Wildfire Riders

((occurs between the Letter to Pa fic and Yva's piece for Fallah))

Smoke filled the room, stinging her eyes and filling her mouth with the taste of ash. Her fingers scrabbled at the walls desperately but found only smooth wooden planks. Fallah knew there was a door here, somewhere, there had to be a door. There had to be a way out. She could feel tears streaming down her cheeks as she tried to blink the smoke away. Her throat ached with it, her lungs burned with it. Where was the Light-forsaken door? Suddenly she felt a blast of heat behind her and an orange-glow washed over the room as the fire encroached. Her ears were full of roaring and whirling fire: it almost sounded like it was a growling and wailing beast. Heart-pounding, Fallah suddenly caught a glimpse of a handle in the gloom and threw herself toward it. The door swung open easily and Fallah stumbled out into the darkness. She found herself gasping for breath facing the forest. A sense of forboding loomed over her still and she turned to look at the burning farmhouse. Faces in the upstairs window looked out at her. Faces twisted with pain and fear. Her parents, trapped upstairs. The high keening wail she heard wasn't the fire whistling through the frame, it was her mother's voice. Her mother calling for her, begging her to help them. She took one step back toward the inferno when a terrible blast shook the structure and drove her to her knees.

"Mother, Father! No!" Fallah wailed into the darkness as the farmhouse began to collapse. Then, something grabbed her shoulder...

“Fallah! Fallah, wake up!”

She woke with a start, her opposite hand forming a fist and beginning to take a swing when her vision cleared. Takani’s worried face hovered over her. She took a deep breath and sat up, ignoring the interrupted punch aimed at him.

“It happened again, didn’t it?” she asked. Her voice came out in a rasp and her throat felt raw. Takani nodded and gently took a seat beside her, then fluidly shifted into cat form.
“What was it this time?”
“The farmhouse. My parents.” She paused to catch her breath as her eyes filled with tears and her throat closed up. “It was….a fire,” she choked out. “I made it into the yard but they….they…” She dissolved into sobs, her self-restraint finally shattering. She wept into the furry shoulder beside her. She had been having nightmares for a week straight, but never the same one twice. Most of them involved her parents in some way.
Takani let her cry herself out. After the first nightmare, she had found it easier to confide in him as a cat. However, this was the first time he had seen her cry. She took a deep breath and burrowed her fingers into the fur at his shoulders, scritching.

“You know Tak, when you first asked to spend the night here, I thought I was doing YOU a favor.”
They both chucked quietly.
“I’m not sure how this is a favor,” he replied. “A stuffed bear would have the same effect.”
“I can’t talk to a stuffed bear, fuzzybutt.” She paused. “Well, I could. But it wouldn’t talk back.”
“Well…you know I can turn into a bear. I wouldn’t be stuffed though,” Takani grinned. Fallah cracked a smile for the first time that morning. “So-why do you think your dreams keep coming back to your parents? Doesn’t that seem strange to you?” Takani asked.

Fallah looked at him quizzically. “What do you mean? They are the most important people in my life! Of course I would be devastated if something happened to them.”

Takani blinked at Fallah. “I was thinking about why you keep having bad dreams about them…and not…you know happy dreams?”

“I…don’t know. Ever since we came back from Caer Darrow I’ve been having nightmares. But my parents weren’t involved in that at all. Why am I having nightmares about them?” Fallah chewed her lip. “Are you having any nightmares Tak?”
Takani looked away from Fallah trying not to answer the question she just asked “Yes….I have.”
Fallah looked surprised. “You have? Why haven’t you mentioned it before?”
Takani glanced at Fallah “It’s…not something I really like talking about.”
Fallah shifted uncomfortably. “I don’t want to pry. I just…I feel vulnerable. Shared pain is halved. Or something.” Takani looked at her. “It’s fine…I usually dream about my parents.”
“Oh. And after last week, of course it would be nightmares.” Fallah thought for a moment. “I have a feeling your nightmares about your parents and my nightmares about my parents are quite different.”
Takani raised his eyebrows “Oh? How do you think?”
Fallah looked down at Takani. “Mine have all been about terrible things happening to my parents. I’d guess that yours are about your father doing terrible things to you?”
Takani nodded “…Yea…I had alot of those…I just don’t know…they keep getting stranger..and stranger…”
“Stranger how?”
“It’s just…I keep having the dream about him giving me my scar…but..I had one time where he actually….sliced me in half…”
Fallah felt the color drain from her face. “No wonder you don’t want to talk about it.”
Takani nodded.

Fallah looked around her small room, searching for something else to say. The spare bed was rumpled, evidence that Takani had spent at least a few hours curled up there. A slight glow of pre-dawn light was visible around the edge of the curtains. The stubs of four white candles sat at each corner of her bed.

“So much for the holy protection of the Light,” she grumbled. The candles were from the Cathedral, blessed by a priest, just as Bricu had suggested.

“It was worth a try,” Takani said simply. “You yourself already lit this place up with holy magic several times without effect.”

Fallah sighed. She was about to reply when a knock sounded at the door. They exchanged confused glances, and Fallah slid out of bed, pulling on a robe over her nightgown. The hallway was empty save for an envelope addressed to her. She clicked the door shut quietly, then stood and read the letter quickly.

“Your Pa?” Takani asked. Fallah shook her head, re-reading the letter over and over again.
“No. Not Pa. The bishop is asking me for a favor,” she replied. “He needs me to travel to Menethil Harbor.”

Yva's piece for Fallah:

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=897&st=0&sk=t&sd=a#p8684

Fallah trudged back to her room blearily, ignoring the strange looks of those she passed on her way. She was exhausted, cold, damp, and practically blind from the damned fog. And she was running out of ideas.
******************

The previous night had seemed interminable after stepping inside the inn and realizing the fog had followed her. She had stumbled to a place by the fire, ordered a warm meal and a mug of hot tea. While the warm blaze took the edge off the chill, the damp remained long after she should have been bone dry. The bitter taste of decay lingered in her mouth and overwhelmed the taste of the stew. She forced herself to swallow it anyway though she ached to spit it into the flames. She choked her meal down quickly, hearing whispers of concern growing in frequency behind her back, and carefully picked her way up the stairs. She undressed quickly, spreading out her armor and clothing as much as possible on the single chair, hoping it would dry. She pulled on a simple cotton nightdress from her pack and frowned as it instantly clung to her damp skin and soaked through. She spent a restless night on the floor, wrapped in her cloak and a single blanket, lest she ruin the inn's straw mattress with the damp. Even the Light seemed to be abandoning her. The typical pure glow at her fingertips was reduced to a weak and watery glimmer, sigils that blazed with near blinding brightness on the ground were faint outlines tonight.

In the morning she had caught the first boat back to Stormwind Harbor and remained on the deck the entire journey, despite driving rain and constant salt-spray. The crew eyed her warily but in the rain the persistent dampness wasn't as apparent. She clung to a railing and shut her eyes; she could barely see out over the water anyway. The wind and rain and salt occasionally drove the blasted mildew smell away and the rainwater felt cleansing on her skin.

The Cathedral was her best hope of getting rid of the Light-forsaken fog. Her horse knew the way and she let him have his head rather than try to pick her way through the bustle of Stormwind blind. At the Cathedral she gratefully accepted help from the altar boys in tethering her horse and getting up the steps into the Cathedral, and then down down down to the basement. Bishop Farthing met her there, along with the Katherine the Pure and Brother Benjamin. They set her by the hearth and all three listened carefully to her explanation of what happened in the marshes and then each took a turn examining her. They confirmed that they could not see or smell the fog itself, but that she was certainly damp. Katherine seemed most troubled by the way Fallah's command of the Light had faded. Sacred candles, holy water, Blessings of the Light, healing spells, cleansing spells were all tried in turn. Any holy magic seemed lessened in her presence. The fog persisted. She declined the bishop's offer of a bed in the Cathedral.
******************

She nearly stepped on the envelope in the doorway. She tossed it on the desk and stripped off her sodden armor and underclothes. Frustrated, she picked through her wardrobe, trying to decide what would be the most comfortable thing to wear when it was soaked through. She settled on a simple dress with a long skirt, and put a vest on over it. She picked up the letter and began to read it, then read it through quickly as the moisture on her fingers began to make the ink run through the paper. It was her father's script.

Fals,
Don't worry about us! Everything is fine here. We have been keeping a wary eye out for strangers, but none have come. Your Ma and I are both fit as a pair of oxen.

I'm worried about you haring off with your new friends though. You know how I feel about those people: you can't trust mercenaries! Even if they themselves are good folk, they tend to make nasty enemies. I don't need you caught up in any kind of trouble. You're supposed to be in school to better yourself. If you get yourself run through because you were off trying to save the world it defeats the whole point. Don't make me withhold your tuition and bring you back to the farm. You've got a promising future: don't waste it.

Hope to hear from you soon.

-Pa

Fallah frowned. She'd not tell her Pa about the fog until she had tried everything she could. With that in mind, she turned and flipped the switch on the buzzbox.

Despite the warm sun on his shoulders, Takani could feel Fallah shivering beside him. A playful breeze tossed his hair as he gently lead her through the Canal District but hers remained damply plastered to the back of her neck. Over the past few days he had become accustomed to the ever-present film of water on his friend, and barely noticed the cold on his palm from where he gently gripped her arm. Meanwhile, she had become accustomed to his guidance on two feet instead of four, as the constant squawking of buzzboxes had nearly deafened him in cat form. She could tell from the way his grip occasionally tensed up that he could still hear the blasted devices, but it was more tolerable as an elf.

Takani stopped near a stone bench and they sat down to wait. Fallah seemed lost in thought and Takani tried not to fidget beside her. A flash of bright green out of the corner of his eye revealed itself to be a gnome approaching, long dark robes dragging along the cobblestones.

"Fizzleworth Sprockets, Mage Extraordinaire, at your service!" The gnome gave a short bow. "You are Miss Fallah, I presume?"

Fallah nodded. "Yes. And this is Takani. Your letter assured me that you were a portal expert?"

Fizzleworth nodded vigorously. "Yes indeed! Portals are my specialty! Zip-zoom, right through the Nether faster than you can blink!"

Takani looked at Fallah, slightly worried. He whispered to her "You sure he can do his job right...?"

Fallah peered at the tiny mage and shrugged. "You tell me! I've uh...never done this before. He comes highly rec..."

The gnome interrupted her. "My dear lady, my handsome sir! Do not fear! I will get you safely to Shattrath City or you'll get a full refund!"

They exchanged glances and then Fallah nodded and stood.

Takani looked at Fallah, still a little worried about her. He decided to remain silent and merely stood up. Fizzleworth took a few steps back and then pulled himself up to his fullest height, which was barely to Fallah's waist. Then he spread his hands dramatically and arcane energy gathered between them. With a flourish, a round portal appeared shimmering in the air. Shattrath City was indeed visible through it.

"You see? Another fine Sprockets portal!" He and Fallah exchanged payment, then he pressed something small and round into the palm of her hand. It looked like a button. "If you are ever again in need of a portal specialist, simply touch the button and think of me! It is my calling card, if you will." With that, the gnome disappeared completely. Fallah took a deep breath and held out her hand. Takani blinked at it for a moment in surprise, then gently took it in his own and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Fallah, I take portals to Dalaran all the time. They are perfectly safe." He paused. "We'll step through together."

She nodded at him and waited. He counted slowly to three and they both stepped into the shimmering portal and then emerged safely at their destination. Takani blinked: this was his first time in Shattrath City. He looked around curiously and then remembered Fallah was still holding his hand. He looked at her and smiled, "We're here."

****************************************************

Her typical enthusiasm for discovering a new place was dampened by exhaustion and her weariness with being surrounded by the fog. She couldn't even see the wonders of this city save for a vague blur beyond the haze of mist. She could hear voices speaking in a foreign tongue, briefly the mildew smell was whisked away and she noticed that even the air smelled different here. And then she noticed the music. She paused to listen to it, a faint undercurrent amid the bustle of a city.

"What is it?" Takani asked her with concern.

"Don't you hear it, Tak? Music! The most beautiful music. Just...shhh!"

He frowned at her but attempted to listen closely and slowly became aware of it as well. He glanced around the dome they were in with the arched doorways, trying to discover the source of the music. There! Her hand was still in his and he tugged at it gently, leading her along. The undercurrent of ethereal music grew slightly louder until he stopped. Fallah could see a golden light before her through the mist. She opened her mouth to speak, when a musical voice resonated through her mind.

<Greetings, child of Light. I have been expecting you.>

Fallah glanced over at Takani, but he was simply looking around the dome, undisturbed by voices in his head. She looked up and up at A'dal before her, wondering how to respond to the naaru. She heard what almost sounded like laughter in her head.

<Simply think of what you wish to communicate, and I will 'hear' it.>

She gathered her thoughts carefully, not wishing to bother the naaru with minor details and trivialities.

<A'dal: I need your help. My friends need your help as well. We are under attack.> She pictured the hauntings of her friends in her mind: Duugvilder being dragged beneath the table, Loreli seeing Zha'ane decay before her eyes, Pitchblack being stalked by a little girl, Channi bitten by a leper gnome, Takani flattening his ears as buzzboxes screeched...

The naaru was silent for several moments. Fallah had a sense of being weighed and measured. She hoped that she was good enough, that her devotion to the Light was strong enough, true enough. It had been Katherine the Pure who had recommended a visit to A'dal when Fallah had returned to the Cathedral, out of hope. Prior to that the druids and Kal'dorei priests at the Moonwell had made a valiant attempt to assist but had come up short as well. The naaru were her last resort, aside from the Riders catching up to Maggie, the odds of which seemed vanishingly slim.

<Fallah, do not worry that you are unworthy. You are a true child of the Light. You fear the Light is abandoning you. Your powers have been reduced. This is due to the fear surrounding you and your physical weakness. Have faith in yourself and your abilities will return to full strength.> The musical tones inside her head became somber.

<Despite the dark nature of these attacks, myself and the naaru cannot intervene. The roots of this are deep and tangled. If I attempt to purge it, lives may be lost.> Fallah's heart sank as she heard the message. Her last hope, dashed to pieces. She could feel A'dal change to a more soothing tone. <Individually, you are weak. Together you have much strength.>

<You will overcome this.>

A wave of despair washed over her in spite of A'dal's reassurances. How could they overcome something this big, something as tangled as A'dal described? They were mere mortals. Men and women, humans and elves, of various skill and experience, a diverse lot to be certain. This was so much larger than any of them. She spun on her heel and began to walk away as quickly as she could with her hindered sight, tears welling up in her eyes. She heard Takani call out behind her in surprise, then his hand was on her elbow.

"Fallah, what-"

"Where's the damned portal?" she snapped at him.

"But we just got here. Don't you want to look around some more?"

"Another day, Tak. Right now, I just want to go home."

"Okay, okay. We'll go. But we're coming back here together. I promise you."

With that Takani lead her to the Stormwind portal as quickly as he dared, glancing over his shoulder at A'dal hovering brightly in the air. The ambient music seemed to have a note of sorrow in it now. He took a breath and stepped into the swirling light. Just as they cleared the threshold, both of them heard the same message:

<You are more than mere mortals. You will overcome.>

****************************************************
Takani stood by the canal and watched as Fallah paced in aggravation. Her sight still hindered, the path she tread was just two steps and a turn, over and over again. She had said very little since their return to Stormwind. Step step turn, step step turn. The hem of her skirt occasionally dripped onto the cobblestones and she was beginning to create a very short and very damp path.

"Fallah, what did A'dal say to you? You seemed so entranced at first..."

"It was a waste of time, Tak," Fallah said angrily. "A complete waste of time. Lots of platitudes about how everything would be fine but no real answers."

"A'dal said it would all be fine?" Takani asked with surprise.

"Not exactly. I believe it was 'you will overcome this.' Which is a load of vague nonsense. He said the roots of this were too deep, he was worried that if he did something..."

Takani looked at her with concern. "If the naaru did something...what? What was he afraid would happen?"

"Death, Tak. A'dal is afraid that if he purges these shadows for us? It could kill us." Fallah had an air of defeat about her.

"So what do we do then?"

"We find Maggie. We find her and we put an end to it. A'dal also said something like 'together you are stronger.' " Fallah paused. "I wish I believed him. I mean, we took a whole mess of people out to Caer Darrow. We got Naiara back. But we managed to dig ourselves a deeper hole! How many people do we need to throw at this one? How can we fight when we're worn down from lack of sleep?" She stopped pacing and stood there, wringing her hands together. She moved to begin pacing again.

"I mean, what is it-"

Suddenly her feet were no longer steady beneath her, her shoe combining with her momentum and the slick cobblestones to send her tumbling backward. She gasped and flung her arms out to catch herself, unable to see how far she was from the ground. It was all happening so fast! She closed her eyes, preparing for impact-

-and felt strong arms around her instead.

Heart-racing with fear, she looked up and saw the soft glow of Takani's eyes right above her. The moment seemed to stretch on and on. She had never noticed how warm it was, being wrapped up together with someone like this.

"Fallah, are you alright?" Takani asked.

She nodded and whispered, "I'm fine." She could feel Takani shifting his weight. "Thanks Tak, I-"

Suddenly her support was gone and she felt herself falling and then-

"Ooof!" They landed together in a heap on the cobblestones. Her head felt like it was on his chest? It was soft and warm at least. Fallah began to giggle, and then the giggle turned into both of them laughing hysterically. After so many sleepless nights, they both desperately needed to laugh. Fallah rolled onto her knees, trying to catch her breath, tears streaming down her face. Her mirth began to fade away slowly and she could hear Takani's laughter dwindling as well.

She looked up and found him right there beside her, an intense look on his face. His eyes captured hers once more. How had she never noticed those eyes before? Her breath caught in her throat.

Takani leaned down and kissed her. She found herself kissing him back.

New story "Study Break" is now posted at Totem and Idols: http://tinyurl.com/29ahy5k
Enjoy!