1.

The hot sun of Durotar beat down mercilessly upon the streets of Orgrimmar that day, as various members of the Horde went about on their business, streaming in and out of the city. A lone figure walked up one of the great stone ramps towards a near-abandoned building, glancing about nervously as he did so, and ducked inside.

Unperturbed by the heat, he blinked his eyes, adjusting to the rather dim interior of the hovel and creeping slowly in. Kronkt hated running errands. An orc of his stature and natural bulk† would be better suited to battle, but with the glut of new recruits, he was informed that his 'contributions' were no longer necessary. This was a sore spot of constant irritation, and it was with no degree of gentility that he spoke his next words.

"LEGIONNARE SWOOP," he bellowed, "THE HORDE HAS NEED OF YOUR SERVIC-"

"Whaaaaaaaat." One golden eye blinked lazily at him from the hammock at the end of the room, where the undead creature...slept, apparently. Kronkt shifted uncomfortably, eyeing the creature with no small amount of dismay. She was sprawled across the hammock, head hanging over the edge of the ropes. Kronkt stood there for a moment, considering his next course of action. "I...uh...the...horde has need of your services."

"I'm napping." With that, she closed her eye.

"But it's IMPORTANT. They uh, they sent me to come get you. If I don't come back with you there could be serious repercussions for uh, for me." Kronkt shifted his weight nervously. The Forsaken had always made him vaguely uncomfortable, he wasn't quite sure why. Right now, it had something to do with the fact that the girl in front of him had her head hanging in what would be a precarious and uncomfortable position for most, causing the blood to rush to one's head. He couldn't imagine how it could possibly be comfortable until he remembered that undead really didn't...bleed. To his credit, he didn't shudder. Much.

"Fine. What is it."

"You are to meet with the leader of the Darkspear Tribe, Vol'jin. He asked for you specifically." Kronkt spat out the last sentence distastefully. Why the leader of their troll allies would be looking for an undead of all things, especially this little snot of a priest, when he could have a great warrior like Kronkt mystified him.

It never really occurred to him that perhaps it was just that his whining got on everyone's nerves.

Swoop slid off the hammock with a thump and stood, gathering herself and favoring him with another curious glance. The orc seemed vaguely uncomfortable, and a very tiny smile flickered across her face. "...well then, I shouldn't keep him waiting, should I." The orc was still starting at her, slack-jawed and unsettled. "...is there something wrong?"

"I uh...no. I just wasn't aware that...I mean...do you really need to sleep? You know, being undead and uh...all that." The orc stammered, puffing out his chest and attempting to look more intimidating but the effect was lost on the priest, who stared at him quite levelly and raised an eyebrow.††

"Yes. We sleep. We eat too. Sometimes we have sex."

With that she pushed by him and tramped outside, leaving the orc to stutter at himself.

It was really no surprise to Swoop that Vol'jin himself would be calling for her, as she had done more than one service for the Darkspear in the past - indeed, enough that they had gone out of the way to train her in raptor riding and let her have one of their war raptors. Said raptor was now making its bouncy way††† towards the Valley of Wisdom with her on its back, and as she rode she pondered what exactly Vol'jin could possibly have in mind for her. A question to be answered shortly as she strode into the chambers of the Horde leader, nodding briefly at the guards and giving Vol'jin a curtsey before flopping on the ground in front of him.

"Sorry, been a long day and it's hotter than...well, you know. What do you need?"

Vol'jin grinned at her as she fanned herself with one hand. "'ey, it be m'eetle friend. You be doin' good, hey?" At the nod and brief smile from the priest, he continued. "I be needin' a favor from ya. It be...very confidential. Hush-hush. Need someone who won't go blabbin ere and dere about what she be doin'. You fit de bill."

A careful nod from the girl in front of him and his grin widened. "Good. I be needin' ya to go talk to Jes'rimon over in de Drag. 'e'll tell ya where to go and what ta do. Hokay?"

"Jes'rimon? ...I'd rather not deal with...him." Swoop remember her past dealings with the unsavory little twerp of a troll and his machinations to move her here and frowned. A chance to plant her staff in his face though, that might prove entertaining, and Vol'jin looked terribly serious as he nodded, leaning forward to quietly speak in her ear.

"Look, ah know you don't be likin' 'im, I don't think 'e be likin ya either, but dis...dis is terribly important. Ya gotta do this for me Swoop, 'dere's a lot more at stake 'ere than where ya be sleepin' next or 'ow many people are wanderin' round Orgrimmar." She blinked, startled, and wondered just how much Jes'rimon had told him of her previous dealings with the troll. Swoop had appeared out of nowhere it seemed, taking some by surprise and others not even noticing her...newness. Had Jes'rimon babbled about this dimensional switch goose chase he'd led her on to Vol'jin himself? It seemed unlikely but the troll was looking at her as if he knew everything about her already, and he spoke again, quietly. "...it be a matter of whether or not de Horde continue ta survive, if ya catch my drift."

She nodded. "Done. Shall I go now?"

The force of the troll leader's encouraging clap on her back nearly knocked her over as he nodded, grinning and thanking her for her assistance. She gathered herself once more, curtseyed delicately to Vol'jin, and made her way out of the building and towards the Drag.

Had she been paying attention, she would have noticed that Vol'jin's grin just got wider and wider as she left, and his eyes glittered with unbridled glee in a manner that was most unsettling.

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† - About 5'3" and 110lbs soaking wet.

†† - The raising of eyebrows has long been a natural sign of aggression in most creatures. The rhinoceros for example will often raise an eyebrow before charging, though most tend to overlook this what with all the stamping snorting and head-tossing, not to mention inevitable goring.

††† - Raptors, while quite intelligent, have no suspension system or shocks whatsoever. Also they have stinky breath that smells vaguely like rotting tuna that was probably dissatisfied with the results of its life given that it ended up stuck in the crevasses of a raptor's teeth.