Beneath the Boughs

Beckyann's heavy plate armor pushed down into the soft forest floor, snapping the occasional branch with enough force to make the sound echo and cause her to wince. Although the tall trees and lush foliage of Ashenvale deadened the sounds, any noise was unacceptable given recent encounters.

The death knight smirked, flicking her runeblade and spattering some of the nearby plants with orc blood. She'd run into not one, but two small patrols of orc scouts so far. They were preparing a new offensive or perhaps mapping out a new area to begin logging operations; either way it didn't matter to her and they were quite dead now, an added bonus on this little excursion.

She had set out to collect some herbs that grew only beneath the shade afforded by Ashenvale's massive trees. Sunlight only filtered down in beams here and there, diffused beneath the canopy and making the perfect growing conditions for certain plants; precisely what she was looking for. Once collected, the herbs and a few other spell components would be mixed and used in some experiments she was preparing that were related to regeneration of undead flesh.

Another stick snapped beneath her boots and she snarled; if she kept making noise she was bound to bring another orc war-party down on her and she had other business to attend to at the moment. Even as she thought this, she entered a small clearing, sunlight dancing down in a beam from far above. Something felt out of place, and she paused, scanning the scenery.

At first she saw nothing, slowly turning in a circle, her runeblade extended before her. She listened, straining her senses as far as they could, attempting to detect whatever it was that had set off her combat alertness. Despite her efforts, nothing seemed amiss and with the abundance of life surrounding her in the forest it was hard to separate a potential threat from the scenery. As she was just about to relax, her gaze roamed over a deeper patch of shadows amongst some fallen boughs and it was there that she saw what had alerted her.

Two golden feline eyes stared at her warily from the shadows.

Had she been alive, Beckyann would have gasped at the discovery. The creature was so silent and still that she would have believed it to be undead if she had not known better. Her runeblade came up ever so slowly, pointed at the shadows. Wild animals roamed the forests and it would not be surprising to have a large hunting cat attack a lone traveler.

A soft sigh of breeze made Beckyann turn her head slightly to the right to check for other foes. The movement was just a fraction of a second, but in the time she took her eyes from the shadows to when she returned her gaze there, the feline eyes had disappeared. She blinked once in surprise; the beast was quick.

Perhaps it was the sudden change in air pressure, or maybe a whisper of sound, but something made Beckyann jump and she whirled, blade up and pointed behind her. Where there had been empty clearing behind her now stood a Kaldorei with a staff. She leaned against the support, watching Beckyann with perfect stillness.

“You startled me,” Beckyann said. The elf remained silent and Beckyann took a moment to study her. Long blue hair flowed down her back like a mane, coming almost to her waist and held in place by feathers and ties. Young looking, moonlight pale skin nearly glowed in the sunlight that shined down on the clearing, the purple markings on the elf's face vivid and looking almost like a butterfly when taken in whole. Dressed in an assortment of leathers that were well worn but also well cared for, the Kaldorei had a very serene, natural feel to her. It took Beckyann only a moment to determine that she was likely a druid, and likely the source of the feline eyes she had just been examining.

With a grunt, Beckyann flicked the last of the orc blood from her runeblade and sheathed it, studying the elf with a raised brow, “What? Are you going to chide me now about being in your lands and tell me what sort of awful abomination I am or some such? I've dealt with your kind before in Darnassus you know.”

The elf remained silent for a moment longer before speaking, her voice soft and almost musical. There was no hint of malice in her tone as she replied, “What makes you believe that your actions within the forest have gone unobserved for the past two hours? I am well aware that you have protected Ashenvale as a whole while you wander here, despite what you are.”

“Look druid..” Beckyann began. The elf held up a hand, pausing her in mid-sentence.

“My name is Celessarae Moonfang, not 'druid' or 'lady' or whatever else you wish to call me. While it is true your kind are unpleasant to us and represent a blight against nature, there are things to weigh and consider,” the druidess said calmly.

Beckyann planted her hands on her hips, staring at the elf in surprise, “Well I'll be. One of you has a bit of sense after all. I wasn't 'protecting the forest' though as you put it. I was attempting to find a specific herb here and happened into the orc patrols.”

Celessarae shook her head slowly, feather swaying in her hair, “It matters little what you did or did not intend. What matters is what you have done. While I am not as advanced in my training as many others, it is still a simple thing to examine. You bring disease and corruption with you, and yet such things are correctable. The orcs destroy the entirety of the forest, devastating the land and reaping more than can ever be replaced. When weighed against one another, it is not difficult to make a choice.”

The words gave Beckyann pause; she had never had a debate with a druid before. In fact, other than sneering at her, spitting at her, or telling her she would be 'watched closely', none had spoken more than a word to her. It was a unique encounter. “I'm pretty sure the rest of your little bunch would have a few words of disagreement with you there elf,” she replied somewhat sarcastically.

The druidess remained serene, either not detecting the sarcasm or not rising to meet it. Silver eyes studied the death knight closely, roaming over the emblems of death that contrasted sharply with her own natural attire, “There are many views on the subject. Some believe you should fall on your swords; that your very existence is a blight and that you should be removed lest you spread. I believe that this is a short term view of the problem however. We live for many centuries, and to think that we will not encounter similar diseases, similar blights like those you represent is foolish. It is only by studying, understanding, and curing such ailments that we can truly protect ourselves in the long term.”

Beckyann blinked and barked out a laugh, “Are you serious right now? You really are a novice aren't you? The plague of Undeath cannot be 'cured'. It has never been done.”

Celessarae smiled, the expression genuine, “You are not the first to say such, and I am not claiming that I now, or possibly even ever will have such skill. And yet I have heard of lands afflicted by such magics that are now on the mend thanks to the efforts of Light bearers and my own kind. Think on that as you will. A time may come when there is peace enough for the best of us to fully study the problem and find a solution. We have hardly been free of external threats and given the time to do so.”

The words sent a chill through Beckyann; the last thing she wanted was a cure, but it would also mean so much to some of the others if not for the world. It was almost a soothing thought when one contemplated the possibility of peace in the distant future, where death knights would no longer be needed nor tolerated. She answered slowly, shaking her head, “Perhaps. That time will not be soon however. If you will excuse me, I must finish my work here and return to where I belong. We will both be happier.”

The druidess smiled, nodding and stepping aside. As Beckyann began to walk towards the edge of the clearing, Celessarae followed her, walking in time. The death knight rolled her eyes, clenching her fists at her sides and tromping through the foliage; the last thing she wanted was a Kaldorei babysitter.

And yet that was what she had. She continued along, moving through the open spaces and searching for the perfect shadowed area where the herb she needed might grow. Behind her, Celessarae trailed after her, content to walk along silently. In fact it was hard for Beckyann to even hear the elf as they moved, and if orcs descended upon them it would be because of Beckyann's doing, not the Kaldorei's.

After ten minutes of futile walking and searching, and the rising tension those silver eyes on her back instilled in the death knight, Beckyann finally spotted the herb she needed. With almost a sigh of relief she knelt down, about to yank the plant from the soil. To her surprise, two pale hands pressed against her gauntlets, stopping the motion.

“You must take only what you need, lest you kill the entirety of the plant,” the druidess chided softly. “Here, I will show you, and assist you. Have you never grown your own herbs before? You can save yourself troublesome treks through the forest if you harvest your own herbs properly.”

Beckyann ground her teeth, contemplating what the elf would look like decapitated. Likely that would not go over well though once the body was discovered and it would create what Red liked to call an 'incident'. She ground her teeth together and plastered a false smile on her face, “Oh. By all means, please demonstrate...”

The elf leaned forward, reaching into a pocket and pulling out a small knife. She gently took the plant in hand, cutting only stems and leaves that were not vital to the plant's survival. Even with the careful pruning, she harvested more than enough herbs for Beckyann's uses. As she worked, the sleeves of her tunic pulled up and Beckyann noted an array of silver scars running up Celessarae's left arm. Beckyann's eyes widened and she clicked her tongue as she studied them.

“Looks like you have some experience with warfare after all,” Beckyann said, nodding at the scars. “I'd recognize a battlefield wound if I ever saw one.”

Celessarae paused, her silver eyes looking into the distant forest for a moment before she resumed her pruning. She spoke over her shoulder, not looking at the human that stood beside her, “Yes. That would be an accurate guess.”

Beckyann smirked, folding her arms across her chest, “Not going to talk about it eh?”

The elf continued to prune, seeming to ignore the question at first. After a moment she spoke, no hint of anger or malice in her voice, “Let us just say we all fail at times. It is impolite to ask about the failings of others. For example, I did not ask you how you came to be as you are, did I? Let the past lie as an example for those who experienced it, and leave it at that.”

Beckyann's smirk faded and an look of annoyance passed across her features. With a gentle motion Celessarae handed the herbs to Beckyann, who rolled her eyes before taking them and shoving them in a pouch. The druidess stood, looking calmly at the death knight, her sleeves covering her arm once more as she leaned on her staff.

“Well, that is the end of my business in your forest, elf,” Beckyann said awkwardly, feeling almost relieved. She turned and paused, looking back over her shoulder, “I would like to open a gate here to depart if you don't mind.”

The elf nodded, speaking serenely, “I will cleanse this clearing once you are gone, fear not.”

Beckyann snorted, “Yeah. Whatever.” She began to chant, opening a death gate. As she was about to step into the howling darkness behind, the druidess spoke one last time, the words something that would haunt Beckyann for hours after.

“A time will come when you will have to rejoin the natural order of the world. Whether that is as a corpse decomposing back into the earth as some would like, or through actual healing is a choice you must make for yourself. The beauty of healing is that it can begin whenever you would like, even if it is only from within. Consider this.”

With that, Beckyann was gone into the darkness, leaving Celessarae to watch as the portal closed. She smiled lightly, murmuring into the wind and beginning the process of rejuvenating the plants that had been touched by the darkness.