The Blade of Sylvanas

[lascivious]

[[More stories and background can be found at Lascivious' biography page.]]

Lascivious' boots clunked loudly on the stone as she slid off the bat. She nodded to Garret the bat handler who - despite knowing her quite well - eyed her with suspicion and some contempt. The old stone floor of the landing was chipped and dented by the heels of legions of steel treads which had landed here. How many feet of the Horde had landed on that same spot? Thousands? Hundreds of thousands? How many times had she landed here?

No matter the number, today was different. It was the first time she had set foot in the Undercity as a death knight. It had been nearly a month since she had walked streets of Orgrimmar – spit on and ridiculed despite her previous status. And despite Thrall’s proclamation that the former Knights of the Ebon Blade would furthermore be considered allies of the Horde, he had denied her request for a new bridle.. She had wandered to the stables but her faithful mount Sam was nowhere to be seen. From there she returned back to the Hold and the plaguelands to work on her skills and had recently begun training in Outland as well. But she had unfinished business the Forsaken city. Business she could not longer find excuses to avoid.

The knight’s steps through the city were measured and with purpose, but without haste. A soldier with courage, but without desire to rush toward death. Lascivious swallowed hard as she walked past the first set of guards and down the curving hall. Inside the Banshee Queen’s throne room voices murmured in their separate corners. A few Horde spoke to the battle masters and Ambassador Sunsorrow with the paladin scum next to him. Observant as always he only glanced at the death knight – then turned back quickly in surprise. The last time he saw her she was ordered by the queen on a mission which would most certainly fail. He smirked slightly and turned to watch the knight more closely.

This was one he wouldn’t mind seeing grovel.

The little knight did not know whether she felt relief or disappointment the queen was attending no one. Still, the few minutes it took for her presence to be acknowledged was nearly unendurably long.

“Child.â€

[lascivious]

The sun in Eversong was bright and warm and Lascivious took full advantage of it, laying on a wide, flat rock enjoying the heat of stone against her back.  It had been several days since she had visited the Undercity throne room and had come from there to Silvermoon. 

As was her habit before she had left for Northrend, she spent some time at the queen’s old home clearing out the undead then spent some time doing minor tasks around the villages.  After intensive and nearly non-stop training it was a good break from the tedium.  She had always felt at ease here.  She had thought it was because of her queen’s affiliation with the elves, but in light of her discovery about her own lineage, she suspected her connection to this land was much deeper than mere association.

The hooves on the path below brought her attention to the present.  Her hand drifted to the pommel of her sword lying beside her and she opened her eyes.  She felt no urgency as the horse’ steps were slow and plodding – a mount given its own head to wander.  She sat up and examined the rider below.

Her lip curled in derision then she saw the armored figure atop a blood knight mount.  Paladin.  As the rider crossed over the ridge and the curve in the path faced more toward Lascivious she saw the Grim tabard and when the blood knight passed by it removed its helm letting long locks of blonde hair fall down her back as she pulled out a cloth to wipe the sweat from her brow.  The Forsaken’s throat tightened and her heart pounded heavily in her breast.

Kiaransalius. 

The death knight hastily reassembled her armor and called on her mount she had picketed behind further back from the road.  She kept the Blood Elf in sight but remind far behind, her face hidden in the shadows of her plated cowl.   She wasn’t sure what she was going to do.  She tried to think of different way to approach the elf – but every scenario played out in her mind as contrived or awkward.  She ran out of time when the Blood Knight reached the beach and dismounted staring out over the ocean.

Lascivious pulled up behind her.  Kiara must have known she was there, but gave no indication of knowing. 

“What are you looking at elf?â€

[lascivious]

Lascivious ran her hands down the dress, smoothing out the wrinkles over her stomach and thighs.  A light green affair with yellow tear-drop shaped dots it was a stark contrast to her hair which hung in dark, luxuriant curls over her shoulders.  The brown eyes staring back at her from the mirror were alive with mischief.

“Do you like it?â€

[lascivious]

“Lascivious sat astride Sam atop the crater looking down at the dark portal.  On either side of her on their frostwolves were the Shu’halo hunters Mohan and Muatah.   They had spent the day together riding and exploring.   The little warrior had worked hard to improve her knowledge of the world around her since becoming the Grim’s Mistress.  It was a daunting notion, but having two allies like these with her – pillars of strength who were ready to live and die by her command for the Mandate -  gave her the confidence she needed to ensure the Horde’s survival.

“The portal will open soon,â€

[lascivious]

Death and decay permeated the ground devouring the dead and the dying.  Lascivious walked through it without a second thought, her booted feet crunching on the grass and leaving a frozen path in her wake chilling any of the Twilight Hammer who may still be clinging to the warmth of life.

As she sheathed her blade a hand clutched at her leg and without a look and barely a thought a cold wave left her hand and blasted away what was left of the feeble worshiper.  In front of her was what she had come to see, her purpose for coming to the lonely woods of Darkshore.

She hopped on top of the altar, sitting on the balls of her feet like a feral animal ready to pounce, and studied the giant rock-like structure in front of her.  The petrified skeletal remains dwarfed the little figure in front of it.  Its snail-like head cast a shadow over the entire glade and its giant tentacles – or tusks – reached out gripping the earth in a useless attempt to pull itself out of the ground.  Piercing the skull between the ‘eyes’ was plunged a rune-covered sword too large to be wielded by anything but the most monstrous of beings.

The Old Gods.  Or perhaps a minion of an Old God.  She had heard much speculation on this since the opening of the gates of Ahn’Qiraj.  Now there was rumor of an altercation between Thrall and the king of Stormwind in Dalaran over what to do about Ulduar.  The more she heard the less she liked it. 

The whole situation stank of political in-fighting.

Arthas was weakening.  He had lost an entire legion of death knights.  His grip on Northrend was slipping with the defeat of each of his minions.  Now was the time to strike.  Instead alliance and Horde were rushing into this prison fortress to fight something that supposedly couldn’t be killed.  Just like C’thun it would keep coming back.  But Arthas could be killed.  Needed to be killed.  Ulduar was just a distraction.  Time for Arthas to regroup.

I should have killed that dwarf instead of helping him, she thought as she climbed the humungous remains.  At the top she squatted by the sword.  Even though half of it disappeared into the creature it towered above her the height of several Tauren.  She wiped some of the moss away revealing the magical inscriptions carved into the blade.


â€

[lascivious]

The dream this evening was different. 

She was in the burning city of Stratholme.  Unarmed and unarmored.  The heat from the fires scorched her skin and the billowing clouds of smoke made her eyes water and obscured her vision.  Out of this burning maelstrom strode her former lord, his menacing visage obscured and wavering behind the wall heat and blowing ash.

Lascivious was proud.  She never backed down from a fight.  She was her queen’s champion.  She was Mistress of the Grim. 

She ran.

From every street, every alley, every square, the mindless dead poured forth driven on by their hunger for flesh and the mocking laughter of their master.  She was heading toward the city’s main gate when she heard the cry.  She couldn’t make out the words, but it was a female for certain.  She stumbled into the square just in time to see a blood elf woman running into a burning building.  She wanted to run forward, but her lungs were burning and her knees shaking with fatigue.  By the time she came to the door the elf was mad, yelling at… nothing.

The Forsaken had to rough her up a bit to get her out of her trance.  She couldn’t remember what they spoke about.  It had been quick, desperate, the details already fading.  But she remembered the elf had red eyes.  They went outside and others were there now.  A crazy warlock, a warrior and… and Villayna.

How odd.

Then suddenly there was great howling as if all the dead and the dying in the city cried out at once, she put her hands over her ears and shut her eyes trying to will out the sound piercing her mind.  Then… then nothing.

She awoke in the room she kept in the holy city.  Her blanket was kicked off the end of the cot and her skin was flush and hot.  Although it was dark, lights from the city gave off enough light for her to see.  She had fallen asleep reading and the candles she used had burned down to their ends. 

The sun will be up soon.

With a small sigh she stood and put on a simple robe before going outside.  Her heart leapt to her throat when she saw a shadowed-robed figure standing on the ledge of the Scryer’s terrace looking down at the city.  At her approach he turned toward her the light from the lanterns around the building shining on him.

“Hello, Harmony.â€

[lascivious]

(from Monday's 6/1 meeting, I'll make it all story like sometime later)

Inside the ruined keep above Scholomance.


Lascivious says: Thank you for coming Grim.  I know the alliance watch out every move and I do not want to bore you completely so I will be brief as possible so we are not interrupted.

Angaroth chuckles quietly.

Lascivious says: Of all the Grim bearing our tabard today, I have done so the longest.  Since there has been Grim I have been Grim and have known nothing else.  The Mandate has guided my Forsaken life since the day the Dark Lady resurrected me into her service.

Lascivious says: Maledictus, our original leader, brought me in and shortly after awarded me the title of Irredeemable.  Through this time I rooted out the weak and unworthy from our ranks... an unofficial inquisitor of sorts.

Angaroth leans against the pillar.

Lascivious says: Afterward when Mal went mad, Grainger took over and guided us as the Steward.  A while back... two years or more... I brought together a similar group of Grim.  I told them of my past, showed them my home where as just a child I was hung so others could hide their own treachery. 

Lascivious says: To many of you now, this means nothing, but a few of you were there.  I discovered my diary while searching the ruins of my home and found out the truth of my human death. I will not cover that again, the truly curious can ask older Grim or me later.  I will just say it was not what my scattered memories had told me it was.

Lascivious says: I was not as innocent as I presumed.  So I sought to purge the remains of my human spirit - for how could I gauge the truth in others when I could not do so in myself?  It was a test by the Dark Lady and I suppose she was pleased because afterward she sent me to the Steward and he told me our Queen had a task for him and he could not continue as Steward so I would become the Mandate's guardian - the Grim's Mistress.

Lascivious says: It was here in this room he passed this responsibility to me.  Here where I assembled my own Irredeemable and Dreadweavers... and the inquisition.

Lascivious says: Grolish, Yichimet, Hektar, Zxon...  Syreena.

Angaroth shudders slightly.

Syreena smiles at you.

Lascivious says: You may not know who some of them are, but I can tell you no finer examples of the Mandate have walked among us.  There was no written Mandate then... only... rules of acceptable behavior... so you can imagine there were not many.

You grin wickedly.

Lascivious says: So I wrote down what the Mandate meant to me and gave it to my lieutenants to discuss.  I was surprised out how... spirited.. the discussion was. It seemed everyone had a different idea as to what it all -meant-.  In the end we settled on the document Qabian now guards in his pants.

Angaroth frowns.

Nymare rolls her eyes.

Lascivious says: Though it has changed somewhat over time the core of it remains.  And that is all it is... a visual representation of what we know is -right-.  what we know must be done if we are to survive in the face of our enemies.

Ulgrath raises an eyebrow.

Kiaralansee ponders Qabian's pants...and scratches her brow.

Angaroth glances at Nymare.

Lascivious says:  What does all this mean?  I will tell you in a few moments.  Syreena, would you mind taking them to Uther's Tomb?  I have to speak with someone quickly and everyone must be assembled as my time will be limited.

Syreena says: Let's go.



Uther's Tomb


Lascivious says: How many of you have gone back in time to prevent the repeated attempts at thwarting Arthas' culling?  How many of you feel guilty about this?  *holds up her hand*  Do not tell me, if you do it is best I do not know.

Kiaralansee leans against a pillar

Lascivious says: I say his action was noble.  His action was in keeping with the Mandate. Doing what was needed to win the day.  Victory over our enemies.  But then something went wrong.  He was abandoned by those he cared for and he mind fell into disarray - easily swayed by other forces.

Lascivious says:  I would like to hear what this traitor has to say.

Nymare crosses her arms over her chest.

Syreena beckons Angaroth over.

Syreena beckons Mohan over.

Lascivious pulls something out of her bag.

Ghost of Uther Lightbringer says: Why do you do this?  Did I somehow wrong you in life?  Ah, I see it now in your mind.  This is the work of one of my former students... Mehlar Dawnblade.  It is sad to know that his heart has turned so dark.  Return to him.  Return to Mehlor and tell him that I forgive him and that I understand why he believes what he does.  I can only hope that he will see the Light and instead turn his energies to restoring once-beautiful Quel'Thalas.

Aquizit mutters to himself, "Some answer."

Lascivious shakes her head.

Sanuye agrees with Aquizit.

Lascivious says:  No responsibility.

Lascivious says: Huh. Perhaps he is right.  Perhaps he is a fool.  Who is to say for sure. I hold to what I said.  Had Uther the courage to stand next to Arthas perhaps he could have guided the prince away from his fall and our ruination.

Lascivious says: Something similar happened to me.  Someone I... trusted... who I should have known better than to trust against all my instincts, betrayed me, distracted my focus and left my mind open to suggestion.

Angaroth mutters that not making too much difference to Arthas inherent human weaknesses.

Lascivious says: Arthas found me and wreaked havoc on what I cared for most - the Mandate and my Grim. 

Syreena peers at you searchingly.

Lascivious says: I have never told anyone the full story - only one person knows it.  But I am sure many suspected. Most of my actions were not my own and through those actions Arthas worked diligently to separate me from the Grim by causing chaos among us.

Angaroth glances around.

Lascivious says: When it became clear to me Arthas would use me to lead the Grim in a ruinous attack on the knights of Silvermoon to weaken it again, for the sake of the Mandate and Grim I stepped down as Mistress.

Nymare raises a doubt eyebrow as she glances briefly over her shoulder.

Lascivious pulls out her journal.

Ulricht remained steadfast void of all emotions but the beast beneath him betrayed the air of tension as he snarled against its reigns.

Lascivious says: Just as when I was a little girl I kept a diary during that time... some of the writing is not even mine - though my hand was surely used to write it.  I left it in the care of my dear friend Kiaransalius and when I returned I saw with horror all the things I had done.


Lascivious says: But unlike Arthas, I had someone who did not abandon me. 

Lascivious says: Kiaransalius.

Kiaransalius nods at you.

Lascivious says: While others hid from me, she stood up to me. No matter how angry I got with her, no matter what terrible things Arthas made me say or do to her or anyone else, she never stopped trying to refocus me on the Mandate.

Lascivious says: A far more loyal knight than pathetic Uther in my mind. 

Lascivious says: It is what kept me going through the dark days under his control, it was always there in the back of my mind.  It was there when I freed myself from his control and led a failed rebellion in Northrend against his army.

Angaroth stops fidgeting and starts to pay close attention.

Lascivious says: We were not proper death knights, merely thralls under his influence.  Some of us broke free and we fought his armies.  It was the day before we were to leave and return to our homes that one of his lieutenants mustered a large force against us and we were wiped out.
Only two of us survived that I know of.  I was buried in an explosion and by the time I dug myself out, the scourge were scouring the battlefield, reclaiming the dead.

Lascivious Pulls open the front of her dress showing a deep, twisted scar over her heart.

Lascivious says: It was the Mandate which allowed me to endure the strike of the blade that sent me to Ebon Hold for my... re-education.

Lascivious says: It is my hope now, that like before, speaking of this will give me a new beginning among the Grim.  I know this tale may be slightly confusing as I have not told everything.  But "everything" would take all night. I have no secrets from Grim.  If you wish to speak to me on the matter feel free - I will do so no matter how painful it is to do so.  I would welcome it.

Lascivious says: I understand if those of you who are new to the Grim do not trust me... or my fellow knights... I would not either.  But most of you I have trained with and have guarded through every dark place in Northrend. I have worked hard to earn your trust since I returned.

Angaroth says: Who betrayed you?

Lascivious holds her hand up.  "A moment."

Lascivious says: To those who served the Mandate with me before I departed.   Know that such a thing will never happen again.  I have always served the Mandate over any. Be them Necromancer, Steward, Artificer, Enforcer... or even Shadowblade.  Neither friend nor lover will interfere with my service or be set above our goal.

Lascivious says: I am proud of what you have done in my absence and of the service our new Irredeemable have given to the Mandate.  That is all I have to say Grim.  Do with it what you will - your acceptance or rejection of me will not change my commitment to you either way.

Kiaransalius smirks slyly at you.

Lascivious nods.

Syreena smiles at you.

Zahak nods at you.

Lascivious says: I was hoping for enough Grim to take over the harbor and maybe go for a pleasure cruise... it's a good night for sailing, but we will pass  on that tonight.  If you do not have anything for me... thank you for your time

Sanuye nods at you.

Angaroth says: Never doubted your commitment. So. Who betrayed you. Is there a killing that needs the doing?

Lascivious sighs.

Syreena grins wickedly at Angaroth.


Lascivious says: A paladin... worse than Uther.  She is dead now from what I hear.


Nymare grins at that.

Angaroth says: Really dead? Or just ...

Aquizit snickers under his hood, he knows almost exactly who by that description.


Lascivious says: I don't know of such things Angaroth... buried as far as I know

Angaroth mutters something about having been buried before.

Nymare says: I wonder if Arthas is thanking her the only way she understands.

Lascivious says: Some of us are harder to kill then others eh?

Lascivious says: Eh.  I hope so Nymare.

Kiaralansee nods at you.

You grin wickedly.

Kiaransalius nods.

Nymare perks at the quiet voice and smiles.

Lascivious says: Is that all?

Angaroth shrugs.  Who knows?

Kiaransalius looks amongst the gathering.

Lascivious says: Hm.. Thank you again then.

Angaroth murmurs to the small waif beside him. "Mind on the mandate even as you whisper sweet nothings, mmm?"

Lascivious looks at Syreena.

Lascivious says: I am sorry for the trouble I caused.

Syreena grins at you wickedly.

Syreena says: We've seen worse trouble.

Lascivious says: I am glad my faith in you has led to such rewards for you

Syreena nods at you.

You smile.

Zahak unleashes his mount from the tree.

Syreena hugs you.

You blink at Syreena.

You hug Syreena.

Syreena grins at you wickedly.

Nymare says: I wonder what is setting off alarms in Orgrimmar.

Syreena says: Xarja, a portal to Orgrimmar.