My Little Warcraft - New Friends

by Shin Guyviroth

Chapter 19 - Shadows In The Light

The night began to quickly dawn upon the plains of Equestria. The sun had set fully into the horizon, leaving the full moon and the glistening stars to take its place within their own domain. Thin strands of darkened clouds veiled the sky, giving a sense of life to what would otherwise be an empty cascade of violet. A gentle breeze rolled through the air, brushing up against the tops of the trees and the leaves upon their branches. The bushes rustled quietly as the woodland fauna scurried to and from, retreating back to their nests, retiring for the night. Everything was quiet, calm, and peaceful.

The bright glow from the campfire illuminated a small clearing amongst a group of tall trees, colouring the faces of the group in a hint of orange and yellow. The warmth bathed each of them equally, lovingly, shielding them from the cold winds. Each of them sat around in a circle upon fallen logs as they gave their undivided attention to the blood elf perched upon a trunk.

"… Then, as we darted down the path, Arthas called upon a huge, thick wall of ice to block our path," Gai'vahros was continuing one of his stories to which the rest of the group was undoubtedly drawn to. As he spoke, he began acting out some of the story with his hands, raising them up as he described the wall of ice growing from the ground. "all of us thought that we were definite goners, but Lady Sylvanas began to chip away at it. The rest of us turned to face the Lich King, arms at the ready, as he called upon his hordes of undead to attack us. We all knew, however, that he was merely toying with us."

"Oh wow, Gai," Sweetie Belle was considerably impressed as she began to picture the action playing out in her mind. "that's musta been totally scary!" even though she had stopped Gai'vahros in mid-story--and the fact that he was sitting before them today-- she couldn't began to imagine how he and everyone else could survive the trap. Even so, the one thing she found amazing was that she was sitting with, what she believed, an almighty hero.

"You could say that," replied Gai'vahros with a light chuckle, "it was daunting that the Lich King crept ever closer to us, with death's door appearing in sight with each step he took. We all battled on as the Scourge leapt at us wave after wave, their numbers not seeming to dwindle despite the many who fell to our might and magic. But, when all hoped seemed lost, Lady Sylvanas called out to us; "the wall is down! Quickly, heroes, make your way to the other side". Before the undead could overwhelm us we retreated down the tunnel, noticing an opening at the far end. That was our goal."

"Well that was mighty lucky of y'all," Applejack spoke as she gave a soft sigh of relief. Like Sweetie Belle, she could scarcely believe that Gai'vahros could come out of this encounter in one piece despite him telling it, alive and well. "what with yer "Sylvanas" bein' able to take down that wall. So, you managed to get to the other side after that?"

"Hah, no," exclaimed Gai'vahros as he looked to Applejack, "like I said, the Lich King was merely toying with us. I think all of us had in mind that he wasn't about to let up on us so easily. The six of us ran alongside Lady Sylvanas, and all of us probably expected the same thing; another huge wall of ice, taller than the first, rose from the glacier underfoot to impede our escape. Again Lady Sylvanas instructed us to hold off any undead that came as she began to strike down the barrier."

"You did it the first time, right?" asked Rainbow Dash with a smirk on her face, "The second time woulda been a piece of cake for ya!"

"It wasn't so simple, my Lady Rainbow Dash," Gai'vahros shook his head before looking up to the pegasus. "remember that the wall was much larger than the last. It was strenuous for Lady Sylvanas to take down the first one, so fatigue began to set in. Not only that but more undead began to rush towards us. Arthas was beginning to show more aggression; tens of undead swarmed us in overwhelming numbers of waves. It was only by the grace of the Light that Christoph was able to combat and keep the pressure, with Stavros providing much needed support, that we were able to take control of the fight. In the end, me and Emilia were able to whittle down any and all enemies who opposed us as Lady Sylvanas tore down the second barrier."

"Uh, who're Christoph and Emilia?" Apple Bloom asked, "You've not mentioned them 'til now."

"Oh, yeah," replied the blood elf, a bit embarrassed that he had not introduced the two of them properly prior to the story. "I guess I'd better do that so you're not confused. Christoph is a paladin of the Alliance. One of the best that they have to offer, in my opinion." Gai'vahros sounded a bit hesitant as he spoke about his comrade, pausing before mentioning him being a paladin, and again at mentioning his opinion. "He seemed to have a personal stake in the war against the Lich King that to this day I do not know of. Emilia is a close friend of mine-- another blood elf who survived the Scourge invasion. We met during the Nexus War to which she was a target of, being a mage as well as an ambassador of the Kirin Tor."

"And what about Christoph? How did you get to meet him?"

Gai'vahros paused for a moment. For a reason kept to himself, he did not like talking about this particular human, but he knew that, if he didn't, the others would catch on. He had to swallow his pride on this one but also had to accept the consequence that may arise from discussing this topic. "We did not meet under good circumstances, I must make clear first. We first met in Lordaeron while I was delivering a message to Lady Sylvanas. Ironic, really; Lordaeron was where he was born before Arthas destroyed the kingdom and, after that, the Forsaken had claimed it their home. He knew what us blood knights were; the embodiment of the mockery of paladins."

"What do you mean, Gai'vahros," asked Twilight, who was concerned as to why her friend would be called a mockery of another class, "why would he think you're insulting paladins?"

"I was afraid it would come to this." Gai'vahros sighed, placing a hand on his forehead as he looked down to the ground. More scared of divulging more of his dark past, he was afraid of his new friends changing their opinion of him. For a moment he sat in a hunched position. The rest of the group stared at him, worried for him but, despite knowing that he was to speak of bad times, they awaited the rest of his tale. "You see, where the paladins gain their power by worshipping the Holy Light, blood knights gain their power by siphoning the energies of the Sunwell. However, before the Sunwell, we siphoned the energies from something else. Even to this day I still carry the burden of guilt of that sin."

Twilight was too scared to ask as she stared into the horrified eyes of the blood elf. Her heart kept pounding heavily against her chest, feeling as though it was trying to burst out. Her throat began to open and close uncontrollably as she tried hard for her words to come out. Her mind, however, couldn't even began to piece the words that she was trying to let out together. Slowly she began to inhale a lungful of air, which managed to do her some good as it helped clear her mind. Finally she could open her mouth without slurring a phrase, asking the one thing she didn't want the answer to. "What… what was it?"

"A living being." uttered the visibly stricken Gai'vahros. His head turned to Twilight, seeing only the shrunken pupils of her eyes and the confused yet mortified expressions of those around her. He knew that they understood what he was saying. "Us blood elves, in our desperate struggle to sate our addiction to magic, resorted to living off demonic "fel" magic. However, our "prince", Kael'thas Sunstrider, captured a naaru-- a being of pure light energy-- and sent it back to Silvermoon to help us with our addiction without having to resort to demonic energies. Most blood knights chose to do so in necessity as an alternative to fel magic. Me and Lady Liadrin, however, did so out of spite."

"What do you mean "out of spite"," Rarity asked. Despite being horrified by what Gai'vahros and his people had done she was still willing to hear the whole thing, hoping to clear up anything she needed to know along the way. "you mean you had a personal grudge against this "naaru"?"

"No," Gai'vahros replied bluntly, "we both had a grudge against the Light. While I was trained as a paladin by my father, Lady Liadrin had always been a priest of the Holy Light. After the Scourge Invasion me, Lady Liadrin, and every surviving high elf, believed that the Light had abandoned us. In our most dearest time we needed the Light more than ever, it had failed us." the blood elf's voice was soft, quiet, and brooding. "Lady Liadrin was the first to be initiated as a blood knight while I followed in her footsteps soon after. I remember her initiation clearly; her cries of anger echoed through the halls, cries of how the light had forsaken her, her family, and her people, as she forcibly drew the naaru's life force into herself. I remember seeing her crumble down to her knees, crying as her emotions overwhelmed her. I remember doing the same when I became initiated."

Silence sank into the atmosphere as Gai'vahros stopped. For some time, no one said anything or even dared to so much as cough. The tension was thick, thick enough the smother the mouths and minds of all those present, preventing them from muttering or even thinking of a response. Applejack and Apple Bloom looked to one another as though they were expecting to hear something reassuring, but nothing was spoken. Rarity and Sweetie Belle wanted to try and console and comfort the blood elf but dared not risk provoking an outburst of emotion from him. Fluttershy was visibly upset; a small well of tears filled her eyes. Even pinkie Pie had a sense of decorum, not bursting out into any jokes or antics. Rainbow Dash became scared both of and for Gai'vahros, not ever seeing him so distraught before. Scootaloo kept close to her idol, trying to tuck herself under Rainbow Dash' wing alongside Spike, who had the same idea. Twilight knew she wasn't going to like the reply but even she didn't foresee this no matter how much she thought about it.

"But there's a happy end to this, right?" Twilight thought for a moment before she spoke out again. She understood that, after the ordeal of the naaru, Gai'vahros helped reclaim the Sunwell. "You said before how you were able to take back the Sunwell."

"Yeah, that's right." Gai'vahros spoke a bit more cheerfully. His look of regret quickly changed into a small smile. "Well, after Kael'thas had betrayed us to give his allegiance to the Legion the blood knights of Silvermoon pledged our allegiance to the Shattered Sun Offensive-- a faction of warriors and adventurers alike whose goal was to defeat the Legion's forces that had attacked Shattrath City, as well as the Isle of Quel'Danas through the Sunwell Plateau. Me and Lady Liadrin were the first to pledge our arms to fight beside Shattrath City. It was also then that we understood that M'uru-- the naaru who we had siphoned our energies from-- knew of his role in the whole ordeal as prophesied by the draenei Velen. Despite our victory over the Legion and the cleansing of the Sunwell, to which we blood knights now gain our powers from, we cannot help but feel as though our sin cannot be forgotten-- cannot be forgiven."

Gai'vahros felt something soft press against his back, and then a second, finally a third. Twilight, Rarity and Rainbow Dash each placed a foreleg upon the shoulder blades of the blood elf, comforting him with their presence. Gai'vahros' head looked up to meet with Twilight's before turning his head to look to Rarity, and then to Rainbow Dash. All three of them had a smile on their face, something that the rather confused blood elf would not have thought there would be.

"I admit that what you did was wrong, Gai'vahros," conceded Twilight as she looked into the eyes of the still visibly distressed elf, "but one mistake doesn't immediately make you a bad person forever."

"Exactly, dear," continued Rarity, "you understood that what you did was wrong, and you've done so much for everyone-- including us-- to show that you're a great person at heart."

"Sure thing, Gai," spoke Rainbow Dash, "and besides; if you weren't a good person, you wouldn't have awesome friends like us, right?"

"I…yeah, I guess so." Gai'vahros didn't know what to say. for years he had bared the burden in his chest and carried the guilt around his neck like a two-ton medallion. He had never told of anyone before now of his painful past, but it felt good for him to get it out. It was even better for him that these ponies-- his friends-- were there to support and encourage him. A bright smile sprawled across his face as he looked back to those who were there for him. "Thanks so much, ladies. It means a lot to me to hear you say such things."

The atmosphere was so much for Fluttershy that she spontaneously burst into flight, making her way to Gai'vahros before embracing him in a big cuddle. Even though she knew he wasn't an animal her natural instinct made her still treat him like one. "I'm so sorry you had to have such a hard life, Gai'vahros," Fluttershy sobbed as tears began to roll down her cheeks. At this point, Gai'vahros wasn't sure if he should feel bad about himself or if he should try to comfort Fluttershy. "but we'll always be here for you! If that's okay with you…?"

"It's always okay with me, my Lady Fluttershy," Gai'vahros replied, wrapping an arm around the pegasus and holding her close to his side. "and I will always be here for you guys."

"But what about you gettin' back to yer own home, Gai," Applejack questioned, "or do ya plan on stayin' here with us?"

Gai'vahros looked back to the pony, who had a small smile on her face. As soon as she mentioned if he was staying in Equestria, Gai'vahros looked to see everyone's faces; they all had a look of expectation as though they all wanted him to say "yes". The only problem was that Gai'vahros still didn't feel as though he fit in-- he was the only elf in this world. In his mind he began to think about long-term commitments; could he fit in a world ruled by ponies? What would he do for companionship? What about the rest of his friends back on Azeroth? What about his commitment to his people? He only had one answer for Applejack.

"… I'm not so sure," he responded to the ever-waiting Applejack. He expected a collective groan in disappointment but all he noticed was a handful of smiles from the group. "I still have business back home, what with the war and everything."

"That's fine," Applejack wasn't disappointed with his words as he had thought she'd be. "you've still got yer friends an' people to protect. They need ya a lot more than we do."

"I guess you're right in that respect," Gai'vahros admitted. His embrace around Fluttershy loosened as he moved his hand from around her shoulder to the top of her head, softly stroking her mane. "but that shouldn't be a measure of where I should go. I like it here and, given different circumstances, I would have told you "yes, I plan on staying here". The problem is that I'm the only elf in this world. What will I do for companionship?"

"Oh, you mean like a girlfriend?" the otherwise extremely quiet Pinkie Pie spoke up from out of nowhere. With the sullen mood over, she thought it best to try and brighten up the situation with her usual light-hearted antics. "Well I think it'd be a neat idea to get you to go out on the town and meet some cute mares! C'mon, you'll have fun!"

"I don't mean to be offensive, Lady Pinkie Pie, but horses and ponies aren't to my taste."

"Oh… oh! You're more of a deer person? That's okay, too! We could always go to Appleloosa and introduce you to a nice deer there!"

"No, no, no. I mean I'm only attracted to females from my own world-- other elves."

"Oh. Why? What's wrong with dating a pony?"

"Nothing! It's just-- can we change the subject, please?"

"Sure! You ever tried a cherrychanga?"

"Uh… a what?"

"A cherrychanga! it's mashed up cherries in a tortilla that's deep fried. Oh, wait, no, that's a chimicherrychanga. Isn't that the most funny word you've ever heard? Like "kumquat"!"

"I think my brain's going to explode…"

"Anyway, guys," by the grace of the Light, Gai'vahros thought, Twilight spoke up before Pinkie Pie could say anything more. "I think it's time we got some sleep. We've got a big day ahead of us tomorrow."

"Truer words have never been spoken," agreed Applejack, stretching her forelegs to the side as she gave a big yawn. "me an' Apple Bloom are gonna hit the hay. I'll see you girls in the mornin'." the two sisters hopped off the log, making their way and tucking themselves into their sleeping bags.

"I think we will, too," Rarity spoke, having the same idea as Applejack. Her and Sweetie Belle made their way to a huge castle-like tent that sat upon the far side of the clearing. "Have a good night, every-pony."

In time, everyone had made nestled into their sleeping accommodations with the exception of Twilight, who sat beside Gai'vahros. "You not tired yet, Gai'vahros?" she asked, turning her head to the visibly awake blood elf. His eyes were still wide open with no sign of fatigue setting.

"Nah. Can't sleep when I have things on my mind." Gai'vahros replied, still looking into the blazing campfire that he had made earlier in the evening. "You know, if things were different I could have taken up Lady Applejack's offer in staying here."

"Yeah, you said that earlier," Twilight responded as she believed Gai'vahros to be repeating himself without him knowing it, "but you said you've got people back home to protect and… well, more chance of love."

"That wasn't entirely true," revealed Gai'vahros, "the reason I can't stay here is because your world is just too… peaceful. All I've known is fighting-- It's all I'm really good at. It's also the only thing that makes me feel alive, feel like life is worth living. I don't expect you to understand, my Lady Twilight, for you have not experienced continuous warring, but for me it's like second nature."

"So you enjoy fighting? You enjoy the destruction that comes with it?"

"… That's correct," Gai'vahros hesitated for a moment but he felt as though he could let out everything about his personal life while around Twilight. In essence she became his closest--and only-- confidant. "but that does not make me an indiscriminate killer. I only oppose those who would threaten my people and for what I believe in."

"And what do you believe in?"

"That I should fight for those who cannot fight for themselves, that I should fight against tyranny and evil wherever it rears its head. It's not uncommon for those like me to keep fighting and fighting until our dying days-- that's still several hundred years for me."

Twilight was silent for a moment. She was immediately impressed with elven longevity in terms of life expectancy but it was harshly offset by her opinion of the blood elf, learning that he enjoys fighting. "Would you still long for fighting even if fighting stopped entirely in your world?"

"That wouldn't happen in my lifetime nor the lifetime of my great-great-grandchildren," Gai'vahros spoke in a sarcastic tone, turning to Twilight with a smirk on his face. "but to honour your question with an answer; maybe, maybe not. I guess that, should there be no more fighting, I'd have no more reason to defend my people since there would be nothing to defend them from. But on the flipside I wouldn't know if I would be bored out of my mind or just grow sick of doing nothing."

"I guess it's kind of like ponies who do extreme sports-- cliff-diving, aerobatics, et cetera-- feeling the adrenaline rush and the excitement of what they do, and then longing for it when they stop. Except your line of work is more dangerous and barbaric."

"Haha, you could put it in that respect and not be wrong about it, I'll admit. But that's why I never said this earlier with everyone here; I didn't want them to think lowly of me, especially after everything I've said this evening. You're a very wise pony, my Lady Twilight, and an even greater friend. I'm glad you understand my feelings on the matter."

"I understand them, Gai'vahros," Twilight spoke softly as she hopped off the log and onto all fours, "but that doesn't mean I agree with them."

"I don't ever expect you to, and I hope you never do. Your world is better off without barbarian-brained fools like me." Gai'vahros chuckled a little as he gave a half-smile to the pony, who returned the sentiment.

"You're a good barbarian-brained fool, so that's okay in my book." Twilight responded in humour before making her way to her sleeping bag. "Goodnight, Gai'vahros. Don't stay up too late."

"I'll try not to. Goodnight, my Lady Twilight."

Comments

[Silver Moon]

A WoW/MLP crossover?!?! Sounds cool! *reads description*
Wait, Blood Elf centered?

myfacewhen.net/uploads/1648-noface.jpg

Because Night Elves are more than 20% cooler.
th01.deviantart.net/fs70/PRE/i/2011/323/7/a/radical_rainbow_dash_by_ambits-d4goxjz.png

[Shin Guyviroth]

2391800 Ah, blood elf was picked because;

1) my main is also a blood elf paladin,
2) A Horde race was picked to introduce the fact that most of the Horde hate Hellscream,
3) a pretty race needed picking to not make things seem too out of place and to also help ease the character into Equestrian society

But don't worry, there will be a Night Elf in the next book ^^

[Zepher2]

ooooooooooooh dem feels great chapter

[Shin Guyviroth]

2391912 Why can't I hold all these feels?

I'm glad you like it, because I thought it was one of my worse chapters written o.o

[Good_name_here]

Apple Dash became scared both of and for Gai'vahros,

Somebody's got shipping on the mind

Solid chapter, and I look forward to reading more.

[Shin Guyviroth]

2401833 Good, because I have the next chapter nearly sorted

And naw, there's no shipping here; think Gai's made it clear that he ain't clopping anything this isn't another elf.

[Good_name_here]

2402168
>Apple Dash became scared both of and for Gai'vahros,
>Apple Dash
You may have misinterpreted my comment a bit I was just pointing out a somewhat humorous typo *shrug*

And besides, humanoid x pony shipping is off-putting imo.

[Shin Guyviroth]

2402440 Ohhhh! Oh, I only just realised the typo. Better go fix that then

[Bazing]

Kirin Tor

Hate those guys...

[flash130]

2391800 Plus Blood Elves are gay

[flash130]

2391870 4) They're gay