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Lover of Editing
That's the thing though, those are Hero Units! Doesn't Gul'dan know that as a Raid Boss he's supposed to be chilling in his boss room waiting for the raid to start?
Chapter 83
When Krivax had explained to everyone that he'd managed to find infiltrators approaching the portal hub by scanning Dalaran after hearing Mal'Ganis' testimony, it was enough to send them all scrambling.
The dire news was impossible to hide from the staff and quickly sent the A.D.F headquarters into a state of chaos. Less experienced administrators, already stretched to their limits by the ongoing attack on Kul'Tiras, panicked after learning that there were Scourge infiltrators in Dalaran. People frantically attempted to contact their families, started making foolish mistakes due to lack of sleep, and began running through the corridors in a hurry to get to their stations.
Krivax did his best to project an air of a calm leader as he organized everything, but some of their frenetic energy was warranted as they needed to move very swiftly.
Emergency messages were being sent via magic to inform the Council of Six about the situation, a messenger had been sent to alert the city garrison, and Krivax had even sent one of his guards to muster the nerubian enclave to help defend Dalaran. Unfortunately, all of these things would take time that they did not have. The paths taken by the Scourge infiltrators were approaching very close to the city's critical defense infrastructure.
As such, Krivax had urgently gathered every combat capable member of the A.D.F into an adhoc squad to hold off the enemy forces until reinforcements arrived. This group included himself, Rommath, Ironaya, Illidan, his remaining guards, a half-dozen Sentinels, and a few other miscellaneous individuals in their headquarters.
Krivax was tempted to leave Magister Rommath to handle the frenzy, but the Magister was needed as he was both skilled enough and had the necessary permissions to teleport within the city's limits. This meant he would be able to position the assembled group to intercept the Scourge infiltrators.
The only difficulty was choosing which group of infiltrators they would be confronting.
"It's faint. Much more so than the enemy group near the portals, but I can just barely feel a demonic presence moving through the Violet Citadel," Krivax reported grimly, not at all happy to have his fears confirmed.
"A Dreadlord then," said Illidan, his voice containing a mixture of excitement and grim determination. "One who intends to take control of the city's wards. The Burning Legion's tactics haven't changed in the slightest since the War of the Ancients."
Krivax's heart dropped as he imagined what would happen if the Scourge succeeded in their plans. Dalaran's anti-spatial magic wards emanated from the Violet Citadel, preventing hostile forces from teleporting whoever they wanted into the city. If they were able to seize control over those wards while simultaneously cutting off Dalaran from the rest of the world, the consequences would be catastrophic.
The Scourge would be completely free to open a portal into the city and allow their forces to pour in while the Alliance would be prevented from mounting an effective defense.
It would be a slaughter.
"We need to focus on stopping one prong of their plan," said Magister Rommath, his normally composed demeanor strained by the gravity of the situation. "Dalaran is only at risk of falling if both the portal hub and the wards are compromised. So long as we defend one, there is little the Scourge can do before the Council of Six intervenes. I suggest that we go to the Violet Citadel. It is far more defensible than the portal hub."
"I'll never refuse the opportunity to slay one of the Burning Legion's dogs," said Illidan, the fel green orbs behind his blindfold growing brighter with a deep desire for violence.
Krivax knew that there were few things that Illidan hated more in the world than demons and that he saw it as his purpose in life to destroy the Burning Legion. Should Magister Rommath teleport them to the Violet Citadel, he had no doubt that Illidan would absolutely tear the Dreadlord apart in short order.
That course of action was likely the objectively correct decision from a strategic perspective… but there was a small problem with that.
"If we go to the Violet Citadel, then a lot of people are going to die," said Krivax, his words immediately drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "Not only are there more enemies in the group heading toward the portal hub, but one of them is… absurdly powerful. If they go on a rampage, then it wouldn't be out of the question for them to slaughter hundreds of civilians and raise them as undead before we can respond."
Krivax couldn't help but shudder as he remembered the faint glimpse of potent necrotic magic that he'd sensed beyond the concealment magic.
If scrying and scouting hadn't already confirmed that the Lich King was stuck in a block of ice near Shen-zin Su's head, then Krivax could have sworn that he'd sensed the leader of the Scourge himself. However, since it was Gul'dan who had become the Lich King rather than Ner'zhul, it made matters much more uncertain.
There was no telling what abilities such a powerful warlock may have manifested after becoming the Lich King that a shaman like Ner'zhul never did during the original timeline. Although, Krivax speculated that Gul'dan was likely the type to favor his personal power.
"It's slightly riskier, but I'm fairly confident that Illidan is the only person strong enough to counter that threat," Krivax continued, knowing that he would need to explain further if he wished to convince them. "Dreadlords tend to prefer subtlety rather than needless slaughter, so it's unlikely that they kill any more than necessary to achieve their goal. Besides, there's a good chance that team Rhonin and the city garrison will be able to prevent them from seizing the city's wards for long enough for reinforcements to arrive."
Fortunately, the Kirin Tor had been wise enough to leave Archmage Cedric behind to head the city garrison, so Krivax genuinely thought the Dreadlord could be dealt with without them. He could tell that his argument was enough to persuade Illidan.
However, he could also tell that Illidan was less than pleased with this arrangement.
"So, you would accept a greater risk that the entire city falls just to protect a few hundred lives?" Illidan said, his expression contemptuous. "To be a leader is to make difficult decisions. This weak-willed nonsense will bring nothing but disaster."
A part of him agreed and wanted to defer to Illidan's vastly greater experience in dealing with matters such as this… but Krivax couldn't bring himself to do so. Illidan may have been instrumental in defeating the Burning Legion during the original timeline, but Krivax couldn't ignore the many times the reckless and obsessed night elf's decisions had caused irreparable harm.
Sometimes, the so-called 'difficult decision' was merely a convenient excuse for callousness, and Krivax didn't want to go down that route. He still regretted the tremendous loss of life when the C'thraxx had attacked the Lordaeron Capital City.
He could only hope that he wouldn't live to regret it.
"I understand that it's a risk, but we have a duty to do what we can to protect the people of Dalaran," said Krivax, meeting Illidan's gaze directly without hesitation. "With your help, we shouldn't have much trouble defending the portal hub from the Scourge, unless you lack confidence in our ability to stop them?"
"I doubt nothing, aside from your strategic acumen," Illidan responded with scorn before pausing to take a deep breath. "However, I will follow your lead in these matters, and we will see what comes of this decision."
Krivax wanted to say more, but they had very little time to waste.
"Magister Rommath, please teleport us now," said Krivax, turning toward the high elf. "I can feel them approaching the portal hub. We must leave now if we're going to prevent them from entering the building."
Magister Rommath nodded gravely and instructed everyone to gather around him as arcane energy began swirling around him. After several moments, the spell was completed and Krivax felt the familiar sensation of spatial magic wrapping around their group and pulling them to the other side of Dalaran.
Almost immediately, they were greeted by the sight of startled Kirin Tor guards who had yet to be informed of the current emergency. They were brandishing spears at them with wild eyed expressions.
"Halt! Spatial magic in this area is permitted only to authorized members of the Kirin Tor," one of the guards said immediately, hesitating only briefly when got a good look at their group. "Present your credentials and allow yourselves to be examined for illusionary magic, or prepare to face immediate detainment."
Krivax was torn between appreciation that the Kirin Tor guards were performing their duties so diligently and frustration at the waste of crucial time. Given how on edge the Alliance was due to the war, all of the guards were extremely tense, ready to attack at a moment's notice.
As the only person in their group who was technically a member of the Kirin Tor, Magister Rommath was quick to step forward and present his credentials, a shimmering badge imbued with magic denoting his position.
"Are you the commander of this post?" Magister Rommath asked the guard that had addressed them, a broad shouldered human who introduced themselves as Commander Reynolds . "Gather your forces and prepare to defend this location. The Alliance Defense Force has reliable reason to believe that it is about to be attacked by powerful Scourge infiltrators."
"Please instruct them to avoid alerting the enemy before they enter the building," Krivax added quickly before the Commander could send out orders. "We want to prevent fighting in the streets as much as possible in order to limit civilian casualties. It would be best to trap them inside and then strike."
"And bring me some weapons," Illidan said while scowling contemptuously toward his Sentinel guards, who immediately began protesting. "That is, if you truly wish for me to be of any use."
Krivax was truly glad that every nation in the Eastern Kingdoms had decided to place their garrisons on high alert, because the Commander merely nodded without complaint and immediately began shouting orders to his subordinates. Fortunately, the portal hub was built somewhat with defensibility in mind to prevent unauthorized individuals from easily leaving or entering Dalaran, so it only had a single entrance and sophisticated wards.
This meant all of the civilians who happened to be inside could be quickly and efficiently evacuated to a safer part of the building, while the defenders took positions near the entrance to create a choke point.
Meanwhile, Krivax and Illidan both made their way to a nearby room away from the entrance. There was a significant possibility that the Scourge could potentially notice the very distinctive Fel or Life magic emanating from them, so they needed to go somewhere where they wouldn't immediately be detected.
Naturally, the Sentinels refused to leave Illidan's side and joined them as well.
Once they were there, Krivax cast a scrying spell over the portal hub's entrance while Illidan concealed their presence with his own spell. There was a decent chance that the Scourge would notice that they were being scryed, but they would probably not realize that their cover was blown. It wasn't out of the ordinary for critical infrastructure to be under constant monitoring, especially during such tense times.
Chances were that they'd simply planned to push their way through an unprepared defense force before any reinforcements could arrive.
Unfortunately for them, that wasn't going to be allowed to happen.
While it felt longer, it had only been around ten minutes from the moment Krivax had first sensed the Scourge's presence to when they were fully prepared to fend the portal hub. The speed and sense of purpose with which everyone moved was impressive, and Krivax saw nothing but determined expressions as he steeled himself for battle.
He could even sense that the city's garrison was responding quicker than expected, and were already converging on the Violet Citadel.
"What do you know of their capabilities?" asked Illidan, his tone serious and sober as he took a few swings of the enchanted blades provided to him by the guards.
Something about the night elf's demeanor had changed dramatically. His typical arrogance and self-assuredness had been replaced with the sharper, more lethal focus of a life-long warrior preparing for battle.
"Very little, other than that their leader is frighteningly powerful and that they are likely all undead," Krivax replied as he monitored the street outside of the portal hub via scrying.
There were fewer civilians out there than usual due to Dalaran's heightened state of security and the general sense of unease in the city. However, there were still far too many in the streets for Krivax's tastes.
He wished that he could warn them and tell them to take shelter, but it was more important that the Scourge wasn't alerted too early.
It wasn't long before the group of Scourge infiltrators stepped into range of his scrying spell. There were eight of them in total, all ostensibly appearing like normal Dalaran citizens of various races, merely seeking to travel to one of the Alliance's major cities.
Their leader looked like a human man with a calm expression and wore the robes of an apprentice mage. He moved with strange grace, and his presence emanated a sense of authority that couldn't be hidden behind the concealment magics that shrouded him.
Illidan gave a curt nod. "I suppose it doesn't matter. Even if they aren't demons themselves, the Scourge is merely another facet of the Burning Legion and will crumble before me."
Krivax didn't react to Illidan's proclamation and instead focused on the incoming Scourge. They were approaching at a casual pace and would hopefully be successfully lured into the building further away from Dalaran's busy streets.
At least, that was their goal, but it became obvious that something had gone wrong when the leader of the Scourge infiltrators suddenly stopped the moment he stepped through the portal hub's entrance.
Krivax let out a short curse as he watched the guard commander approach the infiltrator with a smile on his face, clearly intending to play the part of the friendly greeter.
"Good evening, sir. Is there an issue?" the guard-commander inquired, feigning ignorance.
A part of Krivax didn't expect the Scourge leader to actually respond and instead just immediately attack, but he was pleasantly surprised when the man gave a slight smile, never breaking character.
"Ah, good evening," the Scourge leader replied, his voice calm and smooth. "I apologize for me and my group blocking the entrance. I was just momentarily taken aback when I didn't see any other travelers and that the wards were more intense than I expected. Has something happened?"
The guard-commander, to his credit, didn't falter. "The ongoing conflict with the Scourge and their attack on Kul'Tiras has placed all major cities on alert. We have decided to take extra precautions just to be safe. As for the lack of travelers, it's simply a lull in traffic. Please follow me so that we can get you all processed quickly and safely."
There was a tense moment when the guard-commander began moving further into the compound with the expectation that he would be followed, only for the Scourge group to remain completely stationary with suspicious gazes. Krivax's heart pounded as he let out a curse, fearing that they'd been discovered. He could feel Illidan and the Sentinels tensing next to him, ready to dash out of the room at a moment's notice.
Just as it seemed that the Scourge finally started following and moving further into their trap, Krivax was momentarily distracted as he sensed Dalaran's garrison close in on the demonic presence in the Violet Citadel. A second later, there was a potent clash of Fel magic and arcane magic indicating that a fierce battle had begun in the heart of the city's fortress.
The Violet Citadel was reasonably far from the portal hub, and nobody but Krivax should have been capable of sensing the fight taking place there, but he knew that assumption was wrong when the Scourge leader suddenly stopped again.
"Shit. Move!" Krivax called out, already rushing out of the room.
He was barely able to make it in time to throw out a stream of Life-infused flames that clashed against the overwhelming wave of necrotic energy unleashed by the Scourge leader. Even then, he was only able to save about half of the Kirin Tor guards who were positioned further away from the entrance
The ones closer, including the guard-commander, were killed nearly instantly. Their hastily erected arcane barriers shattering and their flesh rotting away in mere moments. Before their bodies could even fall, their eyes began to glow malevolent blue light as they fell under the control of the Scourge.
The magic concealing their enemies had fallen away, revealing them all to be pandaren monks, their bodies showing obvious signs of decay and emanating necrotic magic. Each of them carried staves made of blackened bone, decorated with glowing blue runes that pulsed with the same unnatural light as their eyes. They wore dark, tattered robes that flowed eerily, as if touched by an otherworldly wind.
Krivax had expected to see malicious and twisted expressions, but they instead all carried an unnerving serenity that felt completely out of place. All of them except for their leader.
The elderly male pandaren stared at Krivax specifically with an eerie intensity. His eyes were a deep, dark void that seemed to draw everything in and the necromantic magic emanating from him was unlike anything Krivax had ever encountered, drowning out all other sensation.
When he spoke, his voice was as if two different people were speaking in unison, with the deeper of the two sounding like something from the abyss itself.
All of this, along with utter hatred and focus with which he looked at Krivax was enough for him to conclude that the undead monk was somehow being… possessed or empowered by the Lich King.
Gul'dan was the only individual who had reason to hate him so intensely, and emanate that kind of power. A part of him was surprised given that the Lich King hadn't manifested this kind of ability during the original timeline, but it made sense that a warlock as hungry for control as Gul'dan would develop such a power.
"You," said Gul'dan through the undead monk he was possessing, voice filled with more hatred than Krivax had ever heard.
Before Krivax could react, everything turned into a flurry of movement as Illidan burst forward, twin blades glowing with fel energy as he sliced through undead mages with expert precision. From there, things took a turn for the worse when the monks jumped back with impressive speed, with the screaming of civilians soon following as they retreated to Dalaran's busy streets.
Illidan immediately chased after them, with Krivax and everyone else quickly following. It became clear why the Scourge had chosen to fight outside when he saw bystanders being killed and raised as undead while the monks dexterously jumped between buildings, leaving chaos in their wake.
Men, women, and children were all running in terror as their once-familiar city streets turned into a horrifying battleground. With each dead civilian, the Scourge swelled in number and their relentless assault risked growing out of control.
Illidan was already engaged in close combat with the Lich King, each of them a blur of motion that sent Fel and necromantic energies exploding with each clash, while the other undead monks were free to run rampant.
It was good that the enemy was being moved away from the portal hub, but Krivax couldn't help but feel a wave of fury at the sight of innocent people being killed for little more than a distraction.
"Focus on the monks and get the civilians away! Reinforcements are on their way!" Krivax yelled, directing the combatants running out of the portal hub as he began casting a short ranged teleportation.
A moment later, he disappeared and reappeared in a flash of violet light in between one of the undead monks and a gnome woman who was desperately trying to shield her child.
"Get out of here!" Krivax yelled to the civilian as he summoned his silk golem right before the monk was about to strike.
She reacted with impressive reflexes, allowing her to barely avoid being grabbed by the golem before leaping away from the burst of flames Krivax sent her way as the gnome family ran for cover.
As she landed, a group of the Kirin Tor guards immediately launched a barrage of various spells at her from every angle while Krivax's bodyguards charged her spear first, only for the undead monk to summon a shroud of dark mist that seemed to absorb all of their attacks and hide her from view.
A few seconds later, she surged forward while ignoring the spear buried in her chest straight into the group of soldiers.
Many of them put up a good fight, burning through chunks of the Death Monk with fireballs or otherwise injuring her with enchanted blades, but the undead paid no mind to her injuries. The undead exploited her resilience to unleash a series of rapid, graceful strikes as dark magic flowed from her staff.
The few blows that didn't outright kill a guard resulted in them being sapped of their very life force, leaving them withered husks. When her mist dispersed a moment later, it revealed that Krivax's personal guard had suffered a similar fate, the corpses of several elite nerubian soldiers littering Dalaran's street.
The sight reminded Krivax vividly of the Horde's Death Knights during the Second War, except that these undead pandaren were far more deadly than even them. Given that Gul'dan was the original creator of the Death Knight, it wasn't surprising that this new type of undead, which he couldn't help but call Death Monks in his mind, held such a horrifying level of power.
Understanding that he would have to find a way to keep the Death Monk from escaping if he wanted to actually deal with her, Krivax took a different course of action the next time he teleported himself and his golem next to her.
While she easily managed to dodge his golem for a second time, Krivax paid that little mind and unleashed a nova of ice magic that froze the entire area around them solid. Every surface, from the ground to the surrounding structures was turned to ice, causing the monk to lose her footing.
Seizing the opportunity, Krivax's silk golem swung down at the monk with a blow that they hastily tried to avoid, turning an attack that would have shattered her skull into one that merely took most of the left side of her body and destroyed her staff.
However, this attack that would be guaranteed to kill a normal person was a mere inconvenience to the monk as she jumped up and grabbed a stone chunk from the shattered road before hurling it at Krivax's eyes with ridiculous precision. Such an attack naturally wasn't enough to pierce Krivax's magical defenses, but it distracted him enough that the monk was able to close in on him.
Even with only a single functional arm, the undead's movements were still incredibly fluid and precise, managing to strike Krivax in a way that sent necromantic magic flowing into his body. He could instantly tell that he would be in extreme danger if not for Alexstrasza's empowerment, but as it was, he was merely staggered. The Life magic acted like potent antibodies against an infection, protecting him from harm.
This was clearly not what Krivax's opponent was expecting, and he exploited her surprise by simultaneously casting a geomancy spell that shook the earth beneath her feet and lunged forward to grab the monk. He wouldn't normally have been able to successfully catch such an agile opponent, but the combination of the icy terrain and being knocked off balance made it impossible to dodge in time.
This meant Krivax was free to completely engulf the monk in Life-Infused flames that ate away at the necromantic magic animating her. The serene expression that the undead pandaren had worn throughout their entire confrontation was immediately replaced by one of agony as she did everything she could to escape his grasp.
Krivax merely ignored her thrashing and occasional strikes until the only thing left of her was a pile of ash.
That took far too much effort for some nameless underling, Krivax thought as he let out a sigh of relief. The Scourge must have truly sent some of its strongest agents for this mission.
Turning his attention to the rest of the battlefield, Krivax became further convinced of this conclusion.
The streets had cleared of civilians by now, but the surrounding buildings had been devastated as each of the Death Monks held their own against multiple Kirin Tor guards. The Sentinels, fewer of them remaining than he remembered, had taken position to the rear and were doing their best to support the beleaguered mages with their archery. Honestly, it was likely that Ironaya was the only reason the Death Monks hadn't managed to simply run past them all and attack the portal hub.
The Titanic Watcher had shed her mortal form and was towering over the structure's entrance, her massive mace deterring any undead that approached as her inorganic body protected her from any necromantic attacks.
The number of dead was genuinely shocking, but Krivax could tell that the Scourge was extremely unlikely to actually achieve their goal. Despite the portal hub only having a few dozen Kirin Tor guards, each of them fought valiantly in the face of such a powerful foe while more and more arrived with every moment. Krivax could sense reinforcements quickly converging on their location, and even see a few nerubian warriors from the enclave crawling over buildings as they made their way to the battlefield.
While the Scourge infiltrators were powerful, they simply lacked the numbers to put up a prolonged resistance, and several of them had already been destroyed.
The Lich King must have also realized the same thing, because the undead he had possessed suddenly scowled and let loose an explosion of dark magic that sent Illidan flying away from him, before retreating toward the southern side of the city. Every single undead followed after him in a synchronized movement that made it clear they were being puppeteered much more directly than the typical Scourge minion.
Krivax wished that he could believe that Gul'dan was retreating due to his outmatched forces, but he could feel the Scourge heading toward a very important structure.
"After them, quickly! They're headed for the Violet Hold," Krivax shouted, realizing the magnitude of the threat.
The Violet Hold was not only a high-security prison, but also housed incredibly dangerous creatures that were imprisoned by the Kirin Tor primarily for research purposes. Should Gul'dan successfully release them, then Dalaran would suffer immense casualties before they could be contained.
The rush to the Violet Hold was a blur, with much of the city in a state of chaos as civilians attempted to get to shelters, clogging up the streets while the garrison attempted to establish some semblance of order. Both their fight with Gul'dan and the confrontation at the Violet Citadel were both very loud, causing the sounds of explosions to echo throughout Dalaran.
Ironaya stayed behind to ensure none of the Scourge attempted to double back and attack the portal hub.
As they approached, it was obvious that the Lich King was already at work as the guards who had been stationed at the Violet Hold had already been turned into undead, joining the other Scourge minions. The formidable prison's entrance had been blasted wide open, wisps of necromantic magic still lingering in the air.
It took only a moment for Illidan to cut down the undead with contemptuous ease, allowing them to enter the prison. Inside the Violet Hold, the scene was exactly as Krivax had anticipated with many of the containment cells shattered and their inhabitants freed to wreak havoc. Magical criminals, monstrous creatures, and the Scourge were fighting against the Kirin Tor. It was unfortunate that Archmage Kel'Thuzad and Queen Kithix were not present in their labs in the Violet Hold as they would have been extremely helpful in dealing with the undead.
However, there was no sight of the Lich King, likely because they had gone deeper into the prison to free its most dangerous inhabitants. Krivax attempted to use his sensory abilities to locate the undead being possessed by Gul'dan, but found that the entire structure was covered with so much Death magic that it was like trying to find a single grain of sand on a beach.
Krivax fully intended to stop that from happening, so he immediately gathered deep into his reservoir of Life magic and let loose an inferno that completely engulfed all the undead in the way of the path leading deeper into the Violet Hold.
"Follow me deeper into the prison," said Krivax, addressing Illidan as the night elf and his remaining Sentinel guards regarded him with a faintly impressed expression. "I doubt I'll be able to handle the Lich King alone, and the majority of the Kirin Tor will need to stay here to contain the prisoners."
For a moment, Krivax wasn't sure if Illidan would follow his lead, given how arrogant the night elf could be, but he was surprised when Illidan merely nodded.
"Very well, mortal. But steel yourself," Illidan warned, an uncharacteristic hint of caution in his voice. "I was able to sense the entity controlling that undead, and they are far more powerful than I anticipated. There are few beings on Azeroth who could have survived as long as they did in a fight against me."
Krivax nodded in understanding. That was about what he'd expected. While Illidan had fought on even ground with a fully embodied Lich King in the original timeline, that was after the night elf had empowered himself further with Fel magic. That he would have difficulty fighting an undead possessed and empowered by Gul'dan wasn't a big surprise.
Krivax could only hope that his contribution would be enough to tip the scales.
As they fought their way into the deepest parts of the Violet Hold, Krivax did his best to conserve his strength for the battle ahead. Illidan held no such reservations, sending large arcs of green fire flying through the air with each swing of his twin blades, his Fel-enhanced speed turning him into a swirling tempest of death that left nothing standing in his wake.
Krivax could easily see why so many people had flocked to follow Illidan in the original timeline, and how the night elf had become instrumental in the Burning Legion's defeat.
To be honest, Krivax had expected that they would find the Lich King in some large chamber where they would have their climactic fight. He'd always envisioned Gul'dan as that kind of cartoonishly evil villain, prone to theatrics and grandstanding monologues before engaging in battle.
That was likely why he was utterly unprepared to be ambushed.
It was likely only thanks to the layer of arcane shielding that he'd wrapped around his carapace the moment he entered the Violet Hold, along with his enchanted defensive gear that he wasn't killed outright. Instead, the blow that impacted his chest as Gul'dan appeared from one of the shadow side passages only sent him flying into a nearby cell wall, making a large crack upon impact.
"You stole my destiny," Gul'dan growled, his voice echoing with an otherworldly, abyssal tone as he launched a massive stream of dark magic toward Krivax.
Krivax watched in horror as his silk golem, which he'd hastily unleashed from its container in an attempt to block the attack, immediately began to decay and unravel upon contacting the Lich King's magic. He'd only ever seen the thing be even slightly damaged by the most heavily enchanted of weapons and strongest attacks, but never as severely as this.
"It is because of you, that I was delivered to Kil'jaeden! It is because of you, that I lost everything!" Gul'dan shouted as he was forced to end the attack by Illidan, the night elf dashing forward and colliding with the Lich King. The resulting explosion of Fel and Death energies was enough to rock the prison, shattering many of the nearby walls.
Despite this, the monk being possessed by Gul'dan never took his eyes away from Krivax as he blocked Illidan's ferocious strikes with an impossibly fast parry. "But it is no matter. I have acquired the power of a god, and I will use that power to destroy everyone who sought to deny me what was rightfully mine. Starting with you, that over-glorified lizard who killed me, and finally the Burning Legion itself."
Illidan must not have liked Gul'dan ignoring him, because with a roar of primal fury he swung down at his opponent with both of his blades and unleashed a wave of Fel magic that forced the Lich King back. The green flames seared into the possessed pandaren's form, causing visible burns across the undead's flesh. But the Lich King didn't falter, instead he let loose an unearthly growl and sent forward several dark, necromantic tendrils toward the night elf that decayed everything they touched.
Seeing that Gul'dan was fully occupied, Krivax stumbled up off the ground and used the last dredges of his Life energy to heal his cracked carapace. Meanwhile, Illidan's few remaining Sentinel guards were locked into combat with a pair of Gul'dan's Death Monks. It was fortunate that the majority of the undead monks had been either destroyed in the previous fighting or were preoccupied with the Kirin Tor, because Krivax doubted he would still be alive otherwise.
It was likely only because the Sentinels were among Tyrande's most skilled that they could hold their own against such a powerful foe.
Once he had recovered, Krivax made a quick assessment of the battlefield and decided to focus on helping Illidan. The Sentinels seemed like they would be able to last long enough on their own, and Illidan would need his help to take down the Death Monk being possessed by Gul'dan
The battle between Illidan and the Lich King had taken the two of them out of sight down a nearby hallway, so Krivax hurried to catch up.
As he turned the corner, he was met with the sight of the two combatants locked in a struggle that few on Azeroth could even hope to participate in. Gul'dan's necromantic magic was eating away at the stone walls of the prison while the souls of the slain swirled around him and attacked his opponent. This would be enough to overwhelm most, but Illidan merely burned through these souls with contemptuous disregard and let loose a flurry of blows against Gul'dan.
Krivax, knowing that he would be most useful supporting Illidan, focused on using his magic to distract the Lich King. Since the Violet Hold's wards prevented him from using geomancy on the stone floor, he instead summoned several water elementals and joined them in launching spears of ice toward Gul'dan whenever there was an opening.
Even then, with the constant barrage of spells and powerful strikes from Illidan's blades, it was obvious that they were still at a disadvantage. Every attack barely seemed to faze Gul'dan's vessel, while the Lich King's retaliatory strikes forced both Kirvax and Illidan on the defensive several times.
Krivax thought that the tides had turned when the Sentinels unexpectedly managed to defeat their opponents and joined the fight with a volley of enchanted arrows. However, he quickly learned that individuals who lacked protection from the Lich King's overwhelming Death magic, such as Krivax and Illidan's respective empowerments, could not tolerate Gul'dan's presence for very long.
It only took a few minutes before the Sentinels began to convulse, their expressions twisted in pain as their life forces were sapped away by their mere proximity to the Lich King. Only due to Krivax's quick ability to sense and deduce what was happening, he managed to save their lives by ushering them away from the battlefield.
As he rejoined Illidan in their struggle against the Death Monk possessed by Gul'dan, he began to truly fear what the Lich King could do in person. Such absurd and overwhelming power was enough to drive anyone to desperation. Gul'dan was beginning to show signs of being visibly weakened, but Krivax and Illidan were both in worse shape.
After reaching the conclusion that the two of them would be unlikely to win a straightforward confrontation, Krivax began to consider other options. It took longer than he would have liked, but Krivax eventually recalled something about their current location and came up with a plan he thought might work.
Needing Illidan's cooperation but not wanting Gul'dan to overhear his plan, Krivax took a moment to cast a spell that would open telepathic communication between him and Illidan. It'd taken a while to learn the spell, but he was more grateful than ever that he'd decided to ask Vizier Hadix to teach it to him prior to their mission in Pandaria.
"Illidan, help me lure him to Archmage Kel'thuzad's laboratory. I have a plan," Krivax projected his thoughts into the night elf's mind. "Given how obsessed he is, Gul'dan will follow us. But we need to make it seem like we're running away."
It took a moment for Illidan to respond, but eventually did with a subtle nod.
With that, Krivax started to deliberately pull back, casting his spells defensively and making sure to move to Archmage Kel'thuzad and Queen Kithix's shared laboratory. Illidan began to parry and dodge more than he attacked, feigning exhaustion as he retreated.
Gul'dan immediately took the bait, releasing a triumphant roar as he attempted to ensnare them with dark tendrils. "Running, are you? There's nowhere to hide!"
Having visited Archmage Kel'Thuzad and Queen Kithix several times for various reasons over the years, Krivax was easily able to lead them through the twisting halls toward the laboratory. When he arrived there, Krivax nearly let out a cheer of relief as he saw that the Archmage had left behind several prototype samples of the same anti-undead alchemical concoction that he'd made use of in Pandaria, exactly where he had last seen them.
Wasting no time, Krivax telepathically shared the rest of his plan with Illidan moments before Gul'dan arrived.
Though calling it a plan may have been a bit generous when Krivax simply used every dredge of power he had to freeze Gul'dan to the ground for a fraction of a second. With swift movements, Illidan picked up one of Kel'thuzad's vials and hurled it at Gul'dan's frozen form.
The moment the vial shattered it was obvious that the elixir was having an effect on the Lich King, even if it was dramatically weaker than Krivax had wished. It was designed specifically to attack the necromantic magic that sustained the undead target, effectively stripping them of their will and removing them from the control of their master.
However, the Lich King was the most powerful necromancer to ever walk Azeroth, and it would take more than a single vial to severe his control.
Therefore, it was a good thing that Archmage Kel'Thuzad was the type of person who was rather obsessive in his research and had several shelves with various prototypes of the elixir.
The next few minutes felt less like a heroic battle and more like a crude brawl as Krivax and Illidan did everything they could to keep Gul'dan in the laboratory while pelting him with glass bottles filled with bright liquids. It was clear that the Lich King was beginning to lose control over his vessel, each successive impact making the Death Monk less and less coordinated in their motions.
Much to Krivax's relief, he soon began to see signs that the undead pandaren was actually fighting against Gul'dan's control. The previous unwavering, dark glow the pandaren monk's eyes began flickering intermittently with a hint of awareness and confusion. His initial plan had been to simply weaken Gul'dan as much as possible, but his vessel turned out to be far stronger-willed than expected.
Eventually, with one final vial shattered against his form, Gul'dan let out a furious bellow as the necromantic magic surrounding the possessed monk receded dramatically.
"Don't you dare consider this victory!" Gul'dan shouted, his hate-filled eyes locked directly onto Krivax. "I'm coming for you and this city! And when I do, no amount of trickery will save you!"
Uninterested in Gul'dan's overdramatic threats, Krivax said nothing as he watched the undead monk suddenly collapse forward, the Lich King's control over them severed entirely.
Illidan approached the undead with his twin blades poised to strike, but Krivax tiredly held out a hand to stop him. "Wait! He's no longer being controlled. Killing him now would be senseless."
Unsurprisingly, Illidan looked up at him like he was crazy, as the people of Azeroth generally didn't tolerate undead in any form. However, Krivax's perspective was a bit different since he recalled the undead who had managed to break free of the Lich King in the original timeline and fight against their former master.
After several tense moments, Illidan nodded and lowered his blades. "Very well. I will stay my hand for now, but you owe me an explanation. Both for this, and for the nonsense that the Lich King was spouting throughout our fight."
Krivax couldn't help but wince, not looking forward to that conversation. It shouldn't be too much of an issue, since Tyrande was already aware that he was a 'seer' and should be able to keep Illidan in line, but it still wasn't a topic he liked talking about.
Not seeing any way to avoid a future explanation, Krivax nodded in agreement before turning his attention to the undead monk. "Hello. I'm Vizier Krivax, leader of the Alliance Defense Force. Who are you?"
The undead monk was quick to respond with an urgent tone, but Krivax suddenly remembered that he hadn't learned the pandaren language. Turning a sheepish gaze to Illidan, the night elf scoffed before casting a translation spell over the both of them.
Krivax wished that he knew how to do that, but translation spells were surprisingly complex and his time wasn't unlimited.
"Let's try that again," Krivax said as he turned his attention back to the newly freed undead. "My apologies. Can you tell me your name?"
The undead pandaren didn't lose any of his urgency as he responded, this time in what sounded to him like nerubian. "My name is Shang Xu, and you must evacuate this city immediately."
"Oh, don't worry. The city isn't in any danger," said Krivax, feeling relieved to learn that the undead was actually friendly. "The portal hub isn't in any danger, and I can sense several of the Alliance's strongest mages have already returned to Dalaran."
Krivax wasn't lying. The Council of Six had teleported back to the city sometime during their fight with Gul'dan and converged on the Violet Citadel. Not long before their arrival, the demonic presence had disappeared, most likely teleporting away rather than fighting multiple angry Archmages. He could feel that the Dreadlord had succeeded in doing something to Dalaran's wards, but he doubted it mattered.
Even if the anti-spatial magic wards had been harmed beyond repair, the portal hub was fine so the Alliance would be able to reinforce the city even if the Scourge started teleporting in undead.
Though, it was a bit strange that the Council of Six was still here and hadn't returned to help defend Kul'tiras.
Krivax explained all of this to Shang Xu, who shook his head in frustration.
"You don't understand. Tichondrius is not one to rely on any singular plan," Shang Xu urgently explained. "He knew that there was a chance Gul'dan would fail due to his obsession, so he devised an alternative plan to destroy the Violet Citadel's tallest spire if the portal hub was not disrupted."
Krivax felt his heart drop as he understood what the undead was implying. It wasn't something that many people knew, but the tallest spire of the Violet Citadel was actually a powerful anti-siege weapon capable of channeling the city's leyline nexus.
All of the Alliance's plans to defend Dalaran assumed the full operation of the spire, which was why they felt comfortable leaving the city relatively undefended.
Krivax immediately ran out of the laboratory and began making his way out the Violet Hold, leaving a startled Illidan to follow. Once he exited the prison, it became clear that Shang Xu had been telling the truth as he saw the reason why the Council of Six had yet to leave the city.
The tallest spire of the Violet Citadel, once looming high over the city as a testament to Dalaran's might, had been completely destroyed. The rubbles of its remains laid in the streets in front of the fortress, with Fel green smoke rising from the center of the impact.
"Thank the Sunwell that you're here, Vizier Krivax."
Krivax pulled his gaze from the horrible sight to Magister Rommath, who looked uncharacteristically exhausted as he ran toward his side.
"Magister, what happened?" Krivax urgently, though he already felt like he knew.
"We don't know. The Citadel simply exploded after you entered the Violet Hold," Rommath said grimly after taking a deep breath to steady himself. "But that's not why I was looking for you. A few moments ago, I received a report that the Scourge was seen leaving Kul'Tiras and began moving toward the coastline of Silverpine Forest. The Council of Six believes that they intend to attack Dalaran and has ordered an evacuation."
His worst fears confirmed, Krivax immediately began making his way to the A.D.F headquarters, so he could do everything he could to help evacuate, and then hopefully defend the city. The threat from Gul'dan, which he previously hadn't paid much mind to, now seemed much more immediately threatening.
Everything that the Lich King had said and done during their confrontation, from his hate-filled words to his focus on killing Krivax, made it obvious that Gul'dan was indeed coming for him. Across Lordamere Lake, he could see every day a city that had suffered potentially irrecoverable harm as a result of his decisions, and now the Lich King intended to deliver an even worse fate to Dalaran.
Krivax had every intention of doing whatever was necessary to prevent that from happening. Oh, Dalaran might be vulnerable with the Violet Citadel damaged, the Alliance navy likely lagging behind in the Kul'tiran harbor, and the Aspects all unavailable, but hope was not lost.
Since he'd successfully defended the portal hub, the most powerful members of the Alliance would be free to arrive in Dalaran far before Gul'dan.
Not only that, but Krivax had been doing what he could to prepare Azeroth for the Lich King from the moment he hatched from his egg. This was what Krivax had been working toward for his entire second life, and if Gul'dan thought that destroying Dalaran was going to be easy, then the arrogant bastard had another thing coming.
I need to contact the High King, Krivax thought, his mind racing. I think this is an appropriate time for Azjol-Nerub to reveal Project Sanctum.
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The dire news was impossible to hide from the staff and quickly sent the A.D.F headquarters into a state of chaos. Less experienced administrators, already stretched to their limits by the ongoing attack on Kul'Tiras, panicked after learning that there were Scourge infiltrators in Dalaran. People frantically attempted to contact their families, started making foolish mistakes due to lack of sleep, and began running through the corridors in a hurry to get to their stations.
Krivax did his best to project an air of a calm leader as he organized everything, but some of their frenetic energy was warranted as they needed to move very swiftly.
Emergency messages were being sent via magic to inform the Council of Six about the situation, a messenger had been sent to alert the city garrison, and Krivax had even sent one of his guards to muster the nerubian enclave to help defend Dalaran. Unfortunately, all of these things would take time that they did not have. The paths taken by the Scourge infiltrators were approaching very close to the city's critical defense infrastructure.
As such, Krivax had urgently gathered every combat capable member of the A.D.F into an adhoc squad to hold off the enemy forces until reinforcements arrived. This group included himself, Rommath, Ironaya, Illidan, his remaining guards, a half-dozen Sentinels, and a few other miscellaneous individuals in their headquarters.
Krivax was tempted to leave Magister Rommath to handle the frenzy, but the Magister was needed as he was both skilled enough and had the necessary permissions to teleport within the city's limits. This meant he would be able to position the assembled group to intercept the Scourge infiltrators.
The only difficulty was choosing which group of infiltrators they would be confronting.
"It's faint. Much more so than the enemy group near the portals, but I can just barely feel a demonic presence moving through the Violet Citadel," Krivax reported grimly, not at all happy to have his fears confirmed.
"A Dreadlord then," said Illidan, his voice containing a mixture of excitement and grim determination. "One who intends to take control of the city's wards. The Burning Legion's tactics haven't changed in the slightest since the War of the Ancients."
Krivax's heart dropped as he imagined what would happen if the Scourge succeeded in their plans. Dalaran's anti-spatial magic wards emanated from the Violet Citadel, preventing hostile forces from teleporting whoever they wanted into the city. If they were able to seize control over those wards while simultaneously cutting off Dalaran from the rest of the world, the consequences would be catastrophic.
The Scourge would be completely free to open a portal into the city and allow their forces to pour in while the Alliance would be prevented from mounting an effective defense.
It would be a slaughter.
"We need to focus on stopping one prong of their plan," said Magister Rommath, his normally composed demeanor strained by the gravity of the situation. "Dalaran is only at risk of falling if both the portal hub and the wards are compromised. So long as we defend one, there is little the Scourge can do before the Council of Six intervenes. I suggest that we go to the Violet Citadel. It is far more defensible than the portal hub."
"I'll never refuse the opportunity to slay one of the Burning Legion's dogs," said Illidan, the fel green orbs behind his blindfold growing brighter with a deep desire for violence.
Krivax knew that there were few things that Illidan hated more in the world than demons and that he saw it as his purpose in life to destroy the Burning Legion. Should Magister Rommath teleport them to the Violet Citadel, he had no doubt that Illidan would absolutely tear the Dreadlord apart in short order.
That course of action was likely the objectively correct decision from a strategic perspective… but there was a small problem with that.
"If we go to the Violet Citadel, then a lot of people are going to die," said Krivax, his words immediately drawing the attention of everyone in the room. "Not only are there more enemies in the group heading toward the portal hub, but one of them is… absurdly powerful. If they go on a rampage, then it wouldn't be out of the question for them to slaughter hundreds of civilians and raise them as undead before we can respond."
Krivax couldn't help but shudder as he remembered the faint glimpse of potent necrotic magic that he'd sensed beyond the concealment magic.
If scrying and scouting hadn't already confirmed that the Lich King was stuck in a block of ice near Shen-zin Su's head, then Krivax could have sworn that he'd sensed the leader of the Scourge himself. However, since it was Gul'dan who had become the Lich King rather than Ner'zhul, it made matters much more uncertain.
There was no telling what abilities such a powerful warlock may have manifested after becoming the Lich King that a shaman like Ner'zhul never did during the original timeline. Although, Krivax speculated that Gul'dan was likely the type to favor his personal power.
"It's slightly riskier, but I'm fairly confident that Illidan is the only person strong enough to counter that threat," Krivax continued, knowing that he would need to explain further if he wished to convince them. "Dreadlords tend to prefer subtlety rather than needless slaughter, so it's unlikely that they kill any more than necessary to achieve their goal. Besides, there's a good chance that team Rhonin and the city garrison will be able to prevent them from seizing the city's wards for long enough for reinforcements to arrive."
Fortunately, the Kirin Tor had been wise enough to leave Archmage Cedric behind to head the city garrison, so Krivax genuinely thought the Dreadlord could be dealt with without them. He could tell that his argument was enough to persuade Illidan.
However, he could also tell that Illidan was less than pleased with this arrangement.
"So, you would accept a greater risk that the entire city falls just to protect a few hundred lives?" Illidan said, his expression contemptuous. "To be a leader is to make difficult decisions. This weak-willed nonsense will bring nothing but disaster."
A part of him agreed and wanted to defer to Illidan's vastly greater experience in dealing with matters such as this… but Krivax couldn't bring himself to do so. Illidan may have been instrumental in defeating the Burning Legion during the original timeline, but Krivax couldn't ignore the many times the reckless and obsessed night elf's decisions had caused irreparable harm.
Sometimes, the so-called 'difficult decision' was merely a convenient excuse for callousness, and Krivax didn't want to go down that route. He still regretted the tremendous loss of life when the C'thraxx had attacked the Lordaeron Capital City.
He could only hope that he wouldn't live to regret it.
"I understand that it's a risk, but we have a duty to do what we can to protect the people of Dalaran," said Krivax, meeting Illidan's gaze directly without hesitation. "With your help, we shouldn't have much trouble defending the portal hub from the Scourge, unless you lack confidence in our ability to stop them?"
"I doubt nothing, aside from your strategic acumen," Illidan responded with scorn before pausing to take a deep breath. "However, I will follow your lead in these matters, and we will see what comes of this decision."
Krivax wanted to say more, but they had very little time to waste.
"Magister Rommath, please teleport us now," said Krivax, turning toward the high elf. "I can feel them approaching the portal hub. We must leave now if we're going to prevent them from entering the building."
Magister Rommath nodded gravely and instructed everyone to gather around him as arcane energy began swirling around him. After several moments, the spell was completed and Krivax felt the familiar sensation of spatial magic wrapping around their group and pulling them to the other side of Dalaran.
Almost immediately, they were greeted by the sight of startled Kirin Tor guards who had yet to be informed of the current emergency. They were brandishing spears at them with wild eyed expressions.
"Halt! Spatial magic in this area is permitted only to authorized members of the Kirin Tor," one of the guards said immediately, hesitating only briefly when got a good look at their group. "Present your credentials and allow yourselves to be examined for illusionary magic, or prepare to face immediate detainment."
Krivax was torn between appreciation that the Kirin Tor guards were performing their duties so diligently and frustration at the waste of crucial time. Given how on edge the Alliance was due to the war, all of the guards were extremely tense, ready to attack at a moment's notice.
As the only person in their group who was technically a member of the Kirin Tor, Magister Rommath was quick to step forward and present his credentials, a shimmering badge imbued with magic denoting his position.
"Are you the commander of this post?" Magister Rommath asked the guard that had addressed them, a broad shouldered human who introduced themselves as Commander Reynolds . "Gather your forces and prepare to defend this location. The Alliance Defense Force has reliable reason to believe that it is about to be attacked by powerful Scourge infiltrators."
"Please instruct them to avoid alerting the enemy before they enter the building," Krivax added quickly before the Commander could send out orders. "We want to prevent fighting in the streets as much as possible in order to limit civilian casualties. It would be best to trap them inside and then strike."
"And bring me some weapons," Illidan said while scowling contemptuously toward his Sentinel guards, who immediately began protesting. "That is, if you truly wish for me to be of any use."
Krivax was truly glad that every nation in the Eastern Kingdoms had decided to place their garrisons on high alert, because the Commander merely nodded without complaint and immediately began shouting orders to his subordinates. Fortunately, the portal hub was built somewhat with defensibility in mind to prevent unauthorized individuals from easily leaving or entering Dalaran, so it only had a single entrance and sophisticated wards.
This meant all of the civilians who happened to be inside could be quickly and efficiently evacuated to a safer part of the building, while the defenders took positions near the entrance to create a choke point.
Meanwhile, Krivax and Illidan both made their way to a nearby room away from the entrance. There was a significant possibility that the Scourge could potentially notice the very distinctive Fel or Life magic emanating from them, so they needed to go somewhere where they wouldn't immediately be detected.
Naturally, the Sentinels refused to leave Illidan's side and joined them as well.
Once they were there, Krivax cast a scrying spell over the portal hub's entrance while Illidan concealed their presence with his own spell. There was a decent chance that the Scourge would notice that they were being scryed, but they would probably not realize that their cover was blown. It wasn't out of the ordinary for critical infrastructure to be under constant monitoring, especially during such tense times.
Chances were that they'd simply planned to push their way through an unprepared defense force before any reinforcements could arrive.
Unfortunately for them, that wasn't going to be allowed to happen.
While it felt longer, it had only been around ten minutes from the moment Krivax had first sensed the Scourge's presence to when they were fully prepared to fend the portal hub. The speed and sense of purpose with which everyone moved was impressive, and Krivax saw nothing but determined expressions as he steeled himself for battle.
He could even sense that the city's garrison was responding quicker than expected, and were already converging on the Violet Citadel.
"What do you know of their capabilities?" asked Illidan, his tone serious and sober as he took a few swings of the enchanted blades provided to him by the guards.
Something about the night elf's demeanor had changed dramatically. His typical arrogance and self-assuredness had been replaced with the sharper, more lethal focus of a life-long warrior preparing for battle.
"Very little, other than that their leader is frighteningly powerful and that they are likely all undead," Krivax replied as he monitored the street outside of the portal hub via scrying.
There were fewer civilians out there than usual due to Dalaran's heightened state of security and the general sense of unease in the city. However, there were still far too many in the streets for Krivax's tastes.
He wished that he could warn them and tell them to take shelter, but it was more important that the Scourge wasn't alerted too early.
It wasn't long before the group of Scourge infiltrators stepped into range of his scrying spell. There were eight of them in total, all ostensibly appearing like normal Dalaran citizens of various races, merely seeking to travel to one of the Alliance's major cities.
Their leader looked like a human man with a calm expression and wore the robes of an apprentice mage. He moved with strange grace, and his presence emanated a sense of authority that couldn't be hidden behind the concealment magics that shrouded him.
Illidan gave a curt nod. "I suppose it doesn't matter. Even if they aren't demons themselves, the Scourge is merely another facet of the Burning Legion and will crumble before me."
Krivax didn't react to Illidan's proclamation and instead focused on the incoming Scourge. They were approaching at a casual pace and would hopefully be successfully lured into the building further away from Dalaran's busy streets.
At least, that was their goal, but it became obvious that something had gone wrong when the leader of the Scourge infiltrators suddenly stopped the moment he stepped through the portal hub's entrance.
Krivax let out a short curse as he watched the guard commander approach the infiltrator with a smile on his face, clearly intending to play the part of the friendly greeter.
"Good evening, sir. Is there an issue?" the guard-commander inquired, feigning ignorance.
A part of Krivax didn't expect the Scourge leader to actually respond and instead just immediately attack, but he was pleasantly surprised when the man gave a slight smile, never breaking character.
"Ah, good evening," the Scourge leader replied, his voice calm and smooth. "I apologize for me and my group blocking the entrance. I was just momentarily taken aback when I didn't see any other travelers and that the wards were more intense than I expected. Has something happened?"
The guard-commander, to his credit, didn't falter. "The ongoing conflict with the Scourge and their attack on Kul'Tiras has placed all major cities on alert. We have decided to take extra precautions just to be safe. As for the lack of travelers, it's simply a lull in traffic. Please follow me so that we can get you all processed quickly and safely."
There was a tense moment when the guard-commander began moving further into the compound with the expectation that he would be followed, only for the Scourge group to remain completely stationary with suspicious gazes. Krivax's heart pounded as he let out a curse, fearing that they'd been discovered. He could feel Illidan and the Sentinels tensing next to him, ready to dash out of the room at a moment's notice.
Just as it seemed that the Scourge finally started following and moving further into their trap, Krivax was momentarily distracted as he sensed Dalaran's garrison close in on the demonic presence in the Violet Citadel. A second later, there was a potent clash of Fel magic and arcane magic indicating that a fierce battle had begun in the heart of the city's fortress.
The Violet Citadel was reasonably far from the portal hub, and nobody but Krivax should have been capable of sensing the fight taking place there, but he knew that assumption was wrong when the Scourge leader suddenly stopped again.
"Shit. Move!" Krivax called out, already rushing out of the room.
He was barely able to make it in time to throw out a stream of Life-infused flames that clashed against the overwhelming wave of necrotic energy unleashed by the Scourge leader. Even then, he was only able to save about half of the Kirin Tor guards who were positioned further away from the entrance
The ones closer, including the guard-commander, were killed nearly instantly. Their hastily erected arcane barriers shattering and their flesh rotting away in mere moments. Before their bodies could even fall, their eyes began to glow malevolent blue light as they fell under the control of the Scourge.
The magic concealing their enemies had fallen away, revealing them all to be pandaren monks, their bodies showing obvious signs of decay and emanating necrotic magic. Each of them carried staves made of blackened bone, decorated with glowing blue runes that pulsed with the same unnatural light as their eyes. They wore dark, tattered robes that flowed eerily, as if touched by an otherworldly wind.
Krivax had expected to see malicious and twisted expressions, but they instead all carried an unnerving serenity that felt completely out of place. All of them except for their leader.
The elderly male pandaren stared at Krivax specifically with an eerie intensity. His eyes were a deep, dark void that seemed to draw everything in and the necromantic magic emanating from him was unlike anything Krivax had ever encountered, drowning out all other sensation.
When he spoke, his voice was as if two different people were speaking in unison, with the deeper of the two sounding like something from the abyss itself.
All of this, along with utter hatred and focus with which he looked at Krivax was enough for him to conclude that the undead monk was somehow being… possessed or empowered by the Lich King.
Gul'dan was the only individual who had reason to hate him so intensely, and emanate that kind of power. A part of him was surprised given that the Lich King hadn't manifested this kind of ability during the original timeline, but it made sense that a warlock as hungry for control as Gul'dan would develop such a power.
"You," said Gul'dan through the undead monk he was possessing, voice filled with more hatred than Krivax had ever heard.
Before Krivax could react, everything turned into a flurry of movement as Illidan burst forward, twin blades glowing with fel energy as he sliced through undead mages with expert precision. From there, things took a turn for the worse when the monks jumped back with impressive speed, with the screaming of civilians soon following as they retreated to Dalaran's busy streets.
Illidan immediately chased after them, with Krivax and everyone else quickly following. It became clear why the Scourge had chosen to fight outside when he saw bystanders being killed and raised as undead while the monks dexterously jumped between buildings, leaving chaos in their wake.
Men, women, and children were all running in terror as their once-familiar city streets turned into a horrifying battleground. With each dead civilian, the Scourge swelled in number and their relentless assault risked growing out of control.
Illidan was already engaged in close combat with the Lich King, each of them a blur of motion that sent Fel and necromantic energies exploding with each clash, while the other undead monks were free to run rampant.
It was good that the enemy was being moved away from the portal hub, but Krivax couldn't help but feel a wave of fury at the sight of innocent people being killed for little more than a distraction.
"Focus on the monks and get the civilians away! Reinforcements are on their way!" Krivax yelled, directing the combatants running out of the portal hub as he began casting a short ranged teleportation.
A moment later, he disappeared and reappeared in a flash of violet light in between one of the undead monks and a gnome woman who was desperately trying to shield her child.
"Get out of here!" Krivax yelled to the civilian as he summoned his silk golem right before the monk was about to strike.
She reacted with impressive reflexes, allowing her to barely avoid being grabbed by the golem before leaping away from the burst of flames Krivax sent her way as the gnome family ran for cover.
As she landed, a group of the Kirin Tor guards immediately launched a barrage of various spells at her from every angle while Krivax's bodyguards charged her spear first, only for the undead monk to summon a shroud of dark mist that seemed to absorb all of their attacks and hide her from view.
A few seconds later, she surged forward while ignoring the spear buried in her chest straight into the group of soldiers.
Many of them put up a good fight, burning through chunks of the Death Monk with fireballs or otherwise injuring her with enchanted blades, but the undead paid no mind to her injuries. The undead exploited her resilience to unleash a series of rapid, graceful strikes as dark magic flowed from her staff.
The few blows that didn't outright kill a guard resulted in them being sapped of their very life force, leaving them withered husks. When her mist dispersed a moment later, it revealed that Krivax's personal guard had suffered a similar fate, the corpses of several elite nerubian soldiers littering Dalaran's street.
The sight reminded Krivax vividly of the Horde's Death Knights during the Second War, except that these undead pandaren were far more deadly than even them. Given that Gul'dan was the original creator of the Death Knight, it wasn't surprising that this new type of undead, which he couldn't help but call Death Monks in his mind, held such a horrifying level of power.
Understanding that he would have to find a way to keep the Death Monk from escaping if he wanted to actually deal with her, Krivax took a different course of action the next time he teleported himself and his golem next to her.
While she easily managed to dodge his golem for a second time, Krivax paid that little mind and unleashed a nova of ice magic that froze the entire area around them solid. Every surface, from the ground to the surrounding structures was turned to ice, causing the monk to lose her footing.
Seizing the opportunity, Krivax's silk golem swung down at the monk with a blow that they hastily tried to avoid, turning an attack that would have shattered her skull into one that merely took most of the left side of her body and destroyed her staff.
However, this attack that would be guaranteed to kill a normal person was a mere inconvenience to the monk as she jumped up and grabbed a stone chunk from the shattered road before hurling it at Krivax's eyes with ridiculous precision. Such an attack naturally wasn't enough to pierce Krivax's magical defenses, but it distracted him enough that the monk was able to close in on him.
Even with only a single functional arm, the undead's movements were still incredibly fluid and precise, managing to strike Krivax in a way that sent necromantic magic flowing into his body. He could instantly tell that he would be in extreme danger if not for Alexstrasza's empowerment, but as it was, he was merely staggered. The Life magic acted like potent antibodies against an infection, protecting him from harm.
This was clearly not what Krivax's opponent was expecting, and he exploited her surprise by simultaneously casting a geomancy spell that shook the earth beneath her feet and lunged forward to grab the monk. He wouldn't normally have been able to successfully catch such an agile opponent, but the combination of the icy terrain and being knocked off balance made it impossible to dodge in time.
This meant Krivax was free to completely engulf the monk in Life-Infused flames that ate away at the necromantic magic animating her. The serene expression that the undead pandaren had worn throughout their entire confrontation was immediately replaced by one of agony as she did everything she could to escape his grasp.
Krivax merely ignored her thrashing and occasional strikes until the only thing left of her was a pile of ash.
That took far too much effort for some nameless underling, Krivax thought as he let out a sigh of relief. The Scourge must have truly sent some of its strongest agents for this mission.
Turning his attention to the rest of the battlefield, Krivax became further convinced of this conclusion.
The streets had cleared of civilians by now, but the surrounding buildings had been devastated as each of the Death Monks held their own against multiple Kirin Tor guards. The Sentinels, fewer of them remaining than he remembered, had taken position to the rear and were doing their best to support the beleaguered mages with their archery. Honestly, it was likely that Ironaya was the only reason the Death Monks hadn't managed to simply run past them all and attack the portal hub.
The Titanic Watcher had shed her mortal form and was towering over the structure's entrance, her massive mace deterring any undead that approached as her inorganic body protected her from any necromantic attacks.
The number of dead was genuinely shocking, but Krivax could tell that the Scourge was extremely unlikely to actually achieve their goal. Despite the portal hub only having a few dozen Kirin Tor guards, each of them fought valiantly in the face of such a powerful foe while more and more arrived with every moment. Krivax could sense reinforcements quickly converging on their location, and even see a few nerubian warriors from the enclave crawling over buildings as they made their way to the battlefield.
While the Scourge infiltrators were powerful, they simply lacked the numbers to put up a prolonged resistance, and several of them had already been destroyed.
The Lich King must have also realized the same thing, because the undead he had possessed suddenly scowled and let loose an explosion of dark magic that sent Illidan flying away from him, before retreating toward the southern side of the city. Every single undead followed after him in a synchronized movement that made it clear they were being puppeteered much more directly than the typical Scourge minion.
Krivax wished that he could believe that Gul'dan was retreating due to his outmatched forces, but he could feel the Scourge heading toward a very important structure.
"After them, quickly! They're headed for the Violet Hold," Krivax shouted, realizing the magnitude of the threat.
The Violet Hold was not only a high-security prison, but also housed incredibly dangerous creatures that were imprisoned by the Kirin Tor primarily for research purposes. Should Gul'dan successfully release them, then Dalaran would suffer immense casualties before they could be contained.
The rush to the Violet Hold was a blur, with much of the city in a state of chaos as civilians attempted to get to shelters, clogging up the streets while the garrison attempted to establish some semblance of order. Both their fight with Gul'dan and the confrontation at the Violet Citadel were both very loud, causing the sounds of explosions to echo throughout Dalaran.
Ironaya stayed behind to ensure none of the Scourge attempted to double back and attack the portal hub.
As they approached, it was obvious that the Lich King was already at work as the guards who had been stationed at the Violet Hold had already been turned into undead, joining the other Scourge minions. The formidable prison's entrance had been blasted wide open, wisps of necromantic magic still lingering in the air.
It took only a moment for Illidan to cut down the undead with contemptuous ease, allowing them to enter the prison. Inside the Violet Hold, the scene was exactly as Krivax had anticipated with many of the containment cells shattered and their inhabitants freed to wreak havoc. Magical criminals, monstrous creatures, and the Scourge were fighting against the Kirin Tor. It was unfortunate that Archmage Kel'Thuzad and Queen Kithix were not present in their labs in the Violet Hold as they would have been extremely helpful in dealing with the undead.
However, there was no sight of the Lich King, likely because they had gone deeper into the prison to free its most dangerous inhabitants. Krivax attempted to use his sensory abilities to locate the undead being possessed by Gul'dan, but found that the entire structure was covered with so much Death magic that it was like trying to find a single grain of sand on a beach.
Krivax fully intended to stop that from happening, so he immediately gathered deep into his reservoir of Life magic and let loose an inferno that completely engulfed all the undead in the way of the path leading deeper into the Violet Hold.
"Follow me deeper into the prison," said Krivax, addressing Illidan as the night elf and his remaining Sentinel guards regarded him with a faintly impressed expression. "I doubt I'll be able to handle the Lich King alone, and the majority of the Kirin Tor will need to stay here to contain the prisoners."
For a moment, Krivax wasn't sure if Illidan would follow his lead, given how arrogant the night elf could be, but he was surprised when Illidan merely nodded.
"Very well, mortal. But steel yourself," Illidan warned, an uncharacteristic hint of caution in his voice. "I was able to sense the entity controlling that undead, and they are far more powerful than I anticipated. There are few beings on Azeroth who could have survived as long as they did in a fight against me."
Krivax nodded in understanding. That was about what he'd expected. While Illidan had fought on even ground with a fully embodied Lich King in the original timeline, that was after the night elf had empowered himself further with Fel magic. That he would have difficulty fighting an undead possessed and empowered by Gul'dan wasn't a big surprise.
Krivax could only hope that his contribution would be enough to tip the scales.
As they fought their way into the deepest parts of the Violet Hold, Krivax did his best to conserve his strength for the battle ahead. Illidan held no such reservations, sending large arcs of green fire flying through the air with each swing of his twin blades, his Fel-enhanced speed turning him into a swirling tempest of death that left nothing standing in his wake.
Krivax could easily see why so many people had flocked to follow Illidan in the original timeline, and how the night elf had become instrumental in the Burning Legion's defeat.
To be honest, Krivax had expected that they would find the Lich King in some large chamber where they would have their climactic fight. He'd always envisioned Gul'dan as that kind of cartoonishly evil villain, prone to theatrics and grandstanding monologues before engaging in battle.
That was likely why he was utterly unprepared to be ambushed.
It was likely only thanks to the layer of arcane shielding that he'd wrapped around his carapace the moment he entered the Violet Hold, along with his enchanted defensive gear that he wasn't killed outright. Instead, the blow that impacted his chest as Gul'dan appeared from one of the shadow side passages only sent him flying into a nearby cell wall, making a large crack upon impact.
"You stole my destiny," Gul'dan growled, his voice echoing with an otherworldly, abyssal tone as he launched a massive stream of dark magic toward Krivax.
Krivax watched in horror as his silk golem, which he'd hastily unleashed from its container in an attempt to block the attack, immediately began to decay and unravel upon contacting the Lich King's magic. He'd only ever seen the thing be even slightly damaged by the most heavily enchanted of weapons and strongest attacks, but never as severely as this.
"It is because of you, that I was delivered to Kil'jaeden! It is because of you, that I lost everything!" Gul'dan shouted as he was forced to end the attack by Illidan, the night elf dashing forward and colliding with the Lich King. The resulting explosion of Fel and Death energies was enough to rock the prison, shattering many of the nearby walls.
Despite this, the monk being possessed by Gul'dan never took his eyes away from Krivax as he blocked Illidan's ferocious strikes with an impossibly fast parry. "But it is no matter. I have acquired the power of a god, and I will use that power to destroy everyone who sought to deny me what was rightfully mine. Starting with you, that over-glorified lizard who killed me, and finally the Burning Legion itself."
Illidan must not have liked Gul'dan ignoring him, because with a roar of primal fury he swung down at his opponent with both of his blades and unleashed a wave of Fel magic that forced the Lich King back. The green flames seared into the possessed pandaren's form, causing visible burns across the undead's flesh. But the Lich King didn't falter, instead he let loose an unearthly growl and sent forward several dark, necromantic tendrils toward the night elf that decayed everything they touched.
Seeing that Gul'dan was fully occupied, Krivax stumbled up off the ground and used the last dredges of his Life energy to heal his cracked carapace. Meanwhile, Illidan's few remaining Sentinel guards were locked into combat with a pair of Gul'dan's Death Monks. It was fortunate that the majority of the undead monks had been either destroyed in the previous fighting or were preoccupied with the Kirin Tor, because Krivax doubted he would still be alive otherwise.
It was likely only because the Sentinels were among Tyrande's most skilled that they could hold their own against such a powerful foe.
Once he had recovered, Krivax made a quick assessment of the battlefield and decided to focus on helping Illidan. The Sentinels seemed like they would be able to last long enough on their own, and Illidan would need his help to take down the Death Monk being possessed by Gul'dan
The battle between Illidan and the Lich King had taken the two of them out of sight down a nearby hallway, so Krivax hurried to catch up.
As he turned the corner, he was met with the sight of the two combatants locked in a struggle that few on Azeroth could even hope to participate in. Gul'dan's necromantic magic was eating away at the stone walls of the prison while the souls of the slain swirled around him and attacked his opponent. This would be enough to overwhelm most, but Illidan merely burned through these souls with contemptuous disregard and let loose a flurry of blows against Gul'dan.
Krivax, knowing that he would be most useful supporting Illidan, focused on using his magic to distract the Lich King. Since the Violet Hold's wards prevented him from using geomancy on the stone floor, he instead summoned several water elementals and joined them in launching spears of ice toward Gul'dan whenever there was an opening.
Even then, with the constant barrage of spells and powerful strikes from Illidan's blades, it was obvious that they were still at a disadvantage. Every attack barely seemed to faze Gul'dan's vessel, while the Lich King's retaliatory strikes forced both Kirvax and Illidan on the defensive several times.
Krivax thought that the tides had turned when the Sentinels unexpectedly managed to defeat their opponents and joined the fight with a volley of enchanted arrows. However, he quickly learned that individuals who lacked protection from the Lich King's overwhelming Death magic, such as Krivax and Illidan's respective empowerments, could not tolerate Gul'dan's presence for very long.
It only took a few minutes before the Sentinels began to convulse, their expressions twisted in pain as their life forces were sapped away by their mere proximity to the Lich King. Only due to Krivax's quick ability to sense and deduce what was happening, he managed to save their lives by ushering them away from the battlefield.
As he rejoined Illidan in their struggle against the Death Monk possessed by Gul'dan, he began to truly fear what the Lich King could do in person. Such absurd and overwhelming power was enough to drive anyone to desperation. Gul'dan was beginning to show signs of being visibly weakened, but Krivax and Illidan were both in worse shape.
After reaching the conclusion that the two of them would be unlikely to win a straightforward confrontation, Krivax began to consider other options. It took longer than he would have liked, but Krivax eventually recalled something about their current location and came up with a plan he thought might work.
Needing Illidan's cooperation but not wanting Gul'dan to overhear his plan, Krivax took a moment to cast a spell that would open telepathic communication between him and Illidan. It'd taken a while to learn the spell, but he was more grateful than ever that he'd decided to ask Vizier Hadix to teach it to him prior to their mission in Pandaria.
"Illidan, help me lure him to Archmage Kel'thuzad's laboratory. I have a plan," Krivax projected his thoughts into the night elf's mind. "Given how obsessed he is, Gul'dan will follow us. But we need to make it seem like we're running away."
It took a moment for Illidan to respond, but eventually did with a subtle nod.
With that, Krivax started to deliberately pull back, casting his spells defensively and making sure to move to Archmage Kel'thuzad and Queen Kithix's shared laboratory. Illidan began to parry and dodge more than he attacked, feigning exhaustion as he retreated.
Gul'dan immediately took the bait, releasing a triumphant roar as he attempted to ensnare them with dark tendrils. "Running, are you? There's nowhere to hide!"
Having visited Archmage Kel'Thuzad and Queen Kithix several times for various reasons over the years, Krivax was easily able to lead them through the twisting halls toward the laboratory. When he arrived there, Krivax nearly let out a cheer of relief as he saw that the Archmage had left behind several prototype samples of the same anti-undead alchemical concoction that he'd made use of in Pandaria, exactly where he had last seen them.
Wasting no time, Krivax telepathically shared the rest of his plan with Illidan moments before Gul'dan arrived.
Though calling it a plan may have been a bit generous when Krivax simply used every dredge of power he had to freeze Gul'dan to the ground for a fraction of a second. With swift movements, Illidan picked up one of Kel'thuzad's vials and hurled it at Gul'dan's frozen form.
The moment the vial shattered it was obvious that the elixir was having an effect on the Lich King, even if it was dramatically weaker than Krivax had wished. It was designed specifically to attack the necromantic magic that sustained the undead target, effectively stripping them of their will and removing them from the control of their master.
However, the Lich King was the most powerful necromancer to ever walk Azeroth, and it would take more than a single vial to severe his control.
Therefore, it was a good thing that Archmage Kel'Thuzad was the type of person who was rather obsessive in his research and had several shelves with various prototypes of the elixir.
The next few minutes felt less like a heroic battle and more like a crude brawl as Krivax and Illidan did everything they could to keep Gul'dan in the laboratory while pelting him with glass bottles filled with bright liquids. It was clear that the Lich King was beginning to lose control over his vessel, each successive impact making the Death Monk less and less coordinated in their motions.
Much to Krivax's relief, he soon began to see signs that the undead pandaren was actually fighting against Gul'dan's control. The previous unwavering, dark glow the pandaren monk's eyes began flickering intermittently with a hint of awareness and confusion. His initial plan had been to simply weaken Gul'dan as much as possible, but his vessel turned out to be far stronger-willed than expected.
Eventually, with one final vial shattered against his form, Gul'dan let out a furious bellow as the necromantic magic surrounding the possessed monk receded dramatically.
"Don't you dare consider this victory!" Gul'dan shouted, his hate-filled eyes locked directly onto Krivax. "I'm coming for you and this city! And when I do, no amount of trickery will save you!"
Uninterested in Gul'dan's overdramatic threats, Krivax said nothing as he watched the undead monk suddenly collapse forward, the Lich King's control over them severed entirely.
Illidan approached the undead with his twin blades poised to strike, but Krivax tiredly held out a hand to stop him. "Wait! He's no longer being controlled. Killing him now would be senseless."
Unsurprisingly, Illidan looked up at him like he was crazy, as the people of Azeroth generally didn't tolerate undead in any form. However, Krivax's perspective was a bit different since he recalled the undead who had managed to break free of the Lich King in the original timeline and fight against their former master.
After several tense moments, Illidan nodded and lowered his blades. "Very well. I will stay my hand for now, but you owe me an explanation. Both for this, and for the nonsense that the Lich King was spouting throughout our fight."
Krivax couldn't help but wince, not looking forward to that conversation. It shouldn't be too much of an issue, since Tyrande was already aware that he was a 'seer' and should be able to keep Illidan in line, but it still wasn't a topic he liked talking about.
Not seeing any way to avoid a future explanation, Krivax nodded in agreement before turning his attention to the undead monk. "Hello. I'm Vizier Krivax, leader of the Alliance Defense Force. Who are you?"
The undead monk was quick to respond with an urgent tone, but Krivax suddenly remembered that he hadn't learned the pandaren language. Turning a sheepish gaze to Illidan, the night elf scoffed before casting a translation spell over the both of them.
Krivax wished that he knew how to do that, but translation spells were surprisingly complex and his time wasn't unlimited.
"Let's try that again," Krivax said as he turned his attention back to the newly freed undead. "My apologies. Can you tell me your name?"
The undead pandaren didn't lose any of his urgency as he responded, this time in what sounded to him like nerubian. "My name is Shang Xu, and you must evacuate this city immediately."
"Oh, don't worry. The city isn't in any danger," said Krivax, feeling relieved to learn that the undead was actually friendly. "The portal hub isn't in any danger, and I can sense several of the Alliance's strongest mages have already returned to Dalaran."
Krivax wasn't lying. The Council of Six had teleported back to the city sometime during their fight with Gul'dan and converged on the Violet Citadel. Not long before their arrival, the demonic presence had disappeared, most likely teleporting away rather than fighting multiple angry Archmages. He could feel that the Dreadlord had succeeded in doing something to Dalaran's wards, but he doubted it mattered.
Even if the anti-spatial magic wards had been harmed beyond repair, the portal hub was fine so the Alliance would be able to reinforce the city even if the Scourge started teleporting in undead.
Though, it was a bit strange that the Council of Six was still here and hadn't returned to help defend Kul'tiras.
Krivax explained all of this to Shang Xu, who shook his head in frustration.
"You don't understand. Tichondrius is not one to rely on any singular plan," Shang Xu urgently explained. "He knew that there was a chance Gul'dan would fail due to his obsession, so he devised an alternative plan to destroy the Violet Citadel's tallest spire if the portal hub was not disrupted."
Krivax felt his heart drop as he understood what the undead was implying. It wasn't something that many people knew, but the tallest spire of the Violet Citadel was actually a powerful anti-siege weapon capable of channeling the city's leyline nexus.
All of the Alliance's plans to defend Dalaran assumed the full operation of the spire, which was why they felt comfortable leaving the city relatively undefended.
Krivax immediately ran out of the laboratory and began making his way out the Violet Hold, leaving a startled Illidan to follow. Once he exited the prison, it became clear that Shang Xu had been telling the truth as he saw the reason why the Council of Six had yet to leave the city.
The tallest spire of the Violet Citadel, once looming high over the city as a testament to Dalaran's might, had been completely destroyed. The rubbles of its remains laid in the streets in front of the fortress, with Fel green smoke rising from the center of the impact.
"Thank the Sunwell that you're here, Vizier Krivax."
Krivax pulled his gaze from the horrible sight to Magister Rommath, who looked uncharacteristically exhausted as he ran toward his side.
"Magister, what happened?" Krivax urgently, though he already felt like he knew.
"We don't know. The Citadel simply exploded after you entered the Violet Hold," Rommath said grimly after taking a deep breath to steady himself. "But that's not why I was looking for you. A few moments ago, I received a report that the Scourge was seen leaving Kul'Tiras and began moving toward the coastline of Silverpine Forest. The Council of Six believes that they intend to attack Dalaran and has ordered an evacuation."
His worst fears confirmed, Krivax immediately began making his way to the A.D.F headquarters, so he could do everything he could to help evacuate, and then hopefully defend the city. The threat from Gul'dan, which he previously hadn't paid much mind to, now seemed much more immediately threatening.
Everything that the Lich King had said and done during their confrontation, from his hate-filled words to his focus on killing Krivax, made it obvious that Gul'dan was indeed coming for him. Across Lordamere Lake, he could see every day a city that had suffered potentially irrecoverable harm as a result of his decisions, and now the Lich King intended to deliver an even worse fate to Dalaran.
Krivax had every intention of doing whatever was necessary to prevent that from happening. Oh, Dalaran might be vulnerable with the Violet Citadel damaged, the Alliance navy likely lagging behind in the Kul'tiran harbor, and the Aspects all unavailable, but hope was not lost.
Since he'd successfully defended the portal hub, the most powerful members of the Alliance would be free to arrive in Dalaran far before Gul'dan.
Not only that, but Krivax had been doing what he could to prepare Azeroth for the Lich King from the moment he hatched from his egg. This was what Krivax had been working toward for his entire second life, and if Gul'dan thought that destroying Dalaran was going to be easy, then the arrogant bastard had another thing coming.
I need to contact the High King, Krivax thought, his mind racing. I think this is an appropriate time for Azjol-Nerub to reveal Project Sanctum.
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xbox432
Lover of Editing
Awww, it would have been so ironically funny if those two had been there and been able to smack down Gul'dan themselves. Oh well, at least we got THIS:
This... It feels just like one of those gimmicky confusing raid fights where you had to use objects in the environment to win. So much nostalgia. The only thing missing was the fact that Illidan and Krivax weren't running around like headless chickens trying to get the mechanics right the first time.
...He completely forgot about the undead monk he was questioning, didn't he? He just left, who I'm guessing is the head monk with healing abilities from a few chapters back, lying there on the floor. Granted it IS the middle of a prison/lab, but that could still be an awkward conversation when the guard forces make it to that room.
JmonsterNEO
Spouter of nonsense
- Location
- The quest forums
*Rapid Minecraft splash potion and breaking glass sfx*
This was a wonderful mental image for me.
Chapter 84
Tichondrius did not approve of the Scourge launching an attack on Dalaran.
It was only thanks to his own cunning that all signs now pointed to the attack being a success that would cripple one of the most important cities in the Alliance. Had matters been left solely to that fool Gul'dan, then the Scourge would have broken itself uselessly assaulting one of the most fortified locations in the Eastern Kingdoms for little strategic benefit.
It was Tichondrius who had formed the strategy to pin the Alliance naval forces to Kul'Tiras, while using saboteurs to weaken Dalaran.
It was Tichondrius who had actually succeeded in that sabotage, while Gul'dan predictably lost sight of his objective in favor of focusing entirely on killing a single mortal.
It was Tichondrius who had made every single plan that was necessary to ensure Gul'dan's incompetence was mitigated as much as possible.
Naturally, his efforts were why the Scourge was currently in a superior strategic position compared to the Alliance. This was in spite of the unexpected speed with which the defenders of Azeroth had managed to pierce the veil surrounding Pandaria and begin a surprise assault on the Scourge's forces.
Still, Tichondrius did not approve of this assault and would have chosen another path if not for the Lich King's intransigence.
"Damn those fools and their obsession with power," Tichondrius cursed hatefully as he beat his wings and studied the enemy preparations from afar. "Kil'jaeden should have never allowed Detheroc to share what he discovered with Gul'dan. It has made him far too difficult to control."
A complex invisibility spell more sophisticated than any the mortals of this world were familiar with had allowed him to fly away from the Council of Six while they dealt with the wake of destruction he'd left behind. Now, Tichondrius was maintaining position a decent distance away from Dalaran, exploiting his magically enhanced sight to monitor a city which had completely shielded itself from all scrying attempts.
"I see little reason for you to be so concerned, Tichondrius," said Varimathras, who was flying by his side and looking down on the mortal city with disdain. "Even if the Alliance transfers their most powerful defenders to Dalaran via portal, they clearly lack the means to hold off the Scourge offensive."
"The Lich King has grown in power faster than expected. Without the Aspects, these mortals have few means of defeating him," said Balnazzar, unsurprisingly quick to agree with his brother. "His hatred has made him strong and focused, as predicted."
Tichondrius was silent for a moment as he watched a group of mortal mages use geomancy to erect obstacles along the only waterway connecting Lordaeron Lake to the ocean. Nerubian Viziers, Kirin Tor mages, and quel'dorei magisters all worked in concert to do what they could to delay the Scourge advance as much as possible. Such paltry efforts would not deter a creature as massive as Shen-Zin Su for long, but it was emblematic of the problem he felt like only he could see.
"The nations of Azeroth have grown far more interconnected and cooperative than we accounted for," said Tichondrius, glaring at the mortals as his mind raced. "We should have made more efforts to weaken and fracture the Alliance before confronting them. It would have made it much easier to predict their capabilities and ultimately destroy them. That we have been forced into this confrontation so early by that meddlesome seer and Gul'dan's impulsivity is a mistake that threatens to cost us dearly."
Tichondrius had been quite surprised when he'd been informed of Detheroc's death at the hands of Illidan, but even more so when Detheroc reformed in the Twisting Nether and shared what he discovered.
Apparently, one of the nerubians had somehow known far more than he should have about the Burning Legion and was responsible for warning the Dragonflights of Gul'dan's plan to raise the Tomb of Sargeras, resulting in the warlock's death. This was something that not even the Burning Legion had known about, and pointed to the likelihood of the nerubian being some manner of seer.
Of course, Gul'dan would have failed in his pathetic ambitions and been torn apart by the demons within the Tomb even if he successfully raised it, but Tichondrius had not bothered to inform Gul'dan of his likely fate.
Instead, Gul'dan blamed this 'Krivax' for sharing his prophetic knowledge and denying him of his rightful destiny to become a god. It was a laughable notion, but the hatred and focus Gul'dan developed after this revelation was useful in furthering the Burning Legion's machinations, at least in the opinion of Kil'jaeden. The Lich King had grown significantly in strength due to these events, his abilities growing more potent in general, and he had also learned how to possess and empower his undead servants without leaving his frozen prison.
Tichondrius had reminded Kil'jaeden several times that this would make Gul'dan more difficult to control, but he simply didn't care. So long as the Lich King served his purpose as a weapon meant to lay waste to Azeroth, little else mattered from Kil'jaeden's perspective.
Personally, Tichondrius speculated that Kil'jaeden's normally cunning mind was compromised by his obsession to deny the Draenei any homeland which they could rebuild on, but he would never dare voice such a thought aloud.
"You would do well not to underestimate our enemy, lest you suffer the same fate as Detheroc and Mal'Ganis," Tichondrius warned as he directed his attention back to Dalaran.
The city was a flurry of frantic activity as the mortal civilians were rapidly being evacuated via the portal hub. Tichondrius watched as the mortal who had caused so much trouble, Krivax, helped organize the city's evacuation as well as directed the nerubians from the local enclave.
Meanwhile, the Council of Six and the Kirin Tor were busy establishing layer after layer of arcane barriers around their forces.
A wide variety of mortal siege weapons were being placed strategically around the city's perimeter, everything from trebuchets and enchanted high elven ballistas to the primitive gunpowder cannons and mortars of Ironforge. A decent number of aerial forces were gathered as well, which was expected given that they could relocate from Kul'Tiras to Dalaran far quicker than Shen-Zin Su.
It was a good defense given the limited amount of time that the Alliance had to prepare, but it wouldn't be enough. Even now, Tichondrius could feel the fabric of reality growing dangerously fragile due to the sheer number of portals being opened by the Alliance. Simultaneously evacuating the city's non-combatants and reinforcing it with additional ground troops was straining the limits of the Alliance's logistical capabilities.
"Even you can't deny that Gul'dan's hatred has helped him to become more powerful than we could have imagined," said Varimathras, not sharing his concern. "No amount of luck or preparation can withstand the overwhelming force he can bring to bear after augmenting that overgrown turtle."
Tichondrius scowled as he was once again reminded of how short-sighted otherwise intelligent creatures could become under the influence of Fel magic.
Still, he couldn't deny that Varimathras had a point.
Looking behind him, Tichondrius bore witness to a sight that would be considered impressive on even the most advanced of worlds that the Burning Legion had conquered.
Surrounded by a veritable flood of undead that blanketed the landscape, the gargantuan form of Shen-Zin Su was shrouded in a perpetual blizzard and surrounded by the shrieking souls of the Lich King's victims as it made its way down an icy path toward Dalaran.
The Averass River, which connected Lordamere Lake to Azeroth's ocean, had burst its banks because of the large ocean waves created by the gargantuan turtle's mass and been entirely turned to ice by Gul'dan. Given that Shen-Zin Su was too large to fit within even the largest of rivers, freezing the water on the ground allowed for a mostly-frictionless path cleared of obstructions. The normally waterbound creature had been able to traverse almost all the way to the lake while also preventing the Alliance navy from harassing their rear.
It was truly an impressive sight… even if this course of events wasn't the most tactically sound.
The lack of a maritime route to Dalaran capable of holding Shen-Zin Su's size combined with the creature's immense mass and it's ineptness when traveling across land meant that the Scourge's attack would be significantly delayed.
The added travel time moving between the coast of Silverpine Forest and Lordaeron Lake had given the enemy many extra hours to prepare when they very easily could have already attacked several more convenient targets instead.
The only benefit to this ridiculous course of action was that the mortals had not expected or prepared for it either. Without the Violet Citadel, Dalaran lacked any form of defensive infrastructure to protect it from this unexpected avenue of attack.
"I suppose we'll learn soon just how wise it was to indulge Gul'dan's folly," said Tichondrius, knowing that there was little point in further debating the matter. Glancing back to see Shen-Zin Su finally entering Lordamere Lake with a great splash of displaced water, he knew that it was time for the Scourge to begin their assault. "Varimathras, you're assigned to lead our aerial forces and prevent the enemy from exploiting their greater strength in that arena. Balnazzar, you will take a group of Kvaldir and launch an attack on Capital City, forcing the Alliance to split their focus."
Tichondrius didn't trust Gul'dan not to somehow ruin an assault that should otherwise be a straightforward victory, so he would ensure they won this battle by any means necessary.
"I see little need for this when these mortals will all soon join the Scourge, but very well," Varimathras said with a dismissive gesture as he looked toward a barely perceptible group of Alliance aerial fighters approaching the Scourge's flank. "I suppose that while we're busy fighting on the front lines you'll be moving throughout the battlefield and orchestrating everything as always?"
"Obviously," said Tichondrius, disappearing in a swirl of shadows from the skies and reappearing in the Scourge's headquarters on Shen-Zin Su.
Varimathras and Balnaazar were far inferior to him in terms of strategic insight and cunning, a fact of reality which often caused them to resent his leadership. As he appeared in the headquarters, a room atop the former Temple of Five Elements that was now filled with maps, scrying mirrors, and some of the most intelligent members of the Scourge, he was greeted with a litany of reports detailing the current state of their forces.
They had suffered minimal losses during their battle at Kul'Tiras due to their mostly defensive posture, but that wasn't to say they had suffered none at all. The Burning Legion had evaluated Azeroth as a world of relatively primitive technology that relied heavily on the abnormal magical strength of its inhabitants, and concluded that it would most easily be conquered through sowing division and discord.
However, circumstances had been moving in exactly the wrong direction as the creation of the Alliance fostered cooperation among its member nations and the Keeper Archaedas shared Titan technology with Gnomeregan. Naturally, this dissemination of technology was fairly slow due to the inability of the mortals to fully comprehend its complexity and the obvious chaos that would come from too rapidly spreading such advancements.
These factors, combined with the enemy's surprisingly capable aerial forces, had resulted in the Scourge losing a few important assets during the initial moments of their attack.
After he finished reading the reports, Tichondrius took a few moments to consider the best path forward.
"Tell the Kvaldir to summon their mist to blanket our approach," Tichondrius absently said to one of the nearby undead after he'd reached a decision, certain his orders would be followed.
Ignoring the undead being as they began to relay his orders through a series of scrying mirrors, Tichondrius reopened his telepathic connection to the Lich King.
"Position Shen-Zin Su close enough to Dalaran that the siege weapons on its back are within range to launch the plague containers," Tichondrius commanded, his tone brokering no argument. "But do not draw too close to the city until the Alliance has revealed what they have prepared."
While Shen-Zin Su was undoubtedly the Scourge's most powerful asset, it was also one of its greatest vulnerabilities. The creature was completely incapable of protecting itself from any enemy forces that managed to land on its shell, and any serious injury could prove catastrophic to the Scourge's ambitions.
The only reason that the Lich King had not been killed shortly after his arrival on Azeroth was due to the mobility provided to him by Shen-Zin Su. Should the creature be rendered immobile or seriously harmed, the defenders of Azeroth would almost certainly launch an all out assault to exploit that vulnerability and end the Lich King permanently.
Tichondrius had no intention of allowing this to happen, and would compel Shen-Zin Su and the Lich King to retreat the very moment it became clear that the Alliance held a significant advantage.
Gul'dan's response to his orders was as predictably furious as always, though this time it also carried a trace of disdain that had Tichondrius wishing the orc still had flesh so he could savor tearing it apart.
"I had not taken you for a coward, demon. My forces are more than capable of shattering their defenses, yet you expect me to stay back like a cowering child?!"
Gul'dan had become increasingly defiant recently and would almost certainly attempt to betray the Burning Legion soon. Fortunately, even a creature as dull minded as Gul'dan realized how much he was relying on the cunning of Tichondrius and his fellow nathrezim.
Without their plans, the Aspects would have already found the Lich King and destroyed him with little effort.
"I expect you to do as you're told, Gul'dan," Tichondrius immediately responded. "Unless you've grown arrogant enough to believe yourself capable of defeating the Alliance while also withstanding the Burning Legion's wrath."
Tichondrius could also tell that the tortures Gul'dan suffered under Kil'jaeden's hand still lingered and caused the Lich King to wisely consider the potential consequences of betrayal. Even with the Lich King's impressive strength, there were many ways that the Burning Legion could punish him should he choose to go against them.
Sure enough, it only took a moment for Gul'dan to do the sensible thing and fall back in line, albeit grudgingly.
"Fine. So long as we turn Dalaran to rubble, and I'm given the chance to peel apart that loathsome nerubian's soul, I will tolerate your needless caution. For now."
Tichondrius scoffed at the Lich King's worthless posturing and immediately cut the telepathic link, satisfied that his commands would be followed, and turned his attention to the scrying mirrors to watch the battlefield. It wasn't long before the Kvaldir received his orders, and the sound of a loud horn could be heard blowing across Lordamere Lake.
The horn's sound, deep and foreboding, marked the beginning of the Kvaldir's attack and the Scourge's assault on Dalaran. An eerie mist rolled across the waters of Lordamere Lake, obscuring the view of the Alliance as a few dozen Kvaldir longboats began making their way to Capital City with Balnazzar openly flying above them.
Tichondrius paid little heed to the diversionary attack, trusting that Balnazzar was capable enough to at least handle this, and instead focused entirely on the assault on Dalaran. Under the cover of mists, Shen-Zin Su continued its slow, inexorable advance toward the city as the Alliance sent its aerial forces to intercept them, likely with the goal of seizing control of the skies over Lordamere Lake.
Although the Dragonflights were all occupied elsewhere, there were still several individual dragons participating in Dalaran's defense, such as Archmage Krasus and several others too unimportant for Tichondrius to have gathered information about them. These dragons led the charge of the Alliance's aerial forces and were followed by large numbers of gryphon and dragonhawk riders, as well as flying nerubians and some mechanical flying devices.
Archmage Krasus was competent enough with magic that he could dispel significant areas of the Kvaldir mist with little issue, rendering them vulnerable to attack.
Tichondrius knew from experience that the combination of dragonfire, alchemical explosives, and magical attacks that they threatened to unleash would obliterate the Kvaldir longboats if left uncontested. This was why he had not only specifically assigned Varimathras to lead the aerial defense, but also to prepare a strategic countermeasure.
Knowing that this would be the beginning of the battle for Dalaran and that their ambush would be far more deadly with two nathrezim compared to one, Tichondrius teleported by Varimathras' side under the cover of an invisibility spell.
"Wait for me to give the order before you move," Tichondrius ordered after establishing a telepathic connection to Varimathras, just in case the enemy forces included someone with abnormally sharp hearing.
Tichondrius sensed a combination of acknowledgement and bloodthirsty anticipation through the connection. Turning his attention back to the Alliance's approach, Tichondrius observed them closely and waited until they were nearly directly above the line of Kvaldir longboats before giving his fellow nathrezim the signal.
Instantly, Varimathras fell upon the Alliance aerial forces like a dark meteor, Felfire wreathed claws tearing through a Gnomish aircraft with little effort as his invisibility spell faded. Meanwhile, Tichondrius unleashed a wave of Felfire down on the mortals that burned through their flesh, preferring to stay at a higher vantage point to observe the battlefield more effectively.
The sudden and fierce onslaught from two nathrezim caused pandemonium among the Alliance, which the Scourge was quick to exploit. Several dozen undead cloud serpents emerged from the mists while a group of naga sea witches used their magic to send multiple streams of water surging toward the Alliance.
Unfortunately, the enemy was not as unprepared as Tichondrius had hoped, and Archmage Krasus specifically showed himself to be a formidable opponent.
"Demon vermin!" Krasus shouted as he used his mastery of magic to freeze solid the water that threatened to engulf the Alliance forces while also moving to intercept Varimathras with a furious roar. "Kalecgos, you handle the other!"
At his call, Tichondrius found himself being attacked by an unexpectedly young blue dragon who was most likely 'Kalecgos.' While he had no doubt that his vastly superior experience would allow him to slay the whelp eventually, a few bouts of exchanged spells was enough to make clear that doing so would take more time than he wished to invest.
He had already succeeded in his goal, assisting Varimathras in turning the skies above Lordamere Lake into a frenzy of combat as the Scourge and the Alliance clashed in a massive aerial battle.
"I'll search for your corpse when this battle is over, dragon. You'll make for an excellent servant," Tichondrius promised as he teleported back to Shen-Zin Su and turned his attention back to the scrying mirrors.
This was how he preferred to wage war, leveraging his superior magical abilities to tip the scales in key battles before retreating to a safe location where he could analyze and plan further.
However, the analysis of this particular battle was less favorable than it seemed on the surface.
Tichondrius scowled as he watched the battle for several moments and concluded that the Alliance forces were superior in this arena.
The nerubian fliers proved themselves to be a particular annoyance, descending upon the Scourge in great numbers without the normal hesitation shown by most mortals. While each of them individually were easily dispatched, the nerubians quickly swarmed any member of the Scourge who threatened to gain an advantage against them, effectively neutralizing the threat. A few of those fliers also seemed to carry explosives that allowed them to attack targets substantially larger than them and cause immense damage.
It was only due to the naga spellcasters lurking beneath the waters that the Scourge was able to protect the Kvaldir as they approached Dalaran's shores.
Not for the first time, Tichondrius cursed how much more difficult his plans had become thanks to Azjol-Nerub's inclusion in the Alliance. The Burning Legion had wrongly believed that the nerubians were too different and isolationist from the other races of Azeroth to work with them.
Tichondrius couldn't help but wonder how much responsibility for their misconception could be laid at the feet of the same nerubian who had arranged for Gul'dan's death.
I suppose I'll find out soon enough, Tichondrius thought with dark promise.
Tichondrius' thoughts were interrupted by one of the undead pandaren monks in the command center monitoring the undead on the gargantuan turtle. "Lord Tichondrius, our siege weapons are within range of the enemy city and ready to fire on your order."
"Then fire immediately," Tichondrius said without hesitation, not bothering to look away from the scrying mirrors. "Let's see just how well they can withstand our plague."
Tichondrius observed with a detached interest as massive plague containers were launched from the back of Shen-Zin Su by the Scourge's trebuchets. Although the siege weapons themselves were primitive, the plague itself was one of the worst magical concoctions that Tichondrius had encountered in his many millennia of conquering worlds.
The Alliance had a significant amount of time to react to the containers as they emerged from the mist and slowly arced toward their positions. This meant a large number of them were intercepted by a dazzling display of well-aimed spells from the Kirin Tor, causing them to explode in a thunderous boom well before reaching their target. However, there were simply too many of them, and a dark cloud of pestilence eventually began to settle around Dalaran's outer defenses.
Tichondrius watched with grim satisfaction as he saw several mortals around the very edges of their defensive formation begin to succumb to the effects, their bodies collapsing in grotesque, twisted forms. It was a delightful sight, and a fate he hoped to deliver to the entirety of Dalaran.
Sadly, those hopes were soon dashed as the Alliance quickly deployed their Light wielding forces to counteract the plague. There were far more than Tichondrius had expected. Previous scouting report had indicated that most of the paladins of the Silver Hand had already been deployed to other locations.The only explanation was that Azjol-Nerub must have sent their so-called 'Guardians of Nerub' to help guard the city.
Cursing under his breath, Tichondrius was beginning to truly hate those meddlesome creatures. He had been counting on the plague to weaken the enemy's defenses and leave them disorganized, and knew that the Scourge would be far more vulnerable to the Alliance's own siege weapons without it.
"Your plan is failing, demon," Gul'dan snarled through their telepathic link.
"If you expected our enemy to simply die obediently with our first strike, then you're even more of a fool than I expected," Tichondrius responded derisively as he studied the battlefield before deciding on a plan. "Send all of our ground forces to join the Kvaldir. Overwhelm them, and focus on opening a path into the city."
It was an inelegant plan, but one that he felt held the highest chance for success. Anything more complicated would risk Gul'dan ruining it, and this would allow the Scourge to leverage its greatest strengths.
For once, Gul'dan didn't bother to argue with him.
When the Scourge's forces stepped onto Dalaran's coast, where the Kvaldir's mist could not reach due to the Kirin Tor's wards, his prediction was quickly proven true. Kvaldir, Sea Giants, and naga alike were cut down by a combination of spells and more mundane projectiles coming from Dalaran's walls.
Everything from cannon fire, absurdly effective alchemical weapons, or massive balls of fire thrown by an Archmage rained down on the Scourge as they approached the city. It was a fairly impressive sight… but one that the Scourge would inevitably overcome by relying on its most powerful asset.
The Alliance's attacks were simply not enough to overcome the innate resiliency of the undead and the sheer numbers the Scourge possessed. Injuries meant nothing to the undead, and they continued to charge relentlessly against Dalaran's walls, threatening to overwhelm the Alliance despite their valiant efforts.
The heavily enchanted walls surrounding the city and the powerful magical wards of the Kirin Tor caused the Scourge to suffer significant losses, but there was inevitably a breaking point.
Seeing a potential opportunity, Tichondrius once again teleported to the battlefield right above a particular section of Dalaran's walls, intending to tip the scales in the Scourge's favor. The Light being wielded by the Alliance's forces made Tichondrius wince in pain and prevented him from casting an invisibility spell, but it didn't matter.
"Dreadlord! Kill it, quick!"
Tichondrius ignored the shouts of the mortals and opened several small portals to the Twisting Nether along the wall's ramparts. Several Felhounds immediately poured through the portals, jumping on mages and tearing out their throats. The Felhounds, with the affinity for consuming magic, quickly began to wreak havoc as they tore through arcane barriers and disrupted the focus of spellcasters.
"Now, Gul'dan," Tichondrius commanded as he unleashed a stream of Felfire on a Light wielding nerubian who attempted to save one of the mages.
Responding to his orders, the Lich King used his ability to empower his undead to great effect on one of the Sea Giants, allowing it to destroy a section of the wall with a thunderous crash. The breach served as a beacon to the undead horde, causing them to surge into the city through the gap in the wall with renewed vigor into Dalaran's streets.
Satisfied with his contribution, Tichondrius recast his invisibility spells and flew high into the skies so that he could watch the scene below. The battle would be too chaotic to monitor by scrying mirror from this point forward, so there was little sense in returning to the command center on the central pagoda on Shen-Zin Su.
As Tichondrius surveyed the battlefield over the next several minutes, he very quickly realized that the Alliance was far from defeated.
While the mortals had lost the advantage of their walls, they had obviously relocated their most powerful members to help defend Dalaran and were well prepared to face the Scourge head-on.
This became exceedingly clear as Tichondrius watched a twenty-foot-tall nerubian Spiderlord glowing brightly with the Light clear an entire street of undead by trampling over them and swinging his scythe-like arms in wide arcs. Meanwhile, the Council of Six and the elite members of the Kirin Tor unleashed devastating magical assaults, their spells weaving through the Scourge with deadly precision.
Tichondrius would normally have trusted the Scourge's relentless assault, the raising of each freshly made corpse and constant attrition to eventually exhaust the Alliance, but he wasn't sure that would happen in this case. Not only due to the Alliance's extensive usage of the Light, but also because the focus of Gul'dan ire, Krivax, was reinvigorating and healing wide swaths of mortals with Life-infused flames.
The sight was enough to convince Tichondrius that Krivax needed to be dealt with if the Scourge wished to make progress. Besides, the mortal had caused him far too many problems already, and Tichondrius eagerly looked forward to ending that threat permanently.
The Lich King should have little problem capturing the soon-to-be-dead nerubian's soul given his proximity to Dalaran, so there was no need to capture them alive.
"Gul'dan, send your most powerful undead to my location," Tichondrius commanded, deciding to handle the matter himself as he flew closer to his target. "Also, focus your efforts on destroying another section of the wall. We can't allow our forces to become stuck in a narrow point of entry if we wish to maintain the momentum of the assault."
Surprisingly, Gul'dan was silent for abnormally long before responding, his voice carrying a mixture of malice and an uncharacteristic solemnity that made Tichondrius pause.
"This plan of yours better work, demon. Should you fail to kill that mortal and deliver me his soul, then you will have proved your ineptitude, and I will no longer have any reason to tolerate your presence."
Tichondrius could tell Gul'dan meant every word of his threat and would doubtlessly attempt to fulfill it if given the opportunity. He and his fellow nathrezim had established plenty of countermeasures for that potential outcome, but those countermeasures would do nothing but hurt their cause if it came to that.
"Just do as you're told, Gul'dan. I will succeed where you failed," Tichondrius responded with forced calm.
A tense silence lingered between them for several moments before Gul'dan suddenly closed the telepathic connection and set off to do as he was instructed. Refocusing on the matter at hand, Tichondrius turned his attention back to his target as he began planning the best way to kill him.
Tichondrius was confident in his ability to slay the nerubian on his own, but the mortal was currently nestled safely to the rear of the Alliance forces. Even he would find himself overwhelmed should he act so recklessly, especially with so many formidable individuals nearby capable of intervening at a moment's notice.
Not to mention the fact that Gul'dan had already revealed his interest in Krivax to the nerubian and the Alliance was well aware of how important he was. In their place, Tichondrius would have prepared several traps around such a high value target, and he had no doubt that the Alliance had done the same.
This was why he had ordered Gul'dan to send his most powerful undead and had not wanted the orc to participate directly by possessing an undead.
The Alliance needed to be thoroughly distracted so that Krivax could be killed in a single, swift motion.
Still hidden under the cover of his invisibility spells, Tichondrius landed on the roof of a building on the same street as Krivax, watching the mortal warily for any reaction. He knew from his experience during the War of the Ancients fighting against Alexstrasza that the mortal likely possessed extraordinary sensory abilities.
This was almost certainly why their sabotage had been only partially successful, but the sheer volume of magic being expended on the battlefield should cover his approach.
Not seeing any immediate reaction from the nerubian, Tichondrius saw this as a sign to proceed and silently walked over to the two members of the Kirin Tor stationed on the roof and launching spells at undead below.
With practiced ease, Tichondrius wove an illusion over them at the same moment that he buried his claws within the chest of one of the mortals and casually launched a sphere of Felfire at the other, killing them both in seconds. Anyone outside of the illusion would neither hear nor see anything suspicious.
Continuing his plan, Tichondrius began to weave stronger and stronger concealment spells over the rooftop, knowing he could not risk being discovered if he wanted his assassination to be successful. Once he was done, Tichondrius looked back toward the battlefield and saw that Gul'dan had done as he'd commanded and sent dozens of undead monks to put pressure on this location.
None of them were as powerful as Shang Xi, who Gul'dan had lost needlessly with his incompetence, but they were all formidable in their own right. Their presence resulted in the Alliance spreading their forces even thinner, creating the opening that he needed.
Even for a natherzim as powerful as Tichondrius, it typically wasn't easy to open portals to the Twisting Nether capable of summoning any demons of note, especially on Azeroth. However, the Alliance had made things slightly easier for him through their frantic use of portal magic to reinforce their city.
Never one to miss an opportunity, Tichondrius exploited the weakness in the local fabric of reality. With a series of complex incantations, he tore several rifts to the Twisting Nether around his location, allowing demonic reinforcements to spill through into the city.
The most powerful of which were naturally around his target.
"Krivax, be careful!"
The warning shout came from one of the strange winged nerubians as a group of Tichondrius' personal elite Felguards charged toward the mortal from a nearby portal. Each of the hulking demons were veterans of countless conquests, and used their massive axes to maim and dismember Krivax's guards with brutal efficiency.
Tichondrius grinned with content as he saw that most of them died far too quickly for the mortal to use his healing flames.
Unfortunately, his assumption that the mortal would have more protection than was readily apparent proved to be correct. One of the guards around Krivax quickly transformed, revealing themselves to be a Titanic Watcher as they descended on the Felguards with overwhelming force. Another, a nerubian Vizier who had been fighting by Krivax's side, showed themselves to be an exceptionally skilled spellcaster as they sank the ground beneath the Felguards feet.
"Brat, search our surroundings! Find the demon creating these portals!"
"I'm trying, Vizier Hadix. But there's too much interference," Krivax called out as he desperately healed the few mortals who had survived the initial assault. "Masruk! Go find Fordring. We need his help."
Not wanting his enemies to successfully contact reinforcements, Tichondrius immediately opened another rift above the winged nerubian as they took flight, sending several Infernals crashing toward them. However, they managed to dodge the burning constructs in an act of surprising agility and continued flying north.
Scowling, Tichondrius focused his efforts on killing Krivax before any reinforcements could arrive. This proved to be infuriatingly difficult as the nerubian seemingly realized that he was being targeted and began fighting more defensively. The empowerment given by Alexstrasza was perfect for such a tactic, granting the nerubian extreme endurance and allowing him to heal his allies.
Not to mention the growing number of unusually skilled mortals who seemingly flocked to protect him.
Thoroughly enraged as wave after wave of demons failed to kill a single mortal, Tichondrius couldn't help but summon an illusion of himself within view of the nerubian on top of the opposite rooftop.
"Why won't you simply die?" Tichondrius asked through his illusion as he ignored the volley of projectiles that passed through it in response. "This city's fate is sealed. You've resisted for longer than expected, but even this is only a fraction of the number of undead to descend upon Dalaran. More and more of your allies join the Scourge with every moment. This is not a battle that you can win."
While Tichondrius' words were meant to break his enemy's resolve, they were not necessarily a lie. Gul'dan had destroyed another section of Dalaran's walls nearly ten minutes ago and allowed another vector for the Scourge to enter the city. The Alliance had many powerful individuals within its ranks, but they would not last forever against such sheer numbers.
Even now, large portions of the city had been completely overrun by the undead and emptied of all life. It wouldn't be long before the rest followed.
"And I thought the Lich King was arrogant. Aren't you supposed to be the smart one?" Krivax taunted back even as he continued to fight the waves of demons and undead alongside his allies.
Tichondrius' illusion scowled down at the nerubian with open disdain. "I am the most intelligent of my kind. Which is why I know your fight is futile. Surrender now, and your death will be painless."
That was a partial lie, of course. He would indeed make the mortal's death painless, but his undeath would be excruciating. Gul'dan had made it quite clear that he intended to make sure of it.
Predictably, the ungrateful mortal spat on his mercy as he replied. "You might be smart, but your hubris means that you never considered that we would have prepared for you, demon. The one that should surrender is you."
There was a confidence in Krivax's words that momentarily caused Tichondrius to hesitate, but he quickly brushed it off. He was certain by now that the nerubian was just bluffing, and it would be safe to end this farce by slaying the mortal directly.
However, just as he had resolved to do so, Tichondrius suddenly sensed an enormous spike of arcane magic emanating from Lordamere Lake. Almost immediately afterwards, there was a blinding flash of violet light which momentarily forced him to look away. Once it dissipated, Tichondrius was greeted to a sight that caused him to freeze completely in shock.
High above Shen-Zin Su was a massive structure that looked… frightening similar to the flying necropoli of Maldraxxus. Shaped loosely like a pyramid, its sides were completely covered in webs that were themselves covered in thousands of nerubians skittering across it. Any undead who attempted to fly close to the structure were immediately shot out of the sky through a combination of magic and projectile weaponry being fired from every possible angle.
It was a feat of magical engineering that was within the means of the Burning Legion, but should be impossible for a world as primitive as Azeroth.
Even teleporting the structure from Northrend to the Eastern Kingdoms should have been beyond the Alliance's capabilities with Malygos trapped on Pandaria. That was unless they had the assistance of some other incredibly powerful spellcaster who the Scourge was unaware of.
Tichondrius was pulled from his shock as he realized he could see some small objects falling from the flying necropolis and quickly cast a spell to enhance his vision. The next moment, he almost wished that he hadn't as he saw that those objects were in fact heavily armed mortals descending on Shen-Zin Su's back with magic to slow their falls.
The vast majority were nerubians, but there were also many heavily armored Draenei as well.
Tichondrius knew that the Draenei had settled on the same continent as Azjol-Nerub, so it would make sense for the damned nerubians to invite them to the assault. When he spotted Prophet Velen himself among the descending figures, shining so brightly with the Light that the perpetual blizzard roaring around Shen-Zin Su parted in his wake, Tichondrius knew that the Scourge was in trouble.
"Gul'dan, submerge Shen-Zin Su beneath the waters. Now!" Tichondrius commanded urgently.
The Lich King understood the danger he was in and immediately followed his orders without complaint. As Tichondrius watched the turtle slowly descend into the murky depths of Lordamere Lake, he nearly let out a breath of relief until the situation suddenly changed. The very earth shook and rose beneath the enormous turtle, forcing it to rise back up in an astonishing display of earth manipulation.
Tracing the magic back to its source, Tichondrius spotted a dwarf with what looked like metallic skin among those descending from the necropolis. Unless the Aspects had passed on Deathwing's powers as the Earthwarden, there was only one individual capable of such a feat.
Keeper Archaedas was considered by the Burning Legion to be one of the weakest Keepers in terms of direct combat… but he was still a Keeper.
The Lich King was by far the most powerful necromancer Tichondrius had ever encountered, and he was surrounded by countless undead and the heaviest fortifications the Scourge could manage to establish on an incredibly mobile platform.
He would normally be completely unassailable, but the reckless decision to attack Dalaran had opened a vulnerability that the Alliance hadn't hesitated to exploit. Now, Shen-Zin Su would need to flee back to the oceans and disappear into its depths before the Alliance managed to successfully destroy the Lich King.
Once again, Tichondrius cursed the incompetence of everyone around him as the Scourge was placed in a race against time.
Tichondrius' thoughts were cut short by the mocking voice of the mortal who he had been attempting to kill. "Would you like to surrender now?"
Tichondrius grit his teeth as he restrained his utter fury. The enemy's morale had been greatly bolstered by the arrival of the necropolis, and he would be quickly overwhelmed if he allowed his anger to control him. Instead, Tichondrius offered the mortal a promise that he meant from the bottom of his soul as he prepared to teleport back to Shen-Zin Su and organize the defense against the invasion.
"I don't know when, but I will ruin you and everything that you have ever built," Tichondrius replied coldly, fully agreeing with Gul'dan for once as he felt a surge of hatred for this particular mortal. "I swear it."
With that, Tichondrius disappeared from Dalaran in a swirl of dark magic, more determined than ever to bring death to this infuriating world.
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It was only thanks to his own cunning that all signs now pointed to the attack being a success that would cripple one of the most important cities in the Alliance. Had matters been left solely to that fool Gul'dan, then the Scourge would have broken itself uselessly assaulting one of the most fortified locations in the Eastern Kingdoms for little strategic benefit.
It was Tichondrius who had formed the strategy to pin the Alliance naval forces to Kul'Tiras, while using saboteurs to weaken Dalaran.
It was Tichondrius who had actually succeeded in that sabotage, while Gul'dan predictably lost sight of his objective in favor of focusing entirely on killing a single mortal.
It was Tichondrius who had made every single plan that was necessary to ensure Gul'dan's incompetence was mitigated as much as possible.
Naturally, his efforts were why the Scourge was currently in a superior strategic position compared to the Alliance. This was in spite of the unexpected speed with which the defenders of Azeroth had managed to pierce the veil surrounding Pandaria and begin a surprise assault on the Scourge's forces.
Still, Tichondrius did not approve of this assault and would have chosen another path if not for the Lich King's intransigence.
"Damn those fools and their obsession with power," Tichondrius cursed hatefully as he beat his wings and studied the enemy preparations from afar. "Kil'jaeden should have never allowed Detheroc to share what he discovered with Gul'dan. It has made him far too difficult to control."
A complex invisibility spell more sophisticated than any the mortals of this world were familiar with had allowed him to fly away from the Council of Six while they dealt with the wake of destruction he'd left behind. Now, Tichondrius was maintaining position a decent distance away from Dalaran, exploiting his magically enhanced sight to monitor a city which had completely shielded itself from all scrying attempts.
"I see little reason for you to be so concerned, Tichondrius," said Varimathras, who was flying by his side and looking down on the mortal city with disdain. "Even if the Alliance transfers their most powerful defenders to Dalaran via portal, they clearly lack the means to hold off the Scourge offensive."
"The Lich King has grown in power faster than expected. Without the Aspects, these mortals have few means of defeating him," said Balnazzar, unsurprisingly quick to agree with his brother. "His hatred has made him strong and focused, as predicted."
Tichondrius was silent for a moment as he watched a group of mortal mages use geomancy to erect obstacles along the only waterway connecting Lordaeron Lake to the ocean. Nerubian Viziers, Kirin Tor mages, and quel'dorei magisters all worked in concert to do what they could to delay the Scourge advance as much as possible. Such paltry efforts would not deter a creature as massive as Shen-Zin Su for long, but it was emblematic of the problem he felt like only he could see.
"The nations of Azeroth have grown far more interconnected and cooperative than we accounted for," said Tichondrius, glaring at the mortals as his mind raced. "We should have made more efforts to weaken and fracture the Alliance before confronting them. It would have made it much easier to predict their capabilities and ultimately destroy them. That we have been forced into this confrontation so early by that meddlesome seer and Gul'dan's impulsivity is a mistake that threatens to cost us dearly."
Tichondrius had been quite surprised when he'd been informed of Detheroc's death at the hands of Illidan, but even more so when Detheroc reformed in the Twisting Nether and shared what he discovered.
Apparently, one of the nerubians had somehow known far more than he should have about the Burning Legion and was responsible for warning the Dragonflights of Gul'dan's plan to raise the Tomb of Sargeras, resulting in the warlock's death. This was something that not even the Burning Legion had known about, and pointed to the likelihood of the nerubian being some manner of seer.
Of course, Gul'dan would have failed in his pathetic ambitions and been torn apart by the demons within the Tomb even if he successfully raised it, but Tichondrius had not bothered to inform Gul'dan of his likely fate.
Instead, Gul'dan blamed this 'Krivax' for sharing his prophetic knowledge and denying him of his rightful destiny to become a god. It was a laughable notion, but the hatred and focus Gul'dan developed after this revelation was useful in furthering the Burning Legion's machinations, at least in the opinion of Kil'jaeden. The Lich King had grown significantly in strength due to these events, his abilities growing more potent in general, and he had also learned how to possess and empower his undead servants without leaving his frozen prison.
Tichondrius had reminded Kil'jaeden several times that this would make Gul'dan more difficult to control, but he simply didn't care. So long as the Lich King served his purpose as a weapon meant to lay waste to Azeroth, little else mattered from Kil'jaeden's perspective.
Personally, Tichondrius speculated that Kil'jaeden's normally cunning mind was compromised by his obsession to deny the Draenei any homeland which they could rebuild on, but he would never dare voice such a thought aloud.
"You would do well not to underestimate our enemy, lest you suffer the same fate as Detheroc and Mal'Ganis," Tichondrius warned as he directed his attention back to Dalaran.
The city was a flurry of frantic activity as the mortal civilians were rapidly being evacuated via the portal hub. Tichondrius watched as the mortal who had caused so much trouble, Krivax, helped organize the city's evacuation as well as directed the nerubians from the local enclave.
Meanwhile, the Council of Six and the Kirin Tor were busy establishing layer after layer of arcane barriers around their forces.
A wide variety of mortal siege weapons were being placed strategically around the city's perimeter, everything from trebuchets and enchanted high elven ballistas to the primitive gunpowder cannons and mortars of Ironforge. A decent number of aerial forces were gathered as well, which was expected given that they could relocate from Kul'Tiras to Dalaran far quicker than Shen-Zin Su.
It was a good defense given the limited amount of time that the Alliance had to prepare, but it wouldn't be enough. Even now, Tichondrius could feel the fabric of reality growing dangerously fragile due to the sheer number of portals being opened by the Alliance. Simultaneously evacuating the city's non-combatants and reinforcing it with additional ground troops was straining the limits of the Alliance's logistical capabilities.
"Even you can't deny that Gul'dan's hatred has helped him to become more powerful than we could have imagined," said Varimathras, not sharing his concern. "No amount of luck or preparation can withstand the overwhelming force he can bring to bear after augmenting that overgrown turtle."
Tichondrius scowled as he was once again reminded of how short-sighted otherwise intelligent creatures could become under the influence of Fel magic.
Still, he couldn't deny that Varimathras had a point.
Looking behind him, Tichondrius bore witness to a sight that would be considered impressive on even the most advanced of worlds that the Burning Legion had conquered.
Surrounded by a veritable flood of undead that blanketed the landscape, the gargantuan form of Shen-Zin Su was shrouded in a perpetual blizzard and surrounded by the shrieking souls of the Lich King's victims as it made its way down an icy path toward Dalaran.
The Averass River, which connected Lordamere Lake to Azeroth's ocean, had burst its banks because of the large ocean waves created by the gargantuan turtle's mass and been entirely turned to ice by Gul'dan. Given that Shen-Zin Su was too large to fit within even the largest of rivers, freezing the water on the ground allowed for a mostly-frictionless path cleared of obstructions. The normally waterbound creature had been able to traverse almost all the way to the lake while also preventing the Alliance navy from harassing their rear.
It was truly an impressive sight… even if this course of events wasn't the most tactically sound.
The lack of a maritime route to Dalaran capable of holding Shen-Zin Su's size combined with the creature's immense mass and it's ineptness when traveling across land meant that the Scourge's attack would be significantly delayed.
The added travel time moving between the coast of Silverpine Forest and Lordaeron Lake had given the enemy many extra hours to prepare when they very easily could have already attacked several more convenient targets instead.
The only benefit to this ridiculous course of action was that the mortals had not expected or prepared for it either. Without the Violet Citadel, Dalaran lacked any form of defensive infrastructure to protect it from this unexpected avenue of attack.
"I suppose we'll learn soon just how wise it was to indulge Gul'dan's folly," said Tichondrius, knowing that there was little point in further debating the matter. Glancing back to see Shen-Zin Su finally entering Lordamere Lake with a great splash of displaced water, he knew that it was time for the Scourge to begin their assault. "Varimathras, you're assigned to lead our aerial forces and prevent the enemy from exploiting their greater strength in that arena. Balnazzar, you will take a group of Kvaldir and launch an attack on Capital City, forcing the Alliance to split their focus."
Tichondrius didn't trust Gul'dan not to somehow ruin an assault that should otherwise be a straightforward victory, so he would ensure they won this battle by any means necessary.
"I see little need for this when these mortals will all soon join the Scourge, but very well," Varimathras said with a dismissive gesture as he looked toward a barely perceptible group of Alliance aerial fighters approaching the Scourge's flank. "I suppose that while we're busy fighting on the front lines you'll be moving throughout the battlefield and orchestrating everything as always?"
"Obviously," said Tichondrius, disappearing in a swirl of shadows from the skies and reappearing in the Scourge's headquarters on Shen-Zin Su.
Varimathras and Balnaazar were far inferior to him in terms of strategic insight and cunning, a fact of reality which often caused them to resent his leadership. As he appeared in the headquarters, a room atop the former Temple of Five Elements that was now filled with maps, scrying mirrors, and some of the most intelligent members of the Scourge, he was greeted with a litany of reports detailing the current state of their forces.
They had suffered minimal losses during their battle at Kul'Tiras due to their mostly defensive posture, but that wasn't to say they had suffered none at all. The Burning Legion had evaluated Azeroth as a world of relatively primitive technology that relied heavily on the abnormal magical strength of its inhabitants, and concluded that it would most easily be conquered through sowing division and discord.
However, circumstances had been moving in exactly the wrong direction as the creation of the Alliance fostered cooperation among its member nations and the Keeper Archaedas shared Titan technology with Gnomeregan. Naturally, this dissemination of technology was fairly slow due to the inability of the mortals to fully comprehend its complexity and the obvious chaos that would come from too rapidly spreading such advancements.
These factors, combined with the enemy's surprisingly capable aerial forces, had resulted in the Scourge losing a few important assets during the initial moments of their attack.
After he finished reading the reports, Tichondrius took a few moments to consider the best path forward.
"Tell the Kvaldir to summon their mist to blanket our approach," Tichondrius absently said to one of the nearby undead after he'd reached a decision, certain his orders would be followed.
Ignoring the undead being as they began to relay his orders through a series of scrying mirrors, Tichondrius reopened his telepathic connection to the Lich King.
"Position Shen-Zin Su close enough to Dalaran that the siege weapons on its back are within range to launch the plague containers," Tichondrius commanded, his tone brokering no argument. "But do not draw too close to the city until the Alliance has revealed what they have prepared."
While Shen-Zin Su was undoubtedly the Scourge's most powerful asset, it was also one of its greatest vulnerabilities. The creature was completely incapable of protecting itself from any enemy forces that managed to land on its shell, and any serious injury could prove catastrophic to the Scourge's ambitions.
The only reason that the Lich King had not been killed shortly after his arrival on Azeroth was due to the mobility provided to him by Shen-Zin Su. Should the creature be rendered immobile or seriously harmed, the defenders of Azeroth would almost certainly launch an all out assault to exploit that vulnerability and end the Lich King permanently.
Tichondrius had no intention of allowing this to happen, and would compel Shen-Zin Su and the Lich King to retreat the very moment it became clear that the Alliance held a significant advantage.
Gul'dan's response to his orders was as predictably furious as always, though this time it also carried a trace of disdain that had Tichondrius wishing the orc still had flesh so he could savor tearing it apart.
"I had not taken you for a coward, demon. My forces are more than capable of shattering their defenses, yet you expect me to stay back like a cowering child?!"
Gul'dan had become increasingly defiant recently and would almost certainly attempt to betray the Burning Legion soon. Fortunately, even a creature as dull minded as Gul'dan realized how much he was relying on the cunning of Tichondrius and his fellow nathrezim.
Without their plans, the Aspects would have already found the Lich King and destroyed him with little effort.
"I expect you to do as you're told, Gul'dan," Tichondrius immediately responded. "Unless you've grown arrogant enough to believe yourself capable of defeating the Alliance while also withstanding the Burning Legion's wrath."
Tichondrius could also tell that the tortures Gul'dan suffered under Kil'jaeden's hand still lingered and caused the Lich King to wisely consider the potential consequences of betrayal. Even with the Lich King's impressive strength, there were many ways that the Burning Legion could punish him should he choose to go against them.
Sure enough, it only took a moment for Gul'dan to do the sensible thing and fall back in line, albeit grudgingly.
"Fine. So long as we turn Dalaran to rubble, and I'm given the chance to peel apart that loathsome nerubian's soul, I will tolerate your needless caution. For now."
Tichondrius scoffed at the Lich King's worthless posturing and immediately cut the telepathic link, satisfied that his commands would be followed, and turned his attention to the scrying mirrors to watch the battlefield. It wasn't long before the Kvaldir received his orders, and the sound of a loud horn could be heard blowing across Lordamere Lake.
The horn's sound, deep and foreboding, marked the beginning of the Kvaldir's attack and the Scourge's assault on Dalaran. An eerie mist rolled across the waters of Lordamere Lake, obscuring the view of the Alliance as a few dozen Kvaldir longboats began making their way to Capital City with Balnazzar openly flying above them.
Tichondrius paid little heed to the diversionary attack, trusting that Balnazzar was capable enough to at least handle this, and instead focused entirely on the assault on Dalaran. Under the cover of mists, Shen-Zin Su continued its slow, inexorable advance toward the city as the Alliance sent its aerial forces to intercept them, likely with the goal of seizing control of the skies over Lordamere Lake.
Although the Dragonflights were all occupied elsewhere, there were still several individual dragons participating in Dalaran's defense, such as Archmage Krasus and several others too unimportant for Tichondrius to have gathered information about them. These dragons led the charge of the Alliance's aerial forces and were followed by large numbers of gryphon and dragonhawk riders, as well as flying nerubians and some mechanical flying devices.
Archmage Krasus was competent enough with magic that he could dispel significant areas of the Kvaldir mist with little issue, rendering them vulnerable to attack.
Tichondrius knew from experience that the combination of dragonfire, alchemical explosives, and magical attacks that they threatened to unleash would obliterate the Kvaldir longboats if left uncontested. This was why he had not only specifically assigned Varimathras to lead the aerial defense, but also to prepare a strategic countermeasure.
Knowing that this would be the beginning of the battle for Dalaran and that their ambush would be far more deadly with two nathrezim compared to one, Tichondrius teleported by Varimathras' side under the cover of an invisibility spell.
"Wait for me to give the order before you move," Tichondrius ordered after establishing a telepathic connection to Varimathras, just in case the enemy forces included someone with abnormally sharp hearing.
Tichondrius sensed a combination of acknowledgement and bloodthirsty anticipation through the connection. Turning his attention back to the Alliance's approach, Tichondrius observed them closely and waited until they were nearly directly above the line of Kvaldir longboats before giving his fellow nathrezim the signal.
Instantly, Varimathras fell upon the Alliance aerial forces like a dark meteor, Felfire wreathed claws tearing through a Gnomish aircraft with little effort as his invisibility spell faded. Meanwhile, Tichondrius unleashed a wave of Felfire down on the mortals that burned through their flesh, preferring to stay at a higher vantage point to observe the battlefield more effectively.
The sudden and fierce onslaught from two nathrezim caused pandemonium among the Alliance, which the Scourge was quick to exploit. Several dozen undead cloud serpents emerged from the mists while a group of naga sea witches used their magic to send multiple streams of water surging toward the Alliance.
Unfortunately, the enemy was not as unprepared as Tichondrius had hoped, and Archmage Krasus specifically showed himself to be a formidable opponent.
"Demon vermin!" Krasus shouted as he used his mastery of magic to freeze solid the water that threatened to engulf the Alliance forces while also moving to intercept Varimathras with a furious roar. "Kalecgos, you handle the other!"
At his call, Tichondrius found himself being attacked by an unexpectedly young blue dragon who was most likely 'Kalecgos.' While he had no doubt that his vastly superior experience would allow him to slay the whelp eventually, a few bouts of exchanged spells was enough to make clear that doing so would take more time than he wished to invest.
He had already succeeded in his goal, assisting Varimathras in turning the skies above Lordamere Lake into a frenzy of combat as the Scourge and the Alliance clashed in a massive aerial battle.
"I'll search for your corpse when this battle is over, dragon. You'll make for an excellent servant," Tichondrius promised as he teleported back to Shen-Zin Su and turned his attention back to the scrying mirrors.
This was how he preferred to wage war, leveraging his superior magical abilities to tip the scales in key battles before retreating to a safe location where he could analyze and plan further.
However, the analysis of this particular battle was less favorable than it seemed on the surface.
Tichondrius scowled as he watched the battle for several moments and concluded that the Alliance forces were superior in this arena.
The nerubian fliers proved themselves to be a particular annoyance, descending upon the Scourge in great numbers without the normal hesitation shown by most mortals. While each of them individually were easily dispatched, the nerubians quickly swarmed any member of the Scourge who threatened to gain an advantage against them, effectively neutralizing the threat. A few of those fliers also seemed to carry explosives that allowed them to attack targets substantially larger than them and cause immense damage.
It was only due to the naga spellcasters lurking beneath the waters that the Scourge was able to protect the Kvaldir as they approached Dalaran's shores.
Not for the first time, Tichondrius cursed how much more difficult his plans had become thanks to Azjol-Nerub's inclusion in the Alliance. The Burning Legion had wrongly believed that the nerubians were too different and isolationist from the other races of Azeroth to work with them.
Tichondrius couldn't help but wonder how much responsibility for their misconception could be laid at the feet of the same nerubian who had arranged for Gul'dan's death.
I suppose I'll find out soon enough, Tichondrius thought with dark promise.
Tichondrius' thoughts were interrupted by one of the undead pandaren monks in the command center monitoring the undead on the gargantuan turtle. "Lord Tichondrius, our siege weapons are within range of the enemy city and ready to fire on your order."
"Then fire immediately," Tichondrius said without hesitation, not bothering to look away from the scrying mirrors. "Let's see just how well they can withstand our plague."
Tichondrius observed with a detached interest as massive plague containers were launched from the back of Shen-Zin Su by the Scourge's trebuchets. Although the siege weapons themselves were primitive, the plague itself was one of the worst magical concoctions that Tichondrius had encountered in his many millennia of conquering worlds.
The Alliance had a significant amount of time to react to the containers as they emerged from the mist and slowly arced toward their positions. This meant a large number of them were intercepted by a dazzling display of well-aimed spells from the Kirin Tor, causing them to explode in a thunderous boom well before reaching their target. However, there were simply too many of them, and a dark cloud of pestilence eventually began to settle around Dalaran's outer defenses.
Tichondrius watched with grim satisfaction as he saw several mortals around the very edges of their defensive formation begin to succumb to the effects, their bodies collapsing in grotesque, twisted forms. It was a delightful sight, and a fate he hoped to deliver to the entirety of Dalaran.
Sadly, those hopes were soon dashed as the Alliance quickly deployed their Light wielding forces to counteract the plague. There were far more than Tichondrius had expected. Previous scouting report had indicated that most of the paladins of the Silver Hand had already been deployed to other locations.The only explanation was that Azjol-Nerub must have sent their so-called 'Guardians of Nerub' to help guard the city.
Cursing under his breath, Tichondrius was beginning to truly hate those meddlesome creatures. He had been counting on the plague to weaken the enemy's defenses and leave them disorganized, and knew that the Scourge would be far more vulnerable to the Alliance's own siege weapons without it.
"Your plan is failing, demon," Gul'dan snarled through their telepathic link.
"If you expected our enemy to simply die obediently with our first strike, then you're even more of a fool than I expected," Tichondrius responded derisively as he studied the battlefield before deciding on a plan. "Send all of our ground forces to join the Kvaldir. Overwhelm them, and focus on opening a path into the city."
It was an inelegant plan, but one that he felt held the highest chance for success. Anything more complicated would risk Gul'dan ruining it, and this would allow the Scourge to leverage its greatest strengths.
For once, Gul'dan didn't bother to argue with him.
When the Scourge's forces stepped onto Dalaran's coast, where the Kvaldir's mist could not reach due to the Kirin Tor's wards, his prediction was quickly proven true. Kvaldir, Sea Giants, and naga alike were cut down by a combination of spells and more mundane projectiles coming from Dalaran's walls.
Everything from cannon fire, absurdly effective alchemical weapons, or massive balls of fire thrown by an Archmage rained down on the Scourge as they approached the city. It was a fairly impressive sight… but one that the Scourge would inevitably overcome by relying on its most powerful asset.
The Alliance's attacks were simply not enough to overcome the innate resiliency of the undead and the sheer numbers the Scourge possessed. Injuries meant nothing to the undead, and they continued to charge relentlessly against Dalaran's walls, threatening to overwhelm the Alliance despite their valiant efforts.
The heavily enchanted walls surrounding the city and the powerful magical wards of the Kirin Tor caused the Scourge to suffer significant losses, but there was inevitably a breaking point.
Seeing a potential opportunity, Tichondrius once again teleported to the battlefield right above a particular section of Dalaran's walls, intending to tip the scales in the Scourge's favor. The Light being wielded by the Alliance's forces made Tichondrius wince in pain and prevented him from casting an invisibility spell, but it didn't matter.
"Dreadlord! Kill it, quick!"
Tichondrius ignored the shouts of the mortals and opened several small portals to the Twisting Nether along the wall's ramparts. Several Felhounds immediately poured through the portals, jumping on mages and tearing out their throats. The Felhounds, with the affinity for consuming magic, quickly began to wreak havoc as they tore through arcane barriers and disrupted the focus of spellcasters.
"Now, Gul'dan," Tichondrius commanded as he unleashed a stream of Felfire on a Light wielding nerubian who attempted to save one of the mages.
Responding to his orders, the Lich King used his ability to empower his undead to great effect on one of the Sea Giants, allowing it to destroy a section of the wall with a thunderous crash. The breach served as a beacon to the undead horde, causing them to surge into the city through the gap in the wall with renewed vigor into Dalaran's streets.
Satisfied with his contribution, Tichondrius recast his invisibility spells and flew high into the skies so that he could watch the scene below. The battle would be too chaotic to monitor by scrying mirror from this point forward, so there was little sense in returning to the command center on the central pagoda on Shen-Zin Su.
As Tichondrius surveyed the battlefield over the next several minutes, he very quickly realized that the Alliance was far from defeated.
While the mortals had lost the advantage of their walls, they had obviously relocated their most powerful members to help defend Dalaran and were well prepared to face the Scourge head-on.
This became exceedingly clear as Tichondrius watched a twenty-foot-tall nerubian Spiderlord glowing brightly with the Light clear an entire street of undead by trampling over them and swinging his scythe-like arms in wide arcs. Meanwhile, the Council of Six and the elite members of the Kirin Tor unleashed devastating magical assaults, their spells weaving through the Scourge with deadly precision.
Tichondrius would normally have trusted the Scourge's relentless assault, the raising of each freshly made corpse and constant attrition to eventually exhaust the Alliance, but he wasn't sure that would happen in this case. Not only due to the Alliance's extensive usage of the Light, but also because the focus of Gul'dan ire, Krivax, was reinvigorating and healing wide swaths of mortals with Life-infused flames.
The sight was enough to convince Tichondrius that Krivax needed to be dealt with if the Scourge wished to make progress. Besides, the mortal had caused him far too many problems already, and Tichondrius eagerly looked forward to ending that threat permanently.
The Lich King should have little problem capturing the soon-to-be-dead nerubian's soul given his proximity to Dalaran, so there was no need to capture them alive.
"Gul'dan, send your most powerful undead to my location," Tichondrius commanded, deciding to handle the matter himself as he flew closer to his target. "Also, focus your efforts on destroying another section of the wall. We can't allow our forces to become stuck in a narrow point of entry if we wish to maintain the momentum of the assault."
Surprisingly, Gul'dan was silent for abnormally long before responding, his voice carrying a mixture of malice and an uncharacteristic solemnity that made Tichondrius pause.
"This plan of yours better work, demon. Should you fail to kill that mortal and deliver me his soul, then you will have proved your ineptitude, and I will no longer have any reason to tolerate your presence."
Tichondrius could tell Gul'dan meant every word of his threat and would doubtlessly attempt to fulfill it if given the opportunity. He and his fellow nathrezim had established plenty of countermeasures for that potential outcome, but those countermeasures would do nothing but hurt their cause if it came to that.
"Just do as you're told, Gul'dan. I will succeed where you failed," Tichondrius responded with forced calm.
A tense silence lingered between them for several moments before Gul'dan suddenly closed the telepathic connection and set off to do as he was instructed. Refocusing on the matter at hand, Tichondrius turned his attention back to his target as he began planning the best way to kill him.
Tichondrius was confident in his ability to slay the nerubian on his own, but the mortal was currently nestled safely to the rear of the Alliance forces. Even he would find himself overwhelmed should he act so recklessly, especially with so many formidable individuals nearby capable of intervening at a moment's notice.
Not to mention the fact that Gul'dan had already revealed his interest in Krivax to the nerubian and the Alliance was well aware of how important he was. In their place, Tichondrius would have prepared several traps around such a high value target, and he had no doubt that the Alliance had done the same.
This was why he had ordered Gul'dan to send his most powerful undead and had not wanted the orc to participate directly by possessing an undead.
The Alliance needed to be thoroughly distracted so that Krivax could be killed in a single, swift motion.
Still hidden under the cover of his invisibility spells, Tichondrius landed on the roof of a building on the same street as Krivax, watching the mortal warily for any reaction. He knew from his experience during the War of the Ancients fighting against Alexstrasza that the mortal likely possessed extraordinary sensory abilities.
This was almost certainly why their sabotage had been only partially successful, but the sheer volume of magic being expended on the battlefield should cover his approach.
Not seeing any immediate reaction from the nerubian, Tichondrius saw this as a sign to proceed and silently walked over to the two members of the Kirin Tor stationed on the roof and launching spells at undead below.
With practiced ease, Tichondrius wove an illusion over them at the same moment that he buried his claws within the chest of one of the mortals and casually launched a sphere of Felfire at the other, killing them both in seconds. Anyone outside of the illusion would neither hear nor see anything suspicious.
Continuing his plan, Tichondrius began to weave stronger and stronger concealment spells over the rooftop, knowing he could not risk being discovered if he wanted his assassination to be successful. Once he was done, Tichondrius looked back toward the battlefield and saw that Gul'dan had done as he'd commanded and sent dozens of undead monks to put pressure on this location.
None of them were as powerful as Shang Xi, who Gul'dan had lost needlessly with his incompetence, but they were all formidable in their own right. Their presence resulted in the Alliance spreading their forces even thinner, creating the opening that he needed.
Even for a natherzim as powerful as Tichondrius, it typically wasn't easy to open portals to the Twisting Nether capable of summoning any demons of note, especially on Azeroth. However, the Alliance had made things slightly easier for him through their frantic use of portal magic to reinforce their city.
Never one to miss an opportunity, Tichondrius exploited the weakness in the local fabric of reality. With a series of complex incantations, he tore several rifts to the Twisting Nether around his location, allowing demonic reinforcements to spill through into the city.
The most powerful of which were naturally around his target.
"Krivax, be careful!"
The warning shout came from one of the strange winged nerubians as a group of Tichondrius' personal elite Felguards charged toward the mortal from a nearby portal. Each of the hulking demons were veterans of countless conquests, and used their massive axes to maim and dismember Krivax's guards with brutal efficiency.
Tichondrius grinned with content as he saw that most of them died far too quickly for the mortal to use his healing flames.
Unfortunately, his assumption that the mortal would have more protection than was readily apparent proved to be correct. One of the guards around Krivax quickly transformed, revealing themselves to be a Titanic Watcher as they descended on the Felguards with overwhelming force. Another, a nerubian Vizier who had been fighting by Krivax's side, showed themselves to be an exceptionally skilled spellcaster as they sank the ground beneath the Felguards feet.
"Brat, search our surroundings! Find the demon creating these portals!"
"I'm trying, Vizier Hadix. But there's too much interference," Krivax called out as he desperately healed the few mortals who had survived the initial assault. "Masruk! Go find Fordring. We need his help."
Not wanting his enemies to successfully contact reinforcements, Tichondrius immediately opened another rift above the winged nerubian as they took flight, sending several Infernals crashing toward them. However, they managed to dodge the burning constructs in an act of surprising agility and continued flying north.
Scowling, Tichondrius focused his efforts on killing Krivax before any reinforcements could arrive. This proved to be infuriatingly difficult as the nerubian seemingly realized that he was being targeted and began fighting more defensively. The empowerment given by Alexstrasza was perfect for such a tactic, granting the nerubian extreme endurance and allowing him to heal his allies.
Not to mention the growing number of unusually skilled mortals who seemingly flocked to protect him.
Thoroughly enraged as wave after wave of demons failed to kill a single mortal, Tichondrius couldn't help but summon an illusion of himself within view of the nerubian on top of the opposite rooftop.
"Why won't you simply die?" Tichondrius asked through his illusion as he ignored the volley of projectiles that passed through it in response. "This city's fate is sealed. You've resisted for longer than expected, but even this is only a fraction of the number of undead to descend upon Dalaran. More and more of your allies join the Scourge with every moment. This is not a battle that you can win."
While Tichondrius' words were meant to break his enemy's resolve, they were not necessarily a lie. Gul'dan had destroyed another section of Dalaran's walls nearly ten minutes ago and allowed another vector for the Scourge to enter the city. The Alliance had many powerful individuals within its ranks, but they would not last forever against such sheer numbers.
Even now, large portions of the city had been completely overrun by the undead and emptied of all life. It wouldn't be long before the rest followed.
"And I thought the Lich King was arrogant. Aren't you supposed to be the smart one?" Krivax taunted back even as he continued to fight the waves of demons and undead alongside his allies.
Tichondrius' illusion scowled down at the nerubian with open disdain. "I am the most intelligent of my kind. Which is why I know your fight is futile. Surrender now, and your death will be painless."
That was a partial lie, of course. He would indeed make the mortal's death painless, but his undeath would be excruciating. Gul'dan had made it quite clear that he intended to make sure of it.
Predictably, the ungrateful mortal spat on his mercy as he replied. "You might be smart, but your hubris means that you never considered that we would have prepared for you, demon. The one that should surrender is you."
There was a confidence in Krivax's words that momentarily caused Tichondrius to hesitate, but he quickly brushed it off. He was certain by now that the nerubian was just bluffing, and it would be safe to end this farce by slaying the mortal directly.
However, just as he had resolved to do so, Tichondrius suddenly sensed an enormous spike of arcane magic emanating from Lordamere Lake. Almost immediately afterwards, there was a blinding flash of violet light which momentarily forced him to look away. Once it dissipated, Tichondrius was greeted to a sight that caused him to freeze completely in shock.
High above Shen-Zin Su was a massive structure that looked… frightening similar to the flying necropoli of Maldraxxus. Shaped loosely like a pyramid, its sides were completely covered in webs that were themselves covered in thousands of nerubians skittering across it. Any undead who attempted to fly close to the structure were immediately shot out of the sky through a combination of magic and projectile weaponry being fired from every possible angle.
It was a feat of magical engineering that was within the means of the Burning Legion, but should be impossible for a world as primitive as Azeroth.
Even teleporting the structure from Northrend to the Eastern Kingdoms should have been beyond the Alliance's capabilities with Malygos trapped on Pandaria. That was unless they had the assistance of some other incredibly powerful spellcaster who the Scourge was unaware of.
Tichondrius was pulled from his shock as he realized he could see some small objects falling from the flying necropolis and quickly cast a spell to enhance his vision. The next moment, he almost wished that he hadn't as he saw that those objects were in fact heavily armed mortals descending on Shen-Zin Su's back with magic to slow their falls.
The vast majority were nerubians, but there were also many heavily armored Draenei as well.
Tichondrius knew that the Draenei had settled on the same continent as Azjol-Nerub, so it would make sense for the damned nerubians to invite them to the assault. When he spotted Prophet Velen himself among the descending figures, shining so brightly with the Light that the perpetual blizzard roaring around Shen-Zin Su parted in his wake, Tichondrius knew that the Scourge was in trouble.
"Gul'dan, submerge Shen-Zin Su beneath the waters. Now!" Tichondrius commanded urgently.
The Lich King understood the danger he was in and immediately followed his orders without complaint. As Tichondrius watched the turtle slowly descend into the murky depths of Lordamere Lake, he nearly let out a breath of relief until the situation suddenly changed. The very earth shook and rose beneath the enormous turtle, forcing it to rise back up in an astonishing display of earth manipulation.
Tracing the magic back to its source, Tichondrius spotted a dwarf with what looked like metallic skin among those descending from the necropolis. Unless the Aspects had passed on Deathwing's powers as the Earthwarden, there was only one individual capable of such a feat.
Keeper Archaedas was considered by the Burning Legion to be one of the weakest Keepers in terms of direct combat… but he was still a Keeper.
The Lich King was by far the most powerful necromancer Tichondrius had ever encountered, and he was surrounded by countless undead and the heaviest fortifications the Scourge could manage to establish on an incredibly mobile platform.
He would normally be completely unassailable, but the reckless decision to attack Dalaran had opened a vulnerability that the Alliance hadn't hesitated to exploit. Now, Shen-Zin Su would need to flee back to the oceans and disappear into its depths before the Alliance managed to successfully destroy the Lich King.
Once again, Tichondrius cursed the incompetence of everyone around him as the Scourge was placed in a race against time.
Tichondrius' thoughts were cut short by the mocking voice of the mortal who he had been attempting to kill. "Would you like to surrender now?"
Tichondrius grit his teeth as he restrained his utter fury. The enemy's morale had been greatly bolstered by the arrival of the necropolis, and he would be quickly overwhelmed if he allowed his anger to control him. Instead, Tichondrius offered the mortal a promise that he meant from the bottom of his soul as he prepared to teleport back to Shen-Zin Su and organize the defense against the invasion.
"I don't know when, but I will ruin you and everything that you have ever built," Tichondrius replied coldly, fully agreeing with Gul'dan for once as he felt a surge of hatred for this particular mortal. "I swear it."
With that, Tichondrius disappeared from Dalaran in a swirl of dark magic, more determined than ever to bring death to this infuriating world.
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xbox432
Lover of Editing
Need a space after that period.
Tichondrius is so freakin' close to having an "Epic Gamer Moment" right now. Heh, it's like in Hollow Knight when Hornet keeps ganking you all while taunting you to "Git Gud!"
What I really want to see is some ritual managing to weaken Gul'dans hold on the Scourge and for all the Pandaren to break free because of some "spiritual peace" thing. Then the newly Forsaken would turn on the Scourge in the presumably huge battle going on.
Edit: Having the turtle become a forsaken and be like the forsaken headquarters would be awesome too. Maybe even continue becoming a Wild God, the first undead Wild God.
Edit: Having the turtle become a forsaken and be like the forsaken headquarters would be awesome too. Maybe even continue becoming a Wild God, the first undead Wild God.
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Chapter 85
If not for his magically enhanced constitution, Krivax was certain that he would have collapsed in relief the moment Project Sanctum appeared above Lordamere Lake.
He still had a few tricks up his sleeves toward the end of the battle, such a potent spell that he'd been developing for a very long time to counter the Scourge, but things hadn't been looking good. Krivax almost wished that he'd been given the luxury of falling unconscious for a few hours after Tichondrius disappeared, but the battle was still far from over.
"Krivax!"
Krivax was pulled from his thoughts as Masruk landed by his side and began looking him over for injuries with a worried expression.
"Don't worry, I'm alright," Krivax was quick to reassure his friend as he began healing a wound in his abdomen left behind by one of the Felhounds. "The Dreadlord left before his demons could overwhelm us. What about you? Any wounds?"
Krivax had sent Masruk off to go find Fordring and had lost track of him in the frenzy of the battlefield. With so many demons and undead running completely rampant throughout Dalaran, there was no telling who would survive each clash.
He looked over Masruk and was relieved to see that he only had a few non-lethal injuries across his carapace.
"I'm fine as well," Masruk confirmed before glancing toward the awe-inspiring sight currently taking place in Lordamere Lake. "I had just found Fordring when that… thing was teleported to the battlefield. He was directed to participate in the main assault on the Scourge's forces."
Krivax looked toward the giant necropolis currently flying over Shen-Zin Su, a constant stream of Alliance forces slowly descending from its lowest platforms. Since the necropolis was connected to the Azjol-Nerub portal network, A.D.F troops could be transported easily onto it and then dropped directly onto the turtle. He could tell that the Alliance were likely starting with their most powerful combatants to secure a foothold, as dozens of Spiderlords floated down at the same time.
Azjol-Nerub was clearly taking the threat of the Lich King seriously and was bringing its full military might to bear. It was truly a sight to behold, and Krivax felt a mix of awe and anticipation at the sheer scale of the operation.
"It is certainly quite impressive," said Vizier Hadix, idly cradling a broken arm as he walked over to their side. "I'd heard rumors, but I hadn't believed that the Circle of Viziers was capable of constructing something like that."
Krivax said nothing as he moved to heal his mentor's injuries, knowing for a fact that Azjol-Nerub wouldn't have been able to create Naxx'kithal, its flying necropolis, without the assistance of outsiders.
During the original timeline, flying necropolis' were one of the most distinctive features of the Scourge and were frequently used by them as mobile fortresses to launch attacks across Azeroth. Since he knew something like that was technically possible, Krivax had proposed the idea to the Circle of Viziers. Some of the Viziers had seemed relatively interested, but the vast amounts of resources and experimental magic needed to make it happen meant that getting approval for it was a longshot.
At least, it would have been before the Second War when Azjol-Nerub had its foundations shaken by learning of the many threats that existed out there in the world.
Instead, High King Anub'arak made creating Naxx'kithal one of Azjol-Nerub's priorities in the form of Project Sanctum. After all, possessing a flying fortress with its own portal infrastructure capable of deploying large numbers of troops and holding enough munitions to level a city was an attractive prospect.
However, the kinds of magic needed to create such a structure was obviously beyond Azjol-Nerub's reach, or they would have already created similar flying buildings before. It was only thanks to the kingdom's contact with the surface races that it was able to gain the knowledge necessary to make it happen.
Well, that and Krivax occasionally dropping hints to Malygos about how useful Project Sanctum could be for Azeroth's defense…
A quiet revolution in Azjol-Nerub's understanding of magic was taking place thanks to collaboration with Uldaman, the Blue Dragonflight, and the Draenei which allowed them to create such a monumental structure.
They hadn't quite been prepared to teleport the thing all the way to the Eastern Kingdoms, but the emergency assistance of Medivh and several members of the Blue Dragonflight allowed Azjol-Nerub to accomplish something it wouldn't have otherwise.
Moments like these were when the power of the Alliance shined the most. Quick organization and leveraging talents from a wide variety of sources was what allowed them to turn the tables against the Lich King and put them in a position to counterattack.
It was… an emotional moment for Krivax, seeing all of his efforts to prepare Azjol-Nerub against the Lich King finally culminating in the awe inspiring flying necropolis.
"Still… the Scourge is far from defeated," Vizier Hadix continued as he looked toward Shen-Zin Su with a scrutinizing gaze. "If the Alliance is not careful, they risk having this counterattack turned against them in a devastating fashion."
Krivax let out a sigh, wishing he could just enjoy the thought of the Alliance securing a decisive victory against the Lich King that didn't threaten to be lost at a moment's notice. Unfortunately, he had naively decided that becoming a leader was a good idea which meant he needed to look at the big picture.
"Why is that, Vizier Hadix?" asked Krivax as he finished healing his mentor and began attending to the many other injured left behind after Tichondrius retreated.
The Scourge had caused far more devastation to Dalaran than he had initially realized. It was only now after taking in his surroundings that he saw the true extent of the damage. Buildings were reduced to complete rubble and the streets were littered with the corpses of the Scourge and Alliance as the remnants of dark magic lingered in the air like a malevolent fog.
If he had to guess, Krivax would estimate that at least a third of Dalaran had been destroyed or severely damaged during the Scourge's invasion of the city. It would take significant efforts to rebuild Dalaran to a point that it was safe for civilians to live in it again.
"If the creature manages to escape below the waters, then it will be nearly impossible to attack it in any meaningful manner," Vizier Hadix explained, his eyes still fixated on the battle. "The Alliance holds the advantage in the aerial theater, but the Scourge holds absolute supremacy underwater. Every combatant on its shell risks being washed away and torn to pieces by undead if Keeper Archaedas loses control over it."
Krivax turned his attention back to Lordamere Lake, more worried now than he was before. It wasn't difficult to imagine the scenario that Vizier Hadix had described.
Keeper Archaedas was doing a good job of restraining the massive turtle with his absurdly powerful earth manipulation to keep the creature above the lake surface. Alliance mages aboard Naxx'kithal were assisting as well by using their magic to create barriers around Shen-Zin Su's limbs, significantly limiting its range of movement.
However, Shen-Zin Su was an undead with inexhaustible stamina capable of continuing its struggles until it inevitably broke free.
The Alliance was risking a lot because this was likely the greatest opportunity they would ever have to end the Lich King for good. But… it was also placing its most powerful assets at risk with this operation. Both Prophet Velen and Keeper Archaedas were fighting atop the massive turtle's shell, along with many other irreplaceable individuals.
If they were lost, then the consequences would be absolutely devastating…
"Do you know what the Alliance's strategists could be planning?" Krivax asked, hoping the much more experienced Vizier might have an idea.
He hadn't exactly had enough time to ask the High King when asking for Project Sanctum to be deployed. However, somebody else decided to answer before the Vizier had the opportunity.
"Headquarters intends to slay the creature using a ritual created by Archmage Kel'Thuzad," said Magister Rommath, walking over rubble and destroyed undead as he joined them. The normally well-groomed elf looked weary, his expensive robes torn and signed from the fierce battle. "The Alliance Defense Force was contacted via scrying with the details of the assault. Your assistance has been requested."
Krivax let out a sigh of relief, glad to see Magister Rommath. Given how chaotic Dalaran was at the moment, it would have taken a significant amount of time to get in contact with anyone who knew what was going on.
"Good to see you, Rommath," Krivax said with a nod of acknowledgement before straightening and focusing on the matter at hand. "Tell me what I need to know."
Krivax listened closely as Rommath explained the Alliance's current strategy in great detail. The Alliance had apparently decided to drop their troops in close proximity to what the pandaren survivors referred to as the Temple of Five Dawns. Aside from the area around the Lich King, it was the second most heavily defended location on Shen-Zin Su and would serve as a perfect staging ground for the Alliance if they could take control over it.
In addition, its position in the very center of Shen-Zin Su made it a good location to perform a ritual designed to end its undeath.
Krivax couldn't help but feel sorry for the ancient turtle and asked why Archmage Kel'Thuzad couldn't simply use more of his anti-undead alchemical concoction to free it of the Lich King's control. Apparently, doing so would be near impossible due to Gul'dan's proximity to the poor creature.
Freeing Shen-Zin Su wasn't an option until the Lich King was put down for good, which would take far longer than they could afford to keep the turtle alive. It was unfortunate, but Krivax recognized that there was little to be done about the matter and accepted it.
Krivax initially thought that Alliance wanted the A.D.F to help them secure the Temple of Five Dawns, but Headquarters seemed fairly confident in their ability to seize the structure given enough time. Given that they were being aided by Prophet Velen, who was likely the most powerful Light wielder on Azeroth, Keeper Archaedas, and every Archmage in Dalaran, that confidence was likely warranted.
Instead, the Alliance's strategists wanted the A.D.F to help secure them time to capture the Temple of Five Dawns by destroying one of the turtle's limbs and reducing its mobility. The longer it took for Shen-Zin Su to break free of its restraints, the better chance the Alliance had in securing the temple and slaying Shen-Zin Su.
"That sounds like a good plan, if not for the countless undead covering every inch of Shen-Zin Su," Krivax said with a trace of exasperation once Rommath finished speaking. "Does the Alliance have any suggestions on how I'm supposed to not only reach the limb, but also destroy it?"
"The Blue Dragonflight can offer a few mana bombs, but nothing nearly as strong as the one used during the capture of Mal'Ganis," Rommath admitted after a moment of hesitation, frustration flashing through his eyes. "To be completely honest, I had the impression that they were hoping you may have an idea that they hadn't considered. All of this was hardly something planned in advance, after all."
Krivax had to admit that was true. The Scourge's attack on Dalaran was a complete surprise, which meant that this counterattack was a hastily made plan put together at the last moment. Even if it was a plan thought up by the Alliance's best strategic minds, led by Supreme Commander Lothar, Ranger-General Windrunner, and High King Anub'arak, there were bound to be gaps and uncertainties.
Frankly, it was a miracle that things had already gone as well as they had.
Krivax did his best to consider the matter with a critical mind, trying to find the best way to use the A.D.F's resources. If he wanted to put together a strike team to destroy the limb, there were relatively few people who he could count on gathering. While the A.D.F could call on powerful individuals to fight, certain members like Archmage Kel'Thuzad had superseding responsibilities to other organizations that took precedence.
It shouldn't be too difficult to recruit Illidan and Vizier Hadix, Krivax thought as he glanced toward his mentor. Masruk and Team Rhonin aren't as powerful, but every bit of help is welcome. Given the importance of the mission, I should also be able to gain the assistance of Archmage Krasus and Fordring despite their current commitments. But will that be enough?
This wasn't like their mission to capture Mal'Ganis, which had been a meticulously planned surprise attack involving several artifacts handcrafted by Malygos and Archaedas themselves. This was a frantic and spontaneous operation into the territory of an enemy who was on high alert and would almost certainly see them coming.
After thinking on the matter for several moments, Krivax suddenly remembered one person who he hadn't considered before who could be extremely helpful.
"Rommath, what did you do with the non-hostile undead in the Violet Hold after that initial assault by Gul'dan?" Krivax asked, recalling the Death Monk who had been possessed by the Lich King.
He doubted someone as egotistical as Gul'dan would use anything less than the most powerful undead he could get his hands on as a vessel. That being the case, the undead would almost certainly have been a high-ranking member of the Scourge who knew many of their secrets.
If Krivax was lucky, then they may have even been one of the original monks killed on the Wandering Isle.
"We did, though we weren't certain of its trustworthiness and had it imprisoned," Rommath confirmed with a nod, gaze becoming shrewd as he realized how useful the undead could be. "Do you wish to gather information from it? I should be able to have one of Quel'thalas' magisters skilled in mind magic here quickly."
Rommath's ruthlessness in this matter didn't surprise Krivax at all. Much like Illidan had been when he first saw Shang Xi, Rommath acted with immediate hostility.
The people of Azeroth didn't have good experiences with intelligent undead, the majority having been created by renegade necromancers. In addition, undeath had a well documented tendency to cause a dulling of emotion and sociopathic behavior.
Shang Xi had seemed surprisingly composed for the short moments Krivax had spoken with him, even more so than he would have expected given his knowledge of non-hostile undead in the original timeline.
"No, that won't be necessary. I'll go and speak to the undead myself," Krivax said firmly, making his decision. "While I'm gone, tell the Alliance that we'll need a way to travel to Shen-Zin Su. Given that Naxx'kithal can't be repositioned without endangering the current offensive and there's no way to teleport there directly, we'll likely need travel by flight."
It was fortunate that the Alliance held aerial superiority. Otherwise, it would likely be impossible to reach their destination without first fighting through an army of undead.
Rommath looked skeptical, but understood that there wasn't enough time to second guess him and immediately set out to follow his instructions. Before long, messages had been sent to the Alliance Headquarters via magic, and Masruk flew off to gather everyone who would be participating in their attack.
Meanwhile, Krivax made his way to the Violet Hold where Shang Xi was being held. The prison's security had been taken over by the Alliance's army due to the emergency situation, though there were still many corpses left behind by the Lich King's attack.
Nobody attempted to stop Krivax, recognizing his distinctive appearance and the urgency with which he moved through the streets. He made his way to the lower levels of the Violet Hold where Shang Xi had apparently been imprisoned. Rommath claimed that the guards he sent found the undead exactly where Krivax had left them, listless and surprisingly compliant.
When Krivax finally reached the cell where Shang Xi was confined, he found the undead monk peacefully sitting in a meditative pose, his eyes closed and his breathing steady. The stillness in the cell was a stark contrast to the sheer chaos that reigned outside and wasn't at all what Krivax had been expecting.
Even if he knew that not all undead were necessarily hostile or malevolent, he'd still thought that someone who had only just been freed from what must certainly have been cruel slavery would be much less… calm.
Krivax cleared his throat awkwardly to get the monk's attention.
"Hello, your name is Shang Xi, correct?" Krivax said once the undead opened his eyes glowing with blue light. "I apologize for your temporary imprisonment, but I didn't have enough time to explain that you were no longer under the Lich King's control when I left."
Shang Xi studied him calmly for several moments before responding. "Temporary? I hadn't believed that I would leave this cell for anything less than my destruction. Is that not the case?"
Krivax couldn't hold back his wince, realizing he'd left someone with the very understandable misconception that they would be executed.
"So long as you don't harm any innocents, you won't be judged for any actions forced on you by magical compulsion," said Krivax, promising to himself that he would do everything in his power to ensure that was the case once this was all over. "But for now, there are more important things that we need to worry about. We need your help to destroy the Lich King."
Krivax went on to explain their current circumstances, along with their mission to cripple Shen-Zin Su. A small part of him expected Shang Xi to be more reluctant to help, either due to fear or distrust. However, the monk surprised him by agreeing to aid him immediately and without the slightest reservations.
"The Lich King arrived in my home and visited evils unto my people more horrific than I could have ever imagined," said Shang Xi, a trace of emotion entering his voice for the first time as the glow of his eyes brightened with fury. "I will do everything in my power to see him end, along with the demons controlling him."
Krivax was glad to hear that since they needed all the help they could get. Still, he had a responsibility as the mission leader to verify Shang Xi's intentions, given that the outcome of this mission could determine the fates of countless people.
"You said that the Lich King 'landed' on your home, which means you are one of the monks who lived on Shen-Zin Su," said Krivax, studying the monk's every expression. "You realize that we intend to kill the creature, right? Do you really not have any reservations about that?"
Shang Xi was likely one of the first undead who had fallen under the Lich King's influence, which meant he had plenty of time to be corrupted regardless of how kind he may have once been.
Despite this, Krivax could see nothing but melancholy and acceptance in Shang Xi's expression as he answered.
"Shen-Zin Su selflessly gifted my people with shelter and protection for centuries," said Shang Xi, his voice quiet and solemn. "He did this for no other reason but out of kindness. Never in my life have I met a more generous person. I know without a doubt that he would have abhorred the evils which the Lich King has forced him to commit and would wish to be stopped by any means necessary."
Krivax listened silently as Shang Xi explained his perspective, feeling a wave of sadness for the tragedy that the undead described.
"It is for this reason why I am so determined to see the Lich King ended," Shang Xi continued, the sorrow in his voice being overtaken by determination. "He cannot be allowed to escape to gather his power for years as those clever demons hide him away in some forgotten corner of the world. Too much suffering has come of him already, and I cannot imagine how much more he will cause if left unchecked."
As Krivax studied the monk and listened to the pain behind his words, he concluded that Shang Xi was being completely honest. While there was a distinct thread of hatred in the undead's voice, it was clearly born from a deep sense of loss and a desire for justice rather than any malevolent motivation.
For a moment, Krivax couldn't help but think that Shang Xi would make for a great leader for any other undead who managed to be freed from the Lich King's control, but that was a problem for later. There was little time to dwell on future possibilities when the immediate threat of the Scourge demanded their full attention.
"Thank you for your willingness to help, Shang Xi. I'm sure your knowledge of the Scourge and Shen-Zin Su will prove invaluable for this mission," Krivax said genuinely before leaving to retrieve one of the Violet Hold's guards.
Krivax had to leverage his authority to convince them to dispel the magical barrier imprisoning Shang Xi, but they eventually reluctantly agreed after he finished explaining the urgency of the matter. The undead monk received many distrustful glares and guarded looks as he and Krivax made their way out of the Violet Hold, but Shang Xi didn't seem to pay it any mind.
Eventually, they arrived at a clearing in the northern part of Dalaran, which had been one of the large marketplaces before the attack, where Krivax had instructed Rommath to bring the rest of the team. It seemed that the Alliance had successfully organized transportation, as several gryphons were being hastily prepared by soldiers for their journey.
Archmage Krasus and Kalecgos had also arrived in their dragon forms, presumably to transport Krivax and Vizier Hadix who were both far too large to mount a gryphon.
Already waiting there was Illidan, notably free of his Sentinel watchers, as he glared toward the sight of Shen-Zin Su. All of the elf's wardens had been far too injured during the fight with Gul'dan to continue with their duties, leaving Illidan relatively free of supervision. Krivax had no doubt that the kaldorei would complain once they learned he hadn't contacted them immediately after Illidan's wardens were incapacitated, but that was a matter for later.
There were far more important things to deal with at the moment than elvish sensibilities.
In addition, Fordring had arrived while still wielding the Silver Hand, so empowered by the Light that the ambient necromantic magic left behind by the Scourge was purified by his mere presence. The nearby Alliance soldiers occasionally glanced at the Paladin with open reverence, likely as a result of his various feats in the defense of Dalaran. Apparently, Fordring had been nearly single-handedly responsible for preventing the Scourge from approaching the portal hub, turning back a large wave of undead with the power of the Light.
Krivax predicted that there would be many legends made from this conflict, and Tirion Fordring was undoubtedly one of them.
A variety of other figures were preparing themselves for battle, including Team Rhonin and many members of the Alliances' aerial combat forces likely sent to escort them. Their assistance would be crucial to safely make it through the Scourges defenses.
As the leader of the Alliance Defense Force, Krivax knew that he was the only one who had the authority to organize these disparate elements into a fighting force, so he didn't hesitate to take on that role
"If everyone is prepared, then we are leaving as quickly as possible," Krivax said as he approached the group, knowing that time was of the essence. "This is Shang Xi. While he is an undead, he has sworn that he means no harm and has pledged to help us destroy the Lich King. I trust his intentions. Does anyone have any complaints?"
There was a moment where everyone traded looks, their expressions ranging from indifferent to distinctly uncomfortable.
Illidan and the nerubians were closer to the former end of the spectrum, while pretty much everyone else seemed much more concerned. Archmage Krasus was one of them, likely because Shang Xi's necromantic magic felt like a blight to his sensibilities as a Red Dragon, but he said nothing after Krivax gave him a nod showing his approval of the undead.
The most important opinion by far belonged to Tirion Fordring, who everyone else looked to as the Paladin locked gazes with Shang Xi. After several moments of tense silence, Fordring finally spoke, his voice calm yet carrying an underlying strength that resonated with conviction.
"If Krivax trusts the undead, and he is here to fight against the Lich King, then I see no reason to object. We all have a common enemy, and every hand raised against the Scourge is needed in this battle."
His words seemed to alleviate the tension amongst the group and the others nodded in agreement, albeit with some still having obvious reservations. The presence of an undead, especially so soon after the Scourge's attack on Dalaran, was not something easily accepted. However, the dire circumstances and Fordring's approval was enough to convince them.
Appreciating Fordring's support, Krivax gave the Paladin a nod of thanks before turning his attention back to the group.
"As you have hopefully been informed, our mission is to do as much damage to Shen-Zin Su as possible with the goal of hampering its efforts to escape into Lordamere Lake," Krivax explained, his voice carrying over the group. "If we fail, then it is doubtful that very many of the Alliance's forces on its shell will be able to escape before they either drown or are torn to pieces by the many undead in the lake."
Krivax's blunt assessment of the situation was enough for a sense of solemn foreboding to fall over the group as everyone glanced toward the scene in Lordamere Lake.
Shen-Zin Su was still raised well over the surface of Lordamere Lake on top of an artificially raised landmass with its edges shaped into massive, in-ward facing spikes of earth. It likely required the entirety of Keeper Archaedas' attention to keep the enormous creature trapped through its constant struggles. Leveraging its strength and sheer weight, Shen-Zin Su was destroying portions of the platform with each snap of its jaw or swing of its limbs, causing tremors that could be felt all the way in Dalaran.
The very sight was enough to inspire both dread and awe in everyone watching.
"The best method of hampering Shen-Zin Su's struggles would be to destroy one of its forward limbs, though we must obviously ensure that we aren't simply crushed under one of its wild blows," Krivax said grimly, drawing the attention of the group back to him.
He'd considered a few other targets before setting on the front limbs. Shen-Zin Su's back limbs were not being used to attack nearly as much and its head was one of its most heavily defended locations, both due to its vital nature and its proximity to the Lich King.
"Therefore, I believe our best option is to land on its shell and use magic to burrow through its undead flesh until we reach the joint of its limbs," Krivax continued, sharing the rest of his plan as he watched the group for their reaction. "That should be the best location for us to attack."
Krivax was relieved to see that nobody had any serious objections to his plan. It was a relatively straightforward strategy, but likely their best bet given how little time they had to prepare.
"Would it not be better to attack both limbs at the same time?" asked one of the Alliance soldiers.
"The Scourge will defend with everything they have. It will be difficult enough to destroy a single limb, let alone two," Fordring responded immediately.
"I'll also be relying on Paladin Fordring to shield us from the Lich King's blizzard," said Krivax, addressing the soldier. "Without him using the Light to protect us, we would likely be either swarmed by spirits or frozen solid long before we can accomplish our mission."
That seemed to be enough to convince everyone of Krivax's plans, and they quickly focused on the details of the mission. Specifically, Shang Xi suggested that they attack Shen-Zin Su's right limb as there was a cave system on that side which should bring them marginally closer to the creature's joint and serve as a defensive location.
With that, everyone moved to get on top of their gryphon while Krivax awkwardly climbed atop Archmage Krasus and secured himself with some webs. He could tell that he wasn't the only one who was uncomfortable, as Vizier Hadix wore a distinctly disgruntled expression as he skittered onto Kacelgos' scaled back.
Krivax would probably laugh at the ridiculous sight of a nerubian Vizier riding a dragon if he wasn't in the exact same situation.
If I survive this, I definitely need to find a better way to fly, Krivax thought as their group took flight and began making their way to Shen-Zin Su.
Given that he was the most experienced candidate for the role, Archmage Krasus took command over the aerial combat. It didn't take long before the Scourge noticed their approach and redirected a portion of its forces to intercept them, though the majority were still focused on attacking Naxx'kithal and the main Alliance assault.
Krivax engulfed both himself and Archmage Krasus in Life-infused flames to protect them from smaller undead such as insects or giant birds that attempted to swarm them. Archmage Krasus handled many of the larger undead with furious swipes of his claws or powerful spells that destroyed any Scourge who approached them.
To the left side of their formation, Vizier Hadix created large webs of arcane magic in the air that hindered the movements of the undead while Kalecgos immediately blew them apart with missiles of arcane magic. Proving his adaptability and experience as a warrior, Illidan learned how to guide his gryphon with surprising finesse and fearlessly flew close enough to the undead that he could strike with his twin blades. Each attack unleashed a burst of bright Felfire that jumped between undead, killing them just as easily as it would have killed the living.
Paladin Fordring, ever the beacon of hope amidst the chaos, hardly needed to swing his weapon at all as few undead were able to approach close to him through the intense aura of Light that radiated from him and the Silver Hand. Those few that did were left weakened and destroyed with almost contemptuous ease, perfectly exemplifying just how well-suited Paladins were for fighting the undead.
Despite their team's power, the Scourge vastly outnumbered them and only became more numerous the closer they drew to Shen-Zin Su.
At one point, an Aerie Peak dwarf and his gryphon were seized by a tendril of water that rose from Lordamere Lake and pulled them screaming beneath its depths, the entire process happening too quickly for anyone to react.
Any undead beneath the lake with a method of attacking them at range attempted to do so, forcing them to fly higher than they would have otherwise liked. Before long, they breached the outer perimeter of the blizzard surrounding Shen-Zin Su where the Scourge only intensified their attacks. The air crackled with necromantic energy, and the visibility dropped drastically as an oppressive blanket of cold that sapped all strength and hope fell over them.
Beyond the hollowing of the winds, Krivax could even hear the screams of spirits being controlled by the Lich King as their ethereal forms flew toward them through the blizzard. Krivax had experienced many truly terrifying things during his second life, but there was something about those haunting wails that pulled at his soul.
"Fall in around the Paladin," Archmage Krasus yelled over the cacophony, his voice amplified by magic to make himself heard.
The group quickly reorganized at the Archmage's command and drew closer to Fordring, whose aura of Light created a sanctuary amidst the blizzard. However, this didn't protect them completely as the lack of visibility meant that the Scourge could more easily ambush them. When an unfortunate mage to the rear was torn from their gryphon by an undead cloud serpent that emerged from the mists and quickly disappeared with its prize, their group adjusted to focus primarily on defense.
As they approached Shen-Zin Su, the true size and scale of the undead turtle became ever more daunting as Krivax got his first look of the creature up close. Its colossal form loomed like a mountain above the lake, making Keeper Archaedas' feat of entrapping it even more impressive. However, Krivax could tell that the earth spikes around it were being reformed slower each time they were destroyed than when he had last looked at them.
It was a clear sign that even Keeper Archaedas had his limits and would eventually reach them.
"Shang Xi, where is the cave system that you mentioned?" Krivax yelled, urgency guiding him as their group flew over a destroyed village filled with undead on the left side of Shen-Zin Su's shell.
The undead monk only took a moment to scan his gaze over his former home before pointing toward a small entrance in a series of cliffs north of the destroyed village. "There! The Shrine of Inner Light is located inside that cave system!"
With their final destination located, Archmage Krasus guided them toward the cliffs as the Scourge began chasing after them with ever increasing numbers. Every inch of Shen-Zin Su's shell was crawling with undead creatures as far as Krivax could see, a clear sign of how clearly seriously the Scourge was taking them as a threat.
It was only seconds after their group landed at the entrance to the Shrine of Inner Light that they were swarmed by every undead in the area. Even with the ridiculous power of their group, it was only due to the defensive chokepoint offered by the cave's entrance that they weren't swiftly overwhelmed.
"Illidan, Vizier Hadix. You two move on ahead to destroy the joint," Krivax called out as he used geomancy to open a sinkhole beneath an undead sea giant. This caused it to fall to the ground where Fordring immediately finished it off with a swing of his hammer.
They had discussed this beforehand and decided that those two would be the best ones for the task. Vizier Hadix knew enough geomancy to dig them through any collapses in the cave system while Illidan could use Felfire to burn a tunnel through undead flesh until they reached the joint.
According to Shang Xi, the Dreadlords had also used Felfire to dig into Shen-Zin Su's inner organs as a method of killing it, so the tactic would no doubt be effective.
From there, Vizier Hadix only needed to use the mana bombs provided by the Blue Dragonflight and placed in the Vizier's spatial bag to finish the job. With the joint destroyed, Shen-Zin Su's struggles would be drastically weakened, and the Alliance's main army would have enough time to perform that ritual that would put the poor creature out of its misery.
Illidan and Hadix charged into the cave system without further word, neither of them the type to waste time when action was needed.
"By the Light's grace, we shall give them the time they need! To arms!" Tirion Fordring called out as he raised the Silver Hand high above his head and unleashed a wave of Light that washed over them.
Krivax felt the Light completely wash away the weariness he'd been accumulating since the fight in Dalaran. Judging by the expressions of his allies, he wasn't the only one who was rejuvenated just in time to face the bulk of the Scourge's forces converging on their location.
Sharing a quick glance with Archmage Krasus, he and Krivax combined their efforts to summon a massive wall of Life-infused flames that smothered the Scourge's charge as undead were burned to ash upon contact. Meanwhile, Tirion Fordring let out a bellow and charged forward, actually causing several undead to recoil from his mere presence.
The next few minutes were a blur of combat as they fought for their lives. This close to the Lich King, the air was nearly completely saturated with necromantic magic and undead were more formidable than Krivax had ever experienced. Ghouls that would normally be destroyed by a single hit took many hits to go down, and the larger undead creatures moved with speed and agility that belied their size.
Bringing Shang Xi proved to be a wise decision, as the Death Monk was both similarly empowered and an extremely capable combatant. He moved with grace and deadly efficiency as each of his strikes shattered the skulls of another undead. At one point, he even somehow split into multiple forms, a skill Krivax vaguely remembered as being something monks were capable of doing, allowing Shang Xi to engage several enemies simultaneously.
Despite everything, the Scourge was still a near overwhelming force that their group could only barely hold back.
"Damn it!" Krivax cursed as he pulled an undead skitterer off his chest and threw it to the ground, stomping on it a moment later in an effort to conserve his magic. "Krasus, there are too many! We need to fall back into the cave!"
A ghoul attempted to exploit his distraction by leaping toward his face with outstretched claws, but was almost immediately impaled by Masruk's spear and promptly disposed of.
Archmage Krasus finished his spell before responding, causing a swirling inferno to materialize in the Scourge ranks that engulfed several dozen undead before being countered by an icy gust that extinguished the flames.
"This is the best defensive point that we could hope for," Krasus yelled as he just barely dodged the claws of a spirit that emerged from the walls of the cave. His magic flashed again, disintegrating the undead in a burst of flames. "We must not retreat until the last possible moment."
Krivax let out another curse as he reached into his spatial bag before throwing an alchemical flask at a charging Sea Giant, causing a potent explosion of arcane magic that transformed the undead into a crystalline statue.
Their group had recognized that it would be unlikely for them to escape back the way they came, which was why all of their mounts had been ushered into the cave first. With geomancy, they could create an exit whenever necessary, but the Shrine of Inner Light had many interconnected tunnels that the Scourge could use to flank them if they were pushed farther into the cave system.
Krasus was right that they needed to hold on as long as possible. Unfortunately, Krivax soon realized that this would become even more difficult as he sensed a familiar demon rapidly approaching their location.
"Fordring! Above you!" Krivax shouted.
Thankfully, the Paladin didn't hesitate to heed his warning and immediately leaped back toward the group just in time to avoid the Dreadlord who crashed down where he had been standing like a meteor. Fordring was barely able to get the Silver Hand up in time to prevent the Dreadlord's claws from tearing out his guts as the demon furiously surged out of the crater it had created.
Krivax immediately recognized that this was the same Dreadlord who had been leading the Scourge's attack on the Capital City. It was no surprise that the demon had returned to Shen-Zin Su to defend the Lich King given the circumstances.
According to Alliance intelligence, the Dreadlord hadn't been shy about announcing his name while helping slaughter Capital City's sparse garrison, and has been identified as Balnazzar.
Krivax instantly cast a geomancy spell that caused the ground beneath the Dreadlord to upheave violently and knock the demon off balance while Fordring swung at him with the Silver Hand. However, Balnazzar managed to teleport away moments before being struck and reappeared in the Scourge lines.
Not long after, it became clear that the Dreadlord had begun commanding the undead forces as several naga sea witches lined up and summoned a flood of icy waters meant to sweep them away. This forced their group to fall back into the cave as Krivax frantically summoned an arcane barrier, with the help of Archmage Krasus, Rhonin, and Kalecgos, to prevent the flood from entering the cave.
Unfortunately, the Scourge had many naga within their ranks and the other side of the barrier was being constantly assaulted by heavy weapons as the undead swam through the summoned flood of water.
"I think now is a good time to fall back," Krivax called out, his voice tense as he strained to hold the barrier. "Archmage Krasus, I'm going to release my barrier and use geomancy to collapse the cave's entrance! I need you to hold them back while I cast the spell!"
Krasus nodded, his expression steadfast as he redoubled his efforts.
Not wasting the opportunity, Krivax released his barrier while beginning to cast the necessary spell. Moments later, the earth began to shake as the stone at the cave's entrance exploded inwards, burying several undead under a massive pile of debris and effectively sealing the entrance.
At least, temporarily sealing the entrance. Nearly immediately afterward, Krivax spotted the eerie green of Felfire from the otherside of the debris, indicating that the Dreadlord intended to melt through the pile of undead flesh and rock.
Krivax and the rest of the group quickly made their way deeper into the Shrine of Inner Light, occasionally leaving behind magical traps.
It was clear from their surroundings that the shrine had likely once been a beautiful and sacred place where the local pandaren had gone to venerate their ancestors. The shattered statues of notable pandaren littered the ground, the signs of the Scourge's desecration evident in every corner. The air was heavy with the stench of decay and necromantic magic, a stark contrast to the beauty that must have once pervaded these halls.
Everytime their group found a good defensive location, they set up traps and defenses to delay the Scourge as long as possible.
Balnazzar repeated his attempt to drown them out with the naga spellcasters, but Krivax predicted that and was quick to respond by freezing each incoming wave solid, creating a protective barrier between them and the Scourge. Despite relying more on fire after receiving Alexstrasza's empowerment, Krivax had always been more skilled with ice magic and forced the Dreadlord to abandon his tactic.
However, the Scourge's overwhelming numbers meant that they faced a constant onslaught of undead and were eventually pushed back to the main chamber of the shrine. At the end of the chamber, Krivax spotted a tunnel that had most likely been created by Illidan and Vizier Hadix if the faint traces of Felfire were any indication.
This meant they had nowhere left to retreat, lest they allow the Scourge to prevent Illidan and Hadix from completing their mission. With that knowledge, their group quickly created as many defensive fortifications as possible while Team Rhonin ushered the flying mounts down the tunnel in preparation for their eventual escape.
The Scourge was never going to allow them the time to create another exit, so they would simply have to fly out of Shen-Zin Su's detached limb once its joint was destroyed. It was a risky plan, but also their best option given the circumstances.
It didn't take long for the Balnazzar to catch up to them, his expression furious as he commanded a full-scale assault on their position. The narrow confines of the Shrine of Inner Light turned the battle into a brutal close-quarters fight, where every inch of ground was fiercely contested.
Since their group had no intention of returning from the route they came, Krivax made liberal use of geomancy to crush as many undead as possible, reshaping the cave's environment to his advantage. Tirion Fordring proved an impassable bulwark as he used the Light to prevent any undead from passing him and bolstered the spirit of his allies. Meanwhile, Shang Xi found with surprising ferocity as he leapt toward the Dreadlord, his strikes clearly indicating his fury even as his expression remained tranquil.
The battle was grueling, with every second feeling like an eternity. Krivax could personally feel the strain of the relentless assault as he destroyed corpse after shambling corpse of the innocents slain by the Scourge.
Even if he had magically enhanced endurance, Krivax still began to grow both mentally and magically exhausted by the endless undead. He wasn't the only one being affected by this exhaustion, which Balnazaar eventually took advantage of as he found an opening in their defenses.
Teleporting away from one of Shang Xi's strikes, the Dreadlord reappeared at Fordring's side and struck with a speed the belied his size. Fordring, ever vigilant, managed to prevent Balnazaar from striking a lethal blow but still suffered a grievous injury to his side. The Paladin staggered, pain etched on his face as blood seeped through his armor, his aura of Light fading as it fought against the Felfire in his wound.
That brief moment, where the Light faltered and they lost the bolstered morale that came with it, caused a ripple of shock to pass through their group. Krivax could only look on in horror as Balnazaar seemed set to take advantage of this momentary lapse to strike down Fordring for good.
In this critical moment, a roar of fury and fire echoed through the tunnel behind Krivax as a blur of movement suddenly burst past him, his twin blades a whirlwind of destruction. In an impressive show of speed, Balnazzar was just barely able to turn in time to meet Illidan's attack. Sensing a predictable surge of magic that indicated the Dreadlord was about to teleport away, Krivax immediately cast a quick counterspell.
This would not stop the demon for more than a second, but that was just enough time for Shang Xi to land a strike on Balnazzar's side that caused the demon's flesh to rot with necromantic magic. As the Dreadlord faltered, Illidan didn't hesitate to take advantage with a lightning fast strike that resulted in the demon's head falling to the ground a moment later.
"Tell the Burning Legion that I'm coming for them, demon vermin," Illidan snarled with obvious hatred and the Dreadlord's corpse collapsed.
I… don't think he heard you, Krivax thought to himself as he summoned a wall of fire between their group and the rampaging undead.
"We can't stay here. With Fordring injured, I don't think we'll be able to last much longer." Krivax said, addressing the group before turning to Illidan. "Has Hadix planted the mana bombs? Were you able to destroy the joint?"
Before Illidan could respond, Krivax received his answer in the form of a deafening explosion that shook the entire cavern. Dust and debris rained down around them as Archmage Krasus created an arcane barrier above their heads.
"That's our sign to leave," Krivax announced urgency as he rushed to Fordring's side and helped cleanse the Paladin's wound.
The group made a fighting retreat as they descended the tunnel of Shen-Zin Su's decayed flesh. Fortunately, there was little the Scourge could do to stop them due to the enclosed terrain, allowing Illidan to protect their rear with almost contemptuous ease. Eventually, they reached the end of the tunnel where Vizier Hadix was waiting for them with an impatient expression and began the awkward process of helping everyone mount their flying creatures.
When they finally managed to do so and everyone flew out of the hole that was Shen-Zin Su's detached limb, Krivax got his first look at the results of their efforts. As an undead creature, the enormous turtle hadn't seemed to react much to losing a limb but the awkwardness of its movements made clear that they had significantly impaired its mobility.
Sea turtles already weren't the most dexterous of creatures on land, and with Shen-Zin Su's massive size, the loss of a limb made his efforts to maneuver even more cumbersome. The once mighty beast struggled to maintain any balance as it uselessly attacked its earthen prison, now relying mostly on his jaws to gnaw at the spikes entrapping it.
Krivax allowed himself a moment to enjoy the feeling of victory before calling out to the rest of the group. "Let's meet up with the Alliance's main assault at the Temple of Five Dawns. This should have bought enough time for them to complete the ritual."
Everyone immediately agreed with his decision and seemed in high spirits as they began flying toward the Temple of Five Dawns. Krivax was also rather encouraged by the success of their mission, but he couldn't help but feel faintly unsettled by what he was sensing at the Alliance's main battlefront near the temple.
He could tell that the Alliance had managed to secure the Temple of Five Dawns as the structure was clear of undead and filled with living creatures, but he couldn't sense the typical surge of magic that he would associate with an ongoing ritual. Krivax had the sharpest sensory abilities of anyone in the group, so he was almost certainly the only one who had noticed this discrepancy.
Still, as Krivax looked at the champions who had managed to successfully fight their way through the heart of Scourge territory and survive, he found that he wasn't too worried. Regardless of what complication they were about to face, the Alliance had many heroes ready to face Gul'dan and put an end to the Lich King permanently.
So long as that remained the case, the Scourge's days were numbered.
He still had a few tricks up his sleeves toward the end of the battle, such a potent spell that he'd been developing for a very long time to counter the Scourge, but things hadn't been looking good. Krivax almost wished that he'd been given the luxury of falling unconscious for a few hours after Tichondrius disappeared, but the battle was still far from over.
"Krivax!"
Krivax was pulled from his thoughts as Masruk landed by his side and began looking him over for injuries with a worried expression.
"Don't worry, I'm alright," Krivax was quick to reassure his friend as he began healing a wound in his abdomen left behind by one of the Felhounds. "The Dreadlord left before his demons could overwhelm us. What about you? Any wounds?"
Krivax had sent Masruk off to go find Fordring and had lost track of him in the frenzy of the battlefield. With so many demons and undead running completely rampant throughout Dalaran, there was no telling who would survive each clash.
He looked over Masruk and was relieved to see that he only had a few non-lethal injuries across his carapace.
"I'm fine as well," Masruk confirmed before glancing toward the awe-inspiring sight currently taking place in Lordamere Lake. "I had just found Fordring when that… thing was teleported to the battlefield. He was directed to participate in the main assault on the Scourge's forces."
Krivax looked toward the giant necropolis currently flying over Shen-Zin Su, a constant stream of Alliance forces slowly descending from its lowest platforms. Since the necropolis was connected to the Azjol-Nerub portal network, A.D.F troops could be transported easily onto it and then dropped directly onto the turtle. He could tell that the Alliance were likely starting with their most powerful combatants to secure a foothold, as dozens of Spiderlords floated down at the same time.
Azjol-Nerub was clearly taking the threat of the Lich King seriously and was bringing its full military might to bear. It was truly a sight to behold, and Krivax felt a mix of awe and anticipation at the sheer scale of the operation.
"It is certainly quite impressive," said Vizier Hadix, idly cradling a broken arm as he walked over to their side. "I'd heard rumors, but I hadn't believed that the Circle of Viziers was capable of constructing something like that."
Krivax said nothing as he moved to heal his mentor's injuries, knowing for a fact that Azjol-Nerub wouldn't have been able to create Naxx'kithal, its flying necropolis, without the assistance of outsiders.
During the original timeline, flying necropolis' were one of the most distinctive features of the Scourge and were frequently used by them as mobile fortresses to launch attacks across Azeroth. Since he knew something like that was technically possible, Krivax had proposed the idea to the Circle of Viziers. Some of the Viziers had seemed relatively interested, but the vast amounts of resources and experimental magic needed to make it happen meant that getting approval for it was a longshot.
At least, it would have been before the Second War when Azjol-Nerub had its foundations shaken by learning of the many threats that existed out there in the world.
Instead, High King Anub'arak made creating Naxx'kithal one of Azjol-Nerub's priorities in the form of Project Sanctum. After all, possessing a flying fortress with its own portal infrastructure capable of deploying large numbers of troops and holding enough munitions to level a city was an attractive prospect.
However, the kinds of magic needed to create such a structure was obviously beyond Azjol-Nerub's reach, or they would have already created similar flying buildings before. It was only thanks to the kingdom's contact with the surface races that it was able to gain the knowledge necessary to make it happen.
Well, that and Krivax occasionally dropping hints to Malygos about how useful Project Sanctum could be for Azeroth's defense…
A quiet revolution in Azjol-Nerub's understanding of magic was taking place thanks to collaboration with Uldaman, the Blue Dragonflight, and the Draenei which allowed them to create such a monumental structure.
They hadn't quite been prepared to teleport the thing all the way to the Eastern Kingdoms, but the emergency assistance of Medivh and several members of the Blue Dragonflight allowed Azjol-Nerub to accomplish something it wouldn't have otherwise.
Moments like these were when the power of the Alliance shined the most. Quick organization and leveraging talents from a wide variety of sources was what allowed them to turn the tables against the Lich King and put them in a position to counterattack.
It was… an emotional moment for Krivax, seeing all of his efforts to prepare Azjol-Nerub against the Lich King finally culminating in the awe inspiring flying necropolis.
"Still… the Scourge is far from defeated," Vizier Hadix continued as he looked toward Shen-Zin Su with a scrutinizing gaze. "If the Alliance is not careful, they risk having this counterattack turned against them in a devastating fashion."
Krivax let out a sigh, wishing he could just enjoy the thought of the Alliance securing a decisive victory against the Lich King that didn't threaten to be lost at a moment's notice. Unfortunately, he had naively decided that becoming a leader was a good idea which meant he needed to look at the big picture.
"Why is that, Vizier Hadix?" asked Krivax as he finished healing his mentor and began attending to the many other injured left behind after Tichondrius retreated.
The Scourge had caused far more devastation to Dalaran than he had initially realized. It was only now after taking in his surroundings that he saw the true extent of the damage. Buildings were reduced to complete rubble and the streets were littered with the corpses of the Scourge and Alliance as the remnants of dark magic lingered in the air like a malevolent fog.
If he had to guess, Krivax would estimate that at least a third of Dalaran had been destroyed or severely damaged during the Scourge's invasion of the city. It would take significant efforts to rebuild Dalaran to a point that it was safe for civilians to live in it again.
"If the creature manages to escape below the waters, then it will be nearly impossible to attack it in any meaningful manner," Vizier Hadix explained, his eyes still fixated on the battle. "The Alliance holds the advantage in the aerial theater, but the Scourge holds absolute supremacy underwater. Every combatant on its shell risks being washed away and torn to pieces by undead if Keeper Archaedas loses control over it."
Krivax turned his attention back to Lordamere Lake, more worried now than he was before. It wasn't difficult to imagine the scenario that Vizier Hadix had described.
Keeper Archaedas was doing a good job of restraining the massive turtle with his absurdly powerful earth manipulation to keep the creature above the lake surface. Alliance mages aboard Naxx'kithal were assisting as well by using their magic to create barriers around Shen-Zin Su's limbs, significantly limiting its range of movement.
However, Shen-Zin Su was an undead with inexhaustible stamina capable of continuing its struggles until it inevitably broke free.
The Alliance was risking a lot because this was likely the greatest opportunity they would ever have to end the Lich King for good. But… it was also placing its most powerful assets at risk with this operation. Both Prophet Velen and Keeper Archaedas were fighting atop the massive turtle's shell, along with many other irreplaceable individuals.
If they were lost, then the consequences would be absolutely devastating…
"Do you know what the Alliance's strategists could be planning?" Krivax asked, hoping the much more experienced Vizier might have an idea.
He hadn't exactly had enough time to ask the High King when asking for Project Sanctum to be deployed. However, somebody else decided to answer before the Vizier had the opportunity.
"Headquarters intends to slay the creature using a ritual created by Archmage Kel'Thuzad," said Magister Rommath, walking over rubble and destroyed undead as he joined them. The normally well-groomed elf looked weary, his expensive robes torn and signed from the fierce battle. "The Alliance Defense Force was contacted via scrying with the details of the assault. Your assistance has been requested."
Krivax let out a sigh of relief, glad to see Magister Rommath. Given how chaotic Dalaran was at the moment, it would have taken a significant amount of time to get in contact with anyone who knew what was going on.
"Good to see you, Rommath," Krivax said with a nod of acknowledgement before straightening and focusing on the matter at hand. "Tell me what I need to know."
Krivax listened closely as Rommath explained the Alliance's current strategy in great detail. The Alliance had apparently decided to drop their troops in close proximity to what the pandaren survivors referred to as the Temple of Five Dawns. Aside from the area around the Lich King, it was the second most heavily defended location on Shen-Zin Su and would serve as a perfect staging ground for the Alliance if they could take control over it.
In addition, its position in the very center of Shen-Zin Su made it a good location to perform a ritual designed to end its undeath.
Krivax couldn't help but feel sorry for the ancient turtle and asked why Archmage Kel'Thuzad couldn't simply use more of his anti-undead alchemical concoction to free it of the Lich King's control. Apparently, doing so would be near impossible due to Gul'dan's proximity to the poor creature.
Freeing Shen-Zin Su wasn't an option until the Lich King was put down for good, which would take far longer than they could afford to keep the turtle alive. It was unfortunate, but Krivax recognized that there was little to be done about the matter and accepted it.
Krivax initially thought that Alliance wanted the A.D.F to help them secure the Temple of Five Dawns, but Headquarters seemed fairly confident in their ability to seize the structure given enough time. Given that they were being aided by Prophet Velen, who was likely the most powerful Light wielder on Azeroth, Keeper Archaedas, and every Archmage in Dalaran, that confidence was likely warranted.
Instead, the Alliance's strategists wanted the A.D.F to help secure them time to capture the Temple of Five Dawns by destroying one of the turtle's limbs and reducing its mobility. The longer it took for Shen-Zin Su to break free of its restraints, the better chance the Alliance had in securing the temple and slaying Shen-Zin Su.
"That sounds like a good plan, if not for the countless undead covering every inch of Shen-Zin Su," Krivax said with a trace of exasperation once Rommath finished speaking. "Does the Alliance have any suggestions on how I'm supposed to not only reach the limb, but also destroy it?"
"The Blue Dragonflight can offer a few mana bombs, but nothing nearly as strong as the one used during the capture of Mal'Ganis," Rommath admitted after a moment of hesitation, frustration flashing through his eyes. "To be completely honest, I had the impression that they were hoping you may have an idea that they hadn't considered. All of this was hardly something planned in advance, after all."
Krivax had to admit that was true. The Scourge's attack on Dalaran was a complete surprise, which meant that this counterattack was a hastily made plan put together at the last moment. Even if it was a plan thought up by the Alliance's best strategic minds, led by Supreme Commander Lothar, Ranger-General Windrunner, and High King Anub'arak, there were bound to be gaps and uncertainties.
Frankly, it was a miracle that things had already gone as well as they had.
Krivax did his best to consider the matter with a critical mind, trying to find the best way to use the A.D.F's resources. If he wanted to put together a strike team to destroy the limb, there were relatively few people who he could count on gathering. While the A.D.F could call on powerful individuals to fight, certain members like Archmage Kel'Thuzad had superseding responsibilities to other organizations that took precedence.
It shouldn't be too difficult to recruit Illidan and Vizier Hadix, Krivax thought as he glanced toward his mentor. Masruk and Team Rhonin aren't as powerful, but every bit of help is welcome. Given the importance of the mission, I should also be able to gain the assistance of Archmage Krasus and Fordring despite their current commitments. But will that be enough?
This wasn't like their mission to capture Mal'Ganis, which had been a meticulously planned surprise attack involving several artifacts handcrafted by Malygos and Archaedas themselves. This was a frantic and spontaneous operation into the territory of an enemy who was on high alert and would almost certainly see them coming.
After thinking on the matter for several moments, Krivax suddenly remembered one person who he hadn't considered before who could be extremely helpful.
"Rommath, what did you do with the non-hostile undead in the Violet Hold after that initial assault by Gul'dan?" Krivax asked, recalling the Death Monk who had been possessed by the Lich King.
He doubted someone as egotistical as Gul'dan would use anything less than the most powerful undead he could get his hands on as a vessel. That being the case, the undead would almost certainly have been a high-ranking member of the Scourge who knew many of their secrets.
If Krivax was lucky, then they may have even been one of the original monks killed on the Wandering Isle.
"We did, though we weren't certain of its trustworthiness and had it imprisoned," Rommath confirmed with a nod, gaze becoming shrewd as he realized how useful the undead could be. "Do you wish to gather information from it? I should be able to have one of Quel'thalas' magisters skilled in mind magic here quickly."
Rommath's ruthlessness in this matter didn't surprise Krivax at all. Much like Illidan had been when he first saw Shang Xi, Rommath acted with immediate hostility.
The people of Azeroth didn't have good experiences with intelligent undead, the majority having been created by renegade necromancers. In addition, undeath had a well documented tendency to cause a dulling of emotion and sociopathic behavior.
Shang Xi had seemed surprisingly composed for the short moments Krivax had spoken with him, even more so than he would have expected given his knowledge of non-hostile undead in the original timeline.
"No, that won't be necessary. I'll go and speak to the undead myself," Krivax said firmly, making his decision. "While I'm gone, tell the Alliance that we'll need a way to travel to Shen-Zin Su. Given that Naxx'kithal can't be repositioned without endangering the current offensive and there's no way to teleport there directly, we'll likely need travel by flight."
It was fortunate that the Alliance held aerial superiority. Otherwise, it would likely be impossible to reach their destination without first fighting through an army of undead.
Rommath looked skeptical, but understood that there wasn't enough time to second guess him and immediately set out to follow his instructions. Before long, messages had been sent to the Alliance Headquarters via magic, and Masruk flew off to gather everyone who would be participating in their attack.
Meanwhile, Krivax made his way to the Violet Hold where Shang Xi was being held. The prison's security had been taken over by the Alliance's army due to the emergency situation, though there were still many corpses left behind by the Lich King's attack.
Nobody attempted to stop Krivax, recognizing his distinctive appearance and the urgency with which he moved through the streets. He made his way to the lower levels of the Violet Hold where Shang Xi had apparently been imprisoned. Rommath claimed that the guards he sent found the undead exactly where Krivax had left them, listless and surprisingly compliant.
When Krivax finally reached the cell where Shang Xi was confined, he found the undead monk peacefully sitting in a meditative pose, his eyes closed and his breathing steady. The stillness in the cell was a stark contrast to the sheer chaos that reigned outside and wasn't at all what Krivax had been expecting.
Even if he knew that not all undead were necessarily hostile or malevolent, he'd still thought that someone who had only just been freed from what must certainly have been cruel slavery would be much less… calm.
Krivax cleared his throat awkwardly to get the monk's attention.
"Hello, your name is Shang Xi, correct?" Krivax said once the undead opened his eyes glowing with blue light. "I apologize for your temporary imprisonment, but I didn't have enough time to explain that you were no longer under the Lich King's control when I left."
Shang Xi studied him calmly for several moments before responding. "Temporary? I hadn't believed that I would leave this cell for anything less than my destruction. Is that not the case?"
Krivax couldn't hold back his wince, realizing he'd left someone with the very understandable misconception that they would be executed.
"So long as you don't harm any innocents, you won't be judged for any actions forced on you by magical compulsion," said Krivax, promising to himself that he would do everything in his power to ensure that was the case once this was all over. "But for now, there are more important things that we need to worry about. We need your help to destroy the Lich King."
Krivax went on to explain their current circumstances, along with their mission to cripple Shen-Zin Su. A small part of him expected Shang Xi to be more reluctant to help, either due to fear or distrust. However, the monk surprised him by agreeing to aid him immediately and without the slightest reservations.
"The Lich King arrived in my home and visited evils unto my people more horrific than I could have ever imagined," said Shang Xi, a trace of emotion entering his voice for the first time as the glow of his eyes brightened with fury. "I will do everything in my power to see him end, along with the demons controlling him."
Krivax was glad to hear that since they needed all the help they could get. Still, he had a responsibility as the mission leader to verify Shang Xi's intentions, given that the outcome of this mission could determine the fates of countless people.
"You said that the Lich King 'landed' on your home, which means you are one of the monks who lived on Shen-Zin Su," said Krivax, studying the monk's every expression. "You realize that we intend to kill the creature, right? Do you really not have any reservations about that?"
Shang Xi was likely one of the first undead who had fallen under the Lich King's influence, which meant he had plenty of time to be corrupted regardless of how kind he may have once been.
Despite this, Krivax could see nothing but melancholy and acceptance in Shang Xi's expression as he answered.
"Shen-Zin Su selflessly gifted my people with shelter and protection for centuries," said Shang Xi, his voice quiet and solemn. "He did this for no other reason but out of kindness. Never in my life have I met a more generous person. I know without a doubt that he would have abhorred the evils which the Lich King has forced him to commit and would wish to be stopped by any means necessary."
Krivax listened silently as Shang Xi explained his perspective, feeling a wave of sadness for the tragedy that the undead described.
"It is for this reason why I am so determined to see the Lich King ended," Shang Xi continued, the sorrow in his voice being overtaken by determination. "He cannot be allowed to escape to gather his power for years as those clever demons hide him away in some forgotten corner of the world. Too much suffering has come of him already, and I cannot imagine how much more he will cause if left unchecked."
As Krivax studied the monk and listened to the pain behind his words, he concluded that Shang Xi was being completely honest. While there was a distinct thread of hatred in the undead's voice, it was clearly born from a deep sense of loss and a desire for justice rather than any malevolent motivation.
For a moment, Krivax couldn't help but think that Shang Xi would make for a great leader for any other undead who managed to be freed from the Lich King's control, but that was a problem for later. There was little time to dwell on future possibilities when the immediate threat of the Scourge demanded their full attention.
"Thank you for your willingness to help, Shang Xi. I'm sure your knowledge of the Scourge and Shen-Zin Su will prove invaluable for this mission," Krivax said genuinely before leaving to retrieve one of the Violet Hold's guards.
Krivax had to leverage his authority to convince them to dispel the magical barrier imprisoning Shang Xi, but they eventually reluctantly agreed after he finished explaining the urgency of the matter. The undead monk received many distrustful glares and guarded looks as he and Krivax made their way out of the Violet Hold, but Shang Xi didn't seem to pay it any mind.
Eventually, they arrived at a clearing in the northern part of Dalaran, which had been one of the large marketplaces before the attack, where Krivax had instructed Rommath to bring the rest of the team. It seemed that the Alliance had successfully organized transportation, as several gryphons were being hastily prepared by soldiers for their journey.
Archmage Krasus and Kalecgos had also arrived in their dragon forms, presumably to transport Krivax and Vizier Hadix who were both far too large to mount a gryphon.
Already waiting there was Illidan, notably free of his Sentinel watchers, as he glared toward the sight of Shen-Zin Su. All of the elf's wardens had been far too injured during the fight with Gul'dan to continue with their duties, leaving Illidan relatively free of supervision. Krivax had no doubt that the kaldorei would complain once they learned he hadn't contacted them immediately after Illidan's wardens were incapacitated, but that was a matter for later.
There were far more important things to deal with at the moment than elvish sensibilities.
In addition, Fordring had arrived while still wielding the Silver Hand, so empowered by the Light that the ambient necromantic magic left behind by the Scourge was purified by his mere presence. The nearby Alliance soldiers occasionally glanced at the Paladin with open reverence, likely as a result of his various feats in the defense of Dalaran. Apparently, Fordring had been nearly single-handedly responsible for preventing the Scourge from approaching the portal hub, turning back a large wave of undead with the power of the Light.
Krivax predicted that there would be many legends made from this conflict, and Tirion Fordring was undoubtedly one of them.
A variety of other figures were preparing themselves for battle, including Team Rhonin and many members of the Alliances' aerial combat forces likely sent to escort them. Their assistance would be crucial to safely make it through the Scourges defenses.
As the leader of the Alliance Defense Force, Krivax knew that he was the only one who had the authority to organize these disparate elements into a fighting force, so he didn't hesitate to take on that role
"If everyone is prepared, then we are leaving as quickly as possible," Krivax said as he approached the group, knowing that time was of the essence. "This is Shang Xi. While he is an undead, he has sworn that he means no harm and has pledged to help us destroy the Lich King. I trust his intentions. Does anyone have any complaints?"
There was a moment where everyone traded looks, their expressions ranging from indifferent to distinctly uncomfortable.
Illidan and the nerubians were closer to the former end of the spectrum, while pretty much everyone else seemed much more concerned. Archmage Krasus was one of them, likely because Shang Xi's necromantic magic felt like a blight to his sensibilities as a Red Dragon, but he said nothing after Krivax gave him a nod showing his approval of the undead.
The most important opinion by far belonged to Tirion Fordring, who everyone else looked to as the Paladin locked gazes with Shang Xi. After several moments of tense silence, Fordring finally spoke, his voice calm yet carrying an underlying strength that resonated with conviction.
"If Krivax trusts the undead, and he is here to fight against the Lich King, then I see no reason to object. We all have a common enemy, and every hand raised against the Scourge is needed in this battle."
His words seemed to alleviate the tension amongst the group and the others nodded in agreement, albeit with some still having obvious reservations. The presence of an undead, especially so soon after the Scourge's attack on Dalaran, was not something easily accepted. However, the dire circumstances and Fordring's approval was enough to convince them.
Appreciating Fordring's support, Krivax gave the Paladin a nod of thanks before turning his attention back to the group.
"As you have hopefully been informed, our mission is to do as much damage to Shen-Zin Su as possible with the goal of hampering its efforts to escape into Lordamere Lake," Krivax explained, his voice carrying over the group. "If we fail, then it is doubtful that very many of the Alliance's forces on its shell will be able to escape before they either drown or are torn to pieces by the many undead in the lake."
Krivax's blunt assessment of the situation was enough for a sense of solemn foreboding to fall over the group as everyone glanced toward the scene in Lordamere Lake.
Shen-Zin Su was still raised well over the surface of Lordamere Lake on top of an artificially raised landmass with its edges shaped into massive, in-ward facing spikes of earth. It likely required the entirety of Keeper Archaedas' attention to keep the enormous creature trapped through its constant struggles. Leveraging its strength and sheer weight, Shen-Zin Su was destroying portions of the platform with each snap of its jaw or swing of its limbs, causing tremors that could be felt all the way in Dalaran.
The very sight was enough to inspire both dread and awe in everyone watching.
"The best method of hampering Shen-Zin Su's struggles would be to destroy one of its forward limbs, though we must obviously ensure that we aren't simply crushed under one of its wild blows," Krivax said grimly, drawing the attention of the group back to him.
He'd considered a few other targets before setting on the front limbs. Shen-Zin Su's back limbs were not being used to attack nearly as much and its head was one of its most heavily defended locations, both due to its vital nature and its proximity to the Lich King.
"Therefore, I believe our best option is to land on its shell and use magic to burrow through its undead flesh until we reach the joint of its limbs," Krivax continued, sharing the rest of his plan as he watched the group for their reaction. "That should be the best location for us to attack."
Krivax was relieved to see that nobody had any serious objections to his plan. It was a relatively straightforward strategy, but likely their best bet given how little time they had to prepare.
"Would it not be better to attack both limbs at the same time?" asked one of the Alliance soldiers.
"The Scourge will defend with everything they have. It will be difficult enough to destroy a single limb, let alone two," Fordring responded immediately.
"I'll also be relying on Paladin Fordring to shield us from the Lich King's blizzard," said Krivax, addressing the soldier. "Without him using the Light to protect us, we would likely be either swarmed by spirits or frozen solid long before we can accomplish our mission."
That seemed to be enough to convince everyone of Krivax's plans, and they quickly focused on the details of the mission. Specifically, Shang Xi suggested that they attack Shen-Zin Su's right limb as there was a cave system on that side which should bring them marginally closer to the creature's joint and serve as a defensive location.
With that, everyone moved to get on top of their gryphon while Krivax awkwardly climbed atop Archmage Krasus and secured himself with some webs. He could tell that he wasn't the only one who was uncomfortable, as Vizier Hadix wore a distinctly disgruntled expression as he skittered onto Kacelgos' scaled back.
Krivax would probably laugh at the ridiculous sight of a nerubian Vizier riding a dragon if he wasn't in the exact same situation.
If I survive this, I definitely need to find a better way to fly, Krivax thought as their group took flight and began making their way to Shen-Zin Su.
Given that he was the most experienced candidate for the role, Archmage Krasus took command over the aerial combat. It didn't take long before the Scourge noticed their approach and redirected a portion of its forces to intercept them, though the majority were still focused on attacking Naxx'kithal and the main Alliance assault.
Krivax engulfed both himself and Archmage Krasus in Life-infused flames to protect them from smaller undead such as insects or giant birds that attempted to swarm them. Archmage Krasus handled many of the larger undead with furious swipes of his claws or powerful spells that destroyed any Scourge who approached them.
To the left side of their formation, Vizier Hadix created large webs of arcane magic in the air that hindered the movements of the undead while Kalecgos immediately blew them apart with missiles of arcane magic. Proving his adaptability and experience as a warrior, Illidan learned how to guide his gryphon with surprising finesse and fearlessly flew close enough to the undead that he could strike with his twin blades. Each attack unleashed a burst of bright Felfire that jumped between undead, killing them just as easily as it would have killed the living.
Paladin Fordring, ever the beacon of hope amidst the chaos, hardly needed to swing his weapon at all as few undead were able to approach close to him through the intense aura of Light that radiated from him and the Silver Hand. Those few that did were left weakened and destroyed with almost contemptuous ease, perfectly exemplifying just how well-suited Paladins were for fighting the undead.
Despite their team's power, the Scourge vastly outnumbered them and only became more numerous the closer they drew to Shen-Zin Su.
At one point, an Aerie Peak dwarf and his gryphon were seized by a tendril of water that rose from Lordamere Lake and pulled them screaming beneath its depths, the entire process happening too quickly for anyone to react.
Any undead beneath the lake with a method of attacking them at range attempted to do so, forcing them to fly higher than they would have otherwise liked. Before long, they breached the outer perimeter of the blizzard surrounding Shen-Zin Su where the Scourge only intensified their attacks. The air crackled with necromantic energy, and the visibility dropped drastically as an oppressive blanket of cold that sapped all strength and hope fell over them.
Beyond the hollowing of the winds, Krivax could even hear the screams of spirits being controlled by the Lich King as their ethereal forms flew toward them through the blizzard. Krivax had experienced many truly terrifying things during his second life, but there was something about those haunting wails that pulled at his soul.
"Fall in around the Paladin," Archmage Krasus yelled over the cacophony, his voice amplified by magic to make himself heard.
The group quickly reorganized at the Archmage's command and drew closer to Fordring, whose aura of Light created a sanctuary amidst the blizzard. However, this didn't protect them completely as the lack of visibility meant that the Scourge could more easily ambush them. When an unfortunate mage to the rear was torn from their gryphon by an undead cloud serpent that emerged from the mists and quickly disappeared with its prize, their group adjusted to focus primarily on defense.
As they approached Shen-Zin Su, the true size and scale of the undead turtle became ever more daunting as Krivax got his first look of the creature up close. Its colossal form loomed like a mountain above the lake, making Keeper Archaedas' feat of entrapping it even more impressive. However, Krivax could tell that the earth spikes around it were being reformed slower each time they were destroyed than when he had last looked at them.
It was a clear sign that even Keeper Archaedas had his limits and would eventually reach them.
"Shang Xi, where is the cave system that you mentioned?" Krivax yelled, urgency guiding him as their group flew over a destroyed village filled with undead on the left side of Shen-Zin Su's shell.
The undead monk only took a moment to scan his gaze over his former home before pointing toward a small entrance in a series of cliffs north of the destroyed village. "There! The Shrine of Inner Light is located inside that cave system!"
With their final destination located, Archmage Krasus guided them toward the cliffs as the Scourge began chasing after them with ever increasing numbers. Every inch of Shen-Zin Su's shell was crawling with undead creatures as far as Krivax could see, a clear sign of how clearly seriously the Scourge was taking them as a threat.
It was only seconds after their group landed at the entrance to the Shrine of Inner Light that they were swarmed by every undead in the area. Even with the ridiculous power of their group, it was only due to the defensive chokepoint offered by the cave's entrance that they weren't swiftly overwhelmed.
"Illidan, Vizier Hadix. You two move on ahead to destroy the joint," Krivax called out as he used geomancy to open a sinkhole beneath an undead sea giant. This caused it to fall to the ground where Fordring immediately finished it off with a swing of his hammer.
They had discussed this beforehand and decided that those two would be the best ones for the task. Vizier Hadix knew enough geomancy to dig them through any collapses in the cave system while Illidan could use Felfire to burn a tunnel through undead flesh until they reached the joint.
According to Shang Xi, the Dreadlords had also used Felfire to dig into Shen-Zin Su's inner organs as a method of killing it, so the tactic would no doubt be effective.
From there, Vizier Hadix only needed to use the mana bombs provided by the Blue Dragonflight and placed in the Vizier's spatial bag to finish the job. With the joint destroyed, Shen-Zin Su's struggles would be drastically weakened, and the Alliance's main army would have enough time to perform that ritual that would put the poor creature out of its misery.
Illidan and Hadix charged into the cave system without further word, neither of them the type to waste time when action was needed.
"By the Light's grace, we shall give them the time they need! To arms!" Tirion Fordring called out as he raised the Silver Hand high above his head and unleashed a wave of Light that washed over them.
Krivax felt the Light completely wash away the weariness he'd been accumulating since the fight in Dalaran. Judging by the expressions of his allies, he wasn't the only one who was rejuvenated just in time to face the bulk of the Scourge's forces converging on their location.
Sharing a quick glance with Archmage Krasus, he and Krivax combined their efforts to summon a massive wall of Life-infused flames that smothered the Scourge's charge as undead were burned to ash upon contact. Meanwhile, Tirion Fordring let out a bellow and charged forward, actually causing several undead to recoil from his mere presence.
The next few minutes were a blur of combat as they fought for their lives. This close to the Lich King, the air was nearly completely saturated with necromantic magic and undead were more formidable than Krivax had ever experienced. Ghouls that would normally be destroyed by a single hit took many hits to go down, and the larger undead creatures moved with speed and agility that belied their size.
Bringing Shang Xi proved to be a wise decision, as the Death Monk was both similarly empowered and an extremely capable combatant. He moved with grace and deadly efficiency as each of his strikes shattered the skulls of another undead. At one point, he even somehow split into multiple forms, a skill Krivax vaguely remembered as being something monks were capable of doing, allowing Shang Xi to engage several enemies simultaneously.
Despite everything, the Scourge was still a near overwhelming force that their group could only barely hold back.
"Damn it!" Krivax cursed as he pulled an undead skitterer off his chest and threw it to the ground, stomping on it a moment later in an effort to conserve his magic. "Krasus, there are too many! We need to fall back into the cave!"
A ghoul attempted to exploit his distraction by leaping toward his face with outstretched claws, but was almost immediately impaled by Masruk's spear and promptly disposed of.
Archmage Krasus finished his spell before responding, causing a swirling inferno to materialize in the Scourge ranks that engulfed several dozen undead before being countered by an icy gust that extinguished the flames.
"This is the best defensive point that we could hope for," Krasus yelled as he just barely dodged the claws of a spirit that emerged from the walls of the cave. His magic flashed again, disintegrating the undead in a burst of flames. "We must not retreat until the last possible moment."
Krivax let out another curse as he reached into his spatial bag before throwing an alchemical flask at a charging Sea Giant, causing a potent explosion of arcane magic that transformed the undead into a crystalline statue.
Their group had recognized that it would be unlikely for them to escape back the way they came, which was why all of their mounts had been ushered into the cave first. With geomancy, they could create an exit whenever necessary, but the Shrine of Inner Light had many interconnected tunnels that the Scourge could use to flank them if they were pushed farther into the cave system.
Krasus was right that they needed to hold on as long as possible. Unfortunately, Krivax soon realized that this would become even more difficult as he sensed a familiar demon rapidly approaching their location.
"Fordring! Above you!" Krivax shouted.
Thankfully, the Paladin didn't hesitate to heed his warning and immediately leaped back toward the group just in time to avoid the Dreadlord who crashed down where he had been standing like a meteor. Fordring was barely able to get the Silver Hand up in time to prevent the Dreadlord's claws from tearing out his guts as the demon furiously surged out of the crater it had created.
Krivax immediately recognized that this was the same Dreadlord who had been leading the Scourge's attack on the Capital City. It was no surprise that the demon had returned to Shen-Zin Su to defend the Lich King given the circumstances.
According to Alliance intelligence, the Dreadlord hadn't been shy about announcing his name while helping slaughter Capital City's sparse garrison, and has been identified as Balnazzar.
Krivax instantly cast a geomancy spell that caused the ground beneath the Dreadlord to upheave violently and knock the demon off balance while Fordring swung at him with the Silver Hand. However, Balnazzar managed to teleport away moments before being struck and reappeared in the Scourge lines.
Not long after, it became clear that the Dreadlord had begun commanding the undead forces as several naga sea witches lined up and summoned a flood of icy waters meant to sweep them away. This forced their group to fall back into the cave as Krivax frantically summoned an arcane barrier, with the help of Archmage Krasus, Rhonin, and Kalecgos, to prevent the flood from entering the cave.
Unfortunately, the Scourge had many naga within their ranks and the other side of the barrier was being constantly assaulted by heavy weapons as the undead swam through the summoned flood of water.
"I think now is a good time to fall back," Krivax called out, his voice tense as he strained to hold the barrier. "Archmage Krasus, I'm going to release my barrier and use geomancy to collapse the cave's entrance! I need you to hold them back while I cast the spell!"
Krasus nodded, his expression steadfast as he redoubled his efforts.
Not wasting the opportunity, Krivax released his barrier while beginning to cast the necessary spell. Moments later, the earth began to shake as the stone at the cave's entrance exploded inwards, burying several undead under a massive pile of debris and effectively sealing the entrance.
At least, temporarily sealing the entrance. Nearly immediately afterward, Krivax spotted the eerie green of Felfire from the otherside of the debris, indicating that the Dreadlord intended to melt through the pile of undead flesh and rock.
Krivax and the rest of the group quickly made their way deeper into the Shrine of Inner Light, occasionally leaving behind magical traps.
It was clear from their surroundings that the shrine had likely once been a beautiful and sacred place where the local pandaren had gone to venerate their ancestors. The shattered statues of notable pandaren littered the ground, the signs of the Scourge's desecration evident in every corner. The air was heavy with the stench of decay and necromantic magic, a stark contrast to the beauty that must have once pervaded these halls.
Everytime their group found a good defensive location, they set up traps and defenses to delay the Scourge as long as possible.
Balnazzar repeated his attempt to drown them out with the naga spellcasters, but Krivax predicted that and was quick to respond by freezing each incoming wave solid, creating a protective barrier between them and the Scourge. Despite relying more on fire after receiving Alexstrasza's empowerment, Krivax had always been more skilled with ice magic and forced the Dreadlord to abandon his tactic.
However, the Scourge's overwhelming numbers meant that they faced a constant onslaught of undead and were eventually pushed back to the main chamber of the shrine. At the end of the chamber, Krivax spotted a tunnel that had most likely been created by Illidan and Vizier Hadix if the faint traces of Felfire were any indication.
This meant they had nowhere left to retreat, lest they allow the Scourge to prevent Illidan and Hadix from completing their mission. With that knowledge, their group quickly created as many defensive fortifications as possible while Team Rhonin ushered the flying mounts down the tunnel in preparation for their eventual escape.
The Scourge was never going to allow them the time to create another exit, so they would simply have to fly out of Shen-Zin Su's detached limb once its joint was destroyed. It was a risky plan, but also their best option given the circumstances.
It didn't take long for the Balnazzar to catch up to them, his expression furious as he commanded a full-scale assault on their position. The narrow confines of the Shrine of Inner Light turned the battle into a brutal close-quarters fight, where every inch of ground was fiercely contested.
Since their group had no intention of returning from the route they came, Krivax made liberal use of geomancy to crush as many undead as possible, reshaping the cave's environment to his advantage. Tirion Fordring proved an impassable bulwark as he used the Light to prevent any undead from passing him and bolstered the spirit of his allies. Meanwhile, Shang Xi found with surprising ferocity as he leapt toward the Dreadlord, his strikes clearly indicating his fury even as his expression remained tranquil.
The battle was grueling, with every second feeling like an eternity. Krivax could personally feel the strain of the relentless assault as he destroyed corpse after shambling corpse of the innocents slain by the Scourge.
Even if he had magically enhanced endurance, Krivax still began to grow both mentally and magically exhausted by the endless undead. He wasn't the only one being affected by this exhaustion, which Balnazaar eventually took advantage of as he found an opening in their defenses.
Teleporting away from one of Shang Xi's strikes, the Dreadlord reappeared at Fordring's side and struck with a speed the belied his size. Fordring, ever vigilant, managed to prevent Balnazaar from striking a lethal blow but still suffered a grievous injury to his side. The Paladin staggered, pain etched on his face as blood seeped through his armor, his aura of Light fading as it fought against the Felfire in his wound.
That brief moment, where the Light faltered and they lost the bolstered morale that came with it, caused a ripple of shock to pass through their group. Krivax could only look on in horror as Balnazaar seemed set to take advantage of this momentary lapse to strike down Fordring for good.
In this critical moment, a roar of fury and fire echoed through the tunnel behind Krivax as a blur of movement suddenly burst past him, his twin blades a whirlwind of destruction. In an impressive show of speed, Balnazzar was just barely able to turn in time to meet Illidan's attack. Sensing a predictable surge of magic that indicated the Dreadlord was about to teleport away, Krivax immediately cast a quick counterspell.
This would not stop the demon for more than a second, but that was just enough time for Shang Xi to land a strike on Balnazzar's side that caused the demon's flesh to rot with necromantic magic. As the Dreadlord faltered, Illidan didn't hesitate to take advantage with a lightning fast strike that resulted in the demon's head falling to the ground a moment later.
"Tell the Burning Legion that I'm coming for them, demon vermin," Illidan snarled with obvious hatred and the Dreadlord's corpse collapsed.
I… don't think he heard you, Krivax thought to himself as he summoned a wall of fire between their group and the rampaging undead.
"We can't stay here. With Fordring injured, I don't think we'll be able to last much longer." Krivax said, addressing the group before turning to Illidan. "Has Hadix planted the mana bombs? Were you able to destroy the joint?"
Before Illidan could respond, Krivax received his answer in the form of a deafening explosion that shook the entire cavern. Dust and debris rained down around them as Archmage Krasus created an arcane barrier above their heads.
"That's our sign to leave," Krivax announced urgency as he rushed to Fordring's side and helped cleanse the Paladin's wound.
The group made a fighting retreat as they descended the tunnel of Shen-Zin Su's decayed flesh. Fortunately, there was little the Scourge could do to stop them due to the enclosed terrain, allowing Illidan to protect their rear with almost contemptuous ease. Eventually, they reached the end of the tunnel where Vizier Hadix was waiting for them with an impatient expression and began the awkward process of helping everyone mount their flying creatures.
When they finally managed to do so and everyone flew out of the hole that was Shen-Zin Su's detached limb, Krivax got his first look at the results of their efforts. As an undead creature, the enormous turtle hadn't seemed to react much to losing a limb but the awkwardness of its movements made clear that they had significantly impaired its mobility.
Sea turtles already weren't the most dexterous of creatures on land, and with Shen-Zin Su's massive size, the loss of a limb made his efforts to maneuver even more cumbersome. The once mighty beast struggled to maintain any balance as it uselessly attacked its earthen prison, now relying mostly on his jaws to gnaw at the spikes entrapping it.
Krivax allowed himself a moment to enjoy the feeling of victory before calling out to the rest of the group. "Let's meet up with the Alliance's main assault at the Temple of Five Dawns. This should have bought enough time for them to complete the ritual."
Everyone immediately agreed with his decision and seemed in high spirits as they began flying toward the Temple of Five Dawns. Krivax was also rather encouraged by the success of their mission, but he couldn't help but feel faintly unsettled by what he was sensing at the Alliance's main battlefront near the temple.
He could tell that the Alliance had managed to secure the Temple of Five Dawns as the structure was clear of undead and filled with living creatures, but he couldn't sense the typical surge of magic that he would associate with an ongoing ritual. Krivax had the sharpest sensory abilities of anyone in the group, so he was almost certainly the only one who had noticed this discrepancy.
Still, as Krivax looked at the champions who had managed to successfully fight their way through the heart of Scourge territory and survive, he found that he wasn't too worried. Regardless of what complication they were about to face, the Alliance had many heroes ready to face Gul'dan and put an end to the Lich King permanently.
So long as that remained the case, the Scourge's days were numbered.
xbox432
Lover of Editing
Yeah, that's expected. Any military leader would be drooling at the tactical, strategic, and logistical opportunity something like this would present. After this, EVERYONE is going to be taking note of Azjol-Nerub's combat capabilities. Because that thing would be a nightmare to fight, especially at this stage in the Timeline where flying ships are almost nonexistent much less flying fortresses.
The High King probably took one look at the plans and went "Yeah, this mine now."
I was thinking this exact thing as a way to slow down or stop the turtle! Makes me giddy when I can guess a plot point like this.
Flying carpets to really go with the Vizier theme? They ARE the mount Tailors get, and Krivax is pretty darned skill with thread considering his golem.
This... while nothing came of it, an instance like this would have been an interesting opportunity. After all, if the Dreadlord was at the cavern entrance trying to burn his way through? Then digging up beneath him, or teleporting behind him could have been a fun surprise.
found - fought
urgency - urgently
Hmm, I AM pretty curious as to what is going on here... Maybe all the concentrated necromantic energies is making them readjust the ritual? Or did the Dreadlord leave some sort of surprise behind?
Chapter 86
Krivax and the rest of his group faced fewer and fewer undead the closer they approached the Temple of Five Dawns.
He could see that the Alliance had successfully secured the structure, though the Scourge continued to assault their location from all sides. They were being held off by Light wielders from all across the Alliance standing at the vanguard. Guardians of Nerub, the Order of the Silverhammer, and draenei paladins all fought off constant waves of undead. Prophet Velen made a particularly impressive spectacle, pulsing with novas of radiant Light that incinerated dozens of undead with each blast.
Keeper Archaedas towered over the battlefield in his true form, arms raised high and eyes staring off into the distance as arcane magic swirled around him. Despite his inorganic and stoic expression, Krivax could sense something within his magic that felt… strained and threatening to falter. It seemed that even a demigod magical robot created by actual gods was having difficulty containing a creature as large as Shen-Zin Su.
Turning his attention back to the Temple of Five Dawns, Krivax felt his unease grow. He'd hoped that he would be able to sense the Alliance's ritual once he drew closer, but that wasn't the case.
Krivax was almost certain by now that something had gone terribly wrong with the ritual to slay Shen-Zin Su, and he urgently needed to figure out exactly what that was.
Most of the group split off from Krivax and Krasus to help the Alliance fend off the Scourge. The situation was too dire and their potential contributions too significant for them to spend time doing anything but fighting. That was one of the reasons why Krivax was so concerned to sense five members of the Council of Six sitting in the Temple of Five Dawns.
The moment Krasus landed, Krivax was already jumping off the dragon and making his way inside of the structure. The interior was littered with the signs of intense battle, the corpses of demons, undead, and members of the Alliance all mixed together in a grim tableau. Krivax could sense the lingering effects of intense Fel and Arcane magic in the air, leaving no room for doubt that the Dreadlord stationed here hadn't gone down quietly.
Nobody attempted to stop Krivax or Krasus as they made their way through the temple, instead pointing them toward the room where the Council of Six was supposed to be conducting the ritual. When Krivax finally arrived at his destination, it was immediately obvious what had gone wrong.
The Council of Six had chosen to confront the Dreadlord in what appeared to be a control center where the demon commanded the Scourge, scrying mirrors all around the room showing different parts of the battlefield. Pieces of the demon himself, a single batlike wing, and one of his large horns were laying on the far side of the room. The rest of the Dreadlord was nowhere to be seen, implying that he had managed to escape before the Council of Six could inflict the final blow.
Successfully escaping from six Archmages was an extremely impressive feat, especially given the identity of the other corpse laying on the ground. Krivax had a feeling that Archmage Kel'Thuzad wasn't exactly in a state to conduct a ritual given that the majority of his internal organs were currently strewn across the room.
The Council of Six was engaged in an increasingly loud argument with Alliance High Command through one of the scrying mirrors, attempting to decide on a path forward now that their initial plan was ruined.
"How did this happen?" Krivax immediately said, pulling aside Archmage Modera for an explanation as the rest of the Council continued their heated discussion. Krasus joined their side, his expression grim as he studied the corpse of his long-time colleague.
"Tichondrius was far more dangerous than we anticipated," Archmage Modera admitted, her tone filled with regret. "We were cautious when we entered the temple, but we didn't expect it would be difficult to defeat the Dreadlord with all of our effort combined. The demon must have thought so as well, because he didn't confront us directly at all and launched an ambush that caught us off guard…"
Krivax listened carefully as the Archmage explained what happened in great detail. Apparently, the Council of Six had begun their assault on the Temple of Five Dawn by sending in a wave of water elementals, golems, and other expendable forces which couldn't be turned into undead. They had rightfully anticipated the temple to be a heavily fortified location with large numbers of traps and wanted these constructs to move in before the Alliance's soldiers.
That proved to be a good decision as the first wave of constructs was indeed met with magical traps filling every hallway, hundreds of undead, and many angry demons. The constructs put up a decent fight, but were very quickly overwhelmed by the Scourge's entrenched forces.
After developing a decent understanding of the temple's defenses, the Council of Six decided to contribute more directly to the assault. Several dozen Kirin Tor mages were left behind to maintain barriers and anti-spatial wards that would prevent any means of escape for the Dreadlord while the Archmages entered the temple.
The battle was difficult, but there were only a handful of individuals more skilled in magic than the Council of Six. Grand Magus Antonidas in particular was a once in a generation prodigy, so they had managed to make significant headway through the temple's defenses. Sadly, once they finally reached the room from where the Dreadlord had been commanding the Scourge forces, they failed to discover the demon and instead found his lieutenants and a small army of undead waiting for them.
The Council of Six managed to defeat the Scourge forces and capture a few of the more intelligent undead so that they could extract information from them. While torture was ineffective on demons or undead, tearing knowledge directly from their minds worked just as well with them as it did on mortals.
This led to them discovering that the Dreadlord, Tichondrius, had supposedly not returned to the temple after leaving Dalaran and instead went to command the Scourge from the Lich King's fortress. The Council of Six understood how cunning Dreadlords could be and considered the possibility that this was some manner of trap, but it seemed exceedingly unlikely at the time.
The Temple of Five Dawns had been completely occupied by the Alliance, surrounded by the Kirin Tor's magical defenses, and the Scourge had genuinely lost many valuable undead in its defense.
The Alliance would have normally done a more thorough evaluation before declaring the temple as having been secured, but there was a limited amount of time to perform the ritual before Shen-Zin Su managed to escape.
Therefore, they decided to take what seemed like a justifiable risk that very quickly turned into a catastrophic miscalculation.
The Council of Six began the ritual to kill Shen-Zin Su as soon as possible, trusting the Kirin Tor to guard them against any attempted disruption. Nobody anticipated that Tichondrius had managed to quietly kill one of those very same Kirin Tor guards during the assault and successfully replaced them.
"Looking back, that Light-forsaken demon likely saw that the ritual was being led by Kel'Thuzad and decided to target him specifically," Archmage Modera said, her hands white as she tightly gripped her staff. "One moment we were making steady progress, and the next, Kel'Thuzad had a Dreadlord's claws impaled through his stomach and the room was engulfed in Felfire. If not for the Grand Magus, Tichondrius' ambush would have killed more than just one of us."
Krivax could only imagine the consequences if that had come to pass. The Alliance was already facing an uphill battle and needed every powerhouse it could get its hand on if it wanted to defeat the Lich King.
"How did the Dreadlord manage to escape after launching his ambush?" Krasus asked, placing a comforting hand on Modera's shoulder that she barely seemed to notice, lost in her own thoughts. "I thought the temple had been secured with wards."
Modera sighed deeply and took a moment to collect herself before responding. "The demons must have been planning this since Naxx'kithal appeared over Shen-Zin Su. The other Dreadlord leading their aerial defenses launched a simultaneous attack on the mages who were maintaining the wards. Enough of them were killed that Tichondrius succeeded in teleporting away before we could finish the filthy creature for good."
As Archmage Modera finished explaining what had happened, Krivax immediately understood just how much Kel'Thuzad's death ruined the Alliance's plans. The ritual to kill Shen-Zin Su was one that Kel'Thuzad had created himself while conducting his personal research into necromantic magic. The Alliance had plenty of genius mages at its disposal who could learn how the ritual worked and reproduce it, but doing so would take time that they didn't have.
From what Krivax could understand by listening to the ongoing argument happening between the Council of Six and Alliance High Command, Keeper Archaedas could likely only keep Shen-Zin Su contained for a few more hours.
It was fortunate that the Alliance Defense Force had been successful with its operation to cripple the massive turtle, or that estimate would be even shorter.
Unfortunately, the Alliance didn't exactly have any contingencies in place to deal with this situation. The Scourge's attack on Dalaran was too sudden for them to have made the necessary preparations and not enough time for most plans to work.
Having received a full update on the situation, Krivax made his way over to the Council of Six so he could better hear the ongoing discussion.
"Retreat is not an option that we should be considering," said High King Anub'arak, his tone decisive and unyielding. "We will have few opportunities in the future to end the Lich King's threat to our people that are as advantageous as this one. While it's doubtful Shen-Zin Su could escape Lordamere Lake and return to the ocean, we do not know if the Dreadlords have the means to evacuate the Lich King. If they do, then they will doubtlessly hide in some already prepared location beyond our reach."
The High King's position was unsurprising to Krivax. Azjol-Nerub was more willing than most mortal nations to suffer significant casualties in the pursuit of its objectives. Even if every single nerubian currently on Shen-Zin Su ended up drowning in Lordamere Lake, Azjol-Nerub could replenish those numbers within a few years so long as it had enough food.
Krivax also agreed that this was likely their best possible chance to decisively deal with the Lich King without a multi-years long campaign that would cost hundreds of thousands of lives. Had Gul'dan chosen to keep Shen-Zin Su at the bottom of the ocean and direct the Scourge from there, it was doubtful that the Alliance would have had many options. He had spoken to Malygos about that exact scenario, and knew even the Aspects considered it a risk to face such a powerful enemy in such an disadvantageous environment.
The current situation, as difficult as it was, provided a unique opportunity that had only come about as a result of Gul'dan's arrogance.
The one to respond to the High King was a stern, female high elf wearing armor on the other side of a scrying mirror. Krivax had never met her, but he assumed that he was currently looking at Sylvanas Windrunner, Ranger-General of Quel'Thalas.
"Not all of us are so willing to accept losing so many of our people," said Sylvanas, equally resolute as she spoke against the High King. "Unless someone can propose a reasonable method of slaying Shen-Zin Su or otherwise preventing the imminent destruction of our forces, then Quel'Thalas will order the evacuation of our soldiers."
"It's possible that we could destroy the creature's head if we use all of our explosives and redirect our aerial forces to an offensive operation," Supreme Command Lothar said hesitantly, obviously reluctant to take that course of action. "However, the undead seem to become increasingly powerful the closer in proximity they are to the Lich King. Our air force would take significant casualties if they were forced to engage the Scourge so close to the enemy's center of power and away from Naxx'kithal."
According to Shang Xi, the Lich King was located in what the locals referred to as the Wood of Staves. It was a grove that served as the final resting place for pandaren elders, who were buried there alongside their staves. It didn't take a genius to guess why the Lich King had chosen this location.
The Dreadlords had moved the giant ice cube in which the Lich King was imprisoned there before directing the Scourge to build a massive fortress around Gul'dan for his protection. Worse yet, this fortress was supposedly constructed with a type of metal alloy nearly as strong as Titansteel, which the Scourge had sourced from the Isle of Thunder. All in all, the final siege on the Lich King wasn't going to be easy once the time for it actually came.
Most importantly, the Wood of Staves was very close to Shen-Zin Su's head.
"There's no guarantee that we have enough explosives to accomplish such a mission regardless," Sylvanas immediately responded. "Nor that doing so would be enough to slay Shen-Zin Su. Does an undead that powerful even need its head to function?"
"I once asked Kel'Thuzas this very same question, and he explained that it depends on the nature of the undead and how it was raised," said Grand Magus Antonidas, offering his expertise as the most knowledgeable on this particular subject. "Many non-corporeal undead such as ghosts, specters, and banshees are fully capable of functioning and maintaining the intelligence with no physical brain to rely on. Undead with physical bodies cannot typically do so, especially those that are sapient. It's unlikely that Shen-Zin Su is an exception."
The rules regarding undead survivability were highly inconsistent in Warcraft lore from what Krivax could recall. There were examples such as some undead surviving complete dismemberment and other examples of undead being killed by a mere broken neck. Destroying the brain was the most surefire method of killing a corporeal undead.
Grand Magus Antonidas spent the next minute explaining why that was, though obviously dumbing down the magical theory significantly. Something about how souls molded themselves to resemble their most recent physical body and mimicked the functions of that form, resulting in necromantic spell components relating to bodily control tending to congregate in the brain.
Or something like that anyways. Unlike Antonidas, Krivax wasn't a genius who could easily understand the intricacies of an entirely different school of magic.
"That's all well and good, but the complications that we've previously discussed mean that we are still bereft of options," Sylvanas said sharply, clearly beginning to lose her patience. "Any plan we decide on, whether it be retreat or otherwise will take time to implement. Time which is running short."
The discussion once again devolved into a chaotic mix of suggestions and heated debates as everyone attempted to figure out the best path forward. In summary, Shen-Zin Su needed to be killed so that the Alliance could safely launch an assault on the Lich King, and the only paths to do so were either to destroy the creature's soul or brain. Since the Alliance had no means to destroy the former without Kel'Thuzad, all the suggested plans revolved around the latter.
Things became a bit worse when the Alliance's specialists from Gnomeregan calculated that Shen-Zin Su's skull could likely withstand more force than their munitions could bring to bear. Even if Naxx'kithal was to fire all of its cannons directly into the creature's face, it would likely be as effective as throwing rocks at a mountain.
This was why most of the suggestions involved magic, but the likelihood that the Alliance would be able to fight through so many undead to reach their target was not all that good.
Krivax's mind raced as everyone attempted to come up with a solution to the problem. He knew that he could never out strategize the Alliance's top Generals when it came to conventional warfare, but this wasn't a normal situation that could be solved with standard tactics.
Therefore, Krivax did his best to think outside of the box. After several minutes of considering every option that came to mind, the only plan that Krivax had managed to pull together was… a bit more outside of the box than he would've liked.
Krivax was worried it would be rejected out of hand, so he decided to first ask a few more questions to ensure his plan was actually feasible.
"Would our forces here be able to hold against the Scourge without the Council of Six if Naxx'kithal was repositioned?" Krivax asked, interrupting the ongoing debate. His question caused a brief pause as everyone considered the implications of moving such a significant asset from the front lines.
"It would be difficult, but Azjol-Nerub can deploy enough reinforcements to hold back the Scourge," High King Anub'arak spoke first, likely trusting Krivax's competency more than the non-nerubians. "You wish to use the safety of Naxx'kithal to protect the Alliance's mages while they perform a ritual? This is the only explanation which would justify moving the Council of Six from their current positions."
Krivax was unsurprised that the High King had seen through his intentions so quickly, though he doubted Anub'arak would be pleased with his plan once he actually heard the full thing.
"Even with the safety of Naxx'kithal, I cannot imagine any ritual that is both simple enough to be completed within a few hours and also powerful enough to achieve our goal," said Grand Magus Antonidas, glancing at Krivax with clear skepticism. "Any plan we settle on needs to not only reliably overwhelm Shen-Zin Su's natural defenses, but also any attempted interruption from the Scourge. It is a monumental task."
Krivax could tell from the expressions of everyone that they also doubted that he could have come up with a plan that none of them had already considered.
"Well… what I have in mind is definitely both simple and effective," said Krivax, hesitating for a moment before mustering his courage and continuing. "I propose that we reinforce Naxx'kithal's lower portions by combining our magical efforts in a straightforward abjuration ritual before moving it directly above Shen-Zin Su's head. Then, after some extremely precise calculations… we simply deactivate the necropolis' flight enchantments and… let gravity do the rest."
The stunned silence that followed after Krivax finished speaking was palpable. Unsurprisingly, High King Anub'arak was the first to respond after a long pause, and he definitely wasn't happy.
"You… wish to use the fortress our kingdom spent several years of meticulous research and a fortune larger than the combined wealth of several nations to build as a mere projectile?" said High King Anub'arak, his voice more incredulous and dumbstruck than Krivax had ever heard from the Spiderlord. "It has not even seen service for a single day, yet you would see it sacrificed in such a manner?!"
"O-Only after it's been reinforced by an abjuration shield, your majesty," Krivax was quick to say, attempting to reassure the High King. "The Circle of Viziers has done meticulous calculations for Naxx'kithal's dimensions, weight, and structural integrity to ensure it is flight capable. It shouldn't take them but a few moments to determine a safe height to drop it from, ensuring maximum impact without risking the integrity of the necropolis itself."
Krivax genuinely believed that ending the Lich King now was worth whatever price that Azjol-Nerub needed to pay.
"It… sounds ridiculous, but there's no doubt that such a maneuver would slay Shen-Zin Su," Sylvanas said hesitantly, though she didn't sound as opposed to the plan as he had expected. "The weight of Naxx'kithal should easily be within the hundreds of thousands of tons, perhaps even in the millions given the vast number of personnel and equipment onboard. It would also open a new front of the battlefield much closer than our current position, and I doubt even those cunning Dreadlords would anticipate such an unconventional tactic."
"Creating an arcane barrier is one of the first things that Dalaran teaches our students, and is simple enough that even those with minimal training can contribute," said Grand Magus Antonidas, his voice thoughtful as he considered the plan's feasibility. "The ritual would need to be modified to support so many mages, but it's well within my abilities to do so."
Despite the High King's obvious reluctance, the conversation quickly turned to all of the various logistical difficulties involved with dropping a flying fortress atop the head of the giant undead turtle, several of which Krivax had not considered.
The Circle of Viziers would need to brace every room within the structure for impact with magic, the Alliance forces would need to be carefully redistributed to ensure the frontline didn't fall apart, and there would need to be a strategy for how they would proceed in the aftermath.
As Krivax listened to all of these discussions take place, he was stunned to find that nobody could find any reasons for why his plan wouldn't work. The Alliance's strategists and the Circle of Viziers all went over the calculations involved in dropping Naxx'kithal several times and reached the conclusion that the lowest levels should indeed be able to survive the impact.
The structural damage would definitely be severe enough to compromise the necropolis' flight enchantments, but everyone aboard should be safe with proper warding and that damage could be fixed… eventually.
There was even a brief moment where someone suggested they simply… drop Naxx'kithal on the Lich King and squash him like a bug. While that would be a very amusing way to end the war, the Lich King's Titansteel fortress was determined to be significantly more durable than Shen-Zin Su's skull, much to Krivax's disappointment.
Someone like Gul'dan deserved to die from having a million ton flying fortress suddenly dropped on his head rather than in a climactic fight.
Unfortunately, it didn't seem like that option was on the table.
After spending a significant amount of time testing and resolving all the issues with Krivax's plan, everyone began to grow excited as they finally found a path forward. The only one who wasn't entirely onboard was High King Anub'arak, who had remained uncharacteristically silent for most of the discussion and only spoke to share the Circle of Vizier's assessments.
Krivax was confident that this was the best plan given their current circumstances, so the High King needed to be convinced to approve it despite the fact that it would cost Azjol-Nerub far more than anyone else. Not only was the truly immense cost of Naxx'kithal an issue, but there was a great risk that the surface races would attempt to reverse-engineer the magical technology that went into its creation.
The kingdom was already one of the most significant contributors in terms of manpower, so losing Naxx'kithal as well was no small matter.
"Your majesty, I understand Naxx'kithal isn't an asset that Azjol-Nerub can afford to lose lightly… but I believe it is absolutely worth making some sacrifices to see the Lich King destroyed," said Krivax, pleading with the High King. "Not only is he an existential threat to the surface races, but also to Azjol-Nerub. Especially now that the Scourge seems to have found allies among the Vrykul."
Krivax glanced toward the various important figures who had fallen quiet and were listening to him speak, hoping they would pick up on his subtle que. Fortunately, Antonidas seemed to understand that Azjol-Nerub might not be willing to carry this burden alone and was quick to offer his support.
"While Dalaran will remain uninhabitable for some time, this portion of Lordamere Lake still belongs to us by treaty," said Antonidas, his voice filled with authority as he spoke directly to the High King. "I swear to you as Grand Magus of Dalaran that Naxx'kithal will enjoy our full and unambiguous protection from anyone who might seek to exploit its vulnerability until Azjol-Nerub repairs it in full."
"I've received authority from Grand Magister Belo'vir to offer reimbursement for Azjol-Nerub's sacrifice," Sylvanas said as soon as Antonidas finished speaking. "Quel'thalas is willing to help fund a significant portion of Naxx'kithal's repairs in recognition of your people's contributions."
"I cannot speak for anyone else, but I will personally lobby the nations of the Alliance for their assistance once this war is over," Supreme Command Lothar added, his tone solemn. "It is for moments like this that the Alliance was created, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that Azjol-Nerub's contributions are recognized and adequately compensated."
Krivax couldn't help but feel surprised at the outpouring of support that was being expressed by everyone. A cynical part of him had expected the rest of the Alliance to just push Azjol-Nerub into this commitment. Dalaran's commitment to help protect Naxx'kithal was particularly important as that significantly lessened the risk of their technology being compromised.
This, more than any other factor, was likely the greatest source of reluctance for High King Anub'arak. That the Alliance seemed so willing to offer their support filled Krivax with both relief, and also pride that Azeroth had come so far in such a short time.
A tense silence fell over the room as High King Anub'arak slowly weighed the costs and benefits of the proposed plan to Azjol-Nerub. After what felt like an eternity, the High King finally responded.
"Just a few short years ago, I would have immediately rejected any plan that called for Azjol-Nerub to make such a sacrifice," High King Anub'arak began, his deep voice echoing through the room. "I had always believed in my kingdom's absolute supremacy and was confident that we could easily withstand any threat posed to us. These recent years have been more eventful and enlightening than the past millennia of my reign. Invaders from worlds beyond the stars, entities with more individual power than I can comprehend, and other equally threatening beings have all changed how I see the world."
Krivax knew that 'other threatening beings' likely referred to the Old Gods, and how these entities were an existential threat to nerubians in particular.
"It is for these reasons that I will agree to this plan. The Lich King will be destroyed by our combined efforts," said the High King. Krivax felt the urge to cheer in celebration, but he forced this impulse back as Anub'arak continued. "But be warned, Azjol-Nerub will expect the surface races to adhere to their vows."
A quick round of affirmations immediately followed the High King's declaration, along with a sense of purpose and determination now that a clear path had been established. As their plans were settled and Krivax exited the Temple of Five Dawns to carry out his part, he also felt a sense of… finality.
If everything went according to plan, then the Lich King would likely be dead far sooner than anyone had ever imagined. Krivax could only hope that the inevitable sacrifices required to make that happen wouldn't be too great.
Strangely enough, Gul'dan couldn't remember any point in his life when he felt as calm as he currently did.
From the moment he had been born as a worthless cripple in a small village along the northern coast of Gorgrond, Gul'dan had known that he was destined for more than had been given to him. Every hint of power that he had ever gained was fought for with a relentless determination, driven by the knowledge that he was destined to reshape the foul world he had been born in.
Creatures like Tichondrius, who had lived for eons and always known power, could never understand what it felt like to be truly and utterly desperate. Perhaps this was the reason why Gul'dan felt calm while the Dreadlords who considered themselves his jailors were frantic as all of the Scourge's plans seemed to fall apart.
Gul'dan knew that the demons blamed him for all of the Scourge's recent failures, but the Dreadlords always failed to see their own faults. It was indeed Gul'dan's decision to attack Dalaran that brought them to this moment, but it was Tichondrius' weakness and hesitancy that prevented him from simply flattening the city with Shen-Zin Su once the Scourge began its assault!
Had Gul'dan done as he pleased, the Alliance's reinforcements would have never arrived before the Scourge finished slaughtering every pitiful fool defending that city! Then Gul'dan could have turned their corpses into his servants and turned them against their former allies.
It would have been glorious, but instead the Scourge was left in disarray as the Alliance pushed them into a corner. Even as Tichondrius swore that he killed the only mage among the enemy forces capable of slaying Shen-Zin Su, the Dreadlord still paced back and forth in poorly concealed trepidation. Too many things had gone wrong for the demons to feel secure, regardless of how favorable their situation currently seemed.
Tichondrius seemed utterly convinced that something would happen to prevent the Scourge's victory. Meanwhile, Gul'dan remained calm. Not because he disagreed with the Dreadlord's assessment, but because Gul'dan was certain that this challenge was simply another step in his path to ultimate power. As far as he was concerned, every single member of the Alliance attempting to prevent the inevitable was simply a future servant waiting to join his Scourge…
"How much longer until this worthless creature finally escapes its prison?" Tichondrius asked, his irritating voice pulling Gul'dan from his thoughts.
Gul'dan turned his attention from the battlefield to Tichondrius, who was currently glaring impatiently at his icy prison. The Dreadlord had clearly seen better days, with one of his wings having been torn clean off and a single horn missing from his forehead. His eyes carried a sort of frantic energy that had been steadily growing as each of the demon's kin were cut down one after another and all of his plans continued to fail.
Tichondrius had chosen to relocate himself to the same room where Gul'dan's icy prison was located, which was naturally the most secure part of his fortress. The Dreadlord would normally have kept his distance, rightfully assuming that Gul'dan would betray him at the first opportunity. However, the demon had been injured severely by the mortals and likely believed that there was little chance of conflict while they both held a mutual enemy.
How pathetic. I'll enjoy finally doing away with the shortsighted fool, Gul'dan thought to himself, wishing he still possessed a body so that he could sneer with disdain.
"Well? Answer me!" Tichondrius demanded, annoyed after being ignored for so long.
It was not yet the right moment for them to fall into conflict, so Gul'dan decided to answer the demon's question. "As I informed you when you asked mere minutes ago, it shall still be a few more hours before Shen-Zin Su escapes. The loss of his limb has severely hampered his movements and I cannot consistently empower the creature with these constant interruptions."
"Cease your whining, Gul'dan," Tichondrius immediately responded, glaring at him even as the demon continued his anxious pacing. "Your surveillance abilities are too important not to utilize. Those damnable mortals are planning something. I can feel it. Sweep the battlefield, and ensure that nothing is amiss."
Gul'dan would have rolled his eyes if he could, but did as he was commanded. The abilities granted to him by the artifacts that housed his soul not only gifted Gul'dan with immense power over death and greatly expanded his mental abilities, but he'd also learned how to see through the eyes of any creature under his control. It would take but a few moments to get a full assessment over the battlefield more clear than the best scrying magic could provide.
With a flex of his will, Gul'dan's mind expanded beyond the confines of his icy prison as he rapidly assumed control over his undead, assessed the state of their surroundings, and immediately moved on to the next undead. Much to Gul'dan's annoyance, Tichondrius' paranoia was very quickly proven to be warranted once he seized control over one of the Cloud Serpents fighting against the Alliance's aerial forces.
"That strange flying fortress of theirs is moving," Gul'dan telepathically reported to Tichondrius, causing the Dreadlord to immediately begin scrying said structure. "I doubt that has been the case for long. If it had been, you would have noticed or Varimathras would have informed you."
Tichondrius barely paid Gul'dan any mind as opened a telepathic channel with his fellow demon and studied the flying fortress with a shrewd gaze, attempting to decipher the enemy's plan. It wasn't long before Gul'dan noticed Varimathras redirecting his attention from his aerial battle to harassing the Alliance force's ground troops.
Gul'dan was no general, but Tichondrius' thinking was simple enough that even he could understand it. Without the fortress there to protect the Alliance, they were in a far more vulnerable position and the Scourge could potentially deal with the creature trapping Shen-Zin Su.
After studying the frontlines of the battlefield for a while longer, Gul'dan felt like this was a good strategy. The Alliance had deployed a large number of reinforcements before beginning to move their fortress, but Gul'dan could already see that the enemy wouldn't last without a steady stream of new fighters. Nonetheless, Tichondrius didn't seem at all pleased by the enemy's seemingly foolish tactical decision, and his expression grew increasingly grim with every passing moment.
Unable to contain his curiosity, Gul'dan decided to confront the Dreadlord directly.
"What is the problem, demon? Should you not be pleased that the enemy realizes the hopelessness of their circumstances and is attempting to save their greatest asset?"
"I would be, if those were truly their intentions," Tichondrius responded, seemingly too distracted by his thoughts to insult Gul'dan as he normally would when asked a question. "But there are no signs of the Alliance forces opening any portals large enough to escape from their current position, nor have the Council of Six exited the Temple of Five Dawns. I would have expected some manner of reaction by now, but there's nothing."
Gul'dan would be the first to call the Dreadlord weak and overly cautious, but even he couldn't deny that something strange was happening.
For the next twenty minutes, Tichondrius' agitation grew as the Alliance's fortress slowly flew across the sky along a path that brought it to a position closer to the front of Shen-Zin Su. It was a shame that the Scourge lacked the means to properly destroy the structure, but any undead that approached it was promptly torn apart by its cannons or gunfire from the soldiers crawling along its sides.
Still, Gul'dan couldn't see what the enemy could hope to accomplish with their current actions. The Alliance would have to reveal its plans soon if it didn't want its ground forces to be completely overwhelmed.
Gul'dan watched closely as the structure slowly flew above Shen-Zin Su's head and grew increasingly confused as it slowly began to descend, though not close enough that it was within the creature's range of attack. That confusion reached its peak as Gul'dan noticed the violet glow of arcane magic spreading across its base.
Gul'dan had no idea what he was looking at, but Tichondrius seemed to realize the enemy's plan after a few moments of examination.
"Gul'dan! Move Shen-Zin Su's head from beneath the enemy's necropolis at once!" Tichondrius barked, his voice filled with more panic than Gul'dan had ever heard from the demon.
Unfortunately, Tichondrius' warning came far too late. The Alliance's fortress suddenly began falling from the skies like a meteor moments after the demon finished speaking. Gul'dan frantically attempted to move Shen-Zin Su out of the way, but the creature's head was far too heavy and the massive structure fell far too quickly.
Gul'dan was forced to impotently watch the necropolis' descent and the cataclysmic impact that followed.
The structure collided with Shen-Zin Su so hard that it caused the ground beneath the creature to crack and shatter, a deafening explosion echoing across Lordamere Lake. Shen-Zin Su's skull stood no chance against the immense force that fell on top of it and was immediately crushed under the fortress' weight. A massive cloud of dust flew into the air as the creature's head was smashed into the ground and its body shook hard enough that both the Scourge and Alliance's forces were staggered by the tremors.
Gul'dan could only stare as the cloud of dust slowly dissipated and the aftermath of the Alliance's devastating attack gradually became visible. He had already felt his connection to Shen-Zin Su disappear immediately after the impact, but the magnitude of the destruction was beyond Gul'dan's expectations. The Alliance's fortress had smashed through the Shen-Zin Su skull and was currently nestled neatly in the creature's decaying brain matter, with most of its physical and magical defenses active.
Worse yet, nerubians were spilling out of the structure and racing up Shen-Zin Su's neck toward Gul'dan's fortress as quickly as they could, hundreds of them weaving a road made of silk as they advanced. The Scourge's forces were far too out of position to stop the Alliance's surprise attack from this unexpected vector and it likely wouldn't arrive until the enemy were frighteningly close to his fortress.
Gul'dan turned his attention to the other front of the battle and saw that there were no good signs there either. Now that the Keeper no longer needed to keep Shen-Zin Su contained, he was single handedly reversing all the progress made by the Scourge as he buried countless waves of undead under the earth.
He could tell from Tichondrius' utter silence that the demon was also shaken by what had happened, frantically scrying and searching for some way to turn back the tides. However, Gul'dan had no intention of allowing the Dreadlord the opportunity to fix his failures. It was clear to him that Tichondrius had outlived his usefulness and no amount of Dreadlord trickery would extricate them from this situation.
With Tichondrius distracted, injured, and still surprised by the Alliance's unorthodox tactic, it was now the perfect moment for Gul'dan to launch the plan he'd been working on since he'd been sent to Azeroth. To his credit, Tichondrius only hesitated for a few moments after one of the Scourge's most powerful mages erected an anti-spatial magic ward around the room and undead began streaming in.
Those few moments were enough to seal the demon's fate as Tichondrius failed to escape before being completely surrounded by undead.
There were two main reasons why Gul'dan had never been able to overcome his jailors before this moment. The Dreadlords had meticulously planned their defenses against him and he needed to worry about Burning Legion retaliation. The Dreadlords were never all within his reach at any given moment and were always vigilant, ensuring that Gul'dan could not exploit a single moment of weakness. He could have launched an ambush before, but it would have never been successful if Tichondrius was not both injured and preoccupied.
But this ambush was successful, and Tichondrius was slowly dragged through the ruined room toward Gul'dan's icy prison after destroying several dozen of his most powerful undead.
"What is the meaning of this, you fool?" Tichondrius shouted as he was dragged across the floor by an undead naga, his body covered in wounds and his last remaining wing lying on the other side of the room. "Even someone like you must understand that I am the only one who can plan a strategy that will overcome the Alliance. Without me, you're nothing but an incompetent husk stuck within a block of ice. This senseless betrayal will cost you everything!"
Gul'dan paid no heed to the demon's bellowing, and instead focused all of his power on the ice that kept him contained. It had taken him constant effort since the moment he arrived on Azeroth to slowly weaken his prison in preparation for this moment. Kil'jaeden had done well when he created it, and Gul'dan hadn't made nearly enough progress to escape completely, but he had managed enough to enact the next phase of his plan.
Tichondrius fell into horrified silence as the sound of cracking echoed throughout the chamber and Frostmourne was slowly pushed from the ice and clattered on the floor.
"Your problem, Tichondrius, is that you care too much about your clever little strategies and believe your quick mind makes you untouchable," Gul'dan said with cold triumph as one of his undead took hold of Frostmourne and pressed it into the Dreadlord's hands. "The time for subtlety is over, and the time for me to fulfill my destiny has arrived. Be grateful that you are allowed the opportunity to take part in it."
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Author's Note: Saw someone on patreon mention that Frostmourne might not be able to absorb a Dreadlord's soul due to its origins. That doesn't seem to be the case from what I could tell during my research, given that Mal'Ganis had to specifically protect himself against Frostmourne to survive Arthas stabbing him in the stomach.
However, I forgot about some of that so I hope you enjoy the explanation I give next chapter.
He could see that the Alliance had successfully secured the structure, though the Scourge continued to assault their location from all sides. They were being held off by Light wielders from all across the Alliance standing at the vanguard. Guardians of Nerub, the Order of the Silverhammer, and draenei paladins all fought off constant waves of undead. Prophet Velen made a particularly impressive spectacle, pulsing with novas of radiant Light that incinerated dozens of undead with each blast.
Keeper Archaedas towered over the battlefield in his true form, arms raised high and eyes staring off into the distance as arcane magic swirled around him. Despite his inorganic and stoic expression, Krivax could sense something within his magic that felt… strained and threatening to falter. It seemed that even a demigod magical robot created by actual gods was having difficulty containing a creature as large as Shen-Zin Su.
Turning his attention back to the Temple of Five Dawns, Krivax felt his unease grow. He'd hoped that he would be able to sense the Alliance's ritual once he drew closer, but that wasn't the case.
Krivax was almost certain by now that something had gone terribly wrong with the ritual to slay Shen-Zin Su, and he urgently needed to figure out exactly what that was.
Most of the group split off from Krivax and Krasus to help the Alliance fend off the Scourge. The situation was too dire and their potential contributions too significant for them to spend time doing anything but fighting. That was one of the reasons why Krivax was so concerned to sense five members of the Council of Six sitting in the Temple of Five Dawns.
The moment Krasus landed, Krivax was already jumping off the dragon and making his way inside of the structure. The interior was littered with the signs of intense battle, the corpses of demons, undead, and members of the Alliance all mixed together in a grim tableau. Krivax could sense the lingering effects of intense Fel and Arcane magic in the air, leaving no room for doubt that the Dreadlord stationed here hadn't gone down quietly.
Nobody attempted to stop Krivax or Krasus as they made their way through the temple, instead pointing them toward the room where the Council of Six was supposed to be conducting the ritual. When Krivax finally arrived at his destination, it was immediately obvious what had gone wrong.
The Council of Six had chosen to confront the Dreadlord in what appeared to be a control center where the demon commanded the Scourge, scrying mirrors all around the room showing different parts of the battlefield. Pieces of the demon himself, a single batlike wing, and one of his large horns were laying on the far side of the room. The rest of the Dreadlord was nowhere to be seen, implying that he had managed to escape before the Council of Six could inflict the final blow.
Successfully escaping from six Archmages was an extremely impressive feat, especially given the identity of the other corpse laying on the ground. Krivax had a feeling that Archmage Kel'Thuzad wasn't exactly in a state to conduct a ritual given that the majority of his internal organs were currently strewn across the room.
The Council of Six was engaged in an increasingly loud argument with Alliance High Command through one of the scrying mirrors, attempting to decide on a path forward now that their initial plan was ruined.
"How did this happen?" Krivax immediately said, pulling aside Archmage Modera for an explanation as the rest of the Council continued their heated discussion. Krasus joined their side, his expression grim as he studied the corpse of his long-time colleague.
"Tichondrius was far more dangerous than we anticipated," Archmage Modera admitted, her tone filled with regret. "We were cautious when we entered the temple, but we didn't expect it would be difficult to defeat the Dreadlord with all of our effort combined. The demon must have thought so as well, because he didn't confront us directly at all and launched an ambush that caught us off guard…"
Krivax listened carefully as the Archmage explained what happened in great detail. Apparently, the Council of Six had begun their assault on the Temple of Five Dawn by sending in a wave of water elementals, golems, and other expendable forces which couldn't be turned into undead. They had rightfully anticipated the temple to be a heavily fortified location with large numbers of traps and wanted these constructs to move in before the Alliance's soldiers.
That proved to be a good decision as the first wave of constructs was indeed met with magical traps filling every hallway, hundreds of undead, and many angry demons. The constructs put up a decent fight, but were very quickly overwhelmed by the Scourge's entrenched forces.
After developing a decent understanding of the temple's defenses, the Council of Six decided to contribute more directly to the assault. Several dozen Kirin Tor mages were left behind to maintain barriers and anti-spatial wards that would prevent any means of escape for the Dreadlord while the Archmages entered the temple.
The battle was difficult, but there were only a handful of individuals more skilled in magic than the Council of Six. Grand Magus Antonidas in particular was a once in a generation prodigy, so they had managed to make significant headway through the temple's defenses. Sadly, once they finally reached the room from where the Dreadlord had been commanding the Scourge forces, they failed to discover the demon and instead found his lieutenants and a small army of undead waiting for them.
The Council of Six managed to defeat the Scourge forces and capture a few of the more intelligent undead so that they could extract information from them. While torture was ineffective on demons or undead, tearing knowledge directly from their minds worked just as well with them as it did on mortals.
This led to them discovering that the Dreadlord, Tichondrius, had supposedly not returned to the temple after leaving Dalaran and instead went to command the Scourge from the Lich King's fortress. The Council of Six understood how cunning Dreadlords could be and considered the possibility that this was some manner of trap, but it seemed exceedingly unlikely at the time.
The Temple of Five Dawns had been completely occupied by the Alliance, surrounded by the Kirin Tor's magical defenses, and the Scourge had genuinely lost many valuable undead in its defense.
The Alliance would have normally done a more thorough evaluation before declaring the temple as having been secured, but there was a limited amount of time to perform the ritual before Shen-Zin Su managed to escape.
Therefore, they decided to take what seemed like a justifiable risk that very quickly turned into a catastrophic miscalculation.
The Council of Six began the ritual to kill Shen-Zin Su as soon as possible, trusting the Kirin Tor to guard them against any attempted disruption. Nobody anticipated that Tichondrius had managed to quietly kill one of those very same Kirin Tor guards during the assault and successfully replaced them.
"Looking back, that Light-forsaken demon likely saw that the ritual was being led by Kel'Thuzad and decided to target him specifically," Archmage Modera said, her hands white as she tightly gripped her staff. "One moment we were making steady progress, and the next, Kel'Thuzad had a Dreadlord's claws impaled through his stomach and the room was engulfed in Felfire. If not for the Grand Magus, Tichondrius' ambush would have killed more than just one of us."
Krivax could only imagine the consequences if that had come to pass. The Alliance was already facing an uphill battle and needed every powerhouse it could get its hand on if it wanted to defeat the Lich King.
"How did the Dreadlord manage to escape after launching his ambush?" Krasus asked, placing a comforting hand on Modera's shoulder that she barely seemed to notice, lost in her own thoughts. "I thought the temple had been secured with wards."
Modera sighed deeply and took a moment to collect herself before responding. "The demons must have been planning this since Naxx'kithal appeared over Shen-Zin Su. The other Dreadlord leading their aerial defenses launched a simultaneous attack on the mages who were maintaining the wards. Enough of them were killed that Tichondrius succeeded in teleporting away before we could finish the filthy creature for good."
As Archmage Modera finished explaining what had happened, Krivax immediately understood just how much Kel'Thuzad's death ruined the Alliance's plans. The ritual to kill Shen-Zin Su was one that Kel'Thuzad had created himself while conducting his personal research into necromantic magic. The Alliance had plenty of genius mages at its disposal who could learn how the ritual worked and reproduce it, but doing so would take time that they didn't have.
From what Krivax could understand by listening to the ongoing argument happening between the Council of Six and Alliance High Command, Keeper Archaedas could likely only keep Shen-Zin Su contained for a few more hours.
It was fortunate that the Alliance Defense Force had been successful with its operation to cripple the massive turtle, or that estimate would be even shorter.
Unfortunately, the Alliance didn't exactly have any contingencies in place to deal with this situation. The Scourge's attack on Dalaran was too sudden for them to have made the necessary preparations and not enough time for most plans to work.
Having received a full update on the situation, Krivax made his way over to the Council of Six so he could better hear the ongoing discussion.
"Retreat is not an option that we should be considering," said High King Anub'arak, his tone decisive and unyielding. "We will have few opportunities in the future to end the Lich King's threat to our people that are as advantageous as this one. While it's doubtful Shen-Zin Su could escape Lordamere Lake and return to the ocean, we do not know if the Dreadlords have the means to evacuate the Lich King. If they do, then they will doubtlessly hide in some already prepared location beyond our reach."
The High King's position was unsurprising to Krivax. Azjol-Nerub was more willing than most mortal nations to suffer significant casualties in the pursuit of its objectives. Even if every single nerubian currently on Shen-Zin Su ended up drowning in Lordamere Lake, Azjol-Nerub could replenish those numbers within a few years so long as it had enough food.
Krivax also agreed that this was likely their best possible chance to decisively deal with the Lich King without a multi-years long campaign that would cost hundreds of thousands of lives. Had Gul'dan chosen to keep Shen-Zin Su at the bottom of the ocean and direct the Scourge from there, it was doubtful that the Alliance would have had many options. He had spoken to Malygos about that exact scenario, and knew even the Aspects considered it a risk to face such a powerful enemy in such an disadvantageous environment.
The current situation, as difficult as it was, provided a unique opportunity that had only come about as a result of Gul'dan's arrogance.
The one to respond to the High King was a stern, female high elf wearing armor on the other side of a scrying mirror. Krivax had never met her, but he assumed that he was currently looking at Sylvanas Windrunner, Ranger-General of Quel'Thalas.
"Not all of us are so willing to accept losing so many of our people," said Sylvanas, equally resolute as she spoke against the High King. "Unless someone can propose a reasonable method of slaying Shen-Zin Su or otherwise preventing the imminent destruction of our forces, then Quel'Thalas will order the evacuation of our soldiers."
"It's possible that we could destroy the creature's head if we use all of our explosives and redirect our aerial forces to an offensive operation," Supreme Command Lothar said hesitantly, obviously reluctant to take that course of action. "However, the undead seem to become increasingly powerful the closer in proximity they are to the Lich King. Our air force would take significant casualties if they were forced to engage the Scourge so close to the enemy's center of power and away from Naxx'kithal."
According to Shang Xi, the Lich King was located in what the locals referred to as the Wood of Staves. It was a grove that served as the final resting place for pandaren elders, who were buried there alongside their staves. It didn't take a genius to guess why the Lich King had chosen this location.
The Dreadlords had moved the giant ice cube in which the Lich King was imprisoned there before directing the Scourge to build a massive fortress around Gul'dan for his protection. Worse yet, this fortress was supposedly constructed with a type of metal alloy nearly as strong as Titansteel, which the Scourge had sourced from the Isle of Thunder. All in all, the final siege on the Lich King wasn't going to be easy once the time for it actually came.
Most importantly, the Wood of Staves was very close to Shen-Zin Su's head.
"There's no guarantee that we have enough explosives to accomplish such a mission regardless," Sylvanas immediately responded. "Nor that doing so would be enough to slay Shen-Zin Su. Does an undead that powerful even need its head to function?"
"I once asked Kel'Thuzas this very same question, and he explained that it depends on the nature of the undead and how it was raised," said Grand Magus Antonidas, offering his expertise as the most knowledgeable on this particular subject. "Many non-corporeal undead such as ghosts, specters, and banshees are fully capable of functioning and maintaining the intelligence with no physical brain to rely on. Undead with physical bodies cannot typically do so, especially those that are sapient. It's unlikely that Shen-Zin Su is an exception."
The rules regarding undead survivability were highly inconsistent in Warcraft lore from what Krivax could recall. There were examples such as some undead surviving complete dismemberment and other examples of undead being killed by a mere broken neck. Destroying the brain was the most surefire method of killing a corporeal undead.
Grand Magus Antonidas spent the next minute explaining why that was, though obviously dumbing down the magical theory significantly. Something about how souls molded themselves to resemble their most recent physical body and mimicked the functions of that form, resulting in necromantic spell components relating to bodily control tending to congregate in the brain.
Or something like that anyways. Unlike Antonidas, Krivax wasn't a genius who could easily understand the intricacies of an entirely different school of magic.
"That's all well and good, but the complications that we've previously discussed mean that we are still bereft of options," Sylvanas said sharply, clearly beginning to lose her patience. "Any plan we decide on, whether it be retreat or otherwise will take time to implement. Time which is running short."
The discussion once again devolved into a chaotic mix of suggestions and heated debates as everyone attempted to figure out the best path forward. In summary, Shen-Zin Su needed to be killed so that the Alliance could safely launch an assault on the Lich King, and the only paths to do so were either to destroy the creature's soul or brain. Since the Alliance had no means to destroy the former without Kel'Thuzad, all the suggested plans revolved around the latter.
Things became a bit worse when the Alliance's specialists from Gnomeregan calculated that Shen-Zin Su's skull could likely withstand more force than their munitions could bring to bear. Even if Naxx'kithal was to fire all of its cannons directly into the creature's face, it would likely be as effective as throwing rocks at a mountain.
This was why most of the suggestions involved magic, but the likelihood that the Alliance would be able to fight through so many undead to reach their target was not all that good.
Krivax's mind raced as everyone attempted to come up with a solution to the problem. He knew that he could never out strategize the Alliance's top Generals when it came to conventional warfare, but this wasn't a normal situation that could be solved with standard tactics.
Therefore, Krivax did his best to think outside of the box. After several minutes of considering every option that came to mind, the only plan that Krivax had managed to pull together was… a bit more outside of the box than he would've liked.
Krivax was worried it would be rejected out of hand, so he decided to first ask a few more questions to ensure his plan was actually feasible.
"Would our forces here be able to hold against the Scourge without the Council of Six if Naxx'kithal was repositioned?" Krivax asked, interrupting the ongoing debate. His question caused a brief pause as everyone considered the implications of moving such a significant asset from the front lines.
"It would be difficult, but Azjol-Nerub can deploy enough reinforcements to hold back the Scourge," High King Anub'arak spoke first, likely trusting Krivax's competency more than the non-nerubians. "You wish to use the safety of Naxx'kithal to protect the Alliance's mages while they perform a ritual? This is the only explanation which would justify moving the Council of Six from their current positions."
Krivax was unsurprised that the High King had seen through his intentions so quickly, though he doubted Anub'arak would be pleased with his plan once he actually heard the full thing.
"Even with the safety of Naxx'kithal, I cannot imagine any ritual that is both simple enough to be completed within a few hours and also powerful enough to achieve our goal," said Grand Magus Antonidas, glancing at Krivax with clear skepticism. "Any plan we settle on needs to not only reliably overwhelm Shen-Zin Su's natural defenses, but also any attempted interruption from the Scourge. It is a monumental task."
Krivax could tell from the expressions of everyone that they also doubted that he could have come up with a plan that none of them had already considered.
"Well… what I have in mind is definitely both simple and effective," said Krivax, hesitating for a moment before mustering his courage and continuing. "I propose that we reinforce Naxx'kithal's lower portions by combining our magical efforts in a straightforward abjuration ritual before moving it directly above Shen-Zin Su's head. Then, after some extremely precise calculations… we simply deactivate the necropolis' flight enchantments and… let gravity do the rest."
The stunned silence that followed after Krivax finished speaking was palpable. Unsurprisingly, High King Anub'arak was the first to respond after a long pause, and he definitely wasn't happy.
"You… wish to use the fortress our kingdom spent several years of meticulous research and a fortune larger than the combined wealth of several nations to build as a mere projectile?" said High King Anub'arak, his voice more incredulous and dumbstruck than Krivax had ever heard from the Spiderlord. "It has not even seen service for a single day, yet you would see it sacrificed in such a manner?!"
"O-Only after it's been reinforced by an abjuration shield, your majesty," Krivax was quick to say, attempting to reassure the High King. "The Circle of Viziers has done meticulous calculations for Naxx'kithal's dimensions, weight, and structural integrity to ensure it is flight capable. It shouldn't take them but a few moments to determine a safe height to drop it from, ensuring maximum impact without risking the integrity of the necropolis itself."
Krivax genuinely believed that ending the Lich King now was worth whatever price that Azjol-Nerub needed to pay.
"It… sounds ridiculous, but there's no doubt that such a maneuver would slay Shen-Zin Su," Sylvanas said hesitantly, though she didn't sound as opposed to the plan as he had expected. "The weight of Naxx'kithal should easily be within the hundreds of thousands of tons, perhaps even in the millions given the vast number of personnel and equipment onboard. It would also open a new front of the battlefield much closer than our current position, and I doubt even those cunning Dreadlords would anticipate such an unconventional tactic."
"Creating an arcane barrier is one of the first things that Dalaran teaches our students, and is simple enough that even those with minimal training can contribute," said Grand Magus Antonidas, his voice thoughtful as he considered the plan's feasibility. "The ritual would need to be modified to support so many mages, but it's well within my abilities to do so."
Despite the High King's obvious reluctance, the conversation quickly turned to all of the various logistical difficulties involved with dropping a flying fortress atop the head of the giant undead turtle, several of which Krivax had not considered.
The Circle of Viziers would need to brace every room within the structure for impact with magic, the Alliance forces would need to be carefully redistributed to ensure the frontline didn't fall apart, and there would need to be a strategy for how they would proceed in the aftermath.
As Krivax listened to all of these discussions take place, he was stunned to find that nobody could find any reasons for why his plan wouldn't work. The Alliance's strategists and the Circle of Viziers all went over the calculations involved in dropping Naxx'kithal several times and reached the conclusion that the lowest levels should indeed be able to survive the impact.
The structural damage would definitely be severe enough to compromise the necropolis' flight enchantments, but everyone aboard should be safe with proper warding and that damage could be fixed… eventually.
There was even a brief moment where someone suggested they simply… drop Naxx'kithal on the Lich King and squash him like a bug. While that would be a very amusing way to end the war, the Lich King's Titansteel fortress was determined to be significantly more durable than Shen-Zin Su's skull, much to Krivax's disappointment.
Someone like Gul'dan deserved to die from having a million ton flying fortress suddenly dropped on his head rather than in a climactic fight.
Unfortunately, it didn't seem like that option was on the table.
After spending a significant amount of time testing and resolving all the issues with Krivax's plan, everyone began to grow excited as they finally found a path forward. The only one who wasn't entirely onboard was High King Anub'arak, who had remained uncharacteristically silent for most of the discussion and only spoke to share the Circle of Vizier's assessments.
Krivax was confident that this was the best plan given their current circumstances, so the High King needed to be convinced to approve it despite the fact that it would cost Azjol-Nerub far more than anyone else. Not only was the truly immense cost of Naxx'kithal an issue, but there was a great risk that the surface races would attempt to reverse-engineer the magical technology that went into its creation.
The kingdom was already one of the most significant contributors in terms of manpower, so losing Naxx'kithal as well was no small matter.
"Your majesty, I understand Naxx'kithal isn't an asset that Azjol-Nerub can afford to lose lightly… but I believe it is absolutely worth making some sacrifices to see the Lich King destroyed," said Krivax, pleading with the High King. "Not only is he an existential threat to the surface races, but also to Azjol-Nerub. Especially now that the Scourge seems to have found allies among the Vrykul."
Krivax glanced toward the various important figures who had fallen quiet and were listening to him speak, hoping they would pick up on his subtle que. Fortunately, Antonidas seemed to understand that Azjol-Nerub might not be willing to carry this burden alone and was quick to offer his support.
"While Dalaran will remain uninhabitable for some time, this portion of Lordamere Lake still belongs to us by treaty," said Antonidas, his voice filled with authority as he spoke directly to the High King. "I swear to you as Grand Magus of Dalaran that Naxx'kithal will enjoy our full and unambiguous protection from anyone who might seek to exploit its vulnerability until Azjol-Nerub repairs it in full."
"I've received authority from Grand Magister Belo'vir to offer reimbursement for Azjol-Nerub's sacrifice," Sylvanas said as soon as Antonidas finished speaking. "Quel'thalas is willing to help fund a significant portion of Naxx'kithal's repairs in recognition of your people's contributions."
"I cannot speak for anyone else, but I will personally lobby the nations of the Alliance for their assistance once this war is over," Supreme Command Lothar added, his tone solemn. "It is for moments like this that the Alliance was created, and I will do everything in my power to ensure that Azjol-Nerub's contributions are recognized and adequately compensated."
Krivax couldn't help but feel surprised at the outpouring of support that was being expressed by everyone. A cynical part of him had expected the rest of the Alliance to just push Azjol-Nerub into this commitment. Dalaran's commitment to help protect Naxx'kithal was particularly important as that significantly lessened the risk of their technology being compromised.
This, more than any other factor, was likely the greatest source of reluctance for High King Anub'arak. That the Alliance seemed so willing to offer their support filled Krivax with both relief, and also pride that Azeroth had come so far in such a short time.
A tense silence fell over the room as High King Anub'arak slowly weighed the costs and benefits of the proposed plan to Azjol-Nerub. After what felt like an eternity, the High King finally responded.
"Just a few short years ago, I would have immediately rejected any plan that called for Azjol-Nerub to make such a sacrifice," High King Anub'arak began, his deep voice echoing through the room. "I had always believed in my kingdom's absolute supremacy and was confident that we could easily withstand any threat posed to us. These recent years have been more eventful and enlightening than the past millennia of my reign. Invaders from worlds beyond the stars, entities with more individual power than I can comprehend, and other equally threatening beings have all changed how I see the world."
Krivax knew that 'other threatening beings' likely referred to the Old Gods, and how these entities were an existential threat to nerubians in particular.
"It is for these reasons that I will agree to this plan. The Lich King will be destroyed by our combined efforts," said the High King. Krivax felt the urge to cheer in celebration, but he forced this impulse back as Anub'arak continued. "But be warned, Azjol-Nerub will expect the surface races to adhere to their vows."
A quick round of affirmations immediately followed the High King's declaration, along with a sense of purpose and determination now that a clear path had been established. As their plans were settled and Krivax exited the Temple of Five Dawns to carry out his part, he also felt a sense of… finality.
If everything went according to plan, then the Lich King would likely be dead far sooner than anyone had ever imagined. Krivax could only hope that the inevitable sacrifices required to make that happen wouldn't be too great.
Strangely enough, Gul'dan couldn't remember any point in his life when he felt as calm as he currently did.
From the moment he had been born as a worthless cripple in a small village along the northern coast of Gorgrond, Gul'dan had known that he was destined for more than had been given to him. Every hint of power that he had ever gained was fought for with a relentless determination, driven by the knowledge that he was destined to reshape the foul world he had been born in.
Creatures like Tichondrius, who had lived for eons and always known power, could never understand what it felt like to be truly and utterly desperate. Perhaps this was the reason why Gul'dan felt calm while the Dreadlords who considered themselves his jailors were frantic as all of the Scourge's plans seemed to fall apart.
Gul'dan knew that the demons blamed him for all of the Scourge's recent failures, but the Dreadlords always failed to see their own faults. It was indeed Gul'dan's decision to attack Dalaran that brought them to this moment, but it was Tichondrius' weakness and hesitancy that prevented him from simply flattening the city with Shen-Zin Su once the Scourge began its assault!
Had Gul'dan done as he pleased, the Alliance's reinforcements would have never arrived before the Scourge finished slaughtering every pitiful fool defending that city! Then Gul'dan could have turned their corpses into his servants and turned them against their former allies.
It would have been glorious, but instead the Scourge was left in disarray as the Alliance pushed them into a corner. Even as Tichondrius swore that he killed the only mage among the enemy forces capable of slaying Shen-Zin Su, the Dreadlord still paced back and forth in poorly concealed trepidation. Too many things had gone wrong for the demons to feel secure, regardless of how favorable their situation currently seemed.
Tichondrius seemed utterly convinced that something would happen to prevent the Scourge's victory. Meanwhile, Gul'dan remained calm. Not because he disagreed with the Dreadlord's assessment, but because Gul'dan was certain that this challenge was simply another step in his path to ultimate power. As far as he was concerned, every single member of the Alliance attempting to prevent the inevitable was simply a future servant waiting to join his Scourge…
"How much longer until this worthless creature finally escapes its prison?" Tichondrius asked, his irritating voice pulling Gul'dan from his thoughts.
Gul'dan turned his attention from the battlefield to Tichondrius, who was currently glaring impatiently at his icy prison. The Dreadlord had clearly seen better days, with one of his wings having been torn clean off and a single horn missing from his forehead. His eyes carried a sort of frantic energy that had been steadily growing as each of the demon's kin were cut down one after another and all of his plans continued to fail.
Tichondrius had chosen to relocate himself to the same room where Gul'dan's icy prison was located, which was naturally the most secure part of his fortress. The Dreadlord would normally have kept his distance, rightfully assuming that Gul'dan would betray him at the first opportunity. However, the demon had been injured severely by the mortals and likely believed that there was little chance of conflict while they both held a mutual enemy.
How pathetic. I'll enjoy finally doing away with the shortsighted fool, Gul'dan thought to himself, wishing he still possessed a body so that he could sneer with disdain.
"Well? Answer me!" Tichondrius demanded, annoyed after being ignored for so long.
It was not yet the right moment for them to fall into conflict, so Gul'dan decided to answer the demon's question. "As I informed you when you asked mere minutes ago, it shall still be a few more hours before Shen-Zin Su escapes. The loss of his limb has severely hampered his movements and I cannot consistently empower the creature with these constant interruptions."
"Cease your whining, Gul'dan," Tichondrius immediately responded, glaring at him even as the demon continued his anxious pacing. "Your surveillance abilities are too important not to utilize. Those damnable mortals are planning something. I can feel it. Sweep the battlefield, and ensure that nothing is amiss."
Gul'dan would have rolled his eyes if he could, but did as he was commanded. The abilities granted to him by the artifacts that housed his soul not only gifted Gul'dan with immense power over death and greatly expanded his mental abilities, but he'd also learned how to see through the eyes of any creature under his control. It would take but a few moments to get a full assessment over the battlefield more clear than the best scrying magic could provide.
With a flex of his will, Gul'dan's mind expanded beyond the confines of his icy prison as he rapidly assumed control over his undead, assessed the state of their surroundings, and immediately moved on to the next undead. Much to Gul'dan's annoyance, Tichondrius' paranoia was very quickly proven to be warranted once he seized control over one of the Cloud Serpents fighting against the Alliance's aerial forces.
"That strange flying fortress of theirs is moving," Gul'dan telepathically reported to Tichondrius, causing the Dreadlord to immediately begin scrying said structure. "I doubt that has been the case for long. If it had been, you would have noticed or Varimathras would have informed you."
Tichondrius barely paid Gul'dan any mind as opened a telepathic channel with his fellow demon and studied the flying fortress with a shrewd gaze, attempting to decipher the enemy's plan. It wasn't long before Gul'dan noticed Varimathras redirecting his attention from his aerial battle to harassing the Alliance force's ground troops.
Gul'dan was no general, but Tichondrius' thinking was simple enough that even he could understand it. Without the fortress there to protect the Alliance, they were in a far more vulnerable position and the Scourge could potentially deal with the creature trapping Shen-Zin Su.
After studying the frontlines of the battlefield for a while longer, Gul'dan felt like this was a good strategy. The Alliance had deployed a large number of reinforcements before beginning to move their fortress, but Gul'dan could already see that the enemy wouldn't last without a steady stream of new fighters. Nonetheless, Tichondrius didn't seem at all pleased by the enemy's seemingly foolish tactical decision, and his expression grew increasingly grim with every passing moment.
Unable to contain his curiosity, Gul'dan decided to confront the Dreadlord directly.
"What is the problem, demon? Should you not be pleased that the enemy realizes the hopelessness of their circumstances and is attempting to save their greatest asset?"
"I would be, if those were truly their intentions," Tichondrius responded, seemingly too distracted by his thoughts to insult Gul'dan as he normally would when asked a question. "But there are no signs of the Alliance forces opening any portals large enough to escape from their current position, nor have the Council of Six exited the Temple of Five Dawns. I would have expected some manner of reaction by now, but there's nothing."
Gul'dan would be the first to call the Dreadlord weak and overly cautious, but even he couldn't deny that something strange was happening.
For the next twenty minutes, Tichondrius' agitation grew as the Alliance's fortress slowly flew across the sky along a path that brought it to a position closer to the front of Shen-Zin Su. It was a shame that the Scourge lacked the means to properly destroy the structure, but any undead that approached it was promptly torn apart by its cannons or gunfire from the soldiers crawling along its sides.
Still, Gul'dan couldn't see what the enemy could hope to accomplish with their current actions. The Alliance would have to reveal its plans soon if it didn't want its ground forces to be completely overwhelmed.
Gul'dan watched closely as the structure slowly flew above Shen-Zin Su's head and grew increasingly confused as it slowly began to descend, though not close enough that it was within the creature's range of attack. That confusion reached its peak as Gul'dan noticed the violet glow of arcane magic spreading across its base.
Gul'dan had no idea what he was looking at, but Tichondrius seemed to realize the enemy's plan after a few moments of examination.
"Gul'dan! Move Shen-Zin Su's head from beneath the enemy's necropolis at once!" Tichondrius barked, his voice filled with more panic than Gul'dan had ever heard from the demon.
Unfortunately, Tichondrius' warning came far too late. The Alliance's fortress suddenly began falling from the skies like a meteor moments after the demon finished speaking. Gul'dan frantically attempted to move Shen-Zin Su out of the way, but the creature's head was far too heavy and the massive structure fell far too quickly.
Gul'dan was forced to impotently watch the necropolis' descent and the cataclysmic impact that followed.
The structure collided with Shen-Zin Su so hard that it caused the ground beneath the creature to crack and shatter, a deafening explosion echoing across Lordamere Lake. Shen-Zin Su's skull stood no chance against the immense force that fell on top of it and was immediately crushed under the fortress' weight. A massive cloud of dust flew into the air as the creature's head was smashed into the ground and its body shook hard enough that both the Scourge and Alliance's forces were staggered by the tremors.
Gul'dan could only stare as the cloud of dust slowly dissipated and the aftermath of the Alliance's devastating attack gradually became visible. He had already felt his connection to Shen-Zin Su disappear immediately after the impact, but the magnitude of the destruction was beyond Gul'dan's expectations. The Alliance's fortress had smashed through the Shen-Zin Su skull and was currently nestled neatly in the creature's decaying brain matter, with most of its physical and magical defenses active.
Worse yet, nerubians were spilling out of the structure and racing up Shen-Zin Su's neck toward Gul'dan's fortress as quickly as they could, hundreds of them weaving a road made of silk as they advanced. The Scourge's forces were far too out of position to stop the Alliance's surprise attack from this unexpected vector and it likely wouldn't arrive until the enemy were frighteningly close to his fortress.
Gul'dan turned his attention to the other front of the battle and saw that there were no good signs there either. Now that the Keeper no longer needed to keep Shen-Zin Su contained, he was single handedly reversing all the progress made by the Scourge as he buried countless waves of undead under the earth.
He could tell from Tichondrius' utter silence that the demon was also shaken by what had happened, frantically scrying and searching for some way to turn back the tides. However, Gul'dan had no intention of allowing the Dreadlord the opportunity to fix his failures. It was clear to him that Tichondrius had outlived his usefulness and no amount of Dreadlord trickery would extricate them from this situation.
With Tichondrius distracted, injured, and still surprised by the Alliance's unorthodox tactic, it was now the perfect moment for Gul'dan to launch the plan he'd been working on since he'd been sent to Azeroth. To his credit, Tichondrius only hesitated for a few moments after one of the Scourge's most powerful mages erected an anti-spatial magic ward around the room and undead began streaming in.
Those few moments were enough to seal the demon's fate as Tichondrius failed to escape before being completely surrounded by undead.
There were two main reasons why Gul'dan had never been able to overcome his jailors before this moment. The Dreadlords had meticulously planned their defenses against him and he needed to worry about Burning Legion retaliation. The Dreadlords were never all within his reach at any given moment and were always vigilant, ensuring that Gul'dan could not exploit a single moment of weakness. He could have launched an ambush before, but it would have never been successful if Tichondrius was not both injured and preoccupied.
But this ambush was successful, and Tichondrius was slowly dragged through the ruined room toward Gul'dan's icy prison after destroying several dozen of his most powerful undead.
"What is the meaning of this, you fool?" Tichondrius shouted as he was dragged across the floor by an undead naga, his body covered in wounds and his last remaining wing lying on the other side of the room. "Even someone like you must understand that I am the only one who can plan a strategy that will overcome the Alliance. Without me, you're nothing but an incompetent husk stuck within a block of ice. This senseless betrayal will cost you everything!"
Gul'dan paid no heed to the demon's bellowing, and instead focused all of his power on the ice that kept him contained. It had taken him constant effort since the moment he arrived on Azeroth to slowly weaken his prison in preparation for this moment. Kil'jaeden had done well when he created it, and Gul'dan hadn't made nearly enough progress to escape completely, but he had managed enough to enact the next phase of his plan.
Tichondrius fell into horrified silence as the sound of cracking echoed throughout the chamber and Frostmourne was slowly pushed from the ice and clattered on the floor.
"Your problem, Tichondrius, is that you care too much about your clever little strategies and believe your quick mind makes you untouchable," Gul'dan said with cold triumph as one of his undead took hold of Frostmourne and pressed it into the Dreadlord's hands. "The time for subtlety is over, and the time for me to fulfill my destiny has arrived. Be grateful that you are allowed the opportunity to take part in it."
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Author's Note: Saw someone on patreon mention that Frostmourne might not be able to absorb a Dreadlord's soul due to its origins. That doesn't seem to be the case from what I could tell during my research, given that Mal'Ganis had to specifically protect himself against Frostmourne to survive Arthas stabbing him in the stomach.
However, I forgot about some of that so I hope you enjoy the explanation I give next chapter.
ThrawnCA
Carbon-based biped
- Location
- Australia
Not only did they mercy-kill the turtle, they even made it quick. Nice work there.
I'm a little confused about what happened with the sword. They gave it to Tichondrius? I didn't think it was especially dangerous to the wielder, not if he's already evil anyway. Or does it directly allow the Lich King to control him?
I'm a little confused about what happened with the sword. They gave it to Tichondrius? I didn't think it was especially dangerous to the wielder, not if he's already evil anyway. Or does it directly allow the Lich King to control him?
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sargentorion
Hunter of bunnycats
- Location
- West Sussex, England
Ah the classic rocks fall the thing dies tactic.
It always works.
It always works.
xbox432
Lover of Editing
I burst out laughing when I heard Krivax's plan. Why? Because I had just enacted a similar plan during my group's latest D&D game. I had my Mechanical Gryphon mount fly up above our battlefield on overwatch, thinking it's damage output would really be useful in the situation. But then I had the idea, the wicked cunning idea... kamikaze! Unfortunately in D&D fall damage caps out at 120, but still. It was so amusing to flatten the enemy leader in such a way. My DM was flabbergasted. Not so amusing was his insta Resurrection the next round.... I guess he was too important to the plot to remove that "easily"?
But still! Getting to see such a similar tactic in one of my favorite stories mere days after my own cheeky stunt!
He REALLY doesn't want to lose his shiny new toy.
Just like Krivax, I feel that moments like this are just so impactful. Azjol-Nerub has taken on a LOT of responsibilities and deficits to fund this war. So it's heartening to see the rest of the Alliance actually stepping up and offering aid. Though it remains to be seen if all of them will follow through...
I started giggling when I realized whose PoV you switched to.
These expressions are what we all desperately wanted to see.
Beings of immense age and power, all rendered speechless at the plans of an unpredictable "child". Wait... Isn't Krivax still just five or so? Kinda reminds me of that line from the Evil Overlord List about keeping a five year old around who you tell all your plans to. If the kid can find a problem with it, then correct the problem immediately. In this case, the kid found the SOLUTION. HAH! Hadix will be so proud.I think Gul'Dan plans on making Tichondrius kill himself with it? Ya know, force the demon to stab himself? But yeah, I found that scene a bit odd myself. Maybe Gul'Dan is just doing it this was for amusement?
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JmonsterNEO
Spouter of nonsense
- Location
- The quest forums
I just had the Free Bird Solo playing in my head during the entire 'smash the turtle' sequence. Leeroy would be proud.
Also:
Also:
(this was the only one I found that would work)
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ThrawnCA
Carbon-based biped
- Location
- Australia
I really don't know World of Warcraft lore, but taking a look at the wiki page for Frostmourne, apparently it can do Bad Things to its wielder. Notably, he can make the sword suck out the wielder's soul, gaining their memories and skills, and then puppet their body.
Chapter 87
It was common wisdom that creatures were most dangerous when they were desperate or cornered.
That wisdom was proving itself to be very accurate as the Alliance drew ever closer to the Lich King's fortress.
"Incoming! Mages, raise arcane barriers!"
Krivax barely had enough time to conjure an arcane barrier before the Scourge's latest round of artillery bore down on the Alliance's advancing lines. Giant spheres of necromantic magic, plague infested chunks of meat, and more conventional projectiles were all launched in devastating volleys as the Scourge unleashed every means of attack available to them. A wide variety of mages from all across Azeroth stood at the front of the lines and began hastily casting defensive spells in unison.
The ground beneath Krivax's feet shook as the Scourge's artillery made impact with the barriers, which was quickly followed by a cacophony of screams and explosions that echoed across the battlefield. The Alliance had many mages at its disposal, but the abjuration ritual to protect Naxx'kithal had left many of them exhausted, and the Scourge had been assaulting them relentlessly from the moment they were within range.
Krivax staggered as one of the Scourge's artillery strikes shattered the barrier of an exhausted mage and caused an explosion nearby. Krivax unleashed an inferno of Life-infused flames at the landing site without hesitation, healing any injured soldiers and purging any corpses of necromantic magic before they could rise as undead.
Several hours of constant battle as the Alliance resolutely pushed toward the Lich King's fortress were enough to forever etch the horror of the Scourge in his mind. They were now close enough to Gul'dan that the necromantic magic in the air was nearly viscous in its intensity, vastly empowering every undead creature they encountered and causing every slain warrior to rise again within moments.
The loss of Naxx'kithal as an aerial fortress and safe haven granted new wind to the Scourge's airborne assaults. The fighting in the sky was so intense that corpses of destroyed undead and debris fell on the Alliance's ground troops nearly as often as Scourge artillery.
This was already the most intense fight Krivax had ever participated in by far, and he only expected it to get worse once the longer things went on.
When the plan to drop Naxx'kithal on Shen-Zin Su went exactly according to plan, much to everyone's surprise, the Alliance hadn't hesitated to capitalize and immediately launch a full-scale assault against the Scourge. While the Alliance could have benefited from a few days to fully organize its forces and allow them some time to rest, that was obviously out of the question. The undead did not feel exhaustion, and they only had a short time before the Scourge redistributed its forces in response to the newly opened frontlines.
There had only been enough time for the Alliance to put together a fairly rudimentary strategy, which basically boiled down to 'attack the Lich King from two different directions at the same time as hard as possible.' Keeper Archaedas, Prophet Velen, and all of the extraordinarily powerful individuals approaching from the Temple of Five Dawns would theoretically keep large numbers of Scourge pinned down.
As a result, every single being on Naxx'kithal who was both capable of fighting and not essential to other crucial tasks was mobilized for the assault, while a constant stream of reinforcements were being portaled in from across the Eastern Kingdoms. All of the elite forces who had yet to be deployed in prior battles were now being brought to the front lines as the Alliance advanced along Shen-Zin Su's neck.
Supreme Commander Lothar, Ranger General Sylvanas, High Tinker Mechatorque, High Thane Magni Bronzebeard, and the surviving members of the Council of Six were all participating in what everyone hoped would be the battle that would end this war. Every nation in the Eastern Kingdoms had retrieved the most powerful magical artifacts within their possessions and entrusted them to their champions, something rarely done outside of dire emergencies.
Krivax was pretty sure that he could even spot several titanforged creatures joining the battlefield, such as Earthen from Uldaman or Tol'vir from Uldum.
Even High King Anub'arak had delegated most of his duties to other members of his council and joined the frontlines, sweeping away tens of undead at a time with his scythe-like arms while surrounded by his royal guard.
Like sharks that smelt a drop of blood in the water, it seemed as if everyone invested in Azeroth's defense decided to bear down on the Scourge. Naturally, Krivax would be expected to contribute to this matter and was now helping push the front lines. It was far from the specialized operations he'd participated in before, but no less important given that the Alliance needed every hand on deck.
"Clear the skies! Incoming Gnomish aircraft!"
Krivax reacted instantly as Supreme Command Lothar's magically augmented command echoed across the battlefield, joining the rest of the Alliance's ranged combatants in targeting the airborne undead. A massive sphere of Life-infused fire joined a volley of arrows, gunfire, and various magical spells which tore through the Scourge's ranks in the air. It was a pittance compared to the overwhelming number of undead available to the Lich King, but it was enough to push them back and offer space to Gnomeregan's aircraft.
From Krivax's perspective, the flying machines created by the gnomes were extremely primitive, being a strange mixture of helicopters and the earliest biplanes used back on Earth. During the Second War, they hadn't even carried any weaponry or been capable of carrying bombs.
Gnomeregan had enjoyed centuries of peace up until then and only designed their inventions for exploration and utility, not warfare.
Gnomish priorities naturally changed dramatically after the Horde sieged their capital and threatened to wipe out their species. Coupled with the high paced advancements brought upon by increased military funding and exposure to Titan technology from Uldaman, it was undeniable that warfare on Azeroth had been changed forever.
"Brace yourself!" Krivax yelled, summoning an arcane barrier in front of himself as a dozen gnomish aircraft flew above the Scourge's ground forces. Moments later, they unloaded a mixture of gunpowder and arcane bombs that caused a cascade of explosions that tore through the undead.
Krivax winced as one of the aircraft was struck by a bolt of necromantic magic from one of the Scourge's mages and began falling out of the sky, but the vast majority of the other aircraft managed to fall back to where it was safe.
"In the name of Azjol-Nerub, push forward!"
High King Anub'arak took advantage of the Scourge's momentary disarray. The sight of several dozen Spiderlord's stampeding forward while surrounded by a veritable sea of spear-wielding nerubian warriors would be enough to break the morale of any conventional enemy. The Scourge's undead were not intelligent enough to face such an issue, but that also meant that they did nothing to stop themselves from being utterly obliterated by Azjol-Nerub's advance.
Krivax watched his people ruthlessly trample and impale the countless undead forces as they charged across the battlefield. They only stopped after they collided with an enormous wave of icy water created by a group of naga sea witches. It took a moment for the Kirin Tor's mages to disperse the wave, but the path for the Alliance to advance was clear once they did.
Similar feats were repeated several times over the next few hours using a variety of tactics. Dalaran and Quel'thalas' mages would unleash their most potent spells, engulfing entire clusters of undead in enormous infernos or maelstroms of arcane magic. Krivax even witnessed a high elf mage use some kind of artifact that simply teleported a large swath of Scourge forces off of Shen-Zin Su, causing them to fall helplessly into Lordamere Lake.
The Alliance's ground forces would then push into these newly cleared areas while being led by heroes like Ranger-General Windrunner or High Thane Bronzebeard. Krivax felt a sense of pride to see the systematic coordinated advance of the Alliance forces taking advantage of its diverse strengths to devastate Scourge ranks and move forward inch by inch.
"Krivax, watch out!"
Masruk's warning pulled Krivax from his thoughts as an undead Sea Giant significantly larger than the rest of its kind smashed through the Alliance ranks and charged in his direction with its club raised high. Krivax reacted swiftly, leaping away from the giant's crushing blow and freezing the club to the ground with a burst of intense ice magic. The undead attempted to pull its weapon free, but the ice held firm and Krivax took the opportunity to unleash a barrage of arcane missiles directly into the giant's skull.
Each of them struck with precision and chipped away at the undead's bone, allowing a precise lance of Life-infused flames to melt its brain.
As the Sea Giant collapsed and ceased moving, the Alliance forces around him cheered and pushed forward, bolstered by Krivax's victory. They quickly sealed the gap in the lines under his directions and continued on their inexorable advance against the horde of undead creatures.
Krivax soon lost himself to the frenzy of battle commanding and supporting his section of the front. He had been tasked with maintaining control of a specific segment of the frontlines, capitalizing on his relative strength and remarkable stamina. His ability to hold onto any advance using his arcane magic and heal the troops under him was crucial in sustaining the Alliance's position, especially as their forces rotated in and out of the combat zone for rest and recuperation.
The battle had already gone on for many hours and would almost certainly go on for many hours more. Not even the supernaturally powerful soldiers of Azeroth could fight that long without rest.
Krivax lasted far longer than most, but he also began to find himself becoming mentally exhausted after constantly fighting for so long. This was especially the case after a particularly difficult part of the assault when the Alliance was forced to fight their way from Shen-Zin Su's neck to the lip of the shell nearly a hundred feet above.
So many lives were sacrificed pushing against the Scourge's advantageous position.The Alliance eventually managed to use a combination of magic and reinforced nerubian silk to create a path onto Shen-Zin Su's shell. Krivax probably saw more people be slaughtered within that… horrific hour of fighting than he had witnessed during his entire second life.
Krivax hadn't realized just how mentally compromised he was becoming until someone was suddenly yelling at him.
"Do not lose focus, Apprentice! A moment's lapse will be your death!"
Krivax was pulled from his thoughts as Vizier Hadix grabbed his arm and teleported them both several feet backwards, moments before a volley of projectiles landed where he had been standing. The following explosion sent several chunks of Shen-Zin Su's desiccated flesh flying in every direction.
"Thank you, Vizier Hadix," Krivax said tiredly as he regained his footing. He doubted that he would have died from that attack, but the fact that he hadn't seen it coming despite his superior vision said a lot.
"If you wish to thank me, then fall back from the frontlines," Vizier Hadix said curtly as he created a web of arcane magic in the air that captured several incoming projectiles. "I will handle your duties until you return. Not only do you need to recuperate, but your unorthodox perspective will doubtlessly be welcome while the Alliance plans the next phase of its assault."
Krivax looked behind him and saw the Alliance's leaders were all falling back and gathering in a fortified location. It made sense as there hadn't been enough time between dropped Naxx'kithal and beginning the attack to actually decide on how they'd deal with the final phase.
An attack against any entity such as the Lich King wasn't something that could be done without an actual strategy. To do so would be like walking into a death trap.
Krivax hesitated for several seconds, unsure as to whether he would be more useful on the battlefield or in the strategic meeting. Ultimately, he decided that Vizier Hadix was correct that he desperately needed a bit of time to pull himself back together. It was also true that his idea regarding Naxx'kithal had been useful despite his relative lack of knowledge about the nuances of military strategy.
Krivax took a moment to thank Hadix and wave toward Masruk, who was currently fighting the Scourge in the skies, to inform his friend about his intentions. With that done, Krivax stepped back from the frontlines and began making his way toward the hastily erected command center.
Well… it was less of an actual command center and more like a small spot that had been cleared amidst the chaos of the battlefield and protected by a multitude of wards.
Thankfully, not every single leader in the Alliance felt the need to participate in the strategic planning. It would have been a nightmare to deal with eleven different people all trying to advance their own agendas. Instead, it was the same three central figures of High King Anub'arak, Ranger-General Sylvanas, and Supreme Commander Lothar who represented the Alliance as a whole and its two most influential nations.
There were a variety of representatives from all the other nations participating in the war, but they were only there to ensure their interests weren't severely harmed and weren't expected to actually be involved in the strategizing. Krivax found a spot next to these representatives and turned his attention to the ongoing discussions.
A Kirin Tor mage was creating an arcane projection which depicted the Wood of Staves and the Lich King's fortress. Another mage was creating a much larger projection of Shen-Zin Su's, with portions of the massive creature shaded in different colors to indicate territory claimed by the Alliance and the Scourge.
It made for a very useful visual indicator, highlighting the Alliance plan to siege the Scourge from two different directions. Krivax had expected that the leaders planned to wait for the other front to arrive, but it seemed like there were some arguments being made on the wisdom of that matter.
"It would be in our interests to destroy the Scourge's pylons as quickly as possible," said Sylvanas, her tone firm as she pointed to one of several obelisk shaped structures surrounding the Lich King's fortress. "All of us can sense the strange magical emanations coming from within the fortress. Whatever the Lich King is attempting to summon or create must be stopped before it comes to fruition."
Krivax had been one of the first to sense the ritual-like magical emanations that had begun shortly after Shen-Zin Su's death and had only grown more intense overtime. Although he had no idea what Gul'dan was up to, Krivax had no doubt that it was nothing good.
The pylons were structures which created magical defenses more formidable than any that could ever be created by mages through their own efforts. They were the source of the perpetual blizzard surrounding Shen-Zin Su, and needed to be dealt with before they could enter the fortress.
"Be that as it may, it would be foolish to attack without our full strength," Lothar said with a grim expression. "It will still be some time before the other front is able to join us. Prophet Velen and Keeper Archaedas are among our greatest assets against the Scourge, not to mention all of the other forces which we would be reckless to engage without."
Those other forces included Illidan Stormrage, the Order of the Silver Hand, and the Guardians of Nerub. All of whom would be essential against the Lich King.
"Our enemy grows more fortified by the moment. Combined with the ongoing ritual, I agree with the Ranger-General that we do not have time to wait for all of our forces to converge," said High King Anub'arak, nodding toward the high elf. "There is no guarantee that delaying would lessen our casualties, nor does Azjol-Nerub fear making the sacrifices necessary to end this threat."
Krivax found himself agreeing with Sylvanas and the High King. He could tell that the Scourge was beginning to recover from their sudden lack of coordination and were growing more dangerous over time. Attacking while the enemy was still on the backfoot was crucial.
He wished that they could afford to wait for the other front to join them, but time was of the essence.
Eventually, Lothar seemed to be convinced and the discussion turned to the best way of disrupting the Lich King's ritual with the forces available to them. It was no small matter given the Scourge's heavy fortifications.
The entire Wood of Staves was shrouded by the Lich King's magical blizzard and enhanced to an absurd degree by the Scourge's pylons. Anyone who didn't get blown away by near hurricane force winds would be frozen solid within moments without magical protection. That didn't even take into account the countless undead who were naturally much less affected by these conditions and would be at their most empowered given their proximity to Gul'dan.
Not only would a large portion of the Alliance mages need to maintain constant protections against the blizzard and thus be unable to contribute in an offensive fashion, but they would also need to separate into several different groups for each pylon. This was because each pylon was strategically positioned in a way that meant that it would take significantly longer to reach and destroy individually.
Taking them out one by one would defeat the entire purpose of attacking so soon in the first place.
It sounded like a reasonable and fairly straightforward strategy given the circumstances, and Krivax found himself unable to think of anything he would do differently. He listened as the leaders of each attack force were decided and was unsurprised that the first names to come up were the heads of various nations.
Krivax was much more surprised when his own name was mentioned after all of the more obvious choices were already assigned. He must have unconsciously let out a noise of disbelief, because High King Anub'arak turned to him with an unimpressed expression.
"Is there an issue, Vizier Krivax? I trust that you're not about to waste my time by suggesting that the person I chose to lead the A.D.F and who can also be credited for devising the strategy which brought us this far is unqualified."
Krivax's protest died in his throat as he met the High King's stern gaze. He wasn't certain if Anub'arak was particularly insightful… or if Krivax had just become predictable to those who knew him.
"There's no issue, High King. I was just surprised," Krivax said, swallowing his doubts and steeling himself. "I will do everything I can to ensure our success."
High King Anub'arak studied him closely for several more moments before giving a satisfied nod and turning back to the other leaders. They had very little time to waste, so the logistical details were decided on far more quickly than might otherwise be the case. Krivax was assigned to one of the closer pylons and had a decent number of forces placed under his command, though he was relieved that High King Anub'arak gave him one of the kingdom's higher ranking Spiderlords to help him coordinate things.
A plan was made for the Alliance's air force to use the remainder of their munitions to help soften the enemy. All in all, it was a fairly basic plan that recognized that this would almost certainly be the final battle of this war, so there was no sense holding anything back.
As the planning session concluded and Krivax began making his way to meet with the forces placed under his command, he did so with grim determination. There was little certainty in how the next few hours would play out, but Krivax was confident about one thing in particular.
The future of Azeroth would be changed dramatically by the end of the day, one way or another.
When Kil'jaeden assigned Gul'dan's soul to be the favored toy of his Dreadlords, he had experienced pain more excruciating than could be described by the learned of shamans.
When Gul'dan's soul was bound to Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination, he had been utterly stripped of everything that made him who he was and reformed into the embodiment of death itself.
When Gul'dan buried Frostmourne into Tichondrius' chest, he began a process that would change him just as much as either of those previous experiences.
While Gul'dan could directly control and empower any undead under his control, it was fundamentally impossible for him to make use of his full strength through such indirect means.
If he wanted to reach his true destiny, then Gul'dan could only do so after freeing himself from the Frozen Throne, which is what Kil'jaeden had called the icy prison the demon had trapped him in. He would then need to acquire a vessel capable of channeling the vast powers at his disposal.
Unfortunately, such vessels were few and far between. Gul'dan had only been able to devise two different means that he was confident would allow him to harness his full potential.
Gul'dan had determined that his soul was tied primarily to the Helm of Domination and more loosely to Frostmourne. This meant that if he excised the blade from the Frozen Throne and guided it into the hands of a mortal foolish enough to claim it, then he could have theoretically used this connection to slowly mold the wielder into a worthy vessel. It would have been the work of years to gradually adapt the mortal's body to necromantic magic more potent than any Azeroth had ever known, but would have resulted in a truly marvelous conduit for Gul'dan's power.
He had only abandoned this due to a lack of time. Gul'dan had been unable to find a means of preventing his Dreadlord jailers from noticing Frostmourne's disappearance. He'd been directing some of his undead to create a convincing enough replica using the Titan forges on the Isles of Thunder, but the Alliance's sudden and aggressive invasion of Pandaria ruined those plans.
Gul'dan looked forward to tormenting the soul of whoever was responsible for that disruption once he was free…
Despite that slight setback, there were other options available to him.
Even without being gradually permeated with the power of Frostmourne, Tichondrius was an eons old demon whose body far outstripped an average mortal in terms of potential. The end result wouldn't be quite as potent as the alternative, but using the Dreadlord as his vessel had some advantages of its own.
It would've been impossible for him to snuff out the soul of any mortal who adapted to the necromantic magic of Frostmourne, which meant Gul'dan would have needed to fight the mortal for control of their body. He would have won, naturally, but Gul'dan always preferred the path of least resistance.
Instead, Gul'dan used Frostmourne to erase most of Tichondrius' soul before he began subsuming it into his own essence and taking control of the Dreadlord's empty body. Tichondrius and the rest of the nathrezim had attempted to shield their souls against Frostmourne, but Gul'dan was not nearly as blind as they believed him to be.
He had once been a warlock, and was intimately familiar with demons and the natures of their souls. It had not been easy to bypass Tichondrius' myriad of protections, but he had done so in the end.
Gul'dan could have extinguished the Dreadlord's soul in its entirety and avoided any fight at all, but he wanted to steal what he could from Tichondrius' memories and skills.
Such small fragments of Tichondrius' soul shouldn't have been any trouble at all for Gul'dan to subsume.
At least… that's what he had thought.
The walls around Gul'dan shook as he howled in pain and fury, struggling to fully conquer the remnants of Tichondrius' soul. The hundreds of spirits inhabiting his fortress let out tortured wails in response to his agony as necromantic magic twisted and surged around him. Countless images flashed through Gul'dan's mind, threatening to overwhelm him as the vestiges of a demon who was older than his entire species proved far more resilient than anticipated.
He was dimly aware of the Alliance slowly advancing on his fortress and desperately needed to finish his transformation before they arrived. Varimathras had taken the first chance to flee after sensing Tichondrius' fate, so the Scourge was only being led by the few intelligent undead within its ranks.
But Tichondrius simply refused to disappear for good!
"Argh! Cease your resistance and accept your fate, Dreadlord!" Gul'dan shouted as he fought for control of the demon's body, throat growing hoarse after screaming for hours. "I will not be denied!"
There was not enough of Tichondrius left to respond, but Gul'dan could have sworn he still felt a surge of disdain in response to his demands. This caused the fiery hatred within him to blaze even more intensely than ever.
There was nothing more that Gul'dan hated than to be looked down upon. He remembered the faces of every being who dared to do so, from the members of his original clan to the many enemies he'd made on his path to godhood, and he had sworn to himself that he would make them suffer.
This arrogant demon would not be the one who forced Gul'dan to break that oath.
He refused!
Gul'dan lost track of time as he struggled against Tichondrius' soul with renewed fervor. He could feel power swelling within him like a volcano on the verge of eruption as he ruthlessly tore away at all that remained of the Dreadlord. Each moment expanded into an eternity, fragmented memories of worlds and realms beyond mortal comprehension flooding into his mind.
Despite being only a portion of what Tichondrius would have known, Gul'dan learned more about the cosmos than he ever thought possible.
He learned answers to questions he had never known to ask, strategies he had never considered, and magic that he had never seen. Most importantly, he acquired extraordinary knowledge about the realm that existed beyond death, and how Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination found their way into the Burning Legion's hands.
How ironic that Tichondrius would be felled by a blade created by his very own masters.
How appropriate the source of Gul'dan's power came from the very gods themselves, intended to spread Death across Azeroth. He would do so and then turn their gifts against them.
But that was a matter to worry about after he dealt with the immediate threat. Gul'dan could feel the Alliance forces inching closer, destroying the structures that protected his fortress. With a final surge of will, Gul'dan took a firm grip of Frostmourne with his new, demonic body, pulled it from his vessel's chest, and rushed toward the Frozen Throne.
Gul'dan roared as he swung Frostmourne with all his might, shattering the icy prison that had kept his power and essence contained, causing the Helm of Domination to drop to the ground. The vestiges of Tichondrius must have understood what was happening, because they attempted to stop him, but they could not.
The Helm of Domination shimmered as it became ethereal in Gul'dan's grasp, seamlessly passing through the Dreadlord's last remaining horn and settling on his vessel's head.
All at once, the cacophony of screaming spirits and whirling magic ceased as the inside of Gul'dan's fortress became deathly quiet. The only sound that remained was a soft chuckle that eventually grew louder until it became a resounding, triumphant laughter that echoed throughout the halls.
He could sense a myriad of scrying spells from the Alliance attempting to penetrate the fortress, likely in response to the massive wave of necromantic magic that had erupted from within it.
Gul'dan ignored them all and allowed himself to enjoy his moment of ascension. He had never felt more powerful and in control than at any point in his life. He didn't have the slightest doubt that he could slaughter the fools wherever he wished!
Even an Aspect would need to fear him!
It was only when another of his fortress' pylons was destroyed that Gul'dan deigned to turn his attention toward the Alliance.
Looking through the eyes of his undead, Gul'dan swiftly formed an overview of the battlefield's current state. His undead legions had slaughtered large numbers of the mortals advancing on his palace, but their continuous reinforcements and superior tactics had allowed them to make significant progress.
His assimilation of Tichondrius gave him the tactical perspective to understand that the Alliance had likely hoped to destroy his pylons and interrupt what they would have perceived to be a dangerous ritual, but they had failed. Only half of the pylons had been destroyed and the enemy's forces were wonderfully divided, with those approaching from the Temple of Five Dawns nearly half an hour away from arriving.
That may not have sounded like a significant amount of time to most, but it would be more than enough for him.
Gul'dan smiled widely as he considered which of the Alliance's military detachments he would slaughter first. His first instinct was to immediately end the life of Krivax, the troublesome nerubian who had caused him so many issues. The nerubian was currently in the midst of fierce combat, shouting orders and fighting against legions of undead that had suddenly grown vastly more coordinated.
But once again, the new strategic mindset he'd acquired from Tichondrius steered him instead towards a different target. The pylon closest to Krivax had already been destroyed and saving the rest would still be valuable to him given the empowering effect they had on the area.
It would be unwise to waste the element of surprise just so that he could kill the nerubian a few minutes earlier.
So decided, Gul'dan used his new understanding of magic and the seemingly endless sea of power at his disposal to casually shatter the Alliance's wards and teleport onto the battlefield.
Gul'dan emerged from a dark cloud of necromantic magic and found himself amidst a group of surprised high elves attempting to unravel the protective magics around a pylon, their expressions becoming terrified at his imposing appearance. Gul'dan allowed himself to enjoy their fear for a single moment before calmly swinging Frostmourne through the body of an elite high elf Spellbreaker, instantly bisecting her.
An enormous torrent of dark magic followed the sweep of his blade, causing tens of high elves to be drained of all life as their desiccated corpses joined the Scourge and turned on their former allies. Gul'dan laughed uproariously as many more high elves died in the immediate chaos and confusion that followed, each swing of Frostmourne claiming multiple lives. The Scourge was enormously empowered by his presence and began to push against the enemy's defensive lines.
Gul'dan had chosen to attack the high elves not only because they had yet to destroy the pylon they'd been targeting, but also because they would make for excellent servants.
"Die, monster!"
"No, Halduron! Fall back!"
This was aptly demonstrated when a furious high elf cursed him and swiftly cut down a half-dozen undead as he foolishly charged toward Gul'dan. A terrified female attempted to call him back, but the high elf failed to heed her.
Even considering the aptitude for swordplay that he'd absorbed from Tichondrius, Gul'dan could admit that his opponent was more skilled than himself. Unfortunately for the elf, that meant little in the face of overwhelming power.
With a casual flick of his wrist, Gul'dan sent forward a jagged wave of ice that impaled the fool and several more behind him. Gul'dan was mildly surprised when the female ceased her annoying screams long enough to summon a shield of Light strong enough to save herself.
Just as he was about to reward the elf by claiming her for the Scourge, several highly enchanted and impeccably aimed arrows pierced through the air and threatened to land in the eye-slits of his helmet. Gul'dan hastily deflected the arrows with Frostmourne before turning to glare at the archer who dared to attack him, spotting a female elf wearing regal armor who was glaring at him with pure hatred from atop a nearby ridge.
Gul'dan was nearly certain that those arrows would have failed to kill him, but would have definitely caused him harm.
He recognized her as Ranger-General Sylvanas and felt a trace of frustration as he realized the elves were rallying around her. Gul'dan had already slaughtered a little under half of the high elven force during his initial onslaught, either directly with his attacks or indirectly when he destroyed their defenses against the empowered Scourge and the magical blizzard surrounding them.
Their morale should have been utterly crushed as the hopelessness of their circumstances became clear, yet Sylvanas' leadership held them together.
It was impressive.
It was infuriating.
"Fighting retreat! Regroup with the rest of the Alliance!" Sylvanas commanded, her voice cutting through the battlefield even as she launched more arrows in an attempt to slow him down.
"Futile," Gul'dan said with a scoff before easily avoiding the arrows and dispatching an isolated group of high elf mages with another sweep of Frostmourne.
The mages attempted to create an arcane barrier to protect themselves, but it was no match for the raw power he wielded. As their barrier shattered, Gul'dan reveled in the despair he could see in the expressions of the elves who were desperately attempting to flee his wrath. These millennia old warriors should have made for a much more formidable challenge, but they died so easily!
Killing them was as simple as hunting rats with rylaks.
It was at this moment that Gul'dan knew that he had truly succeeded in his goal of becoming a god. No amount of force which the Alliance could bring to bear had any hope of stopping him, and the Scourge would spread across not only Azeroth, but to the ends of the cosmos itself.
Gul'dan enjoyed the moment, toying with his opponents to savor the sense of power. He leisurely chased after the group of retreating elves and occasionally killed swaths of them with Frostmourne. Their desperation only grew as there were fewer and fewer of them to fight against the legions of undead tearing at their ranks.
Gul'dan was occasionally stalled by clever tricks or attacks from the skies, but he was simply above such paltry efforts. One particularly amusing attempt came in the form of a dragonhawk rider flying toward him while carrying several mana bombs, apparently intending to sacrifice her life. Gul'dan hadn't even needed to do anything as her mount died to his blizzard long before she could reach him, causing her to fall among his undead hordes.
So long as a few of his pylons remained intact, it would be impossible for the mortals to survive the environment without magical protections. The distraction of the enemy's mages proved a substantial boon to the Scourge.
The high elves eventually retreated far enough that they began to receive substantial assistance from the rest of the Alliance. Gul'dan's advance was slightly slowed as volleys of artillery exploded around him and a few annoying dragons engulfed portions of his Scourge in dragonfire.
Gul'dan glared at the lizards and considered teaching them that the skies were not safe from his reach, but decided against it when he spotted something much more interesting in the distance. The Alliance had obviously been informed of his approach and had organized themselves into defensive formations in preparation for his arrival.
Dozens of Spiderlords, mortal cavalry of all kinds, and mages from across Azeroth were all lined up and gathered in the hope that they could resist his power. The leader of their pitiful alliance, Supreme Commander Lothar, was bellowing what Gul'dan assumed to be some manner of motivational drivel to bolster their morale. Even Krivax, the mortal that he so very much wanted to kill, had been kind enough to place himself in Gul'dan's path so that he could be culled.
How convenient.
Amused and curious, Gul'dan cast a spell that would allow him to listen in on the enemy while his Scourge charged their position. Tichondrius' memories informed him that the best way to shatter an enemy's will was to destroy them when they were at their most hopeful, and Gul'dan intended to do just that.
"Soldiers of the Alliance, we stand at the precipice of a battle to decide the fate of our world. Before us lies a foe of unimaginable power who wields death itself as a weapon. Many of us will doubtlessly fall, but never forget that we hold with us the combined might of Azeroth! We are united in purpose, unyielding in resolve, and unbreakable in our spirit. Our homes, families, and nations depend on us to defend them, so let us send this foul creature back to the abyss from which it crawled. For the Alliance!"
"For the Alliance!"
The human's little speech seemed to serve its purpose as the mortals called out their little warcry in response with clearly bolstered morale. The deafening sound of their shout briefly overshadowed the sound of countless undead charging toward them and the blizzard that raged all around their location.
It would make it all the more sweeter when Gul'dan crushed their hopes under his heel.
Gul'dan waited patiently as the Scourge approached the Alliance's fortified lines, intending to teleport into the battle at just the right moment. Emotionless undead charged through artillery, magic, and aerial bombardment without the slightest hesitation. Arrows and bullets tore through them, but there was always another undead to take the place of the one who fell.
Rotted sea giants collided with nerubian Spiderlords in a titanic clash, mortal cavalry crushed undead beneath their hooves while many were pulled from their mounts into certain death, and the skies were filled with the sounds of combat. But most importantly of all, the so-called heroes of the Alliance delved into the chaos of battle.
The perfect place to end them.
Gul'dan waited a while longer before seeing his chance and teleporting directly into the thick of the conflict. Just like the last time, his arrival cast a dark omen over the battlefield, and Gul'dan had a moment to enjoy Supreme Commander Lothar's expression of surprise. Frostmourne cut through the air like a harbinger of death, ready to end the human's life and destroy the Alliance's resolve in a single moment.
Lothar reacted quickly enough to raise his sword, but Gul'dan merely smirked with the full confidence that no mere piece of steel could stop Frostmourne.
Perhaps that was why he was so thoroughly shocked when Lothar was only forced to his knees instead of being cut in two when their blades clashed and sent a shockwave across the battlefield. Tichondrius' knowledge allowed him to recognize the greatsword as Strom'kar, the legendary blade which had once sealed the C'thrax that attacked Capital City.
Gul'dan's surprise prevented him from reacting in time when a burst of vermillion flames engulfed him, allowing Lothar to escape while he was distracted. Gul'dan roared in pain and fury as he turned toward the source of the flames and unleashed a wave of necromantic magic in that direction. Krivax barely managed to survive by teleporting out of the way like the troublesome little insect he was.
"You're going to regret that," Gul'dan said as he carved a path of death through the Alliance while pursuing the nerubian. "I'd intended to save you for last, but now your miserable existence will end here and now."
Despite his clear and obvious terror, Krivax still managed to muster the resolve to respond. "Probably… but I've been preparing for this moment my entire life, so I think I have a chance."
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That wisdom was proving itself to be very accurate as the Alliance drew ever closer to the Lich King's fortress.
"Incoming! Mages, raise arcane barriers!"
Krivax barely had enough time to conjure an arcane barrier before the Scourge's latest round of artillery bore down on the Alliance's advancing lines. Giant spheres of necromantic magic, plague infested chunks of meat, and more conventional projectiles were all launched in devastating volleys as the Scourge unleashed every means of attack available to them. A wide variety of mages from all across Azeroth stood at the front of the lines and began hastily casting defensive spells in unison.
The ground beneath Krivax's feet shook as the Scourge's artillery made impact with the barriers, which was quickly followed by a cacophony of screams and explosions that echoed across the battlefield. The Alliance had many mages at its disposal, but the abjuration ritual to protect Naxx'kithal had left many of them exhausted, and the Scourge had been assaulting them relentlessly from the moment they were within range.
Krivax staggered as one of the Scourge's artillery strikes shattered the barrier of an exhausted mage and caused an explosion nearby. Krivax unleashed an inferno of Life-infused flames at the landing site without hesitation, healing any injured soldiers and purging any corpses of necromantic magic before they could rise as undead.
Several hours of constant battle as the Alliance resolutely pushed toward the Lich King's fortress were enough to forever etch the horror of the Scourge in his mind. They were now close enough to Gul'dan that the necromantic magic in the air was nearly viscous in its intensity, vastly empowering every undead creature they encountered and causing every slain warrior to rise again within moments.
The loss of Naxx'kithal as an aerial fortress and safe haven granted new wind to the Scourge's airborne assaults. The fighting in the sky was so intense that corpses of destroyed undead and debris fell on the Alliance's ground troops nearly as often as Scourge artillery.
This was already the most intense fight Krivax had ever participated in by far, and he only expected it to get worse once the longer things went on.
When the plan to drop Naxx'kithal on Shen-Zin Su went exactly according to plan, much to everyone's surprise, the Alliance hadn't hesitated to capitalize and immediately launch a full-scale assault against the Scourge. While the Alliance could have benefited from a few days to fully organize its forces and allow them some time to rest, that was obviously out of the question. The undead did not feel exhaustion, and they only had a short time before the Scourge redistributed its forces in response to the newly opened frontlines.
There had only been enough time for the Alliance to put together a fairly rudimentary strategy, which basically boiled down to 'attack the Lich King from two different directions at the same time as hard as possible.' Keeper Archaedas, Prophet Velen, and all of the extraordinarily powerful individuals approaching from the Temple of Five Dawns would theoretically keep large numbers of Scourge pinned down.
As a result, every single being on Naxx'kithal who was both capable of fighting and not essential to other crucial tasks was mobilized for the assault, while a constant stream of reinforcements were being portaled in from across the Eastern Kingdoms. All of the elite forces who had yet to be deployed in prior battles were now being brought to the front lines as the Alliance advanced along Shen-Zin Su's neck.
Supreme Commander Lothar, Ranger General Sylvanas, High Tinker Mechatorque, High Thane Magni Bronzebeard, and the surviving members of the Council of Six were all participating in what everyone hoped would be the battle that would end this war. Every nation in the Eastern Kingdoms had retrieved the most powerful magical artifacts within their possessions and entrusted them to their champions, something rarely done outside of dire emergencies.
Krivax was pretty sure that he could even spot several titanforged creatures joining the battlefield, such as Earthen from Uldaman or Tol'vir from Uldum.
Even High King Anub'arak had delegated most of his duties to other members of his council and joined the frontlines, sweeping away tens of undead at a time with his scythe-like arms while surrounded by his royal guard.
Like sharks that smelt a drop of blood in the water, it seemed as if everyone invested in Azeroth's defense decided to bear down on the Scourge. Naturally, Krivax would be expected to contribute to this matter and was now helping push the front lines. It was far from the specialized operations he'd participated in before, but no less important given that the Alliance needed every hand on deck.
"Clear the skies! Incoming Gnomish aircraft!"
Krivax reacted instantly as Supreme Command Lothar's magically augmented command echoed across the battlefield, joining the rest of the Alliance's ranged combatants in targeting the airborne undead. A massive sphere of Life-infused fire joined a volley of arrows, gunfire, and various magical spells which tore through the Scourge's ranks in the air. It was a pittance compared to the overwhelming number of undead available to the Lich King, but it was enough to push them back and offer space to Gnomeregan's aircraft.
From Krivax's perspective, the flying machines created by the gnomes were extremely primitive, being a strange mixture of helicopters and the earliest biplanes used back on Earth. During the Second War, they hadn't even carried any weaponry or been capable of carrying bombs.
Gnomeregan had enjoyed centuries of peace up until then and only designed their inventions for exploration and utility, not warfare.
Gnomish priorities naturally changed dramatically after the Horde sieged their capital and threatened to wipe out their species. Coupled with the high paced advancements brought upon by increased military funding and exposure to Titan technology from Uldaman, it was undeniable that warfare on Azeroth had been changed forever.
"Brace yourself!" Krivax yelled, summoning an arcane barrier in front of himself as a dozen gnomish aircraft flew above the Scourge's ground forces. Moments later, they unloaded a mixture of gunpowder and arcane bombs that caused a cascade of explosions that tore through the undead.
Krivax winced as one of the aircraft was struck by a bolt of necromantic magic from one of the Scourge's mages and began falling out of the sky, but the vast majority of the other aircraft managed to fall back to where it was safe.
"In the name of Azjol-Nerub, push forward!"
High King Anub'arak took advantage of the Scourge's momentary disarray. The sight of several dozen Spiderlord's stampeding forward while surrounded by a veritable sea of spear-wielding nerubian warriors would be enough to break the morale of any conventional enemy. The Scourge's undead were not intelligent enough to face such an issue, but that also meant that they did nothing to stop themselves from being utterly obliterated by Azjol-Nerub's advance.
Krivax watched his people ruthlessly trample and impale the countless undead forces as they charged across the battlefield. They only stopped after they collided with an enormous wave of icy water created by a group of naga sea witches. It took a moment for the Kirin Tor's mages to disperse the wave, but the path for the Alliance to advance was clear once they did.
Similar feats were repeated several times over the next few hours using a variety of tactics. Dalaran and Quel'thalas' mages would unleash their most potent spells, engulfing entire clusters of undead in enormous infernos or maelstroms of arcane magic. Krivax even witnessed a high elf mage use some kind of artifact that simply teleported a large swath of Scourge forces off of Shen-Zin Su, causing them to fall helplessly into Lordamere Lake.
The Alliance's ground forces would then push into these newly cleared areas while being led by heroes like Ranger-General Windrunner or High Thane Bronzebeard. Krivax felt a sense of pride to see the systematic coordinated advance of the Alliance forces taking advantage of its diverse strengths to devastate Scourge ranks and move forward inch by inch.
"Krivax, watch out!"
Masruk's warning pulled Krivax from his thoughts as an undead Sea Giant significantly larger than the rest of its kind smashed through the Alliance ranks and charged in his direction with its club raised high. Krivax reacted swiftly, leaping away from the giant's crushing blow and freezing the club to the ground with a burst of intense ice magic. The undead attempted to pull its weapon free, but the ice held firm and Krivax took the opportunity to unleash a barrage of arcane missiles directly into the giant's skull.
Each of them struck with precision and chipped away at the undead's bone, allowing a precise lance of Life-infused flames to melt its brain.
As the Sea Giant collapsed and ceased moving, the Alliance forces around him cheered and pushed forward, bolstered by Krivax's victory. They quickly sealed the gap in the lines under his directions and continued on their inexorable advance against the horde of undead creatures.
Krivax soon lost himself to the frenzy of battle commanding and supporting his section of the front. He had been tasked with maintaining control of a specific segment of the frontlines, capitalizing on his relative strength and remarkable stamina. His ability to hold onto any advance using his arcane magic and heal the troops under him was crucial in sustaining the Alliance's position, especially as their forces rotated in and out of the combat zone for rest and recuperation.
The battle had already gone on for many hours and would almost certainly go on for many hours more. Not even the supernaturally powerful soldiers of Azeroth could fight that long without rest.
Krivax lasted far longer than most, but he also began to find himself becoming mentally exhausted after constantly fighting for so long. This was especially the case after a particularly difficult part of the assault when the Alliance was forced to fight their way from Shen-Zin Su's neck to the lip of the shell nearly a hundred feet above.
So many lives were sacrificed pushing against the Scourge's advantageous position.The Alliance eventually managed to use a combination of magic and reinforced nerubian silk to create a path onto Shen-Zin Su's shell. Krivax probably saw more people be slaughtered within that… horrific hour of fighting than he had witnessed during his entire second life.
Krivax hadn't realized just how mentally compromised he was becoming until someone was suddenly yelling at him.
"Do not lose focus, Apprentice! A moment's lapse will be your death!"
Krivax was pulled from his thoughts as Vizier Hadix grabbed his arm and teleported them both several feet backwards, moments before a volley of projectiles landed where he had been standing. The following explosion sent several chunks of Shen-Zin Su's desiccated flesh flying in every direction.
"Thank you, Vizier Hadix," Krivax said tiredly as he regained his footing. He doubted that he would have died from that attack, but the fact that he hadn't seen it coming despite his superior vision said a lot.
"If you wish to thank me, then fall back from the frontlines," Vizier Hadix said curtly as he created a web of arcane magic in the air that captured several incoming projectiles. "I will handle your duties until you return. Not only do you need to recuperate, but your unorthodox perspective will doubtlessly be welcome while the Alliance plans the next phase of its assault."
Krivax looked behind him and saw the Alliance's leaders were all falling back and gathering in a fortified location. It made sense as there hadn't been enough time between dropped Naxx'kithal and beginning the attack to actually decide on how they'd deal with the final phase.
An attack against any entity such as the Lich King wasn't something that could be done without an actual strategy. To do so would be like walking into a death trap.
Krivax hesitated for several seconds, unsure as to whether he would be more useful on the battlefield or in the strategic meeting. Ultimately, he decided that Vizier Hadix was correct that he desperately needed a bit of time to pull himself back together. It was also true that his idea regarding Naxx'kithal had been useful despite his relative lack of knowledge about the nuances of military strategy.
Krivax took a moment to thank Hadix and wave toward Masruk, who was currently fighting the Scourge in the skies, to inform his friend about his intentions. With that done, Krivax stepped back from the frontlines and began making his way toward the hastily erected command center.
Well… it was less of an actual command center and more like a small spot that had been cleared amidst the chaos of the battlefield and protected by a multitude of wards.
Thankfully, not every single leader in the Alliance felt the need to participate in the strategic planning. It would have been a nightmare to deal with eleven different people all trying to advance their own agendas. Instead, it was the same three central figures of High King Anub'arak, Ranger-General Sylvanas, and Supreme Commander Lothar who represented the Alliance as a whole and its two most influential nations.
There were a variety of representatives from all the other nations participating in the war, but they were only there to ensure their interests weren't severely harmed and weren't expected to actually be involved in the strategizing. Krivax found a spot next to these representatives and turned his attention to the ongoing discussions.
A Kirin Tor mage was creating an arcane projection which depicted the Wood of Staves and the Lich King's fortress. Another mage was creating a much larger projection of Shen-Zin Su's, with portions of the massive creature shaded in different colors to indicate territory claimed by the Alliance and the Scourge.
It made for a very useful visual indicator, highlighting the Alliance plan to siege the Scourge from two different directions. Krivax had expected that the leaders planned to wait for the other front to arrive, but it seemed like there were some arguments being made on the wisdom of that matter.
"It would be in our interests to destroy the Scourge's pylons as quickly as possible," said Sylvanas, her tone firm as she pointed to one of several obelisk shaped structures surrounding the Lich King's fortress. "All of us can sense the strange magical emanations coming from within the fortress. Whatever the Lich King is attempting to summon or create must be stopped before it comes to fruition."
Krivax had been one of the first to sense the ritual-like magical emanations that had begun shortly after Shen-Zin Su's death and had only grown more intense overtime. Although he had no idea what Gul'dan was up to, Krivax had no doubt that it was nothing good.
The pylons were structures which created magical defenses more formidable than any that could ever be created by mages through their own efforts. They were the source of the perpetual blizzard surrounding Shen-Zin Su, and needed to be dealt with before they could enter the fortress.
"Be that as it may, it would be foolish to attack without our full strength," Lothar said with a grim expression. "It will still be some time before the other front is able to join us. Prophet Velen and Keeper Archaedas are among our greatest assets against the Scourge, not to mention all of the other forces which we would be reckless to engage without."
Those other forces included Illidan Stormrage, the Order of the Silver Hand, and the Guardians of Nerub. All of whom would be essential against the Lich King.
"Our enemy grows more fortified by the moment. Combined with the ongoing ritual, I agree with the Ranger-General that we do not have time to wait for all of our forces to converge," said High King Anub'arak, nodding toward the high elf. "There is no guarantee that delaying would lessen our casualties, nor does Azjol-Nerub fear making the sacrifices necessary to end this threat."
Krivax found himself agreeing with Sylvanas and the High King. He could tell that the Scourge was beginning to recover from their sudden lack of coordination and were growing more dangerous over time. Attacking while the enemy was still on the backfoot was crucial.
He wished that they could afford to wait for the other front to join them, but time was of the essence.
Eventually, Lothar seemed to be convinced and the discussion turned to the best way of disrupting the Lich King's ritual with the forces available to them. It was no small matter given the Scourge's heavy fortifications.
The entire Wood of Staves was shrouded by the Lich King's magical blizzard and enhanced to an absurd degree by the Scourge's pylons. Anyone who didn't get blown away by near hurricane force winds would be frozen solid within moments without magical protection. That didn't even take into account the countless undead who were naturally much less affected by these conditions and would be at their most empowered given their proximity to Gul'dan.
Not only would a large portion of the Alliance mages need to maintain constant protections against the blizzard and thus be unable to contribute in an offensive fashion, but they would also need to separate into several different groups for each pylon. This was because each pylon was strategically positioned in a way that meant that it would take significantly longer to reach and destroy individually.
Taking them out one by one would defeat the entire purpose of attacking so soon in the first place.
It sounded like a reasonable and fairly straightforward strategy given the circumstances, and Krivax found himself unable to think of anything he would do differently. He listened as the leaders of each attack force were decided and was unsurprised that the first names to come up were the heads of various nations.
Krivax was much more surprised when his own name was mentioned after all of the more obvious choices were already assigned. He must have unconsciously let out a noise of disbelief, because High King Anub'arak turned to him with an unimpressed expression.
"Is there an issue, Vizier Krivax? I trust that you're not about to waste my time by suggesting that the person I chose to lead the A.D.F and who can also be credited for devising the strategy which brought us this far is unqualified."
Krivax's protest died in his throat as he met the High King's stern gaze. He wasn't certain if Anub'arak was particularly insightful… or if Krivax had just become predictable to those who knew him.
"There's no issue, High King. I was just surprised," Krivax said, swallowing his doubts and steeling himself. "I will do everything I can to ensure our success."
High King Anub'arak studied him closely for several more moments before giving a satisfied nod and turning back to the other leaders. They had very little time to waste, so the logistical details were decided on far more quickly than might otherwise be the case. Krivax was assigned to one of the closer pylons and had a decent number of forces placed under his command, though he was relieved that High King Anub'arak gave him one of the kingdom's higher ranking Spiderlords to help him coordinate things.
A plan was made for the Alliance's air force to use the remainder of their munitions to help soften the enemy. All in all, it was a fairly basic plan that recognized that this would almost certainly be the final battle of this war, so there was no sense holding anything back.
As the planning session concluded and Krivax began making his way to meet with the forces placed under his command, he did so with grim determination. There was little certainty in how the next few hours would play out, but Krivax was confident about one thing in particular.
The future of Azeroth would be changed dramatically by the end of the day, one way or another.
When Kil'jaeden assigned Gul'dan's soul to be the favored toy of his Dreadlords, he had experienced pain more excruciating than could be described by the learned of shamans.
When Gul'dan's soul was bound to Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination, he had been utterly stripped of everything that made him who he was and reformed into the embodiment of death itself.
When Gul'dan buried Frostmourne into Tichondrius' chest, he began a process that would change him just as much as either of those previous experiences.
While Gul'dan could directly control and empower any undead under his control, it was fundamentally impossible for him to make use of his full strength through such indirect means.
If he wanted to reach his true destiny, then Gul'dan could only do so after freeing himself from the Frozen Throne, which is what Kil'jaeden had called the icy prison the demon had trapped him in. He would then need to acquire a vessel capable of channeling the vast powers at his disposal.
Unfortunately, such vessels were few and far between. Gul'dan had only been able to devise two different means that he was confident would allow him to harness his full potential.
Gul'dan had determined that his soul was tied primarily to the Helm of Domination and more loosely to Frostmourne. This meant that if he excised the blade from the Frozen Throne and guided it into the hands of a mortal foolish enough to claim it, then he could have theoretically used this connection to slowly mold the wielder into a worthy vessel. It would have been the work of years to gradually adapt the mortal's body to necromantic magic more potent than any Azeroth had ever known, but would have resulted in a truly marvelous conduit for Gul'dan's power.
He had only abandoned this due to a lack of time. Gul'dan had been unable to find a means of preventing his Dreadlord jailers from noticing Frostmourne's disappearance. He'd been directing some of his undead to create a convincing enough replica using the Titan forges on the Isles of Thunder, but the Alliance's sudden and aggressive invasion of Pandaria ruined those plans.
Gul'dan looked forward to tormenting the soul of whoever was responsible for that disruption once he was free…
Despite that slight setback, there were other options available to him.
Even without being gradually permeated with the power of Frostmourne, Tichondrius was an eons old demon whose body far outstripped an average mortal in terms of potential. The end result wouldn't be quite as potent as the alternative, but using the Dreadlord as his vessel had some advantages of its own.
It would've been impossible for him to snuff out the soul of any mortal who adapted to the necromantic magic of Frostmourne, which meant Gul'dan would have needed to fight the mortal for control of their body. He would have won, naturally, but Gul'dan always preferred the path of least resistance.
Instead, Gul'dan used Frostmourne to erase most of Tichondrius' soul before he began subsuming it into his own essence and taking control of the Dreadlord's empty body. Tichondrius and the rest of the nathrezim had attempted to shield their souls against Frostmourne, but Gul'dan was not nearly as blind as they believed him to be.
He had once been a warlock, and was intimately familiar with demons and the natures of their souls. It had not been easy to bypass Tichondrius' myriad of protections, but he had done so in the end.
Gul'dan could have extinguished the Dreadlord's soul in its entirety and avoided any fight at all, but he wanted to steal what he could from Tichondrius' memories and skills.
Such small fragments of Tichondrius' soul shouldn't have been any trouble at all for Gul'dan to subsume.
At least… that's what he had thought.
The walls around Gul'dan shook as he howled in pain and fury, struggling to fully conquer the remnants of Tichondrius' soul. The hundreds of spirits inhabiting his fortress let out tortured wails in response to his agony as necromantic magic twisted and surged around him. Countless images flashed through Gul'dan's mind, threatening to overwhelm him as the vestiges of a demon who was older than his entire species proved far more resilient than anticipated.
He was dimly aware of the Alliance slowly advancing on his fortress and desperately needed to finish his transformation before they arrived. Varimathras had taken the first chance to flee after sensing Tichondrius' fate, so the Scourge was only being led by the few intelligent undead within its ranks.
But Tichondrius simply refused to disappear for good!
"Argh! Cease your resistance and accept your fate, Dreadlord!" Gul'dan shouted as he fought for control of the demon's body, throat growing hoarse after screaming for hours. "I will not be denied!"
There was not enough of Tichondrius left to respond, but Gul'dan could have sworn he still felt a surge of disdain in response to his demands. This caused the fiery hatred within him to blaze even more intensely than ever.
There was nothing more that Gul'dan hated than to be looked down upon. He remembered the faces of every being who dared to do so, from the members of his original clan to the many enemies he'd made on his path to godhood, and he had sworn to himself that he would make them suffer.
This arrogant demon would not be the one who forced Gul'dan to break that oath.
He refused!
Gul'dan lost track of time as he struggled against Tichondrius' soul with renewed fervor. He could feel power swelling within him like a volcano on the verge of eruption as he ruthlessly tore away at all that remained of the Dreadlord. Each moment expanded into an eternity, fragmented memories of worlds and realms beyond mortal comprehension flooding into his mind.
Despite being only a portion of what Tichondrius would have known, Gul'dan learned more about the cosmos than he ever thought possible.
He learned answers to questions he had never known to ask, strategies he had never considered, and magic that he had never seen. Most importantly, he acquired extraordinary knowledge about the realm that existed beyond death, and how Frostmourne and the Helm of Domination found their way into the Burning Legion's hands.
How ironic that Tichondrius would be felled by a blade created by his very own masters.
How appropriate the source of Gul'dan's power came from the very gods themselves, intended to spread Death across Azeroth. He would do so and then turn their gifts against them.
But that was a matter to worry about after he dealt with the immediate threat. Gul'dan could feel the Alliance forces inching closer, destroying the structures that protected his fortress. With a final surge of will, Gul'dan took a firm grip of Frostmourne with his new, demonic body, pulled it from his vessel's chest, and rushed toward the Frozen Throne.
Gul'dan roared as he swung Frostmourne with all his might, shattering the icy prison that had kept his power and essence contained, causing the Helm of Domination to drop to the ground. The vestiges of Tichondrius must have understood what was happening, because they attempted to stop him, but they could not.
The Helm of Domination shimmered as it became ethereal in Gul'dan's grasp, seamlessly passing through the Dreadlord's last remaining horn and settling on his vessel's head.
All at once, the cacophony of screaming spirits and whirling magic ceased as the inside of Gul'dan's fortress became deathly quiet. The only sound that remained was a soft chuckle that eventually grew louder until it became a resounding, triumphant laughter that echoed throughout the halls.
He could sense a myriad of scrying spells from the Alliance attempting to penetrate the fortress, likely in response to the massive wave of necromantic magic that had erupted from within it.
Gul'dan ignored them all and allowed himself to enjoy his moment of ascension. He had never felt more powerful and in control than at any point in his life. He didn't have the slightest doubt that he could slaughter the fools wherever he wished!
Even an Aspect would need to fear him!
It was only when another of his fortress' pylons was destroyed that Gul'dan deigned to turn his attention toward the Alliance.
Looking through the eyes of his undead, Gul'dan swiftly formed an overview of the battlefield's current state. His undead legions had slaughtered large numbers of the mortals advancing on his palace, but their continuous reinforcements and superior tactics had allowed them to make significant progress.
His assimilation of Tichondrius gave him the tactical perspective to understand that the Alliance had likely hoped to destroy his pylons and interrupt what they would have perceived to be a dangerous ritual, but they had failed. Only half of the pylons had been destroyed and the enemy's forces were wonderfully divided, with those approaching from the Temple of Five Dawns nearly half an hour away from arriving.
That may not have sounded like a significant amount of time to most, but it would be more than enough for him.
Gul'dan smiled widely as he considered which of the Alliance's military detachments he would slaughter first. His first instinct was to immediately end the life of Krivax, the troublesome nerubian who had caused him so many issues. The nerubian was currently in the midst of fierce combat, shouting orders and fighting against legions of undead that had suddenly grown vastly more coordinated.
But once again, the new strategic mindset he'd acquired from Tichondrius steered him instead towards a different target. The pylon closest to Krivax had already been destroyed and saving the rest would still be valuable to him given the empowering effect they had on the area.
It would be unwise to waste the element of surprise just so that he could kill the nerubian a few minutes earlier.
So decided, Gul'dan used his new understanding of magic and the seemingly endless sea of power at his disposal to casually shatter the Alliance's wards and teleport onto the battlefield.
Gul'dan emerged from a dark cloud of necromantic magic and found himself amidst a group of surprised high elves attempting to unravel the protective magics around a pylon, their expressions becoming terrified at his imposing appearance. Gul'dan allowed himself to enjoy their fear for a single moment before calmly swinging Frostmourne through the body of an elite high elf Spellbreaker, instantly bisecting her.
An enormous torrent of dark magic followed the sweep of his blade, causing tens of high elves to be drained of all life as their desiccated corpses joined the Scourge and turned on their former allies. Gul'dan laughed uproariously as many more high elves died in the immediate chaos and confusion that followed, each swing of Frostmourne claiming multiple lives. The Scourge was enormously empowered by his presence and began to push against the enemy's defensive lines.
Gul'dan had chosen to attack the high elves not only because they had yet to destroy the pylon they'd been targeting, but also because they would make for excellent servants.
"Die, monster!"
"No, Halduron! Fall back!"
This was aptly demonstrated when a furious high elf cursed him and swiftly cut down a half-dozen undead as he foolishly charged toward Gul'dan. A terrified female attempted to call him back, but the high elf failed to heed her.
Even considering the aptitude for swordplay that he'd absorbed from Tichondrius, Gul'dan could admit that his opponent was more skilled than himself. Unfortunately for the elf, that meant little in the face of overwhelming power.
With a casual flick of his wrist, Gul'dan sent forward a jagged wave of ice that impaled the fool and several more behind him. Gul'dan was mildly surprised when the female ceased her annoying screams long enough to summon a shield of Light strong enough to save herself.
Just as he was about to reward the elf by claiming her for the Scourge, several highly enchanted and impeccably aimed arrows pierced through the air and threatened to land in the eye-slits of his helmet. Gul'dan hastily deflected the arrows with Frostmourne before turning to glare at the archer who dared to attack him, spotting a female elf wearing regal armor who was glaring at him with pure hatred from atop a nearby ridge.
Gul'dan was nearly certain that those arrows would have failed to kill him, but would have definitely caused him harm.
He recognized her as Ranger-General Sylvanas and felt a trace of frustration as he realized the elves were rallying around her. Gul'dan had already slaughtered a little under half of the high elven force during his initial onslaught, either directly with his attacks or indirectly when he destroyed their defenses against the empowered Scourge and the magical blizzard surrounding them.
Their morale should have been utterly crushed as the hopelessness of their circumstances became clear, yet Sylvanas' leadership held them together.
It was impressive.
It was infuriating.
"Fighting retreat! Regroup with the rest of the Alliance!" Sylvanas commanded, her voice cutting through the battlefield even as she launched more arrows in an attempt to slow him down.
"Futile," Gul'dan said with a scoff before easily avoiding the arrows and dispatching an isolated group of high elf mages with another sweep of Frostmourne.
The mages attempted to create an arcane barrier to protect themselves, but it was no match for the raw power he wielded. As their barrier shattered, Gul'dan reveled in the despair he could see in the expressions of the elves who were desperately attempting to flee his wrath. These millennia old warriors should have made for a much more formidable challenge, but they died so easily!
Killing them was as simple as hunting rats with rylaks.
It was at this moment that Gul'dan knew that he had truly succeeded in his goal of becoming a god. No amount of force which the Alliance could bring to bear had any hope of stopping him, and the Scourge would spread across not only Azeroth, but to the ends of the cosmos itself.
Gul'dan enjoyed the moment, toying with his opponents to savor the sense of power. He leisurely chased after the group of retreating elves and occasionally killed swaths of them with Frostmourne. Their desperation only grew as there were fewer and fewer of them to fight against the legions of undead tearing at their ranks.
Gul'dan was occasionally stalled by clever tricks or attacks from the skies, but he was simply above such paltry efforts. One particularly amusing attempt came in the form of a dragonhawk rider flying toward him while carrying several mana bombs, apparently intending to sacrifice her life. Gul'dan hadn't even needed to do anything as her mount died to his blizzard long before she could reach him, causing her to fall among his undead hordes.
So long as a few of his pylons remained intact, it would be impossible for the mortals to survive the environment without magical protections. The distraction of the enemy's mages proved a substantial boon to the Scourge.
The high elves eventually retreated far enough that they began to receive substantial assistance from the rest of the Alliance. Gul'dan's advance was slightly slowed as volleys of artillery exploded around him and a few annoying dragons engulfed portions of his Scourge in dragonfire.
Gul'dan glared at the lizards and considered teaching them that the skies were not safe from his reach, but decided against it when he spotted something much more interesting in the distance. The Alliance had obviously been informed of his approach and had organized themselves into defensive formations in preparation for his arrival.
Dozens of Spiderlords, mortal cavalry of all kinds, and mages from across Azeroth were all lined up and gathered in the hope that they could resist his power. The leader of their pitiful alliance, Supreme Commander Lothar, was bellowing what Gul'dan assumed to be some manner of motivational drivel to bolster their morale. Even Krivax, the mortal that he so very much wanted to kill, had been kind enough to place himself in Gul'dan's path so that he could be culled.
How convenient.
Amused and curious, Gul'dan cast a spell that would allow him to listen in on the enemy while his Scourge charged their position. Tichondrius' memories informed him that the best way to shatter an enemy's will was to destroy them when they were at their most hopeful, and Gul'dan intended to do just that.
"Soldiers of the Alliance, we stand at the precipice of a battle to decide the fate of our world. Before us lies a foe of unimaginable power who wields death itself as a weapon. Many of us will doubtlessly fall, but never forget that we hold with us the combined might of Azeroth! We are united in purpose, unyielding in resolve, and unbreakable in our spirit. Our homes, families, and nations depend on us to defend them, so let us send this foul creature back to the abyss from which it crawled. For the Alliance!"
"For the Alliance!"
The human's little speech seemed to serve its purpose as the mortals called out their little warcry in response with clearly bolstered morale. The deafening sound of their shout briefly overshadowed the sound of countless undead charging toward them and the blizzard that raged all around their location.
It would make it all the more sweeter when Gul'dan crushed their hopes under his heel.
Gul'dan waited patiently as the Scourge approached the Alliance's fortified lines, intending to teleport into the battle at just the right moment. Emotionless undead charged through artillery, magic, and aerial bombardment without the slightest hesitation. Arrows and bullets tore through them, but there was always another undead to take the place of the one who fell.
Rotted sea giants collided with nerubian Spiderlords in a titanic clash, mortal cavalry crushed undead beneath their hooves while many were pulled from their mounts into certain death, and the skies were filled with the sounds of combat. But most importantly of all, the so-called heroes of the Alliance delved into the chaos of battle.
The perfect place to end them.
Gul'dan waited a while longer before seeing his chance and teleporting directly into the thick of the conflict. Just like the last time, his arrival cast a dark omen over the battlefield, and Gul'dan had a moment to enjoy Supreme Commander Lothar's expression of surprise. Frostmourne cut through the air like a harbinger of death, ready to end the human's life and destroy the Alliance's resolve in a single moment.
Lothar reacted quickly enough to raise his sword, but Gul'dan merely smirked with the full confidence that no mere piece of steel could stop Frostmourne.
Perhaps that was why he was so thoroughly shocked when Lothar was only forced to his knees instead of being cut in two when their blades clashed and sent a shockwave across the battlefield. Tichondrius' knowledge allowed him to recognize the greatsword as Strom'kar, the legendary blade which had once sealed the C'thrax that attacked Capital City.
Gul'dan's surprise prevented him from reacting in time when a burst of vermillion flames engulfed him, allowing Lothar to escape while he was distracted. Gul'dan roared in pain and fury as he turned toward the source of the flames and unleashed a wave of necromantic magic in that direction. Krivax barely managed to survive by teleporting out of the way like the troublesome little insect he was.
"You're going to regret that," Gul'dan said as he carved a path of death through the Alliance while pursuing the nerubian. "I'd intended to save you for last, but now your miserable existence will end here and now."
Despite his clear and obvious terror, Krivax still managed to muster the resolve to respond. "Probably… but I've been preparing for this moment my entire life, so I think I have a chance."
Final chapter is up on Patreon for $2 if you'd like to read ahead or support me with a tip for the story.