Death Never Dies

by Milton Garby

  "So aren't you worried that if this magic goes to your head, you'll do something to them?" She snapped her gaze back to the dragon. He dared imply... ? "Isn't it prudent to make sure that doesn't happen?"

  "You're going to follow me into Ulduar aren't you?" She thought about it more. "This probably isn't even your idea is it? That red dragon, or the blue, they're the ones who told you to keep an eye on me." She again wondered how hard it'd be to mind control a dragon. She still needed him to fly her to Ulduar, but having a lizard breathing down her neck, nudging her away from her ultimate destination of Yogg-Saron? No.

  Then again, was there any guarantee she could force him to relax, while still being smart enough to navigate the powerful winds to Ulduar? Sure it wasn't combat, mind manipulation was something she'd actually been practicing a lot, but still... what was the risk and what was the reward?

  The risk was losing her flight and having to hearthstone back. Or getting mauled to death by an angry dragon if she really messed up. The reward was him not following her into Ulduar... which was also a risk because then she wouldn't have a dragon bodyguard with her in case her distraction gem ever failed. And what was he going to do? He wasn't some thief trying to rob her blind. He wasn't some arcane wraith here to suck her magical essence dry. He was a red drake, a goody-goody dragon all invested in being noble, in saving her from herself, in helping her keep her head on straight.

  And maybe he even had a point. On the off chance that being in the presence of the Old God of Death made her pull a Cho'gall, a red drake could probably uncorrupt her before the taint got to her heart.

  "Fine, tag along and keep me from losing my mind. Maybe you'll even be useful and you'll find some superweapon I miss."

  "Anyway I'm getting off topic. Your resurrection magic isn't like the Holy Light. You're... you're doing something that doesn't fit. Like you're trying to fit a puzzle piece somewhere it doesn't go, but you push it so hard it goes in anyway."

  "Resurrection's not that hard. Dragons are just bigger than what I'm used to."

  "You're doing something that doesn't fit. It's a wonderful thing, understand that, but breaking the natural order like that always ends up having some... consequences."

  She yawned, looking at the now-diminished blizzard. Natural order, blah blah. Who cared if that was the 'natural order'? Nature didn't have any real power on its own. "I doubt it." Really, what did he know? He was all about life but she understood how life and death interplayed much better than anyone else. Afterlives, soul drifts, energy bound in souls, all that stuff. She knew - for a fact - he was talking out of ignorance. "Anyway, think you can fly in that?" she asked, gesturing outside.

  He looked thoughtful. "It should be doable, especially if it keep weakening."

  "Then let me on, and keep your sanctimonious preaching to yourself. I don't need to be lectured by a teenager," she snapped irately, a little ball of stress and anger churning in her stomach.

  He snorted. "Fine." The dragon allowed Sara to approach and mount him. She strapped herself in, made sure her bag was secure, her glasses wouldn't fall off, and nodded. Derestrasz got a running start, then leaped into the winds.

  Almost instantly, Sara's stomach dropped out of her body as they tilted sideways, but with a few furious flaps the drake righted himself and began flying north, occasionally being gusted around by the heavy winds.

  The travel was long, and the weather was nerve-wracking. Several more times, Derestrasz had to take shelter from a storm beyond his skill, which only added time. Though after their talk about how Derestrasz knew she had Old God magic, and how he was coming along in some misguided attempt to save her soul, they didn't chat much. Perfectly fine by her. Mountains passed on all sides, sometimes forming interesting arches, loops, and tunnels depending on how the wind had carved through them. A frozen river ran beneath her. As they traveled further north however, Sara could see more and more Titan architecture.

  The earliest time was on a rare, sunny day where she could see everywhere with impunity. The cliff peaks reached for the sun, and on top of one of them was a Titan temple. It was a vertical cylinder, but instead of walls it was supported by bronze pillars, and lit by glowing white orbs of astral energy. Despite the lack of clouds, thunder and lightning flashed above it routinely. And that had been to her left. At the same time to her right, the Storm Peaks emptied out into a massive basin, in the middle of which was a colossal depression. Looking closer revealed the depression was actually another Titan construction. This one was a circular platform that had burrowed straight through the snow and rock, with all manner of dormant, iced-over machinery inside.

  Then on the fourth day, they arrived within eyeshot of Ulduar.

  Beneath them the Storm Peaks were smoothed out into level walkways, with Titan metal still visible in many places. There were even stairs, free of snow, so there were people keeping them maintained. Beyond that was the island that held Ulduar.

  Calling it an island wasn't entirely correct. It was connected to the mainland of Northrend through a very, very deep and rocky canyon, and a few bridges the size of the Trade Distract ran over the gap. The island itself was gargantuan, but sloped down smoothly into the glistening, icy waters. A single, giant mountain took up a large part of the island, but even it couldn't dominate the Titan city of Ulduar.

  The architecture of Ulduar was mostly dull bronze and gray, layered with domes, pillars, ruffled walls, and flower-like symbols over hideously tall doors. All of the windows were tinted bright green, and some spherical magic lights twice her size provided light. From so far she couldn't make out any iron soldiers, but already the sheer scale of Ulduar was truly dawning on her. It had to be some fifteen times the size of Stormwind, just accounting for the size difference between humans and Titans. And in the middle, carved into the mountain, was the largest structure of them all, dwarfing every other building Sara had ever seen in her life. The main entrance.

  Derestrasz landed on a cliff, digging his talons into the ice and looking over at Ulduar. "Ready?"

  Still on the drake's back, she nodded. "Bring me as close as you can, but not too close. I need to get one of them alone so I can set up a distraction spell that'll work on them."

  The air had gone paradoxically dead around Ulduar, so the flapping of Derestrasz's wings filled her ears more than even the rushing wind. Sara wasn't even phased by the sudden movement, by defying gravity. The colossal canyon opened up beneath her, threatening to swallow the two of them. Derestrasz turned, flying lengthwise along the crevice. He slowed down as they grew closer.

  "So," he said, now that the wind wasn't deafening. "How long have you been able to resurrect? I don't remember you saying."

  "What's it to you?" she asked, instantly going stiff.

  "Just trying to figure out what the damage you may have suffered," he explained.

  "I told you earlier to drop it. My family would've noticed if anything was happening to me, I spent the better part of two decades growing up with them."

  "Right right, sorry." They kept flying, and eventually, Derestrasz turned to the right and passed the canyon. She was over Ulduar. Sara was still too high up to see any of the denizens, but she suspected that was going to change soon.

  Her body tingled as the dragon began to descend, far out of the way, behind buildings, behind snowy hills. Nobody was in sight when Derestrasz landed, his sickle claws stabbing into the icy snow, and Sara undid her harness. With shaking legs she jumped off the dragon's side and thumped onto the snow, so cold that the layer of ice weren't even slick.

  A rush of magic exploded upwards into her, filling every inch of her body with focused Old God magic. She was so close. She was in Ulduar.

  Sara was almost to Yogg-Saron.

  Sara

  Derestrasz, in a human form, crouched under the snow mound. Sara cautiously peeked up and looked around. There no iron dwarves, vrykul, or anything in sight. The closest building, towering above them, must've had its entrance on the far side b
ecause she couldn't see any doors. Slowly, staying low to the ground, she made her way towards it until she was pressed up against the metallic walls, and the disguised drake followed her.

  She was somewhat glad it was so cold, since it kept the ice from being slippery. Cautiously, Sara moved along the building, edging closer and closer to the corner.

  "We need to get one of them over here, emphasis on one," she whispered. "If I can get them alone, I can do what needs to be done. Do you see any?"

  Derestrasz pushed ahead and peeked over the corner. "No... wait, I see someone. It's... an iron dwarf." He pulled back. "Two of them. Heading this way."

  Sara cursed. "Two of them huh? Think you can get just one's attention?"

  "That won't work, the other will notice its patrol partner is gone," he whispered. "It's both of them or none of them."

  She considered their options. On one hand she could be patient, wait for them to leave, and wait for a singular iron dwarf to come. It was the reasonable, safer option. But...

  Her entire body tingled with anticipation. She was close to something. Close enough to touch. And who knew when the next patrol would come by? Who knew if there even WERE any lone iron dwarves? They'd just end up wasting hours for no reason.

  "Bring both of them," she said. "I'll handle it," she growled, preparing a spell.

  The adolescent boy nodded and brought both hands together on his right side, like he was cupping something. Out of thin air, little embers coalesced and gravitated into the space between his hands, forming a steadily growing orb. Then, he held out his left hand is if to throw it. The fist-sized fireball flew out, steaming as it sailed through the air, and plopped into the snow. It left only a tiny crater, but from the way Derestrasz hurried back it had caught their attention. She really hoped they wouldn't just send one, while the other ran to raise the alarm. Sara was counting on Ulduar having been quiet for thirty years, so they grew soft.

  If the iron soldiers even could. She heard they were very human-like, but...

  "Get ready to change back and hold them down," she whispered, shielding herself. He nodded and readied himself, splaying out his fingers as if they were claws. The swirling violet magic around Sara's hands shivered as she grinned in anticipation. Before long she heard the thump thump of feet approaching, then around the corner of the Titan building two iron dwarves appeared.

  They were superficially just like male dwarves. Thick bodied, long beards, all that. Then there was the 'iron' portion. Their skin was a dull brownish-gray and, despite being made of metal, seemed to flex and shift as easily as flesh. Their pants, chestplate, and shoulderpads smoothly transitioned into the rest of their bodies, and lightning-blue runes were inscribed along their arms, legs, waist, hands, and feet. The noses had no nostrils, but the eyes and mouth both showcased the inner azure light of the Titan constructs.

  Neither of the two carried any weapons, which explained why, upon noticing Sara, they both raised their hands in perfect synchronization to summon lightning magic.

  Then Derestrasz smoothly transformed back and snaked around behind the two constructs, which apparently didn't take notice of him. Before their lightning bolts could fire he reared up and, with a single paw each, flattened them to the ground.

  When their magic went out, Sara's flew out. She pushed her Old God magic into the first one's mind...

  She hadn't known exactly what to expect. Unlike with others, the mental lines in the iron dwarf were... geometric. They were arranged into a little cube, with nothing but ninety degree angles all around, and the pulses of thought moved like train tracks. It made finding the analogies to non-iron thought very simple, and in no time she'd figured out how to make her distraction gem affect iron dwarves as well.

  Then, she tried to knock them unconscious. Iron dwarves didn't sleep, but they did seem to have a low-power state that was close enough. She pushed her magic into it to trigger it, frowned when it failed, then forced even more power. That worked, and their struggles ceased.

  "Wow," she panted. "These things are something else." She fished around in her pack and pulled out the distraction gem. She held it in one hand, and then got the unenchanted blue crystal into her other hand. Comparing the iron dwarves' minds to how she made her first distraction gem, Sara began etching the enchantment into it. It took some time, especially in the bitter cold, but before long she was done. Then she reached into the two constructs' minds and wiped their memories. Direct memory manipulation wasn't something she could normally do, but these things were so... compartmentalized. Everything was so easy to find, so easy to ruin. No wonder Ulduar had fallen to Yogg-Saron if the Titans had made it so easy.

  She put the distraction gem away and held the Ulduar distraction gem in her right fist. Sara channeled half of her mana pool into it until blue light shone through the gaps in her hand, and she stepped to Derestrasz.

  "Alright, get off of them, change back and stick with me." The dragon obeyed her, staying close behind Sara. Good thing she'd brought a dragon; the iron constructs must not have been programmed to ever see red dragons as threats.

  Sara turned the iron dwarves 'back on' and stepped away. They looked around for a moment, confused, but their eyes passed right over her and the drake. They turned around and continued to walk, apparently having changed their patrol routes on the go.

  "We need to hurry," she hissed. "Their discrepancy might alert the rest of Ulduar and we need to get in before they find out what we've done." She pointed at the main entrance. "Let's go!"

  "Maybe I should fly us in?" he suggested. "If that crystal will keep them from noticing us then we should make as much use of my wings as we can."

  Good idea. "Right." With a shimmering distortion of air, the drake transformed back into his true form. Clutching the gem tightly, Sara climbed on and strapped herself in. He began flapping, which didn't even budge the icy snow, and ascended. First he shot directly away from Ulduar in order to gain height, but once at a terrible height Derestrasz pulled around sharply, so sharply Sara nearly threw up in mid-air, but she held in her lunch long enough for the dragon to straighten out.

  So high up, the air was thin and Sara had to be careful to watch her breathing, as well as the sharp cold, but luckily it meant it would be very difficult for any iron soldiers to notice them, especially with the gem blazing between her fingers. To her left and right the dragon's powerful wings continued to flap, and she looked down to see Ulduar pass beneath them. From so high up, it was easy to see a general structure. The mountain in the center of the island separated 'outer' Ulduar from 'inner' Ulduar. Outer Ulduar's buildings were arranged almost like flower petals around a central core, leading to vast underground chambers. Then there was the mountain, and on the other side was the main city of Ulduar.

  Nestled in between hills, the streets were wide and tall, forming a long path to the north while also branching off into labyrinthine side passages of inscrutable design. Even from so high up, she could see iron soldiers buzzing about down below like ants, and she gulped nervously. That was... quite a lot of them. She didn't like her odds against that many, not even with a dragon.

  That was an army.

  From so high up it didn't seem like a long flight, but it took Derestrasz the better part of the day to finish flying to the right spot. Once there he began making large circles down, which did nothing but eat up the rest of their daylight. With auroras as their primary source of light, Derestrasz flew lower and lower and lower, closing in on the monumental building at the end of the path. That was their destination, the gate to the inner sanctum of Ulduar.

  It was also crawling with iron soldiers. Iron dwarves, titanic iron vrykul, and even a singular iron giant the size of a mansion. Not a single one of them looked their way, but all the same Sara feared to even breathe.

  The final room before the inner sanctum could best be summoned up as a box without a lid, filled with murderous iron constructs that would fry her to charcoal if they saw her. Derestrasz landed on the 'lid' o
f the box and padded over to the edge to look down.

  "Descend slowly," she whispered. "It's a big drop." It was a big drop indeed. Thrice the size of the iron giant, it would be a very quick death if she slipped from Derestrasz's back. He nodded back to her and ever so gently began to flap his way down. It was jerky, so Sara's guts kept going up and down inside her body and she swore she could feel lightning about to strike her. The iron soldiers grew restless as Derestrasz landed in a small pile of snow, and with tense motions Sara got off.

  He shifted back, and Sara held up a finger in front of her mouth; the universal symbol to be quiet. He gave her a quick nod, and Sara began to lead the two of them around the perimeter of the 'box' towards the colossal stairs. Most of the iron soldiers faced forward with eerie stillness. Both her and the dragon's breathing was thunderous, and it was surely because of them that some of the unmoving, unbreathing constructs looked their way before turning back. Not all faced forward either, some faced in various directions to cover all angles. The fact that they were still alive did nothing to calm her. The immense magic inside of her did nothing to reassure her. Sara was certain that any second, one of her footsteps would be just a little too loud and she'd die.

  This was a terrible idea.

  Soon, she and Derestrasz arrived at the back of the box, which was an enormous staircase. Each step was almost as tall as Sara herself, which made climbing it while staying close to the dragon rather awkward and difficult. It took a long time, especially in the darkness of night, and sent shooting pains up her legs. Despite those obstacles, they climbed the steps. Her lungs demanded that she take gasps of air, but she didn't dare do anything so loud.

  Before them was a teleporter. It was a ring of bronze metal on the ground glowing with sky-blue magic, with a hollow wheel floating ten yards above it. The floating ring also held blue light, and in between the two motes of magic transferred up and down rapidly.