She was alone, in a cage, shivering. The dirt she was laying on was cold and rough, a foul smell emanating from every inch of it. Her body felt sore. Fresh wounds from her bound wrists were filling with puss and coagulated blood, and her head was pounding. She was crying, could not stop her tears from rolling out of her eyes. She had only her underwear on , dirty and with blood stains on it. They took her armor and weapons. She felt weak and powerless. How could she phantom she would win? They broke her. They laughed in her face. They did not believe her. Even when she showed them the necklace.
What kept her alive was the living spark of holy light still surging through her veins. Small, comforting, barely there. But in this place, the light hurt. Every ounce she had in her body was fighting with this place, hurting her mind in the process.
Heavy foot steppes were heard in the distance, approaching and she curled in to a ball, shivering again, fear washing over her. She closed her eyes shut, expecting another torture. She would not let them see her weakness.
"Up yet?" A harsh voice came through the bars, to her surprise in Thalassian.
"Yes..." She said in a steady voice, opening her eyes, trying to get up, looking defiant at the blood elf in front of her. She was tall and blonde, a cloth covering her eyes. Small black horns were adorning her forehead.
"Good." The demon hunter smiled. "Aresha, she's all yours". She stepped aside, making room for the one called Aresha. A seaweed smell filled the air, and the sound of scales dragged across the room startled her. A tall, green Naga female was in the door frame, her tentacle hair decorated with various baubles. Her face was pretty, but her eyes spelled murder. She was wearing some cloth chestpiece, that was leaving little to imagination.
"Let'sssss ssssssee what your mind has in ssssstore, warden" The scaled witch hissed
"No..." Kyra stumbled back "I've told you everything..." but before she could finish her sentence, the sea witch raised her hand, and with a short chant, waves of an invisible force bore in to her mind, making her veins on her neck pop out, her jaw stiff. She was blinded with flashing colorful spots, her head pounding. Pain would throb so violently around her skull that she wondered why it didn't just crack open. She screamed from the top of her lungs, her throat sore. The naga spell invading her thinking, cutting in to he thoughts like a dull knife, destroying every ounce of sanity she had left. Suddenly, it stopped. She grasped for air, an annoying ringing in her ears making her , her vision hazy. She lay down on her back, barely hearing anything. She saw the door of the cell open, a pair of female arms picking her up, all in a blur. Her mouth was slightly open, saliva drooling from one side.
"Get her to the headquarterssssss. And call upon the Masssssster. Now!" she heard vaguely, and them she blacked out.
Kyra woke up because something was annoyingly poking her ribs. The bed she was sleeping felt like a pile of rocks. The air was cold and heavy. Her clothes felt stuck to her skin as blood and cold sweat were starting to become dry. She opened her eyes, and looked up. She was not in her bed, nor in Darnassus. She looked around with sleepy eyes, getting up slowly, only to realize where she was. And in that moment, it felt like a sudden jolt of electricity surged through her veins and made her jump to her feet. She looked confused at the troll that was at her left, his palms facing her, arms in the air. Only now she realized she grabbed the small knife and was holding it towards the rogue, the tip of the blade at his neck.
"Easy... I woke ya' up." he said in a low voice, his eyes on the blade. His gaze had no fear in it, only concern. He moved his gaze from the blade to her face, as to calm whatever storm was building in her mind.
She drew her hand back, slowly, hiding the knife back under her bracer in swift motion. Her movement were insecure, the remnants of the sleep still in her movement. She felt her hands shaking. How did she afford sleep in the first place, given the situation?
"You startled me." she said a sleepy voice. The troll lowered his arms, and rolled his shoulders back.
"Dey should come any minute now. " He was holding now both of her swords, and she almost smiled, realizing that they looked small in his hands.
"Here" he said, in a hushed tone.
She took them, and sheeted them next to her belt, one for each side. She quickly grabbed the faceguard from the ground, and secured it onto her face.
"Plan?"
"You beat dem up, I' be in stealth " He added, and his frame started to fade, as he was melting in to shadows. She rolled her eyes.
"That is not a plan..."
"It is one in mah book" she heard in her head.
Before she could say anything, she felt a light push in her chest, and the earth left her feet. The sleep from before dulled her senses a bit, she realised she was falling way too late. She ended up on her back, hitting the ground behind a nearby bush. She rose up, somewhat confused.
The rogue pushed her, and he was nowhere to be seen. "Coward" she thought as she was trying to regain her composure. She rearranged her armor and took one glance around.
The rogue made sure that nothing was left behind. Even their footprints were gone. The earth looked untouched. It was like they never were there. She smiled appreciatively at his effort. He was a good soldier.
She froze. A familiar feeling of dread suddenly overwhelmed her. Her eyes started darting around frantically, her movement stopped, barely breathing and the small hair from the back of her head stood up.
They were here. Her eyes settled over some movement a few feet away from her.
She could identify two shapes, one of them taller than the other. She assumed that one of them was a Night Elf, judging by the ears that were sticking out. The silhouettes were creeping into the place that hours before held the portal, getting closer and closer to her spot. Both of them wore hooded, dark robes and seemed to be in a hurry.
"Wait..."
As they got closer, she could see clearly that one of them was a female Night Elf, and the other one most likely a human male, judging by his size and lack of pointing ears. She gripped the hilts of her weapons and narrowed her gaze.
"Wait..."
The cultists whispered something between themselfes, and looked around. The male's gaze fell on the bush formation where she was hiding. He squinted his eyes.
Kyra froze. She did not breathe. But he looked away in a second, completely unaware of her presence. She sighted in relief. None of them seemed to notice her .They whispered something and joined hands, with their backs at her, and started chanting a spell.
"Now!" the troll's deep voice echoed in her head, reverberating, sending a bolt of electricity through her core and she obliged.
She quickly rose up and leaped as high as she could from bushes, hitting the closest one with the hilts of her swords, right in the head. The human collapsed instantly, without any resistance. The other one, a night elf, visibly startled, hissed at her, withdrew a few steppes back, and screamed something in a unknown language .
Before she could do anything, she was up in the air, her whole body numb, blood pooling in to her mouth. Her insides were burning like fire, twisting and turning in a mad dance, pain hitting her stomach like branding iron, breathing becoming more difficult. A painful lump was forming in her throat, and her senses started leaving her. The trees started spinning, and before she knew it, everything became a blur, her eyes heavy, abandoning herself to what was to come.
Then, she felt like she was slowly levitating, the pain ceasing, her body coming to it's senses. She opened her eyes, moments before hitting the ground with her feet. She landed on all four and started gasping for air, coughing as blood was pouring from her open mouth. He knees hurt, as they were the first to impact the soil. Kyra looked up, gasping for air and saw the rogue with his blade at the cultist's neck, his arm around her chest in a dead lock. The caster's mouth was bleeding, a sight that the troll hit her before, with a swift kick most likely. The hooded elf looked dizzy.
"Took you long enough..." Kyra mumbled, getting up, trying to clean her dusty armor.
"Dis be one of your'?" Roh'khin nodded towards the cultist he was holding.
Kyra spat some blood on the ground, and went closer to the hooded figure that the rogue was holding captive. She slowly removed the hood from the elf, and shook her head, a sad smile spreading on to her features.
"Ishnu'Allah, Alyre. Lost again?"Kyra said in Darnassae.
Alyre's eyes went wide with horror. She started squirming, trying to escape from the troll's grasp, but he was stronger than her. So she tried another path, answering in Darnassae as well.
"Sister, they are all plotting against us...They've captured me, and Tyrande, and forced us to..." The green haired elf spoke, her words rushed, tears in her eyes, a mad expression on her face.
"Stop, Alyre. Spare yourself the embarrassment. Where is Tyrande?" Kyra's voice was steady.
"I don't know...No, please sister...You know me for so many years...Spare me..."
Kyra yelled, her voice booming in the forest silence:
"Oh, for the love of Elune...Shut up! Stop lying!"
Alyre brows went up, and the fear from before disappeared . He features lit up and a content smirk appeared on her face.
"Kyra Moongaze, you will get nothing for me" she shifted to Common.. "You've made an oath, remember? Now on your long list of slips, a new one was added – siding with the Horde...If there was a chance for you to redeem yourself, now it is lost. You lost. Believe me, I will get out of here alive to tell the story..."
Before she was finished, Kyra's fist connected with her jaw at a surprising speed, knocking her from the rogue's arms, on to the ground. Her instinct took over, there was no turning back, and she roared. Her vision became dark, her adrenaline levels at their peak, her anger taking over. Blood pooled in Alyre's mouth, and it spilled on the ground in crimson drops. Kyra leaped on top of her, before Roh'khin could react, she withdrew her fist and punched her again, this time harder. And again. And again. She kept hitting her fast until the troll grabbed her by the waist and threw her though the air, away from Alyre, like her weight was nothing. She hit the ground and a gasp escaped her lips.
The impact broke her focus. Her breath was short, arms shaking from the adrenaline rush paired with anger she felt earlier. She rose up and looked at the woman on the ground. Her face was swollen, her lips cracked, blood vessels popped out under her skin. Her chest was moving up slowly, as she was trying to breathe, a wheezing sound coming out of her mouth. She was laying there like a useless meat suit, with her face smashed and her body contorted from pain. The troll was crouched next to her, checking her pulse or any life signals.
"Ya' almost killed 'er. Dat was not the plan." Roh'khin looked at her with angry eyes.
Kyra took a glance at her bloody knuckles, the realization of what she could've done washing over her like a cold shower. She tried to apologize, but the words got stuck in her throat.
"You and yo' pride, elf..." the troll mumbled, while trying to tie Alyre down. "Pray for a grain o' sanity left in dat mushy brain now..."
She stood there, looking at her hands. They were dirty with sand and blood, one glove was missing. No wonder it hurt her knuckle before when she hit Alyre.
"Don' stand there, tie the otha' one" the troll's voice rumbled like thunder, and he threw her some ropes. She quickly caught them, and proceeded to tie the human cultist.
They've tied them both on opposite sides of the tree. Roh'khin took from his backpack a small jar with some concoction, and approached the human with it. He slowly brought the content to the human nose. The male slowly opened his eyes, shook his head and mumbled something. When his gaze met the troll's face he froze. He tried to run, only to realize that he was tied up. His mouth started to form a spell, but a small hand covered his mouth. His eyes looked at the one that was stopping his spell, and he started screaming.
Kyra's glove was coated in poison. One that would not kill, but it would bring great pain. The rogue was kind enough to share it with her. They both were quiet and cultists muffled cries and tears did not move any of the pair.
"Now listen." Kyra started, her voice calm.
"I've tortured your kind before, and judging by the look on your face, you know that very well. So you have to options. One: You are going to tell me where you took Tyrande and why. For that you blink once. Two: You are going to die a horrible, horrible death, for that blink twice. I am giving you a choice."
The human eyes became pooled with tears, his face contorted and red. He blinked twice. Kyra puffed, and took her hand from his mouth. His lips were swollen, covered in pustules, red circles around them. She took the small dagger from the ground, and with one swift motion, bore the blade underneath his index fingernail, blood pouring out of the loose attachement. The human yelled in pain, but his cries were once again blocked but her gloved hand. He looked at her, with crazy eyes and blinked twice again.
Kyra took the blade again, and smiled, looking in his eyes. She dipped the blade in what appeared to be a flask of poison, and slowly started cutting at his chest. The cultists yelled again, his lips cracking, as she was slicing at his ribcage in steady motions. The blade was dull on purpose, and the pain was greater than he anticipated. A chunk of his skin became loose, and flesh was exposed at the cool night air. The cultist blinked once and fainted.
Kyra smiled and looked satisfied at the troll. His expression was unwavering. He crouched next to her, and brought the container to the human nostrils. The cultists woke up, trying to breathe, his eyes hazy, tears rolling down his eyes when he met the elf's gaze.
"Once..."he mumbled with his deformed mouth, drawing quick breaths "I blinked once..."
"So?" Kyra said, approaching him with her dagger
"We took Tyrande...We had help. Traitors in your ranks. We could not otherwise...Took all of us to do it...She is strong. She is going to be...one of... Plan. Greater than life..."
"Where?" The troll asked approaching, his voice cold.
The humans eyes went wide with fear, his chest was trembling up and down from the short breaths he was taking.
"Rune...here, on the ground" he motioned towards the place they were before."We have another on our chests. You need three. You get there. Other plane. Not our world"
"Who else helped you?" Kyra asked, dangerously approaching the poisoned glove to his mouth.
"No...please!"the cultists pleaded."No more...I will tell you..."
A faint whisper was heard, and before they knew, the cultist burst in green flames, screams flying from his lungs." Reborn! Undead! Great honor!" he yelled, as the flames engulfed him. Smoke rose from the body, chocking them, filling the air with black waves. She retreated back, and pulled the rogues by his vest with her.
Without warning, Roh'khin jumped back on the burning human body, the flames mercilessly licking his skin . He released a terrifying roar, and Kyra jumped and pulled him back once more. She fell on her back, with the troll next to her.
"Are you insane?!What are you doing?!"she yelled at him, pushing at his chest.
"Remembered ta' rune..." He said, holding his burned hand, a contorted smile on his face. On his blue skin, small pustules could be seen bursting.
"I 'ave bandages. I'm a troll, I' be fine" He added, and went towards his backpack.
A loud coarse laugh made them both to freeze. They looked at the tree and saw Alyre with her swollen face, her head resting on the tree bark. Her green hair was messy and coated with blood and leafs.
"Look at you two...So interesting to see two traitors on one side...My master will have both of your heads for trespassing...Do you think you can win this war? We and the undead are more powerful than ever before. We have a new master, and he is patient. Oh, so patient. Tyrande was just the beginning. Our time is now. You two have a choice...Join us, or die. In both cases, you will join us..."she mumbled, her breath whizzy.
Kyra quickly rose up, took one of the flasks from her pouch. With fast steps she approached the tree, and in one swift motion poured the content of the vial in to Alyre's left eye. The woman eye started to swell, the burning sensation building up, and the spellcaster screamed again, only to get her mouth covered with Kyra's poisoned gloved hand. The flesh from green haired woman's eye melted, emanating a foul smell. Kyra took the dagger from the ground, and with a groan, cut Alyre's throat. Blood gushed out, smearing her face and plate armor, but Kyra did not flinch. She looked Alyre in her eyes, as life was leaving them, and whispered through her clenched jaw.
"No. I will live to tell the story..."
Alyre's eyes went dark as she was chocking with her own blood, her body growing limp. Kyra looked as life was leaving the night elf's body, and a content smile spread across her features.
Kyra rose up to her feet and looked at the troll. Roh'khin was staring at her, pure concern in his gaze, and she realized that her eyes looked mad. He was doubting her.
"Let me see the burn" she said and approached him.
He took a step back, and she stopped. She exhaled loudly. He rolled his eyes and outstretched his arm, and she took his hand in hers. The wound was not big, not threatening, but it could interfere with his fighting skills. The palm was burned, but it did not spread to the wrist. She cupped his big palm with her other hand.
"I hate to do this..." she mumbled, and a small ray of light flowed from her hands, stinging him. He looked at her stunned. His wound was closing when the trickle of light was over, blisters were almost gone. "Not even close to what a healer could do, but if you wrap your hand in bandages, you should be fine" she added, smiling. Roh'khin just stared at her open mouthed, not knowing what to say, he looked confused.
"How?" he asked, when his thoughts came back to him.
She said nothing, turned around and went to inspect the rune Alyre was wearing on her chest.
