The idea of this fic, has been pacing through my mind for some time, waiting for me to finally put it on "paper". It took a bit for me to find the proper setting, untill I remembered the events from the instance "Halls of Reflection" in which there is a moment where Jaina is alone with Arthas.

I have always liked the character of Arthas Menethil and his romance with Jaina Proudmoore, but I disagreed with how the producers handled the rest of the story, reason why I wrote this little piece of work. Note that this is a story based in an alternate universe (which is hinted through many of the details within the story, but one can never be too sure of what people understand).

If you happen to read this fic but do not know the characters, I recommend you view /watch?v=DHY85O8mFo8 and /watch?v=K7k9fUqbcyE&feature=related (in said order and on youtube) for an idea on appearance (and perhaps a slight amount of insight regarding the whole background story).

"Remember, Arthas, we are paladins. Vengeance cannot be a part of what we must do. If we allow our passions to turn to bloodlust, we will become as vile as the orcs."

…

"What is this? What are you doing, my son?"

The image of his father's bloodied crown on the floor of the Lordaeron throne room flashed in his mind.

…

"You've lied to your men… and betrayed the mercenaries who fought for you. What's happenin' to you, Arthas?"

…

"What does he say to you, young prince? What does the Lord of the damned whisper to you through the blade?"

Another image flashed - this time the face of Mal'Ganis, contorted in agony as he thrust Frostmourne through the demon's chest.

…

"Return the blade… Complete the circle… RELEASE ME FROM THIS PRISON!"

…

"Now… we… are one!"

[…]

Arthas opened his eyes. Just a nightmare… or was it a sweet dream from the time before he had turned into the monstrosity he was now. He lifted his hand to his chest, burdened by the heavy plates that composed his armor. Not even a trace of a heart beating inside… So why then does he dream? Does the Lich King even sleep? No, he thought… The Lich King does not sleep, does not dream, does not feel… but he is still Arthas Menethil. Should he ever forget that, the spirit dwelling within him, the monster, the darkness, the Lich King… would take control and his legions of undead soldiers would spill upon the world like a tide, washing away all life.

"We have guests… Arthas." The other presence within his body whispered "They have breached the Halls of Reflection. Frostmourne is within their reach."

"They would not dare touch the blade… not if they want to leave with their souls still within their bodies."

"You did…" Arthas could not see it but traces of thoughts depicting a grin came into his mind as Ner'Zhul spoke these last words.

[…]

"Stand back. Touch that blade and your soul will be scarred for eternity. I must attempt to commune with the souls locked away within Frostmourne."

The young archmage looked upon the blade that corrupted the once noble prince of Lordaeron and brought the entire kingdom to ruins. Arcane energies started to flow from her hands, trying to pierce the enchantments on the blade and before soon, gassy figures formed as legion before Jaina and her allies. From among the faceless figures of men and women that represented the souls Frostmourne had devoured, one stood out to greet her.

"Jaina… Jaina, could that trully be you?"

"Uther…dear Uther… I am… so sorry…" She recognized the leader of the once proud Order of the Silver Hand paladins.

"Jaina, you haven't much time! The Lich King sees what the sword sees. He will be here shortly!"

"Arthas is here? Maybe I –"

"No, girl… Arthas is not here. Arthas is merely a presence within the Lich King's mind… a dwindling presence."

"But Uther, if there is any hope of reaching Arthas, I… I must try."

"Jaina, you must listen to me! You must destroy the Lich King! You cannot reason with him. He will kill you and your allies and raise you as powerful soldiers of the Scourge!"

"Tell me how, Uther… How do I destroy my prince? My… "

"Snap out of it girl! You must destroy the Lich King at the place where he merged with Ner'Zhul… atop the spire, at the Frozen Throne. It is the only way."

"You are right… Forgive me. I… I do not know what got hold of me." Jaina took a moment and regained her composure. "We will deliver this information to our allies who fight the Scourge within Icecrown Citadel."

"There is one last thing you need to know. Aaarghhh…" The souls behind Uther vanished "He… is… aaargh… coming. You… you must-"

"Silence, paladin!" The sword siphoned Uther's image back into its form, at its master's command. "You seek to commune with the dead?" The blade disappeared from its pedestal in a flash, reappearing within Arthas' hand. "You shall have your wish." The ground beneath the hall was torn asunder and two champions of the Scourge rose up, their decaying flesh barely attached to their bones.

"Falric, Marwyn… bring their corpses to my chamber after you are through."

"As you wish… my Lord." Marwyn spoke with a guttural voice.

Arthas turned to the open gates behind him, leaving the hall.

"You won't deny me this, Arthas! I must know! I must find out!" In the blink of an eye, Jaina faded from her location and appeared past the heavy iron doors which were now closing behind the Lich King.

[…]

A swirl of feelings had overcome her when she saw Arthas and in the spur of the moment she had abandoned her allies, but even with her conscience already eating away at her, she had to know if the man before her was still her beloved or the monster everyone was painting him out to be. There would be no other chance.

He continued to walk through the enormous hallway as if he had not noticed her presence.

"Arthas, stop!" The air around Jaina became increasingly cold with each step she took to follow him. She looked to the left and then to her right, noticing the skeletal remains of soldiers which were, until then still as statues, and were now coming to life with sluggish movements and hushed groans. The Icecrown Citadel was composed of these hallways, all filled with undead servants who only waited for their master's command to rise up and bring death to the living. An entire graveyard surrounded by impregnable walls… this was Icecrown Citadel, seat of the Lich King. It suddenly became obvious to her that they stood no chance to win against him, not when every one of their fallen would be raised to strengthen his armies. So then why? Why did he not attack the rest of the world? Why did he give them time to prepare? Why did he allow their army to siege his citadel and breach its halls?

The skeletal hand that burst out of the ground, trying to grab her brought her attention back from her trail of thoughts to her current situation.

"Arthas!" She could barely move from the cold air that was now almost unbreathable. The silhouette of her beloved seemed so distant. "A-Arthas… please…"

His grip on Frostmourne's tightened with each of her words. She was dying behind him, chocked by the hungering cold the dark spirit within him was emanating. Was this how he would let it end for her? The sound of her collapsing reached his ears.

[…]

"Jaina…" She opened her eyes when she felt the weight of his hand on her shoulder. His minions crumbled to their former state and the air got warm again.

"Arthas…" She paused, unsure of what to say to him, if the being in front of her was him to begin with. "… why?"

"There was no other way… The Lich King had to be controlled… has to be destroyed. There was no other way…"

"But…"

"I understood it all the moment I picked up Frostmourne for the first time in order to save our people -who he was, what he wanted and eventually what I had to do to stop him."

She rose up to look him in the eyes.

"Killing my own father was the first of his tests… and the first I passed. Everything that followed was done to prove myself to him. Men, women and children, butchered, denied their peace in death by being raised as mindless undead." He turned away from her. "I took my father's kingdom and ground it to dust in a matter of days, damning my people, damning my own soul. This was the price to pay in order to save the world from him."

"…"

"His hatred for the living was only matched by his hunger for power, and to gain more power, he needed a host… but as I shattered the crystal atop the Frozen Throne my body became his new prison and ever since I have been fighting him, gaining time…" He glanced at her over his shoulder "…giving life the chance to triumph over death."

Jaina's eyes widened in shock at his words. It all made sense to her, now, but to make such a sacrifice…

"We were so wrong… Arthas, there has to be a way to-"

"Don't you understand? I cannot be saved! I must not be saved! Eventually, the darkness within me will have control and when that comes to pass, life in this world will cease to exist. He will die with me and nobody must ever know the truth of what happened."

He gently lifted her chin with his hand.

"I will gladly give my life to stop him from desecrating what I hold most dear. I am… sorry, my love. There is no other way." Before she could reply, Arthas' grabbed her throat, lifting her in the air.

"Release her, monster!" The champions that breached the Halls of Reflection with Jaina had managed to defeat the Lich King's minions and were now rushing to her defense.

"Your allies have arrived. You will all die!" He let go of her, knowing full well that she would use her magic to help them escape their doom in a foolish fight against him. A moment later, he felt the invisible chains of her binding spell. It was nowhere near powerful enough to hold him, but he had to play along.

"He is too powerful. I am so sorry, heroes… I had to see for myself. To look into his eyes one last time in order to be convinced. Arthas…" She glimpsed at him again, with tears in her eyes, knowing that it would be for the last time. "Arthas is gone… We now know what must be done. "Her body and those of her allies vanished in a flash as she transported them outside the citadel.

[…]

At the peak of Icecrown Citadel, atop the Frozen Throne. surrounded by his minions and holding the runeblade Frostmourne, the Lich King awaited the slaughter which was to come.

"Jaina…"

Because I do not wish to individually explain to each reader that misses what is already obvious if they paid attention to the details in the story (and the fact that it is stated within the intro that it is an AU), I shall say it here: This is an alternate universe. In this alternate universe, Ner'Zhul DIES with Arthas... it is the whole point of why Arthas chose to become the jailor of Ner'Zhul and wants to die, so that Ner'Zhul can die with him. Also, the reason he needs an entire army to kill him as the Lich King is because an endangered Ner'Zhul would fight him for control with more ferocity and not simply allow Arthas to kill himself and be done with this whole drama. Arthas' plan was foolproof in that he wanted an army to fight him just in case he ever lost control of Ner'Zhul along the way, and the ones fighting him, if poorly trained or few in number, would die. For those who have knowledge on the Naruto manga/series, try to imagine Arthas having become the Jinchuuriki of Ner'Zhul (no it was not inspired by Naruto, but it is the closest thing that comes to mind now.) and when the host dies, the spirit within dies as well... but the spirit takes certain precautions in order to protect the body of the host.

That is all. Reviews (be they good or bad) are appreciated.