Disclaimer! I don't own Wow. Blizz does, and your soul too.
*** Kingdom of Lordaeron – Lordamere Lake ***
'I missed being on a Kul Tiran ship,' I thought. We were on our way to the other side of the lake or, to be more precise, Dalaran. I was giddy at the prospect initially. After all, Fenris Isle was another point of interest. However, we sailed past that during the night, and all I could make out was a bit of light in the distance. That was disappointing, even more so because of the damn morning fog that blanketed our vision.
I was informed that Lordamere Lake often had a thick fog in the morning, but damn, it was so thick I couldn't even see my hands in front of me. It sucked because we were supposed to anchor at Dalaran's docks soon so I was going to miss every last sightseeing opportunity. As far as travel time went, it was fast. Two days by ship to transport five thousand soldiers to the destination, then two days back to get back to take in more. Basically, four days for a round trip. However, the second wave of troops should already be setting out today. The total time to get the entire fast response army to the other side of the lake was twenty-four days. Much faster than the two-month estimate just to reach Hillsbrad by foot.
Speaking of Hillsbrad, the army there that went by the land route should be close to, if not at Durnholde already. Our first wave was going to ride ahead to link up with them and get things in order. Thoughts of having to meet at Durnholde brought up complicated feelings. Feelings that didn't last very long when the fog suddenly cleared up as if by magic.
"It's the mages doing," Kael'thas said as he walked up to my side at the head of the ship. "Look there. Dalaran's violet spires."
'Ohhh!' Suddenly, as if on Kael's command, the fog fully dissipated, revealing clear blue skies. I let out a loud, impressive whistle upon seeing the outline of Dalaran.
It was just as big as Silvermoon and Lordaeron's capital. Like most stuff in real life, it bore only a passing resemblance to its in-game render. The elven influence was obvious; if they repainted the purple spires to gold and green of Quel'Thalas, it would not look out of place in Silvermoon City. Heck, even their tallest spire was reminiscent of Sunfury's Spire, except no king ruled from there. Instead, their ruling body, the Council of Six oversaw everything from the Violet Citadel. I was pretty sure I was the only one who knew that little fact. Well, the only non-Dalaran human at any rate.
"Welcome to Dalaran, Callan." Kael'thas made a grand gesture of presenting the city.
The first of the ships soon docked and, not long afterward, a flood of soldiers began to cover the Dalaran shoreline. Wheeled carts with massive foodstuff were unloaded by the soldiers while horses led by their riders off of the ships began to spread out to make way for the rest of us. I saw Thoras' banner in the distance alongside Uther's flag. Turning to my knights, I nodded my head for them to raise the lion flag of Stormwind.
Unlike the other army transports, my people and I rode with the elven contingent. Even with our mounts, it would have been a waste of space if it was just us. That was why Alonsus had stuck his priests with us. While Liadrin, or rather High Priestess Liadrin now, was now in charge, they were also advised to listen to my 'words of wisdom.'
I loudly snorted at that thought before I watched as our ship edged closer to the docks. All in all, it wasn't a long wait, less than an hour really, before my transport anchored and disembarked. We made quick work of it as Liadrin began to organize the priests while Kael, Sylvanas, and I walked toward the leaders of our army.
"Hail, King Thoras," Kael greeted the ruler of Stromgarde king. He was in the middle of directing some of the soldiers and stopped to greet us.
"Prince Kael'thas, Knight Commander Callan, Lady Windrunner," Thoras greeted us with a smile. "No sea sickness, I hope?"
The new rank took some getting used to I admit. I was promoted by my queen before I set out so that my standing was a bit more prestigious. Her flimsy excuse was my getting the elves of Silvermoon into the Alliance merited a bump up in rank. I was not sure that was gonna fly with Stormwind's command, but the other kings agreed to it so that was my rank for now.
"Some reported discomfort, but nothing severe," Kael answered. "Now, I would like to bring your attention to something, King Thoras."
"Oh, what is it?" the Stromgarde king asked in concern.
"Be at ease, King Thoras. It is nothing problematic, just a slight change in plan," Kale reassured his fellow monarch. "You see, due to Dalaran's rather...delicate ongoing magical experiment, it would not be safe for so many soldiers to pass through the city itself. Instead, if you look here…"
With a wave of his hand, arcane energy leaped from his hand and saturated the ground. Suddenly, like runway lights, twin purple orbs lit up on the ground to reveal a road that wasn't there before.
"These lights will guide the army around the city and onto the main road," the prince explained. "Pass that would be a small township we had established for trade. If need be, the soldiers could rest and make camp there before marching further on the king's road."
Thoras looked a bit disappointed at not being able to go through Dalaran. It occurred to me that Dalaran was still very much shrouded in mystery even to the humans. Most likely, their ambassador only got to see a few approved areas of the city. I, on the other hand, had thoroughly explored the city before in another lifetime. So while it was impressive and cool seeing the famous city in real life, the desire to actually explore it was not that strong. Besides, a Dalaran that wasn't floating felt incomplete to me.
"We'll wait at the town for the rest before departing to Durnholde," Thoras said as he turned his gaze to the carts. "That'll give us time to organize our supplies."
Since we weren't going into a hot zone, it was decided to send the majority of our supply first ahead of the army. That way we could requisition any additional carts and wagons needed from Dalaran itself.
"Then it shall be as you say," the elven prince agreed. Kael really was like how he was portrayed in the game before the whole corruption fiasco. His ego did not chafe at being under human authority.
"King Thoras." A familiar knight approached the pair. "The supplies are all unloaded. Once they are sorted,we'll be ready to move."
"You must take the road here that Prince Kael'thas has revealed, Lord Uther," Thoras said, addressing the future Silver Hand paladin.
"So that's what that light meant." Uther turned his gaze to the magical road.
A moment later, he was joined by Alexandros Mograine, the future Ashbringer. Gone, however, was their shadow. Turalyon was being kept behind by Alonsus Foal to, much to my dread, study under Victoria. However, the good news was that Alonsus was also there to discuss the merit of fighting with the Light with her. If only we had more time, the Order of the Silver Hand would have been formed by now. All I could see for now was Alonsus laying down the foundation of the order.
"I would like to wait for the next wave so I could guide them," Uther told the king. "Alexandros can stay and guide the rest after that."
Thoras' eyes went to the lake and then back to the troops before he stroked his beard. "No, I need you two with me. My lieutenants will stay behind and guide them in your stead."
Uther had some concern, but a hand held up by Thoras kept him silent.
"We'll gather at the town in the south before setting out," Thoras said as he turned to Kael. "You said that they are aware of our coming, Prince Kael'thas?"
"Indeed." Kael'thas nodded. "They have been informed to cooperate in whatever manner you need by the Council."
"If need be, I can always stay back to help guide the next several waves," I offered. I was given a position of command, so I might as well make it look like I was contributing.
"No, I doubt you know the lay of the land." Thoras shook his head. "You'll ride by my side along with Prince Kael'thas."
For a moment, I thought about correcting him. I knew Lordaeron well enough; we just had to go south to hit the road and then head east. Stay east, go past Tarren Mills, and then boom, Durnholde Keep. But if you see a wall, you had gone too far. Of course, that was forgetting that I wasn't supposed to know that yet.
Seeing that I didn't protest, Thoras turned back to the two future paladins and worked out the details. It was a heady feeling to be here in the company of legends in what I knew was a historical gathering. Yet, the more exposure I had to them, the less awe I felt in their presence. However, we were missing some people as Alterac and Gilneas were not with us.
'I wonder who Genn is going to send?' I mused. I didn't know much about Gilneas' heroes and the only notable person of worth was Darius Crowley. If it was him, then the hierarchy would be Thoras, Uther, Kadvan, Crowely, and then me in that order.
"It is a shame you would not get to see Dalaran." Kael's words brought me out of my musing. "Perhaps when all of this is over, you could visit."
I turned my attention to the prince and raised an eyebrow. "Maybe, but that'll have to wait. It looks like they are finished."
Sure enough, Thoras turned to face the first group and informed them of the plan.
"Warriors of Lordaeron, of the Alliance," he began. "We go now to face a foe unlike any other. I am proud to stand beside every one of you. Once the rest of our brothers in arms arrive, we will head to my homeland and show these orcs that it was a mistake to ever step foot into our lands!"
Uther stepped forward right away and held his warhammer high. "For Lordaeron! For the Alliance!"
I hastily pulled out my sword and raised it in reply. My weapon was not the only one as all of the soldiers, even the elves, raised their weapons into the air and echoed Uther's sentiment.
"For Lordaeron! For the Alliance!"
With that, Thoras turned around and marched, the few Stromgarde soldiers that he brought with him, raised their national flag in his wake. Lordaeron's flag joined the red fist banner, followed by Silvermoon's golden wings, and finally Stormwind's lion head. The sound of creaking wagon wheels could be heard and quite a few men began to talk excitedly to one another. I even picked up a few of their conversations.
"We're really going to war!"
"My wife is due any day now. I hope she's doing well."
"The city is beautiful, but it feels unnatural."
"I've never seen so many of us gathered before. These orcs don't stand a chance!"
"We'll send 'em running! Just you wait and see!"
Ah, the bravado... It was going to be a harsh lesson for all of these recruits. Still, I hoped that they were right and that we would be able to close the orcs' path into Stromgarde. It would allow us to do to the Horde what the Spartans did to the Persians.
Kael'thas left me alone for most of the trip while he conversed with his magisters and Sylvanas. Liadrin was in my shadow with the priest's contingent in tow. She was supposed to assign them throughout the army once everyone was here. Many of the priests had worried expressions on their faces, and I could sympathize. The war was going to be rough on them; Stormwind clerics learned that the hard way.
Because our army could only move as fast as our slowest component—in this case, it was the wagons—many horse riders chose to walk beside their mounts. My knights and I chose to do so as well while Thoras and Uther remained mounted. I thought about riding up there since I was a 'commander' now, but I ultimately decided against it. If they needed me, they would call for me.
We arrived at our destination just as night fell. The town was decently sized. I would put their population at maybe ten thousand, judging by its sprawling nature. As a testament to the safety that Dalaran provided, there were no walls around it. The mayor of the town, along with his militiamen, rode out to meet Thoras. It wasn't long before they began conversing. While that was happening, the townsfolks couldn't stop gawking.
We waited for a spell before the mayor's retainers began directing our captains on where to settle our troops. It was in the middle of that while they were setting up camp that Thoras and Uther approached me.
"King Thoras, Lord Uther," I greeted them.
"Knight Commander Callan." Thoras nodded in reply. "After talking with Uther here, we decided that it would be best to drop all formalities for the duration of this campaign. At least, amongst the command staff."
"Oh?" I asked.
Uther nodded. "It's a mouthful and inefficient if we keep having to address each other with our full titles due to courtly courteousness."
"Aye, we should leave such formality when in court." Thoras took over. "Because of your bloodline, it would not be out of place for us to be on a first-name basis. One would even say we are of equal rank."
I made to protest that latter assertion. "King Th—"
"He's right, Callan," Uther cut me off. "You are a direct descendant of Thoradin's line. Your noble blood predates all of the kingdoms here."
"And again lad, just Thoras," the redheaded man chided me.
"If-if you are certain of it, then...Thoras," I sounded it out and was rewarded with a wide smile.
"Great!" The monarch chuckled in a pleased manner as his large meaty fist clapped down onto my shoulder. "Now, while the issue of formalities is important, that was not why Uther and I approached you."
"Oh?" I repeated. "What did you two need from me?"
"According to Queen Taria, you have experience in administrative duties, correct?" Thoras asked a very confused me. "You worked together with the peasants to build a small town, yes?"
I blinked. "Are you referring to my posting in the Redridge mountains?"
"Aye." Thoras gave me a smile that was anything but reassuring. "Keep in mind that I could do the job, of course. Same with Uther, but our time would be better served forming strategies, not bog down in the day-to-day runnings of the army."
'Oh, you bastards.' They were smiling as realization dawned on my face.
"You want me to handle the day-to-day supply demands and bring to your attention anything important," I said bluntly.
"I knew you'd understand!" I wanted to punch Thoras' smug smile off his face! I turned to Uther who coughed in embarrassment.
"While I am a lord, Callan, I was never that good at it." The man had the decency to look guilty at least. "Leading men into battle has always been easier than balancing the numbers for me..."
I stifled my sigh and bit off my protest, knowing full-well that they could have gotten their subordinates to do the job instead. There was a reason for this, even if they were doing a piss-poor job of hiding it. Still, it wasn't like I could call them out on it. "If that is how I could best contribute, then I would be honored to do so."
"Wonderful!" Thoras' meaty hand slapped my shoulder again. The man seriously did not know his own strength. "I already informed the others. Oh! Here they come now."
I turned to see the quartermasters with his civilian equivalent in tow.
"Uther and I will be making the rounds. Good luck, Callan." Thoras gave me a final whack on my back before he left.
"Lord Callan, how should we set up—"
"Lord Callan I'm from the mayor—"
"Lord Callan, where should we put the—"
Seeing them coming over here with stacks of paper waving in their hands, I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, and exhaled.
"Lord, give me strength," I muttered under my breath as the first of the papers was shoved in front of my face.
+++ One week later +++
'Finally!' I thought as I looked at my cleared desk. The mayor of the town had set me up with a house of my own for my job. I looked up to see my knights looking a bit haggard. Haylea, in particular, was slumped down in a slovenly manner in a nearby chair. I almost felt guilty for drafting them, but if I was going to be stuck with paperwork, the rest of the knights would be my runners.
Time to put them out of their misery. With that, I cleared my throat. "That's the last of it. Once you finish your task, you can have the rest of the day off."
"Thank the Light!" Emery was the first to cry out in relief.
"I never want to see another quill or parchment again!" Arabella cried out from her desk. Her hand could be seen stained with splotched ink. Because she was from a minor noble family, she was literate enough, but more importantly, her writing was clean. However, she disliked the prim and propriety of that lifestyle and thus, ran off to the military.
"Enjoy your time." I smirked. My smile widened as they all shot me poorly concealed glares.
Normally, such familiarity with an officer would be frowned upon, but I ran a loose ship. As long as they show up for battle, I didn't mind being an easygoing commander. That and I didn't want to be the tough and stern type. It was taxing to keep up such a tough demeanor all the time. I admired those who could, especially my training instructors and those who I served under, but I was cut from a different cloth.
I gave them a jaunty wave as they finished up their task and left me alone in the house. Stretching out my arms, I leaned back into my chair to breathe out.
"Is there anything I can get you, milord?" a sweet voice asked.
It was one of the few maids that the mayor had given to me to take care of my needs. She was young, maybe in her mid-twenties, with a figure that her dress did poorly in hiding. I was pretty sure she was also given to me for other reasons, but I never took advantage of that. Not that I didn't want to; she seemed willing enough, judging by her flirty demeanor and the way she often leaned over so I could look straight down her shirt. Tempting, very tempting, but I shook my head and dismissed her. I still needed to put my seal on a few more of these parchments before I could have time to play.
Like before, the maid merely bowed her head and went off to do her job. I could admit that while the work was not as daunting as I initially thought it was, it was wider in scope. There were a few more steps and knick-knacks that I needed to get done with in addition to running the numbers. Dealing with the local mercantile guild was new, but I knew what they wanted. They smelled war on the horizon and to them, that meant profit.
Then there were the requisitions requested from the quartermasters for the incoming troops. We were expecting one more group either today or tomorrow. Thoras intended to give them a day's rest before we would hard march for Durnholde. By the time I was done signing off on the requests, I could see the sun beginning to start its descent on the horizon.
Unfortunately, the maid lady had left, otherwise I would have taken her up on her offer to de-stress the tried and true way for soldiers. Instead, I had to settle for the second way: getting shitfaced.
With my course laid in, I looked to the corner and debated whether I needed to wear my armor or not. Deciding against it as I was in friendly territory, I made my way over to the exit. When I opened the door, I was particularly excited to see Harold and Tobin, the two guards standing by the doorway. These two had been lucky enough to draw guard duty. It was amusing how such a tedious duty was coveted in the face of paperwork.
"Sir!" Harold saluted upon seeing me.
"At ease," I replied. "Our job here is finished for now. Once you two are relieved of your post, I suggest you enjoy yourself while you can. There will be very little time for it after we leave, I'm afraid."
The two expressions hardened as they remembered our people's situation. These two, like most of my knights, were from the royal garrison. They only faced the orcs that one time when the city was under siege and were still eager to prove themselves now on the battlefield.
"Time enough for that, Harold," I told the man. "Now, I intend to relax at a tavern. Which one do our men usually frequent?"
"The Closed Eye, Sir," Harold replied hesitantly. "While it is good enough for us, I think it's beneath someone of your station."
I raised an eyebrow. "And which ones does someone of my station visit?"
"The All Seeing Eye, Sir," Tobin answered. "King Thoras, Lord Uther, and the elves' dignitaries grace that inn with their presence."
Yeah, no, I wasn't going to be in stuffy company. I wanted to let loose. "Good, the Closed Eye it is!"
If the two men had any protest, they held their tongues as I pointed for them to lead the way. Along the way, I saw many merchant stalls were still open and serving members of the Lordaeron army. The influx of thirty thousand people with money to spend was probably a big boon to the local economy.
We passed the All Seeing Eye and sure enough, I heard Thoras' booming laughter from the building. I also saw captains and high-ranking personnel milling around outside. That was a bullet dodged for sure. We continued for a short while before I saw more rank and file soldiers milling about. Some were drunk while others just stood around chatting. Then there was some loud music playing in the area.
I grinned as I saw The Closed Eye Tavern. Unlike its rich counterpart, it had no fancy engraving or design. Instead, it was just big as if they just wanted to serve as many as possible. Some of the Lordaeron footmen saw my rank insignia and saluted as we passed.
"We're here, Sir," Harold told me.
It was when we were closing in on the tavern that I heard something that shouldn't be here.
I need a hero~
I shall hold out for a hero til the end of the night~
I pray he be hale, winged of heel, and newly return'd for the fight~
'What?!' I boggled as I rushed into the tavern to see many soldiers and civilians facing one direction. Judging by how they were swaying back and forth, they were clearly enjoying that song.
Tearing my gaze from them, I looked to the source of the singing and saw two familiar songstresses. I knew them; those two belonged to the bard troupe that helped me bring some Earth songs to Azeroth. Sure enough, the bard was in the background, playing the accompanying instrumental. There were also a few more people with him than the last time.
My entrance did not go unnoticed as more than a few Lordaeron footmen saw me and stood up to offer me their table. I held out a hand to tell them to sit, but that bit of commotion drew the bard's attention to us, and I saw his eyes widen as he recognized me. I could see the questions in his eyes, and I had a few of my own as well. However, like a true showman, he finished out the song before having his troupe play general background music.
"My esteemed lords and ladies," the bard said to laughter. No lords or ladies would be in such a subpar building, except for me. "I shall return after my songbirds have reinvigorated their voices with your fine ale."
"Here, here, master bard!" a footman yelled as he raised a toast, just before he caught sight of me and dropped his cup. "Lo-Lord Lothar!"
That drew everyone else's attention to me as most of the men stood up to give awkward salutes. I had to act fast to continue the cheery atmosphere.
"You're wrong!" I declared loudly. "There are no lords and ladies here, just folks who want to enjoy themselves."
Quickly, I turned to the barkeep and tossed him a few gold coins.
"Next few rounds of drinks are on me, everyone!"
That did it as the men, hearing about free drinks, gave a loud cheer and quickly rushed to the barkeep. That broke the tension as, while I was on their mind, I had proven that I wasn't the stuffy kind of lord. I quickly met up with the bard who stared at me as if he couldn't believe his eyes.
"Bard Rhys," I greeted him with clasped arms. "You are a very long way from home, my friend."
"Aye, as are you Cal—milord," the man corrected himself awkwardly. The last time he saw me, I was a private. Now, I was a big shot. "If you don't mind my asking, is it true? Has Stormwind suffered such horrendous losses?"
I blinked at him. He didn't know?
"Ah, where are my manners? Please, come share our table. It's the best in this tavern." Rhys quickly moved me over to his table where some of those, who I knew before I was promoted, greeted me with wide eyes, including the two songstresses.
"Cal—Lord Lothar, what words do you have of Brightwood?" the first Songstress asked.
"Redridge." The second one jumped in. "How fair the Dempsy Farmstead in Redridge, Lord Lothar?"
"Does Westfall still stand?"
"I have family in Elwynn..."
"Enough!" Rhys pounded on the table to quiet the barrage. He then turned apologetically to me. "I'm sorry for their rud— "
I held up a hand to cut him off. "It's quite alright. I get it. Still, I must ask you first, how did you end up here in the North?"
"Ah..." Rhys looked a bit guilty but after glancing at his songstress, he began his tale. It didn't take long, but I did finish a mug of ale while he told the story.
To sum it up, a friend of his had been visiting from Lordaeron, a fellow bard. He heard the new songs that I 'inspired' and felt that they could strike it rich in Lordaeron. They chartered a merchant ship to Kul Tiras after we defeated the initial Horde invasion and stayed there for a few months before sailing to Stromgarde. From Stromgarde, they made their rounds through all the major villages before moving on to Lordaeron. It was when they were performing in a village outside of Durnholde that word came to them of the war.
With their tale done, I took the time to tell them of what had happened for as much as I knew. Harold and Tobin chimed in with any information that I did not know. When I was done, the table was silent, and most signs of merriment were gone. All we could do was drink in sobered silence.
"M-mayhaps, we can travel with you, Lord Lothar?" the first songstress asked me with misty eyes. "My father is elderly, you see, and I need to find out how he fares."
"No." I shook my head. "It's not safe."
She and her friend made to protest, but once again, I held up my hand to stop them.
"I'm headed in the direction of the Horde. If successful, we will be in Lordaeron for the foreseeable future," I explained and saw their expressions crumble. That was when I gave them some hope. "I can, however, write a letter that would allow you to meet with the queen. I do believe that if everything goes well, she will be returning to Stormwind."
Hope blossomed on their faces, and I had to wave off their gratitude before they could say it. Despite their situation, I realized that they had been traveling and thus polluting the northern kingdoms with my songs. I could only apologize to all the Earth artists I had plagiarized.
As for tainting the culture of Azeroth, well… I had little regrets. I mean, in a roundabout way, I was doing uplifting of a culture. Only, instead of technological uplifts, mine was entertainment. If the being who was watching over me right now had a problem with that, they should have given me the abilities of Doctor Stone so I could do crazy technological shit.
"Ah, milord," Rhys interrupted my thoughts while looking at where the band was playing. "It is time we get back to entertaining the tavern. If we can ever be of service to you in any way, please let us know."
The rest of the group, including the two songstresses, gave me a curtsy before leaving.
"They were lucky, Sir," Harold spoke up as he took a seat so he could watch. However, I noticed that my second guard was still behind me so they still got full coverage in case anything happened.
"Yeah, they were," I sighed. I signaled the barkeep to begin sending the ale. "To Stormwind."
I raised the cup to my bodyguards.
"To Stormwind," the two replied.
With that, I began downing the ale, letting the alcohol do its work. I would say the ale here tasted more refined than what Redridge served, but that could be due to some magical technique. After a few cups, I felt the familiar tingling and floaty sensation of getting a buzz. I didn't fight it, but instead, let it wash over me, carrying me away for a brief moment. Deep down, I knew that this might be the last time I could truly let go. So I kept the cups coming and became more talkative. At one point, I went up to the bard group to sing with them.
The song I sang was a popular one, according to Rhys. It was a surprise to me. All I did was replace some of the words to 'Gaston' from Beauty and the Beast with 'Logosh', Varian's gladiator name, and filled in the blanks with his feats. So there I was, belting out the lyrics to the song. The refrain was catchy enough that everyone began to sing along.
No one fights like Logosh~
Mortal strike like Logosh~
In a three-on-three match, no one intercepts and execute foes like Logosh~
As a specimen, yes, he's intimidating~
My, what a guy, that Logosh~
The lyrics were totally nonsensical, but it was catchy and that was all that mattered. So, like so many times before, I regretted nothing.
+++ The next day +++
Word had come in the night that there was an accident at Capital City harbor and that the last group would be delayed by a week. King Thoras decided to leave Alexandros behind and have him meet us at Durnholde. As for why the rush to Durnholde, word came from Blackmoore that the Alterac forces had arrived.
King Thoras intended to have the soldiers blended in together instead of being clumped apart by nationality. While that was a good idea in my opinion, I was worried about the feasibility of it with so little time to acclimate. Even my father had a three month cushion to train the Alliance to fight as a unified force in the original timeline. Thoras assure me that the men would learn on the march. Even though I still had my doubts, it was his call.
So we uprooted our army from the town when the Dalaran force of three thousand arrived and marched toward Durnholde. We passed by several villages gawking at the lines of soldiers on the road. No doubt, they had never seen such numbers in living memory. As we approached Durnholde, I began to get that itchy, uncomfortable feeling.
I could admit that I was selfish. Initially, I wanted to just avoid the whole war altogether to not get targeted by the bronze death squad. As fucked up as it was, I thought that if I let history play out the same, everything would turn out fine when the 'champions' arrive. That would have been the smart and obvious play. However, as the saying goes in my old world, no plan survives contact with the enemy.
It was easier when I was younger to stand apart from the people I interacted with as if I was just a visitor passing through. Their upcoming war had nothing to do with me. However, I got to know the people and inundated myself in their culture, while they embraced all my quirks. Now that the cat was out of the bag, I was in it to win. I realized that I could probably change more things. Could it doom the world down the line? Possibly, but in two decades, that scenario would happen on an almost yearly basis.
In the end, I could only affect what was around me and let the rest fall where it may. One of the things that I would soon be able to affect was Blackmoore and his future victim, Taretha Foxton. She was just a kid now, but I knew the fucker had his eyes on her in the future. Should I just leave it alone? There might be no Thrall if we win this war. She possibly wouldn't die this time around.
But...what if, against my best wishes, it did end up the same way? Shouldn't I just nip it in the bud now? More importantly, wouldn't it be the decent thing to do? The answer came easily enough. While suffering was all around the world, by doing what you could for those in front of you, that was enough.
I was going to prevent Taretha's fate.
With my decision set, I began to think of how I could get her family away from Blackmoore. Maybe I could just slice his head off and use 'the Light willed it!' as an excuse. No…I—
"Callan."
I blinked and looked up to find Kael'thas beside me. All of the commanding officers were on horseback. Well, almost all; the elves rode overgrown chickens called hawkstriders. Sylvanas, as always, was close by and when our eyes met, she gave me an acknowledging nod.
"Kael'thas," I greeted the blood elf prince. "Rest well these past few days?"
Kael'thas smiled. "Oh, I assure you, the Kirin Tor had quite a lot of tasks for me. I barely had time for myself."
"Well, glad you seem free now," I grinned.
"For now, but the mages in our ranks need to be organized," Kael explained. While we didn't get the best mage, we got some promising apprentices who were ready to become full magus. This war was their final exam so to speak. "But I did not come here to talk about that. I came here to ask you something that has been puzzling me."
"Oh?" I shifted on my horse and turned to him. "Fire away."
"I talked to the bard, Rhys, about a song I heard sung when I passed by a tavern last night," Kael began, much to my alarm. "He told me that the song, Logosh, was made by you and was based on a warrior before the world broke."
Oh….fuck. I could feel little beads of sweat forming on my forehead.
"Now, we elves have a long memory but even we lost knowledge when the world broke. It never occurred to me that the mortal races might have history of that time too," Kael said without accusation. It felt like he was trying to sound something out. "You may not know this, but Logosh is not an ancient human nor elven word. After a bit of research on my end, I found it originated from the Tau-ree. An old race from when the world was one."
"Oh-Oh really?" I asked. "I didn't know that."
And I really didn't. I thought it was an orc word.
"Well," Kael'thas continued. "I was wondering if there are other such stories from before the breaking of the world that you are aware of."
My bullshit abilities had grown by leaps and bound after my trip with Alonsus, so my excuse came easily enough.
"Well...unfortunately, the book I read that tale from was in Grand Hamlet and that township is currently inside Horde-controlled territory," I lamented, shaking my head for emphasis. "I just hope they didn't burn the book for firewood."
Kael looked disappointed. He should be, seeing as such a book never existed in the first place. After that, we switched subjects to other things, mostly small talk. The journey continued like that, with me conversing with different elves everyday, but mostly with Sylvanas and Liadrin. It was on the fourth day that I saw a dust cloud kicked up in the distance.
Thoras held up a hand to stop the entire procession as our soldiers took on a defensive stance. It was relaxed when we saw the approaching dust cloud were actually knights in Lordaeron armor. Eventually, the leader of the group arrived in front of us and took off his helmet while saluting.
The man was in his mid-twenties and had a rugged face adorned with a neatly trimmed beard that could be considered handsome. He was the very picture of subservient and friendly as he held the salute. However, I knew he was faking it.
"My name is Aedelas Blackmoore, and I welcome you all to Durnholde Keep!"
*** The Southern Wetlands – Horde encampment ***
Grom Hellscream wanted to split the news bearer's head in half. The orc, though bigger than himself, appeared frightened.
"Fenris," Grom growled out. "Go and get the Horde ready. We will be departing shortly."
"Warchief?" Fenris blinked at his leader.
"Go!" Grom ordered and watched as Fenris bowed and left. He turned to the nervous news-bearer. "Get out of my sight!"
The orc was visibly relieved as he left his warchief tent in a hurry. The leader of the Warsong looked out in the distance as his army began moving their war machines. It was the goblins who suggested they make these so-called siege engines to take on the human fortifications.
Grom wanted to attack the human's lands right away, but Ner'zhul reminded them of the Draenei defenses. They lost many orc warriors due to their foul magick-powered defenses. Seeing the wisdom in the wise shaman's words, Grom had ordered the harvesting of the lumber in the wetlands to make these goblin weapons that would help them in taking the human fortification with minimal losses.
Now due to the new information he had just received, it no longer mattered. The humans were now aware of their presence. While Grom was certain of the Horde's superiority against these pathetic pinkskins, Blackhand's Folly had proven that they were a cunning adversary. He had no intention of giving his prey time to prepare.
A loud horn sounded, the signal for all orcs to be ready for war. While it was sooner than Grom would have liked, he did not mind it. His place had always been on the battlefield, surrounded by his dead enemies.
For the Horde.
TBC…
AN: First off! Thank you Icura for helping edit as always. Thats mah baw!
Special shout out and thanks to all our patron supporter, thank you for your kindness and generosity. Every little bit helps! Thank you so much!
Now, onto the story. I did what I did with the songs, NO REGRETS! Also yes that was Lady Hildegard Von Blingin and Whiteny Avalon rendition of I need a hero. Look em up if you'd like. As for Grom...hey, we all know the Warsong clan are expert lumberjacks, all those years in warsong gulch proved that...I kid, but not really. Also yes Callan got promoted again… XD
Now I would like to address a minor misconception that Callan wants to preserve the timeline. Just because his little fanboy heart ships Turalyon and Alleria, doesn't mean he wants to keep the timeline the same. He just like that pairing and thing they are the perfect couple. You know like Mary Jane and Spider Man, Wonder Woman and Superman etc etc. He couldn't give less of a shit if Sylvanas hook up with another person or Vereesa end up with someone else. He already threw the bronze under the bus why would he keep the timeline the same? Also the way he address them might be misleading like calling Sylvanas the 'future Banshee Queen'. He labeled those people he know of with the knowledge in his head, doesn't mean he intend for them to turn out that way. Just thought I clear that up.
Whew.
Thanks for reading and this is the chapter before Christmas so Merry Christmas to all the readers! Hope you get what you want for it!
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So as always, reviews, comments, criticism, and discussion welcome!