Chapter 20: Reunion

Liana Sunsinger. Kelrian's mother. Was badly wounded.

"Her life is no longer threatened but I'm afraid she will never be able to fight again. She won't be such a good fighter as she has been before, that's for sure" said Ranger-Captain Vara.

Sylvanas was biting her bottom lip. "She lost a limb, didn't she?"

"Her left forearm which is her sword arm"

A loud sigh escaped Sylvanas' lips "At least she is alive and has one hand left with which she could heal the wounded. She can still work as a priestess. She may not like it but at least she didn't die like the rest of her group"

"You need to tell Ranger Sunsinger what happened to his mother"

"I will as soon as I see him" said Sylvanas. "Is there anything else you want to tell me?"

Vara shook her head.

"You may go now. You did a great job at handling these trolls, so you deserve a reward. I give you and your team three days off. Same counts for Verena's team"

"Thank you, my General" responded Vara lowering her head in respect. Sylvanas nodded to her, gesturing her to leave the office. Vara did as she was told, closing the door behind her.

Sylvanas stared at the door for a few moments, not sure what to do at this very moment. She didn't want to ruin her lover's good mood but she had to tell him the truth even though this would mean she wouldn't be able to join him in the shower. He deserved to know the truth. He may not have the best relationship with his mother but that didn't mean she wasn't important to him. She had to tell him the truth. As soon as possible.

She turned her head as she heard her name, looking at the bathroom door which was opened slightly. Kelrian's head poked out, a confused expression was visible on his face. "Sylvanas?" he asked quietly, wondering why she wore her uniform and was not in the bathroom already. He noticed the thoughtful expression on her face, so he was wondering what was wrong.

He came out a few moments later, a towel was wrapped around his waist. His blonde hair was as wet as the rest of his body. He stepped to Sylvanas, drying his left hand before he put it on her shoulder. He turned her around, staring into her eyes, a worried look was visible on his face.

"What is wrong, Dalah'surfal?"

She put her hands on his face, rubbing his cheeks. His presence was enough to brighten up her mood, for a bit at least. "I received bad news"

Kelrian frowned, his face also reflected worry. "Did something happen to the units of Verena and Ranger-Captain Sweetblossom"

"No, they succeeded. They killed forty trolls and only lost five rangers"

"What is wrong then?" he asked, bringing her face closer to his.

"Another group of trolls attacked a village in the south. An entire patrol died, except for a high-ranked paladin. She was badly wounded and lost her sword hand. I'm afraid she will never be able to fight again, at least she won't be as good as she was before"

"At least she survived...I feel sorry about the rest of her group...We're getting less and less..." Kelrian made a depressed face, looking at his feet for a few moments. Then he looked up, regarding Sylvanas curiously. "Did you know the members of this group personally?"

A sad sounding sigh escaped Sylvanas' lips. "I didn't know any of them", she made a small pause, "But you know a least one of them. You know the survivor"

Kelrian's eyes widened. "Who is she?" he asked louder than he had intended to.

Sylvanas hesitated for a moment but then she gave him the answer. "Your mother"

Kelrian's facial features derailed. He didn't move, he didn't even blink, he just stood there. His mind went blank. He didn't do anything nor did he say anything. His eyes stared at a random spot behind Sylvanas.

Sylvanas didn't know what was going on in his mind. Her face reflected worry as she regarded him. Her hands still rested on his cheeks, caressing them softly. She whispered comforting words in his ear, hoping to cause a reaction. But he didn't react to any of her attempts. He remained like this for a while, really worrying Sylvanas.

But eventually, he managed to break out of this state of trance. He turned his head, looking at Sylvanas who was still having a worried expression on her face.

"Kelrian? Are you okay?" she asked worriedly.

"I'm not sure"

"The wounds of your mother will heal sooner or later. She will get better. She may not be able to fight anymore but she will be able to work as a priestess. She could use her other hand to heal the wounded. This might not be the same but it's better than nothing"

"You are right. At least she is still alive, that's better than nothing... You know she might regard me as a shame but that doesn't change the fact that she is my mother. I love her no matter how she treats me"

"I get your point, my love"

"So, you understand that I want to see her?"

Sylvanas nodded her head. "I do"

"Do you know where she is?"

"Not really but maybe your cousin knows more. I don't really know where the paladins are stationed. The order of the paladins knows about that. You can ask Liadrin if she knows anything. Meanwhile, I speak to the paladin with the highest rank in Quel'Thalas"

"That would be my grandmother. She is one of the few members of my family who doesn't regard me as a shame. On the contrary, she told me that she is proud of me the last time I saw her" explained Kelrian.

"Do you have any idea where I can find her?" Sylvanas asked.

Kelrian made a thoughtful face, rubbing his chin with his left hand. "I have no clue" he said eventually.

Sylvanas rubbed her forehead with her fingers, sighing out loudly. "I think it is easier if I order some of my rangers to find your mother. It's easier that way than looking out for some high ranked paladins who might know where she is right now. I will travel to the village where the skirmish has taken place and ask the inhabitants if they know anything. My rangers will also visit your former home and find out if she is there"

"Thank you, Sylvanas" said Kelrian, kissing her cheek softly.

"I would be a bad girlfriend if I wouldn't support you. I love you and I don't want you to be so sad. I don't think that visiting your family is a good idea but I understand that you want to see your mother. I was there for my mother as her disease was diagnosed and I even retired as a ranger to take care of her. I took care of my mother and spend as much as possible with her until I was sure she was getting better. Then I took her place as Ranger-General after she has decided to retire completely"

"You never told me what kind of disease your mother has"

"She has a weak form of paralysis. She is still able to move but she is not able to move very fast. She can't run for very long and fighting is also very problematic. Not to mention that even sparring really exhausts her. It's a riddle for our doctors. After nearly a century none of our best healers found a solution. They don't know how to treat it. So basically, there is nothing which could help her"

"I'm sorry to hear that" spoke Kelrian, lowering his head.

"My mother has needed her time to get used to that but nowadays she accepts how it is. She is doing the household, making sure we get enough to eat, to drink and stuff like that. She is also running a little shop where she sells goods, souvenirs and other more or less useful items. She is happy with her life and that's all that matters"

"Hopefully my mother will handle everything as well as your mother did"

"I hope that too" responded Sylvanas, caressing his cheeks.

"I will return to Liadrin's house and ask her as soon as she returns" announced Kelrian.

"I will take a shower, get some sleep and then I will visit the village which has been attacked. I don't believe she is still there but maybe the villagers know something. I will also order some of my rangers to look for her"

"Thank you, Dalah'surfal"

Sylvanas wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning in to put a quick kiss on his lips. "I'm your girlfriend, it's my duty to cheer you up and support you wherever I can"

He smiled at her, looking into her eyes. She did the same so they stared at each other for nearly half an hour. Kelrian kissed her one last time before he pulled away. "I really need to go now if I want to get some sleep"

"See you soon, my love" said Sylvanas and walked to one of her shelves. She looked for a certain book and pulled it, causing that a secret exit was opened next to the shelf. Kelrian could take the bordering corridor and leave the headquarters of the Farstriders without being seen by anyone. Sylvanas didn't want that he needed to lie if someone would ask him why he left the Ranger-General's office with wet hair. Not to mention people will wonder what he had done there the entire time. She didn't want to cause unnecessary trouble for him, so sneaking out was the best solution.

Kelrian looked at her for the last time before he walked through the secret exit. Sylvanas pushed the book back, waiting until the secret exit was closed. She regarded the wall for a few moments before she started to strip off her clothes as she walked to the bathroom, ready to take a shower.

---

Kelrian took a deep breath before he made the first step towards the entrance on his former home. He was standing in the front garden of his family's house, which was the largest house in Suncrown Village. He hadn't been there for a while so old memories came up as he regarded the house closely.

He noticed that it hadn't changed at all. The walls were made out of the same white material and decorated with the same blue and golden ornaments. It had three storeys and its roof was covered by blue tiles. There was a banner which hung beneath one of the windows on the highest storey. It showed the coat of arms of his family: A man who was looking at the sun while musical notes came out of his mouth. A singing man who was regarding the sun.

Kelrian regarded the house for the last moment before he did the next step, slowing walking to the front door. He stopped in front of it, taking a deep breath before he gathered all his courage and knocked at the door. He didn't need to wait for too long. The door was opened and his younger sister Cincia looked out. The young woman, who was at the age of sixty-two, regarded him with widened eyes, her mouth was widely opened. Kelrian chuckled when he saw his sister's reaction. She didn't expect him and he was pretty sure the rest of their family wasn't expecting him either.

Cincia stopped staring at him after a few moments, approaching and hugging him without hesitation. She wrapped her arms around his back, pressing herself against him. Kelrian put one hand on the smaller woman's head, the other caressed her back softly.

"I've missed you so much" she muttered, keeping her voice low to prevent that any other member of her family could hear her.

Kelrian did the same as he responded. "I've missed you too, my dear. It has been a long time since the last time we have seen each other"

"Fourteen years to be exact"

"Fourteen years already?"

She nodded. "You have been away too long"

"I know" he responded, pausing for a few moments as he considered what to say. "But I can't return as long as mother and father are not changing their minds. I hope you can understand this"

"I do" she said, playing with the hem of her blue shirt. "But I don't like that you are not living with us" she added.

"I don't like it either but I couldn't take it anymore. The way they behaved when I was around and the way they looked at me...It became unbearable, so I left"

Cincia put her hand on her brother's left shoulder, rubbing it softly. "I'm sorry"

Kelrian chucked. It's not your fault my dear"

"I know but I wish I could change things. I tried to talk to mother and father but they didn't listen. Father even forbid us to say your name"

Kelrian's eyes widened, he opened his mouth but no words came out. He was too shocked to say anything. He had expected that his parents wouldn't talk much about him with his siblings but he had never expected that they would forbid them to say his name. His parents were behaving as if he had died. It shocked him that they treated him like that just because he didn't become a priest or a paladin. His parents had expelled him just because he was not able to use the light.

They didn't care that he belonged to the best rangers of his generation. They didn't care that he was the youngest member of Sylvanas' elite team. He belonged to the best of the best. But his parents still regarded him as a shame even though he had a similar status as them.

His father was a priest and his mother was a paladin while he was a ranger. Priests, Paladins and Rangers helped and protected those who couldn't protect themselves. They deserved everyone's respect. His parents may have higher ranks but that didn't make them better than him. Nevertheless, the regarded themselves as better people and Kelrian as scum.

Kelrian had accepted how his parents behaved. He was just glad that he didn't live with them anymore. He would become insane if he would have to live together with his parents. Even a week would be too much for him. Lucky for him, he had been able to move out and live in Liadrin's house.

"I don't believe they will ever change" said Kelrian quietly.

"Sadly not. At least not father"

Kelrian raised an eyebrow, giving his sister a curious look. "What do you mean?"

"I don't think mother regards you as a shame. I believe she only behaves like this because she is too afraid of father"

"How can I understand that?"

Cincia came closer until her mouth was only a few inches away from his ear. Her voice was barely louder than a whisper. "Father is manipulating mother. He forces his will on her. He is telling her that you are a shame and he forbids her to see you. He has also convinced our older siblings to think the same way as he does"

"So, father is stirring up the entire family against me?"

"Not all of us share his opinion. Sindor and I don't share it. We never say something bad about you and we know what he says about you is not true. He is a liar"

Kelrian ran his fingers through her hair, smiling at her. "At least you and Sindor still regard me as your brother. That's better than nothing"

"Don't worry" responded Cincia. "We will never turn our backs on you, we will never betray you"

Kelrian caressed his sister's cheeks, placing a kiss on her forehead. "I wish I could talk to you more but I came here to visit mother. I hope she is alright"

"Her condition has become better over the past days but she still hasn't fully recovered from the shock. She hasn't talked with anyone within the first two days. At least she has started to speak again but she doesn't speak much" told Cincia.

Kelrian nodded to his sister. "I will see it myself but thanks for the update. Is father at home?"

"Yes, he is. So are Sydori and Seitor"

"Where are they?"

"They are in the backyard. They collect some herbs for a tea for mother"

"Then I have to make sure that I will leave this house without getting seen by one of them. I shouldn't stay for too long. I will only stay as long as necessary"

"Shall I accompany you?"

"I appreciate your offer but it's better if you look after father and our older siblings. It would be pretty helpful if you manage to distract them if they want to go to mother"

"I will try my best but I can't guarantee anything"

Kelrian gave her a thankful smile. "I don't expect anything. I only hope that I will manage to pay mother a visit without getting involved in another drama"

"I hope that as well. I will see what I can do for you. Hopefully, I can distract them long enough"

Kelrian caressed her head softly. "You are a very clever and imaginative person, I'm pretty sure you will find a way"

She smiled "Probably"

He returned her smile. He followed her through the corridor to the stairs which led them to the second level. They climbed the stairs and followed the bordering corridor until they came to their parents' room. Cincia knocked at the door, saying her name as their mother asked who was knocking. Their mother told her to come in so Cincia pushed the door opened, entering the room together with Kelrian.

Kelrian's eyes checked the inside of the room as soon as he had stepped in. He noticed that the room didn't change at all over the years. There were wardrobes in front of the left wall and shelves in front of the right wall. There was a king-sized bed on the other side of the room. Kelrian's eyes widened as spotted his mother.

She was lying in the bed, her body was covered by a blanket. Her right arm was uninjured and rested on the blanket, her other arm was hidden beneath the blanket. Her head rested on a pillow, her gaze hung on the ceiling.

Kelrian noticed that his sister had already left the room as his mother spoke her name. "I'm not Cincia" said Kelrian, his voice was lower than usual. His mother lifted her head, looking at Kelrian. Her expressionless look didn't change as she regarded him closely. At least she didn't seem to be angry that he had returned home. She was silent for the first five minutes but then her lips moved, whispering his name. Her lips, which were as pale as her face, formed a small smile as he became closer and kneeled next to her.

He took her hand in his, bringing it to his lips. He kissed the back of her hand softly, a worried look was visible on his face as he regarded her. She was not only pale, but she also looked very weak. Her blue eyes reflected sorrow. The glowing of her eyes was weaker, her once golden hair was lustreless and its colour had become pale blonde. Kelrian could only assume that she must have had a very traumatic experience. He was sure she must have witnessed worse than just losing her forearm.

He didn't want to imagine what had happened when the trolls had attacked her group. A lot of things could have happened. Sylvanas had told him that her entire group had been was the only survivor which meant that she might have witnessed the deaths of the others. Witnessing the deaths of her friends could have been the traumatic experience which had caused these changes. Kelrian didn't want to imagine how he would feel if his friends would have been killed in front of his eyes. He didn't want to imagine how much the deaths of his friends would have affected and changed him. His mother must have been through hell and it was a real wonder she had survived. Every other member of her unit fell but she survived.

Kelrian realized that he had held her hand for a while without saying anything. He found his mother regarding him curiously. "Kelrian" she said, her voice sounded husky and weak. Kelrian leaned forward until he could hear her quiet breaths. "Mother" he responded but didn't say anything else. He had no clue what to say to her.

Should he apologize to her? Tell her how sorry he was? Tell her that everything will become better? Should he comfort her? Give her hope? Tell her that she was still able to work as a priestess? Tell her that even with only one arm she could be useful?

He was still unsure of what to say. He didn't notice that he was frowning and making a thoughtful face. His body was tensed up and he was holding his mother's hand tighter than necessary. She didn't say anything even though he was hurting her a bit. She cleared her throat, causing that he was brought out of his thoughts. He let go of her hand, regarding her without saying anything. She put her hand on his left cheek, giving him a weak smile as she caressed his left cheek.

He managed to speak after a while "I'm so sorry"

"You don't need to be sorry. You are not responsible for what happened to me and my group. You did nothing wrong, my dear"

"If only I would have known that these bastards would ambush your group... I would have slaughtered them all before they would have even come near you" he responded, his voice reflected hatred and sorrow.

"They were too many, not even you wouldn't have been able to defeat them alone, no matter how good you are"

"But I would have made a difference. More people would have survived if I would have been there"

"That might be true but no one saw it coming. You had other tasks to do. I've heard that you have helped the Ranger-General to capture a gang of drug dealers. Not only trolls and orcs harm and kill our people. Illegal drugs do that too"

Kelrian was silent, not knowing what to say. He was grieving, even though his mother was still alive. He was angry. Angry at himself, because he was not there to protect his mother. He was also angry at the trolls who were invading Quel'Thalas over and over again. He would slaughter every single troll if he would have the chance to do that. Unfortunately, he was not strong enough to kill every single troll alone. But he was not alone. There were thousands of rangers and warriors who couldn't wait to avenge the fallen. The trolls will pay for their crimes. Sooner or later they will be defeated by the high elves and the Alliance of Lordaeron. Kelrian was pretty sure about that.

His mother was still caressing his cheek, smiling at him. "You need to know that I'm proud of you" she said. "I've always been" she added as she noticed that he raised an eyebrow.

"I thought you hated me. I thought you also regard me as a shame. I thought you share the same opinion as father, Seitor and Sydori"

"I never did. I've never said something bad to you or insulted you, right?"

"Now that you say it...You are right. You never did that but you didn't stop father from doing it, nor did you try to convince him that his way of looking at things is wrong. He repelled me but you didn't do anything to stop him" spoke Kelrian. He noticed the hurt look on his mother's face and the tears in the corners of her eyes. He realized that he had sounded stricter than he had wanted. He had accused her even though he hadn't wanted to do that. He regretted it immediately. He apologized to her but she responded that there was nothing he had to apologize for.

"I deserve getting insulted. I've been a terrible mother"

"You were not" interrupted Kelrian. "Not always at least. Cincia told me that father has forced you to behave the way he wanted you to. She told me that he left you no other choice than supporting him. Cincia also told me that he has forbidden you to see me. Is that true?"

His mother avoided eye contact, for the first few minutes at least. Then she looked at him, her eyes roamed over his shape. They returned to his face, staring into his eyes. "It's true" she said quietly. "I've been weak. I have been too afraid that he might freak out if I would contradict him... I was too afraid that..." but then she stopped, she didn't speak any further. Kelrian waited that she would finish her sentence after a short pause but she didn't.

"Were you afraid that he might hit you? He wouldn't do that, would he? Father may be strict but he doesn't hit women, does he?" Kelrian asked, his voice reflected confusion and shock. He was hoping that this wasn't true. His father might be an asshole but he had never considered him to be a violent asshole. He didn't want to imagine him threatening his mother. He would never forgive him if that would turn out to be true. He was already angry at his father because he had repelled him and thrown him out of the house. If his assumption would turn out to be true then...

His mother didn't say anything in response. She stared at the ceiling, pretending that she didn't hear it. This was enough for Kelrian to interpret that his assumption was true. He had no official statement from her but the way she behaved told him everything he needed to know. First what Cincia had said and now that. There was no way his father was not pressuring his mother to do whatever he wanted. Nevertheless, Kelrian had no clue what he will do with these pieces of information. He knew that a confrontation with his father would lead to nowhere except for a loud, hot-headed argument.

He came to the conclusion that it was the best to not say anything at first. He will talk with Liadrin, maybe he could try to convince his mother to come with him but first, she needed some rest and get stronger. He regarded his mother for a few moments, not saying anything. He put his hands on her cheeks, caressing them. She turned her head, giving him a small smile as she looked at him.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"It could be better but it could also be worse. I'm glad that I survived this massacre. I feel pretty weak and my arm... It's hard to get used to not be able to feel half of my left arm. I don't think I will ever be able to fight again" she responded, her voice sounded very sad.

"Can I see your arm?" he asked carefully, not sure how she would react.

She didn't say anything in response but she nodded to him. Kelrian pulled the blanket down, revealing the rest of her left arm. The entire forearm was missing, the rest was wrapped up in a bandage. The bandage wasn't bloody, meaning the wound had been treated properly.

"I wish I could change things" Kelrian muttered after a while.

"Sometimes we can't change the present or the past. Sometimes we have to accept how things are. I have lost my sword hand which means I will never be able to fight again, or at least, I will never be as good as I was before the ambush. But I can live with that. At least, I can still heal others with only one hand. You have to see things from the positive side. That's the most important thing you have to do when you want to come to terms with something. May it be the past or something else"

Kelrian nodded to her, signalizing her that he understood what she meant. He took her hand in his, gently caressing its back while regarding her curiously.

"Back to what I have wanted to say. I have never..." she started but the loud sound, which was produced when the door was slammed against the wall as it was opened forcefully, interrupted her. She turned her head, her eyes widened as she looked at the person who was standing in the door. Kelrian turned his head, wondering who was there. His eyes widened when he recognized the person.

It was no other than his father Xenarion who was having a very angry expression on his face. His eyes were narrowed and his face reflected anger. He gritted his teeth, his hands were clenched into fists. It was unmistakable that his whole body was tensed. Except for the anger which was reflected by his face, no other emotion was visible.

Kelrian stood up to his full height, regarding his father from head to toe. He was half a head taller than his father but it that didn't impress or intimidate the older man. Xenarion still stood on the same spot, regarding Kelrian and his mother closely.

"You just got yourself into serious trouble" he spoke, his voice sounded dangerous.