THE PRAXEUM CHRONICLES
"Book One : The Blessed Light"

A World of Warcraft tale
by Stephen R. Sobotka / © 2011

DISCLAIMER : This story is an original prose based on situations, settings, places and themes from the MMORPG game "World of Warcraft", by Blizzard Entertainment Ltd. All characters that appear within - with the exception of all original characters created by the author - are the property of said licenses, and are used here without knowledge or permission of same.

This story is the rightful property of the author; all original characters and the plot depicted within are protected by copyright law. This story was produced to entertain fans of the original game, and is in no way, shape or form intended to be published for monetary gain. Please do not sue.

.
.

oOoOo

.
.

Twenty One

.
.

The creak of wheels rolling against the uneven surface of the path, intermixed with the off-key whistling of the dwarf Rhandall filled Freaja's pointed ears as she sat on the wooden bench-seat of the buckboard wagon. He was stomping along a good pace ahead of them, with his rifle slung across his shoulders, while His cousin Hanna sat on the wagon next to her, driving the sole ram that was pulling them along the road through the Plaguelands.

Sitting amid a cloud of bleak emotions, Freaja stared ahead of the red-haired hunter where Liam was walking next to his sabercat mount. From the stiff posture of his body, it was clear the paladin was as upset as he'd been when the resumed their northward march. Even though Rhandall was making random comments to the knight in between his whistled choruses as they walked, it was clear that nothing was getting through the dark emotional curtain that Liam had enveloped himself in.

Not for the last time in the hours since they'd resumed their trek, she sighed as a pang of regret snapped inside her chest. All of this, just because I finally told him who I was . . . .

It had been after their skirmish with a congress of rabid Scourge; pride filling her as she spoke in a voice didn't waver. "Yes, Liam mac Roi," she said, standing before him, her skirts and war blade coated with undead ichor. "I am a paladin, too."

Liam had turned silent in the face of her admission, but Rhandall and Hanna weren't so afflicted.

"Ye . . . yer a paladin, Lass?" Rhandall asked, his bearded jaw dropping with the shock and awe of the moment.

Hanna recovered from her own surprise and shot Rhandall an amused smirk. "Well, from th' way she carved up yon Scourge, 'tis clear she's nae a scullery maid, that's fer certain." She nodded once with profound respect to Freaja.

Rhandall shot his cousin a droll look. "Ach, I think I'd have preferred her t'be a princess," he muttered. "This alone is just one, big, bloody surprise t'be certain!"

"I think our lassie here's just full o' surprises . . . don'cha think so, Liam?" She glanced at the tall human, only to pull back with concern. "Liam?"

Still in shock, Liam continued to lock stares with Freaja; his face an apparent mask of unreadable calm, a counter-point to Freaja's expression of worry.

"Knight?" Freaja asked. "Is there-?"

"Lady," Liam's voice had been cold and hard as an iron ingot. He then looked at the dwarves and ordered, "Let's get the wagon upright and get moving. We still have a long way before we reach Quel'Thalas."

Rhandall and Hanna were just as perplexed. "Liam, what th' devil-!"

"Did you not hear me?" Liam whirled on the dwarves, his body tense and looming as he towered over them. His fists were balled tight, and he swept his gaze from one to the other as he said, "We are still in danger from the Scourge! The longer we stay here, the worse off we can be. We need to get the wagon up and get moving!"

As he started to move away, Freaja spoke up, saying, "Knight, there is no reason to-." She closed her mouth at the icy stare he gave her in reply.

"Lady Bloodsun, I do not wish to discuss this any further," he said. "We have a job to do, and I will not see us waste any more time to see it through." With that, he turned away and stalked off to recover his mount . . . .

Suns-sparks and Splinters, she told herself now, why was this so hard to deal with? Why should he have been so . . . so angry over this, especially now? Liam had only ever been terse in the heat of a battle, and cross with his fellow companions, the two Wildhammer cousins . . . but he'd never been angry at her before. Perhaps that's what stings so much, she thought. That he's upset over the fact I kept my rank and class from him, after all this time? She gave herself a little shake. But, surely he can understand why I did that? I was in enemy lands, and at the mercy of those who were foes against my kind.

Freaja looked down at her hands, silently regarding them before she told herself, Yet, can I really call this man - this knight - a true enemy? He has risked himself time and again to save me, even against his own people and their standing laws of war. She folded her hands over one another and let another deep sigh slip through her lips.

Beside her on the seat, Hanna was glancing at the elf woman while she tugged at the leather straps idly. At length, she softly cleared her throat and asked, "Lassie, d'ye mind a wee bit o' advice? Woman tae woman?"

Freaja didn't look up at Hanna's query. "Hmm."

"Yer beatin' yerself all o'er an' it's nae doin' yerself any guid." She wrapped both reins around one fist before she pointed with her free hand at Liam. "Granted, I'll be th' first t'say Liam's got his head shoved too tight in his helmet, but 'tis natural t'understand his feelin'."

"Is it, really?" Freaja asked, her tone as bland as milk.

"Aye. If ye think about it." Hanna paused to tugged on the reins to guide the wagon around a dip in the road. "It's a well known fact, most men cannae abide by those who keep secrets," Hanna said gently. "An' I have tae say, wi' Liam it's a cold hard truth. Th' laddie prides himself in trustin' others. 'Tis part o' his nature."

Freaja lifted her head and frowned, looking at the shorter woman at length. "I never meant to harm that . . . well, it was never in my interest-?" She suddenly threw up her hands as frustration bubbled up over the regret festering in her heart. "Oh! Why do I care what that . . . that . . . impossible man thinks!"

Hanna let go with a mild chuckle. "Aye, Liam can be exactly that. Impossible." she said. "Still, th' laddie's really a simple person. Once ye get past all o' his paladin trappin's an' rigmarole." She eyed Freaja with a frank look. "He lives tae help others. That's his whole reason fer any an' all that he does in this mixed-up world."

Freaja stared back at Hanna. "Yet, I'm at fault for not telling him that I am a paladin, too?"

Hanna shrugged. "'Tis not fer me to say what Liam feels 'bout that. But, I canna tell ye this much, lassie, that if we knew early on what ye were . . . well, then. It might have helped us make better choices in helpin' ye get back tae yuir people."

Freaja looked away, mulling that bit of information in her head for a moment. "Yes . . . yes, I can see that now."

Hanna chuckled and gave the closest of Freaja's hands a pat. "Hindsight is always clearest, after ye get th' long-look o' things."

With a wan smile, Freaja said, "Yes, that is true." She looked across at the shorter woman and sighed. "I am truly sorry . . . for all of this trouble I've caused-."

"Ah, I dinnae hold it against ye, Lassie." Hanna smiled, but she cocked her head towards the other two walking ahead of them. "Still, 'tis not me ye need tae apologize to."

Freaja looked back to where Liam was stalking beside his feline mount, and she winced a bit. "Do I-?"

"Freaja, t'be honest wi' ye," Hanna said with a gentle-but-firm tone, "It would'nae hurt ye to swallow a lil pride. If yer worried 'bout bein' left t'fend fer yerself, don't be. Th' lad isn't gonna abandon ye. He hasn't done that yet, an' I canna tell ye he never will."

Freaja ran a hand through her long red-gold locks and blew out her cheeks. "Still . . . I don't know if I can," she admitted.

"I won't think less o' ye, e'en if ye don't do it. Though we will get ye home, it may make th' rest o' the journey better if ye settle this between yerselves." Hanna wrinkled her nose in gentle amusement. "I've had t'eat my own share o' crow now an' then. It never does sit well on yer belly, but . . . as me Mother always told me; Ye can make even th' hardest grog go down, if ye put a lil' honey in it."

Freaja arched one eyebrow at the old Dwarven homily. "Your mother, always says that?"

"Goes wi' bein' th' daughter o' a brewmaster, lassie. Ye best get used tae it, bein' we've still a long way t'go."

At that, Freaja let out a soft laugh, feeling a lot of her unease flow out of her with that simple action. "How is it I find wisdom in one of my kind's . . . enemies?"

"Clean livin', 'praps?" Hanna let out a chuckle of her own.

Shaking her head, Freaja asked, "Still, if I am to do this, how and when would be a good time?"

"No time like th' present, lassie. An' as to how . . . just leave it t'me." She gave the tall elf woman a wink, before she cleared her throat and called out. "Liam! We need tae stop fer a bit. This ram needs a wee bit o' rest."

Liam turned and looked back at them with a frown. "Are you certain, Hanna?"

On the track next to him, Rhandall turned about, scowling. "Why now? We've not got long before we're out o' these accursed Plaguelands-."

"Aye, but we're one ram shorter than when we started on this journey," Hanna said. "Ye wanna have tae pull this wagon th' rest o' the way there?"

Rhandall would have said more, but Liam cut him off, saying. "Get off the road, at least. Over there, to those trees," he said, pointing off to the side. "I'll stand over watch. Rhandall, stay with the wagon."

Rhandall grimaced. "But-? Ach! Aye, lad." He marched back towards the spot where Hanna was pulling the wagon to a stop.

Watching as Liam guided his 'cat mount towards a small rise near the road, Hanna said to Freaja under her breath, "Best get tae th' heart o' th' matter, Lassie. I'll keep my cousin from bargin' in." She made a shooing gesture, hiding it with her body as she back down off of the wagon before turning to Rhandall. "Oy, come 'round here. I think there's summat wrong wi' the rear axel."

"What?" Rhandall's expression turned grumpy and worrisome all at once, "Oh, fine thing! That axle breaks down on us, an' there's no way we'll make good time t'reach th' Elf-lands."

As he stomped past her, Freaja turned away and moved across the road. Well, to use the words my . . . friend said once; In for a copper, in for the whole gold piece.Giving Hanna one last look over her shoulder - and getting an encouraging one in return - she faced the vexing human and continued towards him.

.
.

oOoOo

.

.
When Hanna called out to rest, Liam had been brisk in his agreement. He quickly moved off to a small rise to afford himself the best view of the land around them. Standing with his back to the others, Liam swept the landscape with both eyes open, but only a half a mind taking in the desolate forest and scrub that lay before him.

On the outside, his stance and expression were neutral as frozen water. Yet, inside he couldn't stop the feelings of betrayal and resentment; feelings that for the most part were alien to his usual state of being. Still, he couldn't keep from running the one clarion fact over and over in his mind.

Freaja Bloodsun . . . a paladin herself! Light strike me for a fool! he told himself. I should have seen it before . . . yet, why keep her true identity from me? He seethed, flexing his hand around the hilt of his long sword. Have I not proven myself, my word and deeds to keep her safe? Knowing what she was . . . it would have changed nothing!

A small part of Liam's mind spoke up just then; Would it really not have changed things, Paladin?

No! he shot back.

Are you so certain? the voice asked. For all you are protecting her, she is still a Blood Elf. A race sworn-loyal to the Orcish Horde and the sworn enemy of your own people.

Liam snorted. I never give thought to that sort of division. Not when someone is in need.

Ah, but she had to, hm? She was without her people, her arms and her means to survive. Even with your sworn word, she would not have survived for long had they known she was a paladin of the enemy. A soldier. She did what she felt was needed.

Liam shook his head. But, there was no need for her to do so! I would have helped her, even if I had known-.

But did she know this from the start? the voice asked. When Liam didn't answer, it continued on speaking. No. How could she? She was still recovering from a harrowing ordeal, treated like so much wasted meat by those slavers you rescued her from. Waking up, watched by members of the races of her enemies . . . would you have been so quick to trust, if you were in her place?

Liam remained quiet, his ire slowly ebbing as reason continued to seep through his mind.

So, the voice said, Now can you understand, Paladin? Anger towards her for keeping a small secret, is not what is needed here, now, while you are both still in hostile lands. The Light does teach forgiveness, does it not? Isn't it one of the greatest of all the virtues of that code, for which you have supported and forsworn yourself?

Yes . . . yes, but-? Liam shook himself mentally. How am I-?

Talk to her. See logic and reason, speak truth and the answer will always be found, the voice said with a note of finality. After all, as where there was once unspoken trust, now you must build a spoken trust between you both.

Liam would have said more, but his internal thoughts were interrupted by a soft, throat-clearing sound behind him. Swiftly turning halfway around with his hand tensing on his long sword, he froze when he saw it was Freaja standing there. "Oh," he said at length. "It is you."

Freaja arched one long eyebrow. "You were expecting your King, knight?" she asked, though the acid in her tone was somewhat lessened by degrees.

Liam tried to sound civil, but his words came out cool and indifferent as he turned back to view the landscape. "Even His Highness would be welcome in a land such as this . . . Lady."

He heard her sigh once more, before she moved up to stand directly beside him. Even with his eyes elsewhere, he could sense her presence at such proximity to himself. "Would that any presence be welcome in such a desolate land." She shifted from one foot to the other. "I had thought the devastation Arthas wrought on my own homeland was bad enough. But, to see it here on such a scale-."

"The Scourge did more ill to more than just Quel'Thalas, Lady," Liam said, trying to keep himself in further check. "Lordaeron bore the brunt, but the scars stretch long and far across these lands." He nodded towards the east, where there was a vague outline of a city in the far-off mists. "That there, is Stratholme . . . where Arthas slaughtered hundreds of innocents, where he believed they had been touched by the plague."

Freaja stepped forward a pace, nodded as she peered off towards the former city's ruin in the distance. "It is . . . a terrible thing to know such travesties were given onto more than just my people," she said, sighing before she turned to face him. "But, I am not here to recount the past history, knight."

Liam stared at her, his expression sliding into iron as he prepared for another scathing verbal assault. "Why are you here then, Lady?"

Freaja appeared to swell with indignation for the briefest of moments. Then, she briefly looked away, then down at the ground as she said, "To . . . to apologize, knight."

Liam blinked. The iron set of his features cracking a bit.

Freaja went on speaking. "I should have told you who I really was . . . back before this whole journey began. I . . . I was an enemy in your lands, knight. Even so, to keep my identity from you was wrong. I see that now." She lifted her head and stared up at him, her expression as sincere as he'd ever seen from her. "I know you are . . . upset, and I cannot take away the humiliation and pain you've suffered for my actions-."

"Lady, enough." Liam hadn't raised his voice, but the sheer emotion brought Freaja's apology to a halt. Inside his mind, Liam's thoughts whirled around the two clarion thoughts: For all she though like your enemy, she is still willing to admit she was wrong . . . Remember your visions, Paladin. She is key to a part of your future.

Freaja's face filled immense confusion in the silence that followed Liam's soft-spoken interruption. "Knight?"

Liam finally shook himself and slowly drew up to his full height before her. crossing his arm across his chest and bowing low over his open hand in a reverent salute. "Lady, I ask for your forgiveness." Liam felt every erg of his prior anger fading with each word. "It was not for me to judge your choice, nor my place to be angry for your actions. You only did what you felt was necessary to preserve your life." He slowly rose up, staring at her with a firm countenance.

At first, Freaja blinked in the face of Liam's words. Then, she gracefully bowed in return, saying, "Your apology is accepted . . . if you will accept mine as well?"

With a wan smile, Liam said, "Accepted, gratefully, my lady."

Rising again, Freaja returned his smile briefly. "Good. It is good that we at least can reconcile, as enemies."

"I dare to say it, but we are hardly enemies, Lady."

Freaja frowned, tensing for a moment, before she willed some of the iron seep out of her tense expression and stance. "Yet, we are enemies. Your people and mine have ever had our . . . problems with-."

"That distinction is between those of both our races who can never understand the total truth of our duty, Lady." Liam sheathed his sword. "My duty has ever been, to come to the aid of anyone who is in need. No matter what race or faction they may come from. What one of my people did to the Quel'dorei in the past . . . it is something that I have never supported nor ever will condone." He added with a telling smile. "You should know by now, Lady, that I do not see friend or foe when my duty is clear."

Freaja cocked her head, her expression giving over to a wry look as she said, "Ah, I have begun to notice that." She gave a soft chuckle, before she added, "It is that aspect of you . . . I don't think I came to appreciate it, until after you came to rescue me in Shadowfang keep."

Liam nodded. "I would not be a man of my word, had I abandoned you, Lady."

Freaja smiled, then she stepped closer, making a pointed gesture with one hand as she said, "That word, noble as it has been, had better be worth the trouble yet to come, knight. After all, Quel'Thalas is not your homeland and you may have to count on my help, to see you and your friends safely out."

"That is true . . . but beyond any danger to me and my companions, my duty is to see you to your people. We shall deal with whatever circumstances arise, when the time comes." He shook his head, with a laugh as he stared back at her.

"What is so, funny, knight?" Freaja asked archly.

"It seems we share more in common, Lady, than you realize." Liam said. "Just now, you were saying you would have to protect me."

Freaja felt her cheeks flush, but she didn't back down or move away from the taller human. "Well, as a member of the Blood-Sworn, how else must I act towards someone who has aided me?"

Liam nodded. "In duty, we are bound together more than anything that our races or factions could ever understand. For that, I am humbly grateful that I did chose to help you, Lady Freaja." Extending his hand, the palm open and turned upwards, he said, "Please . . . accept my offer of friendship. As two who follow the path of Light, such a bond is not so strange to foster, hm?"

Studying his face for several moments, Freaja nodded once. Lifting one slim hand to cover his, curling her long fingers around his larger ones, she said, "I accept your kinship, paladin . . . but, you need not offer your friendship to me." She smiled at the confusion filling his face. "I accepted it long ago, when you risked your life time and again." Giving his hand a squeeze, she added, "For all of that, I can accept the truth and caliber of your word, Liam mac Roi."

Liam returned her grip, opening his mouth to speak . . . only to twist sharply, as he shouted with sudden pain.

"Liam!" Freaja tried to back away, only to gasp when he rolled his right shoulder towards her. There, between the exposed joint under his shoulder guard, emerged the barbed, metal head of a war-arrow. As she moved to help keep Liam from pitching into the dirt, she called out, "Hanna! We're under attack!"

Liam grunted with pain, craning his neck around as he swept his eyes along the trees around them. "Blast it!" He reached up and closed his fist around the exposed arrowhead. "Lady, get behind me!" He slowly dropped to one knee. "I'll need you to pull the shaft out!"

Freaja did as he asked, just as the two dwarves came rushing up to them. "Lassie! What-?"

Liam hissed as he made a sharp, jerking motion with his hand, snapping off the arrowhead and casting it away. "Attacker... archer, in the tree line." He groaned as he felt Freaja take hold of the haft of the arrow and slowly pull it free from his shoulder. Hissing with the renewed pain that blossomed from the exit of the shaft from his flesh, he added, "I couldn't see-."

"Don' worry 'bout that, Laddie! We need t'get this first!" Hanna was fumbling with her first aid pouch, getting bandages for his wound.

"I'll be all right," he said quickly. As he started to turn his eyes towards the direction the arrow had come from, he heard Freaja gasp sharply. "Lady?"

"I see something! There!" She pointed towards the trees.

Liam squinted. A flicker of movement in the brush beneath them caught his eye. "Rhandall! Hanna!"

At his word, both dwarves whirled, bringing their rifles to the ready, only to stop when six arrows - long, large-headed warshafts - slammed into the rotting soil around them in rapid succession.

"HOLD!" A high, tight voice called out from the twisted trees. "Move again, and you'll find six more of the same, where you now have eyes!"

Liam stopped moving when the warning had been given, but his senses oriented towards the direction of the attacker's voice. A lone hunter? A scout, perhaps? Even as dangerous as it was, he moved his body half-way in front of Freaja, clearly intent on protecting her unarmored form. Another shaft whizzed by his ear.

"I said DON'T MOVE, human! Drop your weapons now, and stay still!"

"It's yer call, lad," Rhandall said. "D'we fight or run fer it?"

Looking at Freaja, seeing her shake her head, he decided quickly. "Do as they command. We do not know how many attackers are out there."

"Baaah, numbers nae matter t'me, Liam!" Rhandall shouted to the trees. "Come out, ye black devil! Try puttin' those clothyard toothpicks intae me, when I can see ye pullin' those strings!"

A spate of laughter - clearly coming from more than one voice - filtered out from the trees. "Had I wished to, I could have easily killed you before you even had the first inkling you were in trouble, Round-Belly!"

Rhandall barked with a scornful laugh. "Fine thing, an' damn easy t'say . . . when yer shootin' from th' shadows an' not starin' yer foe, eye t'eye!"

There was silence, then the voice replied, filled with icy venom, "If you wish to see who has bettered you, dwarf . . . Hesh'da me'thras!" At once, a lot of movement in the trees quickly resolved into a cluster of figures - all tall, male Sin'dorei; armored, kilted and bearing the long shield and double-bladed glaive of a warrior-elite.

At that Liam nodded, and said to the others, "Do as they command. Weapons down." He drew out his long sword and dropped it to the ground.

Muttering under his breath as he and Hanna did likewise with their rifles, Rhandall said, "Swell! Bloodly swell! We aren't e'en at th' edge o' these blasted lands, an' we find yon Lassie's people!'

"More like they found us, Cousin." Hanna whispered back, looking on as the six Blood Elves began to troop across the sward towards them. "But these are warriors. I dinnae see any bows on them."

Trying to ignore the pain in his shoulder, Liam asked Freaja, "My Lady, do you recognize where these soldiers come from?"

Freaja nodded. "Yes, but . . . this is not right!" She glanced briefly at Liam to explain, "They bear arms and armor of the garrison forces of Silvermoon City. Such guardians are mean only to patrol and guard the lands of my people. They aren't meant to be so far removed from them!"

"Might they be an advance patrol from your furthest holdings?" Liam asked quickly.

"Tranquillien in the Ghostlands is the farthest, but that is still many more miles to the north!" Freaja stopped speaking as the line of Sin'dorei drew up to within a few sword lengths from them; spreading out to form a loose ring around the foursome. A fair number of the elves were glaring at Liam and the dwarves; their glowing, fel-green eyes flicking back and forth as they sized them up.

Hanna shot Liam a look. "Well, what now?"

Liam started to speak, but suddenly, three of Sin'dorei surged forwards shoved him and the dwarves away from Freaja. Taken by surprise, Liam and the cousins were forced roughly to their knees. Several of the Sin'dorei armsmen were actively shoving and smacking Liam, Rhandall and Hanna with the flat portion of their glaives; laughing and jostling them as they surrounded the trio completely.

"W-wait! Stop!" Freaja tried to move past the armsmen, but two moved to block her path. "Leave them alone! They were protecting me," she said.

One of the guardians turned and stared hard at her. "Hold your tongue, girl! You are just fortunate we found you before these . . . Alliance dogs did something unsavory to you!"

Freaja turned angry. "How dare you-!"

"They dare much, to protect you!" said the speaker that had challenged them from the trees, coming from behind the taller armsmen. "Aside! Let me through,"

At once, the armsmen parted, allowing the speaker to appear before Freaja. It was a lone blood elf female - slender, wrapped in the dark leathers of a Ranger. Her face was hidden by the hood of her long cloak, while she carried a hunting bow at the ready. A reddish-furred Springpaw lynx prowled silently at her side. The woman stepped up within arm's reach of Freaja, before she drew a slender long sword and dagger from her belt.

Freaja turned to face this newcomer, her body rigid with anger. "You fools!"

"I'd say you are either very foolish or very stupid, if you traveled far with these Alliance dogs, kinswoman." the ranger said, thrusting a thumb towards her chest. "We protect our own in these blasted lands, and far better than this scum!" She aimed a kick at Rhandall, making him grunt with pain.

Freaja squared her shoulders before saying, "I would ask where you were, then . . . while they were keeping me from being killed by those wretched Scourge?" She glared at each armsman in turn. "We were attacked no so long ago. Have you been watching us all this time?"

"Maybe we have, why should it matter?"

While the two women traded barbs, Rhandall and Hanna both shared guarded looks with Liam. "Ye'd think Lassie would be happier t'see her own people," Hanna muttered.

Liam whispered, "I do not think . . . the ranger is one of Freaja's people, in a figurative sense, Hanna."

Freaja was now clearly enraged, snarling at the Ranger as she asked, "Did you not think to help us, if that is the case? The Scourge almost had us in their teeth!"

"Bah," the Ranger said. "You should be thankful we're here now." Her tone was echoed by murmurs from the other Sin'dorei. "Besides, haven't we proven ourselves, by eagerly coming to your aid now, Girl?"

Freaja moved closer as she faced the slightly-shorter elf. "Perhaps you wouldn't have been so eager, if you had known that I didn't need your unnecessary aid, Ranger!" she said sharply. "And since when has it been decreed that a Farstrider leads the Guardians of Silvermoon? Have the ranks of the Rangers grown so idle, they must take on extra roles to slake their desire to be the best of all of us?"

At that, the laughter died.

Liam tensed. This does not bode well! he thought.

"Who, are you, to be speaking like that to me?" the leather-clad elf woman asked.

Freaja stared back with a fierce expression. "I am who I am, Ranger! Your actions are more damning than my words! Firing on someone who is under the protection of the Order of the Blood Sworn, without confirming who I was prior?" She snorted. "Ranger-General Brightwing will certainly hear about this, when I return to our city!"

One of the guards shifted, bringing the point of his glaive towards Freaja. "How can we be certain you are one of the Blood Knights, woman? You dress and sound like one of those misbegotten currs of the Highborne, who serve the Alliance," he said.

At that, Rhandall muttered softly, "Ach, ye should'nae said that,"

Bristling, Freaja drew herself up proudly. "I am a marshaled Champion of Lady Liadrin's Order of the Blood Sworn! Though I lack my proper attire and my ranseur, can you not see the way I carry my honor, warrior! Or should my name be sufficient for your doubts?"

The Ranger stepped closer, one hand flexing around the hilt of the long sword she carried. "Answer the question then, O' Knight. What, is, your, name?"

Freaja simply stared at the bow-wielding elf; her voice growing in anger and volume as she spoke hard and fast: "I am Knight-Champion Freaja Bloodsun!" Striding up to the woman, she glared and said, "I find it sickening that my own countrymen would be reduced to the level of pack animals . . . especially where the treatment of to honorable people who have protected one of Silvermoon's champions is concerned!"

The moment she stopped speaking, it was clear to Liam and the dwarves, from the expressions on the face of the Ranger, that they recognized her name. "Blessed . . . Sun! Capasia!"

With a sudden move that surprised even Liam, every last Guardian swiftly dropped to one knee, ducking their heads as they faced Freaja. The leather-clad elf followed suit, but she was quickly back on her feet as she faced Freaja with a more respectful air. "Knight-Champion, forgive me, I-. We did not know-."

"Clearly not." Freaja did not lose one jot of her icy tone. "Now, you will give me your name, so I may know whom to report to the Ranger-General for this lack of thinking on your part."

At that, the female bowman reached up and removed her hood, revealing a sun-yellow hair covered head, staring back with a face that was touched with crimson on her cheeks.

Upon seeing this, Freaja blinked and gasped softly. "No . . . Kymeria!"

Lifting downcast eyes, while her lips twisted in a wry, embarrassed smirk, Kymeria Dayrunner said, "It's good to see you too, Freaja." She then looked sternly at Freaja before she nodded to the armsmen flanking her.

Before Freaja could reply, or even think, two of the armsmen stepped in close and seized her by the arms. "What!"

Kymeria said, a hint of sadness in her voice, "It almost pains me to do this, but my duty is clear. Freaja Bloodsun, you are under arrest, for high treason against your people, the City of Silvermoon and the Kingdom of Quel'Thalas."

.
.

-==- To Be Continued... -==-