The sky was mine. Flying came to me instinctively, as if I was born with wings; as natural as breathing. If someone had asked me if I wasn't afraid to face a whole flight squad alone, five fliers against one, I would face such question with the same disbelief as if I'd been asked if I wasn't afraid of a puppy. For that, people often label me as "crazy".
I flew directly at the group, piercing the skies easily. Ala'Nyr was faster and lighter than any other dragonhawk, so the first row of offensive spells and arrows missed me by simple miscalculation. They weren't used to facing someone faster than themselves - to be fair, none of them had ever fought another flight master in the skies. Their job was to shower arrows and spells down on rats on the ground. Facing another flying predator was something entirely new.
I laid on Ala'Nyr's back and embraced her neck, while she shrank her wings around her body and started to spin. We became a bullet, and while earth and sky constantly changed places, my phoenix's spinning made two more arrows slide off as a layer of swirling wind that surrounded us pushed them away.
Two fliers, casters, committed the mistake of flying too close to one another. I flew directly in between them, and the disturbance that we created was great enough to interfere with their flight. The air gap on our tail generated powerful winds that pulled both riders to our direction, but since the winds were too strong and they were too close, they didn't manage to maneuver in time. With a painful thud, the riders collided and started to fall in a mess of broken wings, dangling arms and screams. Two down.
The remaining riders started to maneuver to follow me. Ala'Nyr stretched her wings again only to correct her position, and then shrank them with her beak pointing to the ground. Maneuvers that would turn the stomach of others came naturally to us. Not everyone was ready to try some things - not every rider, and not every creature.
Ala'Nyr was my partner for life, and it only took me a few touches and signs to show her what I wanted to be done. It almost felt as if our minds were connected, as if her wings were mine - and in a way, they were. We plummeted fast in a vertical position, the ground drawing closer by the second as my sister's beak cut through the air. The wind muffled my ears and made my hair lash at my back; I squeezed my eyes agaist the swirling air. I held so tightly onto Ala'Nyr's saddle that my knuckles were white and my legs were tensed. We gained speed quickly.
Some of the riders fell for it and were foolish enough to try my maneuver - after all, I would put too much distance between us if they didn't follow me. But as they did, they must have realized the position didn't allow them to throw spells or arrows at me as the wind resistance would throw them right back.
The fall gave us more speed, and more quickly the ground approached. Every second mattered; a blink of the eyes could mean disaster. I barely breathed, my chest compressed by the wind and the excitement. Every dangerous maneuver was like flirting with misfortune, waltzing through the skies with Death itself.
Much later than a wiser rider would, I commanded my phoenix to stretch out her wings. With a hard jolt and an angled curve, we came out of a vertical position to a horizontal one, parallel to the ground. I could see small pebbles on the ground leaving my eyesight quick as fish swimming in a stream. If I wanted to, I could safely jump to the ground now, so close we were to it that Ala'Nyr had to tilt swiftly to either sides to avoid bigger rocks and mounds of earth that were part of the geography of Netherstorm. Another rider wasn't as skilled. I looked back just in time to see the closest rider fail to avoid a big rock - the wing of his dragonhawk hit the rock and caused him to stumble to the ground. Both rider and creature rolled to the ground, and even though the rider seemed fortunate enough to not have his neck snapped, I knew they would have a bunch of broken bones to take care of. I also noticed another rider stopped following me in my daring move and was left behind. None of the remaining riders seemed to be willing to keep on pursuing me.
The adrenalin rush still numbed my feelings, but I could feel it running out of my blood and leaving my muscles stiffened and hurt. I could barely feel my hands, tightly attached to Ala'Nyr's saddle. That fast pursuit brought me closer to Area 52, back where I should go, and before I knew it, I was already trying to relax from the tension of the recent events. Area 52 was right there, and so I was safe again, with my pursuers gone. I slowed down to give Ala'Nyr's wings some deserved rest, gaining some height again.
Arrogance has consistently been one of my most fatal flaws. I knew I was good in the skies - so good I never thought I would face another sky rider as talented as myself. The wind muffled my ears, but eventually I heard the soft whistle of a projectile cutting the air above me. Ala'Nyr's was faster than me, and she let out a shriek before acting on her own and trying to dive to the side. At the last moment, I noticed a shadow descending upon me.
One of the riders was faster, smarter and certainly more skilled than the rest - and he didn't seem to think that the hunt was over. He hadn't followed me on my insane fall, but instead probably took a current that allowed him to keep up with my speed. Directly above me, I hadn't noticed him until it was too late.
He was silent and precise, a shadow cutting through the skies. When I thought there was no one else left to follow me and slowed down, he dove. I only noticed the shadow, and then a sharp and blazing pain spread all along my left shoulder and arm. The beak of his dragonhawk cut through my flesh like butter and I heard my own voice let out a painful scream, but I was lucky for many reasons. For one, even though I felt my warm blood flow, it wasn't a fatal cut; and two, he was probably aiming for Ala'Nyr's wing. He could dismount me, he could shower me with arrows, but if he damaged one of her wings, I was doomed. Always aim for the wings - but hey, you must know this well.
Deep or shallow, fatal or not, I'm not a warrior, so I needed to resolve that quickly. My flight became unstable with his strike, and then it wasn't only adrenalin that made my heart race wildly. It was fear. I was the prey, and I wasn't used to be the prey. There were no cards left up my sleeve, no maneuvers that could chase him off. Ala'Nyr dove to the side and frantically fluttered to regain stability, trying to get away from our hunter as fast as possible. He pushed us away from Area 52, where we could be helped by the goblin city's defense, and towards Blade's Edge Mountains, the neighboring region.
Arrows started to fly and amplified my terror. I tried to raise an arcane shield but I soon heard Ala'Nyr scream in pain. The world around me was pure chaos and I knew I needed to be over with that quickly - her wings were still functional, apparently unhurt, but I couldn't count on luck alone.
He chased me off to the border of Blade's Edge Mountains, leaving Netherstorm and the arcane storm behind us. The region known as Blade's Edge Mountains is composed of a chain of mountains of the most special kind: they rose as a thousand needles pointing straight to the sky. It's a sterile and stony place, a terrible place of yellow and red rocks. I also learned the hard way it is a place known for the constant appearance of one of the most vicious creatures I know: Black dragons.
The hunter was keeping up with my speed as he chased me, but the arrows stopped coming. He was wiser than me, I will give him that - he was saving his limited arrows for a decisive strike. We flew over another gap between the continents, with only the Twisting Nether to wait for us down there, and reached the neighboring region where I hoped to outwit him and lose him in a maze of stony and sharp needles. Some regions of Blade's Edge Mountains made me think of a rocky needle shrubbery, and I hoped I'd be safe there.
I dove into the mountains and felt like I was inside a thorn bush, instead I was surrounded by stone. Ala'Nyr slowed down and skillfully made our way around her obstacles, waltzing through the air - one missed move could mean a snapped neck, but my reflexes were sharp and I trusted my sister's wings.
In a matter of seconds I emerged to the other side of that rocky wall of needles, letting out a relieved sigh. I felt the sun kissing my skin, something that hadn't happened a while ago, when the arcane storm covered the skies. Those mountains might be sterile and vibrating with the growls of dangerous, vicious creatures, but it still had dawn and dusk.
The rising sun's light showered me, and then no longer. A shadow fell over us again, but this time the hunter's attack wasn't as fast and stealthy as before. Yet I couldn't believe how he was able to keep up with me, not only in speed but in skills. I felt my strength abandoning me as well as my blood, but this time Ala'Nyr was more prepared and was able to avoid the attack completely, rolling to the side as the hunter dove before us.
The hunter prepared his bow once more, turning to face me.
There wasn't much left I could do that would be able to push him away - hunters are fast, they don't need to prepare spells. All they gotta do is fit an arrow in a bow and aim. If I tried to fly away to use the mountains as cover again, he would have plenty of room and time to shot me down. I was weakened, and so the arcane shield I got now would only be able to hold off one or two arrows before fading. If I was lucky, of course.
When you're face to face to your undoing, few seconds of complete tension become minutes as your mind race through your options - have you already noticed it? All of it became clear in my mind: I couldn't fly to the mountains and we were too close to perform any maneuver that could possibly put me in a better situation.
There was only the sun.
As if we were one, Ala'Nyr flapped her wings and took the position I needed. She never doubted me, even though during that time the hunter pierced my shield with an arrow that would otherwise be fatal. She never hesitated, even though we were now offering our exposed and soft bellies for him to hit. My shield was gone and we were vulnerable.
The sun's warmth bathed my back as the hunter once again raised his bow and his eyes to me for the killing blow. But then the sun's light behind me caught his sight, and I almost heard him grunt, shutting his eyes instinctively. Not only the sun was in his eyes, but Ala'Nyr's feathers reflected the morning light and returned it to him even stronger, almost becoming a second sun herself. Blinded, his fatal arrow missed by several inches.
It was the time to strike. We rushed forward, and a couple of wings' flaps brought us closer to the hunter - now becoming a prey. Without slowing down, Ala'Nyr did what she did best, what she was programmed to do as a flying predator: in the last moment she stretched her claws in front of her body, reaching out for her target. Her claws found the dragonhawk's wing and she grabbed it. Her victim squeaked in pain as its wing was torn and momentum favored us - Ala'Nyr was able to drag the creature through the sky for some feet, shaking the rider off the saddle before letting go. With one wing ruined, no flying creature could fly.
The hunter had no wings to save him either, and as he started to fall, I realized I didn't want to see it. I hugged Ala'Nyr's neck and closed my eyes - I didn't want to see his body breaking like a doll against the hard stone down there. I didn't want to see anyone else paying for my actions, for my recklesness, for my stupidity.
For my Neph.
The hunter - and the others of the squad, left behind at Netherstorm - were merely following orders, only pawns being used as a safe plan by Neph. And should he be alive, I knew he wouldn't mourn their wounds and deaths, but instead see to that the survivors were punished for their failure.
It was clear to me now like never before: Neph's neglect toward other living beings apart from ourselves had been growing for a long time, and I was the only one that hadn't wanted to see it. Perhaps I'd been so immersed in his love and devotion that it blinded me to everything else.
The tension started to fade and allow all kinds of pain to embrace me. The wound on my shoulder needed to be dealt with quickly; my stomach started to ache and turn, my limbs were heavy and stiff and my heart hurt so much inside my chest I couldn't breathe. My eyes were tightly shut and I wasn't commanding Ala'Nyr anymore, letting her take me whenever her wings would. I'd thought this was the time for tears, but they didn't come.
It's silly to think one could die from love, from that smothering torment pressing my chest - but when you feel it, when you're at the bottom of that pit, it even sounds like a good idea to just sit there and languish. There were no tears to relieve me. There was nothing anyone could say that moment that would make things better. Sure there were greater kinds of pain, but when you're drowning in that anguish, it feels that's impossible.
I tried to cry, to mourn that dear relationship that met its end with the corruption of my fiancé, but the tears refused to roll. You're right after all - I'm not over him, there's still place for hope in my heart. There's still place for him in my dreams. Somehow I knew he didn't fall to his death back at Netherstorm, and while there was life, there was hope. The feeling in my gut was as strong as the feeling of danger hovering over your offspring - it's instinctive and certain. I just knew it.
Yet another part of me, the reasoning part of me, tried to scream out in frustration. There was no place for hope there. He was gone, despite being alive. He was gone, despite me trying to bring him back to the Light. He wanted the shadows - despite me.
The wind lulled me into a numb state of mind, trying to prevent me from feeling the whole pain of the blow. He was gone. Corrupted, seduced by the shadows, he was gone. You may already be familiar with this, but mortals are thoroughly stupid. Instead of trying to get out of that pit, I couldn't stop playing in my mind the happiest moments I spent with him. Our first kiss, all those happy and exciting hours we spent at a hidden lake near Silvermoon, the day he proposed to me...
"It hurt so much. You will never understand this pain, I'm sure, and for that you're fortunate," Aiwyn sighed.
He's been so silent for so long she thought he had fallen asleep, so she nearly jumped in bed when he started talking.
"I'm not the heartless monster you think I am, you know," he said, while still looking at the ceiling. "You can doubt me as much as you want, but I understand your fiancé. If you were mine, you'd be by my side no matter what."
"Even if I didn't want it anymore?", she asked in a challenge, but he simply shrugged.
"That would be beside the point," he replied, "if you were mine."
He did understand Neph, but that only made her certain she made the right choice.
"Go on," he asked softly.
Hanging to the past, I realized before long that the present required my attention. Ala'Nyr shrieked softly, and I couldn't let my remaining beloved suffer because of my own pain. I had buried my head on her soft, feathery neck, but when she started to decend I raised my head slowly. On her own, she had flown to a region that was the triple vertex of the three neighboring regions: Netherstorm, Blade's Edge Mountains and Zangarmarsh. She wanted to land on the side of Zangarmarsh, where we had previously discovered a very reclusive little piece of land, hard to access on foot. She flew softly to the place without any commands, but her landing was a bit clumsy and she stumbled forward. Dismounting quickly I first inspected her, only to find some arrows had found their way through her feathers. She shrank one of her legs in a reflex, shrieking softly in pain. None of her wounds were too serious, thank the Light, and I only found one arrow immersed in her feathers, close to her tail. I took off the band I used to tie my hair and wrapped it around her leg, covering a deep cut caused by a missed arrow. Despite bleeding a bit, she seemed fine. I gently pulled the arrow that dug into her feathers and pressed it to stop the bleeding. It wasn't grave and I improvised another band tearing a piece of my linen undershirt. Ala'Nyr was taken care of for the moment and moved to drink some water from the nearby stream.
On the other hand, I was still bleeding. I pulled off my shirt and inspected my wound. The path of the healer certainly wasn't for me, and since I didn't have any healing potions at my disposal, I had to improvise. Conjuring a bottle of water, I used it to clean the wound - the moment I touched it, it started bleeding again.
I took a deep breath and put my hand on the cut. There are greater kinds of pain - giving birth is just one of them - but cauterization is hardly a mild, kind thing. I used my fire magic to cauterize my wound, like I'd done many times before, and before long I heard myself screaming in agony, rolling through the grass as I felt the smell of my own charred skin. The real, burning pain was welcome as it forced my mind to focus on it. The cauterization itself was as brief as a few seconds, but the wound kept on burning for a long time on its own. I don't know how much time I just laid there, enjoying the escape the physical pain provided me. Focusing on the pain, I didn't have to think of anything else. I didn't have to think about Neph, about Voren'thal or Azluun's brother.
Love is a drug, a sweet wine that you don't truly realize how intoxicating and addictive it actually is until it is taken from you. Then you feel it. The withdrawal is a terrible one, a paralyzing one. And before I even felt it, I knew there was another battle to come. I knew I would pay a high price for accepting Neph's mana crystal; I could feel the fel magic running through my veins, sweet and energizing, making my heart race uncontrollably. As Neph left my life - or so I would think - he made sure to leave his mark carved deep in my heart and my mind. He wouldn't leave peacefully, no. It wasn't his style. I knew before long I would have a nightmare of mood swings, shaky hands and headaches.
And there were still no tears - I wanted the tears, I wanted to give vent to that deep sadness, to let some of it leak out. Ala'Nyr pecked at my foot, impatient and angry at my lethargy. I could almost guess what she was thinking: "What about me? Are you just going to lay there and forget me? I need you!"
Without warning, a strange memory came to my mind. There was this one time, not long ago, that I found a dying bird rolling on the grass. To see a proud, flying predator dying on the ground is one of the saddest things I've ever seen. The bird probably flew directly into a tree or something - I will never know. I took the bird in my hands and nursed it, tried to give it water and feed and heal it. There were no visible wounds, which led me to believe he indeed hit an obstacle and must be broken inside. Despite my best efforts, after a couple of minutes I realized the bird was already dead in my hands. I burned it and let the ashes be carried by the wind, hoping that might be of some consolation - not sure to whom, though.
To be fair, perhaps I know why this memory came to me. I'd thought the fall would kill the hunter, but sometimes the fall alone is not enough. It may cause some broken bones and a perforated lung that would make him slowly drown in his own blood, and if that was the case, I felt like the best thing to do was to end his suffering, the kind of mercy I hadn't given that bird.
Carefully standing up, I put on my shirt again and evaluated Ala'Nyr's capacity to fly, only to find out it was not compromised. She was hurt, but she could endure that, I knew. I mounted slowly, grunting in pain, and once again we took flight.
The sun was already high on the sky, but not as high as I thought it would be. We flew swiftly but I tried not to push Ala'Nyr so much, since we were both tired and wounded. I flew high to avoid other flying predators I knew to be around that area, and there were no incidents during our fast journey. I wasn't sure of the exact spot our little duel took place, so we flew in low circles over a chosen area until some disturbances caught my sight.
Slowing down, I saw a bunch of raptors attacking a carcass on the ground. The hunter's pale dragonhawk served as a good feast for the native creatures, and I hoped the rider had not found the same fate. I pushed Ala'Nyr to find him.
Once again I got evidence of the hunter's wits and skills, as I flew over the place a few more minutes. I spotted at a good distance what appeared to be a dirty white sheet, torn, hanging from a rock formation by the mountains. As I lowered my eyes, I saw a small dark figure and two larger ones, more hungry raptors trying to get their lunch.
Understanding hit me instantly, and if my mood wasn't so dark I'm certain I would smile at the hunter's capabilities. The engineers of our world created a device that could act as a mage's slow-fall spell, and I saw myself forced to bow to their genius. The device is kept stored inside a backpack and can be triggered by pulling a string. The whole thing opens up and look a lot like a bed sheet attached to the user's back by some strings - it's kinda frightening at first, but you get used to it.
I could only guess his fall must've been troublesome, or else he would not have remained so close to his landing site in such a dangerous place. We approached and Ala'Nyr let out a high pitched eagle-like scream and the raptors approaching the hunter stopped. As we landed and the phoenix flapped her wings at them, screaming a wild threat at them, the raptors seemed to lose interest in their prey and ran away swiftly. I dismounted and looked over to the hunter.
Trying his best to look threatening, the blond, slim hunter didn't hide his pain very well. I could only assume one of his legs was broken by the way he put all of his weight on the other side; perhaps some more broken ribs too, as he had one of his hands pressing the side of his torso. I couldn't clearly see his hands, so despite seeing his broken bow lying on the ground, I assumed he still held to a knife he could throw at me, and I didn't approach much.
We stared at each other, and even though there was hatred in his eyes, I felt not all of it was directed to me. He was familiar; I must've flown by his side before.
"An'lor Sunbright, is that it?" I started as I recognized the man that now leaned against a rock. I was right, he was part of our select group of extra skilled fliers.
"Oh, so you know my name. What an honor," he replied sarcastically. That's all I knew of him. He was one of those people that tend to fade in the background, hiding in others' shadows. He felt like the kind of person that didn't like people. "Tell me: did you see what happened to my dragonhawk?"
"...I did," I was a bit reluctant in telling him, since he seemed to value beasts lives more than peoples'. "It died with the fall. It was fast."
After another tense moment of silence, he nodded slowly in approval.
"Good," he said slowly. "I thought I'd be luckier than him, but I guess I was wrong." His device must had gotten stuck in the rocky mountains and caused him to have a troubled landing. And now he thought I came to finish him off. "I never thought I'd be facing you."
That got me by surprise.
"You didn't? Neph didn't tell you?" I asked. An'lor shook his head.
"He said he would be treating with a dangerous emissary. He would go to the meeting place and talk to you. If he didn't return within a couple of minutes, Nalysa and Il'than would go there to assist him."
Nalysa. She betrayed them to help me. Surely she already had doubts, but later on I learned that moment when Neph attacked me was decisive for her to make up her mind and stay by my side. My sister in anything but blood - I had to overcome my own personal crisis quickly, if not for me, for her. I had to be there for her.
"If things went wrong, he would signal for us to take care of the situation," the hunter kept on telling me, straightforward and simple like that, as if it was a daily mission. "We were told to capture you alive."
Even from the bottom of his shadowy pit, Neph still cared enough to take me alive, instead of simply killing me for treason. He still loved me in his greedy sort of way - as long as I was by his side, he didn't mind if I needed to be maimed and chained. Birds with broken wings can't fly away.
An'lor waited patiently for his words to sink in my mind. The only reason he was talking so much so freely, I assumed, was because he thought he was about to die. That proved to be a good guess.
"Would you be so kind and deliver a message for me?" he finally asked after a moment. I had to admire the dignity he held while face to face to that situation, his pain was clear in his face. He kept his chin high and always looked at me in the eyes.
"This is not the time for your last words and last wishes, An'lor."
He seemed surprised by that, keeping a healthy drop of caution to himself.
"If you're not here to get rid of me, what do you want?"
"I want to see if you're as smart as you look," I said. I felt I already caused so much pain that I needed to do something to redeem myself. Helping him sounded like a good start. "What do you know of the Scryers?"
I was never a diplomat, nor was I ever particularly skilled with words - except for insults - so I'm sure it wasn't just my words that demoted An'lor from the way of our Prince and into the Scryers. He was already unhappy about our Prince, and I imagine he hadn't been with our original formation because he kept himself under the radar.
I teleported us back to Area 52, only to find out Nalysa promptly took my chores and gave the Scryers and Aldors updated information about Kael'thas' followers moves and whereabouts. Even the most annoying Aldor members seemed to like and accept Nalysa - certainly the information she gave them was precious - but I was certain she must have had troubles in making them trust her. For her I also had to be thankful for preparing the terrain at Area 52. No one questioned me, no one confronted me and no one scolded me. That was her doing, I'm sure.
There were some sympathetic glances too, I can't deny it. Perhaps I even grew higher in their eyes for remaining true to our cause instead of keeping by the side of my beloved, which would'd been easier. They could all relate to the feeling of losing a loved one. And on top of that, I brought with me two more elves to our side with solid, important information. That must have counted for something.
All I wanted to do, though, was to dig a hole and bury my head in it. A world without Neph by my side seemed like a world without a North, but it got even worse on that regard.
The rumors raised worries and questions. What Nalysa and An'lor saw only fed those doubts, and before long some adventurers were put to the task of checking it out. It was true. The depth of our Prince's decent to that pit of madness was now clear: the Burning Legion was involved and allied to our Prince, who had promptly abandoned the demonhunter Illidan for another dark lord.
You already know what happened next. The world's attention turned towards Tempest Keep when the word spread. And though mortals can be foolish to no end, the Burning Legion was capable of doing something unbelievable for that time: under the shadow of such an important threat, Horde and Alliance were capable of forging a temporary truce and joining forces. The world turned against Tempest Keep and Kael'thas, and before long, there was the call to arms.
It pained me to see such a situation, a scene taken directly from our worst nightmares. The very person that took us out of darkness lost his mind, and after our people had almost gone extinct, after we almost became a mere memory or note in the history books, we would also lose our ruler, first to madness, and then to Death itself. It was too much.
I remained loyal to the Scryers and Voren'thal, performing my tasks and chores at Area 52 while keeping my ears open for any piece of news from anywhere.
When the summoning came, I didn't answer. Some of the most capable and daring heroes of Azeroth united to take down Tempest Keep in a feat of both bravery and power. Kael'thas was a powerful mage, with all the arcane power mined at Netherstorm at his disposal, so it wouldn't be easy. Normally I don't hesitate on answering such call to arms, but this was different. I had broken bread with those people at Tempest Keep, studied by their side, fought by their side. I was afraid I could falter when the time required decisiveness. I was afraid I would meet Neph and either compromise the operation or be forced to see the light fade from his eyes. It was a rare situation in my life, when I would behave like a complete coward. Katu'zul would've slapped me on the forehead.
But Nalysa understood me and she remained by my side. We waited at Area 52 for news, seeing those brave heroes from all around Azeroth united against one single evil force: the Burning Legion. Our Prince was only its puppet, only a face to punch.
We knew it would happen, and in time Tempest Keep fell. I was at the goblin village when that happened, sitting by my bedroom's window with Nalysa by my side. No one uttered a word for hours, as we just kept our eyes locked at Tempest Keep, trying to imagine what was going on inside. I didn't know what to make of what I felt. Was I relieved that was over? Was I apprehensive about what was to come? I guess I felt it all and more, and those feelings paralyzed me. I forced myself forward and volunteered to be part of the group that would "clean up" the enchanted fortress. Look for survivors, slay anything left that resisted and sack the place I once helped taking and keeping.
I never thought I would live to see Tempest Keep broken. As our big search team entered the place, we saw the main halls were empty and scarred by the conflict that had taken place there. The floor of pale stone told a story for all who wanted to see, with marks of blood and fire and a hundred footprints. Some places were nearly untouched, but everywhere there were knocked over lamps and broken lilac-stained glass. The glowing crystals that enlightened our paths were either broken or taken, sacked previously by some greedy hero.
Ravaged as if run by a group of savages - a tornado wouldn't had done so much damage to the keep, as some corridors didn't have a piece of glass larger than a finger intact.
But the worst were the bodies. Everywhere I could see there were slender bodies being dragged away to be taken care of, armor taken off and pockets turned over. The plundering wasn't new to me - it was a common and expected practice. The winning side must take their reward. Only… the way they rolled over bodies of former colleagues of mine seemed so disrespectful I didn't even stop to think I would do the same if I didn't have any sort of connection with them. But those were elves. Those were my people, my history. I fled that scene that reminded me so much of vultures feasting over a carcass and wandered around Tempest Keep on my own.
Despite my fears, I didn't find Neph. Not even where our room used to be. But I didn't stay long there - that place was just too full of happy memories. I just grabbed a few personal items I left there and a large backpack before moving on.
I wandered places I hadn't been allowed before, only to see the Burning Legion's presence obvious. Bodies of higher demons laid charred and cut to pieces in some rooms, forbidden rune circles of dark purposes were drawn out on the floor as if commonplace, usual. The air even felt gummy and sticky with the reminiscent fel magic, the kind of residue left by the summoning of demons.
Eventually I reached a chamber used as laboratory for experiments. I'd been there before only sporadically - that was the place where our inventors devised their trinkets, magical or not, and researched and studied existing ones. Those places deep inside the keep weren't usually the stage of a battle, but still I could see signs of a rushed getaway, with knocked over items and broken glasses on the ground. I took some time to focus on what I got there and tried to recover some of the research that was being done. I managed to smuggle various intact notebooks and scrolls and strange items out of that place before anyone else would get there to claim their share of the spoils. Everything that caught my attention went inside my backpack, including a very special rune necklace that now rests upon your neck.
He shot at Aiwyn a displeased glance.
"Yes, you daring idiot," she mocked him. "You are being kept at check by an experimental trinket that I wouldn't have even took if I hadn't had room in my bag. If that runic thingy didn't grab my attention for half a second, things would have gone terribly differently for me, I take it "
The man snorted as an answer.
"I wouldn't need chains to make you my pet," he joked. "Although, if I know you well, I think you would force me to kill you. I could swallow you whole."
She merely chuckled at him.
"See? Fate likes to mock incredible beasts like yourself as well, not only mortals," she teased, "but as I was saying..."
As I looked around, all I could think of was how we'd tried to make that place our home, covering the floors and walls with red carpets and gold. But in the end the bones of that place were made by draenei hands and it was hard not to notice that. In the end, various draenei were held captive and tortured in that shining, beautiful fortress. As I made my way out of that room, I realized my feet were taking me even deeper inside the keep, to a place I was not only welcomed but summoned to.
The door was closed and locked, so I had to fireball it to enter - it seemed none of my team wandered so far just yet. The room was mostly kept in the dark, with a soft light revealing some of its main terrible features. The air was still, heavy with the stench of blood and sweat they never managed to get rid of. I suspected they didn't even try. That room smelled of fear and pain, and that was by itself a premise of what's to come to whomever would enter in chains. For innocent eyes, the devices leaning against the wall, or even the large wooden table in the middle of the room, wouldn't look as terrifying as they could be. This was the torture chamber.
We'd done many terrible things, and nothing will ever erase our deeds, but I could try to redeem myself. I went to a small back room where some more items were kept in some shelves. The elf responsible for keeping the place and leading the "sessions" liked to take something of the victims. A ring, a lock of hair, a charm, a letter from a loved one. A token, a trophy. The items were kept in a shelf to the left side of the room, displayed neatly lined up.
My body acted by itself, my mind blissfully numb, my heart made of stone. I ran my eyes over the shelf, searching for a particular item. I found it resting on one of the bottom shelves: a simple blue doll with big eyes made of shinning beads and wearing a white dress. I can't say how long I just stared at the doll in my hands, wondering if I would have the courage to do what needed to be done. Eventually my team reached that place and made me move on. The rest of the work was pretty monotonous, the fear of the possibility of finding Neph fading somehow. My heart was hardened and prepared for anything, I thought.
But in the end, not even Kael'thas' body was found, and things definitely got weird and stressful. The fortress was thoroughly searched and no one found him. Apparently the idiotic heroes weren't careful enough and allowed Kael'thas and a bunch of followers to flee. No one saw that coming.
After being pushed around like a small boat in the open sea, paddling wildly to remain on the surface, when the storm halted briefly I also felt a bit lost. But regardless, I kept on paddling and after being released of my chores, swallowing my fear, I went back to Shattrath.
Once there, I received more terrible news: now openly defiant against the whole world, Kael'thas Sunstrider, the last of a royal elven bloodline, went back where it all began, to our sacred nest and greatest scar. Our Prince claimed control over the place our Sunwell used to be, the Sunwell Plateau. Our well of light was gone, but there was still power in the place, which made me wonder what he was planning. The world was already recovering and preparing for another battle.
I, on the other hand, were preparing for something different. I waited patiently for night to come, and then went to find him where I knew he would be. By now, Shattrath's streets were known to my feet, which quickly made their way to the tavern. Some part of my mind didn't want to find Azluun there, but that possibility was discarded as I entered the place. He was by the counter, and even if all I could see was his large back, I instantly recognized him. I could still turn around and flee; he hadn't spotted me, talking lightly to the barman.
I approached and sat on the stool by his side.
"Water," I requested from the barman.
A friendly smile quickly came to Azluun's lips as he noticed my presence. My dark mood was hovering over my head like a buzzard and he noticed that too, so his smile didn't grow too big. It even looked like a sad smile. He knew how to take the temperature of people's moods, like a good leader should, and act accordingly. A cheery welcome would not fit the moment.
"I'm glad to see you're not harmed, my friend," he started. "At least not physically."
"It's good to see you again, too," I started, and it really was. "What have you been doing?"
"Patrolling the city. A lot of people from your Azeroth landed here lately," he explained. "Lots of people together in one place can cause lots of trouble."
"I can imagine. I thought you would answer the call to arms, though," I said, but he shook his head.
"I'd rather be here, protecting my people and those who remained here," he explained, turning the giant mug of beer he had in his hand. "Did you?"
"No," as I said it, I realized I wanted to talk. I needed to talk. He must have realized it, for he kept inspecting me with his watchful eye. The barman put a glass of water in front of me, and despite not being thirsty I downed it all at once.
"I believe there's no need to ask if there's anything wrong," he started, looking at the empty glass of water, "because there's so much going on lately. The question is: is there anything I can do to help?"
His concern for me was clear in his eyes, and thinking about it now I get the idea he was holding himself back. Perhaps he wanted to put a reassuring hand on my shoulder, give me a warmer welcome, but he didn't touch me yet.
"I need to talk," I finally said. "But not here."
With just an understanding silence and a nod, he stood up and offered me his arm when I did too. We left and he guided me through the city, wandering through alleys and small paths I hadn't even known existed. I didn't truly pay attention to where he was taking me, but at the end of that small walk, he helped me climb on top of a tall rock and sat on another smaller one by my side. That way, our eyes were more or less on the same level. Some trees did the job of hiding us from prying eyes, but right before us we had a clean view of the temple in the middle of Shattrath. For a minute, I stared at the temple and then took a long breath.
"I did something stupid," I said. "But I guess you already knew that was going to happen."
"You are a stubborn little thing, yes," he said. "How stupid?"
That was the moment I let it all out. I started to talk in a never-ending torrent of facts and sadness. I suppose my prose was surprisingly cohesive for my state of mind, and as I started reliving the last days, the tears started to gather and burn my eyes. First they rolled freely and silently, and when there were no more important facts to narrate, I dissolved into a sobbing and whimpering mess. I don't think I'd ever cried so hard in my life until then, and I felt relieved to have Azluun by my side, when he promptly offered his shoulder. I saw my tears rolling down his armor, and after a moment's hesitation, I felt his hand on my back.
It was different, mind you, the kind of friendship I got with Azluun and Nalysa. I always felt I needed to look strong for Nalysa, to spare her from my nightmares. I was the shoulder for her to cry on, and that role of "big sister" came to me as naturally as if we actually were blood related sisters. With Azluun it was different. His presence was reassuring, protective. I felt safe by his side, and everything else was just a natural consequence of that.
Tears do have some sort of intrinsic cathartic power, as if our inner sadness could condense and leak out of our body through them. The more I cried, the more I calmed down. They couldn't cure all illnesses of the heart, but they served me as temporary relief, no doubt. Azluun remained silent, patting my back and listening patiently. Slowly, the crying was reduced to a soft sniveling until it stopped altogether.
"And now there's this issue with our Prince," I began after that long silence. "I never thought I would live to see Kael'thas Sunstrider at the bottom of a pit of madness."
"Can you handle the truth, Aiwyn?" Azluun asked me. His voice was a bit husky from the long moment of silence. That was a strange request, so I raised my head from his shoulder to look at him. Slowly, I nodded. "Then I must tell you this: Madness more often than not isn't a pit. This kind of madness - this fever, greed, lust for power - is not just lying around the corner. It is not static, it is not something that's just waiting to be found."
That was an odd way to put things, but he kept on.
"I believe it's more like... a ladder," he said. "It needs to be climbed. Your elven prince made the wrong decisions, but ultimately he walked that path with his own feet. He climbed the stairs himself."
That made sense, but it didn't work to soothe my pain - it meant no one could be blamed for Kael'thas' mistakes but himself. And the same could be said of Neph - he chose the path he walked, the same way I chose mine.
"I need to ask you something. A favor," he said, taking me from my drifting thoughts. "I think it may help you in these dark moments we are living now."
"What is it?" I asked.
"You see, sometimes, when we are alone, we may not find enough reasons for ourselves to overcome a situation. If there's someone under your wing, someone that needs you, however, it may be easier to move on," he said, and I recognized the wisdom of his words: I remained strong for Nalysa when we faced the wretched, I moved on because Ala'Nyr was hurt.
"I understand. But what...?" I inquired, and he smiled kindly.
"There's an orphan human boy at the orphanage that says he knows you. He seems to admire you very much," he continued, now with a true, gentle smile upon his lips. "He told me a story of you saving him - you may not remember, but he never forgot. What I ask you is this: Pay him a visit. Talk to him, get to know him. And, if you find in your heart the will and strength - and if you find he's worth it... Well, he's interested in becoming a mage. Have you ever thought of having an apprentice?"
No, I'd never thought of it. The question remained in the air as I pondered. I didn't know if I was prepared to have an apprentice - my own Master was very resistant to the idea of taking me as an apprentice. His first and only, he only looked at me twice when I almost smashed down his door, after he'd ignored a dozen requests for him to take me as an apprentice. The question brought me into a pacifying state of reasoning, weighing the pros and cons.
"What about the withdrawal?" he asked me. "Do you feel alright?"
I could hardly say I felt "alright" in any way, but at least for the moment a withdrawal crisis was something reserved for my near future.
"I... I started using fel magic again," I ended up confessing, embarrassed. It was a mistake to accept the mana crystal Neph offered me. My thirst, which I deemed sated until that moment, only came back stronger. While I was with Nalysa, she shared her crystals with me. She showed slight interest in getting rid of the addiction, so I advised her properly: I gave her some potions that could soothe the withdrawal symptoms and told her to stop slowly. Against my own advice, the simple step-by-step approach, I planned to jump off a cliff and stop completely.
"I'm gonna try to stop. Again," I explained, still a bit embarrassed. Azluun simply smiled at me.
"If you're ever in need for some help, you know where to find me," he said.
I have no idea how long we remained there, but when I realized the sky was not as dark as a moment ago, announcing the arrival of the sun in a couple of hours, I knew the time had come.
"Azluun... I have something for you."
He turned to look at me, and his smile seemed to falter as he saw my hesitation. After a while I realized I couldn't look him in the eyes, so I looked to the temple.
"I guess at this point it is almost insulting to ask for forgiveness," I started, feeling something stuck in my throat. "And I can't give you relief in any way in this regard, the same way no one can make me feel better about what happened to Neph. But I still feel I owe you something."
I searched in my backpack, taking out the blue doll and holding it in my hands for a moment.
"This is all I can give you: closure."
As he took the small doll in his big hands, I forced myself to look him in the eye. His face became a stone, hardened and blank. Certainly there were a dozen different emotions raging behind that stone face, and as he starred down at the doll, distractedly brushing her hair with his big finger, I felt terrible. Azluun only meant good things for me so far, so why was I bringing him so much pain? I always thought that the false hope he was carrying might be harmful in a long term basis, but now I wasn't so sure of that anymore.
"My niece gave him this," he said, after a long moment of silence, still looking at the doll. "When he went missing, I feared for the worse, but what kept me on going was my niece. She needs me more than ever before." Suddenly he raised his eyes at me, and I even shrank. "Do you know what happened?"
I just nodded. He took a deep breath.
"Do I want to know what happened?" he asked again. This time, I shook my head. No, he certainly didn't want to know what happened, but he kept on. "Was it fast?"
He was fighting to keep on that mask, but it seemed harder than it looked. His lips were tensely pressed, his eyes were too shiny. I could only guess what kind of feelings were fighting inside him to take over, and I couldn't blame him for anything he might have felt against me.
"No, it wasn't," I finally asked. Seven days, I thought. It took seven days for him to die. "We thought he had important information. If he did, we never heard of it."
It was hard to keep his gaze, but I did. That was part of my redemption, so I couldn't run now. His voice was shaking a little, and that made something inside me shake like an earthquake - seeing him heartbroken made me feel like the worst person.
"My brother was strong," he finally said, turning his eyes to the doll again. "I would like to remember him like that."
The sun was already showering the night sky with its first rays of light, and only then I realized how much time we spent there. I felt that was my cue, so I got up.
"I'm sorry, Azluun. For everything," I managed to say. "I guess I'm going to go now."
"I... I am going to stay here a bit longer," he told me slowly, with part of his mind elsewhere. "What are you going to do now?"
I pondered over that.
"I don't know. I'm thinking of exploring Blade's Edge Mountains," I answered. You know how that story ended up, though. There's where I met you.
I believe that if the situation was a little different, Azluun would've asked me if I wanted company. I couldn't blame him if he wanted to hate me, even if I would mourn deeply our friendship if that happened. It almost felt as if he tried to hate me, which made me think there was more going on inside that head of his than he led me to believe. An awkward feeling nested between us for some time, and for the next days, if I ever saw him at the tavern, I would only see a glass of water by his side. That awkward feeling slowly faded as the days passed, though.
If he tried to hate me, he failed, and I couldn't understand why. At that moment though, with the doll in his hands, the battle was still going on in his head.
"Be careful, Aiwyn the Mage," he said, and then he looked up to me. "I believe the gods may have something planned for you."
I made a stiff, light bow that he returned. The smile he gave was one of the saddest I'd seen.
"May the Light be with you, my friend."