1,554Chapter 18: Volume 2: Chapter 1
Lost Lion
Disclaimer! I don't own WoW. Blizz does, and your soul too.
Volume 2: Chapter 1
*** Searing Gorge – Blackrock Mountain***
Kargath–chieftain of the Shattered Hand–stood behind Grom Hellscream, chieftain of the Warsong, Kilrogg Deadeye of the Bleeding Hollow, Garm Wolfbrother of the Thunderlord and the ogre pet of Ner'zhul, Dentarg, that represented the Shadowmoon clan, on the other side of the mountain that had taken him months to break through.
"Kargath," Grom said as they surveyed the dark overcast barren plain before him. The others knew what laid beyond its horizons. "You did a good job, worthy of the Horde."
"I am honored, Warchief." Kargath tilted his head in acknowledgment. He always liked Grom more than Doomhammer. The latter thought too much. The Warsong leader however understood that strength was all that mattered. "They were a tenacious foe, but like all our enemies before, they could only fall before the might of the Horde."
"They put up a better fight than the goren did, I hear." Garm smirked. "I would wager they're hiding in their underground city, waiting for you to come to them. To bleed your forces."
"And that is exactly where they can stay," Grom interrupted the brewing verbal fight. "Kargath, I need you to stay here and keep this mountain pass open so the rest of the Horde can join us up north."
Kargath made to protest, but before he could, Grom continued.
"Only you can keep these Dark Iron goren creatures in check. Your idea to force them to work and produce valuable weapons helped the Horde greatly," he praised Kargath before nodding to the Shattered hand chieftain in respect. "If you do this for the Horde, then when we conquer the northlands, I will let you have your pick before all other clans. Even mine."
Kargath wanted to smile while the other chieftains did not look too pleased by Grom's offer, but it was a worthy reward.
"I would be honored to, Warchief. This mountain now belongs to the Shattered Hand until you finish the conquest. For the Horde!"
"For the Horde!" Grom replied before he turned to Dentarg. "Now, I want you to tell the rest of the chieftains what you told me."
The ogre mage went forward and nodded in submission to Grom. "After visiting the labor camps here and interrogating them as per my master's order, I found something that might be of great interest to the Horde."
The ogre looked to the Warsong chieftain for permission to reveal his finding.
"Go on." Grom nodded and had a half-smirk. It meant that he already knew the information.
"Then, chieftains, after a lengthy interrogation of the Dwarves here, we discovered a possible way for your shaman to use their power again," Dentarg reported even as Grom smiled at all the stunned chieftains' expressions.
Even with their new warlock power they still held a reference for their old ways.
"How?!" Kilrogg demanded. "The spirit had left us long ago!"
"These Dark Irons Dwarves have shamans among them," Dentarg answered and motioned to let one of the prisoners walk forward, unchained, much to the orcs' surprise.
"He is what they call a Dark Shaman. They do not commune with the spirit as your people once did, but instead, bind the elemental powers to their will." Dentarg nodded to the Dwarf who looked worse for wear but stepped forward as if rehearsed. "Show them."
The Dark Iron dwarf took out four totems similar to the kind that their own shamans once used a long time ago and planted them quickly into the ground. He looked to Dentarg as if for permission before the Ogre mage nodded again.
"Elementals of Fire, I bind you to me and command you to appear before me to do my bidding!" the Dwarf spoke and to all the orcs' surprise, a being made of fire manifested before them.
It did not look like the fire elementals that they were familiar with; this one felt more hostile, but it was still a fire spirit, something that many never thought that they would see again.
"Gul'dan warlocks had clearly failed us," Grom said to the still-stunned chieftain. "No, the old ways served us best."
After Blackhand's disastrous defeat, Kargath and Kilrogg nodded their heads in agreement.
"These...dwarves–" Kilrogg began showing an odd respect. After all, this was not just a prisoner but a shaman. "They are willing to teach our shamans this?"
"These creatures," Grom said looking directly at the Dwarf who did not seem to care about the way he was addressed. "Are much like us. They have a leader and more importantly, disagreement with their leaders."
Understanding dawned on the orcs' faces. So that was how it was...
"In exchange for better treatment and the lands of their enemies in the northern mountains, these Dark Shamans have promised to help us learn their ways." Grom smiled. These dwarves oddly did not care for lush lands and orcs cared not for the mountains. It was a mutually beneficial deal. "Imagine it, my fellow warriors. We will have shamans once more and then all shall fall before us!"
The reality of the gift they found dawned on them, and it was the Thunderlord leader who stepped forward.
"For the Horde!" Garm was the first to shout it fervently.
"For the Horde!" Kilrogg followed.
"For the Horde!" Kargath roared in unity. Grom gave them back their spirits, and for that, he would have his loyalty.
A day later, the combined might of the current Horde army, over three hundred thousand strong, crossed into the searing gorge and began their assault on the lands of Khaz Modan.
***Elwynn Forest – Stormwind City***
'So remember, we built Stormwind City~
We built Stormwind City on rock and roll~~'
I was humming an old 80's rock song with modified lyrics when the group entered what would become known in the future as the Valley of Heroes. Right now, missing were the statues of Turalyon, Alleria Windrunner, Khadgar, Kurdan Wildhammer, and my favorite mercenary, Danath Trollbane. Instead, in the place where Turalyon's statue would have been to greet travelers was Medivh, famed Guardian of Azeroth. He was the same man who I happened to have a … small disagreement with two months back.
It was a busy and paranoid two months that I spent at Northshire Abbey. I knew little of the place save that it was razed to the ground in the game and later would have been the human starter zone. However, as always, when faced with the reality of the situation, Northshire Abbey was large with over ten thousand clerics of various ranks living or administering healing in the building alone. It was also a lot larger than I thought, and instead of one building, as depicted in the game, there were a series of buildings. It might have started off as one small Abbey a thousand years ago, but it had grown to be much more over time. I was taken out of any further thoughts when twenty men bearing the insignia of the royal guards approached us at the base of Medivh's statue.
"Halt!" Gavinrad, the hard-headed asshole, shouted as the group of ten knights that Knight-Champion Gregory supplied to keep me in line stopped.
As far as being a prisoner went, it wasn't bad. I wasn't in chains, and Gregory realized clapping me in chains was bad optics, if not demoralizing in light of our recent victory. However, there were eyewitnesses of my attack, and my defense was suspect and crazy even to the most reasonable people. After all, I made some very, by their standards, farfetch claims regarding Medivh. It was as if I accused Mother Theresa of being the secret leader of a Satanic cult or Gandhi of being a cannibal that loved to go whoring. It just didn't track with their public image. However, on the flip side, my feat of strength and my known affiliation with the Light did warrant some wiggle room and gentler treatment. So everything became very hush-hushed, but it didn't help Gavinrad and Khadgar's case against me when five beautiful holy women were willing to vouch for my innocence.
Unfortunately, Stormwind was not Lordaeron. It turned out the kingdom practiced a strict separation of church and state policy. I was quite surprised when Delilah explained it to me, but it made sense when I thought about the game developer's country of origin. It would track that American cultural influence would be all over Azeroth instead of the more European slant of the Old World of Warhammer.
"Callan Lothar." The head royal knight who looked like a sterner version of Jaime friggin Lannister addressed me.
"Sir." I snapped a formal soldier's salute since I was in front of high-ranking officers now regardless of my alleged crime. I felt a bit underdressed, but Gavinrad refused to give me armor. Armor would make it harder to kill me in case he was right after all.
The royal guard gave a tight nod at my show of respect and scanned the group I was in with his eyes.
"You are to follow me to meet the king," the Jaime look-a-like said as he narrowed his eyes at me. "I have been privy to the details of what had transpired and the charges levied."
On either side of me and to my back were the ten knights Gregory supplied. Gavinrad was also within striking distance of me in case I pulled anything funny. Behind them was a wagon carrying the still comatose body of Medivh who was being cared for inside by Khadgar. At the head of the wagon next to the teamster was the head honcho of Northshire itself, Abbot Alfred Winston. Next to him was High Cleric Mara Fordragon with Victoria. The other three, Delilah, Allyson, and Laura were back in Northshire Abbey to begin instructing the other Clerics in combat. Apparently, the presence of demons freaked out the Abbot and horrified the other High Clerics. So, five years before they were supposed to show up, holy warriors were now being trained. Worse, they were using what I taught the girls as a baseline training program.
I have fucked up everything so very badly…
"However," the Jaime expy continued as he returned his eyes to me. "I will give you the benefit of the doubt, though if you were to exhibit any kind of odd behavior..."
"I understand, Sir!" I gave him another picture-perfect salute. Don't act weird or turn demonic, and I won't lose my head. Implied threat heard!
"Sir Gavinrad, you are relieved of your charge and as a person of interest, we will also be escorting you to the king," the blond royal guardsman proclaimed. "As such, you will relinquish your weapon to me and will receive it back after you meet with his majesty."
Gavinrad's face showed his shock at the declaration. I had to hide a smile. Hah! Suck it. All these weeks, I had his proverbial sword hanging over my head. I understood why he acted the way he did, but we bled together on the battlefield! That should have earned me more trust and that, more than anything else, disappointed me.
Gavinrad reluctantly unhooked his sword and handed it to one of the other royal guardsmen before two of the guards took flanking positions to either side of him. Khadgar was also commanded to get out of the wagon before he was flanked by two royal guards of his own.
"Your Holiness Abbot Winston?" The Jaime expy turned to the old man respectfully. "You have the object in question?"
In reply, the Abbot took out a small intricate white box that had holy scripts engraved on it and presented it to the royal guardsman. Two more guardsmen broke off and relieved the teamsters and took the reign of the carriage. The Abbot, a wisen and kind old man, merely smiled and nodded his head in understanding.
"Alright, we move!" The royal guard began to march.
There was no conversation and no one offered any. Gavinrad was grim and at several points, I caught him sneaking glances at me with a complicated look in his eyes. Every day that I spent healing more people in Northshire and showing off my Light power was another day that I chipped away at his conviction. However, I get that asking to believe that Medivh, their greatest champion, was in fact the Burning Legion's leader was a big ask. Even the Abbot didn't believe that, but that was to be expected. Since it was so early in the timeline, the Church of Light's understanding of demons was rudimentary at best.
If I remember correctly, Dalaran–or rather the Council of Tirasfal–considered Light magic beneath them and worthless in the fight against the Burning Legion. So my explanation about Sargeras, the Burning Legion, and their purpose sounded very fanciful to the uninitiated. Even Khadgar did not know about the Burning Legion either and could not confirm my findings. It made me realize Dalaran must have kept their mages in the dark until the Third War really exposed the closely guarded secret. That really sucked for me because I knew of two Tirisfal members who could have vouched for me in Stormwind, but unfortunately, they died along with seventy percent of the kingdom's conjurers.
They were supposed to die, but not this soon and certainly not by taking out a huge orc army. The Bronze couldn't blame me for that one; I had nothing to do with what happened over there. The gutting of Stormwind's magical forces was not supposed to be widely known, but with me being a designated healer for the overwhelmed Abbey, it did not take me long to put two and two together based on the casualty list. From what I remembered of the chaotic lore of the First War, the timetable seemed…sped up?
I was almost positive that what Lothar did with a third of the Kingdom's army never happened nor the fact the orcs attacked in such numbers. However, I couldn't say it one hundred percent didn't happen either; the First War was the fuzziest moment of Warcraft history with multiple retcons on what 'actually' occurred. Since something did change, however, it would explain why the Bronze came after me.
I knew they would come gunning for me with how I had been overstepping my bounds by showing off my Light magic. However, the arrival of the Infinite flight was something I did not even consider. Those guys, regardless of my personal feelings, were considered evil lore-wise. Yet, now, those same evil guys were on my side. They didn't come back to kill me which meant that I was doing something to their advantage, something could end up with the Old Gods winning in the long run.
"..." I sighed deeply.
The simplest solution was to just off myself to deny them that victory. However, I was a coward, and I liked my living too much to do such a thing. That left me only one route now with my backs pushed this far against the ropes.
Fuck it, I'll do it myself.
I bumped into the knight in front of me in surprise and noticed several people were looking at me. The Jaime expy was narrowing his eyes.
"What...did I say that out loud?" I asked. Judging by their expressions, I did. Whoopsie.
"Yes. What is it that you will be doing yourself?" the royal guard captain answered as his hard gaze stayed on me. I swore I felt a bead of sweat roll down my face from the intensity of the glare.
Immediately, I raised my hands in surrender. I didn't think they heard my long internal rant.
"I was just thinking out loud about...training more clerics in the Light," I said lamely, but it appeared as if my excuse worked as the royal guard captain gave a nod and continued the march.
Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw Mara smiling at me along with Victoria. Those two wanted me to take an even more active role in training the not-paladins recruits on how to fight. I tried really hard to say that there were surely better ways to train. Unfortunately, with the Horde invasion and the first five clerics I trained proven to be effective, the Abbot had been giving me odd looks during the last couple of weeks.
The city itself was crowded like a modern-day one judging by the level of congestion our group had to navigate. I knew right away that it was because of the influx of refugees from Brightwood and Lushland Pass. Though many of the survivors had been dispersed throughout the kingdom, there were those who could afford to flee to Stormwind City. It really conveyed to me just how many people existed in the real world that the game failed to show. I spotted many families that were huddled together, eating whatever food was given to them. Other civilians had thousand-yard stares in their eyes, just sitting in the streets. To the city watch's credit, even with how chaotic it was, there was still a sense of order.
Another thing that I finally saw was the canals of Stormwind which was not as simple as it was depicted in the game. It looked more like a sight out of the city of Venice minus the lack of Italian accents from the populace. It was fascinating to watch people lined up on docks built in the city canal system, to wait for the next ferry to travel to different districts. It also did not look shallow like presented in the game and was in fact pretty deep. I wouldn't be surprised if people could drown in it. It also made sense how a giant alligator could live in the canal in the future.
Another difference was the district. Besides the Trade District, the rest was different from the game. Across from me was what should have been the future Dwarven District, but currently, it was called the Military District and garrisoned the soldiers in the city. Old Town was a massive residential area much bigger than I thought it would be. Once more, knowing and seeing were two completely different things.
Shaking my head, I noticed that, after a good hour's walk, we arrived at a large wall that was heavily defended. I knew that, behind those walls, was the heart of the city and where the royal family resided, Stormwind Keep.
'Okay...' I thought to myself as I inhaled and exhaled deeply to get rid of any nervousness. 'Here we go…'
"Halt!" one of the guardsmen on the wall shouted down. "Identify yourself and state your purpose!"
I was pretty sure these guys knew each other, but security protocols were security protocols.
"I am Knight-Champion Jaime, and I've arrived with the people his majesty King Llane Wrynn ordered brought before him!"
'He really was a Jaime expy?!' No one saw my jaws drop as I turned to look at the royal knight.
"You are expected, Sir!" The Gate Captain saluted. "Open the Gate!"
"From this point on, only the people of interest will be allowed inside the Keep," Knight-Champion Jaime said as we all moved forward and passed through the gate.
Said people of interest were me, the comatosed Medivh, Gavinrad, Khadgar, Mara, Victoria, and Abbot Winston for some reason. The rest of our retinue were dispersed and free to relax in the city.
Once more, I found myself turning my head to take it all in. Where a statue of Varian, future Stormwind King, was supposed to be was instead some other Wrynn. It couldn't be the late King Barathen Wrynn. Maybe it was his father? I didn't get a chance to verify his identity as I was led up the stone steps where more guards could be seen on duty.
I hated guard duty. The tedium of it all drove me crazy, and these guys were supposed to be top talents. How they could stand it was beyond me and made me dip my head in respect before we finally entered the Keep itself.
The Keep was similar to what I could recall, but there were several noticeable differences. For one, there was a main walkway that was like an incline upward. There were smaller hallways on the side that probably lead to other areas with guards stationed at the entrances. One was probably the royal chambers if I had to guess. I caught a quick peek at the Stormwind Library which was much larger than its game depiction. We passed by the war room which, at a glance, I thought was about the size of a fancy hotel hall. We continued up the hallway until we reached the crest and entered a large circular room. There, the first thing I saw was the famous throne of Stormwind and its king.
Howard Stark aka King Llane Wrynn stood tall before us in a fancy silver and gold plated armor with lion motifs all over it. It appeared to me to be the armor from the movie. However, the sword in his hand was definitely not from there. Stabbing downward onto the ground with his hand resting on its hilt was not Lion's Fang, the sword from the motion picture, but a sword I had only ever seen in artwork, the runeblade known as the Great Royal Sword of Stormwind.
"Your Majesty." Jaime stopped and got to his knees once he reached the center of the room. Everyone else copied his action a moment later. "I have returned with the people you requested."
"Up." King Llane extended his hand and raised it and we did so. "You have my thanks, Knight-Champion. Please remain in case we require your presence."
"Sire!" The Captain bowed before he retreated and stood against the wall.
Now that the introduction was over, it allowed me time to get a good look at the room and take it all in. It was a massive circular room made with bone-white stone and carved in a way that showed its elegance at the same time. Guards lined up against the wall just like in the game while behind the king were twelve of the Kingsguard, something that did not exist in the game world. Unlike a certain world made of Ice and Fire, there were more than seven for the king and his family. I knew from my military education that they numbered up to fifty. There were also windows made of stained glass with latches for opening and closing them. Two such windows were opened now, and there on its still were various types of birds along with a black crow that seemed to caw at the birds that got too close to it. I didn't realize it at first but looking out one of the open windows allowed me to see the entire city of Stormwind. It never occurred to me that the design of the Keep was deceptive and hid the fact that we were traveling upward this entire time.
"Callan Lothar."
My name being called by the king snapped me out of my admiration of the throne room.
"Your majesty." I bowed respectfully after searching the people in the room.
"Your father wanted to be here." He must have realized who I was looking for. "However, because it involved you, I could not be sure that he would be impartial. As such, until this...trial is over, your father is guarding the Queen."
Oh.
"Now, as for the reason we are all here," the king began.
I exhaled deeply, standing as straight as possible and holding my head high before facing the king.
"Serious charges have been leveled against you, Callan," the King continued as he stepped off his throne dais and approached me with his Kingsguard following silently behind him. He soon stopped before me. His sharp eyes raked over me as if trying to find something before locking onto mine. "You will be given time to explain yourself, but first…"
At this, the king turned around and walked back to the throne before sitting down on it heavily. The Great Royal Sword of Stormwind was still in his hand, drawn but pointed downward against the floor as he leaned on it.
"Gavinrad, we will start with you first," he said as he took his eyes off of me and brought them to the knight.
"Sire!" Gavinrad went forward and knelt down.
"Up," King Llane said with a raised hand. "Now, tell me exactly what happened as you saw it."
Unlike a real courtroom, there were no chairs or separation of defendant and plaintiff. Of course, unlike a real courtroom, there weren't almost a hundred elite guards in the room ready to take off a person's head if they misbehaved either. So, I found myself only a few feet from my accuser with nothing separating us.
"I would like to start off by saying that Callan Lothar is a noble and honorable man, and it was an honor to have served at his side during those few weeks," Gavinrad began as he looked at me with emotion. "For the time I served with him, I witnessed the Light shine upon and bless him above all others."
The king's eyes flickered to me momentarily before returning to the Brotherhood Knight.
"He is someone I have grown to respect and yes, even greatly admire," the knight continued. "Which is why making such an accusation sickens me but...I saw what I saw. With the dark artifact in hand, he attacked the Guardian in front of my eyes."
Once more the king's eyes flickered to me, hardened before returning to Gavinrad.
"I do not make this accusation lightly, but I saw how he dueled the orc warlock and ripped from his hand the cursed orb of unknown origin," Gavinrad pleaded his case. "I asked him many times for him to release the Guardian, but all of my pleas were ignored. It was then I resolved to de-armed him so that he would stop his assault on the Guardian. Unfortunately, Lady Mara saw fit to intervene on Callan's behalf."
I saw the king's jaw set and his eyes move from Gavinrad to behind me where I knew the two not-paladins were. They were not in armor but instead fancy cleric robes. They told me that perhaps seeing them like this would lend more weight to my innocence.
"So you did not seek to take his life?" the king asked as his gaze returned to Gavinrad.
"No!" Gavinrad denied it vehemently. "He is Lord Lothar's son! I wouldn't dare!"
The king nodded his head in approval of the knight's mercy.
"No matter what... affliction may have gripped him, I could not just kill him." Gavinrad shook his head at this. "Though he would have lost an arm, it would still allow him to keep his life."
"Your reasoning is sound." The King's approval made my hair stand on end. "Continue."
"Then, while I was busy with Lady Mara Fordragon, we both heard a pained scream and found the Guardian on death's door with the dark object still in Callan's hand," Gavinrad explained as his eyes took on a regretful expression as he relieved those memories. "After that… some talking dragons attacked. Their ire seemed to be directly leveled at Callan, not us."
King Llane raised an eyebrow. "That was not in the report you sent us."
"It...it was something we thought best to tell you in person," Gavinrad explained hesitantly. "But Callan refused to explain his connection to those beasts and denied having anything to do with them when they clearly sought him out."
The king's eyes now shot back to me and then back to the knight.
"Are you sure these dragons really sought him out?" The king arched forward, leaning more onto his sword. "Or is it a dark trick played upon your mind?"
"Everyone that was there could attest to this," Gavinrad answered firmly as he turned to the two clerics. "Everyone."
The two clerics looked put upon but could not lie and so said nothing.
"And so, what transpired between Callan and the dragons?" Llane asked with great interest.
Gavinrad was hesitant because when spoken out loud, it would sound crazy. "Nothing, he never got a chance to speak because… more dragons appeared and drove them off."
There was a moment of silence as the king waited but realized nothing more was forthcoming.
"And?" he asked for clarification.
"And that was it…" Gavinrad's face looked just as confused as it did the first time it happened. "They drove the first ones off and left."
"They did not return?" Llane pressed.
"No, sire." Gavinrad shook his head. "They did not."
"And what is it that Callan Lothar accused the Guardian of that you could not write in the report?" The King finally got to the meat of the matter.
Gavinrad looked at me for a few seconds before he steeled himself and turned to the king.
"Demonic possession, your Majesty." Gavinrad exhaled as many incredulous gasps escaped from the guards in the room. "Not only that, but he asserted that the Guardian had always been demonically possessed even from before he was born."
"Preposterous!" the King shouted as his eyes shot to me with anger in it. "He has saved my life several times over. How could you..."
Suddenly, he stopped and closed his eyes before taking a deep breath. Exhaling loudly, he opened his eyes and motioned for my accuser to continue.
"He also spoke of other things, made wild claims about the demons and their hierarchy..." Gavinrad did not believe me and his tone sounded it. "He never shared these thoughts before and only did so after he obtained the cursed artifact."
Well...things were not looking good for my defense.
"Bring Medivh here," the King ordered and with that, a stretcher where a very old and frail-looking Medivh lay was brought forward. At his side was the Abbot who simply bowed to the king.
"My King." The Abbot bowed, however Llane was already on his feet as he walked to the stretcher.
"My friend..." Llane said with clear emotion in his eyes as he took in Medivh's withered appearance before turning to the holy man. "Abbot...how is he?"
"He is stable, but whatever transpired taxed his body and spirit greatly," the Abbot said but shot me an apologetic glance. He knew that his words weren't going to help my case. The king did not look pleased, but stood up and stared at Gavinrad.
"So, in short, Callan's possession of this orc warlock artifact changed his behavior to something more sinister. Furthermore, he could potentially be in league with dangerous dragons," the King summarized sufficiently. "Is that correct?"
"Yes, my king." Gavinrad bowed his head.
"Khadgar, you were Medivh's apprentice and the one closest to him. Did you see any signs of demonic possession?" the king asked the future legendary mage.
"No, your Majesty." Khadgar shook his head. "My master showed no such signs."
Of course not...
"So Gavinrad did not speak any false words?" the king pressed. "His version of the events stand true?"
"Yes, your Majesty." Khadgar bowed low. "I can confirm and swear upon the mark of the Kirin Tor that everything Sir Gavinrad said is true."
"High Cleric Fordragon and High Cleric Victoria, has Sir Gavinrad said anything that is untruthful?" the King asked, giving the cleric a respectful gaze. However, his question threw their game plan out the window. They were hoping they could go into their own version of events. "High clerics?"
"No, your Majesty..." Mara reluctantly admitted. While Gavinrad did embellish, he did report the facts.
"Did you sense anything that could prove that Medivh was in fact demonically possessed?" the king continued to keep his eyes on the clerics.
"There was that dark voice filled with menace we all heard." Mara's defense made me wince. It was a flaw with that defense. "It was toward the end and that which made us stop fighting each other to check on the two."
"Is it true, Gavinrad? Was there a dark voice that was menacing that you all heard?" The king turned to Gavinrad but saw the knight close his eyes and sigh.
"Yes, my King but...that same dark voice sounded similar to that of the warlock that was the original owner of the cursed artifact." Gavinrad turned to his crush and appeared very apologetic. "Lady Fordragon and Victoria can confirm this."
"Is this true, High Clerics?" the king asked, seeing the clerics look uncomfortable.
"….yes, your majesty," Mara finally admitted. They had been on the wall when the warlock attacked with dark K'ara.
The king looked down to the frail-looking Medivh whose chest rose and fell softly, the pained expression from weeks ago having eased off thanks to whatever Abbot Winston did.
"Abbot, show me the cursed object," the king said after he left Medivh's side. However the moment he said that, two conjurers appeared on either side of the king.
"Whoa..." I breathed. They must have used the mage utility spell, Invisibility, but I never heard of it lasting that long. Everyone ignored my remark as the Abbot took out the white box with the church's script all over it.
Before the king could touch it, the two middle age conjurers performed some sort of rite over it. Runes of power were etched into the air and hover only for a moment before dispersing. After the two conjurers were finished with the box, they nodded to the king.
"Open it," the King commanded.
Even though it was daytime, the room seemed to become a bit brighter as K'ara's light filled the room. The king's expression was like everyone else, one of awe. However, I immediately felt K'ara search for me, and when she did, her light dimmed but there was still a dense golden glow on her. It was something that had been happening ever since I…liberated K'ara from the Horde. No source material said the Ashbringer orb had sentience on this level...
"...this is the cursed artifact?" the King asked incredulously and shot Gavinrad a look of disbelief.
The king stared at K'ara for a few minutes before his eyes turned up to the Abbot. "Is it safe to touch?"
The Abbot, in reply, nodded his head and laughed amusingly. "According to Callan, she is a lady so be gentle, my King, but yes, you can."
The king blinked at the Abbot's words before his eyes returned to K'ara. Slowly, his hand reached out and gently picked up the orb and held it before him reverently.
"This was really a cursed object?" the king asked once more as he held K'ara in his hand at eye level to inspect her for any sign of evil.
"I cannot say as I was not on the battlefield that day." the Abbot declined to answer tactfully. "However, I can say with certainty that no matter who was in the right and wrong, whatever transpired that day, K'ara was not the cause."
The Abbot's voice was full of conviction.
The king held the orb for a few more minutes before he gently placed them back into the box. After the box was snapped shut, it brought everyone back to their senses. I watched as the king stared at the box for a few moments before turning to me with a complicated expression in his eyes.
"Gavinrad was right in what he did," the king said. I could feel Gavinrad's tension fading away.
"However, why did you think Medivh was possessed by a demon? How could you even know?" The King turned to me now. I had his undivided attention. "And what is your connection with the dragons that appeared?"
"Caw!" the crow cawed, making me turn to it before the king's cough brought me back.
This was it, this was the moment when everything will change. I already fucked up the timeline somehow and while I suppose I could roll over for the Bronze, that brief taste of freedom was too good. I hadn't realized how much I really restricted myself all this time, not really living my life to the fullest. So, starting from this moment on, I was just gonna live and whatever was gonna come at me… Well, they better bring it. Of course, that didn't mean I didn't have a rough plan.
"Callan," the King prompted me again, waiting for my explanation.
However, first I had to launch the biggest bullshit defense ever seen in the history of Azeroth.
"Well, your Majesty," I began casually, trying to keep the nervousness out of my voice. "Do you remember that time I spoke to my father about how I gained the Light blessing?"
The king appeared thoughtful before he nodded. "I remember."
"The ability to wield the Light was not the only thing I gained that day. I also received a vision from the Light that showed me… glimpses of a possible future."
"You're a prophet?!" the Abbot asked in shock. His gaze slowly became more reverent.
"No!" I shouted because I wanted to nip that right in the bud. Sure, I knew of their future, but if I admitted to that, what would happen if things didn't pan out? They would blame me, and I would need to get the hell out of dodge. Besides, judging by the Bronze fatwa on my head, the future was no longer set in stone. "It was just glimpses of, if you want to be generous, key moments."
The king looked skeptical, but I could not blame him. I would call prophets crazy too.
"And these so-called glimpses showed you a vision where Medivh was possessed by a demon?" he asked.
"No, your Majesty." I shook my head. "Medivh was not possessed in the traditional sense."
"Explain," the King cut in before I could continue. Talk about being impatient.
"The demon that possessed Medivh had been hiding inside the Guardian's mother this entire time so, in a way, the moment his soul formed was when the possession took root."
"Preposterous!" Gavinrad shouted but was silenced by a glare from the king. The king then looked at me to continue.
"Are you saying Lady Aegwynn was possessed by a demon?" the king asked, his tone hard. The kingdom reviving Aegwynn's patronage was one of the biggest boons of the Kingdom of Stormwind all those years ago.
"No, your Majesty." I shook my head quickly. "The demon was hiding inside of her like a little parasite, waiting for the right time to steal her power without her knowledge. Her conceiving Medivh, I mean the Guardian, gave Sargeras the perfect opportunity to steal a body and to a greater extent, her powers."
"Caw!"
Just the mere mention of the name seemed to make the room darker.
"Who is Sargeras?" King Llane asked with a frown.
"The leader of the Burning Legion which is what the demons call themselves," I said as I gazed at the king. "And he wants the world we live in badly. His exorcism here was merely a setback. He will return."
There was a moment of collective silence for everyone, even for those not involved, to digest the information. The king, being more worldly and knowledgeable, recovered first.
"And the Light showed you all of this?" the king asked me doubtfully as his eye flicked to the box again.
"No." I shook my head. I knew things would get dicey if I said it was all visions of the future. There was a simpler way to play off my current meta-knowledge. "The Light told me."
There was a moment of collective disbelief at my statement. It was something I never even talked about with my clerics or the Abbot.
"The Light told you?" The king was clearly trying to hold back denouncing me as a madman, probably because of his friendship with my father.
"Well, not the Light specifically, but more like their agents?" I ventured. I ignored the stunned expression of the Abbot and the clerics to point at the box. "K'ara was one such agent."
"Abbot?" The king's eyes never left me as he asked the Abbot to confirm my words.
"...I-I don't know, my King." The Abbot gazed down at the box and its implication. "There are records, scripts of writing about the Light's agents that date back to antiquity..."
The king leaned back while blinking at the new knowledge bomb I just dropped onto his lap. The Abbot didn't say no outright and cited precedence which meant a heavy point on my side of the scale.
'I don't know, your Majesty. I was just doing the Light's work!' I probably have to explain to the Naaru why I lied, but that was a problem for future me. The king took a while to come to grips with my startling revelation. However, I knew he felt K'ara's presence. Those that are Light aligned knew instantly there was something holy about her.
"If…" the King began with uncertainty. "If what you say is true, then did you not vanquish him when you did this to Medivh? What is this about a setback? About his return?"
He gestured to Medivh's body to show my handy work.
"Your Majesty," I said as seriously as I could. "What I purged from Medivh was just a tiny portion of his power. His real body is still out there in the great dark beyond, destroying other worlds."
The king rubbed his head, and I couldn't blame him. It was a lot to take in.
"It is also why the Guardian is so weakened now." I prepped my closing argument. "The Guardian had been infected by Sargeras from the very beginning. His soul never had a chance to become fully formed."
I heard the Abbot and the other girls gasp at my statement.
"What I did was burn the rotted part of his soul away, leaving whatever that was purely him behind," I said as I pointed to Medivh's gaunt form. There was a flutter of wings as the crow was now on the comatose man's chest. Mara tried to shoo the bird away and was rewarded with a peck on her finger for it. "So that is why he is in the condition he is now. He could have died, but he didn't. Like I told the Abbot before, his soul just needs time to recover and grow before he can wake up."
There was a long moment of silence at what I said. Meanwhile, the two clerics stopped trying to get rid of the crow as they no longer wanted to be pecked at. I narrowed my eyes at the crow and saw it tilting its head back and forth at me.
"So you expect me to believe that Medivh, my friend and the realm's greatest champion, had been possessed by a demon all this time?" The king began to question me, making me turn to him. "And that you saw a vision from the Light that showed you this?"
"He had bouts of lucidity which is the Medivh you probably know," I answered seriously. "In fact, in the final moment, Sargeras was too powerful even for me and K'ara. It was Medivh's spirit himself who helped me burn away his corruption."
"Caw!" I whipped my head to the crow only to see it hop on Medivh's chest gently while tilting its head back and forth at his face.
"If he was a demon, why not explain that to Khadgar and Gavinrad?" The King's question brought me back to him again. "Would it have killed you to take a moment and explain what was going on? Perhaps you would have allies to fight the demon."
"Yes, and it would have killed me," I replied seriously. "In fact, it would have killed all of us. You have to understand how powerful he was, your Majesty. If I had let up for a single moment, a single second, he would have gotten free and wreaked untold havoc. I couldn't let that happen..."
And that was the complete truth. No matter what happened, I couldn't let an exposed Sargeras go and cause that much chaos. There was a long moment of silence as the king kept his eyes on me, never wavering except only to blink. No one dared to interrupt him and I tried to not fidget under his gaze. Only guilty people fidget!
So we waited. Seconds passed by, turning into minutes until the king stood up slowly and walked toward me, his expression unreadable. I had to stop myself from swallowing hard as the king stood before me before. To my surprise, he clapped a plated fist over my shoulder.
"If what you said was true, then…" The King's eyes fell onto my form. "You might have just saved us all."
I saw Gavinrad stiffen out of the corner of my eye.
The King then turned to the Abbot. "May I see the or–Lady K'ara, please?"
The Abbot nodded and opened the box where the king quickly, but respectfully, held the orb in his hand. He then walked toward Gavinrad and held out the orb to him.
"Can you still call this a cursed object, Sir Gavinrad?" the king asked sternly.
What could Gavinrad say? K'ara was exuding pure holy light. If he denounced her, wouldn't that be like him denouncing the Light itself? I had to school my face because it looked like I was gonna get away scot-free! If I had been a mage, it would have been much tougher to prove it, but the Light had built-in trust with almost everybody. Light magic for the win once more!
"No..." Gavinrad admitted. "I cannot, but I still stand by what I saw."
The king sighed but nodded.
"I will make my ruling now in regards to Medivh."
I took a deep breath as I saw the king look between me and Gavinrad.
"I declare Callan innocent in the matter of attacking the Guardian due to special circumstances," the king said as he clapped his hand on my shoulders again and gave me a fatherly squeeze before he gave everyone a cold expression. "However, what had been heard today about the Guardian must never leave this room upon pain of death. Understood?"
"Yes, your Majesty!" the guards shouted loudly, saluting.
"Good, now that that is resolved." The king turned back to me. "Can you explain the dragon part of what Gavinrad reported?"
"Easily," I said and saw everyone give me an expectant look, even the cute little crow. "This had to do with the glimpse of the future I was shown, your Majesty."
The king did not interrupt but instead waited for me to continue.
"You see, the Light told me that the dragons that attacked me were from the Bronze dragonflight," I confessed solemnly. "They are the self-styled guardians of time and to them, there are certain events that are predestined to happen. With me changing that well… I wasn't surprised they paid me a visit."
The king and even Gavinrad took a moment to absorb the enormity of what I just told them. Sorry, Bronze dragons, but under the bus you go!
"What event was it that this Bronze dragonflight took issue with?" the King asked as his eyes instantly darted over to Medivh's prone form. His eyes were not the only pair to do so as many more looked at the Guardian's prone form. Wait, where did that crow go? "Callan?"
Oh, it looked like I would have to reverse that bus over the Bronze.
"It was because I might have prevented the destruction of our kingdom," I told him.
The king sucked in a sharp breath as his eyes widened in shock. I do believe that was the first time he ever lost composure. "Y-You saw Stormwind destruction in the Light's vision?"
"Yes, and the part that possessed Medivh played a role in it," I confirmed for the king. "I also saw his death at the hands of my father, Khadgar, and the orc assassin that came after me for his betrayal of the kingdom but by then, it was too late."
"Lothar and Lady Garona?" The king's eyes went to a stunned Khadgar at my accusation before he returned to me. "How–how was the kingdom destroyed?"
"By the orcs, your Majesty," I told him seriously. "They are agents of the Burning Legions and were invited here by Medivh himself."
"Invited?" The King looked pained. "How? We guard all the passes and our fleets would have spotted any such invaders..."
"He opened a Dark Portal in the Black Morass, your Majesty." It was then I realized they didn't know about the orcs' extraterrestrial origin. "My King, the orcs are not of this world. They came from another world, one where they slaughtered all of its inhabitants at the bidding of their demonic masters."
"The Draenei..." King Llane breathed softly as he realized the full implication of what I said. "Why–why would the dragons want our kingdom destroyed? What possible reason could it serve?"
"For a better future," I told the king truthfully. "Only in the ruins of our kingdom could a better future be built according to the Bronze dragonflight's predestined fate."
The king looked down at his long-time friend. "And Medivh's role in this..."
"To open the Dark Portal, assassinate our best mages, stymie our effort in stopping the orcs, and then die," I explained as simply as I could.
"Did you see this better future in your vision?" the King's eyes burned into me.
"No." Yes, I did, but I wasn't going to tell him that. "My vision ended with the Guardian's death and our kingdom's destruction. What was left of our people was forced to flee north to seek succor from the northern kingdoms."
The king looked horrified, which was understandable, so were the Kingsguards and other royal guardsmen's expressions. However, Gavinrad was a surprise. I thought he didn't believe me, but he looked like he wanted to throw up. Finally, the king's eyes hardened as he looked at me.
"These–"
"Dragons!" Words of pure power suffused the room, much like how Medivh had done before.
The two conjurers and the royal guards were instantly on alert and searched for the originator of the voice. A moment later, they found the source. It was the crow that was on Medivh's body earlier. Only now, it exuded power. It was perched on the top step of the throne dais, surrounded by visible swirls of arcane, frost, and fire magic around it.
"How dare they!" The crow spoke and made everyone back away as it shifted its form, much like how Medivh did in the game to unveil…. Oh, wow.
"Who are you?" King Llane held up the Great Royal Sword of Stormwind. "Identify yourse–it can't be!"
A sexy older woman with long blond hair and a haughty ice-cold expression, dressed in royal purple robes with gold trimming, held up a specialized Lion's pendant to the king. I didn't get the meaning, but Khadgar, the Abbot, the King, and the Royal guards did.
The King lowered his sword, confusion etched on his face as he stared at the woman as if he couldn't believe what was being shown to him.
"Lady Aegwynn?!"
...what?
TBC
AN: Thanks to my Lord Commander Icura for helping me edit this while we try to conquer all of the Old World in Total Waaaargh. Appreciate it!
Secondly thanks to all the readers and reviewers. The discussion for this fic had been awesome and at time, eye opening. I continue to look forward to such reviews and discussion :D
Finally, Surprise! You thought this was gonna be a long trial? Pffft! I had a good chuckle when I saw some were concerned that it would be dragged out. Also yes, Dark Shaman was a thing earlier than it should be but it's not impossible and with an evil rag at the bottom the Dark Iron must have practiced that version before Moria taught them the good version.
No maps this time, I will do those when there is something worthy to put there.
Thank you once more for reading and those that threw something in the pa-treon at- IcuraandVahn if you want to support thanks again!