"Their air force should have only two types: frost wyrms and gargoyles. Gargoyles are constructs too. They aren't very big-about the size of a person with a pair of bat wings. I suspect each one has a human soul sealed inside it, and there probably won't be any shortage of them. We'd better not count on our air force gaining much of an advantage. They also have frost wyrms, which are actual dead dragons brought back to life. They have another unit similar to archers, called sky-shrouders, I think. I'm not too sure. Those are constructs too, about the size of humans."
"From what you're saying, the Undead have a full range of troops. This battle sounds like it'll be hard to fight. We can only hope there won't be too many of them when the time comes," Sylvanas sighed.
"So do I!" Yu Lin Bloodhawk pressed a hand to his forehead and sighed. "But that's impossible. If it all really happens..." His gaze fell on Sylvanas, and he could not go on.
If it all happens, Sylvanas, you might truly become a queen. A real queen-the Banshee Queen.
Sylvanas noticed the pity in his eyes. "You don't seem to have finished what you were saying."
"If it really happens, fewer than one in ten High Elves will survive!" Yu Lin Bloodhawk sighed. "The High Elves will become Blood Elves. They'll lose not only the Sunwell, but their pride and dignity as High Elves. They'll go mad, and even those who scrape by will have to curry favor everywhere just to survive, only to be rebuffed at every turn."
The more he spoke, the lower his voice sank and the heavier his heart became.
He thought of Kael'thas, who had set aside his dignity for his people and sought favor everywhere, only to be rebuffed at every turn and finally meet a violent end. Perhaps he could be called Azeroth's most tragic hero.
Sylvanas fell silent. She had already heard of the High Elves' tragic fate. With sorrow in her heart, she sighed. "Is there nothing we can do?"
"Sylvanas." Yu Lin Bloodhawk suddenly remembered something important.
"Hmm?" Sylvanas looked up at him.
"There's something very important I want you to promise me." Yu Lin Bloodhawk spoke solemnly. "If it really happens in the future, you must help me."
"What could be so serious?" Sylvanas asked in surprise.
Yu Lin Bloodhawk walked to the window and looked outside. Seeing no one, he closed it, then stepped out through the doorway and sent the guards away before returning and shutting the door.
Sylvanas watched him with puzzlement the whole time, but said nothing.
Yu Lin Bloodhawk approached her with a seriousness she had never seen in him before. "If it really happens, I hope you'll help me take at least two-thirds of the Sunwell's energy and evacuate every teacher and student at the Falthrien Academy, along with all its books and records."
"Take the Sunwell's energy?" Sylvanas's eyes widened in horror.
"Yes! Take the Sunwell's energy!" Yu Lin Bloodhawk said. "Whatever happens, even if we have to stage a mutiny."
"Why?" Sylvanas was genuinely frightened now.
"For the High Elves' future, and for their pride and dignity," Yu Lin Bloodhawk said.
"Is there no other way?" Sylvanas asked desperately.
Yu Lin Bloodhawk shook his head, answering her question with silence.
No! The Sunwell's energy is the High Elves' future. The Falthrien Academy is their pride. On Azeroth, no one except the Blue Dragons understands magic better than they do. With them, the High Elves can reignite the Sunwell if it is extinguished, and rebuild Quel'Thalas if it is destroyed.
The foundation of the High Elves isn't the Sunwell's empty shell, nor is it Silvermoon City, the capital of Quel'Thalas. It is the energy within the Sunwell and the research capabilities of the Falthrien Academy.
"Before it happens, I'll find a temporary refuge where the High Elves can evacuate safely. Once the Undead army leaves, we'll return. Quel'Thalas will rise again!" Yu Lin Bloodhawk said with absolute conviction.
Sylvanas stared at him, a tangle of emotions churning inside her. At last, she sighed. "Even if I agree, what good will it do? You and I are only minor unit commanders. The Dawnblade and Flameblade legions guard the Sunwell on Sunreaver Island, along with His Majesty's Spellbreakers and knights. Who knows how many arcane archmages are there? They'll never agree."
"For Quel'Thalas, we must never give up, no matter how little power we have! Do you want to see the Blood Elves of that future? Do you want to see countless Wretched living like zombies? Do the opinions of those stubborn old fools really matter that much?" Yu Lin Bloodhawk asked.
Sylvanas looked torn, her face alternating between livid and pale. Finally, she gritted her teeth. "All right! I promise. But on one condition: whatever the outcome of the war, the energy must be returned to the Sunwell. The Falthrien Academy and everything belonging to it must also return to Quel'Thalas. Those are the people's possessions. They belong to all our people!"
"Let's seal our oath with a clap of our hands! Whoever breaks it shall find no peace after death." The weight on Yu Lin Bloodhawk's heart lifted.
"Agreed. We'll seal it with a clap of our hands." Sylvanas raised her hand and struck Yu Lin Bloodhawk's palm firmly.
"Now that we've sworn the oath, the moment war breaks out, I'll evacuate the Falthrien Academy's teachers and students, along with their research materials. Once that's done, I'll take the Sunwell's energy. Have everything ready before I return to meet you. If the battle changes too quickly and you can't wait for me, you'll have to collect the well water yourself. I'll take control of Sunsail Archorage beforehand and leave a ship there. You must bring the well water out personally. Remember, the well water matters more than Silvermoon City. Don't linger in battle," Yu Lin Bloodhawk said.
What he feared most was history repeating itself. He was afraid Sylvanas would refuse to leave the fighting and inevitably become the Banshee Queen again. That was why he deliberately stressed the point once more.
"I understand. I'll be ready!" Sylvanas said.
The two continued plotting for a while.
"It's a little stuffy in here. All right, let's leave it at that. Once I walk out that door, I won't bring this up again. As for whether you tell anyone else, use your own judgment! Just make sure we don't end up in prison before we've even done anything," Yu Lin Bloodhawk said quietly.
"I'll be careful," Sylvanas said.
"Good. No more talking about this." He stood, went over to open the window, then returned. "Where were we on training the troops?"
"You said you wanted every ranger to have a battle pet," Sylvanas said. "But that's impossible. Even if you use boars, you don't have that many. I don't know where you found these large boars, but there can't be many of them. Ordinary boars are much smaller and couldn't form the Steel Torrent you described. Besides, even finding seventy or eighty thousand ordinary boars wouldn't be easy."
"You're right! Boars have territories too. These are called Giant Bloodfang Boars. In all the Eastern Kingdoms, they're found only in Westfall and the Redridge Mountains in the Kingdom of Stormwind. There aren't many of them, though-somewhere between a little over a thousand and two thousand. Three thousand at the absolute most," Yu Lin Bloodhawk said.
"So few?" Sylvanas asked. "In that case, I'd say there are far more wild bears. At least you can find wild bears in every human kingdom. Altogether, there must be tens of thousands."
"What did you expect? Why else would I wear myself out going all the way there? I practically crossed the entire Eastern Kingdoms. The round trip took nearly two months. Another shipment will arrive in a while, possibly with over a hundred bears and more than five hundred dire wolves as well. Whether they'll actually manage those numbers, I don't know," Yu Lin Bloodhawk said.
"That's too few. Even if you captured every Giant Bloodfang Boar, you'd have no more than three thousand. Against an Army of the Dead a million strong, your Steel Torrent would still be too small. Never mind a torrent-it wouldn't be unfair to call it a trickle," Sylvanas said mockingly.
"That's certainly true for now. As things stand, collecting three hundred wild bears would be easier than collecting three hundred Bloodfang Boars. Every human kingdom has some wild bears, and the Dwarf kingdom has them too. There are plenty in Lordaeron, Gilneas, and Alterac. They're close by, too. Never mind three hundred—even six hundred wouldn't be too difficult!" Yu Lin Bloodhawk said.
"Then your force should consist of two hundred lynxes and four hundred wild bears, not two hundred lynxes, three hundred boars, and a mere hundred wild bears," Sylvanas said.
Yu Lin Bloodhawk glanced at Sylvanas. It seemed she still could not get over the idea of boars as battle pets. All his earlier explanations had apparently accomplished nothing. Without results on the battlefield, it would probably be hard to make these elves, with their absurd obsession with beauty, accept ugly boars. Was it all down to looks?
He sighed. "What can we do? We've already bought them. We can't just slaughter them all. Besides, aren't we a little short on time to go looking for bears now?"
"We could still find another three hundred. How long would you need?" Sylvanas asked.
"Three or four months at least. Wild bears are fiercer than boars and harder to catch. Plenty of places have them, but they're too scattered, and their territories are large," Yu Lin Bloodhawk said.
"Three or four months isn't too long. Aren't you already expecting a shipment of a hundred wild bears? Train them and those two hundred lynxes first. You only have thirty arcane runic beast trinkets right now anyway, so there's enough time. Besides, don't you have five hundred dire wolves coming? If all else fails, fill the ranks with dire wolves!" Sylvanas said. "Remember, your target right now is the trolls. The Military Department's target is the same. Only by producing results will you give battle-pet forces a future."
"No! No! No!" Yu Lin Bloodhawk shook his head like a rattle. "I'd rather fill the ranks with boars than use dire wolves."
"Why? Are dire wolves too small? Go ask anyone whether they'd rather raise dire wolves or your boars!" Sylvanas snapped. "If you don't want dire wolves, why did you buy so many? For fun?"
"Didn't we discuss having you help me secure that fief on Shalandis Isle? I heard those dire wolves prey on murlocs. I have no troops or officers, and at most I can put together a hundred-man guard. How am I supposed to go there? I had to find another way. While the Military Department is still willing to give me a little money, I'll buy some and put them there to help out. They can't cross the sea anyway, so they won't cause trouble in Quel'Thalas." Yu Lin Bloodhawk scratched his head. "Oh, right. Speaking of Shalandis Isle, when can you get it for me?"
Before you continue