Disclaimer! I don't own Wow. Blizz does, and your soul too.
*** Arathi Highland- Stromgarde Keep ***
My eyes fluttered open, and I was greeted by the sight of wooden beams and a stone ceiling. It took me a moment to remember what had happened the previous day; how I almost collapsed after my battlecry. Thankfully, I didn't collapse in front of the orcs and was hurried into the nearby gate tower before being laid down on top of a makeshift cot. The last thing that I remembered was Sylvanas ordering people to stand guard and the soft voice of Liadrin in my ears before I blacked out.
Forcefully pushing away the fogginess of my recent awakening, I quickly got to my feet and took a look at the nearby window, half-expecting to see movement from the Horde line. Thankfully, there was none. At least, none from what I could see. Breathing out a sigh of relief, I allowed myself to relax and assess my current state of being. Giving myself a once over, I realized that I was still in my armor. I sniffed myself and found that the smell was starting to get a bit rough. The exertion from yesterday's fight was there for all to smell. In a siege, we didn't have the luxury of taking a bath since we were conserving water.
It was not a problem for me, however.
This was where being a holy priest class had its perks. Standing up, I gathered the Light and cast a combination of purify and cleanse on myself and viola, the stench was gone. The dirt still remained, but that could simply be wiped away; the important thing was that the bacteria from the orcs' blood, sweat, and spit on me had all been purged in. Before I could say anything, the door to the gate tower opened. In came Liadrin holding a lantern, looking like a supermodel going on a walkabout.
'Was that armor on her?' I blinked in realization. She was still in her priestess outfit, only now there were very light pieces of plate armor on it. She wasn't armed like my southern girls, but I couldn't help but take a closer look. The outfit in question showed some form of smudges and dark brown spots that I knew were from dried blood. There were no obvious rips or tears, and her face looked clean with no signs of any wound.
"Callan." The elf priestess sounded relieved. Then she got real close into my personal space, making me lean back."You are awake. We had fear—"
"I feel fine," I assured her. "Did the other priests suffer any backlash from what I did yesterday?"
Liadrin did not answer me but got even closer instead. She placed a hand on my cheek. I felt her Light pouring into me, searching my body and soul for damage. Cupping her hand on my cheek, I made my reservoir swell and touched her Light energy with my own. Her pretty green eyes widened before she jumped back startled, leaving only a lingering flora smell where she had been.
"Told you that I'm fine." I grinned at her. "Now, how did the others make out? You seem hale, but you're the next strongest in the Light, aside from me."
"They…are completely fine," Liadrin said before gave me a frown that made me feel like I was in trouble. "You took our faith and weaved it into your great protection spell, but you did not share the burden with any of us, Callan."
Oh, I heard the capital 'C' in the way she addressed me before parsing the rest of what she said.
"Wait...I didn't?" I blinked.
Was I carrying all that Light energy by myself? No wonder it felt like my body wanted to tear itself apart and be crushed at the same time. Liadrin did not look pleased. In fact, she had the most put-upon face I had ever seen directed toward me by her. What happened to the usual respect and reverence you had for me?
"Do not do that again." Liadrin jabbed her fingers against my breastplate. "We cannot afford to lose you. Azeroth cannot afford to lose you."
'Give them a couple of years,' I retorted in my mind. 'They'll be pumping out guys similar to me like a factory.'
However, I didn't tell her that, not when the elf priestess had such a serious expression on her face. "Fine. Fine. If the situation doesn't call for it, I won't do it."
Well, I hoped that the orcs wouldn't try that again at any rate. We had proven that we could more than weather the attacks from their shamans. However, as the old Earth saying goes, hope for the best and plan for the worst. Liadrin's brows furrowed at my statement and was about to say something when she cocked her head to the side and turned to the door. A familiar person was standing in the doorway, gracing us with her presence.
"Sylvie!" I greeted the Sylvanas with a wave. "Looking good."
I meant it too. The future Queen of the Forsaken looked like she had just rolled out of bed, looking like a million bucks—or rather, gold. Her hair was straight and shining while her blue eyes were clear, glancing between me and Liadrin.Heck, I couldn't find a smudge of dirt on her. Guess that's the perk of being a range fighter, no need to get up close and personal.
"Lady Liadrin," Sylvanas greeted. Her eyes settled on the priestess. "I had thought you were holding a service for the people."
The red-haired elf turned away from me to directly face Sylvanas.
"Ah, I was, but I sensed that Callan was awake," the priestess said in a friendly tone. "I am sorry that, in my haste, I forgot to inform you."
Whatever they wanted to say next was interrupted when I wanted the priestess to clarify what she just said. "Wait, Liadrin, you can sense me? I didn't know you were a ranger like Sylvanas."
The elf priestess smiled gently and shook her head at me. "No. However, your faith shines like a beacon to us, priests."
Oh right… It was like an imprint left behind by the Light. It was no different from how a shaman could sense the spirits being disturbed or a druid feeling nature being corrupted. Huh, I guess Liadrin had been around me long enough to pick up my 'Light signature,' so to speak.
"Well, I think Sylvie here can get me up to date on our situation," I told the priestess. "If you are going to hold service, I suggest you do it quickly, I believe the Horde will not stay slumbering for long."
The future Blood Matriarch tilted her head toward me in agreement. "Then I shall do as you say, Callan, but please grant me a boon."
"Sure," I replied easily."Anything you want."
"Please address me as Lia." Then, before I could even agree to it, the elf priestess walked back to Sylvanas and nodded to her. "Ranger Commander."
Now it was just me and Sylvanas who were looking intently at me. In fact, it was exactly how Liadrin did earlier. "What? Something wrong with my face?"
The Ranger Commander blinked, but she tilted her head slightly. "Were you aware that you were bleeding from your eyes, ears, nose, and mouth yesterday?"
"I was?!" I asked in shock. Was it because I didn't share the burden? However, it was much easier to take what they gave me and weave it together. I might have to experiment a bit if I could make time. Shaking my head, I focused on Sylvanas. "Never mind that for now, what's our casualties?"
Sylvanas looked like she wanted to table the discussion but ever the professional soldier, she began her report regardless. All in all, less than a thousand dead. The orcs suffered around three thousand confirmed kills and about twice that many wounded from what Sylvanas had glimpsed. I guess that elves being good at math wasn't just an in-game joke.
I sighed at that. We had roughly around fifteen thousand defenders. If we trade one soldier for every three orcs, we would run out of people before they would. Initially, I hoped that we could wound the orcs and make them use up resources and hopefully die from infection. The best-case scenario was spreading that infection around. Unfortunately, they had shamans and those twats were good at healing too.
'Fuck...' I sighed as I listened.
It looks like we would need to draft soldiers from the civilian population. My face twisted at the thought. Maybe it was because I was an American in my past life, but the word 'Draft' held negative connotations for me. I was very happy that Stormwind worked based on a volunteer army system. On the other hand, the other six human nations were more like medieval Europe. While I didn't like it, I couldn't do anything but turn a blind eye to the northern kingdoms pressing peasant levies into their army.
"We need more soldiers," I told her bluntly. She nodded her head in agreement. "I'll have to talk to Knight Commander Archer about asking for volunteers. I think another force of five thousand would be good enough to start. It would help us shore up our defenses on the east and west walls."
The ranger appeared thoughtful as she considered my plan. "It would be difficult to train your peasants under our current condition I think."
"It's do or die time," I said as I made my way to the entrance. "Walk with me, Sylvie."
The elf matched my stride as I exited. Because it was still dawning, there was no intense sunlight stabbing in my eye. I saw some soldiers leaning against the battlement walls, eating some bread with some cut-up meat and cheese. Others were talking in hushed whispers or had their eyes closed getting as much rest as the Horde was gonna give them.
Good.
"Lord Callan Lothar, sir!" A footman spotted me and bellowed at the top of his lungs.
Hundreds of soldiers' helmets snapped in my direction immediately. Chaos ensued a moment later as everyone stopped what they were doing to stand at attention before pounding their fist in salute.
"At ease, soldiers," I said. But they refuse to be at ease.
The stares of silent respect were something that took some getting used to. Honestly, I would much rather prefer cheering and good-natured ribbing instead of this stifling silence. I mean, since I did something crazy last night to protect them, shouldn't they be happy? What I got instead was just stares. Intense, eyes-drilling stares.
As I moved through their ranks, all of them greeted me in an awed tone. What more, when I walked past someone I felt their eyes never leaving me with their heavy gazes. I decided to walk the length of the battlement to check everyone's readiness and if there was any damages worth being concerned about. Those passionate gazes continued to follow me every step of the way.
The worst part was when the priests who had finished their morning service gave me reverent and worshiping looks. I knew they saw me as one of their own now. Surprisingly, they didn't care if I didn't act like a priest, I wasn't required to attend anything. Guess them be the perks of pulling future Light spells out of my ass.
"Lord Callan!" The familiar voice of an Alteraci reached me. A moment later, the large man was by my side. "Reporting for duty sir!"
The man stared at me with the same awed gaze. I didn't remember him being on the wall when I cast the Barrier spell, but maybe he was? It wasn't like I had the best memory.
"It wasn't just the men on the wall that saw what you did, Callan," Liadrin informed me. "The barrier you made was seen by all in Stromgarde Keep."
"Aye, my lord." Falconcrest nodded quickly. He then looked bashful. "I…never thought the Light could do so much nor be so powerful."
"Nor did the Church of the Light." The priestess directed her gaze to the future assassin. "Even our order was blinded to the Light's capabilities."
The redhead elf turned to give me an intense look.
"Luckily, the Light has given us Lord Callan in these dark times," she said with conviction. "And through him, we will defeat those foul creatures!"
'Girl… tone down that...well done!' Liadrin was supposed to be level-headed. Hardcore yes, but she did what needed to be done, there was a certain intensity to her gaze as she looked at me. Frankly, if I didn't know better, I would say she wanted to eat me.
'Thankfully, I don't taste like Naaru.' I chuckled inwardly. It was a silly thought, but her gaze was just that intense. Well, it was time to get to business.
"Soldiers of the Alliance!" I suddenly barked, making them all stand at attention. "You did well yesterday, but that was yesterday!"
I pointed into the direction of the Horde base.
"Today is another day!" I continued. "Another battle! They will seek to test our resolve, just like they did yesterday! Will they succeed?!"
"NO!" the soldiers all shouted in unison.
"Will we let them take our walls?!"
"NO!" the soldiers answered once more.
"Then ready yourself. We'll deny them their prize once more. For the Alliance!" I topped it off before holding up my Light-infused sword again.
"FOR THE ALLIANCE!" Came the roaring reply.
There, I did my part in winding up the soldiers. I saw movement in the orc encampment and knew that today was going to be a tough battle. From my vantage point, everything could be seen. There had been some changes. The orcs were smoothing out the terrain in front of their base. Well, it would make it easier for them to send forces to siege us, but we had time before we could start harassing their peons.
As I made my way back to my spot on the wall, I met Archer and told him my volunteer/draft plan. I also told him that I might want some of the militia to rotate with our soldiers to gain combat experience. The cruel math of war was that the weaker ones always died first. The price for the soldiers to gain those experiences yesterday was a thousand lives. If I could mitigate those losses, it would be worth it.
Eventually, I returned to my position over the gate. The Lion flag of Stormwind was fluttering proudly behind me. Sylvanas was content to be at my side as was Liadrin until the Horde attacked.
"Liad—Lia," I began. The pony-tailed elf turned to me. "See if you can find more people with a strong belief in the Light among the civilians. We lost a few priests yesterday. The more we have the better."
"I believe the Church of the Light missionaries travel around to recruit those strongest in the Light. There shouldn't be any left," Liadrin replied.
"You would think but it is possible that a person's affinity might show up later in life," I explained to her. "After all, the Light is powered by our faith and conviction. In these trying times, many will turn to the Light and—with enough faith—gain the ability to wield it. Besides, it can't hurt to check."
The pretty elf's eyes widened as if she never considered it before. A moment later, she nodded enthusiastically. "I will do as you say after the day's battle is won."
"Light willing, you mean," I corrected her. "It's bad luck to presume you will win before a battle begins."
"No." Liadrin shook her head. "We will win this day. The Light will assure it, and you shall be its guiding hand."
For a moment, just a brief moment, her eyes flash golden. I blinked as I recalled that the High Elves only had golden eyes when they had a deeper connection to the Light. Shaking my head, I cleared my thoughts. Without much further ado, we stood and prepared for the day as we saw the orcs begin to roll out catapults.
"Soldiers of the Alliance!" I enhanced my voice with the Light to be hard. "Prepare for battle!"
+++
I looked around at the soldiers around me. It was now afternoon, and at where the soldiers should have been fighting, there was instead an odd peace. Unlike the previous day's intense fighting, the lack of it today made the soldiers drop their guard. Even Sylvanas was leaning on her bow in a bored manner. The only busy people were the spotters for our catapults.
I sighed softly. The expression 'egg on my face' would be apt for me. Besides throwing tons of catapult-slung rocks at Stromgarde, the Horde had not once attacked today in any meaningful manner. Thanks to some trial and error, the Horde had found the sweet spot that was outside of our catapult range. However, in exchange, all they could reach with their lobs was the base of our wall.
Initially, some of the Horde catapults had tried to sneak in closer to get at the wall higher, but our spotters got our catapults to hit them with acceptable accuracy. Now? They were just harassing us. Ineffectually, at that. I stood up and saw that a few of my soldiers were tense, but I held out a hand.
"I'm just taking a look," I told them.
I carefully peered over the wall just as another boulder was lobbed at the foot of the wall. There was a slight vibration upon impact but that was it. I noticed some hairline fractures at various spots, but from what I have been told, that was acceptable enough. The mason guild who maintained Stromgarde Keep spoke of how the castle was built by weaving magical runes and tapping into nature's power.
That conversation triggered obscure knowledge from my previous life. I finally remembered that the Arathi used to have shamans and druids themselves before they converted to arcane and the Light. Proof of such practice was scattered throughout the Arathi Highland in the form of those elemental altars.
I had to admire a structure that stood for nearly three thousand years. It was built for war against savage foes after all. The only odd point was that the orcs were content with lobbing boulders at us. Frankly, I expected more since they had goblins in their ranks. Where were the explosives? Either they were saving it or they didn't have enough to use them. Maybe the boulders were just a test to see how sturdy the walls were.
In the end, all of my speculation didn't mean squat as all the Horde did was continue their harassment. By the time the sun set, all I could do was just shrug and raise my sword in victory. I doubled the guard that night just in case, but there were no signs of any night attack. The next day, the Horde went right back to throwing boulders.
They repeated the same thing on the fourth day of the siege, though this time, they attempted to concentrate more of their attacks on a certain section of the wall. Despite their best effort, the walls held, even though there were more stress fractures at certain points. By the time the fifth day rolled around, their attacks had become routine and were lulling my soldiers into a worrisome state of complacency.
I was paranoid because I suspected our enemy was planning something big. The only bright spot in all of this was that it allowed us to train up our peasant militia and gave Liadrin time to screen for more priests. Whatever the orcs were planning, I wanted to have enough priests on time to soften their attack, even if they could only do the most basic of spells.
Before I knew it, a week had passed and my paranoia proved to be true.
"I think we're about to find out what they've been up to," I said as I looked at the flurry of activity in the Horde camp. Around me was my cobbled command staff. Sylvanas was second, Knight Commander Archer was third, and finally, Falconcrest was the last.
"They are pulling back quite far," Archer commented. He seems to be squinting with a hand over his eyes to shield against the bright sun. "Is...is it possible the Alliance had lifted the siege?"
I could hear the man's hopeful tone but I shook my head. "Lordaeron can't send an army that fast."
"Should we send scouts?" the Alteraci asked.
"No," I shook my head. "No need to waste lives. Let's see what they do next."
The Horde all seemed to be finally moving, leaving behind a silent camp. Did they leave after all? Had the Alliance army got here in time and diverted their attention away from us after all? Dare I hope...we survived? Just as happiness was about to bubble up inside of me, Sylvanas brought me back to reality.
"Movement," Sylvanas said. "They have those large ettin creatures with them. They're hauling something."
"The are?" I squinted and sure enough, the tiny dots were getting bigger. Not only ogres but orcs in long robes with animal skin on them. I recognized the archetype. "It's their shamans."
I turned quickly to Liadrin.
"Gather our priests, Lia," I called her by her nickname. "I think they're gonna attempt a spell again."
I could feel the tension cut through everyone. The memory of the last magical battle was still fresh in everyone's minds. However, this time would be different. Thanks to the Horde giving us some free time, we were able to experiment with helping carry a spell. We were also able to train an additional fifty priests from the civilian refugees. To Liadrin's surprise, many of them were talented enough to use Light spells up to the barrier level. There were more, but all they could do was cast a weak heal which was still good in a pinch.
I had a theory on why that was the case, but now wasn't the time to share it. In the meantime, the soldiers—upon seeing our buffed-up priestly forces—felt better. While the fury of nature was scary as fuck, being protected in a golden dome made of Light was comforting.
"We are ready, Callan." Liadrin had the priests clump up around me, ready for me to send them to any area where they were needed.
"All the civilians are in secure areas I hope?" I saw Archer nod. "Then let's see what these green bastards got for us."
We watched as the ogres slowly put down large stones and at the shaman's behest, placed these stones in certain areas. One of the shamans—someone I recognized because of his white painted face—began walking toward us. He stopped just outside of Sylvanas' range, his eyes searching me out specifically. How do I know this? It was because his gaze stopped on me. Then to all of our surprise, the Orc addressed us in Common.
"Prepare yourself, humans, to taste the might of the Horde!" The orc's power-enhanced voice boomed like thunder. "Your fate is sealed! While your city turns to ash, we will feast on your bones and sleep on your graves! There will be no mercy!"
Despite how short and blunt they were, the orc's words were effective. Even though we came out ahead, soldiers did die from the Horde's attack, along with the promise of more in the future. No matter how I cut it, I needed to stop this. Gathering the Light in my body, I enhanced my voice and begin shouting.
"Ner'zhul!" From the way the orc stiffened and looked surprised, I realized it really was the legendary orc shaman. I wasn't sure before but...holeeee sheeet, it was the future Lich King! Of all the villains in WoW he was the most famous and for a long time, thought to be unbeatable.
Thankfully, he wasn't the Lich King now. Ner'zhul opened his mouth and was about to say something. However, I wasn't having it.
"Betrayer!" I shouted before hurling the most insulting word you could at an orc. "Coward!"
The future Lich King looked stunned as if he didn't hear me right. However, when he parsed my words, his expression turned furious. He opened his mouth, but I cut him off right away.
"Fuck off!" I bellowed for all to hear.
Ner'zhul froze and looked surprised by my interruption. I knew he was angry now and opened his mouth again.
"Human—"
"I said—" I interrupted him. "Fuck off!"
"Y—"
"FUCK!" I emphasized the word. "OFF!"
If looks could kill, I would have died a few times by now. Ner'zhul was furious. The orc was a respected shaman even when he had fallen and allowed Gul'dan to take over. Had the human kings or leaders been here, they might have had a tete-a-tete with him and heard him out. However, I wasn't doing that at all. He was not used to the level of disrespect, and it showed.
"Human—" Ner'zhul roared. "You—"
"Fuck off!" It was Falconcrest who hurled the abuse first. The rest of the soldiers along the line took their cue from him and began to parrot him.
"You heard us!" I grinned. "Fuck off!"
The orc shaman and future Lich King heard the disrespect in our tone as he endured our abuse. Knowing we would not let him make any grand speech or threats, he turned around, furious, but that was a mistake as that proved our insults had gotten to him. Jeers rained down from the walls, and we saw him turn to his orc and ogres while shouting something. I guessed that it was probably to tell them to hurry up with whatever they were doing.
"Well..." I said lightly. "He's mad."
The Ranger Commander shook her head.
"Let us ride out and disrupt them, Lord Callan," Falconcrest suggested. To his disappointment, I shook my head.
"These orcs aren't stupid," I told him as my eyes scanned the surroundings. "If we go out there, an army will be waiting for us."
The Alteraci looked as if he wanted to refute my statement. "But lord—"
"Look at how they've fought us so far?" I explained to him. "They tested our defenses on the first day before they unleashed that magical attack. After that, they have been trying to break our walls down. Now, we see them setting up what I'm guessing is some sort of magical circle. If anything, we need to be more cautious."
Of all the orcs in Warcraft, Ner'zhul had a pretty good grasp on strategy and tactics that rivaled Doomhammer. If I hadn't changed the future, he would have launched an successful attack on Nethergarde Keep after the second war, destroying it. After that, he would have raided New Stormwind for the book of Medivh before unleashing Grom on the Alliance to make his getaway. That was not even including his planning of the takedown of the entire Alliance as the Lich King. Credit where credit was due; Ner'zhul was very deadly and not to be underestimated.
Once again, lacking offensive arcane capabilities, our best bet was to tank whatever Ner'zhul planned on throwing at us. An hour later, we got our answer, confirming my suspicion. It was definitely a magical runic circle that was easily two hundred yards wide. There were at least a hundred shamans around the large circle, chanting and waving their arms up and down. If that wasn't enough, something about it gave me an extra bad feeling.
'If only Kael was here,' I lamented. The elf was knowledgeable; he would have known exactly what they were doing.
Then, like a switch being flipped, the skies above us became overcast and a sinister feeling permeated the area. My hair felt like it was going to stand on its end, and my skin suddenly had goosebumps. Liadrin and Sylvanas sucked in a sharp breath, telling me that they also felt the same thing. I guessed that it was due to the magical nature that made them so sensitive to the arcane. I saw the soldiers close by shift in place and knew that they were feeling the same sense of dread that we all felt.
"Steady!" I shouted. "Priest! Prepare your Barrier chant!"
Unlike before, they weren't going to go to predetermined spots along the wall. We were all clumped up so that we could all power the Barrier, with me taking the lead. Whether that was the right choice or not, I couldn't say. Knowing what I know, if Ner'zhul went with the big bolts first, we would be sacrificing people needlessly by casting smaller Barriers like before.
That fucker already burned us once that way.
With my eyes never leaving the ritual, I silently called upon the Light. The familiar happy sensation came quickly. I felt the other priests gathering the Light alongside me. The Light usually poured into me like an unrelenting wave, but with all the priests calling upon the Light, it was like a tsunami. Immediately, the aura of dread on the wall was dissipated as people felt the comfort of the Light.
In the midst of all this, a sharp sense of power filled the air from the orc's side, right before the shamans in the circle raised their hands into the air. Ner'zhul, standing in the center, struck down with his staff.
"Whatever it is, it's going to happen soon," I told my priests. There was a violent crack that almost made me cast the Holy Barrier. However, I realized that it wasn't coming from the sky; it was coming from the ground. The area began to shake violently, just before a red portal opened on the ground level. A powerful heatwave poured out with many of the grass at the edge catching fire and burning to a crisp.
"Firelord!" Ner'zhul's voice boomed. "Your servant calls upon your aid! Accept our sacrifice of these humans' lives!"
'Firelord?' I blinked. However, before I could think more on it, I sucked in my breath as carts of caged humans were wheeled to the edge of the red portal and then pushed in.
"Damn beasts!" Knight Commander Archer shouted as cage after cage of humans was pushed into the portal. "We must save—"
Anything he wanted to say was cut off as a loud boom echoed and a pillar of fire shot up from the circle and touched the sky. Then a dark sinister voice could be heard.
"The bargain has been struck!" The voice of power filled the air. "All shall taste the flames of Sulfuron!"
"Ragnaros, here?!" I couldn't believe it. I felt eyes on me due to my exclamation, but I didn't care.
"Callan?" Liadrin sounded worried. However, I didn't answer her as I watched as a wave of lava bubbled and poured forth from the red portal. The shamans screamed in alarm when they realized they were not immune to the lava and ran off. Even Ner'zhul seemed surprised since he was forced to retreat. I could only watch in horror as the earth in front of us cracked and began to turn black.
"We—we're doomed!" a fearful soldier said.
"We need to escape!"
"Callan?" This time, it was Sylvanas looking at me. In fact, all of them were looking at me.
In the game, Ragnaros was a level 60 raid boss, requiring forty people to defeat him. However, this was not a game; this was reality, my reality now. I doubt game levels factor into any aspect of this world. Considering the background of the Firelord, I would argue that his power level was comparable to that of the Lich King and Archimonde. His mere summoned presence transformed Blackrock Mountain into the hellscape it was today; those lands were not always known as the Searing Gorge and Burning Steppes.
Thankfully, though powerful, that didn't mean Ragnaros was invulnerable. With the help of the 'champions' in the game these threats were defeated. Though perhaps it was more accurate to say that they assisted people like Tirion and the others. We didn't have those people yet. Heroes, yes, but not the 'champions' needed to back them up.
"Lord Callan?" Archer's voice was laced with worry.
However, that didn't mean we were helpless. On top of my cheat, I had knowledge on the flexibility of the Light. The Light could be gentle or harsh depending on the circumstances. The budding idea in my head was a bit crazy, but with the priest, there was a chance I could pull it off.
"Liadrin, everyone!" I said urgently. "I need you to help me while I shape a spell!"
Looking away from the red portal to the Firelands, I looked up and called upon the Light, feeling it respond to me right away. However, instead of salvation like last time, I wanted its fury, its retribution. I swore the Light felt confused by my request, but did as I asked. Slowly, I began to shape the vessel with the Light's help.
"Do you feel that?" I asked the priest. Seeing Liadrin nod was a good enough answer for me. "Pour everything you have into it. Every ounce of faith and devotion you can squeeze out of you even if you collapse!"
I felt the tsunami wave of Light from before rush up to the sky and fill the attack I was molding. It nearly collapsed the spell I was weaving, but willpower was a factor in holding it together, something I had honed in battle. I found myself remaining calm even as the situation got worse. Perhaps, it was because of my WoW knowledge, but as intimidating as Ragnaros was right now, he wasn't fully here.
Thanks to my knowledge from my previous life, I knew that a summon took a lot of effort, especially on that scale. It was also the most vulnerable moment for the summoned. Right now, Ragnaros was at his weakest point.
"We need more!" I urged them. The sky crackled from the Light being poured into it. "Give everything you have to me!"
I felt the Light swell and grow even greater in power. Around me, I could feel the strain of the priests as they expended their faith and devotion to the sky. It was the younger priests who collapsed first. They had given all they could, and I couldn't ask any more of them. It would be up to the rest of us.
Slowly, the feeling of dread was dispelled by the overwhelming holy presence in the sky. The power above us was building up to such an unimaginable level that it probably would have impressed even the mages of Dalaran. As more priests fell, I reached out and began to condense it all. The slightest mistake or distraction would cause the gathered Light to spread out and be wasted.
It wasn't until Liadrin collapsed at my side that I knew that this was all I was going to get. I just hoped it was enough.
From the red portal, two fiery hands grabbed the edge of the circle, instantly charring the ground around it. Two horns made of flames attached to a menacing burning skull slowly started to rise from the circle. The earth itself seemed to groan as the Firelord began to manifest in the Arathi Highland. Left unchecked, the Highlands would turn into a place like the Blackrock Mountains, burnt and barren. Sinister laughter echoed as the humongous flaming skull of Ragnaros rose from the depths of the Firelands.
"By fire, all shall be—WHAT?!"
Without any need for ceremony or banter, I directed where I wanted all of that Light energy to go. A sword made of light formed in the sky before rocketing downward and stabbing through the emerging Firelord's head, detonating on the spot.
Perhaps it was because I was a priest, but the explosion of Light did not hurt my eyes at all. Instead, I could make out a massive golden pillar completely engulfing the portal to the Fireland, spreading out from the point of impact and obscuring my vision. Shortly thereafter, a massive shockwave followed the Light explosion, knocking many of us off our feet.
When it was over, and we could see again, many gasped as the land in front of Stromgarde Keep appeared to be a charred husk of its former self. What more, the strike had also taken out a chunk of the orc encampment.
'Holy shit...' I thought in awe just before my vision began to swim. 'Crap… not again…'
I felt myself falling as darkness rushed up to greet me like an old friend.
+++ Arathi Highland - Orc Encampment +++
Ner'zhul skin burned. His soul felt like it was on fire. If it wasn't for Dentarg, he would scarcely have been able to walk.
'How?' His thoughts raced. 'How had the human done it?'
Even when his people fought the Draenei, they had never performed such foul magick. Dentarg continued to escort him to the spirit lodge so that he could recover. The backlash from the human magick that had interrupted their summoning had killed many of his shamans. Those who didn't die were now suffering as he was, their spirits just as scarred.
"I see your plan has failed." A voice that bordered on disrespect made itself known.
Ner'zhul looked up to see Blademaster Kajind enter his tent. He was of the Burning Blade clan and was to be his adviser in military matters. The orc was now looking at him disdainfully, but then again, to all Blademasters, he would have still received the same treatment even if he had been Gul'dan. Blademasters tended to trust in their strength and weapons; they had little patience for subterfuge or tactics.
"Any other… tricks, Great Shaman?" the Blademaster asked sarcastically.
Ner'zhul nostrils flared at the disrespect and had he been stronger, he would have immediately shown his power to the Blademaster. Unfortunately, the spirits were acting erratically and refusing his call. They have been wounded and needed time to heal. He had hoped to not spend his warrior's lives like Blackhand and Gul'dan, but it was now out of his hands.
"...there are none, Blademaster Kajind," he replied bitterly.
The Blademaster openly sneered at him before he looked in the direction of the human walls.
"Then it is time for us to destroy them like true orc warriors! For the Horde!"
"...for the Horde…" Ner'zhul intoned, knowing that many orc warriors would have to die before they would be able to take those walls.
***Shadowforge City – Throne Room ***
Emperor Dagran Thaurissan did not know how nor did he know why, but the curse that plagued his people and kin was lifted. There was a sudden pain as if his soul was being cut, but when he recovered, he felt lighter than before...his thoughts clearer. His generals all agreed that the pact that had been forged by his forefathers was no more.
His people were free of the Firelord.
Now, even though there were greenskins above in their citadel, the leader of the Dark Iron dwarves needed to use this time to launch a surprise assault on the Firelord forces nesting in the city depths.
It was time to cleanse their molten core.
TBC...
AN:
First of all thanks to Icura for helping me edit this chapter! Thanks broskito!
Secondly, thank to all the patrons, your support means more than you realized and continue to help!
Now, onto the story. Bet ya'll didn't see that coming! I knew about Myzrael but I was like...I can escalate it! Though I have plans for Myzzie too, but heh thats for later, for now, the focus is here. Loved the pervious chapter speculation and discussion I was kinda giggling cause I knew what was in stored,. Thanks again for those feed back, now despite Ner'zhul best effort to fight smart, the orcs gotta win this battle in the trenches. And the siege continues! Once again thanks for reading.
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Finally, as always C+C welcomed, discussion eternally appreciated