Preparing Early for the Northern Expedition

With victory in the battle for the Tomb of Sargeras, the Burning Legion's threat had been temporarily resolved. Rend also returned to Noxus with the little princess Tyrygosa and the others.

But returning to the Immortal Bastion did not mean Rend had time to rest. All manner of matters still weighed on him.

He had to settle the hundreds of thousands of Blackrock Clan brethren who had returned from their Ethereal homeland of K'aresh. Not only had they replenished the Blackrock Clan's once-depleted population, but they had also brought back Ethereal astral technology.

He also had to reorganize the Blackrock Clan's major legions. The Trifarix Legion had campaigned north and south, always fighting on the front lines and in the hardest battles. It could no longer maintain its original strength of fifty thousand; even its reserves had been exhausted.

Several of the other legions also urgently needed reinforcements, including the two that had fought the humans of the Burning Steppes and Redridge Mountains, as well as the Dark Iron Dwarves of Blackrock Spire.

The legion Anok Grimtotem had led in the siege of Shattrath had likewise suffered devastating losses.

Moreover, Rend, who knew the course of history, knew that the Lich King might already have awakened. In a few months, the era of Wrath of the Lich King would arrive, and an expedition to Northrend would be unavoidable.

Preparing supplies for the next campaign, settling the returning Blackrock Clan brethren, and reorganizing the Blackrock Clan's major legions left Rend overwhelmed. He did not even have time to accompany little princess Tyrygosa or his two adopted daughters, Trianis and Vanessa VanCleef.

Trianis was, after all, a Blood Elf with exceptional magical talent. Little princess Tyrygosa treated her as her own and taught her the ways of magic. The essence of the