The Man I Love

A/N: Thanks a lot for reading! So now next chapters, I hope you will like them as well ; I have been busy with work so maybe they are shorter, but I will try to keep up the story as much as I possibly can!



A/N2: Thanks a lot for the reviews! Highly taken into consideration :) Hope to hear more soon!! ^^

Now,

on with the story!!!!!





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     As they rode off north towards Felwood, their mounts seemed to grow accustomed to the constant riding and they adopted a pace which was slower but constant; this way they had only to make very few stops to give them water and a little rest.

     The trees were blown by the stronger wind that was beginning to show up, and the colorful dyes of greens, violets and blues of the Ashenvale forest had begun to darken into mere browns and blacks as the sunset gave way to the night.

     They hadn’t been riding for two hours when they had to make a sudden, aggressive stop very near Raynewood Retreat. A scream of pain and fear pierced through the air.

‘’Off the road. Now!’’ Crikton hissed at his friend, backing away and directing his mount towards some bushes behind two tall trees. He dismounted and crouched beneath them, listening carefully.

  Zeyhan followed him, hiding just some meters away in another set of bushes. Their mounts had to be left striding around if they were to hide effectively; the animals were too big to be hidden and it was too risky to cling on to them.

‘’I hear someone…’’ Whispered Zeyhan in Crikton’s direction, but the man just raised his hand in a halting motion and listened. 

     He began crawling his way under bushes and plants, behind trees and slopes, so that he wouldn’t be spotted by whoever was there. His body crept like that of a snake across the forest’s cold, damp ground as he made his way towards the source of the scream. The wind blew harder and harder, and the sunlight was quickly fading away; it was not going to last any longer, and they would be soon consumed by darkness.

     The sounds of cries, clashing weapons and thuds could be heard in the air, and his heart began to race faster and faster as adrenaline ran in his veins; there was something hostile in the situation that he didn’t like at all, but nonetheless he approached the source of the screaming individual.

  He waved at Zeyhan, telling him with just signs that he could come closer. The Paladin did as he was being told, and from the position at which he had arrived by crawling, he couldn’t believe what he saw. Between bushes, plants, the grass and some big roots, he caught a glimpse of a bulky, big, green back covered in strong, shiny plated armor; and a head popping out, bald and with somewhat pointy ears. Beside this individual, that seemed very much like an Orc, stood a hooded figure, but to guess from its crooked, back-arched pose it had to be a troll. Zeyhan couldn’t hold a gasp. His eyes round in what he wanted to believe was disbelief but was actually disgust.

‘’What do you see?’’ Crikton whispered as low as he could, trying to make himself understood by his mate.

  Zeyhan shook his head, trying to observe further from those standing figures. Another scream was heard, a woman precisely by the pitch of it. And then, quietness.

‘’There is no point in going there’’ He replied, shaking his head in denial.

‘’What is it?’’ Crikton insisted.

‘’Us.’’ He spat, ‘’Horde.’’ He said. His tone was somber and dead serious, his eyes looked angry.

‘’How many?’’

‘’Two…’’ He waved an arm so that Crikton could come closer and see for himself; and he did. He crept up to Zeyhan and looked in the direction the Elf was pointing at. His own mouth flung open. Well, it was something normal to see other opposing factions do against each other. But with such dishonor, such disgrace and cold hearts… A family. It didn’t even seem fair. His heart gave a leap as he scrutinized everything under his thoughtful look.  

‘’Not every one of us is like that, ’’ Zeyhan tried to defend himself. ’’There are some that still fight with honor’’ He whispered, touching Crikton’s forearm.

 But still, Crikton could just simply not give any credit to what he saw. A middle aged Night Elven female lay face down across the ground right in front of a small, poor, precarious hutch. Her slightly purple skin was pale and her green, long hair fell around her neck and shoulder. Shiny, crimson blood still spouted out of her stabbed body, a big puddle of it was already formed around her body. Almost next to her lay sitting against the wooden wall of the hutch the body of a male Kaldorei, probably her mate. His throat had a big slash from where blood had already stopped cascading down all over his body, and his eyes were still open. Lifeless eyes which seemed to stare right at the crouching couple observing the massacre that had occurred. A final, third body was spotted by Crikton not too far away from the other two. A small child who had tried to run away, but that had been reduced to the ground and probably died with very little struggle. Hopefully with no pain at all.

   He swallowed hard, trying to keep himself at ease. He would not risk his life for ones that were already gone, nor he would let himself lose at the mercy of the rage that had began building inside him. He would also try to avoid bringing Zeyhan any additional problems that he didn’t bring up on himself; but when he heard a small, weak cry… He instantly stared back at Zeyhan with a violent turn of his head, looking for an answer.

‘’What was that?’’ He asked his friend, looking at him. Zeyhan didn’t turn round to face Crikton back; he was too focused observing what was going on just some meters away from them.

      A third individual had shown up from inside the hutch, carrying in his arms a small Elven girl, who probably was not older than eight years of age. She cried, kicked and struggled under the strong grasp of another Blood Elf as he carried her away towards his friends. The short haired, dark purple skinned brave little elf kicked her captor as he laughed at her failed attempts of freeing herself. She babbled things in Darnassian and cried desperately as she noticed the bodies laying on the ground before her.

‘’Three.’’ Crikton pointed out, his heart gave another leap. That was just mean, cruel and unnecessary, but they were just two, and the others were three up to what they could see from their hiding spot…

‘’That is so wrong!’’ He said sharply as his hands turned unconsciously into fists, pressing them so hard that his hails would have pierced his skin if it were not for the gloves he was wearing.

‘’Shh… I’m trying to hear what they say.’’ Zeyhan told him as he sharpened his ear and paid attention.

 The Orc spoke in a very low, deep voice which sounded like grunts; they all laughed and looked at each other; the little Elf still trying to get away. In between laughs, grunts and the screaming cries and shrieks from the youngling he could only make out things like ‘fun’ , ‘blood’, ‘trip’ and ‘head back’. But he was not even sure… He needed to be closer…

   The two men watched in horror as the Blood Elf placed the small girl down on the floor, letting her go and then waiting for his mates to chase after her and bring her back. It was like a fetching game, but only fun for those on their side.  The petite Night Elf ran for several times till she was too tired to fight back, her small, thin body finally surrendering, looking at them in horror as only the hooded figure approached her.

 But it all happened too fast.

‘’Hey!’’ He shouted as he walked towards them, a fake smile across his lips ‘’What are you doing, fellow mates?’’ He asked.

 Crikton’s heart faltered and his stomach turned as Zeyhan’s voice began to grow distant. He looked at his side only to see the Elf was missing. ‘You stupid fool’ he though with anger; he knew that even if he tried, three was a considerable number when it came down to fighting terms. Crikton couldn’t understand a word of what they were saying, but to guess from the tone in their voices, it just seemed like a casual encounter.

‘’Havin’ some fun, eeh’’ replied the hooded figure. It was certainly a troll, tall but crouched, his blue hair hanging down in dreadlocks, his face pale and tattooed in whites and yellows; it reminded Zeyhan a lot about Keyrna’s tattoo. His tusks, though, were much bigger and sharper than those of his friend, and they were pointing now In his direction, threatening.

‘’I see.’’ He said, trying to hold on to an easygoing attitude. His head tilted towards the girl being held by the Orc, ‘’and what about that one there?’’ He tried to sound as normal as possible, his heart was beating out of control, but he needed to keep a hold of himself if his plan had a remote chance of working.

‘’The last one,’’ the Orc demanded, almost proudly. ‘’She was going to be mine, but you can have her.’’ He said with a dumb smile across his face, pushing her trembling body towards Zeyhan.

 He caught her right before she hit the floor, but he tried not to look gentle as he pulled her towards him. With trembling hands he groped her little shoulders and held her tight. She was frightened of him as much as she was frightened of these other men around her; for her it was the same, they were all threats and she couldn’t tell the difference.

‘’Oh…’’ He replied, looking at the faces of the other men that were observing him. The other Blood Elf seemed to be a hunter, he even had a gun hanging from his left side, but his pet was nowhere to be seen around. The other two seemed like warriors; the Orc slightly stronger than the Troll, but Zeyhan could have been wrong. ‘’This sounds tempting…’’ He swallowed; a mischievous smile across his face as he slid his hands up to the Night Elf’s frail neck. She whimpered and sobbed as she tried to move away.  

      Crikton’s heart was beating out of control, he saw as the others seemed passive in Zeyhan’s presence, and he knew that he couldn’t just show up in the middle of their conversation, but he just wished he could. How foolish it was of Zeyhan to go there alone, now how was he planning on getting out of this situation he had dived head first into?

‘Please don’t do anything stupid.’ Crikton begged as he saw Zeyhan slightly position himself with his feet on the direction of the main road.



 

But it was too late.