User:Akuyim/An (Ab)normal day at the Guild Hall (3)

An (Ab)normal day at the guild hall 3
Akuyim called Reggie to his side, before the game the two felines were playing got out of hand. He had no doubt in his mind, that due to his stronger affinity to Reggie then Bronwyn’s to Ashlar, Reggie could very well hurt Ashlar badly. He didn’t want to see that happen. The tavern tables and chairs looked as if a tornado from the Barrens had settled down and ripped through. Removing a couple gold coins from his belt pouch he placed them in Bronwyn’s hand.

“To cover my share of the damages” He said with a smirk. It was good to see Reggie get a work out and cause mayhem all at the same time. It was something Reggie enjoyed.

“You know, we may have to have a no pet rule in here” She chuckled back, while surveying what damage had been done. Luckily for them no one had been hurt, injured or maimed.

The sun was slowly waning marking it’s way towards late afternoon, the engineer’s meeting was still going on. He assumed the other hunter’s were still busy, he was hoping to go out and hunt something large, like the fabled King Mosh in Un’Goro Crater. That would have to wait for another time, perhaps tomorrow. He said his goodbyes to Bronwyn and Ashlar and headed back out the way he came.

Thumbing the brim of his hat down to drown out the settling sun, he glanced at his right and saw Toku and Remania near the practice arena of the Warlock lodge. He was close enough to nod in their direction and hear a snippet of the conversation they were engrossed in. Something about the best way to keep a Doomguard in check, as if there was a surefire method. Shaking his head he continued his walk.

The pair meandered with no rhyme or reason, through the holdings beyond the guild hall. He was unsure of where he was going, he was just walking and Reggie dutifully followed. They were soon at the Herbalist’s garden. The peaceblossom was in full bloom, and a rabbit was currently making it’s home here in the garden. He walked over to the peaceblossom, smelling it and startling the rabbit in the process. With a heavy sigh he sat down on the small stone wall that barricaded the herbs from rampantly growing outside the boundaries placed upon them. Placing his elbows upon his knees and his hands to his cheeks he became lost in thought. Reggie laid down beside him, flopping on his side and nudged his back against the stone wall as to relieve an itch.

Peaceblossom in bloom always reminded him of his mother, when he was younger she would take him with her just outside of Orgrimmar to have him help pick the peaceblossom outside. Always weary of the scorpions that dwelled there. At this moment part of him wished, someone, anyone needed help. Whether it be in the Shimmering Flats, Nightsong woods, hell he would have gladly accepted defending Splintertree Post then what was about to transpire next. Alas, he thoughts began to wander to the dark place, the events leading up to his mother’s death. His whole body began to shake violently with anger.

Night. The stars shone like diamonds in the sky, the moons baleful gaze squeaking through the gnarled branches of the trees around Tranquil Glades Cemetary. The band of orcs rode their wolves carefully through the trees. Ahead in the distance a small stone church sat, guardian of the marble orchard surrounding it. Inside, kneeling a human paladin, the church aglow with hundreds of candles flickering gently in the night breeze. The orc commander, called for one of his men to silence the human so they could make base camp in the church. His mother held him closely, he had not seen the atrocities committed to the humans the night before and she didn’t want him to see this one either. She turned her wolf away so she was looking at her husband. They were far enough away that she knew her son couldn’t see in the church. If done right, the human wouldn’t have time to scream before dying either. She was wondering if taking their son on this journey had been the best course of action, but in truth it was too late now.

With the deed done, they approached the church. As they got closer the candles began to snuff themselves out one at a time, with no breeze to be the cause of it. Until soon the last one was gone, leaving the church eerily quiet and dark. His father and the commander began to argue, but he was too young to understand all that was said, in the end defeated his father took his place with his family and held them all close. The others began taking anything remotely of value and placing it in their packs. The commander had called for one to remove the supply packs from the supply wolves and store them in the church as the wolves needed a break from their cumbersome loads.

Time passed. The orcs had locked themselves down in the church for the night and would head out at dawn’s light. A shattering of glass was heard, they bolted up. Boney hands began pawing inside, beating at the doors. The stench of death and decay was so thick, so overwhelming it danced on their tongues as they breathed. The rank air, was to much for the small boy and he retched. His mother scooped him up and covered his eyes. The wolves tethered outside began to growl and howl. Some in anger, some in pain as the legion of hungry corpses descended upon them. One of the orcs threw open the doors, and hurled himself at the pile of skeletons swinging his two handed axe in great cleaving arcs. In the end, he was beseiged and torn asunder, but his sacrifice was enough to let the others, fight their way to the wolves and save some before they all became food for the undead. His mother stumbled upon the bloody steps, while carrying her son and fell to the ground. They were upon her in an instant. Shielding her son with her body the best she could, they clawed and bit into her back. The few that had attacked her fell before the blade of her husband, and a fellow orc. He lifted her to her feet and helped her into the saddle of her wolf. They took off into the woods, only to realize the supply packs, were in the church behind them. It was too late to try and get them, the commander would have to send someone back in the morning.

His mother, breathed heavily, she was in pain and he knew it. The wolf itself was trained to follow the others, but he placed his small hands on the reins anyway. They had traveled for a time. This area belonged to some sort of spiders, as their silk marked nearly every tree, every shrub. They didn’t encounter any, for that they were grateful. They came to a hill overlooking a road. The lights of darkshire could be seen way in the distance. To their right was a small guard tower, known then as Beggar’s Point. The commander made the decision, to assault the tower, and camp there, to regroup. They were still far out from Stonard to make it in their present condition.

The humans, here at the guard tower, were in no presence of mind to fight a swarm of angry, wounded orcs. The few defenders the tower fell quickly, before the warning bell had rung. The wolves were tethered out behind the tower, and the wounded were bandaged. His mother’s few shamanistic spells were enough to close her wounds, and the wounds of others. But she grew weak, a contagion was in her now, something her minor magics couldn’t fix. Her husband applied what few bandages he had to her back to try in vain to keep the disease in place.

Morning came. The humans had come to relieve the night watchmen. A second skirmish broke out, but not all the humans lay slain. Words rang out, Beggar’s Point had fallen. The militia came, choking off the tower from the road. It was a standstill, the militia was poorly trained, and poorly armed, they didn’t have the necessary pushing power to reclaim the tower. They did have numbers, and it would make the orcs retreating towards Stonard through Dead Man’s Pass impossible. To make matters worse the supply packs, were still in the forsaken church. They held the alchemist’s herbs, and she looked like she could use them dearly. They also contained a good amount of food. The orcs would become deprived and desperate in a few days. They had to pray for a break or a weakness in their adversary in order to leave.

Days leeched into nights, his mother grew weaker and sicker with each passing hour. The arguements became more frequent and fierce between his father and the commander. He remembered sneaking out daily and trying to find herbs for his mother, but the ones he found he had damaged and made unusable or turned out to be nothing more then weeds. One the scouts returned around dawn of the fourth day. Armored knights from Stormwind would be entering Darkshire soon. It would be only a matter of time before they would arrive at Beggar’s Point. Luckily for the orcs, the humans had grown complacent in there situation. The commander decided, that half of his men would charge the human embankment while the other half snuck out and gathered the wolves, they would ride for Stonard. As the commander expected, the humans broke beneath them and the ones that didn’t die, retreated towards Darkshire, hoping to meet up with the knights from Stormwind.

The journey through Dead’s Man Pass, were uneventful, only remembering it was stark grey and filled with dead trees and their branches filled with corpses of criminals hung there and left for the large blueish-grey buzzards known as Sky Shadows to feast at. His mother rode with his father, she was leaning against his chest, she was too weak to support her own weight, he rode with the only orc female of the group besides his mother. They rode fast and furious through the Pass, the hammering of wolves claws reverberating through the day.

They reached Splinterspear Junction, it was an impressive wooden guard tower. The orcs that manned it, offered the riders food and water. It was however too late for one. His mother was to far away for him to hear what she said to his father, but her gaze had become affixed to a covered bridge to the left of them. When the strength had left her for talking she simply rested her head upon his chest and faded from them. Bereft with grief, he held her for all she was worth. He remembered he was placed upon the ground. It was surreal, everything moving about in a haze, unknowing. He like his father was at a loss, but too young to understand why the events happening were doing so. Words were passed back forth from his father to the commander one more time. This time his father had won. There across from the bridge, the last thing his beloved had seen, his father started digging. So did he, and a couple orcs from the tower. This was to be her final resting place, she never would make it to Stonard. Now in afterthought he remembered some of the words the commander had said to his father as they dug her grave, and marked it with a torch. “My advice to you is to start drinking, heavily”

His thoughts began to shift once more, his body shaking even more violently. He knew he was right to do what he did years later.

“Are you ok?” a voice came.

Startled he jumped, his eyes wildly snapped into focus. He turned his hurtful, tear stained gaze to Caladi.

“Uh.. Yeah I’ll survive. I always do.” he stammered back. Reggie had fallen asleep. He didn’t know how long he had been out of it, nor how long she had been there. He turned to look at the sun, even lower in the sky. An hour or so had passed, it would be an hour before dinner.

“You sure don’t look ok.” She whispered back as she too inhaled the fragerance of the peaceblossom.

Ignoring her obvious, attempt to try and get him to speak about his thoughts, “So what brings you out here?” he countered.

“Oh I just wanted to see the peaceblossom one last time before the young herbalists get their paws on it.” she said in an almost reverant voice.

“Even the youngest and inexperienced hands can pluck the blossoms, without harm Caladi.” He whispered back. “I have dallied here too long as it is. Enjoy your blossoms.” with that he stood up and nudged his sleeping companion. “I will see you at the mess hall.” he called back as he walked away.

He walked by the stables, where the mounts were being fed by the respective owners. All except the skeletal horses used by the forsaken. They had no need for food or water. He wondered if they enjoyed or even needed the companionship like their counterparts. He saw no sign of Khandivya, so he decided to feed Bryania and his wolf before going to the mess hall. Others were there, they spoke of things mostly the weather and other pleasantries, but he was in no mood for pleasantries.