MARCUSNE

One second, I was yawning for the sixth time watching another spoilt high born lady manipulate fire, the next I was being pushed frantically to the door by my mother.

"Shit, fuck, we all knew this was going to happen but we had all hoped, all of the houses had at least hoped-"

A blistering ball of fire slammed into the wall a few metres away from her and she let out a terrified scream and crouched to the ground. Father and Uncle Ilain had already run out, leaving us to struggle ourselves through the panicked crowd. My eyes darted around the room in a panic, scanning for any way out. Spending so much time in the woods, my mind was accustomed to building routes through places where there were none. Still, I found nothing. All I saw was Keltoi, my fellow Magicians' Academy classmate, being overtaken by his own father's forces. His twin sister, who I didn't know half as well, was batting at her father, screaming like a banshee with every fireball the guards let fly. I heard a whimper from my mother beside me. I turned to her and clutched her arm.

"They wouldn't dare to hurt us mother, you know that." I assured her.

The death of Highborns during a Casting? That would be a death sentence for a Blood Elven house. As if it's not shameful enough to have a son who could not muster the slightest bit of magical ability, not even I was that bad, I could at least perform one healing spell. A roar made its way through the crowd suddenly, and I heard La'rai screech from somewhere in the room. The screams fell silent and everyone had turned back to the Casting stage. Tayler stood where Keltoi had been, the latter was nowhere to be found. Vanished, into thin air it would seem. Shocked mutters of 'where'd he go' worked their way through us, but then a guard called out with conviction "He's still here!" and the barrage of deadly magical attack resumed, this time even more lethal as they had no visible target.

"If you're still here, you good for nothing traitor, know this: You are hereby banished from this land and those under my rule. If you ever, ever step foot in in these lands again, you will be killed on sight, you hear me? Never, ever, come back!"

A death sentence against his own son, I never thought I'd see this happen in my lifetime. Of course it had happened in the past. It was one of Uncle's favourite stories to tell me as a child, how the princess Gi'laria was beheaded by her father for not proving herself worthy at her Casting. My heart ached for Keltoi, but I couldn't feel too sympathetic. I saw him in classes, he had only begun trying a few weeks ago, otherwise he'd sit back and flick his fingers lazily. His sister and he would argue viciously during lessons, lengthening them significantly. They weren't our favourite classmates. Also the fact that he'd shamed his family by failing the Casting, as much as I willed not to feel vaguely offended, it is something that was hammered into us since we were infants. I made a mental note to berate myself later.

I turned back to mother, her short blonde hair was all I saw, her face was toward the platform again. The onslaught of fire had stopped, and all that was left on the marbled stage was the collapsed body of a woman. Tayler's sobs echoed throughout the clearing and everyone was staring at her – low- and Highborn alike. A good minute or two passed, and to everyone's surprise it was not her father who stepped forwards, but instead her mother. They looked almost identical, but of course Tayler's mother looked a good thirty years older than her daughter. She grabbed her upper arm and pulled her to her feet.

"Good Elves of the houses of our kingdom, I give you our new lord! My daughter, Tayler!"

A quiet rumble of applause petered out very quickly. Such an extravagant announcement was out of place. Their father stepped in again, and pushed the woman aside with force, scowling at her. She sat meekly back down in her chair, but crossed her arms and returned it as soon as he looked away. The man stalked around Tayler as he positioned himself centre stage.

"I must apologise for this afternoon's events. You have all undoubtedly travelled vast distances to witness the casting of my daughter-"

"And son!" Tayler cried.

He spoke only louder to drown her out.

"And I am sorry that it has had to end this way. We only follow such strict protocol to provide our kingdoms with the highest and most noble leaders we can, to make things better for our people and lead the Blood Elves to glory!"

As if on cue, riotous applause erupted within a few of the higher born houses than my own. It's as if that simple statement had erased everything that had happened from their memories. My own mother included, who nudged my side. I reluctantly put my own hands together, and felt suddenly sick at the scene I was a part of. Smouldering rubble littered the ground, children had tears streaming down their faces, people were still cowering behind chairs and we were all on our knees, applauding a man who had just tried to kill his own son at all costs and pushed away his terrified daughter. I glared up as he stood over the people, a smug grin sliming its way over his face the louder the applause got. I couldn't turn into that, there is no way I would become that.

"Oh, look at your robes!" mother fussed, brushing away at the embroiled sleeves of my disgustingly green ceremonial robes "These cost five hundred gold a piece, and now they're ruined!"

"Please Dassilia, there are more important things that we still have other than Marcusne's robes." Father scoffed, picking at the hawkstrider leg he reluctantly took from the Orcish kitchens.

"I know, I know, but I don't want to have to get the servants to make another. You know how long it takes them and-"

"Not here Dass, do not let them overhear you."

I looked to a young male Orc in the corner of the room, prodding the fire and making sure it stayed alight to provide us with warmth and a way to cook us more food if we desired. None of us would take him up on the offer though, we never made servants overwork. We tried to do everything ourselves and that's why mother and father would berate me so harshly when I returned from the woods with nothing. It meant we had to bring in the servants, and it had been happening almost daily recently. Uncle chomped down on his own food and swiftly demanded more from the Orc.

"Honestly brother, must you?" Mother scoffed, dabbing her mouth with the silken napkin.

"They were born to serve, who am I to stop them?" he chuckled as the hulking green man replaced his empty plate with a steaming bowl of soup.

I looked to the Orcs face. It looked grief stricken, as if he had lost something and was trying to hold himself together as best he possibly could. Mother had seemed to pick up on this too and reached out her hand and began to say something but was stopped by father instantly. The Orc walked to La'rai, and commenced to polish her sun-shaded scales. Having no concept of what slavery was, she trilled happily and squinted her eyes in satisfaction.

"We can't risk it here, did you not see what happened at the Casting? Uldara is not a merciful man. He would let tradition kill him if it meant staying proper." Father hissed "Why do you think your brother and I ran so quickly?"

"If he is so big on tradition Ha'rin, he would not kill visitors, especially not those Highborn of other houses. Especially not his neighbours." She retorted.

We were Uldara's neighbours, true, but I had a huge sense of doubt that he wouldn't attempt to exterminate our entire village if we double crossed him. Nobody is that stupid though, nobody dares to double cross the Blood Elven kingdoms. Lots of races have in the past, but not Blood Elves that have trade agreements with each other. Keltoi and Tayler even seemed to know to an extent how horrible their father was, yet they were subservient to him and Tayler was even excited to come into power. Although, I'd imagine that today's events were not exactly how she'd wanted everything to happen.

TAYLER

I awoke after an hour of sleep, by my curtains being forcefully pulled open and the clear purple veil covering my bed was quick to follow.

"Orders of your father lord Tayler, he would like you awake now." As soon as the Orcish woman had entered, she was gone again.

Her tone was rough, and almost angry. There's no way that she could know what I did, I tried to convince myself. I rubbed my eyes and found that my hands were still shaking. Be it from the shock of the previous night's events, or the lack of sleep that I was able to get, I had no idea. I hadn't even changed out of my flowing purple robes yet. They were impractical, but made a statement. I'd designed them myself, originally for my mother for when her sister came to visit. They were killed, however, by allied forces in Ashenvale, apparently led by a Draenei hunter.

That was years ago though, and since they were so far apart they weren't that close anyway, so I thought it'd be appropriate that I wore them for my Casting. They had a deep neckline that went below my bust and cut off just below my belly. I wore thin blue silk underneath, so not too much of my skin was exposed. The trail was very long, and granted, made it hard for me to walk up onto the platform and manoeuvre myself properly when I was performing my magic. It was also horrific sleepwear. My legs had been caught up in the trail during the night and the silk undergarments had wrapped around the wrong way and everything just felt uncomfortable.

I slipped it all off and started toward the door to my wardrobe room, but was stopped by a commotion outside my window. I looked out and could feel my stomach churn the instant I saw what it was: four of my father's men, loading a body into the back of a cart. It was wrapped in a white sheet, and I was used to seeing this happen. Peasants would die outside of the castle often, hoping that the higher ups would save their lives, however they all ended up in that cart and dumped into the Dead Scar. This was different though. A charred and blistered arm was swaying outside of the sheet, and all four men were looking up at me. I didn't care to cover my naked body, my hands went instantly to cradle my face as tears streamed down, and I lost my ability to breathe properly. Father wanted me awake now so he could show me that this wasn't over, and I was yet to experience the hardest part of my transition.

I yearned with every passing hour to visit my brother, as I knew he would be waiting for me with every second. I couldn't, I couldn't risk it yet. Father would expect it, he would expect me to go to Keltoi as soon as I could. I had to spend the next few days convincing father that I was beginning to accept his 'betrayal'. I would try and slip in little things in conversations with everybody that I could. 'I tried so hard to help him and all he did was throw it back in my fucking face." "Don't worry father, I won't let you down as he did. I'm sorry I'm just sorting through all of these new responsibilities, I'm very excited." "Keltoi didn't deserve our family name, I'm coming to accept that now."

I felt sick saying such things, but I was protecting him. I also spent those few days subtly gathering regents for weak spells that could help him if he'd found any trouble on his own, which I'm certain he would have. I gathered herbs from the gardens, gems from my own personal collection and various oddities from the Orcs quarters. I hardly found any time to do even that though, mother and father were overworking me like I had never been before. Every day it was up before the sun, and spells for a good three hours before I was allowed to eat. Then it was public appearances, where I would smile and wave, spout out some "glory to the Sin'Dorai" stuff and then move on to the next village. It was only after three days of constant shit, that I was able to actually find a spare moment to myself, which I used to trick father into thinking that I needed more spell regents as all of my training had exhausted them. I told him I'd go out to the village near the Dead Scar as they had powerful regents I couldn't find in our own. I saddled up my red Hawkstrider and set off to the shitbox of a cottage that Keltoi would be staying in.

I shook my head again as I set off. A rabbit, a fucking rabbit. He'd almost died for a fucking rabbit. If I had left them another day, he would be dead, along with the stupid animal. Before I left I cast a keeping spell on the slain Springpaw, so it wouldn't spoil and he would have at least some source of food in the off chance that I couldn't bring him more gold and silver before he ran out. I conjured a small bundle of straw and a few dozen carrots out on the doorstep for his stupid rabbit and set off back to the kingdom again. I felt a bit warmer after having had seen my brother, knowing that he would be okay for the night – if he stayed away from wild animals that was – so it had drowned out the guilt that I still had over La'Shak that had struck me like a bolt from the sky the minute I passed through the village gates. I checked that my spare gems were still in my pockets as mother would surely ask me what I procured on my trip to the scar. Luckily, they were occupied with dinner, so I went straight up to my chambers. My new handmaiden was dusting my furniture and didn't so much as to grunt a forced 'greetings my lord' as I walked inside. She was much bulkier than La'Shak, and far more intimidating. Her voice was as deep as a male Orc, and her hair was greasy and uncared for. I sat down at my dresser and sorted through my various gems and crystals. Dream essence, vision dust, glimmering shards. If only I could find my mystic essences, then I could do it. I looked over to the Orc.

"Have you any idea where my mystic essences are?" I quizzed her simply.

"No my lord." She grunted, not even looking to me.

"Well go and get me some." I demanded, my offended tone almost inherent and subconscious. I immediately backtracked as I saw the charred, dead hand. "Please, I need it for something urgently."

She looked to me with angry resent in her eyes. "Right away my lord."

Her strong steps made me jump as she left. When I was sure I was alone, I pulled open my top drawer and fumbled around for the large linen bag that I hadn't touched in years. I smiled at it when I found it. "He still has no idea that I've had it all this time" I remembered fondly. I reached inside and pulled out a stuffed toy bunny rabbit that mother had made for Keltoi when he was a young child. She had made me a doll of a woman Blood Elf, but Kel pulled its head off and put it in my dinner. He had this thing well into his teen years, and as a bit of late revenge – and because a sixteen year old boy having a doll was weird – I stole it and had kept it in this drawer ever since. I stroked its brown fur, probably plucked from a meat rabbit, although I daren't tell him that, and placed it on the desk. I placed my hands over it and closed my eyes. A warm tingling sensation worked its way through my bloodstream and eventually it reached my fingertips. The figure began to shrink and shrink until I willed it to stop. Opening my eyes again, I saw it was almost the exact size that I had wanted, the size of my thumb. I grabbed a needle and thread from my sewing box and conjured a small clip that I attached to its left ear. Then, carefully, I sprinkled just the right amount of vision dust over its body, followed by merging it with a glimmering shard. All I needed now was that mystic essence and it would be done.

She returned within a few minutes and threw a small woollen bag in front of me as I painted my nails.

"Thank you." I said more sweetly that I ever had to a servant.

"You're welcome my lord." Of course, was the only response I got before she returned to her silent dusting.

I took out the glowing bottle of pink gassy fluid, with the familiar shining white orb of light floating in the middle of it. I poured some water in a goblet and tipped the essence inside. I picked up Keltoi's old toy, and carefully submerged it in the mixture. As I let it soak, I turned to the woman.

"Have you a name?" I asked her.

"Yanar, lord Tayler, that's my name." She scoffed, again not looking at me.

I couldn't bare it anymore, my guilt was feasting on my mind and I had to get it out.

"What are the other servants saying about me? What has father told you all?!" I cried, choking on my words.

Now, she turned to look at me. Her eyes narrow, and her jaw curled into an angry scowl.

"We do not entertain rumours about our masters my lord." She was forcing the words out, because her face was telling an entirely different story.

"Stop! Stop with the formalities for one second; that is an order. I order you to converse with me!" I yelled, and now, she had no reason to hold back.

"Okay. Your father brought our fallen sister's body into the kitchens as we ate. Burned and charred, smoke still rising from her blistered face, he slammed her right on top of our food. He looked at us in disgust. 'My daughter, your new lord Tayler is going to have only the hardest working of Orcs serve in our new kingdom.' He said 'This one was weak, and she took no quarter in slaying it on the spot. A lot of you will suffer the same fate, so I suggest you abandon all friendships you have because by the dawn of her wedding half of you will join this one in death." And before he walked off, he suggested we eat her corpse as he assumed my people did 'it's already been char grilled for you.' He said."

She stomped towards me in anger.

"He chose me because he knows I'm not weak. So, you Highborn, pointy faced, pasty little cunt, if you think you can set me alight you better fucking think again because I will snap your pretty little limbs before you can even say alaka-fucking-zam."

The tears streaming down my face turned to tears of utter fear as the woman stood fierce and unwavering.

"Y-You'll be killed yourself." I stammered.

"Do you think I give a fuck?" she sneered "It'll be worth it just to see you get what's coming to you. But for now, my lord, you leave me alone and I'll let you live."

It wasn't very reassuring so I went to check on the rabbit, the only thing that felt comfortable in my room at the moment. Pretty much the one person who had never threatened to kill me, Keltoi, and his rabbit was the closest link I had to him right now. The water had returned to its natural clear colour now, the toy had soaked up all of the essence and as I took it out I saw the magnificent purple glow dancing in the air all over it. If Keltoi were to survive with his new power, he would need an enchanted object to increase its power, and lessen his chance of being detected. If he attaches that to his belt, he could stand right in front of somebody's face and still not be seen. I shoved it back into the drawer and made a mental note to take it to him the next opportunity I had.

Hours had passed, mother had been in to visit and pester me about my suitor, which was becoming more and more of a pressing issue as the days dragged on, but I had still not been able to decide. It would have to be someone from my Magicians' Academy as they are the only suitable Highborn men in our area of influence. I told her I had three men in mind, which was a complete lie, I had none, but I had done it to shut her up. Yanar had stopped her work now and was standing against the wall near my door, guarding it and opening it as people needed me. Our doors were always guarded by Orcs, even as we slept, even as we showered, Orcs. You grow up with it, so it's normal. At least in my kingdom it was.

I sat on my bed wracking my brain for someone. I would get to name my own suitor, where as in the past it was a traditional arranged marriage, organised solely by the parents. Although, these days parents still had a very strong influence, but if I pushed hard enough I would get who I wanted. Na'lier was one of the men in my academy, gorgeous as fuck, but had also fucked his way around half of the kingdom. He was also vicious and rude, what I imagined a younger version of my own father would've been like. Hashild was bulky, tall and also thirsty for blood. Bal'adan, attractive, a master of the arcane and also, violent. Bal'shor, okay looking, master of frost, once said that all children who disobeyed their parents should be drowned. I was beginning to notice a pattern.

Then it hit me, there was one man I knew who had never really shown any violent tendencies, had never once said a word against anyone, which was extremely rare for a high born Blood Elf, even Keltoi had said terrible things, and I'm sure I had too. Normally, I wouldn't mind who my suitor was, as long as they stayed out of my way once we were married. I had Keltoi to think about though, there is no way I could see him ever again if my husband were violent and controlling, they would have his head the minute I said 'I'm just going to get some bread from the scar'. I'd be escorted by soldiers, under my brutal husband's command. Not if I pushed for this one though, from what Kel had said, this man was different; he had more of a Night Elven spirit to him than a Blood Elf one. That's exactly what I needed, someone who would listen, someone who would help, and someone who wouldn't kill my brother. That's when it all came together, and that's when I had decided, my choice set in stone.

I wanted Marcusne.