Severance

A day later, the Alliance army arrived not far from the Dark Portal. Nathanos returned after scouting the enemy and addressed the Alliance leaders gathered around the campfire. "I think we're in trouble." Everyone looked at the young human. "This land is corrupting, and that portal is the culprit," he explained. "I sense an evil energy surging from the other side of the Dark Portal, affecting our world, starting from the land around it, and this influence is spreading."

"Why did this change happen?" Uther asked.

Khadgar shook his head. "The Dark Portal connects two worlds, Azeroth and the Orcs' homeland. I've been worried about this before, but Nathanos' words have convinced me that the Dark Portal is probably more than just a bridge. If the negative influences over there are eroding this place, it can only mean that this massive portal is merging the two worlds together."

"Is their world made of red rocks like these?" Brann asked, still concerned about the topic he was interested in.

"No, at least not before," Khadgar replied, looking somewhat anxious, but he finally decided to explain, "A long time ago... actually, not so long ago, when Lothar and I came to Lordaeron, I saw some visions. I saw a place of despair, a place that drove people mad. There was almost no life there; the vitality of the earth had been completely drained. A terrible magic corrupted the land, leading the people who originally lived there step by step into the abyss. That was the home of the Orcs, the world called Draenor."

After Khadgar finished explaining, he remained silent. Nathanos was surprised and even a little angry. Why didn't he say something so important sooner? Alleria and Uther also showed some displeasure, but Khadgar's expression told the others that he did not want to talk about the past.

"If what you say is true, I'm afraid that kind of contamination is spreading here through this portal," Nathanos said to Khadgar, Archmage nodded in agreement with his deduction.

"Another reason to destroy it," Turalyon announced. "The sooner the better."

Uther nodded in agreement. "Yes, the sooner the better."

Khadgar, Turalyon, Uther, the Bronzebeard brothers, and Kurdran exchanged glances.

"Tell the Warrior," Turalyon said gently, picking up Lothar's broken sword and his own warhammer. "We will attack immediately." Khadgar was once again amazed by the changes that had taken place in Turalyon over the past few months. Turalyon had become more serious and confident; he had transformed from an inexperienced young man into a seasoned Warrior and an experienced commander.

The soldiers prepared themselves, all crouching low as they advanced, trying to remain as quiet as possible on the red rocks. After crossing a small slope, a deep chasm appeared before them, its walls even higher. In the center of the valley stood a colossal gate, not built into a wall or building, but rising from nothing. Alleria gasped in astonishment upon seeing the Dark Portal in its entirety. The gate was hundreds of meters high and hundreds of meters wide, constructed of brown stone. Rough, swirling patterns were carved along its sides, and a ring of skulls surrounded its base, with curved spikes on the outside. The central section had some crude decorations, and even more astonishingly, a crouching dragon appeared to be carved above the portal. Alleria was deeply displeased by this. The portal itself emitted a green and black glow, brimming with energy.

The Orcs gathered at the gate, seemingly unsure of what to do. There were more Orcs than deserters, Turalyon was clearly right; Doomhammer had left some guards. But the Alliance forces still outnumbered them, and the Orcs were scattered in small groups, indicating they no longer trusted each other and had returned to their families or hunting parties. This wasn't an army, but a large number of small groups.

"Now!" Turalyon shouted, leaping from the cliff edge and plunging down the slope, almost landing on the heads of several Orcs. A broken sword pierced one Orcs, and a warhammer struck another in the head; both Orcs fell to the ground simultaneously. Uther and the other Paladin rushed forward to protect Turalyon's flanks, while the rest of the Alliance forces launched their Charge.

Nathanos fired from a distance as Uther ordered, though reluctantly. He had considered sneaking into the battlefield to kill some Orcs officers, but the Paladin had specifically instructed Alleria to keep an eye on him before leaving. The Female Elf readily agreed, returned Nathanos Lo'gresh him, and stayed by his side without leaving his side. So he and the Elf Ranger remained on the cliff providing ranged firepower.

The battle was swift and one-sided; the Orcs were poorly organized, fighting in small groups. This allowed Turalyon to easily send his soldiers to encircle and kill or capture small squads at a time. He led his troops systematically through the valleys, felling Horde after Orcs. Many Orcs and Death Knight had already fled back through the Dark Portal to avoid being killed or captured. Only a small group of Orcs remained, holding their ground and covering the retreat of the Orcs.

Finally Turalyon arrived at the base of the Dark Portal. Two burly, muscular Orcs stood on the steps, each wielding a massive, crude battleaxe. Medals and bone ornaments adorned their hair, foreheads, and armor. Their hair was tied into short, black, pointed knots. One of them had bloodstained bandages wrapped around his left shoulder and left leg. Yet, they both appeared confident and arrogant, as if Orgrim's defeat had had no effect on them whatsoever.

"You stand before Rend Blackhand and Maim Blackhand, from the Blackfang Clan," one of them called out, his steps heavy as he approached Turalyon. Turalyon was astonished that every Orcs he encountered seemed to speak a human language. "Our father was Blackhand Blackhand, who led the Horde until Doomhammer killed him. Now that Doomhammer has fallen, we will rebuild the Horde until it is stronger than ever before, and then we will crush you!"

"Not anymore," Turalyon replied. His voice echoed through the valley. A faint, sharp white light emanated from him, contrasting with the light emanating from the Dark Portal. "Your Great Chief is now our prisoner, your army shattered at Blackrock Mountain, your Horde utterly defeated, and all that remains of you lies before this gate, surrounded by us." He raised his broken sword. "Come and defeat me, or go back to your own world and never return."

The taunt had its effect; the Blackhand brothers charged down the steps in fury, letting out a savage Battle Shout as they leaped toward Turalyon. But the newly appointed commander did not flinch. He swiftly stepped back, causing the two Orcs' attacks to miss and strike the ground. Then he advanced again, retaliating with his own weapon, striking them in the jaw. Maim on the left staggered back, dizzy, while his brother was wounded, blood flowing from the cut on his jaw.

The two Orcs exchanged a glance and launched another fierce attack, but their assault seemed clumsy and savage, made even more so by their still-healing wounds. Turalyon slid forward on his knees, quickly slipping between them to avoid the attack, and the broken Quel'Zaram struck Maim in the abdomen, while his warhammer struck Rend in the chest. Then Turalyon kicked both Orcs from behind, sending them tumbling to the ground.

"Clan brothers, come here!" Knowing he was no match for Turalyon, Maim roared, "Kill this human!"

Two more Orcs joined the battle, attacking Turalyon from both sides. The Paladin prepared to defend himself, when suddenly two arrows shot from above and behind him, piercing their throats. Turalyon looked back and saw Nathanos lowering his bow. He raised his warhammer in gratitude for Nathanos's help.

"How did you do that?" Alleria asked the question she had asked long ago. Lor'themar and Verina had the same question in mind. They were more than 300 meters away from Turalyon's location. Although Alleria knew that Nathanos could shoot from even further, she couldn't even judge the distance.

"Focus on the battlefield." The human only said four words and didn't tell her anything, but the Female Elf had already decided that she must get this human to tell her how to increase the shooting range.

Taking advantage of Turalyon's turn, the Blackhand brothers retreated, brandishing their weapons at some Alliance soldiers. They broke through the Alliance ranks and used the opportunity to escape. Some Orcs followed them. But Turalyon had no time to attend to them. Many Orcs continued fighting, some even scorning the fleeing Blackhand brothers.

Turalyon glanced down at the two corpses on the ground, then watched the Blackhand brothers disappear at the other end of the valley. Next, he looked up at Khadgar. "Now!" the Paladin shouted, pointing Lothar's sword at the Dark Portal. "Destroy it!"

"Everyone back off!" Khadgar shouted back. "I can't guarantee it will be safe!"

Turalyon and ordered everyone to leave the massive stone gate. Khadgar and the other mages focused their attention on the structure. He could sense the Dark Portal's connection to the two worlds—a bridge linking them. Khadgar had previously tried several times to attack the Dark Portal, attempting to disrupt the green energy, but his magic had been absorbed. Now, only this physical gate remained. No matter how powerful its magic, stone was still stone, and stone could be shattered.

Khadgar focused his attention, filling his body with magic. The land's energy was dwindling, but the Dark Portal itself contained vast amounts of energy, and there were no measures to prevent mages from appropriating it. Khadgar and other mages were doing just that—drawing energy from the Dark Portal and channeling it into Khadgar. As the energy increased, his eyes glowed white, lightning danced at his fingertips, the wind howled around him, and the sky began to rumble. Khadgar hoped this would be enough.

He closed his eyes, faced the Dark Portal, opened his arms, and released all his energy, which coalesced before him into a mysterious, pulsating, luminous sphere. He could feel this energy sphere, its pulsation, its cohesion. Good. He focused his consciousness on the rift, on the energy it contained, and confirmed its location once more.

Finally, he opened his eyes.

Khadgar slammed his hands together, palms facing each other, and pushed the energy ball forward, stretching it into a long, thin shape, like a gleaming, slender Greatsword.

"Get down!" Nathanos grabbed Alleria's hand and pulled her backward, causing them to fall to the ground.

At that moment, energy erupted, flooding the Dark Portal and shattering the stone slabs that formed it. The next second, a powerful shockwave rippled around the Dark Portal, causing many Alliance soldiers and Orcs Warrior to lose their footing; even Khadgar himself was thrown several meters by the impact. The Dark Portal was shattered into pieces, and the surging colors vanished, replaced by emptiness. The connection between Azeroth and Draenor was severed, and the earth began to breathe again.