Chapter 26

The enemy of my enemy is my friend.

If Snow Rendal had a copper coin for every time she had heard that clichéd remark, she would be able to buy that enchanted claymore she wanted so.

Rendal laughed. It was not something she did often, but for some strange reason it bubbled up in her guts, slithered into her throat, and burst from her lips. The centaur guard gave her a puzzled look.

It was almost a year ago she'd become a "Black Rose", an elite shadow operator on behalf of the Alliance. It was an unrewarding position, to accept it she had to fake a defection from her own government, and in the event of her capture by the Horde or any other rival organization, the Alliance would effectively disown her. Magnus wasn't aware of that little rule, which was why he kept her alive.

She was a prisoner of war. Having been captured while spying, Magnus had every right to order her execution. At least he could lock her in a dungeon and swallow the key. That was a troll idiom she used, which made her laugh a little harder.

Rather than the cells, Rendal was residing in a rather nice room. There was a large bed in the center of the area, which was large enough to compensate a normal sized centaur. There was a glowing stone hanging from the ceiling, which provided a satisfactory amount of light. But it was still a prison. A guard was stationed at her door at all times, even when she slept or changed her clothes. Needless to say, she hadn't done much of either in her time in captivity. There were also no windows, Rendal quickly lost track of time when in the confines of the room.

Magnus had said she'd be released once the business with the rebels was taken care of. That business was of coarse the slaughtering of those who opposed his rule.

"You follow a dictator, you know," she said to her guard.

"I follow a visionary," was the centaur's response.

"Same thing," she shrugged. "Every decent creature is ashamed of the ruler he, or she, follows."

"Then you are ashamed?"

"No," she answered sharply. "But then, I'm not a decent woman." She laughed again.

---

Summoning portals was far from a safe process. There were a great many risks involved. For one, there was always the peril something could go wrong with the spell, and the portal would open in the wrong place, such as under the ocean or the pits of a volcano. And even if it took one to the desired location, there was always the hazard you'd fall into an area populated with a hundred hostiles.

Shaak kept these fears to himself. He didn't want to show his fright before his comrades, he didn't want to show the weakness he was ashamed of.

They were approximately a mile away when Shaak sensed something in the air. It was a certain taste, different from the ones Taff and Eck excreted. He followed that bizarrely unique tang until he stumbled upon a dwarf and a gnome.

Instinctively, the blood elf drew his wand and began summoning flames that would incinerate the Alliance soldiers. Fire expelled from every poor of his skin, his robes would've burned away if not tailored to survive such a blaze. He paused when the tauren's heavy hand came to rest on his shoulder. The fur on the great bull's wrist was instantly singed, but he seemed to take little notice.

Taff said, in common, "Bare you greetings, Commander Wonki and Commander Bracha."

"Bare you greetings," the gnome woman said in surprisingly fluid orcish.

"What is your presence?" the tauren asked.

"Assassination, as usual. A centaur has grown strong through a demon's pact. He may prove a threat to the Alliance."

"Magnus?"

"Yes. That is his name."

This time it was Eck who spoke. "The centaur is a danger to the Horde. We are here to neutralize that threat as well."

The gnome thought to herself. The dwarf woman instead reached behind her as to take hold of the rather large hammer on her back. It was in that instance that Shaak identified her armor, and a shiver ran up her spine. She was a paladin, one of the Alliance's zealots. Shaak prepared to take her down at a moment's notice, the slightest show of hostility on her behalf.

"Then I guess we're working together," the gnome squeaked.