Warcraft III: Soul Trapping and Sorcery

Chapter One:

Lordaeron:

Ruins of Dalaran:

Main Scourge Base:

Two weeks after the fall of Dalaran, Arthas Menethil was rather wishing he hadn't done such a good job of wiping out the Paladin order. If he'd been a bit less efficient he might not have been bored out of his mind at the moment. His blue green eyed gaze fell over the blighted wasteland that was the horizon with disinterest, his long white hair blowing in the wind as he waited atop the shattered remains of the Violet Citidels, watching the dead pines rustle.

"I see..." began his right hand Lich, Kel'thuzad. "Something beginning with-"

"Ruins." said Arthas in a tired tone, shifting his grip on his Runeblade absently.

"How did you guess, Prince Arthas?" asked Kel'thuzad curiously. "I didn't even give you a letter that time."

"Because I said corpses last turn." explained the Lich King's Champion "And that just about covers everything in this entire region. Seriously, Lich, we've been at this for the whole day. Doesn't the legion provide something to do when they aren't burning worlds?"

Kel'thuzad paused. "Well... no. Ordinarily I might amuse myself by studying the numerous ancient tomes that had been collected in the city of Dalaran, but Lord Archimond kind of accidentally blocked up the entrance to the library with his world destroying magic. Why not practice with your electric guitar?"

"Well I would, but Tichondrius banned me from using it." complained Arthas in irritation, glancing over at his skeletal friend. "Still, I suppose that-" His phone rang suddenly, and he removed it from his pocket and put it to his ear. "Hello?"

"Don't even think about it." said Tichondrius, before hanging up.

"...Well that's out." said Arthas in an annoyed tone. "So, are you certain that there are no more villages in the region to pillage in this region?" He looked back over the burnt up city behind them, hoping to catch sight of a self rightous Paladin to duel amongst the crumbled towers. He was to be disappointed.

"I'm afraid not." replied the Lich apologetically "I'm afraid that we were very thorough. Also Lord Mannaroth has reserved the rest of Lordaeron. We could try to burn a few, but if we got caught, then Archimond will probably kill us."

"Damn." muttered Arthas looking back down at he overgrown pavement. "Nice to know that my devoted service to the Legion's unholy goals is rewarded with scorn, and indifference."

"If it's any consolation, Prince Arthas, Mal'ganis didn't consult me when he assigned me to be killed by you."

"But I thought that the Lich king told you how our encounter would end?"

"Well..."

...

Flashback:

Lordaeron:

The Temple of Almost Certain Damnation:

"Master." said Kel'thuzad over his psychic link. "I have successfully completed my mission, permission to withdraw."

There was a pause.

"Permission denied." came the Lich Kings response "You still need to get killed so I can ressurect you later in the Sunwell."

"...Wouldn't it just be a lot simpler for me to teleport out, turn myself into a Lich normally, and then skip the entire invasion of Quel'thalas."

Another pause.

"Perhaps." replied the Lich King "But on the other hand I'd have to change my calender, and that is way to much hassle."

"But I'm about to be ripped to shreds by angry Paladin." pointed out the Necromancer.

"I don't see how that's my problem." replied Ner'zhul with a mental shrug, before cutting the link.

"Damn." said Kel'thuzad "Well, maybe I'll get lucky and win."

The mental link was suddenly reestablished with Ner'zhul laughing "I wouldn't count on it. Your totally going to die."

...

Lordaeron:

Ruins of Dalaran:

Main Scourge Base:

"...and, then you beat me to death with a giant hammer." finished the Lich.

"Yeah, sorry about that." said Arthas with an embarrassed smile.

"Do not concern yourself my Prince, you were only doing your job." replied the Lich "Besides, I can move better now anyway without that pesky arthretis."

"Well as long as things worked out." muttered Arthas, glancing back to the horizon. "Still, that still leaves what we're supposed to do while we're waiting for Archimond to actually give us a mission."

"Well..." started Kel'thuzad "Do you want to play chess."

"Eh, sure, why not." said Arthas, and they walked off to search for a board.

...

Kalimdor:

Somewhere in the Barrens:

Alliance and Horde camp:

It was a bright sunny day in the Barrens, which wasn't saying much given that it was one of the hottest areas on the planet. The Alliance and Horde camp had been set up on a hill with defense in mind, as both of them prepared for the war with the Burning Legion. It was surprisingly, dull all things considered, and it was also sweltering. For her part Jaina Proudmoore once again thanked the elements for Ice spells, because without them she would passed out from exhaustion, even in her form fitting white outfit that clung to her curvaceous form, and bared her midriff.

She looked at the Warchief before her critically, inwardly wondering how it was that the massive green skinned Orc could stand to wear pitch black armor in a place like this. Perhaps Orcs were just better in the heat than humans. They had apparently lived in a desert world at one point, after all. Either way, they certainly lacked a certain understanding if their most recent request was any indication.

"So let me see if I have got this straight." she said, pushing her light blonde hair back behind one shoulder. "You want me to create a soul gem."

"Yes."

"You know..." said Jaina "The sort that traps souls."

"Indeed."

There was a pause, in which Jaina resisted the urge to smash her head against the table. "This plan sucks, and you suck for thinking of it."

"Well that was rather undiplomatic of you." said Thrall, and Jaina rolled her eyes.

"I'm terribly sorry if I seem impolite, but I'm a Mage, not a Warlock. There is a very big difference between them."

"Could gave fooled me." said Thrall honestly.

Jaina looked offended.

"Of course there's a differance!" she said angrily "Mages are people who spends years studying to increase and control their power, like my late master Antonidas. Warlocks are just idiotic hedge wizards who are too stupid to figure out that making a deal with Demon never pays. Warlocks don't work for their power, they get handed it to them by outside sources." replied the Sorceress "And we all know what that did to your world as a result of their actions."

"So..." began Thrall "In essence Warlocks destroy the worlds they live in, because they are too lazy to use their own magic."

"Precisely." said Jaina "Calling a mage a Warlock is the ultimate sign of disrespect for their abilities."

"I see." said Thrall "You know, my people hate Warlocks so much that we've banned arcane magic entirely."

"Now that's dedication."

...

Somewhere in Northrend:

"Damn it I hate warlocks." said Ner'zhul telepathically as he watched the verbal wordplay between orc and human. "Bunch of power stealing hacks."

"But weren't you a Warlock at one point." asked Anub'arak as he stood guard by the frozen Throne. "In fact, isn't all of your power stolen from other people."

There was a pause.

"Anub'arak do you wish to be sealed back inside the box." asked Ner'zhul politely.

"Please don't send me back there." said the King of Azjol Nerub in a small voice.

"Then be silent. Bitch."

...

Alliance and Horde camp:

"Moving on." said Thrall "Shouldn't you know how trap Souls."

"Of course not." said Jaina "The Kirin Tor had all the data on it destroyed years ago. Even putting aside moral issues inherent in such spells, it was a PR nightmare." she stretched her arms outward. "And before you ask, no, I'm not going to try to figure it out right now. We don't have the time or equipment for such experiments. Why don't you try contacting the remnants of the Shadow Council."

"Yeah..." said Thrall. "I kind of killed them all years ago. If any of them are still alive, they aren't going to be help us. Don't you know anyone with a Soul trapping abilities.

"If they did, they've probably gone on to join the Burning legion at this point." replied Jaina bitterly. "Although..." she paused, then sighed in resignation. "I'm going to need to make a phone call."

...

Dalaran:

Scourge Base Camp

"And that is checkmate." said Arthas as his rook trapped Kel'thuzads king. They had balanced the board upon one of the fallen stones of masonry, as even now sat with the chess board between them.

The wind whisled through Kel'thuzad's bones as he pretended to examine the board. "Hmm, well done sir." he said "I didn't see that coming at all."

"You say that every time we play chess." muttered Arthas as he began to put the pieces back in their places "Quite frankly I'm beginning to wonder if your just letting me win."

"Well it is technically my duty to ensure your ultimate victory." argued Kel'thuzad, and had he had a face, Arthas though he might have been smirking.

"Whatever." replied the Death Knight "In any case, do you think there are any Paladins left around here."

"The answer was no five minutes ago, milord." said the Lich modesty "I sincerely doubt the answer has changed in the last five minutes."

"But I'm bored!" yelled Arthas "I mean, we've spent the last six hours looking for something to do. God I hate being so damn efficent!" he paused, before pulling out a phone. "Hold on a minute I've got an idea."

...

Scourge rearguard:

Sylvanas' base camp:

Sylvanas Windrunner was reflecting on the nature of undeath when she was jogged from it by a phone call. She ignored it completely, preferring to continue gazing out over the destruction she had wrought. She was a statuesque woman, though she was admittedly short for a High Elf, and her skin was darker than any of her kinds became naturally. Her clothes consisted of a bellyshirt and pants that clung to her voluptous form.

Her red eyes narrowed in annoyance as she realized that phone kept on ringing. "Damn it!" she curseed "Why did Arthas insist on us having these things! It's not as if thwey are actually necassary in any way shape or form.

The ringing continued, and she finally snarled in frustration and grabbed the phone, before putting it to her ear. "What the fuck do you want?" she asked bluntly.

"Hello" came the nasal voice of a Stormwind noble who kept prank calling her. "Is your refrigerator running."

"Listen to me you pathetic waste of space." she said in a calm tone to fool who had called her. "I have told you to stop harrassing me repeatedly, and you have ignored me. As such, I have decided that if I recieve one more phone call from you, or anyone else, within the next hour, I will brutally murder you some day."

"Well that seems a bit harsh-" began the person.

"It won't be quick, either. Your torments screams will echo throughout the universe, and even the most terrible of Dark god shall weep to know that any being ever suffered as you had. Fuck off, and never call me again." she hung up, and tossed the phone at the rubble. Unfortunately it was military grade, and thus didn't break,

"Now then, maybe I can get some peace before-"

The phone rung again.

"That son of a bitch." she hissed in fury as she picked up the phone with a snarl, only to see that it held a number that she didn't recognize. As such, she opted to show restrain. She put the phone to her ear and spoke in a calm, controlled, and absolutely deadly voice. "I don't know who you are. I don't know what you want. If your a telemarketer, or looking for a donation to charity, then I can tell you that I don't have any money. What I do have is a very specific set of skills. Skills that I have learned over a very long career. Skills that make me a nightmare for people like you. If you hang up this phone right now, without saying anything, then that will be the end of it. I will not hunt you. I will not persue you. But, if you annoy me even slightly I will hunt you. I will find you. And I will kill you." she paused "Then I'll kill your girlfriend. And your little dog, snookems. And then your cat, and your horse, and any other pets you might have. After that I'll slaughter your family, and your friends. And their friends, and any aquintances which you and they may or may not have possibly met. Then I'll kill the birds who nest in the tree's nearby your house, and slaughter everyone in the few locations where you've visited. Then I'll go get a priest to bring you all back to life so I can murder you all again, only more slowly. And the second time I'll add a few litters of puppies and kittens to the bodycount. Now what is it going to be?"

"...I was just about to order pizza, and I was wondering if you wanted anything." came the voice of Arthas Menethil, sounding rather shocked.

"Oh." said Sylvanas, mildly surprised, but otherwise uneffected. "Small pizza, onions and green peppers, thin crust."

"...What, that's it?" he asked.

"I don't like meat." she said with a shrug.

"That's not what I meant." replied Arthas in an annoyed tone. "You just more or less outright stated you planned to horribly murder me twice, along with hlaf the population of the world, just because you thought you were being called by someone who annoyed you. It's traditional to apologise in these situations."

"Your presence always annoys me." she said with a shrug, though she knew he couldn't see it. "So I'm going to do that to you next chance I get. Or at least I would, if I wasn't already planning countless thousand deaths for you already. So which place are you ordering from, I need to know the prices."

"Eh, it's a demonically run place in the twisting nether." explained Arthas casually "Really good service, and excellent food."

"Well that's more than can be said for Quel'thalas, even pre invasion." she said with a shrug "You would be surprised at just how bad it was. We elves may have been masters of magic, with a perfect society greater than any other in the universe, but it was next to impossible to find a good pizza place."

"I noticed." said Arthas "Anyway, I'm going to make the call once I hang up, I'll pay for it."

"Thanks." she said "I may consider slightly decreasing the harshness of the horrifying torments I intend to put your through when the day of reckoning comes."

"Right, fine whatever." said Arthas "I have to go."

"Bye." she said before he pressed the off button. She turned off her phone and gazed into the distance mournefully "VENGEANCE SHALL BE MNE!" she screamed to the heavens suddenly, before she began to wonder if she should have ordered red peppers as well.

...

"Well, she's about the same as always." said Arthas as he hung up.

"Still bitter about that whole burning down her country thing?" asked Kel'thuzad.

"Yeah..." said Arthas "Hey Kel, could you get me the phone book."

...

A few hours after they had recieved, and eaten their orders, a ringing sound filled the air, and Kel'thuzad floated up quickly, raising his hands as dark fire crackled on his skeletal palms.

"Calm yourself." said Arthas, reaching into his capes inner pockets. "It's just my cell phone again."

"Oh." said Kel'thuzad, before looking a bit confused. "You know, I probably should have asked this before, but how do we have Cell phones?" he said at last.

Arthas chuckled in amusement as he pulled out his still ringing tone "We have tanks, flying machines, and instant teleportation, and you are complaining about instant communication."

"Good point." conceded Kel'thuzad.

Arthas' eyes widened in surprise as he saw the caller ID, then he flipped open the phone, and put it to his ear.

"Oh, hello Jaina! How have you been!"

...

Authors Note: So yeah, this is an idea I had a while back, and never got a chance to use. It was inspired by that one mission in the last Warcraft game, where Jaina provides Thrall with a Soul Gem to capture Grom, who has turned evil.

My first thought when the mission began was basically "wait a minute, Jaina shouldn't have a spell like that . So I came up with this concept.

Is this going to stick to lore? I don't know, I'm still working on it. It will probably be shorter than my other fics though.

Please review, and tell me what you think.

Author's Edit: I added a seen which introduces Sylvanas' character a bit earlier, and made a few edits to make things flow better, and maintain consistancy of story.