Grommac, a young Orc, walked cautiously into the Valley of Trials. As he stood before Kaltunk, he questioned whether he was ready to begin his career as an Orc warrior. Kaltunk sent him to Gornek to obtain his first quest on the long path to becoming the warrior he was destined to be.
He had little more than a crude axe when he went to farmer Lok'lub's farm and began slaughtering mottled boars, but it was a beginning. Standing over the last boar carcass, an apparition appeared before him. Upon seeing the apparition, Grommac knelt, partly in fear and partly in awe.
"Grommac, we are watching you."
"Why do you watch me?" asked Grommac.
"Because we are here to help you attain your destiny. When you need us, we will be here. As the days of your life pass, we shall come to you to shape your destiny."
The apparition then faded away, leaving Grommac knelling there alone. He looked around to see if anyone else had seen the apparition, but he was all alone. He shrugged his shoulders and ran off to turn in his quest to Gornek.
Grommac collected fruit. He hunted Northwatch scouts. He even beat lazy peons with a blackjack. Whatever was asked of him, he had done. Slowly, he was growing into a fine warrior. It was not long before Zureetha Fargaze finally sent Grommac to Sen'jin Village.
As Grommac paused on the outskirts of Sen'jin Village, he suddenly felt a presence. As he looked to his left, he found the apparition standing under a large tree next to the road.
"You have done well, young warrior, but your destiny is not here."
"Then where is it, apparition?" asked Grommac.
"To the north in Orgrimmar."
Grommac shrugged his shoulders and headed north toward Ogrimmar. When he reached the outskirts of Razor Hill, Grommac looked around for the apparition, but he saw no one but the patrolling guards, so he entered. Grimtak the butcher motioned to Grommac.
"Would you do a favor for me, young warrior?"
"What would you require of me?"
I need to send some of my choice cuts of meat to Gryshka, the innkeeper in Orgrimmar."
"I am heading there. I can do that for you."
"Speak with wind master Burok and he will afford you transport to Orgrimmar."
Grommac took the package of meat from Grimtak and went looking for the wind master. When Grommac approached Burok he was greeted with a smile. Burok recognized the wrappings of the butcher and immediately offered a free ride to Orgrimmar.
Grommac was in awe at the size of Orgrimmar. Never had he imagined any city could be so large. It took him some time to make his way to the inn as ever where he turned there was something new to attract his attention.
Upon entering the inn, Gryshka rapidly recognized the wrapped package of meat and approached Grommac. She took the package from him and gave him a letter to deliver back to Grimtak in Razok Hill.
Having returned to Razor Hill, Grommac turned the letter over to Grimtak. He would have spent some time exploring Razor Hill except that he knew the apparition would be looking for him in Ogrimmar, so he decided he should hurry and return. Not wanting to spend the money to fly, he decided to walk back to Orgrimmar.
Grommac wandered Orgrimmar for hours without any idea why he was there. He waited for the apparition, but it did not appear. With no word coming, he decided to go out and mine some ore to pass the time. When Grommac returned to Orgimmar he heard a voice calling to him.
"We have come to you as we have promised." The apparition said.
Grommac looked to make sure no one was looking before he spoke, "I have waited for you to appear."
"It is time. You must fly to the city of the undead. From there you shall travel to the village of Brill. It is there that you will gain the skills required."
"Required for what?" asked Grommac.
The apparition said nothing more. It simply faded away. Grommac looked around to make sure no one saw him talking to himself.
In a whisper, he said, "Yes, apparition, I will do as you say."
Grommac made his way to the Zeppelin and traveled to Undercity. Landing in Trisfal Glades, he quckly made his way to Brill. Locating Magistrate Sevren, Grommac began to do quests for the locals. He knew that each quest he performed got him that much closer to whatever the apparition wanted of him.
Grommac crossed Trisfal Glades fighting murlocs, bears, bat, and even the fearsome Scarlet Crusade. Running out of quests, he looked around for the apparition who had led him here, but there was no sign on it. As he didn't see the apparition, it became time to journey to Silverpine Forest and seek out Grand Executioner Mortuus.
Questing in Silverpine Forest was different for the young Grommac. He especially liked bombing murlocs from the back of a bat. The whole time he was still wondering why he was among the undead. He also wondered where the apparition was during this whole time.
The weirdest quest Grommac experienced was talking to someone hiding in an outhouse and then being told to go into a house and hide in a wardrobe. He had this strange compulsion to feel the back of the wardrobe to make sure there was a back to it and he really had no idea just why.
He was finally sent to the Forsaken rear guard where he continued to perform the tasks given him. The worst task he had here was battling spiders to free fellow orcs. Since Grommac hated spiders, he couldn't help but repeat one phrase the whole time.
"Why did it have to be spiders?"
It wasn't long before Grommac had completed his duties with the Forsaken rear guard and was on his way to the Sepulcher to continue lending a hand. He looked for the apparition as he traveled down the road, but he saw nothing but trees and the occasional bear.
Grommac was only in the Sepulcher for a short time before he moved on to the The Forsaken Front. The Gilneas were everywhere, but that's what he was there for. Their numbers had to be controlled as they were beginning to flood into the area.
As he arrived at the Forsaken forward camp it was still Gilneas he was fighting, but Grommac figured that at least it wasn't spiders. Soon he learned that humans from Stormwind had reinforced the Gilneas. He was ordered to enter the city and take revenge for the Forsaken who were slaughtered.
Grommac was finally ordered to get to Lord Vincent Godfrey. With more reinforcements arriving from Stormwind, there was no time to waste. He rushed off in search of Lord Godfrey, but they were too late. They found him lying dead on the beach. Carefully, they picked up his body and carried him to Lady Sylvanas who raised him as an undead.
It wasn't long before Grommac was sent to Ambermill, where he obtained the Ambermill Codex. Knowing it was important he took it to Dalar Dawnweaver. Of course, she required a Dalaran Archmage's signet ring to decipher the codex. This called for a trip to the Crater that was once the location of Old Dalaran.
As Grommac came out of the inn, the apparition appeared next to a lamppost nearby. Grommac was surprised to finally see the apparition once more, but he did not speak. He simply stood on the road staring off into the distance.
"You have come a long way, young warrior. We are proud of your progress."
Without losing his stare, Grommac asked, "Why have you been gone so long?"
"You must understand that it is a great strain on us to appear here. We are further away than you could ever imagine."
"So what now?" asked Grommac.
"You go to Old Dalaran just as you were planning. We will tell you what you must do once you arrive."
As Grommac watched out of the corner of his eye, the apparition faded away. With nothing else to do, he flew to the Forsaken front and began his long trek toward Old Dalaran. He began to become anxious as he drew near to the border to Hillsbrad Foothills. When he arrived at Southpoint Gate, he stopped and sat down.
The apparition once again appeared and spoke to Grommac, "Why do you hesitate, young warrior?"
As he rose and began heading into Hillsbrad Foothills, he repeated the montra, "Why did it have to be spiders?"
He stopped on a small hill and sat down to look at Old Dalaran from a distance. Somewhere between the buildings was to be found the signet ring that Dalar Dawnweaver required. The apparition appeared as Grommac sat on the hill. He didn't notice its presence at first.
"You are near your destiny, young warrior."
Pointing toward the crater, Grommac asked, "Down there?"
"Yes. After you locate Relios the Relic Keeper for your ring, you must find the old inn and go to the basement. There you will find an item that you require to fulfill your destiny."
"What item?" asked Grommac to no avail, as the apparition faded away.
Grommac found and slew Relios the Relic Keeper. He took his signet ring and slipped it into his pocket. He then went in search of the inn. When Grommac arrived, he found the door boarded up. He tore the boards from the door and forced it open.
Cautiously entering, he made his way down into the basement. As he walked around he looked for whatever he was sent here for. As he walked around the basement, he found himself staring at the floor. He suddenly had a feeling overcome him.
Grommac reached down and started digging at the floor. He soon uncovered a large leather sack. When he opened the sack he found a red glowing stone inside.
He tied the sack closed and headed for the portal at the bottom of the crater, fighting arcane remnants all the way down. With two remnants charging him, he stepped into the portal and vanished, reappearing in the Sepulcher.
After receiving his reward for his task, Grommac walked outside and found a nice place to sit and relax. It was then that the apparition reappeared.
"Congratulations, young warrior. You have done well so far. It is time to return to Orgrimmar."
Before Grommac could say a word the apparition faded away. He assumed this obviously meant this was not a time for discussion. After having a bite to eat and getting a bit of rest, Grommac began his long trip back to Orgrimmar.
Arriving in Orgimmar in the early evening, Grommac made his way to the Valley of Strength and stood before the Warchief's Command Board. As he stared at a notice on the board, the apparition's voice came from behind him.
"Pay attention to that notice, young warrior, it says 'destiny calls'."
As he turned to look, the apparition was already gone. He then turned back to the board and read the notice. It was a call to arms at Mor'Shan Rampart on the border between Northern Barrens and Ashenvale. He shrugged his shoulders and began the trek to Mor'Shan Rampart, not knowing exactly how this had anything to do with his destiny.
Grommac made his way into the Northern Barrens and headed north on the Gold Road. He happened upon a house to the side of the road just short of the Mor'Shan Ramparts. There was an orc who greeted him when he approached.
"I am Brogor," the orc said.
"Hello, I am Grommac.
Brogor looked Grommac in the eyes as he spoke, "While we cast our eyes toward the cataclysm, who watches our backs? While our leaders take up arms against Deathwing, the Burning Blade plots our downfall."
Brogor looked to the southwest as he continued, "Even as we speak, they are gathering recruits and supplies at the farm to the southwest. I care not to meet death at the hands of the Burning Legion. It's time we take matters into our own hands."
He then put a hand upon Grommac and asked, "Grommac, will you help me keep the vigil? Go and slaughter their ranks before it's too late."
It was then that Grommac's attention turned to a female goblin standing near the side of the house. She motioned to him so he came near.
"I am Wenikee Boltbucket and I want to fix this samophlange, but to do that I'm going to need some supplies. I ran out of seventeen-point-five gauge nugget slugs and I'm going to need a bunch of those for the work ahead."
"Where might I find the slugs?" Grommac asked.
"Unfortunately, the closest place to get them is the Burning Blade farm to the southwest. The place will be heavily guarded, so be careful, but the samophlange just might be worth the risk. Search the tool buckets, then return to me when you've gathered enough nugget slugs."
Being that he was heading to the farm anyway, Grommac reasoned that it would be just a short distraction to collect a few nugget slugs. He headed off to the farm to the southwest.
After completing his task for Brogor, he reached Mor'Shan Rampart. Grommac began helping defend the border from alliance intrusions. Eventually, he was sent to the Warsong Labor Camp to fetch wood for the Mor'Shan Ramparts. Once there he was once again visited by the apparition.
"It is time, young warrior, to fulfill your destiny."
"Yes, apparition, what do you require of me?"
"You must go to Demon Fall Canyon. There you will find a statue of Grom Hellscream."
"Where will I find Demon Fall Canyon, apparition?"
"Go to the east, Grommac, to the east."
"Why do I go to a statue?"
"Because it is your destiny, young warrior."
The apparition faded away once more. Grommac shrugged his shoulders and headed east toward Demon Fall Canyon. He asked Gorka about the canyon, trying to get directions.
"It is east of here," Gorka said, pointing to the east, "and watch out for demons, obviously."
So Grommac headed east and followed along the mountains, skirting the Dor'Danil Barrow Den. He also had to avoid the slimes in the area. Arriving at Felfire Hill, he quickly understood what she meant by telling him to watch out for demons.
Reaching the entrance to the Demon Fall Canyon, he started fighting his way in through one demon after another. Finally, he was standing in front of Grom Hellscreams statue. As Grommac stood silent, he took the red stone from the sack and held it up to the statue. The stone began to glow a bright red.
As the Eye of the Oracle continued to glow, a mist flowed from the Eye and into the stone statue. Soon an apparition stepped out of the statue as the Eye of the Oracle disappeared. Grommac stood motionless as the apparition spoke.
"I am Ael'koel. My essence was locked within the stone that became that statue. It is good to be out of my prison to breathe fresh air once more. But this is not the place for a long discussion."
The apparition moved to Grommac and merged with him. The apparition then found a place in Grommac's subconscious where it could reside undetected.
Grommac suddenly found himself staring at the stone statue with no recollection of the red stone, or anything to do with the apparition. It was as if his memory had been wiped clean.
As Grommac stood there, he wondered why a statue of Grom Hellscream would be surrounded by demons. As he stood staring at the statue, he felt a compulsion to return to Orgrimmar. He headed for the flight master to begin his long trip home.