I present to you, my faithful readers, Chapter 3 of Rise of the True Death God. So Ichigo's journey on Azeroth has hit a snag with his first encounter with a race other than humans although, to be honest, the forsaken are 'technically' human corpses but I digress. I am impressed that the number of reviews, favorites, and alerts continues to increase. I'm already at over 50 reviews and 100 alerts/favs for only two chapters, which is remarkable!
I will like to once again thank General Zargon for beta reading this chapter. I must have gone through 5 revisions as he kept pointing out grammatical and plot errors. His pointing out of several glaring mistakes and Ichigo OOC moments added a lot of text to this chapter that I think makes it better. You should go check out his stories when you have a chance.
There are several things I want to point out:
1) I am still debating whether or not to make his zanpakuto Zangetsu. Before anyone gets upset about this Ichigo is still at the point in time where he is using Rukia's shinigami power as his own. Who is to say that given enough time Rukia's power would influence his own, innate, powers and warp them into something new? Food for thought.
2) If you want to see what Ichigo's armor is based upon look up 'Alabaster Plate.'
3) I saw the Legend of Korra season finale and now I have a strong urge to include a shaman named Korra in my story. Eh, I'm sure the urge will pass eventually.
Revised: November 19, 2013: I accidentally uploaded the chapter with the rough draft of Sylvanas's conversation. I took a look at it (with the help of a reader) and saw that she was completely out of character at one point. It has been updated and she should now be more in line with her characterization.
...
Rise of the True Death God: Chapter 3
Ichigo's sleep that night was anything but pleasant. Instead of his usual dreamless slumber he found himself involuntarily subjected to a mixture of dreams and nightmares that caused him to toss and turn in his bed.
"Where am I?"
He was standing in the middle of upon first glance looked to be Karakura Town. Glancing from side to side Ichigo noticed that there was no one else. He could hear no cars, people or even the standard noises and sounds that he had come to expect from his hometown. Even the animals that somehow made their homes in the trees and buildings were quiet. It was almost as if he was standing in the middle of a ghost town.
Shifting his gaze skyward Ichigo saw that the normal blue sky had been replaced by a swirling vortex of black, white and gray that seemed to be centered directly above him. Staring up into the center of the vortex Ichigo couldn't help but be wary of what awaited on the other side. Unable to quell the feeling of unease bubbling up in his mind Ichigo began walking down the deserted street, his footsteps echoing as he went.
"Why didn't you save me big brother? I was all alone."
"Yuzu?" Ichigo spun around at the voice, "Yuzu I-"
What he saw was not his sister. What stood in front of him was something alien in the shape of Yuzu Kurosaki. Her normally expressive and hope-filled eyes were now dead and a dark shadowy mist constantly wafted off her body only to dissipate inches later. When he took a step towards her the shadows surrounding Yuzu doubled and a harsh wind prevented him from getting any closer.
"Why did you leave me to die?"
"I didn't!" he argued. He knew this thing wasn't his sister but his heart was clenching just from the voice. It might not be Yuzu but it sounded just like his sister, "I tried to save you!"
The shadowy figure mimicking Yuzu didn't say anything. Instead the shadows surrounding her enveloped her body and a moment later his other sister Karin was standing in her place, "We waited for you to save us Ichigo. Dad said you wouldn't let us get hurt. Where were you when the demons came to our house?"
His fist clenched at the heart wrenching accusation. What was the point of asking him these questions if he already knew the answer?
"I didn't want to leave you behind," he answered somberly after a moment, "I tried to come back for you. There's no excuse for leaving you and Yuzu alone. I'm sorry Karin."
When he received no response Ichigo looked up and saw the shadow figure of Karin had vanished. After briefly looking around the gray and dreary streets Ichigo began to wonder if he had actually even seen them to begin with. Sighing and turning around he wondered if the guilt over everything that happened was beginning to erode his sanity. He knew, damn it he knew, that nothing that happened on his world was his fault but he couldn't help but take the blame for it. His name meant 'one who protects' and yet he wasn't able to do a damn thing to save anyone. Some protector he was…
A loud crash reverberated through the area and nearly knocked Ichigo off his feet. Looking around for what could have caused it Ichigo saw a column of smoke and fire rising from behind some buildings to his right. As he tried to think what could have caused it he heard a different sound, almost like something shifting a great amount of weight, come from the same direction.
"What the hell was that?"
His question was answered as a large clawed hand gripped around the roof of the building in front of him. That claw was quickly followed by an enormous green dragon that had to stand nearly twenty feet high and more than triple that in length.
"What the fuck?"
Ichigo's outburst caught the green dragon's attention. As it spun to look down on him with its glowing, pupil-less eyes it growled. While that was frightening enough on its own the dragon then spoke to him.
"Your kind does not belong in the realm of dreams! Begone!"
With that the dragon reared its head back and let loose a stream of green flames towards him. Unable to react in time Ichigo crossed his arms in front of his face and braced himself as the emerald fire enveloped his body.
Ichigo woke up with a start. Taking in a couple of deep breathes it took him a few seconds to realize that he was not on fire and everything that had just happened was only a dream, or more like a nightmare. Laying back down as his breathing and heart rate returned to normal he glanced through the single-paned window and saw the first rays of the early morning sun beginning to filter through the trees of Hillsbrad and into his room.
Turning away from the window and staring at the ceiling Ichigo wondered what his dream meant. It seemed to real to be a normal dream. In fact, if he thought about it, it was eerily similar to how Medivh had first come in contact with him the day before the Burning Legion arrived. Ichigo didn't want to make any conclusions but he was wary about what it meant.
"What the hell was up with that dragon? What did it mean I didn't belong?"
Ichigo knew that green dragon wasn't part of his dream but he couldn't explain how. There was just something strange and foreign about the dragon that made him think it came to his dream for a purpose.
"Who's going to believe me?" he sarcastically thought as he rose out of bed. Sitting on the edge of the bed and stretching his sore muscles, he looked around the small, but comfy, room that Phin Odelic had been nice enough to rent for him.
The room had all the basic amenities he'd come to expect from an inn. There was a bed, a nightstand and a small writing desk in the corner across from the door. The window next to the bed gave him a good view of the surrounding forest.
"Wait a second…"
Something seemed different than he remembered. Ichigo looked around his room again and saw a piece of paper folded up on his desk. Curious about how it got there he walked over and unfolded it to find it was a handwritten note.
"Ichigo," he began reading out loud, "This is Phin Odelic. I want to thank you for the help yesterday. Go talk to Robert at his workshop as soon as you can. He has something that I think you'll appreciate."
Ichigo looked at the note for several moments before crumpling it up and tossing it into the trash. Putting on his shihakusho, mindfully noting that it seemed to be in even worse shape than it was yesterday, he left his room and headed towards the blacksmith.
...
Ichigo stared at the mannequin draped in a suit of armor with a mixture of disbelief and awe.
"How the hell did you manage to do this without measuring me?"
Robert Aebischer chuckled, "Don't you remember? I wasn't exaggerating when I said was the best blacksmith north of the Wetlands. You wouldn't believe how many requests I get to come back to Stormwind and train a bunch of children. I have spent so many years crafting and forging armor and weapons that the moment you walked in yesterday I had a rough estimate of your height, weight and sizes."
"Yeah…" Ichigo was a little disturbed by this but decided to push past it, "It is done?"
"I began working on it yesterday evening. Usually I don't start for a couple of days but you must have done something really important because Marcus came to me and, in his own way, ordered me to have your armor done before noon today."
Ichigo inwardly sweated a little. How does someone explain that they have the leader of a nation of the undead out for his blood? Hopefully Phin was right and he still had a few hours before Sylvanas, or whatever her name was, retaliated. Putting his troubles with the forsaken on the backburner for the moment Ichigo stepped forward and examined the armor Robert had crafted for him.
"You like it?" Robert said, the pride in his work evident in his voice, "I based it off the Alabaster armor model but I decided to make a few adjustments and modifications."
"Modifications?" Ichigo picked up one of the silver gauntlets and found that it weighed next to nothing but that was impossible. The metal looked and felt like steel and yet it weighed nothing close to that.
"For starters I decided to forgo fitting you a helm."
Ichigo dropped the gauntlet back down and looked at Robert, "Why?"
"Since you use a zweihander you need as much visibility as you can. A helm, while protecting your head, would limit your field of vision and allow an opponent to potentially sneak up on you. I assume you don't want a blade piercing through your neck because you didn't see the enemy coming."
"I suppose that makes sense," Ichigo muttered although, if he was honest, it really didn't but Robert was the blacksmith so he had to trust him on this matter.
Robert nodded sagely and pointed to several of the interlocking silver plates, "Instead of simply using mithril I added in a small amount of truesilver to increase your defense against magic."
"Hold on a second," Ichigo stopped Robert before he could go any further, "How does it help with magic?"
Robert looked as if Ichigo wasn't close to being the first one to ask him that, "Truesilver ore has several arcane properties that a skilled blacksmith like myself can take advantage of. If refined correctly, truesilver's mystical properties can be concentrated to the point where a small amount added to the forging process can resist or even negate certain magical attacks. I wouldn't recommend walking head on into a Fire Blast though. Truesilver might stop magic but the heat from the spell will still cook you alive."
"Now then," the blacksmith continued speaking once Ichigo was done asking him questions, "I went one step further. If you take a look under the armor itself you can see the mithril chainmail as well as the undershirt and cloth leggings. A good hunter, especially if they're a night or high elf, can hit between the metal plates with their eyes closed. That is where the chainmail comes in. The connected rings will absorb and dissipate the energy in the arrows but only if shot at from a distance. At close range…well, I don't need to tell you what will happen but it won't be a pretty sight."
"Won't the combined weight of the armor and chainmail make it hard for me to move?"
"You must never have spoken to a blacksmith before," Robert shook his head and reaching over to a stack of ingots. Lazily picking one at random, he tossed it into the air before throwing it at Ichigo. Ichigo let out a shout of surprise and attempted to grab it, knowing that it will probably break a bone or two in his hands. To his surprise his hand wrapped around the ingot without much effort.
"What the hell?"
Robert let out a boisterous laugh, "That ingot you're holding is pure mithril boy! It's harder and tougher than steel and silver but weighs about a fourth of either one. A suit of armor made of iron or steel weighs somewhere between twenty and twenty-five kilograms but if you forge it out of mithril it'll only weigh a quarter of that! I've worn mithril armor during my time in the Stormwind Army and I can tell you that it's like nothing you've ever worn. Once you put it on and experience how light it is you'll never want to wear steel, thorium or anything else ever again."
Ichigo had stopped paying attention to the blacksmith once he mentioned how light mithril was. Holding the ingot in his hand and giving it an experimental toss he wondered how something like mithril could exist. If it had existed on his world it would have revolutionized so many things. Modern industry might have evolved in an entirely different direction.
"Now if I am done explaining Blacksmithing 101 to you I need you to strip down to your underwear," Robert counted down from five as Ichigo's mind processed what he just asked.
"Wait. What?"
"I need to make sure the armor fits," Robert explained, "I may be a blacksmithing genius but even I make mistakes, as rare as they may be. I need you to strip down so I can test fit the armor and determine if I need to adjust anything. You don't want to be in the middle of a battle and suddenly find your armor falling to pieces because it was improperly fitted, do you?"
"That's not the problem," Ichigo pointed out embarrassed, "I just don't want to strip in front of a total stranger!"
"Fine," Robert grumbled and turned his back to Ichigo, "If you're going to be a child about it I'll just turn around until you're comfortable."
Not trusting the blacksmith Ichigo quickly removed his shihakusho and began the arduous process of putting on his armor one piece at a time. The black shirt and pants, as well as the mithril chainmail, went on without so much as a problem. Flexing an arm and finding almost no resistance or weight from the chainmail Ichigo had to admit that Robert was right about the metal. Next came the greaves, gauntlets and boots, all of which he was able to secure by himself. When he tried to properly put on the chest armor he found his arms unable to reach the straps. After several failed attempts only to realize his arms couldn't bend the way he needed them Ichigo grumbled. He was going to need some help.
"I could use a hand here."
"It's about damn time you asked for my help," Robert had anticipated Ichigo's trouble. With an experienced hand he easily buckled the brigandine into place, "But I'm surprised you managed to get so far. Usually my customers want me to do everything for them."
"Wait, how many customers can you have in a place like this?"
"You'd be surprised," After strapping the layered mithril pauldrons into place Robert stepped back and admired his handiwork, "Everything looks good…nothing seems loose or out of place. Do you mind moving around a bit? I need to see if everything is fitting correctly."
Ichigo flexed a hand, the silver gauntlet moving and flexing in time with his fingers. Clenching a fist he then took a few steps forward, "Everything seems fine to me."
"That's good…" Robert nodded absentmindedly. It was obvious that there was something on his mind, "Would you mind doing me a favor?"
Ichigo stopped examining his armor and turned to the blacksmith, "Like what?"
Robert motioned towards Ichigo's zanpakuto with a nod of his head, "I find myself intrigued by your blade. Do you mind if I examine it? I promise I won't damage it."
While Robert might have thought his request was quite normal Ichigo was apprehensive about letting other than himself touch his zanpakuto. He was still confused and upset about what had happened to that undead he fought the previous night. He hadn't even been aiming for a killing blow and yet a shallow wound was enough to kill the deathguard. Ichigo was quite sure the blacksmith wouldn't impale himself on his zanpakuto but he couldn't account for what might happen if Robert were to even touch the hilt of his zanpakuto. Would Robert simply fall over dead or would nothing happen? As much as Ichigo wanted to simply refuse Robert's request he realized that might be suspicious and in the end he made up his mind.
"Fine," Ichigo said and handed the blacksmith his zanpakuto. He was careful to point the blade away from Robert and towards the ground, "I better not find any scratches on it once you're done with it."
Robert scoffed and chuckled, "What do you take me for, an apprentice? Of course I'll be gentle with it."
For a moment, as Robert reached out towards his zanpakuto, Ichigo had the faintest feeling that something bad was about to happen. Zanpakuto were supposed to slay hollows and help souls pass over to the Soul Society but this world was very different. He had no idea what kinds of effects coming here had on his zanpakuto. The second before the blacksmith grabbed hold of his zanpakuto's hilt seemed like an eternity to Ichigo and when Robert touched it without falling over dead or any other effects he let out a sigh of relief.
"So it can't harm anyone that isn't cut by it. It's a relief to know it's not anymore dangerous than a normal blade."
"This is quite a nice blade. Nice balance and weight distribution," Despite his professionalism Robert found himself even more impressed with Ichigo. The zweihander had to weigh nearly 5 kilograms and yet Ichigo had shown no strain or exhaustion from carrying it. Five kilograms might not seem that heavy but over the course of several hours of walking, running and fighting the weight tends to becomes much more noticeable. As intriguing as it was, it was not the most impressive aspect of Ichigo's zweihander. That honor went to the quality and craftsmanship.
Holding the blade in a standard two-handed grip Robert noticed that the weight between the blade and the hilt was perfectly balanced. Holding the blade in various stances and forms Robert found no additional strain on his arms. In his youth, when he apprenticed under Ironus Coldsteel in Ironfroge, Robert had made many subpar and low quality weapons. They would always turn out to be too top heavy to properly swing about or the weight would be improperly distributed, which made it nearly impossible to find a solid stance.
"Who could have crafted such a remarkable blade?"
Holding the blade parallel to his eyes Robert carefully analyzed each inch of Ichigo's zanpakuto. The blade was truly remarkable in every way, shape and form. He may proclaim to be the best blacksmith north of Ironforge but whoever made Ichigo's zweihander was in a league of his or her own. A normal blade, even one created by a master weaponsmith with years or decades of experience, had flaws. There might be a slight imperfection in the shape of the blade from where the metal did not cool evenly or a structural weakness due to the blacksmith not mixing the metals together in the correct ratio. Ichigo's zweihander had none of that.
"If that wasn't enough I cannot find any trace of wear or use upon it."
It was true. Robert carefully looked over the blade with a trained eye in search of anything wrong but found nothing. There were no cracks, chips or dents along the edge of the blade from combat and the junction between the hilt and the blade, where rust always tended to form first, was as polished as a new sword. This weapon was simply unbelievable.
"Tell me Ichigo," Robert tried to keep the excitement out of his voice. He was a man about to reach his fifties. He shouldn't start acting like a teenager receiving their first real blade, "Your zweihander is as close to perfection as a weapon can get. I must know who created this blade. Their work is the finest I have ever seen. Even my master, who is considered one of the greatest blacksmiths on Azeroth, could not create such a perfect weapon and quality."
"I don't know who made it," that much was true. Ichigo remembered Rukia stabbing him through the heart with her zanpakuto then there was a flash of light and suddenly he was holding his own zanpakuto, "A friend of my family gave it to me before I arrived in Southshore."
"I see," Robert handed Ichigo back his zanpakuto, "Well I suppose this is where we part ways. You have your armor so your chances of meeting with a terrible fate will be low. Good luck in whatever you are going to do."
Ichigo nodded and turned to leave the stable. No more words were said between them as Ichigo walked out of the dark building and into the mid-morning light of Hillsbrad Fields.
...
As consciousness slowly returned to Marco Ghoulstomper the first thing he noticed is that he was being dragged along the floor.
"What happened to me?"
His arrival to the Undercity was about as eventful as ever. He had flown in through the old sewers and over the putrid green slime that flowed in rivers through the ancient canals. Michael Garrett, the local flight master of the Undercity, had been there to greet him upon arrival, the sarcasm in his sardonic 'welcome to the Undercity' not lost to the deathguard. Still, as much as he had wanted to return the favor with a sarcastic comment of his own, Marco had a job to do. So instead of saying anything he simply flipped Michael off with both hands and began making his way out of the Trade District towards the Royal Quarters.
The journey was quick and eventless. Apart from a lumbering abomination forgetting to look where it was going and falling off a ledge into the flowing green rivers below nothing really exciting happened. That all changed once he reached the steps leading to the Royal Quarters.
Security around the Royal Quarters had always been tight. Marco might not have been to the Undercity more than a dozen times in the years since his reanimation as a forsaken but even he was aware of how difficult it was for someone to enter the chambers of the Dark Lady uninvited.
There were several lines of defense someone, most likely a fervent and insane human, would have to pass through before even reaching the royal chambers. The Undercity itself was the first and most powerful defense the Dark Lady had. Thousands of forsaken, dozens if not hundreds of abominations and not to mention the ghouls, zombies, and the other races composing the Horde stood between an intruder and just the entrance to the Royal Quarters. If someone was powerful and stupid enough to make it that far then they had to contend with the royal deathguards.
Handpicked by the Dark Lady herself upon rebirth and indoctrinated to put her safety above even their own undead lives, the royal deathguards were the epitome of loyal soldiers. Marco had met one of them and he was certain that there was nothing left in that pitiful deathguard's mind than instructions to protect the Dark Lady. If Marco still believed in a higher power he would have prayed for their cold, corrupted souls.
If someone were to actually get through the Undercity alive and intact, break through the royal deathguards without so much as a scratch and make it to the royal chamber itself then they would face the third and final line of defense: the Dark Lady herself. Marco had never seen his queen fight but knew deep within his soul that she could annihilate any of them without becoming winded.
His problems began as soon as he stopped in front of the hall leading to the Royal Quarters.
It was all standard procedure so there should have been no problem. If anyone wanted to even think about walking into the Royal Quarters on their own two feet or with their heads still attached to their necks they needed to follow procedure. A royal deathguard would step forward and order them to give the reason they should pass through. If the reason given were valid enough to warrant speaking to the Dark Lady then they would proceed. If not…Marco did not have any questions about those who would waste the time of the Dark Lady. If they did then…well…they brought whatever happens to them upon themselves.
"Halt," the emotionless voice of the royal deathguard commanded. Marco did not dare to move even one part of his undead body. Any sign of movement would be taken as an act of aggression, "For what meaningless purpose do you dare hope to see the Dark Lady?"
The feminine voice, which Marco could tell much have come from southeastern Lordaeron from the way she drew out certain sounds, did not seem to have a lot of patience. Playing his cards safely he said, "I have an important missive from High Executor Darthalia of Tarren Mill."
The royal deathguard held out a skeletal hand, the gauntlet failing to hide the fact that she had no flesh on her fingers. Marco placed the letter he had been given from Darthalia into the royal deathguard's hand and stepped back.
That was when his problem really started.
The royal deathguard had opened the missive and read through it. When she did not say anything Marco assumed everything was all right and missed the slight twitch in her neck. Before he could think two more royal deathguards appeared out of the shadows on either side of him. Marco had barely turned to look before one bashed him over the head with his shield.
"By the shadows…what did Darthalia write down?"
Before he could think of anything he was unceremoniously thrown onto the floor. While the impact did not cause him any pain it was still very jarring.
"What is the meaning of this…interruption?"
The headache and dizziness quickly left Marco upon hearing the voice of the Dark Lady. He tried to push himself up into a kneeling position, as to not seem rude, but one of the royal deathguards pressed down on his back with their foot. Despite not being able to move Marco was still able to turn his head and managed to see one of the royal deathgaurds step forward and present something to the Dark Lady. Upon a closer look he saw it was the missive he had come to the Undercity to deliver.
Marco watched the Dark Lady's reaction as she hastily read through the letter. He saw her expression change from displeasure and indifference to rage and anger and finally to cold hatred. When her eyes settled on him he did his best not to flinch.
"Leave me alone with him."
The royal deathguards still in the chamber bowed gracefully once and disappeared back into the shadows where they no doubt waited until the Dark Lady needed them. Fearful for his life Marco struggled to get to his feet. He did not want to know what the Dark Lady had in mind for him but it could not be pleasant.
"What's the matter?" Lady Sylvanas Windrunner, also known as the Dark Lady, asked in mock polite as she slowly walked down the steps from her throne, "You seem to be in quite the rush to get up…Marco."
"You-you know of me, my lady?"
A cold and calculating smile graced Sylvanas's lips and it frightened Marco to no end, "But of course. Darthalia was quite…belligerent in her message that you get the credit for what happened in Hillsbrad."
An arrow pierced through Marco's shin and into the stone tiles composing the floor. His yellow eyes opened in shock. He hadn't even seen the Dark Lady draw a weapon. Nervously shifting his gaze from his pinned leg towards Sylvanas he saw her twirling another arrow in between her fingers, a light purple miasma wafting off the end.
"I wouldn't be too worried about your life," Sylvanas haughtily said as she came to a stop several feet in front of Marco, "I have no intention of ending your undeath if you simple give me the answer to a few simple questions."
"O-Of course my lady," Marco stammered and tried to pull the arrow out of his leg only for another one to pin his right foot to the ground.
"Your attempt to leave is quite rude Marco Ghoulstomper," Sylvanas mockingly frowned, "Now that you cannot leave let's begin. I'll start with an easy question. What did the human look like?"
If that wasn't a loaded question then Marco wasn't a forsaken. Realizing that he would not leave the Undercity, or this room alive if he didn't give the Dark Lady what she wanted he began talking, "He was young, no older than eighteen human years, with dark orange or red hair and piercing brown eyes. He wore a black robe that seemed torn and burnt in places. I have seen many mages and warlocks in my life but what the human wore was unique. If I had to hazard a guess I'd say it was made for close combat. I have never seen anything like it."
"Good," Sylvanas's tone betrayed no satisfaction, "What about his weapon? Tell me everything."
"It looked like a zweihander. No markings, runes or symbols of any kind were on it," Marco took a chance and glanced upwards into the face of Sylvanas and flinched back. She was not happy with his answer. He needed to think quickly, "But there was a feeling I got when the human drew his blade."
"A feeling?" Sylvanas repeated sarcastically. Deciding that Marco was hiding something from her she made the motion of visibly drawing the Sunstrider's Longbow that had been given to her when she was promoted to Ranger-General all those years ago. Usually she could get her people to tell her anything but Marco did not have the usual infatuation forsaken had with her. He had come back from death free of the Lich King's mental control and thus only joined the forsaken because he had no where else to go.
Marco saw that he might be one arrow away from actually dying and quickly explained, "His weapon emanated a feeling that I find hard, if not impossible, to describe. On one hand I felt a sense of unease and dread of what will happen if it should cut me but another part wanted to find out. It was very confusing."
Sylvanas lowered her longbow slightly. Apparently the human's weapon gave off a faint mental compulsion that could be easily resisted by any forsaken of sufficient mental fortitude. This was a piece of interesting information that would make hunting down this human much easier.
When she focused her gaze on the deathguard, Marco refused to lock eyes with her, "Did you happen to find out this human's name?"
"His name?" Marco weighed his options for a moment before realizing Sylvanas had asked him a question that did not require much thinking. After a second he forced himself to look at her face and said, "He didn't give a name. I had asked for it, as a show of honor, but he refused to reciprocate."
"How very interesting…"
While a name would make hunting down this human much easier, Sylvanas had worked with less information before and gotten results. Still, she needed to proceed cautiously with this new development. Unlike the bastard Arthas, who knew she was out for his blood or whatever ran through his frozen veins at this point in time, this human did not know she was targeting him. That could work to her advantage.
"You may consider yourself fortunate that I have better things to do than killing you. As much as the High Executor demanded that you pay the price for your failure I think that what you discovered earned you a reprieve," Sylvanas turned around and walked back towards her throne, "But my patience with your presence in my chambers is limited. You have ten seconds to leave before I consider you and intruder. Ten…nine…five…"
Without even considering the damage he was doing to his body, it could always be repaired by a priest later on, Marco ripped himself off the elfwood shafts the Dark Lady used in her arrows and sprinted out of the royal chamber just as the Dark Lady reached the count of one.
Sylvanas watched Marco flee with veiled amusement. Some would say that she was soft and weak to allow the deathguard to flee with his life but the Dark Lady dared those that did to say it to her face. She was always open to criticism…
"How long do you plan to stand in the shadows plotting Varimathras?"
The nathrezim walked out of the corner of the chamber, the shadows peeling off his demonic body like water, "You always did have an eye for detail Sylvanas. Perhaps that is why I continue to serve you."
"You continue to serve me because in a moment of insanity I once spared your pathetic life," Sylvanas glared at Varimathras with her glowing red eyes, "But I shall not make the same mistake twice. What do you want?"
Varimathras chuckled, "I couldn't help but read that letter while you were distracted by your petty emotions. A blade that can sever the soul from the body with but a swing…now where have I heard that before?"
Several arrows shot towards the nathrezim at blinding speeds but Varimathras seemed unfazed by the wounds in his body, "Your temper is still the stuff of legends. I can see why Arthas found you such a troublesome opponent but let's cut to the heart of the matter. I find myself…not nervous, per say, but concerned about this human."
"Nervous you say?" the corner of Sylvanas's lip curled upwards.
"Arthas does not scare me for he remains upon his frozen throne to the north with only his plots and power to comfort him. As long as he does not change the status quo then frostmourne remains safely at a distance. This new player to the game is different. A new frostmourne appearing is a surprise and I do not like surprises."
"I never thought I would see the day that you would show any emotions other than contempt and pride," Sylvanas rested her head on a fist and crossed her legs, "But what do you suggest we do about this human? He is too dangerous to live and yet we have no clue as to what his motive or purpose is."
"This new player is quite cunning," Varimathras admitted with scorn, "He has a blade similar to frostmourne and but he has yet to slay the living and raise them as the undead bound to his will. In all likelihood he is infinitely more cunning and patient than the prince was or ever will be. All this human has to do is bide his time and suspicion on him will be kept to a minimum. In all likelihood we would never have noticed him if he hadn't shown himself last night but I wonder if that was part of his plan."
"His plan you say?" Sylvanas did not like it when things developed faster than she could anticipate and counter. Such a lack of foresight doomed Quel'thalas to destruction and her soul to an eternity of torment.
"He had no reason to show himself. It was possibly the riskiest decision he could make and yet he did it…brazenly I might add. This human appears to have the cunning of a dreadlord. A frightening prospect indeed."
Sylvanas narrowed her eyes in thought. The nathrezim had made a valid, and frighteningly accurate, point. She had no idea why this human was in Hillbrad or even where he was going. Arthas, that name still filled her soul with rage, had been prideful enough to explain his plans to those he thought dead or no longer an issue. If Marco, that sorry excuse for a deathguard, had been right than this human did not explain his motives at all but still something bothered her. Suddenly it hit her and she cursed herself for not realizing it earlier.
"The new plague…"
"The improved version of the plague of undeath that you have your apothecaries working on? I never understood why you try to improve upon something that's already perfect."
"Yes," Sylvanas said in a tone that suggested it was the most obvious thing in the world, "The letter from Darthalia said the human knew what the courier was carrying. The courier had been transporting notes on the almost completed new plague to Tarren Mill. That human is up to something with my plague and I will not stand for it. No one crosses me and lives to tell about it."
Varimathras chuckled again, "Then what do you suggest?"
Sylvanas calmed down and composed her features. She needed to keep her emotions out of this until she had this human bound and gagged at her feet, "Going directly after him will be a problem. There is no telling whether he can sense the undead or even control them. If he is as brilliant and cunning as you infer he could turn my forsaken against me and send them back to the Undercity as an unwitting spy. He also doesn't seem to be overly antagonistic towards us. We can use that to our advantage and play it safe. Observe him from a distance and find out where he is going. I know the perfect person for such a task…"
...
As Ichigo stepped outside he was forced to cover his eyes from the sun directly overhead. He must have been inside for longer than he thought because when he had first walked into Robert's stable the sun had barely been above the trees to the east. Either he had lost track of time or this world did not have the same length day as his world.
"There's so much about this world that confuses me."
He hadn't noticed it yesterday when he first arrived due to everything that had happened back on his world but upon careful observations it was apparent that Azeroth was a much different place than Earth. The forsaken, for instance, had initially surprised him but he quickly got over it. He had been a temporary shinigami on his world so the concept of the dead coming back to life didn't surprise him as much as it might someone else. What drew the focus of his thoughts wasn't something obvious like magic and various sentient races besides humans but the covert and hard to visualize differences.
He didn't know if it was because he wasn't from Azeroth or that as a shinigami he had some sort of extrasensory perception that most, if not all, people on this world lacked but he could sense something in the air. As much as he tried to describe it he couldn't. It was like trying to come up with a new color that no one had seen before. Ichigo couldn't describe it despite his best efforts but he knew it was there.
Realizing that he would not be able to do anything about it or, even if he could, what it meant Ichigo shrugged and decided it wasn't worth thinking about. As he walked down the streets while getting the odd glance or two from people interested in his new armor Ichigo found it amazing, despite Robert telling him already, how light mithril was. The fact that it was stronger and more durable than steel and yet weighed only a quarter of it was yet another sign that Azeroth and his own world were completely different. If something like mithril had existed on his world someone would have found it.
As he made his way towards the road leading out of Southshore Ichigo realized something important – he had no idea where to go.
Aside from the vague notion that he needed to go to Stormwind, wherever that was, he had no clue what he would do once he got there. In fact, the only reason he was even going there was because one of the guards told him about it yesterday and, with no other options, he agreed. A more pressing matter was the issue of actually getting there. He didn't know where Hillsbrad was relative to anything on Azeroth. For all he knew Stormwind could be thousands of miles away across an ocean or just around the metaphorical corner.
"Ok," Ichigo grimaced in annoyance and rubbed his eyes, "How do I even leave this place?"
While he had no idea where Stormwind was Ichigo was having trouble just leaving Southshore. Last night when he stole the notes on a new plague from the forsaken courier he had waited by a road that led off both to the east and west. If he left Southshore without a starting point on where to go who knows where he would end up? He had never really been the best person when it came to directions and if he tried figuring it out on his own he would, in all likelihood, get inexplicably lost.
Ichigo sighed and looked up into the sky. At the current rate he would need to flip a coin when he reached the intersection in the road. The problem was that he didn't have a coin to begin with, "I suppose I'll burn that bridge when I reach it."
"I thought you might try and leave as soon as you could Ichigo."
Ichigo turned upon hearing the familiar voice. Standing near a woman who was feeding a pair of gryphons what looked like parts of a cow was Marcus Redpath. The marshal of Southshore was sitting in a chair and the expression on his face suggested he had been waiting for Ichigo to arrive for quite a while.
"What are you talking about?"
Getting out of the chair with a small grunt, Marcus walked towards Ichigo, "You have earned quite a reputation Ichigo. When Phin spoke to me this morning about what you helped him discover I was both flabbergasted and shocked. It is unprecedented for someone who had just arrived in Southshore to help us in such a way without expecting anything in return. This town owes you quite a bit of gratitude young man."
While being called 'young man' was better than being called a boy Ichigo was still suspicious of the marshal's motives for waiting for him, "I only helped to get this armor I'm wearing made for free. You were so persistent that I do that I was left with no choice but to help."
"Be that as it may," Marcus said without showing the least amount of annoyance at Ichigo's dismissal of his gratitude, "You still helped us. You and I both know that if you really wanted to leave Southshore there was nothing I could have done to stop you apart from physically restraining you and, to be honest, I don't think I have the manpower to accomplish that."
Marcus had a point. As much as he did not want to fight Ichigo was certain he could have taken Marcus's soldiers on without much trouble. The problem was that while he could have left Southshore without being stopped he would have made an enemy on a world that he didn't belong to already. He couldn't afford to alienate himself from everyone that he met just because he didn't want to be forced to deal and interact with that.
"So why are you stopping me now?" Ichigo was curious for why Marcus was here. He was damn well sure it wasn't to offer his heartfelt thanks and appreciation.
Marcus's expression tightened as he recollected what Phin had told him, "You might have saved us all from a fate even worse than death Ichigo. Did Phin tell you what the notes contained?"
Ichigo nodded grimly, "Something about a new plague. I wasn't too worried about the details. Anything dealing with a plague is bad news."
"You are correct," Marcus nodded, "Phin wasn't able to piece everything together since some notes were missing or incomplete but the damned forsaken weren't just planning on raising the people of this town into undeath. Their plan was much more sinister and unholy. They've been trying to weaponize their plague, change it into something that could be used to do just more than raise the dead. If Phin is right, and by the Light I hope he isn't wrong, then this new plague has been transformed from simply a disease to an explosive substance that the forsaken were planning to use on Southshore."
"That's…" Ichigo swallowed nervously. Who could think of doing something like that? It went against every fiber of his being.
"That was my reaction," Marcus thought Ichigo was taking it quite well. His own reaction to the forsaken's new plague was a mixture of mute shock and denial. To think that Southshore had been only a year or two away from complete destruction at the hands of something even more deadly than the plague of undeath, "You did Southshore, and Stormwind, a great service. With the notes we have on the new plague, as well as other forsaken military secrets, we can break through the aerial blockade and get a message to Stormwind about the current situation. You saved us all from a terrible fate and for that I want you to take this."
Marcus looked away from Ichigo and nodded to someone. As soon as he did a soldier appeared with a backpack-sized knapsack. Taking the knapsack and thanking the soldier, who quickly returned to his post, Marcus saw Ichigo's confused expression and began explaining.
"Consider this a token of Southshore's appreciation for all your help," Marcus explained as he handed it to Ichigo.
"What's in it?" Ichigo asked as he opened the knapsack and began riffling through the various items within.
"I remember you saying you arrived in Hillsbrad as a result of a portal accident so I took the liberty of gathering together some supplies you will need once you head out of town. Most importantly there is a map of the northern Eastern Kingdoms. It only covers the land between Dun Morogh and Silverpine Forest so you will need to stop at Ironforge to travel the rest of the way to Stormwind."
"Ok," Ichigo nodded. This journey was starting to get complicated.
Unaware of Ichigo's annoyance Marco continued, "There is also about a week's worth of mage food and water in there. Since it was conjured up by magic it won't spoil or go bad. Aside from a small amount of emergency supplies there is also a small pouch with some gold and silver I managed to pool together. It's not much but it should get you where you need to go."
"Thanks," Ichigo muttered.
There was a pregnant silence for the next several second. As Ichigo turned to leave Marcus called out for him, "Before you go I have one last bit of advice for you."
The marshal motioned with his hand towards Ichigo's new knapsack. Handing it over, Ichigo watched Marcus pull out the map and lay it on a nearby bench, "I know you have never been to Hillsbrad before so listen carefully. The easiest way to Stormwind would be to take the road north out of Southshore and then make a right once you reach the old Alterac Highway. If you follow the highway to the east past Durnholde Keep and through Thoradin's Wall you'll find yourself in the Arathi Highlands."
Marcus seemed to ponder something before continuing, "My information is a little outdated on the current situation in the highlands but it is safe to assume that the Syndicate has control over most of the fields and meadows. Durnholde Keep is also under the control of the Syndicate bastards so be sure to not get too close. Stick to the road and just past Stromgarde Keep you'll reach Refuge Pointe. Talk to Commander Amaren once you arrive and tell her that I sent you. She should be more than willing to help you get through the highlands."
Ichigo folded his arms as something nagged at his mind, "Thanks for the help but won't the undead be looking for me after what I did to them last night? I didn't exactly get on their good side with what I did."
"Good point," Marcus conceded and studied the map for a moment before pointing to a spot of land just to the east of Southshore, "Here. You can bypass taking the highway past Tarren Mill if you cut through the Nethander Stead to the east.
"Nethander Stead?"
"It's an old farmstead that was abandoned when the plague hit Lordaeron. In the following years, with no one to till or protect it, gnolls have moved it and claimed it as their territory. The gnolls have a hatred for the undead so you shouldn't encounter any forsaken near the farm."
"What is a gnoll exactly?"
"Think of a highly territorial, hyena-like beast that's about five feet tall and will eat anything they can catch. If you avoid getting too close to them and don't touch anything in the stead you should be able to get through without being bothered. Once you pass it you should reach the highway near Durnholde Keep. Light bless you on your endeavors Ichigo."
As Marcus Redpath walked away to continue his duties as the military leader and protector of Southshore Ichigo turned to the east and took a deep breath. This is it, he thought with a small amount of trepidation mixed with nervousness. He had no idea what was out there waiting for him or what he could expect to find. All he knew was that he was utterly alone on this world and it would stay that way.
With that he stepped out of town and into the forests of Hillsbrad, eyes peeled for any sign of movement and one hand resting on the hilt of his zanpakuto.
...
"If you keep moving around I'm going to cut your leg off out of spite."
Marco forced himself to stay still as the apothecary finished healing his torn flesh and bones. After he had managed to hobble out of the Royal Quarters with his undead life intact he made his way to the nearby Apothecarium to be healed. Usually he wouldn't be caught near this place. Master Apothecary Faranell had the reputation for being bat-shit insane even for a forsaken. If the rumors about him were true, and Marco had no doubt that they were, then he had to make sure he wasn't left along with Faranell. He didn't want to wake up as part of the master apothecary's unholy experiments.
"I appreciate your help Katrina."
Katrina Rotsnapper scoffed, "Why is it that whenever you come to visit me you're always in need of repairs?"
Marco sighed, "Probably because that's the only way you'll talk to me."
Apothecary Katrina Rotsnapper was one of the highest members of the Royal Apothecary Society and stood just below the three grand masters although one would not know that just from appearances. Unlike Faranell and the other leaders who invent and test new poisons and plagues on the enemies of the forsaken, Katrina controls abomination development and creation. While other members of the society might look down on her for her work, Katrina takes pleasure in the gratitude the Dark Lady gives her. Every abomination in the Undercity was sewn together by her division and she is always on the lookout for corpses to stitch together to create more abominations. She is also one of the three forsaken gifted with the sacred knowledge of the unholy spell to reanimate the corpses into abominations.
"Why don't you just visit one of the hundred or so shadow priests milling about the Undercity?" Katrina asked as she pulled back on one of the stitches. It was lucky Marco could not feel pain as an undead or this would really hurt. Katrina wasn't exactly being gentle.
"The last time I went to a priest for healing the idiot removed my arm by mistake," Marco sarcastically replied, "Your work is better than a priest's anyway."
"How sweet of you. If I had a heart I would be swooning head over heels for you right now," Katrina rolled her eyes and stood back, "There. I'm done. Your legs should be as good as new now. How did you end up in that sorry state anyway Marco?"
"It's a long story Katrina," Marco knew better than to mention that the Dark Lady was responsible. No forsaken would ever dare to speak out against the Banshee Queen even if she were at fault in the matter. He had witnessed one forsaken whisper a derogatory comment about the Dark Lady a couple of weeks back and the next thing Marco knew that undead had run into a group of Scarlet Crusaders and was torn to pieces.
"Come on. You can tell me," Katrina motioned for him to get off the operating table. Marco wouldn't be surprised if this was where Katrina experimented with the corpses she loved so much.
"No I really can't."
"Fine," she threw her skeletal arms up into the air in frustration, "If you're not going to tell me then there is no more reason for you to be here. I have work to do and your presence is distracting me."
Marco finished putting his armor back up and walked towards the entrance, "It was nice seeing you too Katrina."
"So what happened to that mindless partner of yours?"
Marco stopped and turned around. Katrina was busy sifting through preserved body parts from various races. He didn't even want to think where she got them, "He's dead."
"It's about time," Katrina found what she was looking for and picked up a pair of legs, "Your partner didn't exactly come back from the dead with all of his wits intact. He was one outburst away from turning on the Dark Lady. I'm glad someone managed to put him out of his misery. "
He paused for a moment before saying, "So am I."
Heading up the ramps leading out of the Apothecarium Marco was deep in thought on what he should do. On the one hand he had no reason to help Ichigo or even protect him. Marco had experienced enough encounters with humans, and other races, which looked upon him and the rest of the forsaken with hatred and disgust but it had been a long time since he had met an honorable opponent. On the other hand he lied to his superior officer and, even worse, the Dark Lady herself. While there was no one left who could say he withheld information from the Dark Lady Marco wasn't stupid enough to think she couldn't figure it out on her own. If, no when, she did there would be hell to pay and Marco wasn't sure how bad the punishment would be. He had told the Dark Lady everything but a name but even that small omission may have him on Faranell's experiment list by the end of the day.
...
With a groan that expressed just how annoyed and pissed off he was Ichigo kicked away a gnoll with enough force to send it careening backwards across the Nethander Stead into a couple of its friends. Without even hesitating another gnoll attempted to close its jaws around Ichigo's neck only for the shinigami to duck before grabbing it and tossing it into the air.
"Can't you things take a hint?"
Ichigo's question fell on deaf ears as the rest of the gnolls quickly regrouped before snarling viciously at him and charging. Stepping around a haphazardly swung axe, Ichigo pivoted and smashed his elbow into the gnoll's face and forced it into unconsciousness. Before the gnoll could slide mercifully to the ground Ichigo heard a familiar crackling sound. Picking up the unconscious gnoll he spun around just as a shaman released a bolt of electricity from its clawed hands. The spell arced across the air and hit the gnoll Ichigo was holding dead center in the chest.
"That's not right."
Ichigo looked at the now dead gnoll he was holding before letting go of the burnt corpse. The shaman hadn't even hesitated to attack a fellow gnoll if it meant Ichigo would be hit by the attack as well. Luckily for him the Alabaster armor he wore was able to dissipate what part of the Lightning Blast that was able to pass through the gnoll and onto his body.
As he spotted several new gnolls join the battle Ichigo groaned, "How did this even happen?"
When Marcus told him the gnolls wouldn't attack if he left them alone Ichigo had put his trust in the marshal's experience dealing with the beasts. It hadn't taken Ichigo long after leaving Southshore through the forest to the east to reach the stead. It was roughly the same distance from the town as the forsaken outpost. The only obstacle that he encountered was the Darrowmere River but luckily the river had been narrow enough for him to easily jump across. After climbing a hill on the other side of the river Ichigo saw the stead and got his first glimpse of a gnoll.
His first impression of a gnoll was that it looked like a very ugly hyena that wore cheap and broken armor over their blue fur. Crouching low on the hill overlooking the stead to avoid being spotted he managed to overhear several of them speak a broken form of English. If the inane conversations he heard were any indication then gnolls were not the sharpest creatures.
"I don't have time to mess around. I need to find another way around."
Ichigo carefully looked around for a way around the stead. If he could stick to the hills surrounding the fields he could sneak around the gnolls without drawing any attention. Marcus might have told him that as long as he stayed far away from the stead they wouldn't bother him but Ichigo wasn't about to take a chance that the marshal was wrong. As he crept through the trees and around rocks, careful to not make too much noise, he heard growling coming from the trees to his left.
"Oh, come on."
When only one gnoll appeared out of the brush to his left Ichigo considered taking it down before moving on. Perhaps if he knocked it unconscious quickly enough it would prevent any more from spotting him. That plan quickly went to hell before he could even begin turning around as another two, then three, then a dozen gnolls appeared out of the forest. It didn't take long for Ichigo realize he had been surrounded.
As the various gnolls snapped salivating jaws in his direction and fought amongst themselves for the first bite of what they assumed was an easy and weak meal Ichigo was already considering his options. He knew that drawing his zanpakuto and killing the gnolls was both the fastest and easiest method but some part of his mind stayed his hand before he could. Although killing the gnolls would solve his problem right here and now he didn't know what kind of effect his zanpakuto would have on the creatures.
"A zanpakuto was designed to slay hollows and send souls to the Soul Society."
He had no idea what sort of effect coming to Azeroth had on his zanpakuto but until he did he was going to play it safe. Unless he absolutely needed to, he was not going to cut someone with his zanpakuto. That only left the immediate problem of the gnolls for him to deal with. Removing his hand from the hilt of his zanpakuto he cracked his knuckles as he decided to do this the old fashioned way.
Several minutes later and back in the present time Ichigo looked around with a satisfied smirk. As the gnolls that avoided being knocked unconscious fled from him, leaving their comrades behind, Ichigo couldn't help but appreciate their tenacity. If he was honest, beating the gnolls senseless again and again had started to get annoying. While he was both stronger and faster the gnolls were extremely stubborn. Several times he had been sure one had been knocked out only for it to get up the moment his back was turned and attempt to either bite or attack him.
After quickly looking around a final time to make sure the gnolls weren't up to anything Ichigo headed across the stead. Since they already knew he was here, sneaking around the stead became quite pointless. As he traversed the fields, careful to stick clear of the giant mushrooms growing in the same spot crops once did, and began ascending up the path leading away from the stead Ichigo looked around and noticed everything looked the same to him. It was just trees, rocks, hills, and mountains in the distance. Unwilling to find out he had been traveling in the wrong direction the entire time he reached into his knapsack and pulled out the map.
Carefully studying the map, and flipping it over when he realized he was looking at it upside down, Ichigo tried to look for a landmark. If he was where he needed to be then he should be able to see the Hinterland Range to the east. Glancing up from the map he saw several mountains peaking out from over the trees so he was close to where he needed to be,
"I guess I'm in the right spot," Ichigo folded the map up and put it back. As much as he appreciated what Marcus did for him, the marshal still treated him like a child. He may have no idea where on Azeroth he was but that didn't mean he couldn't figure it out on his own. The map was helpful for sure but Ichigo prided himself on being able to look out for himself. Even before he came to Azeroth he had been mostly independent and self-sufficient. In fact, his sisters-
Ichigo stopped that train of thought before it led him to a place he didn't want to go. Closing his eyes and forcing his mind to think about other things he turned to the south and began following the road to the Arathi Highlands.
As he trudged down the road Ichigo came to the conclusion that he could have arrived in a much worse place. From what he could gather from the conversations he heard in the inn last night Hillsbrad wasn't exactly the worst place he could have ended up. Apparently there were entire areas just to the north where the undead have taken complete control and the living are either killed or captured for experimentation.
"So what's my purpose here?" Ichigo thought pensively, "I know Medivh said my journey or something was not yet over but the bastard didn't even give me a clue on where to go next. Am I to just wander around until something hits me in the face?"
It wasn't long until Ichigo spotted what had to be Thoradin's Wall that Marco had mentioned. Ichigo had assumed it was either a barricade or simply just a name for a naturally occurring pass in the mountains but he did not expect to see what he did. The wall was easily over one hundred feet high and stretched across the ground in between two mountains. Ichigo didn't know who could build such a thing but whoever did must have had a very good reason.
"Keep moving freak!"
The harsh and hate-filled voice snapped Ichigo out of his thoughts. The substitute shinigami quickly hid behind a nearby outcropping of rocks before he could be spotted. After waiting several seconds, in case he had been spotted, he glanced and saw a sight that made him frown in disgust.
Nearly a dozen humans in a mix of grey leather and cloth armor with the bottom halves of their faces covered with red bandanas were walking down the road but that was not what pissed Ichigo off. It was the several bound and gagged figures that weren't human that caused him to clench a fist in disgust. He didn't need to be a genius to figure out what was going on here.
Ichigo carefully moved around the outcropping as the Syndicate members and their prisoners passed by. He didn't want to risk a confrontation just yet. He had no idea of their skills or abilities and while he was sure he could take on a few of them without much difficulty a dozen might be trouble. Despite wanting to rescue the prisoners Ichigo took a moment to look at them.
There were four prisoners of different races and genders in total but Ichigo could see that none of them were forsaken. There was a large green-skinned figure that towered almost a foot above the Syndicate rogues and was covered in fresh scars and wounds. It was clear that he had put up a fight against the humans before being captured. There were two blue skinned figures with tusks protruding from their faces, one male and female, in a similar state to the first prisoner. The last figure was a tall purple-skinned man with green hair and glowing silver eyes. He looked to be in the worst shape of the four prisoners with one eye swelled shut and red blood trailing down his lip.
Ichigo watched the procession walk down the road and turn into a ruined and mostly destroyed castle. Frowning he pulled out his map and saw that this was Durnholde Keep. This was the place Marcus had said the Syndicate took over and it was where they took the prisoners.
He took one look down the road towards Thoradin's Wall before coming to a decision on what to do. The way forward was probably clear of the Syndicate, which meant he could reach the Arathi Highlands without running into trouble. That was the easy thing to do but the simple thought of leaving those people to the mercy of those Syndicate bastards filled Ichigo with disgust. He knew what he had to do but he had to do it carefully. There was no telling how many enemies were inside the old and broken keep and he wasn't sure what they would do to the prisoners if he was spotted trying to rescue them.
Taking a moment to come up with a plan he slowly made his way towards the keep while making sure to stick to the shadows.