Valeera Sanguinar

The screams and cries echoed through the thick forest as the small convoy was nearing its destination. They were nearing the arena. Valeera peeked out through the caged window of her wagon. The huge trees and the thick green flora couldn't even be compared to the forests she had seen before. This was the ancient land of Kalimdor. The land of opportunity. Danger lurked around every corner. That was one of the reasons she came here.

After the undead had destroyed everything she ever held dear in the last war, she lost her identity. She became a nobody. Trying to live off of other refugees was futile. Nobody had anything to share. Or at least, nobody had anything they wanted to share. That was where her small frame and quick reflexes came in handy. Yes, Valeera was a thief. She became a career thief not by choice, but out of necessity. And the occasional fights? Well, she may have looked like a little girl, but she could handle herself. Most of her attackers usually only saw her as a scrawny elf kid. The first mistake. Had they known she was actually older than most of her human attackers, they might not have underestimated her. But that was years ago. She was a woman now. It was a lot harder playing the innocent little girl, but her presence at least demanded some sort of respect when she was dealing with others. Purchasing supplies, weapons, occasionally booze, was no longer a hassle. But more importantly, it made her leaving the dying Plaguelands behind to seek new opportunities a possibility. The newly discovered Kalimdor was the perfect place for that. At least that was what people living in contant fear of undead attacks used to say. It was a shame that a troll guard spotted her nabbing some trinket off one of the orcs shortly after her arrival to the promised land. For such tiny eyes, trolls apparently had very keen sights.

Soon, she had the whole garrison of orcs and trolls chasing after her. The problem was, she had no idea where to run. She'd just arrived a short while ago. That was how she ended up trapping herself by running into a dead end. The guards thought they had her. Well, actually they did get her... eventually. Not before she managed to knock a few of them out, though. She was no warrior, but she could stand her ground, even against bigger opponents. Until she was disarmed and apprehended. But luck was again on her side. Well, if you could call her catching the interest of a slaver luck. Some arena promoter saw potential in the young woman, and took her off the guards' hands. Not that it mattered, really. Now she was just locked up as a **** and not as a prisoner. At least, she was then guarded by one lone orc instead of a garrison full of the bastards. Easier to escape, she thought. But to her surprise, she was sold before she could even hatch an escape plan. An orc named Reghar Earthfury bought young Valeera as a personal pit fighter. Out of the frying pan and into the fire, eh?

That was how she arrived to the land of opportunity and immediately became a ****. But she was still alive and kicking, and that was what mattered. The tranquility of the Feralas wilderness looked so calming. Contrary to the unimaginable **** she had heard going on in the arena. Yes, that was her current destination. One of the biggest arenas in Kalimdor, she heard. Ever since he'd bought her, Reghar had tested her against some fighters at other establishments, and was pleased with the results. They had this interesting relationship over the last couple of months. And to Valeera's surprise, she was pleased as well. She had had her fair share of violent disputes back in the Plaguelands, but fighting while spectators were cheering for her was another kind of thrill entirely. She prided herself on becoming one of Reghar's most priced assets. Even if that asset was only a ****. Her accomplishments had earned her much. The respect of other fighter, for starters. But also some special privileges among the other slaves, like her own room, choice of food, or a real bed every once in a while. And she had her very own fans. That was the most satisfying for her. She had never dreamed of being idolized. After all, she was just a thief with nothing to her name. And a **** at that. But these people admired her. They loved how she kicked the snot out of orcs and trolls, and this filled her with a certain kind of content. But this time, she was going to be part of the real show. The Dire Maul arena. The thought filled her with anxiety. Was she afraid of ****? Maybe. But right then, she was more afraid of disappointing her admirers. The cheering crowd was getting louder and louder, until the convoy finally stopped. They arrived.

The wagon was opened and out stepped Valeera, her green eyes squinting in the bright rays of the sun. Ruins all around her, as far as eyes could see. Night elven ruins, she was told. Not that it mattered. She stepped away from the wagon and stood, with hands of her narrow hips. She was wearing a black leather tunic, enhancing her petite frame, and tight leather pants with long, high heeled boots. For such a small woman she was suprisingly gifted in the bust department. Something she did not shy away from flaunting. She lived to please her fans, after all. She brushed away a golden lock from her face and scanned the area for her master. There he was. A huge orc talking to some lackeys. Reghar noticed her standing there and walked up to her. Well, you could almost say he walked down to her. Valeera, though an adult in every aspect, still was quite short for an elf. Something her high heels planned to compensate for. And compared to this huge orc, she looked downright tiny. Valeera looked up at the orc's ugly mug.

"Can I have my daggers back now?"

Reghar frowned down at the tiny elf woman.

"... please?" Added Valeera, with a **** smile through gritted teeth.

"Sure." Replied the orc. "Bong, arm her and set her on her way. She won't cause trouble." He looked at Valeera again. "Because she's a smart woman and knows better." And with that, Reghar turned to bark some orders at others in the distance.

Yeah, one of these days Reghar was gonna find Valeera's daggers at his back. He was lucky he hadn't treated her badly so far. Well, at least if you didn't consider sending armed thugs with killer intents at her a bad treatment. But there was something about the orc that sort of grew on her. Yes, he treated her as a tool, but at least he made sure that tool was well maintained.

The orc named Bong walked up to her and slapped two daggers in her hands. "Here! Try not to cut that pretty face of yours, doll."

Doll? Did that big, stupid orc just called her a doll? That was it. She hated, more than anything else, being treated like a child. By the time Reghar turned back, Valeera's daggers were at the throat of Bong and her green eyes were burning with fire. It took Valeera all her willpower not to kill this expandable lackey she had at her mercy.

"I said, she knows better!" Said Reghar, with a stern gaze. Valeera's hands were trembling. Yes, she knew better. This stupid orc was not worth angering her master. Not that she had ever seen him angry, but it was something that she somehow didn't really miss.

"Call me doll again." Whispered Valeera looking up at the startled Bong. "And I'll cut off something you can't live without. Understood?" Bong gave her a slight nod, at which Valeera lowered her daggers. "Yes, I know better." She said, looking back at Reghar submissively. She didn't want to lose any of her privileges. She had worked damn hard to earn them.

"Good. You wouldn't want to miss the surprise we were talking about." And with that, Reghar left to do some other slaver business. No doubt, very important...

Surprise? What kind of surprise was Reghar talking about? She had heard him talk about this before they left for Dire Maul, but nothig specific. She had kind of already forgotten about it. Was he going to reward her for her exemplary behaviour? Well, he better was. Valeera was led through a long tunnel, at the end of which she looked up and saw the huge coliseum of Dire Maul. In a surprisingly good shape, compared to the other ruins in the area. She thought of all the spectators that could fit in. And then all the fighters as well. She gulped. She may have stood her ground against all the thugs Reghar threw at her, but this was the big thing. It was unnerving to think of all the fighters that proved themselves to be here. But she was not led into the coliseum just yet. Her guide took her to one of the smaller buildings in the vicinity.

"In there." Said the troll leading Valeera pointing at a stone hovel. "Ya can practice all ya want. Ya may even find da other fighters as well." The tall troll looked down at her. "No trouble, though." And with that, he left her there.

Valeera swallowed being treated like a dumb puppy by the troll and conveyed the building instead. She was not in the mood for practice right now, but she sure would have loved to see others in practice. She could spot the weaknesses of other fighters before even entering the arena. Maybe. So she strode, daggers on her belt, into the small training area set up for the **** fighters.