Shamanic Shenanigans
6/7 Evening
I’ve been checking my “dead” tab about once a day to figure out who to resurrect. My first revival from Warranty Plan had been a draenei dragon that died in the battle to take Twilight Grove in the first place. He had a family and nobody substantially more useful had presented themselves. Finding Keristrasza among the dead came as something of a shock; she was an auto-resurrect, no questions asked. If nothing else I needed to know what would kill a red dragon in the same weight class as the dragons of nightmare.
Finding out that the Tuskarr were being slaughtered was pretty rough, but I cared far more because of Nefarian’s involvement. I didn’t have any real connection to the walrus folk, so it didn’t hit me particularly hard, but I was still going to go all out on this. I let Alexstrasza handle the strategy here; she knew the area better than I did, and my orders were essentially given a blank check to take down Nefarian. I had work of my own to focus on.
••••••••••
Thrall was, unsurprisingly, a bit busy with conducting a war. He welcomed me into his presence, but he also didn’t leave the table which contained a map of Kalimdor. Honestly? Fair. I passed out a pair of amulets to his elderly advisors Eitrigg and Varok Saurfang, and moved on. Thankfully I had another, somewhat less cool shaman trainer to draw upon. One that wasn’t running the orc UN single-handedly.
••••••••••
Sagorne Crestrider, the tauren who I had captured alongside Tyrande and her staff, was a specialist in shamanic healing. Of course, what I was looking into learning right now was such a basic bitch tier of shamanism that his specific discipline didn’t matter at all. I was coming in with a Geomancy skill chip as a crutch, which I had to unequip to fully process what I was being taught.
I was lucky. Though the first spirits most shaman made contact with were the crazy little wind elementals that will shoot lighting at anyone if you ask them correctly, the generally agreed upon easiest element to work with is earth. As such, I got to learn how shamanism is different from Geomancy while also leapfrogging through the basics. I imagine Nefarian’s knowledge of the subject had something to do with that.
Compared to geomancers, shaman used more advanced tools and had a more secure supply line for power. Everything else flowed downhill from there. Totems serve as a repository for their power, allowing them to hold drastically more of it and prime motes of energy for a specific purpose. Essentially, they had macros programmed into their totems. Combined with a constant drip feed of energy from a willing and powerful elemental, such as Theradras, they could reliably do much more powerful and complex spells as long as they had their totems on them. It was surprisingly sophisticated if you analyzed it from a mage’s perspective.
There was quite a lot of mysticism to it as well, and training the body to itself be a conduit for spiritual energy, but the totems seemed to be the key to quick power for me. With a few hours and a magically charged stone provided by Theradras, I was able to learn Rockbiter and Earth Shock while Sagorne built me my master totem.
I wouldn’t be dropping it in battle; the combat totems shaman planted during battle were created from local materials with a spell stored in the master totem. Each master totem could only support one combat totem at a time, unfortunately, but for now I only knew how to craft one, the humble stoneskin totem, anyway. Nothing to write home about, but it would make my allies a little more resistant to harm while active. I’d move along to more powerful totems tomorrow; at least one of the flamewakers should be captured by the time I’m ready for my fire totem.
••••••••••
Anveena slowly pushed Kalec with a tendril of arcane force, causing the blindfolded and gagged dragon to spin and face her. Tyrygosa had suggested integrating magic practice with their fun, which Anveena had enthusiastically agreed to. Thanks to the necklace, Kalec hadn’t been able to bring himself to say no to his lover nor his ex even as they’d tied him up, blindfolded him, and suspended him in the air. Anveena had dropped him more than once by losing focus on the levitation spell, especially once Tyri had started playing with her nipples “to help her practice focusing.” It legitimately had been good training, in that Anveena’s fine control had improved tremendously between soul talent and her own nearly limitless reserves, but Kalec had not been captured quite yet despite nearly a full day of going along with the girls' fun.
Aggressive initiations required that the target get off, and thanks to some general mental shifts applied by the logistics team at Lord Bismark’s orders Tyri just didn’t find Kalec particularly attractive anymore. She had studied the changes in others, and she was sure that she’d be as taken with him as she ever had been the moment he was captured, but right now? It was nearly impossible to focus on getting him off while Anveena was right there. Tyri couldn’t modify her own settings, even the thought of asking someone like Vanessa to do so without Erich’s orders felt somehow wrong, but she could adjust Anveena, and did so when she realized that they might have wasted nearly the whole day. She lay back and fiddled with her friend’s mind, queuing up a dozen changes to happen at once.
Watching the sweet little Anveena’s eyes go blank and her jaw go slack was exciting all on its own. When she started awake, her mouth formed into a predatory smirk as she began to stroke her lover’s cock. Thanks to Tyri she had just learned and embraced every facet of BDSM that anyone in the entire retinue had ever experienced. All from a dominant perspective, for now. She put her detailed and intimate knowledge of her lover’s body to use, keeping him on edge for as long as possible. Mixing sweet talk, degradation, and pain, she confused and aroused Kalec beyond anything he’d experienced with her before.
When he was finally allowed to cum, Tyri’s own climax followed quickly. After all, she was now looking at two people that she both loved and specifically fetishized. With Kalec captured, Tyri lazily switched Anveena to another preset she’d made before pressing a few buttons for Kalec as well to make sure he’d play along. She whispered into her former intended’s ear. “Now it’s your turn. The Sunwell is an object to be used, and she’s so eager for you to use her, isn’t she?”
Lord Bismark was booked for tonight, so Kalec would be the first to use The Sunwell as a fuck doll. Anveena would come back soon, once their fun was finished, but for now The Sunwell smiled up at a man who she only recognized as being in the retinue. His seed would be almost as good as her owner’s. Anyone in the retinue should feel free to use her any way they pleased. She was just happy for the opportunity to be useful!
••••••••••
Jaws dropped as Cairne Bloodhoof walked out of the central building of Thunder Bluff. The old chieftain had remained in excellent shape, both mentally and physically, but he’d long since abandoned the fiction that he wasn’t old. He joked about it, used his aching joints as a tactful way to refuse invitations to events, and there was more frost in his hair than the original color. Until today.
The twelve foot tall bovine Adonis moved with power and grace that shocked everyone in Thunder Bluff. He exuded such vitality that those around him felt their own bodies thrum with energy. His long white braids had been replaced with the chestnut brown of his youth, and the hearts of many a Tauren woman thrummed with something a bit more raunchy than reflected youthful energy.
Magatha was shocked to see him; she’d met him in his prime, being nearly as old herself. They’d never been friends, but the old crone had always had a certain respect for the powerful warrior. If martial prowess alone made a strong leader, she’d agree that Cairne had earned the role. A shame he lacked the ruthlessness that the tauren needed from him.
Seeing the old fool walk into her tent looking like the last fifty years hadn’t happened was an unpleasant shock. Senility was always a lurking specter for an elder, but she certainly hadn’t expected to jump straight to hallucinations. She turned to look at him with a steady gaze, masking her confusion as well as she could. Was this Baine? She hadn’t seen Cairne’s brat in a few years.
The vision from the past interrupted her musings. “Magatha, your eyes do not decieve you. I have been granted a gift from the Earthmother. I am here to pass it on.”
Magatha was unimpressed. “Hmph. So that’s why you’re looking so healthy. Even so, what would make you want to give me such a gift?”
“The Earthmother told me of a Great War to come. An enemy to match the Burning Legion. Fifteen years ago, you and your tribe stood alongside me and our allies on the slopes of Hyjal, despite your misgivings. I believe that you will do so again, when the time comes, and that we will need you at your strongest. Will you let me bestow this gift upon you?” He removed a bracer from his wrist, a bronze armguard set with stones that glowed a faint green. He held it out to her.
She considered it for a time. “Very well.” The fool. She would stand beside him should such an enemy rise against them once more, yes, but if this gift could be passed on further, he was offering it to her whole clan. She heard the click as it latched onto her wrist. It would never leave the Grimtotem.