Chapter 43: Homeland

Massive walls surrounded the gate which didn't look too old. It was the replacement of the main gate that had been destroyed by the Scourge. The main gate had stood in the middle of the southern wall of old Silvermoon. Nothing was left of the old gate. All that was left of the gate were pieces of wreckage scattered over the Dead Scar. The new gate was not in the middle of the remaining wall. It was on the right side.

It was not as large as the main gate had been but still large enough. Sylvanas wondered why they had made it so large. The previous gate had been so tall and huge because the architects had found it more aesthetic that way. But there was no need for aesthetics in these times, especially since the resources of the sin'dorei were limited.

Sylvanas assumed that at least. She had no idea if the sin'dorei were lacking resources or not. Nevertheless, she considered it a waste of resources to build such a huge gate. She could only assume that the architects didn't want to give up their pride, their culture and their ideals of beauty.

It was also possible that they had made it so large to signalize other nations that they were not defeated. Maybe they wanted to prove that they still had the resources to rebuild their city and pose a threat to the Scourge. It was not unlikely that they wanted to make Silvermoon look as impressive as possible to scare enemies away. People will think twice before attacking Silvermoon when it had such a huge gate and thick walls that surrounded the city.

Silvermoon looked so different from the last time Sylvanas had seen it. It was a lot smaller. Only the right half had been mostly rebuilt, the left half still laid in ruins. Scourge minions and wretched elves roamed through the ruins of Silvermoon. Alleria had told her that the wretched had once been sin'dorei who had failed to control their innate addiction to magic. They had changed due to the lack of arcane energy.

They were attacking every creature that crossed them and tried to devour the magic inside their bodies. They were a dangerous threat to anyone and the sin'dorei had not managed to get rid of all of them. People usually avoided the ruins of Silvermoon but Alleria and Sylvanas knew that the wretched problem had to be solved one day if the sin'dorei wanted to reclaim all of their lost territories. There was much to do in Quel'Thalas and Sylvanas wanted to help the sin'dorei whenever she could. She would do everything in her power to help them because she knew if she would do that, the blood elves would help her defeating Arthas and the Scourge.

Sylvanas regarded the distant ruins for a few more moments before she looked at her older sister who pointed at the gate. Sylvanas nodded and followed her, knowing that her rangers and Alleria's men were behind her. Sylvanas felt the guards' eyes on her and her Forsaken as soon as they approached them.

The blood elves' eyes were widened, shocked expressions could be seen on their faces. Sylvanas had expected that. It was not their first time to see undead creatures but it was their first time to see undead creatures accompanying their leader. Especially when one of them was a well-known person who had once been very popular among the elves.

They were shocked and surprised to see Sylvanas. Some were disgusted while others were either curious or alarmed. Some of them had put their hands on the handles of their swords, others had raised their weapons a little. They lowered them as they noticed the calm look on their leader's face but they still remained attentive and worried. "There is no need to use your weapons, guards. These undead creatures, who call themselves Forsaken, come in peace. "They are not our enemies."

"Are you sure, Regent Lady?" the guard with the highest rang asked. It was a male with long honey-coloured hair. He had a scar on the left side of his cheek, his eyes were dark blue.

"I am, Captain," responded Alleria with a calm voice.

"But... They are undead," said another guard, a female with green-dyed hair.

Sylvanas looked at the woman. "We never asked to become undead, didn't we? We fought against them just as you did. The only difference between you and me is that I didn't survive the defence of Silvermoon. None of us did. We were raised by Arthas and his vile necromancers and we were forced to serve him. We didn't do that voluntarily. But now we are free and want nothing more than killing that bastard and making him pay for what he did to us, to the sin'dorei and to Quel'Thalas."

The woman said nothing in return. Her gaze rested on Sylvanas, her facial expression still reflected concern. Sylvanas stared at her, causing the woman to avert her gaze eventually. Sylvanas looked at her sisters, noticing that they were giving her curious looks. "Is something wrong?"

Alleria and Vereesa shook their heads. "No," they said in unison.

"What are we waiting for then? As you know, we can't bear the sun for too long. I don't want to be exposed to it any longer than necessary," Sylvanas said.

Alleria nodded and looked at the captain. "Let us pass."

"But, Regent Lady...We..."

"That's an order, captain," responded Alleria with a serious voice.

"As you wish, Regent Lady," replied the man and lowered his head, stepping aside. His men followed his example, making enough space for the Windrunner sisters and their companions. They walked through the gate, arriving on the main road of Silvermoon. Dozens of citizens were gathered there and minding their own business.

Some of them spotted the undead and pointed at them, alarming sound escaped their lips. The citizens around them turned their heads and looked at them too. Shock and surprise were reflected on their faces. Their expressions were similar to those the guards had made. They looked worried but they didn't break out in panic. They didn't run away or screamed. They stood still and closely observed Sylvanas and her companions.

"You don't need to fear them. They are not our enemies. They are fighting the Scourge as we do. They are on our side, so they won't do you any harm. Trust me, citizens of Silvermoon," Alleria spoke loudly so that everyone could hear her.

The citizens trusted Alleria but they remained cautious. They recognized Sylvanas and realized that the rumours about her were true. They had loved her in life but now they were afraid of her. Not everyone but a portion of them. They were suspicious of her. Others were shocked to see what Arthas did to their beloved Ranger-General. Sylvanas assumed that some of them were regarding her as an abomination, as something that shouldn't exist.

She didn't care what these individuals thought about her. What was important to her were the opinions of the majority of the sin'dorei and the opinions of her sisters. She had their favour already, so she only needed the favour of the citizens. She had her sisters behind her and the king was not against working with her. But she also needed the favour of the new Ranger-General. She had to find her successor and convince them that she was not the enemy of the sin'dorei. If she had all these popular people behind her, it would be easier to win the favour of the citizens.

Alleria was aware of the tense and awkward situation so she did something to loosen it up. She put her left hand on Sylvanas' shoulder, giving her a nod. This gesture was only a small gesture but it meant a lot to Sylvanas and to the people around them. It signalized the blood elves that Alleria was not afraid of her. Alleria had always been one of the persons the citizens looked up to the most. Since she had accepted the position as Regent Lady, more and more people had started to look up to her and choose her as their role model. The people had put their trust in her and the king.

The people saw that their leader was touching the woman they had looked up the most since she became Ranger-General. This small gesture signalized them that Alleria trusted her. Some were still suspicious of Sylvanas but most of the gathered inhabitants relaxed. Some gave her small smiles, others addressed her by her name or her former title as they greeted her.

Ranger-General. It had been a long time since Sylvanas had been called that. It sounded weird in her ears. Wrong. She was no longer their Ranger-General and she will never be Ranger-General again, even if she wanted. She was undead and could never take that position again. She didn't want to be Ranger-General because she was already the queen of Undercity. She already had enough responsibilities and tasks to do. She was already busy enough these days. She barely had any time for herself even though she no longer needed to sleep. She was busy all day and night.

Alleria noticed the barely recognizable smile on Sylvanas' lips. She stared into her eyes, keeping her hand on her shoulder. She pulled away eventually and looked ahead. "We should make our way to Sunfury Spire."

"Yes, please. The sun starts to make us feel uncomfortable. Let's go to a place where we are not exposed to the sun," suggested Sylvanas.

"We should go to my office then. There we can talk in private."

"I like that idea."

"Let's go then."

---

The first thing Sylvanas noticed as she entered the spire was the different colour of the decorating elements. The colours of the curtains and carpets had been blue when she had last visited the spire. They were red now. Blood red.

"You redecorated the spire," mentioned Sylvanas as she let her gaze wander.

"The Scourge devasted the spire, so we had to renovate the interior furnishing. We have chosen red as the main colour. We are no longer high elves, we are blood elves and we wanted to live up for that name. As you noticed, more people are wearing red colours these days. The Silvermoon Guards wear red armour, most mages wear red robes. The windows of the spire and other important buildings are made out of red decorative glass, the roofs are covered by red tiles. Red is our primary colour these days," explained Alleria.

Sylvanas gave her an irritated look. "Isn't red the colour of the Horde? I thought you want to remain with the Alliance."

"I have no intention to ally myself with the Horde if that's what you are afraid of."

"I'm afraid of nothing," responded Sylvanas. She stared into her sister's eyes, signalizing her that she was serious about this.

"I believe you, sister."

"So you want to re-join the Alliance?"

"There is no Alliance which we can re-join. The Alliance fell apart when Garithos tried to execute our brethren. We have to create a new one. At the moment, the kaldorei and the sin'dorei are the only members of the new founded Alliance. The Forsaken will be the third member if you agree to work with us. All you have to do is to help us fighting the Scourge and send troops and resources when needed. We will do the same of course."

"I still want to join you."

Alleria and Vereesa smiled at her. "We are glad to hear that."

Sylvanas said nothing in return. She just followed her sisters through the long corridor in which guards were patrolling. They didn't stop walking as they spotted her but their gazes rested on her, they even turned their heads and looked over their shoulders. Sylvanas had still not gotten used to the unpleasant gazes she received from some people.

She had enjoyed being everyone's eye-catcher in life but since her death she hated it. She hated that many creatures were staring at her with shocked expressions on their faces and open mouths. She hated it but there was nothing she could do about it. It was only understandable that people who had known her in life were shocked to see what she had become.

She was wondering how Kelrian would react if he would see her. If they would ever meet again. She had no idea where he was nor did she know if he was alive or not. She hadn't heard of Kael'thas since months. She was eager to find out how Kelrian and Raesh were doing but she didn't dare to ask her sisters, at least when others were around. She might ask them when they would be alone.

They reached the end of the corridor and came to a door in front of which a few guards stood. They gave Sylvanas similar expressions as those guards who had passed them. Sylvanas ignored them and waited until the door was opened, following her sisters. They entered Alleria's office. Sylvanas let her gaze wander, noticing that the room looked similar to the office she once had as Ranger-General. The furniture was similar and the positions where the pieces of furniture stood were almost identical. The only big difference was that Alleria's carpet was crimson red and not blue like hers.

Sylvanas' gaze fell on her sisters who were giving her curious looks. Alleria pointed at the two chairs in front of her desk. "Take a seat, Sylvanas. You too, Vereesa."

Vereesa didn't hesitate to sit down. Only Sylvanas needed a few more moments before she sat down and crossed one leg over the other. Sylvanas' gaze fell on the framed photos on the desk. She picked up one of them, examining it closely. She ran her fingers over the glass, her eyes stared at the three women. She took a closer look at her old self. She had been so beautiful when she had been alive. Beautiful and full of joy. These days, she was neither alive nor full of joy. A year ago, anger had been all she had left.

Now, things were different. She still had her family who would support her. They didn't fear her, otherwise, Alleria wouldn't have touched her. She assumed that Alleria was not aware of how much that small gesture meant to her. She was sure Alleria had mostly done it to signalize the inhabitants that they didn't need to be afraid of her. Nevertheless, it had meant a lot to her. It had felt good to be touched again by a person who had meant so much to her in life.

Sylvanas had had phases where she had not cared about the living members of her family. She had hated them and had been jealous of them. Jealous that they had survived and had not been forced to go through all the pain she went through. She had been jealous that they were still alive.

But she was no longer jealous of them. She no longer hated them. She had noticed that they still meant a lot to her. Shewas certain that the bonds between her and them will never be the same again but she would do anything to create new bonds and make them as strong as possible.

Sylvanas regarded the picture for quite some time before she put it back on the desk. "I don't have a single photo of us. I don't have a single item left that I have owned in life. Except for the ring but it's not mine..."

Alleria leaned forward and put her hand on Sylvanas', giving her a comforting smile. "Now that we are alone, you can talk to us about anything. Don't hold back."

"I'm not a very talkative person. I never was."

"Well, that's not quite right," said Vereesa. "You used to talk to us and our family a lot." Vereesa looked at her oldest sister, giving her a questioning look. Alleria suspected what she was silently asking and gave her a quick nod.

Vereesa looked back at Sylvanas. "You talked a lot with Kelrian." She noticed the change of Sylvanas' gaze but she had no idea what that meant. Suddenly, Sylvanas appeared sad to her. Vereesa parted her lips, intending to ask her if she was alright but no words escaped her lips. She closed her mouth again and averted her gaze, looking at her fingers.

Alleria's gaze remained on Sylvanas who was toying with the ring on her wedding finger while completely lost in thoughts. None of the three sisters said anything. The silence was awkward and unpleasant but none of them broke it. Only when Sylvanas looked up and noticed that her sisters were at a loss of words, she decided to ask something. Something which was in her mind since she got her free will back.

"How is Kelrian doing?"

Vereesa turned her head to look at Alleria, silently asking her if she wanted to respond to Sylvanas. Alleria gave her a small nod and looked at her middle sister. "We haven't heard of him since he went to Outland with the king. We have no idea what he had done in the past months. We have no idea what exactly our brethren are doing on Outland. All we know is that the king is searching for a cure for our addiction to magic."

"He is looking for a cure for over a year, isn't he?"

Alleria nodded. "After the mages destroyed the corrupted Sunwell, he started looking for a cure but..."

"But he hasn't found anything yet. Otherwise, he would already have returned," completed Sylvanas.

"Exactly."

Sylvanas ran her fingers over her forehead. "What is Outland?"

"Outland is another world. The world of the orcs, or what is left of it. Outland is a shattered world. The king described it like that in one of his letters."

"So Kelrian is on another world... I don't like that idea...," Sylvanas whispered. Alleria and Vereesa had heard every single word due to their good hearing. "You miss him, don't you?" Vereesa asked.

Sylvanas was silent at first but then she nodded. She saw no reason in denying it. Kelrian was still important to her. She felt something for him. She was not sure if it was love but she knew that she had strong feelings for him. He was still very important to her. She wanted to meet him again. She wanted that more than anything else.

"I hope he is alive," she said quietly.

"We hope the same, sister," replied the youngest of the three sisters.

"What about my son? How is Raesh doing? Does he know about me?"

Alleria took a deep breath. "I didn't tell him about you yet. I wanted to find out first if you are on our side. I didn't want to give him any false hopes so I withheld that information."

"I assume that news of my return to Silvermoon will spread quickly. It's not unlikely that he will hear of it if he is still in Silvermoon," said the Banshee Queen.

"He is," replied her little sister.

"I should meet him."

"You should, Sylvanas. You should."

"I will."

Alleria took the floor. "Do you want to stay in Silvermoon for a few nights and think about everything or are you already sure that you want to join us?"

Sylvanas' voice sounded determinate. "I am. If the sin'dorei accept the Forsaken then I want to join you."

"We should ask the citizens in this case."

Sylvanas raised an eyebrow. "And how would you do that?

"We can hold a speech in front of a gathered crowd and let them vote."

A thoughtful look appeared on the Banshee Queen's face. "Are you sure that this is a good idea?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

Sylvanas shook her head.

"See. That's the best option we have. We will hold speeches tomorrow in the evening. We will announce it today so that the people have enough time to consider if they want to come or not."

"I think you are right but... I'm not sure if the sin'dorei want to listen to me."

Alleria gave her a comforting smile. "Most of them already know you are here. They have not forgotten what you did for them. They have not forgotten about your sacrifice. I believe they want to hear you."

The Regent Lady noticed that Sylvanas was a little insecure. She put her hand on Sylvanas', caressing it carefully. Sylvanas' eyes stared into hers. Alleria returned her gaze. "You don't need to be afraid, sis. Everything will turn out well."

Sylvanas nodded hesitantly. "And... What should I say to them?" she stuttered nervously.

Alleria put a strand of golden hair behind her ear. "Well, just say what comes in your mind. Tell them about our common goal and tell them why they should trust you and the Forsaken. Remind them what you did for them in the past. Speak about bringing Arthas to justice and that you want to help to rebuilt Quel'Thalas and make it as beautiful and glorious as it was in the past. I'm sure enough things you could say will come in your mind. You were an excellent speaker before the tragic events of the past and I believe you are still an excellent speaker. You just have to put faith in yourself. You have to be self-confident."

Sylvanas gave her older sister a thankful nod. "I think I can do that."

"I have no doubts you can."

"I will stay in Silvermoon as long as necessary," Sylvanas announced after she had been silent for almost five minutes. "We will hold our speeches and then see how the crowd reacts. If their reaction is positive, then I will join your Alliance."

"Malfurion Stormrage wants to meet you and speak to you before we do that. As a founding member of the new Alliance, he has a veto right. I can only allow you to join if he agrees but I have no doubt he will welcome you. I have no doubts you will manage to convince him. He is good at assessing people so I'm sure he will notice quickly that you are not evil. He will quickly realize that you are on our side and have the same motives as we have," Alleria responded.

"When will he come?" Sylvanas asked interested.

"I will send a messenger to him. I assume he will come to Silvermoon tomorrow if he has time."

"I will give my best."

Vereesa put a hand on Sylvanas' shoulder, making the undead elf turn her head to look at her. "Just be yourself, Sylvanas. If you act the same way you did over the past days then Malfurion will have no reason to not trust you."

Sylvanas gave her a small smile. "I hope so."

"Don't just hope. Have faith."

"I have faith, don't worry."

Sylvanas didn't show it, but she was glad that her sisters were supporting her. Having her sisters on her side meant a lot to her. She had feared they would hate her, be disgusted by her or even reject her and cast her out. She had been afraid they would regard her as an abomination. She had had these fears until the end of the meeting in Suncrown Village. During the meeting, she had still been afraid that things would end badly.

Fortunately, everything had gone right. Her sisters didn't hate her nor did they wanted to end her existence. They showed sympathy for her and wanted to support her whenever they could. She was glad that she had them. She was glad that they were not afraid of what they didn't understand. They were the best sisters she could imagine.

The three sisters did nothing but staring at each other for a while. This time, the silence was not awkward or unpleasant. On the contrary, they enjoyed the pleasant silence. It was Sylvanas who ended it eventually. "I think I'm ready to meet my son."

Her sisters smiled at her and got up. "Let's go to him then, shall we?"

Sylvanas got up as well. "Yes, please."