| abstract
| - There isn’t much to tell in her early years. She came from an average household and her family lived off the land comfortably. Her childhood was a normal one and she stayed out of trouble. However, with the rise of the Defias and kobolds, her family struggled to keep food on the table as their property was being stolen and destroyed. The Stormwind Guards had no reinforcement to spare so their fields were unprotected until they were forced into leaving their home. Catherine was in her teens when this incident occurred. Her father went on many trips to hunt for animals to skin then sell the hides in the city as she and her mother worked at a local tavern and rented out the basement. She helped serve the patrons, clean up after them, and sometimes would wander the city scavenging for food and discarded items to sell. All three worked relentlessly. Sometimes she joined her father on his hunting trips to help skin the animals he killed. This went on several years until she was twenty-four; which was when her parents were finally able to get back on their feet and afford a real house. Her father acquired a job as a tanner at a local leatherworking store and things seemed to be settled once more.
* Chapter Two: Tiragarde Rogues Not being needed to help with the family income anymore or keep her mother company, she decided to move out and finally begin her life. She was restless and needed to get away from doing mindless tasks of cleaning and washing, and wanted to escape the brutal city life. The easiest way to make a few gold at that time was contract work, and since she held a deep empathy for the farmers in Westfall, she joined the troops at Sentry Hill. She received some basic training, minor equipment, and was sent off to battle…. Yet she was a poor fighter, and her gentle nature made her timid in combat. She was weak, but she was agile and light, which made sneaking around certain enemies easy… yet other then the element of surprise, she had no real advantage. Knowing that fighting wasn’t meant for someone like her, she was preparing to leave and return back to the city… that is, until she was partnered up with a young assertive woman named Myrian to do one final mission. Her boldness took Catherine off guard, but they made an excellent fighting pair with Myrian up front and close, with Catherine attacking from the flank. Myrian tried to convince her to becoming her ‘partner-in-crime’, of which was freelancing and random acts of mischief. Catherine refused, but Myrian was determined to give her a taste of how much fun a freelancer can be. To prove it, Myrian dragged Catherine to the barren region of Durotar… What happened there changed Cats life forever. The two sneaked across the land and played mind tricks on the horde… making brief appearances to startle the natives, distracting people from the shadows, pick pocketing Orc guards, and sometimes lending a hand to the young Hordelings that were overwhelmed in battle. This was a far stretch of what Catherine was used too, and although she was shaking the entire day out of fear and anxiety, she enjoyed every moment. Myrian tried to prove that the world was their playground, and for that day it truly was. They returned to Durotar several times. This was a home to Myrian, who took refuge in the human fortress of Tiragarde. It was a strict rule that they never insult, taunt, or be the first to attack someone, which worked out excellent. Tiragarde became fully aware of their presence in Durotar, and quickly honoured them with their green tabards and gave them command of a small unit of rogues, which was known simply as “Tiragarde Rogues”. Together they shared a co-leadership and handpicked only the best of rogues to join them.
* Chapter Three: Shades of Gray Things seemed to be working out for the best. Cat and Myrian became partners and spent many of their time in Durotar, but the majority of their work happened in Southern Eastern Kingdoms. They were hired by people wanting a certain item stolen, and received several contracts to spy on others. Business was good, and they gained a reputation for being reliable freelancers. Each day brought Catherine out of her shell more and more, getting over her moral conflicts with thievery and becoming a better fighter with Myrian as her teacher. Even though Myrian had a short temper, she was assertive and a risk-taker, as Catherine was diplomatic and calm, but sometimes too gentle. Together, they balanced each other out perfectly and acted as the others weak-points. While things seemed to be going well, it wasn’t until Myrian stole a wedding dress from a nobleman paladin in Stormwind named Soteh that things took a twist. Cat found herself being hunted by the relentless and powerful unit of the ‘Alliance Guards’, and avoided capture several times. The two rogues soon realized that Soteh was the leader of the clan and Cat finally convinced Myrian to return the dress before things got worse. She did, and Soteh stopped the hunt – and realized that the two rogues may be handy informants for future missions. He quickly hired the two to work for him and gave them many tasks to perform. Eventually, Myrian and Cat became good friends with him and his clansmen, and Cat began to catch Soteh’s eye. He tried many attempts to woo the rogue, and after a lot of persistence, Catherine began to gain an attraction for him as well. The two started dating formally. She made several diplomatic appearances at his side during meetings and events, but she never inquired anything about his clan. He tried to receive some information on her other contracts, but gave up when she refused to say a word out of respect for the contractor. Things began to turn serious between them in several months, but Myrian felt left out and wanted Cat to cease dating Soteh so they could spend more time together. Some friction was placed between the two partners and Cat tried desperately to reassure her that she wasn’t being replaced. All the meanwhile, Soteh was pleading with Catherine to join his clan, out of fear that Myrian and her may get hurt if they continued to accept the dangerous contracts they were receiving. She quickly became stressed and overwhelmed, unsure what to do as she became quiet and timid during the frequent arguments from both to change her mind. Things quickly started a landslide that traveled fast downhill. Myrian went solo for a mission unknowing to Catherine that angered a deadly community of warlocks. She became cursed and plummeted into darkness… then one day, disappeared completely. Fearing the worse, Catherine searched what seemed the entire world for her dearest friend, but found nothing. To make matters worse, Soteh was on a hot seat as many other clan leaders were accusing him of being sympathetic to the horde. His opinion of the alliance and the horde was being challenged during many conflicts on the battlefront, so much that he rejected the Alliance and his clan, accusing them of loosing track of their honour. Catherine struggled to keep the Tiragarde Rogues in line and active without Myrian, yet her mind was distracted by troubles that threatened the things she loved. She found it difficult to defend the keep against the horde troops as she began to realize that both factions are similar. Soteh decided to leave the alliance completely as he felt he was being disowned by it, claiming that the horde were more honourable… and pleaded to Catherine to come with him and join him. Catherine’s heart pleaded to go with him, as her morals and loyalty to Myrian and Tiragarde begged to stay. She told him she wouldn’t leave home, and despite her efforts to keep him by her side, he left for Tirisfal Glades. She never saw Soteh and Myrian again. Soon after… she disappeared as well.
* Chapter Four: Wandering Child No one heard from her during the next two years that followed. She took the life of solitude to reflect on where she stood. With so much that had challenged her morals, she needed to establish herself. She became a nomad on Kalimdor to survey the Horde more closely, secretly hoping to spy Soteh or catch wind of him, or Myrian. She spent a few months in the Stonetalon Mountains where she began to live off the land, gathering precious gems and healthy hides, selling them to some ratchet merchants on their way to Desolace, and surprisingly, set a healthy relationship with the Tauren of Sun Rock Retreat to buy her wares. She was an active tradesman, and the life suited her fine. She trained herself to view the horde the same as the alliance…. But secretly, she carried a lot of resentment. To her, the alliance chased away her Love, as the horde stole it. The guards left her family to fend for themselves in her childhood, as the renegades stole their property. The only way to move on and live was to become unattached to her past, her morals, and her anger… of which led to a completely new perspective on everything. Continuing to do scavenging work as a living and inhabiting the most desolate of places, she decided to return back home on the sixth year of solitude…. But the reason why is left unclear. The only property she had was her name, and wished that it be the one thing no one could touch and take from her. The only problem was the home she returned too, was far different then the home she left…
* Chapter Five: Acrimony A woman claiming only to carry the name of ‘Mestery’ came to Stormwind. No one had any recollection of her, which surprised some since she seemed to be an experienced combatant, and carried the engraved symbol of the Tiragarde Anchor upon her shoulder. Her files that reflected her past accused crimes were non-existent with the new role of Mestery, and to the alliance, she was unregistered - and seemingly non-existent. When asked what profession she was, she simply called herself a Scavenger.... not sharing her name with anyone but herself.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)