Music: UNOPENED FLOWER by 2002

The rain reduced to mere spit-spots, clouds thinned, and sun rays reached through the gloom turning the land below golden. 

I flew to the port side and sat on the railing.  I was excited yet apprehensive  -  I was heading home. With my memories now fully restored, I was living with a new fear. 

Over the past three years, so many things happened which had brought Sarah, Illidan and myself closer.

With Sarah, it was simple – I loved her; from the first moment I found her in Elwyn Forest. A traveller from a world called Earth, she came to my planet spouting fantastic stories of the Burning Legion. In her world, she had played a game which mirrored Azeroth. She knew so much about our homeland and our people, right down to specific individuals, including Illidan - especially Illidan.

His body had been frozen, held within a fel prison, and his soul wandered, lost in the Twisting Nether – the afterlife.

Sarah was determined to rescue him. She told us he was pivotal in the fight against the Legion.

Extracting Illidan's soul from The Twisting Nether had cost Sarah dearly. And when the Demon Hunter saved her life afterwards, it altered her in more ways than any of us had foreseen.  With both Illidan and Sarah's powers enhanced, they helped us defeat the enemy.

Not only did she now bear the markings of a Demon Hunter, but over time, she had also developed new skills; one being her ability to read my mind – when it was my own. My reaction, when she broke the news, bore an agony like no other. I was furious.

By then, The Void Lords were our latest and most deadly threat. Thanks to Illidan's advanced warning, I was aware the Void could alter our thought processes and manipulate emotions; still, the knowledge had not protected me from their influence.

I became unreasonable, cold, detached, quick to anger, and intolerant of both Sarah and Illidan.

I had found the tiniest bit of criticism aimed at the Kirin Tor hugely offensive. Illidan had challenged our abilities to deal with the then-pending threat of complete annihilation. Regrettably, my own doubts had fuelled my irritation towards him; his connotations and alternative suggestions having gnawed at my nerves.

And even though deep down, I knew he was no threat to the relationship I shared with Sarah, the bond between her and Illidan also irked me.

Yet, when I spoke with Sarah at the battlefront in Draenor, and she told me her greatest curse was to love me, somehow, that pierced the negative shroud in which the Void had enveloped me – albeit for only a few short hours.

It had been sufficient for me to ensure I made the necessary preparations should I - as I suspected I might - need to shape-shift in the Dark Portal to survive its destruction.

I was well aware of the consequences if one provoked metamorphosis within a time portal. Doing so meant you adopted that form, permanently. Therefore, within the journal, I inscribed an ancient spell, known as the Thalassian Secret - which was the only way to bring me back.

 With the magic's foundations steeped in Elven history and the arcane, I knew Illidan would be the one to interpret and administer the spell.

I depended on Sarah finding that book. Most of the content was for her eyes only; no-one else could read the words meant for her. But, I had enchanted the journal.

The Thalassian Secret required to be 'hidden' beneath other text, and that was for the Demon Hunter to find. While I recognised many of the words and chants, I was not competent enough to perform that brand of magic. Only Illidan would be able to achieve that. 

Perhaps Sarah had not given him access to the book? I could only hope the magic within the pages would call to him.

But even if it did, my irrational behaviour before the collapse of the Dark Portal could determine whether he chose to work the spell for me – or not.

Ironically, I found myself depending on that bond between the Demon Hunter and Sarah to make me whole again.

I tried hard to ignore the fact I had absolutely no idea if anyone who had been subjected to the magic had survived.  Perhaps I had not planned prudently at all - but it was a risk I had to take.

The sound of the engines changed, stirring me from my morbid reverie. The zeppelin ascended to cross the Northern Elwynn Mountains. Clouds, light and airy, hung over the ranges. The mist parted, opening the way ahead as the enormous craft cleared the peaks.

My heart started to beat faster as Stormwind's cathedral spire came into view. The crisp white and sand-coloured stone of the city's buildings greeted me - I was home. 

Majestic turrets, towers, rooftops, cobbled streets and stunning landscaped gardens opened before us. I noted a new feature erected in the recently restored gardens off Cathedral Square. Covered entirely by a heavy tarpaulin,  the subject remained hidden from view.

The zeppelin's engine changed gear again, and it started its descent. Venturing above the city rooftops, it turned slowly and headed towards the keep. Atop the royal residence, blue Alliance standards emblazoned with the head of a lion rippled in the breeze.

On the uppermost balcony, I could make out two figures, hands shielding their eyes against the sun, watching our approach. King Varian and Prince Anduin were poised, ready to furnish the Horde visitors with a royal welcome. 

To their left, a landing platform rose from the central tower -specially constructed for the dignitaries from Quel'thalas to disembark.

As the craft came to moor, Varian and Anduin, escorted by the Royal Guard, arrived at the base of the steps waiting for the Regent Lord and his advisors.