Doubt and Confidence

Kor'korn Mining Operations
Northern Barrens
 Midnight

The figures moved silently through the night, only the soft sound of their footsteps in the tall grass of the barrens whispering around them. Wearing light plate and scale mail armor, the group had used thick cloth as a sound absorber by lacing the material in between each piece of metal to prevent the plates from clinking against one another. Each of the lithe Sin'dorei forms also carried a large sword or axe, and all wore full plate helms that covered their faces and heads completely.

Along the outskirts of the Kor'kron mining camp, the sentries walked their normal routes, searching for intruders amongst the operations set up by the Warchief to fuel the army that was bearing down on the troll uprising in Durotar. Although the orcs had keen eyesight, the Sin'dorei kept low in the tall grass and were able to get within feet of them before springing their ambush.

It was over in a matter of moments, squads of highly trained and well prepared Blood Knights pouring from the high grasses and cutting down the sentries before they could rouse the rest of the camp. In the lead group, Kyliska Sunfire grinned behind her helm as she brought her greatsword down in a slash, cutting down another of the orcs. Long away from true battle, she gleefully continued the charge, her men pouring into the encampment behind their eager leader.

Ahead of her Kyliska saw activity begin to erupt amongst the outer tents and guard towers that perched above the mine opening in this part of the Kor'kron holdings. Orcs poured from their bunks as the sounds of combat echoed through the night. Disorganized and unprepared for such a large force to strike at them so quickly, the orcs found themselves hurled back as Kyliska continued to advance with her men.

Her heart raced as she cut down another orc, the thrill of battle flowing through her like fire in her veins. Kyliska felt as if she could fly as the adrenaline pumped through her, making her feet move faster and her warcry echo loudly into the night. Around her the Blood Knights under her command took up her shout, the sound overwhelming the clash of blades as they met more resistance. The further into the camp they pushed, the more the orcs began to resist, their numbers growing as they grabbed weapons and wiped sleep from their eyes. It mattered not a bit to Kyliska however; she was in the moment and ready to face whatever might come her way.

Her primary objective was to capture the area around the base of a Kor'kron observation tower that overlooked the mine's entrance. To this end she began to direct her men towards the structure, her shouted commands coming in between bouts of furious hand to hand combat. Although the orcs were much larger than her and highly trained, the pure raw fury pumping through her at that moment made Kyliska more than up to the task of gutting them as they charged at her. Around her the other Blood Knights fared equally well, the Light they wielded flashing brightly in the darkness of the night and sending orcs scattering away from the front of their advance.

Just as she reached the base of the tower, Kyliska observed the largest group of orc fighters she had yet seen gathering near the mine's opening. Amongst them she saw several orcs in robes and holding staves or armed with strange, flickering orbs that rippled with fire. Her eyes widened within her helm as one of them brought an orb up and began to chant, fire growing in the air around the object. Kyliska braced herself to be struck by the spell, silently urging her men forward in her mind and hoping they could reach the main enemy force before they were cut down by spells.

Just as the magic was about to build to a critical mass the air around the orc began to warp and spark strangely as the leylines were shredded by arcane magic. The orc howled as his spell fizzled away to nothing, harmless flares of fire shooting up into the air from his deadened orb. Kyliska turned her head, looking back over her shoulder to see three robed figures striding over to a small rise that her men had already secured. Although she couldn't identify all of the Sin'dorei due to the large hoods they wore to cover their heads, she could see the sparkle of blue runes on the face of one of the spellcasters and she knew that Biara Sunfire was there with her own magic to defend her sister.

Kyliska grinned as a fel green eye gave her a wink from beneath the hood before she turned and continued her charge, blade held high. Behind her she heard a musical voice begin to chant and a moment later deadly shards of ice flew over her shoulder and slammed into one of the spellcasters, hurling him to the ground. Kyliska roared another warcry and darted down the rise towards the mine's entrance, her Blood Knights following her into battle eagerly.

On the rise behind her, the magical battle began in earnest as several more robed orcs began to hurl spells at the trio of Sin'dorei holding their ground. Arcane energies flickered into life as Biara's wards absorbed several of the spells, the magic arcing into the air and absorbed into her own spellwork. Her apprentices chanted in unison with her, deadly shards of ice flying from the position they held and slashing into the ranks of orcs milling about behind the main combat. Kor'kron fell left and right, pierced by shards of ice or frozen to death where they stood, their own magic deflected and exploding harmlessly in the grasses around the Sin'dorei spellcasters.

Beneath her hood Biara grinned, reaching out with both hands to conjure a swirling ball of magical energy before hurling it amongst the orcs. The orb expanded, razor sharp shards of ice flying from it in all directions as orcs dove for cover behind supply crates and tents. Several explosions rocked the encampment as mining supplies detonated, the howls of orcs rising up from the flames and debris raining down on the combatants. Biara strode forward, her apprentices following her and magic on her fingertips as she pushed the enemy spellcasters back, destroying the best line of defense amongst the surprised orcs.

Kyliska continued her own push, her charge meeting fierce resistance and placing her in the midst of the largest melee, just where she enjoyed being most. Her blade dripping gore now and her armor dented and battered, she whirled and dove between the orcs, slashing and cutting them down one after another. With a roar one of the Kor'kron overseers charged her, his own form massive as he brought his axe down towards her. Kyliska merely laughed again with her helmet, all concerns vanished in the unending thirst for blood that pounded in her temples. She dove to the side as the axe bit into the soil next to her, her own blade coming up and embedding itself in his chest even as her Light lashed out to blind a second orc that had been coming up behind her.

With the overseer's fall, the morale of the orcs broke and they began to run. Kyliska struck out, cutting the legs out from under one of the fleeing orcs as several more shards of ice flew over her and struck a few in the back. Within moments the battle began to end as orcs streamed away from the victorious Sin'dorei, their forms shrinking in the distance as they abandoned that portion of the mining operations. Kyliska could hear horns calling in other nearby encampments as the orcs roused more of their warriors, and she knew they had only a limited amount of time to complete their objective.

As she turned to go back towards where Biara was consulting with her apprentices, a strong hand gripped her ankle. She looked down in surprise to see a mortally wounded orc glaring up at her, blood on his tusks and staining the ground around him.

"F-filthy traitor!" the orc growled. He futilely tried to grasp a dagger with his mangled arm, spitting his words up at her as she looked at him in surprise. "You b-betray the Warchief! You will die for this scum!"

With her bloodlust waning and the orcs words ringing in her head, Kyliska found herself unable to answer the wounded creature at her feet, her mouth opening and closing within her helmet as she tried to form a response. The realization of what they were actually doing began to dance in her mind, and she felt a shiver go up her spine as the word 'traitor' echoed in her thoughts.

"You think he won't k-know elf scum?" the orc spat again. Unable to hold his weapon, he could only apply pressure to the plate armor around her calf. It hurt a little, but wouldn't cause an injury. "The Warchief will wipe your people off of the face of Azeroth for this! W-we...we will kill all of the traitors and make a stronger horde! Y-you are weak and pathetic!"

"N-no! We're not traitors!" Kyliska heard herself bark out. "We've always fought for the Horde! Y-you...we...."

Her voice trailed off as she looked at the wreck of a creature at her feet, her hands trembling now and her grip on her sword weak. What were they doing? They were killing orcs, their longtime allies and people they had fought beside for years against the Alliance. How could it have come to this? Why were they here? Without the bloodlust to cloud her thoughts, the cold reality of the treachery they had just committed made Kyliska's heart sink like a stone in a pond.

She plunged her sword into the soil, reaching up to lift her visor out of the way so she could speak more clearly with the orc. She wanted to kneel down beside him and explain to him that they were NOT traitors and that her loyalty could never be in question, but the words wouldn't come to her. As she opened her mouth to speak again, a lance of razor sharp ice shards flew through the air and slammed into the orc's chest, slaying him instantly and splattering his blood on her face. She blinked her eyes, reaching up to wipe the gore from her cheeks as best she could.

Biara stood beside her, looking at her quizzically and speaking softly, "Sister. We agreed that there would be no prisoners. What are you doing? We've only a limited amount of time to finish here. I've set the men to burning as many of the supplies as possible."

Kyliska paused, looked at her sister miserably and shaking her head, "Why Biara? Why are we doing this? What made it come to this point? These people are our allies. They've always been there for us and now we kill them? I just don't understand what is happening. I know there have been problems with the Warchief but this...this is just wrong..."

Biara reached up and pushed her hood back, her fire red locks falling around her face as she shook her head and patted Kyliska's shoulder, "No sister, what is wrong is when a leader decides that his allies are disposable tools to be used and cast aside. What the Warchief has done has resulted in the deaths of Sin'dorei, and worse it has lead to him stealing magic that rightfully belongs to us. He has tarnished our image and threatens to destroy everything we've worked to rebuild in Quel'Thalas. Some of the orcs may still be our friends, but when it comes right down to it I will slay ANYONE who threatens the Sin'dorei, even traitors amongst our own ranks. You know this. It is what we've always fought for."

Kyliska sighed, nodding as her sister spoke and looking at the dead orc on the ground between them sadly, "I know that. I know you're right but it just feels wrong. I just....I have a lot of misgivings about this. It's not like it used to be, when we knew who the enemy was without question. This is not like slaughtering humans that we KNOW are trying to kill Sin'dorei."

Biara nodded, taking her sister's hand in hers and gently guiding her around the dead orc, "I know that Kyli, but there's more to it than that. Come, I think you need to see this."

The two walked through the wreckage of the camp even as the Sin'dorei they had lead there continued to burn and pillage as much as possible. Along one side of the battlefield lay more dead orcs, and Biara brought Kyliska over to a few that wore robes, kneeling down and retrieving one of the orbs that the orcs had been using. She held it up, nodding in satisfaction as if flared with deadly fire magic.

"This orb is an abomination. The orcs have stolen objects like this from across all of Azeroth to empower their magics. With it, they are harnessing the earth and tearing the leylines in this area. If you look in the pit beyond, elementals rage at what has been done to them and the very soil is burned and scorched," Biara said in an almost professional manner.

Kyliska looked beyond the dead and into the mining pit below, seeing the magical damage her sister had pointed out as if for the first time, noting the raging elementals that thrashed against the walls of the mine's entrance. She nodded, biting her lip and looking back at Biara, whose own gaze was affixed on the orb. The wards on her face glittered brightly as Biara snuffed the orb's power, absorbing it into her body with a shudder. When Biara looked back at her sister, there was a smile of satisfaction on her face and her fel green eyes glowed just a little brighter.

"There is also the Sha to consider," Biara said, tossing the now dead orb onto the ground behind her. It shattered into a thousand dull fragments as she lead Kyliska away from the dead and towards the center of the camp. "I do not know what Garrosh is doing, but he has breached the wards on a Titan chamber that contained some relics dealing with the Old Gods. We have already seen that he is willing to employ deadly magics to slaughter soldiers and civilians alike. I will not allow him to have such power unchecked when it could be turned against Quel'Thalas. It is time we seized this magic for ourselves once more."

"I think I see Biara," Kyliska said slowly, turning her sister's words over and over in her mind. Although doubt still nagged at her, she knew that what the Magistrix said was right, and if her experiences in Pandaria had taught her nothing else, she also knew that trusting feelings of doubt lead to empowering the Sha. "No matter what happens, you know you can always count on me. We will do this together, and we will help the rest of our people to see what you've shown me."

Biara nodded, smiling and embracing her gore-covered sister. "I knew you would understand once you saw. While we cannot tell anyone of what we've done here yet, the Magistrate and the Regent Lord both have been looking at the Warchief askance for some time now. It is only a matter of time before we are fully engaged in all out war. When that time comes, the honors we will receive for what we've done here will come to those whose true loyalty is and always has been to Quel'Thalas. Together we will protect the future Kyli."

Kyliska nodded, returning her sister's embrace and then turning and beginning to bark orders to her men. Within moments they had begun to pull back, towards the center of the encampment as planned. Biara began to chant, her apprentices joining in as they opened a glowing portal back to Quel'Thalas. Within moments the Sin'dorei strike force began to pull back, the highly trained fighters disappearing into the portal and returning home.

Kyliska smiled at her sister one more time before stepping through the portal, leaving Biara as the last to enter. The Magistrix turned and studied the now-burning encampment with a critical gaze before reaching into a pouch and pulling out a small blue orb. She held it up before her, smiling and leaning forward to place two ruby red lips against it in a gentle kiss.

She turned and tossed the orb over her shoulder, letting it shatter on the ground behind her as she walked towards the portal. Her voice murmured softly as she departed, the words hanging over the now silent encampment.

"House Sunfire sends its regards, Warchief."

Biara vanished, her portal closing behind her as the shattered orb began to spit magic out of it. Arcane energies built up into a hum as the spell grew, magic preparing to fulfill its purpose within the center of the camp. The energy continued to grow, drawing from the leylines all around the area until it reached critical mass, the full force of a netherstorm unleashed in a catastrophic explosion in the center of the dead camp.

The flash of light flickered across the night sky of the Barrens as the Sin'dorei magic destroyed the mine's entrance and sent tons of rock and soil plummeting into the open pit the Kor'kron had made, putting an end to the mining operation along that side of the encampment.