[FFML] [SI] Chance of a Millennium 7-9

[Tannim Murphy]

Again, sorry for the spam.

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Chapter 7

Xxxxx

"I still can't believe you guys did that to me!" Kyle groused, trying to both hide her face and glare at her companions as they walked along the paths of Darnassus.

Matt nodded along with whatever Kyle was saying. She had been complaining for the past fifteen minutes. While it was starting to wear a bit on him, Serenity was still snickering every once and a while at Kyle's complaints. Neither one had apologized for their part in last night's fiasco, but Matt dearly wished he'd been able to snag Kyle's cell phone and record to the whole thing. It would've been great blackmail material for years.

Kyle, for her part, had had a fairly horrible morning. Waking up with a pounding headache, she'd quickly discovered that Jae's body was apparently one of those that experienced the hangovers most people only pretended to have. Back when she had been a he, and human, the worst he'd ever suffered was a dry mouth and some h. This, though...

"And Serenity, your snickering is like driving an ice-pick through my brain... these ears are sensitive!"

Serenity tried to keep a straight face, she really did. But the memory of Kyle singing drunkenly to a crowded tavern simply brought her too much joy to contain. It was quite possibly the most fun she'd had in centuries, and she really couldn't help the occasional fit of laughter that seeped through her regal facade.

"Alas, it appears I cannot quite contain myself." Serenity did not sound apologetic in the least.

With an overly-dramatic sigh, Kyle threw her hands up. "Forget it, you guys are... ugh. I hate you!" Despite her words, she continued to travel with them towards the odd gazebo that lead to the docks.

"Remind me, friend, where we're headed?" Serenity asked, once she'd gotten her laughter under control, and felt Kyle'd had enough time to cool off.

With a weary sigh, Kyle explained. "Up ahead is a portal... thing, that leads down to the docks of Teldrasil. From there, we're going to take the ferry to Auberdine, which is where the main boat to Stormwind departs. Hopefully, we'll be able to catch that boat, and from there, we'll mosey on over to the boat to Northrend."

"Don't forget to grab the flight path." At Serenity's curious gaze, Matt winced. "Or will we need it? Are we coming back? I just remember needing to talk to those griffon guys if we ever wanted to ride anywhere." He did not add how much he really, really wanted to try riding a griffon. Despite Tannim's memories of riding such beasts, Matt wanted the first-hand experience. It seemed very, very fun.

"Not to burst your bubble, kid, but we're probably never coming back this way again," Kyle thoughtfully added, and secretly enjoying the look of crestfallen dismay on the Human-turned-High-Elf's face.

"And... what is this Auberdine place?" Serenity asked, a moment later.

Kyle paused, forcing the others to stop behind her or risk running into her, before turning around. "Auberdine is a night elf city on the northwestern coast of Kalimdor, one of Azeroth's two major continents. Stormwind, where we're headed, is in the Eastern Kingdoms, where Ironforge and Dun Morogh are. That's the other continent."

Serenity nodded in understanding.

Matt reached deep in the recesses of his mind to try and recall just where the ships in Auberdine went. He gave up and searched Tannim's memories. "Hey, when did they put in a ship to go to Stormwind? I remember it going to somewhere else." Of course, that had been several years and two expansions ago. "And they've got a ship going to Exodar, too?"

As they approached the low gazebo glowing with an unnatural pinkish light, Kyle shrugged, before turning to walk backwards. "Auberdine did have a boat going to Menethil Harbor, as well as a boat to-" With a flash, Kyle disappeared as she entered the pinkish light, her explanation being cut off mid-sentence.

Matt bowed and motioned towards Serenity. "Ladies first." She smiled at this bit of chivalry and without hesitation stepped into the pink light. He soon followed, and enjoyed the brief tingling sensation that spread throughout his body from that particular form of transport. It was like being caressed with a hundred feathers all at once, both inside and out.

"-The Exodar," Kyle finished, somewhat dismayed that Serenity seemed utterly unimpressed with the magic that had teleported them from the city in the trees down to sea level.

Leading them down the hill they'd appeared on, and towards a dock that jutted out into a gray, foreboding sea, Kyle continued his explanation. "When Wrath of the Lich King came out, the boat from Auberdine to Menethil instead went to Stormwind, and the dock in Menethil was instead used to give players a path to Northrend; one of two. With the Horde, they have Zeppelins; we in the Alliance have boats."

"Sounds... interesting," Serenity said, thinking the explanation over. "Do you think the boats will run as they did in the game?"

Kyle snorted. "I doubt it. Maintaining a fleet of ships to constantly travel back and forth with or without passengers seems not only excessive, but wasteful. And Jae agrees... we're going to have to hire a ship."

"From here?" Serenity asked, with a note of disdain in her voice. The dock ahead had a few boats tethered to it, but none looked capable of sailing across an ocean.

"No, from here, we'll just find someone to ferry us across to Auberdine... you can just make it out through the mist," he said, pointing across the water, towards a cloud of mist, and the mountains peeking up further behind it. "And it looks like Blaine's still here," Kyle said, grinning.

"Blaine?" Serenity asked softly.

"Blaine!" Kyle called in Darnassian, before freezing.

"... Can I help you?" The male night elf asked curiously as he looked over the night elf, human, and... high elf? approaching his fishing boat. He may be old, but he didn't recognize any of them, despite the apparent familiarity the night elf seemed to have with him.

"Sorry, I'd just... heard so much about you, it's like I already knew you," Kyle said, wincing internally. Jae's memories were damnably complete, but sometimes, the lack of her actual existence could be problematic.

"That's alright, friend. You're not the first to address me with such familiarity. I assume, then, you seek passage to Auberdine?" The fisher asked.

Kyle nodded. "Yes, please. My friends and I are on our way to Stormwind." Despite having no trouble talking in a language utterly unfamiliar to Kyle a few days earlier, this body had no trouble with it, and managed to switch to English without pause when speaking the name of the human city.

"We're willing to pay, if it'll help," Serenity offered, in Darnassian as well.

Both Kyle and Blaine stared at Serenity in surprise, and even Matt couldn't help but ask: "When'd you learn that?"

"Learn what?" Serenity asked, sounding confused.

"Darnassian... and English, now that I think about it," Kyle asked.

"Oh! Languages? I'd be a pretty lousy leader of a Solar System if I couldn't understand different languages, wouldn't you think? The Serenity line has always had an innate ability to understand and speak any language observed," the Queen explained, as if discussing the weather.

"Goddess, I wish I had that ability," Kyle said, earning a nod from Matt and Blaine as well.

"Anata wa wakarimasu desu ka?" Matt asked in one part of his admittedly small Japanese vocabulary.

"Yes, I understand. Why do you ask?"

Matt switched to Thalassian, language of the high elves. "Doral ana'diel?"

"Well, thank you. And you?" Serenity asked in the same.

"Ow-hey bout-ay ow-nay?" Kyle shot.

"Ine-fay. is-thay one-ay," she paused, looking down with a frown for a second, "is-thay one is un-fay?" She shrugged. "I can't actually fully grasp it. What's the purpose of a language modifier like that?"

Kyle shrugged. "Pig Latin. Call it a roughly humorous bastardization of English to be... err... latin-ified." With a grin, she pointed at a wandering night elf Sentinel. "Bogey on your six, please eyeball to de-louse."

Serenity blinked, before turning around and looking at the night elf indicated. "Bogey verified. It's a Chick." Again she paused, before frowning. "That one was confusing... And vaguely militant. I can see the Martian Legions falling in love with it."

"Huh. I honestly didn't think Brevity Code would count, since it's just a bunch of... code," Kyle admitted.

"Um... excuse me," Blaine said, wondering what had just happened.

"Oh, Blaine! Sorry!" Kyle said, before holding out her hand, "I'm... err... Jaessica, and my friends are Serenity and... Tannim?" Smiling away, as best she could the confusion in her voice, she waited as he greeted each in turn.

"One's as good as the other," Matt shrugged. "It'll do. Please to meet you, good sir. Slain any undead lately?"

"I killed my share of the Scourge and Burning Legion in the Battle at Hyjal, but after that..." he trailed off, and turned to look at the misty sea. "I'm tired of the death. I do what I can for my people, Paladin. It may not be as glorious as the fight against the undead, but I like to think I've done my part... and continue to do it."

Serenity spoke up, before Matt could respond. "I, for one, appreciate your contributions. Even if the humans of this world never directly benefit from your contributions, the help of the night elves in the ongoing war is not to be dismissed or ignored."

"And an army marches on its stomach," Kyle amended with a quick grin.

"Indeed it does, friend. Indeed it does," Blaine responded, smiling in return. Strange though these three were, they at least seemed to have a bit of common sense. He hoped they'd survive long enough to get the chance to make the decision he had, even if they chose to continue the fight, in the end.

Shaking his head at the thought of all the young wanna-be adventurers that had passed though his boat on their way to adventure and untimely death, he turned to the trio. "Well, we'd best be off before the tide turns. If you don't mind me checking my traps on the way, I can get you to Auberdine free of charge. If you must get there as fast as possible, though, I'll have to ask for compensation for the lost time."

"Well..." Kyle started, frowning in thought. "I suppose that depends. When does the Ferry to Stormwind arrive?"

"Tomorrow afternoon, if the weather holds," Blaine responded amicably.

Serenity nodded. "Well then, don't let our presence keep you from your work."

"I'd even offer my assistance with it, if you'd have it," Matt offered with a tilt of his head. "It'd be more than fair for the ride."

Blaine nodded. "The help would be appreciated friend." Glancing once more at the three, he nodded. "Well then, let us be off. The tide is with us, and the wind is fair. I should have you in Auberdine before the sun sets."

Kyle blinked, and was about to point out that the other shore was visible from where the stood, but a stray memory of Jaessica's stopped her. Apparently, Blaine's traps went up the coast of Teldrasil, then down the coast of Darkshore, with a few scattered among the shallows between the two. It was an afternoon affair to check them all, and Blaine would definitely make Matt work, though his apparent chivalrous streak would let her get away with watching.

"Score!" Kyle mumbled, as she crossed the dock and jumped down into the boat. It wasn't a galleon, but at 30-some odd feet, and a pair of square sails, it was impressive that Blaine handled it by himself most of the time.

"Come, Tannim. We've got lines to cast, and traps to check." Blaine called, as he followed Kyle onto the ship.

"Aye aye, captain!" Matt said cheerfully.

A few hours later, Matt's cheer had evaporated, to be replaced with weariness and displeasure. "Surely it wouldn't hurt 'her' to help a little?" Matt asked, glancing at a smiling Kyle, who was sitting at a small table with Serenity and watching the two run around to check trap after trap.

"Of course not, Lad, but that's not the point! Women like them have their duties, and Men like us have ours."

Leaning forward, Serenity quietly asked Kyle "'Women like us?'"

Kyle held back a snort. "'Women' indeed." With a shrug, she grinned and leaned back. "Social Sexual-dimorphism. It's not quite sexist here on Azeroth, but chivalry exists... go figure."

"I see... so what is our job, exactly?" The Queen finally asked.

"As far as I can tell, avoid sweating, smile at the big strong men, and maybe work on our tans." Kyle said, before scowling at her blueish skin. "Can I tan?" Thinking about it a moment, she scowled. "Apparently, I burn. Easily."

"And you would prefer what? To turn cyan?" Serenity deadpanned.

"... I guess not." Kyle looked around then sighed. "This is somewhat boring, though."

"I'm sorry my company isn't mentally stimulating enough for you," Serenity replied. "You're not exactly girlfriend material yourself, you know."

Kyle winced, before scowling. "Why does Jae take that... oh. Huh. One sec, let me think..." Kyle was surprised to find out that, despite Jae's forays into the world, she'd made few strong friends, and they were all merely memories placed there by Elune, so for all intents and purposes, they were dead. While a bit of a tomboy, Kyle couldn't help but blanche at the more feminine memories, before wincing again upon realizing the kind of things Serenity might have wanted to talk about. "Wow... umm... tell you what. Since we're here for Blaine-knows how long, why don't you ask some questions about night elves. Who knows... I might learn something, too."

Serenity looked thoughtful for a moment, before nodding. "Alright."

And so, as Matt and Blaine whiled away the afternoon with hard labor, Serenity and Kyle talked about the inconsequential until the boat drifted to a stop at an empty dock in Auberdine that evening.

"I musta gained like two hundred points in my fishing skill," Matt muttered to himself as he wiped the sweat from his brow.

"Yes yes, but can you open all the clams you got while mounted?" Kyle replied, with a smirk. Serenity ignored the inane banter to observe the coastal city of Auberdine.

Matt paused to think. "We should probably can the game chatter. It wouldn't do good to spook the locals." He kept the fact that he himself had no idea what Kyle was talking about carefully hidden and as the boat neared the dock, and he leapt out to help tie it to its mooring.

Xxxxx

Meanwhile, in a cave far, far away:

"Alright, the next item on the agenda... an attack on our Ironforge outlet."

"Survivors?"

"Three. Apparently, our wizard got confused and killed our men, letting the attackers go."

"... I see... and our wizard is...?"

"Never going to make that mistake or any other again."

"Excellent. And the attackers?"

"Actually, it appears two of them have run afoul of the Priestess of Elune. They were escorted to the temple in Darnassus and have yet to emerge. The third has, apparently, been released."

"Well, keep an eye out for the other two, and the usual for the third."

"..."

"I sense you're going to argue with me on this."

"Not argue, merely... suggest. She's... unusual. Fetching. Carries herself well. There are uses for someone like that. She could prove valuable."

"I see... very well then. I trust you to see to the details. Make it so."

"Very good sir. Next, we have a surprise turnout of..."

Xxxxx

Unlike the marble structures that made up the bulk of Darnassus' buildings, Auberdine was a quainter-looking town, the buildings made of thick curved timbers supporting violet tiled roofs. Most of the buildings were open as well, where one would expect a wall with a door, there were gaping entrances that gave Kyle both a sense of nostalgia, as well as unease.

"For a race so ready to call itself 'prepared' for the second coming of the Demons, Simple concepts like 'security' and 'privacy' seem to have been totally overlooked.

Serenity blinked at that, having totally missed that aspect of the architectural philosophy. "Hmm... and how does Jae feel about it?"

Kyle smirked. "Honestly, she feels about the same way.... huh. Apparently she had a nice little house. Actually, it was like a studio apartment, with... ..." she trailed off, eyes wide.

"What? With what?" Matt asked.

"Umm..." Despite the blueish skin, Kyle managed an impressive blush. "Apparently there's a community bath."

"Oh?" Matt asked, then his eyes widened. "Oh!"

"Yeah," Kyle nodded. What wasn't mentioned were the thoughts such memories lead to, and the associated memories there. Who knew?

"In any case," Kyle said, trying to divert attention back to their surroundings, "I'm pretty sure this building here at the base of the dock is an inn, and we can get a room while we wait for the ferry to Stormwind."

"Remind me again why we couldn't just get a portal to Stormwind?" Matt asked plaintively. He'd already had a long day working on a boat, the less time spent on another, the better.

"Because there weren't any mages in Darnassus that would send us."

"This should also, I believe, allow you more time to be acclimated with your abilities and memories," Serenity pointed out. "I'd much have two capable fighters at my side than two people, and four conflicted personalities."

"The lady doth have a point," Matt pointed out.

Matt shrugged, "I guess so."

It took several seconds to register that he had been talking to himself. Matt nodded to himself. "Ah, there's the first sign of insanity. I was wondering when that'd show up. It's a little late, though, don't you think?"

Kyle rolled his eyes. "Lets... just get a room." pausing to think about that for a moment, she hastily amended. "Let's get two rooms."

Fortunately, the Inn was fairly empty, and a pair of rooms were easily gotten with some of their purloined gold, Tannim getting his own at Serenity's insistence, while the two girls shared a room with twin beds.

When they were as alone as they could be, Serenity waved Kyle over towards her bed, and whispered quietly; "I know you're really a man, but I don't think I could face Matt and ask you about this. I..." she trailed off, and looked somewhat concerned, before whispering. "I need a refresher."

"... Excuse me?" Kyle deadpanned.

"I... there's... you know. Pressure. I've been looking, but there aren't any... devices to help cope with such things around here."

"What are you used to?" Kyle asked curiously.

"Crystal Refreshers, the highest quality of personal relief," Serenity admitted. "Only the best. But here...?" She shrugged helplessly. "I don't know what to do."

Kyle's blue face twitched, the long eyebrows wiggling as she tried to comprehend this. "Wait... you... are trying to... uhh... relieve yourself?"

Serenity's innate grasp of language helped her catch what was implied, and she reared back in shock. "NO!"

Doing her best to calm herself (and wishing away the blush that burned her cheeks) Serenity pointed to her lower abdomen, just below her navel. "Here. Pressure. Relief?" She hoped the simplicity of the request would convey what her failed attempts at explanation had not.

"OH!" Kyle said, in sudden understanding. With a knowing nod, he crossed his arms and elaborated. "You need to take a leak."

Serenity's blank stare at that worried Kyle. "Err... you... have to go to the bathroom, I mean? Number one?" at her lack of a response, Kyle scooted back on her bead a little. "It's not, you know... number two, is it? Is it in the front or the back? I... why am I asking? Why are you asking?"

Serenity, who had managed to lose all her composure, stared at Kyle with the most impressive set of puppy-dog eyes (s)he could ever recall seeing. "I don't know what it means!"

"..." That wasn't expected. "You... don't... know how to go?"

The queen shook her head. "That's what a Crystal Refresher is for. Ever since I can remember, whenever I felt like this, I stepped inside, there was a flash of light, and I felt better."

"... How about that. They teleport the shit right outta ya on the moon."

Serenity, face flushing, buried her face in her hands. "I cannot believe you just said that."

"Well, seriously. This isn't something I think I've ever had to explain. Do the moon cats use these... Crystal 'freshers too?" Kyle asked, hoping to sidestep the issue.

"Of course! They're fairly ubiquitous." Serenity responded, as if it were obvious.

"Well then. This... is going to get fairly... umm... There's a word for it, but goddess only knows what it is, cuz I can't think of it," Kyle finally said, while trying to figure out how to phrase things.

Fortunately, despite the few times the new-night-elf tripped over an explanation here and there, Serenity seemed willing to listen, and finally she nodded her understanding, before heading out the door.

When she came back a good twenty minutes later, she looked a bit less sure of herself. "This... stays between us." She said, her voice allowing no argument.

Kyle just nodded, before trying to change the subject. "So... umm... yeah." After fumbling for a moment, she decided on a much better subject. "Why did Elune... do this to me? And Matt, though, more me, since this is a fairly drastic change, you know..."

Serenity smiled, sitting down on the bed she'd claimed, and looking across the room at Kyle, who was watching her intently. "Do you really wish to know?"

Kyle nodded, and Serenity sighed.

"You scare me."

Kyle blinked, unsure how to respond to that. Finally; "Elune... this world's moon goddess, turned me into a female night elf, because I scared you?"

Serenity nodded, looking out the oversized window at the dreary conifers beyond. "You're very... strong-willed. Elune explained it to me some, after you two had left, and I don't hold it against you or anything, but you're..." She paused, turning to look at Kyle, before sighing again. "You're different than most every man I've ever met."

Kyle smirked, and grabbed his breasts, ignoring how odd it felt, and replied. "Yes. I'm definitely different than most men."

Serenity rolled her eyes, before pointing at him. "You are not of the Silver Millennium. While Matt behaves similarly, you treat me with little reverence at even the most trying of times, and it's hard for me to cope. All the people I've ever met at least respected my position... you... don't seem to care."

"I care," Kyle frowned, not liking this almost-melancholy dressing-down. "I'm..." She paused, humming in thought for a moment, before continuing, "I'm not used to royalty whatsoever, and I'm pretty socially independent. So... it's just... not in my nature to act so... subservient. I tend to toss out the phrase 'respect is earned, not given,' but in truth, I tend to show little respect to anyone."

"Yes, I'd been told as much. Your stint in the military gave Elune a good-enough look at that facet of yourself." Serenity stated with a wan smile. Then the smile faded. "But that's not what you asked. You wanted to know why you are like you are?"

Kyle nodded, and she continued. "I'm not used to strong-willed men, but women? I've quite a few of them around me at almost all times."

"Ahh... the senshi."

"Yes. My friends, my protectors, the guardians of the Silver Millennium. They themselves are not as free-spirited as you at your most rebellious times, but you behave far more like one of them than any of my male guards."

"So... it's to make you comfortable? At the expense of my comfort?" Kyle asked, her displeasure creeping into her voice.

"No, it's... something Elune refused to say. But from what I can guess, I'm to come to trust you as I do any of my senshi... to what end, I don't know, but in this way, I can begin to get over the part of you that frightens me the most." Serenity replied cryptically.

"Well, that's..." Kyle started, before pausing. "What frightens you the most? The fact that I'm a guy?"

"Have you ever wondered why no men are senshi, despite an even split in the sexes, both on earth and in the Silver Millennium?" Serenity asked, changing tactics.

"You mean, aside from the fact that it was a story written by a girl, for girls, and a bunch of guys acting like girls would be fairly underselling?" Kyle deadpanned.

"... That's... not quite the response I expected." She shook her head, before pointing at Kyle, "there's a common theme in many of the cultures I've observed; 'women create, and men destroy.' It's certainly untrue, as both have the capacity for both creation and destruction, but-"

"Every myth has some basis in truth," Kyle said, cutting her off.

Serenity smirked. "Indeed. A nice way to put it. So, when the idea of the Senshi was first proposed, we decided that, in a female-ruled society, a set of female guardians would reinforce the theme we'd established: forging an empire of peace and prosperity."

"So... men kinda got shafted." Kyle said.

"Of course not. They're not second-class citizens, and they certainly have every opportunity to advance as women, but certain positions are held only by women, and over time, that's filtered down so that our society as a whole tends to have a matriarchal bent to it... something I've been told is pretty much the opposite where you come from."

Kyle nodded. "Okay... and... what's this got to do with me?"

Serenity sighed, "I'm just establishing the past so you understand where I'm coming from. Your role in things is... unknown to me. But Elune has stated that there's... a need for you. You and Matt. And I get the feeling that need goes beyond Azeroth."

"You mean... what? You're not going to send us home from here?" Kyle asked, frowning.

"If that is what you wish, than I'll use everything in my power to return you to your homes..." she paused, looking somewhat unsure whether or not to continue, before nodding softly to herself and straightening up. Turning to gaze at Kyle with all her regal bearing, she elaborated. "My Kingdom is in danger. I knew this before you came, and have done all I can to see it through these troubled times. Yet you imply that there's more to come, up to and including the collapse of everything we've ever built."

"We never said that!" Kyle protested, though even to her, it sounded hollow.

Serenity pierced her with a glare. "I can read between the lines, you know. Your implications and insinuations were enough to fill me in on the most likely outcome. And even if you two had never arrived, what you've hinted at is similar to what my court scribes have predicted in their worst-case scenarios."

"I see... and you think Matt and I can change this?"

Serenity shook her head. "I don't know what to think. Elune, however... she feels it is destiny. And I fear she's correct. There's something about you two that implies change, unpredictability... chaos. If I can harness that for the good of my kingdom, my people, what kind of ruler would I be to pass up the opportunity to save everything I built? Everything that I love?"

Kyle sighed. "People are dying?"

"Few at first, but recently, it's been hard to face the coming day, knowing that a steadily growing list of casualties is waiting for me each morning." Serenity explained, factually.

"And you think I can somehow change this?" Kyle asked quietly, eyes closed.

"I don't know. Can you?" Serenity asked, just as quietly.

Kyle thought on this. Without asking, Serenity had requested his aid. Aid in a fight he knew was destined to fail. And yet, was it? He knew the source, knew the enemies plans, and even had a rough idea as to when the decapitating blow was to be delivered. Could he change history so drastically? Should he?

Opening his glowing eyes to look down at his- no, her obviously female chest, an attempt by Elune to help him gain Serenity's trust faster, Kyle couldn't help but sigh in resignation. There was really no other answer to give.

"I can't do it alone."

"Whatever help you need, you'll have it," the Queen replied instantly.

"This will not be quick, and it will be violent and unpopular with your more peace-loving citizens."

"Do what you can to keep it clandestine, and I will work whatever magic it takes to cover it up."

"And the violence? casualties? Collateral damage and innocent bystanders whose luck runs out at the most inopportune of moments?" Kyle asked, eyes narrowed.

Serenity closed her eyes, looking pained. "Death is never acceptable, but sometimes, it is also unavoidable. You will do everything in your power to minimize innocent casualties, and I will simply have to learn to accept that which I cannot change."

Kyle nodded. "I can do that. Will you offer Matt the same choice?"

Serenity nodded. "I shall, though his nature is less inclined to dip towards the more visceral responses as you. Do you think he'd accept?"

Kyle grinned. "You're very good at telling me I'm violent-prone without insulting me."

"I'm a queen. We have to have some tact to get through the day." She said, rolling her eyes and smiling. "Do you?"

"You are a queen... And by accepting, I suppose that would make you my queen, as well. So, your highness, I feel I should say, with all due respect, that you're being an idiot for even considering the possibility that he'd turn you down."

"... Really?" She asked, looking somewhat surprised.

"Definitely."

"Well then, I shall ask him tomorrow. And as for you..." She put her finger to her chin in thought. "The Silver Millennium doesn't currently have knights, but I think you'd best fit that role... I'll see to it that you're given the proper recognition upon our return, and for now... For now, I only ask that you continue with the task I've already asked of you."

"Yes yes, your precious space-rock." Kyle said, rolling over in bed so her back was to the queen.

"Space rock!?" Serenity squawked, shocked at the way one of her guardians referred to the Silver Crystal. Before Kyle could say anything, she hurled one of her pillows at the night elf's back, earning a grunt of surprise.

"Oh, I see how it is," Kyle answered, before the room was full of flying pillows and bubbly laughter.

Xxxxx

Matt glared at the ceiling. He didn't know why, but he had the sudden sensation that he was missing out on one spectacular girl-on-girl pillow fight, and every bit of him that was Tannim was screaming at him to go outside and look for it.

Rather than give into the urge, he curled up on his side and placed his own pillow over his head. Someone down the hall from him was making an awful racket, and it was getting hard to sleep.

It was then that it occurred to him just who was sleeping down there; namely, Kyle and Serenity.

Matt spent the rest of his evening trying to block out the mental image of the two bouncing up and down on their beds, tossing pillows at one another.


Chapter 8

Xxxxx

"Think they suspect something?"

"Not likely. And even if they did, that tainted soup should keep them asleep long enough for us to grab the one and get back."

"It's too bad we're not allowed to sample them..."

"You just remember what happened to the last guy who acted on those thoughts. Grab her legs, will ya?"

"I'm not going to... jus' sayin'..."

"Alright, we're good. Lets go."

Xxxxx

Kyle rushed through the woods, doing her best to ignore the shouts of Matt fading behind her. The day was off to a pretty horrible start.

After a three-day trip by boat across the ocean to Stormwind, they'd taken a day to get used to the ground not rocking beneath them before trying to charter a boat to Northrend. Unfortunately, the dock master had taken one look at them and denied them passage to the Northern Wastes, telling them it was for their own good.

Dejected, the party had traveled to Goldshire at Kyle's insistence, in an attempt to plan their next move. A Small village outside of the bustling fortress-city of Stormwind, Goldshire had been a peaceful little place the three felt was good for planning their next move.

That was yesterday. Today, they'd woken up to a warm meal, and no Serenity. In her place had been a piece of gold, and a note not to follow them.

"Bastards," Kyle snarled, pulling her daggers and sprinting out the door, with Tannim at her heels and quickly falling behind.

Reaching an empty clearing, Kyle stopped, half his mind screaming at her for running like an idiot, and the other half screaming at him for letting this happen.

A minute later, Matt emerged from the trees, stepping into the leaf-spotted sunlight of the clearing and looking her over. "Any luck?"

"No... I... was stupid. I don't know why I ran here. Jae doesn't either. Shit, I can't believe they just took her."

"Of all the-!" Matt punched the nearby tree with a gauntleted fist, and growled in frustration. "We have to find her! Hire a hunter to track them down! Do something!"

The foliage danced with the wind as if in response to the agitation felt by the two standing in the clearing. For once, Kyle was at a loss for what to do next. Everything had been planned. They'd retrieve the rock, head back to the Moon Kingdom, thwart the impending invasion and go home. Now the Gold Farmers had kidnapped their one ticket back, and thrown everything for a loop. It had been carelessness, a stupid mistake to not set some sort of watch or perimeter guard, she knew, and all this could have probably been avoided. But when Serenity insisted on her own room last night, she hadn't even thought twice about it...

"We're going after them, right?" Matt's eyes shone with fierce determination; in part born from holy zeal to see righteousness done on the Tannim side of things, and partly from his own rage at seeing a friend stolen right under their own noses.

Kyle stared at Matt for a moment, before shaking her head free of the endless loop of recriminations going through her head. "Yeah... yeah we are. They want to play at being bad like that? Then we'll just have to introduce them to some Twenty-first century bad-assery."

Turning around, Kyle started walking back towards Goldshire.

"What's the plan?" Matt asked, as he followed.

"We get whatever we left at the inn, and head to Stormwind. If there were Gold Farmers in Ironforge, there's bound to be some in the other Alliance capital city."

"Are we going to kill them?" Distaste was evident in his face and voice. "I know they're bad guys, but... they're still people."

"We'll find out where they took her, one way or the other," Kyle replied, her steps even as they approached the inn.

"You don't have to kill them for that, though."

"Matt! Right now, I'm in a body that's distinctly not mine. I have ears that make sleeping on my back uncomfortable, foreign thoughts constantly running through my head, and I swear to god, I think it's that time of month or something. And Jae is not at all opposed to killing those who threaten or hurt her friends. So please don't give me any reason to tear into you, alright?" Kyle snapped, before stepping onto the road that lead from Goldshire to Stormwind.

Matt drew up to his full height and took a step forward into Kyle's personal space. He stuck his face fully in to the Night Elf's, who, to her credit, did not flinch. "Look. We're both concerned about her, alright? Truth is: Tannim has had to kill too, but it's always been reluctantly and I happen to agree with him on that. When it comes down to it, I'd rather see a hundred bad guys dead and bleeding than even one of my friends hurt. But we will not, I repeat, will NOT endanger lives if they can be spared, no matter who they are. We start doing that we become our enemies, and are no better than the Scourge."

"Jae fought the Scourge as well. Both here, and at Hyjal. Don't you dare compare me to those mindless abominations. I will refrain from outright killing, but only because a trail of dead bodies will not help up. But don't expect me to ask nicely when we confront them." Kyle replied, eyes narrowed and mouth drawn tight.

"Fine." Matt said tersely, and stepped back with obvious reluctance. "But know this: I will not hesitate to place myself between you and an enemy if I deem it necessary; and on that day, feel free to 'tear into me' if you dare."

Kyle sneered, before spinning to continue on her way. "Like I care," she shot over her shoulder. "Water-boarding doesn't leave any physical scars, anyway."

Before Matt could reply to that, Kyle stepped inside the inn to retrieve their gear.

Xxxxx

After paying for the interrupted and untouched breakfast, and asking the innkeeper if they'd seen anything, Kyle left, tossing Matt what little he'd left behind as he passed, heading up the road to Stormwind.

Matt huffed and he puffed as he shuffled behind slowly in his plate armor. This stuff was heavy! He briefly took the time to envy Kyle in her lighter leather armor.

Elwynn forest, in which Goldshire sat in the center of, was cheery-looking, which only helped to enhance Kyle's foul mood. When a lost-looking young dwarf, stepped in front of her, she had to bite her tongue not to scream at him.

"Good morning, ma'am." Kyle's eyebrows twitched at that. "I was wondering if you knew the way to Westfall Garrison. I've been asked to report there for the militia, and don't know these human lands as well as I do the snowy fields of Dun Morogh."

"And... you're asking a night elf?" Kyle replied.

"Aye, you look like you know your way around these parts." The Dwarf replied.

"I see. Well, you're in luck." Stopping to turn around and orient herself, she pointed down the road. "Follow this road to Goldshire. It'll hit another road going east and west. Travel west, and just follow the road... you can't really miss Westfall, It's after the bridge, just look for the tower."

"I see. Thank you ma'am. And you too, good sir. Always nice to see a fellow Paladin." With that, the Dwarf raised his shiny battle hammer in salute, before heading down the road. "Thanks again," he called back. "You two make a cute couple!"

Whatever satisfaction Kyle had taken out of helping the young paladin died with that, and only Matt's solid grip on the collar of her leather armor kept her from following the runty little fellow and giving him a piece of her mind.

"Lets get going, dear. We've still got a ways ahead of us." Despite Kyle's rather loudly proclaimed disagreement that it wouldn't take long, Matt kept his grip and forcibly dragged the Night Elf towards their destination. His greater weight allowed Matt to pull Kyle along despite her vehement protests until she started walking in that direction on her own violation.

Kyle straightened out her armor and pretended nothing had happened. "I'll head towards Old Town when we get there. Where are you going?"

"I figure I might as well check the trade district, maybe the innkeeper there might have a better idea of where to look for them than our last one. If not one of the merchants in the area might have a clue."

The city of Stormwind was, as one would expect of a capital city, huge, and the granite and marble that made up most of it still shone brightly in the morning sunlight. The main entrance from Elwynn Forest lead visitors past some rather impressive marble statues of heroes from earlier wars (games), directly into the Trade district, east of which lay Old Town, where Kyle turned to go.

Matt turned left, in the opposite direction, heading toward where he vaguely remembered the inn to be. Luck was with him; not only did he head in the correct direction immediately, but every shop had huge signs hanging above the doors, cheerfully proclaiming their wares with large pictures so as not to confuse newcomers. The inn was clearly visible this way, with the sign easy to identify thanks to a giant beer stein for a marker. Underneath it read 'The Gilded Rose,' which Matt assumed was the name of the place.

Upon entering the building, Matt was greeted with the smiling face of the proprietor, a young woman with auburn hair. She started at seeing the race of her new arrival, but quickly caught herself. "And what brings you, traveler, to the Rose this fine day?"

"Alcohol. Lots of it. I've heard this place has the best. I hope you can accommodate me?"

"Certainly good sir!" Finally, a customer that appreciated her fine apple ale! "Would you like it by the barrel or by the cup?"

"By all means, let's get a keg party going in here. My treat." Matt pulled out his large sack of gold and took out a fistful of coins. "This should hopefully pay for everything."

"Thank you, kind sir! This is more than enough!"

Xxxxx

Unlike the seemingly-random spread of vendor's carts and the sound of barkers crying their wares out to passerby's in the trade district, Old Town was serene, despite its somewhat-hypocritical name. Almost all of Stormwind had been destroyed in the second Warcraft game, and only recently rebuilt within the past twenty years or so. Old town was mostly as new as the rest of the city. What hadn't been replaced had been touched up quite a bit. Despite that, the architecture here felt less... refined; which suited Kyle fine.

"Well well, what have we here, boys?"

Kyle rolled her eyes as a gang of young humans stepped out of an alleyway, one keeping a close eye on the road leading towards the militia barracks.

"A new face, even if it is another elf..." one of them answered.

"That's right! And that means-"

"-they have to pay the toll!" a third finished, picking up what the leader had started saying mid-sentence.

Glancing around, Kyle smirked, glad Matt had left, before lunging, glad to be offered a chance to take out her frustrations. Before they could do more than cry out in surprise, the one watching the road received a boot heel to the head, the second had been body-checked into the stone wall nearby, the third was flopping around on the ground after taking a fist to the face, and the leader was now staring into the unsettling silver eyes of the female night elf assassin who was poking him in the neck with the tip of a plain-looking (but definitely sharp) dagger.

"Gold Farmers. What do you know about them." Kyle asked flatly, ears twitching as she listened to the one on the ground behind her continue to try to get his bearings.

"G-g-gold? Farmers?" The leader asked, earlier bravado replaced with stutter-inducing fear.

"Yes. Gold Farmers. I'm not in a good mood, so if you could answer me quickly, I'd be far less likely to use this," she emphasized her threat by jiggling the dagger against his jugular.

"Ahh," he quailed, swallowing and wincing as the shift drove the dagger a bit deeper into his throat. "I've... heard of 'em. B-but never actually met one."

"Go on," Kyle prompted, smiling even as he heard the youth on the ground start to climb to his feet.

"They're... people say they trade in rare goods, and can get you whatever you want... for the right price. I don't know anything else though. I promise!" Despite the worry in his voice, his look over Kyle's shoulder was all the warning the human-turned-night-elf needed. Kyle pulled him forward a few inches before shoving him hard into the wall with her free hand, allowing her fist wrapped around the pommel to hit the risen youth behind her in the face in a full-powered backhand. This time, when he hit the ground, he stayed there, and by the time the leader had gotten over the bruising bounce off the solid wall, he was once again alone and at the night-elf's mercy.

"Cute, but not really helpful. I suppose I'll have to use this after all," Kyle said, glancing down at her dagger, but not bothering to sound unhappy at the thought of using it at all.

"No! Please! I've told you everything I know! What more do you want?!"

Kyle paused, somewhat surprised. "I want names. Locations. Something other than vague descriptions that could be used to describe any friendly store owner on numerous planets." Kyle smirked, and patted the gang leader on the cheek with the flat of the dagger's blade. "Think you could hook me up with information like that?" She paused, as the young man shook, and shrugged, before rearing back theatrically, the pose very obviously one that implied she was about to stab him.

"Nononono! Old Henry!" The leader shouted.

"Old Henry?" Kyle asked, dagger still held aloft, ready to strike.

Nodding, the youth glanced around. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone I know, but he's... he's one of them. A transporter."

"A smuggler," Kyle replied, to which she got a shaky nod.

"Yeah, whatever. He's over in Cathedral Square. But I didn't tell you that... Please! That's all I know! I promise!"

Kyle paused, as if thinking it over, before shrugging, and sheathing the dagger back under her belt. "And so it is." Stepping back, she reached up, brushing some imaginary dust from the leader's shoulder, before slapping his bicep harshly and grinning. "And hey, I'll even give you an excuse if anyone asks what happened!"

"An... excuse?" the unsettled leader asked, confused. Still smiling, Kyle buried her fist in his stomach, the thin tunic offering no protection whatsoever to the sucker punch that put him on the ground, curled up with his hands holding his suddenly-upset stomach.

"What was that for!?" He asked, groaning, tears streaming from his eyes.

Turning to go, Kyle didn't bother answering as she looked back over at the gang that had tried to intimidate her into giving up some of her money, and couldn't help but hope they'd learned their lesson.

Unmolested the rest of her way, Kyle crossed one of the myriad bridges that connected the smaller sub-zones of Stormwind, taking a moment to glance at the small fish swimming in the city's canals. Back on Earth, any city designed like Stormwind would kill the fish used to stock the man-made canals in a matter of days. Litter, chemical runoff, and god-knows what-else would make the water a stinking, polluted health hazard within a year, if not weeks.

Kyle wasn't sure if Azeroth's human population was cleaner, or if they were maybe using magic in a subtle way to ensure things stayed clean, but she secretly enjoyed the change of pace. Or maybe Jaessica, who'd grown up in the forests of Ashenvale, was imposing her druid-o-centric society's views upon him while he wore her body... frowning at the way that train of thoughts had derailed, Kyle turned away from the fish, and hurried on towards Cathedral Square, where the grand Cathedral of Light rose above the skyline, dwarfing everything but Stormwind Keep itself within the city.

Cathedral Square was bright, the small fountain in the center burbling softly as water cascaded down its tiers, and paladins, priests, and citizens all wandered around on their errands for the day. Into that crowd stepped Kyle, and suddenly the friendly conversation around the entrance from the canals died down.

With a wince, Kyle pressed forward, wondering if the lull had been caused by his current race, sex, or profession. Probably all three. Doing his best to ignore the sudden stares, Kyle quickly made her way through the crowd towards the alley behind the orphanage.

Unfortunately, Matt had apparently beaten her to it. Though his way of information extraction was somewhat... different than Kyle had expected.

"-and they'll continue singing it forever just because this is this song that never ends-"

Kyle watched the half-High-elf-half-Human sing badly off-key, with a mug of something in one hand and his other arm around her target, swaying to the beat.

"Okay! Stop! I've had enough! I'll talk! Anything to get you to stop singing that damnable song! And I use the term 'singing' losely..."

"Just what we wanted to hear," Kyle said, pulling one of her daggers free as Old Henry turned to look at her in surprise, and then fear.

Xxxxx

"Well... they're certainly ambitious," Kyle muttered, staring across the blackened fields of ash towards the towering mountain in the distance.

Old Henry, after being properly motivated, had divulged a lot more than they had expected. None of it truly important save the location of their base of operations: The Aerie of Blackrock Mountain, Blackwing Lair.

A quick, nauseating trip via gryphon to Morgan's Vigil, and here they were, staring at the sharply-rising peak, surrounded by lakes of lava.

"You know, we should be somewhat grateful, I suppose," Kyle added, after a moment's silence.

"Why's that?" Matt asked.

"Well, if this were Vanilla Wow, we'd be looking at a fight against numerous black dragons, and the son of Deathwing himself, Nefarion. At this point in time, however, he should be dead."

"That's good?"

"..." Glancing at the moving shapes in the distance, Kyle shrugged. "Better than having to hire forty people to form a raid group and try to take him down." With that, she set off towards the mountain, Matt following closely behind.

Despite the lack of random monsters in the area, aside from those spotted at a distance, the only indication this area had been teeming with vicious ogres, orcs and dark iron dwarves were the odd, charred skeletons that dotted the landscape. Most hand been scavenged for gear or meat, but the occasional helmet or broken sword testified to the battles that had taken place here. It was rather disconcerting, but the lack of a welcoming atmosphere made this place the perfect hideout for the kind of bandit scum they were currently after.

A crunch on gravel and ash was the only warning Kyle had, starting to move to the side before a heavy body slammed into her back with enough force to send her and her invisible assailant sprawling.

Matt turned at the noise, and scowled as he spotted Kyle being choked by an unknown elf. A blood elf, even, after catching a glimpse of the green glow in the elf's eyes. Before he could free his greatsword, however, Kyle elbowed the elf hard, and used its suddenly-loosened grip to reach up, grab the elf by his hair, and toss him over her shoulder.

"You asshat!" Kyle growled, her voice hoarse, a moment before she brought her fist down in a hammer blow into the elf's stomach.

Her assailant curled up after that, his face turning an interesting shade of green (which didn't quite match his eyes) And Kyle stood up, stepping back and pulling a dagger free in case he tried anything else.

"What the hell was that for?" She asked, as the floored elf tried to keep his lunch down.

"You'll get nothing from me, Gold Farmer scum!" he spat back weakly.

Matt's face lit with understanding. "Ah! Classic case of the heroes mistaken for the bad guys. Happens all the time." He smiled down at the blood elf as he offered a hand to help the man up. "Hope she didn't hurt you too badly, Kyle doesn't like being startled."

The elf swatted the proffered hand away. "As if I'd accept help from you! Our kingdom destroyed, and you and your ilk hide within Stormwind while our people suffered and died by the thousands! No surprise one of you would join the Gold Farmers," the elf hissed.

"Hey! We're not gold farmers, pretty boy! We actually have a pretty bad relationship with them at the moment."

"Yeah. The last two we met died," Matt added. He purposefully left out the fact that they hadn't been the ones to kill them.

"Actually, if you count sleeping-through-their-kidnapping as a 'meeting,' the last ones we met kidnapped Serenity," Kyle stated, plainly.

"That's not a meeting!" Matt snapped back. "That's just proximity!"

"So? When a king or president or something stands close to you, you can say you met him, even if you didn't exchange names and shake hands."

"Puh-leeze. You're comparing Gold Farmers to a Head of State? That's like telling someone it's an honor to meet their mole hairs."

"...umm... excuse me..." the blood elf said, wondering what had happened to get these two arguing about something so... lame.

"SHUT UP!" Kyle and Matt yelled at him simultaneously.

"...o-kay..." The blood elf replied, turning to the gold farmers standing nearby and wishing he could vanish like his mentor.

"Look," Kyle said. "It's not a matter of proximity or social status. In the... end... when did all these people get here?"

Matt turned to look, and blinked in surprise at the three men standing around them in a loose circle.

Two of them were, by their armor, warriors, while a third robed figure had a blue creature beside him that looked sort of like the genie from Aladdin, a voidwalker, clearly marking him as a Warlock.

"Well, what have we here?" The warlock asked, rhetorically. "Lost adventurers?"

"Not likely... those two are friends of the leader's current guest... they were told to stay away."

"And the magekiller?"

"A friend of theirs? Who knows. They're obviously arguing about something... Enough to let us sneak up on them. What a pathetic pair of rogues," one of the armed warriors sneered.

"Hey!" Kyle interrupted. "I'll have you know I'm quite skilled."

"Oh really?" the other warrior asked, clearly skeptical.

"Really. I just didn't bother being subtle because I knew this would work faster."

The three looked confused. "What would work faster?"

Kyle just scowled, ignoring Matt and the blood elf's looks of confusion. "Stop repeating what I say and pay attention. Here' I'll draw it out for you." So saying, she crouched in the ash and drew a few dots and crosses in the sand, then added a box, a triangle, and a stick figure. "See?"

Nobody saw. With a sigh, Kyle scooted to the side and waved them around. "Try from this angle..."

As they scuffled around the diagram, curious, Kyle grinned nastily. "Gotcha," she whispered to herself, a moment before throwing a handful of dirt and ash into the faces of two of the Gold Farmers.

As the third reacted, Matt, suddenly realizing what Kyle had been doing, pulled his sword free and swung, catching the third on the head with the flat of his blade as his attention was on the rogue who'd blinded his compatriots.

Before the blinded two could get the grit out of their eyes, Kyle had put the warlock in a rather painful looking headlock, while the blood elf did his best to slice the vision-impaired warrior to pieces.

Lacking an opponent, Matt shouted "By the light of Elune!" and swung at the startled voidwalker who was getting ready to defend its master. His sword glowed brightly as the blade bit deeply into the middle of ethereal darkness, causing the creature no small amount of pain. It took a swing at him that was mostly deflected off his armor, but managed to injure him slightly none-the-less.

"Release!" Matt commanded, and he felt the spell on his blade grow exponentially in power before finally exploding outward in a sudden burst of holy magic. It shredded the demon and dispelled its tenuous hold on the mortal coil, sending it back into the ether where it came from.

In the end, there were two unconscious Farmers, and one dead, slowly bleeding out onto the desert floor.

"Well... that's one way to do it, I guess," Kyle mumbled, staring at the gaping wound on the dead warrior's throat. Looking down at the dagger in her hand, she sighed, realizing that she would probably be putting the bladed edge to use soon enough.

A cough drew the attention of both otherworlders to the blood elf. "...I am prepared to believe you do not like Gold Farmers," he said finally.

Kyle just rolled her eyes. "Funny, how that works," she mumbled to Matt as she began tying the unconscious Farmers up. Actually, she tied one up. They didn't quite have enough rope for two, so they opted to tie up the surviving warrior while trying to figure out what to do with the spellcaster. After a quick debate in which the blood elf offered to finish the warlock off, Kyle shrugged, and turned to look at the sleeping body thoughtfully for a minute.

"Oh, hey! Look over there!" Kyle suddenly exclaimed, pointing.

Matt and the blood elf turned to look and saw nothing; there was, however, a muted crack, and all of a sudden the warlock was conscious. Conscious and screaming as he rolled around holding a clearly broken leg.

"Aww, looks like he can't follow us that well, now. Too bad." Kyle said, not sounding sympathetic in the least. People intending to kill you (at best) weren't likely recipients of sympathy.

"True, but this is a warlock, don't you think-" Matt started to say, before there was a wet pop, and suddenly more screaming.

Looking over, the two displaced earthlings saw the blood elf standing over the warlock with one arm twisted to the point that it had been dislocated at the shoulder.

"...nevermind." Matt shrugged. "I suppose that'll stop him from casting."

"Oddly enough, that was rather satisfying," the rogue said, reaching down for the other arm with a grin. The warlock quickly passed out again from the pain.

"So, do we question them?" Kyle asked as she surveyed the unconscious bodies with a contemplative look in her eyes.

"Here, let me do it." Matt moved over to the warrior who was still unconscious, raised the head, and took a firm grip on his mouth. "Who are you and what are you doing here!?" he said sternly, then moved the Farmer's lips up and down in time with his next words, which he spoke with a falsetto voice. "'I'm a bad man and deserve to be robbed blind.'" Matt dropped him unceremoniously and started going through his pockets. "Seems like he's telling the truth to me."

Kyle rolled her eyes. "Whatever. He's tied up. Lets hang him from a tree."

"What!? He's unconscious!" Matt objected.

"I don't mean kill him. Just string him up by his waist. Like a pinata."

"Oh." Matt deflated. "Can't we doodle on his face first?"

Kyle made a show of patting down her leather armor. "I seem to have left my magic markers in my other body's pants."

Matt paused and mouthed 'my other body's pants' to himself, before being struck with an idea. "Ooh, we should leave a note that says if you beat him with a stick, candy falls out!"

"Too bad we don't have any real candy on us. Be funny if the first whack actually did-"

"What's wrong with the two of you?" The blood elf shouted, interrupting the two as they bantered. Then he frowned. "You two aren't... together, are you?"

He cowered in fear at the glare Kyle gave him, the sudden murderous intent radiating off of her so thick it actually distorted the air around her. This was tempered only very slightly by Matt's sudden, howling laughter. "I get it, I get it, you're single! Touchy subject?"

"You... you have no idea," Matt said.

"That's okay. The name's Dax. Thrall sent me out here to scout out these Gold Farmers and eliminate them if I felt I could. Obviously, he's unaware of how deep their corruption runs." Looking at the two alliance fighters, he nodded. "I think you two would make... interesting allies for this quest... though your usefulness is somewhat questionable." He turned his gaze to Kyle, sweeping his eyes over her before smirking. "By the way, seeing anybody?"

Kyle walked away after braining Dax with the butt of her dagger.

"That is also a touchy subject," Matt stage-whispered as the Blood Elf tried to get his bearings from the ground.

Shakily climbing to his feet, Dax stared after the receding form of the Night Elf rogue thoughtfully. "Well.. you know what they say about violent night elf women..." he supplied as slyly as he could. Before Matt could respond, he jogged on ahead, hoping to catch up.

Matt rolled his eyes, but otherwise remained silent. This guy looked like the type that had to learn from experience. He winced when, as Dax finally caught up, Kyle sucker-punched him in the kidneys and started moving at an even faster pace than before. Dax did not seem deterred in the least.

It did not appear that Dax was a quick study, Matt thought, and his opinion of the elf's survival abilities dropped a few notches. "Maybe he'll eventually learn this isn't your typical night elf?" he asked himself rhetorically.

Matt grimaced as another advance was rebuffed in a violent but efficient manner, and shook his head.

"Nah."


Chapter 9

Xxxxx

"You're quite the defiant little one, aren't you? It is no matter. You will break, because I will break you, just like all the ones who came before you, and all the ones who will come after. And... I... I see... ohh, yes. Now I see, indeed. Well, we can't have that, now can we?"

"What are you..? No! NOOOO!"

Xxxxx

Blackwing Lair was dark. Blackwing Lair was hot. And Blackwing Lair stank like something long dead was slowly decaying.

"Oh, damn. Am I glad he's not moving," Dax said, staring at the bones of some oversized dragon. Around the room lay skeletons of orcs and smaller dragon-creatures, as well as what looked like the crushed remains of numerous oversized eggs.

Kyle couldn't help but chuckle as she picked up one of the shattered shells. "No wonder black dragons are so bitchy. If they laid big-ass spiny eggs like this all the time, I can only imagine how they'd take it out on the little bastards that hatch."

"You mean..." Matt asked, not really paying attention.

"Yup." Kyle nodded. "They got no love from their mothers."

"You two do realize we're in the lair of a black dragon, surrounded by the bones of those you mock, right?" Dax asked warily.

Kyle snorted. "What's he going to do, haunt me? He's dead. And this time, no server reset is bringing this bad boy back." Crouching down before the scarred skull of the dragon, Kyle smirked and patted the skull between the eyes. "You failed to protect the eggs, Razorgore. Better a team of adventurers bring you low than what you'd receive reporting your failures to your boss."

"You knew this beast?" Dax asks in shock.

"Kid, you ain't seen nothing, yet."

"I know." Dax took a moment to leer purposefully at Kyle's chest, before settling back into a more serious demeanor. "But that doesn't explain how you were on a first-name basis with a black dragon."

Kyle straightened up and pointed at the doorway in the back of the room. "Through that door lies Vael, corrupted red dragon who earlier in his life helped adventurers in the orc-infested spire below. Further we'll find.. more dead... It was a pretty hellish run, back in the day."

Dax digested this bit of information. "O-kay." He turned to Matt and whispered, "she's a spy for the alliance, isn't she? Been here before, watched it all go down, helped with the scouting?" Dax nodded to himself, convinced one mystery was solved. He gave Matt a wink and nudge on his plate armor, "I'd like to get my hands on her secrets, if you know what I mean."

"If you got your hands on my secrets, I'd take you hands off your arms," Kyle muttered, before heading through the door in the back.

"She's been here many time before, yes," Matt admitted reluctantly. "Though not in the way you think. Why do you antagonize her so much, anyway?"

"Because it's fun?" Dax grinned. "And I don't particularly care for either of you, so it makes me laugh if she gets angry. Plus? She's hot when she's mad."

"Well, I suppose that's at least an honest answer."

"I can still hear you two!" Kyle shouted from the next room. "Get a move on!"

Dax moved towards the door with the grin still plastered on his face. "Aww, don't get impatient babe, I know you're eager to form the dragon with two backs. Your stud-muffin is coming!"

There was a muffled thud, followed by a soul-rending shriek of agony from the other room. When Matt passed through the doorway, he found Dax curled up in a fetal ball on the ground, a small puddle of vomit nearby, and the blood elf rolling around crying, holding his crotch.

Matt crouched down next to the weeping man. "Well? Was it worth it?"

Dax shook his head no.

"Then stop griefing our party and get your head back into the mission. We've got a dungeon to raid." Despite Dax's protests, Matt hauled the elf onto his feet and shoved him deeper into the lair.

He was remarkably well-behaved after that.

Xxxxx MEANWHILE, A FEW FLOORS ABOVE xxxxX

"IDIOTS! FOOLS! IMBECILES!" the figure on the crumbling throne shouted at the figures scurrying around the room, "You came running HERE to alert me, leaving the door wide open for them?"

While the few beings below him cowered and quailed in terror, the leader of the Gold Farmers turned towards a chained figure on the wall, smirking to himself at her listless gaze and forlorn appearance. "They come to rescue you, my pet. To what end, I don't care, as they will die, and you shall see that none can oppose the Gold Farmers of Azeroth!"

"You... killed her..." Serenity mumbled.

"Oh, relax. I'm sure you'll be back in that state soon enough."

"You... you..." Serenity was at a loss for words. The grief, pain, resentment, and self-hatred she felt bubbled up within her, and she fought it as best she could, before glaring at her captor. "They will kill you. And I will do nothing to intervene. No matter how precious life may be, yours is forfeit. I promise."

He laughed at her. "Ha! Still some spirit, yet! Stronger than you have threatened me so, yet here I am, and where are they now?" He pointed at a pile of bones in the corner, various tattered bits of armor still clinging to them.

Xxxxx

The party of three passed the bones of Vael, Dax stopping to inspect them before Kyle dragged them further into the labyrinthine lair. Finally, passing a room full of small nests and odd mechanical devises that appeared disabled, they spotted a pair of guards ahead, protecting a dark room.

"Broodlord Lashlayer used to guard that door... If I had to guess, I'd say beyond this point, we'll be fighting gold farmers."

"With no healer?" Matt asked. While normally paladins could put their in-game talents towards healing, it didn't feel like Tannim had done so, instead going towards dealing more damage. And while he could in fact cast a few healing spells, it was no substitute for a dedicated healer.

Kyle frowned. "Looks that way. Considering how our fight outside went, I think we should be okay... if we're sneaky. Dax, take the guard on the left, I'll take the one on the right. Matt, give us a few seconds to get close, then draw their attention."

"Yay. Decoy drone yet again. I have a feeling this is going to be a recurring theme with us."

Briefly letting Jae's memories take over, Kyle felt something like a veil of cloth fall over her, and to Matt's eyes, she disappeared. Almost. There, where she had stood, was a blur, a slight waver in the air, and if he frowned, he could make out Kyle's features, but only because he was aware of where she had been, and where she was. Even as he thought about it, Kyle started to move, and she slid out from under his gaze.

Dax, however, was feeling argumentative. "I want the one on the right!" he hissed, disappearing as well and moving towards his proclaimed target.

Rolling her eyes, Kyle veered to the left, feeling her movement somewhat hindered, as if she was moving under water. Still, in what felt like no time at all, she made it to her target, and moved behind the unsuspecting guard, before glancing over to where Dax should be.

With the two rogues in position and waiting to strike, Matt boldly walked forward towards the guards as if he owned the place, weapon out and resting on his shoulder. The clanking of his armor alerted the guards of his presence long before they saw him, so they had ample time to draw their swords. They relaxed a little when Matt made no threatening motions towards them, but didn't put away their weapons.

"Who goes there?" one asked.

Matt grinned. "Have either of you heard of the benefits of serving Elune? I know she's an elven goddess, but I really think you should really hear me out-"

"NOW!" The Blood Elf shouted, appearing from nowhere even as his daggers slid into the guard's back between the ribs.

Kyle grimaced, before slipping her arm around the guard's neck and tightening her grip. Even as she felt the veil of stealth slip away, she was moving, a sharp twist ending the guard's life, even as a gasp of surprise started to slip through his lips.

As Kyle's target slipped to the floor bonelessly, Dax's twitched and weakly struggled, even as his blood pooled on the floor around him. His mouth moved silently, blood dripping from pale lips, and finally, after steadily slowing, the second guard went still.

"That was just as disturbing as last time," Kyle muttered, doing her best to scoot out of the way of the spreading puddle beneath the body.

"And that's the second time you've let someone live," Dax replied.

Kyle blinked. "Umm... he's dead," she said, pointing at the body she'd created.

Then she ran over to the ledge overlooking the room below and emptied her stomach.

"What's wrong?" Matt asked, concerned.

Turning to look at the body, Kyle shuddered, then turned away again. "I was hoping I could be more nonchalant about it, is all... Not quite so easy." Suppressing another shudder, Kyle straightened up. "There will be more ahead. It should get easier... in time."

Dax scratched his head. "I don't know who trained you, but it never gets easier. You just learn to accept it and move on."

Looking at the concerned rogue with a a little surprise, and even some respect, Kyle nodded. "I see. Well then, He was a bad guy, in my way, who helped those who kidnapped Serenity..."

"You did what you had to, Kyle," Matt said gently.

Kyle just nodded, before moving towards the door. "Lets just... get this done."

The next room, however, gave Kyle pause. Where before, there had been goblins and drakes and odd chemistry devices, the walls and alcoves were jammed with weapons racks, sleeping cots, and a series of portals through which they could see a number of cities, both Horde and Alliance.

Fortunately, there was hardly anyone around a few sleeping Gold Farmers occupying the beds, while a couple of children, one human, one blood elf, wearing manacles crouched, scrubbing the floor and not looking up as they passed.

"Slaves," Dax hissed, watching the two children work for a moment before making his way towards the weapons rack.

"Anything good?" Kyle whispered, even as she shifted through the collection of wood and steel meant to maim, dismember, and kill. Most of it looked fairly generic, however, and with a shrug, Dax moved on towards the next one, then the next, with increasing disdain, before turning away in disgust.

"You'd think a group like this could afford more than the standard crap they hand out to voluntary militias," he muttered, before turning towards the back of the room.

Following his gaze, Kyle and Matt saw a ramp leading up and around a corner.

"What's up there?" Matt wondered aloud.

"Well, there were three drakes in here, before. Now? Who knows," Kyle replied, looking at the sleeping Gold Farmers with a scowl. "Unsporting though it may be, I don't like the thought of any of those guys sneaking up behind us... and we only have so much rope."

Dax nodded, pulling one of his daggers. "Quietly, Dax," Kyle whispered, even as she made her way towards another sleeping figure.

"If I was a dungeons and dragons paladin I'd have to stop them," Matt muttered to himself.  "Luckily, Tannim hates slavers as much as I do. They'll get no mercy from me." Matt took up over-watch position, covering the exits best he could in case anyone woke up and tried to run. He knew it would be pointless to try to sneak around in his heavy armor.

Kyle briefly stopped to tell the slaves to leave, quietly, before pausing to look down at the sleeping figure. Behind him, he heard a muted squelch from where Dax had gone, and winced, even as she raised a dagger over her head.

With a sigh, she let it fall to her side, looking around before turning it around and swinging the butt of it at the Gold Farmer's temple. At least, that's where she aimed. Apparently not sleeping quite so deeply as the others, the Golf Farmer snapped up his arm to deflect the blow, his eyes snapping open to grin at Kyle.

"Word of advice: don't hesitate!" Before she could move, the Farmer had rolled out of bed and was on his feet, hands up and ready to fight. Kyle took a step back, shocked, before crouching as well, knife still held pommel up.

"An interesting choice," the Farmer muttered, before trying to punch the thief. Kyle dodged wildly, and only Jae's training allowed her to avoid the following punch. Then everything started to blur, the two of them trading blows as Kyle watched from within Jae. At first, he was awed at the way she moved, but her training, as underhanded though it may have been, missed some fairly obvious openings the Gold Farmer left undefended during his attacks.

Finally, frustrated at the way they seemed so evenly matched, Kyle took control, feeling the agility and sureness in her limbs disappear as the Gold Farmer pressed his apparent advantage. Which was when Kyle struck. Rushing him as he tried to punch, and getting inside his guard, the outer edge of Kyle's hand flashed out, a wet crunch filling the room, and suddenly the gold farmer was on the floor, kicking and writhing wildly as he clutched his ruined throat.

"What was that?" Dax asked, watching the twitching body slow. He'd not seen what she had done, but was impressed with the results.

"Looks like she collapsed the larynx," Matt offered. At Dax's confused look, he elaborated, "She crushed his voicebox."

"Throat. Groin. Eyes. Knees." Kyle replied with a shrug. "Weak points in all humans... and humanoids. I tend to focus on the throat, but all of them work wonders when incapacitating, debilitating, or, if necessary, terminating."

Without elaborating further, Kyle turned and headed up the ramp, leaving Dax to look at Matt questioningly.

Matt looked towards Kyle's retreating form. "She mentioned she was in the army. I suppose this is training from that experience." Dax took that explanation at face value, and didn't question it further.

Ahead, the room continued on, more cots and racks adorning the alcoves, except for the last one, which was gated off and guarded. Frowning at the guards, who would have to be taken care of, Kyle felt herself go into stealth, before moving forward. Most of the beds were empty, the racks nearby empty of weapons and items. One figure, however, lie on a bed, coughing fitfully and visibly shivering despite the heat in the room.

"Well, that's one we'll not have to worry about much," Kyle muttered, turning to look at the guards, and whatever it was behind them. Then she blinked. Beyond the guards, resting on wooden mannequins, were rows and rows of armor, each one within a bubble of blue magic that shimmered in the faint light of the torches around the room.

Spying the red and black leather outfit she'd coveted back in classic WoW, Kyle felt a smirk grace her face, even as she turned to look at the guards in her way.

"Hmm..." Pulling a dagger free, she turned it around again, running her hand over the blunt end of the handle and wondering if the game was at all relevant here. "Only one way to find out," she muttered, before moving around one guard and letting him have it with the hardest swing she could build up in the stealth-induced slowness.

With a groan, the guard fell to the floor, alerting the other guard that something was up, even as Kyle backed away slowly, still in stealth.

Drawing his sword, the guard looked around the room warily, before moving over to his fallen companion. "Zinnersnip! Get up! What's wrong with you?" He poked his companion with his sword, eliciting no response. Before he could check further, however, he felt an arm snake around his neck, and a feminine voice whisper "goodnight," in his ear.

Kyle held on as the man struggled, his sword arm unable to get the blade moving fast enough to bite past the thick leather, and too close to put the sharp point to use. Of course, with the pressure she was applying, he didn't have that long, and she felt herself smile as his movement became lethargic, the sword clattering to the floor as he weakly tried to pull her arm loose. Finally, he collapsed to his knees, and she held on for a few moments after he stilled just to be sure. When she let him go, she glanced at him and grimaced.

Apparently, she'd held him too tight, and the capillaries in his face had burst, leaving red splotches on his nose, cheeks and forehead.

"Impressive," Dax muttered, fading into view nearby.

"Not really. That won't last lon-" Kyle winced as Dax put his dagger to use, ending the two guards' lives just as easily as he had earlier.

"Doesn't get easier?" she asked with a frown.

"Knowing those two wont be coming after me tonight, or tomorrow, or next month or year? It had to be done. Reports from the Horde back me up. It's messy work... but it needed to be done."

Without saying more, Dax stepped into the room beyond the guards bodies and whistled appreciatively.

"My thoughts exactly," Kyle replied, stepping forward to stand before the Bloodfang Armor set. Dax watched her for a moment, enjoying the view as she shifted from foot to foot before the armor, and glad her attention was so caught by the armor that she didn't notice his gaze.

Finally, Kyle turned, causing Dax to turn his head so quickly he almost lost his balance. "What do you think, preservative or security?"

"What, the spells? Probably security. This is a rather expensive collection... I'm surprised they don't outfit their people with these," Dax replied.

"You don't give mooks good gear. That just supplies the enemy," Kyle replied.

"Judgment Armor, right? You showed me a picture of this. Yeah, the robe is a bit like a dress, but I have admit this hood is simply bad-ass. Not to mention the daggers ornamenting the shoulders! That and the red, gold and black color scheme is choice." Kyle looked over and saw that Matt was already putting on the finishing touches of his new, vastly superior armor. The old set was sitting in a half-hazard pile next to him, and as he put on the hood a pair of glowing white eyes sprang into existence to complete the effect.

The paladin turned to his companions and asked, "Be honest: does this robe make me look fat?"

Unable to resist, Kyle buried her face in her hands with a heavy sigh. Then she began pulling the armor off the mannequins, before pulling it on as quickly as she could get the generic leather gear she was wearing off.

After pulling on the black-and-red pants, she turned to the stunned Dax, who was staring at her with wide eyes. "Quit staring and change, unless you don't think this gear is an improvement!"

"I... I don't..." Dax started to say, before a mannequin slammed into him, some of the leather armor on it falling to the floor at his feet.

As he tried to change and watch Kyle, he managed to get both legs into one leg of armor and fell painfully onto his face. While that was going on, Kyle quickly switched leather chest pieces, enjoying the improved flexibility even as she slid on the bracers and gloves and admired the way she could move her fingers and hands as if there was nothing on them at all.

Finally, she pulled on the hood, frowning as she fed her ears through the openings provided, and grinning as she felt her face disappear into the shadow the design granted her.

"Oh, now this... this is something else," Kyle said, flexing her hands and looking at them.

Dax finally got his own armor on, grumbling about how he had missed the best part, and finally, the three stepped out of the armory, feeling a little more confident than before.

"It's too bad we can't get some worthwhile weapons. I remember that some good ones were found here, but it's unlikely we'll come across any of the originals."

"I think this is a pretty good find itself," Dax replied.

Kyle shrugged. "True. We've got one big room full of weird grinder things on the walls.. the Chromaguss' Lair, then Neltharion's throne room. Want to bet the leader of these Gold Farmers is in there?"

"My life for Auir! Wait, right company, wrong game..." Matt muttered to himself. "I'm going to need a proper battlecry if we're going to be doing this right. Spoon? Nah..."

As they made their way further in, Kyle paused in shock. Unlike the piles of bones seen earlier, the corpse of Chromaggus lay where it had fallen, not looking as if any time had gone by at all. The deadly wounds that had brought the two-headed dragon/dog low still leaked fluids, and its dull eyes stared at them in silent, unending accusation.

"Why isn't it decaying?" Dax asked, poking the corpse with his dagger tentatively.

"I would imagine Nefarion's tinkering with the Bronze Dragonflight caused this... it's like he's frozen in time, at the exact moment of his death," Kyle replied, wondering whether or not Nozdormu, the keeper of time and leader of the bronze dragonflight would care that the blood of his brood had been used to create this abomination; and how it affected it still. Probably not. Turning to look at the raised portcullis, Kyle nodded towards it. "Through there is where we'll probably find the leader of the Gold Farmers."

Kyle turned to look at Matt, finally catching the paladin's attention after a few more moments of internal deliberation.

"Aha! I've got one!" Matt nodded happily to himself. "I'm ready when you are."

Kyle motioned towards the door. "By all means."

Matt drew his sword and muttered blessings over his, Kyle's, and Dax's weapons. They all glowed softly with a faint hue, and the two rogues stepped back, Kyle disappearing into invisibility. Before fading, Dax glanced back the way they had come, scowling a moment before slipping into stealth alongside the night elf.

Through the oversized entrance Matt strode, armor glinting in the evening light as it streamed in through one open side of the chamber. The glint, however, was diminished somewhat by the unnaturally large piles of gold coating the floor across from the opening in veritable mountains of gold coin.

With the opening on one side, and the gold on the other, there existed a corridor down the length of the chamber from the entrance that lead up to an impressive stone throne.

And on that throne sat a man... a human; and one that was unsettlingly familiar to Kyle.

Dax, ignoring the figure, focused his attention on the twelve or so guards and gold farmers stationed around the room, some looking forward to the one-sided assault on the trespassers, others looking warily at Matt and obviously unaccustomed to combat.

Not one to waste a perfectly good battlecry despite already holding everyone's attention, Matt bellowed, "LEEEEROOOOOOOOOY JEEEEEEEENKIIIIIIIINS!" as he charged the surprised group, seemingly alone in his mad rush against what appeared to be a superior force. After a few moments the people who looked like they knew how to fight unsheathed their weapons with a knowing smirk and prepared to engage the interloper.

"News flash! You're standing on holy ground! Consecration!" Cracks formed in the floor where holy magic sprang up from the stone floor and spread out in a circle roughly seven feet in all directions. This severely annoyed the people immediately surrounding Matt by causing them slight pain, but otherwise did not do much damage. It did its job, though, by keeping the attention squarely on him.

Kyle watched Matt engage the crowd, and knew the odds were definitely stacked against them. As the paladin was surrounded, Kyle made her way to the throne, enjoying the way the shadows hid her presence, until she reappeared beside the leader of the Gold farmers, dagger held against his throat.

"Stay your blades!" She called, hoping that was the right thing to say at a critical juncture such as this.

"How sad," the leader said with a slight sigh.

Kyle blinked. That wasn't how it was supposed to go. "Excuse me?"

The leader turned his head to look at Kyle, and suddenly the dagger in her hand went flying, Dax appearing with his foot out, having just kicked it from her hands. "Did you really think..." the leader elaborated, Dax taking up a position behind him, "honestly believe, that I would just let you waltz in here, uncontested?"

Kyle frowned, even as she felt the tip of a sword at her back. "Umm... we didn't get in here uncontested. And I take it Dax is yours? He killed a few of your men."

The Leader shrugged, turning to Dax. Dax nodded. "It's true. They were inattentive and weak. Better off dead than guarding something potentially valuable."

Kyle scowled at the by-play, before crossing her arms defiantly. "So... who are you? You look just like him, but he's dead."

"Your knowledge of human history is quite good, if you recognize me. I chose this face to mock his memory, honestly. He failed in his task, and as I was always referred to as his lesser, I felt it only fitting," the smiling face of Victor Nefarius said.

Kyle nodded. "You took his lair for your own devices... is it safe to assume more Gold Farmers can be found in Onyxia's Lair, as well? The Lady Prestor may be dead, but surely you've not put all your eggs in one basket." Kyle glanced at the piles of gold, before shrugging. "So to speak," she amended.

"Oh, very good, little mortal. I shall have to tear all you know from your little purple skull before I finish you off."

"Oi! Piss-for-brains. Forgetting someone?" Matt waved his sword for effect.

Dax sneered. "He knows nothing. A high-elven paladin of Elune. This night elf is the brains."

The being disguised as the previous lord of Blackrock Mountain frowned. "And yet, they come all this way for a third... one whose bearing is even more regal that this one is self-assured," he replied, waving a hand at Kyle.

"Whatever she may be, your plans are too far-reaching for any of these to interfere. Best to do away with them," Dax hissed.

"Remember your place, Dax. This one has knowledge. And I will see it become mine before she draws her last breath."

"Funny, Sartharion said something similar, right before he was ambushed in the Obsidian Sanctum."

The leader of the Gold Farmers drew back as if physically struck. "WHAT!?"

"Oh, yes. Below Wyrmrest Temple in the Dragonblight of Northrend, your brood's next great plan is already nothing more than a memory. But what can you expect from the addled minds of Deathwing the Deranged's demented brood."

"How dare you. HOW DARE YOU! The Black Dragonflight will rule this world, and all the lesser beings shall know their place, or die defending the lie that is their freedom!"

"Tell it to your brother, you half-witted lizard," Kyle replied, ignoring the hard poke in the back she got for that.

"..." The dragon in human-form opened his mouth to shout a response, before pausing. "You shall die. But only after watching all you hold dear to you suffer. BRING OUT THE WENCH!"