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Finished! :D This chapter was so much easier to write than the last one... It's a bit longer than the other chapters too; I may have to divide it into an epilogue.
I haven't finished a multi-part 'fic in forever; I'm so pleased with myself. ;) It's nowhere near NaNo length, of course, so I guess I'll work on my original fairy tale-like story next...
Previous chapters: Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3
World of Warcraft: "Mystery of the Violet Citadel" by Avi
Chapter 4: "Higher Learning"
"I don't like this," complained Jadaar aloud, as he tightly gripped the reins of his gryphon. He and Asric were currently flying through the night sky, around the magical glowing dome surrounding Dalaran.
Asric flew up next to the draenei, on his wyvern. "Don't tell me that you're afraid of flying, you old blowhard," he mocked.
"Flying, no. Falling, yes," said Jadaar, gritting his teeth. "Isn't there a no-fly zone surrounding Dalaran?"
"Well, yes. But you know very well that a levitate spell activates if you fly too close, so it's not like you'll fall to your death."
"I still don't like it. Besides, I'm certain that the wizards wouldn't like us flying around their tower... Isn't why they put in the no-fly zone?"
"I always thought that was because they didn't want passing adventurers to peep at the female apprentices," commented Asric.
"Very droll. Why are we up here, anyways?"
"I already explained it to you; we're trying to find out where Archmage Vargoth is."
"But are you certain that we'll be able to see anything from up here?" asked Jadaar doubtfully. "It is nighttime, after all."
"That's true... Then let's see how close we can fly to the Violet Citadel." Asric steered his mount towards the tower.
"But--" protested Jadaar, but the blood elf was already out of earshot. Muttering under his breath, he steered his gryphon until he had caught up to the elf.
As he reached the Asric's side, the elf pointed to one of the towers far below them. "Jadaar, can you see anything down there?"
The draenei squinted his good eye, as he stared down below. "There appears to be a light over there... It almost looks like a campfire."
"The question is, what is it doing on the roof of that tower?" mused Asric. "Let's go see if we can take a closer look."
Against Jadaar's better judgment, they both swooped down towards the tower... Then suddenly, the draenei felt the familliar tingle of passing through a magical barrier.
"We've crossed the no-fly zone!" cried out Jadaar, in alarm.
Both the animals they were riding shrieked in surprise, and dumped their riders at the same time. Just then, the levitate spell surrounding the city activated, and both Jadaar and Asric were floating slowly and safely in the air.
"Try and land on the roof of the tower, where we saw the light," said Asric, as he floated close to Jadaar. The draenei nodded grimly, in reply.
Fortunately for them, the spot they were aiming for wasn't too far below; the levitate spell wore off, just as both of them landed lightly on the domed roof.
Jadaar wiped the sweat from his brow. "That was close," he said, and took a step back.
Unfortunately for Jadaar, the place where he had landed was where the dome of the roof began to slope down; the draenei cursed as his hoof skidded, causing to him to lose his balance.
Just when Jadaar thought he was going to fall to his doom, he felt someone grab his hand; the draenei slammed against the slope of the dome, with a grunt.
"Ugh... Have you gained weight, windbag?" groaned Asric. He lay flat on the roof, as he tried to pull up his companion.
"You're more of a pansy than I thought, elf," retorted Jadaar, wondering why he was resorting to insults at such a time. He felt himself sliding further down the roof, and dragging the elf with him. "Leave me be!" he yelled.
"And have you land on some passerby far below? You'd never let me live it down."
It was then that it finally occurred to Jadaar, that as much as he and Asric would snipe at each other, he wouldn't have done half of the things Asric had asked of him today, if he didn't trust the elf... And even though Jadaar had had his doubts, he was now certain that Asric would've done the same for him, too. As much as either of them would try to deny it, they were unmistakably friends now.
Just then, the end of a staff dangled close to Jadaar's face. Instinctively, the draenei grabbed it with his free hand, and felt himself being pulled up by both Asric, and the owner of the staff. They both then helped Jadaar to his feet.
"Thank you. Both of you," said the draenei gratefully. As Asric clapped him affectionately on the shoulder, Jadaar turned to look at the newcomer.
There was no doubt that this person was a mage of some sort; he fit the classic image of a sorcerer, with his pointed hat and purple robes.
"I appreciate the thanks, but it's really unnecessary," said the mage, as he leaned upon his staff. "There's actually a balcony around the edge of this dome, so you probably wouldn't have fallen off the building."
Jadaar and Asric both stared blankly at him, then glanced over the the edge of the roof. Sure enough, there was a balcony with a railing just a few feet below, where they were standing.
The draenei and elf looked at each other, then averted their gazes hurriedly, in silent agreement to never speak of this incident again.
"I certainly wasn't expecting any visitors up here," continued the mage, who didn't seem to notice the uneasy silence. He walked towards the middle of the dome, where a campfire was lit. "Still, I have plenty of food... Would you like something to eat?"
He gestured around him. There was a veritable feast surrounding the campfire; there was even a roast suckling pig, waiting to be carved.
"Er, that's all right..." said Jadaar uncertainly. He glanced at Asric, who was staring at a pile of picnic baskets stacked to the side.
"How about something to drink?" I may have some wine somewhere..."
"Excuse me," interrupted Asric suddenly, "but are you Archmage Vargoth?"
The mage blinked in surprise. "Why, yes. How did you know who I am?"
"We've met your apprentice, Miki," explained Jadaar. "She's very worried about you."
A look of guilt crossed Vargoth's face. "Poor Miki! I completely forgot about her; she must've wondered where I went..."
"She not the only one," said Asric, looking serious. "The rest of the Kirin Tor is searching for you, as well."
As Vargoth's eyes widened, Jadaar and Asric took turns in explaining what had happened in earlier, in the tower room. When they had finished, the archmage looked ashamed of himself.
"To think, I caused so much trouble..." he said weakly. "That poor rogue, being imprisoned for my sake..."
"So you were the one who planted that teleport spell in those apprentice books," said Asric, narrowing his eyes.
Vargoth nodded wearily. "I've had very few visitors, since I came back from Outland; and yet I haven't been able to leave my room, since then... I was just a prisoner there, of my own device." He sighed. "So I devised the hidden code, in hopes of attracting the curious and observant."
"But aren't you outside your room, right now?" pointed out Jadaar.
"In the most literal sense," said Asric. "We're currently standing on the roof of your tower room, aren't we, Archmage Vargoth?"
The archmage hung his head. "That's right. I thought that if I could manage to stay out here for a bit, then I could get used to the idea of leaving my room..."
It's a good thing that he doesn't have a fear of heights as well... thought Jadaar, warily eyeing the edge of the roof.
Archmage Vargoth turned away, to stare out at the magical city below.
"I wasn't planning to stay out here for very long," he said quietly. "But I had forgotten how much I missed the view of Dalaran from up here." He heaved a sigh. "Such a lovely place..."
Vargoth then looked back at Jadaar and Asric. "But I suppose I should return to my room now, and inform Archmage Modera of my whereabouts."
"Wait," said Jadaar, holding up a hand. "Before you go, I'd like to ask you one thing."
"Certainly," replied Vargoth.
"Um... Could you please teleport us both to the ground first?" asked the draenei, looking sheepish.
*****
The next morning, Jadaar and Asric sat at their usual table at Cantrips and Crows, idly discussing everything they had been through the previous day, over drinks.
Asric sulked into his wineglass. "All that work, and we didn't even get paid for it..."
"You're the one who didn't want to involve the authorities," reminded Jadaar, in amused tones.
"But I was hoping we'd get some recognition for all this," complained the blood elf.
"I'm sure the Kirin Tor is probably embarassed about the whole situation," explained the draenei. "Missing one of their mages in their own tower? I can't blame them for wanting to cover that up." Jadaar paused in thought, for a moment. "By the way, how did you know where Archmage Vargoth was?" he asked the elf.
Asric shrugged. "It was more of a guess, really. Do you remember when we were up on the balcony of the Violet Citadel? Well, I thought I could see a light on top the roof of the tower across from us; I wasn't sure, though."
Jadaar glared at him. "You weren't sure?"
"Well, I knew that Vargoth couldn't be too far from his room. Why else would the mages' scrying spells keep telling them that he was nearby?" The elf shrugged again. "I'm sure they would've figured it out eventually, but the appearance of the rogue distracted them."
The draenei nodded. "It was just bad luck, that she showed up when she did."
It was then that Jadaar felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Pardon me..." said a female voice.
The draenei turned, to see a blonde human wearing dark leather standing behind him.
"Sorry to interrupt your conversation," continued the woman, "but I was was wondering... Are you Jadaar?"
"Er, yes," replied the draenei. "And you are...?"
"My name is Eliza Hawkeye," said the woman, with a smile. "And I believe I have you to thank, for getting me out of that sticky situation, yesterday."
"Um..." Jadaar cast uneasy glance at Asric. "Well, to be honest, my companion here did a lot of the detective work--"
"Actually, it was more of a team effort," interrupted the blood elf, with a wry smile.
"Then I offer my thanks to both of you," said Eliza, smiling at Asric, as well. "That little gnome mage told me about you two; since you helped out both of us, I thought that the least I could do is return the favour." She pulled out a pouch filled with gold, which she placed on the table.
"But we couldn't possibly accept--" began Jadaar, then caught a poisonous glare from Asric. "Er, I mean, we would be happy to accept your reward," he corrected himself hastily.
"I wish I could offer you more than that," admitted Eliza. "Still, if you ever need any help from SI:7, let me know."
"Just put in a good word for us, to our old superiors in Shattrath," said Asric, smirking. "Let them know what they've lost."
At this, Eliza laughed. "I'll be sure to do that."
Eliza then turned to leave; that was when Jadaar noticed something strange beside her.
"Um... Eliza? What is that?" asked the draenei, trying not to stare.
"Oh, this?" she replied, and moved aside.
Jadaar could now see the odd creature clearly; it reminded him of one of the strange, amorphous creatures that warlocks summoned, only paler in colour, and smaller in stature.
"Isn't that an arcane elemental?" asked Asric.
Eliza nodded. "Archmage Vargoth gave it to me," she explained. "He felt bad about what happened, but still wanted to thank me for figuring out his code; so he gave me one of his familiars, as a reward. Isn't it cute?"
Jadaar and Asric stared at the creature blankly; it returned their look with the same stare.
"Yes... Cute," repeated Jadaar.
He exchanged a glance with Asric. They both knew about the acquisitive natures of the adventurers visiting Dalaran; they were always suckers for something new and unusual, and Eliza's odd new pet would definitely qualify.
After Eliza had thanked them again and left, Jadaar mused, "I wonder how long it will take before someone reads those books again, and finds the teleport spell..."
Asric shrugged. "Who knows?"
"But now that that the Kirin Tor knows about it, you don't suppose that they might make it easier? For poor Vargoth's sake?" asked Jadaar.
Asric snorted. "Oh, like Rhonin would go along with that."
Jadaar looked thoughtful. "Still, I suspect that once everyone sees that new pet of Eliza's, then everyone will want one."
The blood elf laughed at this. "I think you're right, Jadaar. Vargoth may have visitors sooner than he expects."
Jadaar lifted his tankard. "Then I propose a toast to Archmage Vargoth."
Asric raised his wineglass. "To Vargoth, it is," he said, with a smirk. "After all, it is partly thanks to him, that we have gold lining our pockets again."
The elf tapped his glass against Jadaar's mug with a contented clink.
I haven't finished a multi-part 'fic in forever; I'm so pleased with myself. ;) It's nowhere near NaNo length, of course, so I guess I'll work on my original fairy tale-like story next...
Previous chapters: Prologue, Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3
World of Warcraft: "Mystery of the Violet Citadel" by Avi
Chapter 4: "Higher Learning"
"I don't like this," complained Jadaar aloud, as he tightly gripped the reins of his gryphon. He and Asric were currently flying through the night sky, around the magical glowing dome surrounding Dalaran.
Asric flew up next to the draenei, on his wyvern. "Don't tell me that you're afraid of flying, you old blowhard," he mocked.
"Flying, no. Falling, yes," said Jadaar, gritting his teeth. "Isn't there a no-fly zone surrounding Dalaran?"
"Well, yes. But you know very well that a levitate spell activates if you fly too close, so it's not like you'll fall to your death."
"I still don't like it. Besides, I'm certain that the wizards wouldn't like us flying around their tower... Isn't why they put in the no-fly zone?"
"I always thought that was because they didn't want passing adventurers to peep at the female apprentices," commented Asric.
"Very droll. Why are we up here, anyways?"
"I already explained it to you; we're trying to find out where Archmage Vargoth is."
"But are you certain that we'll be able to see anything from up here?" asked Jadaar doubtfully. "It is nighttime, after all."
"That's true... Then let's see how close we can fly to the Violet Citadel." Asric steered his mount towards the tower.
"But--" protested Jadaar, but the blood elf was already out of earshot. Muttering under his breath, he steered his gryphon until he had caught up to the elf.
As he reached the Asric's side, the elf pointed to one of the towers far below them. "Jadaar, can you see anything down there?"
The draenei squinted his good eye, as he stared down below. "There appears to be a light over there... It almost looks like a campfire."
"The question is, what is it doing on the roof of that tower?" mused Asric. "Let's go see if we can take a closer look."
Against Jadaar's better judgment, they both swooped down towards the tower... Then suddenly, the draenei felt the familliar tingle of passing through a magical barrier.
"We've crossed the no-fly zone!" cried out Jadaar, in alarm.
Both the animals they were riding shrieked in surprise, and dumped their riders at the same time. Just then, the levitate spell surrounding the city activated, and both Jadaar and Asric were floating slowly and safely in the air.
"Try and land on the roof of the tower, where we saw the light," said Asric, as he floated close to Jadaar. The draenei nodded grimly, in reply.
Fortunately for them, the spot they were aiming for wasn't too far below; the levitate spell wore off, just as both of them landed lightly on the domed roof.
Jadaar wiped the sweat from his brow. "That was close," he said, and took a step back.
Unfortunately for Jadaar, the place where he had landed was where the dome of the roof began to slope down; the draenei cursed as his hoof skidded, causing to him to lose his balance.
Just when Jadaar thought he was going to fall to his doom, he felt someone grab his hand; the draenei slammed against the slope of the dome, with a grunt.
"Ugh... Have you gained weight, windbag?" groaned Asric. He lay flat on the roof, as he tried to pull up his companion.
"You're more of a pansy than I thought, elf," retorted Jadaar, wondering why he was resorting to insults at such a time. He felt himself sliding further down the roof, and dragging the elf with him. "Leave me be!" he yelled.
"And have you land on some passerby far below? You'd never let me live it down."
It was then that it finally occurred to Jadaar, that as much as he and Asric would snipe at each other, he wouldn't have done half of the things Asric had asked of him today, if he didn't trust the elf... And even though Jadaar had had his doubts, he was now certain that Asric would've done the same for him, too. As much as either of them would try to deny it, they were unmistakably friends now.
Just then, the end of a staff dangled close to Jadaar's face. Instinctively, the draenei grabbed it with his free hand, and felt himself being pulled up by both Asric, and the owner of the staff. They both then helped Jadaar to his feet.
"Thank you. Both of you," said the draenei gratefully. As Asric clapped him affectionately on the shoulder, Jadaar turned to look at the newcomer.
There was no doubt that this person was a mage of some sort; he fit the classic image of a sorcerer, with his pointed hat and purple robes.
"I appreciate the thanks, but it's really unnecessary," said the mage, as he leaned upon his staff. "There's actually a balcony around the edge of this dome, so you probably wouldn't have fallen off the building."
Jadaar and Asric both stared blankly at him, then glanced over the the edge of the roof. Sure enough, there was a balcony with a railing just a few feet below, where they were standing.
The draenei and elf looked at each other, then averted their gazes hurriedly, in silent agreement to never speak of this incident again.
"I certainly wasn't expecting any visitors up here," continued the mage, who didn't seem to notice the uneasy silence. He walked towards the middle of the dome, where a campfire was lit. "Still, I have plenty of food... Would you like something to eat?"
He gestured around him. There was a veritable feast surrounding the campfire; there was even a roast suckling pig, waiting to be carved.
"Er, that's all right..." said Jadaar uncertainly. He glanced at Asric, who was staring at a pile of picnic baskets stacked to the side.
"How about something to drink?" I may have some wine somewhere..."
"Excuse me," interrupted Asric suddenly, "but are you Archmage Vargoth?"
The mage blinked in surprise. "Why, yes. How did you know who I am?"
"We've met your apprentice, Miki," explained Jadaar. "She's very worried about you."
A look of guilt crossed Vargoth's face. "Poor Miki! I completely forgot about her; she must've wondered where I went..."
"She not the only one," said Asric, looking serious. "The rest of the Kirin Tor is searching for you, as well."
As Vargoth's eyes widened, Jadaar and Asric took turns in explaining what had happened in earlier, in the tower room. When they had finished, the archmage looked ashamed of himself.
"To think, I caused so much trouble..." he said weakly. "That poor rogue, being imprisoned for my sake..."
"So you were the one who planted that teleport spell in those apprentice books," said Asric, narrowing his eyes.
Vargoth nodded wearily. "I've had very few visitors, since I came back from Outland; and yet I haven't been able to leave my room, since then... I was just a prisoner there, of my own device." He sighed. "So I devised the hidden code, in hopes of attracting the curious and observant."
"But aren't you outside your room, right now?" pointed out Jadaar.
"In the most literal sense," said Asric. "We're currently standing on the roof of your tower room, aren't we, Archmage Vargoth?"
The archmage hung his head. "That's right. I thought that if I could manage to stay out here for a bit, then I could get used to the idea of leaving my room..."
It's a good thing that he doesn't have a fear of heights as well... thought Jadaar, warily eyeing the edge of the roof.
Archmage Vargoth turned away, to stare out at the magical city below.
"I wasn't planning to stay out here for very long," he said quietly. "But I had forgotten how much I missed the view of Dalaran from up here." He heaved a sigh. "Such a lovely place..."
Vargoth then looked back at Jadaar and Asric. "But I suppose I should return to my room now, and inform Archmage Modera of my whereabouts."
"Wait," said Jadaar, holding up a hand. "Before you go, I'd like to ask you one thing."
"Certainly," replied Vargoth.
"Um... Could you please teleport us both to the ground first?" asked the draenei, looking sheepish.
*****
The next morning, Jadaar and Asric sat at their usual table at Cantrips and Crows, idly discussing everything they had been through the previous day, over drinks.
Asric sulked into his wineglass. "All that work, and we didn't even get paid for it..."
"You're the one who didn't want to involve the authorities," reminded Jadaar, in amused tones.
"But I was hoping we'd get some recognition for all this," complained the blood elf.
"I'm sure the Kirin Tor is probably embarassed about the whole situation," explained the draenei. "Missing one of their mages in their own tower? I can't blame them for wanting to cover that up." Jadaar paused in thought, for a moment. "By the way, how did you know where Archmage Vargoth was?" he asked the elf.
Asric shrugged. "It was more of a guess, really. Do you remember when we were up on the balcony of the Violet Citadel? Well, I thought I could see a light on top the roof of the tower across from us; I wasn't sure, though."
Jadaar glared at him. "You weren't sure?"
"Well, I knew that Vargoth couldn't be too far from his room. Why else would the mages' scrying spells keep telling them that he was nearby?" The elf shrugged again. "I'm sure they would've figured it out eventually, but the appearance of the rogue distracted them."
The draenei nodded. "It was just bad luck, that she showed up when she did."
It was then that Jadaar felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Pardon me..." said a female voice.
The draenei turned, to see a blonde human wearing dark leather standing behind him.
"Sorry to interrupt your conversation," continued the woman, "but I was was wondering... Are you Jadaar?"
"Er, yes," replied the draenei. "And you are...?"
"My name is Eliza Hawkeye," said the woman, with a smile. "And I believe I have you to thank, for getting me out of that sticky situation, yesterday."
"Um..." Jadaar cast uneasy glance at Asric. "Well, to be honest, my companion here did a lot of the detective work--"
"Actually, it was more of a team effort," interrupted the blood elf, with a wry smile.
"Then I offer my thanks to both of you," said Eliza, smiling at Asric, as well. "That little gnome mage told me about you two; since you helped out both of us, I thought that the least I could do is return the favour." She pulled out a pouch filled with gold, which she placed on the table.
"But we couldn't possibly accept--" began Jadaar, then caught a poisonous glare from Asric. "Er, I mean, we would be happy to accept your reward," he corrected himself hastily.
"I wish I could offer you more than that," admitted Eliza. "Still, if you ever need any help from SI:7, let me know."
"Just put in a good word for us, to our old superiors in Shattrath," said Asric, smirking. "Let them know what they've lost."
At this, Eliza laughed. "I'll be sure to do that."
Eliza then turned to leave; that was when Jadaar noticed something strange beside her.
"Um... Eliza? What is that?" asked the draenei, trying not to stare.
"Oh, this?" she replied, and moved aside.
Jadaar could now see the odd creature clearly; it reminded him of one of the strange, amorphous creatures that warlocks summoned, only paler in colour, and smaller in stature.
"Isn't that an arcane elemental?" asked Asric.
Eliza nodded. "Archmage Vargoth gave it to me," she explained. "He felt bad about what happened, but still wanted to thank me for figuring out his code; so he gave me one of his familiars, as a reward. Isn't it cute?"
Jadaar and Asric stared at the creature blankly; it returned their look with the same stare.
"Yes... Cute," repeated Jadaar.
He exchanged a glance with Asric. They both knew about the acquisitive natures of the adventurers visiting Dalaran; they were always suckers for something new and unusual, and Eliza's odd new pet would definitely qualify.
After Eliza had thanked them again and left, Jadaar mused, "I wonder how long it will take before someone reads those books again, and finds the teleport spell..."
Asric shrugged. "Who knows?"
"But now that that the Kirin Tor knows about it, you don't suppose that they might make it easier? For poor Vargoth's sake?" asked Jadaar.
Asric snorted. "Oh, like Rhonin would go along with that."
Jadaar looked thoughtful. "Still, I suspect that once everyone sees that new pet of Eliza's, then everyone will want one."
The blood elf laughed at this. "I think you're right, Jadaar. Vargoth may have visitors sooner than he expects."
Jadaar lifted his tankard. "Then I propose a toast to Archmage Vargoth."
Asric raised his wineglass. "To Vargoth, it is," he said, with a smirk. "After all, it is partly thanks to him, that we have gold lining our pockets again."
The elf tapped his glass against Jadaar's mug with a contented clink.
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