The Keep

The Dark Portal loomed before her, massive and shimmering with a brownish-green image. The swamp on the other side was dank, bugs flittering in the grass while large scaled beasts shimmied close to the ground. Kali stood tall, holding her younger sister in her arms, her blue eyes wide with wonder. Her skin was still brown, unlike most of those around her, her hair a dark black. She stood wearing very little clothing, her body tiny and bony from lack of food.

Her little sister was a mirrored image of her, though her skin was even less green than Kali’s, and her hair finer and a little lighter. She held her childishly in her arms, holding her to face the portal as well. Gul’dan spoke at the front, though Kali wasn’t listening. Even though her parents were devout followers of his, she got a bad vibe from him. She stared wide-eyed as the blue skinned draenei fell bleeding on Gul’dan’s blade and an invisible shiver ran up her spine. Her stomach growled as she returned her gaze to the shimmering image of what they called Azeroth.

Her parents stood behind her proudly, her father grasping both of her shoulders a little too tightly for comfort, though she was used to it. Her mother looked up at him, then back at Gul’dan. She did not bother to take the baby back from the arms of her child, too concerned with what would come on the other side of the portal. Humans, they were told, ruled the world, and would put up a strong fight. The warlocks of the Horde were needed, and her father and mother would proudly oblige, thirsting for the blood they had been denied for so long.

Draenor was dying a slow death, corrupted by the fel the orcs indulged in, but they were promised a new, clean land with riches beyond their imagining, and power beyond that. She knew her father would step through the portal and slaughter all in his sight, and her mother would silently follow in his footsteps.

She couldn’t say her home was an unhappy one, but there was something lingering there that her young mind couldn’t quite comprehend. The silences were more filled with meaning than Kali could ever comprehend. She knew that it wasn’t typical that she cared more for Lae than her mother, having taken up the role of motherhood as soon as Lae stopped breast feeding. Her mother had forced her to stop early, as well, having never quite taken to the child. Kali, on the other hand, adored her, often playing games with her and sneaking her food when her mother denied it, saying there was only enough for the three.

Kali knew that she was getting to an age where the warlocks had force grown others. She was grateful that whatever happened to those strange children forced to be in adult bodies did not happen to her. There was no need for soldiers after the Draenei were slaughtered, but she looked sadly back on her friends that seemed as though their bodies were too large and clunky for them. She feared that they would once again resort to such things through the Portal, though she knew better than to voice her concerns.

Her father had a temper that both she and her mother had learned to placate through silence and agreement. Even Lae, no more than a babe, had learned to silence her cries when he was in the area, becoming calm and choking back her cries of hunger. He was powerful and would often duel, winning the clan food, glory and acknowledgement within the Horde, but still things were scarce.

He clutched at her shoulders, massaging them roughly, pressing too hard into her spine and causing her to cringe, forcing her body to remain still as he leaned down and spoke roughly in her ear, “excited to bring glory to our Clan, to our people?”

She nodded, knowing better than to disagree. “Yes, Sir,” she spoke with confidence, hugging Lae closer to her chest.

She had been born during the fighting when the Horde needed soldiers, and she knew her father had hoped for a boy. Nonetheless, he trained her hard. By the time she knew to walk, she was familiar with wooden swords and shields, that the blue skinned people were her enemy, and that Gul’dan was the saviour of her people. It didn’t change her instincts to feel badly around Gul’dan and knew the electricity in the air didn’t carry a good feeling to her.

Grot was her salvation, however. His parents were clanless peons, doing odd jobs for the Horde, and they quickly took to one another behind her parent’s backs. By the time they were five, they would wrestle, she always winning, pinning him into the red dirt of Hellfire, grinning wickedly down at him. It was to him she confessed her fears, concerns and bad feelings of what was going on. He stood at the edge of the large gathering, she knew, and they had planned to stick together through the portal. Because of the changes within the Horde, the lack of a clan wasn’t as embarrassing as it would have been ten years earlier, but he was still looked at with a certain disdain from others, especially her father who still held on to their clan’s pride.

The Blackrock Clan was not large, but they supported Gul’dan unquestioningly. They quickly took to their new Citadel, practicing night and day for any possible skirmish, often sending out scouting parties to look for a fight, participating in the dueling, and loudly supporting the Legion. Her father had once been a proud shaman, but quickly got the taste of fel magic in his blood, eagerly taking to the aid of his tiny imp minion and conniving her mother to follow in his footsteps, even though she preferred the infernal beings constructed from rock and fel.

Their eyes were red by the time they stood at the portal entrance, having fed on the blood of demons willingly and enjoying the strength and power they felt they had. Kali had been spared the blood because of her age, as was her little sister, and Grot had been denied the blood. The group of orcs let out a large war cry at Gul’dan’s words of encouragement, of death, of destruction, and they stormed through the portal. Nervously, Kali followed, holding tightly to her sister. She tentatively stuck a foot through before being pushed by the shoulders through by her father. She winced as she walked through, feeling as though her body was being slowly torn apart and put back together, as though time had slowed substantially. She lost her footing on the other side, catching herself in time to spin herself around and fall on her back instead of on her face, clutching Lae to her chest.

She gasped at the warm and wet air of the Swamp, so unlike the dry air of Hellfire, clutching on to the wet dirt below her gratefully. She stayed sitting on her bottom as she watched the orc army pass through the portal, many of them quickly forming hunting parties and storming any prey they could see. Her eyes widened as she saw them take down large cats and some of those reptilian creatures quickly. Many of them cut hungrily into the beasts and ate the flesh raw, their fangs and faces quickly becoming covered in the blood and excrement of the beasts, and snarled at one another for another piece. Gul’dan held up his hands as he watched the hunger induced chaos, smiling a little at the lust in their eyes.

“These beasts are nothing compared to those of the humans! You take these beasts down easily, but the humans will give you a fight, so feed your fill, and we will prepare to take this land for the orcs!” he shouted, his own red eyes flashing hungrily. He had his own plans for this world, of course, but he would need his army well fed to succeed.

Kali slowly got up, walking around the area and watching the groups of orcs killing and eating, before looking around for her father. She found him not far from where she fell, standing there with a wide smile on his face. Sensing her there, he grabbed her shoulder roughly, jostling her too and fro before smiling back at the land before them. “We should get some food, Sir. Lae hasn’t eaten in days.” He grunted, looking around for his wife. Locating her, he grabbed her wrist and dragged her towards one of the cat like creatures while Kali started up a small bonfire using some of the twigs and stones around the area.

She laid Lae next to her, cooing down at her before rolling over to her side, rubbing her stomach, kissing her pudgy brown cheek. “It’s goin’ to be okay, Lae. Got a big ol’ world for us now, an’ plenty of food.” She smiled down on the child with motherly affection, smiling wider as Lae grabbed her finger in response, kicking her feet and cooing back happily as she always did when Kali seemed pleased.