Chapter 32: Righteous Destiny

Kael'thas averted his gaze from the portal in front of him and looked at his son who was sitting on the floor while his half-sister was healing him with the help of the holy light. He didn't hesitate to walk over to them. "How much time do you need?"

"I'm done soon, my king. But I fear that some scars will be left behind. I was not able to close all wounds cleanly," Sydori replied.

Kael'thas nodded. "There are worse things than scars."

"That's right but still. These marks may never leave him. Only with the help of magic, he may get rid of them but the progress is very painful."

"I'm glad as long as he survives. Let's hope the torture he received won't change him."

"I'm fine, your highness," Kelrian said. His voice was quiet and weak but at least he had said something. He had been silent for three days and only communicated with gestures. Most of the times he hadn't reacted to Kael'thas', Sydori's or Elena's attempts to start a conversation with him.

"I'm not sure about that but I trust your word. Do you feel strong enough to go through the portal? I can't leave you here but we can't wait forever because we don't know when Garithos will return."

"I'm fine," responded Kelrian. "I think I can go through the portal."

Lady Vashj came to them. "You should send your people through the portal, Kael. It is time that we take one final step towards destiny."

Kael'thas gaze fell on her, a small smile appeared on his lips as he stared into her eyes. Despite looking like a sea snake, her face was very beautiful. She must have been stunning as a night elf. He had no doubt she had many admirers ten thousand years ago.

He had to admit he had grown fond of her since he had met her. He had talked to her about their pasts, their interests and other topics. He had to say that she had a very interesting personality. She may look like a monster but she was not a monster. She only wanted those naga who followed her to survive. She was a leader who thought first of her people and then of her own interests. Just like him.

"You are right, Vashj," the king replied. His gaze fell on Kelrian, receiving a nod from him. Then he looked at the one hundred seventy gathered blood elves, noticing determination on the faces of most of them. "My people are ready."

A satisfied smile could be seen on Lady Vashj's lips. "Good."

Kael'thas turned to his people. "You have heard her. It's time to take the final step towards our new destiny. The Alliance is failing so we need new allies but we also need a new source of power. Lady Vashj promised that Illidan Stormrage will help us dealing with the never-ending hunger for arcane energy. We will never have to feel the way we are feeling now if we go through the portal and allow him to help us. In exchange, we will serve him. I rather serve him than that bastard named Garithos. To hell with him."

"To hell with him," repeated the blood elves loudly."

Kael'thas smiled and ordered the first group to walk through the portal. An hour later most sin'dorei have stepped through the portal. Only four remained. Kael'thas looked at Sydori, Elena and Kelrian. "It's your turn now."

"What about you, my king?" asked Sydori.

"I will go with Lady Vashj after her people have stepped through the portal. I'm the king so I go last. The Captain leaves the sinking ship last. I won't go before the last ally has stepped through it."

"I will see you on the other side, my king," said Kelrian.

Kael'thas nodded and gave him a small smile. "Now go." He watched them leave, waiting until the last naga had stepped through the portal. Only he and Lady Vashj were left. He stared into her eyes, noticing that she was doing the same. The naga put one of her hands on his left cheek and caressed it. He didn't do anything about it and allowed her to touch him. He didn't say or do anything. He just stared into her eyes.

Suddenly, he heard a sound, turned around and stepped away from Lady Vashj. Arcane magic was crackling around his fingers, his eyes were narrowed as he took a closer look at his surroundings. Lady Vashj had her bow drawn and an arrow knocked.

"Lower your bow, snake. I do not intend to harm you," shouted a voice. Two creatures came in their sight. Kael'thas' narrowed eyes remained on the female. He regarded her from head to toe. Her skin was bluish, there were marks under her red eyes, most of her pale blonde hair was hidden beneath her red hood. Her facial features were familiar to Kael'thas. His eyes widened as he recognized who she was.

His voice reflected doubt and heavy surprise. "Sylvanas? Is this... Is this really you?"

Sylvanas hesitated for a moment but then she spoke, her voice was cold. "It has been a long time, Prince Kael'thas."

"King Kael'thas," corrected Vashj.

Sylvanas' gaze fell on the serpent. "And you are?"

"I'm Lady Vashj and who's that?" she asked and pointed at the demon next to her.

Kael'thas' gaze fell on the nathrezim. "Is that your new overseer? Did Arthas order him to watch over you?"

Sylvanas' laughter sounded horrible. "My new overseer? No. He is not and Arthas is no longer my master. I'm free, like thousands of others who were once forced to serve him."

Kael'thas tilted his head. "And why is he accompanying you then. Who is he?"

"My newest toy. His name is Varimathras and he serves me..."

"Loyally?" the king asked.

"Well, he hasn't proved his loyalty yet but he soon will," Sylvanas explained.

"And you trust him?" Kael'thas asked. Doubt was clearly hearable in his voice but also visible in his eyes.

"I will see if I can trust him but for now, I need his aid to take down the last dreadlord who is plying his dreadful trade in Lordaeron."

"You want Lordaeron?"

"I didn't say that. I just want to get rid of those who stand in my way. I'm sure you know what I want. We share a common goal, old friend."

"Vengeance," Kael'thas replied without thinking twice.

Sylvanas nodded. "Arthas has to pay for what he did to me, to our kingdom and to our people."

"I agree with you."

"It's good to know that you are not my enemy, Kael."

Kael'thas' blue eyes stared into her red ones. "You came here to help us, didn't you?"

Sylvanas' gaze fell on the portal and then on Lady Vashj. "Yes, I did. But it seems someone was faster than me."

"Lady Vashj supported us against the undead. She is on our side. We share a common goal and a common hatred for Grand Marshal Garithos."

"I've heard of him," replied Sylvanas.

Surprise was reflected by Kael'thas' face. "You did?"

The Dark Lady pointed at Varimathras. "He told me that the demon Detheroc mind-controlled Garithos and forced him to capture your people. He wanted to execute them. Varimathras also told me that Garithos tortured Kelrian. Is that right?"

Kael'thas nodded. "He did."

Sylvanas' eyes narrowed, anger was reflected by them. But her gaze became normal eventually. "How is he doing?"

"He will make it. Elena and his sister are taking care of him."

Sylvanas' eyes narrowed again as she heard that name. "What about my son and my family?"

"Raesh survived and lives with your sisters. Your mother died but I'm sure you are already aware of that."

"I am. Lyndia died too so did Sylvera. They are still in Arthas' hands but I intend to free them if I find them."

Kael'thas' eyes reflected a mix of shook and grief. "Sylvera died?"

For a short moment, grief was also visible in Sylvanas' eyes. "Unfortunately, yes. Can you do me a favour?"

"Depends."

"Don't tell Kelrian about me and about everything I told you. I'm sure the torture left marks on him. I don't want you to make it worse. Tell him when the time has come but not right now. Let him recover first."

"You still care about him, don't you?" the king asked curiously.

Sylvanas didn't respond to him. She just stared at him coldly.

"Anyway, I will be quiet if that's what you wish but keep in mind that he deserves to know the truth. The truth about you and your daughter."

"I know. He shall know when the time his right. But for now, I want you to withhold these pieces of information."

"I will think about it."

"Not only think about it," responded Sylvanas. Her voice was louder and more aggressive.

Kael'thas lifted his hands in surrender. "Whatever you say, Sylvanas. Your wish is my command."

A small smile appeared on her lips. "That's what I wanted to hear."

Sylvanas' gaze fell on the portal again. "Where are you going?"

"Meeting new allies. That's all you need to know for the moment," said Lady Vashj.

Sylvanas' eyes narrowed. "I wasn't talking to you, snake," she hissed.

"I would have said the same, Sylvanas. I'm not sure if I can trust you yet. That's why I won't tell you where we go. But I'm looking forward to working with you against the Lich King if you convince me that I can trust you. As you know, Arthas killed my father, my mother and my wife probably too." He made a short pause. "Did you see Alina somewhere in his ranks?"

Sylvanas shook his head, noticing that Kael'thas' facial expression didn't change at all. "But that doesn't have to mean that she was not raised. I don't know about her fate." She might be wrong but she had the assumption that Kael'thas was already over the death of his wife.

The way he had stared into the naga's eyes... Only a blind person wouldn't notice the tension between them. Imaging the king with the naga made her sick but she was the last person who would judge anyone for their love interests. As far as she knew, the naga had been night elves once just like the sin'dorei.

She wondered if Kelrian had already gotten over her. She clearly remembered that she told him to move on. She didn't want him to be alone and unhappy for the rest of his mortal life. It was not unlikely that he had found love again. She had died more than a year ago, so it was possible that he had managed to move on.

If there would be a new woman in his life it could only be Elena. Sylvanas had no doubt Elena would throw herself at him and take advantage of her death. Kelrian believed that she had been turned into a different creature, so it was very likely that Elena was trying to win him over.

Sylvanas didn't know what she should think about it. On, the other hand, she would be happy if Kelrian would find love again. At least the living Sylvanas would have been happy for him. But the undead Sylvanas was conflicted. She felt many emotions. Many emotions she couldn't identify. But she was able to recognize one of them. Jealously. At least she believed it was jealousy. Otherwise, she had no explanation why thinking about Elena and hearing her name made her so angry. So angry that she even imagined smashing Elena's head against a wall over and over again...

"We will go now," announced Kael'thas. Sylvanas was brought out of her thoughts and looked back at the king. "I wish you good luck with your plan. May Arthas get what he deserves."

"I'm looking forward to seeing you again, old friend," Sylvanas responded politely and lowered her head in respect as she had always done in life whenever she had said goodbye to him.

Kael'thas regarded her for a few moments before he stepped through the portal with Lady Vashj. He checked his surroundings immediately when he came out on the other side. The area was more dismal and neglected than any other area Kael'thas had ever seen. The ground was not even, auburn and very firm. He saw no sign of vegetation and the ground didn't look as if it was fertile.

His people and the naga were standing around him and Lady Vashj, looking at them expectantly. Kael'thas let his gaze wander. Some of them looked very determined, they would follow him wherever he would go, while others looked insecure and were wondering why they went to this miserable and wretched place. Kael'thas couldn't hold that up against them because he was also wondering why they were there in this sad place.

"What is this desolated place, Vashj?"

"This shattered world is called Outland, Kael. It is all that remains of Draenor, the former homeland of the orcish Horde."

"I remember when Archmage Khadgar led the Alliance Expedition here, years ago. He almost succeeded in wiping out the orcs for good. In an attempt to escape, Ner'zhul opened a number of massive dimensional gateways, but all they succeeded in doing was tearing the planet apart. That's what he told me."

Lady Vashj nodded. "And now, amongst the ruins of this dead world, we have come to find the master."

Kael'thas raised a brow. "Illidan is here? Why? What could possibly interest him in this barren wasteland?"

"That I do not know. Regardless, we should seek him out quickly."

"Agreed... Actually, I am anxious to meet him again. If he can cure my people of their hunger for magic, I will gladly pledge myself to his service."

Lady Vashj gave him a small smile. "Let's go, Kael. Your people can't wait to find their cure. It's somewhere out there in Outland and all we have to do is to find Illidan."

"Do you have any idea where he might be? Where shall we start looking?"

"We should go north. Lord Illidan told me that he wanted to erect a base there."

Kael'thas nodded. "Let's go then, Vashj. The earlier we find him the better."

"I agree, Kael," Vashj responded and smiled at him.

---

"I told you it was a waste of time to go there, milady. The sin'dorei managed to get free without your help while Balnazzar has strengthened his defence. He knows we are coming. If we would have attacked him immediately, half of his forces would have died before he would have noticed our presence. Now, we won't be able to surpass his defence." Varimathras' voice was deep as always and sounded reproachful.

The dreadlord was reproaching her, blaming her for that foolish move. She knew he was right. She had allowed her emotions to take control of her and lead her to do that foolish move. She shouldn't have gone to Dalaran and try to help the sin'dorei. She should have attacked Balnazzar immediately. She knew that. She didn't know why she went to Dalaran.

On the other hand, she couldn't have known that her former people had found new allies. She had thought they had no allies and would be executed by that bastard. She couldn't have known that they teamed up with these vile creatures.

Sylvanas didn't want to admit it but she went there because she didn't want her people to die. She couldn't allow that her race would be extinguished. She guessed that only a small portion of the survivors had been trapped in Dalaran but it was not unlikely that these former prisoners belonged to the few warriors Quel'Thalas had left. The sin'dorei wouldn't be able to help her to fight the Scourge without warriors.

She was glad that her former people were safe. She didn't want to admit it but she still cared for them. Nor did she want to admit that the main reason why she went to save them was that she didn't want Kelrian to die. She would rather cut out her own tongue than saying that aloud.

The initial situation was worse than it would have been if she wouldn't have gone to Dalaran. Balnazzar had more men than her and he was the strongest of the three dreadlords. Varimathras would never admit that but it was true. She knew it. She had felt their auras and the aura of Balnazzar had been a lot stronger than the one of Varimathras. It wouldn't be easy to take him down but Sylvanas was convinced that she could defeat him with Varimathras at her side. But first, she had to get rid of his army.

"Lady Sylvanas? Did you hear what I said?"

"I did."

"And?"

"And what? Do you want to keep reproaching me or shall I hit you until you stop?" she asked, her crimson eyes glowed dangerously.

Varimathras swallowed, making a sound in the back of his throat. A small amount of fear was visible in his eyes. "I'm sorry, milady. I didn't mean to...Forgive me...I..."

Sylvanas slapped him hard across the face. Twice. Her face reflected anger. "The next time I will have your head on a spike if you ever dare to contradict me, reproach me or try to correct me. IS THAT CLEAR?"

Varimathras trembled when he saw the maniacal expression on her was unpredictable and that made her so dangerous. He was afraid of her, afraid of what she would do to him if he would say a wrong word or do a wrong move. He knew he had to be careful in her near. One wrong step could cost him his head.

"IS THAT CLEAR, VARIMATHRAS?" she asked again, her voice was much louder.

"Yes, milady."

The expression on her face became normal again. She had calmed down and was no longer furious. A satisfied smile appeared on her lips. "Good."

"We still don't have enough men to defeat Balnazzar's army," Varimathras mentioned carefully, hoping Sylvanas wouldn't rip his head off for noting facts.

"I know but there is someone whose army is big enough."

"You mean Gilithos?"

"Garithos," corrected Sylvanas. "His name is Garithos."

"How do you think can we convince him to fight for us?"

Sylvanas tilted her head, raising a brow. "You often claim that the nathrezim belong to the smartest races of the universe. Proof it. Tell me how you would do it."

Sylvanas regarded him with interest as he thought about it. A thoughtful look could be seen on his face, his hand rested beneath his chin and was caressing it. He was silent for a few moments. "I have two ideas."

"I'm listening."

"Three to be exact. Either we convince him to join us by making false promises. Or we possess him as Detheroc did. And third, we kill him and I replace him."

A mischievous grin appeared on Sylvanas' lips. "I like the third option but I don't want that you kill him. I want you to bring him to me."

"You want to do to him what he did to your husband, right? Varimathras asked. "You want to make him suffer."

Sylvanas was silent, her expression was impassive.

"I count that as a yes."

Sylvanas remained silent.

The demon cleared his throat. "Shall I go now?"

Sylvanas nodded, a small amount of anticipation was visible in her eyes.

"I'll leave then," he announced and walked away.

---

Nothing but a wasteland. Wherever Kael'thas looked, he saw nothing but the dull, miserable land through which they were walking for days. He had the impression it would never end. He was wondering how long they would have to travel before they would find Illidan. Not only was marching all day very tiring, especially because of the warm atmosphere, but there was also the constant hunger for magic he and his people had to deal with.

Garithos had taken away all of the artefacts and objects in which arcane energy had been stored when he and his men had imprisoned the sin'dorei. Kael'thas and his people had searched the dungeon for these objects but they hadn't found them. Without them, they couldn't satisfy their hunger which had bad consequences for them. They were physically weaker, some had even collapsed and had to be carried by others while a few blood elves didn't make it. They had lost seven so far. They had put them on stretchers and carried them with them, so they could bring their bodies to Silvermoon one day. They deserve a proper funeral and their families deserve to see their bodies and say goodbye to them.

Kael'thas could only hope they would find Illidan soon. His people needed a cure from their addiction to magic. They needed a new source of power to satisfy their hunger. They needed that to survive. He couldn't allow more blood elves to die. Around ten percent of the population of the high elves had survived the invasion. Most of his people died when Arthas left Silvermoon in ruins.

He couldn't allow his people to die out. The ones who were following him needed help but also those who were in Silvermoon, on Quel'Danas and in the villages which had been rebuilt under Alleria's watch. They needed the cure as bad as those who were with him on Outland. Their mission had to be successful, otherwise one day he would have no more people to take care of. He couldn't allow that to happen.

Kael'thas came to a cliff, stopping in front of it and letting his gaze wander. There was a huge base on the other side of the cliff. The design of the buildings was familiar to him. Lady Vashj came to Kael'thas, putting a hand on his back. Her orange eyes took a closer look at the base. "Night elves! What could they be doing here?" she asked confused.

"The warden Maiev swore to capture Illidan at any cost. She must have brought her warriors here to hunt him."

"Damn. We must prevent her from getting him," hissed Lady Vashj.

"I'm afraid but it seems we are too late for that," said a familiar voice. Kael'thas turned around so did Lady Vashj who removed her hand from his back immediately. They saw Kelrian whose condition had become better over the past days. He was one of the few whose condition hadn't become worse since they had stepped through the portal and arrived on this strange, shattered world.

"What do you mean, Kelrian?" asked the king.

"The hidden wards we put on the ground from time to time noticed something," he said and took a glass globe out of his backpack, muttering a few words. The globe started to glow and showed a moving image. It was like a vision, but it showed the events of the present and not of the past or future. Kael'thas' and Lady Vashj's narrowed eyes rested on the object. They saw Maiev, four of her warden and four archers escorting a floating large green crystal in which Illidan Stormrage was locked.

"He might still be alive," said Kelrian.

"We must rescue him before the damned night elves bring him to their base," hissed Lady Vashj.

"I agree," responded Kael'thas. "Let's go."

---

Sylvanas looked up from the map as a familiar person entered the room. It was one of her best dark rangers who had never disappointed her since they had broken free from the Scourge. He had been one of her best rangers in life and his unholy resurrection had only made him stronger.

He waited near the room's entrance and looked at her, waiting until she allowed him to speak. "What is it, Zetai?"

"Varimathras returned with the human you wanted alive."

The corners of Sylvanas' lips formed a small smile, anticipation appeared in her eyes. "Where is he?"

"He's waiting outside."

"Tell him to come in."

"As you wish, milady," Zetai responded and left the room. Sylvanas didn't need to wait for too long. Varimathras, Zetai and the dark rangers Kelia and Velonara entered the room three minutes later. Varimathras carried a humanoid creature wrapped in blankets on his shoulder.

"Welcome back, Varimathras," Sylvanas said with a pleased smile on her lips. "It seems you were successful. I hope you kidnapped the right human and not someone who looks similar to him."

"Don't worry, milady. The humans I manipulated confirmed that the man I kidnapped is Garithos." He put the creature on the floor.

Sylvanas made a gesture and Varimathras didn't hesitate to remove the blankets. A gagged and tied man laid in front of her feet, his once magnificent armour was dirty and heavily damaged. Dried blood stuck on it as well. "He's wounded," Sylvanas remarked.

"He resisted and I wounded him in the progress but he is still alive, as you demanded."

A mischievous grin could be seen on her lips. "Perfect." She regarded the unconscious human for a few moments before she looked at Zetai and Kelia. "Bring him to the back room and remove his armour then tie him onto the table." The dark rangers didn't hesitate to carry out the order.

Sylvanas looked at Varimathras. "Balnazzar hides in the ruins of Lordaeron. Are Garithos' forces mobilized?"

Varimathras nodded. "They are ready for battle and waiting in a camp near your base."

"Perfect. We will attack in two days. Be ready."

"I will, milady."

"Go now." Sylvanas' gaze fell on her dark rangers after the demon had left the room. "You will leave too," she commanded. The dark rangers nodded and walked out of the room. Sylvanas didn't hesitate to go to the back room, her facial expression reflected pure anticipation.

She walked over to Garithos, noticing that he was awake. His brown eyes were widened and he looked around in panic but was unable to anything in the room which was not illuminated.

"Where am I?"

"Somewhere nobody will ever find you," Sylvanas whispered, her voice sounded dangerous. Very dangerous.

Garithos shuttered as he heard her voice. "Who are you?"

Sylvanas was silent.

"What am I doing here?"

"You are being held captive by me."

Garithos' eyes narrowed. "Who are you and why are you doing this to me?"

Sylvanas remained silent and pulled a dagger from her belt, running the tip of her index finger over the blade.

"Let me go," demanded Garithos. "I did nothing to deserve this."

Sylvanas snorted. "That's a lie, Garithos, and we both know it."

Garithos tried to recognize anything in the dark but he saw nothing but the shapes of a person. "Who are you? I'm tired of this. Show yourself, coward."

Sylvanas muttered a few words in ancient thalassian and the surrounding darkness was lifted a little. Garithos was able to see her. His eyes were widened in shock but the shock was quickly replaced by anger and disgust. "An undead Scourge whore, I knew it."

Sylvanas remained calm. "I'm no longer fighting for the Scourge. I want to destroy it by any means."

"Pah. I don't buy that for a second. You want to manipulate me and make me believe you are fighting the Scourge but in truth, you are still a part of it. You undead are all the same. Dumb, mindless creatures who follow that traitorous bastard. I don't listen to your lies, ugly bitch."

"I'm not lying and I don't care if you believe me or not. I didn't bring you here to convince you to work for me. Your men are already under my control. They will help me defeat Balnazzar. I will use them as cannon fodder and those who survive will be controlled by Varimathras. I can also just kill and raise them if I want. You must know that Arthas made the mistake to give me more power than any other creature he had raised. I nearly killed him but one of his loyal bootlickers prevented that at the last moment. Anyway, I am sure you are wondering what I want from you instead."

Garithos' eyes were still narrowed. "Yes, I do."

The corners of Sylvanas' lips formed a wicked smile as she toyed with the dagger. "I will make you pay for what you did to Kelrian," she said and rammed the dagger in his left upper thigh, her smile became wider as she heard his loud and painful screams.

"Who?" Garithos cried out. "I have no idea who you are talking about."

Sylvanas rammed her dagger through his other upper thigh. "You know exactly who I mean." She pressed the tip of the dagger against his neck. "The blood elf you tortured."

"I tortured lots of them. That's not very precise."

Sylvanas' eyes narrowed, she moved her dagger and cut his left cheek. "His name is Kelrian Sunsinger."

Garithos' eyes widened. "You mean the king's lapdog."

Sylvanas cut his other cheek. "I don't like the way you call him."

Fear was clearly visible in his eyes but Garithos still managed to control himself. He didn't beg her to stop nor did he tried to get free. His eyes narrowed eventually and a bold look appeared on his face. "I'm not afraid of you, evil witch."

Sylvanas chuckled. "Your eyes are telling a different story. Seems they are lying. Either them or your tongue. One of them lies. We need to get rid of the liar. What do you value more, Garithos? Your tongue or your eyes?"

Garithos' eyes narrowed, an angry expression appeared on his face. He didn't say anything in response but he spat at her, hitting her face. Sylvanas lashed out, hitting him hard across the face. His nose broke and blood flowed out. "You judge others because of their race. You judge them by the way they look. You are a racist, Garithos. You are the worst of the worst. But you won't be able to judge anyone by their looks if you can't see them," Sylvanas said with a furious voice and brought the tip of her dagger close to his left eye.

"You may kill me witch but you won't succeed in the long run. Someone will come and bring you to justice."

"There is no justice in this world, otherwise, Arthas would be already dead," responded Sylvanas and stabbed, listening to his painful cries which were music to her ears. "And you won't die now. You will suffer and wish you had never touched a hair on Kelrian's head. Your death will be slow and painful. A death a monster like you deserve."

Sylvanas moved the dagger a little to the right and stabbed again.

"Now the looks of other creatures will never bother you again but you won't make it out alive, so it doesn't matter anyway." She paused for a moment, calming down a little as she listened to his painful cries. "I think that's enough for now. See you soon, Garithos. Oh, wait... my bad."

Sylvanas regarded the grand marshal for a few moments before she turned around and walked out of the room, leaving him there alone.