"Why are you helping me?" Hearing my own voice as if I were standing beside myself, my vision was a blurry combination of my room and another darker one. I could faintly see the silhouette of Stefan as he stood in my chambers, his kind eyes focused on me and a warm glow surrounding him.

"Your father once told me you'd be the one to save us one day." Stefan replied, his next words faint and inaudible. Just before his image was completely replaced with a void, he continued softly. "I believe in you."

It was as if I had awoken from a dream only for it to be replaced with a nightmare. I sat upright on the bed, finding out I'd be placed on a dusty bed in the middle of a dark, moist and dirty room covered in dust. As I breathed out ashes flew up all around me, only a sliver of light falling through the curtains as a cold draft went through them.

"Shit!" I cursed immediately when I saw that the sun was already halfway up, quickly jumping from the bed and towards the window only to find out that it'd be barred. Glasping my hands around the cold iron bars I tried to heat it but the same sedative still prevented me from doing so. Instead of on those barricades my eyes focused on what I could see through the windows and it made me tremble in fear and anger instantly.

Eagle's fall was ablaze. I could see Arthas's army souring through the sky, bombarding the palace and the city itself with just remnants of the shield still protecting the buildings. Even from this far away I could hear the screams. I was too late.

"Obi." His name fell off my lips as I closed my eyes, using the force bond we'd created yesterday. I could feel his presence still there but it was faint.

"He won't have long." His voice sent a shiver up my spine. His footsteps drew near, slow and calculated. "Neither will his friend." Derik continued, intertwining his hands behind his back as his eyes bore into the back of my head. "Arthas hates them most of all."

"You're lucky this sedative is still in my system, traitor." I snarled, slowly turning around to face him. "Or else you'd be just mere ashes on the ground."

"Am I, a traitor?" Derik lifted one eyebrow, his black cape flowing behind him as the draft went through it. "I'm following the man that was betrayed by your father. Anduin Fireheart broke a vow the day he attacked Arthas. Doesn't that make you the traitor, and not me?"

I scoffed, waving his words away with my hand. "I'm not here for history lessons." My eyes scanned the room for anything I could use, a weapon or some heavy object. They had clearly cleaned the room before setting me here, which made me realize they must know what I am. They must know that I am tied to Arthas, which was most likely the explanation as to why they abducted me in the first place. My only advantage was that they didn't know that I did.

"No, you're not." Derik chuckled lightly. "Arthas Blackwing wanted to negotiate with you."

"While he's attacking my city?" My eyes narrowed almost instantly. "After he'd send his right-hand man to abduct me?!"

"You best listen to him, little niece." Derik stood up straight and looked down on me. His hand went for the doorknob, grasping it tightly. "You're lucky he's even giving you this opportunity. He's your only chance."

"You're lucky I can't kill you right now, uncle." Rolling my eyes, I pushed past him, resisting the urge to stab him with the two syringes I'd collected from the storage room. They still pressed on my skin, letting me know they were there. As I walked through the halls with Derik behind me and a few other guards in front of me, I soon learned we were back in the castle of Borovia, Arthas's former home before it was burned down by Anduin.

"He's in there waiting for you." Derik pushed past me and stood in front of the two doors of the dining hall. The roof had partly caved in, black covering the remaining stones that kept the building in place. It almost looked like an explosion from the inside had caused the fire in the first place. Before opening the two massive, iron doors Derik's eyes narrowed at me threatingly. "Behave."

"I always do." I had to resist the urge to drop my jaw as I took in the room before me. I was right, the fire started here. Shadows of bodies covered the walls that were covered with a layer of black ashes. Even their images seemed to scream out in terror, their voices somehow still caught in the room and echoing for eternity. The dining table, however, was still intact and surrounded by the decorated chairs of the Blackwing family. They weren't empty. Old bones were still seated, seeming as if they hadn't been moved since the moment of their death.

"Finally, you're here." Only then did I notice Arthas sitting at the other end of the table. He leaned back in his chair, his red eyes glowing fiercely with a single strand of his black hair hanging before them as they focused on me. The same chill went through me as I felt the dark, intense magic surrounding him. His presence only awakened fear and dread, like a darkness that fell over the mind.

He chuckled as he saw me freeze in place, motioning towards the scattered bones. "Take a seat, your majesty."

~

"Anakin!" As he dodged another blast that was sent his way, Obi-Wan jumped over a pillar that had collided with the ground and made his way towards his former apprentice. The first thing he could remember was waking up to a loud explosion, only to find the princess's office empty except for himself. He didn't have time to search for her in the midst of the chaos that had immediately followed with Arthas's army crashing down on them the moment the sun had risen.

"Have you seen Lyanna?!" Obi-Wan yelled over the sounds of battle as he deflected a few blasts with his lightsaber. Pulling Anakin down with him they hid behind another chunk of debris, breathing wildly as dirt flew all around them.

"I thought she was with you?" Anakin's brows drew together as he sat on his knee, his dark hair falling before his face. He looked behind himself at his troopers that had created a perimeter around the palace, hopelessly shooting down the countless enemies from the skies.

"She was gone when I woke up." Obi-Wan muttered, closing his eyes and letting himself lean against the cold stone for a moment. He sensed her presence, yet she seemed far away. Moreover, he could feel another presence with her, something darker and sinister. It wasn't good news.

Anakin's eyes lit up for a moment but he refrained himself from making a comment. "I'm sure she's fine, master." He smiled encouragingly. "She can take care of herself."

"That's what worries me, Anakin." Obi-Wan spoke as he looked up at the sky, seeing countless wings cloud the dark grey horizon as raindrops fell on his dirt-covered face. He remembered her trembling hands from last night, her hopeless eyes as they gazed at him each moment she could as if each could be her last. "I'm not afraid she can't, I'm afraid she won't."

Anakin bit on his lip as he glanced over the debris, seeing another platoon heading their way. "In any case, if she doesn't come back soon and burn all those men we'll be too dead to even worry about her."

"We need her if this plan is going to work." Obi-Wan cursed under his breath. "Even Eveline is nowhere to be seen and the king is too busy killing everyone that gets near his throne." Before standing up Obi-Wan took in a deep breath to ready himself, focusing on the force to aid him. "At least Arthas hasn't shown up yet, which is either really good news or immensely bad."

"Let's keep it at good news for now." Anakin slightly jumped, ready to get back into battle as he smirked at his former master. "C'mon master, we have a battle to fight. You wouldn't want Cody to think you're getting too old for this."

Obi-Wan continued to curse silently. "Anakin, if we ever get out of this, I'm going to make sure we aren't stationed together for the next few years."

As he stood in the middle of the line of fire but didn't seem to care, Anakin opened his arms and smiled widely. "But master, you'll miss me."

~

"I take it you've seen what's happening in Eagle's fall right now?" Arthas's eyes were trained on me. His eyes seemed to glow a brighter red than ever before and a slight snarl playing around his lips each moment. Yet, each move he made and each word he spoke was calm and calculated.

The image of yet another burning city wasn't something I'd soon forget, especially when all my loved ones were in it. "Why am I here, Arthas?" I questioned, not touching the food they had sat before me while Arthas was calmly eating his steak. I didn't have the energy to bend around the subject, nor the patience to listen to him longer than needed. The rage was already burning away inside of me as I could feel my powers slowly returning.

"You broke a promise." He said as he took a bite of his food. "You said you were going to kill the last Stormrage yet I find the spoiled brat still breathing and reigning over our beautiful kingdom."

"It's not our kingdom, Arthas." I bit in response, making him stall his movements and drop his fork on the plate with a loud crash. He sat back unimpressed, raising his eyebrows. "Aidan is my brother and Valeria is his and mine." Arthas shook his head no, but it didn't seem to stop me from continuing. "Did you really think I would hurt him, my own brother? Did you really think I'd make the same mistake you did?!"

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Arthas suddenly bellowed, clenching his fists as he slammed them down on the table. Startled, my whole body stilled as I watched him try to control his breathing. The candles on the table dimmed, almost going out completely as the darkness fell on us. "Look around you." He motioned towards the skeletons as he raised his voice. "Do you know who they are?"

The loudness of his voice had me chained to the seat, my hands grasping the armrests tightly till my knuckles went white. My eyes seemed to be stuck on his like a deer caught in the headlights, too afraid to even glance away. "They are my brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, grandparents, mother, father." He growled and slammed against the table once again before walking around it. "We sat here, celebrating our victory over the jedi and sith. Celebrating the pact that Anduin Fireheart and I had made, a pact that made us brothers, a pact that made us the two rightful rulers of Valeria, the pact that had finally come to pass."

I swallowed loudly as I heard the fury in his voice even as he walked behind my chair, grasping the sides. "He sat in this chair." He leaned down, whispering against my ear. I could feel his breath on my skin, fearing that each movement I made could set him off. "Celebrating with us with that kingly smile on his face as my sister eyed him as all females did those days. Oh, the glorious Anduin Fireheart, phoenix and warrior of the people with his beautiful red locks and crashing blue eyes. How everyone loved him."

I felt his cold fingers slowly gliding down the side of my cheek until they went through my hair delicately. "Little did they know he had come to kill them." His voice was ice cold as he grasped my arms tightly in his hands, lifting them up. "He did this, - " He raised them further till my palms faced the table and the skeletons. "and he burned them all to a crisp when desert was served."

Arthas dropped my arms suddenly and walked back to his chair, sighing deeply as he seated himself only to continue eating calmly. "And so, I inherited the power of a thousand generations. More power than anyone has ever had the privilege or burden to possess, only because I was the only one in my family immune to the fire." He started to cut the meat on his plate. "All that because Anduin Fireheart, our most loved ruler, was paranoid I was fucking his wife."

I watched as he collected himself, seeing just a sliver of sadness flash through his eyes as he ate. "So, Lyanna, -" He lifted his gaze towards me. "Are you just like your father or will you keep to your promise and kill your brother? Will you let me rule alongside you, just like I was promised all those years ago?"

A deal with the devil. Ruling alongside him, a warrior of vengeance, a representation of the darkness that resided within every one of us. There was no doubt I could somewhat control him, like two sides of the same coin we could rule. Yet, Aidan wouldn't be there and the jedi would no doubt be killed instantly. Valeria, however, would be saved. In the end though it would make me no different from the man sitting before me.

"I'm not my father." My voice trembled as I spoke. "His promises aren't mine to keep and his mistakes are his alone." I saw Arthas snarl slightly, feeling my refusal coming before I even spoke the words. "Arthas, I can help you. I know you loved my mother and I know you cared for me as a daughter, so at least give me a chance." He narrowed his eyes but nodded for me to continue with my proposal. "You surrender to us, cease your hostilities and call back your army from Eagle's Fall. We will grand you a royal pardon and let you live out the rest of your days in a land we'll grand to you, away from the kingdom and away from all those horrible memories. You live a good life and we leave all this in the past."

"A place for me to grow old and die in, how wonderful." Arthas chuckled. "I seem to have given you the wrong impression, my dear, you're in no position to negotiate."

I took in a deep breath to calm the nerves that started to form in my stomach. "Arthas, listen, -"

"I have given you a choice!" He yelled, interrupting me. "You either join me, now, and kill your brother and we'll rule together or, -" Arthas pointed at me, his voice dropping dangerously low as he growled. "I will kill every one you hold dear, your family, your jedi, all your patients and everyone you have ever known and lock you up in the deepest dungeon I can find to live out your days in complete solitude and darkness."

I knew my next few words would determine my fate. Arthas was on high alert, watching every move while Derik stood idly in the corner, eyeing me just the same. His hand was on his sword, ready to strike. I sighed deeply, looking down at my empty plate. They wouldn't kill me. Arthas knew as well as I did that that would leave him vulnerable and probably kill him too. No, they would lock me up. The only chance I had was escaping, to try and make sure that Obi-Wan was safe before sacrificing myself for Valeria. I had to know he was all right, it was the only thing left that I wanted to do.

My eyes darted to the knife they had laid down. "Well?" Arthas pressed on, leaning on his hands as he stared me down. "What is it going to be, Fireheart?"

"You leave me no choice, Arthas." My fear was replaced by determination as a plan formed in my head. "You never have."