Forgot



Fire in the air.
Cinders scorching his lungs.
Burning embers hissing in the water next to a dock as his naked feet pounded the wood.
A roar as though the bowels of the earth had been angered.
And then, merciful silence.

-

“Oi! You alive there?” A rough voice called, piercing through the goblin’s murky mind. Cracking his sand-encrusted eyes open, the goblin saw a similar face peering down at him.
“Quite the blast, that was. You alive there? What be your name?”
The goblin blinked, looking around to get his bearings. An island burned in the distance as ships sailed away, the sky angrily spitting dark and ember soaked clouds. The shore on which he was sitting was littered with debris and other individuals.
Many of them didn’t move.

Right. He asked me a question.
“I-erm, forgot y’see.”
“You forgot? Well that won’t do. Follow me ‘Forgot’. Ya don’t look like a Steamwheedle Cartel bloke, but we’ll treat you right all the same.” The goblin grunted, heaving the other upright and making sure he didn’t plant face first into the sand.
Steemwheedle- No, that doesn’t sound right. Bildgewater Cartel, now that sounds better.
But why?
“Plenty of salvage to be had after this event, but let’s get ya to the tavern and fix you up. Some ale and a few spells later and you’ll be right as rain I reckon. The local guild can handle that much.”

Forgot nodded, slowly regaining his balance as the two walked along the shoreline.
Booty Bay. Right. That’s where we are.
The coast-side hovel was hustling and bustling with activity, docks full to bursting with arriving ships. Set into the mountain, timbers and buildings crisscrossed the entire cove as individuals ran this way and that. Massive wooden pillars secured the towering buildings to an above-water floor as waves lapped at a few ramps and docks at the entrance of the cove. Gryphons and Wyverns flew in and out from the flight-masters carrying their cargo, be it person or crate to their destination. On the bottommost floor of the town, the tavern (judging from the sign and rowdy occupants), was still in full swing, a party not about to be stopped by whatever events had previously occured outside.

“Another refugee? Get him in here and a pint of whatever’s left!” A barkeeper yelled, the orc waving the two goblins inside.
“You here for that there guild gathering? Top floor and to the right.” The orc added, the goblin at Forgot’s side leading him through the rowdy crowds.
“We’re just celebrating a fine haul of loot from a dangerous mission; best you join us to get your bearings. Forget the day for a moment.” A Tauren remarked, gesturing farther down the hall.
A guild celebration, that sounds nice. But I’m a refugee? A refugee from what? The burning island? Why would everyone want to forget the day?

Entering a large room, the two goblins made their way along the wall as revelers in the center downed ale and other drinks by the gallon at various locations. More than one table held a smattering of individuals regaled the others with tales from the previous mission.

“Who do we have here? A lost soul from the island?” An armored blood elf rumbled, standing up from his chair with slightly unsteady legs.
“Hey there Guild Master. Aye. Found him on the beach with quite a nasty lump on his noggin. Figure I’d bring him by, you did say your guild needed some temporary grunt work.” Forgot’s savior remarked with a shrug.

“Hmm. So we do. Very well, set him in one of the side rooms; and we’ll take care of him. See to it you’re paid for the trouble.” The blood elf remarked, the two goblins sidling off to a side room. An female orc seemed to take interest in the pair as she sculped an ale-ice sculpture from her mug with a casual twirl of her hand.

“Well Forgot, here ya go. Take care of yourself, and I’ll probably see you around at the salvage sites.” The goblin remarked, helping Forgot into a bed before waving on the way out. The room was a simple one, meant for one night stays during travels. A bed, cabinet and washing basin was the entirety of the wood-paneled room.
For Forgot it was pleasant enough to promptly pass out in without a second thought.

-----

“Oi, Forgot. Up you get.” A gruff voice sounded, causing the goblin to snap up in bed.
“Hmm? What….ah.” Forgot muttered, sitting up and looking at the blood elf towering over him. “I’ll make this quick because my hangover is killing me. My name is Reganius Solaris. The guild leader couldn’t make it, but Heanor sends his regards.” He explained.
“I take it you still can’t remember anything? The goblin who brought you in mentioned something about that.”
Forgot simply shook his head with a shrug.
“I’ve got nothing, sorry. Some things are more familiar than others, but that’s about it.”The blood elf shrugged as well, waving for him to get dressed.
“Well, grab some food; we’ll give you a loan to get you back on your feet. There’s plenty of refugees from the island besides. Alaruna will show you to the docks, where you’ll work for a time. We need grunt work, just moving shipments onto boats. You’ll get a daily payment and have a room, so it’s better than nothing.”

Forgot nodded, pulling on his somehow-not-shredded white shirt.
“All the same, thanks.” He remarked, following Reganius out to the Inn entrance. The female orc was there; giving Reganius a wave.
Seeming to be friendly or not, she’d still be able to snap him in half.
As Reganius nodded and headed his own way, the orc woman waved to Forgot.
“Ah, you’re the new guy. Forgot, right? The whole memory thing…well, follow me. The name is Alaruna by the way.” She grunted as the goblin fell into line at her side.

“So. Can’t remember anything huh?” Alaruna mused, Forgot nodding with a frustrated grunt.
“Aye. Just fire, and then everything is blurry. It’s already starting to get on my nerves.” The goblin grumbled, his guide letting out a loud laugh.
“Well, perhaps it will solve itself in time. Incredible day or two it has been. The island erupting, and the return of-” She mused, eyes then narrowing as a rather dirty looking goblin waved to her and interrupted.
“Hey, got some of the nicest wares-WARGLEBLAAR-“
A jet of salty water promptly sprang up from between the dock planks and attacked the goblin’s mouth, Alaruna shaking her head as they continued on.
“That idiot has tried to scam at least five of us into buying his garbage.”

Forgot nodded, more surprised and enthralled than put off by the display.
Such power. She can control the elements at will? Perhaps just water…
Pretty impressive.
Stopping near a small wooden warehouse and a pile of crates, Alaruna gestured to each briefly.“It’s simple. A boat comes, you load the pre-stacked crates onto the boat. Rinse and repeat. The foreman will verify you worked the day with some breaks to eat. Fair enough?”
Much better than a goblin sweatshop…
“Aye, thanks. I’ll see you round?” Forgot asked, the orc smirking at him as she turned to leave.“Perhaps we’ll catch a drink later, if you survive your job for more than a day…”

*One Week Later*Forgot grinned as he raised the large mug, promptly downing the contents in a single go. To his eternal satisfaction, Alaruna slid over a couple pieces of silver as she smacked a hand to her face in defeat
“How did you just down five pints of that?” She muttered.

The week had flown by, Forgot’s duties being rather remedial but strangely satisfying. There was an alien itch at the back of the goblin’s mind as he worked; as though he wasn’t suited for this kind of thing. That said, it was incredibly satisfying to see a physical result from his and the crew’s efforts when loading the ships. The pay was good, and even after a few days had a sliver of savings to show for it. The guild had been remarkably welcoming, their members occasionally checking in on the amnesia-stricken goblin and inviting him to quite a few short amusing outings. On a more sombre note, Forgot had quickly discovered what the burning island business was about. Apparently some crazed dragon had returned and levelled hundreds of square miles, causing many volcanoes to erupt.
Namely, a certain island off the coast.

But that was for armies and other heroes to deal with; for Forgot, he just wanted to get some more coin and his life back on track.
Alaruna had finally agreed to have a drink with him the previous night, the orc shaman seeming to find him interesting-or at the very least amusing. Something about the powerful orc woman was enthralling- and she strangely seemed to return the interest (to what extend the goblin still wasn’t sure).
Forgot, to his credit, tried to not act fascinated at the ice-ale sculptures the Shaman could produce on a whim.

“Forgot? Ah, there you are.” A rough voice called, the goblin turning around and looking up at the tall blood elf in front of him.
“Guild Master Heanor, glad to finally meet you-well, officially!” Forgot proclaimed, his nerves soothed by the copious amounts of alcohol infusing his veins. A chuckle was Heanor’s response, the blood elf slapping down a small metal badge to the table.

“I hear you’ve been quite a hard worker this week, and helped out a few other guild members with their work load too.”
The goblin shrugged, waving off the words with a hand.
“Hey, I understand hangovers. Least I could do for you all.”
Heanor grinned, then gestured to the badge.
“What do you say we make it official? Care to join our guild?”
Forgot raised his mug, taking the guild seal in his other hand.
“Would be my pleasure!”
The tavern then roared with a toast to the newest addition to the guild, Forgot feeling more part of a family than he ever had in his life. As the festivities wore on, a newspaper was casually tossed aside, a simple title visible on the second page.
‘Vast fortune still remains unclaimed for missing Bilgewater Cartel Member...’

Profile template by Lea.

World of Warcraft belongs to Blizzard.
Story by Frode, characters by Tasha based in the world of Warcraft which belongs to Blizzard.