SideQuest

Chapter 1

Aadi blinked against the blinding Hellfire sun and groaned. Why did her body hurt so much? She lifted her left arm, checking her red health-tracker. One hundred ticks of health left, barely a breath. The blue mana-tracker secured on the same wrist was full. Her body fell flat against the scorched ground, zone battles racing through her mind.

Helboars roamed mindlessly around her. The sound of bones cracking reverberated with their every footstep, reminders of how many died on the barren, hard-packed wasteland.

Then she heard that hiss.

Darting ahead like always, Trapt crested the hill Aadi found herself on. The white lizard-dragon's tongue flopping free as it plobbled along. Once it reached Aadi, Trapt hissed a second time then shook its triangular-shaped head in satisfaction and proceeded to drool all over her while it waited for the arrival of its master.

Pryn walked over the hill a moment later.

The young Night Elf Hunter was tall and lanky. They all were. The only difference between the others and Pryn was that she was Aadi's sister. When Pryn finally came to a stop, she hovered over Aadi, her head tilting to one side as she studied her sister with pupil-less silver eyes. She did little else.

At least she offered a shadow against the blinding light, Aadi thought, checking her health-tracker again. She'd gained a few ticks.

"Heal yourself, sister."

Trapt stomped its paws back and forth in place as Pryn dropped a ribbon-tied scroll onto Aadi's armored chest. The lizard-dragon eyed the Helboars as they roamed the land and protectively circled the pair of Night Elves once. Then, as if to help heal the Druid, Trapt waddled back over and licked Aadi's face.

"What happened?" Aadi asked, pushing the dragon away and sitting up.

"The Legion is coming."

"The Burning Legion?"

The Hunter nodded.

"Why?" Aadi's nose crinkled at the thought of returning to the fight. She'd spent her days alone for the last two expansions. And now—

"I don't know," Pryn shrugged away the question, as if it didn't matter, but her words strung out with a hint of worry. The Hunter noticeably shifted her weight from one foot to the other. She was restless and cared little for class politics, yet here she was. Instead of doing as she pleased, roaming from one realm to the next with her creatures, she was delivering intel from the front lines.

"Why didn't you just send me a Guild tell?" Aadi asked, wiping Trapt's drool off her face. She checked her health-tracker again, deciding to cast a heal-over-time spell. It didn't take much mana. The Night Elf Druid closed her fingers into a fist, and a green haze balled around her hands for a split-second before she lifted her arms over her head and cast. A series of green ribbons circled her in a sphere-like patterns.

The Hunter rolled her eyes and released a long, suffering sigh. "I did."

"I didn't get it." Aadi blinked, adjusting her left eye in search of her Guild messages. Not many were coming in, maybe her Comm needed repair. Then she remembered. "I forgot. I put you on /ignore."

Pryn crossed her arms, disregarding Aadi's comment as she surveyed Hellfire's land.

"Did you read the scroll already?"

Pryn nodded. "And accepted."

Aadi sucked in a deep, dusty breath and sighed. "I've been away for two xpacs—"

"So? What choice do we have? Just be happy you're back. Not everyone made it."

Aadi smirked, checking her red health-tracker again. Half full. She slipped her arms behind her back and pushed away from the ground, standing up with a yawn. "You mean, made it back...yet."