I'm really ready for my two main characters to finally meet but I don't want it to feel rushed and clumsy. Sorry if these chapters felt dragged out. Finding a flow is definitely the thing I'm struggling with most.
Chapter 7
Her father had been right, the trip took longer than expected. Much longer. Once she was packed and ready to go they met up with her friends and made their way to the Undercity and from there Orgrimmar. It took them three days to get to the Horde capital, three days of waiting around for the next wave of soldiers to be ready to take off to Borean Tundra, and five days, so far, on the zeppelin there. Yesterday the temperature was noticeably colder, today it was freezing.
Undercity had been cold and wet, she had never been to a gloomier place. Most Blood elves hated the dark and she was no different. They had stopped in the city while they were waiting for the Zeppelin to restock some basic supplies. The underground world was unnerving, to say the least. She had seen plenty of Forsaken, they were the Elves closest allies in the Horde, but she had never been around so many of them at one time. Their city smelt of mold and decay and had a cold emptiness she had never felt before. It wasn't just lifeless, it was soulless. The Undead hadn't been unkind, but she was anxious to be somewhere else.
She had been looking forward to reaching Orgrimmar, she had never been to the capital before and she was sick of the cold, but once they got there it had been easily over one hundred degrees. The Orc city was built into the orange mountains of Durotar which absorbed and radiated the suns heat. They kept to themselves during their short visit, not leaving the small inn they had all been staying in.
Kaendris had sent her a parchment while they were waiting around in Orgrimmar expressing his sadness that they hadn't been able to travel to Northrend together. It 'would have given them the personal time they needed'. She wanted to vomit in her mouth. Sick of his advances and feeling snarky after her promotion she sent him a parch back asking him to 'kindly fuck off'. She hadn't received a letter back.
After cold wet Undercity to hot muggy Orgrimmar, now they were back in the cold. She couldn't believe they weren't all drowning in sickness.
The trip so far had, for the most part, been pleasant. She had gotten to spend some much needed time with her father. He had kept to his word and had been treating her like an adult. He wasn't bossy or demanding. He didn't try and correct her constantly or nag her in that fatherly way. It was...nice.
They had spent most of their time just talking, something they really hadn't done much of. They talked about her Mother and Sister, about their life before Arthas' invasion, and about how much had changed. Most of their time he explained to her what her new responsibilities would be, both in Northrend and back in Silvermoon. Magisters held a very important place in their society and thus, she had become a fairly important person. While she wouldn't be given any huge responsibilities since she was only recently promoted, she needed to carry herself like she did.
He went on about what Dalaran was like and how to assert herself with the Kirin Tor mages. They apparently looked down on the Magisters for not joining their ranks, so in turn she had to act like she knew she was an equal.
"Do not let anyone push you around Athiana. Show that you know you deserve to be there and the fact that they need you shows superiority. Don't be snarky though, be respectful, you are still a Blood elf."
She had to learn the complicated ranks of the Horde, Alliance, and various factions within them. She already knew the languages which would be helpful in a city filled to the brim with all the different races, now she needed to learn the politics.
Each day on the Zeppelin drew on and on since they didn't have much to keep them entertained. The sleeping was cramped, the meals mediocre, and Nelmara discovered she had terrible motion sickness. It was nice being able to spend quality time with her friends and father, but she was starting to get cabin fever.
Two days into their trip she had ran out of Blood thistle. This didn't bother her too much since she knew she needed to break the habit anyway, but she also hadn't brought a mana crystal with her. Her father had brought a small one he always kept in his coat pocket and she had been sneaking hits off it but it barely sated her. Once she got to be in constant battle, as long as her targets had mana, she'd be fine. All this traveling was slowly wearing on her until then though.
Tristana had spent most of her days out on the upper deck, looking into the clouds or out over the ocean. She sat on a ledge, back against a pillar, one knee to her chest and the other leg hanging over the edge. She opened her hand, flicking a small ball of fire to life and closing it to smother it repetitively.
"Hey Tris" Nelmara skipped over and plopped down next to her. It was clear they were getting close to Northrend with the massive amount of icebergs they had began flying over.
"They said we should hit land anywhere between two and four hours." She turned and looked over the edge, turning an pale shade of green. "If we're still at least two hours away and it's this cold I can't imagine how cold it's going to be when we get there." They both pulled their overcoats around them tighter.
"You're going to a place called Coldarra, what were you expecting?" They giggled.
"You are sooo lucky you get to go to Dalaran! It's going to be amazing. You'll get to meet so many people!"
"Yeah she is!" Zael called as he entered the deck from the lower level. "We'll be freezing our balls off as she's Wining and Dining the Horde and Alliance aristocrats. He sat down next to Trista and stretched his legs. "Shit, I would have studied languages too if I had thought they would ever be useful" he scoffed crossing his arms behind his head.
"This is probably a shocker but intelligence and knowledge is always useful" Tris laughed and shoved his shoulder.
"Yeah yeah", he frowned. "Really though, when's the next time we'll even see you".
"I have no idea. I guess it's possible at some point I'll get stationed near you. I assume once you go in for Malygos I'll be there."
They all murmured their agreements.
"You know" Nel turned so she was facing both of them, "This will be the first time we've all been apart since...I don't even know when."
Trista nodded gloomily.
"Eh, we'll parch to each other every other day or something" Zael scratched his head. "We know you can take care of yourself and I'll take care of Nelmara" he grinned. "Besides, Tris is the one that will be getting into alllll kinds of trouble. Alliance General assassinations, wild liaisons with the local Orc war hero, leading the revolution against the Dalaran government, the possibilities are endless."
"My time will probably be spent translating basic messages, conjuring food, and trying to learn their portals. I'd be surprised if my days are exciting compared to yours."
The heaviness in her stomach grew as they loomed closer to land. Trista spent the next few hours just watching the ocean below them. She was just noticing she had been seeing more and more wildlife when one of the Goblin's running the Zeppelin called out they would be pulling up to port soon. The three friends ran to the bow to watch as they flew into the new world.
It was unlike anything any of them could have ever imagined.
