Chapter three
In the jungle, peril comes often and unexpectedly. Every creature large and small knows this, with some creatures even being born already infused with this most basic and vital of instincts, coming right out of the womb with the ability to walk because remaining stationary while so vulnerable and weak was just not advisable. The strong prosper here and the intelligent endure and even being one or both of these is nowhere near a guarantee for continued survival. Foolishness of any kind is punished swiftly and without mercy. The Jungle weeds out all flaws of any kind.
Arrogance doesn't exist here.
The night progressed on, and as Anduin and the Harpy girl continued to observe the camp, both couldn't quite comprehend the sheer amount of arrogance these beings showed as they began to settle in for the night. Neither one of them could decide if these beings were really this foolish or if they were just that confident in their strength, or if they were just that unknowledgeable about the wilds of the jungle. None of their reasons were good in any way.
These beings set up no perimeter. They had no awareness of their surroundings. They did nothing to hide their tracks or mask their smells. They didn't even dispose of their scraps decently and they failed to fully utilize their fire. Then again, Harpies didn't do any of these things either. However Harpies are an established denizen of this jungle. Everything knows the scent of a harpy nest and they know to avoid them in most cases. These strangers were different. They are unknowns and everything will come for them either curious or hostile. It was a damn right miracle already that they hadn't attracted something more dangerous than a few wolves and bears.
Anduin snorted quietly to himself as soon as he thought that, startling the harpy a bit. Perhaps that last statement wasn't quite right. He was there after all.
These creatures, strong as they seemed to be, would learn. They would learn swiftly the folly of treating the jungle as they had. It would be a lesson he would personally teach each and every one of them, whether they wanted the lesson or not. Their utter lack of awareness would be the recipe for their downfall.
As the moon reached its highest point in the sky, and all but two of the beings had settled into their tents to sleep, Anduin began his class…
(-)
Edana felt it almost as soon as the moon reached a highpoint, that predator skulking about the outside of the camp, moving through the trees as silent as a shadow, disturbing so little that the shakings branches or the rattling of leaves could be mistaken for a breeze or a harmless critter moving about. It was moving about the entire perimeter of the camp, messing with the trees and the branches. She could hear the slow methodic carving of wood, could see tree limbs subtly shifting as if being made to move, could hear vines slowly and steadily being strung along at a painstakingly unnoticeable pace to anything not paying attention.
It was two hours into hyper-focusing on the predators near undetectable movements that she came to a rather startling realization.
"It hunts," she whispered, her eyes suddenly gaining a tense, nervous gleam.
"Lady Hatetalon?"
The Harpy queen raised a talon to silence the girl who spoke, her eyes never once straying from the tree line. What was it doing? Her unwavering staring caught the attention of several others. Tension began to mount as they tried to focus on what their queen was staring at.
Another hour passed.
*snap*
And then everything began in earnest.
One of their guards, a huge green skinned brute of a man suddenly drew his axe as he whirled to face the perimeter of the camp.
"Something is here." He said with a low almost animalistic growl.
The other guard looked at him questioningly.
"Gor'ug?"
He turned to the other guard with growing urgency shining in his eyes.
"Wake the others."
As the other Guard rushed towards the tents, he turned to Edana, a snarl on his visage as he noticed her unwavering stare out into the jungle
"You know something," he growled, leaning towards the cage with a sneer.
"You will tell me what it is."
But Edana was…too captivated by whatever it was that was out there. Her eyes shone with fascination and birdlike focus, uncaring of anything else around her.
The warrior looked ready to lunge his hand through the cage at her when all of a sudden he felt it.
The jungle itself seemed to still. A presence slammed down on to the battle senses of the warrior, making him nearly stumble. How the hell had they missed this presence?!
"!?"
something dropped from above and landed right behind him…
Edana watched as the man spun around, axe aiming to eviscerate whatever it was that dared to startle him.
He missed.
"Wha-urk!" a hooked bone curved dagger ripped across his throat in a spray of blood and viscera as the assailant lunged up from a crouched position with a speed he couldn't even begin to track in his surprised state. A second later, a cord looped itself around the man's neck and tightened instantly, cutting off airflow and preventing him from making any sound. Edana and the other Harpies watched in shock as the man clutched at his ruined throat for five feeble seconds before there was a crash like a log hitting the ground and with a violent snap of the neck, the man was yanked into the underbrush, leaving only his axe to clatter to the ground.
The noise startled the entire camp.
"What the-! UP! EVERYBODY UP!"
Shock colored every harpy there as they could only stare at the spot the green skin had just been occupying. And as they stared, trying to comprehend what they'd just witnessed, the assailant gave the Harpy queen one intense stare for the briefest of seconds before darting back into the jungle. All she was able to get a look at was his glowing eyes and fur cloak.
Fizzo and the rest of the camp arrived mere seconds later.
He noticed the axe a second after that, followed by the drag trail and the blood leading into the jungle. "What the…"
"ARGH!"
The agonized scream startled everybody. Fizzo turned to the source, a startled gasp upon his lips as he beheld one of his Tauren subordinates gaping down at the large crudely carved wooden spear sticking out of his leg and pinning him to the ground.
A second later, before another thought could even begin to form in his head, there was an audible twang from the tree line.
Another spear came. It shot from the canopy so suddenly and with a disturbing amount of accuracy, lancing through the chest of the Tauren and ending his suffering almost in an instant.
Time itself seemed to freeze for a second.
"We're under attack!" yelled Fizzo. "Ready your weapons men!"
A second later, he disappeared as if made of shadow, fading away like an illusion.
What followed next would stick with any who survived forever.
Arrows and spears flew at them from seemingly all directions. The invaders panicked and clustered together only to realize the deadly folly in such a decision when a spear slammed into the middle of the group, nearly impaling two people.
"Spread out! Don't let them cluster you toge-ghagahhh!" the one who was speaking, another green skin gagged at the arrow suddenly occupying the space that his jugular used to reside. He had about two seconds to realize this fact before the arrow exploded, sending flaming chunks of skull flying in all directions. The body wasn't even done collapsing before another arrow flew from the tree line and struck another through the eye.
"Shit! It's a marksman!"
"Is it the Alliance!?"
"In the trees!"
Torches began to get tossed haphazardly in all directions in an attempt to smoke the attackers out, lighting the forest around them on fire, but it only added to the chaos. A flaming arrow struck the supplies, lighting it all ablaze in seconds as it exploded.
"Find them!" yelled another tauren as he and couple of others tried to spread out into the jungle
They fell prey to traps.
Tripwire snares lashed around ankles and chests, hauling people into the air almost as soon as they were out of sight of the camp, leaving them to struggle fruitlessly in the air, for a few seconds before the second halves of the traps set up began to do them in.
One man was strangled to death by vines tied to rocks.
Another was pulled up into a hanging spear, the sturdy wood piercing through leather and flesh alike as if made of butter as the momentum dragged him up at speeds he couldn't control.
One man caught sight of something leaping through the trees to land on one individual and only had time to shout, "There!" before the trapped victim let out a gurgling cry and stopped struggling forever. Then the figure leapt away and disappeared back into the jungle.
For twenty minutes this went on. A seemingly constant stream of guerilla style surprise attacks harassed the camp, ending nearly a dozen lives in just as many minutes, causing the survivors to panic as adrenalin flooded their systems. The screams of the dying became the only symphony for that amount of time as the assault continued.
Edana had never seen this style of combat before.
The meticulousness of it baffled her. The brutally efficient way in which it was carried out fascinated her down do her bones. The creature was a hunter through and through. An intelligent deadly creature that could wipe out an entire group without ever being seen if so allowed to prepare, and these foolish beings had indeed allowed this hunter to prepare and prepare well.
She was so transfixed on the beautiful chaos being wrought that she didn't notice the small figure appear on a branch of the tree behind her. She didn't notice the widening of the other's eyes as the figure rose and proceeded to drop from above.
She did however notice when it landed atop her cage with a soft grunt and the clang of talons on metal.
"N-no…way,"
The one who uttered this was the strong willed girl with almost white plumage. Her eyes stared in shock at the figure staring back at her.
"Hello Sister."
Against a backdrop of fading flames and the screams of those under attack, a one armed adolescent girl looked on from a crouching position, her eyes shining with a sturdy resolve.
"It's so good to see you." She paused as she looked out over at the camp. The attacks were slowing down and the fires were beginning to die down. There was a large Tauren in the middle of the camp, directing water with a strange glowing wooden stump. Shamanism. This let her know that time was running short. The survivors were beginning to rally. Anduin wouldn't be able to stay hidden long.
"Please hang on," she said to the captured Harpies. "We're here to rescue you."
"We?"
The girl's eyes darted to Edana, wide and shocked, but she quickly snapped out of it though to peer closer into the Harpy queen's eyes.
"Y-yes," she stuttered. "I managed to gain his allegiance. He helped me recover…" she cast a forlorn look at her stump of an arm. "Mostly."
"And just who," began Edana with a low whisper as her eye narrowed in thought at the girl. "Have you managed to gain the allegiance of?"
There was a hum in the air, an unnatural sound that no one could replicate. The harpies gasped, Edana's eyes widened and the one armed girl's voice rang out as a shriek as a dagger materialized at her throat from nowhere, followed by a gloved hand, then a short green arm, then another.
Slowly, and yet quickly as well, a figure materialized behind the girl, sharp golden teeth gleaming in a savage grin as beady eyes flashed in satisfaction yet to come. His other hand, rough and clawed came to rest upon her shoulder as he leaned over her to whisper in her ear.
"Yes," he hissed. "I'd very much like to know this as well."
A second later an armored boot launched her off of the cage and into the camp proper, amidst a symphony of screeches and screams.
….
Anduin never did enjoy doing what he did…
"WHERE are they?! find-ACK!"
He was a gentle soul at heart, preferring peace over all else. He didn't like to fight, not to the death anyway. His heart ached every time he had to end a life.
"Gurk! Gaaahh!"
Even now, as his final arrow lanced through the throat of the Tauren commanding the elements around him, he closed his eyes in a silent prayer. He didn't enjoy this, not at all. But he knew that if he wanted to preserve the peace he'd established for himself then he'd have to be willing to fight.
And so as his assault continued, he closed off his heart to any sympathy he might have felt for these invaders and did what needed to be done.
His resolve hardened further when his companion suddenly landed on her back in the middle of the camp with a pained grunt.
"!?"
Beady eyes stared out into the forest, as her assailant appeared, pinning her down with an armored boot, a challenge upon his expression. Anduin knew what the creature wanted and his spirit roared with a fury that demanded this fool's head for his arrogance.
And in the background, Edana Hatalon watched it all with eyes aglow and un-moving, her talons clenching and unclenching.
(-)
Fizzo was a shrewd one. Most of his kind was. His mind worked in stages, always anticipating, always coming up with a plan. He was always a step ahead, was always ready.
So when the camp came under attack, he immediately vanished into the shadows and waited.
It took him five minutes to confirm that there was only one attacker. Whoever they were, they were good. His analytical mind watched at the spears and the arrows flew from the tree line, propelled by tree mounted slingshots and other such traps. He watched as his men were ruthlessly cut down, halving their numbers in just as many minutes. The attacker was damn impressive, immediately he targeted the mages and the shamans in the group, cutting away at their magical forces before they could ever truly gain a foothold. He watched as his men, panicked at first, began to rally, their battle prowess finally surfacing as the attacks began to slow down.
He watched it all, and didn't move. He had a feeling. This attack was meant to serve a purpose. Sure it could have been a random attack. Some creature they'd unknowingly trespassed upon was probably trying to drive them out of its territory. He wasn't so foolish as to believe there weren't dangers in this jungle but he dismissed this as a simple random attack, first of all the arrows and spears suggested something intelligent. He had a suspicion that this attack wasn't so random.
A few minutes later, he was proven correct.
Watching that girl drop from the trees above, with her one arm and determined eyes, to talk to the harpy queen and the others, made him smile. These birds proved more impressive every day. And listening to the conversation piqued his interest by a lot.
So he materialized behind her, and asked as well about this mysterious harpy benefactor. Of course, he needed to put on a show. Give his men a bit of a moral boost. So he didn't hesitate to boot the brat off of the cage and into the camp. She fell with a screech and landed with an umph that quieted the entire camp in an instant. All eyes focused on her, and Fizzo made a show of appearing at her side to plant his boot on her chest to keep her from rising.
"Sister no!" screeched the only other harpy to look like the girl pinned under his foot. At the same time the girl herself shouted out the name, "Anduin!"
He didn't say anything, at first. He merely looked out into the woods, a challenge in his eye and waited.
The air seemed to still as he continued to wait. The girl beneath him tried ineffectively to claw as his steel-clad foot.
Fizzo's eyes narrowed as he looked out into the forest. "I know you can see this!" he called out, grinding his foot into the girl's chest. "show yourself!" When nothing happened, his eyes narrowed. The girl cried out as Fizzo pressed down harder. "Or do you really not care about this bird at all?"
The girl grunted and tried again to pry the foot from her chest, but having one arm made the task impossible.
Still there was silence.
The goblin made an annoyed sound, but just before he could begin to really add pressure to the girl's chest, his would be foe finally showed itself.
From the trees, a cloaked and saber skull helmeted figure dropped into the camp, in a crouch, feral and wild, the being growled out a low rumbling hiss that would have sent shivers down a lesser man's spine. Fizzo himself felt his adrenalin spike a bit from the aura the creature was radiating. He couldn't see much of the being, but he didn't need to. This was a wild man in the purest form, a denizen of the jungle just as untamed as the environment he was raised in.
"Well. Just look at you." He began with a grin, even as the survivors of the camp began to encircle. "I must say, I'm impressed. One man and you've done this much damage. You've quite the skill set."
The being didn't move, didn't take his eyes off of him for even a second. Fizzo continued, unfazed by the silence.
"What's thing like you doing out here, fighting for these savage birds anyway?" he pressed down a bit, making the harpy under him grunt in pain.
"Let…girl go," the creature spoke in broken common, surprising not just him but the others as well.
"Oh, didn't like that eh?" he pressed a fraction harder, making the girl gasp and the being in front of him tense every muscle in his body in preparation for attack.
"Ah ah ah, I'd relax if I were you. Get too hasty and your little piece here won't survive."
Fizzo's common wasn't the best but he knew enough to get the point across. The creature paused but didn't relax. Good enough. He smirked.
"I think you know what you gotta do." He brandished his dagger. "You're real good when ambushing a fellow. But how good are you in a straight up fight eh? I'm curious to know."
The girl beneath him grabbed at his leg. "You won't win."
"Hmm?"
Despite the situation, she smirked up at him, razor sharp teeth gleaming with a savage anticipation. The faith that shined in her eyes was unshaken, unbreakable. She believed with all of her very spirit in this individual.
Heh. How touching.
"That's the Feral King," she explained, making the harpies suddenly go quiet in shock. Immediately all Harpy eyes focused on the crouched figure. The girl clutched tighter to his leg. "You invaders… you won't leave this jungle alive."
"Heh. Is that so?" He watched as the hunter slowly rose up out of his crouch to stare at him with those eerie eyes of his. "Well, you certainly look the part. But…I wonder…"
The girl cried out in sudden agony as Fizzo's foot crunched down upon her torso with enough force to crack her ribs.
Anduin audibly growled, making several people flinch and tense. His voice came as a hiss, a blade being unsheathed as it almost danced into the ears of everyone there. Broken common spoke to him directly. "Wont…tell…again," he said
But there was something about his voice that suddenly registered to Fizzo's brain. The tone…the influx. This Feral King…
"No…fucking way," Fizzo whispered to himself in sudden realization.
Fizzo's eyes flashed, his smirk vanishing at last as he began to glare. He leaned forward a bit, making sure to maintain the pressure on the bird's chest as he finally began to show signs of the hostility he felt.
"You're a kid," he said, as if he just couldn't believe what the hell he was seeing. He gazed at the Feral King in a new light, pieces suddenly clicking into place.
"I can't believe it. You're a kid and you have the absolute nerve to talk to me as if you dictate what's going to happen in this situation? Hah! You won't tell me again? And where was that warning for my subordinates. Huh? You show up outta nowhere and lay waste to over half my unit and you expect that I'll listen to you? Some lost naïve brat who fancies himself a hero?"
His snarled and pointed his dagger down at the girl beneath his boot.
"You think you can stop me from ending your little tart's life before you can move? Your arrogance makes sense! Only brats have the sense of entitlement you seem to be feeling!"
"You're the one who's arrogant!" yelled the girl under him. He turned a glaring visage upon her, but that did nothing to quell the absolute faith shining in her eyes. Such a sight enflamed him, tempted him to drive his dagger right into her heart and bask in the brat's despair.
"You invaders came into our jungle, you killed my sisters and our clans and you dare to chain down our queen. Did you really think there were going to be no consequences for that? Stupid!"
"She's right,"
He snapped his gaze to the cages.
Edana smirked at him. Her eyes razor focused.
"The jungle forgives not the weak, the arrogant or the foolish." She gestured towards the feral brat still glaring at him, then again to the other Harpies all glaring from their cage. "You may have claimed your prizes. But that only means you now have to prove you've earned them. The jungle will test you at every turn. Your test is this. You brought the wrath of the Feral King down upon you. It is up to you to prove that you deserve the spoils you seek. Defeat him and you just may survive to make the northspring Harpies your…asset. Be defeated and you shall perish as you would deserve."
One of the orcs surrounding the goblin and Anduin snarled.
"Enough of this farce! Fizzo! Kill the girl! I'll deal with this fool myself!"
He drew his axe and lunged, a snarl upon his visage.
"Wait!" yelled a Tauren. But it was too late. Without even looking at his attacker, Anduin reached under his cloak and whipped three small spheres into the orc's face. They exploded into green gas that immediately rendered the orc blind and crying out in pain, gasping for air. The orc dropped his axe, and the weapon wasn't even halfway to the ground before Anduin unfolded an absurd tri-bladed bone augmented night elven glaive and slashed out the orc's throat with a spin and a spray of green blood. The Axe planted itself in the ground at Anduin's feet and the orc collapsed, gargling and chocking to death on his own blood.
Fizzo had one second, only one to realize that the brat hadn't stopped rotating before chaos broke loose.
"The Fu—
The glaive sailed at the goblin almost too fast to track. The rest of the invaders converged upon the feral king and the Harpies went absolutely wild in their cages. Noise exploded in a chaotic symphony as the battle reignited anew.
Edana laughed as Fizzo was forced to throw himself to the side, lest he be decapitated right then and there. The one armed girl scrambled to her feet and the Feral King lunged, jumping up onto the shoulders of the tauren who tried to warn the orc.
With a snarl he slammed wrist mounted claws into the man's thick neck, leaping away as the attack failed to do significant damage and the Tauren tried to counter attack.
Fizzo vanished.
The one armed girl screeched, slashing talons across the hamstring of a troll, then hastily jumping away as the woman dropped to a knee and slashed at her with a sword. She retreated to the edge of the clearing. Gasping as her abused ribs shot pain through her whole body. "Anduin!" she called.
The feral King responded, ripping his claws from the eye sockets, and therefore the skull of his latest opponent and approached. "Back," he said quickly as an arrow grazed his cheek. He snarled and flung a tomahawk in retaliation splitting the face of the fool who shot at him. She nodded, climbing onto his back and finding a firm purchase upon his cloak. The second she did, he was on the move again, leaping into a tree as two people tried to impale him with spears.
"My sisters!" cried the girl suddenly as Anduin retrieved his glaive and used into to parry a sword strike from a female orc. He dodged away after moving with the blow as it became apparent in a microsecond that he wouldn't be winning a contest of pure physical strength. He nodded at her, lunging at the orc who was heading towards the cages with a look of bloodlust on his face.
"Go," he commanded as he landed in front of the orc. The warrior snarled, his red eyes landing on Anduin with a single-mindedness that cost him his life.
He didn't see the one armed girl until she screeched, leaping from Anduin's back and jamming her talons into the man's throat, savagely tearing it out before he could understand what had just happened. She cried out though as the orc had just enough time before he collapsed to viciously backhand the girl away, sending her slamming into Edana's cage. Anduin snarled and stabbed the orc through the right eye in retaliation.
He reached into his cloak again as he swung to face the others snarling in anticipation of another clever attack. He took a mace to his side instead and was sent flying across the clearing. His vision blurred as he felt a rib break upon impact with the tree he slammed into. Then he had to hastily roll to the side to avoid a thrown spear and subtly tossing a trap out before him. He snarled as his vision cleared. "I'll kill you!" screamed a troll. She lunged…right into anduin's trap. She cried out in agony as her already injured leg, courtesy of the one armed girl was nearly blown off. She collapsed before him, eyes wide as he glared and yanked the thrown spear from the tree in preparation of running her through.
Then his eyes widened as he leapt back, barely avoiding yet another thrown weapon, this time it was an axe. "Do not charge at him recklessly!" snarled an Orc as he hefted the troll woman up. "Or did you forget that he's a hunter type!? Surround him! Dammit where is that cowardly Goblin!?"
His moment of distraction cost him as Anduin's spear plowed through his shoulder and sent him nearly spinning to the ground
"Shit!"
(-)
Her whole body cried out in agony as she tried to breath. Something was definitely broken. She could feel the bone scraping her lung with each labored breath. She coughed blood as she propped herself up against the cage, watching through blurred vision as Anduin fought the remaining invaders, she wanted to help. Her spirit cried out for vengeance and the desire to help the boy currently fighting for her and her sisters and queen, and she went to push herself to her feet in order to do just that, watching as Anduin jammed the spear into the chest of the remaining Tauren, snarling like a wild beast as he wretched it from side to side, causing a devastating amount of damage before leaping away as the others converged on him again. She watched as he scaled a tree and used it to hurl two spheres at the invaders. One was swatted away by the orc while the other exploded into smoke.
She flinched when Anduin was forced to leap from his tree as it was cut down by the orc, screeching as she forced her battered body to her feet, preparing to surge back into the fray.
"You are in no shape to join that fight Little Sister."
The girl's heart stopped.
Edana Hatetalon stared down at her with the intensity of a hawk, her eyes shining in interest as she examined the girl. Her presence, all but forgotten in her desire to join Anduin, slammed back down upon her, freezing her in place as her brain and very soul came to realize just what was addressing her.
"Battered and Broken, and you still wish to join that creature…"
Edana trailed off for a moment, her eyes never once so much as even blinking.
"Your eyes won't even leave him."
It was true. The continuous sounds of the fight had drawn the girl's attention once again without her even noticing it, her mind already beginning to put Edana on the backburner. There was a chuckle, and the girl turned back to the queen again, gasping as she realized her disrespect.
"Fascinating."
"M-Matriarch?"
Edana turned back towards the fight and observed. The Feral King cried out as the troll girl landed a slash across his chest, but he didn't retreat, instead he surged up at her, attempting to cut her head off with his glaive. It was parried by the Orc with the axe while another troll tried to run him through from behind. He paid for his gambit with his arm.
"The Feral King…" continued the Harpy Queen. "A dangerous legend all of our kind are told to avoid, and for good reason. He is a brutal creature responsible for the decimation of the last queen, a spirit of vengeance if provoked….and yet."
The suddenly one armed troll's agonized cries trailed off into gurgles as Anduin folded the glaive and jammed it through the side of his neck and wretched it to across, nearly severing his entire head.
There was a cheer from the other Harpies.
"Do you have a name yet?"
It took a second to comprehend the question. Everything seemed to dull as the words repeated themselves inside her head.
A name, an honor given to those who survive long enough to earn one, and a following title describing their most notable accomplishments or characteristics.
She cast a forlorn look to her severed arm, knowing that such a thing was never to happen now.
"N-No my Queen."
The Harpy Queen regarded her. But she didn't say anything else. She just…stared for well over thirty seconds.
"Hmph."
The girl tuned it out, chosing instead to make her way back towards Anduin, determined to help.
She missed Edana's calculating stare.
(-)
There were three survivors left. Battered and bloodied, they faced off against this fierce creature and knew what humility was. Thrush, the Axe wielding Orc couldn't help but admire their foe. He'd never been in such a fast paced high stakes fight before. Not really. As an adventurer, he was more used to the flashiness, the pomp and dialogue of the battle, taking, and basking in the glory that came with each defeated foe. He was too young to remember the ways of the old Horde, growing up with only stories and showered with the glory they supposedly basked in, and raised on Azeroth with its notions of honor, glory and exploration. He'd seen his fair share of battle of course. He was no naïve weakling, but this…
This was different. Whatever this creature was, he definitely wasn't one to mess around. He didn't say anything. There was no talking, no posturing or stupid monologue, only a relentless aggressive assault that gave them no time for rest. Sure they got their hits in, but that was mainly due to numbers, which he had methodically and efficiently cut down.
At each side, his remaining comrades struggled to keep their composure. The troll girl, a fledgling warrior trembled in pain and fear, her eyes shaky as she eyed the being in front of them, her leg was a slashed and burnt mess, slowly regenerating because of her Troll heritage. Her young life had been nearly ended over half a dozen times already, her experience being nowhere near close enough to even try and face such a creature. And the Tauren, another warrior who wielded a Halberd was barely even conscious, pain and blood loss all but making him useless at this point. The fact that he was even still alive was a testament to his fortitude and bulk.
And the less said about his own blown out shoulder the better.
And yet they struggled on, for that was the only way they were going to survive. Keep him moving, keep moving. Don't think, don't talk. Rely on your instinct. Do whatever you need to do to preserve your life.
Thrush growled to himself. This was supposed to be a simple extermination quest! Kill a few Harpies and report back to Chief Spirithorn. Instead, Fizzo, that greedy bastard decided he wanted to tempt fate and try and capture as many Harpies as he could, attacking multiple nests, eventually bringing down the wrath of their queen who cut a swath of death through their ranks before, somehow she was subdued. But was he happy with that? No of course not.
He didn't condone what had been done to those bird women, abused and mistreated, hauled off to be sold as slaves to the ogres of Dire Maul. But he didn't stop his comrades from indulging themselves either. He didn't see the Harpies as people. He was more grossed out by the fact that people even had that kind of taste for what he amounted to wild animals. And of course Karma caught up with them all once again, as a survivor of their raids, returned with something even worse than the Harpy Queen to lay utter waste to their entire camp. And where was Fizzo? Fucking hiding like the shit he was, no doubt waiting for an opportune time to strike, sacrificing the lives of the others to do so. It was a shit situation, and his mind struggled to come up with a way to get him and his remaining comrades out of this mess alive.
"Argh!"
The Tauren fell onto his back with a pained gasp with the wild man standing on his chest, about to plunge his spear through his neck.
"No!"
The troll slammed her sword into the spear, shattering the shaft, and sending the blade spinning off, but she was also was thrown off of her own feet. Thrush acted instantly, throwing his axe at the creature, expecting him to leap away and off of the Tauren's chest. Instead, Thrush was astonished and horrified to see the guy duck and pull out a broken sword, plunging it down towards his victim's throat. The Tauren intercepted the blow, catching his wrist with an inch to spare then hurling the Feral King away with a roar of desperation.
Anduin landed on his back with a grunt, but sprang back to his feet almost instantly, absentmindedly noticing that his saber skull helmet had fallen off. Glowing blue eyes shone in the night, fully exposed for the first time.
"Garlan! Are you okay!?"
"I'm fine. I thank you for the save young warrior."
"Holy Fuck he's relentless. I've never fought anything like this before."
"Yes. He's something el…"
The Tauren froze as his gaze landed on their foe. "What…the…hell."
The other two, confused by this, turned to face their foe as well. They gasped as one.
They watched, incredulously as their foe, a fierce wild creature more fearsome than anything they'd ever faced before, tilted his head in confusion at their stares, wide blue, almost innocent looking young eyes staring back with a question, as if to say, "What?"
"I-It's a Human," muttered the Troll. "A-a Human boy be doin all dis…"
"I can't believe it," All thoughts of battle left his mind as the kid continued to stare back at them in confusion. He dropped to his ass, no longer caring to fight. Hysteria set in for a second and he laughed. He laughed long and hard, tears threatening to spill from his eyes. He watched as the kid started to relax, his stance, gradually easing up as his one armed companion limped over to him and looked over his injuries in worry.
"A-anduin," muttered the girl as she stared at him. The boy grunted, hissing as he clutched as his side. "H-hold on."
The three Horde warriors watched on as the pair became lost in their own world. They'd never seen anything like this before. It was almost heartwarming, the way the Harpy fretted over him, her eyes shining with faith and care.
Shame overcame the three of them.
"Look at them," muttered Garlan.
They looked over to the rest of the captured Harpies, seeing them as something other than animals to kill for the first time ever, locking eyes with the grimfaced Harpy Queen and the scared young gazes of her subjects.
"Fuck," muttered Thrush, looking down.
And then the moment was ruined.
"I knew there was something fishy about you!"
Fizzo appeared behind Anduin so suddenly, everyone took a second to register that he was there. It was all that was needed.
"Argh!" "Ayee!"
Stabbing both the Feral King and his Harpy companion in the kidney he chuckled as they both collapsed, the girl falling over completely while the boy dropped to a knee with a snarl. He immediately lashed out but the goblin was ready, parrying the blow from the broken sword then kicking the boy in the chest, dropping him to his back. When the boy made to surge back up, the Goblin firmly placed his dagger at the Harpy girl's throat, drawing blood.
He sneered when the boy froze.
"That's what I thought," he said. "Stay your ass right there Boy. You have a lot to answer for."
"Fizzo!" Snarled the orc warrior "What the fuck do you think you're doing?"
The goblin chuckled. "What? Don't tell me you're getting all sentimental bout some human brat who just killed all of our companions over a bunch of fuckin birds?"
The troll spoke up, her voice timid but determined "It's n-not dat. I Jus-just. Look at dem! They be kids!"
"So? You think that matters in a life or death fight? Look at what they've done. Besides, I didn't hear no complainin when we were ransacking their nests, smashing their eggs an killin everyone too feisty to restrain." When the Troll looked down, Fizzo smirked. "It's far too late for a conscious now hun, now let's treat these brats like the warriors they wanna be eh?"
"Except you didn't give them the defeat of a true warrior," countered Garlan with a disapproving glare.
"Instead, you hid away, letting the rest of us fight and die so you could capitalize on their fatigue."
"Let the girl go," snarled Thrush. "Release her and face that boy in an actual match, prove to us that you're more than just a scheming coward."
"No," Said Fizzo. "Fighting's done. Way I see it, I got what I came here for," he cast a quick look back at the harpies then eyed the boy, noting that in that second he was looking away, the boy had got to his feet. Damn. He was quick. "And then some." He grabbed the girl by the hair, ignoring as she cried out. "So here's what we're gonna do. You three find me some rope. We're bringin these two wit us. And you Brat, You're gonna pay me back for all the assets you cost me. I hope you'r-
"I've heard enough."
Lightning came. Fizzo's entire body suddenly lit up like a light, electricity dancing over his form without warning. "ARRRRGGGGGG!"
The girl yelped as she was hit with a bit of some of the lightning, falling from Fizzo's grip. Anduin was there in instant to catch her. The attack lasted three seconds but it left Fizzo laying on the ground in a twitching mess. He struggled to roll to his side, his eyes trailing over towards the cages.
Edana lowered her smoking talon.
"W-what…what the hell are do you think you're doin you bitch?" snarled the goblin as he struggled to his feet. The Harpy queen merely regarded him as if he were trash, her disdainful gaze hammering at his ego. He looked so shocked, as if he couldn't comprehend why she'd attack him. "Y-you're mine! I proved that to you when I beat you! Why the hell are yo-ARRGH!"
A folded glaive burst from his chest in a spray of blood and viscera. Anduin growled into his ear.
"T-the fuck!?"
"The jungle, forgives, not the weak, the foolish nor the arrogant." Edana's gaze was as unforgiving as it was blank. The other harpies began to screech in bloodlust and adulation. "You have proven to be all three."
The Feral king snarled and grabbed the goblin's head, wretching it to the side and exposing his neck. The one armed girl stepped in front of him. Fizzo's eyes widened.
"What the hell are you three doing!?" he cried to the horde warriors who hadn't moved an inch. "Stop them!"
"Tch," began Thrush, "Even if we wanted to, Fizzo, That boy has proven already that we couldn't stop him if we tried."
"Indeed," grumbled Garlan.
"I'm not gon ta be throwin mah life away trying to save ya worthless hide. Ya reap what ya sow."
Edana's face twisted into a bloodthirsty smirk. "You had your chance. I gave you your test. You failed. You don't have the strength to claim me. I believed differently at first. But after watching you, it has become painfully apparent that you never did. I don't know what you wanted to do with me in dire Maul, but you would have never been able to hold on to me there."
"N-noo! NO! I refuse! I refuse to die like-hurk!"
The one armed girl sank her sharp teeth into his throat. In a last, desperate attempt to free himself, he tried to stab at her. Anduin caught his arm.
"And now you fall prey to a bigger predator. Die like the weakling you are," were Edana Hatetalon's final words to him.
The girl ripped out Fizzo's jugular with a vicious snarl. Blood spayed out, coating her face. Fizzo gurgled on his own blood, rapidly fading, he struggled to cling to life, but it was a vain endeavor. Anduin pulled the glaive from his chest and lowered the goblin onto his back and stepped back as his companion kneeled before their foe. "Anduin. Free the others. Please."
The Feral King nodded then with a grunt, he bounded over towards the cages.
The three horde warriors watched with wide eyes as the girl carved out Fizzo's heart and ate it.
Three minute later, there was a screeching cheer as the harpies flew from their cages. They swarmed around the Feral king, gleeful, awed, fearful and reverent, eager to get a close look at him but too nervous to get too close. They flooded the clearing.
Anduin smiled and returned to his companion. "Rescued," he said with a grin. The girl smiled, tears spilling from her eyes. She lunged at him.
Anduin's eyes widened as the girl hugged him, pressing her whole body to his, as she cried. "Thank you so much, Feral King. Thank you, Thank you Thank you!"
Still covered in blood, the girl kissed him, ramming her bloodied lips to his in a show of pure gratitude. Anduin froze. But then instinct took over, and he hugged her back, squeezing her to him as the kiss began to intensify.
"O-ouch!" she cried as her cracked ribs and their stab wounds reminded her that the both of them were in fact still injured to hell and shouldn't be trying to do anything else except heal. Anduin winced and blushed. She giggled.
Edana landed before them.
Instantly everyone got quiet. The Harpies all landed around them as well, perching in the trees and on the ground, all eyes on the pair who's saved them.
Anduin gazed back at the beautiful woman with an unwavering stare, holding his companion to him while holding the queen's gaze. They stared for over ten seconds, before Edana's gaze became approving.
"Good," she said. "You are indeed what the tales make of you." She smirked. "I am impressed."
Anduin smiled softly, nodding back at her. She then turned to the one armed girl.
"And you. You did what no other would have ever dared to even try." Her talons began to glow green. "And you did it, crippled as you are."
The girl winced. A harpy without both wings….a walking corpse. She gasped as she and Anduin were engulfed in the soothing light of a rejuvenation spell, basking in relief as all of their minor wounds rapidly healed, and their major wounds regressed to a much more manageable state.
"Brave, determined, intuitive, foolish…"
The girl winced again and buried her head in Anduin's chest.
"…Strong."
What?
Her head snapped back up, eyes wide.
They grew wider still when the Queen of all harpies in the jungle…kneeled before the two of them. And then one by one, the others began to kneel as well.
"W-what?"
Edana stared at Anduin. "The Northspring Harpies, are yours now, Feral King. She turned to the girl. "And they will obey you as well, Sister Syriana Singlefeather."
Everything absolutely froze. The one armed girl stared uncomprehendingly at the Harpy queen as her brain completely shut down. Then time resumed and a surge of adrenalin flooded the girl as she gasped yet again. "Wh-what did you s-say?"
Edana smiled warmly. "Your name."
The emotion that came next overwhelmed her. She collapsed, her eyes wide and shocked, Anduin lifted her up and smiled. It was too much. She burst into tears. Edana stood. "Congratulations. You have distinguished yourself in a way that not even I have accomplished. Embrace your name and title. Prove to us all the strength I know you have, and know that your sisters will always have your back."
Happiness on this scale was something she never thought she could feel. Validation was given. And for the first time since losing her arm, Syriana Singlefeather no longer worried.
A cry of adulation went up into the air as the remaining harpies took flight once again, dancing and twirling in celebration.
"SISTER!" A girl with short hair and athletic build with the same color plumage landed before the pair and grabbed Syriana in a hug "Sister! Sister I'm so glad! I'm so glad you're here! Thank so much! I'll never forget what you have done!"
Syriana cried tears of joy and sadness. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry I couldn't save the rest of our enclave. I'm sorry you were taken!"
"None of that! It wasn't your fault. And you saved us in the end. And you earned a name! I'm so proud to be your sister!" The two girls descended into crying words and hugs.
It was at this point that Anduin noticed the three Horde warriors. They were sitting there tending to their own wounds, but their eyes, their eyes were tearful. He approached.
They tensed instantly as the boy walked over and stared at them. There was confusion there, as if he couldn't quite categorize them in his mind. Tentatively, the troll waved. Anduin's head tiled to the side in confusion.
Thrush chuckled. "Quite the little beast, aren't you?" Then he frowned sadly. "I….no, we apologize for what we have done. I know my words can never make what we did right or forgivable, but know that we feel the shame and will always regret our actions here."
"Hmph. That's quite a statement."
Edana Landed behind Anduin, towering over him and she pierced them with her sharp gaze. "I wonder if you actually mean it."
"W-we do," said the troll. "We didn't take da time ta give ya any thought. Ta us yous was just animals."
Anduin frowned but said nothing. Edana gave a non committal gesture. "You're not entirely wrong," she began, surprising them. "To survive in a savage land, you must learn to be savage yourself. This jungle will punish you for any lack of resolve." Then she narrowed her eyes. "But it is important to remember, Invaders that wildness does not mean mindless."
"We understand," said Garlan with a firm, resolute not. Edana huffed. "Good."
She then smiled and bent down to rest her talons on Anduin's shoulders. "You three faced the Feral King and survived. You have a strength all your own." Anduin gave the Harpy queen a quick confused look at her sudden affection before turning back towards the Horde warriors. "But I suggest you return to wherever it was you came from. This jungle belongs to him."
She guided Anduin back towards the others.
The Horde warriors watched, over the course of the next twenty minutes as the Harpies eagerly grabbed whatever shiny things they could carry, Syriana, Anduin and Edana watching in amusement before at last, they began to set out.
They watched as the Harpies faded back into the jungle and disappeared into the night.
The last to leave was Anduin, with Syriana perched upon his back, his glowing eyes were that last to fade into the darkness he began to make his trip back to his territory.
"Holy crap," muttered Thrush.
They had one hell of a story to tell…
AN: ANNND DONE! Holy crap this is the longest chapter ive written in a long time. But there was just so much to write. I was NOT going to split this arc up into two chapters, I'm not a huge fan of cliffhangers and you guys deserve a good chapter after such a long wait. So what's in store now eh? Anduin's legend begins to grow, he gains his first followers and we learn that in a fight, you do NOT let yourself get distracted for even a second if you're fighting the Fuckin Feral king. This aint no anime, fool! Hahah.
Also I feel like I should explain a bit about Edana Hatetalon. I'd say her personality resembles that of Raven Branwren from RWBY. She operates on a principle of might makes right. She values strength. Honestly tho a lot of creatures do. And as a Harpy who in the lore of wow and in other mythologies, she is a wild thing who has no qualms about taking what she wants because she has the power to. If she is defeated in battle or if she meets someone stronger than her she may end up following them. Fizzo beat her in a fight. In her mind, the goblin pretty much had the right to do whatever he wanted with her. But his actions confused, annoyed and put her off. Then when the Feral king attacked and proceeded to decimate the people she couldn't, it intrigued her. She compared Fizzo to Anduin and tested him in her mind, wondering if he was truly worthy to have her. Fizzo failed that test with his cowardly acts against Anduin and her allegiance switched because of that.
Anyway hope you guys liked this chapter. Tell me what ya though of my fight scenes haha.