Chapter 7
Sylvanas
Sylvanas sat, listening to more reports, trying not to look as agitated as she felt. Her mind began to wander, not for the first time, to the events of the night before. She was surprised when the human didn't argue with her after the mak'gora, and instead, seemed willing to comply with her insistence to leave. His profficiency and brutality in the battle had taken everybody by surprise, everyone but her, of course, but it was the dark, primal energy that he excuded, that, she noticed, was felt by all who witnessed the one-sided fight. She would have to keep an eye on the small group of blood elves, led by Starbane, in particular. She noticed them practically salivating at the waves of arcane energy that emanated from her new champion. She knew that others in the audience could feel the strange power too, even if they didn't know exactly what it was that they were experiencing. She didn't trust any of them, not truly. He belonged to her, and no one else.
What she was not expecting though, was her own rash actions, which not only surprised her, but was thouroughly unlike her. She wouldn't deny that she was attracted to him , but she was always level headed and patient when it came to following a plan, yet he had managed to make her reckless. She wasn't sure if it was seeing him fight, or his dark power resonating with her, but she had practically jumped on him, as soon as they entered her room. It was only then that she recognized that he seemed particularly easy to influence. She had tried many times before to influence his mind, make his emotions more malleable, to no avail. And then, it finally dawned on her. Of course, her dark powers were more likely to work on him, when he was still under the influence of his own dark power. In another life, she may have even felt a little guilty at her manipulation, but she had convinced herself that he had put a spell on her, as much as she had put a spell on him, and fair was fair. It wasn't as if he didn't enjoy himself, she thought, a small smile, almost invisible, appearing on her face.
"...are your orders, my queen?"
She cursed herself internally. She hadn't noticed herself zoning out completely. "What?", she snapped, much more angrily than she had planned.
Nathanos looked perturbed, but after a moment, began to rephrase the question. "As I was saying, now that the night elves have retaken Darkshore, what are your orders, my queen?"
"Let them have the Naga ridden place, it is of no consequence to us right now. We have already made our point to the Kaldorei and to the Alliance. Besides...I have more important things on my mind...more important matters to consider." Sylvanas stood up to leave. Nathanos opened and closed his mouth, as if deciding whether he should speak or not.
He decided on the former, as she walked past him, seemingly itching to escape the room...or to escape me?, he wondered.
"Sylvanas!" His voice, louder than he had intended, reverberated throughout the room. He rarely ever addressed her by her first name anymore, but something felt wrong. And it wasn't just this day, she had become even more distant than usual these past few weeks. He had a feeling that he already knew why, and an odd emotion that he hadn't experienced since he was alive, began to bubble up inside him. It wasn't welcome, and he wasn't sure which angered him more.
Sylvanas standing stock still, slowly turned her head towards him, with burning eyes. She took her time to answer, her face betraying a mixture of emotions, but none of them obvious to discern. She spoke slowly, in a cold tone, "What is it,... Nathanos!" She spoke his name in a particularly icy tone , her voice dripping with irritation.
He was taken aback, but composed himself quickly. "I know we have already spoken about this, but, you don't seem like yourself."
"This again?", she let out a sigh of annoyance, rolling her eyes.
"You know that I'm at your disposal. If there's something on your mind", he paused for a moment, with a look of determination on his face, before continuing, "You have confided in me before, Sylvanas, you can again."
For a second, her face softened, before a sneer marred her beautiful visage. "And where did that leave me...nowhere...still alo-" She stopped abruptly, quickly composing herself. She continued, her voice calm, and her face portaying no emotion. "You do an admirable job as my champion, Nathanos. That is all I need from you." And with that, she turned and walked out the door, leaving Nathanos utterly confused and bitterly angry.
She decided to take a walk by herself, in an attempt to clear her cluttered mind. "Damn, Nathanos", she spat out loud, with thankfully no one around to hear. Her thoughts began to wander back to bitter memories she would rather forget. Memories, that she was loathe to admit, had hurt her deeply, almost too deeply to bear. When she had chosen to trust her younger sister Vereesa. It was at the trial of Garrosh Hellscream, where she and her sister had rekindled their relationship over their mutual hatred of the despised orc. They hadn't so much as spoken to each other in years since Sylvanas's death and subsequent raising into undeath, and at first she had been wary. But her heart that had so long been closed to anything resembling love or hope, had quickly begun to open again. She hadn't realized how lonely she had been, and her sister made her feel things that she only remembered feeling in life. Family, love, trust, excitement, hope. Vereesa had promised that she would come to live with Sylvanas in the forsaken undercity, and Sylvanas had promised that they would rule, together,...sisters once more. And for the first time since her tragic death, she had felt those emotions again, and they had warmed her cold body.
But...Vereesa betrayed her. She chose her sons over her sister. Her sister that needed her, even if she hadn't realized it up until that point. She had given Sylvanas hope, an escape from her cold, bitter loneliness, and had then ripped it away, tearing what was left of her heart with it. She couldn't believe that she had been betrayed, and so cruelly. Vereesa had sent a note to apologize, but the damage had already been done. Sylvanas fell into a hole filled with rage and grief, and had broken down, sobbing, as if she had lost everything. And she had.
It was then that she understood. She had been a fool. She had been a fool to trust. She had been a fool to hope, and she had been a fool to love. The only time that she had opened up her heart since her undeath, and it had been cruelly stomped on. She told herself that she would never make that mistake again, and she had stuck to that. Over time, she had become even more guarded, more violent and hate fuelled, more cruel. If she couldn't have love and hope, then nobody would. She would doom them all. Even Nathanos, whom she had trusted and confided in, a man whom she had feelings for in life, hadn't seemed to respond to her affections, regardless of how guarded or subtle they had been. He respected and admired her, yes, but he only ever followed orders, so how dare he question her now. How dare he show an interest in her now, when he had done nothing to prevent her growing loneliness. And damn him for dragging these horrible, weak memories back. She was alone, she would always be truly alone, and she had made peace with that.
I HAVE made peace with that!, Sylvanas reiterated to herself once again, so why was it that she had become so agitated, even more than usual, since the arrival of this new champion. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she had found that she liked him. He had no problem arguing with her, he was belligerent and he had proven his battle prowess more than once. He was similar to her in many ways, but he was also alive, and even though he had a darkness within, he was also touched by the light. These things fascinated her, but also, in some way scared her. When she had slept with him, she was once again reminded of herself when she was alive. His warm body pressed against her cold skin, had rekindled old feelings that she had promised herself, would remain dead, lost to time. Feelings that had been buried deep had begun to resurface, and she would not let that happen, not again. She was once a fool, but no more. She wouldn't allow herself to feel trust, hope,...love, not ever again. Those were the emotions of the weak, and she was not weak. She had hardened herself against everyone and everything, and that was how she would remain. She would continue to use Matt for her own gains. She would continue to manipulate him for her own means, and she wouldn't allow herself to entertain any thoughts about anything else, particularly those weak emotions. She clenched her jaw tightly, forcing herself to believe it.
Matt
After Tameriel had appeared with a tray of food for breakfast, Matt had eaten quickly and had decided to go outside and see the city of Orgrimmar for himself. Putting last night out of his mind, as best as he could, he walked slowly down the dusty streets, enjoying the hot sun beating down upon him. He noticed that Tameriel was following him from a distance, but he didn't care. For the first time since he had been unceremoniously torn from Earth and appearead in Azeroth, he was walking where he wanted to walk, alone, and it felt good. Orgrimmar was a burgeoning city, and even though many warriors could be seen, so too were what seemed like normal residents, merchants and even children. He was aware of the many stares that he received, but he noticed that some of them now looked at him with respect. Word must have gotten out about the mak'gora and about Orgrimmar's new resident human, he thought. As he was thinking this, he felt something small and heavy thud against his foot. Looking down, he saw that it was a ball of some sort and bent down to pick it up. He almost jumped, startled, when the smallest orc that he had ever seen suddenly appeared before him. The orc child looked up at him with a mixture of astonishment, wonder, and a little apprehension.
"Oh, hello little man, this wouldn't be your ball, would it?", Matt said in a playful voice.
The little orc began to jump up and down, "Grak ha, grak ha!"
He didn't know if this was orcish or just a child that hadn't reached proper speaking age, but he seemed excited.
Matt knelt down, and holding the ball in his left hand, began to wave his other hand dramatically, and the ball began to float in mid air. The little orc stared in amazement and began screeching and laughing with excitement, just like any human child would.
"Oh, you think that's cool, watch this, little man", Matt declared with a gentle smile. With the ball still floating in mid air, he formed a small ice ball in each hand and they began to swirl around the child's ball, like orbiting planets. The kid laughed and shrieked in delight, jumping up and down and waving his hands and clapping. Matt decided to increase the amount of ice balls, and soon there were about ten small orbiting, icy planets. Before he knew it, about ten or twelve orc children had surrounded him and were clapping along with excitement.
He wasn't aware of the growing crowd, until he glanced to the side. Some merchants had come out of their shops, wondering what all the noise was about, and there were passersby that had stopped to watch the strange human's magic tricks. Some viewed him with interest, others with a smile, and the rest with uneasy stares. He decided to end his little magic show, much to the dismay of the children, but he plucked the ice balls, one by one, out of the air and handed one to each of them. They seemed delighted, as they ran around in circles, moving the freezing ball from hand to hand.
Matt plucked the original ball out of the air, and kneeling down, handed it back to the little orc. At first, he looked a little sad, but Matt created an ice ball for him, and put it in his other small green hand. The kid's face lit up, and Matt put his hand on his head, ruffling his black hair. "That's for you, little man, you better join your friends." The orc child smiled and began to run after the others, only stopping to look back and wave goodbye to him.
"Haha, cute little guy", Matt said, waving back.
He turned around to find a female orc with her arms folded, smiling at him. He had noticed that the female orcs had small tusks as opposed to the males, and were slightly shorter. This orc female was the same, although she wore a simple gown, not warrior armor. Like all orc female's though, her body was both feminine and muscular, and her long dark brown hair was tied in a pony tail, each side of her head shaved.
"It isn't often that you see a human entertain orc children", she said, still smiling, "Let alone call them cute."
He smiled back at her. "Well, I'd never seen an orc at all up until a few weeks ago, so I guess I'm not your typical human."
She looked confused, but her smile remained. "Is that right? Regardless, thank you for playing with them, human. It brightened up their day, which isn't easy to do for orphans of the horde."
"Orphans? Oh...I didn't know, besides, an orc child is still a child. The name's Matt by the way", he replied, saddened to hear that the children didn't have any parents to go home to.
"I'm Gatha. I help at the orphanage. I had heard that a human had entered Orgrimmar with the Warchief, and that he had easily bested Orgoth in a Mak'gora. I did not think such a warrior would have had an inclination to put on a magic show for children, orc or otherwise", she said, with a raised eyebrow.
Matt put his hand to his chin, as if thinking, "Hmmm, I see your point, but then again...", he looked at her with a grin, "Maturity is overrated!"
She laughed, "It was good to meet you human...Matt. Maybe we'll run into each other again. Goodbye." She began to walk briskly after the children, who had moved a fair distance away, still playing with their rapidly melting balls of ice.
"Goodbye Gatha, nice meeting you too", Matt said, continuing his exploration of Orgrimmar. When she was out of sight, his smile quickly faded and a shadow fell over him. How many children had he made orphans since his arrival on Azeroth?
Valeera
It had been a couple of days since Valeera had left Stormwind, and her planned infiltration of Orgrimmar was proceeding as planned. Her hope that Matt was alive was constantly wavering, but her progress remained undeterred, until now. Travelling by herself was something she was completely accustomed to, and she knew that she could move quickly and quietly on her own. She also knew the dangers of travelling Azeroth by oneself. Thugs, bandits, and creatures who would attack and kill, were alway things to be wary of, and although Valeera had had to deal with those situations before in her line of work, it was nevertheless, always a bother. Today was one of those days. She had been followed for almost twenty minutes by two imbecilic looking, human thugs, waiting to strike as soon as she entered a forest up ahead. She could have easily given them the slip, but her resolve to reach Orgrimmar, and her stress of the last few weeks, had built up an anger in her that had not been sated. She decided to use these two degenerates as a well deserved punching bag. When she had reached the forest, she could hear them virtually running as they tried to keep up with her. Valeera rolled her eyes, unbelieving of their stupidity, as she hid herself easily, and waited. A few seconds later, the two men burst into the forest, stealth, clearly not their strong suit.
"Where'd she go?", asked a tall, skinny man, with a bald pate.
The other man, slightly shorter, with long straggly hair and missing half of his teeth replied, "Dunno, but she's got to be here somewhere. She's got some pretty blades, which means that she's got gold. Keep lookin, we'll find 'er!"
They began to stomp through the trees loudly in search of her. Valeera, hidden in one of the trees, had to stop herself from laughing at their stupidity, as she looked down on them.
"She's not bloody 'ere", the bald one grumbled loudly.
"Just shut up and keep looking, she can't 'av got far", the long haired one barked.
Valeera had had enough and landed on the ground, deftly and quietly. "Hey, idiots! I'm right here, and by the way, you two are the worst bandits I've ever seen", she said chuckling, while shaking her head in mockery.
The two bandits visibly jumped, surprised, and turned quickly to face her, angry scowls on their faces.
"I'd watch what ya say girly, no need to make things worse for yerself", long hair snapped.
"Is that right?", Valeera replied, maintaining her mocking tone. "Please...don't hurt me!"
"Huh huh huh", baldy laughed stupidly, "That's the right attitude she-elf."
Valeera could see weak waves of arcane energy surrounding the bald one, and realized that the idiot probably didn't even know that he could use magic, if trained.
Long hair turned to him with a scowl, "She's mockin' us ya fool."
Baldy seemed perplexed at first. Eventually realizing what his partner had said, his face turned an angry shade of red. "You'll regret makin' a fool outta me, ya whore. We'll take yer pretty blades. We'll take yer gold, and then we'll take yo-" He stopped abruptly as one of Valeera's blades now protruded from his throat. The tree behind him was suddenly covered in a crimson spray, as the bald bandit sank to his knees, gurgling blood.
The long haired bandit stood with a look of shock on his face, but then, in a fit of rage, turned and rushed her, brandishing a knife. Valeera remained standing where she was, not a care in the world, almost bored. The bandit had almost reached her, when she slashed forward with her remaining blade, severing the man's arm in one motion. He fell to the ground screaming, as blood gushed from the wound. The screaming began to stop, when the man's blood loss took it's toll, and he started to weep. Valeera knelt down on one knee, as the man stared at her in fear.
"A pityful sight!", she said softly, staring right back at him, uncaring.
She got up and walked slowly over to baldy, who remained on his knees, still gurgling blood. She stood over him, her glowing eyes cold and unflinching. "How many others have you two degenerates robbed and...taken?" He tried to speak, which only resulted in more blood flowing down his lips and neck.
Valeera put her hand over his face, her own features now creased with a pent up fury. "Well, now I will take from you." She began to absorb his mana until there was nothing left of his life force. She gasped as her own arcane energy surged with renewed power. She stumbled back from the dead man, and retrieveing her blades, continued on her pressing journey.
She quickened her pace, feeling energized, utterly focused on her mission again. Even the warnings that suddenly returned from her good friend, Broll Bearmantle, wouldn't stop her. The night elf had already helped her through her previous mana addiction, but this time would be different. That bandit scumbag deserved it, and besides, she was more mature now, she knew what she was doing. She could control her urges, and the mana that she had absorbed would only give her more strength, more energy, to get to Orgrimmar sooner. Her heart quickened. To hopefully see him again...to save him...and nobody or nothing was going to stand in her way.
Orgrimmar
Matt had spent a few hours looking around the horde city, in part, purely for the sake of exploration, and in part, looking for possible escape routes. He didn't know what the hell he was doing anymore. His initial plan to escape had become...complicated, and when he really thought about it, he didn't know where the hell Orgimmar even was. He knew it was somewhere on Kalimdor, but that was it. He didn't know where anywhere was, he had just been following Valeera and the night elves. He didn't even know what Azeroth looked like on a map.
When he thought about Valeera, he could feel himself getting depressed. He wanted to see her again, and the thought that his wish may never be fulfilled, filled his heart with anguish and longing. He missed her. Even in his darker moments, she had comforted him and never made him feel like he was anything less than a good person.
Sylvanas, on the other hand, was a mystery. He felt that she was completely comfortable with his darker side. In fact, he got the feeling that she was actively encouraging it. He had mixed emotions about her. She was either feared or hated by the alliance, understandably so, but there was more to her than being a simple villan. He really didn't know what her plans for him were, and honestly, he didn't trust her one bit. Trying to remember exactly how events unfolded that led to his sleeping with her, led him to confused memories, and he didn't understand why. He could remember everything in vivid detail, except for one moment in particular. Last night, he had remembered something that had given him pause, but trying to remember now was impossible. His mind was blank, like it had been ripped from his memory. The only thing he could remember, was feeling that Sylvanas was the most important person to him. But there was also another side to her that he had glimpsed. She had shown a vulnerability when reminded of her own tragic past, and had even symathized with his father's death, a genuine emotion that was difficult to fake. And then there was the sex. He couldn't deny that she was a stunning, dark beauty. Her cold body didn't do much to quench the fire of the night before. If it was the perfect seduction, then it was one that he had partaken in, with only one regret. Valeera. Sylvanas was a complicated woman, that much was obvious. He knew that she was trying to chip away at him bit by bit, in an effort to make him willingly join her. He would have to do the same, try to delve deeper and unnerve her. If he could crack open even a portion of her icy cold exterior, he would discover a bit more about the undead elf. Know your enemy, he thought.
Matt turned around, "Do you want to join me Tameriel, or are you just going to walk behind me all day?"
The dark ranger popped her head out from behind a building, wearing a look of surprise and worry. She looked to the ground, cursing herself, and began to walk over to him.
"I was just shadowing you for your own protection. You're a personal guest of the Warchief." Standing in front of him now, he noticed that she looked weary.
"Are you okay? You look tired, or low on energy or something. Did you get enough sleep?", he asked.
"I'm okay", she answered, "I don't like being in the sun too long."
"Oh, well lets walk back together in the shade over on the other side", he replied.
Tameriel nodded to him with a look of gratitude, as they entered the shade.
"By the way, forsaken don't really sleep, as I'm sure you must have learned last n...", Tameriel stopped abruptly, "We can rest, but we don't really sleep."
"Yeah, you mentioned that the first time." Matt looked at her with an uneasy smile, "I guess even the forsaken can wisecrack."
She looked at him apologetically, "The warchief is notoriously private, please don't tell her that I know anything that may or may not have happened last night...with you...and her...in bed togeth-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah", he interrupted her, waving his hands wildly, "I get it Tameriel, I get it, okay. You don't have to spell it out. I won't say anything."
They walked together for a while in an awkward silence.
"I was standing guard last night, that's the only reason I knew of the two of you", said Tameriel, breaking the quiet respite, "It would have been difficult not to hear considering the passionate noises of-"
"So we're back to this again", Matt replied, cutting her off, "And not with much subtlety either."
She glanced at him sideways, "My apologies, I don't mean to pry. It...interests me."
"Whatever relationship Sylvanas and I may or may not have, interests you?"
The dark ranger nodded.
"Why?"
"A forsaken relationship with one of the living isn't exactly commonplace, let alone one with the queen of the forsaken herself. I had never seen her indulge in such an interest before."
"Really?", he replied, keeping his voice low. "There was never anyone else since she became one of the forsaken?"
"Well...there is Nathanos, but...I don't think it's a relationship of that sort."
"Nathanos, who's that?"
"He is the queen's personal champion. It's rumoured that they had been in a relationship while they were both alive. Some say that the relationship persists, but I tend to disagree. It's clear that she favors him, but I have been around long enough to see that their relationship is a complicated one, but not of that nature."
"Interesting, I haven't met him yet. I wonder why, if he's her personal champion?"
"I don't know, but I'm sure she has her reasons. Being one of the forsaken is not easy...for any of us. To be undead is to be shunned by the living, to have lost everything that you had in life. Some have embraced it and hate the living. Others have a hard time accepting it and the complex emotions, or lack of emotions, that come with it. Many are not as well preserved as Sylvanas, so senses like touch, taste and smell are extremely limited. Sylvanas may divide opinion amongst the horde, but the forsaken love her and are completely loyal to her. As for dark rangers' like me, she saved us. I only want the best for her. That is one of the reason's why I'm so interested in your relationship."
Matt looked at her, "That sounds...extremely challenging. I think that I can understand a little bit more now about why she is ,how she is. Thank you."
She nodded in acknowledgement.
"If that's one of the reasons, what are the others?", he asked.
She smiled awkwardly. "I wasn't sure it was possible. Some of us...",she looked away, then continued, "Even though we are forsaken, some of us...have had as much of loneliness as we can bear. Hatred of the living, war after war, even I have found that it does not sustain me much anymore. To know that companionship could be possible...It fills me with an emotion I had thought was long lost." She met his gaze again. "Hope."
Matt didn't say anything, but he didn't underestimate the gravity of what Tameriel had just said. He was beginning to really understand how much trauma and pain that being one of the forsaken must bear. That they were constantly battling with bitter emotions, allowed him now to comprehend Sylvanas more than he had been able to. He felt sympathy for them, for her. He was beginning to get to know his enemy, if she really was his enemy. He wasn't so sure any more.
They had arrived back a few hours later, and Tameriel made sure that he was well fed. He still hadn't seen Sylvanas since he had woken, and he was well aware of the many strange looks that he was getting from the guards and attendants in the Warchief's abode. She was obviously still keeping information about him contained, and they all scrutinized the lone human with interest. Not long after he had finished eating, a forsaken man entered the dining hall and sat down beside him. Matt was expecting him to say something, but he just sat there staring at him.
"Eh, Hello, I'm Matt", he said extending his hand.
The man completely ignored his intended handshake, instead choosing to maintain his stare. "I'm Nathanos, the banshee queen's champion. Most know me as Blightcaller and fear my name. You...", he pointed his finger at Matt's chest, "can call me Blightcaller."
Matt let his hand slowly drop to his side. So this is Nathanos. What a prick! "Good to meet you too, Nathanos", he replied with emphasis on his name.
Nathanos's face cracked with a wry smile, "You're a cocky one aren't you? Be careful that you don't say something that you might regret, champion." He laughed derisively at the last word.
"And to what do I owe the pleasure of your company?", he retorted with a defiant scowl.
"I had to see you for myself. To find out what she see's in you. And I have to say...", he leaned forward, "I'm thoroughly disappointed."
Matt calmly folded his arms and snorted, "I'm heartbroken!"
Blightcaller's left eye twitched in annoyance. "You may have somehow fooled the rest, but you don't fool me. You were with the alliance. You can't be trusted. Just know that I will be watching you."
"I'm already being watched, I would have thought you'd know, being Sylvanas's champion and all. But then again, maybe she didn't want to burden you with all your other important champion duties, like threatening complete strangers. Strangers that you know nothing about."
"If you betray her, hurt her in any way", Nathanos lowered his voice, his face a picture of cold, calculated cruelty, "Before I kill you, I'll hunt down that blood elf bitch, Sanguinar, and make her suffer for a long, long time, before I kill her."
Nathanos had barely finished his threat, when he was lifted off his chair and forcefully slammed against the wall. It had happened so quickly that it was a blur. He could feel his windpipe being crushed, and stared into the black eyes of the alien champion. It was like he was staring at a completely different person from the one he had just threatened. His face was no longer aloof or unthreathening. It had contorted to one of pure fury and unadulterated hatred. Nathanos realized that he had miscalculated. He should have played the long game and watched him from the shadows, but it was too late to regret now. Just as he was about to wonder if he was going to die here, an ear-splitting scream caused the pressure on his neck to relax.
Sylvanas had entered the room, and confronted with the clash, had let loose her banshee wail. She stood there, with Matt crushing Nathanos, and she could almost feel her unbeating heart, leap in her chest with panic. This was not how it was supposed to be. Matt slowly turned his head towards her, and a chill went up her cold spine. It had been a very long time since something or someone had scared her, but she felt fear now. His eyes had turned black again, but this was nothing new. He was a vision of wrath. The waves of hatred that his power had discharged had rooted her to the spot. She forced herself to speak. "Matt, let him go!" He scowled angrily, but let go of Nathanos as he fell to the ground with a thud. "What happened here?", she asked, her voice returning to some semblance of her usual confidence. Matt, still furious, walked right past her without answering and burst loudly through the door she had just entered.
Sylvanas rushed over to Nathanos. "Nathanos, are you alright?What happened? Tell me!"
"I...I may have warned him against betraying you", he said.
"And he turned on you for that?", she asked, concerned.
"I may also have threatened to kill the blood elf, Valeera Sanguinar."
Sylvanas's concerned expression turned quickly to one of anger. "You fool, we're supposed to recruit him, not threaten him. How dare you go behind my back. You better hope that you haven't ruined my efforts."
He looked up at her, "Are you sure that you should? You must have felt that too. Are you sure that you can control him?"
"If left to my own, I can", she hissed, and turning on her heels, exited the room to try and find Matt.
Sylvanas's pace quickened and she was grateful that he hadn't gone far. He was just outside the building, pacing like a mad dog. The area was secluded apart from the guards posted at the entrance. She moved slowly towards him and put her hand on his arm. Almost growling, he shrugged it off, and turned to glare at her, his fury still unabated. Sylvanas was disgusted with herself that he had made her flinch once again, and in front of her guards. The sound of moving armor and weapons being drawn was almost instant.
She turned back towards the guards, "Stand down." They followed orders, but didn't look happy about it. "Leave us", she said. For a moment they didn't move. "NOW!", she snapped. They didn't need to be told again, as they disappeared with haste.
"Maybe that wasn't such a good idea Warchief", he turned to her in a threatening manner.
She barely resisted the urge to flinch yet again, which finally succeeded in flaring her own unbridled rage. She slapped him hard, her gauntleted glove tearing deep claw marks in his left cheek. He literally growled at her this time, inches from her face, his wounds healing instantly. She stood her ground, "How dare you speak to me like that. I'm not some common wench, I am a queen." He had never seen her eyes flare a brighter red. He leaned in, their faces almost touching, midnight black mist now discharged from his obsidian eyes.
His low voice rumbled with uncontained rage, "I could kill you, Sylvanas"
Her arms reached up, holding his face in her hands. "But you won't", she answered confidently.
He felt a sudden fogginess, but ignored it.
She noticed that his face softened, and a hint of a smile appeared on her own.
"You're a murderer", he replied with a noticeable lack of his previous anger.
"So are you", she said, softly.
How could such a beautiful, gentle voice have cut him so deeply with such few words. She's right. I'm a killer. Am I really any better than her?
He raised his hands to his face, laying them on hers. "What's happening to me?" He looked deep into her eyes, as if looking for the answer, "What's wrong with me?"
Her eyes softened to match her voice, "Nothing. There's nothing wrong with you." She took his hands in hers, "We are both dark kindred spirits, alone in a world that will never truly understand us. The confusion you feel is a result of your own self doubt. You must begin to embrace who you really are." She released one of his hands, holding the other one tightly. "I will help you" , she said, as she took a step backwards, leading him by the hand. "Embrace it...embrace me", she whispered seductively, leading him inside.
As Sylvanas led him to her room, Matt could feel the seductive lure of his dark power, and of her. He had spent so much time trying to keep himself from fully succumbing to it, that he could feel his will becoming weaker and weaker. He was tired, so tired, and the idea of being with someone that not only appreciated his darker, violent side, but also understood it, was becoming more alluring by the minute. When they got to the bed, Sylvanas began to slowly take off her armor, as he watched, entranced yet again by her beauty. She moved elegantly towards him, her naked skin almost a shimmering blue, as the moon's rays lit up the dark room. By the time she had taken off his clothes, his body had already made his decision for him.
Unable to fight anymore, he allowed his instincts to take over. As his hands moved down her thin waist, tracing the curves of her hips, he grabbed her ass with both hands, and lifted her up. Wrapping her legs tightly around his waist, her arms draped around his neck, their lips met. Sylvanas's couldn't help digging her nails into his neck, with the intensity of the kiss. He moved to the bed, sitting down. Sylvanas, her hands now on his chest, leaned forward, pushing him backwards onto the bed. She moved her cold, soft hands from his chest, slowly tracing his abdominals with her fingertips. As she leaned forward to kiss him again, her long pale hair tickling his neck, she moved her hand down his body and began to pleasure him. He held her hips, as she moved backwards. A gasp of pleasure escaped both of their lips as soon as he was inside her. Syvanas sat up, her back arched and her hips in motion. When Matt lay a warm hand on her flat stomach, Sylvanas became acutely aware of the warmth of his living body, shuddering with a rare pleasure. She took his hand and placed it on her breast, his heat warming her cold skin.
She looked at him, their eyes meeting, and saw her own bliss mirrored in his. She was conscious of the fact that this time felt different, more personal, with more... complicated emotions involved. The first time she had manipulated him to her advantage, but this time even though she had opened the door, he had walked through it with minimal influencing. For a moment, fear almost gripped her. She promised herself that she wouldn't allow herself to be emotionally compromised ever again. She moaned, laying her body on his, quickly forgetting her concern. He embraced her, his arms pulling her close. Closing her eyes, she reminded herself that she was in control,...she was definitely in control. She kissed him, almost believing it.
Stormwind
"Tell me again", King Anduin Wrynn asked Mathias Shaw, in a disbelieving tone, his brows raised, "Word for word, what exactly did your spy report?"
Shaw understood the young king's shock, and more to the point, his worry. "He has been deep undercover in Orgrimmar for a long time now, your majesty, If he reported it, then it's true. He's one of our best. I trust him implicitly."
Anduin sighed, running a hand through his hair, "I'm not saying he's untrustworthy, spymaster, I need to hear it again, for my own benefit."
Shaw nodded, "I understand. He said that Sylvanas Windrunner returned a couple of weeks ago with a human male. He had been kept out of sight for at least the first two weeks. Our man on the ground didn't know why, and he was unable to uncover the reasons. He decided to keep a close eye on the warchief, and in the last week, his ever watchful eye, payed dividends. She was seen escorting him around Orgrimmar in the open. It was when the human was challenged to a mak'gora, that the rumours really started to fly, which made our man's job much easier."
Anduin shook his head, and Mathias stopped. "I'm okay spymaster, continue."
"The human easily won the mak'gora, slaying the battle hardened orc extremely easily, and with no lack of flair or violence. Our man witnessed the fight, and reported that Sylvanas had called the human, Matt. During the fight, his eyes had turned black and many reported feeling waves of extrordinary mana emanating from him. The report suggests that-"
Anduin waved his hand, cutting him off. "I've heard enough Shaw." The color had drained from the young man's face, as he sat down hard. "It's him. Somehow, someway, It's Matt. He's alive, not dead or one of the forsaken. How can this be?"
Shaw frowned, replying in a serious but concerned voice, "It does sound like that is the case. Your majesty, we cannot leave him with her. She will twist him, turn him against us. Who knows what kind of power he could wield against the alliance."
Anduin shook his head yet again, Light, what do I do?, "It's my fault, my naivety that caused this in the first place. Now, not only has a good man been captured by the banshee queen, but the horde has an extremely powerful warrior to use against the alliance. Valeera told me what he did in Ashenvale, but I don't believe that she could turn him against us. I met him Shaw, I won't believe it."
"I hope that you're right, but we can't take that chance, your majesty."
Anduin stood up, "You're right, and I don't intend to. I will send for our allies and we will decide what to do together. Thank you spymaster."
"Your majesty", Shaw bowed politely and left the room.
At least one other person will be very happy to know that he's alive, regardless of the fact that the horde has got him. I must let Valeera know as soon as possible, Anduin thought. He hadn't seen her for a few days at least, and had been worried about her, but decided to give her the space she clearly needed. He would contact her tonight, in the usual method. But first, he needed to contact his advisors and allies, and whatever came next, he hoped the light would would guide him through.
Orgrimmar
Sylvanas had to chide herself more than once during the morning's reports. She was usually so self disciplined, but found herself almost daydreaming about the night before. She had watched Matt as he slept, realizing what a wonder it actually was, and how peaceful he had looked. And she hated herself for it. But when she thought about their night together, she could almost feel his warmth again, and she craved it. She began to chide herself yet again, when one of her rangers burst into the room, almost in a panic. Her attention was immediately diverted to the problem at hand.
"My queen, there's a...there is someone...", the dark ranger tried to speak plainly and failed.
"What is it, spit it out!", Sylvanas rose, concern in her voice. She was ready for anything.
"My apologies Warchief. Alexstrasza, the life binder...the dragonqueen, is at the gates. She requests an audience with you and the human champion, Matthew Dawson."
Sylvanas, her eyes now opened wide, quickly realized that she was not ready for anything,...not ready at all.
Author's Note
Just a little note to say thank you to anyone that has left a review, comment, or has just read up to this point and has stuck with the story. Thanks!