"This is impossible! What kind of unholy sorcery is this?!" the Dreadlord roared in a mix of shock and fury.
To him, it looked like a necromantic spell, but those damned skeletons—how did they dare to rebel? That fool Ner'zhul, he actually dares to betray the Legion.
Tichondrius immediately jumped to the conclusion of the Lich King's betrayal, never suspecting he had been outmaneuvered by a mortal. After all, only his demons had fallen; the undead remained untouched.
"Now! Let's go!" Rhodes's face was pale from the strain of such a large-scale spell, but his hands never stopped. He swung his staff again.
"Firestrike!"
The piles of demon corpses ignited into a towering inferno, incinerating any survivors and further clearing the field. Rhodes followed up with a barrage of Holy Flash, Holy Storm, and Consecration. Golden light turned waves of skeletons and zombies into dust.
He even summoned nine Light Elementals to assist. Without their demon commanders, the undead fell into chaos—and a certain Lich King, hoping for Tichondrius's demise, offered no commands to guide them.
Illidan needed no prompting. The moment the ripple faded, his massive demon wings snapped open, and he shot toward the isolated Dreadlord like an arrow. The Fel fire on the Warglaives of Azzinoth blazed to its peak, fueled by his主人's burning battle intent!
"Tichondrius! Your end is here!" Illidan's roar echoed through the valley.
Forced into a duel, the Dreadlord had to face a peak-condition Demon Hunter empowered by the Skull of Gul'dan, backed by a human mage of terrifying power. The hunt had reached its climax.
Tichondrius hissed, unleashing a powerful wave of Shadow energy: Carrion Swarm! A shockwave of death swept out, meant to freeze the bravest heart in fear. But Illidan merely sneered, his Immolation fire burning bright, rendering the Dreadlord's psychological attack useless.
"Hah child's play!" Illidan growled, slicing two lethal green arcs toward the Dreadlord's head.
Clang! Boom!
Fel and Shadow collided in a deafening explosion. Tichondrius was knocked back by the sheer force of the blow, the ground beneath him cracking. He roared and summoned meteors from the sky that transformed into green-flamed stone giants—Infernals.
Against these magic-immune behemoths, Rhodes was ready. He deployed his Gold and Diamond Golems to intercept them. Meanwhile, his Light Elementals rained Holy magic upon the Dreadlord.
"It was you! You wretched traitor!" Tichondrius snarled, launching a swarm of Shadow Bolts. "You betrayed the Legion, betrayed the Master!"
"You are mistaken, Dreadlord," Illidan countered. "I never swore fealty to Sargeras, so how could I betray him?"
Tichondrius tried to cast a Sleep spell, but Rhodes had prepared for this. Clad in the latest anti-magic gear from the Dwarves and High Elves, and protected by his golems, the spell washed over him harmlessly.
Illidan seized the opening. His style was wild and soul-tearing. Tichondrius, though powerful, found himself completely suppressed in close-quarters combat.
"You have angered me, insects!" The Dreadlord erupted in a Shadow Nova, forcing Illidan back. He began chanting a long, obscure incantation, warping the space around him for a devastating Fel spell.
"I don't think so!" Rhodes's eyes narrowed. "Spell Counter!"
An invisible wave of Arcane interference—a spell he had "borrowed" from a certain female mage—hit Tichondrius, shattering his concentration. Rhodes followed up with Curse, Slow, and Blindness.
The Dreadlord groaned as the backlash of the interrupted spell left him silenced. His body stiffened, his energy suppressed, and most lethally, his vision went dark as he was rooted in place.
Illidan struck instantly.
"Metamorphosis!" Illidan growled. His body surged in size, his speed and power skyrocketing. He became a green phantom, appearing behind Tichondrius in a blink. The Twin Blades of Azzinoth tore through the base of the Dreadlord's bat-wings.
"AAARGH!!!" Tichondrius screamed as his remaining wing was severed at the root, dark green demon blood geysering out.
Rhodes took the opportunity to cast a Druidic spell learned from Cenarius, summoning massive vines to entangle the Dreadlord's body. Illidan followed through, severing an arm before kicking the demon to the ground and leaping onto him for a final, frenzied assault.
"Now, Rhodes!" Illidan shouted, pinning the struggling demon down with his blades.
Rhodes was already charged. All his mana condensed at the tip of his staff—not into Arcane or Holy light, but the most violent, destructive force of the heavens: Thunder.
"Lightning Bolt!"
His voice boomed like thunder. A massive, blinding bolt of lightning tore through the air like a spear of divine judgment, striking Tichondrius squarely in his exposed chest!
Rumble—!!!
"AAAAAHHH!!!"
The roar of thunder drowned out the Dreadlord's final wail. The electrical energy surged through him, vaporizing his life force and leaving a charred, hollow hole where his heart had been. Tichondrius, the great strategist of Archimonde, lay dead, his essence dissipating like smoke.
"Nice work, Rhodes," Illidan said, nodding with satisfaction. It was a pity this wasn't the Twisting Nether; the demon would eventually return, but for now, he was gone.
"Back at you. I finally understand how safe it feels to have a terrifyingly powerful warrior by my side," Rhodes laughed.
As they celebrated, two figures approached in the distance. One rode a white Frostsaber, while the other was a giant eagle that transformed into Malfurion Stormrage.
"Stay away from him, demon! Rhodes, come to me, don't let that monster hurt you!" Malfurion looked at the massive demon before him with extreme hostility. "Cursed demon, where is my brother? What have you done to him?"
"How tragic, brother," Illidan snorted. "Do you truly not recognize me?"