Climax IS COMING UP! Thank you for sticking with me so long!But don't stop reading,there's an epilogue coming too...
About what I said last time,yes,I've planned for a rewritten version,but only if YOU are interested. Otherwise,why bother?This is a fanfiction,but after reading the Death Knight manga (loved it!) I realized there's a lot of things I could have done better or changed,for example one thing I wrote in the last chapter.
Enjoy and comment!
Chapter XXVI: The heart
Nadaala jumped impatiently from one foot to the other, frequently glancing towards the exit of the Citadel. She didn't understand why everything had to take so long time nowadays, especially after what the Lich King had done to them. Everytime she she thought about it, anger and hate bubbled up inside of her, and she grew more eager to charge the Citadel and take revenge for her own death.
But on the other hand she could not be a selfish brat. The other knights of the Ebon Hold had suffered at least as much as her, if not more. Several of her friends that had participated in the Battle at the Light's Hope Chapel had slowly regained their memories. Thassarian, Darion, Koltira, Galbana, and many more. But she barely knew her full name. She partially envied them for being able to reunite with their loved ones, but she also saw how they suffered from all they had lost.
So much and so many had fallen under the evil reign of her former master. Why did the Highlord insist on extending the time for the final battle so much?
The squeeling sound of the doors opening caused her to turn around, and she rolled her eyes when the only one exiting was one of the damned orc death knights that Darion had insisted on bringing. According to him, they would "need all the help they could get". For what?! Finding a bloody organ, that's what.
Sure, it was the heart of Arthas that the Ebon Hold's Highlord stood and talked about with Thassarian a few steps away from her, but if it was that important, then couldn't he have gone out to find it the minute he knew about it instead of hanging around here? And why was she the only one realizing the great time they were wasting right now? Even Galbana, her best friend, agreed with Darion and had sneaked away during the reunion feast to get as much rest as possible, and she hadn't seen her for the entire morning.
Now that she thought about it, Nadaala hadn't seen Koltira either. Perhaps he also needed to rest…
The blackhaired death knight caught sight of a small pebble on the ground. Its edges were round and its surface dull, meaning it most likely came from the ocean. But how could an ocean-torn pebble find its way to the cloud borne city of Dalaran? It would be most logical that a bypassing adventurer had accidentally dropped it. She humphed. What kind of a moron would carry around a small rock?
She bent down and picked it up. Weighing it lightly in her hand, she determined that it was in the perfect size and weight to throw, if the time ever came. No one would miss it; there were plenty of rocks everywhere.
Silently, Nadaala let the rock slip into her pocket, making sure it would not escape like it had that poor adventurer. A shiver down her spine suddenly told her that she was being watched. She spun around. The Highlord and Thassarian seemed to have finished their discussion, for now they were inspecting her with curious looks.
"Anything on your mind, Nadaala?" Darion asked in a slightly amused tone.
She quickly shook her head. In response, the Highlord grinned and then turned back to Thassarian, who still eyed her suspiciously. She shot him a glare which caused him to shrug his shoulders and resume his 'oh so important' discussion with the other death knight. Sighing, Nadaala realized that this could take yet another while. She decided that she at least could catch in on what the two were talking about, so she moved a bit closer to them, than sat down on the ground in a sulking way.
"It is as I thought, our scouts state that a group of Cultists are moving towards the Cathedral of Darkness," Darion said. He spoke in a low tone, just barely for Nadaala to hear him. Thassarian nodded, leaning closer to the Highlord.
"Do we bring all our men, or should some remain?"
The Highlord turned his gaze for a moment, a troubled look over his face. By just staring at him, Nadaala could tell what he was thinking. He wasn't bringing all of the Ebon Hold, even though he knew how much they all wanted to get revenge. But of course.
Thassarian, who already knew the answer, too, asked; "What orders do I give, sir?"
Darion sighed heavily, studying the Ebon Knights with grief. Some seemed to relax up until the last moment, by throwing dices or discussing things not related to war. The rest, however, stood leaned against their runeweapons or sharpened them repeatedly. After another moment of silence, the Highlord answered; "Tell them to hold the Scourge off. We will need all the distraction we can get, and in case we don't make it…" Mograine's voice trailed off for a moment. "…in case we don't make it, someone needs to resume our mission."
Nadaala could not do else but stare at him. Those orders were unfair, especially if he was the one to decide which would stay. She was about to get up and protest, when the doors of the Citadell swung open once again. Galbana hurried down the few stairs and up to the Highlord. "Forgive me for the delay," she said, bowing slightly. Mograine waved off the apology, while Thassarian asked her;
"So, when is Koltira coming?"
Both of the men smirked slightly when her cheeks darkened, but she tried to keep as straight face as possible. "He is on in his way, Thassarian." She swallowed and turned to the Highlord again. "Uh, are we ready to set out?"
The Highlord shook his head. "Not quite yet, but we will tell you when."
Galbana and Nadaala nodded and left the two champions. After sitting by the Citadells wall in silence for a moment, fingering on her runeblade Sarya, Nadaala glanced at her friend. The night elf seemed very relaxed and content, so perhaps she actually had been resting the entire night. Clearing her throat, the black haired death knight decided to bring it up.
"Had a good night's sleep, then?"
The statement did not quite give the reaction she expected, as Galbana's eyes suddenly grew wide and her cheeks dark. "EH?"
Nadaala raised an eyebrow. "What, I was just asking." She glanced around the grounds. "Where IS Koltira, anyway? Can't we go-"She stretched out after her friend's arm, but the night elf avoided her.
The black haired death knight was getting even more confused now. "You're acting a bit odd. Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm fine! Really!" Galbana stood up as if in a hurry. At that moment, the doors swung open once again and Koltira in person exited the citadel, followed by three other death knights that quickly merged with the other ones that waited for the Highlord. Koltira, however, strode past them and joined Mograine and Thassarian with their discussion. He mumbled something to them, and while he talked, he caught sight of Galbana.
His serious face loosened up a bit as they exchanged eyecontact. Nadaala felt like she was in the way, judging by the emotions between them. Mograine, however, seemed completely unaware of what was going on and asked for Koltira's attention again. But before bringing up the subject, he faced Galbana and waved at her to come too. "It would be well if you new arrivals could take part in my strategies," he told them, and they both nodded.
Nadaala sat quietly and watched them. She barely even heard Thassarian as he leaned towards the wall beside her. After a minute, she spoke out to none in particular. "Galbana looks very relaxed for it to be the calm before the storm. That just is not like her."
The other death knight shrugged his shoulders. "I can't say. I don't know her as well as you do, but perhaps she has grown more mature during these last months. It is hard when you go through such things as we all have…" His face darkened. "And then have to drag your past with you into danger."
Moving her gaze from the Highlord, who now stood pointing at a map he had unrolled on the ground, Nadaala was now confused. "Eh?"
Thassarian smirked. "Never mind. But you're right though, I guess something must have changed. Still, I'm a bit worried though… Koltira was never the… emotional type."
At this, Nadaala decided that there was not much to understand in any of the reminizing things that Thassarian said, and so she just leaned back again. Right now, there was no telling if she could ever have an opportunity in peace like this once more.
.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
"Need help?"
I pretended to be annoyed at Koltira's mockery, rolling my eyes as I continued strapping on the saddle of my skeletal gryphon. "No thanks, I can handle it myself." Testing if the strap was tight enough to hold the saddle, I sighed a bit and bent down again to adjust it. I could practically hear Koltira smirking behind me, but he didn't say anything.
Just as I backed away to examine if I was ready, a sudden outburst startled every death knight and other adventurer nearby. "They did WHAT?!"
Both Koltira and I turned around to look at the Ebon Highlord, who didn't seem to calm down any second now, giving the elven scout in front of him a hard time keeping his own. Thassarian and Nadaala were already running to Mograine's side, as were the other Ebon Knights.
"What happened?" Thassarian asked seriously.
The scout cleared his throat, scanning every one of the knights around him, staring at him. "I… I flew to the Crusader's Pinnacle as fast as I could, but lord Fordring was not anywhere to be found… According to one of the Crusaders there, he recently set out with a band of soldiers to the Cathedral of Darkness. Said they'd go undercover to find the heart, they did."
A murmur spread quickly among the death knights, and some started raising their voices. "Their out of their minds!"
Obviously, I thought to myself, but I could not help but feel shocked and despaired. Tirion may have been lucky the last time, but this time, the Lich King would defiantly be prepared.
Mograine put a hand to his head, desperately trying to figure out a new plan. Frustratedly, he unsheathed his runeblade and raised it to the sky. "Knights of the Ebon Blade! Hear me! Circumstances have wrecked our strategies useless, and so we must act now!" Everyone in his presence stood silent, waiting for his next words. "When we fought at Light's Hope Chapel, the Argent Crusade stood tall and helped us see the truth. This time, it is time to repay that deed!"
The crowd of death knights cheered, ready for battle. I raised the Shadowbringer in agreement with the others. Though still looking stressed, the Highlord called for silence once more. "There is no time to make proper formations. Still, I believe Tirion will need all the help he can get, if we shall ever bring him and his Crusaders out of there alive. Any whose name I call now, will make themselves ready for battle immediately and take their mount."
The mood of the crowd changed almost instantly, as the knights realized that now all of them would fight for their revenge. They all started shouting over the others, trying to either tell Mograine to pick them or bringing the whole Ebon Blade.
Still…
"Súbuna!" As the first orc was called to ready her mount, I looked to find both Koltira and Thassarian on their gryphons already. Of course, the death knight champions still had an advantage in situations like these. Though it didn't take long until I and Nadaala were told to prepare for ourselves, and no more than five minutes later, the handpicked Ebon Knights urged their mounts to fly and set out from the magical city.
This time, it was war.
.-.-.-.-.-.-
After what seemed like hours of flying over the icy mountain tops, a dark building started to take shape in the distance ahead of us. As we got closer, I noticed that some of its constructions looked like mockings to the cathedral of Light in Stormwind, and I also got a creepy feeling as I studied the cathedral's towers and pinnacles. They reminded me way to much of the Lich King's helmet. Then again, it seemed like this was a common design on the buildings attributed to the Scourge lord. I had heard of the Cathedral of Darkness once before, when my mind was still under the Lich King's control. I had learned that this place was were the Cult of the Damned held their main gatherings, were they welcomed their new members and so on. That meant there would be countless of them inside.
The sky was dark, and the moon was hidden behind thick gray clouds. Still we could discern the Cultists as they passed below on the cathedral's grounds, keeping an eye on every direction. Except of the sky above them, that is.
Our undead gryphons shrieked as we got closer, causing the Cultists to look up. In their shock, they had no time to gather themselves before the Knights of the Ebon Blade had lunged ourselves off of our mounts and ended their lives, then provoking them from rising again.
The guards standing by the Cathedral's entrance reacted as we ran towards them, and raised their weapons to defend the building. Súbuna, the orc, quickly threw a frost spell over them that stunned their minds. The Cultist's empty stares grew dizzy as the spell hit them, making them stopping dead in their tracks. Súbuna threw herself over one of the guards, as Thassarian and Nadaala graciously slew the other two.
Once they were down, we held our blades up another moment in case there would be anymore Cultists. When we were sure they were all gone, we lowered our weapons and looked at Mograine for new instructions. The Highlord nodded. "Now only remains to find Tirion and…"
He was interrupted as a loud, and very familiar, voice echoed out from the Cathedral. "ARRRRRRRRRRRRRGHH!!"
My eyes widened. The Lich King was here. But what in the world could cause him to yell out in agony, as if his whole being was being ripped apart? And yet how much I hoped that so was the case, I knew it wasn't.
Mograine jerked his head towards the entrance. "We have no time to lose. Now!"
Our band of Ebon Knights ran for all we were worth. If the Lich King beared so much pain, then Tirion and his Crusaders would defiantly be in grave danger right now. As we ran through the entrance, I heard more people yell.
"Tirion's down!! Protect him with your lives!!"
"You…will pay for that old man!! Slay them all!" The last words by the Scourge lord caused us to run even faster, if that was even possible. And at last, the soldiers of the Argent Crusade came within sight.
The situation looked pretty brutal. A small, ice cold object was floating in the air, a deep cut penetrating the organ. On the ground lay Tirion, surrounded by his defenders, all wearing the same dark robes as the Cultists that had now rushed forward to kill them. Several fresh corpses also lay spread around the cathedral… and beside one pillar, the Lich King sat down, kneeling, and gripping his armoured chest in agony.
"Take heart crusaders!! You do not fight alone!" Koltira yelled, as our group quickly surrounded the cultists, me and Nadaala standing between them and the Argent Crusade's leader.
"I hope you don't mind if we crash this party," Thassarian said as he studied the Cultists. Some of them were the very ones that had served us on the Acherus. "I brought some old friends with me."
I glanced over my shoulder, having my runeblade raised to the cultists in case they would try anything. Tirion's face was pale, and he defiantly had trouble breathing. And what was that horrible, dark aura that rose from him…? I looked up at the cold heart above us. Then at the Ashbringer that lay abandoned next to the Argent Highlord. He couldn't have…Could he?
Giving priority to rescuing the Crusaders, Mograine spat before the Lich King and then opened a death gate portal in the air. He nodded at the Crusaders. "Quick, through the portal! He won't stay down for long."
Without hesitating, one of the soldiers threw the Highlord's arm over his shoulders, and motioned for the others to follow him. Giving us one last, appreciating look, they ran through the death gate and disappeared.
As soon as they were gone, the Lich King slowly looked at us from underneath his helmet. "It seems that the puppet does not know his place, Darion."
The Ebon Highlord growled. "Ironic how you say that, when you are the one kneeling."
The Lich King chuckled, a joyless, cold laughter. However, he slowly stood up, his Cultists rushing to his side. In response to this, I and Nadaala ran back to the others, pointing our weapons at our former master, with an undescribable hatred. There was a tension in the cathedral, a tension I hadn't felt since we stood like this by the Light's Hope Chapel. Perhaps this was our very last encounter. Perhaps this was were it all ended.
"So it's to be this way then," the Lich King said coldly. "Tell me, how does it feel to betray your own kind, Darion?"
Mograine's face hardened, like I had never seen it before. "I could ask you the same. It seems you have done nothing else, after all."
Someone shifted next to me, and I was surprised to see that it was Thassarian. He looked like he was suffering from yet another flashback, a real painful one. And then I understood that the human death knight had been one of those to stand by the Lich King since the beginning. Since before he had picked up the Frostmourne, when he was still prince Arthas Menethil, of Lordaeron.
The former Alliance prince growled deeply. His second defeat by his own minions must have caused him to grow really infuriated, humiliated and disappointed. In anger, he lifted his runeblade with his hands, screaming out his fury. And suddenly, the whole cathedral began shaking.
The Cultists that up until now had been standing by his side began running around in panic, confused over what was happening. But for what reason I didn't understand, wouldn't their death give them the undeath they had so long sought after? Through the rumbling that the shakings caused, I barely heard Mograine yell; "Quickly! To Dalaran!"
As we started running for the exit, I glanced over to make sure that the Lich King hadn't moved. But that he had. As panic started to hit me, I tried to scan the room to know where he was, and suddenly a dark shape appeared behind the Highlord…
"NOOOOOOOOOO!!" I yelled.
Using my night elven swiftness, I ran as fast as I could, reaching the Scourge Lord right when he lifted his sword, and did the first thing that came to mind. For all I was worth, I pushed Darion out of the way, and in the same second, a sharp, numbing pain hit me in the chest. I shut my eyes in agony, but didn't need to look to know that I had been cut.
After registering a fall, my head hit the ground and my surroundings disappeared. The last thing I heard was HIS voice.