"The furbolg Chieftain has been healed, Lord Cenarius. And the last pockets of our slumbering fellows have been contacted as well."

"Well done, Fandral. It is good that the two of you have finished your tasks with such speed… we have need of you on another mission of dire importance."

Contrary to Rognak's expectations, he and Cenarius don't immediately rush off to hunt down the Skull of Gul'dan and Tichondrius so that they can handle what Illidan would have handled if not for his death. Instead, they linger… and the reason why soon becomes apparent when Fandral Staghelm and the other druid, Broll Bearmantle, come upon them.

Rognak can't help but shift from foot to foot as he listens to the Archdruid and Lord of the Forest talking. The egotistical Night Elf shows no sign of his corruption, and indeed outright preens under Cenarius' words. Out of everyone in this forest, there's probably nobody whose opinion Fandral actually cares about besides Cenarius'. Or at least, he does an excellent job of making it seem like he cares about the Demigod's opinion.

By this point in time however… Fandral was already corrupted, Rognak was pretty sure. From what the second set of memories had told him about the other druid, Fandral would have attacked Malfurion shortly after the Battle for Hyjal and put him in a coma so that his plans to plant Teldrassil could go through unopposed.

With Cenarius alive and Malfurion dead for all intents and purposes, Rognak didn't know what that would end up looking like when all was said and done. But at least he'd warned the Forest Demigod about Fandral's true loyalties ahead of time. There was no way the Archdruid would be able to ambush Cenarius as he'd ambushed Malfurion. Rognak wouldn't allow it.

Of course, Cenarius was MUCH better at hiding the depth of his knowledge than Rognak was. Fandral turns to him after a moment of preening and eyes him up and down, sniffing haughtily.

"You're the Chieftain of those savages, aren't you? Poor excuses for druids, one and all. They reflect badly on their teacher."

Rognak stiffens at that. He'd heard about the confrontation between the Night Elf Druids and his Orc Neophytes of course. He hadn't been sure what to do at the time, so he'd let it be. There had been more important things to worry about, or so he'd figured. But now Fandral was addressing him directly and insulting him to his face at the same time. He's trying to instigate a fight, likely seeing Rognak as nothing but a 'savage' like all the others.

Unfortunately for him, Rognak isn't about to pick a fight he's not sure he can win, even if the Archdruid has just woken up from one of those centuries-long naps the Night Elves are so fond of. That doesn't mean he's not entirely above stooping down to Fandral's level, however.

"They are neophytes and young yet, aye. I wonder if you were half the druid you are now at only twenty years of age."

Fandral stiffens at that, clearly not expecting Rognak to bite back with such succinct speech. However, before the Archdruid can respond, Cenarius steps in. Rognak notes that he does so only after the orc has had a chance to speak and feels a wave of appreciation towards the Forest Demigod for that.

"Enough. Infighting will not serve us here. And take care of your words, Fandral. Chieftain Rognak's students are MY students as well. Would you say they reflect poorly on me, Archdruid?"

That certainly gets the cantankerous Night Elf's attention, his eyes widening as he immediately tries to backtrack.

"Of course not, Lord Cenarius! I only-!"

Beside him, Broll Bearmantle snorts, cutting him off.

"Quit while you're behind, Fandral. Quit while you're behind."

At being ganged up on three-on-one, the Archdruid falls silent, scowling mightily. But then, he has every reason to want to avoid rocking the boat too much here and now. So long as he doesn't truly piss Cenarius off, he's a shoo-in for taking Malfurion's place as the leader of the druids and co-leader for the Night Elf people as a whole. In fact, that's exactly what the other memories tell Rognak would have happened, albeit with Malfurion still alive but in a coma and Fandral being the one who put him there.

… That said, Rognak can't help but glance curiously at the other Night Elf Druid in the clearing. Broll Bearmantle… isn't someone that Rognak's second set of memories recognizes. And yet he's clearly a big deal if he's able to shut down Fandral like Rognak heard he had back during the first confrontation. And for him to be with them now, he has to be fairly strong and important, right? So why does Rognak not recognize him? Is the second set of memories… incomplete in some way?

"As I was saying, we will all be working together on a mission of grave importance. The source of Ashenvale's fel taint has been made clear to us. A dreadlord known as Tichondrius the Darkener uses a terrible artifact known as the Skull of Gul'dan to spread his corruption throughout the Felwood. If we do not destroy him and the Skull once and for all, then the Defiler's forces might be too much for us to overcome in the long run."

To their credit, Fandral and Broll both straighten up at that, becoming filled with purpose as they listen to Cenarius intently. Continuing on, the Lord of the Forest gestures to Rognak.

"As it so happens, it was Tichondrius' plan that this brave young orc foiled in the first place when he stood against first his Chieftain and then against the demon Mannoroth as well. They meant to kill me, to lure me into a trap and utilize fel-empowered orcs to slay me for their purposes. Without Rognak's interference, I would not be standing here before you today."

Not entirely true, Rognak can't help thinking. Knowing what he did now, if he hadn't acted to stop Grom… then Cenarius probably would have done something else to still avoid his demise. All the same, Rognak HAD pretty much foiled Tichondrius' and Mannoroth's plot, hadn't he? As Broll looks at him with respect and even Fandral gives him a begrudging nod, the young orc druid can't help but feel a swell of pride in his chest. It was nice to be reminded of the good he'd done since arriving on Kalimdor.

"Now, with that out of the way… come. We must move with both great speed and great stealth. If the Darkener is allowed to realize that we are coming for him, then he will flee with the Skull of Gul'dan and we will lose our one opportunity to remove both him and the artifact from the field. Right now, our only hope lies in secrecy. He believes that his presence in these woods is still hidden, but now that we know he is here… his time has become quite limited indeed."

As Fandral and Broll both nod their agreement at that, Rognak can barely contain his excitement. At long last, he's going to get to see firsthand how Cenarius does it! How the hell does a creature as big as the Lord of the Forest manage to be so damn stealthy?! Ever since he'd first snuck up on Rognak at the forest's edge all those weeks ago, the orc had been wondering! And now… now he would get to experience it personally from the stealth side!

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As they begin to move, Rognak watches intensely, committing this moment to memory. At long last, one of life's great mysteries would be solved.

-x-X-x-

"We are here."

… Huh, so that was how Cenarius did it. Interesting, but Rognak shakes himself out of his moment of awe and focuses on the matter at hand. True to his word, the Lord of the Forest had led them right to their quarry… specifically, the Skull of Gul'dan lay in the clearing beyond, surrounded by Satyr and other lesser demons. Nothing all that special, really.

As they lurk in the shadows, watching their unsuspecting prey, Cenarius turns to the three of them and nods.

"We must move quickly. I shall prepare to destroy the Skull. You three must handle the others so that they cannot alert the Darkener too early to what is happening here. As soon as the Skull is sundered, Tichondrius will likely arrive, made aware of its removal. You must be ready to strike the moment he does so, lest he try and escape."

There's a pause as Cenarius makes sure that they're all clear on their assignments. Then, Rognak begins moving off from the Demigod with Fandral and Broll, the three of them all spreading out as Cenarius begins focusing on his spell. It takes a little bit, but soon enough they're all in position. Rognak meets Broll's eyes and the other druid nods at him… but when he looks to Fandral, the Archdruid just scoffs and lifts his hands, twisting them.

In a heartbeat, roots come out of the ground beneath a dozen of the lesser demons, grabbing them and holding them in place as storm clouds appear over their heads and localized lightning strikes begin coming down on them. At the same time, Broll turns into a full-sized bear, throwing himself at his own portion of the demons.

It's not quite as timed as Rognak would have preferred it, but he supposes he shouldn't have been that surprised. With a grunt, he lumbers forward as well, pulling forth his axe from his back. Wolfsong sings silently through the air, cutting through a satyr's head just as it's turning to take in Fandral and Broll's efforts. And then Rognak is among the enemy as well, cutting them down one by one.

The ensuing battle is… messy to say the least. But at least none of the demons manage to get word to their master. As they fight, Rognak's mind automatically categorizes Fandral and Broll's respective fighting styles in terms that his second set of memories supplies. Fandral Staghelm is more of a Balance Druid, preferring to rely on both nature and arcane magics. Broll, meanwhile, is most definitely a Feral Druid, switching between animal forms faster than Rognak can keep track of sometimes.

By comparison, Rognak has never felt overly specialized in any one direction, truth be told. As they fight, he finds himself wondering if that might be because of where his powers come from. The number of patrons he apparently has among the Wild Gods of Azeroth is… still somewhat staggering to even think about. To have been given not just Cenarius' blessing, not just Elune's blessing… but the blessing of who knew how many nature deities?

… Well, it certainly reflected in his fighting style. He switched between wielding Wolfsong with deadly precision and casting moonbeams at the drop of a hat. And when he wasn't doing either of those, he would transform into an animal shape if it would help him kill something faster. Ultimately, Rognak didn't have one preferred style of fighting. He did what worked and in his experience, whatever he did… usually worked.

He notices Fandral and Broll watching him in the same way he's watching them. He sees Fandral's frustration over his chaotic fighting style, and Broll's confusion. Something tells him that it's not normal, what he's doing. But hey, it works for him and it's not like Cenarius has told him he needs to change it up in any of their lessons so…

Before he can think on that for any longer, the fighting finally comes to an end, the last of the demons guarding the Skull of Gul'dan felled by their combined efforts. And just in time too, for Cenarius steps out into the clearing a moment later, holding a spell-working of great power in his branch-like hand.

"Prepare yourselves. The Darkener will soon arrive."

With that declaration made, Cenarius thrusts forward his hand… and Rognak watches, clutching at his axe, as the Nature Magic runs right into the evil artifact. The Skull of Gul'dan tries to defend itself, if the shaking is any indication… but in the end, it's not enough. Given the time to prepare the proper spell, Cenarius' casting causes cracks to form in the skull, until finally it shatters in an explosion of Fel Energy.

However, Cenarius is ready for this as well. In the other world that Rognak's second set of memories remembers, that Fel energy is what would have turned Illidan into a demon and given him a serious power-up. In this world, Illidan isn't here… and instead, the explosion of fel magic is directed UP into the sky, a massive pillar of bright, sickly green power.

Rognak's eyes widen as he sees it. No wonder Cenarius was so sure Tichondrius would come immediately. And indeed… that's precisely what happens, the flapping of bat wings signaling the dreadlord's arrival.

"Who DARES?! Wha- you! No! How did you find this place?! How are you here?!"

At first, Tichondrius looks downright enraged. But as soon as he sees Cenarius, it melts away to be replaced by shock and horror. The dreadlord instinctively takes a step back, only to run into a trick that Cenarius had pulled from Rognak… a wall of brambles formed in only an instant directly behind the demon. It even goes a step further, reaching out and grabbing Tichondrius, holding him in place.

"The 'how' is unimportant, demon. After all, why should the dead care about 'how' their death came to pass?"

Rognak doesn't waste time. At Cenarius' words, he rushes forward and slams his axe into Tichondrius' chest with all his might. Wolfsong glows with Nature's Wrath, a bright verdant green in comparison to the fel magic tainting the area. Tichondrius howls, his face twisting into a rictus of pain and agony as he snarls at all of them.

"YOU! No! This was not how it was supposed to be! Mannoroth failed, but I succeeded! I slew the Archdruid in his sleep! I set the Skull upon this forest! Lord Archimonde! I have served you well!"

For a moment, Rognak fears that the Defiler will literally show up to save his minion. But it would seem Tichondrius' pleas fall on deaf ears by design, as Cenarius strides forward.

"Your Masters cannot hear you here, demon. These are my woods. Your plans have been for naught. Your schemes have been unraveled. Kalimdor rises and the Defiler will soon join you in death!"

As Cenarius thrusts his hand forward, Fandral and Broll join him and Rognak pulls Wolfsong back in order to swing it again. Under the combined might of all four of them… the dreadlord dies and he dies messily, screeching in agony until all that's left is his armor, the rest of him destroyed.

For a moment, silence reigns over the forest. Then, Cenarius lets out a single sigh.

"Well done, all of you. With the Skull destroyed and Tichondrius gone, Archimonde's forces are that much weaker. Now… now we might just have a chance."

More than a chance, Rognak can't help thinking to himself. He refused to let Malfurion and Illidan's sacrifices be in vein. Perhaps they weren't supposed to die here, but then neither was Arthas. In the end… in the end, Rognak decides then and there, staring down at Tichondrius' empty armor, that he's not going to let anything hold him back anymore.

With Cenarius on his side and aware of Rognak's true origins, they can change so much, fix so much… no matter what happens next, he won't let it catch him off guard. He'll roll with the punches and adapt, no matter the circumstances.

"Come. We shall return to camp and get what rest we can."

-x-X-x-

By the time they get back to camp, the revelry is fully under way and to Rognak's surprise, the three factions that make up their little army of would-be world saviors look like they're well and truly getting on for the first time… ever. This, of course, doesn't sit well with Fandral, who stomps off scowling. Broll, meanwhile, makes his way over to where a group of Night Elf Druids and some of Rognak's Warsong Neophytes are carousing together.

Cenarius departs with but a single nod of his head that Rognak returns and Rognak… Rognak finds himself at a loss for a moment. Until suddenly, there's a tug on his wrist and he turns to find Shandris standing next to him. The Night Elf Sentinel doesn't smile, but the hooded look in her eyes makes it clear what she wants from him. And so Rognak allows himself to be tugged along, figuring that at least this much was pretty clear at this point.

That is… until she guides him into a tent and Rognak finds himself staring into the eyes of one Jaina Proudmoore in a significant state of undress. And suddenly he realizes that nothing is even REMOTELY clear.

Roll with the punches and adapt. That was what he'd told himself, right? Easier said than done…