Chapter 16: The Siege.
In coordination with the other Horde Army Thunderaxe fortress was surrounded with ease. A attempt was made to get out before the surrounding had completed, but they were cut down by the air division, to which Occulus was added. Neither side provoked the other. They just stood there, Fortress on one side, Army on the other. In this time forces were being distributed and the entire siege was put under Kor'el's command. Kor'el ordered a group to go talk to those within Thunderaxe.
And so Jack walked one his own to the massive gates that gave entrance to Thunderaxe. Well, not entirely alone. The raptor stood by him. "Don't you dare jump at someone's throat before I sat so, okay?" The raptor made an attempt at nodding.
He saw the guard notice him coming up to the gate and he put out a white flag. He stopped a few feet from the middle of the gate and looked up. "Let me talk to one of your leaders."
Behind the walls commotion arose and the guards suddenly looked within the walls. Someone ordered the gate be opened and slowly the massive doors swung outward. Sounds of old hinges and chains clanging against each other rang though the air. Jack watched as two forms stepped through the gate. One was a massive demon with immense horns jutting up from his eyebrows. The other displeased Jack more than any demon could ever do. Krasgall. "You are dead." Jack told Krasgall.
Krasgall touched himself everywhere theatrically and said: "No I am not." Krasgall's throat bore a scar where Jack had nearly snapped. "What do you want?"
Jack returned to the matter at hand. "You have one last chance to surrender."
"Surrender?" The demon bellowed. "Why would we surrender to pathetic mortals like you?" The demon snapped his fingers and ranks upon ranks suddenly marched into view. "Tell me why?"
"If you don't, all of you will most likely be killed."
"We do not fear death. Death is only the beginning of a great journey."
Jack began walking backwards down the path. "Right. Last chance, when I am gone there wont be second chances." He said, focusing more on those on the walls than of the two in front of him.
"No!" Krasgall shouted. "Last chance Jack, you can still join us."
"Uhm. . . No." He said as he pulled into view the grenade launcher and aimed it at Krasgall. Krasgall knew what would probably happen and jumped aside as Jack pulled the trigger. As the grenade left the barrel he jumped behind an outcropping and took his gun in hand. The raptor followed him behind the outcropping. In truth it wasn't expected that the defenders of Thunderaxe would just lay down their weapons. All the catapults of both the armies fired simultaneously at the sound of the grenade impacting the ranks that had formed behind the pair that had come to talk to Jack.
A battle cry split the air and the ground forces of the two armies attacked. The wooden walls fell easily beneath the onslaught of the catapults. But as the dust settled those inside Thunderaxe charged out. Jack got up and ran towards his questionable safety. When he saw the charging First Horde Army coming in his direction as he topped a small hill, he stopped and turned. Gunshots rang across the open fields as his pulled the trigger again and again. A bullet hit a shoulder and ripped the shoulder plating of, nearly taking the shoulder with it. Other bullets hit heads and stomachs, but all seemed to hit flesh.
Even before the two charging behemoth forces collided bodies fell on both sides. Spells already shot through the sky. Arrows seemed to momentarily colour the sky black. For as far as Jack could see to the sides he saw the front lines of the forces smash into one another.
To Jack's dismay he was hit by a magically imbued arrow. It pierced right through the plating that was hidden within his cloths. It pierced his right shoulder and his arm fell to his side. He grabbed the shoulder. Blood was coming out of the wound and quickly coloured the area red. He was unable to move the arm, the arrow had shot through the bone. He tried to pull it out but was just rewarded with additional pain. The raptor was looking up at him with concern.
A undead grabbed his other shoulder and pulled him down. He forced Jack to a sitting position and told him to stay put. As much as Jack was disgusted by the decaying fingers that were tending to his wound, he let it happen. A white glow surrounded the fingers and seemed to move to the shoulder. The pain lifted and the undead healer took hold of the arrow. "This will be bloody." The undead warned. The undead pulled at the arrow and the tip that had burst through the other side sank back in. To his surprise Jack felt nothing. The undead pulled again and the arrow came loose with sounds of bones cracking. Pieces of bone flew out of the wound and it began to bleed even more. A gaping hole now existed in Jack shoulder. Blood-loss began to slow Jack's mind. The undead noticed it and speeded up the healing process. Again the fingers approached the wound. The whit light again spread across the wound. The spell that prevented Jack from feeling any pain suddenly lifted. As the pain coursed through him freely again the wound began healing. First the bone grew back, then muscle grew over the bone. And finally the skin.
"It should be good now." The undead said in their always echoing voice.
Jack tested the shoulder and nodded to the undead healer. The healer got back up and turned around. He walked to another wounded nearby, but suddenly halted. He fell down with an arrow in the neck. The windpipe had been damaged beyond repair, even if he was an undead. The undead lay thrashing around while grabbing his neck. Slowly the thrashing stopped and the body lay still. The fact that the one who had just healed a wound that might just have become a mortal wound died like saddened Jack like few things could.
He slowly stood up and reloaded the grenade launcher.
This had just become personal.
Where was Krasgall?
Grisha saw the dragons pass over head. The dragons dove down beyond her sight and roars like only dragons could make them erupted from that location. Now she stood together with Tal'grush and Warrick. Behind them was Nell, casting spells as he had done before at Crossroads. For some reason Grisha had the feeling that Nell wasn't giving all he had. To her it looked like he did give his all, but the feeling remained.
She had no more time to think of Nell. A troll lunged at her with one sword in his right hand and an axe in his left. He brought both weapons down at the same time and she blocked them with the large axe handle. Before the troll could react she swung the axe at his neck, beheading him cleanly. As the head bounced of the floor a spray of blood erupted from the neck. As the body fell forward she could see the spine and windpipe through the blood.
Another, this one undead, came into view. She, it was a female undead, was standing in a bloodbath of her own creation. In her two hands she wielded a massive hammer. It seemed impossible that a creature of her bulk could even carry that hammer, let alone use it. Still she charged at Grisha. Fear suddenly blossomed full in Grisha's mind. The Hammer came closer and closer. The undead was distracted suddenly by a tauren wielding two axes, who slashed at her. With impossible strength she placed the hammer so it would divert both axes, then she brought the hammer down on the tauren's head. The crack of bone snapping briefly send shivers down Grisha's spine.
The undead refocused on her and slowly waded through the blood and bodies to her. Occasionally she deflected a blow and struck back. One or two managed to scratch her decaying skin. She kept going for Grisha as if Grisha was the only thing that mattered, and anyone who got in the way was to be killed. To Grisha the only way the undead could show this kind of strength in keeping the hammer aloft was through a spell. Grisha pushed her fear away and charged the undead. She brought her axe down and it was deflected. To Grisha's good fortune an orc used the opportunity to swing at the undead. Without even looking the undead deflected the blow and shoved the head of the axe in the orc's face, the orcs nose was broken but he continued to fight.
The hammer came down on Grisha's axe, but she held the block. The orc again swung his axe and was rewarded with the axe sinking in the undead's back. The hammer fell out of the undead's hands and she stood as if she was frozen. Grisha cut of the head with her axe and the body dropped down. As the body lay still it transformed. The arms grew thicker just as the legs. The undead's armour was replaced by ornate armour that seemed to be made of molten metal. Horns jutted from the head and with the other features marking it as a demon. The demon had evidently cloaked himself as an undead so he , or she, wouldn't draw attention. With the demon's inherited powers the demon could readily use the hammer. The orc stepped beside her and only now did she recognise him as Tal'grush. "Thought you might need some help with this one." He said.
"Thanks. You should get that looked at." She said as she indicated the nose.
"When I see a healer I will." He looked around him and saw none of those. "But for now I will live." And he charged back into the fray.
She shook her head at his eagerness to fight again, but moments later followed herself. She saw Warrick fending of blows while Nell was behind him. Had they moved that far apart in such a short time? She ran back to Warrick and helped him by drawing the attention of one the attackers. Before the attacker could do anything she buried her axe in the attacker's stomach. The troll doubled forward and fell down, clutching the wound. Nell blasted the last attacker and then moved on to others. Warrick made a thanking gesture to her as she walked to his side. He took the shotgun from his back and checked if it contained shells. It did contain them and Warrick held it ready to use.
Just as Grisha was about to tell Warrick something a pack of beast charged into the fighting ranks. They stood on four legs and sported a heavy horned head. On top of their shoulders were long tentacles with suckers on the ends. The tentacles sought to drain the life of anything that got attached to them. "Felbeast." Nell warned.
The felbeast were not the brightest of creatures but they worked in packs. The lines that had previously held the felbeast away fell and the beast charged at Grisha and her companions. Next to her deafening sound of the shotgun resounded. One felbeast fell, nearly decapitated from the blow. Moments later another fell with the same injury. Three fell by Nell's flames in one burst. The last one was hit by Grisha's axe that swung upwards into it's chin. The head was cut in two but was still attached. The stumbling body fell on top of her and the greenish ichors that was the felbeasts blood was spilled all over her armour. The good thing was that it was dead and that the line was restored.
Warrick saw the felbeast crash into Grisha. She tried to push it of but it was to heavy. He looked to Nell, who was looking at him as if expecting him to push the felbeast of. He walked to where Grisha was struggling. "Need a hand?" He asked with a slight bit of amusement in his voice.
"Yes, cant you see that you idiot?"
Warrick acted like he had been deeply offended. "That hurt, but I'll help." He put his hand to the cold carcass and pushed. Slowly the beast rolled of Grisha. She got back up and tried to brush the sticking demon blood of her body. She only ended up with sticky hands.
"I cant wield my axe like this. It is to sticky." She complained.
From his belt Warrick took his canteen. "Here. Use the water to wash it of."
She looked at the canteen, then looked at him. "But you need that to drink."
"I'll get a refill from Nell." He pointed behind him, at Nell.
Without saying anymore she took the canteen and rose it above her head. She let a little bit dropped on her chest and used the water to was the now not so sticky green blood of her. She handed the canteen back to Warrick and made him hold it up. As she held her hands under it he let the water drop down on her hands. She washed the blood of the hands. "It is okay." He put the canteen back on his belt and studied her body. Now her slim, but not skinny, green body was covered in a mixture of green blood and glistering water. He couldn't help but admire her feminine forms. She saw where he was glancing and slapped him across the face, just hard enough for him to notice. "And now I am good enough for your eyes. Only good enough when covered in some demon's blood."
"Let's just save that conversation for tonight, given we survive till then." He returned.
She nodded in agreement but still kept a wary eye on him.
The fight in the sky was almost non-existent. Every now and then a demon with wings would take to sky but that was it. This was fine with Palkor. He made Magmaradon sweep though the ranks of Burning Blade. Magmaradon's talons ripped apart every Burning Blade within reach, while carefully avoiding all others. He made another pass and this time flame shot forth from Magmaradon, incinerating any who came in it's path. He flew back up, avoiding a folly of arrows and hovered in place outside the reach of any arrow. From his mouth Magmaradon shot a stream of molten magma. The liquid fell on the bodies and burned holes and set them aflame. All hit fell down screaming.
Magmardon faltered in his spell as thundering noise came from above. Almost nobody had noticed the air beginning to look like a black whirlwind. From the sky fell a multitude of infernals. They initially sought to hit those that were flying above the battlefield. Palkor only narrowly avoided the flaming boulder that sought to crash into Magmaradon. Others weren't so lucky. He saw his division commander get hit. The wyvern was dragged down underneath the infernal, but both were already dead since the infernal hot them. The sound of the infernal hitting the ground marked for Palkor his ascension to division commander, since he was the second in command.
Some of the infernals didn't land where they had planned to. Some where deflected by invisible force shields cast by the spell casters. Instead those landed amongst their fellow warriors, killing many. Two even collided with each other in the sky. They exploded and rained burning pieces down on the Burning Blade.
His first act in his new position was make everyone keep an eye on the sky. An explosion reverberated through the air. Palkor turned around in the air and saw a mushroom cloud rise above the catapults. He scanned the ground for any spell caster or contraption that could have caused it. He found nothing, but Nell was drawing his attention again. He flew down and listened to what Nell had to say. "There over there." Nell said as he pointed at a hill in the distance.
Palkor gestured his thanks and took of. Occulus noticed him and flew with him. They neared the hill and a flash of red lightning shot through the sky directly at them. They both got out the way and continued to the group of demonic spell casters. Occulus cast a spell on the area that made all slow down as if time it self was slowing down. It affected all except himself and the young black dragon with his rider. Slowed as they were the demons could accomplish little to defend themselves. They fell to the last one by the flames and talons of both dragons. As some lay burned to a crisp, others lay with stomachs split open and blood and intestines spreading across the ground.
After many more incidents like these the day grew to an end. The sun set and cast an orange light over the fighting men. From both sides horns called them back for rest and food. At the now abandoned battlefield lay fifteen thousand dead. As Nell approached the base camp he saw the small group he was hoping to find, however there was something wrong. As he came up behind Jack he noticed the silent moans of a dying man, or better, orc. He gently pushed Jack aside and saw Tal'grush sprawled on the ground. Grisha was sitting by him and Warrick wasn't far as well. The raptor gently licked blood of Tal'grush's hand. The hand came up and patted the head.
From Tal'grush's chest jutted a spear. The tip was made of an obsidian material. It punctured a lung, which was now filling up with. One arm lay useless as it had already died. The only sound Tal'grush was able to make was a pained gurgling. He coughed up blood and his face covered in it. The raptor already came up to clean the head as well, but the same hand that had patted the head was now preventing the raptor from doing what she was planning to do. Tal'grush offered his one living blooded hand to Grisha and she took it. He moved the hand to Warrick and he to took it. Next was Jack and he as well took it. Palkor dismounted from Magmaradon and took the hand in his turn.
As the hand moved Nell's way he took it as well. The slippery hand covered in blood send shivers down Nell's spine. The Tal'grush that ranked among the best of the horde's warriors had been reduced to this pile of blood coughing flesh. The hand fell down as Tal'grush wasn't able to keep it aloft anymore. Tal'grush gave them all one last smile as if this was the way he had always thought he would die. Finally the head fell down as well and lolled to the side.
That night fires burned bright to signal the passing of many. As Tal'grush lay amongst the burning dead Grisha couldn't help but let a tear roll down her cheek. Warrick put an arm around her and she didn't protest, she grabbed his arm as well. That night no cheer full music was played because everybody knew that tomorrow the fight would resume with the same intensity.
"Jack! I must talk to you!" Nell said. "In private." It was still night. It would take some time before the sun would emerge above the horizon again. Jack just nodded and followed Jack to a more private location.
"What is it?" Jack asked.
"I don't know where to begin."
"Begin at the beginning."
"Right." Nell deeply thought how to begin. "Okay. . . You know I told you I studied dragons?"
"Yes."
"You remember Occulus stopping before me?"
"Yes."
"Do you think a dragon like Occulus would stop before any mortal?"
This caught Jack of guard. He thought for a moment. "No. but I guessed you had somehow spend time with Occulus in the past and that he recognised you, or something like that."
"There is no dragon that wouldn't respect me if they knew who I truly am."
"Do I know who you are?" Jack asked.
"No. But soon you will. And you will be one of the very few. Occulus is one of those very few." Nell paused for a moment. "Do have any idea what I am?"
"If you are asking it that way, you are not human, you only wear this form as a disguise. I suppose that is possible through magic."
"You suppose right."
"And if you are talking about respect from dragons, than that would mean." Jack looked at Nell with a look of sheer disbelief. "You are a dragon."
"Yes. But still. If I were a dragon like Magmaradon I still would never have been able to stop Occulus on his charge." Nell continued
"You mean if you were a black dragon?"
"No. I am actually a black dragon, and I am sure Magmaradon knows it, or more like feels it. And through Magmaradon Palkor suspects as well. No I am not just a black dragon. Compared to me Occulus is a youngster."
"You mean dragons can get bigger than Occulus?"
Nell chuckled. "Yes, much bigger. You wont find ANY black dragon older than me."
A memory came to Jack. "So you are the aspect?"
"You don't have to be oldest to be the aspect. No, I am not."
"Why tell me now, and not when we first met?" Jack asked.
"The very fact that I wear this form should answer that question. I am thought dead by nearly all dragons, including all of the aspects and the rest of the black dragons. Only a handful know of me, including Occulus. And the reason that I tell you now is because I think you deserve to know. And because I plan to return to my natural shape tomorrow. I want nobody except you, and maybe Palkor, to know that it is actually me when you see a black dragon soaring through the sky the size of Thunderaxe fortress it self." Nell explained.
"Are you really that big?"
"No. I am just saying it so you know you are looking at me and not Magmaradon."
Jack returned to camp and lay down on his bed to rest a bit. The raptor lay at his feet and had her head up and watching him intently, as if she wanted him to say something about where he had just been. Did she know?
As the sun peeked over the horizon the armies charged at one another again. The Burning Blade seemed to be far fewer than there should be, but they still put up a fight. The catapults had been destroyed the other day, so no artillery rained down behind the enemy's lines. They were climbing over their fallen comrades to reach their enemy's. Battle commenced again. They battled on in the day and even when the sun was high in the sky and threatening to bake anyone who stayed in the sun for to long.
A spell cast by the demons came down near the command division. It missed but still caused death. The demons had realized where the command of their enemy was located and were now concentrating on it. Spell casters worked to deflect any spells coming for the commanders.
Warrick stopped to overlook to field. As if smelling it for the first time Warrick smelled the death and decay. Forever the image of the endless battlefield would be printed on his eyes. He saw the may bodies lying around and as he looked at every single one of them he had to think of Tal'grush. A shockwave nearly made Warrick loose his balance. Another shockwave ripped through the ground. The shockwaves sped up until they were like a heartbeat. They continued on and suddenly died away.
As Grisha came up to him as if he had an explanation for this, the dead bodies at Warrick's feet stirred. In an unnaturally loud voice Nell shouted across the field what was happening. "They are animating the dead!" The dead stood up and began slashing at the First and third Horde Armies. They were much slower, only good when distracting or in an immensely large force. Warrick pumped the closet full of lead and they fell back down with a few more holes. More came at them and Warrick had to reload the shotgun. Grisha defended him while he reloaded.
He was done and shot again. Again the dead fell down again. Suddenly one dead appeared to Warrick's right. Just as it slashed at Warrick it was hit in the head. The force cracked the bones and the head hung awkwardly. A kick from Warrick was enough to put it down. He looked to his saviour and saw Jack standing at the head of a dozen men with crude guns. Jack ordered the men to direct their fire on the Burning Blade in the distance. Warrick walked over to him. "Thanks for that." Warrick said.
A cry rose to the sky. The four of them, Jack, Warrick, Grisha and the raptor, looked to where the cry originated from. It came from a hill. On top it was command division. Around it was a complete army of dead. Some already fell to the tremendous onslaught. Occlus swooped down over the dead and crushed many. Bodies went flying as Occulus' talons ripped through the dead.
The four of them charged down the hill and up the other hill to help Kor'el. But they came to late. As the last dead fell down and resumed their previous state the damage had been down. Kor'el lay with an ripped open chest. Not a single organ lay untouched. Warrick had to look away from the blood that was streaming down the hill.
"Who is in command now?" Jack asked as sober as Jack could be at times like this.
"The other Warlord." One of the commanders called.
"We must reorganise, we cant go on without leaders." Jack said.
Messengers were quickly send to the other Warlord and quickly order was restored. The plan to push the armies back had failed, but a heavy prise had been paid. Again a high Warlord lay dead on the battlefield.
Jack looked for Nell but couldn't find him. He looked backwards, in the direction of Ferelas, and saw the hooded form of Nell pass over a hill. Nobody had seen it except him. He thought about going after Nell, but thought better of it. He turned again to the front line and charged down the hill. As he pulled the trigger of the grenade launcher he heard a roar like he had never heard before split the air. Knowing what it was he didn't turn around. Now he had a personal quest to settle. Getting to Krasgall.
Palkor heard the roar from behind and immediately recognised it as a dragon's roar. The tone of the roar however startled him. It was much deeper and it rumbled over the landscape. He looked back and saw a dragon the size of an aspect take to the air. The colour of the dragon disturbed Palkor. He knew of only one dragon that was black and this huge, as huge as an aspect. The aspect of the black dragons has always been a mad creature in the living memory and was aptly named Deathwing, the Destroyer. Below Palkor some of the more aged fighters thought they recognised the huge shape as well and began shouting the name. From his position Palkor could see that it however wasn't Deathwing. Deathwing had had metal plates bolted to his body to give him the protection his already almost impenetrable scales didn't give him.
If it wasn't Deathwing, than which was it. Maybe Nell knew, he had been studying the dragons for a long time. Where was Nell? Palkor scanned the ground for the one he sought, but didn't find Nell. He looked back up at the dragon that was now racing for the battlefield. Palkor knew only one black dragon that wasn't just as mad as Deathwing. And if there was a black dragon here that was the size, or maybe even bigger, of Deathwing. . . That could never be a good thing. A dragon like the aspects would be capable of destroying an entire army. And if the tide would be turned against the dragon, the dragon could still fly of.
To Palkor's surprise the dragon flew past the spell casters that made up the rear of The First Horde Army without disgorging a single flame. It soared up and almost vanished into the clouds. Moments later the giant came back down, without flapping his wings. He only used the wings to direct his fall and slow him down slightly. Landing on four massive legs the black came down far in the Burning Blade's ranks. Around the area where the dragon came down the ground split open. The tears spread and became small canyons. From the bottom of the canyons came a firestorm mixed with magma. The flame and magma incinerated those close by that were not killed by the landing of the dragon.
From his mouth the dragon shot a breath of fire not even Occulus and Magmaradon together could match. Not once did the dragon hit those not Burning Blade. The Burning Blade's ranks were thrown in utter chaos. The armies easily broke their lines and charged for the fortress. Again the massive black lifted of and flew for the fortress in the distance. He landed just before the walls and let loose another pillar of flame. The flame easily burned the outer wooden walls. For some reason no resistance came from the fortress.
Jack stood by as they attempted to bash open the doors with a battering ram. It required a dozens hits to smash the doors open, but when they did they did so with a thundering crash as they landed. Immediately they began pouring into the fortress, expecting to see a new army awaiting them. Instead as Jack entered he saw the last of the demons disappear through a portal. They had opened a portal and had stepped through it in the time granted to them by the Burning Blade that had held them away from the walls. A few grunts charged for the portal, but as the portal collapsed the wave of energy ripped them apart.
The fortress was checked but no one was found. They had been fooled. Now the Burning Blade had used the portal to transport themselves to a different location. They could be anywhere on Kalimdor now. They may never be found.
Jack saw the massive dragon, that he knew was Nell, lift of again and disappear in the distance. It seemed that nobody suspected that Nell was the dragon, and if anyone did suspect they didn't show it.