Lothar stared in horror at what his friend had become.
"My first experiment was a great success, as you can see," observed Gul'dan. "At first I was unsure how the gift of the Fel would affect one of your kind, especially one so unwilling to accept it, but Khadgar has surpassed even my highest expectations."
Lothar couldn't speak. He didn't trust himself to. Because of all the things the warlock could have done to Khadgar, he never would have guessed that Gul'dan would share his "gift" with the mage. /A magic unlike any other,/ Medivh had once called it. /It feeds on life itself. It pollutes the user, twisting everything it touches. It promises great power – but it exacts a terrible price./
The price Khadgar was now paying.
Gul'dan waved a hand, feeding thin tendrils of green energy into Khadgar. The mage's unnaturally glowing eyes closed and he shivered, clawed hands gripping the bars. But the claws weren't the only changes. There were two sets of horns at either side of Khadgar's head, curving backward and gleaming white like bone, and what Lothar had initially thought to be a cloak draped around the man's shoulders was actually a set of dragonlike wings. From the shoulders themselves grew multiple bony spikes.
He looked like the demon Medivh had become. The demon he and Khadgar had fought, and beaten. But his face was still clearly Khadgar's…and for Lothar, this made it immeasurably worse. Fighting Medivh hadn't been easy, but it would have been even harder if he'd still looked like himself.
"Excellent," Gul'dan pronounced, ceasing the stream of energy; and Khadgar sagged against the bars, sighing, his eyes still closed. "My pet will grow ever stronger, the more of my gift he receives. And when the Fel has fully remade him, he will be stronger than Medivh ever was, and he will help me conquer your world."
Lothar finally found his voice. "What, you mean to say this – process – isn't even finished yet?" he bellowed. He couldn't imagine Khadgar changing much more than he already had.
The orc guards gripped their weapons and moved closer at his outburst, but Gul'dan waved them back. "Too much too quickly would have killed him. That was not part of my plan," he explained. "Right now, at such an early stage in his transformation, he is still a creature of instinct, nothing more. A lower demon, able to carry out simple commands, and easily controlled by one such as myself. But not for long. Once the Fel has consumed him completely, his higher functions and intellect will return…and at that point, he will aid me in my war efforts willingly," he pronounced. "And then I will have him kill you in front of my entire army." He smiled. "But for now…"
The warlock turned to face Khadgar. "Open your eyes, my pet," he said. "I've brought you a friend."
Khadgar did as he was commanded, turning his Fel-green eyes onto Lothar for the first time. There was an intensity in his gaze, maybe even curiosity, but no real recognition.
"This next experiment, if successful, could prove even more useful than the first," stated Gul'dan. "Because now that I know I can gift humans with the Fel, I should determine if those humans can transmit it to others. If so, it will be an invaluable method of spreading my influence across your world. And you will help me assess that, commander." The orc gazed at him knowingly. "I could smell the lust on you from the moment you arrived. And I know it wasn't directed at me." He laughed. "I can still smell it now, and it's even stronger." He leaned closer to Lothar. "You desire him. Even as a creature like this, an inhuman demon, you still desire him."
Lothar clamped his jaws shut, not wanting to give Gul'dan the satisfaction of a response. But by the Light, he couldn't deny it. Even through his revulsion at what had been done to Khadgar, Lothar still wanted him. He still loved him.
The warlock laughed again, and sent more Fel energy into Khadgar before addressing the demon-mage directly. "You know what Lothar wants, don't you?" he asked. "If I can smell it, then you certainly can…and in your current state, I can only imagine what that scent is doing to you." He reached up and brushed Khadgar's hair back from his forehead in an almost affectionate manner. "Would you like to use him, my pet? Fuck him?" He looked between them. "Take him, but do not kill him. Let's see if you can spread the Fel to Commander Lothar. And even if you can't, well…consider it a reward for your future obedience."
Lothar took an involuntary step backwards, but two of the guards grabbed his arms, holding him in place while the other opened the cage door. Lothar fought as hard as he could, but he would have been hard-pressed to keep even normal orcs from forcing him through it and into the cell.
"He won't kill you. Not yet," Gul'dan assured him, as he and the guards prepared to leave Lothar to his fate.
"You son of a bitch—"
"Temper, temper, commander – I would suggest not raising your voice or making any sudden movements around my pet. He may not kill you, but he can certainly still injure you, especially if he takes any of your actions as a threat." The same ugly smile as before spread across Gul'dan's face. "I'll leave you two to get…reacquainted. When I return, you will either be a creature of the Fel, as Khadgar is, or a footnote in a failed experiment. Either way, I look forward to seeing the result."