Orotle's Awakening

[Pelagrin]

Please direct any comments to the Introduction thread.

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Part I

Working on the farms of the forest was grueling, but Orotle never complained. Not even the constant tormenting and harassing from Billy, his master’s son, discouraged him. He was well fed and had a place to sleep. This was the only life he had ever known, but everything changed when he saw the creature.

It was a just another typical day in the fields in the Elwynn Forest. As usual, the servants kept their distance from Orotle as they worked. He wasn’t sure how he had come to reside there, but he was the only of his kind and the only one that was forced to work in bondage. On this particular day, Orotle kept having an uneasy feeling that he was being watched by an unknown presence.

Suddenly Orotle saw a shadowy transparent wolf-like creature emerged from the woods. Fear gripped Orotle. He looked around for help, but saw that nobody else noticed the apparition. Just as he was about to run, he heard a voice echo in his mind, “Friend, you are the only one who can see and hear me. Fear not, I am here for you.”

Orotle opened his mouth to speak, but before he could utter a sound the creature continued, “Remain silent. They will all think you the fool if you start talking to no one. I am speaking through your mind. Think and I will hear.”

Orotle replied silently, “Who...a….what are you?”

“This you will learn in time. The important question that you should concern yourself with is why you are the only one here who can see me. Just know that you are special and that you have great power hidden within you.”

“Great Power?!?” Orotle realized suddenly that he had spoken out loud as everyone stopped working and stared at him. What he said was really of little concern since he was unable to duplicate the sounds of the humans, but he could tell that they were suddently watching him more cautiously.

“Sorry,” continued Orotle, “you say I have great power?”

“It comes from your heritage. You are a Tauren and are a descendant of a line of great druids. I have been searching for you for many years and just recently learned that you were being held captive here. It is a long and bloody story that shall have to wait for another time. What you must know for now is that when you were an infant, your village was destroyed, your parents were killed, and you were taken and sold into slavery. I am here to give you freedom and to train you in the way of your true destiny.”

“You say that there are others like me out there?”

“There are a great many like you, and there are others who can…..” The creature was cut off by a great flash of light from the trees. “I’ve been discovered! I must go now, but I will return. I have prepared your first lesson. Dig where you sleep.” He then turned and fled into the woods.

 

[Pelagrin]

Part II

Orotle had a hard time focusing on his work for the rest of the day. There were too many unanswered questions spinning in his head. He had always wondered why he was the only of his kind on the farm and why he was the only one that worked in chains, but until now it had never occurred to him to wonder where he came from and how he arrived on the farm. The biggest questions that burned in Orotle’s mind were in regards to the great power that he supposedly had hidden within, the identity of the ghost creature, and the meaning of the creature’s parting words. Unfortunately he would not be able to return to his bed until dusk.

The day passed and the time finally arrived for Orotle to sleep. Exhausted from the day’s grueling tasks, he followed the master to his corner of the stable and waited patiently as the chains were fastened to the wall. He realized that it would be unwise to immediately begin searching for whatever had been left for him, so he lay down and pretended to sleep as the human tended to the animals that resided in the barn. After what seemed an eternity, the master blew out the lanterns and returned to the house.

After the human left, Orotle continued to wait for about another hour and then rose to begin his search. He swept the straw aside to reveal the soft earth underneath. The ground was hard and firm and didn’t appear that it had recently been dug. He began to wonder if he had understood the creature correctly, but he attempted to dig.

He first tried using his hands to disturb the earth, but the hard ground gave him great difficulty. He looked around the stable for some type of tool and noticed that there was a hoe on the far wall. That would be perfect, except Orotle was bound and his chains would only allow him to move about a foot from his bed. Slowly he began to pull to see if he could break the chain from the wall. As he pulled, he could hear the wooden boards creaking as the iron bolts struggled to maintain their grip. Finally, after several minutes of strenuous heaving, there was a loud crack as the boards gave way and exploded into thousands of splinters. Orotle was still bound by the chains, but he was now free to navigate the entirety of the barn.

Orotle’s heart beat quickly as he hurriedly grabbed the shovel and began to dig. He knew that the humans would have been awoken by the noise and would surely come to investigate, so his time was short. As he chopped frantically at the ground, he heard the door to the master’s house open and close. The footsteps grew closer, but he continued to dig. The key jiggled in the lock of the barn and the door creaked open. Orotle dove to his knees in an attempt to remain hidden for as long as possible. He continued to dig abandoning the hoe in favor of his hands on the now soft dirt. Just as the master approached, Ororle grasped hold of a small white stone.

He attempted inspect the rock and barely noticed a symbol on the surface before he felt the blow to the back of his head. He was stunned as the room briefly grew dark. He almost dropped the stone, but clutched hold of it tightly. As he gripped his newly found treasure, he began to feel warmth emanating from the rock, up his arm, and into his body. The warmth soon engulfed him in a pulsating energy and his body began to glow with a bright golden light. Orotle rose to his feet as the intensity grew uncontrollably. All of a sudden, he felt himself rise to his feet into an outstretched position and he heard let out a deafening roar escape from his lungs. The energy and glow subsided as quickly as it had begun. Orotle turned and bolted from the stable knocking down his master as he passed. He fled swiftly into the forest, away from the only place he had ever known as his home. He ran unaware of his destination, but he knew that remaining on the farm after this would certainly result in his death.

He needed to find the ghost cat - the only one that could answer his questions and lead him to his true home.

 

[Pelagrin]

Part III

Orotle had no idea how far he had run. He also had no idea where he was going or which direction he was traveling. All he knew was that there was a great city of humans near the farm, and he had fled in the opposite direction. For though his primary goal was to find the ghost creature, his secondary and equally important goal was to avoid the humans at all costs. He knew that if he were to be recaptured by the humans, he would surely be beaten severely, and possibly even be killed.

He was not fast by any means, but his adrenaline gave him the stamina to run for what he guessed was almost an hour without a break. However, eventually exhaustion overtook him and he knew he had to find a place to hide to get some rest. He stopped for a moment to catch his breath and began to survey his surroundings. He had crossed the river and was still in the Forest, but the dense foliage here made this area much darker than the area he had just fled. He noticed a small mountain near him and thought that there was a chance that he might find a cave or some place where he could hide and rest.

As he reached the base of the mountain, he could see that he wouldnÂ’t be able to ascend from his immediate location, so he cautiously trekked along the base searching for some place where he could hide. There were several times that noises caused him to duck into the brush, but each time he was relieved to see that it was just one of the forestÂ’s resident creatures. As he made his way along through the trees, he eventually found a path the led easily up into the small mountain. He followed along until it began to lead down into the middle of what he had thought was a small mountain.

The valley that he was entering was much brighter and more beautiful than the dark forest that surrounded it. The path continued down into an open area. In the center was an enormous stone circle standing vertically on a platform with brilliant colors of light swirling within. The path ended at the base of the platform where there were steps leading up to the mysterious artifact.

Orotle stood at the base of the ring with a sense of wondrous awe. He had never seen such an object. He was also curious about the substance that made up the center of the ring. What did it feel like? Was it safe? He stepped forward and reached out to see if he could touch it when a voice inside his head interrupted him.

“I would advise against your current course of actions.”

Orotle swung around and saw standing before him a giant bear. The bear raised on its hind legs towering over Orotle and let out a loud roar.

“AHHHHH?!?!” Orotle shouted as he staggered backwards.

The bear flung out with its paw and smacked Orotle off of the platform. Orotle fell hard on the ground striking his head on a fallen stone pillar. Just before losing consciousness, Orotle saw the bear coming toward him. He thought, “Great! I escaped just so I can be a bear’s dinner.” And then everything went black.

 

[Pelagrin]

Part IV - coming eventually

 

[Pelagrin]

Orotle awoke with the word headache of his life. He looked around has he opened his eyes and noted that he appeared to be lying on the dusty floor of a cave. He attempted to sit up, but the room started spinning as he fell back down.

"Careful friend, you took a nasty fall and hit struck your head. You have been unconsious for two days."

Orotle slowly sat up to see who was speaking. Crouched over near the cave's entrance was a creature that resembled him. Orotle was thrilled as he had never seen another like him.

Orotle slowly spoke, "who are you? I have not seen another such as myself."

"My name is Faloryn. I, like you, am a Tauren druid. I am the creature that appoached you in the field. I am the one that burried the stone under your bed. I am the creature that thrust you away from the portal."

"What?!?" Orotle asked in amazement, "how can that have been you?"

"As druids, we are able to shift into various forms," the druid said as he morphed into the shape of a giant creature that resembled a cross between a bear and an owl.

"How do you do this sorcery?"

Faloryn again morphed, but this time into the shape of a bird. He hovered over Orotle and said, "As I told you, WE are druids and are able to shift into various forms. Each form is unique and allows for different abilities."

"WE???" asked Orotle in shock.

"Orotle, take the stone that I gave you in hand, close your eyes and imagine yourself transforming into the shape of a bear."

Orotle was still in a state of shock, but he complied. He slowly arose and removed the stone from his pocket. He firmly gripped the stone, closed his eyes, and he formed an image of himself transforming.

"Take deep breaths Orotle and relax, but concentrate on your transformation."

Orotle slowed his breathing and attempted to relax his muscles while attempting to imagine himself transforming just as Faloryn had.

Moments later Orotle asked, "did it work?", but he was answered by silence. Opening his eyes and looking down to see his cloven hands and feet gave him the answer he needed. "I'm sorry, I am still weak from my fall. My head is throbbing with pain."

Faloryn sat facing the cave's entrance. "You must not let pain be your excuse. There will be times when you must make use of your abilities under diress. The transformation is a simple task and I had hoped that your mind was strong enough, but you are not ready. There is much you need to learn."

"I'm sorry Faloryn. I will work to learn. Could you me on one thing though? What is this stone, and why did I feel a surge of energy when I picked it up?"

"That is called a hearth stone. The stone contains power and picking it up awoke the powers that were dormant in you. As you train, you will feel the rushes of energy from time to time. Each time you feel that rush, you will be come stronger and unlock new abilities until you have finally reached your full potential. You have a long and difficult journey my friend, but in the end you have the potential to be a druid even more powerful than myself."

"So the stone gives me my powers?"

"No Orotle, the stone mearly is an object that contains it's own magic. Your true power lies within you. However, as we travel, you will meet others who can link their stones to yours. This will allow you to instantly travel to them no matter where you are."

"Is the stone currently linked somewhere?" asked Orotle.

Faloryn replied, "The town that it was set to no longer exists. If you use it now, I am uncertain where it will lead."

"How do I use this stone?"

"When the time comes, simply close your eyes while gripping the stone tightly and say 'hearth', but do not do it until it until we have had a chance to link it to another location. As I have said, I do not know where it will lead."

Orotle nodded and slipped the stone back into his pocket.

Faloryn turned and walked to him. "Now let me take care of that headache for you." He closed his eyes and began speaking a language that Orotle was unfamiliar with. A green mist flowed from Faloryn's hands and flowed into Orotle.

Orotle felt a warmth flowing through his body and he suddently realized that he was no longer in pain.

"You should be fine now, but I suggest that you rest. We have a long journey ahead and you are still weak."

Faloryn spoke another phrase that Orotle did not understand and suddenly Orotle felt himself grow extremely tired. He lay back down where he had previously woken and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

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(part V coming eventually)