XIV
The Horde burned through the marsh. Garrosh surveyed his forces as they trudged through the mud and the muck. He road proudly upon his dire wolf, his Kor'kron keeping their vigil of his safety. Though, periodically, the Warchief glanced skyward, expecting to see the Earth-Warder come flying in to stop him. Then, he looked down, watching the ground and expecting the Earth-Warder to rise up from it and stop him.
He expected the Earth-Warder to stop him. In fact, he wanted it. Garrosh grinned.
"Where is he?" asked Malkorok. "You'd think with all the commotion, hearing our arrival, the Black Aspect would come out and meet us."
"I know he will come," said Garrosh. "He's just a little late."
"Perhaps you should ask for his autograph once he arrives, Warchief."
"Certainly, once he is gone, such a signature would become rather valuable," said Garrosh, his grin broadening.
He turned to the sound of gunfire as more Alliance soldiers threw themselves at his army. However, he could not help but to note that there were not many soldiers even guarding the marsh. Fewer were black dragons. Garrosh took in a deep breath. They were in Theramore.
Several paces back Baine and Vol'jin could sense the anticipation in their troops. Baine himself could feel the tingling numbness in his own fingers. The air was deathly still, the thick humidity clung to his fur. He smelled the rotting stench of wet leaves from the swamp. His furred ears twitched as he felt a mosquito land upon it. Then, he heard a slap and turned to find Vol'jin flick off a mosquito from his fingers.
"I should have brought me bug spray, mon," he said. "Dhe bugs ain't dhis bad back on dhe Isles."
"Swamps," said Baine. "And the mosquitos much think you're tasty."
"True," said Vol'jin. "Well, I always knew I was rather sweet."
Baine pulled up to a halt when he heard the sound of a horn. Then, the air creaked across the trees, building up to a deafening roar. The Tauren Chieftain looked to the hazy sky, feeling the air suddenly become hotter. Baine swallowed dryly, his heart leapt into his throat. The raptor Vol'jin rode upon gargled a growl. The troll held his hand out to the dinosaur, grazing down the grain upon its neck. The raptor settled, though its throat trembled as it hissed. He heard Garrosh barking to his soldiers. Then, he heard the sound of swamp gas hiss as it bubbled from the brown bog. Then, an idle cough from behind him as a tauren tried to clear his throat. Then, one after another, every warrior, shaman, mage, paladin, death knight, all loyal to the Horde sank into the mud. They were caught, each one, shoulder deep in the mud just as something massive approached.
Garrosh could hear the the sound of great wings flapping as the creature approached. Baine's heart now sank along with Vol'jin's as they were now held prisoner by the very swamp they marched over. The only one who was free to move around was Garrosh himself. The Warchief looked up and his grin was still beaming. His dire wolf on the other hand was not at ease. The animal's ears flattened as the thing neared. The Warchief gripped the wolf with his thighs as it twitched. He could sense it was about to buck him off.
"Just the dragon I wanted to see," he said.
Neltharion backwinged and landed upon the marsh quite a ways from the army. The ground trembled under his weight and then shuddered just as he slowly walked towards Garrosh. His shadow fell upon them. The soldiers watching him approach wiggled about in their entrapment, some of them attempted to push themselves out of the mud as their fear rose. Goblins got out of their tanks and bolted.
"Come back here, you cowards!" Garrosh called. "Come back here! I will have your heads mounted to the gates of Orgrimmar for this desertion!"
"They run because they know what's coming," said Neltharion. "And they know that this is absolutely stupid, Garrosh! What the hell do you think you are doing coming here with that tiny army and thinking you could take my home away from me?"
Garrosh placed his hands upon his hips and laughed. Neltharion lifted his foot up and then slammed it down only inches away from the Warchief. The wolf bucked the orc off and bounded off while Garrosh slammed into the moist ground, splattering mud upon his face. He heard another thunderous stomp from the dragon as he attempted to rise to his feet. Garrosh fell backwards upon his buttocks again. He felt the heat rise around him and cast his amber gaze forward. His sight was filled with the glowing, fiery mouth and the many, many teeth of the Earth-Warder. Though, this was not the first time he bore witness to Neltharion's massive maw. The last time the Warchief had the pleasure of seeing what it looked like inside, Neltharion attempted to eat him. All because Garrosh called the dragon "Deathwing". Luckily, that human companion who his spies informed Garrosh of her rather intimate relationship to the Earth-Warder, was able to stop Neltharion before he became the dragon's lunch. Though, despite staring down the glowing throat of the Black Aspect, the intense heat which radiated from it, Garrosh Hellscream was not afraid. He smiled.
Neltharion lifted his head and surveyed the army that the Warchief brought.
"Look at this tiny thing," he said. "Were you honestly thinking you could take Theramore with an army of that size?"
"You're forgetting my fleet," said Garrosh.
Neltharion huffed: "Oh, I didn't forget them. They backed up even further than they were when I first spotted them." He rumbled. "Honestly, is this some sort of joke? Is this the Horde's version of knocking on someone's front door and run away, only leaving a burning paper bag filled with steamy dog poo?"
"No, but it is my way of telling you that no matter what you do, or where you go, I am always one step ahead," he said.
Neltharion's eyes rolled as he lowered his head back down to Garrosh.
"Oh, I know about your little secret weapon," he said. "And what you're planning with it. And I want it to stop now. I have your army held hostage, so I shall make my demands. If you want me to let them go, turn yourself over to me. I'll take you to Theramore and there, you will be held as a prisoner of war for the Alliance. And none of your warriors have to fight this ridiculous battle, no one has to give their lives up so foolishly. This can all end right here, right now. Your warriors can go home to their families. I'm sure they are missed. Just give yourself up. Call off that airship."
"This was your plan?" Garrosh asked as he crossed his arms. "This? Hold my brave warriors hostage and hope I would just hand myself over to you in the name of peace?" He started a soft chortle. "Hand me over to the Alliance and think that would stop the might of the Horde? You truly have shown your colors today, Earth-Warder."
"I don't care about this stupid war," said Neltharion. "I just care about my home. My only home! You've not made much of Kalimdor very welcoming. And Varian Wrynn is just as bad. But at least here, I could have some sort of safe haven, something to call home, something to fight for when the world itself has now decided to turn its back on me all because of Deathwing. I cannot erase what he had done, but I am trying hard to fix what I can."
"And failing miserably. All that great power you have and you can't even use it to mend what Deathwing broke. And now you dare threaten me with the lives of my men."
Neltharion shifted, his talons digging deep into the peat. His tail slammed against lines of trees, knocking them flat. The earth trembled again as black smoke and ash puffed from his nostrils.
"Well, then," said Garrosh. "Come on. Let's see how far over the line you are willing to go, Neltharion. Go right ahead and crush every single one of them. Crush them! End this war with one smite. I know you can. I know you have that power."
Neltharion uttered a small, high-pitched whine and his eyes came to Baine and Vol'jin.
"Come on, snatch me up," said Garrosh. "I am at your mercy, just take me."
Neltharion lifted a paw up, ready to take the Warchief. But then he stopped, his paw only over the orc's head.
"What's the matter?" Garrosh asked. "You've tried to eat me once, you were more than ready to swallow me then. Why the hesitation now?"
"Stop the airship," said Neltharion, his voice becoming gravely. "Now."
"Terribly sorry," said the Warchief, still standing so confident even among his frightened soldiers. "But you did not say the magic word."
Neltharion felt a strange tingle upon his back. The air smelled like lead. Through the rock, he heard a twisted ringing tone and he took in a deep breath. Then, he lifted his head up, craning it back towards Theramore. A chill ran down his back as his keen eyes spied a long, dark, sharp shape coming closer. He could see purple streams of energy radiating out from the shape.
"Even if you take me now, you still won't be able to save your home," said Garrosh.
"What is that?"
Neltharion turned back to see who asked that question. Then, he saw Baine and Vol'jin, both chest deep in the mud with their warriors. The Earth-Warder grunted, twitching his cheek. The two felt the mud loosen around them. They wiggled themselves out of the holes, hefting onto their feet and craned their heads painfully to look upon the dragon. Neltharion huffed, black smoke spilling from his nostrils.
"Garrosh has a mana bomb," he replied. "He's gonna use it on Theramore."
"A bomb?" asked Baine. "You are a damned hypocrite, Hellscream! Whatever happened to not forsaking honor?"
"It has enough power to level the entire city, and maybe the surrounding marsh along with it," said Neltharion. "And of course instantly kill anyone within its detonation area."
"Dhis be dhe coward's way!" said Vol'jin. "Thrall would never––"
"And need I remind you that Thrall is not here?" Garrosh asked. "I intend to be rid of all my enemies! Every single one of them. Varian sent his finest to Theramore, and now because of this oversight, he will loose his finest."
"I'll ask again," said Neltharion. "Stop the airship."
"No."
"You are falling into the same path of destruction your father fell into," Neltharion began. "When he decided to dabble in things he did not understand, Garrosh. Have you learned nothing from him?"
Garrosh snorted at the mention of his father's failings. However, he was not going to let this get him down, not at the moment of his eminent victory.
"I've learned that I need to be one step ahead of my enemy," the orc replied. "And five steps ahead of you! I have plans, one to cover every foreseeable stumble. You and your great power, you cannot win against me."
The Earth-Warder growled, finally giving in and snatched the Warchief up into his paw. All Garrosh could do was laugh.
"My Warchief!" Malkorok called. "Unhand him, dragon, now!"
Neltharion opened his paw to look upon Garrosh.
"Go ahead," said Garrosh. "Do it! Crush me!"
"Order them to change course," said Neltharion.
"No. Even if you do capture me, take me prisoner, it will not stop the airship. The bomb will drop no matter what you do."
The dragon growled.
"You have only one option," said Garrosh. "Fly up there and try and stop it. Because I certainly won't."
Neltharion slowly lowered the Warchief down to the ground. Then, he began to spread his wings.
"When I destroy that airship, I will return to finish what I started here!" he growled just as he took off. The torrent wind knocked down Garrosh, Baine, and Vol'jin. They covered their faces as the dust flew into their eyes, stinging them and the wind deafened them once more. Then, once the wind died, they looked up to see the massive Black Dragon fly upwards towards the airship.
"Oh, by all means," said Garrosh as he lifted himself up. "Do come back for another chat, Neltharion. That is if you make it out in one piece."
He turned to his mages: "Prepare the shields."
§§§
Neltharion pumped his wings, swiftly gaining altitude as he shot towards the airship. He could sense the strange energy emanating from the bomb in purple ripples. Below, Neltharion could see Rhonin and Jaina desperately opening up portals in order to save the soldiers that were in Theramore before the bomb hit. The Black Dragon looked down to find Kalecgos racing up towards him. The smaller Blue Aspect righted himself out, his azure wings wide.
"What are you doing?" Kalecgos asked.
"Trying to stop the airship," Neltharion replied. "What are you doing?"
"Same thing," said Kalecgos. "I thought you were going to capture Garrosh."
"I did," he replied. "But he wouldn't break."
"Even if you captured him, he still would have used the bomb?"
Neltharion's lip curled as his eyes became downcast.
"An if I took him there, and the bomb went off anyways," he said. "Garrosh would have died with it."
"A martyr to his cause. And in his death, he would become even more powerful."
"There's only a very small handful of people in the Horde who hate him," said Neltharion. "Because he is driving the Horde to do what it did before, to be what the Horde was originally meant to be. An invading and conquering force, not a society of peace. And the orcs who wanted it are going to get what they want. And to hell with what the lesser races say! Whether or not Garrosh dies. I didn't realize what kind of influence he had until I attempted it. He planned for me to take him. Just like he planned for this."
"What kind of mortal is he?" Kalecgos asked. "I've never met anything like him to out wit an Aspect."
"He didn't have much to do that with," said Neltharion. "I'm not exactly the Aspect with the wit––at least anymore." He looked up as his flight took him high above the thick, white, fluffy cumulous clouds. "It was a bad plan. Stopping the bomb seems like a better idea."
"The plan was good," said Kalecgos. "But maybe it was the execution."
"Right, the execution. I'm glad Jaina had some forethought though, just in case I screwed it up."
"She's an intelligent person––for a mortal," said Kalecgos.
"Admit it, you like her," said Neltharion with a grin.
"Alright, fine, I like her. Anyways, we need to stop that airship. The bomb is putting out a dampening field and it's destabilizing their portals. Rhonin and Jaina can't send people through."
"Well, then, let's knock that airship out of the sky!" bellowed Neltharion.
They pushed on through, soaring high above the clouds. Already, the ship was alerted to their presence and orcs and goblins swiftly manned the gatling guns mounted upon the side. Both dragons banked as the guns fired upon them, opening their mouthes to release their breath weapons. Neltharion coughed and lobbed a boulder-sized lava bomb towards the ship. It impacted, splattering hot, molten rock everywhere, and sending the ship into a fast spin down towards the ground. Kalecgos dove down and latched upon the undercarriage of the ship, diving his claws upon the plating as it plummeted.
"Kalecgos!" Neltharion called.
"Trying to get into the bomb bay," said Kalecgos.
Neltharion started his own dive, folding his wings in, the wind whipping his beard to his side and wiggling loose his braids.
The Blue Dragon continued to tear the underside, plate by plate, bolt by bolt. Then, the door upon the underside of the airship opened up. Kalecgos peeped inside, only to find the bay was empty.
"What?" he said, astonished. He heard the snickering high pitched voices of the goblins inside the ship. Then, he craned his head down towards the ground, seeing a faint, black dot surrounded by purple energy fall towards Theramore Isle. "No! Neltharion, the bomb! They released it!"
Neltharion took in his breath and folded his wings to his side, his body now in a speedy dive straight down. His black body passed the ship as Kalecgos pushed off from it. The Blue Dragon watched with his amethyst eyes wide as the ship itself seemed to vanish in mid of its own drop.
"The ship can teleport?" he asked. "What has Garrosh been up to?"
Kalecgos looked down now, seeing Neltharion in his speedy dive for the bomb.
The Black Dragon felt his eyes begin to water and he squinted them against the wind. His forepaw came outstretched, his face twisted into a hard grimace. The ground was rushing up fast, Theramore Isle became larger and larger with each passing feet he neared. If he caught the bomb, his dive would certainly destroy the city itself. Then, the bomb itself began to activate, its center opened up to reveal the glowing Focusing Iris inside. More arcane energy leaked out in purple and blue streaks along the side. Neltharion came closer his paw arched around the bomb. Then, just as he was about to close his paw around the sphere, suddenly everything turned blinding white.
"Neltharion!" Kalecgos called as he watched the Black Aspect become engulfed in a blinding white and purple sphere of arcane energy radiating out from the bomb itself. The sphere grew, swallowing all of the Earth-Warder, the buildings, the ground, the entire island, inch by inch. Suddenly, Kalecgos felt the force of the blast beat against him and he was thrown back, spinning off towards the southeast.
The whole world seemed to turn white.
§§§
The blinding purple-white light etched its way across the marsh and Garrosh had to shield his eyes. The blinding flash nearly burned his retinas. Everything was bathed in white. The trees around them seemed to burn with purple-white fire and then, shattered like glass. The shields held strong, taking the force of the shockwave that blasted forth through the marsh, leveling brush and trees. Lightning danced across the enormous dome of purple-white as it grew and grew, rising like a swollen sun in the southeast.
A strange phenomena.
The air was charged, the smell and taste of lead upon their tongues. Ringlets of ionized, vaporized air formed around the sphere of energy. And then, the sphere collapsed upon itself with a second deafening boom. The air sucked in with a whoosh and Garrosh watched as whatever trees were left blew inward towards the blast. Then, he turned back to Theramore, a grin spreading across his tattooed face. Rising up from the blast was the strangest cloud he had ever seen. It was shaped like a mushroom of purple and gray debris. Higher and higher, a hundred feet, five hundred feet, then a thousand feet up into the air.
He saw the Earth-Warder dive before the blast, and the Spell-Weaver there too. Then, when the great dome formed, swallowing Theramore up in its blinding bright light, the Earth-Warder was gone. So was the Spell-Weaver. He turned, hearing his mages murmur to themselves about how their mana cache had been stolen from them when the blast happened. Any device powered by arcane energy suddenly went dead. The tanks stalled, their arcane batteries drained. Wands could not work.
As the cloud thundered higher and higher into the sky, Garrosh started to laugh. He opened his arms wide, holding Gorehowl up proudly, triumphantly.
"Glory to the Horde!" he bellowed to the sky. "Hellscream has won!"
Baine looked upon the cloud, his heart falling to the pit of his stomach. He fell to his knees, dropping his weapon from his hand. He looked on as the cloud rose high, hitting the ceiling of the sky and spreading out, carried by the trade winds––carrying the remains of Theramore and scattering them across Kalimdor. The Tauren's mouth hung open, his eyes began to water as he saw the destruction. What was a forest and marsh now was flattened, dried, crystalline, sandy plains. The shield held up and protected them as they bore witness to Garrosh's power.
He watched as those who came to defend their home were instantly reduced to ash at sight of the flash. They had not even a chance to fight such an awesome power. His head bowed, his black mane fell into his eyes, becoming slick with his tears. Tears fell down his muzzle as he curled up. He grabbed the soil beneath him and he began to beat the ground. His heart and mind was awash with every emotion, sorrow, horror, anger, confusion, vengeance. And he continued to beat the ground, grunts, growls, and sobs escaping his mouth.
Vol'jin stood, frozen, his eyes wide. His daggers dropped from his hands as well and he felt his legs go numb. His throat was dry, his jaw slacked. He did not know what to feel, what he could feel after witnessing such power.
And all for a little island stronghold? Was using such power really worth the little island stronghold?
Then, the Troll turned to Garrosh who still laughed cheerfully.
"What have you done?" he asked, suddenly breaking the awestruck silence. "What have you done?"
The brown-skinned orc turned to his query and his eyes narrowed.
"I have given the Horde a much needed victory," Garrosh replied. "And I have erased at last that one little blight upon Kalimdor."
Baine lifted his head, his eyes red with his tears. His jaw trembled, his shoulders shook.
"The Worldmender," the Tauren began, his voice almost sounded lost.
"Dead," said Garrosh. "Along with that Blue Dragon Aspect." He raised his hands again. "I have slain Deathwing the Destroyer! At last the Great Black Dragon and his accursed brood is long gone! And those who remain do so because they now serve me! They serve the might of the Horde!"
"Dhe Earth-Warder is dead?" Vol'jin asked. "Have you lost all rational thought, mon?"
"You are a fool, Troll!" Garrosh shouted as he pointed his axe at Vol'jin.
"No, I be no fool!" Vol'jin retorted back, his lips pulled taunt over his tusks. "Tis you who are dhe fool, Hellscream! You've doomed us all."
"We don't need the Earth-Warder," said Garrosh. "I finally did what that softy Thrall could not. I killed Deathwing."
"But you said we needed the Worldmender," said Baine. "And we do. He is the heart of the Earth-Mother. Without him, her heart is broken, the world will break with her. Thrall cured the Worldbreaker so that he may then cure the world of its own sickness." He pointed a thick finger right at Garrosh. "What you have done is blasphemous against HER!"
"How dare you question me in my moment of glory," Garrosh said in a low growl.
"Even I felt dhe spirits singing in rejoice when that Black Dragon you hated was cured," said Vol'jin. "Whatever Thrall did to make him sing a different tune helped the world. I knew dhe world before Neltharion's cure, and dhen I knew it afterwards. Me shamans never felt stronger in dhey connection with dhe elements, never felt such joy in dhey lives before the cure. I never felt stronger with me connection. Dhe song sings loudly and happily and you silenced it!" His hands balled into fists. "Four two years, I heard it, we all heard it and now it's gone!" His hands dropped heavily to his sides. "You stole it away, Garrosh Hellscream. And now, I hear nothin'."
"What I have done is given you a glorious battle at Northwatch!" Garrosh said. "And I tempered your patience so that Theramore would draw in the Alliance's finest soldiers. Now each of you a veteran of a battle against the likes of Jaina Proudmoore, Archmage Rhonin, General Marcus Jonathan, and General Shandris Feathermoon! As well as the Worldbreaker himself! When we march home, we march with pride in our hearts for we have faced odds that could break any one man, and we stood and won!" He lifted his thick hand up, clutching it into a fist. "And to secure such a glorious victory, I snatched away one of the most powerful magical artifacts in the world and the finest magic wielders to fashion a weapon that can destroy entire cities with one blast!"
Then he turned back now to the deep crater slowly filling with sea water that once was Theramore Isle.
"This is what we have wrought for the glory of the Horde!" he called. Garrosh's heart swelled with pride even more just as he heard the cheers from his soldiers.
"Hail, Garrosh Hellscream!" they called. "Warchief of the Horde!"
Baine lowered his head, his hands covering his ears from the cheers and the laughter. He wagged his head heavily, his brow lined with grief and self-loathing that he had a part to play in this.
"My spirit is tainted," he whispered to himself, his words drowned by the cheers. "After all he tried to do––make peace––and I wanted it so badly––this is how I even repay for kind words filled with wisdom? By leading Garrosh here to kill him? He had no part in this, Vol'jin. He only wanted to protect––his home, his family. He never saw this as the war between the Alliance and the Horde, only an invasion of his home and he tried to resolve it peacefully."
"An honorable task," said Vol'jin, picking up what Baine said. He knelt to the tauren. "No bloodshed, no one having to die today, Horde or Alliance. We all go home to our families and call it a draw. Fight another battle, one more fitting warriors dhan dhis massacre. He really be not Deathwing, yeah?"
"And now we've lost both," said Baine.
"Me brother Thrall, he ain't gonna like dhis either," said Vol'jin. "All dhat work he did to even purge dhe taint off of dhe dragon, all it lost now. All in vain. And Thrall was so proud dhat despite dhe Cataclysm, he actually made a through it all."
Baine wiped his snout and turned to the blue-skinned Troll.
"Neltharion said he wanted to meet with you. He wanted to meet you and talk."
"Talk, huh? About what?"
"What he talked about with me," said Baine. "A peaceful future. Help us if we helped him too. And he said that if we had someone on our side that was more powerful than Garrosh, perhaps we wouldn't be so afraid of him." His head lowered. "Oh, how he was wrong in that. Neltharion even told me about what Garrosh was building––that bomb––what he used to make it with. He had no idea that Garrosh would use it against him."
"I would have liked to talk with him," said Vol'jin. "If in he not stomp on my people's homes, dhat is." He sighed. "I reckon I won't get dhat chance now."
Vol'jin looked up, seeing the shadow of Garrosh fall over him and Baine as the orc stepped closer.
"I know what you are feeling, my friends," he began, his voice dripping with a tone of sinister, yet sweet deceit that made Baine's ears flatten against his head. "Confusion, awe, shock by the power you have witnessed today. So, I will excuse your slanderous words to me for now. We've all had a busy day. There is nothing more we can do here." He turned back to Malkorok. "I shall leave a small garrison to fetch that very important component in our victory. Hopefully it has not been harmed in the blast and we can still use it again. Perhaps Feathermoon shall be the next ground zero target."
"Ground zero?" Malkorok asked. "Ah, a fitting name for the center of the blast. I shall order a trustworthy garrison now to search for––"
He broke off when they felt a sudden jolt from the ground. A violent tremor quaked and the ground began to split open. Baine shot to his feet, his heart leaping into his throat. He hoped, he hoped dearly that the quake was being produced by the Earth-Warder. He hoped the dragon survived. He looked on as the crater that was now filled with the water from the ocean cracked open and caved in, revealing a larger hole in the ground. The land around them began to crack open as well as the ground caved in, collapsing upon a vast cavern system hidden deep within the marsh.
The ground opened up and lava erupted up, shooting skyward like a fountain. Garrosh and his warriors started to run from the eruption as it showered hot, orange rocks upon the ground.
"The Earth-Warder?" Malkorok asked as they all paused in their flight.
Garrosh's eyes narrowed when he beheld the eruption slowing down. The fountain fizzled out, leaving only a few cracks here and there along the ground.
"No," he replied. "But the Earth-Warder must have dug a vast cavernous system under the marsh. We all knew there were lava pits in his daughter's lair. He must have extended it."
They marched northward towards a hill looking over the marsh. Garrosh ascended and surveyed the damage.
"That fool of a dragon built a network of caverns all around the marsh and into Theramore!" he said. "And now, because of the bomb, it's all collapsed. Another show of the might of Hellscream." Garrosh scratched his chin. "This whole area is volcanically active." Then he scanned the tall ridges that surrounded the marsh. "I'll be damned. I should have known! The entire marsh itself sits inside an ancient volcano caldera."
"Dustwallow Marsh is a volcano?" asked Malkorok.
"A hidden volcano," said Garrosh. "Of course that fat dragon wanted to live here! His kind always love volcanoes. This is the perfect place for him, inside the mouth of a massive volcano––the largest known, perhaps. But innocent looking. No one the wiser to its true identity. Dustwallow Marsh––no, Dustwallow Volcano!"
"Our scouters have reported the latest of Theramore's use of generators driven by geothermal activity," said Malkorok. "Orgrimmar sits on a volcanic site as well."
"And we are making use of it as well," said Garrosh. "But this is astounding."
"How do you even know that this is a volcano?" Baine asked.
Garrosh grinned, glancing back at the Tauren chieftain: "I've studied. The Earth-Warder is a well of knowledge. And now, only I have that knowledge. And I shall put it to even better use than he." He took in a deep breath, holding out his arms. "Now, come, we must return home! Malkorok––make sure the men you pick are very good swimmers."
"Yes, Warchief," he said.
As the army turned to leave, Baine took one last look upon the enormous filled in sink hole that was the island of Theramore. Vol'jin placed his hand upon Baine's shoulder.
"There's nothing we can do about it now, brother," he said. "We'll––give them a proper final words when we get home."
"Make it a good one," said Baine.
"Dhe best, mon," said Vol'jin. "Dhe best."