Strith
08-22-2010, 06:22 PM
On a particularly blustery evening, a large shadow crept along the snow flitted stonework of Ironforge. As the figure responsible for the shadow approaches, the shade diminished with its arrival. Eventually it disappeared, and a small Gnome appeared at the threshold of the mighty entrance. He walked with an axe on his back, and Trogg blood splattered across his plate armor. His eyes were wise and old, and as he meandered through Ironforge without speaking, people hardly noticed him. Dwarves, Humans and other Gnomes passed by him without a second thought or glance. He asked a guard for directions to the Gnomish portion of the keep, and heads off in the direction the dwarf’s finger had pointed him too. As he approached, the smell of burnt hair and various mechanical oils hung in the air. Within the midst of it all, the old male Gnome sees a familiar face…
“Gelbin, you old fool!” he said with renewed vigor as he jogged to the raised platform.
Two gnomes begin to intercede his path, but the regal Gnome atop of the gear platform dismissed them.
“Why does your voice sound familiar,” the Gnome king said as he adjusted his spectrometer goggles to gaze at the newcomer.
“You don’t recognize me?” the older Gnome said in mock offense.
“My memory revitalizer elixir is still in testing sir, but if my recollection serves, I do not remember such a voice ever being associated with the crude weapons and armor of war…”
The old Gnome sighed and pulled the axe from his back and examined it. “It is a long story, but while I was leaving Gnomeregan, I have statistically proven that every living sentient lifeform has a deactivation button! It seems to require a device like this one. One must simply apply quick and decisive pressure with the device to the cranial dome of any being, and they shut down! Amazing isn’t it? It doesn’t require magic at all!”
Gelbin grinned under his friendly mutton chop beard and stepped down from his throne. He embraced him warmly.
“We thought you had died defending Gnomeregan,” Gelbin Mekkatorque said clasping him by the shoulder plates and stepping back to examine his attire. “I can see the mighty Thunker Geargrind has been busy!”
Thunker smiled weakly and nodded. “Obviously I'm not dead you twit....” he said, evidently offended. “I suppose everyone thought wrong, didn't they?” He looked down at his armor. “I had to fight my way out of there. How long have I been out?”
A look of confusion crossed Gelbin’s face. “Out? What do you mean, out?”
Thunker gave him a reprimanding look. “Come now, you don’t think I have been living in Gnomeregan all this time in all those vile fumes, in solitary confinement by choice? Is that logical?”
Gelbin’s smile faded and he bristled. Clearly he wasn’t used to being spoken to in such a way, but he remained silent.
“I have been out of things far too long, it seems. That comatosity device I was testing worked all too well, though I admit there were… side effects…”
Gelbin nodded in understanding. “I see. Well you have been gone for some time…. Almost eight years, to be precise.”
Thunker wiped a hand through his thinning white hair. “Spin my gears…”
“Indeed,” replied Gelbin. “A lot has changed since you were last a part of the world.” Gelbin cocked his head as Thunker seemed to be engrossed in his thoughts; his stubby fingers were counting absently.
“Thunker?”
The spaced out Gnome blinked three times and looked up. “Hmm? Oh forgive me.”
Gelbin nodded to his new apparel. “I thought mages of your caliber preferred to fight with arcane magic and slightly lighter garb. What happened down there?”
Thunker sighed and rested the axe on the floor, cupping the bottom of the hilt with his two hands. “Yes well, like I said, the device had some side effects. Since I was extracted by some foolish treasure hunters, I have either forgotten how to tap into the energies of this world, or I have been robbed of the ability. It is one of the experiments I plan to conduct in greater detail once I am oriented. I suppose the other Gnome Troopers are likely looking for me eh?”
Gelbin coughed. “My old friend, since your… disappearance,” he said delicately, “The regiment is no more. They all perished in the evacuation of Gnomeregan. Your son Budge was even a part of an attempted reformatio-”
Thunker’s eyes went wide. “How could I have been so absentminded? Where is my boy? Where is Budge?”
“I’m sorry old friend, your son… he… well he made some enemies within the Alliance and is an outlaw. When the regiment failed, he felt he failed and what was good of him went haywire we think. SI:7 attempted to track his movements but lost him some months ago.”
Mr. Axeljinx remained silent and unreadable for several moments, attempting to come to terms with the recent news.
Geblin sighed. “We wanted you to assume command, but we thought you perished in Gnomeregan. It was logical to elect your son… he knew some of your work and was a brilliant mage and engineer of his own right.”
Thunker sniffed and steeled himself. “Gnome Troopers were a sham and a failure if Gnomeregan fell during its watch. To re-forge it without modifications was foolish of you.”
Gelbin narrowed his eyes at the slight. “It was not my choice, but your son’s. Do not place this error on me. That being said, we would like you back, Thunker. You could reform another mage Order like the Gnome Troopers and-”
He dismissed the Gnome King. “No, I do not hypothesize so. You want powerful mages, not some old blade wielding Halfling like myself. My time as a powerful sorcerer has ended. Like a failed schematic, I have to go back to the conceptualizing board and reconfigure myself.” Thunker hefted his axe onto one shoulder. Even now he felt calluses forming on his little pudgy hands from wielding it.
“What is your plan now?”
Thunker sighed and looked up and around him. He inhaled. “I don’t know. You seem to have things under control here… things appear to be fairly stabilized. I think that while I perform experiments to deduce what depleted my abilities, I will explore the world anew. Perhaps learn how to wield this ungainly apparatus that they call a weapon. It seemed effective enough in dispatching the Troggs; I must pursue this line of research and establish if there is a correlation to its effectiveness with other savage brutes.”
Gebling Mekkatorque nodded. “Well I could use another Gnome who knows his way around a weapon. I am after all, the High Tinker now and the more able bodies I have, the more efficient the Gnomes are. It’s a simple Wrenchworth Logarithm.”
Thunker’s eyes narrowed and he puffed his chest while shaking his small finger at the self proclaimed king of the Gnomes. “Am I to kneel to you now? Until Gnomeregan is reclaimed, I will not consider you to me my superior. You have done nothing by Cog, to assist in the reclamation of Gnomeregan. Shunt, had it not been for some foolish treasure seekers, I'd still be locked away in that infernal comatosity device. Who know how long it would have lasted until it system energies were depleted?!?” He shook his head. “Now I will do what I can to help the Alliance during my travels to find my son and during experiments, if it means they will eventually assist with retaking Gnomeregan.” The thought of Gnomeregan apparently triggered an uncorrelated memory in Thunker, for he pounded his foot in frustration. “Diddleswitch! I left some importantly classified schematics down there!”
Mekkatorque growled and pointed his finger at Thunker. “You watch your vocalizer, old Gnome. Things have been very busy while you have been snoozing in your self contained preservation chamber. We have been dealing with things much bigger than the Trogg invasion!”
“It is a comatosity device, you old toggletop! It places you in a timeless coma… though I can see the practical application of a contrivance that would preserve the subject….” He rubbed his hand through his beard, and then shook his head, realizing they were getting off subject. “That is beside the point! I will make a compromise with you. When you are ready to retake our home, I will be ready to stand by your side.” He nodded, saluting the proud Gelbin.
“I wish you the best of results in your endeavors.”
Gelbin moved back onto his throne and nodded in return, seemingly tired from the conversation. “And you as well. I am interested in the results of your findings regarding your magical allergy.”
Thunker nodded, his hand probing his beard once more as he shuffled away. “Hmm, allergy… interesting hypothesis,” he mumbled to himself as he waddled out of sight.
“Sir who was that?” one of the Gnomes said to the King.
Gelbin watched him leave. “That was Thunker Geargrind, and he was once counted among the greatest Gnome mages we had.”
The gnome nodded, unsure what to say. “Was he named after THE Thunker Axeljink sir?”
The Gnome King nodded. “Aye. Axeljink thought he had potential when he was a youngling, and even offered him some teachings. In return, Geargrind honored such attention and praise by changing his name while he was still a youngling. Geargrind looked up to Axeljink like a father.” Gelbin sighed. “Little difference that makes now. The Axeljinks’ are dead and any congruent comparison between the council member and that man now was his magical abilities...”
Gelbin shook his head at the tragedy. “A part of him did die in Gnomeregan I suppose…”
“Gelbin, you old fool!” he said with renewed vigor as he jogged to the raised platform.
Two gnomes begin to intercede his path, but the regal Gnome atop of the gear platform dismissed them.
“Why does your voice sound familiar,” the Gnome king said as he adjusted his spectrometer goggles to gaze at the newcomer.
“You don’t recognize me?” the older Gnome said in mock offense.
“My memory revitalizer elixir is still in testing sir, but if my recollection serves, I do not remember such a voice ever being associated with the crude weapons and armor of war…”
The old Gnome sighed and pulled the axe from his back and examined it. “It is a long story, but while I was leaving Gnomeregan, I have statistically proven that every living sentient lifeform has a deactivation button! It seems to require a device like this one. One must simply apply quick and decisive pressure with the device to the cranial dome of any being, and they shut down! Amazing isn’t it? It doesn’t require magic at all!”
Gelbin grinned under his friendly mutton chop beard and stepped down from his throne. He embraced him warmly.
“We thought you had died defending Gnomeregan,” Gelbin Mekkatorque said clasping him by the shoulder plates and stepping back to examine his attire. “I can see the mighty Thunker Geargrind has been busy!”
Thunker smiled weakly and nodded. “Obviously I'm not dead you twit....” he said, evidently offended. “I suppose everyone thought wrong, didn't they?” He looked down at his armor. “I had to fight my way out of there. How long have I been out?”
A look of confusion crossed Gelbin’s face. “Out? What do you mean, out?”
Thunker gave him a reprimanding look. “Come now, you don’t think I have been living in Gnomeregan all this time in all those vile fumes, in solitary confinement by choice? Is that logical?”
Gelbin’s smile faded and he bristled. Clearly he wasn’t used to being spoken to in such a way, but he remained silent.
“I have been out of things far too long, it seems. That comatosity device I was testing worked all too well, though I admit there were… side effects…”
Gelbin nodded in understanding. “I see. Well you have been gone for some time…. Almost eight years, to be precise.”
Thunker wiped a hand through his thinning white hair. “Spin my gears…”
“Indeed,” replied Gelbin. “A lot has changed since you were last a part of the world.” Gelbin cocked his head as Thunker seemed to be engrossed in his thoughts; his stubby fingers were counting absently.
“Thunker?”
The spaced out Gnome blinked three times and looked up. “Hmm? Oh forgive me.”
Gelbin nodded to his new apparel. “I thought mages of your caliber preferred to fight with arcane magic and slightly lighter garb. What happened down there?”
Thunker sighed and rested the axe on the floor, cupping the bottom of the hilt with his two hands. “Yes well, like I said, the device had some side effects. Since I was extracted by some foolish treasure hunters, I have either forgotten how to tap into the energies of this world, or I have been robbed of the ability. It is one of the experiments I plan to conduct in greater detail once I am oriented. I suppose the other Gnome Troopers are likely looking for me eh?”
Gelbin coughed. “My old friend, since your… disappearance,” he said delicately, “The regiment is no more. They all perished in the evacuation of Gnomeregan. Your son Budge was even a part of an attempted reformatio-”
Thunker’s eyes went wide. “How could I have been so absentminded? Where is my boy? Where is Budge?”
“I’m sorry old friend, your son… he… well he made some enemies within the Alliance and is an outlaw. When the regiment failed, he felt he failed and what was good of him went haywire we think. SI:7 attempted to track his movements but lost him some months ago.”
Mr. Axeljinx remained silent and unreadable for several moments, attempting to come to terms with the recent news.
Geblin sighed. “We wanted you to assume command, but we thought you perished in Gnomeregan. It was logical to elect your son… he knew some of your work and was a brilliant mage and engineer of his own right.”
Thunker sniffed and steeled himself. “Gnome Troopers were a sham and a failure if Gnomeregan fell during its watch. To re-forge it without modifications was foolish of you.”
Gelbin narrowed his eyes at the slight. “It was not my choice, but your son’s. Do not place this error on me. That being said, we would like you back, Thunker. You could reform another mage Order like the Gnome Troopers and-”
He dismissed the Gnome King. “No, I do not hypothesize so. You want powerful mages, not some old blade wielding Halfling like myself. My time as a powerful sorcerer has ended. Like a failed schematic, I have to go back to the conceptualizing board and reconfigure myself.” Thunker hefted his axe onto one shoulder. Even now he felt calluses forming on his little pudgy hands from wielding it.
“What is your plan now?”
Thunker sighed and looked up and around him. He inhaled. “I don’t know. You seem to have things under control here… things appear to be fairly stabilized. I think that while I perform experiments to deduce what depleted my abilities, I will explore the world anew. Perhaps learn how to wield this ungainly apparatus that they call a weapon. It seemed effective enough in dispatching the Troggs; I must pursue this line of research and establish if there is a correlation to its effectiveness with other savage brutes.”
Gebling Mekkatorque nodded. “Well I could use another Gnome who knows his way around a weapon. I am after all, the High Tinker now and the more able bodies I have, the more efficient the Gnomes are. It’s a simple Wrenchworth Logarithm.”
Thunker’s eyes narrowed and he puffed his chest while shaking his small finger at the self proclaimed king of the Gnomes. “Am I to kneel to you now? Until Gnomeregan is reclaimed, I will not consider you to me my superior. You have done nothing by Cog, to assist in the reclamation of Gnomeregan. Shunt, had it not been for some foolish treasure seekers, I'd still be locked away in that infernal comatosity device. Who know how long it would have lasted until it system energies were depleted?!?” He shook his head. “Now I will do what I can to help the Alliance during my travels to find my son and during experiments, if it means they will eventually assist with retaking Gnomeregan.” The thought of Gnomeregan apparently triggered an uncorrelated memory in Thunker, for he pounded his foot in frustration. “Diddleswitch! I left some importantly classified schematics down there!”
Mekkatorque growled and pointed his finger at Thunker. “You watch your vocalizer, old Gnome. Things have been very busy while you have been snoozing in your self contained preservation chamber. We have been dealing with things much bigger than the Trogg invasion!”
“It is a comatosity device, you old toggletop! It places you in a timeless coma… though I can see the practical application of a contrivance that would preserve the subject….” He rubbed his hand through his beard, and then shook his head, realizing they were getting off subject. “That is beside the point! I will make a compromise with you. When you are ready to retake our home, I will be ready to stand by your side.” He nodded, saluting the proud Gelbin.
“I wish you the best of results in your endeavors.”
Gelbin moved back onto his throne and nodded in return, seemingly tired from the conversation. “And you as well. I am interested in the results of your findings regarding your magical allergy.”
Thunker nodded, his hand probing his beard once more as he shuffled away. “Hmm, allergy… interesting hypothesis,” he mumbled to himself as he waddled out of sight.
“Sir who was that?” one of the Gnomes said to the King.
Gelbin watched him leave. “That was Thunker Geargrind, and he was once counted among the greatest Gnome mages we had.”
The gnome nodded, unsure what to say. “Was he named after THE Thunker Axeljink sir?”
The Gnome King nodded. “Aye. Axeljink thought he had potential when he was a youngling, and even offered him some teachings. In return, Geargrind honored such attention and praise by changing his name while he was still a youngling. Geargrind looked up to Axeljink like a father.” Gelbin sighed. “Little difference that makes now. The Axeljinks’ are dead and any congruent comparison between the council member and that man now was his magical abilities...”
Gelbin shook his head at the tragedy. “A part of him did die in Gnomeregan I suppose…”