((Written for Grung, as he made me think about how Lune has impacted Biara.))
With the slightest whisper, Biara awoke in the deep blackness of night. Her fel green eyes staring into the depths of her bedchamber, easily picking out the details of her furnishings as the moonlight glimmered faintly through the window. With a sigh, she relaxed and turned over on her side; there was nothing in the room with her. Her gaze came to rest on Elunearia, who shared her bed this evening. The priestess looked utterly at peace as she rested beneath the silken sheets, her head cradled by a plush pillow and her golden hair spilling across the crimson fabric. No mark of worry or anxiety marred her features, and in that moment Biara wondered if she looked upon a living Sin'dorei or if instead, one of the Light's angels lay beside her.
Biara smiled with contentment, but the feeling faded as something nagged at the back of her mind. She often thought odd thoughts in the depths of the night, especially when she awoke unexpectedly. Carefully she pulled back the silk covers and slipped from the bed, being cautious not to disturb the slumbering priestess. Elunearia gave a slight sigh in her sleep, but otherwise remained peaceful as Biara smiled at her again and slipped quietly across the room. She would take a short walk to clear her mind before rejoining her lover.
She slipped through the doors at the end of her bedchamber, careful to close them quietly so as to make no sound. The cold stone corridor outside her rooms were equally silent, and a quick glance up and down the hall showed two guards stationed at the far ends, watching over the doorways there. Biara made her way towards one, intent on getting higher up into the spire to take in some night air. As she approached the guards, some intuition made her begin to feel uncomfortable, and her keen eyes studied the two Sin'dorei carefully as she approached. Something seemed out of place, but she couldn't quite put a finger on what it was.
As she got within three feet of them, the source of her anxiety became clear. The guards had not moved at all. Not even a fraction of an inch. They stood rigidly by the door as if statues. She walked directly up in front of one, seeing only his faint intake of breath to show he was alive. Staring within the depths of his helm, she could see his eyes, unblinking, a well of horror as he was a prisoner in his own body.
Paralytic poison!
She turned, intent on heading back to the bedchambers. Something was very very wrong. As she spun around, she saw something that horrified her. The door to the bedchambers was ajar. She had left it closed. Biara burst into a dash, fear almost overwhelming her.
She dashed into her bedchambers, her nightgown flowing around her as she took in the sight she had most dreaded. A female orc was stealthily making her way towards the bed, gleaming daggers drawn. An assassin sent to kill Biara or her lover. The Magistrix's heart lept into her throat. She ran into the room, only to have something large and rough grab her left arm and wrench it painfully around behind her. A gleaming blade came up towards her throat as a voice whispered in her ear.
"Magistrix Swiftlight sends her regards," the voice was like gravel rolling down a hill, a deep and powerful male orc. The blade came up towards her, but Biara had only eyes for the female orc about to impale her beloved.
In desperation, Biara brought her right hand up and grabbed the naked blade. It bit into her flesh, cutting to the bone. She didn't care, all that mattered in that moment was getting to Elunearia before the orc did. She shouted a word and instantly she was beside the female, the orc that had held her stumbling as he tried to regain his balance, his captive and victim having disappeared. With another shout, the female was rooted to the ground with ice, the coldness creeping up her leg. She snarled at Biara, and with a distant look in her eyes Biara spoke one more word, entombing the wretch in a block of suffocating ice.
Instinctively, Biara jerked her body to the side and a thrown dagger narrowly missed her. It came so close that it severed one of her ear rings, the golden jewelry tumbling to the floor. The weapon flashed past Biara, only to strike a glowing holy shield of power as Elunearia rose to a crouch on the bed, her face a mask of fear. In that moment, Biara hated the assassin behind her more than anything in all the world. They had frightened Lune! They had almost killed her! They had to DIE!
She whirled as the orc charged her, pointing a finger. He tried to dodge but Biara's combat training was superior, and an icy lance of magic found his heart, freezing it and sending him to the floor, dead.
In the silence that followed, Biara quickly hurried over to the fallen orc, searching his body for clues and bringing up a small disc before Elunearia's startled gasp.
"W-what...who..?" the priestess said, shock still gripping her.
Biara looked at her as she held the disc up. "It's a minor hearthstone, created for a single use. The assassins were meant to transport themselves back a short distance to the Magistrix that sent them. She has to be nearby, as this spell is not powerful enough to go further."
Elunearia examined Biara with her eyes, taking in her barely clothed form and the blood that was dripping from the wound on her hand. She met the other's gaze, "Don't Biara. Don't go after her. You're hurt, they surprised you. There's been enough killing this night. Don't let her draw you into this further."
Biara looked sad and responded with only a whisper. "I have to. This is my job, my lot in life. I'm sorry my beloved." She spoke a few words of power, and water elementals appeared. Two of them moved to remove the bodies from the room, and a third approached Elunearia, obviously a guardian.
Elunearia's eyes pleaded her case as Biara spoke another word and the air around the Magistrix popped. A battlestaff hovered there, and she clasped it with her bleeding hand, wincing as blood flowed down the shaft of the weapon. Biara whispered one last time, "I'm sorry Lune...this is how my life must be. I wish to all the gods you didn't have to see it."
With a flash of magic, Biara disappeared, the hearthstone having taken her to wherever the Magistrix was located. Elunearia covered her mouth with a shaking hand, the realization that assassins had tried to kill her only just starting to sink in. As she stood trembling in her nightgown, a deep rumbling explosion and a flash of orange light lit up the room through the windows. The priestess rushed to the balcony, looking out across the Court of the Sun.
On the uppermost platform of a distant spire, she could just barely make out two tiny figures. One glowed with a blue radiance; magical shielding surrounding the person with ice. The second figure was almost wreathed in flames, and as Elunearia watched, huge explosions blossomed all across the spire top, wreathing the first figure in blasts of fire. The magical battle could be heard as a series of small <pops> from so far away, and Lune couldn't make out what exactly was happening as the first figure seemed to hurl sparkling bolts of icy magic at the other.</pops>
Even as the priestess tried to make sense of the scene, the fiery figure pointed and a huge orb of fire appeared, gently floating towards the person's opponent. The other combatant responded in kind, and an orb of flaming frostfire appeared. The two orbs drifted into one another, and as they touched they created an explosion so bright that Lune had to cover her eyes and look away. When she turned back, only one figure stood, and she couldn't make out who it was or what was happening. After a few minutes, a glowing circle appeared, and in the bedchamber behind the priestess a second matching circle flahsed into existence as Biara stepped through her portal and returned to her own spire.
Elunearia rushed back into the bedchamber, seeing Biara apparently unharmed other than the injury to her hand, the Magistrix looking weary. Silently, Elunearia approached her and held out her hands so she could inspect the injury, and Biara complied by tossing her battlestaff to the floor and holding out the injured limb.
Biara watched as Elunearia tenderly looked over the wound, tsking to herself as she saw how deep the gash from the knife was. The two did not make eye contact as the priestess worked, and the silence lengthened as the wound was tended to. Finally, in a quiet voice, Biara whispered to Elunearia.
"I didn't kill her."
The hands that were holding hers stopped moving for an instant before Elunearia resumed her work. "Then why did you even go?"
The question was met with silence for a moment before Biara responded, "Because she would never stop if she wasn't thwarted now. She'd keep coming for me. Coming for YOU. I had to stop her to keep you safe."
The answer seemed to satisfy the priestess as she whispered the words to a spell, causing the wound close completely. She looked up and met Biara's gaze, "What did you do then if you didn't kill her?"
Biara sighed, breaking the eye contact and looking down. "I fed on her magic. It will be weeks, possibly months before she can even summon the most simple of spells. I devoured as much of her magical energy as I safely could, and left her unconscious atop the Magister's spire. She will have a headache in the morning, and have learned a lesson she'll never forget."
Elunearia smiled, and Biara let her hand drop away, walking towards her bed, a bit unsteady after the battle she'd been through. The priestess followed, and the two went back beneath the sheets, Biara facing away from her lover, her expression lost to Lune.
"Thank you Biara," she whispered. "You did the right thing."
"I'm not just a killer Lune," the answer came quietly from the darkness. "I have feelings too. It haunts me to do these things, but I WILL do them if I have to. I'm...more than that though."
Elunearia wrapped her arms around Biara, and after a moment of tension, the Magistrix seemed to relax. "I know Biara, I know."
As she felt Biara's breathing relax and sleep overcome her, the priestess thought that one day perhaps the Magistrix would come to truly believe what she had just said, and perhaps not face the nightmares that so often awakened her in the night. One day perhaps....
With the slightest whisper, Biara awoke in the deep blackness of night. Her fel green eyes staring into the depths of her bedchamber, easily picking out the details of her furnishings as the moonlight glimmered faintly through the window. With a sigh, she relaxed and turned over on her side; there was nothing in the room with her. Her gaze came to rest on Elunearia, who shared her bed this evening. The priestess looked utterly at peace as she rested beneath the silken sheets, her head cradled by a plush pillow and her golden hair spilling across the crimson fabric. No mark of worry or anxiety marred her features, and in that moment Biara wondered if she looked upon a living Sin'dorei or if instead, one of the Light's angels lay beside her.
Biara smiled with contentment, but the feeling faded as something nagged at the back of her mind. She often thought odd thoughts in the depths of the night, especially when she awoke unexpectedly. Carefully she pulled back the silk covers and slipped from the bed, being cautious not to disturb the slumbering priestess. Elunearia gave a slight sigh in her sleep, but otherwise remained peaceful as Biara smiled at her again and slipped quietly across the room. She would take a short walk to clear her mind before rejoining her lover.
She slipped through the doors at the end of her bedchamber, careful to close them quietly so as to make no sound. The cold stone corridor outside her rooms were equally silent, and a quick glance up and down the hall showed two guards stationed at the far ends, watching over the doorways there. Biara made her way towards one, intent on getting higher up into the spire to take in some night air. As she approached the guards, some intuition made her begin to feel uncomfortable, and her keen eyes studied the two Sin'dorei carefully as she approached. Something seemed out of place, but she couldn't quite put a finger on what it was.
As she got within three feet of them, the source of her anxiety became clear. The guards had not moved at all. Not even a fraction of an inch. They stood rigidly by the door as if statues. She walked directly up in front of one, seeing only his faint intake of breath to show he was alive. Staring within the depths of his helm, she could see his eyes, unblinking, a well of horror as he was a prisoner in his own body.
Paralytic poison!
She turned, intent on heading back to the bedchambers. Something was very very wrong. As she spun around, she saw something that horrified her. The door to the bedchambers was ajar. She had left it closed. Biara burst into a dash, fear almost overwhelming her.
She dashed into her bedchambers, her nightgown flowing around her as she took in the sight she had most dreaded. A female orc was stealthily making her way towards the bed, gleaming daggers drawn. An assassin sent to kill Biara or her lover. The Magistrix's heart lept into her throat. She ran into the room, only to have something large and rough grab her left arm and wrench it painfully around behind her. A gleaming blade came up towards her throat as a voice whispered in her ear.
"Magistrix Swiftlight sends her regards," the voice was like gravel rolling down a hill, a deep and powerful male orc. The blade came up towards her, but Biara had only eyes for the female orc about to impale her beloved.
In desperation, Biara brought her right hand up and grabbed the naked blade. It bit into her flesh, cutting to the bone. She didn't care, all that mattered in that moment was getting to Elunearia before the orc did. She shouted a word and instantly she was beside the female, the orc that had held her stumbling as he tried to regain his balance, his captive and victim having disappeared. With another shout, the female was rooted to the ground with ice, the coldness creeping up her leg. She snarled at Biara, and with a distant look in her eyes Biara spoke one more word, entombing the wretch in a block of suffocating ice.
Instinctively, Biara jerked her body to the side and a thrown dagger narrowly missed her. It came so close that it severed one of her ear rings, the golden jewelry tumbling to the floor. The weapon flashed past Biara, only to strike a glowing holy shield of power as Elunearia rose to a crouch on the bed, her face a mask of fear. In that moment, Biara hated the assassin behind her more than anything in all the world. They had frightened Lune! They had almost killed her! They had to DIE!
She whirled as the orc charged her, pointing a finger. He tried to dodge but Biara's combat training was superior, and an icy lance of magic found his heart, freezing it and sending him to the floor, dead.
In the silence that followed, Biara quickly hurried over to the fallen orc, searching his body for clues and bringing up a small disc before Elunearia's startled gasp.
"W-what...who..?" the priestess said, shock still gripping her.
Biara looked at her as she held the disc up. "It's a minor hearthstone, created for a single use. The assassins were meant to transport themselves back a short distance to the Magistrix that sent them. She has to be nearby, as this spell is not powerful enough to go further."
Elunearia examined Biara with her eyes, taking in her barely clothed form and the blood that was dripping from the wound on her hand. She met the other's gaze, "Don't Biara. Don't go after her. You're hurt, they surprised you. There's been enough killing this night. Don't let her draw you into this further."
Biara looked sad and responded with only a whisper. "I have to. This is my job, my lot in life. I'm sorry my beloved." She spoke a few words of power, and water elementals appeared. Two of them moved to remove the bodies from the room, and a third approached Elunearia, obviously a guardian.
Elunearia's eyes pleaded her case as Biara spoke another word and the air around the Magistrix popped. A battlestaff hovered there, and she clasped it with her bleeding hand, wincing as blood flowed down the shaft of the weapon. Biara whispered one last time, "I'm sorry Lune...this is how my life must be. I wish to all the gods you didn't have to see it."
With a flash of magic, Biara disappeared, the hearthstone having taken her to wherever the Magistrix was located. Elunearia covered her mouth with a shaking hand, the realization that assassins had tried to kill her only just starting to sink in. As she stood trembling in her nightgown, a deep rumbling explosion and a flash of orange light lit up the room through the windows. The priestess rushed to the balcony, looking out across the Court of the Sun.
On the uppermost platform of a distant spire, she could just barely make out two tiny figures. One glowed with a blue radiance; magical shielding surrounding the person with ice. The second figure was almost wreathed in flames, and as Elunearia watched, huge explosions blossomed all across the spire top, wreathing the first figure in blasts of fire. The magical battle could be heard as a series of small <pops> from so far away, and Lune couldn't make out what exactly was happening as the first figure seemed to hurl sparkling bolts of icy magic at the other.</pops>
Even as the priestess tried to make sense of the scene, the fiery figure pointed and a huge orb of fire appeared, gently floating towards the person's opponent. The other combatant responded in kind, and an orb of flaming frostfire appeared. The two orbs drifted into one another, and as they touched they created an explosion so bright that Lune had to cover her eyes and look away. When she turned back, only one figure stood, and she couldn't make out who it was or what was happening. After a few minutes, a glowing circle appeared, and in the bedchamber behind the priestess a second matching circle flahsed into existence as Biara stepped through her portal and returned to her own spire.
Elunearia rushed back into the bedchamber, seeing Biara apparently unharmed other than the injury to her hand, the Magistrix looking weary. Silently, Elunearia approached her and held out her hands so she could inspect the injury, and Biara complied by tossing her battlestaff to the floor and holding out the injured limb.
Biara watched as Elunearia tenderly looked over the wound, tsking to herself as she saw how deep the gash from the knife was. The two did not make eye contact as the priestess worked, and the silence lengthened as the wound was tended to. Finally, in a quiet voice, Biara whispered to Elunearia.
"I didn't kill her."
The hands that were holding hers stopped moving for an instant before Elunearia resumed her work. "Then why did you even go?"
The question was met with silence for a moment before Biara responded, "Because she would never stop if she wasn't thwarted now. She'd keep coming for me. Coming for YOU. I had to stop her to keep you safe."
The answer seemed to satisfy the priestess as she whispered the words to a spell, causing the wound close completely. She looked up and met Biara's gaze, "What did you do then if you didn't kill her?"
Biara sighed, breaking the eye contact and looking down. "I fed on her magic. It will be weeks, possibly months before she can even summon the most simple of spells. I devoured as much of her magical energy as I safely could, and left her unconscious atop the Magister's spire. She will have a headache in the morning, and have learned a lesson she'll never forget."
Elunearia smiled, and Biara let her hand drop away, walking towards her bed, a bit unsteady after the battle she'd been through. The priestess followed, and the two went back beneath the sheets, Biara facing away from her lover, her expression lost to Lune.
"Thank you Biara," she whispered. "You did the right thing."
"I'm not just a killer Lune," the answer came quietly from the darkness. "I have feelings too. It haunts me to do these things, but I WILL do them if I have to. I'm...more than that though."
Elunearia wrapped her arms around Biara, and after a moment of tension, the Magistrix seemed to relax. "I know Biara, I know."
As she felt Biara's breathing relax and sleep overcome her, the priestess thought that one day perhaps the Magistrix would come to truly believe what she had just said, and perhaps not face the nightmares that so often awakened her in the night. One day perhaps....
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