Cheyenne sat outside the inn in Shattrath City and sighed. She was bored and missed Grok. This was supposed to be "qualitytime" with her father but as usual they'd got as far as the inn and her father had disappearred inside.
Normally this wouldn't have bothered her, she'd have run to the orphanage, collected Grok and gone off to entertain themselves as someone elses expense.
"But he's gone now..." she thought miserably and turned her gaze to the tunnel that led from the city into the the forest.
Her mind started to formulate an idea. It was only a forest how big could it be and it's where Grok was, a building project in a forest couldn't be hard to find. Yes, thats what she'd do, slip out of the city and pay a suprise visit to Grok then nip back before her father came out of the inn. She knew her mother wouldn't miss her, she was too busy prettying herself on the offchance of a visit from some paladin.
Chey rolled her eyes at the thought, then pushing a small fishing knife she'd acquired into the cuff of her boot she set about finding Grok.
Through the tunnel and out into the forest, she and Grok had been this far but never out of sight of the entrance or the ugly Draenei on his ugly mount that guarded the entrance. As she walked past the guard he signalled for her to go back inside and muttered something at her in his indecipherable language.The only word she understood was "Belf" which she knew to be an alliance word for Sin'Dorei. She flashed him a wide warm innocent smile and answered him in Thalassian " Sod off you over grown goat...." and laughed to herself as he returned her smile.
The forest was huge and as she peered into the distance she could see no sign of any building project only huge spiders and hungry looking wolves.She thought of turning back but her lonliness urged her on, driven by the desire..no need to see her friend.
Keeping to the shadows and rocks she navigated the woodlands for what seemed like hours she was tiring and was getting hungry and still no building project. She reluctantly decided to give up the idea and return to Shattrath, she turned and saw nothing but trees and with a sinking feeling realised she was probably lost.
She wearily sat for a moment partially to rest but mainly to get her bearings. as she chewed her lip thoughtfully the faint smell of roasting meat drifted across and looking into the near distance she saw the faint flicker of a campfire and two people.
"Oh thank you..." she said to no-one or nothing in particular and made her way stealthily towards the camp. There were two men there, both human, from the sanctuary of the shadows she watched them. Warrior she thought as she looked to the bigger of the men, all muscle and with a slightly acrid smell of blood, sweat and metal. The other a wiry looking individual with lank black hair she took to be a warlock judging by his lack of armour and weaponry. They were engaged in casual conversation none of which she understood but they sounded friendly enough. The fire crackled invitingly and the roasting meat dropped its juices into the flames sending an irresistable aroma towards her. Hunger conquering fear she stepped from the shadows into the clearing.
The warrior reached for his sword and held it towards her, the warlock merely raised an eyebrow laconically as he eyed her waiflike demeanour.
He spoke to the warrior who lowered the sword but his eyes never left her.
Cheyenne looked longingly at the fire and the food, hoping they would understand.The warlock appearred to and walked to the fire and pulling a leg of meat from the rack over the fire, casually threw it to her.He motioned for her to sit and sat beside her.
Pressing his fingers to his chest he said "Delnar". Cheyenne looked at him and smiled gratefully and warmly as she ate.Pointing to herself she said "Cheyenne..I'm Cheyenne".
The warlock smiled and nodded, not a pleasant smile she thought to herself and made a decision to leave as soon as she was finished.
She'd never encountered problems with any of the "opposite faction" as she'd heard humans referred to, not realising that this was because Shattrath under the rule and guidance of the Naaru insisted on the city being an arbour of sanctuary. She was blissfully unaware of the depth hatred that existed between their two races.
Finishing the meat and feeling rested she rose to leave, again flashing her smile and voicing her thanks. The warlock smiled the unpleasant smile and she saw the warrior smirk, a small knot of fear formed in her stomach.
They were going to kill her she thought, swallowing on the rising panic, but why she wondered, why would they want to do that after they'd shared food. She rationalised she was just being silly and took a step back.
The warrior had moved behind her and she stumbled against him as she stepped, his strong hands gripped her shoulders. Her heart seemed to jump into her mouth and she looked to the warlock, he bore no weapons and didnt look as if he were preparing to cast, he just looked at her with that cold smile on his lips.
I t was only as the grip on her shoulders tightened and the warlocks eyes laviciously roved her form did she realise their true intent.
"No...please No...."
The ache and pain in her body was nothing to the shame and humiliation she felt as she crawled away and under a bush. The men, as if nothing had happened went back to their fire and food. She curled up into a foetal ball and silent tears rolled down her cheeks. She heard movement at the camp and it stirred her from her lethargy, she had to get away before...before..., she couldnt bring herself to even think about what had happened. As silently as she could she rose to a crouch and scanned the area for an escape route. A last glance at the men to see if they were looking for her, they still sat drinking and laughing around the fire oblivious to her presence.
A cold anger started to replace the pity, deep in her stomach it knotted as she looked at them...laughing...she looked at the warlock, her violater, she could smell his scent clining to her, invading her senses and swallowed the urge to vomit. He had had no right..he had taken from her what wasnt his to take, but hers to have given to who she chose when time was right. Her eyes glowed deep green as she festered on her thoughts. A sharp stinging pain in her hand brought her to her senses and glancing down saw a trickle of blood from the heel of her hand, she raised her hand and sucked the blood away to examine a small thin razor like cut. "Ow.." she thought. Looking down she saw an old rabbit snare, a long thin sharp wire looped to form a trap, secured by two small wooden pegs half buried in the soft earth. She dug it up intending to throw it away, a cruel device she thought, set by a hunter who was no doubt too inefficient to kill it himself..probably a Nightelf....
"dangerous" she thought as she ran her thumb delicately along the wire," you could cut someones thro...." she looked towards the small camp and her mind raced.
She'd need to get rid of the warrior...one punch from those huge fists and she'd be down, she noticed he was bared chested and unarmed as he washed in the stream, The warlock some distance away was fiddling with his pack. Her mind worked furiously, resisting the urge to shout in fury and charge she slunk quietly into the shadows and inched forward. She reached the warlock, his scent repulsed her, incensed her...from the shadows she aimed a low kick at his groin, sharp quick and stabbing she couldnt help but feel smug as he soundlessly slid forward, his mouth open but no words coming out as the pain of her blow sent him into a state of semi paralysis. "I'll have you later...." she spat as she slipped back into the shadows and headed towards the washing warrior.
Her heart pounded in her chest and she tasted andrenelin as she crept closer, he slowly rose and shook his wet hair then as idly rolled his shoulders she struck, leaping from the shadows cat like and silently,the snare held in both hands she swung her arms in a loop over his head as she leapt. Her foot found the small of his back and using this as leverage she propelled herself back pulling the wire tight against his throat. It was with an almost perverse pleaure she heard the sickening squelch of the flesh split and his blood spurt.
Spitting blood the warrior fell to his knees, his hands clawing at the wire around his neck. She released the makeshift garotte from her hands twisting it shut as she did so and darted towards the now stirring warlock, pulling the knife from her boot as she ran she launched herself at him. Dodging her initial assault, all she could do was flay the knife and hope it struck, she missed and she saw him come towards her his minion already summoned.
She saw no quarter in is eyes as an icy fear gripped her heart, she looked at him defiantly as he began to cast.Then her knees buckled, her spirit wavered and she fled....running crying into the depths of the forest. She dimly heard him laughing cruelly and spitefully but he didnt follow.
From her sanctuary of shadows she watched him fly from the forest but it was still sometime before she got the courage to leave her shelter. Creeping back to the camp she saw the warrior still there, lying on his back moving feebly as his blood ran from his ruptured throat. He turned weakly towards her, his hand held out towards her asking for help, his eyes beseeching her. She looked down at him and drew her knife.
It was there the hunter found her, straddled across the body of the warrior, her hand loosely coiled around the hilt of a small knife which was still embedded in the chest of the fallen human.A mutitude of puncture wounds littered the body some bloodless ovbiously done while the warrior was dead. Her exhaustion and the wounds showing it had been a frenzied and merciless attack.
The hunter said nothing, just placed a firm but gentle hand on her shoulder and nodded towards a waiting windrider.
She looked up as if in a daze at the Sin'Dorei before her. He guided her up and gently lifted her onto the beast wrapping a soft hide cloak around her.Leaping on behind her and holding her safe he flew them back to Shattrath.
She ran to her home, her father was still in the inn and her mother was brushing her hair and singing softly.
"Mamma..." Chey cried softly using the term she hadn't even thought for years
Her mother turned and looked a look of horror on her face.
Chey stood there looking waiflike and lost, her dirty face streaked with tears, her clothes torn and bloodied.
She and her mother exchanged a look and Chey knew that her mother knew what had happened to her.
Her mother knelt before her and took her shoulders.
"You mustn't tell anyone..anyone do you hear...." she said.
Chey nodded, she wasn't listening all she wanted at that moment was her mother.She opened her arms.
There was a knock on the door and a polite cough and there stood the Bloodknight. Celena rose smiling, her child forgotten for the moment.
"We'll speak when I get home..." her mother said
Chey nodded numbly.
She resolved there and then that no-one but no-one could be trusted.Humans only less so than your own mother it seemed.
No one would ever get close enough to her again and any man that so much as tried to touch her she would kill.
The warlocks face and scent etched in her senses, she knew she would know him if their paths ever crossed again and if they did...no..when they did, she would be ready.
