TAYLER

"…and the beauty of the fire you conjured during the Casting my lord, I couldn't believe what my eyes were seeing! You have such a natural and, I don't know, fluid way of contorting the arcane I wish I-"

I scoffed and rubbed my temples to calm myself.

"La'Shak, please, you're a fantastic maid, but can you please just shut the fuck up."

Her rounded green features recoiled for a second in fear that I may strike her as mother did. I could see the moment she felt she was safe, and she resumed folding my linen sheets.

"Of course my lady, sorry, my lord."

I continued to brush my hair; it would tangle so easily and fighting off about ten of father's men had not helped my situation. I knew I would pay the price for my actions. Of course, my Casting had already happened and I was in a much higher position than I was before, but, somewhat unfortunately, my parents were still alive. They still had to pick a noble house for me to marry into, they needed to appoint me a place of honour in the Magicians' Academy, and I looked to La'Shak in sympathy as I would also require a much more qualified handmaiden.

"Where were you born?" I asked her with force, hoping that learning more about Orcish lands would silence the thumping dread in my heart.

She stammered growled nonsense for a good two minutes. "Oh, lady, lord, lady, lord, I mean, I can't particularly, well, of course I can but I, well you see, lady, my lord, oh I am sorry"

"La'Shak, please. Composure or erasure." I turned my gaze away, back to my mirror in hopes it would calm her.

"Orgrimmar, my lord."

I saw my own glowing green eyes widen in my reflection. The brush dropped from my hands and I couldn't help but turn back around to her.

"Orgrimmar?" I scoffed with less tact than I was capable of "How did you survive in such a place? It's such a hole from what I've heard of it!"

She looked vaguely offended, but I didn't care much for her feelings, I was now genuinely concerned about such a huge kingdom, full of Orcs. Well, it wasn't exactly surprising that she hailed from there, most Orcish orphans are shipped off to human, gnomish and blood elven kingdoms around Azeroth - or they are sold by desperate parents on the black market, but I had always thought my lands had a higher quality of servant than those.

"Mother once ordered a thousand plainstrider fillets from their butchers district and they tasted so vile that we refused to even feed the slaves with them! And the fashion! Fucking lords, it's horrendous, it almost makes me as sick as that meat did!"

"It was my parents, my lady."

I recoiled in stunned silence. My handmaiden had just interrupted me. Her face was to the floor, but soon raised up in apparent terror.

"My lord!" she quickly corrected "I must apologise, oh please, I was deep in my own mind, it's not place to interrupt a lad- lord. OH please forgive m-"

I shushed her.

"It's okay, what did you have to say, about your parents?"

Despite what would've been her best efforts, the internal battle she was having with herself was plastered all over her face. I gave her as long as she needed before she found it within herself to speak.

"My father was killed at the front line, by a raid of humans at the front of the city."

I found myself shocked once again.

"Your father was an Orgrimmar guard? How in the twelve fires of hell did you end up here?"

Her face dropped further, and it was hard to tell because of her rough Orcish accent, but it sounded like her voice was beginning to crack.

"Strength and honour are the two most important things to my people. My father was killed with a single swipe of a blade, he was the first to fall. My entire family was boycotted; we received no compensation, no help. My mother lost our bar, and had to marry again. Orcs are not friendly towards children that are not their own, and so to protect me, as things don't normally end well for adolescent female orcs in those situations, she sold me."

My own face began to feel heavier, and my breath ran cold as opposed to its usual warm. I thought my house had more honour, more tact, than to buy servants from underground slave dens. When I realised who hired La'Shak in the first place, my limbs went weak.

As if summoned by his own betrayal, the locked doors of my chambers swung open.

"You are all this kingdom has, how could you shame me further than your brother already had!"

La'Shak squealed in terror and dropped my sheets to the floor.

I turned around defiantly to the towering structure standing in my doorway.

"You expect me to sit by and watch as you murder my twin brother? Father, have you lost your fucking tiara and feel a bit more power hungry than usua-"

My words were drowned out by a sudden firm grip on both of my arms, squeezing the tighter and tighter as my father became more enraged. His face was inches away from mine as he pinned me helpless, to my chair.

"We raised you to know better than this you stupid, you fucking stupid ignorant little wench!"

I tried my best to snap back at him as I normally do, but he had never been that angry before. Not that I had seen. I opened my mouth, pleading for witty words to come out, but it was instead my eyes that opened, with tears flowing out of them. All that left my mouth were muted sobs as images of a blade slicing through Keltoi's neck flooded my father's eyes.

"Enough! Your days of crying are over Tayler. You are the leader of our people now, you will show strength, you will show discipline and by lords you will exert every inch of our power while you do it! We are the most noble of houses in this land you WILL uphold that princip-"

"If we are such a noble house father, then please, please tell me why we have illegal slaves working in our own living space!"

His grip got lighter and his eyes honed in on La'Shak, standing against the wall, clinging to my sheets to provide her any comfort she could. My father let me go completely and stalked his way over to her. She clenched her eyes shut as his steps got closer. My fathers' face had gone slowly from enraged to what seemed like utter confusion.

"You care for the rights of creatures such as these?" He pointed to her, "Orcs? You care for her?"

I said nothing, my arms free now, but still as stuck to the chair as I was when he towered over me.

He nodded as he took my silence as confirmation. He paced a bit, murmuring to himself.

"Right, okay then." He stopped and looked up at me, "You may have proven yourself to the people in your tests today, but regardless of what you think you are yet to prove yourself to me. Kill her."

It felt as if his stone set glare was a knife right through my chest. I sprung up from my chair and shook my head, tears streaming down my cheeks as the realisation slowly set in.

"No, no-"

"Don't you dare to disappoint me further Tayler, KILL HER!"

"NO FATHER YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!"

He stalked towards me and gripped one of my arms so tightly I felt as if it may break.

"Stop! Father please!"

He yanked my body up as my grief made me fall. His hand whacked the back of my head.

"What have I told you about crying? KILL THE SLAVE!"

I could hear La'Shak beginning to cry, pleading for her life, but the sheer intimidation of my father was much louder.

"TAYLER! KILL THE FUCKING SLAVE OR JOIN YOUR BROTHER IN EXILE!"

With the most powerful force I had ever felt in my life he pushed me forwards. My legs gave way and I struck the golden marble ground.

"GET UP!" he demanded

I found my footing, yet my tears kept falling. I daren't face my father again, and so, with chest hammering away, I faced the orc. Her brown eyes were swimming with as many tears as my own. She began mouthing words, begging me to not do what we both knew I was going to.

And as much as I willed them not to, my hands began to burn hot as I raised them into the air.

Marcusne

I sighed out loud as my waterlogged boots scared away the fifth pigeon in half an hour, through the towering yellow and crimson leaves, sheltering the entire floor from the outside world. How did I manage to overlook it though? 'Just troop on through the mossy riverbed, you'll be fine it's just a bit of water, no harm can come of it, right?'

What was I? An apprentice camper? How could I ever have thought that would make logical sense? So, once again, I had found nothing for mother or father to eat tonight. I pressed my bow tighter to my chest at the thought. Food hadn't been on the table for two nights now, and mother had to call in the house chefs again, eyeing me up and down disapprovingly as they served up steamed trout all the way from Stranglethorn. That won't be the way tonight! My optimism pushed me further into the woods, where I was certain I'd find another bird, preferably deaf to wet boots.

Irritation, likely fuelled by hunger and fatigue, swelled in my gut. If they could ignore the persistent croaks of toads and the trilling of the insects, why were my steps any different? Only that morning had I overheard the employees at the leatherworks in Silvermoon speak of two female Draenei hunters. One, who could snag any beast with a single shot from her crossbow and the other who was rumoured to have such a strong connection to her own home forest on Azuremyst that the animals and trees 'spoke' to her. Zanithae, one of the most respected and exalted Alliance hunters of a decade ago was undoubtedly who they spoke of first. She provided armies with the morale they needed and led her people to many a victory. The Blood Elves, my people, loathe her. Of course, our kingdoms swear death on anyone who dares to even sport gold and navy in their casual attire. Zanithae was different. She led an army against a Blood Elven base camp set up in Ashenvale, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of our people. That week the news circuits through the entire Blood Elven population were rife with calls for Zanithae's live capture, so she could be executed publicly in Silvermoon. She has never been seen since, but talk of this 'new' female Draenei forest mistress has raised questions. Could it be Zanithae?

I hoped not. She was one of my idols from my early days, although of course I never dared speak it to anyone, especially with the royal blood that ran through my veins. It would be high treason, speaking anything other than utter hatred for anyone associated with the Alliance. I spat to my side in disgust, in myself, and in 'my' people. Why couldn't I have the talents the Draenei had? Of course, it was our addiction to the Arcane, to magic and all that was involved with it. Nature was merely something that we needed to survive, something we take from and never nurture or protect. If it were to disappear, we would just turn back to magic to provide us with the sustenance we require to live. We'd probably let the Humans and Night Elves die off before we started charging the Dwarves, Gnomes and Draenei obscene amounts for it until they slowly all died out too.

I felt a small nudge at my elbow, and a smooth, yet somehow rough beak brush across my cheek. I chuckled lightly and slid my hand onto the back of my Dragonhawk's neck. She trilled as quietly as she could, and pointed her luminous blue eyes to a stump a few yards in the distance. Atop the mossy remnants, sat a nest with three large eggs very obviously pointing from the top of the twigs.

"Good work La'rai!" I petted her on the head.

She smiled at me, a smile that only my bond with my pet could see. I aimed my arrow as I took the most silently squelched steps that I could. The numerous amount of deadly beasts that would fiercely protect their young flicked their way through my head. Then I had to raise the question of if my catch would even be edible, and worth all the effort of the potential fight I was about to endure. I shook the thoughts away, it would be much more worth it to avoid the judgemental eyes and the threat of my bow being taken away again. There is no way in the whole of Azeroth and Outlands that I could survive without her again. I clutched my bow even closer to my chest at the mere thought of that threat. My steps found their place as best they could, away from crunching leaves and stray branches as I slowly but surely got closer to the nest. Uncertainty began to descend upon me as I got a few inches away, and nothing had come to protect them. I leaned closer, ears scanning the area, turning in every direction they could. Yet, even with Blood Elf hearing, I heard no disturbance other than La'rai's constantly flapping wings. I gave myself a few more moments just to be sure and proceeded to reach for the first egg.

"Marcusne!"

La'rai let out an earsplitting Dragonhawk cry that sent scratches down the length of my spine. I jerked my head around to her and frowned. She lowered her head in shame and flew towards my uncle, robed and disgusted by the dirt he'd worked into the bottom of them in his effort to get to me.

"Uncle!" I called, as casually as I could "What brings you to my neck of the woods then?"

His impatient expression framed by his waist long blonde hair told me that he was not amused, and my chuckles faded away.

"By the mud caked in your vest I must assume that you have forgotten." He sighed, brushing a tiny spider from his shoulders in horror.

My face went as empty as my mind because I had no clue what the fuck my uncle was talking about. Forgotten? What had I forgotten? Another robe fitting? The arrival of the Sunstrider's again?

"What have I forgotten uncle?" I resigned myself to asking when I couldn't think of a single thing.

"The Casting!" he shouted in resignation "You are late for us to set out on our way to the house of Quel'Mara for the casting of the two black haired freaks! You parents are far from impressed that you're not present!"

I groaned and couldn't stop it. More magic interrupting my time in the woods. I didn't hate the magic, I wasn't particularly bad at it either and when the time came for me to take over in my place as leader of my house I would take up the role. As long as I can spend time in the woods with La'rai, I could be sane enough to do anything, even run a kingdom.

Uncle scoffed pompously at La'rai who was hovering next to him, a dumb and happy look on her face. She was only a Dragonhawk, but I knew that she loved visiting neighbouring kingdoms and having the servants feed her exotic fruits from all corners of Azeroth. Blood Elves spared no expense for their high status visitors, not even in the rare case that they have pets. Dragonhawks and the occasional housecats are all that Blood Elves will allow to frequent their kingdoms and provide for them. Cats purely as vermin control. In fact, before other houses are scheduled for a visit, every cat in the kingdom is let loose to seek and destroy any creature unlucky enough to have set up shop in the land. Dragonhawks, however, are a huge symbol of honor and nobility in our culture. There was a kingdom not too far from mine with huge murals and statues honouring the Dragonhawk and all that it symbolises for us. Grace, discipline and, of course, a very strong tie to the arcane. This is why, as a child, I was permitted to keep a dragonhawk egg until it hatched on the eve of my sixteenth birthday. La'rai was a gift from a noble in Silvermoon, in thanks for my father's command in a battle against the humans long ago. Dragonhawks may mean a lot to us, but they are rare and can often only be obtained through eggs, which are only affordable to the rich or famous. Before the Scourge attacked years ago, Dragonhawks were just as prevalent as our people.

I watched my own Dragonhawk fly off with my uncle, beckoning me to follow. I reached behind me quickly and shoved all three eggs into my rucksack and headed off.