On the battlefield before Crusader's Hold, the fierce melee had been raging for nearly ten minutes.
"Hah... hah..."
Panting, Uther raised his warhammer and blocked a sweeping slash from Frostmourne. Tremendous force, mingled with icy cold, surged up his arms. The cold vanished upon contact with the Holy Light, but the sheer force still drove Uther several steps back.
Arthas was about to follow up when Dathrohan's greatsword and Gavinrad's one-handed hammer struck from either side. The King of the Death Knights sneered, gripped Frostmourne in one hand, and thrust his free hand forward. A snow-white sphere of light burst before Dathrohan and Gavinrad, and an avalanche-like wave of cold instantly drove them both back.
"Howling Blast!"
Just then, Alexandros lunged at Arthas from behind, his greatsword raised high. Wings of Holy Light formed behind him. This strike was faster and stronger!
Arthas had no time to dodge and could only use the same move as Alex. A green magical shield spread out behind him, taking the full force of Alexandros's furious strike. Though Arthas was far stronger than Alex, Mograine was no Herod, either. The blow actually cleaved through the green shield, and the sword, wreathed in Holy Light, cut into Arthas's body for the first time.
"Argh... insect!"
In pain, Arthas raised Frostmourne toward the sky. Black energy surged wildly in every direction like ghostly claws. Alexandros's strike had landed, but before he could retreat, a claw seized his throat and hauled him into the air.
"Strangulate!"
"Let him go, monster!"
Seeing his friend seized, Uther disregarded his weakened body, summoned the Holy Light once more, and charged at Arthas. But the instant he drew near, Arthas lifted his face, revealing a savage grin as his scheme succeeded. Black and white light rippled across the raised Frostmourne. As the Runeblade swept down, it cut through the air itself, trailing tiny black rifts beyond its path.
"Obliterate!"
The blow, which gathered all of Arthas's remaining death runic power, was mightier than anyone had imagined. The Runeblade cleaved the warhammer Uther held before him in two. Fortunately, Uther stepped back in time and escaped injury from the blade.
But just as Uther breathed a sigh of relief, he saw Arthas open his left hand toward him. Dark red light surged in his palm, and six eerie runes formed a distinctive glow outside the ring of light.
The next moment, ghostly claws of dark red energy erupted from Arthas's palm, seized Uther's body, and dragged him over. Uther held holy water in his hand, but before he could drink it, his body hurtled involuntarily toward Arthas.
But Uther was a top-tier paladin for a reason. The moment he sensed danger, he channeled all his remaining holy power to the surface of his body. Rings of Holy Light formed barriers around him.
"Divine Shield!"
It was known as the paladin's invincibility skill! In the game, this move could certainly defend against the vast majority of damage. But if Dick had been there, he would have shouted for Uther to be careful, because against a mastermind-level boss like Arthas, even Divine Shield was not invincible!
Later, after Arthas merged with Ner'zhul and became the second Lich King, when players fought Arthas, none of those supposedly "invincible" skills-paladins' Divine Shield, mages' Ice Barrier, warriors' Shield Wall, or monks' Cocoon of Life-worked against his final move, "Fury of Frostmourne"!
Players had all sorts of explanations for this. One of the more plausible ones was that Frostmourne's power came from Nath'Zael, the homeworld of the Nathrezim demons,
where the power level was considerably higher than Azeroth's. Thus, under the suppression of that source of power, all those invincibility skills had to step aside. (A load of very serious nonsense, haha~ don't believe it.) But Uther did not know this. Only when Arthas's cold gauntlet seized his armor did Arthas's dreamlike murmur reach his ears.
"Against me and Frostmourne, your Holy Light cannot protect you!"
Shing!
The sharp Runeblade pressed against the divine shield. Black, red, and green light corroded the Holy Light. Before the disbelieving eyes of Uther and the watching knights, the sword slowly but inexorably pierced the divine shield around Uther. As the Holy Light collapsed, the black-and-blue sword tip burst out of his back.
"No!!!"
"Aaargh!"
Freed from his restraints, Alexandros's eyes reddened. Though he and Uther differed in their beliefs, that could not erase the friendship forged through decades of fighting side by side. He swung his sword wildly, attacking Arthas. Under that dense, frenzied assault, even Arthas had to turn to defend himself.
Impaled, Uther felt as though his soul, too, had been pierced by that icy blade. He fell helplessly toward the ground. Under Frostmourne's overwhelming suppression, Holy Light rapidly dissipated from his body. Dathrohan and Gavinrad abandoned the fight and immediately carried Uther back among the knights.
As Gavinrad trembled, using the Holy Light within him to hold back the rapidly spreading cold in Uther's body, a voice rang out.
"Don't touch him!"
Gavinrad's hands froze in midair. He looked back and saw Dick, holding a black sealed jar. Like a maddened tiger, Dick leaped from his warhorse and hurried over to Uther. He pulled the Grand Knight's head up. Seeing Uther on the verge of death, Dick gritted his teeth, raised his hand, and slapped him across the face.
"Have you gone mad? What are you doing?!"
Dathrohan immediately laid his sword against Dick's neck. Dick looked up at him.
"Shut up! I'm saving him!"
"Can you hear me? Grand Knight Uther, wake up! This is your last chance. If you give in now, Frostmourne will take your soul! You'll become an accomplice to darkness! Can you hear me? Wake up!"
Dick seized Uther's icy arm, then saw the Grand Knight struggle to open his eyes.
"You... Dick... I was wrong... I shouldn't have..."
"Shut up, Grand Knight. Listen to me now!"
Dick lowered his head and spoke quickly to the dying Uther.
"Frostmourne was made by Nathrezim demons, also known as Dreadlords. Its ability to absorb souls comes from the Lich King, but that ability isn't absolute. As long as we can find another dark artifact on the same level as Frostmourne and put your soul into it, you can escape the fate of death. But you'll also be transformed into a death knight!"
Dick let out a breath. Looking at Uther's widened eyes, he forced an ugly smile.
"Don't look at me like that, Grand Knight. With my method, you'll become this world's first death knight with free will. Though the Holy Light will abandon you, at least you'll still have your soul and can settle things with Arthas in the end. Don't forget! Lordaeron still needs you!"
"Are you willing to do one more thing for the land beneath your feet, even if it means protecting this shattered kingdom in a dead body? If you're willing, blink!"
Dathrohan and Gavinrad had heard Dick as well. They watched Uther intently. Though this went against the way of the Holy Light, as his comrades, neither wanted that Runeblade to drag Uther's soul into hell. But Uther pressed the tome in his hand into Dick's, then closed his eyes with difficulty. His meaning was clear.
He would not abandon the way of the Holy Light, even at the risk of having his soul devoured after death!
But that was not what Dick wanted to see. He murmured,
"I'm sorry, Grand Knight, but this isn't the time to let you have your tantrum! The Order of the Silver Hand needs your strength, and so does Lordaeron!"
"Someone! Get a mage! Freeze Grand Knight Uther's body!"
Dick shouted behind him. A knight immediately responded and stumbled away. Less than a minute later, a Blink brought someone to Dick's side. Without a word, the garrison mage of Crusader's Hold rolled up his sleeves and pressed his staff against Uther's body.
Before his soul faded, his bodily functions, along with his last trace of life, were completely frozen. But this was no cure-all. Unless the Dragon Aspect Malygos intervened, mortal frost could not seal a soul.
So Dick did not waste a second. Once Uther was frozen, he addressed the two Grand Knights watching him.
"Please, go relieve High Knight Alexandros and bring him back. I have another secret to tell him! It concerns the future of the Order of the Silver Hand!"
Dathrohan and Gavinrad exchanged a glance. The former looked suspiciously at Dick.
"Where did you learn so much?!"
"Do you remember the mysterious prophet who appeared at King Terenas's court a year ago?"
Dick spun his lie without even looking up.
"He told me!"
Dathrohan closed his eyes and said nothing. He simply drew his sword and charged toward the battlefield. Though he had not seen it himself, that mysterious prophet had reportedly predicted that darkness would destroy Lordaeron. Uther and Alexandros had both been there.
Whether Dick was telling the truth would be clear once Alexandros came over to see him.
A few minutes later, the old knight, covered in wounds, ran panting toward the frozen Uther. He reached out and touched the cold ice, then fixed Dick with a hawk-sharp stare.
"You said you've met that prophet?"
Dick met Alexandros's gaze without fear.
"Yes. That was actually Medivh's soul. But Grand Knight, this isn't the time to discuss that. Grand Knight Uther's last hope rests with you!"
"What do you mean?"
Alexandros asked. Dick pointed at the glove on his left hand, which Alexandros had never removed since their first meeting.
"Fourteen years ago, you followed Marshal Lothar on the expedition to Blackrock Mountain. You killed an orc warlock and obtained a Gemstone surging with dark energy. That Gemstone burned your palm, and it still hasn't healed. Am I right?"
Shing!
As Dick finished speaking, Alexandros's sword was once again at his neck. The old knight took a step back.
"Who exactly are you?! This... I never told anyone about this!"
"That doesn't matter! What matters is that Gemstone. It's our only hope of defeating Arthas!"
Dick extended his left hand and removed his glove, revealing the silver hand surging with order power. Yellow skin joined to a white steel fist made for a most bizarre sight. Alexandros could not help gaping at it. Dick put his glove back on.
"See? Everyone has secrets, but that doesn't matter. At the end of the Holy Light lies darkness, but at the end of darkness lies the Holy Light, too. That's the secret of that Gemstone. Take it to Ironforge and have the finest smith forge it into a sword. When you wield it, even Arthas will tremble before you!"
As Dick spoke, he pointed at Uther.
"While the sword is being forged, you also need to take the Grand Knight to Deadwind Pass, to Karazhan, the Wizard's Tower of Medivh, the Kirin Tor who opened the Dark Portal and caused the Orcish War. Find the crypt hidden there. It holds another dark Runeblade collected by Medivh. Only that sword can save Uther's soul-if you don't want to watch Frostmourne absorb your old friend's soul!"
"You're forcing Uther to abandon what he cherishes most! Are you still a believer in the Holy Light? You devil!"
Alexandros roared furiously, while Dick merely shrugged indifferently.
"Choose faith, or choose to keep his soul in existence. If the Holy Light can't save him, he'll have to rely on himself!"