Slaves of Fate [1]

Chapter 1

     Fendassa hurried down the cobblestone street after having left her brother and his friends at the draenei's abode in Boralus. The frigid rain easily soaked through the thin fabric of her tattered dress, further accentuating the night elf's malnourished form but she did not notice; she just had to flee. It did not matter where she ended up, as long as she got far away from *him*. 

     Fendassa, her younger brother Veldrinas, and their elder brother Vanathil had been raised in an influential Quel'dorei family. As heirs, they were expected to keep a tight rein on their outward emotions at all times in order to not only represent the family well, but also as training for when they would certainly be involved in Highborne politics later in life. But their father was an elf of very high standards and not easily pleased. He would constantly admonish all three children when they failed to perform to his high expectations, thus they would always seek to win his approval but rarely receive it. 

     While Veldrinas and Vanathil seemed to learn how to suppress their emotions with relative ease, Fendassa, due to her brash and outspoken nature, did not. 

     She struggled constantly to prevent her emotions from showing. Some days were easier to manage, but other days it seemed impossible. Today, unfortunately, happened to be one of the latter.

     Soon, Fendassa's march became a sprint as her heart pounded in her ears and her raging emotions finally overcame what little remaining composure she had. Her tears mingled with the rainwater streaming down her face, blurring her vision, and before she knew it her bare feet slipped on the slick pavement, driving her to the ground with a gasp. 

     She landed hard and lied there sobbing for a couple minutes before she was able to muster the strength to rise and continue on. 

     Stumbling forward, she soon found shelter under a deserted market stall and curled up with her knees to her chin, her body bruised and exhausted. She shivered as the rain continued to fall, seemingly in concert with her tears. 

    "Why?" she croaked aloud, "why did you come back, Veldrinas? When it would have been easier if you had stayed away."

     There it was, the all important question she should have asked her brother when she had the chance. 

     "You made your choices!" The woman thought bitterly. "I condemned you for them. I should hate you for what you've become. Even though you saved my life I should reject your attempt at redemption. But I want to forget everything that's happened and accept you back. I want to pretend that things are normal between us again. But why?"

     The elf stood up as she angrily voiced her tirade to the turbulent sky. 

"I should be disgusted by you! You are abhorrent, a traitor to all Kaldorei. But if that's so, why don't I feel that way towards you?” 

     She cast down her gaze and exhaled, calming somewhat. "When your friend recited that line from the favorite story mother always used to tell us my heart leapt within me. Against all odds, you were alive again, and all I wanted at that moment was to run to you, hold you close and never let go."

     Tears began flowing anew as Fendassa seated herself in the partial shelter of the abandoned market stall. She hugged her knees tightly while she struggled in vain to wrap her mind around the guilt she felt at her apparent betrayal of everything she thought she believed in. 

     "All I wanted was to be accepted by my own people, yet I feel more at home with humans than I do my own kind."

     "When Teldrassil burned, I wept and mourned for them, as a devout follower of Elune should. But some small part of me didn't. Some small part of me merely watched their suffering with glee, heard their cries of anguish and firmly believed that they got exactly what they deserved. They paid the price for their hubris, for believing they were better than the Highborne, and that I actually believe it is what frightens me the most."

     "I...I don't know what to believe anymore," the elf admitted before she buried her head in her hands. 

     After sobbing quietly for a few minutes, an idea came to mind.

     "Perhaps Alayna could help me," the elf wondered as she arose, blinking away her tears. 

     "Well, in any case, I could use the company," she thought as she began casting the spell that would send her to Stormwind. With a flash of arcane energy, the mage disappeared, leaving the rainy Boralus market deserted once again.