“I have been ordered to tell no one below the rank of Ranger-Captain” Yasmyr had muttered, her wounds freshly healed, her and Narme had been ‘commandeered’ without his knowledge, for some unknown purpose, and been away for two days, even Yasmyr’s husband, the Sun Hawk’s Flight Surgeon, did not know why…Brigante had asked him just earlier..
“You must know, Chaplain, where are they, where is my Flight Lieutenant, your Wife?”
Aiechi had shook his head “Sir, I can’t say”
“Is that can’t say because you don’t know, or can’t say because you do know but she asked you not to say?”
“The Former”
With the serendipity that exists only in real life, and yet seems so unbelievable in fiction, the Comms crackled into life, “Sir, this is ‘Bandit’, we need an extraction, we’re at Mor’shan ramparts”
Brigante swore but raised his gauntlet to his lips, depressing the button and speaking into it, as Arowik and Aiechi raised their eyebrows in astonishment at the voice that had ‘gone dark’ as they say in the Aerie, their communicator turned off.
“Is Reddawn with you? How many are we extracting, is the ground situation ‘hot’?”
Reddawn’s voice, also absent these last two days came over the Comms “I’m here Sir”
Yasmyr cut in again “Just us two Elves, and Reddawns companion Sabre, the ground situation is -not- ‘hot’ Sir, repeat, -not- ‘hot’.
Brigante cursed, before turning to the other Hawks “Alright, you heard that, get armoured up nonetheless, and to your Hawks, two minute Flight Warning.” He whirled and ran himself, with the other Hawks, to the vast enclave of beasts in the Valley of Honour, the traditional ‘rookery’ when the Hawks landed in Orgrimmar. As he did, he saw Forenth, his Handler, smoking a cigarette and talking with the other Handlers, Brigante raised his hand and twirled his finger around in a circular motion. He was too far away to hear the words said, but he was pretty sure Forenth uttered a curse that would turn the air blue, ditched his cigarette and slapped the Handlers into standing by their Dragonhawks.
As he neared, Forenth was already preparing his battle armour, and flight harness, the two attaching it swiftly, locking Brigante into the saddle, the Thick Kodohide strapping and Thorium buckles making it an impossibility for him to be dismounted. Forenth, that ancient veteran soldier growled “What is it my boy?”
“The Lieutenant and Reddawn called in, they need an extraction”.
Forenth glowered “I’ll let the Handlers know, theirs have been going spare worrying about ‘their girls’”. Brigante nodded, conducting his last flight checks “Tell them they are alive, and coming back home now” Brigante looked at his Handler, who stepped back , crossed his wrists, hands held together, thumbs entwined, fingers splayed wide, forming a set of wings symbol. He was good to go.
“Hawks, this is Sun Hawk Actual, confirm your flight checks are complete and you are ready” He muttered into the Comms.
“This is Arowik, Ready”
“Val’kyr’ Ready”
“Grab some Sky, lets bring them home!”
It was textbook, a straight flight in, a quiet landing zone, ‘Val’kyr’ checked over the two elves, who were bloodied and exhausted, whilst Brigante and Segtillis flew a combat air patrol over the proceedings. Everything seemed so...Quiet. What had happened? Whatever it was, could wait until they reached Orgrimmar, although secretly Brigante was -furious-, whatever ridiculous folly his two scouts had gotten into could have cost him two valuable fliers over Silithus, at just the point when the Horde armies mustered to march there.
“This is ‘Val’kyr’, they’re both stabilised enough for transport”
Brigante sighed and nodded, before responding “Good work ‘Val’kyr’, lets bring them home.”
The journey back was equally quiet, not a far flight, from Mor’shan to Orgrimmar, yet as the two elven scouts were led to the barracks, which would have to make do in lieu of an infirmary, Brigante’s rage increased. It was with teeth gritted that he had assisted the Flight Surgeon, as Aiechi, ‘Val’kyr’ tended their wounds.
And then it was done. And time for some answers.
“I have been ordered to tell no one below the rank of Ranger-Captain” Yasmyr had muttered, and Brigante saw by the direction of her gaze that she even included her husband, who had just healed her, in that. Something was clearly afoot of a greater magnitude than he suspected.
“Sorry you chaps, leave us, I need to know what is going on”
The instant the other elves had left, Brigante whirled upon his executive officer and hissed. “This had better be good”
“Sir, orders were from on high, higher than you”
“What do you mean higher than me, I am the Commandant of the Aerie, I command the Escadrilles, there is no...do you mean a Ranger-Lord?”
Yasmyr nodded tiredly “Thats where -our- part of the orders came from Sir”
Brigante frowned, “What interests does Quel’thalas have in this area, we’re mustering to march on Silithus?, or we were, the others seem to have went their merry way”
Narme and Yasmyr just looked at each other, but Yasmyr spoke “Not just Quel’thalas, Sir. We weren’t alone. The Horde has interests there. The -Entire- Horde.”
The implication was clear. Brigante paused “These orders originated higher than a Ranger-Lord, didn’t they?”
Yasmyr shrugged, wincing in pain at the recently healed arrow wound, Brigante looked at the arrow, so recently removed.. “Darnassian, you were in Ashenvale”.
His eyes grew wide, as the magnitude of what was occurring struck him. It was brilliant, if you had a mind to conceive it, it was genius, if you had the sheer callous will to enact it.
Suddenly with a hollow pit in the seat of his gut, he saw it…
“We’re …..We’re not going to Silithus, are we, Flight Lieutenant?”
“No Sir, we’re not”
“We’re actually going to try and invade Ashenvale, whilst decoying them to Silithus…”
Yasmyr shook her head.
“No Sir. You don’t understand. We’re not going to try and invade Ashenvale…”
“Astranaar has fallen”
“We -have- invaded Ashenvale”
And the last piece fell into place. That is what this fist was, that is why the build up of soldiery, aerial forces, naval and artillery.
Conquest. Domination. Annihilation.
He rubbed his eye, soothing the scar tissue around it.
“We’re not stopping there, are we, we’re using the forces here gathered to push even further?”
“Pretty sure thats the plan Sir”
He sighed, and ran a hand through his hair tiredly.
“And we’re the Sin’dorei unit still here, so will be sent into it..”
He laughed bitterly, as his minds eye raced to the future.
“Another war where we are seen as warmongers then? We can withdraw, and seen to be disloyal to the Horde, or we can follow through, and when we return to Silvermoon….”
Yasmyr looked at him sympathetically, his expression of torment writ large on his face.
“You saw what Conclave is like…”
“This time they’ll hang me”.
His mind raced. “We’re not stopping at Ashenvale, which means our forces gathered will be pushing into Darkshore, and from there…..”
“Sun Above...this is a ‘Scenario: Nightmare Blue’ situation, we’re instigating Nightmare Blue”
Narme looked askance at the pair, as the air thickened between them, not being an Officer of the Aerie, she would not know the various codenames for the threat levels and risk scenarios of the aerial forces of Quel’thalas.
Yasmyr knew though, oh she knew. ‘Nightmare Blue’, a scenario title for full on aggression, either the Alliance attempting to destroy a Horde city, or the Horde attempting to destroy an Alliance one, and the resultant complete intercontinental war that would follow...
“We’re going for Darnassus” Brigante sighed, “And we were ordered here with the Mark One ‘Annihilatrix’ munitions.
Yasmyr nodded, her eyes sleepy, her injuries taxing her strength, but struggling to get across the gravity of the situation to her Commander, she nodded and murmured “We didn’t play you, Sir, I only found out when our orders came through, and by then, too late to tell you, and you -know- my skillset”.
Narme nodded “This was recent, we thought you knew, but, the orders did come through from a Ranger-Lord, and, well, they outrank you.”
Brigante nodded slowly, eyes still staring at the Kaldorei arrow in his hand as he slowly twirled it, the arrow spinning slowly in his grasp.
He sighed and nodded. “All we can do is play the hand that fate has dealt us. If Operation Nightmare Blue it is to be, then Operation Nightmare Blue it must be…” He paused, setting the arrow down.
“In Which case you both need rest, We will be busy about our bloody business soon, you don’t need me loitering around, I need...time, to process what you have just loaded upon me, Flight Lieutenant”. The elven officer’s shoulders sagged as he limped from the Orgrimmar barracks, his mind racing in a panic such as could not be calmed….
By all accounts, it was some six hours later, that the elven officer was laid to rest, practically carried to the barracks by an Orcish comrade of his, reeking of alcohol he could only babble about fire, and hangings, and becoming death, a heavy Orcish cloak laid over him to silence him as much as warm him. One curiosity many noticed was how he kept clutching at a ring on his left hand. It was almost as if he wore two wedding bands, One gold. One Truesilver.