She rose to find her comrades holding their own. Below, the raptors and Rhonin kept the other guards at bay, but Iridi appeared to be having difficulty with what she was attempting. At the very least, it seemed to Grenda that the draenei was no further along than she had been moments before.
Suddenly, thunder shook the cavern, thunder so powerful that it sent skardyn plummeting from the walls and dwarves from the ledge. Grenda had never heard such thunder and was amazed that it could be felt so deep within Grim Batol.
But then the dwarf realized why she had never heard such thunder... because it was not thunder at all.
It was a roar.
The time has come, Zendarin Windrunner had decided but minutes before. This is no longer worth my efforts....
He had always known his partner in this affair was mad, but apparently madness was commonplace when it came to anything revolving around this accursed lump of dirt called Grim Batol. He himself must have been mad to have ever accepted her offer to reveal to him new sources of magical energy in exchange for his assistance with her spells. Their creation would have given him access to more magic than a thousand blood elves could gather in their not inconsiderable lifetimes...magic and dominance.
But now was the moment to begin what he had intended all along. The thing in the pit had grown rapidly; it was surely near its full potential.
All Zendarin had to do was give it that final push... and at the same time seal his own mastery over it.
He stepped to the pit. Although he gazed hard, their creation was still difficult to make out. The creature radiated a unique, fascinating energy that the blood elf hungered badly for, but that was a feast for a better time. Now...now he had to be the one to do the giving.
Through the cerulean cube in the other chamber, the nether dragon was ever bound to the thing here. However, the link had to be purposely opened, generally by Zendarin and the dark lady together. Zendarin had always indicated that the staff he had stolen could do no more than it had in that regard.
Naturally, he had lied.
The staff was fascinating. He had tricked the draenei into revealing the secrets of its use while in another guise. He had discovered how to make the staff work for him and him alone so that no one could think to take it from him in turn. If she had tried,the staff would have returned to its creators, the beings called the naaru. That was what should have happened when he had slain the draenei. If not for the fact that he had learned the secret of transfer, a secret even she could not peel from his mind.
That was perhaps the greatest reason why she had never actually followed through with her threats against him. Despite all her hubris, Zendarin knew that he had still been an essential element of the spellwork.
But where she desired domination over all, he would be satisfied with domination over some and the satiation of his eternal hunger. Zendarin leaned over the edge more and pointed the crystal at where he best estimated the bulk of the creature—Dargonax, she had so grandiosely called it—and concentrated.
The staff's astounding energy flowed into the pit. As it struck, it outlined for the first time Dargonax's full glory.
Zendarin gasped and almost lost his focus. It was far more huge and powerful than he had thought! Surely even she did not comprehend the full scope of what they had wrought.
And that only made the blood elf grin more eagerly. As he fed the staff's power into the beast, he also used it to awaken the cube, awaken it and demand that it take from the imprisoned dragon all that it could and feed that also into Dargonax.
As both magical streams poured into the essence of the creature, it suddenly let loose with a tremendous roar that shook Grim Batol. However, caught up in his lust for the greater magic with which he believed his betrayal would reward him, the blood elf only laughed. He was master of the situation now.
He was master of everything....
But as Zendarin continued with his traitorous act, he did not notice a shadow that separated from others in the chamber.
Sinestra watched the blood elf commit to his betrayal. She smiled in satisfaction as he worked to take all that she had set intoplace as his own. When Sinestra was certain that there would be no going back for Zendarin, she sank into the shadows again and vanished.
All was going just as Deathwing's consort had planned, all save for the question of Korialstrasz.
But that was a problem easily remedied....
There was another who heard the roar and feared what it meant, especially as the voice in his head was no longer there. Kalec sought hard for Dargonax's presence, but not because he desired the creature to stay with him. Rather, now that it appeared that he was free, the blue had his own interests with which to deal. They did not directly deal with the missing Korlalstrasz, but if Kalec ran across the red, he would by no means avoid him.
Kalec still had reservations concerning the other dragon. He did not trust many of Korialstrasz's choices, although he did have to admit that the red was more than willing to put his own life on the line for those choices. That was something that he had not so much believed until this point. Kalec had always thought Korialstrasz more of a manipulator, in some ways as callous as even Deathwing.
No...he’s no Deathwing, the blue thought with some shame. But neither is he me.... Kalec would have never risked his friends or loved ones. Never.
He followed a trail that he did not understand. It was not the one he had begun under Dargonax's guidance. Rather, the blue felt as if someone had called to him, someone who suddenly had ceased doing so. Yet, Kalec did not feel that he could ignore it.
Lower and lower he descended. He was near, very near, to something.
What he thought a movement in the shadowed recesses of the passage caught his gaze. The blue cautiously turned toward it.
A blue glow sphere burst from his empty hand. In its light, the younger dragon saw nothing but rock wall.
Cursing his own anxiety, Kalec continued on. He hoped that soon he would find whatever it was he was meant to find.
Then, a golden glow radiated from some point far ahead. Kalec gripped the magic blade tight. As he moved closer, he saw that there was some chamber there.
The golden glow brought back memories he had tried to keep down. Anveena's face appeared before him, both beautiful and innocent. She had touched him as no other had or ever could... and now she was gone.
His earlier ire at the red dragon burned anew. It was Korialstrasz —in the guise of the wizard Borel—who had caused Anveena such grief. It was the red's fault that Kalec had lost her forever. It was—
He stepped into the chamber... and saw Korlalstrasz as the mage Krasus being guided by a high elf toward a strange broken crystal.
Rage overwhelming him. Kalec let out a roar and charged the red.
Both Korlalstrasz and the high elf looked his way. The high elf —a ranger—released the dragon mage and moved to block Kalec from him.
The blue had no quarrel with her. She was clearly another of Korialstrasz's dupes, likely thinking his guise as Krasus made him a trusted friend, not an insidious, uncaring plotter. Kalec gestured and, despite some sudden, unsettling weakness that he blamed on his counterpart, his spell sent the high elf flying to one of the walls, where the rock sealed around her wrists and ankles. There she would keep until he had dealt with his foe.
"Kalec!" Korlalstrasz started. "You live! I thought—" The blue's rage suddenly registered with him. "Kalec, listen to me! There is something wrong with you—"
But Kalec was aware of the danger of letting the cunning red's words infiltrate his mind. Gritting his teeth, he swung at the cowled figure.
However, his blade was met by a fiery orange-red sword that sprouted from his foe's hand just as Kalec's had. Kalec had taught Krasus the spell during a quiet moment on the journey and the irony of that was not now lost on the red. The two shared one stinging blow after another, most of the offensive ones on the blue's side.Yet, not for a minute did Kalec think Korialstrasz's hesitation agains
t attacking in turn anything more than a ploy. He had to strike down the older red before the latter could put whatever trick he had into motion.
"Kalec! You are not thinking for yourself! Another is doing that for you! Gaze upon the foul artifact near us and understand the reason!"
Despite himself, the blue dragon did glance for just a single breath at that which Korialstrasz had mentioned. For the first time, he saw the oddly-cracked, glowing sphere. Shards of it were missing here and there, yet, some force held it together.
Moreover, that same force seemed to also be the source of a strange pulsation. As Kalec's and Korialstrasz's magic-wrought swords clashed again—sending off showers of energy—the pulsations magnified.
But although he saw that there was likely a link between the actions, Kalec assumed that they could only be from one source... the cowled figure before him.
"A master of trickery as usual!" he growled. "But not a master of magic..."
Kalec's blade, about to meet the other yet again, suddenly curled around as if a tentacle. It wrapped around Korialstrasz's arm and burned bright.
With a cry, the red dragon released his own weapon, which faded to nothing.
The younger dragon tugged hard, pulling Korialstrasz toward him. In his other hand, a second weapon formed.
But the rock beneath Kalec's feet chose that moment to sprout life in the form of great vines that burst through cracks to tangle his feet. He managed to slice some, but in the end lost his balance.
Both opponents tumbled to the floor. Korialstrasz grabbed the younger dragon's arm. "Hear me! We are being manipulated! Sinestra has drawn us together into the very place she intended we end up! Do you not feel yourself getting weaker yet? Do you not recall the tales of my people's sufferings when they chose to stand guard over Grim Batol? The very reason for that hovers near us, areborn and redesigned monstrosity that surely still earns the title Demon Soul!"
A part of Kalec registered what the other dragon said, but it was not a great enough part to overcome the intense fury and mistrust he felt for Korialstrasz. "Spare me your lies! This is just as likely your devious trap as it is that witch's!"
With each passing moment, Kalec's strength waned more, but his unchecked anger kept him fighting. He would not give in to Korialstrasz! He would not!
The blue dragon focused all his magic on one spell. He did not seek to conjure any intricate attack, but merely wanted to make certain that when it hit Korialstrasz, there would be no doubt as to the outcome.
The cowled figure's pale visage distorted in clear recognition of what his younger foe intended. Korialstrasz's dismay further fueled Kalec's pleasure. In the blue's mind, Anveena's face smiled at his impending triumph.
Kalec smiled back at her, all the while ignoring Korialstrasz's entreaties.
"For you, Anveena..." he whispered.
The blue dragon unleashed everything.
Grim Batol shook again. Dwarves, skardyn, drakonid... all were tossed about as if tiny toys.
The pain!Zzeraku suddenly roared in the draenei's head. The pain! It tears me apart!
"What happens?" Iridi shouted out loud to the dragon.
"Keep at it!" called Rhonin, thinking she was speaking with him. "Keep at it—"
His voice failed him as the bound nether dragon suddenly shimmered. Zzeraku's body all but faded away for a moment. A terrible moan escaped the suffering leviathan.
The pain! I am being eaten!
Have courage! the priestess told Zzeraku. Have courage!
Her words, her strength, cut through his suffering. Zzeraku stared at her. Why do you do this for me? The draenei have love for my kind, after all that has happened!
Iridi was steadfast. I do it because you don't deserve this....
I—do not?
Then, elsewhere, yet another horrific roar sent further chills down the spines of all. Even the raptors cowered at its force. "I have this terrible feeling that we're too late," Rhonin said.
TWENTY
He was alive. Krasus was not surprised by that miracle, but neither was he entirely pleased. Kalec's attack had failed, but failed for a darker reason.
"Ah, the great Korialstrasz...defender of the lesser races, savior of Azeroth... the grandest fool ever born..." declared the voice of Deathwing's consort.
Krasus could barely move. It was painful just to lift his head enough to see her stride toward the re-crafted Demon Soul and touch it as a loving mother would a cherished offspring. The dragon mage doubted that Sinestra had ever treated Nefarian or Onyxia so, but then they had not existed solely for her ambition and madness. The Demon Soul had no mind of its own, no potential dream of independence....
"It shall—it shall never w-work!" he managed to croak. "In the end—you shall only have—have disappointment—and death..."
"Preach not to me, Korialstrasz," the black dragon mocked, now peering up in amusement at a stunned Vereesa. "Yes, my darling, you are also alive, albeit temporarily. You should thank me for that miracle. All the force this impetuous young fool sought to unleash was steered elsewhere through my good efforts...."
Krasus snorted. "It was—it was your vile whispering in—in the blue's mind in the first—first place that made him cast such a force of violence."
"Of course! He made such a wonderfully delectable choice! You can imagine how enjoyable it was to find out not only that he was alive, but that his thoughts were in such distress that I could easily manipulate them against you! Your continual interference in theaffairs of the world has left you with many like him, Korialstrasz...."
"And you are—are breeding your own destruction. S-Sinestra! You cannot—cannot control what you have wrought! Think upon that before it is too late—"
She gave a curt wave with her hand, and he went flying up against the celling. Krasus screamed as he hit, but not only because of the force.
The point of a long, wicked stalactite—a stalactite reinforced by the black dragon's power—thrust through his chest.
A stream of the red's life fluids drizzled onto the chamber floor. Krasus gasped, yet, despite what seemed a mortal wound, he remained conscious.
"All goes as I desire, my darling Korialstrasz, and always has! I have adjusted for every eventuality and although I will grant you some surprise on my part at your ability to escape the chrysalun chamber, your act only served to enable me to bring matters to a swifter and more satisfying conclusion!"
"You will—you will only bring yourself to—to a swifter doom, I tell you! Even now—"
"Even now, your other companions are trying in vain to either escape or, in the case of two, actually dare to free the nether dragon...." She smiled at the expressions of both the dragon mage and the ranger. "Ah! Some of this is not known to you? You, my dear high elf, should be especially interested, as I do believe that with the draenei who is known to both of you, there is a human wizard...a human with the red hair marking him as Korialstrasz's favored lackey!"
"Rhonin?" Vereesa gasped.
"Such a loving mate..." The veiled figure's expression momentarily hardened. "Such a loving mate..." The sense of triumph returned. "But they are both merely readying themselves to add to the reservoir of magical energies I have been collecting for my new children...."
A savage roar shook the chamber, almost sending Krasus failing to the floor. At the last moment, Sinestra reinforced his agonizing captivity.
"Listen—listen to that—Sinestra! Each time he cries out, your creation sounds larger, stronger...."
"But, of course! That is the point! Really, Korialstrasz, I think your mind is finally going."
The cowled figure managed to shake his head. "You will never understand until it is—" He groaned."—is far too late..."
She laughed. "Do you feel the weakness spreading? Do you feel the numbness embracing you? When I gathered up what fragments there were of the Demon Soul, I found within it a residual energy like none I had ever seen. More interesting, the pieces appeared to be trying to draw in more
energy, as if seeking to rejuvenate my dear, unlamented mate's creation." Sinestra caressed the gleaming construct, "it was as if fate had granted me its favor. I already had Balacgos's Bane, which would work so hand-in-hand with what was left of the Soul that it was almost as if I had planned it myself!"
Krasus knew of Balacgos's Bane, a cube of cerulean created by one of Malygos's elder offspring. All blues were caretakers of magic, but Balacgos had gone one step further; he had designed the cube to deal with a situation that he thought endangered Azeroth... the unharnessed latent magical energy that was spread throughout the world, magical energy that no one controlled, but that could be used by any unscrupulous practitioner of the arts who came upon them.
The cube had been designed to seek and take into itself any such energies that it sensed. One only had to activate it with their own power. The cube was intended to be a reservoir, keeping that magic available for when the blue flight might need it.
But upon first using his grand creation, Balacgos had discovered a small error in his calculations. The cube had sensed nearby magic and absorbed it...but that magic had been the dragon's.
The other dragons had found him a dried husk, blues being so much a part of magic itself that it was as much their life as their blood or other life fluids.
This had been in the ancient times when Malygos had still been truly sane and Deathwing had yet been the trusted Earth-Warder, Neltharion. Krasus recalled with some irony that, in order to keepthe cube from doing harm to his people, Malygos had, on Neltharion's suggestion, passed it on to his trusted friend to bury deep within Azeroth.
It had been like giving an assassin a dagger and telling him not to use it.
Still, like what remained of the Demon Soul, Balacgos's Bane had obviously had its purpose altered. Now, the two artifacts gave Sinestra the ultimate matrix for absorbing the energies she needed to create a dragon such as had never flown any world's sky.
"It will not take much longer for both of you to be drained of what I need," Sinestra explained. "In the meantime, I shall see to the draenei and the human. Their powers with yours will make a delightful mix! A shame you will not be alive to see what I create with it, Korialstrasz! I think that even you would find it most interesting...."
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