An enormous crystal stood atop a towering spire of rock.
Not a single snowflake clung to the crystal. It gave off a faint, dizzying blue glow that drew the gaze of anyone who looked at it, luring their mind into its depths until it was finally devoured.
The crystal, which seemed to have stood there for ten thousand years, began to tremble slowly. A figure wrapped entirely in a black cloak gradually appeared before it. He gazed at the crystal with fanaticism in his eyes, a gaze so burning that, had it been any more intense, it might have melted the crystal.
After a long while, the black-robed figure finally began to move toward the top of the enormous crystal. No, climbing would have been a better description. After some time, he finally drew close and reached out a hand. Beneath his robe, his skin was visibly pale and so shriveled that little more than a layer remained. Even without seeing the rest of his concealed body, that alone revealed him to be a monster wrapped in skin. From this distance, the crystal looked like a rough, uneven throne. The sinister throne above gleamed faintly, radiating an oppressive force that compelled him to bow his head and bend his back. His black hood fell away, revealing long, silvery-white hair, a pair of fanatical eyes, and long, pointed ears. They marked him as someone who had been a High Elf in life, though now he was undead.
Dar'Khan, the commander of Lordaeron City, had hidden in an underground passage before the city fell, then seized an opportunity to escape.
As a Heroic Powerhouse, Dar'Khan had escaped smoothly. No other Hero Rank powerhouse had engaged him, and he had broken through without difficulty. But that was true only of Dar'Khan himself. The