Jon Chess unwrapped the newest acquisition for his meager library and placed it carefully on his work desk.
Chess had recently met with a mysterious quel'dorei named Dal'nathir Bloodrose. Chess had approached an old friend, Demisette Cloyse, in pursuit of someone who could begin training Chess in the rudiments of the arts of the Shadow. Jonathan was very good at approaching unseen and unheard, and his "blackout bombs" - small grenades which generated an acrid brimstone-tinged smoke cloud for concealment and evasion - were up to the highest standards of Gnomish engineering, the Legion was awash in fel magic, and it's practitioners and demons possessed abilities that made Jon's skills seem like children's' toys. If he was going to go up against Legion operatives in and around the Broken Shore, he would surely need more of an edge. Cloyse had put Chess together with Dal'nathir, and the two of them had met in the ruins of Ahn'Qiraj.
"This is the Light's Hope Chapel of shadow magic, Jonathan Chess," Bloodrose had explained. "It is an ideal place for you to begin your journey into the Path of Shadows". They had spoken at length, and Jonathan had learned of Natalie Seline, who had once been a Bishop of the Light in Stormwind. She had made an in-depth study of the orc necrolytes who had poured through the Dark Portal. Over the years her studies shifted to focus on finding out all she could about the dark energies and preached about the necessity of balance between The Light and the Darkness. After her death, the Kirin Tor sought to expunge all of her writings, locking what they could find in a vault in Dalaran, but the Forsaken re-discovered her teachings, and founded the Cult of the Forgotten Shadow.
The vault in Dalaran was a problem for another time, but perhaps it would not be necessary. While Jonathan was, by nature, possessed of an almost-fatal curiosity, perhaps he did not need her book Secrets of the Void, nor even her journal, a collection of notes penned by the leader of the Cult of Forgotten Shadows. Perhaps her studies could be pursued by studying some of the primary source materials Natalie Seline had used. Jonathan had, once upon a time, done some work for the Arakkoa in the Lower City section of Shattrath, striking against their Shadow-worshipping brethren in the nearby Terokkar Forest and Skettis. Perhaps he could find those, or at least the contents, translated from Ravenspeech to the Common Tongue.
Chess knew just the right person to ask, too.
One of Jonathan Chess' shameful secrets is that he was a collector and reader of steamy romances, especially those written by Bill Spearshaker, a dwarven author renowned for his exquisite penmanship and lurid plots. Chess had crossed all over Azeroth in the employ of Elling Trias, delivering orders of cheese, and taking fresh orders. If some of the packages he had delivered contained things other than cheese, Jonathan wouldn't know - the packages were sealed by Trias, and the orders were sealed by the customers. If certain goods other than cheese were delivered - say, illicit payments for information, and if those orders were actually intelligence reports, how would Jonathan have known? In any case, there wasn't a town in all of Azeroth that Jonathan hadn't visited, from Dalaran to the Undercity, and wherever he went, he made sure to check to see if there were any books of interest in the local bookshops. The supply was minuscule, and the demand heavy. Several of Spearshaker's novels, like Blue Moon, Jonathan had never found, and one night he had been approached by a Forsaken fellow named Cravitz Lorent.
"I understand you are looking for excitement...." the fellow had whispered to Chess. "Needs that can only be fulfilled by rare books." Jonathan had nodded, and that afternoon spent a small fortune on several additions to his personal library. Unfortunately for Chess, the shady book dealer had no shop, but was often found in the Dalaran underground, called the Underbelly. The Underbelly was the old Dalaran sewer system, and it was inhabited by rogues and ne'er-do-wells, who operate the black market, where many things of a less than legal nature could be found.
Jonathan took himself to Dalaran, and walked the tunnels of the Underbelly, talking with the usual con artists, poisoners, fences, and grifters - including a troll named, appropriately enough, Griftah - putting out the word that Chess was looking for Cravitz, and could be reached at the Legerdemain Lounge.
He didn't have long to wait - just until sundown.
Cravitz appeared in the doorway to the common room of the Legerdemain Lounge, and approached Jonathan.
"Jonathan Chess. You have summoned me - what is it you desire? I have still not located a reasonably-priced copy of Blue Moon..."
"This is something else. I am in the market for translated books which teach Shadow magic - I know that the Arakkoa in the Outlands have such things, but no idea how to go about obtaining them. I thought that a merchant of your resources might have a better..."
"I have Act Like a Crone, Think Like a Sage, I have Augury Without Bounds, I have Basketweaving the Sinister Way," listed the Shady Book Seller. "I have Curses: A Practical Guide. Eat, Scry, Love. Fifty Layers of Shadow, although I am told it gets everything wrong. I have How To Jinx Your Enemies Without Really Trying. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Hexxers. The Art of Darkness. What Exactly Is Scrying Anyway?... "
"Wait, let's go back. How much for The Art of Darkness?" asked Chess.
"I have a slightly scuffed version without dust jacket, but the pages are tight and the binding has not cracked," informed the Forsaken, and the price bargaining began. At the end of the day, Jon Chess had significantly dipped into his cash reserves on hand but had obtained copies of Wildhammer Book of Verse ("A collection of the filthiest limericks you've ever laid eyes on"), Dirty Tricks, Vol 1, and a volume of Scarlet Confessional Book.
And The Art of Darkness.
Chess had recently met with a mysterious quel'dorei named Dal'nathir Bloodrose. Chess had approached an old friend, Demisette Cloyse, in pursuit of someone who could begin training Chess in the rudiments of the arts of the Shadow. Jonathan was very good at approaching unseen and unheard, and his "blackout bombs" - small grenades which generated an acrid brimstone-tinged smoke cloud for concealment and evasion - were up to the highest standards of Gnomish engineering, the Legion was awash in fel magic, and it's practitioners and demons possessed abilities that made Jon's skills seem like children's' toys. If he was going to go up against Legion operatives in and around the Broken Shore, he would surely need more of an edge. Cloyse had put Chess together with Dal'nathir, and the two of them had met in the ruins of Ahn'Qiraj.
"This is the Light's Hope Chapel of shadow magic, Jonathan Chess," Bloodrose had explained. "It is an ideal place for you to begin your journey into the Path of Shadows". They had spoken at length, and Jonathan had learned of Natalie Seline, who had once been a Bishop of the Light in Stormwind. She had made an in-depth study of the orc necrolytes who had poured through the Dark Portal. Over the years her studies shifted to focus on finding out all she could about the dark energies and preached about the necessity of balance between The Light and the Darkness. After her death, the Kirin Tor sought to expunge all of her writings, locking what they could find in a vault in Dalaran, but the Forsaken re-discovered her teachings, and founded the Cult of the Forgotten Shadow.
The vault in Dalaran was a problem for another time, but perhaps it would not be necessary. While Jonathan was, by nature, possessed of an almost-fatal curiosity, perhaps he did not need her book Secrets of the Void, nor even her journal, a collection of notes penned by the leader of the Cult of Forgotten Shadows. Perhaps her studies could be pursued by studying some of the primary source materials Natalie Seline had used. Jonathan had, once upon a time, done some work for the Arakkoa in the Lower City section of Shattrath, striking against their Shadow-worshipping brethren in the nearby Terokkar Forest and Skettis. Perhaps he could find those, or at least the contents, translated from Ravenspeech to the Common Tongue.
Chess knew just the right person to ask, too.
One of Jonathan Chess' shameful secrets is that he was a collector and reader of steamy romances, especially those written by Bill Spearshaker, a dwarven author renowned for his exquisite penmanship and lurid plots. Chess had crossed all over Azeroth in the employ of Elling Trias, delivering orders of cheese, and taking fresh orders. If some of the packages he had delivered contained things other than cheese, Jonathan wouldn't know - the packages were sealed by Trias, and the orders were sealed by the customers. If certain goods other than cheese were delivered - say, illicit payments for information, and if those orders were actually intelligence reports, how would Jonathan have known? In any case, there wasn't a town in all of Azeroth that Jonathan hadn't visited, from Dalaran to the Undercity, and wherever he went, he made sure to check to see if there were any books of interest in the local bookshops. The supply was minuscule, and the demand heavy. Several of Spearshaker's novels, like Blue Moon, Jonathan had never found, and one night he had been approached by a Forsaken fellow named Cravitz Lorent.
"I understand you are looking for excitement...." the fellow had whispered to Chess. "Needs that can only be fulfilled by rare books." Jonathan had nodded, and that afternoon spent a small fortune on several additions to his personal library. Unfortunately for Chess, the shady book dealer had no shop, but was often found in the Dalaran underground, called the Underbelly. The Underbelly was the old Dalaran sewer system, and it was inhabited by rogues and ne'er-do-wells, who operate the black market, where many things of a less than legal nature could be found.
Jonathan took himself to Dalaran, and walked the tunnels of the Underbelly, talking with the usual con artists, poisoners, fences, and grifters - including a troll named, appropriately enough, Griftah - putting out the word that Chess was looking for Cravitz, and could be reached at the Legerdemain Lounge.
He didn't have long to wait - just until sundown.
Cravitz appeared in the doorway to the common room of the Legerdemain Lounge, and approached Jonathan.
"Jonathan Chess. You have summoned me - what is it you desire? I have still not located a reasonably-priced copy of Blue Moon..."
"This is something else. I am in the market for translated books which teach Shadow magic - I know that the Arakkoa in the Outlands have such things, but no idea how to go about obtaining them. I thought that a merchant of your resources might have a better..."
"I have Act Like a Crone, Think Like a Sage, I have Augury Without Bounds, I have Basketweaving the Sinister Way," listed the Shady Book Seller. "I have Curses: A Practical Guide. Eat, Scry, Love. Fifty Layers of Shadow, although I am told it gets everything wrong. I have How To Jinx Your Enemies Without Really Trying. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Hexxers. The Art of Darkness. What Exactly Is Scrying Anyway?... "
"Wait, let's go back. How much for The Art of Darkness?" asked Chess.
"I have a slightly scuffed version without dust jacket, but the pages are tight and the binding has not cracked," informed the Forsaken, and the price bargaining began. At the end of the day, Jon Chess had significantly dipped into his cash reserves on hand but had obtained copies of Wildhammer Book of Verse ("A collection of the filthiest limericks you've ever laid eyes on"), Dirty Tricks, Vol 1, and a volume of Scarlet Confessional Book.
And The Art of Darkness.
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