Cold As Ice

[Aiyan]

(( Something fun I did up prior to the release of Wrath. Was going to roll a DK and have this as her background, but decided against it. This was just fun to do :) Each line of lyrics denotes a time change))

You're as cold as ice. You're willing to sacrifice our love...

The slam of the door satisfied her more than the sound of any of the words she had spoken. The cool, bitter taste of the night danced teasingly on the tip of her tongue, washing over the rows of clenched teeth, drawing her away from the warmth of the fire on the other side of the wall. She could hear his ragged sobs, but to her ears, they were little more than an annoyance. She was not prepared to comfort someone who had hurt her. The road soon placed itself beneath her adamant footsteps, taking her away from her husband's farmstead and deeper into the clutches of midnight.

You never take advice. Some day, you'll pay the price, I know...

"With all due respect, Captain, I strongly believe that we should return to the ships. Your father, the Admiral-"

"My father," she spat coldly, "requested that we hold this landing until he returns; unless all chance for success is lost." Her sword scraped its way into the scabbard, the frost making the effort a little more difficult. "Are you telling me that we cannot achieve victory?" Her piercing blue eyes fixed menacingly on the Sergeant.

"We're rapidly running out of resources, ma'am, and these trees are frozen to the core. We won't be able to hold until the end of the week." The Sergeant's teeth chattered, emphasising the shakiness of his voice. "Besides, if we expect to keep the fires lit-"

She shook her head sharply. "I want all of the lumber devoted to repairs. Fires are not necessary; the heat of your men's blood should be enough to keep them warm."

The Sergeant cranked his neck to look around at the slightly blue faces of his soldiers. He was not sure if they were shivering from the biting cold or simply out of fear for what lives they had left.

I've seen it before. It happens all the time. You're closing the door; you leave the world behind...

The Admiral had been gone far longer than he said he would be, but still, the Captain waited.

She lifted a tankard of water from the table, and would have taken a drink from it had the liquid within not been frozen solid. The razor wind whipped at the whitened folds of the tent, threatening the arrangement of furniture she had established in her father's absence.

She opened her palm, a blue orb of light filtering into existence a few centimetres from her fingertips. She had always preferred the sword to magic, but she could not deny the innate affinity she had for spells. Eyeing the glow in admiration, she silently remarked that the element that had helped to keep her alive over the years was the very same that was claiming the lives of her soldiers. She had never minded the cold, even on her visits to the Alterac Mountains. She saw it as a test of her resolve.

The folds of canvas parted to admit a footman whose helm was gripped tightly under his arm. "Captain, our scouts have returned with reports of a mineral deposit on the crest of a hill to the west. It's surrounded by a forest with plenty of available resources."

The Captain swirled a fingertip ominously around the circumference of the ice in her mug, staring into the solid core within.

"It is less than half a day's march from here, ma'am. We can have the garrison mobilised by tomorrow morning." The footman's fingers drummed anxiously on the iron of his helmet.

She looked up from the tankard, a wry smile forming on her slightly blue lips. "West takes us closer to the enemy..."

"Indeed it does, ma'am."

She thought for a few moments longer. "Send Thoradin and his dwarves to capture the site and set up a mining operation."

The soldier frowned slightly. "Surely such a place would require as many-"

"Are you questioning the decision of a superior officer, footman?"

The man flinched, his eyes locked into position by her steel gaze. "... No, ma'am."

You're digging for gold. You're throwing away a fortune in feelings, but some day you'll pay...

The dwarves had failed to defend the mine, though she was scarcely surprised. They were most likely in too drunken of a stupor, she thought as she glared at the cone of smoke belching insultingly in the distant freezing air. She should never have trusted them with such an important task, though at least she would never over-estimate their competence again.

She looked onto the reflective surface of the inverted shield held tightly in her arm. Her gaze met that of an athletic woman in her early thirties with straightened, shoulder-length threads of ebon hair. Her features were not overly pointed, but they were most certainly sharp. The woman's eyes glinted like sapphires that had been touched by the frost of winter's coldest night. They were set beneath a set of claw-shaped eyebrows. The stern expression sculpted into her visage had been referred to as beautiful on many accounts, and even though it now held a blue tinge, she knew herself that it was capable of shining with charm.

"The dwarves have doomed the success of this mission, Sergeant..." She stared at the ice on the ground a few feet away from where she stood.

"Does this mean that we are leaving, ma'am?"

She nodded icily, looking to the moving waters of the dark ocean. "We have no alternative... Prepare the ships for a departure at dawn tomorrow. We shall return to Lordaeron without the Admiral."

Cold as ice -- you know that you are...

The bay had been frozen over for almost two weeks, and for all of that time, the men had been hacking at the ice to try and free the ships. It was a fruitless labour, but at least they were doing something.

She attempted to wipe the sweat from her brow, but stopped when she realised the droplets had become tiny crystals of ice. Looking to the setting sun, she prayed for an escape from the trap that the sea had sprung.

The Admiral had still not returned, and the population had been reduced to one-eight of its original number. If there was an attack, there would be no chance of survival. It was as she was pondering this that a deathly roar echoed around the stark cliffs of the cove.

The soldiers spun their heads around wildly, scanning the cliff tops and ravines leading further inland for the source of the noise.

She got slowly to her feet, dropping the pick-axe at her feet and placing a hand on the cool hilt of her sword. She struggled to keep her eyes open as she strode towards the gap in the cliffs to the left of the camp.

[Aiyan]

Another ice-shattering cry sent the soldiers scrambling for their armour and weapons, while their captain continued to walk silently across the snow towards the ravine. She reached the breaking in the cliffs, stopping to look ahead at the squads of footmen racing towards her. Then, she saw it, its massive form swaggering into view from around a bend. Several parts of its gargantuan coat had been stained red by the deaths of its previous victims; some of which were impaled on the terrible horn rising from the monster's furry snout.

Heavy paws wrenched screaming soldiers from their feet, flinging them against the cliff walls or lobbing them into its gaping maw. Its form filled most of the width of the ravine, though its lack of mobility did not reduce its deadliness. Snarling and spitting, it made its way along the path, hastily getting closer and closer to her, tearing life apart in its wake.
She raised her hands, forcing the magic from its resting place and into her fingertips. Azure light swelled into existence above her palms, glowing warningly.

"Come on, then," she hissed through gritting teeth.

The huge beast crunched the metal armour and flesh of its last snatched soldier, before directing its attention to the light emanating from the small woman. Attracted by the strange luminescence, it charged awkwardly, growling in a curious rage as its feet thudded on the cold ground.

The soldiers ran past their captain in an effort to escape, fleeing for whatever safety they thought existed at the camp. In a matter of moments, she was alone to face the monster, the magic coursing through her arms. She did not tremble.

Exclaiming with the effort, she flung her hands in the direction of the beast, two massive ice shards flying from her hands and plunging deep into the creature's head. It reeled, screaming furiously a few times before collapsing to the frozen ground, sending tremors through the earth for miles.

Cold as ice -- as cold as ice to me...

"The... The Admiral's out there, Captain... But he's not dead, he's" The man's gaze shifted to stare blankly at the roof of the tent, his head lolling to the side, a final breath leaving his body.

Her thoughts raced wildly. Her father was not dead, and was less than a day from returning. This scout had confirmed it. She rose from the chair, storming through the flaps of canvas and into the white light.

How she had come to detest this place...

It did not matter, though. As soon as the Admiral returned, they would all be going home.

Cold as ice...

She slid her sword out of the corpse as it fell to the ground, turning madly and swinging the head off another. She tried her best not to register the faces belonging to them, her fury sending her into a blinding flurry of attacks and parries.

"Stand FIRM!" she yelled sharply, her piercing azure eyes glancing at the few men still standing with her. The fear that they held of their captain transcended that which they had for the undead.

"Death to the living!" A whinny from a terrible steed revealed the proximity of the Admiral. His skin was grey, drained of all colour and the warmth of life. As he locked gazes with his daughter, she learnt that his eyes were still the same as hers. A wicked grin spread across his pallid face. He swung his jagged blade to point to her, directing a charge and unleashing the next wave of ghoulish minions.

"Slay them all!" she cried in response, slicing her way through the sickly flesh of humanoid forms that had already felt the pain of death. She made her way closer and closer to the man sitting on the armoured skeletal steed.

The rider chuckled at her efforts, gripping the reins tightly in frosted metal gauntlets. "Accept the inevitable, my daughter..."

"I am NOT your daughter!"

Another grin revealed that the Admiral had a newfound deviousness. "You may renounce me as your father..." He held up his insignia. "But you are still my Captain. Your next order is to surrender."

The horde of rotting creations withdrew, cowering behind the smiling Admiral, their disfigured jaws gnashing violently with insatiable hunger.

The Captain panted, looking to the terrified faces of her soldiers. It was not within her power to dismiss the Admiral's rank, and so he was still a superior officer to her. "Do you honestly believe that you are still of higher standing than myself, despite your betrayal?"

This gave the rider pause; enough time for the soldiers to more closely examine the vicious sword held in his hand. "You are going to die, daughter... Why waste your energy delaying fate?" A fatherly expression made the face seem more human. "Serve your new King with the same vigour and zeal, and you shall be rewarded beyond measure."

"Reduce them to bone piles!" The command came from her, but even she was not sure whom she was addressing.

She closed her eyes, lowering her sword as the horde of monsters charged to meet the rush of her soldiers. She did her best to ignore the screams.