Chapter 21

One day after capture …

Alyna was dropped unceremoniously onto the stone floor of what she assumed was part of the keep's dungeons. She ignored Keleseth as his brown boots came into view, which irked him enough to grab her hair to force her to look at him.

"The Lich King is prepared to offer you power beyond your imagination." He made a sound of disgust before adding, "Again. The ridiculous army you don't even lead would pale in comparison to the countless at your command if you returned to the Scourge's embrace."

She felt his grip in her hair tighten, and she managed a slight sneer. "Jealous?"

He slammed her head back onto the stone, which she barely felt due to being undead. She realised he was more used to toying with the living than their own kind.

"The choice is yours, sister. One way or another, you will serve. It's just a matter of how easy you make it for yourself." Alyna snarled, but held her tongue. She knew her only hope of escaping was to draw out whatever Keleseth had planned. He laughed. "I'll take your silence as a no. I was very much hoping you'd decline his offer."

He stood, and she felt the same hands that had dragged her from the Gjalerhorn start pulling her leathers off her body. The manacles around her wrists were split, and attached to a pair of chains hanging from the ceiling. She was strung up until her feet did not touch the floor. Only then did she see the last person she ever thought to see again.

Ra'thanar Windrunner stepped forward and looked her naked body up and down. "At least my granddaughter has a good eye."

Alyna shook with fury. "Betraying family was not enough for you? Now you betray your people? Your soul?"

"In that … I had no choice. But I cannot say I do not enjoy my new power."

As he stepped closer, she managed to take in more details. His black eyes, pale necrotic skin, and her own realisation that she could not hear a heartbeat. She shook her head in disbelief. "How? How can you be darkfallen and I didn't know?"

He scoffed. "As if someone of my considerable ability would be a lowly darkfallen. I'm San'layn. And, since you have so foolishly declined the Prince's offer, I will be your replacement on the Council."

Something about Ra'thanar's ambition must have rankled with Keleseth as he felt the need to say, "He was not hidden from you. His body was recently found frozen in the ice where he died as a coward." That earned him an angry glare from Ra'thanar, but he appeared to be mindful of Keleseth's position and did not reply. The prince gestured at Alyna. "Make sure she's prepared. I will leave you to it."

Ra'thanar gave the prince a slight bow as he left with the vrykul, leaving him alone with Alyna. He turned to regard her, his smile hard.

She chuckled. "I quite enjoy the thought of you dying disgraced and alone."

His smile disappeared, and he raised his hand to cast a spell. She felt the curse immediately wrap itself around what was left of her soul, and she screamed. The chains rattled as she struggled against the pain. When the spell subsided, Ra'thanar stood before her. In his hands he had something long, wrapped in dull cloth.

"The Lich King wants you completely drained before he arrives. How that happens … is up to you. I can make it a long, agonising affair. Or …" He pulled the cloth back to reveal Alyna's lost runeblade, Felo'alaan. "… you can make me the blade's new master and your draining will be less unpleasant."

She stared at it in shock. "She gave it … to you?"

"You obviously could not be trusted with it seeing as your loyalty was far from secure, so I'm told." He smiled. "The Blood Queen has no such doubts with me."

Alyna shook her head. "The runeblade chooses its own master."

Ra'thanar laughed. "Did Falcar fill your head with that rubbish? The idealistic fool. He probably thought if he told you that it would convince you to be his successor with less resistance than you were infamous for. The commoners also like such fanciful tales."

"I … felt it bond though," she murmured in confusion.

"Oh, you are bonded to it. But it had nothing to do with the runeblade accepting you, and had everything to do with you finally accepting what it had to give you. And as the master of the runeblade, you can will it to accept a new master."

She laughed, albeit weakly. He had told her two things he had most likely not intended to. Firstly, that her undead nature had not broken her bond to the runeblade somehow, and secondly, that whatever her fate was to be, the Lich King did not intend to have her soul destroyed. Ra'thanar needed her to give him the runeblade.

"Never," she spat at him.

Angrily, he wrapped the runeblade up and glared at her. "Have it your way." He raised his hand and murmured a few words before gesturing at her. The powerful curse took hold of her, and did not let go for a long, long time.

Twelve days after capture …

Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Thump, thump.

Alyna's eyes flew open as she heard the heartbeat. The sclera of her eyes was now also black, and she scanned the room hungrily. He had kept the living from her. She was starving. She could smell blood. Fresh blood. Her mouth was salivating as she bared her much larger than normal fangs.

Thump, thump. Thump, thump. Thumpthumpthump. Thumpthumpthump.

Two hearts beating! She tried to get to them. The chains rattled. Her body flailed in the attempt; her body heavy. She looked up in confusion. She was bound? Why was she bound? She howled in rage and fought against the iron around her wrists. She could feel the magic in them, but it was weak.

Very weak.

She was so hungry.

She heard laughter. The heartbeats were closer. She looked down to see two male humans looking up at her. Dark robes. Pallid skin. They smelt of death, but were very much alive. Cultists, came the word into her mind. It was a bad word. She didn't know why.

"What did I tell you? It's her," cackled one to the other.

"She looks too pale. Are those wings? They're massive!"

He got a slap from the first across the shoulder. "Of course she's pale, you idiot. She's dead now. She wasn't before." He looked at something beneath her. "Not sure about the wings."

The second squinted at her, and then laughed. "I see it now."

She had wings? She looked to where her feet would touch the floor if they could and saw the bottom of two dark leathery-wings as they hung down from her back. Her mind was sluggish as she tried to move them. She saw a twitch. They felt heavy.

She raised her head and watched as the humans talked. Their faces were familiar. Their heartbeats were faster. One tucked his hand into his robes near his groin. She heard only parts of their conversation over the constant thump of their blood.

"We could lower her down? She's too weak to fight us."

The first looked at the chains, a cruel smile splitting his face. "Going to be just like old times, isn't that right Alyna?" He moaned slightly as he pulled his hand from his robes.

She heard the moan. She knew it. Memories flashed through her starved mind. They hurt. She didn't want them. She struggled. They laughed at her. Also familiar.

Then she knew who they were.

Rage flooded her body and she pushed her will against the magic in the manacles. It was weakening. It had not been renewed since her capture. More images tore at her mind.

Thumpthumpthumpthump!

As the runes on the manacles fizzled and burnt out, she roared at the now nervous humans. She pulled on her chains, raising herself through sheer fury, and she focused on the blood she could hear rushing through their veins.

And then she called to it.

Their screams delighted her as she pulled their life essence from their bodies. She felt stronger. She called for more. She was so very hungry. Her mind was clearing as they writhed on the ground, and the agony caused by her hunger began to subside. She could hear another sound and realised she was laughing as she felt one of them die under her assault.

"Enough!" cried Ra'thanar as he ran towards her. He must have cast another of his confounded curses because she was suddenly wracked with pain. It forced her to stop feeding.

When the curse subsided, she could see the still living human had been dragged away.

"That was careless, Ra'thanar," came the very displeased tone of Keleseth. "She was almost ready."

The confused Windrunner shook his head. "I don't understand how she was able to feed."

The prince looked at Ra'thanar like he would an insect. "She was born to be a queen, you fool. Just because she refuses to be one does not mean she's not capable of sucking your soul right out of you even in her condition." She could see Keleseth eyeing her warily before he grabbed Ra'thanar and they started walking away from her. She just about managed to hear, "Don't go near her in case you piss her off enough to actually do that. Nothing, dead or alive, is to go near her, understood?"

She didn't hear the reply.

She didn't need to.

She just had to wait.

Sylvanas pressed herself against the pillar as a spear came hurtling past where her head had been.

"I think they know we're here!" yelled Liadrin.

The queen gave her a stern look before turning to speak to the dark ranger beside her, Marrah. "Anything that can help on that side?"

The ranger peered around the stone pillar. She quickly rethought her action when another spear flew past. She looked at her queen and shook her head. Sylvanas took stock of their situation.

The four rangers and three paladins had been met by an elite Alliance group within the catacombs of the keep. Liadrin had struck a deal with her contacts – they had agreed to take them to the breach that led into the keep, if they could also send their own team along for their own mission. Sylvanas had seen no reason to refuse, hoping the Alliance group would create a distraction.

Things had gone well, to start with. They could hear fighting in other parts of the keep as the Alliance team were indeed spotted. They had made their way carefully through the keep to the dungeon they were now in. The corridor had numerous cells along it, but none had held Alyna, so they had kept going. It eventually led them to the large circular room they were now in. Four large stone columns helped to support the ceiling as various cells lined the perimeter. The centre held numerous pieces of furniture and tools she knew were meant for torture. It had also held two dozen heavily armed vrykul who now had them pinned behind two of the pillars, with a paladin and Kyala still in the corridor. The vrykul had concealed themselves in the cells until Sylvanas and her party had committed to the room.

The queen turned to get Liadrin's attention. "They've got us pinned down, and they're not advancing."

The blood knight matriarch returned the gaze levelly. "It's like they have us where they want us."

Sylvanas had thought the same, but she could not see any traps or devices that could ensnare them. "We need to retreat."

"Agreed," came the tense reply. She glanced over her shoulder to the male elf at her side before turning back to the queen. "Rathe'an should be able to shield us as we pull back to the corridor, but it won't get any easier from there."

The queen regarded the matriarch. The vrykul were warriors, and while the rangers were agile they were not very effective in enclosed spaces like the corridor. The paladins wore heavy armour, and would be unable to run away as the rangers could. If they made a stand, the paladin's presence was a barrier that would not last long with the sheer number of vrykul assaulting them. They would also be in the way of the bow-wielding rangers. The queen could not even use her powerful banshee wail as everything was so enclosed she would incapacitate her own rangers. She knew Liadrin expected Sylvanas to use the paladins as a delaying tactic to let her rangers, and herself, escape.

It was a valid tactic to the banshee queen if it meant she could get to Alyna, but something was wrong about the entire situation. She thought about what Alyna had told her about the vrykul, and what she had found at the mineshaft.

With some urgency she finally replied, "It won't be enough. Look for runes!"

"Runes?" Liadrin frowned, and then understood.

The sound of a scream in the corridor cut off their plan. Before they had a chance to react, two elven bodies came hurtling out of the corridor. Their bodies slammed onto the stone floor and slid for a moment before coming to a halt. Neither Kyala or the female paladin moved, telling Sylvanas that at best they were unconscious.

Liadrin and Rathe'an raised their weapons and faced the door as Sylvanas, Marrah and Alaana unleashed their arrows into the corridor. Several vrykul stumbled out. Those who did not collapse were cut down by the two paladins. Another, healthier wave of vrykul followed and were also cut down by the trapped cohort.

As Sylvanas reached into her quiver, she pulled what she realised was her last arrow. She was good with her swords, but could not hope to continue for long against numerous human giants. She nocked her arrow, drew the string back, and began charging it with one of her shadow-based spells.

An eerily familiar voice laughed from just inside the corridor. "You can fire that arrow and collapse this doorway, Sylvanas, but your fate is sealed either way." Ra'thanar Windrunner stepped forward into the dim light. "And you still wouldn't kill me."

Sylvanas was too stunned to fire immediately. Her hesitation cost her. Behind Ra'thanar, a female vrykul uttered a few words. Numerous stone slabs at the cohort's feet began to glow faintly before the runes inscribed into them activated. The queen tried to move away, but found she couldn't. None of them could. Calmly, her grandfather strolled over to her. Almost delicately, he removed her drawn arrow before he then wrenched her bow from her grip. As he did so, a small pendant he wore glowed slightly, presumably granting him immunity from the immobilisation spell. He tossed the bow to one of the vrykul who had been helping to keep the group pinned.

"Disarm them all," he ordered before he faced Sylvanas, a victorious smirk creeping across his face. "Keleseth didn't think you'd come, but I told him you would if given the slightest opportunity." He looked her up and down, before laughing. "And here you are! You're so disgustingly predictable when it comes to that bitch."

Sylvanas seethed as she fought against the magic containing her. She couldn't believe she had walked into a trap. Part of her knew the Lich King would want to punish her for what he saw as her rebellion, but she had not expected such an elaborate scheme. Even worse, she had let Alyna down. She felt her rage building, her banshee nature threatening to overwhelm her.

"I'm sure we'll have plenty of time for a family reunion," crowed Ra'thanar. "I can't say I was surprised to find out what you had become, but you'll be brought into line soon enough."

Unable to contain it, Sylvanas released her banshee scream, the force of it pushing through the immobilisation magic just enough. Vrykul dropped to the floor in agony, all of them with bloodied ears as her cry reverberated off the stone and metal within the dungeon. She heard the restrained groans from the two paladins and her own rangers, and she felt slightly guilty for adding to their misery. What she did enjoy, was Ra'thanar's cry of pain. He did not collapse as the living did, but she enjoyed his discomfort.

"You'll pay for that," he growled. He turned to a large vrykul stumbling to his feet. "Get the manacles on all of them. And gag them. I want no trouble from them as we take them to the portal." He then sneered at the banshee queen. "You'll pay for everything you've done, Sylvanas. And then … you'll serve."

Sylvanas felt a shudder pass through her. She recognised it for what it was – fear.

Alyna's eyes snapped open. It was quieter than she had ever heard it, but she would never forget the sound Sylvanas made when she released her banshee scream.

Sylvanas is in the keep.

She had no idea how she had managed to get inside, but she knew the odds of her queen succeeding were slim.

Unless she helped.

Alyna looked up at the manacles. When she had broken the runes, it had weakened the metal. Either Keleseth had been unaware she had burnt out the magical bindings, or he was too scared of her to have them replaced. Regardless, his lapse in judgement had given her a distinct advantage. She had managed to take enough energy from the cultists to suit her purpose, and she now willed her magic into her hands.

Her hands grew impossibly cold, bringing the temperature of the air around them down. The cold slowly seeped into the manacles. When she thought she had weakened them enough, she drew on what strength she had and pulled herself up. When she was as high as she could raise herself, she relaxed. Her body dropped, her weight added to by her thick wings. As she reached her starting position, the manacles snapped with the strain and she collapsed onto the floor. She snarled and tried to untangle herself.

The noise of her breaking free had not gone unnoticed, and a pair of vrykul appeared at the entrance to what she had recognised was one of the sizable halls of the keep and not the dungeon. By the time they realised she was free, it was too late. She had heard their approach, and could almost taste their blood before she started drawing it from their bodies. She smiled with relief as she felt her hunger become less painful.

She managed to stand and stumble over to where her leathers had been left the day she had been stripped of them. It was not vanity that drove her. She knew she would need to fight, and any protection was better than none. Awkwardly, she pulled on her pants and boots, and then glared at the rest of her gear. After a moment, she took her cloak and began tearing strips from it. Her wings meant she could not use her jerkin, so she wrapped the strips around her chest instead. She decided to leave her bow and take her swords, not that she was going to let anything get near her.

Alyna looked around at the hall. While she knew the keep well, most of the halls looked alike so she could not immediately place where she was. She did know Sylvanas sounded as if she were below her position, which made sense. She figured her queen would have assumed Alyna would be in the dungeons, which were always near the bottom of such structures.

Her priority though … was to feed. Alyna smiled ferally as she started towards the door the two vrykul had appeared at. Their screams had got the attention of their comrades, but not one of them had had the courage to confront her. She could feel them all waiting. She was not going to keep them waiting any longer.

Alyna strode purposefully down the halls of the large keep. Any of the living who dared get in her way immediately became food. The undead compelled to stop her fell in purple flames. There had been no concerted effort to stop her, but she knew their undead masters would be aware of her escape. She would be met by a significant force soon enough.

Sylvanas.

One of the vrykul had mentioned a trap for her queen. A gift for the Lich King. A trophy for Ra'thanar.

Alyna raged at the thought. No one was going to give Sylvanas to Arthas! She kept feeding, kept pulling the life and power from the vrykul who had once sworn their allegiance to her when she brokered their deal with their master.

She was so hungry.

While she had seemingly starved herself before, she had never done so to this extent. The power thrilled her. It coursed through her being and made her feel invulnerable. Her wings and body were strong now, and in the high-ceilinged halls she flew up and then crashed down on her enemies. She enjoyed the feeling of their helplessness. She could taste their fear in their blood.

She had to have more!

If Ra'thanar was going to give Sylvanas to Arthas, there was only one place she knew he would do it from. There was a large circular grand hall in the middle of the keep with an impressive vaulted ceiling and ornate viewing balconies. Keleseth had favoured it greatly the last time Alyna had been in the keep, and she knew he had made it his domain. That was where the Scourge version of a portal, a death gate, to Icecrown Citadel had been anchored by her a few years ago.

It was on one of the balconies that she found herself. In the hall, she could see Ra'thanar channelling magic into a dark crystal to activate the death gate. Keleseth watched on. Alyna's eyes fell onto the seven elves with manacles on their hands and feet. They all wore what appeared to be ball gags, including Sylvanas. Part of Alyna found that amusing. Filling the room were at least three dozen vrykul and vargul, and yet more ghouls, mainly facing the two entrances into the hall.

With a single beat of her wings, she leapt up onto the balustrade and threw a single, powerful bolt of frost at the crystal, shattering it. Ra'thanar leapt backwards, shouting his outrage as some of the shards flew at him.

Everyone was now looking up at her. She closed her eyes briefly. So many heartbeats. So many souls. And … something else. She smiled and held her clawed hand out. "You have something that belongs to me, Ra'thanar." She did not shout her words, but she did not have to; the acoustics of the room ensured she was heard. From a pedestal near the central throne, an object vibrated under a cloth, before it flew towards Alyna. She grasped the handle of Felo'alaan.

And gasped in pain!

She felt the runeblade initially reject her, its purity at being forged by the draconic guardians of life at odds with her state of undeath. She held on though, and watched as the bright red blade darkened rapidly into a dark purple resembling her own shadowflame. The pain then disappeared as she felt its power add to the considerable amount she had recently consumed. She almost groaned at the pleasure she felt through it.

She was dimly aware of the two San'layn beneath her shouting as she was reunited with her runeblade. Bodies were moving around. Spears began to bounce off the magical shield she had erected around herself. A couple of lightning spells crackled around her futilely. The attacks felt feeble. Laughable.

She looked down at the clearly worried San'layn. "We need to talk, brothers. Without these … distractions."

Holding Felo'alaan, Alyna launched herself from the balcony and flew up into the middle of the room so she could see every occupant. She reached down into her own core, where her power dwelled, and demanded more of it than she ever had before. As she surveyed her food below, she pushed her vision into the realm of the dead. The colours of the drapes, tiles and tapestries faded into greys, and she smiled. Inside every creature, alive and undead, she could see the white of their souls, with those of the living shining brighter. Part of her mind noted where Sylvanas and those with her stood as she focused on the rest.

She called to the souls, and when they resisted, she pulled, breaking their connection to the physical world. She felt them empower her as she consumed them.

She felt each white light die.

When she dropped to the floor, landing easily on her feet, the echoes of dozens of screams were still reverberating through the hall.

She had never felt so powerful. She could feel the energy dancing across her skin and all she wanted to do was unleash it, and absorb more. She felt giddy, even slightly intoxicated. She turned to fix her fully black eyes onto the two San'layn as they stared at her, transfixed.

They moved simultaneously. Ra'thanar moved to stand behind Sylvanas as Keleseth ran towards the door, jumping over the corpses of his former bodyguard.

"Move, and she dies!" yelled Ra'thanar. He had hold of the queen's shoulder and had a spell prepared in his free hand. Alyna felt for Sylvanas. She knew the woman hated to be helpless, but she appeared to be just that.

The former blood princess smiled slowly at Ra'thanar, before she cast a teleport spell and disappeared. She reappeared behind Ra'thanar and thrust Felo'alaan into his lower back and up through his body. While it would not kill him, she knew her blade would disrupt his magic.

She placed her own hand on his shoulder and calmly replied, "I don't respond well to threats." She pulled him away from Sylvanas, and pulled her runeblade out of his body. He had enough time to look at her before she swung the dark blade at his neck, and beheaded him.

Alyna looked up to find Keleseth facing her at the edge of the room. She laughed at him, knowing exactly why he was still there. It had happened to her several times. He didn't move as she stepped over corpses to reach him, holding her wings high as she knew he had always been jealous of them. As she drew to within an arm's length, Keleseth dropped to his knees.

She chuckled. "Arthas does not like cowards, Keleseth. You should have known that." As the Lich King had been able to overwhelm her will and control her directly as he wished to, so he had done with Keleseth. The blood prince had failed the Lich King badly enough that he was giving his pawn to Alyna as punishment. He had become disposable.

"Take my soul, Alyna." His voice trembled. "Please."

It was very, very tempting to the power-hungry Alyna. Taking his soul would be the most intense energy she would have consumed, ever. But it would permanently kill him. He would escape justice.

"Show you mercy? You want me to show you mercy after everything you have done?" She gently touched her claws to his cheek. "Do you think you deserve it?" As he looked at her, she enjoyed the fear in his eyes, and the slow realisation that she would never show mercy to him. He tried to move, but the Lich King's will was too strong. She removed her claws from his cheek and brought Felo'alaan to bear. "I will not spare you the punishment of the hell that awaits your soul, brother." She snarled, "The same hell you would happily see my soul enter over the years. And then, when Arthas brings you back, you will suffer his own particular kind of wrath until he decides how you will serve him again."

With a single swing of her runeblade, she removed Keleseth's head and flung it pettily across the hall with an angry cry.

It was strangely therapeutic.

She flapped her wings a couple of times and dropped down before Liadrin and the paladins. Their heartbeats were loud in her ears, and now all the distractions were gone she was finding it hard to ignore them. The colour in the room began to bleed away as she saw the sheer purity of their souls.

A body fell into her, and she stumbled. Angry, she turned to see two fiery red eyes glaring angrily up at her from the floor where Sylvanas had fallen after hurling herself at Alyna. Without looking away, the queen held her bound hands up at Alyna. For a moment, the darkfallen was confused, her hunger still throbbing through her. Slowly, her mind cleared, and she touched the manacles. They froze rapidly and Sylvanas snapped them apart before swiftly removing her gag and ankle manacles.

The queen rose to stand before Alyna, slowly saying, "I get the feeling you did not need to be rescued." She sounded suspicious, but surprisingly calm.

Alyna shook her head slightly. "I did. It is complicated." She tilted her head slightly at her queen. "You … came for me?"

Something passed through Sylvanas' elegant features that Alyna couldn't make sense of. Her queen leant forward and very quietly said, "I will always come for you." She pulled away slightly before giving Alyna a careful look. "You're not in full control."

It took the darkfallen a few moments to process the words before she shook her head. "Too much power. It's … I want more."

The queen nodded at their companions. "Use some of it to break them out of their restraints. And then … can you get us out of here?"

Alyna looked at the others as if they had suddenly appeared. "Yes. I can." She began to freeze the manacles in turn automatically, not really needing to think about the task. As she did so, the paladins and rangers moved to collect what gear the dead vrykul had brought with them. Alyna spent the time trying not to take any of their souls, with Sylvanas watching her carefully.

When they were ready, they gathered around Alyna and she cast a mass teleportation spell to get them all out of the keep.