Veronalara's Diary

Day 1

Things were terrible. Nathanos was dead. In fact, he had been dead for a long time, and this time he was truly gone. I saw him and his house turn to ashes, carried out by Regent Alleria herself. Enya and I hid in the distance—very far away, observing. SI:7 spies were everywhere; avoiding them wasn't easy. I desperately wanted to help Nathanos, because only he was suitable to lead us orphans, freed from the Lich King's control, but I knew I couldn't save him. His relationship with Alleria was common knowledge; the Regent didn't even intend to forgive him, so how could he care about us, his former subordinates? I was devastated, and Enya even berated Alleria for being heartless. In the blink of an eye, my only support was gone; I had to think of something else.

Day 4

Lordaeron's situation is far from friendly to us, and it's deteriorating. The Demon Lord Varinathas and Anatheron have seized control of Silverpine Forest; the Scarlet Crimson Crusade indiscriminately excludes all other races; Kel'Thuzad, leader of the Scourge, occupies Stratholme and commands the terrifying, eerie floating fortress of Naxxramas, having dispatched a large army to guard the Barov family's territory in the Western Plaguelands, arrogantly fighting on two fronts against both the Demon Lord and the Crimson Crusade. What secrets lie within Scholomance remains unknown, and no one knows.

None of these three forces are ones we can fight against, nor are they ones we can rely on.

The danger wasn't just from external enemies; serious problems had also arisen within our own ranks. When I told the others about Nathanos's ordeal, a dark cloud began to hang over everyone. Saloren, in particular, was devastated and filled with despair. I could understand his act of entrusting the sword Quel'delar to Nathanos. It was a sign of his trust in that man. But reality proved unexpectedly cruel. In the end, he went mad, and I had to end his suffering.

Day 9

We finally found a place to stay— Darrowshire. I had been here before; I remembered it as a beautiful town. Now it's deserted, completely abandoned after the devastation of the Scourge. Liana was the first to discover it; she's an expert at finding people and also very good at locating places. She had been observing the area for a long time and confirmed there was no threat.

Day 11

The situation was finally improving. We established ourselves in Darrowshire and began searching for other lost souls like ourselves. We found many, and even recruited an Abomination during our search. This large creature was simple-minded and obeyed my every command. We searched every corner of Darrowshire, looking for shelter from the wind and rain. I guessed there must have been fierce fighting here; abandoned weapons and armor were everywhere, enough to arm our men, but very few were willing to take up arms. One man asked me, "What's the point of us taking up arms?"

I couldn't answer that question; I remember how bewildered I was at the time.

Day 15

More and more people arrived; I counted, and it was already well over a hundred. This might be a good thing, but I was worried. I feared the commotion might escalate, even attracting the Crimson Crusade. To avoid this, I decided to have the refugees hide during the day and come out at night. The only difficult case was the Abomination; I had to hide him behind the church on the hillside and have him sit down. It was a last resort.

Day 20

My fears came true: several Crusaders came to patrol the area. They were fully armed, Warrior if they spotted me, a battle would be inevitable.

Fortunately, no battle broke out. Those people only glanced at us a few times before leaving. I guess they didn't like their mission, or perhaps we had already cleaned up the mess. In any case, this incident served as a wake-up call for us.

Day 30

Fewer and fewer people came; Liana and the two Ranger only brought back five people.

Day 33

Strange things started happening. More and more people reported hearing a girl crying at night. At first, I didn't pay much attention, but then I heard it too. Something unusual was lurking in the shadows. I intervened and quickly found the answer: the ghost of a little girl hiding in a badly damaged wooden house—a place so dilapidated it had gone unnoticed. The little girl was crying for her doll. It took me a lot of effort to piece together the broken pieces of her doll. Finally, she stopped crying. But she kept smiling, causing new trouble for others.

Day 37

Enya said they didn't want to come out, and I understand them. So far, we can't find a way out. What should we do? What are we doing? What's the point of everything we're doing? More and more questions are arising, and no one has asked me these questions yet. But I know... that day isn't far off.

Day 42

I finally couldn't hold back any longer. I summoned the other Dark Ranger and told them my doubts. I regretted doing so, because we parted on bad terms. Some said we should conquer new territories. Others suggested we find a safer place. Opinions were divided. I was in a bad mood, so I wandered around aimlessly. To my surprise, I found that Abomination still sitting on the ground, motionless, his eyes fixed on the hillside in front of him. I had forgotten about him! How long had he been sitting there? Sometimes I envied him, envied his vacant state, not having to rack his brains over anything else.

Day 45

Today is a dangerous day, but also the most important day.

He actually appeared in front of me!

The day was sunny, a rare occurrence in the Eastern Plaguelands rain was incessant, and good weather brought danger. Over two hundred dead survivors were hiding in Darrowshire, and the heat amplified the stench of decaying corpses, eventually attracting the Crusaders. Their leader, a Priest, roared that he would drag out the Undead hiding there. If he was trying to lure us out, he succeeded. On our side, only a few Ranger were capable of fighting. Those who could wield weapons, including the Abomination, huddled in a corner, trembling. They feared the Holy Light —who wouldn't? But fear couldn't stop the Holy Light's wrath. The enemy was a complete squad, over twenty strong. We ambushed and killed three with arrows, but that revealed our position. They raised a shield wall. Their musketeers opened fire, and we were quickly suppressed. But that wasn't all; the Priest fired a signal flare into the sky—we were all exposed, and more Crusaders would soon arrive to surround us. I thought we were all doomed today.

That's when he appeared; I didn't see him at first. An arrow told me of his presence. That arrow pierced a Crusaders's shield, went through the man's head, then a second arrow followed, killing a musketeer, and a third arrow took the Priest's life.

I was surprised. Who could it be?

He stood in the most conspicuous spot on the hillside, a position everyone could see. It was an excellent firing position; he could attack the living, but the living couldn't attack him. Alleria had praised his superb marksmanship, and I'm sure she was absolutely right. More and more people fell, some even unable to escape.

Finally, all the enemies were wiped out.

I watched him intently as he transformed into a wisp of black smoke and flew to the dry well in the center of Darrowshire.

Then, his eyes spotted me hiding in the shadows!

I will never forget his eyes; the crimson fire in them could rival the brilliance of the sun.

A few of us Dark Ranger came out; we hardly ever show up during the day.

He said something to us, and we instinctively obeyed him. Yes! For some reason, hope rose in my heart.

He ordered us to hide!

Day 46

In the dead of night, an even stronger Crusaders arrived, drawn by the Priest's signal flare. This time they outnumbered us, including cavalry. But by dawn, they were all corpses. We emerged again, along with other Undead, even the Abomination dragging its heavy steps. Everyone surrounded him, and he was wiping the blood from his sword with a white handkerchief. He merely glanced at us as we came out.

I asked him: Who are you?

His self-introduction was simple: he removed the black cloth from his face, revealing obvious burn scars. His face lacked the ability to heal itself and could only rely on clotted blood to stop the wounds, but this didn't affect Enya and my impression of him. My sister exclaimed that it was impossible, but he just smiled and said only one sentence, "From now on, I am your leader!"

I was stunned. Although we had invited him to lead us, his tone and attitude made it seem like he was trying to seize power from us, the few Dark Ranger. I didn't mind handing over command to him, but we couldn't represent the Will of the other Undead.

No one refuted his words, but no one agreed with them either.

Facing him, I don't know where I got the courage, I said to him: If you want to lead us, you have to let us take up arms.

He just glanced at me and didn't threaten me to shut up.

I have witnessed countless breathtaking scenes in my life, but I can say with certainty that today, in Darrowshire, I heard the most exciting sounds:

We are all wandering souls of the dead. Sword-wielding Warrior, followers of the Holy Light, honest commoners, or valiant heroes—that is but our past. We bravely defended our homeland until our lives were lost. Yet the evil we fought against was not easily banished, and those who once shared our hardships are no longer as worthy of our protection. Now, the shadow of death brings us no Tranquility. We have made enemies. The Lich King will not spare the souls that escape his grasp, and the living will not allow us a place in their world! What should we do? I believe you must be wondering: what distinguishes us from the Lich King, from Arthas? Place your hands on your chests and feel them! Your hearts have long since ceased beating, reminding us that our bodies are dead, but also telling us that our souls still burn! We are free, though the living cannot distinguish us from the Scourge; we are powerful, for the Lich King has created a terrible enemy for himself; and we are worthy of redemption. Death has altered our fate, but the future remains in our hands. Now, the road ahead is before us. Who among you is willing to follow me on this forgotten path?

As he finished speaking, his eyes turned to me, as if expecting something. I looked around and was surprised to find that I was the last one to kneel...

Day 47

When I first called out his name, he rebuked me. I didn't know he had given himself a new name— the Witherer! We also have a new name— the Forsaken! This name was chosen when he took an arrow from his quiver. I vaguely remember that there was a Sauras language on that arrow.

Day 49, Night

The Witherer explained their purpose to us: we must take revenge, revenge on the Scourge. We never dared to think of this before, but now we are full of confidence. Everyone is gathering usable supplies; we are preparing to leave this place.

Day 50

Our operation began, but not to attack the Scourge's stronghold. Instead, under the cover of night, we left Lordaeron along the Thondroril River. We were heading south, passing through the Burning Steppes, avoiding Stormwind City, and entering the Rainforest. The Witherer said that place was coastal. It was full of living people, but they weren't hostile to the dead, as long as you paid them enough!

We're going to... (The latter half of the diary has been torn out)