âWake up! Wake up! Itâs just a dream!â
âWhat were you dreaming aboutâŚ? You were shoutingâŚâ
âI woke up because you were screaming so loudly.â
âShhâ No, no, donât panic, love. Youâre safe now.â
âIt was so real! I swear! He/she was here!â
âI donât ever want to sleep again. What ifâ what if I dream about that again?â
âIf you tell me, itâll go away. Thatâs what my mum/dad always told me and itâs never failed me.â
âDo you want to go back to sleep, or shall I make you a cup of tea?â
âI donât want to go back to sleepâŚâ
âIâm so scared⌠I canât stop seeing what I just saw. It was so vivid!â
âThereâs really nobody here, okay? Do you need me to show you around to prove that to you?â
âHow do I know Iâm not still dreaming? Youâre acting really strangely.â
âLetâs get you to the shower, youâre covered in sweat.â
âThereâs really nobody else here.â
âYouâve got a really bad fever. That must have caused those weird dreams.â
âI donât even know what a peaceful nightâs sleep is like anymore.â
âI canât do this anymore. These nightmares have to stopâŚâ
âShh, it was just a bad dream. Just a dream, okay? None of it was real.â
âI canât go back to sleep after that. I need coffeeâ no, I need a drink, a stiff one.â
âHow long have you been having these nightmares?â
âIâve had nightmares all my life, but theyâve been really bad recently.â
âYou get so worked up before you go to sleep, maybe you should try to relax a bit more. Maybe then youâll get some rest?â
âIâd kill for a peaceful nightâs sleep.â
âA dream catcher? Honestly? Iâm not a child.â
âNothingâs ever helped this. I just need to learn to live with the fact that sleeping will always be a nightmare, literally.â
âIâm so tired⌠but thereâs no way Iâm going back to sleep after that.â
"Will you be taking this?" Nephelea offered Kirenestus his cloak, which he'd left on the back of the bench in the inn. "You'll probably want it, won't you? Because... rain..?"
Kirenestus looked behind him with a start. The cloth covering his ruined eyes was thick enough to obscure even the faintest outline of eye socket, but he still looked directly at her. To tell the truth, he wasnât used to the sight yet. He could see, but things, like the cloak in her hand, were faint enough he was prone to leave them. He accepted the cloak from her with a nod and a faint smile. âThank you.â He threw the hood over his head and fastened it around his neck then arranged it around the glaives at his back. âI appreciate it. Iâm not far from home, but it smells like rain, doesnât it?â
âI donât know what rain smells likeâŚâ Nephelea didnât fidget - at least, she didnât try to. Cinnamon stuck his head out of her bag, perhaps alerted to his mistressâs change in tone. âI mean, I try to stay inside when I see bad cloudsâ oh, oh, Iâm sorry. I didnâtâŚâÂ
âItâs okay. You didnât bother me.â Kirenestus sounded amused, even gave her a friendly smile. âIf I couldnât see at all, Iâd be a danger to myself and everyone else carrying blades around, wouldnât I?â Kirenestus looked down at the cat peering out of her purse. The first emotion that flowed across his face was confusion, followed quickly by recognition and exasperation. âThat cat must have used up all nine lives by now.â allthejubilees
âCinnamon?â The young woman asked, and the cat - old, mean, and should have shed his mortal coil ages ago - yowled low at Kirenestus. Oh, yes, he remembered him too. âOh, maybe? Heâs a good cat though. Very sweet.â The cat continued his low yowling. âI think he stays with me because we have a lot to see!â voidshattered
âI remember that cat.â Of course, now that recognition set in, he couldnât say where. Illidari didnât stalk the streets of Silvermoon. âI think I still have scars. You can tell him I donât do ley line research anymore, he wonât have an opportunity to shred me like last time.â allthejubilees
âOh no, I donât think heâs ever scarred anyone before.â Except he had, and that was years ago, in another time and place when heâd been a younger cat. And meaner, even. Age had mellowed the creamsicle colored cat out. Age, and a steady diet of field mice. âYou must be thinking of a different cat.â Clearly, because she had never been an Illidari. No, no, no (okay, maybe a little). voidshattered
"I'm blind, not deaf or dumb. I recognize both of you." Kirenestus moved to sit on a bench. Okay, he could see, but Silvermoon was a strange mass of gray and faint color, lingering fel corruption present all around. He'd never been so aware of it. It made him dizzy, almost. He rubbed at his forehead. Two small bumps there itched. Great. Perhaps he was getting those horns. "I don't bite. Sit down. I haven't seen anyone else from the war. How have you been?" allthejubilees
"Will you be taking this?" Nephelea offered Kirenestus his cloak, which he'd left on the back of the bench in the inn. "You'll probably want it, won't you? Because... rain..?"
Kirenestus looked behind him with a start. The cloth covering his ruined eyes was thick enough to obscure even the faintest outline of eye socket, but he still looked directly at her. To tell the truth, he wasnât used to the sight yet. He could see, but things, like the cloak in her hand, were faint enough he was prone to leave them. He accepted the cloak from her with a nod and a faint smile. âThank you.â He threw the hood over his head and fastened it around his neck then arranged it around the glaives at his back. âI appreciate it. Iâm not far from home, but it smells like rain, doesnât it?â
âI donât know what rain smells likeâŚâ Nephelea didnât fidget - at least, she didnât try to. Cinnamon stuck his head out of her bag, perhaps alerted to his mistressâs change in tone. âI mean, I try to stay inside when I see bad cloudsâ oh, oh, Iâm sorry. I didnâtâŚâÂ
âItâs okay. You didnât bother me.â Kirenestus sounded amused, even gave her a friendly smile. âIf I couldnât see at all, Iâd be a danger to myself and everyone else carrying blades around, wouldnât I?â Kirenestus looked down at the cat peering out of her purse. The first emotion that flowed across his face was confusion, followed quickly by recognition and exasperation. âThat cat must have used up all nine lives by now.â allthejubilees
âCinnamon?â The young woman asked, and the cat - old, mean, and should have shed his mortal coil ages ago - yowled low at Kirenestus. Oh, yes, he remembered him too. âOh, maybe? Heâs a good cat though. Very sweet.â The cat continued his low yowling. âI think he stays with me because we have a lot to see!â voidshattered
"I remember that cat." Of course, now that recognition set in, he couldn't say where. Illidari didn't stalk the streets of Silvermoon. "I think I still have scars. You can tell him I don't do ley line research anymore, he won't have an opportunity to shred me like last time." allthejubilees
Bringing this back because relevant. Also Yyanthe Edit: it ate my whole write up of these guys. Not rewriting on mobile, autocorrect driving me nuts. Will fix at home on my pc.
((I took a lot of liberties with this. Hopefully it works! Warning for gore and self-inflicted injury in the section below the cut.))
In the end, it hadnât been Kirenestus who initially disabled the demon, but Kelenar. They were in the middle of battle with smaller demons, felguards and their hounds, and it was Kelenar who saw the fleeing shape of the Nathrezim. Kelenar who let loose a blinding flash of Light without so much as a warning. And as as everyone, Kirenestus included, reeled and tried to regain their senses, Kelenar calmly took the flask of poison from Kirenestus and threw it at the Nathrezim. The flask shattered and the demon doubled over as the poison began to work. Kirenestus recovered enough to help Kelenar dispatch the rest of the demon patrol, then they trussed their quarry and loaded it onto a protesting Thalassian horse in Argent colors.
Safely back at their camp, with Kelenar keeping watch, Kirenestus began to get things ready. The two crystal daggers, glowing fel green with residual power, harvested and cut from a broken Sinâdorei power crystal, were cleaned thoroughly and placed in front of a large stone bowl. Their power derived from a time before the Sinâdorei had regained the Sunwell. Demonic power. Appropriate, he thought.
Small runestones marked the edges of Kirenestusâs circle. It wouldnât keep anything of importance out, but he hoped it would mask what he was doing, at least for long enough for him to finish. The runes glowed fel green, partially because of the thick demonic magic around them and partially because of the magic they were imbued with. Kirenestus hadnât consulted Kelenar when he made them on the way here. One paladin who was more healer than guard wouldnât be enough to hold off a swarm of demons while he was vulnerable. Better if they didnât sense them to begin with.
Bandages waited on the makeshift altar, too, along with a blindfold Kirenestus fitfully tore and then sewed from one of his fancy, thick winter cloaks on the sea voyage to Tanaan. Rich red, with gold trim, and thick enough that no one would be able to see through it. He ran a hand over the heavy cloth and a shiver of fear ran through him.
âI can smell your fear, mortal.â The other thing near the altar was awake but still unable to control his limbs. The Nathrezim was tightly bound next to the altar, but it wouldnât have mattered. His wings twitched uncontrollably and his tail jerked too hard to even give him purchase enough to push himself up.
âNot for long.â Kirenestus looked up at the moons, barely visible. It wasnât the best time for this kind of ritual, but they didnât have enough time to wait for both moons to be full. This would have to do. Kirenestus lit the candles he brought with them. The thick, acrid smell of dragon fat filled the air, though the candles themselves looked as if they were only half there. Netherdrake. Kelenar gave them a look, but pretended a moment later not to notice. Kirenestus knew the paladinâs mind was on Hearthglen and the young woman, the young netherdrake, who lived with him in his cottage there.
Kirenestus set them up along the circle. When the last candle was placed, the magic in the air increased, sealing the circle with an almost audible whoosh of air. He gave Kelenar an apologetic smile. âIâll be alright. Just keep an eye out for trouble.â
âYou idiot. Fine.â Kelenar drew his greatsword and the Light flowed around him, settling into the runes of the sword.
Kirenestus turned away from the paladin, back to the demon trussed at the foot of the makeshift altar. He drew a different dagger from his boot, this one wickedly serrated and heavy, solid metal. He began to cut away the ropes. As each one fell away, the Nathrezim fell more limp, until he laid prone at Kirenestusâs feet, glaring up at him. âYou canât control me, no matter what you were promised. I will eventually be free, little one...â
Kirenestus pretended not to hear him. He sheathed the dagger in his boot again, then reached for the stone bowl and one of the crystal daggers. He looked up at the moons. Elune wasnât up there, but the Pale Lady was. He hoped that would suffice. The language he chanted in when he knelt beside the Nathrezim was Kaldorei. The demon glared at him, then when he understood the meaning of the words, he began to struggle. Kirenestus paid him no heed, just set the bowl down, then jerked his head back to expose his throat.
Without warning, he switched to Eredun, looking back down at the demon with a hard expression, he said, âNow, I bind your power to mine, and I pledge to use the power Iâm granted to destroy the Burning Legion wherever I find it.â
âGood luck,â the demon sneered, âbecause I will always be inside you, waiting to get out.â
Kirenestus drew the crystal blade across the demonâs throat. Blood sprayed out, staining his hands as well as filling the bowl with fel green blood. Kirenestus left the dying demon and moved to the altar. He unwrapped the glaives laying there. The metal glittered with engraved runes. When he saw them, the demon tried to struggle again. Kirenestus just looked back at him and, with a deep breath, he tipped the bowl, drinking deeply from it.
It was like fire flowing through his veins. He almost dropped the bowl, but he made himself slowly set it down on the altar before he collapsed to his knees beside it. He refused to cry out, not with the dying demon watching him. Kirenestus picked up the other dagger and he dipped both into the remaining bright green blood. Both flared as the residual energy recharged them. Before he could lose his nerve, Kirenestus brought them up and shoved them into his eyes.
This time he did cry out, as did the demon. Magic swirled around them, grew tighter and tighter. The tattoos on Kirenestusâs upper body glowed bright, fel green. Blindly, he reached for the bowl, tipping the rest of the blood over the glaives. Then he took the glaives in hand and, turning, he nimbly sliced the head from the nathrezim. The circle evaporated as the magic dissipated, and Kirenestus again sank to his knees, groaning.
Kelenar came up to him, then, grabbing the bandages to wrap his ruined eyes. Kirenestus didnât hear what the paladin was saying to him. His mind was buzzing, buzzing...and then, suddenly, everything went dark and he fell face first into the bloodied dirt.
The ritual didnât work like it should have. There were failures, Kirenestus knew. Heâd heard about the ones that, for whatever reason, didnât take to the demonic power. The demon raged inside them and drove them insane. He wasnât going mad, he didnât think, but there was lost time. Voices. Nightmares. Perhaps it had been a mistake going for the Nathrezim. The demon was adept at possessing others. Had it been hubris to think he could control a master.
The niggling doubts inched their way through his mind as he followed silently behind his paladin escort through Tanaan Jungle. They were still deep within enemy territory and Kelenarâs runed greatsword glowed with the Light as he led the way, occasionally using it to cut through the thick underbrush.
âWeâre coming.â Kirenestusâs ears twitched. Had someone spoken, or was it just in his head? âLetâs go to Mulgore, daddy!â Perhaps in his head. Runed glaives were strapped to his back, and he drew them. He felt better, more solid with their weight in his hands. âI can smell your blood!â
Kelenar heard the movement and turned to him. âIs everything alright?â Kirenestus couldnât see details of the paladinâs face, not with the faceguard he wore and the vision he wasnât used to yet, but he could hear the concern.
âDo you hear something?â Kirenestus looked around, straining to hear something, anything, besides the laughter in his head.
âJust you. Youâre about as graceful as a herd of tauren.â Kelenar eyed the glaives, his gaze obvious even to Kirenestus. âIs something wrong? Weâre almost to the front, you can rest once we get back behind Horde lines.â
Something moved, just behind Kelenar, and Kirenestusâs gaze snapped to it immediately. âYou canât cage me forever...â Moved again. Bright against the grey that the world had become. He snarled. âGet down!â And he took a step forward, swinging the glaives in a wide arc in the space just above Kelenarâs head.
A howl erupted, and a succubus came into view. She was holding her arm, where bright green blood flowed from a deep gash. Kirenestus pushed past Kelenar and swung the glaives again. Her head went rolling.
As Kelenar stood and brushed himself off, Kirenestus knelt beside the body. He touched the bloody stump of her neck with two fingers, then brought them to his nose. He could almost smell the power in her blood, and on an impulse, he stuck the fingers in his mouth. There was a sharp pain on the back of his head as Kelenar slapped him.
âNo backsliding. Letâs go. We need to hurry, I doubt it was alone.â
Kirenestus let Kelenar herd him back towards the Horde line, but he kept looking back at the body cooling on the jungle floor. What a waste.
From Syelli: "You look familiar, have we met before?"
Kirenestus was bent over a book, tracing runes into its cover in glittering dust. His ruined eyes were hidden behind a thick cloth, but his hands moved with the surety of someone whoâd done that a million times before. He answered without turning towards the newcomer. âHouse Goldendawn is blessed to have survived the wars relatively unscathed. You may know any one of us.â
"Will you be taking this?" Nephelea offered Kirenestus his cloak, which he'd left on the back of the bench in the inn. "You'll probably want it, won't you? Because... rain..?"
Kirenestus looked behind him with a start. The cloth covering his ruined eyes was thick enough to obscure even the faintest outline of eye socket, but he still looked directly at her. To tell the truth, he wasnât used to the sight yet. He could see, but things, like the cloak in her hand, were faint enough he was prone to leave them. He accepted the cloak from her with a nod and a faint smile. âThank you.â He threw the hood over his head and fastened it around his neck then arranged it around the glaives at his back. âI appreciate it. Iâm not far from home, but it smells like rain, doesnât it?â
because sometimes whatâs left to the imagination is much more terrifying.
âAre you feeling alright? You donât look it.â
âI just heard something⌠Something badâŚâ
âWhy didnât you tell me about this?!â
âWhatâs all this blood?!â
âWill you tell me what the fuck is going on?â
âDonât give me that look! It wasnât my fault!â
âYou should probably sit down for this.â
âPlease tell me you forgive me!â
âI canât live without you!â
âOh god, It was a mistake coming here⌠Iâm sure of it.â
âWhat the hell happened to you?!â
âWhere have you been?! Iâve been waiting for hours!â
âYou promised you wouldnât do this anymore!â
âI knew not to trust you!â
âWhatâs that in your bagâŚ? Is thatâ? Tell me itâs not!â
âIs this what a dislocated shoulder feels like?!â
âHow could you do this to me?!â
âWake up! Wake up!!! Youâre having a nightmare!â
âI feel weird⌠what was in that drinkâŚ?â
âI donât want to leave you, but youâre not really giving me another option.â
âPlease⌠youâre scaring meâŚâ
âSsh, I heard something again. How arenât you hearing it? It was loud⌠and getting closer.â
âAre you okay in there? Youâve been so quiet.â
âI came as soon as I could! Did he/she get to you already?â
âI donât know whether I want to do this. I donât know whether I CAN do this.â
âDo you remember anything?â
âYou have to tell me who did this to you!â
âNo, no, Iâm not alright. Iâm definitely not alright.â
âWhatâs your fucking problem?!â
âAre you crying?â
âYouâre freaking me out! Please calm down!â
âIâm leaving. And Iâm not intending to come back.â
âYou⌠are dying?â
âDid you drink the whole bottle while tripping? Seriously?â
âDo you have a deathwish or something? Jesus!â
âEver been held at gunpoint? Want to know what it feels like?â
âStop screaming! Shh, calm down! You have to keep quiet!â
âWhenâs the last time you slept?â.