Your cruel device
Your blood like ice
One look, could kill
My pain, your thrill
~Poison-Alice Cooper~
The search for the stones seemed like an endless task. Cordana was successful in her trip to Highmaul, and went back several more times. The Ogres had no notion of her presence although she did nearly get waylaid by a trap or two. That information she kept to herself, as Khadgar would just be difficult about letting her return if he knew.
The other mission specialists were also successful. Several stones had been dug up from a small stronghold of Ogres, and an Ogre ruin was discovered by Jaaral near Highmaul that yielded a few more.
Khadgar tried to work with what he had, but it still wasn't enough. Perhaps he could employ magical means to root out more of the stones.
"Cordana my dear, I had thought to scout the ruins of the Ogre stronghold Jaaral found, and try some different techniques. I know there has to be many more stones we can find. I am just not achieving the power I require from what we do have."
Cordana raised herself up from where she was napping. "I will go ahead of you then and make sure it is safe. I would feel better if you waited in raven form somewhere just in case."
Her voice was firm and he didn't try and argue the point. He watched her languidly stretch and smooth her disheveled hair. She was different from the Cordana he had gotten to know. This Cordana was quieter and less playful. Let this war end quickly, he thought. It is wearing on her and I cannot bear to see her so drained.
"Have you eaten today my love?" he asked.
"I had some fruits when I awakened, yes."
"And that is all?"
She gave him an annoyed glance. "Yes, that is all. That is all I required. I do not scrutinize every bit of food you put in your mouth Khadgar, so I would ask you for the same courtesy. Just because I am doing things differently then I had before is no reason for you to become so obsessive. Obsess about the stones we need instead."
The Archmage said nothing. The hardness in her voice was reason enough to let it go. He did not wish to upset or alienate her with his concern, but something wasn't quite right with his Cordana. He sensed it.
She donned her encounter suit. "I am ready," she said simply and waited for him to cast them a portal.
They both enjoyed digging through the Ogre ruins. Khadgar was not sure why the creatures had abandoned the place but they had left everything behind and simply moved on. Their artefacts were very large, even to the two of them who were quite tall in their own right. Jaaral had worked through one of the rooms quite thoroughly, but his other duties had prevented him from returning.
Khadgar cast a few circles and tried to apply his newly discovered Ogre magic. He found nothing in the first room, but the second held some anomalies he had to investigate further. With an exclamation of delight, he found a half buried chest, a small one, that contained a few scrolls and several of the stones.
Cordana had dug herself a nice little hole and was pulling up a small metal box. There were some vials inside and 2 small stones, but it was better than nothing.
She stood up quickly to carry it over to Khadgar and show him, and was overcome by a sudden dizziness. Momentarily disoriented she dropped to her knees, the box clattering onto the ground.
Khadgar looked up and saw her collapse and blinked to her side.
"Cordana! Were you hit by a trap? Are you alright?" His eyes were filled with concern and he pulled her close.
She held her head. "Oh, yes...a trap. That must have been it. I unearthed something and I wished to show you when it hit me. I must be more careful."
Khadgar swept his arm in a wide arc. No anomalies alerted him. There were no traps present, sprung or hidden. He said nothing, but held her until she had recovered, than they looked at the contents of the box together. Cordana was quiet. She was shaken by the strange event.
She knew it hadn't been a trap, since she had scanned for them also before digging. I am temporarily compromised, she told herself. It will pass and everything will return to normal. I am still able to carry out my duties. I must make a greater effort to return to proper health.
She smiled at Khadgar. "Let us return to the Garrison and add these stones to the chest. Maybe we have enough and you can try your scrying spell once more."
Cordana had a hard time staying awake as Khadgar put the new stones in the chest, and did a short incantation with them.
"Their power level is increasing," he said happily. "We still need more of them unfortunately but I feel that soon there will be enough to complete the scrying spell."
He looked over at Cordana who had her head resting on her arms, eyes closed.
"Light, Cordana," he said crouching down next to her and stroking her cheek. She looked so beautiful, so peaceful, dozing there. "You tell me nothing is amiss with you, but this is really unnatural."
She opened her eyes halfway. "I'm sorry Khadgar, but your voice is so soothing and comforting that I cannot help myself. Plus, all of this arcane magic is not terribly exciting to me."
She lifted her head up and stretched her arms out, then stood and stretched again.
"My dear," said Khadgar. "We are going to go and eat now. I need to see you consume a healthy amount of food to rest my worried mind."
"Fine," she said.
He offered her his arm and she took it. She carried her cloak and helmet in the other arm, the blades occasionally clinking on the armor plate of her outfit. People stopped to look at them, finally relating the woman they had seen Khadgar with occasionally, to the mysterious Warden who protected him.
"You are turning heads again, Cordana," said Khadgar smiling. It pleased him to be seen with her, a strong and beautiful woman.
"Don't point it out please," she said. "You know how I loathe attention from anyone but you."
He laughed softly. "Even if you were to loathe it, I would still shower you with it regardless."
They sat down on the terrace and Khadgar ordered every food he knew of that she liked. Cordana was aware that he would be observing her and she felt rather hungry, and ate as much as she felt she could. He looked pleased.
"Now that is more like it!" he said.
"Now that you have made me feel uncomfortable and awkward," she said wryly. "What are we going to work on this afternoon? How about your earth manipulation? You are still struggling with the demand/ask concept and I need help with fire wards."
He conjured up a white rose and placed it before her. "We could spend some time on that if you like, but I have something I wish to give you."
He retrieved a small box out of his satchel. She looked at it with a smile and proceeded to open it. Inside was a hair clip, beautifully carved out of a bright silver metal, inset with bright blue gems, the color of his wonderful eyes.
"Oh, Khadgar!" she exclaimed. "Thank you!"
He rose from his seat and took it from her, gently drawing back the sides of her hair and placing the clip to hold it. It looked magnificent on her deep purple hair.
"I wish to give you every beautiful thing I can think of, Cordana," he said. "You deserve nothing less."
He kissed her tenderly. "Shall we return to the Tower?"
They worked on their respective magical challenges for a few hours, then Cordana curled up on the couch. Khadgar read to her for a few minutes, until he saw that she had fallen asleep. He covered her with a light blanket and went back to his studies.
It took a few weeks, but with everyone's combined effort, enough stones were gathered from around Draenor. Khadgar felt confident that he could successfully carry out the scrying spell that would find the location of Gul'Dan's lair.
Cordana was sluggish that day, and felt as though everything was moving in slow motion. She had a bath and dried her hair and sat out in the sun for a short time hoping it would regenerate her.
Khadgar brought them a meal, and watched her while she ate it, which she did. She had to admit that eating better was giving her more energy and helping her function. Still, she didn't feel she was quite up to par yet. The sedentary lifestyle of being the guardian of an Archmage was not helping matters.
"When you are ready, Cordana, we will go outside and begin this spell. I am eager to find that demon."
She dressed in the encounter suit, and helped him suit up in his battle gear.
"We've learned everything we need from the ogres, my dear. Thanks to everyone's efforts, I believe I can pierce the veil of secrecy that's cloaking Gul'dan. I will find him."
They walked outside, and Khadgar began his magical ritual. Cordana didn't understand the strange words he spoke, but she could feel the incredible surge of power from him.
"Gul'dan will not be able to hide from my gaze this time."
Cordana was suddenly beset by a feeling of dread, a coldness that crept deep inside her. I don't like this at all, she thought, all her senses firing.
"Archmage, be careful," she warned, her voice tight.
He did not appear to hear her. "Yes, yes! Come on..where are you...I will find you...so close, I can feel the net tightening upon him, we have him where we want him!"
In front of them, an image began to form.
The warlock Gul'Dan.
"There! Gul'Dan, I have found you!" cried Khadgar.
The warlock sneered. "You! The human mage from Tanaan! I've been enquiring about you, Khadgar. It would seem we have a history."
"Then you know how this ends. Give yourself up," said Khadgar.
The warlock laughed. "Your clumsy magic works both ways. I have also found you."
Cordana couldn't shake the sense of dread that still enfolded her. The last time she had felt this way, an assassin had come close to fatally wounding Khadgar. But he had assured her that there were wards in place that would warn him should the Tower security be breeched. But you are deeply ingrained in your ritual, she told herself. Would you even be aware if the alarms were tripped? She scanned the area quickly, trying to gain a sense of what was bothering her. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Suddenly something moved to her left. She turned, far too slowly and was struck across her upper back and sent sprawling hard onto the ground. As she looked at Khadgar and tried to call out, something hit her in the head. While her helmet protected her from serious harm, she was momentarily disoriented by the strong and heavy blow.
With horror she saw the same assassin, the odd looking female, appear behind Khadgar and raise her dagger. The Archmage was unaware, his attention was fixed on Gul'Dan. The dagger was dripping with a greenish ooze that could only mean one thing.
Poison.
"No...Khadgar...!" she called out weakly, trying to stand. Her body would not obey her commands and her vision was swimming before her. Her legs felt weak and rubbery and every action seemed to be delayed interminably. The connection between her mind and her body seemed disconnected. She tried again, and effected only an awkward half crawl across the ground.
The assassin drove the dagger into his back, through the wards and scales as though they were not even there. Khadgar cried out in shock and pain, thereby dropping his focus and ending the ritual. But the demon orc did not disappear as he should have.
Gul'Dan laughed as Khadgar stumbled a few steps, then collapsed groaning on the ground.
"Foolish mage. Your death will be excruciatingly painful. I only wish I could be there to enjoy it."
The image disappeared, along with the assassin.
Cordana tore the helmet from her head and dizzily lurched towards him, falling to her knees at his side. She turned him over. His face was pale and contorted in agony, eyes squeezed shut. Tears leaked from the corners and a terrible moaning escaped from his lips.
The Warden's heart was racing. Oh Elune, she begged, preserve my beloved, please don't let him die!
"Khadgar!" she screamed at him, taking his face in her hands. "Look at me! Open your eyes and look at me!"
He struggled against the agonizing pain, his breath ragged and uneven as all of his major muscles began to cramp, but he opened his eyes the best he could.
Cordana locked her gaze with his and her eyes flared with light. His breathing grew shallow but as he stared into that whiteness, it evened out. The pain faded from his eyes.
"...'dana..." he gasped.
"Quiet!" she demanded. Her glow of her eyes brightened even further, until there was nothing for him to see but a bright white light that surrounded him. Khadgar stared, hypnotized.
The abilities of the Wardens were always a closely guarded secret. Even between one another, the sisters did not divulge what it was they could do. Only Jarrod seemed aware of each of their talents, using that information to assign them appropriately. Cordana had been found to have a unique ability he had never seen before. She could essentially freeze time in a particular person, putting them in a form of stasis for a few minutes. It was a powerful ability, and one he hoped would not need to be used often. It was both a defensive and offensive skill and Cordana had never used it but once in all her years.
She gently rolled Khadgar onto his side, off the wound.
I have bought you precious minutes, she said to herself. I need to find help. She shoved her fear of leaving him alone to the back of her mind. She could not save him on her own and needed assistance.
Grateful for her celerity, Cordana raced to the portal to Jaaral's Garrison. Due to good planning, it linked to a place near the infirmary. As luck would have it, the Commander was making his rounds and had just passed by with a few of his men.
"Jaaral!" she screamed. "Help me!"
She careened into him, still slightly dizzy, the blades on her cloak clinking against his armor and that of his men as he caught her. "Khadgar has been poisoned!"