Author note: Finally forced my self to sit down long enough to write this chapter. Sorry for the massive wait. Please leave a full review of this. Please make it more than "update sooner" or "write more" I need to know what you liked, or didn't, so I can figure out what to do next story wise. Also, any suggestions for future chapters would also be greatly appreciated as that would also considerably improve the speed I get new chapters out.
Chapter 4: One step at a time
Korra was not happy at the moment. She was not happy at all. Why do you ask? What could be there source of the Avatar's major frustration at the very moment? Common. The damn language her new hosts was trying to teach her. It was bullshit. What kind of language was it?! Seriously! What kind of weird alien language didn't have masculine and feminine forms!? Speaking the language called common, and that too made it seem even more uninspiring and bland, made Korra feel like some kind of genderless alien doll from the outer dark.
"Two months here and I still have no clue how I got here in the first place." Korra sighed to herself before leaning back in the chair she had been sitting in, staring up at the ceiling of the room she had been set up in. She hated Common, but she was also smart enough to understand that she would never find her way back home if she didn't at least know how to understand or speak it. "I hate having to learn their language to even start asking how I could get back but…. Well I guess I have no choice. It's this or having to pantomime what I am trying to do to everyone I meet in this place." Korra turned her head when she heard Menalrith enter.
"how are you doing?" the blood elf asked pleasantly. Korra had finally learned enough common to have coherent if very broken conversations. IT was clear, however that Korra didn't like the fact the common apparently didn't have masculine or feminine forms of speaking. Or the fact that there were several words that were pronounced the same but spelled slightly different from each other such as there, they're, and their. It also didn't Help that Krom liked to say Korra was stupid for her broken Common speech. And it made Menalrith mad because she had to point out the Krom had just as much difficulty learning it has Korra currently was. All the Orc would do in response to such was to grunt and say he learned common easily, despite it being a l total lie.
"Is stupid." Korra snapped back.
"What is?" Menalrith replied. She already knew the answer. Korra didn't like having to learn a new language. The young woman clearly didn't like feeling dumb or being told by certain insensitive orcs she was dumb. Or the fact the language she was learning was admittedly hard to learn to begin with.
"Common!' Korra threw her arms in the air. "Korra think it too too stupid and hard learning. "She stood up and paced the small room. "Why you no learn wǒ de yǔ yán (1)! I sounding like wǒ hěn yú chǔn, shuō huà bú duì (2)! Like I no know speaking right! Is too too hard! Korra want to speaking zhōng wén (3)!"
"wǒ shuō de shì cóng nǐ nà li xué dào de dōng xī (4)" Menalrith replied crossing her arms. "But none of the rest of Azeroth does
" I knowing that!" Korra snapped angrily, stomping her foot in frustration. "But Korra is Avatar! "
"And what does that even mean?" Menalrith was getting tired of Korra acting like a petulant child. "It may mean something where you are from, but here there are many avatars of many gods and demons. You say you are the Avatar? Of what?"
Korra visibly flinched at the blood elf's words. She had never really had to think about that before. She was the Avatar. No one in here world ever had to ask of what. They knew. But here.
"I is Avatar." Korra replied rather weakly. "Korra is …. ummm… is jīng shén yǔ huó rén zhī jiān de qiáo liáng (5)
"A bridge between the living and spirits?" Menalrith asked. She crossed her arms and thought for a moment. "You mean like a shaman? There are many shamans in Azeroth. Are you saying you are the only one where you are from?"
"Is more to than that." Korra shook her head. "I try explaining." SO Korra did her best to explain to the Blood elf what she understood about being Avatar. About wielding all for elements, which itself resulted in a brief explanation of bending the elements. Then Korra explained the concept of the avatar cycle and how she was in fact a reincarnation of the previous Avatar and how each avatar is reborn each generation to one of the four elemental tribes of her world moving between them in order each generation. At the end Korra felt a little better, having been able to let out some of her frustration and all.
"that… Is very little like a shaman." Menalrith said after few moments. "Shaman can channel the elements, but not at all like what you just described." It was a lot to take in for the blood elf. If what Korra said was true. And Menalrith was starting to believe Korra was from a different world, despite her orc companions protests otherwise, which made little sense as the orcs themselves came from a different world originally. But is seemed as if Korra's world was very different from her own. And the scholar in Menalrith felt a thrill of excitement of learning more.
"your world sounds like a very unique place." Menalrith smiled at the young, dark skinned woman. "If it is alright with you, I would like to hear more. And if you are willing. I can tell you more about this world, Azeroth."
"I…. I would liking that." Korra nodded in response. "Oh. Where your friends being?" Korra then asked. "not seeing for a while."
"Ah. They are out doing work for the Argent Dawn. The order we belong to." Menalrith pointed to the tabard she was wearing. "We were founded to protect the people of this region from the threat of the Scourge, an arm of the undead. Lead by Arthas, The Litch King.
"The Litch King?" Korra asked. "Undead?" that sounded like something the Avatar would need to look into.
Krom, Torben, and Theodora
Out in the remains of a little hamlet deep in what was now known as the plaguelands, three members of the Ardent dawn were fighting a large group of ghouls. Krom laughed as he cleaved another ghoul in half with his massive axe. The large orc was in his element fighting the undead creatures sent by the Scourge. Torben mean while was dropping another group of undead with precise shots from his dwarven blunderbuss. Theodora was in her worgen form slashing and weaving around rotting limbs and jagged claws.
"you know, "Theodora commented dryly. "you could be a little less happy about doing this Krom. It's not the fault of these poor souls that they ended up the way they are."
"I can't help it if I enjoy myself." Krom countered. "Besides a just love the funny sounds they make when you… crunch them. "
"Bloody typical." Torben muttered as he loaded another shot into his weapon and blasted and on rushing ghoul. "Can't you take things seriously just once, you daft orc?"
"Bah!" Krom huffed back in annoyance. "I am always serious when it comes to matters of battle!" He casually deflected the clumsy swing of a rusted sword before smoothly switching into a decapitating strike. "the drums of battle beat in the heart of every orc! It is in our blood." Several more ghouls fell in short order to the large orcs battel axe.
With that the last of the ghouls hade been returned to death. The sun was starting to sink into the perpetual murk of the horizon. The group had been sent to this region of the plaguelands in response to information indicating the possible presence of a higher-ranking necromancer in service of the Scourge. Unfortunately, they had not encountered the alleged death magic user. So, their mission was only part way successful. They were able to destroy the ghouls being amassed in the area; however, they were unable to locate their controller.
"Was our information wrong?" Theodora frowned in annoyance as she scanned the immediate area. "There was supposed to be some kind of necromancy among this horde of ghouls… But I never saw anything but ghouls so far."
"It might be possible the little coward up and ported out of here when he realized his pet monsters were losing." Torben commented nudging a ghoul head with is foot before spitting on the ground.
"Can we be sure the death mage was ever here at all?" Krom tugged on his beard in thought. "ghouls do tend to congregate in their original homes in life." Krom rolled a ghoul body over, take a quick inspection of the rags it had clinging to its frame. "Besides, for all we know we killed him and didn't know. Many of these Scourge Necromancers are barely more alive than the abominations they command."
"the Necromancer would have also made it obvious he was present also." Theodora replied with an annoyed huff. The orc could be surprisingly ignorant at times. And it annoyed the female worgen to no end. What made it worse was the fact that Krom could be incredibly observant and insightful when it came to battle and discerning enemy tactics and movement. Then he would turn around and missive blindingly obvious social cues. It was baffling how anyone could be able to so easily read the subtlest movements in others during a fight could then immediately miss the same kind of signs outside of one.
"If the Necromancer had been nearby, he or she would have been casting their death magic at us the whole time. None of us had so much as a bolt of darkness thrown our way the entire time." Theodora turned at Torben's approach. The dwarf took a long pull from a hip flask he had on him, offering her a little that the worgen politely declined. "In any case we're done here. Let's head back."
"Aye." Torben nodded in agreement, securing his flask again. "We can also start to figure out what to do with our new guest."
"The dark-skinned human." Krom commented as he strode up to the two as the began making there way back out of the ruined Hamlet. The strange human had finally started learning enough basic to understand them they her. However, it still left the question of what to DO with her. Did they send her on her way? Or did they let her stay and join the Ardent dawn? If they had her stay, well what abilities di she have that would contribute to the Ardent Dawn's mission of freeing the plaguelands of the undead abominations infesting it? Those were questions of course, that would have to wait until the three got back to there small base of operations in the area.
"Nothing we can do now." Theodora replied. "All we can do is hope Menalrith has made some progress in figure out who she is." Theodora shifted back into her human form as the reached the edge of the hamlet where they had tied their horses in a concealed spot inside the ruins of a small hut. "let's just get back. Then we can worry about what do with our unexpected guest and where to go from there. Agreed?"
Two grunts of approval came from the worgen companions as the mounted up and made their way back south toward their little base and current "home". Theodora knew, that no matter how things played out with the mysterious girl they found, things were somehow going to change drastically.
Author Note: Once again, sorry for the long wait. Leave reviews telling me what you liked and what I could improve. Please no one sentence reviews of "I liked it, write more." Or "update sooner." They are not helpful and tell me absolutely nothing about what I did that you liked.
Translation
wǒ de yǔ yán: My language
wǒ hěn yú chǔn, shuō huà bú duì: I am stupid and cannot speak correctly
zhōng wén: Chinese
wǒ shuō de shì cóng nǐ nà li xué dào de dōng xī: I speak some learning from you.
jīng shén yǔ huó rén zhī jiān de qiáo liáng: Bridge between the spirits and the living