Ultimately, Araxion and Sariona did not make good on their promise to speak after the battle. They returned to the camp, safe and relatively unharmed, and slept for long hours to regain their energy. The morning after, they were awoken by one of the camp's head cultists, a tauren, banging on a dirty pan to rouse them from sleep.
"Araxion and Sariona?" he asked, a sneer on his face, pleased at how annoying he had managed to be. "The High Priestess wants you at our Hyjal base. Something important. They need you there as soon as possible."
Araxion yawned, and Sariona was the first to be aware."For what?" she asked.
The cultist shrugged, walking out of the cave entrance. Both of the drakes were unhappy with the rude awakening, but left the cave regardless, still fighting off sleep as they emerged into the center of the camp. Sarona was muttering under her breath, and Araxion turned to look at her.
"Which way is the main camp, anyways?" Araxion asked.
"Must be southwest," Sariona said. "We're one of the camps closest to the bulk of the fighting, nearest Nordrassil, so the main camp must be further south and west."
Araxion paused, pushing off into the air and nodding. "I'm sure there's plenty of other drakes coming and going from there," he said. "We can follow them, maybe."
Sure enough, after a while of flying, Araxion and Sariona could see large groups of twilight drakes flying in various directions. They eventually identified the path to the main camp, and followed along from the sky. There was a designated platform for new arrivals, and they landed there. A night elf dressed in twilight garb stepped forward to meet them.
"Names?" she asked.
"Araxion and Sariona," Araxion answered smoothly. "We were told we have buisiness with the High Priestess here."
The night elf scrawled something down on a piece of paper, rolling her eyes. "Another pair here for that," she sighed, then gestured dehind her. "There's a tent over there for you, they'll tell you what to do."
Araxion and Sariona made their way over to the tent. Araxion went in first, and immediately, a cultist grabbed his neck and moved him off to the side. The same happened to Sariona; they were brought together into the same part of the tent. Someone dumped a bucket of soapy water first over Sariona and then Araxion, and two cultists began scrubbing both of the drakes. Sariona backed off, surprised, while Araxion looked around in confusion.
"What are you doing?" he demanded.
Another cultist joined in, and he had to admit, it was nice to feel his scales being cleaned. There was hardly an opportunity to remove all the dirt and blood that built up over time, but the fact that these cultists were cleaning them only raised more questions. The High Priestess, a human Araxion knew to be named Azil, emerged from behind a curtain to address the two drakes.
"Ah, you two have finally arrived," she said. "I assigned a few cultists to clean you up before you meet with the... dignitaries. It's good that you're filthy- it shows that you've been fighting."
Araxion shifted to let the cultists clean under his wings, while Sariona fixed the priestess with a cold stare. "What are you talking about?" she asked.
The priestess pulled some papers out of her robe. "Allow me to explain," she said. "You two are among the best and most brightest of your flight. We've been watching you for a long time; your trainer, Esteria, would always send glowing reviews of your performance under her guidance. Especially considering your ages, you are among the twilight dragons with the most drakes killed. Yesterday, that wyrm you slew, Nalasra, was one of the highest-ranking commanders at Nordrassil. You've done us a great service by killing her."
The priestess continued. "But that is not why you called you here; her death had no bearing on whether or not we'd ask for you. We have two emissaries here from elsewhere on Azeroth, and they're seeking two of the most talented twilight dragons for special roles. There is Lady Irissia, on behalf of the naga, and Kerelion, on behalf of Deathwing himself. You should be honored."
Araxion was clearly pleased with the cultists who were cleaning him, while Sariona was more wary, shying away from touch. The High Priestess was amused, a wry smile on her face. "You need to be presentable for our guests," she said. "I'll tell them to expect you in fifteen minutes."
It took a little less than that for the cultists to finish up. It had been the first real cleaning that either Araxion or Sariona had ever gotten, and they both took a bit to marvel at their own scales, and then at each other. They glistened in the light with every movement; it was strange to look and see just how beautiful twilight dragons really were, considering that they were usually only seen with blood and grime all over their body.
"It's time," The cultist that walked in was a tauren, and he gestured for the drakes to follow. "Stay silent, unless they talk to you directly. You want to show your obedience," he explained.
They walked to another, larger tent a short ways away. The High Priestess stood on an elevated platform, looking over entire tent. Araxion and Sariona were ushered into a circle in the middle of the tent; on either side of them was a dark-haired human, presumably Kerelion, and Lady Irissia, a white-scaled naga. The High Priestess clapped, smiling. A cold chill passed through Araxion- that same old cold feeling. It had been so long since he'd felt that.
"So they've arrived," she said.
"These are the youngest we've seen," Kerelion noted.
"Ah, yes, but perhaps some of the most accomplished, especially considering their age," The High Priestess said.
Sariona was moved off to the side, while the tauren cultist gestured for Araxion to walk around the circle. He complied, both the naga and the black dragon looking at him closely.
"This here is Araxion," the High Priestess began, reading from a paper. "Truly one of our finest. He is from the brood of the great Sintharia, sired by Deathwing himself. He's only three months old, having spent only a month under the guidance of Esteria in the Twilight Highlands before being sent to aid in the effort here at Mount Hyjal. We know that he's capable of siring whelps: it says something about our confidence in his abilities that we'd let a fertile twilight drake fight on the front lines of such an active battlefield as Mount Hyjal."
Araxion couldn't help but be surprised. How do they know if I'm able to have children? he wondered. And why is that such a big deal?
Araxion and Sariona switched places, with Sariona now walking around in the circle. The High Priestess continued. "Sariona, who you see now, is around the same age as Araxion, from the same class taught by Esteria," she said. "Notably, she is originally from a bronze egg instead of the red or blue typical of twilight dragons, her egg laid by the young bronze Mazidormi, her father unknown. We aren't certain- you can't tell until they're of age, with females- but we believe that she is fertile as well. And like with Araxion, the fact that we even let her on the battlefield as a possibly fertile drake is a true indicator of her abilities."
"They seem like they'd be prime candidates for your breeding program," Kerelion noted. "Why instead are you offering them for our projects?"
"Lady Sintharia is producing many children, and we don't want our project to become over-saturated with her brood, seeing as a very high percentage of them is fertile," the High Priestess explained. "And while Sariona may be valuable to introduce fresh blood to the lines, there are many azureborn drakes with even more unique lines, and we have more confidence in the fertility of many of them."
"I would like to see Sariona closer," Lady Irissia requested.
The cultist beckoned Sariona out, and she walked over to the Lady. She slithered down to be closer to the drake, putting her hands on the drake's scales to feel them more closely. The naga ran her hands over the drake's face and neck, as if looking for something in particular. She poked at the drake's wings, and Sariona lifted them obediently, allowing the naga to inspect them. Lady Irissia moved back to her original platform, nodding with approval.
"She's a beautiful specimen," the naga remarked. "Does she know magic?"
"We don't teach any of our young drakes anything except plain combat skills, so no magic apart from their natural shadowfire breath," the High Priestess explained. "And while we can't even trace Sariona's lineage back to Nozdormu, seeing as she's bronzeborn, it stands to reason that she'll bee very capable of learning."
"Have you found your dragon, Irissia?" Kerelion teased, his voice unusually harsh.
"I don't like to make commitments," Lady Irissia said. "But I do believe that she's what my mistress is looking for, yes."
"I have mine," Kerelion said, hardly casting a glance at Araxion. "I know a good dragon when I see them- I am one, after all. Our Lord will be most pleased."
"Both of your selections are going to be fighting tomorrow, keep in mind," the High Priestess noted. "It's an honor that you've chosen from our drakes, but we absolutely need the best and brightest of our drakes for the coming battle. We'll be sending them back to the Twilight Highlands as soon as we can, but they will be fighting with us once more."
"I welcome it," Kerelion rumbled. "One last combat challenge, in my mind."
"I have no doubt about my choice's talent," Lady Irissia said. "We will eagerly await her arrival."
Araxion and Sariona were led away by the tauren cultist to a small tent with sleeping areas. The tauren turned to them, gesturing to the tent.
"Aren't we going back to the camp?" Araxion asked, surprised.
"I believe you heard the High Priestess mention the coming battle," the tauren replied. "We need you to fight, too. The site of attack is closer to her than your camp, so you might as well just save your energy and stay here."
The two drakes took their spots inside the tent, looking at each other with the same expression. "I'm not quite sure what to make of that," Araxion said.
"It was like some sort of auction ring," Sariona said, and shuddered. "That naga put her hands on me, Araxion. They felt so odd."
"It looks like she 'chose' you, whatever that entails," Araxion noted.
"That Kerelion had his eye on you too, I'm sure of it," Sarion said.
Araxion circled in his bed, laying down and resting his head on his forelegs. "I'd rather not think of it for now," he said.
"Resting before the battle tomorrow, now that we know of it?" Sariona asked. "That's wise."
"You should, too," Araxion said.
Sariona sighed, and laid down. "I'll see if I can," she said.