Authors notes.
Many characters in this story come from different sources. Some characters are taken from the original World Of Warcraft game and novels, and some are owned by friends. Alicestrasza and Nemestrasz are my own creation, with the ends of the names as customary for their Dragonflight.
As the mists of the mountains, in which the Red Dragonflight roamed, lifted, many forms took to the sky. It was a time of peace and prosperity for the many inhabitants of the rocky land. At least a few months had passed since the Shattering, and one small group from the Red Dragonflight had gone to live calmly in these regions – Though they were never far from helping their one and only queen, Alexstrasza. The blue sky was an endless abyss for these few beings, and among them, was one very mischievous little spawn. As red forms glided and dodged through the wet clouds, one hung near the back. The slow dragon was not ill, nor in any discomfort. She was just going to take a slightly... different route through the mountains today.
Alicestrasza let her wings take only the small currents of air as she watched her siblings fly further in front of her. This region was swarming with the spawns of Deathwing. The dark destroyer had once been aptly named Neltharion, the Earth-Warder. Yet as the Old Gods had resurfaced long, long ago, the Black Leviathan had been driven insane. After causing havoc on numerous occasions, it was now unclear where the dragon was hiding. But plenty of his flight roamed over the world. His flight, and the twilight flight.
As the cloud cover began to thin out, the red dragon saw her chance to have some fun, and dove straight down towards the distant ground below. Why fly over the mountains silently when you could duck and dive THROUGH them? It seemed like the better option. Above her, only one of her siblings noticed her departure. With a draconic sigh, Nemestrasz watched the female's antics with small amusement. If Korialstrasz was here... Oh she'd be in so much trouble for being so reckless. And thus, without a second thought, Nemestrasz also dove down through the thin cloud cover in pursuance of his sister.
Currently unaware of the behaviour arising out to the north, Korialstrasz, or rather Krasus, leant back in the chair in which he had taken comfort. The chamber which he had resided in was changing constantly. The scenery on the walls shifted from clouds, to rain, to sun and much more. It was much of a mini paradise. However, the consort was not paying any attention to the all-too-familiar surroundings. His gaze rested on three floating orbs which danced just out of his reach.
The first orb depicted a forest, with a green haze flushed over it. This was the emerald dream, a dimension which the great Aspect Ysera controlled. It was a world of silent dreams and hopes. A world which had a great distortion in it. The orb was there so that Krasus could keep a silent eye on the Aspects domain. He had not asked the Green Leviathans permission, but if needed, he would inform her of any strange occurrences.
The second orb showed the realm of Deepholm. Krasus only had it there in case something unexpected happened, merely a precaution. The world pillar shone several colours of red and purple, showing off its beauty to any adventurers who flew past. However, the world pillar was in need of being restored still or the whole of Deepholm was going to crash into Azeroth. Very soon..
And the final orb was shifting visions. A few flashes showed Grim Batol, Blackrock Caverns…Until it rather suddenly settled on what seemed to be a desolate area with quite a few mountains. Blades edge? No.. Somewhere more distant. The male elf leaned forward in urgency as he attempted to get a better view on the floating magic. Ordering the orb silently to head to where the situation seemed to be occurring. The view flew past a large black dragon, before shifting and turning back to it. Was that the issue? It was only one.. No. There were more forms in the distance. Two red dragons were heading straight for the black one.
And those two dragons were two of his kin.
'I told you to head back up! This is my route!'
Came the complaining tone of the female red dragon. Alicestrasza glared over at the male who had joined her. Of course, speaking was becoming awkward due to how much banking and turning she had to do. The route would have been absolutely amazing, and fun, if she had not been joined by the 'Silent drake' as everyone knew him. Nemestrasz flew quietly beside her, but the glare in his eyes were evident that he was annoyed at her change of scenery.
'Just go back and join the rest of the flight.'
He remarked, before sharply banking left and letting his wings catch the soft wind in order to give him a little bit of height over her. Alicestrasza was such a nuisance at times; she was defiantly the joker of the group. It was only her wits that had stopped her from being eaten by goodness knows what in her life. The pair flew in silence, ducking passed fast approaching mountains and such. Nemestrasz was by now tempted to grab her with his claws and drag her back up to the rest, but that would only end up in him hurting her...
The male's thoughts were shut off suddenly as he felt himself collide with Alicestrasza. The female was purposely slowing, and rapidly. Nemestrasz let out a grunt of annoyance as he attempted to urge her forward, only to receive a sharp wack to his side which she'd inflicted with her wing.
'Damn it! We need to turn back! NOW!'
Alicestrasza urged. About ten metres up ahead, was the large form of a Black dragon. The creature was balancing on a ledge of a nearby mountain, and it had just spotted them. The dark dragon turned his head and began to stretch both leathery thin wings to the air, before letting out a screech that would even make Malygos cringe.
Suddenly, it was upon them.
Let The Games Begin.
The only noise which broke the silence of the forest came from the soft sound of footsteps. A sleek body moved swiftly through the trees, almost impossible to catch sight of it at the speed it was moving. Not even the animals residing in bushes noticed the figure dancing through the green undergrowth of the trees. Lyanta Windshot ran with the speed of a Nightsaber through the calm sanctuary in which she spent many of her days. From afar you could easily tell what race she belonged to, even from just the smallest of glimpses. Long elegant purple ears stretched out from her head marking her to be the nocturnal race of the Elves. Her skin was a light purple colour, and her eyes shone with the light of Elune. However, the female was not a priestess, nor a druid. So it would seem rather strange for her to be roaming through the woods of Moonglade. But you had to have some fun sometime didn't you?
Beside her flew a giant celestial owl, its wings reflecting off every bit of light in the woods, making its usual azure brilliance dulled to a slight green. The owl was Lyanta's most faithful companion, Soren. The pair had been through a lot together, they'd travelled the world of the Outlands, and they'd braved the harsh cold of Northrend. Yet now they were sneaking around the druid's world. She meant no disrespect to Malfurion and such, but curiosity killed the Nightsaber…as they say.
Advancing towards the barren dens the female was stopped in mid stride, and for the first time that day, had actually come to a complete halt as a rather loud and painful screech ripped across the open sky, and the serenity of Moonglade. Putting it down to one of the animals fighting, she began to head forward again, until another screech tore the silence. Was something fighting nearby? Or perhaps the screech was loud enough to travel over several miles.
'Soren, fly to the source of that noise and search for any clues of what that may have been.'
Lyanta addressed the owl next to her. With an obedient nod, the owl stretched its spectral wings and departed in the direction of the awful sounds. Of course, Lyanta had no interest of staying where she was and soon left in a hurry after her companion, her agility making it rather simple to catch up with it.
As claws and teeth dug into her scaly flesh, Alicestrasza continued to attempt to push off the giant black dragon which had pinned her to the ground of the Barrens. The ruby dragon's wings beat endlessly against the dusty hard earth under her. The dragon above her seemed to sneer at its prize, before loudly crushing one of her wings under its clawed foot resulting in another loud screech of agony ripping through Alicestrasza's lungs. Circling above the pair Nemestrasz was making his dive for them, aiming for the black dragons wings. Moisture soaked his body from the clouds as he tucked his leathery scaled wings in, making the drop seem to take less time than needed. Sure enough, Nemestrasz collided with the giant black drake and managed to drag it off of Alicestrasza in its moment of surprise.
The female ruby dragon shifted herself to her feet before painfully departing from the ground and continuing the futile fight against the black. Banking softly, she dug her claws into the weak points between the drakes scales, ripping a few loose in the process whilst Nemestrasz held the screeching dragon still. In one last effort to rid itself of its two foes, and get out in one piece, the Black drake shifted its whole body to the side in midair before ramming his long and deadly tail straight into the females chest. Blood ripped out from it, but the impact in midair had sent her flying back. Infact, she'd been thrown straight out of the wasteland they'd been in, and god knows where she'd land now..
Of course, she soon found herself crashing through trees and grass and an unfortunately great speed. And being a creature of her size, the ground in which she had collided with, had turned a deep black colour where the soil had been churned up. Alicestrasza let out one last defiant roar, shaking the trees around her, and even accidentally setting alight to a few of them, before her large head slumped onto her front feet, and her consciousness slipped from being.
The dragon's last thoughts before the darkness were only that of Nemestrasz, who she had left behind. She couldn't head back to him in such a state…Her left wing was badly injured, and her chest was still seething with agony.
She just hoped her death would be swift.
Far, far away from all the commotion in Kalimdor, Stormwind was beginning to face another day of joy. The city flourished with life of different races, and it was at this time, that the large guilds would meet up and discuss what to do with the rest of the month. One of these guilds, was the Fellowship Reborn, a fairly large guild with many various types of members. Some had joined recently, and others had been there since the creation. The meeting was in the Dwarven District of Stormwind, though luckily the smog from outside had not yet penetrated the walls of the house they were staying in. Several different people and creatures sat around one large table in the centre of the room. A few of them were arguing, and others were just idly chatting whilst they all waited for the Guild Leader to come back from his latest successful raid.
Several cats sat around the outskirts of the table, some seeming more mortal than others. Serelonde was one of these. The Night Elf had resumed his feline form merely to keep out of the bickering going on just a few metres away from him. He had led himself down on a rug next to the fire and was quite happy just to watch the flames flicker with endless freedom. His eyes absently drifted to the table as voices were suddenly raised on the far side of it.
'I'm telling you! The Naga was huge! But I still cut it down!'
Slamming a mug down in triumph onto the wooden surface, a human paladin gleamed with utter pride at his own words. Running a hand through his fiery hair in joy, he continued his rant about his trip to the underwater world of Vashjir, as a couple turned their heads to listen. Merely for the fact not all of them had gone to that call, most had headed off to Mount Hyjal by order of the king. However, Ascarod had delved the depths, and apparently slaughtered a massive Naga. Naga were the water serpents which roamed the seas, and they served their masters well. Asca' continued to tell tales of giant squids, and bloodthirsty sharks as he drunk down another pink of Dwarven Ale.
'Forget that mate, I managed slay hundreds of those Twilight scum!'
Came another booming voice over the table, from the other side this time. Shifting his gleaming sword, and pointing it up to the roof, a Death Knight bathed in his own glory as he recalled his time in the Twilight Highlands. Ssylar was usually rather quiet at the meetings, but as Asca' had ranted about his own victories, the Knight couldn't just sit by and silently think about his. And thus, two stories began to echo around the wooden meeting point.
'Enough you two! I managed to get a piece of the World Pillar back! Beat that!'
And yet, a third voice joined in the drunken boasting. A warrior had decided to speak up in the matter, boasting about his time in Deepholm. That was another huge issue which needed to be resolved. However, boasting about it really wasn't really necessary. Yet, the three drunken males continued to speak about their triumphs and efforts. Dahusband, or Dahubs, as everyone knew him, was still gloating about the Pillar Fragment, whilst gulping down the ale. Sat next to Dahubs was a rather agitated looking Priest. Long horns curved out of her head showing her to be a Draenei. The female was tapping her fingers on the woodwork, trying to calm herself from shouting at the drunks to shut up. After Asca' once more raised his voice, on about the sharks this time, she snapped.
'By the Naaru! Would you please quieten down!'
She frowned, standing up for emphasis. The entire table instantly went silent, other than a few murmurs and laughs. Elect folded her arms over her robes in annoyance and glared at the inhabitants of the table. They were always worse when the Guild Leader wasn't around. Though hopefully, they wouldn't have to wait long now.
Elect sat back down, having completely quietened the drunks. It was rare that Lyanta hadn't shown up to a guild meeting. However, Elect had no need to contact her and with that, the Draenei muttered softly under her breath.
'This is going to be a long night..'
The dragon was absolutely huge. Huge in comparison to the Elf who stood before it. Lyanta gawked at the magnificent sight which had unveiled itself in front of her very own eyes. Infact, this dragon was so huge that its form towered over the greenery around it, the leviathans wings as high as the tree's. She could just make out its head from where she was crouched, it was led dully to the side, across the giant claws which scrapped effortlessly at the soft ground. The dragon was clearly injured, though was agitated at the same time. Was it trying to get somewhere? It seemed that it couldn't even lift its head at this stage. Plucking up all courage that Elune had granted her, Lyanta began to push forward through the last concealing shrubs.
Immediately, the Leviathans eyes opened at the sound of footsteps. The dragon seemed to be attuned to even the smallest of sounds. Its eyes bore into her very soul as she approached, as if uncovering her secrets silently from within. In a useless effort, it attempted to lift its head up to stare directly at her, both eyes narrowing whilst judging whether she was to be considered a threat or not.
'I mean you no harm.'
Lyanta assured, raising both hands out in front of her in an attempt to back up her words. It was not curiosity that drove her to near the dragon, but something inside of her. Something warm with an edge of urgency. Perhaps it was Elune? Though, she would never know.
'You…Mortal…Stay away'
Alicestrasza hissed, beating one large leather wing on the ground in frustration. One wing was fine, yet her left one was gravely injured from the fall she had endured. She wasn't going to be able to fly for at least a week. However, for a dragon who had lived for decades, a week was merely a blink for her. Mortals believed time periods to be long. Yet they were nothing for her, nothing at all. Decades, even centuries passed quietly by.
'I have no need for your help.'
Lyanta merely rolled her eyes at the dragons warnings. She had no interest in leaving a creature such as this, harmed and alone. Therefore, she continued to carefully edge forward. If the dragon had been of the Black Dragonflight, she would have killed it by now. Yet this one was red. One of Alexstrasza's children. She knew that the dragon would do her no harm at all. The dragon opened her jaws to growl, revealing a unnerving array of large, sharp teeth some of which were nearly half the size of Lyanta. The behemoth posed no threat to her, as far as she was concerned. Finally reaching the dragon, Lyanta extended one hand and placed it upon the dragons muzzle. She ran her hand over the scales, as the dragon finally gave up and placed her head back down on the ground closing both eyes in contempt.
'Teachings have spoken of dragons having more than one form. Have you got another form which you can use? I know a place where I can help you. But I can't get you there in that form.'
Lyanta spoke calmly, yet there was a sense of urgency in her tone. There had been tales of Deathwing having a human form. So did this dragon have another form? She needed to get aid for the dragon, but that could only happen in Stormwind. Her thoughts were cut short as the dragon nodded, pushing itself painfully to its feet. And then... The most beautiful sight occurred…
The dragon groaned, extending its ruby wings to the sky. A soft shimmer enveloped the behemoth as those wings became arms, its hind legs became feet. The dragons muzzle shifted back into a nose and mouth. Finally… A form which resembled a human fell to the ground. Shifting the blood elf female, Lyanta managed to haul her up, before grabbing her hearthstone from her pocket and beginning to cast it. However, she knew she'd have to be careful in Stormwind.
'Now then! I'll be heading all the way out to the Twilight Highlands next. There will be another attack launched on the Citadel! I'm not going to miss out on it!'
Rhecker remarked, breaking the news of his next adventure rather suddenly to the guild. A silence swept over the table, weighing down the hearts of the members present. Recently, Rhecker had been travelling a lot in an attempt to take down the new criminals of Cataclysm. However, Magmaw had been a huge threat to the heroes, but the paladin had once again triumphed. Despite this, the looming worry of the guilds welfare hung thick, much like a looming atmosphere over the once joyful event. Even the few drunken males had placed their mugs back down on the oak table in disbelief. Daring to break the silence a Rogue which had remained silent until now spoke out.
'You only just returned though? How long is it until you leave?'
She asked, raising a eyebrow towards the Paladin. The females name was Jendrah, but most knew her by Jen. Having been a more recent addition to the guild, she usually kept quiet during these conversations. But this time, it seemed she was the only one who had plucked up and rose above the dwindling shock.
Rhecker let out a hearty laugh at her question. Although the Paladin was strong, he had no intentions of leaving in a hurry. He had an audience with the King the next day. Though, he guessed he'd have to leave soon after it.
'I'll remain here for a couple of days.'
He replied, grinning. The male sat himself down in one of the vacant chairs and placed his shield aside for comfort. At that, the guild's spirits heightened and they were off again. More bragging and arguing reached across the table from the previous suspects, but with the atmosphere lifted, it was merely amusing to watch them now. Even Rhecker joined in with some of the smaller conversations which revolved around recent events nearer to home. He was particularly interested in one subject. In his absence, he had not been there to witness the marriage of two guild members who were sat at the other side of the table. Akelah and Hellsbirth had gotten married after the Cataclysm which had shook Azeroth. Both of them were Draenei, yet their classes were different. Akelah was an accomplished Mage who focused on arcane magic. Whereas Hellsbirth, or Hells, was an experienced Shaman. Rhecker nodded as the hunter next to him spoke of how the wedding had been held in the Exodar.
The hunter was known as 'Celtic' to the guild. And had gained quite a high rank. However, the female Draenei felt the guild was more of a family than a guild.
A crash resounding from upstairs caused half the guild to quieten down and stare at the staircase in confusion. Silence fell over the table once more, before a loud call of 'MY BAD!' echoed throughout the house. Elect covered her mouth in a chuckle as she recognized the voice.
'Looks like Lyantas back'
She smiled, raising to her feet quietly and brushing off her robes. The Draenei nodded towards everyone before exiting the room and making her way up the stairs. God knows why Lyanta had used her Hearthstone to get back. Surely she could have ridden back on her Saber? Infact... Did that mean she'd left her Nightsaber somewhere? Shaking her head, Elect knocked on the door to the room which Lyantas hearthstone was attuned to.
Inside that very room, Lyanta hurried to place the injured human down on the bed. The Night Elf couldn't help but gawk at the robes which the human wore. Had they been part of the change? Was that another part of the miracle she'd witnessed earlier. Either way, she had no time to ponder on such a thing as the knock resounded throughout her long ears. Glancing only once back at the motionless form on the bed, she stared at the door in an attempt to work out who was on the other side. If it was Rhecker or Ascarod, she was doomed. Lyanta knew she wasn't supposed to bring people here without their permission. And how exactly was she to explain that the seemingly human form was really a dragon?
'Who's there?'
She asked, peering curiously at the wooden door by now. Perhaps she'd imagined the knock after all.
'It's me, Elect'
The voice replied. And without any notice, the Draenei Priestess had already opened the door and was heading in. Even as a Night Elf, Lyanta knew her reactions wouldn't have been quick enough to hide what she'd done. Elect raised one eyebrow at the sight in front of her, before raising one hand and pressing on her forehead lightly.
'Rhecker's going to kill you.'
She sighed, looking back up at Lyanta before letting out a laugh. Of all the crazy things the hunter had done in her life, she'd brought back someone to where the guild held their secret gatherings? However, being a priestess of the Naaru provided her with some initiative that the human before her, wasn't all that she seemed to be.
'I think you're going to have to have a pretty good exclamation for this'
Elect remarked, pointing to the motionless female. And thus, Lyanta recited over what had happened in the past couple of hours. Elect showed no emotion until Lyanta had exclaimed that the human was in fact a dragon, at that point both of the Draenei's glowing eyes widened in utter astonishment.
'A..What?'
As the Trade District bustled with people trying to do their daily shopping and such, no one noticed a dark figure slip passed them. This very figure seemed to meld with the shadows as it slowed its pace beside the canals. Pushing passed a group of Dwarves, the figure slipped into one of the many nooks and crannies in the city. With a sigh, he pulled back his hood to reveal himself to be slightly elven of nature. Not a good thing to look like in an Alliance city.
Nemestrasz let a sigh escape his lips as he slumped down to the ground, resting his head on his hands. Alicestrasza had gone missing and was somewhere within this city. But the male couldn't get a complete grip on exactly where. Maybe it was his emotions messing with his spells, or perhaps she was being held by Magi. Though, the male doubted the latter. If she was being held by someone, they'd have a hard time keeping her from eating them or something.
A small chuckle left his lips at the thought of Alicestrasza attacking a bunch of corrupted Magi. He had only once seen her fight, and that had been merely earlier that day. To be honest, he'd thought her pretty hopeless at it all. Though, he could not help but love her. She was his destined mate after all. No matter how he thought of her, that emotion of love was always dwindling around in his mind somewhere. He couldn't afford to lose her now, not before having declared such feelings to her. He refused to let such a thing happen. The male let his disguise with the shadows slip for now. No need to waste effort.
