before the Third War

She entered the mess hall just as the tables were clearing.  Two hands clapped together from among the rising soldiers, a sharp enough sound to snap her to attention.

"Hey, there she is!"

Her eyes focused on Elmo as he sat with his cleaned breakfast plates, a smile on his face.  "I said I would be back."  With a groan and a clatter she fell to the bench beside him, pushing her hands through her hair and trying to keep her eyes open.

"You get him?"

"Yeah."

"You bring him in?"

"Yeah, marched him overland hobbled and gagged about four miles. It took a while."  She pried her eyes open, focusing on her benchmate.  "Elmo, I watched him report to his superior.  His superior was -" She paused, looked around.  Elmo's eyebrows bristled.  "You know how I was watching the Lord of Vision yesterday?"

The sun shone down, bright and hot, unimpeded by cloud.  It struck off the shining steel pauldrons of the tower guard, arranged in a neat perimeter twenty yards from the base of a soaring mage tower.  Half of the guard faced inward, shoulder-to-shoulder, at parade rest.  Behind them, another ring faced the people of Dalaran, watching and cheering. Toward the tower, beyond a green lawn, a chorus of mages likewise encircled the new structure, hands risen in a number of strange gestures, chants rising from practiced lips.

A tall, burly soldier, with arms that buldged beneath his chainmail, stared across the lawn to the segment of guards opposite who were relieved of the sun by the tower's shadow.  "Lucky bastards," he muttered, wrinkling his nose as another trickle of sweat trailed from beneath his coif.