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Chapter Four

Winged Terror

Nobu'tan knew that he had to rest soon, but he continued to hike through the forests of eastern Lordaeron, pushing himself as hard as he could to reach Quel'Thalas and the rest of the Horde. The reason he was refusing to rest was that, far back down the main road toward the Capital City of Lordaeron, Nobu'tan had spotted the Alliance army marching the same direction.

Thankfully, hundreds marching along a road would never be faster than a lone figure going cross country, so the orc trained warlock figured he would arrive with time to spare to warn Gul'dan of the approaching army.

He was just passing by a large trade village, circling around it via a mountain pass that separated him from the town by a lake. Just as he was passing by a knot of trees, he heard something faint, like a rustle of leaves or a tiny branch snapping. Shifting his eyes, Nobu'tan paused, even as something leapt down from the trees behind him.

Turning slowly, Nobu'tan eyed the Forest troll that had stalked him. The tall creature was smirking, probably because of several of his fellows that were surrounding him even now.

"Took you long enough to find me," Nobu'tan said in perfect orcish, startling the troll, "bring me to Gul'dan and you will be rewarded."

"Why we be helpin' you, human? Why don' we just gut you and bring your body to the Horde?" The troll said, smirking.

"Because if you did so, Gul'dan will obliterate you, your race, and everything you hold dear. I am Nobu'tan, apprentice to Gul'dan. You will take me by the swiftest route to him, as the human's army is following behind us. Choose quickly…"

The troll paused, and Nobu'tan could see that the cunning creature was thinking about it. "Fine den human, if you be tellin' da truth, we be taking ya to Gul'dan, and if ye be lying, well… the orc be downright terrifyin'…"

"Good choice," Nobu'tan said, gesturing to the north, "shall we then, Quel'Thalas isn't getting any closer…"

The other trolls leap down at that point, and Nobu'tan offered his hands to be bound by the thick ropes that the trolls carried. The price of his pride was well worth the speed that following the troll's route through the woods would grant, getting him to Gul'dan's side all the faster, and returning him to his rightful place at the forefront of the Horde's war machine.

Smirking as they began their trek northward, Nobu'tan wondered what his master had been up to in his absence, as well as idly pondering if his disappearance had been noted by the Kirin Tor as of yet. He shivered at the thought, almost thinking he may have been being watched at the exact moment, but shook off the sensation almost as quickly. It was unlikely that the wizard's would be able to track him this far.

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Kel'Thuzad frowned as his scrying orb recorded his wayward apprentice joining up, or being captured by trolls in the eastern forests of Lordaeron. Why the boy had run so far only to be caught by the Horde was indeed puzzling, and the Archmage had half a mind to go after the boy himself, obliterating whatever obstacle was in his way to do so, but something seemed highly wrong about the scene.

Tobias seemed far too at ease upon seeing the trolls, and offered his hands willingly to be bound instead of fighting back. With his knowledge and pure talent, the boy ought to have been able to put the mongrel beasts down with little effort, which led Kel'Thuzad to believe that some other, darker reasoning was afoot here.

Talented though the boy was, he was still a naive child in some regards, to think that the Kirin Tor lacked the ability to monitor him regardless of wherever he fled to. If not for the sinister aura that seemed to be growing in the north Kel'Thuzad would have teleported north immediately to reclaim the boy, but it wasn't a risk he was willing to take with the Horde known to be in that region, at least not without more knowledge.

Then of course there were the boy's darker dealings to contend with. The guards had discovered a dead mage out in the woods near the Alterac Mountains, the taint of demonic magic all around as well as signs of a brief and frighteningly powerful magical duel. None of the other wizards knew or had noticed that Tobias was missing, and Kel'Thuzad was keeping it that way for the time being, but he knew. The boy had dealings with demons, and was powerful in that regard as well.

Had the Archmage known, he probably would not have stopped the lad from dabbling with the darker aspects of magic, but he would have advised extreme caution. If only the boy had felt that he could trust Kel'Thuzad more, he bemoaned. The stolen tomes from the vault attested however to a plot, almost as if the boy was not truly there to learn, but for some other purpose.

Kel'Thuzad had suspicions, and nothing more however, and he wasn't comfortable acting without genuine proof that something was afoot as of yet. So for the time being he would wait and watch, hoping that this was just the case of a wayward apprentice that tampered with magic he wasn't prepared for yet and panicked. Hopefully that was the case, in which the Archmage was more than willing to be lenient with Tobias, albeit there would be drastic punishment for the death of a fellow wizard, but Kel'Thuzad could understand the boy's reasons for running.

If not however; and something darker was indeed going on, then Kel'Thuzad had to act to deal with the boy permanently, before word reached the rest of the council's ears of how his star apprentice stole one of the few manuscripts of demonic magic from them, and escaped after clearly learning from its vile pages.

The Horde and its warlocks were bad enough, they didn't have time to deal with their own… and then the fearful idea struck the brilliant wizard. The boy had gone straight toward Quel'Thalas, the one place that the Horde was well known to be heading for.

Could it be possible that the boy was in league with the Horde from the beginning? The very idea seemed outrageous; the Horde was here to kill all humans in Azeroth, so what would the incentive be for any human to assist them? If that was the case, then Tobias could not reach the boarders of Quel'Thalas, willingly or otherwise. If the Horde was going to claim the demonic grimoire from the lad, then they needed to be stopped.

Thinking quickly, Kel'Thuzad altered his view in the scrying orb, trying to plot the route that the trolls would be taken to the elven homeland. It was a long shot, but once he felt like a likely place that they'd have to pass was found, he concentrated, gathering his magical power around him, and fixated upon the location, teleporting there with a burst of arcane magic.

The clearing he had chosen was a few hours ahead of where he thought that Tobias was, and that was all the time Kel'Thuzad needed to set his trap. Snatching up a pointed branch from the ground near a dying tree, the Archmage quickly started drawing runes into the moist earth, gently drying and solidifying it afterward with the lightest of fire spells. Arcane runes were normally painstakingly complex and difficult to use in such a hasty manner, but Kel'Thuzad was no normal magus, and he had devoted much time to their creation and use, so preparing several powerful and well concealed traps was child's play for the Archmage.

Once those were completed, he looked to the center of the clearing, concentrating to channel a massive amount of mana into the central rune of power, charging the entire array with his own signature. To another powerful magic user, it would be equal to lighting a beacon to his location, and he ran the risk of Tobias sensing it coming, but Kel'Thuzad hoped beyond hope that the boy was a captive, and would be overjoyed that someone had come after him.

Once that was finished, Kel'Thuzad casually conjured a pint of water, and sat in the middle of his runic array to enjoy the magic infused liquid. There was little to do but wait for the time being, and occasionally scry on the boy and his captors or guides. When roughly an hour had passed, Kel'Thuzad started to hear figures approaching through his magically amplified senses, perfectly attuned to the natural sounds around him from waiting in the clearing.

Naturally, once the trolls smelled his presence, they took to the trees, just as Kel'Thuzad had anticipated. Once within range, he causally flicked a wrist at the nearest tree, which welled up with a blast of arcane might, flinging the troll that had been hiding within it to the ground. His fellows, outraged at being detected so easily, leapt from their positions and charged at the Archmage, who calmly waited in the middle of his trap.

Once the last of them stepped onto the runic circle, Kel'Thuzad smiled, activating the spells with a mere gesture. Magic lashed out, spewing fire, ice and all manner of spells at the five very confused and soon to be dead trolls.

Try as they might, the evil creatures could neither retreat past the circle of runes nor reach Kel'Thuzad, as barriers of arcane magic barred their way stronger than steel. Within moments it was all over. The charred remains of the Horde warriors was all that was left of the captors of Tobias, yet the boy himself was nowhere to be seen.

Looking around cautiously, Kel'Thuzad tried to locate the boy via magical scrying once again, only to find his vision horrifically blocked by another, intensely strong presence. The figure of the presence seemed older, yet terrifyingly strong in the arcane arts, and significantly different from any of the Kirin Tor that ought to possess strength of that level.

There could only be one answer, and Kel'Thuzad lamented his failure to stop Tobias. His setting of his powerful trap had indeed alerted someone of his intent, and that had to be one of the powerful warlocks of the Horde, who was now protecting Tobias from his sight, which proved that the boy had been nothing more than a spy and a pawn to steal knowledge of Dalaran for the Horde. It was highly likely that the boy was not even human himself, but some sort of orc illusion that had not been revealed by Dalaran's magical auras.

"Know this, warlock," Kel'Thuzad told the specter, "you cannot keep him from me indefinitely, I will find the boy, and foil your plans with the knowledge he stole."

The figure laughed, a harsh burbling sound that seemed to emanate from the pits of the Nether itself, and Kel'Thuzad turn fixatedly to the boarders of Quel'Thalas. There was nothing for it, but he had to press onward. There were several hours yet before the army of the Alliance arrived to bright the fight back to the Horde, and if he was to snatch Tobias out of the madness before they arrived, then the Archmage of the Kirin Tor had to act fast.

Now it was personal, this warlock and Tobias had made a fool of him, and Kel'Thuzad would repay it in kind. He would reveal the boy for what he was, and put an end to the vile scheme that his warlock masters had in store for the Alliance, on his own if needs be. Somewhere in the back no his mind, Kel'Thuzad sensed the presence of Archmage Khadgar approaching from the location of the Alliance column, but he paid the man no heed. This was now technically an official matter of the Kirin Tor, and whether or not Khadgar wanted to object, Kel'Thuzad would seek out the boy and this warlock, and end this business once and for all.

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Gul'dan watched with well suppressed mirth as his apprentice made his way confidently through the ranks of orcs, trolls and even ogres toward him, magical power radiating off his body to ward away those who would be foolish enough to challenge a human in their midst. "You have returned to my side at last, Nobu'tan," Gul'dan said, pride evident in his voice as he placed a hand on the young human's shoulder.

"Yes, Master," the orc raised human said, bowing his head obediently, "and I've brought some of the knowledge of the Kirin Tor wizards with me, but there is a problem…"

"The Archmage that has followed you here…" Gul'dan finished, surprising his apprentice, "I sensed him trying to trap you, but you've done well in escaping back to my side. We can deal with his irritating snooping when it comes to it, but you must come and see what discoveries I have made in your absence."

Leading the boy, rather more excitedly than he wished to portray himself, Gul'dan swept a hand over the expanse that had several of his Altars of Storms were laid out, all being powered by the newest of the Ogre Magi to continually turn more of their kin into the fearsome beings. "I do not recall us having so many magi, especially among the ogre population," Nobu'tan commented, not fully understanding what was before them.

Eager to explain to his most attentive and intelligent servant, Gul'dan began, "When we arrived in the boarders of this forest, I found something very noteworthy, a towering Rune Stone. As the Horde spread around to gather resources, I received reports of more of these stones ringing the trees, all pulling power from the elves' mysterious Sunwell to block outside magic from working."

Nobu'tan thought for a moment in the lull as Gul'dan led him up to the nearest Altar. "So you pulled away the stones, firstly to break the enchantment over the elves' land preventing our magic, then you reshaped them into this, albeit crude appearing, empowering altar, for what purpose?"

"Have you not guessed?" Gul'dan said, feigning disappointment.

"The Ogre-Magi…" Nobu'tan said after another pause, "You've been transforming ogres into magic users, like us."

"And ones that are completely loyal to me," Gul'dan added in a low voice, to which Nobu'tan smiled.

Signaling to the Ogre magi around this altar, Gul'dan had them all approach, each one watching Nobu'tan carefully, sensing the powerful magic radiating off the boy, but confused because of his race. "Master, what do you need?" the lead mage asked, keeping one head fixated on Nobu'tan while the other turned to address Gul'dan.

"This is my primary apprentice, Nobu'tan," Gul'dan introduced, "do not let the frailty of his race deceive you, he is one of us, and a part of the Horde in all but blood, you are to respect and obey him as you do me."

"Yes, Master," one by one the ogre magi acknowledged, coming forward to get a sense of Nobu'tan's magic, so that they'd recognize him even in the midst of battle. It was actually rather interesting for the orc raised human, watching the once clumsy and brutish creatures now be so agile and intelligent. "Are they ready to fight using their magic?" he asked Gul'dan as the group returned to their stones to continue amplifying more of their kin.

"A few, but we've been keeping them busy in converting as many of their brothers as possible before the trolls finally stir up the elves enough to attack us," Gul'dan explained.

"There's more then," Nobu'tan added hastily, "the human army is marching to try and flank us from the south, they ought to be here within a day."

Gul'dan froze, that had been news he would have wanted to know immediately, "That changes things," he stated slowly, "I will warn Doomhammer, he is back towards the initial place that we arrived, burning the forests with his warriors. You will train as many of the ogre magi in the basics of magical combat as fast as you can, they can pick up a few things that will make them even more destructive, and then you will take all and follow to where we will be. If my guess is right, then we will be locked in battle by then."

"Yes Master," Nobu'tan acknowledged, even as Gul'dan sent up a small flare of dark magic, signaling to all the ogres and their magi brethren to gather to him. As they did, with Cho'gall coming along as well, Gul'dan hastily addressed them, "enemies of the Horde are approaching us, and it won't be long until the elves swarm from their forest to stop Doomhammer from burning it, I must go and warn the Warchief to expect an attack from the rear, this," he indicated Nobu'tan, "is my apprentice, Nobu'tan, you will obey him and he will teach you several basic spells to power you further before you all need to march to our position, I want those ogres who did not yet have the ritual performed on them to come with me."

There was a great swelling of murmurs among the gathered ogres, and the magi took charge, issuing commands to their denser brethren, until at last the brutish ones lumbered away toward Doomhammer's camp. "I'm putting a great deal of trust in you, Nobu'tan, do not fail me," Gul'dan said before departing.

"Don't worry master, I haven't yet." The human child responded with a wry grin. Gul'dan couldn't help but chuckle as he departed for the camp of the Warchief. Even if it meant actually helping the Horde for the time being, having his apprentice back was more than compensation for dealing as Doomhammer's lacky.

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Cho'gall watched with disdain as Gul'dan departed. The Twilight Hammer Chieftain had seen how casual and even downright doting the orc had become with the human, only after a few weeks of separation. Was Gul'dan becoming soft? Granted that was not a theory he was willing to test, but it still galled the Ogre mage to watch the tiny human running through the basics of warlock magic with the thirty or so brand new ogre magi, who watched with fascination and almost obsessive patience, some even trying to mimic the boy in the effort to perform the spells themselves. Turning to depart, Cho'gall thought he would rally his clan instead of watch this spectacle. He was Gul'dan's apprentice as well, but the old orc didn't pay nearly so much attention to Cho'gall anymore, and that had shaken his faith in the orc's promises.

Would they really find great power deep under the seas of this world, or was that just more of Gul'dan's ploys to keep stringing Cho'gall along, playing puppet to the orc's grand play. It may soon be time for the ogre and the orc to part company, if things went south after this battle. It was clear that Doomhammer would not approve of Gul'dan departing the front lines now, not when they were so close to the human's capital, but would the Warchief send warriors to hunt the warlock down when they deserted. Gul'dan didn't think so, but Cho'gall wasn't so optimistic.

Upon reaching the camp of the Twilight Hammer Clan, Cho'gall was approached by one of his ranking commanders, who saluted by slamming a meaty green fist to his chest, "What are your orders, chieftain? Do we form up with the Blackrock or Stormreaver clans?"

"Stormreaver, commander," the Ogre Magi replied, gesturing with a sigh, "after the upcoming battle we will remain to protect the Stormreavers as well as they make full use of the Altars of Storms that Chieftain Gul'dan has created for the Horde's use."

"Yes Chieftain, by your word." The orc replied, moving out to rally the warriors of the clan and march them into position alongside Doomhammer's and Gul'dan's fighters.

They may remain allies of the Horde for the time being, but Cho'gall was starting to think that, in time, he would need to start looking out for the welfare of himself and the Twilight Hammer over anything else. Standing beside Gul'dan when they arrived, Cho'gall silently watched as the pair of orcs had their little power play, with Gul'dan intentionally pushing Doomhammer's buttons with his withholding of specific, small pieces of information.

Peons and some of the Blackrock grunts were running about the edge of the trees, setting the forest alight, letting great plumes of smoke fly into the air, signaling to the oncoming human and elf forces where they were, and at the same time distracting them from the real prize of the Altars of Storms.

Cho'gall was the first to spot the Alliance army assembling far off from the edge of the forests, and both of his heads smiled slightly at the blood and chaos that awaited him in this battle.

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Khadgar was aghast at the evil magic that permeated throughout the edge of the Eversong Woods, in addition to the physical fires that were turning the sky red with ash and dust.

Somewhere among the fire and literal sea of orcs, dark magic was brooding, like a festering wound, but Khadgar couldn't see any particular source for it. Regardless, it put the Archmage on guard. The others however, were not as aware of the added dangers and only could focus on the orcs and the fires.

"We have to stop them!" Alleria cried, spinning to Turalyon in her desperation. "We need to stop them!"

"We will," he replied turning to the herald, "Inform the unit leaders, we ride north until we are level with the orcs. Then we will charge, taking them unawares. Also, warn the men to gather water as best they can, and detail several units to put out those fires. We don't want the forest burning down around us."

Even before the Herald turned to relay his commands, Turalyon had already rounded on Khadgar, "Can you do something to stop the fires?" he asked hastily.

Khadgar nodded, "Will a thunderstorm suffice?"

"As long as the lightning does not find any more trees, yes," Turalyon replied, jumping his attention once more to Alleria, snapping at her to get the ranger's attention. "Take your rangers and go. Go! Your brethren are no doubt already fighting the Horde somewhere in the forest. Find them and let them know we are here. We need to coordinate our attacks or the Horde will crush your people within the trees and then smother us without."

The female elf was clearly in shock from the burning of her homeland, as she was staring blankly through the paladin. "Now!" he snapped, clearly hating that he had to treat Alleria so harshly. "Or are you too slow to make it to the trees safely?"

That did it, and the elf glared bitterly at Turalyon, before gathering her elves and charging down to the tree line and disappearing into them. Khadgar remained behind as the entire Alliance column surged on to attack the Horde warriors. Meanwhile, Khadgar gathered his energies, forcing on the air around the forest's edge, gathering clouds and moisture to cause a localized thunderstorm to form over the fire. It was taxing, manipulating magic in such a way, but once the downpour started, the effects were instant, battling the flames while the Alliance clashed with the Horde itself.

After the spell was complete, and his magical strength exhausted therefore, Khadgar took up his sword and dashed after Turalyon to lend what aid he could now that the fires were taken care of. Indeed by the time he reached the battle the fires were all but extinguished, and he struck the nearest orc with both sword and staff, well enough contending with the brutish creature's skills with the axe, not that Khadgar would prefer to use mundane weapons except when he lack any other choice.

Thankfully, it seemed that Alleria and her rangers had moved swiftly indeed, as arrows started to fly from the trees, and the lithe woman reappeared. "I can see I got here just in time," she commented as she reached Khadgar and Turalyon, "What do you do when I am not here to save you?"

"I manage," the paladin joked, casually blocking an attacking orc with his shield before smiting it down with his hammer. Alleria put a pair of arrows into another charging green-skin as she sidestepped close to the pair of humans. "Did you find them?" Turalyon asked.

"I did," she confirmed. "And the entire council has agreed. Already the warriors and rangers are mobilized. They can be here in ten minutes, if here is where you want them."

"Here is as good a place as any," Turalyon replied, "And as long as we are here to fight them, the Horde isn't going anywhere."

Alleria nodded. "I will run back and inform them. You have only to hold fast until they arrive." Something was off, but Khadgar had to fight off a pair of axe wielding orcs and couldn't try to see what was wrong with the elf. But the time he could look, she had already departed, and Turalyon had returned his full attention to the battle around them.

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Nobu'tan smirked as he felt the massive welling of magic that conjured the downpour ceased. The ogre magi were as ready as they could be to fight; having practiced some basic fire spells as well as scavenging the biggest orcish weapons and chained together pieces of armor as best they could.

The sky was still heavily overcast, which led to the best cover for the ogres to cross the distance to the battle unseen. When they arrived, Nobu'tan hung back, not wanting to get mistaken for a member of the Alliance forces with his purple robes of Dalaran still on, but still he sent a single ogre mage on ahead to scout, before gesturing for the rest to follow. Watching from the far sidelines, Nobu'tan was impressed with the scout's initial, and quite devastating, charge into the battle, batting aside whole knots of soldier with one swing of its weapon, and expelling flames from its free hand to incite chaos into the ranks.

Naturally the human's adapted to their new foe and eventually brought the ogre mage down, but it was of little consequence. What Nobu'tan did take notice of was the arrival of the elves, emerging to the very edge of the forest and after a moment spreading out to flank the orc mass of orcish warriors in between the two armies. The tide here was quickly falling out of the Horde's favor, just before the rest of the ogre magi arrived, thundering through the battlefield like a massive wave of power and destruction.

Gratefully, the ogres were indeed intelligent, and had seen what had befallen the scout, and were prepared for the counterattacks that the Alliance and elves tried to throw at them, and batted aside arrows and spears that went their way, bodily crashing into the elves and sending the much smaller soldiers flying.

The orcs rallied, surging around the ogre magi, and more from Doomhammer's command position swept into the battle. Spotting the green on their banners and armor, Nobu'tan guessed that Kil'rogg Deadeye and his Bleeding Hollow Clan had joined the fight. The human warlock, like much of the Horde, respected Kil'rogg immensely, his great age a testament to how strong he was as a warrior and a leader.

Nobu'tan only interacted with the great warrior once before, and had been impressed that the old orc did not view him with disdain like the majority of the Horde, but was more intrigued with what he called 'Gul'dan's masterpiece.' It might have been insulting, but somehow Nobu'tan had sensed that the orc had a decent amount of respect to give the warlocks and their power, regardless of the race of the magic wielder.

It seemed that even combine the humans and elves were overwhelmed, but then something made Nobu'tan look up. Gryphons, Nobu'tan had read a little about them and seen one or two while he was at Dalaran, but still, the figures riding them were dwarves and swooping down to counterattack the ogre magi. The two headed creatures, unaccustomed to the new threat, had no means to protect themselves as the lead dwarf crushed both heads of one of their fellows, toppling the ogre mage onto the ranks of orcs and sending its club flying.

But even as the gryphon riders were attack, there was another, much farther spec descending from high above. Nobu'tan strained his eyes, trying to see. It clearly wasn't anything bird-like, not with the way it was gliding well above the clouds. The dwarven gryphon riders must have seen it as well, as one of their number charged upward to contend with the rapidly approaching form. But even as they come together, Nobu'tan realized that the other figure was significantly larger than even a gryphon, especially when it devoured the dwarf and his mount whole.

It was a dragon. Nobu'tan raised his eyebrows, even more when he spotted the figure riding upon the dragon's back. It was one of the Horde's warriors. How on the world had Doomhammer managed to get dragons on their side, and even more how had he kept it a secret from even Gul'dan? Nevertheless, as the dragon swooped down over the line of trees, the Alliance soldiers started to flee, running away from the forest as the dragon began to belch flames.

Nobu'tan staggered slightly, sensing the need to get away from the trees as fast as possible. Then he spotted a second and third dragon swooping down to set the forest ablaze once more. Nobu'tan felt that his best move would be to fall back to the Altar's of Storms, and see of the Horde was rallying there. Most of the warriors were departing, even as the Alliance, elves and dwarves fled to the hills.

When he arrived, he found Doomhammer, Gul'dan and the remainder of the clans gathered there, most preparing to leave. Gul'dan and Doomhammer were speaking, and the Warchief looked far less than pleased, but Nobu'tan did not care. He was more focused on the newest arrivals of the Dragonmaw clan, their leader Zhulued striding past Nobu'tan without a glance to speak with Doomhammer.

Nobu'tan approached his master, even as the Warchief departed with the shaman. "What are our orders?" the orc raised human asked, smiling even as he saw Gul'dan's fierce grin.

"We're staying here for a time, seeing what powers the Alters will grant, and afterward we will need to speak on in a more private setting." Gul'dan replied, glancing back toward the Warchief. "It seems that Zhulued and Doomhammer had a hand in securing this victory. I think that the Dragonmaw will also be remaining to see about attacking the elves' capital city for a time, but they are of little concern to us.

"We cannot breach their defenses." the Dragonmaw chieftain said, possibly a little louder than he had intended, for both Nobu'tan and Gul'dan to hear, "Even the dragons can do nothing. Their fire washes over the city but does not touch it, and their claws are repelled by an invisible barrier they cannot break."

"It is the Sunwell," Gul'dan commented, turning back to add to the Warchief's conversation, "the elven source of magic. It gives them immense power."

Doomhammer looked somewhat resigned that the warlock might be an expert on the topic, and turned to address Gul'dan, "Is there any way to destroy it, or drain it, or tap it for ourselves?" he asked.

Unfortunately, Gul'dan shook his head, "I have tried," he admitted, "I can feel its power, but it is of a kind unfamiliar to me, and I cannot touch it." scratching his bristly beard however, Nobu'tan caught his master glancing momentarily at him, smirking for the briefest of moments, "However there may be alternate routes I can take to harness its magic, but still, it might be that only the elves can gain its power; it might be tied directly to them and this land."

"Can you use the Altars to break their defenses?" the Warchief asked next, and again Gul'dan glanced at Nobu'tan before answering, "That is one of the things I wish to attempt before leaving this place. I do not know if it will work, but the Altars are crafted from the elves' own Runestones, which were originally powered by the Sunwell itself. I may be able to use that link in reverse, sending my own magic, or another's, into their power source and either destroy it or wrest control away from them."

He smirked then; widely enough for Doomhammer to see, and the Warchief bristled but said nothing. It was clear that the other orc was aware which choice Gul'dan was shooting for, and did not like it in the slightest.

"Do what you can," he said after a moment, wave a hand casually at Gul'dan. "But breaching the city is secondary. We cannot get in right now but they cannot get out, either." He turned back to Zhulued then, "The same goes for your dragons. We may need them, particularly if the Alliance had more warriors waiting at Capital City. If you have not managed to break their barrier after a few more days, leave it and send your dragons to join the rest of the Horde."

Gul'dan and Nobu'tan left at that point, but were able to keenly hear the Warchief's last words, even if the other orc thought they might be out of range, "And make sure he and his warlocks accompany you."

"What now, Master," Nobu'tan asked as they returned to the Stormreaver camp, gratefully entering Gul'dan's tent and discarding the purple Dalaran robes in a heartbeat, going straight for his personal trunk for his own heavy orcish robes. It was cold this far north, and while magic was able to be employed to stave off the elements, it was far easier to just dress warmly and focus his energies on more important tasks.

"We wait until the Horde moves on, Nobu'tan," Gul'dan said, gesturing for and taking the book that Nobu'tan had acquired from the vaults of Dalaran. Thumbing through the pages, Gul'dan read the tight human script expertly, having taken great care to learn it himself as well as teach it to his apprentice.

"Intriguing," he said softly as he pursued the tome, "It seems that most magic users on this world have little to no concept of what demons truly are, or the powers that they give. Whoever was the original owner of this tome was quite clear that he was one of the last true warlocks among the humans, before the formation of the Nation of Dalaran and their Kirin Tor, who expelled him from the society of wizards and hunted him down. The fools, they kept the grimoire because they cannot fathom destroying knowledge, even of the blackest arts."

Gul'dan returned the book, "There is little here that I have not learned from Kil'jaeden himself, but you may find it most useful Nobu'tan, there is quite a bit of knowledge about demonic summoning and other concepts we have not had time to address yet."

"Thank you, Master." Nobu'tan said. He was about to ask more, but a magical presence, very powerful, announced itself well outside the Horde's camp. Looking to Gul'dan, Nobu'tan knew that his Master had felt it as well. "You Archmage friend has come to call it seems." Gul'dan mused, pulling at his beard in thought.

"Shall I send Cho'gall or some of the other Ogre Magi to deal with him?" Nobu'tan asked.

"No, this foe is too powerful for all but possibly Cho'gall, and for once I think I'd like to have some of the fun. Let us go together, and put this human in his place. There is time before we must make our journey back to Southshore, come."

Pausing to snatch only a few on his personal belongings, just in case, Nobu'tan rushed out of the tent to follow Gul'dan toward the surge of magic that was no doubt Kel'Thuzad.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Line Break ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kel'Thuzad waited patiently, knowing that Tobias and his orc master were near. Although he inwardly mourned at his own foolishness of taking the boy in so easily, he knew how he must make amends, even swallowing his pride and telling himself that he would go to Khadgar in the Alliance camp once this was finished. He would tell his fellow Archmage everything, which he felt would trouble the young man greatly, as he had been the one to recommend the boy to Dalaran. But only once this task had been completed first. Then together, both Archmagi could decide on what to do with Tobias and his treachery against his own race.

It had taken some time to follow the boy's trail from the eastern forests of Lordaeron, but he had managed it, the Archmage inevitably needing to follow the sounds of battle and the roars of dragons to find the aftermath of the skirmish on the edge of the Eversong Woods. It was a terrible tragedy, but there was a singular purpose for his coming here, and Kel'Thuzad continued to pursue the fiendish magical residue to the orc encampment.

Now that he had found their camp, he set himself up a good distance away, and started channeling magic through himself, as a beacon to any in the camp with arcane intuition, knowing that Tobias would sense him, as well as the powerful orcish magic user. They would come, it was to likely a trap that they would be unprepared, but Kel'Thuzad was one of the most learned of the Kirin Tor, and felt that he could contend with the magic of these demon-spawned orcs.

Soon he could make out two figures approaching, one larger and hunched while the other was fairly smaller. Good, the pair had come alone. It wouldn't be fair if they brought more magical warriors, at least to the orcs…

Readying his staff, Kel'Thuzad stepped forward to meet them both, looking balefully across at the grisly old orc that stood beside his former apprentice. "I see I was mistaken about you, Tobias Banu, if that's even your real name…" he said slowly, sizing up the pair as he prepared for a fight.

"So you did…" the orc replied, catching Kel'Thuzad off guard slightly. He was not aware that the creatures spoke the common tongue, let alone with such eloquence. "But what you did not figure was the foolish venture of following my apprentice back to me…" the orc added, grinning slightly and showing his mouthful of sharp and jagged fangs.

Kel'Thuzad cringed unconsciously, the wafting of the blackest of magic he had ever witnessed emanating from the orc before him, causing the Archmage to rethink how he was going to defeat them. Drawing from his deep stores of learning and study, Kel'Thuzad quickly began to apply himself to the first major problem, separating the orc from his apprentice.

Despite the fact that he was more powerful by far than the human child who may have been called Tobias, two mages on one still were bad odds. He had to eliminate the boy immediately to even up the battlefield and allow him to focus all his attention on the greater threat. Luckily, he had a spell in mind, one that was about a rare as it was powerful. Tapping into the little stone on his belt, one that would transport him directly to his personal chambers in Dalaran, Kel'Thuzad started warping the energies, aiming them as the boy and hoping that his home was truly far away from here.

Meanwhile, he continued talking, trying to stall for time, "So, you coming to Dalaran was all just a ploy to lure out an Archmage for your own games, was it?"

The orc laughed, and Tobias smiled cruelly at Kel'Thuzad, confident beyond anything the Mage had seen while at his true Master's side. "No," the orc replied, "Your presence is more an annoyance than anything else, wizard. I wanted to know the strength and power of your nation, as well as what they knew of our powers, which is surprisingly little from what I've learned. It will be a simple matter once were finished razing Quel'Thalas to ravage your city, lay waste to this world, and open portals to thousands more for the Horde to conquer."

Kel'Thuzad just stared at the raving orc, so power hungry and mad that he would contract with demons, let alone with his entire race. "But then why take on a human as an apprentice…" he asked, genuinely curious, and the orc paused in his monologue, sensing that the Archmage wanted to know.

"That is an interesting question, and finally phrased in a way that I can answer…" the orc responded, stroking his beard with one hand. "This one is destined for greatness and a power all of his own, who better to guide him than I, Darkness Incarnate!" And to Kel'Thuzad's surprise, the pair attacked instantly, catching the Archmage off guard.