Chapter 60: The Fisherman and the Fish

Early the next morning, Jess and Gred set out for the mountains.

Jess remembered this road leading straight into the hills. More than twenty years later, Blackrock orcs would gradually take over the region and set ambushes along the roadside for passing travelers. For now, though, the road was still guarded by the Lakeshire militia.

They left Lakeshire farther and farther behind and climbed deeper into the woods on the slopes.

But wherever they went, they could look down and see Lake Everstill in the distance, with Stonewatch Keep on the edge of the horizon. Unlike Elwynn Forest, it would be hard to get lost here. Neither of them felt especially nervous.

"Give me my potion first," Gred said, holding out a hand. "If we suddenly run into him, it'll be too late to hand them out."

Jess passed him a bottle. Gred shook it back and forth.

"This potion of yours... looks like pretty average work."

"Amazing, Master Alchemist." Jess reached for the bottle. "Then drink your own potion."

Gred snatched it away and laughed. "Why so touchy?"

While they were bickering, a low rumble of thunder came from behind the mountains.

"Rain's coming," Gred said. "See? I told you those people in town were reliable. Let's get down to the lake quickly."

Jess followed him. "Remember what those fishermen said yesterday? About the murlocs and all that?"

"Just stay away from where they live," Gred said. "You can see their little straw huts on the shore from hundreds of yards away."

They hurried downhill. Just as they were about to leave the trees for the shore, Jess called out, "Don't go any closer! There won't be any cover on the bank. The orc will see us the moment we get near him."

Gred grabbed a tree trunk to stop himself sliding farther down the slope. The hill was steep here, leveling out only near the shore.

"You're right." He gave Jess a thumbs-up from farther down. "We need to be careful from here on."

They waited by the trees for a while. Scattered raindrops began to fall.

Jess made his way from tree to tree until he reached Gred and found his footing.

"Are those militia sure the orc comes out every time it rains?"

"I never said every time," Gred replied. "Just that whenever they've seen him, it was raining. We're still some distance away. The militia think he lives in the hollow behind that big rock over there. When it rains, he comes down to the lake for fish. Let's go a little farther."

They walked on and stopped in a patch of woods on more level ground. Gred peered toward the water but couldn't see anything unusual.

Find this and other great novels on the author's preferred platform. Support original creators!

By now the rain was heavy. Jess was almost soaked through. He sat on a rock looking at the lake. A sudden flash of lightning lit up the view, then faded.

Something came back to him. Something about the way that orc caught fish.

"Ever heard of shamans?" he asked Gred, who was leaning against a tree.

"Heard of them? I know one," Gred said, popping a berry he'd pulled from a bush into his mouth. "Humans call them shamans. We call them sages. They're dwarves who can speak to the earth and sky. Long ago they were leaders and advisers of the Wildhammer clan. They bless our warhammers with the power of storms, giving them lightning that can easily blast the wings off those bloodsucking bats. But plenty of people say the sages had already become weaker than their ancestors by the time I was born. So according to them, even the impressive things they do now are the work of a weakened generation."

"Probably something to do with the trolls," Jess said.

Gred spat the berry down the slope. "The sages have said something like that too. The trolls' rituals interfere with their connection to the elements, their ancestors, even the spirits. But I don't really understand how."

"Here's my guess," Jess said. "The elements in Khaz Modan knew the dwarves long ago. But the Hinterlands were troll territory thousands of years ago. The elemental spirits there have lived with trolls for who knows how long. Maybe they've been communicating with troll witch doctors for over ten thousand years. In other words, the local elements don't trust the dwarves who came later."

"How do you know all this?" Gred asked.

"The library," Jess said. "Doesn't matter. What's important is whether that orc might be a shaman."

"What?" Gred looked at him in disbelief. "You think he's one of the Horde's sages? But didn't you just say local elements don't trust outsiders? Even if... even if he knew the elements back on Draenor, wouldn't he be an outsider here too? Wouldn't they reject him?"

"Humans here abandoned elemental worship ages ago," Jess said. "These days, mages use the arcane to force the elements to serve them. I wouldn't be surprised if the elements actually dislike humans. They'll even work with gnolls! So if a shaman comes along who's already good at communicating with elements, someone who understands them better than a gnoll, it wouldn't be strange for the elements to cooperate."

But now that he'd said it, Jess also thought there was something odd about the idea. The orc Horde that attacked Azeroth had drunk demon blood. They'd abandoned the elemental path. Even someone who had once been a shaman would normally be avoided by the elements after being tainted by demonic power.

Was he overthinking it?

"So... the local elements have switched sides? No, no, hold on. Why have you suddenly decided this orc's some kind of shaman?" Gred asked.

"You said the militia saw him chanting on the shore in the rain, then dead fish floated up out of the lake. Have you thought about which mage or warlock could do that? What spell would work that way?"

"Let me think..." Gred put on a thoughtful expression.

Jess interrupted him immediately. "I'll tell you. None of them. Only electricity could do it. He's electrocuting the fish!"

"Electrocuting fish?"

"Exactly. The shaman summons a storm when it rains and sends lightning into the lake. Any fish nearby would get shocked to death or knocked unconscious and float to the surface. That'd be easy for a capable shaman, as long as the elements were willing to help!"

Now Gred didn't know what to say. He looked toward the shore. The lake had turned gray behind the curtain of rain. Stonewatch Keep in the distance and Lakeshire on the other side were no longer visible.

"Then how do we deal with him?"

"Deal with him? Forget it," Jess said. "I don't think the two of us can take on an orc shaman. Never mind his ability to command wind and lightning. Shamans hold high positions in the Horde, and orcs respect strength. Even in close combat... are you confident you could beat him? I'm not taking that risk."

"Well... we'd better think this through first, then. Why didn't you say so earlier?!" Gred grabbed his bag and sword and turned to head back.

"How's that my fault?" Jess complained.

"Ahem."

"Come on, let's go!"

But when Jess turned around, he saw a tall, dark shape standing indistinctly among the trees higher up the slope, watching them.