Parting Ways

The hawkstriders raced through Eversong, leaving the more populated areas near Silvermoon far behind. Fifteen in number, their feathers flashed brightly amongst the natural colors of the enchanted forest around them. At the head of the procession rode the Magistrix Biara Sunfire, her fire red hair flowing behind her as she urged her mount to greater speeds, glowing blue ward marks glittering on her right cheek as she hurried. Behind her, her retinue attempted to keep up, the highly trained guards of House Sunfire determined to match the boldness of their Scion.

With the speed at which they traveled, it was not long before the group found itself entering a clearing deep in the heart of Eversong, nearer to one of the gentle shorelines that graced Quel'Thalas. Nestled in the clearing was a large estate, a low gold-painted wall made of stone surrounding the structure. Biara pulled back on the reins of her hawkstrider, slowing herself and the rest of the procession down as she studied the structure.

There was little to remark about the building itself. Typical of a noble house, it displayed a bit of wealth in its design and exterior decor that the Magistrix would have expected. The low wall was broken by an arched gateway with a crest centered above it. The emblem that hung there was a golden sun cradled by the branches of two golden trees on a field of red; the emblem of House Sunhaven. Other than this display of ownership, there were no other markings visible, and in fact there was no sign of the typical magical wards, lanterns or floating gardens that other Sin'dorei buildings would have. Biara narrowed her eyes as she noted this, snapping her reins and passing beneath the gates.

Within the courtyard there was activity. Sin'dorei trained with weapons in a small practice yard off to one side, while guards that looked suspiciously like Spellbreakers stood motionless before the twin doors that lead into the estate. Biara also noted that rangers with bows patrolled along some portions of the wall, presumably to make up for the lack of any visible mages or other spellcasters amongst the defenders. Even as the Magistrix absorbed all of this, the twin doors opened and a male Sin'dorei in blue and gold robes passed through them, a smile on his face and his hand raised in greeting. He approached the group, pausing and bowing before Biara.

“Magistrix Sunfire, it is indeed a pleasure to see you on this fine day. To what do we owe the honor of this-” he began. He was cut off before he could finish.

“You will take me to the Lady Sunhaven at once,” Biara stated coldly, her fel green eyes boring into the seneschal.

The other elf bowed again, the smile remaining plastered on his face, “Of course Magistrix! I shall take you to her at once. Your men will need to surrender their weapons to the guards before you proceed.”

Behind Biara, her retinue began to grumble. She held up a perfectly manicured hand, silencing further muttering, “I will proceed alone. You cannot disarm me of my magic anyway and should something befall me, my men will make war upon this manor house and my sister will avenge me.”

“Magistrix Sunfire, I am sure I've no idea what you are referring to. Please, if you will, Lady Sunhaven is right this way,” the elf replied. Biara could swear he was smirking now. She quickly dismounted, her blood red and gold robes falling into place around her as she moved gracefully behind him, her heels pounding on the marble floors as they entered the structure.

They passed through a number of corridors, the interior of the building decorated as one might expect of a Sin'dorei noble house. Expensive tapestries and paintings dotted the walls, statues in alcoves here and there as they walked. Throughout the house was the sound of some instrument being played, possibly a violin although Biara was not entirely certain. It did little to soothe her ire as the seneschal brought her to a narrow doorway at the end of a long corridor and pushed the barrier aside. He bowed, gesturing into the room. “The Lady Sunhaven is within, Magistrix.”

Biara ignored the elf, brushing past him as if he didn't matter, stepping into the room as he closed the door behind her quietly. The room beyond the door was a large circular chamber with windows all around; likely the base of one of the estate's elegant towers. Within the center of the room was a large reflecting pool, a pile of smooth, polished stones in the center allowing water to flow gently down an incline, sending ripples through the water. Along edges of the pool and surrounding the room was an array of flowering plants and greenery that immediately set one at ease. A narrow pathway of stepping stones lead to a flat marble surface before the flowing display of water in the center of the pool, and above the stone a figure hovered in mid-air.

She sat cross-legged, her hands resting on her knees and her fingers pointed upward. Long golden hair flowed down her back, the color much brighter than the blue, brown and gold dress she wore. Hovering as she was a few feet off the ground, Biara could clearly see that the other elf was barefoot and catch a glimpse of the sea-green color of her nails; colors that were not traditional amongst the populace of Silvermoon. The Magistrix's mind immediately tensed, the hovering elf looking nothing less than a Quel'dorei in that garb.

“Lady Sunhaven,” Biara intoned, her voice filled with restrained malice.

The other elf did not respond for a moment, simply floating there, meditating before the flowing water. After a moment, her musical voice came out in a soft, low tone, “Lady Sunfire. Your visit is not unexpected. In fact, I assumed you would have come two days prior to this. You must be very busy in the city, and I apologize that I must consume more of your time.”

Biara sneered at the back of the hovering elf, her words tinged with anger, “Yes, well I generally must set time aside to deal with potentially dangerous political upheaval that could spell disaster for my House. As you well knew when you sent me this farce of a letter.”

With that she reached into a pouch, taking out a folded piece of parchment bearing the emblem of House Sunhaven and tossing it onto the ground. She folded her arms across her chest, staring at the other elf, “I am awaiting an explanation.”

Alleriel Sunhaven murmured to herself, completing her meditation exercises and gently floating to the ground. Her sea-green eyes opened, and she rose on her bare feet, turning to face her counterpart. She gave Biara a pleasant smile, looking her over before responding, “I do not believe much explanation is required Lady Sunfire. The letter plainly states my intentions. House Sunhaven is withdrawing its support from your alliance of Houses. My men will no longer heed orders from the Blackhearts command structure, and I am withdrawing all of my companies back to Quel'Thalas.”

Biara's face blazed with fury and she barked her words out, the sound echoing from the peaceful chamber, “I was unaware that House Sunhaven was full of traitors who would stand against Quel'Thalas.”

Alleriel shook her head, her expression still calm and her voice neutral, “And I was unaware that House Sunfire was lead by an orc.”

Biara's eyes popped wide open and she stabbed a finger towards the other elf, “How DARE you? What are you implying?!”

“It is simple Lady Sunfire,” Alleriel said, still calm and serene. “Your campaign in Pandaria, in fact the entire objective that you have given our alliance of Houses, does nothing but drain the resources of Quel'Thalas and put our people at risk. In fact, more Sin'dorei have been lost due to the plotting of our 'Warchief' than I care to consider. As a result, it is only prudent that I withdraw House Sunhaven's support of this campaign until such a time as the Warchief looks at our people with the respect we deserve and handles our companies with competence when planning his war.”

“I could have you executed for what you just said,” Biara responded sternly. “We are members of the Horde. The Sin'dorei support the Horde. I do what I must for our people.”

Alleriel shook her head, looking at Biara with some degree of sadness, “Lady Sunfire, I must respectfully disagree. The battles at the Isle of Thunder as well as Garrosh's use of our magic for most foul purposes shows that he cares nothing about the fate of the Sin'dorei. Are we so numerous that we can continue to slaughter our own people over a political divide? Will we allow the orcs, creatures that have once before burned our precious forests, dictate the fate of our race? I fear you are blinded by your hatred of the Alliance and by the feeling of power that war brings you. The Quel'dorei are our people, even if they have made choices that we cannot accept politically. Each one we slay, each one of our own we lose to their arrows, brings our entire race closer to the brink of extinction.”

Biara stormed towards the other woman, her face inches from Alleriel's, “You betray all of Quel'Thalas with your words. What will you do, flee to Dalaran? Do you think your green eyes will see you welcomed there?”

Alleriel did not move or show any sign of concern as the other Sin'dorei raged at her. Her tone became more stern as she replied, “I am loyal to Quel'Thalas first and above all else. My men will continue to perform the duties they have performed for thousands of years; the protection of our lands and people. If you believe I will stay my hand when it comes to the Alliance, you are mistaken. I simply refuse to put our soldiers in a position where they can be used as fodder for the orcs, who have shown precious little respect for their own allies. You will need to come to terms with this I fear.”

Biara looked as if she were about to slap the other elf. For a moment she trembled with rage, glaring at Alleriel, “You are fortunate that I cannot bring the bulk of my men here to raze this estate to the ground. Due to your withdrawal from our alliance, I am forced to send even more of my soldiers to Pandaria. Pray that when this campaign is over my temper has cooled in relation to your defiance of the Warchief's will.”

With that she turned, beginning to storm towards the door. She paused as Alleriel's words came to her from over her shoulder. “Lady Sunfire, the reason why you will not come and raze this estate to the ground is precisely because of the threat you just made. In your reign over House Dayfire and later House Sunfire, you have engaged in brutal and senseless slaughter that has resulted not only in the loss of hundreds of Sin'dorei lives, but the utter destruction of the spire that was built by your House in antiquity. The reason why your threat is empty and meaningless is because, unlike you, I put the lives of the Sin'dorei in my care as my first priority. Meaning I have hundreds and hundreds of trained fighters, many dozens to each of your own.”

Biara turned, her eyes wide. Behind her Alleriel remained where she'd been standing, her words contrasting harshly with the serene room around her and the calm look on her face. There was a look of experienced wisdom in the Lady Sunhaven's eyes that spoke volumes about her capabilities and her tolerance for threats against the Sin'dorei of her House. Biara's mouth opened and closed once or twice, at a loss for words.

“Lady Sunfire, I see that you are about to depart,” Alleriel said. “Do know that although I have withdrawn my support for your little personal war, I am still a Sin'dorei, and still support Quel'Thalas. Should you or yours need aid of any sort; food, medical supplies, healing, or the like, please write or call upon me. I will not see a Sin'dorei suffer needlessly, even those under your care. I am not your enemy, but neither am I your friend.”

Biara simply glared, spitting out her words, “You will suffer for your lack of conviction one day Lady Sunhaven. Good day to you.”

She turned, her robes whirling around her as she stormed out. Alleriel's final words drifted over her as she hurried down the corridors, intent on getting Sunhaven Manor far from her sight. “A true leader knows that to lead is to suffer for one's people Lady Sunfire. Every day until the day I am able to lay down this burden I will worry over those in my care. Perhaps you should do the same. May your path be green and golden.”

With Biara gone, Alleriel turned back towards her reflecting pool, the urge to meditate again strong within her. It was best to banish fears and anger to keep oneself balanced after all. As she sat in her meditation pose once more, she murmured to herself in wry amusement, “That went precisely as well as I expected it to go.”

With a smile, she closed her eyes, slowly beginning to hover once more, silence descending on the chamber.