Disclaimer: I am in no way affiliated with Blizzard (though it would be nice ^_^;), and I am no making any profit from writing this. I'm writing this because 1) Warcraft III owns me, and 2) for fun, of course. ^_^
Chapter 4
They ran. Silvitas didn't know how long they ran. The orcs, at first, were pursuing them, but they gave up as dawn came. They still had a long way to the Den, however, and Silvitas felt too tired to continue.
She collapsed in exhaustion, and vomited. Torvin stopped and allowed the exhausted girl to mount him, and he bounded off to catch up with the rest of the group.
There weren't any casualties for the wolves, but it was a different story for the night elves. Only about a dozen were with them now. Most of them were lost during the fight—the others were shot down when the orcs were chasing them.
Silvitas gripped Torvin tightly, breathing heavily. They wouldn't make it to the Den until the afternoon, and it was only mid morning. Silvitas closed her exhausted eyes, and a fitful sleep took over her.
* * *
"They are coming soon."
Four wolves sat in a circle in a cave. In the center stood a single wolf, Gravus Firedance. His fur was black with many gray hairs across his coat. His eyes were a milky white, and he was a frail creature. The wolf was blind and the wisest wolf of all. And, despite being deprived of sight, his ears could detect a mouse's squeak from a mile away; far better than any wolf.
"How far away are there, Gravus?" a wolf asked.
"They will make it here by afternoon," Gravus replied. "They also have visitors with them…a wise visitor, far older than me. Far, far older…and also many others…" His voice trailed off. He was lost in his thought again, sitting still and in silence.
The other wolves were confused. They had nothing to ask of the wolf, so they got up and left.
Gravus closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He was again alone in the dark cave. He didn't mind it. Alone meant he could think without interruptions. It was also much more peaceful without other wolves to ask him questions or bother him.
"Wolf Mother Spir-Alan help us…the forest reeks of death and despair. The ground now marred with blood of many. They come again, Wolf Mother. They come again."
* * *
It was a stop that awoke Silvitas. Her legs were sore, but she felt a bit reenergized. She looked around. The sun was up, but it was still too cool to be the afternoon. It looked like they all stopped at a pond to rest.
"Drink, sister," Torvin said, bending down so Silvitas could dismount. She flinched a little as she made her way to the pond. She dropped on her knees and dipped her hands into the water, drinking handful after handful of it.
Cenarius, getting the first time to think clearly, was feeling a bit guilty at first for leaving behind the other night elves. But after sitting alone in contemplation, he figured that it was only for the better. He paced around impatiently. He lived for many years in the forest, and though he was old, he still had lots of pent up energy. He wasn't feeling tired at all after the long run; in fact, he'd enjoy another run if they weren't running from the orcs.
Aeslanda padded up behind the group. "The orcs are not following us anymore, for sure," she announced, startling the group. "But we must get going soon to heal the wounds and gather our strength. These forests are nothing safe. I sense a dark, brooding force, and it is not the orcs."
"As I do, too," Cenarius said. "The trees screech and the animals weep in these forests…it pains me to see them live in fear day after day. But, it also frustrates me that I cannot do much to save them."
Aeslanda nodded solemnly. "Talking will do no good, however. The red skinned orcs are brutes and will not stand for what they think is trivial. And our negotiating with them is one of the things."
"Then I say we just head in there and kill the damn monsters!" one of the wolves barked.
"Are you a fool, Arron? Only in great numbers will we be able to defeat them. They are stronger than the green skinned orcs. And though I do not know what is behind the change—"
"—there is a demonic force behind it," Cenarius interrupted. "I know it; I feel it. A great demon that I fought eons ago…I felt his presence in each of the orcs."
"…that's it," Silvitas's eyes widened. "Who was the wolf who saw the two demons?"
Aeslanda turned to her, puzzled. "It was Gravus, Silvitas. But more like he heard the demons from his den, actually. Why?"
"I mean, how often has a demon actually come to these forests?" Silvitas asked. "Never! They might be the cause of the corruption
Aeslanda blinked. "I never thought about that, Silvitas. We must talk to Gravus, then. The day goes by, and we have a limited amount of time. Let us be off." She trotted into the woods, followed by the rest of the troop.
* * *
Gravus trotted out of his den, taking a deep breath. He sat in front of his den, listening and taking in his surroundings.
"Hello, Aeslanda," Gravus greeted the group before they had a chance to. He was one of the few who could call Aeslanda without the formalities. "You came earlier than these sharp old ears could hear."
"We must talk, Gravus," Aeslanda said.
"I know that," Gravus said. "You have an interesting group with you right now…ah, the great Cenarius. A pleasure to meet you and the night elves. The last time a night elf stayed in this camp was so long ago…they are good company, yes…"
"Gravus, stop your rambling," Aeslanda said curtly.
"Ah, sorry then," Gravus said. "What is it that you want to know?"
"I assume you know that there are orcs here," Aeslanda said.
Gravus nodded.
"Good, then. We ran into red skinned orcs, however. Much more powerful…and much more of an evil aura surrounding them. Do you still remember the two demons at the fountain."
Gravus, again, nodded.
"Tell us what happened there."
"Very well then. It was early morning—the sun was just rising and the birds were waking. I awoke with them, and I decided to take a walk out in the wilderness. It was maybe about an hour into my walk when I encountered them. Thank goodness, those terrible beasts thought I was just an ordinary wolf, for I would have been slain like the poor Furbolgs guarding the fountain. Anyway, being blind old me, I cannot exactly describe the two demons. All I can say is that one was terribly large. An impatient and hotheaded one he is. The other, smaller, but still larger than your average demon. He was more a cool, calculating type."
"And did they do anything else?"
"Of course. I heard them talking about you, Cenarius. The smaller one suggested using the orcs to kill you. Apparently, a blood pact was made between the larger demon—Mannoroth, I think that was his name…"
"Mannoroth…" Cenarius hissed. "I remember that foul demon…"
"Quiet, Cenarius," Aeslanda said. "Continue, Gravus."
"Hm. So Mannoroth spilled his blood in the fountain. The smaller one, the dread lord I believe, told Mannoroth that it would fuel the orcs' fury. And that was about it, as I sneaked off into the woods again."
"So you are right, Silvitas," Aeslanda said. "Come, night elves. Today we rest and gather our strength; tomorrow is the day we set out in search of this evil."
* * *
The Den was only a small clearing full of burrows and caves. When the sun was still up, the Den would be flurrying with activity. Mother wolves would take care of their pups, who would be off romping and playing with their friends. The males would patrol their territory, making sure nothing strange was going on. The old wolves were content telling stories to the young wolves, or better yet, alone in their cozy homes.
Silvitas wasn't feeling too social after her ordeal. She decided to go to her den to see if anything was out of the ordinary. Her den was only a small cave, split into three different rooms—one for Torvin, one for Aeslanda, and one for Silvitas. Silvitas's room only had a blanket in there, and a couple of doodles one the walls. Her lip curled into a small smile. She remembered when she was young, and how she always drew on the walls. She wasn't very good at it, but she still found it fun. She would ask Torvin or Aeslanda to paint something, but they couldn't. When she was young she always asked why she was so different, and after hearing Aeslanda's story of her past over and over again. Afterwards she began to slowly lose interest in drawings, but the few drawings that she still had she was viciously protective over.
Silvitas flopped onto her blanket, still tired. She heard a lot of commotion outside—the shamans chanting, the inquisitive pups wondering who the newcomers were—but Silvitas was too exhausted to take part in it. She fell asleep quickly.
A/N: I know, I was just kind of regurgitating already-known information in there, but I had to throw it in so we could get a show on Silvitas's wits.
Well, I know this one came slower. Writing is hard with school and not too much motivation. It's weird, how you really, REALLY want to write about something, then you write the first chapter, and then the inspiration just really dies down. But don't worry, I promise I'll keep this one going until the end. ^^; I don't think this story will be too long either way, though, because I'm really no good at making long stories.
Oh, and to answer your question, Hyper Guyver, the wolves are…wolves. Only they're a lot bigger, maybe like horse-size only bulkier because of fur and stuff. Though, having a human/wolf hybrid would've been a good idea for Torvin's Avatar. I never thought about that. X_x I was thinking about it the other day, and I came up with an idea that I can use that form later on in the story…thanks for the suggestion, you'll see in the next chapters. ^^