Took a while but the second chapter of Assassins Kiss is finally up! As always Reviews are welcome.
Plaguelands Rendezvous
Eastern Plaguelands
Kalim dismounted the moment the griffon landed. There was no point in hanging about after all, he only had 2 weeks to find her, persuade her to come with him and then get to Silithus. Time was a commodity he had very little of.
It had been difficult enough to track her this far, she had been travelling at great speed north to the Plaguelands. Now she was here it was going to be hellish trying to find her.
"Still, the local Argent Dawn commander should be able to tell me her rough whereabouts." He whispered to himself "Very little goes on in the Plaguelands without someone telling The Dawn about it".
At least he hoped the Dawn would know, otherwise he would have to resort to the Crusade and as they weren't very open with their secrets he would be forced to resort to sharp pointy things to get the truth out of them.
He strode into the chapel and instantly noticed an few odd things. For instance there were a lot of men and women dressed in red. The Scarlet Crusade.
Kalim released his grip on his weapons, he hadn't realised he'd been holding them so tight. He snorted, some people had a security blanket. He had security weapons.
"Who are you? This is a private conversation!" called a voice.
Kalim turned and saw a small, thin man with a weedy little moustache. He could already tell he was going to hate him.
"Well?"
"Move or die, little man" Kalim hated self-important people, unfortunately most rich people were self-important.
The man drew himself up to his full (although still quite small) height.
"I will have you know that I am Scarlet commander Azhrael, supreme lord of-"
"Then the standards of the Crusade must have gone down." Kalim brushed him off and continued his search for a Dawn commander who could tell him something about her current position.
"Kalim? Don't tell me that's you under that veil!"
Kalim turned and grinned as he saw the speaker. Barnatheus was one of his oldest friends and allies, Kalim hadn't heard from him from awhile and had taken that as good news. After all it was better than hearing about him in an obituary.
"It is you! Well now, you must tell me of what's happened to you in these past 14 years!"
"Fine, fine Barnatheus but at least let me sit down while I tell you."
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It was quite a long story and Kalim was quite aware of time's passing and tried to keep it short but he kept on getting interrupted.
Eventually he managed to finish and was quite definite about not hearing Barnatheus's life story.
"Look I'd like to ,old friend but I'm in a bit of a hurry"
"Oho! Now you've got me interested. Why are you in a hurry?"
Kalim winced, he'd glossed over his reasons for coming here in the hope that it would save time but it looked like he wad going to have to explain it.
"You remember school? The school that taught us real lessons I mean?"
"Of course. Lessons like how to behead a man from fifty paces." He shook his head "I never could get that one..."
"That's the one. Well do you remember Elaneth?"
"Elaneth... Elaneth.., Oh yes her! The night elf druid right? A bad business that was." He shook his head "Didn't you save her from eternal corruption?"
" I was the one who nearly killed her."
"Oh yes... But that was to save her right?"
"Yes. Anyway I'm looking for her and I've got about three days before I have to head off."
"Well maybe I can help you there then. I'm Commander Barnatheus now so I think I can access the Records. I'll tell you when I find something." Then he walked off
Kalim nodded and sat down, Barnatheus had got top marks in languages so this shouldn't take too long.
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Four hours later
Kalim waited. He'd been right, it had only taken five minutes but he hadn't been pleased with the answer.
"Stratholme, Why'd it have to be Stratholme?" He muttered.
He froze. He heard a noise, someone or thing was trying to be stealthy. Scratch that, a lot of something's were charging him, if he hadn't heard that sound he'd be dead.
"It's not that bad, fleshling and it has advantages." Said Kaim'il.
"Shut up"
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His sword whipped across slicing through yet another skeletons skull. A quick twist of his other blade cut a ghoul in half. He cursed as yet another abomination staggered towards him. He couldn't keep this up for much longer. He must have killed dozens of undead in the last few minutes and his muscles were telling him to stop. Hell his skin was telling him to stop!
He planted his foot on one of the abominations ribs and began to climb it like staircase. It swung its great meat-hooks at him only succeeding in tearing at its own flesh. Kalim slashed and leaped off as it fell, headless, towards the ground
As he landed his blades twirled in defensive patterns intended to ward off all incoming attacks. But there were none. It was then that he noticed that no undead still stood on the field of battle.
"Still no time to gloat about victory" He whispered to himself "I still have to find her"
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Elaneth waited. She had been waiting for a long time for this. The moment of her revenge on the fiends who had attempted to control her. And now she would destroy one of their greatest champions.
"Baron Rivendare..." she whispered. It had become a kind of prayer to revenge. Revenge for too many things for counting but on the top of that list was revenge for their attempted control over her.
Her breath caught as the great gate, entrance to once mighty Strathholme opened and out came the Baron Rivendare, strutting without a fear in the world.
"Well that's about to change, my dear Baron" She purred. She began to focus her power, the power of nature into a beam of pure moonlight. It was fitting that the pure light of the moon would purge him.
With a cry, she released the spell and a bright beam pierced through the heavens, veering unerringly towards him. The Baron looked up at the last moment and his face contorted with fear.
"It must be fear..." She whispered to herself, surely no one would Smile? Then she was blinded by the light.
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Kalim groaned as he saw the horizon light up. It was a moonfire and a big one at that.
"Maybe it was some other Night Elf Druid..." He whispered to himself without much hope.
"No. I'd say that your lady friend is pretty much screwed." Kaim'il said
Kalim could almost see the nasty grin on Kaim'ils face. For a short time Kaim'il had actually possessed Elaneth and he had been most unwilling to let go. In fact the only way to make him let go had been to...
Kalim shook his head, there would be time for remembrance later. Right now he had a druid to save.
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Elaneth blinked, trying to clear the blinding light from her eyes. Was he dead? He must be dead! He must be! He-
A wild laughter burst out from the gate. She turned dreading what she might see.
The eight black guards who had been escorting him had been vaporised but the Baron himself was laughing madly. He appeared to be unhurt, indeed he seemed amused.
"It has been along time since anyone attempted to kill me" he said "But it was foolish to believe that one such as you could even attempt that. Unfortunately I must take revenge for the ... deaths of my guards."
His spell was the exact opposite of hers. Elaneth's spell had been to summon the pure light of the moon. His was a spell of darkness meant to bring the foulest and most corrupted Shades in the Scourge and then command them. " Tis vador, metshal pallel!" Too late she realised ,to attempt to counter it, it had already been completed.
"Kill her."
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Kalim ran. He'd felt that last spell and Light Almighty it was a nasty one.
" Why does she have to take on one of the Scourges most powerful agents by herself? Light but she must be stupid! Why cant she just read a book eh? " he muttered to himself.
" That's like saying why are you an assassin? Mortals don't need a reason to be stupid. They just are."
"It's because we don't live forever Kaim'il. We don't have a thousand years to spare. Hell, we're lucky if we get a few decades. We always feel that time not spent doing anything is a waste of time."
"You sound like a philosopher. And if you already knew the answer to your own question, why ask it?"
Kalim couldn't be bothered with a debate on the principles of mortals lives, so he settled for the tried and tested reply.
"Shut up."
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She was frozen in place by fear as the Shades approached her. Each one had an aura of fear and death.
Time seemed to stand still as they approached. "I'm... going to die." She thought. That thought shook her out of the spell but it was too late , one of them stood over her claw raised. She closed her eyes...
And them opened them. The Shade was flailing around wildly trying to hit something. "Its been blinded" She thought. But how-
Then she felt a strong hand slip round her legs as another slipped round her back. She was then lifted up, and before she could say a word, the man who had picked her up was running, very quickly.
"Who-"
"Shut up, Shut up, Shut up, oh feck they're gaining"
She turned. Over a hundred Undead were rapidly approaching, in their ranks she saw Death Knights and Liches.
"Run Faster!"
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"How's that portal coming?"
"It would be faster if you stopped talking. It's very difficult to cast a spell without a real mouth, you know. I could do this much faster if you just let me take control."
"No."
"Very well then. I predict that at this rate, it will take me about a minute to complete the spell"
"A minute is fine. Make sure it's no more than a minute though."
"Yes, Master. I live only to serve. Might I clean your ass with my tongue while I'm at it?"
"Shut up." Kalim had to admit it . Kaim'il had been becoming a lot more touchy, a lot more emotional, a lot more... alive lately. Kalim shrugged, it was all to the good that he was more alive. It had been terrible when he had kept on quietly trying to undermine his mind. He didn't bother with that anymore, he just insulted him at ever possible time.
Kalim was a very fast runner. Years of being chased by hundreds of heavily armed guards did that to a person. But he didn't have the unnatural stamina of the undead. He could sprint for about 20 minutes, after that he would fall into a fast jog for about an hour or two. Then he would go into a slow jog. He'd never had occasion to go slower. He'd never had an enemy who been able to keep up with him for that long.
"Well now you do, eh Kalim?" He whispered to himself.
He noticed that Elaneth had settled quite comfortably into his arms. While this was quite pleasant, he was kind of feeling she should earn her keep.
"I don't suppose you could cast a spell or two to slow them down could you? If its not too much trouble that is?" his voice had a definite sarcastic overtone to it.
"I've just gotten comfortable, you know."
"Funny. Now please Elaneth entangle them or something!"
"How do you know my na-"
"I'll tell you later. However there will only be a later if you slow them down!"
"Fine"
She mumbled a quick incantation and instantly hundreds of massive roots sprang from the ground and attacked their pursuers.
"That's a little better."
A ghoul leapt effortlessly over the roots and charged him. He twisted and even with Elaneth in his grasp managed to avoid the blow.
"Alright that's it! You're running!" And then he dropped her.
"Bastard!" She screamed.
"I'm done, mortal. The portal is ready when you are."
"Now would be nice!" he paused, suspicious "Where is this portal to anyway?"
"Menethil"
"Really? Its most unlike you to be helpful... Are you ill?"
"Shut up"
Kalim grinned. There was no doubting it, Kaim'il was learning what life was like.
"I'm ready. Open the portal."
"Is your girlfriend ready though?"
Kalim turned. Elaneth had transformed into a cheetah and was keeping pace with him. Kalim started as he realised the hidden meaning of the Liches words.
"An innuendo? Most unlike you Kaim'il."
Kaim'ils reply came in a blue flash next to him. Kalim cursed and turned to jump. As he did so a Death Knight moved in front of him.
"You cannot run! The Scourge will hunt you down!"
Elaneth leaped past the Knight into the portal but Kalim could see there would be no such luck for him.
He prepared to vanish when a thought came to him. A very, very nasty thought.
His sword lanced out faster then the Death Knight could react. Before he could even draw his sword Kalims sword had pierced his groin. Deeply.
"mmmmmmmm..." the Death Knight moaned as he crumpled. Kalim grinned, undead or not all men had that weakness. Kalim flinched at the thought of it happening to him, then shrugged. He had enough problems already, with a curious druid, a possessive Lich and an annoying employer. He didn't need any imagined horrors. He shrugged again and leapt through the portal just as it closed.
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Well what do you think? Sorry it took so long, i had exams:( oh well. The story will be updated rather sporadically for a while as exams aren't over yet. Anyway as always Read and Review!