Of Blood and Honor (13 page)

Beaming with pride, Taelan turned and smiled warmly at his mother and his old friend, Arden, who stood a few paces behind her. The aged guardsman, who had watched over and protected Taelan for nearly fifteen years, smiled back proudly. Arden marveled at how much Taelan resembled his father. He knew that Tirion would have been proud.

The crowd surged up to congratulate Taelan and welcome him to the Order.

Arden had turned to make his way toward the exit, when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a familiar figure moving through the crowd. The tall, nondescript figure wore a green, hooded travel-cloak and weather-stained leathers. But Arden would have recognized the gray haired man’s piercing green eyes anywhere. For a brief second, he locked eyes with the aged stranger.

“Tirion,” Arden whispered under his breath.

The stranger smiled knowingly at Arden and raised a stiff hand to his brow in salute. He then pulled his hood low over his face and promptly slipped out the back of the cathedral.

Looking back at Taelan, Arden said, “Like father, like son.”

Chris Metzen is the Creative Director for Blizzard Entertainment and has worked as both a writer and designer for the company over the past seven years. Chris has led the development of Blizzard’s game worlds and storylines, including those of the
Warcraft, Diablo,
and
StarCraft
series. Chris co-wrote the
StarCraft
short story “Revelations” with fellow author Sam Moore for the Spring 1999 issue of
Amazing Stories
magazine.
Warcraft: Of Blood and Honor
is Chris’s first solo foray into the world of fantasy-fiction.