Chapter 68: Chapter 68
"Oh, wow, Vandercross has made his crystal forest, shouldn't you be just about done by now?" Earthwarder, the green haired golem summoner yawned towards Starbottle as he boredly reclined in the dirt.
"Don't bother the girl much, Ward, she's had it tough. Chasing Vandercross all these years, and he shows up with a mystery child out of nowhere? Now Vandercross is having the time of his life playing with said child. Starbottle must be cross if I do say so myself." The priestly Dawnbringer patted his belly, and chortled at their resident alchemist's expense.
"Stuck in the backline playing support with these two again is insufferable." The silver haired Elf, Starbottle muttered tersely to herself as she continued to stir her cauldron.
Reaching for one of her key ingredients for her next step, Starbottle found her hand grasping at air. Blinking her eyes in surprise, she looked down, and confirmed it was missing.
A second later, Starbottle heard a loud crunch, causing her cheek to twitch, and a sickly sweet smile to spread across her face.
"You know Ward, being dead isn't so bad. Sure, the fruit flavor is muted, but whichever necromancer brought us back did a bang-up job I say! Jolly good show!" Dawnbringer leaned on his staff, and happily munched on an apple-looking fruit.
"Hmm, the stars still look the same, but the song of the earth is different. In a way, it's more welcoming than before…How about you Dawn? How do you even wield the Light as an Undead?" Earthwarder looked up at the stars in thoughtful reflection.
"Huh. How come I can still wield the Light?" Dawnbringer stopped what he was doing for a moment, then held his hand up, curiously inspecting it.
A spark of Holy energy thrummed across his fingertips.
"Oh!" Dawnbringer flapped his hand like it had caught fire.
"You okay?" Earthwarder slowly rolled over to face him, and stretched lazily like a cat.
"Yes, yes, simply-oh, Starbottle! What are you doing here, shouldn't you be working your magic?" Dawnbringer questioned.
"Alright you glutton, hand it over." Starbottle crossed her arms like an irate mother catching her naughty child in the act of stealing cookies.
"No fair, Dawn, you took Star's reagents, and didn't share any with me?" Earthwarder slowly intoned.
"And you, Earthwarder, why aren't you hidden in the ground, or your golem? Faedra could be here at any moment, and attack us like last time!" Starbottle hotly demanded, and pointed a finger of accusation at the green haired Elf.
"Easy now, there's still half of the reagent left, and leave the lad alone, he's been hit hard, what with the unlife and all." Dawnbringer held out his large hand, and presented a fruit missing well over half of its mass.
"Always leaving me with these idiots in the backline while you go off gallivanting for all the fun and glory." Star muttered to herself as she took what little remained of the fruit.
She then abruptly turned away, and stormed back to her cauldron to complete the final step in her potion.
"Is she gone?" Earthwarder questioned.
"You're the one with earth sense, right?" Dawnbringer pressed back.
"Like I said, the ground sings a different tune now, and-two explosions rocked the battlefield almost simultaneously in two separate locations, interrupting their chat-ah, I think Windrunner and Bloodchanter are about to die. Shouldn't you do something about that?" Earthwarder rolled over, and slightly raised his head from the ground, before deciding he couldn't be bothered.
"Those two pricks? Please. Windrunner has been chasing the position of First Seat forever, practically coddling the King's balls for a chance at the spot, and acting like a cutthroat to get it. Whilst Bloodchanter rubbed me the wrong way, the rumors surrounding his training regimen never sat well with me. Now if Firecaster's life were on the line, that would be a different story!" Dawnchaser said as he watched on passively as Rho'dan burnt Bloodchanter to a crisp, and Lor'Themar cut Windrunner to pieces.
"Mmhm, Firecaster is a good man." Earthwarder nodded along.
"Well, enough chit chat, it's time to entertain our guest." Dawnbringer wiped his fruit stained sticky fingers along his robe, and turned around back towards Starbottle.
"Do we have to?" Earthwarder yawned.
However, Earthwarder's unenthusiastic demeanor was not matched by a nearby camouflaged ranger.
An Arcane Arrow came out of the dark of the night, white energy coated its tip, and aimed straight for Starbottle's throat.
Before it could make contact, Dawnbringer had thrown up a shield of Divine Intervention around the alchemist, blocking the would-be assassins attack.
The arrow-which was about to hit the barrier and break apart-suddenly separated itself into 8 smaller arrows, and went around Starbottle. The true targets were Earthwarder and Dawnbringer!
A wall of earth rose up in the shape of a great maw, and swallowed the arrows whole.
The colossal golem overhead reacted as well, and began to pound the ground in many random locations.
"Ruargh!" The golem roared, and yellow-brown energy pulsed around its hands. It then punched into the ground so that its arms were up to their shoulders deep in dirt.
A pulse of dust swept across their location, revealing a cloaked figure in green.
Seismic shifts around the crater saw boulders and rocks slide downward into the pit, one after another to take the ranger out.
"Damnit." Helios muttered to himself as he was forced to cartwheel out of the way as a stone the size of a carriage came barreling at him.
Jumping from boulder to boulder, Helios managed to get off a few more Arcane Arrows, but each and every one of them was blocked by a shield of Light from the priest.
"If it isn't the lad who tried to kill Varrus in the drama club, lieutenant Helios! This is a surprise, what are you doing working with Vandercross's pup?" Dawnchaser cupped his hands, and shouted over the constant tumble of dirt and debris to be heard.
Helios ignored the portly priest, as every second, he was in a constant state of peril.
Stakes of earth sprang up underneath, and the golem was intermittently hurling giant stones at him, forcing Helios to maintain a heightened sense of panic if he even hoped to dodge this constant barrage of attacks.
Mid handspring, Helios witnessed A'lar, Prince Kael'Thas's phoenix companion crash in front of him in a fiery explosion.
Helios idly noticed that the phoenix had one necrotic wing that continued to heal and decay every second. The sacred bird was weeping tears, clearly withstanding incredible pain, yet even so, he stood up to confront the barrage of rock and stone.
Helios blinked in surprise when he saw Prince Kael'Thas, bleeding from the forehead, and half his robe was burnt away. Underneath the robe was a ghastly palm print of seared flesh. Yet despite his own terrible wounds, Kael'Thas paid them no mind as all his focus was placed on the Troll in his arms.
Jan'alai's breath was shallow, and her eyes glazed over. The muscle in her arms had shriveled, and a sick tumor pulsed black lines all throughout her veins. Green fire pushed the rot away, but it only served as a stop gap measure. The disease was slowly, claiming her life.
But this moment of inspection wasn't to last long, as the golem did not stop just because a new element had added itself to the fight.
"Kieer!" Al'ar screeched, and blasted a bolt of fire at a nearby stone boulder, blasting it to pieces.
As a phoenix, Al'ar could undergo rebirth at any time to remove any of his negative status conditions. However, his defiance to save his Master struck a chord in Helios's heart.
Helios felt hot shame as he recalled the moment he had fled from his squad, from his wife as the Scourge had come down upon them.
For a moment, he was paralyzed in fear as images of his wife's demise flashed through his mind.
"Kieeer!" A holy radiance flashed from Al'ar, breaking the ranger out of his fugue.
Blinking his eyes, and feeling the terror gripping his mind disappear, Helios listened to Al'ar's desperation, and gathered that the phoenix was pleading him to take action, to rescue his friend and companion.
Kael'Thas had an all too familiar, lost, distraught look on his face as his bloody hands desperately held onto the slowly necrotizing form of Jan'alai.
Helios felt disdain for the Troll, like any true son or daughter of Quel'Thalas. He was of a mind to leave her to her fate. But the desperate bravery of Al'ar to tank the seemingly never ending earth spikes and boulders moved Helios.
Furthermore, the agony of despair upon Kael'Thas's face was like a mirror into Helios' soul.
Closing his eyes, Helios went against his instinct to flee, and held out his hand to the beleaguered Prince.
"Stand up, Prince Kael'Thas! We must go!" Helios said urgently.
"No no no no no no no." Kael'Thas ignored Helios, and repeatedly spoke down at his lover in denial.
"Wake up!" Helios slapped Kael across the face hard.
"Is this the same man who preached to us during the day of mourning? The inspiring leader who cried for vengeance?! I respected you, Kael'Thas. I want to leave you for dead, let Vandercross-as much as I despise him-to take your post. But look at your phoenix companion! Whilst you sit here lost, he is giving his life for you!" Helios raged, every word he spat at the Prince feeling like a self-criticism for Helios's own past cowardice.
"Al'ar…" Kael'Thas raised his head, and watched on as his friend ate dozens of stone spears, yet kept on going despite the pain. Fire, flesh and blood dripped down the phoenix's flank, yet he never stepped back, never gave in!
"Go! Take Jan'alai to Varrus, he will know what to do." Kael'Thas unceremoniously shoved the Troll into Helios's grasp.
Helios blinked in surprise at the sudden move.
Gulping a mouthful of dust, Helios saw the determination in Kael'Thas's actions, and withheld any criticism.
"Give them Hell." Helios saluted in respect, then slung Jan'alai over his shoulder, and fled towards his boss.
The golem stopped targeting Al'ar, and tracked its attacks to follow Helios whilst he ran away.
Shortly after Helios made his escape, Rommath and Firecaster came floating down.
Rommath, in his high collared outfit rode atop a floating carpet, whilst the tall red headed Firecaster sat upon a flying horse clad in flames.
Rommath bore a fresh scar across his forehead similar to Kael's, and the sleeve of his left arm was missing, yet he seemed to ignore these wounds as mere trivialities.
Firecaster, in contrast, was unharmed, and observed the entire event unfolding as a silent spectator. Occasionally he titled his head to the side in thought, or nodded here and there, but otherwise seemed comfortable to remain still.
"A noble soul indeed, my Prince. It is self-sacrificing qualities such as this that place you above Anasterian's other children. Why can you not see that this weapon is a gift to you? Even now, the Scourge gathers in the Ghostlands, preparing for a second offensive. This weapon is precisely what we need to forestall my sister's ambitions." Rommath said in an effort to sway Kael'Thas.
"You practically raised me, master Rommath. When the court schemed, your vast repertoire of knowledge was my escape." Kael'Thas closed his eyes as he recalled his childhood.
"But the living dead have no place in this kingdom. Your reckless use of magic has seen my friends on the verge of death, and has threatened the security of my people. I am sorry, master, but as sovereign of Quel'Thalas, I, Prince Kael'Thas Sunstrider hereby sentence you to death." Kael'Thas said with steely resolve.
Each word uttered from his mouth felt like he was chewing up glass to get it out, but the attempt on his best friend's life, the near death of Jan'alai, and the crippling damage done to Al'ar were too much!
Rommath was like a second father to Kael'Thas. But necromancy so soon after the Scourge invasion was a line too far! Much more, it was necromancy of their own people! The very founding members of the country! If even they were unsafe, who was to say the rest of Quel'Thalas's citizens would be safe from Rommath's control once they had perished?
"A pity. You are not the leader I thought you were. I thought I instructed you that it is not knowledge that is not a danger to society, but the practitioner. If you cannot bear the torch of progress, then I shall do so in your stead. Our race was born from magic, I will see that we become the masters of all magic." Rommath exclaimed.
Kael'Thas stood up to his full height, and drew upon the Mana in his body, and patted Al'ar on the side. The burn mark on his chest caused him to grimace, yet he had a mission to accomplish.
For all his friends, for his people, but most importantly, for himself.
"Kieer!" Al'ar shone radiantly in the night, bathing the area in a bout of extreme Light.
The illumination brought a smile to Kael's face, and he ruffled his companion's feathers.
"That's right Al'ar, I'm still standing."
However, at this moment of resolve, Starbottle had finally finished her brew.
A pink fog erupted from her pot, and spread throughout all corners of the Sunwell's crater. A sickly sweet smell preheated the air upon the fog's arrival.
Seeping into every crack and crevice, any mite, cockroach, or insect caught in its pathway instantly melted. Whatever organic material this fog touched turned into soup.
Rommath flew high to avoid the death cloud, and looked down at Kael, shaking his head at what could have been.
"Kieer, kieer!" Al'ar warned Kael of the oncoming danger.
It came so quickly, Kael didn't have much time to work a powerful spell, so thinking on his feet, he replied with an instant cast.
Ignoring his friend's concern, he met the oncoming cloud with a Howling Blast.
A twister of cold wind emerged from his hands, and pressed the rapidly advancing fog to his left and right.
However, the perfume acted like it was alive. Twin drills of fog formed from Kael's side, and rushed at him with the force of a cyclone.
With Al'ar's damaged wing, Kael refused to move from his spot, and repeatedly shot out Howling Blast after Howling Blast at the pink fog, yet the gas was pervasive, and seemingly never ending.
Fatigue was building up as mana exhaustion began to take ahold of Kael. By constantly casting spell after spell, he had no time to absorb a Mana Stone. Sweat was accumulating across his blood streaked brow, and his muscles began to feel lethargic, yet he refused to bow out. He refused to leave Al'ar behind!
"Kioer, Koeer!" Al'ar begged Kael to portal out, and save himself, that Al'ar could always be reborn from his egg.
"No, no, if I can't make a portal large enough for you too, then I won't do it! Besides, we both know that your egg can be destroyed!" Kael harshly admonished, as he stubbornly kept casting Howling Blast in all directions.
"Kier…" Al'ar cried out in melancholy.
"If only I had a little more time to cast a more powerful spell." Kael muttered helplessly to himself.
Al'ar seemed to have heard this, and he began to flap his wings. Great gusts of wind picked up, and put the pink fog at bay.
However, each time he flapped his wings, the plague in his body would spread that much faster. Every second of action only served to weaken the phoenix further and further.
Kael'Thas witnessed his long time companion waste away before his eyes, yet he was touched by Al'ar's determination.
Not letting this act of selflessness become squandered, Kael'Thas immediately began to chant a spell to take care of the fog.
"Wilya Aeri Oro
Wilya Aeri Hîth
Wilya Aeri Densaəde!"
Kael'Thas intoned.
Upon the completion of his spell, the density of the fog utterly changed, making it so light, that more dense gasses displaced Starbottle's spell. It happened so quickly, that no matter how much Starbottle tried to control it, the pink fog flew up into the heights of the atmosphere, beyond her range of command.
"I'm still standing." Kael'Thas defiantly exclaimed up at Rommath as the fog disappeared from sight.
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AN: Read 25 chapters ahead at: patreon.com/KarpQQ
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