Chapter 4

Shaak didn't have much experience with creatures of the Horde. To his knowledge, there were five, primitive, races: the vile trolls, the bestial tauren, the sadistic undead, the grotesque orges, and the despicable orcs. They were all terrible, despicable monsters, depraved of love or honor. How foolish he'd been.

The way the troll behaved to his comrades, even that he could talk in common. He was not some mindless cannibalistic voodoo priest. And the undead, so unlike the mindless Scourge. The orc had spared him, and now was searching for Shaak's little sister. And the tauren was not some savage brute, but was clearly blessed with intelligence.

Never the less, the blood elf froze when the great grey bull trampled from out of the forest. It was not a conscious response, and Shaak tried to act normal, fearful of offending the tauren.

Strange how Shaak feared Taff the most of all the four creatures of the Horde he'd encountered. He knew the least about tauren as a race, and, like all of the Alliance, he feared what he did not know. What he was sure, was that this bull was extremely intimidating. Its sheer size was overwhelming, awe inspiring even. Its arms were the width of Shaak's body, and it stood at almost eight feet tall.

Shaak swallowed a lump as the tauren approached him. What should he do? Look at its eyes? Stare at the ground? Move to the safety of the cabin? Stand his ground?

"Shaak," the tauren said. Its deep voice made the blood elf tremble.

Shaak risked looking up at the tauren, but before he made eye contact, he caught sight of the tiny body the bull held. "Cynthana," he gasped.

Quickly, the bull gave his tiny hostage to the blood elf. "She fine," he assured. "Shaken, but fine. She strong."

Shaak smiled. "Yes, she is." He couldn't hold it in any more, he had to know. "Why are you helping me? Why did you rescue her?"

"You hunted, like us. We like brothers," the tauren chuckled warmly.

Shaak finely decided to end the conversation with; "Thank you."

The cabin held few earthly possessions: furs, ammunition, weapons, rations and armor, and so the group could leave soon into that night.

"Wa happen at da town mon?" Aloos asked, walking alongside Taff. He used orcish, so the elves wouldn't understand.

"Place was crawling with the Sentinels," the bull replied. "Not much of a problem though. They'd been gorging themselves on the town's supplies. They didn't put up much of a fight." There was remorse fresh in Taff's voice. He'd slew a dozen of the purple skinned humanoids, he'd felt their spirits depart this plane of existence. There killings weighed heavy his soul.

"Ye had no choice mon," Aloos comforted. "Ye warned dem, didn't ye."

"Of-course." Before Taff killed another sentient being, he gave them one chance, one warning to run. If they refused, then their deaths weren't his fault. Or at least that's what he tried to convince himself.

"And ye saved a kid, an innocent, mon."

"I know."

"Ye can't save em all mon. Most of dem want to believe we're monster, and nothing will ever change that. They're not all like Lunn."

"I know."

"Speaking of Lunn, mind if I take her ta bed when we get back mon? I didn't get to do dat Sentinel none, and a month is a long time to be at an outpost wit no women. Hell, I'm so desperate I'd take one of your cows."

"Aloos!" the bull growled.

The troll leapt back to avoid crushing hoof, laughing loudly. "Oh, come on mon. It was a compliment to ye species. And I was just sayin Lunn's got a great body. Can't figure out how she ended up wit ya."

To his delight, Taff gave a deep, warm laugh.

A few steps back, Shaak watched the tauren and troll talk, their langue sharp and strange to his ears. He wondered what they said, tried desperately to make sense of their growls and grunts but no avail. "Where are we going?" Cynthana asked. She tried badly to keep pace with the group, though her small legs kept her at a disadvantage.

"The Undercity," Shaak said simply.

"But you said never to go there. You said to always avoid the Forsaken at all costs."

"Forget everything I've told you, all right. Right now, the Horde are the only creatures that won't kill us on sight. If you see the Sentinels, or the humans or any of the Alliance, run. If you must fight, use everything you have in you. If they capture you, they'll kill you."

"Alright," Cynthana said somewhat shaken. Shaak knelt down so the child could climb onto his back.

"How much farther?" the blood elf male asked.

"Tired mon?" the troll laughed.

"Almost be there," the tauren assured. "Will stop at Brill for night, just over hill."

Brill was a first line of defense for the Undercity against the Scarlet Crusaders, the Scourge, and the Alliance. Warriors of all races stood vigilante on the town's streets and snipers watched from tall towers. The moment the team entered the city limits, an arrow dug into the ground an inch from Taff's hooves. Fearful; Shaak, carrying his little sister, attempted to flee but ran into the orc's chest. Aloos almost rolled onto the ground in a fit of laughter.

Taff lifted both hands over his head. Next, he pointed his right arm out, then let his shoulders slump. It was a gesture that any Horde knew to make when entering a friendly town. It signaled that there was no danger, and that they hadn't been taken hostage.

The group disbanded quickly. Aloos went off to get drunk. Cerberus and his pet deposited the two elves at the holding house. Eck left to see his wife. Taff departed to report to his superior. He entered the town's main hall, where he found Executioner Zygand, along with a living night elf.

For a moment, Taff forget his duty as the slinky elf leapt into his powerful arms. And he held her there for a moment tenderly, taking in the warmth of her body and the smell of her skin.

"Commander Pantherfoot, Commander Wolfhoof, are you done?"

"Oh, yes," Lunn said blushing. The tauren gently set her down.

"If you'd allow her to join my team," Taff growled.

"Commander Pantherfoot may serve the Horde best by way of intelligence and strategy. Besides, I wouldn't want your men to be distracted," the executioner replied bitterly. "Has the Scarlet infestation been dealt with?"
"Yes, sir. We executed the regional leader as well as his closest advisors as ordered. We were going to inflict further casualties when something came up. A blood elf asked us for sanctuary. He claimed that his kind are the victims of one of the night elves' purges."

"Yes, we are aware of the current state of affairs. The Undercity has been receiving refuges for the past week or so. Contacts from Orgrimmar and Thunder Bluff indicate this is no isolated affair."

Taff brushed the coarse fur on his chin, thinking. "Where is the Dark Lady?"

"She's already left," Lunn purred.