There was a second of silence after I spoke. The red dragon, in high elf form, blinked almost owlishly as if trying to grasp what had just happened.
"I'm Korialstrasz, Prime Consort of the Dragon Queen… and I see I wasn't lied to. Are you sure you're a full blooded furbolg?" The pale 'elf' asked with a relatively relaxed smile, though I could see the hidden tension in his muscles and body language.
This was nothing I was unfamiliar with when it came to dragons.
They were far more instinct-driven than they liked to admit, but it just rarely was the case, as very few things were above them in the food chain.
And I was among those few things, well, perhaps not strictly above, since I wasn't their predator, not actively, at least.
But I was in the same realm and above the vast majority of dragons, in raw power at the very least.
They couldn't throw around their weight without me clapping back hard. And I looked like a jalgar, only meaner in every way.
It was destabilizing.
"At some point I was, yes… Now not so much, as you can see. I bleed more than red." I said, playing along. He seemed pleasant–he appeared so–and he was the favored mate of the Aspect of Life.
I was about as sharp as a hammer when speaking, but wasn't stupid. And the red dragons were allegedly more empathetic than the flying reptiles.
And Korialstrasz was, from what I vaguely recalled from my past, to be important, but not much else.
Wasn't his alias Kresus or something… that wasn't important now.
"Fascinating. I have never met a creature quite like you, though you must tire of my rambling." Korialstrasz hummed, his hand gliding over the ethereal golden threads of the Goldilocks.
"He would, cousin, tenderness is not his forte. And I'm curious too, you only said you wished to meet Ohto and had me escort you without explaining more than that it was important." Itharius interjected, earning a raised fur brow and flick of an ear from me.
We were on the same page then.
"As said, what is the reason someone like you decided to come to see me like this?" I asked, keeping eye contact.
And what an annoyance it always was when even the tallest on average were half my height. A kaldorei was small, and a quel'dorei was downright tiny in comparison.
And that was when I was on all four! Of course, I couldn't walk on two legs, or at least do it elegantly, but still, I could barely look anyone in the eye without sitting.
That was why I sat. It was less awkward. I would prefer the two dragons were in their real forms, but there wasn't enough space. It would feel less fake even if they were significantly weaker in that form.
"Then I would be direct. My queen wishes to meet you, the central point of much discussion within our flight and beyond. In this honor, your presence is demanded within the Ruby Sanctum." The red dragon proclaimed far more formally than he had an instant ago, the shift was almost jarring.
I felt my heart skip a beat… The Aspect of Life, Alexztraza, wants to see me, and now, at all times?
I shouldn't be surprised, I wasn't, to an extent. I was an oddity beyond oddity.
I attracted attention, and I didn't hide. As far as I knew, there was virtually no recording of Life magic users like me outside her flight, Freya… and the Old Gods, to an extent.
The insectoid races were artificial, and Curse of Flesh wasn't the Void alone. I knew I had studied this during the Third War, when I healed humans, gnomes, and dwarves.
This type of thing left traces, and Life transmuted inorganic matter into its opposite.
Technically, Wild Gods did too, like how jalgars were shaped by Ursoc. But that wasn't one-on-one; it was more like using a chunk of their life force than a type of mana.
It wasn't unique to them. But doing this killed pretty much everything else since most didn't have a nearly endless well of life force that could replenish itself.
It was also partly how blessing worked; you impart a part of your essence.
And it was limited and not what was done here.
Pure Life magic was rare, beyond that even. It was the control of Life itself, and this scarcity was most likely due to the designs of the Titans.
Given my influence, power, and accomplishments, it was only a matter of time before the words of my existence reached her. I didn't need to be remotely as powerful to be worth paying attention to.
But still, she was the Life-Binder; yet, without further questioning, wondering won't help.
And I wasn't going to roll with it without having an answer. As exciting as witnessing how red dragons did their magic may be.
"And why should I?" I said, making myself more comfortable, "Let me word it better… I want to understand. This is sudden, and the timing is… unfortunate. I don't have the leisure for a tour. Unless this is short or more than a badly hidden interrogation, I must disappoint your queen by my absence."
Alexstrasza was no queen of mine. Better to make that clear from the get-go, she didn't rule the Wild, much less the world, even less me.
Dragon Aspect or not, it didn't make me have to bow down to her; that was frankly ridiculous to think that. I obeyed none but the Wild as long as its purposes were untarnished.
Demanding me to come over without a say went beyond the respect I owed her, but I doubted this was that. But dragons were dragons.
Arrogance was their second name and nature; perhaps the Red Dragonflight is good-hearted compared to the rest of dragonkind.
Yet they remain dragons.
They might not even compute someone refusing them.
It was proven true by the tension spiking up with Itharius looking over from me to his fellow dragon with pursed lips, yet a resigned, if almost exasperated, look.
He expected this, Ambassador of the Green Dragonflight indeed.
Korialstrasz frowned, the beginning of a snarl flashing before disappearing over his features. The mere fact that I didn't immediately agree seemed outrageous.
It was mildly amusing.
His smell did not lie, and we both knew it. He might appear calm, but he was not; he didn't like some of what I said. But what he had to say was important enough that he kept his facade.
I didn't lose my touch then.
"Those are fair critiques with truth in them, Ohto of the Greenweald. But I assure you of the importance, we have obtained one of the fragments for the staff you seek to repair. Additionally, and related to the former, we require your unique perspective and expertise on some sensitive matters that may interest you. However, I fear I'm forbidden to speak of it here, by decree of my queen. Sorry, Itharius, it will be explained later." The red wyrm said, choosing his words meticulously to goad me into agreeing.
The green wyrm nodded and didn't say anything.
And I won't lie, there, in what he laid bare, was far more meat than empty words wanting me away.
And another of the fragments? Awesome, we still missed two, though. Useless. Harsh but true, even if a step closer in the right way.
It was peculiar. This level of secrecy was beyond what I would expect from a red dragon going straight to me.
Not that I doubted their talents for manipulation, half of what they did was this. And to hide from a green dragon, one of power like Itharius of all of them.
It was big and something the green wouldn't approve of as it currently was.
Or it could be far worse and needed to be quieted down to avoid hysteria.
Wasn't the Dragon Queen tortured and forced to breed? I don't know, and me? Didn't they have better healers than me? By the ancestors, why did they want my help?
But I was internally rambling, and Korialstrasz awaited my response.
"I can agree to most of that. Depending on what you need me for and how long, in exchange, I want the certainty that your flight would help the Wild against Ahn'Qiraj and similar threats be taken seriously. And more selfishly, studying your ways of magic to reduce risk." I paused, I had much more to say, and I noted the twitch of an eyebrow from the false high elf.
"You were absent during the last Legion invasion and after, you helped none, nothing. Not even a word. Absolute silence. Now you pop up without notice and request my help when you didn't come when Azeroth's fate was in the hands of a megalomaniac demon lord, at that, in a time of urgency? I don't ask you to fight our wars, or say empty words, but acting upon why you were elevated would be greatly appreciated." I finished, more sharply than strictly necessary, but it needed to be said.
And I could have been far less gentle.
I was tired. The Twin Bears only knew how much I was. I felt old.
Guardians of Azeroth balance my furry ass, whatever 'balance' actually meant.
Only the Green Dragonflight seemed to take their missions seriously, with the Bronze, I supposed, too, as much as my emotions would love to deny the second.
They never learned that the War of the Ancients was also a result of their failure to perform their duties.
They weren't above mortals; they never were and never would be. I don't know how they didn't understand.
The notion of mortals was ridiculous in the first place because of its connotation with qualities like intelligence, wisdom, and power.
The blacks were corrupted trash in need of total annihilation.
The blues were useless, having forgotten how to mate, and wholly absent too when this was literally their honey and salmon.
Even more so with what Azshara had done in the past, and for recent history, there was no excuse. It was a matter of magic, too.
The reds were standing around after being unable to outwit orc slavers of all things. Mind control was hardly unbeatable when you had so many advantages.
I was exaggerating and missing key details, as I was relying on emotions and half-forgotten, mostly incomplete, shaky memories.
However, something was wrong with how they dealt with things. Or a lack thereof until it blew on their snoot.
Ignoring more than ninety percent of the sapient population is a poor tactic. Who could have guessed, not the dragons evidently. And exceptions didn't make the rules.
Korialstrasz didn't like what I said at all.
But it seemed he got the gist of my character, and kept his cool or saw I wasn't wrong. There was more than anger from my slights; it was hard to see but not to smell.
There was turmoil.
Shame and guilt were present, both interesting for their own reasons. It made me feel a tad bad, but there was little else.
"You do not trust us, it is saddening. But I understand and will show you in time that you can. We have failed mortals in many ways, but let's focus on what awaits, not what has been." He breathed out, the faintest of smiles appearing again.
"I cannot speak in the stead of the Dragon Queen, but you have my words, I would do my utmost to see your requests met, if you accept. My flight would have helped against the silithids regardless, even in our diminished state. Our duty is to Life."
I hummed, and it came more of a low, throaty rumble as I spoke, "Then, I agree, but I need a time frame… I'm a busy bear, very busy. And I have many projects under my paws, I can't promise my full commitment until I see what you want from me."
"Immediately would be preferable, but that's unrealistic. I will stay here for three nights for you to prepare, then we will fly to Wyrmest." The red dragon explained, but I was beaten in correcting him.
"That would be unnecessary. The Wild has, with Lady Ysera's accord, grown a Dream Portal in the jungle of Sholazar Basin. You may use the Dreamway from Moonglade to not waste time, cousin." Itharius interjected, making us both aware he wasn't a branch in the background.
The one in Grizzly Hills could be used too, and it was safer but it was a third farther away. And the green wyrm understood I was busy, so I didn't add anything.
"That is convenient news. Then, Ohto, let us meet again there in the allotted time. It was an enlightening talk." Korialstrasz nodded, and I huffed in acknowledgement.
"Let's do so." That had exceeded anything I thought today was going to be.
But apparently, this discussion hadn't ended yet; this time, it wasn't the red one who spoke.
"Since I'm here, I also have a message for you, Ohto." Itharius said, walking two steps forward, "It relates to that alien flora you revitalized. It has a resilience to the Nightmare almost comparable to Nordrassil. However, our magic fails to guide its aggressive biology effectively; yet, its potential against our olden foe is far too great to be ignored. My Lady wishes to explore what you can do with it."
It was the thing Medivh had warned me not to play around in the open years ago.
I didn't need his advice for that, but it was heeded regardless.
It had been days before the Gilneas mission that I managed to revive some fragments of it from their fossilized state in a curated environment.
I learned that this alien life form was dangerous beyond what most would grasp. Well, it didn't do much, but I saw and felt its potential.
It was unlike anything else; it was reminiscent of the depth of life in the Dreaming. Only the Primal Spore was rawer, purer.
It consumed everything to grow endlessly. It was very likely a fragment of a greater whole, too.
It resisted the Emerald Nightmare, too, from what was just said. Sending samples was the right call; alleviating my workload was only a bonus in the grand scheme of things.
Be that as it may, it was to be handled with utmost care and precautions; the Spore could be catastrophic if left unchecked. It was no miracle solution.
Honestly, it was the exact opposite. It could be the best or worst choice of my life. Only the future would tell on which side of the pendulum it is.
"That's… good. Very good. I will, if we can work fast, we may even use whatever we make against the insects." I said, my claws tapping softly on the mossy ground.
"First order of things, though, sleep… May Ursol and Ursoc guide and give you strength!" I left at those final words, a yawn escaping me to amplify the meaning.
*
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