We arrived at Teldrassil early in the morning, before the sun rose. We were lead to the night elf city of Darnassus, where we were introduced to what would be the new home of many. The Howling Oak was what it was called - a massive tree similar to the one back at Gilneas. It was in a quiet corner of the city, fairly out of the way. I decided to explore the rest of the city, until I came across a board with notices posted over it. One message caught my eye - one requesting the assistance of able-bodied members of the Alliance. A boat was to leave Darnassus to Stormwind, and from there a tram ride to Ironforge. I had nothing in Darnassus to leave, so I decided to answer the call. I packed my things and Ross and I headed to the docks of Rut'theran.
It was a long journey. Stormwind was grand! A beautiful place indeed, provided you avoided the areas the cataclysm had ravaged. I should visit again sometime soon. I've decided to don my human visage within the cities and towns. I feel it greatly assists me in blending in, as I don't particularly feel like attracting curious eyes in a strange city. A bustling place it is, and the last place I would want to attract any attention. Ross seemed enthralled by all the scents and nearly chased after a young night elf druid that ran past us in her cat form. The human male that was with her gave us a frown as I held back the blasted, barking dog. Ross! That is not how you blend into a crowd!
The Deeprun Tram was fascinating, too - though I felt rather nervous as we passed through the undersea tunnel. I kept catching glimpses of massive moving creatures in the water. Ironforge was a sight to see as well. Strange, how small creatures such as dwarves and gnomes have a city with such massive ceilings. The warmth of the dwarven city gave the chill wind of Dun Morogh an extra bite when walking out of the gates. I stayed in my worgen form for much of the trek through the snow. My fur kept me warm enough to keep going, though my paws were horribly cold.
I eventually came across a dwarf who went by the name of Hammerfoot. He told me that his friend had gone missing and asked me to try and find him. The man's mention of hearing growls from nearby worried me, but I went nevertheless. I found the man, but something had found him before me. Finding his journal and flipping through it, I found that he had been mauled by an unusually large bear. I had scarcely arrived at the scene when the culprit came charging out of the bush at us, clearly intent for another meal. Ross and I rid the world of the creature. I took its paw and the dead dwarf's journal and took the bad news back to Hammerfoot.
The dwarf was deeply saddened, but requested that I go ahead to the next guard station and bring them a report. I went, as he wished. I feel some guilt for delivering the somber news and leaving immediately after, but I suppose there was nothing else I could do. I arrived at the Valley of Kings in Loch Modan and delivered the report. I was ordered to exterminate some troggs and collect their teeth. Ross and I did as such.
Ross even sniffed out an unusual trogg - later on I learned he was Magosh, an important shaman among the troggs. He had been eluding the dwarven forces for some time now and they were relieved I had managed to hunt him down. I was sure to give Ross extra to eat for his next meal as a reward.
We were then to dispose of the trogg leader, Grawmug.
He went down, but the little hellion didn't die without injuring Ross first. The poor old boy was limping terribly, up until the point I had to carry him. I took him back to the inn where the local hunter helped me fix up his injured leg. The dwarves here are a very kindly people. Belda, the hunter who helped with getting Ross patched up, offered to keep an eye on Ross for me. The tavern was warm and cozy with its big hearth and seemed like a good place for Ross to recover. The old hound seemed to realize it too, settling himself by the fire and quietly resting his head on his paws. I bought him something to eat before leaving and promised to check up on him whenever I could. Belda told me she'd send a message should anything happen.
I left the inn with a heavy heart, realizing how I had become so used to having Ross by my side. Just then, an odd glimmer of light caught my eye. It was just on the outskirts of the town and I decided to investigate.
As I drew closer, I realized the light was moving in an erratic pattern. It was quite apparent, now that the night had fallen. The sound of a soft buzzing reached my ears and I realized, much to my surprise, that the light belonged to an animal. A twig cracked under my boot and the creature zipped into a nearby bush. Not particularly a good hiding spot, seeing how I could see the curious green glow past the leaves. I took a bit of food out of my pack in an effort to coax it out.
Eventually, a pair of large, buggy eyes poked out of the bush. It was a massive firefly of sorts, and a hungry one at that. It waved its antennae at me before timidly hovering forward and nibbling on the slice of cheese I had offered to it. The food seemed to please it and it hovered by my side, poking at my pack for more. I'm no expert on bugs, but something about it strikes me as being female. I decided to give her the name of Flicker, thanks to that soft green glow she emanates.
Flicker was able to help me with tasks I otherwise would've completed with Ross. She seems nervous to go into battle, but happily obliges should I give her some cheese in return. Together we collected some bear meat for the chef at the inn...
... and collect gnoll ears (A horribly messy and smelly business. I highly recommend staying far away from these creatures' ears.).
We took a small venture down to the banks of the dock, where Flicker's light helped me spot a piece of paper stashed beneath a dock. It appeared to be a document of sorts. I will hold onto it until we come back to Thelsamar.
I reported to the Algaz station, from where I was ordered to kill some kobolds and investigate one of the dwarf's suspicions of a leader among them. Kobolds, if possible, are even more disgusting than gnolls. I hope I won't have to deal too much with them in the upcoming days. I did find a kobold that appeared to be of higher rank and dealt with him as was proper.
I'm going to rest for the night at Algaz. Flicker is unused to being indoors and is skittish around the dwarves, but I expect that she'll come around eventually. Good night for now.
-- Mordakai
The old boy deserves his rest.
I like that firefly model. Nix is super pretty too.
