[RP Story] The Bloodmoon Clan's Chronicle

Chapter 15: Along the Dead Scar

Hundreds of blood elves marched along a scar in the middle of the land. It was a Dead Scar where rocks had crumbled to ashes, where flowers had withered and where the mindless reeked of death. Eligor walked close to Uhrian with his face hidden under his violet hood to shade his pale face disgusted by the horrors he witnessed. He felt faint among the putrid smells of the permanent– and the living dead they passed by. Some of the undead was stripped of everything but their bones while others limped around with bloated bodies, green fungus-like skin covering parts of their bodies and insects such as flies and maggots living of their remains. Eligor couldn’t look these monsters in their eyes as there was nothing but void looking back at him. Armed men and women shot their arrows and cut their blades into what remained of these walking dead and Eligor witnessed limbs twitching after they were removed, awful gases escape from their stomachs as sharp steel pierced through and black and green organs, feasted on by larvae, splash to the withered ground as they, almost on their own, slithered through openings of the undeads’ bodies.

Those who were slain were burned in bonfires big as houses and Eligor had since long stopped counting the times he threw up. As dead flesh burned around the army, Eligor couldn’t help but think about how this dreadful invasion had given the elves new hope; a new sense of connection to one another. People who used to frown upon their neighbors shook hands with a smile and promised each other to win this war together. Former citizen took arms and signed up to Prince Kael’thas Sunstrider’s army. He was the symbol of hope this people needed. He showed only pride and courage and forced a façade of seemingly cold-hearted calm. Uhrian whispered once to Eligor pointing out that the Prince was keeping this façade to trick the people into believing that there was enough hope to once again reach peace.

Uhrian seemed to loose hope, seeing all this death around, but Eligor disagreed. He had made a promise to himself, to the Moonflower clan and to Aengel that he would save them all, even if it meant giving his life in return. Thinking about Master Azaiel put a smile on his face. Now he had his wisdom. Maybe once he would get his courage?

The sun had set and all that lit up the camps were the bonfires of corpses. Men and women tried to wash the disgust away in the nearby river and Eligor and Uhrian sat next to each other on a fallen trunk overlooking the camp and the prince who talked to his generals about what was to come.

“How do you feel, Uhrian?” Eligor asked after they had been sitting in silence for too long.

“I have never felt this much pain before. It burns inside.”

“Yeah”, Eligor muttered. “Seeing these bonfires are horrible. I keep thinking about how all these ghouls were humans and elves once too. Some might have families still alive somewhere.”

Uhrian sighed. “I’m not talking about the undead. I don’t expect you to understand.”

Eligor looked at the elf next to him who gazed emptily at the camp. Did he refer to the Sunwell? Was that why he was loosing his morale? Did he feel drained?

Eligor leaned forward and rested his chin on his palm. “Maybe I don’t. But I understand how Aengel feels.” He could picture Aengel Moonflower before him, strapped to that cold wall with enchanted cloth wrapped around him.

He looked back up at Uhrian who glared angrily back at him. “How dare you?”

Eligor looked down on the ground. “Aengel is the offspring of the Blue Dragonflight. He doesn’t belong. That is something which has haunted him and tormented him all his life. But he’s got you guys. You’re his family and you make him feel loved. I can relate.”

As he gazed back up at Uhrian, he noticed the elf had calmed his senses and could even smile despite the circumstances. “You’re a pretty okay guy, Eligor. Despite having only the lifespan of a week or so.”

They chuckled. Uhrian leaned forward to rest his chin on his palm and Eligor noticed how he tried to force himself not to grind his teeth because of the tormenting pain inside him. The elves had relied so much on their Sunwell, he couldn’t imagine it was this tormenting for them without its essence. He put his hand on Uhrian’s shoulder and let some magical essence flow through his palm into Uhrian. The torment wasn’t as great for a human. If he could share some of his magic to Uhrian, he might be able to save him from ending up like Aengel did.

As the essence flowed through Eligor’s palm to quench the thirst in Uhrian’s soul, he noticed the elf close his eyes with a satisfied smile on his face.

Magnificient! The story continues. Makes me wonder how long the Bloodmoon Clan's tale follows the story covered in lore, ergo Kael'thas' path.

One slight idea of improvement. Even though it might be something you're familiar with, I'd drop off those "you're pretty okay guys" lines. While most of the story is of formal language, it really sticks out to my eye.

Aelhaiarn wrote:

Magnificient! The story continues. Makes me wonder how long the Bloodmoon Clan's tale follows the story covered in lore, ergo Kael'thas' path.

The story goes on to the present day so I could basically keep making chapters until I grow tired of it. About Kael'thas' path, well... you could spoil it for you and read the character description of Uhrian Bloodmoon in the Horde char forum. It has a short summary of his part in that bit of lore.

Chapter 16: Visitors from the far west

Week after week, the army marched further south, passed the northern Plaguelands and through the ruins of Lordaeron. Undead and monsters fell to their blades and the more weak and drained the blood elves became, the more proud and inspiring Prince Kael’thas seemed every time he drew his Flamestrike sword or incinerated another ghoul. The army had reached the woods of Silverpine when an Alliance courier arrived with a letter to the prince. Shortly thereafter, the prince ordered his men to establish outposts in Silverpine and scout for Scourge bastions. Uhrian was set out to scout while Eligor’s orders was to stick close to the prince at their caravan of goods and weaponry.

The army had grown thin and barely a few dozen men remained at the caravan after scout squads were sent out the woods and construct teams were building outposts at strategically chosen locations. One of those locations was at the River Arevass after ghouls had raided most of their previous camps.

The soldiers were exhausted. While the prince overlooked the loading of the supply wagons, Eligor and a few soldiers went to the river to wash themselves.

“Eligor was it?” one of the soldiers asked.

“Yes?” Eligor leaned forward to taste the water of the river but spat it out as it tasted sour.

“I heard you’re Uhrian’s servant. A human wizard from Dalaran.”

“I am, yes. And you are?”

“Is it true that you fought alongside the wizards against the Scourge? Did you fight with King Anasterian?”

Eligor shook his head. “I fought with some of the wizards at the gates but never alongside the king. I heard he fought valiantly though.”

The elf muttered. “There’s a rumor about you.”

Another of the soldiers looked up with a glare at the elf and hushed him to be quiet.

“What kind of rumor?”

“They say you’re helping Uhrian somehow. Making his hunger go away. You don’t have some kind of cure, do you?”

Eligor looked into the reflection of the water and noticed some ravens circle the air above them, probably waiting for them to die and decay.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about”, Eligor said and splashed water in his face again. It didn’t feel very refreshing.

He looked up and noticed the soldier facing him with a suspicious look. “Please, can’t you help me too? It’s so painful.”

The man who had hushed him before stood up and the other soldiers at the river did the same. “Yeah, help me too”, he said.

Eligor dried the water off his face with his robe and sighed. “I can’t help you. I’m sorry.”

The soldier quickly stood up and glared at Eligor with a burning rage in his eyes. He took a step forward and kicked Eligor in the stomach with a force which made him loose his breath. Eligor fell to the side, gasping for air, with eyes watered by pain.

“You think that hurts?” the blood elf said. “You have no idea what pain is!”

He grabbed Eligor in his collar, dragged him to his feet and pushed him in the river. Eligor looked at the man with a confused look, breathing heavily with water up to his chest. He could feel his bottom freeze as he sat in the coldness of the river.

“Here we are fighting the Scourge in your people’s lands! Risking our lives for what? Damn human!”

Eligor bit his lip and looked down on his knees that were exposed above the surface of the cold water.

“Hey! You!” the prince yelled from the caravan at the outpost. “Get back to work!”

The soldiers grinded their teeth, gave Eligor one last look and then walked up the hill to help loading the wagons. Eligor waded up to shore, shivering from the cold water. He didn’t have a towel but found a wool blanket in his bags which he used to dry himself. However, his robes were soaking wet and he knew he had to change or else he’ll catch a cold.

As he changed from one robe to another, he noticed a ruckus at the caravan where Prince Kael’thas seemed to converse with two purple-skinned women. He had never seen their kind before. What were they? Eligor closed his eyes and focused, tried to dig deeper within Master Azaiel’s knowledge. The words night elves came to mind and he opened his eyes. What brought night elves to Lordaeron?

He stroked his wet hair back with his fingers and then hid it under the dry wine-red robe’s hood. Curious, he silently walked up to the convoy to listen in on the conversation. Hopefully he hadn’t missed too much of it.

“Perhaps once your people are safe, you will help us hunt the demon we seek?” one of the night elf women said and gave Prince Kael’thas a light but graceful bow.

“It would be an honor, milady”, the prince replied and bowed gracefully.

Eligor wondered what demon they were talking about. Were there more dangers than the Scourge in these lands? He had grown used to fighting the undead by now but he had never battled a demon before. He noticed the blood elf soldiers whisper silently to each other. They looked nervous. He wanted to find out more but felt maladjusted enough because of the incident at the river. Who could he talk to?

Hopefully Uhrian would come back soon.

Chapter 17: The ambush in Pyrewood

It seemed the night elves names were Maiev Shadowsong and Tyrande Whisperwind, the latter being a priestess and the first one a warden hunting a demon called Illidan Stormrage. Eligor didn’t hear much of the conversations they had with Prince Kael’thas Sunstrider, but he heard the rumors among the men. Some said that the demon Illidan was once a night elf too, but fell into corruption and now commanded an army of his own. The more Eligor listened to the rumors, the more scared he became of the outcome. He had grown used to fighting the mindless ones of the Scourge by now but Illidan seemed almost as dangerous as the fallen Prince Arthas Menethil himself. He never spoke to the night elves himself and neither did he question authority. All he could hope was for Uhrian’s return with the scouting reports and to not face the demon without him.

The army closed in on Pyrewood village where they had orders to find and retrieve buried supply caches but the village was too quiet to be safe. It was an open village at the coast, most likely attractive to the Scourge as they had raised bastions in less appropriate locations. However, there were no sounds in this village. There were no signs of life. No animals roaming the streets and no birds flying in the sky. A few scouts were sent out and they all came back shrugging. Pyrewood village seemed safe but intuition pointed to the contrary.

The caravan slowed down once it reached Pyrewood and the army marched more slowly, eagerly waiting for an ambush. “Something doesn’t feel right”, Maiev Shadowsong said.

“Yes. Perhaps we should keep the caravan moving”, Tyrande said with a nod.

The army tried to speed up and moved the caravan more quickly through the streets of Pyrewood. As the army ventured further along the road, undead ghouls appeared from nowhere and furiously jumped the soldiers. Guards were beaten to the ground, ripped apart or dragged to the ditches where all that could be heard were horrible screams of pain.

Eligor felt his heart beat faster. Prince Kael’thas drew his Flamestrike sword and the night elf priestess shot arrows from atop her white tigress faster than any ranger Eligor had seen before. He knew that Saleos was fast but nowhere near this speed.

The caravan was surrounded by ghouls. Soldiers drew their blades and wizards channeled their magic. Eligor pulled up his sleeves and did the same. Fire and frost were launched at the enemies who burned and froze while they fought. Soldiers died and wounded screamed. Eligor backed up closer to the caravan and killed ghoul after ghoul while waiting for the road to be cleared and the caravan to be able to keep moving.

Moments later the fighting ceased and the roads seemed clear. Maiev approached the caravan from a ditch where she had fought. “We’ve driven them back, but the second wave is advancing!”

A loud roar was heard from behind a house and a giant abomination slammed its weapon into its wall, breaking the entire building. Ghouls jumped up from behind fences and out from windows, rushing toward the caravan at light’s speed.

“We’ve run out of time!” the prince yelled. “The caravan will not survive another assault!”

Eligor looked around himself, noticing dead soldiers all around. He tossed up his bags on one of the wagons. More soldiers did the same and the wagons were pushed faster along the road. The remaining men and women moved back while shooting arrows and arcane on the Scourge.

“Kael, get your caravan moving across the river!” Tyrande yelled as she turned her tigress to face the incoming wave. “I will stay behind and hold the bridge!”

They ran. The wagons moved as fast as Eligor’s pulse beat. He didn’t look back to see Tyrande and Maiev exchange their last words and he didn’t look to see if the prince and some of the wounded had managed to close in. When he finally did turn around, he saw the priestess make her stand atop the bridge and hundreds of beautiful, glowing stars fell from the sky and burned the ghouls they hit. It was magic unlike anything Eligor had ever seen. The rain of stars was inspiring to him and gave him the adrenaline needed to keep moving. More soldiers turned to see the remarkable sight and Eligor heard the prince mumble with amazement: “It’s working! She’s holding them back!”

As the priestess killed hundreds of ghouls by herself, the bridge under her collapsed and she fell into the cold river. While the caravan kept moving, the prince stopped and turned, ignoring Maiev’s attempts to stop him.

“We must save her! That current will take her straight into the heart of the undead lands!”

Eligor gulped in shock. The magic was astonishing. The night elves were as graceful as the elves he had come to learn and love. He stopped for a second to catch his breath and mourned the idea of what could happen to the priestess downstream. He bit his lip, closed his eyes and prayed for her safety. Then he turned around and ran after the caravan.

The soldiers didn’t speak for the rest of the day. Even later at night when a safe spot had been found and an outpost was constructed to house the men for the night. Maiev Shadowsong and her night elf sisters had gather together and were discussing something with Prince Kael’thas Sunstrider as well as a wise-looking night elf man who just had appeared from the woods. His clothes and weapons looked as ancient as himself and Eligor couldn’t take his gaze away. Eligor sat next to Uhrian on a rock in the outskirts of the outpost. Uhrian had returned shortly after the prince gave order to build this camp.

“I heard you’ve had a handful, Eligor”, Uhrian said. “Rommath told me about the ambush.”

“Yeah”, he muttered. “I was told your team scouted Illidan in Dalaran.”

Uhrian nodded. “It’s not far from here. Only he seems to be strong enough to wipe out most of us. And then there are the naga he commands. This won’t be an easy task. We might very well not make it.”

Eligor didn’t answer. He kept thinking about Tyrande Whisperwind and how the current had dragged her away. He didn’t care if this would be his final battle. He wanted to show bravery just like she did.

Uhrian put his hand on his shoulder. “But don’t worry, kid. We’ll survive and have great stories to tell when we get home.”

Eligor looked at Uhrian with a big smile on his face. “I’m not afraid. Actually, I look forward to it.”

Chapter 18: Illidan and the vile naga

Both the blood elf and the night elf armies marched upon Dalaran, bravely eradicating the defenses of the vile naga. The scaly creatures were slow but strong, and they were skilled with the arcane – especially with the frost element. However, land wasn’t their territory and they couldn’t defend themselves against the skillful soldiers attacking them.

Eligor stayed close to Uhrian and weren’t part of the frontal assault squads. The night elves had taken some of the rangers with them to attack the base from the flanks and Prince Kael’thas fought valiantly alongside the ancient druid Malfurion Stormrage and the warden Maiev Shadowsong among the brave footmen at the front. Uhrian and Eligor were guarding the squads of mages preparing rituals to take down the enemy’s defense towers.

Arrows kept sweeping in with the wind and the glimmering scales of naga could be spotted on top of defense towers guarding the part of Dalaran where the demon Illidan had been spotted. A white-haired mage finished his ritual and slammed his palms into the ground, making the earth tremble below their feet. The tower before them shook with great force and the stone shattered to the ground, crushing the shrieking naga. Another mage had finished his ritual and another tower fell before them.

A horde of murlocs approached from west but Eligor blasted them away with a cone of flaming heat. Despite the heat of battle, he felt calm. He was happy. He nodded to Uhrian with a proud grin.

“It’s not over yet”, Uhrian said. “We still haven’t faced the demon.”

The naga weren’t as strong as they were ugly, but it was thanks to the combined forces of the blood elves and the night elves which had granted them victory. The defenses had been broken and the ground could be felt trembling once more; however, this time not from their magic. The remaining naga pulled back to defend their leader Illidan who was shouting angrily from the ruins before them. “No! The spell is not done! It is not done!”

The battle settled down and both elves and naga lowered their weapons. The druid rode up to the ruins to face the demon. It didn’t even look like he had broken a sweat. Maiev ran quickly up behind him. Eligor and Uhrian breathed as they squatted down next to some dead naga. They had to regain their strength if they were to face the demon within the ruins. Prince Kael’thas had joined with the night elves to face Illidan. The exhausted men and women still waited at the remnants of the vile naga’s defenses.

They didn’t hear what their leaders were talking about to the demon, but Eligor could hear the druid slam his staff in the cobble and shout: “And no heed to the cost? Because of you, Tyrande is dead!”

Dead? Eligor remembered the priestess falling into the river, dragged with its current downstream. It wasn’t certain she was dead, was it? He noticed more of the soldiers listening in on the conversation between the heroes and the demon. Eligor stood up and silently approached the ruins to hear more. Uhrian hobbled a few steps to follow him.

The prince ran up to the furious Malfurion and said: “Your pardon, Lord Stormrage, but the priestess may still be alive! She was swept downriver, but it’s premature to simply assume that–“

“Silence, Kael!” Maiev commanded.

The druid slammed his staff in the ground once more and the sound echoed across the ruins. He stared at Maiev with such anger that Eligor could feel his heart freeze. “You told me she was torn apart! You lied to me!”

A few night elves appeared from the shadows and joined the group of heroes at the ruins. Most of the blood elves were still resting a few yards back but none from either army said a word. Eligor and Uhrian stood where they could see into the ruins and they saw Maiev look at Malfurion with trembling eyes next to the mighty demon. Illidan was idling behind them, watching them all through the piece of cloth that covered his eyes. Even though his eyes were blind, his gaze could be felt in the bottom of the soul, and his dark wings moved silently through the air. He was stuck to the ground by solid roots which had entangled his entire body.

“The Betrayer’s capture was our primary concern, Shan’do”, Maiev said desperately. “I needed your help. I knew you would go to her and we would lose our chance! I…”

“Just who is the betrayer now, woman? I must go to her immediately.”

The demon looked up at the druid and seemed to relax his grip around his sharp blades. His voice had lost all its anger. “Believe me, brother, despite all our differences, you know that I would never lead Tyrande to harm! Let me help you. My naga can scour the river for us! Let me do this, at least.”

“Very well.”

Eligor looked at Uhrian who shrugged at him. “Let’s go back to the camp”, he muttered.

Eligor looked back down into the ruins and then nodded to Uhrian. “Yes. Let’s go.” They both turned around and silently regrouped with the remaining blood elves. Malfurion and the demon Illidan quickly rushed passed them followed by the remaining night elves. Moments later, they were gone. All who remained were the blood elves and hundreds of dead naga.

Eligor gave Uhrian a quick nod. “I wonder how they are doing back home in Silvermoon.”

“I’m sure we’ll get to find out soon.”

Chapter 19: Children of the blood

Ewah entered the basement quietly. She held a plate with some food and tea and walked carefully not to spill. The basement was almost completely dark if not for a few lights which originated from the enchanted materials and the alchemical liquids of the machinery that was Aengel’s prison. Objects like these had been used by wizards to imprison beasts, spirits and demonic creatures to calm their senses and prevent them from escaping. No ordinary prison could hold Aengel in his current wretched state. In front of the unconscious Aengel sat Saleos with his chin rested in his palms. He had been sitting here constantly since his brother’s breakdown and he rarely spoke.

Ewah felt alone. She was the only one from the family left to keep things going and many of the servants and guards of the ruined mansion had died in the war. Friends and relatives came over from time to time to pay her a visit, but they all had their own problems to take care of at home.

She gave Saleos a comforting smile as she put the plate on the table next to him. He didn’t even glance at her. He was pale and skinny from not eating.

“You should eat”, Ewah said with her softest and most caring voice. “Aengel won’t go anywhere.”

Saleos remained silent. He stared at Aengel whose eyes were covered by the enchanted mooncloth. Aengel was trembling and sweating; he had another nightmare.

“You should drink at least”, Ewah continued. “I mixed some bloodthistle with the tea to help you relax.”

“I am relaxed”, Saleos muttered, still staring at his brother.

“You haven’t seen the sun in weeks”, she said. “Why don’t you follow me upstairs for a while? The weather is nice. We can look at Quel’Danas from the terrace.”

“And look at what? The fallen towers? The destroyed Sunwell?”

“Anything is better than this!” She pointed at Aengel and the horrible machinery that entangled him.

Saleos glared angrily at her, grinding his teeth. “Get out of here”, he muttered. “Leave me alone.”

“Whatever”, she said and walked towards the stairs. “I hope you’ll reconsider. You’re not the only one suffering here. Eligor and Uhrian are fighting the Scourge at the front. You’re a good-for-nothing weakling!”

“Get the hell out!” he roared, grinding his teeth as she hurried up the stairs. The room lit up a little from the green glow emanating from his eyes and he could feel a painful ache in his heart. He noticed his hands trembling and he couldn’t relax. He took a deep breath and then tossed the tea cup at the wall, but it collided with a part from Aengel’s machinery.

“What the hell is happening to me?” Saleos said to himself and tried to breath. He could feel a wet drip run down his nose. He wiped it with his fingers and noticed he was bleeding. The sound of peering liquid echoed across the room and he noticed his nostrils weren’t the only thing with something running from it.

One of Aengel’s tubes had a crack and a smelly green substance was leaking from it.

“No! No! No!” Saleos shouted and jumped up to his feet. He ran across the room and fell to his knees before the tube. He put his palms against the glass and tried to prevent the liquid from running out. “Hang in there, brother. Hang in there.”

The tube survived another week with a piece of cloth around it. However, both Aengel and Saleos looked weaker with every day. With hope of fixing the machine after the accident, Saleos sent a letter to Undermine to request the aid of a skilled and expensive engineer. Maxiz Batteryflux arrived shortly, careless about the ruins of Silvermoon or the pale and sickly figures greeting him. The goblin was dressed in a white cape and carried sparkling goggles with strange lights. Saleos had never seen anything like this short, green man before, but he had heard well about his reputation as an engineer.

“So is it fixed?” Saleos asked the goblin who poked his goggles while putting his tools back in his toolbox.

“There’s nothing I can’t fix, mister”, the goblin snorted. “I’m known to have the least explosions of all the engineers in Undermine.”

“A tube can’t explode now, can it?”

The goblin snorted again. “There’s nothing that can’t explode, mister. It’s impressive how you’ve got the machine to work with that piece of clothing around the crack. Maybe you should become an engineer yourself.”

Saleos felt a little more relaxed now when the professional had fixed the crack in the tube. He sat down on his chair again and leaned back. He had never thought of himself as an engineer before but the idea was tempting. If he learned to engineer, he wouldn’t have to pay a goblin hundreds of gold to get things done. He carefully watched the goblin as he inspected the machine, both the engineered parts and the enchanted parts.

“I must admit that magical cloth isn’t my expertise”, Maxiz snorted.

“That’s not why I hired you. The magic is flawless. Are we done now or what?”

“Ah, yes”, the goblin snorted. “Tube’s only one thing though. There’s a lot of clockwork on this old thing. It could need some repairs. I could make a complete rework of the machine for you if you want. Will cost though. I’ll have to get some stuff from my shop in Undermine as well. Two more weeks. Maybe three. Then I think we can get this thing up and running.”

Saleos put his palm over his face. “It is already up and running.”

“Aye, aye, aye. Dunno when it all breaks down though. Could take a day. Could take a year. I could fix this thing for you cheaper than anyone else.”

Saleos felt the aches in his heart become stronger and stronger. He had heard about the goblins’ greed. He couldn’t afford to have this little man working next to his brother in all this torment. Not for two-three weeks at least.

“Just get the hell out of here, little man.”

The goblin grinded his teeth to Saleos. “You’re making a mistake, elf. If you don’t want me to repair this thing then you could just plug it off right now. Wouldn’t it be easier to just kill this wretched pink-ear instead of nailing him up on this wall here? What’s the point of this super-prison anyway? Some depraved shit you people are doing here!”

Saleos rushed to his feet and jumped on top of the goblin who fell to the floor with a thump. “What the hell did you just say, you piece of shit?” he roared and punched the goblin in his face. He could feel the goggles crack under his knuckle.

The goblin screamed as Saleos kept hitting him in the face. Blood squirted and Saleos eyes glowed brighter and brighter. He punched for what felt like an eternity and Maxiz Batteryflux soon stopped screaming. Saleos felt incredible warmth within himself and the earlier agony transformed into a sense of euphoria. Even long after the goblin had died, Saleos kept on destroying what remained of his head with broken knuckles.

Blood squirted and he sang: “Anar’alah, anar’alah belore”. He could see Aengel’s pure smile in his mind and hear him sing this lament with his beautiful voice. “Sin’dorei.” He could now feel the floor under his knuckles and nothing seemed to remain from the goblin’s head other than some bloody goo. “Shindu fallah na.”

He stopped punching the goblin and hobbled away from the corpse. Blood was dripping from his hands and his face and clothes were drenched in that engineer’s own red fuel. He looked up at Aengel and could swear he saw him look back at him through that cloth. He nodded to his brother with a smile and could see his brother smile back at him.

Let’s sing together, brother.

“Sin’dorei.” Saleos’ voice echoed through the room. “Anar’alah. Shindu sin’dorei.”

They were the children of the blood, singing their lament in beautiful harmony.

Chapter 20: Desperation

Eligor and Uhrian heard how their glorious prince got ridiculed by the Grand Bastard of the Alliance, Garithos. Neglecting the elves' bravery against the naga who had overtaken the Dalaran area, the human knight was furious that Prince Kael'thas' army had arrived as late as it had. The army had regrouped with the human soldiers in a base camp in the outskirts of Dalaran, waiting for their prince to discuss strategy with the Grand Marshal. It seemed the Scourge were advancing to retake Dalaran and that the human forces had managed to fight them off at the mountains. While the humans were planning to return to the front to face the undead, the blood elves were ordered to defend Dalaran and repair the local observatories so that they could monitor the Scourge's movements.

Insulted from being belittled by the Grand Marshal, Prince Kael'thas ordered his men to move out towards the observatories, with only a few wizards and soldiers to hold guard and put up defensive spells in Dalaran. Uhrian was one of the men ordered to follow Kael'thas while Eligor decided to stay in Dalaran with the excuse of taking the time to locate Master Azaiel's office within the ruins.

Uhrian and the platoon marched out to the woods, following the observatory tower they could see in the horizon. Scouting ghouls fell to their swords and they advanced without any losses. Shortly, they descended a hill leading them to the big lake blocking their path to the tower.

“Damn”, the prince muttered, pondering how to cross the lake.

Uhrian knew spells to help him cross the water, and looking around he could see others who probably possessed similar skills. However, there was no way to transport the full platoon without any ships or zeppelins. Suddenly, the platoon noticed movements in the water. Scaly heads could be seen breaking the water's surface and monsters ascended the beach towards the armed elves.

“Naga!” the prince said, reaching for his Flamestrike sword. “You fought for the demon Illidan!”

A female naga, dressed in enchanted jewelry and wielding a promising bow, stopped at the shore and said: “We're on our own now, good prince. I am called Lady Vashj. My brethren and I come in peace, to offer you our aid.”

“You have nothing I need, witch!”

“Is that so?” A few of what seemed like abandoned ships were dragged in chains by naga towards the beach where the army stood. The ships looked human and had probably been stolen by the Grand Marshal's forces further up north. “I thought you might require boats to reach the observatories you seek.”

Some officer from the platoon raised his head and muttered something about them not needing alms. The prince discretely gestured him to be quiet. Kael'thas nodded to the naga. “And you would give these freely? Why should I trust you, my lady?”

A smirk could be seen on the naga's scaly face. “Our two races share a common ancestry, Kael. Now against the undead, we share a common peril. These boats are merely a gesture of goodwill.”

A man leaned over to Uhrian and whispered in his ear. “What is she talking about? Aren't we supposed to be enemies?”

Uhrian shook his head. “I don't know. Perhaps the enemy of my enemy is my friend … I guess.”

Eligor and the wizards prepared rituals at the entrances to Dalaran, summoned water elementals to guard and put up arcane traps. He noticed how the blood elf wizards were easily tired and their eyes glowed bright green whenever someone conjured a spell. They were very tolerable about him being a human among them, but the more rituals they made, the more aggressive their behavior seemed. Eligor found the traits both fascinating and disturbing. As soon as they were done, he excused himself from them and headed for what remained of the building hosting Azaiel's former office.

The tower had broken in two and broken debris were scattered across the area. Ancient tomes had been ruined and papers lied spread across the cobble. It was a depressing sight. Eligor remembered the first time he had been in this area as a child. It was his ninth birthday and he had been sent here by Kel'Thuzad to pick up a journal containing alchemical recipes. On his way out, he had tripped on one of the tiles and sprained his ankle. A beautiful priestess had seen the accident, kneeled down to him and given him a smile as she gently put her palm on his ankle. Then she walked away, his ankle completely healed, and he never saw her again.

Now there were no beautiful priestesses in the area. The only humans were lying dead on the ground and all he could sense of their spirits were chills running through the wind. He approached the front door to the tower, which was still intact, and he burst it open with a quick spell. He took the stairs up a few floors and finally found what remained of the office. Parts of the facade were completely gone and he could feel the cold wind through the opening. Shelves had fallen to the floor and books and journals were spread across the room. The desk was upside down and flasks and potions lied shattered on the carpet. This office had been like a home to Eligor. This was a depressing sight. He walked through the office, cleaned up the worst mess and sorted out the few books which were still in good shape. He opened one journal to look and smiled as he suddenly remembered its content. It wasn't his own memory but his master's, given to him through the Heart of Azaiel.

When Eligor were done saving what little could be saved from the office, he moved towards the laboratory next to it, which contained the project Azaiel had hoped would save the world. Eligor couldn't help feeling his pulse go faster as he approached the door. He imagined the worst of scenarios.

The project was completely broken by debris from the upper floor. Eligor could feel an agonizing desperation having lost his breath by mere sight of the project. The theory behind it had taken more than Eligor's own lifetime and the construction had been taking half. It was an arcane reactor, meant to store almost infinite amounts of energy, like a miniature Sunwell. The sphere which was the reactor had broken into pieces and most of the documentation behind it was ruined or gone. Eligor looked at the remains of the reactor as well as the journals and scrolls spread across the laboratory. He fell to his knees, empty.

He could probably rebuild it with time. No, he could definitely rebuild it with time. He would perfect it! Eligor began theorizing and documenting in his mind what he could do with this project. Would he rebuild just a smaller version of it and plug it into Aengel's machine, he could probably charge him with enough energy to cure him from his curse. He had to do this, but he couldn't transport all of this equipment now during the war. He had to wait for better times.

But it was an intriguing thought. If only he could find a source of power to empower this reactor.

Chapter 21: Saved by the bell

Eligor Silver packed all the tomes and journals he could fill his bags with, gave the broken project a last look and then headed to the door leading back to his group. As he approached the door, he almost stumbled over a very tiny girl, looking intently at him from the entrance.

“A gnome?” he said loudly, giving the girl a confused look.

She tilted her head, looked at him and then moved past him into Azaiel's office. She was dressed in a white robe with golden embroidery. She didn't reply nor did she look at him for very long. As she witnessed the broken pieces of the arcane reactor, she smiled and begun investigating it by lifting pieces, touching them and looking at them. Eligor couldn't help but notice something different about her. She didn't seem like an ordinary gnome. He could feel something in the atmosphere, the pressure of a powerful energy. But it wasn't arcane. It was definitely divine.

“What are you?” he asked. “Who are you?”

The gnome looked up at him, tilted her head again and smiled. “I'm Chronormu, but call me Chromie.”

Eligor scratched his head. Chronormu? “You're a dragon?” he said, feeling frightened and honored at the same time. But more so: confused. What would a dragon want with his master's office?

“I'm sorry if I scared you, human.”

“No, not at all”, he stuttered. “It's an honor, Chromie. But I'm bewildered.”

She looked around, noticed how she squatted between pieces of broken materials. She broke out in a big grin. “My apologizes, human. I'm here to create a time pocket in this office. Now step back if you will.”

Eligor carefully moved a few steps back, facing Chromie who channeled a pulse of energy inside the office. “You're locking the span of time within one frozen moment? That's amazing.” Eligor felt such awe by witnessing this act of divinity that he didn't realize his lack of manners and respect for this mighty being. He suddenly recognized his behavior, put his arms behind his back and looked shyly on the floor. “Pardon my manners. I have never met a dragon before. Only Aengel, but he's a half-breed. Now I'm rambling again. Sorry.”

“Ramble on, human”, Chromie said. “I like you now more than what you will become anyway. It's not my duty to do so, but I will give you a warning so this meeting of our's will not contaminate the flow of time.”

Eligor looked up, eyebrows raised in perplexity.

“When the right time comes, you will remember this time pocket and seek it out. You will be in the center of a rift in the future, unwillingly so but so nontheless. This is nothing which is in your power to prevent and would I do something about it now, I would be changing the flow of time myself. You will feel when the time is right and only you can prevent the rift.”

Eligor gasped. “I don't understand. Can't you be more specific and tell me how to prevent this?”

Chromie shook her head. “It's not up to me to interfere with your past nor future. All I can do is to provide the tool needed for you to make sure your time flows unbroken. Now you have the tool, all you have to do is wait for the error you one day must repair.”

Eligor lowered his gaze. Then looked up on Chromie once more. “But you told me that I will become someone worse. What does that mean?”

She stood up, brushed some dust off her robe and looked up at Eligor with a big smile on her face. “All I can say is that your spirit is worth being proud over. And no matter in which realm your spirit exists, it is that which defines what is you.” She stepped up to him, gave him a pat on the side of his leg and then disappeared before his eyes.

Eligor stood there for a moment, startled by the experience and bewildered about his own future. He looked around, trying to see things in the room which proved to him what had just happened. Were there any signs here that this was now a time pocket? No, the room looked exactly like it did before. Had this all happened or was it his own imagination?

No matter what it was, he knew one thing. He had to make sure he could give himself, the Moonflower Clan and his beloved Ewahline the best possible future.

Chapter 22: I am death

Saleos sat on his stone bench in the dungeon below the Moonflower mansion. He had his palms over his head, breathing heavily as he thought about what he would do now. His brother was still incapacitated in his enchanted shackles and the dried blood which remained of his prison's mechanic still remained on the floor. The body had been stored elsewhere.

“I'm so hungry, brother”, Saleos said. “And so angry.”

Aengel did not reply. He was still in a coma after becoming Wretched by the destruction of the glorious Sunwell. He had merely breathed for all these weeks, not aware of the haunted ruins of Silvermoon around him. Saleos had spent all those weeks here with his brother, and only eaten what his sister had brought down for him. Ewah was living as the lone Moonflower in the mansion above, haunted by the ghosts of the fallen brethren.

“What was that, brother?” Saleos said. “No, I can't leave you alone.”

Aengel remained unconscious. The only one talking to Saleos was his own inner demons.

“Are you sure about that? I promise I'll be back. Very shortly.”

He tried to stand up but he had moved so little the last couple of weeks, he had lost much of his weight. He felt weak and exhausted. As he stood up, his knees and back screamed in agony. But he told himself it wasn't that bad. He could still move. He was a Ranger-First Sergeant. He would fight like a beast for his brother. He could still stalk his prey.

He gave his brother a last look as he hobbled up the stairs. He put a lot of force into pushing up the door and as a glimpse of moonlight reached his eyes, he felt it burn hotter than a desert sun. As he had adjusted his eyes to the bright moonlit sky, he could take a look at the ruins of his city for the first time since the Scourge invasion. The ruins looked hauntingly dark, but the heaven's stars looked comfortingly bright. He had truly missed them.

He lurked among the tower ruins and saw moving shadows darker than his own. His stomach screamed for food but his soul screamed for satisfaction. He felt empty and depressed. But the anger within him craved blood more than he craved food. As he approached the lights of the still living side of Silvermoon, he could hear flutes and harps playing melodies not far from those he used to play to entertain his family. Like a moth to the flame, he was attracted to the music and silently approached it to take a look.

He found a secluded building with naked women and men engaging in intimate activities on the balconies. His eyes opened wide as he saw his elven brethren enjoying each other more morbidly and more openly than what had earlier been accepted. He had to pinch his arm to see if he was dreaming.

He pulled up his wine-red hood and approached the front of the building. The music was originating from inside. There was no front door and he could clearly see that it was a brothel. A busty lady approached him as he entered the door. His stomach had calmed down and he could feel a mild satisfaction from within him. Something in his mind said: “this is where you can quench your thirst.”

“I'm looking for … a man”, he stuttered.

The woman looked at his dirty clothes. “Do you have any money?”

Saleos checked in his pockets for a few gold coins and showed them to the lady. She nodded, took his wrist and pulled him with her into the brothel's main hall.

“Any special requests, mister?”

“No … any will do”, he said with a pulse almost itching in his chest. He had been in that dungeon for so long, he didn't know how society had developed. That this place was so open, so calm, filled him with a sense of depraved joy. He knew he wouldn't dare entering a place like this before in his life, but now he was different. He could feel how he had changed. Aengel had been Wretched by the Sunwell's destruction. Maybe he was destined to become depraved?

The sexual act itself didn't satisfy him as much as he had hoped it would. It was a charming man, much like those he had sought for earlier in life, but these people were too emotionally distant to fully satisfy Saleos' needs. The anger was still within him, growing more and more during the night, until it snapped.

Saleos had to return to the shadows, drenched in liquids of lust and death. A man had died by his hands tonight but he didn't care. He felt satisfied as he walked back to his dungeon. He wasn't hungry anymore. Neither was he angry. He had to acknowledge and embrace his inner deviant to find peace. To prevent himself from becoming Wretched like his little brother.