What is the Nexus?
The main leaders of each dimension had gathered in a large room where Tassadar was hovering inside a blue energy field. While he was finally awake, there was still going to take a little while longer before he is 100% healed. Still he had recovered enough to talk.
"My mentor, are you sure you are ready? Your wounds have yet to fully heal" Artanis said.
"Enough of this Hierarch. We have waited long enough, we need answers now" Varian said sharply, he all but lost his patience, it was time to see if Tassadar really was worth the rescue.
Artanis glared at him but before he could retort Tassadar put an end to the potential argument "It is ok Artanis. The king wants answers and he shall have them".
Varian impatient mood cooled down a little at that "Thank you Tassadar. You can start with explaining what this Nexus is".
"The Nexus is a realm between universes. As you have seen it pulls parts of different universe to itself and the people along with them. There is no telling how many landscapes, or even planets, have been gathered by the Nexus' unbelievable power" Tassadar explained.
"How did this happen? What kind of power would allow anything to pull universes together?" Genji asked.
"I spent a lot of time trying to figure that out and thanks to a human with was knowledge, I was able to find out what caused all this" Tassadar said before activating a hologram of some kind of stones "I call them: The Unistones".
"Unistones?" Thrall asked.
"These stones represent the very fabrics of our realities. Each reality has one and they are the ones that maintain our universes... and it looks like they are located here in the Nexus" Tassadar explained.
"And these Unistones are the reason for all this?" Jim asked.
Tassadar nods "I'm not sure how it happened. But these stones seems to have formed a connection and the combined energies pulled our universes together".
Varian thinks this over. It was not to hard to believe. He has seen similar things happen before. There was one question though "So how do we undo all this?".
"I believe there is only one way: We need to find a colect these Unistones and with their power, separate our universes and restore them to what they used to be" Tassadar explained.
"Then how do we find them?" Jack asked.
"That... I don't know. They could be anywhere in any universe" Tassadar answered.
Genji sighs "It's never that easy, is it?".
"I'm afraid it's worse than you think young Shimada. The darkness of each universe has caught wind of this as well. And they seek to use the Unistones for their own gain" Tassadar said.
"What kind of darkness?" Thrall asked.
"All kinds of darkness. But the one who is actively searching for them is Diablo" Tassadar answered.
When he said that, Valla, who had been silent this whole time, let out an angry growl "Should have known that abomination was still around".
"Wait. Who is this Diablo guy?" Jim asked.
"Diablo is no mortal, friend Raynor. He is the Lord of Terror, the physical embodiment of fear" Tyrael explained "Diablo was the youngest of the Prime Evils, but I found him the most dangerous, for his power over terror left him incapable of feeling fear. Though he had easily possessed and corrupted many humans, Diablo's essence was finally trapped in a soulstone and banished to the unfathomable Abyss twenty years ago. But it was not enough".
"He came back?" Genji asked.
Tyreal nods "Many times. But the time he did the most damage was when he possessed a girl name Leah. With her as his vessel he attacked our home. Imperius tried to stop him. The two did battle, and before long, Diablo had the upper hand, cleaving Imperius' weapon in two, and impaling him. Imperius was able to teleport to safety, but could not stop Diablo from shattering the gates. The way to Heaven lay open, and the legions of Hell followed, gaining access to the Silver City for the first time in the history of the Eternal Conflict".
"But you managed to stop him" Genji said.
"We did. Atop the Silver Spire, we found the Prime Evil. Empowered by the souls of the Evils, Diablo and us met in battle, the Lord of Terror even transporting us to his own Realm of Terror. Yet even that was not enough, and in the end, we prevailed. Diablo's physical form disintegrated, and his essence returned to the Black Soulstone. An unintended consequence of this battle was the creation of the Realms of Fate" Valla explained.
"We hope that would be the end. But it was not to be. While Diablo and the Evils remained contained in the Black Soulstone, the stone itself exerted a corrupting influence on Heaven. Reforming the Horadrim, I took the stone to the Tomb of Rakkis, seeking to keep it hidden from the worlds of both Man and angel. However, the stone was taken by Malthael, former Archangel of Wisdom and now the Angel of Death. Malthael intended to use the stone to consume all demonic essence within Sanctuary, which would eradicate humanity in the process. The Nephalem battled him to the point where Malthael destroyed the stone, taking the essences of the Evils into himself. Yet even this was not enough, and Malthael was defeated. However, in the process, Diablo was freed, still bearing the essences of the other six Evils" Tyreal finished.
"And now he seek these Unistones" Varian concluded.
"When I learned of his plans I tried to find and warn you all. But I was captured and tortured. Diablo knows of the stones, but like us, he has no idea where they are or how to find them" Tassadar said.
"Then we need to find these stones before Diablo does" Genji declared "But how do we find them? We don't even know where to start looking".
"Nor do we have the resources for traveling around the Nexus to look for clues" Varian added.
"I think I got an idea" Jim spoke, making the others look at him "My people have noticed multiple floating bases all over the Nexus. If we reactivate them, we can use their sensors to search for these stones. Should at least give us an edge over Diablo".
"Diablo has countless of demons and corrupt zergs to help him look" Nova pointed out.
"The at least Raynor's plan could help us even out the odds" Jack said "We need all the help we can get if we're gonna survive long enough to even make it back home".
Varian thought it over and nodded "Vert well. We'll go along with Raynor's plan for now. I pray to the light it provides us with results".
"Then we shall start preparing for the potential hardships we may face. All of you head back to your places. Gather what you need and make sure to get as much rest as you can. Tomorrow, we head out" Artanis said.
Everyone nodded and went to prepare for the ordeal to come.
Unknown to them, something had been spying on them through a crystal ball.
On top of his Frozen Throne, the fallen prince Arthas heard everything "Unistones... stones of near unlimited power... So that is what Diablo is after".
The demons and the the Scourge had fought a dark war ever since the Nexus pulled them together. Non of the two sides had gained a solid advantage over the other and the war raged on.
"We can not allow Diablo or these mortals to get their hands on these stones, my king" Arthas' loyal servant Kel'Thuzad said from next to him.
"I agree. Send out our scouts and prepare to create more death knights. It is time for us to go on the offensive and claim some territories for our own" Arthas said.
Kel'Thuzad bows "Then by your will it shall be done".
After the lich left, Arthas watched over his deathly kingdom "You will not win this war, Diablo"
As for Diablo himself, he held the black stone he had found in his hand, feeling the power coming out of it, he knew it could prove useful. And it was time to test it out.
"Bring her in" Diablo ordered.
The gates opened and two demons dragged a woman inside the room. She was chained up and struggling to break free before she was thrown to the floor. She glared at Diablo with hate.
This woman was Yrel, a draenei paladin. Born and raised at the temple of Karabor. She was dedicated to her faith and spent much of her time in the temple, caring for others and showing great promise as a healer. Her gifts caught the eye of Velen, who accepted her as his pupil. Velen taught Yrel the value of leadership and sacrifice as she developed her other gifts. However, Velen's prophetic mind also sensed Yrel would have a large role to play in the future.
This would prove to be true. While at the temple, Yrel witnessed the first battle with the Iron Horde under the command of their new Warchief, Grommash Hellscream. During their assault on Karabor, the Iron Horde captured Yrel, who remained a prisoner until she was rescued by a group of adventurers from Azeroth. Despite having never killed anyone before, Yrel recognized the necessity and joined the adventurers. She aided the group in any way she could, eventually helping them establish a garrison at Lunarfall. Travelling back to Shadowmoon valley with the adventurers, Yrel returned to Embaari Village where she was well known by the villagers. The children flocked around her, chanting her name, joyous that she had returned safely.
Yrel and Velen were reunited at Lunarfall. Velen began to further nurture Yrel's leadership skills by putting her in charge of a group of Rangari to search for prisoners in Shadowmoon Village. Yrel was hesitant, noting that she had never led soldiers before, but Velen told her she was capable of more than she knew. While the Shadowmoon Clan was in the process of summoning the Dark Star, she discovered her sister Samarra dying due to injuries inflicted by the summoning ritual. Upon her death, she was driven into a fit of mourning and weeping almost uncontrollably. She swore to Samaara: "I will become strong, I will protect our people. I. Will. Fight!", acknowledging that if needed, she would become her people's savior. Yrel and Velen eventually went with the Alliance Commander to stop Ner'zhul from summoning the Dark Star. Velen tried to reason with Ner'zhul while the three of them fought to interrupt his ritual, but this failed. Ner'zhul finished the ritual and teleported away as the dark star began to descend upon them. Velen realized the only way to stop the Dark Star and return K'ara to her true form of light, was for him to sacrifice his mortal body. He passed the mark of the Naaru to Yrel, who watched as her mentor was consumed by the darkness, purifying K'ara. Maraad arrived shortly after, telling Yrel that Karabor was being overrun and urging her to flee with her people. Wiping away a tear, Yrel stated that Velen's sacrifice would mean nothing if the temple fell. She joined Maraad in an aerial assault on the Iron Horde forces at Karabor. With the help of the Alliance forces and K'ara, the Iron Horde's forces were decimated.
After the annihilation of the Shadowmoon Orcs and the Iron Horde fleet, she traveled to Talador to aid in defeating Blackhand's fleet, which was stationed in Shattrath City. She, along with Maraad, Khadgar and a group of adventurers managed to break through his forces. On the deck of one of the ships, she witnessed Doomhammer's death and shortly after, was shielded from an explosion by Maraad who sacrificed himself to protect her. In Maraad's final moments, Yrel asked "Maraad, how?". His response and final words were "In the light, we are one...". Yrel had been saved by another mentor, although they had only just recently met. Shortly after, while Blackhand tortured Durotan on the deck of the ship, Yrel threw Maraad's warhammer into the back of Blackhand's head, diverting his attention. Blackhand chuckled and asked her "What do you want, little girl?" to which she replied calmly "Your head!". As Blackhand charged at Yrel, she quickly healed Durotan of his injuries. The massive Orc grabbed her by the throat and lifted her off the ground, but she managed to catch the Frostwolf chief's axe as he threw it to her, bringing it crashing down on Blackhand's shoulder, inflicting a deep wound. Seconds later, Yrel and Durotan were teleported to safety by Khadgar as the ship exploded.
Yrel later aided in the assault on Grommashar, leading a small force to battle Garrosh Hellscream, who she learned was behind all that had transpired. Yrel and the Alliance commander gave Garrosh quite a beating in the battle before he managed to incapacitate them. Luckily, Thrall arrived at that moment and challenged Garrosh to Mak'Gora, saving Yrel from being killed by Garrosh. The two orcs then left everyone else behind and headed to the Stones of Prophecy, where Thrall was eventually victorious, killing Garrosh with the power of the elements.
Eventually, Yrel answered the Exarch's call. Accompanied by a champion, she set out accomplishing tasks for the Council of Exarchs which tested her faith, courage and strength of heart, and ultimately passing the council's final test of combat. With her actions, she proved to the Exarch that she was worthy, so they granted her a seat on their council and the title of "Exarch" so that she might help them lead the Draenei people. Yrel was part of the force which invaded Hellfire Citadel after it had been taken over by Gul'dan and the Shadow Council. Following the defeat of Archimonde, Yrel approached Khadgar and asked him if he thought the Legion invasion was over. Khadgar replied that Gul'dan and his demon masters are not beaten so easily and voiced his fear that this was only the beginning. Yrel told Khadgar that if he ever needed the aid of Draenor, the Orcs and Draenei would be ready. Khadgar smiled and bid her farewell until their next meeting, before flying off. Yrel then stood with Durotan and Grom to witness a new dawn for Draenor.
Yrel continued to glare at the prime evil in front of her with disdain "I don't know what you seek Diablo. But you will never get anything out of me".
"I do not need you to speak, only for your to obey" Diablo said as he stood up and walked towards her.
"I will never serve you!" Yrel shouted.
"Yes, you will" Diablo said darkly before using the black stones power to sent dark energy in to Yrel's chest.
The draenei paladin gasped before she began coughing "No! NOOO!".
She screams as her skin turned from its natural color to dark black while her eyes turned glowing orange and red demon markings formed on her body.
Diablo smirked "Rise my servant".
Yrel obeyed his request and stood up while looking at him with no trace of the defiance she showed earlier.
"You shall be one of many to spread terror across the nexus. You are my Hell Knight" Diablo declared.
"Yes... my lord" Yrel said in a lifeless voice.
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Tell me what you think.