December 16, 2008 - : OOC - More to come
Filed Under: Out of Character, World of WarcraftDiscussion: C[0]mments
It’s been a while since we visited the World of World of Warcraft, but rest assured, we will make a trip very shortly, I promise.
Things over the past several months were hectic, with my daughter growing up and joining Cheerleading, my surgery, being understaffed at work…
However, there will be more stories, and there will be a new storyline to follow as well, this one being more of a dramatic one, following the trail of twin sisters, Déadian and Picaresque.
More to come… I promise
May 12, 2008 - : Journal Entry 6 - Father Figure
Filed Under: World of WarcraftDiscussion: C[3]mments
Dear Diary -
What the hell am I lookin at? Right now, I’m sittin here on my floor, starin at some freaky lookin bird thing, half out of its egg, runnin around my house like some kinda fool. It’s got Vera so wound up, she’s on top of my bed, arched up, hair stickin straight up. That’ll teach me to help out the orphans… Eggbert she called it. Eggbert the crazy chicken vulture is what I call it.
Oh well… I can’t really get rid of it, so it’s here to stay, at least until I can pawn it off on some unsuspectin sap.
It all started two days ago…
I had just arrived back in Shattrath, after stoppin K’Vorkian’s insane experiment up in Netherstorm. My poor Vera was all irritable and hungry, so I fed her, got her bed ready and decided to head down to the pub in the Lower City. Grape opted to come with me, so we shambled out into the chilly night, taken in the sights and smells of the city.
Now, I may be a Huntard, but I was raised in the city… Stormwind to be precise. I never knew my kin. When I got old enough to ask the lady runnin the orphanage who my folk were, she couldn’t tell me. I pressed her for detail, havin convinced myself that my father was some great heroic figure in the war, and my ma had died in some big ole tragedy. I badgered and badgered the staff at the orphanage for days, weeks and even months. Finally, I guess they couldn’t take it anymore, so they finally snapped and began yellin at me.
“Your parents left you here cause you were too damned ugly!” the first lady said.
I stood, shocked for a minute, then shuffled out of the room. Not believein what the crazy woman had said, I decided to press on. I kept askin around, pesterin the staff, hopin that one of them would give me the real answer. Eventually, one by one, they all told me the same thing… “Ugly baby,” and “face looked like you were hit with a fryin pan,” were two of the more memorable comments.
Buncha psycho liars. I’m devishly handsome! I know, cause Cinderellie tells me so.
Oops, I got sidetracked a bit! Where was I? Oh yeah, I was talkin about my walk around Shattrath with Grape. Well, we never made it to the pub that night. Instead, as I was walkin by the local orphanage, I saw a sign that they were lookin for short term volunteers to help them out. Decidin to erase some of my bad memories, I went in and talked to the lady. She explained to me that they had a buncha kids there that were dyin to see the world outside of the walls of Shattrath. They were lookin for adventurers that would help fulfill the wishes of these poor tykes, and take them on a grand adventure, around the world.
Well, no sooner had the lady spoken, than Grape had plucked up one of the little Draenei girls, tossed her in my backpack and wandered out the door, draggin me with him. I tried to explain to Grape that the kid wasn’t for sale, but he wasn’t payin me no mind. Instead, he dragged me to the dockin bay and beat his chest, callin for Bearkiller. With a grumpy roar, Bearkiller stomped out, eye boogers still in her eyes.
“Haven’t you heard of the sayin ‘don’t wake sleeping dragons?’” I asked Grape, who was busy climbin on to Bearkiller’s back.
Lookin over my shoulder for the authorities, I hopped onboard my netherdrake, confident that at any moment I was goin to be arrested for kidnappin. However, that didn’t happen. Instead, the little girl poked her head out from my backpack and began flappin her gums about wantin to go see the summonin stone at Auchindoun. I rolled my eyes, shoved the kid back down into my backpack and Bearkiller took off.
A few minutes later, after divin into the trees a few times and gettin me almost knocked off, (I don’t think Bearkiller was happy about bein awoken from her nap) we arrived at the stone in Auchindoun. I pulled the girl from the backpack and placed her on the ground. Almost immediately she began runnin around like a lunatic and activatin the stone, creatin portal after portal, talkin about how wonderful it was and yadda yadda.
After I lost my patience, I grabbed up the kid by the scruff of her neck, tossed her into my backpack again and listened as she blabbed on and on about seein place after place after place. Grape amused her on the trip by playin peek-a-boo and pickin the lice out of her hair. He’s such a good ape. I eventually got bored, grabbed my bottle of whiskey and got drunk, offerin it to the kid every once in a while to keep her warm.
About five hours later, and after visitin Exodor, Shattrath, the Dark Portal and the Caverns of Time, I finally hearthed us all back to Shattrath, headin straight to the Lower City Orphanage upon arrival. Yankin the runt out of my backpack, I underhand tossed her through the door and wiped my hands off on my pants. Filthy kids…
Lookin up, I saw the orphanage lady starin in disbelief at me… “WHAT? Kid’s got fleas or sumthin…” I said in response to her silent accusations.
Before I could leave tho, the brat came runnin back out of the inn, clung on to my leg and began thankin me for takin her around and showin her the sights. She told me she’d never forget the Hero of Canton (that’s Me!) and gave me this large spotted egg.
I realize now, it was a practical joke.
So, here I sit, starin at this deformed chicken-vulture thing runnin around my house, knockin my stuff around and gettin into all kinds of trouble. I’m sure Vera will get annoyed enough at some point that she’ll just snap the thing up in her jaws and be done with it. Until then, I’ve got yet another idiot to feed, and his name is Eggbert.
May 1, 2008 - : One Man’s Demonic Nightsaber …
Filed Under: World of WarcraftDiscussion: C[6]mments
Jaynekobb raised his bow and pulled back the string, watching nervously as Vera stalked toward him, growling lowly and baring her vicious looking fangs. His throat was tight, his stomach was turning, but above all else, his heart was breaking. Seeing Vera like this was something he never expected, and couldn’t possibly be emotionally prepared for.
As he felt the tension on the bow string grow with every moment, Jaynekobb glanced around the room, hoping for a way to avoid putting down one of his most beloved pets. Surely, K’Vorkian had built a device to undo whatever his weapon had turned Vera into. What kind of self respecting mad scientist wouldn’t?
Sweat was beginning to sting his eyes, and Vera was getting closer with every passing moment. As Jaynekobb was finally pressed up against the wall behind him, he almost stumbled as his foot kicked one of the Blood Elves. Thinking quickly, Jayne dropped to the ground and used both of his legs to push the body of the Blood Elf toward Vera, hoping she would choose to dine on it, rather than him.
“May the gods forgive me,” Jaynekobb said, feeling horrible about offering a corpse up to Vera to devour.
Vera stopped her stalking and lowered her head, never taking her eyes off of Jaynekobb. With a sniff, she began inspecting the body, pawing at it occasionally, growling in indecision as she looked longingly at her former master.
That’s when the Blood Elf’s hand moved, and his eyes opened, startled at the site of the demonic feline pawing him on the chest and sniffing at his neck.
Vera let loose a mighty roar and bit into the Blood Elf’s arm, causing him to scream in horrendous agony, trying to get away from the monstrous creature. He tried hitting her on the snout with his other hand, but it was in vain. Vera had claimed her prey, and it would not get away now. Realizing the game was afoot; she released the arm and snapped her jaw around the Blood Elf’s neck, freezing him in place as the life drained from his body.
Jaynekobb stood in horror for a moment, then snapped himself out of it. How many people and creatures had he killed? How many Blood Elves had he shot down while Vera did this very thing? He couldn’t begin to count… so why was this one any different? Why did he feel so guilty?
As he felt horror let its grip slacken on his heart, he gathered himself and jumped over the railing, down into the center of the room, worried that his sudden movement would re-center Vera’s attention on him and bring his plan to a quick end. Fortunately, however, his former pet’s hunger outweighed her hunting instinct, and she paid him no mind.
Jaynekobb ran to the weapon that K’Vorkian had used on his precious kitten, and began looking for any kind of switch that would allow him to reverse the effect. He flipped the gun over and scoured it for instructions, but none were to be found. Just as he was about to give up and began planning his next move, however, he was seized by the arm.
Startled, Jaynekobb pulled out his dagger and turned toward his assailant. There, looking woozy and scared was the second Blood Elf guard. Before Jaynekobb could stab the dagger into the Blood Elf’s throat, the man began whispering in a raspy voice.
“I know what you are trying to do, Night Elf, and I can help you do it, but you must allow me to leave after you’ve cured your pet,” the guard spoke with a thick, melodic accent.
Jaynekobb thought for a few moments, trying to block out the sound of bones crunching and flesh being torn apart. He held no ill feelings toward this Blood Elf, but he didn’t exactly trust him either. His mind raced, but finally he made his decision.
“Fine, but… no tricks, or I will make sure the last thing you see is my blade,” Jaynekobb replied.
The Blood Elf nodded and, while keeping his eyes on Vera, slowly walked over to a panel on the wall. There, he began turning a knob counter clockwise until it clicked loudly. Looking over his shoulder at Vera, he slowly began raising a large switch. With a rusty squeal, the switch began its journey upward, making enough noise to attract Vera’s attention.
Vera turned her head and looked toward the Blood Elf that was making the horrendous sound. With a roar, she leapt into the air at the warrior, teeth and claws bared for the attack.
The Blood Elf screamed at the sight and tried, vainly, to get out of the way. Before he could, Vera was on top of him, biting him on the shoulder, pinning him to the ground and digging her claws into his chest. He squirmed under her weight and looked toward Jaynekobb, straining to get out his last words.
“SHOOT IT! SHOOT IT NOW!” he screamed before his words turned into a meaningless howl of pain and terror.
Jaynekobb’s eyes widened at the sight of the dying Blood Elf, but knowing the he was probably next, grabbed the gun and shouldered it, feeling its power course through his arm. As he prepared to fire, Vera turned to look at him, her eyes filled with hellfire and hate. With another roar, she thrust herself into the air, her attack set.
Jaynekobb squeezed the trigger and let loose a blast of hellfire, hitting Vera in the chest, knocking her from the air and sending her flying across the room. With a resounding thud, she slammed up against the wall, and fell to the ground in a heap.
Jaynekobb dropped the weapon and walked slowly toward Vera, picking up his axe from the ground, and wielding it cautiously. Vera still had the same coloration, and her size and shape had not been altered any. It appeared that the blast had done nothing to reverse the effect, and Vera was still possessed by whatever fel energies had taken her over.
As Jaynekobb neared her, Vera began to stir, her eyes blinking a bit. She stood up and looked around, growling in anger. After a second, her attention turned toward Jaynekobb and she tensed all of her muscles, preparing to leap. Jaynekobb grabbed his axe tighter, ready to finish his nightsaber off, should it come to that.
Vera bolted across the room and threw herself on to Jaynekobb, shoving him to the ground, causing him to lose his grip on the axe, sending it skittering across the room. He grunted in pain and began to try and put himself at ease in these, his last moments. Vera was too strong for him, and he was completely unarmed now.
The nightsaber growled ferociously and put her face right next to Jaynekobb’s, opening her mouth wide, her razor sharp fangs dripping saliva and blood on to his face. With one final thrust, she began licking his face, her sandpaper like tongue sloppily smearing blood all over his face.
Jaynekobb winced for a moment, and then realized Vera was not killing him. Instead, she appeared to be… washing him. He tried to move, but she growled and pressed her paw down firmly on his chest, keeping him in place. As the minutes wore on, Jaynekobb finally allowed himself to relax a bit. Perhaps the second shot had worked on her. Was it possible that she had reverted back to his loving Vera? Was the demonic influence gone?
After what seemed like hours, Vera finally let Jaynekobb up, and began sniffing at his satchel. Jaynekobb stared down in confusion for a moment, then, smiling, reached into his satchel and produced a cooked trout. Holding it out to Vera, he tried not to flinch as she snatched it out of his hand, dropped it on to the ground and began playing with it for a bit before happily devouring it.
Looking around the room at the chaos, Jaynekobb sighed to himself and looked toward the door that K’Vorkian had escaped through. The tiny mad scientist had once again escaped, and now the desire to capture him was even stronger. He could almost forgive the theft of the two gold pieces, but there was no way in hell he could let what K’Vorkian had done to his kitty stand.
K’Vorkian would pay dearly for his assault on Vera, and Jaynekobb would enjoy doing it. In the meantime though, he had to find his way back to safety, and figure out a way to explain to all of his friends just what had happened, and why Vera looked completely different.
With a grin, Jaynekobb began turning every steam release valve he could find in the room, causing the pressure in the pipes to build. Calling for Vera, the two best friends ran through the maze of tunnels, Jayne following Vera every step of the way. Just as they emerged from the cave, a large explosion could be heard coming from behind them, a sign that Jaynekobb had stopped K’Vorkian’s plan… at least temporarily.
Jaynekobb stopped and turned back around, looking at the cloud of steam bursting from the cave’s entrance. Next to him, Vera sat on the ground, washing one of her paws, completely oblivious to the events that had just transpired. Jaynekobb looked down at her and scratched her behind her ear. She looked different, but Jaynekobb knew that his pal was okay, and that made everything else just a little bit better.
—
Epilogue
The night had come, and the rocky crags of Netherstorm were silent, except for the sounds of wind. Vera sniffed at the air and purred.
Happily, she prowled across the campsite, sniffed at Jaynekobb’s head, and with a satisfied growl, plopped her butt down on Jaynekobb’s chest and began trying to wake him up to go hunting.
Stupid Nightelf.
April 29, 2008 - : Everything Changes
Filed Under: World of WarcraftDiscussion: C[5]mments
Jaynekobb walked down the dimly lit cave, hands behind his head, keenly aware of the danger he was in. The Blood Elves behind him had their weapons trained on him, and were waiting for an excuse to kill him. Jaynekobb knew all of this, yet he vainly tried to come up with an escape plan.
Vera had abandoned him in favor of butterflies, Grape was nowhere near, and Bearkiller, even if she were awake, was far too large to fit into the cave’s entrance. Jaynekobb, for the first time in a very, very long time, found himself completely on his own, and he simply had no idea what to do.
As they walked down the cave’s wet and moldy corridor, he tried to remember every detail, in case he needed to find his way out in a hurry. Unfortunately, soon enough the caves all began to look alike, and quite frankly, he was lost. As they turned one more corner, he walked into a large open room with a slope down into another level. The Blood Elves, pushed him forward, and he began the slippery journey down the slope, hoping the whole time that the Blood Elves would not be able to keep their balance, and it would present him with an opportunity to escape. But, as they finally reached the bottom level, he knew his hopes were for nothing.
Their journey continued, and after what seemed like an impossibly long walk, they finally entered a large, brightly lit cavern. The open space had been enhanced heavily with magical spells, some to bring light to the cavern, others to bring warmth. The walls were not slick and slimy in here, but instead were covered with copper piping, nozzles, large containers and all sorts of engineering equipment. The noise in the room was a cacophony of hissing and grinding as the gadgets did their varied tasks.
In the center of the cavern was a large, inverted cone, coming down from the ceiling. It appeared to be made of some type of fel iron, very sturdy looking and slightly ominous. Its surface seemed to shimmer and shine randomly as if a magical aura was embedded into the steel itself. At the tip of the cone, in what seemed to be the dead center of the room itself, a large crackling ball of energy danced and flickered, shooting out sparks occasionally and large explosions of sound. Below the ball of energy was a large circular platform, made of the same fel iron as the cone above it, and a railing circling the perimeter, either keeping people out, or the energy in; Jaynekobb could not be sure.
As Jaynekobb took in the awe inspiring site, his eyes finally turned to the little gnome off to the left, busily fiddling with a large, gun like device. From what he could tell, the gun was attached to the base of the fel iron platform with a large cable.
All of this though, was irrelevant to Jayne as he recognized the gnome. Jaynekobb felt his chest burst with fury, his brain turning to one thought and one thought only. Before he could stop himself, he began to leap off of the stairway and charge toward the gnome.
The Blood Elves, sensing the tension in Jaynekobb’s demeanor, grabbed on to his arms and pulled him back, preventing him from attacking their boss.
Struggling against them, Jaynekobb finally thrust forward, but was held firmly in place by the two warriors behind him. His anger welled up and he yelled as loud as he could.
“K’Vorkian!!!! I WANT MY TWO GOLD PIECES!”
— Meanwhile —
Vera sniffed the ground a bit and eyed the tunnel ahead. She could still smell Jaynekobb’s stench, along with two others’. Blood Elves by the smell of them. Most likely, they’d captured her Night Elf before he could hatch his ridiculous plan, and dragged him, unwilling into the caves.
The large cat shook herself in frustration and flexed her claws a bit, digging them into the stone. She had to go in there to get her Night Elf, this much was certain. Vera loved her pet Night Elf, and would see no harm come to him. Although he was an idiot, flawed and stupid, she found herself needing to be near him, keeping him out of trouble and helping him in his battles. No, Vera could not leave the Huntard, Jaynekobb to his own devices. That was certain doom.
With one last grumble, Vera tensed her shoulder muscles and propelled herself into the cave, following the scent, not stopping for anything. Her nose could not be fooled, and her footing was sure. She entered a large room with a downward slope, and leapt to the bottom, before turning to her left and continuing her pursuit. Her prey was ahead… her pet Night Elf was ahead.
With one final burst of speed, Vera flung herself into a large, brightly lit room and tackled the two Blood Elves to the ground, inadvertently knocking Jaynekobb down as well.
—
Moments after his outburst, Jaynekobb was slammed to the ground with incredible force, but managed to land on his side, in a defensive posture. There, standing on the two Blood Elves, Vera, his precious kitty stood proudly, roaring in victory.
Jaynekobb grabbed his bow from the fallen Blood Elves and turned to K’Vorkian, the bowstring already pulled back, a fresh arrow placed on to the string. Feeling the rage build up again, Jaynekobb aimed the arrow at the Gnome’s head and prepared to let it fly.
It was at that exact moment when Vera and Jaynekobb’s life would take a dramatic turn. Jaynekobb, having announced himself with a rage filled outburst, followed by Vera’s attack, had given K’Vorkian just enough time to turn toward them, the strange gun looking device readied.
Before Jaynekobb could release his arrow, K’Vorkian pulled the trigger of his weapon, and a large explosion of light and hellfire burst from the chamber, aimed at Vera. The shot found its mark, and blasted Vera, enveloping her in hellish flames, her howls of pain deafening Jaynekobb and shattering his world all at once.
Jaynekobb, now distracted and startled by his beloved cat’s pain, let loose with the arrow, which missed K’Vorkian by a foot and embedded itself in a pipe attached to the wall. Steam hissed out of the pipe and filled the room, giving K’Vorkian a few moments to drop his weapon and run down a hall on the other side of the room, leaving Jaynekobb and his pet Nightsaber behind.
Jaynekobb couldn’t understand what was happening to Vera, as she howled in agony and stretched her mighty frame out, her open jaws stretched wide, pointing at the ceiling. Jaynekobb could feel her pain, but didn’t knwow how to help. The demonic flames enveloped her completely, before, after what seemed like an eternity, flickered out and died, leaving Vera to scratch at the floor, her torment continuing.
Jaynekobb cast his healing spell on Vera repeatedly, hoping to help her, but got no response, other than the continued howling of pain as something strange began happening to his Nightsaber. Her fur began to shimmer, mimicking the strange behavior of the fel iron cone. Underneath the shimmering, Jaynekobb thought her could see her stripes beginning to lighten and her mane beginning to grow a bit.
After a few minutes, the shimmering died down, and standing in front of him, Vera shook herself and growled lowly. Her fur had completely changed now, her once dark stripes replaced by lighter, more luminescent ones. Her mane had grown a bit, but the biggest change, the one that made Jaynekobb step back was her eyes.
Gone were Vera’s once loving and curious eyes. Instead, staring back at him were glowing, demonic green eyes, filled with anger and pain, and above all hunger.
K’Vorkian had done something to his precious cat, and now, unsure of what was going on, Jaynekobb backed away from the angry looking nightsaber as she growled and stalked toward him.
“Vera? It’s me… it’s Jaynekobb,” he said, pulling out another arrow, praying that he would not have to put down one of his best friends.
Vera, seemingly oblivious to Jayne’s mutterings, stalked toward her prey, eager to rip into the flesh and fill her belly with the blood of the guilty.
—
To be continued
April 16, 2008 - : The Adventures of Vera the Super Cat!
Filed Under: World of WarcraftDiscussion: C[4]mments
Vera the Nightsaber yawned loudly and looked around, admiring the forest and feeling the warm summer sun on her back. Finding a nice sunbeam, she plopped her massive frame down and stretched out, rolling back and forth on the grass covered ground. Life in the hills surrounding Skettis was good.
Vera didn’t know much about the world around her, and quite honestly didn’t really care. As long as her belly was full, her fur was clean and there was plenty of prey for her to stalk, she really didn’t have too many complaints.
That is, until that fateful afternoon, while she was rolling around in her precious sunbeam.
In the middle of her afternoon ritual, something was suddenly amiss. She heard a noise that bothered her immensely and looked around, searching for the source of the noisy gibberish that was offending her very sensitive ears.
There, in the shade she saw one of the intruders. This intruder was tall, ugly, two legged and very smelly. And, to top it off, he was in her safe little spot. The intruder’s arms were outstretched, and his mouth was muttering some odd phrases over and over again. Finding it incredibly irritating, Vera got up and attacked the intruder, slashing at his legs and midriff over and over again. She bit at his knees, chomped at his side and tried to push him down.
Unfortunately, none of her attacks could stop the intruder from making that horribly irritating noise. As the seconds wore on though, she realized that she was suddenly able to understand the intruder a little bit at a time. His tone went from irritating to almost gentle and kind. Her attacks became more symbolic and less dangerous, and her aggression dropped with each passing moment.
Before she realized it, Vera was actually fascinated by the tall creature with the large floppy ears and green hair. He still made her a bit upset, but the fact that he was offering her very tasty treats and petting her behind the ears and under the jaw helped ease her frustration.
Within minutes, she found herself following the ugly thing through the forest, away from her home and into the wild. An hour later, she had no clue where she was anymore, but her belly was still full and the treats the stupid looking intruder was giving her were very tasty and exotic. She found her affection for the two legged idiot growing with each step of their journey.
— A Year Later
Vera sat on Jaynekobb’s chest, washing her forepaw, looking off in the distance, completely unaware of the incredible pain she was causing her friend and the bones that were about to break in his chest. Out in the distance she watched the sun rise, casting its beautiful light onto the strange floating islands of Netherstorm.
To her left, her Netherdrake, Bearkiller, was snoring away blissfully, a snot bubble forming in her nose, popping every once in a while. Things were good in Vera’s world. She had her own personal Night Elf to feed her and groom her. She had her own Netherdrake, and even had an ape for a chew toy. Things could not be any better… except of course, for the fact that her Night Elf insisted on sleeping during the night.
For the past year, Vera struggled valiantly to try and train Jaynekobb to sleep during the day and hunt at night. She tried to explain in her own way, that hunting at night yielded better results. She would chew on his head, paw at his chest, sit on his stomach, lick at his toes… anything to try and get the idiot up and active.
Alas, none of her ingenious strategies seemed to work. Instead, Jaynekobb seemed more irritable and less agile. But, Vera would not be swayed. The stupid Night Elf would become a great hunter if it was the last thing Vera did.
So, it should come as no surprise, that when Vera finally gave up on Jaynekobb and went to lay down for the morning, he would once again get up and begin yelling at her, pushing her, shaking her and struggle to wake her up.
Instead, Vera simply laid in her sunlight, content that the day would unfold as she wanted it to. Jaynekobb would do something stupid, and she would have to rescue him… again.
A few hours later, Vera woke up with a stretch, showing her disgruntled Night Elf all of her teeth in the process. He looked at her in frustration and began packing up his things. Yesterday he’d muttered something about a cave that he wanted to sneak into, and apparently he was preparing to go.
She watched for a few moments as he put his gear on and turned to head to the cave. Unfortunately for Jaynekobb, her attention turned to more important things, and she found herself staring at a cloud of butterflies in the distance.
Vera hunkered down, her tail swishing back and forth. All things Jaynekobb disappeared from her mind, and she began chasing the butterflies, occasionally jumping up to swat at them and try to catch them in her mouth.
Eventually, however, the thrill of the hunt wore off, and Vera turned to go back to camp and see what trouble Jaynekobb was going to get into today.
When she returned, however, the camp was empty with the exception of her napping Netherdrake, and Jaynekobb’s scent leading into the cave. She could smell his fear and knew that once again, it would be up to Vera to save Jaynekobb from some untimely demise.
If only Jaynekobb knew how hard Vera worked at keeping him out of trouble.
Stupid Nightelf.