Command

Archimonde watched as his Warrior retreated in full force. Large numbers of demon soldiers shed their blood on the battlefield, falling to the blades of the Elf or being torn to shreds by the Night Elf's mounts. The demon counterattack seemed unlikely to achieve its intended goals, given the tenacious resistance of the Blackrock Spire defenders.

Archimonde witnessed it all, but instead of being enraged, he smiled. Ravencrest was dead, and the muscular greenskin Warrior and the agile undead were elsewhere. Archimonde greatly admired the Orcs' primal strength and Nathanos's cunning.

"Now is the time..." he hissed.

Garrid is still trying to gather anyone who can join the fight, but the fortress is now severely understaffed, and deserters have also appeared.

But Garrid still didn't give up. "Everyone! Move! For Kalimdor!"

Just then, a sound reached his ears, catching his attention. The sound reminded Garrid of his past observations of flocks of birds landing on trees. The sound of many wings flapping in the air was incessant.

He looked up.

A dark mass of Doomguard appeared in the sky.

"By Elune!"

Each Doomguard carried a heavy jar, from which smoke occasionally drifted. The jars were quite large and heavy, too heavy for the Night Elf to lift, and even the Doomguard seemed to be struggling, as if carrying them required all their strength.

Garrid Shadowsong stared intently at the demons, watching them fly at full speed towards the leading guardian Elf ... and then towards the center of the formation. The battle on the ground was raging, and many probably hadn't even noticed the demons in the air. Desdale Stareye was no exception.

We should report to StarEye immediately: Garrid has no other choice now. Ravencrest is gone, and there's no one else we can count on.

Captain Garrid leaped onto his mount—a Night Saber named Bud —and galloped off in the direction he had last seen the Star-Eye banner. Shortly after he left his position, Doomguard suddenly began circling above the Elf army. The captain saw one of the Doomguard begin to empty its jars.

Boiling green liquid was poured over the heads of the unsuspecting soldiers.

They screamed in agony. The soldiers splashed with the deadly liquid collapsed to the ground, writhing in agony. This single jar of liquid could burn more than a dozen Night Elf, leaving them severely injured, crippled, or even killed on the spot.

Immediately afterwards, the other winged demons also poured out the jars they were holding. In an instant, Fel energy rained down from the sky, showering upon the guarding army.

The soldiers scattered in panic, fleeing for their lives; the entire ranks were in complete disarray and utterly routed. They could bravely face the enemy's claws and blades, for those threats could be repelled with weapons, but they were helpless against the actions of the Doomguard.

Garrid urged his mount to gallop away, the painful screams echoing in his ears. Soon he saw the banner of Desdale Stareye, and not long after, he saw the leader himself.

The scene before him shattered Garrid's fighting spirit; he sat frozen on his mount. Desdale Stareye sat astride it, like a dead man. He had watched helplessly as his grand battle plan crumbled into nothing, unable to conceive of any action to turn the tide of battle. His subordinates and guards surrounded him, gazing helplessly at their command palace. Garrid saw no hope in their faces.

The captain of the Night Saber rode past the guards and a nobleman, his hands trembling as he reached out to the commander. "My lord! Take action! We must destroy those demons!"

"Too late, too late!" Starry Eyes muttered, looking away. "We're finished! Everything's over!"

"Commander!" Garrid instinctively looked up at the sky.

Two demons were hovering above their heads, each carrying a jar full of venom.

Garrid grabbed the nobleman's arm and shouted, "Danger! Get out of here!"

Starry-eyed's expression turned somewhat wooden, and she disdainfully flung his arm away. "Let go of me! Who do you think you are, Garrid!"

Garrid stared at Star Eyes in disbelief. "Commander, it's dangerous here!"

"Get out of my way, or I'll lock you up!"

Garrid cursed, knowing he couldn't persuade the man to leave, and then sharply jerked the reins, urging his mount to depart.

He left at the perfect time.

In the blink of an eye, a torrent of Fel poured onto Stareye and those around him, Fel melting their metal armor and scorching their skin. A searing pain shot through them, and Stareye's Night Saber abruptly flung its master's hissing body away. Stareye crashed to the ground, his once proud face now contorted with terror, unrecognizable. His men and guards fared even worse; those who hadn't died convulsed on the ground, their faces mangled, their screams a chilling spectacle.

Garrid was powerless to help them.

The Doomguard flew through the air, posing almost no threat to the large army of guards. Only a few arrows were shot from the ground, felling a few Doomguard and killing others with the Moon Guard, but the overall strength of the force was not being utilized. Garrid was astonished by the army's disorganization and lack of cohesion, and couldn't help but recall that Stareye had long ago replaced all the military officers under the former commander with his own confidants.

Before long, Garrid was surprised to find that some of the Night Elf troops were still waiting in place. They waited anxiously for any possible new orders.

'What's going on? We need manpower right now, why are some people still standing still?'

The captain of the guard rushed up to the group, shouting, "What are you doing? What are you doing? Can't you see the demons slaughtering our brothers and sisters?"

"We await Lord Desdale's orders, Captain," one of the Elf replied. Garrid understood that they were unaware of their commander's death and assumed the nobleman would summon them at any moment.

"How many archers does this unit have?" Garrid asked.

"Dozens, the guard captains!"

This is far from enough, but it's better than nothing. "Get the archers ready! The rest of you, provide protection! Aim at those Doomguard! Take them down!"

The officer immediately gave the order. Garrid looked around anxiously, searching for something that could be used as a weapon. Just then, a man on horseback galloped up to him. He saluted Garrid, a gesture that made Garrid feel like the supreme commander.

"The eastern wall has been breached, and we're almost at our breaking point!" he said, pointing to a spot near the center behind him. "The commander in charge of that defense has sent me to request reinforcements!"

He ordered the officer, "Go to Suramar immediately! Find Archmage Elisande and ask her to send reinforcements." Garrid then remembered something and added, "Mage troops and archers would be best."

After Garrid finished speaking, the other person's expression relaxed somewhat, and he accepted the order and left. Before Garrid could even process his thoughts, two more people came rushing over. Seeing this, the captain of the guard guessed that people had seen him organizing forces for a counterattack, and therefore some people mistakenly thought he was commanding the troops in the name of Desdale Stareye.

Although Garrid was not the commander, he could not ignore them. He listened carefully to their needs and tried to come up with a temporary solution.

To his surprise, another Moon Guard arrived before him. Despite being a high-ranking mage, the Moon Guard, dressed in a long robe, breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Captain Shadowsong.

"The archers effectively halted the winged demons' attack. Although the casualties were considerable, we have regrouped. We are now dealing with those in the sky and therefore require more protection!"

Garrid struggled to suppress his urge to swallow. Not wanting the mage to see his unease, he feigned a glance towards the distant left flank. He saw several rows of soldiers huddled together to prepare for the approaching demons. The soldiers in front were packed tightly together, while those behind were unable to exert their strength, and many front-line soldiers were brutally killed by the enemy's blades as they were pushed and shoved.

"Go back there immediately and extract a small unit from that force." Garrid's forehead was beaded with sweat. He wasn't sure if a small unit could solve the Moon Guard's urgent problem, but if no troops were sent, the Moon Guard would be in danger. He could only silently pray that no innocent lives would be lost because of his decision.