Gifts of Affection

“…W-What was that?” There was no hiding the trepidation in Vaen’s voice. The only reply he received through the pitch darkness was a frightened whimper. An oppressive black crept over his vision, the only source of light coming from two red beads on the ground. The figurine.



“Can you feel my hand?” Vaen waved his hand around searchingly in the dark, until he felt fingers grasping back into his palm.



“…Yes.” He held her hand as she pulled herself up to her feet. His vision denied, he could feel his other senses heightening as he heard her kicking tiny pebbles as she climbed to her feet. He could even hear her heartbeat thumping against her chest, every hurried breath she took.



“We’re going to move over there to pick up the figurine, alright?” He gripped her hand tightly. It was the only connection he had to the living now. There was no denying there was a comfort in knowing there was another living, breathing being next to him.



“Ok.” He could tell she was steeling her nerves, trying to hide the quivering fear coursing through her body. Her hand shook.



Vaen dropped to his knees, picking up the faintly glowing figurine, the two red beads on the doll still glowing. “D-Do you know what that voice was?” She whispered to him. She hung close to his body, wrapping her arm around his.



[i]“Ywaq puul skshgn…”[/i]



They froze. The dark whisper pervaded through the air like a pestilent wind. It was as if it were in reply. Vaen could feel his hand being squeezed in a death grip.



[i]”…on'ma yeh'glu zuq.”[i]



He passed the figurine over to the blood elf, making sure she had a firm hold on the figurine before he released his grip.



Vaen’s mind tingled, a lightheaded feeling coursing through. His head felt airy, as it seemed his conscience spoke to him.



[i]“They drink your fear…”[/i]



He could feel her shiver.



[i]“…it is the blood of life.”[/i]



He stood deathly still. An ominous silence hung in the air. It was instinct.



A faint rhythm began resounding in the distance. It was soft at first, growing louder and louder with each passing second. It was unmistakable. Something was coming.



“Summon the dog.” He whispered as deathly low as he could.



He felt her squeeze his hand in reply. The small red beads flashed as a small aura of purple surrounded the blood elf. His heart was relieved to momentarily see light, to see the slender girl’s features, to be able to see anything at all. He watched as she closed her eyes in concentration, murmuring arcane words. In an instant, the room shone with light as the felhound crawled from a portal torn from the Nether.



The felhound recoiled in fear as it recognized Vaen’s face. Vaen wasted no time sheathing his sword, and using his free hand to pluck up the pup by the scruff of its neck, holding it in front of him like a torch. Its burning eyes and each labored breath illuminated a few feet in front of Vaen in a sickly red hue.



“Come on.” He slowly strode forward, the blood elf following closely behind. The felhound whined and whimpered as it twisted to and fro in Vaen’s grasp. The rumble was growing closer.



[i]“ Ywaq ma phgwa'cul hnakf.”[/i]



The dark whisper was louder now. It was almost as if… it were next to them, whispering in their ears.



Vaen looked back at the girl, the resolve in her green eyes. He could see the fire reflected in her pupils. Her defiance had finally given her a backbone.



“I don’t know how this is going to end. “ She did well to hide her fear. “But in case something happens… I’m Vaen. With the Stormwind Regiment from Elwynn.”



“You can call me Senna.” The golden-haired elf looked deep into his eyes. “Thalassian for Light. You will guide us safely out of here, Vaen.” She tried to curl her lips into a reassuring smile, the coy, beaming grin he had been so accustomed to in a prior life. She patted his shoulder, tucking in close behind him.



A voice resounded in their minds. [i]“They are the whisper on the shivering wind.”[/i]



The felhound shrieked. A high pitched whine emanating from its maw as the voice echoed through its mind. It thrashed to and fro in Vaen’s grasp, before it slipped from his hands, landing onto the ground. Vaen dropped to the floor, trapping the felhound in his hands.



“Vwooosh!” A bolt of shadowflame ripped overhead, barely missing Vaen’s torso, singing the fabric on Senna’s robe as it sailed past them and exploded against the far wall into a conflagration of sickly crimson flame. Senna’s eyes widened in shock as she righted her body, having twisted it with a hair’s breadth to spare. Feline-like reflexes.



Vaen grabbed the felhound by the scruff of its neck, holding it in front of himself like a shield as he charged forward in the direction of the shadowflame bolt. “Follow me!” He shouted.



Senna quickly followed after the burning red beacon in Vaen’s hand, trying to keep up with his pace as the darkness threatened to engulf her.



Two globes of shadow energy were swirling in the darkness, a blackness that was visible even in the pitch darkness. It seemed as if the darkness itself was being manipulated, drawn from the ether into a condensed form. Vaen had seen it too many times already. Shadow magic.



His eyes followed the motions of the swirling black globes intently as he raced forward. Waiting for the precise moment, he ducked as he saw the globes whip towards him, slinging another missile of the fiery shadow energy towards him. Vaen dashed to the side, narrowly dodging it as the ball of destruction zipped past him, crashing into a plume of shadowfire behind him.



Vaen raised the felhound high, illuminating his target. His mouth dropped agape at what he saw.



It was a massive, hulking creature with no discernable face; its head grotesquely misshapen, what appeared to be a long, willowy snout running down its head. A thick carapace-like, hardened shell covered its body, fitting together like sheets of armor, sinewy muscle overgrown at its joints. Two arm-like appendages sprouted from either side of its thick trunk, each arm splitting into a mass of long, spiny, floundering tendrils, snaking back and forth in the air like snakes. Two sockets in its head flickered open. Two malevolent yellow eyes revealed themselves, gazing straight at Vaen.



[i]“Shur’nab… shur’nab!”[/i] They were no longer just whispers. The creature’s voice was dark and terrible, a chill running through his bones as the sound echoed through his ears. He could see the monstrosity moving its lower mandibles, as if it were mocking him in laughter.



The faceless one reared its arms backwards, its tendrils glowing with eldritch shadow power. With a violent, sudden forward motion, it erupted another bolt of destructive shadowflame at Vaen.



Caught off-guard at the monster’s quickness, he stumbled as if he tried to dodge the missile. He instinctively raised the felhound up like a steel shield. The pup’s screech reverberated through the room as it was engulfed in shadowfire, the massive ball of destruction bursting into smaller embers, falling to the ground before burning with an unholy light.



Vaen instinctively dropped the felhound as the shadowflame consumed it, smoke rising from the thrashing beast as it flailed in the throes of the unholy fire. Vaen wasted no time. He cut an arc through the air, splitting open a gash on the faceless one’s hardened carapace as it recoiled backwards. He quickly followed it with another slash, his blade singing through the air as he tried plunging the blade edge into the creature’s flesh, narrowly missing as the faceless one sidestepped it with amazing agility.



Senna ran to the injured felhound, dropping to her knees as Vaen occupied the monstrosity. Remarkably, the beast still twitched, the shadowflame that had engulfed it only seconds ago slowly being absorbed by its thick hide.



“Magic resistant… you’re going to make it!” The blood elf laid her hands against the felhound’s burns, its skin growing cooler to the touch by the second. Her hands glowed with a divine hue for a brief moment, as the felhound’s flesh slowly began to mend itself, stitching over the open wounds. The felhound’s eyes flicked open, as it jumped into her arms, licking Senna across the face.



“AaaaggghhHH!” Vaen’s cries of agony echoed through the chamber, his hands clutching his head as if he were trying to contain his brain. The faceless one channeled a beam of black energy from the multitude of its wavering, snake-like tendrils, joined together into a coherent beam of intense, focused shadow energy. The beam seemed to redirect itself into Vaen’s eyes, nose, and mouth, following him as he tried to twist his face away from the monster. The shadow magic had a mind of its own as it ripped into his mind, like a snake violently forcing its way through his orifaces, crawling under his skin, probing into his mind. It felt as if he were being torn apart and melted from the inside.



Senna ran to the human, carrying the felhound in her arms. The way he screamed was sickening, it made her want to empty the contents of her stomach. “Hold on, Vaen!”



She hoisted the felhound in front of the black beam, turning the pup so that the beam diffracted onto the back of its scaly hide. The beam seeked detour around the felhound’s contour, spilling over it like a liquid, seeking entrance into the creature’s fragile mind. But the magic-resistant hide dispersed the shadow magic, nullifying it as tried to gain admittance. Senna held the felhound aloft with one hand, her other hand drawing symbols in the air as she chanted a prayer. Her eyes were filled with worry as she focused her healing onto Vaen’s twitching form, his hands clutching his head.



“Get up!” She screamed at him. He blinked. He could see her mouth moving, but he couldn’t hear any of the words. He groggily got up to his feet, as sound slowly re-entered his conscience. “Get up Vaen! I need you!” She had her back turned to the Faceless One, trying to pull him up to his feet. His hands grasped the leather hilt of his sword again, gripping and ungripping it a few times as refamiliarized himself.



He watched in confusion as Senna’s body flew across the chamber, tumbling through the debris as she impacted against the hard floor. He turned back to the monster. Its massive, tentacle arm had bits of her white robe stuck to it when it smashed into her small body.



The Faceless One raised its arms high in the air as it drew power from the darkness, aggregating into a massive globe of shadow power.



[i] “Gul'kafh an'shel. Yoq'al shn ky ywaq nuul.”[/i]



Vaen took a step back as he grimaced. It felt like his mind was being pried open, forced to divulge all its secrets. And then, the pain vanished. He looked up.



[i]” Gaze into the void. It is the perpetuity in which they dwell.”[/i]



Senna’s figure stared back at him.



“…What? I just saw you…” He looked backwards behind him to the wreckage, but her body was no where to be seen among the craters of shadowfire.



“That’s because you’re a vile, spiteful, petty man.” She spat at him as she walked towards him. She slapped him across the face before he could react. “You are weak and a coward. You really think I could love a bastard like you?” Her voice was full of venom.



His face contorted in anger, tinged with pain. Her words struck a nerve, grinding against a nerve he had hidden deep within his psyche.



“That’s right, kill me. That’s all you can do, run and hide from your problems! You are a pathetic little boy!” Senna laughed at him, her eyes narrowing in mocking derision.



“Shut up!” Vaen was blinded with rage. He swung his fist at her, aiming for her cheek.



She caught his punch, easily deflecting it with her hand. Her other hand reached beneath her robe, drawing a slender kris, quickly plunging it into abdomen.



His eyes widened in surprise as he felt blood rushing from his mouth, spilling down his lips.



“You…! Had a weapon the whole time?” He mouthed.



Senna’s lips curled into a devious smile as she nodded in reply. “You have been played the entire time, little boy. You have brought me the means to escape this accursed Terrace.” Senna plunged the kris even deeper before turning the dagger in his gut. Her other hand pushed his back into the dagger. “Now die.” She grinned at him as she watched him slink to the ground.



Vaen’s mind flashed with realization. “No!” His hands gripped Senna’s shoulders even as he entered he could feel his death throes coming. “You are not real… you are not Senna!” He growled as used the last of his strength to lean his weight on the smaller blood elf, easily toppling her onto the ground. He fell on top of Senna’s figure, the dagger sinking even deeper into his gut as he fell onto the blade.



He could feel his body shaking as he tried to stave off death. Senna’s expression changed from shock to horror as his shivering hands snaked their way up from her shoulder to her small, slender neck.



“No, Vaen!” His fingers gripped Senna’s neck. “Stop!” Her emerald eyes watered as they pleaded into his eyes. “Stop, Vaen, don’t do this!” She began choking as he slowly began applying pressure to her throat. “V-Vaen, please… I love you…” She began gasping for air as she shuddered, violently thrashing beneath his body. His grip unrelenting, he laid his bodyweight down against her neck. He closed his eyes, averting his face away from her delicate face, strangulating to death. “V-V-Vvv….” He heard her sputter before she was silent, a deadened glaze In her bright emerald eyes. Vaen collapsed on top of her, his eyes closed, the dagger having done it’s damage…



“Whore!”



Vaen’s eyes snapped open.



“You are a vile, disgusting harlot!” Vaen raised himself off from the ground. Senna’s corpse was gone. He reached done, feeling for where her kris had punctured him. He was whole. “You’ve brought dishonor to your kind! I am ashamed to even know you!”



Vaen rose to his feet, looking to his right. Senna was on her knees, her head hung low, tears dripping unabashedly down her cheeks. She kneeled as if in penance in front of the figure of a red-headed Sin’dorei woman. Vaen ran to Senna, grabbing a hold of her shoulders, shaking her.



“It’s not real! Snap out of it! It’s all a mind trick!” He shouted. It was no use; she couldn’t hear or feel him.



“I’m sorry… I didn’t mean for it to be like this…” Senna reached into her robe, slowly drawing a smooth kris from a hidden pocket.



“It’s the only way you can redeem yourself, Senna.” The red-headed blood elf snapped angrily in reply.



“Stop!” Vaen rushed in, trying to force the dagger out of her hands. “Don’t do it!” It was futile. Her hands moved with a power all of her own as she raised it in the air, turning the point towards herself…



Vaen turned to the other blood elf woman. He acted instinctively, quickly drawing his sword and plunging it deep into her bowels. To his surprise, the crimson-haired elf disappeared into a dispersion of mist.



Senna blinked as she held the dagger aloft, before catching sight of Vaen’s turned back. She quickly slipped the dagger back into her robes, concealing it.



“…Vaen?” She spoke gently.



“Get up, there’s no time!” He rushed back towards the Faceless One.



She nodded. “Right.”



Vaen approached the monster cautiously as he circled it, searching for a vulnerable spot. Senna grabbed the felhound into her arms, whining even in the heat of the battle.



[i]“Ywaq maq oou; ywaq maq ssaggh. Ywaq ma shg'fhn.” [/i]



[i]They do not die. They do not live. They are outside the cycle. [/i]



“You will pay for the crimes you’ve committed today, you vile creature..!” Vaen charged the Faceless One, aiming a slash for the creature’s skull.



It raised its arm, parrying Vaen’s blow. The sword sank deep into the Faceless One’s arm, driving deep into its flesh. It howled in anguish as a purple bile bubbled from its wound. Enraged, the monstrosity slammed its other tentacle arm into Vaen’s body, bowling him over.



The creature’s angered wails filled the air as it wrapped its tendrils around Senna’s body, the tentacles slithering around her body like a whip.



Senna screamed as she felt the slimy tendrils snaking across her body, slowly squeezing the life out of her as they constricted. The felhound popped out of her arms, landing precariously on the Faceless One’s arm. The pup growled as it sank its sharpened teeth into the sinewy muscle.



Vaen picked himself up as the creature reared its head back in pain, its other arm swatting off the felhound like an annoying gnat. Momentarily distracted, Vaen saw his opportunity. He rushed forward, grabbing a hold of his blade wedged deep into the Faceless One’s arm. He pushed his bodyweight onto the edge, the sharpened sword slicing down the cross-section of the Faceless One’s arm like a guillotine.



An earth-shattering roar filled the chamber as it recoiled in pain, its long snout flailing wildly as Vaen severed its arm. Its tendrils slowly unwrapped themselves from Senna as she dropped to the ground with the remnant of its appendage, the tentacles in their death throes as they slithered wildly across her body.



Vaen pulled his blade from the gory entrails and charged forward towards the dying Faceless One. He plunged his sword deep into the monster’s hardened carapace, eliciting another ear-splitting howl. He threw his arms over it, using the spiny growths on the creature’s carapace to climb on top of it. He pulled his blade out of the fresh wound as he slung himself around its neck. Balancing himself precariously on the creature’s shoulders as it meandered aimlessly in agony around the chamber, Vaen hoisted the sword high into the air. Vaen’s deathblow came shattering down, splitting into the creature’s thick skull, felling it in a single blow as it crashed forward, delivering Vaen to the ground, his blade embedded deep in its skull.



Vaen breathed a sigh of relief. The tendrils made their final death throes, before being still forever. Vaen looked to Senna, her body shaken and quivering. He looked back to the creature, pulling his sword from its carcass.



[i]“Iilth vwah, uhn'agth fhssh za.”[/i]



[i]”Where one falls, many shall take its place.”[/i]