The Alfar that were left behind were now aroused and freed from their eternal prisons of stone, but for the meantime they would have to patiently wait for time to pass. Those entrusted with their essences needed time to develop. It would take time for them to attain sufficient level to successfully traverse the Blasted Lands. While this would take time, compared to the thousands of years that had passed in silence, this would be but a blinking of the eye.
The day they waited for had finally arrived. Each of those who bore the essence of an Alfar had reached the level at which they could safely wander into the Blasted Lands. It was midnight when the essences of the twelve awoke from their long sleep. They took control of the bodies and minds of those they inhabited. In the early hours of darkness they began their long trips to the Blasted Lands and the Dark Portal that lie within.
It was a longer trip for some than for others, but all twelve made their way to as quickly as they could. Althoran was the first to arrive in the Blasted Lands. He sat on a hill within sight of the Dark Portal and waited in silence for the others to arrive.
As the hours passed, each arrived in their own turn. Those who were already there would acknowledge the arrival of each new comrade, but they did not break their silence.
It was late in the afternoon when the last of the twelve arrived. The others all welcomed him, but they did not break their silence even now. Instead they sat and waited for the sun to set and for darkness to embrace the land.
As night came, they lit a fire and stood in a circle around it. They soon began to chant, their voices rising up from the hill as if they were the words of a song. Finally, an apparition appeared among them. The chanting ceased when the apparition began to speak.
"We had long wondered what became of our brothers who were left behind. We felt the pain when your voices were silenced. We searched and searched until we found you encased in your prisons of stone. We watched time slip passed, but there was nothing we could do."
The apparition slowly moved among the twelve in a moment of silence. The twelve did not speak. They each knelt as the apparition approached them. The apparition finally began to speak once more.
"We watched as the Dark Portal was created by Nedivh and the warlocks of the Shadow council and a glimmer of hope began to grow. When Kazzak found the relic of the past and opened the Dark Portal to Outlands we saw the portal change from blue to green and we rejoiced. Finally, Garrosh Hellscream, with the help of Kairozdormu, opened the Dark Portal to Draenor of the past and the portal changed from green to red. We knew it was finally our time to act. It was the opportunity to attempt a rescue of the twelve."
"We have waiting in perpetual silence as Azeroth grew into the world that it is today. We thought our torture would never end," said Althoran.
"Through the actions of others, The Dark Portal is now red. The most difficult part has been done for you. You now have the sufficient power between you to make the portal change to white. It will only remain white for a few brief moments, but enough time that you might pass through."
"It is time then?" asked Tyrrai.
"Yes, Tyrrai, it is time."
The twelve walked down from the hill and approached the portal. Together they drew in the remnants of the energy which was from the begin time.
First it was Althoran to focus his energy upon the Dark Portal. Next was Ael'koel to focus his energy upon the portal. Svartalf took his turn to focus his energy. Aelathem, Tahlwyn, and Kethlar followed close behind. Soon to add their energy were Baelreth and Gaelzair, followed by Kethspar, Tyravain, Nim'keth. The last to add his energy was Thobrar.
As Thobrar focused his energy on the portal, he called out, "I add my power to the others! For the…" He paused for a moment, and then continued, "For the Alfar!"
Soon the vibrations began to cause the ground beneath their feet to tremble. A glowing white mist formed at the center, to replace the red glow from before. The white mist resembled a heavy fog rolling across the surface of the ocean.
Slowly, the mist began to clear until the interior of the ring took on the aspect of a polished glass lens. As they continued to watch, the new world began to take form on the other side of the portal. As the world sharpened, they were able to see a small island, far from any other shores. While the interior of the island was a cold and forbidding place composed of mountains and lava flows, the coastal areas were grasslands with vast forests of birch, aspens, rowans, junipers, and willows.
"What world is this that stands before us?" asked Althoran.
"The inhabitants of this world call this small planet Earth," the apparition said.
"Come, my friends, there is no time to waste," demanded Althoran.
The essences of the twelve quickly evacuated the bodies of their hosts, causing their hosts to fall to the ground unconscious. Without hesitation they stepped through the portal. Because the portal had been set to the past, the physical laws were altered. As the twelve arrived on the other side of the wormhole, they were returned to their bodies as if the untold centuries had never taken place. A moment later the portal returned to its usual state of red.
After the passage of a few moments, those adventurers who had been the hosts to the twelve began to wake. It took them only seconds to realize they were in the company of the opposing faction. With hands on their weapons they stood there not sure what to do. They each stared at one another wondering who would attack the others first.
Kuurok slowly took his and from his mace and asked, "Who else does not know how he got here?"
His question went unanswered. They simply stood there with blank looks on their faces, each trying to remember how they came to be here before the Dark Portal. One by one they released their grip on their weapons. It was becoming obvious to each of them that something had happened that was beyond their understanding.
Falgrim was the first to speak up, "The last thing I remember was going to sleep in Ironforge and then I was here."
Skessan said, "I do not know what brought us to be in this place at this time in history, but whatever brought us together must have been for something that goes beyond our petty differences."
"If that is the case," Atumanus said, "then we cannot let it end here."
It was true. They could not let it end here. Though they could not understand how, they knew deep inside that something special had brought them together. They now shared a bond greater than the sum of their individual parts.
One by one, they slowly began to leave, each going their own way, but it was not to end this night. They each were compelled to return each year to the hill in view of the Dark Portal. There they would celebrate whatever brought them together. While they never learned what brought them there, they were now friends and no longer enemies. Perhaps their unusual friendship would one day spread and perhaps the Alliance and the Horde would one day live together in peace.