Chapter 12 - Aftermath

"OK, I get that you're trying to do the whole 'mysterious being' vibe here. But come on, you gotta give me something!" Dalrus said in frustration.

"Oh, Dalrus, dearest... You should know there's a limit to how much I can show you." The ethereal he once knew as Sister Margaret replied. "Your human mind can only take so much, after all!"

He did not know where they were. He felt like he was laying on a soft bed, but when he looked down, all he saw was the infinite darkness with shiny spots randomly glowing all over the place. It was as if he was surrounded by a clear night sky in all directions. Margaret was just in front of him, her staff laying sideways and her sitting on top of it in that same position he had seen so many times in the past; her legs crossed, one hand supporting her elbow as the other supported her face.

"Jeez lady, even in my hallucinations, you can't be open with me?" He grunted, crossing his arms stubbornly.

"Hmmm... Well... If I really were a hallucination, I couldn't tell you what you don't know!" Even with her voice sounding like four people talking at the same time in a closed room, Dalrus could still make out her amused tone. "But you do know how dangerously close you came to the Void today. This is the last time I can bring you back from the abyss like this, love. Next time you dive in too far, nothing will be able to help you. You almost attracted the attention of some very dangerous things down there!"

He leaned his head to the side in wonder. "Yeah, about that... Could you maybe tell me something about the Void? As in, why are there so many people using it without going crazy? Like those necromancers?"

"Oh, Dalrus, sweetie..." He could almost see that swirling red galaxy that now passed for her face bending into a smile. "Madness doesn't always mean turning into an incoherent mess of a person. Someone who would willingly serve demons and dedicate their lives to the Cult of the Damned... Sounds pretty crazy to me!"

"OK, but what about the undead then? How can Shadow Magic bring the dead back to life?" He lifted his brows at her. "And don't tell me that's not how it works. I've seen enough junk to know you actually can truly bring someone back to life."

For the first time, he heard her sigh. He wondered how she could do that when she didn't even have lungs. Felt like a rather unnecessary way to focus one's magical talents. "Dalrus, now you're stepping into something a little deeper. Infusing something with shadow magic and giving it life is really not that complicated. But to summon a departed soul and bind it to this world... That's just unthinkable. It's not as simple as simply bringing someone back to life. It's a fate even worse than truly dying."

He scratched his head. "So what even is the Lich King? And the Burning Legion? Demons, zombies, crazy wolf people... Why is everything such a mess?

The ethereal tapped her metaphorical chin. "Well... The Void is a primordial force. It can be used to alter the fabric of this universe itself. But what you're referring to... That would be closer to the very wheel of fate. So long as life exists, chaos will always be there. So long as even one being is capable of thinking independently, it is inevitable that everything will be thrown out of whack. Imagination is a rather dangerous thing!"

"So... What." He lifted a brow at her inquisitively. "You telling me it's not the darkness' fault everything is the way it is?"

"The Darkness is a force, dear. A tool. It can be wielded by anyone. What it does after that is not Its fault. Things are only as bad as people can make them. True, there are primal evils in this universe. But the titan Sargeras... He was once a force of good. He made a choice. And now the result is all around you." Margaret was hovering closer to him. "Is there anything else you'd like to know? I think I have enough time for one last wonder!"

Dalrus furrowed his brows at her. Placing his hands on his knees, he tried to get up. Looking down, he saw his body was straight, at least. It was difficult to decide what was up or down when you were floating aimlessly amidst an infinite black void. "Yeah... What am I supposed to do with all this junk?"

He heard the amused chuckle resonating within those long straps of cloth surrounding the energy mass that formed her head. "Oh, Dalrus, you should already know that! That is what is so wonderful about the Void... You are free to do whatever you will with it!"

He tried to argue with her about it once more, but something caught on his throat. His hands went to his neck and he was hit by a violent coughing fit. Absolute darkness closed in, blocking all sensation, all thought...

And then he opened his eyes.

Dalrus was laying on his back on what he assumed was a hospital bed. His chest was bare, and there were bandages around his waist. Looking down, he noticed he was in a rather spacious room. Many more were laying there with him, most of them moaning in pain and covered in far more bandages than he was. Light was filtering through windows along the walls, and many nurses were scurrying back and forth to try and care for the patients.

'Huh... Daylight.' He thought, looking out through the window. 'Long time no see, buddy. Where have you been?' He smirked, then began to sit up against his bed. His body felt fine. He remembered his desperate escape from those wolfmen before losing consciousness... He hadn't been seriously injured. A few cuts and bruises as he ducked and rolled through the dead trees, maybe some massive exhaustion and a tiny bit of dehydration. But he was pretty certain he had escaped the incident unharmed. Then he began to hear a commotion outside.

"...afraid his situation hasn't changed! He's still sound asleep! And I can't have you take up space among the injured soldiers!" A feminine voice was coming from outside, and getting closer. And then he heard the unmistakable melodious tunes of his angry father screaming. "WOMAN, MY SON IS IN THERE, AND I'LL BE DAMNED IF ANYTHING WILL KEEP ME FROM HIM!" Before long, the door was slammed open, and Dalrus saw Lord Kalthuz storm inside as a very concerned nurse followed on his heels. The expression on his father's face when he saw Dalrus grinning at him from the other side of the room was one the boy would remember forever. "Mornin', pops. What's the word?" The boy casually said.

"Dalrus..." His shoulders slumping, Kalthuz rushed forward and knelt beside his son's bed. Taking Dalrus' hand on his own, the man brought the back to his lips, then pressed Dalrus' palm firmly against his forehead as he lowered his face. "Thank the Light, you're alright... When I saw Darius carrying your body on his horse, Light forgive me, I thought..."

"Hey, come now! What kind of rogue would I be if a pack of angry dogs took me down?" His smile wavering for a moment, Dalrus leaned forward and wrapped his arms around his father's neck, pulling him into a tight embrace. "I'm fine, old man, don't worry about me. How are you though? I'll bet fighting those things was a lot worse than running from them!"

Pulling back from the hug, Dalrus saw his father smile warmly down at him. "I'm in one piece, son. And all thanks to you. Blast it, when those things swarmed us, I was ready to call it quits and go down in glory. Next thing I know, all hell is breaking over my head and suddenly the worgen break off and start chasing something across the battlefield!"

"Wait, come again? What you say?" Dalrus blinked. "The what now?"

"Ah, yes. The worgen." Kalthuz nodded. "The king said that's what they are called. Beastial abominations that those blasted mages unleashed. Apparently, Arugal was holding that card in his sleeve. As soon as he let the dogs out of the leash, they turned on the mages and began to kill everything in sight."

Dalrus was reminded of that conversation he had heard not so long ago between the king and the mage…

"But can we use them?" The king asked impatiently.

"That... Is difficult to determine, my lord." The mage conceded. "They are very brutal. I could summon them from where they lay, but I can't say for sure I would be able to control them..."

"It is enough that we can set them loose upon our enemies." Greymane countered. "I hope to the Light it won't come to this, but should the worst come to pass, I want you ready to let loose those creatures upon the undead. With any luck they will end up wiping each other out."

"As you will, my lord."

'Bloody hell, the old man really did it.' Dalrus thought as a chill ran up his spine. 'And now he's dumping the load on Arugal... Crafty.' Then again, Dalrus had to admit... As bad as things turned out, at least Gilneas wasn't flooded with walking corpses that moment. "Blimey." He said out loud. "I bet finishing them off wasn't easy."

Dalrus saw his father draw in breath, then he lowered his head and scratched it's back nervously. "Hmmmm... About that. Those things, they aren't like the undead... Most of them vanished within Silverpine Forest. The rest... They, ah..." Kalthuz sighed, then stared his son in the eyes. "Arugal gathered what he could of the beasts... And took over Shadowfang Keep. The entire place is occupied by the worgen now."

The boy went open-mouthed. He was about to ask more about it when suddenly a nurse, accompanied by two armed guards returned to the room. "There he is, making noise, trouble and getting in the way of the patient's treatment!" As Kalthuz was dragged off kicking and screaming, the nurse began to run a diagnostic on Dalrus, who was lost in deep thought. The Keep to the far northwest was a mighty bastion that managed to hold as much as Gilneas itself against the undead. To think its occupants were all killed by those savage worgen just as victory amidst that nightmare seemed to be in their grasp...

"Do you feel anything?" The nurse was asking, which broke the boy from his contemplation. "Ah... Yeah. It feels cold. Where's my shirt?" The next few minutes, Dalrus was examined all over, and finally, satisfied, the nurse decided to let him go. He discovered he was being treated at Stoneward Prison, as were most of the injured people. Quickly he made his way down the spiral steps. Finding his father was easy; he just had to follow the ruckus. Kalthuz was about to enter a fistfight with seven heavily armed soldiers when Dalrus emerged from the steps, grinning down at the old warrior. "I'm all good, pops. Just got released. No need to start a new war."

Showering the poor soldiers with a few more threats, Kalthuz begrudgingly walked away with his son. He was wearing a linen tunic, as his clothes couldn't be found after all that mess. "So... Is this it? War's over? Undead are gone, Worgen are in?"

"Aye, so it would seem." Kalthuz sighed, then began to wind his arm a few times as he winced a little. Dalrus realized his father was still wearing his plate armor; both of the pauldrons were missing, a chunk of the armor on his right arm was gone, as was the glove there. There were dried blood stains all over his body, and his sword was missing as well, only the empty scabbard strapped to his back. "At least the worgen aren't actively trying to exterminate us. They look like savage beasts, driven by hunger. At least beasts can be hunted down."

"Dandy. By the way, where's Felrus?" Dalrus looked around as they began to walk the busy streets as if expecting his brother to be waiting for them by the corner. Now that the sun was out and the siege was over, there were many people out and about, cheering in joy, hugging each other and celebrating in general. The soldiers were doing their best to keep the ruckus away from the hospital areas, but they could hear loud music coming from the Cathedral Square all the way from there.

Dalrus saw his father suddenly tense up for a moment, then he picked up his pace and began to march forward which made Dalrus almost have to run to keep up with the tall man. "Your brother... He's waiting for you at home." Was all he said.

A cold grip took over Dalrus' heart. "Wait... Is he alright? I mean, he's not hurt, is he? He's still OK?"

Kalthuz peered at his son over his shoulder. "What do you think, boy? Of course he is hurt. You don't go to a war without getting hurt. Every blasted person around us is bloody hurt! Now hurry up, your mother is worried sick over you!"

Despite Dalrus' insistence, Kalthuz refused to give him a straight answer about his brother's condition until they arrived back at the manor. It seemed as if, in his haste, his father had forgotten to get a horse; as soon as he saw Dalrus being carried on Crowley's, he had ran straight at them as the noble made his way into the city to get some proper treatment for the boy. That had been yesterday. Time sure flew by fast.

Frustrated at his father, Dalrus began to pay attention to his surroundings instead. People were out and about everywhere. As soon as the worgen had been driven off by Crowley's charge, Greymane gave the news that the Undead had been defeated. The citizens of Gilneas were all partying their hearts out, throwing beer, music and fists everywhere. It brought a smile to his face. 'Bloody hell... We actually made it. Nice.' By the time they arrived back at the manor, the loud music and happy, dunken yells could still be heard in the distance. Kalthuz made his way inside, followed closely by Dalrus. A servant hurried forward, making her way towards them and saying: "Thank the heavens you're here! He just woke up! The priest said we shouldn't change the bandages until..."

"Quiet! I'll go see him now! Dalrus, you..." Kalthuz turned around to face his son, but Dalrus simply stood there, with both of his eyes half closed and a brow lifted high in the air as if he were saying: "Seriously?" Kalthuz caught himself mid-sentence, then he let out a tired sigh and nodded. "Blast it, I shouldn't keep you out anyway... Fine. Come with me then." Silently, they made their way upstairs. Felrus' room was just next to Dalrus, on the opposite side of their mother's. As they arrived, Dalrus saw that entire wing of the manor looked very dark, all windows closed. As they entered his brother's room, Dalrus could see that old priest who had birthed him standing up and about to leave. "Well? How is he?" Kalthuz immediately burst out as he stepped forward.

Closing his eyes, the dried up old man shook his head, then said: "I closed the wound. Can't do anything about the scar. But that's not the issue... I don't know what effects those things can have. I felt some strange... Energy in the wound. I can't describe it. It is... Ancient. As ancient as the world itself."

Dalrus was trying to look into the room past the two men arguing by the door without success. "But is it dangerous? Is he going to live, damnit!?" The priest stroked his beard as he pondered the question Kalthuz proposed. "I can tell it is no threat to his life." He finally said. "I don't know what it can do, however. I must go now. Many more people need me. Maybe from their wounds I can get some insight from this." And with that, Dalrus and his father made way for the priest to walk out. Immediately after, Kalthuz slowly stepped inside and approached Felrus' bed, which was by the corner of the room besides the closed window.

Unlike Dalrus', Felrus' room was very spacious in the center, as the lad frequently practiced his swordplay there. Bookshelves adorned the walls, with a large desk next to the door where Felrus performed most of his studies. Dalrus had one of those as well, although he couldn't even remember what color his desk was. He mostly used it to drop his cloak on.

Felrus was laying down on the bed, all his armor removed. Like Dalrus had been, the youth was naked from the waist up, except he was covered in far more bandages than Dalrus was. His left shoulder especially sported a huge bandage held in place by cloth straps. He imagined there would be a healing salvo underneath. More bandages wrapped his entire torso and most of his left half. On top of that, his left arm was extended to his side, being held up by a cast from his elbow to his wrist. Another bandage was covering his left eye like an eyepatch, along with most of his face on that side. Looking at his father and brother, Dalrus saw him take in a deep breath and visibly relax against his pillows. "Dalrus... Praise the Light, you're in one piece..."

"Nevermind me, what the bloody hell happened with you!?" Dalrus stepped forward, staring at his brother aghast. "All this... I thought you..." Dalrus slowly squinted at him. "Felrus... What's wrong with your left side?"

"Your brother took a blow while he fought." Kalthuz cut in. "We all did. Even I got my share of scars. Important thing is, we are all alive after this. And it's all thanks to you, Dalrus. You saved our lives back there."

Felrus' eyes half dropped as if he were too tired to keep his eyes fully open. "Father... It's fine. It's not like we can just hide it forever. He has the right to see it."

Dalrus' heart was now racing within his chest. "See what?"

Felrus was staring at their father. "Father. Dalrus has already grown a lot. After today, we can't treat him as a child any longer. He as the right to see."

Kalthuz ran his hand over his dirtied face and sighed. "If that's your will, son... I will respect it. But Dalrus... Don't forget. It's thanks to you that we made it back here in the first place..."

Dalrus could feel an icy grip on his heart. "Stop beating around the bloody bush and show it to me already!"

Felrus nodded one last time at their father, who in turn nodded solemnly and went forward. Carefully, he unwinded the bandages around Felrus' face. Dalrus felt his heart sink within his chest and took a step back.

The skin was mostly healed by now. He could only imagine how bad it looked earlier. It was all wrinkly and pink starting at his jaw, then up his cheek and ending at his brow. Miraculously, his brother's eye had been spared. He could see the burn scars went down along his neck as well, and he figured his side and arm were also scarred and burned. "This is what I get for fighting without a helmet." Felrus said, launching his younger brother a smile.

"No... Wait... Fel, don't tell me... When I... The gunpowder..." Dalrus' mind was going haywire. He felt numb. His eyes were very wide, and his eyebrows were deeply bent on his forehead. Kalthuz lowered his head, and silently waited for his son to respond.

"I was by the edge of our defensive ring... Right at the corner. When your distraction went off... I guess I was a little too close for comfort. The heat got my face and neck." Bringing his right hand up, Felrus touched his burned cheek gently. "It feels kind of numb here, but mostly it's cold and itchy."

Dalrus couldn't take his eyes off his brother's scarred face. 'I did this...' He thought. 'My brother is scarred for life... And it's my bloody fault.' Staring down at the floor, Dalrus brought his hands up into his field of view. He clenched his fingers into fists, then opened them up and spread them. 'What have I done...?'

"Dal. Look at me." Closing his eyes for a moment, Dalrus lifted his head, but could not look his brother in the eye. "I said look at me, Dalrus." Felrus said more insistently, and Dalrus was forced to look at his brother in his deep blue eyes. "I know what you're thinking right now. And you know what? You're absolutely right. It is your fault that I am like this."

Dalrus pressed his lips firmly together, trying to hold back his tears. He then closed his eyes and slowly turned away. "Yeah... You're right." He said in a weak voice. "I'll just-"

"I'm not finished. Look at me, brother." Dalrus was already starting to step away when Felrus called him out again. Turning around, he saw Felrus' gaze never left Dalrus', a stern expression on his young face. "It is absolutely your fault... That I am still alive. It is your fault that I made it out of that battle bruised and scarred... Instead of a corpse. It is your fault that me and twenty eight other men came home to our families. It is your fault that none of us was murdered and eaten by those monstrosities. It is your fault that our mother still has two children to embrace, even if one of them is going to carry a scar on his face for the rest of his life. It is your fault, Dalrus, that me, and our father, did not die on that day, when the enemy was defeated and a new one turned on us. So don't you dare look away from my face ever again. Because this is the face of someone who will forever be indebted to you. The face of a person whose life you saved." And finally, Felrus smiled at his brother, tears starting to leak out of the corners of his eyes. "Or do you seriously believe I'd rather be killed and devoured by those bloody wolf men than sit here on this bed with just a scar on my face, you bloody twit?"

Dalrus himself was crying now. Kalthuz was smiling just as Felrus was, the very same tears of emotion streaming down his old, rugged face. "You think we would just forget this? Dalrus... A scar is a very cheap price to pay for victory. It may damage his looks, but your brother will survive. As will I. As will every single person in the battalion that we fought alongside. We were all ready to accept death. And it is thanks to you that we didn't have to. So when you look back on this... Proudly remember that you didn't think twice before putting your life on the line to save us. And I have never been so proud of you, my son. Both of you."

Unable to hold himself back, Dalrus ran forward and threw himself at his father's arms. Kalthuz then leaned forward and pulled Felrus into it as well. Locked in that tight embrace, the three men cried out all the tension of the past few days. That dark threat over the horizon. The seemingly endless battle. All those horrible deaths they witnessed. The monsters they killed... But now, finally, that threat was over. They were, at long last, safe.

"Are you so certain the threat is over?"

Dalrus' eye twitched.

"You won the battle... But you know... The war goes on. To the far west, it goes on... The threat that your king refuses to acknowledge. The burning flame that will consume your world."

'Will you give it a bloody rest? I'm having a moment here!'

"Enjoy this moment then, young one... Make it last... For you shall never again savour one as such."

'What the bloody hell do you know, you're just a voice in my head!'

"Dalrus..." His brother was speaking. Dalrus opened his eyes and looked at Felrus. "Thank you, brother. Truly. I swear one day, I'll pay you back tenfold for what you've done for us today."

"Yeah, well..." Dalrus wiped his tears and stood up, trying to muster up a cocky smile. "Let us all hope that the need for that doesn't show up anytime soon, eh?"