Chapter 3: Defence

"They did what?" The expression on Sylvanas' face told Lyndia that she couldn't believe what she had just told her. Shock, doubt and panic could be recognized.

"They managed to get into the city and now they are attacking the citizens," Lyndia explained quickly.

"How did they manage to do that?" Sylvanas shrieked, waking the sleeping bird in the surrounding trees and scaring them away.

"We have no idea. They appeared out of nowhere and started to attack us."

"How many creatures are there?"

"Nearly a hundred, maybe more. I can't tell."

"Shit, we need to act quickly. We need to kill them before they can cause great damage." With that said, Sylvanas quickly rushed through the portal, leaving Kelrian and Lyndia behind. They arrived in Undercity a few moments later, the first thing Kelrian did was to pick up a sword from the floor and check his surroundings.

They were in the throne room, nearly a dozen dark rangers were spread across the room and firing arrows outside. The royal guards were at the entrance and gave their best to hold back skeletons, ghouls and other undead creatures that had the size of humanoid beings.

"You are not wearing any armour," Sylvanas said to Kelrian as she shot another arrow, hitting a ghoul right between the eyes. The ugly creature stopped moving and fell backwards, but it was immediately replaced by another one that jumped on one of her royal guards and brought him to the ground. Before anyone could react, the ghoul had already buried its fangs in the man's neck. The other guards tried to help him but it was already too late.

"Neither do you," Kelrian replied as he made his way to the entrance. "I doubt we will have the time to put on our battle armour."

"We need to act quickly to prevent them from doing any damage," Sylvanas shouted, letting another arrow fly through the air. It hit its target in the shoulder but didn't kill it. "Dammit," she hissed as she drew another arrow from her quiver, finishing the target this time. If the ghoul wouldn't have moved to the side, she would have killed it with the first shot.

Kelrian had reached the guards in the meantime and jumped in the fray without hesitation. He didn't wear any form of armour, not even a coat of chain mail or leather clothes. He wore a thin blouse and jeans. Everyday clothes that were unfit for battle. He had not expected to go into battle, so he had dressed like this. Not even Sylvanas had seen that coming but she still wore clothes that were better suited for battle than Kelrian's. She even wore uniforms in her free time. Her old habits turned out to be a blessing in this situation.

Kelrian had to be more careful this time. There was nothing that could protect him from the swords, claws and teeth of the undead. Nothing but the barrier he had cast on himself but he had no idea how long it would endure. He felt a little insecure without his armour and his enhanced sword but he ignored that feeling and swung the weapon he had picked up, beheading a ghoul and a skeleton.

"We have to burn the corpses," shouted one of the guards.

"No, the risk is too high that the fire gets out of control and burns us," shouted another.

"Talented mages are able to control their fire, so you don't need to be afraid that the fire reaches you," Kelrian said to him.

"As long as no necromancer is spotted in the city, no corpse is getting burned. We only use fire if necessary. That's an order," shouted Sylvanas from behind.

"You heard her," Kelrian said, thrusting his sword through the upper body of a ghoul. The creature was not dead yet, to the surprise of Kelrian those around him. It stretched out its arms and tried to scratch Kelrian with its claws. Kelrian thrust the sword deeper into the ghoul's chest, finishing it before it could harm him.

"Burning skeletons are approaching," cried out a guard.

"Shit," Sylvanas cursed, getting closer to the entrance. Her dark rangers moved with her without her needing to tell them. "Archers and mages focus on the skeletons, we cannot allow them to reach our front line."

They did as they were told, firing everything they got at the dozens of skeletons. The mages used frost techniques to slow them down or even freeze them in place, the dark rangers used explosive arrows, hoping that the explosions will tear nearby skeletons apart.

Kelrian knew better than approaching the burning skeletons. If he would have worn his full-body armour, he would have dealt with them without a problem. But fighting them with nothing but the barrier to protect him was suicide. He remained at the front, dealing with the ghouls, skeletons and raised corpses. They were numerous, but the more time passed, the fewer they became.

A sigh of relief escaped Kelrian's lips as the last ghoul fell. His gaze wandered to the corridor where the remains of the burning skeletons were scattered all over the stone floor. Not a single burning skeleton had reached him and the royal guards. Nevertheless, several guards had lost their lives. A dozen guards were wounded, a few had lost an arm or a leg while others had suffered biting or stabbing wounds.

"This is not over yet," Sylvanas shoutedbefore anyone could sit down and relax. "Other areas are getting attacked as well, we need to protect our citizens. Those who are still able to fight come with me. Those who are badly injured or feel unable to continue fighting will stay behind. The apothecaries will take care of them."

Some of the guards muttered something but they knew better than speaking out against their queen. They obeyed without hesitation, following their queen through the corridor that led to the Apothecarium. "You should put some armour on," Sylvanas said to Kelrian when they passed the royal quarter.

"The only armour that is in there is my former armour and it would take too long to put it on. No undead creature but you can touch it, due to the runes carved in it, even with your help it would take too long. We don't have the time for that. The more time we waste, the more Forsaken die."

Sylvanas wanted to say something in return but she held back. She wanted to say that she didn't care about the other Forsaken, that she only cared about his safety but she couldn't say that out loud. Not only because she was surrounded by her people but also because it wasn't true. She didn't want any of her people to die. Neither did she want him to get hurt.

Instead of telling him that, she gave her people an order. "Keep your eyes on Kelrian's back, he must not be hurt."

Kelrian wanted to argue with her about that point, he wanted to tell her that he could take care of himself but he knew better than arguing with her about his safety. Sylvanas was always afraid for his safety and they had better things to do than arguing at this very moment. He remained quiet and renewed the barrier around his body, hoping that not too many Scourge minions were still inside the city.

They didn't find any intruders in the Apothecarium but they spotted several Scourge minions on the outer path to the War Quarter. As they came closer, they realized through which way the Scourge had come through. "Seems my assumption turns out to be right. They really came through the sewers," hissed Sylvanas.

"The entrance to the sewer was heavily guarded, I cannot believe that they managed to take out the guards without raising the alarm," responded Lyndia.

"We will figure out what happened later, for now, we need to kill them. Mages try to extinguish the flames. Not only the burning skeletons but also the burning buildings. Archers, fire everything you got."

"We will run out of arrows soon, Sylvanas," replied Verena.

Sylvanas groaned. "Fine. Three of the mages have to craft new arrows for us. Go! Go! Go!"

Spells and arrows flew through the air, killing dozens of Scourge minions within a short amount of time. Kelrian didn't think twice about putting himself in danger as he joined the front and attacked every servant of the Scourge that came near him. He even shot rays and spheres of light at his opponents killing many with his techniques. They fought their way through the sewers, killing all Scourge minions but they also lost a handful of soldiers in return.

Sylvanas had watched in horror as several of her Forsaken had caught fire when burning skeletons had come out of a hiding place and jumped on them. Not every burning Forsaken could be saved in time, several were turned to ashes while many of those who had been saved had suffered serious burning wounds. Nevertheless, they were still able to fight.

They reached the end of the sewer, spotting a huge hole in the walls. "Did anyone hear the explosion?" Sylvanas asked.

"I don't think so," responded Lyndia. "I spoke to the guard captain who was stationed near the other side of the sewers and he told me that they didn't hear anything nor did they see the attack coming. They were heavily surprised by the Scourge minions that came out of the sewers."

"They must have used a spell to silence all sounds," Kelrian concluded.

"I wonder how they even managed to get near Undercity without being seen," Sylvanas said.

"Maybe they came from the water. As we know, the undead can swim, even the brainless ones."

"But they only do that when anyone with influence is around. They don't do that without being ordered to, they are not smart enough for that. Not to mention that someone has set the skeletons on fire. I have no doubt that there is an intelligent creature still in the city, probably the one who leads the attack. We must find them and take them captive or kill them if we don't have another choice."

"The question is where they are. They could be anywhere."

Sylvanas looked at Lyndia and then back at Kelrian. "There are three remaining areas we need to check. The Magic Quarter, the Rogues' Quarter and the city core. Not to mention we also have to check the ruins above the ground. We need to split up."

"I'll go to the core," Kelrian replied without thinking twice.

"I'll go to the Rogues' Quarter," responded Lyndia.

"Alright. Verena goes with me, Zetai goes with Kelrian and Nathanos with Lyndia. The others split up equally once we leave the sewers," Sylvanas ordered.

They left the sewers and split up, Kelrian and Zetai lead their group to the core, also known as the heart of Undercity. They were greeted by a bunch of undead, burning skeletons were also among them. The mages managed to deal with the flames, the rest dealt with the Scourge minions that were not on fire.

The creatures that approached them were not as numerous as the ones in the sewers and those who had tried to enter the throne room. Kelrian and his group fought their way through the intruders, reaching the middle part of Undercity. Dozens of Scourge minions were awaiting them but they managed to kill all of them. They only lost three Forsaken in return.

"What now?" Zetai asked as he cut down the last ghoul with his sword.

"Either we go to the other areas and see if Sylvanas and Lyndia need help or we check out the ruins above the ground."

"We should help the queen," Zetai replied.

"Sylvanas can take care of herself. We should rather make sure no servant of the Scourge hides in the ruins. Imagine if one of them is a summoner. I don't want them to summon more minions. The battle will never end if they summon more creatures."

"The queen's safety is more important," Zetai said determinately.

"As I said, Sylvanas can take care of herself. Clearing the ruins is more important."

"You are not my boss," Zetai said and turned around, making a few steps away from Kelrian. "I only take orders from the Dark Lady and not from her pet. I will go to her and make sure she stays alive." With that said, Zetai vanished into the shadows. But he was not the only one. Two of Sylvanas' dark rangers, who were close to Zetai, disappeared with him.

Kelrian shook his head, a small amount of disappointment could be seen in his eyes as he regarded the remaining Forsaken. "But you follow me at least, right?"

"We will," responded a Forsaken Lieutenant with the name Varim. "The Dark Lady will handle the remaining Scourge minions, not to mention that she is not alone. I agree that we need to secure the ruins of Lordaeron."

"Alright, then we should go now and don't waste any more time."

Kelrian led the Forsaken to the elevator area, testing if the elevator worked properly first before they got in. Once they arrived on the top level, they followed the course of the corridor, reaching the exit that would lead them to the former throne room of Lordaeron, the place where Arthas Menethil had killed his father and doomed his kingdom.

Kelrian was the first to enter the circular room and notice a dark aura inside. He turned his head, spotting walls of shadow blocking the exits. He was alone in the room and none one else could enter it nor did it seem that he could leave it. Kelrian held his sword in front of his upper body, his golden eyes wandered. He didn't see anyone but the aura he felt couldn't be missed. Someone was near. Someone who must be pretty powerful. And Kelrian was still not wearing any piece of armour.

"Show yourself, coward," he roared out.

"With pleasure," a husky voice shouted. A female figure materialised in front of him. Red glowing elven eyes that were similar to Sylvanas', snow-white hair that reached to her shoulders, skin that was as white as chalk.

The woman wore pitch-black armour that covered her entire body, only her head was unprotected. Kelrian immediately recognized that face due to the woman's prominent facial features.

"Elena!" Kelrian hissed.

"It has been a long time, my love," Elena replied.

"My love... I don't love you anymore, certainly not now that it turns out you are just another one of Arthas' puppets. Not to mention that I will always love Sylvanas. Only Sylvanas."

The corners of Elena's lips formed a provoking grin. "You will love me once Sylvanas is no more. I will make sure you will forget about her."

Kelrian puffed. "That will never happen."

Elena's chuckle sounded like a creaking door. "Just wait until I'm done with you, my dear. You will never think of her again. Promised."

"Whatever the Lich King promised you, it's not worth it. Think of your people. Do you really want all of them to die for whatever that son of a bitch promised you?"

"I don't care about the sin'dorei. I don't care about the Alliance either. All I care is about you," Elena hissed.

Kelrian shook his head slowly. "You will never get me, Elena. Not in a thousand years."

"I will make you want me, be sure of that."

"So, you will mind-control me? Is that your idea of a working relationship? Forcing me to love you?"

"As long as it works, why not?"

Kelrian shook his head in disbelief. "Your idea of a working relationship is very twisted. Just like you are. It's wrong."

"I don't care and soon you won't either."

Kelrian pointed the tip of his sword at her. "I'm sorry I was unable to burn your body back when you died. I'll make sure it will be burned this time so that you will never have to serve that butcher again."

"You don't wear your precious armour, Kel. Your chances of victory are almost zero."

Amused laughter escaped Kelrian's lips. "I don't need my armour to defeat a piece of shit like you."

Anger could be seen in Elena's fiery-red eyes as a weapon appeared in her left hand. It looked like a combination of brass knuckles and a long sharp knife that was at least twelve inches long. It was blood-red, a dangerous aura was radiated by it.

Elena was dressed like an assassin, so it only made sense that she wielded such a weapon, even though it didn't look like a typical weapon for an assassin. He would have expected daggers or a one-handed sword but not this weird brass knuckle knife.

"Last chance to surrender," Elena hissed angrily.

"I'll never surrender."

Elena tilted her head a little. "Very well, Kel. We could have done this without pain and violence, but you leave me no other choice than to do it the hard way. It's your fault that this will be quite painful for you."

Kelrian said nothing in return as he watched Elena closely. She attacked much faster than expected but Kelrian was still able to parry. He tried to grab her with his free hand, knowing that his touch hurt undead creatures who weren't Sylvanas, but Elena managed to turn away and avoid his attempt that way.

"Nice try," she hissed angrily and swung her knife again, the anger in her eyes increased when Kelrian parried again. And again. "Stop defending yourself, you cannot win anyway," she roared out.

She attacked again, much faster than before, and Kelrian only managed to avoid her blade at the last moment. He had the impression that the angrier she got, the stronger and faster she became. He was sure it had something to do with the weapon she swung. It was not an ordinary weapon, he knew that for sure.

Kelrian swung his sword, which was not enhanced by magic, but Elena parried the attack and managed to push him away. "Do you really think you can beat me without the armour and the sword the naaru gave you? You might be the Chosen but you are useless without your gear."

"Are you sure of it?" Kelrian asked right before he hit her with a ray of light, causing her to cry out in pain. Kelrian didn't hesitate to attack her while the pain stunned her, unfortunately, Elena managed to pull herself together much quicker than he had hoped. An ordinary undead creature wouldn't have been able to do that. It was either her armour or the power given by the Lich King that allowed her to resist the effect of his technique.

Kelrian realized that Elena was much stronger than expected. He knew he had to be careful, that he had to regard Elena as equally powerful as long as he was fighting without his gear. She was not an enemy to take lightly, she shouldn't be underestimated.

Elena jumped to the side, avoiding Kelrian's next ray at the last moment. "You are fast," she hissed. "But not fast enough."

Suddenly she appeared in front of Kelrian and executed an attack before Kelrian could react. The blade cut through the material of his long-sleeved shirt and grazed his left hip, leaving a long cut there. The cut was long but at least not too deep. It wasn't a mortal wound.

Kelrian stepped to the side, avoiding a stabbing attack. He parried her next attempt and managed to grab her face, his hand touched her left cheek, causing her to cry out in pain as the holy light hurt her skin. She tried to get free but she didn't succeed until she grazed his forearm with her weapon a few seconds later. Kelrian let go of her face when her weapon left a long cut in his flesh, he bit his bottom lip hard to prevent a painful cry from escaping his lips.

Elena backed away from him, her free hand wandered to her cheek that was marked by a serious burning wound. She regarded her reflection in her blade, her eyes fell on him again once she had seen what he had done to her face. "You son of a bitch, I will make your whore of a wife suffer for that. How dare you ruin my beautiful face?"

"You weren't as beautiful as Sylvanas in life, and you don't look nearly as beautiful as her in undeath either."

"If I cut Sylvanas' eyes out, she won't be as beautiful anymore," Elena roared out as she jumped forward and put all of her power into her next attack. Kelrian reacted quickly and swung his sword as well, wanting to parry her attack. Things didn't turn out as he had expected. Elena's canalized anger made her attack so powerful that it shattered Kelrian's sword. Nearly two-thirds of the blade broke off and landed on the floor far away from him.

"Oh, did I break your sword, my dear? I'm so sorry," she said with a highly exaggerated voice. "Not!" she hissed a few moments later, her voice reflected pure anger.

She swung her weapon again but Kelrian managed to catch her wrist, keeping the sharp blade away from his upper body. Due to her armour, his touch didn't even hurt her. He could only burn her by directly touching her body. Her face was her weakness.

Elena tried to free herself but Kelrian's grip was too strong. He realized quickly that she was so busy trying to get her hand free so that she didn't pay attention to his other hand that still held the remains of the sword. Kelrian took advantage of her unawareness and thrust the shattered blade into her left hip. Elena did not only cry out in pain but also spat blood out. It was not much but it was still enough to stun her for a short moment, allowing Kelrian to thrust the blade deeper into her flesh.

Unfortunately, Elena wasn't defenceless for too long. She finally managed to free herself and land a forceful kick in a region that could be considered a weak spot for any man. The expression on Kelrian's face was anything but pleasant, the pain he felt was immense. Kelrian tried to back off but he couldn't move fast due to the pain that was coming from his nether regions and still rushing through his body.

"Now you will finally be mine," Elena hissed. Besides the anger in her voice, there was also a little bit of joy. She stretched out her arm to grab Kelrian but an arrow bored into the palm of her hand before she could reach him.

"Get your hands off my husband, you filthy whore."

Kelrian turned his head and saw Sylvanas coming through the only entrance from which Elena's spell had been removed.

"Sylvanas Whorerunner...How comes that you are still alive?" Elena asked surprised.

"Next time, send better agents to kill me," Sylvanas said in return, throwing something in front of Elena. It was the separated head of an undead human. Shock could be seen in Elena's eyes but it was quickly replaced by hatred.

"You will pay for this," she roared out.

Sylvanas tilted her head, pure coldness was reflected by her eyes. "No, you will pay for daring to touch my husband. I will tear your arms and legs apart and then I will have sex with my husband right in front of your ugly eyes. And there will be nothing you will be able to do about it. I will fuck him as often as I want while you are forced to watch. And then I'm going to burn you alive while laughing at you."

Elena gritted her teeth. "I will do the same with you."

"Try it, slut." Sylvanas knocked an arrow and shot. Elena failed to dodge in time, the arrow didn't hit her head but her chest instead, piercing right through the armour in her right boob. "You bitch!" Elena roared out as she ran towards Sylvanas who shot another arrow that pierced her left knee.

Another painful scream escaped Elena's lips. Seeing her opponent in pain amused Sylvanas. She was not a sadist, she just couldn't stand Elena, especially not because she wanted Kelrian. Just the slightest thought of someone else touching or kissing Kelrian made her angry. She didn't want to imagine what Elena would do with him if she would manage to manipulate and corrupt him. It would only make her angry. Very angry.

Despite the arrow in her knee, Elena still managed to move. She was not as fast as before but not too slow either. Her agility surprised Sylvanas and Kelrian. The Banshee Queen didn't hesitate to fire another arrow, which Elena cut in halves before it could hit her. She came very close to Sylvanas, forcing her to drop her bow and draw her swords from her belt. Elena attacked swiftly but Sylvanas blocked it and thrust her second sword through Elena's right hip, making her cry out in pain.

The Scourge commander staggered backwards, surprise and disbelieve could be seen in her face. She was inattentive for a short moment, so she didn't realise that Sylvanas had already taken another swing until it was too late. She only managed to turn her head away at the very last moment, preventing Sylvanas' sword from slicing her head in halves. The sharp blade only grazed her face but it left a long cut on her beautiful face. The cut ran across her entire face, starting at her forehead and ending at her chin. Dark blood flowed.

A painful facial expression was the only reaction Elena gave as she backed off. She was angry, but her face did not reflect it in the slightest. It was clearly visible that the pain Elena felt was very strong.

"You will pay for everything, one day," Elena hissed to Sylvanas. "You might have won today but you have not defeated me yet. I will return and make you pay a thousand times for what you did today. Remember my words."

Sylvanas said nothing in return as she created a shadow bolt and threw it at the white-haired woman. But before her technique could hit, Elena disappeared from one moment to the next. Sylvanas averted her gaze as soon as she was sure that Elena was no longer there, and not just invisible, and looked at Kelrian who had gotten back to his feet. "Are you okay?"

"I am. I look worse than I feel. My crown jewels hurt much more than the bleeding wound."

"Maybe I should check them out and see if they are okay or not," Sylvanas said with a small smirk on her lips.

"No need to do that. Elena just kicked me in the balls, she didn't cut anything. I will be fine."

"If you say so." Normally, Sylvanas would have made another ambiguous comment but she saved it this time because of the situation they were in. They had just been attacked by the Scourge, numerous Forsaken had lost their lives and some of the areas had been damaged or devastated. The situation was serious. Jokes or ambiguous comments were inappropriate.

"Are the other areas cleared?" Kelrian asked after a few moments.

"I hope so. Our men are searching every corner of Undercity for remaining Scourge minions and the ruins of Lordaeron are getting checked too. If any remaining creature is found, they will be eliminated without hesitation."

"How bad is the damage? How many Forsaken did we lose?"

"We haven't figured out the exact number yet. We have found numerous bodies or body parts. We need to do a complete count to determine the exact number of Forsaken we have lost," Sylvanas explained.

"And about the damage the Scourge caused?"

"The hole in the sewer wall will be the hardest to fix but I have no doubt my engineers and builders find a solution. Closing the hole has the highest priority."

"Do we know how the Scourge managed to approach Undercity without being detected?"

The Banshee Queen shook her head. "There was no mage with them that was powerful enough to cast a spell strong enough to hide hundreds of minions. Elena didn't seem to be a mage, neither did her second in command or whoever that guy was." Sylvanas pointed at the head she had thrown at Elena's feet and then continued. "They were assassins, not spellcasters. My only guess is that someone was with them to cast such a spell but they didn't join the attack."

"Either that or the spellcaster is still inside Undercity."

"I hope not. I don't want more damage to be done nor do I want to lose more Forsaken."

"We should help your men looking for any remaining Scourge minion."

"Enough of my men are doing that already, they don't need your help. You, on the other hand, need medical care. Your wound doesn't look good."

"I can heal myself," Kelrian replied.

"Then do that. I won't leave your side until all of your wounds are treated."

Kelrian focused his powers as he pressed his right hand on the wound on his left forearm. The wound was closed rather quickly, allowing Kelrian to proceed with the wound in his left hip. Once the wound was healed and the pain had vanished, he lifted his head and looked at Sylvanas again who was regarding him with a relieved expression on her face.

"I'm fine, honey. No need to worry."

"Sadly, that coward managed to escape. I would have loved to separate her ugly head from her filthy body."

"If I would have worn my armour and wielded my sword, I would have killed her. I think so at least. She was strong but not that strong. I would have had the upper hand with my weapon and armour."

"We should have kept a clear head, we shouldn't have jumped through the portal without thinking. That was my fault. I jumped first. If I would have thought rationally, we could have prevented you from getting hurt and might have even killed Elena. I'm sorry."

Kelrian gave her a small smile and put a hand on her cheek. "No need to be sorry. The news surprised you the same way as it surprised me. I didn't think of putting my armour on first before going to Undercity. I acted instinctively and followed you through the portal."

"We need to keep a clear head in the future."

"Let's hope an attack like that never happens again. We need to be better prepared from now on. The Scourge proved once again that they are a serious threat. A threat that must not be taken lightly."

"We have to be more careful from now on," Kelrian said.

"I wonder if we were the only target or if other cities or areas have been attacked as well."

"There is only one way to find out."

"We need to inform the other leaders," concluded Sylvanas.

"Shall we send letters?"

"That's an option but I think I will pay Alleria a visit first."

"I'll come with you."

"It makes more sense if you go to one of the other capital cities. It's enough that I visit Alleria. We don't need two to report what happened."

Kelrian surrendered. "Alright, where do you want me to go?"

"To Outland. You need to inform the naaru of what happened."

Kelrian nodded. "You are right. I should go there."

Sylvanas put her hands on his cheeks and caressed them, staring into his eyes. She kissed him briefly. "I'll see you later then."

Kelrian gave her a smile and turned around, walking towards the portal that had been created by a mage. He looked at her one last time before he stepped through it.