Post by Neonhyper
In before there are no male blood elves.
Chapter Three---
"You know, I agree, this was a great idea." Loretta exclaimed as she picked the small glass up in two fingers. The girl took a small sip of the bluish liquid before smiling at James, who was seated across from her in a small wooden booth.
He took a bite of the meat scattered across his plate, only a few scraps of food remaining on the whole thing, "I am known for my genius ideas." James nodded his head in an unconvincing manner, and Loretta couldn't keep herself from laughing.
"So, the letter said the package was already here, didn't it? Or is it going to arrive 'soon'." She asked, placing a grape inside her mouth and closing her mouth around it once she was finished her sentence.
"It should be here already. Why? Are you anxious to get it already?" He asked.
Loretta looked thoughtful, spending more time than needed to pretend to think of an answer she already had, "Of course I am!" She said with a smile, "I think that before we pack it in for the night, I might go out and get it. If I don't pick it up early, those greedy goblins might try to sell my armor."
James nodded, ravenously devouring what was left of his meal, before sliding the letter over to the girl, "That should have the location of where you want to go to get it. Of course, I should probably come with you, as you never know what's out on the streets..."
"I'll be fine, Mr. Smith," She scolded, "I do have weapons on my person now!"
He lifted up his hands in defeat, "All right, all right. I guess you're able to go out on your own."
Loretta rolled her eyes, before finishing off her food and slipping out of the booth she was sitting in. She leaned over and snatched up her coat, carefully putting it back on before nodding at James. He smiled once, before heading out of the booth and attempted to find the innkeeper.
The human girl shook her hair out before heading toward the exit of the inn, pushing the door open and heading out into the chilly night air of Booty Bay.
---
"Gol'Kosh!" One of the orcs screamed as he pulled back on the rope in his grip. His feet were slipping out from underneath him and the palms of his hands burned in agony from the burn of having the ropes pulled through them, "Men! Keep pulling! The beast refuses to be subdued!"
A ring of orcs, taurens, and trolls all in the same predicament as their apparent leader, surrounded the monster they were attempting to keep control of. The creature, at first glance, appeared to be some sort of a mix between a kodo and the rhinos of Northrend.
It was colored a sick looking obsidian, and closer examination showed that the hide was not pure leather, but strands of midnight black fur woven together into a tough mass overtop of its hide. It might have looked normal, if not for the large patches of dried blood matted along its entire body. Three horns ran down its forehead, the two farthest away from its mouth were small, but deadly sharp. The largest of the three rivaled the size of dwarf male, stronger than any man-made weapon.
Multiple ropes were tied around its legs, but they didn't help from keeping the beast from lashing out its captors. Sharp hooves dug into the red Durotar soil, and the creature swung its head from side to side and bared the rows of twisted fangs inside its mouth. Its eyes burned with an otherworldly orange fire, and the men trying to subdue it recoiled in fear.
"We can't keep this up, Commander!" A tauren screamed, "It will kill us all before we could get it anywhere! Our only choice is to slay it!"
The orc that had been throwing out orders quieted down. He was silent as he kept pulling on the line in his hand, digging his heels into the ground beneath his feet, and scowling as he wondered how this creature got all the way out here to begin with.
"He's right. Men, get ready to grab your weapons, if we are to die, at least we may know that we died fighting a beast of legend." He shouted, "On my command, drop your lines!"
They anxiously waited for their leader's signal as the beast continued to push and pull against their hold on it, "Ready... prepare... Lok'ta---"
"Oh for the love of the world, you just had to unsaddle him didn't you!"
The call from behind him pulled the orc commander's attention away from the beast and his plan, to the figures approaching from the road south. Two female blood elves approached, one of them cowering at the sight of the monster they chained down behind the other.
"I'm serious, now I have to get all of his armor back on, and that's just a pain... It was bad enough doing it after he's been with me for a while, but now that you decided to cause him to riot..." Nasia went on in a rant as she approached the group and the creature.
"Prepare to drop your ropes, boys, you won't be needing them." She commanded, Lithi gripped her friend's arm and yelped as they got closer. The scout locked eyes with the raging beast and gave it a sly smirk.
The two stared each other down for a while, the men watching were awestruck that the beast was barely fighting as it watched the elf, "Shari'adune" Nasia almost whispered the Thalassian phrase, but it was heard clear as day through the silence that had dawned over the area.
Almost immediately the pressure against the ropes loosened, and the taurens, trolls, and orcs let go of them and backed away from the creature. Nasia didn't pay attention to the slack-jawed looks she was getting, as she walked up to the beast with Lithi at her heels.
"There we go, Marthik'redar," She said, running one hand around the creature's massive horn, "Now, Lith, I suggest you summon up that charger of yours, because I'm quite sure that in all honesty you don't want to ride Marth here."
The paladin nodded fervently and began conjuring light between her fingers. Nasia walked to the side of Marthik and pulled herself onto the beast's muscled back. When the scout looked to the side, she saw Lithi mounting up on her silver armored stallion, and Nasia nodded.
"Guess I'm just gonna have to ride this thing bare-back for a while..." She muttered, wrapping both arms around one of the smaller horns on Marthik's forehead and kicking her legs out behind her. With a nod, she signaled their leave, and the two blood elves left a Horde troop watching the dust behind them with gaping expressions.
---
Loretta looked down at the letter again, making sure she was headed in the right direction as she turned a corner. The wooden walkways creaked beneath her feet, giving her a slight eerie presence as she traveled across the town. She gulped and kept on walking, smiling as she approached the sign that marked where she should be heading.
The girl slipped down the street, expecting to come across a door to knock on, or a window, or even a little shack. Instead she found herself sandwiched between two buildings, with no entrance in sight to enter either of them. She slammed her boot into the ground, realizing that she must have taken a wrong turn, and pivoted on her heels to leave.
Only to come face to face with robed figure that was blocking her exit from the alleyway.
On impulse, a hand shot out to one of her daggers, but a firm grip had already sealed itself around her wrist. She couldn't reach her weapons, and she stared wide-eyed at the person standing before her. Whoever it was, they easily dwarfed her, but they couldn't have been much taller than James.
"Don't worry, Skyblade." A low, suave voice echoed from within the cloth garments that hid the man's entire body, "I'm not here to hurt you, nor to harm you in any other way."
Before she knew it, the person had slipped a package into the hand he wasn't holding, "I'm here to deliver you something, two things actually."
"What... but I... only one..." She stuttered, not sure if she should be believing the figure.
Loretta could almost imagine the smirk from underneath his shadowed face, "Yes, you only knew you were getting the armor. That is one of the things I have for you. The other is revenge, revenge for something you thought you could have prevented, but weren't able to."
"I will grant you this revenge, for I have equal goals for the elf you seek to destroy." It was then that he loosened his grip on her wrist, and backed up. He ran a hand along the hood over his head, and reached to grab the fabric near the top.
Loretta opened her eyes in dumbfounded shock. Before her stood a perfectly handsome man, his face was soft, but his skin was an unhealthy pale. He had long blond hair, that swept out into a breeze that passed by as he had removed his hood. That's when she noticed what was so striking, the two tall pointed ears, and the sharp green eyes watching her every move.
"My name is Proprias Shadowstrider."
---
"So we're heading to Ashenvale? How long should that take?" Lithi asked nervously, glancing up at Nasia. Marthik was much bigger than her charger, and the paladin still gave the beast uncertain looks.
The scout mumbled something, before realizing Lithi couldn't hear her, and resaid it a bit louder, "Two days, I'm guessing. The Barrens is huge, and it will take at least a day and a half to reach the Ashenvale border. Another half a day to cover the trip to Demon Fall."
"And how d-do you know he'll b-be there?" The younger elf stuttered out.
"Because," Nasia started, her voice dripping with malice, "my brother is not very unique when it comes to where he wants me to go."
