Goods

Did you get it?

Fenris's footsteps trod upon the shattered land. Blood Maw approached after discovering him. When the Orcs who had traveled to the Broken Isles returned, the dragon promised to them by Deathwing was already waiting for them there, and then the Black Dragon Gate quickly brought them back to the Blasted Lands, back to Blood Maw and the others.

"Yes, we got it," Fenris affirmed, raising the long, narrow scepter wrapped in cloth and handing the Sargeras's Staff to the Blood Maw, rejoicing at finally being rid of it. "So what do we do next?"

"Go back, back to Draenor," the Blood Maw replied curtly. His hands gripped the scepter protectively. "Our mission here is complete. Azeroth is no longer important to us."

Fenris was about to ask some details when a sudden rumble stopped him. He looked up and saw the Orcs guiding several large wagons, pushing them into the valley. He remembered his conversation in Blackrock Mountain and knew that these must be the Deathwing had asked them to take to Draenor.

"Blood Maw!" Fenris recognized the voice; it could only belong to the Warsong Clan Commander. Grom Grommash and his forces had recently been harassing the Alliance troops stationed at Tower of Observation, and he had just returned. Although he was still some distance away, everyone could hear his voice clearly. "These dragons! Did you bring them?"

"Yes!" Blood Maw replied, though he didn't raise his voice, Grom could still hear him clearly. "The black dragons are our new allies!"

Warsong Clan Chieftain frowned and shouted, "I hope your winged friends won't cause any chaos." He took a few more steps closer. "Is the mission complete?" Grom asked the two.

"Of course," Blood Maw replied, without saying anything more. Grom glanced at the trucks.

"What is that?" Grom asked.

"Cargo," the Blood Maw replied curtly. Each wagon was made of thick timber, with high railings, and completely covered by a thick layer of tarpaulin. Judging from the extent of the covering, the wagons were all loaded with goods.

"It seems all we need to do is get those artifacts," Grom said.

"Plans can change," the Death Knight replied. "Don't worry too much, these goods won't affect our plans." He glanced at several Orcs trying to approach the wagons, then amplified his voice with some kind of magic, making it echo throughout the valley in an instant. "I will personally protect those wagons, and if anyone dares to try to peek inside, I will deal with them myself." The Orcs were stunned and stopped in their tracks. Two Orcs were near the back of the wagons quickly retreated upon hearing this.

Fenris shrugged; he had done his job. If the Blood Maw wanted to play any tricks, that was between him and Ner'zhul. "How much longer before we leave?" he asked.

"I need some of your men to stay here and guard the Dark Portal. You and the rest of your clan can leave now," Blood Maw replied. "Tagga, you should also leave some Bonechewer Orcs behind."

Fenris frowned, but nodded nonetheless. He had hoped all members of his clan could return, but he understood the Blood Maw's decision.

"And what about us?" Grom asked. After Fenris and Tagga left, the Blood Maw turned to look at the Warsong Clan overseer, who could clearly sense a smile on his face hidden behind his black cloak.

One week later, Tower of Observation

The drawing room was one of the few rooms in the castle that had been completed. At that moment, Turalyon was inside, listening to Uther's report.

"So, this place has been attacked recently?" Turalyon frowned and exchanged a glance with Khadgar.

The older Paladin nodded and added, "Several patrols were attacked, and none of them survived."

"Has Tower of Observation been attacked?"

"No." Uther shook his head, but his worries did not lessen. He said, "General Turalyon, I have doubts about the Horde's actions. According to the intelligence we have, the Horde has received help from the black dragons and has attacked Dalaran, stealing a precious artifact. I believe..."

"I know what you're going to say, Uther," Turalyon said, his thoughtful expression strikingly similar to Lothar's, a fact Uther could clearly sense. "I've been speculating whether the Medivh's Book that's gone from the Stormwind City Royal Library is also connected to the Horde, and I received a report from Admiral Proudmoore that a few days ago fishermen spotted Horde ships on the shore, proving that the Orcs have been out to sea."

"Their actions seem very chaotic, but there must be some important connection."

Turalyon nodded. "How is the Alliance's mobilization progressing?"

"Aerie Peak and Ironforge have agreed to send troops, and also..." Uther paused, thinking of Nathanos. Since his return from Quel'Thalas, Nathanos had become taciturn, and Uther asked him how things were, Nathanos only nodded in response. "Also, Quel'Thalas is organizing reinforcements."

"Excellent!" Turalyon stood up; this was one of the few pieces of good news he had heard recently. "Uther, before the Alliance army arrives at Tower of Observation, have your men keep a close watch on the Dark Portal's movements!"

Dalaran

Khadgar's clean-shaven face looked quite neat. He stood outside the mage city. Although it was late at night, a room in Violet Citadel was still lit. Khadgar focused his consciousness on that room. He began to float upwards, and when his feet touched the terrace, he found the door to the room wide open, with a sheer curtain hanging to keep out insects, but the thin curtain could not block the soft moonlight. Khadgar gently parted it and went inside.

"Welcome, Khadgar." Khadgar wasn't particularly surprised to see Antonidas; this was the Kirin Tor chieftain's room. Khadgar sat down in a chair, and Antonidas handed him a glass of wine.

"Thank you." Khadgar didn't say anything after they both took a sip of the wine.

Antonidas pointed to Khadgar's face, which should have been young, and joked, "You look much younger!"

"I'm trying to make it look as comfortable as possible. I miss this feeling, this feeling of being young. But I'm powerless, someone has to stop Medivh. Most of the time I don't really mind, but sometimes, like right now, I... really miss it."

"...I know." Antonidas nodded, feeling a pang of shame every time he saw Khadgar's face. Khadgar hadn't even turned twenty when he left, but only a year had passed. When he returned to Dalaran, Antonidas felt as if a century had gone by. The Archmage decided to stop discussing this painful topic. "King Terenas should have received my message by now."

Khadgar his anger at the Horde's attack on Dalaran, revealing only his confusion. "I don't understand, the Horde and the black dragons? But what about the Red Dragon? As far as I know, the two Dragons are sworn enemies."

The Archmage shrugged. "No one has seen Red Dragon for a while. Not long ago, a village on the border of Lordaeron was razed to the ground by the Dragons, and an investigation confirmed that it was the black dragons who did it. Perhaps the Red Dragon have broken free from the Orcs' control, which is, of course, the best outcome I could hope for." He frowned and continued, "But the Orcs have found new allies, and it seems that this time they are all doing it voluntarily."

Khadgar shook his head and said, "Are they preparing to invade Azeroth again?"

"I don't know," Antonidas admitted. "Perhaps. They've already invaded once, and while they were at it, they dragged Alterac into the abyss." His brow furrowed even more. "The Orcs stole the Eye of Dalaran, Khadgar."

"Yes." Khadgar knew what a huge loss this was for Dalaran. "But what would the Orcs Horde want it for?"

"I don't know, but they did steal only one treasure," Antonidas said with certainty. "Several Death Knight managed to get through our defenses, take it, and use the black dragons to help them escape. Just a few days ago, there were reports that the black dragons slaughtered all the Alliance troops monitoring Alterac, clearly under the orders of that traitor Perenolde."

"What? How is this possible? How did Perenolde manage to do that?"

"That's another mystery. Khadgar, I think you should know about this."

"Thank you," Khadgar said sincerely. "Yes, I should have known." He frowned, deep in thought, and reached out to stroke his beard, only to find his chin so smooth. "And perhaps I can find the reason behind it all. First the Medivh's Book, and now the Eye of Dalaran. Why are they specifically looking for these things?" Khadgar reluctantly placed his glass on Antonidas's table and stood up. "I should go back."

Tower of Observation

"Focus your attention. You don't need to use force with your hands. Relax your whole body, just like spreading butter on a piece of bread." Nathanos adjusted a soldier's archery posture, but he only said it verbally, crossing his arms in front of his chest. He did not force the recruit to change his posture, and he also stood three meters away to avoid making the other person nervous.

Are you ready?

The recruit swallowed hard and nodded.

"Release your grip," Nathanos calmly ordered. The soldier's hand relaxed, no longer as stiff as before. The arrow sliced through the air and struck the target, hitting the bullseye.

The surrounding soldiers clapped and cheered. The recruit jumped up, bow in hand, while glancing back at Nathanos, awaiting his evaluation.

"Excellent," Nathanos said, nodding in satisfaction, then turned to go elsewhere. But the first thing he saw when he turned back was Alleria in the distance, clad in a tight green breastplate, and he was surprised to see her there. Nathanos stared at her for exactly a few minutes, until the Female Elf turned to leave to report to Turalyon. Watching her retreating figure, Nathanos couldn't help but recall their meeting outside Zul'Aman. What was she thinking then?