[Episode 211005] [Episode 211005]Akane sat in one corner of her cell, shivering. She never felt this cold or helpless before in her life. The undead monstrosities that were under Arthas' command had dragged her away before she could even talk to him, throwing her on the back of one of these insect monsters, which carried her bound body away. The foul stench of the walking corpses all around her had made her gag, and in the end, it was so worse that she fell unconscious.
When she awoke, she was within an empty, bleak cell with walls made of black stone, and icicles that were hanging from the metal bars of her cell. Outside, she could hear the hissing and growling of the monsters, but no one had come to talk to her.
In the end, she was glad for that. Nothing in her life, not even the Orochi, had scared her like this. And for once, her stubbornness and determination to prove herself as a strong martial artist didn't show themselves.
A few rags had been thrown into her cell, and she was wrapping them around her cold body as good as she could, although it didn't help much against the stinging cold. The food that had been placed into her cell in a wooden bowl, however, she didn't touch. It was a disgusting, green glop of something she could not quite identify. It smelt horrible, even worse than her own cooking.
She didn't know for how long they were letting her wait in here, and the longer she waited, the more hungry she got. Still, her disgust was stronger than that, so she decided to let her stomach rumble for now.
There also wasn't any window around, and no clock, so she couldn't tell how much time had passed, or if it was already night or not. She was a bit tired, but it was so cold that she couldn't fall asleep.
Finally, after what seemed like hours to her, she heard heavy footsteps that were approaching her cell.
She was startled when she recognized Arthas' face. He didn't wear his spooky helmet anymore, but his appearance was still frightening. Akane shuddered. How could the handsome, noble young man she had met during her childhood have turned into THIS?
"It... has been a long time, Akane," Arthas said calmly. "But I recognized you the first moment I saw you."
Akane didn't know what to say. She didn't know what he would do to her, but she was afraid, so she scooted backwards until she hit the back wall of her prison.
Arthas smirked. "You must be horrified by what I have become, isn't that so? The noble prince of Lordaeron, the aspiring paladin, having turned into a Death Knight... even more, into the Lich King, the most powerful being alive on Azeroth..."
"A-alive...?" Akane stammered. "Y-you and I are the only living people around here, aren't we? What are those monsters, Arthas? What... what have you done to them?"
"They are my servants," Arthas explained while he slowly walked up and down in front of the cell. "It is much easier to control the dead than the living, didn't you know? I agree that they don't exactly smell like violets... but who cares about such useless plants, anyway?"
He reached into his belt pouch and pulled something out. It was a bright, pink flower petal. Akane didn't think something beautiful as this would exist in this dark place, and she was surprised that it still looked like it was freshly picked.
"Fragile, little things..." Arthas murmured while rubbing the petal between his gloved fingers. "So colorful... and yet so useless. In the end, death will be the end of all living beings."
A dark aura suddenly surrounded his hand, and Akane could watch how the darkness seeped into the pink petal. Within seconds, it turned brown, dried up and fell apart in a small cloud of dust. Arthas clenched his fist.
"Humans are like those little plants, Akane... they all will die in the end. I just help them to reach this goal more quickly."
"No one wants to die," Akane said in a trembling voice.
"Only because they don't realize that they don't have any other choice," Arthas smiled. "I'm actually doing them a favor, you know? Thanks to me, their bodies will still be useful after their death... useful to me! They will help me reach my rightful goal: To become king!"
"But weren't you the prince of Lordaeron, Arthas?" Akane shouted. THis time, she actually stood up from the ground. "What happened to you? You already had everything! You were a paladin, and a PRINCE! You would have become king of your people... so why did you turn into... into this?"
"Many things happened since you last came for a visit, Akane..." Arthas said. "The Scourge filled my heart with bitterness... with lust for revenge!" A wicked grimace appeared on Arthas' face. "Instead of listening to 'reason' and following the 'light', I gave in to my feelings, I let myself be engulfed by the hatred... and I became more and more powerful! I killed all that stood in my way: My father, that fool Uther, the stubborn High Elves... even Illidan wasn't able to stop me... and now... I AM THE KING!"
Akane realized that this wasn't the boy she knew anymore. "You're not a king," she muttered. She was disgusted. "You are a monster, worse than those creatures you are controlling. I can't believe I EVER called you my friend!"
She glared at him, then she turned around to face the wall. "I don't want to have anything to do with you ever again!"
Arthas walked closer to the iron bars. "Oh... I don't think you have a choice there, Akane," he smiled. "You are already in my grasp... it's just a matter of what I'm going to do with you. You know, I'm not doing this with everyone... were you just a common woman that had gotten herself lost in the snow, I would have simply ordered my troops to kill you and turn you into an undead soldier. But I am generous... because of our special past, I am giving you an offer."
"Whatever you are offering me, I don't want it!" Akane spat.
"Are you sure?" Arthas smiled. "Just wait until you hear my proposal... I am offering you to become one of my personal elite warriors, a Death Knight of the highest rank! You will stay alive, and you will have powers that are rivalled by only me and my most entrusted advisors. I know you have been training to be a strong warrior yourself... but that is nothing if compared with the power I'm offering you! Imagine... you can raise the dead with a single gesture of your finger, and on your command, they will do whatever you tell them. Your enemies will fall under your blade, and nothing will ever stand in your way... and everything you to will be in my service! Together, we can conquer this world, Akane!"
For a moment, Akane tried to imagine herself in a dark armor that looked similar to the one Arthas was wearing, with a spooky, pale face and a glowing sword in her hand. She shook her head. "No! I will never become like you!"
"I advise you to think it through, Akane!" Arthas said. "Since otherwise... I will be forced to turn you into a mindless ghoul! Or maybe I can use your body parts as raw material for creating an Abomination... either way, you will serve my army! And I would definitely prefer welcoming a new powerful general in my ranks than just another common foot soldier... cannon fodder..."
He turned around. "I will give you time to think it through... until tomorrow. Remember, Akane, you are at my mercy... you won't be able to escape this place."
And then, the Lich King left Akane alone in the darkness. The short-haired girl collapsed on the floor again, fighting against her tears.
"Ranma... where are you?" she sobbed.
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(Posted Sun, 28 Sep 2008 18:20)
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