Escape from the Hold

((Written with Renan))

The air within the Violet Hold hums with barely restrained arcane energy, the wards and barriers bathing the red brickwork in pale blue light. Cells of all sizes are set back into the circular chamber which reaches up hundreds (if not thousands) of feet overhead.

A few guards pace back and forth on the ground level, crackling staves held at their sides as the inspect each cell. Above them, even more guards float and glide between cells on enchanted discs.

A pair of guards, one wearing a crisp new robe, approach one of the lower cells. The obviously senior guard stops and sighs, gesturing to the small chamber. “And this is prisoner 2468391. She was brought in last night for...”

The barrier flares and stretches as the occupant of the cell slams against it. “Fer nothin’! Fer takin’ a damn drink! I dun'no why you’d throw me in ‘ere for tha!” Macee snarls, pressing her muzzle against the straining energy field.

The senior guard, clearly frustrated by the prospect of repeating an argument, whirls to face Macee. “A scrying basin! You were drinking from a magisters mana infused scrying basin!”

Macee grins a toothy grin as she realizes he’s taken the bait. Again. “I thought it’d be fizzier. Ya 'no, more bubbles?”

The guard shakes with rage for a moment before stomping away, the junior guard smiling and waving shyly at her before hurrying after her instructor.

Macee flops onto her back, arms and legs splayed out and her tongue poking out the end of her muzzle as she makes a long, annoying ‘pthbbbbbbt’ noise at the retreating guards. She looks slowly around her cell and sighs, frowning as she pulls a bundled up scarf from her tunic. She regards the soft fabric for a moment before holding it to her nose and inhaling, the familiar scent of Kan calming and refocusing her instantly.

Wrapping the scarf around her neck she rolls backward and to her feet, her keen eyes inspecting the stone walls for faults or seams. “Time ta go.”

The cell which holds Macee isn't large by any means, but there is more than enough room for her even when in Worgen form. The walls curve as the rise, forming an arch at the ceiling. The chamber is spartan save for a simple (and very old) bedroll on the floor and an enchanted light fixture on the back wall. The shimmering magical barrier which holds her is solid to the touch; painless when a small amount of pressure is exerted against it, discomforting increasing on par with the force of the contact. A small grate with no discernable purpose, roughly one foot by two feet, sits at the base of the back wall beneath the light. A drain in the middle of the floor serves to drain liquid so...what is that one for?

Macee kicks the bedroll aside. She wasn't going to sleep on that. No way, no how!   Clawed hands roam along the walls of the chamber, feeling for any loose brick.  When her trip around the room was done, she pauses to stare at the grate. Hmm.  Head tilts to the side as she squats before it. Reaching forward, she grips the grate, giving it a firm pull.

As her clawed fingers reach through the grate she can feel the cool air against her fur, being pulled out through the openings. It's a faint vacuum, so much so that she hadn't noticed it until now. The metal grating itself is snugly set into the wall but there are no bolts or fasteners. In this situation, the deterrent to escape is the size of the brick-lined shaft beyond. Far too small for the menagerie of beasts, demons, and monsters held within the Violet Hold.

She stands and moves to the barrier that holds her inside. Peering out past the barrier, she looks for whereabouts of the guards.  When she's sure they are out of earshot, she moves back to the grate.  Flopping down onto the ground before it, back paws poised before the metal before she pulled her legs back toward her chest. With a mighty exhale of breath, she kicks her legs out, feet smashing firmly against the grate. If she couldn't pull it out, maybe she could kick it in.

With a few quick kicks, the metal gives way, the edges of the grate grinding against the smooth stone which makes up the Hold. Macee manages to catch the plate between her feet before it falls, but just barely. Outside the cell, the guards don't seem to have noticed the sound amidst the assortment of noises coming from the other cells.

Quickly leaning forward, she grips the grate firmly in her hands. She heaves a huge sigh as she pulls the grate into her lap, that would have been bad news if it fell in. Readjusting her body, she leans the grate against the opening just to it looks like it's not been touched. Rolling onto her side, she once again checks on the guards.

The pair of guards from before is now at the far end of the ground floor. The senior guard points first at the young trainee and then at a spot near one of the larger cells. He then summons a flying disc and zips into the air and out of sight. The young guard seems to mock her teacher's mannerisms before shaking her head and assuming her post. The two guards, one on each side of the main entrance, seem to be quite bored and distracted by whatever they are talking about. A series of chimes echo through the Hold and all the magical lights dim, the ambient light dropping but the illumination from the barriers increasing noticeably.

With a soft snort, she stands and looks at the barrier.  It must be bedtime, why else would the lights dim?  With a shrug, she turns back toward the grate. She would make no move until someone checked on her. They needed to know that she was still safely inside her 'cage'.

A fair bit of time passes before anything of note happens...until Macee feels the entire floor beneath her shake. A heavy pounding and rumbling begin to echo through the tower from one of the larger chambers, the noises from the other cells quieting dramatically. The guards all seem on alert but not panicking. One of the guards, a Quel'dorei woman, passes slowly by Macee's cell and pauses to watch her for a moment, her pale blue eyes betraying...amusement at the young Worgen's situation.

Macee presses her hands to the floor of her cell, turning her head to look at the Quel'dorei. "Wha' was tha'? Why'd it shake?"

The woman turns her back to the cell but peeks over her shoulder to Macee. "It's the Void Reaper." She whispers, motioning to the largest cell on the far side of the prison. The gate around the magical barrier was much larger and more warded than any other and a semicircle of armed magisters stood watching the shifting shadow form within. "When the sun goes down it gets stronger. That's why the lights dimmed, we had to channel more magic into the shields to-" She cuts herself off as she notices something Macee can't see. "Just sit tight, young one. You'll be let out in a day or two." With that, she marches off out of sight.

A day or two? No, she didn't think so.  Peeking in the direction the elf marched off to, she backed further into her cell.  Lowering herself to the floor before the grate once again, she slowly began to push it aside. With every inch that she pushed it, she would pause and watch the barrier. When no one came running, she'd push it a little more.

Inch by inch the grate slides out of the way, the guards all seemingly focused on the loudest resident of the Hold. Macee can feel the cool rush of air across her feet as the air is being drawn into the vent. As she sets the grate aside a massive, atonal screech rings in her ears and the lights flicker for a moment, the barriers flaring almost solid white with energy.

Well, she knew she didn't want to stick around to see just what was making that noise! Quickly shifting out of her Worgen form into her human one, she slips her feet into the vent. Quietly, she shimmies into the vent, pulling the grate back into place. Alright, she was in here.....now what???

Once she was inside the air shaft she could feel the direction the air was being pulled. She could also now understand why such a venting system was needed. All manner of noxious smells swim past her in the vent; the scent of rot, the sting of burning sulfur and the musty smell of death all mingling around her. But they are all being pulled in the same direction.

Macee fights the urge to vomit but slowly she makes her way down into the rest of the vent shaft. The stinks had to go out somewhere and that's where she planned to go....out.

There are small relief vents every hundred feet or so but they only serve to remove some of the rancid smells, and they are far to small for Macee to escape through. After another ten minutes of endless crawling, she rounds a bend to find a metal grate identical to the one in her cell. A plume of fresh air swirls around the opening and the vile odors mercifully dissipate.

Pressing her nose to the grate, she inhales deeply of the fresh air before she peers through the grate. Where did this grate lead to now?

The air is fresh and clean. Beyond the grate, she sees clouds and a small outcropping of stone, a chunk of pavilion fractured during the city's initial raising that has stayed in a magical orbit around the island ever since.

She begins to kick at the new grate. If it fell this time, it didn't matter. She was close to getting out of here anyway.

The grate comes loose with a single firm kick and spirals out of sight, a rush of cool fresh air swirling around Macee, chilling her rarely seen human skin.

As she looks outside her new escape route she can see a few options. Above her a series of disused pipes and craggy rock seem to span the distance up, but how far she can’t be sure. Below her, a series of magically floating islands drift lazily and erratically to and fro.

Well, up was almost always best in a situation like this.  Not that she'd been in many situations like this before but...eh. Up it was. Quickly shifting to her Worgen form once more, both to escape the chill and for a better claw grip, she begins her ascent.

At first, the curve of the rock face is frightening, the slab of rock supporting the city rounding quickly at the bottom. However, hand over hand (or claw over claw) she begins to gain ground, the slope shifting to a much more manageable wall-like angel. Once established on the wall, if she were to look around she would see a blanket of pure white clouds below and a darkening evening sky above. As she nears the end of her climb a small island of rock drifts by lazily, a small home built atop it. From inside the cozy tower, through a rose-tinted window, a young child waves excitedly as she notices Macee.

Macee chuckles and returns the wave to the child, but finishes with a clawed finger to the end of her muzzle in the classic 'shhhh' motion. She didn't really need the kid to run to her parents and alert them to the crazy Worgen scaling the side of Dalaran!

The girl too raises a finger, hers telling Macee to wait, before she disappears. She returns a moment later, beaming ear to ear at Macee, a grey woolen cap on her head. There is a knitted nose, a pair of ears and two black buttons sewn on as eyes. The girl beams at Macee as she shows off her Worgen tongue, pointing from her ears to Macee’s and back. After a few more excited hops the girl remembers her instruction and lowers down, her eyes and knitted ears poking above the windowsill, watching as Macee continues to climb.

Macee beams ear to ear at the girl's display! Nobody has ever wanted to mimic a Worgen before, at least not to her knowledge. This made her...happy and proud!  She'd have to remember to send that kid a Worgen-y gift of some sort.

The little girl gives Macee a quick thumbs up and points up as if to remind her to climb.

As Macee looks up at the climb awaiting her she notes just how few usable handholds exist much further up. Instead, her eyes are drawn to... a door? An actual door set into the otherwise natural side of the island. The door itself is plain, iron bound plates, with a red hand print at its centre.

Macee studies the door briefly. Hmm...who would put a door out here? Well, using a door would be much preferred to the arduous climb that she knew was awaiting her. Reaching out, she pressed the palm of her clawed hand against the red print on the door. It seemed like the correct thing to do.

The hand print, which is a little smaller than her worgen hand, pulses once under her touch and the heavy door swings open. A hooded figure pulls the door all the way open and eyes Macee, their eyes going wide when they realize she had climbed her way to the door instead of flying or levitating. They step back quickly and motion her inside, shutting the door quickly behind her. “What the fel are you doing out there?”

Macee hauls herself inside the doorway, rolling to her feet and spinning to face the figure once she waThe hooded figure blinks at her a moment, mouth hanging open in disbelief, before shaking their head and pulling back their hood. “This is the Underbelly. You... you meant to be here, right? This place isn’t exactly for tourists.” The Kaldorei warns as she runs slender fingers through her hair as she shakes it out of her hood. Macee swears she can see moon dust sparkling around the woman.

"Yeah...yeah..I'm s'posta be 'ere."  Macee chuckles and looks at the Kaldorei. " 'ow do I get back topside?"   She begins to look around for a way out.

The Night Elf takes Macee’s chin very gently in her hand and leans down to look her eye to eye. The Kaldorei’s black eyes narrow for a moment before she smiles and hands Macee a cracked platinum coin. “Here. If anyone stops you down here just show them this.” She points down the dimly lit hall and then to the right. “Follow this path and take a right. You’ll see, and smell, the way back above ground.” She adjusts Macee’s scarf and pats her shoulder. “Go home, little Worgen.” She says, managing to not sound condescending.

Macee raises a brow when the elf grabs her face, but makes no move.  When she's handed the coin, she takes it. She stares at the woman for a moment before she bounds down the hall and to the right.  To avoid being stopped, she stealths herself and quickly and quietly moves to the exit of the Underbelly. Before breaking stealth, she transforms back to her human form.  Using Kan's scarf as a disguise, she wraps it around her head and face as a makeshift kind of hood.  If the guards of the Violet Hold were looking for her, they'd be looking for Macee the Worgen, not Macee the Human.

As she nears the ramp leading up and out of the sewers Macee catches a familiar scent. Ren? It was faint...but it was him. She was sure of it. The scent grows stronger as she nears the exit.

Standing at the bottom of the last ramp out of the Underbelly a hooded figure emerges from the shadows, a faintly glowing dagger emerging slowly from within a dirty cloak.

Macee pretends to not see the hooded figure or the glowing dagger. She stands in the archway entrance and scans the street for Ren.

The hooded figures shoulders slump as they slide back into the shadows. They are clearly very new at this.

As she stands at the top of the ramp a wave of actually pleasant smells wash over her. Cooked meats, confections, incense and potpourri all mingle together. Still, through it all, she can still smell Ren; the scent of rose water and fresh linen.

Peering up and down the street she begins to follow his scent, the guards and most city residents paying yet another hooded woman in Dalaran no mind. The scent grows stronger the further east she goes.

She follows her nose to the east (hehe).  Why hadn't he stayed at the Aerie? What if Kan was there? Well..no..she'd caught Kan's scent here in Dalaran as well so she knew that couldn't be true. She paused at a corner to take yet another look around the streets for him.

As she peeks around the corner she notes a number of shops and stalls stretching down the street, small crowds of evening patrons and shoppers enjoying the mild night. One building catches her eye tho fills her with dread.

The Violet Hold.

She was back at the damn prison! It’s undeniable tho, Ren’s scent is stronger the closer she gets to the Hold.

From behind her, a plucky gnome floats atop a water elemental with goldfish living inside it. “That’s right folks! The Kirin Torn is pleased to offer its citizens and guests alike free portal service across the Alliance! If it’s a port of call we can zap you there!” Little bolts of lightning crackle around her as she finishes her sales pitch, her voice sing songy and exceedingly excited. Behind her nearly a dozen portals shimmer, each displaying a different metropolis of the Alliance.

Macee watches as people, unchecked and unchallenged, help themselves to the magical service.

As much as she wanted to quickly jump into a portal back to Stormwind, she needed to find Ren first.  Cautiously, she wound her way through the small crowds on the street. She kept her eyes peeled beneath the makeshift hood. Maybe Ren wasn't in the prison..maybe he was in a shop near there? Maybe he was standing near the fountain? Maybe, he was just standing in the middle of the street?

Ren is, in fact, walking up the main path towards the prison. He is only a few steps off the main street and appears to be waving to one of the guards.

Where was he going? Noticing that he was waving to a guard, she decided to wait and see what was going on. She side stepped the path to the prison and settled herself against the wall near to its entrance.

From her vantage point Macee can't quite make out what was being said over the din of the city but she can see them very clearly. The guard, a friendly looking sort, was watching Ren intently as he was speaking and gesturing. She and the guard both watch as he gestures to something a head taller than him and almost as wide. He points to his fingers and makes an elongated gesture and points at his teeth in a...For Fel sake.

He was describing her to the guard.

With a huff, Macee strides toward Ren. Stepping next to him, she grabs his arm, giving it a rather tight squeeze.  "There you are!  Oh, Mother was so worried when she didn't find you in your room! Thank goodness you didn't get very far!"  Turning  her head toward the guard, she fixes a sugary sweet smile on him. "You'll have to forgive my brother here. Always going on about werewolves." Leaning close, she speaks softly to the guard. "Multiple head injuries... it's quite sad how often he thinks he's being chased by werewolves."  Her attention back to Ren, she grips his arm tightly again. "Let's stop bothering the nice guard here and go home Felix. Mother will have dinner waiting."  Slipping her arm through Ren's, she begins to lead him away from the Hold.

Ren blinks at her for a moment, about to speak, when he thinks better of it. He pulls gently at her grip, motioning to the sky. "But the moon...It's OUT. You * know* what that means!" He insists as he is dragged back down the path. The guard mutters something about "every city having one" and returns to his post at the door.

Ren continues his charade until they are both well around the corner from the prison. At last, he stops and turns to face her, a mix of confusion and relief furrowing his brow. "Macee? What? How?"

"Wha' are ya doin' 'ere Ren? I tol' ya ta stay at the Aerie in case Kan showed up!"  She finally lets his arm go.  "Ya didn' nee' ta come runnin'! I was fine! They said they woul' only 'old me there for a few days...." She quickly snaps her mouth shut, forgetting that Ren didn't know she'd just escaped from Violet Hold.  "Wait...did Kan come back? Is that why you're 'ere?"

Ren smiles at her as she rambles, shaking his head slowly. "No, she's not back. I actually...came after both of you. I was worried and...wait, why were they keeping you in the Hold? My contact only said that the guards had picked you up."

" Is not importin',  stupid guards and their stupid rules a'bou where and wha' ya kin drink here."  She waves her hand dismissively.  "I 'ad Kan's scent for a moment....but...I lost it. I don' thin' she's 'ere in Dal anymore."

He sighs, shoulders slumping a little. "Well, you had her scent which means she was here. I think it's a safe bet that she and Jon are well an truly making mischief." He says, almost convincingly. He rests a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I'm glad you're okay at least. I was really worried when Arastus said you'd been arrested. Some in the Kirin Tor aren't exactly the most welcoming, as I'm sure you know."

Macee nodded her head. "Iffin' they don' wan' ya ta drin' outta their scryin' bowls, the shouln'a leave 'em out."  She sighs softly. "Shoul' we go back to the Aerie?  From here, Kan and Jon coul' be anywhere in all of Azeroth by now."

Ren looks around Dalaran slowly, eyes narrowing as he thinks. After another moment he nods slowly, a frown creeping onto his face. "It's true. With this city being such a nexus to the whole of Azeroth they could literally be anywhere...Any time if they went to see the Bronze Dragons." He muses, only half serious.

He sighs and folds his arms across his chest, grumbling quietly. "If only I hadn't waited so long, we could have had two of us looking for her."

Macee shook her head. "Nah...I tol' ya ta stay 'ome. Lets jus' go back 'ome Ren."  She looks completely defeated.  "There was a gnome ova there givin' free ports ta anywhere." She juts her thumb back in the direction of the Hold.

Ren nods and begins to walk slowly towards the next pavilion. "Is there anything you want to see while you're here? There's more than just a jail." He teases, a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "There's this treant, Applebutt or something, and he sells these apples..."

Macee sounds tired when she answers. "No Ren...I jus' wanna go 'ome." She turns to look at him, tears in her violet eyes. "Please take me 'ome."

Ren is stunned, his heart dropping into his boots. Without a second thought (or a first thought given that Macee could throw him off the floating island if she wanted) he wraps his arms around her small frame and pulls her into a hug. "Okay, we'll head home right now. My friend knows to keep an ear open for any news so... that's good." He says, trying to smile encouragingly.

She sniffles and nods her head, resting her forehead briefly against his breastplate. "Thank ya Ren."

Ren strokes her hair gently and nods before turning and continuing towards the portal area with her. "Anytime kiddo. C'mon, we're almost home."

Macee allows herself to be led. She felt... angry, sad, defeated... all of that. Right now, all she wanted was to go back to the Den and curl up in her chair.

Ren, understanding Macee's need to be home and alone, deftly intercepts the bubbly gnome and prevents a second trip to the Violet Hold. As he steps up to a portal in the rear of the pavilion he turns to Macee and smiles, genuine warmth and optimism returning to his smile. "C'mon, after you."

She doesn't even ask where this portal is going, she just steps through and waits on the other side for him.