Vincit Qui Se Vincit Chapter 6

Many thanks to my current supporters on Patreon! Please consider joining their ranks for any number of benefits, including early access to chapters of all currently-updating stories!

Neolithic Knuckledragger: Acrimonius

Bronze Barbarians: Luke B.

Iron Intellectuals: WanderingDaemon, TheDukeOfBears, MouthyStorm, Cybercrisis, Markus

Machine Menace; Aydrik

Nuclear Noncombatant: Amanda E.

#############################################################

Vincit Qui Se Vincit

Chapter Six

##############################################################

Joan

I shuddered again, the aftershocks of my orgasm still throbbing through my body, and momentarily considered the idea of finding myself some privacy to indulge in some self-satisfaction, before pushing the idea to the back of my mind. I would be strong and responsible, and more importantly I would be patient. My Lady would take me when I was ready, and not a moment before, and I wouldn’t dishonor that kindness by submitting to my lusts before my heart had healed. Besides which, I had a job to do, and that job consisted entirely of overseeing the imminent holding action against The Scourge, here in the narrow pass of the Bulwark.

“Lady Romee, the civilians have started moving out again, along with the Royal Guard and the cavalry.” Sally Whitemane said respectfully, approaching and bowing from a half step behind me. I couldn’t resist taking a slow inhale, smirking slightly as my enhanced Servant senses detected the soaked folds and loincloth she was somehow ignoring. I could admire her dedication to the mission at hand, though admittedly it was the same iron will and dedication that would have turned her into a psychotic zealot if not for My Lady’s arrival. “There were many volunteers amongst the people who wished to fight, but I presumed you wished them to keep moving and leave the fighting to the heavy infantry.”

“That is correct, Sally, which leads me to wonder why you are still here. The place of a healer is with the noncombatants, not on the front line. You are too valuable a resource to risk some necromancer or skeleton archer getting lucky. Not to mention how poorly your father would react to your death.” I responded, giving the white-haired young woman a mildly censorious look. One that didn’t seem to affect her in the least, to my amusement.

“My father would be proud of me for standing to defend our people, just like he always has.” She responded, lifting her chin. Not in an effort to look down at me, but rather in an effort not to seem submissive or pliable before me. Unsurprisingly, it seemed the spine she had possessed in ‘canon’ had not grown only when she was forced to kill her Raised family members. “Besides which, I have no interest in playing the part of the desperate, frightened damsel. ‘Tis neither in my nature, nor is it likely to impress Queen Calia or Lady Andraste.”

“Hoh~?” I hummed, raising my eyebrows curiously and turning my attention more fully to her, confident that The Scourge would not arrive for a reasonable amount of time. She blushed faintly at my attention as I scrutinized her. “And why is impressing the two of them so important to you, Sally?”

“…Lady Calia is my Queen, why wouldn’t I want to impress her? My family has served the Menethil dynasty for generations, we are loyal sons and daughters of Lordaeron. By impressing her and proving myself a capable subordinate, I can not only continue that tradition but raise our standing from well-regarded servants to the nobility, perhaps a new High House entirely.” She responded, and I could tell that she was being honest with me…just like I could tell she wasn’t telling me everything. Even without knowing My Lady’s aura was doing to her, I would have been able to tell just by looking at her blush and the same shy mannerisms (if muted by her impressive attempts at stoicism) of a maiden in love.

“That might be true, Sally, but I’ll notice you said nothing about My Lady. Which is perfectly fine, because there is no need for you to say anything. I am fully aware of why you would want to impress her, but I assure you that it isn’t really necessary. She already intends to take you for her own, which is another reason I would prefer you went to safety.” I explained, briefly wondering if I was being a bit too blunt, not to mention precipitous, with my announcement of Her intentions. But she was aware, her presence brushing against my mind, and was making no protest or chastisement known to me, so I supposed I was safe enough for the moment.

“Ah, that is…” Sally started to respond, blushing furiously, before lapsing into a pleased, if terribly embarrassed, silence. The poor girl probably wasn’t used to such blunt declarations of intent, if Azeroth was anything like my homeland and time. There was a dance, then, between the interested party and the parents of the person they pursued, followed by another dance with the person themselves.

The fact that said declarations came from (as far as Sally could tell) a member of the Black Dragonflight probably made things even more interesting for her.

“Lady Romee, the Scourge have spotted us. It’s vanguard should be arriving within the next quarter of an hour, our scouts estimate, with some five-hundred assorted undead. Mostly ghouls, a fraction of skeletons armed with bows.” A runner skidded to a halt beside us, cutting off further conversation as she saluted whilst trying to catch her breath. She hesitated, face twisting with not just fear but fury as she continued. “We’ve also counted a half-dozen necromancers from the Cult of the Damned amongst their number. Light strike them down, the traitors.”

She looked very much like she wanted to spit on the ground in disgust, but restrained herself admirably, and I nodded in both approval of her self-control and acknowledgement of her report.

“Excellent. Pull all of our scouts back, there is no more need for their services on the front. I want them split between our flanks on this side of The Bulwark. I doubt that the Cult members in charge of this force will be smart enough to try and send extra groups through the mountains, but Arthas might do so of his own volition. Fliers, especially, are a matter of concern. Undead gryphon or something of the sort, perhaps.” I ordered, and she saluted again before dashing off to pass the orders along. Turning to regard Sally again, I gave an amused huff before waving a hand in acceptance. “It seems you will not have time to catch up with the others, and so you will remain at my side, though I shall leave explaining the matter to your fatherup to you.”

“No need, my Lady, I imagine I understand the situation quite clearly.” Geoffrey interjected as he arrived, standing in the same place the runner had not moments before. Seemingly ignoring the situation with his daughter for the moment, he met my eyes and continued. “The spell-traps and explosive charges have all been placed according to your instructions, ma’am. The moment you give the command, we can bring much of The Bulwark down on the Scourge and block the pass. Undead or no, it will take them some time to clear it or climb over it.”

“Excellent. Anything that can slow Arthas down is good, and the longer the better. We must have as much time as possible to evacuate the people and negotiate with Quel’thalas. I’m hoping that Anestarian will be reasonable, but while I don’t doubt he will see the wisdom of working with us eventually, I would rather it happen long before we have to worry about desperate last stands while the civilians flee.” I smiled, feeling quite pleased. My Lady had developed this plan, and I had presented it on her behalf, to surprise and approval.

I had questioned, at first, why My Lady didn’t simply unleash our group’s full power against the Scourge and earn the awe of the natives while simultaneously being as expedient as humanely possible. She had explained that, while she could do that, it would make allying herself with the natives and keeping them from joining her rivals harder. That being said, she did intend to get Lordaeron’s citizens to relative safety (by capturing the High Elven targets and using their political leverage to aid her cause) before capturing as many of her targets from across the world as she could. Some, though, she fully expected to have to pry from the corpses of her opponents.

Truly, My Lady was a cunning individual, and a practical one.

“Get the troops on their feet and into formation in eight minutes. I want all unit leaders checking their subordinates, anyone who is injured or otherwise not fighting-fit is to fall back from the shield-wall. I don’t care if they can ‘handle it’ or don’t want to ‘abandon their comrades’. I appreciate their courage, loyalty, and determination to fight, but those same traits will endanger the mission and their comrades alike.” I dismissed him with one final order, and he saluted before squeezing his daughter’s shoulder gently and moving off to obey.

I cast my thoughts to my Mistress, telling her that battle would soon be joined, and promising to accomplish my mission without fail.

##############################################################

Andraste

The scent of burning trees, flesh, and bone clouded my nose as much as the thick pall of smoke kindled by the flames I had used to create it clouded the sky. Arthas was clearly not entirely a fool, or his subcommanders decently intelligent, because that was the fifth band of Scourge I had found, and the largest. I would have placed its numbers at nearly two-hundred, mostly made up of the shambling ghouls and a handful of Abominations. They wouldn’t have been a challenge even if I hadn’t been airborne, but as it was…well, it wasn’t any fun in the least. Really rather boring, actually, if I was to be honest.

Fortunately, I wasn’t really here for fun. I was here to capture waifu, erase the entirety of Blizzard’s increasingly bizarre ‘story’, and have massive amount of incredibly kinky sex. Which was, admittedly, really very fun for me, but that was entirely beside the point.

The complete lack of gargoyles was actually somewhat concerning to me, as the flying monsters were (at this point of the Scourge’s existence) the sole flying threat the Lich King had at his command. Not a single one of them had entered the Silverpine Forest since she had taken the skies, which meant they were wreaking havoc elsewhere. Either slaughtering villages and refugee groups that hadn’t been found and absorbed yet or, and this actually made me somewhat nervous, because that could mean that they were preparing to launch a surprise aerial attack on not only innocent civilians under my group’s protection, but my future lovers as well. I didn’t dare cease my current efforts in order to seek them out, nor could I afford to change my timetable in any meaningful way. I had to reach a point of exponential growth before my rivals showed up, because even if many of them would probably wipe each-other out, I would be forced to contend with at least a few.

“Mistress, we’re nearly to The Wall.” Lorna’s demure mental voice drew my attention back to the present, and I gave a draconic grin.

“Mistress, I expect to engage the Scourge vanguard at The Bulwark within the next ten minutes. I do not expect that we will have any difficulties with wiping them out and closing the pass as planned. I am also pleased to report that Miss Whitemane is quite interested in yourself and Calia both.” Joan added not moments later, and my grin grew. Perfect. Everything was proceeding as I had hoped that it would.

“Magnificent. Joan, proceed as planned. Lorna, I am on my way back to you. Prepare for my arrival.” I responded, banking away from the burning swathes of destruction that I had laid out. Fortunately, Azeroth being what it was and working the way it did, my efforts were unlikely to result in the entirety of Silverpine going up in flames. Which was good, because it would be very hard to play the part of the divine hero if I set a good portion of the continent on fire.

I poured on the speed, soaring towards the clustered beacons of light that represented my closest women, enjoying the ‘sight’ of them in my mind, my soul. Truly, I might be a villain in many ways, but I would be damned if I didn’t cherish the people I had taken as my own. Only a handful of minutes later, the large crowd of refugees under Lord Crowley’s banner, and my protection, came into view. They were just arriving at the base of the Greymane Wall, a multicolored, desperate tide of sentients faced by the great, unfeeling grey stone edifice blocking their way to (relative) safety. It looked as though The Wall’s garrison hadn’t yet reacted to those standing on the proverbial stoop of their door, but I could hear the sound of alarm bells ringing as I was spotted, and I could see artillery such as cannons and ballistae turning to track me. I banked and stooped, gracefully gliding towards the refugees, shifting into my human form and dropping the final twenty yards to land with catlike grace beside Crowley, his advisors, and my women.

“Ah, Lady Andraste, welcome back. Judging by the smoke on the horizon, I feel safe in assuming that you were successful in not only finding, but immolating some manner of undead?” Crowley asked, rather nonchalantly given the circumstances, and I smirked before giving him a brief overview of not just the Scourge I had encountered, but their subsequent destruction, as well as I my concern over the lack of flying creatures. When I was finished, he frowned thoughtfully and nodded slowly in agreement. “I have to agree with your analysis, though of course you are more familiar with this…Scourge, I believe you called them? Appropriate, if horrifying, but I digress. The lack of flying monsters in the whole of Silverpine means one of two things: that the Scourge possess none, which seems far too convenient to be true, or that, as you suggest, they have another target in mind. So, if we are not the primary target, and the small number of enemies you faced suggest that to be true, they must be focusing on the Lordaeronians that fled east with your vassal.”

“Precisely. Which means we are running out of time. I had hoped that Arthas would split his attentions between multiple targets, allowing us to thin his numbers by facing smaller forces piecemeal while unifying our own strength, but it seems my actions in defense of Calia have engendered his ire. That will make things more problematic for my sweet Joan and the people under her protection, but I think that she will prove more than equal to the problems.” I responded, before looking around at the others. My newer acquisitions were still blushing faintly at my regard, while Calia was simply beaming with pleasure at my return, and I grinned at them all for a moment before looking up at the wall. “So, if one of our lovely mages could enhance your voice, Lord Crowley, you might get the ball rolling with the garrison.”

He nodded again, and Modera stepped up to place a shimmering hand on his back. Really, it was so useful having such magically inclined and expertly trained women in my hoard, especially when magnifying someone’s voice was a literal parlor trick. The sort of thing they did to one another at parties and galas to ‘liven things up’.

“Guardsmen and Women of the Greymane Wall! I am Darius Crowley, Lord of the Northlands! Defender of the Northgate and Sentinel of Silverpine! I bid you open these gates, welcome within its protection the people of my lands and our bereft cousins of the North!” Crowley called to the faces peering down at us from so far above.

“Lord Crowley, would that I could obey, but the King has commanded that the Gates of the Greymane Wall open at the orders of no man nor woman beyond he himself! He has no desire for the people of Gilneas to be embroiled in the conflicts of The Alliance!” someone shouted back through a speaking trumpet, and Crowley scowled ferociously, quite unhappy despite fully expecting such a thing.

“My good man, this is no political struggle amongst our former allies or fights with remnants of the Horde! Lordaeron has fallen, the people you see with me are the sole survivors of her people in the whole of Silverpine! We cannot turn them away, neither for the sake of our own morality nor can we risk ignorance to the threat that destroyed their homes!” he shouted, adding a persuasive edge to his tone, gesturing around himself to our group, then pointing to the pillar of smoke in the distance as he continued. “I know you saw the dragoness who stands beside me now, and the two members of the Kirin Tor. I know you see in the distance the pall of smoke, born from an inferno now seething in the north of Silverpine! Again I say to you, throw open the gates!”

A gesture from Calia had Modera applying the same magic to her as had been applied to Crowley, and the uncrowned Queen of Lordaeron joined him in addressing those barring the way.

“Guardians of The Wall, I am Calia Menethil, the very last of my House! With me stands Jaina, Heiress to Kul Tiras and Apprentice to Archmage Antonidas himself, and the Archmage Modera of the Council of Six! This is no meagre threat before which we flee, to have such people in our company, lending their aid to us! Send word to my beloved Godsfather, by all means, but I must insist that you give entrance to my people! Let the blame, such as it may be, rest upon my shoulders, not yours!” she pleaded, and there was a commotion on the wall, sunlight glinting off of spyglasses as the Gilneans attempted to confirm her story. A bare moment later, there was much shouting above, and the gate before us began to creak open.

There was a great cry of relief from the people behind us, and Calia grinned as she was showered with congratulations, eyes sparkling with joy and pride as I squeezed her shoulder and radiated {Approval} through the bond. We moved forward to greet the well-decorated, armored woman, obviously the garrison’s commander, who bowed to Calia, saluted Crowley, and eyed me suspiciously as her subordinates began ushering people through the gate.

“My Lord Crowley, Your Royal Highness, Lady Archmage, Lady Proudmoore. I would say that I am happy to see you, but if what you say is true about the current circumstances, I have a distinct feeling that none of us are happy, nor will we be for quite some time.” She said briskly, gesturing invitingly for us to follow. “I ask that you explain everything to me promptly on our way to the capital. If there is a threat approaching our nation, and The Wall for which I am responsible, I must have every detail which you can offer. Especially if I am to fend off Lord Godfrey’s anger for admitting so many refugees onto his lands without so much as a word to or from him.”

I would have sworn if not for my self-control, having thoroughly forgotten (if I had even know in the first place) that the lands directly behind the Greymane Wall belonged to Godfrey. He had convinced the King to build through the lands of Lord Marley (his lackey, in all truth), cutting Crowley and his lands out of Gilneas proper, in order to enhance his own land’s value and strategic importance. Which mean we would have to deal with one of the most problematic, opportunistic, and untrustworthy men in the Eastern Kingdoms.

Delightful.

“Lord Godfrey will damn well get over it. The Scourge are a far greater threat than he can imagine, and certainly of more importance than either his ego or his pocketbook.” I growled, exhaling twin streams of smoke from my nostrils as I turned my pupils snakelike briefly. A display of aggression and exasperation that would remind them all that I was a dragon on a mission. “If we fail to crush them, the Lich King will be a threat to the whole of Azeroth for many years to come. If he does not eradicate all life upon this world before then!”

The woman stared at me, seemingly shocked by my vehemence about the magnitude of the threat, and I waved her off with an irritated huff that was mostly for show as I looked at Modera. I simply raised an eyebrow, my desire (not {Desire}, not yet) flowing through our connection, and she hummed in thought for a moment before responding aloud.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, if you are willing, I can teleport all of us to about a mile outside the city. The capital’s wards are, themselves, strong enough that I cannot pass them by without using an amount of force that would be…unseemlytowards an ally, but it will save us many hours of travel. Time is, after all, quite short.” She proposed in my stead, to the quick and approving assent of the group, and Crowley beckoned over his Armsmaster. He was quickly briefed and placed in charge of the refugees, alongside the garrison executive officer, and we moved away from the crowd, Modera gathering arcane energies around herself. In a flash of bright blue-white light, we moved from the Wall to Aderic’s Repose, the nearest place to the city proper that we could reach.

Fortunately, horses were readily available, and we were quickly mounted and on our way. I felt my excitement growing with every equestrian stride, eager to acquire yet another gem and begin truly making my mark on this world. Even if I wished to move on to ‘better’ worlds as soon as possible, a part of me still loved what Azeroth once was, and relished this opportunity.

################################################################

Tess Greymane, Princess of Gilneas

The gardens of the palace had always been one of my favorite places as a little girl, playing hide and seek with not just my brother, but my friends from the nobility of not just my own kingdom, but those of our neighbors. Even now, as a woman grown, I enjoyed the tranquil beauty that they represented.

Though, of late, that enjoyment had certainly grown bitter-sweet.

With Jaina now busy learning from Antonidas, Arthas campaigning in Northrend, Calia busy helping her father keep Lordaeron under control, and Lorna…

I sighed sadly.

Well, needless to say, my truest friends were far from me now, and the little girls and boys I had grown up with amongst my father’s nobles had long since become adults in their own right, too busy helping to manage their own lands and fortunes to spend idle time with their princess any longer. My father seemed intent on leaving the responsibilities of our people entirely to my brother, and while I felt Liam would in time be a great King, I craved more for myself than a life of embroidery and child-rearing.

But what was I to do? Shirk my duty to my House, to my people and nation, simply so I could experience a thrill, go on a wild and reckless adventure? Indulge in my own selfish wants over the needs of Gilneas? No, I would never do such a thing, it was not in my nature, nor would it ever become so.

My mouth twisted bitterly as I ascended the stone steps to the palace’s innermost curtain wall, letting the breeze sweeping in from the sea wash across my face, the white-on-black symbol of my homeland slowly twisting and furling atop the flagstaves embedded periodically along the stretch of grey rock. Soldier after diligent soldier, resplendent in the garb of the Royal Guard, saluted as I passed, gauntleted fists crashing against their chests, spear-butts thudding on the ground, and despite my moroseness I was able to muster the appropriate responses for them. It was hardly their fault that my life was as it was. They had done me no wrong and deserved no discourtesy on my part.

I was turning yet another corner, heading towards the main gate, when a cry went up from the guards ahead of me. A trumpet blast split the air, calling the castle’s inhabitants to awareness, and I ran towards the gate as quickly as I could, holding my long skirts and cursing my less-than-utilitarian footwear. I arrived in time for the gates to boom open, a group of mounted riders clattering inside at nearly a gallop. Only three of them were Gilnean, and I briefly recognized the commander in charge of the Greymane Wall before my eyes fell on many faces that were dear to me. Faces that belonged to beloved friends that I had been lamenting the absence of not minutes ago.

I made haste down the gatehouse’s interior stairs, emerging once more to the sight of hostlers and guards descending on the group to take charge of their mounts, even as the rest of my family, and several of my father’s advisors, appeared at the top of the palace stairs to inspect the commotion.

“Lorna! Calia, Jaina!” I cried out gleefully as the group dismounted, absently noticing the Council of Six member and the stranger that accompanied the Lord Crowley and my dear friends. I quickly pulled my Lorna into a tight embrace, laughing as she returned my affections with all the warmth I could have hoped for, but as I went to do the same with Calia and Jaina, I stopped. Both looked the worse for wear, and I frowned in concern at the look I saw in both their eyes. “My dear friends, what is wrong?”

“Tess…” Calia sighed, giving me a tired half-smile in response, but she neglected to respond before looking towards my approaching father. “Godsfather, I’m sorry for such an unannounced visit, especially given the…difficulties between your kingdom and my own, but I had no choice. I must ask for sanctuary and succor, else there will not be a House Menethil within the month.”

My father and mother actually stumbled slightly at that, and I could see the profound shock I felt reflected on their own faces at the blunt, baffling, frightening words from the other girl. For her to say such a thing…were Terenas and Arthas dead? Surely not, the army of Lordaeron was second only to that of Quel’thalas, and even then, they were far closer than most would imagine, given the disparity in magical power and longevity-born experience.

“Of course you have sanctuary here, Calia! How could you ever imagine otherwise?” my mother responded immediately, stepping forward and embracing the other princess before looking to her companions. “All of you, come inside. We’ll get you cleaned up, fed and rested.”

The group exchanged glances before turning their eyes to the woman I didn’t recognize, the tall and lithe armored woman with her dark hair and tanned skin, stretched taught over powerful muscle. She frowned slightly, glancing up at the sun before nodding in agreement. I tilted my head curiously, wondering who this woman was that had such a powerful (politically and magically) group of women looking to her for permission to so much as bathe and eat.

“Our time is short, but we have enough for that before Jaina, Modera, and I must depart for Caer Darrow.” She said aloud, thoughtfully, her voice a contralto purr that was rather intriguing, if I had to be honest with myself.

“And what is it that you must take them to do? For that matter, who exactly are you?” my father asked sternly, eyes narrowing slightly as he regarded this (I could see the thought in his mind) interloper that didn’t seem to be aware of her ‘place’.

“My King, My Queen, My Fellow Lords.” Lord Crowley began, quite formerly, as he gestured sweepingly to the woman, who stood tall and proud beneath our scrutiny. “Allow me to introduce the Lady Andraste of the Dragonflights, here to personally intervene on the behalf of Azeroth against a resurgent Plague of Undeath, which she has named The Scourge.”

“So named because of their reintroduction to our world: The Scourging of Lordaeron. As we speak, what is left of the Royal Army and the capital’s population are fleeing through the Eastweald with an army of undead on their heels. Lordaeron has fallen, and darkness encroaches on the whole of Azeroth.” The dragoness added, not seeming to care about the emotional havoc she was wreaking amongst us. “Begun, the Third War has.”

########################################################################

Yes, an update for this. I told you, did I not, just as I told you that the next story to be updated is Seraphim. After that, Nothing Is True.