((Continued from last post))
The next artifact, said the brave, was a scroll. I found it guarded by the second leader of the Grimtotem, an elder shaman. The brave told me that the shaman had been trained by Elder Crone Magatha Grimtotem, a traitor against the Horde and an incredibly powerful shaman. True to his rank, this shaman was very impressive.
He instantly began calling down fire and lightning to strike us. We weathered through it, though I managed to get my leg burned.
In a last act of desperation, he transformed into a mountain giant, which nearly crushed the brave. Somehow, though, my bullets, Trk'hsk's bites, and the brave's axe managed to finally fell the shaman.
Before he died, he called me "Chosen of the Crone." Both the brave and I were confused by this, and I had the feeling that the brave was getting suspicious. The windserpent, he said, was Arikara, the pet and minion of Magatha.
As I picked up the scroll, Arikara appeared again. He praised us, then flew off towards the next bluff. We followed.
Yet another Grimtotem leader lived there. A strong warrior, he was also a high chieftain. The brave was quite battered by the end of that fight, but forged on, encouraging me to find the last artifact - a drum.
The drum was nearby. As I picked it up, Arikara appeared yet again. This time he seemed mocking, and his voice shifted to that of an old woman. Magatha was speaking directly through him, not attempting to hide the fact that she was he and he was she. She asked if I could take care of her unruly nephew. Unfortunately, that was also the brave's next target.
He was well guarded. I was very worried about the Brave - he was really struggling near the end of the fight. Eventually the Grimtotem tauren fell, though. The Brave turned to a nearby cave. I thought he simply wanted to rest there, but there was actually a non-Grimtotem tauren there. She had been the wife of Arnak, the Grimtotem we had just killed. It had been a forced marriage, but I could see that she was sad he was dead.
She had a special task for me - find, attack, and slay Arikara. I headed to Arikara's Needle and used the artifacts to summon him.
To my surprise, the artifacts disappeared in a flash. Arikara had taken them! Then he attacked, though fighting him was not so hard as it had been to fight Arnak. He was still an impressive and powerful enemy to face.
Arikara stopped fighting as he weakened, flying out of reach and speaking to us. Magatha revealed that she had been captured by the Twilight's Hammer and wanted me, of all people, to help her. Lakota, the wife, told me to search the Highperch for her.
When I arrived, I was informed by the tauren man there that the Highperch had been a Wyvern home for many years. Now, however, the Twilight's Hammer was capturing and slaying the beasts. I was to kill the poachers and free the younglings.
The wyverns were happy to help me kill the poachers. My respect for the beasts grew. They're graceful and strong, wilder than any gryphon.
Trk'hsk was very helpful in finding the younglings, though they screeched and cried so loudly that it was no trouble finding them, even if I had been blind. In no time I had a crowd of the tiny beasts about me.
The tauren then wanted me to free their patriarch, named Heartrazor. Apparently he was bound and near death. I headed up to the highest level of the Highperch and found him tied there, surrounded by guards. The guards fell and I freed the massive beast. What a sight so see! His wings nearly blocked out the sun!
My last task at the Highperch was to kill the Cultist leader there. He was in command of capturing and training the wyverns. It was obvious that I wouldn't find Magatha, but I helped anyway. Heartrazor even flew me to the human.
He wasn't guarded at all. As we fought, I began to hear the soft beating of wings, which built until it was the roar of many tiny wings beating all at once. Before I knew what was happening, the hatchlings I had saved swarmed all over the human, clawing at his eyes and biting at his throat.
Then they lifted him into the air, flapping their wings in unison to catch the air, and dropped the screaming human off a cliff. Trk'hsk was annoyed that he lost the chance at a meal, but I was laughing too hard to care.
Trk'hsk cheered up as I headed to the east, towards the meeting point where I was to meet Lakota. I hope I don't need to leave Thousand Needles soon, if only for Trk- he loves the boat. When I arrived and dragged the crocolisk onto shore, I saw an interesting sight. Lakota, the mild-mannered tauren, had killed an orc cultist, stolen his armor, and donned it herself.
She encouraged me to do the same. I have to admit that the Cult knows how to make good armor. Goshlok liked it as well. That poor wolf, she hasn't gotten much exercise here.
We used the disguise to assassinate leaders of the Cult. I didn't appreciate the dirty work. There's no honor in making your enemy turn his back before you kill him.
Eventually I managed to find Magatha, bound by magical shackles. I freed her, and was immediately jumped by angry cultists. She let me deal with them as she teleported away, telling me to meet her to the east.
I found her with Arikara. I must admit, they make an impressive pair. Powerful, all-controlling. And although I hated her as a traitor, I found I was beginning to respect her - more than I respected Lakota. Magatha was cruel, but she was also wise and cunning, along with courageous. She didn't stab you in the back. She stabbed you in the front and twisted the dagger.
She instructed me to kill several elementals and collect condensed elements. The cultists attacked in mass, but they were weak and fell easily. The elementals were slightly stronger.
Once the elementals were dead and the elements collected, Magatha had me kill a large arcane elemental. She claimed it was infused with a "doomstone", which the Cult wanted to overload. She wanted it taken as, she claimed, it would explode and destroy the entire region if it was too overloaded. I didn't trust her to not use it, but anything was more trustworthy than the Cult. I slew the arcane elemental and collected her Doomstone.
As I expected, she did not want to be friends with the Horde. She swore she would kill me next I saw her and boasted of having all the artifacts and the Doomstone. Though angered, I had truly expected it. And still I found myself respecting her. Not as a friend would respect a friend, but as one would respect a strong enemy. She used people for her own good and did so without lying or sugar coating. She never promised me anything for my help, and I did not expect anything.
Strangely affected by the events, I let Goshlok wander. He brought me to a ledge that was occupied by green snakes and bright aqua scorpids. I watched them, but none interested me.
Until a ruby colored serpent appeared, glittering brightly in the sun.
I approached, watching it warily. The snake flared its hood and eyed me with a knowing grin, as if it knew everything about me. I couldn't compete with that, but I wasn't going to back down, and returned the gaze. Apparently, that was all it required from me.
Arikara. A fragment of a tauren that could have been a great leader, had she not followed such dark goals. Arikara will follow me to Tanaris. As for Trk'hsk, he will stay here for now until I take him to Orgrimmar. I suppose he deserves a rest, and the goblins have tied my boat to their barge so he can sleep on it all day. He will be happy. And when he goes to Orgrimmar, he can doze in the sun by Lok'vadnod.
