World of Warcraft®

A few months or so ago,

“Is there anything else you need to know, Danner?”

The human soldier looked briefly at Iseul, a rather slim pandaren who had reddish-brown fur and green eyes. She was mostly covered in bandages and lying down on a plushy bed; recovering from a beating she had received from… paladins, mentally unstable ones at that. Hio, Iseul’s brother was sitting on the floor. Currently they were inside of The Lazy Turnip inn at Halfhill.

He frowned and looked at the notes in his parchment notebook. She had provided him with the details on the races of each paladin, their armor and weapons they carried. The attackers were two humans and a dwarf, at least the soldier thought so. The notes didn’t have enough evidence that illusion orbs or potions were used. A dwarven stein and book were found at the scene…

Now, he needed to report back to his commanding officer at Lion’s Landing. That meant heading there after dark; it was dusk now. One might say he should stay at the inn for the night since it could be ‘dangerous’ for an Alliance soldier to be traveling alone. He had made the trip many times before without any incidents. As long as he stuck to the roads, it would be safe.

“You provided more than ample. I’ll report everything to my commanding officer once I get back. If he or his superiors have any question; they’ll get in contact then.” Danner got up from his chair and grabbed his cloak.

“Are you taking a kite to Lion’s Landing?” Hio asked.

“Na, I got my horse.” No way was he going to take a kite from a kite master. Not once had the human ended up at the intended location with that blasted method of ‘transportation’. “At least I’ll get there without being blown way off-course.”

“You have a point. One time I took a kite and ended up in Townlong Steppes instead of Tian Monastery.” Iseul chuckled briefly. “Have a safe trip now, Danner. Also… send your sister my regards if you see her soon.”

“Take care!” He bowed briefly before exiting the room and heading downstairs. Iseul had told him earlier that his younger twin sister Carena was still alive. Frankly, he had suspicions for the last few weeks and had many questions but it was something to think about later. He had other things to think about.

For some reason, he felt he was forgetting something. Well, he was known to occasionally leave his possessions and not remember. The soldier quickly inspected himself. He had his watch on a chain, his cloak, his pack that contained various items and the parchment notebook. He was wearing his plate armor so not forgetting that.

What could he be overlooking? Wait, he didn’t have his helmet on. He quickly opened his pack and found it. However, even after putting it on, he still something was being ignored. Maybe it was nerves but he did feel lighter. Well, he didn't eat a hearty dinner...

He walked over to Innkeeper Lei Lan and thanked her briefly before walking out. Outside there were two female blood elves presumably arguing in their native language; one of them had a lower tone to their voice which seemed a bit odd. He didn’t know Thalassian but his human girlfriend had some knowledge of it; then again Mandi would actually egging the elves on in an attempt to cause them to fight.

Still, the tall human didn’t have the time to watch a possible brawl as much as it could be entertaining. He headed over to the stables while thinking of his sweetheart, Mandi. She was dang cute in his eyes; raven black hair, almond shaped gray eyes and very fair skin. She was muscular and quite fit. She was a good brewmaster monk, too.

Mandi was currently in Kun Lai Summit picking herbs or flowers for her next brew recipe. Or was it Kafa berries? He’d have to read her letter again. She mentioned a surprise the next time they saw each other. If her letter was something to go by, it could be a few weeks. Yes, he missed her but he’d see his sweetheart again. He’d have to see if he could procure a box of chocolates for her.

Anyways, that was something for him to do after he back to Lion’s Landing and reported to his C.O.. Danner blinked when noticed his lantern was attached to the bridle of the brown horse. Huh, he forget that he had left it here. Well, it would be needed since he would be traveling in the middle of the night. Valley of the Four Winds did have rain squalls that’d make it really dark.

He briefly grabbed the lantern and lit it just to be on the safe side. The soldier took his horse and walked it out of the stables. Once out, he noticed the arguing blood elves were going inside The Lazy Turnip. He had to hope that Iseul and her brother wouldn’t be bothered by those two. He climbed onto the horse and took off in the eastern direction.

This may have been slower than a gryphon but he didn’t own one. He got this horse a few months after the Cataclysm. Did it have a name? It did but it was called Pink Sparkles. Yes it was very ‘feminine’ especially considering it was a male horse but he wasn’t the one who named it. Neither did his girlfriend. Who name it? Taya and Lisanna, young twin sisters that his brother Venn and wife were guardians of did.

Venn was less than impressed with the name due to the gender of the mount and tried to get the girls name it something else. Danner had decided to keep the name; partly to spite his brother. Some of his comrades razzed it for a while at the time. In fact, he one time woke to seeing a pink bridle on the horse when he was stationed in Twilight Highlands. That was quite the prank they pulled on him.

His thoughts got distracted when he suddenly heard a scream. He brought his mount to a stop; they had just crossed the wooden bridge east of Halfhill. The soldier hopped off the horse and decided to look around. Something about the scream bothered him, it was one of someone in distressed. Thankfully it was clear out so he could see in the dusk-nightfall. He got out his nifty spyglass and glanced through it.

There was a small house in the southern direction but it hadn’t come from there. He didn’t see anything else or in the southeastern area except a wolf going after a stag. Another scream was heard and Danner noticed it seemed to be coming from the northern direction. He looked on and was confounded and distressed.

A pandaren cub was running or at least trying to from three attackers; two male humans and a dwarf. Wait a minute; Iseul’s attackers were of those races. Another look and he shook his head. Even in the dusk he could tell they were paladins. One of the humans was bald which matched the description Iseul gave him. The other human was wearing purple plate armor and the dwarf paladin could be a mute or was deaf.

The hell… why would they go attack a child especially one that was unarmed? Didn’t they have moral guidelines to follow? His older brother wouldn’t even consider this type of activity. It was clear they were mentally unstable.

Based on what Danner was seeing; those paladins weren’t backing down. And the cub wouldn’t be able to outrun them much longer. Without much thought the soldier knew what he had to do; help the little pandaren get away. Confronting three armed paladins was very reckless but he was known for such activities. He put the spyglass away and grabbed the lantern off the bridle.

The soldier motioned for Pink Sparkles to stay put and without hesitation, ran towards the source of trouble that was several yards north currently. Yes, he had the lantern in his right hand but he tended to put that on the ground before grabbing his weapons in battle or confrontation when it wasn’t a ‘sneak’ attack.

A thought just occurred to him then. Did he have his weapons with him? He checked his back where they were normally strapped and realized his massive sword and mace were missing. O crap, where the hell could have he lost them? He knew he had left Lion’s Landing with them. Out of all things to forget, this had to be the most idiotic one yet.

Even without his weapons, he still was going to confront the paladins. Brazen, yes but perhaps there was the chance they’d quit trying to attack the pandaren cub if they saw an Alliance soldier. Very small chance as he noticed they were relentless as he got near. The little pandaren had tripped and the attackers were still going the cub as prey. They almost had him surrounded.

“Stop! What the hell are you doing? Get away from the pandaren.” He yelled.

The three paladins didn’t even seem to notice him, something that irritated the soldier. Danner sighed and wondered how to get their attention. He didn’t have his weapons but he still had his lantern. Hmm… could he throw it at one of them? It wasn’t a weapon but he didn’t have much of another option; the largest rock he saw in the grass was the size of a pebble.

Granted, there might be someone out who complain about what he was about to do but he didn’t have another option. The soldier aimed his throw and flung the lantern towards the bald human paladin that was closest to the cub. He would be very surprised if it actually injured the paladin. “Hey, I said stop.” He watched the lantern bounce harmlessly off the shoulder-pad armor.

The bald human paladin turned around, motioning to his buddies. “O look what we have…. an unarmed soldier. You have no jurisdiction here.”

He smirked; that seemed to done the trick. “You certainly have no rights attacking a pandaren cub on Pandaria or anywhere.”

“What you talking about? We’re pursuing and destroying any abominations.” The bald human paladin commented.

“Abomination? I don’t see any scourge around.” He sighed, they had bad excuses. While he heard the Scourge wasn’t a threat, that didn’t mean none were around to be cleaned up. “Shouldn’t you be in the Plaguelands or Northrend attacking the undead?”

“You idiot; the pandarens are abominations. They all deserved to be exterminated… along with demons, murlocs, blood elves and scourge. It doesn’t matter if they are children or not.”

He frowned… seriously? They wished all pandarens were exterminated? This was worse than Iseul or even Danner had thought. These paladins were really messed up in the head. How could they believe all that and still have access to the light? He had no clue but knew Venn would be having a hissy fit and scolding them if he was here.

“Now, if I were you, I’d leave before anything unfortunate happens. Here’s an incentive to do just that.” The bald human got out a coin sack.

Were they trying to bribe him? That certainly wasn’t going to work. The pay may not be the best but Danner loved serving in the military, more gold coins couldn’t change that. Right now, he saw his duty helping the little pandaren escape. He might just have something in his pack to do that; a gnome gave him an invisibility potion and small smoke bomb to use in times of great emergency.

Supposedly the bomb had a magical part where it could keep enemies from moving but it hadn’t been tested out. Now seemed to be a good time to test it. He ‘sneakily’ got the potion and a small smoke bomb from the small pack on his belt. He wasn’t going to use it for himself, thankfully the vial wasn’t child or cub proof. He made a subtle motion to the young pandaren who seemed to take noticed and got up.

Hopefully the young cub could catch. Granted what he was about to do was very foolish; the paladins were extremely likely to attack him instead. While he could throw out a punch, it wasn’t enough to defend himself. Mandi wasn’t here to help out. Danner was really regretting being careless and forgetting his weapons. “No, keep it. I’m not interested in money.”

He threw the small bomb at the paladins. While smoke was starting to spew out; he quickly threw and the potion vial at the cub. The young pandaren caught it and gave Danner a quick glance. “Drink it, it’ll make you invisible so they can’t see you. Now, run speedily.” He muttered quickly.

The pandaren smirked and quickly drank the contents. Danner noticed the cub sprinting away in the direction of the wooden/bamboo bridge before disappearing from sight. How long would the potion work for? The gnome didn’t say at the time but hopefully it would last long enough for the young pandaren to get to a safe hiding spot or maybe even Halfhill.

He did have the nearly impossible task of now trying to defend himself from armed paladins. The human was about to turn towards them when suddenly… it felt like a hammer had hit his head. Ouch! He was starting to feel dizzy. He breathed and woozy feeling started to subside; however, he noticed the paladins surrounded him. Interesting, Danner hadn’t noticed until now that he was taller than all of them.

All of them seemed to be very furious and ready to beat him up. He didn’t like the looks of this at all. Their eyes were that of a predator looking upon caught prey. Would he even survive this? No one else was in sight to possibly give aid. There was a way to find out… he’d have to fight. Not that he minded; he was a warrior. He quickly dodged an incoming blow from a giant mace; the weapon was the size length as the dwarf wielding it.

Just because he was wearing plate armor didn’t mean he couldn’t move quickly when he absolutely had to. He took a closer look at the mace, as he had studied weapon making. It wasn’t shaped like a hammer; it was more torchlike and had many spikes. The metal was either dark iron or saronite. It seemed to be very sturdy and wouldn’t break easily. He knew that if the mace hit him, his armor would get dented and repeated hits could break it.

He dodged the spiked mace a few more times and even managed to punch one of the paladins in the face, it was either the bald human or the one wearing purple armor. However, he was in trouble. Danner noticed what appeared to be a conjured giant hammer being sent right at him. The soldier had somehow forget that was of their spells and didn’t even have time to possibly dodge it.

Moments later, he was aching and was starting to feel queasy. Then the spiked mace hit him in the chest; thankfully his plate armor provided some protection from the spikes, however it was dented, almost to the point of cracking. His armor should have way stronger than that… unless it hadn’t been repaired in a while.

Great! Not really. He then noted both of his feet felt they had burns on them. Before he knew it, he was being tackled to the ground by the dwarf paladin and bald human one.

Damned, his helmet fell off and started to roll. Before he could grab it, both of his arms got grabbed and he got dragged back to his feet. He struggled, kicked at the dwarf and managed to free his right arm but it didn’t matter. Within seconds, he had a sword pointed just inches from his face. The soldier let out a sigh as his right arm was taken ahold of.

No use fighting now… he was unarmed and feeling nauseous. If he had his weapon, this would be a different situation. The sword was lowered but at the same, Danner was forced on his knees. Something told him they weren’t going to kill him; a captive seemed to be more probable. Moments later, his hands were in a tight bind behind his back and his possessions were being taken away.

“Don’t say a word unless we asked you to.”

Damned, this situation wasn’t looking good. The soldier was tense. He was still alive but in the grasps of mentally unstable paladins. Who knows what they were planning to do. No, he couldn’t escape without help. Since he hadn’t seen any travelers, he wasn’t expecting any aid. Eventually someone from Lion’s Landing would come looking for him once he didn’t report in but that could be a few days and…

“Relax lad, we aren’ simply killin’ yer.”

Danner blinked, his thoughts interrupted. Did that dwarf just talk? He hadn’t made a single sound since he had first confronted them. According to Iseul, he didn’t speak a peep when they attacked her a few days earlier. Based on the information, he thought was either mute or deaf. Clearly that wasn’t the case and just didn’t like to speak.

“I’d think you have to suffer first… for helping that abomination escape. Other than that... a kobold could put up a better than you did.” the bald paladin smirked.

Danner shook his head; a bit insulted. Kobolds? He had been able to fight those off since he was eight years old. Wait, the word suffer was mentioned. Were they planning on torturing him? Knowing how they thought, that was likely possible.

“Wait… look at this.” The bald paladin held up Danner’s medallion type dog-tags. “So, your name is Danner Vasile?”

He winced after the dwarf smack his jaw. The soldier could taste blood in his mouth. “Yes.” This was the only thing he was planning on telling these captors and hell, it wasn’t even his full name; Danner Hans Vhitaker-Vasile. He didn’t go by his full last name due to a few being confused by it. That and he wanted to be sure it was spelled correctly in case he decided to change his mind. And no, he wasn’t going to mention it, even if they interrogated him.

“Well, you’re in luck. Lady Nisensi will want to see this...”

That’s when he suddenly heard Pink Sparkles being attacked. Wait, his horse had stuck around? He thought it would have ran off. Who was attacking him? The paladins were guarding him. Had a passerby showed up just to attack his horse? He briefly looked in the direction and his horse was lying on the ground with many arrows stuck in the body. Damn…

He let out a sigh; Pink Sparkles was still alive but he knew based on the way he was breathing and where the arrow were fired, it wouldn’t be for long. The soldier felt anger. He really should have protected his mount more or shooed him off when the pandaren cub got away. Now, he didn’t have a mount, not like that mattered given his situation.

“What do we have here? Report, Ian.”

He looked in the direction of the voice and noticed a male high elf; one that had brown hair. A ranger by the looks of the armor and bow in hand. He had to be the one who attacked his horse. Based on the comments, he was in charge of these paladins. Danner hadn’t figured they had a boss.

“Hiren, we caught this unarmed solder. His last name is Vasile!” Ian, the bald paladin held up the medallion.

“Vasile? Let me see that.” Hiren walked over and inspected the medallion and then glanced at Danner. “Well, he does have red hair like the other Vasiles’ had. Let me go contact Nisensi. Keep him guarded.” The high elf several yards east.

Something bothered the soldier with that comment. His hair was a light reddish color, almost a light auburn. Why were they interested in the name Vasile? His late mother’s side of the family had been for the more part murdered in a horrific massacre; possibly committed by trolls. Besides his siblings and Venn's son, Uncle Keeneth was the only other one still alive; unless the rumor about him having children was true.

Was Nisensi an old family friend? His uncle hadn’t mentioned anyone with that name, neither did his Great Aunt Tara while she was alive. Surely if female (lady was mentioned) was friendly, he would have been told about it. Now, an old nemesis of the family was a more probable identity of this female; especially considering the scheme his late grandparents had ran.

“She’ll be here momentarily.” Hiren said. “Don’t even think about trying.”

It wasn’t like Danner was in the position to escape by himself. The binds on his hands were tight- he had no doubt they were enchanted that way. He had given up the one potion so the pandaren cub could get away. And he knew that they weren’t going to release him once this Nisensi arrived. Still, maybe there was a slight chance a group of adventurers would come by and give aid. He would pay for help.

Hope was fading of a rescue as a white haired female high elf and a human male in golden plate armor showed up a bit later. That must have been ‘Nisensi’, at least he presumed it was. Danner noticed that elf had many potions attached to her belt. Based on that, he guessed she was an alchemist; an evil one.

Nisensi glanced over at the horse and then at the high elf ranger. “Hiren, did you have to kill that horse?” Her voice was sweet yet cold at the same time.

“Of course, love. I couldn’t let one live that was named by a prissy blood elf. The tag on the reins said it was named Pink Sparkles.” Hiren chuckled.

Wait, his horse was dead? The human looked and noted the mount had quit breathing. Yes, it was lifeless now. That didn’t surprise him but still… as much as he hated the comment Hiren made, it could have truth in it. It didn’t matter now but Danner most certainly would have got his mount a different name if Venn or someone else had told him.

“Besides, we wouldn’t want our prized captive having any chance of escape, Nisensi.”

“Fair enough. Now, let me see that tag.” Nisesni walked over to where Ian was holding his medallion. After taking a look, she then took a good, long glance at Danner. “He does have the red hair and the slightest resemblance to Hans. Here I thought all the Vasiles’ were dead… clearly I was mistaken. Who knows how many of those blasted humans live. Does he have anything else?”

“Just his pack filled with various items including letters and cloak. And that helmet.” Ian picked up Danner’s helmet.

The soldier shook his head. He still had a few of Venn’s most recent letters in that pack, he had forgotten to take them out like he had with Mandi’s notes before he had left Lion’s Landing. Thankfully Venn hadn’t their full last name but the captive human a bad feeling now; he could tell based on Nisensi’s words that she without a doubt was an enemy of the Vasile family.

“No weapons?” the paladin with golden armor asked.

“No, Bran. He confronted us without any weapons. Unless you consider a lantern one.”

Bran glanced at the lantern and smirked. “Well, he’s not the brightest soldier out there.”

“Yes, he’s an idiot. A kobold has more intelligence than him." Ian remarked. "What are your plans with this prisoner?”

“Keep him alive. Ever since the night of the massacre me and Hiren committed, I’ve regretted that I didn’t leave one of the younger Vasiles alive so I could have a captive for a lab experiment. I have serveral potion recipe that are for criminals that haven’t been created. But now I have a second chance. He can pay for his family’s crime slowly…”

Danner felt chills go down his spine. Wait, she was the one behind the Vasile massacre? Well, her and Hiren. Still, he was more than surprised to find out trolls weren’t responsible. He had to wonder if his sister found out; there had to be a strong reason Carena faked her death.

He also paled at the mention of ‘lab experiment’? He had a feeling the plans for him were nefarious but not to that degree. To say the soldier was alarmed was more than accurate. Frankly he was terrified at thought of being held in a lab and experimented on. However, he couldn’t let them know his fear. He glared at Nisensi angrily.

“Fate is fortunate to you, love. I assume your other plans are finding the other Vasile relatives. He can’t be the only one alive.”

“Agreed. He can’t be the only one.” Nisensi walked over to where Danner was held and grabs one of the crystal vials off her belt. She at first smiled but then frowned in disgust when she realized there was spit on her robes. She motioned to Bran before muttering, “Feisty… he’ll need to be broke. Hold him still.”

The soldier smirked briefly before getting hit. He was taught to not spit at or on females but he’d figured this high elf was a good exception to that rule. Danner then noticed the elf had taken the cap of the potion. O hell, that wasn’t going down his throat. But he didn’t have choice in the matter. The paladins really had a hold of him now. Nisensi knelt down next to him; he glared angry eyes at him.

He tried to move but couldn’t. Despite any effort he made to struggle, He was forced to drink the blasted potion. He coughed; the taste was of rotten eggs and mold. Yuck! If his nausea feeling wasn’t bad before, it was now. If he puked, hopefully it’d spew on Nisensi. He then yawned. Wait, was that a sleeping potion he had been forced to drink? It was by far the worse one if that’s the case.

Another yawn from him. He struggled to stay awake but he’d do his best. Where the hell were they taking him for one? If there was one thing certain, her lab wasn’t in Pandaria. He needed to find that out and hopefully it’d be soon. He watched Nisensi take some steps back before getting out a rune. The elf woman muttered words in Thalassian as a portal started to appear. However, he couldn’t tell where the destination was as he vison was blurring.

“Shall I bring him to your lab, Lady Nisensi?” Bran asked.

“Not yet. Once that’s armor is off, put in him in one of the dungeon cells; one that is secure. He needs to get used to his… fate.”

"With pleasure."

Danner yawned and felt himself being dragged to his feet. He couldn’t stay awake much longer. No adventurers or adult locals had come to his aid. However, he did hear Ian drop his medallion dog-tag and not pick it up before that paladin through the portal. Interesting, no one else was picking it up, the lantern or torching his dead horse.

Maybe there was a glimmer of hope for him, that would he survive. If someone found the scene within some hours, perhaps they would let his C.O and comrades at Lion’s Landing know and a search party be organized. Though the chances that the residual magic from a portal would be traceable was extremely slim. In truth, he knew nothing about the schools of arcane magics.

There was even the chance his estranged sister would help out. Even though she had horrifically bad eyesight and refused to wear glasses, Carena was a skilled rogue. She wasn't the lawful type but that could be an advantage... or not if Nisensi had no contacts with shady types. Feasibly, she had a chance to find wherever this elf was located.

Although he hoped she wouldn’t be the one to find the scene due to her monstrous gryphon mount. If the rumor were true, Gryphy would have a ball devouring his dead horse. The poor soldier shivered and then passed out; right before he was dragged through the portal.

((OOC:

This is related to the thread, A frantic plea for aid. Even though it's a flashback type post, I decided to put this in a new thread. I hope I was to get the infomation accurate based on posts and in-game rp.

It was decided that a rescue would play out on the forums. This is open to anyone involved or wishes to be.

As to the timeline of that, I have a few ideas. One would be set just about the time of WOD expansion launch events. The other idea is that takes place a few week to a month after, possibly even currently.

Whatever timeline other want to go with is fine with me. It 's a difference between longer recovery time and much, very long recovery to the point of nearly driving someone insane time for Danner.

Also, if there's a better thread title, I'm open for suggestions.))

Carena sat down at the table, wincing. She was currently inside of a building hut in Krasarag Wilds and had just finished cooking a meal for her uncle Keeneth. She had managed to burn her left hand in the process but that was usual for the rogue. Who knew that cooking scrambled eggs and meat was a dangerous task…?

Anyways, her uncle would be arriving soon to talk and deliver a letter for her; one that she still had to write. She had sent a note a few weeks earlier to Stormwind Watch. Another one was needed but she couldn’t actually go to Stormwind City- no employees had fled there.

Luckily a few employees had gone missing in Pandaria and Nisensi had sent her to track them in addition to her regular business of ‘gathering’ information. Lately, she had to stay low and do the wench’s bidding so she wasn’t be discovered. Why…? She felt through her packs and got out parchment paper and ink.

Her mission to infiltrate Nisensi’s organization and take out the wench had become much more complicated thanks to her twin brother getting captured a few months earlier. While they didn’t look alike, there was just enough resemblance that one could tell they were related if in the same room together. Carena had got a new hood that covered more of her face once she learned of his imprisonment.

The paladins involved still gloated about the situation. Danner may had good intentions in confronting them who were chasing the pandaren cub. However; it was idiotic for him to do it without weapons or extra help.

The huntress Coriani Arrowind informed her by letter that she found the scene and decided to go to the inn and see if he was there; hoping someone had stolen his medallion. She managed to make it to The Lazy Turnip on a broken foot and realized something had happened to him after she checked with the innkeepers and Hio. Danner had apparently left his weapons inside the room Iseul was recovering from injuries.

The pandarens didn’t realize it until a few hours after he left; Iseul had been tired and Hio was actually blind and hadn’t heard Danner put his weapons down. They were hoping the soldier was going to come back for them. She didn’t blame the pandarens for not chasing down Danner; Iseul was injured for one and he should have figured it out before leaving the inn that he had forgot them.

Danner was still alive but was now held in Nisesni’s lab building inside of a cage. He had been moved there from the dungeons a few weeks earlier. He had suffered beatings while imprisoned in the dungeons and now had more injuries- due to potions. She sighed; her brother was being used as a ‘lab experiment’, something that peeved her.

They may been estranged but she still cared for his well-being. If there was one thing she didn’t want, it was Nisensi killing another relative. Her brother was strong but even he had his limits. A rescue would be needed soon.

While she could deal with Nisensi, her bodyguard Bran was different matter. He was a paladin; one that was very dangerous. Of course it didn’t help that the rogue was a bit clueless on how to defeat paladins; she was knocked unconscious within five seconds after challenging one to a friendly duel- that happened years ago when she was sixteen.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts. Moments later, she noticed the shape of a tall human enter the building. “Greetings Uncle Keeneth. Thanks for doing my task.”

“No issue, Car. Besides, I needed to check on you. I assume Danner is still conscious. Mandi is really missing him.”

“Yes but in pain.” Carena frowned.

Her uncle nodded, “I’m not surprised considering what that wench and Hiren did to the other Vasile relatives. They will pay for it.”

“I know, I’ll make sure of it.” She pointed at the plate of food on other side of the small table. “I made that for you…”

“You actually cooked?” Keeneth had a surprised tone to his voice. “I thought you told me Royland never let you near a kitchen stove due to your eyesight.”

The name of Car’s late guardian made her smile briefly. “I got it from a recipe book.” Royland was a retired rogue who happened to been a great cook. But the scrambled egg recipe she had wasn’t from his cookbook; that was locked away in one of his many lockboxes. Instead, she had gotten the recipe from her Great Aunt Tara’s cookbook. Hopefully he’d still enjoy that relatives’ food.

“Hmm, is that his egg recipe?” Keeneth sat down at other end of the table. “I’ll have to try it. You have the letter ready?”

“Writing it now.” Car sighed before she started to write the letter in her usual horrible handwriting, that read;

Greetings Stormwind Watch,

An update to the dealings at Nisensi’s headquarters. The blood elf prisoner was recently moved to the lab building after losing consciousness. Potions are keeping him alive currently but who knows how long it’ll last.

Her plans haven’t changed for blood elves and pandarens; she’s still trying to find a way to capture Failiani Arrowind. I’ve already warned Taelis about it so no worry about that.

I mentioned previously a few weeks ago that the Alliance soldier was moved and being held there also. Danner’s left arm is still broken from that potion and another one of her mixtures caused several burns. For some reason, those and other injuries seem to be ‘resistant’ to healing.

Nisensi enjoys watching him suffer; claims that he is ‘slowly paying for the Vasile family crimes’ and she’s been given a ‘second chance’. As one can imagine, Danner is miserable and she hasn’t even tested every recipes intended for him. The wench has more and is creating another concoction; one that has all the current tested potions combined into it. That or one of the untested mixtures could kill him.

I’d suggest a rescue happen soon. Over half of Nisensi’s minions are out on various task. I can’t meet in Stormwind currently to discuss any plans, however I might be able to sneakily do so in Pandaria- a few of employees have gone missing in Dread Wastes and one in Valley of the Four Winds.

A note can be sent by mail as a response. Even without a meeting, I can get any rescue part inside the lab building- I have lenses or smoke bombs that can be used as a signal.

~ C

She took a look at it. Granted she couldn’t read her handwriting but luckily one of the officers of Stormwind Watch could. With that in mind, she folded the letter up and put it in an envelope. The rogue had other issues now. While she had been writing, she had only heard him take a few bites of the scrambled eggs and meat before stopping. For some reason, her uncle didn’t seem to like what she had cooked. “Is it bad?”

“Well… yes, Car. The boar meat is burnt crispy. It’s barely edible and yet, the flavor is familiar.” Keeneth sighed and shook his head. He then pointed to the scrambled eggs. “Why are there egg shells in this?”

“For crunch factor…” she shrugged and then frowned. She had mixed the egg shells along with the yolks and whites. Scrambled eggs were supposed to crunchy, right? That’s how she remembered her Great Aunt Tara cooking them the few times while the elderly relative was still alive; in fact the recipe in Tara’s cookbook called for egg shells.

Her brothers would never eat them and Car would get sick shortly after but that had to be due to something else, maybe? She had food intolerances to bread and lobster but wasn’t aware of one to eggs. She could eat and drink other products that contained eggs. “It not Royland’s recipe.”

“I can tell, Car. It vaguely reminds me of Vasile family gatherings as a young child. Where did you get the recipes from?”

“That cookbook over there.” She pointed over near the cooking stove and shook her head. The rogue felt awful. She had wanted to cook a great meal but clearly that didn’t happen. She hadn’t had hours to slowly roast food and hope it’d be edible. The recipes in the cookbook claimed to be ‘quick’ and it was.

Keeneth walked over to where the cookbook was at and picked it up. After some moments of glancing through it, he chuckled and shook his head. “I thought the recipe was familiar. I didn’t know Aunt Tara actually created a cookbook. She even titled it, Tara’s famous and most memorable recipes. I miss that relative…”

Cara sighed as Keeneth walked over and handed her the book. Well, the recipes were memorable but not in a good way. Her great aunt may not been the best cook but her skills as a rogue was a different story. Even at a venerable age, the elderly relative would fight off wolves and bears with ease, at least from what Car could remember. Tara was the best at picking locks open according to Uncle Keeneth.

In fact she was the one who taught Carena how to open beginner lock-boxes. Tara likely would have taught her more except the relative died four months after breaking her right leg. That happened a few weeks after Venn’s eleventh birthday when Car and Danner were nearly seven years old. She blinked and took her glasses off to wipe her eyes. “I miss her, too.”

“I know, Car. She took care of you, Danner and Venn after your parents died. Aunt Tara was one of the best rogues in the family but…” Keeneth paused and let out a sigh. “She was the worst cook I’ve known. Tara being the worst at cooking should stay that way… but I wouldn’t get rid of the cookbook. I could see it having use…”

“I’m keeping it. The recipes are good for crashing wedding receptions.” Carena smirked briefly. The food mentioned was quite memorable; something needed for those type of events. Who said the memories had to positive ones?

“Exactly!” the tall human went over to the cooking stove. “Well, you should be going.”

She watched Keeneth get out food ingredients from his pack. Not surprising since she messed up his dinner. As much as the rogue wanted to talk more, her uncle had a point that she needed to report back to Nisesni. “I’ll better be going. Sorry I screwed up the meal.” She handed her uncle the envelope that contained the letter.

“I’ll have to teach you how to cook. Be safe, Car. ”

“Don’t worry, I’m being careful.” Carena got out the hood from her pack.

“I know but that Bran is getting suspicious. I’ll be sure to check on Gryphy.” Keeneth commented.

“He’s always wary but I’ll keep an ear out. I’ll talk later…” Carena waved before putting on the hood on her head and exiting the building. She had left her gryphon mount with her late father’s baby sister, Etta who had volunteered to watch him.

Hopefully he was behaving for her aunt and not circle around Etta’s horse, hoping it’ll fall over and die. That was one of the reasons she didn’t want the gryphon in Grizzly Hills- it took her days to get his attention away from the mustangs the first time she visited the area. Gryphy craved horse flesh but thankfully didn't go outright and attack the animals.

She activated the hearthstone that went to Nisensi’s headquarters and briefly thought about the letter. Uncle Keeneth would have no issue sneaking a letter into the Stormwind Watch off-duty room; he was probably going to head there once he ate something. This was one relative she could trust in getting something delivered.

-------------------
After the bells rang at midnight, a tall human figure sneaked around Stormwind City. His footsteps were quieter than a mouse as he went through the Cathedral Square and over to the building of Stormwind Watch. It was stress-free and easy for him to get inside the off-duty room without being seen; practice from he had all the years for the various missions, raids and heists he did.

Once inside, Keeneth put the envelope that contained the letter his niece had masterfully written and set it down on the table. But he wasn’t quite ready to leave just yet. He placed down an orb and a note. The note was in written in common; however it was gracefully written. One might think an elf was the writer of it. Was this his normal style of writing? Who knows? Anyways, the note read;

Greetings officers of the Stormwind Watch,

I believe you heard about the orb incident at Nisensi’s headquarters. The person was hired by me. He were supposed to hide every scrying orb in not so obvious places and for the most part, he failed. Nisensi found and had her minions removed most of them; except for one.

He managed to get inside Nisensi’s lab building and place one orb in a rather inconspicuous location on the first floor. It still has yet to be found. This orb left here at the very minimum will let you see who enters.

A warning; the bodyguard is getting very suspicious of the infiltrator. My fears are if rescue doesn’t happen soon for the prisoners, she will be discovered.

Keeneth sneakily scurried out of the building and headed towards the Valley of Heroes. He had other business after all to attend to. What type? That would be a mystery for now…

((I'm sorry about the long wait...))

An unknown about of time later,

Xing Quai shook her head as she sat and looked at an ancient mogu artifact, or rather the remains of one. Someone had sent her it a few weeks earlier, claiming it could be used as a means of transportation. Not having to walk everywhere on foot had sounded good at the time, especially since she had managed to sprain her left foot-paw and wanted to explore Northern Stranglethorn Vale.

The artifact had done wonders; the disk shaped device had even managed to fly in the air. She had managed to explore bit of the troll ruins without any incidents. Just imagine the exploring she could do. She had heard interesting things about Twilight Highlands. However, the device suddenly broke just after crossing over Mirror Lake in Elwynn Forest on her way back to Stormwind City.

Thankfully that device wasn’t flying too far from the ground and the monk was able to make a safe enough landing. If the artifact had been higher in the air, she could have been seriously injured or even killed from the fall. Granted her injured left foot-paw was sore but she was alive, a positive thing to think about.

It was but she also felt sadness when she thought of her late cousin, Yani Qui. The young pandaren had a lot going for her but was murdered by an insane gnome and night elf. Xing herself was confronted by the two and managed to survive by knocking out the night elf and running away for her life- something that nearly killed her due to her ‘fluffiness’, or her being overweight.

Still, she could be happy. The gnome was caught and had been put to death for his crimes. Li, Yani’s twin brother and cousin Xing-Hio were alive and safe. It was something to smile about. Li Xing, the orange tabby Yani had as a pet before dying was doing well; even if all it wanted to do was use Xing and Li for a climbing post. The monk didn’t mind that… too much.

“Hello there, pandaren.”

The voice interrupted Xing’s thoughts. The pandaren hadn’t heard anyone land nearby. Wait, was that a bandit? Supposedly they were in this area. She had better be prepared for a fight if that’s the case. Thankfully her staff was within reach.

She scooted and turned herself around where she noticed a human female. Even in the starlight, she could tell the human had black hair pulled back in a messy pony-tail and almond-shaped eyes- gray colored iris possibly? She was of a muscular build, a healthy weight. The female also wore red leather armor.

Based on the wooden staff and brew keg the human carried, it seemed she was a brewmaster monk. Still, she was a bit suspicious that another monk would be around. Did the person have nefarious intentions? It was possible but she looked friendly. There was a way to find out. She grabbed her wooden staff quickly and used it to help herself up. Xing noticed the human seemed to eyeing the artifact pieces. “Hello.”

“I’m sorry to bug you but I could use some assistance in a matter. I won’t take long.”

“I see. What do you need help with?“

“I’m looking for a pandaren by the name of Xing Quai. From the description I got, she’s got black and white fur which is common for pandaren. Supposedly, she’s overweight and…”

“I know of her.” Xing blinked. Yes, Xing was quite overweight but she still didn’t see herself that way. Pandarens were supposed to be big, right? Size was strength, at least that’s what she remembered her monk trainer telling her years ago. Wait, why was this monk looking for her?

The human female almost had a relief expression on her face. “You do? Where is…”

“That is my name.” She interrupted the human. “Who are you?” the monk held her staff.

“Xing, I'm Mandi, a brewmaster.”

“It’s good to meet you, Mandi. Why are you looking for me?” Xing asked.

Mandi walked over to where the pieces of the mogu artifact were laying on the ground. The human put the keg down and briefly inspected the pieces. “Well… you heard of rogue, Carena? She sent me to find you.”

Xing nodded as she had heard of this ‘Carena’. This mysterious rogue had somehow managed to steal her coin purse and hearthstone and put the items inside of a mailbox located in the Cathedral Square some time ago. None of her gold coins were stolen but it did contain a piece of candy which had been quite delightful. Hmmm, candy!

That rogue had also put a note with her missing items. Apparently said note had been a warning and Xing was in protective custody until the gnome was caught. Wait, had the rogue gotten this monk to deliver a warning? It could explain why Mandi seemed to be worried. “I presume Carena has a warning or something?”

“You are correct, Xing.” Mandi nodded before letting out a sigh, “She has a warning as do I. Let me show you hers.”

The monk watched the human put the pieces of the large artifact disk put ‘together’ and compare it with a two pictures of another one that looked eerily similar. However, Xing’s disk had cracks all over it; even where it hadn’t broke while the ones in the pictures didn’t. She thought it had been due to age but maybe that wasn’t the case.

“As you see, there shouldn’t be these types of cracks anywhere on it. It was faulty-most likely tampered with.”

“Wait… my transportation device was damaged? Who...” Xing asked as a big envelope was handed to her. The monk briefly inspected it and noticed while it was unsealed, it was addressed to Stormwind Watch. Wait, why was this handed to her? “Isn’t this addressed to Stormwind Watch? I shouldn’t…”

“Yes but it has the answers you seek.” Mandi picked up her keg. “I wrote it so I’m find with you reading it first. Just seal it after.”

Xing shook her head briefly. She shouldn’t be reading this but the brewmaster gave her permission to do so and without much more hesitation, she opened the envelope and found a letter. The back of the parchment had drawings of various flowers and herbs. The writing of the letter itself was nicely written in common; something she could read thankfully. She blinked while reading it;

Hello officers!

I surely hope this is received since I can’t deliver in person for… reasons.

Anyways, I better state my motives for writing a letter and yes, it’s a warning. I know the rogue who infiltrating that cult who took the alliance soldier captive. Recently, Carena informed me by note that Nisensi has developed a concoction that she think will kills pandarens while leaving their fur intact for skinning. That thought of why one would want to do that sickens me….

The high elf had chosen a few targets to capture and test out her potions. Hio and Iseul are two of pandarens targets. I hope you’re aware that these are two that the solder Danner Vasile was interviewing shortly before he was captured. The pandarens have been warned and are under protection. I may step in if asked.

The other pandaren target is well, Xing Quai. According to Car, a former gnome member had tried to pursue her before. They sent her a faulty, tampered transportation device in hopes she would use it due to her overweight and ‘lazy’. I was sent to find the pandaren before the device could break and leave her stranded in a very remote area. If you’re reading this lovely letter, you’ll know I found Xing.

Still, I have other reasons for writing; I was at the inn at One Keg when I overheard a few paladins who were employed by Nisensi. I listened to the entire conversation and guess what; they are very aware that they have an infiltrator in their mists. While these paladins haven’t figured out the identity of the person, it’ll only be a matter of time before they do.

And they will. As it is, one lone employee did figure it out and attempted to kill Car north of Stoneplow. Thankfully the dwarf greatly underestimated her abilities and was taken care of. But still, if one guessed it... Nisensi will eventually. Let’s face it, Carena will suffer horribly if caught and the elf may tighten security even more if she escapes.

That’s my worry because Danner is very miserable and barely conscious from all the torture he’s endured. He is very strong but even has his limits. If only I hadn’t been on my herbal and Kafa berries gathering trip during that time…

If there is a rescue mission, it needs to happen ASAP.

Should there be a very slight chance I’m needed for something, I’m in Pandaria- usually at Halfhill.

Brewmaster Mandi E.

P.S. There is a question I have about a banishment sentence I received. Perhaps this can be answered for me at a later time?

“So this cult tampered it.” Xing Quai had heard about Nisensi from when the gnome had confronted her. She didn’t know that she the transportation device had come from this insane cult; she never would have used it. Still, she could be thankful that it broke in Elwynn Forest and not someplace even more remote where Nisensi’s crazy members could get her.

“Yes, I’m certain it was.” Mandi sighed briefly before turning away briefly.

“Are you alright?” Xing asked as the brewmaster turned towards her again. The human was wiping her eyes. “You seem worried. Why don’t you pour yourself a drink? At least, that’s what my old master would have told me to do.”

“Umm... wait, my mentor would say the same thing if he was here. I should have time for a quick drink.” Mandi sat down and grabbed her keg of whatever brew she had. “Yes, Xing, I’m worried for reasons. The alliance soldier mentioned in the letter; well, he’s my lover. That cult captured him after he stopped them from trying to kill a pandaren cub. He didn’t have his weapons with him, either…”

“He sounds… brave.”

“Yes, he is. He’s also reckless when I’m not around. Carena is also a concern right now. She can be very moody when she doesn’t eat much. Her skills are good but I’d just have to hope she won’t do something that’ll break her cover.”

Mandi wasn’t the only concerned for this Alliance soldier; the pandaren was also. He may be alive now but knowing that elf’s plans for pandarens… those ideas may extend to him. No one deserves that, especially one that had stopped the cult from going after a cub. And yes, it was concerning the rogue infiltrating this cult was in danger of being discovered.

This letter needed to get to Stormwind Watch. With that thought, Xing folded the letter and put it inside the envelope. She then sealed it and was prepared to hand it back to the brewmaster. “I presume you want…”

“Actually, I need you to deliver the letter for me if you wouldn’t mind.” Mandi interrupted before sipping the last of her drink.

The monk nodded as she recalled from the letter that Mandi said she couldn’t deliver it in person. Not that Xing Quai would mind doing such a task, even if running there would be, uh, challenging with a sore left foot-paw. Mandi had enough to worry about. Besides, she needed to get back anyways and check on her cousins. “I can do that.”

“You see, I can’t enter Stormwind City at all. It’s complicated… I’m banished from going there due to an incident years ago. I won’t get into the details of that event now.”

“Oh…” Xing blinked. She wasn’t about to ask how that happened.

“The banishment is so ambiguous that it could extend to the entire Kingdom of Stormwind. To make matters worse, my papers also doesn’t tell me how long the punishment goes for. I had to come from Ironforge to warn you.”

“I see… I’ll get this letter to one of the officers; Officer Calent Miller as soon as possible. I understand if you need to leave.” the monk smiled as Mandi nodded. If there was a possibility she was banished from the entire kingdom; that could also give another reason for her worry and didn’t want to take too long in the first place. The brewmaster could get into trouble if found.

“I really appreciate it and so does Car. She said you could be trusted; high praise coming from her. Do take care of yourself, Xing.” Mandi handed a canteen to Xing. The human then walked over to where her keg was and picked it up. “I brewed this before coming, consider it a treat.”

Xing nodded before bowing at the human who now had a hearthstone in hand. She was one to take a free brew from a fellow monk. “Take care, Mandi. I hope one day you can return to Stormwind legally.” She watched Mandi smirk briefly before activating the stone.

After the brewmaster vanished, she looked at the pieces of the disk. She picked all of them up and put them into her largest pack as quickly as she could before looking in the direction of Stormwind City. The overweight pandaren then started to run. While it wasn’t too far away, it still would hurt….

Danner groaned as he came to. How long he had been out? Who knows but he was in a lot of pain. To say he was a bit sore was a major understatement. Between the burns, rashes, small wounds and few broken bones he had sustained, it wasn’t shocking that the human was in agony. One might consider him lucky to still be alive.

He opened his eyes and noted the iron bars that kept him confined like a caged lab rat. He felt like one; his current prison was located inside of an alchemy lab building. The cage he was held in was too small for the human to lie down or stand up fully. He could sit but his legs were so sore. Thankfully that horrid high elf female wasn’t in the room at the moment. Still, that even brought dread to him.

His thoughts drifted back to when he was imprisoned in the dungeons of the cult’s main building. He had been down there for an unknown amount of time before being moved to the current place. Danner had suffered beatings and some malnourishment; somehow the guards had figured out his least favorite food was a certain type of bread and would bring him that.

Pumpkin bread… yuck! Actually he disliked anything that contained pumpkins including pie. However, the thought of eating bread that contained it made him feel nauseous. Why was that? He didn’t have an intolerance or allergy to bread but the way his Great Aunt Tara would make the dough and bake it could make anyone hate that type of food.

It would be common to find pumpkin seeds, skin, stems and eggshells whenever the elderly relative would make it. Unfortunately, her other ‘bread’ and even cooking recipes weren’t better and he quit eating it while she was alive. Even after Tara died, he still avoided any type of bread for some years. He wasn’t forced to eat it as a younger teenager.

Once he joined the Alliance army, he learned to eat and tolerate most types of bread. Except for the one type he hated and well; he was forced to eat it while being held in the dungeons. He didn’t want to starve to death but he still got sick a lot of the times. Those times though, the pumpkin bread had a sour smell to it.

Thankfully for Danner, a few of the guards had pity and would ‘sneak’ him hardtack and an apple occasionally. He gobbled it down as quickly as he could the times it had been brought. Still, he knew he had lost some weight from that hated experience. The cell he was held in was also small compared to the other ones. He was angered just thinking of the beatings he suffered.

He thought the situation at the dungeons was dire. However, being held in the alchemy lab building was far worse. He suffered a few beatings here from Bran but that hadn’t increased his injuries much. No; the vile potions he’d been forced to drink had done far more damage to the soldier. Not only did it affect him physically… mentally too. Being used a ‘lab experiment’ was his worst nightmare.

Danner shivered. He certainly had a fear of potions and anything else the wench in charge would produce. Another horrible memory went through his mind. Shortly after he had been moved to the lab building, Nisensi had managed to create a porridge-like mixture that contained pumpkin and other vile ingredients. She considered it far too thick to be a potion and decided to serve it as a ‘meal’ for him.

Of course the soldier wasn’t going to eat the ‘porridge’ willingly so it was forced down his throat. Between the rancid smell and taste; it had been enough to make him ill for days. He guessed it was days, he lost track of the time long ago. Luckily for him, that horrible vile mixture hadn’t been served again but it irritated him that actual food seemed to be scarce in this place. He didn’t get to eat every day when he was awake...

The soldier’s thoughts were distracted as he heard something. What could be causing it? It wasn’t Nisensi or her bodyguard but critter-like? With that thought, he looked to his right and couldn’t see anything near the two cages close by that could be making the noise. Was he imagining the noise? It was possible but then again the lighting in the entire room was dim.

He sighed irritably as he heard the noise again; there was no way he was imagining the sound. In fact, it seemed the source of the sound was a bird based on feathers ruffling. He glanced over at the two experiment tables near the center of the room. He shivered; Nisensi had threatened to restrain him on one of those but thankfully hadn’t.

The cult often mentioned they wanted to exterminate the Sin’dorei and yet they kept one alive. That prisoner was restrained on the table closest to the cages. The male blood elf was severely emaciated, had cuts all over his body and hadn’t woke up in some time. He was certain the elf would have died long ago if it wasn’t for a mysterious potion forced down him on a ‘regular’ basis.

No, he didn’t see a bird near the experiment tables or the staircase near the far left corner of the room. Where was it coming from? He could still hear feathers…

Gobble! Gobble!

What the hell? The source of the sound was a turkey? Danner wondered where the creature was located as his stomach started to growl. He hadn’t ate any meat since being imprisoned and frankly, he missed it. His favorite meat and food was actually bacon but considering the circumstances; any type of meat would be delicious.

Sliced turkey… hmmm! Danner knew he wouldn’t be able to get any turkey meat in this place, but he could dream. Another sound from the turkey reminded him to try and find it from where he was stuck.

He looked over to his left at the wall where two book-shelves and a small desk-table were situated against and shook his head in anger. On top of the desk, there was a small cage with the turkey imprisoned inside of it. What? That wasn’t there when he was awake last. He sure wondered what happened when he was passed out.

Was this crazy cult now making plans to exterminate all the creatures? It wouldn’t surprise him if that’s the case now. The thought made him really angry. How could Pilgrim’s Bounty be celebrated without turkeys? Granted; it was ate but he wasn’t one to hunt them to extinction.

The turkey suddenly went silent as he heard footsteps coming up the staircase. Danner tensed as he knew those footsteps belonged to Nisensi and Bran. Within seconds; those two were up the stair and into the room. He felt dread as he saw two different colored vials on the elf’s belt; one of those had to be intended for him.

What did those vials contain? Who knows but a good guess would be something harmful to him. Nisensi mentioned she had more potions to ‘test’. The last one had caused a rash to appear all over his legs. The smell red bumps didn’t appear to be blisters but the pain from it was so intense it actually made him pass out.

He looked at his legs and the red bumps were still near his knees; that had to be the reason it’s been hurting since he’s been awake. No, he wasn’t going to touch it either since he had strong feelings the pain would get worse. He didn’t need to make his suffering worse than what it was.

He was a bit surprised when Nisensi walked over to the small cage on the desk-table. Normally she and Bran would walk over to his cage and bother him with the potions. Plans must have changed with the turkey… that feeling the cult now wanted to exterminate turkeys in addition to their other plans could be valid.

Nisensi opened the cage and grabbed the turkey; she then motioned to Bran and handed him the creature. Danner felt helpless; that vial could contain something deadly that’d harm it greatly or kill it even. While he liked to eat turkey; that didn’t mean one deserve to be used a lab experiment like this.

Since he was locked in this cage; only thing he could was glare angrily and watch Nisensi force down the green contents of a small crystal vial down the creature. The turkey had angry gobbles coming from it. Danner couldn’t blame the bird; Nisesni’s potions had a horrid vile taste to them.

They surprised him further when they put the creature on the floor a bit later. It started to run about when he watched Bran get out his hammer-weapon. Danner was puzzled. Why had they given the turkey a vile potion if going to kill it with weapons? He then noticed Bran had caught up to the turkey and was prepared to swiftly end’s it’s life.

Danner blinked as he Bran’s two-handed hammer bounced off the turkey harmlessly seconds later. Huh? How was that possible? The creature should have crushed and died instantly from the blow. Not only was it was alive; it didn’t seemed to be harmed by it. Was it an actual turkey or had someone created a mechanical version of one? It even seemed resistant to light-based spells.

“Well; I was hoping it would have died by now.” Nisensi frowned. “Strange…”

“There’s something unnatural about it. It’s not possible for a regular turkey to survive that blow or the power of the Light.” Bran shook his head.

“Agreed. It shouldn’t have survived being locked in a cooking stove oven for hours, either. Our newest chief engineer claimed it’s not a mechanical one. It’s a mystery; one I must solve.”

Danner blinked; the turkey had survived what? It should have been cooked to death if it had been in a stove. If the creature wasn’t mechanical… he could see a possible reason why the cult had taken an interest in this turkey. Still, they better not be planning on exterminating them.

Wait… was it his imagination or did the turkey have a sparkle to it? If that was case, it could be an enchanted turkey. Generally speaking, he was clueless about enchanting and the processes with it. He heard rumors that very experienced enchanters could make certain creatures immune to most types of deaths.

Was it enchanted? Maybe but that didn’t matter as the turkey suddenly flopped over near the far side of the room. He noticed the creature wasn’t breathing and seemed to be dead. He shivered… if that death was due to Nisensi’s potion, it hadn’t taken that long to work. That vial must have contained a poison or something similar in manner; it had been green in color.

“Finally!”

“Interesting…” Nisesni walked over and inspected the dead turkey. She picked it up and brought it over to her small desk. “This will need to be dissected to see if my latest poison was the cause of it. Later. Relax, I haven’t forgotten about you. I got more to test, Vasile Rat.”

There was no way he could relax now. He really tensed up as she walked over to his cage and motioned to Bran. Chills were going down his spine while the elf uncapped the lid on the dark-colored crystal vial. He was terrified but still he couldn’t break down just yet. He angrily glared at her while she slipped the vial through the cage bars. Too bad his mouth was too dry to spit at her though the bars…

The potion didn’t smell rotten like the last one but that didn’t mean it couldn’t harm him. As much as Danner wanted to resist; he didn’t and drank it with a disgust expression. For one, he was starting to feel dizzy and besides, Nisensi’s bodyguard was near and he wasn’t hesitant to cause pain.

After the contents were drank, Nisensi slipped the vial through and after some moments she got back on her feet. To his surprise; the potion left a pleasant, bacon taste in his mouth. It reminded him of one of his girlfriend’s brews. His thoughts drifted briefly; he missed Mandi greatly. Knowing her, she was worrying over him being missing.

Wait a minute… normally he would start to feel ill, have pain starting up somewhere in his body or both by now. Also, her concoctions were horrible in taste and smell a majority of times. Only one potion of Nisensi’s had no taste or smell and frankly, that potion broke his left arm. While that part of his arm seemed to have finally healed (Danner somehow set that bone himself); his left wrist was now broke.

Could it be? He was certain that last potion wasn’t a poison or harmful mixture but his girlfriend’s apple and bacon brew. Which led to a bigger question; how did that brew end up in a crystal vial? Better yet, how come the high elf alchemist not figured it out?

Well... between this brew and a cookbook that his Great Aunt Tara wrote, he had very strong suspicions that his sister was infiltrating this cult. He sister had very horrible eyesight but even then, he could see her being sneaky enough to switch out a harmful potion for a brew. He was grateful for a break and gave him hope he hadn’t been forgotten. Maybe a rescue party was in the works? Still, that was very risky of her.

“He doesn’t appear to be pain or ill-feeling.” Nisesni then sniff the empty vial in her hand. “Bran, does this smell of boar bacon?”

Bran walked over and inspected the vial. “Yes it does, Lady Nisesni. It also smells of apples. This wasn’t the potion you were talking about downstairs.”

“This was supposed to be my potion that contained Brinescale Serpent.” Nisesni had a furious expression. “It was switched out! Who’s been in my lab within the past two weeks?”

“Chief Engineer Berryrocket, Assistant Engineer Quickit, Talen and Spy Mistress Hani Tara. If I had to wager a guess Lady Nisesni on who the traitor is…”

”Assistant Engineer Quickit… that gnome was very inquisitive about all the potions; even asked if I was going to sell them. Is he around? “

“No; he left for an ‘errand’ supposedly. He didn’t take a portal. You’re right, Lady Nisesni. He was far too curious about the potions; even more than Hani Tara. I should have figured there was another traitor besides the… Shall I have the paladins go find and drag him back here?”

“Yes! If he’s the one who took that potion and… then he needs to be made an example of.”

“Indeed.” Bran started to walk towards the staircase. “Anyone else you wish to have them pursue?”

“Not until Quickit is found.” The high elf crossed her arms.

“Your orders will be followed, Lady Nisesni.” The bodyguard went down the staircase.

Danner tensed up. It seemed Bran suspected someone else was a traitor. That worried Danner. If his suspicions were right; Hani Tara was a possible alias that his sister was using. They were around the same height and thin, skinny build. He didn’t have full proof though as the spy mistress wore a mask that covered her face. Still…

He watched Nisensi again walk over to his cage and get a vial from her pouch. Damned; he really hoped with the one potion stolen that it would distract her from testing any more on him for a bit. He glared at her with angry eyes, feeling chills as he tried to resist. No use as he felt too nauseated from the smell.

“Well, Vasile Rat, you have to suffer more for the family crimes. I always have a back-up. Enjoy! I’ll have more to test when you next wake.”

He coughed some seconds later as she slipped her hand and empty to her belt. No, he wasn't going to enjoy it. Based on her words; it was a vile sleeping potion. If it was one he’s was thinking of, he was going to be in serious pain for at least a few minutes before blissfully passing out. He was really irritated. Within some seconds, he started to yawn and then his right arm started to have burning pain.

He yelped and winced. The previous potion tested a while ago had caused him to feel sharp, stabby pain. This was a different type but it currently causing as much misery as the other one. Still, how many types of vile sleeping potions did the elf have? This would be the fourth variant of one he'd consumed since being captured.

His left arm started to have the same pain and before he knew it, it was starting to spread around his body. He yawned and winced; now his legs felt they were on fire. He looked and there weren't any additional burns. Potion must be attacking his nerves. His body was quivering; something he wasn't expecting.

Danner yawned again and well, passed out. His body continued to shiver while he was unconscious.

((Sorry for the wait. I'll make any spelling edits later. ))

The dim light from the small oil lamp in Calent Miller's room did little to illuminate the room, and even less to reduce her eye strain. The Watch sergeant paused in her work, rubbing her eyes. The hour was late, but there was much to be done before leaving for Northrend. On the desk before her lay a jumble of notes, maps, and reports, all valuable puzzle pieces in this case. What had started as a murder investigation had expanded into something much, much bigger.
Calent adjusted the wick of the lamp, brightening the room slightly, and continued poring over her notes. She flipped through a stack of papers, personnel dossiers, for each person that was assigned to this mission.

Agents Hazlett and Skyriver already made a great team, and would be a valuable addition to the mission.
Officer Cyndine Windsong was deadly accurate with a bow, and had years of scouting experience.
Sergeant Alilyana Riversong would be lending her medical expertise, as well as developing a strategy for getting into the complex unseen.
The rest of the roster was comprised of Terra Incognita agents.
Arlston Cross had hundreds, maybe thousands of successful missions under his belt. All of which were classified. He would certainly be an asset to the team.
Kaellar had a reputation for being stalwart and unstoppable. What he lacked in mobility, he more than made up for in fortitude and strength.
Rounding out the bottom of the roster were two agents she had not met yet, A hunter named Tarryn Aedelric, and a Paladin named Jaynery Lightshield. She did not know much about them, other than that Aedelric was a sniper, and that she and Lightshield worked as a team. Arlston had vouched for their skills, and that, she supposed, was enough.

Calent scrutinized the hand-drawn map again, several crudely drawn stick-men glared back at her. She rubbed her eyes again. She was not getting any further with strategy this night. The weary sergeant looked over to her window, a grayish light just beginning to appear on the horizon. Shrugging her tired shoulders and stretching, she made for bed. She still needed a plan of action, but the mission would be more difficult if she was too tired to play her role in it. Tomorrow, Officer Halconis was going to attempt to use the scrying orb that had been left in Nisensi's lab. She fervently hoped that some new information would come of it, another piece of the puzzle to put into place before they left.

The night found Calent in a troubled sleep, dreams plagued with angry looking stick-men, while Yani Qui called out for help.

((We're about ready to get rolling on our end, thanks for being patient c: ))

OOC Note; I play Cyndine as a High-Elf; on the server, I use the Orb of the Sin'Dorei to best mimic the appearance of one. However, as the forums don't have that ability, I'm using the Horde version of her to make posts on her behalf.

EDIT: Got to 90. It should now accurately reflect the Watch or Elven Ranger outfits as intended.

“Good evening.”

Cyndine Windsong walked into the barracks, where Sargent Calent Miller sat at a table, looking over some notes and maps for the operation. Tilting her head to the side, Cyndine sighs, turning her head to look at the clock. "Tomorrow's it, eh?"

Distracted, and fairly nervous, the Sargent replied, “Yeah...”

Looking toward her locker, Cyndine thought about her equipment that she had ordered and prepared beforehand. She wanted to get a head start on preparations for the operation. "How are preparations?" she asked, pausing for a moment to look toward Sargent Miller.

With a focus in her expression, Miller replied bluntly, “Make sure you pack warm clothing. Layers.”

Responding with a curt nod, Cyndine turned to her locker, and walked up to it. "Of course. I did remember 'blizzards' being mentioned." Opening it, Cyndine can see her equipment waiting for her. She reached in, and pulled out a blade. Its golden gleam with a magically enhanced hilt and reddish light from the centre of the blade made it immediately obvious to others in the office. She holds it out, and twirls it slightly, far out of the way of anyone else, and takes a moment to study the blade.

Ignoring the movements and the weapon, Sargent Miller bluntly replied, “I've had my things packed for several days. Are you ready?”

Cyndine nodded slightly, while doing a mental checklist to make sure she brought everything she needed. "I've pre-packed clothing, supplies, food, and all the essentials. I wanted to review my kit, however." She proceeded to sheath the blade. She proceeded to put her bow in the locker, and pull out one that appeared to have been upgraded from her previous one. Silently, she checked the bow for any imperfections. Pausing for a slight moment while looking the new bow up and down, “Do you have any thoughts about tomorrow?”

With tired, yet relieved eyes, she answered, “I'll be glad to finally close this case.”

Cyndine, nodding approvingly at the bow's workmanship, sheathed the bow on her back. She reached in, and pulled out a rather heavy-looking gun. “Agreed. I'm personally more interested in saving the prisoners. Arrests come second, in my opinion.”

Adding to her previous statement, Calent added, “The murder case that led to this, it was the first case I was ever assigned to.”

Cyndine, cocking the large anti-armour blaster she held, raised an eyebrow and looked at Sargent Miller, while she checked, studied, and released the charging handle. "...This is your first case?" She carefully slung it on her back.

Replying while working on her paperwork, she added, “I've taken on many since, but this investigation was the first case I was assigned.”

Cyndine nodded, while reaching into her locker for her boot dagger, which she promptly slid into her boot.

Sargent Miller continued, “The Pandaren Yani Qui collapsed in the doorway, she was very young....we couldn't save her.” She paused her words, thinking about the situation that brought her here. Cyndine grabbed her heavy pack, and put it on her back. She tightened the straps so that the large gun and bow are secured against her for the trip. "...I'm sorry to hear that," Cyndine finally said.

Miller finally spoke, to finish her sentence. “...But, we can save the prisoners.”

Nodding with a slight smile, Cyndine pulled out a much lighter, yet far more practical rifle, with twin barrels and a six double-round drum. It had a scope and iron sights on it. "...And that, my friend, will happen." She cocked the weapon, and checked the chamber. She released the bolt, and slung it, resting across her chest. She then grabbed three extra loaded drums, and strapped them to herself on some pouches on her outfit. At this point being almost done, she glanced over at Miller. "You've held your nervousness in quite well." She smiled, and looked back at the locker, looking it over for anything she might have missed.

Chuckling, Sargent Miller replied with a slight smile, and very slight tension releasing in her voice, "That obvious?"

Cyndine smiled slightly, while she closed the locker. "Barely, actually. I'm just good at reading people. A little bit of nervousness is understandable, considering the circumstances.” Satisfied that she was equipped for the operation, she closed and locked her locker, and walked over to Sargent Miller's table, and sat down on the chair, careful to not sit on her own gear. Settled, she smiled. "...Though I can't tell your level of nervousness."

Bravely, Sargent Miller responded with confidence that Cyndine couldn't tell was real or forced, “I'm confident that the people I've gathered can get the job done.”

“As am I,” Cyndine replied. “If that's the case, why are you worried?”

With a tinge of worry, Sargent Miller thought about the question. “But there are always so many things that can go wrong, and not all of them can be planned for.” She looked over her map again, as if willing it to reveal more information.

Cyndine nodded, and shifted the sniper rifle to hang off the side of the chair. She folded her legs, resting her feet on the chair, and tucking them in with her arms, with her body facing ninety-degrees to the right from the normal sitting position on the chair, as her equipment would make it impractical to sit in some other way. "The infamous five-percent margin for error," Cyndine concluded.

“A one percent chance doesn't make any difference to the one percent,” Miller said to Cyndine.

Cyndine nodded, her expression shifting to one that looked serious and slightly remorseful at Miller. "Want to know a secret?"

Sargent Miller raised an eyebrow at Cyndine.

Cyndine, seeing Miller's expression, took the eyebrow movement as a go-ahead. "...No one's perfect, and no plan is ever perfect. If people die, you can't blame yourself if you did everything you could." Shifting slightly, and seemingly uncomfortable by her own history which hung on her shoulders like a lead weight, smiled slightly. "...It's the only way you can live with yourself, if something goes wrong."

Sargent Miller immediately replied, “And so I will. I will do everything I can.”

Satisfied, Cyndine nodded, and smiled. "Good." Shifting again, slightly uncomfortable by the amount of equipment on her, she added with a smile, “I have faith in your abilities to lead this. I wouldn't have signed on if I didn't.” She thought for a split second, and added, “Jade trusts you implicitly, and I trust her implicitly.”

With a slight smile, Miller replied, “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

Noting her smile, Cyndine replied with her own. "You're welcome." Her soft, yet sharp high-elven features on her face soften with friendly emotion. "I'm here for you if you need me, you know?"

“Thanks,” Miller simply replied with some appreciation.

Cyndine nodded, and stood up. Her expression shifted to a professional demeanour. “What time are we gathering tomorrow, sir?”

“We'll be departing for Dalaran at first light.” Miller responded.

Cyndine nodded. "Understood. I'll be ready."

With the hint of exhaustion under her breath, Miller added, “I'll just... stay up and go over my notes a bit more before I turn in...”

Noting this, Cyndine took a step up, and motioned toward Miller's book and map. “Sir...” She cleared her throat. "Calent." She motioned to close the book. "You've worked hard enough on this. If you overdo it, you'll be exhausted, you'll be working yourself up over possibilities, and be ineffective.” With concern in her eyes, Cyndine continued, “It's best to let things flow. Have a basic plan that has room to flex to circumstances, without making it a documentary. And sleep...sleep is the number one step to success. If you're tired, how can you lead us?”

Miller grinned wryly. “I don't suppose we're bringing the coffeemaker to Northrend...”

Cyndine shook her head, and smirked in response. "If we are, you're carrying it." She motioned to herself and her equipment, which included the golden-red sword, large anti-armour rifle, long-gun rifle revolver, and bow. "As you can see, I'm equipped for war." Pausing for a moment, realizing the apparent lunacy of the sheer amount of equipment she was carrying, smiled slightly. "...The few thousand gold to enchant these to make them as light as fabric was worth every penny, I should add."

Sargent Miller seemingly slipped her focus on her documents. Cyndine thought for a moment. “I wonder if we could enchant the coffeemaker to make it light enough to be portable?” She smirked slightly, and shook her head at the thought.

In her traditionally blunt manner, Sargent Miller knew the answer to that; “I don't think the commander would be willing to part with it.” She squinted once more at the map before rolling it up and closing her journal. "You're right, I should sleep."

With a smile, Cyndine nodded. "Good. Rest easy...there is much to focus on tomorrow."

“Indeed,” Miller replied sleepily.

Turning to fully face Sargent Miller, Cyndine gave a semi-professional, relaxed salute. "Shorel'aran, Sargent Miller."

In response Sargent Miller saluted back “Rest well, Officer Windsong.”