Lo'kni Thunderhoof: By the Fire.

It's happy hour, the alcohol is flowing. It's time to pull up a tankard of ale, bottle of wine for the ladies and regail tales of heroism and grandeur.

Topic/Postby Sigmard » 22 Dec 2011, 03:31

Lo'kni Thunderhoof: By the Fire.

My first stab at some sort of RP backstory here. This may not be entirely plausible with Horde Lore or the like, but Lo'kni is very old and possibly a touch senile. It covers any mistakes, trust me. So there! Probably only of interest to Bannerites anyhow. Anyhow, enjoy the wall of text!

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Amidst the thick canopy of treetops and lush growth that enveloped the section of the Barrens known as the Overgrowth were a pair of tents and a campfire pitched close to the edge of the unusual forest. Sat around the campfire was a silver haired Kal'dorei man and an elderly looking Tauren, his braided hair adorned with numerous colourful feathers, bones, tiny wooden carvings and stray strands of grass. They had both been sat at the fire for hours now, barely saying a word to each other. They cooked seperate meals, but no hostility was shown between the two, but they both felt the awkward silence. It was the Kal'dorei who decided to break apart the noiselessness of the night.

"Of all the people that have come to help me in this cause, you weren't one I ever expected to see again, Lo'kni", said the Kal'dorei elf in the orcish tongue. Lokni stared at him for a moment, weighing up in his mind why he had decided to speak.
"These are our lands. That is reason enough to try and correct this overwhelming blight upon it." replied Lokni, looking around at the 7 foot tall flowers that grew under the shade of the trees. "It surprises me little that the other races aren't exactly racing to come to our aid."
"You mean your companions?" the elf asked.
"Companions? That's a generous term to give them. They are more like my... " the tauren replied, mulling over with great thought to find the correct term to label the other members of the Red Banner, "...responsibility."
"Yes. I was somewhat shocked to see your group approach. Forsaken and Sin'dorei... if you were not with them, I would have thought they were assassins sent to end my life."
"It may still come to that, Naralex." Lokni stated grimly. "There are others in our group, but sometimes other matters crop up that require their attention." Lokni smiled a little at the thought, pondering if the Banner's friendly troll druid was still chasing around a potential interest they came across several weeks back or not. "Still, death and destruction seem to be where we excel, despite working to the contrary."
"I... see." Naralex mumbled, somewhat disturbed by this revelation. "But it cannot be all bad, surely? I assume Aiyana is with this... Red Banner as well?" A look of pain came across Lokni's eyes, letting out a tired sigh to the silent night air, his thoughts running through the final moments of his mate.
"She is with the Earth-mother now." Lokni finally replied.
"That is saddening to hear. She was a bright student of nature." Lokni merely nodded in agreement, the bones entwined in his braids clinking together with the motion. "So I suppose you are with this group because your children are of age now. Storn and Taini, yes?"
"Indeed. Storn has... chosen his own path. I pray the ancestors are treating him well." Lokni spoke with some bitterness. "As for Taini... she is with Aiyana. I suppose in a way, she was why my love died". Naralex held his tongue, unable to find any words that would be of any comfort to the elderly shaman. But curiousity crept into his mind, and soon showed on his face.
"You wish to know why." Lokni asked a few moments later, noticing the hesitation with the elf's reply. Naralex merely nodded in response. Lokni began to recount the times to the listening druid.


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A few years before, before the great Cataclysm caused by Deathwing, Lokni and his family lived in a moderate sized tent upon the middle rise of Thunder Bluff. It was mid-morning, the day was bright and clear and inside the tent Taini was helping her mother Aiyana tend to a few unusual plants which sat atop the table in the main room. Of course, rooms were not seperated here by thick walls of stone but by a veil of leather and so this house only had three rooms: the main part and two bedrooms, one for Lokni and Aiyana, and the other for Taini and Storn.

Both Aiyana and Taini were pale skinned Tauren, having a thin frame and milky white fur. They wore tribal robes and necklaces, with a single gemstone in each. An amber stone for Aiyana in a silver necklace, and an emerald for Taini in a golden necklace. They were taking cuttings of a few plants that were in clay pots.

"Where did these plants come from, mother?" Taini asked curiously, taking a yellow and purple coloured flower head from the top of a plant, placing them inside a pestle and mortar.
"Stranglethorn, little one. They've been known to provide rejuvinating properties for the trolls there. I am eager to see how effective it is." Aiyana replied, "Don't cut too many, we won't be needing that much."
Lokni entered the room, emerging from the flap from his room, stretching out his limbs and yawning widely.
"Did you sleep well, father?" Taini asked, smiling brightly.
"Well enough. Just not long enough." he replied, taking a small bowl of berries from the table, tossing a few into his mouth at a time. "You're still working on this cure?"
"Yes, Lo'kni. It's very important that we find a cure for the plague that curses our Forsaken allies." Aiyana replied.
"By curing them, you will kill them. I find the best method is to whack them with a big stick..."
"...or strike them with the fury of storms, yes dear, I know you do." Aiyana finished for him. "But it is not their fault they are what they are. Besides, it is not just for them I find this cure but for all the other life that become afflicted by it. At early stages, this cure could save their life. Now grind up the pettles if you would, Taini." Taini proceeded to do just this, looking up to her father.
"Father..."
"Oh for the last time, yes, you are allowed to see him when he appears. I wasn't drunk the last five times you asked." Lokni grumpily replied, shoving another mouthful of berries into his mouth.
"....Father..." Taini sighed, grinding down the pettles into a fine dust.
"Why don't you tell him about this job you have found, Taini?" Aiyana suggested, smiling encouragingly.
"What job?"
"She's found work with a company who are in need of healers. I think it's a very good idea, as she would get to practice her skills in the field. Or at least in Orgrimmar."
"Orgrimmar? Out in the field? Oh no, my daughter isn't ready for that!"
"Lo'kni, she's of age and she is incredibly skilled, I'd say so even if I weren't her mother. She is ready, and she should go." Aiyana argued.
"I think it's a stupid idea. Who knows what those orcs will put her up to!"
"...Father!" Taini shouted.
"Please Taini, you do not know what these orcs have been like lately..." Lokni stated, chewing vigourously.
"No, Father! That bowl isn't your meal! That one is!" Taini pointed to a similar bowl on the table, filled with a variety of colourful berries. Lokni looked from the bowl in his hand to the one on the table.
"Oh... I thought this wasn't tasting too pleasent. So... what have I been eating?" Lokni asked. Taini looked worried, but Aiyana just chuckled loudly.
"Erk-berries." answered Aiyana after a few moments of laughter. Lokni had a look of discomfort on his face.
"Why are they called that, mother?" Taini asked, looking ponderous. A strange noise came from Lokni.
Parrrrrp.
"Oh no!" exclaimed Taini with worry, but Aiyana just laughed some more.
"Don't worry, they're not deadly, but I better find something to give you, Lo'kni." Aiyana smiled, getting up from the table and opening a large chest at the side of the room, taking out a small vial of clear, thick liquid from within, handing it to Lokni. At this moment, the front 'door' flapped a few times. This was akin to knocking on a solid door, so Taini opened it up. Outside stood a tall, broad brown Tauren, adorned in mail armour, emblazoned with symbols of the sun upon it. Taini giggled brightly and turned back to the room.
"He's here! May I.." she started.
"Yes Taini, you may go. Enjoy yourself." replied her mother.
"But don't stray too far from the Bluff! Stay within Mulgore!" shouted Lokni as Taini ran outside. He sighed heavily, looking up to his love.
"It's her life, Lo'kni, and he seems very nice. Sensible. I know he's a Sunwalker but..."
"It's not that." Lokni mumbled.
Rurrrrrrrrp.
Aiyana giggled, gesturing to Lokni to drink the vial.
"Why did you have to put both of them on the table!?" he remarked grumpily.
"Well, you didn't buy us another table for this house for me to work on, so we have to use this one. You could have asked before eating, and don't say we should work on the floor... you would have just stepped on them instead."
He sighed heavily, knowing he would not win this arguement. His stomach was already feeling a bit better from the vial however, as he began to tuck into his morning meal. Aiyana placed a hand on his shoulder, while the other began to pick errant pieces of grass from Lokni's hair and braids.
"How do you ever get this much stuck in your mane..."
"The trees should be taller! It's not my fault."
"Oh Lo'kni. Whatever would I do without you to keep me smiling?" she giggled, placing a kiss on his cheek.

An hour later, Taini and the brown Tauren, Etu, were strolling along the plains of Mulgore, travelling east. Etu had a pack on his pack, as it was his idea they should go for a meal out in the wilds, with no one to disturb them. Holding hands, they made their way eastwards for an hour more, until sight of the gatehouse of Mulgore came in sight, barely more then the foundations. With sights of Alliance scouts more frequent in Camp Taurajo, Mulgore was being fortified to prevent the capital coming under threat.
"Etu, where are we going?" she asked. "It's not much further, is it? I'm hungry already." He turned to her, taking her other hand in his, looking shyly at her.
"Well, it is, actually. Quite a way" he admitted. "It's in the Barrens."
"The Barrens?! No... no no, I can't go there! I promised my father we wouldn't stray from Mulgore..."
"Where we're going isn't a dangerous place. There's a orc holding nearby, and we can stick to the roads till we get to the holding. There's a wonderful lake there, and I know you'd love it! Besides, I can handle anything in the Barrens. With you at my side, we'd be perfectly safe. Looking out for each other." Taini bit her lip, her tail swayed slightly. She knew her father wouldn't like it, but she felt safe with Etu.
"Would we be back before sundown?" she asked.
"Of course, we could spend a few hours there and still be home for that!" he grinned. She laughed and squeezed his hands, and soon they set off along the road. By midday, they had started making their way north along the road through the Barrens. A few hours more, her legs felt very sore, but they had finally arrived.

The Forgotten Pools lay before them, an Oasis brimming with life. She sat down in the grass, running her hands through it, as he lay out a cloth and took out several packs of various foods and a bottle of Eversong wine. She had to admit, she did love the sight and smells of the place. They spent the next few hours there, talking and laughing, enjoying the sights, the food and each other's company. But time ticked on and upon seeing where the sun was in the sky, she knew they had to make their way back. They were putting all the things away when a snap of a twig caught Taini's attention. She looked around, but couldn't see anything.
"Did you hear that, Etu?" she asked as he held his hand up. His eyes scanning the surroundings. He pulled out his sword and shield and slowly approached a nearby tree when an arrow flew out and hit his shield.
"Taini, run! Get back to the holding!"
"What?! No, not without you!"
"I said RUN!"
Numerous centaur charged out from the cover of bushes and trees, all towards them, bows, spears and swords readied and pointed towards them...

The sun started to set over Thunderbluff. Lokni stood by the lifts at the edge of the Lower Rise, gazing down the road, his hair gently swaying in the evening breeze. Aiyana walked up to his side, taking a hold of his arm in her hands, leaning her head against it.
"Sundown", he grimly stated.
"She's in love, Lo'kni. She's probably lost track of time. I can hardly blame her for being late."
"No, she's more considerate then that. If it were Storn...". He paused for a moment when he saw that mentioning their son's name had upset Aiyana. He decided to let that matter settle for the time being. "This is not like her."
"No, being late is not like a young woman enthralled by a lovely young bull." Lokni snorted at the comment. "Lo'kni, she'll be back soon. You'll see. Come home with me, and we'll have our evening meal. We can wait for her there."
"I will wait here. I will not miss out on this chance to berate this... Etu." Aiyana sighed, but started stroking his arm.
"Fine. If the husband will not come home for his meal, then the meal must come to the husband. I will bring it here and we shall eat as we watch." She lightly tapped Lokni's arm before setting off home. As the sun sank down behind the horizon, Aiyana returned with a basket with their evening meal in.

Together they ate, but Lokni's eyes never shifted from the path or the lift. An hour later, as the stars brightened in the night sky, an elderly tauren warrior ascended the lift.
"Hail Lo'kni Thunderhoof! You would not guess who I saw passing through the site of the gatehouse this afternoon.", the elderly warrior greeted.
"Who?", Lokni knew the answer, but hoped that he was wrong in this more then anything else.
"Your daughter, along with some young tauren Sunwalker."
"That IDIOT! I told them to STAY in Mulgore!". He growled in anger as he stormed off home, Aiyana close behind him. The elderly warrior seemed bewildered by all this, but thought it best not to ask further about it. Lokni started gathering his pack and his travelling gear, along with his weapons. Aiyana started to do the same.
"I will snap his neck once I get my hands on him!"
"Lo'kni, calm down! Let's find them first, then we'll deal with it." Aiyana felt upset, since her daughter had promised not to leave Mulgore. "You're not leaving until I know you won't do anything rash, my love."
"Rash?! I'll beat him like a kodo hide!"
"Lo'kni! Calm down!"
As much as he wanted to leave, he knew Aiyana had her ways of preventing him. He always was easy to aggrovate when angered, and so it was a full hour before the pair managed to leave Thunderbluff, both of them heading straight for the gatehouse. It was almost the middle of the night by the time they reached the gatehouse. They asked the soldiers there if they'd seen the pair when a messenger arrived there from the north.

"Yes, I remember seeing them. They headed north, to the Crossroads. I believe they mentioned heading to a lake up there. The only lake that far north would be the Forgotten Pools, close to a hold west of the Crossroads." the soldier continued as the orc messenger arrived.
"Patrols are to be doubled immediately! Centaur have attacked the hold west of the Crossroads." Aiyana grasped tightly onto Lokni's arm at the words.
"Did you see a young Tauren couple up there, orc?" Lo'kni asked abruptly.
"No. All I know is several of our patrols were attacked and a couple of our forward scouts have yet to return from their duty" the orc confirmed. Lokni bowed briefly before the orc before rushing off north with his wife. An hour had passed when they reached the Crossroads. Soldiers of the Horde were clearly in action, loud shouts and commands disrupting the usual calm of the night. They asked a few soldiers about their child, but none had seen her, or the young Sunwalker. Shortly afterwards, they headed off to the hold, down the western road.

When they arrived, they saw a group of Horde soldiers moving a cart into the hold, a large lump upon it covered with a linen tarp. They rushed to the soldiers.
"Stay back, citizens. This area is not safe."
"Please sirs, my daughter was seen going into this area today, and I must know where she is." Aiyana pleaded with the soldiers, as Lokni went to the tarp and lifted it up. Underneath was a barely clothed corpse, a tauren male. Numerous cuts, lacerations and several arrows protruded from his bloodied remains. But gazing upon his battered face, he knew exactly who this tauren was.
"Aiyana. It's Etu." he stated coldly.
"Hey, you can't just rumma..." the orc soldier tried to protest, turning away from Aiyana. He was almost knocked over when she rushed past him to her husband. She gazed upon the body, staggering against Lokni at the horror of the sight.
"By the ancestors..." she whispered. "May they guide this poor soul to the Earth Mother's side."
"I should be careful what I wish for." remarked Lokni, turning back to the soldiers. "Where did you find him?" The orc soldier looked enraged by the audacity of this newcomers.
"Why should I tell you? You'd only get yourselves killed!" the orc barked at them. Lokni, his temper reaching boiling point, hoisted the orc up from the ground by the neck of his tunic, letting his legs dangle helplessly in the air.
"WHERE?!"
"To... to the... north, by the... lake..." gargled the orc. Lokni tossed him back down to the ground roughly, sprinting off towards the lake as fast as his elderly legs dared to carry him, Aiyana in close pursuit. The orc shakily got up to his feet, as a troll soldier helped dust him off.
"Those... taurens! I thought the blood elves were pompous!" growled the orc, looking down upon his uniform. The troll soldier sniffed twice, looking at the orc's uniform.
" 'ey mon, I smell piss. Ja got a liddle scared dere, mon?" he commented, before bursting out laughing as the orc ran off to get a change of clothing.

By the lake, Lokni and Aiyana came upon the site of a battle by the lake, the same site that Etu and Taini were eating earlier that day. Searching around, they found a couple of Etu's items... and one of Taini's.
"They wouldn't leave these things, Lo'kni." shivered Aiyana, still in shock from the sight of Etu.
"No. Centaur are usually very thorough with their looting. They must have been in a rush..."
"I didn't mean that!", she gasped. Lokni lifted up his hand to silence his wife, gesturing for her to approach. He had noticed in the grass a small trail of blood upon the grass, amongst a heavily trampled trail leading off to the north.
"Someone ran from here wounded... and judging by the number of tracks leading from here..." Lokni began as he turned to look Aiyana in her eyes.
"...they were chasing someone. They were chasing..."
"Taini."

They didn't need to say any more. They could hear Horde soldiers approaching from behind them, but the need to find their daughter was all that mattered now. They rushed off, following the trail. They moved past the nearby hill, further north, when several more sets of tracks seemed to cut off the trail from the east. The entire ground upon the featureless plain was well trodden, numerous splatters of blood lay about. Arrows embedded into the ground were scattered all about, amongst a few broken spears, scraps of armour... scraps of clothing. Aiyana picked up one piece that seemed to stick out to her, caught upon a jagged rock. It was soaked with blood.
"Oh no... Earth-mother help us... this is from Taini's robe!" she screamed. Lokni looked around at all the tracks on the ground, trying to ignore the blood splatters. They seemed to be going around in a circle numerous times, but several seemed to split off in various directions, leading away from the spot. The most prominant feature was the obvious removal of the top soil, leading off in a track to the west.
"She was caught here. She's been dragged off to the west." he stated, his voice barely containing his rage.
"She... she's been captured?!" Aiyana asked hopefully.
"Let's find out." He pointed off to the west, then with his wife ran off in that direction. It was not long before they could see several darkened silhouettes huddled around in a circle. As they approached, they could hear the giggling... the cackling.

"Hyenas!" Lokni screamed, charging at the group. One of the hyenas ran towards Lokni, sensing an easy kill. Little could it have known the surge of static running through Lokni's body as it approached. Moments later, it felt a thunderous surge through it's body, catapulting the poor creature helplessly through the air, it's fur burning from the energy of the shock. The rest of the creatures fled at the sound of the crack of lightning, not to mention the sight of the lone hyena's body flying towards them, thudding lifelessly next to them. Lokni and Aiyana approached the site to see the what the Hyenas were so enthralled with.
Laying upon the floor in front of them was the remains of a female tauren. Small and thin framed, a vast majority of the upper body, neck and face missing, blood dried into the short grass all around them. What remained had it's fur matted thick with blood, the limbs barely hanging together by the sinew. The body wasn't even clothed and the flies were already descending upon the remains. Lo'kni knelt down over the remains, Aiyana's legs gave way from underneath her as she crashed to the floor, sobbing helplessly.
"Tell me it's not true, Lo'kni. That it's not real!" she sobbed as he looked over the body. A twinkle from the ground close by caught his eye. He reached over and pulled out from the dust of the ground, as rays of the dawn began to shoot across the plains, making it glimmer brightly in his hand: a golden necklace, stained in blood, with a single emerald from it. He held it up to Aiyana so she could see.
"No... not my sweet Taini..." she wailed, tears streaming down her face. Lokni cuddled his love as tightly as he could, fighting back his grief, trying to stay strong. Her agony echoed across the plains for all to hear. Barely minutes afterwards, Horde soldiers came across them both, to see them both mourning the loss of their child.


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The night elf's eyes reflected the dancing flames of the fire as Lokni sighed deeply, the pain of the moment filling his body. The shaman closed his eyes, feeling the sting of his tears, sniffing deeply.
"You need not say anymore, good shaman." Naralex offered.
"I must. You knew Aiyana, so you should know what became of her. It was the worst time of my life to return to Thunderbluff after all of that. We held a funeral pyre for her remains a few days later, after all her friends knew what happened. She had a great many, and they helped us gather up her things, sort through it all. But it had broken the heart of my beloved. It was barely a month later when she caught a terrible illness, and despite our best efforts, her body and spirit refused to fight anymore. I still feel it was grief that killed her."
"Grief kills a great many, Lo'kni." Naralex stated somewhat coldly. "How did you cope?"
"I'm not sure I did. I remember spending months hunting down centaur packs, unleashing all my rage and anguish upon them. Then with the Shattering, the death of Cairne and the Grimtotem assault, it all felt a bit much for me. I don't remember much from then, but it must have been at least a year of grieving and little else."
"But Storn still lives?"
"He does. But he was not there when I burned the remains of his sister. Or his mother. I will not speak of that."
"I see."

The pair stared into the fire for a great many moments. The elf then looked upon the moon in the night sky and spoke again.
"There's one thing that still puzzles me. How did you join this... Red Banner... after all this."
"It was when I finally had the courage and will to look through my daughter's possessions. Amongst them was a contract for her job. It was a trainee position for a healer... but after a few years, it also mentioned that she would have to sign up to a military company known as the 'Red Banner'. She had signed it willingly, and yet... I felt compelled to uphold her promise. I'm glad she never lived to see exactly what it was like. I am not sure she would have coped with it any better then I have."
Lokni grinned, and both of them laughed loudly. But Lokni's laugh became a cough, then a yawn.
"I am sorry. I fear I must rest... I probably should have been asleep hours ago."
"Do not mention it, Lo'kni. Please, feel free to use the tent for shelter."

Lokni nodded his respect, and entered the tent. A simple fur lay upon the ground inside, but it was comfort enough for the tauren's aged body. As he lay down, he ran his hands through his braids, before pulling them close in front of his face. He gazed upon them, past the feathers, the bones, wooden carvings and other assorted trinkets... to look upon two gemstones. In his left hand was an amber, with a silver chain wound tightly into his hair, as the right held an emerald, tied to his braid by a golden chain. He hoped that the Earth-mother was letting them rest better then he was. He bought the gemstones to his mouth, kissed each one in turn, then rested them lightly upon the ground, before drifting off into a deep sleep.
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Sigmard
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Topic/Postby Tiermaya » 23 Dec 2011, 00:04

Poor Lo'kni. Heart breaking stuff. Good read, though.
Serendipity wrote:****ing Royal Mail! They're about as much use as a condom made of tissue paper.
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