Daemon

Chapter 1

By: Dark-Elk

=+=+ Authors Note: This story happens approximately 50 or so years after Frozen Throne. Not sure exactly how many, but it really doesn't matter. =+=+

The stench of death hung in the air like a malignant fog. Mordecai struggled to keep his last meal down as he surveyed the gruesome scene before him. His face, an impassive mask, gave no hint to his company his true discomfort.

"Demonspawn!" spat a pale, spindly man from behind Mordecai, studiously avoiding the litter of corpses before the group. Mordecai tried to place the voice, but gave up the futile act. He was not known for his social skills.

"That is what it looks like," a tall, voluptuous brunette, clad in traditional mage robes, affirmed. Mordecai knew the voice well - he had fallen prey to her charms years ago, but their love, or lust, had been only fleeting. She was Anya Proudmoore, granddaughter of the legendary sorceress Jaina Proudmoore.

"No," Mordecai said quietly.

"What? This is obviously the work of demons. Their energies taint this room, and I can see the corpse of an imp lying under the body of the rearmost knight," argued the gravelly voiced paladin Arthur. "Being surrounded by these vile energies is making me ill."

"I didn't say the magic wasn't demonic, and I didn't disagree that there are demons in this chamber," replied Mordecai. He closed his eyes and raised his hands to chest level. He softly chanted for a moment before a small, glowing mass of light appeared in his outstretched hands. He lightly tossed the vibrant sphere at a dead soldier near his feet.

The light landed on the stomach of the soldier, and the trio behind Mordecai stared raptly as it flattened and began to spread across the body. Mordecai's head fell back, his eyes fluttering slightly as the light further obscured the body. Finally, his eyes shot open and one his hands fell limply to his sides, extinguishing the light.

"Mages."

"What? That's absurd!" exclaimed Anya.

"Doesn't mean I'm wrong," Mordecai said as he began rubbing his tired arms.

"Of course you could be wrong! Scrying spells like the one you just performed are notoriously unpredictable, even in the hands of powerful mages, and it's easier to misread the results than to get a correct reading!" she shot back.

"Which is why we are fortunate that I am not a mage, aren't we? Or did you forget what I am?" Mordecai asked quietly, turning back to face the assembly.

"I know all too well what you are, mageslayer!" Anya hissed venomously.

Mordecai merely shrugged and met Anya's emerald gaze. "I am of the order of Kalel'Nor. Whatever names you wish to call me are your own opinions," he said. "However, do remember that I spent many years training. I don't question your skills. You would do well not to question mine."

Anya folded her arms across her breasts sullenly, favoring him with a smoldering glare.

"Now, if I may continue. There were three mages in this room. Powerful mages," Mordecai amended. "I believe they summoned the imps and demons we see before us."

"That's impossible, Mordecai!" the pale man argued, whom Mordecai now remembered was called Edgar. "The castle's mystical wards should have detected such a foul act!"

Anya looked over at him and said, "It is possible for mages as powerful as Mordecai suggests to mask their energies. Mages powerful enough to summon demons and control them wouldn't have any trouble at all dodging the wards in the castle."

"So where are these mages?" asked Arthur as he looked around the chamber. "They obviously aren't here among the dead."

"If you'll notice," Mordecai said as he knelt down to the ground, "this summoning circle here was made of powdered rubies and rose quartz, a mix perfect for summoning lesser demons. The line is broken slightly here," he pointed out. "The break is in the direction of the window. I'd suggest they left that way."

"How could they?" Edgar asked curiously.

"I cannot tell which demon classes they summoned, aside from the obvious bodies in here, but I think it probable that they managed to summon one capable of flight," Mordecai said as he stood up again.

"Wonderful. A trio of powerful mages loose in the city, able to control demons. It sounds like this evening will be eventful," Arthur said grimly.

"You're probably right. I wouldn't think they'd be able to manage anything immediately. . .it's still a little light outside, and even powerful mages would have been drained casting these summons. We should have a small amount of time to alert the city," Mordecai said before turning to Edgar. "Go down to the governor's chambers and tell him what we've discovered. Have him call up the militia."

"Right. I'll find you once I've done that," Edgar said as he walked quickly out of the room, nimbly stepping around the bodies that covered the floor.

Mordecai turned to Anya. "Go rouse the resident mages. See if you can find anyone who's missing that would be powerful enough to manage these spells. Have all the available mages meet in the main courtyard."

Anya nodded sharply and said, "We'll be waiting for you," before she stepped out into the corridor.

"What about me?" asked Arthur suspiciously. "Wouldn't I have been a better choice to go talk to the governor?"

"No. You said earlier the energies in here were making you ill, meaning you are able to detect demonic magic easily. I need you with me to help me hunt down any of the demons that are in the city, assuming they're still here."

"You don't think they will be?" asked Arthur. "If they aren't here, why'd you want the militia and the mages?"

Mordecai walked slowly across the room, his hands clasped behind his back neatly. He stopped in front of the window and leaned against it, looking out at the setting sun. He glanced over to Arthur. "I have traveled much in the past few years, friend, since I left the Tolaria'Din, the citadel of the Kalel'Nor. In the past few months, there have been a number of occurrences such as these."

"Absurd! Surely the mage leaders would know of this!" Arthur exclaimed.

"I'm not sure that they aren't the ones responsible," Mordecai replied quietly.

Arthur stood in stunned silence before he said, "Those are heavy charges."

"They are, and I hope I'm wrong. It doesn't really matter who is summoning them at the moment. Merely the fact that the rift between our world and the Twisting Nether is wide enough to allow members of the Legion through is troubling enough," Mordecai said and turned to Arthur. "You know all about the last time they came through, don't you?"

"Sure. Everyone knows about how they came here with the help of the Guardian and created the Undead Scourge. It's why we live here instead of Lordaeron," Arthur said.

"The last Guardian of Tirisfal, Medivh. He was indeed the linchpin for those events. Many of the Orcs will tell you that he was the one who led the Horde here from Draenor," Mordecai said with an amused look on his face. "But what they don't tell you is that he hosted the spirit of Sargeras of the Legion."

"Is that so?" Arthur asked. "And how do you know that?"

"It's the reason my order was formed. The person who killed the form of Medivh that held Sargeras, the great warrior mage Khadgar, Medivh's former apprentice, decided that the world needed to be prepared if anything happened like that again."

"Why would a mage create an order of mageslayers?" asked Arthur. "Seems like he betrayed his own kind to me."

"That's just the name that the so-called "true mages" call my kind. Though we have killed mages, and are in fact trained to do so, our primary goal is to prevent the Legion from gaining a foothold in this world again. Mages helped bring them here before, and we're here to make sure they don't do it again. However, with the number of demon summons on the rise," Mordecai said as he pushed away from the window and walked closer to Arthur, "I believe they have begun to push through again."

Arthur shook his head sadly and said, "There are dark times in the future, then."

"The near future. Most of the demons haven't been reclaimed and slain. There's a small army out there," Mordecai said quietly.

"You think they will attack soon?"

"I'm sure of it," Mordecai replied with certainty.

"Then we'd better get moving. Maybe we can find these mages or some of the demonspawn before they go rejoin their kind," Arthur said before walking to the door and out into the hallway.

Mordecai lingered in the room, his eyes raking over the details before he sighed softly and followed Arthur.

=-|-=

"My men are at your command, Mordecai," spoke a lieutenant through his helmet's vents. "Is it true that there are demons in the city?"

"Possibly," Mordecai allowed. "They may also have already left."

"If they're still here, we'll find them."

"Split your men into three groups. I will lead one, and Arthur will take another. Leave the third group in the courtyard and await the mages that Anya is bringing."

"By your word, sir," the lieutenant said before turning and beginning to yell orders to his charges.

"Arthur, if you find demons, try to take them yourself with the men you've got. If you run across a mage you suspect of summoning them, send for me quickly. Don't try to fight him or her," Mordecai said.

"I hear you. I'm not quite up to tangling with mages yet. I think that me and these men can bash in demonspawn skulls easily enough, though," Arthur said with a grin before he started off at a fast jog, the militiamen falling in behind him.

Mordecai turned to the group of soldiers that remained, and yelled out, "Keep your eyes open. If you see a demon, tell me at once. If you see a mage, don't try to apprehend him! A mage powerful enough to summon demons is powerful enough to destroy you all without a second thought." He turned and walked into a side street, and beckoned for the worried soldiers to follow him.

=-|-=

"Mordecai sent us, Lady Anya. He wished for us to guard the courtyard along with any mages you returned with," the lieutenant told her, not able to keep from raking his eyes appreciatively across her form.

"See something you like?" Anya asked him harshly.

"Sorry, miss," the soldier said sheepishly before walking away.

"Men. Can't live with 'em, can't turn them into sheep," she muttered in disgust under her breath. She turned around and faced the half-dozen mages she had retrieved. "Mordecai says that there are demons in the city, maybe lead by powerful mages."

"Mordecai!" spat out one of them. "You're trusting a mageslayer?"

"I don't care if he's right or if he's wrong. The possibility that demons are loose is enough for me," she replied.

"This had better not be a wild Murlock chase, Anya, or the elder mages will hear of this, and I would hate to think what sort of consequences it might have for you," another mage said darkly.

"I'll worry about myself another time. Let's find these demons, if they still remain," she said.

=-|-=

Edgar drew his cloak closer around him as he wandered the upper heights of the castle, allowing himself a few moments of relaxation before joining the demon hunt. The sun had finally dropped below the horizon, and the sky was just beginning to change from dark blue to the black of night.

Edgar loved the night, and for good reason. As he walked, the cloak shifted enough to fall open again, revealing the small plethora of daggers that crossed his chest, and the vials that were secured to his belt; the garb of a skilled assassin. Edgar happened to be one of the best that weren't available for hire. Rather, he preferred to join armies and factions freely, performing a few dirty deeds before moving on. He considered himself a good and just man, one who killed only those deserving of death, rather than the enemies of those with large purses.

He paused and leaned against the rough-hewn stone balustrades that lined the corridors, his eyes scanning the horizon, sighing softly at the beauty of the stars that were just beginning to show themselves. He began to push away from the railing when something caught his eye: a small, flickering point of light, apparently far away.

He reached into a small leather pouch on his belt and pulled out a small collapsible telescope. He pulled it out to its full length before raising it to his eye and pointing it towards the light.

"Demons!" he exclaimed, his eyes widening. "A bloody army of them!"

He crammed the telescope back into bag and dashed off into the darkened corridor, yelling out Mordecai's name.

=+=+ Other Author's Notes: This is only my second WC story, so bear with me please. I'd like feedback if at all possible (I don't ask for it very often), because I'm not too sure of my skills in this universe. If you have suggestions or find plot errors between this and established material, please mention it!

Also, I'm not sure how long this will be. . .probably four or five chapters at most. And I don't have a name for this chapter yet. . .I'm working on it. I'll take suggestions of those too.

Fight on, Dark-Elk

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