The Shadow of the Flame

Byron's training of both Embry and Teregan continued in earnest. He seemed more determined and less patient then before. Despite this, Embry and Teregan were rising to the occasion, learning faster then he had ever seen an aprrentice master the use of fire. It was as if is urgency were directly feeding their abilities. They always trained in secret, but Byron refused to tell them why there was so much need for secrecy. Teregan hypothesized it was to ensure his parents would not find out.
Like so many things though, it is impossible to keep a secret forever, and the day of their discovery was teh beginning of the war for this small band. A young gnome, just over twenty years old, hailing from Kharanos, a small dwarf village outside of Ironforge, had been hiking up the mainland toward the Alterac Mountains. At the base of the mountains was a base of sorts for the Rogues of SI:7. Tindry, as she had been called by those few she referred to as her friends, had always been a bit of an outcast. Her dark mood, and dreary outlook on life did not jive well with her fellow gnomes, and feeling alone, the transition to training in the ways of the rogue was very natural for her.
Her slight stature allowed her to go just about anywhere undetected as each footstep was silent. She had grown accustomed to watching people, learning that you never know when you will discover something of great value by simply watching. So she spent most of her time in Ironforge, in the shadows, spying on any and all she could see. Most of what she saw had proven pointless, but every once in a while, she would discover something of importance. These nuggets of information usually same in the form of internal threats to Magni Bronzebeard. Through her efforts to protect his kingdom, she had quickly risen in the ranks of SI:7 and was now prepping for a training session that would prelude her first true mission for the organization.
On her way to this meeting, she had taken a gryphon to the outskirts of Gilneas, and had met with some contacts she had their to get supplies and information. Even this deep into alliance lands, you never knew when a group or orcs might appear, and she wanted to know as much about their movements as she could to ensure safe travel to her destination.
After gathering all that she needed she began to make her way. Along the way, she passed by a village that looked deserted, but it was obvious by the crop fields nearby that it was not. She continued her journey, being careful to stay out in the open, when she saw something out of the corner of her eye. It was a flash of some kind.
She looked in the direction the flash had come, but saw nothing, so she decided to move closer and try to find its source. As she moved closer to where she thought it had come from, nothing seemed to appear. Finally at the edge of a corn field, she saw an old man and two young children sitting the ground. The man was talking to the children, his movements mirroring that of a teacher deep in a lesson. The children's attention was focused on the man, and it was obvious they found what he was saying to be of the utmost importance.
Must be a good story, Tindry thought to herself, but resolving that there was nothing suspicous going on here and that she had likely not seen a flash and that her mind was playing tricks on her, she resolved to leave. As she began to step away, she saw the man stand up, put his hands together in front of him, and then thrust his right hand forward with great force.
At that very moment, a tree off in te distance lit up in flames. Tindry was shocked, and knew immediately the old man was a mage, and a powerful one at that. What she saw next though shocked her even more. The two children stood up, put their hands out in front of them, and curled their fingers inward as if they were trying to pull something in. The flames, that had been raging on the tree, left the tree and floated in the air towards the children, until it sat in a ball, above their hands.
He is training them to be mages...interesting...I thought that mages had to go to stormwind to be trained...Tindry thought to herself, but she took the information and deposited it in her head, along with so many other secrets she had learned, deciding to divulge it later, to the right person, and for the right price.


A couple weeks later, after finishing her mission succesfully, Tindry found herself in the local Stormwind pub, celebrating her success with the few people she called friends. She was on her third drink of the night, and the haze of drunkeness was settling on her mind lightly. As she sat at the bar, she looked over and saw a mage she had seen before, so she sidled up to the seat next to him and asked, "Doesn't a person who wants to train to be a mage come to stormwind for that training?"
The mage turned and looked at her. He was a younger man, with jet black hair down to his shoulders, and a crisp beard that went down to his chest, ending in a sharp point. The man clearly did not want to be bothered, but that had never bothered Tindry before.
"Yes, they can be discovered elsewhere, and there are even some other specialized places where the training can occur, but Stormwind and Lordaeron are where the majority of future mages go to train." the mage replied.
"Are there any training areas near Gilneas?" Tindry inquired.
"No, Gilneans would go to Lordaeron to train." he answered.
"Interesting..." Tindry replied while shelving that knowledge in her head again, certain that this information would be quite valuable to the right bidder.
Tindry drank another two pints, before deciding the time had come for her to return to her room at the inn and sleep off her stupor. Before she could get up though, a hooded stranger came up and sat next to her.
"I apologize for eavesdropping, but I couldn't help but notice your conversation earlier with that mage. Why did you ask him that?" The stranger asked.
"What's it to you?" Tindry shot back.
"I was just curious if you saw anything that would lead you to wonder if there was a training station near gilneas."
"What is it worth to you?" Tindry asked.
"Name your price and if the information helps me, I will pay it."
"50 gold pieces, and not a penny less." Tindry bartered.
"Done!" The stranger said emphatrically
"There is an old man, in a village near Gilneas, training two children to be fire mages."
"What ages were the children, and was either of them a girl?" the stranger questioned.
"There was a girl and a boy, the girl looked close to 10, and as for the boy, probably a year or two younger." Tindry answered.
"Perfect, your information has been most helpful." the stranger replied, handing him a bag in which he had counted out 50 gold pieces and sealed inside. "I would like you to have this too." The stranger said and handed him a small ball, that looked like an eyeball. "It is called an eye of kilrogg. Great blessings come to those who stare into its depths."
Tindry accepted the gift, and looked into the ball. Within seconds, her face was a blank stare.
The stranger looked at her with a devilish grin forming on his face. "I can't have you telling anyone else that. That's why I wiped your memory with that eye. Never again will you even know who you are, let alone what you saw."
The stranger dropped the bag of gold into Tindry's pocket, walked her back over to the mage sitting at the bar, and asked, "Would you be willing to port my friend to the Exodar. I am afraid he has drinken too much, and I think he would be better suited sleeping in his own bed instead of the inn tonight. I will gladly pay you for it."
The mage, despite appearing to not want to be bothered, perked up at the mention of payment. "Sure," he replied.
Then the mage pulled out a small stone, stated an incantation, and circular portal opened up before him and the stranger. The stranger gave him a few gold pieces, and took tindry through the portal. Once inside the Exodar, he dropped Tindry by a wall, and walked ack through the port, back to Stormwind.
As the stranger walked out of the bar, the mage heard him say, "Finally I shall have the ultimate power added to my collection!"

The Heated Discovery

In the weeks that followed, Embry spent most of her day training with her father. After training, she would join Teregan in the field and try to teach him what she learned. Teregan failed to repeat his success from the first day, and found himself very discouraged. Embry continued to encourage him, telling him to never give up.

By this point, Embry had advanced in her development a great deal. Her father had been working on helping her develop a flame shield to protect herself with. She was finally starting to see success, but the shield wasn't nearly strong enough to block an attack. Byron wouldn't explain why, but Embry sensed an increased sense of urgency in his training efforts. "You need to learn this Embry. I have seen it all, and this skill is essential to your survival."

Embry tried to teach Teregan the same manuever, but found it hard to teach a skill that she had not yet mastered herself. Despite the struggles, Teregan did manage to make a shield big enough to protect his hands, but nothing else. Everytime he tried to increase the size of the shield, it would simply evaporate.

"Here, let me show you again. The shield's growth depends on the strength of the flame it is stretched from. Your flame is not strong enough."

"But how do you make it stronger. I swear, I just can't make it any stronger." Teregan complained.

"It all comes from inside you. You have to want it...truly want it."

Teregan closed his eyes, and tried again. He had gotten quite good at finding his inner flame and moving it to his hands, but no matter how hard he tried that flame always seemed to pale in comparison to Embry's flame. The results were no different this time either. "I give up." He exhaled, and sat down on the cold dirt.

Embry walked over to him and sat down next to him. "It's probably for the best. We have been at this a long time. You need a break."

"Do you think I will ever get this? Or am I destined to always be a failure?" Teregan inquired.

"You'll get it. It's just not easy."

Teregan got back up, and looked at Embry. Her silky brown hair hung at her shoulders, curling inward, and her robe was a refreshing shade of blue. He was amazed how at peace he felt around her. "I want to try again."

Embry laid down on the ground and looked up at him. "You'll have plenty of time later. Take a break, so you can recover."

"No, I am not ready to give up."

Embry exhaled, and got back up. "Ok, if you insist, let's try again. This time, don't be so eager to pull the flame outward, focus on it while it is inside you, and try to grow it there instead."

Teregan looked at her longingly, hoping this would be the time his efforts would be rewarded. He again focused in on himself. He found the flame quickly, but instead of moving outward, he focused on the flame, trying to will it to grow. Embry also closed her eyes, hoping to be able to share some of her own focus in the hopes it would help him. As the two stood, facing each other, like two statues, they failed to notice the approach of a visitor.

"Embry, what are you doing?" the stranger boomed out.

Embry spun around in an instant, and saw her father. His hands were on his hip and a scowl encompassed his face. She could tell he was furious with her. Teregan lost the flame the moment he heard Byron's voice. He opened his eyes, and felt petrified with fear. He had never seen Byron this angry. His ice cold stare appeared like it might burn out his soul.

"What are you two doing?" Byron asked forcefully.

Teregan looked at Embry, uncertain what to do. Embry stepped in front of Teregan, blocking him from Byron. "I am teaching him to be a mage."

Byron's eyes seemed to burn with an inferno. "How could you? I told you nobody was to know about this. You have endangered you, me, and everyone who lives in the village."
"But..." Before she could finish though, Teregan stepped forward and asked, "How could her teaching me to be a mage put any of us in danger. If anything, she is helping protect us from danger. Three mages is better then two, if anybody decided to attack the village."

"So you are a mage now?" Byron asked pointedly.

"No, but I will be." Teregan answered defiantly.

"Well mage, prove to me your worthy!" Byron commanded in a deep and rough voice.

"How do I do that?" Teregan asked.

"Block this!" Byron yelled out as he sent a pulse of energy toward Teregan. The pulse hit Teregan square in the chest, knocking him to the ground. Teregan gasped, trying to get his breath back.

Byron grabbed Embry's hand and began to walk her back to their house. "Not everyone is meant to be a mage Embry. The sooner you learn that, the better off you will be."

"WAIT!" Teregan gasped out. "I am not done!"

Byron turned around and saw the defiant face of a young boy, taunting him to attack again. He hesitated, but saw the boy was determined. "If you insist."

Byron sent off another pulse of energy, but this one was bigger. Teregan was ready this time. He focused inward, found his inner flame, and pushed it outward, but he was not quick enough. Before he had even managed to get the flame out, the pulse slammed into his chest, knocking him three feet backward.

"Stop it!" Embry yelled, "You're hurting him!"

"I am teaching him a lesson, one that I hope he won't soon forget." Byron said as he again grabbed Embry's hand and departed.

Teregan laid on the ground, motionless. He had never hurt so bad in his life. Each gasping breath burnt his lungs and required all his effort. He coughed, trying to force the air out of his lungs. He couldn't move, and wondered if the last attack had left him paralyzed. He looked outward, and saw Byron and Embry walking out of the field. He tried to yell out to stop, but he couldn't make a sound.

Willing his limbs to move, he rolled over onto his chest. Martialling all the strength he could muster, he lifted himself up on all fours. "Stop!" Teregan exhaled weakly.

Despite the weakness of his voice, Byron heard it and again turned to face the boy. "You're not done yet? You still want more? Fine, I will give you more...Mage!"

"No father...no" Embry pleaded.

A second later, Byron was again shooting out another ball of energy, this stronger then both of the previous two, and threw it will full force at the weakened frame that stood before him.

Teregan was desparate to earn Byron's respect. He closed his eyes, looking inward, but when he found the flame, it was different somehow. It was bigger, more ferocious, and instead of sitting in his core, it radiated throughout his whole body. He pushed it out with all of his remaining strength, and braced himself for the oncoming blow...but it never came.

Embry looked at Teregan, shock and awe coursing in her face. She saw around him a massive shield of flame, bigger then she had ever seen before. Her father's energy ball and simply dissipated into nothingness the moment it hit the shield.

Byron was also shocked, but quickly recovered his poise. He looked at the boy with a curiosity that he couldn't understand. How could such a small boy produce such a powerful shield? he thought as he looked at the boy with closed eyes, bracing for a blow that was already gone. He looked at Teregan differently and determined that this event had changed everything.

"Teregan, are you sure you want to go down this path? Their is nothing but pain ahead." Byron explained.

Teregan finally opened his eyes, and saw a softer aura encompassing Byron. "Yes I do. I will do anything to be a mage."

"I can see that. I have seen grown men walk away from the ways of magic after getting hit by a lot less then what you just endured. If you remain this determined, I promise you...you will be a mage. But be warned, your suffering today is a mere pebble in the mountain of pain and suffering that your chosen path will take you. Are you sure you want this?"

"Yes." Teregan said reverently as he kneeled down before Byron. "Teach me how to fight, and I promise, your daughter will never be alone in a fight."

Byron looked down at the young boy with admiration. He could tell there was a special essence in this boy, and knew that his destiny was entwined with his daughter's as much as his own destiny was. To not train the boy would be to deny the fates, and he did not dare do such a thing.

A Simple Spark

Three weeks later, on a brisk autumn morning, Teregan built up the courage to go ask Embry about events of the previous night. He walked out into a nearby field of cornstalks, and deep in the middle, there was an area cleared out where he and Embry had always met up. She was there, as he had expected, reading a book. He walked up to her and sat facing her.

"What's up Teregan?"

He looked at her, not sure if he truly had the courage to respond. "Um...can I ask you a question?"

She pulled her nose out of the book and looked at Teregan quizzically. "Sure," she replied.

"Embry, I wanted to ask you about the other night."

"What night?" She asked."

"The night of that really bad storm."

She looked at him, confused and hesitant. "What do you mean?"

"I saw you...and your dad, out in the front of your house."

"You were there?" She inquired.

"How did your dad do all that? I have never seen anyone do that before."

Embry turned away from Teregan. "You weren't supposed to see that." She said.

"Are you a real mage?"

Embry turned back to Teregan, and laughed out loud, "No...I am not."

"But when he spoke to you, he was talking like you should be able to control the fire like him."

"I didn't say I can't use fire. I am just not a mage...yet."

"So you are training to be one?" Teregan burst out.

"Yes, but don't tell anyone. Nobody else is supposed to know. My dad was very clear on that." She explained.

"Is it hard to do?" He asked.

"Yes, but it is exhilerating at the same time."

"I wish I could learn to control fire."

She looked at him, and a sly grin rolled across her face. "What if I teach you how?" She asked him.

"You could?" he asked as a huge smile broke across his face.

"Only if you promise to keep it our little secret." She explained.

"I promise," he said as he jumped up, pointing his hands in all different directions, pretending he was shooting fire out of his hand with each thrust.

Embry laughed out loud at his childlike exhuberance. She stood up from the ground, looked him up and down, and put her hands on her waist. "Ok, your first lesson. Fire is dangerous, and so learning to control it requires great care. I want you to put your hands together, and squeeze them tightly against each other."

Teregan jumped up, put his hands together as if were about to pray, and began to squeeze them tightly together, a huge grin spreading across his face. His brown hair swayed in the wind, as he held his position.

"Next, I want you to look deep inside yourself. Inside all of us is a spark of energy. If you can find that, and push it to your hands with your mind, it will become accesible for you to control."

Teregan went crosseyed as he thought about a flame in his body moving to his hands. A few moments later, he took his hands apart, and in deafeat, said, "I don't think it is working."

Embry laughed again. "You're not supposed to get it the first try, it took me three days practicing before I finally unleashed the spark. Try again, and remember, you must focus, and believe. If you do, it will move for you. You will be able to feel it moving inside you."

Teregan closed his eyes tightly and looked deep inside himself, and then he felt it, miniscule at first, but it grew as he became more aware of it, until it grew strong enough that he felt he could begin to move it. As the heat radiated through his body, Teregan couldn't help but smile, but in doing so, he lost his concetration, and the heat began to disappear. He focused again, but it was too late. It took all his concentration simply to keep it from disappearing completely. When it reached his hands, in what felt like an hour to him, but had been closer to five minutes, he opened his hands, and looked down.

There, in the crook of his hand, was the smallest spark of a flame he had ever seen. He looked at it, and his smile grew even larger. "Look Embry, I am doing it!"

Embry watched in awe, but quickly recovered her composure and said, "That is very good Teregan, but we will need more practice if you ever hope to be able to hurt anything. That spark wouldn't even singe a fly."

Teregan looked down at the small spark, and watched as it fizzled out. "I guess I am not much of a mage, am I?"

"You will be Teregan. I promise, I won't give up until we are both mages. Then, we can take on all the evils in the world together." Embry said as she beemed with pride.

Teregan smiled, contemplating a future in which he and Embry were real life mages, fighting all the worst villians, saving everyone, and becoming true heroes.

"I would like that." Teregan said and he gave her a hug.

Visions of Fire

Teregan, as a boy, grew up in the village of Amber Ridge, a small settlement on the edge of the borders of Gilneas. This run down hideway was the home of 8 families, all but one farmers, who made their living off the land, and paid little attention to the politics of Gilneas. The one exception was Byron. He was an elderly man, but his muscles were still tone and steady. On the typical day, he would wander slowly through the village, observing the children as they played. Always he watched, but he was unwilling to tell anyone why, and most didn't ask, because in addition to being the leader of this small band of misfit farmers, he was also a great mage in his own right.

Whenever he wandered the town, he showed his age, often leaning hard on his cane, and taking ample oppurtunities to stop and catch a breather. He never appeared to be in a rush, and he seemed to always know exactly where he was going. He was an enigma, but despite that, he was loved by his neighbors. Many knew that this man had once fought in the great second war with the Orcs, and while they did not know the details of that experience, they knew he came back a different man, and many felt, not in a good way. But despite the solitude that he chose for his life as a result of the war, he was still kind, and that was good enough for all the people he led.

Byron had a daughter named Embry. Her mother had died 9 years earlier giving birth to her. Back then, her parents had lived in Stormwind, and Byron had been a concierge to the King. He had even found time to counsel with Jaina Proudmoore. Despite her being so young, he had seen a great wisdom in Jaina, and had hoped that one day his daughter would grow to be as remarkable a woman as she was. Byron had not taken the death of his wife well. Despite being known by many in the castle walls as a recluse, he found himself looking for even greater seclusion than he had had before. In the early years of Embry's life, she was cared for more by Tila, the servant, then by her father.

When Embry was two, Byron recieved a vision in his sleep. He saw himself, on a great battlefield, with all his former colleagues from the war. They stood at arms, facing an army of Orcs fiercer then any he had ever seen. They were outnumbered, five to one, and he knew that here, on this battlefield, he would make his last stand. As the Orcs charged, he pushed his fear down, determined to take as many as he could before his inevitable death.

Then in utter horror, he saw Embry standing inbetween the two armies, except she was a bit older. She appeared to be around ten years old. He screamed at her to run to him, and get away from the river of death that the Orcs pushed down upon their small band. No matter how loud he screamed, she couldn't hear him, so he ran, with all his might to get to her. No matter how hard he ran though, he knew he would never get there in time.

As the Orcs bore down on her defenseless position, he saw her turn, wink at him and then turn to face the Orcs. Her deep, brunette hair, bounced in the wind as she turned and her little body, covered in a robe much too big for her little frame. And then he saw her lift her hands, as the sleeves of the robe fell revealing two small hands, clenched tightly. He looked at her in wonder as her hand opened and a shield of flame enveloped her. She stood amidst the flame, and yet none of it touched her at all. She began to mumble words under her breath, and in the last, he heard her yell, "Be gone!" as a huge tidal wave of flame erupted from her hands towards the Orcs. It must have been a mile wide, and 10 feet tall, and not a single Orc was able to get out from its intense heat. The few who managed to run from the flame and avoid death, merely ran away for their lives, sprinting to stay ahead of the inferno.

Again, Embry turned to her father, and as all the men of the Stormwind Royal Army cheered her miraculous victory, she merely looked at her dad, and winked again. Then, Byron woke up, soaked in sweat, lying on his bed, and he knew what he must do. The next day, he packed up all his belongings, and departed for deeper seclusion. He knew his daughter carried a great power, and that if he had been gifted with a vision of it's potential, surely somewhere, the evil also knew of her existence. He determined to hide her, so that nobody would ever find her, until she was ready.

That is how he ended up in Amber Ridge, living amongst Teregan and the other farmers in the small village. As Teregan grew up, he had developed a close friendship with Embry. Despite the two years difference in their ages, Embry had always treated him well, and he had come to admire her greatly. He often found himself mimicking her every move, wanting to emulate her in every way he knew how. Teregan also looked up to Byron, but in a very different way. He respected the grizzled mage, but he also feared him, and was careful to not to cross him whenever he saw Byron nearby.

Teregan had only once ever seen Byron use his abilities as a mage. It was a very stormy night, and the rain had drenched all their homes, and the chill of the wind had invaded their very souls. On that fateful stormy night, Teregan had snuck out of his parents house, intent on going to see his dear friend Embry. As he approaced her house, he saw a dance of flames unlike anything he had ever seen. The flame appeared like a snake striking in many different directions all at once. As he got close enough to see the source of the flames, he was shocked to see Byron, manipulating the flames with his hands. He no longer appeared as an old man though. He moved with a swift fluidity that Teregan would have thought impossible of a man his age. His tensed muscles seemed bigger, and more pronounced then he had ever seen. Seeing Byron, shirtless with soaked pants, playing with the fire, despite all the rain that engulfed them, he had gained a profound and even deeper respect for the man he had before merely refferred to as the father of his friend and leader of their tribe.

Then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Embry sitting in the corner of their yard, her clothes drenched, her hair plastered to her face, crying. His heart went out to her, and he wished he could heal her grieving soul. He then heard the booming voice of Byron, "Embry, get up, there is no room for weakness with the enemy. If you show weakness, they will devour you...NOW, GET UP!"

She merely sat there, continuing to cry. The flames that danced off the tip of Byron's hand immediately receded back as if they had been an optical illusion of Teregan's mind. Teregan saw Byron walk to his daughter, and pull her up by her hand. In the howling wind of the storm, he managed to hear him say softly to his daughter, "I am sorry, I have worked you too hard again. Let's go inside and get you warmed up by the fire."

As she stood up with help of her father's hand, all she could manage to mutter was, "yes, daddy."

"My young one, the evil comes, and we must be prepared..." His face got dark as if those very words had harrowed his soul, then continued, "but it is enough for one night. You have progressed far more quickly then I had expected. You will get there soon, don't give up hope."

The two of them walked into the home, silhouette's of a very old man hobbling back into the house, with a broken form of a girl, shuffling in behind him. Teregan felt he had intruded on something that he was not meant to have seen, and so without bothering to even speak to the two, he made his way home.

Prologue

Tereson hobbled down the cobbled roads of Ironforge. He did not have the balance and dexterity he had once had. He was old, and knew that his days must soon come to an end. He had lived a long and full life, and was content with the knowledge that he had left none of his ambitions undone.

Tereson was a gnome. He barely came to the waist of a normal human, but had never felt hampered by his slight stature. His graying hair was hard to find nowadays, except in his lengthy mustache and thick bushy beard. The bags under his eyes seemed larger then his eyes, and by the limp in his step, it was obvious he had endured a life of hardship. He carried a cane in his right hand, a cane for which he held a special affinity to.

After nearly tripping on a small pebble in the street, he placed the cane down to balance himself. As he neared the entrance to the Explorer's League corridor in Ironforge, he saw the remains of a pterodactyl, hanging from the ceiling, and remembered the awe he had felt as a young boy, seeing those remains. He headed into the main corridor of the Explorer's League hall, and headed towards a table topped with many books.

The books were old and worn, and appeared as if they could disintegrate into dust at any moment. With the exception of one of the books, they had all been penned by Tereson himself, and the one that hadn't had its own special significance. Tereson climbed up onto the table and sat down. In the center of the room, sitting in a circle, surrounding the table, sat 8 gnomish young ones. Tereson had taken it upon himself to train them in the culture and history of the alliance. Before opening his mouth to begin the lecture of the day, a young one by the name of Cogsprint spoke up.

"Please tell us another story, Master Tereson."

Tereson had been in the habit of late of teaching the children the alliance's history through stories, but he had withheld one story in particular, fearful that the young ones were not old enough to truly appreciate its lessons yet. He eyed Cogsprint steadily, and made up his mind that the time had come.

"I have a very special story for all of you today." He said.

The children looked at him with gnome-eyed wonder, as if they were in a trance.

"My name is Tereson, and I am an honorary son or Teregan, the great mage of Gilneas, who founded of the very order we serve in, and I believe it is time you heard his story."

Tereson grabbed an old book with a red cover, opened it up gingerly, and began to read...