[Horde] Chapter Five: Session One-Hundred Two
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January 1st - January 4th
Nyxxa had gone to give a report back to Illysanna, and the Slayer acknowledged that Nyxxa had done well to remove Caria permanently from the board. She also mused that Aranna Starseeker seemed to be eager to carry on Nyxxa’s work, but Illysanna was optimistic about her potential once she went through the requisite training. Illysanna also reassured her that she would be relieved of her duties in the days she had left, and she was glad that the Illidari had taken a risk on her so many years ago.
Illysanna and Nyxxa embraced, and Nyxxa left with a smile as she returned the Raven’s Eye to Illysanna.
Vaerux informed Nyxxa as she left that Caria was getting restless, and Nyxxa admitted she had planned to talk to Caria when she calmed down a bit. But it seemed now was the time.
Caria demanded to know why everyone was talking like Nyxxa was about to die, and Nyxxa said that she was. Caria wanted to know why, and Nyxxa calmly explained the situation, and Caria demanded to know why she was wasting her life because no one cared about a bunch of ghosts.
Caria said they could have figured something out, and Kil'jaeden could have helped. Nyxxa mentally grabbed Caria by the shoulders and said that Kil'jaeden had already planned on replacing Caria with Nyxxa, and he had spoken to her himself. At the end of the day, Kil'jaeden had always just been using her.
Caria retreated in rage and despair, and Vaerux reappeared to check in on Nyxxa, who admitted the response was better than she had been expecting, but at the end of the day, they had both made their beds, and soon, Caria would be free even if she didn’t see it that way.
They also exchanged some final words, and Vaerux promised that, this time, he wouldn’t run when Nyxxa was gone, and if he did, then he hoped she would haunt him and drag him back by his tail so he couldn’t become the person that hurt her again. Nyxxa promised she would.
Meanwhile, Zar’Kaa was giving a report to Volrath, who similarly congratulated Zar’Kaa on his good work on the group getting a windfall. Zar’Kaa asked what Volrath thought about their position in the conflict, and Volrath explained the Dark Horde had started to make moves in earnest, but they were taking steps to prepare and learn so they could avert whatever calamity was waiting.
Zar’Kaa asked if the crew was ready, and Volrath said the crew had not signed up for a war, they were there for a rescue mission. Ultimately, their military might was lacking, and even with the aid of those they found on the Isles, they were not strong enough to stand up to the armies in question. However, as long as they continued to move forward in ways they specialized, he believed casualties could be kept to a minimum, and they had to be ready. But it was an opportunity to show their strength to the Horde. If nothing else, the Horde would be neighbors of the Darkspear, and they needed to ensure they earned their respect.
Zar’Kaa asked what Volrath thought would happen after all of this, and Volrath said the Horde planned on returning to the regions they had conquered and evacuate before spring. Volrath’s current intention was to sail back with the Horde and offer their ship as a guide to travel across the ocean to Kalimdor.
However, from there, it wasn’t his decision, it was up to the warchief. But either way, they would need scouts, and the Darkspear knew the area. Zar’Kaa mused that the Zandalari empire might want to meet the Horde and size them up, and perhaps they could make an introduction for them, and Volrath agreed that outsiders were not unwelcome at the Zul Summit as long as they were not at war, and it was an interesting notion. However, someone needs to vouch to the chieftain on the character of the Horde if she was to vouch for the Horde at the Zul Summit.
Zar’Kaa said there was a lot to consider, but there was one more thing he wanted to muse on, and he explained Arthak asked him to join the Horde independently of the Darkspear’s decision. Volrath said that was interesting, and Zar’Kaa said he hadn’t made a decision, but it was on his mind.
Volrath said the Horde seemed to be setting itself up as something. Arthak had ambitions to set it up as a power of great influence, and there was a path that would take Zar’Kaa away from the Darkspear if he chose to follow it, and it was a path others had walked before him. Volrath, however, could not give Zar’Kaa any advice one way or another. Zar’Kaa said he wasn’t asking for it, he just wanted Volrath to know.
Zar’Kaa agreed.
Zar’Kaa said it wasn’t a decision he was planning on making soon, as he needed to focus on the war effort anyway. Volrath agreed, and he said it was ultimately his own responsibility to ensure as many of the zandali there lived to make those decisions.
Zar’Kaa thanked him for his input, and he bid Volrath farewell.
Symma had taken Iskar to get him acclimated to the ritual site, as well as the other arakkoa that were there. Symma admitted the one thing she had not told Iskar was how much the site meant to her, and she gestured to scratches in the tree, which resembled childhood doodles. Iskar correctly assessed it was where the great raven had roosted and raised Symma, and he said that it was clever to use a place of significance to a similar creature.
They reflected on what home meant, and Symma said that she believed it was where the heart was, though Iskar joked that he had been called heartless, so that likely meant he was homeless for the time being.
It seemed that Iskar knew Brakoss and Krisek, and Brakoss appeared to not be too keen to see him again, but Krisek was much more amicable, and she congratulated Rak’Symma on her triumph. Iskar said he was going to help them use the tools he had to their fullest.
Iskar presented the artifacts he had: the saga, the mask, and the quill (spear) of king Terokk. He believed they would allow them to commune with the dead king, as he believed that would give them the best chance for success given he had been in the realm with the dark god the longest.
Iskar assured them that, ultimately, he was a man of his word and he would do everything he had promised. Symma said she hoped so as her own reputation was riding on the integrity of his word. Iskar said his other two attempts to defy her and her friends had failed, and he wasn’t about to try a third time.
Brakoss and Krisek admitted they didn’t have any further concerns they couldn’t manage.
Symma asked if there was any use for Blaithe’s remains, or if they would be burden for acclimating Anzu. Krisek quickly told Symma they were not a burden and they had given his resting place a wide berth, and they had no desire to use them unless Symma was fully certain of their use as they could make no guarantee they would not be damaged by the rite. After a moment of consideration, Symma said Blaithe wouldn’t want someone to be lost in the dark, and she had never meant for him to reside there forever.
Iskar said that was an interesting premise, and he believed it could help and they would treat it with the utmost respect.
Sol went to check on the seed that he had recovered from an actual dream, and Ariesera mused it was fascinating because it was nothing like anything found in the waking world, and someone uninitiated being able to take such a thing from the Dream was somewhat unprecedented, as dream seeds were imaginary conceptions of life.
Sol said he wanted to plant it and see what happened, and Ariesera said she was most interested, though she believed the druids were largely busy. He said he wished to plant it in Nar'thalas, and Prince Farondis was ultimately receptive to it as it piqued his curiosity. Nyxxa also accompanied them to witness the potential miracle.
They found a nice terrace that overlooked the city, and Sol buried the seed and gave Nyxxa a vial of holy water to pour on it. However, nothing seemed to happen, even though magic was quickening within it. But it didn’t seem to be ready.
Ariesera mused she didn’t know what would come of it, but there was something there. Sol apologized to those gathered because he expected things to happen faster.
However, he mentioned he was planning on also making a little person.
Sol said he wasn’t going to because leaving a surprise was part of the fun. Nyxxa cackled in the background.
Nyxxa had gone to try and commune with the Tear of Elune after getting permission from the priestesses due to the blessing of Elune that had been gifted to her. Curiously, the radiant presence of the holy water seemed to burn her flesh less than it had before.
She was greeted with a beautiful subterranean pool surrounded by grass, and hovering above the water, was a teardrop-shaped gemstone that reflected the light into the water beneath it. There was no natural light in the chamber, but it seemed between the Tear and the water, the chamber was as lit as a full moon.
Symma had also joined Nyxxa, and she recognized the tear. There was a time long ago when she recalled the same gemstone, and it had been carried by Freya. However, it had been called the Tear of Eonar then, which was the name of one of the Titans.
Tyrande invited them to kneel so that they could begin the blessing of the tear. She asked Elune to cleanse their souls and spirits of all that troubled them, so they could be reborn in Her waters.
Nyxxa prayed for guidance from Elune so that when she was lost she could be guided home. Symma prayed for the hope that it could bestow its blessing and heal the Mother Tree.
The water of the pool around the Tear started to glow, and a resonance began. The water began to dance around them, and Nyxxa began to a tune no one else could hear. It was a song of mourning, but also a song of faith. The priestesses watched in awe as her each step transformed her into a conduit. Her tattoos began to glow with the same color of the waters. It was the dance that had to be performed when the time came, and it would tie her irrevocably to her heart’s desire. As long as she clung to it, one day, she would find her way back, no matter how long it took.
Symma watched as Nyxxa moved, the water equal parts her teacher, her dance partner, and her very soul. As the water approached Symma, it didn’t ask for a dance. From her, it asked if she was ready and willing to do whatever it took, no matter what came for her, or what was asked of her. It asked her if she would *be* the tree of life, and the anchor of destiny, and the mistress of the Mother Tree. Not in name, not in duty, but in spirit in every single aspect of it. Her life and soul would be bound inextricably to it.
Symma planted her staff before her, and she caused more of the water lilies to grow. She felt the branch of G’Hanir drink in the blessing, and she felt the bond between her and it disappear, because a bond insinuated the two were separate. For the first time, she felt a connection. She hadn’t been missing anything. There was no piece that was denying her. She had simply not been ready, but she was now.
G’Hanir was not safe. It could not be safe as long as Infazzar was out there, but as the branch grew, it finally took the shape of the key that opened the final door preventing her from being what she needed to become.
A voice asked if that was her, and Symma teared up as she acknowledged it was, and the voice replied it had missed her. In the midst of a liminal dreamscape, Symma pressed her head against the trunk of G’Hanir, and she said that they could rest easier, as she would do everything she could to keep them safe.
It seemed the voice was multiple voices, as if every voice sacrificed to the tree was speaking at once.
Symma opened her eyes, and beheld her staff. The branch of G’Hanir was revitalized, and fully awakened. It appeared her wardrobe had also changed to match the staff, as petals adorned her body and it wrapped around with vines.
Nyxxa collapsed onto Delas with a wide smile on her face.
The priestess said that she was glad they had agreed to the meeting, and she had been very wrong to doubt Nyxxa. Tyrande also noted it seemed Symma had undergone a metamorphosis, and Symma said it was less a change, and more settling into what she needed to be.
As Nyxxa left the chamber, she touched the moonwell waters and realized that the waters no longer harmed her. She began to weep.
A priestess then produced a silver dagger and presented it to Symma. She said it was a gift that she believed would be useful, and Symma was confused, but she drew the blade. She felt a cool embrace of moonlight radiate from it. It functionally served as a portable moon for her.
Symma asked who she had to thank for the blade, and the priestess smiled. She said she wasn’t at liberty to divulge it, they had just hoped it would come in useful. Symma said it would, and she asked the priestess to thank the person if they saw them again.
Zar’Kaa gathered the warband to express the matter of his use of the fel, and he admitted he broke his own rule and crossed the line he had set for himself. He didn’t know what was going on, but he knew of someone that would. Arthak expressed Zar’Kaa was speaking of the elder, and Nyxxa asked if Zar’Kaa really believed Gul’dan would give an honest answer.
Zar’Kaa said that he believed Gul’dan would give some sort of truth, though he wasn’t sure which one it would be. He wasn’t sure if he could just stop using the fel, and Nyxxa asked if Zar’Kaa had the Illidari look at it. Zar’Kaa said he had, but they ultimately had told him the fel manifests in different ways for everyone, and they could largely teach him how to control his own gift.
However, Zar’Kaa didn’t want to reach out to Gul’dan without the party’s blessing. Sol said it was awfully risky, but he said to just go for it. Arthak recommended Zar’Kaa use the protection the shu’halo had given to Nyxxa.
Nyxxa said that if he needed to do it, do it, but that was not her giving her blessing, because Gul’dan was a man that, the longer her friends were exposed to him, the more they wished to die because of it.
Symma took a breath and said that she agreed the thoughts were reckless, and ultimately they had spent a great deal of effort wresting a great many allegiances away from Gul’dan, and if he was asking something of Gul’dan, he would probably expect something in return.
Seria said he should be careful.
That evening, Zar’Kaa went to rest and he opened his mind to the Shadowmaster. He was greeted with a burning battlefield littered with corpses. He saw Gul’dan standing with his back to Zar’Kaa.
Zar’Kaa said he wasn’t expecting to either, and Gul’dan mused he didn’t know if that made him bold or foolish. The Shadowmaster turned to him and asked if Zar’Kaa had forgotten that he just slew one of his students and took some of his agents and allies. He asked if Zar’Kaa had come to apologize or beg for help.
Zar’Kaa said neither, but in the time he had been learning from him, he took Gul’dan as someone that saw the value of offering his wisdom.
Gul’dan laughed and said he offered it freely with his friends, but Zar’Kaa had turned his back on him. He wasn’t about to give Zar’Kaa more information for him to stab him in the back with.
Zar’Kaa said he had few enough friends to count on one hand, but he had learned how not to make them from Gul’dan. He also felt like some part of Gul’dan calling him a friend was genuine, because he felt a kinship, because Gul’dan seemed to understand him.
Zar’Kaa asked where that path went, because clearly Skovald’s end was the most recent one. Gul’dan mused that fate might not have been his, given Zar’Kaa was the one that took Skovald’s life. He might not have chosen the path of weakness.
Gul’dan said the wisdom he had for Zar’Kaa was that if he sought to make amends and ask something of someone who he had turned his back, then perhaps he wasn’t the one that should have been slinging arrows further. Zar’Kaa retorted that the same could be said for Gul’dan.
Gul’dan laughed.
Zar’Kaa tried to leave the dream, but he realized he couldn’t.
Gul’dan vanished, and Zar’Kaa was left alone in the burning wreckage of the facsimile.
Seria had prepared a celebration at Black Rook Hold as it was Riff’s birthday, which by extension, meant was also Seria’s birthday by troll culture as her patron loa was Riff. There were was some confusion amongst the trolls as to what the celebration was about as they didn’t all know Riff was a loa.
Riff and Zabra kept making suspicious eye contact that went completely unnoticed by Seria.
Eventually, as everyone gathered, Riff got to the top of one of the posts for volleyball and thanked everyone for coming. He acknowledged it was probably confusing for everyone, and he wanted to show them all something. He looked at Seria for a moment, both apologetic, but also looking for permission. She gave a surprised, but supportive nod.
Riff jumped off the pole, and his body twisted in the air and two great wings appeared from his arms. He floated in the air in his true, serpentine form, surrounded by people. He was a gorgeous spectacle with prismatic scales, and everyone that didn’t know took a step back. Some went for weapons, while others gasped or borderline screamed.
Zar’Kaa spoke up in support of Riff to try and alleviate the fear.
Riff addressed the crowd and acknowledged he likely was frightening to them and reminded them of someone else, as that day was his day a long time ago, but today was his own day, and their day, and he didn’t want to lie to all of them anymore.
Zar’Kaa spoke up in support of Riff again, and Seria was crying, so proud of her son. Symma also spoke up in support of Riff, as the world was changing and new pathways had opened, and this was not a nightmare returning, but something lost being returned.
Zabra also said there was a time generations ago where there were tales of a prismatic serpent that soared through the skies long before the time of the dread serpent. He said that, perhaps, what stood before them all was not a nightmare, but a dream that had finally awoken, and it was nice to meet him.
Remnii spoke up that she had traveled with Riff since he had hatched and she had seen goodness in his heart, and Vel also agreed he had been an inquisitive and bright student of the world that had done far more for it than many others had. His presence opened up a path that didn’t erase what had been, but it laid the stones of a future that could bring what was long ago.
Seria approached her son and pressed her forehead to Riff’s and said she was so proud of him and who he was. She dropped her glamour, revealing her true form, and there was more gasps as they saw her tail and feathers.
Riff loudly proclaimed she was Seria, his mother, his best friend, and his High Prophet. He said that if they didn’t trust him, then they could trust her, but he wouldn’t let her, nor anyone else, down.
Zuni took the opportunity to call out “happy birthday” to Riff, and despite the mixed feelings, the celebration started in earnest.
Gifts were given, and Nyxxa provided Seria and Riff both with matching hair sticks. Sol gave Riff a flintlock pistol. Zar’Kaa offered to help Riff make his first spear. Remnii gave Seria and Riff matching bracelets, and Vel had created a consumable wand that had 10 uses that would cause a colorful illusory snake to explode from it like a firework.
Bakaz gave Riff a collection of poisons so he could learn to identify them. Zekhan and Zabra had composed the beginnings of a rhyme for Riff that could be used to help introduce loa to young trolls. Zuni presented a unique contraption that was a troll version of a ball in a cup.
Zuni then approached Seria and told her to close her eyes. She did, and he told her to open them again. She saw a handcrafted surfboard with ornate, stylized faerie dragons painted all over it. He said he thought it would be easier for Seria to learn if she had her own board. Seria approached the board and ran her hand over the paintings. She said it was beautiful, and Zuni smiled and said he wanted to make sure it matched its new rider.
Zuni glanced at Vel and gave her a wink and a thumbs up, and Vel smirked and nodded as it had gone over just as well as she had told him it would. Seria realized she had never told him about faerie dragons, and he joked he had his sources.
Seria had made Riff a small pottery version of himself, and Riff held it tenderly with his eyes wide. He said it was really fragile, and he would make sure he took good care of it. He immediately put it in the trinket box the real Vel had given him and he proudly showed off that it could protect everything else he had collected.
At the end of the party, Zar’Kaa approached Seria and mused that the reveal had been unexpected, but it seemed things went well. He also said she did well in Stormheim and it was good she was there, and she said she was only following orders.
Zar’Kaa said even so, he felt it merited a mention, and he left her to it.
Bru’kan smiled as he watched the aftermath of Riff’s party, and he told Seria she should be proud of her boy, as he was quite brave. Seria said she was, though she wished he would have told her. Bru’kan chuckled and said that was kids for her.
He commented that she had wanted to talk to him. She said that she wanted to give him a place to stay, but Bru’kan said he was fine and didn’t want to worry her as he was simply getting what was coming to him. Kala emerged and scolded Bru’kan as it was safer with them, and Bru’kan relented, but he needed something to inhabit.
Seria asked him if he really thought she didn’t think it through, and she produced a pendant in the shape of a sun. Bru’kan asked if she made it herself, and Seria nodded. Kala smiled with pride and said her girl had more than a few skills. Bru’kan said that was very kind, and he would try not to be too much of a burden. Seria said he wouldn’t be.
Seria held out her hand, and Bru’kan took it. His spirit moved into the pendant, and she felt his presence safe and secure within. He quietly thanked her. He said that he wouldn’t say he didn’t deserve it, otherwise her mother would scold him.
Kala agreed she would.
