Resolution

As the sun set and the stars shifted, the blue moon of the twin moons rose gently into the sky, while the white moon, still shy, had yet to show its full face from behind the mountain peaks. Azeroth welcomed its beautiful, bright night.

Thanks to the light of the twin moons, the night here needed almost no illumination. Reading outdoors was still difficult, but visibility was fairly good.

The Orc camp beneath Blackrock Mountain had fallen quiet. Most of the Orcs had grabbed their weapons, flopped down on the ground, and quickly begun snoring.

But some Orcs were still awake.

Around a bright bonfire, a dozen or so Orcs sat in a circle. Behind them, several Orc warriors stood with their weapons in hand, warily watching their surroundings.

This was the Bloodfang Clan's camp, and everyone gathered here belonged to the clan. Their leader was their chieftain, the aging and cunning Kilrogg Deadeye.

Every Bloodfang Clan chieftain sacrificed his left eye to the spirits of their ancestors. Through this ritual, they could glimpse the future of both their clan and themselves.

Kilrogg was no exception. A black eyepatch covered his left eye, while his right shone an unnerving blood red.

Though Kilrogg was old now, not a single Orc chieftain dared look down on him—not even Orgrim Doomhammer.

In his youth, the Bloodfang Clan's chieftain had been ruthless enough to kill his own father.

"We can't let this go. The Trolls must pay!"

One Bloodfang Orc spoke up.

"Exactly. Orgrim wants to protect those Trolls, but we'll never stand for it!"

Someone answered.

"Let's go kill every last Troll!"

A young Bloodfang Orc shouted, worked up with anger.

"Keep your voice down! Kill every last Troll? No, Orgrim won't allow it."

Some of the Bloodfang Orcs still had a little sense.

"Bah, Orgrim isn't our chieftain."

The hot-blooded Bloodfang Orc clearly had little respect for Orgrim.

"Killing every Troll is unlikely. We're just one clan, and those Trolls are powerful."

Some of the Bloodfang Orcs assessed whether wiping out the Trolls was feasible.

"We could ask the other clans for help."

Some of the Bloodfang Orcs made the suggestion.

"Who? The Dragonmaw Clan are a bunch of old-fashioned traditionalists. And those two pups from the Black Tooth Grin Clan... Orgrim killed their father, yet they still obey him without question."

A Bloodfang Orc said bitterly.

"How about asking the Burning Blade Clan to help?"

A voice abruptly cut into the Bloodfang Orcs' conversation.

"Who's there!"

Kilrogg barked.

Until then, the old chieftain had been listening to his clanmates argue. He was used to finding the support he needed in their disputes.

But the unexpected voice put Kilrogg on guard. He knew every Bloodfang Orc present, but that voice...

"Kaldara, what are you doing here? This is the Bloodfang Clan's camp."

Kilrogg rose to his feet and shouted toward a patch of shadow.

The other Bloodfang Orcs stood as well, forming a shield in front of Kilrogg. Whatever the other clans might say, they respected their chieftain and were willing to protect him from attack.

"Everyone, get out of my way!" Kilrogg shouted.

As the Bloodfang Clan's chieftain, he rarely got into fights.

The Destroyer Blackhand's fate was not enough of a lesson for Kilrogg. In his long life, he had seen too many capable chieftains ruined by a moment's recklessness.

But a truly excellent chieftain wouldn't hide behind his clanmates when danger came. Besides, the one they faced wasn't an enemy. He was an Orc, too.

"This is the Horde's camp, Kilrogg. Ever since Blackhand founded the Horde, the clans have no longer been separate. So I can come and go as I please."

Kaldara stepped out of the shadows. The bonfire and moonlight illuminated his tall, powerful frame, casting an even larger shadow behind him.

"If the clans are no longer separate, why are the Blackrock Orcs living in tents while my clanmates have to sleep out in the open?"

Kilrogg dismissed Kaldara's words.

There had been plenty of ambitious Orcs who wanted to unite their kind, but who had actually managed it? The Destroyer Blackhand hadn't. Gul'dan hadn't. Orgrim Doomhammer hadn't, either.

"What does that matter? It's not going to rain here."

Kaldara replied.

"If you came here to tell jokes, you can go back now."

Kilrogg pushed past his clanmates and stood opposite Kaldara.

"Of course I didn't come to tell jokes. I came to help you solve your problem."

Kaldara said.

"How?"

A red gleam flashed in Kilrogg's one eye. He knew what Kaldara meant.

Were the Blademasters going to interfere in the Horde's affairs?

"With this."

Kaldara reached for his waist.

The Bloodfang Orcs tensed at once and raised their weapons.

But Kaldara remained unfazed. He calmly took something from his belt and tossed it at Kilrogg's feet.

"What's this?"

Kilrogg frowned and looked down, then froze.

The old Bloodfang chieftain looked up at Kaldara in disbelief, then lowered his gaze to the round object again.

At last, Kilrogg crouched, picked it up, and examined it in his hands before standing.

"A Troll's head," Kilrogg said quietly.

He said it for his clanmates to hear.

"What?"

"A Troll?"

"That thing... could it be..."

The Bloodfang Orcs began whispering among themselves, and the camp grew chaotic for a moment.

"Silence!"

Kilrogg's words quieted the Bloodfang Orcs, though a few of the younger ones still stole glances at the Troll's head in his hands.

"Hold on to this."

Kilrogg casually tossed the Troll's head to one of his clanmates, then stepped forward.

"We have things to discuss. All of you, step back a little."

Without looking back, Kilrogg addressed his clanmates.

Some of the Bloodfang Orcs were worried about Kilrogg's safety, but at the old chieftain's command, they could only clutch the Troll's head and retreat.

"What happened?"

Standing opposite Kaldara, Kilrogg asked sternly.

Though he was advanced in years, Kilrogg straightened up and stood almost as tall as Kaldara.

"I killed him and cut off his head. If you like, you can cut a piece of skin from it, too. Isn't this what he did to your clanmates?"

Kaldara said casually.