World of Warcraft: The Ties that Bind

by Blackdrag-rose

Val'sharah: Meeting the Druids

"Is there anything we need before we head down to Val'sharah?" Lyra asked, as she wanted to be sure that she, Trixie, and Azuregos were well prepared for the journey ahead of them.

"Nope. It appears that we already have everything that we need." Trixie replied, as none of them had sold much of what they had picked up from their time in Azuna, save for her when she and the two other additions had sold the items they had acquired from the Eye of Azshara.

"Then let's get going." Lyra said, to which she, Trixie, and Azuregos walked out of the inn they had been sitting in and made their way to Krasus' Landing, where they were sure they could pick up a flight to the zone they would be heading into.

As they walked down the street Lyra noticed that there were a great deal of warrior type heroes entering the city, apparently telling the others about how they dealt with one of their enemies in Stormheim, though it appeared that they were no closer to finding the Aegis of Aggramar yet. Those that were returning from Highmountain, so they could restock on essential items they needed, also appeared to be having some trouble retrieving the Hammer of Khaz'goroth, which may or may not be in the hands of someone who didn't know how to us it, depending on which story they were hearing. It made Lyra happy that the Tidestone of Golganneth had been recovered and safely secured inside Aegwynn's Gallery, which could be one of the safest places in the city... and she smiled as she realized that the Tears of Elune would soon be there as well.

When the trio reached Krasus' Landing, and had passed all of the heroes that were returning for supplies so they could continue their hunt for the two Pillars of Creation they were after, they noticed that Khadgar was standing in the middle of the landing... and he seemed pleased to see them once more.

"I rarely get to say this, but I have good news for all of you." Khadgar said, waiting for the trio to approach him before he spoke, though at the same time Lyra and Trixie smiled at him as well, "Malfurion Stormrage, and the four chosen Archdruids, managed to make landfall in Val’sharah some time ago and have already taken care of things there. It seems that fortune is still smiling in our favor! They are waiting for you as we speak in Lorlathil. Speak to Aludane Whitecloud, whose standing over there, to secure a flight to Val’Sharah... though you should know what to do when you arrive."

Lyra almost chuckled at that statement, because if everything she had been through was anything to go by Khadgar might have just jinxed them. Trixie, on the other hand, nodded as she walked over to the man in question and said that they needed two mounts to take them to the village in question. The man wondered why only two, to which Azuregos smiled and shifted into his dragon form, leaving the man to nod as he prepared two hippogryphs for Trixie and Lyra to use. Once they were ready to go the trio took off, to which Azuregos stayed at a decent distance to keep the hippogryphs from freaking out, but making sure that he could see his friends and be sure that nothing happened to them.

The trio flew over Azsuna, taking in the sights of the places they had cleared out in order to find the Tidestone and wondered if Prince Farondis was looking up at the sky, before they turned their attention to the forest in front of them. The two hippogryphs seemed to know the way to Lorlathil, as they moved through the forest with such speed and accuracy that told them that Alundane had trained them very well. It didn't take them long to reach the village that they were supposed to be meeting Malfurion and the Archdruids in, though as they descended towards their location Lyra noticed the familiar night elf that had several animal features attached to his body.

Standing to Malfurion's left was a creature made out of wood, a treant Lyra recalled, and a creature that looked like the drawings of the moonkins that Trixie had shown her while they were saving Azeroth from the small Legion invasions. On the ancient druid's right, however, was a intimidating bear that had armor on it's front legs and impressive claws, as well as a dark furred cat, who had armor on all four of its legs and some metallic claws over its front pair. Lyra could tell that the four Archdruids were very powerful, as the various weapons they commanded definitely held great power within them... to which she wondered why she and Trixie were even here to help them, as she would love to hunt Maiev down now that she knew who was standing in front of her.

"Elune-Adore." Malfurion said, though at the same time Lyra and Trixie climbed off of the hippogryphs they had been riding on, while Azuregos shifted back into his elven form, "It is good to see that the people that answered our call for aid are the same ones that recovered the Tidestone; Trixie Lulamoon, Lyra Heartstrings, and the dragon called Azuregos. Allow me to introduce Esalia Dewforest, Linbu, Monoskah Windhorn, and Bloodclaw."

From what Lyra knew about the druid class, which admittedly wasn't a lot, there were four different paths a druid could take when they had enough training, such as how a mage could become a frost mage, a fire mage, or an arcane mage. Druids, on the other hand, were broken up into restoration druids, balance druids, guardian druids, and feral druids, to which she determined that the order they were named matched up with their chosen path. She resolved to properly introduce herself to their allies, because she was sure that they would be getting to know each other in the next day or two... as well as the fact that they would be helping out when it came time to deal with the Legion.

"It is good to meet all of you." Trixie replied, to which she, Lyra, and Azuregos bowed their heads towards the four Archdruids, though that was followed by the four druids repeating the movements themselves, before she turned back towards Malfurion, "What's the situation?"

"Cenarius, the Lord of the Forest, has been cursed by some vile power." Malfurion said, though that was followed by him letting out a sigh, one that indicated that whatever power had befallen the powerful being was something he either hadn't seen before or it was something old that was coming back, "Our first objective should be to gather the three Archdruids that lead and protect the forest.... with their help we might be able to determine what afflicts my mentor, and potentially find a way to cure it. I will remain here and lend Cenarius what aid I can. The three of you will join the leaders of the druid order and speak with Remulos... he should know the whereabouts of the other Archdruids."

Trixie and Lyra nodded to Malfurion, who immediately turned around and headed to the right of where the group was standing, which told them that Cenarius had to be deeper in the forest. Once the night elf had disappeared the group of seven walked over to night elf centaur that was standing beside a tree that had an inn built at the bottom of its roots.

"Keeper Remulos," the treant said, causing the centaur to look over at the group, to which he raised an eyebrow when he noticed that Lyra and Trixie were standing with the four druids, "Cenarius has been cursed by some foul and wicked power... we need your help in finding the three Archdruids that rule and protect the forest, so we can help the Lord of the Forest get better."

"I see." Remulos replied, to which he pulled out a map of the forest and beckoned for them all to gather around him, which was easier said than done considering that there were seven of them this time around, "In Moonclaw Vale, which is across the main road from where we are position, is where Thaon Moonclaw, the Archdruid of the Vale, and the feral druids that follow him reside. To the south of us rests the Den of Dreams, where Archdruid Koda Steelclaw and her dedicated disciples carry out their sacred duty to observe the Emerald Dream. And to the north of us lies the ancient grove Thas’talah, where Elothir communes with nature and instructs his acolytes in the ways of healing and lore. Once you have aided the three Archdruids, and informed them of our crisis, you should return here and help Malfurion with the next steps of his plan."

"Will do," the dark furred cat stated, to which Remulos started to walk away from where everyone was standing, allowing him to turn to the group, "Okay, I think we should split up into three groups and contact the three Archdruids at the same time."

"That sounds like an excellent idea." the moonkin said, though that was followed by everyone, including Lyra, Trixie, and Azuregos, nodding their heads in agreement, "I take it that you already have some ideas for the groups, considering that you volunteered the information?"

"I have indeed." the cat stated, though that was when everyone really quieted down, so they could accurately hear what the feral druid wanted to tell them, "I would suggest that Monoskah, Linbu, and Azuregos head down to the Den of Dreams and awaken Archdruid Koda and her disciples. That would allow Esalia and Trixie to head over to the grove of Thas'talah, where they can seek out Archdruid Elothir and tell him the dire news we all face... leaving Lyra and myself to find Archdruid Thaon."

"Considering the number of people in our group, that sounds fair for all parties." the bear commented, to which he stared over at the moonkin and Azuregos for a few seconds, before beckoning for them to follow with his head, "Come on, we had best get moving before something else happens."

Trixie and Azuregos embraced each other for a moment before the disguised dragon followed the bear and the moonkin down the path that they had to take. The instant they were out of sight the treant walked over and placed a hand on her shoulder, telling Trixie that it was time for them to get started as well. As they walked down the path they needed to take, however, Lyra had the feeling that she and the feral druid might have picked the Archdruid that was in the most danger... because she had the feeling that something bad was going to happen, but this time she hoped that she was only overthinking things.

Once Trixie was out of sight Lyra and Bloodclaw turned around so they could head over to Moonclaw Vale, where they hoped that they would be able to find Archdruid Thaon quickly... because Cenarius was depending on their success, and neither of them wanted to disappoint him or Malfurion.

Author's Note:

Yes, another short chapter to follow the last one, but the next few will be longer. For those interested the druids are as follows:
Esalia Dewforest, night elf restoration druid
Linbu, troll balance druid
Monkskah Windhorn, tauren guardian druid
Bloodclaw, worgen feral druid
None of them are actual characters in the game, but generated characters for the story... though Lyndraxa, the demon hunter from the previous chapter, is one of my characters.

Comments

[HeartfireFirebrand]

I thought Cenaurius died to the Orcs.

[Blackdrag-rose]

8671734 He's a demigod... and in WoW demigods don't permanently die, they just go to sleep or something for an untold number of years until they wake up again, usually when the world is in peril again.

[Xarmar13]

8671734
Yes, he was killed by Grommash Hellscream during the events of WC3. He came back as the ancients were returning during the Mount Hyjal questline during Cataclysm. He also shows up as part of the fight mechanics during the Ragnaros fight in the Firelands raid on heroic difficulty.