Chapter Thirty-Seven – Lillia
Dustwallow Marsh: Onyxia's Lair
Lillia walked up to the mouth of the Lair fuming with herself. What she wanted more than anything else was for Tael to be by her side, and yet after the debacle in the bath a few hours ago, she had remained mad at him. She told herself that it was because of his seeing the others in the nude; and he really did get a good look before Rellia punched him in the face. She herself had slapped him, along with Mavare and Amyntastrasza, so she really couldn't get mad at Rellia and Aphrodite for doing it as well. Aside from all of that, it was her embarrassment at being seen that really made her mad. Men will always be men, and their natural attraction to the female sex will always be there.
Lillia sighed at the memory. Her body must have looked alien to him compared to the others, with the scars and the white tinge of winter surrounding her. Very unappealing-and yet, she wondered if he even noticed at all with the realization at he was about to be in big trouble.
Maybe she was thinking too much into it; or that her scars would even be visible to the naked eye anyway. The only color Death Knights really retained outside of the glowing eyes, of course, was their hair. Hers was blonde, like her mother's and Marjhan's was Black etc. Their skin tone would have been changed by the effects of being neither alive nor dead, and their eyes would always glow blue.
It was not like she cared about her eyes, they were blue before the change and so she never really noticed.
Lillia realized the Lair was blocked by these spikes that came out of the ground (almost like teeth) and drew her Runeblade. She took a moment to peer at it, really take in it's power. After her previous runeblade shattered, she had received this one without so much as a thanks to the Highlord for making one for her. In fact, as intimate as she was with the blade, she rarely took the time to study the craftsmanship that went into her weapon, preferring her enemies to be familiar with its design as their life ended.
After the battle of Andorhal in the plaguelands, Lillia had allowed Tael and Amyna to study the weapon at her inn; and while Amyna looked at her pityingly for being tied to such a weapon, Tael was fascinated with its design and very interested in its unfortunate connection to her.
Someone tugged at her free hand.
Lillia looked down to find Amyna gazing at her with worry on her little face. This was not the first time she wished the Dragon Whelp could speak, and Lillia drew on an anger she never thought she'd have at the injustice of it all.
"Something wrong?" Aphrodite asked, casually.
Lillia turned to the Paladin with something akin to hate on her face. She was okay with all of her companions; even Argus the Spellseal, of whom she was understandably annoyed by much of the time he traveled with her. Aphrodite, and her manner of dress was the only one she came close to hating, which unbeknownst to the Paladin was a very dangerous position to be in.
Lillia with one step and all the anger she could muster, shattered the spikes covering the hole to the stupid cave.
"Nothing is wrong" Lillia's voice was deceptively calm, and then she looked to Amyna, who took her hand.
"I'm okay, really" she said fondly to the Dragon who looked like an elf child.
Amyna beamed at her, as if that was the sunlight Lillia needed (which it was) and ran back to Rellia who ruffled her hair.
"I want you all to listen to me" Lillia said, facing the group "Onyxia to many of you may not be a new enemy, but she has certainly changed for the worse. Either by her own plan or as a pawn of the Hated Lich King; she has returned to the land of the living, and attempted an assassination of the King of Stormwind. Another words, she is undead"
"This isn't our first rodeo, Death Knight" Aphrodite said, smiling "I think we can take care of ourselves"
"Enemies that are dead, Paladin, are always more deadly and difficult to kill than the living" Lillia responded bitingly "And since none of you have any real experience on such matters outside of our Forsaken allies; you will shut up and listen to me"
Lillia looked at her audience once more before continuing.
"For the most part, the dead cannot feel pain" Lillia looked at Aphrodite "They do not need to sleep, they do not need to eat, they do not need to breathe" Lillia scanned the crowd and slammed the tip of her blade to the ground to lean on it "They do not fear death, they do not fear life, they do not fear injury. They are impervious to empathy, they do not feel remorse or sorrow, there is no mercy in their eyes. They do NOT FORGIVE, and they do NOT FORGET"
Lillia paced back and forth now, and continued.
"You will all listen to me to the letter, especially when we get to Onyxia-and WE will make it to that bitch. If I tell you to run, you will run. If I tell you to fight, you will fight. Onyxia is waiting for us; she took that demon and staff to lure us here, and she will have something up her sleeve"
As Lillia finished speaking, a Dragonkin ran out of the cave and tried to attack. Lillia plunged her blade through its head before it even swung its blades.
"Are you finished talking our ear off?" Aphrodite asked.
"We enter the cave" Lillia spat, and with her runeblade drawn, she entered Onyxia's Lair.
True to the Plan they made in the inn, Lillia, Aphrodite, and Moonkin Mav took the offense against the Dragonkin of the Black Dragonflight. Lillia was most impressed with the Druidess; her nature magic was really powerful and thoughtfully supplemented with her dagger. The Moonkin would control the roots in the ground to stop the Dragonkin advancement, and pick them off a few ranged attacks like wrath or starfire. Tarethra and Argus would use Frostbolts and Shadowbolts respectively and finish a few off. Aphrodite knew how to use her one handed mace, and the Light was strongly with her; enough to make Lillia a little jealous.
Of course the Light always answered Humans better than they ever answered elves.
Even with the whole party doing their part (and Rellia and Amyna were superb at rear defense and healing; and Amyna could do both simultaneously in her true form), the Dragonkin were many in number and just as ruthless in power. After they cleared the first chamber, Lillia ordered the party take an hour's rest; and summoned a few skeletons to help keep watch.
She sat down, and with Amyna snuggled as close as possible (scales and all) she allowed herself a sigh of contentment.
"You give us that speech and then grow soft on me, Death Knight" a voice said.
Lillia looked up at Argus and Tarethra, and scowled.
"I know you want Scrape back, Argus, but the others are tired from all that fighting" Lillia said, as she stroked Amyna's horned and scaly head. The Dragon Whelp had closed her eyes.
"I would be tired too, I suppose, if I was still alive" Argus and Tarethra sat down across from Lillia "although my party might not have consisted of a child or a pregnant woman, for instance" the Warlock chuckled.
"They have worked far above expectations" Lillia said, looking at the Moonkin engaged in conversation with the priest and the Paladin "It's that woman that vexes me; I'd rather have ten pregnant women and twenty Dragon Whelps, than all of the Aphrodites in the world.
"Jealous much?" the Warlock asked.
Lillia laughed.
"I would never be Jealous of a prostitute" she said.
Aphrodite suddenly looked at Lillia, and smiled before continuing her conversation.
"Actually, she's a Countess" the Warlock said "I doubt she slept with many people, though I know of one she'd do for free"
Lillia clenched her free fist, and Amyna looked at her.
"Touched a nerve" the Warlock said "I figured that was the real reason you didn't like her-even if you like the Druidess"
Tarethra looked at her husband, and sighed-or tried to. Lillia almost forgot that she also couldn't speak, but for a totally different reason than Amyntastraza. Because while physical and mental trauma has impeded the Dragon Whelp from speaking out loud, it was the ocean the denizens of Booty Bay threw her into that made Tarethra mute. Her voice box simply rotted out of her.
Lillia reserved a measure of anger for Booty Bay, as a result of that travesty.
Argus held his wife to him, and said no more; and Lillia had noticed a change course through the Warlock when he did this. She didn't think Argus was ever capable of the display of affection he had for Tarethra before they were reunited, although she supposed it was likely he wasn't totally loveless, just by his words at the ball.
Didn't he say he was sown back together again because of his wife.
Lillia continued such reminiscing until they had to move on. Such was the way of the Death Knight.
She only hoped Tael was doing okay, or that Miss Proudmoore would be able to forgive him.
Lillia was on alert, even with her thoughts running askew. They had faced very little Dragonkin since the first chamber, and the place had suddenly become extremely quiet, despite the amount of molten rock moving within the cavern.
"This is the second time we came across a bunch of scorched bodies" Rellia said, concerned.
"It does look like they had very little reaction time, doesn't it?" Mav cawed.
The others were getting antsy as well, so Lillia concluded this wasn't just a feeling.
She continued along with Aphrodite and Mavare until they got to the last chamber. In the center of the chamber stood a woman of noble visage; and Lillia was sure she was Katrana Prestor.
"I've been waiting for you Argus" the woman said, and cocked her head in a very un-humanlike way.
"Have we met before?" the Warlock asked.
"You ask me that now?" the woman laughed so hard, the chamber shook "You and that Whelp's father were instrumental in removing my father from his position in Lordaeron, and you ask me that now?"
"Korialstrasz" Argus Whispered "Krasus we called him, I'd forgotten"
Lillia felt Amyna stiffen at her father's name, and she was quite intent on Onyxia's words.
"Of a truth I remember Lord Daval Prestor, but having only met the guy once, I concluded that he was suspicious on account of his distaste for Apples"
"Apples?" Onyxia looked like she was ready to say 'really?'
"I think anyone who hates Apples is suspicious, it's just what I do" the Warlock said "I went to Krasus with my opinion and he agreed with me" everyone looked at the Warlock incredulously; to which his reply was "What? What did I say?"
Lillia stepped forward.
"What exactly were you after, Onyxia?" she asked, seething "Or was this a waste of everyone's time?"
"Revenge, and such" Onyxia replied "You wouldn't understand"
"You were an advisor to the King of Stormwind" Aphrodite stepped forward "Someone Varian trusted, and you betrayed him! You speak of wrongs against your father, and you almost drove Stormwind to Oblivion!"
"I think there was an ulterior motive to Onyxia revealing herself, and setting this up" Rellia said "I don't buy revenge"
Lillia agreed with her.
And suddenly there was a loud noise, which shut everyone up and caused Onyxia to turn around completely in surprise.
Three people had fallen to the ground on top of each other and Lillia knew who they were, but that didn't make any sense…no one could teleport through Onyxia's barrier.
"Are we just going to keep teleporting until we get to Darnassus?" the woman on top asked.
"I hope not" Jaina Proudmoore (who was between Tael and the other woman) said "I knew it was bad, but I didn't realize how bad. Tael, I'm sorry I smacked you"
"I would be better if you got off me"Tael's voice was muffled "I can't rightly breathe"
"Oh" the girls said together "We're sorry"
They got up, and seemed to finally realize something was terribly wrong.
"Um, guys" Tael said "Is that Katrana Prestor, or a doppelganger?" He noticed Lillia, and his face lit up-and that caused her to ache in response.
"I think it's safe to say that's the real Onyxia" Jaina replied.
Only silence filled the cavern then, just silence and surprise.