   “No! No! Try again.” The stern mage trainer of the humans was not Peeko’s idea of a teacher. She was trying to master the ability to create an arcane explosion. Each time, the perfect dome would start expanding and then dissolve in a manner of seconds. The annoying human trainer was not helping at all. As she began to go through the incantation she allowed her thoughts to drift back to earlier in the day when she had been outside the Stormwind Bank, by the mailbox waiting for some mail from a member of her guild.
She had been sitting there for several minuets when there had been a commotion and raised voices coming from the front gate. She leapt up and ran towards the gate. Her short gnomish legs didn’t allow her to run fast and so, when she arrived at the gate there was already a crowd gathered on either side of the road. She turned and saw a large crate. Peeko climbed up onto the crate. From here she could see a procession of humans dwarves and a lone night elf. They were in a diamond formation. She could just make out a cart with a cage and inside the cage was an orc. She had never seen an orc before. They were huge! This one took up the whole of the cage. He looked like a high rank. He wore a pure white spike on his helmet. She then studied the night elf. He wore green armour with many cuts and scrapes. Peeko started, she had seen that armour before!
When she had been a young gnome, she would stay in her uncles’ armoury shop for hours watching each soldier come in and order some armour made and collect it. She remembered an elf, not unlike this one, but wearing black armour who had come into the shop flanked by two human officers. The elf had looked at her and she had shuddered at the anger and hatred blazing from his eyes. He had talked long with her uncle and after another look at Peeko, as if making sure he remembered her face, walked out. A week later he came back, alone this time and wearing brown leather, talked with her uncle who went into the back of the shop. After a short while her uncle returned with the green armour on a stand. He had helped the elf put it on. When it was all secured the elf pulled out a pouch of money and a large bronze key. Peeko was confused, what would her uncle do with a key? Her uncle took the key and knelt behind the counter and inserted the key into a lock, opened a door like a safe and picked up two identical green swords. These were the quickblades. She remembered her uncle telling her about two legendary swords called the quickblades. Then he bent down again and picked up a huge bow and a quiver to match. The elf took these and strapped them on and then he turned and went out of the shop.
   As she looked at the elf leading the procession she realised that this was the same elf! Suddenly the elf turned his head quickly and looked directly into her eyes. The hatred was still there but seemed more controlled somehow. It still sent a shiver down her spine.
   “Perfect!” Peeko was jolted back to the present by the trainer’s voice. “ The best I’ve ever seen!”
   “Excuse me, am I interrupting something?” A deep and resonating voice came from the doorway.
   The trainer looked to the door in anger, then his face blanched, “N-No Grand Marshal” He stammered. “We j-just finished” Peeko was shocked at the fear in the man’s voice which, minuets earlier had been full of authority. Then she saw whom it was standing in the doorway. She felt the familiar shiver.
   “May I talk with Peeko alone Trainer?” The elf asked.
   “Y-yes sir, I’ll just leave.” The trainer scurried out of the room, casting a nervous glance back at the elf.
   “So Peeko you’ve been busy since I saw you last.” The elf’s voice was not as harsh as it was when he dismissed the trainer.
   “How do you know my name?” Peeko was glad to keep from stammering.
   “Peeko, I’ve known your family for longer than you have lived.” Peeko was not expecting that answer.
   “Why have you sought me out?” Peeko began to become even more nervous than she already was.
   “I wish for you to join me in my defence of the alliance.” Peeko was so shocked she found herself unable to reply.
   “But I don’t even know your name.” She managed to force out after a long silence.
   “Grand Marshal Alexandre of Alterac at your service.” The elf said with a flourish.
   “Umm are you sure you want me to join you? I am not very good with the arcane powers.” Peeko secretly hoped she could go along but she did not wish to let down Alexandre.
   “Who said anything about arcane?” The hatred was gone from his eyes and there was now excitement. “I know you secretly practice the powers of fire. Tell you what, use your pyroblast on that target there.”
   “Umm ok” How had he found out? It was supposed to be a secret! She focused her mind on her inner flame and willed it to aid her. She muttered the incantation and an immense fiery boulder appeared from thin air and sped towards the target, hit it and exploded in fiery brilliance.
   “Ok so…. You will come with me?”
   “Yes!”
   “Meet me at the deeprun tram station tomorrow at midday you’ll meet some of the other people who are coming with us.
   As Peeko settled down for the night in her room in the mage tower she couldn’t help thinking that she was about to have the time of her life. As such, she tossed and turned for hours. When day broke she had only got a few hours sleep. She gathered up her meagre belongings into a backpack and headed off towards the deeprun tram. She hardly noticed the mage’s greetings. She passed through the cathedral square, not noticing the priest’s blessings. As she turned into the dwarven quarter she heard the familiar clunking of blacksmith’s hammers and the grinding of cogs. She drew around the corner and saw the magnificent entrance to the Deeprun Tram. Waiting at the door was a dwarf leaning on a large battle-axe with a black skull carved into it.
   “Your Peeko?” He said in a gruff voice as Peeko came closer.
   “Yes.” She was slightly intimidated by this dwarf.
    “Come with me.” The dwarf lead her inside. As the dwarf closed the door, a human came into view. She wore purple plate armour with crystals hovering around it. She carried a large round shield and a spiked red mace.
   “So this is the Peeko we were to greet. This is her, Moliok? The human murmured.
   “Yes. This is her Antiquity,” The dwarf grunted.
   “Come then, the others are waiting on the platform.” Antiquity gestured and they walked through to the main platform. Standing around the elf were seven people of various races. They were going through an old tome with the alliance insignia on the front. Alexandre’s head snapped up as they entered.
   “Ah Peeko, just in time!” His deep voice echoed around the station. “Come, meet the others who will be joining us,” He looked at the three of them. “You already know two, Antiquity is a Paladin and Moliok is a Warrior. This gnome here is Vrac, he’s a warlock. Here is Hotaruchan, a priest. Darkcreeper, a rogue. Emath, a druid. Mentan another druid, Ozain, a frost mage and last but not least, my mentor Rohaer. As Alexandre had shown her Ozain, she had felt this enormous warmth blossoming inside her. From the way he looked back at her, the way his shoulders lifted and his eyes lit up, she new a link had been made, an unspoken link. Alexandre noticed this with a wry smile.
   “Ok people here comes the tram.” The elf Alexandre had introduced as Rohaer called. His voice was deeper than Alexandre’s and his eyes showed wisdom. With a loud whoosh and clanking, the tram pulled into the station. The team clambered onboard. When they were all on and the tram had begun to move down the long tunnel which led to the dwarven capital of Ironforge, Rohaer brought out the book again from his pack and showed the team a page with ten separate drawings and writings.
   “These people are the reason we are together. Our task is to eliminate them.” He read off a couple of profiles. “Cymea, Head Paladin and Guild Mistress of the Circlian Crusaders.

LanCraft Forum

World of Warcraft => Roleplaying and Stories => Topic started by: Alexandre on June 22, 2007, 08:23:21 AM