Chapter 16

The tall white cliffs of southeast Northrend came into view while they were still miles away. For the first time she could remember since dying, Sylvanas felt true excitement pulse through her.

Arthas, I'm coming for you.

She gazed at the imposing cliffs with a small smile. She knew the ominous view was part of the Howling Fjord. The prow of the ship rose and fell as it was steered towards the northeast, the other three ships in her fleet following their example. Alyna had assured her that while the cliffs dominated the entire south-eastern province of Northrend, there was a decent sized area on the eastern shore that would be an ideal landing zone. Sylvanas had wanted to sail through the fjords and get as far inland as she could, but Alyna had warned against such a tactic. She would be showing her why once they made landfall.

The queen turned her head slightly to address Kyala at her shoulder. "Do you understand your orders?

Kyala nodded once. "Yes, Dark Lady."

Sylvanas felt her smile wane as she looked back at the cliffs. "I realise the task will not be simple, as she is not your lieutenant. But it is vital that Alyna remains fed. That will be considerably more difficult here than it is at home."

"Would it not be easier to move me into her unit, my Lady? I could personally attend to her needs if that were the case."

The words were innocent, but Sylvanas felt a flash of jealousy move through her. She had to remind herself they were talking about Alyna's need to feed, and nothing more. Though, why she was jealous in the first place confused her. Aloud, she said, "I will not interfere with Areiel's running of her company." She turned back to Kyala, her red eyes flashing. "Unless I have to. If she neglects Alyna's need, and does not respond to your counsel, you are to inform me immediately."

Kyala bowed her head lightly to acknowledge the order. "Of course, my Lady."

Sylvanas cast her gaze over the decks of her flagship. She could see Areiel on the quarterdeck talking to one of her rangers. She did not expect Areiel to intentionally starve Alyna, but Sylvanas had one reason to doubt her; she was a known friend of Talnia's. While the woman had publicly disavowed the actions of the disgraced ranger-captain, it was difficult to know her private feelings on the matter.

Areiel must have felt the queen's gaze, because she looked up and gave the queen a bow of her head that was quickly matched by the ranger.

Sylvanas did not acknowledge her. Instead, she asked her agent, "Where is Alyna?"

"I believe she is in your quarters, my Lady," came the neutral reply. Kyala gave her queen a carefully guarded look. "Do you wish me to summon her?"

Sylvanas gave her a brief nod. "Yes, but not here. I will be in the hold."

Kyala bowed her head in respect, and moved gracefully away to perform her task.

After waiting a few moments, Sylvanas stepped away from the forecastle and into her ship, winding down through stairways into the hold. She stopped at the entrance to one section that held a dozen large barrels firmly fastened to the deck with rope. Two apothecaries were in the middle of a discussion, but they stopped to bow as she appeared. Another appeared at her side, and she realised it was Grand Apothecary Putress.

"Ahh! Dark Lady! It is always an honour to be in your presence. How can we assist?" He almost purred in his eagerness.

She turned her red gaze to his glowing empty eye sockets, knowing full well he could see perfectly. "Is the plague secure?"

"Yes! Yes, of course, my Lady. Secure and stable. Though the sooner we move the barrels off the ship, the better. I need solid ground to continue my experiments."

She gave him a nod. "It will take a few days for the scouts to report back once we make landfall, but we will find a suitable place for your laboratory. I don't want anyone finding it." She gave him a stern glare. "Until then, Putress, no more accidents."

He bowed deeply. "Understood, Dark Lady."

She turned to continue walking down the hold, to find Alyna waiting silently for her in the corridor. She nodded her approval at the woman's rapid obedience, and walked deeper into the hold. Without needing to be told, Alyna followed. Dim lanterns flickered and swayed with the motion of the ship as they lit up various pieces of equipment and weaponry. However, most of the sections were full of heavily armoured Forsaken soldiers. The concentration of undead in the hold made the air thick and heavy with the scent of decay, but both women were unaffected by it.

Near the back of the hold, Sylvanas stopped at an open section that was acting as a stable for all of the skeletal horses the rangers and officers would use. They stood rigidly in their own armour, in various states of decay. Unlike her people, these animals were not dead. Not exactly. Animals that contracted the plague did not die and rise again like people. They just slowly decayed into undeath. Sylvanas led Alyna to a particularly intact animal, before stopping to turn to her ranger-lieutenant.

"Before we left for Orgrimmar, I decided to prepare a gift for you." She raised her eyes to Alyna's. "I wanted to show my gratitude to you for choosing to stay with … us." Ignoring the fact she had almost said 'me', Sylvanas gestured at the black mount before her, and waited.

Alyna looked at it. Her eyes widened, and she looked back at Sylvanas, who gave her a small nod. Alyna stepped towards the creature and held out her hand. In an act of affection Sylvanas had thought the creatures were unable to feel, it reached forward with its partially-decayed muzzle, and pushed into Alyna's hand. Alyna raised her other hand and slowly placed it on top of its black nose. She slowly trailed her palm up to its forehead to wrap her fingers around the protruding horn. The top of the horn had snapped, but Sylvanas had made sure it looked whole by having a vicious black metal tip fashioned for it.

Alyna didn't look at her as she quietly said, "You gave her the plague."

"She would not accept an undead rider. If you are to ride Sable again, I had to." Truly, she had not wanted to take such an action. Alyna had loved the steed fiercely in life, and she had wanted to preserve something of that for some sentimental reason she had felt more than thought. She had been the one to contaminate Sable's feed, and she had been there as the quel'dorei steed had screamed in agony until its nerve endings had finally dulled enough to not feel the rest of the horrific process that would alter it forever. She felt she owed it to the once graceful creature to be there. She hoped it would be an adequate gift to Alyna in undeath.

Sable whinnied as Alyna patted her neck and rubbed her muzzle as they stood amongst the rest of the completely still and silent mounts. The queen raised an eyebrow slightly at how typical it was that Sable would stand out, just as Alyna did. Sylvanas found herself smiling slightly as the two re-bonded.

Eventually, Alyna raised her black eyes to Sylvanas. "Thank you. She is a thoughtful gift." The mask Alyna wore meant she couldn't tell if the woman was smiling, but her words sounded like she was. The queen felt good.

"You are welc—" Sylvanas stopped as her ears picked up a muffled sound that could only be described as a 'whoompf'. She could see Alyna had also heard it. Both women tilted their heads and looked around as their ears tried to pick up the sounds of the ship.

It was Sylvanas who realised it was a sound her ship had not made. She grabbed Alyna and pulled her down to the deck as she yelled, "Get down!"

Somewhere above them, the sound of wood explosively shattering tore through the ship, quickly followed by screams and shouts. When it became clear the cannon ball had missed their position, Sylvanas scrambled to her feet and ran down the hold. She took the stairs in twos and threes as she climbed up to the main deck of her ship. She arrived to a scene of controlled chaos as her ship's captain barked orders for their own cannon to be primed from her position on the poop deck.

Sylvanas looked around. Her eyes flashed angrily as she saw the five Alliance ships bearing down on their position, flying the banners of the Alliance North Fleet. They were barely visible through a mist that had seemingly appeared from nowhere, which would explain why she had not been told of their presence. Only one was in firing range, and currently only by the single cannon in its bow.

"Come about!" yelled Dread-Captain Harker. She waved at her first mate. "Broadside to bare!"

"Belay that order!" countered Sylvanas, her captain finally noticing her. She ran over to her queen as Sylvanas moved up to the quarterdeck.

"My Lady! If we can bring our cannon round first, we can take out their lead ship."

Sylvanas gestured at the other three ships in her own fleet. "Then we will have to deal with the other four Alliance vessels before our own have a chance to sail into position. I am not willing to risk the plague barrels, Dread-Captain."

Harker looked down at her feet as if she could see through the decks into the hold. She immediately understood and looked up at her queen just as the lead Alliance ship fired again. This time, Sylvanas could see the cannon ball sail through the air. They were closer now, and as the Windrunner had not turned to face them, it smashed halfway up the stern, causing the ship to shudder.

Sylvanas looked down at the female Forsaken captain. "Bring us behind the Oblivion. The others can engage. Be ready to peel off if we need to."

"Yes, my Queen!" Harker then started shouting orders again. Additional sails were immediately unfurled on each mast and the ship groaned with the added strain. Beneath her feet, Sylvanas could feel the ship lurch with the added speed as she climbed the steps to the poop deck to survey the area of battle from the high vantage point. She realised Alyna was right behind her.

"My Lady, we need to stay out of the mist," she said quietly.

Sylvanas narrowed her eyes at the seemingly obvious advice. "I have no intention of losing sight of the Alliance, or of my own ships."

Alyna shook her head. "The mist is not natural, and it is moving closer to us. We must, at all costs, stay away from it."

As Sylvanas looked at the sea, she could finally see that Alyna was telling the truth. The mist was visibly rolling over the top of it and coming closer far faster than any natural mist on a breeze. She called down to Harker and made sure the captain understood that avoiding the mist was the higher priority.

She turned back to Alyna. "Explain," she ordered.

Alyna frowned slightly. "I'm not sure I can, my Lady. All the knowledge the Scourge had about this phenomenon came from the gossip and rumours that local inhabitants have." She gestured at the mist. "The mist hides a danger. Whenever it appears, strange ships come out of the sea filled with tall humanoids covered in seaweed, barnacles and green scales. They raid the fishing communities that inhabit the low shorelines, and disappear back into nothing." She paused, before adding, "They are called the Kvaldir."

Both women frowned as a cacophony of cannon fire suddenly thundered through the air. It was distant, and muffled, and it soon became apparent that none of their ships had been hit. Alyna then pointed. "There, my Lady. The rear Alliance ship … it is firing into the mist."

Sylvanas turned and tugged at a very long looking-glass that had been attached to a bracket on the rail. She held it to her eye and adjusted the lens to focus on the rearward ship. Alyna, again, was right. She could see the Alliance sailors focused on something other than the Forsaken. She moved the looking-glass around and paused. She thought she could see something in the mist that looked like another ship. She only caught glimpses, but it was not a configuration she recognised.

Another volley of cannon fire boomed through the air. This time, Forsaken ships were hit. She lowered the looking-glass and glared at the Alliance. They either hadn't noticed that their rear guard was under attack, or they didn't care and were more intent on killing her instead. So be it, she thought. They would pay for their folly.

The Queen's Reprisal, the Dark Defiance and the Oblivion all returned fire. The ships rocked with the force of so many cannons firing at once. As the battle raged, she let her sailors do their work, not interfering unless she absolutely felt she had to. Whatever had happened to the Alliance's rear guard had meant the battle had been an even four against four. The reality was her own ship could not fire due to their deliberate positioning, and the Alliance were having difficulty keeping more than two ships in firing range at any one time. This was down to her fleet's clever manoeuvring, and the Alliance finally realising the mist was also a threat. She felt pride in how they managed to continue retreating from the mist, while still managing to return fire and keep the Alliance from getting close enough to try and board. She was especially pleased when the lead Alliance ship lost two of its masts within a minute of each other. It fell back, unable to maintain the chase as others in the fleet overtook it. A few minutes later, it was enveloped by the chasing mist.

It was three against four. And the mist was no longer pursuing the battling ships.

"My Queen," started Alyna. She gestured to their left as they passed the edge of a fjord. "That is where we can make landfall."

Sylvanas turned, and smiled. There were still tall cliffs they would have to navigate, but before them was a large piece of flat land with a viable beach. There were some jagged rocks just offshore, but nothing they could not navigate with a bit of focus. The smile was short-lived as she looked back at the Alliance vessels. "We cannot make landfall with them chasing us."

More cannon fired, and the main mast of the Queen's Reprisal shattered near the base and collapsed forward to tangle with the foremast. Similarly, the lead Alliance ship also lost a pair of masts, and had a large hole gouged out of its bow near the waterline. Cheers erupted from her sailors as the two other Alliance ships struck some of their sails, pulling them in and tying them off so the wind would no longer catch them.

"It would appear the Alliance have decided to stop giving chase," noted Alyna.

"It's the first smart thing they've done today," the queen replied. She moved to within earshot of the dread-captain who was at the ship's wheel. "Dread-Captain Harker, prepare the fleet to make landfall."

The dread-captain was focused on the Queen's Reprisal before she turned to Sylvanas. "Yes, Dark Lady. I fear the Queen's Reprisal will not be able to steer around the rocks though."

Sylvanas looked at the de-masted ship. "Why not?"

"Her sails, my Lady. They cannot strike them as they're tangled, and they're still catching the wind. Unless she slows, she won't be able to avoid them." She pointed at the activity on the ship. Sailors were trying to climb the masts. "They're trying to cut them, but that means they won't be able to turn about and slow."

"We cannot help them," came her dispassionate reply. "Prepare the rest of the fleet for landfall."

"Yes, my Lady," came the immediate reply. The captain moved away to follow her orders.

Sylvanas moved to stand next to Alyna at the back of the poop deck to keep out of the way. As they slowed and began to move around the rocks, she watched as the sailors on the Queen's Reprisal battled their ship. Interestingly enough, the Alliance vessel was having a similar issue further down the coast. It had been left alone as the remaining two had retreated, unable to go with them but unable to stop hurtling towards the shore.

In an intriguing move, the dread-captain of the Queen's Reprisal dropped the forward portside anchor. She could hear the rapid rattling of the chain as it clattered down to the seabed. Being near shore, it did not have far to go, and once the anchor dug in, the bow slowed. The stern, however, began to swing around and the ship leant violently into the turn. She saw a few sailors clinging onto the masts desperately, one falling into the sea. Cannons slid across the decks, some going overboard and crashing into the sea, along with sailors and other equipment. As the stern swung round, she could hear another anchor being released. The sound of creaking, bending, and snapping wood echoed off the cliffs.

It was not enough. The ship had slowed, but too late. Two very loud explosions heralded the moment the anchor chains tore away from their housings with the huge force that had been placed on them. Sideways on, the Queen's Reprisal slammed into a tall rocky shard. By some miracle, she then rested there with a deep groan.

Alyna was the first to speak. "Interesting move. The dread-captain may have just saved the ship from being split in two. That looks … salvageable."

"Indeed," she agreed. "Let us hope the plague canisters she is carrying have not been breached."

Alarm sounded in Alyna's voice. "They're carrying the plague too?"

Sylvanas looked at her ranger-lieutenant. "All the ships are. We just have the vast majority of it in our barrels. The rest have smaller canisters."

Anything Alyna would have said was interrupted by the Alliance ship crashing into its own rocky outcrop. Sylvanas watched with satisfaction as their captain had not been as enterprising as her own. The Alliance ship was sinking, and the crew abandoning ship in desperation. Small explosions could be heard that Sylvanas figured was the gunpowder on board being set off as lanterns and furnaces were disturbed by the crash.

"It appears there will be survivors," Alyna observed.

Sylvanas smiled slightly. "Good. You need to feed and Putress needs test subjects. They'll do nicely." Convenient and practical. Everything was falling into place.

24 hours later …

"SEVERE STOMACH PAIN? We are the Royal Apothecary Society! Inducing belly aches is not part of our job description!"

Kyala chuckled at the aggrieved cry of a senior apothecary. "Well, it seems their experiments are going well."

Alyna rolled her eyes as the two women entered the only building the Forsaken had managed to erect so far. "I'm just glad they can't use the plague until we find somewhere for their laboratory. Not if all their experiments are so … successful."

"Ha! I'm with you on that one. The Society has a high casualty rate."

A third female voice joined their conversation. "They give their lives gladly, Kyala. As I know you both may, one day."

The two rangers turned to bow slightly at their queen. "We do as required, Dark Lady," replied Kyala.

The queen acknowledged them with a nod before she looked at Alyna. "Is the lift ready?"

Alyna gave her queen a nod of her own. "Yes, my Lady. I have come to report that we had enough rope. We can now use the lift to take troops and supplies to the top of the cliff."

"Excellent," said Sylvanas. She looked as if she were about to add more, but a cry from outside interrupted her.

"Archers at the ready! Hold your fire!" All three women looked to the door.

"That's High Executor Anselm," murmured Kyala.

The high executor's voice was heard again. "What fool dares to enter her Majesty's dominion unannounced?"

The rangers moved aside as Sylvanas passed between them to stand in the doorway. The three women looked out towards the gates of the fortified camp. Anselm was sat on a skeletal horse. Before him stood a dozen soldiers, and archers had their bows raised from their various positions around the camp. Some were rangers.

They all faced what appeared to be a male blood elf, though by the colour of his skin he was clearly undead. Behind him stood four enormous humanoids. Easily as tall as a tauren, they appeared to be very large, very muscled, male humans. They wore furs, appeared to prefer their hair long, and carried very large axes.

The elf at the front wore dark orange and brown caster robes, though his chest was bare. His eyes were black, his hair was long and dark grey, and he wore a dark mask covering the lower half of his face that bore embroidered grey fangs. A faint glow was visible from several dull-orange crystals embedded into his clothing.

Alyna recognised him immediately, and found herself inhaling a sharp breath in surprise as he spoke. It gained her a glance from her queen.

"Ah, but it is you who intrudes on our master's territory. He could wipe you out in an instant for that transgression alone! Arthas does not have much love or patience for his escaped slaves." The elf cackled. "But … he has learned of your victory over Stormwind's North Fleet and thinks you have potential. Potential to see reason and abandon Sylvanas' childish rebellion."

The queen moved forward and Alyna immediately grabbed her upper arm to pull her back. She whispered loudly to her queen, "Don't! Please. He knows you're here and is trying to draw you out."

Sylvanas narrowed her eyes at Alyna. "You know him." It was a statement, not a question. Alyna replied with a nod as the elf spread his arms grandly.

"Behold the Vrykul! A race that has perfected war and destruction to the point of an art form. Already they've cast their lot with the Lich King! Their dwellings surround you and their numbers are easily five times yours." He shrugged and gestured at the mounted Anselm. "The choice is yours. Return to the Lich King's army and fight alongside them or remain loyal to your so-called queen and suffer their wrath as they drive you from their homelands!"

No one moved. Anselm made a show of reaching up to stroke his non-existent beard. "Is that all you've come to say?" He laughed and then cupped his hands to his mouth and yelled, "Send these scumbags back to hell! Fire at will!"

Two-dozen arrows were loosed in a single wave. As they flew towards the elf, he shimmered and disappeared, appearing behind his vrykul bodyguards. The arrows embedded themselves into the warriors before they had a chance to react. They dropped down dead without really knowing what had just happened.

"Such a futile gesture," purred the elf. He raised his hands and a dark purple glow began to grow in each palm.

Instinctively, both Alyna and Kyala moved to protect Sylvanas, placing their bodies in the doorway. Her view was not blocked though, and she saw what her rangers saw. As the elf finished casting his spell, purple tendrils flew from his hands to the soldiers before Anselm and the nearest archers. They all dropped their weapons and grabbed their chests, screaming in agony.

"Listen to your men's dying cries as I drink in their souls!" shouted the elf. By the time he finished his sentence, the spell ended, and all his victims dropped to the ground as cerulean blue ribbons flew from their corpses to the elf. Alyna knew immediately they were not just dead, but utterly destroyed.

"This will not be the last you hear of me! I will return to spit on your corpses after Utgarde's armies have descended upon you! And then, you will serve the one, true King!"

The elf cast what most would recognise as a teleportation spell, and he vanished.

Terse, angry words were spat from behind Alyna. "Let. Me. Through."

Immediately, the rangers parted, and their queen strode out and immediately went to the nearest body. Alyna followed, knowing this was going to be a very difficult conversation. As Sylvanas bent down to examine the soldier, Alyna said softly, "They are beyond resurrection, my Lady."

"Why?" came the angry question.

Alyna closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, Sylvanas had stood up and was glaring at her. High Executor Anselm had also dismounted and was standing just behind her shoulder. "They have no soul left to bring back. He … ate them."

"Sounds to me she knows what just happened, my Lady," observed the angry Forsaken officer.

"Alyna …" warned Sylvanas.

The ranger-lieutenant looked up at the cliffs, gathering her thoughts. She realised she couldn't tell Sylvanas the whole truth. Not yet. She wanted to tell her everything, but she knew the queen was not ready to hear what she had to say. And she wasn't quite ready to admit her most shameful secret just yet.

"He is Blood Prince Keleseth. He is one of the senior princes of the San'layn, and is a member of the Blood Council."

Sylvanas' eyes flashed a bright red. "The same Council you were on?"

"Yes," she confirmed. "He was a reasonably respected magister before he became what he is now."

The queen looked at her dead soldiers. It was very clear by the controlled rage in her voice that she was trying hard to wait for Alyna's explanation before she gave into her anger. "He consumed their souls. You did not mention that ability when you spoke to me of what you are."

Alyna visibly winced. She definitely hadn't mentioned it. In hindsight, she realised she should have come up with some reason to mention it as they were going to come across San'layn eventually, but she had been preoccupied with other things.

"It is a very rare skill, my Lady. While it grants great power, that power can be unstable so very few San'layn train the technique." That much was true, she thought. A few of her undead kin had literally conflagrated themselves by absorbing too much power too quickly. Only the Council were really capable of using the ability with any degree of control.

Blazing red eyes turned to regard Alyna. "Can you do that?"

Alyna did not turn her eyes away, as desperately as she wanted to. "No, my Lady. I resisted the urge to do such a thing." A lie, and a truth. She had not always successfully resisted though.

They stared at each other for a few more moments before Sylvanas appeared to accept her answer. It made Alyna doubt as to whether she had been fully believed. She was relieved when the subject was changed.

"This 'Utgarde' he mentioned. The name is familiar. That is the large keep by the lake in the middle of the province?"

Alyna nodded, "Yes. It appears he has woken more of the vrykul as well. When I was here last, there was just a small handful."

A new voice spoke from behind her. Alyna turned to see that Areiel had arrived at some point during the conversation.

The ranger-captain spoke with confidence. "I will immediately set up scouting parties atop the cliff now the lift is available. We'll figure out where these new vrykul are hiding."

Anselm added, "I'll double the building of the fortifications since we're now up against an army of giant humans. I will also have the mages set up some wards to prevent another incursion via teleportation."

Sylvanas looked at her senior officers, and gave her consent for them to do as they suggested. She then looked at Areiel. "Plan the next few days without Alyna. She will be escorting me to Utgarde Keep. I want to see for myself what we have to deal with."

Alyna surprised herself by not reacting, but Areiel was not so restrained. "My Lady, is that wise? It is quite some distance to go with just a single ranger as a bodyguard. Surely we can get the information you require without placing yourself in harm's way?"

"Your concern is noted, Ranger-Captain. And discarded. Alyna knows the land, and additional numbers would risk drawing attention to our presence. We will be back in a few days. I expect this camp to be a fully fortified base by then."

"Yes, Dark Lady," replied both Anselm and Areiel.

The high executor saluted and left to obey his orders. Sylvanas looked to Alyna. "Go get our horses and meet me by the lift. I'll be there shortly."

Alyna bowed her head, "Yes, Dark Lady."

As she walked towards the make-shift stables, she felt Areiel fall into step beside her. Her words were quiet, but Alyna could not help the shudder that went down her spine at the malice behind them.

"Bring her back safely, or don't come back at all."

She was then left alone with her thoughts.