As they got closer to the coast, the scent of greenery mixed itself with the smell of the ocean. It was faint, but it still reminded Faith of several afternoons spent at the beach near Windrunner Spire with Sylvanas and her family. If she closed her eyes, she could almost see Sylvanas in the surf, water dripping off her muscled body, making it glisten in the sun.

"What could you possibly be thinking about?" Sylvanas asked her, walking up to her.

"Memories of times past," whispered Faith.

"So, me."

"It doesn't always have to be about you. I could be thinking about my brothers, my sister's wedding, or my parents."

"Were you?"

"No."

Sylvanas smirked, "You may be dead, but there's no mistaking that look on your face."

"What look?"

"You'd be blushing if you could. Your cheeks would be warm, but your hands would be cold. You would tremble if I were to run my finger down your spine. And if I let you, you would devour me right here, right now."

Faith blinked once, "I'm sure I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Is that a quiver I hear in your voice?" Sylvanas put a hand on Faith's lower back, "You want me."

"Now you're being cocky."

"You don't have a lot of time to ravage me before I leave, Faith. So if you want us to make love, I suggest you tell me now."

"I don't want to… is that all you think about?"

"Lately? Yes. And I know you have as well."

Faith didn't get a chance to answer as an Alliance ship came into view.

"Everybody to your stations!" cried Sylvanas as the other Forsaken ships rang out with the same order. Faith started performing a cloaking spell, although it was impossible that the Alliance ship hadn't seen them. She heard the distinctive sound of canon fire and stared.

"They're not firing at us, Sylvanas," she said, pointing to the water. "Look."

Sylvanas' gaze raked the waterline, seeing that Faith was right. The Alliance ship was firing at something in the water. People.

"Orcs," she hissed. Turning her head, she ordered a return of fire. Cannon balls began to fire from their ship, towards the Alliance vessel. Despite how far they were, Faith distinctly saw one of their cannonballs rip through the mast of the blue and golden ship. A good shot.

"We've got to help them out," said Faith.

"What happened to not helping the orcs ever again?" asked Sylvanas, already signaling for them to move closer to the soldiers in the water. Blood had already stained the sea red, attracting aquatic predators, but a few of them still appeared to be alive. As they watched, a female orc cried out, pulling out a blue-tinged blade and attacking a shark that was trying to eat her.

Faith murmured a spell, and her hand glowed icy-white suddenly. Moments later, the water around the orc began to freeze over, allowing her to climb on it to escape the shark. Below her, the predator froze, dying instantly. The orc raised her weapon in thanks. Looking at her eyes, Faith realized she was a death knight.

Faith raised her hand again, creating a path on the water for the death knight to get to the ship while other mages did the same for the remaining survivors. The Alliance ship fired one final shot and stopped.

"Since when does the Alliance kill arbitrarily?" asked Sylvanas.

"Since we destroyed Theramore, I would guess," answered Faith. She walked towards the edge of the ship, holding down a hand for the death knight to grab. "Welcome to The Everstone, death knight," she said. "Are you all right?"

"I've been in worse positions before," she said quietly, her voice like the creaking of a crypt door. "Thank you for your help. My name is Garia. Garia Gorecarver."

"That's quite a name," Sylvanas told her, nodding. "What happened?"

"The Alliance sank our ship," said Garia as other survivors began to climb onboard. "We were making our way to shore when they fired on us. That's when you came in."

"They fired on you without warning? It wasn't in retaliation for anything?"

"We're at war, so I suppose that was it."

Sylvanas rolled her eyes, "Other than that."

"We engaged an Alliance ship before docking, but I can't be sure it was the same ship."

Faith shook her head, "That doesn't warrant them shooting at you after sinking your ship." She went to help some of the other survivors, most of which were badly injured. A young brown-skinned orc had lost a leg and was clearly trying not to scream at the sight of the mangled stump that jutted from his hip. A Forsaken priest was slowly healing him so that he wouldn't bleed to death, but it was obvious that he would never fight again.

"What am I supposed to do with my life now?" he asked. "All I know is fighting."

Faith knelt next to him, "You could learn a trade. Maybe you could make armor or weapons for soldiers, or be a recruiter. Once you're healed, we'll send you back to Orgrimmar so that you can be fitted with a prosthetic. You'll see, there will be plenty of things for you to do."

"But it won't be the same."

"Of course not. But you can still lead a good life and be useful to countless people." She squeezed his shoulder before standing straight again and moving to another orc. This one was in much worse condition. The troll druid who was with him was desperately trying to staunch the flow of blood from an abdominal wound. How he had made it to the ship was a complete mystery. As Faith approached, he reached out to her.

"I don't w-want to d-die…" he gasped.

Faith took his hand, "You're going to be just fine, you'll see. You fought well, a true hero of the Horde, soldier."

The soldier's body went limp suddenly, and Faith closed her eyes, shaking her head.

"You can stop now," she told the druid. "He's gone."

The druid sighed, shaking his head, "I tried…" he said sadly.

"I know you did. Sometimes, people can't be saved, and it's okay."

"You're not angry?"

"I am, but not with you. Keep working, druid, you're doing fine."

She joined Sylvanas, who had moved to the other end of the deck. They were almost at a makeshift dock that would serve its purpose. Faith recognized crude orcish workmanship, which told her that more of Garrosh's forces had already landed.

"According to some soldiers, half a dozen ships were able to disembark soldiers before the Alliance attacked. Apparently they're spread around this stretch of land."

"What about the Alliance?"

"They're on the other side of the beach. The ship here was just patrolling the area." She pointed to a mast sticking out of the water. Even from a distance, both of them could see the tattered blue sails that indicated that it had been an Alliance craft.

"What are your orders?"

Sylvanas glanced at her, arching an eyebrow, "You know my orders."

Faith nodded, leaving Sylvanas' side and readying a party for landing. To her surprise, Garia joined her.

"Most of my crew is gone. It'll be best for me to join up with the others, wherever they are."

"I'll be happy to have you with us, Garia," said Faith, shaking her hand.

Garia nodded, going to join the Forsaken soldiers who were getting ready to disembark.

"All right, everyone!" cried Sylvanas. "I want you to hurry up and get off the ship fast! We have supplies to bring ashore and we have to make way for the others, so move it!"

Nobody needed to be told twice. The foot soldiers got off the ship first, each of them carrying various bags of weapons and ammunition. Next came the mages, who were levitating heavier crates that carried clothes and other goods from Silvermoon. Finally, bringing up the rear was the cavalry. Sylvanas rode first on Venom while Faith rode a new steed she had called Winter. The beast, a horse that had only recently been raised, was, by skeletal standards, a magnificent creature of pure white bone. Already, he showed loyalty to his new mistress and snarled at anybody who came near her, even Sylvanas.

"Maybe I should have gotten you a better horse," said Sylvanas, glancing at the pair of them.

"No, Winter's great. I mean, he's not Lady, and he's certainly not Prince, but I'm sure he and I will become great friends." He voice trailed off a little as she thought of how upset Lady had been when Liadrin had come to take her back to Quel'Thalas. She had screamed and kicked and very nearly crippled the stable attendant who had come with the Sin'dorei paladin. Only Sylvanas had been able to intervene and calm her down.

Sylvanas kept her eye on her, wondering whether she shouldn't stay with her. Faith was still feeling a little fragile, which was usual in her situation, although she wouldn't have admitted it to anybody. Wordlessly, she extended a hand to her, and Faith glanced at her before sliding Winter closer to Venom and briefly grasping her gloved fingers.

They moved quietly through the woods that looked so different from the ones they were used to. Faith had read about the plants she was looking at, but had never seen them in person before. Bamboo as tall as ancient fir trees covered the landscape, their leafy canopies filtering the sunlight so that everything looked green. Small snakes and insects moved away from them as they approached, clearly unused to seeing undead walking around.

"It's beautiful here," said Faith, catching sight of what appeared to be a shrine in a small clearing. She noted the exquisite workmanship of the shrine, even from a distance.

"It may not be so beautiful when Garrosh is done with it," said Sylvanas.

"And that doesn't bother you?"

"It would have done, once upon a time. But those days are long gone, my darling."

"Well, it bothers me. I don't think that we should let him destroy a world just because he wants to control it."

Sylvanas smiled a little, "I love that you still feel that way. I was afraid that you would rain down fire and brimstone on the world now."

Faith looked at her, momentarily surprised. "I want to. I feel angrier than I did before. But there's a big part of me that doesn't want to lay the world to waste. I don't want to be known as a killer, Sylvanas."

"Well, you're a killer in general, baby. So am I, so's everyone. But you don't kill arbitrarily. You think before you take a life, which is both good and bad. Good because you know what you're doing, bad because you tend to mull over each kill. Or at least you did. I don't know what it'll be like for you now."

"What was it like for you?"

"Arthas had tortured me so much… all I wanted was to make others suffer as much as I had. Please tell me I didn't do the same thing to you."

"I just told you that I don't want to lay the world to waste," said Faith quietly. "Besides, you didn't torture me."

"What would you call what I did to you?"

"You loved me."

Sylvanas didn't know how to answer that statement, so she didn't, closing her eyes against the tears that unexpectedly threatened to overwhelm her. She cried easily now, in light of what had happened, and it thoroughly unsettled her.

They began to hear sounds that didn't belong to the forest. Sounds of machinery and beastly voices that belonged to orcs. They saw blood staining the grass, and Faith wondered what kind of creature had been killed there. There was a strip of matted brown fur nearby that didn't belong to any of the races she knew.

"Up ahead," said Sylvanas. "Look."

They had reached an area that had been converted into an airbase that had obviously belonged to the Alliance, judging by the burning banners on the ground. As they went further, they saw various members of the Horde gathered here and there, polishing weapons and building crude towers out of wood. People recognized Sylvanas, and soon, everyone knew she was there.

"Lady Sylvanas," said an orc, walking over. Faith recognized him as Nazgrim, whom she'd briefly met while she'd been in Vashj'ir. He was a general now, and looked the part with a huge broadsword strapped to his side and highly polished armor that was only dented in one place. "We didn't know you would be coming."

"I'm not staying," said Sylvanas. "I just came to deliver additional troops and supplies."

"You're a lifesaver," said Nazgrim, his eyes widening at the amount of things they had brought.

"Let's not get carried away. I didn't do this out of the goodness of my heart," Sylvanas told him. "Faith will be staying here to oversee the Forsaken troops remaining behind. She'll be in charge."

Nazgrim nodded, looking at Faith with a mixture of sadness and wariness. "Major Everstone. I was very sorry to hear about what happened to you."

"Thank you, General," said Faith to him. She glanced at the airfield, surprised by how big it was. "How did the Alliance manage to build this in such a short amount of time?"

"They conned locals into building it for them. As far as I know, they were pretty much treating them like slaves, so we freed them. Here are some of them now."

Faith blinked slowly. Pandaren. Creatures that should no longer have been in existence were walking towards them, some of them with black and white fur, others with fur of lighter brown and red colors. They looked cuddly. She leaned towards Sylvanas, "Is it me or do they look soft and adorable?"

Sylvanas snorted, "I looked soft and adorable in life. And I could kill with a flick of my wrist. Don't underestimate them because of their looks."

"Soft and adorable," repeated Faith. "You were soft and adorable?"

"I was adorable! I was golden and beautiful and cuddly."

"You were a lot of things in life, Sylvanas, but cuddly isn't one of them."

"Hey, I cuddled you."

"Sometimes," said Faith, climbing off her mount and facing the Pandaren, who were looking at them with their mouths open.

"You… you are not alive," said one of them.

"Not technically, no," answered Faith. "You've never encountered undead before, have you?"

The pandaren, a male by the looks of him, shook his head. "We have ghosts that haunt some areas, but that's it." He came closer, visibly holding his breath, and Faith murmured a spell to make it easier for him, "How did you do that?" he asked, his eyes widening.

"Do what?"

"You made everything smell like… spices."

Faith smiled, "Magic," she told him. "Is it better?"

"Yes, much. Thank you." He reached out a hand towards her, "May I?"

A nod, "Go ahead."

He gently touched her arm, "Your skin is cold."

"Indeed it is," said Sylvanas, sounding amused now. "At least she has skin. Most of the other Forsaken aren't so lucky."

The pandaren looked at Sylvanas and backed away, scared now. "Why are you here?"

"You should not bring your war to our shores," said another pandaren, a female this time with patches of dark brown and creamy white fur. "I do not mean to offend you, but the sha have already come forth… we do not want our land destroyed because of you."

"The sha?" asked Faith.

"Manifestations of the old god Y'shaarj. They appeared when he was slain by the titans," said the female. "We have not seen them for a long time, but when your people came, they arrived suddenly. You must leave. Your emotions will make things worse for all of us."

Faith closed her eyes, "Yet something else I thought was a myth," she said.

"You've heard of them?" asked Sylvanas.

"I read about them not too long ago. I've had time on my hands, since I no longer sleep. There's a book in our library that alludes to malevolent spirits that came forth when this particular old gold was slain. They have several manifestations that are linked to anger, hatred, despair, doubt, pride, fear and violence."

"I'll have to find it," said Sylvanas. "So, because of this, we should leave?"

"You do not understand," said the first pandaren. "The sha have already taken over some of you. Your general here already felt their effects."

Faith turned towards Nazgrim, "Is this true?"

Nazgrim gave a nod, "It is. I felt like everything bad I felt had been multiplied tenfold. I didn't care suddenly what happened to anybody. I wanted to kill everything."

Faith and Sylvanas glanced at each other, "You should go, Sylvanas," said Faith.

"And leave you here? You're newly dead and raised, you're brimming with negativity."

"So are you! I was killed, Sylvanas. Me. I'm dead now. I was the love of your life, and I was killed."

Sylvanas ran a hand over her eyes, "Stop it."

"You all should go," said the female pandaren. "Please. You cannot remain here!"

Sylvanas turned her red gaze to her, "I appreciate your position, but we have no choice in the matter. We have been ordered here, and here we must stay."

"You would destroy Pandaria with your war?"

Faith shook her head, "We are not here to destroy your home. This is a war, unfortunately, and we have been ordered here by our warchief. I'm afraid that not obeying these orders would have horrible consequences for all of us."

The female looked at Faith, her green eyes wide, "But…"

"I give you my word that I will do everything in my power not to destroy your home. And if something is destroyed, we will help you rebuild it."

Faith's words rang across the airfield, and everyone stared at her as she spoke. The promise was real, its ring unmistakable.

"I know what it's like to have an invading force destroy everything you have ever known. I know what it's like to have everything taken away from me. We all do. And because of that, we will respect your land is if it were our own."

"Are you sure you can keep this promise, Faith?" asked Sylvanas in a low voice.

"I intend to," she said. "Now, you should really go. Please, Sylvanas. You came with us because of me, and I love you for it, but it's time for you to go home."

Sylvanas gave a slow nod, hopping off Venom and going to her, "You be careful, do you understand me? Faith, I mean it." She didn't want to leave her. Everything in her screamed that they should stay together and not be separated again.

"I'm always careful."

"More careful than you were last time."

"I'll do my best, Sylvanas," said Faith.

Sylvanas leaned down and kissed her softly, "I love you."

"I know," said Faith in a gentle voice. She slowly ran her thumb over Sylvanas' bottom lip, "Be safe."

"And you." Feeling wretched, she watched Faith as she created a portal back to Undercity. Stepping through it, she nearly dragged Faith with her.

I don't want to leave you… not again… my Faith…

AN - Hi everyone! Sorry if this part was late! I've been very busy at the office, getting ready to give a seminar next week, and going on a business trip the week after that, that it's been difficult to write. I haven't even played WoW in five days because I've been so tired. Tried a bit yesterday but it didn't take. Anyway, I hope you like this chapter! I'll post the next one as soon as I can! Thanks for reading!

Lunarelle