Post by Morec0
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Gilnean Moon (Part 5). ))
By the time Krista reached Duskhaven she had literally passed out from exhaustion, fortunately an old… friend of hers was in the town at the time, and she had been able to tell him where she needed to reach before passing out entirely. Unfortunately that “friend” of hers was Lord Alexander Bowie, a noble of southern Gilneas and a former boyfriend of hers. The two had been in a relationship for several months a few years ago, but closer towards its end Krista had rapidly decided that there was simply nothing she liked about him. At all.
She had broken off their relationship just before the Winter’s Veil season, but Krista was fairly sure that Alexander had never gotten over it. Even at Crowley’s trial, as she had been leaving, he had approached her and tried to win her back with a few pathetic poem that, if it was even original at all, he had paid someone to write for him. To that latest approach she had replied: “No. Now leave me alone. Forever.” Even back then she knew it would not be the last she heard of it, however, and as she awoke in the carriage he had called to take both of them to the Greymane Manor she dreaded whatever attempt he would make this time.
“Did you have a lovely nap, my-,” Alexander started to say, but Krista sharply cut him off.
“Finish that sentence and I’ll be more than willing to rot in the penitentiary with Crowley’s men,” she replied, relived that the carriage they were riding in came to a stop shortly after that. The other noble had no doubt been watching her sleep like that vampire from the Nightfall series – Light how she hated those books. She surpressed a surpassed a shudder as she quickly opened the door of the carriage and climbed out, heading for the door to the manor.
To her dismay, she heard Alexander following. “Krista, please, what say you to a nice dinner? I happen to know that the food at the
Cibatus De’Tirus is exceptionally good this week.” Krista continued to walk away, leading to Alexander hurrying up to her and grabbing her shoulder to stop her. The Lady Jeret responded by turning around and backhanding Lord Bowie across the face.
“I haven’t time for this, Alex,” she said sharply, Alexander’s face reddening deeply as she called him by the nickname. Even when they had been together he had refused to let her, or anyone, ever call him Alex. For whatever reason it was one of his pet peeves and Krista had learned to exploit it tremendously. “Now; leave. Me. Alone.” She turned away and continued to all but run towards the door of the Greymane Manor. Lord Bowie stood in silence, then turned and returned to the carriage, giving the driver instructions to take him back to Duskhaven before closing the door.
Krista was already knocking her fist against the door as the carriage rolled away, and she paid it no notice because of that. After a few minutes a butler opened the door for her, raising an eyebrow as he saw her. “Can I… help you?” he asked, not sure what to make of her based on her appearance.
Krista also knew she was a mess. Between having missed out on a full night sleep from praying at the Cathedral in the city, having to ride all the way from her manor to Duskhaven, having fallen into the mud once she had reached it, and now just having woken up she was obviously a complete disaster. “I am Lady Krista Jeret,” she said, “Noble of Central Gilneas and sister to Ivan and Blaine Jeret. I-.”
“Yes, I’m sure you are, young lady,” the butler replied sarcasticly. “Simply stay out there, would you? I send for someone fetch a carriage to take you back to the poorhouse you es-.” He was cut off as Krista muttered an arcane spell that slammed the door on the butler’s finger’s before opening it up again. The man had been sent to his knees from the pain, his fingers at odd angles and clearly broken.
Krista stared down at him as he looked back up at her. “I do not have any more time to waste.”
Genn Greymane downed the potion Krennan had given him, shuddering as he felt it hit his stomach and from there be absorbed directly into his bloodstream. The alchemist had not been sure if it would work, but Genn had been out of all options that did not involve him being executed. So far the potions seemed to be working, but Genn kept a very close eye on himself for any of the slightest signs that the worgen transformation was taking hold.
“Milord,” a butler said outside the door of Genn’s personal study, “you have a visitor.”
Genn quickly hid the flask he had drank the potion out of and then walked over towards the door, opening it. Krista, who clearly was having a bad day, bowed. “Milord, I must speak with you immediately about our nation’s security.”
Genn frowned. By the tone in her voice he could tell that she knew about the worgen. “Thank you Jarvis. That will be all.” The butler bowed and then walked away, the Gilnean king then noticing that he was holding his right hand in pain. “I trust you had nothing to do with that?” he said to Krista.
“It is a lesser matter, my king,” Krista said. “May I enter?” Genn nodded and stepped out of the way; Krista walked in and took a seat on a chair in the corner of the room. “My king, I am aware that my brother, Ivan, was sent to deal with the threat of…,” she trailed off, not sure how to tell her king about what she had seen without sounding like a madman.
“They’re called worgen,” Genn finished for her, his voice solemn.
Krista’s mouth dropped open. She was speechless for some time, but then managed to ask a question; “you… know? You knew?”
“Since its beginning, yes,” King Greymane admitted with a nod. “I had hoped to contain it without letting the public in order to prevent mass hysteria, and when that failed I ordered for a section of the military to destroy it.”
“My king,” Krista said, more shocked than angry, “I fear that the soldiers you sent have failed. My brother was among them, and he fled the battle to warn me about the… worgen threat before he...,” she trailed off again, now knowing the king could understand what had happened if she told him but not still able to wrap her own head around it.
“Before he became one of them,” Genn closed his eyes and bowed his head, his face as white as a sheet. “Lady Jeret, I am so sorry.” He was silent. “And if you are speaking the truth – forgive me, since you are speaking the truth – it must be true that they failed.” Genn stood, knowing that there was only course of action he could now take. “I must go see to it that Gilneas City is evacuated before the beasts can reach it. Lady Jeret, I ask that you stay here for your own protection, Mia will be glad to loan you some new clothes.”
“My king, if I may go with you I could be of some assistance.”
Genn just shook his head. “No, too many live are at risk as it is. Please stay here.”
“My king, I beg you,” Krista said, standing. “I care just as much for the Gilnean people as you do. You will need my help; if these things have the numbers to slaughter an entire battalion of Gilnean soldiers they may have spellcasters amongst their ranks as well. I can help you counter that. And if it does not exist than I will be an advantage we have over them.”
Genn saw the determination in her face and sighed. If he had learned one thing from being married to Mia all of these years it was this; when a woman sets her mind to something there is no way a man can deter her. “Very well,” he said. Krista curtsied appreciatively.
Twenty minutes later the two set out on horseback for the barracks near Duskhaven.
The brown-furred worgen Ivan had became climbed along the face of the mountains above Aderic’s Repose. It would have been both easier and quicker to simply walk through or around the graveyard, but something about it set his fur on end. It was not just a plot of land with corpses buried in the ground; there was something truly supernatural about it, something that the worgen would prefer to avoid.
After putting a good amount of distance between itself and the cemetery, the worgen scaled down the mountain face and onto the ground. It sniffed the air, smelling the scent of more of its own kind near, and then took off towards the north. Quickly the sight of a Gilnean town came into view, but the worgen continued towards it undeterred. Even from here the beast could see that the human population had been slaughtered and that the whole area had been taken over by the worgen.
He was only twelve yards away from it when he saw a flash of white fur off to his left as something charged towards him. Before he had a chance to look over at it a large white worgen tackled the brown one, knocking him off of his feet and kicked him away from the worgen-owned Keel Harbor. Snarling, the white worgen paced the area in front of the brown one, keeping him from approaching.
The brown worgen jumped back to his feet, baring his freshly blood-stained fangs at the other. After a second glance however, he noticed something about the white worgen; it looked very similar to him. He took a deep breath, smelling the air around the other worgen before nodding and barking at him.
The white worgen, a beast that had once been Blaine Jeret, blinked in surprise, and then also nodded at the worgen that had once been Ivan, stepping aside. The brown furred worgen headed for keel harbor, the white one following just a few paces behind.