Tormenting Visions

[Leothiel]

*Day of the end of the Naxxramas raid*

Leothiel woke up very hesitant and shaking. Alexstrazsa's task for him was a march to his own death. He treated the day like it was his last day. After he worked for the Argent Crusade, he helped bring justice on Kel'thuzad, The Lich King's main lieutenant. Afterwards, he and Oneille separated from the group to have a picnic and talk at the shore of Stonebull Lake. During the swim, Leothiel thought about the stumps found in his back even though they weren't visible yet. He was still trying to remember if Oneille knew about them.

Leothiel went to bed with the thoughts of death, transformation, or both. He had a difficult time sleeping. His thoughts and horrifying nightmares crossed paths between waking and sleeping while burring the lines between the real world and the dream world. He spent the entire night stirring only to look himself in the mirror in the morning to find that the stumps had grown into wings. Then he woke up only to find relief that the wings were only a part of a dream.

[Oneille]

Wyrmrest Temple the very home nest of Alextraza and her brood. In the frozen wastes of Dragonblight the Life-Binder, queen of dragons, mother of the red dragon flight sits and waits. She listens to the wise, the forlorned, and the inane. This eve though the dragon queen listens to an elven warlock whose mind races with what will unfurl this night. Oneille Brightgrove speaks of her thoughts on the future and what she should do in regards to how life is rushing past her.

Alexstraza bends her graceful head in recognition of the elven female's distress, "One young, I have lived countless ages, seen many battles of home and heart, and this I must say: have faith child for in all else faith will never falter."

Biting her lower lip Oneille nodded solemnly then began to make her way down a winding staircase down to the lower levels of the temple. It seemed surreal to be talking with the matriarch of the red brood, but the queen was correct, faith no matter the circumstances is all we have left.
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Outside the temple Oneille sat atop her netherdrake. Several red brood hissed causing the large male drake to growl in return. Oneille patted him soothing his anger, "Hush Onyxein, best to be calm we've much to concern ourselves with."

Looking off into the distance Oneille braced herself against the cold till she spotted the figure of a certain "mother".

"Nightwarder Lah, mother!" jumping down from Onyxein, Oneille bounded towards the matron warder and hugged her tightly, "Oh mother I have missed you."

Holding still tightly the young elven female loved on her mother as best she could. Releasing the motherly priestess, Oneille spoke gingerly about events unfolding without revealing many details.

"Nightwarder, mother" she sighed, "I am blessed by the Goddess to have such a wondrous man in my life."

With that the two smiled as both awaited the arrival of a one Leothiel Frosthawk.

[Leothiel]

Leothiel had been growing more pallid by the hour since his nearly restless night. He was surprised to see Asarelah joining him and Oneille for this. Leothiel greeted Oneille with a kiss. He showed strength, but his speech showed the opposite. He started by saying "It is time for me to atone for my crime." Asarelah gave him a look of puzzlement and asked "What crime?" "My talk with Alexstrazsa will tell you the nature of it."

The three of them approached Alexstrazsa. Leothiel knelt and said to her "Life-binder, I have the seed from Nordrassil in my possession. My plan was to hire a druid for you to bless it, with the druid not knowing my intentions. After the blessing, I was to drop it into the Sunwell of the present. You know what I have done. You see through lies and better than my brother. Before I return the seed to its proper place and time, will you bless it?"



Alexstrazsa put her hand on Leo's chin and said "Stand up, young elf. Because of your honesty, I will grant your request. This place is too small for me to do the blessing. Go to the place where life and death meet: Angra'thar." Alexstrazsa went to the ground, transformed into a dragon and flew to the northwest. Leothiel, Oneille, and Asarelah followed.

Each wing beat from Autumn, his hippogryph, translated into a harder and slower beat of his heart. He had encountered dragons before and has taken them down. He knew that Alexstrazsa was not just any dragon or any aspect: She was close to a goddess in her power.



The three SIn'dorei landed and Leo placed the seed in front of Alexstrazsa and stepped out of the way. Alexstrazsa let out a loud roar and bellowed a large fire on the seed. The seed was not consumed by the fire, but had a green glow. The roar alone left the three of them cowering in fear.



Alexstrazsa retained her full draconic glory and quietly whispered "It is now time for you to plant the seed where it belongs. You must do it alone. I now take my leave" then flew off to return to Wyrmrest. Seeing a blessing from the power of full-grown dragon aspect and the fear from it made Leothiel forget something: He felt like he was marching to his own death.

((I'd finish up the Hyjal portion here, but we kept bouncing from the instance server))

[Asarelah]

Her daughter, Oneille, at her back, and Frosthawk before her, Asarelah watched closely as the Ambassador stepped respectfully up to Alexstrazsa, displayed in all her formidible glory.

Touching her hearthstone, she sent a silent whisper to the Ambassador's consort. "Daughter, fear not for your Beloved. He is my focus. I shall not let him fall."

Asarelah tightened her concentration, whispered a word, and set a powerful shield about Leothiel as he placed the seed before the dragon, bidding her to bless it. Alexstrazsa let out a magestic roar and bellowed a large fire on the seed, but it was not consumed. Instead, Asarelah watched in wonder as it took on an irridescent green glow. Her hand to her throat, she gathered her trembling daughter to her side, and cast a renew on the cowering Mage before he could collapse, his strength obviously ebbing in his bid to achieve the blessing upon this seed.

The dragon's voice reached her ears. She was quietly whispering to the trembling Mage still on his feet before her. "It is now time for you to plant the seed where it belongs. You must do it alone. I now take my leave." And with that, the dragon returned from whence she had come; back to the Wyrmrest Temple.

The party stood as if transfixed, still dazed from the experience of what had just unfolded before them. Finally snapping her wits back in to place, Asarelah stepped forward and placed a hand gently on Leothiel's shoulder.

"Ambassador, what now?" she gently asked, turning him toward her.

[Leothiel]

The words "Ambassador, what now?" spoken by Asarelah filled Leothiel with dread. His final steps were ahead of him. He nervously said "We are to go to.. the Caverns of Time." The three mounted up, flew into Dalaran, and took the portal in the Violet Citadel to the Caverns of time. Leothiel's heart beat even louder and seemingly more slowly with each beat of the wing or new step.

A small group of bronze dragonkin in their humanoid form greeted the trio. One of them greeted them with "We've been expecting the mage, but who are these? All three of you bear the imprint of one of our own." Leothiel spoke with a tone of death on his voice "The warlock is Oneille Brightgrove. She has conquered my heart and will not see my trial be carried alone. The priestess is Asarelah Pureheart, who is the second-ranking follower of the Lady Nyx." The dragonkin was shocked to hear about the name.

Leothiel, Onielle, and Asarelah found an exit to a strange green land. "This place is blocked off in our time" commented Leothiel. We need to get going. The three passed through the Alliance base without any incident. When they arrived at the Horde base, they stopped to salute Thrall. At the pass, Leothiel stopped them. "I must do this alone. You two are not to pass until called." Oneille kissed him and said "You will not be alone. I love you." She realized that those were the instructions of Alexstrazsa. Oneille had been instrumental in researching as to why magic affects him so badly. She also knew that this atonement had a great chance of killing him. She started to cry at the realization of this. To Asarelah he said "You will be unable to patch my wounds should I have any. This is my crime that I am now answering for." Asarelah fortified Leo.

As he was about to mount up and leave, two bronze drakes flew down and transformed into their humanoid forms. They only let Leothiel through. Right then, two more drakes flew in the direction of the Tree. Asarelah used Mind Vision on him as he was apporaching Nordrassil. At the base outside of the well, Leo stripped off his equipment. "I am not going to need this when I am dead" he thought. He grabbed the seed and dove in to the well.

He felt all of the boons being undone. His own mage armor and additional intellect were gone. Oneille's warlock breath on him was gone. He felt Lah's word of fortitude and spirit leave him. Even her mind vision on him cut out. The purity of the magic of the Well was beginning to weaken him. He also felt a sharp pain in his back. "Go lower" he heard. The time seemed like hours as he was being weakened. He buried the blessed seed and right before his breath ran out, he felt something grasp him. Then his eyes closed.

He found himself in a forest. He walked around. The first elf he saw was his deceased sister Islanna. "Leo?" she said. "Leo, it's you!" She ran toward him and gave him a hug.

"Islanna? I thought... I am.. sorry" "For what? Not honoring me with a burial?"

"Y.. yes."

"You honored me by what you just did. Remtheras is here but in a rather odd form." Islanna felt Leothiel's back. "I see the same has happened to you."

Leothiel now thought of two particular members of the family. "Where are ann'da and minn'da?" Islanna replied "They have not journeyed here nor is it your time." Just then, Leothiel felt something like he was being pulled against his will. He found himself face down on the grass next to Nordrassil. When he looked up, he saw Alexstrazsa. Oneille was crying for her beloved mage and Asarelah tried in vain to heal him. Asarelah and Oneille also noticed something: He had sprouted a small pair of vestigial wings and his already light skin tone was even lighter. Alexstrazsa returned to her elfin form and turned to Lah. "His strength will recover in time." The dragon queen then turned to Leothiel "I did not expect you to survive and you did not expect to survive that either. Back at Wyrmrest, I smelled the fear of death on you when you asked me to bless the seed. The finality is one of the two reasons I granted your request." Leothiel tried to sit up despite his lack of strength so he could listen to the Life-binder. "The other reason will be for you to discover at another time. The Well neutralizes magic. Certain practicioners are vulnerable to the Old Gods. The taint of Yogg-Saron is gone from you. He will torment you no more as long as you do not step into his lair."

Leothiel found some strength to speak. "Alexstrazsa, how can I stop Yogg-Saron then? That requires I confront him directly." Alexstrazsa said "Old gods do have fear. Dragonkin are among them. I think you have an unfinished trip to Eldre'thalas due. The Shendra'lar expect your arrival. I now take my leave." The dragon queen changed into her full dragon form and flew off.

Leothiel said "I won't be able to cast for some time. You two are welcome to stay with me until more of my strength is back." Oneille embraced him tightly and said "Love, I won't leave you." After some time, the mage felt that he had more strength back and could move around. "I need to go to Winterspring. Someone is waiting for me there." He rode off and returned to Haleh who was at the top of Mazthoril.

"Matron, I have returned from the Life-binder's task" he said. Haleh reached to feel his back and said "I wondered when this was going to happen."

"What was going to happen?"

"Exposure to high doses of pure magic on certain highborne, or in this case, the son of a highborne. I have seen many highborne transform in my millennia of life. If you are as sharp as your mind suggests, who had it the worst?"

"Queen Azshara?"

Haleh smiled at the answer and said "Seek her followers. Though you are clean of the taint, you still have some vulnerability to it. Before you leave, there is someone who is excited to see you."

Leothiel saw a blue whelp headed towards him excitedly. "Azureus!" The whelp flew towards him with excitement and gave an affectionate nudge. Haleh continued "That is a special whelp. He has sought you since his hatching. It is time for you to leave. I will take you back to where you belong." Leothiel felt a very swift kick that landed him in Dalaran. It was almost sunrise. He went to bed.

That night's dream brought him back to the Sunwell. He saw a red demon climbing out of it, which was then devoured by something. That something was a blob with many mouths. Just then, what he recognized as a naaru swept in, killed the blob and infused the Sunwell with the power of pure light. Leothiel felt that energy and a song. "Seek out the brightest light in the very dark" is what he could hear. When Leothiel woke up in the mid-afternoon on that day, he looked in the mirror and noticed something: His vestigial wings had grown even larger.

[Oneille]

Was it finally over? Were the crisis of both mage and tribe at an end? Least for now the tormenting visions Oneille's beloved had been facing ceased. Leothiel and Oneille visited the realm of Outland spending much time in the presence of the Na'ruu. New knowledge passed between mage and warlock as the patron light beings granted both lovers a sense of peace. The trial of Leothiel Frosthawk seemed over, but that was far from the truth. Not until the defeat of Yogg-Soran could Leothiel truly be at peace.

Oneille ambled about the upper crest of Shatratth for a good portion of the morning as she wondered what the day would day would fare like for her love as he attended to busy elsewhere. Smiling the elven warlock hummed merrily to herself as she walked back to the Scryer's Tier.

[Leothiel]

*The night after the atonement*

Leothiel and Oneille went to Silvermoon after contributing to the assault on the Dread Citadel of Naxxramas. They went to a secluded beach where he had something to show her. He removed the top half of his armor on his body to reveal someting on his back: A pair of grown vestigial wings, similar in shape of the wings of the felbloods but not in color. His wings were an almost transparent white. The exposure to magic in the Well of Eternity grew them and his next sleep following finished them. Oneille had been more than a love for him: She had conquered his heart and taken on something he knew she didn't have to.

*Two nights after the atonement*

Leothiel and Oneille met in Nagrand after their respective trials. Leothiel ran his usual outside work for the Argent Tournament while Oneille underwent their trials in the Colosseum. They both brought glory to the Horde and to the Sin'dorei. Leo received a note in the mail: "Meet me in Vengeance Landing." This was music to his ears as he always looked forward to these times. He stopped at Dalaran to pick up some wine.

After Oneille finished up her trials, the two decided to head to Nagrand. They discussed many things over a picnic basket and a bottle of wine: Her family, then end of his torment. They also quietly shared the beauty of the uncorrupted Nagrand. Both were happy that he was no longer being tormented by visions but he said that he needs to be protected from future torments. "Light in the darkness" was the clue.

Leothiel said "I will need to see a naaru." The closest naaru was A'dal, who was located in Shattrath. They flew to the chamber. Leo knelt down to A'dal. He felt a beam of light and a song that soothed him. "You have gone through a great trial. This is a city of light. Go see the light in the darkness." Leo thought "Shadowmoon Valley?" "Go east" he heard from A'dal.

Leo had made a foray into the Black Temple about the time magic was starting to torment him physically. He also knew there was a naaru at the entrance of the complex. Shadowmoon was still a place of darkness and fel magic of the most foul degree. After he and Oneille landed at the entrance to the Karabor complex, he saw the one A'dal was referring to: Xi'ri. He knelt down before the being of light. Again, he felt a sense of calm then a song followed by a telepathic whisper: "Welcome, young arcanist. I see you have answered my call. You will never be tormented by an old god again." After that, Leothiel saw and felt a beam of light so powerful, it knocked him to the ground for a few seconds. Oneille nearly panicked "Leo! Love! What happened?" Xi'ri replied "He is still alive, daughter." Leo picked himself off the ground and became reoriented after a few seconds. "The old gods... will no longer... have me. I am free." Oneille gave him a very tight hug.



After they left and returned to Shattrath, Leothiel said "I have one more mission. I must seek out the Azshirites. Alone." Oneille replied "Why alone?"

"My trip to Eldre'thalas is still unfinished."

*The following day*

Leothiel hopped the portal in Dalaran to Thunder Bluff. From Thunder Bluff, he flew to Mojache, which was the closest flight path to the Eldre'thalas ruins. He dodged ogres and Alliance while heading in to the ruins. He knew how to get to the library. When he arrived, he received a greeting from Lorekeeper Lydros "Ishnu alla, son of the Highborne. We have been expecting your arrival for the past few weeks." Leothiel was stunned at the words of the lorekeeper and asked "Weeks? I was told only three days ago you were expecting me."

The lorekeeper explained. "There was a major rumbling when you started tapping into the pure magic of the arcane. We had seen you here before and felt something. Then last week, a daughter of the Highborne stopped by. When she described some of the symptoms you had been experiencing, we pointed her to the family history texts and the documentation of the experiments." Leothiel said "Please continue." As the lorekeeper resumed his talk, Leo started removing the armor on his upper body then turned around. All conversation in the library came to a stop. Soon, there were gasps. Lydros looked around. Leo stretched out the wings for all to see.

After what seemed like a long silence, Leothiel asked about some of the transformations of the Highborne. Afterwards, Leothiel pulled a book out of his bag that showed some of the transformations of the children of Blood. "I still claim myself as not only a Sin'dorei, but a proud son of the Highborne. Keep this book for your archives or for when you head to Teldrassil." Lorekeep Lydros said "We won't be accepted in Teldrassil." Leothiel said "There are many practitioners of magic in the Alliance that the High Priestess is associated with. Can you make peace with them?" Lydros was becoming visibly defensive at this point. Leothiel spent the rest of the afternoon in the library before leaving realizing what it meant to be a proud son of the Highborne. Before he left, he wrote a note and attached it to Azureus:

To: Thaelen and Anara Frosthawk

Dear Father, Dear Mother

I am alive. So is Thieldren.

Your son,

Leothiel

(( This will tie into the Reunions thread ))

[Asarelah]

Oracle Tallbear silently stepped in to her Nightwarder's study, without a knock, knowing full well that Asarelah's attunement to her was so keen that Lah would "feel" her approach. Sure enough, Asarelah looked up just as Aitana was about to speak.

"Lah, are you keeping an eye on Leothiel? Rumors of a dragon encounter have reached my ears..." Aitana asked, clearing expecting to be briefed on the encounter of some days past.

"Yes, Oracle, I have been, and was with him when he asked a blessing of the Dragon Queen in Wyrmrest Temple. He was so tormented by visions, and burning.... it seemed the only possible way to perhaps clear his mind..."

"Nightwarder, do not put Lady Nyx's Umbral Champions at risk without at least informing me first!" The Oracle turned a stern gaze upon the now chastised Nightwarder, who promptly informed her of everything that had transpired.

[Oneille]

"Why do I feel this way? Why does my chest seem to grow tight? Could this feeling of love be tearing me apart?" Oneille glanced about her apartment in Silvermoon the night sky still visable through her bedroom window. Rubbing her eyes and remaining in a sleepful stupor she pulled the covers tightly about her body cocooning herself in the silken sheets.


On the other side of Oneille layed the place, fuzzy mass that was Kim. The worg pup grew with each passing week and currently the little critter was half the size of Oneille. Sleeping soundlessly the worgling snored as his mistress propped up on her elbow to smirk at the sleeping form.

"All right little guy time for you to sleep on the floor next time, you're too big for this routine." Oneille gently caressed the wolf's mane as she began to turn over, returning back to her side of the bed. Sighing heavily Oneille watched passing clouds filtered through the night sky as thoughts turned towards Leothiel.

"Beloved, I wish someday I won't have to sit here alone. These days and nights without you seem to gnaw away at my sanity. Hmph about all that keeps me company is a worg pup named Kim." smirking she shot at glance at Kim who still dozed off regardless.

"Oh, Leothiel if only you were here now..."