Cult & Conspiracy

[Master Vorr]

This is my first WoW fanfic, based upon several friends/characters that I play with in my guild. Let me know what you all think, as I'm testing my ability as a SciFi/Fantasy writer based on Blizzard's ideas and ingenious concepts. Here's the beginning:
mv

Part I

Ersatz arrived at the Razor Hill Inn during the cold hours of the early morning, in secret. The Orc only had two bodyguards assigned to him, and both were securing his room for the night. Tomorrow, as soon as the sun rose, he would set off on the last leg of his long journey to Orgrimmar, and deliver the most important letter of his life to Thrall, leader of the Horde.

This letter was the very reason he was summoned all the way to Ironforge, far away in the Eastern Kingdoms. From the meeting that took place there he was ordered to travel back to Kalimdor in secrecy, and his mission would be fulfilled once he reached Thrall’s Palace. He and his guards, two Tauren druids, were forced to move slowly and in disguise, taking every back channel they could think of, for the fate of all of Azeroth may depend on the scroll he carried at all times.

Now, he sat atop his Great Wolf mount, cloaked and blending into the night. His journey, which had taken months on end, was almost over. It’s completion within his grasp.

‘Just one more day…’ Ersatz thought.

The two druid guards emerged from the inn. “All clear,” the calico one whispered.

The other Tauren helped Ersatz dismount, and tied their Kodo to a stable post. Both hefted heavy battle axes while Ersatz only had a long sword. He was led inside with all weapons sheathed, flipped a single gold coin to the innkeeper, and headed upstairs.

While in the hotel, Ersatz was comforted by the warmth of finally being indoors for once. ‘Maybe I can rest easy tonight…’ He yearned for a nights rest on a soft bed after so many spent on the hard ground, underneath a tent that had been constantly pelted with freezing sleet and rain.

When he arrived at his room in a long hallway, his guards stood at both sides of the door. One slid the door open, peaked his head inside, and then waved Ersatz in.

‘Now for my own personal inspection.’ The reason Ersatz needed bodyguards, and such able ones at that, was that Thrall felt his life would be in grave danger on the return journey home. Who, or what, could possibly be their enemy was unknown, but The Horde didn’t like to take chances. Though their travels had been safe and uninterrupted thus far, it was no indication for him to feel lax and cut corners with security.

His room, was somewhat nice, even though he had stayed in more luxurious suites in his lifetime. There were no windows or closets; the only exit being the front door, which was to his liking. ‘No was for assassins to sneak in.’ The room had been cleaned of most furniture, leaving it scarce. Only a small nightstand and a medium-sized bed with covers that didn’t even reach all the way to the floor were left. ‘Good… not many places to hide.’

There was one lone glass pitcher of water on the nightstand. ‘No doubt it had already been checked for poison…’ Ersatz looked back to the entrance at the Tauren guards, who nodded.

As they creaked the door to a close, leaving it open just a crack, a chilling feeling invaded him. It was quiet. Almost an eerie dead quiet. He found it odd that a hotel so necessary on the road to Orgrimmar did not emanate a sound, even at this hour. On the way in, he had heard no other guests, or even the slightest hint of livelihood from the tavern a floor below.

His suspicions gripped his fear. ‘There weren’t any other mounts outside! …’ Nothing that would indicate that other travelers could possibly be lodging in this very same building tonight. Could it be that the only residents in the inn were him, his bodyguards, and the innkeeper?

‘Could the druids have set this up?!’ Ersatz’s mind raced. ‘They picked this inn, “inspected” it, and secured my room… Would they dare have me killed in a vacant hotel?!’ Paranoia had seeded its roots deep within his mind.

He drew his long sword, adrenaline pumping, ready for anything. He checked the pouch at his waist to see if the scroll still lay within. ‘This is all that matters!’

A door slammed from somewhere within the hotel, echoing throughout his entire floor. Ersatz strained his ears to listen. He heard several, if not many, Orcs stumble out of a room down the hall. They were drunk, no doubt at this time, and singing and laughing loudly. All was perfectly normal.

Ersatz breathed a deep sigh of relief, and placed his sword at his bedside. He walked to his door and whispered ‘good night’ to his guards.

“Good night, sir,” they both said.

He trusted them. In fact, he was lucky enough to even have these two on his quest. They had done everything for him and much more. It looked like he would indeed rest easy tonight.

He went to fully close the door and lock it. But something odd struck him. The lock was broken, and from the inside. His eyes went wide with fear. Someone was in this room with him.

Before he could even move a muscle, he felt a blow strike him from behind, on the back of his skull. For a moment, he couldn’t move or speak. He just stood perfectly still, mouth agape, and paralyzed. Sapped.

Without muscle control, he could no longer hold himself up, and fell backwards to the floor. Only something caught his head and he hit the ground without as much as a muffle. Pain now replaced the numbness that constricted his entire body, and his eyes focused.

Above him was the ceiling, and then, as if it appeared out of thin air, a hooded figure looked down upon him. As it leaned in closer, with a dagger raised in its free hand, tusks protruded from the hood.

‘A troll?!’ he questioned.

The tusks were so close; he could feel the figure’s rotten breath on his face.

“For the Horde…” his assassin whispered.

In one fluid motion, the figure slid the dagger across his neck, spilling blood everywhere, quietly.


* * * * * * *


Hargeth, a rogue assassin, had just murdered Ersatz, a diplomat to Thrall himself.

The troll wiped his blade clean and sheathed it. His kill had gone all too easy. He stood looking over the dead body, and almost chuckled, even with armed guards outside.

He had been stealthily waiting in this exact room for the past seven hours, waiting for his target. He knew his Tauren guards would pick this room, due to its apparent security, and he would have Ersatz all to himself.

There was that one point where he thought he had been found out, when Ersatz went for his long sword.

‘It pays to be the best…’ Hargeth thought. Only in broad daylight was he visible without choice.

Now, it was time to leave. He decided not to let Ersatz’s body bleed all over the once stainless floor. With great effort, mostly due to silence, he drug the large Orc over to the bed, flopping the body face down on the mattress.

Hargeth was almost ready to make his undetectable escape through the door, but noticed he couldn’t help but stare at the dead Orc. The kill, although easy, was almost perfect; flawless. He couldn’t just leave this body, letting the druids and the rest of Durotar to wonder how this could’ve happened.

The troll drew his previously used dagger, his favorite one, and plunged it into the back of Ersatz. The dagger bore a lone insignia on the hilt, which was barely visible, and rarely known to anyone.

‘There,’ he smiled, spreading his lips over his tusks. ‘Let them all scratch their heads.’

He once again turned and headed for the door, but stopped himself once more.

‘Almost forgot…’ he remembered. Hargeth went back to Ersatz, and felt around in the pouch on his waist. Once he found the letter to Thrall, he vanished into thin air, and escaped from Razor Hill.

[Master Vorr]

And ... this is the second part.
mv

Part II

“Master Sergeant Ulldhur, are you awake sir?”

A voice from outside Ulldhur’s bedroom door yelled. Whoever it was, had been banging on his door for the past five minutes.

Ulldhur rolled over sluggishly, none too appreciative of the unwelcome wake-up call. “State your name and order of business!” the Orc warrior growled back.

“First Private Gonzok, reporting!” the voice sounded more alert. Ulldhur could’ve sworn he heard the Private salute him through the other side of the door. “Warchief Thrall has asked me to come and retrieve you.”

Ulldhur thought for a moment. “Go away,” he told the Private, and rolled back over to go to sleep.

“He requests your presence urgently, Sir!”

‘What could Thrall possibly want that involves me being there?’ Ulldhur sat up and pondered. “Is Ersatz back yet?” he asked.

“Uh…” Gonzok hesitated. “Yes and no…”

‘Yes and no?’ Ulldhur got out of bed and answered the door, with bright sunlight from above Orgrimmar pouring in. “Explain yourself, Private.”

“…It’s best if you just come see for yourself-“

“Wait,” Ulldhur cut him off. “Why are you even coming to me? Master General Khan is my superior.”

Gonzok looked surprised. Ulldhur could see that the Orc Private was sweating above his brow. “I figured you would’ve known already, Sir,” the Private stuttered. “But, Khan has gone missing…”

“What?! For how long?”

“Going on more than a week now…”

“Where’s his second in command?”

Gonzok gulped. “First General Tuloc has also gone missing…”

Ulldhur couldn’t believe it. The highest two ranking military officials that oversaw all of the Horde’s armies, had disappeared, possibly MIA. The idea of both of them not having whereabouts at the same time seemed impossible, which made Ulldhur sense something much bigger was going on.

Master General Khan was Commander Thrall’s star Orc pupil. It was he who personally trained Ulldhur and Tuloc to be the best warriors the Horde had ever seen. Only Ulldhur had merely made the rank of Master Sergeant, while Tuloc achieved First General, positioning him directly under Khan. Now, his mentor and rival were both unaccounted for, leaving all Horde forces crippled.

Ulldhur immediately turned around, dressing himself in mail and plate armor.

“Should I wait for you outside, Sir?” the Private asked as he watched.

“No, I’m not going.”

“…Sir, this is a direct order from our Commander.”

Ulldhur found his Legionnaire’s Sword and old wooden shield. “Then you can tell our Commander that our armies are leaderless! The Alliance could destroy us! Khan and Tuloc must be found immediately!”

“Exactly! Sir, by the chain of command you are now in charge and must report in Khan’s absence at Thrall’s Palace in the Valley of Wisdom!” Gonzok argued.

Ulldhur calmed himself. “I’m assuming this has to do with whatever Ersatz was sent after in the Eastern Kingdom?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Then you don’t need a warrior for diplomatic issues,” Ulldhur fastened his sabatons and tightened his waistguard and breastplate.

Gonzok felt defeated. If he couldn’t reason with Ulldhur then he would have to beg him. “Sir, where are you going?”

“To find my men and organize a search party, out of my way,” Ulldhur pushed his way past Gonzok out the doorway, helmet underneath his arm.

“Sir, please! I swear to you, the situation is dire! Thrall desperately needs your help!” Gonzok pleaded. “You are now the Master General.”

Ulldhur had always hoped to be recognized by that title, but not this way. Khan was the best warrior he had ever seen and with Tuloc next in line, it didn’t seem feasible that he could ever become Master General in his lifetime. But to assume the position based upon two disappearances seemed wrong.

‘No. Khan is still alive somewhere. He is the Master General.’ Ulldhur breathed a deep sigh and turned to face the Private. “Very well, take me to Thrall.” If there was a meeting that Thrall had called for, maybe he could convince his Leader that the first order of business should be the recovery of Khan and Tuloc.


* * * * * * *


Gonzok quickly led Ulldhur through a bustling Orgrimmar that was now wide awake. Merchants and arms dealers ran rampant through the dusty city streets. Most of the common inhabitants were Orcs and Trolls, with a few Tauren here and there. Undead rarely came out in a crowded area in broad daylight, if there were any in the heart of Orc Horde territory at all.

They reached the Valley of Wisdom with very little trouble, and ascending the steps into Thrall’s Palace. This is where Ulldhur slowed his pace. He had never been this close to Thrall before, and now he was about to enter his Palace for the first time ever.

He never had the honor of meeting their Leader and Commander before. That was the Master General’s job. He had caught a glimpse of him at a rally on the eve of battle once, but he was only a Second Sergeant then. Only Generals where allowed anywhere near him at the time.

Now, he would get the chance to be in the same room with him. Probably with a bunch of politicians talking for what would surely seem like eternity. That was the problem he always had with diplomats and political idealists. All they did was talk. A world wide war has been going on for years against the Alliance and the Horde, and still, some people felt the best thing to do about anything was talk it over.

The way Ulldhur had been brought up, and that he very much believed in, was that the only way to finish a battle was to fight. If you sat around talking all day about the way of things, you got killed. Khan had taught him that. The best course of action was action itself.

Inside Thrall’s Throne room, Ulldhur saw every single race that fought under the Horde banner. There were representatives of every class he could think of standing in small cliques and groupings. Blood Elves, Undead, shamans, and warlocks. Everyone important was here, except Thrall.

Gonzok led him over to where a few scarce Orc warriors were. “This is where Khan and Tuloc would be seated for such meetings.”

Ulldhur looked at who was closest to him. Tauren druids were on his left and a mix of Undead and Troll priests on his right. “I take it you’ll be joining me for this whole procession?” he asked the Private.

“…Due to lack of personnel at the moment, yes. I will be joining you this one time,” Gonzok replied.

Ulldhur hadn’t figured that if Khan and Tuloc went missing, the soldiers that guarded them were probably missing as well, or dead. “Good,” Ulldhur patted the smaller Orc hard on the back. “You’re my second in command then.” He actually was glad to have Gonzok, a fellow warrior, with him. He never did have the stomach for putting up with spell casters, and now he was surrounded by them.

The two of them stood waiting for several minutes. Ulldhur had nothing to do to pass the time, except by watching everyone else chat. When he was about to ask someone when they would begin, what looked like a large Safari Hunter lion brushed right by his legs, almost knocking him over.

‘Cursed hunters should keep their pets on leashes!’ he growled at the cat, and glared around the room for its owner.

An announcing Orc, decked in high class plate armor, stopped him. “All rise for Lord Thrall!” he bellowed.

Everyone quieted down immediately, and stood at attention. Thrall entered the room with his head held high and assumed the throne. Once he did, all others stood at ease.

Ulldhur had never seen an Orc as great as Thrall was. He was massive. His plated armor barely contained the bulging muscles underneath. His face was strong and his eyes decisive. He had the look of a true leader and was the perfect fighter.

“Thank you all for coming,” Thrall spoke to the mass in a depressed tone. “Sergeant, who is absent at this time?” he asked the Orc who introduced him.

The Orc was handed a scroll filled with names by a Blood Elf. “Just a few…” he scoured over the list. “Orgnak the shaman from Stonetalon Mountains … Onai the hunter from Mulgore in the Thunder Bluff region … Aranel and Naling the two paladins from Silvermoon … and Ezekio the warlock from Undercity. I think that’s it…” the Orc looked over the entire room, and stopped when he came to the druids next to Ulldhur. “Minarr of Echo Isles, you will honor your leader and commander Lord Thrall by being in your true form in his presence!” he ordered.

Ulldhur looked over, puzzled, and noticed that the lion that had run into him earlier actually had a pair of bull horns coming out of its head.

“As you wish…” the lion spoke, bowing its head. With a flash of light, the lion grew to tremendous size and transformed into a fully grown Tauren.

The announcer Orc rolled the scroll up and nodded towards Thrall. Ulldhur then noticed that Thrall was looking straight at him.

“Master Sergeant Ulldhur, I presume?” the High Orc asked him.

“Yes, my Lord.”

Thrall seemed pleased by knowing of him, which came as a surprise to Ulldhur. “You were trained directly underneath Master General Khan, is that correct?”

“Yes it is, my Lord.”

“I’m terribly sorry about his and Tuloc’s disappearances. I understand that you just learned of this this morning, and it might be difficult for you…”

Ulldhur tried to swallow, but he had slight cotton mouth. “It is only difficult for me to just stand here…” he felt the stares of everyone else in the room fixate on him. “But, as always, my duties are to the Horde.”

“Good. Hopefully, the connection between their cases and the matter at hand might become clearer once we begin our discussion,” Thrall looked towards the ground as he finished the last sentence, and was silent for a moment. Finally he spoke, “Would the priests bring the body in?” Two undead left the room. “Sergeant, please give your report once they return.”

Ulldhur looked to Gonzok with suspicion. ‘What is going on here?’

The two undead returned with what looked like a dead body wrapped in cotton sheets that were stained red. Once it was in the center of the room, the priests bowed to Thrall and went to the side. No one spoke, and few others gasped in shock.

The Orc Sergeant stepped forward. “This is the body of Ersatz, political advisor to Lord Thrall,” he removed the sheets that covered the body, and revealed a gruesome corpse.

Ersatz lay on a table, lifeless, with a gapping slash across his neck. Ulldhur felt his jaw clench so tight, he thought his teeth would crack. His stomach churned and his blood boiled. Not that he hadn’t seen death before, but this became quickly personal, as Ersatz was not a soldier, and Ulldhur was furious.

The rest of the room flinched and reeled at the sight of the dead body, so the Orc Sergeant spoke up. “His body was found earlier this morning at Razor Hill-“

“Who did this?!” Ulldhur shouted.

“Master Sergeant!” the Orc snapped back. “I realize that you are new to these proceedings, but that is no excuse! We will have order and you will not speak out of place.”

“I out-rank you, answer my question.”

The Orc opened his mouth to retaliate, but stopped himself. He tried to hold his composure, while his green face began to show hints of red.

“Order!” Thrall barked at the two.

“That is one of our own!” Ulldhur stepped forward, challenging the rest of the room with his eyes. “Obviously, he was murdered, so why are we still standing here?!”

“Ulldhur, please! You will wait your turn!” Thrall stood up off his throne. “Let the Sergeant finish briefing us all.”

Ulldhur regrettably stepped back and took a deep breath.

“Thank you, my Lord,” the Orc Sergeant bowed. “As I was saying, Ersatz’s corpse was discovered by his two bodyguards early this morning. The victim’s body was found face down on a bed at the Razor Hill inn. His neck was slit open, dragged to the bed, and then a dagger was driven into his spine… That is all that we know at this time, other than the most heart-breaking fact of all – the letter he was carrying, has been stolen…”

Cries of fear rang up from the gathering, as the Orc Sergeant sat back down beside Lord Thrall.

“Please everyone…” Thrall stood up and quieted them all down. “Yes, it is troubling to learn that my most revered advisor’s passing from this world was dealt by murder … but it saddens my heart to know that the assassin was after the letter addressed to me.”

“What letter?” Ulldhur spoke up again.

“He is too new to this council to learn of the letters significance!” the Orc Sergeant accused him again.

“What letter?!” Ulldhur’s voice grew louder.

“The letter Ersatz was sent to retrieve from Ironforge,” a Blood Elf from across the room spoke up.

“He gave his life trying to defend it…” a female Troll had tears swelling up in her eyes.

“WHAT letter?!” Ulldhur yelled.

“It was a treaty!” Thrall bellowed, silencing the commotion. “It was a Peace Treaty that I needed to sign…” he sighed. “A truce … between the Horde and the Alliance…”

Ulldhur felt sick to his stomach. He couldn’t believe it. ‘A truce?!’ “Say it’s not true…”

“It is…” Lord Thrall answered with a stern face. “The leaders of the Alliance, Anduin Wrynn from Stormwind, King Magni Bronzebeard from Ironforge, and Tyrande Whisperwind from Darnassus have all made plans and discussions between myself, Cairne Bloodhoof, and Sylvanas Windrunner with translators done by way of secret and coded scrolls. I was to be the first to sign, a showing of trust towards the Alliance, and then send the treaty onto Thunder Bluff and Undercity.”

“Are you insane?!” Ulldhur blurted out. “There’s a war going on!”

“A war that is costing hundreds of thousands of lives!” Thrall shot back. “On both sides… not just our own. For years we’ve been tearing all of Azeroth apart, and there soon won’t be any world left. Besides, this council, and the other two in Thunder Bluff and Undercity have decided – this is for the best…”

“You can’t be serious! … After all that’s happened… After all they’ve done to us! Look at how many of us they’ve slaughtered!” Ulldhur ranted.

“And, I assure you, we have done the same, if not more,” Thrall sat back down, lowering his tone. “The real danger in the situation is that after months and months of planning and terms of agreement, with the treaty now gone missing, the Alliance will surely believe a betrayal on our part. It can only be a matter of time before we can expect a full retaliation if that scroll is not recovered.”

“Which brings us to the open discussion on who could have killed Ersatz and why,” the Orc Sergeant announced.

“Are you kidding me!?” Ulldhur screamed. “It was the Alliance!!! They could’ve killed Ersatz, shown up on the shores of Durotar with their entire army, screaming, ‘Why haven’t you signed the treaty? We tried to reason with you, and now the truce is over!’ And then we’re back to square one. That sounds something like a human or dwarf or night elf would do!”

“Ulldhur’s right,” a Troll hunter stepped up. “That kind of plot is well within the Alliances’ grasp. It is an act of desperation to a war that they are probably losing.”

“Here, here!” a Tauren shouted in approval.

“There may be more to this than meets the eye…” Thrall warned. “I have reason to suspect insurgence within the Horde’s forces… treason. And that may or may not have to do with Khan and Tuloc’s disappearances.”

“Lord Thrall, neither Khan nor Tuloc would ever betray the Horde!” Ulldhur defended his teacher. “To even suggest that is-“

“I’m not saying they are traitors…” Thrall cut him off. “I’m opening the idea that their kidnappers may be. Tuloc was to ensure the treaty’s safe trip to Thunder Bluff, and from there, Khan was to deliver it to Undercity. Now they have been missing for quite some time, and the first messenger dead.”

“But the Alliance could also be responsible for this as well!” an Undead chimed in.

“That is a possibility… But, we’re all going to have to watch our backsides. Whether you want to believe it or not, the Horde does have enemies, most of them internal,” Thrall hushed the crowd. “And it is most likely that the Alliance have their own moles to deal with… Ones that don’t want a Peace Treaty between the two factions to ever be signed.”

No one spoke for about a minute. Ulldhur was having a hard time trying to put all the missing pieces together. To think that a member of the Horde would murder one of its own, for a purpose that might benefit the Alliance, was unthinkable. Whoever had killed Ersatz would pay, as well as those who had a hand in Khan and Tuloc’s disappearances.

“Now, the reason all of you were called here today, is because you are the best, the elite,” Thrall stood up again. “And of course, for the sake of mutual interest, the Alliance is doing likewise. We need all of our top commanders, trainers, masters, and specialists working together to weed out this traitor or group of traitors. And since the situation is unique, and normally I would never ask this of any of you, the Alliance will be sending their own representatives to assist us.”

The entire room exploded in outrage. Ulldhur had never even heard battle cries as loud as this in his lifetime. It took several minutes of the Orc Sergeant screaming for ‘Order!’, before anyone could hear Lord Thrall speak.

“Now listen! This war needs to end! The top tier of their soldiers and ours are being charged with keeping this information highly classified. It is top secret! If anyone from the masses, from either continent, found out about the treaty or any failed attempts to sign one, there would be wide panic. Radical idealists would try and take matters into their own hands, as with Ersatz’s murder. Riots would explode onto every street corner in every town. Eternal flames would burn all the cities across Azeroth to the ground …

“It’s hard enough on us all to fight this war as long as we have, and have it end on you in such a way. If all of you look deep within yourselves, you’ll see that the burning anger inside yourself is pride! And that is the end result of uncontrollable bloodlust! When you fight and kill as long as most of you have, you become stubborn and forsake the logic in reason. But, personally, I’m tired of seeing my race die off from this planet…” Thrall took his seat, winded, and held his brow.

Ulldhur’s head began to spin. Could the self-sustaining war between the Horde and Alliance really end with a Peace Treaty? Would he have a hand in ensuring that it did, if Lord Thrall wished it? No, Ulldhur did lust for blood. He wanted more than anything to kill all of the Alliance. Every single last human, gnome, dwarf, night elf, and draenai. To just stop because of a few signatures on a scroll seemed insignificant. And the toll cost of the war had been anything but insignificant.

“Is that the murder weapon?” the Tauren druid, Minarr, broke the tense silence.

At first, many looked around, surprised that such a question would arise after Lord Thrall’s speech.

“Uh… Yes, it is,” the Orc Sergeant reluctantly answered.

Minarr stood up, and walked with clopping footsteps by his hooves, to the center of the room where Ersatz lay. The Tauren stopped over the body, and picked up a small dagger that was lying next to the corpse. “This is the same dagger you pulled from the victim’s spine?” he asked, examining the blade.

“Yes.”

“And you and your priests never realized that this weapon bears an insignia on the hilt?”

The room began to stir with whispers. “No, we didn’t notice any symbol on the weapon at all…” the Orc responded.

“Lord Thrall, if I may present our first clue in solving this murder?” Minarr bowed. Once Thrall nodded his approval, the druid continued. “This symbol, which is meant to be fashioned after a closed fist, with rays of light escaping through the cracks in the hand, is the flag sign of a mysterious cult. I believe they are called the Band of Shadows. If I am correct, then this means that those responsible behind Ersatz’s murder and the missing Peace Treaty, are a vast, underground organization of spies and assassins the likes of which we could never imagine.”

“I’ve never heard of this cult…” Thrall looked bewildered. “How did you come across this information?”

“I, too, have heard rumors of their prestige,” one of the Undead added. “There were traces of proof of such a network, years ago, in the Silverpine. But the investigators went missing, presumably KIA.”

“Knowledge on the Band of Shadows is scarce, due to the numerous missing cases and murders, most appearing accidental,” Minarr continued. “With this dagger found in Ersatz and the disappearance of our Master General and First General, it would seem the Band of Shadows is who we might be dealing with.”

“How big of a cult are we talking about?” Thrall became intently interested. “I want numbers, and who’s in charge?!”

“No one is said to have known for sure,” Minarr sighed. “One report from long ago said that no one person was in charge of the entire organization, and that all members were equal, as one.” Minarr then seemed to hesitate before he spoke again. “It is possible … again, I’m not sure … for the cult to be so large and advanced, that there may be members made up from the Horde … and the Alliance.”

Thrall buried his head in his hands, letting the information sink in. “Thank you, Minarr. You may be seated.” The Tauren returned to the other druids. “Due to this new information, the location of the Band of Shadows is our first priority. Now that we know we may be dealing with spies, secrecy is of the utmost importance. If we can solve this whole mess before the Alliance representatives get here, the better. Everyone be sure to obtain a report from the Sergeant, as well as a case mission. I want that treaty found… Meeting adjourned.”

The races of the Horde inside Thrall’s Palace sprang to life. While Ulldhur sent Gonzok to the Orc Sergeant to retrieve their orders, he couldn’t help but notice the Tauren druid, Minarr, eyeing him.

[Master Vorr]

Here is the last part that I've constructed so far. More is on the way and the ending is well thought out. Now onward to the journey that takes us there! ---AUTHOR'S NOTE--- The following takes place just hours after Part I takes place. Wasn't sure how to work that into the story ... so I just did it here.
mv

Part III

The torrid waters of the Great Sea rocked the Horde Embassy ship back & forth. The night’s air was freezing cold, and it was darker than the opposite side of the moon.

The ship itself, Genesis, carried several Blood Elf troops from Silvermoon, and was commanded by two Paladin representatives. First Lieutenant Aranel and Second Lieutenant Naling. Both of these females were exceptionally beautiful, and were the only ones standing watch on deck.

“Our armor is likely to rust if we stay out in the open any longer,” Naling muttered, trying to control her teeth from chattering.

“You mean, you’re likely to freeze if you stay out here any longer?” Aranel smiled at Naling, a steady trail of warm breath left her lips, frosting in the air as she spoke.

“Precisely.” Naling stretched and tried to move around a little bit, not letting the thin layer of frost stick to her joints in her armor. “Why are we sailing this far again in all hours of the night?”

“Thrall in Orgrimmar sent a letter requesting our presence for an important meeting. And for the last time, we absolutely have to be there. The treaty could’ve reached its destination or maybe the council wants to amend several of the terms … or several of them…”

“Right… the treaty. That’s exactly how I want this war to end, after all those years of silly and wasteful training,” Naling rolled her eyes.

Aranel couldn’t help but smile even bigger. “You can go below deck, I’ll be fine out here,” she nudged Naling.

“No. I said I would stay out here with you and I will.”

Aranel giggled lightly. ‘Just like Naling, stubborn and defiant as ever…’ “I’m the Commander on this ship, so I outrank you…”

“So?”

“Would you just go below deck, please?”

“Nope.”

“That’s an order.”

“I’m sure it is…”

Aranel looked at Naling as she had crossed her arms, and was rubbing them furiously to keep warm. The two starred at each other and then burst out laughing.

Aranel and Naling were the closest of sisters, only they were not related by blood, or family or marriage in anyway. They had literally known each other their entire lives. Childhood, adolescent, military training, paladin apprenticeship, and presently they were still climbing the ranks of the Horde’s Navy together. Aranel had even been born exactly one minute before Naling, and they had always joked that she would always be one step ahead of her best friend.

Once their laughter subsided, the sounds of the waves returned to their elegant ears. Then, the soothing music of the sea was interrupted by an odd sound behind them.

“Did you hear that?” Aranel looked at Naling.

“Yeah, it sounded like a door slamming below deck,” Naling stood still.

“No, it sounded like someone stepped on a creaky plank, and it snapped,” Aranel disagreed.

The two starred into each other’s faces with confused expressions. ‘What could possibly make a noise that sounded completely different to the both of us at the same time?’ Aranel wondered.

Naling motioned over her shoulder with her eyes, towards the mast. Aranel knew what she meant and nodded in agreement. ‘We’re not alone on this ship…’

The Blood Elves twirled around in an instant, swords drawn and shields raised. Only no one was there. Nothing but darkness and the open sea in every direction. They walked slowly towards the center of the deck, where they thought the sound had come from. Aranel and Naling stood under the mast, all of their senses heightened and alert.

Behind them from the port side of the ship, a small totem silently rose from the wood of the ship itself. It let off a feint red glow, and its stubby wings began to rotate clockwise and counterclockwise with each other. The paladin duo remained unawares, still starring off to the starboard side of the ship.

Then another totem rose, this time from the deck, and emanated a soft blue glow. Then another, this time green. And another, as white as snow. The magic from within the four elemental totems began to come to life, just as Aranel noticed the pool of rainbow color reflecting at her feet.

She could not, however, turn around in time. At least not to save Naling. The red totem quickly launched a massive fireball through the air, flame contorted and rolling in and upon itself, was hurled until it struck Naling’s backside. The Blood Elf’s mail armor sparked and singed hot red, as searing flames washed over her body and she fell to the ground.

Naling screamed to the high heavens, while Aranel joined her sister in her sorrow. Only for a split second though. The red totem groaned and made ready to launch another attack. But this time, Aranel had her shield in the air, ready. Her shield was steady, and another fireball exploded against the metal, then dispersing instantly.

She moved closer, she had too, to get close enough to strike and cut the totem down. Who or what cast it was not important, as she didn’t know how long her shield could hold out. She inched across the deck, shield poised, and checked her progress by looking at her feet, being hammered with fire blasts the whole way. Aranel felt she was close enough when the next explosion almost knocked her off her feet. She gripped her sword, and raised her arm ready to strike.

Just as her blade was about to come down, another blade appeared out of thin air and stopped her mid-swing. A Night Elf materialized out of the night air, right next to her, holding a dagger against her sword.

‘A rogue!’

The Night Elf, just as quickly as he appeared, stabbed Aranel in her back, with his free dagger. She screamed, and surprisingly muscled the Night Elf away from her, with a sudden burst of adrenaline. The Night Elf lost its balance, and landed on its backside on the deck. With no time to lose, Aranel did a backspin and chopped the red totem in two, in which it disintegrated back into the ship.

Now, only three totems were left. Aranel was bleeding slowly, and Naling still lay prone facedown, simmering. The Night Elf brought itself to its feet, striking a fighting stance for battle.

‘I don’t know how this rogue got onto this ship, but it certainly didn’t cast these totems! --- There’s a shaman on board somewhere…’

A few seconds ticked by. To Aranel’s surprise, the Night Elf started to glow green and blue, as its weapons started to have white gusts of wind encircling its blades. These totems were helping the Night Elf, somehow. She either try and destroy them all, while the hidden shaman could just recast them, or try and take down the rogue of the Alliance.

Aranel’s thoughts quickly went to Naling. ‘She’s still lying there … probably dying…’ Tears began to swell in her eyes as she glared at the Night Elf. ‘Because of you!’ The Night Elf would surely die by her hand.

She lunged at the rogue, her sword swift and true, with her shield ready to deflect any attacks. The Night Elf was quicker, but Aranel had a blazing fury inside of her. If these two combatants had met on the battlefield, the rogue might be the better. But right now, nothing could stop Aranel.

The two traded blows and parried, all futile to the Blood Elf. She lunged herself in closer and uppercut the Night Elf with her shield, breaking his jaw. With the rogue distracted by pain momentarily, Aranel aimed her sword at its heart, and went through her target. No magic was even necessary.

The Night Elf fell dead to the ground, gaping bloody wound in its chest and all. Aranel rushed to Naling’s side, reached deep inside her races’ ability to easily manipulate mana, and started to heal her wounds. Naling started to cough and come to, so Aranel rolled her over on her back.

“Are you okay, does it hurt anywhere?” Aranel’s voice was choked up.

“What happened?!” Naling groaned.

“We’re under attack, you need to get up and wake the others below deck!” Aranel tried to help her sister to her feet.

“Behind you!” Naling cried, before she could even sit up.

Aranel spun around again, ready for battle, but stopped. The Night Elf, the one she had just killed, was standing upright again. The gaping would was being healed, with a blue light working to piece the muscle and flesh back together.

‘The totems!’ Aranel ran to the three that were left and hacked at them furiously, and one by one they all disappeared.

It was too late. Aranel had taken too much time doing the wrong thing first, as the rogue was directly behind her again. It raised its dagger in the air, and cursed at her in a language she didn’t understand. It was too bad for the Night Elf, that Naling was to her feet again, and made a clean cut at the base of its neck, decapitating the rogue.

“You’re bleeding…” Naling noticed, as the Night Elf fell dead to the ground, finally.

“I’m fine,” Aranel walked past her.

“Do you want me to heal you?”

“I want you to get below deck and wake the troops!”

From high above them, another Night Elf rogue leaped from atop the mast and landed next to Aranel, daggers ready. Just as this new one was about to strike, Aranel parried with her shield.

“Go! Now!” she ordered Naling.

All of Naling’s nerves and instincts screamed at her, as she had to turn and leave Aranel to fight the newcomer alone.


* * * * * * *


Naling kicked down the doors to the crew quarters below deck, where dozens of members of the Horde slept. The long room was pitch black, save for the lone swinging oil lamp that hung from the ceiling.

“All hands on deck! We’re under attack! The Alliance is trying to take the ship! Everyone get to your feet and answer your Lieutenants call to arms!” she barked orders.

Only, nothing in the dark beyond her moved. There wasn’t a single sound except for the waves crashing against the hull of the boat. Then Naling finally noticed the smell. It stank like rotting flesh and dried blood.

Soon enough, her eyes adjusted slightly, and she covered her mouth in shock at the horror. All of her crew, every Tauren, Troll, Blood Elf, and Undead, lay dead on the ground and in their beds. Throats and wrists had been slit, and stomachs had been gutted open. All twenty-five of her soldiers had been murdered right under their noses.

Naling heard a blade being unsheathed, and noticed a cloaked figure standing directly underneath the oil lamp. “You!!!” she screamed, and drew her sword. “You are dead!”

The figure slowly turned around, and her stomach fluttered, and she flinched. Maybe her mind couldn’t take in what she was seeing as real, but there could be no other explanation. The person standing only yards away from her was definitely an Undead.

It starred at her, glowing red eyes and bare skull, and laughed at her.

‘Is it mocking me?!’ she glared back at the Undead. “Traitor, I will have your head!”

The undead continued to giggle, showed its stained dagger, and edged closer to the paladin. Just as it passed directly underneath the lamp’s light, Naling noticed a very odd mark on top of the skull cap of the Undead. To her, from her angle, it appeared as a closed fist, with rays of light escaping through the cracks in the hand. She became distracted for a moment, as the Undead rogue vanished into a cloud of smoke.

Naling panicked. She blamed herself for not attacking instinctively at first, while she instead starred at its bare, white skull. Now the rogue could be anywhere, behind her or in front. She swiveled on her feet, not giving it the chance to striker her back so easily. She walked more to the center of the room, stepping over the bodies of her fallen comrades, trying to gain more room for footing.

What Naling had not anticipated, was the Undead simply walking past her and heading for the exit. The only door to go above deck slammed shut, and footsteps could be heard running up the stairs. She was stuck in a room full of dead bodies, and her sister was above deck, fighting off an Alliance invasion, alone.

She tried to make a run for the door, but was knocked off her feet after only taking a few steps. The Genesis had been hit hard, from the starboard side, and was probably being rammed. A pile of boxed crates that were stacked near the door toppled over, and came crashing down on Naling’s head, knocking her out cold.


* * * * * * *


Soon enough, Aranel let this new Night Elf meet its end just as the one before it. As quickly as she landed the killing blow, she was thrown sideways, from the ship jolting. They were being rammed, probably from a smaller ship on the starboard side.

‘Where is Naling? She should be back up here with reinforcements already!’ Aranel got up in time to hear approaching footsteps coming from the stairs. But what she saw emerge from below deck was not what she expected. It wasn’t Naling or a mass of troops ready to fight. It was a single Undead, bloodied from head to toe.

“Soldier, are you alright? What happened down there and where are the others?” Aranel yelled to the Undead. The hooded skeletal figure looked blankly at her, and then ran for the port side of the ship. “Wait, where are you going?” The Undead didn’t stop and heading right for the railing.

“Stop! Come back here! That’s an order!” Aranel ran after it. But it was too late, as the Undead jumped over the edge of the ship and splashed into the dark waters of the Great Sea. ‘What in Azeroth is going on here?’

The ship was rammed again, almost sending Aranel overboard. She gained her balance and ran towards were the impacts were coming from.

‘Where is Naling?!’

Just then, time seemed to slow. Aranel felt herself running at full speed, but the world around her moved at an incremental pace. First, another green totem rose from the wood of the deck, followed by two more, blue and white. Then, a blue hand gripped the starboard railing, from outside the ship, and pulled itself up into full view.

A large Draenai shaman hurled itself over the railing, and landed hard onto the deck, making a loud thud with its hooves. Aranel tried to stop herself, hoping to avoid a full-on collision with the disgusting Alliance member, but ran into the blunt end of the Draenai’s staff. It had struck her so hard, she was sent flying backwards. She gripped her shield and sword and brought herself to her feet, only to be met with a blast of lightning from the shaman’s hands.

As her muscles had tiny spasms all over her body, she tried to formulate a strategy. The only way to kill the Draenai was to stop its use of totems. Even though it had struck her flat-footed, the blow wasn’t that strong. She could overpower it by arms to arms.

Aranel reached deep inside herself, touching that ancient arcane ability her race had mastered, and summoned the magic to her palms. In a second, she would suck the mana right out of the shaman’s body, making it useless. When she went to cast her spell, she looked up to see that the Draenai was readying a spell of its own, and it cast first.

She was hit with a shock spell, and felt the magic leave her fingertips, and her head spun with dizziness, as green light whirled around her. She tried to bring back the magic from within her again, but to no avail.

The shaman now raised an open hand to the sky, as a flash of lightning answered its call, and three encircling orbs of electricity surrounded the Draenai. The tip of its staff glowed a flaming red, and the shaman now took attacking stance.

Aranel had no time to react. She raised her shield just in time to deflect one blow, and readied herself to strike at the shaman’s midsection. Only her sword was met with a jolt of electricity that was sent coursing through her body, shocking her. She hadn’t seen it, but a single orb of lightning met her blade before she could make contact with the body, and the Draenai was unharmed.

Aranel didn’t know what to do. Now the shaman was starting to glow green, blue, and white, a sign that the totems were enhancing it. She had to think quickly. In the meantime, the Draenai landed a blow in her stomach. She doubled over and attempted to thrust upward, but her blade yet again met another defensive orb. This time she felt the shock nearly immobilize her.

The shaman followed up with a crashing blow from its flaming staff on top of her head, jolting her vision. Aranel felt her hair and ears get singed, and the pain throbbed all around her skull. She could think of only one option.

The magic had slowly come back to her, and she had to act fast. She raised her sword hand in the air towards the sky, murmured the spell name, and consecrated the ground beneath her and the Draenai. And just as she predicted, the remaining orb moved to shield its caster, and dispersed on the deck, with bolts of electricity streaking towards her feet. Luckily for Aranel, she had enough time to put the ultimate failsafe, one of divine protection, around her. A bubble of yellow holy light engulfed her and stopped the orbs charge from getting anywhere near her. The deck now began to glow with the appearance of yellow light seeping through cracks, and the power of her holy magic caused the shaman severe pain.

Now the playing field had been leveled, slightly. Aranel stood starring her attacker in the face, while she can’t strike him just yet, with the aura shield in place. The Draenai starred back at her, repulsive tentacles swaying from its jaw line, and smiled.

‘You can’t touch me with the divine holy light in place!’ she grinned in her mind.

The shaman waited a moment, then made a dashing move with its staff, and swept its long end at her feet. Aranel didn’t even bother to defend herself, as her shield was up. But just as the staff connected with her, the shield dissolved. She was unprotected, and fell tumbling over backwards from being tripped.

Beside her, another red totem, although different from the first, rose out of the deck next to her. Its wings acted as the first one did, and began to rotate. Aranel couldn’t move quickly, as she was slightly stunned from her head crashing to the ground. Two seconds later, the totem began to wobble in place, then exploded. A wave of burning fire was sent in a wide radius and burst through Aranel.

Her skin, clothes, armor, everything, caught fire. The flesh of her fair skin began to melt away, as she screamed and rolled over, trying to extinguish the flames. Only she couldn’t put them out, as the Draenai had planted a firm hoof on her stomach. She lifted what was left of her eyes to see the Alliance murderer raise its staff, and drive the blunt end into the center of her throat, killing her.


* * * * * * *


The Draenai stood over the dead Blood Elf body, panting. Its mana had been exhausted, and it needed to be helped back to its small ambush ship by a couple Night Elves, rogues and druids. Just as they were about to sail away, the Undead rogue climbed aboard the ship, and motioned for more Night Elves to go aboard.

As they did so, four of them brought back the two dead bodies that Aranel had killed. On the deck of the ship, the remaining Night Elves took torches and set fire to the Genesis.

Once all the Alliance were back on the ship, the Undead rogue and Draenai shaman commanded their rowers to cast off. Their ship set sail into the night, as the Genesis lit ablaze, and floated on across the Great Sea.

[EL MACISH]

/cheer!!!
cool story should have made the rogue an undead or elf trolls have to much respect for orcs to have killed one who was on a mission

[Master Vorr]

Sorry this is taking me awhile to write... I play WoW too much.
Anyways, I've love to hear/see some more feedback. All comments and criticisms are welcome, positive AND negative.
mv

Part IV

Gonzok returned to Ulldhur, bringing a small, very brief, scroll with him.

“This is it?” Ulldhur asked.

“Well … This is all that we know…” Gonzok handed over the letter.

Ulldhur sighed and skimmed over the case mission. “It says we are to first investigate the inn at Razor Hill?”

Gonzok was confused. “Is that a problem…?”

“No,” Ulldhur shoved the scroll back into Gonzok’s hands. “Let someone else do petty detective work.” He grabbed his old wooden shield he had sat down for the meeting and made his way toward Thrall. ‘I’m here to find Khan and Tuloc…’

Ulldhur approached Lord Thrall slowly and patiently, as he was thanking other council members for coming. “Ah, Ulldhur… I was hoping to have a quick word with you before you left,” Thrall held out his hand in appreciation.

Ulldhur hesitated before shaking it. ‘This is the greatest warrior that ever lived…’ Slowly, Ulldhur extended his hand and applied a firm handshake. “It is an honor, my Lord.”

“Please,” Thrall motioned to the hallway behind his Throne. “In private, if you don’t mind?”

“No at all, sir.” Ulldhur walked into the confinements of a small, dark hallway until he reached Thrall’s private chambers beyond.

“I’ve reviewed your battle records, Ulldhur,” Thrall entered the room behind him, still commanding the same presence as he did with a full council. “Very impressive. I’ve also glanced over your training records that were sent to me, personally by Master General Khan, at one time.”

“When did he do that?”

“It was … some time ago. When I had a position open for an extra personal guard, Khan gave me your file along with his recommendation. He said that you would’ve been the best…” Thrall motioned for Ulldhur to take a seat opposite of him at a large, oak desk.

“My Lord…” Ulldhur was speechless. “Had I have known, I would have been honored to-“

“I didn’t choose you,” Thrall said bluntly. “Would you like to know why?”

Ulldhur paused for a moment. “Of course.”

“Your history suggests you are something that I like to call … a loose cannon,” Thrall eyed Ulldhur inquisitively. “Tell me, how did your father die?”

“He … was killed … by the Alliance,” Ulldhur choked out, jaw clenched. “Some blasted human stabbed him through the chest while he was passing by … while their troops raided the village my family had lived in. My father was just a farmer … and was defenseless.”

“And this … tragedy. Has it ever affected your judgment in the heat of battle?”

Ulldhur shrugged, and began sweating from his brow. “I don’t see what any of this-“

“I do. In every battle you’ve ever been in, as a Commanding Officer or not, you act very irrationally when the Alliance seems to have the upper hand.”

“But it did help us win, My Lord.”

Thrall made a gesture which appeared similar to someone rolling their eyes. “Do you think we’re still winning now, Master Sergeant?”

Ulldhur held his tongue and continued to look his Warchief in the eye.

“Here’s the thing. I didn’t chose you to be a personal bodyguard because you endanger people’s lives, not just your own. Khan personally trained two, and only two, Orcs to replace him one day. Funny thing is, the one Orc whose training results and numbers were far batter than the others, yet he was only promoted to Master Sergeant. While the other, more cool-headed and rational, made First General. Why would I ask this same warrior to guard me, after such a suspicious rising of the ranks? At the time, I had you figured for having a short temper and a large ego.

“But that was years ago. Here we are, today, merely talking about a peaceful co-existence with the Alliance, and you explode like that and make a fool of yourself and all Orcs in my Throne room!” Thrall slammed his massive fist on his desk, then took a minute to regain his composure. “What if Khan and Tuloc are really dead? … Am I supposed to trust you as the new Master General? … And if I did, would you kill us all trying to win this war single-handedly?”

Ulldhur thought over Thrall’s words for a moment, before he carefully chose his answer. “Sir, I guarantee you, I will find Khan and Tuloc, and ensure their safety.”

Thrall sighed. “Then it’s as I feared … you want your father figure back. Well I want my treaty back. You’re dismissed,” Thrall waved Ulldhur out of his chambers.


* * * * * * *


Ulldhur returned to Gonzok, with his head hanging low, and found his Private talking to Minarr.

“Ah, Master Sergeant?” the Tauren druid asked.

“Yes…?”

“It appears that we have been assigned to working together.”

“No thank you,” Ulldhur sneered at the spell caster.

“Thrall won’t let you bring your thirty best soldiers across Kalimdor with us,” Gonzok spoke up. “We have to be discreet, and we’re going to need Minarr’s help.”

“That is not necessary,” Ulldhur looked to Minarr. “Sorry, but we can handle this on our own.”

“Tell me, how does such a distinguished warrior such as yourself come to wear the finest Dreadnaught armor I’ve ever seen, yet carry around a simple, old wooden shield?” Minarr observed.

“This was my father’s.”

“Why not get a better one and leave the good memories hanging on a wall? I’m surprised something as old and worn as that hasn’t broken yet…”

Ulldhur glared at Minarr with razor sharp eyes. “It still has its uses … There are still a few more human skulls to cleave before I leave this world…”

Minarr seemed to hold words back as he studied Ulldhur. “So, the Razor Hill inn, then?” Minarr asked.

“For the last time, thanks, but no thanks,” Ulldhur walked past the Tauren.

“I hope you both realize exactly what you’re going up against…” Minarr warned.

“Cowards?”

“The Band of Shadows are not just a group of people that have get-togethers and meet-and-greets in a cave somewhere. They’re powerful. They have never had the need to hide because they’re always in front of you, or right behind you. You walk out onto the streets of Orgrimmar right now; everyone you see within eyesight could be a Shadow,” Minarr spoke. “They are everywhere and could be anyone.”

Ulldhur walked back to the corpse of Ersatz, picking up the dagger that ended his life. “Tell me then, what exactly does this mean?” the Orc pointed to the insignia on the ball of the hilt.

“Careful with that…” Minarr held up his massive, leathery, three-fingered hands. “The blade might be poison-tipped… That symbol, the fist with beams of light seeping out through the cracks in the fingers … It’s a twisted metaphor. Light holds back the dark, but the shadows of the night can block out the light, rendering the world in darkness. The fist is literally a shadow, as every member is a Shadow themselves.”

“Well, thanks for the inside scoop…” Ulldhur smiled and sheathed the dagger inside his belt. “Gonzok, we’ll be leaving now. And, Minarr, don’t follow us…”

The two Orc warriors turned to leave Thrall’s Palace, as Minarr looked on. “You can’t blindly disregard our Warchief’s orders! Lord Thrall is expecting results, not a heap of dead bodies!”

Ulldhur stopped at the entryway of the Palace. “That’s where you’re wrong. Corpses are results.”


* * * * * * *


Ulldhur and Gonzok rode their separate Great Wolf mounts out of Orgrimmar in silence. Gonzok felt the need to talk things out, plan out their every move as per their mission, as his training had conditioned him to do so. Ulldhur would be an odd Commanding Officer to work under, and if they couldn’t get along and work as a team, then there might be no hope.

“Sir?” Gonzok asked. Ulldhur didn’t answer, as he had a stern look on his face. A deep thinking face. “What are you thinking, sir?”

“I’m thinking that … if Minarr is right, then we’re in enemy territory right now.” Ulldhur pulled his Great Wolf to a stop on a barren, dirt rode in Durotar, in the middle of the vast, empty, red desert. “Which means, we can’t trust anyone…”

“Sir?” Gonzok broke the Master Sergeant’s concentration. “What are your orders?”

Ulldhur sighed. “I can’t run off into the horizon to find Khan and Tuloc. I have to start somewhere… And maybe… we’ll run across Ersatz’s killer and this Band of Shadows.”

“But, the treaty, sir.”

“I am not looking for a treaty of any kind.”

Gonzok lowered his head and sighed to himself, the heat of the late morning sun bearing down on him. ‘Ulldhur is going to be more of a hassle than anything else…’

“But, that doesn’t mean that we aren’t going to follow orders,” Ulldhur tried to appease his Private. “We will go to Razor Hill. If a Shadow was actually there, then that’s our only lead to Khan and Tuloc.”

“Aye, aye, sir!” Gonzok smiled.


* * * * * * *


Their Great Wolves tore through the desert with such speed; the short journey seemed almost none existent. Both Ulldhur and Gonzok tied up their mounts outside the Razor Hill inn, and headed indoors.

Razor Hill was tremendously smaller in size, compared to Orgrimmar. Its design and architectural scale was similar with just about every other Orcish city in Kalimdor. Only two stone buildings, the inn and the trainers’ quarters, both on opposite sides of the street of each other. Around these buildings, tents bound by thick leather for roofs, were scattered about, mainly for merchants.

Upon entry, Ulldhur stopped himself in the doorway to the inn. ‘This was the building Ersatz was murdered in…’

A female Orc ran to greet them. “Oh, thank the heavens. We were hoping that Thrall or his council would send someone quickly, but we didn’t expect anyone right away!”

“Where is everyone?” Gonzok looked around.

“It’s the scene of a crime, no civilian should be anywhere near this building…” Ulldhur looked to Gonzok.

The Orc looked between the two and paused before speaking again. “We had to close down for the day and empty out the entire inn. Everyone was a little upset, but they were more understanding once they heard of the murder,” she informed them.

“And who are you again?” Ulldhur asked.

“…Nachda,” the Orc seemed taken aback. “I’m the hostess here with my husband, the Innkeeper. Who are you two…?”

Ulldhur didn’t say anything and looked towards the floor landing above them, so Gonzok answered. “I’m First Private Gonzok and this is Master Sergeant Ulldhur,” he informed her. “We’re here to investigate Ersatz’s murder.”

“Oh… I’m so sorry, forgive me, Master Sergeant!” Nachda knelt before Ulldhur.

This is the part where Ulldhur felt the most out of his element. He was used to combat and an expert at it. Not investigation, or any practice of the kind. He hated questioning people and blatantly preferred killing them on the battlefield. But, there was only one way to find Khan and Tuloc.

“Get up. Were you working here last night?” Ulldhur starred at her.

Nachda seemed even more perplexed by Ulldhur, and slowly stood back up. “No, I went home early to get some sleep.”

“So, your husband was the only one here last night when Ersatz was given a room?” Gonzok followed up with his own question.

“No,” Nachda answered.

Gonzok furrowed his brow in confusion, so Ulldhur stepped in. “You mean, you live here at the inn with your husband?”

“Yes, in the basement.”

Gonzok looked to his CO in shock. “I need you to take me to where you found the body this morning and I’ll need to speak to your husband immediately,” Ulldhur demanded.

“Of course…” Nachda lead them upstairs and down the hallway to Ersatz’s room.

Gonzok was the first to step inside for inspection, while Ulldhur stopped in the doorway once again. ‘This is the room where Ersatz took his last, dying breath…’

The roof itself would’ve even met his security standards. There were no windows and bare furniture. It was quite an ominous place to die in.

“His bodyguards found his body on the bed this morning…” Nachda stepped in the room. “Is there anything else you need?”

“We’ll be a couple minutes,” Ulldhur said quietly. “Have your husband meet us downstairs.”

Gonzok and Ulldhur stood in the very center of the room, until it was a quiet as death.

“What do you think?” Gonzok asked.

“You ask that question a lot, don’t you?” Ulldhur responded, while his Private nodded and shrugged. “This was perfect. For this assassin, however he or she did it; it must’ve been the easiest kill in the world for them. We should have no leads or clues, except for the fact that it took place in this room. How they got in, killed him, and left undetected is a staggering mystery…”

“But we do have a clue. You have that Band of Shadows dagger that you nabbed from the body.”

Ulldhur smiled and looked down at his waist. “Yep. Let’s go see the innkeeper.”


* * * * * * *


The two Orcs headed downstairs and were met by the innkeeper and his wife.

“I’m Grosk, the innkeeper here,” the hunched over Orc informed them.

“That’s nice. If you’ll excuse us, Nachda?” Ulldhur beckoned for the Orc’s wife to leave the plaza of the inn.

“Of course…” she obliged. “Be careful,” she whispered in her husband’s ear before departing.

“Grosk, we need to ask you a few questions about last night…” Gonzok began.

“Last night?” Grosk repeated.

“Yes, when an Orc named Ersatz bought a room here,” Ulldhur stood directly in the Orc’s eyesight, so Grosk didn’t have a choice but to look deep into his icy stare.

“I don’t think I’m supposed to talk about that … I was paid handsomely,” Grosk looked to Gonzok.

“You are aware that he was murdered here early this morning, right?” Gonzok asked. “In your very hotel, in a room just upstairs on the second floor.”

Grosk didn’t say anything and shifted his gaze back to Ulldhur, who was now inches from his face. “Look, I’m not a bad guy or anything… But that Orc last night seemed like he didn’t want anyone else to know that he was here.”

“How so?” Ulldhur’s hot breath touched Grosk’s short, stubby nose as he asked the question.

Grosk leaned backwards but still kept his footing, becoming very weary-eyed of Ulldhur. “He had his bodyguards come in and inspect the place. Then he came in and flipped me a solid gold coin… Money like that doesn’t come through here everyday…” the innkeeper began to sweat heavily at the brow.

“So when the body was discovered, where you planning on not notifying any authorities?” Gonzok asked.

“It was my wife’s idea… She was terrified of not letting a body be put to rest properly. She’s a bit skeptic of karma and the afterlife and such…” Grosk looked back to Ulldhur. “Didn’t want the Inn to become haunted as the end result of us not doing everything we could to make things right.”

“Smart woman,” Ulldhur said.

“Grosk, we need to find out everything we can about Ersatz’s murder,” Gonzok enlightened him. “Can you please tell us everything that you know?”

Grosk shrugged. “There’s not much else to tell. His guards came down and told us about seven hours ago that their Orc had been killed in the middle of the night. My wife Nachda and I viewed the body for ourselves, and she notified the grunts stationed out in the town. They got in touch with someone from Orgrimmar and the body was taken there. My wife then spent the rest of the morning cleaning the room from all the bloodstains…” Grosk looked back and forth between Gonzok and Ulldhur, who was breathing down his neck now. “That’s about it. Nothing more to it, I’m afraid…” he gulped loudly.

“Sadly, I’m afraid there is…” Ulldhur stepped in even closer.

“Grosk, Ulldhur here is the Master Sergeant. And I personally, would never partake in the actions that my CO would act on without question,” Gonzok slipped further into a balanced role of good cop and bad cop with Ulldhur. “We need you to tell us everything. Anything that might’ve seemed unusual to you at anytime on the day before the murder took place.”

Grosk stuttered on words that he never spoke. “I don’t know…”

Ulldhur got so close to the innkeeper’s face, he hesitated there for a moment, and then finally pulled himself back. “This isn’t a bad omen on your lodging establishment, which we’re talking about here. This is an Orc, once a living and breathing one just like you and I. Not just a fellow member of the Horde, but a member of our race! Now … what’s tingling at the back of your mind that’s making you sweat so badly?”

Grosk’s lip began to tremble slightly. “Ok … His bodyguards…”

“What about them?” Gonzok asked.

“They were two Tauren… druids, if I remember correctly.”

“What does that-“ Gonzok started.

“You’re sure!?” Ulldhur interrupted.

“Yeah, positive. Ask my Nachda,” Grosk looked to Gonzok, wiping his brow. “I just thought it was a little weird that such an important Orc to Thrall would be guarded by two Tauren… But, I’m just saying…”

Gonzok looked like he was going to say something in protest, but Ulldhur pushed him towards the door. “Thank you for your time, Grosk. We’ll be on our way now,” he departed and led his Private out of the Razor Hill Inn.

Gonzok stopped his Master Sergeant once they were clear of the inn. “What are you doing? What he said doesn’t tell us anything!”

“It tells us enough,” Ulldhur looked up towards the sky, thinking for a moment. “It tells us that we need to start with the Tauren bodyguards.”

Gonzok threw up his arms in frustration and stepped a few paces away from Ulldhur. “I can’t believe this…”

“Master Sergeant!!!” a voice called to Ulldhur.

When he looked back down, he saw the Orc Sergeant from Thrall’s meeting running towards them. “Ulldhur! Gonzok! You must come quickly!”

“What is it?” Gonzok hurried over.

“There is a ship … one of ours,” he stopped for a second to catch his breath. “The Genesis… its passengers were supposed to be at this morning’s meeting. But …”

“But what?!” Ulldhur straightened the Sergeant out.

“…It looks like mass slaughter. The Genesis has landed at Scuttle Coast, southeast of here, and appears to be torn asunder.”

“Are there any survivors?!” Gonzok begged, white-eyed.

“We’d better hurry… Most of us are already down there,” the Orc Sergeant started running again. “They’re still pulling bodies out of the water!” he shouted back to them.

Ulldhur and Gonzok looked at each other for only a split second, then climbed atop their Great Wolf mounts and took off.

[Master Vorr]

This next part is a bit shorter then I previously planned out, but, I hope you all like it just the same. Not exactly sure how many "parts" there are going to be for the finished story, but I do know that it'll take awhile. :( I'll try to write and posts these installments for Cult & Conspiracy as much as possible, but i do work fulltime and am trying to concentrate on finishing up another story, non-WoW related. Hope you enjoy.
mv

Part V

Chaos. Disaster. Casualties of war. A devastating loss. All of these words were what Ulldhur would’ve used to describe the sight he saw before him, as he approached the shipwrecked Genesis. Only, he was unable to speak at the moment.

The Genesis lay in two separate halves in the water, amid a galley of several other sunken ships. They were left there as a result of several battles against the Orcs and Admiral Proudmoore. The Horde had never bothered to clean them up, as a warning to any approaching Alliance ships. ‘All those who come ashore WILL meet their maker!’

The bow and the stern of the Genesis, or what was left of them, were still smoldering in flames. Casters were waist deep in water trying to extinguish the embers with magic. Among them, Minarr, who was scurrying about, searching for survivors. As Ulldhur came closer, he saw that Minarr was constantly morphing back and forth between his true Tauren form and a sea lion form. He’d run into the tide, morph into sea lion, dive down for a minute or so, then resurface with a body on his back. So far, all of them had been limp.

The scene chilled Ulldhur to the bone. Usually in a crisis situation, soldiers, even brave ones, of the Horde would be screaming and crying for somebody to help them. As of right now, though, the sound of the waves creeping up the shoreline was the only audible sound. All of Scuttle Coast was dead. The beach was littered with lifeless bodies that everyone had to step over to drag more from the wreckage. No one said anything…

Suddenly a Troll priest screamed at the top of his lungs, held a staggering fist to the sky, and cursed the heavens aloud as he fell to his knees. He was bent over the body of a Blood Elf, one that he had been trying for the past twenty minutes to resurrect, but couldn’t.

“Let her go, brother,” the Orc Sergeant went to comfort the Troll. He knelt down in the water next to him, and examined the body. “Lt. Aranel Moonwind…” he sighed. “Time of death?”

The Troll priest took his time before answer. “Late last night … beneath the stars…” he replied with a trembling voice. “Somewhere, out at sea…” he buried his face in his three-pronged hands.

Gonzok stepped forward. “Is there anything we can do?”

While the Orc Sergeant shook his head, the Troll priest stood up. “No … Everyone here is dead.” The Troll picked up his staff and began walking off the beach, towards Orgrimmar.

“Amoru, wait – “ the Orc Sergeant tried to stop him.

The Troll simply held up his hand, as if to say he was deliberately ignoring him.

Ulldhur didn’t know what to make of the situation. His sorrow for the lives that were lost was masked by anger and confusion at the same time, and his emotions pulled him in both directions at once. “What happened here?!”

“We don’t know…” the Orc Sergeant answered.

“Well someone better find out!”

“Master Sergeant, we are the first ones here! We simply don’t have enough information to conclude how a tragedy like this could befall the Genesis and her crew.”

“I want to know how all of these soldiers died!!!” Ulldhur screamed.

“The best thing for you to do right now is help the rest of us get those bodies out of the water…”

The stern of the Genesis let out a loud creaking groan, which caused everyone on the beach to stop and look.

CRACK!

The wood of that section of the ship split into halves again, and crashed into the water. Chunks and splinters of wood flew into the air and the leaning mast fell with a resounding thud amongst the waves. While the two halves of the stern began to sink quickly; huge, massive waves leaped into the air. Even Ulldhur, who was standing the farthest back on the beach, felt the spray of mist pelt his face.

“Everyone, get back!” the Orc Sergeant ordered everyone.

All of the Horde personnel ran screaming, as the Scuttle Coast claimed another ship for its collection. Ulldhur watched as the water bubbled and settled down, and saw something odd break through the surface.

“Help! Somebody get me some help!” Ulldhur heard a voice shout.

He grabbed Gonzok by the shoulder and the two of them rushed into the water. His mail and plate armor began to drag and slow him down in the waist deep water. Ulldhur stopped once he saw who had been calling for help. It was a sea lion, a very large sea lion, with a body of its back. It hopped onto the shore, fins flapping on the wet sand, and morphed back into Minarr.

“Get me a healer!” Minarr yelled.

“What is that?” Gonzok starred at the body.

“NOW!” the Tauren bellowed.

Ulldhur turned and shouted to the rest of the beach. “Is there a priest out here?!”

“No,” the Orc Sergeant ran up. “Amoru left. We don’t have a priest…”

“What about a shaman or paladin?” Ulldhur pleaded. “Anyone that can revive and heal?”

“I’m sorry.” The Orc Sergeant stepped past Ulldhur and knelt next to Minarr. “Minarr, do you think you can bring her back?”

“I don’t know…” Minarr snapped. He grabbed the body of what looked like a Blood Elf and turned it over so it lay on its back.

“You do know it’s impossible to revive someone if they’ve been dead for over an hour…”

“I know!”

“Well, is she alive or not?” the Orc Sergeant asked, while Minarr craned his neck to listen for a heartbeat.

“She’s not breathing…” Minarr lifted his massive Tauren hands on the Blood Elf’s chest, and began to manually pump her lungs for air.

“Minarr, you’ve been out here for hours, you need to rest,” the Orc Sergeant reprimanded the druid. “You might not even have the strength to bring her back!”

“Then get me a mana potion!!” Minarr snapped back again.

“Don’t press so hard, she’s smaller than us…” Gonzok warned. “You might crack a rib.”

“Just go and get a potion,” the Orc Sergeant sent Gonzok running up the beach, asking the others for potions.

Minarr continued to press on the Blood Elf’s chest, pausing every few seconds to listen for breathing. All Ulldhur could do was stand back and watch.

‘If this Blood Elf comes through, she may be the only key to what happened last night on the Genesis…’

After a few more minutes of what seemed like futile effort, the Orc Sergeant was growing impatient. “Minarr, let her go…”

“NO!” Minarr pressed harder on her chest, and pretty soon they all heard a terrible sounding ‘snap’. Minarr paused for a second, while Ulldhur glared at him.

“Try not to do more harm than good, shapeshifter…”

“A few broken ribs won’t matter if she dies!”

“She’s been dead!” the Orc Sergeant argued.

“I got one!” Gonzok ran back to them and handed Minarr a small vile of thick, blue liquid.

The Tauren popped the cork and swallowed the whole potion in one gulp. Ulldhur winced as he did so. The stuff probably tasted horrible and Ulldhur was thankful that he would never have to stomach it. He fought and won battles with his pure strength, not with something as whimsical as magic. Still though, he didn’t admonish a casters’ power. Healing a bloody, gushing wound without using bandages was impressive and useful. Even if he didn’t like it, magic was not something to be taken lightly.

“Everyone, stand back,” Minarr got up and rubbed his hands together. The Tauren druid began chanting in a foreign, mumbled language. As he did so, a soft, green light started to glow from within his hands. Amazingly, the light seemed to trickle down to the Blood Elf’s body, and oozed beneath the skin.

At that moment, Ulldhur looked over and noticed that Gonzok has his eyes closed and was speaking silently to himself. ‘Is he praying?’ he made a disgusted face.

Within seconds, the light had vanished, and Minarr began panting as if he had held his breath the whole time. He starred at the Blood Elf’s body, waiting for it to move. “Come on… come on… come back to us…” the Tauren mumbled.

“Is that it? Is that the best you can do?” Ulldhur asked Minarr.

“She’s been gone for too long…” the Orc Sergeant shook his head. “Lt. Naling Goldsbane… Time of death?”

Minarr didn’t answer him and started chanting again. This time, when the green light returned, it was much brighter and pulsed stronger than ever. Ulldhur could see the spell take its toll on the druid, as he was sweating profusely and his gigantic legs were shaking.

Just then the body jolted, like it had been shocked by thousands of volts of electricity. Everyone gasped in amazement, even Ulldhur, while Minarr’s chanting grew louder and louder. In a split second, the Blood Elf shot upwards, looked like she was trying to gasp for air, then doubled over and spat up. Wave after wave of sea water came spewing from her mouth, and managed to churn Ulldhur’s stomach, despite all the things he had seen. The Blood Elf then sucked down a lung-full of air so loudly, it sounded much like a new born baby coming into the world, taking its first breaths.

When she could breathe properly, the Blood Elf fell back down on her side, and curled up into a ball. She was lying there on the beach, shaking and soaking wet. The Orc Sergeant and Gonzok rushed to her aide, while Ulldhur breathed a sigh of relief and Minarr dropped to his knees, exhausted.

“Lieutenant? … Lieutenant, can you hear?” the Orc Sergeant tried to see if the Blood Elf was coherent. After all, she had technically drowned.

“We need to get her back to Orgrimmar and have a First Aid specialist and a priest look at her, and make sure there’s no permanent damage,” Gonzok suggested.

“I’ll carry her back…” Minarr could barely stand up. The Tauren took a moment to prop himself upright again, then scooped up the Blood Elf in his arms. As he did so, they all heard slight popping sounds of her bones and joints creaking, most notably her ribs. Just as that happened, the Blood Elf let out a terrible and blood curdling scream.

“What are you doing to her?” Ulldhur yelled at Minarr.

“She’s in pain… I just need to get her on the back of my Kodo and head to Orgrimmar right away,” Minarr walked away. “I know a good Alchemist there since I don’t have my supplies with me… Don’t worry, she won’t have to endure his pain for long,” he called back to them.

The three Orcs watched as Minarr rode with the newly revived Blood Elf back to Orgrimmar in the mid-afternoon sun.

“First Ersatz, then the treaty, and now this…” Ulldhur looked to the ground. “The Alliance is going to pay.”

“Wait a minute, it’s more likely the Band of Shadows is behind this,” Gonzok offered his rebuttal.

“Regardless, whoever they are, they just made a mistake…”

“And what’s that?”

“They forgot to kill someone,” Ulldhur shifted his gaze back into the distance to the Orc capital city. “And lucky for us, she didn’t drown afterwards.”

[Master Vorr]

Yep, been awhile since I've added the next part, especially since it's only half finished, but from an author's standpoint, I've hit writer's block. After the * * * at the end of this part, I know exactly how the rest goes, but have gone retarded as how to start it, i.e. the first word of the sentence. But, I'm not worried, happens to me all the time.
Also, I've noticed quite a few more people have viewed my fanfic since the last time I posted, which I'll gladly take as a compliment. I'm hoping to hear from any of you on what you think. You can rip into it as much as you want or praise it to high heaven; I love debating literature. So here it is...
mv

Part VI - pt. I

“How’s she doing?” Warchief Thrall asked a Herbalist who had been charged with watching over the Blood Elf survivor.

“I think she’ll pull through…” the Troll Herbalist whispered. “She’s been healed well enough. The hard part was bandaging her ribs so that they’d heal properly.”

“Will she be back to her old self again?” Thrall asked. He and the Troll were standing outside of the Blood Elf’s recovery room, at the Inn in Orgrimmar.

“In the long run, absolutely,” the Troll reassured Thrall. “But for the time being, in the recovery process, she’ll have to take it easy. When she’s able to walk again, no long-winded activities, otherwise she’ll have trouble breathing. And especially no fighting.”

“How bad was the damage?”

“To be honest with you, my Lord, I’ve never seen anything like this,” the Troll seemed amazed. “When Minarr told me all that had happened at Scuttle Coast, I couldn’t believe him. There’s no telling what ramifications there are to reviving someone who’s been dead and drowned for quite some time. Her brain could be damaged, but … who knows?”

Thrall breathed a deep frustrating sigh. “And she’s to remain sedated like this for a few more hours?”

“Of course, it’ll allow for the pain to subside.”

“Thank you.” Thrall touched the Herbalist meaningfully on the shoulder. “If Amoru comes back to check on her, tell him that I’ll have him demoted and receive twenty-five lashes in public the next time he leaves the scene of an accident again!” he threatened while he walked away.

Sitting outside her room also, just a little further down the hall was Ulldhur and Gonzok. Thrall approached the two Orcs with his hands on his hips and looking mournful. He wasn’t wearing any of his normal, epic armor, just a plain leather tunic.

“What are you two still doing here?’

“I’m waiting for the Blood Elf to wake up,” Ulldhur replied calmly. “I have a few questions to ask her.”

“She is not to be disturbed, Master Sergeant,” Thrall warned him. “Now, you’ve both made your reports on the incident, why not leave and continue your investigation?”

Ulldhur ignored him and looked past at the Blood Elf’s room. “What was her name again?”

Thrall grinded his teeth and glared at Ulldhur. When he didn’t answer, Gonzok muttered, “Lt. Naling Goldsbane.” Thrall shot a glance at Gonzok that forced him to look to the floor. “Ulldhur … you do realize, that this is a black day for the Horde?” Ulldhur didn’t answer. “Twenty-six soldiers were stabbed, gutted, burned alive, and drowned all on the same ship. My advisor was murdered at around the same time last night, and our peace treaty is missing!” Thrall bent over in Ulldhur’s face. “But at least you’re just sitting here, instead of doing what I told you…”

Ulldhur simply shifted his gaze to the floor, and didn’t move. Thrall was merely inches from his face, glaring at him, trying to antagonize him. ‘Don’t give in…’ Ulldhur told himself. ‘This is what he wants … He wants me to lose control and explode in his face.’ He cracked a tiny smile just before he spoke. “I just have one question, My Lord… How come two Lieutenants were bringing a small battalion of troops over here from Silvermoon?”

Thrall stood back up straight. “Lieutenant’s Aranel and Naling were asked to be present at the meeting I held this morning with the council. They knew how dangerous the situation was and enlisted soldiers to accompany them. Presumably, they were on their way here when the Genesis was attacked.”

Ulldhur sat in silence, thinking deeply. “Thank you.” Ulldhur sat further back in his seat to relax and made direct eye contact with Thrall.

The two starred at each other. Once Thrall realized that Ulldhur wasn’t going to move, he stormed off. ‘The treaty first, Ulldhur! Nothing else matters!” he shouted back to them.

Now Gonzok and Ulldhur were left sitting alone in the hallway. The Private’s leg was twitching, but he waited a few minutes before he said anything.

“I know you know this Ulldhur, but … I’m going to ask it anyways. You do realize that the penalty for disobeying a direct order and or treason is - ?”

“Death by hanging,” Ulldhur answered before Gonzok could finish. “I know…” He stood up and patted him on the shoulder. “Let’s go wake up our only survivor.”


* * * * * * *

As always, TBC ...

[Nitesky]

GOOD STORY 10/10 only thing is, Isn't the title of the story a level off of

Starwars Jedi Academy?

[Master Vorr]

Well, thank you very much. I appreciate the first compliment.
As far as the title being a level off of SW: JA, even though I've never played the game, that would be a no... It's not.

Part VI - pt. 2 is almost ready.
mv <-->

[Inquisitor7]

Very impressive, Master Vorr. Your writing style is clear and fairly concise. You don't go overboard with description, and you do a great job of conveying the right tempo for a scene. The battle on the Horde ship (between the Blood Elf paladins and the undead rogue and Draeni Shaman) flowed well and was not gratuitous in violence or length, as far as I can tell. The only section that struck me as off was the scene in Part II where Ulldhur was before Thrall and the council.

Thrall seemed surprisingly sentimental in the way he spoke- not that that's a bad thing in the right context. But I don't think things like the following really fit:

“I’m terribly sorry about his and Tuloc’s disappearances. I understand that you just learned of this this morning, and it might be difficult for you…”

In my opinion, it would make more sense for Thrall to say that in a private setting.

It definitely wasn't a terrible section; it had some nice little details (like how Ulldhur is larger than the private, and Thrall is larger than Ulldhur, giving physical manifestation to an Orc's significance and thereby emphasizing it more), and the diversity of the gathering lended it the importance it needed. Now, I did find Ulldhur's behavior during the meeting to be startling; apparently, he did not have a sense of the meeting's formality and the need for clear deliberation. By having him act that way, you definitely got across the point that he is a "loose cannon"; however, in a way it seems somewhat unbelievable that he would be so blind to convention. Of course, that is just my opinion. Feel free to agree or disagree.

That's all I've got for now. I would give you a more detailed response, but I don't have the time. Anyway, I hope you keep on posting. Your write very well, and your story has an interesting plot (full of assassinations, intrigue, action, and all that good stuff). So please, keep it up.