Pink Rose [1]

"This Is What I Get for Eating Too Many Doughnuts"

Quest Objective: Watch pastry intake.

~ The Jade Forest ~

I hadn't spent a lot of time in this foreign jungle, but I knew some things weren't right. The chatter of crickets and wildlife had gone silent. I saw silhouettes dancing across the mossy hills and through the trees.

I sighed as I rested my back against the dark, damp trunk of a tree. This escape was beginning to backfire on me. I had no clue where I was—everything looked the same. It was alive and lush. I never knew plants could be so green. I could've sworn I was walking on piles of emeralds if the grass wasn't so soft and squishy.

My hand gently pressed against the burn on my side. The wound was inflicted with more than flame; the fire must've held fel or acid. I had a few healing potions, but they only quickened mending process.

I forced myself up and continued my trek. As far as I knew, the Horde and the Alliance had made it to this new continent, and neither were my allies. My plan had probably sped up my impending demise.

My eyes widened as I kept walking and took cover behind another tree. I peeked out at a small village made of tiny huts. It seemed mostly empty—I had heard sounds of fighting earlier, but some guards remained. My eye twitched a little as a monkey stood guard at the entrance next to an orc.

Of course the island sides with them. Unbelievable.

I huffed silently. I needed a map, some source of direction. Otherwise, two options remained: accept my doom in the foreign jungle of an uncharted continent, or face the wrath of angry villagers.

I was so engulfed by my decision that it took me a few minutes to notice something brushing against my shoulder. I jumped, clamping a hand over my mouth as I faced the intruder.

The vine swayed limply from side to side. I heaved a sigh of relief, then my eyes lit up. Yes! Use it!

I tugged on it hesitantly with my fist, and when the rubbery rope held, I hoisted myself up. I gathered the end with me as I climbed up, glancing at the guards as they started to make their rounds along the encampment.

"HEY!"

I muttered a curse and looked over my shoulder. The orc and the monkey that accompanied him paused as they looked up at me, shielding their eyes from the sun that peeped through the trees.

Without thinking, I blurted, "Hi."

The orc with skin that matched the bright jade of the forest scratched the top of his head. "I thought rogues were supposed to blend in...and they're usually skinnier."

A rich delight filled me when I contemplated letting go and falling on him. I'm a little more muscular than the average slender, toothpick-thin blood elf. And I eat all the damned doughnuts I want. So what?

"Thank you, I appreciate that." I remarked as the cruel desire to accidentally drop a knife below me waned. "I'm busy doing my job right now, shouldn't you be doing the same?"

"I am," the orc insisted. The monkey beside him roared in agreement. "I'm lookout."

"Well, you're doing a fabulous job," I called down to him. I settled onto one of the branches. The limb creaked beneath my weight.

"Thank you! I don't get a lot of recognition for my work—when you're a scout, you feel so invisible sometimes, you know?"

"I wish," I muttered. I tucked my hair behind my ear as I looked down at him. "Keep strutting, yeah?"

"You got it—! Oh, and look out for a fugitive on the loose! Her name's Eona Strider, female blood elf, rogue, green eyes..."

I leaned the rest of my body back on the branch, raising my chin with one hand as I said, "Sounds like a weirdo, I'll holler if I see anything."