Deception (a World of Warcraft Fanfic)

Zhu's watch

Today is beautiful. The clouds have cleared, the roads are no longer muddy, and I actually bested Sarah in our training duel.

Well, by "bested" I mean she tripped over a root and fell backwards, dropping her arrow. I guess it wasn't the fairest match of all, but if my father could see the smile on her face, well, perhaps he would smile, too. Seriously, though, I'm getting better.

She also told me not to ignore "my gift", because, "any fool can wield a weapon, skill is another factor, but you are a priest, it is your given duty to heal. I am what I am, if I'm hurt, I push on, if I break a leg, it's broken. This may not sound the best, Andi, but unlike me, you can take a beating and walk away scratch free. Now that's a gift."

And what she didn't know, is that it did sound the best.

We approached another sha manifestation, they've been growing more and more common as we reach our destination. She held her arm out behind me and crouched behind a tree.

"What do you notice about them?" she asked me.

"They're..." I tried to find the right words. They're black and white? Was I supposed to study for this? "They're clustered."

"You're right. Now, do you think we can take them?"

"Well, they aren't the strongest, and there's not too many. Easily."

"Right again, now, picture them as orcs, and not just any orcs, the most elite of all the kor'kron. Not a fun opponent and you can bet your life they'll fight back as soon as I take my first shot. Can we take them?"

I thought for a bit. "It's doable, but to risky, I'd suggest avoiding it, unless you think you can shoot fast enough."

"That's not what I asked," she mumbled, turning to look at me. "I asked if we could take them. Can we?"

"Maybe."

"That is where you are wrong. What's the problem here?"

"They're too close together, if you shoot one, the others will notice, and they'll attack you. At this distance, it's too difficult to shoot them all before they reach you."

"What can you do about it?"

A smile escaped from the corner of my lips, "This, cover your ears." The scream was effective, toying with their sense of direction. They dispersed, confused and dumbfounded.

"Sitting ducks." Five shots, five perfect shots, and they were all dead. My mind slowly melted back to reality, and I realized that they were just five shalings, not kor'kron. I had a long way to go if I were to ever be of use in that situation, but I was coming on strong.

"Can you see it?" she asked.

"No, can you?"

"Yeah, come here, and look to the right." I tried to close on eye like she does when she shoots, but it's easier seen than done. "You're too tall," She paused, as if shocked about what she just said. "Kneel a bit, so your at eye level with me. Between those trees."

She held me in just the right spot, and I could see bamboo houses and a roaring fire. We were almost there.

"Quite the sight for sore eyes, isn't it?"

"For you, perhaps. I think the forest is stunning."

"You haven't gotten sick of it?"

"I am not one to love a location, I follow the action, as the ancients followed game. Though it was the hunt they chased, it was the land that made the stories."

"Well, I'm a city boy myself, but I must admit, it's been a fun few weeks."

"Yeah, it was nice to have someone to talk to. And I thought it would be another rescue and return."