Chapter 27

Sylvanas fell backwards onto the steps of the dais in shock. Varimathras stepped forward, raising his sword in what she knew would be an attempt to decapitate her, and she found she was powerless. The debilitating nature of her wound meant she could not move her legs and she was simply too weak to manage a banshee scream. She looked up at the dreadlord, determined not to show him any fear as his arm began to descend.

Alyna silently vaulted herself up behind Varimathras, driving her two borrowed short swords into his back. The dreadlord howled in pain and stumbled to the side, his attack on Sylvanas no longer his priority. The captain hung onto her weapons, wounding him further. Varimathras bellowed in outrage and violently spun his body around.

Alyna went flying off the dreadlord's back, leaving the two sword hilts visible where she had stabbed him between his wings. She collapsed unceremoniously onto the throne room floor and rolled onto her knees, facing him. Power was already visibly forming in the palms of her hands, and she cast the spell at Varimathras, freezing him and two of his conspirators in place.

She scrambled to the crumpled form of Sylvanas and gasped when she saw just how horrifically injured she was. If Varimathras had been just a few inches closer when he struck, he would have completely cut her in half. Undead as she was, the injury was still potentially survivable but Alyna had to act fast. She quickly looked around to see if there was any help, only to realise that the few others in the throne room had been killed.

The ice block that was Varimathras began to shake as the dreadlord radiated with power. His hands glowed fiercely with fel energy as he worked to shatter what was essentially a thick glass prison. Alyna knew she had a choice to make; attempt to kill a powerful dreadlord without any of her weapons, or save her queen.

Something inside her clenched tightly at the thought of losing Sylvanas.

There is no choice.

Alyna quickly arranged Sylvanas' cloak under her broken body. A few of her preserved but useless internal organs had spilled from her body and Alyna quickly packed them back into the wound before she carefully picked her up. Her queen was so fragile she felt like she might snap in two. As she stood, slick fingertips weakly touched her cheek. She looked down into dim red eyes, and she knew she had to hurry. Her spell would also not hold the dreadlord for much longer.

"I've got you," she murmured, leaving the throne room behind. She stepped over the slaughtered royal dreadguards in the corridor and paused at the exit into the Undercity proper, listening. She already knew the apothecarium to her left was engulfed in the rebellion sweeping the city, but she did not hear much coming from her right. Swiftly, she jogged as smoothly as she was able to down the edge of the canal in the general direction of the rogue's quarter. She knew it was a risk to not stealth, but she had no bow and no runeblade, having left both behind in the barracks not thinking she would need them for a talk with Sylvanas. Conserving her power was more important than being discovered right now.

The canal was not deserted, but the people were too preoccupied with their own priorities to pay attention to a ranger carrying a hooded elf. No one would expect it to be their queen, and so no one truly saw her. A glance down at the closed eyes of her precious burden caused Alyna to curse. She stopped her jog and looked around for some shelter. Spying a door that was slightly ajar, the captain shouldered her way in and paused, listening for any sign of occupancy. When she thought they were alone in the small knickknack shop, she kicked the door closed and knelt down to lay her queen on the floor.

"You're not getting out of our talk that easily…" she muttered as she placed her blood-soaked hand on the queen's chest. She then willed her own life force from her body, to Sylvanas. As the dark red tendrils passed between them, she could see the internal injuries through the gaping slash in her queen's abdomen heal, just enough, to see her through a little longer. It was nowhere near as effective as it would have been on a living person, but it was all Alyna could do for now.

A gloved hand reached up to grip her wrist as Sylvanas groaned in profound pain.

Alyna kept her voice low though she could not hide her relief. "You need to be quiet, Sylvanas. We're hiding."

The queen grimaced deeply. "F-from … who?"

Alyna broke the magical connection as her queen was strong enough to talk. She grunted with the drain it had caused but it had been necessary. "Putress is back in Undercity and started a rebellion in the Apothecarium. I have no idea if Varimathras is with him, or just taking advantage of the situation, but he just tried to kill you."

Red eyes snapped open, clearer than Alyna had seen since all this had started. "Teleport?"

Alyna snorted in bitter amusement. "My weapons are back in the barracks. I could risk teleporting us to the mage quarter anchor to use a portal, but both traitors know our emergency procedures. They may have forces there to secure it and have likely collapsed the portals."

"Leave … me," came the weak order. "Go."

Alyna narrowed her eyes at the stricken woman, unsure where the sentiment was coming from. She shook her head firmly. "No. I left you once to die because you ordered me to go. That's not happening again."

Sylvanas actually tried to glare at her before she relented, nodding weakly. "Then … we must … get … to the sewers … and evacuate."

The captain gazed down at Sylvanas. She did not want to abandon their city to the rebels, but Sylvanas was still dying and in absolutely no state to spearhead a resistance. Leaving the city was her only option. Red eyes flicked down to where Alyna's hand was still pressed against her chest, before making eye contact again. "Thank … you."

The captain sighed. "Thank me when you're safe. We've a long way to go."

She rearranged Sylvanas' cloak again, wet as it was with her blood, and opened the door to the shop, peering around for any trouble. She then picked her queen up and tried to shift the woman into a more comfortable position to carry, earning her a pained grunt of mild protest. Using her foot, she cracked open the door further. Not hearing any immediate danger, she slipped back out into the city with her cherished charge.

Amidst the vast warren that was the Undercity, there were numerous ways to access the sewers that led to the surface. Alyna was not prepared to risk the main tunnels, and so she had carefully navigated their way up the various levels of the city she had come to know as home. In her initial loneliness upon joining the Forsaken, she had made use of the time by exploring the twisted maze of existing catacombs, tombs and dungeons that had been further dredged haphazardly by at first the Scourge, then the Forsaken. She made use of that knowledge now, her target being a rarely used pipe near the roof of the city that she had occasionally made use of during her training to avoid people.

She moved cautiously along the narrow walkways and balconies of the uppermost level of the city, trying to stay away from the edges when she could. She was not concerned with falling, she was confident in her footing, more so with not being seen by the rebels currently below her in the canal. So far, none had thought to raise their heads. She hoped it remained that way.

Sylvanas' eyes were closed again, and she had gone silent. Neither of the signs were good, but Alyna had nothing left to give to sustain her queen, having already done so twice. Even if she wanted to, she was now too weak to stealth them both. Holding her queen close, she slid over the top of the waist-high wall of another balcony and walked quietly along the metal mesh walkway beyond.

They were nearly at the sewer entrance. She lifted Sylvanas up a bit higher and threw her leg over the next wall. She twisted her hips, dragged her trailing leg over the wall, and hopped down to cross the newest balcony. As she rounded the central pillar she silently cursed and ducked back around it. She could see the sewer, but there were people fighting in front of it, the sounds of battle difficult to pick out from the cacophony rising from below. As gently as she was able, she put Sylvanas down behind the pillar, and then peered round it.

At the sewer entrance itself she could see a male and female sin'dorei and a Forsaken male fighting rebel Forsaken, and a tall male demon with bladed armour, duel-wielding swords. Watching carefully, she realised the demon was fighting with the rebel Forsaken, and not against them. A bright flash of Light descended onto the demon, stunning it, but a rebel leapt to its defence.

So much for a nice, quiet sewer pipe, she mused.

With a low growl, Alyna stepped around the pillar. She noted where her presumed allies were, and then pushed her vision into the increasingly familiar grey realm of souls. The screams of the rebels resounded off the ceiling and stone walls as she forcefully relieved them of their souls, and she delighted in the rush of her renewed power. The demon turned and began to charge down the bridge that connected Alyna's side with the side the sewer was on, but he did not get far before the captain froze him in place.

Three pairs of eyes blinked at her in astonishment though Alyna ignored them as she turned to pick up Sylvanas. She held the queen protectively close to her chest while she crossed the bridge and when she reached the demon, she unceremoniously kicked him off the bridge to shatter in the canal streets below. She was no longer concerned about alerting the rebels as to where they were as the screaming would likely have done that.

Now she had the time, Alyna recognised the two elven defenders as Ambassador Sunsorrow and Champion Cyssa Dawnrose, a blood knight paladin instructor. The former stepped forward, lowering his mage's staff. "Captain, your arrival is fortuitous." He used a sleeve from his robe to wipe perspiration off his brow.

Alyna narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the Forsaken wearing a Royal Apothecary Society tabard. "You do not side with the Society in this rebellion, Apothecary?"

The man shook his head vigorously. "N-no, Captain. I am not part of Putress' lot." He lowered his simple sword and gestured at the scene below them in the streets. "Quite frankly, I think him a mad man for all this."

The blood knight took a step forward. "Apothecary Lydon has valiantly fought with us, Captain. There are civilians behind us making their way up to the surface. He volunteered to help delay our pursuers."

Allegiance confirmed, Alyna knew further delay was foolish. "Then help me with Lady Sylvanas. She is gravely wounded."

All three then properly looked at who Alyna was carrying as she pressed past them into the sewer pipe, wanting to get out of sight. Once she had turned a corner, she felt a hand on her shoulder, and she stopped.

The no-nonsense tone of the champion echoed slightly in the pipe. "Captain, you need to set Lady Sylvanas down so I can assess her."

Alyna gazed down at the motionless form of her queen and then relented, kneeling first and finally settling her on the floor. When she lifted aside the queen's cloak, she heard sudden intakes of breath as the onlookers saw the extent of the damage Varimathras had done.

"By the Sunwell! How is she even still with us?" gasped the ambassador.

Dawnrose knelt beside her before looking up at Alyna. "She will not last until we can find a shadow mender. I can help ensure she lives to see one, but …" She winced. "The Light can help her, but it will hurt her immensely."

Lydon muttered, "Pain is likely not our Lady's most immediate concern."

Alyna gave the paladin a nod to begin, and they both settled beside the queen, one to heal, the other to support. The red-headed elf removed her plate gauntlets and grit her teeth through her emotions as she gingerly moved the queen's stale lifeless organs to where they should be within the cavity. Working in silence she placed her hand over the wound as best she could. When Dawnrose prayed to the Light, it responded, flowing through the paladin and into Sylvanas. At first, she just lay there as she was tended to. Then, she woke up.

Screaming.

"Hold her down!" called the paladin, trying to maintain her concentration.

As Alyna reached over to do just that, Sylvanas grasped the captain's wrist in a grip she could not break. She pressed back to pin the queen's arm against her own chest and grabbed the other arm to roughly immobilise the thrashing woman. Lydon threw himself onto the queen's legs though his skeletal frame was not enough, forcing the ambassador to reluctantly help.

As the Light burned through the queen, her eyes searched for and found Alyna's. Despite her agony, she was seemingly aware of the need to try and remain quiet so outside of her initial outburst the banshee queen rode through the process with a clenched jaw, managing only a few groans and gasps.

After a few minutes Dawnrose sat back, perspiration glistening on her smooth elven features. "I've done all I can. She will live but needs more attention."

Sylvanas finally broke eye contact with Alyna and managed a low hiss as she struggled to sit up, assisted by her captain. Her voice quivered very slightly. "You have … my gratitude."

Surprised to see the queen awake and talking, Dawnrose quickly began to apologise for talking about her in the third person, but the queen waved away her words. Using Alyna as support, she awkwardly stood up. An ugly dark line across her abdomen showed where her wound had sealed but it was clear she was still uncomfortable. Though she was now able to move her legs, she was highly unsteady, leaning heavily on Alyna whose arm was now around her newly sealed waist.

New sounds echoed down the sewer pipe from the direction of the surface. Both the ambassador and Alyna prepared spells in their free hands as Dawnrose took up her sword and shield in a defensive position, drained as she was.

When a unit of dreadguards came into sight, led by Grand Executor Ryley, they all relaxed. When Ryley saw the banshee queen she broke into a grin.

"Your Majesty! It is a relief to see you. When there was no word from you on the surface I decided to come see if we could lend any assistance."

The queen nodded once. Her words were clipped as Alyna felt her physical effort to remain standing. "You are a welcome sight, Grand Executor. But we must return to the surface immediately. For now, Undercity is lost."

The news wiped the smile from Ryley's face. It was replaced by a look of steely determination. "She'll be found again soon, your Majesty." She turned and began giving orders to her troops to surround and protect the group.

Alyna gestured for Dawnrose to come closer, and she began moving the queen's support over to the paladin.

Sylvanas resisted. "What are you doing?" she asked quietly but firmly.

"You must go with them, my Lady. And someone has to make sure you are not followed," she stated bluntly.

Just when Alyna thought the queen would argue with her, she relaxed and allowed the transfer of support to the blood knight. Just before the captain let her go, Sylvanas pulled her close enough to whisper, "Do what you have to do, my bow."

The words resonated through her mind as Alyna watched the group move deeper into the sewer. Was Sylvanas finally trusting her? Another thought then suddenly hit her: was trust really the issue here?

Questions for another day, she realised. The captain spun on her heel and headed in the opposite direction. After she crossed the bridge she turned and froze the bolts holding it securely, and then shattered them. The bridge swung down and smashed loudly into the stone wall before snapping its other hinges and dropping down to the canal, crushing a pair of rebels. Satisfied no one would easily follow her queen, Alyna stepped into the shadows to see what chaos she could cause.

An hour later, Alyna snuck into the ranger barracks, and froze. Four gasmask-wearing rebel Forsaken were rummaging through the various racks and chests in the main hall. With them, however, was a plaguehound that was staring directly at her position. Whether it could smell, hear or actually see her didn't matter; it knew she was there and started growling, catching the attention of the rebels.

One of them raised a rifle and tried to look threatening. His voice, though muffled due to the gasmask, noticeably trembled. "Come outta them shadows! We know yer there."

Alyna smiled slightly. Considering where he was, he had a good reason to fear the shadows. She could just kill them without ever showing her face, but she needed information. She allowed the magic concealing her to drop and she rippled into view.

"Eh, well. Loo' wha' we 'ave 'ere, a dark ranger." The rifleman gestured at his companions and they moved to try and circle her, brandishing swords and daggers in her direction in a manner they probably thought was threatening. Alyna stepped forward and allowed them to as it would embolden them.

The rebel nearest to the rifleman edged a little closer to the clear leader. "Maybe she knows where it is? Coz it ain't 'ere."

Alyna flicked an ear slightly, trying to make out their words through the masks. "Yes, perhaps I can help," she said smoothly.

"Aw, shit, Darny," the small female to her side spat. "She's that black-eyed one. She won't be tellin' us nothin'."

The rifleman, presumably Darny, tightened his grip on his weapon. "Likely not t'us, but Lord Varimathras will make 'er talk 'bout where she's stashed that sword."

The captain chuckled lightly. "Won't Putress have something to say about that?"

"Nor likely. 'e does what 'e's told like the rest o' us," came the reply. He waved the muzzle of his gun towards the door. "Now if you'll jus' turn around slowly like and we can get on our way."

Alyna turned slowly, as ordered. "Where are we going?"

"Throne room, where else?"

Where else indeed, she thought. She should have probably guessed that the dreadlord's battered ego at having been subservient to Sylvanas for all these years would have driven him to take the seat of her power for his own. Still, she had all the information she required for the time being.

Alyna smiled as the world started to turn grey. "Thank you for the invitation, but I'm busy." A moment later she was striding towards her office before their bodies hit the floor and their screams had subsided. The dark green plaguehound postured and growled at her but she ignored it.

She scowled at the mess the rebels had made of her office. She had only had it a week, but she had just got things how she liked them. As she already suspected, her runeblade was missing from her weapons rack. Since the rebels were looking for it, she hoped that meant Kyala or Saria had thought to take it with them. Alyna bent down and picked up the bow Sylvanas had made for her, quickly examining it for damage and feeling relieved when she found none. Once she had stowed the bow across her back, she grabbed her usual quiver and stuffed in as many arrows as it could take. A further search of several drawers and the floor eventually turned up a set of keys. She collected them before leaving.

She did not head back down the main hall though, but instead turned towards the cells. The door was still locked, which presumably meant the rebels had not thought to see what was on the other side yet. She descended to the lower level and paused before a particular door. The hesitation lasted only a moment before she unlocked it and stepped just inside, staring down at the lone inhabitant.

"What the fuck do you want?" growled Talnia from the far corner of the cell. She was filthy, wearing little more than rags. Her feet and hands were shackled, the chains bolted to the wall. She could move around, but not far. She had no visible scars, but Alyna knew her punishment had been more mental than physical.

As Alyna spoke, she began to remove a key from the ring she carried. "I'll keep this short. Varimathras and Putress have staged a rebellion. The city is in chaos. The Queen has been evacuated but will be returning in force, in time." She held up the key for Talnia to see. "You can either help me prepare for her arrival or stay here." Alyna shrugged nonchalantly. "And perhaps be found by the rebels before reinforcements arrive."

Talnia blanched at the suggestion. Slowly, she stood. "You'd trust me?" she asked warily.

"I trust you want to get back into our Lady's good graces and not rot here forever." The two women stared at each other, each trying to gauge what the other was thinking. Alyna was not in the mood for such mind games though, and she turned to leave. "Fine, I can do this alone."

"Wait!" snapped Talnia, desperation evident in her voice. Alyna looked back over her shoulder. The former captain raised her manacled wrists. "I will help you." Alyna threw the key to her chains into her cell and left to go further into the dungeon. She heard Talnia calling out, "Where are you going?" but she did not reply.

Alyna unlocked the final cell door on the row and let the door swing in. The human inside did not move at her presence. Curled up on the floor, he continued to stare straight ahead. She felt a familiar rage at his sight, and she allowed herself to feel it for a few moments. For one, last time.

She spoke to him, her words soft but filled with hatred. "For years, you have struggled to attain what you call 'greatness', to achieve his blessing of undeath as the ultimate reward for your depravity." Her boot's slight heels echoed dimly as she strode slowly into the cell to kneel beside him, the leather of her armour creaking as she lowered herself. His eyes flickered. Good, he is aware. "I know it galls you that he gave me a 'gift' you so desperately strove for, a stupid girl who never wanted it, who resisted against him even after attaining it. Me, not you, blessed by your false god." She saw a muscle in his cheek twitch, and she smiled slowly. She gently brushed back his matted hair from his face. "Your soul is now mine. You will never be raised. And as you scream your final breaths, I hope your last thoughts focus on the one truth of your pitiful existence: you failed."

Alyna stood and walked to the door. In a few seconds, he was dead. She stared at his inert form as his very life spread through her being, adding to her power, then she went to re-join Talnia. She found the woman standing outside of her cell, waiting.

As she approached, Talnia chuckled darkly. "So, it was you making him scream these past few days." She raised an appreciative eyebrow. "Haven't you changed."

"Shut up," Alyna growled, not stopping. She climbed the stairs, and after pausing for a moment at the top to make sure the barracks were still clear, she moved through into the main hall. She gestured at the scattered equipment. "Gear up as best you can."

Talnia did not have to be told twice. As she got herself some armour and weaponry, Alyna decided to do the same. She doubted they would be able to come back to the barracks until Sylvanas returned. After finding some daggers and a sword, she found another quiver, filled it, and then hung it from her belt. It was not ideal, but without her runeblade she would have to manage her magic as she could not feed on demons. She had already seen one of the creatures and had no idea how many Varimathras could summon.

Once done, Alyna strode over to one of the rebel corpses. By their attire and demeanour, she knew they were not apothecaries, and yet they all wore gasmasks. Deciding there was a good reason for it, she pulled the one off 'Darny'. The plaguehound was still there, watching her quietly, apparently content to sit beside its dead master.

"We don't breathe. Or do you suddenly have a working pair of lungs?" quipped Talnia.

"Neither did they, but they're wearing them." She turned to face the former captain as she snapped the mask on and adjusted the straps for the best fit. Her voice was slightly muffled as she added, "I'm not about to risk it. Feel free to be my canary*."

With a grunt of disgust, Talnia relieved another rebel of his mask and put it on. "If you say this is a fucking improvement, I'll—"

"Do absolutely nothing," snapped Alyna. "You obey my orders, or I'll kill you and tell the Dark Lady you're a traitor. Is that understood, ranger?" In truth, she did not expect the woman to pose a problem as it was in her best interests not to, but she had no time for petty power games.

Even through the mask, Alyna could see Talnia's red eyes flash in rage. "Yes." She sighed. "What is the plan?"

Alyna walked slowly to the main exit. "Resist. By the time the Dark Lady arrives, I'd like to know where their main camps are and to have killed as many of them as possible. They will have a plan to defend the city. I want to disrupt it."

"And you think the two of us can make a difference?"

She looked back at Talnia. "You accepted the deal. What do you think?"

The woman chuckled. "I think they're going to find out just why they fear us in the first place."

Before they left, Alyna had a thought and she looked at the plaguehound. "Heel!" she commanded. Amazingly, the creature left its fallen master and moved to her side.

"Seriously?"

Alyna shrugged at Talnia and left the barracks.

From her vantage point, Alyna cast her spell on the plague cauldron down below. It rapidly froze solid before suddenly exploding as an arrow hit it.

Talnia lowered her bow. "Just how many of these are there?"

The captain grunted. "Too many." She was about to say more but the sound of wings interrupted her. She looked up. "Move!"

Both rangers dove away as a winged demon crashed onto their balcony. Alyna rose to her feet and snap cast a frost nova, rooting the demon to the floor. He snarled at her and swung a sword in her direction, but she was just out of reach. The creature roared in pain as Alyna could see the tip of a different sword suddenly appear out through its chest. It then disappeared. The demon remained rooted and unable to defend against the devastating swing that sliced through its leg from behind, cutting right through. Alyna's spell wore off as Talnia kicked the demon over the balcony to fall. Despite having wings, it crashed down on the ground below, the sound of its neck snapping audible from above.

Alyna turned to Talnia, the demon's severed leg between them being sniffed at by their adopted plaguehound. "Not bad. And I suppose that one also has a name?"

The woman snorted in amusement. "You're pretty handy at freezing things yourself … Captain." She then looked over the side briefly to double check the demon. "I believe that one is a 'doomguard'."

"Ah." Having no idea whether the use of her rank was a compliment or an insult, she did not acknowledge it. "So, felhunter, felguard, wrathguard, shivarra, sayaad, and now a doomguard. Varimathras really is inviting the entire family."

Alyna quickly peered over the side to search for more threats and demons whose names she had yet to learn. They had spent the past two days playing cat and mouse with the rebel forces. On one side, they had made progress. On another, they were fighting a losing battle. Alyna slipped her vision into what she was increasingly calling her 'greyscale'. "I don't see any Forsaken. Plenty of demons, but they're not close. It doesn't look like they heard their friend fall."

Talnia was using her cloak to clean her sword. "We haven't seen any rebel Forsaken for hours now. It's possible we've either killed them all or they're all above in the ruins." She chuckled knowingly. "And when I say 'we', I mean you. I had no idea your appetite was so voracious." The woman then had the audacity to wink.

Alyna ignored it. After two days with Talnia she knew the woman was not actually trying to get under her skin at this point. She just could not help herself. She was right about the Forsaken, though. The plague cauldrons they were destroying had been used to fill barrels that had subsequently been transported to the surface via the elevators. The ones she had killed were not being replaced so they were finally thinning down their numbers. This was also the first cauldron they had seen in a while. The demons, on the other hand, were another matter and rapidly multiplying.

"They must be expecting the Queen to attack through the main courtyard," Alyna mused out loud.

Talnia sheathed her sword. "That would be the better option for her, yes. The sewers can be easily trapped and caved in if required. Not ideal."

"So can the elevators," Alyna pointed out, realising that it was still the less fraught option. "Let's go check on them, shall we?"

The other woman grunted but did not object. "I wish we could do something about these demons. He is summoning them from somewhere."

Alyna shrugged. "We've investigated every demonic power source I've sensed and dealt with the minor portals. The only one left I can feel is in the Royal Quarter so the main portal must be there." And they were not about to head there without numbers to back them up.

"Well. At least we've made sure the city is relatively unplagued." Talnia sounded proud of their work.

Alyna gave the woman a small grin as she walked past her. "Keep the gasmask on though. I prefer it that way."

A low chuckle followed her down the corridor behind the balcony. "Careful, Captain, or I might get dangerously close to actually thinking you're tolerable."

The two women fell silent as they began to move in the familiar pattern they had built together. Alyna led the way using her ability to see souls to keep them ahead of any demons. When they had no choice but to sneak past some, Talnia would take the lead and Alyna would take hold of her arm. To conserve Alyna's energy, Talnia would stealth them both so long as the captain maintained physical contact. If she needed to be directed, Alyna would tap her shoulder.

The plaguehound trotted along behind them dutifully. Though Talnia had initially thought it would be a problem, the plaguehound had proven invaluable when it came to the felhunters used by more intelligent demons. Like the plaguehound, felhunters could see the dark rangers through their stealth and alerted any demons nearby of their presence. However, when they saw the plaguehound, which itself was demonic in origin, they just assumed it was reacting to that. It had given Alyna some early respect from the former captain.

She could not deny that the pair had worked well together. If pressed, she would even admit to having enjoyed parts of their collaboration. Slowly, when it was safe, the pair had talked about the events that had happened while Talnia had been indisposed. She had made few comments, and most of them had been reserved for calling Areiel various names for her actions on behalf of Talnia. Alyna had found that curious.

"You're not defending your friend?" she had asked.

"Why would I defend a fool? I made a mistake, and she failed to learn from it. Lady Sylvanas will now be assisting her in that lesson."

Alyna expected that she had just had what would be closest thing to an apology that she was going to get.

During their quieter times, her thoughts had turned to Sylvanas. She believed she was beginning to understand her queen's motivations for certain decisions. When they had been alive, she had more than once accused her lover of being overly protective because of her feelings and of using her superior rank to try and keep Alyna safe. She had begun to see the parallels between now and then, and she finally comprehended the depths of emotion Sylvanas must still possess. Depths she had kept masterfully hidden, likely even from herself, until she could no longer. Cracks were appearing in the queen's walls and Alyna knew it was time to either fix them permanently or knock the damn thing down.

Once the minor issue of a rebelling city was resolved, that is.

Eventually the two women reached the central district of the Undercity, the trade quarter, dominated by the bank raised up in the middle of the domed section. Curiously, no one was there other than themselves. Alyna suddenly tapped Talnia's shoulder, telling her to stop before they crossed the bridge. She had another look around in her greyscale, and then let go of the woman, immediately removing her stealth. Talnia disappeared briefly before she too stopped cloaking herself.

"What?" she asked impatiently.

"There's no one here. Doesn't that strike you as odd if this is meant to be where our Lady is expected to attack from?" Alyna kept looking around, turning on the spot.

Talnia immediately understood and also looked around, warily. She raised her hand up to touch her bare throat. "Now that you … I think my skin is … tingling? It's hard to tell."

Alyna frowned and closed her eyes, focusing on her magical senses. The demonic energy in the city was increasingly strong, but just below it she could sense numerous points of arcane energy in their immediate area. "There's arcane magic here. Several sources, but I'm having difficulty locating them."

"Well, one thing's for sure: it's a trap. It has to be," Talnia announced matter-of-factly. "And unless you have some bright ideas, the only way to find a trap quickly … is to trigger it."

Alyna turned to Talnia. "We have no idea what it will do. It could collapse this entire section."

The woman shrugged. "If that happens, then they'll find the cave in pretty quickly and will just have to find another way in. One that isn't a death trap."

They stared at each other for a few moments as they generally did when it was decision time. Alyna wasn't sure if she was constantly being tested or if Talnia just had nothing better to do. "Have anything to throw?"

"No …" she replied slowly. "But you do."

"I do?"

"You do." Talnia laughed, enjoying the game. "You're a frost-shadowy-mage thing." She gestured at the bridge before her that led over the sewer canal towards the bank on the central platform. "Make a snowball."

Alyna felt her jaw drop slightly in bewilderment. It sounded like a childish thing to do, but it was also a little brilliant. The traps were likely to be triggered by either weight or presence. The snowball could potentially do both if it was big enough. She held her hands out and quickly formed a fist-sized snowball between them. She rolled it forwards so it stopped at the top of the bridge.

Nothing happened.

She made another snowball and rolled it with more force so this time it crossed the bridge entirely. When it rolled off the end, it was immediately evaporated in a sudden subdued explosion that forced the two rangers to take a step back and automatically raise their arms to protect themselves. The plaguehound yelped and ran behind Alyna's leg. When she lowered her arm, Alyna could see a sizable crater that had narrowly missed compromising the bridge itself.

Talnia slowly half-crossed the bridge to inspect the damage. "Surprisingly quiet, but deadly, it would seem." She straightened up. "Do you think you could replicate this one day?"

Alyna followed, ignoring the question and automatically explaining what they had just heard. "Most of the sound from an explosion is generated by the sudden compression of air by the force generated by a chemical blast." She began to forge another snowball. "A lot of magic ignores the air. I once heard it described as it can pass through the gaps in the air. Anyway. It doesn't make much sound so most of what we heard was the damage to the floor." She gestured for Talnia to move back along the bridge a bit. "While it ignores air, it does not ignore solid things. Like us. And … snowballs."

She rolled the snowball towards the bottom of the steps, setting off another arcane mine.

"We're going to be here a long time if we have to do this one by one," groused the former captain.

"It was your idea. And I don't think we have to destroy all of them. We could just clear a path to one elevator to start with." She glanced back at Talnia and smirked, "And when I say 'we', I mean me. Put yourself somewhere useful and make sure we're not ambushed."

Surprisingly, she did exactly as she was told. Alyna looked down at the plaguehound. It looked back up at her. She shrugged and figured it would make an informed decision about where it wanted to be as soon as things started blowing up again. She made another snowball and got to work.

Sometime later, she reached the closest elevator. She whistled to signal Talnia, and then waited for the ranger to catch up. She felt something brush against her leg and she looked down to see the very dusty plaguehound that had not left her side.

Once Talnia came into view, the captain gestured at the door. "They destroyed the door. And the elevator along with it."

Talnia peered into the shaft, carefully. "I'm just seeing the usual trap. Are you sensing anything?"

Alyna shook her head. "Not this time." When Talnia stood back she took her own turn at examining the large metal spikes that had been arranged at the base of the shaft. It was part of the planned contingency to needing to close the shafts to an enemy; the spikes were kept in storage nearby. They had been melted into the floor.

The current captain looked back at the former captain. "At the risk of sounding like I'm only useful for one thing, I can freeze them. And shatter them."

"I'm not about to complain about something that works." Talnia shrugged. "I've nothing better." She then surprised the captain by sounding almost concerned. "Have you got enough juice for it?"

She assessed herself for a moment. "I do, so long as we just do this shaft. I'll have to stop freezing cauldrons until I feed again though."

Talnia shifted her weight as she thought. "How can we tell the Dark Lady we've cleared this shaft and it's safe?"

Alyna stared at the spikes as she followed her own thoughts. Then, she smiled slightly.

"Leave that to me."

NOTE: *Before technology came into force, canaries were taken down into mining tunnels with miners. If a dangerous gas was released, such as carbon monoxide, the gas would kill the canary first and provide a warning for the miners they had to leave the tunnel.