//------------------------------// // The Baron's Outing // Story: The Crystal Vizier // by Lich-Lord Krosis //------------------------------// Titus sighed, walking away from the Crystal Guard's barracks. It had been scarcely fifteen hours since he had arrived at the Crystal Capital, and he had already started regretting it. Oh sure, he would have come eventually, if only inevitably to come and serve his new king... He wanted to forget everything sometimes, just go back to the times before the fall of Lordaeron, when he would frequent the stables, feeding and caring for his living horses. When he would be actually able to FEEL the breeze run through his hair... But no. Those times were long gone... Titus stopped in his tracks to run a slightly shaking hoof across the bottom of his neck, feeling the small canyon of disfigured flesh traveling around it. Long gone... A laugh knocked him violently out from his reminiscing, his head rocketing to the right, facing the guard's bar. Eh... why not? The guards deserve to know their captain... Snorting once in amusement, the stallion turned his body towards the door, following the sounds of merriment and revelry that echoed from the establishment. Now, at the height of his service to the Scourge in Stratholme, he had little to no personal time. Sure, he had nearly an entire, albeit undead-infested city at his disposal, but he had little to no meaningful relations with any of them, save Maleki, an aspiring student of his good friend, Kel'Thuzad. The man was a wreck, constantly wanting his station within the city to be spotless, as if he needed to impress him. He made sure that his robes were washed, his beard and hair trimmed... He even began going through the process of meticulously cleaning, repairing and even bathing his sector's ghouls and zombies. Daily! When asked why he performed the ludicrous and unsanitary task, he would usually reply, 'Just because the dead serve us, does not mean they should look dead...' Other than his... questionable antics and horrendous case of mysophobia, the mage was an excellent necromancer. He never talked about much, other than his time on Scholomance, where he met and took a fast liking to Kel'Thuzad, who was then a human. The two apparently got along well, and it was when Kel'Thuzad had learned of Maleki's untimely death, several years after the Baron's death, that the archlich genuinely mourned for the loss of his friend. Quite the rare occurrence for the undead wizard. Of course, this meant that Titus was there to... comfort him. The archlich, unlike other liches of the Scourge, was fully capable of displaying and acting upon emotions, as he had when the necromancer had died in Stratholme. He had called Titus up to his throne room, asking for... a friendly chat. Not to discuss battle plans or stratagems, but to talk. The two talked for nearly three days straight, talking about their lives in the Scourge, and how they sometimes missed their antics in Capital City or Dalaran when they were younger, how they missed their respective families. They were both quite obedient to their master however, so looking back on their marathon of a conversation was quite... hazy. Maybe he would ask again, sometime. "Hey, buddy. You alright? You look like you've seen a ghost." Titus looked up to see several guards staring at him from their respective bar stools, the undead stallion having wandered into the establishment some time ago. "Y-Yes! I'm fine. I'm fine." he uneasily smiled. The guards mostly shrugged and went back to their respective drinks or meals, ignoring the strange stallion. "Titus, I presume?" Another startling voice echoed from his rear right, and he darted around, instinct grabbing for his pistol. He realized his mistake, however, when he looked at the beautiful mare before him. She was one of his master's... friends, if his memory served him well. Her wings and crown, however, told him quite a bit more. "Baron Titus Rivendare, at your service." He respectfully bowed, drawing his runeblade to ceremoniously place it upright before him. Silence. Giggling. If the stallion could blush, his face would be cherry red. The mare was laughing at him. "M-My apologies, your highness. I meant no offense..." The mare rose a single hoof to silence him, the baron's muzzle closing. She smiled, patting the wooden seat next to her. "Please, sit. I like to get to know the stallions and mares protecting my subjects." Titus paused for a moment, but his chivalry eventually kicked in, and he nodded. Sliding gently into the cramped seat, he placed his gun and sword upon the table, to make his posture more comfortable for the both of them. The princess giggled, before offering a hoof. In a manner befitting the prestigious rank of the mare, he kissed it. "My word, such a gentlecolt..." Luna smiled, her eyes half-lidded, whether from desire or amusement, Titus couldn't guess. "But, as much as I enjoyed your gesture, I wanted a hoofshake..." The baron raised an eyebrow, somewhat doubting if this mare was actually royalty. "You... you want a hand... hoofshake?" he asked, unsure what to do. Luna giggled again, before grasping his hoof in her own, shaking them up and down. "Princess Luna." "I... a pleasure, your highness..." Titus nodded once more, a smile gracing his own muzzle. Luna smiled back, but it quickly reversed into a frown of concern, her muzzle hanging towards her drink. "Is something wrong, you highness?" Titus asked. Luna looked up, a rather adorable pout adorning her muzzle. "Now, I do not want this to be a prim and proper meeting. I want you to be yourself. I won't learn anything about you, otherwise." "Y-Your highness..." Titus began to protest. "Oh, and call me Luna, please." she smiled once more. "Please don't make me order that, either. I want this to be an enjoyable excursion, after all. Why else would I come to a bar?" Titus looked her dead in the face for a few moments, unsure of what to do or say. Eventually, his gaze softened. "Yes, your... sure, Luna." ......... "So, you and archmage Kel'Thuzad knew eachother, then?" Luna asked, taking a small sip of her whisky, the burning fluid making her eyes water slightly. Titus nodded. "You could say we were best friends, actually. Back when we were both human, of course." he chuckled, taking a rather sizable swig of his beer. "What was he like before... well... that?" Luna asked. Titus thought for a moment, and laughed. "What?" "Nothing, just never thought about how... smart he was. He was always smart, but he was a genius when it came to magic. Frost magic and Conjuration in particular." Titus looked back at his beer mug, watching the chilled fluid swirl. "Explains how effortlessly he took to Necromancy, like a fish to water." Luna nodded, thanking the barmaid when she came back with another whiskey for her. "He was always going on about how much he loved the snow when it was winter, how much he loved the falling leaves when it was autumn. He was a very... vocal guy, I guess. Always speaking his mind." Titus smiled sadly. "What? Did something happen?" Luna asked him, her eyes holding genuine concern. Titus looked to her, and nodded grimly. "The Sunwell happened. He took that harder than when his mother was killed in the First War..." Titus took another long drink from his beer. "The day he killed his brother. The day Kel'Thuzad the Archmage died. The day Archlich Kel'Thuzad was born, I guess. That, combined with the madness of the Lich King, drove him off the deep end." Rivendare sighed. "He... he KILLED him?" Luna asked, shock plaguing her voice. She reassured herself that the actions were likely not his own, and that the Lich King was likely forcing him to, but the thought was no less... horrible. Titus nodded, and explained. "As you likely know, he even resurrected his brother into a skeletal slave, trying desperately to fix his mistake. He never fully recovered from that, I don't think." Titus shivered, a chill running down his undead spine for the first time in a long time. "Do... do you mind if we don't talk about this, it makes me... uneasy..." Titus asked, looking to the princess. "No! Of course not! I... I'm sorry for asking..." Luna panicked slightly, wondering if she had inadvertently overstepped. Titus shook his head, chuckling. "Don't worry about it. It... it just makes me regret SO much more than I can handle at the moment." Titus admitted to his new... friend. His first friend in nearly a millennia, and it was a magical pony princess. Heh, wait till Kel hears about this... I'll never hear the end of it...