Chapter Fifty Six
The Molten Core
Teg'Ramm was certain that they needed to be cautious from this point on, as the Stormreavers had done a great deal of damage to the forces of these elementals, and their enemies were sure to want revenge as the united force pushed even deeper into the core of the mountain.
Whatever those serpent creatures were that seemed to be important leaders in the elemental's ranks, they were less than pleased with their progress, as another confronted them once they turned a corner in the passage and entered another vaulted chamber filled with small earth and fire elementals.
This particular serpent could access Arcane magic, and wielded it with an ease that was downright disturbing to the ogre, as he had never before witnessed a mage of great power, aside from the guardian Merlin for those short encounters when the Order of the Black Harvest aided him in defeating Morgan Le Faye.
This was on an entirely different level, as the raw magical energy that poured from the strange creature dashed stone asunder and only their most powerful shields prevented them from being harmed. Needless to say, there were a great deal of injuries to heal once the beast was slain, and even more arguing about how to add that creatures large stash of treasure to their ever increasing horde.
It was quite surprising the number of items that they had discovered that were not only useable for them, but seemed to have been made with mortals of their sizes in mind, rather than the hulking serpents or their elemental allies.
Nobu'tan chalked it up to the fact that magic attracted magic, and chose to explore the ramifications no further than that, even if that left many questions still unanswered.
There was still yet much farther to go, and another hulking elemental of fire now blocked their path, scalding the stone beneath it to glass as it moved.
In answer, Nobu'tan called upon his Mage training, and started to heavily rely on the magic of ice and shadow, as his powers had merged together from so long training as both mage and warlock. They seemed more effective than most of the other spells that even Teg'Ramm could use on the beast, but the group of over forty still had a deal of a time destroying the beast, with it setting members of their group ablaze as well as burning the very magic out of a being, which caused their goblin healer allies to go into a frenzy of magical arts to prevent anyone from actually dying.
Soon enough, that elemental also fell, its embers filtering away in the heat of the volcanic air and the heavy metal bindings revealing more stored treasure that this creature had possessed. Interestingly, the ogre mage noticed that the Death Knight, Voldemort, had taken a fancy to one of the items dropped by this elemental as well, grasping a large, highly magical bracer from the entire trove and secreting it away.
For the time being, Teg'Ramm allowed the man to have his stolen treasure, if only so that no one else had to carry it, but he made a note to inform Nobu'tan of the proceedings at the earliest opportunity.
The path ahead rose over a lava flow, giving a wide area to observe where in lay more fiery hounds, as well as a massive molten giant, which seemed to be guarding yet another of the strange runes that seemingly were formed out of the rock of the volcanic floor of the various chambers.
However, it was a long drop if they desired to attack the giant immediately, and the path continued on past that point, which begged them to explore and see if there was another way around. It was fortunate that they were high enough that the giant could not see them, nor the hounds at its feet smell them, as Nobu'tan took them past and onward to the chamber beyond.
Just when Teg'Ramm thought that the caverns were going to continue on forever, they rounded a corner and came to what seemed to be a dead end, ringed with elementals and another, larger, group of the fiery serpents, which their demonic allies charged eagerly, insatiable in their lust after blood and death.
The Fel Centaur and Veela, almost as demonic as the true demons, were hot on the heels of the charging Legion creatures, eager to see the death of their enemies. The others were more cautious, supporting the mad charge from the rear with spells and projectiles, hemming in those elementals that tried to circle around and cut their group in two parts.
It was only afterward that they realized that while the passage ended in that particular direction, there was another path that circled back and downward, leading to the massive giant from the direct route.
Some of their allies were about to proceed into view to challenge the great hulking creature, but Nobu'tan called them back. "I want those with spells to backtrack to the overlooking platform, it will give us an advantage of attack on two sides." He commanded, which seemed fair and reasonable to them all.
Teg'Ramm, the Council of the Black Harvest, and their other mages and warlocks took to the platform overlooking, while Voldemort, their demons and other melee fighters charged into the open, initiating battle with the giant and its allies.
Only once the battle was in full swing did Nobu'tan give the order, and from their great height they rained down powerful spells of death and destruction, slaughtering the lesser minions of the giant, and causing great harm and distraction to the giant himself, forcing it to decide between the forces on the ground and those above its head to focus on.
That distraction alone was probably what save a great many of their forces down on the ground, where its stamping feet might have crush a great deal of their warriors, and before too long, the deathblow was given. The giant fell in a great ruin, and the rune flared into being, before fading completely.
But even as they relaxed from their current battle, and started to move toward the passage that would unite their two groups, a hissing voice sounded in the tunnels, indeterminable where it originated. "The runes of warding have been destroyed! Hunt down the infidels my brethren!"
They looked about for a time, but it was Nobu'tan, who had instantly conjured eyes of Kil'rogg to scout out the source that located the largest of the serpent creatures, along with several heavily armed fellows, high on a rise situated between their current position and the other faction down where the giant had fallen.
Quickly giving them orders to meet them at the base of that rise, Teg'Ramm, Nobu'tan and the others made their way there, mercifully free from all other interfering creatures or elementals. However, when they arrived, and were joined by the rest of their party, the ramp leading up to where the voice had originated was already swarming with the greatest number of elementals that they had yet to see.
"It will be a hard won battle just to ascend to that platform, let alone whatever fight comes after." Nobu'tan mused, watching their demons charge the bottom part of the spiral ramp and engage the swarms of elementals as they poured from somewhere above, just out of sight.
"Nevertheless, where you go, we will follow," Teg stated, Ramm nodding in agreement.
"If we fight carefully, and push with a steady pace, then these elementals will break before us, and their rubble will coat the slopes as we climb," Aisha Feltalon said, her screechy voice somewhat jarring on the ogre mage's ears.
Nobu'tan nodded, accepting the loyalty as it was given, and turned his face toward the daunting bastion of elemental forces, "then we attack," he commanded, giving the order for them to support their expendable demons and push the top of the rise.
Teg'Ramm eagerly took to the front, tired of waiting in the rear and casting spells when his arms were just as effective holding a weapon. The magically enhanced staff that he used was well balanced and effective at bashing in even the solid stone heads of the elementals, and while Teg made excellent use of their momentum to push onward, Ramm guided their mind, casting supporting and destructive spells even without the needed gestures that their arms wouldn't be capable of doing while fighting.
Such was the gift of the two headed ogre magi, and it was a powerful tool in their arsenal that they preferred to not showcase too often to potential foes, or anyone else for that matter. Better for them to be underestimated by those who didn't understand the nature of having two powerful and cunning minds affixed to one body, as well as a powerful stream of magical power that ran in and through the same body.
Only through the combined effort of the group however, allowed them to push through the endless streams of elementals and breach the top of the rise. Waiting for them there was a grouping of heavily armored and angry fiery serpent creatures.
A pair of demons charged in gleefully, but for once the creatures were more than prepared for the attack, and used their weapons to tear the Legion minions apart. "Reckless mortals!" the lead creature declared, raising one of its scaly arms and pointing at the group of Stormreavers as they assembled at the top of the slope. "None may challenge the Sons of the Living Flame!"
And without further warning, the knot of creatures, these 'sons of the living flame,' attacked.
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Draco hadn't expected any of their battles to be as swift or brutal as this one had exploded into being. The serpent-like creatures were vicious, and it took the combine effort of the warlocks to summon enough demons to hold them off barely from breaching their line and pushing their entire force back onto the ramp.
For a brief moment, all seemed lost, and they were about to be forced back, but Draco drew strength to himself, refusing to allow such a defeat after all they had sacrificed. Calling upon the power of the Fel, he allowed the demonic summoning energy to flow through him, and a massive meteorite crashed through layers of volcanic stone above them, smashing into the midst of their attackers, and stunning many of them from the impact.
From the ruin rose a terrible Infernal, fully under Draco's control and blazing with Felfire. Taking up the same tactic, many of the other warlocks around him summoned similar effects, and soon the roof was punctured with holes as the demonic golems were brought to the field.
The tide had turned in this stunning display, and the forces of the Stormreavers rallied, charging back onto the rise with fury, and cleaving down those allies of the great serpent as they recovered from the impacts of so many infernals.
Surprisingly once his guards were dead, the leader of these supposed high and might creatures fled back from them, "Impossible! Stay your attack, mortals… I submit! I submit!" it cried, the hissing and sputtering making it difficult to fully tell what he was saying.
Nevertheless, Nobu'tan ordered them to halt, although they kept their weapons high and spells ready to be flung at a moment's notice. Despite this, the creature seemed perfectly at ease, albeit angry at being defeated. "Brashly, you have come to wrest the secrets of the Living Flame! You will soon regret the recklessness of your quest." It hissed, and Draco was somewhat confused. Just what was it that the creature thought that they were after in coming here?
"I go now to summon the lord whose house this is. Should you seek an audience with him, your paltry lives will surely be forfeit! Nevertheless, seek out his lair, if you dare!" the creature declared, before dramatically vanishing into a pillar of fire.
"Well, that was unexpected…" Draco said when several moments had passed with no further change around them. Behind where the creatures had been there was a large stone trove filled with even more items of magical properties, which the Stormreaver's eagerly claimed for their own, but they had nowhere else to go further into the mountain.
"He said he was going to awaken the lord of this mountain…" Nobu'tan said, already deep in thought and pacing as they divided the treasure for transport. "There has to be something else we've overlooked here, some small side passage that went unnoticed as we came down here."
"No other use but to backtrack then I guess?" Draco volunteered, and pleasantly most of the group nodded in agreement, even if they were all equally displeased by the idea of scouring the underground volcanic chambers once more.
"If we can eliminate the leader of these elementals, then the lower sections of the mountain are ours for the taking," Nobu'tan explained, working to convince the several who felt too tired to go on, or who were otherwise unwilling to proceed, "in addition to claiming greater praise and honor from the Horde…"
"Besides," Draco added, "we have to go back to leave anyway, if we want to make sure that nothing else got away from us."
And so, in the end, logic won out, and they started the arduous climb back up the sloping tunnels, checking every nook and cranny for any off shooting passages that hadn't been explored the first time.
They had almost reached the first area that led back into the dwarven mines and caverns when one of the Fel Veela ran over to the group, pointing out a large passage that had not been present before, smoke and vapor spewing forth from another network of tunnels beyond.
Elementals were present, which led to the conclusion that this was indeed the place that they sought, and once again the group of Stormreavers went in, hungry to find the last of their adversaries in this portion of the mountain and secure their dominance here at last.
The chamber didn't stay dark and covered with smoke for long, as they quickly came into a massive central chamber, spiraling down toward what seemed to be a pool of lava in the very base of the mountain.
What was more, the serpent creature that they had confronted and chased off was there in the center, channeling magic into the very center of the volcano. Whatever the creature was up to, there was quite the large buildup of energy, almost reminiscent of methods that they used to bring powerful demons out from the Nether to do their bidding.
Of course, this seemed vastly different, as the energy was purely fire and arcane, rather than touched with the Fel as were the demonic summoning.
It took some time for their group to travel down the narrowing spirals of passable rock between the lava flows and reach the central area where the serpent humanoid was awaiting them. Even as they drew closer, the creature began to speak to them, "The Firelord and his brethren once held sway over this entire world, mortals. As a servant of the old gods, he fought against the Titans for domination of this planet. The victorious Titans banished my master and his brethren to the elemental plane, there to remain imprisoned until the end of time."
Draco said nothing, but could tell that even Nobu'tan was stayed at the thought of confronting such a powerful being. Nevertheless, the Stormreaver Clan marched on, drawing closer to the central pool of swirling magma.
Taking their silence as permission, the fiery serpent continued its tale, "A mere three hundred years ago, a reckless dwarf named Thaurissan summoned the master from his fiery realm. His return to this paltry world devastated the surrounding lands and created this volcanic core. Mighty Ragnaros has slept under this mountain ever since." The creature explained, which was odd that such a one would reveal so much regarding the master whom he served. Quite arrogant it was, if he thought that they would be so easily defeated, Draco mused.
But the creature didn't stop, even as they drew level with the lowest point of the mountain, "We, his sworn servants, do his bidding and enforce his iron rule. Cut off from the energies of his fiery realm, Ragnaros is but a shadow of his true self. However, he has more than enough strength to be your end. Imprudent whelps! You've rushed headlong to your own deaths! See now, the master stirs!"
Draco spotted several of their group tighten their holds on their weapons, preparing for the order to slay this creature and prevent the summoning of such a being, but Nobu'tan made no attempt to give such an order, even as the lava started to churn of its own, and the servant of the elemental lord raised its arms in triumph, even as a column of flame and lava flow upward, forming into a strangely humanoid shape, bearing a mighty hammer in one molten hand.
"Behold Ragnaros: the Firelord! He who was ancient when this world was young! Bow before him, mortals! Bow before your ending!" the servant cried joyously, but it seem that the master was less than pleased.
In a booming voice, the Firelord turned and spoke to the creature, "TOO SOON! YOU HAVE AWAKENED ME TOO SOON, EXECUTUS! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS INTRUSION?"
Humbly, knowing Draco presumed that he would have angered his lord with this action, the creature finally named as Executes spoke, pointing at the Stormreavers, "These mortal infidels, my lord! They have invaded your sanctum and seek to steal your secrets!"
Whatever Executus thought would occur, Draco didn't presume that the wrath of his lord was at the top of the list, even as flames began to wash over the serpent, and Ragnaros roared in anger, "FOOL! YOU ALLOWED THESE INSECTS TO RUN RAMPANT THROUGH THE HALLOWED CORE? AND NOW YOU LEAD THEM TO MY VERY LAIR? YOU HAVE FAILED ME, EXECUTUS! JUSTICE SHALL BE MET, INDEED!"
"My flame... Please, don't take away my flame..." Executus weakly pleaded, before his body simply dissolved into ashes and vanished forever.
Once his servant was disposed of, the towering elemental lord turned his fiery gaze upon them, anger clearly wrought in his terrible voice, "NOW FOR YOU, INSECTS! BOLDLY, YOU SOUGHT THE POWER OF RAGNAROS. NOW YOU SHALL SEE IT FIRSTHAND!"
Without warning, the massive hammer lifted, molten magma pouring from it as it removed from the pool below the powerful inferno that was Rangeros, swinging with a massive overhead attack at them. What the elemental lord did not expect, was the addition of so many wizards from a long distant world. Wands were draw like lightning, and layered shield charms projected over their heads, forming a near impenetrable barrier from the sudden attack, and stopping the hammer as it thundered down upon them, splattering lava in all directions away from them as it collided with the unseen force of their magic.
"Spread out, attack!" Nobu'tan commanded, and the Stormreavers obeyed, Draco going with his father and several of the other Black Harvest Warlocks to the left, while their melee fighters charged the front, and others went right, along with Nobu'tan himself.
The narrow paths of rock seemed rather treacherous for them to stand upon, even as the lava all around them surged and oft times erupted upward as the Firelord moved and swung his hammer, this time met by a massive shield in the hands of Voldemort, who took the blow with the resistance of a pillar of stone, feet sinking slightly into the stone beneath him, but otherwise being unharmed.
Blasts of Felfire and shadow magic poured from all sides, peppering the towering form of Ragneros, and while Draco knew that the spells had to be taking effect, he couldn't shake the feeling that it was a futile effort, what magic could they know to defeat an ancient terror such as this being?
Eventually, the hammer in the elemental lord's hands started to glow white hot, and Draco knew that he was up to something, "BY FIRE BE PURGED!" Rangeros cried, swinging the hammer high and spewing a torrent of magma in all direction.
"Shields!" Nobu'tan yelled, moments before they acted, many dodging the torrents of fiery liquid or throwing up quick shield charms or spells that protected them from the downpour. Seeing that his tactic had been foiled, the Firelord turned upon Nobu'tan, seeing him as the leader, and attempted to crush him with the massive hammer, but the warlock turned out to be far too nimble and well defended for the Firelord to strike.
Dodging swiftly, and using both wizard magic and the mage arcane spells to defend himself, Nobu'tan was able to draw much of the attention of the Firelord away from the others, so that they could continue to fire spell after spell at the massive elemental.
But the distraction only lasted so long before the Firelord grew wary of their magic. Slamming the massive hammer down with great force, Ragneros broke apart the stone that Nobu'tan had been standing on, the warlock only barely dodging out of the way as fresh magma took the place of his previous location. "TASTE THE FLAMES OF SULFURON!" he bellowed, before submerging completely into the lava.
There was a pregnant moment of near silence, as the magma hissed and churned, before it erupted in many places, affecting some with terrible burns and causing the shaman and priests to scramble about in a panic to heal those who were most grievously injured.
The massive elemental lord rose from the center area of lava once more, brandishing the molten hammer and throwing various spells of fire into their midst, even as they resumed their attacks, trying to hinder or weaken the powerful ancient being.
"COME FORTH, MY SERVANTS! DEFEND YOUR MASTER!" Rangeros bellowed after a time, and fiery portals opened all around them, spewing forth various serpent creatures, which hissed menacingly as they advance on them from all sides.
The battle grew, if anything, more intense. Draco flung spell after spell, hoping to at least make sure his curses were well affixed to every living target that he could, dodging weapons and flames as he ran about the outer circle to stay out of range of the swarming mass of attackers.
Eventually, he found his father in the mass chaos, who was being healed of a direly bleeding wound in his shoulder by a shaman, magical water streaming down the wound as it closed itself. "There's too many of them." He stated, turning to the nearest one and causing the Fel magic to start ripping the soul violently from the creature's body, knocking it to the ground as it writhed in agony.
But then the Firelord roared again. "MY PATIENCE IS DWINDLING! COME, GNATS: TO YOUR DEATH!" he shouted, as a literal wave of magma started to churn along the outskirts of the spiral of stone, coming straight for them.
"Draco!" Lucius shouted, throwing his son behind him alongside the goblin. His wand was out and a shield formed over the pair, but Draco saw in dawning horror that his father was outside of it, and Lucius screamed as the wave of lava overcame him, was blocked and rolled off to the sides of the shield, leaving the ruin of his father before them.
"Save him!" Draco demanded of the shaman, who looked daunted at the challenge for a moment, before pulling several small totems from a bag at its waist. "Protect me, young scion of Malfoy, and I will do this thing you ask."
Immediately, fresh cool water swarmed around the goblin's arms, tethering around Lucius' charred form, even as Draco summoned every demon he could think of, demanding of them to protect the goblin with their lives from all interruption. There was not a moment to spare if his father was to live through this battle, and Draco would not be the one to tell his mother that her husband had died within the first month of their arrival in this place.
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Nobu'tan saw the moment that Lucius fell defending his son and a goblin shaman, and rage engulfed him from the very core of his soul. This family had given their all to help him, and this Firelord in his arrogance had destroyed their patriarch, the one who had pledged loyalty to Nobu'tan and his cause.
All around, his allies were sporting many injuries, being healed as quickly as they could by the various goblins, but there was were only so many of them, and soon enough they would be overrun if something didn't change now.
"COME YOU MINIONS OF FIRE! COME FORTH YOU CREATURES OF HATE! YOUR MASTER CALLS!" Ragneros commanded, summoning more of his fiery servants to the battle, cackling in laugher as their demons collided heavily with the elite of the Sons of the Living Flame.
Felfire and shadow power surged through Nobu'tan, along with the Arcane might that he was taught. "No more!" he roared, leaping into the air as he transformed into his demonic form, the Felflame upon his skin protecting him from even the heat of the Firelord as he collided heavily with the armor plating that the elemental wore.
Felclaws slashed wildly, and spells of Fel, Arcane and wizardry flew from his lips, even as a literal Nether storm erupted around the battle figures. Channeling all the magic he could through his already sizably powerful frame, Nobu'tan sought to end this elemental lord at all costs, even his own life if need be. The Stormreavers must live on, even if he himself perished.
"YOU CANNOT DEFEAT THE LIVING FLAME!" Rangeros challenged, trying to bat him away with arms of lava or the massive warhammer in his hand, but Nobu'tan was relentless. He had fought much in his short life, and even if this was the greatest challenge of all thus far, he would not fail his people.
Felclaws tore into the metal chestplate that the elemental lord wore, exposing the very heart of the Firelord, surging with a heat greater than anything within the Volcano. Summoning all the Arcane he could muster, Nobu'tan unleashed a beam of pure frost into the very heart of Ragneros, which caused the Firelord to scream in agony and rear back, stunning every one of his servants into silent horror as they watched their master die.
The flaming heart of the Firelord slowly froze over; becoming a hardened chunk of volcanic stone, and Rangeros himself began to teeter, slowly sliding back into the magma at his base.
"IT WAS…. TOO SOON!" he said, even as Nobu'tan leapt off the falling corpse as it slid the rest of the way into the pool of lava, dragging the massive hammer with it. It was over, the Firelord was defeated, and his minions fled back into the fiery portals from whence they had come, unwilling to challenge the demon that had slain their master.
Almost immediately afterward, there was a blinding flash of light from behind them, and Nobu'tan whirled, expecting some new enemy, but lowered his hands as he saw Lucius rising to his feet, the burns and injuries that had killed him rapidly disappearing, and the man standing whole and very much alive before him.
"Lord Nobu'tan," Lucius said as the younger warlock rapidly approached, concern still etched in his face at seeing the man who had just returned from death on his feet so soon. "It seems that magic in this world is far more powerful than I had possibly imagined, even being able to bring the dead to life once more…"
Breathing a sigh of relief, Nobu'tan assessed the rest of their situation. If Lucius had energy to be sarcastic and irritating, then he was fine. "We have cleared out all of the elementals, and their dwarven servants, just as Rend demanded of us, we can now return to him and begin our long preparations for the taking of the upper reaches of the mountain, and the reuniting of the Horde in its glory."
So it was that a tired, but ultimately victorious group which emerged from the depths of Blackrock Mountain, back to the Horde encampment at the base of the mountain, and Nobu'tan took the leading six of the Council of the Black Harvest to the tent of the Warchief, while the others saw to their own needs, refreshment and relaxation from the grueling time beneath the mountain. It was rather odd to know that they had been fighting through those tunnels for nearly a day and a half without rest more than a pause here and there.
To say that Rend was surprised to see them back so soon was an understatement. The orc had been already in the midst of eating his own rather large evening meal, along with his commanders and generals, and paused in the process of ripping meat from a pork leg as the Stormreavers entered. The rest of the noise in the room died as well, all eyes turning toward the dirty, soot stained, and in some cases bloody travelers that had barged in.
"Warchief," Nobu'tan said, making certain that their illusions were still firmly in place, "The Stormreavers return to you victorious. The mountain's depths are clear of all opposition."
The silence that pervaded the statement was almost as profound as the statement itself. Clearly, Rend had not expected them to survive, let alone so quickly come back with news of their victory, and had nothing to say, just as much as Nobu'tan had expected. The fact that this lout was now Warchief was more a matter of bloodlines rather than the orc actually earning the title.
Unfortunately, it would be extremely difficult to assert full and total control with this other Lord Nefarious in charge of the upper regions of the mountain, if Nobu'tan was to take command of the Horde directly, not to mention grossly wasteful of his own time that would be better put to use plotting and planning their rise as a power throughout the continent. In due time perhaps, it would be necessary to remove or replace Rend Blackhand, but now was not that time.
Finally, the Warchief recovered enough of his senses to respond, and let out a howl of delight, slamming the meat back down on the table. "We have all the more to celebrate then it seems!" he cried, beckoning the Stormreavers to join the large table at which they all sat.
Nobu'tan took a seat directly opposite the Warchief, but as the rest of his commanders would not move themselves, the other five of his warlocks had to stand around him, like a guard against treachery as food was passed toward Nobu'tan. "Tell us," Rend demanded, "how did you manage what my own warriors could not is so short a time."
And so Nobu'tan began, between mouthfuls of food and drink to not appear discourteous to the gesture of sitting at the Warchief's table and partaking of his own food, to tell them the long tale of their decent into the mountain, and the slaughters that took place among first the dwarves, then their elemental masters.
He pointedly neglected to tell of the prisoners that he had freed and taken into the Stormreavers, nor of the survival of the Dwarven princess and her departure with the remnant of their people, nor of the Firelord and all they had learned regarding its history. Some things were better kept to oneself in these matters, and much of the history and lore would be wasted upon deaf ears to them regardless.
"And so," Nobu'tan finished after about an hour of telling, "now we control all of the depths of the mountain, all the way to the very roots of its volcanic base."
Rend roared with pleasure, "Lord Nefarius will be pleased to hear of this," he boasted, "it will do well for us to inform him of this as quickly as possible, he may even want to meet you himself," the orc said haughtily…
"True, and that is all well and good, Warchief," Nobu'tan stated, growing colder as he stared into Rend's more-than-bloodshot eye from all the drink he had consumed during the telling of the Stormreaver's tale, "But there is still the matter of freeing the Horde completely from outside control. The mountain is ours, the heritage of your father, and I will not rest so long as some human has control of it, and through it delegates the action of our mighty Horde."
Rend seemed to momentarily sober at those words, probably recalling that his father had been the one to take this mountain in the first place, naming it a sign that the Horde was right to come here, at learning that the mountain's name was the same as their Clan.
"I agree that the Horde needs to be united under orc rule, as it once was," Rend said after a time, "but there is more at work here than I felt safe to share with you before. But now, after such a display of loyalty, I think we can trust you with the truth."
Already sensing something that was amiss since they had arrived in the Burning Steppes, Nobu'tan answered, "The dragons…"
"Yes," Rend affirmed, "Lord Nefarius has a strong alliance with these black dragons, and is aiding them in some sort of strange project, creating a completely new dragonflight by crossing the magic and flesh of the others, warping them with magic that I can scarcely recognize, let alone start to comprehend."
It spoke highly of the situation, Nobu'tan noticed, for Rend to readily admit that he did not understand something, even in his drunken state. And, from what Nobu'tan remembered of the orc from so long ago, being drunk off the various amounts of swill that Rend considered passable as drink tended to only make him angrier and more stubborn as time passed.
This either meant that the orc had mellowed with age, which Nobu'tan was loath to believe of Rend, or that this was something deathly serious that the orc was withholding information about to him. "There has to be something else you're not telling us," he therefore replied, hoping to coax out some measure of useful information out of the orc.
The orc frowned, clearly already starting to feel the effects of his many drinks this night, but said no more about the mysterious benefactor and his draconic allies, turning his bleary attention rather to the other commanders, who were telling tales of the old days, and merrymaking about their victories of bygone battles.
Nobu'tan decided that he was no longer required to remain, and therefore stood, departing swiftly with the rest of the Council, and passing through the camp unhindered to the area that the Stormreavers had claimed, far on the western side of the encampment, closest to the mountain.
Nobu'tan retired to his own tent almost immediately, accompanied only by Teg'Ramm, who had elected himself to serve as personal bodyguard whenever he wasn't ordered to do otherwise. Nobu'tan allowed this, as he hoped to preserve a closer relationship with his servant and student than what Gul'dan had let sit idle and fester when it came to Cho'Gall so long ago.
The sun was already setting as Nobu'tan retired, forcing himself into a sort of waking trance to recover his energy, while still remaining as alert as he dared in case someone approached uninvited. There was still a great deal of mistrust between the Stormreavers and the rest of the Horde, he could sense it, but little they could do to rectify that at the moment.
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Narcissa Malfoy already had had quite enough of riding upon beasts, and these flying gryphons were the worst and most filthy creatures that she had ever encountered, not that she dared mention aloud her discomfort. Years of Pureblood breeding and grooming mixed with a knowledge that these beasts were far more intelligent than their appearance suggested aided her in holding her tongue, as she had little desire for the razor sharp talons to be turned upon her or those women and children that she had a job escorting toward the capital city of Stormwind.
This was already the second trip back that she had to make to Lakeshire, as those who had organized their travel plans hadn't factored in that there would be so many women and children in need of protection, and thusly had understaffed their guards, not to mention failed to forewarn their destination of the numbers about to join them. As such, while Narcissa and the fist group had been able to travel all the way to the massive castle city without issue, they had quickly run out of rooming the various inns and taverns that they occupied while searching for more permanent lodging.
These two idiocies had compiled to Narcissa needing to fly all the way back to Lakeshire before the second group left, to reroute them to the nearby settlement of Goldshire, just outside the castle, and the inn there, which quickly filled up as well. Now she was on her way back, again, to direct the next group toward Northshire Abby, which had graciously opened the doors of their monastery to the refugees that remained, so that they had a safe place to rest while they sought out employment and refuge in the city.
She did not complain however, as she knew that Lucius had the much harder task, making sure that Nobu'tan didn't steer their forces straight into a political trap, or some other nightmare, not to mention actual fighting and other hazards that had prompted her husband to send them away in the first place.
With a surprisingly soft bounce, the Gryphon landed at the nearest roost to Lakeshire, on the far side of the large bridge, still under repair, and Narcissa was helped off the beast by the local Flight Master, a woman named Ariena Stormfeather, with whom Narcissa had grown somewhat familiar with on her first return trip.
"Back again, my Lady?" the woman asked, recognizing her once Narcissa had her feet back on solid earth.
"Yes," Narcissa replied, gingerly working the wrinkles from the front of her robes, as appearances were extremely important in places like this, "We completely filled the Lion's Pride's Inn in Goldshire, and the next group needs to be told that they will be heading to Northshire Abbey."
"Oh my," Ariena replied, even as she took the lead that was attached to the Gryphon that Narcissa had arrived on, tying it to the bed of straw that the beast was already lounging upon, looking over the pair of woman with its massive eyes. "Do you need any help rounding them up?" she asked.
"I think not, but thank you for your consideration," Narcissa replied, wanting no help from anyone in organizing her people. She was very capable on her own, as Lucius would attest to in no small words. "I believe they are all awaiting my, and the escort's, arrival near the far side of the bridge."
And sure enough, there was a large congregation of familiar faces moving toward them across the damaged bridge, many of the women's faces rather humbled from what they had thus far experienced. Narcissa wondered how many of the wives and children of those Purebloods who had rallied around Nobu'tan truly realized what their decision had entailed, or had even asked what would become of them once they arrived in this world. Not that it mattered what they thought. They were just as aware as Narcissa was that there was no turning back now, and had to make do with what comforts they could get. At least magic was still just as powerful here as it was at home, if not more so. There were only so many things a woman could do without after all.
