To Kill a Ghost

Some people drift through life aimlessly, only existing to be used by others.

Asta's knees hit the ground hard as she was pushed forward, her hands bound tightly behind her back. She felt a boot kick her from behind, sending her face first into the wet dewy grass beneath her. She grunted, tilting her head back as she tried to get a view of what was in front of her.

"Letting yourself get captured, Lady Asta. Tsk. Tsk." A young girl's voice said in front of the prone knight.

Asta felt a hand grasp a handful of her blonde hair, which was now a tangled wavy mess strewn about her head and face. It pulled her violently back to her knees, and a high pitched growl escaped her lips. She was now able to see her captor clearly.

It was a young undead girl, clad in green robes of royal fashion, her pale, deathly skin was smooth and clean. She was almost human looking, if it weren't for her eyes which glowed with pale blue light. It was her grin which was the most inhuman, which stretched across her face as she gazed down at the battered and defeated knight of Lordaeron, Lady Asta.

"You really should've killed yourself while you had the chance." The undead girl continued, clasping her hands behind her back as she paced back in forth in an exaggerated fashion. "Now it's too late. You let yourself be defeated. Humiliated. Now you're at our mercy. How does that make you feel, Lady Asta? To be at the complete mercy of your enemy, whose cruelty you are quite familiar with?"

Asta gulped, tears forming in her eyes, but she forced herself to keep her teeth clenched, staring fiercely into the undead's eyes.

"You tricked me!" Asta said, "You're a coward!"

"Now now, Lady Asta. All's fair in love and war. Isn't that right?" the undead reached into her robe, pulling a gleaming dagger from it's sheathe. Asta glared at it. It looked sharp, and deadly. She didn't want to imagine what the girl was planning to do with it. "What do you want?" She asked.

"Want? Ha... Hahahaha! Want? From you? What could you possibly have that I would want? No... This isn't about 'want'. This is about punishment. Punishment for defying your king."

"King?" Asta spit at the girl's feet, "The king of Lordaeron is dead. Your master killed him."

The undead girl snarled, stepping forward and punching Asta hard across the face. She stepped back, shaking her hand and rubbing her knuckles. Asta laughed, and she felt blood trickle down her chin.

"Arthas will never be king of Lordaeron. I'd rather see the kingdom burn than that happen." Asta said.

"It will burn! And from the ashes, it will be reborn, under the rule of our great and noble King Arthas!" The undead woman exclaimed, extending out her arms and looking up at the sky with frenzied eyes.

"You're insane."

"Am I? I hold onto hope, and faith, believing in the benevolence of my master, and believing that all that I lost will be returned to me. How is that insane?"

"You can't bring back what is lost, not except in some twisted, hellish form, kind of like yourself."

"Ha. I can't expect a human to understand. The minds of mortals are so short-sighted. You cling to the light out of fear, completely oblivious to the otherworldly powers at work in this place." She let out an exasperated sigh, "Anyway, I grow tired of you. The reason I haven't killed you yet is because I have an offer. It wasn't my idea, but it seems some among our ranks still care for you. Consider yourself lucky."

"An offer?"

"Forgive me, Lady Asta." A voice came from behind her. Into her view stepped a large, imposing knight, clad from head to toe in crimson armor, wielding a greatsword of enormous proportions.

"Wulfgang..." Asta lowered her head, her eyes widening in shock. She clenched he teeth, and tears dripped down her face. She looked up again, now smiling. "So it was all a lie, then? Everything? You, the others, the Ghosts of Lordaeron? Was any of it true?"

"I'm afraid not. It was all planned by Kel'thuzad from the beginning. We merely wanted to weaken both the Forsaken and any remaining forces still loyal to the old kingdom. It didn't turn out exactly how we wanted, but we gained anyway."

Asta became despondent, staring at the ground with glazed over blue eyes.

"Why me?" she asked.

"Mostly because our prior friendship in the army, but other than that, you just turned up at the right time."

Asta started to laugh.

"What a joke. My whole life has been some kind of cruel joke. This world is f*****g hell."

"I am sorry, Asta. I wouldn't have done it if it wasn't necessary. It doesn't have to end like this, though." Asta looked up at him and listened, "Pledge your loyalty to Arthas. Join us, become a death knight, and together we can truly rebuild Lordaeron like you've always dreamed."

"So you're just as delusional as she is. There's no way I'd ever join your ranks. You're evil through and through, and I'd rather be tortured to death than help to realize your sick nightmare."

Cayene made her way behind Asta, kneeling down. Asta felt the cold steel dagger press against her neck, it's sharp edge biting in to her skin and drawing blood.

"You'll help us one way or another. Either you do it willingly, and retain your free will, or we'll enslave your soul and you'll become a mindless ghoul." Cayene said.

"If the light is merciful, it will tear my soul apart before it's of any use to you."

"Hmm, how disappointing. We could've been a big happy undead family. Shall I kill her now, Wulfgang?"

Asta looked up fearlessly into the glowing blue eyes of Wulfgang, who gazed back down at her from the visor of his plate helm. He looked at her for a long moment, before finally closing his eyes and nodding slightly.

"Great!" Cayene said, and Asta felt the dagger stab into the side of her neck. She let out a pained cry, which was stifled quickly as blood began to gurgle up in her throat. The dagger sawed through her neck, cutting through her arteries and her esophagus. Her eyes opened wide, her mouth open and gushing blood. Blood spurted from her neck wound, the undead girl cackling maniacally as the crimson liquid spattered over her face. She followed Asta's tilting body to the ground as she continued to saw her neck all the way to the bone.

Asta would've grasped at her throat if she could, but her hands were bound helplessly behind her back. She merely gasped in futility as blood pooled around her body, her eyes glazing over as the light left them. She still couldn't quite believe that this was happening, but reality did not give her time to come to terms with it. Darkness came over her, and soon there was nothing.

Cayene licked the blade of her knife, looking down at Asta's lifeless body.

"So beautiful. So tragic. Oh how the human condition endears me so. Hahaha! You must agree, Wulfgang. She was your friend, wasn't she?"

Wulfgang said nothing, instead staring down at Asta as well.

"Hmph, very well. Use your runeblade and bring back your pet. She'll need some stitching though before she'll make a useful tool."

"Silence, girl! Let us leave this place. I do not wish to look at this scene any longer."

"Watch your tone with me, knave! You are just a knight, and in MY service, so don't forget that! Got it?"

Wulfgang turned away from her and began marching off into the trees. "...You are a child. Let's go!"

"So be it! Let the carrion have her, if you wish! Don't think I will forget this, though! Our superiors will hear about it!" Cayene shouted as Wulfgang continued on. "Hey, where are you going!? Wait for me!" She ran after the armor clad knight.

Asta's body remained on the forest floor, her face frozen in her last moments of despair, tears drying on her face. A few drops of rain fell, and a shower came down, water mixing with blood and soaking into the earth.

Author's Note

And ending that I came up with for one of my WoW characters. She was the leader of a group called "Ghosts of Lordaeron," and sought to reclaim the kingdom of Lordaeron and make it a kingdom for human and undead alike.

Reviews

[Samuel Dickens]

What a sad ending for Astra. Too many enemies and betrayers. You intimated that she might reanimate as something not quite herself, so her story may not be over. Though a bit too violent for this old one, I know there's an audience for such work. It reads well, but could be made better with a little editing. For instance, the word is "esophagus".

[Sir Aphid]

thanks. i forgot that when i wrote this i mispelled that word and planned to come back later to fix it. thanks for reminding me.