Level 33: Remote Controlled Zombie
A/N: Special thanks to Zero Moment, the other sans, Housecarl of Clan Drops, and AdmiralPopeyesBeard for commenting last chapter! Your support means a great deal and I hope to continue hearing from you all with what thoughts you have!
This chapter was admittedly a bitch to write. I wrote a total of twenty seven thousand words worth of variations for it and was not happy with any of them, so my apologies for taking a bit longer with this one. I was writing a ton, it just wasn’t what I would consider usable.
Anyways, I hope you enjoy, and please leave your thoughts in the comments below!
“Cowards! You would flee from your post when the enemy is at our gates!?”
Blood Elves fled in droves as their foes rushed forth to meet them in battle, the defending army completely routed and caught out by the swift approach of a force led by a man they had once been allied with. Tasked by Kael’thas Sunstrider with securing a foothold in the region known as Outland, Mitter’meyer had taken his forces and gone through the large gate between worlds to do as told.
Their movements had been expected by their enemy however and a defensive force from the Blood Elves in Outland had come to meet Mitter’meyer’s army, but their timing had been unfortunate: Mitter’meyer had arrived just as the Outlanders set up to repel their brethren from the barren landscape that was Outland, rather than after they had the chance to properly prepare for an invasion. In fact this worked in Mitter’meyer’s favor for his army was able to assault the other with a forward blitz that drove them into confusion as they were torn away from their tools and efforts to prepare and instead we being set upon by the very Blood Elves they had meant to slay.
Adding into this was a certain degree of uncertainty of fighting one’s own kind, the Kael’thas of Outland not having toiled to make sure the soldiers sent to confront the incoming army were wholly loyal to him. While possessing a greater army, the force sent by this Kael’thas was picked apart at a pace so rapid that it was almost as if it was no battle at all. Those that did not surrender were fleeing, all except for those whose sense of duty was such that to surrender or run like this was unforgivable, and so they fought tooth and nail against the Gale Wolf’s forces.
They did not expect to then be caught in a pincer strike from a force led by Reuenthal, who had taken a longer route around to face the enemy, only having been slowed the briefest of moments by the retreating forces his own came across which he quickly forced into submission and took prisoner for the time being. Their army having collapsed in the makeshift base by the exit of Outland by the edge of the steps leading up to it, only one Warrior truly stood in opposition to them and kept the battle from ending.
A warrior forged by the deadly combat of Outland, where the least dangerous opponents one could face were the Fel Orcs that slaughtered so many in Silvermoon, a silver haired Elf by the name of Anavel stood to face his enemy despite his imminent defeat as the forces around him crumbled.
Twenty men had been cut down, though not slain thanks to the usage of healers, by the man as he again and again drove back any who approached him in the small passage he stood in. It was not a true passage like one might find in a castle but rather just a result of the makeshift supplies and tools that were going to be used that afternoon to build the forward base.
Alliance and Horde troops were both nearby, having engaged in a truce by the edge of the portal to allow both of their armies through to face the Illidari, but they did not move to help Mitter’meyer’s army even as it ran into difficulty against the immensely skilled foe who had earned a lifetime of battle experience in hellish conditions.
As Mitter’meyer and Reuenthal considered their options from the sidelines, still having to command the entire battle and its many components despite being capable fighters themselves, the mercenary who tagged along with them at Kael’s insistence spoke up.
“Your boys have been having trouble getting past that there pretty boy,” Bronn said in a simple tone, as if he were just explaining a basic fact so he could get on to what he truly meant to say, which happened to be a bit of dry humor, “Though come to think of it you all look like lasses, so who am I to judge. Want me to handle ‘im?”
Not trusting of the mercenary, Reuenthal spoke up and looked over to his friend, “Mitter’meyer, I believe we had best attend to this ourselves.”
Eager to face a challenge of this sort, the co-leader of the expedition smirked back as he brandished his hammer, “Yes, let’s!”
“Bronn, organize the forces that have been driven back so that when we are finished we can move forward.”
With this command given, Reuenthal and Mitter’meyer stepped forward and dismissed their troops trying to assault the purple armored Blood Elf whose skill was unquestionable as was his loyalty to his cause: not out of personal sadism, loyalty to the Illidari, or anything of the kind, but rather an obvious devotion to his kind as he fought so hard to serve even in the face of what he must believe to be traitors.
Perhaps if he had not come up against the combined might and skill of the twin pillars of the Kael’thas army, he may have managed to eke out a victory based on his own valor and determination alone.
Despite his fierceness in the fights leading up to their encounter, Anavel greeted the two other men with due respect for those of their rank.
“Mitter’meyer, the Gale Wolf, whose swift troop movements routed forces belonging to the Lich King, and Reuenthal, the man who defeated the infamous Edwin VanCleef…” Anavel’s voice shifted from a regretful respect to a tone of irritated betrayal, “It is an honor to face two commanders of your notoriety, but I shall not let you pass. I have been told you serve the false Prince Sunstrider now, and so I shall not allow your heresy to continue. For our race and people, I cannot!”
He leapt forth and was soon met by Mitter’meyer, who reacted with a fervor for battle and desire to test his mettle against one of their own who had been forged by Outland’s brutality. A land of demons, Fel Orcs, and other horrors ought to forge some of the most trying of foes, and he was proven correct in this belief when he was driven back quickly by the swordplay of his foe. Now on the defense, Mitter’meyer realized that he had to invest all his focus on not allowing a fatal blow from striking him one moment to the next, something he could only manage to do thanks to the speed he possessed matching the swiftness of the tactics he wielded.
Anavel drove Mitter’meyer back with a mighty blow and leapt forth to close in for the kill, only for his foot to become snagged on something that caused him to drop to the ground as blood pooled around his ankle. Looking down, the Blood Elf could see that a trap like what one might hunt with had been put down while he was focused on his close fight with Mitter’meyer, his eyes having been too focused on his enemy to see the trap his foe had purposefully jumped over.
After the initial bite of the trap, Anavel felt his entire leg begin to freeze as the magic imbued upon it spilled forth onto him. A freezing trap, a common trap for Hunters, but an effective one all the same…he growled at how he fell for one of the oldest tricks there was, letting himself be so caught up in fighting one foe that he fell victim to another’s simple cunning.
Reuenthal stood enough paces back that he was not in danger of being immediately assaulted by Gato, but close enough that when he leveled his pistol towards Gato’s head it would surely blow the man’s head off, “You are outmatched, Anavel. You and your men do not need to die here today, nor do they need to do so in the employ of a traitor to our people.”
The wounded and defeated soldier snarled, refusing to accept what he was being told, “You lie! I serve the same cause I always have!”
Keeping an even tone, Reuenthal shook his head while continuing his effort to plant enough of a seed of doubt in his foe that he would not have to fight him to the death: Anavel would not abide capture, so even with one limb disabled he would prove a threat.
“Kael’thas Sunstrider has had his position usurped by a man who seeks not to save our kind, but rather to use them for his selfish will. The man you would take orders from is corrupt, and the followers he surrounds himself with are either fools or morally bankrupt as their patron.”
“I…”
To secure his effort that now was beginning to show progress with the appearance of doubt on Gato’s face, Reuenthal closed what little distance remained between them and lowered his weapon, instead bringing a hand down to touch the other man’s shoulder, “There will always be another battle, another occasion to prove your loyalty to our people. Do not throw away your life for a meaningless battle and for the sake of a pretender.”
While calming down somewhat, Anavel was still put off by the idea that he had been misled by the man who he swore his loyalty to and the cause he lived to serve as well, “What proof do you have?”
“We have met the one who has falsely been labeled pretender, and he is the man we once fought against the Undead hordes with back at the time of the Scourge’s encroachment and destruction of our lands. There cannot be two of the man we know as Prince, so the other must be false. We have been sent here to liberate Outland from those who would endanger our people, and the mad fool commanding our forces here is our primary enemy.”
Being told this, even the fiercely loyal Anavel began to question his beliefs, his gaze turning aside as he finally laid down his own arms, “Kael’thas has been acting…erratically in recent months. Many have had their misgivings, but it is not the place of a soldier to question their lord, merely to obey them and carry out their will.”
Fighting to stand up, the soldier broke the ice surrounding his leg with a fierce movement of the trapped limb, then knelt before Reuenthal and bowed his head modestly, “If what you say is true, then let me pledge my sword to you so I can make right the service I have carried out for a fiend who would misuse our people.”
With the surrender of Anavel came the following surrender of even the most ardent forces following him, for until that point the man had been a bodyguard and immensely loyal soldier to their lord. If even he was giving up, then there should as well, particularly since their foes seemed to not wish them any real ill-will. Bloodshed had been kept to a minimum fortunately due to the overall circumstances, and so some of the force sent to defeat the “rebels” instead became a part of it while the remainder (and majority) became prisoners of war.
As they finished reorganizing their forces, Mitter’meyer approached his associate and grinned broadly to the man who convinced even the hardliner Anavel to stop in his tracks, “You are quite the orator when you put your mind to it. No wonder you attract so many women if you can even convince our enemies to join us.”
Reuenthal shrugged, not about to take credit for the charisma his handsome personage possessed, though appreciative of how it aided in this scenario. While many were put-off by his dark humor, his eyes, or his history as a bastard son of a noble family, he possessed an appeal to those he was able to prove himself to, “I merely spoke the truth and was fortunate enough that it was heeded. We face a civil war now, and it would be a shame if talent was to be wasted and if those not complicit in the betrayal were to be punished for the crimes of another.”
“I agree. We should try to keep the bloodshed down as much as we can, at least against foes who might be allies if not for circumstance,” Mitter’meyer gestured wildly as he gripped his fist, “Those who willingly sold their souls to the likes of the Dreadlords though will find no mercy from I, Mitter’meyer, and instead face the swift justice they deserve!”
His friend smirked, not nearly as theatrical as his partner but appreciative of the spirit he possessed all the same, “And then return home for a nice homecooked meal and play the part of courteous, henpecked husband. The parts of fierce warrior and devoted husband suit you both well. I don’t believe I could ever juggle the needs of a wife and child with the duties of a soldier.”
The feisty look on Mitter’meyer’s face faded as he thought of his own family life, and of what it lacked due to the inability of him or his wife of conceiving a child, “Well, I am not so perfect as to have the ideal family life, but all the same I do what I can for Eva.”
Realizing his misstep, even the normally unapologetic Reuenthal felt the need to instantly offer some form of consolation, “I apologize for my careless word choice. I forgot that…”
Mitter’meyer held a hand up to stop his friend. He knew that the man meant no offense, and he would accept no apology where none was needed, “It’s fine. No need to dwell upon it.”
He and Eva had been speaking and were content with adoption when they felt the time was right, but with all the strife in the world presently they did not think it would be acceptable to do so yet. After all, Mitter’meyer was constantly endangering himself still, and to take in a child only to orphan them again would be cruel.
With the defeat of the first force sent their way by the mad prince Kael’thas of Outland, the army of rebellious Elves dedicated to the one they believed to be their true lord had established themselves in the world known as Outland.
On the world of Azeroth, a new peril had come to threaten the group whose loyalty was possessed by those breaching Outland.
Trixie looked up from the arrow pointing in her face to the light blue skinned Undead woman whose Elven features were apparent even to the partially ignorant Trixie. The woman’s hood did not hide her ears, and her revealing armor did not disguise the lithe form that she possessed.
“You had best explain why I should not slay you for trespassing, High Elf, before I let this string go.”
Trixie opened her mouth to do just that, not wanting to be slain by whomever this was who managed to creep up on her so quickly, before another voice interrupted and kept her from doing so.
“No need!”
Trixie, Vanessa, and Sylvanas all turned to face the noise, only for the last of the three women to let out a surprised breath as something shocked her. The man who had spoken was wearing dark leather armor, his green eyes shining out of his devil horned helmet which held the same color as his outfit. His shoulderpads glowed with green fel energy, and he had what appeared to be a remote control in his hands as he spoke up again in a cheerful voice.
“What a beautiful opportunity! Now I can have Sylvanas Windrunner herself carry out my task, then bring her head back for my lord to admire!”
Not exactly minding that someone who had just moments before threatened her was suddenly rigid and not moving, seemingly because of this man’s remote control…thing, Trixie still was curious as to what was now happening: from what she could tell she was now being attacked by someone who wanted to attack both her and the person who previously had been attacking her.
Why couldn’t this world be as simple as Equestria?
It was then that Trixie noticed that a small car-like thing was skittering across the ground of the forest clearing, and from it a beam was being emitted towards the now frozen Sylvanas Windrunner.
“Wait, is that remote control toy stopping her?”
The interloper cackled, “Stopping? Oh no no no, it’s doing far more than that!” he moved the controls on his system, “Sylvanas, kill them all!”
Trixie did not have time to even take another breath before the other woman’s bow caught her in the throat and knocked her off her feet and clear over the camp’s fire all the way to the other side of their set-up. As she tumbled aside, Vanessa threw herself aside to avoid a follow up attack from Sylvanas, the teenager having an easier time actually seeing the Undead’s movement but still barely able to keep up with the far more powerful being who now was being used like a puppet thanks to the overpowered trinket brought by this enemy Elf.
Not hesitating at all, Sylvanas let loose an arrow towards where Trixie was pulling herself to her feet, the magician having had trouble breathing at first and focused more on that than the actual battle. The arrows did not meet their target despite their speed due to a last second forceful movement of her bow, for a hurtled spear had clipped its bottom.
The possessed Sylvanas turned to see a metal boot to the face as Lavitz launched himself into the battle as fast as he could manage. While not in his peak shape, he still possessed the eye of a Warrior who had been on the level of Azeroth’s finest, even if he had not been at the top of that tier. The impact of his attack knocked Sylvanas back, but it did no actual damage to her, the leader of the Undead race protected by the powerful magic held within her clothing and weapon.
The Blood Elf in control of Sylvanas sneered, "You reacted swiftly, I would have thought you still would be fighting the reinforcements of Undead I saw coming our way. Step aside, Knight of Stormwind, for I am about to do both of us a favor."
Lavitz growled as he took a roundhouse kick to the chest that he could feel break ribs, yet he had to power through if they were to survive this. He must endure for the sake of the others, though he noticed something when struck by Sylvanas he thought useful: she was not fighting at her full potential, which gave some small glimmer of hope that they could survive her brutal attack.
"I could never look at my mother in the eye if stood by and did not intervene here, so prepare yourself Telonicus!”
The Elf named Telonicus snickered at the proclamation, still being in control of the situation as he made Sylvanas continue her assault. Too close for great use of her bow, Sylvanas instead removed arrows from her quiver and used them as daggers of sorts to impale her enemy. It was by throwing himself aside and trying to do everything in his power that Lavitz managed to keep from letting her stab the magic infused arrows straight through his armor, and it was by doing this that he tried to buy more time for Kael and Karl to finish off the Undead that were coming their way.
As Sylvanas threw punches and kicks into her near impossible to see attack on Lavitz, Telonicus began to smugly take in the sight before him of seeing a Knight from Stormwind have the life beaten out of him with no true way of retaliating. The man’s pale face had blood running down it from where a strike had left a gash on his head, and as the stream of blood grew so did the sadistic grin Telonicus held.
"You seem weaker than I thought you would be, Knight. Has standing around in a castle made you grow all stiff and rusty?" he sneered at the other man as Sylvanas kicked him over and began to stomp on his armored chest, damaging his shattered ribs even further and making him spit up blood, "Or is this the true strength of the last child of Servi, a man whose weakness let him fall to that fool Garithos?"
Despite the beating he was suffering, upon hearing Telonicus’s taunt, Lavitz threw a hard punch into one of the Undead’s shins as she lifted the other to finish him off with a stomp to the neck. Losing her footing, Sylvanas stumbled away from Lavitz for a moment before regaining it, just when a shout distracted her (or really Telonicus) from their attack.
"Kikoho!"
A bright flash illuminated both Sylvanas and Telonicus, Trixie’s attack having been focused in a direction that would strike both. She did not pause to allow the light to fade though, and she shot forth another arcane blast after the first, and another following that, and so on and so forth with each shot growing larger and more ferocious than the last to the point she began to clear away the forest in that direction as collateral damage from her spell.
"What is this..."
When Trixie ran out of breath and could no longer sustain her barrage with her now empty mana pool, Telonicus and Sylvanas emerged from the smoking and smoldering of the now destroyed terrain. While both were in most respects completely unharmed, the fact that they had been repulsed shocked Telonicus…at least until he remembered that the reason they sought this woman was the power laying within her, whether she knew it or not.
Catching her breath and preparing herself in a combat stance, Trixie prepared once more to fight. A certain pride showed itself in her voice and stance, and her eyes glowed fiercely as she stared down the Elven man who now opposed them, "I carry with me the legacy and power of Luna Faustdóttir, and I shall not let some cadaver or her puppeteer stand in my way or harm those I care about. Now flee, or in the name of Luna, I will punish you!"
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and instead we being set upon by
1. Were.
I... can't... urge... too... strong...!
Guess defeat is... remotely possible for Telonicus.
Man, he would be one tough boss to take down if he can do that to anyone regardless of level, it'd be a living nightmare being forced to act against your wi- oh. Guess we know who Sylvanys will be aiming for next.
Why do I get the feeling of bad guy monologue coming from him? Must be paranoid... or just your writing giving me suspicions again like what happened in Outland earlier (albeit that was an immediate effect compared to several others you've done).
Speaking of, I still have a suspicion about the Outland forces for some reason, it seems almost dare I say, too easy at the moment. Hang on... back at the Monastery... !!!
7465203
Nonsense, engineers are good at manipulating the odds. He just needs to get control of the battlefield again.
The difference between a poor bad-guy monologue vs. a well executed one. One gets you killed, the other distracts them pesky heroes.
7479357 Telonicus is decidedly the former example, as someone possessing his skillset who could actually utilize it to its potential would be broken as hell, so there has to be a reason he's just a sub-boss in Burning Crusade rather than the guy running the show...I chose "incompetence" as the explanation, as while he is quite skilled in what he can create and do, he's too foolish to reach that potential and thus remains as a lackey. A well off lackey, but the guy who the Kael in Outland felt comfortable sending off to go deal with a few low level Twink characters rather than actually join him in the conflict in Outland.
Case and point, the mercenaries/bounty hunters hired by Telonicus killed the people who he also paid to capture Trixie. End result? Trixie escaped, and he lost everyone he paid because he didn't think to have them coordinate their forces and efforts.
7465203 Remote is the chance of him succeeding.
He's toying with Sylvanas, and facing off against the protagonists. He'll be lucky to just survive the encounter. As you allude to, Sylvanas is going to be pissed.
Telonicus may or may not have a bit of a villainous monologue, but it'll come from the fact that he thinks he's won rather than anything else. As for the Outland writing, what made you suspicious?
I mean I love foreshadowing, and hinting, and related things, but I do it so much I genuinely don't know who is catching what.
As for things being too "easy" in Outland, it was more so a case of Orcus on His Throne for Outland Kael sending what he thought would be enough soldiers to put down some rebels who aren't even on the level of the forces in Outland, only for swift tactics on the part of Mitter'meyer defeating the force before it could establish itself and Reuenthal neutralizing the one threat that remained. More of a time for them to show off and display why these two are now in charge of the army while their own Kael is away than things just being "easy". It shows both Outland Kael's foolishness (he could have come and killed them all himself if he wanted to, especially if he brought his full army) and the competence of two of our supporting cast.
7479990 The Outland suspicion? The one thing that made it stand out was from the previous (previous) rest chapter from right after they captured the monastery where Mitt'meyer and Reuthenal were having a chat with Kael. Least I think it was both of them at first before one went off shortly after and we had a small discussion on seeing where I could find the foreshadowing which lead to the line of Kael and I think it was Mitt'meyer offering a drink or a gift after all this was said and done.
7480977 Mitter'meyer and Lavitz exchanged a bit of friendly conversation, Mitter'meyer having known his father from the previous war and expressing regret over his death, and the two bonded over both being loyal soldiers, with Mitter'meyer giving Lavitz a small gift that Lavitz was apologetic over not being able to return the favor of (not having a gift to give back at the time). Mitter'meyer told him not to worry and that there would always be another time to exchange gifts, and then they parted ways. That was their foreshadowing.
Reuenthal's foreshadowing came in a couple forms, the first being his dark, contemplative conversation with Trixie in which she recognized that he, like herself and Kael, was someone who was damaged and haunted by his past, and that Trixie didn't want him to suffer that burden alone. The second was that, shortly thereafter, Reuenthal executed a soldier for unlawfully pilfering against direct orders, ending the encounter with a bold proclamation of "Why don't you take over the country?" when the soldier tries to liken Kael's rebellion to the stealing of items.
The instance is drawn from the source material he comes from, for it is an integral moment for the character and the arc he possesses, viewable here at 23:18, while the first moment is original content of Trixie recognizing how an arc could go and trying to divert it if at all possible.
There is actually more foreshadowing than I have mentioned, but I won't say more for now as I believe the above should be enough for the time being. You did mention Lavitz and a drink though, and Kael currently owes Lavitz a drink from awhile back when Lavitz offered him relationship advice with Trixie.
7501084 Well, I'm going to do my best to get to the next chapter as soon as possible. Reading this is a lot easier - and far more fun - than the rest of the stuff in my "Read Later" folder.
7501365 Sounds good! I'm actually about to finish the next chapter in just a moment, so I hope you continue to enjoy as you work through it. Any thoughts/comments you have along the way would be most appreciated!
... TO THE WIKI!
Gah! Unexpected Sailor Moon reference! Must...not...picture Trixie in a sailor fuku!
...oh wait, that's not a bad image.
I've no idea who Telonicus is or how he works with that mind control thing but I'm sure Sylvannas will be pissed.