Bornn
02-02-2006, 01:19 PM
((Character Background))
Death And Undeath
By the Campfire
He drew a deep breath, inhaled the smoke from his pipe, and let it out slowly. His face was mainly hidden under his thick, dark cloak, and beyond him was nothing but the blackness of the night. He introduced himself as a bard, a storyteller, yet none of us believed him. His voice and mannerisms did not bode well for a storyteller and we grew suspicious that he traveled these dangerous lands alone.
Nonetheless, he offered to tell us a story if we shared our meal and the warmth of our fire with him. We agreed, if only because as Paladins of the Holy Light we could not turn our backs on this man and leave him to the cold of the night. We gathered around the fire after our meal, keeping our weapons nearby in case of danger and waited for his story to begin. The night seemed to grow colder as he began to speak and his thick raspy voiced carried quietly into the night as he began.
“The story I am about to tell you is about those whom you once swore to protect, but now deem to destroy. Listen carefully as this is a true story…”
“As you know, many years ago, before the plague of the scourge ravaged the lands of Lordaeron, it was the Kingdom of Men. On the outskirts of this vast kingdom lie a small farm owned by a Peter Silverstein and his wife Mildred. Living and working at the farm for the Silverstein’s were three youths; Jake, Bradley and Silvia, each of whom came from a different walk of life.”
“Jake had been working at the farm the longest, his father, Lord Jacob, was a rich nobleman who began life as a peasant and now sat at a table with the wealthiest people in Lordaeron. Lord Jacob swore that his son would learn the lessons of life as he did and sent Jake off to work at a young age. Silvia on the other hand came from the other side of the river. Most of Silvia’s family was dead. Her father and her brother died when she was young and several months after that her mother remarried the worst sort of man. After several beatings, Silvia took matters into her own hands and her step father’s heart soon beat no more with Silvia’s dagger through it. That was Silvia’s last act before running away from her home. She was eventually taken in by the Silverstein’s and only stayed and worked because she had no where else to go. Then there was Bradley, whose mother and father lived in Goldshire. Hard times had befallen Goldshire and Stromwind and Bradley’s father had fallen ill. The Silverstein’s were old family friends and Bradley was sent to their farm to work and aid his parents in these hard times.”
“Life at the Silverstein farm was nothing out of the ordinary for the three. But change is inevitable…”
The Silverstein Farm
It was a Tuesday morning at the farm and with the morning light the rooster began to crow. Jake stirred in his bunk, trying to catch that last few minutes of sleep until Bradley woke him, Bradley always woke him, and with the squeaking of the door here it came. Jake rolled over and sat-up, before Bradley got to his bunk. Jake stretched his arms and hopped off his bunk. Bradley flashed him a smile and went back outside. Jake surveyed the room, Bradley’s bed was already made, perfect as always, as were his things in the corner of the room, everything in order, perfect as could be. Jake looked over to his untidy things and scowled. He picked up Bradley’s book and placed it on the other side of the nightstand and laughed at the look on Bradley’s face when he found one of his things out of order. Jake’s game was cut short as he heard some rustling over in the neighboring building; Bradley must be trying to wake Silvia. Jake laughed and began to get ready for the day’s work.
Bradley shook Silvia again, pleading for her to wake, but she was in a dead sleep. Bradley sighed and went outside to get a bucket of water. He returned several minutes later to find Silvia’s bed empty and an angry Silvia glaring at him from across the room with her dagger in hand. Bradley stopped dead in his tracks, placed the bucket on the ground and headed outside, mumbling something about a “stupid white bitch”. Silvia put the dagger away and began to get dressed.
Outside, Bradley waited for Jake and Silvia to join him, he perched himself up on a nearby fence. Memories came back of when he first came to the Silverstein Farm a few years back. After a few minutes Bradley came out of his day dream as the roster crowed again. He took a deep breath of the crisp morning air and looked around to see some of the tools on the side of the shed had fallen over. Quickly, he jumped up to correct and order them properly. As he was double checking to be sure they were aligned tallest to shortest he heard laughing behind him. “You’re such a tool Bradley,” Silvia scoffed at him. Bradley tried to ignore her, knowing she was just trying to get a rise out of him. “We all need some sort of order in our life Silvia, order is what keeps us sane,” Bradley retorted. “Sane! You are definitely not sane Bradley,” Silvia laughed as she headed up to the house. Moments later Jake joined Bradley outside as he was finishing up his ordering and let out a laugh before the two quickly followed behind Silvia.
The Stranger
After breakfast Jake, Bradley and Silvia headed out to the northern field for the start of their day’s work, the harvest was here, which meant longer day's work and shorter night's rest. There was a chill in the morning air, which seemed more bitter than usual for this time of year. But, as the day wore on the sun grew hotter and hotter as it reached its peak in the sky. Soon the chill of the morning was forgotten as the temperature grew hotter still. About mid day, as the three were almost finished with the northern field, Jake began to pack up his things when he suddenly he froze stiff as a board in the middle of the field.
Jake’s loud gasp caught the attention of Silvia and Bradley who looked over just in time to see him collapse to the ground. The two rushed over to him. Jake was sprawled out on the ground, breathing heavily with a blank stare in his eyes. Silvia splashed some water from her water skin onto Jake’s face as Bradley shook him and shouted “Jake! Jake, can you hear me?” Slowly, Jake’s heart returned to a normal beat and his breathing steadied. Finally, he blinked and nodded in response. Bradley slowly helped Jake sit up, “It was another vision,” Jake explained, “but somehow it was different than the others.” Jake had had these strange visions from time to time, though it had been awhile since his last one and the three had hoped that these strange occurrences had passed. By the look in Jake’s eyes Silvia and Bradley knew that something was troubling Jake about his latest vision. “Do you remember anything this time, did you see something?” Bradley questioned him as he helped Jake to his feet. But the only response he got from Jake was, “Yes, I saw it… it is coming…”, but he would say no more.
After several minutes Jake seemed to have recovered, but the site of his vision was surely troubling him. As the three sat by the wagon and rested they heard a loud ruckus from the across the field. Jake seemed to be okay and the three quickly made their way across the field to see what was happening. As they reached the source of the noise they found Mr. Silverstein holding a man in his arms. The man was wheezing heavily, bent over on his knees holding his stomach. His skin was a sickly greenish orange and covered with odd blisters. Upon Mr. Silverstein’s orders, Silvia quickly ran to the house to tell Mrs. Silverstein to prepare a bed and to get some fresh water and bandages.
Back in the field Jake and Bradley helped Mr. Silverstein carry the injured man back to the house. The man said nothing coherent, he just kept screaming and breathing heavily. He had a mad look in his eyes and the blisters on his skin began to ooze. Jake and Bradley laid the man in the newly made bed and the three were then told to take the rest of the day off and to stay out of the house. At first the three weren’t sure what to do, a day off during the harvest was not something they had ever had in all their years working at the farm. But, the tone in Mr. Silverstein’s voice when he repeated the orders was enough to make them all bolt from the house.
For the rest of the day Jake, Bradley and Silvia sat outside their bunks as odd screams were emitted from the house. That night, none of them slept as the screams only grew worse. Jake lay in his bed, starring up at the ceiling. His thoughts were not on this strange man, they were on his vision. Jake was no Prophet, he knew that, but from time to time he had these odd visions. He knew not what they meant nor rarely remembered anything of them, and only told Bradley and Silvia. He had never given any of them much thought at all, except for this one that is. Something about it seemed real, though he couldn’t remember exactly what he had seen. He remembered only the sight of a river of blood, a sight that intrigued him more than it frightened him. That feeling is what Jake’s mind dwelled on, what did this mean?
In the bunk below Bradley lay with his face smothered in his mattress and his pillow pulled down tightly over his head. He tried to block it out he tried to block everything out. The one thing he had found here at the farm was order and that order had become his life, but now that order was breaking down. First Jake’s vision, then this strange sick man and finally a day off during the harvest! What was he to do? Bradley was so out of it that he didn’t even notice that Jake had moved his book. Half way through the night Bradley began mumbling incoherently and knocked several items off his nightstand, an act that normally would have sent it him into a fit to re-order it all. But this night Bradley did not care, his world was being turned upside down as the strange man’s screams seeped through his soul.
Silvia too lay awake in her bed, she lied there listening to the man’s screams feeling nothing, Silvia never felt anything. She simply lied there without moving a muscle and listened. At one point when the screams died down a little she turned her head, but once the cries resumed she didn't move again until morning.
Back at the Campfire
The stranger paused in his story.
Enthralled by the tale, we had not moved a muscle while he related the fate of the Silverstein Farm. His voice, though quiet, had penetrated our hearts, as if magical in nature. The story he told was familiar to other recitings of the plague of the scourge that we had heard in the past, but somehow this tale seemed to have more bearing on us than those of our own backyards in Stormwind. We, the seasoned Paladins of the Holy Light, were being drawn to this stranger and yet we were nervous, even frightened of this mere man. We were battle hardened and each of us had cut down our fair share of monstrous beasts, yet when a nearby owl took flight, we all flinched at the sudden flapping of wings.
The stranger simply chuckled, raised his old pipe to his lips, and continued his tale.
“Listen closely now as the plague of the scourge consumes those at the Silverstein Farm and turns them into the minions of the Lich King.”
The Plague
The screaming, from the house, had finally stopped in the early hours of the morning. One by one, Silvia, Jake and Bradley all got up and stepped outside. With a blank look at one another they slowly made their way up to the Silverstein’s house.
As they reached the front steps they all stopped and stood in silence, they heard nothing. Silvia slowly crept up the front steps as silent as could be. Bradley followed slowly behind nearly as silent. Silvia propped the door open and poked her head inside. The main hall was a mess; the rug was all mangled, pictures had fallen off the wall and the broken glass from them was strewn about, and several chairs lay broken in pieces. As Silvia opened the door more a loud creak stopped her, she turned around to find Jake had ascended the stairs and joined her and Bradley. With a sigh Silvia pushed the door open fully and stepped inside. They surveyed the house from the entry way and found that the destruction lead into the kitchen and living room as well. There was not a single piece of furniture or household item that was not broken or tossed about.
The three slowly headed up the stairs to the second floor. They first checked the spare room, where they had laid the strange man the day before, but found the bed to be empty. A puddle of water lay in the center of the room and an empty bucket was badly dented and hung out of a broken window. Without a word they moved across the hall to the Silverstein’s bedroom. Silvia pushed on the door but it seemed stuck, she began to push harder with no result. Bradley and Jake joined in and the three of them managed to push the door open enough for them to enter the room. The dresser had been pushed up against the door, blocking any entry. As they contemplated this their eyes scanned the room and almost in unison they all saw it. In the corner of the room lie two bodies, curled up in the fetal position side by side. Upon closure inspection they saw it was the Silverstein’s, their lifeless bodies showed no sign of injury. However, they both were covered in the same blister’s the strange man had had and their skin was the same sickly greenish orange. Silvia, Bradley and Jake all remained there for moment, standing over the bodies of the Silverstein’s in complete silence.
“I saw this, saw it all” Jake finally said, breaking the silence.
“What else did you see Jake?” questioned Silvia.
“I saw the end, and then a new beginning. I know not what it means, but somehow it is all connected to the river.”
“The river? What river?”
“The River of Blood.”
Suddenly Bradley broke out in a fit of laughter. Jake stepped back, away from him, he wouldn’t have been so shocked by the laughter had it come from Silvia. But to come from Bradley could not be a good sign.
Bradley’s fit of laughter was suddenly cut short by a loud crash from downstairs. As the three raced down the stairs they heard more noises coming from the basement, and then it all went silent once again. “What the hell is going on?” Silvia asked as she looked from Jake to Bradley. Bradley laugh again, “And what the shit are you laughing at” she added. “Ha ha! Don’t you see? Chaos has consumed us all and it is…” But, before Bradley could finish, the noises from the basement returned. Jake pushed himself passed Silvia and crept around to the basement door, which was broken in half. Together they slowly moved down into the basement. Halfway down they began to hear a guttural breathing sound and stopped, frozen on the stairs as they listened to the breathing.
“BRAAAAIIINNNSSS!!!!!”
A monstrous ghoul like creature suddenly jumped in front of them and at once they turned and bolted up the stairs. At the top of the stairs, Silvia grabbed hold of what was left of the kitchen table and heaved it down the stairs, toppling the creature over. They gathered in the living room, trying to make sense of it all. Somehow, that strange man from the previous day had turned into that hideous beast. As they began to talk things over and catch their breathe they heard another rustle, this time from upstairs! As they peaked around the corner they saw two more of those ghoulish beings clambering out of the Silverstein’s bedroom. They froze in place, unable to make sense of it all. Suddenly their trance was broken by the sound of shattering glass. Silvia and Jake quickly turned to find that Bradley had just jumped out of the window! They rushed over to look out and saw Bradley standing on the front lawn looking back up at them, his face appeared to be all cut up but otherwise he seemed fine. Bradley had a mad look in his eye and let out a chilling laugh, “I have given in to the Chaos and in return it has set me free!” he let out a wicked cackle before running around the house out of site.
"He's gone insane," Jake said as he starred off into the distance and began mumbling something about these beings, his vision and the “River of Blood”. He looked down at Silvia who had a wide grin on her face and he knew that she was accepting her end, though in a calmer manner than Bradley.
A Return to the Campfire
The story, traded for a meal and a warm fire, continued to unfold in an unpleasant direction. We did not know the identity of this stranger, nor did we know why he was telling us this tale. Yet we listened, a captive audience, unable to look away or move as if an unseen force kept us pinned to our seats.
The night had deepened as the stranger told his tale and now the cries of the wild were nowhere to be heard. The wind was no longer rustling the trees and the water in the nearby stream seemed to have stopped. The only sounds were those of the crackling campfire and of our steady breathing. It seemed as if all nature had stopped and was holding its’ breathe while it listened close to the story told by the campfire.
The stranger cleared his throat as we leaned in close as he began again.
"My tale is now nearly at an end. The story which I am about to tell is a familiar one - that of the rise of your former friends and new found enemies… The Forsaken…”
Death and Undeath
As Bradley ran around the house, screaming manically he saw them off in the distance and stopped. Up upon the hill in the horizon to the west stood a line of what seemed to be thousands of these ghoulish fiends. Bradley stood there and starred up at them as the ghoul from the basement climbed up, out of the basement stairs. The ghoul slowly moved towards Bradley. “Yes! I see it now, I see it all," he screamed, "there is no Order, only Chaos. Chaos is the only truth! After all these years I finally feel alive, I have finally been born.” and with that the Ghoul was upon him and Bradley was no more...
On the other side of the house Silvia made her way over to her bunk as Jake stood on the front steps. “Where are you going?” he called out to her. Silvia stopped at the door to her bunk and turned to face Jake, “to die” she said and flashed him a smile before disappearing into her bunk. Jake stood there, bewildered. He sat upon the step and placed his head in his hands. “She is right,” he said to himself, “our death is coming...” Jake heard the door bust open behind him as the Silverstein ghouls rushed out of the house at him...
In her bunk, Silvia lied in her bed, starring up at the ceiling with a grin on her face. After a few moments she drifted off to sleep as she waited for her end…
Suddenly Silvia woke up as two beings crashed through her door. She rolled over and to her surprise she saw a man standing over the body of a dead ghoul. The man looked back at her in surprise. “Quickly, come with me, the undead are swarming this place.” The man grabbed her hand and bolted out of the door with her. There was chaos all around as the Paladins of the Holy Light mounted up ready to flee the oncoming horde of undeath. Silvia, coming to her senses pulled her hand free from the man and before he could turn to grab her again she jumped on his back, drew her dagger from here boot and slit his throat. “NO! You will not take this from me!” Silvia then turned and ran towards the oncoming scourge to meet her end...
The Forsaken
Silvia suddenly awoke once again. She looked about as her eyes slowly came into focus. “What now?” she thought, “Did those lousy Paladins actually manage to save me!” But her worst fears were stilled as she looked about. She found herself in a dark, damp crypt. She was not brought here by the Paladins, but who then? She slowly stood, her body felt strange, uneasy.
Slowly she crept through the crypt and found the stairs leading out to the night sky. As she reached the top of the steps she froze, an undead being stood there starring at her curiously. “Welcome,” he said in a friendly voice. Silvia stood there unmoving, not knowing what was going on. Suddenly she realized this undead being was not her enemy, he was her kind. As Silvia looked down upon herself she saw the skeletal figure that she had become. This undead being greeted her again in a soothing voice and explained how she had come to be. How the scourge had taken her and most of Lordaeron, but with the aid of the Dark Lady she was now free and one of the Forsaken. When the grave keeper had finished he asked Silvia her name, her response was “Styll.” The way she had left the last human she was in contact with and the way she would soon leave many more.
Following the instructions of the grave keeper, Styll made her way through the Trisfal Glades to the small Village of Brill. She smiled at the site of the rundown and decrepit farms around Lordaeron. Upon arriving in Brill, Styll headed over to the tavern and heard a man shouting inside, an undead man. “NO! NO NO NO!” the man shouted. “Look as this, its perfect! What are you trying to do to me?” The man quickly moved all the neatly placed items on the table in front of him around into disarray. Feeling better the man sat down upon the center of the table, in the middle of his chaotic mess. He surveyed the room and his eyes fell upon Styll as she entered the tavern and he grinned. She knew those eyes…
“Jakar!” the man shouted, “Look who’s finally woken?”
Another undead man looked up from his seat across the room and stood. “Glad you decided to join us,” the second man said as he smiled and strolled across the room towards her. The first man quickly jumped up and followed behind.
The two undead stopped in front of her, Styll smiled.
“Well now,” Jakar began, “We haven’t seen one of those from you in quit sometime Sil…”
“Styll…” she said, interrupting him, “Jakar…”
Jakar nodded. Styll looked over at the other man, who had been sitting upon the table.
He grinned at her, “Bornn”.
“Yes you are.”
Jakar placed his arm upon her shoulder, “Come now, there is much we need to discuss.”
Off in the forest, Jakar began to explain. “’The last army, that known as the Locusts, shall stretch across the countryside, their numbers so great they form their own River of Blood, and when they march, the world shall know their coming and their ascension.’” Jakar smiled, “Locusts, Chapter 2, Verse 25.”
Styll starred blankly at him as he continued. Jakar explained how, before the Silverstein ghouls finished him off on the porch, he had the same vision he had in the field. He and Bornn had woken several weeks prior and when they finally met up he informed Bornn. In return Bornn handed him a ripped parchment with that phrase on it. At this point Bornn interupted and went on to explain how it came from the Prophecies of St. Gregarion. Bornn had found the parchment in an old pile of books at a farm in Silverpine Forest.
“That is the River of Blood I saw in my vision," Jakar continued, "Our rising as Forsaken by the Dark Lady was no mere coincidence. I for-saw all of this, the Crimson Lord has chosen us to aid in his coming.”
“And what have you seen since you have risen?” Styll asked.
“Nothing, my visions have ceased. I have refocused that energy to the shadows,” Jakar grinned wickedly.
Bornn, interrupted again and went on to explain how there is a group who call themselves The Crimson Watch. These warriors, clad in crimson attire will for-see the rising of the Crimson Lord and the glory that will soon follow. It has become there intention to join The Crimson Watch and aid them in the coming of the Crimson Lord.
Epilogue
The stanger had finally finished his story as light began to creep into the dark sky. The long night had passed and dawn was not far off. Nothing remained of the fire but smoldering ash. The storyteller lit his pipe once again.
"So my story comes to an end for now. Your three former friends and new found enemies have joined the Crimson Watch and soon they will see the coming of the Crimson Lord.”
Slighted by the abrupt ending, one of my comrades stood and laughed, thanking the stranger for his mythical tale.
“Mythical? Oh no, I’m afraid what I tell you is the truth my friend.” The stranger retorted.
My comrade turned to the stranger, “How could it be? How could you possibly know so much about these three and their rising as the Forsaken?”
The stranger merely laughed, “It’s easy, don’t you see? For I am the Shadow Priest, Jakar!”
With that the stranger stood and cast back his hood, revealing his empty eye sockets. Before my friends and I could grasp what was happening and grab our weapons, Jakar’s spell sent us all fleeing into the woods in terror. The undead priest stood there, in the middle of our camp, from the spot he had recited his tale, and blasted my friends with his dark, shadowy magic.
After what seemed like ages, we regained our composure and charged at this abomination of life. But before I even took three steps back toward the camp my remaining comrades were suddenly cut down by two unseen rogues who had been waiting in the shadows. I stopped dead in my tracks and dropped my sword. My friends lay strewn about, their bodies mangled and lifeless. As one of the rogues bent over and began feasting on a lifeless corpse, I lost my dinner from the previous night.
I was frozen in place, I could not move as these three wretched beings came down. I feel to my knees and I looked up at the first rogue, "Bornn..." and then to the other, "Styll...” They nodded and I was ready for my end. But kill me they did not, instead they let me live on the condition that I would tell their tale and tell I have…
Death And Undeath
By the Campfire
He drew a deep breath, inhaled the smoke from his pipe, and let it out slowly. His face was mainly hidden under his thick, dark cloak, and beyond him was nothing but the blackness of the night. He introduced himself as a bard, a storyteller, yet none of us believed him. His voice and mannerisms did not bode well for a storyteller and we grew suspicious that he traveled these dangerous lands alone.
Nonetheless, he offered to tell us a story if we shared our meal and the warmth of our fire with him. We agreed, if only because as Paladins of the Holy Light we could not turn our backs on this man and leave him to the cold of the night. We gathered around the fire after our meal, keeping our weapons nearby in case of danger and waited for his story to begin. The night seemed to grow colder as he began to speak and his thick raspy voiced carried quietly into the night as he began.
“The story I am about to tell you is about those whom you once swore to protect, but now deem to destroy. Listen carefully as this is a true story…”
“As you know, many years ago, before the plague of the scourge ravaged the lands of Lordaeron, it was the Kingdom of Men. On the outskirts of this vast kingdom lie a small farm owned by a Peter Silverstein and his wife Mildred. Living and working at the farm for the Silverstein’s were three youths; Jake, Bradley and Silvia, each of whom came from a different walk of life.”
“Jake had been working at the farm the longest, his father, Lord Jacob, was a rich nobleman who began life as a peasant and now sat at a table with the wealthiest people in Lordaeron. Lord Jacob swore that his son would learn the lessons of life as he did and sent Jake off to work at a young age. Silvia on the other hand came from the other side of the river. Most of Silvia’s family was dead. Her father and her brother died when she was young and several months after that her mother remarried the worst sort of man. After several beatings, Silvia took matters into her own hands and her step father’s heart soon beat no more with Silvia’s dagger through it. That was Silvia’s last act before running away from her home. She was eventually taken in by the Silverstein’s and only stayed and worked because she had no where else to go. Then there was Bradley, whose mother and father lived in Goldshire. Hard times had befallen Goldshire and Stromwind and Bradley’s father had fallen ill. The Silverstein’s were old family friends and Bradley was sent to their farm to work and aid his parents in these hard times.”
“Life at the Silverstein farm was nothing out of the ordinary for the three. But change is inevitable…”
The Silverstein Farm
It was a Tuesday morning at the farm and with the morning light the rooster began to crow. Jake stirred in his bunk, trying to catch that last few minutes of sleep until Bradley woke him, Bradley always woke him, and with the squeaking of the door here it came. Jake rolled over and sat-up, before Bradley got to his bunk. Jake stretched his arms and hopped off his bunk. Bradley flashed him a smile and went back outside. Jake surveyed the room, Bradley’s bed was already made, perfect as always, as were his things in the corner of the room, everything in order, perfect as could be. Jake looked over to his untidy things and scowled. He picked up Bradley’s book and placed it on the other side of the nightstand and laughed at the look on Bradley’s face when he found one of his things out of order. Jake’s game was cut short as he heard some rustling over in the neighboring building; Bradley must be trying to wake Silvia. Jake laughed and began to get ready for the day’s work.
Bradley shook Silvia again, pleading for her to wake, but she was in a dead sleep. Bradley sighed and went outside to get a bucket of water. He returned several minutes later to find Silvia’s bed empty and an angry Silvia glaring at him from across the room with her dagger in hand. Bradley stopped dead in his tracks, placed the bucket on the ground and headed outside, mumbling something about a “stupid white bitch”. Silvia put the dagger away and began to get dressed.
Outside, Bradley waited for Jake and Silvia to join him, he perched himself up on a nearby fence. Memories came back of when he first came to the Silverstein Farm a few years back. After a few minutes Bradley came out of his day dream as the roster crowed again. He took a deep breath of the crisp morning air and looked around to see some of the tools on the side of the shed had fallen over. Quickly, he jumped up to correct and order them properly. As he was double checking to be sure they were aligned tallest to shortest he heard laughing behind him. “You’re such a tool Bradley,” Silvia scoffed at him. Bradley tried to ignore her, knowing she was just trying to get a rise out of him. “We all need some sort of order in our life Silvia, order is what keeps us sane,” Bradley retorted. “Sane! You are definitely not sane Bradley,” Silvia laughed as she headed up to the house. Moments later Jake joined Bradley outside as he was finishing up his ordering and let out a laugh before the two quickly followed behind Silvia.
The Stranger
After breakfast Jake, Bradley and Silvia headed out to the northern field for the start of their day’s work, the harvest was here, which meant longer day's work and shorter night's rest. There was a chill in the morning air, which seemed more bitter than usual for this time of year. But, as the day wore on the sun grew hotter and hotter as it reached its peak in the sky. Soon the chill of the morning was forgotten as the temperature grew hotter still. About mid day, as the three were almost finished with the northern field, Jake began to pack up his things when he suddenly he froze stiff as a board in the middle of the field.
Jake’s loud gasp caught the attention of Silvia and Bradley who looked over just in time to see him collapse to the ground. The two rushed over to him. Jake was sprawled out on the ground, breathing heavily with a blank stare in his eyes. Silvia splashed some water from her water skin onto Jake’s face as Bradley shook him and shouted “Jake! Jake, can you hear me?” Slowly, Jake’s heart returned to a normal beat and his breathing steadied. Finally, he blinked and nodded in response. Bradley slowly helped Jake sit up, “It was another vision,” Jake explained, “but somehow it was different than the others.” Jake had had these strange visions from time to time, though it had been awhile since his last one and the three had hoped that these strange occurrences had passed. By the look in Jake’s eyes Silvia and Bradley knew that something was troubling Jake about his latest vision. “Do you remember anything this time, did you see something?” Bradley questioned him as he helped Jake to his feet. But the only response he got from Jake was, “Yes, I saw it… it is coming…”, but he would say no more.
After several minutes Jake seemed to have recovered, but the site of his vision was surely troubling him. As the three sat by the wagon and rested they heard a loud ruckus from the across the field. Jake seemed to be okay and the three quickly made their way across the field to see what was happening. As they reached the source of the noise they found Mr. Silverstein holding a man in his arms. The man was wheezing heavily, bent over on his knees holding his stomach. His skin was a sickly greenish orange and covered with odd blisters. Upon Mr. Silverstein’s orders, Silvia quickly ran to the house to tell Mrs. Silverstein to prepare a bed and to get some fresh water and bandages.
Back in the field Jake and Bradley helped Mr. Silverstein carry the injured man back to the house. The man said nothing coherent, he just kept screaming and breathing heavily. He had a mad look in his eyes and the blisters on his skin began to ooze. Jake and Bradley laid the man in the newly made bed and the three were then told to take the rest of the day off and to stay out of the house. At first the three weren’t sure what to do, a day off during the harvest was not something they had ever had in all their years working at the farm. But, the tone in Mr. Silverstein’s voice when he repeated the orders was enough to make them all bolt from the house.
For the rest of the day Jake, Bradley and Silvia sat outside their bunks as odd screams were emitted from the house. That night, none of them slept as the screams only grew worse. Jake lay in his bed, starring up at the ceiling. His thoughts were not on this strange man, they were on his vision. Jake was no Prophet, he knew that, but from time to time he had these odd visions. He knew not what they meant nor rarely remembered anything of them, and only told Bradley and Silvia. He had never given any of them much thought at all, except for this one that is. Something about it seemed real, though he couldn’t remember exactly what he had seen. He remembered only the sight of a river of blood, a sight that intrigued him more than it frightened him. That feeling is what Jake’s mind dwelled on, what did this mean?
In the bunk below Bradley lay with his face smothered in his mattress and his pillow pulled down tightly over his head. He tried to block it out he tried to block everything out. The one thing he had found here at the farm was order and that order had become his life, but now that order was breaking down. First Jake’s vision, then this strange sick man and finally a day off during the harvest! What was he to do? Bradley was so out of it that he didn’t even notice that Jake had moved his book. Half way through the night Bradley began mumbling incoherently and knocked several items off his nightstand, an act that normally would have sent it him into a fit to re-order it all. But this night Bradley did not care, his world was being turned upside down as the strange man’s screams seeped through his soul.
Silvia too lay awake in her bed, she lied there listening to the man’s screams feeling nothing, Silvia never felt anything. She simply lied there without moving a muscle and listened. At one point when the screams died down a little she turned her head, but once the cries resumed she didn't move again until morning.
Back at the Campfire
The stranger paused in his story.
Enthralled by the tale, we had not moved a muscle while he related the fate of the Silverstein Farm. His voice, though quiet, had penetrated our hearts, as if magical in nature. The story he told was familiar to other recitings of the plague of the scourge that we had heard in the past, but somehow this tale seemed to have more bearing on us than those of our own backyards in Stormwind. We, the seasoned Paladins of the Holy Light, were being drawn to this stranger and yet we were nervous, even frightened of this mere man. We were battle hardened and each of us had cut down our fair share of monstrous beasts, yet when a nearby owl took flight, we all flinched at the sudden flapping of wings.
The stranger simply chuckled, raised his old pipe to his lips, and continued his tale.
“Listen closely now as the plague of the scourge consumes those at the Silverstein Farm and turns them into the minions of the Lich King.”
The Plague
The screaming, from the house, had finally stopped in the early hours of the morning. One by one, Silvia, Jake and Bradley all got up and stepped outside. With a blank look at one another they slowly made their way up to the Silverstein’s house.
As they reached the front steps they all stopped and stood in silence, they heard nothing. Silvia slowly crept up the front steps as silent as could be. Bradley followed slowly behind nearly as silent. Silvia propped the door open and poked her head inside. The main hall was a mess; the rug was all mangled, pictures had fallen off the wall and the broken glass from them was strewn about, and several chairs lay broken in pieces. As Silvia opened the door more a loud creak stopped her, she turned around to find Jake had ascended the stairs and joined her and Bradley. With a sigh Silvia pushed the door open fully and stepped inside. They surveyed the house from the entry way and found that the destruction lead into the kitchen and living room as well. There was not a single piece of furniture or household item that was not broken or tossed about.
The three slowly headed up the stairs to the second floor. They first checked the spare room, where they had laid the strange man the day before, but found the bed to be empty. A puddle of water lay in the center of the room and an empty bucket was badly dented and hung out of a broken window. Without a word they moved across the hall to the Silverstein’s bedroom. Silvia pushed on the door but it seemed stuck, she began to push harder with no result. Bradley and Jake joined in and the three of them managed to push the door open enough for them to enter the room. The dresser had been pushed up against the door, blocking any entry. As they contemplated this their eyes scanned the room and almost in unison they all saw it. In the corner of the room lie two bodies, curled up in the fetal position side by side. Upon closure inspection they saw it was the Silverstein’s, their lifeless bodies showed no sign of injury. However, they both were covered in the same blister’s the strange man had had and their skin was the same sickly greenish orange. Silvia, Bradley and Jake all remained there for moment, standing over the bodies of the Silverstein’s in complete silence.
“I saw this, saw it all” Jake finally said, breaking the silence.
“What else did you see Jake?” questioned Silvia.
“I saw the end, and then a new beginning. I know not what it means, but somehow it is all connected to the river.”
“The river? What river?”
“The River of Blood.”
Suddenly Bradley broke out in a fit of laughter. Jake stepped back, away from him, he wouldn’t have been so shocked by the laughter had it come from Silvia. But to come from Bradley could not be a good sign.
Bradley’s fit of laughter was suddenly cut short by a loud crash from downstairs. As the three raced down the stairs they heard more noises coming from the basement, and then it all went silent once again. “What the hell is going on?” Silvia asked as she looked from Jake to Bradley. Bradley laugh again, “And what the shit are you laughing at” she added. “Ha ha! Don’t you see? Chaos has consumed us all and it is…” But, before Bradley could finish, the noises from the basement returned. Jake pushed himself passed Silvia and crept around to the basement door, which was broken in half. Together they slowly moved down into the basement. Halfway down they began to hear a guttural breathing sound and stopped, frozen on the stairs as they listened to the breathing.
“BRAAAAIIINNNSSS!!!!!”
A monstrous ghoul like creature suddenly jumped in front of them and at once they turned and bolted up the stairs. At the top of the stairs, Silvia grabbed hold of what was left of the kitchen table and heaved it down the stairs, toppling the creature over. They gathered in the living room, trying to make sense of it all. Somehow, that strange man from the previous day had turned into that hideous beast. As they began to talk things over and catch their breathe they heard another rustle, this time from upstairs! As they peaked around the corner they saw two more of those ghoulish beings clambering out of the Silverstein’s bedroom. They froze in place, unable to make sense of it all. Suddenly their trance was broken by the sound of shattering glass. Silvia and Jake quickly turned to find that Bradley had just jumped out of the window! They rushed over to look out and saw Bradley standing on the front lawn looking back up at them, his face appeared to be all cut up but otherwise he seemed fine. Bradley had a mad look in his eye and let out a chilling laugh, “I have given in to the Chaos and in return it has set me free!” he let out a wicked cackle before running around the house out of site.
"He's gone insane," Jake said as he starred off into the distance and began mumbling something about these beings, his vision and the “River of Blood”. He looked down at Silvia who had a wide grin on her face and he knew that she was accepting her end, though in a calmer manner than Bradley.
A Return to the Campfire
The story, traded for a meal and a warm fire, continued to unfold in an unpleasant direction. We did not know the identity of this stranger, nor did we know why he was telling us this tale. Yet we listened, a captive audience, unable to look away or move as if an unseen force kept us pinned to our seats.
The night had deepened as the stranger told his tale and now the cries of the wild were nowhere to be heard. The wind was no longer rustling the trees and the water in the nearby stream seemed to have stopped. The only sounds were those of the crackling campfire and of our steady breathing. It seemed as if all nature had stopped and was holding its’ breathe while it listened close to the story told by the campfire.
The stranger cleared his throat as we leaned in close as he began again.
"My tale is now nearly at an end. The story which I am about to tell is a familiar one - that of the rise of your former friends and new found enemies… The Forsaken…”
Death and Undeath
As Bradley ran around the house, screaming manically he saw them off in the distance and stopped. Up upon the hill in the horizon to the west stood a line of what seemed to be thousands of these ghoulish fiends. Bradley stood there and starred up at them as the ghoul from the basement climbed up, out of the basement stairs. The ghoul slowly moved towards Bradley. “Yes! I see it now, I see it all," he screamed, "there is no Order, only Chaos. Chaos is the only truth! After all these years I finally feel alive, I have finally been born.” and with that the Ghoul was upon him and Bradley was no more...
On the other side of the house Silvia made her way over to her bunk as Jake stood on the front steps. “Where are you going?” he called out to her. Silvia stopped at the door to her bunk and turned to face Jake, “to die” she said and flashed him a smile before disappearing into her bunk. Jake stood there, bewildered. He sat upon the step and placed his head in his hands. “She is right,” he said to himself, “our death is coming...” Jake heard the door bust open behind him as the Silverstein ghouls rushed out of the house at him...
In her bunk, Silvia lied in her bed, starring up at the ceiling with a grin on her face. After a few moments she drifted off to sleep as she waited for her end…
Suddenly Silvia woke up as two beings crashed through her door. She rolled over and to her surprise she saw a man standing over the body of a dead ghoul. The man looked back at her in surprise. “Quickly, come with me, the undead are swarming this place.” The man grabbed her hand and bolted out of the door with her. There was chaos all around as the Paladins of the Holy Light mounted up ready to flee the oncoming horde of undeath. Silvia, coming to her senses pulled her hand free from the man and before he could turn to grab her again she jumped on his back, drew her dagger from here boot and slit his throat. “NO! You will not take this from me!” Silvia then turned and ran towards the oncoming scourge to meet her end...
The Forsaken
Silvia suddenly awoke once again. She looked about as her eyes slowly came into focus. “What now?” she thought, “Did those lousy Paladins actually manage to save me!” But her worst fears were stilled as she looked about. She found herself in a dark, damp crypt. She was not brought here by the Paladins, but who then? She slowly stood, her body felt strange, uneasy.
Slowly she crept through the crypt and found the stairs leading out to the night sky. As she reached the top of the steps she froze, an undead being stood there starring at her curiously. “Welcome,” he said in a friendly voice. Silvia stood there unmoving, not knowing what was going on. Suddenly she realized this undead being was not her enemy, he was her kind. As Silvia looked down upon herself she saw the skeletal figure that she had become. This undead being greeted her again in a soothing voice and explained how she had come to be. How the scourge had taken her and most of Lordaeron, but with the aid of the Dark Lady she was now free and one of the Forsaken. When the grave keeper had finished he asked Silvia her name, her response was “Styll.” The way she had left the last human she was in contact with and the way she would soon leave many more.
Following the instructions of the grave keeper, Styll made her way through the Trisfal Glades to the small Village of Brill. She smiled at the site of the rundown and decrepit farms around Lordaeron. Upon arriving in Brill, Styll headed over to the tavern and heard a man shouting inside, an undead man. “NO! NO NO NO!” the man shouted. “Look as this, its perfect! What are you trying to do to me?” The man quickly moved all the neatly placed items on the table in front of him around into disarray. Feeling better the man sat down upon the center of the table, in the middle of his chaotic mess. He surveyed the room and his eyes fell upon Styll as she entered the tavern and he grinned. She knew those eyes…
“Jakar!” the man shouted, “Look who’s finally woken?”
Another undead man looked up from his seat across the room and stood. “Glad you decided to join us,” the second man said as he smiled and strolled across the room towards her. The first man quickly jumped up and followed behind.
The two undead stopped in front of her, Styll smiled.
“Well now,” Jakar began, “We haven’t seen one of those from you in quit sometime Sil…”
“Styll…” she said, interrupting him, “Jakar…”
Jakar nodded. Styll looked over at the other man, who had been sitting upon the table.
He grinned at her, “Bornn”.
“Yes you are.”
Jakar placed his arm upon her shoulder, “Come now, there is much we need to discuss.”
Off in the forest, Jakar began to explain. “’The last army, that known as the Locusts, shall stretch across the countryside, their numbers so great they form their own River of Blood, and when they march, the world shall know their coming and their ascension.’” Jakar smiled, “Locusts, Chapter 2, Verse 25.”
Styll starred blankly at him as he continued. Jakar explained how, before the Silverstein ghouls finished him off on the porch, he had the same vision he had in the field. He and Bornn had woken several weeks prior and when they finally met up he informed Bornn. In return Bornn handed him a ripped parchment with that phrase on it. At this point Bornn interupted and went on to explain how it came from the Prophecies of St. Gregarion. Bornn had found the parchment in an old pile of books at a farm in Silverpine Forest.
“That is the River of Blood I saw in my vision," Jakar continued, "Our rising as Forsaken by the Dark Lady was no mere coincidence. I for-saw all of this, the Crimson Lord has chosen us to aid in his coming.”
“And what have you seen since you have risen?” Styll asked.
“Nothing, my visions have ceased. I have refocused that energy to the shadows,” Jakar grinned wickedly.
Bornn, interrupted again and went on to explain how there is a group who call themselves The Crimson Watch. These warriors, clad in crimson attire will for-see the rising of the Crimson Lord and the glory that will soon follow. It has become there intention to join The Crimson Watch and aid them in the coming of the Crimson Lord.
Epilogue
The stanger had finally finished his story as light began to creep into the dark sky. The long night had passed and dawn was not far off. Nothing remained of the fire but smoldering ash. The storyteller lit his pipe once again.
"So my story comes to an end for now. Your three former friends and new found enemies have joined the Crimson Watch and soon they will see the coming of the Crimson Lord.”
Slighted by the abrupt ending, one of my comrades stood and laughed, thanking the stranger for his mythical tale.
“Mythical? Oh no, I’m afraid what I tell you is the truth my friend.” The stranger retorted.
My comrade turned to the stranger, “How could it be? How could you possibly know so much about these three and their rising as the Forsaken?”
The stranger merely laughed, “It’s easy, don’t you see? For I am the Shadow Priest, Jakar!”
With that the stranger stood and cast back his hood, revealing his empty eye sockets. Before my friends and I could grasp what was happening and grab our weapons, Jakar’s spell sent us all fleeing into the woods in terror. The undead priest stood there, in the middle of our camp, from the spot he had recited his tale, and blasted my friends with his dark, shadowy magic.
After what seemed like ages, we regained our composure and charged at this abomination of life. But before I even took three steps back toward the camp my remaining comrades were suddenly cut down by two unseen rogues who had been waiting in the shadows. I stopped dead in my tracks and dropped my sword. My friends lay strewn about, their bodies mangled and lifeless. As one of the rogues bent over and began feasting on a lifeless corpse, I lost my dinner from the previous night.
I was frozen in place, I could not move as these three wretched beings came down. I feel to my knees and I looked up at the first rogue, "Bornn..." and then to the other, "Styll...” They nodded and I was ready for my end. But kill me they did not, instead they let me live on the condition that I would tell their tale and tell I have…