Malfesta[]
Origins[]
I used to live in Hillsbrad. My family would visit the town of Terran Mill every week for
supplies. At least the supplies we could not take care of ourselves. I remember life on our farm was always busy, always something that needed to be done, even after the sun went down. I remember the one occasion; I don’t even recall what that occasion was, when I was still small when my family went to the great city of Lordaeron, all bedecked in bright colored banners and flags. I remember the music and the smells of fair foods, but it is the music I remember best. I really wish I could remember the whole thing but I only get bits and pieces.
Not long after I remember my parents getting nervous but I was too clueless to figure out why; I suppose I can blame it on inexperience and youth. The next bit I can remember is fire, a lot of fire, and screaming. I recall the horses shrieking in terror as the barn burned around them and my helplessness to save them. I remember feeling terror myself as I finally saw the horrors that were inundating my home and then thankfully I don’t remember much else. I think I can get bits and pieces of the time in the middle but I try not to or I think I’d just curl up in a ball and cry.
My next actually conscious thought was not so long ago; It I do remember clearly. I woke up in a crypt. Let’s just say that little fact did not go over well with me. I spent the next few days trying to deny it, a shivering, howling mess. I may be many things but I am practical and all things happen for a reason even if I can’t see it. Pulling my shattered wits back into a semblance of normalcy, I thanked whatever gods had seen fit NOT to put mirrors down here. I can see for myself what I’ve become and while I don’t necessarily hate it I don’t like it either. As I made my way to the surface, another in similar condition curtly greeted me though he seemed better adjusted. The lands we occupied were dark, dank and very sickly looking. The area beyond the fence was teeming with walking corpses and I almost returned to the relative safety of the crypt I had just left. Screwing up my courage, I continued, quickly locating the one I had been directed to speak to. I’m a farm girl, I’m not some great hero to swing sword and run off to battle, so of the choices I was presented with the healing arts seemed the lesser of evils. I’m not a greatly religious person so my motivation for this path was simply so I could do what I could to keep others from suffering the same fate I had.
Soon I was deemed of sufficient strength and learning to go forth from the training grounds of Deathknell (how appropriate) and make my way to the nearby town of Brill. As I followed the road, I began seeing things I recalled from my life and I soon recognized the gates of Lordaeron. Oh how the mighty have fallen, the once beautiful walls are dirty and scarred, its colorful banners gone. The very stone itself seemed as sick and lifeless and the lands it brooded over. The only people I was coming and going were more of my kind and other definitely non-human folk. This told me all I needed to know about the fate of the area. I hurried the remainder of my journey to Brill and procured a room in the Inn – I needed time to reflect and come to terms again.
Since then I’ve learned much, even that there are benefits to this state of being. I’m kind of liking the fact I can stay submerged underwater for great lengths of time as well as not absolutely needing to eat or drink. I still can’t bring myself to seek out a mirror and I carefully avoid reflecting surfaces. Though the majority of the world towers above me, I am also learning confidence, which is a good thing. I sense something coming, I have no clue what but something is out there, I catch glimpses of it in my nightmares.
Shadows[]
Mal surveyed the tainted landscape of Felwood from the relative serenity of Ashenvale’s forests. Zephyr’s bridal jingled as he shifted, shaking his head, eager to be moving again. Mal closed her eyes and listened to the sounds of life around her as she attempted to center herself prior to entering the tainted lands. She found it all too easy to slide into the darker side of herself and enjoy the pain and misery around her as she went about her business. Tash’s soft fur and purr a tactile and audible reminder of the things and people she held dear.
“Things must change, and soon, before I don’t want to resist it anymore.”
She sighed to herself before calling the shadows to her again, a shiver of sinister pleasure washing over her as they answered her call. She chuckled, the sound bringing to mind the bubbling of the noxious green ooze of the Undercity. She spurred her mount into motion, his hooves beating a steady rhythm on the worn stones of the road.
A New Chapter[]
Mal sighs wearily as she joins Cat in bed. The day had been trying and very, very long. She snuggles into Cats embrace finally feeling a peacefulness she had not felt in years. Tash’s weight joins them on the bed and he curls up next to her purring. As she lies there surrounded by the things that have kept her sane these last few weeks, she cannot help but remember the crucial event that finally opened her eyes. The smell of chemicals, the image of dull fur and tired eyes, the last rattling breath as the body falls to the floor. She says a silent apology as she holds a string of hand carved beads. She may not be able to reverse what she had done but she could and would do everything in her power not to repeat it. This night as she closes her eyes she is met not by darkness but by a gentle light.
.*.*.*
((a day later))
“What does walking corpse have faith in that isn’t dark and sinister?” Mal thought to herself. She sat in the room she and Alleycat shared idly petting Tash as she pondered. No matter how she circled the question, the teachings of the Light she had as a child kept creeping in. Since she had awoken in Deathknell she had not spent much thought to faith, she simply had done what was needed and did not look back. Perhaps it was this that set in motion the event that had shown her the path she now walked. Mal frowned; she never had held much in the idea that there was some otherworldly being up there watching all of the horrible things that happen. Mal shook her head and sighed.
“Have I mentioned I don’t like philosophy?” She asked of no one in particular.
Tash merped at her as he happily kneaded the cushion they occupied. Once again, her thoughts turned to childhood teachings. Everything is connected and we see this connection with our senses and our emotions, it is these things that connect you to the universe. She knew she loved Alleycat with all of her heart and soul. She enjoyed the feel of Cats' arms around her and the sound of his voice. She loved Tash, enjoyed hearing and feeling his purr and the feel of his soft fur. With just these basic things, she knew she was still connected to the world around her.
“So…. If I’m still connected to it…”
Mal smiled to herself.
.*.*.*
((almost 2 weeks later))
Mal silently watched Cat as he slept and she was struck by just how much she cared for him. Curled up in their room at the inn she felt safe and secure and eternally grateful she had not lost him. Her thoughts turned to what had occurred, what she herself had done to keep her sanity whole, to keep him safe. She did not wish to contemplate existence without him… She would lose her will to live. She thought of her actions these past couple days and of how close she had come to turning into something she did not like. With the thought of loosing Cat she had more than happily been willing to do absolutely anything to get him back, had killed to do so. She was grateful more extreme measures had not been necessary. She refocused on Cats sleeping form and smiled for a moment. She was still unbalanced though and she had gone against the teachings of the Light in recovering what had been taken from her. Cat hugged her closer as he picked up on her inner turmoil and Mal quieted her thoughts. As she settled back into a light doze she knew what she needed to do – she would visit the Cathedral in Stormwind.
Novice No More[]
Mal lay wrapped in Cats’ arms mostly asleep but awake enough to remember; her thoughts roamed the events of this past two days. She smiled to herself as she recalled their hunt through the hives in Silithus and stifled a shiver as she also recalled silithid claws, teeth, and the sting of their venom. The less than pleasant thoughts invariably led to their experiences in the wrecked city of Stratholm. Images of Redwater lying in a broken heap, of Poknok unmoving, Martouf bleeding onto the scorched street and her beloved Cat… She cuddled closer to him to reassure herself. The farther into the city they had gone the more savage the scourges attacks were, the less effective her skills became, the more her people died. She could not stop remembering and the images of Cat’s various deaths replayed themselves. She held him tight as she recalled purposefully letting him fall so the rest of the group could survive and how incredibly hard that had been, how much it had hurt. When all was said and done, they conceded defeat this time and retreated from the city’s walls. Once they had completed their repairs and restocking, her and Cat wandered up to Winterspring to avail themselves of the restorative waters of the hot springs to wind down and clean off the filth before they retired for the day. Their experiences had served a vital purpose though; it had shown Cat that she was no longer the weak and unskilled Novice she had been when they met. She was more than able to defend herself and others if the need arose. Mal sighed and let the memories trail off as she drifted further into sleep, content and safe in Cat’s embrace.