The Dark Phoenix

by Angelus Titanus

After his defeat at the hands of Tyrion and Teclis at the Finuval Plain, Malekith banishes himself into the Realm of Chaos to escape the Flames of Asuryan. Crippled and dying, he is saved by an unknown entity. She returns Malekith to the mortal realm with no memory of his past or identity. Washing ashore in Bretonnia, he is discovered by local humans. Anti-hero Malekith fic

6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Exile

Still recovering from the depressing epiphanies that hit him like a wall minutes prior, Malekith cupped his face with his hands and tried to snap himself out of his weakened mental state. Elves were notoriously more emotional than humans and other races…even if they didn't show it. Nevertheless, it took great discipline for one to be as stoic as he was. It was something his father pounded into his head ever since he was a boy. The fact that he shed even a few tears in front of Naerelia even in spite of his situation was deathly crippling to his ego.

It was almost as if it was the collective pain he felt for countless years finally started leaking out of his soul. He wondered how much worse it would have been had he been alone. Even still, all he could do now was move on and pretend it didn't happen. He mentally focused and berated himself for his soft thoughts as he dismounted the horse and followed behind Repanse into the castle and up some stairs. It was quite fortunate that the human didn't see his weakness. He couldn't stomach that much shame.

Naerelia seemed a bit hesitant and skeptical to follow, but she likely didn't want to be separated from the only other elf there. As they entered the main entrance to the castle and walked through the courtyard, they passed by a number of nobles and knights along the way. All of the humans were staring at them suspiciously, but Repanse's presence seemed to invoke some degree of awe. As they progressed past the curious humans, Naerelia glanced at Malekith, "What do you think will happen here, Malerion?"

He looked at her and shrugged, "We'll probably have to answer questions about why we're both here and what we know about the druchii attack. This human woman in front of us is a paladin who says she serves some goddess called the Lady of the Lake. This woman has been missing from her society for a few centuries I believe. They're likely just as confused about her being here as me. Hopefully, we can just explain ourselves and be on our way to Marienburg. Then you can go home, and I can figure out whatever I want to do."

"I liked you better when you didn't talk much," Repanse couldn't help but comment as she glanced back. No doubt she was paranoid about them speaking in elvish to each other.

"I was just telling Naerelia who you are and how I got here," Malekith responded stoically.

The paladin didn't reply initially, but Malekith could tell that she was curious about it. After briefly stopping, Repanse sighed, "I'd appreciate if you didn't speak elvish or whatever your language is around me. It's rude and it's making people nervous."

Malekith nodded his head, "That's fine then. Do as she says, Naerelia."

He didn't have much time to take in the woman's reaction as she faced forward again and kept walking. Naerelia on the other hand seemed annoyed that Malekith easily just complied with a human's demand.

"No wonder the Lady saved you…you're the most reasonable elf I've ever met," Repanse muttered almost disbelievingly as they continued along.

"So…why are you here, Malerion?" Naerelia asked, "I mean you haven't really explained anything about that yet."

"It's a long story. Her Goddess saved my life…I think. At least that is what this Lady of the Lake claimed when I encountered her. To give you a basic summary: I washed ashore in a village south of here called Seafield. It was attacked by beastmen and I helped the humans fight them off after the Lady of the Lake appeared to me. These knights showed up and I've been in their custody ever since. The fact that I'm a mage and an elf has them gravely concerned about my presence in Bretonnia. They were taking me to Marienburg because they have some quest they're on and because it has enough of an elven population to assist me. We detoured to L'Anguille or Tor Alessi here to retrieve some of their mages. That was when we saw the druchii fleet attacking the city and intervened. As I mentioned to you earlier, I'm not part of a rescue force. I only went on that ark to save the human mages and to make sure Duchess Repanse didn't die," Malekith gave Naerelia a basic explanation of what was going on.

The elven princess nodded her head, "I see…well that makes sense. Marienburg definitely has a big elven population. It's surprisingly insightful that these ignorant people would know that. How did you wash ashore in Bretonnia though? What were you doing before then? Mathlann must truly favor you if you didn't drown in the ocean. Also, if you washed ashore, then how do you have ilthimar armour?"

"That's the thing…I awoke with amnesia, and I don't exactly remember what happened prior to waking here. The Lady of the Lake gave me my armour and sword. She said she saved me, but never explained why. She didn't bother explaining much despite the fact that she seemed to know who I am. I've slowly been remembering things these past few days, but there are a lot of holes in my past. I believe I was attacked by a dark mage while fighting daemons. Though I have no context on where, when, and how it happened, I do remember daemons and a fire though." Malekith gave her a sliver of honesty without giving away sensitive information.

"Maybe Lileath saved you…I mean you are wearing her amulet after all. Still…you say you remember fighting daemons? That's terrifying." Naerelia replied with notable interest.

Repanse stopped in her tracks again and looked back appalled, "You were fighting daemons?!"

"I have flashes of them occasionally…and I remember vague things about fire and a spell hitting me. It seems only natural to assume that I was fighting some chaos sorcerer," Malekith noted.

The paladin seemed to recover from her shock quickly, but now looked interested, "What else do you remember now?"

"Not as much as I'd like…but your goddess said my memories would come back in time. She seemed to think I was important…but I couldn't say what my relevance is to her," Malekith shrugged.

Repanse scoffed, "All elves think they're important…"

"So do all humans. We're all just mortals playing the games of the gods. In the grand scheme, none of us really matter do we? I'm not trying to proclaim my superiority over you or say that your goddess favours me. It was just an observation based on my own subjective experience." Malekith countered.

"Fair enough, Malerion…" Repanse huffed.

Ignoring Repanse, Naerelia interjected curiously, "Well your armour is quite prestigious looking. Gold usually denotes an officer's rank. It seems like an ancient design. It's not common for lowborns to have such unique ilithimar armour like yours. Do you remember what your occupation was in Ulthuan?"

"Lowborn? Didn't you say you were highborn, Malerion?" Repanse immediately noticed an inconsistency.

'Damn it...ughh now I have to explain this away,' Malekith mentally sighed.

"I was…but I'm technically not anymore. I remembered some of it on the journey here to L'Anguille. This armour belonged to my family. I was a battlemage and a captain in the army…I was exiled a long time ago. I remember why, but it's not your place to know the details. I have memories of traveling the world and I've been an exile for centuries. I don't remember how I ended up in Bretonnia, but that is the gist of who I am. So technically I am no longer a highborn in the eyes of my kin," Malekith fabricated some lies to reinforce his cover story. His calm and assuring tone seemed to convince Repanse and Naerelia that he was being honest.

He didn't have to worry about Naerelia learning the truth if nobody was alive from his past now. There was no point in trying to claim his old identity if millennia had passed since the days of his youth. He figured it was simply just easier to lie about everything and remove any connection he had to that old life. Plus whom in this time would even believe he was Aenarion's son or a prince? His lie about being an exile would also conveniently explain away his absent name in military records to modern day Ulthuan and make him less suspicious if he gave a shameful admission such as being an exile. Most exiles had their names stricken from records and their family names removed if they had one. At least that is what Malekith remembered from his era.

"An exile? Hmm…is that why you hate highborns then? Someone exiled you for a past crime or failure? I get it now. It makes perfect sense. You said you were from Nagarythe and your mother was from Avelorn, right? Was she highborn and your father lowborn? Are you a bastard?" Naerelia wondered.

"It was actually the other way around…my father was highborn. Even still, my mother was a cunning and peerless mage. Not many people liked her relationship with my father," Malekith shrugged as he responded with vague, indirect honesty, "it really doesn't matter anymore. That life is over. I was highborn, but I'm nobody now. To answer your question, yes…I technically am a bastard."

"Well between that and the amnesia, it certainly explains why you seem a bit clueless about recent history in Ulthuan. What were you exiled for though? If it was truly something bad, you would have been executed or imprisoned. Was it self-imposed? How long ago was this exactly? In fact, how old are you anyways?" Naerelia began to interrogate him.

"You said you've been an exile for centuries? Do you know how old you are?" Repanse chimed in curiously.

"That depends on…what year it is." he countered.

Before Repanse could answer, Naerelia did, "It's XI, 329, 3. I don't know the day though. It was impossible to keep track of time on that wretched Black Ark."

Malekith stared at her blankly, "Refresh my memory on what the means again."

Naerelia rolled her eyes at his ignorance, "It's the 329th year of the eleventh phoenix king's reign and it's sun season. Exactly 6,992 years since Aenarion was crowned the first phoenix king. Does that ring any bells for you?"

'I was born 42 years into my father's rein…so that means I was born 6,950 years ago. This is insane! There's no way I'm actually that old. Something definitely must have sent me forward in time. I remember something about daemons and a fire. I must have been in the realm of chaos or something like that. There's no other explanation for this absurdity,' Malekith thought to himself with a disturbed expression on his face.

"Well?" Naerelia pestered him eagerly for an answer.

"It's 1514 here in Bretonnia. When we passed through Estalia, they said it was 2492 in the Imperial Calendar…if that helps. The Imperial Calendar is one of the most widely used in the old world…so maybe you know that one better considering you haven't been home in a few centuries." Repanse added.

Malekith shook his head, "I don't really remember what year I was born. It was a long time ago. I'll explain more about what I remember later, but this isn't the best time or place to do so…especially with things being as hazy as they are. I'd prefer to answer your questions with full clarity."

"That's fair," Repanse nodded understandingly.

"Do you at least remember what phoenix king ruled when you were exiled? Was it King Finubar or Bel'Hathor? I know it can't be Morvael since there's no way you're over a thousand and you didn't recognize his name when I mentioned it." Naerelia asked with anxious interest.

The dark-haired elf sighed, "I honestly don't remember who was the phoenix king when I still lived in Ulthuan. I'm fairly certain it's not Finubar though. It was likely the one before him."

"So Bel'Hathor, then? Hmm…in that case you must be at least four centuries old at the minimum. Finubar became phoenix king over three centuries ago. That's my guess considering how ageless you look." Naerelia noted.

"Are elves immortal? How can you even tell each other's ages?" Repanse asked with genuine curiosity.

"Our perceptions and senses are far keener and vastly superior to that of the lesser races. It's subtle, but we can see the age of our kin better than your kind can. Elves are not entirely immortal…they technically can live that long or longer, but as they age, elves start to show their world weariness. Their hair might whiten, and they become gaunter. An elf generally won't even develop elderly features until they're at least seven centuries old. Malerion looks like he's three or four centuries old if I had to guess," Naerelia answered.

'Maybe that is my real age if we discount any time dilation involved? She thinks I look that young?' Malekith thought curiously.

"So an elf isn't considered 'old' until they're seven hundred?" Repanse asked surprised.

"Well technically, the average elven lifespan is 1,200 years…so seven centuries is the equivalent of 50 for a human, maybe? Mages can live a lot longer too, so there's also that to consider. One of our ancient Everqueens, Yvraine, lived 2300 years. Some of the druchii are able to live even longer than that with blood magic. Their leader, the Witch King, was almost 7 thousand years old before he died," Naerelia answered condescendingly.

Repanse cocked her head confused, "Witch King? So that's the dark elf leader? The King of those elves that just attacked the city?"

"Yes. He died a few centuries ago thank the gods…but the druchii are still as dangerous as they've always been," Naerelia replied without adding any context.

The Bretonnian paladin simply just scoffed, "Well, that's fortunate to know. Maybe your people should do something about that so these dark elves don't attack Bretonnia again."

"I agree…with their king dead, how has Ulthuan not managed to wipe out these degenerate elven traitors?" Malekith chimed in.

"You're from Nagarythe…you should know firsthand just how dangerous druchii are. It's just not worth investing so many Asur lives into an offensive when those maniacs are obviously going to cannibalize themselves sooner or later," Naerelia countered.

Repanse shook her head in disapproval but didn't say anything.

"Those druchii wouldn't exist if I still had an army. Your excuse is little more than cowardice. Ulthuan has really become weak if that's your justification for not finishing them off," Malekith responded spitefully.

"Why don't you have an army though? Why can't you state the reason for your exile? Is it truly that shameful?" Naerelia pestered him further.

"Just let it go, Naerelia…I'll tell you the whole story at Marienburg," Malekith replied callously.

This comment seemed to bother the princess, but she wisely chose to shut up finally.

Repanse sighed, "You should respect his privacy, elf girl. It's clear he carries a burden of shame. In a way, you're almost like a questing knight…journeying out into the world to regain your honour. Maybe that similarity is what drew the Lady's gaze upon you."

"I suppose that's a somewhat accurate comparison though I'm surprised you would equate me to being like your people. Most of your knights seemed offended when I mentioned a similarity between our situations previously," Malekith replied.

"Normally, I'd never humor such an outlandish comparison, but the Lady deemed you worthy enough to save. She must see virtue in your heart, or I doubt she would have. Thank you for telling me this, Malerion. I appreciate your honesty in admitting to being an exile. That and your actions here today have convinced me that you're honourable and trustworthy," Repanse responded courteously.

Naerelia finally recovered from Malekith's remark and shook her head, "Well, I can see you're still bitter about whatever happened. I'll let it go for now…but I'm going to find out sooner or later when we go back to Ulthuan. Whatever it is though, I'm sure it's not as bad as you probably think it is."

Ignoring the female elf, Repanse glanced over at Malekith again with a confused look, "If you're an exile, does that mean you can't go back to your homeland?"

"I honestly don't know. My exile wasn't really forced upon me, but I left when I couldn't succeed my father. I was also told not to return until I had proven worthy enough to be my father's son. It's been so long now, that I don't even know if there's anything worth going back to. My family is all dead and I'm a nobody now. At the very least, Marienburg will be a good place for me to regain my bearings and memories while I decide on what to do. I don't want to burden you anymore than I already have with my own problems. It won't be an issue for you, Duchess Repanse." he shrugged.

Naerelia frowned and spoke in Eltharin, "You rescued me from a Black Ark…I'd say that's enough to earn you a place back in Ulthuan. Since your exile wasn't mandated, you can return…especially after I speak of your actions against the druchii. I don't know what your problem is, but you're never going to regain your lost honour by dismissing me. I know you think I'm just an ignorant child, but I don't appreciate you spitting my generosity and gratitude back in my face. I want you to come back to Ulthuan with me. Please just acknowledge my efforts at least…you're being petty for no reason."

Repanse sent a sharp glare at Naerelia for speaking in elvish again but didn't comment on it. She seemed more interested in Malekith's reaction to the foreign words. He showed no visible reaction and didn't even look at the female elf.

"We should probably get moving. I don't want to keep your king waiting, Duchess Repanse," Malekith ignored Naerelia's comment as he kept his gaze on the paladin.

His apathy to her efforts seemed to infuriate the Asur princess in a way she had probably never experienced before. Another elf was considering a human more important and worth speaking to than her.

Naerelia seemed desperate to make Malekith like her for whatever reason. He didn't quite understand why considering how blunt, rude, and dismissive he had been to the young princess. Perhaps it was because nobody had ever been dismissive of her before. Most people wanted what they couldn't have and the narcissistic aristocracy of Ulthuan hated when people didn't care about their prestige. Something about Naerelia just reminded him of Ulthuan's courts and how much they didn't like him. He was not about to suck up to this spoiled princess for any reason…he was the son of Aenarion after all.

"Let's be on our way. The king and Prophetess Celine will certainly want to talk to you, Malerion. Try to remember where you are and speak to the highborns inside with as much respect as you can. I know that's a great undertaking for an elf, but I'll speak on your behalf so long as you don't bring any dishonour to my chevaliers or to me. You've been honest and chivalrous from what I've seen of you so far…I'll make sure they know of it," Repanse finally changed the subject.

"As you say, duchess Repanse. I'll be civil and honest, but I'm not about to go in there and be held on trial for the crimes of the druchii." Malekith nodded.

Repanse shook her head, "I won't allow that to happen. I will vouch for your integrity. Just swallow your pride and remember that you represent my chivalry in there. Do not dishonour me."

"Very well, Duchess Repanse. I'll be on my best behavior," Malekith sighed with acceptance.

"I don't like the way you're talking to us. We're not your worthless servants, knight! For the sake of getting this unbearable nonsense over with, we'll go along with your overbearing request, human...but don't get used to ordering us around," Naerelia added unnecessarily.

Repanse glared at her, "Don't test me…elf."

The two stared each other down briefly, but Malekith eased the tension as he changed the subject, "Is there some custom or courtesy I should be aware of when addressing the king and your nobility, Duchess Repanse?"

"Refer to the King as Royarch and pay attention to their titles if they introduce themselves to you. Just use their titles, be honest, and don't disrespect them. You should be fine, Malerion. You're a reasonable elf and you clearly have some diplomatic sense about you. Your friend on the other hand should probably just keep her mouth shut. I don't need some bratty elf girl making me look bad," Repanse stated seriously.

"Excuse me?! Did you just call me bratty?! I'm probably four times older than you!" Naerelia protested.

"You heard me…one more word out of you and I'll make you wait outside, elf girl." Repanse followed up with a dangerous glare.

To Malekith's relief, Naerelia didn't retaliate as she simply just pursed her lips and leered in disgust. Part of him actually found hilarious even though he would be extremely angry had he been in Naerelia's place. Something about seeing an elf princess getting humbled by a human was deeply satisfying for him to watch.

Repanse then glanced at Malekith, "If elven commoners are this high-strung, I can only imagine what your nobles are like."

"They're much worse…especially the ones from inner Ulthuan." The dark-haired elf answered unnecessarily.

"Is that where this girl is from?" Repanse asked.

"Naerelia here is from Cothique which is more of a backwater provincial kingdom of northeast Ulthuan. They're generally the nicest elves to humans and dwarves from what I remember since they trade a lot with the Old World." Malekith couldn't help but add.

"So what you're telling me is that she's actually humble and kind by elven standards?!" Repanse gawked.

Malekith simply nodded, "She's also what you humans would call a country bumpkin."

To his shock it actually made Repanse chuckle ever so slightly. Naerelia on the other hand seemed appalled that Malekith would actually say something negative about Ulthuan and about her to a human. To say that she looked offended and distraught by his words was an understatement. This elven princess had clearly never been made fun of like this before in her life. Her sulky expression reflected that clearly.

While Malekith didn't actually dislike Naerelia, he saw little point in trying to suck up to her or get tied up in owing her any favors. She was also a freshly crowned princess and there was no way that the son of Aenarion was about to stroke her ego. There was simply no benefit in doing so as she doubtfully had much political power to actually help him in the way he'd prefer. Building rapport with Repanse on the other hand seemed more beneficial for the time being.

"I can't believe you're willing to ingratiate yourself to lowly humans and yet you treat me like I'm some worthless nuisance. You've clearly been living among these savages for too long. Badmouth me one more time and you can forget about me helping you. I can't believe you think this is appropriate behavior…to insult a princess and laugh about it with a human! If you hadn't saved me from that Black Ark, I'd hate your guts right now! Why are you treating me like this?! Do you hate Ulthuan or something?" Naerelia complained in Eltharin.

"Listen, princess…I'll explain more to you in private. I'm sorry for hurting your feelings, but we need to focus on one thing at a time. Just behave yourself and follow my lead until we get out of Bretonnia. This woman is our escort out of here and she trusts me now. Let me handle this and I'll get you safely home. We can talk about whether I'm coming with you when we get to Marienburg. The issue is more complicated than I wanted these humans to know. You're drawing unnecessary attention to yourself," Malekith retorted with calm rationality.

It seemed to calm Naerelia down now as she gained a slight epiphany about why he was being cruel and dismissive. He was protecting her…at least that's how she interpreted the situation. Malerion most likely believed that she would be in danger if he treated her with any kind of reverence in the presence of humans.

'That's it! He doesn't actually hate me…this is all an act so he can manipulate the humans and keep their attention off me. He was much nicer when we had those brief moments alone on the ride up here. Now it makes perfect sense! He risked his life to save me…there's no way he would actually talk to me this way. It's all just part of his plan to manipulate these dumb humans,' Naerelia rationalized Malekith's cruelty in a strangely delusional mental cope.

Repanse blinked several times in confusion, "What's your lady-friend saying, Malerion?"

"She was just saying my exile has turned me rude, savage, and uncivilized. I then apologized to her and asked her kindly to go along with your terms. Don't mind her…she's probably still worked up from the battle and her escape. Her captivity to the druchii has likely put her on edge. I think she just needs time to adjust to Bretonnia. Not many elves are used to interacting with humans. She'll ease up once we're on the road," Malekith answered with calm assurance.

Naerelia simply huffed in silence as she looked away with annoyance.

"Well, I say we've delayed long enough. Let's go speak to the king," Repanse sighed as she led them along.

'Ulthuan's highborns are more annoying than humans to deal with…this shouldn't be too bad so long as Repanse vouches for my honesty. At least she trusts me now.' Malekith thought to himself as the trio walked into the throne room.

Upon entering the throne room, they were greeted by a room filled with lords, ladies, and knights who were all conversing rather frantically about the fortunate escape from the grim fate many were almost subjected to.

Lowly servants were desperately cleaning and attending to the needs of the nobility all around the massive chamber as well. As they walked along, an overexaggerated gasp escaped the mouth of a nearby noblewoman who was fanning her face dramatically.

Nobles all around them began to part and disperse away from the new arrivals into the throne room chamber. Henri and Jean were also there with a number of Repanse's chevaliers and were quick to join up with their leader as she gracefully approached the throne.

For some reason, the chevaliers seemed far more curious about Naerelia being there than Malekith, but they stayed professionally silent as they formed up in front of the lagging female elf and right next to Malekith and Repanse.

More than a few eyes were condemningly glaring Malekith's way. He was quite grateful that Repanse was there to justify his presence as quite a few knights and guards were staring him down with their hands on their weapons.

The King, presumably, was standing there with a few other important looking humans along with a large host of knights. Their conversations all ceased immediately as Repanse knelt down and announced herself, "Duchess Repanse de Lyonesse…Damoiselle de Guerre at your service Royarch."

The King stepped closer and looked down at her with an awestruck smile on his face, "I saw the Fleur de Lis…but to think the great Repanse de Lyonesse graces our kingdom once again. Rise my lady. One of your legendary prestige and honour does not need to ingratiate yourself with such humility. I acknowledge your title and your chivalry my lady. You are most welcome here. You have my gratitude in helping to defend the city. Also, the Grail Damsels and the Prophetess all confirmed that you are indeed the real Duchess Repanse. It is an honour to meet you."

Rising to her feet, Repanse responded promptly, "Forgive me, your grace, but I do not know who you are. I've been gone from Bretonnia for nearly 500 years when Louis the Young was king. May I request a formal introduction?"

'She and I have that in common…displaced in time,' Malekith thought with intrigue as noticed the court gossiping with awe and wonder that an ancient hero of their kingdom had returned to them.

Part of Malekith kind of a wished that he would get that kind of reception if he went back to Ulthuan…but he knew he wouldn't. It's doubtful anyone alive would even recognize his true name or believe that he was Aenarion's son. Even if they did, would they actually care? Not many elves from his time liked him outside of Nagarythe and Avelorn.

"Of course, Duchess Repanse. I am Royarch Feramand of Bastonne. Might I ask how you still live after five centuries, my lady?" he followed up his answer with a question of his own.

Repanse bowed her head respectfully, "Of course, Royarch Feramand. I took my chevaliers on an errantry quest down into the blighted undead lands near Araby. It was a sickening realm where undead Nehekarans rose from their tombs to spread their terrible evil across the world. I vowed to see an evil necromancer destroyed. I succeeded…but at a price. He cursed me and my closest knights with his dark magic. It left us frozen in time I believe…we were freed by the lady herself. She appeared before me and told me much of what had happened since the time of our curse. The great lady then gave us a chance of redemption and asked that we partake in a holy mission for her. Most of my company are questing knights that I have drawn to our cause along the way, but my fellow paladins Henri and Jean and our greatest knights were all spared by the lady's grace. Damsel Chantelle was also among our company at the time and can confirm this. The Lady of the Lake promised us the grail if we succeeded in our new quest."

The onlookers around the chamber all gasped with awe and glee at the paladin's words. The King himself seemed amazed, "Our great Lady saved you from the clutches of death? Truly a remarkable tale Duchess. She promised you the grail as well? I have never heard of a female grail knight, but if any are worthy, then you would certainly be among them. You and your heroic chevaliers are legendary heroes. I can see why the lady would consider your worth."

"Thank you, royarch. Though our worth is yet to be determined. We must succeed in the lady's quest first. That's also why we're here at L'Anguille," Repanse followed up humbly.

The King cupped his chin, "Ah yes…the Prophetess Celine mentioned she had come here awaiting the arrival of someone special. It would appear she did not exaggerate at all. I can still scarcely believe this wondrous news of your return, my lady."

"You're too kind, royarch," Repanse bowed her head respectfully.

"A female grail knight...is such a thing possible?" a nearby nobleman asked the king skeptically.

"It would indeed make history." another man added.

Repanse shook her head and spoke humbly, "It isn't my intention to make history or change customs, my lords and ladies. I only seek to carry out the Lady's will. If she deems me worthy to be a grail knight, then I will accept. If she does not, then I will carry out her will or die trying regardless."

"If it is appropriate, might I ask what this quest entails? What have you vowed?" King Feramand wondered.

Repanse briefly glanced back at Malekith for some unusual reason before speaking, "The Lady's words were thus: 'Journey north to Marienburg and help anyone you come across along the way. When you arrive, seek out the slayer dwarf and help him. He will lead you to a dark place desperate for heroes. Be those heroes…and you will be grail knights. We vowed to fulfill the Lady's quest or die trying.'"

'What is a grail knight? Is that some higher ranking position?' Malekith wondered. Pushing those thoughts aside, he was deeply intrigued by her quest though. The dwarf they were seeking out was a slayer. He vaguely remembered what a slayer was…it was a dwarf who took a death oath to fight and die in battle in order to regain his lost honour.

"Truly a great journey lies before you, madame. It pains me to know that you won't be staying in Bretonnia for long, but the Lady's will is absolute. Even despite such a grand undertaking, you still committed your forces to helping my knights. You bring great honour upon your chevaliers and yourself for assisting us in repelling the dark elf attack. You have my thanks for that. You may be grail knights yet. If any woman is worthy...then it would be you Damoiselle de Guerre."

"Of course, Royarch. Do we have your blessing to bring along Prophetess Celine and her grail damsels? We have Morgiana's blessing, but I would hate to take them from here if you need their help more than us," Repanse followed up.

King Feramand nodded his head, "I'll gladly offer my blessing as well. With that said, I have a few more questions for you my lady. To start…who is this elf I keep hearing about? Is that him?"

Repanse looked over at Malekith and gestured him forward with subtle grace. He mentally braced himself for whatever was in store and did his best to maintain a diplomatic face of professional courtesy. Though since he was an elf, it probably came across as stoic indifference. Under normal circumstances, he would find the idea of diplomacy with humans laughable, but right now it just seemed the most logical path to follow. The less drama and negative attention he drew to himself, the better. He could play along with this annoyance until he was at Marienburg.

"I can introduce him and explain the situation, or if you'd prefer…he can as well," Repanse noted.

The King narrowed his gaze curiously at Malekith and Naerelia further behind them. She clearly had no intention of interacting with the humans if she didn't have to as the princess didn't even budge from her location behind Repanse's knights. She clearly thought the entire ordeal was beneath her, but thankfully wasn't sneering or acting out. In some ways, Malekith understood her temperament, but she was not very diplomatically keen. Even as abrasive as he was, Malekith knew better than to be rude to foreign sovereigns. At least Naerelia had enough sense to stay quiet and not look at anyone.

"Who are you, elf, and why are you in the company of Repanse de Lyonesse?" the King asked. While his voice wasn't hostile, it was clearly suspicious and curious.

"My name is Malerion…I'm an exile from Ulthuan. I'm what you humans refer to as a 'high elf'. I understand you're not fond of my kind, but I offer you my honest account about why I'm here if you'd care to hear it," Malekith began calmly and with as little elven condescension as he could.

The nobles around the room began to gossip and whisper with fascination, skepticism, and dismissal. Though most probably believed he couldn't overhear what they were saying, Malekith could. He swallowed his pride and ignored the ignorance of the humans as he kept his attention focused on the king.

King Feramand nodded his head, "I would very much like to hear of it, Malerion of Ulthuan. I saw you fighting the dark elves on the battlefield, and many have said you're a wizard of some kind. While I would normally find that troubling, the fact that you're a high elf makes things different. We are not resentful of your people. In fact, high elves helped save Couronne several decades ago. I am willing to hear you out and judge you fairly. Please tell me about yourself and why you're here."

"I'm a battlemage. I recently washed ashore half-dead in a village called Seafield. I believe that's close to Bordeleaux. I have some lingering amnesia about what I was doing before landing in Bretonnia and I don't quite remember how I got here. The villagers there saved my life from drowning, but I chose to leave shortly afterward so I wouldn't cause complications for them. When I walked east, I came upon a pond near a tree and past a hill. When I got there, I took a rest. A…an ethereal being appeared before me while I was there. She called herself the Lady of the Lake and claimed to have saved me. She returned my armour and my sword and said my memories would return eventually. The Lady spoke of my father…she knew things about me that I wouldn't expect from a human goddess. As I spoke with her, I saw a beastman horde making its way towards Seafield. I was given the choice to either leave or to help the villagers. Against my better judgment, I went back to fight the beastmen in repayment to your goddess. Sometime into the battle, Duchess Repanse and her knights arrived to wipe out the beastman horde. She then put me into custody and tried to identify why a mysterious elven mage like me was there. Eventually, it ended with her believing my story and my agreeing to come along with them to Marienburg and out of your lands. We detoured here to L'Anguille, and I offered my assistance to Duchess Repanse as a proof of my innocence and so that I could expedite our journey to Marienburg. I apologize if I've caused any commotion in your lands, but I have every intention of leaving peacefully," Malekith answered with mostly honest stoicism.

A wild chorus of gasps and offended grunts and huffs escaped the mouths of many onlookers. They were clearly offended that an elf claimed that their goddess saved him personally. Some though seemed amazed that a holier-than-thou elf would even admit to a human goddess saving him. It was clear the highborns in the room knew more about elves than the commoners as they found his apparent humility surprising. It might have even convinced a few of them that Malekith was being honest.

The outbursts and conversations continued for a few seconds before the king held up his hand to silence them. He then stared intensely at Malekith as if he was judging his virtue.

"How did he convince you of this, Duchess Repanse?" the king finally asked after a long and uncomfortable silence.

The paladin spoke calmly and without hesitation, "He described the Lady's likeness to me exactly as I remember her. The Lady's intervention is also the only explanation for how he got his armour and his sword back. The villagers I interrogated said he washed ashore in nothing but undergarments. The bailiff even told me that he was wearing peasant clothing when he left and that armour when he returned. I normally wouldn't trust such a bizarre story, but the evidence lines up with what he said and what the villagers confirmed."

"You would trust the accounts of peasants?! They're too ignorant and simple to understand what they saw," an overzealous knight couldn't help but interject.

"Maybe so, but I was once a peasant too and I can attest that they're not all stupid. I truly believe Malerion saw the Lady. How else would he know what she looks like? I believe it was the Lady's will that my knights cross paths with Malerion. As you've probably heard by now, he was a great help in the battle today. I witnessed him personally killing dozens if not hundreds of these vile dark elves. He even came aboard the…black ark, the elf called it, to assist in the rescue of many of you in this very room. He's clearly not an enemy of Bretonnia, and he has been reasonably compliant with me and respectful of our ways. Plus, how many of you have met an elf who would show such humility and admit to his failures? He had no reason to tell me this, but Malerion admitted that he is an exile. I vouch for his character and I'm willing to stake my own chivalry on it," Repanse replied calmly.

The legendary paladin's words seemed to calm down the room as many people were awestruck that someone like her would make such a grand gesture of trust to an elf.

King Feramand was silent for a moment as he stared at Malekith, "Do you have anything else to add Malerion of Ulthuan?"

"I'll just say this: Your Lady and Duchess Repanse both have my appreciation and respect for saving me. I can only hope that my survival benefits us all down the line. I have no intention of trying to make you believe me, but that's the honest truth. You can take it or leave it. With that said, I now have a newfound admiration for your goddess and your knights. Duchess Repanse has been just and fair…and I ask that you do not besmirch her chivalry, empathy, or honesty by dismissing me as a liar. While I'm not happy to be here, I am grateful that someone like her crossed paths with me. She represents your kingdom very well even to an elf like me. If there are more humans like her in your kingdom, then it gives me assurance in the nobility and greatness of Bretonnia," Malekith responded with tactical diplomatic suaveness.

As he expected, his statements worked quite well. The mere mention of anyone in that room thinking Repanse was a liar was enough to make almost all of them get over the idea of the Lady speaking to an elf. His praising of her and of Bretonnia also seemed to stroke the egos of all the nobles. To hear a high elf praise Bretonnia was enough to draw out their more receptive attitudes. Malekith was well aware of how humans saw elves and knew the best way to earn the trust of humans was to make them feel respected and important…even if they really weren't.

Repanse herself even looked somewhat impressed that Malekith was able to diffuse the doubts with such a simple charismatic response. She also seemed to be wondering if Malekith was genuinely praising her or just selling an act to the nobles. In truth, he actually did have a decent measure of respect for Repanse, but he could care less about Bretonnia or any of the humans in this chamber.

"If one of her chivalry attests to your character then I can certainly accept that you are being honest. I'll admit I find your humility very surprising though. I understand elves think quite poorly of most human kingdoms. It seems apparent why the Lady would extend her benevolent and divine grace upon one such as you. You've told quite an interesting tale though if I must say, Malerion of Ulthuan. It was mentioned you were an exile…might I ask what for?" the King followed up after a chorus of gossip.

Malekith sighed, "Pride…"

"Pride?" the king repeated Malekith's response curiously.

Naerelia and Repanse seemed especially interested in this answer as they stared at him with intense expressions of fascination and speculation.

"I brought shame to my father's name, and I left after he died. I suppose my long years of exile have humbled my perspective on the world and of myself." Malekith finally managed to forge a vague story. In some ways it was actually true even despite his gap of memories. His emotion behind the statement was real though as Malekith seemed deep in thought over the shame he probably did bring to his father's legacy.

"I believe the Lady may have wished for Malerion to join us on our quest, King Feramand. Though I would never force that duty upon him. It is his choice to make," Repanse spoke up again as she looked over the lords and ladies in the room. They seemed shocked by this idea.

"Is that so?" The King asked.

"It is an…unconventional situation, but perhaps he was given this mercy by our Great Lady so that he could regain his honour? I dare not speculate further on the Lady's true intentions, but I vowed to her that I would help anyone we came across. We crossed paths for a reason…and Malerion was vital in saving many of the nobles and other citizens that were taken on that massive ship," Repanse answered.

Another wave of comments followed by the audience, but it was nothing relevant for Malekith to really listen to. Their conversations were a mixture of approval and disapproval. Before anyone could say another word though, a woman stepped forward.

She was adorned in a posh, over-the-top white dress with gold and silver trimmings and designs. It left very little to the imagination as it was quite tight and low around her torso. Malekith instantly recognized that she was likely one the human mages. The woman also had elaborate hair to say the least. It was a pale golden colour and was triple braided extending down to her mid back. She had parted bangs that almost covered one of her eyes and had an elaborate gold tiara and a partial veil covering the top of her head. The woman's eyes were a very pale blue, and she was probably the best looking human Malekith might have ever seen. She almost seemed elven to him which was quite strange for him to take in.

The woman spoke up regally to the throneroom, "Silence, all of you! This coming was foretold. It WAS the Lady's will that Malerion cross paths with Duchess Repanse."

"Lady Celine?" Repanse addressed her confused, "you knew of Malerion's coming?"

"Our great Enchantress Morgiana le Fay knew of his coming and she told us as much after you sent Chantelle to ask for her wisdom. She knew that the Lady had a particular interest in this wayward prince of Ulthuan. I also attest to Malerion's honesty, King Feramand. My word also carries the testament of the Fay Enchantress herself. It is our Divine Lady's will that this elf lived. She sees in him, a great hero of the Old World," Prophetess Celine explained cryptically.

Malekith immediately frowned upon hearing that as his diplomatic front began to wane, 'Great hero of the Old World?! So the Lady DID want me to go on some stupid quest after all. Wait…she just told them all I'm a prince?! How does she know that?! Maybe the Lady told this Morgiana about me? Who exactly is that? Is the Fay Enchantress Morgiana their high priestess or something?'

He didn't dare look at Naerelia in this moment, but it was clear she was glaring daggers into the back of his head upon hearing Malekith wasn't just a highborn, but an actual prince. He was going to have some trouble elaborating on his cover story now.

"I can see in your eyes, Malerion, that you believe she might be forcing this upon you, yes?" Celine immediately picked up on Malekith's reception to the statement.

He simply sighed, "I wouldn't go so far as to say she forced anything on me. The Lady said I was free to choose my own path. I am grateful to her, but I do find myself a bit confused as to why she sees such value in my life and why she would want me to do something when she has her own competent devotees and champions already."

"That is because you can do what knights cannot, Malerion…you are traveled, and you know the world well. You speak many languages, and you know many cultures. You are also very powerful as many here have likely seen proven today. Why wouldn't the Lady want you helping her faithful? She might also believe you can bridge the mistrust between elves and men. That is my personal belief, but only Morgiana or the Lady herself could say for certain." Celine countered.

"It's a lot to take in…I'd prefer to regain more of my memories before committing to anything that grand." Malekith responded slowly.

Celine nodded somewhat compassionately, "Take your time and think about it. We can speak more on our journey to Marienburg. I will not think less of you should you decline to join the Chevaliers' quest. The Lady believes you will do great things for mankind no matter where you go. The Lady has given you a great calling. I hope you answer it and that you may regain your honour through her benevolent grace."

'Ughh…I feel like I'm being guilted and manipulated here. Why did they have to make this into such a big deal? I just want to get out of this place.' Malekith sighed mentally.

King Feramand raised a hand to his chin, "Hmm…quite an interesting development. The Lady wishes for improved relations with the elves?"

"I believe that is her will, Royarch, but only Morgiana could say for sure," Celine replied.

"Exactly how much did this Morgiana tell you about me?" Malekith asked somewhat concerned.

Celine shook her head, "Beyond what I have already stated, nothing else. I believe in her wisdom though. I saw you hold off those dark elves while we were escaping. You are brave and noble…that is what I have learned from you today."

'Maybe brave…but I'm definitely not noble,' Malekith mentally scoffed.

The fact that a prophetess AND Repanse vouched for the accuracy of Malekith's account seemed to all but alleviate any negative tension in the room. In fact, most of the nobles even seemed to be looking at Malekith with eyes of approval now.

'So, the Lady wants me to bridge the mistrust between humans and elves? Why? None of this makes any sense. Sure I'm the son of Aenarion, but I'm just one elf. Why are these people looking at me like I'm some mystical hero now? Humans are bizarre…I want no part of this nonsense.' Malekith thought briefly as he nodded at Celine.

"When do we depart for Marienburg?" Malekith asked after another uncomfortable moment of the room's inhabitants talking about him. He wanted nothing more than to be somewhere else right now.

Celine glanced at Repanse, "When do you wish to leave, Duchess?"

"We rode half the day before fighting here. I'm sure the surviving men are tired, and it would be rude of me to leave immediately. It would be best if we resupply and gather up any willing questing knights to join us on our journey. We'll leave tomorrow Prophetess Celine."

"Of course," the mage bowed her head as she looked over at Malekith. He found it somewhat annoying that Celine was staring at him and wasn't really sure if he was allowed to leave now.

"So what now, Duchess Repanse?" Malekith asked.

"You are all my honoured guests here tonight. Allow me to introduce myself to you noble heroes of L'Anguille. I am Duke Taubert, the ruler of this dukedom. First of all, please allow me to express my sincerest gratitude for your chivalrous heroism today. Even you, Malerion of Ulthuan. I grant you all rooms to stay at the castle tonight. I will also hold a great feast in your honour and in Royarch Feramand's honour. I will have my servants prepare quarters for all of you," a human man spoke up as he approached Repanse's group.

Repanse bowed her head respectfully, "You honour us, Duke Taubert. We appreciate your generous hospitality. I do regret to inform you that we do not have proper evening attire to wear to your feast though."

"Not a problem at all my lady. I will have the servants fetch you all fine clothes to wear. It's the least I can do. I look forward to speaking with you more tonight, but alas I must make preparations. If you'll excuse me," the Duke replied before turning towards the King, "If you need anything further from me, Royarch, I am at your beck and call."

"Thank you, Duke Taubert. I appreciate your hospitality. My army will also be staying for a few days to make sure the city is secured and that resources can get allocated soon for repairs. We'll speak more later. I must consult with my advisors, and I'd like to get an estimate on the damage done to the city," Feramand added.

"It was an honour meeting you, Royarch Feramand," Repanse bowed her head. All of her knights followed suit. Even Malekith did, despite it feeling almost silly for him to bow his head to a human. Naerelia didn't, but nobody wanted to point it out and the King himself didn't even seem to care as he exited the chamber with a large host of other nobles and knights.

"Farewell for now," the king announced before leaving.

Once he was gone, most of the congregation seemed to disperse a bit, but Repanse and her company were still the center of attention as quite a number of people wanted to come up and talk to them. As this was going on, Malekith edged his way with subtlety to the exit and managed to slip out without being intercepted. It was likely most of the humans were probably too intimidated to actually talk to an elven mage and he was perfectly fine with that.

After leaving the chamber, he let out a heavy sigh of relief. Naerelia quickly followed him out and broke his blissful moment of peace as she immediately spoke her mind, "I had a feeling this was something big. You're actually a prince?!"

"Ughh…it was a long time ago. I'm not anymore," Malekith sighed dramatically at the elven maiden's pestering.

She frowned, "Well, I won't bother you about it…especially not around all these humans. Still, I think I get it now. You don't want to go back because you're too proud to not be a prince anymore."

"You're right…" Malekith nodded.

Naerelia looked surprised by his admission to this and shook her head, "Well, sorry about getting upset earlier. I didn't realize you were just trying to manipulate the humans. What's all this nonsense they're going on about though? Are you really going to go on some quest with them?"

"I don't know…hopefully not." he shrugged.

Before Naerelia could say another word, a trio of human women showed up out of nowhere. Malekith immediately recognized Celine and the two others were likely the grail damsels that Repanse kept talking about.

"Who is this elven maiden, Malerion?" Celine asked him curiously.

"She's just an elf I rescued from the Black Ark. I asked Repanse if we could bring her along to Marienburg," he answered bluntly.

"Well met, milady. You carry yourself quite well," Celine addressed Naerelia.

The female elf crossed her arms, "Of course I do…I'm an Asur."

"What is your name?" Celine asked.

"Naerelia," the female elf answered plainly.

Celine tilted her head slightly, "Hmm…I have heard that name in dreams."

"Have you now?" Naerelia countered.

"I see you are still recovering from the trauma of captivity…I will give you space," Celine responded politely when she noticed Naerelia's lack of interest.

"Did you come out here to make sure I wasn't running away, or do you just want to talk more?" Malekith changed the subject.

"I was quite eager to speak more with you. I find your involvement in the Lady's prophecy quite incredible if I'm being perfectly honest. Morgiana spoke of you with such…reverence. I would like to get to know you better," Celine answered regally.

"Umm…okay. So, you're here to interrogate me?" the elven prince asked dryly.

Celine chuckled almost girlishly at his question, "You're quite antisocial, aren't you? I have no intention of prying into your personal business, but I do like to know my fellow travelers on a base level. If you'd like, I will happily answer your questions as well. A fair exchange, no?"

"Is this human trying to court you or something? It's rather shameless and weird." Naerelia asked in Eltharin.

Ignoring Naerelia's remark, Malekith broke the odd tension as he spoke up again, "So you're a mage then, Prophetess Celine? What schools of magic are you skilled in?"

Despite him not wanting to converse with any more humans today, part of him was very curious about human mages. Malekith knew they were very rare, and he wasn't quite sure if one was capable of being naturally skilled. Plus he wanted to know just what these women were capable of in a worst case scenario.

Celine smiled at him sultrily, "I am skilled in three winds, Malerion. Ghyran, Ghur, and Azyr. My damsel underlings are both skilled in Ghyran and they are decently trained in Ghur. Speaking of them…I should probably introduce you. Forgive me for not doing so sooner."

Celine then waved forth the other two maidens to her side. Both were quite beautiful…for humans…and they seemed to project an almost otherworld aura like Celine herself.

"This is Chantelle de la Nuit, and Vivienne Lafond," Celine introduced the two grail damsels.

Malekith stared at them briefly as he took in their appearances. Chantelle was a beautiful and young looking woman with long black hair. It flowed halfway down her neck with two ends braided off on either shoulder reaching to her chest. She had blue eyes, a delicate feminine face, and was around the average height of a female human. Chantelle also wore an elaborate purple dress with an absurd amount of cleavage showing.

Vivienne had long red hair with bangs and most of it was pulled into a singular long braid. She had green eyes and was quite pale. Her skin was completely porcelain and near flawless minus a few freckles on her cheeks. Like Chantelle and Celine, the woman had a lot of makeup on as well. She was slightly taller than Chantelle but still way shorter than he was. Vivienne wore a green and white dress with gold trims and designs. This woman also had an almost promiscuous and alluring look about her which made Malekith uncomfortable to look at her for too long. He couldn't quite explain it, but Malekith got the impression that these women were far from chaste despite their seemingly pure demeanors.

"Well met, lord elf. It is always a pleasure to meet one of the fey-blooded," Vivienne politely bowed her head as she lifted up her dress slightly.

"The Lady spoke of his importance, but she didn't mention how handsome he'd be. Well met, Prince Malerion," Chantelle giggled almost shamelessly to Vivenne and Celine.

"Don't call me that…it's just Malerion. I don't need everyone under the sun knowing I'm a former prince," Malekith couldn't help but show his disapproval.

Chantelle graciously bowed her head with sincerity, "Forgive me for my lapse in judgment. I will happily respect your wishes. Also, you have my thanks for helping Duchess Repanse. She is slow to trust, but she is a great woman. It warmed my heart to see her speak so highly of you and you of her."

'I can't wait to get to Marienburg…if I have to deal with this girlish nonsense, then they can forget about me helping them,' Malekith thought annoyed.

Doing his best to change the subject again, Malekith glanced at Celine, "So you can only bend three winds of magic? Hmm…I always wondered what the capability of a human mage could be,"

"You are also a mage. What winds can you bend, Malerion?" Celine asked.

"All of them," Malekith replied simply.

"I see…so you're able to use Qhaysh? I understand that's exclusively an elven ability," Celine responded.

Malekith shook his head, "Not exactly. I believe the ancient elven mages learned how to do it from the reptiles of Lustria. I'm not sure if a human could learn it, but I don't know much about human mages. To be honest, I expected you'd only be capable of bending one wind. Three winds is still quite respectable for a younger race."

"You flatter me, Malerion…though it is uncommon for a human mage to master more than one wind. Most wizards in the empire can only ever master one. We disciples of the Lady are an exception to this thanks to her divine power and our long lives," Celine responded with a playful smile.

Before Malekith could respond, Repanse and some of her Chevaliers came outside looking for them. They quickly interrupted as Repanse spoke her mind, "Malerion, I have some questions…if you don't mind."

Despite the extra annoyance, Malekith couldn't help but feel grateful that Repanse had come to save him.

"Of course, Duchess Repanse," he jumped at the opportunity to ignore the human mages.

"Celine said you're a prince? How high ranking is that in Ulthuan? Are you the son of the king!?" Repanse asked curiously.

'She's not far off on that assumption.' Malekith thought to himself.

"Ughh…ignorant humans," Naerelia muttered under her breath.

"No…a Prince is just a highborn elf that rules over a Tor generally which is a major elven city. There are varying levels of pedigree with certain families being held in higher regard than others. Some might have sovereignty over an entire kingdom and lesser princes. Others could simply be rulers of a small city-state. It just depends. Essentially a prince or a princess is just a Lord who rules a city or holds land…not too dissimilar from your Dukes and Duchesses. We do have a king…the Phoenix King and an Everqueen," Malekith answered.

"Oh…that's interesting. Even so, that would make you and I of a similar standing. We're both high nobles who don't hold land. Who knew we'd have so much in common." the paladin nodded.

Henri, who was also nearby glanced at Malekith and spoke his mind, "Your words brought great honour upon the Duchess Repanse, Malerion. We have agreed to grant you free leave to wander about without our direct oversight anymore."

"That's good news," he replied with genuine relief.

"We have many wounded knights in my company, Prophetess Celine. I apologize for asking this of you, but can you help heal them?" Repanse turned her attention to Celine now.

The prophetess nodded her head, "Of course, duchess. My grail damsels and I would gladly assist in healing the wounded."

'Thank Asuryan!' Malekith sighed with relief.

"It was nice meeting you, Malerion. I hope we can speak more later. I look forward to learning more about you," Celine gracefully waved at Malekith before walking away with Repanse and the grail damsels. Most of the knights followed, but one remained behind.

It was Jean, who Malekith now recognized was the third paladin of Repanse's chevaliers after herself and Henri. The man stared at the elf seriously for a moment before speaking his mind, "I might have been wrong about you, elf. You have my apologies…I am glad to see some of your kind possess chivalry."

"Don't worry about it. When do you want me back for this feast tonight? I'd like to go see the city's lighthouse if that's okay," Malekith asked.

Jean stroked his goatee briefly, "Try to return by sundown. Also, most of the city guard is aware of who you are, so they shouldn't cause any issues."

"Good to know. Thank you…Jean," Malekith finally addressed him by name.

"Stay out of trouble, elf," the paladin waved before departing.

"So we're actually leaving the city, right? Tell me we're leaving…please?" Naerelia asked in Eltharin.

"You can if you want…but I don't see the point in it. Marienburg is still the closest port that can get us a ship to Ulthuan and it's a lot safer to travel in numbers. I'm going to the Tor Alessi lighthouse. I'd like to see it," Malekith shrugged as he walked over towards his horse.

"Wait for me!" Naerelia chased behind him.

'They're not dragging me into some prophecy…I could care less about improving relations with humans. I just want to get out of this place with as minimal issues as possible,' Malekith concluded as the two elves mounted his horse and rode out of the castle.

Ghrond

"Mistress! We found something finally!" a sorceress exclaimed as she ran into Morathi's personal chambers.

The druchii queen was currently sitting in a bath and was writing in her tome. Morathi hissed with annoyance, "Kharlissa?! What are you doing back here?! I thought I told you not to return from the chaos wastes unless you had Malekith with you! He better be here!"

"W-we didn't exactly find him…but t-this is something important and it relates to him!" the sorceress replied nervously.

Morathi placed down her tome and immediately stepped out of her bath. She nudely strutted towards the sorceress Kharlissa and narrowed her gaze dangerously, "So…you and those human savages discovered something worth my immediate attention?! What did you discover that warrants this interruption!? For your sake, this better be worth my time. I thought I made it perfectly clear that you were not to return WITHOUT Malekith!"

The sorceress nervously approached Morathi and knelt down subserviently before her naked mistress. Kharlissa looked almost hesitant to answer, "I…this is undeniably worth your time, my beautiful mistress Morathi. I had those northmen watching the polar gate consistently and I've been leading their shamans around to search for any signs of Malekith's emergence. We-"

Kharlissa never got to finish her explanation before a crackling tendril of dark magic engulfed her. The younger sorceress screamed in pain from Morathi's agony hex as she writhed around on the ground in pain.

The First Sorceress spoke with malicious impatience, "Stop…wasting…my…time! Where is Malekith?!"

"ARGHHH!" Kharlissa whimpered as the spell finally subsided. She slowly got back to her knees and looked up with complete fear.

"P-please mistress! I can explain!" Kharlissa tried to calm Morathi's foul mood.

The first sorceress smirked malevolently as she knelt over and cupped Kharlissa's cheek with her hand, "Oh really? Then explain, Kharlissa. Explain to me why you traveled all the way back here to Ghrond without Malekith in tow?"

The younger sorceress shivered from Morathi's touch as the first sorceress began to stroke her hair, "If you found a lead, then you should be pursuing it right now. I understand you long to be at my side, dearest Kharlissa, but you mustn't disobey your mistress…"

Kharlissa was about to respond before Morathi's hand now wrapped around her throat. The nude sorceress then straddled Kharlissa pushing her to the ground and hissed angrily, "Why aren't you still out there searching for him?! Surely you could have magically contacted me if it was this important, Kharlissa. Enough groveling, girl! What have you learned of Malekith?! I WANT MY SON BACK!"

In the midst of Morathi's violent behavior, a pack fell off of Kharlissa's back and it made a loud clang against the chamber floor.

Morathi looked over at it a moment after it happened before refocusing her attention on the younger sorceress again. She quickly got off of her and voiced her curiosity, "What's with the pack, Kharlissa?"

Kharlissa visibly started shaking as she stood up and reached back down for the pack The fact that a high ranking sorceress was actually carrying a pack seemed odd as most were too proud to do something so menial. Morathi watched her like a serpent as Kharlissa slowly reached inside.

Her hand shook as she pulled out an item out of it and showed Morathi. She meekly managed to speak again as she handed the item over, "I postponed my search because I found this, mistress…"

The First Sorceress felt her heart sink in her chest when she saw what it was. It was Malekith's helmet from the Armour of Midnight.

Morathi stared at the helmet with disbelief and horror. Her hands traced gently over its burnt metal frame as she examined the ancient gold and black helmet. She genuinely could not believe it…not since he nearly died to the Flames of Asuryan before the Sundering did the possibility of his death truly seem real to her. Even despite how long he had been gone, Morathi had been supremely confident that he would return eventually. The sight of Malekith's helm seemed to indicate otherwise. Oddly enough, it was missing the Circlet of Iron though.

The first sorceress stared at the half-shattered mask on the front of it and actually felt despair. They had not always been close…especially in the past few millennia, but the idea of Malekith actually dying seemed impossible to her. If she were still capable of crying, then she probably would have at this very moment. She was alone now and without Malekith's claim to the Phoenix throne, it would probably be nigh impossible to truly conquer Ulthuan now.

The countless generations of Malekith's scheming had left the druchii utterly divided without his supreme authority to command them. No amount of her own plotting and politics could undo the schism of Naggaroth that was bound to occur if news of this got out.

The black guard were eternally loyal to Malekith, but what would they do without their master? While Kouran Darkhand and the tower masters were still her allies, Morathi doubted that the black guard leaders would follow her. Hellebron would certainly do everything in her power to weaken Morathi's influence in the Cult of Khaine. In fact, Malekith was the only person who kept Hellebron from coming after her politically or militarily. It's not like she could trust the council to help her.

All Morathi truly controlled now was the Dark Convent and the Cult of Pleasure. She couldn't hold the cauldrons as sole leverage over the Cult of Khaine without political support from Malekith as well. Also, even if she worked tirelessly to assimilate and covert the many dreadlords, hag queens, and black arks under her rule, it would be optimistic to assume that only half would oppose her. The druchii were too well-fortified for the Asur to truly exterminate, but without their leader…any hope of leading a successful invasion of Ulthuan was all but impossible. It seemed more likely that the druchii would inevitably cannibalize themselves now. All her hard work and millennia of scheming were crashing down right before her eyes as she squeezed the helmet in her hands.

Add all of that on top of Morathi's own emotions about the situation and she felt truly lost on what to do now. For over 7000 years she never once felt like she didn't have a plan. How was she going to keep Hellebron and her other political rivals in check now? Who was going to enforce the dreadlords' loyalty to Naggarond?

Morathi then dropped the helmet causing an echoic clang to fill the eerily silent chamber. She slowly looked away with a distant stare as she tried to think of any other possibility about the reality she was now faced with. Her thoughts were impossible to comprehend as Kharlissa anxiously awaited some response or command.

"M-mistress?" Kharlissa broke the silence with anxious fear.

She was swiftly met with a brutal backhand sending the other sorceress to the ground. Kharlissa knew better than to retaliate as she slowly got back up and rubbed her cheek shamefully.

"It…can't be. Does anyone else know?" Morathi finally spoke after an awkward silence.

"I've shown no one else but you mistress. Some of the northmen knew but I killed all of them. I know what kind of mayhem this would create if word of it got out that King Malekith is dead," the sorceress explained.

Morathi nodded her head, "Good…see to it that nobody finds out or I'll feed your soul to Slaanesh."

Kharlissa visibly flinched from Morathi's threat as she sank back to her knees. Her mistress had once sent daemonettes to rescue her and ever since then, Kharlissa had grown to fear her dark master even more than she originally did. The random torture and abuse didn't help either. Knowing that Morathi had some connections to the Realms of Chaos was intimidating to say the least. Even to a powerful sorceress like Kharlissa, Morathi was a terrifying mistress with an unpredictable streak of cruelty and evil.

"What should we do now? I mean without Malekith…" the younger elf hesitated to voice her mind further. It was clear she was afraid that Morathi would do something spontaneous and violent again. Her fears were confirmed when Morathi backhanded her once more out of frustration.

Although it wasn't as painful as the agony hex, it was harder than the first slap and it did draw blood from Kharlissa's lip. She reluctantly accepted the hit as she stared at her mistress fearfully.

"What about the Circlet of Iron…why isn't it on the helmet?" Morathi asked slowly.

Kharlissa shook her head, "There was no sign of it."

"Is that right…you wouldn't happen to be lying to me, would you Kharlissa?" Morathi asked dangerously.

The other sorceress ingratiated herself as she bowed her head to Morathi's feet, "Please mistress…I swear I don't know. I promise I have no idea!"

"Ughhh! This is impossible. Why did this have to happen to me?! WHY?! WHY ME?!" Morathi shrieked hatefully.

The younger sorceress had no idea what to say and remained silent as she looked back up. Kharlissa did her best not to flinch, but she couldn't help it from Morathi's shriek.

"I don't deserve this…I'm a queen! I'm the greatest mage in the world! Why did this happen?! Why do they take away everything that rightfully belongs to me!? Malekith CAN'T be dead! I won't accept this!" Morathi followed up as she cracked a fist.

Kharlissa frowned but finally managed to speak a bit optimistically, "Maybe he's not actually dead? We didn't find anything else but the helmet. There was no armour, no circlet, no weapons, or even a body. The Witch King is powerful…it's possible he survived. I will keep searching mistress! I just felt it necessary to bring this to you in person! I couldn't risk sending it with a servant or a rider. I swear I'll look into it further!"

Morathi gave her a disgusted look, "You naïve girl…Malekith can't survive without the Armour of Midnight. That feeble Asur mage reignited the Flames of Asuryan. I can see the burns all over the helmet. Malekith likely burned alive. It's doubtful there's a body left. The Circlet of Iron was probably looted by daemons for all we know!"

"S-so what should I do now?" Kharlissa asked fearfully.

The first sorceress shook her head, "I should have known better than to entrust this task to an underling...even one as reliable as you, Kharlissa. I will have to confirm what happened myself. Gather my inner circle and bring them to the tower, Kharlissa. We will use the helmet as a catalyst to peer into the realm of chaos. It should be able to give us a vision of what happened. At the very least, we can at least recover the Circlet of Iron."

Kharlissa looked a bit spooked by the notion of Morathi tracking what happened, and it didn't go unnoticed by her dark mistress.

"Something wrong, Kharlissa?" Morathi asked almost tauntingly as if she had some inkling of awareness that the sorceress was hiding something.

Kharlissa quickly collected herself and responded urgently, "N-no! Of course not, mistress! I am just surprised something like that would work. I'll gather the other high sorceresses at once!"

"Not all of them…just get Caladrielle, Talindra, and Astralla. I want this to remain a secret after all," Morathi commanded.

After rising to her feet, Kharlissa teleported out of the tower in a haze of dark magic.

Once Kharlissa was gone, Morathi looked down and picked up the helmet again. She stared at it intensely for presumably minutes as memories of her son flashed before her eyes. Morathi then felt a burning wet feeling in her eyes. An impossible feeling that she had not experienced in millennia.

"Am I crying?" she spoke aloud as she wiped away her eyes almost in disbelief that she still could.

The hag sorceress remembered this feeling before the Sundering when she thought Malekith was dead. She swore to herself that she would destroy the world if she could not have it…and without Malekith, she couldn't feasibly achieve that anymore. She had only ever loved two people in her entire life…Aenarion and Malekith. It greatly bothered her that Malekith had been spiteful of her in the recent years. While she did manipulate him and use Malekith as a tool at times, Morathi still wanted to see him succeed. She wanted him to be the Phoenix King and to avenge the injustice done upon Aenarion and their people in Nagarythe. She clearly remembered the way Ulthuan's courts treated her…the Bride of Aenarion. The way they treated her son because they thought she was unworthy. She was twice the queen Astarielle EVER was.

Hatred seethed through her now as she remembered the fury she felt when the feeble Asur princes spat upon Nagarythe to name that weak prince Bel Shanaar as Phoenix King. How was he worthy to succeed her beloved Aenarion?! She remembered how righteously smug they were in their decision and how unambitious Malekith had been before the Sundering. The very fact that he accepted it initially was his ultimate failure as a son. Aenarion explicitly told her to make sure Malekith succeeded him. It wasn't her fault that Malekith suffered this fate. It was HIS fault for being a coward.

She had no choice…she had to put her son on this path, or those insufferable usurpers would have gotten away with their petty betrayal. He may have resented her for it, but Morathi couldn't bear the thought of seeing her son's rightful destiny stolen from him…or her rightful place as queen-mother taken. Over their long reign in Naggaroth, Malekith had only grown more hateful and distrusting of her. Why?! She did everything that was in his best interest. She loved him! In fact, she was probably the only person in the world that did! He was nothing without her…so why did he hate his own perfect mother near the end? How could he blame HER for HIS mistakes and HIS weakness?

'He loved me once. I wonder if he ever realized that I always did what was best for him? It's not my fault this happened. We could have avoided the Sundering altogether had he possessed the spine to stand up to those scheming, weak traitors after his father died. I did everything I could for you son…I tried to kill Yvraine. I tried to kill Morelion. I taught you almost everything I know about magic. I even set you up to be a savior to Bel Shanaar's feeble reign. Ultimately I had to force your hand…or you would have accepted mediocrity. You would have accepted a pitiful life with that worthless wife of yours. Why were you like that? Why didn't you care the way I did? Why didn't you have the strength to take up the Widowmaker like Aenarion? Why were you such a coward?! Why?! WHY?! WHY!? I did everything I could to give you the world…and you resented me for it! Over the years, your spite turned to depression…you became weak, and you stopped caring. When did it start, I wonder? You never quite trusted me the same ever since I killed your wife. I had to do it…I did it for you! I did it because you couldn't! I couldn't let her betray you again. Did she mean more to you than me? Your own beloved mother?! I wonder if you'd trade being the Witch King for a life with that insufferable bitch, Allisara. I had to kill her to snap you out of your melancholic languishing. She turned you against me. She HAD TO DIE! This is your fault! Y-you…should have trusted me.' Morathi brooded over her thoughts of Malekith.

Tears continued to fall down her face as Morathi thought about the events that led up to her son's grim fate.

'You're more like your father than I ever imagined…and now you're dead too because you didn't listen to me! I alone knew what was best for you! BOTH OF YOU! Why couldn't you see that?!' she thought bitterly as she threw the helmet on the ground and stepped out onto her nearby balcony.

'It seems I have to do what you lacked the strength to. So be it! Despite your failures, I will avenge you my son…I will avenge your father's legacy too! Ulthuan will know my retribution! That feeble Asur mage who did this will die horribly! I'll throw his soul into the Maw of Chaos myself! He thinks himself a master of magic?! I'll show him a MASTER OF MAGIC! I will undo the vortex and cast this world into its long overdue doom! Caledor won't stop me! If I can't have Ulthuan, then Nobody can!' Morathi thought furiously.

With wild anger, the first sorceress conjured a storm of dark magic over her tower. She screamed with hatred as she fired black lightning into the sky. It lit up the dark clouds overhead with a storm of tempestuous magic and released a dreadful barrage of thunder seconds later. Echoic thunder rang around the skies for miles presumably as the winds of magic became more violent and conjured up a storm.

Morathi then turned to reenter her chambers. The angry sorceress walked with purpose as she picked up Malekith's helmet again, 'But first…I will find out how you died. I will find out what daemons have your circlet…I will need it to enact my goals.'

Later

About an hour passed after Morathi's magical fit atop the tower. She was currently in the central chamber of her tower in Ghrond setting up the necessary ritual to learn how Malekith perished. It didn't take long for Kharlissa to finally return along with a number of Morathi's most notable sorceress underlings. This included three other sorceresses in addition to Kharlissa herself. As they entered the chamber one by one, the sight of Malekith's broken helmet sitting in the center of a ritual magic circle caused all of them to show visible signs of disbelief and concern.

Morathi dangerously turned her gaze upon her underlings, "You've arrived…good."

"Lady Morathi…THIS is why you summoned us?" one of them gawked in disbelief at the sight of Malekith's helmet.

Another sorceresses spoke disbelievingly, "So…Malekith is dead?!"

Morathi nodded her head, "Yes, Talindra…and you will not speak of it to anyone. Take your places upon the sigils I've drawn out. We're peering into the realm of chaos. I will discover what killed my son."

Still in a state of shock, most of the arriving sorceresses slowly got to their places as they traded uncertain looks of fear and anxiety with one another.

Talindra looked at Kharlissa disbelievingly, "So THIS is what you found in the chaos wastes?! What else did you learn up there?"

Kharlissa sighed, "Not much, unfortunately…but I had to bring this back to Ghrond immediately when I found it."

"What ritual are we performing mistress?" one of the other sorceresses asked.

"A ritual of peering, my dear Caladrielle. Fortunately, we can trace the winds of magic on Malekith's helm to show us a glimpse into the past. I need to find the Circlet of Iron," Morathi answered her.

Caladrielle frowned, "I assume this ritual requires a great deal of magic then if you needed all of us here for it?"

"Yes…take your places," Morathi ordered curtly.

"Hey, Astralla…move over to that sigil. I always stand on the left," Caladrielle complained.

The other sorceress huffed at her, "Fine…"

Once all of the shocked sorceresses were in place, Morathi walked to the center of the ritual circle and began to start chanting in a dark tongue. The sorceresses chorused her words and quickly created a swirling tempest of dark magic within the chamber as they joined magical links with one another around the circle. A chaotic haze filled the area as their magic converged upon Malekith's helmet which was now floating freely in its center. Moments later the converging magic almost seemed to show time rewinding as it retraced the residue of chaos upon the crown to its origin.

This continued for about a minute as the spell took full effect. Once it was ready, Morathi cast another spell into it. The sorceresses quit chanting afterwards as everyone in the chamber could now hear and see Malekith in the past. All of them looked completely shocked by the sight of Malekith standing before N'Kari, greatest of the greater daemons of Slaanesh.

"N'kari was there?!" Morathi voiced her concern immediately as she watched the greater daemon speaking to Malekith.

Talindra glanced at Morathi confused, "You know this daemon, mistress?"

Kharlissa showed visible signs of uneasiness at the sight of the greater Slaaneshi daemon as she did her best to not make eye contact with Morathi who was staring at her intensely. It was obvious the First Sorceress was almost daring her to say something.

"Of course I do…N'kari is the daemon that mortally wounded Aenarion during the creation of the vortex. He swore to wipe out the Line of Aenarion. Malekith also once bound this daemon to his service. I told him it was a terrible idea. This is the result of him not listening to me," Morathi replied unfazed by the unusual looks her sorceress followers were giving her.

"I think we know how he died now…" Kharlissa muttered quietly.

"Wait...this is the same Keeper of Secrets that Malekith unleashed against Ulthuan three centuries ago, right?" Astralla pointed out.

"Be silent, I'm trying to listen," Morathi huffed in annoyance.

When the vision got to the part about N'kari's claims of fornicating with Morathi, the sorceresses in the room traded concerned looks with one another. The first sorceress immediately dismissed it, "It's lying. I never slept with that wretched creature. It appears as if it's trying to agitate Malekith. It used to shapeshift into a female version of Malekith just to annoy him."

Kharlissa looked away doubtfully as she knew firsthand that Morathi had some connection to the daemons of Slaanesh. The other sorceresses didn't fully buy Morathi's claim, but they knew better than to say anything. It was no secret to any of them that Morathi had an unexplainable benefactor that boosted her already great power. Most would assume her power came from Khaine, Hekarti, and Atharti…but the more knowledgeable knew better. This was even more obvious due to Felicion Heartkeeper's failed trap which Morathi easily escaped years prior.

"What spell is Malekith preparing? I've never seen that before…" Caladrielle asked Morathi.

Morathi had widened eyes of concern as she answered, "He's casting Soul Reaper and Bladewind at the same time."

"I wasn't aware one could cast Soul Reaper and Bladewind simultaneously. It seems like he's adding a binding hex into it too." Kharlissa pointed out with genuine fascination.

"Is he really attempting to cast something that complex in the Realm of Chaos?! That's suicide." Caladrielle said disbelievingly.

"It sounds powerful. I'm surprised the daemon isn't trying to stop him. If Malekith bound this creature once before, then it would be foolish of it to let him cast a spell." Talindra remarked as Malekith quietly kept chanting his spell whilst ignoring insults.

Kharlissa crossed her arms, "The daemon doesn't seem to be taking him seriously. I hear Slaaneshi daemons enjoy toying with their victims, but surely even N'kari isn't prideful enough to let him cast that."

"N'kari is toying with him…I doubt he expects a spell like that or a binding to work in the Realm of Chaos. He's likely getting pleasure from seeing Malekith do something so desperate and foolhardy," Morathi stated as she continued watching the scene unfold.

They watched fascinated and somewhat impressed in the following minute as Malekith overwhelmed N'kari with his reckless overuse of magic.

"He's just forcibly willing the magic now…how reckless," Talindra shook her head disapprovingly.

Morathi scoffed at her, "He doesn't have a choice. N'kari is extremely powerful and could easily defeat him in his wounded condition."

After the battle reached its apex with Malekith subduing N'kari, all of the sorceresses showed absolute awe that Malekith actually had the ability to repel a greater daemon in the Realm of Chaos with his magic. Even Morathi seemed impressed by it, "I wonder if Malekith has been hiding his true power from me?"

"That seems like the only logical explanation for this, mistress. I'm…honestly impressed. I knew he was a powerful sorcerer, but not THIS powerful. To think he did all of that in his wounded condition..." Caladrielle added.

Talindra shook her head, "He had more access to the winds of magic being inside of the realm of chaos. As impressive as it is, I could probably do something like that too,"

Morathi scoffed at her, "You would die trying to cast that spell, Talindra. Among the druchii, Malekith is second only to me in sorcery. I taught him Dhar before ten generations of your ancestors were born. He could cast Dhar when he was a boy and he mastered Qhaysh too! Don't presume to think you were ever on his level. My son was a prodigy. Even Anethra wasn't as powerful a mage as Malekith, and she was alive during the Sundering."

"Of course…I never said that I was his equal or his better," Talindra responded submissively.

Kharlissa glanced at Morathi confused, "Malekith could use Qhaysh?"

Morathi nodded, "Yes…though I had not seen him do it in a long time. He's proficient at all the winds, though it took him almost five centuries to master Qhaysh. He had a difficult time with it because I trained him how to combine winds into Dhar when he was young. He learned True Dhar before Qhaysh which made it exceedingly difficult for him."

"Mastering Qhaysh and True Dhar seems impossible…they're polar opposites. How could one have the willpower to do that? You'd have to be insane to have a mind capable of snapping between those two disciplines…or a split personality at least," Kharlissa shook her head doubtfully.

Talindra shook her head, "Well Malekith IS insane…"

"Hahaha, he just threw that greater daemon into Nurgle's realm? I'd certainly love to see how that played out," Caladrielle chuckled as the battle finally concluded.

"If he beat that daemon, then how did he die? He looks perfectly fine to me," Talindra wondered. Not even a second after finishing her comment, they all saw Malekith sink to his knees as a gale of dark chaotic wind raged around him.

"Look closer…calling upon the winds like that in the realms of chaos is dangerous. Its effects don't just dissipate there," Morathi pointed out.

The sight of Malekith then reaching up to try and tear off the Circlet of Iron confused all of them.

"What is he doing?!" Talindra gawked at the sight of Malekith desperately pulling at his helmet's horns.

"Is he trying to tear off his crown?" Caladrielle asked.

"Who are you?! What are you?!" they heard Malekith shouting as he tightly pulled at the horns of his helmet.

Morathi shook her head, "Why can't we hear what he's hearing?! There must be echoes…something is talking to him."

Astralla frowned, "I can see a portal behind him in the distance…he almost made it back."

"If she's a daemon, then why do you refer to the Cadai?!" Malekith demanded.

"She? I think there are entities there speaking to him. Look closely through the tempest to his right…what is that?" Morathi asked confused.

"I see it too, mistress!" Kharlissa announced.

"I will never succumb to chaos! Let the flames burn me! Smite me with your power Asuryan! You've never held back before! I accept my death! KILL ME SO THIS NIGHTMARE WILL FINALLY END!" Malekith howled before successfully ripping off his helmet.

The entire audience audibly gasped as they saw him tear the entire crown off his head. As it went thudding beside him Malekith screamed in pain as his body floated in the air. The flames of Asuryan then engulfed his entire body burning away his armour and mottled flesh.

The sight of him burning alive was shocking, and it continued for a while until he stopped screaming in pain. It seemed quite obvious to them that he was dead at this point.

"Well, this explains why we only found his helmet…" Kharlissa shook her head.

Before any of them could respond, something unexpected happened…before the flames could completely disintegrate his corpse, they fizzled out. Moments later, a white flash of high magic erupted away from his body and dissipated the dark energies swirling overhead.

Then they saw something unbelievable…his body started to regenerate its flesh as it almost seemed to glow an ethereal blue colour. A light green aura also covered the inner blue one. As his flesh returned and his body healed, Malekith's dark hair grew back in mere seconds. They could see the look of shock in his bright green eyes as he looked at his arm.

Every sorceress in the chamber stared in amazement at the sight of a fully regenerated Malekith glowing in this strange and burning magical aura. The sight of him fully restored was quite shocking to the chamber audience…especially to those who had never seen Malekith's actual appearance before. That being everyone present except Morathi. Before they could see anything else, a blinding bright figure drowned out the vision.

"NO! What is that light?! I can't see anything!" Morathi hissed angrily as the blinding light cut off the rest of what happened. They couldn't even hear anything else too much to their frustration.

After the blinding light passed, the vision abruptly ended.

Upon the vision's conclusion, the floating helmet in the middle of the chamber then fell back to the ground. As it clanged upon the floor, the magical lights of the ritual circle and the miasmic vision faded.

Everyone present had no idea what they just witnessed and Morathi looked stunned beyond belief.

"S-so…did Malekith actually die?" Kharlissa broke the uncomfortable silence filling the chamber as she looked around at the other sorceresses and then Morathi herself.

Caladrielle answered after an eerie silence, "I don't know…it looked like he regenerated somehow."

"The way his body was glowing, perhaps he became a wraith or a spirit? That could have been his soul." Talindra chimed in.

"Then what happened to the body then?" Caladrielle countered.

Talindra shrugged, "It is the realm of chaos…it could have just disintegrated away. We did see him burning after all."

"What was that light? There was someone there that did something to him," Caladrielle added.

Morathi finally found her voice as she cut into the conversation, "H-he...he's alive."

"What?! Are you sure mistress?" Talindra had the audacity to question.

"The flames of Asuryan went out…he burned away and was reborn a phoenix," Morathi said almost cryptically.

Kharlissa's eyes widened in awe, "Wait…are you saying he's been blessed by Asuryan? That's impossible…isn't it?"

"Like Aenarion himself…but how? Didn't the flames reject him?" Talindra questioned.

Morathi raised a hand to her chin, "Perhaps Asuryan changed his mind. Malekith did show an indomitable will to resist chaos in the very heart of its realm. Asuryan is a fickle and pragmatic god…he cares not for sentimentality or mortal morality. Aenarion told me as much long ago. He values high willpower and sacrifice."

"So if the Asur find out that Malekith regenerated from the Flames of Asuryan…" Kharlissa paused almost gleefully at the idea.

"Then it would be proof he is Asuryan's chosen…as well as Khaine's. Destined to be the ruler of the Druchii and the Asur. The rightful phoenix king. Ahahaha! My son lives!" Morathi sounded genuinely happy for the first time any of them had ever seen.

"I'd hate to be the pessimist here, but how can we be certain of that? Assuming this theory of yours is even true, that doesn't change the fact that something took him away after his body healed. Malekith could be anywhere for all we know," Talindra crossed her arms and stated doubtfully.

"It doesn't matter…he's alive, and we WILL find him!" Morathi hissed at her.

Talindra sighed heavily, "So assuming he is alive and he's Asuryan's chosen…what will that mean to the Asur? I doubt they'll accept his rule even in spite of such a blessing."

"We almost won that last war with the Asur! Malekith's only weakness was the Flames of Asuryan! Don't you understand the significance of this?! The Asur Mage who defeated him will not be able to stop him this time," Morathi explained.

Kharlissa pursed her lips, "The mage Teclis? He's the greatest of the Asur mages. I'm not so sure even Malekith could best him in a contest of magic."

'Or you mistress…' Kharlissa added mentally.

"Then I will deal with him myself…though I feel as if you all underestimate my son's power. He is MY son after all. Though perhaps even I underestimated him. He's so much like me. I trained him so well," the first sorceress proudly retorted.

"I doubt the Asur will care if Malekith was blessed…or forgiven by Asuryan. However you want to phrase it. Most will see him as an even greater threat if they learn about this," Talindra sighed.

"Many will still resist…but they will be unable to deny his birthright once we've disposed of their leaders. The Asur honour tradition more than you might think. When their self-righteous champions are broken, they will have no choice but to accept his rule. How could they oppose the will of their own god? Not only that, but how will the druchii respond to their king in the flesh? Malekith's glorious return will inspire the druchii unlike we've ever seen before. To see his handsome face…to truly know that he is destined to rule the world. Not only that…but Malekith is very cunning. He could surely convert some Asur to serve him in this state. After all these years…Ulthuan will truly be mine," Morathi responded with starry-eyed excitement over the new possibilities.

"I wouldn't mind seeing more of Malekith's face. He looks so much like you, Lady Morathi. I never imagined he'd share your looks to that extent. He's quite appealing," Astralla remarked with a sly smile.

"I didn't think he looked like that. Who knew Malekith was so attractive?" Caladrielle followed up.

"Of course he is! He's MY son and Aenarion's son! The two most beautiful elves who've ever walked the face of this earth." Morathi boasted shamelessly. Her pride was overflowing at this point.

Seeing their mistress in high spirits was something of a new experience for all of the sorceresses present. The very idea that Morathi could be jovial while not torturing someone was quite interesting for them to witness

"Well, I'll certainly enjoy reintroducing myself to our king. If he truly is alive, then I look forward to us finding him. He might have needs after all those years in the Armour of Midnight." Talindra said somewhat suggestively.

Morathi narrowed her gaze annoyed, "You had better stay in your place…I will not allow any of you to try seducing my son!"

"Why not, mistress? We're your most trusted sorceresses and we are ritually married to him. What if he desires a concubine? Is it not fair to honour Atharti with such an indulgence?" Caladrielle giggled.

"I will be the one to decide whether or not you lustful girls are worthy of my son. Don't even delude yourselves into thinking you're worthy. You can find your carnal delights elsewhere. There are more than enough for you here in Ghrond," Morathi hissed almost jealously.

Caladrielle and Talindra traded uncertain looks with one another as both were likely confused about Morathi's objection.

Kharlissa sighed, "So…assuming this all works perfectly, then who is Malekith to marry? I doubt the Asur will truly accept him as Phoenix King unless he marries the Everqueen. Have you ever given thought to how we would deal with that, mistress?"

"Malekith has no queen…Malekith needs no queen. He would also say that himself. Besides...I'll make sure their won't be a surviving Everqueen before Malekith ascends. Send word to my dark riders, gather an expedition force, and have a Black Ark recalled. I will investigate further and study the portents for any sign of Malekith's location." Morathi ordered before walking out of the central chamber and back to her private quarters. She made sure to pick up Malekith's helmet along the way.

Once she was out of earshot, Talindra shook her head, "Is it just me, or does the mistress seem a bit overprotective of Malekith? How are we unworthy? I'm a high sorceress!"

"I never said anything about being his queen…but I'll happily be his consort. It won't be my fault if he somehow can't control his desires around me," Calladrielle almost seemed to brag.

"I'm just glad he's alive…I didn't realize how bad Naggaroth would be without Malekith around…" Kharlissa sighed.

'Or how bad Morathi would be…I need to find him before she does,' Kharlissa added mentally.

"Let's hope we find him soon. Maybe he can keep Hellebron from going on a rampage. She's one bad day away from trying to siege Ghrond," Astralla chuckled.

"She's crazy…but not that crazy," Talindra scoffed.

Kharlissa shook her head, "I don't think you take her seriously enough. Hellebron has many allies among the dreadlords and has been consolidating power in the Cult of Khaine. Without Malekith around, she'll only grow bolder. The only reason she even follows him is because her father did and because Malekith has everyone convinced that he's Khaine's chosen. We need to find Malekith as soon as we can."

"I'd love to see Hellebron try…imagine what Malekith would do to her when he got back? He'd probably sacrifice her in the middle of Har Ganeth just to prove a point! In fact, we'd probably see a repeat of what he did to Har Kaldra when it rebelled. Oh, it just makes me so giddy thinking about it. It would be even funnier if he did it on Death Night too! That's what I'd call poetic justice." Caladrielle giggled wickedly.

"I'll bet Saerina would love this news about Malekith's regeneration. She was a Malekith fanatic even before seeing what he looked like. Now that I think about it, that might be why she fell out of the mistress' favor. Lady Morathi certainly acted strange when Saerina asked her if she could be his personal sorceress in Naggarond," Talindra got off topic.

Kharlissa tilted her head confused, "What do you mean by that? Saerina wanted to be Malekith's personal sorceress?"

"You should have heard her two centuries ago when Malekith came to Ghrond. I've never seen any sorceress act that blatantly obsequious: 'Your mother has assigned me to be your liaison during your visit here, your highness. My name is Saerina, but you may call me whatever you'd like. It's a great pleasure to see you here in Ghrond.'" Talindra mocked humorously.

Caladrielle quickly added to the mocking imitation of Saerina, "Don't forget my favorite line, 'I understand you really like specialists. I can speak twenty languages, I'm well-versed in portents and prophecies, I'm a high sorceress, and I have a spy network in Cothique. If you ever need another sorceress in Naggarond, I'll happily volunteer, my king. I can think of no greater privilege than to be your personal sorceress.'"

Talindra shook her head, "I can't believe she was bold enough to suggest that. It's quite shocking that Malekith didn't punish her for it. She looked so devastated when he just walked away and ignored her! Hahaha! I think Morathi assigned her to be Malekith's liaison as a joke to humiliate her."

'Maybe if I become Malekith's personal sorceress, I can finally get away from Morathi!' Kharlissa thought hopefully.

"That's difficult to imagine. Saerina is usually uptight. Speaking of her…do any of you know where she is? She hasn't been back to Ghrond in a while," Kharlissa responded after her brief mental musings.

Talindra shrugged, "She was here a few months back while you were gone. I think she was hired by a black ark fleetmaster and went to Karond Kar. They left on Mathlann's Blade for raiding season. Saerina could be anywhere in the world right now. Though if I recall, Mathlann's Blade prefers to raid the Old World. Maybe Saerina wanted to make use of her supposed spy network too…who knows."

"Well, I suppose Saerina is in for a pleasant surprise when she returns to see Malekith back. Unfortunately for her, she'll have some competition for being Malekith's personal sorceress now. That job seems a LOT more appealing now," Caladrielle smirked haughtily.

"What makes you think you're getting that position? I'm clearly the best sorceress in Ghrond besides the mistress…and the most beautiful," Talindra raised a brow with a rivaling stare.

Caladrielle grinned wickedly at her, "No you're not, but don't get so defensive. I can share with you, Talindra…to a certain extent. May the best sorceress win."

'Neither one of you smug bitches is going to beat me…' Kharlissa thought hatefully.

"Careful now…if you all keep talking like that, you'll end up like Felicion," Astralla warned them with evident caution in her voice.

Kharlissa finally broke the mood and spoke up seriously, "The mistress wanted a black ark. Saerina is already on one…maybe we should contact her? If they're still anywhere close to Naggaroth, we could have that ark here relatively soon."

"Good point Kharlissa. Try to contact her then. Saerina should be easy to contact magically with her mirror. That shrew should have no issues convincing the fleetmaster to answer Morathi's summon," Talindra noted.

"Maybe, but Morathi's influence doesn't carry the weight it used to without Malekith around. What if the fleetmaster declines to listen?" Astralla asked.

Kharlissa shook her head, "Then I'll get another black ark. Someone will jump at the chance to earn Ghrond's favour. I can assure you of that."

"Just tell Saerina to seduce the fleetmaster so he'll come back to Naggaroth," Astralla suggested.

Talindra rolled her eyes, "Saerina…seduce someone? That's laughable! I think the fleetmaster she's with is female. It would be a little more difficult to pull that off…especially for her."

"Saerina's smart...she'll make it happen if she knows this is about finding Malekith," Astralla smirked.

"Oh...that's a good point actually," Caladrielle laughed.

"Do what you can, Kharlissa, and keep us updated. I suppose we should all get to work with Mistress Morathi's orders and gather up an expedition force. I'll get some infantry and cavalry. Caladrielle, how about you get some beastmasters and secure us a few beasts. We could use a hydra or two. Maybe a dragon if one's available. Astralla, you go find some shades and see about convincing some witch elves to join up," Talindra sighed unenthusiastically she strutted out with Caladrielle.

Astralla rolled her eyes at the duo after they left, "Those two never change…I suppose I'll go hire some shades then. I'll worry about getting witch elves later. If you're getting a black ark, try to get us some veteran corsairs too."

"That was my intention, Astralla. I'm going to start in Naggarond. If the mistress asks, that's where I'll be." Kharlissa replied haughtily to the other remaining sorceress.

Astralla rose a brow, "Would she approve of you going to Naggarond at a time like this?"

"I'm not counting on us being able to get Saerina back. It's the biggest and closest port. Why wouldn't I go there?" Kharlissa scoffed.

"You may go, Kharlissa," Morathi's voice interrupted causing both sorceresses to jerk their heads in the direction of the stairs. Both were notably spooked by their mistress' eavesdropping, but quickly collected themselves.

"Of course, mistress…thank you!" Kharlissa responded.

"While you're there inform Kouran Darkhand and the black guard tower masters that Malekith is alive. It will help us to leverage influence over them. Obviously, you know better than to tell anyone else. Keep in touch with me, Kharlissa. Even if Malekith is still in the chaos wastes, we will need a black ark when he gets back. Malekith will have a lot of petty rebellions to put down upon his return." Morathi followed up.

"As you command, my mistress," the younger sorceress exclaimed.

"Also…Astralla?" Morathi addressed the other supreme sorceress darkly, "would you mind coming upstairs with me?"

Astralla's expression sunk a bit nervously as she answered slowly, "W-what for, mistress?"

"I have another special request for you. We'll speak of it in my chambers," Morathi answered almost dangerously.

"On my way, Lady Morathi," Astralla nodded as she followed Morathi up the stairs.

Kharlissa didn't even want to ponder over what THAT was going to entail. Her paranoia though was rampant as she immediately assumed it had something to do with Morathi plotting against her.

Once they were all gone, the sorceress swiftly left the tower out to a nearby balcony and to her dark Pegasus. Kharlissa didn't waste time as she departed from Ghrond on her long flight south to Naggarond. Once she was a reasonably safe distance away, she opened up a pack on her flying steed which released a strange compression of magical power. She smiled proudly as she pulled out the Circlet of Iron which had been concealed within.

Kharlissa stared at it intensely, 'I was going to keep it for myself to kill her…but if I give it back to Malekith, I'll definitely earn his favor. The Circlet might even be able to lead me to him. With it, I can definitely find him before Morathi. I need to get to him before she does. He's the only one who can save me from her! I'm not going to end up like Felicion…'

Kharlissa then glanced down at the wrapped up blade on the pack as she replaced the Circlet of Iron, 'Destroyer will be a nice gift for the king as well.'

Morathi's Private Chambers

Astralla nervously followed Morathi into her private chambers and felt her heart pounding faster with each step further.

Morathi led her all the way to the balcony before finally speaking to the younger sorceress, "You've always been loyal to me, Astralla…"

"Of course, my beautiful mistress! Why wouldn't I be? My greatness is a reflection of your magnanimous grace and supremacy. I am nothing without you. W-what do you need me to do?" Astralla asked anxiously.

The First Sorceress slowly turned around from the balcony view and stared at her, "Kharlissa is lying to me…I don't know what about, but I have a feeling she knows more than she pretends to. Don't bother hiring the shades or recruiting witch elves. I will do that myself. I have another mission for you, dearest Astralla."

"Y-you think Kharlissa would plot against you? She can be a bit insufferable, but isn't she your favorite?" Astralla asked surprised.

"That's precisely why I take precautions. Betrayals come from those closest to you, do they not? Regardless, I need you to go to Karond Kar and contact the Beastlord Rakarth. He has Seraphon in his menagerie of creatures. Seraphon is magically bound to Malekith, and she can smell and sense his magical presence. She may be able to locate him better than we can," Morathi replied haughtily.

Astralla rose a brow uncertainly, "Does that mean you want me to inform Rakarth about Malekith's situation?"

"Yes…Rakarth can be trusted. He is also unrivaled in tracking and he's the only person besides Malekith that can keep Seraphon under control. We will need his help to control that dragon. Seraphon is too dangerous otherwise. I want you and him to discreetly locate Malekith and inform only me when you find a lead," Morathi explained.

The younger sorceress seemed a bit confused by Morathi's intentions, "I will of course do as you wish, but why isn't that our main plan? What's the point of Kharlissa getting a black ark then? I could probably secure one a lot faster directly at Karond Kar."

"I tracked Saerina's location. Mathlann's Blade is on its way back to Karond Kar as we speak. It should arrive in a few weeks. Take command of it before Kharlissa does. I'd prefer her spending a bit more time in Naggarond," Morathi answered.

"So…you think she intends to find Malekith before us and not tell you?" Astralla's eyes widened at the idea.

"I'm not entirely sure what she's up to, but I prefer to have failsafe precautions for every variable. Kharlissa will certainly be useful by convincing the black guard to order a Black Ark to Naggarond. That is the ark I intend our main expedition force to embark upon. You and Rakarth will have a large head start in finding Malekith before then and it will allow me to keep a closer eye on Kharlissa directly. Does that make sense to you dear?" Morathi followed up.

"Of course, mistress…but won't it draw a lot of attention around Naggaroth if everyone finds out that the Dark Convent is recalling two black arks. Someone will certainly look into it. What if Hellebron or some of the dreadlords notice?" Astralla noted.

Morathi nodded, "Perceptive as always my dear. I will handle the politics. You just find Malekith, and I'll concern myself with that."

"As you command Lady Morathi. I will journey to Karond Kar at once!" Astralla bowed her head before leaving with haste.

Once she was gone, Morathi turned back to look at Malekith's helmet in her hand once again. She felt a wicked smile grace her face as her mind raced in excitement, 'Your loving mother can't wait to see you again…son.'

L'Anguille, Malekith

Malekith and Naerelia were currently on their way back to the castle and both seemed to have a sense of dread with each step their horse took on the way.

Naerelia couldn't help but sigh dramatically in objection, "Do we really have to go to this feast of theirs? I shudder to think of what humans consider 'fine dining.' This entire experience has been the equivalent of rolling around in mud with animals."

"It's not THAT bad…though I am quite looking forward to getting out of here myself," Malekith sighed.

"I mean, their race is completely barbarous and insufferable if you ask me. I can't believe what they did to Tor Alessi here. These humans have really downgraded the elven infrastructure and architecture of the city. The lighthouse is the only part that isn't ugly."

"I agree…but short of sending an army here to weed them out, there's nothing we can do about it now. At least it wasn't despoiled by greenskins or chaos. It doesn't really matter. It's theirs now," Malekith shrugged.

"Damn the druchii and damn the dwarves. It's so painful to think our ancient empire used to span half the world. Now these savages just squat in our cities and breed away like the monkeys they are," Naerelia scoffed.

The dark-haired prince frowned at her comment, "War with the Dawi?"

"Oh gods…tell me you know about the War of the Beard?!" Naerelia exclaimed with annoyance.

He shook his head, "I don't remember…sorry."

"Oh yeah…it's going to take me a while to get past this you having amnesia thing. I'll refresh your memory. After the druchii started the civil war with the Asur, it tore to empire asunder. They orchestrated some kind of deception and turned the dwarves against us. The short, stout barbarians razed countless colonies and we were forced to withdraw back to Ulthuan and leave them to their fates. The only ones who survived ended up living in the magical forests. They're the Asrai and they're about as savage as humans are."

'The elves and dwarves went to war? I don't remember much about it, but I thought we were allies with the Dawi? I suppose much has changed in these thousands of years. This future is terrible,' Malekith thought distraught.

"Anyways, I'm getting tired of ranting. Since we're alone, do you mind telling me what Tor your father was the prince of, Malerion?" Naerelia asked hopefully.

Malekith sighed heavily, "It doesn't matter…he's dead."

"Well, I think I know which one…Tor Anlyth. It was destroyed five centuries ago by daemons, and it was right next to the fortress of Dead King's Peak in the Annulii mountains. It's also close to Avelorn. Did I get that right?" Naerelia asked with smug assurance.

"Uhh…yeah you're right," Malekith confirmed her false assumption.

He knew better than to say he was actually from Anlec as that would make it too obvious that he was from House Tinuron.

"I knew it! That must mean you're Prince Malladon's bastard son! He died five centuries ago. I'm figuring you out slowly but surely, Malerion," Naerelia proudly boasted.

Malekith was actually somewhat glad that the princess had finished his cover story for him. Now he didn't have to preoccupy his thoughts with logical excuses anymore.

He feigned reluctant acceptance to her remark, "Your glibness does you no credit, Princess Naerelia."

"Hmph! Well, from what I recall reading about the history of Tor Anlyth…the Prince fought to the death to defend the city. I wasn't aware he had an heir. Most of the survivors of the city's destruction immigrated to Evershale. You could probably reclaim the ruins and after saving me from druchii, the court will definitely reinstate your noble status…especially if you were Malladon's only heir," Naerelia rambled on.

"That's assuming I go back…" Malekith scoffed.

The princess batted him in the back almost angrily, "Oh for Isha's sake, why must you be so stubborn?! You can seriously regain your princedom and your honour! What are you so opposed to? Do you not want to feel indebted to me? Is that it?"

"I…I'm not like my father," Malekith said distantly as he thought of Aenarion, "I'll never be like him. Everyone made sure I knew that before I left. I haven't done enough to prove my worth to him or to Asuryan. I could care less about the politics."

"You're really melodramatic, you know that? It's not like you were the Phoenix King's son. I don't know what kind of insane expectations people had of you, but as far as I'm concerned, you seem very competent for a prince. If this is about you being a bastard, then get over it. Wouldn't you disgrace your father's legacy more by letting your family line die with you? You're his only heir…people care more about that than your mother being lowborn, Malerion," Naerelia persisted in her persuasion.

"I'll think about it, alright? Now please try and get along with the humans for a little while longer, princess. I'd like to get out of here with as little strife as possible," Malekith responded as they reached the castle gates again.

The guards quickly opened it for them and stared with fascination and mistrust at the two elves.

"As you command, my prince," Naerelia replied jokingly.

"Don't do that..." he groaned in annoyance.

"Why not? You are my elder and a prince..aren't you?" she smugly replied.

'That damn prophetess just HAD to say I was a prince. Ughhh...so much for me fading into obscurity. I don't like the idea of pretending to be someone else's son, but whatever gets her off my case I suppose...' Malekith thought disapprovingly.

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Alrighty guys and…gals? I doubt girls read this. Anyways, that's the next chapter down. I'm certain a lot of you are wondering why I didn't update my 40k fic…so I ended up losing the chapter document and I have to rewrite it again. Hopefully that shouldn't delay me too long…but I was closer on getting this out and decided to expedite this fic instead because I was frustrated with that situation.

First of all, praise my patron deity Slaanesh for granting the will to be excessive and obsessive. Praise Tzeentch for all the schemes and plots starting to web out. Things are going exactly as planned. Screw Nurgle for giving me the flu and…I have nothing bad to say about mighty Khorne…*sweats profusely*.

Back to this story though, we have a lot to unpack here in this modest 22k word chapter. The chapter opens up with some serious interactions between Malekith, Repanse and Naerelia.

Most of the chapter is talking (which is boring I know), but it establishes a lot of important plot points and character perspectives down the line. So Malekith ends up trying to fabricate some elaborate cover story about him being an exile. After realizing it's been thousands of years, he figures it's pointless to go around claiming he's Aenarion's son. It also conveniently explains away any mysterious uncertainty about him while still being vague about his past. He's a great liar and manipulator. Malk learned that from his evil mom.

Something big is revealed in this conversation though as Malekith realizes that it's the reign of the 11th Phoenix King Finubar. So, the current year in our setting is 2492 on the Imperial Calendar. For those that don't know, that's before Louen Leoncoeur and Karl Franz become respective sovereigns of their nations but it's close enough to the modern setting of Warhammer Fantasy as we all know it. Louen becomes Royarch in the year 2500 and Feramand's reign ends around 2495. Feramand is most known for his conflicts with the lichemaster Heinrich Kemmler. I know Louen's father was king as well, but it's never really specified who he was. Most assume it was King Charlen who famously fought alongside Imrik against beastmen. So Louen is a pro elf kind of king and many of the grail knights are receptive to high elves because of this past history and their aid in Couronne's defense. King Charlen ruled decades prior, but Grail Knights live longer than normal humans. Louen is like 70 when he becomes King and still looks like a young chad.

Now another interesting thing to note is the Battle of Finuval Plain takes place in 2302 I believe. That means Malekith was in the Realm of Chaos for 190 years. The Asur think he's dead in this AU timeline (minus a few experts like Teclis and Alith Anar who have doubts). Time dilation is a thing there…just like the warp in 40k. Now this story will span the course of years, so you can expect to see notable characters later on. Don't worry…Grombrindal will be in the story. This is really where we're going to start diverging from canon so don't be surprised if Malekith being in the Empire is a butterfly effect that changes everything.

Now we do learn something interesting about Repanse's quest. She and her chevaliers are trying to become Grail Knights. This is quite interesting because it would mean Repanse would become the only female Grail Knight. Repanse is already special because women aren't allowed to become knights…but she's a Paladin because she is a champion of the Lady. Jeanne d'Arc style. Her trying to become a grail knight is a BIG DEAL to Bretonnia. For the less informed, a grail knight is sort of like the fantasy equivalent of a space marines in that they're transhumans. They're superhuman warriors. Bretonnia's kings are all required to be grail knights and they're the pinnacle of chivalry and heroism to Bretonnians.

In addition to Grail Knights, Cathay's Dragon-blooded (shugengans mostly) are also superhumans since they come from the bloodline of Xen Yang's children. From what I've learned about Cathay in TWW3, there's only 5 of the dragon children still around of the original 9 and both the Celestial Dragon Emperor and Moon Empress are missing. You might see some of these dragon characters later on in the story. Yin-Yin is the only one I'm going to confirm for now. She's the Sea Dragon and the ruler of Eastern Cathay. She commands their fleets. She has a LOT of experience with high and dark elves since Naggaroth borders her to the east. She isn't too fond of black arks raiding Cathay. All of them know who Malekith is. Some might even know what he looks like. Most of you probably know who Maoi Ying and Zhao Ming are, but there's also Yuan Bo, the Jade Dragon. He rules central Cathay and is its administrator. Li Dao rules Southern Cathay and defends it from Ind and Khuresh. He's the fire dragon and he doesn't like their eldest sister Maoi Ying. Zhao Ming hates Yuan Bo because he doesn't believe alchemy is a sanctioned form of magic. (Plus they all think Zhao Ming is crazy for being too close to the Great Maw). In TWW3, Maoi and Zhao were looking for the Dragon of Light, Shen-Zoo, who is their lost younger sister. The reason I'm explaining all of this is because Cathay will feature heavily in this fanfic…so stay tuned for some Eastern action! Speaking of dragons...Seraphon will be learning how to speak in this story too.

Moving on from that, Malekith meets Prophetess Celine and her Grail Damsels Chantelle and Vivienne. Now I apologize if I'm insulting anyone with all these unnecessary explanations. I don't want to insult anyone's intelligence, but I feel it's worth explaining this just for good measure in case a random reader doesn't know. A Prophetess is also called an Enchantress. They are the top tier Grail Damsels (women taken as children by the Fey Enchantress and raised in service to the Lady). The operate outside of Bretonnian Law which allows for them to ride horses and pretty much do whatever they want. They're quite unique for human mages because they can bend more than one wind of magic. Celine knows the Lore of Heaven, Beasts, and Life. Her damsels only know life and a bit of beasts. Grail damsels have really long lives similar to Grail Knights and they are the only accepted mages in Bretonnia for the most part. With Empire mages being possible exceptions. In the lore, Chantelle was a damsel in service to Repanse. All of them answer to the Fay Enchantress Morgiana le Fay, who is seen as the high priestess of the Lady of the Lake. Now despite being all virtuous and whatnot, damsels aren't chaste. They typically take on lovers through their lives and tend to be romantic, poetic, and promiscuous. That's why they were acting the way they did towards Malekith. Considering his mother is the prettiest elf in the world and his dad is elf jesus, it's not a stretch to say Malekith is really good looking. Hell Tyrion looks just like Aenarion and even has druchii (besides Morathi) thirsting after him in canon.

Pushing forward, we cut over to Ghrond to finally get some insight into what the druchii are up to. Now I could write an essay summarizing what's all going on there, but most of it is fairly straight forward and easy to follow. The hunt is now on to find Malekith. Who will find him first though? Will it be Astralla and Rakarth, Kharlissa, or someone else?

The chapter finally ends with Naerelia "figuring out" who Malekith's father is. She incorrectly pieces together the lies Malekith told her along with information she knows and concludes that Malekith is the bastard son of Prince Malladon of Tor Anlyth. Now I made him and this place up, but it's next to the very real Dead King's Peak. In this the timeline of this fic, Anlyth was a moderate sized Nagarythe Tor on the border with Avelorn and not far from the Phoenix Gate. (It's not in canon, so don't lynch me). The Asur are going to assume "Malerion" is the bastard son of this dead prince…well at least until they learn who his REAL dad is.

I wanted to keep going with this chapter, but alas that's enough for now. If I wrote out the feast and the journey to Marienburg, this would end up being 30 k words. As always, I appreciate anyone who's made it this far and read up until now. I know Warhammer Fantasy doesn't have the biggest following, but I enjoy producing this content for the few of us out there who like Malekith. Stay tuned for more shenanigans and let me know if there's something you might want to see in future chapters.

Praise Slaanesh and Tzeentch too...err I mean Praise Sigmar and Asuryan. See ya next chapter. You better come back...or else.