Meeting Old Friends

It was several days after he arrived at Grom'gol Base Camp that Fentulk received any response to his letter, and the form it took was completely unexpected.

He'd spent the day hunting, after reacquainting himself with his old pet, Moke. Though the windroc had languished in stasis in the Nether for years, unaware of the passage of time, he still found it within himself to express extreme displeasure at the neglect. Not even the relative entertainment of chasing down raptors for his master smoothed the ruffled feathers.

Fentulk's knuckles were bloody from the frequent nips, his arm clawed deeply by angry talons. He suffered the abuse without complaint, feeling it was deserved. He voiced no protest when Moke obstinately flew to the roof of the zeppelin tower and preened himself.

After turning over the raptor meat to the cook and hides to the armorer, he halted and nearly fell over upon seeing her.

Ghakora had always been an attractive orc, even dusty from Durotar's desert sands. Several years in the comfortable embrace of Silvermoon City had polished her to a stunning shine. If he hadn't had his heart stolen by pale skin, he might have given this woman another glance. However, as soon as they renewed their acquaintance, he remembered there was nothing she had that he wanted.

"Fentulk," she said loftily, laying her hands gently on his shoulders and kissing the air on either side of his face. "It has been too many years. You haven't changed a bit."

"I thought you'd just write," he said uncertainly. "Didn't expect you to come."

She laughed lightly. "My dear, why in the world would I write to you? Have you troubled yourself to learn how to read, or does that simple skill still elude you?"

Though her tone was not provocative, her words stung, and he flinched slightly. No, Ghakora hadn't changed one damn bit, either.

"Ghakora, I..."

"Please, call me Kora," she said, pulling a face. "It is much less... unpleasant on the ears."

Blinking, he tried to rally his forces once more. "Kora, then. Kora, I need your help. My letter..."

"Yes," she said impatiently, though she hooked his elbow with her hands and steered him toward the inn. "Your letter stated your need. I confess, when I received it, I was... rather shocked. We haven't seen one another in such a long time..."

"I don't know nobody else," he said. "I don't know the land, either. I thought..."

"Hush," she interrupted, wincing at his poor use of Orcish. "I know what you need, and I will provide."

Sighing gratefully, he allowed himself to be led into the zeppelin tower's first floor inn.

"A room, please," she said to the innkeeper. He grunted and passed a key to her. She dropped some coppers into his palm. Fentulk's eyes narrowed as she pulled him to the room at the back, under the stairs.

Once the door was closed, she sighed, "Now, then. I've little time to waste in this backwater, so please be quick." She began to peel her robe off.

Fentulk's jaw dropped open, and he backed away from her. "That ain't what I want!" he choked.

Pausing with the robe barely covering her breasts, she looked at him rather haughtily. "Your letter said you wished me to aid you in finding a mate. I assumed, recalling your obsession with me..."

"What? No! That is not what I want from you! That fucking goblin!" he roared, thudding his fist into the wall. "And I wasn't obsessed with you!"

Shouldering her robe back on, she put her hands to her hips and shrugged. "Of course you were, darling. Why wouldn't you be? Never mind. What is it you want, then?"

"I... I need your help finding a mate," he said, staring at the floor. He was so humiliated, he wished it would open up and swallow him.

"So your letter said," she replied. "'Only you can help,' it said."

"I don't know nobody else," he growled.

"'I remember how kind you were,'" she quoted. "'How lovely...'"

"That ain't what I told him to write," he snarled.

"Oh dear," she said wearily, rubbing her eyes. "Fentulk, you still brutalize our language. I should not be surprised your agent embellished a bit."

"If you thought I wanted this, why the fuck did you come?"

She raised her eyebrows and gave him an indulgent look. "I learned many things among the Blood Elves," she said softly. "One of those things was how to please myself." Her eyes scanned his form hungrily. "You have not changed. You are as I remember you. That is why I came."

It was tempting. Very tempting. But he was on a sacred quest, and it would not please the ancestors if he strayed from it.

"You can't have me," he said stiffly. "I want a human woman as a mate. I need your help to find one."

For the first time since he'd known her, she was struck speechless, and her face actually showed shock.

Recovering, her once pleasant face contorted with disgust. "And why, exactly, would I do that for you?" Now he could see the orc beneath the smooth, elven-influenced veneer.

"You do not have to do much, just... tell me where to go."

"Oh, I shall tell you where to go," she snapped. "The Nether take you, you ignorant man. There is no love for orcs among humans. You will be sadly disappointed, assuming you live long enough."

"I lay with a human woman a few weeks ago," he pointed out, and she blinked with surprise. She quickly masked it.

"So there you are," she said. "You have already found her. What in the world are you still looking for?"

"She ain't the one," he replied. "She... showed me what I wanted, but... I ain't gonna find it with her."

Rolling her eyes and beginning to pace the small room, Kora snarled, "You fucked a human whore, and now you can't wait to plow another. I'd forgotten what a stubborn son of a bitch you are, Fentulk."

"She weren't no whore," he muttered.

"Then a madness took her," she said dismissively. "A madness that is in short supply within the Alliance. Do you not realize we are at war again? I've lost count how often we have been. Orcs and humans just don't get along. And you want to bed one. Good luck with that."

"There ain't no humans on Draenor," he growled. "I got no reason to hate them."

"I beg to gods-damn differ," she snapped. "The place is lousy with humans now. Just because it's a virtual human-free paradise in Nagrand doesn't mean the other regions don't require a good cleansing."

"Just help me, please," he begged. "Where do I go? How do I travel? What do I do?"

"You go north until you are captured as a spy, then you try to keep your mouth shut and not betray the Horde while they torture you, then you die. That is what you do."

"I can't just... travel? They ain't gonna let me mind my own business?"

She laughed heartily, shaking her head. "You stupid, stupid man. To begin with, you are an orc. You wander north of here into Duskwood or Westfall, lands utterly in the hands of the Alliance, and you will be captured. If you are lucky, you will be shipped back south to neutral territory. If the ancestors wish to teach you a lesson in following stupid whims, you will be imprisoned, tortured, and killed. Eventually."

"They don't do that," Fentulk denied with little conviction, simply because he didn't know what humans were like.

"They most assuredly do," she snapped. "You will do whatever the hell you want to do, I've no doubt. I only ask that you not mention our association when they are peeling your skin off strip by strip. I have a few... acquaintances I do not wish to anger."

"Humans?"

She rolled her eyes. "Of course not. Human mages are pigs. There are one or two draenei who are... acceptable, shall we say?"

Fentulk frowned. "Are you fucking draenei?"

Sneering, she said, "I would not lower myself. You are low enough."

"Ain't you ever wanted somethin' so bad...," he began, but she cut him off.

"Don't try to compare your unreasonable lusts with any of my pursuits," she snarled. "I believe we are finished here." Considering him for a moment, she briefly closed her eyes and bent a little. "Here. In case you... run into trouble." She extended her hand, and a bright white glow began to grow in intensity. Fentulk squinted against the glare.

"What's that?"

"It is an attunement spell," she explained. "Similar to what you likely share with your pet... Moke, was it? It will allow you and I to communicate. Distance does not matter." He nodded, and she pressed the glowing spell to his temple.

He felt the cold chill as the magic seeped through his skin into his head. It was uncomfortable, and slightly painful, but over quickly.

"You needn't speak out loud," Kora instructed as she straightened her robe and flicked minuscule lint from the fabric. "I would prefer you didn't, actually. Though I'm certain your thoughts are as... poorly structured as your spoken words." Shuddering, she continued, "There is a small amount of discomfort with each use, so do not alert me to every little thing. Emergencies only. If I am able to assist you, I will... likely... do so. Probably."

"Thank you," he said grudgingly.

"Do not expect me to rush to your rescue if you are imprisoned, however," she warned. "I'll not associate myself with criminals, no matter how wrongly accused."

"I ain't gonna trouble you with that," he assured her.

"Good. Now, if our business is finished, I'll return to Dalaran. Call if you need something dire, darling."

After she was gone, Fentulk let out a long breath. Why did audiences with Ghakora... Kora always leave him feeling drained and impotent?