What Is That?

"It's getting late, Andy. We should head back!" The sun had reached the horizon, and the woods were growing dim. Hilar called out to him.

"Oh, right." Andy carried the day's spoils on his back: the pelts of various beasts, and, of course, the Giant Owl meat he planned to cook for dinner.

Hilar shifted into his panther form and ran ahead, with Andy following behind. These days, Andy could keep up as long as Hilar didn't use his unique ability. He had the big tree he climbed every day to thank for that. Though Nathas had left, Andy hadn't slacked off on his training.

The two raced out of the dense forest and toward Darnassus's gates. As they neared the entrance, a panther's roar sounded behind Andy.

Hilar's expression changed. He hurried to a stop, shifted back into his humanoid form, and led Andy to the side of the road.

"What's wrong?" Andy asked, confused.

"Looks like we'll have to wait a while," Hilar said with a furrowed brow.

Another roar rang out, so loud that Andy felt his eardrums might burst. If Hilar hadn't been holding him back, he would have started setting traps. That was no ordinary beast's cry. Just from the sound of it, he could tell the creature had to be enormous.

Andy rose onto his toes and peered down the road. A Night Elf riding a Sabers that looked as big as a horse was slowly making his way toward the gate. A small squad of Night Elf riders on similar mounts followed behind him.

"That Sabers is huge!" Andy exclaimed.

"They're coming. Don't talk about them carelessly. We'll go in after they've entered the city," Hilar said.

Even at a walk, the enormous Sabers moved swiftly, and in the blink of an eye they were right in front of the two of them. They didn't stop, but the Elf at the head of the group gave Hilar a long look. As for Andy, who had a longbow on his back, he was completely ignored.

Near the back of the group was a flatbed cart pulled by two Sabers. On it sat something like a cage, taller than an average person, covered tightly with a cloth that hid everything inside.

Only after the group had passed through the arched gateway into Darnassus City did Hilar tug at Andy, signaling for him to go into the city.

"Who are they? Why did we have to make way for them?" Andy thought of the Elf at the head of the group, and anger welled up inside him. That Elf had been so arrogant he hadn't even deigned to notice Andy.

"The Night Elf Sentinel Unit," Hilar replied. "They have the right of way and a few other privileges. They're Warriors of the Elf Race, defenders of the Elves."

"It looked like they were bringing something back with them," Andy said.

"Yeah. They're usually stationed in Ashenvale. They wouldn't return to Darnassus without a special reason," Hilar said.

"Their Sabers mounts are impressive. Can Sabers really grow that big?" Andy asked.

"I heard from our senior apprentice that the Sentinel Unit's Sabers are specially selected, strong breeds. They're raised from a young age, then trained with the Elves' secret arts. They're not just mounts, but also combat partners to the Elf Warriors," Hilar explained. "Come on, we'd better hurry. It'll be dark soon."

After the two entered the city, Hilar hurried off, saying he needed to ask their senior apprentice what was going on. Andy went back to his little place alone to make dinner: roasted Giant Owl meat.

Once he'd eaten his fill, Andy grabbed the spoils he'd brought back that day and headed for a big tree in the center of Darnassus. It was exceptionally thick, though its crown wasn't all that high. Four large openings had been made in its trunk, housing four long-established shops in the city. One of them was a leather goods shop that accepted the beast pelts Andy and Hilar brought back.

Andy had turned in pelts there many times, so he knew the routine. He counted them, wrote his and Hilar's names in the ledger, and turned to leave.

As he rounded the tree, Andy spotted a crowd gathered in the square. It looked like they were surrounding a cage. A cage? He remembered the one the Sentinel Unit had been hauling earlier and decided to take a look.

"Sir, excuse me. Let me through," Andy said as he squeezed his way in. "Hey, ma'am, could you move over a little?"

After much effort, Andy finally pushed through the crowd. The cage stood two heads taller than a full-grown Elf. But what was inside nearly made his jaw hit the ground.

"An Orc!" the Monster Spirit exclaimed in his mind.

No kidding. I know! Andy cursed inwardly. How could it be an Orc? How had the Sentinel Unit soldiers managed to capture one? Orcs were far stronger than Elves—not just by a little, but by an entire order of magnitude.

Andy glanced at the people around him. Thankfully, the Elves seemed not to recognize the Orc. Everyone looked shocked, so his own astonishment didn't stand out.

Suddenly, someone in the crowd shouted, "Whoa, what is that?"

The sudden shriek made Andy jump. He looked back and saw Hilar and Andrew squeezing through the crowd. Hilar had never seen an Orc before, and in his surprise, he'd cried out.

"What is that?" Hilar stared at the Orc in the cage. "Is it some kind of beast that's become a spirit?"

The Orc bared his teeth at the onlookers and let out an occasional low growl. He really did look like a beast, except that he had two hands and two feet. His massive beastlike head sported a gaping maw; his eyes bulged like oversized bells, and two tusks jutted from either side of his mouth. His skin was yellowish brown, and it was hard to tell what kind of Orc he was.

The Orc wore a piece of leather armor—or rather, just a hide. Most of his skin was exposed, so he might as well have been bare-chested. Thick iron chains, each as wide as a wrist, shackled his hands and feet. He let out a low growl, then tugged at the chains, his face twisted into a fierce scowl.

"#@￥%@#"

Was he just talking? Andy secretly asked the Monster Spirit.

"Yeah. He just told you all to get lost!" the Monster Spirit translated.

"￥%#@@￥"

"He's telling you to get lost now!" the Monster Spirit said in Andy's mind.

Even without the Monster Spirit's translation, Andy could more or less figure out what the Orc meant. The Orc was crouched on the ground, gripping the bars with both hands, baring his teeth and shouting. Then he shook the iron bars as hard as he could.

The two Sentinel Unit Warriors standing guard on either side first ordered the onlookers to step back. Then they jabbed the Orc in the cage with their clubs. As though he'd been badly hurt, the Orc fell to the floor and roared. After they'd prodded him for a while, only his heavy breathing could be heard from inside the cage.

Andy watched the Orc for a few moments, then greeted Hilar and turned to squeeze back out of the crowd. He headed for his little place, with just one thought left in his mind: There's no time. They're coming!