Thanks to those who reviewed previous chapter... Everything proceeds smoothly, and I hope for your enjoyment of the next chapter! ~F

Chapter Eighty Five

Reinforcement Shuffle

It hadn't taken Lor'themar long to return to Silvermoon, nor to convince his people that their new allegiance to the Horde was their chance to return honorably to the world stage. Many were eager to start influencing the course of the world, and leapt at the chance to have allies that actually respected them. The damage that Lord Garithos did to the Blood Elves and their relationship to the Alliance had been devastating in that regard.

The Sin'dorei had new ships in their arsenal, but for a quick sail down the eastern coast and no real risk of a sea engagement, there was little to worry about ferrying many of their forces, along with Lady Sylvanas and her Dark Rangers, to the eastern coast of the Arathi Highlands.

Scanning the mountain range with a spyglass, Lor'themar frowned, "It doesn't seem that there is any feasible pass that we can use to get through…" he commented.

Sylvanas leapt down from the crow's nest, where she had also been scanning the wall-like mountains. "There is nothing for it but to sail south and continue searching."

"Naturally," Lor'themar replied, turning to look ahead as they rounded a small outcropping in the mountains, and spotted something with potential. "There." He said, pointing. Dead ahead of their small fleet lay a small section of legitimate farmland, just outside a massive cave opening.

"Well, that seems like the most convenient possibility for us to use…" Sylvanas commented, and Lor'themar signaled the helmsman to bring them to the small farmstead.

Oddly enough, the entire property seemed abandoned. Lor'themar guessed that whoever had owned it fled when the undead Scourge ravaged across Lordaeron. Oddly enough, the farm seemed dwarven in nature, with a ram stable and clear dwarven architecture in the construction.

They disembarked cautiously, but try as they might, neither the Forsaken nor the Sin'dorei could find any manner of trap or signs of life on the entire beach-side farmstead. "This seems to be the perfect place for us to set up a hidden base…" Lor'themar stated.

"Once we confirm that this cave will connect to the main part of Arathi…" Sylvanas added. Together the two started toward the mouth of the cavern.

"Even if it doesn't, miners could tunnel through just as easily…" Lor'themar countered, and while he knew the leader of the Forsaken agreed, there was still the need to confirm if they could start making raids on the Dark Horde or not.

Surprisingly, the caverns were actually quite extensive, and seemed as though whoever was living on the farm outside was doing a serious amount of mining here, with the shape of the tunnels winding their way through the mountain.

"It might take longer than we expected to fully search through these caves," Sylvanas stated, as they arrived as another major interception.

"So, we will be taking control of this area, and begin laying out plans for an outpost?" Lor'themar asked, turning back the way they had come.

"I suppose it will be the best option," Sylvanas admitted, "the single entry point will be significantly useful for us in defense, while the open water gives us plenty of avenues of escape if needed."

"I'll send word to the Warchief that we've found our entry point then," Lor'themar affirmed, signaling for several engineers and Farstriders to approach them, "These caves need to be fully explored. If there is no exit into the Highlands, we need to create one, and disguise it thoroughly."

"As you wish, Lord Regent," the elves replied, before gathering their equipment and entering the cave swiftly.

Sylvanas was already overseeing the demolition of the existing structures, in preparation for the workers that would come with timber and stone to create their own fortifications here. They were luck that the dwarves had already constructed a pier-like dock, as it made their transportation far easier.

Nodding at a magister, Lor'themar gave the signal for the elf to teleport all the way to Orgrimmar, in order to inform the Warchief of their discovery, and to send supplies to Silvermoon to then be funneled down by ship to their location.

As much as they had made progress and had success in this mission, Lor'themar was uneasy. He wanted to know what the Dark Horde was up to, especially if it was such a threat that both the Warchief and the Dark Lady mutually held them as a great threat. Rommath attested to their strange new magic that they wielded, but that gave Lor'themar little to go on regarding the magnitude of the threat.

He was likely to continue feeling this way until they got into Arathi so that he could witness the Dark Horde first hand. And he intended to be part of those initial raids, just to satisfy his own curiosity regarding these new foes.

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Nobu'tan had been quite surprised that the Horde had ceased their attempts to probe the defenses of Thoradin's wall, and had settled into just a prolonged presence on their borders. It was likely that they wished to just prevent them from expanding further in that direction without knowledge returning to the nearby undead capital, and as far as Nobu'tan was concerned, they could have Hillsbrad all to themselves.

What else did concern him was the report from their troll allies in the Hinterlands. Apparently, elven vessels had been spotted heading down the coast from the north, and while he was not completely aware of their relationship in the grand scheme of things, Nobu'tan didn't trust having seen some of them among the Horde when they last attacked their defenses.

But since they passed south of the Hinterlands, there had been no further word regarding them. If the Elves were getting involved in the war, especially on the side of the Horde, then that was indeed something particularly problematic.

Nobu'tan knew the Quel'Thalas was well defended, and they would have great difficulty in even reaching their land let alone attacking. However, there was a potential ally that far north that they could make contact with.

Shadow Hunter Vosh'gajin did not seem remotely surprised that he was summoned by Nobu'tan, "What'cha be needin', boss-man?" the troll asked, bowing slightly before Nobu'tan.

"It is time for the Dark Horde to reestablish old ties to the trolls of the north…" Nobu'tan stated, smirking at the troll.

"Dere be no trolls left in da north," the Shadow Hunter replied, "unless you be thinkin' of goin' all da way up to Zul Aman…"

"I do…" Nobu'tan affirmed. The Vilebranch Troll looked somewhat uncomfortable at the prospect.

"Zul Aman has been silent for years, Boss-man," he informed Nobu'tan, "No one be knowin' whether da Amani still be bein' dere, let alone if dey still be willin' to join with da Horde."

"If Zul'jin lives, he will remember me," Nobu'tan said, moderately confident in his words, "we have the tools and the resources to broker an alliance once more with the Amani… especially if their hated foes, the High Elves, are on the move again."

"Alright Boss-man," Vosh'gajin said at last, "I be carryi'n your message to da Amani, but I be warnin' ya. Zul'jin was mighty angry when the Horde fell, and dey say dat he was captured by da elves durin' the last battle… who knows what dere still is up dere."

"I understand," Nobu'tan responded, dismissing the Shadow Hunter. He would know of the secret passes that would allow travel from Arathi directly over the mountains to Quel'Thalas, and from there to the hidden fortress of the Amani Trolls.

Normally, he would want a much larger group of trolls to be his envoy, but War Master Voone and his tribes were busy in the south, taking control of the jungle trolls in the southernmost regions of the Eastern Kingdoms.

With that matter underway, and all scouts on alert of the Horde's secretive movements, he had little to do here remaining, and with Draco waiting for him at Blackrock mountain, Nobu'tan opened a shadowy portal to the mountain.

Draco was already waiting in Nobu'tan chambers when the Grand Warlock arrived, as well as Blaise Zabini. "Curious," Nobu'tan said as he stepped through and acknowledged them both, "I would have thought you would be relaxing from your long trip in Kalimdor, Blaise."

"One can never rest when there are as many threats in the world to our cause as I know of," the Assassin replied, and glanced sidelong at Draco.

"I trust Draco with all our plans, give your report," Nobu'tan stated.

Blaise hesitated a moment longer, then nodded. "I had discovered a knot of necromancers hiding in our ranks, with a multiracial base on the eastern mountain range." He reported.

Nobu'tan froze, thinking hard about the information. "Using the death Knight Voldemort, I routed them and slew the traitors as quickly as possible, but we did make contact with their leader. A lich named Kel'Thuzad…" Blaise continued, and Nobu'tan swore loudly.

"Blast that foolish mage!" he shouted, sweeping a hand across and knocking tomes and parchment across the floor from his table.

"I presume you know of this one closely," Draco asked, and Nobu'tan calmed himself.

"This presents a dire threat to us…" he said, "from what information I've learned in records and other history, Kel'Thuzad became a high ranking leader in the faction known as the undead Scourge, which destroyed most of the Eastern Kingdoms in the time that I was gone. If he has reignited his interest in me, it threatens everything that we've built."

"You think that they might attack us here? In our place of greatest strength?" Draco asked further, and Nobu'tan nodded.

"Not only attack, but in overwhelming numbers…" he responded, "and there is little way we can counter them, with their stronghold on the northern continent of Northrend…"

"From what I overheard," Blaise added, "they were most assuredly planning an attack on us, as well as the other capitals of the Horde and Alliance."

"We need to make sure that we have as many defenders as possible before this attack happens." Nobu'tan said, thinking swiftly. "as many Fel empowered warriors as possible, more ogres and many more trolls to have as broad a range of forces as possible."

Turning to Blaise, he continued. "Go to Rockard, in the Blasted Lands, and inform Teg'Ramm of these events. He is to go to Kalimdor with the elite of his clan. You mentioned ruins there that were infested with Ogres and other spirits. Take them there and add everything you can to our arsenal."

Then to Draco, he continued, "We may have to delay our trip to seek retribution on the Twilight Hammer, at least until we are certain that there are forces here enough to protect our assets…"

"If we can force the Twilight Hammer to return to the Dark Horde…" Draco added.

"True, they would be a great asset," Nobu'tan replied, stroking the small stubble on his human face, "but we cannot trust that they will give up their madness even for a moment. From what I guess, they are much like Morgana was: obsessed with their eldritch masters and wholly uncaring of the world around them."

"So we continue empowering our warriors with more of the Pit Lord's blood, and wait for reinforcements to arrive from north and across the sea…" Draco acknowledged.

"Unless…" Nobu'tan wondered aloud. "Perhaps we can plan to use the dead against their master…"

"Reinstitute the order of the necrolytes into the Horde?" Blaise asked, well aware of the ancient group of death magic wielders.

"Perhaps it is time for Voldemort to prove that he can lead in our ranks as well as be a devastating force of destruction in his own right…" Nobu'tan said, smirking. Conjuring an eye with a gesture, he sent it away with the message for the former Dark Lord.

While they waited, they ironed out the needed repairs to their fortifications, and what possible routes of attack the Scourge might take, from land or air. Blaise seemed certain that some sort of flying attack would happen, and while Nobu'tan doubted that Kel'Thuzad would manage to slip air forces so deep into their territory, it was still a threat to be considered. He wasn't prideful enough to be blind to even a potential weakness.

Soon enough however, Voldemort arrived, and Nobu'tan focused completely on the Death Knight. "The time has come," he said as the armored corpse joined them around the table in Nobu'tan's chambers, where he had laid out a map of the surrounding area.

"Due to the pending attack from the undead Scourge, we have determined that the best route of counter would be training some of our forces in the same manner of magic that these necromancer use to command the dead, and rip control of their footsoldiers from them as they charge our lines." He explained.

"I can only command so many, and wresting them from the control of another is a tedius and difficult task," Voldemort replied, looking dubious at the prospect.

"To that end, I wish for you to train our new order of necrolytes in the death magic that you have been blessed with…" Nobu'tan commanded, and while Voldemort's eyes narrowed, he did not voice any complaint. "Through you, I hope to turn the tide of my old mentor, and make certain our establishment in this place for all time."

Voldemort was silent for a long moment, "Very well," he said at last, "I will train these fools that you will send to me, should they survive the needed preparations to be able to commune and control the dead."

Nobu'tan was only somewhat aware of what the Death Magic constituted, which was why he himself had made no effort to raise more Death Knights outside of the one whim of Voldemort, and even then with powerful enchantment to prevent the corpse from betraying him. He had always felt that Teron Gorefiend had resented Gul'dan for his return to the living world, and Nobu'tan was not willing to find a dagger in his chest as he slept, especially not from one that had for a long time wished his death on a personal level.

"Good," he replied, "We will send all those who have the gift of magic, but are not worthy to become warlocks or mages to you. Train them as swiftly as you can. The more that is prepared before the Scourge attack, the better."

Voldemort nodded and departed swiftly, leaving the three younger humans to deliberate. "Draco," Nobu'tan stated, "I know that I was going to keep you around for the time being, but I have a feeling that we need to keep an eye on the Twilight Hammer at the same time. I can handle the preparation of the Fel warriors here, can you go on ahead and make contact when you are in the southern deserts of Kalimdor. I will teleport to you when you arrive, and we can investigate the rogue clan together, and then return."

Nobu'tan could tell that his right hand was not pleased with the request, but understood the worry that Nobu'tan expressed. From Blaise they had discovered that the Twilight Hammer were in with the same league of beings that Morgan le Fay back on earth was. These creatures were violently opposed to all life, those that used the Fel especially.

If they were to summon any of them, it would be particularly dangerous for them, no matter where in Azeroth they were. Not to mention the danger to the world itself that they had fought so hard to arrive at.

They were not about to lose this world to outside forces.

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Varian looked up from the reports he had been given. "I trust that these have not yet been made public knowledge?" he asked.

The Night Elf messenger nodded. "The High Priestess told me that they were for your eyes only, your Majesty."

Varian nodded. Apparently, Cenarian druids in the southern regions of Kalimdor had reported a great stirring of Twilight Hammer Cultists, as well as the ancient Silithids awakening from their long slumber.

Setting the report aside, he addressed the messenger, "What are the Night Elves planning to do with this information?" he asked.

"The High Priestess wants to send heroes of the Alliance out to Silithus and lend their aid to the Cenarian Circle in whatever way they can, before the Horde hears of this matter," the messenger replied, "there is a new mineral that has sprung up, called Silithyst, and it would be problematic if the Horde were to get their hands on too much of it…"

Varian thought quickly. While they had an uneasy truce with Thrall and his Horde, they still had to maintain their advantage as a world power. Hopefully if they moved quickly enough they could gather much of this new resource and discover its uses before the Horde make their way to the south after it themselves. "I will send out notices for heroes of the Alliance to gather to their enclave in Silithus." Varian acknowledged, pressing his seal to the report and passing it along to a waiting pile of missions to be spread out among the adventuring populace later that day.

"That is all that Lady Whisperwind wishes," the Night Elf replied, bowing respectfully and departing.

Varain thought hard over the matter. They could risk another eruption between their factions if they met in the southern deserts, but it would be far enough away from either capital to not warrant follow-up military provocation. Still, in any event he would want someone he could trust to lead the expedition of adventurers down to the deserts there.

"Page," he summoned, calling forth the young man that attended him, "sent to Lord or Lady Malfoy, I have a request to make of them."

"Yes, your majesty," the lad said, before darting off at full speed through the keep's corridors. Varian smirked. The lad was brash, and not wholly aware of the propriety of his station, but he was eager to give every ounce of energy he had to whatever Varian needed, and the King appreciated that over everything else. Hopefully the page didn't strain a muscle on his way across the city; he was liable to sprint the whole way just to arrive as quickly as physically possible.

Thinking of what he was going to request, Varian sat back in his chair. If Draco, or barring the younger man Lucius himself, would agree to head the expedition to Silithus, it would do a great deal in assuring Varain that they were loyal to Stormwind despite their strange and mysterious background. Hopefully Anduin was getting good information from Lady Proudmoore, and they could put the matter to rest.

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Lucius walked quickly to the door when he heard the bell, and opened it.

A page was standing outside, hands on his knees and huffing as though he had run a marathon to get there. "L-lord Malfoy?" he wheezed, and Lucius smirked. He knew that this was the royal page, who served King Varian, and it was highly likely that his guess of a marathon was close to accurate.

"I am he, please come inside and refresh yourself." Lucius said, taking the boy by the shoulder and leading him inside. It wouldn't be good for the lad to pass out on his doorstep.

After getting a drink of water in him, the boy looked better, although still rather red in the face. "I trust that King Varian wishes to speak with me or my wife?" Lucius guessed before the boy could speak, and sheepishly the lad nodded.

"I will come as swiftly as I can," Lucius replied, "I just need to make sure my wife is comfortable, and I will start on my way over."

The boy nodded and turned to the door, "Don't run the entire way back," Lucius cautioned him as he reached for the doorknob, and the boy blushed again, "We want you to actually make it back to the keep to deliver my answer, so take it easy. The King will not be upset if you take a few more minutes to get there."

"Yes, Sir," the boy said, easing the door open and stepping out again. Once it was closed, Lucius went up to the second floor, where the bedrooms were. Narcissa had been spending more and more time in bed lately, as her pregnancy got into the latest stages. "The King has summoned me, and I need to see what he desires," Lucius said, kissing her forehead and making sure that the blankets were tucked carefully around her body.

"All right, my dear," Narcissa said, smiling rosily up at him. "Miss Parkinson will be along soon, and she will take care of anything I need while you are away."

Squeezing her shoulder affectionately, Lucius closed the bedroom door, quickly jotted down a note for his son's fiancé, and departed. He circumnavigated the packed Trade District through the canals and made his way up to the Keep.

The guards saluted as he passed, likely knowing that he was expected. Lucius still had yet to manage the same level of command that his wife had with the soldiers guarding the Keep, and couldn't come and go as he pleased. Following the instructions that were given when he met with the guard captian at the entrance, Lucius quickly found himself at the private study of the King of Stormwind.

Knocking respectfully, he waiting until the door was opened for him. Nodding at the same page that had come earlier, and noting that the boy was far more relaxed and less blustered than before, Lucius entered.

"You summoned me, your Majesty," he said in greeting. Keeping a respectful distance, Lucius observed the room. For the study of a royal ruler, it was rather sparse. The shelves were more or less bare, aside from a few trophies and ornamental weapons on the walls. The only books were in a small pile on the desk that Varain sat behind, along with parchment and a single quill standing in a vial on ink. It was clearly the room of a leader that was more of a practical person, and would study only when absolutely needed.

"Yes, Lord Mallfoy," Varian said, looking up and smiling, "I've recently received word of a concerning matter in the southern regions of Kalimdor."

Lucius frowned; this was not something he was aware of. Varian clearly noticed, and continued, "The Druids of the Cenarian Circle are noting a large increase in activity around the hold in Silithus, from both the native insectoid populace as well as the Twilight Hammer Cult that has moved into the region and taken up residence."

Some of that information Lucius was aware of, although he maintained his frown for the sake of the observant king, "What would you have of me in regards to these matters, your Majesty?" he asked.

"The Night Elves wish for the entire Alliance to send their adventurers to the desert in order to investigate and put an end to the cultists and whatever activities they are up to. I wish for you to lead the company of adventurers that will assemble in the next few days." Varian explained.

It was an enticing concept, and Lucius could see the test for what it was. Clearly there was a mystique around them and their people in the eyes of the rest of Stormwind, and it had only been a matter of time before someone started asking the deep questions. For it to have been the newly returned King was just an added unfortunate turn of events. However…

"I apologize, your Majesty," Lucius stated, "I cannot, in good conscious, leave my wife in the state she is in, even with what help there is, and go out to this expedition."

Varian seemed unsurprised, albeit somewhat disappointed. "Ah, yes. Lady Malfoy is with child is she not?" the man asked, and Lucius couldn't help but beam with pride.

"If you excuse my brashness, but you both seem rather late in years to be expanding your family in such a manner…" Varian added, and Lucius knew that there was a trap there. He had to answer, and whatsoever he answered would be judged according to what the King knew.

"Your Majesty," he started, "those of us with the special gifts in magic, like myself and my family, are blessed with longer than average lifespan, and as such the years of fertility are also longer…"

"And where is it that these gifts of magic are found in such abundance, that you had to leave and join us here at Stormwind, exactly?" Varian continued, driving the main part of his trap home.

Lucius knew that answers would not escape now, and rather than allow himself to ruin anything with the plans of the Dark Horde, he formulated a lightning swift plan. "I am not at liberty to tell the details." He started, but held up a hand as the King started to rebuttle, "however, I can crush two murlocks with one stone, and provide someone who can both answer your questions to your satisfaction as well as lead the adventurers to Silithus."

The King did not seem particularly pleased with the compromise, but there was nothing that Lucius could offer better than that, and clearly Varian could tell that this was the case. "I want to meet with this person as soon as possible, and I want to know the time and day that they will arrive."

"I will inform you as soon as I know, your Majesty…" Lucius said, bowing as he was dismissed.

Quickly he departed, already composing the message for Nobu'tan in his mind. It was time for Tobias Banu to return to Stormwind, and within the hour his silver peacock was sailing over the houses of the city, bound for the north as swiftly as the magic could go.

Lucius did not tell Narcissa regarding the matter, and passed off the summons from the King as him merely wanting to know how they were doing and if they needed anything for her comfort. He did not want to add more to her stress with the due date for her child so close.

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Jaina did greatly enjoy having Anduin on Theramore, but in all honestly she could tell that there was something of an ulterior motive for the boy's presence. He spent a strange amount of time with Aegwynn, despite having no idea who the ancient Magna actually was.

Something was up, and she was going to get to the bottom of the matter this evening. A large meal had been prepared, the people of Theramore Keep also wanting to greatly impress the future king of Stormwind.

Anduin, as all young boys, was very easy to persuade with the promise of food, especially new and interesting meals that were considered adventurous to try. She may have used that to her advantage, making sure that there were enough courses for them to try.

Anduin clearly had to struggle to keep his composure of interest as dish after dish were placed before him, and maintain his manners as such befitting a prince. But she figured that she would be more than able to worm out the information she desired.

"You've been busy since you arrived here Anduin," she said, ladling some clam soup into a bowl for herself.

The boy was distracted momentarily from the sight of so much food, and shrugged, "I suppose that is true, Aunt Jaina." He eagerly took a roll, and dipped a spoon into the chowder that was placed before him, eagerly savoring the creamy taste.

"What I mean is, we've done actually very little together, and it's nearly time for you to return to Stormwind…" she continued, and Anduin nodded, his mouth full of food and therefore unable to respectfully reply.

"It makes me almost wonder if there was another reason for your visit," Jaina added, and smirked into her goblet as the young prince choked slightly in surprise. Honestly, Anduin was almost too read to read.

"W-why would you think that?" the boy spluttered, coughing in the attempt to clear his throat and lungs from food.

"Tell me truthfully Anduin," Jaina pressed, staring hard at the prince, "Why did Varian send you here?"

Anduin held out for all of three seconds, before exhaling and hanging his head. "Father wants to know more about the Malfoy family, and their allegiance, and figured that you might know more. And your handmaiden told me of her suspicions, but nothing regarding what you actually think, so I was trying to find a good reason to bring them up in conversation, but it never happened."

Jaina huffed, "If Varian wanted to know about them so badly, he could have come to me himself…"

Anduin at least had the sensibility to look embarrassed at being found out, but Jaina was already settling her mind on a course of action. "I'm going with you back to Stormwind, if Varian wants to know what I know about the Malfoys, he had better ask me himself."

That perked up Anduin, and the boy looked quite excited that she was going with him back. "There's so much I can show you then, abotut he changes that father has been making to the city," he said eagerly, and Jaina laughed.

There was the Anduin she knew and loved.

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Teg'Ramm was not sure how much he could believe regarding the human assassin that attended Lord Nobu'tan, but the seal on the order was genuine enough to warrant his attention. "The other continent…" Teg muttered, even as Ramm craned his neck to get a better view of the scroll.

"Yes," Zabini, also known now as Tenebrous, said, "There is a sizable elven ruin near our main base there, and at least a wing of it, and the land surrounding, is filled with ogre clans… Lord Nobu'tan wants our forces bolstered as much as possible to impede a possible attack coming soon…"

That got the ogre mage's attention, "Lord Nobu'tan expects us to be attacked?" Ramm demanded, and Teg narrowed his eyes on the human in orc illusion before him.

"Yes, from the armies of the dead from the frozen northern continent," the man replied, and Teg'Ramm could detect no lies in his words.

Nodding, Teg started to calculate what they would need in supplies for such a journey, while Ramm conjured several messenger eyes and sent them out of the fortress windows, summoning the elite of his warriors and warlocks to attend him. They would leave as swiftly as possible.

"Whatever Lord Nobu'tan desires, we will fulfill," Teg'Ramm stated, even as each mind completed their tasks. "How do we intend to travel to this place?" he asked. Few of their number could produce portals in strength to move an entire company. And their standing gateways did not as of yet connect to such a distant location as this Kalimdor.

"Lord Nobu'tan has given me an enchanted runestone that will open a portal for us, and a second that will return here." Tenebrous stated, withdrawing the fist-sized stones from his robe and showing them to the ogre mage lord.

"I see," Teg'Ramm stated, sensing the Grand Warlock's magic on them, and nodding to himself. Everything seemed truthful. Even though he did not doubt that Lord Nobu'tan would want this sort of expedition from him, it was still good policy to squint at anything the assassin said, just in case.

Within the hour, his forces were rallied and the supplies for their march gathered. Teg'Ramm and thirty other ogres waited in the courtyard for Tenebrous to wield the runestone, each a keen mind that was focused utterly on the loyalty to their clan, and by extension, the Dark Horde itself.

With a tap of his wooden wand and a few muttered words, Tenebrous had the stone glowing. It lifted into the air and spun like a child's toy, until before the spinning rock a gateway in space opened before them. Teg'Ramm knew that they had a limited window to move through, and ordered his guard to advance. The portal widened to allow two ogres side by side to enter, and within moments all were through, leaving only the two leaders.

Teg'Ramm nodded at Tenebrous, and stepped through before the human, feeling the shift in the air from the Fel-charged dryness to something even more pervaded in death, lacking all moisture and any semblance of life in it.

They were truly in a new land, and Teg'Ramm looked about at the grey landscape with a critical eye. "We will need to march to the south for a time to reach the land where the ruins lie," Tenebrous explained, "but we might as well do the courteous thing and notify the local fortress leader of our presence, and that we are on a mission for Lord Nobu'tan himself."

Teg'Ramm nodded. He still did not fully understand the humans and their secret rituals of communication, least of all the reasons behind it, but if it made their expedition easier, then he was all for it.

Leaving the thirty ogre warriors and warlocks waiting in front of the massive gate, Teg'Ramm and Tenebrous entered, getting more than a few glances from the local orc population, until the human pointed a disguised finger at a particular figure, "There is who we wish to converse with," he explained, and Teg'Ramm followed the assassin's lead as they approached.

The figured turned toward them when they were within a few paces, "Ah, Teneborous, I didn't expect you back so soon…" he said silkily, and glanced up at Teg'Ramm, "and the lord of the Balefire Clan, as well. To what do I owe the pleasure?"

"Do we have somewhere to speak in private briefly?" Tenebrous asked quickly, the assassin clearly paranoid of anyone and anthing that was not a full member of the Dark Horde.

"Of course…" the other disguised human said, ushering them both into the large stronghold structure of the base. Even though it was still under construction for some manner of upgrade, Teg'Ramm could tell that it was a well built.

"What do you want, Blaise?" the orc said, his voice already showing irritation at their presence.

"We are required to inform you that we, the Balefire Clan's warriors and I, are using your stronghold as a base camp as we venture into the wilds of Feralas, under Nobu'tan's orders for even more recruits to the Dark Horde…" Tenebrous explained swiftly.

"That's all?" the other human said, looking instantly bored, "why would you think to bother me with that?"

"Requirements of Lord Nobu'tan," Teg'Ramm said swiftly…

"Ah…" the other replied.

Tenebrous smirked at that point, "Have you bothered picking a name yet? Or are these orcs still just calling you Lord?" he asked teasingly.

The other human clearly had not as of yet, and the irritation was clear on his face, "I haven't had time for that. I don't have the long leisurely walks between locations to think and plan, like you. I have to get this fortress into perfect shape for out campaign onto Kalimdor when Nobu'tan feels the time is right…"

Tenebrous rolled his eyes. "Whatever, but I'd recommend committing a bit of time to it, then let the name slip out in a rumor, so that they at least know what to refer to you in third person… it would at least be amusing how long until they try to use it to you directly…"

With that Tenebrous left, and Teg'Ramm spared only a single glance back as they departed the stronghold. If anything, the other orc looked thoughtful at the snide suggestion, and the shadow of a smirk was on his face.

Teg'Ramm was sure that in his entire life, he had never met a stranger or more unusual group of creatures as these humans.