Author's Note:
Hi everyone! I'm now (almost fully) moved into my new apartment, and I love it, except that I don't have the Internet yet. They promised me I'd have it today, but my modem still isn't giving me the Net (*insert boos here*). Good thing I can connect via my phone (*insert hurrays here*). Here's chapter 52 for your reading entertainment. I hope you enjoy it!
Love,
Lunarelle
"That must not have been easy for you," commented the white tiger, looking at where Faith was kneeling, wiping at her face. Her sobs sounded odd, breathless, but she was quickly regaining her composure. Next to him, Taran Zhu looked impassive, as though he couldn't have cared less about what he was witnessing. On his other side, Prince Anduin and the tauren were looking more sympathetic.
"The worst is yet to come, is it not?" asked Anduin.
"It is. Get up, Faith, and face your latest challenge. Hatred."
Faith looked up as another manifestation of the sha materialized in front of her. After having faced Sylvanas again, she expected to face Garrosh because of what he had done to her, but instead…
Arthas.
Prince Anduin gave a cry of alarm, stepping back and hitting the wall behind him. "That's the Lich King... she has already killed him."
"But she still hates him," said the tauren. "Not that I can blame her after what he did to her people."
"And what did he do?" spat Taran Zhu. "What did he do to deserve getting killed?"
It was Anduin who answered in a soft voice, "He sacked Quel'Thalas, Faith's home, and destroyed nearly everything there. He decimated the elven population so badly that merely one hundred thousand of them remained, out of a population of over one million individuals. Oh, and he killed Sylvanas Windrunner personally."
"We have all lost people," said the pandaren without emotion.
"But maybe you should learn about Faith's past before you pass judgment on her."
Faith heard them talking, but only dimly. A hatred so powerful was coursing through her that she could barely see straight. Her body shook. Her vision blurred. All she saw was Arthas killing Sylvanas, plunging Frostmourne into her body and raising her as a banshee. The hatred was clear and bright. It almost had a taste. A metallic one, nearly akin to blood.
"Arthas…" she whispered.
Arthas laughed. It was an illusion, but it sounded exactly the same way he had when she'd heard him in Icecrown Citadel. The laughter brought back all sorts of horrible memories, and her skin began to crawl, as though covered in spiders.
"You think you have beaten me," he said to her. "But you haven't. I will always be there, reminding you of what I've done, of the way I brought about the destruction of your home, of your family, and of your lover. Sylvanas."
At the mention of Sylvanas' name, Faith screamed and lunged. Arthas raised Frostmourne and parried her blow with ease. Sparks flew, and he laughed again.
"I killed her, and I enjoyed it. I tortured her, and I enjoyed it. I watched her slowly losing her mind at the thought of your death… and I certainly enjoyed it."
Faith's hatred peaked, and she attacked over and over again, sending out every single spell she could think of at Arthas. Most of them hit him, but seemed to have very little effect on him. A dim part of her told her that she was going about this fight the wrong way, but she couldn't heed her own council. The reminder of what Sylvanas had gone through was at the forefront of her mind, clouding everything else.
Sylvanas.
Her heart seemed to quiver in her chest. It must have been an illusion, because it lay there, unbeating, but she felt it nevertheless. A distant cry, Sylvanas calling out to her in love.
Love.
Faith paused, and Arthas' illusion thrust Frostmourne into her. Her world flashed, colors washing out of it briefly before she saw Sylvanas, living Sylvanas standing before her.
"Let me go, Faith," she said. "Let go of the past, and focus on the future. You must. You cannot hold on to me that way, it's unhealthy. And while you do, you will never be free of the hatred you feel burning deep within you. You will never be truly able to love me again. What you feel now, it is nothing compared to what you could really feel."
Had Faith's attention not been wholly absorbed by Sylvanas, she would have heard Anduin's shocked cry. She would have seen the tauren's face slacken in awe.
But she saw none of it. Her heart broke, mended itself, and broke again.
"Let go of it," said Sylvanas. She came closer to her, floating an inch or so above the ground.
"Sylvanas…"
"I'm here. You know I'm here. Not the undead version of me you know, but me. The real me that you loved for so long. I'm here for you, within you, right next to you. And I will never leave you." Sylvanas put a hand on her face, and it was warm. Their lips touched. An illusion it might have been, but to Faith, it was entirely real.
When she opened her eyes, Arthas was gone. Sylvanas came closer to her, diminishing into a golden mist that went through her, settling right where her heart was.
"What in the name of all Pandaria happened?" asked Taran Zhu, his voice surprisingly loud. "What was that?"
"Faith beat it," said Xuen. "She beat back her hatred."
"How? She barely fought."
"Oh, she fought. Just because you didn't see her physically fight doesn't mean she wasn't fighting it."
"But what did she do?"
"She used love," said Anduin. "I don't even think that she did it consciously."
The white tiger nodded, "However she did it, it was effective. And it has certainly left its mark upon her."
Faith looked at him, "What do you mean?"
"Look at yourself, child."
The walls of the room were made of reflective marble, and when Faith caught a glimpse of herself, she blinked. From what she could see, her hair was now as white as her skin, like a fresh snowfall cascading from her head.
"But… how?" she asked.
Xuen looked down at her, his blue eyes benevolent, "I suppose that what you felt was so intense that it affected you physically. Since you are undead, it affected you differently than it would other people."
Faith didn't know what to say. "I guess…" she whispered after a few seconds.
"The fact that you were able to go through the trials says a great deal about you, Faith Everstone. Your people have brought war to our shores, but you show that there is the capacity to also bring peace. Because of this, I will allow both the Horde and the Alliance to go to the Vale of Eternal Blossoms. I hope that you will treat it well, for we are very fond of it."
"Thank you, White Tiger," said Anduin earnestly. "We're most grateful that you would grant us this honor."
Taran Zhu, however, was visibly upset by the decision.
"One person alone cannot tell you what an entire people will do! She does not control what the Horde does! You are making a grave mistake in allowing her people and the Alliance to enter the Vale."
"She has proven her worth, Taran," said Xuen quietly. "And I'm sure that the other celestials will agree with me on this. Please, join us at the Gate of the August Celestials, at the entrance to the Vale, and we will grant you all entry." He looked at Faith again, "I can sense that you want to go home. Will you have the energy to do this now?"
"I think so. But I need to send a report first."
"I can do that," said the tauren. "You need not worry about that, Faith."
A nod, "Thank you." She was about to ask how they were going to get to the gate, but Xuen called a couple of pandaren mages, who created a portal for them. She was the last to step through the gate of swirling energy.
Faith had passed the gate once, from afar. She'd heard of what was on the other side, and had wondered whether she would get to see it.
The Vale of Eternal Blossoms.
It lay there, just beyond the gate, which was still closed, although one could scarcely fail to notice that the four August Celestials were there, and that they were getting ready to open the doors for the people standing there.
The pandaren were speaking in their own language, but Faith had picked up a few words here and there, and managed to discern that everyone was excited about finally being able to see it for themselves.
"Why haven't they been allowed there before?" she asked.
"It was sealed following the overthrowing of the mogu. This was a place where the power of the Well of Eternity coalesced, you know."
"Was it?" asked Faith, surprised. "I was only aware of two such locations on Azeroth until now."
Xuen nodded, "The Vale was sealed in order to protect it. Emperor Shaohao came here to unburden himself, and according to legend, as soon as he walked into the Vale, the trees began to blossom." With another nod, he turned towards everyone, as Yu'lon, the great dragon, flew up into the sky.
"Children of Pandaria," she said as everyone began to kneel. "The mists have fallen. For good or ill, our land is open to all."
Xuen took a few steps forward and roared. The land under Faith's feet trembled, and suddenly, the gates unlocked and opened, revealing the Vale of Eternal Blossoms to all of them.
Faith's mouth dropped open. Memories assailed her, as the riot of color strongly reminded her of Quel'Thalas.
It was breathtakingly beautiful. A clean smell of fresh earth, flowers, and trees surrounded her, and even though her senses were dull that day, she took a step back, overwhelmed.
Everything seemed golden. The grass was a vibrant yellow, impossibly soft to the touch. Thousands of little flowers sprouted from the earth, their petals beautiful and delicate.
Strong trees with dark trunks unfurled golden leaves and blossoms as people began to walk through the gates, in awe over what they were seeing.
"Unbelievable," said Faith quietly. By her side, Garia stared around her, stunned.
"I don't think I've ever seen such a beautiful place. And Pandaria is already beautiful as it is."
Faith agreed. There were no words to describe what she was seeing. An amazing sense of purity permeated the very ground they stood on, and Faith found herself wishing that she had come here much sooner.
"Sylvanas would have loved this place when she was alive," she whispered.
"Is there anything that you see that doesn't make you think of Sylvanas in any way?"
Startled into laughter, Faith shook her head, "I'm sorry. I know I mention her a lot."
"A lot…" muttered Garia. "You could live inside her skin and feel that you weren't close enough to her."
"I don't hide that."
"I know, that's what I'm saying. You talk about Sylvanas so much that I feel like I'm her best friend now or something."
Still smiling, Faith put a hand over her mouth, "All right, I'll keep quiet about her."
"No you won't. You can do a lot of things, Faith, but not talk about Sylvanas when she's not around isn't one of them. What do you think she'll say about your hair?"
Faith twisted a strand of her newly whitened hair around her finger, "She'll probably call me a ghost, I dunno."
"You don't think she's going to obsessively look it over strand by strand?"
"No, no. That's me, not her. Did I ever tell you? Once, I found a couple of strands of her hair in my bedroom after she'd visited me, and I kept them. I actually framed them and kept them on my wall. She never knew that."
"You… kept strands of her hair. I don't think we should be friends anymore."
Faith began to laugh again, "It's not that strange. People keep strands of their loved one's hair all the time."
"Yeah, their children's or someone who's died, maybe. But… you were obsessed."
"Yeah, well, I couldn't be with her back then, which made me want her more."
"More? More than now? I'm happy I wasn't there to see that."
They walked through the Vale, following the throngs of people who passed under two enormous mogu statues that had been depicted as carrying spears that formed an archway.
"Wow," said Faith. "I will never cease to be amazed at what the people here have managed to do."
"Your people have great structures too," said Garia fairly.
"We did, yes, until the Scourge pretty much destroyed it all."
"Still, you've managed to rebuild."
Faith nodded, "This place reminds me of home."
"Wasn't your home green?"
"The south, yes. But Sylvanas was in Silvermoon, where everything was covered in autumn colors." She didn't mention that the color of the trees reminded her of the way Sylvanas' hair used to shine like freshly spun gold in the sun.
Garia chuckled, "I give up trying to understand you."
Faith smiled, before turning her eyes to an immense palace that loomed inn front of her, "Would you look at that…" she said. "That must be Mogu'shan Palace."
"How could you possibly know that?" wondered Garia.
Faith nodded towards all of the pandaren around her, "I've been hearing them talking about the palace ever since we walked through the gate. Seeing it, I can understand why. I mean, look at that."
Garia gave a nod. It didn't look like anything she had ever seen before. Her people had certainly never built that kind of structure, nor had any other members of the Horde, except for the Sin'dorei, whose buildings could certainly be grand in stature. "It's striking."
It was. Everyone who had ever laid eyes on it had said the same thing. Built on a hill, in tones of white, red and gold, it was a beautiful building that followed pandaren and mogu architectural lines. A grand staircase led from the center of a glowing pool to the front doors. Blossoming red trees grew on either side of this pool, the waters of which looked crystal-clear, even at a distance.
"It looks magical," whispered Faith.
"I don't think that's just for looks," said Garia. "It's a bit like Dalaran or Silvermoon: you can feel the magic of this place."
"From the smallest pebble to the brightest leaf, magic is here, all around. That's something that I was told when I was little. Magic was everywhere at home, and almost everyone could access it in one way or another."
"Did Sylvanas tell you that?"
A smile, "No. It was Ravenna, my sister. I miss her. I'm sure she would have loved to see this place."
"Even Garrosh couldn't fail to appreciate the beauty here."
A look of alarm crossed Faith's features, "I don't want to think of Garrosh here. The war he's forced us into has already caused damage to Pandaria. I'd hate to think of what he would do to the Vale."
A group of pandaren began directing the flow of people towards areas to the right and to the left of the palace. Faith and Garia were directed, along with the rest of the Horde travelers, to a separate area than the Alliance travelers.
"The members of the Alliance are to go to the Shrine of Seven Stars, while the Horde should go to the Shrine of Two Moons," someone was calling out. "We don't want quarrels here."
Faith smiled ruefully, "I guess that not even this sanctuary can quell the war. I can't blame the locals for wanting to preserve this spot."
Neither of them said anything else until they had arrived at the Shrine of Two Moons, which seemed to be an extension of the palace. It was just as pretty to behold, and the inside was sumptuously decorated with jewels of jade and gold, and softly shimmering lanterns. Hot food awaited the living members of the Horde, while others decided to take a bath or visit the shrine.
"What will you do now, Faith?" asked Garia. "Will you go to Sylvanas?"
A nod, "I want to talk to her. It's not the first time I've had to kill some image of her, but it never gets easier."
"Well, at least you know that if things got really bad, you'd be able to kill her immediately."
"I don't know about that. I wonder if she'd be able to kill me."
"Didn't she try, once? When she was Scourge, I mean."
"Yes, but I don't really count that. Her will wasn't her own then." She cleared her throat, taking a small vial of potion out of her pocket and swallowing its contents, "I should find a map and get acquainted with this area so that I can make a portal to return."
A Forsaken mage heard her, "That won't be necessary," he said. "We are all doing this so that we might be able to make portals to any of the capital cities. The pandaren have set up a room for this purpose on the second floor. If you give us a couple of hours, we will be able to create a portal for you."
"Thank you," she told him. "I'll come with you then. Garia, what do you want to do?"
"Oh, I'll explore a little. See you later, Faith."
Faith squeezed her hand before following the Forsaken mage to the portal room. Mages of every race had converged there, and were looking at maps and star charts. Faith joined them, and an hour later, the first portal to Orgrimmar had been created, followed by a portal to Undercity, which Faith took, landing in the room just off the Royal Quarter.
"Oh, there you are. Sylvanas expected you an hour ago."
"Hello to you too, Carrick," said Faith smiling as she saw her Rotvine at the entrance to the room. "What do you mean Sylvanas expected me?"
"Oh, you know how it is. She felt that something was wrong, and she expected you to come home right away."
"Nothing's wrong, really. There was just a trial I had to pass, and no trial is complete for me unless I have to kill some version of Sylvanas."
"Again? How many times have you done that now?"
Faith chuckled, "Several. And it doesn't get any easier."
Sylvanas suddenly appeared before them, rounding a corner, and having evidently overheard Faith's statement, "The gods really don't have any better things for you to do, do they?"
"It wasn't the gods this time, Sylvanas, it was the sha."
"The sha made you kill me?"
"It was a manifestation… can we talk about this in a less public setting?"
Sylvanas made a big show of looking around. Other than Rotvine, nobody was in the corridor with them.
"I'll make myself scarce," said Rotvine. "I don't need to see you two reuniting. Again."
"Oh, Faith's not here for a reunion. Are you, my love?"
"I am, but that can come after we've talked."
