The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 18: Remembering the Fallen

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 18: Remembering the Fallen

“Daniel!” I shrieked again. I could still hear agonized screams coming from outside. I struggled against Gwen’s grasp, but to no avail. “Let me go!” I demanded. “He’s still alive! I need to help!”

“Naomi, he’s…you know he’s gone,” she stated quietly, her voice little more than a whisper. I could hear pounding on the door. There’s someone out there! Daniel’s still alive! I need to let him in!

I began to thrash. “No! Let go of me! I can save him!” I cried, tears streaming out of my eyes. The screams turned to sickening gurgles. The pounding weakened and turned to little more than soft pats on the wood.

“If you go out there, you’ll die…you know that.”

“I don’t care!” I continued to struggle, but she tightened her grasp further. “I don’t care!” I repeated. “Just…please…let me…” I went quiet and my body went limp as I focused my eyes on the doorway.

The commotion outside was gone, save for the rain of plague barrels. An eerie green liquid seeped in from beneath the door, the noxious mist rising from it. No… I knew what that substance was…it was all that was left of some poor soul exposed to the Plague. I was trembling uncontrollably, my mind desperately trying to find some semblance of hope that Daniel had somehow not been in range of the blast – that he had turned around and escaped the city through one of the other districts. Deep down, though, I knew that wasn’t the truth.

“No,” I sobbed quietly. He’s not dead…he’s not…he made it out.

Not letting up her grip at all, Gwen gave me a soft squeeze. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “We need to get out of here…if another one of those barrels hits that close…We’re not safe here,” she added after a pause.

“No…I have to help him…” I whimpered.

“Naomi…he’s gone…there was…there was nothing you could do,” she commented sympathetically.

“He’s not gone!” I cried, wrestling to free myself from her. “Gwen…let go of me! Right now!” An unimaginable anger washed over me. I don’t know who or what it was directed at, but my entire body burned with it. “Let. Me. Go!”

I found some buried strength and managed to break Gwen’s pincer grasp on me. Shoving her to the side, I hopped up and made for the door. He’s okay…he made it out…I have to find him. I have to help him.

Gwen got behind me and threw her arms under my own, yanking me back. “Naomi, stop! You’ll die too!”

I kept fighting back, but she had a lot of leverage over me and I wasn’t able to move or free myself. “No…please…” I sobbed, defeated. I fell down to my knees and went silent. He’s…he’s really gone…he can’t be…please…Light…I’ll do anything…I’ll give anything… I could barely breathe.

“He fought bravely for his country…for you. Let’s get you to safety so his sacrifice means something,” Gwen urged quietly. I could hear the plague barrels continuing to fall.

I didn’t respond, but I didn’t resist as she pulled me to my feet and led me down the stairs. Everything felt numb. My eyes were pointed forward, but they were out of focus, blurred by tears and disbelief.

At the bottom of the staircase was a long tunnel heading west out of the city. Skittering and chattering met my ears, but I wasn’t sure I actually heard it. The path ahead was dark – it was nearly impossible to see. In the distance, there was a faint light. Amidst the strange screeching and scratching up ahead, I heard the distinctive crackling of fire. A spot of warmth could be felt on my left cheek – Gwen had found and lit a torch.

“Come on,” she implored softly. Her voice sounded so distant. She was miles away…or I was…I didn’t know anymore. I felt her hand on my back.

As I shuffled forward, I caught sight of Gwen swinging the torch around in front of her. Rats and other nasty little vermin hissed but shrank away from the light.

“Stupid little…” I heard Gwen grumble while we moved slowly down the tunnel. The sounds of the artillery slowly became less audible. Eventually, the stone felt cold and damp beneath my paws. “We must be under the river,” Gwen mentioned.

I couldn’t tell if she was talking for her benefit or for mine. My mind was still back in the streets of Gilneas City. He can’t be…  We pressed forward. The faint light at the end of the tunnel was growing nearer and nearer. The little pests that scurried through the passage began to thin, retreating away from the natural light. Finally, we reached the set of stairs that led to the surface.

Sunlight poured onto my face as we emerged; I winced, my eyes having grown used to the darkness below. And I wasn’t in the mood for the sun. Of all the times for it to not be raining… I would have taken some solace in the world being in as deep of despair as I was.

“Come on, let’s find somewhere to sit down,” Gwen offered.

“You’re here, Naomi!” Krennan called out, approaching us. No…I can’t… I didn’t look at him; my eyes were fixated intently on the ground; but I was somewhat aware of his presence. He stopped, probably after seeing my despondent face. “What…what has happened?” he gasped.

I shuddered before shaking my head. I couldn’t say it…I couldn’t admit it out loud.

“Someone close to her didn’t make it out,” I heard Gwen finally respond after she realized I wasn’t going to.

“Oh…oh dear, I’m…I’m so sorry,” Krennan responded. “I’m sure we have enough help as it is,” he muttered.

“What’s going on?” Gwen inquired. I don’t care anymore. These stupid little problems keep costing me more and more.

Krennan wrung his hands. “Well, in our hurried escape for safety, we disturbed the resting homes of our ancestors. A grave sin, if you’ll pardon the pun,” he stated uneasily. “As you well know, it is tradition that a small memento be buried on top of a Gilnean’s grave, beneath the shallow earth.”

“Yeah….of course,” Gwen shrugged. I knew she hadn’t known that. If things had been different – if Daniel was here beside me – I would have found that amusing.

“The stampede of people fleeing these tunnels has unearthed those mementos and angered the spirits. If we don’t return the vestiges to their resting place, I fear the spirits might get more agitated. We cannot afford any more ill omens,” Krennan explained. “Several volunteers have already begun cleaning up. You two mustn’t worry. We’ll see to it that the dead return to their eternal slumber.”

My ears perked up a bit. The dead returning? They can do that? Maybe…maybe Daniel could…But there was nothing left of him. He was nothing more than a puddle.

“Captain Malmin is among the citizens helping bring peace to the dead. I’ll…I’ll tell him you’ve arrived,” he stated, effectively excusing himself. It was a small consolation that my father had made it through safely, but it did little to assuage my guilt and sorrow.

“See? They don’t need us for everything,” Gwen mentioned. “Come with me.”

She led me off to the side and beckoned for me to have a seat on a low wall just off the path. She sat down next to me and waited in silence. I started to sob again, burying my face in my hands. I sat like that for several minutes until I exhausted myself. Gwen just sat beside me, waiting and running her hand through my mane.

After a while, I lifted my head and gazed up. Aderic’s Repose was the largest cemetery in all of Gilneas and the resting place of all of the country’s heroes. It was a tall hill with a great, spire-like stone at its crest. The path wound its way around the hill, spiraling until up it reached Aderic’s shrine at the base of the stone. Tombstones and crypts lined the hill.

From here, I could see several people at work re-burying mementos near the western end of the hill. I stared emptily at the stone on top of the hill. All of Gilneas’ heroes lie here…but there’s nothing left…no way to lay him to rest. I began to spin the ring around my finger. He…he deserves to have a memorial here… I desperately wished I had some way to bury him here, so that his spirit might find peace amongst the greatest heroes our people had ever known. That way, he could join them with the Light.

“Naomi?” I heard my father say nearby.

Slowly, I turned my eyes towards him. He stared down at me with a concerned, distressed expression. I was sure he knew what had happened. “Daddy….Daniel…he…” I started, voice wavering.

My father looked down. “I see,” he muttered. He stepped forward and sat down beside me. He was rummaging through his pockets. A moment later, my father procured a folded letter. He held it between his hands for some time, turning it over with his fingers. “He knew this might happen,” my father commented quietly. “Did…did you see it happen?”

After a moment, I shook my head, but I couldn’t bring myself to respond.

“The group he was with was hit by the Forsaken bombardment,” Gwen responded for me. “I closed the door to shield us from it before it dropped.”

“That must have been awful!” I felt my father’s hand on my back. “I know how you felt about him…and I know how you feel. Losing someone you love…it leaves a void in your heart…you feel lost…helpless,” he commented. I started shuddering as I listened to his voice. As I thought about it, I realized he did know how I was feeling. He went through it when Mom died! “I’ve felt it twice in my life.”

Twice? I looked over at him. I still couldn’t bring myself to speak, but I stared at him curiously.

He let out a long sigh. “I didn’t know him all that well, but Daniel was a truly wonderful bloke. And he spoke of you often while we worked in the forge. He…” My father cleared his throat. “He loved you dearly,” he stated. Why the pause?

I spun the ring around my finger some more. “We were…we were going to get married,” I muttered dismally. “We were going to get out of this craziness and…” I trailed off.

“I’m sorry, Naomi,” my father stated empathically. “We have bought ourselves a bit of respite.  Soon, though, we will have to move again. And we will have to have our wits about us when we do. I know it will be hard, but you have to stay strong a little while longer. When the time comes, allow yourself to grieve. There will be people who tell you to move on…to put on a happy face…but you have to let yourself feel. Let yourself grieve for as long as you need,” he encouraged quietly. My father turned the letter over in his hands again.

I took several long, jagged breaths. I thought through what he said. I couldn’t argue with it. If I couldn’t manage to hold it together until we were safely away, I wouldn’t be the only one to pay the price. I watched as my father fiddled with the letter. “What…what is that?” I finally asked, running the back of my hand under my eyes.

My father let out a long sigh and then cleared his throat again. “Daniel was…he never expected to walk out of Gilneas City today,” he told me.

Wh-what? “He…did he…want…?” I asked incredulously. I frantically thought through every memory I’d had of him in the past. He couldn’t have wanted to die. He was so happy and optimistic. My heart started pounding as an indescribable darkness gripped my chest.

My father shook his head. “No…nothing like that,” he assured me. I let out a long breath. “Daniel was a bright one and he knew what we were up against. He knew that people like him and me were no match for the army of the Forsaken. He didn’t want to die…but he was prepared for it,” he explained with a sigh. He slowly presented the letter to me. “He gave this to me before the battle started to give to you in the event that he…didn’t make it.”

Hand shaking, I reached out and plucked the letter from his hand. I stared down at it for several seconds, wondering if I should read it. Would it help? Or would it just hurt more? I swallowed hard. There’s a chance I won’t be able to read it later. Trembling, I unfolded the paper. After several more breaths to compose myself, I began to read.

“My dearest Naomi,

 If you are reading this, then I am most surely dead. I always knew that you would survive this, even if I could not. I know that live has not been easy for you, but you never gave up. You wouldn’t let the Forsaken destroy. And, I pray that you do not let this destroy you, either.

There is something that I want to get off my chest. When the city was first attacked – when you were cursed – I believed I had lost you. I didn’t know what to do. It was the closest I ever came to ending it. So when you showed up again, I saw a glimmer of hope that I thought had been stripped from me. But…you were in that form. You were a worgen. I did everything I could to see past it. I had to keep telling myself that it was still you in there, deep down. I kept with you in hopes that one day a cure would be found, but I did not think I could love that body as you are. I proposed to you with these fears still in my heart.

Then things changed. They changed the night you came back from the Blackwald. It was then that I realized that this horrible curse was part of you. I watched you continually fight to prove to our people – to me – that you were still one of us. I realized that this is who you are now. You were still the same woman I fell in love with and you were also a worgen. The hatred I had for your worgen body dissolved and I was filled with a profound happiness. I finally realized I wasn’t still waiting for you to come back to me. You already had.

 It was with this feeling in my heart that I spent the last several nights. I was overjoyed to spend the rest of my life with you. My only regret is that I could not be around for more of yours. But do not despair: I am with the Light, now. And will watch over you as you continue on what I can only imagine will the path of legends. Continue to fight. Continue to live. Continue to love.  And when the day comes, we will see each other again within the warm embrace of the Light.

With all of my love, now and eternal,

Daniel”

I did everything I could to hold myself together as I read each word carefully. Gwen and my father sat silently beside me; I had no idea if either of them were reading over my shoulder. So many different emotions swarmed through me – anger, sorrow, love. Why didn’t he tell me before? Why couldn’t he be honest with how he felt about this body? I took a sharp breath. Was he trying to protect me? To keep me from worrying when he knew I was already upset about it? I thought back to every interaction we had had since Duskhaven. He was so genuine about it all; and it was all based on hope.

“Naomi? Are you okay?” I heard my father ask cautiously. It was then I realized I was hyperventilating.

But, in the end, he loved me for me. It was real, all of it. I closed my eyes. Daniel…I love you. I’m sorry. I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough to save you, too. After a moment, my breathing started to return to normal. I carefully folded the letter as I opened my eyes.

I have to keep it together for now. There will be more tears…but it isn’t time for that. “I…I’ll be fine,” I finally responded. Shaking, I rose onto my paws, slipping the letter into my satchel. There was one last thing that needed doing.

“Naomi?” Gwen questioned, jumping up next to me.

I walked towards the hill; Gwen and my father followed me. I could feel their curiosity, but they didn’t outright ask what I was doing. I wandered until I found an empty patch of ground. I drew my sword and stuck it into the ground to mark the spot. Looking around, I spotted a nearby tree. Marching over to it, I ripped a large piece of bark from its trunk.

After returning to the plot, I inscribed Daniels name into the bark with my claw and jammed it into the ground. Just below the makeshift headstone, I began to dig a small hole in the soil. It didn’t need to be deep – just deep enough that the rain would not wash it away.

After taking one more deep breath, I removed the engagement ring from my finger. I stared at it lovingly for a moment as it rested on my palm. Then, I carefully laid it within the hole before pushing the dirt into place. I patted the loose soil tenderly. Rest in peace. Rest with the Light, my Love.

I stood back up, gazing down at the grave. Once again, I wished I was able to bury Daniel properly. I prayed that this would do. I prayed that this was sufficient to allow him to be recognized amongst the great heroes of Gilneas. I retrieved and re-sheathed my sword.

I felt my father’s hand on my shoulder. “He has earned a resting place here,” he assured me. “Everyone will know his sacrifice.”

I nodded, keeping my breaths steady. Now that he was laid to rest, it all became real. He was dead and I couldn’t deny it any longer. There would be time to grieve. He would always be in my heart, but I had to keep going. I had to keep moving forward and trust that he would watch over me.

Gwen circled around in front of me and threw her arms around me with a supportive embrace. She didn’t say anything. We just stood there for some time until she let me go. I actually smiled. I had lost Daniel, but I still had others who cared so much for me – who loved me.

“Naomi,” Lorna called softly to get my attention. I turned towards her. “I heard what happened. I’m really sorry. The king is preparing a memorial for Prince Liam. I figured you might want to attend,” she invited. “We are meeting up at Aderic’s tomb.”

I nodded. “I’ll be along in a moment,” I assured her. Lorna nodded and walked away, heading up the path. I turned my attention back to Daniel’s grave. Crouching down, I kissed my palm and then pressed it against the earth. “Farewell, my Love,” I whispered tenderly.

With that, I stood back up and turned to Gwen and my father, once again wiping the tears from my eyes. “We should go and honor the prince,” I declared. My father nodded. Gwen appeared hesitant, but she didn’t argue.

Together, we made our way up the path. It wound up the side of the hill. At one point, we faced east. The walls of Gilneas city were visible across the channel. The air above the walls was engulfed in the sinister mist of the plague. The city was dead; there would be no reclaiming it – not now, not ever.

Though there were still people who survived, it was obvious to us all: Gilneas had fallen. The Forsaken had taken our land from us and forced our people to flee. With their cursed, vile plague, they have ensured that Gilneas as a country will never recover. The only act of defiance we had left was to survive.

Eventually, we reached the end of the path. There was a shrine there with candles burning. The Gilnean flag stood over the shrine. King Greymane was there and Prince Liam’s body was laid out on top of the stone cap to the tomb. He looked so peaceful. Lorna and Darius Crowley appeared and stood nearby, watching the king. A moment later, Krennan Aranas appeared with Lady Armstead.

Beyond the tomb, we had yet another clear view of the city and the green fog that rose from it. An eerie silence befell the world. Anger began to sweep over me. The Forsaken would be made to answer for these crimes.

King Greymane put his hands on the tomb near his son. “May the Light bless the spirits of our ancestors, for they’ve chosen to allow my son to rest on this holy ground. It is here, surrounded by the heroes and patriots of Gilneas…where he belongs,” the king declared with a surprisingly strong and sure voice.

Lorna stepped forward. “You were a true man of the people, Liam. Unlike any Royal I ever met. We will make them pay for this,” she promised, her voice wavering slightly.

Darius approached the tomb, his hulking form casting a shadow over the prince. “Gilneas will remember your courage forever, Liam,” he commented in his gruff, powerful tone.

He rest of us stood by, watching. I offered up my prayers for Liam and hoped that he and Daniel were at peace. I didn’t feel comfortable speaking and it seemed like the others shared my sentiment.

“You held a deep love for the people, my son. Above all, you would have seen them to safety. I will ensure that they are safe. But we will return, Liam. I swear this to you,” the King declared. “Somehow, we will reclaim our country. Gilneas will live on. Until that time comes, Liam…rest and find peace. The people will live on. We will live on.”

I bowed my head as I listened to the words. We will return. We will drive the Forsaken from our lands. This country is ours and we will take it back. Sylvanas will pay for what she took from us – for Liam…for Daniel.

After a few more reverent moments, most of us departed, leaving King Greymane to finish burying his son in peace. Krennan approached us. “We might’ve lost our city, but we have appeased the dead. It’s time to meet with the rest of the survivors in Keel Harbor.”

Keel Harbor… Of course we’d have to go to Daniel’s home. “Is it time to leave Gilneas?” I asked. I hoped the ships were still afloat and that there would be enough to ferry us away to… somewhere.

Krennan nodded. “It is. I will accompany the king when he is ready. I hope that the preparations can go off without a hitch, but I’m sure there’s plenty to do before we’re in the clear. Until the king arrives, I suppose Lord Crowley will be in charge when you get there.”

I turned to Gwen and my father. “We’d better get going. It’s time to finally end this nightmare,” I declared.

They both nodded. Together we took the road north away from Adreric’s Repose, leaving the remains of Gilneas City at our back. We’re so close. We’re going to make it. We’re going to live.

And once we’re away, we’ll have the opportunity to properly remember the fallen.

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The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 17: The Plague Comes

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 17: The Plague Comes

Tobias led us north towards the channel between Greymane Court and the Cathedral District. The waters were down in this part of the city. He stopped and turned. “We will track Sylvanas down. We have good reason to believe she is still in the Cathedral District. Let’s try not to be seen,” he added.

Not being seen sounds like a good plan. I stripped off my armor, not wanting the noise from the plate to alert any Forsaken to my presence. My normal cotton clothing would have to do. I left the armor and my sword at the top of the channel.

“Let’s go at once,” Tobias proposed. Taking a few quick steps, he launched himself across the channel and landed on the other side. Gwen and I followed suit, though I landed quite a bit closer to the water than the others. I scurried up the ditch and pressed myself against the outer wall to the district.

Tobias silently motioned for us to follow. Gwen transformed, probably because she felt she could be stealthier as a cat than a worgen. He crept towards where there was a break in the wall – a spot where the wall had crumbled away, possibly hit by a stray cannonball during the initial attack on the city. Peeking around for a moment, he hopped over onto the other side. We jumped over behind him.

The courtyard was empty, for now. Across the way, I could see a makeshift Frosaken base. There were tall purple tents and lots of twisted, iron devices holding tanks filled with the same green liquid I had seen earlier. There were Forsaken guards over there, but they did not seem to notice us. We dropped low and crept forward.

Somehow, we made it to the opposite wall – the only barrier between us and the Forsaken camp. Tobias carefully peaked over the wall and quickly dropped down. He shook his head at us. Sylvanas isn’t there.

“Make sure everything is ready!” a raspy, empty voice commanded someone on the other side of the wall. The owner of the voice made no attempt to quiet his tone; it must have been inconceivable to them that they would have eavesdroppers. “The orcs’ emissary is ready to meet Sylvanas inside the cathedral!”

“Did you hear that? Sylvanas is headed to the cathedral!” Tobias mentioned with a low whisper. “Let’s hurry. If we can get in position quickly, we may be able to find a good time to strike.” We rushed over to the cathedral. The cannons still sat on the steps, collecting dust. I was a little surprised the Forsaken didn’t try to use them.

We hurried inside the cathedral and began looking around for somewhere to hide. The inside had been almost completely cleared out; there wasn’t any substantial furniture that could hide our large forms. My eyes surveyed the pools on the side of the cathedral. “The water,” I whispered.

Tobias nodded. The three of us ran over and carefully lowered ourselves into the water, not wanting to splash water on the wooden floors of the cathedral and potentially alert Sylvanas to our presence. Gwen changed back so that she could better tread water. We stayed close to the ledge to reduce our visibility from up top. I was able to peer a little bit over the edge to see into the rest of the sanctuary.

A couple of minutes later, Sylvanas entered the sanctuary with a heavily armored Forsaken commander. He reminded me of Executor Cornell, but his armor led me to believe he was of a higher status.

“High Executor Crenshaw, are the barrels being loaded?” Sylvanas asked curtly.

“Yes, My Lady…the catapults will be ready to fire within the hour,” the Forsaken commander responded with a nod. “These Gilnean dogs won’t have anywhere to hide.” I had to suppress the urge to growl.

“Lady Sylvanas!” a booming voice echoed through the cathedral. I turned to inspect the entrance. A large humanoid creature walked in wearing spiked armor over his bulging muscles and green skin. He had a hardened face with two large, tusk-like teeth jutting out from his lower jaw. He fit the description of an orc from the books I had read.  Duh…they said an orc would be coming.

“Ah, General Warhowl…to what do we owe this visit?” Sylvanas greeted, obviously not too thrilled with his presence.

The orc met Sylvanas’ disapproving sneer with a defiant laugh. “It appears you’re losing control of Gilneas, Sylvanas. Garrosh fears he’s going to have to carry out this invasion himself,” he stated, almost in a taunting voice.

Sylvanas’ face turned to disgust. “You can assure Garrosh that this is a minor setback. Our victory in Gilneas will be absolute!” she declared confidently. I didn’t like the sound of that word: absolute.

General Warhowl narrowed his eyes at the Banshee Queen, inspecting her visage. “You sound very confident, your Majesty. I seriously hope you do not plan to use the Plague,” he stated, talking as if scolding a child. “Garrosh has explicitly forbidden it.”

“You’d do well to watch your tone, General,” Sylvanas scowled menacingly. She turned away. “Neither you nor Garrosh have anything to worry about. We’ve ceased all production of the Plague…as he ordered,” she mentioned distantly. “We’d never deploy it without his permission.”

The orc stalled, staring at Sylvanas before he bowed his head. “I will deliver my report to our leader, then. By your leave, my lady,” Warhowl grunted.

“Go with honor, General,” Sylvanas responded with an air of superiority. She turned and watched as the orcish officer left the cathedral.

High Executor Crenshaw approached Sylvanas. “My Lady! Should I order my men to stop the deployment of the Plague? Or are we to continue as planned?” he inquired, obviously confused by the interaction. Please…call it off.

Sylvanas laughed. “What kind of question is that? Of course we’re deploying the Plague as planned!” she replied with a wicked grin.

“As you wish,” Crenshaw stated with a low bow.

They began to walk towards the entrance of the cathedral. “Let the Gilneans enjoy their small victory. Not even their bones will remain by tomorrow.” A moment later, I could hear the sounds of the cathedral door opening and closing.

A chill ran down my spine. I had no idea what the Plague really was, but it sounded nasty. Sylvanas was explicitly ordered not to use it by the only creature on Azeroth she reports to. But it’s coming. I recalled the dream I had had last night – the green fog; the stench that burned me from the inside out. It was just a dream, wasn’t it?

“This changes things,” Tobias muttered as we pulled ourselves out of the water. “We must report back to Darius and his daughter.”

I couldn’t help but agree. It looked like revenge for Liam would have to wait. We carefully snuck out of the cathedral and back to the channel. I collected up my armor as we passed it. I needed a chance to change out of these sopping clothes.

We clamored into Greymane Court. I looked around, searching for Lorna or Darius. I couldn’t them outside. Tobias started sniffing the air. “Over here,” he beckoned. He continued to sniff as he led us towards a nearby building.

Sure enough, Lorna was inside. She didn’t seem to be doing much more than pacing back and forth. She looked confused to see us. “Back so soon? What has happened?” she asked quickly.

As I undressed and slipped my armor on, I reported back to her the meeting we had witnessed. “We heard them say it would be ready within the hour…maybe sooner,” I concluded.

“The Plague?” Lorna repeated. She bit her knuckle while she thought. “Something so heinous that not even the orcs condone its use? I didn’t want to bother the king, but I’d say this warrants notifying him,” she mentioned.

“Excuse me, my Lady; I must find your father and tell him immediately,” Tobias declared with a bow.

Lorna nodded, allowing him to go. She turned to us. “Tell Greymane that we have trackers on Sylvanas and tell him about the Plague. The decision will be his. Launch an all-out attack against the leader of the Forsaken or try to evacuate the survivors,” she told us. There was a strange, anxious, distressed look on her face.

“We’ll see to it,” I assured her, straightening my breast-plate. Gwen and I left her to her worried pacing and walked out of the building.

The king was in a nearby house, standing in his human form. His clothes were stretched and ripped. Liam’s body was laid out ceremoniously on the table, his hands folded across his chest. If I hadn’t known better, he could have been sleeping. The king stood over the body, staring down into his face. His eyes were red, weary, and sorrowful.

“My King?” I stated cautiously as we entered.

He shook his head. “I do not wish to be disturbed,” he grunted. “Unless you’ve come to tell me where that witch is so I can rip that head off her vile body, please just leave me in peace,” the king requested in a low tone.

“But, sir…” I cleared my throat. “We found Sylvanas and…she’s planning on unleashing some sort of Plague on the city,” I explained quickly. “Darius’ men are tracking her, but the Forsaken already have their orders…our people…they’re…” I wasn’t sure what else to say.

The king let out a long sigh and rubbed his eyes. “You present me with the most difficulty choice of my life, young Naomi,” he muttered, running a shaking hand through his son’s hair. “As much as I want to exact swift and brutal revenge…I must honor my son’s memory first. He cared for his people first and foremost.”

“So another evacuation?” I concluded.

“The Undertaker’s Pass goes underground below Northgate River. We will begin moving our people through.” King Greymane turned and stared directly at us. “You must prevent the plague from being deployed while we evacuate our men, women, and children to Aderic’s Repose,” he told us.

Again, why us? “How are we supposed to do that?” Gwen and I asked simultaneously.

“We captured a few of the Forsaken’s dreaded bombing bats. I want you to fly the infernal beast as best you can and unleash hell upon those who seek to bring the Plague to our people.”

“But…” I wasn’t too keen on flying.

“You have to hurry!” There wasn’t any hint in his tone that told me we had a chance to argue with him.

Suppressing an aggravated and anxious sigh, I turned and left without another word. I could feel Gwen falling in behind me. I heard a high-pitched screeching sound not too far from the building and followed it. Rounding the corner, I saw a group of Gilneans surrounding two large cages. Inside were two gigantic bats with satchels attached to saddles on their backs.

“You’re really going to do this? You’re going to fly?” Gwen asked as we tentatively made our way over there.

I took a deep breath. “If it means stopping the Plague, then…yes,” I responded. “And why aren’t you freaked out about it? Cat’s don’t fly,” I added.

She opened her mouth to respond, but we reached the bats. “Yes? What is it?” one of the Gilneans asked hesitantly as we approached.

“The king ordered us to take these bats and try to slow the Forsaken down. The rest of you need to take Undertaker’s Pass and get out of here,” I informed them.

“You can’t be serious. You plan to ride these things?”

“That’s the plan. Now open up this cage and get moving!” Gwen commanded.

We got scattered nods and they fumbled with the locks. They threw the gates open and eventually managed to grab the reigns of the giant bats. They led the creatures out and handed them over to us. I took several deep breaths. Well, here goes nothing. I hopped onto the saddle and looked around for a moment. Gwen was already on top of hers. I checked the bags that were by me. There  was a pile of bombs within, but they didn’t look like they had anywhere to light them. I wondered if they would just explode if I threw them. I hoped they would. Otherwise, I’d be hocking glorified rocks at the Forsaken and hoping that did something.

“Just breathe…and hold on,” Gwen advised. “It’ll be just like riding a horse,” she added

I nodded weakly. A horse with big leathery wings instead of hooves. There was no use stalling any longer. I kicked the side of the bat and pulled back. The  beast shrieked and began to flap its enormous wings. My stomach twisted and churned as the bat lurched off of the ground and into the air.

The thing took off into the skies.  I squeezed my thighs in as tightly as possible to keep my place on the saddle. Slow down, slow down! Wind whipped my face, stinging my eyes. At least fly straight! The bat jolted and bucked for a few more seconds before I managed to gain control of it. My heart was pounding in my ears but I let out a sigh of relief…at least I wasn’t upside-down or something.

I could hear Gwen laughing a little ways behind me. I must’ve looked like a fool during all of that. I dared to look over my shoulder and caught sight of her flying stably behind me. How did she get the hang of this so quickly?

She flew in next to me. “You’re doing well!” she called across the wind.

“Have you done this before?” I shouted.

“Not exactly! But if you know how one thing flies, you pretty much know what to expect,” she responded with a sheepish grin. What else could she have possibly flown?

We pointed the bats to the north. I leaned forward to encourage the bat to descend. We were flying over the Cathedral District. The Forsaken were gone; the district was empty. That’s not good. Where did they all go?

I found the answer to my question the moment we passed the walls of the city. There were hundreds – maybe thousands – of Forsaken troops outside the northern wall of the city. They marched forward alongside dozens upon dozens of Forsaken catapults. They were followed by carts filled with barrels; even from here, I could see a noxious green glow emanating from them. Where are they all coming from? I gazed forward and caught sight of the Greymane Wall. A massive crack had split the wall in two. The Forsaken army must have been pouring in from Silverpine Forest.

I turned my attention back to the approaching forces. I swallowed hard. There’s no way we can stop all of those. There were far too many of them. Carefully, I reached down into the saddlebag and retrieved one of the bombs. Well, at least we can slow them down. Here goes nothing.

I hurled one of the bombs towards one of the catapults in the front. I couldn’t watch it, but I heard the explosion as the bat passed over. The air erupted with chaotic, confused noise. I heard another explosion and assumed Gwen had tossed a bomb of her own. I grabbed another and lobbed it towards yet another catapult. We can’t let them release those barrels!

I flew further north past the front line. A little way behind the main force were a few large vats, filled with the same green liquid I had seen in the barrels – similar to what was in the cages back at Emberstone. The Forsaken were filling even more barrels there. I grasped another bomb and chucked it at the vat. I watched as the bomb detonated and the shattered. The green liquid spilled out onto the surrounding Forsaken forces.

The reaction was instantaneous. The Forsaken began to melt upon contact with it, their already-rotten skin falling off of the bones like gelatin. Even the bones, themselves, burned away. They disappeared into the green liquid – leaving no trace of the Forsaken that once stood there.

A violent shiver jolted through my body. Those puddles in the cages…they were people…Vlanov had been experimenting with the Plague on Gilneans. It was awful; evil beyond description. It was all the more reason to stop those barrels from flying.

I carefully turned the bat around and glided back towards the front. I could see Gwen on her bat tossing bomb after bomb at the Forsaken siege weapons. I grabbed another bomb and lobbed it at yet another catapult. They kept pressing forward, despite our attacks.

Before long, I could tell I was reaching the bottom of the bomb bag. But there were still so many catapults left. I focused my remaining strikes on the catapults nearest the river. If we could take out the ones in range of the city, it would buy the people more time to escape.

One of the catapults made it into range and fired, sending one of those terrible barrels hurtling over the wall. I watched, holding my breath as the barrel rolled through the air. It crashed down somewhere in the empty cathedral district. I couldn’t see where it contacted, but I could see the cloud of green mist rising. It’s begun. At least it only struck the empty district. But I had no doubt they would quickly be able to consume the entire city in that vile cloud.

“I’m out!” I heard Gwen call.

I searched through my own bag; I only had one more. I plucked it up and immediately hurled it towards the catapult that had just fired the first barrel. If nothing else, I’d get a little revenge. “Me too!” I responded. “We should head back and get the hell out of dodge!”

Other catapults started to get into position and began launching plague barrels into the city. I prayed that we had slowed them down enough for the others to get out. We raced back across the city, making sure to fly high above the mist. Even from this distance, my nose began to burn. We had to have bought enough time. We had to.

We angled the bats down. It occurred to me I didn’t know how to land these things. Hopefully the bat knew how to land itself; otherwise, it was going to be a very painful landing. Thankfully, the bat began to slow on its own as we approached the ground. It reared back, nearly bucking me off the saddle as it touched down.

I nearly tripped as I threw myself off of the blasted animal, thankful beyond words to be back on solid ground. My legs actually shook as I took a few tentative steps away from the bat.  I turned to watch Gwen landing. Both of the beasts flew away the moment we were a small distance away. I hoped they’d just head off and be free instead of returning to the Forsaken to be used against us again at some point. Maybe we should have killed them when we landed, but that option didn’t sit too well in my mind.

I could see groups of survivors from the battle still clamoring into a building just across the street. That must be where the pass is. We ran back to where the king had been. He still stood inside, but Liam’s body was gone.

“Sir!” I gasped as we entered, adrenaline still pumping from the flight. “We bombed as many as we could. But…” I cleared my throat. “There were too many…It’s only a matter of time before the catapults are in range of this district,” I reported. “I’m sorry.”

The king turned to us, his eyes still red and puffy. He offered us a weak smile. It was still so disturbing seeing him like this; he seemed…broken. “No apologies necessary,” he responded. “You may have bought us exactly the time we need.”

“What now?”

“Follow me,” he beckoned, walking past us and out of the building. We followed him across the street. “My son’s body is already on its way to Aderic’s Repose, with the rest of our people.”

There were still a few people trickling in to the building. “So most of our people are safe?” I asked. I could hear the faint whistling and subsequent crashes of the barrels smashing into the Cathedral District. They sounded closer.

He nodded. “We’re still waiting for a few stragglers from Merchants Square,” he responded.

Stragglers?  “Wh-who are we waiting for?” I inquired cautiously, something heavy falling into my gut.

“Some of the guards Liam left to defend the district. We got word to them immediately, but they had the farthest to go,” he responded.

My heart began to race. Daniel was in Merchants Square! “I need to go check on them,” I declared in a panic.

“No. It’s time for you two to pack it in. Down the stairs inside is the Undertaker’s Pass. You two get yourselves to safety.” the king commanded.

“But…” I started to protest.

“There are no buts about it. After everything you have done for Gilneas…both of you…” He paused for a moment. “We will not lose three heroes today,” he concluded.

“My fiancé is still out there and I am not moving until I know he’s safe,” I declared resolutely. I stared the king down to make sure he knew I wasn’t budging on this issue.

He narrowed his eyes, as if taken aback by my insubordination. He looked like he wanted to argue further, but he eventually shook his head. “We have all lost so much…who am I to tell you to lose more? You can linger until the soldiers from Merchants Square arrive and no longer,” he told me. “And if he should not return with them, I forbid you to searching for him. We are simply out of time.”

I nodded. It was good to get that concession from him. “We’ll wait here for them,” I repeated.

“I am going on ahead,” the king commented, grabbing a lit torch from the wall. “Make sure you bring a torch with you; you’ll need it. The tunnel is full of nasty, knee-biting critters of the worst kind. But they don’t like the light; it’ll keep them at bay,” he informed us. “I’m sure you will be able to find Krennan on the other side; speak to him when you can. And, please, stay safe. Should those bombs start dropping anywhere close to here, get your butts through that passageway and don’t look back. Understood?”

I was going to protest but I decided against it, remembering what I had witnessed when I broke the Plague vat. “Un-understood,” I stammered. He’ll get here before the catapults reach this district. I had to keep telling myself that.

King Greymane turned and walked down the stairs. We watched as the light from his torch disappeared into the darkness of the tunnel down below.

“Do you think he’s going to be alright?” Gwen asked suddenly.

“Who?” I wondered. There were so many people he could be talking about.

“King Greymane,” she clarified. “He looks like he’s hanging by a thread.”

“He just lost his son,” I pointed out. “But he’s holding it together, so that’s got to count for something.”

I shuffled uncomfortably and walked over to the entrance to the building.  I looked out and surveyed the streets; they were empty. I perked my ears up, listening carefully. Amidst the intermittent detonations of the Forsaken’s vile artillery, I could hear the unmistakable clinking of armor. They’re coming. I didn’t know how far away they were, but I could still hear them.

“Worried about Daniel?” Gwen asked suddenly.

“He’s not safe yet,” I told her. “Of course I’m worried.”

She placed her hand on my shoulder. “I’m sure he’s fine. He’ll make it,” she encouraged softly.

I appreciated her support, but I wasn’t completely convinced. I couldn’t shake this awful feeling of doom in the pit of my stomach. Something terrible is going to happen, I know it. I didn’t respond to her; I just kept listening. The soldiers sounded like they were getting closer. Unfortunately, so did the barrels.

There was a particularly loud explosion. I dared to step out of the building to look around. Just north of us, at the channel between the districts, the green mist rose. They’re getting so close. I remembered King Greymane’s command. I’m not leaving…not yet. “Come on, Daniel,” I muttered hopefully as my eyes surveyed the streets.

“Naomi, we shouldn’t stay any longer,” Gwen stated, her voice wavering. Guilt consumed my mind. Gwen was putting herself in harm’s way because I was being stubborn – because I wouldn’t leave Daniel. But I could leave…not yet.

“You should go. Meet up with the others at Aderic’s Repose,” I proposed.

“I’m not leaving here without you.”

“If one of those barrels touches down here…”

“You’ll die for sure,” she interrupted. “And we talked about this. If we’re going to die, we die together.”

“Gwen, really, you should get to safety.”

“We should both get to safety,” she argued. “I understand you don’t want to leave Daniel behind, but how do you think he would feel if you died because you were waiting for him?”

“I need to make sure he’s alright.”

Gwen let out an aggravated sigh. “Fine…you’re too cork-brained to listen to reason. But I’m still not leaving you here alone,” she grunted.

I listened. The soldiers were much closer now. Surely, they’ll make it! Hope began to rise up in me, suppressing the awful feeling in my gut. Then, there was another massive crash as a plague barrel collided with the building where we had spoken with Lorna – not more than a block away. Hurry…please…

I began offering up a silent prayer for the Light to watch over Daniel and deliver him here. I kept my eyes on the sky for sign of any barrels that may be venturing too close to us. I began to quiver; the anxiety was becoming too much. I hated the waiting, but I couldn’t bring myself to go searching for him. I knew Gwen would come with me, and I wasn’t about to do that to her. I cursed myself for feeling so relieved that he had been left behind in Merchants Square; now he was in peril because of it.

“Naomi!” I heard a familiar voice call. I immediately swung my head towards the street running east towards Military District. A small group of Gilnean troops were running. At the front was none other than Daniel, his helmet discarded somewhere.

“Oh thank the Light!” I sighed in relief. I raised my arm and waved to beckon them to hurry. Come on…almost there…almost safe! They were almost here, only a few dozen feet from the entrance. They’re going to make it! “Daniel, hurry!”

“Look out!” Gwen cried suddenly. She grabbed me by both shoulders and yanked me inside the house, throwing me against the far wall and closing the door with lightning-quick speed. She dove over near me just as I heard a horrible crash just outside of the door.

My heart skipped a beat and my chest tightened painfully. I tried to deny it, but I knew exactly what that sound was. Green smoke crept in under the door.

My body began shaking violently and tears appeared immediately. No…No…no, no, no, no, no…No! They were right out there. Daniel was right outside when the barrel hit. No…he got out of the way. He got out of range. He’s fine. That’s when the screaming started from outside. I lurched forward to try to get up – to try to help – but Gwen held me down. He’s got to be alright…he’s… I closed my eyes. I was unable to suppress my need to shriek.

“Daniel!”

---

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The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 16: A Royal Sacrifice

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 16: A Royal Sacrifice

We spent the next two days around Emberstone Village. The refugees from Duskhaven came with us. The tradesmen immediately went to work with preparing the arms and armor for the final assault on Gilneas City. Daniel worked from sun-up to sun-down in the forge with the assistance of my father and various other citizens. I offered my services, but pretty much everyone denied my help.

At first, I couldn’t quite figure it out, but it quickly became apparent that there was a concerted effort to ensure Gwen and I didn’t exert ourselves after all that had happened over the last couple of days. So the two of us spent the time wandering around and trying to relax, which was difficult with the coming battle looming over us.

I did what I could to change into my human form. With each time I transformed, I found it slightly easier to stay that way for a little longer. But I always sprouted fur and claws eventually, which usually left me too wiped out to change again for quite some time.

I wondered why the Forsaken hadn’t tried to reclaim Emberstone after we’d liberated it. We had soldiers posted outside of the gates to the city, but nothing came out to fight us, yet. I shuddered to think of what sort of preparation they were making behind the walls of our capital.

In the afternoon of the second day, Gwen and I were approached by an aging woman. “Excuse me, you two,” she started cautiously. We turned to face her curiously. “My name is Magda Whitewall…for many years, I was a chef for the Greymane family. I have something to ask of you.”

“Um…sure, what is it?” I responded somewhat uncertainly.

She took a deep breath. “I’m not dumb,” Magda started, taking me aback quite a bit. “I know what’s ahead of us. Our people are going to those gates and fight against an enemy that is better trained, has more numbers, and better weapons than us,” she exclaimed. I averted my eyes uncomfortably. I had been thinking about that fact quite a bit, myself. “Even if we succeed, it’ll be at a great cost. For most of us, tonight’s meal will be the last. Now, I may not be much use in a fight, but I can cook. That’s what I need your help with.”

“Cooking?” Gwen blurted out.

She gave us a weak smile. “Not exactly, dear. There are stags that roam these woods. The soldiers and militia are far too busy to go hunting and their bullets always leave a strange taste in the meat, anyway. If you can bring me back some of these beasts, I will ensure that the last meal these folks get will be their best!”

A wide smile spread across Gwen’s face. I could tell she had been feeling antsy and restless and this was just the thing to let her blow off some excess energy. I took that as an affirmative from her. “Looks like that’s right up our alley,” I commented. “We’ll be back well before dinner time.”

Gwen and I spent the next several hours sprinting and darting through the trees and hunting the wild stags. Gwen was much better at it than me and easily tracked the animals around the forest. When we closed in, we had to be careful not to mangle the body too much. After each kill, we dragged the carcass back to the outskirts of town, where a cart was waiting to deliver them to Magda.

I hated to admit it, but I was having fun hunting like this. It was especially great to be able to do it alongside my best friend. Being a worgen was feeling more and more natural for me and I was starting to come around to Darius’ and Gwen’s way of thinking…starting to, anyway.

After a long while, we ended the hunt and returned to Emberstone. Magda was easily found in the kitchen of the inn, slaving away over the spoils of our ventures into the woods. There were several other people scurrying around helping her prepare the food. “Well done, you two!” she exclaimed as we entered.

“Was there anything else you needed, ma’am?” I asked.

She shook her head. “You’ve done wonderfully, my dears. Now our men and women will have a last good meal before they set off for battle,” she assured us. “Now go and please try to rest. Dinner will be ready in a couple of hours.”

We excused ourselves and went back to wandering around the town. No one else came to bother us until the evening meal was ready. All of the free Gilneans gathered in the town square for a feast – the final meal before war broke loose. There were only a few hundred people left, not including the worgen running around. They were off doing something with the rest of the pack – probably making their own preparations for the day to come.

Daniel met up with us at the gathering, his face covered in soot and ash from the fires of the forge. I helped him clean up a bit while we waited for our food. He filled me in on what they’ve accomplished over at the blacksmith – making tons of armor and swords for the Gilnean people. The ore from the mine was so critical for the preparations. I was happy the Forsaken didn’t have access to it any more. I vaguely recalled him mentioning some sort of surprise for me, but he didn’t bring it up and I didn’t ask about it.

Finally, plates of food and mugs of wine were delivered to us. We each had massive slabs of venison and some sort of potatoes. It was heavenly. Once again, the sensitive worgen taste buds proved to be a silver lining to my condition. And the wine… I was still young, but I don’t think anyone cared. After all, most of us will probably be dead tomorrow. After I downed the mug, someone came by and refilled it. After a little while, my head started to spin delightfully.

There was a celebration of sorts after dinner – singing and dancing and the like. But Daniel, Gwen, and I wandered away after we had eaten for a quieter moment. Also, I didn’t want to watch my father and Mayor Armstead getting increasingly frisky as they drank more. As soon as we found a secluded spot, I changed myself into my human form again, quickly adjusting my clothing to fit my smaller body. I moved the engagement ring over to my thumb to keep it from slipping off.

Daniel and I sat close, staring up at the sky. It was a peaceful night, despite the sounds of music floating over from the town square. The cloud coverage had finally dispersed and we could see the stars. Gwen sat nearby; I’m not rightly sure what she was doing – my attention was primarily on my fiancé.

“What do you think is going to happen tomorrow?” I asked anxiously.

Daniel shook his head. “I don’t know…But whatever happens, we’ll fight through it side-by-side,” he responded, his voice was calm even though I could see he was as on-edge as everyone else. “When I asked you to marry me, the circumstances were impossible. But with all that’s happened since then…it’s actually realistic to think that we…We’ll survive tomorrow,” he continued. “We’ll survive; and when we do, we’ll have our wedding.”

I laid my head on his shoulder and squeezed his hand. “I can’t wait,” I cooed. However, I wasn’t so confident. I’d fought the Forsaken and they had some very powerful creatures among their ranks. There was an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach that we hadn’t seen the worst of them. Stop thinking like this. I have to have hope. But I couldn’t completely shake my feelings of doom. Instead, I buried myself in the fantasy of that peaceful moment.

At some point, Gwen wandered away and returned with some more wine. The three of us drank together in our secluded little corner of Emberstone Village. Eventually, I became too foxed to contain the wolf and my body changed; but I barely noticed. The night began to blur, but I knew I was happy.

Eventually, it was time to turn in for the night. With so many people in the town, we were a little short on rooms, but we were able to talk Gwen into waiting outside while Daniel and I had some intimate time. When the deed was done, we allowed Gwen to come back in. After she joked about the smell, she changed into her cat form and curled up on the end of the bed like a common household pet – though, she’d maul me if I mentioned that.

As I started to drift off to sleep, I had this strange feeling: this is nice. The man lying next to me; the snarky druid snoozing at my feet…this is my family. And tomorrow, I was prepared to fight fang and claw to protect them…to keep this feeling. Hope started to swell within me, allowing me to wander peacefully into the dream world.

***

I walked through the quiet streets of Gilneas City. Smoke filled the air and choked my lungs. There were bodies of Gilneans – human and worgen alike – littering the streets. Every so often, I found the corpse of a fallen Forsaken, but our dead vastly outnumbered theirs.

As I walked, horrified, I stared into the faces of the dead. I recognized many of them. Several I had only seen in the last few days, but they had become familiar. I saw Melinda Hammond…and there was Marie Allen…Willard and Molly – the tanners who had created my armor – lay side-by-side a little further up the street.

Continuing on, I encountered the bodies of more important people in my life. I let out a whimper as I came across my father’s still body, deep wounds etched into his body. Nearby were the corpses of Lady Armstead and Lorna Crowley. Near Lorna lay her father’s savage body – such a mighty fighter felled by a barrage of dark, wicked arrows.

Then, as if my horror and sorrow wasn’t high enough, I found Daniel. His eyes were open and stared directly back at me as I peered down at him. I couldn’t stop the tears from rolling down my furry cheek. Why did everyone have to die, but I’m still around? Why did I survive? I didn’t do enough…if I had fought harder, maybe they would have lived.

Something occurred to me: I didn’t see Gwen anywhere. I called out her name, desperately hoping she had made it out, too. I couldn’t stand being alone. There was no response. I began to run through the streets, searching for my friend.

I skidded to a halt in front of the Light’s Dawn cathedral. “No!” I gasped in devastation. “No…” Strung up on a post like the worgen girl in the fields of Duskhaven was Gwen, her body hanging broken and limp.

I fell to my knees and began to sob, unable to take my eyes off of my friend. Why? Why was I spared? What could I have done to save them? I…I failed.

“There will be nothing left…no bones for the buzzards to pick clean,” I heard the sinister voice of Executor Cornell sneer. The same noxious stench from Vlanov’s cages returned, burning my nose and stinging my eye unmercifully.

There was a deafening rumbling and I could see a wall of green mist rolling towards me at high speeds. As it approached, the foul odor became more and more overpowering. I couldn’t breathe, and I began to cough, sputtering crimson liquid onto the ground. My vision was starting to go black as well.

As the mist passed over Gwen’s body, I watched her skin melt away and her bones dissolve before my very eyes, leaving nothing but a shapeless puddle. I didn’t have long to dwell in my terror before the wall of mist crashed into me. Then all went dark.

***

I shot up in the bed, breathing heavily. Tears were in my eyes as I recalled that horrendous nightmare. I didn’t understand how I could go to sleep so peacefully and then have a dream like that. I immediately checked and found Daniel beside me and Gwen at the foot of the bed.

My sudden movement alerted Gwen and she started to stir. After looking at me for a moment, she changed into a worgen. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

I took several more breaths before responding. “It’s nothing…just a nightmare,” I responded, trying to assure myself of that. But there was this sinking feeling that it was more…a premonition.

“What about?”

I shook my head. “I don’t want to talk about it,” I sighed, rubbing my eyes.

“Was it about the battle today?” she inquired empathetically. I nodded. “It’ll be okay…Whatever happens, we’ll be inseparable till the end.” It was surprisingly uplifting and reassuring.

Daniel finally began to rouse. “Good morning,” he grunted. “Everything alright?” He sat up groggily and began running his hand through the fur on my back.

“I offered him a weak smile. “Everything’s lovely,” I responded, trying not to let my voice waver. I took a deep breath. “I reckon it’s time to get ready,” I declared, gazing at the sunlight pouring in through the window. My chest tightened as my anxiety started to rise. It’s time to get ready. I repeated it in my head over and over again. This is real…this is happening.

We all rose from the bed and, after a few minutes, found ourselves out in the street. It was already busy with Gilneans doing their final preparations for the assault. Daniel led us over to the forge where there was a large line of people trying to obtain their equipment from the pile of crates nearby. We walked straight past them into the building.

“A few days ago, Lady Armstead asked me to start putting together some stronger armor for you two than the leather you’ve been wearing,” Daniel commented. Is this the surprise? He cleared his throat. “I know it’s not the most…complete suit of armor, but we didn’t have the time to make anything like chain-linked tops to cover your body and we didn’t want to hurt your range of motion,” he apologized, echoing what Lady Armstead had told me a few days ago.

Daniel produced a glimmering steel breastplate with a couple of hinged plates hanging down on the front and back and a couple of leather straps connecting them. I opted to leave my shirt on underneath it and slipped into the armor. Daniel went to work adjusting the straps. There were a pair of steel leggings as well and separate plate braces for my calves, upper arms, and forearms. He also helped strap on a pair of simple, steel shoulder pads.

“How does that feel?” he checked curiously. I watched him surveying his body before he set his inquisitive and hopeful eyes on me.

I stretched out and bent my body in as many ways as I could think. The armor was certainly heavier than I was used to, but I could still move relatively unimpeded. There were still sections of my body that were pretty exposed, but I felt much more protected. “It’s wonderful,” I assured him. “Thank you for putting it together for me.”

“I tried to design a helmet for you, but…” He cleared his throat again. “I couldn’t come up with something practical that would work with you…um…snout,” he explained, almost ashamed.

“I’ll be fine…I just need to keep things away from my head,” I responded.

He turned to Gwen. “Now for you.”

She shook her head resolutely. “No…no armor for me, thank you. I’ll wear Naomi’s leather before you can get me into anything heavier than that,” she stated. “I spend all of my time as an animal, anyway.”

Daniel looked mildly frustrated, but he eventually shrugged. “Suit yourself.” I could hear a little indignation in his voice, as if he were insulted that she was rejecting the armor he had put time into crafting.

“It’s nothing personal, I’m sure,” I cut in.

“Of course it’s not. I’d rather be naked,” Gwen laughed. “Thanks, anyway.”

He looked back to me. “There was something else I put together for you,” Daniel added with a smile. “I think you’re going to like it.”

My heart skipped a beat as I started to get a little excited. He looks so happy! I wonder what it is! Daniel stepped back behind the crates and pulled out an incredibly long box, not unlike the ones swords were stored in. Returning to us, he set it down on a crate and opened it up.

Inside was a gigantic rapier. Its size matched my new body the way my old sword matched my human size. The metal shimmered in the light as I reached for it. I immediately tossed it up and caught it on my finger about part-way up the side of the blade to test the balance; it teetered for a moment before coming to rest. I wrapped my hand around the hilt and whipped the sword to my side. It moved so easily, so naturally – like an extension of my arm. I grinned in approval.

“It was hard to make something so thin and so long while retaining its structural strength, but I think I finally got it figured out; as you can see, the blade is a little thicker than the rapiers used by the others, but you’re also strong enough to more than compensate for that,” he explained. “What do you think?”

“It’s amazing!” I assured him raising the sword and moving it around to further acquaint myself with it.

His grin widened; he looked absolutely delighted that I approved of it. He handed me the scabbard for the sword and helped me attach it to my belt. “One last thing…look on the inside of the handguard,” he instructed.

I obeyed and inspected the sword. There was an inscription etched on the inside of the guard: To Naomi Malmin, with eternal love. ~Daniel LeReaux. It was sappy, but it brought a tear to my eye all the same. I shoved the sword into its sheath and threw my arms around him.

“Stay safe, Love,” Daniel begged me. “Please…stay alive.”

I nodded, immediately reminded of my track record with promises. “You stay safe, too. I love you,” I promised him. He smiled and returned my love. He pulled me down and planted a kiss on the top of my snout.

After a moment, Gwen tugged at me to pull me away. “I’ll make sure this little chit makes it through the day,” she assured Daniel. “I can hear Lorna calling. We should see what she needs.”

“I have to get myself ready for battle,” Daniel responded. “I’ll find you before we march on the city.”

“See you soon.” With that, Gwen and I left the blacksmith. Just like Gwen had mentioned, Lorna was making her way towards the blacksmith, wearing a black formal dress and carrying her favorite rifle. As always, a vibrant rose sat in her hair.

“Well don’t you look like quite the soldier?” she commented, looking me over. “The Forsaken will quiver in their boots at the sight of you.”

“Let’s hope so.”

She took a deep breath. “I just came from a strategy meeting with the king. The plan is set. The time has come, Naomi. We’ve rallied and armed every Gilnean. It is time to meet the enemy head on. Time to settle the score with Sylvanas and her Forsaken dogs once and for all,” Lorna announced strongly.

“So what is the plan?” I inquired.

“Prince Liam is heading the assault from this gate on the Merchant Square. King Greymane and my father are leading the assault on the other districts. We’ll attack them on three fronts to split up their forces.”

“So should we join the other worgen with your father?” Gwen asked.

“No. The people know your prowess and valor in battle; they need to see it. Take up your rapier alongside Liam and us humans. Inspire our men and women in combat,” she commanded, shaking her head. “Let’s move along. As the people finish their preparation, they will join us at the stables near the bridge to the city.”

I took a long look back at the forge before following Lorna. I could hear my armor clinking together as I walked. Each of my steps felt heavier – more difficult – but I was confident I could cope with it. If not, I could always strip the armor off.

We walked out of Emberstone and followed the road south and to the west. We took a surprisingly leisurely pace and we were passed by carts of armed Gilnean citizens on their way. We didn’t talk much as we walked; I think each of us were dwelling on what was ahead of us. Before long, I could see the bridge leading to the gates to my old home. I could see the gates were opened – or possibly broken by the Forsaken. We had our entry.

“No matter what happens today,” Lorna started, “I wanted to thank you on behalf of all of Gilneas for everything you’ve done for our people…for me.”

“There’s no need to thank me,” I responded humbly, looking away briefly in my embarrassment.

“No…really. Thank you.”

We arrived at the stables and found Krennan standing nearby. More Gilneans poured in by the minute. “Ah, Naomi, come to join in the fray?” he asked as I approached. “With you on our side, the scales will surely tip in our favor!”

I shuffled uncertainly. I don’t think I’m really that important, all things considered. I was certainly much less without Gwen by my side.

Within the hour, it looked like most all of the capable Gilneans had arrived. Daniel located me easily and stood beside me, clad in heavy-looking armor and carrying a thicker sword than mine. The others began to line up in ranks near the bridge. There were men and women – most were wearing armor similar to Daniels. Some carried rapiers, while others were armed with rifles.

Prince Liam trotted up on his horse. “There you are, my friend. Please, join me in the front. We’ll lead this charge and reclaim our city,” he invited. I nodded but sent him on ahead.

I turned to Daniel. “Don’t do anything too risky,” I requested.

He laughed. “I should be saying that to you! I’ll see you when this is all over.” He told me that he loved me and I returned the sentiment.

With that, Gwen and I made our way to the bridge and stopped next to Liam. In the distance, we could hear the sound of a battle horn wailing along the wind. The prince turned to face his people. He pulled his sword from its sheath and raised it high into the air to get everyone’s attention.

“The Forsaken think we’re weak. A broken people. They think we’ll roll over like a scared dog,” he announced with the strength of a resolute leader. “How wrong they are! We will fight them in the fields until the last trench collapses and the last cannon is silenced.” I looked around; every eye was fixated on the prince. “We will fight them in the streets until the last shot is fired. And when there’s no more ammunition, we’ll crush their skulls with the stones that pave our city!” I could see hopeful, excited expressions start to arise on the faces of the people. Inspiration started to swell within my heart. “We will fight them in the alleys, until our knuckles are skinned and bloody and our rapiers lay on the ground shattered.” A low cheer began to arise throughout the crowd. “And if we find ourselves surrounded and disarmed…wounded and without hope…we will life our heads in defiance and spit in their faces! But we will…never surrender!” he declared as his horse reared back. The shouts and cheers from the people were deafening. “For Gilneas!” he cried, finishing his rallying speech.

With that, Prince Liam spun his horse around and charged across the bridge. Gwen transformed as the two of us gave chase. I could hear the unmistakable sound of the army charging behind us. We darted past the gate into Merchant Square. There were several Forsaken soldiers in the square, but that seemed to be the worst of it; I couldn’t see any abominations or other nasty aberrations the undead could come up with. There was a dark ranger commanding them at the far end of the square. She would need to die.

I collided with the first Forsaken, knocking him to the ground. Unsheathing my rapier, I immediately sliced open his throat. The people charged past me, yelling to high heaven. Gwen and I continued running forward.

The square was in complete chaos. Metal met metal, creating a cacophony of shrill clanks mixed in with the deafening blasts from the rifles. I fought my way forward, the rage of battle growing within me with each undead I dispatched. My eyes were set on the dark ranger, who began firing arrows into the crowd. A line of Forsaken riflemen emerged from around the corner of the buildings and opened fire on the battle, indiscriminately cutting down Gilnean and Forsaken alike. The Gilnean riflemen returned fire, taking out most of the undead gunners.

I pushed past the skirmish and burst out into the open, charging towards the dark ranger. She readied an arrow and let it fly, but I ducked to the side. I could hear it whizz past my head. I’d better get there before she gets another one ready.

Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a horse charge past me. Liam galloped forward, ducking low and holding his sword out. The dark ranger abandoned her bow and pulled out a sword to deflect Liam’s attack as he reached her. I pushed myself harder and launched myself at the ranger’s guards to keep them off of the prince. Gwen darted between the Forsaken and leapt onto whatever target she wanted.

I heard a distressed cry. Turning around, I saw Prince Liam on the ground with the ranger crouched over him. It looked like she had jumped off her skeletal steed and tackled him to the ground. She had a dagger at his throat. I reacted immediately, sprinting as fast as I could in the heavy armor. I shoved aside the intervening Forsaken and launched myself onto the dark ranger. I knocked her off of our prince and we rolled to the side. I recovered quickly, snatched up her dagger and sank it into her chest. I watched as the undead leader returned to just being dead.

I glanced over at Liam, who nodded a thank you before collecting his weapon and rising to his feet. I followed suit and returned to charging at every Forsaken soldier I could find. I took a breather and surveyed the square. The people were still fighting valiantly. There were bodies strewn throughout the square, but still they kept fighting. And they are winning! The number of Forsaken left in the square was dwindling quickly.

As I surveyed the battle, I wondered where Daniel was. Is he safe? There were a number of Gilneans that had already fallen…was he one of them? I need to go find him. I need to make sure he’s safe.

“Merchant Square is ours,” Liam declared behind me, snapping me back to the moment. “Come, let’s meet up with Lord Crowley in the Military District!”

I have to trust Daniel is still alive. I have to focus. I jogged with the prince over near the separation between the districts; Gwen fell in beside me immediately. We skidded to a halt. “Oh shit!” I declared. There were tons of hulking abominations across the bridge in the Military District. How in the name of the Light are we going to be able to fight all of those?

“Artillery’s arrived!” I heard Lorna announce, as if reading my thoughts. I turned and saw her escorting cannon teams rolling their massive weapons forward. She set them up at the top of the stairs leading down to the bridge.

“You’re a sight for sore eyes, Lorna. Let’s get those cannons manned!” Liam declared.

“Where did you get those?” I asked incredulously. As far as I knew the cannons they had used before were still set up outside the cathedral.

“My father had armories all over the country. These were from our Emberstone stash,” she responded with a sly smile. “Now if we could only lure those bloated monsters in range, we could clear the way no problem.”

I glanced down at Gwen. “Leave it to us,” I declared. “Just make sure those cannons are ready to fire,” I requested, descending the stone steps.

“They will be,” Lorna assured me.

Gwen appeared to understand what I was getting at. I sheathed my rapier and bent down onto all fours. This isn’t going to be fun. I kicked off and sprinted towards the bridge. It took a moment to get myself balanced under the weight of the armor, but I managed – though, awkwardly.

Letting out a long howl, Gwen and I dashed into the Military District. The abominations turned to investigate the source of the noise. When they say us running around, they shouted with idiotic anger. They tried to grab and swing at us as we darted between them. I wasn’t too keen on letting them get their disgusting hands on me. Thankfully, these abominations weren’t as quick as Brothogg – but I had no doubt they would prove just as strong if I let them get a hold of me.

I could hear their clumsy, lumbering footsteps as they gave chase. I howled again and we made our way back towards the Merchant District. I could see the cannons sitting atop the stairs, barrels primed on the street we were running upon. I skidded to a halt at the base of the stairs and spun around, whipping my rapier out just in case one of them got through.

“Fire!” Lorna cried out before I was temporarily deafened by the blasts from the cannons. I watched as the abominations – who had funneled onto the bridge – got torn apart. Though they were strong creatures, their flesh was rotten and sloppily stitched together and the cannonballs easily ripped through them, leaving massive, gaping holes in their bodies.

My ears rang and I was terribly confused. My vision was blurred as my mind tried to cope with all of the noise. I could hear cheers and shouts, but they were muffled – far away. I staggered a little, trying to keep my balance while my head spun. It took several moments to collect myself before I could survey the carnage the artillery had wrought.

The barrage from the cannons cut the abominations to ribbons. Most of the distended corpses fell off the bridge into the canal below. Some left their lumps of lifeless flesh as rancid roadblocks on the stone path. The couple that were still able to stand were missing large chunks or entire limbs.

Liam and several Gilnean citizens charged forward and easily swarmed and overwhelmed the remaining abominations. A moment later, the bodies were cleared away, opening up the path into the Military District.

Before we pressed forward, Liam began commanding groups of soldiers and militia around. He wanted to leave a group of Gilneans behind to hold off any Forsaken troops that might try to circle around through the Cathedral District and get around behind us.

I caught sight of Daniel in the crowd of Gilneans being ordered to stay behind. I breathed a sigh of relief. He’ll be safer here. The Forsaken will surely be more focused on the other districts! That’s where all of the fighting is taking place. Besides, if things got dodgy, they could always collapse the bridge between Merchants Square and the Cathedral District.

“Now, Crowley’s troops are up ahead! Press on!” Liam announced. We charged down the street, armor clattering noisily. I had a vague recollection of the original attack on the city wen the refugees and I were slowly making our way through these very streets, wary of worgen attacks. This time, though, the worgen were with us…they are us. I could hear howling up ahead.

We reached the end of the street where it opened up into the main area of the Military District. The buildings were completely devastated and I remembered when we had used the cannons to level the district during the worgen invasion. I hadn’t seen the amount of damage we had done. All along the crumbling rubble, there were tons of worgen already engaging the Forsaken.

The undead presence here was stronger than Merchant Square. There were more abominations   scattered amongst the normal Forsaken soldiers. It was complete chaos; the worgen darted around and launched themselves at their enemies. There was no doubt the worgen were fast, but I knew first-hand that we weren’t always fast enough.

The human Gilneans rushed forward to assist the worgen with Liam at the head of the charge. I felt a swelling surge of hope as I watched the humans fighting alongside my kind. It had become one thing for me to be around them, but I knew there was still a deep mistrust of worgen. But here they were, united against a common enemy…even if it were just for today.

Gwen and I joined in the fray, fighting ferociously. I wanted to find Darius; it would most definitely be safer around him. Every few feet, our progress was impeded by Forsaken soldiers. They were relatively clumsy compared to some of the others I had fought. It was easy enough to dodge their strikes and take them down with stabs and slashes of my own; or, at the very least, distract them long enough for Gwen to blind-side them and deal with them in manner she was so accustomed.

“Where’s Darius?” I called out to worgen we passed. “Where’s Lord Crowley?”

“The prison,” one responded as he sank his claws into a Forsaken soldier’s stomach.

I set my eyes on Stoneward Prison. It had been relatively untouched by the cannon fire. There were so many more abominations congregated there. Great… With a sigh, we pushed forward, fighting our way through a seemingly endless torrent of undead. My rage was building further; it burned through me, pushing me harder…faster.

The battle became a blur as I let the fury take over. My instincts and reflexes took over, allowing me to effortlessly deflect blows and counterstrike. I was actually out-pacing Gwen for once. This battle-born part of me was actually enjoying itself, easily overriding my fear.

We were confronted by one of the abominations just near the entrance to the prison courtyard. He glared down at us with an angry sneer. Then, without any warning, he launched his hook at me, the chain running between his large, grubby fingers. I leapt to the side to avoid it as it crashed into the ground where I had been and cracking the stones. The abomination clenched down on the end of the chain and pulled back so the hook flew back towards him.

It shot over his head and, in one fluid movement, he swung the chain around and swiped at me again. I immediately dropped onto my belly as the heavy hook flew over me. Had I been even a fraction slower, I knew I would have been wiped out by that thing; and I was sure I wouldn’t have walked away from a blow like that.

I glanced up just in time to roll over as the abomination brought his cleaver down. The blade sheared through the ends of my mane, but I was otherwise unharmed. I scrambled to stand on my paws, readying my blade.

Gwen roared and pounced onto the abomination, sinking her claws into his shoulder and clinging to the monstrosity’s gargantuan body. That got his attention and he tried to grab at the large predator attached to his shoulder. I took the opportunity and ran forward, leaping into the air directly at the vile creature. I landed on his chest, digging the claws of my left hand and paws into his body for support, and rammed the business end of my rapier into his chest. The abomination roared in pain. I kicked off and let myself drop, dragging the blade with me and slicing through his chest and rotten, exposed gut.

The abomination wrenched and stumbled, finally falling forward; the ground actually shook as he collapsed. Gwen hopped off and walked over to me. I knelt down for a moment and set my hand on her head. “Nice work,” I commented. “Thanks for having my back.”

“An impressive strike,” I heard a familiar voice acknowledge in approval. I turned and found Darius’ impressive form standing atop another abomination corpse in triumph. His one good eye was fixated on us. “I knew you I was right to have my money on you two,” he laughed.

“Darius!” I sighed in relief. “Thank the Light.”

“I’m glad to see you in the battle, friend,” he declared. “We well on our way to securing this district, there are just a few more…”

A booming roar drowned out whatever Darius was saying. The ground actually quaked at the deep bellow. “What was that?” I gasped, surveying the area.

A gargantuan shadow stood atop the prison walls, its features obscured by the sun behind it. It moved forward and fell down into the prison courtyard, nearly knocking me off of my footing as the stone shook beneath me. When I had regained balance, I gazed into the prison. “Light save us,” I whimpered. Whatever this thing was, it was huge…standing almost half the height of the prison itself. How it had gotten up there in the first place was anyone’s guess. Like the abominations, this giant was patched together with the flesh of other creatures. But it was much larger, much more…well, just more. Its bloated belly flopped around as it took a step forward on its tree-trunk-thick legs. Some sort of growth or a glob of fat hung down from its brow, covering most of one of its eyes. The face would otherwise appear childish; its mouth gaping in what appeared to be confusion. My entire body quivered at the site of this unparalleled atrocity.

“It…fun time…now?” it asked in a slow, moronic voice. I watched its eyes surveying the battlefield.

“We’re going to fight that thing, aren’t we?” I heard Gwen inquire in awe to my left.

“Yep,” I responded shortly, trying to control my fear. What nightmare realm did they dig this thing up from? It sounded and even looked like an oversized, mismatched, diseased toddler whose only desire was to pop the head off dolls. And we were the dolls. A part of me felt pity for its apparent lack of sentience, but my experience with the undead was what they lacked in intelligence, they made up for in sadism.

Darius let out a piercing howl, rallying whatever worgen he could to battle. They charged at the lumbering, oafish giant. Gwen transformed and the two of us charged forward to join the pack. The first one to reach its legs leapt on, digging his claws in and started to climb the giant. It let out an agonized scream. “Bad toy!” it shrieked before reaching down and plucking the worgen from his thigh with its thick, stubby hand. “Bad!” It threw the worgen hard against the wall of the prison; I could actually hear the shattering of his bones as he collided with the hard stone.

The other worgen took a step back for a moment. The fleshy giant swung down at them in a fit of rage. They all dodged out of the way as the stone cracked beneath its blow. I saw Darius lunge forward to attack its hand, his claws tearing through the flesh easily. But the giant didn’t slow down. It swung to the side, backhanding Darius and knocking him across the courtyard.

“It’s too strong!” I heard him admit. I looked around for some sort of solution. There has to be some way to kill it.

Behind the creature, in the back of the courtyard, stood a couple of skull-adorned Forsaken siege weapons. There was a pile of barrels that I imagined could be lit on fire beside them. “The catapults! Use the catapults to bring it down!” I called out.

“I’ll distract it,” Darius volunteered, rising and charging back at it. I had no idea how he was able to even stand – let alone continue fighting – after taking a blow like that.

I circled around the monstrocity, sprinting for the nearest siege catapult. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the creature swiping and swinging at Darius and a small handful of worgen that fought with him.

Gwen and I reached a catapult at about the same time another small group of worgen reached another nearby. Gwen transformed and hoisted a barrel up onto the catapult. There was a torch nearby; I snatched it up and pressed the fire against the projectile to ignite it. After taking a moment to make sure we were generally aimed in the right direction, I pulled the lever to let loose the flaming barrel at the giant.

The barrel struck it on the left shoulder, shattering and releasing its very flammable contents all over that side of its body. The flame spread and the giant began screaming in agony. The other worgen let another projectile fly, consuming the other side of the creature in fire. It began flailing while it shrieked; the other worgen cleared away from it. It was the most ungodly sound that met my ears as it desperately tried to extinguish the fires that ravaged its malformed body. Eventually, it fell forward, sending another staggering jolt through the ground. “Just…wanted…play,” it gasped before the life left its eyes.

We met up with Darius. “Quick thinking, Naomi,” he commended, breathing heavily and clutching his side. “That thing would have easily smashed most of the pack before we could have brought it down.”

“Do you think there are more of them?” I asked cautiously.

He shook his head. “Probably somewhere…but I imagine something like that is hard to transport. Unless they put it together here.” The implications of that statement made me shudder.

“Lord Crowley!” Liam called out running up to us. “The Military District is ours,” he reported. “Your worgen fought ferociously.”

Darius stared down at Liam with his good eye. “They’re not my worgen, young prince. They are our people. Remember that,” he corrected. “We will finish this together. Now, Let us join your father’s forces, Liam. They’ll need our help against Sylvanas,” he proposed.

Sylvanas… I had heard the name uttered so many times. The ruthless leader of Forsaken – the Dark Lady; the Banshee Queen – was up ahead. My mind was conflicted. I was excited for the opportunity to finally avenge the Gilneans that had fallen in the Forsaken occupation. But, at the same time, I was terrified down to my bones to be face-to-face with someone with the reputation that followed Sylvanas Windrunner.

“Lead the way, Lord Crowley,” Liam responded.

I snapped myself out of my thoughts. Scared or not, it’s time to end this. We followed behind Liam and Darius as we ran towards Greymane Court. I could already hear the sounds of battle up ahead. The remaining Gilneans – humans and worgen, alike – fell in behind us.

As we crossed the bridge into the third district, I could see royal soldiers locked in battle with heavily-armored undead troops. On the bright side, they were the regular humanoid Forsaken and nothing bigger from what I could see. The king was in the middle of the fray, carrying a massive broadsword that he used to cleave the undead in half.

“Father! We have taken Merchants Square and Military District,” Liam reported loudly. “We are here to assist you!”

“Block their retreat, Liam! We’ve got them right where we want them!” the king responded.

The prince nodded and took the human forces to get into position. The pack, however, continued charging forward, crashing into the Forsaken forces.

“Genn, we are here. Lead us to victory,” Darius announced once we had joined the fight.

The king smirked as he quickly surveyed the reinforcements. “Excellent…their vile queen is up ahead. We should have no trouble reaching her now,” he claimed.

“I tire of this nonsense!” a dark voice echoed. But it didn’t sound like it was yelling; the voice seemed to be reverberating through my brain. It left a sinister shadow on my mind and sent an intense chill through my body. “Worthless dogs…don’t you know when you should run with your tail between your legs?”

I turned to the north and saw a figure descending the stairs of one of the large buildings of the district, flanked by some of the most brutally armed Forsaken I have seen yet. It was small and wearing a deep purple cloak with the hood up. The air itself chilled in its presence. In a terrifyingly-swift motion, it threw back the cloak to reveal a very slight female body. She wore an armored bikini around her torso, revealing a number of unhealed wounds that would have been fatal for a mortal. She had heavier armor about her legs and shoulders, all adorned with greenish gems, spikes, and skulls. White feathers poked out of the end of her jagged shoulder-pads. A large quiver full of arrows was slung across her back and she carried a sturdy-looking longbow. There were two short, sleek swords at her belt. She had the figure of the other dark rangers I had encountered, but she was much more decorated. The woman pulled back her hood to reveal long, pointed ears and a pale-blue face with eyes that glowed a wicked orange. Her long dark hair fluttered around her as if moved by the wind, though the air was still.

“You dare challenge the Banshee Queen?” she sneered. A pulse of dark energy emitted from her and crashed against us. For a moment, I felt like I couldn’t breathe – like I was drowning in freezing water. But the sensation passed. That was only a taste…a warning. What is she? As I recovered, I became acutely aware of a chilling, disturbing wale. I gazed up at her and gasped; there were now a number of ghostly figures floating above her, shrieking.

“Sylvanas!!” King Greymane challenged at the top of his lungs. In an instant, he transformed into a worgen, nearly tearing completely through his royal clothes. He shot towards the leader of the Forsaken with frightening speed.

“Charge!” Darius shouted, falling in behind the king.

I hesitated for a moment, paralyzed by fear. I felt a firm hand on mine; I looked over and saw Gwen in her worgen form staring at me. “Whatever happens here, I’ll be beside you,” she assured me.

I closed my eyes to solidify my resolve. This monster has to pay for what she has done to my country. The moment I opened my eyes, I charged forward, sword at the ready.

The Gilnean forces engaged with the Banshee Queen’s royal guard and the ghosts swirled above, swooping in to ambush distracted soldiers. While they appeared to be little more than apparitions, I noticed that there was something corporeal to them: they could actually be struck by our weapons.

I stayed low to avoid attention from the aerial attackers, charging after our leaders. The way was clear; most of Sylvanas’ guards were occupied with the fury of the Gilnean army. The Banshee Queen’s bow was now slung across her chest as she ducked and dodged away from Darius’ and King Greymane’s attacks with breathtakingly terrifying agility. They were barely able to jump out of the way or parry her when she decided to lash out with her swords. The others that fought her were not so lucky and were easily cut down by her blade.

Once I got there, I lunged at Sylvanas with my sword. Her orange eyes darted to me and she danced around my weapon with a superior smirk. She’s toying with me…with all of us! I swung at her again and my blade passed right through her. I paused for a moment before my brain registered what had happened: she moved so fast, my eyes couldn’t keep up. I heard a low laugh.

I caught movement out of the corner of my eye and leapt away in time to avoid an axe from one of her guards. An angry spark ignited within me. How dare you interfere? I turned to face the guard. He took another swing at me and I ducked low to avoid it. Lashing out, I caught him in the ankle with my blade and swept him to the ground. With a quick, decisive motion, I grabbed his thick axe and used it to liberate his head from his shoulders. I could feel myself get riled up.

I spun back around to Sylvanas and launched myself back into the fray. As I swung and missed over and over again, my rage intensified. I was able to strike faster. As my reflexes took control, I could see my sword getting closer and closer to her.

Sylvanas’ laughter stopped. Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see there were fewer and fewer guards. For all I knew, they had all been taken care of. Sylvanas had played with us for far too long and she was quickly running out of forces.

My blade caught her in the arm just below her shoulder-guards and she hopped back, a strange look of surprise on her face. “How dare…” she started, but King Greymane lunged forward and caught Sylvanas by the throat.

The king savagely slammed her into the wall of a nearby building, his hand firmly around her throat. “It’s time you paid for what you’ve done to Gilneas,” he snarled.

“Enough!” Sylvanas shrieked, her orange eyes glowing as another dark pulse flew from her body. King Greymane was thrown back.

Once again, as the power crashed through me, the awful choking sensation gripped my lungs. I fell to my knees, trembling and gasping for air. I can’t breathe…it’s so cold! My eyes darted around desperately. Surely, someone could help. But the others all looked like me – struggling simply not to die.

“You worms should have wiggled away when you had the chance.” Sylvanas retrieved her bow, her eyes primed on King Greymane as she drew a wicked arrow from her quiver. “Let’s see how Gilneas gets on without its stubborn leader,” she spat, raising her bow. The tip of the arrow was tainted with a dark mist.

“Father!” I heard Prince Liam shout frantically. What happened next occurred too fast for me to really register. The arrow was gone from Sylvanas’ bow and Liam was standing between the Banshee Queen and his father. He teetered where he stood for a moment. I could see the shaft of the dark arrow protruding from his shoulder. I wanted to scream, to yell out to him, but I couldn’t…I still couldn’t find air that could ill m freezing lungs.

Sylvanas let out a short laugh and shook her head. “Such a waste,” she scoffed, staring down the prince. “That arrow’s poison was not meant to be wasted on your whelp.” Sylvanas sounded so smug and superior. She turned her back on us, pulling her hood back over her head. “We’ll meet again, Genn,” she assured him before walking off.

Only once she was out of sight did the dark powers that gripped us dissipate. If she had stayed around, she could have easily killed each and every one of us. I took several deep breaths, feeling my lungs expand and contract once again.

“Liam, no!” I heard King Greymane yell. My eyes shot over to the prince.

Prince Liam had turned towards his father. His face was eerily pale and he looked like he was struggling just to remain standing. “We did it, father…we took back our city,” he gasped weakly. “We took back…” Prince Liam couldn’t finish his statement and collapsed into his father’s arms.

“Liam!” the king called out again. The prince did not respond. I could hear King Greymane openly sobbing. It was perhaps the most disturbing thing I had witnessed all day.

The other Gilneans stood, stunned, and watched the scene, grim expressions set on each of their faces. My nose began to burn and I could feel tears welling up in my eyes. The prince was dead. He was a man who always put his people first. He would have been a beloved leader, but all of that was cut short.

“So it’s true then?” Lorna muttered sorrowfully, walking up beside me.

“Lorna…” I acknowledged, unsure of what else I could say. I need to go find Daniel…I need to know he’s alright. And my father…where is he? Is he still okay? We had lost so much today; I wanted the solace knowing I hadn’t lost everything. Gwen stood at my other side and wrapped her arms around me for support; I leaned my head against hers.

My sorrow and longing to see my loved ones changed into anger. Sylvanas… She was still out there. She had killed him so easily and she looked so happy and comfortable in doing it. She has to be stopped. She has to be brought to justice.

“We’ve driven the Forsaken back. We hold three out of the four districts. But at what cost…” Lorna trailed off. She took a deep breath. “Gilneas has lost her favorite son. We will mourn when this is all over, but we cannot afford to a day sooner.” I looked down at her curiously. “We will not allow ourselves the luxury of grief while the enemy still breathes Gilnean air.”

“What can we do?” I asked hopelessly. The Banshee Queen was so terrifyingly powerful. I wanted to make her pay, but I couldn’t deny what I had witnessed.

“As we speak, my father’s men are getting ready to strike while we still have the Banshee Queen’s trail. I would understand if you didn’t want to join us; you’ve given so much already. But if you do wish to help, just say the word when you’re ready. Liam deserves vengeance,” Lorna declared strongly.

I turned my attention to Gwen. Her face was set, I could tell her mind was made up. She simply nodded. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see the king slowly carrying his son’s body away. I returned my gaze to Lorna and wiped the fur under my eyes with my finger. Daniel can wait for me…we don’t have much time.

“We’re in.”

A worgen stepped out from the shadows behind Lorna. I recognized him as Tobias Mistmantle, Darius’ right-hand man. “It’s decided then. Come, friend…” he invited. “The hunt begins.”

---

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The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 15: Liberating Emberstone

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 15: Liberating Emberstone

“Stop being such a baby,” Gwen scolded as she dabbed my nose with a wet cloth. “I nearly ripped a chunk out of your shoulder yesterday and you barely flinched. You get a bunch of tiny scratches and all of a sudden you’re whimpering like a pup?”

I winced each time she prodded my nose with the towel. We were fresh out of the bath and I started whining the moment the hot water hit the cuts on my arm and torso. It stung unmercifully! “Well my adrenaline was pumping then…now I’m just exhausted and in pain,” I complained. “Ah!”

“Oh shush,” she scoffed.

“Can’t you just…you know…heal me?” I requested hopefully, thinking back to yesterday.

She sighed. “I told you I’m just learning how to do it…it takes a lot out of me,” Gwen responded. “Besides, it’s just a bloody nose…and the cuts aren’t deep. They’ll heal quickly.” She reached forward with the cloth again.

I drew away. “I think that’s enough,” I stated.

“Oh you’re such a child,” she laughed, tossing the cloth to me. “Still got a little blood caked on there, but if you’re going to be difficult, you can bloody sort it out.”

I gingerly began to wipe at my sore nose. I really hope it’s not broken. I flared my nostrils a few times; it hurt, but it still worked. My eyes teared up a little. We fell silent; the sound of the storm raging outside reached my ears.

“I have to say, it feels great being clean again,” Gwen sighed. Her fur kind of puffed out as it dried. “First real time in months.” She fell into a large armchair near the lit hearth. It was reminiscent of Baron Ashbury’s library.

Memories of my first night in Duskhaven returned. “I know the feeling,” I responded, wiping at my nose again. I sat down near her, closed my eyes, and just felt the heat of the fire. “Hopefully the rain subsides before they make us go back out there again.”

Gwen nodded. “And they had better be bringing us some food,” she added. After all, Lord Hewell had assured us he’d have some of his servants bring us something.

Sure enough, a couple of minutes later, a small line of people marched into the room with platters and goblets in hand. They were visibly uncomfortable approaching us. I knew the look well; it was the same uneasy fear the people of Duskhaven had only a few long days ago. But at least the people of Duskhaven had been around tame worgen before me. Instead, these poor people were being asked to bring food to a pair of butt-naked worgen who – for all they knew – were going to tear them apart the moment they came in.

I made sure to thank them as they placed platters on the floor between us. Trembling, they rushed out of the room without acknowledging my gratitude. Gwen didn’t seem to pay them any mind. She was much more focused on the silver dishes on the floor.

“Do you smell that?” she asked, taking a long sniff. She ran her tongue along her lips. It almost looked like she fell out of her chair as she scrambled towards the food.

I began to smell the air and the scent of cooked meat met my nostrils. My mouth began to water as my stomach groaned greedily. I slid off of my own chair and reached Gwen as she threw the covers off the platters. Mutton! I thought about the sheep Gwen had been carrying earlier.

“Do you think this is my little attempted snack?” Gwen asked, obviously on the same wavelength as me.

“If it is, it’ll probably taste better this way,” I shrugged. We dug in. Gwen and I ate in silence until the bones had been picked clean of meat and the goblets were drained. Gwen fell onto her back and let out a long, satisfied sigh. I leaned back and smiled. I felt…full. For the first time in days, my hunger was completely sated. “I hope this becomes a regular thing.”

“We just have to keep saving the king, apparently. Heroes eat free,” Gwen joked, looking over at me. “How’s your nose?”

“Still sore…but I’m fine,” I responded, wrapping my arms around my knees. I stared at my friend for some time. She returned my gaze curiously.

“Is…something wrong?” she wondered, cocking her head to the side.

I was silent for another few moments. “At Walden’s estate…I thought you were dead,” I started quietly. Her face fell. “I didn’t know what to do…I had to keep going…I had to free the king…but…” I took a deep breath. “I had thoughts…scary thoughts…”

“What do you mean?”

“I couldn’t stand that you were gone…I wanted to end it,” I admitted.

“Naomi!”

“I thought about it…I wanted to do it. I think I would have if you hadn’t shown up at the cliffs,” I told her, tears gathering. I recalled the dark thoughts that had plagued my mind. I wondered if I would feel so intensely if it had been anyone else…even Daniel. I looked away from her, too ashamed to try to meet her eyes.

Gwen wandered over to me and hugged me. “I know the feeling,” she stated gently. “All too well.” It didn’t take me long to realize what she meant. “I don’t know what I’d do if you were dead. That’s why I had to believe…that’s why I had to look for you after the city was attacked.”

I’d been so reckless with my life for so long; throwing myself into danger knowing that I might not make it out. It started in Gilneas City. I thought it was all to protect everyone, but I had no idea how it felt to them…until now. “I’m sorry; I’ve been so stupid.”

“How about this? No more going it alone, for either of us,” Gwen proposed. “Like, at all.”

I nodded. “Deal.” I felt a little better talking to Gwen about it, but the disturbed feeling stayed with me. Would I have actually killed myself? Just thinking about it made me shudder and left an uncomfortable knot in my gut.

After a little while, I started to feel uncomfortable being naked. Though my shirt and cloth pants had been mostly shredded by the tree, I still had the leather armor. I stood and walked over to where my belongings were piled and began to dress myself. I retrieved the extra pads from my satchel; I figured if my cuts were going to heal undisturbed, it would probably be best to keep them better protected.

Gwen, on the other hand, did not seem the least-bit perturbed by her nudity. Her clothes had had a chance to dry near the fire, but she didn’t appear to care. I made a mental note to remind her to put them back on before we left.

“How long before Armstead and the others get here, you reckon?” I wondered aloud, falling back into the chair.

Gwen walked over and sat on the arm of my chair. “Beats me,” she shrugged. “Missing your little plaything?”

“Don’t call him that,” I requested.

“Well, the size difference between you two is…jarring,” she teased.

“I know, but still…please don’t.”

“Fine!” she finally sighed.

We chatted for a few minutes when I noticed something. My ears perked up, listening carefully. “Do you hear that?” I asked.

Gwen looked up and paused for a moment. “I don’t hear anything,” she responded, shaking her head.

“Exactly,” I stated, rising from the chair. There was a window across the room with the drapes drawn across it. I marched over and pulled the cloth aside. “The rain’s stopped,” I reported. Dark, ominous clouds still floated overhead, but the storm seemed to be over…or put on hold.  I turned to Gwen. “What say we go see if there’s anything we can do?” I proposed.

“Do we have to? I was relaxing,” she whined.

“I’m getting restless,” I responded. Though I couldn’t disagree with a little relaxation, it felt like there was something I needed to be doing. I couldn’t really unwind with that feeling looming over me.  “Put some pants on, Love.”

Gwen made an exaggerated groan before standing from the chair. “If I have to.” She begrudgingly walked over to get her clothes. “How long do you think we’ll get to rest here?” Gwen asked while slipping her paws into the legs of her pants.

I shrugged. “Maybe a day or two? Mayor Armstead mentioned something about attacking the Forsaken at Gilneas City. If we’re doing that, we’re going to need time to prepare,” I explained. “Since neither of us is any good at making weapons or armor, maybe there will be less to do.”

After Gwen had dressed herself, we left the room. As we walked down the hall, I noticed Gwen had grabbed a sheep bone from the plate and was gnawing on it absentmindedly. Before long, we were in the entry-hall. Servants scurried around – doing what, I’m not sure.

As we walked past them, I did my best to ignore the fear-filled expressions that kept getting thrown our way. I opened the door and nearly collided with King Greymane. Lord Hewell stood close behind him.

“Ah, there you two are,” the king acknowledged. “We were about to come find you.”

That can’t be good. “Rest time is over?” I asked.

He nodded. “Indeed, rest time is over,” King Greymane stated. I heard Gwen groan again. “The leadership here at Tempest’s Reach saw fit to send some scouts north. They returned not too long ago and reported in about a mining town near Northgate Lake…it’s currently under Forsaken occupation,” he explained. I knew exactly where he was going with this. “I’ve already sent some of my men, along with Crowley’s daughter to….”

“Lorna was here?” I blurted out. Why didn’t she come find us?

“She was. She arrived just as the scouts returned. The young lady volunteered the moment she heard,” the king explained. “Miss Crowley wanted to fill me in on the situation in the Blackwald. But now she has joined the troops I sent to the livery stables near Emberstone Village to begin operations from there. Liam will be joining them shortly, as well.” He cleared his throat.

“You want us to go and help at Emberstone, too, don’t you?” I concluded.

The king nodded. “The more people we can save, the better off we’ll be in the final push. And we need the ore Embersone produces if we’re going to keep up production. I need to stay here and organize the assault on Gilneas City.” A more ignorant mind may have accused the king of cowardice. But he had already sent some important people along towards Embersone. The planning must be legitimately vital or he’d go himself. After all, assaulting the capital was not going to be easy. “Lord Hewell will help you secure horses to get you there.”

“I’m perfectly capable of getting there on foot,” Gwen declared stubbornly.

“I have no doubt, but it’s best if your muscles are rested when you get there. The trip to Emberstone Village is not a short one,” King Greymane reasoned. “Now you’d better be on your way.”

“Come with me,” Lord Hewell beckoned. We stepped around the king and followed him.

A question popped into my mind. “Excuse me, my lord. Why didn’t you join the other lords with Godfrey’s plan?” I inqured. I don’t know why I was curious, but I was.

“It is not the time to turn against one another,” he responded. “It was clear to me that Godfrey’s plan came from a darker intent than the virtuous means he claimed to seek. He tells us the king is among the cursed, as anyone can see you two young women are. Well, worgen or not, he is still the king and the people have always rallied behind him,” Lord Hewell explained. Westarted to climb up the hill towards the bridge to the late baron’s home.

“That’s very perceptive of you. But the other lords fell for it?”

“The other lords fell for greed. Godfrey promised them prominent positions in his new government.” It made a lot of sense; after all, they weren’t wanting for money. “But let’s just say there’s a reason my estate is the most modest amongst the eastern lords,” he laughed. I suppose it was modest for a mansion. We reached the livery that, only a few hours ago, had been filled with guards and their dogs. “Here we are. May the Light guide your journey.”

After a couple minutes Gwen and I were sitting atop two large mountain horses. We took off down up the road. These horses did not seem the least bit inconvenienced by the slope; Gilnean horses were powerful beasts. We charged past the wall of sheep – the fluffy livestock choosing to scatter rather than get trampled beneath the horses’ mighty hooves. We galloped past the Walden estate, following the road northeast. To our right were small windmills – probably used by the less wealthy farmers.

To our left was Gilneas City. We moved along the road that ran just east of the canals that surrounded the city. Just like before, I couldn’t help but notice just how dead it looked, standing as if nothing more than a shadow – a silhouette of a once-glorious society. Staring at it, I became sure that Gilneas as we knew it was dead and gone. All we could hope to do now was survive and maybe try to pick up the pieces; but it would never be the same.

The horses sprinted north into the forests of Eastern Northgate. I had become so used to the disturbing trees of the Blackwald that the normalcy of this forest was a surprising pleasure to my eyes. I caught glimpses of deer through the trees as we zoomed by. The pack didn’t cross the river…this place looks untouched by the curse.  I amused myself with my thoughts as we rode further north. If we hadn’t had such a filling meal back at Tempest’s Reach, she’d probably jump off her horse and go enjoy herself some venison.

I don’t know how long we rode, but eventually I caught sight of the stables just west of the road – immediately east of the gate into the Merchant Square…my old home. As we approached, I saw some mining carts and ore piled nearby. There was a mining rail track headed further northeast.

Militiamen were standing guard and met us as we arrived at the stables. I hopped off the horse and left him in the care of one of the guards. Looking around, I saw Lorna knelt down by a man dressed in nothing but a pair of tattered pants. She used the butt of her rifle to support herself with the barrel sticking high into the air.

“Lorna!” I called, running up to her. I could hear Gwen following in behind me.

She immediately stood and turned at the sound of my voice. “Naomi! What are you doing here?”

“Greymane sent us,” I reported.

“He sent you, or you volunteered?” she wondered aloud.

“Not much of a difference these days,” I sighed.

“Well if you’re willing, I can use all the help I can get. We’re surrounded by Forsaken on all sides and can use all the help we can get!”

I nodded to let her know Gwen and I were with her. “What’s do you need us to do?”

“We recently found out that the villagers at Emberstone survived most of the ravages of the curse.” She cleared her throat. “Unfortunately, their village wasn’t as fortunate when it came to the Forsaken invasion. The Forsaken have taken the villagers prisoner and are forcing them to work the nearby mine as slaves,” Lorna explained grimly. “We need to free them.”

“Who’s he?” I asked, staring down at the man who seemed to be on the verge of losing consciousness. He had long, scraggly white hair and a beard. His body was covered in cuts and bruises that were in various states of healing. Some of the more recent-looking wounds must nearly have revealed the underlying bone. He looks like he’s been tortured!

“His name’s Marcus; one of the villagers from Emberstone,” Lorna responded.

The beaten, exhausted man lifted his hand and beckoned me closer. His eyes had a strange combination of fear and desperation. If the people of Emberstone had not been afflicted with the Curse, there was a good chance their fears of my kind would be intense; maybe even more-so than the others. I imagined the idea of a tame worgen would be quite alien to them.   

“A Cursed with the ability to speak,” he gasped with an airy voice. “Am I to understand you mean to help us?”

I nodded. “I’m a Gilnean, through and through,” I promised.

“I…I have something I must ask of you if you are going into the mines,” he announced.

“Anything.”

He took several, labored breaths. “When the Forsaken took our town and our mine…they put anyone who could lift a pickaxe in chains and sent them to work in the mines…” He paused. “They treated us with utmost cruelty.” There was a terrified, distant quality to his eyes as he seemed to remember the horrors. “I was among the few who escaped. But those of us who were weak…those who could not endure the hard labor were worked to death by an abomination…known as Brothogg.” Another abomination? I shuddered, recalling my last encounter with those things.

He began coughing uncontrollably. “I think you get the picture,” Lorna cut in, squatting down by the man and putting her hand on his shoulder.

Marcus shook his head. “My wife was among his victims, worgen…I swore one day her death would be avenged. But…alas…I am too frail now. But you…you can deliver justice!” he exclaimed. Marcus coughed again. “You can deliver justice…for my wife…for Gilneas!” His eyes shifted from horrified to determined as he stared into mine.

“I will do everything in my power to ensure the abomination is slain,” I vowed. Immediately, I regretted those words. The last time I had fought abominations, I had a barrel of gunpowder and a man with a rifle. How am I supposed to fight one of those with nothing but my claws?

He gave me a weak smile. “Thank you…perhaps there may yet be redemption.”

I wasn’t entirely sure what he meant by that. I stood up and let out a long sigh.

“What’s an abomination?” Gwen asked curiously as I turned my back to the frail old man. A part of me had forgotten she hadn’t seen too many of the Forsaken in the Blackwald.

“An awful, awful creature,” I responded, unsure of how else to describe it. “Believe me: you’ll know it when you see it.” Lorna walked around and stared at the two of us. “What about Emberstone Village?” I asked.

“I’m trying to come up with a plan for retaking that, but we have to take the mines first. If we don’t free the slaves before an assault on the village, I fear they’ll slaughter the captives,” Lorna explained. “I’ll assemble a few men to…”

“No,” I interrupted. “Let Gwen and I go. It will be dark in the mines; she and I should be able to see a bit more clearly,” I explained. “And if it’s just a couple of worgen, the Forsaken might not think to try to call for reinforcements,” I added.

“Remember that whole thing about us not being reckless?” Gwen muttered.

“This way, we’ll be reckless together. That was the deal,” I retorted, sticking out my tongue.

“If you’re not back in two hours, I’m sending in the soldiers,” Lorna declared.

“Fair enough.”

“Just take that track on up. It’ll take you straight to the mines. Best of luck.”

With that, Gwen and I turned and marched towards the track. “I’m sorry I volunteered you for this,” I muttered as we put some distance between us and the stables. I really had no idea what sort of resistance we were going to be facing in there.

“Well it is stupid and reckless…and you’re stupid and reckless,” she shrugged. “You and I wouldn’t be friends if I couldn’t handle stupid and reckless.”

Before too long, I could see buildings to the north, slightly off to the left of the rails we followed. Emberstone Village was quite a bit bigger than Stormglen – about the size of Duskhaven. Even from this distance, I could see the dark, purple banners of the Forsaken standing near the road. So many people under the ruthless hand of the undead. We had to succeed.

Ignoring my desire to attack the village directly, Gwen and I continued along the tracks. We were approaching some tall hills and rocks and the tracks seemed to wind between them. We slowed our gait. There were so many places the Forsaken could hide and ambush us. But when we entered the narrow path cut through the hills, all was still.

The wind picked up, rustling the leaves on the trees on the hills above us. A pungent odor was carried with it – the repulsive scent of rot and death. “What is that smell?” Gwen whined quietly.

“You haven’t run into many Forsaken, have you?” I realized.

“I guess only that one that I killed when you found me,” Gwen responded. “That one didn’t smell this bad.”

“That was a different kind of Forsaken altogether. The normal ones are…unpleasant,” I explained.

“I think I may vomit,” Gwen grumbled.

“Please don’t…if you do, so will I,” I pleaded, holding the back of my hand against my nose to dampen the stench. It made my stomach churn. I will not lose the only satisfying meal I’ve had in days!

The tracks twisted around a hill before revealing the large, dark, gaping tunnel that was the entrance to the Emberstone mine. There were toppled mine carts cast off to the side. I wondered if they were forcing the slaves to carry the ore by hand. After all, if they used the tracks, they’d be in for a surprise when they reached the livery. We slowed down and listened carefully; I could hear a cacophony of sounds coming from within the mines – the clank of picks against stone, groans, raspy shouts, and – of course – cries for mercy. The rotting smell was stronger than ever as we approached the entrance of the mine.

Nothing ran out to attack us, which was always good. I wondered how deep in they were. There had to be some light down there. After all, as far as I knew, the Forsaken didn’t have night vision. But the entrance was completely black.

“You ready?” I asked, more preparing myself than anything.

“I’ll be right behind you,” she assured me before lurching forward as she changed into her cat form.

I took a deep breath and stepped into the shadows. I moved slowly and cautiously. The jagged stone floor was uncomfortable on the pads of my paws, but they were tough enough from getting torn up. I kept one hand on the wall for support and guidance; I wasn’t too keen on smacking face-first into a wall. It felt like we were walking on a decline.

Before long, the mineshaft turned. At that point, I could see the flickering, uneven light from a torch on a wall up ahead. The closer I got to the light, the louder the sounds reverberating off the shaft got and the more pungent the stench. It was far worse than I remembered from Duskhaven; down in the mines, there was no opportunity for it to dissipate.

We approached the light and I cautiously peered around the corner. The villagers were there, lined up along the walls of the mine – picking away at the stone – while a handful of Forsaken slavers walked back and forth barking orders and threats. Beyond them, I could see the tunnel branched off into the deeper recesses of the mine. Torches intermittently lined the walls, casting twisted shadows all around.

I took a deep breath as I watched the movements of the Forsaken slavers. Most of them carried a bone-tipped whip in one hand and a sword in the other. There was one, though, wielding an axe that was huge compared to its withered, bony body. Let’s get this sorted.

Without a sound of warning, Gwen and I sprinted into the chamber. I launched myself first at the undead with the axe. It wasn’t hard ripping the weapon from his brittle fingers. Spinning around, I buried the blade into the Forsaken’s chest.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Gwen pouncing on one of the others. She tore out its throat with her massive fangs. I shuddered a little, unable to fully imagine how putrid that must have tasted.

I pried the axe out of the torso of the fallen slaver. I was tired of sullying my claws with their vile flesh. The other Forsaken turned to face us. I tightened my grip on the axe and bared my teeth. The miners stopped working and were cowering near the walls; their feet were bound in chains so they wouldn’t be able to get out on their own.

“You filthy beasts. We’ll kill you!” one of the Forsaken growled.

I snarled and lunged forward. The Forsaken prepared to lash at me with his whip, but Gwen ambushed him, tackling him to the ground and eliminating him in the manner Gwen was so accustomed. One of the others, however, got off an attack. The crack of the whip was deafening to my sensitive ears. The bone top of bit into my shoulder and I yelped in pain, my cry echoing through the chamber. I could feel blood start to run down my fur.

My cry quickly turned to a roar as I charged at my attacker. I slammed into him, knocking his frail form to the ground. With a snarl, I brought the axe above my head before throwing my strength into a powerful vertical strike, nearly cleaving his carcass in half from his head to his belly.

I turned, rage coursing through me once again. It felt so good…so powerful. Again, I could hear the faint sound of sizzling and my shoulder quickly stopped hurting. I could actually feel the wound closing, like the burning rage of combat was cauterizing it.

Gwen had dispatched most of the others. Only one was left at the far end of chamber. He took a cautious step back as I noticed Gwen slowly creeping towards him. The Forsaken turned and started to run further down the tunnel. He’s going to sound the alarm! Without thinking, I lobbed the axe across the room. It spun awkwardly through the air before slamming into the back of the Forsaken. Unfortunately, he got hit by the blunt side of the weapon; otherwise, that would have been astounding. Before he could get up, Gwen was on top of him.

I gazed around the dimly-lit room. The still bodies of the Forsaken soldiers littered the ground, some in more pieces than others. The enslaved villagers pressed themselves firmly against the walls, quivering uncontrollably. Their eyes were filled with terror as they stared at me. I heard a terrified whimper escape the mouth of one of the miners nearby.

Not wanting to terrify them further, I kept my distance as I studied their shackles. I wonder if one of these things had the keys. I turned my attention back to the remains of the forsaken. If I had to guess… I went to find the one I had stolen the axe from. If he was the only one who was armed differently, it stood to reason he was of a higher ranking than the others. He had to have them. I began rifling through the body. Sure enough, there was a ring of small, brass keys on his belt.

I easily ripped it away from the body and bounced it in my palm for a moment. Slowly, I walked towards the nearest human. He tried to scramble away, but didn’t get very far because of the chains. “No! Please!”

“Would you quit it?” I requested in a somewhat irritated tone. I worked too hard to put up with this shit. I squatted down and fumbled with the lock until his ankles were released. “There. Now you can run away all you like.”

“You’re not going to kill us?” the man asked cautiously, his voice quivering. “Even the Cursed are fighting the Forsaken?”

“Long story short, yah,” Gwen cut in.

“They talk!” another villager gasped.

“You hear!” Gwen responded sarcastically.

I walked around, systematically releasing villagers from their bonds.  “Lorna Crowley and some of the king’s men have set up a garrison at the stables to the west. Stay low and follow the tracks. You should make it without problems,” I informed them, ignoring Gwen.

“Th-thank you!” None of the villagers lingered long after I had freed them.  I just prayed that there were no new Forsaken waiting for them as they came out. Before too long, Gwen and I were alone in the tunnel.

“Remind me not to bite those things again, would you?” she commented.

I couldn’t help but laugh. “If their smell is any indication, I don’t imagine it was pleasant.”

“Do you have any more of that potion crap to wash out my mouth?” Wow, I didn’t think it would be that bad!

“Sorry, you’re out of luck.”

Gwen sighed and turned back into her cat form. I hoisted the axe up onto my shoulder and, together, we ventured further into the mines. There were some empty, dark passages that wound through the rocks. We hit a fork in the tunnel. One of the paths went down, while the other remained level, going off to the right. I decided I didn’t want to have to go further down if I could help it; not quite yet, anyway. Besides, I could hear more coming from the right.

Finally, the tunnel opened up again, this time into a much larger cavern. There were only a couple of guards patrolling around up here. But I could see a ledge not too far to the left that looked like it was overlooking more of the mine – perhaps where the other path led to.

“Work harder, you maggots!” one of the slavers hissed, lashing out with his whip and catching one poor soul on the back. The man’s agonized scream sent a shiver down my spine. “This ore is not going to mine itself!” It let out a gurgling chuckle, as if amused by what it considered to be wit.

I signaled to Gwen what the plan was. If there were more Forsaken down below, I didn’t want to allow these guards the opportunity to alert them. After catching a quick breath, I charged forward, Gwen easily pulling ahead of me. The guard must have heard our heavy steps, because he slowly turned around. He faced me just as I was swinging the axe to remove his head from his shoulders.

I looked past his corpse as he collapsed in time to see Gwen tearing the other one apart. For a moment, I thought we had successfully killed the Forsaken without making any noise. That is, until a couple of the slaves started screaming. I thought there may have been more soldiers coming up behind us, but their terrified eyes were fixated on us.

I let out an aggravated sigh. Spinning around towards the entrance to the cavern, I tensed my muscles and waited. Surely, the noise would attract more guards. But nothing ever came. Eventually, the slaves must have screamed themselves into exhaustion. Something occurred to me: the guards probably didn’t think humans screaming was worth investigating. It simply meant the slavers were doing their job.

“Are you done?” Gwen asked as she shifted back into her worgen form.

“We’re not going to hurt you,” I assured them quietly, not wanting risk an enemy hearing me. I approached them with the keys.

“But…you’re…you’re worgen!” the closest slave gasped in disbelief. They still trembled as I closed in. It wasn’t until I started unlocking their shackles did they finally stop shaking.

“We prefer the term ‘Furry Gilnean,’” I heard Gwen retort behind me. I couldn’t stop an audible snort as I suppressed a laugh. That’s so wrong. Nothing about this situation is funny.

One-by-one, I released these slaves as well. If my personal tally was accurate, we’d freed at least two dozen villagers. I told them where to go to get to safety, they actually thanked us, and hurried away.

“So where’s that abomination, thingy?” Gwen asked as the last of the villagers disappeared into the dark tunnel. I had almost forgotten about that. The leader of the slavers was still somewhere down here.

As if on cue, a low roar resounded through the cavern. “Why there no ore!” a deep voice bellowed. “Where guards? Bring me slaves…me punish!” The voice sounded lacking in intellect, but made up for it in malice. It had to be near.

Gwen and I crept towards the ledge overlooking the rest of the cavern. Down below were a few more Forsaken slavers forcing more villagers to work. Then, in the corner was a horrendous figure – the abomination, Brothogg. Just like the others I had fought a few days ago, he seemed to be stitched together from the parts of multiple creatures. He carried a vicious-looking whip in the hand of the arm protruding from his back in addition to a massive hook-and-chain and meat cleaver in the others.

“What in the world is that?” Gwen gasped.

“That’s an abomination,” I responded quietly.

Obeying the overseer’s demand, one of the slavers walked forward and grabbed a slave. The villager began pleading for mercy. He was struggling to escape, but the Forsaken troop was able to drag him towards Brothogg.

“We have to do something,” I stated. Gwen nodded. I looked around, trying to figure out a plan. We weren’t that far from the bottom floor of the chamber. I’ve fallen further…today. “When we get down there…” I cleared my throat. “I’ll distract Brothogg while you take out the other slavers.”

“Are you sure?”

I took a deep breath. “Yeah…I’m sure.” The poor villager was almost at Brothogg; we had to act quickly. “Go…now!” With that, I hopped off the ledge.

I hit the floor hard and ran forward. Gwen ran out ahead of me and jumped on one of the guards. I kept going on towards Brothogg. The abomination watched my approach, an amused grin spread across his face, showing of cracked, brown teeth.

I took the axe and swung at Brothogg, but the fat creature was surprisingly quick. He slammed the back of his hook into my side and knocked me to the ground. I cried out in pain. Brothogg gurgled out a low chuckle. “Puny dog…I crush!”

I scrambled to stand, groaning as I hoisted the axe up. I looked up at the abomination just in time to see him bringing the massive cleaver down. I raised the axe quick enough to deflect the attack, but the force sent the weapon from my hands clattering to the floor. Oh shit. I took several steps back as the abomination advanced on me.

“Heh heh…you make Brothogg laugh…so puny…so weak,” he taunted as I scrambled away. After a swift motion, he cracked the whip across my chest. The leather armor absorbed some of the lash, but it still felt like I’d been shot. I yelped and whimpered, falling to the ground.

This thing is going to kill me! And I was sure it would enjoy every last second of it. I tried to crawl away, but he quickly gained on me, the ground rumbling with each monstrous step. He loomed over me and I could not keep myself from trembling.  I’m not ready to die!

There was a constant rumbling in the ground now, out of sync with his lumbering footsteps. It sounded like whatever it was was getting closer. Brothogg raised his cleaver high above his flabby head. I could see the desire in his eyes – the anticipation. As his hand jerked forward for the final slice, I closed my eyes.

I heard the unmistakable crumbling of rocks as the rumbling became nearly deafening for a moment. And then – nothing. I was still alive, too. Cautiously, I opened my eyes. What in the name of the Light?  Long, thick vine-like roots had burst from the rocky floor of the mine. They were twisted and tangled around Brothogg, immobilizing him completely.

“What?” I gasped in disbelief. My eyes wandered off to the side and I could see Gwen holding out her hands towards Brothogg as if clenching the air. There was an eerie glow ather fingertips. Her teeth were gritted and her body began to shake, like she was struggling to keep him in place.

I hopped up and darted around the entangled abomination and collected the axe from the ground. Then, I took a running start towards Brothogg. Leaping high into the air, I brought the blade of the axe down onto his head. It cleaved through the stitched, rotting flesh and sank deep into the hideous creature.

For a moment, Brothogg’s body continued to struggle but eventually went limp. The roots retreated back into the stone and disappeared, allowing the fat pile of flesh to fall to collapse in a lifeless heap on the ground.  Brothogg is dead…for good.

I wrapped my arms across my torso and panted heavily. I hate those things…how they hell are they so strong?

“So…that’s what you meant,” Gwen commented, breathing heavily as well. “Abominations…I guess the name fits.”

I nodded. “Yeah…what was that you were doing, by the way?”

Gwen managed to flash me a prideful smile. “You fancied that, did you?” she responded. “Trade secret,” she added with a wink.

I surveyed the room. The bodies of the Forsaken littered the floor and the villagers stood by, watching us. Like the others, they still looked terrified; however, on some level, they must have realized that we were on their side after fighting Brothogg.

Slowly, I went around and freed the remaining villagers with my set of keys. I was still trying to catch my breath from the impact of the whip. My chest ached horribly; each breath sent a jolt of pain through me. We followed behind them as we ventured through the dark tunnels of the mine and found our way back outside. I took a deep breath as we reached fresh air; the stifling stench of the undead was starting to dissipate.

“Hey, you okay?” Gwen asked, circling around in front of me.

“I think so, why?” I responded through gritted teeth.

“I can hear your breathing…it’s jagged. You’re in pain.” She checked me from head to paw.

“I took a whip to the chest,” I explained. “I’ll get over it.” Gwen prodded my torso and an overwhelming pain shot through me. I doubled over, tenderly clutching my sides. It feels like I’m dying! My ribs must have been broken. I took several sharp breaths.

“Sorry, love,” Gwen apologized immediately. She helped me stand straight up. Gwen reached out again and I recoiled. “Calm down,” she pleaded, hovering both of her hands over my torso. She closed her eyes and seemed to be concentrating intently. Her fingertips began to glow green and I could feel a warmth emanating from her hands. Gently, she pressed her hands against my side. Pain shot through me again, but only for a moment before it went numb. It took only a moment before Gwen removed her hands. The pain was gone and breathing became much easier.

She swayed a little bit before falling forward and catching herself on her knees. “Gwen!” I gasped, dropping down to check on her.

Gwen was panting. “That…takes a lot out of…me,” she gasped between breaths. “Did it…work?”

“I feel fantastic, thanks,” I responded with a nod. She’s amazing. After a moment, I helped her back up. Together we made our way away from the mine slowly; Gwen’s legs shook as she walked. I asked her about the magic she had used and she explained a bit of how she did it. I didn’t fully understand it, but it had something to do with mixing her own life energy with the powers of nature around us. I could barely imagine how exhausting that would be; it sounded rough.

We found Lorna and the soldiers crouched behind some boulders and foliage outside of Emberstone Village. The villagers we had freed were nowhere to be seen. Gwen and I walked up to Lorna to report on what had happened in the mine.

“Well done,” Lorna commented when we finished our explanation. “We’ve sent them down to the livery. Liam arrived with some more help and he’s looking after the villagers,” she explained.

“How is Marcus doing?” I inquired. “I want to tell him Brothogg is dead.”

Lorna’s face fell. “Marcus succumbed to his wounds shortly after you left,” she responded solemnly. “But his soul will rest easy knowing that our people are no longer suffering under that monstrosity’s yoke.”

My stomach twisted guiltily. I don’t know why I felt responsible, but I did. I wondered why so few people knew how to use healing magic like Gwen. There had to be someone who could have helped him. Why hadn’t I told Gwen to help mend his wounds? The thought hadn’t even occurred to me.

Lorna cleared her throat, “Unfortunately, we don’t have time to mope around. The people are free…but the town is still occupied by the Forsaken,” she declared.

I blinked a couple of times, snapping myself out of it. “Do you have a plan?” I wondered. This is turning out to be a really long day. If it hadn’t been for the couple of hours’ break we had taken in Tempest’s Reach, I’d probably be on the verge of passing out again.

“They’re cut off from their main force in the city, so if we’re going to drive them out, now’s our chance. Their leader, Executor Cornell, is known for his unbound ruthlessness. Before he passed, Marcus told me of another: Vlanov the Mad – a so-called scientist and a member of the Royal Apothecary Society. I’m told he has been carrying out inhuman experiments on anyone too old or too weak to work the mines,” Lorna explained.

A Royal Apothecary? I’d heard about them and the horrible experiments they did out of spite for the living. I shuddered to think of what may have happened to the villagers left under his care. Brothogg was a violent brute, but at least he only dealt in physical pain. But a Royal Apothecary wouldn’t stop there.

“We will help take care of the underlings. You two should take care of Cornell and Vlanov. If we cut off the head, the rest will fall,” she instructed. “Are you two up for the task?”

I glanced over at Gwen uncertainly. She still looked pretty wiped out, but she nodded all the same. I wondered how much of her willingness had to do with wanting to stick with me. I should say no. They can do this without us, right? But…how many more Gilneans would die without our help? Where’s Lorna’s father? Where’s Darius or any of the other worgen? Why is it just Gwen and me? It ain’t fair.

I sighed. “We’ll get it sorted,” I stated, my drive to protect the other Gilneans overriding my trepidation.

“Brilliant,” Lorna smiled. “Do what you can to safely scout out the village. We’ll begin our attack soon and draw their attention.”

With that, Gwen and I left to approach the town, staying low and doing what could to hide behind cover. I could hear shouting coming from Emberstone – Forsaken were commanding more slaves to do something. There was also sadistic laughter rising above the shouting. We luckily managed to reach one of the buildings on the outskirts of town without being seen.

Gwen finally managed to control her breathing and transformed into a cat. I peeked around the corner of the building and immediately drew back as a Forsaken patrol passed along the road. Again, the stench of the undead met my nose. After a moment, I peered around again. The guards had passed and I could pretty safely see down the street.

In the distance to the north, near the watermill at the river, I could see a very peculiar Forsaken. He wore a pale green lab coat and was bald with the exception of a few tufts of hair that stuck out at bizarre angles. There was a strange tank filled with a green liquid on a pack on his back. There were cages near him; I could see a couple of captured villagers in the cages. That must be the apothecary!

A moment later, the sound of gunfire rang out and the streets burst into chaos. Forsaken soldiers could be seen running towards the battle. Vlanov looked around briefly before turning back to his work table, obviously unconcerned by the attack.

Now’s our chance! I jumped out from the corner and started running up the street towards the apothecary. I heard a yell to our left and turned just in time to dodge a Forsaken soldier taking a swipe at me with his blade. Before I could retaliate, Gwen pounced on him, pinning the undead to the ground and tearing apart his throat.

“Thanks,” I mentioned as Gwen stepped off of the still body. I reached down and retrieved the sword. This will come in handy. The blade was weighted strangely; it felt alien in my hands. I missed the feel of my old rapier; I was used to how that felt – how it was balanced.

I quickly looked around; it didn’t seem like any of the other soldiers had seen us. I turned back towards Vlanov and continued. It didn’t take long to reach the mad scientist. I didn’t even give him the chance to retaliate and cut him down before he even turned around to face us.

When the apothecary’s body lay motionless on the ground, I surveyed the little lab area. There were vials and flasks of chemicals all over the table. I had no idea what they were for, but my imagination was running wild with the possibilities. Not wanting to dwell on it further, I turned my attention to the cages.

They were empty. But…there were people here a moment ago! I knew I saw them. Had someone let them out before Gwen and I got to Vlanov? Maybe when we were attacked on our way here. I walked closer to the cages and inspected one of them – one I remembered had had a villager in it. There was a noxious, foul, green puddle at the bottom of the cage, slowly oozing out. A thin, greenish vapor rose off the liquid. The stench of it burned my nostrils; it was far more repulsive than even the rotten scent of the Forsaken. I immediately backed away from the cage, pressing the back of my hand to my snout to mask the smell. Was…was someone standing in that?  I had to suppress the urge to vomit.

I turned around and found Gwen back in her worgen form. There was a look of absolute revulsion on her face as she stared at the cage. “What foul alchemy is this?” she gasped. “It’s evil…unnatural.”

“Nothing about the undead is natural,” I pointed out, dropping my hand to my side.

Gwen shook her head. “There’s something different about this. I have this awful feeling. I don’t know what it is, but…” she trailed off as she looked over at me. “Naomi, your nose!”

“Huh?” I grunted, reaching up at touching my nose again – this time with the tips of my fingers.

“You’re bleeding!”

Sure enough, when I held my fingers up, I could see crimson blood smeared on the fur of my fingers. What in the name of the Light? I started playing through the last few minutes in my head. When did I get hit? I couldn’t think of anything.  My eyes wandered over to the cages and the ooze therein. Was it that? I quivered a little bit. I had only sniffed it for a moment. What sort of torture would it be to have to stand in it for an extended period of time? “I’m…I’m alright,” I finally assured her. I waited for a moment while I mentally checked myself over for any extra pain.

“Let’s get as far away from this place as we can,” Gwen proposed.

“We have to kill that Executor first,” I reminded her. I jerked my head to signal it was time to leave. She transformed and we hurried away, but the memories of those cages lingered in my mind.

We headed west through the town. I could still hear gunfire from Lorna and her soldiers and there weren’t many Forsaken left in the town. On a couple of occasions, we were clumsily attacked, but we were pretty easily able to dispatch the disorganized retaliations.

As we reached the town square, I caught sight of a rather-important-looking Forsaken. He wore heavy plate armor with fin-like blades jutting out from the shoulder-pads and gauntlets. He stood beneath a tall purple tent with two banners flanking the sides depicting part of a pale, vaguely-female face: the banner of the Forsaken. Another indication he was a high rank in the area was that he wasn’t involved in the fight; instead, he was commanding his underlings to do the fighting. There was no mistaking it: this was Executor Cornell.

Cornell was busying himself with something on a table in the tent. He was holding a meat cleaver which he periodically chopped down on the table. There was a much larger weapon leaning against a chair nearby, just out of Cornell’s reach. We have to take care of him quickly, before he gets his weapon. I couldn’t believe how nonchalant he looked with there being a battle going on so close by. He’d pay for that arrogance.

We charged forward, bursting into the tent. Cornell reacted much quicker than Vlanov and began swiping at us with the cleaver, apparently having decided it was too risky to go for his weapon. His swings were fast and powerful and I had to keep hopping away and deflecting the strikes with the sword I had acquired. When Gwen lunged at him, Cornell reached out with his free hand and caught her around the neck, just behind the jaw. He positioned her so that I couldn’t safely attack.

“You pitiful creatures,” he spat. “I can’t wait for the Dark Lady to cull this worthless country. Unfortunately, you won’t be there to enjoy it,” he threatened, raising his cleaver as Gwen struggled to free herself.

Her claws couldn’t penetrate his armor, making her unable to break his grip. As one, last ditch effort, she changed back into a worgen. Now being more humanoid, she was able to grab hold of Cornell’s arm and, with mighty force, was able to snap the bones. He released his grip and recoiled in agony.

Gwen scrambled away, allowing me to charge in and finally take a swing of my own at Cornell. He tried to dodge, but I caught him in the neck with the blade. It bit into the rotting flesh of his neck and came to a stop when I hit the spine. There was a shocked expression frozen on the executor’s face as he teetered back and eventually fell to the ground.

As we turned to leave the tent, we heard a gurgling laugh. “You may have killed me…but you cannot stop what’s coming…the Plague is here. There will be nothing left…no bones for the buzzards to pick clean,” Cornell stated spitefully. We turned and watched him as the spark of life fizzled out of the Forsaken leader.

“What do you think he meant?” I wondered aloud.

Gwen was quiet for a bit, her face pointed north. “I…I’m not sure,” she finally replied. “Nothing good, that’s for sure.”

As we turned back around, I saw Lorna and several human soldiers running up to us. “We’ve managed to route their forces here,” Lorna reported. “My men are hunting down the stragglers, but we’ve done it…We have the people of Emberstone on our side now thanks to you,” she exclaimed.

“So what now?” I asked.

“Now, we work on cleansing the village of any trace of the Forsaken occupation,” Lorna explained. “As for you two, there’s nothing else for you to do here. You’ve already done so much. Head back to the stables, get your horses, and return to Tempest’s Reach. Go be with your loved ones and tell the king and Lady Armstead we can safely move the people up here,” she instructed. Lorna leaned forward and threw an arm around me. “You’ve more than earned a couple days’ rest. But be ready: the battle for Gilneas City is coming.

---

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The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 14: Coup D’etat

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 14: Coup D’etat

When I awoke peaceably the next morning, I found myself staring down the length of a long furry snout…my snout. I let out a long sigh. I had a long way to go before I could stay in my human form without changing back at the drop of a hat. I wondered just how long it would take to make it second nature – or if it ever would.

I could feel Daniel on top of me. His face was buried in my fur-covered chest. He snored loudly, but the sound was muffled by my cleavage. The previous night’s events fluttered into my brain and I let out a humiliated groan.

That must have been enough to rouse Daniel. I could feel him moving around and finally push himself up. “Good morning,” he greeted with a yawn. He stared at me for a moment before letting himself fall back on top of me.

I grunted as he landed. “Hey,” I complained.

“Sorry; you’re just so comfortable,” he responded, rolling off me and propping himself up on his elbow. “So last night was fun,” Daniel commented with a sheepish smile.

“Yeah…” I replied distantly, thinking through it all again.

“Did I fuck you so good, you turned into a wolf?” His grin widened and I could tell he was doing everything he could to hold back laughter.

I closed my eyes and let out a long exhale. “That…may have happened,” I admitted, feeling my cheeks heat up beneath the fur. “And what’s with the language?” It wasn’t like him to be so crass. That was my thing.

Daniel began laughing. “What can I say? I saw the opportunity and I took it,” he responded. He rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. His eyebrows raised up. “The howling was a nice touch, by the way,” he snickered.

I brought my large hands up to my face. “Light just kill me now,” I groaned. To say I was embarrassed would be to call a typhoon just ‘a little bit of rain.’

Daniel kept laughing. “Oh settle down, Love. Do I really have to say it?”

“No, I suppose you’ve already said it too many times,” I responded. I didn’t need another lecture on how he didn’t care how I looked and all that…stuff. I guess the fact he continued after I changed is proof enough of that.

“It is pretty spectacular that you can change forms though. Just more evidence my fiancé an amazing woman,” he encouraged. “You get the best of both worlds.”

“I wish people would stop saying that,” I grumbled. If I heard it much more, I might actually start to believe it. “I guess we should get up and see if there’s any breakfast being served.” With a grunt, I sat up. Instinctively, I sniffed the air. There was the distinct scent of sex in the room; it was strong on my sensitive nose. “Yeah, definitely time to go,” I added, wanting to let the room air out a bit before someone happened to come along.

There was a roll of thunder and I realized that I could still hear the rain. My ears must have just grown to ignore it until the sound of thunder forced my attention on the storm. I wondered if the mayor would have the people evacuate to Tempest’s Reach in this. I continued to dwell on it while I slipped my clothes on. I bent over to pull my pants off, flashing my furry butt at Daniel.

“I have a question, Poppet. Why does your friend have a tail and you don’t?” Daniel inquired as he, too, got up from the bed and stretched out.

“That’s a…uh…long story,” I responded, realizing he had no idea she was a druid.

“I’m getting the feeling you don’t know how to tell a short story,” he teased. “Well, if you’re not in a disclosing mood, maybe we should head downstairs. Maybe a little breakfast will make you feel more like sharing,” he commented.

I nodded as I checked to make sure my ring was in place; it was. I made for the door, opened it and stepped out. I tripped as my paw collided with something large but soft. I performed the most brilliantly spectacular tumble into the hallway.

“What in the…” I grunted, rubbing my back where I hit the wall. A gigantic cat lay on the ground outside the door. Damn it, Gwen. She looked like she had been sleeping there, but she was definitely awake now, staring at me as if wondering what all the commotion was about all of a sudden. What’s she doing here?

“Where did this creature come from?” Daniel asked from the other side of the bedroom.

Gwen’s ears perked up and she spun her head around to face Daniel. She rose to her paws and let out a low growl.

Daniel backed away cautiously, putting his hands out. “That’s a good kitty.”

“Gwen!” I scolded.

She stopped growling and transformed back into a worgen and rising onto two paws. She was naked again. “It’s not nice to call people ‘creatures,’ she commented at a very confused Daniel.

“I…I’m…sorry?” he stammered uncertainly.

“Why were you sleeping outside my room?” I wondered aloud.

She shrugged. “I didn’t you to walk off without me,” she responded matter-of-factly. I wondered if there was more to that. I wondered if she didn’t just want to get as close to me as possible. Or maybe she heard me last night and just wanted to stand guard to make sure I was safe.

“Well go get some clothes on,’ I insisted. “We’re going to get breakfast.”

“Do I have to?”

“You’ll scare the locals if you don’t,” I pointed out. “Come on, we want them to like us.”

She gave me the most pathetic little pouty-face. “Fine…if I have to,” she muttered, storming off to the room next door.

Daniel hurried up to my side. “You didn’t tell me your friend was a druid,” he mumbled. I saw a hint of realization in his eyes. “She was that cat that followed us around the night Gilneas City was attacked, wasn’t she?”

I sighed and nodded. “She was,” I admitted. “Look, before you give me another lecture: I know I shouldn’t have hidden you from her, but I can’t change that I did, okay? Let’s just say now you two know each other and move on.”

Daniel chuckled while rolling his eyes. “Sounds like she already gave you hell over it.” He didn’t chastise me further. “I guess that explains the tail. See that wouldn’t have been such a long story,” Daniel teased.

A moment later, Gwen showed up, looking strangely out of place in her shirt and pants. She walked past me and stopped. I could hear her sniffing. She looked over at me and grinned. “Smells like someone had a little fun last night,” she taunted under her breath.

I would have been glowing with embarrassment had it not been for the fur. I was a little more than extremely self-conscious now. “Just don’t,” I requested timidly.

“Settle…Nothing wrong with a dog burying his bone,” she giggled. I thanked the Light Daniel didn’t seem to be listening this conversation.

“Please, shut up!” I growled under my breath. I could hear Gwen giggle to herself rather maniacally.

“What were you two talking about?” Daniel wondered, finally joining in.

“Nothing,” I snapped, probably a little too quickly. “Let’s go.”

Together, we marched down the stairs. The inn was considerably more crowded than the day before. In fact, I suspected every one of the survivors were packing into the room. Everyone must’ve wanted to stay out of the rain.

Mayor Armstead stood at the front of the room. I could see my father standing nearby her, looking suspiciously triumphant. I shuffled around a bit once my mind reached a conclusion as to why. I’m sure Daniel felt the same way.

“Ladies and gentlemen, your attention please!” Lady Armstead bellowed; she was surprisingly adept at projecting her voice for someone so small. Maybe one day I’ll command the presence of one of these leaders. The entire room went silent. “Some of you may have heard that today will make for Tempest’s Reach along the path through the Blackwald. Lord Darius Crowley…” There was an audible murmur of uncertainty through the crowd. “…and the worgen of Gilneas have regained their sanity. They have given their word to defend us whilst we journey east. We have confirmed other survivors have gathered in Tempest’s Reach. There will be security in numbers,” she explained.

“As you are all undoubtedly aware, we are in the midst of another thunderstorm. We can wait a short number of hours to see if it abates, but if it does not, we will have no option but to begin moving by mid-day. After you have all had a chance to eat, I need all able-bodied men and women to help prepare the carts for the move. The Forsaken will not break us. Glory to Gilneas!” Mayor Armstead then fell silent, only to be replaced with cheering.

A couple of minutes later, they began serving portions. It was difficult to maneuver around the all of the people. No one seemed to be leaving. It took way too long to get way too little food. I really hope there’s more to eat at Tempest’s Reach; I don’t know how much longer I’ll be able to sustain myself on this. I started to feel a little guilty for the snack they’d given Gwen and me yesterday. That was food someone else probably needed. We decided to return to the room to avoid the crowd. Thankfully, the smell had all but disappeared.

“Is this really all there is?” Gwen complained as we made our way back towards the stairs. We were obviously on a similar wavelength.

“I’m sure there will be more to eat later, once we get to Tempest’s Reach,” I responded while also trying to convince myself. “Let’s just be happy there still anything left.”

“I guess,” she grumbled.

We all sat on the bed when we got back to the room. I was in the middle and the other two both sat insanely close to me. We ate in relative silence, but it did not last long – since the food didn’t last long. The storm continued outside.

“So did something happen at that weird tree when the king showed up?” Daniel asked out of nowhere.

My mind immediately recalled watching King Greymane transform before my eyes. It was clear not even Lord Godfrey had any idea. I cleared my throat. “Um…like what?” I responded, trying to buy some time while I started thinking of an explanation.

“I don’t know. Did he like get attacked or something? When he came back, his clothes were pretty ripped up. I happened to catch a glimpse of him while I was taking a break,” Daniel clarified.

“Oh…um…no, nothing strange like that that I’m aware of,” I reported, glancing over at Gwen. She looked like she really wanted to say it. Thankfully, she held her tongue. “Must’ve…um…must’ve been on his way back. Those trees are sharp; maybe he got caught in something.” It was a weak excuse, but I couldn’t think of anything better. “What have you been up to at the forge?” I asked, changing the subject abruptly.

He didn’t seem to mind the shift and went on to explain that he had been working on new arms and armaments for the Gilnean citizens. He’d helped make more swords in the last day than he could count. “It’s been difficult. Of course, Duskhaven’s blacksmith is out there; and there’s me. But that’s it; no one else here knows a blacksmith’s hammer from a mining pick. Your dad and a couple other people have been helping out, but…let’s just say this isn’t what they were trained to do,” he stated, a hint of frustration in his voice.

I laughed. “Yeah, he’s a hell of a merchant, but I couldn’t see him being a smith,” I acknowledged.

“I’m working on something for you, but it isn’t quite finished yet,” he mentioned. “I don’t want to tell you what it is yet, though. Not until it’s finished, anyway.”

“Then why tell me about it?” I groaned, nudging him with my shoulder. “Now I’m going to sit here and wonder.” On the other hand, maybe it’ll help take some things off my mind.

He opened his mouth to respond, but there was a knock on the door followed immediately by Mayor Armstead letting herself in. “There you are! I trust you three are having an uneventful morning?”

“We’re having a hungry morning,” Gwen cut in.

“Yes, I’m afraid there are many who share that sentiment. But that should change soon,” she responded distantly. She looked to Daniel. “We’ve fired up the forge already in hopes of getting a little more done before we leave Stormglen. Would you be willing to continue what you started yesterday?” she requested. I was surprised she didn’t outright tell him to do it.

“Of course, Ma’am,” Daniel consented.

“I would also like to talk to you about a…special project for the next couple of days when we get a moment,” she added. Mayor Armstead put her eyes on Gwen and me. “As for you two. Genn and Krennan left for Tempest’s Reach very early this morning. Genn mentioned something about needing to have words with Lord Godfrey. I want you to meet up with them and see if there is anything that needs being done before the rest of the refugees arrive,” she stated. “It would be better if you two…introduced yourselves before they become overwhelmed with the new arrivals. It might give them a chance to…process everything,” she explained.

“You want us to go out in that?” Gwen complained while a roll of thunder punctuated her point.

“Oh come on, you big baby,” I teased. “Like you’re not used to it.”

“Sure I’m used to it, but I want to get used to being dry. In case you hadn’t noticed, we don’t exactly smell pleasant after we’ve been out in the elements,” she countered. In fact, I have noticed that. She let out an annoyed sigh. “Fine. But I demand a chance for a legitimate bath after we’re finished today.”

“Deal,” Mayor Armstead promised. “And for what it’s worth, there’s a good chance we’ll all have to trudge through this ourselves.”

“We’d better get going, yeah?” I commented, rising to my paws. Daniel was the next to stand. “I’ll see you soon in Tempest’s Reach, Love,” I assured him, planting the end of my snout on his forehead. I imagined it would be awkward to kiss him on the lips in this form and I definitely didn’t want to attempt it in the present company. Gwen stood up and looked at me expectantly. “I’m not giving you a kiss; you’re coming with me,” I declared, to which she struck me lightly in the back of the head.

“Thank you both. We will see you soon, I trust,” Mayor Armstead responded gratefully. “Now Mister LeReaux, please follow me so we can discuss my plans.” Daniel left with her.

Walking over to the desk, I placed the leather cuirass over my shirt and slipped into the leather pants with the cotton pants on underneath them. As for the other pieces, I stuffed them into my satchel for later. There was no point in putting them on; it wasn’t like we were going into battle or anything like that. I jerked my head towards the door. “Come on. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we get that bath.”

Begrudgingly, she followed me out of the room, down the stairs, and towards the entrance to the inn. We stood in the doorway for some time, staring out at the rain. Maybe it’ll let up in the next few seconds. It did not. We were wasting time. Finally, we stepped out and the cascading water began to pummel us, sticking to our fur.

We hurried through the town and made for the stone road that headed east out of Stormglen. After passing the wall at the town border, we became surrounded by the gnarled trunks of the Blackwald. Sadly, though the trees were everywhere, the bare branches offered little shelter from the rain. By this point, we were both waterlogged anyway, so it wouldn’t make much difference.

“This weather is awful,” Gwen complained as we moved along the road.

“It can’t be much worse than before we were cured,” I pointed out. “I mean, you were outside in this all the time.”

“Yeah, but now I have the presence of mind to complain about it,” Gwen scoffed.

The path started to elevate; the incline made it more difficult to keep up my brisk gait. “This is getting kind of rough,” I commented between increasingly heavy breaths.

“Now who’s the one complaining?”

“Shut it,” I snapped.

Gwen laughed and then fell forward, dropping onto her hands. She continued alongside me at a trot on all fours, her butt stuck high in the air. “You should try this; it makes it easier,” she advised.

“You look kind of ridiculous,” I pointed out.

“I don’t rightly care.”

I started to slow, but she kept right on going, seemingly unimpeded by the incline. It’s not like anyone is going to see us. With a sigh, I too, dropped onto my hands and took several tentative steps forward. I couldn’t really describe how it felt; just that it felt oddly natural to trot like this. Gwen was right: it was considerably easier to keep going without getting tired.

“See what I mean?” she asked excitedly.

“I guess…”

“See, this is one of the reasons I always liked being a kitty. It feels so liberating,” she stated.

I let out another sigh. “But I feel like I’m giving in to the bestial side…and I don’t like my ass pointing to the sky for all to see.”

“I bet Daniel wouldn’t mind it,” Gwen teased. I groaned. “I know you guys were going together before Gilneas City, but I can’t believe he’s into the whole fur and fangs thing.”

“Can we not talk about this?” I requested with another groan.

Gwen snickered. “Since when were you such a bloody prude?” She caught the annoyed glare I threw at her. “Oh right…little miss ‘I don’t want to be a worgen,’” she taunted. “We got that whole curse thing sorted, so it’s not that big of a deal.”

“Maybe not for you, but I liked being human,” I argued, feeling myself getting worked up. I became painfully aware of how I was moving. And I’m walking like a damn dog, too!

“And now you can be from time to time…it makes it more special,” Gwen countered.

I fell silent, refusing to feed into her taunts. I wish I could be half as comfortable as she was. I turned my attention, instead, to the twisted black trunks of the trees we passed. After a couple of minutes, Gwen’s pace slowed and she eventually came to a stop. I took the opportunity to stand up as I spun around to face her.

“Something wrong?” I asked. The rain started to let up.

Her expression was sullen…morose…as she stared at the ground. “I’m sorry,” Gwen sniffled. “I…I shouldn’t keep teasing you about…you know…this.” I wasn’t sure how to respond to this sudden change in her demeanor. I stood there, inspecting every inch of her face; she wouldn’t – or couldn’t – bring herself to meet my gaze.

“What’s gotten into you?” was all I could think to ask. There was something else up, but I couldn’t tell what.

“With the exception of the couple of stuffy old men in the order, there was never anyone like me in Gilneas.” Her voice was low and sorrowful. “And even among the druids, I was considered a bit off…” Gwen took a deep breath. “But you…you were relatively normal – compared to me. In a way, I was jealous. Now, we’re both worgen and here I am making jokes about how you want be your old self again. If anyone understands what it feels like to not be normal, it should be me.”

My eyes widened when I realized what she had really been saying. She wants me to feel alright with this body…because she looks to me to feel normal. If I felt normal in this body…  When it came down to it, she was afraid…terrified of isolation.

“Well, whether I like t or not, I am a worgen,” I admitted to both her and myself. I walked over to her and squatted down. I directed her chin so that she couldn’t not look at me. “Maybe it was easier for you to accept since you spent half your life covered in fur…” Though, I wonder if it is actually easy for her to accept. “…It’s just taking me some time, okay?” I thought about what it felt like to change into my human form; sure I looked normal, but that pressure was always there to let the wild side out.  I couldn’t keep pretending like it would be possible to feel normal ever again as a human…I’d always feel like I’m hiding who I am…what I am.  I had to get used to this eventually. “Oh…and I was never normal,” I added with a smirk.

That brought Gwen back. “Well no…but compared to me, you were quite plain.”

The rain had slowed from a deluge to little more than a light downpour. I jerked my head back up the road before dropping down onto all fours. “Shall we hightail it on to town? With all this rain, I’m just dreaming of that bath.”

“Hey, I was the one who made the deal, I get it first,” she argued.

“You’ll have to beat me there,” I challenged before taking off down the road, sprinting. Again, I wasn’t sure I liked how natural it felt. But I guess it’ll be a good thing if and when I decide this isn’t so bad. I could hear Gwen’s claws clicking against the stone behind me.

The trees whipped past me as I dashed up the road.  I have to admit, climbing the trail is so much easier on four legs. A moment later, I caught movement out of the corner of my eyes. Before I completely registered what was going on, a large cat darted out ahead of me.

“Hey! No fair!” I yelled after her between breaths.

Gwen roared in response and just kept going. We zoomed past the lamp posts and fences as we raced. I tried to push myself hard, but I reached my limit for now. The rain, though sparse now, whipped at my face as I ran. I could only imagine how it felt at Gwen’s speed. Before long, the trees of the Blackwald began to thin out.

We emerged onto the side of a cliff; the sea extended off to our left. Up ahead, I could see a watchtower before a bridge. Beyond that, several tall buildings rose above the mountain slopes. “Gwen! Hold up!” I yelled ahead of me. I watched her skid to a halt.

She transformed back into her tailed-worgen form and sat on the ground. “What?” she complained as I slowed and stopped near her. “Didn’t like that I was winning?”

“I figured the residents of Tempest’s Reach might get the wrong message if they saw us sprinting towards them like that,” I explained rationally. “Remember, we want them not to shoot us.”

“I suppose you have a point,” she sighed, standing up with me.

We walked towards the bridge as I brushed my matted hair out of my face. Having had time to adjust to the other movements, I was a little unsure on my paws now. Gwen seemed completely unfazed.

“What’s that?” Gwen wondered as we approached the watchtower near the bridge.

It took me a moment to see what she was referring to. Just around the corner of the building, there was a pair of boots sticking out. At first, I thought they were just discarded footwear until they moved. “There’s someone there. Let’s check it out.” We hurried up to the side of the building and then crept along the wall. I didn’t want to scare whoever it was.

Slowly, I turned around the corner. It was Krennan. He was slumped against the wall, groaning and slowly, weakly, moving. His clothes were in tatters and he was covered in mud. “Krennan!” I gasped. “What happened?” Where’s King Greymane?

Krennan slowly turned to stare up at me. Gwen stayed behind the corner. It took him a moment to recognize me; his eyes were unfocused. “Naomi! Genn…they’ve taken Genn…they’ve taken…our king!” he grunted as if every word caused him pain.

“Who did?” I asked immediately. Are the Forsaken out this far? Impossible!

“Godfrey,” he muttered. “He managed to convince two of the eastern lords to go along with his plan…King Greymane…they took him prisoner at…Tempest’s Reach!” Krennan explained through strained teeth.

I helped him to his feet and he leaned against the wall for support. “Are you okay?”

“I’ll live,” he responded. “They confronted us here…the king agreed to go with them when they started having me beaten.”

“Why would they do that?” I wondered aloud. I know Lord Godfrey hates worgen, but to kidnap the king? Gwen emerged from the corner and stood next to me.

“The fool seems to think he can strike a deal with the Forsaken by turning King Greymane over to them,” Krennan explained. His eyes drifted over to Gwen and then back to me. “They must have hit me harder than I thought,” he mumbled.

“You’re not seeing double, old timer,” Gwen commented.

A puzzled expression spread across his wrinkled face. “But…the serum is…”

“Irrelevant,” I interrupted, only deepening his confusion. Nobody told him? “It’s a long story and I’ll fill you in later. For now, just know that we got the whole curse business sorted…for the most part. You remember my friend Gwen?”

“The girl from Gilneas City?”

“One and the same,” Gwen stated.

“Why, yes…of course…I wish we could be meeting again under happier circumstances.”

“What should we do about Godfrey?” I inquired. This day isn’t going to be fun…at all.

Gwen bared her teeth. “I think we should execute them all for treason, personally,” she proposed.

Krennan shook his head. “Most of the lords’ men are peasants conscripted to do their lord’s bidding. That, or they’re refugees from Stormglen who have been forced into service in exchange for food and shelter…and it does us no good to kill so many of our own,” he declared, voice regaining a bit of strength. “No…We need to resolve this with as little bloodshed as possible. If you can assassinate the traitorous lords, we might be able to keep this from getting out of hand.”

Assassinate? I shuddered a little bit at the word. But I couldn’t say I disagreed with what he was saying. I didn’t want any more otherwise-innocent Gilnean blood to be on my hands. “Who are the lords?” I asked. There were a few well-known nobles that lived out here; it would be a shame to kill the wrong ones.

“Baron Ashbury and Lord Walden have sided with Godfrey,” Krennan explained. Of course…the two richest pricks in the region…Godfrey must have promised them quite a bit if he could get them to risk treason. With the money they hoarded, they could buy half the population of Gilneas. “Ashbury’s manor is attached to the great lighthouse…and the Walden estate is up the road at the end of the town. If you’re looking for them, you might want to start there.”

“They’re going to be on the lookout for worgen,” I realized out loud. “We’d be killed on sight.”

Krennan’s face fell. “You’re right. I…” he trailed off, looking absolutely defeated.

Something sparked in my brain. “I think I have an idea.” I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. It’s time to change…I need to be human for this. Almost immediately, I could sense my body changing. It is definitely getting easier to do.

“By the Light,” Krennan gasped. “How…”

I opened my eyes, glad to see the absence of my long snout. Having lost my fur, I began to shiver beneath the cold rain. I grabbed the waist of my pants immediately to keep myself from flashing the old man. “Like I said…it’s a long story,” I replied in my normal, clear voice. I took a moment tighten my belt and tie off my shirt. “Gwen,” was all I had to say.

She nodded and immediately turned herself back into her cat form. Not very conspicuous, but they won’t be looking for creatures like her. I quickly glanced myself over. I still looked quite awkward in the oversized clothes, despite having secured them to try to compensate for my smaller form. I also had no shoes; I wiggled my bare toes on the wet stone as I stared down at them. If anything, I still stand out more than Gwen will.

“Hopefully this will let us get close enough to the lords without attracting too much attention,” I stated, staring across the bridge at Tempest’s Reach. I saw the lighthouse Krennan had referred to standing tall off in the distance, precariously perched atop a massive stone that jutted out of the water. I hope I can stay this way long enough to get there. I just need to stay calm.

“It’s the best plan we have. If we waited for Mayor Armstead and the others, I’m afraid this will become far too bloody a conflict than Gilneas can bear with the Forsaken after us,” Krennan mentioned darkly. “Again, I’m afraid the people have to ask too much of you.”

“Well, someday it’ll be someone else’s turn,” I commented with a smirk. “But I don’t have the luxury to complain right now.” I turned. “We’ll put an end to this,” I assured him. I gestured for Gwen to go and we marched towards the bridge.

I could hear my feet slap on the stone as we walked – an odd contrast to the clicking of Gwen’s massive claws. We probably look like the most bizarre pair. I wonder if I could pass Gwen off as an exotic pet. But…how would someone dressed like me possibly afford such a purchase? I began formulating a convincing identity.

As we neared the first set of buildings that dotted the steep trail up the mountains, I saw that they had set up a guard checkpoint. A couple of humans stood in the road with rifles in hand. They were dressed in the coats and vests common amongst the middle class with a top-hat perched on their head. They must have been conscripted by the lords.

“You there, halt!” one of the guards commanded, raising his gun towards us. “Who are you? State your business!”

My heart-rate started to increase dramatically. Breathe…don’t lose control or you’ll be dead for sure. My mind scrambled to come up with a response. “Um…my name is Cynthia Hammond,” I announced. Why did that name come to mind? “I was a deckhand on a merchant ship, the Celeste, before it was sunk by the Forsaken. I’m just looking for a safe place to stay,” I explained, hoping that they bought it.

“What’s that thing you’ve got following you?” the other asked, weapon primed on Gwen. I could hear her growling quietly next to me.

“My pet,” I declared strongly. Sorry, Gwen.

“I ain’t never seen something like that here,” the second guard countered.

I cleared my throat. “Well of course not…I found her on one of my trading trips abroad. Ever heard of a place called Ashenvale? They’re all over the place there,” I responded, closely inspecting their reactions. I wanted to get as much warning as possible that I’d need to run for it.

“What’s with your wonky clothes?”

I paused for a moment. “I…uh…lost everything when the Forsaken attacked. My regular clothes got ruined in the Blackwald and I found these along the way. Do you have anything that might fit me better?”

The guards looked at each other and then back at me. My body tensed up a little while their eyes were upon me. What are they going to do? Did they buy it? I held my breath. “Must’ve been one big fellow what owned those clothes you found,” the first guard commented. I just noticed how much I was shivering. In an instant, his expression softened. “Can’t let a young lady like yourself stay out here to freeze in the elements.” They both lowered their weapons. “Move along to the tavern up the road. They’ll get you taken care of right quick.”

I exhaled slowly. “Th-thank you,” I stammered in disbelief. It worked! Gwen and I walked past them and up the road and into Tempest’s Reach.

It was odd; if the survivors from Stomglen had met up with those that already lived here, I would have expected there to be people out and about. I wonder if the business with the king has people on edge and staying indoors. The rain probably didn’t help either. Gilneans were never a people to be too averse to the rain, but it still was much more pleasant to be dry.

A single guard walked up and down the main road carrying a rifle and sporting a long rapier at his belt. He was followed closely by a large mastiff that sniffed the ground as it walked. As they approached us, the dog began to growl menacingly. Gwen and I both froze where we stood.

“Whoa, there,” the guard commanded the dog. “Sorry about that, Miss. We trained these dogs to sniff out worgen, but I guess you can never really get them to ignore other animals. He must not be too thrilled about your curious pet, there. What is it?”

“Uh…nightsaber from the lands to the west,” I responded. “Sniff out worgen?” I asked cautiously, watching as the dog kept snarling and barking at both of us. Can it tell what we are?

“That’s right, Miss. We were told there might be an attack soon, so we wanted to make sure we would be ready the moment those beasts tried to sneak in,” the guard reported. “Hey, you daft idiot, settle down,” he commanded. “You’d better move along before he breaks off his leash,” the man advised.

I wasn’t about to argue with him and sped along. “That was close, Gwen,” I muttered quietly. “Even in these forms, I think it knew what we are,” I realized. Gwen let out a little whine. “Hopefully we don’t run into too many of those. And hopefully their masters are cork-brained enough to think the same way that bloke did.” She nodded her feline head.

Up ahead, I could hear arguing. Without being in my worgen form, I couldn’t quite make out what they were arguing about, but one of the voices was very distinctly that of Lord Godfrey. I ran towards the voices, Gwen at my heels, and then stopped outside of an open, flat area that must have been the town square. Across the road behind us was the cliff overlooking the sea. The entrance to the plaza had been all but barricaded off, save for a narrow entryway. There were a few buildings leading into the square and one of them was huge. With its location but apparent size, I wondered if it was the home of one of the lesser eastern lords.

I could see Lord Godfrey standing in the center of the square, talking quite loudly with someone who was clearly another member of the nobility – from what he was wearing. Nearby – across the plaza from the large house – King Greymane stood in his human form inside a tall cage atop a cart. He stared at the two men in the center. For a moment, his eyes flitted to me as I peaked around cautiously, but there was no visible reaction on his face.

“Lord Godfrey, you cannot be serious about this!” the other man declared. “What gives you the right to rebel against your king?” This man had longer, dark hair and friendly mutton chops.

“He is leading our people to ruin, Lord Hewell,” Lord Godfrey claimed. So that’s Lord Hewell…not one of the ones we have to kill. “I will not stand by and let the Forsaken wipe us out while he fails to take any meaningful action.” You were happy to follow him until yesterday, you bigoted prick! I could feel a bit of anger starting to rise up in me and the pressure to show my wolfish form became much more noticeable.

Lord Hewell frowned. “And what makes you think the Banshee Queen will recall her forces if you hand Genn over to her? The Forsaken are not known for their trustworthiness,” he pointed out.

“At the very least it will slow them long enough for us to get to safety through the Greymane Wall,” Godfrey declared. “We are moving forward with this plan whether or not you agree with us, Hewell.”

“The people will not like this.”

“The people will like what we pay them to like.” I can’t believe he actually said that. Did he really think money could really buy loyalty? The anger flared again and I had to take control of myself.

I wanted to stick around and hear the rest of their argument, but Gwen nudged me. She’s right. If we’re going to confront Godfrey, we need to cut off his support. I carefully snuck past the square and we continued up the road.

A little further up the road, the elevation leveled out to a large circular bit of road. In the center was a tall, wooden post with signs pointing off in several directions and documents posted along it. Beyond that was what looked like a small livery and hitch-posts. There were several guards lined up there, each with their own mastiffs. To the left, the road continued up the side of the mountain. To the right was the bridge leading to Baron Ashbury’s cliff-side manor. Along the long, stone bridge, I could see a guard patrolling back and forth, probably with his own mutt in tow.

“Well, here goes nothing,” I whispered.

Gwen and I hesitantly walked towards the bridge. Right away, I could hear the dogs starting to growl as they watched us approach. My heart started to pound in my chest again and I really had to focus to contain myself. Stay calm…if you freak out, they’ll know for sure. I forced myself to march more confidently.

As I reached the bridge, the patrolling guard stopped us. “What is your business here, Miss?” he demanded. He glanced down at Gwen. “And what is that?” There was disgust in his voice.

“They told me at the edge of town to come and talk to Baron Ashbury about what I can do to help around town,” I lied. My eyes shot to his mastiff, which did not look to happy we were there. “And this is my pet nightsaber. I used to work on a merchant ship before the Forsaken showed up and picked her up during my travels.”

“Why would they send you to Baron Ashbury?” he wondered out loud.

My chest tightened; I could hear my heart beating in my ears. “I don’t know,” I responded. “I just know they told me to. I didn’t ask them why.” I figured ignorance was the best way to go with this one.

The dog was barking like mad, nearly foaming at the mouth as it struggled against its leash. The guard kept the dog at bay, though. “Follow me; I’ll take you to my lord, myself,” he commanded.

I have a bad feeling about this. Hesitantly, we followed. The mastiff begrudgingly went with his master, but kept trying to turn and snarl at us.  I didn’t dare try to speak as he escorted us across the bridge. I just stared ahead.

Once at the other end, the path took a sharp incline and spiraled up the spire-like rock. At the top was the Ashbury manor. At the far end of the impressive building was the lighthouse tower. The beacon was lit in the dark weather, stormy weather. With the exception of that, the house was cast in shadows. It gave off a very eerie aura and my skin started to crawl just staring at it. I really hope that’s not the worgen coming out.

The guard marched directly to the entrance and heaved the heavy door open. “My lord!” he called, his voice echoing through the empty hall. He led us deeper into the mansion. There were intermittent torches lining the walls, casting an uneven light on the portraits of the Ashbury family line. Their gaunt, smug faces almost made what we had come to do easier.

He pushed open another door into what appeared to be some sort of library. The hearth was lit across the room and a man sat in a large chair near it. The man was bald with a full, white beard. His face showed the same privileged sense of entitlement I had seen in the portraits in the hall and I could tell by the apparent quality of his clothing he was the lord of this estate: Baron Ashbury.

“What is the meaning of this interruption?” the baron questioned, his condescending voice striking a nerve. It reminds me so much of Godfrey.

“My lord, this young lady tells me she was sent to meet with you,” the guard reported.

“Meet with me? For what purpose?” he demanded. Baron Ashbury fixated his eyes on me and a disapproving sneer spread across his face. “Speak, girl.”

I closed my eyes for a moment to check my emotions. “I want to help with the exchange of King Greymane for the lives of our countrymen. They told me at the entrance to town that you were the man I should talk to,” I responded.

“Is that so?” Baron Ashbury wondered. He turned his eyes back to the guard. “Go and check with the perimeter guards,” he commanded. I began to wonder just how suspicious my explanation was. The guard nodded and left immediately. “Well then, girl, let us sit and talk,” he invited, beckoning to a chair that sat opposite the hearth from him. “And when he returns, we’ll know if there is truth to what you’re saying.”

I swallowed hard and obeyed him, taking a seat in the luxurious chair. Gwen sat on the floor next to me, waiting patiently. I began to wonder how long I would have before the guard came back and they figured out I was lying. I shouldn’t wait too long.

“Interesting pet you have there. I may wish to acquire one when this is all over. Tell me, where did you find it?” the baron asked.

“The continent to the west, across the Great Sea,” I responded.

“And how, pray tell, did you find yourself so far away from home?” he inquired, leaning forward.

“I worked as a deckhand on the merchant ship, the Celeste,” I responded. “I came across this fine specimen on one of our journeys.” I studied his face to gauge his reaction.

He looked pensive – like he was actively pondering something I had said. “That would be the ship of Captain Malmin, yes?” he checked.

“Y-yes,” I stuttered in response.

Baron Ashbury smiled malevolently. “There were only a handful of merchant ships allowed to leave our waters. Because of my position, I made it my business to know them. Your captain is a honorable man, young lady…a man whose loyalties are very clear.” He cleared his throat and I jumped.  “I imagine you travelled with the refugees from Duskhaven?”

“Th-that’s right.” I quickly glanced down and realized Gwen had disappeared.

“And here you are without the others…curious,” he mused. Baron Ashbury smirked as he studied me.

I squirmed uncomfortably in my seat. I think he’s on to me? Gwen…where did you go? I glanced around quickly and caught sight of a furry tail disappear behind Baron Ashbury’s chair.

“Now, Lord Godfrey tells me that the good captain’s daughter is among the cursed. He tells me the young Miss Malmin is, for all intents and purposes, King Greymane’s personal pet. And it makes me ponder…would they be above sending the beast ahead to ensure the king’s safety?”

I squirmed even more. “I…” I wasn’t sure what I could say. He knows! My fear began to rise. I’ve been found out. I began to wonder how I could possibly make it out alive.

“It is a neat trick to hide amongst the normal humans. If Lord Godfrey had not told us about the king’s talent with that regard, perhaps you would have fooled us,” he sneered. “But, alas, we prove too clever for you.”

The pressure was becoming intense. I struggled to calm myself. If I turned back into a worgen, it would be over for sure. “So what happens now?” I asked.

“What happens now is I call for my guards. They come, you get arrested. Who knows? Perhaps you’ll make just as useful a pet for me,” he laughed. A figure grew behind his chair, clinging to the shadows. “Unlike my friend, Godfrey, I do not hate your kind…I see you as…useful. I’m sure I can…”

A large, fur covered hand covered his mouth, muffling his last words. Gwen stood behind him, back in her worgen form. “You will not threaten my friend,” she hissed in his ear. I watched his eyes widen in horror and could hear him trying to scream through her hand, but it only came out as a muffled grunt. “Now, I’m afraid we can’t stand by and let you betray our king,” she commented. “Long live Gilneas!”

With that, she dug the claw on her other hand into his neck under his ear and dragged it through the skin of his throat all the way to the other ear. Crimson blood oozed out as she tore through the soft flesh. It began to spray, nearly reaching where I sat. Gwen let go of him and stepped away. Baron Ashbury made a series of gasping and gargling, grasping at his neck. After a moment, his eyes rolled back in his head and he slumped down, falling still.

“Well that was sufficiently gruesome,” I observed, covering my mouth with my hand. I stood up from the chair as Gwen walked around to me, wiping her hand on her pants. I threw my arms around her. “Thank you for taking care of that.”

“Any time. Gilneas is better off without people like him. I can’t believe he said he’d make you his pet,” she responded, forcing a laugh.

“No kidding. What a scumbag,” I sighed. “We should get out of here before the guards come back,” I pointed out. Gwen agreed and shifted back into her feline form. We briskly strode out of the room and down the long, torch-lit hall.

A couple guards walked around the hall near the exit, but they didn’t seem to pay us any mind. Thankfully, they didn’t have hounds at their heel. I forced myself to keep my breathing normal; the pressure was rising in my body and it was becoming more difficult to hold it back. I threw open the door the massive door to the outside.

To my dismay, the rain had picked up again. Lighting arced across the dark clouds that blanketed the sky above us. If the situation had been different, I would have been more than content to wait around for the storm to die down a bit before stepping out, but…well, we did just murder someone. I heard Gwen whine next to me. She must have had the same reaction.

We ran out into the downpour, the cold water pelting my bare skin and slapping my already-drenched clothing. The stone was pretty slippery, especially considering my lack of footwear, and it quickly became a chore to descend the steep path.

As we descended, I looked out across the bridge and gasped. Oh shit! The guard was returning and he was bringing the others that had been posted by the stables with him. I looked around frantically. That bridge was the only way back to the mainland and there was no way we were going to survive a jump into the sea below; there were far too many jagged rocks hiding beneath the turbulent surface. There had to be a hiding place somewhere nearby. But…they have the dogs. Where could we hide from that?

There was a decently-sized boulder just off the path to the left and grabbed ahold of Gwen and pulled her behind it. I curled up under the rain with Gwen’s furry form pressed up against me. Her soaked fur only made me feel colder. I could hear boots and paws slapping against the stone just beyond us. I clenched my eyes shut. Just keep running. Don’t find us! My mind was racing as fast as my heart. The pressure was starting to become overwhelming. The rain will hide our scents…the dogs won’t notice us. We’ll be fine.

The footsteps grew louder; the dogs were growling and the men were shouting, but I couldn’t tell if they knew where we were. I couldn’t concentrate enough to understand what they were yelling to one another. Just keep going; we’re not here. I held my breath and realized I was shivering uncontrollably.

The mob kept on up the road. I listened as their footsteps became so distant as to be drowned out by the sound of the storm. I let out a long, relieved sigh and opened my eyes. Gwen nudged the side of my face with hers, which I interpreted to be a sign of comfort.

“That was too close,” I gasped. The pressure inside me was starting to become too much. I hadn’t been in human form this long yet and I had already gotten pretty worked up. I wasn’t sure I could hold it together for much longer. “Let’s hurry.”

Jumping to my feet, I dodged around our hiding place and started to speed down the rest of the path. My foot slipped out from under me and I fell backwards, landing hard on my butt and sliding on the slick stone as a thin layer of water cascaded down from the top of the road.

At that point, I lost control. I tried to slow myself as I slid, but I couldn’t get any traction. My body sprouted fur and my claws grew out. Once that happened, I was able to drag my claws along the stone and slow myself before the path evened out near the bridge. Finally, I came to a stop and stared down the length of my snout while rain pounded my face. It reminded me a lot of the moment I woke up after regaining control of my body.

Gwen’s grinning face popped into view – her worgen face. “That was spectacular!” she laughed. “You okay, Love?”

I grunted but nodded. “I’ll live,” I assured her.

“That looked like fun,” she noted, offering me her hand to help me up.

“It wasn’t.” She pulled me onto my paws. I looked down at my body. I felt absolutely exhausted – physically and mentally. Looks like I won’t be able to disguise myself anymore. We’re going to have to get creative with the next one. At least my body felt a little bit better insulated.

Gwen didn’t both changing her own form as we ran across the bridge. I was on the lookout for more guards, but I couldn’t see any movement up ahead. They must have all gone with to figure out what was going on. Thank the Light for that.

Over the sound of the storm, the unmistakable shriek of a bell rose. They must have found Baron Ashbury’s body. I shuddered a little as an image of the man’s lifeless corpse reached my mind. It had to be done. I broke into a run, but refused to sprint on all fours; the ground was far too slippery for me to do it confidently.

We reached the end of the bridge and reached the tall sign-post. For a moment, I gazed down the road to our left – where we had come from when entering Tempest’s Reach. I could see lanterns bouncing up and down as more guards clamored towards the bridge to see what the fuss was about.

Without hesitating further, Gwen and I ran across the wide circle and continued up the road further into the mountains. I focused ahead, vigilant for any hint that there were more guards coming down from up there, but we were fortunate.

Out of nowhere, we turned a corner and were confronted by a large herd of sheep just loitering in the middle of the road. It was like a solid wall of rain-soaked meat and wool. “What in the…what are these things doing out here?” I blurted out, slowing my pace and stopping in front of them.

“Divine intervention?” Gwen shrugged. Her stomach growled ravenously to punctuate her point.

Where is the shepherd? It seemed bizarre that they would just leave them out in the storm. Or, maybe their pen got damaged by the elements. I had no idea, but I didn’t have the time or energy to ponder on the sheep for very long.

There was a small path into the rocks to the left. Maybe we can go around them. It didn’t look like it would be possible to go through them. “There will be time for food later,” I told her. “Come on.”

Begrudgingly, Gwen went with me along the side path. It was a steep climb, but we were able to finally get onto level ground. It was nice being on the soft grassy ground up at the top; though I was not terribly keen on the mud, I welcomed getting off of the hard surface.

Up ahead, there was another large structure. This house wasn’t quite as big as Baron Ashbury’s manor, but still beyond indulgent. Surveying the area, I couldn’t see any properties nearby. It looked like the end of the road; this had to be Lord Walden’s estate.

Guards patrolled in front of the house. Their heads swiveled around attentively. They’re probably on edge from the bell. Lord Walden had to know he was next. I felt kind of bad for his men, having to patrol around in this awful weather.

I happened to look beyond the house and stopped. I could see the silhouette of Gilneas City. The entire city was dark and lifeless. A deep sorrow gripped me as I stared at the barren city. My home…it’s dead…and it will never be back to normal…it’ll never be restored. I couldn’t take my eyes off it.

“Naomi…don’t think about it…don’t do that to yourself,” Gwen urged softly, my ears only barely able to pick up her voice over the rain. She put her hand on my shoulder and gently shook me out of my trance. “The important thing is we made it out. And we have things to do. We can’t allow ourselves to get distracted.”

I closed my eyes for a moment. “You’re right,” I sighed. There will be time for wallowing later.

We ducked behind a rock sticking out of the ground. I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate, but I was still feeling drained. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t change. After a moment, I groaned in frustration and opened my eyes. “I don’t think I can…” I stopped talking the moment I looked over at Gwen.

She was carrying one of the sheep and had it nestled in her lap. She stared back at me, a guilty look in her eyes. “What?”

“Why do you have that?”

“Lunch?”

“Gwen, that’s gross!” I protested. At least cook it first.

“I’ve been hunting and eating fresh meat for years as a cat. It doesn’t bug me,” Gwen claimed.

I shook my head. “Put it down,” I insisted. “We can eat later…and have normal food.”

She didn’t look too happy with me, but she reluctantly obeyed and let the animal go. It bolted away and quickly disappeared in the rain. “You owe me something tasty,” she grumbled.

“I think everyone owes us both something tasty,” I pointed out. “Now what are we going to do about Lord Walden?” I asked, trying to refocus my friend.

“Can’t we sneak through like with Baron Ashbury?”

I shook my head. “I don’t think I can turn human yet…I need time to rest,” I explained.

“Well let’s come up with something quickly; I don’t want to be out in this for much longer,” Gwen complained.

I had to agree with her. We peeked over the rock towards the Walden property. A quick movement caught my attention. There was a guard sprinting from the road up toward the front door. “My lord!” I could hear him yelling. “Lord Walden!” He was stopped by the guards at the door.

Someone stepped out onto the balcony above the door. It was difficult to make out his features in the rain, but I assumed that was the lord of the estate. I could see a rifle in his hands. “What is the meaning of this?” he bellowed with an irritated tone.

“Lord Walden; Baron Ashbury has been murdered!” the soldier reported at the top of his voice.

“What? How?” Lord Walden demanded.

“Assassins, my lord! They used some sort of ruse to gain access to Baron Ashbury and killed him in his own library,” he reported. “I have details, sir. May I come in to deliver my full report?” the soldier requested hopefully.

Please don’t let him! If we were going to have to kill Lord Walden, I didn’t want to have to deal with anyone else. I began to wonder just how many of these so-called guards actually agreed with what their lords were planning.

“You want to come in here?” Lord Walden clarified, voice filled with spite and suspicion.

“By your grace, my lord. The rain is cold and I would be grateful for the chance to warm myself by the fire,” the man responded.

“And you would like to give me a report of just how the assassins made it to Baron Ashbury,” Lord Walden continued.

“That’s right, my lord.” The guard sounded honestly confused that Baron Walden didn’t seem to understand what he was saying.

Without another word, Lord Walden raised his rifle and fired. The thunderous, staccato blast of the rifle rang out, drowning out the sound of the storm as it echoed across the dark sky. The soldier’s head lurched back and, as if in slow motion, leaned backwards until he eventually collapsed in a heap on the ground.

“Nice try,” Lord Walden spat.

I fell back behind the rock. “He killed him,” I gasped. He killed that guard…he thought the man was one of the assassins. He’s dead because of us. An uncomfortable knot formed in my gut. “He just shot him without a second thought.”

Gwen put her hand on my shoulder. “It’s not our fault. He was a rich arse before we killed Ashbury,” she pointed out. “Remember why we’re here. These guys following Godfrey are scum, through and through…you heard Godfrey; they think they can buy the support of the people. Walden’s no different…he doesn’t see normal people as people so much as services being bought and terminated on a whim.”

I nodded, but it didn’t completely quell my guilt. She was right, of course, but I couldn’t help but feel like the guard would still be alive if we had gone after Walden first, instead of Ashbury…or, if we’d only been a little faster. We should have just killed Ashbury and moved on…why did I keep up the charade? I wasted so much time.

“Let’s finish this,” Gwen encouraged.

After a moment, I let out a jagged breath and popped my head back around the rock. “But how, though?” I wondered out loud.

“How should I know? You were always the smart one,” Gwen shrugged.

Now that’s a sad reality. I scanned the estate. There were guards patrolling around and posted at all of the entrances I could see. How do we get in there? If I busted through the window, they’d hear and come running. My eyes drifted to the balcony where Walden had gunned down the innocent guard.  There are no guards there!

“The balcony,” I stated. But how to get up there? The walls are wood… I looked down at my claws. I could climb; I was sure of it. I remembered the worgen in Gilneas City doing it with ease. My body climbed the city wall when the curse had me. I looked back up at the house. There’s a low bit of roof over it. I can drop down from there.

“I can get up there, no problem,” Gwen claimed, catching my meaning.

I shook my head. “You did Ashbury; this one’s mine,” I declared.

“But really, I can just…”

“No…I’ve got this,” I interrupted. My eyes met hers. “I’ll be back in a moment.”

Dropping low, I crept around the side of the house. As miserable as the weather was, the heavy rain and darkness from the thick clouds probably masked my advance. I stayed a good distance from the building as I swung around to find a clear area.

There was a small graveyard near the back corner of the house. I wondered if this was the Walden family’s personal cemetery or if it was intended for servants. I didn’t dwell on it for long as I turned my attention to the house. There weren’t any guards in sight here.

I took a couple of deep breaths and rubbed my hands together. Here goes…I ran forward and leapt with all of the muscle I could muster to launch myself at the house. As I hit the wall, I jammed my claws into the wood. It gave a little and I dipped down a couple of inches, leaving gashes in the wood. But I was on the wall; that’s what mattered.

I pulled myself up and shot one arm up, digging my claws in higher up. Cautiously, I shifted my weight onto that hand to make sure the wood would hold before pulling myself up further. Foot by foot, I scaled the wall. I became painfully aware of the awful scraping noise my claws made as they bit into the wood. If it weren’t for the constant pitter-patter of the rain, they would hear me for sure.

After some time, I made it to the roof. For a moment, I laid out on top of the building, panting and trying to catch my breath. Well, I made it…phase one, complete.  As I rested momentarily, I saw a huge bird swoop over me. It looked like an eagle or some sort of giant raven. What in the world is that? I’d never seen a bird so big in Gilneas…and why did it choose to come out in a storm like this? Personally, I wouldn’t want to be anywhere near the sky with the lightning being as bad as it is. Before long, the bird disappeared on the other side of the house.

I tried not to think about it too much. I have work to do. I rolled onto my belly and carefully crawled across the room, doing what I could to make as little sound on the shingles of the roof.

Finally, I reached the front edge of the house and looked for the balcony. As I positioned myself, one of the guards in the courtyard turned to patrol towards the house and stopped, staring up towards the room. I quickly shrank away behind the edge of the room and went very still. I held my breath and listened. After what felt like forever, I realized I didn’t hear anything new – no yelling; no marching of boots on stone. Slowly, I peeked over the edge of the roof and saw that the guard had gone back to patrolling in the rain.

I let out a monstrous sigh. That was close! My heart was racing and I had trouble keeping my breathing from becoming labored. As I slowly moved myself to a crouching position on the edge of the roof – perched like a bird on a branch – I monitored the guards. None of them were facing the house at that moment. It’s now or never.

I slipped off the edge of the room, grabbing ahold of it with one hand to slow my fall. For a short second, I hung there off the side of the room. Then, I let go and dropped onto the balcony.

The door was already open and the room on the other side was quiet and still. Not wanting to be seen from below, I moved into the room while down on my hands and paws before rising up slowly. I could hear water cascading off my drenched body onto the floor. The water drained through the cracks in the floorboards.  Warily, I scanned the room.

There wet paw-prints on the wood floor leading from the balcony door deeper into the room. They were too wide to have been made by any of the dogs the guards had been leading around. And the spacing was way off. My curiosity getting the best of me, I followed the tracks until I came across a body lying stone-still on the ground.

I inspected the body. The man wore the clothes of a nobleman, which looked damp from recently being outside. His face was contorted in pain; his eyes wide and fixed straight ahead. Upon closer studying, I noticed his neck had a dramatic jagged quality to it, like the bones of his spine had been severed. That was it…his neck had been broken. Is this Lord Walden? How…who killed him?

“It was adorable watching you try to play the rogue,” Gwen’s voice sang behind me.

I jumped and spun around. She was sitting in a big arm-chair in the opposite corner, her legs crossed nonchalantly while one of her paws bounced. There was an amused grin spread across her face.

“Gwen! How did you get in here?” I demanded, inadvertently with a growl.

She pointed at herself. “Druid, remember?” she responded matter-of-factly. I wasn’t completely sure if that really answered the question. “I tried to tell you, but you interrupted me and ran off,” she sighed.

I looked down at the body; I was sure now it was Lord Walden. “Why didn’t you let me do it?” I asked. “I told you I would do it. You didn’t need to kill them both.” I wasn’t angry…just frustrated.

Gwen stood up. “You have too much weighing on your conscience as it is,” she explained. “I didn’t want you to worry too much about ending another life.” She walked over to me and stared down at the body. “You would have worried about it…hesitated, maybe…You might have given him a chance to hurt you. I didn’t want that.” We were quiet for a little bit. “His neck snapped so easily…he went faster than Ashbury,” she added darkly.

I couldn’t tell how she felt about the assassinations. A part of me was afraid she enjoyed it. Gwen always had some savage tendencies since she spent so much of her life in the wilds, but now she was in a body that was so dangerous. But she seemed sullen from having done it…even remorseful.

“Well, now that this is sorted…” she started.

“It’s time to confront Lord Godfrey,” I concluded. I began to anticipate how all of this would go down. Would he try to fight us? Or would he surrender without the support of the other lords? I knew his hatred for us so well. I couldn’t see him giving up on that rage.

“If it comes to it, I won’t get in the way,” Gwen mentioned. “This one is all yours.”

“Appreciated.”

But before that, we had to get out of the Walden estate. Gwen refused to explain how, exactly, she had gotten into the house, and I didn’t think the balcony would be a realistic getaway. We’d be seen for sure.

As quietly as we could, we snuck out of the room into the main hall of the house. There were no guards around and my sensitive ears couldn’t hear movement anywhere nearby. I wondered if he had sent all of the guards outside to stop intruders before they could even get in.

With each creak of the floorboards I stopped and listened, my heart jumping into my throat every time. But no one came. We found a stairwell going down onto the ground floor. Step was more stressful than the last; I felt increasingly vulnerable the closer we got to the main floor. I had no idea what could be waiting for us; and they would see us before we could see them.

I remembered the exits were all covered by guards. I looked around for an alternative. We could go out a window, but…would we be able to get away before they come looking and find us? There was another set of stairs heading down into the cellar nearby. I led Gwen down there, but there wasn’t an exit down there that I could see. “What do we do?” I asked.

Gwen thought for a moment. “I’ve got an idea.” She took a deep breath. “You stay here. I’ll go back upstairs. I’ll attract the guards up there and you run out the door,” she proposed.

“But what about you?”

Again, she pointed to herself. “Druid.”

“What does that even mean?” I blurted out.

“It means they won’t catch me so easily. I hid from a pack of worgen for months, remember? I’ll meet you again near the courtyard where they’re keeping the king, okay?”

I knew now how Gwen had felt at Gilneas City. I couldn’t let her go off and do something so dangerous without me. But…I have to believe she knows what she’s doing. “You have to promise to be more careful than I normally am.”

She grinned. “That shouldn’t be hard.” She started back for the stairs and the stopped and looked back at me. “See you soon,” she added confidently. With that, she ran up the stairs.

I could hear the floor creak as she returned all the way back upstairs. A moment later, a chilling howl resonated throughout the house. Then, I heard a stampede of heavy footfall on the floor above me. My ears tracked them as they stormed up the stairs.

I took a deep breath and sprinted up the stairs. Above me, I could hear Gwen roaring, challenging the guards. Be safe, Gwen. I n for the front door. I paused briefly to peer outside; all of the guards had been drawn upstairs. I ran out into the rain and made for the rock we had hid behind earlier.

I was half-way across the courtyard when I was nearly deafened by a bizarre, high-pitched screeching followed by barrage of gunfire coming from the Walden home behind me. I froze in place. No! I knew she was fast, but no one had the reflexes to dodge that many shots. Tears started to gather in my eyes as I spun around and stared at the house. I could still hear yelling.

I backed away slowly, my eyes fixated on the balcony. Some guards ran out and scanned the skies. They weren’t looking at me, for some reason. Their guns were primed on the clouds as they spun around. What are they looking for?

One thing I was sure of, though, was that Gwen hadn’t come out before them. And there was no way she could have gotten past them to get down the stairs. They shot her… I couldn’t get that conclusion out of my mind. My anger began to rise; I wanted to charge in there and tear them apart. I wanted to avenge my friend.

But above all, I was furious with myself. I had let her go so quickly after finding her again. She had made me promise not to abandon her and yet I so easily let her run off on her own. I held such contempt for my failure as her friend. How will I ever live with myself now? I curled up behind the rock and began sobbing.

It took several minutes for me to settle down enough to think. She sacrificed herself so that I could get out…so that, together, we could save as many Gilneans as possible. I had to end this…for her. I could start thinking of how to punish myself after my people were safe. I can’t kill myself until I deal with Godfrey.

Miserably, I started to make my way back to the road. I had enough attention left to notice the guards that were running up and down the path before they noticed me. I scrambled back up the hill near the Walden estate. South of me was the cliff’s edge overlooking the square where the king was being held. At least, that’s what I assumed it was. I couldn’t see past the roof-tops a little ways down.

The highest roof was probably a ten-twenty-foot drop from where I was. It was also quite the distance out. Well, if I miss it, I’ll get to see Gwen again, I thought to myself. Really quickly, I looked over my shoulder. It was only a matter of time before they found me. I needed to confront Godfrey before they did.

I took a step back and ran towards the edge. I pushed off right at the edge and launched myself into the air. I had a strange perception of time as I free-fell towards the house. Am I going to make it? Rain slapped my face, mixing with the tears that streamed out of my eyes. Do I even want to make it? I needed to keep reminding myself of what I was doing this for…what Gwen had sacrificed herself for.

I reached out, hands extended towards the roof. I’ll make it. My chest slammed into the corner of the roof, knocking the wind out of me. In desperation, I flailed around with my arms and managed to get my claws to catch on the shingles. I hung there for a moment, gasping out deep, uneven breaths as my body quivered.

It took me some time to compose myself. My paws dangled uselessly below me; I couldn’t get my lower claws to catch on the wall. I twisted around, trying to see what I could do from here. I suppose I could climb up on the roof…but then I’ll just be stranded even higher. Looking down, I couldn’t see anything that would be remotely safe to land on and I was confident the fall would kill me.  My options were…limited.

With a grunt, I pulled myself onto the roof. From there, I crawled over to the other side to get a better view of what I was dealing with. Sure enough, Lord Godfrey still stood in the courtyard, subjecting himself to the bitter elements just to stand guard over King Greymane in the cage.

There was a shorter building not far from Lord Hewell’s house where I was perched. It wasn’t as bad a jump as from the cliff to here. I can make that.  I backed up a bit and – with a running start – pounced to the next roof down. I made a lot of noise as I scrambled onto the shingles, so I ducked down and waited. After waiting a moment, I carefully peeked over the side.  Godfrey didn’t seem to notice.

I slowly crept around the edges of this roof, looking for a way down. There wasn’t another roof I could reach from here. But…there was a tree on the other side. The branches looked strong and, well, sharp. It was close enough, but…this is going to hurt.

I leapt towards the tree and crashed into the branches, covering my eyes with my arm as I flew. The distinctive sound of cloth tearing intertwined with the cracking of branches and the rain. Splintered wood bit into my skin, causing me to wince. Before long, I slammed into the trunk – snout first. My nose stun fiercely as I clawed at the bark to get ahold of the tree. After a chaotic couple of seconds, I came to a complete halt.

I let out a long breath. I’m never getting this far away from the ground again. Body shaking, I started to climb down. My nose started to feel warm and something ran down from it onto the tip of my lips. I instinctively licked my nose and the taste of blood became readily apparent. I couldn’t help but whine as I descended the tree.

I thanked the Light the moment my paws touched down on the soft, cold grass. I quickly inspected myself. The tattered remains of the shirt were stained with blood. My entire body was sore, but at least it didn’t feel like there were any particularly deep wounds.

I limped around the side of the building; my legs were screaming at me with each step. I was near where King Greymane was being held; there were a few empty cages between him and me. I wonder if one of those cages was intended for me… I stayed low as I moved forward, hiding behind the carts that held the tiny prison cells.

I stole a glance over one of the carts and noticed Lord Godfrey facing this general direction. I couldn’t tell what he was looking at through those tiny circle spectacles, but I was pretty sure he hadn’t seen me. Otherwise, he’d be screaming to high heaven.

Just then, Lord Hewell walked into the courtyard from the street. “Godfrey,” he called with an irritated voice.

As Lord Godfrey turned to face the other nobleman, I took the opportunity to dart forward to King Greymane’s cage.

“It’s you!” he declared in a low voice. “I’m afraid negotiations with Godfrey have gone sour.”

“Obviously,” I responded, fumbling with the latch for the cage. The lock looked weak. “We took care of the other lords,” I informed him before stopping. I stared straight ahead as my mind wandered to Gwen.

“I wish it could have been avoided. Let us ensure this is resolved without further bloodshed,” King Greymane commented darkly. “Where is your companion?”

I blinked a couple of times before going back to unlocking the cage. I didn’t respond to his question.

“Baron Ashbury and Lord Walden were found dead in their homes,” I heard Lord Hewell explain angrily. “I told you this plan of yours was not what the people wanted!”

“Did they capture the assassins?” Godfrey returned, seemingly ignoring the last part.

“They have not,” Hewell reported. My ears perked up. They would have mentioned if they caught and killed a worgen! But…where was she, then?

Getting frustrated, I grabbed hold of the lock and just tore it off the cage with a loud clank. That drew their attention. Lord Godfrey turned as the cage door swung open and King Greymane hopped down.  He walked towards the two lords with me following close behind, doing my best to walk steadily.

“It’s over Godfrey. You have no support left among the eastern lords,” King Greymane declared. “Surrender now. Put an end to this coup and we can figure out how to deal with the Forsaken together.”

I stared curiously at the back of the king’s head. After all of this, he’s still willing to give Godfrey a chance? I couldn’t help but growl. Somewhere inside me, I wanted his blood. After all he has done to me…to my kind…he deserved to pay.

Godfrey’s face twisted into a wicked, disgusted grimace. “No,” he spat, backing towards the entrance to the square. “I’d sooner die than have one of your kind for a king!” he declared, nothing but pure loathing in his voice.

With that, he spun on his heels and sprinted out of the square. Instinctively, I gave chase. Whether or not Greymane wants him alive, he’s not getting away!

Godfrey didn’t turn to go up or down the road. Instead, he sped across it, his top hat falling off as he reached the other side. He wouldn’t! He kept going. He would… Before I could stop him, Lord Godfrey threw himself off the cliff.

I skidded to a halt and cautiously approached the ledge, peering down. It was dark, so it was difficult to see. Angry waves crashed against the jagged cliffs and rocks below. Godfrey was gone. No one could have survived that fall. A strange mixture of satisfaction and disappointment swirled in my mind. He was finally dead, but part of me hated that he went out on his own terms and that I couldn’t play a direct part in it. That part of me scared me deeply, but I couldn’t deny its existence. At least he can’t keep pushing his agenda to hurt my kind.

I heard a long whistle. “Well now…I’d wager we’ve seen the last of that pretentious arse,” a familiar, raspy voice declared nearby. “Shame we didn’t get to do him in like I’d imagined.”

My face lit up as I turned to find Gwen staring down over the edge of the cliff. “Gwen!” I cried, nearly tackling her as I threw my arms around her. “I thought…I heard the gunfire…I didn’t think you made it,” I stammered, my brain moving far too quickly to be coherent. It was as if a massive weight had been lifted from my chest.

“It’s a shit feeling, isn’t it?” she teased with a vindictive edge to her voice. “I promised you I’d be more careful than you are,” she reminded me.

“How did you escape? There were so many guards!” I asked, holding her out at arms’ length.

She started to point to herself yet again. “Are you really that thick or do I need to spell it out for you?”

Right…Druid… “I’m just so…I can’t believe you’re alive!” I hugged her again. I couldn’t begin to describe just how elated I was feeling. I almost kissed her.

After several moments, we parted. “You sure look like hell,” Gwen observed, surveying me. “You really are a danger to yourself when I’m not around, aren’t you?” I shrugged in response.

King Greymane walked up to us. “The list of things I’ve had to thank you for is ever growing,” he commented. “It’s a shame we could not end this peacefully, but you’ve met Godfrey…his hatred for our kind knows no bounds.”  He paused for a moment and cleared his throat. “Now, Lord Hewell will make sure you two are welcomed here. You’ve earned a bit of respite,” he assured us. “But do not go too far. I suspect we’ll have need to call on you soon.”

I let out a long sigh of relief. I looked up at the rain and then down at my friend. The coup is over. Time to lick our wounds and rest up. An excited grin spread across my face. “It’s about time for that bath, don’t you think?”

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The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 13: Old Friends, New Bonds

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 13: Old Friends, New Bonds

I stood alone in the darkness. Above me was the clear night sky. The light from the moon was particularly bright and magnificent. I looked down at the ground in equal wonder. The ground was reflective, like I was standing on the surface of a perfectly still, glassy lake.

I bent to inspect my reflection. Though I could see my long furry snout between my eyes, my reflection showed me, furless and very much human. I squatted down, staring in awe at what I saw in that reflection. I couldn’t believe it; it was…me. Tentatively, I reached down, taking painful notice of the dark fur on my hand and arm, and pressed my palm against the surface of whatever I was standing on. At the same time, my human reflection did the same on the other side.

The moment my hand touched that surface, a quick ripple pulsed from my fingers and traveled across the entirety of the glassy surface. As the ground rippled, I watched my reflection change. By the time the waves stopped, my reflection as the worgen me. At that moment, I noticed my hand and arm changing; the fur thinned and disappeared into my skin. My hands shrank and the claws receded to normal fingernails. I could feel the rest of my body changing, becoming smaller. Crossing my eyes, I basically watched my snout pull back.

“I…can’t believe it…” I gasped, standing and touching my furless face with my human hands. Somehow, I had switched appearances with the strange reflection cast on this mysterious ground. I stared down at my wolfish reflection and then back at my petite hands. I think I got the message.

The light from the moon shined brighter and brighter, drawing my attention to it. It was a pulsating pale light. “Child…” a benevolent voice resounded. The voice was smooth, warm, and distinctly female. The pitch was lower, similar to Belrysa’s, but much more…I don’t know…motherly and supportive.

There was a blinding flash of light from the moon. When it was over, there was a glowing form standing in front of me. She was bathed in light and it was difficult to make out her features, but her silhouette was obviously that of a night elf. For all I knew it was from her that the night elves were originally shaped. I didn’t really know what was going on, but I knew I was standing in the presence of a divine being.

“I am Elune, a goddess to the Kal’dorei and protector of nature,” she introduced. “It was with a heavy heart that I watched as the curse that had once afflicted my children befell you. It was for that reason I directed my children to your small country.”

A goddess? I didn’t feel worthy. “Why would you show yourself to someone like me?” I asked incredulously. “I’m no one…a commoner among my people.”

She smiled. “But your soul is far from common,” she responded. “I have watched every noble deed, every noble thought. To you, I must express my deepest regret that you had to bear the responsibility of such a tragedy. It did warm my heart to see you reunited with your young friend. She called to you often.”

“How do you know that?” The question didn’t sound as stupid in my mind. She could probably read our minds or something.

“When her body was claimed by the curse, her body retreated into the Emerald Dream…a dimension of my own making…Azeroth untouched by the mortal races. Druids have always had a deep connection to the Dream. Through that realm, she reached out to you, calling you and guiding you to your salvation, whether she was aware of it or not.”

I blinked a couple of times. I guess what I heard made sense. I tried to imagine what Azeroth would look like if there were no mortals there. A strange question bubbled into my mind. “Excuse me, um…your highness?” I stammered uncertainly.

“Speak, child,” she invited without correcting how I had addressed her.

“How did the curse get to Gilneas? If it was a night elf affliction, how did it cross the Great Sea?” I inquired. I was genuinely curious.

I heard what might have been a laugh escape her lips. “Sometimes I forget what your kind do and do not know. Allow me to show you,” she responded lightheartedly.

Show me? How could she show me? That question was answered almost immediately as the world around us began to change. In an instant, I found us in the middle of a battle of epic proportions.

“Many millennia ago, long before your kind ever began to appear on this planet, the demons of the burning legion, led by their creator – the fallen titan, Sargeras – tried to obliterate all of Azeroth. The Kal’dorei and the ancient spirits fought against them in the shadow of the World Tree, Nordrassil,” Elune began. There were hundreds – no, thousands – of night elves locked in combat with an endless tide of demons. “This struggle is known to your history as the War of the Ancients.” The demons were a diverse collection of the most terrible creatures I had ever laid eyes on.

The night elf sentinels dodged and ducked around the massive great-axes of the lumbering, armored felguards. Gigantic winged doomguards with swords the size of trees cut through the night elf phalanxes like a warm knife through butter. Even larger still were the pitlords with their glaives that would have dwarfed even Koroth. Their blades met against the stone of the humongous mountain giants and the bark of the ancient, animated trees that fought against them.

There was a massive turtle standing between some of the larger demons and the comparably puny night elves. The giant wolf, Goldrinn, I had seen upon drinking from the Well of Fury was darting through the battlefield, tearing demons apart with ease. Alongside him was an equally massive stag, goring whatever Goldrinn left.

Behind the night elf forces stood Nordrassil. The trunk of this mighty and magical tree extended into the heavens so far that I could not even begin to see the leaves. From what I had read, Nordrassil had been the life essence of Azeroth until its power was drained over a decade ago.

The skies opened up and flaming meteors began to rain down on the elf forces. Once the meteors crashed into the ground, they stood up as animated, flaming rock creatures – the infernals. The night elves were struggling to push back the onslaught of the Legion. I watched on in horror as the war waged on.

“The outlook was grim. With each passing hour, the legion pushed closer to Nordrassil,” Elune continued. We flew across the battlefield to a cave near the base of the World Tree. “In their desperation, the druids of the pack forsook their oaths to balance and allowed the beasts to overcome them.” I watched as the night elf druids transformed into monstrous worgen – much larger and seemingly much more powerful than I would ever be. “With their aid, we were able to hold off the Legion long enough for a solution to present itself.” I watched as the worgen tore into the demons as they charged into the fray. They fought with such amazing ferocity. But I knew first-hand that they were no longer druids. They were feral beasts…’killing machines,’ as I’d been called…that thankfully seemed more intent on killing demons than elves.

“Though the war was won and the Legion repelled from Azeroth, the druids of the pack were lost. They had to be removed from Azeroth. As a merciful reward for their contribution during the war, I decided to banish them to an eternal sleep within the Emerald Dream where their rage would be soothed and they could sleep until the end of time in peace. That was the origin of the worgen curse,” Elune explained.

The world went dark around us and was replaced with the same night sky and glassy ground as before. “Though the demons were largely pushed back, their corruption scarred the planet beyond healing. Pockets of demons remained and multiplied near Mount Hyjal in a place that soon became known as Felwood for the corruption the demons sowed there.” I don’t know why I was surprised the story didn’t end there.

Again, the starry night disappeared and we were in a dark forest near a mountain pass. This place was magnificent, with colossal trees sporting the most brilliant shades of purple and green leaves. I couldn’t help but feel that this was how the Blackwald was supposed to look. The grass was a lush green; everything here seemed alive and peaceful. I looked up the pathway to the north and my face fell. The ground was brown and dead and the trees were diseased beyond redemption.

“For thousands of years, the Kal’dorei were able to hold off the demons of Felwood from spreading their despicable influence to Ashenvale. They kept the demons at bay, but were never able to do more. Then, a few short years ago, just before the plague ravaged the lands to the east, the Kal’dorei decided to make a change.”

“A change?” I threw in, wanting to feel like I had some interaction with the goddess’ story.

“A priestess of the moon by the name of Velinde Starsong was granted an army of sentinels and charged with ridding Felwood of the demons for good. Velinde was one of my most loyal servants and dutifully accepted what was required of her.”

I saw a young-looking, blue-haired night elf leading a large force of troops, all women and all riding on the back of massive moonsaber tigers. “They used the Shrine of Mel’Thandris, a sacred place on the border between the two territories, as their base camp.” We floated with them up a mountain path and into a little hidden enclave. I saw Velinde pouring over maps of Felwood, surrounded by a few of her troops. “It was there that she developed a strategy with her lieutenants to extinguish the flames of the Legion.”

The war planning faded and I was suddenly in Felwood. “But it was no use,” Elune stated solemnly. I watched as the sentinels clashed with the demons. It seemed like for every demon they felled, two of Velinde’s soldiers were lost. It was a brutal slaughter that made my stomach churn and wretch.

The battle went black and we returned to the shrine. Velinde was there alone in front of the altar. “That was when she asked for help.”

She knelt down on one knee and bowed her head. “The numbers of my companions dwindles, Goddess, and my own power shall soon be insufficient to hold back the demons of Felwood,” she admitted in a very defeated voice. “Goddess…grant me the power to overcome my enemies! Hear me, please! My need is desperate and my cause is just!” she pleaded. It sounded as if she were sobbing.

“I took pity on my devout servant. The demons of Felwood were more formidable than anyone could have imagined and I feared that none would be able to curb their spread if left unchecked. And so, I sent her a gift,” Elune informed me.

A bright beam of light descended on the altar and the Scythe of Elune materialized out of thin air. It hovered in the air above the altar. Velinde gazed up at in in amazement. “What…what is this?” she gasped, reaching for the weapon. “Could this be the answer to my prayers? Elune has granted me a weapon – this scythe – to defeat the demons!”

As the world around me went dark once again, I heard Velinde’s voice. “Elune has granted my wishes. The lives of my fallen comrades will not be in vain, and I shall avenge their deaths using the Scythe of Elune,” she declared resolutely. “It is an ancient thing that could be older than even the Kal’dorei. I can feel the power of the goddess flowing from it.”

Velinde appeared in the darkness, holding the Scythe. “For many hours I examined the tool that the goddess granted to me. It is no ordinary weapon, that is for certain, nor is it a simple magical implement. With it…it is as though the barriers of time and space are weakened,” she observed. It was odd, I was hearing her voice, but the Velinde in front of me wasn’t moving her mouth. It was like I was hearing her private thoughts. “Holding the Scythe in my hands, I received a vision of chaos. Wolf-men…the worgen…battled an incredible enemy.” A rift opened in front of Velinde and I could see the worgen fighting the demons during the War of the Ancients on the other side. “The worgen fought savagely, as fit their primitive-looking race,” she observed.

“And that was when I realized the true power of the Scythe. By focusing on it, I became able to communicate with the worgen. It was not speech I used to contact them, however. It was something different…I could not describe it. What mattered was that the worgen heard and understood me. By further channeling the energy of the Scythe, the barriers weakened more, and I was able to draw the worgen into our world. A score and a half I was able to summon in my first attempt,” she recounted triumphantly. I watched as Velinde cut rifts in the air with the Scythe and worgen stepped through. She had summoned a new army.

The next thing I knew, we were back in Felwood and I watched the worgen tearing through the opposing demonic beings. “Velinde began to push back the demons with the help of the worgen. She continued to summon them to Azeroth and they fought alongside her, obeying the will of the one who wielded the Scythe,” Elune explained while I watched the carnage. “All seemed to be going so well, until…”

I could see worgen running free around the forests. They weren’t fighting anything; they looked like they were hunting. They looked like my pack had a couple months ago. “My Goddess; a pack is lost. I sent the worgen to range through the forest and identify areas of demonic infestation, but they did not return. I begin to worry about the leaders I have entrusted control to. They are of simply mind, and this small amount of authority I have given them, they stretch it to the utmost. Am I losing control? Perhaps I shall cease summoning additional worgen for the time being,” I could hear Velinde pray as I watched the small pack of worgen roam the wilds.

“So she began losing control,” I realized.

“That wasn’t where it ended. Before long, she prayed to me again,” Elune pointed out.

The pack we watched grew and grew in number. “Goddess; though I have not summoned additional worgen, their numbers continue to increase. It is as though the Scythe no longer requires my intervention for the summoning process. This is troubling. I have gathered as many of the packs as I could find, and ordered them to remain at the Shrine of Mel’Thandris. Meanwhile, I have searched the libraries in Darnassus and consulted with the Circle of Ancients in Darkshore. There were none who could…or would…tell me about the worgen. I have heard reports, whispers, of a wizard of the Kirin Tor named Arugal. From what I have heard, it is possible that he also has contacted the worgen. I would consult with this wizard – distasteful as it may be – and see what he knows,” Velinde continued. I saw her riding, alone, atop her moonsaber with the Scythe attached to her back. “Beloved Elune, your gift gave me the strength to defy the demons of Felwood. But the worgen are dangerous and I wish to stem the tide. On the morrow, I will trael to the port in the Barrens and book passage to the New World. Please grant me your blessing until my work is done.” Velinde, still carrying the Scythe boarded a large merchant’s ship and sailed east.

“What happened to her?” I asked.

“She reached the southern tip of the Eastern Kingdoms and traveled north with a caravan. Soon, she came to a forest known as Duskwood. The caravan came under attack from black riders from Deadwind Pass. She escaped the skirmish and hid in a nearby mine. She continued to pray to me and channeled her focus into the Scythe. Finally, Velinde Starsong was summoned through the Scythe into the Emerald Dream,” Elune explained. “It is there that my loyal servant remains. The Scythe was found some time later and traded hands many times until it ended up in the hands of the Archmage that Velinde sought. The rest, I think you already know,” the goddess concluded.

“If the Scythe couldn’t keep control of the worgen for good, why would you give it to her?” I wondered, hoping I didn’t sound to accusatory.

Elune did not look the least be perturbed by my question, like she knew I was going to ask it. “I had witnessed firsthand how swiftly the worgen could fight the demons. However, though they used to be beings of balance and justice, they are now creatures of chaos. Even with my foresight, chaos still surprises even me,” she explained. “Ever since the disappearance of Velinde, I have guided my people to fight the curse the worgen inevitably spread and restore balance to the souls touched by it.”

“So, my soul is balanced?”

Elune nodded her shining head. “The beast can no longer try to control your will.”

“But I’m still a worgen?” I looked down at my hands human hands. It was so great feeling like myself again. I didn’t want to wake up from this dream.

“You are a human…and a worgen…you are you,” Elune responded.

My body began to tickle all over. Looking down, I watched the dark fur sprouting all along my arms. “No,” I gasped. “No, no, no, no!” I could feel my body growing and reshaping. Before long, I could see my furry snout again. I fell to the ground and buried my face in my large, clawed hands.

“The druids of the pack abandoned balance because of the power they could obtain to fight their enemies. The strength and ferocity of the worgen is a great gift, even if you cannot see it at present. For the rest of your natural life, you will reap the benefits of this gift without worry…without fear that the beast will take it from you,” Elune commented calmly. “Of course, the choice of how you live your life is up to you.”

I let out a long, frustrated sigh. “So what happens now?” I inquired.

“Now, you wake. Your people will surely need their hero back,” Elune responded. “Go forth, young Naomi, with my blessing and never forget who you are and the path you have walked.” With that, there was another blinding flash of light and Elune disappeared.

I was left standing alone, staring up as the moon shined brilliantly down upon me.

***

My eyes snapped open and I found myself staring at the underside of Tal’doren’s mighty trunk. I could see my snout in front of me and I knew how my body looked. I’m still a worgen. But I couldn’t feel the curse any more. I could feel anything that wanted to turn me into a beast.

Slowly, I sat up. Darius sat on a boulder nearby. “It is done then, Naomi,” he commented, standing when he noticed my movement. “You are one of us now.”

I didn’t respond, I just nodded. I gazed around. Vassandra stood nearby, but the other two elves were nowhere in sight. There were still many worgen inside the tree, but none of them seemed to pay me any mind. Gwen lay beside me, still asleep.

“What did the goddess say to you?” Vassandra asked curiously, approaching and kneeling down nearby.

“She told me about the origins of the worgen and…someone named Velinde,” I responded.

Vassandra nodded. “A tragic tale, indeed,” she commented. “You are among the fortunate few; Elune does not present herself to many outside of the Kal’dorei. I hope your mind is at peace.”

“It’d be a lot more at peace if I wasn’t a fur-ball,” I grumbled.

Darius began to laugh at my response. My embarrassment started to rise. “I can tell you, I know the feeling,” he chuckled. “At least at first. I used to try to stay human as long as possible, but I eventually discovered there were benefits to this form…and nothing to be ashamed of.”

Something he said confused me. “What do you mean ‘stay human?’” I inquired.

Darius stood up straight and threw out his arms. Before my eyes, his fur began to disappear and his wolfish features shrank away until the Darius Crowley I had met in Gilneas City was standing before me. “Mastery over the beast has granted us mastery over our form,” he informed me.

My mouth hung open in disbelief. “How…?” I couldn’t finish the question; my brain wasn’t working right. I need to learn how to do that.

“To take a human form, it takes concentration. It requires you to contain a great deal of power. Your body wants to be in the form it is in now, so it can become…difficult to stay as a human for long,” Darius explained. “With time and practice, it becomes easier…like building a muscle; but when the going gets rough, the wolf will try to come out,” he added. Then, his wolfish features returned, changing him back into the formidable worgen that led this pack.

“So it’s not permanent?” I asked, someone crestfallen.

“You’ll always have control, if that’s what you mean,” Vassandra cut in.

“It is your choice whether or not you want to work towards making your human form nearly effortless. I, for one, have come to embrace being a worgen,” Darius explained. “There’s so much power and freedom in it.”

“Can you teach me how to change?” I requested earnestly.

Darius looked slightly disappointed, but he acquiesced and began to outline the process as best he could. Some of it was a little vague, but he explained it like flexing a muscle. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to explain to someone how to move their muscles. It’s just something we do.

I tried to follow his instructions. I closed my eyes and tried to focus. Come on, change! I kept chanting it in my mind. I controlled my breathing while I tried to focus on transforming. It took several frustrating attempts before I could feel my body starting to change in any way. My eyes snapped open and I saw my arms moving into an awkward stage between furry and normal. I started to get excited. It’s happening! But my excitement broke my focus and the fur grew in thicker.

“Damn,” I grunted, annoyed.

“It takes some time. You have to maintain your concentration until the transformation is complete. After that, it becomes easier. But if you get too…emotional…well, you may find yourself accidentally changing back,” Darius warned. “Keep working at it. You’re a strong lass; I’m sure it’ll become second nature to you in no time.”

Another question popped into my head. “Um…am I…still, you know…contagious?” I inquired uncertainly. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to know the answer, but I knew I needed to.

“Do you mean can you infect other people with the curse?” Darius clarified. I nodded. “The curse, as you know it, is gone. So no, you cannot pass the curse on to another. Once we have cured every worgen in Gilneas, the only way to make new of our kind is to use the Scythe,” he explained. “So if you want to take a bite out of someone, chomp away,” he laughed. That wasn’t exactly what I had in mind.

I felt movement to my side. Gwen was starting to rouse. I shifted around and leaned over her, staring down into her face. I placed my hand on her shoulder. She opened her eyes peaceably. “Naomi?” she muttered groggily while I watched her eyes focus. She sat up and stared at me.

I threw my arms around her, nearly tackling her back to the ground. A moment later, I felt her hands on my back. “I’ve missed you so much,” I told her quietly. We separated after a long time. “Why…why didn’t you stay in Duskhaven with the rest?”

Gwen looked away. “You left me all alone,” she responded sullenly. “Whether you were alive or dead, I had to find you.”

“Well, I’m here now,” was all I could think to respond to that. I paused for a moment and ten hugged her again.

“I can’t believe the nightmare is over,” I heard her murmur quietly. I couldn’t help but think about something Darius had said to me earlier: one nightmare ends, another begins. It didn’t seem like an appropriate time to fill her in on the ongoing dangers in Gilneas. Again, we separated.

I nodded. “It took a little longer than we thought, but we survived the curse,” I responded. Finally, I decided to stand up, staggering a little bit before catching my balance. I offered a hand to Gwen and helped her up onto her paws. I couldn’t help but notice her nudeness. I guess she finally had an excuse to run around naked. I made a mental note to comment on it later.

“It figures you were Naomi’s druid friend,” Darius commented, still standing nearby. “Only someone who spends that much time with nature could have evaded my trackers for as long as you did.”

Gwen appeared oddly proud of that statement. She gave him a sheepish grin. “I know my way around a tree,” she shrugged nonchalantly.

“And your way around a claw,” Darius pointed out. “You took down some good hunters in your time.”

This time, she didn’t look so proud. “I’m sorry…I couldn’t stop myself.”

Darius clapped his hand on her shoulder. “As far as any of us are concerned, you did nothing wrong.” He looked back and forth between us. “While we are not related by blood, you are both our sisters, now. The pack is a family. Welcome.”

I looked over at Gwen. It was already easy to think of her as a sister. My heart swelled at the thought of having this special connection with her now that so few Gilneans would understand. She was already unofficially family; but I felt a new level of affection for my friend.

“Father!” I heard Lorna’s voice call out, excitedly. We all turned; sure enough, Lorna was standing at the entrance to Tal’doren. She stared directly at her father; somehow she knew that she had picked the right worgen.

Darius’ face visibly lit up. “Lorna!” he gasped. She started running towards him. At the same time, he took a couple long strides towards her before wrapping his arms around his daughter. He looks like he’s strangling her. “My child; thank the Light you’re safe!”

“I can’t believe you’re alive!” I heard her respond, voice muffled by her father’s fur. Seeing them reunited brought tears to my eyes.

“I wanted to find you the moment I returned to myself, but I had a responsibility to my men…to the others who were cursed,” Darius apologized.

“Crowley!” came an unpleasantly familiar voice. It made my skin crawl. I turned my gaze from the father and daughter, locked in a warm embrace, back to the entrance to the sanctuary. There were several new people there: Lord Godfrey – clad in his signature top-hat and great coat –King Greymane, and a small force of soldiers carrying rifles. Lord Godrey stepped forward, pushing his spectacles up his nose. “You and your elven allies are hereby ordered to serve along the king’s army,” he declared, not even trying to hide the spite from his voice. I had a sinking feeling I knew what sorts of missions he would have for us.

Darius stepped around Lorna, eye fixated on Godfrey. He didn’t respond and just stared the aging man down.

Lord Godfrey did not seem intimidated. “Cursed or not, you are still bound by Gilnean law! You will serve your king or be executed for treason,” he threatened. Under Godfrey, serving is an execution sentence.

Darius let out a threatening snarl. That made Godfrey take a tentative step back. With a grin, Darius turned his eye to the king. “Does this toad speak for you, Genn?” he growled. “Do you come to our dwelling as a friend? Or do you come as a tyrant?”

I surveyed the soldiers. They all held their rifles as if they were ready to use them at a moment’s notice. Would they gun us down if the king commanded them to? I doubted King Greymane would actually give that order. What if Godfrey gave the command? Would they listen before the king could stop them?

King Gerymane stepped forward, past Godfrey, and stopped a few feet from Darius. “No, old friend,” he responded in a tired voice. “I’ve come as an equal.” What is that supposed to mean?

The king huddled over. I heard what sounded like a strained groan. His body started to grow gradually. His fine clothes seemed to be struggling to stay intact as his size increased. No way! After a moment, he flung his arms out and arched is back as fur sprung up all over his body. There was a very audible rip as his clothes tore. His face elongated before our eyes. My king…is a worgen? I wasn’t sure my eyes were actually working right. It was phenomenal. Even as a giant humanoid wolf in tattered clothes, he looked rather regal. His fur was largely gray, consistent with his hair at his advanced aged.

“Impossible!” Lord Godfrey gasped in disgust. The color had drained from his face and he stared at King Greymane with complete disdain. He took a couple of steps back before turning and sprinting out of Tal’doren. I had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach. Lord Godfrey hated my kind. What is he going to do now?

I quickly looked over the soldiers to make sure we were still safe. They looked confused – some actually afraid – but they stayed their weapons and stared at the king. They were probably wondering what to do now.

Darius bridged the gap between him and the king quickly and held out his arm. The grasped each other’s forearms and held them there stably. “Aye, Genn…It is not law that binds us. It is something far stronger,” Darius affirmed, voice filled with respect. “First, politics separated us, then the curse. Now, old friend…we are brothers once more. My men are ready to give their lives under your command,” he promised.

King Greymane nodded. “It is decided, then. We will unite all Gilneans and drive the Forsaken from our lands!” he declared. “It is a load off my mind to have you on our side, my friend.” The king turned towards me and fixed his eyes on my incredulous face. He let out a chuckle and gave a strong nod. “I must go rally our people. We will meet again in Tempest’s Reach,” King Greymane stated. After another couple of minutes, he left with his soldiers.

I still stood there, stunned at what I had seen. I still wasn’t sure I believed it. Darius walked up to me, amusement on his face – probably from my expression. He let out a long sigh. “It’ll be a long time before our nation comes together again,” he commented realistically. “The old political divisions pale in comparison to what divides us now.” I thought about the reactions people had had to me when I woke up. I wondered if the worgen would ever get fully reintegrated with the rest of Gilneas. “However, if there was ever a time for us to come together and unite against a common enemy, it is now.” He placed both hands on my shoulders. “And it is you, Naomi, who have proven able to bridge the gap between our people.”

I shuffled a bit. “I don’t know about that,” I muttered.

“Know it or not, you have done wonders for our time. While you are undeniably a member of the pack, it is time for you to return to the rest of our people.” He reached down and grabbed my left forearm, holding my left hand up. “Return to your loved ones,” Darius added, obviously referencing the ring.

“What?” Gwen blurted out suddenly. I shrugged; this was something I was going to have to explain at some point.

“When you get to Stormglen, tell them it is safe to go through the Blackwald on their way to Tempest’s Reach. We will take care of any Forsaken who follow them,” he vowed.

“I’ll let them know.”

“I’m coming with you,” Gwen declared.

“Are you sure? The humans might not…” I started.

“I’m not going to let you leave me again,” she interrupted stubbornly. “We only just found each other after so long…If you’re going somewhere, I’m going with you.”

I thought about arguing, but I could see she wasn’t going to budge. And to be honest, I didn’t want to be separated from her again, especially not so soon. Finally, I just nodded. I looked from Darius to Vassandra and Belrysa. “Thank you…all of you.”

“You never need to thank us, young one,” Belrysa assured me calmly.

“We should be apologizing to you for allowing the curse to come unto you in the first place,” Vassandra added. “Go in peace, child.”

I looked over to Lorna who stood beside her father. “Are you coming back with us?” I asked.

She shook her head. “I’ll be along eventually,” she responded. “But not now.” I understood.

Gwen and I left Tal’doren together. She stayed very close to my side as we made our way into the trees to the south. “So… you’re getting married now?” Gwen blurted out after a minute.

“No…yes…I don’t know,” I responded uncertainly.

“Huh?” she grunted, understandably confused by my response.

I let out a long sigh. I spent some time explaining the situation. “I love him; he loves me…we’re committed to each other…but who knows if we’ll live long enough to actually get married,” I concluded. I realized something: one of the reasons I was so hesitant about this engagement was gone now. I couldn’t wait to tell Daniel.

There was a visible change in Gwen’s demeanor. She became sullen and withdrawn while her ears fell. Her head turned away from me and she slowed her pace, starting to fall behind. I stopped and turned to her. “Is…something wrong?” I asked.

“Oh no, everything’s fine,” Gwen responded, a frustrated tone of sarcasm in her voice. She wouldn’t make eye contact with me.

“Gwen!”

She was silent for a moment. “When I woke up, I left immediately…I went to go find you,” she finally started. My chest tightened. I think I know what’s wrong. “I went through hell…I lived a nightmare for so long…angry, alone, afraid…

“Gwen, I…”

She shook her head fervently. “No…I was so alone…I needed you; I called out to you. But you took so long to come after me. You let me suffer so you could play out some fantasy?” she accused, tears accumulating in her eyes. She looked beyond betrayed.

Before she could react, I closed in on her and threw my arms around her. I fought back tears of my own; my nose stung fiercely.

“Let go of me!” she snapped, struggling to try to free herself. I could feel her arms flailing behind me. Then she dug her claws into my back.

I whined and whimpered as I tried to ignore the pain. “I’m not letting you go,” I told her softly. “It isn’t like that,” I claimed seriously. “I wanted to come after you the moment I found out you left Duskhaven…I wanted to search for you immediately.”

She stopped struggling, but she was still tensed up. “Then why didn’t you?”

Not releasing my embrace, I explained about the potion. While I was free, I was a captive to Krennan’s serum. I couldn’t leave until I had enough to last for a few days…or else I would turn back into…that thing. Then the Forsaken showed up and I had to fight to survive. I didn’t throw anything back at Gwen while I explained. “When I reached Stormglen, I was exhausted…too tired to even hope to find you. It was last night that Daniel proposed to me. It didn’t matter to him that I only had a week of the serum left, he still talked me into it,” I finished. “Then…this morning, I used every last drop I had.”

“Why? Why would you do that?” she questioned, voice wavering.

I took a deep breath. “I would rather spend my last few hours of sanity with you than a few more days with Daniel but without my closest friend,” I admitted. That may have sounded wrong, but it’s true.

I felt Gwen’s body relax. She broke down and began sobbing. “I’m sorry,” she wailed.

I bent back a little bit, keeping my arms on her side. I pressed my forehead against hers, the tips of our long noses touching. “I love Daniel…I really do…but he and I will never share what you and I have had…what we now have,” I assured her as compassionately as I could muster. It’s like Darius said; we’re sisters.

We stayed there like that for some time before Gwen had settled down enough to continue. Finally, I turned so that we could start moving on; I flinched a bit as a jolt of pain shot across my back. “What did I do?” Gwen gasped. I felt her hand gently press against my back and I winced again as her palm touched where she had clawed me a little while earlier. She went quiet and her hands started to feel warm against my back. The area went numb and then pain was gone completely. I spun around quickly in time to see a greenish glow disappearing from her hands. “I just started studying restoration magic before Gilneas City,” she explained timidly, staring at me apologetically. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.”

“Ain’t nothing to worry about. It’s easy to forget what these bodies can do,” I responded. “Come on, let’s keep going.” We continued back through the trees. Gwen seemed to bounce back pretty quickly, though I could still occasionally pick up an ashamed aura about her.

We walked for a long time; I had forgotten how deep into the Blackwald Tal’doren stood. My stomach began to rumble. I haven’t had anything to eat since breakfast, I realized. It seemed like I was ravenous more often than not these days.

“Did I hear you say he had to talk you into the engagement?” Gwen asked suddenly, a playful tone in her voice. And she’s back.

“Yeah, he did. I didn’t see the point of it all, given what’s going on,” I replied, going on to explain that conversation in more detail.

“I didn’t know he was such a cork-brained sap,” she giggled.

“He really is,” I laughed. We shared a very lighthearted moment. “He’s terribly romantic. It’s sickening sometimes.”

“I guess one of you needs to be girly,” Gwen teased.

“Hey!”

“No judging…I’m sure you’ll make a lovely couple. I hope he looks better in a dress than you did.”

I sighed. “Glad to have you back, Love.” She continued to laugh. “Speaking about clothes, I bet you’re feeling…free,” I commented.

“More than you know,” she grunted while stretching out. I felt something brush against my legs. Gwen had grown out her tail again. She looked incredibly odd with her wolfish body but tail of a large cat. “I told you before all of this happened…if I could keep my thumbs and communicate, I would never leave my forms,” she added. She let out a long sigh. “It was so awful when the curse had control, but now that I’m me again, I like how it feels,” she admitted.

I thought about Darius’ words; his choice to remain a worgen. “I don’t know if I do,” I responded. I couldn’t deny I was faster and considerably faster in this form. It had been so long, I barely remembered what it felt to be human, but I still didn’t really feel comfortable. I was quite a bit better than a few days ago, and it would probably get easier, but it was still hard.

I heard Gwen’s stomach grumble. Mine echoed it. “Do you think there will be food for us?” Gwen inquired hopefully.

“There should be,” I replied. “Though it might not be much. They have to start rationing everything out more.”

“Is it much further?”

“You’re the one who knows these woods,” I shot back. Before long, though, the run-down mill came into view. We are so close. Before long, we reached the gate to Stormglen. “Welcome back to civilization,” I told her as we stepped into the town.

It was a bit livelier than when I left. It looked like the citizens from Duskhaven had found their vitality again. Though it was getting dark and thick clouds had rolled back in, there were people about, walking from building to building. Some carried crates towards the inn. I could see smoke rising from the forge and I wondered if Daniel was there, working away.

Some stopped as soon as we showed up. After a moment, I realized they were staring at Gwen. They were used to seeing me, but a naked worgen was the sign of a feral worgen. They seemed uneasy, but the fact that I was there may have helped keep them from devolving into panic. Taking a deep breath, I led Gwen through the town and made our way towards the inn.

As I had hoped, Mayor Armstead was there, directing citizens to busy themselves with various tasks. All activity ceased when we entered; the mayor looked up from what she was doing. She eyed Gwen for a moment, then me, then she gave us a wide smile.

Mayor Armstead crossed the room swiftly. “I see you found the person you were looking for,” she greeted cheerfully. “I knew you had an ulterior motive for going into the Blackwald this morning. But you were gone so long, we were getting worried.” Our stomachs roared in tandem. “Please, come and eat. We saved some dinner for when you returned,” she invited.

She led us over to the table and instructed us to sit. Mayor Armstead returned a couple of minutes later with a couple of plates containing a small portion of pork and some chopped potatoes. Again, the amount of food was less than I would have liked, but it was better than nothing.

“So, tell me what happened,” she requested. While we ate, I recounted much of what had happened. It took a while to go through everything. Of course, I left a lot out, like my dream conversation with Elune and the fact that the king was a worgen. I figured if she already knew, I didn’t have to say it; and if she didn’t know, it wasn’t my place to reveal it. “Crowley wanted me to tell you to lead the people through the Blackwald to Tempest’s Reach. He said they’d take care of any Forsaken that tried to follow us,” I concluded.

“We’ll start moving in the morning,” Lady Armstead responded nodding. “We have confirmed there are survivors up there. Back it up a bit…are you saying you’re not cursed anymore?”

I nodded. “It’s gone…I can’t feel it,” I confirmed.

“We’ll have to tell Krennan. I’m sure he’ll be beyond relieved. I know he’s been stressing out about it all day.”

I looked around the room from person to person. “Where is my father?” I asked, moving past the conversation. I was tired and didn’t really want to have to explain much more before I saw the people I cared intimately about.

“We put him to work at the forge with your boyfriend,” Lady Armstead responded. “The king was talking about reclaiming our city. It’s crazy, but everything these days is crazy. I’ve had to put everyone to work in preparation,” she explained.

“Oh.”

I heard a thunderous boom outside. It was followed moments later by a constant, low-level sound of water. Another storm approached. It rains entirely too much in this country.

I heard Gwen let out a long sigh. “It’s been a long time since I’ve had shelter from the rain,” she realized aloud. She was staring out the window. It was really coming down out there. It was hard to believe these storms came so quickly, without warning.

“Oh…where are my manners? I should get you some clothes,” Mayor Armstead mentioned quickly when she glanced over at Gwen.

“That’s not necessary,” Gwen denied. I smiled in amusement.

Mayor Armstead laughed. “I’m afraid it is. You may not like to be clothed, but you’ll scare people if you’re not. They know not to trust a naked worgen.” She stood up and walked towards the stairs.

“I really don’t see what the fuss is about,” Gwen grumbled.

“Oh, hush. Just take your clothes off when you get to a bedroom,” I responded, rolling my eyes.

Gwen whined in frustration, but accepted the bundle of clothing the mayor offered when she returned. She stood and slipped the clothes on and the sat back down, dejectedly. “Well, with this rain, I imagine your father and friend will be along soon. They probably won’t be able to keep the forge fires going much longer.”

“That’s good. Um…is there another fresh set of my-sized clothes? I’m not sure if I want to wear this for the rest of the evening,” I requested hopefully. It wasn’t practical to wear all the time.

There should be a couple of sets up in the room you slept in last night,” she said tentatively. “And we’ll arrange things so that your friend gets the room beside yours,” she added. “There are a few open cottages down the road we can move people to.”

“That would be lovely,” I responded. “When my father and Daniel return, can you please tell them I’m upstairs?”

“Of course.”

I rose from my chair. Gwen shot up as well. She’s probably never going to let me leave her alone at all any more. Hopefully I’ll be able to get some alone time with Daniel! “Thank you for the food,” I told the mayor; at the same time, my tummy rumbled again. I was still quite hungry.

She laughed. “Well, if we’re going to be moving on in the morning, I’ll see if there is any more food we can send up. You’ve earned an extra little treat, I’d wager.”

I thanked her and excused myself, with Gwen following at my heel. I trudged up the stairs, my legs feeling a bit tight as I ascended the steps. It wasn’t far down the hall to the room. As soon as I walked in, I let myself fall onto the bed and let out a long, loud sigh.

“Gwen…we’re in for some rough times ahead,” I stated, staring at the ceiling.

She plopped down next to me. “As long as you don’t run off on your own and do something stupid, we’ll get through it. Things only seem to go wrong when you leave me behind,” she responded.

“Maybe you have a point there.” I lapsed into silence and continued to stare at the ceiling while listening to the rain.

After a couple of minutes, I sat up with a grunt. I’d better change out of this armor. I stood and began to unlace the leather bands around my arms. The fur beneath them was compressed while the areas that weren’t covered were puffed out a bit; I imagined it probably looked very silly. I ran my hand up and down my arms to even everything out. I found a simple pair of pants and shirt on the desk nearby and snatched it up before taking off the rest. I let out a satisfied sigh as I took off the cuirass, letting the girls free. Before long, I was in the loose-fitting clothes and feeling a bit more liberated. I think I can understand Gwen’s objection to being dressed.

I stacked the pieces of the armor up on the desk and then returned to sit on the bed. I closed my eyes and started try to focus on changing form. The only way I’m going to get this is to practice.

Gwen must have noticed my lack of motion and controlled, even breathing. I felt her sit up next to me. “Are you okay? What are you doing?” she asked quickly.

I groaned, keeping my eyes closed. “I’m trying to focus,” I told her.

“Focus on what? The rain?”

“I’m trying to focus on turning into a human again,” I elaborated. “I’m told we can do that now that we got rid of the curse.”

“Oh…like this?” she inquired curiously.

I opened my eyes and looked over at her. Gwen was, indeed, furless and back to her old self; of course, she kept the ears and tail. She stared at me innocently. She looked quite awkward, being her normal size but sitting in worgen-sized clothing. I thought she was going to slip out of the neck of the shirt.

Frustration surged through me. “How did you do that?” I demanded. Why can she change so easily?

Gwen smiled. “It’s sort of the same thing for me to switch to other forms,” she claimed. Before my eyes, I watched her body change into the familiar giant cat she liked to turn into. Then, she went back to her worgen appearance. “See? It’s not too hard when you get used to it.”

“Show off,” I muttered. Yeah, maybe it’s easy for a druid… She giggled. “Now let me try.”

I closed my eyes again and went back to work. Damn it, Gwen…you make this look so easy. Maybe I’m just stupid. I should be able to do this…at least a little bit. I need to be able to. I want to be me again. What’s wrong with me? Why can’t I do it? I couldn’t quiet my brain down. My breath wavered a bit and I clenched my eyes tighter. Focus, Naomi. Focus! But I couldn’t stop myself from dwelling on my frustration.

I felt Gwen moving around the bed. In a moment, I felt two powerful arms wrap around my midriff and a furry chin rest upon my shoulders. “Don’t think,” Gwen whispered.

I don’t know why that helped, but it did. My mind went blank and I couldn’t formulate a complete sentence in my head. The only thing that showed up was a mental image of me…what I used to look like.

I could feel myself shrinking in Gwen’s arms; she quickly towered over me while embracing me. My whole body tingled as the fur receded. What was even stranger, still, was the sensations I felt as my face and paws started to change shape. I could hear popping and cracking, but it didn’t hurt.

I opened my eyes once it felt like everything was done. I stared down at myself. The sleeves of the shirt now completely consumed my arms. I swiftly yanked them back to reveal a pair of furless, very human arms. “It…it worked!” I exclaimed, feeling my smooth face and petite nose. I stretched out my legs and inspected my small feet, wiggling my toes. By the Light, it worked!

I freed myself from Gwen’s arms and hopped to my feet. But the moment I stood, my pants succumbed to gravity since I didn’t have the size to hold them up any more. The shirt covered everything – mostly – but I could feel myself glowing with embarrassment as I bent to collect them from the floor. Gwen just started laughing. I had to hold on to them to keep them from falling again.

While I was ecstatic to be back to my normal self, I felt strange. It was like there was an odd pressure all around my body…like something was trying to burst through my skin. I knew what it meant: the worgen was trying to come out. I had to concentrate to keep it contained. A brief jolt of disappointment shot through me. No matter what I do, my body will always try to go back to that. Eventually, I’d have to stop seeing myself as human…my body’s new natural state was worgen.

“You did it!” Gwen congratulated. I couldn’t help but suspect it was half-hearted. “You should probably find a way to take care of those clothes,” she advised.

I nodded and twisted so that I could tie up the side of the shirt to tighten it. As for the pants, I grabbed the leather belt from the armor and snaked it around my body, pulling it as tight as I could. There wasn’t a hole available. I guess they did make it with my bigger body in mind.

Gwen stood and wandered over to me. She reached forward and bored a hole through the leather with one of her claws, allowing me to use it in this body. She stood there, almost a foot-and-a-half taller than me. It was so odd…I vividly remembered being just a little bit taller than her most of our lives.

“Thanks,” I said with a smile. “I can’t believe I look normal again,” I sighed. I could feel the pressure building. Either that, or it was just getting harder to hold back.

“I don’t see what it matters how you look,” I heard Gwen grumble, turning away slightly.

“You can’t seriously think I looked better like…that!” I declared in disbelief.

“We were always a pair of cork-brained bitches,” Gwen shrugged. “Now we finally look the part.” She turned her back to me completely.

“Oh, you dirty…” I growled playfully, pouncing onto Gwen’s back. She lurched forward as I collided with her and climbed onto her shoulders, draping my arm around in front of her like I was going to choke her.

“You want to do this, little lady?” she retorted, laughing. She twisted and grabbed at me, but I ducked away from her grasp. Finally, she was able to get her furry hands on my arms near my shoulders and she whipped me over her head and dropped me onto the bed.

I bounced a couple times before coming to rest on the mattress. I was laughing for a moment when I stopped. My skin began to tingle again. I had lost it…I stopped monitoring myself and released my new ‘muscle.’ Crap! I scrambled to untie my shirt and undo the belt before I changed and ruined yet another set of clothing. Before long, my body sprouted dark grey fur and the wolf came out.

I laid on the bed, panting. Why am I so exhausted? It couldn’t have been from today. I wasn’t nearly this tired a moment ago. “Damn it,” I gasped between breaths. I couldn’t keep my human form for very long…or maybe it was the excitement of jumping on Gwen. The moment I stopped monitoring it, I paid for it. Well, at least I still have my own mind.

Gwen popped into view. She was upside-down and her face was incredibly close to mine – inches, actually. “There’s my favorite bitch,” she stated fondly. Before I could respond, she licked me right between the eyes.

“Ewww,” I groaned, rolling to the side and wiping my forehead. “What’s gotten into you?”

Gwen giggled. “Nothing’s gotten into me,” she claimed. “Can’t I just be excited to see my friend?” She flopped on the bed. “Not like I’ve had too much to be excited about lately.” Her freedom must finally be sinking in. Gwen let out a long sigh of her own. “Look, I know why you want to be human again, but I like you like this,” she told me seriously, turning her head so that our eyes could meet. “How many people do you think there are like us in the world?”

“I guess,” was all I could think to say. There was something in her wild eyes; the way she stared at me so earnestly. There’s more to it than that. I could see fear behind her stare. “What’s this really about?” I finally asked boldly.

Gwen let out a soft whimper. “I don’t know,” she responded. “It’s just that…before…you started spending so much time with Daniel. We were always so close, but you never introduced me to him. It was like you were ashamed of me…”

“Gwen, it wasn’t like that,” I protested.

“And then I found out you were with him for all those days leading up to today,” she continued. “I know you could explain that away, but…I don’t know…I’m afraid that we are drifting apart. I just thought…maybe being a worgen could give us something no one else had. Maybe we could get that old bond back.” Her voice was quiet and reserved. There was a visible drop in her mood.

I opened my mouth to say something and then stopped. “Gwen…I’m sorry,” I finally apologized. “I know how it looks and I can see why you think that. I don’t have an excuse for why I never told Daniel about you before. All I can do is tell you that I love you like a sister and…I guess I took you for granted and I’m sorry.” It was my turn to be bold, I leaned forward, and pressed my snout to the end of her nose; my tongue automatically sticking out and giving her a tiny lick.

She grinned and giggled. We scooted close to each other. We didn’t talk; we just laid there. Unfortunately, we couldn’t stay there for long. There came a cautious knock on the door.

“Who could that be?” I groaned as I forced myself onto my paws. Daniel or my father would have just come in. I marched across the room to the door and threw it open.

There was a young woman there; she bowed when I opened the door. “Lady Armstead told me to bring you two some extra food,” she announced uneasily, presenting a sizeable covered platter. I wondered what, specifically, was putting her on edge. It must be the strange new worgen in town.

I thanked her, she bowed, and left us alone. I walked back to the bed with the platter and set it between us.

“What did they bring us?” Gwen asked hungrily, rubbing her hands together. I shrugged and removed the cover from the platter to answer the question. They sent us a chicken…a whole chicken! And some bread. Gwen’s eyes widened in excitement.

We ripped the chicken in half and began to scarf it down. I was feeling considerably more satisfied after we demolished the treat. I leaned back and let out a satisfying sigh, watching Gwen gnawing on a chicken bone to pick off the rest of the meat.

“Gwen, I need you to do me a favor,” I requested suddenly.

“Hmm?”

“If it ever feels like I’m drifting away again, I want you to hit me and remind me of how much of a cork-brained bitch I really am.”

Gwen giggled. “Can do!” she promised. I knew she’d relish the opportunity if it ever arose.

A couple of minutes later, the door swung open and striking the wall on the other side with a loud bang. Gwen and I both jumped. Daniel and my father stood in the doorway. “Naomi,” Daniel sighed in relief.

I hopped off the bed and ran up to throw my arms around both of them. “I’m back!” I declared. “And I have wonderful news!” I became aware of some serious body odor coming from both of them. Though they had obviously been out in the rain, they still had ash or…something…smudged all over them.

“I’m glad you’re back and safe. I was beginning to worry,” my father commented. He looked past me. “Is that…” he trailed off. I followed his eyes and could see him inspecting Gwen. “Gwen Forrestier…is that you?” I must really be terrible at identifying worgen. How can he tell so easily?

Gwen nodded. “It is, sir.” I never knew why, but she always found my father to be intimidating. Maybe she reminded him of someone. Who knows? But she was always very formal with him.

“Get over here!” he invited. She complied and scurried over. My father broke away from our hug to give her her own embrace. “It’s about time we got you back,” he commented. “The family didn’t feel right without you.”

“Hey, Poppet; where’s your ring?” Daniel inquired quietly.

“What do you mean? It’s on my….” I held out my left hand to prove it, but the ring was gone. Oh crap! “Where is it?” I exclaimed, spinning and looking around the room, frantically. It has to have fallen off when I transformed.

“What’s going on?” I heard Gwen ask.

“I can’t find my ring!” I nearly shouted as I dropped to the floor. I searched the wooden floor; I couldn’t find it. Where did it go? I can’t believe I lost it already! I kept mentally beating myself up.

I couldn’t see what Gwen was doing. “Here it is,” she announced. I looked up; she was leaning over the bed. I could see the ring in her hand. “You should be more careful with this,” she taunted before tossing it across the room.

Snatching it from the air, I quickly slipped it back on my finger. “Thanks,” I grumbled.

“Why did you even take it off in the first place?” Daniel asked.

“I…um…it’s hard to explain,” I responded, rubbing the back of my head. I didn’t want to tell him what happened…not quite like this. I had other plans.

“I see…” He didn’t sound like he wanted to drop the subject. “So…this is your friend you were telling me about?”

I nodded and formally introduced them. I didn’t make any mention of the fact that they had technically already met once before. That led into an explanation of the day’s events. “And so…we’re not cursed anymore!” I concluded happily. “Kind of. We can’t lose control now!”

They were both exceptionally excited. We kept talking about it for several minutes before my dad declared he had to leave. “Gw-I mean Mayor Armstead told me she has business she would like to talk with me. I had better go see what she wants,” he stated. I gave him a sheepish smile, recalling what that really meant.

Gwen let out a massive yawn shortly after my father stepped out of the room, echoing my own feelings. “I think it’s time to turn in,” I declared. I stared at Gwen. “I’m not pushing you out, but can I ask…”

“Yeah, yeah…I’ll go next door for the night. But you’d better not try to run out on me. I’d track you down,” she responded, wandering out of the room and leaving Daniel and I alone.

“She seems nice,” he commented awkwardly.

“Just wait until you get to know her.”

He walked up to me and threw his arms around me. “I never would have dreamed that you would be able to get free of the curse,” he mentioned warmly. “Looks like the future’s getting brighter.”

He leaned in to give me a kiss on the side of my face. Again, his stench hit my nostrils. I recoiled a bit. “Um…I’m sorry…I need you to go wash yourself off,” I demanded. “You stink.”

Daniel laughed. “Sorry; busy day at the forge,” he apologized. “Is it that bad?”

“Just go.”

“I’ll be right back, then.” He wandered towards the door. “Then we can…sleep,” he added before disappearing.

I rolled my eyes and then sat on the bed. It felt like a lot of my strength had returned, especially after a much more satisfying meal. Closing my eyes, I worked to clear my mind and concentrate on changing. It was substantially easier this time and, in seconds, I could feel my body changing. By the time I opened my eyes, I was human again. Immediately, I could feel the pressure again all over my body, but I was able to hold it back, for now.

My ring slipped easily off of my finger. I picked it up and looked at it for a moment. There’s no way this would fit anymore. I slipped it on my thumb; it was still loose, but I hoped it wouldn’t fall off like before.

I sat on the edge of the bed and I waited, trying to imagine Daniel’s reaction to seeing me like this. I smiled as the images came to my mind. Before long, I heard footsteeps coming down the hallway. “Okay, I washed up,” he announced, pushing the door open. “How do I…” He stopped the moment he saw me. His mouth hung slack. He wasn’t wearing a shirt and had a towel draped over the back of his neck. “N-Naomi…” he finally stammered in disbelief.

I gave him a warm, inviting smile.

“H-how is this possible?” he gasped, taking a few tentative steps into the room.

“It’s part of the ‘cure,’” I explained, still grinning. “If I focus, I can make myself look like this Do you like it?”

He nodded fervently. It took him a surprisingly long time to get to the bed. I stood as he made it there. Just like before, my pants immediately fell around my ankles. Daniel stared down at them for several seconds. “I…have that effect on people,” he joked, regaining his goofy side.

I burst out laughing. “You wish!” I giggled. I actually had to look up at him to meet his gaze. I stood on the tip of my toes and planted a kiss on his lips. “You’re such an idiot.”

“Maybe, but you’re the idiot who agreed to marry this idiot,” he taunted back. Daniel pulled me in for another kiss. “So what now?”

“You know, I’m not contagious. I asked,” I mentioned coquettishly. Calmly, I grabbed his hand and gave a gentle tug. “You coming?” I invited, moving over onto the bed.

He nodded and excitedly scrambled into bed with me. One thing led to another and we began making love that night. It was so wonderful; I got lost in the sensations. It had been way too long since the last time… As things were really starting to heat up, my body began to tingle. I was getting lost in the pleasure. As my arousal hit its climax, a howl starting to build. By the time I realized what was happening, it was too late to stop it.

Come on! Not now!

---

Go to Directory                                Next Chapter –>

Dark Corners: Isolation Anxiety and Self-Monitoring

Hi all,

It’s time for another Dark Corners post because…well, it’s something that’s been on my mind for quite a long while and I just wanted to vent. Long story short: I feel…different. I can’t quite place what it is, I just feel disconnected from people. Throughout large portions of my time in graduate school, I found myself intentionally isolating myself from my colleagues. Now, I want to make sure I make this clear: they are all wonderful people and I have nothing against any of them. But I would get invited to get-togethers (for instance, the Halloween party) and I couldn’t bring myself to go. Like I said, I had nothing against any of them, but I just felt like the only reason I was getting invited was out of a sense of obligation. I had no basis for this assumption, but it was there.

Then, some time ago, I went to a social event with many of them. I had a good time; I participated in the games and talked with people. But at some point in the night, I had this strange feeling. I was so profoundly lonely, even though I was surrounded by people. While I like and respect each and every one of them (and they, for some reason, seem to like me), I didn’t feel like I was really connected with any of them. I felt like an outsider watching a close-knit group having fun. I felt like I had little-to-nothing in common with any of them except for our education and I knew nobody wanted to talk about school when we weren’t in class. I began to wonder why I was there, suspicious of why I had even been invited, and began to withdraw again.

After dwelling on it (ruminating, if you will), I came to the realization that I was the one to blame for how I was feeling. I am a pathological self-monitor. There are things about me that I painstakingly hide from the people around me…things about myself that I refuse to allow to the see the light of day. I work so hard to create this idealized presentation of myself that I begin to become anxious and paranoid that the person they all call a friend is not actually me, but rather the facade that I have allowed myself to show. It was then that I came to realize that there were maybe two people in the world who know these marginalized things about me (and I will admit that one was NOT my ex-, whom I dated for ~4.5 years). Several people whom I count as very close friends don’t know this stuff. It terrifies me on an existential level that I have started posting some of my writing and that someone will find out something about me that I have accidentally allowed to shine through. There is still a great deal of stuff I have written that will probably never show up on this blog for that reason. And so I’ve fallen into this perpetual state of loneliness, no matter how many cheerful and friendly people I surround myself with.

So why is this coming up again now? As I have stated in previous posts, I just began my doctoral internship. I have recently met my intern cohort and they are all great people, from what I can gather. But just in the short amount of time I have been able to socialize with them, I have started feeling this sense of isolation again. I think about what I allow to show through and what I anxiously work to suppress. It has even been happening with the people I am working with who are not part of the internship.

I’m beginning to wonder if I’ll ever allow myself to feel like I’m part of the group. I’m beginning to think I have a very serious problem.

On a lighter note, I’ve been making pretty significant progress with the Fall of Gilneas. I have crossed the 200-page point. Recently, I caught up with where my low-level character is in the quest and now I have to play through some more of it so I can take notes on the questline. The next chapter should be out in the next couple of days.

Well, that’s all for now. See y’all next time!

~Malm

The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 12: The Scythe of Elune

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 12: The Scythe of Elune

“Welcome to Tal’doren,” Lord Crowley invited, throwing out his arms. He noticed the worgen carrying Gwen. “That one alive?” he asked.

I nodded. “She should be,” I responded hopefully. I had no idea how much blood she’d lost. “She thought…” I cleared my throat. “Were you going to have her killed?” I asked, my anger starting to bubble up.

Lord Crowley nodded solemnly. “Her rage was unnatural, killing my scouts left and right. And yet elusive like I had never seen. We determined she could not be captured and was too big of a threat to allow to roam the wilds,” he explained. “How ever did you overcome her?”

I began to explain about the potion; how it had given me back control and how I used it on Gwen. Lord Crowley laughed a little. “I was wondering how in the name of the Light you made your way back to civilization. You have to hand it to the old alchemist. But why would you use the last of something so precious on that one?”

“Do you remember my companion in Gilneas City? The druid who protected me? That’s her.”

His face fell. “I thought she had made it out safely. Damn,” he grunted. “Well, we will do everything we can for her…and for you,” he promised. “Please, follow me.” He led me inside the tree. The other worgen carried Gwen in behind us.

Inside the tree, there were dozens of worgen gathered, sitting on stones or walking around. In the center of the huge chamber, there were three stone basins sitting atop pedestals made of white stone. I wondered what they were for. “So, Naomi; tell me has brought you here,” Lord Crowley requested casually.

I explained what I could while watching the other worgen bring Gwen near the basins and set her gently on the grassy ground. “And then I met Belrysa in an old mill just outside of Stormglen. She led me here,” I concluded, fighting the urge to go check on my friend.

“I’m thankful for what you have done for our people…especially for Lorna…she’s all I have left.” I thought about past conversations with his daughter. “I will send for her right away.”

I nodded and paused. I need to ask. “Lord Crowley?” I started.

“After what you and I have been through, I’d reckon you can call me Darius.”

“Oh…okay…Well, how did you – all of you – conquer the curse?” I inquired. He had to tell me the secret. It was my only chance now. I continued to focus on my breathing, but I could feel my resolve waning. It was becoming harder and harder to fight it.

“For months we wandered the wilds of Gilneas, hunting and living like beasts. Then, one day, the night elves found us. They are powerful, make no mistake, and they took us under their wing, in a sense. They have taught us much during this time. They’ve taught us who we are and where we come from. Thanks to them…thanks to this place…we’re no longer mere beasts. We have regained our free will,” he responded.

That’s not really an answer. “Yes, but…how?” I insisted.

“All in due time. Believe me, my friend; we are not in the business of withholding salvation,” he stated, placing a large hand on my shoulder. “Come, there is someone you should meet.”

Darius took me over near the basins. My attention was focused on Gwen. She seemed to still be breathing. After a moment, she arched her back for a moment before falling back still. She didn’t regain consciousness, but she was definitely still alive. Thank the Light.

“This is Vassandra Stormclaw. She was the one responsible for bringing us peace,” Darius stated, snapping me back to my surroundings. In front of us was another tall night-elf woman. She had short, vibrant green hair. The markings around her glowing eyes looked like leaves. Her robe contained earthy greens and browns.

“I sense a great deal of turmoil in your mind, young one,” Vassandra said a familiarly calm but higher voice. Young one? She doesn’t look that much older than me! That was when I remembered the books mentioning the night elves don’t age – at least not like normal. “You are at war with yourself and the curse is being held at bay by…something…something that will not last much longer.” How can she know that?

Two other night elves stepped out of the shadows and stood near the basins on either end of Vassandra. Both of them were men with exceptional hair and features. The one on the left had long blue hair that was pulled into a ponytail in back and braided down the front, with the locks reaching past his armpits. The one on the right had long green hair also pulled back in a ponytail probably reached his butt. They looked almost more feminine than the woman standing in front of me. They were a strange race indeed.

“What happens now?” I asked, staring at Vassandra.

“We must perform a ritual,” she responded. “What you know as the curse began as a heresy among our bretheren. Faced with a losing battle against demonic forces, the Druids of the Pack eschewed the balance they were sworn to and allowed the beast to overtake them. Because of their recklessness, they were banished to the Emerald Dream where they continue to live in eternal slumber beneath a tree identical to this one. But as with any force of chaos, the curse spread to others,” Vassandra explained prophetically. “What we do today will spit in the face of chaos and restore balance to your heart.”

I was getting excited. “Tell me what I must do,” I pleaded, hopping where I stood anxiously.

Vassandra looked from me to Gwen, and then back. “This tree was a gift from Elune as a sanctuary for the druids of Azeroth. It is in sanctuaries such as this that our people could meditate to control the primal energies that flow through us and back to nature. There are plants that you will find growing only in Tal’doren’s vicinity; you will know them by their white leaves. Bring me the leaves from this plant, and the ceremony will be ready to continue,” she instructed.

Picking leaves from a plant? It seemed like a needlessly menial task. Why wouldn’t they have stuff like that ready to go? “I’ll be back post haste,” I promised. I looked back down at Gwen; I could see a bit of blood starting to accumulate beneath her. “I wounded her pretty badly…Please take care of her,” I nearly begged.

“We’ll take good care of her,” Vassandra assured me.

I turned and made my way out of Tal’doren. There were worgen standing on either side of the entrance to the tree, standing guard. They didn’t look at me as I left. I wandered quickly out into the clearing, looking around for this plant they told me about.

“Your attempts to resist me were amusing at first, but my patience has run its course. I will make sure you pay dearly for your defiance.”

I scanned the field more quickly. Something caught my eyes off to the west of the tree: there was a small shrub-like plant with pale leaves. That has to be it. Looking around, there didn’t seem to be anything else that possibly could be the plant in question; all of the other foliage had very dark leaves and petals.

I ran over to the plant and knelt down beside it. My ears perked up. Do I hear…singing? The plant seemed to be emitting a peculiar sound – though, I guess any sound would be peculiar for a plant to make. It was like a woman holding a high note. It was soft and definitely difficult to hear, but I know I heard it. Like everything else in this strange area, the leaves seemed to glow in the dim lighting of the Blackwald. I waved my hand in front of the leaves and marveled in the unique effect. It seemed like such a shame to pick something so beautiful, but Vassandra had said this ‘Elune’ thing had put those plants there to be used. Just being in proximity to it made me feel calmer. The voice of the curse was completely silent.

Reaching forward, I placed my hand on one of the leaves and felt a small surge of some sort of energy flowing into me. It felt warm and welcoming. To make things better, I could feel the battle wounds that still remained closing further. I wondered what someone like Krennan could do with a plant like this. The possibilities were endless!

But, first things first. I began plucking leaves off of the glowing shrubbery, dropping them gently into my empty satchel. I didn’t know how many leaves Vassandra would need for the rituals, so I stripped a good half of the bush bare. With a soft grunt, I stood up, dusted myself off, and walked back towards the huge tree.

As I crossed the clearing, I gazed up at the mysterious structure. How did I not know a place like this existed in Gilneas? Did Gwen know? She had to. She used to hunt these woods all the time. Why didn’t she tell me? I would have loved to have spent time exploring the Blackwald…before all of this craziness happened. It was a pretty safe assumption the days of normalcy would not be returning.

I re-entered the tree to find Vassandra and Belrysa kneeling beside Gwen on the ground. I quickly rushed over to them. They had Gwen lying on her belly with their hands pressed against her back where I had swiped her. Their hands were glowing – Vassandra’s were green while Belrysa’s was gold. Thank the Light for healers.

“How is she?” I asked immediately.

“She’s lost a lot of blood, but she’ll live,” Vassandra affirmed.

“Will she wake up soon?”

“We are not sure,” Belrysa cut in. “Whatever you gave to her is responsible for her lack of consciousness. Were you out for long when they gave it to you?”

I tried to remember. “To be honest, I’m not completely sure.” I remembered waking up in the rain, where Lord Godfrey had left me. I suddenly became irrationally angry at Godfrey for how he treated me and the other worgen. A low, nearly inaudible growl escaped my throat.

“Did you bring the leaves?” Vassandra asked, rising to her feet.

“I did,” I affirmed, retrieving them from my bag. “Is this enough?” I added as I handed them over.

“This will be more than enough to complete the ritual for you and your friend,” she assured me. I felt oddly self-conscious. Did I pick too many? “These simple leaves grow by Elune’s grace. They will help your mind understand the need for balance and your soul will permanently earn mastery over the beast,” she further explained.

I grinned and shuffled around a little bit in excitement. So, I’ll be cured? I couldn’t believe my ears. “How long before the ritual is ready?”

“Not long. We will begin preparations immediately.” With that Vassandra turned her back to me and carried the leaves to the two night elf men that still stood nearby.

“I can’t believe the nightmare’s almost over,” I said aloud in my excitement.

“One nightmare ends, another begins,” Darius stated. His sudden voice made me jump. Turning, I saw him approaching me. “I will indeed be very happy when you are lifted from the shadow of the curse. It will be one less thing for you to worry about while we deal with the Forsaken.”

Oh…right…the Forsaken. In my anticipation, I had almost forgotten about the undead forces that were invading my home. I looked up at Darius. Wait a tick. If this ritual will cure me, how come the other worgen still look like…well…worgen? My heart fell and my excitement began to dissipate. Maybe it wasn’t a cure after all. “Why won’t they just go away? Haven’t they already taken enough from us?” I wondered with a frustrated sigh.

“Because the Forsaken aren’t here for our lands and our people, alone. They’re looking for something we possess,” Darius responded.

“Possess?” I parroted in confusion.

He nodded. “An artifact capable of uncontrollably spreading the curse to all humanity.”

My mind started making some connections. “That wouldn’t happen to be the same artifact the archmage, Arugal, used to bring the worgen here in the first place, would it?”

He forced a laugh. “You’re quite an astute young woman. Indeed, it is the very same. We cannot allow them to find it.”

“So we know where it is?” I asked curiously.

“We’re the ones who’ve been hiding it from Forsaken,” he responded.

“And where is Arugal?”

“Dead…probably. Only the Scythe remains,” he shrugged. “We believe the Scythe found itself back in Gilneas shortly before the worgen attacked the city. As for Arugal, we can only…”

“Darius!” a gruff male voice called out, interrupting him. A worgen with lighter fur dashed up to his leader. “The dark rangers have the Scythe!”

“What? How!” Darius demanded.

The other worgen shook his head. “I do not know, my lord. They got to it before we were able to reach it,” he reported.

Darius growled in annoyance. “Get our men in position immediately, Tobias,” he commanded. Oh hey! I know him, too! “We cannot let the Scythe fall into the hands of the Forsaken!”

Tobias nodded and ran off. Several other worgen ran off with him. If what he said about this thing is true, they’re going to need as much help as they can get. “What can I do to help?” I asked seriously.

Darius turned back to me and stared at me with a puzzled expression. “You really are the same woman I met in Gilneas City, aren’t you,” he finally said with a laugh. “I’d argue with you, but I imagine that hasn’t worked in the past.”

I shifted around uncomfortably.

He sighed. “Ever since the Forsaken invaded Gilneas, we’ve done our best to keep the location of the Scythe of Elune a secret. We moved it at night from location to location. And the dark rangers got close, but never found it…until now, apparently.  If you’re offering to help, I’m inclined to take it. However…” Darius cleared his throat. “Since you have not completed your ritual, I cannot allow you to engage the enemy directly. If something happens and you lose control…I shudder to think what you might do to my men,” he explained with a sheepish grin.

“Then what can I do?” I insisted.

Darius produced a plain horn from somewhere and handed it to me. “The Scythe was hidden at the Woods’ End Cabin far to the west of here. You’ll know it when you see it. My men will make sure the dark rangers are unable to move it from there. When you find the cabin, blow this horn. Tobias and the trackers will engage the dark rangers. Once they have, it will be safe for you to sneak inside the cabin and retrieve the Scythe,” he explained.

“I’m just supposed to steal it and run?” I asked. I felt my talents might be more useful in the middle of the fray.

“Under no circumstances are you to engage the enemy,” he commanded. “Let the trackers do the fighting and just get back here safely. Do you understand?”

The commanding presence in his voice made me feel I had no choice but to agree to his terms.  “Fine,” I grumbled, staring down at the horn.

“The ritual will be ready on your return,” he stated. “So all you need to worry about is surviving.”

After another short exchange of words, I left Tal’doren yet again. The guards had left their post. I figured they probably went to join the others to stop the rangers.  I ran west, across the clearing and into the strange and twisted forest. These trees were such a stark contrast to Tal’doren; I tried to imagine the forest if it were made only up of those mystical druidic trees. It certainly would make the Blackwald a more inviting place.

I focused my attention away from the dark trunks around me and down to the ground. I could see tons of paw-prints in the soil. I’m curious if I would be able to find them if Darius hadn’t told me where to go. I had never had to do a great deal of tracking. Most of the time, the thing I was after would find me…and then try to kill me.

The further away from Tal’doren, the stronger the burning sensation in my mind became. The curse was becoming undeniably stronger and I really had to work at ignoring the growing presence in my head. Its constant threats of what would come if I succumbed was enough to bring tears to my eyes. Stop it! Don’t give in. If you get upset, it will only become that much more powerful. I did what Belrysa instructed and forced myself to focus on my breathing once again.

I pressed further west. Eventually, the trees began to thin; I had to be coming to the edge of the Blackwald. I started to look around. I had been running for a while – maybe an hour. My paws were starting to get sore, and I still hadn’t found this cabin. Did I miss it? Darius had said it would be obvious.

As if on cue, I stepped around a tree and saw a small structure up ahead. It was a tiny log cabin with a low stone wall around it. Even from this distance with several trees in the way, I could see a sizeable group of dark rangers standing guard around the wall, bows at the read and scanning the trees.

I slowed to a stop and hid behind a trunk. I really hope they didn’t notice me. Carefully, I jumped from behind my hiding place to a slightly closer tree. I scanned the area, looking for signs of Tobias and the trackers. Sniffing the air, I could vaguely pick up a scent that could have been them, but I could not see anyone.

Finally, I reached the closest tree to the cabin. Peering out carefully, I could see the entrance to the cabin. But there were at least a dozen rangers standing on that side of the house. I wonder if this was the group the one that attacked me earlier came from. If they knew what had happened, I imagined they’d be royally pissed off at me. I hid back behind the trunk again and closed my eyes, taking several deep breaths. My body was quivering. These rangers were terrifying one-on-one. This was simply overwhelming.

“Weak little girl. Let me do it. I will rip them to shreds” It was a strange new tactic. The curse must have grown tired of my resistance and was trying to talk me into giving up willingly. I gazed down at the horn in my hand and thought about Darius’ command. He knew the curse would be trying its hardest to take me back, especially with the second bite giving it an edge. He didn’t want to give me a reason to give in.

Hold on…if this thing is so important…like, if the Forsaken could use this to wipe out humanity as we know it, why isn’t he here to stop it? I started to feel indignant…like I was being used again – sent out like a lamb to the slaughter. Part of me wanted to abandon the mission and return to Duskhaven…but what would be waiting for me there? The curse was coming and complying with Darius was the only way I could stop it.

I wondered again if the trackers were in position. I peeked out at the cabin again. The longer I waited, the less likely I’d make it through this with my sanity. Well, here goes nothing. I raised the horn to my snout and forcefully blew into it. The deep blast of the horn reverberated through the trees. Almost immediately, I heard howling to answer the call of the horn.

Once more, I peered around the trunk and saw the dark rangers focusing more intently on the forest. They all had dark arrows readied along their wicked bows made of bone. The howling grew louder and fuller as more of the hidden trackers joined in. The sound was nearly deafening.

All of a sudden, hell broke loose. The rangers began firing into the trees and I became instantly aware of movement all around me. I caught glances of other worgen darting around the trees and in the bushes. The trackers moved in, charging from the cover of the trees straight at the cabin and pouncing towards the rangers. Most of them were able to dodge the barrage of arrows, but I could hear desperate yelps as worgen were struck by the defiled projectiles. I saw my kind fall. My anger and frustration began to rise again. I thought Darius cared about his people; why would he send them to die while he stayed safely away.

“No one cares about us; not really…not even our own kind. We have to look out for ourselves.” It was particularly strange to hear the curse say ‘us.’

I couldn’t force myself to run in there through a mixture of fear and hesitation to throw my life away for another nobleman who used those under him like pawns. I dropped the horn to the ground and began to consider running away. If I get far enough away, maybe they won’t be able to find me. I won’t have a chance to hurt anyone.

Just then, I noticed someone emerge from the cabin. It was another dark ranger with the dark hood and weapons. But she was more magnificently adorned with armor. She reminded me more of the ranger who was in charge of the advance forces at Duskhaven. That has to be their leader. She emitted a presence of ruthlessness and malice. My urge to run intensified as the fear began to overpower my already-waning sense of duty. The head ranger pulled out a long, curved blade and cut down the nearest worgen with terrifying swiftness.

“Strike down these mongrels. Scatter them, whimpering, to the wilds like the beasts they are!” she called out to her troops as she killed another of my kind.

I took a trembling step back. They don’t stand a chance. They’re going to die. Again, the thought of running off crossed my mind. I shook my head. No…if I leave, they’ll die for nothing. They’re relying on me to get that artifact. They’re sacrificing themselves so that I can get my job done. Darius be damned; I’ll do it for them.

A monstrous howl rose above the rest, rallying the worgen in an instant. I saw a dark blur launch from the nearby trees and charge the leader. After a moment, my mind registered what I had seen: Lord Darius Crowley had joined the fray. He was waiting for their leader to show herself. I saw him meet the blades of the ranger’s commander with his vicious claws and muscle.

My resolve swelled in my chest and I, too, burst from the tree-line. I made straight for the entrance to the cabin. The rangers were far too distracted with the worgen’s onslaught to notice me slip past. The plan had worked so far.

The inside of the cabin was vacant. The floor was clear with the exception of a large trunk resting beneath the window. There was nowhere else I could see or a scythe to be stored. I hurried over to the trunk and tore off the lock with my claws. I threw the trunk open and then stopped as I peered inside.

The Scythe was there. It was a large blade, shaped like the crescent moon and attacked to a long shaft of pure-white wood and what looked like a petrified vine twisted around it. The blade shined with a pale light. Its beauty most definitely struck me; however, the most noticeable thing was not how it looked but how it felt. I don’t know how to explain it, but it was like the Scythe was reaching out to me…calling me. I felt an unnatural attraction to it, mystified by its presence. I had no doubt that if the Scythe could tell me to do something, I would be obedient. I could feel the curse inside me sharing in my awe. It wanted nothing more than to be directed by the Scythe. Darius wasn’t kidding…if this artifact could spread the curse and then control it, we could not allow this to fall in the wrong hands.

With a deep breath, I reached forward and plucked the scythe from its resting place. The moment I touched it with my furry hand, I felt its power flow through me. As I stood up, eyes fixated on the weapon, I realized how effortlessly I could feel myself repelling the will of the curse inside me. It was obeying me, for once.

I shook my head to break myself out of my little trance. The sound of the battle outside reached my ears again and I remembered what I was here to do. I spun on my paws and sprinted out of the cabin, the Scythe held close across my chest.

I dashed back to where I had been hiding. The worgen kept fighting behind me. Do they not know I made it out? Looking around frantically, I noticed the horn I had dropped sitting on the ground. I scooped it up and sent out another long blast from it.

I quickly checked the cabin. It looked like the worgen got my message, as they fell back almost as quickly as they had come. My heart sank as I could see the number of lifeless, fur-covered bodies around the area. But I had the artifact. Their sacrifice had worked.

There would be time for mourning later. I had to get the Scythe back to Tal’doren. I had to go through the ritual and rid myself of the curse forever. I ran as quickly as I could on two paws off to the east. My ears kept twitching as I heard the sounds of movement around me. Out of the corner of my eyes, I could see worgen running alongside me, probably wanting to ensure the safety of the Scythe.

Finally, the magnificent, waterfall-adorned trunk of Tal’doren came into sight. I made it! I didn’t stop running until I was inside the tree. I bent over, panting heavily. My legs are going to ache tomorrow!

“Well done, my friend,” Darius exclaimed, walking up to me. I inspected him from paw to snout. I couldn’t see any new battle-wounds. If I hadn’t seen him join the fight, I wouldn’t have believed he had actually been there. “For a moment, I had wondered if you were going to go through with it.”

“For a moment…so did I,” I gasped in response as I tried to catch my breath. I held out the Scythe. I couldn’t help but notice an amusing longing in Darius’ eyes. He was as mesmerized by it as I had been…and still was. Why don’t I just keep it? I didn’t want to give it up. There was so much power in it and it made me feel so serene. I shut my eyes as he plucked it from my grasp.

I opened my eyes after a few seconds. I looked past Darius and saw Gwen still lying on the ground. I ran up to her and knelt beside her; her breathing was stronger now. Again, I placed my hand on her head and ran my fingers threw her hair. “We’re going to be alright, Gwen,” I told her calmly, hoping she could hear me.

She began to rouse in response to my voice. My heart skipped a beat and started rising in tempo out of excitement. Gwen rolled over and her eyes fluttered open slowly. She stared up at me for some time with her wild eyes. The monstrous edge had disappeared from them. “You…you found me,” she finally muttered feebly. I continued to run my hand through her fur to keep her calm. “You brought me back.” Tears reached my eyes as I nodded fervently. I couldn’t believe I had my best friend back.

I opened my mouth to speak, but I was interrupted. “It is time, Naomi,” Darius announced. “This…alchemy that has kept the beast inside you at bay will not last for long.” I could feel the truth in that statement. “The first cursed worgen were night elf druids like our new allies. They, however, abandoned the balance that the rest of their kind embraced and allowed the beast to take over their minds. It is only fitting that their brethren be the ones to deliver us from the curse. Go, Warrior. Drink from the waters of Tal’doren and make peace with yourself.”

I looked down at Gwen. “We’re going to be okay,” I assured her. “Come with me.” I rose to my paws and helped her rise. She placed a great deal of her weight on me as we staggered towards the first of the three basins. I gazed into the waters and could see strange reflections of worgen locked in conflict.

“Drink from the Well of Fury, young ones,” the blue-haired night elf invited. “But be warned: the curse will try to retake you; you must fight it.” I hesitated for a moment. Then, I dipped my snout into the waters and drank. I could see Gwen following my example. My legs nearly buckled immediately as my mind was assaulted with visions of the viciousness of the worgen. I saw myself, darting across the battlefield and tearing my enemies apart.

“Yes, I can feel the fury…the rage…I will be free!”

“Just as Goldrinn’s spirit once blessed our druids, let Naomi and Gwen be blessed with the wisdom of his race and the ferocity of the wolf god,” the elf exclaimed. His voice sounded distant. As he spoke, a massive white wolf appeared in my visions and stared at me, stymying my urge to kill.

I staggered away from the basin, actively trying to hold back the curse as it desperately tried to wrestle control from me. “You will not win, little girl. Your body is mine!” I could hear growling and snarling. It wasn’t long before I realized I was the one making the sound. I had no idea what Gwen was doing. My vision started turning red. I was losing the battle.

A strong hand pressed against my shoulder and steered me towards the next basin. Vassandra awaited me there, watching me with a peaceful, unconcerned expression. “Drink from the Well of Tranquility,” she invited, waving her hand towards the second basin. “Drink and find the calm your soul desires.” Frantically, I dove my snout into the waters and lapped it up as quickly as possible.

Instantaneously, the rage subsided and the visions changed. I was in a forest, alone. I could hear running water and could see little animals and insects scurrying around as they went about the course of their peaceful daily lives. I saw a calm wind rustling the leaves. There was no anger in my heart left.

“Just as Daral’nir soothes the cursed druids who gave in to the beasts and abandoned balance, let Tal’doren soothe these two young ones,” Vassandra announced. Gwen must have made it to the second basin, too. Thank the Light.

“What are you doing? No!” The curse sounded so desperate now. I think it knew what I was trying to do. But its power had waned very suddenly. It struggled to get the upper hand, but I was overcome with a sense of calm that the curse could not overcome.

“Go now, young ones. Drink of the final basin. Once the ritual is complete, you will be visited by the Goddess. Your questions will be answered.”

I made eye contact with Gwen and we both nodded. Side-by-side, we approached the third and final basin of water. The green-haired male elf stood near the basin. He held the Scythe of Elune. “Let the Scythe unbind that which was not meant to be bound!” he declared, dipping the tip of the scythe into the waters. “Let the soul master the beast, lest the beast master the soul!” The waters began to glow with an intense white light. “Drink now from the Well of Balance and expel the curse from your soul forever.”

“No!” the curse whimpered as Gwen and I drank from the final basin.

I staggered back. The voice in my head had fallen silent. I searched and could not find any trace of it. The curse is gone! I grinned in excitement. It’s gone! My head started to spin and my eyesight became blurry.

“Gwen,” I gasped. I could see the outline of my friend nearby. I staggered over to her. I felt my hand touch hers just as we both began falling to the ground. I felt a series of strong hands catch me and lie me down. By the time my head hit the dirt, my mind was many years and thousands of miles away.

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The Fall of Gilneas – Chapter 11: Into the Blackwald

The Fall of Gilneas

Chapter 11: Into the Blackwald

“Naomi!” I heard a familiar, friendly voice calling out through the void around me. “I can feel you; you’re so close!” The green-tinted vision of Gwen appeared in the darkness. “They’re still looking for me. You have to find me first.”

“Where are you!” I asked.

“You know where I am…I’m in the Blackwald,” she responded. “Please. You have to find me. They’re tracking me. They know they won’t be able to capture me easily, so they’ll kill me.” Her voice was beyond distressed.

“Who’s tracking you?”

“I don’t know who they are or how they regained their sanity,” Gwen responded. I took that to mean worgen were following her. They regained their sanity? “There are strangers, too. I don’t know who they are or where they come from.”

A glimmer of hope appeared in my mind. If there are worgen out there that are sane, there might be a way for me to keep control, after all! Maybe it’s Krennan’s students; maybe they figured out the potion, too. “How will I find you?” I inquired.

“This body…my body…it doesn’t like new creatures entering its territory. If you come…I’ll find you,” she promised.

“And then you’ll try to kill me,” I concluded.

The image of Gwen looked away guiltily. “I’ll try not to, but this body hasn’t responded to my commands, yet.”

“I know the feeling,” I sighed. So I have to find her and subdue her without letting her kill me. Should be simple…  “I hope I can do it.”

“If I’m going to die…I want you to do it,” Gwen cried. “One way or another, I want you to end this nightmare.” My gut wrenched painfully. I knew that feeling all too well. I needed to find her.

All of a sudden, her image began to fade out. “Gwen? Gwen, where are you going!”

“There’s not much time! Help…” And then she was gone. There was nothing but darkness around me.

“Gwen!” I called out.

“Young Naomi…” a new voice chimed in. I looked around, but couldn’t see anyone. It was a deep, smooth, female voice with a very calm and strange accent?

“Who’s there?” I inquired, oddly anxious. How do people keep talking to me in my dreams?

“You and I do not know each other, but we will…soon,” the voice responded. “It is rare to find worgen such as yourself whose mind is still intact. I thought we had already located most of them.”

“What do you mean?”

“Now is not the time for an explanation. We shall speak soon and all of you will have your answers.” An old structure came into view. It looked like it might be an abandoned windmill. The desolate and contorted trees of the Blackwald could be seen behind it. “Until then, rest well. Important times lay ahead, Naomi. Farewell.”

“Wait! How do you know my name?” I insisted. But the image disappeared, and with it I was back in the silence and nothingness.

***

I awoke the next morning monumentally confused. What the hell was that all about? Who was that other voice? My mind shifted to Gwen. I knew what I had to do now…or, at least, I knew what she wanted me to do. But how am I supposed to subdue her?

And what was all of this talk about other worgen tracking her? Were there really worgen out there that had overcome the curse? How? Would they be able to help me? Or would they try to kill me on sight, thinking I was as wild as Gwen?

Shaking my head, I tried to sit up, but had some difficulty. Daniel still lay nestled against my chest. His hand rested right on my belly. I could hear quiet snoring. Gently, I jostled him awake.

“Huh? What’s going on?” he questioned groggily.

I thought about telling him about that dream. In the end, I decided against it. It was a dream; I had no idea if there was truth to any of it. I didn’t want to give him false hope. “It’s time to get up,” I informed him.

“Why?”

“Because I don’t want to waste any time,” I responded, slipping out from under him. I sat up and stretched out. I made a monstrous yawn, letting out a quiet, involuntary whining noise. I quickly snapped my mouth shut, a little embarrassed by the sound.

Daniel just laughed as he sat up. He stroked my back tenderly. “You know, the longer I see you, the less I see anything strange about your appearance,” he commented with a yawn of his own.

“Well I’m glad one of us is getting used to it,” I responded.

Before I could respond, there was a loud knock on the door. “Naomi! Are you awake?” I could hear Lorna call from the other side.

What’s she doing here? I looked over at Daniel. “Um…one minute!” I responded frantically. I shot out of the bed and scrambled to put my clothes back on. My claws caught the fabric as I jammed my legs into the pants and I winced a little as I heard the loud rip. Damn it. I had gone through so many sets of clothes in the last few days alone.

“Hey, calm down,” Daniel stated, keeping his voice low. “No need to rush.”

I ignored him. I started running my fingers through my hair, as if it acted like some sort of comb. Why am I doing this?  I dropped my arms to the sides. Darting across the room, I threw the door open. I could see Lorna jump; she must not have expected me to move that quickly. Or maybe she hasn’t gotten used to…me.

“Are you feeling alright?” she asked, raising an eyebrow at me. She surveyed my body. I had to have looked like a mess – clothes disheveled and ripped. Plus I was breathing a little heavily from the brief rush. After a moment, she craned her neck to look around me and saw Daniel still sitting on the bed. A sly, knowing smirk spread across her face. “Fantastic.”

Again, it was fortunate my face was concealed beneath dark fur or she would very clearly see my embarrassment. “Did…did you need something?” I asked.

Lorna blinked a couple times, as if she had forgotten why she was there. Then, she shook her head quickly to collect herself. “It took a while, but I think I’ve put together what happened here,” she explained, holding up the old journal. “At least partially. I wanted to be sure to talk to you about it. They’re just starting to serve the people breakfast downstairs. Shall we discuss it while we eat?” she proposed. “You’re welcome to come, too…um…Danny, was it?” she added, extending the invitation.

“Close…Daniel,” he corrected, standing and walking up to my side. “That sounds lovely.”

The three of us made our way down the stairs to the main room of the inn. A large crowd had gathered, everyone obviously awaiting their morning meals. Some people looked over at me when we walked in, but no one seemed to shrink away. There was a nearly-deafening level of noise inside the building as everyone was talking with one another – some shouting to ensure their voice was heard over the racket. It was not terribly comfortable for my ears; I started to feel a growing confusion as the noise overwhelmed me. I could feel an old rage building up; it wasn’t what I felt while fighting – not entirely. It felt like the curse was trying to take advantage of my confusion and reclaim my body. Is the potion starting to wear off?

“Do not forget your daily dose,” Krennan said, suddenly appearing behind us as if on cue. His voice made me jump.

“Oh…right…thank you,” I responded. I realized I had left my satchel up in the room.

Daniel looked at my waist and, as if reading my mind, declared, “I’ll go get it for you.” He scurried up the stairs.

“What a helpful lad,” Krennan commented.

I cleared my throat. “Um, Krennan…what would happen if I didn’t take the whole vial?” I asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Like, what if I only drank a little bit? Would I still lose control?” I clarified. “I just thought it would be good if…I don’t know…if I could conserve it a little bit.”

Krennan shook his head. “I would not recommend it. That dosage is meant to help you keep control for a full day. I don’t know what would happen if you didn’t take it all; it might not last as long…or it might be too weak to overpower the curse altogether.”

“You should try it out. You should see how little of it you need,” the voice advised. I didn’t need to be able to sense its malicious intent to know why it wanted me to do that.

I knew I wouldn’t be able to hide the disappointment in my face. “Okay…thank you,” I responded; it wasn’t his fault, after all.

“I’m sorry; if there were any way I could thin it out, I would.”

“I understand.”

Krennan nodded and shuffled away. He’s such a strange, awkward man.

“Ah, good morning, Naomi!” Mayor Armstead greeted, walking up to me from the crowd of people. “It’s a little lively down here, this morning, isn’t it?”

“You could say that,” Lorna cut in. “How are you, this morning, Lady Armstead?”

“As well as can be expected, Lorna,” the mayor responded. “It’s been busy. Your father’s been an enormous help to me manage the stress,” she stated, directing the last addition toward me with a wink. I caught her meaning and shuffled a little uncomfortably.

“Any breakthroughs?” Lorna asked.

Mayor Armstead shook her head. “No. We just sent some scouts into the mountains to the east to see into these rumors of survivors. I’m hesitant to move our people through the Blackwald unless I know there’s somewhere safe for us to go.”

“What about the Forsaken? They’ll catch up with us soon, won’t they?”

“The scouts reported in this morning and informed me that they fell back after Koroth showed up and gave the scoundrels hell,” Mayor Armstead responded with a smile. “I hear we have you to thank for that,” she said, again addressing me.

“Koroth, huh?” Lorna mused. “You’ll have to tell me how you managed that one, sometime,” Lorna told me in admiration.

Daniel showed up with my satchel and handed me a vial from it. With a deep breath, I downed its contents and kept myself from gagging. Hey, look at the bright side…once we run out, I don’t need to drink this nasty stuff anymore. It was the smallest of silver linings, but it was there.

“Anyway, Naomi,” Mayor Armstead started, clearing her throat. “I have a surprise for you. Go get yourself some food and then come find me after you’re finished eating.”

“A surprise?” I repeated uncertainly.

“Think of it as a gift. But I’d better get back to the people; they’re not going to organize themselves. See you soon.” The mayor turned and started dodging through the crowd. A moment later, I could hear her commanding voice rise above the white noise and start directing the survivors around. Everyone quieted down the moment she started talking.

It was amazing seeing how quickly they complied with her instructions. We went to get in line for food along with the others. It took a little bit, but we were eventually able to get our breakfast. The noise level started rising gradually as Mayor Armstead stopped barking instructions. They were obviously starting to ration the portions out quite a bit and, sadly, there wasn’t any bacon. I know the mayor doesn’t want to move the people, but how long can we really stay here?

We took our food outside of the inn. It was strangely quiet; probably mostly in contrast to what it was like inside. There was a low stone wall across the road from the inn where we sat to eat. “So what did you find out?” I asked curiously while taking a bite.

Lorna nodded while she finished chewing. “Yeah. So, according to the journal, there were survivors of the curse in this town. But the worgen started showing up in the Blackwald and occasionally attacked the town. From what I can gather, most of the town left to join others in the mountains, in Tempest’s Reach. And by most of the town, I mean everyone…everyone except for the man who kept the journal; old man Bradshaw.”

“So there really are other survivors out there,” I echoed. While it didn’t really help my current situation, it was good to hear that more Gilneans may still have a chance to make it out of this.

“Sounds like it,” Lorna affirmed. “But that’s not the interesting part. So this guy, Bradshaw…well he noticed the worgen attacks had stopped all of a sudden. In the last entry, he talks about preparing to go into the Blackwald to investigate.”

“They just stopped?” I asked. “Is it because everyone left?” I mean, it made sense; if there was no food, why come around?

“That’s what I thought, but there was still plenty of food left behind by the people who evacuated to Tempest’s Reach. He wrote in his journal that he would inspect the town every day and could find no trace of worgen activity. It was like they stopped coming by altogether very suddenly.”

“Huh,” I grunted. “So where does this get us?”

Lorna shrugged her shoulders. “I’m not rightly sure. But Bradshaw lived in a mill just northeast of town. I’m sure it is abandoned now, but you could go see if you can find any clues there,” she suggested.

A mill. I thought back to the strange ending to my dream last night. Was that the place I had seen? I couldn’t think of any other place that might have fit that description. If it wasn’t Bradshaw’s mill, then it had to be a similar place nearby. It was the best plan I had.

“So there’s nothing about what happened to this Bradshaw guy?” Daniel wondered aloud.

Lorna shook her head. “No. Like I said, the last entry detailed his intent to investigate the Blackwald. There’s nothing after that.”

“Where did you find that journal, anyway?” he inquired.

“It was sitting on a table at the inn,” she responded. Her face became pensive.

“Don’t you think that’s odd?” Daniel pointed out.

I was confused. “Why would that be odd?” I asked, feeling a little more than foolish for not understanding. I could tell by the look on Lorna’s face that she understood his statement.

“Well, if Bradshaw lived in a mill to the northeast, and he didn’t write any entries after going into the Blackwald, how did the journal end up at the inn?” he explained, skeptically.

“And now that I think about it, the reason I was drawn to it was it looked out of place – like there was less dust on it than the rest of the building,” Lorna added distantly.

“You think someone planted it for us to find?” I concluded, doing the wolf-equivalent of raising an eyebrow.

“It looks that way,” Daniel stated. “Do you think it might be a trap?”

“A trap laid by who? The Forsaken were behind us before we came here. They couldn’t have planted it,” I reasoned. Maybe it was whoever that voice belonged to. She seemed to know me. Did she know I was coming? Was she trying to draw me out to that mill? For what purpose?

“The feral worgen, maybe?” Daniel shrugged, continuing to munch on his food. “Trying to bait out some food?”

“Speaking from experience, let me tell you feral worgen do not have the wherewithal to set something like that up,” I pointed out. “They’re kind of…basic.”

“I’ll show you who’s basic when I am ripping your friends and family limb from limb.” The curse only proved my point; though, no one else was privy to that evidence.

“I’m going,” I declared. “I’ll check out what’s there and see where that takes me.” My voice was sure and resolute. I turned to Daniel. “I know we already do not have much time, but how do you feel about me being gone for a while?”

“To be honest, I’m getting more and more used to it,” Daniel laughed. “Besides, I planned on firing up the local forge again to see if I can make myself more useful around here. Just…promise me you’ll be careful.”

“I promise.” Well, if I run into Gwen out there, that promise will go out the window. My promises always seem to go out the window. At least I haven’t gone off and died…yet.

We continued discussing the journal’s contents and the plan while we finished our breakfasts. I, for one, was still quite hungry; but I wasn’t about to go begging for more than my share of food. Eventually, I decided it was time to find Mayor Armstead. Lorna indicated she wanted to go clean her rifle and left us as we went into the inn.

We were able to find the mayor at the back of the inn, finally able to take some time to take a seat. It was so early in the morning and she already looked completely exhausted. She looked up as we approached; I could see the stress on her face for a moment before she hid it with a smile. “Did you enjoy your food?” she asked politely.

Daniel and I exchanged quick glances. “It was lovely,” I responded while my stomach betrayed me by rumbling loudly.

Mayor Armstead let out a long sigh, running her hands through her hair. “I know, I know…we’re doing the best we can. I just hope this is all over soon.”

“I’m willing to wager you’re not alone on that one, ma’am,” Daniel threw in.

She forced a chuckle. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right.” She let out another long breath as she pushed herself to her feet. The tired woman turned her weary eyes on me. “You look like someone with a purpose,” she commented.

I briefly informed her of the plans to check out the mill. “For once, it sounds like a task that won’t likely get me killed,” I half-lied. If my suspicions were true, I would be having some company soon. I didn’t want to tell them about that. “But I wanted to stop by and check in with you before I left. You had mentioned something about a surprise?”

“Ah, yes. Please follow me,” she invited. Daniel and I followed her out of the inn and down the street towards the center of Stormglen. “After our little chat at the manor, I began speaking with the tradesmen who survived Duskhaven – which was most of them, by the way,” she added after seeing my expression. I had to force myself to remember what she was talking about. “The tanners and leatherworkers were able to whip something up that should be…functional for the time-being.” I vaguely remember having inquired about more substantial clothing.

She led us into a small building on the western side of the town square. A middle-aged couple sat within at a small table. My eyes were immediately drawn to a bundle on top of the table. After a moment, I forced myself to survey the rest of the room. It was dim, lit only by the sunlight coming in from the windows. A thick layer of dust and cobwebs had settled on most of the surfaces; though, the bed and table looked to have been cleaned off. I don’t know why I was surprised by the state of the structure; after all, it was abandoned along with everything else until we showed up. There was an assortment of strange-looking iron tools hanging on the wall or sitting on shelves. I was very unfamiliar with their function, but if I had to guess they were used for preparing and working with leather.

“So this is her,” the male in the couple declared as they both stood from their seats. “The only trustworthy worgen in the country.” I shuffled uncomfortably. It was reassuring to hear they trusted me, but I still picked up on his tone of disdain for my kind. “I’ll be honest, when the mayor asked us for help, I thought she was crazy!”

“Oh hush, Willard,” the woman scolded.

“I’m just saying, worgen are killing machines, Molly,” he replied to the woman. “An armored worgen? You have to admit, it sounds crazy.” A killing machine… I really didn’t like that.

“Willard!”

The man looked over at me. “Of course, you’re different,” he added hastily. “You’re alright.”

I couldn’t meet anyone’s gaze. His reassurance wasn’t entirely reassuring. No matter what I did, it didn’t seem to extinguish how people view the worgen. Sure, they might be nice to me; but deep down, they probably still see me as a monster.

“Just get her set up, will you?” Mayor Armstead sighed, sounding more than a little frustrated.

“Oh, alright!”

They skirted Daniel outside and closed the door. Willard looked away as Molly stripped my clothes from me. She helped fit me into a pair of leather pants and a leather cuirass. The top covered my breasts but left much of my midriff exposed. My arms were completely uncovered as well. The pants only went down to my knees. Then, Molly and Willard began lacing up some leather pads around my upper arms, forearms, and the lower half of my legs.

“Why is it so…exposed?” I asked cautiously, not wanting to insult them.

Mayor Armstead chose to answer the question. “They didn’t want to obstruct your range of motion. Given the time constraints, we didn’t really have much time to test out different designs, so they decided to leave your joints uncovered,” she explained, matter-of-factly. “But the rest of it should give you a bit more protection than the cotton clothing,” she pointed out.

I couldn’t argue with that. Though, if I ended up fighting against Gwen, it wouldn’t be that much protection from the claws and teeth of another worgen. I had a chilling reminder of the original outbreak in Gilneas City.

“Does everything fit alright?” Molly asked.

I moved around a bit. Nothing seemed to budge. “Feels like it,” I responded. “Thank you for this,” I made sure to add.

“Like I said, we were a little strapped for time. I’m sure we can make something a little more…complete next time,” Mayor Armstead assured me. I wondered if there actually would be an opportunity for a next time. “But this should be useful for your journey to the mill.”

I nodded and continued to thank the pair of trade-workers. I wanted to make sure they didn’t think I was dissatisfied with it. I also didn’t want to leave the impression that Willard’s comments had irked me…no matter how much they actually had.  They inspected my body, as if taking note of how my limbs actually bent. I wondered if they were planning the next suit of armor.

After a few more minutes, Mayor Armstead and I left the building and found Daniel outside. “If we had had the resources and time, I would have had something fashioned for you out of steel,” she commented as we put some distance between us and the leatherworkers. “But what do you think?”

“It’s snug, but not too tight,” I responded. “I think this should work well for the time being. Thank you.”

“I wish you luck in your investigation. Hopefully, it’ll help us figure out if it’s safe to keep moving forward.”

“I’ll let you know what I find,” I promised.

Mayor Armstead nodded. “Well, I had best go find the king and come up with a contingency plan,” she announced. “As always, stay safe.”

We said our farewells and then it was just Daniel and me again. “I have some work I need to get done, as well,” Daniel informed me. He stood facing me, looking around awkwardly. “I love you, poppet; come back to me.” He threw his arms around me and pulled his face into my chest.

I returned the embrace warmly. “I love you, too.” I was quiet for a moment. “Thank you for being here for me,” I finally added. I shuddered to think how I might feel differently about myself had he not been around to bolster my spirits with his unwavering optimism.

After a few more heartfelt moments, we parted and I began to walk northeast towards the end of town. Now that I was alone, my mind began to buzz with recollections of the dream and questions about what was going to happen when I got to the mill.

I passed by the stone wall that signaled the border of Stormglen. Beyond that lay a path leading directly into the dark trees. I took a deep breath before pressing forward. The moment I left the border of the town, I began to feel as if I was being watched. Is Gwen already on the prowl?

I looked around nervously as I entered the shadows of the twisted woods. The trees were eerie, especially with no leaves at this time of year. It was like the forest was diseased. I could hear something moving amongst the foliage, but it didn’t sound big enough to be of any consequence. Still, I was more than a little on edge.

I felt like I warily walked that path forever. Finally, the mill came into view. There was no doubt in my mind now that it was the same one from my dream. The windows were dark and the blades of the windmill were falling apart. There was a doorway facing me, and I could see the door hand fallen off its hinges into the overgrown grass next to the structure. The entire building looked like it was falling apart.  It creeped me out more than the trees of the Blackwald. To make matters worse, I still had the acute sense I was being watched…or hunted.

As I approached, I noticed a shadow move within the mill. I stopped and dropped low to the ground with my ears pulled back. Whatever was in there, I would be ready for it. For the next several moments, I waited; but there was no further movement. I inched forward cautiously, waiting for any additional sign of threats. Again, there was nothing.

It took pretty long to sneak up to the open entryway. I peered inside. It was dark, but I could make out a figure crouched down in the center of the bare room. This person wore a bright yellow cloak with a hood over its head. The cloak billowed out across the floor around the figure. Is it an enemy? It hasn’t noticed me yet. I shifted and stood up straight, my body casting a shadow into the room and over the figure.

In a smooth, fluid motion, the figure rose and turned while pulling the hood from its head. What in the… The figure – a woman, by the looks of it – was unlike anyone I’ve seen in Gilneas. She was tall; easily matching my height, if not passing it. The strange woman’s skin was a pale blue and completely devoid of blemish from what I could see of her face. She had long, silky purple hair that swayed unnaturally with each subtle movement. Her ears were incredibly long; much longer than mine, and hairless. Her eyes glowed with a light reminiscent of the moon. Around her eyes were red markings – tattoos, maybe.

“I’ve been expecting you, Naomi,” she greeted in the same smooth voice I remembered from my dream. “Do not be alarmed. My name is Belrysa, a Priestess of the Moon…a Kal’dorei…a night elf,” she explained calmly. I remembered reading of the night elves in the books my father brought home. They were from a land far to the west. What is she doing in Gilneas? “You might not know my people, but the destinies of our two races have been linked since the curse befell you.”

“The curse? Linked? What do you…” I started incredulously. I wasn’t completely sure I had heard what I thought I heard.

“I’m sure you have many questions. And they will be answered in time,” Belrysa interrupted. “I know why you’re here and what you’re looking for…” You do? I don’t even really know what I’m looking for. “I can’t lead you there with the enemy tracking you. One of Sylvanas’ scouts have been following your tracks,” she informed me in a grim tone.

My body tensed up and I began trying to listen for the sounds of danger; I spun around and surveyed the shadowy trees behind me. I couldn’t see anything, but there was a much more weight on that feeling I was being watched. Is it another one of those rangers? I shuddered, remembering my encounter with one the other day.

“You can’t lead the Forsaken to the place you seek,” Belrysa added.

“How am I supposed to shake them?” I inquired earnestly.

Belrysa produced an amulet made of a strange material; it was smooth and warm to the touch and appeared to glow with moonlight. “Take this talisman and walk along the road just north of here. The ranger will be waiting for you there. Let her lure you to her trap and use the power of the talisman to free yourself. The rest…well, I trust you already know what you must do.”

I nodded while I stared at the talisman, stroking it with my finger. “How do I use its power?” I wondered aloud.

Belrysa smiled and told me a short incantation. As she spoke, the talisman glowed more brightly and then emitted a pulse that felt like a warm wind across my fur. My vision momentarily was enveloped by a flash of white.  “That will ensure her trap cannot hold you for long. Go now; we will go together into the forest once your pursuer has been dealt with.”

I left the mill and followed the stone road to the north. It led down a steep hill and around underneath the Bradshaw mill. I was close to another tree-line. These trees looked much more shadowy and sinister. It gave me chills.

Suddenly, as I walked cautiously along the path, I heard a loud snap and my feet became frozen solid. I looked down in horror as I watched magical ice begin to climb up my legs. My paws quickly became numb as a wave of cold washed over my body. When the ice reached my knees, a short, lithe figure wearing a black hooded cloak stepped out from behind one of the gnarled trunks. I couldn’t help but notice she somewhat resembled the night elf I had just met but was much, much smaller.

“Foolish beast,” it laughed with an eerie voice I had hoped to forget since the first time I heard the likes of it when Gilneas was invaded. “The cowards should never have let you off the leash to wander away,” she taunted. I let out a distressed whine, wanting to let the ranger think she had won. At the same time, I did take the statement at least a little to heart.

The ice had reached my waist. My whine became less and less of an act as my nerves cried out from the cold. She walked closer. “I’ll admit: your kind is a wondrous weapon. To think, a nothing like you could become such a problem for us…just because you got some claws,” she continued. “Just think what my Dark Lady will be able to achieve when we can wield that power. What was that? What exactly do these freaks have planned?

The ice reached my boobs. Well, I think that’s about enough of that. She wasn’t close enough for me to strike right away, but if I waited much longer, I wouldn’t be able to use the talisman. Clutching the talisman in my hand, I muttered the incantation under my breath. The talisman glowed and pulsed. Immediately, the ice shattered and warmth returned to my body immediately. I fell down onto all fours for a moment, balance thrown off by the sudden use of my legs.

The expression on the ranger’s face was absolutely priceless: an amusing combination of surprise and fear. “How did you…?” she trailed off, hopping back away from me before I could lash out at her. She continued to back up near the edge of the trees. I could hear a low snarl rumbling from the shadows of the woods. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t need a trap to defeat you,” the dark ranger claimed, pulling out her bow and readying an arrow with terrifying swiftness.

I found my footing and readied myself to dodge her arrow. My eyes were focused on the enemy in front of me, but I became increasingly aware of the noises coming from the trees. Something else is coming.

“Filthy mongrel; I’ll put you down like the beast you are,” the undead scout spat.

A dark blur launched out of the tree line and crashed into the ranger, who crumpled to the ground under the force.  A sickening crunch echoed across the sky. I let my muscles relax for a moment before I realized what had happened. There was a very-naked worgen hunched over the now-motionless body of the dark ranger. Its – or, more accurately, her – terrible jaws were around the Forsaken’s skull. The worgen jerked her head to the side and the ranger’s leg twitched automatically.

After a moment, the worgen turned to me, crouched low to the ground on all-fours. She bared her teeth and resumed the vicious snarl I heard a moment earlier. Even from this distance, I recognized a wild edge to her eyes that was in addition to the pure rage that normally filled the eyes of a feral worgen. That’s her…I know it.

“Gwen!” I entreated, hoping that my friend was somewhere in there; that she could hear me.

For a moment, I saw her ears twitch and her snarl lessen somewhat, but she quickly regained her threatening composure. I moved slowly and brought my hands up, displaying my palms towards the enraged worgen before me. “Gwen, it’s me. It’s Naomi,” I called desperately. I really don’t want to fight you. Again, her face changed for a moment before the curse took full control again.

Without warning, Gwen sprinted towards me. I barely had time to react before she leapt on top of me. I fell to the ground as her body collided with me. I managed to get my arm up and wedged my forearm just beneath her neck. She snarled and snapped her jaws at me over and over, trying to get those massive teeth around my throat.

“G-Gwen!” I gasped, struggling to push her back. “Don’t you recognize me?” Her teeth were mere inches from my flesh. “Don’t you recognize me?” Well, probably not. I wouldn’t recognize me. “Gwen, please!” She was relentless though.

Once she realized she wasn’t going to be able to sink her teeth into my neck so easily, Gwen lashed out with her claws. I raised my other arm to try to protect my face just as a set of claws tore into my arm at my elbow. I winced and my arms faltered ever so slightly. But it was enough for Gwen to win the struggle. I desperately rolled to the side to avoid having my throat ripped out.

She’s going to kill me, I realized as those razor-sharp teeth sank into my shoulder. I let out a piercing yelp in agony. Then something unexpected happened; as if in response to my cry, Gwen’s jaws released their mighty hold. Without questioning it, I put all of my force into shoving her off of me.

Scrambling up onto two paws, I stood there, eyes fixated on Gwen. She hopped up onto all fours and stared back at me. There’s something strange in her eyes…pain? Regret? Had I actually reached her? I could feel something warm and wet starting to run down my left arm. I moved my arm around and winced again; I could move it, but it hurt like hell.

I could hear a low laughter in the back of my brain. The curse was happy about something. “Bitten once again,” I almost sang. ”It’s all a matter of time, now.”  My chest tightened when I realized what it must have meant. Had I just received a second dose of the curse? Did it work like that? Would Krennan’s serum be able to hold it off? How long would I have?

Then, my questioning turned to anger. I will not let you take control. I took several deep breaths, still staring down my friend. How dare you think you can control me? I will never let you imprison me in my own body again! As the anger grew, a growl rumbled out of my throat. The rage began to consume me, but not in the same way when the curse had taken over; it was more like when I had been fighting the Forsaken.

A strange sizzling noise met my ears, distracting me for a moment from the worgen in front of me. My arm felt weird; not painful, but sort of numb. I inspected my shoulder and could actually see the puncture wounds starting to close; the flow of blood quickly stopped. I don’t know how my body was regenerating so quickly, but I didn’t really have the focus to figure it out at the moment. My eyes snapped back to Gwen. Reasoning with her won’t work. I have to try something else. The growl turned into a full on snarl. Here goes nothing.

I dashed towards her. She readied herself and met my charge. What happened after, I wasn’t entirely sure. There was a flurry of fur, claws, and teeth. My rage reached what felt like it had to be critical mass. I was moving faster than normal, dodging her swipes and doing what I could to deliver blows of my own without resorting to the use of my claws. The last thing I wanted to do was kill her.

Her claws connected with me again, this time across my belly. With a yelp, I jumped back for a breather. Gwen fell onto all fours and her muscles visibly tensed up. She was panting heavily.

My mind was still racing, trying to figure out what to do. All the while, I could hear the voice of the curse taunting me, not the least bit worried about my resolve. Its voice slowly started to get louder. It made it more difficult to think.

I clutched my stomach for a moment. It didn’t feel like the wound was that deep; it bled a little, but not as bad as my shoulder had a moment before. I should be fine. And at least she didn’t hit one of my extra nips; that probably would have hurt. I let my arm fall to my side. At that point, my wrist brushed up against my satchel, which was attached to my belt at my side. The remaining potion vials… They had used a large dose of the serum to bring me back; I wondered if it could do the same for Gwen.

Gwen charged at me again, tearing me away from my thoughts. I stepped to the side and swung at her; but I forgot to close my fist and my claws caught her on the back. She emitted a distressed yelp when she hit the ground. Turning towards me while releasing quiet whimpers, she stared defiantly up at me before roaring and sprinting off into the trees.

I can’t lose her! I gave chase, quickly falling to sprint on all fours after her. It was the only way I could possibly keep up. My belly ached as I propelled myself further; the wound may have been opening with the strain. I prayed I wouldn’t bleed out before I had a chance to get to her.

I was gaining on her, somehow, as we darted between the twisted tree-trunks. She didn’t go particularly deep into the Blackwald; instead, she kept changing directions, skirting along the outer rim. Finally, I was close enough to attack. Leaping forward, I dug my claws into the back of her shoulders and slammed her into the ground. She howled in pain and struggled to escape my grasp. In one quick motion, I spun her onto her back and straddled her belly to keep her from standing up or slipping away.

She twisted and roared in distress, trying to wrench herself free, but I held down her arms, my claws tearing into her biceps to anchor my grasp. I could feel blood oozing out of the wound onto my hands.

“I’m sorry, Gwen. I don’t want to hurt you,” I told her as calmly as I could, despite the adrenaline raging through my veins. Again, I could hear the strange sizzling noise and the wound on my stomach stop hurting almost altogether. “This is for your own good.”

Suddenly, my vision started to go red and I started snarling. I couldn’t stop myself. I could feel a malicious intent building up. It wanted to rip out my captive prey’s throat and assert my dominance as the alpha. No! I am in control, not you! My will overpowered it – this time – and my sight returned to normal. It was clear the curse was gaining in strength.

I tried to take full measure of my breathing while I waited for Gwen to stop struggling. I need to find a way to get her to take the potion. I blinked. But…if I give it all to her, there won’t be any left for me. And then we’ll both be wild in a day’s time anyway. I didn’t know what to do. No matter what I did, everything just seemed so futile. Either I end her nightmare and I go back to mine in a week’s time, or I deliver her to sanity and we both keep it for a day…if that long. I made my decision: I’d rather spend one final day with my best friend as herself than to suffer through this without her.

Cautiously, I let go of her arm so that I could get to my satchel. She immediately took the opportunity to swipe at me. I bent back to avoid her swing and then grabbed hold of her wrist and dragged it back to the ground. I shifted my weight so that I could bring a paw up to pin her arm down. It was definitely a very awkward kneeling position. I kept talking to her – trying to soothe her fury – but it didn’t seem to help; she kept thrashing and trying to get free.

I fumbled with my satchel, trying to get the vials out. I felt a burning in the back of my brain; the curse was gaining steam and trying to reclaim my body for its own nefarious purposes. I wouldn’t let it do that. Not yet.

I managed to get one out and carefully removed the cork with my teeth. This was hard to do with one hand. “This is going to taste disgusting,” I warned as I tried to hold the vial over her mouth. Gwen continued to thrash about, this time more vehemently. Her head jerked around, making it damn near impossible to get a good angle.

I thought about the day they gave me my first dose. It was easier with me in the stocks, but I was still pretty resistant. The king had to grab my jaw. With a sigh, I shuffled around again to free my other hand. I was now standing on both of Gwen’s upper arms, near her shoulders. I could feel her flailing her body back and forth to try to free herself. It was hard to keep my balance, but I had to do it.

Squatting down, I grabbed hold of the base of Gwen’s jaw and forced her to face up. By applying a little pressure, I was able to force her mouth open and keep it that way. “I’m really sorry about this. You’ll thank me soon…I hope.”

Carefully, I poured the contents of the vial into her open mouth. Gwen made this awful gargling sound as she tried desperately not to swallow the foul liquid. “Drink it down,” I pleaded, massaging her throat with the back of my other hand. Finally, I felt her swallow.

One by one, I poured the vials from my satchel into her mouth and massaged it down her throat. I hoped I had enough to give her body back to the real Gwen…and not too much to kill her. I had no idea what the right dosage was for this. Before too long, my satchel was empty. My only chance at remaining remotely human was spent. One way or another, it was over.

I stepped off of Gwen, who immediately rolled over onto her front and began sputtering and gagging. She tried to stand, but fell back to the ground. She seemed to become weaker by the second. I couldn’t help but notice a small pool of blood on the ground where she had been laying. I could see blood staining the fur on her back where I had swiped her earlier.

Moments later, Gwen collapsed and lay still. If it weren’t for the subtle rising and falling of her back, I would have been convinced I had killed her. Breathing hard, I plopped down beside her. I rolled her over and placed her head on my lap. Her face was peaceful.

A deep sadness bubbled up from my heart. She got herself infected because she was looking for me after Gilneas City. I was the reason she was so lost and alone for so long. I arched my back a little and threw my head upwards, letting out a long, somber howl that echoed through the trees. A shiver rand down my back while I did it; it was always a little strange to hear myself make such wild noises.

After I was finished, I turned my attention back to my unconscious friend. Gently, I ran my hands through her fur and disheveled hair. I continued to gaze into her quiet face. I hope you’re this calm when you wake up.

“She’ll be weak. I’ll be able to tear her apart easier than a baby.”

I tried to ignore the voice, but I couldn’t deny it was stronger than ever. I could still feel its influence growing. I continued to pet – for lack of a better word – my best friend. Tears gathered in my eyes as I thought about everything that I had lost and was about to lose.

I heard footsteps nearby and turned towards them. Belrysa glided across the ground with an eerie grace. “I began to worry when I heard the fight,” she commented in her calm, soothing voice. She knelt down beside us. “It is such a tragedy what happens when the curse takes hold.” She spoke with such certainty and compassion; as if she had seen it firsthand.  “It is also tragic when they wake up, as if from a terrible nightmare, and are faced with the horrors of what they had done.”

“How do you know so much about me? About my kind?” I asked, voice wavering.

“I told you already: the destinies of our two races intertwined the moment the curse swept through your homeland. Now, there are others like you. And they, too, were lost and confused. I was among those who saw to their convalescence personally,” she explained. Convalescence? “I can only imagine how you must have felt with the rest of your people – alone, different…like there was nowhere you belonged.” I stared down at Gwen, the night elf’s words hitting too close to home for my comfort. “But there is a place where you belong.” My ears perked up and I stared back up at Belrysa. “Tal’doren, the wild home. It was once home to an order of druids who took the shape of wolves…a long, long time ago in a different age. It is there that you will find the answers you seek. It is also there that you will find someone who can offer guidance,” she stated.

“Who?” I asked, terribly confused.

She gave me a warm smile. “An old friend,” she responded cryptically. “Come, let me take you there.”

“I can’t leave without her,” I declared. I didn’t care about getting my answers if I couldn’t bring Gwen with.

“I understand. This one has been a blight upon these woods for some time. She was so good at hiding when we looked for her. I know they will be happy for the opportunity to help her. We were afraid that…another course of action would have to be taken,” she stated solemnly.  “We will ensure her safe delivery to Tal’doren.”

Something heavy hit the ground behind us and I jumped. I twisted around as best I could and saw a large male worgen walk up to us. Unlike the typical feral worgen, this one still wore clothes; and it walked much more calmly than I would have expected. He circled around to my front and bent down, reaching for Gwen. I threw my arms over her to shield her from him.

“It is alright,” Belrysa assured me. “I told you you are not alone.”

Hesitantly, I leaned back and allowed the other worgen to hoist her motionless body up in his arms. I stood up and stared at the worgen man who had Gwen. “Hurt her, and I’ll tear you apart,” I threatened. I don’t know why I was feeling so hostile. He just grunted a chuckle and turned away from me.

“Let us go,” Belrysa invited.

We walked together through the trees. The worgen who held Gwen stayed in my sight at all times. I needed to ensure my friend’s safety. She still seemed to be breathing and occasionally would move on her own, but she did not regain consciousness. Belrysa walked beside me. I noticed now that she made no sound while she moved. She must have intentionally made sound earlier to keep from setting me off.

As we made our way deeper into the Blackwald, the trees changed. There were actually signs of life, but the leaves that covered the branches were dark purple – or maybe black; I couldn’t be sure. That in combination with their twisted, gnarled shapes made them much stranger and, frankly, creepier than the leafless trees along the edges. Gigantic vines began to weave around the trees, their massive tendrils strangling much of the nearby foliage. More resilient bushes sprung up between them.

“I can feel it. It is only a matter of time before I have you again. This time, I will take it all.”

Belrysa placed a slender hand on my shoulder. “I sense a great deal of conflict in your mind,” she observed in a quiet voice. “You must find balance. Breathe, long and slow. Something so simple can be so powerful in stemming the progression of the curse. At least for a time.” It was strange advice, but I tried it. Oddly enough, when I focused on breathing, the burning in the back of my mind became less of a problem.

“Thanks,” I muttered.

“It will only work for a short time. We must get you to Tal’doren immediately,” she warned.

“How much longer?” I asked. We had been walking for what had to have been hours. I began to worry that Gwen hadn’t awoken yet. But we were following an obviously tame worgen. There must be someone who can help us!

“We are close now. Tal’doren is just beyond these trees.” That had to be the most unhelpful description I have ever heard. There are trees everywhere!

A few minutes later, we came to a large opening in the trees. “By the Light,” I gasped out of sheer wonder. In the center of the clearing was a truly gargantuan tree. But it was more than that. Dazzling water that glowed like the moon cascaded down its side as if there were a river at the top of the tree. The water ran off the edge and into a shimmering mote that surrounded the base of the massive trunk. There were stone columns and arches of an ancient and ornate design embedded along the height of the tree. I could feel calming energy radiating from this place.

Belrysa led the way as we approached the tree. I could see multiple worgen standing guard at the base of the tree where there seemed to be some sort of large opening underneath the trunk. What this place used to be, I was not completely sure I understood, but now it appeared to be some sort of sanctuary for my kind.

As we approached this opening, a large worgen stepped out. His muscles were something to behold and he walked with a commanding presence. It was reminiscent of the alpha that we had fought on the roof of the prison in the city. An eye-patch covered one of his eyes.

“Light be praised,” the impressive specimen of a worgen stated in a rough and forceful voice. “You’re all right, Naomi Malmin! I have been waiting for this day for a long time. It is truly great to see you, my old friend.”

“Wha…?” My mind was starting to try to put things together.

“It’s been a long time since Light’s Dawn.”

My eyes widened in realization and recognition. This massive worgen with his stone-carved muscles and aura of strength and leadership was, indeed, what Belrysa had called him: and old friend. For so long, I had suspected he was dead and hoped I was wrong. But here he was.

The worgen standing before me was none other than Lord Darius Crowley.

---

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Still Moving Forward

Hey all,

I wanted to take a moment to check in. Like I mentioned in my last post, I just started my doctoral internship in school psychology. I have been incredibly busy with that. In addition, I have been raiding with my guild three nights a week, which has taken up quite a bit of time that I would otherwise spend writing. That may change now as they move into Mythic content and I start getting benched (as awesome as Malminator is in my head, I’m far from a good DPS), so I may find myself with more time to write, but who knows?

I’m still working my way through The Fall of Gilneas and hopefully I still have a few people reading it here and there, despite my rather thin posting schedule. Also, keep in mind that the chapters that are getting posted are in their raw, unedited forms and – in many cases – I do not read through them before posting.

From now on, I will no longer be including an introduction or conclusion to each chapter I post. In other words, when I post a new chapter, the ONLY text that will be in the post will be the chapter itself. I can do separate posts if I want to give any more personal updates. I will also be going back and editing the previous posts so that they only contain the text for the chapter. I am doing this for when I create a table of contents (so to speak) that will allow people to easily navigate between chapters and they won’t have to ignore my little statements. So, even though each chapter won’t explicitly invite it, I welcome all comments, questions, and constructive criticisms.

Since the chapters of the Fall of Gilneas are taking longer than before, I will try to keep some content going to keep people at least remotely interested. If there’s anything you would like for me to talk about (whether it be psychology, video games, writing, or…anything really), let me know and I will do what I can to do it. I’m trying to think if there are any stories (short or otherwise) or scrapped projects that I would feel alright with posting here for your entertainment. I could probably come up with some more character profiles, too. We’ll see.

Chapter 11 should be out by the end of the weekend (/fingers crossed). That’s all I’ve got for now.

See y’all next time!

~Malm