Cold Desert Night

(( This is a reenactment of Nukhan's first battle when the Scourge invasion first happened with the Naxx release and helped forge his character and how they affected his life. ))

It was an unusually cold summer night in the desert of Tanaris. Nukhan had just left Tahawen after their journey through the Un'Goro Crater. She had made sure to point out the areas of refuge if things were to get a bit ... eventful ... for the budding warrior in the days he'll be there alone.

The last he saw of the huntress she had been trying to whittle down the few ranks of Scourge left upon the sands. Nothing she couldn't handle herself, she insisted Nukhan turn in for the night after his long day.

All day long he had been busy. Much of it spent within the Orgrimmar walls trying to figure out plans for an axe that would allow him to seek his revenge on those that unfairly and dishonorably stole his father's life, and his life's prize. He had had no luck finding any clues to the axe's whereabouts.

"Perhaps it wasn't all that I was told it was ... Surely I, or my friends, would have heard something about it by now," he thought to himself. Shaking off the pessimistic attitude, he assured himself someone, somewhere, had it. In the meantime, he would have to do what he could with his own hands.

Throwing some designs through his head he quickly came to realize his focus was not in it. Worrying about the safe travels of Washoe's pilgrimage to wherever he had gone; thinking of how he had not visited battlemasters in a while; how his mother was doing; how the Order would survive these taxing times. He quickly folded up his parchments and took a stroll through the streets. As luck would have it, he spotted Tahawen and Dragonsblood.

He forced himself to come to a conclusion, "A new journey should help clear my mind."

As usual, the free spirited huntress offered her guidance and protection, though by the gleam in her eyes at the mention of Un'Goro, Nukhan figured he would not have to try hard the next time he needed her help there.

Their trek through the crater had been relatively safe, Dragon and Tahawen knowing each creature's strengths and weaknesses. Their hunt was successful, and Nukhan's night was to end in the inn of Gadgetzan. He was sure Tahawen would be off once the minor Scourge threat was culled. Yet he still could not sleep. Unrolling the few clean pages he had, he began to list materials he would need, and dimensions he would want. This time, it was not focus that elluded him, it was skill. He would be able to forge a finely balanced blade, or axe, or mace, yet the materials he would use would have to imbue the weapon with those extra bits that would make it legendary. Cursing his naivity and lack of knowledge, he took a seat next to the main room's hearth.

It was colder now. Desert weather he was well aware of, but this was midsummer! Lost in his whirlwind of thoughts, the plush chair and the warmth of the fire helped him finally get some rest.

That rest would not last long.

He awoke to the high pitched screams of the goblin and gnome citizens of the small town. He chided himself for being unprepared, he had been slacking lately. In a rush he ran to his rented room and grabbed only his chestpiece and new axe. It wasn't even sharpened, but he had no time right now. The view as he opened the door to the inn was aweful and terrifying at the same time.

A legion of Scourge marched through the town. Guards of the town were fighting side by side with gnomes, night elves, humans, and a few Tauren and orcs. Any dislike the parties had for eachother had been washed away by the freezing touch of the new enemy that had layed siege to the town. Nukhan was frozen in place, unaware of what really was going on, and how powerful these new foes were. His gaze locked on a human mage and paladin taking down one soldier, he was quickly shaken back to reality as a ghoul grabbed him from the side. It wasn't one of the Lich Kings finest, as the unlucky once living body still had wounds in its neck and chest. A loud roar followed by a quick strike to its healing neck rendered the attacking monster limp and on the hot sands.

His blood boiled. The pale sands and skin of the ghouls turned a shade of red. He wondered the Scourge had gathered so quickly when the night before there had barely been any. If only more of the Order had been around ...

He had no time to think. He quickly jumped into the fray, side by side with those who would strike him down had he stepped within sight of their own towns and lands. Knowing he would be overpowered left on his own, he placed himself between the knights and legionnaires. A druid touched his mind with a message of serenity and the mark of the wild. He knew he had one protector. Unleashing a multitude of sweeping whirlwind strikes with his axe he aided as much as he could the defenders around him. One by one the ghouls fell as the citizens ran for shelter. It was a battle unlike any he had experienced before; the calamity; the unnatural sounds; the searing cold touch of the ghouls on his unarmored parts. More defenders arrived on gryphon and wyvern. The Scourge ranks were being driven back into the ground.

The gentle touch of the Tauren druid close by helped his rage recede, making Nukhan aware that the battle was close to ending, that the more able, and prepared, defenders had the situation under control. A nod of thanks and approval from the bystanders supported the druid's thoughts. Priests and shaman tended to the hurt and dying, more warriors and paladins threw the undead back into the spirit planes.

Nukhan waited, arms at ready, until *he* himself was sure the defense was successful. Confident it was, he turned back towards the inn to gather his things. A booming laugh filled the air along with a message of doom. Steadying himself from the rage that was still within him, Nukhan had only one thought: Be prepared.

The Scourge invasion was real. He would be ready next time, in mind, body and spirit. His axe would have to wait, fate and destiny needed him elsewhere for now.