Chapter 2

The strong waves lashed against the wooden hull of the ship strongly, causing it to sway slightly to the side. There were still minor chunks of ice still floating around, even though the climate had drastically improved. The wind was merciless as ever, lashing out every now and then. Most of the men of the expedition were huddled below the desks, most having sporting varying cases of frostbite, hypothermia and high fever. All except a few. One of them stood regally at the bow, his cloak also flowing in what seemed like a regal way. A lone yet small figure crept up from behind him.

"Arthas…."

"Yes, Jaina?"

"You should really get those fingers of yours treated. They have literally turned blue."

Arthas paused to look down at his own appendages. True to her words, they had indeed turned a sickly blue, showing that there was hardly any blood left in that part.

"It does not hinder me. Those men below are in greater need….."

"But you the priority."

"They have suffered more."

"You have suffered tenfold, Arthas. Listen to me!"

Arthas turned around and gave her a sad smile.

"I am."

"No you're not. You are their leader Arthas! If something happens to you, they'll lose their morale!"

"Nothing's going to happen to me."

"Yes it shall. If you leave these wounds unattended, it shall rot away your fingers. Go, Now."

The tone of command seemed strange, but Arthas obeyed it nevertheless. He had to admit, he was clearly helpless before her, succumbing to her every order like some dog to his master. He never minded it though, for he was far too happy to make it here alive. Jaina had taken it upon herself to narrate every detail of the Legion, a monstrous and never ending army which had consumed countless words before their own. Their motives were unclear, but one thing was clear. They were going to attack here, and no one would be able to stop their arrival. Their strength was itself legendary; there were myths that even as you slew one, three more monsters would take the former's place. There were more stories which described their bloodlust so great, that the sky used to be tainted by it. Later, it would burn and then would rain down monstrosities to help the conquest itself. And it was said that the leader of the monstrous army was so powerful itself that the very ground he used to walked used to die. His name was forbidden to be uttered, even forbidden to be written.

Bringing himself out of his stupor, Arthas found himself in his quarters, while Jaina was bustling around, apparently finding ointments for his fingers. Her face had a tired look, apparently from their hasty retreat. Fortunately, they were able to pull back without further delay, with almost nil losses. Arthas chuckled to himself as he thought how angry Mal'Ganis would be, seeing that his well laid plan go down the drain.

"There. All done."Jaina uttered, as she knotted the final of the bandages.

"Ow! That hurt!" Arthas had put on a playful tone, and had even pouted. It would be an understatement to say that he looked cute.

"Quit it…...Baby."

Arthas pouted again. Laughing, Jaina came over and sat next to him. It was a sickening silence, because a certain memory of a lip lock surged through both of their minds.

"You wound me." Arthas managed to speak out. His voice was still a normal tone, which was an achievement in itself.

"Stop it!"

They both sat down on the bed, facing each other. A pregnant silence was in the air, until Arthas spoke out.

"Jaina, I wanted to ask you something…"

"What is it?"

"Why did you come all the way to Northrend to save me? I mean" he faltered, seeing the hurt expression on her face." Everyone thought that I had gone mad, misguided by anger, blinded by vengeance. But still you came. You believed in me. You showed me the path. You brought me back. Why? What have I done to deserve all of this?"

Jaina sighed. She thought that it was something else. A knot which had entangled in her stomach gave way for free thinking.

"Because I knew that no one would. I mean someone had to do it, right?"

Arthas winced inwardly. He did not expect this answer. He tried his best to hide his disappointment, but failed.

However, Jaina did not notice it. She continued with her earlier dialogue, acting as if there were no distractions.

"Even if someone else had gone, I would have come with them too."

"What am I to you, Jaina?" Arthas repeated his earlier question.

"To me? A childhood friend, a nuisance, a prince, soon to become a king, a best friend-"

Arthas felt his innards going numb at her words. He felt as if someone had gripped his inner organs and was twisting them hard.

"- and the only man I've ever loved." She finished, giving him a smile.

Arthas was shocked. He had not expected the conversation to turn around like this. He managed to stutter out a dazed 'what' before she brought herself before him and gave him a wonderful kiss. The problem was that Arthas was still too dazed to kiss her back. She noticed this and gave him a questioning look.

"I must be dreaming…."

She chuckled before answering him with another kiss.

"No you're not."

"Are you sure of this Jaina? Do you really want to be with me?"

She really wanted to hit him, but remembering his fatigued and injured state she decided against it. She also remembered that Arthas was a bit thick-skulled, a fact that she had conveniently forgotten.

"Yes, I am Arthas. There isn't any other person that I entrust my love to."

"I'm honored." He replied, this time a bit with more gusto, before he kissed her again."Can you remind me why we stopped this earlier?"

"It was your stupid decision. You decided to put it off until you became a king while I became a full-fledged sorceress." Her voice held a tone of hurt, while her eyes had a bit of fire in them.

"My apologies. Can I make it up to you?" Arthas had a devious smirk.

Returning it, she said in an equally devious voice. "Of course you can."

Later at night, a lone figure stood again at the bow, this time, it had wrapped a blanket around itself. The frame was quite small, yet still it withstood the mild yet unending lashes of the cold air. The ships had anchored, finding that they needed to repair the damage to one of their hulls. The damage was undoubtedly due to a hidden iceberg, which was able to tear off a side portion of the hull clearly off, sending the target ship off balance. The ship had immediately stopped. The captain of the injured vessel had pleaded with Jaina to continue with the return journey, but being the ever so stubborn lady, she had ordered everyone to stop. Arthas seconded her decision, saying things like building more trust, keeping friends closer. The last statement brought back unpleasant memories for her.

A pair of hands encased the figure from behind, which turned into an embrace. Later Jaina found herself staring into Arthas's emerald orbs.

"What are you doing up here Jaina? And at this time?"

Jaina shook her head. "It's nothing Arthas. I just came up here for some fresh air."

"Jaina…this fresh air is dangerous if exposed to it for a long time you know. In fact you were the one who told me."

"I know. But I just….want to be here."

"Jaina. You can tell me what's bothering you."

Jaina fell silent. She turned back to face the ocean, her hands firmly clasping the cold wood of the boat."You know what's bothering me Arthas."

"Is it them?"

"Yeah. It's them. I really don't know how could be so stubborn?"

Flashback

Arthas and Jaina materialized from the waygate leading to Frostmourne. The was base was still thankfully standing, along with most of its occupants. However, just as they materialized, an undead attack waved lashed at their defenses. Arthas's right hand man and most trusted follower, Captain Falric spotted them immediately spotted them and came rushing over.

"Prince Arthas! What is Lady Proudmoore doing here? And where is Muradin? We cannot hold against the undead any longer, my lord!"

"Calm down Falric. This is not the time for answers. For now, we have to repel this attack wave. Meanwhile, I want you to gather the rest of the force by the bonfire post haste! I have an important announcement to make."

Falric nodded. He never questioned his prince and his long time friend. Even if he found these orders quite strange, he obeyed them nevertheless. Just then, he noticed the absence of a weapon in Arthas's hands.

"My price! Where is your weapon? Did you find the blade? OR did you lose your maul? Do you want another?"

Arthas shook his head and mentioned him to carry out his orders. Not even hesitating, he saluted and went off to carry his orders.

Jaina looked at his retreating figure. She turned to Arthas.

"Quiet obedient, isn't he?"

Arthas smiled. "He should be. He's my right hand and my closest friend I've got here. That is, apart from you."

"We'll worry about that later. Shall we deal with those monstrosities first?"

"I was about to mention the same."

Jaina twirled her staff in response. Even if Arthas lacked a weapon, he was well experienced in fighting without his weapons. He charged up his fists with holy powers. Giving a nod towards the attackers, he saw that a group of sorceresses were trying immensely to hold the invaders back, but were too tired. Knights were also present, but one swipe from the bulking abomination was enough to ground them.

"HOLD-YOUR- GROUND! PRICE ARTHAS TRUSTS US TO HOLD THIS GATE! WE SHALL NOT FALL!" One of the Knights shouted over the din of clashing metal.

Arthas charged into the fray, dealing a massive blow to a skeleton, which crumbled immediately against his light powers. A necromancer turned to look at him. The face of the undead caster turned into a leer, as he brought his staff back to unleash a spell. Arthas was still many years away from him, which spelt certain death for him. Just as his mouth opened, his torso was blasted opened from a blast, which sent the frail man immediately into the chasm of death. Arthas turned back and mouthed a faint thank you to Jaina.

"Move over Arthas. Pull your men back. Let me handle them."

"Are you sure?"

"Certainly."

Arthas gave her a fleeting glace, and then ordered his army backwards into the relative safety of the archer posts. Turning back he saw that the very air around Jaina was shimmering, as if the entire air had condensed. The land in front of her was barely visible, as it had disappeared under the cover of a thick mist. He had seen this only once before- when he was desperately trying to hold the town of Hearthglen from the undead waves. Soon, thick chunks of ice rained down from the sky, completely blanketing the area in front of her. The voices which came from the misted area made his stomach churn. As the mist lifted, the undead army was scattered. In pieces- as in body pieces.

With that, Arthas ordered the rest of his force to retire to the bonfire. As he approached the position, Falric was immediately by his side again. However, a peculiar sight caught his attention. Turning towards Jaina, he saw that she had noticed it too.

"Why are those dwarfs…glaring at us?"

Falric was quick to answer.

"I do not know the exact reason, my lady. It seems that they are extremely suspicious of you. And they are incessantly inquiring about Muradin, Prince Arthas."

"Hmmm. What did you tell them?"

"To assemble by the fire."

"Good."

Arthas signaled for everyone's attention.

"My friends, I have an importance announcement to make. I doubt that anyone of you knows Lady Proudmoore here, who has come all the way from Dalaran to Northrend for just one thing. She hastened over the vast oceans to tell me just this- our expedition here was an ambush. "Arthas pauses, for the gasps from the audience were loud."Yes. It is the truth. I've seen it myself. This force of the undead that the miserable mongrel commands- the same person who ravaged our country land; is just a fraction of the force of the undead. As you may have heard earlier, I had gone to retrieve a powerful artifact. A blade to be exact, to tip the odds in our favor. However, I was misled. That was nothing more than an instrument of the real master of the undead. The very dark energy resonating from the blade was enough to strangle the very life out of you. That couldn't be possible our salvation. Now, thanks to Lady-"

A thick accented voice cut his speech. "Wha' abou' Muradin, laddie?" The speaker was undoubtedly, a dwarf.

Arthas took in a long breath before continuing. He decided that the truth won't help much here.

"Muradin Bronzebeard was killed during the battle for retrieval of the blade."

Arthas ignored the startled cries.

"But make haste, Lady Proudmoore has revealed to me another thing. An ancient prophecy, dark, yet forgotten due the fear it instills. As we leave for Lordaeron, how much ever I would love to wait over there, along with you all, I simply cannot. For the prophecy that I spoke of earlier, mentions that the entire force of the undead, unstoppable and unforgiving, shall invade the country in less than two seasons. For that, we have to flee to the far western land of Kalimdor, just to ensure our safety. Remember the more time we waste here, the more time is running out for humanity. WE HAVE TO REACH THE SAFETY OF KALIMDOR. When we dock at Lordaeron, I beg you. Try to convince as many of your relatives as you can. Try to tell them, to flee with us. My father won't agree with this. That is why I have to tell you all of this now. We have to survive. That is all. Now we have a fleet ready for departure at the shores. Make haste and pack up. Carry as much as you can. We shall require the supplies- sooner or later. Make haste men!"

With that, the crown immediately burst into action. Jaina noted that they were extremely loyal to Arthas, never questioning him. They simply rushed back to their tents and started bringing the camp down. Meanwhile something caught her eye. A group of people was standing still amongst the orderly chaos. And all of them were glaring at her.

"Uuh, Arthas, why are the dwarfs glaring at me? Again?"

"Hmm. It seems that I have to intervene."

Arthas made his way to the stationary group, with Falric and Jaina at his heels. The dwarfs continued to glare at the approaching trio.

"What seems to be the problem?"

"Whaddya' means whas' the problem? Don' play dumb with us laddie!"

"Tell us wha' realy happe' to Muradin! "

"I told you! He was-"

"Don' give us dat lad! If ya came out aliv' from that figh' he shoul' too!"

Arthas went quiet. He really had to come up with something.

"This won't get us anywhere."

"LIKE HELL IT WILL! TELL US WHA' HAPPEN TO MURADIN!"

By then, Falric had his sword pointed at the dwarf's throat.

"What your tongue, dwarf!"

The dwarf ignored him.

"Wha' is this Arthas? Prophesy? Ya expext us to believi' that shite?"

"You believed the rumors about Frostmourne."

"Dat was anothe' thing. And ya expect us to believe her? How do we kno dat she isn't trickin' us?"

"Jaina is my childhood friend…"

"She may be yur friend, ma boy, but she clearl' aint ours."

Arthas grew exasperated.

"Look we are running out of time here. More the time we waste, the closer we inch to death. WE have to move now. And you can trust her. Muradin would have."

"Dontcya' tell us wha' he would hav' done!"

"Look, are you coming or not?"

"We aint budging from ere! Not till we da truth!"

Arthas was shocked. But however, he did not have much more time to waste.

"So be it."

End Flashback

"I mean, cant they have come? No doubt they would be all slaughtered by now!" Jaina completed.

"Naah. I wouldn't worry about them. They survived earlier, they can do it again."

"Are you really sure, or are you telling that just to calm me down?"

Arthas gave her a smile. "It's the truth."

She returned it. "So Arthas, what are you going to do for your weapon? You can't fight bare fisted all the time."

"Yeah, I've thought about it. In fact I have an idea of a wonderful weapon right here."

"What are you going to use for it?"

This time Arthas gave her a huge smile. He then proceeded to remove a medium shaped pouch from his hip. Finishing his job, he passed it to her and mentioned her to open it. Her curiosity piqued, she opened the pouch, only to reveal….

"Ice. What's the meaning of this Arthas?" The tone of disappointment in her voice was evident.

"This is not ordinary ice. Try melting it."

Jaina raised an eyebrow, but refused to comment. Arthas was still smirking at her, looking as if she would fail.

"This is so stupid…."

Concentrating her energy, she felt a familiar warmth growing on her hand. She took a piece of ice from the bag and caught it in her flaming hand. After a few good minutes, she opened her fists. Her jaw almost hit the deck.

"This is impossible…"

"No its not. This is not ordinary ice. It is the same ice which was used to encase Frostmourne. I spent most of my energies purifying it. I picked up many of these pieces before leaving the cave."

"But…. I mean….. how?"

"The prophet told me that the icy tomb of the Lich King was made from conjured ice form the fiery depths of hell itself. It took considerable power in making these shards pure, just think how mush powerful the head of the legion would be."

"I won't worry about that now. Our main problem should be our withdrawal from Lordaeron."

"Yeah. But I rather doubt that they will welcome me with open arms. Moreover, when I make my suggestion, I will not hear the end of it."

"And with all that is going along, I rather doubt that you will be becoming anytime soon-"

Arthas gave a silent nod.

"But you'll always be my king….." She finished her statement.

Had to leave the dwarfs behind... I have to set up the setting for the Warcraft:The Frozen throne

Let me tell you, i was really blown away by the reviews. 8 reviews! Thanks a lot! Woo hoo! The adds were welcome too.

The contest is still on, and no one yet has still managed to give out the correct answer. Please leave your answer in a SIGNED review, so that i can contact you for your answer. Dont forget, you have only one guess, and i dont want multiple guesses. If that's the case, the prize is forfiet! ( I am evil. MUHUHAHAHAHA) . Naah just kidding. Max three gusses.

I suggest that you all hurry up with the thinking part, cause the new Lich King will be unveiled probably after 2 or 3 chaps. So, keep guessing! I will be honest about my part of the bargain, so try!

And yeah, i actually need help. Not now, but i still need it. The help will be mostly be required later, but the announcement has to be done now. You see, i have not played World of Warcraft. I have only played the trial version, and that does not help much. So i'll require the help of some indivisuals who actually have completed the entire game. ( WOW: WOTLK) Not till Catalysm. Some people who have gone till lvl 80, etc. because i dont know what happens after lvl 20, and it sucks! I have to continuously refer WoW Wiki, and its such a pain in the rear. SO, if i had help, i could manage to update faster! Which is infact better for ya all! So, i shall feel better if some players, ( lvl 80 or close to it) contact me. message me, I wont require the help right away, but it will be better if we still got into contact.

Aah, and naturally, i will be willing to share spoilers with them too. Fair exchange, ya know.

And in case you are wondering why spoilers should be important, think again. I am going to change a majority of the plot, i.e some dead characters shall live, vice versa, some shall change sides, etc.

And please dont forget to drop a review! It makes me feel better.