Malygos was put out of his misery by a band of adventurers like me. I do wish I had been a part of that group, sadly I wasn't apart of the 'raiding scene' at that time, a bit too young. It is fascinating to me how you dragons can think that you are so far above everyone else and then try to come down off your pedestal to have a real human conversation."
"What do you mean?" Kalec asked.
"I'm saying that you're blind. Jaina Proudmoore has been running this town into the ground. It's become even worse since her best friend came to town and they've spent their time feuding like teenage hussies. I will turn this town around and make it a hospitable environment for all that need it to be," Gidora retorted.
"Really? You don't even know this town. I'm sure the only thing that you know about Dalaran was that it was a hub for you back in your 'adventurer days' during the crusade against Arthas and then again during the fight against the Burning Legion. Gidora, you don't know a thing at all and that is why I am here," Jaina responded.
"You keep telling yourself that. I will bathe in the tears that follow your loss," he answered. After speaking, the druid instantly disappeared into the crowd leaving the couple alone.
"What in the world? Can you believe that guy? The way he talked to us, and how he was so sure he would win! I can't stand him," Jaina exclaimed.
"He does seem like quite the pompous a-" Kalec started.
"How. Dare. You," a voice growled.
Jaina spun around to peer into the angered face of Calia Menethil. Her face was beet red, and if it were a cartoon she would have had steam rolling out of her ears. Jaina could tell she was gritting her teeth as she spoke and both of her hands were balled up into fists that could have lunged out at her at any minute.
"I'm sorry. Can I help you?" Jaina snapped.
"Help me?" Calia laughed. "Now you want to see if you can help me? That seems odd that you would want to do that now beings when I actually did need it you walked away and left me to the wolves!"
"I don't know what you're talking about," Jaina denied.
"Are you kidding me, woman?" Arator yelled.
Kalec stepped forward, "Do not speak to my girlfriend like that."
"Then maybe your 'girlfriend' should have the common decency to help people who are actually in need. No instead she leaves them to almost get-," the words caught in Arator's throat.
"What?" Kalec questioned. "She is nothing but helpful. Your 'girlfriend' just wants nothing but to make it look like Jaina is a terrible human being."
"First off, Kalec, do not speak to him like that," Calia retorted. "Secondly I don't understand how you can defend her. This ordeal actually happened. My god, Kalec, I thought sharing a child would give us some kind of a bond and you would believe me when push came to shove."
Arator turned to Calia, "You what?"
Kalec laughed, "You really think that would keep us together? You abandoned the child. To think that you have any right to be a mother, a friend, or anything decent is absolutely ridiculous!"
"I did for our child what I thought was best at the time!" she screeched moving towards him. "You do not get to tell me about how my choices are wrong. You weren't there. You don't know!"
Jaina sighed, "I literally don't know what you're talking about. I wouldn't have left you if something terrible was happening; however, if I did wouldn't it simply be payback for what you did to your husband and daughter?"
Calia's face burned a bright red and she spat, "Okay. Okay. Yes you see I must have learned it from you when you decided to abandon my brother, Arthas, when he needed you most."
The tension that instantly grew between the two women could have been cut with a knife and spread on toast. No one moved and no one spoke. The two men knew that this was between the women and had no desire to get in between it despite how much they defended the women they had came with. Jaina wanted to reach out and knock the look off of Calia's face, but she knew better than to create a scene like that in a public place.
She knew that she couldn't let Calia have the last world, though, however, as she went to speak her voice was interrupted by another up front at the podium that was set up. Everyone snapped their heads towards the front and watched as an elegantly dressed blood elf headed towards the microphone with an envelope in hand.
The entire room erupted in cheer as they saw the actress Anaisa stroll across the stage and queue herself up at the microphone. She scanned the crowd and smiled at everyone that looked up to her like she was some royal goddess.
"Good evening everyone!" she welcomed. "As you know I am Anaisa Pye and I want to welcome you all to this wonderful event tonight. We know that every two years we have a huge election for the person that is going to represent this town and make it the best that it can be. This year is one of the most epic that I have seen in a long time; however, despite how intense it was we do appear to have a clear winner!"
The crowd erupted in cheers that echoed off of every wall in the citadel. Jaina watched as Anaisa smiled and looked out around the crowd. Slowly her smile faded to a frown as the cheers refused to die down.
"Okay," she whispered.
"Okay," her voice rose a little higher.
"OKAY SHUT UP!" she screamed in the highest pitch anyone had ever heard. The crowd died down and as it did she sat the envelope upon the podium and began to open it up. Nervousness spread throughout Jaina's body with each rip she heard echo through the microphone, and it grew and grew until Anaisa came to the end and had the document open.
"Without further ado, I finally have the results as to who will be leading us for the next two years," Anaisa divulged. "Oh they will be fantastic! The new mayor of Dalaran is-"
As they began to speak the name, a tiny gnome ran up and she leaned down to allow him to whisper in her ear. After a couple of seconds she stood back up and the gnome ran off. "Well it appears we had a few last minute votes that weren't counted. So with these now counted I am happy to to announce that your new mayor is...Gidora Hall!"
Cheers roared from the crowd as the Highmountain tauren made his way towards the podium and stood up staring at the crowd, waving at everyone. Jaina scanned the faces of the room and nearly everyone was in a jubilant mood. Citizens were hugging, chugging their drinks, a few were even crying, and none of it made sense to her. How had someone so new simply shown up, magically find his name on the ballot, and win the hearts of everyone in Dalaran in such a short amount of time. None of it made sense to her, and the only other person's face that appeared to match her disbelief was the one other person who had lost.
The tauren's one eye peered out at the roaring crowd. The feeling of exuberance that welled up inside of him came bursting out of him in the form of smiles and waves. Never before had he had this many people excited about something that he had done. The entirety of Dalaran was shouting his name, and it felt fantastic.
I did it. I won. Everything is falling into place, he thought to himself. All of the years of hard work, it's all coming down to this crowning moment. The rest is easy.
He quickly spotted his opponents in the crowd and the disappointed and angry faces that made them stand out like a wolf in a sheep herd. A quick chuckle escaped him as he saw the women part ways with their dates and head deeper into the crowd away from each other. If there was one person they disliked more than him in the moment, it was each other.
"I first want to say a huge congratulations to my running mates Jaina Proudmoore and Calia Menethil. You made this a fantastic and exciting race and while I'm sure you would have done great things, and in Miss Proudmoore's case she has done many amazing things. I plan on building on that foundation and bringing Dalaran to heights it has never seen before. I wish you both the best in your future endeavors," he began.
Even louder cheers and screams came from below him, and he simply waved and they began to quiet. He continued, "I also want to think all of you. I haven't been in town long, but you seemed to have all welcomed me with such open arms. I wouldn't be up here tonight if it wasn't for you all. That's why I am going to work relentlessly to make this town a better place for you, and all that come to seek refuge from the outside world that is left. I want to welcome others, much like you have all welcomed me!"
"With that being said," Gidora went on, "my first act as mayor is to rid the entire city of that cultists rabble. We don't need any of that crime here or being associated with the town. Refugees from the outside are going to be scared enough as it is, they don't need the fear from those guys making it worse. And what better way to welcome newcomers than by making sure they have a place to stay? That means I will be reopening each of the inns that were previously shut down, as well as announcing the surprise I have been keeping to myself until tonight."
He let the cheers erupt once more and reveled in all of it. He was mayor. Dalaran was his town now, and the things he had worked for were slowly falling into his lap. There would surely be more obstacles, but the biggest hurdle of all had been overcome.
"Without further ado, I have been in talks with a few gnomish and goblin engineers over the past few days, and with funds that I donated we were able to build a miniature inn. They tell me that the whole thing should be finished tomorrow and we'll be able to use a Kyanite-Laser Embiggener to make it to full size and able to house thousands of people looking to start new in Dalaran!" he announced.
The druid didn't think the cheering could get any louder, but the moment he announced the changes he feared that the entire Violet Citadel would come crashing down upon them all. The echoes thundered from wall to wall, and the ground shook from the citizens jumping up and down.
It all felt so great and he was so lost in his thought, that he didn't notice the blue dragon Kalecgos stroll up beside him and shout outloud, "I have an announcement to make!"
"Well, Maraad? What exactly did you mean?" Mishka shouted angrily. "Did you do something that caused this?"
Maraad's heart raced and threatened to rupture in his chest. He had let his words get away from him and forgot that Mishka had been standing by his side. The anger he was feeling and had clouded his judgment, and now everything was about to come crashing down around him.
"Look at me," she threatened. "What did you mean?"
Begrudgingly the draenei turned to face her. Her normally beaming blue face was flushed with red hot anger. Tears of pure rage pooled in her eyes, as her balled fists threatened to crash into the side of his face.
"How can you say that?" he spat. "How can you even say that I had something to do with this, Mishka? I care so much about Yrel. This is destroying me inside and to think that her best friend, and someone that even I call a friend would stand here and blame this entire dilemma on me?" Thinking on his feet, he buried his face in his hands and let the sounds of sniffling echo inside them.
Just as fast as the anger had reared its ugly head in Mishka, it dwindled and she placed her hand on his shoulder and soothed, "I-I'm so embarrassed. Everything is just so-so out of place that I can't even think straight. The only thing I can think about is Yrel, and when you said that I just jumped to conclusions, and I shouldn't have."
Gradually Maraad lifted his head from his hands and gazed into her eyes. "I only meant that I thought I was doing everything a boyfriend could do. I was there for her. We were having a child. I thought everything was great, and all of a sudden a tragedy befalls us like I was some criminal deviant. I just simply don't understand the universe."
Mishka choked out a laugh, "You didn't do anything, Maraad. You've done the best of your abilities, and while I'll be the first one to admit I don't always think that's what she needs, but you are a fantastic person and neither of you deserve whatever this is."
A sigh of relief almost left his lips as he realized he had covered flawlessly. No one could know what he had been up to and certainly not Yrel's best friend. He knew that Yrel would make it out of this, and everything would finally go back to the way that it was supposed to be. Their love story would play out just like it had in the stars eons ago. He was sure of it.
"I'm really glad you're here, Mishka," Maraad sighed. "She would be so happy to know that we're here waiting for her."
Mishka smiled and leaned forward and they embraced. The embrace not only soothed him from reassuring his misdoings weren't out in the open, but also because it felt great to be near someone so close to the woman he cared about and who cared about her just as much as he did. A common ground was a great place to stand.
"Again I am so sorry for attacking you," Mishka said as she stepped back.
As he went to respond loud incessant beeping began to ring from the machines that were hooked up to Yrel. They both snapped their heads to the side and saw as the heart rate monitor had flatlined and everything seemed to go dark around Maraad even as the doctor and nurses raced in around him.
"Ugh! It's so infuriating! I've lost everything!" Jaina screamed storming deeper into the overzealous crowd.
"What are you talking about?" Kalec questioned walking up behind her and sliding his hand around her waist.
She quickly spun around to face him and out of his grasp. The look of pure exasperation plastered her face. She sputtered and spat trying to get the words out. Finally she made comprehensive words, "Exactly what I said, Kalec! I lost everything! I spent years being the leader of the Kirin Tor and then became mayor after the war. I don't know anything else. It's all gone now!"
"Babe, I'm still here," he breathed. "You didn't lose everything."
Instantly she felt the guilt riddle her body and sprang forward and brought his lips down upon hers. "That's not what I meant," she whispered. "I love you, Kalec, you know that I just-I just don't understand this."
Kalec responded, "It does seem pretty fishy, but we'll get through this. Together."
The mage shook her head and stomped towards a waiter carrying a tray of champagne glasses and reached for one. As fast as the glass touched her hand she slammed it back, but in the moment hesitated with the liquid in her mouth. She turned her head to peer at Kalec as she nonchalantly began to spit the alcohol back into the champagne flute
His face lit up as everything clicked in his brain. She knew that he was placing the morning sickness, the news she had to tell him, and now the inability to drink alcoholic beverages. "A-Are you? Jaina? Jaina!?"
Her face split open in a grin as she sat the glass down on a nearby counter and nodded her head. In a split second, the dragon had cleared the distance between the two of them and lifted her into the air and spun her around. As he sat her down he plastered her face, neck, and cheeks in kisses.
She pushed him back and laughed, "Kalec, calm down. Yes. The visit I had with Velen confirmed I am in fact pregnant. We're gonna have a baby!"
"This is amazing! I love you, Jaina! I-I can't believe this! I have to let everyone know. I think this tauren has had enough time up there," he cheered. She continued to laugh as she watched her boyfriend, the father of her unborn child, jaunt up to the podium and yell that he had an announcement to make.
Putricide lazily walked down the halls and stared into each window examining each patient within them. Most of them were fast asleep for the night, and it meant it would be an easy night for him. Normally they were bouncing off the walls, screaming at the top of their lungs, or begging to be released.
It soothed him that the night would be slow moving. He had so many things going through the pipeline, that when he actually had to work he never really got anything accomplished. Finally it seemed like that would be a reality for him.
There was one patient that he needed to make sure that was still going through with his medication regime. John Doe had to be taking his medication to make sure that everything Putricide was doing would be kept a secret, and he could continue on.
As he came upon the door he looked inside and didn't see the man anywhere in the room. He laughed as sometimes he knew the patients would find themselves curled up in a ball in a corner and simply sleeping underneath the bed. Putricide needed to make sure everything was okay, because no matter what he needed John Doe alive.
Once the door swung open he quickly scanned the room and found nothing out of order. He sneakily crept towards the man's bed and as he neared it he immediately saw a tiny blue dot sticking out from underneath the pillow that was on the small cot each room had. Almost immediately he saw that it was one of the meds that John Doe was supposed to be taking, and once he lifted up the pillow he saw an entire collection.
"What is going on here?" he shouted to the air. Putricide turned around to face the door and as he did he barely saw the metal bed pan slam right into his face and everything went black.
Calia stormed away and snatched two glasses of champagne hastily dumping the contents down her throat and setting the flutes angrily upon the bar next to her. She could feel her blood boiling, and the anger and rage seemed to be manifesting into heat so much that even the metal plate on her chest seemed to be getting hotter.
"Hey, take it easy. It's gonna be okay. You might not have won, but neither did Jaina. That's kind of a win isn't it?" Arator asked catching up to her.
Everything inside of her wanted to scream that no it wasn't. She had came here with an idea, a plan, and it was all for naught. As she turned and faced the blood elf, though, she realized that she had found something more than she had even been searching for. The whole idea had been to come to Dalaran and simply ruin Jaina. Never had she thought that she would meet someone that actually cared enough to be by her side at an event like this. Especially not after everything the town had learned about her.
Gazing into his green eyes seemed to set her completely at ease. No she hadn't won the election, but somehow she had gotten something even better in her mind. Delicately Calia stepped forward and placed her arms on his shoulders and played with the back of his hair. "You're right I guess. She didn't win either so I can take the small victory. It's still amazing to me how Gidora managed to secure victory so easily after barely being in town that long," she said.
"It is quite odd," Arator agreed. "No matter what, though, I think you had a fantastic campaign."
"Thank you," she smiled, "And quite honestly I feel like I found something even better than a seat in the Violet Citadel."
Arator laughed and asked coyly, "And what exactly is that? After those many revelations you had when we were talking with Jaina and Kalec, we should probably talk things first."
Lightly she punched him in the shoulder and grasped two more glasses of sparkling liquid from a nearby waiter and handed one to Arator. She raised it towards him, "It all seems huge, but I assure you it's not, and we will talk about it. For now let's toast. To us. To the beginning of something fantastic I hope."
The moment Arator moved his glass to toast hers, the screeching sound of a microphone exploded throughout the room and both of them had to cover their ears from the noise. Even through their muffled ears, Calia could still make out the sound of Kalec's voice shouting, "I have an announcement to make!"
Immediately she moved her hands away and perked up to see the blue dragon standing next to Gidora, who had stepped off to the side, literally glowing. He was radiating so much happiness and joy Calia felt it could have made even a saint nauseous.
"I know it's a huge evening, but it's also an evening to make fantastic revelations. I have something I would love to share with every citizen of Dalaran," he continued. "As many of you know Miss Jaina Proudmoore and I have recently gotten back together. It's been an incredible time so far and I cannot wait to see where our lives go next; however, we won't be exploring that alone. Not only will we have my first born son Arza with us, but tonight it was revealed...we're expecting another baby!"
Applause erupted from the crowd as Jaina made her way up to stand by Kalec side. He embraced her, and they both fell into a passionate kiss. Once it ended Jaina smiled out at everyone and waved. More applause erupted and congratulations were being thrown at them.
Are you kidding me? She gets everything, and I'm left with nothing? How is this fair? What have I done that's any more heinous than she has? I keep getting the terrible end of the stick, and I am so sick of it! She has to pay!
Through her thoughts she could hear a faint whisper trying to comfort her, and finally it became a shout. "Calia? Calia! You're gonna break that glass!"
Snapping out of her own head, she loosened her grip on the champagne flute she was holding and thanked the Titans she hadn't shattered it in her hand and created a scene. She could tell her cheeks were flushing, and she wasn't going to hide the fact that she was angry, but she wasn't going to give Jaina and Kalec the satisfaction of knowing it.
"Are you okay?" Arator asked.
"I'll be fine. I'm just...really tired of Jaina Proudmoore," she revealed.
"Well then," he soothed grabbing her open hand with his own and raising his glass once more, "shall we continue where we left off? A toast to us?"
A smile crossed her face, and she raised her glass once more, "To us."
Before their glasses could cling, the front doors of the citadel burst open creating an echo that could have woken even the most dead of Forsaken. Every single occupant spun around to face the door and see where the commotion had come from. The moment each person laid eyes on the person who had slammed the doors open gasps erupted and moved through everyone as if they were doing the wave.
Calia's eyes scanned the area and promptly found the intruder. The second she had, she wished she hadn't. Even underneath the layers of dirt that covered his body, the tattered rags he was wearing that barely concealed anything, the dim lighting, and the silver hair that now fell from his head, Calia could recognize the man anywhere.
For years he had been her confidant, her best friend, and sometimes even her whole entire world. Even after everything she would have moved the Shadowlands and more to help him. Most of all he was her baby brother. Her only remaining family.
His head and eyes darted from person to person as he stood ragged and torn in the doorway, and once he spotted what he was looking for only one word rang throughout the dead silent room.
"Jaina," he breathed as he collapsed in a heap on the floor and the next sound was that of Calia's glass falling from her hand and shattering to a million crystallized pieces on the ground.
Author's Note: I want to start off by apologizing that it's been so long since a chapter was up. This was clearly supposed to come out over Christmas and then I had a New Years one planned after that; however, I've been extremely busy and even though I have a notebook filled with ideas and where the story is going to go, it sometimes is a little harder to put it onto pages and into a cohesive thought. With that being said, I am still working on it and there will still be updates. As always I really want everyone to R&R! Let me know what you think of the story so far. Where do you want to see it go? What do you hate? Who are you favorite characters and why? Who would you like to see? Who's your favorite couple? Who would you think make a great couple? I've had some good reviews even the one that told me they loved the story until I "turned Jaina into an evil Disney stepmother". Someone even talked about how they enjoyed Illidan's character, and were taking guesses about John Does! Seriously, much more is coming, and I can't wait!