The Crystal Vizier

by Lich-Lord Krosis

Old Friends and Old Enemies

"So, you arrived in this world how long ago exactly?" Kel'Thuzad asked. Titus reached up with a single hoof, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"Hmm... maybe a few months ago? Its been too long... I can't tell. We've been wandering around the frozen tundra for FAR too long..." Titus sighed, his subtly glowing yellow eyes looking down at his forehooves in frustration. Kel'Thuzad snorted lightly in annoyance, turning his skull to the silent stallion in the corner.

The stallion, by Equestrian standards, was massive. Probably only a few inches shy of Celestia's height. He was a dark, sickly shade of grey, with patches of his scraggly coat falling out. A telltale sign of age...

Or undeath...

The latter, most likely, seeing as the stallion's dull, glassy eyes each glowed with an unholy pinprick of yellow energy, dominating the area in which a pupil normally sat. When he asked the guards who accompanied him to his chambers what they though of him, the two stallions replied with hasty comments on the pony's... willingness. While it followed orders without question, the gargantuan hulk of necrotic flesh and bone seemingly harmless, despite his grizzled and rough appearance. At closer inspection, Kel'Thuzad saw that the stallion was all but fixed in his current location, his form having not moved since his entry into the room. His eyes lazily drifted back and forth, surveying the chamber, but stayed mainly on the two of them.

"Kel'Thuzad?" Titus asked, leaning in closer to the lich. Kel'Thuzad snapped out of his thinking, turning to Titus.

"Titus, who is that?" Kel'Thuzad rudely gestured to the stallion off to the side, his rather... unintelligent eyes turning to the lich as he pointed at him. Rivendare laughed lightly, and looked to his accomplice, clicking his tongue across his teeth once. The stallion's ears perked at the simple sound, the light thuds of his weight echoing across the floor as he approached the baron. Rivendare chuckled as the stallion plopped it's flank down upon the floor next to him. Rivendare lightly brushed the stallion's ragged mane, the creature crooning at the touch, his muzzle pointing down towards the floor, letting his friend pet him gently.

"Deathcharger, say hello to Kel'Thuzad." Titus commanded, a smile across his face. Deathcharger looked up to the quite flabbergasted lich, his form rising to go and greet the undead archmage. Kel'Thuzad's eyes widened as the stallion butted his head gently into his ribcage, eyes closing in comfort at the cold of the lich's body. Kel'Thuzad chuckled lightly, his claw reaching up to gently pet the mane of the Deathcharger, a quiet nicker issuing from the feral stallion's muzzle.

"Did he arrive with you?" Kel'Thuzad asked, snapping his fingers once, a small bag of sugar cubes teleporting into the lich's hand. With gentle persuasion, the Deathcharger slurped half of the entire bag into his maw, munching happily away at the treat. Rivendare nodded.

"He awoke about an hour after I did, next to my runeblade." Titus explained. "So... how is our new master?"

"He... he is different, for sure. No where near as ambitious or violent as Arthas was. But here is the strange part..." Kel'Thuzad chuckled, the baron leaning in to hear better.

"He was already undead when I arrived."

The baron drew back at the knowledge.

"How so?" Titus half-whispered, brushing his hoof up against Deathcharger's mane, the undead stallion having traveled back over to him after devouring the rest of Kel'Thuzad's treat. Kel'Thuzad chuckled again.

"Lichdom."

"Really?!" Rivendare exclaimed, confused. Kel'Thuzad nodded, waving his arm once to bring the Helm of Domination from under his unused bed. Rivendare's face cringed at the sight of the helmet, and Deathcharger reared up once, a warning neigh escaping his primitive vocal chords.

"What... what are you doing with..." Kel'Thuzad stopped his friend with a single claw.

"I'm studying it. To make sure history does not repeat itself." Kel'Thuzad spoke. Rivendare rose a hoof in protest. "With our master's permission, of course." Titus lowered his hoof, and nodded. He seemed... disappointed. A few moments passed in silence.

.........

The two friends looked to one another in shock. They had just felt the passing of someone nearby. Too nearby for comfort, in Kel'Thuzad's case.

.........

"Did you just..."

"I felt it."

.........

In an instant, the two were up from their chairs, Kel'Thuzad's arms already engulfed in blue flames.

"Back away from the door, Titus." Kel'Thuzad warned, his arm flames heating to a near white intensity. With a snarl, the ice exploded away from the doorframe, the chunks of frozen water clattering to the ground everywhere outside the room. The stallion and lich rushed out, to be met with a sight out of Kel'Thuzad's figurative nightmares. One of the guards next to his master's room was struggling to keep a large gash in his neck from killing him, a spurt of blood exploding from his mouth and throat whenever he took a breath. His comrade was already dead, a dagger protruding from the back of his head, the steel blade having punched right through the helmet he wore.

Kel'Thuzad growled in anger, cursing his stupidity.

The door was shut tight.

Melted shut...

When I get ahold of that... MONGREL...

Kel'Thuzad quickly rushed forward, a single ray of necromantic flames exploding from his hand, knocking the struggling guard out, but sealing his throat. The lich slammed the door open with his sheer strength alone, and his glowing eyes darted around, looking for his queen.

"Move and she dies."

.........

"Fire Fight..."Kel'Thuzad turned his head nearly one hundred and eighty degrees to face him, the stallion holding his queen around the neck, a still-bloody dagger poised to puncture her throat. Cadence whined, but was silenced as Fire Fight pressed the dagger tighter to her skin, a small line of red trailing away from the tip.

*Click*

"Drop it."

Kel'Thuzad turned slowly to his accomplice, and grinned.

"You think I am intimidated by a stick, fool?! I AM LORD FIRE FIGHT!" the stallion scoffed. "NOW CEASE THIS FOOLISHNESS, OR SHE-"

There was a sound of thunder, and the left half of Fire Fight's head was gone. Cadence screamed as she was covered in brain matter and... green blood. Rivendare chuckled darkly, a rush of adrenaline exploding through his undead veins as he lowered his still-smoking flintlock, the Lordaeron Royal Seal glinting in the moonlight flooding in through the windows. The Fire Fight dropped the knife almost instantly, a single hoof coming up to stroke the missing part of his skull. He shuddered once, then collapsed, sending a small wave of liquefied brain and skull pooling across the floor. Cadence's screams had attracted several more guards now, the stallions and mares scrambling into the room.

Kel'Thuzad chuckled, turning to his friend.

"It's good to have you back, Titus."

Author's Note:

Sorry for the extreme delay.

My grandfather passed away last weekend, and I have been... coping.

Thank you for your patience.

Comments

[jmlop0]

Fire fight didn't live up to his name.... a Shame.

[SeventhBrony]

Take as long as you need to cope, we'll be here ready for the next update.
Also, GREEN blood? Something's not right here, we dealing with Changlings now?

[shenadri]

wait a sec... green blood ?

oh you!

[zoruatrainer66]

Take your time, we'll wait.

[Sigmacipher]

6884706 Jeez...This is why you punish nobles more harshly than commoners...

[novablade223]

ahhh firearms. still curde but very very good at what they do >:)

[PetuTheViewer]

Take your time. I know from personal experience that getting over the death of a relative (especially a closer one) takes time. I have been through it with both my grand fathers. Though I do find that concentrating on the moment helps in the early days of sorrow and going through the motions of daily life can at times dull the pain. At least until one learns to cope with it. All it takes is time and the patience to keep going. The presence of friends and family willing to listen your sorrow can help too and honestly talking about it with others may be painful but usually I at least felt a lot better afterwards.

This is just my personal experience though and mine are from a few years ago so I may have forgotten much of it.

All the best to you in recovering from this ordeal.

[DJ Discharge]

green blood...so either changlings or demons.

[Cadmium]

I think Kel'thuzad really needs a real door, constantly shattering and refreezing the barrier is kind of inefficent.

[Ninjahzzzz]

6884944 Why not both? ....Sorry, the mariachi band is out for lunch.

[Fetch]

And thus, Equestria is introduced to gunpowder weapons.

[MonkeyChunky]

Sorry for your loss. Take all time you need. The story's not going any where.

[Aerin Silverfeather]

Blamo

[King Leoric]

I know exactly what you feel. My ganma passed away years ago but the sorrow stil pangs sometimes.