Attack of the Vrykul!

Good grief, what a night. So, OK, after a pretty boring day, we put Wynni to bed, and Pizzy and I were enjoying ourselves upstairs a bit, celebrating his newly exalted status with the Shattered Sun Offensive. It was like, seriously, 11PM at night or whatever. And we start making love, and all of a sudden there's this banging on the door. I ignored it at first, but then I heard Noodler's voice hollering for me to open up. Gah. So Pizzy and I finished up, and I threw on a bathrobe while he got properly dressed. Noodler was a bit surprised at my dishevelment (though I don't know why he SHOULD be - hello, ELEVEN AT NIGHT, HOLY CRAP), but he was mostly panicked. He was like, Duerma, you guys have to get to the keep. The Vrykul are totally attacking. And I'm like, what? And then I heard the dragon scream. Crap crap crap.

So then I was like, look, Pizzy and I are trained professionals - we kick blood elf and dragon tushy on a regular basis. I'm not gonna hole up like a pansy when I could be totally helping. So I gave him Wynni to get to safety and I hustled upstairs to get my battle gear on. For once, I was glad that Pizzy seems to think that his pewpew clothes are appropriate for every occasion. And it's weird, but it felt really good to strap on those spiky shoulderpads of doom for once. I guess as much as I wish for a life of domesticity, this adventuring stuff is in my blood.
I popped up an Eye of Kilrogg to get a glimpse of whatever the heck was going on. There weren't a lot of them - seemed like just a skirmish or whatever - but these guys were seriously creepy. I mean, OK, so you know how humans are freakishly tall? Well, these guys were even BIGGER. Like, at least as big as Tauren, if not more so. And they kind of looked like humans, except kinda ugly, but they didn't move quite right. And then, of course, were the dragons. Geesh. They didn't look like real dragons - they were white, for one, and had yellowy wings. I don't think we're in Azeroth anymore.

We tiptoed outside and went around to the northeast, where the attacks were coming from. I'm not sure that even the Westgarde inbfantry noticed us. I cursed up the Vrykul while they weren't paying attention (with elements, maybe? Or is it shadow? Whatever the wild new flavor that is two curses in one! It's like a fruity juice blend!). We picked one and lit him up like a firecracker with a mad pyroblast/soulfire combo. A couple more hits and he was just a black mark on the ground. See how YOU guys like being burninated, huh? I sent my succubus in as a distraction (ooh, I wanted to smack her for that smirk she gave me and Pizzy before running out there, though), and as they chased her, I sacrificed her for some sick shadow power and let loose with a few shadowbolts.
It was pretty obvious we were there at that point, and we had to hide and let the infantry get their attention again before we could let loose with any other dirty tricks. It took awhile - at least half an hour of non-stop fighting - but we finally drove them off, and their little dragons, too. Several infantrymen were injured, but no one was killed. And we EVEN managed to take one of those Vrykul guys prisoner! Obviously they weren't expecting the gnome artillery. Hopefully that'll scare them off from attacking again for awhile.

Current events in the Howling Fjord

Pizzy had to get back to civilization for some work today, so I spent the day just hanging out with Britta. I figured at the very least, I could get a feel for recent events in the Howling Fjord so I knew what to start gathering info about. She was thrilled to death to have visitors - I guess she quit her job at the inn a couple weeks ago, and she's been pretty bored and lonely at home by herself. Wynni had fun playing with the stuff she'd prepared for the baby, and Britta and I were able to just chat for awhile.

Evidently, the Vrykul - those guys who harpooned our boat - have been a serious problem lately. I guess they've been here all along, but have only become a threat in the recent years. She said that overall, Westgarde was a lot safer than Valgarde, but their activity has picked up a bit here too. Britta told me that she was thrilled that I was able to come up - evidently the only midwife in the region was killed in an attack a few months ago, and she's been scared to death about the upcoming birth ever since then. I'm like, you know I fall asleep, right? And she said that her mother would be here with any luck, and if not, at the very least Noodler could have poking rights.
Anyway, more stuff! Her brothers haven't always had to go all the way up to the Grizzly Hills for their logging stuff - there used to be plenty of forest right there around Westgarde for their needs. The Vrykul came in, though, with dragons, and burnt the forest all around, presumably to make way for ground troops. The dragon bit was kinda whoa - I asked if she knew what color they were, but she replied that she hadn't even seen what happened. All the women and children are ushered into the bottom of the Keep at any sign of danger. I'm curious and suspicious now - could it be more black dragons like the orcs use in the Spire?

The one bit of positive news that she had was that the Explorer's League was sending people up here in droves. I guess after Uldaman had been pretty thoroughly searched, they didn't have much left to do in Azeroth, and Northrend was the next frontier of choice. (Course, there's still freaking ULDUM down there in Tanaris that hasn't even been sniffed at, but maybe people were sick of desert after hanging out in Silithus for so long.) The prize site is, obviously, Ulduar up in the Storm Peaks, but they are digging in everywhere they can. There's a big operation in the Grizzly Hills, but they're setting up excavations all over the Howling Fjord because who knows what they'll find? And while they have an independent operation over on the eastern cliffs, they're also setting up one nearby and using Westgarde as a base.

She started asking me about Pizzy after that, and it's sure a lot easier to be candid when he's not wringing his hands beside me and Noodler's not giving me the protective big brother evil eye. I opened up to her a bit about the whole debacle in February; she was a bit concerned, of course, but she told me about a huge fight that she and Noodler had had during their courtship. I guess there was some problem between him and one of her brothers, and her brother had made some racist remarks, and she hadn't understood what had happened exactly and so sided with her brother at first. Just like between Pizzy and me, things got all out of hand, and neither was really listening to what the other was saying, and they ended up breaking up for a couple months. It took them awhile to smooth things over, and it was a long time before Noodler was really accepted by her family, but it all turned out all right in the end.

I summoned Pizzy back after dinner. (No mail for me, what gives? If I were still a major leader and I had someone offering herself as a spy, I'd be like, hook me UP! Information's what makes the world go round, after all.) While he worked on cutting a gem for his new wand, I told him the story that Britta had told me. I figured it'd be good for him to realize that everyone has problems and stuff, and to let him know that my brother's hardly a bastion of perfection himself. Pizzy's such a fretful person. I wish I could calm him a bit. Anyway, he seemed to at least appreciate the story, and we did make love afterwards, so that's something, right? I really wish he'd let me into that goggled noggin of his

Emissary to the Furbolgs!

Today, was totally a lot more busy. I really wanted to make sure that I had some contacts up here so I know what's shakin', you know? If my people are going to be going to be kicking ass and taking names in Northrend, then I totally need to get them some info so they're safe and stuff!

ANYWAY! So, I totally boogied up to the furbolg villages, and Noodler was like, dude, be careful, and I'm all, shyeah, I'll be fine, just take care of Wynni, mmmmmkay? I totally took the road up to Thor Modan in the Grizzly Hills, and the dwarves were totally like, holy crap, a gnome! They weren't really very positive when I told them I wanted to go and chit-chat with the furbolgs. Apparently the furbolgs aren't really excited about the dwarves digging in their hills for old crap or whatever... just like the Taurens! I mean, finding out about ancient history is fun and stuff, but it doesn't mean we should be totally starting wars or anything. ANYWAY! They totally pointed out where Drak'Tharon Keep was and told me to stay the heck away cause I guess it's held by Scourge. And they were like, oh yeah, don't try to go to Zul'Drak, or the Dragonblight, cause there's even MORE Scourge there. And I'm like, dude, I was kicking death knight butt in Naxxramas back in the day, I'd be totally fine!

At any rate, they totally got me pointed to Grizzlemaw, which is totally the furbolg capital city. I summoned Pookie and we rode through the blowing snows to the big old wooden walls and stuff. It kinda looked like Orgrimmar or something! They were a little wary at first, especially since Pookie's kinda scary-looking, but when I totally told them I was on a diplomatic mission, they let me in. I think I kinda confused them a bit - I'm totally smaller than the dwarves they had contact with, and I have awesomer hair, and I talk faster and stuff. Anyway, so I totally sat down with a couple of their elders, and I told them all about the Order of the White Tower, and they were like, cool, but what does that have to do with us? And so I asked them about reconnaissance and stuff, and they're like, why should we find out stuff for a tiny fluorescent dwarf? Man, finding crap out about Outland was totally easier - I could just make my demons do my bidding and they couldn't argue with me and stuff.

So, I totally tried to tell them that HEY, I'm so not EVEN a dwarf, and besides, I'm TOTALLY friends with the Timbermaw (well, at least, they'll talk to me now which is progress and stuff). And we just went back and forth like this for SUCH a long time, until I was like, you know what, I totally have to split if I'm going to make it back safely. So, I guess I can't really count on the furbolgs in the Grizzly Hills to give me good info, which is totally a bummer. Oh well. I TOTALLY have my ways, and I'll be able to find out crap for my friends, you just wait! Anyway, so Pookie and I flaming-hoofed it back through Thor Modan and all the way back to Westgarde. I had to fry a troll and a couple of wild animals in the process, but it's OK, cause I totally won.

When I got back, Britta had cooked up a nice meat pie with some of the leftovers form her family's Winter Veil feast, and it was awesome as always. In the evening, I totally went about the business of packing up and everything. Gosh, I can't believe that we're going already tomorrow! It seems like we just got here. It was SO totally wonderful to spend time with Noodler again and everything. On the other hand, it'll be totally wonderful to see Pizzy again. I hope I can totally get ahold of him to tell him to meet me at the docks at Menethil.