The Dark Portal Opens

Blasted Lands, once the southern half of the marshlands known as Black Morass, now a foul desert that resides next to the northern half of the marshlands called the Swamp of Sorrows. It was where the Orcish Horde first started their invasion, charging through a portal built by the Guardian Medivh on Azeroth's side and the warlock Gul'dan on Draenor's side. The land itself began to die as the near barren world of Draenor, caused by the use of demonic magic known as the fel, began to have its magics pour through into Azeroth and kill the land and wildlife around the portal.

At the end of the Second War, the portal was closed to stop the magics from pouring through, only opening up again briefly for the shaman Ner'zhul, Chieftain of the Shadowmoon Clan, to gather powerful, magical items to create many more portals on Draenor so the orcs could invade new, less resistant worlds. Now with the Dark Portal closed once again, yet showing signs of activity, Dalaran and their outpost Nethergarde Keep are standing watch over the land and the portal, waiting for the day it becomes active.

Guards were posted near the Dark Portal, sending feedback back to Nethergarde Keep every two hours with any and all updates. "So there I was, right? Middle of Elwynn Forest on my week off and some lowlife, good for nothin', scrawny shit stain tries to hold me up with his rusty knife, arm shakin' and drownin' in sweat."

There were three guards at the Dark Portal, two veterans of war and a recruit that was put alongside them for experience. "Tell ehm what you did, Reg." One of the older guards said, looking over to the recruit. "You'll love this."

"I.. I think I have an idea on what he does next." The recruit said.

"Shut up Bill." The guard said, slapping him on the back of the head. "Just listen to him."

"Thank you, Michael." Reg says, looking over to Bill. "So this little shit, bones shakin' so much I thought I was bein' held up by a skeleton, dropped his knife when I took one step towards him. Takin' that opportunity, I picked up his knife and pointed it back at him. And I swear to the Light, both moons in the sky and whatever fucking Gods are listenin', that this good for nothin' waste of flesh and bones had shit himself so badly that the birds could smell it and flew away."

Bill grimaced and looked away. "That's... Disgusting."

"This is the best part." Michael said, nudging Bill with his elbow.

"I hope it gets better..." Bill muttered, being hit on the back of the head again by Michael.

"Shut it." He told him, knocking the recruit forward a couple steps with how hard he hit him. "Carry on, Reg."

"Right, so as I was sayin'. There was this stench comin' from that scrawny rat in front of me and -"

Before the guard could finish his sentence, there was a loud bang behind the three of them, followed by the sound of wind rushing passed them and then a dark, purple glow lighting up the immediate area. "That's... Not good." Michael said, looking over to the recruit with them. "Bill, go back to the Keep and inform the Captain that the portal is open."

"Wh-what about you?" Bill asked, watching both Reg and Michael place their helmets on their heads and pick up their swords and shields.

"Just go, boy!" Reg barked, standing beside Michael as a group of demons walked through the Dark Portal. "Ready?" He asked, getting a confident nod from the soldier beside him before they both charged towards the demons who noticed them and charged towards them.

High within Sunfury Spire, two elves were sleeping peacefully in bed when three firm knocks on the door to their Sunfury home woke them both up. "Mmmm... Was that the door?" Sylvanas asked, sitting up a little and looking over to Athrodar who sighed and kissed her on the temple.

"It was, go back to sleep. I'm sure it's nothing that we won't have to worry about until the morning." Athrodar whispered to her, smiling to himself when she nodded her head lazily and flopped back down and curled up in the bed, wrapping the bed sheets around her tightly.

"Wake me up if it is important." She muttered, falling back to sleep quickly.

Making his way to the front door, Athrodar held up his hand when he noticed Victoria yawn and rub her eyes when she stood at the door to her bedroom. "Go back to sleep honey, I'm sure it's nothing."

"Okay, dad." She muttered, shuffling back into her bed and, just like Sylvanas, flopped back down in bed and went back to sleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

Opening the front door, Athrodar looked out and saw nobody standing in front of him for a couple seconds before he looked down a little and noticed Thalina standing in front of him, an annoyed look on her face when she saw he had to look down to even notice she was there. "Thal, you do realise what time it is, right?"

"I know, it's the middle of the night. But since my father is sleeping and I am still a Convocation Apprentice, I am on late night messenger duty." She smiled up at him and handed Athrodar a letter in her hand. "It's urgent, but the King has given you the day to think things over."

Athrodar sighed and opened the letter, reading through it quickly and frowning at the piece of parchment in his hand. "Wait..." He said, reading through it again and then looking over to Thalina. "Who else knows?" He asked her.

"Only you, the King, me of course because I'm nosy and I used my magic to reseal the letter and Dael'Thaelas." Her smile faded a little when she saw Athrodar run a hand through his hair. "When do you think you'll have to leave?"

"Probably in a week." Athrodar told her, looking down at the letter again. "So the Dark Portal is open, huh?"

"It is." Thalina told him.

"I'll talk to the King in the evening, after I've had some time to think and discussed this with the General." He smiled and looked back to Thalina. "Thank you, you can go now and hopefully catch some sleep too."

"Will do." Thalina told him with a beaming smile.

Closing the door behind him, Athrodar made his way back to the bedroom and looked over to the window in the room, sitting on the windowsill when he made his way towards it and looking out at the city below. "Brilliant." He muttered to himself, looking down at the letter in his hand. "I knew this day was coming, but I still hoped it wouldn't."

Hearing Athrodar talk to himself, Sylvanas sat up slowly, yawned and stretched. "Who was at the door?" She asked, looking over to Athrodar and just making him out through her sleepy haze.

"Just Thalina handing me a report for the Convocation. I'll tell you about it in the morning." Athrodar told her, making his way over to the bed and kissing the General on the forehead. "Go back to sleep." He whispered.

"Only if you hold me." Sylvanas muttered, trying and failing to fight off tiredness.

"If that's what my General wants." Athrodar whispered back to her, climbing over the General slowly and hearing her giggle when he took his time getting into bed.

"Just lay down already." Sylvanas laughed, smiling and shaking her head when he collapsed on top of her. "That's not what I meant!" She cried, pushing him off her and resting her head on his chest when he laid down properly beside her. "Only I can lay on you, not the other way around. You know how much I love hearing your heart beating in your chest when we sleep."

Athrodar smiled and kissed the top of her head, holding her closely to him. "I know." He whispered, kissing her on the lips now and feeling the General try to deepen the kiss. "I love you."

"I love you too." Sylvanas replied, nuzzling her head under his chin and letting out a long sigh of content. "Nowhere else I'd rather be."

"That makes two of us." Athrodar agreed, falling asleep with the General in his arms.

"Are they all there?" Kael'thas asked, fixing his robes whilst looking in the mirror in front of him, moving slightly to the left to look at Thalina who was waiting for him.

"They are, your Grace." She told him, being placed in his command for the week to get used to how the King goes about his day. "You're the last one to arrive."

Kael'thas smiled and fixed the last couple of spots on his robes. "How do I look?" He asked, getting a smile from the young mage.

"Perfect, your Grace." Thalina told him, getting a chuckle from Kael'thas in return.

"If that were the case, I would never have asked." He told her, looking over to the mage who looked down at her feet in embarrassment. "But I'll take your word for it, Thalina."

Making his way to the Convocation Hall, Kael'thas opened the twin doors to find everyone was in fact waiting for him, all the Convocation as well as the Ranger-General who had been called to many Convocation meetings as of late. "Sorry for keeping you all." He said, sitting down at the head of the table and looking over to Athrodar, then over to Dael'Thaelas. "I take it you all know why we're here?"

"The Dark Portal is open." Sylvanas said for everyone, getting a nod from the King.

"Exactly that, yes." Kael'thas agreed. "You're all here because we are planning to send an expeditionary force through in a week. I need you all to start making plans and preparations for whatever it is we find on the other world. Whether it's a world full of demons or nothing at all." He looked over to Belo'vir and Telramar, his two Grand Magisters present in the meeting. "No doubt we'll find something of use magic wise, so gather a group to send through with the expeditionary force." He looked over to Athrodar now. "And as we discussed, you will be my eyes and ears. Anything and everything that happens needs to be reported back to me."

Dael'Thaelas sat forward the moment the King appointed Athrodar as his shadow. "M-my King. Surely I should be the one to go? I have more experience managing resources, I know what to look out for. Athrodar wont -"

"I have chosen him, Lord Sunblade." Kael'thas said, interrupting Dael'Thaelas and looking over to him now. "You are to remain here and protect our borders, serve your King and his Kingdom whilst Athrodar leads ours forces on the other side of the Dark Portal."

"Along with the Ranger-General who will be leading the rangers of her choice." Athrodar said, looking over to Sylvanas and then over to Lord Sunblade. "I'll be fine, if that's what you're worried about."

Dael'Thaelas let out a small laugh and then looked over to the King. "Any words on that race off the coast of Darnassus?"

"They're called the Draenei." Kael'thas told him. "Apparently they are to partner with the Humans, Dwarves and Gnomes to help bolster the Alliance. According to General Feathermoon's report, they are from the same world the Orcs came from and escaped a demon, only to crash here."

"No doubt they had the same problem we did with the Orcs." Athrodar said, looking over to his great grandfather who nodded his head slowly.

"They did, only worse." Kael'thas told him. "They are joining the Alliance because those that remained on that planet they escaped from made contact with some humans and dwarves. Something we found out when the first reports from the other side of the Dark Portal came through."

"We are receiving reports already?" Belo'vir asked, watching the King nod his head.

"We are. Well, at least Dalaran are. But seeing as we have a good working relationship with Dalaran, it's only natural we get these reports too." Kael'thas placed a hand on the table and tapped his finger lightly. "What the reports have also said is that this world is full of demons, corrupted demonic orcs and a giant machine that roams the very lands you will be stepping onto."

"A giant machine?" Sylvanas asked, leaning back in her chair and looking at the King. "How big are we talking?"

"Reports are ranging from the size of our walls to half the height of this very spire." Kael'thas told her. "It shouldn't be too difficult to find it and it's mostly passive unless provoked, so hiding should be easy if you need to."

"Shouldn't be too hard then, my King." Sylvanas said, looking over to Athrodar quickly and then returning her attention to the King. "I will need Athrodar's help in picking out the lucky few who are going of course. Seeing as he will be in charge of this expedition, I would like his input when it comes to the rangers."

Kael'thas smiled and held back a laugh. "I understand, General. You can take him once this meeting is over."

The meeting went on for half an hour longer, discussing mostly logistics, supplies they would be taking and several minor problems that were to be sorted in the meantime whilst the expeditionary force were away. Once they had finished however, there was a slight nervousness about Sylvanas and Athrodar as they left the Convocation Hall. Neither truly knew what they were going to face on the other side of the Dark Portal and now that they both had more to lose than when they did during the Scourge's first invasion, they both agreed to take extra precautions when it came to who they were selecting and how they would go about this new campaign.

"What are we thinking? Field our best rangers, best scouts or those who will pack up and leave quickly without any fuss?" Sylvanas asked him, standing beside Athrodar when he stopped walking to think. "I'm thinking a mix between best rangers and scouts." She suggested, waiting for his answer.

"I think that would be the smartest option." Athrodar agreed, looking over to the General and noticing a slight worry in her eyes he had only seen when she returned from Stratholme. "Hey, we'll be okay." He told her softly, placing a hand on her cheek. "If we're lucky, we won't play a major part in this war and we will have time to look for Alleria."

Sylvanas shook her head. "It's not that." Said the General, taking hold of his hand and kissing the palm of it, only to place it back on her cheek. "I have something to lose now. A whole lot to lose actually. I have two kids, two nephews, a sister and brother-in-law and finally." She placed a hand over his hand that had remained on her cheek and leaning her head against it a little. "I have a husband I don't want to lose."

Athrodar smiled at his new title. He had only been wearing it for a week, but they had both agreed they didn't want to wait any longer to get married and wanted it to be silent with no guests outside of immediate family. "And I have all of that and a wife who didn't let me finish proposing to her when I showed her the ring I had given her years before. Instead she dragged me to Liadrin and planned the date for the wedding to happen two days later."

Sylvanas smiled brightly at the story. "I was excited. I had already waited decades for you, I just wanted it to happen as soon as possible." She got up onto her tiptoes and kissed him hard on the lips. "And I couldn't be happier with my decision. I have my mate. The elf I am spending the rest of my life with."

"So..." Athrodar muttered, looking the General in her eyes. "Would Viraleth be the first and only sensible option when it comes to our rangers?"

"She is going, yes. I have already discussed this with her before the portal even opened." Sylvanas began to grin at him. "I have also spoken to your mother and Melonara. Illana is looking after our children and Viraleth's daughter whilst Melonara has agreed to come with us."

Athrodar pulled back and frowned at the General. "What? Why?" He asked her.

"Because they have a successful tavern in Stormwind and Melonara has already found a couple of humans to run the tavern whilst she's away and your mother wants to spend time with Victoria and Talanas." Sylvanas placed her hands on his face and pulled him closer so she could kiss him. "That and Mel's a good ranger and scout that could be of use to us."

Athrodar began to tilt his head at the General and grow a frown on his face. "Does this mean Anya and Clea are going?" Asked the Lieutenant, watching Sylvanas slowly smile at him and knowing the answer already. "Oh, come on..."

"They're good rangers!" Sylvanas told him, taking hold of his hands. "They just... Know how to push everyone's buttons. Especially yours it seems."

"Don't get me wrong, I enjoy their company... Sometimes. But, do we have to bring them?"

Sylvanas grinned, knowing she couldn't pass up the opportunity to have others tease Athrodar too. "We do. Now, alongside Melonara and Viraleth, we have four out of thirty. Not including the two of us."

"I'm sure you'll pick out the other twenty-six before tonight, which I will go through and decide whether or not I agree with your choices." Athrodar said, kissing the General lightly. "Until then, I have to check in on my class and their new instructor whilst I'm away."

"Then I will get onto finding our group." Sylvanas told him, getting up onto her tiptoes and kissing him again, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding the Lieutenant close to her. "You will accept every single one of them too." She purred, kissing him again. "Go, I'll come find you when I have the group, even if I'm early."

"Then I will keep myself busy until then." Athrodar told her, squeezing the General. "Starting with my class at the Academy."

"I love you." The General whispered to him, smiling brightly the moment she saw the Lieutenant smile at those three words.

"I love you too." He whispered back before they both pulled away and went about the rest of their days.

"I don't like that you're going to that evil place." Illana said, hugging her son tightly. "You should be staying here."

"You know I can't." Athrodar told his mother, kissing the top of her head and holding onto her tightly for both comfort and reassurance. "I am going to be surrounded by our best rangers. We aren't going to be in any real threat either, not unless we go looking for it." He looked over to the group of mages being led by Grand Magister Telramar Dawnstrider. "And I have Thal's father there, so if anything happens you can blame him."

Illana pulled back from the hug and pulled her son's head down so she could kiss him on the forehead. "I trust your wife more to keep you safe." She told him, looking over to Sylvanas who was hugging both Talanas and Victoria. "That and she will want to return to your children."

Athrodar smiled and looked over to three of the most important elves in his life right now. "I feel the same way. The sooner we get this campaign over and done with, the better."

Illana watched the General look over to the two of them and waved her over. "You're going to miss your son's fourth birthday." She whispered to Athrodar, hugging Sylvanas when she stood in front of her. "Hello, dear."

"I'm happy you're here, Illana." Sylvanas whispered, hearing her chuckle and feeling her hug tighten a little.

"I told you, you can call me mom." Illana told her, pulling back and watching an embarrassed Sylvanas look away from her. "I don't mind, honest."

"I know." Sylvanas said, looking down at her hands when Illana took hold of them. "I'm just not used to it yet. I've not called anyone that since my own mother died."

"Then I won't force it out of you." Illana told her, keeping her voice as soft as always and smiling at the General who smiled back. "I never said at the wedding, but I'm happy you two have repaired your bridges. I don't think I've seen him so happy."

Sylvanas smiled brightly at her words and looked over to Athrodar who was talking to Kael'thas whilst keeping his arms around Victoria who stood in front of him, holding onto her father's arms. "Like I have said to him, I've waited decades for this moment and now I have a son with him and a daughter who may not be mine, but I love her as if she was." Her smile saddened a little. "I just wish she was mine, but I acted too slowly."

"You can't blame yourself for him being constantly horny back then and surprisingly only getting one woman pregnant." Illana said, getting a small laugh from the General. "If it makes you feel any better, I know Victoria is warming up to the idea of calling you her mother."

Sylvanas' smile grew to a size she didn't think possible. "That does make me feel better." She said, looking back to Illana. "I'm just sad I am going to miss by son's fourth birthday and Victoria's twelfth whilst I'm on a different planet, hopefully finding my sister."

"I'm sure they both understand why you're not going to be there." Illana said, looking over to her son and granddaughter.

"If you need anything, just send a runner back to the city." Kael'thas told Athrodar. "No doubt you'll need a handful of blacksmiths and builders to set up an outpost once you find an ideal location."

"Almost definitely. Hopefully the Grand Magister will be able to open up a portal between that location and here, to make travel quicker." Athrodar said, glancing down to his daughter who continued to hold onto his arm tightly. "And if the outpost is safe, perhaps you can visit this new world, my King." He kissed the top of his daughter's head and made her look up at him. "As well as you and your brother."

Victoria smiled brightly at her father. "I would love that."

"I have instructed the Grand Magister to do some research on the land, separate from what your main task on that planet." Kael'thas told Athrodar. "Any results will be sent back to the city and if he has any unanswered questions, hopefully our mages here can find the answers."

"No doubt he'll want the help of our rangers to secure things for him." Athrodar said, looking over to the Grand Magister. "I'm sure it will be fine, but I expect complaints after the second or third time of asking."

"Knowing Grand Magister Dawnstrider, I expect he will try to do most things on his own and with his mages." Kael'thas told him, smiling when he saw Victoria hug Athrodar tightly. "I think she wants to spend the last few minutes with family and not with me." He said, stepping back and watching Athrodar hug his daughter.

"Promise me you'll be safe?" Victoria whispered, just for reassurance on the whole thing.

"I will be." Athrodar whispered back to her, kissing her on the temple. "Sylvanas will make sure of it and since I am just an ambassador and the King's right hand on this mission, I won't be doing much fighting, if any unless it is necessary."

Victoria smiled and looked over to Sylvanas and Talanas who were both making their way towards them. "That's good." She said, hugging Sylvanas again. "I want you to be safe too."

Sylvanas' smile made Athrodar smile when he saw them hugging. "I will be safe, just for you." She told the young elf. "So long as you promise me you'll look after your brother?"

"I will." Victoria said, pulling back from the hug and taking hold of Talanas' hand. "Grandma will help too."

"Ready to leave?" Athrodar asked, getting a nod from the General and placing a hand on her back. "I'll go inform the Grand Magister, wait here."

Arriving in the Blasted Lands took a few minutes for the Ranger-General and her rangers as well at Grand Magister Dawnstrider as his mages, all of them looking up at the giant portal that stood before them. "So this is it..." Viraleth muttered, looking over to the Ranger-General. "We step through this and we're on another world."

"And hopefully we will find Alleria over there." Sylvanas said, taking hold of Athrodar's hand when he stood beside her. "I'll go through first."

"I'll be right behind you." Athrodar told her, raising her hand to his lips and kissing the top of it.

Sylvanas took a deep breath and began to make her way towards the Dark Portal, looking back to her group of rangers for a few second. "Here goes nothing." She muttered, making her way through the Dark Portal and moving her hand to her eyes when the sun on this planet began to blind her.

"Damn that's bright." Athrodar muttered, standing beside the General, making her look over to him and the rest of her rangers who were walking through the Dark Portal. "So this is the orc home world." He said when his vision cleared, getting used to the immediate change along with everyone else.

"We need to find a place to make camp." Sylvanas told him, watching several demons engage in a fight with humans, dwarves, tauren, orc and trolls. "Then we can start to find some footing on this planet and help the Grand Magister with his missions as well as our own."

"We just have to get through these demons." Viraleth told the Ranger-General. "I can gather a few scouts and push forward, perhaps I can find something of use."

Sylvanas nodded her head in agreement to her plan. "Go. We'll try to find a way for the rest of us to get through and further in land."

Watching their Chief Scout leave, Athrodar took hold of Sylvanas' hand again and smiled when she looked down at the action. "Ready?" He whispered to her.

"I am." She whispered back to him, placing her free hand on the back of his head and pulling him down towards her, placing a soft kiss on his lips for a couple seconds and pulling away when she realised they weren't alone. "Let's go find us a way through these demons."

A/N: Been a LONG time since I uploaded, but I have been busy trying to write this chapter (And half of the second one), as well as another story I am working on in the mean time that will be based around Dragonflight for my other AU story (That says its finished, but I really had an itch to write another story for it after re-reading the entire thing, playing Dragonflight and falling in love with some of my OC's all over again). So expect that one to be out and updated in turn with this one, though I might add three or four chapters on one story and leave the other one for a bit if I have more drive to write it... Basically I'll have two stories going at once!

Anyway, enjoy this chapter, it took me several months to write and rewrite when I didn't know what to put. This story is going to be tough, but I am looking forward to it as there is a lot of changes in TBC and a lot more in Wrath now that Quel'Thalas/Silvermoon didn't fall.