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 Post subject: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 7:32 pm 
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((I'm going to try to go in smaller bits at a time this time. Hope you enjoy!))

Escaping. That’s all Kaeevanrash could think about. Escaping and the myriad obstacles that were making that more difficult to accomplish. His heart was pounding so hard from running that it felt like it was going to explode. His limbs were beginning to feel like lead, and the broken iron shackles on his wrists certainly didn’t help. He had no weapons nor armor, his only clothing being some tattered cloth pants.

The shaman wasn’t even entirely sure just where he was. He thought he might be still be in Ashenvale Forest, but where? He couldn’t think on it long enough to figure that out yet. Right now, he just knew he had to get away. He just had to find some place where he could hide and rest. Some place where the certain death that was following him would not discover him.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 7:32 pm 
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The path Kaeev ran on began to slope downhill somewhat. His running slowed to a clumsy stumble, his limbs quaking from exertion and his breath ragged as he drifted off the path into the foliage. As he tried to descend a rocky hill his hooves slipped, and he made the rest of that descent in a painful tumble.

His whole body ached, but he did not feel he had broken anything from the fall, thankfully. He got up slowly, still a bit disoriented when he heard a low growl behind him. He whirled around quickly and looked up in time to see a dark-furred nightsaber jumping off the rocks right at him, bearing menacing claws and fangs.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Fri Jan 29, 2010 8:19 pm 
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“Umph!” grunted Kaeev as he caught the large cat, kicking it behind him as they fell. The cat landed on the ground several paces away, but it did not stay there long. By the time Kaeev sat up and turned, the nightsaber was upon him again. It was both big and heavy, and the shaman was able to keep its attacks at bay only so much. He caught one of its paws in one hand, the other locked in its maw as he managed to catch its bite on his wrist. It was a small boon granted by an unlikely source; the shackle still on his wrist was protecting it from the crushing and tearing of the cat’s powerful jaws. But it still had a paw free, and it was gradually getting past Kaeev’s arm in attempt to claw at his neck and face.

The cat did not look starved by any means, for that was the first reason Kaeev could think of that he would be attacked in this manner. Unless--which he quickly realized--this beast was sent after him specifically to slay him.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 10:05 pm 
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Fear, in a greater degree than before, began to set in on Kaeev. Fear that, even if he did not sustain mortal injury, this beast would slow him enough that the death in pursuit would surely catch up to him. Galvanized into action, he shut his eyes as he suddenly relaxed his arm that was in the nightsaber’s mouth, which caused to beast to press right up against his body.

Before the beast could react and move in for a lethal bite, it hissed and whimpered as it began to convulse, while Kaeev’s hands glowed a bluish white with the sizzle of electricity. This small call was enough to subdue the beast, and for Kaeev to give it a hefty shove off him with a hoof.

But the adrenaline was still pumping through the shaman’s veins, and he did not stop there. He quickly got up and staggered the few paces to the nightsaber and brought down a heavy hoof on its throat with a sickening ‘crunch’. It went still instantly.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Sun Jan 31, 2010 10:09 pm 
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Kaeev looked away, regret on his face for what he just did. He knew he had to do what he just did. One way or another, he likely would not have survived another encounter with this now-dead nightsaber. He checked himself for scratches: he was bleeding, but not badly. He’d be all right. Another surge of adrenaline kicked in as he continued running, daring not to look back behind him as he strayed further off the path into the forest.

A short time later he arrived in a small clearing where he stopped to catch his breath, the first real opportunity he had to do so. He didn’t get to for very long before distant shouts reached his ears. He listened hard, trying to quiet his own breathing in the process.

He heard a distant scream, one of words he did not recognize. A moment later he heard it again. It was that of a female, and the words were in Darnassian, and with the way it was said, it almost sounded like a name. Then it hit him: the nightsaber. They had found its body. They were not far behind.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Tue Feb 02, 2010 10:49 am 
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((This is goood Kaeev, keep it coming!))

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When all have left, all we have is us...


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 7:17 pm 
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Kaeev hurriedly pressed on, getting short on breath again as he left the clearing and crashed through more brush. Then, as he passed a tree, he suddenly had the strange impression that he should stop. It was the last thing he wanted to do; he kept going. But the impression soon came again. Gasping for breath at this point, he acted on the prompting this time, stopping and leaning himself against a great tree.

As he labored to catch his breath, he happened to look at the tree’s massive roots, and noticed an abundance of moss growing on and in between them. Feeling oddly curious, he reached and pulled off what ended up being a large hunk of the stuff. He examined it closely, sniffing it a bit when he then got an idea. He looked heavenward.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 7:18 pm 
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Night elf sentinels--several of them--stole their way through the wood with blades drawn and arrows nocked on their bows. Several Nightsabers followed suit with them, quietly sniffing out the area for unusual scents. What little noise they did make was almost completely drowned out by the sounds of forest life.

In the past, Ashenvale Forest was a sparsely settled hunting ground, the ancestral homeland of the night elves for millennia. That all changed when the Burning Legion came again into their lands only three years before. The hunting in and caring of this lush forest was left by the wayside to do battle against the demonic threat. Though the Legion was defeated, the Kaldorei traditions surrounding this had never been fully embraced again. Just a couple of years was all it took for forces both natural and unnatural to take over the majority of the land. Roads had become overgrown and nigh impassable as they yielded to the verdure, the sky almost completely blocked out by the expanding canopy. The Horde had slowly begun harvesting lumber in the east. Naga had surfaced in the west, and traces of the Legion still remained in parts of the land. Finally, the wildlife, fueled by the surge of vegetation and lack of hunting, had overrun much of the land. In short, Ashenvale Forest had become a land that was wild, dangerous and beautiful all rolled into one.

The sentinels cautiously pressed onward, the plants proving to be but a slight hindrance in their search for their quarry. Occasionally one of them would hold up a hand for silence to listen, but simply motion for them to continue forward a moment or two later. Their Nightsabers eyed their surroundings with them, continuing sniffing the ground. The group moved on, gradually making their way back toward what was left of a road.

....From underneath a massive tree root that looked practically buried in foliage, Kaeevanrash watched them pass by until they were out of sight, before giving a quiet but very long sigh of relief. He was safe...for now.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Wed Mar 03, 2010 7:19 pm 
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Finally the shaman could breath normally again. It took every ounce of effort he could muster to keep his breath quiet after all that running. That flash of what he believed to be inspiration worked well in his favor; the moss that he stumbled across masked his scent well enough for him to hide and remain undetected. The thought came to him that maybe with some alchemy he could devise some sort of elixir that would have a similar effect, but he didn’t dwell on it long as a more pressing question soon returned: where exactly was he?

From his vantage point he looked around, hoping to find any visual clues as to his whereabouts. It definitely looked like Ashenvale, but he had no idea what part of the forest he might be in. He was relatively familiar with the region, but he did not recognize any landmarks that would tell him what part of the forest. Then, a distant sound he heard made his settling heart sink: that of waves crashing. He would only be able to hear that if he were somewhat close to the region’s western shore.

He breathed a discouraged sigh and rested his head on the soft earth. As he laid there quietly in his hiding place, musing over his predicament, fatigue soon gave way to sleep.

Splintertree Post was to the south and far to the east. He had a long trip ahead of him.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Wed Mar 24, 2010 11:43 pm 
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Three days ago…

“Hey Kaeev!”

The shaman ignored the gruff voice calling after him. He was busy chopping away at a huge tree, and he’d only just started. He was one among several orcs doing the same job.

The voice called for him again, this time sounding a little more serious. “Grunt!”

He stopped upon hearing his rank, and turned to face the voice’s source. An orc guard, clad in spiked armor and bearing a crude axe in one hand and a parchment in the other, stood before him. The guard traded glances between the writing on the parchment and Kaeev, the latter look having a disapproving feel about it. Finally the guard spoke, offering Kaeev the parchment. “I’ve orders f’r you to report to Blood Guard Stoneaxe at the Kargathia Keep immediately.”

The shaman did his own trade of glances between the guard and the tree he had begun chopping away at. “Now, Grunt,” said the guard. 

Suppressing the urge to scowl (among other things) at the guard, Kaeev nodded as he put down his axe, took the parchment and started toward Kargathia Keep, dusting flecks of bark off on his pants and then wiping his brow and on his shirt before ruffling it in an attempt to cool off. Notwithstanding the guard and having no idea what he was being summoned for, he welcomed the “break” he was getting.

The past several months had not been very fun for him. He had proven himself in battle and on several missions in the service of the Horde while stationed in the Barrens, only to get sent up to Ashenvale to do little more than chop wood at the Warsong Lumber Camp. He never considered himself strong as far as tauren go, but the stereotype around here was that any tauren was more than qualified for unskilled manual labor. He was a shaman, a gifted shu’halo with close ties to the Spirits and the elements. Here, he was just another laborer, a laborer with valuable skills and a good reputation that seemed to have gone unrecognized. And finally, there was the whole business of cutting down the trees. He understood that the harvest of lumber was necessary for the Horde to establish a foothold in this land and supply their needs elsewhere, but the deforestation here still nagged at him. He could feel the land’s pain when he first arrived here, and it was only growing with time as more trees fell to saw and axe.

He breathed a sigh, glancing at the parchment as he made his way through the camp toward Kargathia Keep. The note had nothing further to add from what he’d already been told.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Thu Mar 25, 2010 3:51 pm 
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More guards keeping the way into Kargathia Keep parted as Kaeev showed them the parchment with Stoneaxe’s seal upon it. The keep itself still was not yet completed, but it was far enough along in its construction that a command post had already been established there. Entering the keep, he made his way around the circular hall to the doorway leading into the main room. Once there, he rolled his shoulders back, stood up straight and entered the main room, maintaining bearing.

The main room was rather large, but cluttered with construction materials. At one end of the room there was a large desk, filled with stacks of paperwork, maps and the odd weapon here and there. Two orcs sat there, studying a map of the region. The first was large in stature with deep green skin, hazel eyes and long black hair. Both his physical features and armor were well-kept, even for an orc. He looked quite busy. The other orc appeared lesser by comparison on all accounts: a bit lanky, more crude armor and looking rather stressed. It wasn’t hard for Kaeev to guess which of the two was Blood Guard Stoneaxe. He came to the desk, stopping some paces away before facing the pair directly. His hooves made a slight “click” as they came together and he saluted the officer, saying, “Sir, Grunt Kaeevanrash reporting as you ordered.”

Stoneaxe eyed him up and down, a look the shaman had received many times in the past several minutes. After a moment of silence that was beginning to grow awkward, the officer stated, “At ease, Grunt.”

Kaeev relaxed his stance, waiting anxiously to hear the reason he was summoned here.

Stoneaxe was right to the point. “Are you a shaman?” he asked.

“Yes sir,” answered Kaeev, a hint of pride in his voice. His response was met with another quiet and awkward moment as Stoneaxe eyed him up and down again.

 “The shamans of my people are often easy to distinguish by their trinkets, paintings or tattoos,” said Stoneaxe with some skepticism, “yet I do not see any on you. Where are yours?”

“I have them, sir,” replied Kaeev. To affirm this, he held out his hands with his palms open. He frowned slightly as looked at them himself. Gray and blue symbols were indeed painted on the palms of his hands and on his wrists, but they had become badly faded with time and hard labor. Stoneaxe looked at them and grunted, seeming satisfied. “A servant of the storm,” he muttered aloud more to himself than to Kaeev. The shaman nodded anyway.

Stoneaxe then fixed his eyes angrily on the other orc, who yelped in pain as the officer stood suddenly and dealt him a swift thump on the head with his fist. “Idiot,” said Stoneaxe, gesturing with a hand toward Kaeev as he verbally berated the other orc, quoting him in a mocking tone. “’There aren’t any shamans here,’” he said. “‘Send for one from Orgrimmar or Thunder Bluff.’ Yes, waste even more days waiting, doing paperwork—“ He took a moment to then gesture toward the tall, unkempt stack of parchment on the desk. “while one resides here right under our very noses! And you put him to work, chopping wood with the peons!”

At this point, Kaeev was looking a little bemused as he watched. He then tensed as Stoneaxe looked his way suddenly and said, “How long have you been here, shaman?”

Hesitating briefly, Kaeev looked up as he quickly recollected. “About 4 months sir,” he answered hastily.

“FOUR MONTHS!” bellowed Stoneaxe before bopping the other orc on the head again. “And only just TODAY, after sifting through all this—“ He gestured to the pile of parchment again. “--did I find record of him even being here! Get out of my sight, before I put you in his place for four YEARS. Dismissed, Sergeant!”

The other orc, quailing from the reprimand, saluted smartly and left the room in haste through the doorway opposite the one Kaeev entered in.

“Uggh! Useless..” exclaimed Stoneaxe before sitting back down in his chair, rubbing his temple for another seemingly long and awkward moment while Kaeev stood there, fearing to make any sound lest the Blood Guard turn his wrath on him.  The officer’s arm fell from his temple, his hand landing on the table with another ‘thump’ as he then fixed his eyes on Kaeev and gave a frustrated sigh before he spoke again.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Tue Mar 30, 2010 3:40 pm 
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Stoneaxe’s tone of voice was level now.  “Grunt,” he began, “if you ever are given command over a post, keep things organized.” The last three words were said slowly and emphatically. “Otherwise, you might find yourself in that sergeant’s boots when someone comes to take over.” He looked out the doorway that orc had departed and shook his head with with a grumble. Kaeev simply nodded his head, keeping silent.

Stoneaxe’s gaze then fell to the map on the desk as he reached underneath it and pulled out another parchment. Holding it in front of him, he began to read it out loud.

 “Grunt Kaeevanrash.” 

“Yes sir,” answered Kaeev swiftly. Stoneaxe merely raised an eyebrow as he paused, looking up at the shaman briefly before reading on. “Winterhoof tribe by blood, trained as a shaman with the Stormspeaker tauren.” He simply mumbled as he read between lines he deemed more noteworthy. “Recommended for service in the Horde by his elders for his gifts.” More mumbling. “Kaeevanrash was instrumental in maintaining security at the various Horde posts within the Barrens. He quickly rose to the task in combating the local threats; centaur, quillboar, silithid, Venture Company, Druids of the Fang, it did not matter. He not only played a crucial role in repelling these threats but also…” He then spoke with some emphasis again. “…used his healing abilities to sustain his fellow grunts, keeping casualties to a minimum. Signed, Sergra Darkthorn.” He set the parchment down, fixing his eyes on Kaeev again. “She is not one that is easy to impress, shaman. I think you are just the one we need for an important mission.”


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Sun Apr 04, 2010 11:12 pm 
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Stoneaxe beckoned Kaeev closer with one hand, the other turning the map around so the shaman had a clear view of it. There were various marks on it to indicate certain locations, including the lumber camp as well as another post just west of it. The officer put a finger on that spot. “Splintertree Post—here—is our newest and westernmost location within the Ashenvale Forest. We hope to change that soon by setting up an outpost on the western shore, here.” He set his finger on each location as he spoke. “In order to be able to effectively communicate with that post, our wind riders will need to know the quickest and safest route they can take without worry of Alliance or other forces trying to shoot them down.”

He looked up at Kaeev briefly before continuing, again indicating different locations with a finger. “That is where you come in. Right now we know the major Alliance posts between us and the shore are Astranaar, here, and Maestra’s Post here. Those are the ones we know of, but we think there may be more. I want you as part of a scouting party to make your way across the forest to the shore. Document the location of any posts you find, Alliance or otherwise. Avoid confrontation with them as much as possible; this is a reconnaissance mission, not a hunt for blood.” He spoke that last part of the sentence with emphasis. “Finally, when you return, your party will report your route to me.”

He leaned back in the chair, looking up at Kaeev, “Report to Sergeant Ugath, he will be your party leader. Dismissed, Grunt.”
 
“Sir,” said Kaeev, coming to attention and saluting Stoneaxe, who returned it with his own salute while saying, “Lok’tar ogar.”

The shaman marched out the way he came. Once he was out of the room and out of Stoneaxe’s sight, he resumed a normal walk and looked at his open hands again, with their faded paintings on them. He frowned again. It had been some time since he had called upon the Spirits, and he felt like it showed.

He stepped out of Kargathia Keep, still looking at his hands. Then, getting the feeling someone was watching him, he stopped and looked up. Sure enough, there was the guard that originally brought him the order to come here, standing there.

“What did he tell you?” said the guard.

Rather than mention the specifics of the mission Stoneaxe had given him, Kaeev only answered, “He asked that I report to Sergeant Ugath as soon as possible.”

The guard smirked. “You’ve found him, Grunt. Go meet with the quartermaster and get yourself some armor. We leave early on the morrow.”


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Mon Apr 19, 2010 5:45 pm 
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Two days ago...

Kaeev came to slowly and in a daze that made his stomach turn. The taste of blood on his lips became apparent, and he didn’t know why. He didn’t know where he was or what had happened, only that he was in pain. His head pounded like a hammer on an anvil as his vision was still unclear. His back felt sore and scraped, as if he had been dragged. And the side of his neck ached like something sharp pricked him badly. The last thing he could remember before now was leaving with Sergeant Ugath and the rest of the party that morning, deviating from the main path once they had crossed the river just past Splintertree Post, at the bridge.

His hand reached up to massage his aching head. His hand felt heavy as he lifted it, but he thought nothing of it as his senses still remained in a stupor.

..until an awful sound reached his ears: the jangle of iron chains.


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 Post subject: Re: Between A Tree And A Hard Place
PostPosted: Mon Apr 19, 2010 10:37 pm 
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The fetters on Kaeev’s wrists immediately went taut as the sound registered in his mind, and for a brief moment his senses became clear. He did not notice the chains that were on his hooves, and that they were shorter in length than the ones on his wrists. Thus, as he stumbled onto his hooves to move forward, he tripped as those chains went taut also and he fell forward, howling in pain at the terrible strain this put on his arms before he slumped onto the ground. His senses floundered again and his stomach felt as though it would heave like an oncoming tide. Voices reached his ears, startled shouts in Darnassian. Further disoriented, his cries settled to agonized moans as he managed to keep his stomach under control, and he looked up from the dirt and strained to focus.

Blurred shapes moved in front of him, keeping their distance as they continued to shout the same words in Darnassian that he could not understand while they brandished their weapons. Another voice shouted at them in the same language, and the fuzzy shapes parted as another made its way through them and toward him.

The shapes finally began to take form as the shaman’s daze began to fade, at least for now. There were several night elves eyeing him with angry glares as the central figure approached him. Clad in a fine, hard leather cuirass and with long brown hair and a scruffy face came a human, who was soon right in his face with a sneer that was quickly annoying the shaman. Kaeev spied insignias on his shoulders, which hinted that he was of significantly higher rank in the Alliance. The thought came that he could shatter the man’s leg with a well-placed kick, but the eyes of the others watching him indicated that was not a good idea. He was in no place to attack without harsh consequence. He was a prisoner. The shame of it all began to weigh on him. He said nothing to the human who was still looking him over, letting his head loll to one side as he avoided the human’s gaze. What was there to say anyway, thought Kaeev. I do not understand them, and I doubt they will understand me. He stared off at nothing, certain that the human would speak soon enough, if he had anything to say at all.


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