"I'm surrounded by idiots! Hmmpfh!

Rithrynn thought as she sat back in her seat with an annoyed pout, her arms folded across her chest, and head moving around to find a direction where she could avoid looking at the other occupants in the wagon.

-SCREEECH-

As the carriage suddenly ground to an immediate halt, slipping across the ice for a couple of meters before stopping; Rithrynn find herself having to grab onto whatever door handles, seats and bars she could find in the small wagon to avoid being thrown across it and right into the little Liaena on the opposite side.

"Curse these maleficent midget transports!"

It was with great relief that Rithrynn finally left the wagon, having to take a moment just to breathe in the air after her boots had touched the pavement. Any moment longer in that undersized coffins on wheels and her legs would have fallen asleep!
But as she looked up, she saw the great and massive white marble spires of the Stormwind grand cathedral looming over her. Although she had seen them before, she had never actually been this close to them before. The Night Elf simply stood in the middle of the cathedral grounds and stared up at the massive building, blatantly ignoring everyone else around her.

"Whoah, those are huge!" Rithrynn muttered as she observed the different spires, which made the building rather taller than the shorter, circle formed temples of her own people.

"Why do such short creatures make such big buildings?"

" ... are they meant to be compensating for something?" Rithrynn asked, the Night Elf still consumed by the massive building ahead of her to look around her.

" ... "

But the lack of response from either Liaena, Marshal or Fran, either to explain or berate her, made the Night Elf become curious. Taking her silvery eyes off the towering structure ahead, the Night Elf looked around herself - only to realize that the rest of the party were nowhere to be seen. It was simply a sea of robed humans which looked all the same to her!

"Crap!"

Quickly scanning the area, Rithrynn was quick however to identity the back of Fran as the dwarf began to ascend the many steps to the Cathedral, causing the dwarf to become visible in the slightly taller crowd of generic humans.

"Wait for me!" Rithrynn quickly called out as she charged through the crowd, being able to dodge most of the bystanders and cathedral goers, but accidentally running a few over as she made a beeline to the stairs. After just a few short seconds(and a couple of ruined robes of bystanders and monks who had been knocked down in the icy slush), Rithrynn had finally caught up with Liaena and the rest of the party; choosing to ignore any potential glare she might have been receiving from the crowd behind her.

"... that that Night Elf friend of yours? Why is she dressed like that?

Overhearing the whisper from Bella to Liaena, the Night Elf's eyes were quick to locate the former who was walking next to Liaena.

"I'm wearing what I'm wearing because Li here is just so very good at making friends." Rithrynn said with a slight smirk in reference to Liaena; the Night Elf motioning at her sword that rested by her hips, which was only one of the many deadly artifacts that made up the mini-arsenal that the Night Elf was carrying on her person.
"Buuut, if you and Li need some private time to catch up, I won't get in the way... "

Staring at Bella, the Night Elf threw her a sly wink before Rithrynn's eyes began to shift between her and Liaena, her mind trying to come up with every possibly likely relation, official and unofficial, that the two girls could be having. But perhaps fortunately for Liaena, as they entered into the Cathedral, the Night Elf's eyes were quickly removed from them in favor of gazing around at the massive hallway that they had just entered, and the towering stone pillars supporting the painted roof above their head. Short of their own steps, there wasn't much noise in the cathedral other than slight murmuring and the faded sound of people walking quietly around in the surrounding hallways.

"By Elune.... oh, hey, I can hear my own voice in here!"

“There’s been all sorts of stories, that you brought in a dying dwarf yesterday and he bled out in the infirmary."

"That's just a story, lass." Fran replied to Bella, although hesitant as he wondered whether feeding her curiosity would be such a good thing to do. Liaena's mood, which had improved however so little since she had left the carriage, seemed to have gotten worse after the arrival of her 'old friend'. ¨
"Though it could have been true, if things had gone differently..."

As they entered the sacred grounds of the cathedral interior, the dwarf made sure to lower his voice, not wanting to interrupt the serenity within the holy walls of the place. However, any considerations made by the dwarf would be far outweighed by the inconsiderations of the NIght Elf walking behind them, as Rithrynn almost shouted out behind them!

"I can hear my own voice in here!"

"Would ye quiet down, kid! This is a holy place!" The dwarf would whisper slightly loudly back at the Night Elf, having taken the initiative to speak back against the Night Elf lest Marshal be given another opportunity to go on a divine rant of his, which seemed to be the old man's favorite pastime. But regardless of what the dwarf said, he might just go ahead with one regardless!

To the dwarf, it seemed like a logical paradox how such an obnoxious people as the Night Elves could be famed for being supposedly great scouts and unseen hunters!

“What…?”

Having also lowered her voice as they entered the quiet walls of the cathedral, Bella glanced between Rithrynn and Liaena (who was giving the former the mother of all black stares) with some befuddlement, which was finally replaced with surprise as she caught the Night – Elfs meaning. “Ohhh…no no no, nothing like that. We just go way back, don’t we Li, hmm?”

“Oh yes” Liaena simpered with an entirely fake smile to match Bella’s. The two girls continued to eye each other up challengingly as they walked quietly behind Marshall. “What are you up to, Bella? I’m not making you late for anything, am I?”

“Oh well, actually I'm off duty so don’t worry about that. How about you, Li? Anything I can help with, at all?”

“….No, no...but thanks for the offer. I’m—“

"I can hear my own voice in here!"

….

The two girls paused in their quiet talk to turn and stare at the Night Elf walking along behind them, along with several people passing by in the vicinity around them. They had passed from the atrium, through another set of double doors into the huge hall of the cathedral and were walking up the far left side, parallel to a row of columns that reached up to the great dome of the ceiling. Which Rithrynn’s voice was now echoing from.

“—here”

“—here”

“—here”

“What is her problem?” Bella whispered into Liaena’s ear with a muffled giggle as Fran set about berating the Night Elf. Marshall on the other hand, appeared to have entirely ignored Rithrynn’s behaviour, or perhaps was too deaf to hear it. Instead he had strode away into the main body of the church, as the girls turned hurriedly to follow.

The wide central section of the Cathedral was lined with wooden pews, with a clear aisle in the centre. There were a few local people sitting in various locations on these, but it was evidently not a official time of worship if the low turnout was anything to go by.

Beyond the pews, there was a small open area before encountering a white marble plinth, jutting out of the floor to form a shallow step and elevating the far back of the gigantic hall. Further back on the elevated area was a flight of steps, leading up to where an altar was banked by glowing candles on its left and right. The back of the hall was given over almost entirely to windows, reaching the whole length of the back wall and up towards the roof. Glancing up towards the arches of the ceiling could reveal cunningly located mirrors if one cared enough to search for them, redirecting light from the windows back towards the altar; ensuring that even the feeble winter sun was enough to bathe the plinth in light.

It was on the first low step that a woman in priest robes stood, speaking quietly to a working man standing on the lower ground and holding his cloth cap in his hands. Passing her hand briefly over his forehead the man stepped away; leaving her to turn to observe Marshall approaching, pursued by Liaena and Bella.

“Priestess Thea”

“Priest Marshall”

Thea inclined her head in acknowledgement, before stepping down to look over the other bringing up the rear behind the old man. “Apprentice Rune. Apprentice Silva. Welcome back Fran, I was glad to hear of your fathers recovery. And...”

“….”

The entire group paused to look at Rithrynn, who had cheerfully stepped up onto the plinth to get a better view and was now studying the entire room.

….

“Wut?”

“Get. Down.” Liaena hissed after a long moment, where it became clear that nobody else was planning to resolve the situation for her. A hard tug on her sheath had a grumpy Rithrynn down at the same level – of sorts – as everyone else, as Thea inclined her head towards the elf. “Welcome to the Cathedral, Night Elf. I hope you enjoy your visit”

“Not rea--”

“…Priestess Thea!” Liaena jumped in hastily, before Rithrynn could cause events to unravel any further. “Father Marshall had something important to discuss with you!”

Thea gave the old man a brief look, to which he responded with a short nod. Turning to walk towards the edge of the great hall, she turned back as her gaze settled on Liaena again to give her a penetrating look. “Am I to assume this is to involve you, Apprentice Rune?”

“….Yes.” the girl said carefully. “And uh…Fran and Rithrynn here, they’re kind of involved too. Not Bella though. She’s not”

“What? Aw, but Li…”

“I see. Be about your duties then, Apprentice Silva” Thea’s voice, while never raising above a mild monotone, still managed to possess many of the qualities of a whip-crack that had Bella pursing her lips and backing away slowly. Turning to open a side door, she gestured to usher the other towards it. “If you would then, Father. You may use my study.”

The Night Elf, barely having returned to the group after having been most unjustly forced from her perfectly fine perch for no good reason; had already removed herself from the conversation to simply stare around at the interiors of the Cathedral. What was actually said in the conversation was of little importance to Rithrynn, as she seemed lost in the countless artworks that littered the insides of the grand cathedral, choosing to focus on the great statues, hanging banners and majestic paintings that adorned the interior.

"I should tell Mistress Serphia about this place. I bet the sisters would have loved to see this, and we got room for like five more warbands here as well!"

Although her face had been initially carriying a sense of amazement and naked wonder, the Night Elf had already restrained herself as to form a more neutral and indifferent facial expression.

She could after all not have the monkeys believe that a Night Elf would ever be impressed by something that they built!

That little detail though did not do anything to change the fact that the sentinel's attention would still be 90% of the time focused on the roof, pillars and artwork, and not on the group that she was supposed to be protecting.

“If you would then, Father. You may use my study.”

Hearing a door open, Rithrynn automatically began to move in the direction of the sound while her eyes were still plastered to a painting depicting what she assumed was some holy event involving someone being doused in water, or was he being drowned? That was, at least, until her waist suddenly met an unforeseen wall - a human wall.

*Crash*

Big Night Elf Warrior versus Small Human Girl. It was not much of a contest, as Rithrynn walked straight over Bella, knocking the human over and down onto her bum. Finally taking her eyes from the roof to look down at her unfortunate victim, Rithrynn raised her long brows in a moment of surprise before holding up her hand as a sign of peace.

"Ash'felor, sorry about that, consort of Li..." She muttered, before hastily retreating over Bella to step into the room; assuming the role of both vanguard and protector of the group as she took point, to guard them against whatever possible threats that could be lying in Thea's study! Marching through the doorway, Rithrynn reached down to rest her hand around the hilt of her sword.
"Fear not, I will go first!"

But as far as potential threats went, unless one considered the concept of 'tidiness' public enemy number one, the immaculate study of priestess Thea was rather peaceful.

The priestess' room was both clean and orderly. Despite the numerous books, scrolls and parchment that existed within it, they were all neatly ordered into a sophisticated and elaborate system of shelves and bookcases that spun the breadth of the room. The floor and the humble carpet that rested on it were both pristine, without a speck of dust to be seen on it. The study desk that sat in the corner of the room did not sport a single crumb of food or spilled wax, and the simple bed on the other side of the room was well made to the point it looked like it had even been ironed! Rithrynn was left surprised for a moment, barely remembering to step aside as the rest of the party entered behind her; Marshal first. If she hadn't known better, then she would have assumed that Thea had blood relations with Friedrick, Sharon's butler, judging by the cleanliness of the room!

"Sooo... " Rithrynn finally began, the Night Elf letting go off her sword as she leaned sideways down against Liaena to throw the human girl a slightly uncertain look.
"What exactly are we looking for again? How is this helping the rescue mission?"

She asked, the Night Elf's eyes shifting back and forth beneath her hood and helmet to the stoical Marshal who had entered the room with an iron expression on his face, as though the man himself had been chosen to partake in some most holy and divine mission and did not have time to care about the petty rabble standing behind him!

Entering the room behind Rithrynn, Thea pulled a chair out from behind her desk to sit down. Marshall had already seated himself in the only other chair in the room, leaving Liaena to stand behind him. The girl leaned forward to try and insert herself into the conversation. “Father, could I…?”

An arm shot out from Marshall to cut Liaena off, as the old man leaned forward to look Thea in the eye. “Priestess Thea, how would you rate the sincerity of this lying brat of yours?”

“Pardon?”

“what?”

Liaena hissed, turning furiously on the old man where he sat implacably on his chair. “For she has come to me with a story that is frankly, incredible. But if she could somehow be genuine for once in her useless life, it could very well threaten the sanctity of everything we know and love.”

….

“I…see” Thea said finally. Eyes drifting between Marshall and Liaena, she finally settled on the latter (who had turned scarlet with anger) as she gave her a thoughtful look. “Maybe I should hear it then, Father. Then I can judge”

“Uh…thank you, priestess” Liaena managed finally, after a long pause of trying to light Marshall on fire with her eyes. Stepping forward slightly, she had the uncomfortable feeling of being under a spotlight as Thea eyed her. “Yesterday morning, Sharon and I got a tip off that his attacker was hiding in an inn in Old Town…”

*

It was with that that Liaena launched into a long retelling of the events of the sewer, and what they had found down there. From there, she glossed over the events leading up to the meeting at the Vanguard HQ, other than her and Kathlin’s presence there and their clash with the White Hand. Going into depth regarding everything she knew about the Nobleman Alficious’ and the mysterious case of his death, she laid the diary in front of the older woman to point out relevant pages.

“…and Kitty was supposed to meet me back at Sharons house, and she didn’t, and I got this instead. She discovered this, and got kidnapped for it!” Liaena finally finished emphatically. Thea had been silent throughout the entire monologue, studying the relevant pages closely.

“Priest Marshall informed me of the events in the sewer. We have our people there now, cleansing those runes”

“Okay…”

“There is nothing there however, to prove that the White Hand guild is secretly a cultist group” Thea remarked as she leaned back slightly in her chair, eyes narrowing on Liaena as she held one finger on the diary. “Tax fraud, maybe. Crimes against humanity, no”

“There is” Liaena retorted, eyes blazing at her superior. “I told you, one of their members got a fatal blow from Doin, and he walked away like nothing after it. Besides, why would they abduct Kitty if they didn’t have something to hide?”

“You don’t need to be in league with the dammed to want to hide your misdeeds, Rune” Thea observed. Surveying the diary again, her gaze noticeably darkened as she looked at the note from Kathlin. “I will write to the Lords widow, and ensure an investigation into this is opened immediately. If this group have abducted Apprentice Lennox, I assure you they will regret it”

“No. No. That’ll happen too late” Liaena said immediately. The girl took a step closer towards the priestess’ desk. “The King is visiting tomorrow morning, isn’t he? You need to tell him all about this and make him act, while I get proof”

“Proof?”

“Yes. I’m breaking into Honors Watch tonight, to rescue Kitty. She’s a witness. And you’re going to help me do it”

“Apprentice Rune…”

“You will help me” Liaena took yet another step forward to the point where she was right in front of Thea, as her voice cracked slightly. “Because if I’m right, you’re condemning one of your apprentices to die horribly in some twisted plot if you don’t. Thea, I saw the man who’s responsible for all of this, he’s a Death Knight here in Stormwind, and he had members of the White Hand with him. And if we don’t stop him, the same thing’s going to happen here as what he did to Dalaran!!”

“Watch your tone, brat!”

The girl nearly shouting despite all the taboos over raising her voice in the Cathedral, Thea’s eyes had narrowed to slits on Liaena as she finally paused for breath. “Sit down, Apprentice Rune.”

….

Liaena looked for a moment as though she was about to start screaming for a moment, before backing away to sit down with a thud on the edge of the hard bed. Thea did not appear particularly angry after having just been raged at, more resigned as she turned over another page of the diary with a sigh. “I wish you wouldn’t miss your appointments”

Rithrynn had been watching the rather heated conversation that was taking place in the room. In whatever hierarchy they had in the Cathedral, the Night Elf could only assume that Priestess Thea was some sort of big shot. And the fact that she could somehow manage to keep control over Liaena and her ilk was enough to make the analogy between Thea and a cat herder. Because both jobs must have been just as difficult!

But as much as she might have enjoyed seeing Liaena being talked down and locked by Thea, seeing as the black haired girl was as stubborn as ten dwarves and as persistent as a braindead woodpecker, Rithrynn felt that it would be unwise to leave her completely alone.

“I wish you wouldn’t miss your appointments”

"Li did help uncover a secret cult hiding out beneath the sewers of Stormwind. Which was also guarded by assassins lying in ambush! I think a few missed appointments means very little in comparison to foiling the practice of dark magic beneath your very feet!"

"Quiet, twisted harpy; this matter is between the people of the cloth!" Was a lightning fast response from Marshal, who jabbed his finger at Rithrynn.

The father's comment did little to improve Rithrynn's mood it seemed, as the elf's silvery eyes narrowed on the old man like that of a threatening predator!

"Your contribution against this darkness has not exceeded the point of meaningless banter and rants. If it had not been for me and my sisters, you would not even know about the existence of this cult growing right below your very feet!" Rithrynn spat back with a sharp tone against Marshal, returning a finger of her own at Marshal before turning to Thea as the Night Elf walked up next to Liaena who was sitting in her bed.

"I have no idea if you know or not, but Li here is messed up in the head, incapable of telling danger. She WILL go after her friend regardless of what happens here today, whether you choose you support your own pupil or not! She is on the trail of a Death Knight leading a Death Cult here in Stormwind. Could there possibly be a more noble quest? She is preventing a possible catastrophe!"

"The only catastrophe there will be is if we allow her to run off to that castle!" Marshal brummed loudly, knocking the bottom of his staff down in the stone floor to make his point clearer.
"The girl is a menace, and your influence on her is a bad one!"

"You dumb ap,-"

Rithrynn had opened her mouth to spew out a flurry of bile at Marshal, but decided it against it and closed her mouth. She was probably not going to make any impression on Thea, whether or not she choose to verbally or physically abuse the old man. Grudgingly, Rithrynn turned her head away from Marshal, swearing revenge on the old man before turning to look at Thea.

"Me and my sisters will protect Li here in her search, but she needs your support if we are to have any major victory against this cult! Their power vastly overshadows each of us if we stand alone!"

"Hold there - hold me pint fer a moment!" Fran suddenly exclaimed, the dwarf walking forward into the conversation while adjusting his girth-guard.
"What's all this cultist and dark sorcery business, and Death Cults connected to the White Hand?"

The Dwarf asked, looking surprised as his gaze passed through the group.

"I knew they were assholes, but this is adding a whole new layer to the pie of evil!" The dwarf expressed, holding up his hand while he spoke.
"I cannea tell whether this is a good, or a bad thing. If we can nail them as cultists in the eyes of Stormwind, they're as good as done for it! But, the idea of cultists infiltrating Stormwind is a frightening idea, especially considering their rapid expansion. These guys are spreading into more sectors than just security. You can hardly see a ball or party among the nobles where there isn't some hired white cloak."

The dwarf raised his mailed fist to pound it against his studded vest.

"The 'Van has a stake in this game as well, and by Bronzebeard's brass balls, ye bet we aren't gonna sit idly on our asses while the lillies's influence spreads throughout the city!" The dwarf stated stated loudly, but upon receiving a mixture of confusion, as well as slight ire from Marshal for his language, the dwarf was quick to comment again.

"Ahh, those are 'lillies', what we like to call the White Hand."

The dwarf commented as he scratched his long and bright beard, nodding his head.

"I'm afraid infiltration is not our strongest side, and we really can't just flat out attack the lillies without repercussions, but we know how to make a mess! If ye need their attention away from Honor's Watch tonight, then the 'Van's got you covered! I've been itching for some payback for me pa!"

"I have no idea if you know or not, but Li here is messed up in the head, incapable of telling danger!”

“…I am not!”
Liaena spat furiously. Thea inclined her head slightly towards the Night Elf in recognition. “Yes, thank you. I did know that”

….

Watching Rithrynn and Fran carefully as they both put their respective two bits into the conversation, the priestess waited until both of them finally ground to a halt before she spoke again. “I’m still not hearing any proof of a link between this ‘White Hand’ Guild and a death cult, apprentice”

“I told you –“

“The church does not normally involve itself with politics or internal security, which you should be well aware of by now, apprentice.” Thea’s voice, while quiet and calm, had the remarkable effect of drowning out Liaena as she held up a finger to her. “To intervene in a situation such as this, there must be no doubt of the authenticity of the threat to this city. Do I have to explain to you the impact an incorrect accusation would have to the trust placed in this order?”

“…Okay. Fine” the girl said finally, after a long pause of tiredly staring at the floor. Looking up again, she met Thea’s eyes. “So I’ll get you your proof, when I go in. Tonight”

“Which is illegal”

“So is kidnapping people! So is fiddling your books, and murdering nobles to get away with it, but I hear all you can do about that is sit and write letters!” Liaena exclaimed furiously. Jumping to her feet yet again, she glared down at Thea. “Death Culty-ness aside, you know that they’re up to their necks in dirt, and you want to let them get away with it!? We’re – we’re supposed to be protectors of this city! Not a bunch of bureaucrats!”

“Hrmmph” Marshall grumbled, shuffling around on his chair as he glared up at Liaena. “For once, something that we could agree on brat”

Leaning back slightly in her chair, Thea gave Liaena a long, hard, stare before she finally spoke again with a hint of a sigh. “I can’t condone you forming a strike force onto private property, Rune”

“You don’t need to” Liaena said quickly. “Just…don’t notice when I start recruiting myself, okay? This was all my doing. Everyone’ll believe that”

“No doubt.”

Thea pulled a very clear I-can’t-believe-I’m-even-having-this-conversation expression as she looked down again to the diary on her desk. “Describe this Death Knight to me, apprentice. You say he was involved in Dalaran?”

“…”

“Yeees…” Liaena said hesitantly after a long pause, taken completely unawares with the rapid conversation shift. “He was. I saw him there”

Launching into a description of Sherpa, Liaena gave an accurate physical description and current pseudonym, and proceeded to gloss over or outright fabricate any details of his history or recent events that she could think of. He was re-imagined as a malevolent cultist, with a hatred of Sharon purely due to the latters intervention in the Dalaran massacre and their shared background as Quel’dorei.

As she finished, Liaena found that her hands were shaking slightly and her skin felt cold as Thea eyed her very closely. She clasped them together to hide it as the priestess glanced over at Marshall. “Forgive me, but would you give me a moment to speak to my student in private?”

“…What!? Hrmph, fine.” Marshall grunted, sounding distinctly pleased to be dismissed after an initial gesture of outrage. Getting slowly up from his chair, he nodded to Thea with a lowering of his bushy brows. “I’ll be in my study then, priestess. Come and join me when you are done here, we shall discuss this further”

“Of course, Father”
Thea gave Marshall a beatific smile as he headed for the door, to turn and raise her eyebrows at Fran and Rithrynn apologetically. “….If you would be so kind?”

The Dwarf furrowed his heavy eyebrows for a moment, before he quickly made a subtle bow to Thea.

"Of course, m'lady. We'll be right outside. Come... " Before he turned to walk out, the dwarf's attention moved to the tall Night Elf standing next to him. Fran gently tugged Rithrynn's cloak to get her to move, before quickly letting go and retreating a step backwards as if he expected the Night Elf to immediately spin around in retaliation with her blade and attempt to swipe his head clean off for the 'offense'!

Once he had gotten her to move however, Fran was quick to walk over to the door and exit the room, waiting for Rithrynn to exit as well before closing the door as quietly as he could.

Given the fact that the heavy wooden door was well oiled, it was impossible to avoid an audible 'bang' as its iron frame smashed against the masonry of the doorframe. Pulling on his shoulder, Fran's eyes rolled over to gaze in every other direction other than the Night Elf. Fiddling with his belt, the dwarf moved a hand down into his cloak, much to the suspicion for the Night Elf, before freezing when he suddenly noticed a pair of monks walking past them on the other side of the column row.

Holding his hand still, he moved his other hand into a similar position - acting like he was watching the scenery of the Cathedral as the two monks passed them.

As soon as the two monks had disappeared around the last column however, the dwarf was quick to produce a tin canteen that he swiftly uncorked. As he removed the cork, a strong alcoholic aroma could immediately be smelled in the air around them, coming from whatever baneful stuff the dwarf had in the canteen. Taking a quick sip, Fran screwed the cork back on before putting the canteen back in his cloak.

"Sooo... " The dwarf finally said something, his eyes casually rolling back onto Rithrynn.
"What is it you guys are doing in Stormwind? I mean, other than raiding bars, picking fights and terrorizing the local markets?"

"Why do I never get to be present for the important and special meetings!?"

" ... other than raiding bars, picking fights and terrorizing the local markets?"

Standing around with her arms folded across her chest, and her face forming a sour pout; the Night Elf eventually raised an eyebrow to throw a glare down at the dwarf standing next to her.

"It's a vacation."

"Really?"

"Yes, sort of. Though I spend most of it taking care of Li who is in there right now," Rithrynn would explain, leaning her head towards the door to Thea's chamber.
"Her backside is like a magnet to all sorts of assassins and other goons, and it doesn't help that she has absolutely no concept or understanding of danger either!"

Rithrynn said, before doing a quick mental summary in her head to count all the times she had saved Liaena in the past. But it would be a number a bit higher than anything she was prepared to count to, and so she gazed back down at the dwarf who was still looking at her.

"It is sort of like trying to herd a sheep through a forest of wolves, except that this sheep has severe anger management issues, lesser to greater symptoms of insanity; and an irresistible urge to charge at any wolf it sees."

The alcohol from the dwarf's bottle still lingered in the air, and upon reaching Rithrynn's nostrils, it was enough to cause the Night Elf to wince. Although she had consumed her own fair share of wine, dwarven beer or spirits was something she had never actually tasted. And judging from what it smelled like, she probably had no desire to do so either anytime in the future! That is without even considering the fact that any alcohol other than wine was illegal wherever Darnassus' authorities had control.

"How do you even keep that vile liquid from burning through you anyway?" Rithrynn eventually asked, eyeing the dwarf's cloak where he had retreated the canteen.

How the dwarves even managed to stomach their own drinks was a mystery to the Night Elf, and considering their high volume, it was even more bizarre that they were supposedly a race of smiths and workshop runners. One would have thought that with such strong drinks, any dwarf would be prone to instantaneous spontaneous combustion if they ever came close to a hot forge!

Thea returned Frans bow with a small nod of her own, watching the door slam shut before her attention switched back to the only other person remaining in the room. “Apprentice, would you be prepared to testify against this individual of yours?”

Liaena, who had been carefully negotiating her way towards the vacated chair now that Marshall had vacated it, convulsively gripped the back of it as she shot Thea an aghast look. “…what?”

“…Let me explain the ‘burden of proof’ to you, apprentice” Thea leaned back in her chair again, steepling her fingers together as she shot Liaena a particularly sour look. “It is required before our law allows us to convict someone of the small matter of ‘being a Death Knight’”

Eyeing the white-faced girl, the priestess’ voice became slightly softer as she continued. “On the other hand, a witness statement involving this man in the attack on Dalaran could at least be taken as justification for the guard to arrest him on suspicion of criminal activities. A full investigation could potentially follow”

Sinking into the chair with a thud, Liaena studied a knot in the wood of Thea’s desk as she refused to meet the woman’s eyes. “I….I can’t”

“Why not?”

“…………..”

Thea sighed audibly as the silence stretched on too long in the room, before raising her eyebrows towards the ceiling. “Then my options to assist you are limited, apprentice”

Liaena raised her head slightly, to look up at Thea. “You do believe me, then”

“….the timing of this with the discoveries in that sewer requires me to be circumspect, to say the least” Thea observed dubiously after a pause where she looked down at the diary in front of her. “Add that to the fact that your tales are usually more credible than this, and yes, unfortunately I do think you believe what you say. And this does sound like the level of trouble you and apprentice Lennox are stupid enough to find yourselves in.”

Having been watching Thea with the sort of hopeful caution that gave away the underlying fear that she would suddenly snap back and order her out of her office, Liaena promptly resumed staring at the floor. “I shouldn’t have got her involved in this”

“No. But then you shouldn’t be involved either, so I suppose that’s blame you can assign to both of us” Thea remarked as she shuffled papers on her desk into a neat pile before pushing them to one side. “If this is indeed the day for full openness between us, how about you tell me what sort of hair-brained scheme you propose to extract her with, apprentice? Just so I know whether I need to confine you to a cell for your own safety.”

The dungeon that Kathlin had been brought to under the mighty fortifications of Honor's Watch was damp and cold, having been carved out somewhere close to the core of the hard reef itself. Although there floor was covered in carved stones and doorways, the walls were left bare, the naked rocks of the reef dripping with moisture along the dungeon hallways. The prison section of the dungeon was relatively small, a narrow corridor stretching somewhat above ten meters inwards with six individual cells, barred shut with metal bars, and with only one door leading out.

Kathlin, who had been left with little more than her robes, lay in complete darkness in one of the cells. There was no source of light in the dungeon, it being situated too deep inside the reef for there to be any windows, and no torches or sconces were lit along the walls.

That was, until the flickering light of a torch could be seen through the grate on the door to the room, followed by a set of footsteps before the door suddenly swung open, casting the first bit of light into the room for hours! Entering the room were three men. The first one was the black haired human, Sevarian, wearing his regal themed silver commander armor and cloak as he walked alongside the cells. Accompanying him were two White Hand chevaliers, and one battlemage.

"So this is the prisoner." Sevarian commented as he reached Kathlin's cell, looking through the bars to gaze at the girl who was the only prisoner in the dungeon. The heavily armored sorcerer studied the girl with a mixture of anticipation, glee and excitement; like a kid staring at the shelves in a candy shop.

"I have to admit, when my Master told the architect that we would be needing prison cells, I had my doubts. But it seems his foresight was accurate yet again." Sevarian stated, before raising a hand to knock on one of the greenish metal bars that sealed Kathlin in her little corner.
"Thorium bars, impervious to magic, and as good as steel. And behind you are more than thirty feet of pure rock before you get to any kind of exit. Plenty of small details as well that allow for protective barriers and wards, if such precautions should be necessary. Though in your case, I do believe this might have been a little overkill."

While Sevarian talked, one of the Chevalier went on to unlock the door to Kathlin's cell. Upon opening it, he marched up to Kathlin and grabbed the girl by her arms, bringing them behind her back in a solid grip before leading her to the entry of her cell.

"The extra security won't be necessary, she is just a little girl." Sevarian commented to the Chevalier. The Chevalier eyed the Knight Commander for a moment, before eventually letting go off Kathlin's hands, leaving her free to move them about.
"Any escape attempt or attempt at resistance would probably not result in little more than a glorified suicide, wouldn't you agree?"

Sevarian asked, turning his attention to Kathlin before suddenly shaking his head.

"Oh, pardon my manners! I haven't even introduced myself. My name is Sevarian Hoster, Knight Commander of the White Hand. I have been looking forward to meeting you. You and I are going to have a wonderful time together!"

---

"How do you even keep that vile liquid from burning through you anyway?"

"Humfh, 'vile liquid'. Now lass, let me tell you!" Fran mentioned, reaching into his cloak to bring the canteen back into the Night Elf's vision.
"This here is a proper homebrew, based on the legendary recipe of Thanos Firebreath, a famed dwarven traveler who is said to have tasted every single brew on Azeroth, and even Outland. It is said that all his drinks put together would be enough to fill the lake of Loch Modan, and that he could figure out the recipe all the way down to the base ingredients from merely tasting a drop of any beverage!"

Fran proclaimed loudly and proudly, as if he was presenting the Night Elf with one of the greatest secrets of his people.

"Aye, it may be a bit strong. Mebbe lethal to a lightweight such as yerself. It also doubles as a makeshift firebomb if the situation calls for it. Quite destructive at that I might add." Fran commented as he balanced the canteen in his hand, before giving the plated belt surrounding his girth a solid pat.
"But this here is something that I have been building up fer years of experience! Just like battle makes a warrior's hide thick, so too does strong drinks toughen up his insides as well!"

When stories involved the beautiful young maiden, or princess, or whatever confined in a dungeon, they tended to skip ahead to the inevitable rescue, and not make the reader suffer through all the bits in between. Kathlin would never rate herself as ‘beautiful’, princess or otherwise, but she had not counted on the most notable facet of prisonerhood being the sheer tedium of the whole affair as inky blackness pressed in on her from all sides.

Given her vocation, Kathlin had initially had the idea that a few prayers might be expected, if not required from her in her current predicament. Unfortunately her attention was persistently diverted by other considerations, like exactly where that regular dripping from the roof was coming from. She was clearly somewhere below sea level if the damp was anything to go by, which made her wonder whether there was some sort of inlet somewhere and the dungeon was designed to fill up with water at high tide, similar to those death traps she had read about in some horror story once.

On the other hand, she reckoned she had been dumped in this cell at least one tidal cycle ago and there wouldn’t be much point in hauling her off to the castle in the first place if they were planning something like that. It seemed much more likely that there was some sort of back door to this place somewhere, where they could dump her lifeless body in the sea when they were done doing their bad-guy-things. Yes, that was more practical.

….

Shut up brain.

Kathlin reached up to slap herself upside the head just as the door at the far end of the corridor creaked open to emit dazzling light into the dungeon and Severian complete with goons entered. The girl swung her legs down to sit up on the thick shelf of rock that apparently passed as a combi couch/bed in dungeonland as the former launched into his monologue. Were it not for the obvious severity of the situation, the man secretly reminded her of a particularly villainous, particularly excitable estate agent.

"Oh, pardon my manners! I haven't even introduced myself. My name is Sevarian Hoster, Knight Commander of the White Hand. I have been looking forward to meeting you. You and I are going to have a wonderful time together!"

“Kathlin Lennox” Kathlin said cautiously. The man creeped her out no end, with the way he was eying her up and down as though she was a fresh, particularly delicious new cut of meat. It also occurred to her that this was in all likelihood precisely the reaction he wished to inspire in her, and so she stiffened her jaw slightly as she tilted her head to look up at him. “Apprentice Priestess of the Cathedral of Light. What do you want…exactly?”

"But this here is something that I have been building up fer years of experience! Just like battle makes a warrior's hide thick, so too does strong drinks toughen up his insides as well!"

There was an audible giggle at this, despite Fran and Rithrynn apparently being alone in this section of the cathedral. The noise made Fran flinch and quickly spin around, hurriedly concealing his flask inside his cloak again. “Er, hello! Someone there?”

…..

There was a guilty pause, before a form finally slunk around the edge of a column and became Bella, having been previously entirely concealed from the pair on the other side. The girl gave Rithrynn and Fran a perky smile, clasping her hands together in an ‘evesdropping? Who, me?’ sort of way. “Oh, hi! You guys are still here?!”

“….”

“…Ohh, don’t worry about that. I won’t tell her” Bella said confidentially upon seeing Fran’s extremely discomfited expression. Leaning comfortably against the wall, the girl looked curiously at each in turn, and then at the very firmly shut door. “So how come you guys are left standing outside? I thought you were all meeting Priestess Thea?”

Although the Night Elf's eyes were quick to jump to the newcomer, Rithrynn did not seem any surprised at Bella as she came out from her little hiding place.

Indeed, there had been at least a dozen of different eyes trained at her during her wait outside the room, mostly from curious little priestesses who presumably came from the same nosy herd as Liaena. It seemed as if the moment she had stepped into the cathedral, she had become the main center of curiosity for the more nosy members of the church, of which there were no shortage of!

"Yes, this certainly does seem familiar."

"Apparently, the people who are tasked with protecting their very lives during a soon-to-be very dangerous rescue operation; are not trusted enough to be allowed to participate in a simple discussion." Rithrynn remarked with a slightly sarcastic tone, clearly not happy about being left on the outside as she stood with her arms folded across her chest.
"One would have thought that when there is a paramilitary secret cultist organization going around town and kidnapping their members, they would at least be a little bit more open to their few allies."

Rithrynn, who's face had remained in a sour pout, soon changed expression when she suddenly noticed Bella's features; a spark of recognition appearing in the Night Elf's eyes as she suddenly gained a more curious expression herself.

"Hey, wait a minute... you aren't one of Liaena's peers, are you?" Rithrynn asked, suddenly stepping a bit closer to stare down at the considerably shorter creature.
"In that case, you should probably take care. Li has a tendency to get her friends maimed, kidnapped or worse, which is why we are here in the first place. She is an expert at sticking her nose into anything, especially if it's dangerous. She usually gets out alive; granted, with some considerable help from me; but I cannot really say the same for the people around her."

Inside Thea’s office, Liaena had been talking on and on for several minutes before she finally paused for breath. The older priestess looked down at her desk, on which was a sheet of paper with a crudely drawn ‘battle plan’ scrawled on it depicting the keep, the ringing wall and various arrows dotted about on the sketch.

“Well it’s not the most foolhardy thing I’ve ever heard out of you, apprentice”

“…Thanks?”

“That hardly ranks as a compliment, Rune.”

Thea gave the girl an extremely severe look, to which Liaena hastily rearranged her features into appearing as amenable and contrite as possible as the woman went back to studying the rough map. “….and I couldn’t help but notice you have placed yourself directly into the line of fire.”

“Yes. If the Night Elves are going to get in without fighting a whole battalion, we need a distraction” Liaena said carefully. Eying Thea carefully to try and detect any tells for her mood, she tried for an ingratiating smile“…I’m, uh, rather good at distractions”

“Yes, yes I suppose you are” Thea said dourly to the parchment, before giving the girl a sharp look. “And if you are caught in this ‘distraction’?”

“I won’t be” Liaena said confidently. Thea shot her a look that clearly stated she felt no such assurances, before sighing and pointing a finger at the door to the room. “…Invite your companions back in here, Rune. There is no reason they should sit out from this…and your Night Elf friend should have some input into this so-called plan of yours, as you appear to have signed her for a crucial role in it”

“Hmph.”

Everything that had happened since they had arrived at the Cathedral seemed to have occurred at a tortuously slow pace, but Liaena manfully resisted the urge to snap at the other woman as she slipped off her chair and hurried towards the door, pulling it open.

“Guys, come back in…”

“Oh, hai Li”

“Someone’s been kidnapped?”

“……”

Liaena froze as she looked over at Bella who had turned slowly to face her, eyes wide open with shock. “Is that true, Li!?”

“…….”

Taking half a glance up at down the corridor to spot other apprentices that were slowly drifting closer to find out what was going on, that was all Liaena needed to grab Bella by the front of her robes and haul her into Thea’s office. Rithrynn and Fran entered behind her at a much more sedate pace, the latter closing the door behind them once all had entered.

“Could you just – not – say anything – stupid!? Just for once? Would that be so hard!?” Liaena seethed at Rithrynn furiously. Having let go of Bella’s robes, that girl raised her hands defensively as she backed away from the pair, before giving Thea an imploring look. “I didn’t do anything, priestess. I just asked –“

“Sit down, Apprentice Silva, Apprentice Rune. Apprentice Rune, I suggest you calm yourself” Thea’s voice cracked like a calm, very monotonous whip. Liaena sunk back into the only chair available in the room, still very clearly fuming, while Bella perched nervously on the edge of the bed. Thea gave the latter another one of her exceptionally severe looks.

“Apprentice Silva. There are times that allowing information to become public knowledge would be highly counterproductive to this church, detrimental to others welfare -- and would displease me greatly. Do you understand?”

“…Yeeess priestess. Sorry priestess. So….uh…” Bella said tentatively. “Has someone been kidnapped then?”

“…..”

Thea sighed, gazing into the empty air in front of her desk in a manner that clearly bemoaned her lot in life as she chewed over that question. “Apprentice Lennox”

“Kathlin!?” Bella emitted in shock, before a slight frown creased her forehead dubiously. “…Light, who’d ever want to kidnap her?”

“By all accounts, she had the exceptionally poor judgement to expose a city wide conspiracy” Thea said dryly as she pulled Liaena’s poorly drawn battle map towards her again, glanced at it and placed it to one side as she looked up at Rithrynn. “Apprentice Rune was speaking to me about her plans to infiltrate this fort of yours. I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts on the matter”

"Your unconditional cooperation, Lennox."

Sevarian smiled, before motioning for Kathlin to follow him as he began to head towards the exit of the room. The three men behind her had positioned themselves in a triangle around her, and walked with her as they followed the Knight Commander out into the corridors.

The corridors were as dark as the cells she had been, the only source of light being a torch carried by one of the chevaliers accompanying them. The hungry flames cast a flickering light out across the darkened corridors, showing the bare rock walls that surrounded them, the floor being the only part of the corridor that had actualy been covered by proper stone slabs in contrast to the bare and jagged reef rock walls.

"I am afraid that the things you have seen, the things that you have heard, have rendered your personal freedom a problem." Sevarian explained as they walked down through the corridors, only being able to see a few feet ahead of them, and surrounded by an amorphic darkness that seemed to creep slowly in on them. It was completely silent in the empty hallways that they walked through, almost as if it had been a tomb or a resting place.
The way they were able to navigate their way through the seemingly darkened maze of narrow corridors that stretched and turned in every direction seemed to suggest that Sevarian must have been quite familiar with them from before.

There were numerous doors along the way, the letters on the sighs next to them becoming illuminated by the torch as they passed. Some read 'Storage B', 'Ammunition Storage: Fourth Level', but a lot of the doors they passed had no labels either, seemingly in conflict with the orderly numeration of the other doors.

Eventually however, they reached a series of corridors that were lit; the sconces burning ever so quietly on the wall. But the light they cast was not that of familiar red flame, but a haunting, blue and mysterious flame that burned in almost complete silence, casting a strange, azure light across the corridor.

"You will go no further." Sounded Sevarian's voice all of a sudden, as he motioned towards the two chevaliers who had been following them. They saluted, before spreading out to either wall to take up guard positions while Sevarian walked through the door in front of them, followed closely by Kathlin and the battlemage behind her. The room they entered was a larger, circle shaped stone room, with an oval roof, with stone pillars running up across the bare rock walls on the side. The room was mostly free of furniture, aside from some dark purple and mythical runes that adorned the surface of the floor at the center of the room.

Upon entering the room, four other men appeared from the surrounding walls, as if they had been waiting for them. They all wore longer, white robes and hoods, and their attention was focused on Sevarian without question.

"Fortunately for you, little girl, I will not require your life." Sevarian explained, turning to look towards Kathlin.

" ... only your fragile mind."

"I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts on the matter”

"Liaena made a plan?" Rithrynn immediately asked in return, staring back at Thea and Liaena with a look of confusion, before her eyes finally fell on the crude drawing on Thea's desk that was supposed to represent something that might be identified as a 'battle plan' drawn by an ogre. The Night Elf walked through the room to stop at the desk, staring down at the parchment while awkwardly moving a hand up to scratch the back of her hood.

"Well, it's... " Rithrynn started, holding the parchment up while glancing down at Liaena, the latter currently looking up at her an intense, dark stare.
" ... it's not the worst, but I do believe that my mistress, Serphia, already has a plan of her own. Scaling the cliff walls is a part of it, but I think she'd rather want to see the castle itself with her own eyes before deciding on which direction to approach."

Rithrynn muttered as she studied the map, turning it slightly sideways as she attempted to interpretate the strange hieroglyphs on the corner of the map that was Liaena's handwriting, referring to some 'distraction' of some kind, the next readable word saying 'BOOM', followed by the drawing of multiple skulls around the text.

"But I am a little curious about this 'distraction', which really hasn't been covered in any great detail here... " Rithrynn said, before placing the battle plan back down on Thea's desk and returning to look at Liaena, with her eyes narrowing to give her a critical look!

"What are you planning on blowing up?"

The Night Elf asked, now looking more suspicious towards the little girl. Rearing her rump, Rithrynn would slump it down as she sat on Thea's desk with arms folded across her chest, ignoring the protests from Thea behind her, as well as the creaking noise from the desk under her butt while she stared at the black haired human.

"Any explosion at the harbor is going to stir up a hornet nest that we don't want to deal with. If there is going to be an explosion, it has to either be far away from the harbor, as to draw attention away from it, or close to the end of the operation, so that we can disappear before any crowd gather."

"What are ye saying', explosions?" Fran suddenly exclaimed, looking surprised as he stared at the accusing Night Elf.
"Nobody said anythin' about explosions!"

The dwarf reacted, his eyes jumping between Rithrynn and Liaena as a confused expression donned his face.
He had heard no mention of explosions until the Night Elf had mentioned it, and so it had taken the dwarf with surprise as he stepped closer.

"Now, just to clarify; I know that no self respecting dwarf would ever renounce his beard given love for beer and explosives, but I gotta agree with miss Long Ears here." Fran stated as he motioned towards Rithrynn with his elbow, the dwarf shifting his gaze over to Liaena.

"If ye want a distraction, the Red Vanguard can make one for ye. That is, unless ye want multiple distractions."

Fran hinted rather suggestively with his heavy brow at the end of his sentence. Although he did share some of Rithrynn's concerns, he would not say no to a big explosion, provided that something that he liked wasn't the target of said explosion. The dwarf almost felt guilty to think that he could possibly be advocating against wanton use and display of big booms, and a part of his dwarven spirit urged him to to do something about it.

"I know some old houses and buildings that have been abandoned and are long due demolition anyway, something about 'protecting cultural heritage' or some wish-wash like that."

“That doesn’t sound better” Kathlin mumbled as she eyed the awaiting runes, the pentacle and the cultists. It all came off as horribly Bad News to her, and left her with the sinking feeling that as tedious as the cell had been, she would far rather be back there with the darkness and dripping, than right here.

She had to stall, that thought was uppermost in her mind. Liaena would come for her, hopefully with backup, and she had to hang on till then. Which meant in this case, delaying whatever horrible fate the ‘Knight Commander’ not-so-subtly had planned for her in the immediate future.

Still forced to walk forward due to the presence of the mage behind her, Kathlin dragged her feet to move as slowly as she dared. The girl sneaked another glance at the runes before looking over at Sevarian dubiously. “…This can’t be just about what happened at the mansion, surely? Okay, so I’m a witness. But there are easier ways to deal with witnesses than you know. All of this.”

The girl waved vaguely at the at the setup, taking the opportunity to have another good peer at the runes as she did so. “…I think your Captain made a point of that, in fact.”

If she looked at the runes on the floor in just the right way, Kathlin could see the dark spells twisted around them, glistening and knotted together in a way that made her feel physically ill. Holding back her nausea, she studied them for any conceivable pattern. The entire ensemble made no sense to her whatsoever, but she thought she could vaguely pick out some master spells in the setup, based on those that were linked to the most other threads and those which made her feel the most ill to look at. “This probably counts as ‘an attempt at resistance’. Oh well.”

A stirring from the mage right behind her, as his suspicious glare bored a hole in the back of her neck. “Sir—“

“Oh!”

Stumbling on the paved floor, Kathlin threw out her hands as she fell to grab and twist at the spell she had zeroed in on, and felt it break as she hit the ground. Startled cries of mingled outrage and pain were emitted from the cultists around her as she went crazy on the remaining enchantments on the runes, snapping and battering at any crucial links she could see before the first spell hit her from behind.