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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 7:34 pm
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Xaturi tossed the book down unceremoniously, glaring at it irritably as it lay on top of the growing heap of documents on the desk. The normally bustling temple was far beneath her tower study, but it was perfectly quiet now, the civilians had already fled the conflict that was to come. Cowards.
She started to pace. The dull thudding of her hooves on the flagstones was the only sound to break the heavy silence. A storm was brewing, that was for certain. But it was more than mere thunder that hung in the air. The distant thrumming of fel energy had been a constant, troubling undertone all week, subtly growing stronger and stronger as the days progressed, audible only to those who developed a sensitivity to it. By now it had reached a deafening roar in the mage's keenly-tuned mind, and it was thwarting every attempt at concentration she could muster. Their doom was approaching. And unless some brilliant plan sprang into her mind out of nowhere...
Xaturi snapped her fingers with an impatient growl, and a mote of volatile, crackling energy flared suddenly to life above her hand. Its harsh yellow light flooded the study, throwing off sparks that threatened to set a merry blaze in the considerable hoard of dry paper. She leaned closer to the shelf next to her and peered at the names of the dusty tomes, muttering indistinctly under her breath as she read. All attempts at diplomacy had failed miserably. But not all of the orc messengers had been returned to their masters untouched, despite the council's warnings. Without the knowledge they possessed, the draenei would be fighting blind. There had not been much information to be had, but beneath the rumblings of war there was muttering of meddling demons, the merest whisper of Kil'Jaeden...
The soundless roar grew stronger still, pulsing so strongly with the pure, chaotic energy of the Twisting Nether that it seemed to shake the very ground beneath her feet. Xaturi rubbed a fist into her forehead in a vain attempt to dispel the splitting headache it was producing. If only it would shut up for a moment, maybe she could think... A book suddenly tumbled from the shelf beside her, snapping the mage quickly out of her reverie. She looked up - the ground really was shaking.
Xaturi ran to the balcony, and her jaw dropped as she glimpsed the chaos below - the enemy was already here, and beginning to swarm into the temple by the hundreds. The tremor must have been the gate giving way. "Light save us..." After snatching a glowing ruby hurriedly from the desk, she hurtled down the tower steps. About halfway down, she collided with a snarling orc and was flung back into the wall, knocking the breath from her lungs. She stared in shock at him for a split second before her reflexes kicked in and fired off a massive explosion of fire energy at the orc as he charged back toward her, a rusty axeblade swinging just inches from her face until he was flung backward by the force of the explosion. She shot another blast of fire toward him, then turned and hurried down the steps before he could recover himself. How had they gotten so far in? Her blood turned to ice - Was it possible they had already overrun the temple? She murmured a well-practiced sequence of warding spells, glittering runes spinning a shield around her as she began to descend into the fray.
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 7:35 pm
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They were horribly outnumbered. For every enemy they killed, two more took its place. They had to think of something quick if they were to survive. Ahnkoron closed his eyes and prayed to the Light. His warhammer began to glow and he thrust it toward the nearest group. Light shot out of the head and expanded, forming an impenetrable shield around them. They were safe, for now.
Suddenly, the air began to dry up and crackle as sparks of flame began to erupt out of the air. He immediately looked for the source and saw a group of warlocks chanting behind the warriors. "Niklaya! Try to reverse the spell!" She looked at him and smiled. A golden aura emanated from her as the fierce attack was flung back to the unsuspecting casters. Incinerating any enemy in the line of fire. Ahnkoron continued to bash away axes and spears.
Niklaya's presence became faint. Ahnkoron turned to see an Orc pull the corrupted spear from Niklaya's bosom. Ahnkoron stared wide eyes as she began to teeter. He grabbed the orcs spear and thrust it up into his chin, making it protrude out of the top of his skull. He caught Niklaya just as she was about to hit the ground. He clutched her close to his chest. He tried to heal the wound, but the vile enchantment had already done its deed. Niklaya was dying. He gripped her closer as the remaining orcs moved in to finish him. "My darling, Niklaya. I'm so sorry." He sobbed. She slowly looked up to him and smiled. She reached up and caressed his cheek, wiping away the tears falling from his eyes. "Don't worry, my love. We'll be together again. I love......" Niklaya exhaled her last mortal breath. Ahnkoron stared at her lifeless body. He pulled her closer to him. He screamed in agony. "Niklaya! No!" He was oblivious to the orc slowly walking up behind him. It rose its waraxe, ready to deliver a mortal strike.
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 7:36 pm
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Xaturi's eyes widened as she reached the base of the tower. The temple sanctum was crawling with orcs, only a few scattered patches of Draenei still holding their ground, and even those small patches of resistance began to flicker out as she watched. There was a small cluster of Draenei a few yards away that seemed to be fading fast, their last fighters already seemed to be wounded, they would fall if they didn't receive help.
Xaturi bounded into the chaos with a wordless yell, flinging raw fire and torrents of spells toward any orcs that stood in her path, creating a blazing inferno around her that consumed all who approached. An irrational feeling of glee bubbled up into a triumphant laugh as she watched her enemies' charred remains fall to the ground, only to be trampled by a new wave that met the same fate. A savage grin spread over her face. This was what should happen to enemies of the Draenei.
She slowly carved her path through the sea of orcs, her face stern with concentration as she fought to keep her shields viable and offense blazing, at the same time deflecting the foul magic of the warlocks as they wove curses of corruption and weakness. She had nearly reached the gathering, there were now only two fighters left, and they were huddled on the ground, unawares as one of the barbarians lifted his axe for a deadly swing. Wait, wasn't that...? Why wasn't he fighting?!
"AHNKORON!!" She struck out at the orc threatening him with a savage yell, hitting it point-blank with a blast of fire, then shoving it aside with a sharp blow from her staff as it reeled, clutching its destroyed face and roaring in agony. She rushed into the clearing and tugged roughly at the knight's shoulder. "Ahnkor-" She stopped short as she saw the lifeless figure he was huddled over. She stood there stunned for a moment, but hurriedly shoved the wave of emotions away and shook the knight's shoulder urgently, her back still turned to the battle. "Ahnkoron, you must fi-" But even those few seconds of hesitation was enough, and she was suddenly tossed aside as a wild blow from the wounded orc struck the back of her head. The impact was dampened by the protective spells, but it was enough to send stars bursting into her vision, her shielding spells flickering out of existence as she stumbled unsteadily to her feet.
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Posted: Sat Aug 23, 2008 8:21 pm
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Ahnkoron's eyes widen as he feels a deep, malicious presence. He looked up to the sky as the clouds swirled ominously overhead. "Xaturi. Do you feel that? It feels...familiar." His jaw slackens as a dark figure descends from the sky. It lands several steps behind Niklaya's lifeless body. "No! Get away from her!" Ahnkoron throws a beam of light at the being. It seemed to dissolve into the darkness. The shadow glanceed at him with its pitch black orbs. It looked down at the body in front of it, then back up at Ahnkoron. A lighter area around where its face would be turns to form a smile. The shadow then descends upon Niklaya and consumes her."NO!" he screams as he lunges at the shadow, swinging his mace at the form. The mace flows though it as though it didn't exist. The shadow looks up at Ahnkoron, its "face" nearly touching his, and smirks."She...is mine." The shadow laughs. Ahnkoron fell to his knees, sobbing. "Niklaya..." Ahnkoron whispers as he buries his face in his hands. He then looks up at the mist, screaming. "Give her back!" The shadow shrugs, grinning. "If that is your wish." It extends its arms, revealing a dark vortex. Darkness surrounds him. ---------- Ahnkoron opens his eyes. The dull light of the morning creeping through the window. He looks around to see that he is in a small room. His gear is piled onto a nearby desk. Xaturi asleep in the chair across from it. Xaturi... He slowly gets up and walks to the window. The city below, just beginning to wake for the approaching day. He walks over to Xaturi's still form and picks her up, carrying her to the bed. He slowly puts her down and covers her. "Thank you, my friend." he whispers. He grabs his gear and walks out the door. I can never get away from that nightmare. Though that shadow...it always seems to be out of place. It wasn't there that day. He sighs as he walks into the empty streets. Or was it? And why does it always seem so familiar? Like I know the presence, just not the face. Ugh. I'm not thinking straight. It's just a dream. Stepping into the square, he walks to the fountain and sits down. Trying to clear his mind of the burning images.
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Posted: Sun Aug 24, 2008 1:55 am
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Xaturi muttered something drowsily as she slowly settled back to sleep, lost in her own dreams, in a world of ice and snow. She had nodded off only a few hours previous, poring over old letters until the small hours of the morning. She slept fitfully for about a half hour or so, and woke with a start as a door slammed downstairs in the inn's tavern. A fatigue-bleared bad temper settled over her at once, and she quickly found herself completely unable to fall back asleep, staring instead up at the dim ceiling. Damn it all, it's hardly even dawn... She growled under her breath as rose, rubbing a kink out of her back with a wince. "Damn chairs... well that was a stupid idea." She blinked fuzzily, and picked the sheets away with a bemused frown. "I could have sworn I fell asleep at the desk... hrrmph." She shrugged and got up with a stretch, splashing cold water from the basin into her face to wake herself up.
Xaturi took a deep breath and sighed, blinking away the last remnants of drowsiness as the refreshingly icy water quickly evaporated. "Ah, that's better... I wonder where Ahnkoron's gone..." She looked around the room for any sign of him, but it was empty. A chilly morning breeze swept in through the open window, the sill crusted lightly with melting frost from the brisk autumn night. She shivered, clicking her tongue in annoyance, and moved to close it. "Tsk. Well it's no wonder those damnable insects got in, it was cold enough too..." A glint of metal in the square below caught her eye. Ahnkoron was sitting on the fountain, clearly lost in thought, frowning as he puzzled over something. So that's where he went... Her curiosity sharpened, but she decided to leave him to his thoughts for a little while. She slammed the window shut unceremoniously and turned to pull on her warmer outer robes from where they lay across her chair, tidying her desk as she went - brushing away a few insect-sized puffs of ash that were strewn across the desktop, scrubbing lightly with her fingertip to remove (or at least smear around) the charred marks beneath them, and then shoving all her papers into one corner.
Xaturi finally made her way downstairs, sniffing the air with a grin, her mood rapidly improving as the tantalizing scent of baking bread and sizzling bacon drifted up from the kitchens, making her stomach growl rather noisily. After leaving a few coins for the inkeeper, she quickly found a plate and scooped up a rather large helping of the delicious-smelling breakfast dishes that were being prepared, ignoring the chef's glare as she swiped another for her other hand. If there's one thing these human creatures are good at, it's cooking, She thought to herself with a contented smirk as she started on her third stack of the strangely delicious sweet flat cakes they served here, drowning them with a generous puddle of sweet syrup as the humans did. I really must get this recipe from the cook...
Eventually, contentedly full and in a considerably brighter mood, she sauntered out to the main square and sat down next to Ahnkoron on the fountain, and just quietly watched as the people of Stormwind begin to wake up and go about their business, setting up the marketplace and hawking their wares loudly to whoever would listen, some even making up little tunes to advertise themselves. She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, but said nothing. He seemed troubled... Well, If he wished to talk, he could. If not, she shrugged mentally, then she would amuse herself by controlling the vermin population. But she would be quiet, of course, to avoid offending his sensibilities. He wouldn't notice as a fat sewer rat scuttled under a market stall and suddenly keeled over, only a thin wisp of smoke betraying the true cause of its sudden demise. She chuckled inwardly, managing to keep the light-hearted smirk of her face.
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