Assault on Darkshire [Staging]

[Skeletor]

Skeletor continued to grin despite Kerrigan’s backhanded snub. Her aims were starting to become obvious to him; by tactically downplaying the importance of the other assembled primes, the brood queen was subtly trying to set herself up to be Illidan’s second. He had seen Evil Lyn use the same tactics to manipulate her position within his own court. Idiots like Merman and Trapjaw would cluelessly play right into her scheming and Skeletor did little to curb her machinations, provided she remembered her place.

He was still trying to determine how much free reign Illidan would allow his subordinates when it came to jockeying for position. From his actions thus far he seemed unlikely to allow much open in-fighting, so Skeletor would need to combat her plans with a more delicate approach.   Bending slightly in an ornate bow, Skeletor grinned at the brood queen. “Ah, ha? Call me Skeletor” he cackled, “pleasure to make your acquaintance, Bladeling.” Kerrigan likewise ignored his jab, though her eyes flashed at his last comment.

More than satisfied with the exchange, Skeletor turned to regard Illidan as the Kaldorei finally decided to take command of the situation before things spiraled much farther out of control. The Night elf spoke of control, and Skeletor’s eyeless sight glanced at the surrounding forces. They seemed confident in Stormrage’s chances to challenge the might of Darkshire, no mean feat. This warrior was clearly competent, the flaming eyes and glowing tattoos were clear indicators of the power that flowed within the prime. Perhaps he would not be able to challenge Stormrage for control of the army, at least not at this time.

His musings were interrupted by another outburst from the child. The small girl pronounced the assault doomed and turned on a dime, striding towards her horse and “glitching” onto its back. The large black steed reared in surprise as the child suddenly appeared on its back, grabbing hold of the reins.  Her hooded companion stared incredulously as the girl rode out of the castle. The assembled primes stood in silence for a moment as she left. Turning back to face Illidan, Skeletor realized that the red-cloaked mummy who had remained silent throught the exchange had also vanished from the gathering.

Skeletor had seen situations like this before, and understood just how close to total collapse this entire assault was. Someone needed to change the tempo of the meeting and fast. Within the throes of defeat was often a golden opportunity. With a nigh-imperceptible glance towards the Brood Queen, Skeletor advanced to stand in front of the seething Kaldorei.

“I, at least, have reason to trust in your abilities, Stormrage.” Leaning on his Havoc staff for support, Skeletor knelt before the former Demon-hunter theatrically, face as impassive as always. “Together we shall bring fury down upon the fools of Darkshire that would dare to challenge our might!” Skeletor rose and turned to face the remaining assembly of primes. “Do any of you think otherwise?” he challenged sweeping the head of his havoc staff at the remaining two warriors. Skeletor knew he might be getting over-zealous, but he figured the Kaldorei would be too desperate for support to admonish him too harshly. “If you anyone else thinks Illidan is not the one to conquer this pathetic mass of humans, then by all means, Speak your minds!”

Skeletor’s bluster fell flat however, as he realized that Chara’s companion had also quietly excused himself from the group during Skeletor’s ranting. The Warlock’s pointed staff lowered back to the ground. Only Kerrigan remained, watching his antics with a look of faint disdain. Skeletor turned back to face the Night Elf. “Well that may not have worked quite as desired.” He said, much of his bluster gone. “Do we still mean to assault the city? They will hardly be short on defenders.” There numbers had halved within the course of minutes. “Do we still intend the same course of action, or should we seek more allies?”