Author's Notes: This piece is what I have named "Prologue, part one" in my files. Once upon a time, the death knight known as Maerciless was simply Allendrelle, a paladin in the Alliance army. She and Aeschlie were partners on the battlefield, and were very close. Aeschlie used to be very bubbly and mischievous before losing her partner to the Scarlet Crusade. Background check: Maerciless/Allendrelle has always known she's been attracted to women, but the concept is new and strange to Aeschlie. This was the last night they spent together before Allendrelle's capture.
"In here!"
A muffled giggle came from the dark shadow of a giant tree at the outskirts of camp. Allendrelle paused, looking wearily around for the patrol on watch. The dark-skinned draenei could see them at the north end of the sea of tents, chatting with the guards at the entrance. Security had been lax in the last few weeks: going over a month without seeing the enemy made everyone feel a little bold, a little invincible. The voice came again, this time getting impatient.
"Come ON Allie!"
With one last glance at the guards, Allendrelle pushed her way through the prickly bushes at the base of the tree, cursing under her breath as her armor snagged on the thorns. She was making quite a bit more noise than she wanted to for someone breaking curfew.
"How did you get through here so quietly?" she whispered, half under her breath. Aeschlie's head popped up from behind the bush.
"I went around, where the path is." The other draenei grinned impishly, her light blue eyes shining in the moonlight.
Allendrelle sighed deeply, and pushed her way through the rest of the bush. Three trees grew side by side behind it, so close together they seemed as one from a distance. Their overlapping trunks formed a natural hollow nearly hidden by the foliage. It was in here that Aeschlie beckoned. Allendrelle got down on her knees and crawled through the cramped opening, and was pleasantly surprised to find it was much bigger inside than she thought. The other draenei had spread a wool blanket down on the earth floor, and there was plenty of room to sit up straight without knocking her head against the ceiling. It was actually quite cozy. She folded her legs under her as Aeschlie dug around in a bag and produced a bottle. The dark-skinned draenei wrinkled her nose.
"Ugh, not more of that dwarven swill." Aeschlie had been on a quest for good liquor ever since they started on this campaign. Although a favorite of their allies, neither draenei had gotten used to the dark, heady ale that was characteristic of the breweries of Dun Morough. With a sly smile, Aeschlie turned the bottle towards her friend to read. The writing was distinctively Draenish. Allendrelle grabbed the bottle to look closer.
"Where did you get this?" she asked, incredulous. It was the real thing, bottled before the fateful exodus from Draenor, now called Outland. Aeschlie leaned forward and snatched it back. She started yanking on the top to open it.
"Lt. Nuural had a secret stash in his trunk. He won't notice one missing." The cork came out with a satisfying pop. She took a swig of the liquid straight from the bottle, then passed it back to Allendrelle. The glass was smooth in her palm as she took a drink. It tasted harsh with a hint of sweet, just like home.
After a few rounds of passing it back and forth, Allendrelle felt the warmth from the alcohol settle in her belly and spread to her limbs. Both draenei had removed the outer pieces of their armor and she was now resting with her head in Aeschlie's lap. As the two talked, swapping stories of early life on Draenor, paladin trainers both headstrong and humorous, and curiosities about their new home of Azeroth, a peaceful bubble seemed to form around the hollow beneath the trio of trees. Much like the atmosphere surrounding the army camp as of late, Allendrelle felt nearly invincible, safe and buoyant under the affects of the strong drink and the comfort of her friend's presence. She closed her eyes, letting the feeling settle over her like a warm blanket as she half-listened to Aeschlie spin yet another funny tale of training mishaps.
The two draenei paladins had not become friends until they had clung together in the early hours after the crash of the Exodar, scared and disoriented on the unfamiliar planet. They had grown up in different parts of Draenor, and had mostly trained under different mentors. But that night the only thing that mattered was they were both draenei, and were willing to work together to help rescue the rest of their brethren and try to gain their footing in their new home. They had been inseparable ever since, requesting to be on all the same assignments and constantly watching out for each other. They were both very skilled as paladins, and in a battle learned to move and fight almost as one. Off the field, their personalities were different but complementary, and Allendrelle couldn't imagine life without her daring companion by her side.
"...But he didn't realize his armor was unbuckled, and we could all see his..." Aeschlie couldn't finish, she was laughing so hard. Allendrelle laughed too; she couldn't help it, the lighter-skinned draenei's laugh was so infectious. Her horns scraped against Aeschlie's midriff through her shirt as she shook with laughter and she shrieked, pushing Allendrelle off her lap.
"Aaaahh! No tickling!" she gasped between giggles. The other draenei didn't even hesitate. She tackled her, and the two tussled on the earthen floor, wrestling poorly in their drunken, mirthful state. Finally they both collapsed, too dizzy to declare a winner. Allendrelle watched the whorls in the wood above her spin lazily as Aeschlie rolled over against her, settling her head on her shoulder. Allendrelle's arm automatically curled around her in a protective gesture, and Aeschlie sighed as she relaxed into her embrace. She was almost dozing when the other draenei spoke, quietly breaking the silence.
"Do you think of home much?" Only a slight slur to her voice betrayed the haze of the alcohol surrounding her. Allendrelle turned her head slightly to glance at her friend. Her pale hair was in disarray, her bangs covering her pale blue eyes. She wore only a thin sleeveless shirt under her armor and it lay against her skin loosely. Her breeches had come unlaced and the knees were smudged from the earthen floor they were sprawled on. Her eyes, usually a mixture of confidant and playful, were wide and solemn. Altogether it gave her a very vulnerable look, and Allendrelle instinctively pulled her closer.
"A little," she admitted. She brushed the other draenei's hair from her eyes. Her voice took on a wistful tone.
"On clear nights, I remember sneaking away, and climbing into the tallest trees I could find. There were plenty around my grandmother's house, and although she was always chasing us out of them during the day, at night I was free to sit as long as I liked. I used to scale as far as a dared, until the branches were so thin they would sway and nearly shake me off, and I would watch the stars. After The Sundering, the stars changed every night: I often wondered whose night sky I was seeing, what kind of people lived under those stars."
The buzz made her head heavy, and she lay back down to stare at the tree roots above her.
"It's the little things about those nights I remember the most: the sound of the talbuk herd sleeping behind my grandmother's house, the windrocs in the ravine, and farther away, the clefthoofs out in the plains. The smell of the Dreaming Glory on the breeze. Even my grandmother's cooking. Those are the things I miss the most." Allendrelle was surprised to feel her voice catch in her throat to think of her grandmother's talbuk farm and the quiet times spent in it. She was relieved when Aeschlie continued talking.
"My family were fishermen in Terokkar, near the border of Nagrand. Father was a paladin as well, and was gone a lot with the army. But his favorite thing in the world was to man the fishing nets himself, and bring the catch in for the day. I think he preferred the simpler life." She laughed and sat up, shaking dirt and leaves out of her pale hair. "Not me. I'd rather be where the action is. I left home to be a paladin as soon as I was of age." Allendrelle picked up one of the leaves newly settled on her shoulder and flicked it at the other draenei with a laugh.
"I believe that," she said with a wry smile. The devil-may-care look had returned to Aeschlie's face, and she swung one slender leg over Allendrelle and sat down on her stomach less than gracefully. She leaned forward on her hands and studied the dark-skinned draenei's face for a moment. The strong drink made Allendrelle more sensitive to the weight of the other draenei perched on her, and her heart began to speed up of its own accord. The warmth of her body was almost too pleasant, and it took a lot of effort to remain still. Aeschlie's eyes were scrutinizing her soul, with just a hint of soft around the edges.
"I'm glad we found each other, Allie," she said, leaning down slightly lower. Allendrelle felt her breath gentle on her face. "We make a good team, you know? We're unstoppable in the skirmishes, no one can beat us." The memory of the two of them teaming up during training to take on the other soldiers in the encampment flickered through her mind, but quickly ran away as she felt Aeschlie's lips brush hers. Heat rushed up into her face, but she did not pull away. The haze from the alcohol buzzed in her ears as she kissed her back, reaching up to pull her down into her arms. The comfortable weight of her friend felt so right against her, like two halves made whole. Several breathless minutes passed as she held her tight against her. Allendrelle felt Aeschlie stiffen slightly and push back, sitting up. She tried to lean up with her, but the other draenei held a hand to her chest, holding her back as she broke the kiss. Aeschlie laughed quietly, a blush bright on her cheeks as she sat up and pushed her pale hair out of her eyes. Allendrelle leaned up on her elbows and stared at her, trying to remember how to breathe. The other draenei continued to retreat, climbing off of her and sitting down awkwardly on the floor, still giggling nervously. Allendrelle squashed a tremendous desire to grab her and keep her there. A slow fire had been kindled in her belly and was starting to overpower the buzz from the alcohol. She had no idea what had just happened there, but she was not ready to let it go yet. Aeschlie was still backtracking.
"Sorry, I think we got a little carried away there," she kept her eyes to the side as she tried to smooth her clothing down. Allendrelle fought with herself for a long minute. On one hand, the spark that was lit between them was burning fiercely inside her, and she wanted nothing more than to scoop her up in her arms again, touch her face, kiss her neck...she ground her fists into her eyes and made herself stop. Aeschlie was obviously uncomfortable, and if she pushed her now she would run away.
"I guess so," she agreed reluctantly. After a few awkward moments, Aeschlie tried to recover the conversation.
"I mean that, though, about making a good team? There's no one I'd rather be fighting with on the field." Her confidence building back, she rested her pale blue eyes on Allendrelle's darker blue ones. "No matter what happens, I've got your back, and you've got mine. Right?" She held her hand out. Allendrelle clasped it tightly.
"I promise." She held her gaze steady with hers. Her heart thundered in her chest as the look turned intense. Aeschlie was the first to break away, although she hesitated a bit before doing so. She grabbed her cloak out of the messy pile of gear behind them.
"Let's try and sleep this liquor off before we have to go on duty tomorrow," she said as she balled it up for a pillow. She laid her head down, her eyes closing almost immediately. After a few moments, Allendrelle grabbed her cloak and did the same. With only a slight pause, she curled up against the lighter-skinned draenei, laying her free arm over her and pulling her close. The peaceful bubble that had built up over the course of the night held while the two slept until morning.
There will be one more part to this piece forthcoming.