The Wandering Path: Twisting Shadows

Vord decided to wait until nightfall to start out. He had checked his gear again, wrote his notes, and waited some more. As the Grin started to retire, Vord remained awake. When all but the guards were asleep, he went to gather his gear again, making the final preparations. He looked at the kunai he had set to the side and stopped for a moment questioning his actions. After dismissing the thoughts with not even a second thought, he listened for the sound that told him it was time: rain. He had seen the clouds earlier in the day and his prediction held true. He wrote his note to Drak'nora, pausing briefly before exiting the room.

Lightning lit the camp before the thunderclap followed. The guards had been standing there all evening, and now it was raining when the end of their rotation was still hours off. One stretched, trying to keep loose and turned around to see a shadow a few yards away, but inside the camp. He nudged his friend. "Who do you think that is? He doesn't carry himself like a warrior...." The other guard thought for a moment before speaking. "A scout maybe? It looks like Vord." Another bolt of lightning lit the camp, and the guards saw Vord standing, his bow drawn with two arrows nocked, ready to fire. The thunder masked the noise, and the two guards dropped to the ground, arrows sticking out of their skulls.

Vord had been running for hours, stopping only briefly to catch his breath every half hour or so. He had reached the rendezvous point in the Barrens and was there for no more than five minutes before an undead mage stepped out. "After all this time we were wondering if you really were going to come." "If you want good information, it takes time." Vord replied, "It took time for them to trust me again after my 'return'." The mage smiled and began to make a portal. "You'll find that things have changed in your absence." The portal stabilized and they stepped through to a Scourge camp in Plaugewood. Vord looked up to the sky to see that Naxxramas had disappeared, just as the reports had stated. "Welcome back to the Scourge, Death Knight."

Morning came, and it was not long before a runner rushed into Yagyu's tent. The runner told of dead sentries, and Yagyu walked out to look for himself. A few Grin were gathered, and Cailos was kneeling by a body with an arrow in his hand. "It's got a mark of it Chief." he said, handing the arrow to Yagyu. Yagyu looked at the marking on the shaft, an eagle-like bird with arrows in it's talons. He had seen the mark before, and the marksman who carved them into all of his arrows. Yagyu looked to see a note nailed by a kunai to the totem by the entrance, and his blood ran cold. He plucked the note and read it.

"You were content to see things as they were, and now you pay the price. You never thought of this, for one to betray everything of this clan and now you reap what you have sown. I have been biding my time, watching, listening, waiting, and now with the Grin's secrets open to me, I have returned home. Things are never as they seem, and you have learned this at the price of your brothers blood."

Yagyu turned to see the Grin's eyes filled with rage and lust for the blood of the murderer. All but the eyes of one orc, as Drak'nora walked from the inn holding a letter.

Drak'nora looked at the Chief, stricken. "I feared this would happen, sir." She said, quietly. "He had been solitary, more than usual, and in my absence the pull of the Scourge has strengthened..." she trailed off, closing her eyes briefly.

Looking back at Yagyu, a new intensity in her eyes, Drak'nora said, "We all must go to Northrend. And soon."

Grimface, awoke and poked his head out the tent towards the commotion and heard Yagyu reading what was on the note. Now aware of the situation, Grim sprinted to the dead bodies and pulled the other arrow from the corpse. He had heard of the scourge imbuing their arrows with death magics but he had never seen one and wanted desperately to test it's effects on his old armor.

The return from the highlands was rather painful, having searched for a couple of weeks and found only an empty dilapidated camp where the orcs were rumored to be. He waited at the camp one day for Signe and Drak'nora to join him before breaking the news and leading them back to Stonard. Luckily, Minigrim enjoyed the trip, seeing as he got to explore the world in a way he never had when left with the guards. He was now running and managed to survive his first snake bite and, of course, killed the snake after it bit him.

Grim's temperament had been rather lax of late with the recent defeat at the hands of the Keepers of Stromguard and other alliance forces. He was bored and, quite frankly, was looking for something to peak his interest. The magics of the arrow could provide a good distraction and may even work his skills as a blacksmith.

Grimface walked to the forge area and pulled out his old Adamantite chest plate, plucked the gems out of it, and put it on a target dummy. He walked to his tent and grabbed Signe's Bow of the Pheonix and struggled to get himself in a proper position to shoot the arrow. "How the hell does she do this?" he grumbled to himself as he finally drew back and let loose the arrow knocking the armor off the dummy and onto the ground. The Arrow was broken halfway up the shaft, but Grimface was more curious about the reaction of the magics on the armor. As he watched over hours, the area around the arrow began to corrode and became as brittle as dead leaves.

"Interesting..." he said as he grabbed the armor by the neck hole and carried it to Yagyu. He announced himself and entered to show Yagyu what he had uncovered.

Bok'theg was just departing as Yagyu saw the familiar shape of Grimface walking towards his tent. The Warchief sighed heavily...it seemed he would never have time to finish his coordinations or planning for this battle. He simply had to put more responsibility on Shadiel's shoulders. The elf had been helpful so far and it was needed even more with the loss of Vord.

He stood up and walked out the tent to see what it was Grimface had for him.

"Hail Warcheif!", Grimface said, "I have made a troubling discovery. It seems the dark magics of the scourge are very corrosive to the armors we have been making with the ore we found in the Outlands. Adamantite looks to be less susceptible than Fel Iron based metals do, but if our armor deteriates over a few hours...we are as good as naked when the scourge attack the second time."

Yagyu nodded for Grimface to continue.

"Sir, I think a scout force of Blacksmiths, Leatherworkers, and Tailors should head for Northeren immediately to start crafting armor for the clan's move to fight the scourge." Grimface set the armor down for Yagyu's inspection patiently awaiting his response.

GLaDOS watched Grimface go into the tent and thought to eaves drop on there conversation. After hearing Grimfaces suggestion she spouted "I may know a tailor slash scribe that would do it for some gold." Her eyes dimmed as she realized she what she did she looked at the shadows in the tent waiting for there response.

Yagyu picked up the armor and examined the results of the corrosion. It was obvious that their current armor would not last long against the he was about to reply when GLaDOS spoke up.
The orc scowled at the robot and swing the armor down angrily at GLaDOS.

"I don' like spyin' on my conversation yew hunk o' junk!"

Quickly his anger subsided and he looked back at Grimface and nodded.

"Yer right Grimmy. Gud work. Give me names of who ya propose ta take with ya. We'll need some better metals ifn' we're gunna win these battles."

"My apology's, I was walking by and over heard." GLaDOS takes a step back, her eyes going back to there normal yellow turning away starting to go back to what she was doing.

A forsaken rogue sat in the shadows of a tree east of Plaguewood, periodically surveying the horizon. "He's late." the rogue muttered under his breath. He stood up and jumped slightly when a voice rang out. "No, we're right on time." Two skeletal warriors each with a large gauntlet rushed forward, a chain attached to both gauntlets, and looped the chain around the rogue, immobilizing him. He struggled briefly before feeling razor edged teeth in the chain cutting through his light armor and flesh. As the two warriors pulled tighter it cut deeper, and a necromancer stepped forward. "Tell us, who were you waiting for?" The rogue kept his mouth shut and the warriors pulled harder. "Tell us, and I will make sure it's quick. Who were you waiting for?" The rogue spat at the necromancers feet, "You'll get nothing from me scum. We tread the Path, and the false King will pay for his treachery to his kin and nature with his life. We hear all, see all and know all, and it is too late for you to save yourselves." The necromancer smiled and turned his back to the rogue and made a gesture with his hand. The two warriors yanked the chain with all their unholy strength, leaving the rogue in ribbons upon the ground.

Vord stole away from the camp, he had been kept too long by those sent to ensure his loyalty. He found Urja sitting outside the camp, and walked west to the location the informant was at. When they got there, all the found was the tattered armor, shredded and disembodied limbs, and many things he hadn't seen in all his time in Naxxramas. Urja swore in troll while Vord looked the carnage over. He found a bag among the remains and slipped into his pack and looked up to see Urja ready to slice open a mutated plague maggot. "Leave it be." Urja looked up with rage in his eyes. "We jus' gonna be lettin' dis maggot eat 'Im? He wos our-" "I'm well aware of who he was." Vord said, "He knew the risks as does everyone else. This way we don't have to dispose of the body, however disgusting the thought of it is." Urja dropped his gaze and sheathed his blade. "Wat now den?" "we hope he carried his message in a more tangible form and figure out how they knew he was here. I found a-" He turned to see a necromancer working his way towards the two, and Urja took cover in the shadows. As the necromancer approached he called out to Vord. "Sire, we've almost completed our deconstruction of camp. We're moving all greater personnel to the boats in preparation to sail to Northrend." Vord nodded, "Very good to hear, I will join you shortly, I have one last matter to attend to here."

The necromancer bowed and moved off, and Vord walked to the tree, reached into his bag and pulled out a small box. He quickly buried the box and hoped she would find it. Vord lost himself in thought, wondering if pairing her up with Dusteye had been a good idea.

A tauren sat among the plains of Mulgore, meditating and immersing himself in nature. The other druids had said he was eccentric, while others called him insane. But labels were lost on him and words had little meaning on their own. He opened his eyes to look for his pipe. He found the herb helped greatly in his meditation, and while searching for the herb, he found a letter sent to him by Vord some time ago. It foretold of a female orc who would likely be 'agitated' by orc standards when she came to him. The tauren smiled, looking forward to the meeting.

Londra sat by the warm fire. Watched the flames glow in orange and reds. "Lon?" Lon turned her attention to the voice that called her name. Signe stood there with a smile. "Signe, sit please." Signe took a seat besides her friend. Lon looked at the fire once more, then focused back to Signe. "How have you been? I haven't spoken to you much since your return." "I'm good. Sadly they left before I was able to get there. We'll find them again." Londra just nodded at her.

"Hey Lon . . . " Signe's voice trailed off. "Something wrong Signe?" Signe took a quick look around, and leaned in a little closer to Lon. "It's about Vord." Lon's eyes saddened a little as a cold chill ran through her body, "I've heard." "I am worried.... worried about Drak'nora. She's keeping to herself about this. I can't tell if she's ok or not. She's been... different, since we returned." Londra could see the look of worry in Signe's eyes. "Could you," Signe's voice trailed off. "Could I what?" Signe took in a deep breath, "You have been through so much . . . I don't want to think of what could happen, but . . . I've got to ask." Londra tensed up a bit.

Londra sighed, "Sig . . . " "I know I shouldn't ask. I care too much about you to let anything bad happen. Just as I think of you as family, so is Drak. I need to know that she'll be ok. I need to know that she'll be safe. I know that you can do this." Being so close to the fire, Londra felt so cold. She picked up a stick and tossed it into the fire, "I can't control it, you know that. Once it takes over, it can consume me. I vowed to never go back to that place. With Vord..." Lon's words trailed off as the silence set in. Signe raised her hand and placed it on Lon's shoulder. "I would never ask, and you know that. You are much stronger now than you were before. You can handle it, should it come. I know you can. I need you to do this... please Londra?"

Londra turned away so that Signe couldn't see the fear in her eyes. "I... I'll do it. Tell Drak to talk to me." A sigh of relief escaped Signe's mouth as she reached over to hug her friend. "Thank you Lon... Thank you." Londra closed her eyes and could see the darkness. She opened them and focused back on the fire. "Geez Sig, let's not crush me to death with those arms!" Sig pulled back and they looked at each other and laughed. Signe smirked at her and mumbled under her breath, "Weakling." Lon smiled at her, but her heart was beginning to feel the pain. "I need to get some rest, and gather some things. Tell Drak'nora to speak with me as soon as possible. We have much to discuss." Londra nodded her head, and made her way to her room.

Signe sat there by the fire for a moment before getting up. "I did the right thing. I know I did. Londra can handle it... I hope." The look of worry returned to her eyes. "Now to find Drak."

Grimface saluted Yagyu and headed to the Inn to try to assemble his team. He knew he would need at lest one leatherworker, tailor, and jewelcrafter to cover all the bases of gear the Grin would need in Northerend. He sat down at a table in the corner to see who was here and would survive Northerend. Londra was in the inn talking with Drak'nora and Signe about something he didn't want to get involved in, but it did fill two spots in his team.

"Now i just need a tailor" he though to himself as he looked around the room. He saw many people stitching up their robes but he knew no tailors. Maybe he should grab a grot and beat the information out of them? No, that would take too much time and he was in a rush to get backed and going. Maybe if he asked Londra it would be easier but that would mean disrupting his sister's and wife's conversation with the priest. He thought to himself about how much he wanted to live to lead this expedition, then decided to risk it.

"Londra!" he bellowed from across the room, "Do you know of any good tailors?"

All three of the ladies turned and glared at Grimface for a second before Londra said "I know lots of them! Shadiel, Jonn, Rue, and Herra are a few...go bother them will you!" The ladies turned right back to each other and continued with their conversation.

Grimface now had a good list to start with, but he needed to get the word out to those who would accompany him. He quickly scribbled down the names of those he wished to accompany him: Signe, Londra, and Jonn. He stood up, grabed the parchment, and walked to Yagyu's tent to leave it for him to review later. He pinned the parchment to the flap and headed towards his anvil.

He grabbed his trusty worn blacksmith hammer and his rusty pick. Neither of his tools were in particularrly good shape and he did need new ones. These tools had lasted him for a good number of years now and he wasnt sure if they would work n the ores in Northerend. He would have to find out when he gets to an ore vein. He packed his tools, a few extra gems he had around, and loaded them onto his Kodo, which was grazing just outside of camp. They would need to leave shortly and he hoped that everyone would be willing and ready to go by the next morning.

Things were bad for the Grin; they had won a decisive victory over the Alliance only to have one of their own defeat them by killing two guards and leaving to serve a Lich.
In a time when they should be celebrating, most of the Grin were in either morning or planning to hunt and kill one of their own. Times were bad.
Awanu helped bury the bodies of the fallen guards; they had been good men who had the bad luck to draw guard duty that night. Awanu himself had been in the same place just the night before.

Awanu was sitting next to the fire; he had his pipe out smoking the last of the felweed and bloodthistle mixture. He watched as Shadiel walked into the war tent to talk with Yagyu and Cailos. He saw Paestyl and Blackhalka carrying Vulcean back to his hole. Awanu was not sure if Vulcean was drunk or if he had tried fighting Crunk again.

Awanu had his gear packed and ready in his room. He had told Vulos that the Northrend would be a great test for them and their quest to become Holy Striders. However, Awanu had other reasons for going to the land on top of the world. He knew that the powers of the Earth Mother to be great there, and this would increase his power as a Druid. He knew the Grin would need all the help they could get once they hit the Northrend. He also knew that the best friend he ever had, had left to go North, and Awanu wanted to track him down, and then kill him.

Awanu walked into the Inn and sat down at a table in the far corner. He saw Londra talking to Drak'nora and Signe.
Vulos was drunk at the bar changing in and out of tree form, and smacking a grot with his limbs and laughing hysterically. Awanu hoped he passed out in Tauren form, carrying a tree was not easy.
Grimface had just interrupted the talk between Londra, Drak’nora and Signe; Awanu sank a little deeper in his sit in case the three decided to attack Grim who was sitting between Awanu and the three women.

They were leaving in the morning for the north; Awanu was not sure which of the officers he was to follow, most likely Cailos, but who knew. He hoped it was not Londra, she seemed to like steak and there was no way to be sure that steak would be plentiful in the north, why take the chance. Either way he would do what was asked of him. And he hoped he would get the chance to meet up with his old friend Muglaw.

Drak'nora packed a small bag, readying for her trip to Mulgore. She pulled out the note that Vord had left for her a few days before.

"My love,

I cannot tell you why I have done this, but know that I carry you with me as I do. I have seen too many of my comrades fall, and I cannot stand by knowing there is something I can do. You many not understand now, but in time, you will.

Seek out Dusteye in Mulgore.

Hoping to see you again,

Vord"

Sighing, she folded the letter once more, and placed it in her pack. A quiet knock came from the door. Drak opened it to see Signe. "Sister, I have charged Londra with looking out for you. I know you hope on finding Vord." "I will find him, Signe." Drak responded. "He has a reason, I just do not know what it is. I thought I was enough, that the pull of the Scourge was gone. I was wrong, but I know he does not do this without purpose." Drak looked down at the blade that was her wedding gift from her lifemate. "It will not be easy. It will take the whole Grin, and more. There is something in Northrend that threatens us all." She placed the blade in her bag. "I am going to Mulgore. Vord said to find someone called Dusteye. I hope he can help." Signe eyed her sister, knowing there was nothing she could do to stop her. "Go find Londra. She will help you. Do not go alone." Drak'nora nodded. She picked up her bag, gave Signe a quick hug, and left to find Londra.

It had been a few days after his arrival in Northrend that Vord was "free" to patrol the lands on his own. After a brief stop at Acherus to replace his old armor and worn and broken swords, the smiths marveled at the additions to his helm. They soon sought to further the augmentation and Vord still laughed at the thought of Yagyu learning that he had helped the enemy. He was then quickly dispatched to Northrend to resume his post in Naxxramas, with Urja stowing away on board his ship.

While many of the Death Knights under the Lich King's command defected to the side of the living, there were those that remained, and they still had those who did not want to be on what they considered the loosing side. Instructor Razuvious had many new trainees that had made it through the basic slaughter trials and were real hopefuls to be actual Knights. Vord walked the halls of Naxxramas, weighing his new axe critically. He had preferred the flexibility that his twin blades had offered him, but now that his role had shifted to heavy combat, so too must his tactics. Razuvious had sent for him, but the runner had not told him why, so he readied for the worst.

"Ah, greetings Knight. It's good to see you found your way back to your post. Was your trip productive?" Vord kneeled down in respect to his C.O. "It was Sir, the new Chieftain confided in me not just information of troop movements of the Dread Horde, but Thrall's Horde and Alliance forces. He also taught me basics of each factions tactics, which I expanded on. Unfortunately I could not find anything of true value on the officers." "I see," replied Razuvious, "Then your self appointed task was a failure, and you know what becomes of those who fail, let alone traitors." Vord looked up, with a surprisingly cold look in his eye. "I might not have found much personal information to bait and eliminate the officer corp as intended, but I found something much, much more valuable: the existence of the cure to the Plague of Undeath."

Razuvious looked down at the Knight before him incredulously. "WHAT? How is this possible?" Razuvious looked around quickly, checking to make sure no one was in earshot before lowering his voice. "We have been questioning your loyalty to us for some time now, but if this is true, and you can destroy all evidence and knowledge of it's existence, then your loyalty will no longer be in question, and you will assume your rightful mantle as a captain among our Brothers and Sister in our order. Rise Vord, go south to to The Grin's encampment and destroy that knowledge, and kill any that stands in your way. This is the will of the Lich King, see it done."

A shadow crept into the room where an orc was packing some gear. The orc stopped for a moment to listen, then carried on after dismissing it. The shadow crept closer, drawing an assassination blade, one that doubled for use in a sword fight. The figure swung the blade to behead the orc, but was stopped a few inches short by a tanto. "You're getting sloppy Elyndis"

The former High Elf now Dark Ranger pulled her hood down and lowered her blade. "How did you know it was me?" "Because your blade still has that scratch on it." Vord said over his shoulder. He sheathed his tanto and dwelled on it for a moment before returning it to his belt. Elyndis sheathed her blade and walked up behind him, stretched her arms over his chest in an what would have been an awkward hug. "But there's so much more you could get to know about me..." she whispered in his ear. Vord shrugged her off and continued. "Razuvious tell you why you're being sent out?" Elyndis sighed at the rejection, "Somewhat, he told me I'm to head out to investigate the Forsaken apothecaries and their works, but he didn't give me a reason. I'm not sure why he's so set on finding out what the ingredients of their so-called Blight is, but he's dead set on it."

Vord turned, eyes fixed in the same steely cold he always used when conveying a message. "Because if we do, it's the end of the war. They'll have no legs to stand on and they'll have to fight a conventional war, something we excel at. We'll be able to secure Northrend easily , and then move onto other targets." She nodded, "It would be nice to be somewhere that wasn't freezing all the time, but such is life." Vord laughed at her thought.

It had been a short trip, considering he had gone from the crown of the world to it's bowels. He sat on his horse trying to figure out the best way to infiltrate Stonard, where most of the Grin were still waiting to be deployed. He finally resigned to the thought that any attempt of stealth would fail due to his limitations, and a more direct approach would work better. He rode in, much to the surprise of the guards, and tied his horse to a post before walking in the inn and sitting at the bar. Only a handful noticed right away that he had walked in, as a fight had broken out about the acceptance of Death Knights into the clan. Vord grabbed his drink and called out, "Nice to see not much has changed." Most of the assemply turned and looked, one of them being Yagyu who, after standing dumbstruck at Vord's audacity, shouted a command. "IT'S VORD, GET HIM! I WANT HIM ALIVE!"

Vord reached into his bag for a smoke bomb and laid down a heavy smoke screen and vaulted out the door. Crunck, Demonstrike and Shadiel rushed outside to fight, with Crunck charging first, brandishing his mace. Vord sidestepped him, throwing him as he went by, and narrowly brought up his anti-magic shell to block a fireball sent by Shadiel. Yagyu walked outside and stood next to Demonstrike. "Hold, I want Demonstrike to handle this. This is your chance at redemption, take him alive and in a state fit for questioning." Demonstrike nodded and stepped up to engage Vord, who watched the tauren carefully. "You must stop this brother, throw off the chains Arthas has put on you." Vord reached up and pulled his axe off his back, "You know nothing, so do not speak to me as though you do." Demonstrike sighed, readying his runesword. "Only pain will come of this, break your bonds with Arthas and choose redemption, for your own sake." "Enough talk, let our blades decide who is right." Demonstrike pulled Vord in with Death Grip and the fight began. The two fought evenly matched, each dodging, blocking and parrying many blows. The fight lasted for a few minutes before Drak'nora walked out and, seeing Vord, called his name. Vord looked up and paused for too long, and Demonstrike swung a heavy right hook to the side of Vord's head, knocking him out.

Vord came to the next day. He looked around and found himself in a makeshift prison in a corner of the inn, his hands and legs shackled and held him in place with a pin in the floor. He turned to see the guards, who looked at him with obvious contempt and loathing. "Go inform Warchief Yagyu that the prisoner has come to." 'So I don't have a name now huh?' he thought, 'About what I expected.' It wasn't long before Yagyu, Shadiel, Cailos and Oroki walked up with GLaDOS ready to record the interrogation.

It was nightfall again. The interrogation had gone on for hours, with Yagyu asking the same question: why? Of course he couldn't give him the answer, since he kept asking himself the same thing. And he would always think of the same answer that he had concluded all those weeks ago when the plan had started. He had come this far, and there was no going back now. not until his task was finished. As Vord lay there, he tried to put the thoughts out of his mind and reviewed the day. Almost everyone he knew had stopped to look at him, curse him, and some spat on him. 'Fools.' he thought, They know nothing. But it wasn't those who had come to see him, it was the one who hadn't. He had not seen Drak'nora since his fight with Demonstrike, and it brought a tight knot to his gut. He heard the door to his cell open, and someone walk the short distance to where he lay. He heard the person sheath a blade, and whisper. "What has become of you?" He knew exactly who it was and his worst fear since his capture came true. "Drak..."

The next day, Vord sat up against the wall of his cell, the door still open from where Yagyu had just walked out from an interrogation session. While he had tried to keep his voice in a neutral tone, his face betrayed him. He had a look that Vord had never seen before, one of guilt, anger and pain from betrayal. He didn't dwell on it long, since he hadn't gotten much sleep after Drak had come looking for answers. He was just dozing off when a voice awoke him. "Why have they done this to you? Here, let me get you out of those." Vord tried to hide his utter surprise as he watched Sharda rush forward with a set of keys, only to be stopped by Drak'nora, with Demonstrike walking out from behind the corner. "I don't think that's a good idea." Drak said to Sharda, who looked between Drak, Demon and Vord. "But why? What has he done to deserve this?" As Vord looked at Demonstrike, an idea formed. 'Yes, that might work...' Vord spoke up, "Yes, what have I done to deserve this? Well, 'Demonstrike'?" The tauren just stared at him, his expression hard to read. "He is not himself, he cannot be trusted. But there is something I've wanted to ask, why did you return here?"

Vord grinned, "I suppose there's not much you can do to stop what's in motion now, so I'll oblige. I was sent to destroy research that was found some time ago, research on a cure for the Plague of Undeath." The three sat there looking at Vord, Demonstrike in shock. "I was sent to find this research and destroy it, while another was sent to find the recipe for the Forsaken Blight. With this achieved, nothing would stand in the way of the Lich King." Sharda shrank away from Vord, while Drak gave him a look of contempt. "I don't know who you are anymore." As she stood up to walk away, he called after her, "Did you meet with Dusteye?" She turned to look at him again, "Yes, I did. He wasn't clear on anything and gave me no answers." Vord laughed, thinking back on his own experience "Yeah, that sounds about like Dusteye." He motioned her towards him as best he could and whispered in her ear. They locked eyes and he hoped she would understand. As she stood back up, Demonstrike placed a hand on her shoulder. "With this knowledge, it might be better to kill him. If he completes his task, all hope could be lost." "Yes, that's true, but what would your brother or Yagyu think of you killing me?" said Vord, "I doubt they would be happy, since they want me alive."

"My brother would know it had to be done." Demonstrike replied in a dark tone, "You're too dangerous to let live." "Then strike me down, right here." Vord continued, "Why not end it here, secure your 'redemption' by saving the clan." "Because I will consult my brother first. He guided me back here, and I have faith in him." Demonstrike turned to walk off, but he still needed a few more good pushes. "You know, I think I'll stop by Revantusk on the way back. Take the whole village apart, hut by hut, troll by troll." Demonstrike stopped in his tracks, mane bristling. "Then you obviously don't know the trolls who live there, they aren't novice warriors." "Oh, I know them." Vord replied, "I used to live in the Hinterlands. I watched them hunt and fight a lot, and the present no challenge to me." Demonstrike turned to face Vord, eyes burning. "My brother and his new fiancé are there as well, my brother will fight to the death if you threaten her with death." Vord knew he was close, he could sense it. "I won't kill them, oh no." Vord replied, voice sinisterly cold. "No, I will take them alive to Northrend, and there they will be fed to the ghouls, live. Whatever's left will be risen in service, so you'll still be able to visit them, although they might not be as talkative." Demonstrike roared in anger and took his runeblade off his back. "ENOUGH! I WILL END THIS MADNESS HERE!" as he brought his blade down, Vord held his chain up to block, the blow shattering the chains and shackles. Demonstrike looked at Vord's triumphant face as he cursed what he'd done.

Vord quickly tackled Demonstrike and dealt a swift blow to the back of his head, rendering him unconscious, and ran off to the barracks. He quickly found his armor, and saw where Sharkfyn was quartered. He knew that she had been on the assignment so he looked quickly and found the book that contained the theories of the cure, along with more resent research that helped to further it. Vord smiled and stowed it quickly in his bag and ran out. Later, somewhere in the swamp, Vord sat on his horse Soren and waited for Urja. The troll was good at his work, and Vord need to make sure the book wouldn't be found. Urja appeared beside Vord, "Joo be havin da book?" Vord handed Urja a package wrapped in a heavy cloth, and Urja nodded, fading into the shadows. 'It's the begining of the end, now I just have to survive.' he thought.

Drak'nora, Londra and Cailos had been riding from Ratchet to Mulgore for a few hours and stopped to take a break and water their mounts. Drak had taken Signe's advice and brought Londra with her, who in turn brought Cailos as well. As Drak watched them, both had seemed a little uneasy since the start, but she hadn't bothered to ask. She had plenty of things on her own mind. As she sat watching her worg drinking, she thought back to what he had told her in Stonard. "Find Dusteye again, tell him you seek to walk the Path." She had heard it repeated in her mind countless times, trying to understand what he could possibly have meant. It was clear that he had been lost to the Lich King again, but it was the look in his eye...there was more to what was being said there. She had told him that Dusteye had been no help the last time she had gone to see him, and he laughed at it. Not the derisive tone he had used with many of the others who had tried to speak with him, but true, genuine laughter. She lost track of time as she kept thinking about the puzzle until Londra came over and tapped her on the shoulder. "We're ready to get moving again, and we don't want to wait any longer or we'll lose another day." Drak stood up and smiled as best she could, "No, we don't. Let's get moving." As she mounted up again, she thought back to her first meeting with the druid and mumbled darkly. "Dusteye, you'd better have answers this time, damn good ones too."

Drak'nora had been wandering the plains of Mulgore on her own for most of the day and was getting irritated. "Where the hell is this druid?" she asked aloud. "Maybe you should instead ask yourself, where are you?" Drak'nora turned to see a tauren dressed in druid garb, most likely in his mid to late twenties holding a pipe that still smoldered and was giving off a foul odor. She called back to the druid while trying to ignore the smell wafting from his pipe. "Druid, do you know where I can find a tauren by the name of Dusteye?" "Dusteye? hmmm, yes, I know of him. He lives in a cave not far from here. I'll take you there." Drak'nora hopped off her mount and followed on foot, leading her worg behind her. Although he didn't look it, the druid moved fast and reached the cave before Drak and called back to her. "Come on, he doesn't bite. Well, unless he's had a strange tea again, or tried to wait a whole month for a new moon without sleep. But he hasn't done anything like that in a while, so you might want to keep your guard up." The druid walked in while Drak was still tying her worg up, and walked in the cave cautiously, but saw only the same druid sitting there, meditating. "I don't understand, I thought you were taking me to see Dusteye." The druid didn't open his eyes to speak. "What is it to understand? To understand brings knowledge, and they say knowledge brings power, which breeds greed and arrogance, the qualities of a fool. So to understand is a fools errand?" Drak watched the druid for a moment at a loss of words before starting again. "You told me Dusteye would be in this cave, so where is he?" again, the druid kept his eyes closed. "Dusteye wanders the plains." Drak's eyes sharpened, "Then you were lying to me?" "No, I have told you no lies." he replied. "Then he's in this cave." "No, he wanders the plains." "Then how could you not be lying to me if he's not here?" "Because you imply that I lie to you now when I do not. Dusteye wanders the plains now, and when you called to me I told you where he was. Would you like some tea?" Drak'nora snarled in irritation. "Then take me to where he is now." "Dusteye can only be found by those who already know where he is, but since most thing he is insane, he seldom speaks with many people for them to know where he is for them to speak with." the druid replied, "Only someone who's speaking with Dusteye knows where he is, since they already know where he is for them to find him to speak with him. But luckily I speak with Dusteye quite a lot, and so I know where he is a lot." "Do you know where he is now?" she asked, eager to get away from the druid. "Of course, he's wandering the plains. Weren't you listening?" "Then you if you know where he is then you can take me to him." The druid gave her an exasperated sigh "Of course I can't because I'm not talking to him. How could I be speaking with you in this cave and be speaking with him down in the plains at the same time? You don't make much sense, are you sure you feel well? You should have some tea to clear your mind some."

Drak'nora stood watching the tauren drinking his tea in utter awe. 'He's out of his mind...' she thought, 'Completely insane.' She heard the tauren mutter something "She's hopeless..." Her agitation had reached a boiling point. "What was that?" she asked, reaching for a knife. "Oh nothing," he replied, "I was just speaking to Dusteye." Her grip loosened as she thought. "If you're speaking with him, then he's here, which means you can show me where he is, but since we're the only two here, you have to be Dusteye." The tauren finally opened his eyes and gave her a quick smile. "You seem to have figured that out faster than the others, so now that you've found me, what question do you have for me?" Drak'nora sighed a breath of relief, progress. "I was sent by an orc named Vord to find you, he said you would have answers." "I see, then what is the question?" "What do you have to do with Vord? Why did he leave us? What does all this mean?" Dusteye gave her a confused look, "What questions are those? You know not many people speak with me to know where I am to speak with, and since orcs tend to do less talking than fighting, he would not have spoken with me to find me so that I could speak with him. If I have not spoken with him, I know not of what his intentions are, but I believe I can answer your last question. I believe this means you have the wrong Dusteye and that you want the Dusteye that wanders the plains. I'm the Dusteye that dwells in the cave, so I'm sorry for the mistaken identity." If she had not spent the time with her brother in the wilds before this trek, she might well have lacked the patience to not strike him down there. She watched him finish his tea at a loss for words, then simply walked out, hopped up on her mount, and resigned hope.

Demonstrike sat in his quarters, his head still feeling the dull, ache, of his concussion. Before he became a death knight, he had been very calm and relaxed. He was never so rash and hardly ever lost his temper. Vord had exploited this new quick temper and had goaded Demonstrike into a fight.

"Dammit!" He slammed his fists down on the arms of the chair he was sitting in, breaking them off.

"Tough night, son?"

Demonstrike jumped a bit at the voice of his father. There, Saltrock stood in his doorway with his arms folded, and a worried expression on his face. The old tauren continued. "Don't feel too bad. You still have a long way to go before you master your new skills and mindset." He walked over, sat on Demon's bed, and mused "It wasn't too long ago that I was saying that same thing to you about your shaman abilities. You proved me wrong, though. You were closer then I thought."

"I played right into his hands. I should have been able to see it!" Demonstrike lamented.

"He got, ya, son. You can sit here and stew about it...or you can get up and do something about it." Salt rose and pulled a pouch from his sack. "I came here to check up on you...and to give you a little gift. It comes from the Warlock, Kirtan. He pulled this out of your former prison...thought it would do you some good."

Demonstrike reached into the pouch and drew out a vial of green liquid, and large, heavy, ring.

"Drink the potion, son." Salt encouraged.

"Demonstrike did as he was told. He quaffed the bitter elixer in a single gulp. Within moments he felt his mind clear and his anger subside. He suddenly remembered things long forgotten...and smiled broadly. He looked up at his father "What has this done?"

Salt smiled back "It's released you from the final bonds that kept you tehered to the Lich King. It won't turn you back into your former self...but you should feel a lot more like the old Demonaro."

"And this ring?" Demonstrike asked

"Salt's smile turned cocky "It was Danomolis's family ring. A reminder that you control your fate...not anyone else."

Demonstrike placed the ring on his right hand with pride.

"Now, son, are you going to let that bastard, Vord, get away with whatever it is he's planning?"

Demonstrike rose, grabbed his sword, looked defiantly up at his father, and said solemnly "No."

Drak'nora paced the tiny inn at the small Forsaken encampment in the Howling Fjord. She hadn't heard anything about Vord for a week, and was trying to piece together what she had learned. Signe's mother, Zarrah, had recently found her daughter and the Grin, and gave some insight to the Death Knight situation. Drak wanted to believe that Vord's actions were a ruse, and not his real intent. She struggled with the knowledge that he killed guards, betrayed the Chief, and, mostly, that he left her for the Scourge. His laughter kept echoing in her mind. It was real amusement, not evil. The way he looked at her, too... it was not the cold mindlessness that Zarrah had described of the Death Knights still under the Lich's control.

Drak thought about what the older orc had said. "Those under the control of the King do not think for themselves. All of their actions are dictated by him and his most trusted (I use that word loosely, Drak'nora) advisors. Any free will once had is locked away, over shadowed by the power and corruption of the King. Those of us who have managed to break free have done so with a great struggle, and at great cost. We are not to be pitied, nor are we to be revered. Our actions while under the power of the Scourge were not our own. I cannot speak for others, but I carry the burden of my horrors with me."

Drak'nora stopped pacing and thought hard. "Maybe Vord is one of the Knights of the Ebon Blade now, but can't show that he is. Maybe he has another purpose. I can't believe he'd want to destroy the cure for the Scourge! I will find out. I have to. There is much more at stake now."

Dusteye watched Drak'nora pace through his left eye, as his right eye was still swollen from where she had hit him a few days ago. She had not been in any mood for his games when she had visited the second time and only after she had hit him several times and was pulled back by Cailos, did she mention what Vord had told her. "Vord must've had one hell of a time with you." He said quietly. Drak's ears twitched and so did her right hand. "What was that druid?" Dusteye shrank a little from her, "I said nothing. When do you wish to start your search for Vord?" Drak'nora turned to look at Dusteye and a mote of satisfaction welled up from seeing his injuries. "I have gathered most of the supplies we need, but word still needs to be sent to the Warchief." "And then we move?" Drak nodded. "And kill any who stand in my way."

Vord knelt by yet another corpse, examining it. Urja stood near, looking at the corpse nervously. "Et not be her, is it mon?" Vord shook his head, "No, it's not her." Vord took out a piece of parchment and scratched a name off the list. He was so far along now that very few names remained. He sighed and stood up. "There's no way this corpse is going to rise again, but just to be sure..." He took a torch out of his bag and burned the remains. Time after time he had done this, and he was getting tired of the smell. Urja breathed a sigh of relief. "We best be on our way mon, dis smoke be givin away our position." Vord looked at the burning husk one last time. "Yeah, let's get going."

Vord was in his quarters again, waiting to be summoned to a chamber where he would be relinked with the Lich King. His mind was racing, thinking about everything he had done and what this would mean. He heard a rustle behind him and turned to see Urja, his face grave. "She be here mon." Vord looked at him questioningly, "How do you know that, we haven't-" "Ah have mon. Ah been to the other necropli, and she not be dere." Vord shook his head at the troll, "That doesn't mean she's here. She could be somewhere else in Northrend." Urja shook his head. "Ah gottah know, an' joo promised. But if joo gottah go den Ah'll be going bah mahself." Urja started towards the door and Vord stopped him. "Stick to the shadows, I'm going too."

Vord checked his list over mentally again. So many of them were on it, so many that were missing. As they walked the corridor, Vord knew what it meant to be a prisoner here. He stopped mid step, memories flashed before him of the ones who were kept here along with him, those that hadn't made it out. He heard voices echoing in his mind, screams from the damned who haunted his dreams returned in the waking moment. In the past, in the rare moments this had happened, he had always had a clan mate, a friend, a loved one. His thoughts turned to her, as they had since he had left. He'd ask himself why he'd left so many times a day that the answer didn't come in the form of words, but images, sounds and smells. The clicking sounds of boots on the stone floor brought Vord to his senses, and he flinched slightly as arms slipped over his shoulders. "Wandering around on your own? You look a little lonely, maybe I can help with that..." Elyndis whispered in his ear. Vord shuddered on the inside and thought quickly how to get out. He felt her turning him around and getting closer, yet in his mind he knew there was nothing he could do if he ever wanted to see Drak'nora again. Heavy hoof falls answered Vord's prayers as the hulk of a tauren Targan rounded the corner and stopped at the sight of the two standing there, interrupting Elyndis as they stood looking at the tauren. Targan often acted as an enforcer who didn't mind resorting to violence to keep knights in line. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but you know we're not to become...close to fellow knights. This isn't the first time you've been warned Elyndis." The elf glared at Targan but he shrugged it off. "Leave the orc be or I will have to tell Razuvious." Elyndis sighed angrily and pulled herself off of Vord. "Come, we need to talk about this problem of yours." Targan rumbled. Vord wondered if she would resort to killing Targan so she could resume her pursuit, but he hoped to be gone by her return. As the end of her cape disappeared around the corner, and Targan followed her, Vord breathed a sigh of relief. Urja stepped out and put his hand on Vords shoulder and shook his head. "Ah don wan ta tink about what joo was gonna tell joo wife if she had her way." Vord's reply came weaker than he imagined it would be. "My epitaph."

The two continued walking down the corridor to where the warden of the prison and where the records of the prisoners were kept. Urja was noticeably more jumpy now, drawing his dagger each time a rat or other vermin made a noise. As Vord walked into the room where the warden was stationed, and called to him. The warden stood up and after asking what Vord was doing here, fell to the floor after his head was severed by Urja. Vord quickly walked to the bookshelves where the records were kept and started looking. "Dere be so many of dem..." Urja said, looking at all the volumes of cataloged prisoner information. As Vord scanned the books, he found many of the names on his list, and crossed off all but three, Rami and her two guards. He scanned farther, and finally he found it. They had made a portrait of Rami and marked her for interrogation and information gathering, he read farther and saw that her escorts had been executed for crimes against the Lich King. A cell number was along with her picture and a date marked that she had been captive for near two years. Vord swallowed hard to try and clear the lump in his throat. 'Two years in this hell...' He thought. Vord left the room after Urja hid the body of the warden, and made their way to the block where Rami was being kept. Vord kept revisiting Rami's page in the book, and he kept wondering of what the meaning of the name of her block meant. Her block was labeled 'Broken' and he knew it did not bode well from looking at the coffin sized cells. They arrived at the cell that was marked as Rami's, and Vord looked through the slit in the door to make sure. "Did joo find her?" Urja said, shifting from foot to foot in anticipation, "Is Rami in dere? Is she heah?" Vord nodded and pulled out a key he had gotten from the wardens office. Vord unlocked the door and stepped to he side as he opened it as Urja stepped up closer. Urja relaxed and dropped his dagger as Rami stepped out of her cell.

Urja rushed up and grabbed her and lowered her to her knees. Urja hugged her close as Rami's muscles relaxed completely and a sigh escaped her. "Ah missed joo so much." Urja whispered in her ear as tears formed in his eyes. Vord's voice caught Urja's attention, but there was a strange tone to it. "Urja..." Vord said again, his face sad. Urja looked at him, then back to Rami as he finally saw what Vord couldn't bring himself to say. Rami's skin had gone from blue to a sickly gray color in the two years in her cell, her eyes were sunken and gray, her hair had fallen out in clumps and her muscles were severely degraded. Vord saw before him the meaning of why this block was labeled broken, for she was a broken husk. Urja stared in disbelief at his wife, eyes tearing up again. "No. No, no babay no!" Vord stood there, staring at the nightmare that plagued him come real for another. He knew first hand what it meant to be a prisoner in Naxxramas, and what a toll it took. Urja rocked on his knees still hugging Rami to him. "I'm so sorry, Ah tried to find joo, Ah did! Please, Rami! Rami! Please..." Urja shook her slightly and she let out a soft moan. "RAMI! DAMNIT IT'S ME! IT'S URJA!" Vord stepped to Urja's side and he saw the pain in his eyes. Urja looked back at Vord and his voice turned even more desperate. "What do Ah do? Ah don't know what ta do, Ah don..." Vord said nothing, not knowing what to say, and put his hand on Urja's shoulder, and started off for the corner. A tear tracked down Urja's face as he looked at Rami. "Ah'm so sorry, Rami." Urja said as he reached down into his bag. Vord saw what he took out and knew what was to come, and knew he would do this same if it were him. Urja tightened his grip on the small hand cannon he had made weeks ago. He looked Rami in the eyes and wished she would return his gaze, but found only empty eyes staring back. "Ah love joo so much..." As Vord was walking back to the office, he heard the shot ring out, and muttered a prayer for Rami.

((I would like to apologize in advance for this massive post, so please bear with it as I'm probably not going to be able to finish it any other way before I leave tomorrow.))

It took Urja two minutes to join Vord again. Vord looked the troll over and saw that his eyes looked different, darker. Vord took his list out and looked it over. Rami had been the last one they found and he slowly crossed her name off. Urja watched him and Vord knew something inside him snapped. "Is dat all she was to joo, just annaduh name? Just annaduh tahget joo needed to find?" Vord showed no emotion, trying to maintain the facade he had developed over time. "She was a friend and a colleague, but I know that you-" "A COLLEAGUE?!?" Anything else that Vord said was drowned in the explosion that issued from Urja. "SHE WAS MY WIFE! SHE WAS MY REASON FOR FIGHTING AND ALL JOO CAN SAY IS SHE WAS A COLLEAGUE?!?" Vord stared at Urja, trying to gauge how much more he could take before reaching for a blade. "You know how it goes, emotions like this jeopardize the assignment, and people die. Look at where we are. We are in the bowels of the enemy stronghold and you're shouting our position to every guard that didn't hear your gunshot." Vord winced inwardly as he knew the last thing he needed to do was remind Urja of his deed. Urja dropped his gaze and spoke quietly, but the deadly seriousness weighed heavy on his words. "Joo might have a point, but know dis. When Ah find out who sent Rami out on dat assignment, dey gonna be tastin mah steel." Vord nodded and knew he would do the same if it were him. "We've finished our task, now it's time to get out of here, alive if we can. Stick to the shadows and if I'm stopped, get out and wait at the rendezvous point two days. If I'm not there, then find the others and give the report." Urja nodded without saying anything and stalked out the door. Vord watched him leave and wondered if he was stable or not. The last thing he needed was to be paired with a suicidal troll who had nothing to loose.

Targan had been lecturing Elyndis for several minutes now and she was getting bored. Not only had he nipped any chance of fun in the bud, but now he was ruining any chance she might have to cut Vord off before he got back to the more populated areas of Naxxramas. She put her hands on her hips as she listened to Targan rant about how running around with other servants of the Lich King was clouding the real issue at hand, and toyed with the idea of killing him so she could go back to hunting the orc. 'I'd have enough time to hide the body before I lost the trail...' she thought. The sound of a firearm discharging cut through the air and the ranger and knight looked down the hall. "Probably a torture master finishing a guest with a captured weapon." Targan said, answering Elyndis' question before she had the chance to ask. "I'm begining to grow weary of telling you this, ranger, so heed my warning. The next time you think to play your games with my brother knights, I will personally put you so far into a grave that there will be no coming back." Elyndis narrowed her eyes at the tauren and stared back. As Targan turned to leave, shouting cut the air again, and they both looked down the hall again. The shouting sounded like a troll, and no trolls were stationed here as either a knight or torturer. Elyndis stepped into the shadows and Targan joined her as footsteps were heard coming towards them. Vord came out of the hall and looked around quickly before heading towards the exit at a good clip. Elyndis waited until Vord had disappeared around the corner before heading to the office of the warden, Targan on her heels. Elyndis walked in and looked around and, seeing blood, walked over to a large cabinet used for filing. The body of the warden fell out as she opened the doors and she smiled at the corpse. "Looks like Vordie's been up to something, wouldn't you agree Targan? Too bad someone wasn't with him to stop such a heinous deed." Targan snorted. "Enough. Let us find the traitor and put an end to him." Targan hurried off and Elyndis stared at the corpse with glee. 'I LOVE it when they run, it makes it so much more fun when I catch them.' she thought as she stroked the whip at her belt lovingly. "Thank you." she said to the warden before racing after Targan. 'As long as I make it look like a fight, the torture masters won't know the difference.'

((She might be a pervert, but it's not THAT.))

Vord and Urja moved northeast quickly, trying to reach the relative safety of the mountains. He knew by now they had discovered the warden, and with Elyndis seeing him in the area around the time of the death, they'd know he was responsible. As the sun went down, Vord and Urja stopped and made a small camp, both not wanting to cross enemy territory at night. Vord cursed at how slow their progress was, he had left his flyer behind when he had left the Grin and they needed to be on foot to cover their tracks, so they were only halfway to the mountains. Vord sat staring at the fire, scratching Stripes behind the ear. As always, the tiger bounded up to him when Vord had called, and with his old friend at his side again, there was only one thing missing. He had no idea where Drak'nora was, but he knew the Grin had expanded farther into Northrend. Vord took out a piece of parchment and hoped she had found Dusteye, who would guide her to him. As he finished writing the note, he prayed Drak would get the note, and checked it over again. It told her where to meet him, and along with the note he wrote everything he wanted to say to her if they never met again. He sealed the two notes individually, marking one as "Open if I don't make it." He tied them to a strip of leather and bound it around Stripe's neck and looked the tiger in the eyes. "Find Drak, hurry." Vord watched Stripes race off into the darkness and Urja broke the silence. "Joo know she won't come." Vord said nothing and tended to the fire. "We gonna die out heah, well, maybe not me." Vord looked up at the troll and glared at him. "You got something to say troll? I can see it written all over your face." The shadows around Urja's eyes grew darker. "Joo know who sent Rami out, doncha?" Vord nodded but said nothing. It wasn't until the sound of Urja drawing his blade that Vord told him what he wanted to hear. "If you're looking for the one who sent Rami to her death, it was me. I heard that there was a new type of plant that was resistant to the effects of the corruption, and her skill with plants and communing with the elements are unmatched, so she was the natural choice." Urja snarled, "Dere were others, she didn't have to go." Vord sighed, his face grew sad. "I've lost so many, Urja. Rami wasn't the only one. When she didn't check in, I sent two teams to find her, then another after they went missing, and another. All of them are on this list. All of them are dead now, and I'll have to answer for it, when I meat their survivors and when I see them in the afterlife. The area was supposed to be secure, and there's only one explanation for bad intel." Urja spat the word as if it tasted bitter. "Spy." Vord nodded and stared into the fire. "We're down to ten members now, and I know Dusteye and Geitz are innocent, so we have six people to investigate." Urja thumbed the edge of his dagger as he watched Vord. "Ah still got a debt to settle wit joo. Joo gonna feel da pain Ah feel, but because joo be helpin me to find da one who sold her out, joo gonna die fastah." Vord watched the fire burn, not really listening to Urja. "Good to know."

Elyndis smiled at the snow. Vord might be good, but he was hurrying, and he was getting sloppy. "Do you have the trail?" Targan asked, annoyed they hadn't found him yet. "Yes, but it looks like there's another with him, though he's lightly armored by the looks of it." Targan snorted. "It doesn't matter how many travel with him, the traitor will still pay the price."

Vord sat bolt upright, looking into the darkness. Urja doused the fire with a few handfuls of snow while Vord listened for the sound again. The wind turned in their favor and he heard the crunching of snow under boots and the two started their run to the mountains. Since they didn't bother to conceal their tracks as they had already been compromised, they got to the mountains shortly after dawn. Vord looked at the entrance to the mountains, quickly planning on how to stall their pursuers. "Urja, take that path. We might be able to evade them long enough to make it to the secondary rendezvous point and loose them there." Urja nodded but didn't say anything as he headed off at a quick pace. Vord knew he'd have a better chance on his own, since Urja wasn't the one they were hunting. Vord looked down his path and adopted the aspect of the beast, and started running.

Targan's heavy breathing from their run was the only noise in the air as Elyndis inspected the tracks in front of her. One set of tracks were deeper than the other, though the heavier impressions looked like those of a more lightly armored target. Elyndis smiled, Targan wouldn't know the difference, and that would get her time alone with Vord. "Vord went that way, but there are other tracks in the snow. It looks like whoever was with him dropped some weight, but I can still track him." Targan nodded, "I will track Vord and put an end to him. Find his companion and capture him alive if you are able." Elyndis bowed to Targan, smiling as he walked down his path. "Of course my lord."

It had been two hours since Vord had set out on his own, and he had just stopped to catch his breath and string his bow. As he strung his bow, an arrow thudded into the ground by his foot. He looked at the black arrow and even before he heard the voice, he knew who was behind him. "You've put me through a good deal of trouble Vord, but now it's just the two of us." Vord tossed the arrow away and brought his bow around, but another arrow cut the string. "Oops, clumsy me." Elyndis walked up, taking her whip off of her belt. Vord tossed his bow to the side and drew his tanto on got into a fighting stance as he watched Elyndis swing her whip with a crack, then she started her attack. Without his bow, Vord didn't have an effective way to strike back without getting in range of her whip. As Vord tried to step out of range of her whip, he slipped on a patch of ice and Elyndis lashed out, snaring Vord's leg and pulling him in. He snarled as he tried to cut through the whip, but dropped the knife as she tugged hard, causing him to slam his head on the ground. She quickly jumped on him, stunned him with a left cross, then trapped his arm while she slipped the whip around his neck a tightened it, choking him. She leaned in uncomfortably close, watching his face contort and his pupils dilate. "That's it Vord, just relax and go under. I'll make sure Targan doesn't find us before you wake up...and then, well...you can guess..." He heard her laughing in his ear as a shadow covered them. He saw a blur of motion in the corner of his eye as he lost consciousness.

Drak'nora turned her wolf toward the mountains, as the directions given by the Forsaken in Venomblight had said. She shivered, pulling her cloak tighter around her. A little ways up the snowy hills, a scuffling noise caught her attention. "Probably just a bear." She thought. But something made her pause. "I'll go check it out," she murmured. She dismounted, and tied her wolf to a nearby tree. She quietly made her way over the snow, looking around the corner of a mountainside. She saw a prone orc, with a slim figure in black choking the orc. Drak'nora moved closer, her boot hitting something hard. She looked down, and gasped. It was Vord's tanto. A white-hot rage ran through her as she quickly contemplated her next move.

Unsheathing her sword and moving her shield around front, Drak'nora charged in at the figure in black, knocking her off of Vord onto the snowy ground. She slammed her shield hard again as the elf tried to recover her footing, bringing her sword around to slice at the whip. The blade easily cut through the leather of the whip, shortening it's length considerably. "You have interfered where you do not belong, orc." Elyndis snarled at Drak'nora. "Oh, I think I do." Drak'nora retorted, smashing her shield again, this time into Elyndis's face, a thrill racing through her as blood spurted from the elf's nose.

Vord, still gasping for breath, sat up to take in the scene before him. "Drak!" He rasped. Drak'nora heard her name, but did not acknowledge him. Elyndis' eyes gleamed. "So, this is your mate. How lucky for you. You can watch as she dies, before I finish what I started!" Drak brought the flat of her sword to Elyndis's cheek, leaving a bright red welt. "You, you bitch!" Elyndis spat. The elf reached down in a swift motion and brought out a dagger from her boot, swinging it upwards towards Drak's midsection. Drak dodged, but the knife sliced into her thigh. She felt the poison starting to work it's way through her blood. "I must move quickly." Drak thought as she regained her balance. Drak'nora brought her shield down one last time, stunning Elyndis, and knocking her out cold.

Panting heavily, Drak'nora reached into her pack for a small vial of antivenom. "That may not work, Drak." Vord said, coming to her side. "You must get back to the apothecaries at Venomblight." Drak finished the potion, and bandaged her leg. "What about you? Where are you going?" She asked, as she watched Vord tie up Elyndis. "I haven't seen you in months... I didn't know if you were even alive." The anger built in her again. "You speak to me like I had just seen you this morning! You send me on a chase with a crazy druid, and I get no answers. I just happen upon you, nearly being choked to death by that, that, sadist, and you speak to me quietly, like nothing has happened!" Drak'nora started limping off towards her wolf, stopping when Vord put a hand on her arm. "I need answers, Vord. The Grin needs answers."

Vord looked into Drak'nora's eyes and she stared back with a look Vord had troubling figuring out. Concern, anger, fear, and love all combined to make an intense stare which made him question everything he had done. He opened his mouth to speak and she stiffened, preparing to hear what his justification was. "First, we need to treat this wound...then I'll tell you everything." She sighed and pulled away slightly, but watched as he quickly rummaged through Elyndis' bags then came back with a vial. "This should be the antidote for the poison. They usually carry some on them should they ever need it." Vord pulled out some heavy bandages and she began to protest. "I've taken care of it Vord, now tell me why you left us." He gave her a blank stare and just as she asked "What?" he quickly rapped on the wound causing her to wheel back in pain. He cut the bandage off, administered the antidote, and almost finished re-wrapping the bandage before she recovered and hit him. Drak'nora finished tying the bandage as Vord wisely moved back a bit and looked at the welt on his arm she had given him. Drak'nora massaged her leg as she stood up and tried standing on her leg and winced again as pain shot up her leg. "Come on Drak, let me." Vord quickly picked her up and carried to a nearby cave that overlooked a drop off in a valley that lay in between two mountains. After anchoring Elyndis in a place where he could keep her alive as a prisoner and tying Drak'nora's worg to a tree, he started a fire and sat down next to Drak'nora and began telling her the story of the wandering path.

"...And after we found Rami, there was no reason to remain there, so we headed here and as you can see we were pursued." Drak'nora had sat in silence since he had started, only occasionally asking a question. "When I left, I couldn't risk telling anyone in case it reached Arthas' servants. They would have known something was wrong if Grinners were treating me differently than most traitors." Drak'nora sat silently, staring at the floor of the cave. "Drak, while I was gone, I was always thinking of you. I'm sorry I couldn't-" Drak'nora held her hand up to stop him. "When we gave each other our vows, we vowed to always be there for each other. When you left, without me..." Vord stared at the ground, not wanting to meet her eye. "Leaving without you was the hardest thing I've ever done. I knew that you'd insist on coming if you knew, and if you had come, and something happened to you..." his voice broke off as he swallowed hard, trying to finish. Drak'nora scooted next to him and looked him in the eyes. "I'm here now, and nothing will keep me from you." He held her close to him and whispered in her ear, "Hope guided me. It's what got me through the day and especially the night. The hope that after you were gone from my sight it would not be the last time that I would look upon you, to know that you were still mine, and that you still had a want for me." Drak'nora smiled, "Of course I still want you, I can't give in to an elf now, can I?"

Urja looked at the cave where Vord and Drak'nora had made camp. It had taken him the whole day and most of the night, but he had finally found them. Now it was just a matter of time for the clumsy tauren to follow the tracks he had made to this point. Most would consider this act a betrayal, but Urja was using the tauren for his own ends. Targan would dispense the justice Urja had promised Vord, he would make Vord feel the pain Urja felt.

It was a few hours after dawn that Vord heard it. The bellowing warcry was hard to miss, and Vord knew exactly who it was. Drak'nora gave him a confused look as he walked to the entrance, and she soon limped to his side. Targan stood with Elyndis along side him near the edge of the cliff. "Your time has come Vord, the Lich King has judged you a traitor, and I will carry out the sentence." Vord grabbed his axe off his back and looked at Drak'nora. "Go, I will rejoin you at Agmar's Hammer." Drak'nora shook her head, "No. I won't leave you when I've just gotten you back. Besides, I still need to repay that elf in kind for what she did to you." He glanced at her and saw she had the same determined as her brother when he made up his mind. He smiled and watched as Targan drew his blade and Elyndis moved off for her fight with Drak'nora. He closed the distance between him and Targan, and tried to devise a plan. Targan swung his blade overhead and Vord blocked with his axe. Targan pressed the attack, forcing Vord back with every swing. As Vord neared the edge of the cliff, he sidestepped Targan and swung his axe. Targan blocked the the blow and countered with a move that disarmed Vord and sent the axe flying into the valley. Vord jumped back and raised his fists, and Targan grinned and sheathed his blade. Vord looked at Drak'nora and saw her matching Elyndis' blade blow for blow. He smiled, admiring her skill, and made a mental note to not provoke her when she held a knife again. Targan again stepped forward and swung around with a right hook. Vord almost laughed aloud at how slow he moved, how easy it was to dodge. He moved back each time Targan threw a punch, dodging what he couldn't check. As Targan shifted to throw another punch, Vord saw his opening. With a flash of steel, his open palm sped towards Targan's exposed neck. Targan grabbed Vord's wrist as if he expected it and kicked Vord hard in the chest, sending Vord back five feet, and inspected the wristblade. "I see you obtained some of Fenris' toys, but they cannot maintain the illusion of true skill against an opponent like me." Targan tossed the blade away, the blade sinking into the cold ground. Vord gasped for breath as Targan closed the distance between them and picked Vord up by the throat. Vord kicked at Targan's ribs but found only plate armor, and Targan retaliated with several blows to Vord's face. Targan held Vord up closer, looking the Grinner over before snorting, "Pathetic." Targan unsheathed his blade and drove it into Vord's gut, taking care not to hit his spine. Vord looked into Targan's eyes and roared as Targan angled the blade as he pulled it out. Vord's armed dropped to his side as he went limp, nearly blacking out from the pain. Targan looked into Vord's face once more before casually tossing him off the cliff. Vord thought he heard his name, but it sounded so distant...

He saw the plains of the Arathi highlands, an orc with what looked like a orc child sitting upon his shoulders. The girl was talking to the orc, who had many scars on his arms and another running across his forehead. The orc had a broad smile, which was missing a front tooth. A set of kunai sat in a small pouch alongside a tanto at his belt. The orc walked along the road, listening to the girl on his shoulders as she talked to him, and he looked like he had finally found what he had been looking for.

Vord hit the ground hard, a thick layer of snow cushioning his fall before his momentum broke through a tunnel. Two nerubians looked at the light streaming down their tunnel and after investigating, found Vord's unconscious form. The nerubians looked at each other, then one moved in to inspect the orc. As the nerubian looked Vord over, the other clicked uncomfortably. "It looks like a death knight has fallen into our tunnel." The other nerubian nodded, "Agreed, but he still lives, though not for long if we do nothing." The nerubian's nervous friend clicked again. "When did we begin to give aide to the enemy?" The one closest to Vord grabbed the orc's feet. "He might be the enemy, but if he survives we will have a prisoner with valuable information on the Scourge in the region. We must at least take him to Her..." The other nerubian spread his mandibles in something that seemed like a grin. "Yes, we will take the orc to Her..."