World of Warcraft: Journey of the Huntress

Chapter One

"Two hundred ships at my disposal, yet the one carrying my son goes missing!"

The angry voice of King Varian Wrynn emanated from the war room of Stormwind Keep, echoing out into the throne room and beyond as he shouted in frustration. A loud thud followed, and anyone who knew of the king's sometimes volatile temper made a wide arc around the doorway leading into the room where he was meeting with one of his military advisors and a high-ranking member of SI:7. One person, however, remained resolute in standing just outside the doorway in order to listen in on the rest of the conversation – despite the fact that the sound of what she imagined to be the king's fist coming down upon the table sporting a tactical map of Azeroth had startled her, causing her to jump and let out a soft gasp.

She continued to listen in as the king demanded to hear the last message sent by Admiral Taylor, whose ship the prince had been on for his diplomatic mission. She could barely understand the garbled, static-filled transmission but was able to pick out enough to make out that Anduin was safe in spite of the wreckage caused by an unexpected attack from a Horde air fleet. A relieved sigh escaped her lips at the same time she heard the king utter his son's name, but their moment of relief was short-lived.

"Surprise attack!" she heard Taylor's voice call out urgently. "Requesting immediate... If anyone's receiving..."

The transmission seemed to go dead at that point, and she could feel her heart hammering wildly in her chest in panic. A soft whine came from her side and she looked to the large grey wolf sitting next to her. He had been able to sense his mistress' distress and was looking at her with concerned eyes. She forced a smile and reached out to gently pat her companion's head, even as she returned her attention to the conversation going on within the war room. She heard the king giving orders to send an elite task force to go to the last known location of Taylor's ship and search for his son, followed by Rell Nightwind's assent and assurance that he would see to it the best men were sent on the mission and that they would set out before nightfall.

She wasn't at all surprised when the purple-haired night elf stopped just outside the doorway upon exiting the war room, his head turned slightly in her direction. He gave a brief nod, indicating she should walk with him, and she fell in step at his side with her wolf bringing up the rear. They walked in silence through the throne room, and it wasn't until they were halfway down the main corridor of the castle – and well out of earshot of the king – when the elven rogue finally spoke.

"You really shouldn't eavesdrop on other people's conversations," he admonished her in his deep voice, his eyes remaining forward.

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but SI:7 is a group of spies. Isn't that sort of what we do?"

"You are not a member of SI:7, and this entire ordeal is none of your concern."

His firm tone caused her to stop in her tracks and she reached out to grasp his arm, forcing him to a halt. He turned to look at her, and his glowing eyes narrowed as he met her gaze.

"This is my concern," she corrected him, her green eyes never breaking the contact between them. "Rell... It's Anduin."

He sighed and turned away from her, reaching up to gently remove her hand from his arm before continuing on his way out of the castle.

"I know you and the prince sometimes played together as children, but that does not mean you have a right to demand a place on this team, Larraine."

Larraine moved quickly to cut off the much taller man, a piece of her light auburn hair falling into her eyes. Her wolf, meanwhile, quickly stepped to her side and let out a low growl. Rell gave the animal an almost threatening look, though it refused to back down, then he turned his gaze toward the girl before him.