DAoC Azizz
Posts: 3
(8/24/05 10:26 am)
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the Trial of the Sealion
This is a story I wrote a long time ago. Just thought I'd share.
Aduras and the Trial of the Sealion.
Having attained the 16th circle and immediately headed to the Night Elf town of Auberdine on the North Western shore of Kalimdor. When arriving in Auberdine, I visited the mail-box to mail some blasting powder I had found to one of the guild's resident gnome engineers. From there I climbed to the hippogriff roost and flew straight to the port village of Rut'Theran.
I left the hippogriff in the care of the stablemaster and made my way up the roots of the Great Tree to the portal to the Night Elf city of Darnassus. When my eyes recovered from the brightness of the portal, they were greeted by the sights of wonderful Darnassus. Darnassus is not like crass Human cities full of ill noise and fouler odor. I quietly made my way to the Cenarion Circle, seat of the Druid's power.
After paying my respects to the head of the druid order, I then presented myself to my masters. He bade go to the hidden druid village of Nighthaven in the Moonglade and seek out another druid master. Since the way to Moonglade is secret I used the scroll of teleport I was given when I underwent the Trial of the Bear.
Nighthaven is a rare place in our war torn world. It is open only to druids. All druids are welcome, and guardians of the town will not permit the war to spill over here. Thus Night Elf and Tauren can study druidic lessons in peace. Since the tongue of the Night Elf is difficult for the Tauren, and the reverse is so for the Night Elves there is not alot of conversation. This lends Moonglade a tranquil, mystical quality.
I found the man my trainer commanded to seek out. He told me of the Trial of the Sea Lion. It would be a difficult task, taxing both mind and body. The first task, I thought would be easy. He held a tiny bauble in his hand and instructed me to deliver to the Shrine of Remulos that lay just outside of Nighthaven. He told me to make haste as I only had 30 minutes to accomplish this task. I knew the location of the Shrine and it was not very far at all. My confusion turned to shock as he quickly turned and threw the bauble into the depths of Lake Elune'ara! He told me that the I must reach the Shrine of Remulos and deliver the bauble to the Keeper in the alloted time or I will have failed the test.
With all speed I slid down the ravine and into the cold waters of the lake. The lake is vast, deep and murky. Finding so small a treasure would indeed be a difficult challenge! I began my search, heading for the deeper waters.
I made out a dark shape in the depths, and to my surprise a Tauren druid was swimming right at me, his eyes fixed upon the lake bottom. I was able to swim up above him, getting passed, from my perspective, a pair of dangerous looking horns. The guards of Moonglade inforce the peace, but I realized that in the depths of the lake, there was not a guard in sight. A place like this could be a perfect spot to deal quietly with a member of opposing faction. I passed overtop safely outside of his field of view. Or so I though until the Tauren glanced up at me. He had been aware of me all along. Thinking a large wet, cold Tauren is not something to be triffled with, I wisely resumed my search.
My time was running out and I had still not found the bauble. I continued to search. To my luck a night elf druidess swam by and beckoned that I follow her. She led me right to the bauble I so desperately sought. I collected the tiny jewel and rose to thank her. She was gone! Had she disappeared into the depths?
I had no time to ponder this! I knew my time was limited and I immediately made for the Shrine of Remulos. We Night Elves have had centuries to develop uncanny direction and time sense. Within steps of my feet reaching dry ground, I knew I had failed the test. Hoping that the keeper of the shrine would only care to recieve her prize, I approached anyway.
I presented the bauble to the keeper. She would not look at it.
"Aduras, you have failed." she said. "Return to he who gave this Trial."
I returned to Nighthaven crestfallen. I was thinking how I was to be denied one of the animal shapes that druids are renown for! Climbing the stairs with leaden feet I returned to the questgiver. I returned his jewel with a heavy heart and informed him that I had failed. I turned to leave the man's home, but his hand on my shoulder stopped me.
"You will be given one more chance to complete this test, Aduras," he intoned "but you must go now."
I was exhausted and freezing. This was indeed a trial, and not the easy task I had thought it to be so recently. Once again, he threw the jewel into the depths of Lake Elune'ara. Trying to shake off my lethargy, I once again hit the icy waters. Then an idea struck me! I had completed the Trial of the Bear long ago. I took on the shape of a bear. The bear is naturally more insulated against the cold and are surprisingly good swimmers.
Not suffering from the cold as I had been, I began to my search anew. Luck was with me! Within minutes, I had located the bauble and I was making my way to the Shrine.
Triumphantly, I presented the bauble to the Keeper. She plucked the jewel from outstretched palm.
"Well done Aduras," she said as handed me a steaming bowl of a thick broth, "you have completed the first part the Trial of the Sea Lion"
I moved outside of the Shrine, and quickly made a small fire. I sat down by the fire and consumed the steaming broth. Warmth slowly crept up my chilled bones. As I did so, the Keeper informed me of that I must speak to the villagers of Nighthaven, and that two of them will put me on the path to completing the Trial of the Sea Lion.
I thanked the Keeper of the Shrine for the surprisingly flavourful broth and made my way back from the Shrine of Remulos to the village of Nighthaven. I spoke with near everyone living in that town, both Tauren and Night Elf.
Finally, I came across the Hippogriff Roost. The Roost is staffed by a Tauren and Night Elf. These two had the answers I sought. I was to seek out the broken halves of a medallion, reunite the pieces and bring the medallion back to Moonglen. As I had learned in the first portion of the Trial, what sounds easy often is anything but.
The one half of the medallion it was said, was to be found in the waters north of Auberdine, the other half in the waters outside of a place called Westfall.
The only way to leave the Moonglade was on Hippogriff back and it would only take me to Rut'Theran village. Once I arrived in Rut'Theran, I was able to talk the stablemaster into allowing me to proceed to Auberdine.
I quickly left the town and headed north towards Clearspring River. The night-elf at Nighthaven told me to seek out half the medallion at the claw shaped rock outcropping in waters just off from where the Clearspring empties into the Great Sea.
The waters of the Great Sea were as cold as Lake Elune'ara but I had learned that lesson. I once again took on the shape of a bear and began searching for this claw shaped rock. I soon found the distinctive rock, and the creatures that dwelled near it.
I approached the rock, but was soon forced to flee from the attacks of numerous deepwater threshers. Threshers, I have learned are creatures left-over from a by-gone era. They are vaguely reptilian and adapted entirely for life in the ocean. They have long, sinewous necks, fins instead of legs and long tails. They also have sharp teeth, as I quickly discovered. Luckily, they were more interested in driving me off, than pursuing me as a meal. More than once I was forced to revert to my true form and cast spells of healing upon myself.
I did notice that creatures seemed to prefer the deeper waters. Remaining in my true form, and thus presenting a smaller shape, I quickly swam into the very center of the rock formation. Taking a deep breath I swam straight down. None of the threshers had taken notice of me and I was relatively safe. I looked about quickly and saw half buried in the sea floor what appeared to be a metallic strongbox. This must be what I was looking for and rushed towards the strongbox.
The strongbox had corroded in the salt waters of the Great Sea and was difficult to open. Either my haste to get the prize or my attempts to open the strongbox alerted the threshers. As they began to converge on me, I finally managed to open the strongbox. I reached into the strongbox and pulled out a fragment of ancient medallion. My task here complete, I left the snapping teeth of angry threshers behind me and made my way back down the coast of Darkshores to Auberdine to seek out this place called Westfall.
The Tauren in Nighthaven who told me of this Westfall place only indicated that it was Human controlled territory, nothing more. My journey to this distant place would be long indeed. I had traveled to the Dwarven citadel of Ironforge and Stormwind, the capital of the Alliance long ago. I had even seen the strange construction of Gnomes linking these two cities called the Deeprun Tram.
I left Auberbine on ship bound for the Menethil Harbour on the edge of the Wetlands in the Eastern Kingdoms. Not far from the docks was the Griffon stablemaster. Marvelous creatures, Griffons, and it is always pleasure to cross country in the company of such impressive animals. I will admit, I prefer these creatures to the hippogriffs native to Northern Kalimdor.
I left Menethil on griffon back headed to Ironforge. I do not yet know of a direct route between Menethil and Stormwind, so I was forced to visit the Dwarven holdfast of Ironforge. The flight between Menethil and Ironforge was taxing on my mount, and when I arrived I stabled the creature and paid the stablemaster a silver coin to make sure the griffon that bore me would be treated to the fresh meal and a day of rest.
Eager to be on my way, I hired another griffon and flew with all speed to Stormwind, seat of the Alliance. I marveled at the sights of the city that the humans have built, by the standards of my people, in the blink of an eye. I was even pleasantly surprised to find a large sized patch of untouched ground with the natural plantlife of the region in abundance. My people are drawn to such places, it seems, and I met a good many fellow visiting night-elves there. I learned from one such visitor that Humans call such places "parks". A few night-elves druids, no doubt sent by the master druid, have taken up residence in the park to tend the trees. It was indeed a pleasure to find druids in Stormwind city. I spoke with the druids at length of the location of the second piece of the medallion. I hardly surprised to find that word from Cenarion Circle flies faster than griffons or hippogriffs. The druids of Stormwind knew I was doing the Trial of the Sealion. All that he was permitted to tell me was that I was to make all haste to a place called Westfall. Once in Westfall, I was to search in the waters near a canyon. I made my farewells and set out to distant Westfall.
Edited by: DAoC Azizz at: 8/24/05 10:38 am
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