Dancing lessons

I spent most of today just moping around Silvermoon.  Chrysalis reached me through my brand and said that we needed to talk, so I agreed to meet her in the Exchange.

We found a bench to sit on, and she apologized for lashing out at me the night before.  I wasn’t really mad at her – just mad at the situation.  Chrysalis has a number of problems of her own, I learned, problems that I either dismissed before or just didn’t notice because I was too wrapped up in my own head. 

She felt used, and I got the impression that she felt a little bit betrayed.  What she thought was a meaningful relationship turned out to be nothing more than someone else’s amusement.  I didn’t tell her how obvious that appeared to me from the very beginning. 

After I convinced her that things were over over between Ysabelle and I (and it took a lot of convincing) she seemed to relax a bit.  I feel like Ysabelle and all the drama surrounding her was like this giant Elekk in the room whenever Chrysalis and I were together.  It felt good to be to just push that aside and relax and have fun with her.  We hadn’t really been able to laugh and relax like that since those first days we met.

We both joked about our miserable and pathetic romances, and she told me that I’m the only man she has in her life now. 

We were alone in the Exchange for a while, but in any busy place like that you’re bound to bump into someone you know sooner or later.  Velysen, Lisette, Erunen, and Zaliron all joined us in time. 

Someone mentioned how it seems we had ourselves a small party, and someone else remarked that we would have a party, except that there’s no dancing.  I think it was Lisette who suggested that Chrysalis and I dance, but I flat out refused – Chrysalis seemed disappointed. 

Lisette and Erunen took it upon themselves to set the example, and began to dance.  They really were something to behold – and after seeing what their idea of dancing was I was even happier I hadn’t volunteered.  I would have stepped on Chrysalis’ toes and quite possibly knocked her over if I had attempted anything similar to what those two were able to do.  They were getting quite hot and heavy, too, and I think I saw each person watching them blush just a little bit. 

Chrysalis seemed especially flushed and got up and left suddenly, walking to the nearby inn.  Erunen glanced at me from his embrace with Lisette and spoke to me through my brand, telling me to go after her.  When did I become the boyfriend who’s job it is run after the girl who stalks away?  I was curious to see what had upset her, though, so I followed her to the inn and found her seated upstairs on one of the beds.

She told me that the weight of everything was just getting to her.  I think maybe watching the couple dancing got her thinking about her own (failed?) relationship.  I was still exhausted from last night, myself, and sat down on the bed next to her.  I didn’t know quite what to say, so I just put my arm around her.  She seemd to calm down and leaned against me, falling asleep. 

After everything that’s happened over the past twenty four hours this was not a situation I would have expected myself to be in – but it’s nice to have something to hold on to.   

More misery

When I woke up this morning on Fray Island, Ysabelle had already gone – which I was expecting.  I didn’t see her until later in the night, when the entirety of the Guard met to assault Theramore Island.  Ysabelle and I arrived in the marsh together, but kept our distance from each other.  I figured it wouldn’t really be appropriate to be pawing her while listening to Alkaiser give orders on where and how to attack – as much as I might like to have been at the time.  

We were each broken into smaller groups prior to invading the island fortress.  I was placed with Miralan, Achates, and Fandaleen.  At the time I thought maybe Alkaiser intentionally placed me in a different group from Ysabelle, but I convinced myself I was just being paranoid.  After what happened later that evening, though, I’m not so sure.

The assault went well for the most part.  We went through the town without much resistance, it took Jaina Proudmoore herself to turn us back.  Even though we were bested by her, we still considered the assault a success.

Afterwards, we each made our back to Silvermoon.  Jaina had us pretty well scattered, so we all trickled into the city one by one.  I met Fandaleen and a few others at the usual gathering place, but left shortly after to change into some more comfortable clothes.  This plate armor is going to take some getting used to.  As I was out walking around I came upon Chrysalis and Nefarirr sitting by the fountain.  Nefarirr was pleasant enough, but Chrysalis saw me and lunged, grabbing hold of me and pulling my face to hers – at first I thought she was going to kiss me, but no such luck.  She was furious, she told me how Alkaiser found out about what Ysabelle and I had done, and that he had ended things with her.  She told me that now Ysabelle was a wreck, that she was begging and pleading him to take her back. 

Then Chrysalis bit me on the neck.  She was blaming me for Ysabelle being so upset, and I just didn’t want to hear it.  I summoned my horse and got away from her as fast as I could.  She tried contacting me through my brand, but I ignored her. 

Just last night Ysabelle told me that she loved me.  She told me that she wanted to be free to be with me.  Why she would lie about that I don’t know, but lie is what she did.  She wanted to be free from him, and she got her wish.  Now she’s upset over this?  Did she ever even want to be with me?  Did she think she could keep me on the side forever?  She knows what it’s like to have to compete for someone’s affection, I know that she won’t tolerate being someone’s second choice.  But she expects me to endure what she cannot?  I don’t know what the truth is anymore, and I don’t even know if she’s capable of telling me the truth. 

This has just been too much.  I’ve been going back and forth with her for too long.  I’m sick of it, and I’m finished.  She deserves the misery that she feels. 

One story ends, another begins

After I left Ysabelle I used my hearthstone to take me back to Silvermoon where I immediately made my way to Bloodvalor in Farstriders’ Square.  I think he was actually a little bit surprised that I had managed to complete the trial, but maybe I was just imagining that.  I feel like people generally have low expectations of me - which usually works in my favor.  But not always.   

Anyway, with the crest I retrieved from the fallen knight in Deatholme, Bloodvalor granted me the title of Bloodknight Adept.  He then had me take the blood of the wrathful, the corrupted kor gem, and the blood-forged ingots to the smith on the other side of the square.  I did so, and the smith got right to work crafting the weapon for me.  One thing that took me by surprise, though, was the reaction from someone else working at the forge nearby.  He saw what we were doing and what materials we were working with and left the area, as if disgusted.  I suppose this is something I should get used to.  Some people simply do not approve of the way the Bloodknights take their power, or maybe they’re just afraid.    That’s okay.  The occasional dirty look is a small price to pay for a weapon like this. 

I have to admit that completing the trial did give me a bit of a confidence boost, even though I did have lots of help along the way.  So, riding high, I marched right into Silverguard Keep and applied to join the guild.  I still had some doubts about whether I truly belong with a bunch like that, but at least this trial taught me that I can hold my own. 

Besides, I already know one of their members, and I think this one will make it all worthwhile.      

Leaving Home

My first stop was to be the orcish city of Orgrimmar, a place I was eager to see.  I would not be returning to Silvermoon until my job was complete, so I decided to pack the few things I could say were mine and check out of Wayfarer’s Rest.  I had been able to sell some simple pieces of armor that I crafted from ore I had come across in my travels, but it still left me with barely enough to settle the bill at the inn.  Perhaps I should have paid more attention to dad when he tried to teach me about his work, maybe then I could have made something worth more than a few coppers. 

As I left the inn I saw a crier running through the Walk of Elders, yelling something about an Alliance attack on Fairbreeze Village and other points in the wood.  A company of soldiers ran past me and through the gate, followed by all manner of person willing and able to defend what little lands we had left.  I tighted the strap on my pack so it wouldn’t bounce around and joined the crowd rushing into the battle. 

When I reached Fairbreeze, where the bulk of the fighting was happening, I thought I had made a huge mistake.  This was not the kind of skirmish that has become so ordinary in the wood since we declared our allegiance to the Horde.  This was a well-coordinated attack being made by well-seasoned fighters with swords bigger than I was.  Blood Knight or no, I was out of my league here and stood no chance at combat with this army.  Rather than throw my life away, I looked for others I could help. 

I saw a man whose legs had been trapped underneath some tumbled rocks – the effect of a small gnomish bomb, it seemed.  I was able to move the rocks and saw him to the relative safety of Falconwing Square.  As I ran back towards Fairbreeze I spotted a dark-haired girl dressed in a fine gown, tattered though it was, walking straight into the fighting.  She was unarmed and appeared to be in a bit of daze, judging by the slow, drifting steps she was taking.  There was even a baby dragon – the likes of which I had never seen before - tugging at her dress with it’s teeth, apparently in a futile attempt to direct the woman away from the melee.

I rushed over to her and asked what she was doing.  She didn’t respond, but her face was flush as if she had been crying.   A bullet sent from a dwarven rifleman rang past my ear and I knew we had to get out of there.  I placed my hands on the woman’s shoulders, intending to turn her in the direction of the city and lead her back, but she tensed at my touch and met my eyes with a look of fear I couldn’t place.  Another bullet buried itself in the dirt in front of my feet as I told her that I’m not the one she should be afraid of right now. 

I heard a growl and looked up to see a kal’dorei druid barrelling towards us in direbear form, but a volley of Farstriders’ arrows slowed him down enough for me to grab the girl’s hand - a bit more roughly than she probably cared for - and get out of there.  I practically dragged her through the wood and across the Dead Scar, pausing only once to throw a little blast of exorcism at the face of a mindless Scourge minion in our path.

We eventually made it to the gate of the city - no thanks to the girl’s lead feet.  I had planned on taking her to the Wayfarer’s Rest to get her to sit down, relax, and come to her senses.  When I started moving in that direction, though, the dragon sceeched and dove down, grabbing my cloak in its teeth and pulling me a different direction.  Don’t ask me why, but I followed the little guy’s lead and, after a time, was brought right to the door of Silverguard Keep! 

There was a person sitting behind a large desk at the end of the entry hall who, unphased by the state of the girl, informed me that she did indeed live there and directed me to her quarters.  Once we reached her room I didn’t linger, I didn’t really have any idea what I was still doing there in the first place – I probably should have just left the girl with the person at the desk.  She walked straight over to her bed and nearly collapsed – whatever ordeal she had been put through must have taken a lot out of her.  She seemed okay, though, or at least unharmed from what I could tell.  I placed my last healing potion on a shelf where I thought she would see it - I figured she might want something when she wakes up – and left her.

The dragon gave me a happy chirp on my way out, and I asked the guy at the desk to look in on the girl in a bit.  He gave me a look that said, “Unlikely.”

As I exited Silverguard Keep I saw some soldiers walking back into the city, their wounded in tow.  The battle was over, it seemed.

With nothing left for me to do there, I adjusted my pack and set off for the Undercity. 

The Second Trial

So, the whole thing where Bloodvalor sent me into the cave and into an ambush- he called that the first trial.  You can imagine my delight when I was told that I was ready for the second trial.  I was to seek out Master Kelerun Bloodmourn outside the ruins of Silvermoon.  Easy enough, right? When I arrived he congratulated me on making it that far and then proceeded to tell me that I need to kill four other Blood Knights who are about to come at me.  At this point, I didn’t get too hung up on the fact that I was really killing these people – I know that they can be easily enough brought back to life so long as we act quickly to do so.  Even so, these trials have me questioning my expected lifespan. 

Anyway, I do the deed and am sent back to Bloodvalor in Silvermoon.  Apparently there’s more to this trial.  There was a fleeting moment where I had mused about calling it quits right then and there, but the rewards promised by Bloodvalor should I live through this trial - status as a Blood Knight Adept and a weapon far superior to any I have ever owned – were very convincing.  Besides how bad could it be? 

My first task was to gather the crest from a fallen Blood Knight, one that would become my own providing I didn’t meet the same fate as it’s previous owner.   This required a trip back to Deatholme, where the body of a knight – the leader of a failed assault on the Scourge base - would be found.  Deatholme and I are old friends – I had been in and out of there more times than I cared to think about during the past several days.  I was not eager to return, but at least now I knew my way around.  Finding the body was no problem.

My next assignment was to gather three items necessary to forge a Blood-Tempered Ranseur – the weapon that was to be awarded to me as a symbol of my status as a Blood Knight.  Apparently a ranseur is another word for ridiculously huge giant pokeystick, something I had no idea how to spell (I had to ask a passing apprentice mage how to spell it for this journal) let alone wield. 

This task would be quite a bit more difficult than the last, as it involved a good deal of travel to places I had been unfamiliar with - places I kind of wish I hadn’t become familiar with.

  

Taking a break

Okay. So in the last couple weeks since I left Eversong I’ve somehow managed to cut the head off of a Scourge leader, cross the Great Sea on a goblin zepplin, met with Thrall, and killed some demons in this sweltering cave underneath Orgrimmar itself. Now that my life has apparently become a whole lot more interesting, I thought it might be a good time to catch my breath and start a record of all that’s been going on.

The troubles facing Quel’Thalas have been well documented, so I won’t linger too much on the jobs I took there. To put it simply- there’s a lot more to be done there, but the place seems to be in good hands with all manner of elves itching to make their mark on the world and pitching in wherever necessary. The Farstriders seem to have a good handle on the situation, as good as can be expected, at least.

I do want to go on the record and say that the Blood Knights are a bit more… intense than I had expected. After I did a bit of work in Eversong, I apparently caught the attention of some of the trainers and was given a task to test my mettle, so to speak. Knight-Lord Bloodvalor wanted me to go over to this place called the Isle of Tribulations, find a cave, and light a brazier located inside. So I find the island, kill a couple of overgrown spiders along the way and make my way to the back of this cave. “Easy enough,” I think, so I light the brazier and expect some floating magical head to congratulate me on a job well done or something like that. But no, instead a crazed Blood Knight charges into the cave after me and starts swinging a sword at my head! I barely managed to dodge that blow, and once I got over the initial shock of the whole thing I was able to put him down.

So, with no floating head in sight, I decided to just trek back to Silvermoon and let the Knights know that one of their members had turned to one of the Wretched or the plagued or was just plain nuts. Imagine my surprise when Bloodvalor tells me that he sent this guy in there to kill me, but it’s all okay because I’m alive. What’s more, he sends me to one of the trainers who gives me a device to resurrect this guy that I just killed… who had apparently been hauled back to Silvermoon just after I left the cave. It was all very confusing.

Long story short, I take this trinket from the trainer and bring the poor guy back to life. He wasn’t really all the grateful, in fact he seemed a bit disgruntled at the whole situation. I’ll have to remember to think twice before I agree to do Bloodvalor any favors. At least I learned the ability to resurrect those recently fallen, a good skill to have to be sure, so in the end I suppose the ordeal was well worth it.

More to follow after breakfast… I should cook up some of these crunchy spider legs before they go bad.