"Terry is on that stupid zeppelin!" Sapphire screamed.
She was yelling at Kel'thuzad, who was unimpressed by it. Ethan was sitting on his throne, so upset that his fleas were acting up, and the worgen was force to scratch vigorously, and bite his fur.
Kel'thuzad had performed the finding spell for Terenas and Calia. Terenas was heading north very fast. Calia was in New Alterac, probably stalking the streets, terrorizing ghouls and geists.
Kel'thuzad looked over to Ethan. "It's a good thing she's pretty...That's what I said, isn't it?" He said, turning his attention the angry girl, just in time to see Sapphire looking murderous. But not at him.
She was glaring at Ethan.
"I am going to go get him...And you are going to find Calia."
Ethan frowned. "Shouldn't... I go get Terenas? It's my fault."
He sounded guilty. Sapphire's look softened, and she went over to kiss him. Her voice was more gentle.
"No. I'll get there faster by flying. Terenas is probably scared. And Tanomoan is a bit..."
Ethan chuckled. "Mad like his father?"
"Special," Sapphire retorted. She didn't like it when Ethan made fun of Tanomoan. He's worse off than Sapphire. She used to be the last Menethil, but there is a lot of them now. Plenty of them. As far as Sapphire knew, he was the last Black dragon as well as Blight being the only Twilight dragon.
"All right...He's special. Okay? Now go, before Mr. Special decides to show Terry how to play with sharp objects."
Worry spread over Sapphire's face. She burst into a run, leaving Kel'thuzad and Ethan behind.
Her cloak spread out, turning white, and splitting up into feathers. Her body shrunk, and her nose and mouth turned into a beak. She felt her feather burst out over her skin. Her arms turned into wings, and she grew a tail of feathers. Her feet grew talons. The snowy owl hooted as she flew through the hallways toward the closest window. She flew out of it, and turned north. Wind rushed over her.
Terenas hugged himself tightly, shivering. The soft towel around him was warm and dry. Water dripped from his white hair.
He was in a ornate room, gaudily decorated. Gold was everywhere. The bed had gold sheets on it, the pillows were gold-colored. The light sconces along the walls were golden. Even the portrait of Tanomoan over the fireplace was hung in a frame that was of the rich yellow color. The rugs were thick, Terenas's feet sinking into them. He went over to the fireplace, and sat in front of the roaring fire. It was Tanomoan's room, but Blight told him the dragon rarely used it. From what his father told him, and what Terry had observed the few times Tanomoan visited, it did not surprise Terry much how vain the dragon was. Apparently, he always carried a mirror with him.
Blight came walking over, in his goblin form. While Tanomoan liked humans, with their taller stature and their pale skin. Blight liked the green skin and large ears of the goblins.
The goblin dragon held out a mug. Terenas took it, and saw that it had hot chocolate in it.
"Oh, Thank you!"
Terenas drank it gratefully. The hot drink made him feel much better.
"If I know Momma, she'll use magic to find you!" Blight said reassuringly.
"Yeah. It was an accident. I just fell into the crate."
"There are no accidents. Just events that happen which their purpose is not clear yet."
Terenas looked at his adopted brother. Blight smiled with sharp teeth. The little dragon was deformed and an abomination of nature. Yet he seemed nicer than Tanomoan.
Blight looked around. "Well. I am off to bed."
Without another word, he went off to the corner of the room. Terenas frowned. He had not noticed that corner.
Oily rags were formed into some kind of nest, which Blight laid down into. He turned into his dragon form and rolled onto his back. He yanked the gloves off his paws, tossing them to the floor. Deformed fingers with just indentations where the claws should be. Terenas watched his brother curl up, and pulled out a book to read. The human boy looked at the garish, unused bed to the dirty pile of rags.
"Why don't you just sleep in the other bed?" Terry asked.
Blight looked over to him. "Oh. Tanomoan...I don't mind. I like my bed."
Terry scowled. "You shouldn't have to sleep on that. You're a Menethil, aren't you?"
Blight blinked. He seemed confused. "I guess I am."
He put his book in his mouth, and stood up. The dragon hesitantly made his way over to the nice bed. He poked it, and jumped back. Nothing happened, so Blight climbed up it.
"Oh...It's very comfortable." The dragon said. He rolled around the covers, enjoying himself. Terry smiled. Hopefully, Tanomoan wouldn't come barging in. Terry went over to a bookshelf, and looked at the titles.
Similarities in the Courtship rituals of Gryphons and Dragons. Mating habits of Dragons: With Illustrations. Human anatomy. Reptiles and Amphibians. The Latest Research on Dragons. Theories on the Crossbreeding of the Dragonflights.
Terenas wondered why Tanomoan had such odd books.
The door was locked, which did not bode well.
Arthas folded his arms. He took a deep breath, preparing himself to open the door. Jaina was in Dalaran, and therefore Arthas could enter into her private study without chancing her walking in on him.
"Daddy! Where you go? You didn't finish your tea!"
Arthas quickly kicked open the door and entered the room. He closed the door, and pressed up against it. Angelica walked down the hallway, calling for her father. Arthas had played with her, and had barely gotten away.
He ripped off the bright red cloak, and took off the yellow paper crown.
Marwyn was going to die. He could have warned Arthas. Angelica had put on a pink dress, gave Arthas the cloak and the crown, and set him down at a table in her room. Tryg, his ghoul friend Wormeater, and Jeffrey the geist had joined them for tea and sandwiches. Arthas had excused himself the first chance he got.
Arthas waited until he could not hear his daughter's voice, then sighed in relief. He finally took in his surroundings.
Cages hung above Arthas's head. Chains dangled from the ceiling. Bodies were in the cages. Below the cages, bloodstained tables lined the room. One side of the room, there was a cauldron over a fire, full of bubbling green fluid.
Arthas stared. He did not know how to handle this. It was unexpected.
"Jaina."
As the Lich King, Arthas had set out laws recently. It was illegal to resurrect any bodies that were in the ground. Plague is not allowed, and anyone found in possession of it would be punished.
But...How could he do that to Jaina? He never thought Jaina would do something like this. He looked up at the bodies in the cages. Most were Forsaken, but there was also a blood elf, a troll, and an orc. Arthas felt sick. Not because of what he saw. He had seen, and done worse. But Jaina was not that kind of person.
Arthas covered his face with his hands. He groaned. He had to do it. Jaina would hate him, but he had to do it. He mentally ordered some of his servants to come to the room. When they came, Arthas told them to destroy everything in that room. He left it, and prepared for when Jaina returned.
Footsteps echoed through the halls of Howling Keep.
Tanner and his orc friend Zuloch were standing guard to the private quarters of the royal family. They were laughing, telling each other jokes. Neither noticed two hooded figures approaching them. The two boys were just laughing at each other. Guard duty was always boring. Nothing ever happened, especially where Tanner and Zuloch guarded, the private quarters of the royal family. No one had the audacity to try to sneak into there. Invading the royal family's privacy was something just not done.
That, and the queen was the Lich King's daughter while the king was a huge worgen. No one in the Scourge was suicidal. They wanted immortality, but not a severe maiming by an angry Sapphire or Ethan.
So, when the boy guards noticed the hooded figures, they were utterly confused. The deathknights, Falric and Marwyn, had been known to visit on occasion, but with notice. And Falric had already retired into the guest rooms with his wife. That had brought immature snickers from both guards.
"What is your business here?" Tanner asked. Neither figure said a word. The boy scowled.
"Must I repeat myself? What is-"
His friend Zuloch watched in horror as one of the figures grabbed at Tanner, and flung him away effortlessly. Tanner slammed against the wall.
Zuloch tried to unsheathe his sword, but felt pain in his chest. He looked down, and saw a sword imbedded inside of him. Blood oozed out. He looked up to the man, and saw what he looked like under the hood.
"King...Ethan?"
"Ow! Daddy! Let go!"
Calia struggled in her father's grip. He did not even look at her.
"Calia...You are in big trouble. I would be quiet if I were you."
The girl was being dragged through the streets of New Alterac. She was muddy, and wet. Not only had Ethan been mad at her for wandering off, but also playing in dirty street puddles. It was not as cold as the rest of Northrend, but neither was it Scholozar in the Howling Fjord. She might catch a cold.
The girl pouted. "No! I don't wanna. What'd I do wrong?"
Ethan let go of her, and turned to face her, teeth bared. Calia shrunk away, suddenly frightened. His fur was standing on end, and Calia thought his claws looked sharper somehow.
"You just left! You didn't tell anyone where you were going. You just left. Do you realize how worried we were?"
The girl bit her lip, much like how Sapphire sometimes did. Ethan sighed. He held his arms out.
"Come here, sweetheart."
The girl went into her father's arms, and cuddled against him.
"I'm sorry! I promise I won't ever do that again!" She said. The girl was on the verge of tears. Ethan licked her cheek.
"I'll hold you to that promise. Let's go home. You can tell your grandfather sorry too. Then you can watch me yell at him!"
The girl smiled. "Okay...I'm hungry. Can I have food?"
"Sure." Ethan was feeling much better now that only one child was missing.
"Raw steak?" Calia asked.
Ethan scowled. "No, you can't have raw meat!"
"Aww...But you do!"
He picked up the girl, and swung her onto his back. She squealed and grabbed his fur tightly.
"I'm a worgen. I can have raw meat if I want. You can't."
Calia bit her lip again. She opened her mouth to say something, then closed it. Ethan did not see it.
He carried her away toward the Keep. To keep her occupied, Ethan let her ask questions.
"Is it true you were an Ebon Blade knight?" The young girl asked, tugging at her father's ears. She bit the left one.
"Hey, Don't bite that. Yes, I was."
"So, you know Darion Morgraine," Calia stated proudly. Ethan would have shaken his head in amusement if the girl wasn't on his shoulders.
"Of course."
"How come he helped Grandpa? I thought they hated each other."
"Hmm. Good question. And when I asked him that, Darion punched me in the face. Maybe he was just doing it for Sapphire. She has this way with everyone, making them want to do things for her. Or, in the case of Kel'thuzad and Medivh, she's just such a freak of nature that needs to be examined."
"You a freak of nature, Daddy."
"You are too. Born from someone who used to be a deathknight...and whatever Sapphire is."
"She's the Owl," Calia said.
Ethan stopped up short. "Who...Who told you that?"
"Marwyn."
"Oh, he's such a gossip whore," Ethan snarled. Calia tilted her head.
Ethan groaned. He entered into the Keep's main entrance, not noticing that there were no guards. Calia noticed though. She frowned, but didn't say anything.
No one was in the Keep's corridors, and even Ethan noticed. He looked around.
"Where is everyone?" He asked. He dropped onto all fours, and Calia slipped off his back.
"Dinner time. Maybe they all hungry."
They headed toward the royal quarters, and Ethan turned the corner. He saw the bodies. The smell of blood was overpowering to Ethan. He saw several guards around them, talking.
"Calia...Stay right here. Close your eyes."
"Why-"
"Just do it!" Ethan snapped. The girl obeyed, covering her eyes with her small hands.
Ethan went over to the bodies, and looked at them. Just boys. Half of the guards of the Scourge were young boys raised by cultists and deathknights, to make up for the numbers lost in the war with the Alliance and the Scourge, and the rebellion under Bolvar.
He was hoping that the boys were just injured. But the looks on the other guards told him otherwise.
The boys had been mutilated. The young orc had been killed by a sword thrust to the chest, and the other his throat slit. But that wasn't the worst of it. Someone, whoever had done this, had crushed their skulls. Ethan saw the brain matter, and felt sick. He wouldn't lose his face in front of his guards though.
"What happened?" He asked, trying to keep his voice from breaking. The boys were no older than fourteen. It looked like.
"I don't know, Sire. We have scoured the entire Citadel, but no one here saw intruders. One guard had two people enter, claiming they were here to see the Captain of the Guards, with a letter from the mayor of New Alterac. We sent someone to the mayor."
One guard was looking at the bodies, tears in his eyes. Ethan went over to him. The guard was about seventeen, with dark brown hair and blue eyes. He was buff, and did not look the type to cry so openly like this. Ethan put a hand on the boy's shoulder.
"Tanner was my brother..." The guard said, sniffling. Ethan looked at the dead boys.
"I am truly sorry...I'll get the bastard that did this. Can I do anything for you?"
The young man shook his head. "No, sir."
"No? Not even...Arrange the funeral?"
Some Scourge children had died of sickness and the cold. All of those who had, no one wanted to resurrect. Tanner would have been old enough to resurrect and be all right. If his brain had been intact. But someone must have known that, and crushed the skull so the brain would be damaged.
"Our parents can do it. But...It would be nice if you came," The guard said. Ethan nodded.
"Of course. Why don't you go home to your parents now-"
"No. I would rather stay here. Do my duty." Ethan was a bit shocked at that statement, but did not protest. He asked the guard his name, where he lived, and if he knew where the other boy had lived. When Ethan got all the information, he told the guards to take the bodies away. Calia had disobeyed again, and watched the bodies of the guards being taken away.
As Ethan stared at the bloodstains, he realized something. He looked into the flung open doors of the royal quarters.
"No...Arty! Serenity!" Ethan went barreling down the corridor. He went to Serenity's door, which was closest. He looked around the room in a panic. The girl wasn't there.
"Serenity!"
There was a soft hoot, and Ethan quickly turned toward the noise. It was in the closet. He opened it up gently. Inside, perched on a shelf, was a tiny owl with a heart-shaped face and long legs. Ethan looked at it. A barn owl, he thought.
"Serenity?" He asked. The owl hooted. It was shivering. When Ethan held out his arm, the owl climbed onto it, digging its talons into the fur and skin. Ethan winced, but said nothing.
He quickly found Calia, and held out the owl.
"Take your sister to the throne room wait there. All right?"
The girl nodded. Serenity had calmed down by now, and gently flew onto her sister's shoulder.
Ethan went back to find Arty. When he opened the door into the twins' room, he saw blood and gasped. He opened the door more.
Alfie, Arty's beloved pet, was laying in a pool of his own blood. Ethan sighed in relief. Not because the dog was dead, but because it was not Arty. Then, he realized something. The dog had it's spine broken. Ethan felt a cold pit in his stomach, and looked to the closet. He heard whimpering.
Ethan sidestepped Alfie's body, and opened the closet. There was a yelp, but Ethan was in shock.
Arty was cowering in the corner of the closet, clutching at Rot. Terra was next to him, growling at Ethan until she realized he was not an enemy. But Ethan was looking at Rot. The plaguehound puppy looked at Ethan, and they both knew. Years ago, another boy with black hair and green eyes had witnessed his older brother crushing the spine of another dog with his boot. And like Arty, that boy had cowered in the closet, clutching at a puppy by the name of Wendell.
Last time, the boy had confronted his father about the older boys sadistic ways. And the father had not listened. Now, Ethan knelt down.
"Son. Are you okay?"
Arty nodded, and whimpered. "Alfie..."
"He's going to be okay. I will have your great-grandfather fix him. Okay. He's going to fine. Come here."
The boy let go of Rot, and collapsed into his father's arms, sobbing.
"The bad man that did it...He looked like you, and told me how much he hated dogs..."
Ethan felt rage build up in his chest.