Little irked so easily as a creature drenched in some other’s darkness --- at least the Light-soaked idiots were consistent in their folly, determined to wallow in their self-righteousness ‘til the time came for him to drown them in it. But this. This was just… atrocious.
“What next? Shall they summon up some festering prisoner to stand with us? Did Yogg-Saron ignore their call, and you were the best replacement on hand?”
The Void bubbled thick around her, leaving a greasy taste in the back of his throat, the pit of his stomach. Vile. Disgusting. An utter, complete waste of ambition and intent ---
“Never mind --- a few days, and I suppose the differences will be hardly notable.”
Hello, I’m The Doctor from Doctor Who. I’m looking for just about anyone, I have multiple timelines and miss a lot of people, though I’m primarily searching for Martha Jones, Jack Harkness, Donna Noble, and Sarah Jane Smith. Anyone who knows the Doctor (from any era!) is free to contact me and I’d love to chat. My kin blog is @thasdorah or like/reblog this post and I’ll get in touch.
how does zo feels about other organizations, such as the blood knights, the twilight hammer, the cenarion circle, the uncrowded, the illidari, any/all that are relevant to her. which ones does she see more positively, if any? which ones does he like the least or sees as more of a threat? and also, does this change when he becomes deathlord?
It’s a complicated assortment of “ hate you, hate you, don’t know you ” !
Broadly, Zoen considers every organization a potential threat to the Ebon Blade. While he generally does care about cooperating with them on behalf of Azeroth --- being one of the idiots who lives on Her --- he doesn’t tend to … trust them an inch beyond that? Considering their initial reception from the Capital cities ( rotten fruit & jeers ) , Koltira’s abduction and the stone silence from all other sectors regarding it , and the depth of atrocity that the Ebon Blade sunk to during Legion … Zoen has little faith in anyone ever having the Ebon’s back.
Let the Highlord worry about protecting Azeroth --- the Deathlord will protect the Ebon Blade.
For the most part, her precise feelings for each of these organizations did not change overly as a result of her ascension. She’s very honest in her dealings with others, and while her reasons for liking or disliking particular groups might have deepened, little has happened to entirely alter them. Undeath has not left Zoen particularly open to change.
The Four Corners of the House of Troubles
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Zo gets along with the other sketchy bastards best of all. The Illidari, the Council of the Black Harvest, and the Uncrowned rank highest in terms of who she interfaces most easily with. These are the nasty lads.
He gets along best with the demon hunters! Due in no small part to her excellent rapport with Eri’thaes Grimfall, but also because they’re hot and mean and she’s got simple tastes of compatible temperaments. The Ebon Blade understand intimately what it means to make the most of monstrosity on behalf of those who are not monsters. Whether the monstrousness was by choice or by tragedy matters less than what they are now.
For similar reasons, he has a lot of fondness for the Council of the Black Harvest. In addition, Zo was raised by a warlock! She remembers vaguely a lot of old theories and rituals, and can still speak Eredun quite fluently. They’re a very nostalgic crowd for him to hang around --- PLUS, they appeal to his own tendency to moonlight as a mad scientist. If anyone can understand the thought process that led her to turning herself into a weird little Wraith monster, it’s the folks who dabble with Metamorphosis.
Though the Uncrowned undoubtedly rank higher than the vast majority of the other class orders in Zoen’s books, she’s not quite as fond of them as she is the two flavors of demon up above. Quite a bit of this is sheer arrogance. What do a bunch of warm-blooded fleshy mortals know of the dark? Posers. Lilian Voss can’t make up for all the living in those ranks. Crawling around in the sewers does not a shadow make.
Another cause is that Mathias fucking Shaw is in that number, and Zoen. fucking. hhhhhates that guy. so much.
But they count Tess Greymane among their number, so. Can’t be all bad, can they?
The Righteous and the Meek
Surprising no one, Zoen still hates the paladins. That’s a grudge that will outlast the stars. You can only ruin a kid’s life so many times before their ghost holds it against all of you for eternity. Prior to his ascension to lordship, Zoen despised them as a bunch of self-righteous fanatics. Nowadays, they’re a bunch of self-righteous fanatics who may hold a completely legitimate and Acherus-destroying grudge. Zo’s not stupid. He knows he’s committed sins as grave against them as they’ve committed against himself. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t still hate them, though.
While the flavor of enmity depends upon the particular order ( with Silver Hand ranking barely above Scarlet Crusade ) there is never anything less than the utmost derision in her demeanor towards them.
The Blood Knights specifically are an interesting case, though. She’ll die her final death before admitting it, but for the longest time Zoen found them unspeakably spooky. They were warlocks using a Naaru! That’s hardcore! He’d almost admire it if they hadn’t stopped, but also it’s just a reminder that the Light is a tool --- an extremely powerful, extremely flexible tool that her kind cannot stand. Paladins are the greatest threat to the Ebon Blade, and the Blood Knights remind him of that particularly well.
His relationship with the priests’ Conclave is a little more complicated. He respects their willingness to stare straight into the Void and even utilize it to their ends. That shows a depth of character he doesn’t tend to expect of wielders of the Light. On the other hand, they also wield the Light. She’s never not going to find that unspeakably lame and discomforting.
There’s also a shred of tanks vs. healers drama going on here --- Zo’s enough of a jock to think folks who stand in the back of the fight flinging spells are lamer than those in the thick of it getting bloody. She kinda wants to shove them in a locker.
Other Class Halls
No one Zoen has a strong enough opinion to loathe or like, and thus are treated with a general attitude of disdain and sneering. The Unseen Path and Valarjar don’t really pop up on her radar very much. She knows they exist, probably has to interact with the Battlelord and Huntsmaster not uncommonly, and that’s about it. Unnoteworthy.
Even when her mother was at the head of the Kirin Tor, I can’t imagine Zoen ever developing much of an opinion on mages. The vanilla cousins of warlocks. She’s got a tendency of trying ( to various degrees of success ) to access their restricted archives on behalf of whatever new nightmare science project she’s currently fiddling with, but otherwise --- eh? Again, jock mindset.
He'd care about the Order of the Broken Temple a lot more if they'd invent an alcohol that can get the undead properly drunk. Until then, eh?
The Earthen Ring and Cenarion Circle are two groups Zoen very rarely deals with … mostly on their behalf, strangely. This is almost exclusively a personal inclination which has continued onward into his lordship. Zo knows he’s an abomination against the natural order, and while that generally doesn’t concern him … much … he does retain a certain fondness for certain things. Flowers, for instance. He’s never quite been able to shake that soft spot in his rotten heart for bright, fragile blooms.
Zo can’t touch a living flower any longer without immediately killing it. Little lasts long in his grasp. But he retains that affection, and keeps his distance. He tries to leave a space between himself and the things he loves so they may thrive.
He doesn’t talk much to the Farseer or Archdruid.
The Old Gods’ Factions
Twilight’s Hammer are a joke. Zoen cannot take them seriously. She’s unable to hear the Old Gods’ call due to the Lich King --- she doesn’t get the whisper translations when we fight Old God servants, all she hears is squid noises. They are the lamer cousins to the Cult of the Damned, and the Cult of the Damned is as lame as it gets! Who even are these guys? Ridiculous. Your aesthetics are weak and your gods are dull.
( Now, note --- Zo hasn’t had a lot of serious exposure to the Hammer, even during the Cataclysm. She participated in the Fall of Deathwing, but she was by no means one of the big name heroes in that expansion. Drop him in front of Cho’Gall and see how long that arrogance lasts. )
This opinion is specifically for the Twilight’s Hammer; Zo can get along disconcertingly well with other factions of Old God forces. During Mists of Pandaria, for instance, she spent a great deal of time in the Dread Wastes aiding the Mantid. She really enjoyed her experiences with them! It was very easy to lull into a feeling that they were similar to the Ebon Blade, a ruthless band fighting against their wretched monarch.
Then came the “ your gods are not our gods ” reveal. She was deeply distressed to have to fight them all in Orgrimmar later on, however. It’s not something she’s ever entirely come to terms with. She got along so well with them … and then this was where their hearts led them? Against Azeroth, on the field with that monstrosity of a Warchief? She’d become so fond of them. They wormed their way into her heart.
"Does Neleena ever gets on your nerves or are only my sisters like that?" She knows who approaches by the sound of her feet, barely perceptible, but to Alleria noticed and familiar. Her eyes remain on the practice target though - already filled with more arrows than it likely should. She's been here a while, and not interested in being careful even with her weapons. "I swear if Sylvanas didn't shut up I'd kill her."
;𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃 — @thasdorah
A look was shot between the mangled target and Alleria's tensed posture before a vague smile passed Willa's lips, ❝ I imagine if I had a sister like Sylvanas, I'd feel the same... but I don't. ❞ The half-rhetorical question felt easy to answer — no, of course she didn't. For the sake of relating, however, Willa thought on it for longer than a knee-jerk reaction.
❝ Neleena never causes any trouble if she can help it. She practically breaks into hives at just the thought of disappointing a superior. Hard to be annoyed at someone who actively avoids conflict. ❞ Was it disappointing, though? Willa had a hard time deciding on that. Did she want self-absorbed, hot headed and impulsive sisters? Definitely not. Willa would never envy Alleria that. Yet there were times Willa did find herself wishing Neleena was a little more outspoken ... or maybe just more confident in general. No one could speak their minds without the confidence to do so.
❝ If nothing else, at least my parents got one well-mannered and obedient child. I guess yours did too ... after a few tries. ❞ It made sense to instinctively compare Neleena to Sylvanas or Vereesa with them both being sisters and similar in age, but the truth of the matter was Willa's relationship with her own sister was far more comparable to Alleria's with Lirath. A true golden child that could do no wrong in their eyes.
With a shrug of her shoulders, she stood at the blonde's side with arms casually crossed while she gave the training dummy another good look, ❝ Did you want to tack your sister's portrait up there or is just envisioning her face good enough for you? ❞
“ i’m with you. always. no matter what happens, i will be right by your side. do you understand? ”
;𝐀𝐍𝐒𝐖𝐄𝐑𝐄𝐃 — @thasdorah
As difficult as it was to admit, the words felt foreign in more ways than one. It wasn't as though Willa had never experienced loyalty, but it was a sentiment all its own when it came from a subordinate. Alleria was many things, but she wasn't that. Their history was a jumbled mix of contradictions; a tangled and knotted red string until they both took a knife to it.
Young, impulsive, abrasive. They had never been oil and water, they had been oil and oil that kept igniting and burning out. There had never been any promises, just a shaky idea of loyalty. ... They were not those young woman any more, right? Time had hammered away at their youth, obligation had shackled their impulses — abrasive ... well they weren't claiming to be different people.
❛ Promise me. Swear to it. Put blood to your words. ❜ Those demands circled ravenously through her mind, but Willa's lips remained sealed. Those were not the words she was afraid of escaping. ❛ I will make choices you will not understand anymore. I will not honor your loyalties, I will not share your allegiances. Do you understand? ❜ Would that end up mattering? Would that be enough to erase the claims she made in the moment? They were both still clutching broken pieces of all they had left, eventually they would realize their hands were bleeding.
Willa allowed herself a moment to truly look at Alleria, impassive in expression but penetrating in gaze. All the surface shallow things were still the same. Her hair was still spun of gold, her eyes were still evergreens. Yet she was not still the woman Willa had failed to love enough. That thought was anything but disheartening. What could her heart allow her to become that Willa would not find admirable; would not find worthy. In her eyes was not a second chance, but a new unexplored path.
❝ I don't really think it's anyone else's business. ❞ It would probably be a healers business... but it was just a rash! At least from as far as he could tell which was not easily because it was directly on his back and he lacked the ability of an owl to twist his head freakishly around to look himself.
It was probably nothing! Maybe he'd brushed up against some poisonous plant without realizing at some point and it would clear up on it's own. That was definitely it. It absolutely had nothing to do with the newly imported delicious fruit that he had started eating every single day. It definitely wasn't that. Who had allergies to fruits.
Halduron gave it one last attempt to get a better look at the red splotchy skin that was slowly spreading across his lower back, to no avail, ❝ ... Is it bad? ❞
