Post by Morec0
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Gilnean Moon (Part 12). ))
Blaine, Ivan, the soldiers already there with them and others that had been brought from Greymane Manor to assist them spent the next hour rescuing as many survivors of the flood as they could. Blaine had stayed in his worgen form, much to Ivan and the other soldier’s horror, and because of that had outpaced the rescue attempts made by his allies in mere minutes. By the end of their efforts he had personally saved more than the combined efforts of his brother and all of the soldiers helping them.
The survivors were either weak or unconscious, which Blaine had been grateful for since he knew otherwise they would have hindered his attempts to help him. This was also his reason for vanishing shortly after the rescue attempt was finish, telling his brother to have Krennan meet him outside the gates once everyone was attended to and out of harm’s way. It would take another hour for that to happen, an hour for the survivors to wake up or just gain the strength to move and for those who did not make it to be given a proper burial. When the last of the dead were laid to rest Ivan and the soldiers led the remaining Gilneas to the manor.
Krista ran to embrace her brother as soon as she saw him approaching. She then looked through the survivors for Blaine. The blood drained from her face when she failed to find him. “What… what h-,” she placed a hand over her mouth and closed her eyes to try and stop the tears.
“He’s alive,” Ivan replied, speaking plainly to comfort his sister as quick as possible.
Krista’s tear-wet face blinked into an expression of confusion. “What? Where is he? Why isn’t he here?”
“I’ll explain later,” the eldest Jeret said. “Where is Krennan?”
“You’ll explain now!” Krista demanded of her older brother.
“Listen, Krista,” Ivan said, looking his sister straight in her yes. “Something very, very wrong has happened, and until Krennan has a chance to look over it I don’t think talking about it aloud is the best option right now.”
What little blood had returned to her face quickly drained away again. “Has he… has the curse overtaken him?”
“Partially,” Ivan said as he started to walk towards the manor, Krista following at his side.
Krista's expression was somewhere between utter horror and completely confusion. “
Partially?”
“I’ll explain more when you see him. First, we find Krennan.”
Krennan was at a loss for words as he looked at Blaine. The curse had taken hold psychically, that much was clear, but mentally the youngest Jeret Lord was still himself. He acted like a Gilnean Lord instead of an animal and he could formulate perfect Common sentences to answer or ask questions. And the question he chose to ask was the same one on everyone’s mind:
“What has happened to me?”
Krennan took a few seconds to think before speaking. “I don’t know,” he said.
“You have to know
something!” Krista yelled at him. “You’re the one who’s been researching the Curse for all this time!” She had been just as terrified when she saw Blaine, the worgen he had become at least, standing on one side of the road waiting for them. Even after Blaine spoke to ask his sister to calm down it had taken a little while for her to make sense of what had happened, and although she was not as terrified of him now as she had been she was scared to death of what this could mean; a fraction of that fear manifesting as rage toward's Krennan's inability to deduce what had happened to her brother.
“My sister has a point,” Ivan said, cutting his sister off from yelling at the Royal Alchemist any further, and then said what Krista was thinking; “Could this happen to us?”
“Yes… maybe… I’m not sure; there was nothing in my research to suggest… this as a possibility. Nothing. Never before has anyone retained their… their
sanity, if you will, after a transformation. By all I understand of the curse, this is impossible.”
“Clearly that is not the case,” Ivan said. “Can it be reversed?”
“Ivan…,” Blaine started.
His brother cut him off. “We’re going to fix this, Blaine. Don’t worry, we’ll find a way to turn you human again. That is our first and foremost priority.”
“Ivan, I know you want what is best for me,” Blaine said. “But maybe we can use this as a blessing instead of discarding it as a curse? What has happened to me, maybe we can use it to shed more light onto the nature of the Curse. If we can study whatever phenomenon has happened to me maybe we can find a cure, or at least a better way to treat the condition.”
“Your brother may be right, Lord and Lady Jeret,” Krennan said to Ivan and Krista. “If I can get some samples from your brother, maybe we can see if there is some difference between what he became first and what he has become now.”
“You will do no such thing!” Krista said. “Just… just give him some more of the potion! That’s all that’s been needed before, that’s all that is needed now.”
“We would lose this golden opportunity to expand our scientific kno-.”
“
Screw science!” Krista yelled. “Jus-.”
Ivan put a hand on Krista’s shoulder, silencing her as she looked over at him in confusion. “Krista, let them.”
Krista’s jaw dropped. “Ivan, have you lost your mind?”
“It’s Blaine’s choice, and it is for the betterment of Gilneas. Whatever Krennan manages to learn from… studying our brother could help find a cure. And as long as Blaine is within Krennan’s care no harm will come to him.” Blaine nodded gratefully.
Krista did not agree. “No. You’re mad! You’re all mad!”
“Krista…” Blaine tried to say something to calm his sister down, but she just shot him a glare and stormed off. The youngest Jeret sighed as he watched her storm off. “We should give her some time to calm down.”
“Don’t mistake my defense of your wishes as being on your side, Blaine,” Ivan said, causing his brother to look back at him in shock. “She’s
just as right in her points as you are yours. Whatever has happened to you, Blaine, you should pray to the Light it’s not permanent…” His train of thought derailed as he realized he was being far too harsh on his younger brother for something that was not his fault.
“Just be careful, Blaine,” Ivan restarted, speaking more softly now, “and stay out of sight until you understand more about what’s happened. The last thing we need right now is for a panic to break out.” Blaine nodded and Ivan went to catch up with his sister.
“Come,” Krennan said. “We’ll use the emergency escape to enter the manor.” Blaine nodded and followed the alchemist; although his eyes watched his siblings walk away until they were out of sight. He took a deep breath and hoped to the Light they would forgive him for his decision.
“… And so then the vampire says: ‘a real
f*cking vampire!’” Morec finished his joke and broke into a peel of laughter. “Hahah! It cracks me up every time! Hey, wait; are you ignoring me?”
Vrem continued to ignore Morec, causing the death knight to just shrug and turn his attention back to creating and maintaining the icy path that the two of them were moving across – Vrem and his pets on foot Morec on the back of Deathcharger – towards the nearest ship.
“State your name and business!” a Forsaken lookout yelled to them as he spotted their approach from a few yards off.
“Vrem Dartskul and Morec Rivendare, survivors of the flood on the mainland,” Vrem yelled, continuing his stride up to the side of the ship. “Reporting for duty under Captain Asther.”
The sailor was silent as he waited for them to get close to confirm their identities. Now close enough themselvbes to see those aboard the Forsaken ship the death knight and marksman-hunter could see the sailor nod and throw down a ladder for the two to climb aboard with. Morec jumped off of Deathcharger first, saying “race you to a top” with a laugh and began to climb. Rottalon flew off of his shoulder as Vrem began to climb. The sailors then lowered down a cargo lift to pull Marrow and Deathpelt aboard. Vrem finished his climb up and saluted as Captain Asther walked up.
“I trust you have a good reason for your absence, soldier?” the Forsaken Captain asked, not quite irritably but also not purely out of curiosity.
“Damn right we do; we almost drowned!” Morec yelled; but Asther annoyed him, wisely awaiting a serious answer from Vrem.
“We along with a good portion of the Forsaken assault force were on the mainland when the entire coast was flooded over as the result of an earthquake,” Vrem began, Rottalon landing back on his shoulder. “Most of our forces decided to pull themselves ashore, but we,” he motioned to himself and Morec as he continued, “elected to return to the ship and request immediate assistance or evacuation for our allies trapped on the mainland.”
“They knew the risks,” Asther replied, “they’re on their own until we move forward with the second wave of a proper invasion. I have no intention of risking our soldiers to save those already dead.”
Vrem nodded, Rottalon affectionately pecking at his skull. “By the Banshee Queen’s will, Captain Asther.”
“Captain,” said one of the Forsaken sailors, most likely the ship’s First Mate, “what do you plan for our next move?”
“If our scryers are correct the earthquake shattered the reefs around the northern coastline even further, making it possible for our ships to reach at least within cannon-distance that portion of the Gilnean coast as well. You are to take the ship there and open fire on the Manor we saw one the cliffface the moment it is within range.”
“Aye, Captain,” the sailor replied and began to yelled the orders to the rest of the crew.
“As for you two,” Asther said, turning to Vrem and Morec. “Rest and ready yourselves for the second wave, you’ll be on the front lines of it.”
“For the Banshee Queen,” Vrem said, saluting. Morec also saluted, then turned and walked off to head below deck; he hummed a tune as he went..
“For the Banshee Queen,” Asther agreed, saluting back.