Hello everyone! Sorry for the wait, I'm very busy with uni but I promise to try harder to publish regurlarly.

Enjoy!

Chapter 10 : Mak'gora

A loud griffin's cry was heard, and she saw Lothar, sword raised, diving towards her. She let out a soft sigh of relief and exhaustion, before passing out and falling on the floor with closed eyes, drained of energy.

Lothar and his griffin had crashed into the army of Orcs, killing the monsters mercilessly. Lothar let his griffin protect him as he ran to Karandra's body, limp on the ground. His eyes went wide with fear and panic but he saw no injury on her skin, and only Orcs' blood on her armour. He kept his calm and threw her light body on his shoulder before running to Llane. He fell to his knee when he saw his friend dead. He then spotted Garona's dagger in his neck, and let out a low growl.

How could she betray them?!

He was about to grab Llane's body as well, when he felt Karandra moving on his shoulder. Trusting his griffin to keep them safe a little longer, he carefully laid her down on the ground.

"Lo-Lothar?" she whispered weakly, squinting her eyes to make the blurriness fade away.

"I'm here now," he managed to smile slightly at her. "I'll get us out of here, but I need you to stand up and walk on your own for that. I'll carry Llane. You just run to my griffin and jump on the saddle, you hear me?"

She nodded and he pulled her up before picking up Llane's body. They ran to his griffin, got on the saddle and took off, but were suddenly pulled back on the ground, and violently fell off their mount.

Karandra rolled on the floor with a pained groan but quickly stood up, coughing because of the dust around her, and raised her sword in front of her with trembling arms. Her eyes scanned around her. The griffin seemed fine, keeping the Orcs away from him further away. She saw Llane's body near the magnificent animal. She understood that the griffin was guarding it at all cost. She searched for Lothar, expecting him to be up and fighting, gathering her last drops of strength to join him and get out of here.

She saw his body lying face down on the floor. Her eyes widened suddenly and she ran to him in a rush.

"No, no, no, no, no…" she kept repeating before dropping to her knees and turning him on his back. "Lothar! Wake up! You have to wake up! Now! Lothar, please!" she begged in a yell, panting, crying.

She frantically shook him. She could feel the Orcs surrounding her, ready to attack them.

"Lothar, please wake up, I need you," she whispered as she cradled his face, lying him on her lap. "Lothar…"

She felt big, calloused hands closing on her arms and pulling her roughly to her feet while restraining her.

"No! Let me go! Let me go!" she growled as she tried to fight the Orcs off.

But nothing worked. She even tried conjuring up the golden magic but it was useless. She saw Blackhand make a gesture from the corner of her eyes. The Orcs then stood in a large circle around him and Lothar that was lying on his back, still unconscious. Blackhand picked up Lothar's sword from the ground. The two Orcs that were holding her brought her to the first line of the circle, forcing her on her knees as they kept her arms spread out so she couldn't move.

She was still crying and didn't stop to try and wriggle out of their grip until Blackhand's voice boomed.

"Shut up and don't move, half-breed!" he spat at her in the Orc language.

"Never!" she retorted with a fierce expression. "You're not my master anymore, you bloody bastard!"

Blackhand roared in fury and pointed the sword towards her.

"One more word and I kill him now!"

She clenched her jaw tightly, her eyes sending him a deathly glare. She then frowned slightly. What Blackhand just said finally registered in her mind. Lothar was still alive. And Blackhand was waiting for him to wake up so they could fight and he could have the honour of killing the Commander of the human army, since he didn't have the chance to kill the King.

"You'll defy him in a Mak'gora," she said almost inaudibly, realisation dawning on her.

"I'll enjoy killing him in front of you, slowly, painfully," he laughed. "Then I'll let my clan have fun with you until you beg me to kill you. And I won't. I want you to suffer, and remember the death of that human".

Karandra didn't reply, as fear crept in her heart. Could Lothar win in a Mak'gora against Blackhand?

She heard a small cough and her eyes snapped to Lothar whose eyes shot open. She saw him turn his head towards Blackhand, on the other side of the circle. Blackhand threw his sword to him. The blade planted itself in the ground, inches away from Lothar's head. Karandra let out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Mak'gora," Blackhand said in his deep, guttural voice as he was pacing.

Lothar rolled on his side and pushed himself up, eyeing Blackhand carefully. He then caught sight of Karandra on his left, and his eyes widened slightly.

"I'm alright," she immediately told him. "Blackhand provoked you in a Mak'gora. It is a sacred tradition for Orcs. A one-on-one duel, a fight until death," she explained. "Blackhand wants the honour of killing you himself," she added in a trembling voice.

Lothar just nodded as he looked to Blackhand once more. The latter was smirking viciously.

Lothar grabbed his sword and pulled it out of the ground with a focused look. Blackhand stopped pacing for a second, zeroing his eyes on the human in front of him, before pacing again.

Lothar didn't move an inch as he kept his eyes on the Orcs' war chief. Blackhand was starting to lose patience, growling at the human.

Lothar smirked slightly, and took off running towards Blackhand, quickly gaining speed. Blackhand started running a second after him, making the earth shake under his big steps.

Karandra held her breath and her eyes were wide with fear as she saw the two mighty warriors getting closer to each other. She saw Lothar raising his sword above his head with both hands, a very determined look on his face, his eyes shining with a deep and cold anger, and a want of vengeance.

Blackhand raised his left hand – which mas made of metallic claws since Lothar had exploded it with a boom stick – and was about to crush the human with it when Lothar fell to his knees, sliding forward on the ground. The claws missed his head by a few inches, too few according to Karandra.

Lothar's sword sliced Blackhand's flesh from his belly to his groin, making the huge Orc cry out loudly in pain. The thick, green blood flowed out of the deathly wound as Blackhand fell to his knees, clutching his abdomen desperately while Lothar just stood up with a blank face, totally unharmed.

He quickly walked towards Blackhand that was showing his back to him, and violently plunged his blade through his torso, killing him instantly. The beast didn't have any right to still breath the air of his dear Azeroth after killing so many innocents, after killing his son.

"For my son," Lothar growled after pulling out his sword and kicking the dead body to the ground.

Karandra then saw his eyes widening slightly, and his breath becoming more ragged. She could see the whirl of thoughts, emotions and feelings that was storming wildly in his eyes. Then he turned his head and locked eyes with Garona from afar. The anger and disgust were clear on his face now.

The Orcs around were so surprised that Lothar won so quickly and flawlessly, they were still not moving.

"Kill him. Kill him!" Gul'dan ordered.

Lothar understood the order in Orc language, but didn't care, still glaring at Garona that looked heartbroken. The order had surprised the Orcs however. One that was holding Karandra down was even so surprised that his grip tightened too much and he snapped her shoulder out of place with a loud and disgusting 'crack'. She yelled out in pain and surprise. The sound snapped Lothar's back to reality and he swiftly turned to her.

"Let her go," he growled menacingly as he walked straight to her.

"He said 'let her go'," she translated quickly to the two that were still holding her.

They released their grip and let her fall to the ground as they hurriedly took two steps back. Karandra was agonising with the pain radiating from her shoulder, and so exhausted she couldn't move. Lothar squatted down and gently picked her up, one arm behind her neck and the other behind her knees. He stood up, carefully cradling her to his chest.

"Don't worry, Karandra, you're safe now," he said tenderly even though his face was still hard. "I'm getting us out of here".

"Karandra?" Gul'dan repeated. "Ha! She gave herself a name!" he laughed.

"Her name is a gift from him!" Garona defended her sister.

"The human cares for her? How pathetic!" Gul'dan spat. "He is weak, just like her. Kill them both, now!"

He stepped forward with a menacing scowl.

"Gul'dan!" Garona stopped him. "The Mak'gora is sacred. The human won, fairly. Let your warriors honour their tradition".

"I will not be disobeyed!" the evil Orc growled. "What are you waiting for? Do as I say!" he pressed 'his' army.

All the while, Lothar had slowly walked towards his griffin, keeping his eye forward, as he passed through the crowd of Orcs. None of them tried to harm him or Karandra, they were letting him go, stepping out of his way and placing their fists on their hearts as he walked by them in silent tribute.

"Traitors!" Gul'dan roared as he pushed them away. "Get out of my way, I'll do it myself".

"Who will obey you, if you go to war with your own kind? If you do this, you will lose the Horde. And this war is only beginning," Garona reasoned him, stalling him so Lothar and Karandra could go back to Stormwind alive.

Gul'dan spat on the dust-covered ground and turned on his heels, walking towards his hut with a low growl. Meanwhile, Lothar had walked to his griffin. He put Karandra carefully back on the ground before putting his hands on her hips and gently lifting her to the saddle.

"Will you be able to hold onto me with only one arm for hours?" he asked worriedly.

She nodded as she had a hard time breathing.

"I'll manage," she answered in a breath.

He nodded back and put Llane's body across his griffin back before mounting in front of Karandra, his arms wrapping around his friend's corpse. He felt Karandra's right arm around his waist tighten its hold, and his griffin took off, heading South.

Karandra was holding tightly onto Lothar, her head leaning against the cold metal of the back of his armour. It had been a few hours since they escaped the Orcs' camp, and neither of them had uttered a single word. Karandra was doing her best staying awake and not hissing in pain each time her dislocated shoulder was moved by the cold wind.

She knew Lothar was more or less unharmed, just too deep in thought. After all, his King, best-friend and brother-in-law just died from Garona's hands. Many of his soldiers had died too. He had been betrayed by Garona. He fought in a Mak'gora against his son's murderer. He was lost in his emotions.

After another hour, the sun had mostly disappeared behind the horizon, and Karandra finally decided to speak.

"Lothar?" she softly called him.

His shoulders jumped ever so slightly, and he turned his face a bit so she knew he was listening to her.

"We should stop for the night, don't you think? I'm sorry but I'm not sure if I can stay awake much longer. The cold, the pain, everything, it's taking its toll on me. I'm not as resilient as you," she said.

"We can't stop for the night, we have to get back to Stormwind as soon as possible. But let's stop for an hour, so I can hunt something to eat and you can rest a little," he answered in a blank voice.

She nodded and he guided his griffin down in a clearing. He helped her down and immediately gathered wood for a fire. Once he had a little pile, he was about to light it up but she softly put her hand on his shoulder.

"Can… Can I try something?" she hesitantly asked.

"What?" he said with a slight frown, cocking his head to the side.

"I'll explain after," she smiled softly before closing her eyes.

She tried to find again that special feeling that she had discovered hours ago, when she had used magic to push the Orcs away. She found it inside her, in the form of a bright golden flame inside her chest. She visualised a fire, and she concentrated on making the fire escape her body from her fingers, towards the pile of wood. She could make it run along in her body but had to focus more to make it go to the wood, grimacing in the effort. She could feel a thin sweat covering her forehead but didn't pay attention to it. After a few minutes, she heard Lothar let out an exclamation of surprise, and she breathed heavily as she opened her eyes. The fire was burning high and brightly.

"How… What the Hell?" Lothar exclaimed.

"Magic. I didn't know I had this inside me before today. When Garona… When…" she trailed off, feeling the tears gathering in her eyes.

Lothar immediately rushed to her and carefully embraced her, before helping her sitting down. He sat next to her and rubbed her right arm comfortingly.

"Shh, it's fine," he whispered. "You don't have to speak about it. I understand. I'm not going to force you to tell me what happened. Just know I'm here if you want to".

"Thank you," she sobbed before breathing deeply. "So… When it happened, the Orcs surrounded me, ready to attack. I was blinded with hate and the want of revenge. I don't really know how it happened, but I was growling, louder and louder, and then I felt light coming from within me. I let it explode around me and it pushed the Orcs away. I was ready to jump back in but you arrived and I collapsed. That's all I know," she explained.

"Impressive," Lothar mumbled. "Well, I'll speak with Khadgar, see if he can help you control your magic".

She merely nodded.

"How is your shoulder?" he then asked, searching her eyes for any trace of pain or discomfort.

"I don't know the word in your language," she admitted. "It's not in the right place".

"You mean it's dislocated? That Orc popped it out of its socket?" Lothar said with anger, though she knew it wasn't directed at her.

She nodded once again.

"Okay, let's get you out of your armour, I'll pop it back in its place in no time," he decided.

"Have you healed this kind of injury before?" she asked worriedly.

"I did it for my son three or four times. He used to climb trees when he was about twelve years old. And he always ended up falling, so I had to fix him up," Lothar chuckled.

Karandra stayed silent at the mention of his son, knowing no word could ever ease the loss Lothar was suffering. She let him remove the pieces of armour on her shoulders, on her arms and forearms, then the breast plate. Then he pulled the laces of her sleeveless leather vest, and threw it away. He gently helped her pull out her left arm out of her thin shirt so he could see the expand of the injury.

His eyes widened comically when he saw the tan skin that was now blue and purple in a wide area around the shoulder.

"Fuck, that bastard nearly tore your arm off!" he growled.

Karandra hung her head in shame. If she had been quicker to get onto the griffin, they would have escaped at first try and this would have never happened.

"Hey," Lothar called her, softly lifting her chin up so she could meet his soft gaze. "It's alright, I'll put the shoulder back in its place and once in Stormwind I'll find you a healer. Maybe Khadgar knows some spell…" he added.

He slowly leaned forward and captured her lips in a soft kiss. He quickly pulled back and smiled softly at her. He gave her a small piece of wood.

"Bite this, hard, because it will hurt badly".

She nodded and planted her teeth in the wood as he carefully grabbed her arm.

"Okay, here we go".

He quickly forced the arm in a weird twist, and Karandra yelled in pain as tears flowed out her eyes like rivers. Damn, it hurt like Hell! He checked that it had been done properly, and gently swiped her forehead and her cheeks. He grabbed the piece of wood and tossed it in the fire before giving her a peck on the lips.

"I'm sorry, but you'll feel better soon I promise. You can stay here, I'll hunt something to eat".

He kissed her forehead and went into the forest. Karandra tried to relax, sitting on the ground, when she felt something behind her back. She turned her head and saw Lothar's griffin laying behind her. She smiled at the beautiful beast and leaned against his soft feathers.

Lothar was quick to come back with a rabbit, and she devoured half of it in no time before curling up in a ball in front of the fire. Lothar chuckled when he heard her soft snores only seconds later. He took his time finishing his meat, put out the fire, and secured Llane's body behind the saddle on his griffin's back. He gently picked up the young woman without waking her up and mounted, cradling her like a princess in his arms. His griffin took off as he was thinking once again.

She may be no princess by blood, but she was his princess. He had seen her fight, the day his son died, her technique might be a little blunt and imprecise but he knew he could turn her into a perfect warrior in no time. And if Khadgar could teach her magic, well she could become the most powerful soldier of the human army. The Lady Commander. The title sounded nice to him. He looked down to her peaceful face as she slept in his arms. She could be fierce and full of fire, yet she seemed so fragile now, nestled against him.