Author's Note: I used to write and pose stories on here in the past, but time availability and responsibilities had forced me to stop. Now, I want to write again, but I felt I should start over rather than try to get back my old account. I hope readers enjoy and I attempt to write a story for fun and, in a small way, support for a game that still means so much to me.
To my knowledge, there is not much lore on the events between the War of the Ancients and the events of the Warcraft games, so I thought it presented a good opportunity to rewrite history. Taking place immediately during the War of the Ancients, and without the appearance of a mysterious green-skinned creature called Broxigar the Red, the Titan Azeroth awakens briefly in a panic and creates an avatar of herself to protect herself.
Now, with the immediate threat dealt with and no further orders given, Avatar, as she will come to be known, will reshape an alternate world in which the orcs never invaded.
Illidan: Knight to E3.
She moved his piece, and then moved her bishop from A1 to D4.
Illidan: Pawn B4 takes Pawn A3.
She moved his piece and took hers, then moved her pawn at B2 to A3, taking his pawn.
Illidan: Bishop to E6 takes knight at C4.
She moved the pieces, and then used her pawn at D3 to take his bishop at C4.
Illidan: King to E6.
She moved his piece, then moved her castle to E3.
Illidan: You are putting yourself at check.
She moved her castle back and moved her king to F3.
Illidan: Knight E6 to F5. Check.
She moved her king to G3.
Illidan: Queen to G6. Checkmate.
She hummed silently to herself for a few seconds as she examined the board, and then let out a defeated sigh before looking back up at him and smiling. "Congratulations. Another game?"
She had been coming by once a week to visit him in his prison, much to the dislike but reluctant acceptance of the Wardens. The process to get to this point had been a long and drawn out one, but she had finally managed it after months of assisting them, earning their trust, and gaining permission from other political and influential powers within the Kaldorei.
To them, she was coming by as a means of thanking him for his actions in the War of the Ancients, something very few knew of and none but her thanked him for, but there was a deeper meaning to her meetings and these games that put his mind at ease and calmed him.
Illidan: No, I believe that is enough for today. What is the score?
Her: My victories: 37 Your victories: 59. Unfinished games: 27.
Illidan: Why do you keep track of the unfinished ones?
Her: It is a subconscious response. Should I recreate one of them so we may finish it?
Illidan: No, perhaps next time. I think your time is up.
The sound of stone sliding against stone echoed through the hall, and she began to pack up the chess set she had brought with her from the storage room elsewhere in the Vault.
Her: Another week then… I will see then, Illidan.
Illidan: No 'Master Stormrage', this time?
Her: Oh? I remembered to not call you that, as requested. I am… improving?
Illidan: You are the avatar of a titan, I do not think you can improve beyond what you already are.
Warden: I believe he means you are being more socially comfortable around him than before.
The night elf demon hunter and metallic silver humanoid turned their heads to see the armor-cloaked night elf approaching them. Her face was concealed by her helmet, but the voice gave away her gender as female; the majority of Warden watchers.
Her: Good day… Enysa Stonelight. I am glad to see you have returned to duty.
Enysa: Thank you. I'm glad to be back to my normal routine. Who won this time?
Her: Illidan has remained undefeated for 5 games now.
Enysa: Have you considered a different game? I do not think strategy is your strong suit.
Her: Unadvised action. How am I to improve without practice?
Enysa: True. Anyway, visiting time is over.
Her: Very well. I will depart. Farewell, Illidan. Until next week.
Illidan: Stay safe, Avatar.
Her: Avatar?
Illidan: It's been almost 3 years and you still have not decided on a name for yourself. If nothing else, 'Avatar' suits you.
…
Avatar: Affirmative. I have added it to my memory banks. I will depart now.
Enysa: Follow me, then. Lady Shadowsong rejected your request to walk the Vault alone again.
Avatar: Was it the delivery of my request?
Enysa: I'm pretty she thinks you might try to smuggle the betrayer out one day.
Avatar blinked her eyes as she and Illidan both looked at the warden.
Despite her power, she chose to make arrangements and receive permission to meet with Illidan on a weekly basis, at least. Given what she could, and had demonstrated in the closing moments of the war only a few years ago, Warden Maiev Shadowsong, Archdruid Malfurion Stormrage, and Priestess Tyrande Whisperwind, among others, were suspicious of her motives and reasoning behind her actions and request to meet with Illidan the Betrayer.
That taken into consideration, however, her silvery humanoid form was about a foot shorter than the average adult Kaldorian woman. Sneaking someone of Illidan's size out of the Vault would be a difficult task, if not physically impossible.
Avatar: Destruction of trust and good will built up over time has been calculated as ill advised and not recommended. Conclusion; lifeform Enysa is joking.
Enysa: You should consider visiting more people, avatar of Azeroth. Your social skills are…
Illidan: In her defense, she has gotten better.
Enysa: She does speak with people besides you… right?
Illidan: To my knowledge, yes.
Avatar: Affirmative. I have had contact with the yaungol, tauren, trolls, elves, titanforged constructs, vrykul, and earthen. Currently attempting peaceful communication with the insect-like nerubian, auir, c'thraxxi, qiraji, and mantid specieses.
Enysa: Those are the ones spawned by the Old Gods, correct? If so, you are playing with fire, young one.
Avatar: Negative. Dragon aspects have already been contacted, minus Aspect of the Earth, or Earth Warden, Neltharion, whose status remains as 'missing' and 'corrupted'.
Enysa: That is troubling, but hopefully it will not be something we have to deal with anytime soon. Let's go. Shadowsong asked me to hurry you along and inform her of when you have left.
Avatar was led through the Vault of the Wardens, a prison for powerful enemies, mostly demons but a few others, that had survived the War of the Ancients. She remembered helping to capture some of them, and even recapture others during her visits to meet with Illidan Stormrage, or the Betrayer, as he was known by his peers.
These visits, however, were not just in thanks for his service, but held a secret meaning.
She deposited the chess board with the others. Three in total, for now, with at least two more she hoped would come in the next few years. Sixteen pieces per set, forty-eight pieces in total. Forty-eight hunters in the making were represented by a different, hand carved piece of material they had chosen to represent themself.
Every time she came by, it was another lesson for her to give to his students, each one having chosen to show their support to him in secret from their peers. Given how the Kaldorian culture was at the moment, it was easy enough to transport these individuals to a more secure and hidden area so they could train without being seen or heard from. A secret place to prepare their minds and bodies on the chance another invasion would take place.
The belief in the actions of one to sacrifice everything for the greater good and purse it even at the risk of exile or worse, she found that commendable and worth helping. Rather than be made into those outcasts or public enemies, these elves could train in the ways of the demon hunter with instructions from their role model freely, but, in exchange, they had to make their friends and family believe they had been lost at sea while trying to make landfall on a broken piece of the continent. In this way, they did not have to worry about search parties.
Contact with a transformed group of elves, mutated by the power of one of the Old Gods known as N'Zoth, and calling themselves naga, led by the former queen of the Kaldorei Azshara and her handmaidens, they were able to make the journey to a land they called Dar'Odar, or World's Watch. It was more of a refugee camp than a stronghold at the moment, but time and support would see it grow into something both formidable and respectable.
Avatar: Will my assistance be required before departure?
Enysa: No. There have been no reports of demons lately. I think we've finally gotten them all.
Avatar: That is good. I do not like demons. They only want to destroy.
Enysa: What about those Old Gods and their monstrous creatures? Aren't they just as bad?
Avatar: Cannot be determined due to Titan interference before creation by native Titan Azeroth. Contact required before threat assessment can be taken.
Enysa: And the titanforged? I've been told you have spoken of those to others of my watch.
Avatar: Titanforged creations remain classified as neutral for the time being. Status is subject to change as Old God influence spreads among them.
Enysa: Elune have mercy. What are you going on about?
Avatar: Aliment designated as 'Curse of Flesh' by Prime Designate of Azeroth, Titankeeper Odyn, and Titankeepers Tyr and Ra has been identified as the primary cause of titanforged becoming mortal and more easily subject to Old God influence. Objective; contact servants of Old Gods to further explore the possibility of curing or halting aliment. Objective declared suspended by Prime Designate until further notice.
Enysa: But you are not exploring that?
Avatar: Correct. Assessment of the situation is required. I will partake of this investigation myself as part of world and self exploration and discovery while mortal races evolve and rebuild in the wake of demon invasion.
Enysa: You are the most active creation of the titans I have ever seen.
Avatar: Creation was due to the panic of the sleeping Titan Azeroth, not foreign Titan Pantheon. Purpose for creation was to protect Azeroth. Titan Azeroth failed to specify which 'Azeroth'. Conclusion; protect World Azeroth and Titan Azeroth. No memories or information of the world were implanted into the subject Avatar of Azeroth. Learning through experience has been deemed necessary to fulfill the purpose for creation.
Nylina: Hello again, titan avatar. Hello Enysa. Is she giving you her backstory?
Enysa: I feel like I should be writing it down, but yes.
Nylina: She tends to do that. Myrea, Shanas, Hydlas, and Keldor have all heard her tale as well.
Enysa: The Betrayer said she had gotten better than when she first started visiting.
Nylina: I know. She's still going even now. Hard to believe she's only three or four years old, yet we could probably learn about the origins of the world from her.
Enysa: I know. I think it was Keldor who said he learned we evolved from trolls before she stopped and asked how long he was going to follow her.
Nylina: Oh, you found out that story too- She's gone.
Enysa: She's over there.
The two wardens looked out the door to see Avatar was several meters away from them, now standing facing them and waving her arm as though to say 'Goodbye'. The two waved back and watched as she turned around, and then closed the door to resume their conversation.
Power that kept the continent from being blown to pieces when the Well of Eternity imploded had just come and went into the Vault of the Warden to visit and play board games with the Betrayer Illidan Stormrage as though it were normal. To be fair to the wardens, that same power was now causing an uproar in the world as whole as it wandered around speaking with powers that had existed on the planet sense before the Titan Pantheon, Old Gods, and perhaps Elemental Lords without direction or instruction apart from the one to 'Protect Azeroth'.
There was no telling how this would alter the future of the world. A future that the Bronze Dragon Flight was already questioning and attempting to fix.