Chapter 8 chapter eight

They are approaching step by step, to surround Grim Batol... Nekros had known for a long time that this day would come.Ever since Doomhammer and the Horde's tragic defeat, he has been counting how long it will take for the victorious humans and their allies to push into the last remaining orc territory in Khaz Modan.Yes, the Alliance of Lordaeron had to fight hard to get here, and they did.Nekros could almost imagine the army gathering on the border. But before the army could attack, they wanted to further weaken the orcs.If Creel's words were to be believed—he had no reason to lie at this point—then there should now be a plot: to kill the Dragon Queen, or to free her.

Exactly how many people they sent, Creel couldn't say, but combined with the information on the increasing military activities in the northwest, Nekros could imagine that such a major operation would require at least a regiment of elite knights and rangers To be done.And there will certainly be some mages, powerful mages. The orc weighed his artifact.He knew that even the Demon Soul wasn't enough to protect the place, and he couldn't count on his patriarch to bring aid at this time.Zuluhed (the Ninetowns translator (tired) Zuluhed, who helped Illidan train dragon knights at Dragonmaw Hold in Shadowmoon Valley) is preparing his men to the north for an incoming wave of attacks.Some of the lower ranks guard the borders to the south and west.Nekros had as much confidence in them as he did in Kriel's intelligence—not only that, but in fact, the crippled orc believed in every decision he made.

He limped along the stone path, not stopping until he came to the place where the red dragon riders were resting.There are not many experienced riders left, but one of Necrus' trusted riders is still at the forefront of every battle. Most of the fighters were crowded around the table in the middle of the room, where they usually ate, drank, bragged, and played dominoes.Judging by the din from the crowd, they were having fun now.Nekros knew it would be unwelcome to disturb them at this time, but he had no other choice. "Tugs! Where are the Tugs?" Some people looked towards him, and their angry looks warned Nekros: It is best to interrupt this time because of something important.The lame orc bared his teeth, a heavy brow furrowed.Although his leg is disabled, he has been chosen as the leader here, and no one, not even the dragon knights, can disrespect him.

"You have to have someone to talk to, huh? If there is no one else, I will catch you and feed the female dragon~" "I'm here, Nekros~" A gigantic figure stepped out of the crowd, standing a head taller than all the other orcs.A scowling, ugly face—ugly even by orc standards—gazed Nekros's gaze.One of his fangs had collapsed, and a huge scar ran across that fleshy face, adding a lot of "color" to it.The shoulders, which were half wider than Nekros's, connected two arms as thick as Nekros' good legs. "I'm here……" Tuggs walked towards his officer, and the others respectfully stepped out of the way.Tuggs walks with the unflinching confidence of an orc warrior, and he is entitled to that confidence—how many times his dragon has wrought havoc, griffin riders have slain, human armies have been routed under his command... ...more dragons than anyone else in the clan.Orders and medals from Doomhammer and Blackhand, not counting those from the Zuluheds, dangled from his ax-lines and circled the whole of his chest.

"Are you going to send me on some mission, old man? I could kill them all with seven more! No problem at all!" "That's what you were trained for!" Naruto paused, determined not to let him humiliate him any more. "But do you dare to fight this gambling battle?" Some of the dragoons cursed under their breath, but Tuggs seemed interested. "A special mission? Is there anything better than burning a few useless farmers?" "There might be some soldiers, maybe even a mage or two! That's what you like to play with, isn't it?" Tuggs narrowed his beastly red eyes, "Tell me something more detailed, old man..."

Ronin can finally go to Khaz Modan.He should have been happy at the thought, but the price he paid for it was too high: he had to deal with those dwarves, and they obviously hated Ronin, just as Ronin didn't like them; that was enough broken.Vereesa said she had to go too, which was natural—she had to make this excuse in order to get the promise of Falstad (Ninetowns translated as Falstad? Wildhammer, now the High Lord of Eagle's Nest Mountain)—but This messed up his plans.He must go to Grim Batol alone: ​​without needless companions, and without risking another catastrophe. There can be no more sacrifices.

And what looks even worse now is that he found Duncan?Sir Sentus somehow persuaded the "impossible" Falstad to take him too. "All crazy! Crazy!" Ronin kept saying, more than once. "No one else is needed!" But now, when the Gryphon Riders were busy preparing to carry them across the sea, no one would hear him.No one cared what he said.As ridiculous as it sounds, Ronin even suspects that if he continues to protest, he may end up being the only one left. Duncan had already discussed with his people, and he handed over the command to Roland and asked him to convey some orders to others.The bearded knight entrusted something like a medal to the young subordinate.Rhonin hardly thought anything of it—the Knights of the Silver Hand seem to have a thousand rituals for different trivial occasions—but Vereesa walked up to him, leaned close, and whispered to him: "Duncan He handed over his seal of authority to Roland. If the old knight has any misfortune, Roland will officially take over his position. The knight of the Silver Hand is never kidding."

He turned to ask her something, but she had already walked away.Since Rhonin threatened her, Vereesa's tone became serious.Rhonin didn't want to be forced to do something to get Vereesa back, but he also didn't want her to suffer any misfortune because of his mission.He didn't even want something terrible to happen to Duncan, though the paladin's chances of surviving the interior of Khaz Modan were probably much better than Rhonin himself. "Time to fly!" Falstad shouted. "The sun has come out, and the old people are getting up to work! Are you all ready?"

"I'm ready," Duncan replied solemnly. "I'm ready too~" The nervous mage rushed to reply, not wanting anyone to think that he was the culprit for the delayed takeoff.He would have set off with one of the dwarves last night if he could, but Falstad insisted that the brutes needed enough rest for the morning's action, and Falstad's word was law among the dwarves. "Then let's go to the griffin!" The happy dwarf held out his hand to Vereesa. "What do you think, dear elf lady?" Vereesa smiled back at him and fucked his griffin.Luo Ning had to try his best to keep his expression unchanged.He would have preferred Vereesa to ride a dwarven griffin other than Falstad, but it would have made him look like a complete fool to propose.Besides, it doesn't matter whose griffin Vereesa sits on.

"Hurry up, mage!" Moloch complained, "I really hope this trip ends quickly, the sooner the better!" Duncan put on a suit of light armor and mounted another dwarven griffin.As a warrior, even if the dwarves didn't like him, at least they respected him.They knew the power of the holy order in battle, and that was evidently why Ser Centus had no trouble convincing the dwarves to take him. "Hold tight!" Moloch ordered, "or you will fall to feed the fish!" As he spoke, the dwarf ordered the griffin to run forward, and then took off.The mage had already grasped it as hard as he could, but the feeling that his heart was about to pop out of his throat made him a little worried about the safety of this trip.Luo Ning had never sat on a griffin before. Seeing the huge wings fluttering up and down, he quickly decided that if he didn't die this time, he would never sit on a griffin again.Every time the half-lion, half-bird animal flapped its wings, Rhonin's stomach shook up and down.If there were some other way to cross the sea, he would be very happy.

However, he had to admit that the flying speed of this beast was unimaginably fast.Within minutes, Husk and the entire coastline were out of sight of their gang.Not even dragons could match such speeds for sure, though the gap would be small.Rhonin remembered how the three griffins circled the red dragon's head so quickly.That's a dangerous sideshow even for a griffin, let alone another animal. Below them, the sea was churning violently, the waves first piled high and then sank very low again.The wind was blowing head-on, and the mist that came with it forced Rhonin to pull down the hood of his robe to block them.None of this seemed to affect Morlock; in fact, he was even enjoying it. "How long do you think it will be before we reach Khaz Modan?" The dwarf shrugged. "A few hours, human! It can't be faster~" The mage kept those unpleasant thoughts to himself, and curled up, trying to ignore the journey as much as possible.The thought of having so much water down there irritated Ronin.Between Husk and Khaz Modan only the plundered island nation of Tol Barad can bring a modicum of change to the boundless sea, and Falstad have said before that they will not land there .It was conquered by the orcs at the beginning of the war, and the most advanced creatures left on the island were just some weeds and little monsters.The breath of death seemed to be rising from the island, and the breath was so strong that Rhonin was unwilling to refute Falstad's decision. They flew and flew... Finally, Luo Ning dared to look at his companions.Duncan posed a firm figure in the face of the bitter sea wind, apparently ignoring the drops of water hitting his face~ and Vereesa at least showed a little discomfort with this crazy way of traveling.Like Ronin, she keeps her head down most of the time, with her golden hair tied back in the hood of her cloak.She leaned slightly towards Falstad, and it seemed to Rhonin that the dwarf was enjoying it. Finally, his stomach got used to it a little and it was not so uncomfortable anymore.Rhonin looked at the sun and calculated that they had been flying for about five hours.Judging from the speed of these griffins, they should have already flown halfway.He finally broke the silence and asked Morlock if it was what he thought it was. "Half way?" the dwarf laughed. "In two hours, we'll see the cliffs of Si Khaz Modan! Half? Haha!" The good news, not the dwarf's sudden humor, made Rhonin smile.Three-quarters of the way down the road, he's still alive, and in just over two hours he'll be "on the ground" again.This time, at last, he encountered no more terrible disasters to hinder his progress. "Then do you know where we can land?" "Lots of places! We'll get rid of you soon! Let's hope it doesn't rain before we get there." Ronin looked up, carefully observing the clouds that had just formed over the past half hour.It might be rain clouds, but Rhonin wasn't sure; even if they were, it certainly wouldn't rain before they reached their destination.The only thing he needs to worry about is how he can get to Grim Batol by himself after others return to Lordaeron. Rhonin knew full well that if they found out what his real mission was, they would think it was an extremely reckless plan.He thought again of the ghosts that haunted him, ghosts from the past.They are the real partners of Luo Ning in this mission, and they are the driving force for Luo Ning to move forward.They will watch Ronin, watching him succeed or die. die.Luo Ning had thought more than once that maybe this result might be the best explanation for those companions who died before.Maybe then Ronin can truly atone for his sins and reduce the ghosts in his imagination a little. But first he must go to Grim Batol. "Look over there, mage!" He looked over, not noticing that he had slid down a bit just now.Rhonin looked over Morlock's shoulder to where the dwarf was pointing.At first he saw nothing, the sea foam wet his eyes.After he got a better look, he realized that there were two black spots on the horizon, two still spots. "Is that land?" "Yes, mage, that is Khaz Modan!" near!New vitality and enthusiasm rekindled in Luo Ning's heart, and he thought he should be able to sleep peacefully for the rest of the journey.Khaz Modan is almost here!No matter how difficult the journey may be from here, at least he has managed to get this far.At the speed of a griffin's flight, it only takes a moment longer for them to set foot on— Two new spots caught his attention. These two spots in the sky kept moving, getting bigger and bigger, as if they were coming towards them. "What are those? What are those coming at us?" Morlock leaned forward and looked at each other. "In the name of the Northland Ice Cliff! It's two dragons!" dragon…… "Is it red?" "Does it matter? Dragons are dragons, and by my beard, they're coming at us at high speed!" Rhonin glanced at the other Griffin Riders, seeing Falstad and they also found the two dragons.The dwarves immediately adjusted their formation and spread out to narrow the enemy's target.Rhonin noticed that Falstad was a little behind, probably because of Vereesa.On the other hand, Duncan?The one that Centus rode moved forward quickly, overtaking the other griffins in the group. The two dragons also moved in a strategic manner.The larger one rose to a higher position and then flew away from its mate.Rhonin immediately realized that the two giant beasts wanted to sandwich the griffin and the passengers, and then catch the turtle in the urn. On top of each dragon's hulking form sat an orc, stronger and fiercer than any orc Rhonin had ever seen before.The orc sitting on the larger dragon appears to be the leader.He swung his ax at another orc, and that orc's mount flew off in the other direction. "These two are experienced riders!" cried Morlock excitedly. "The one on the right is especially good! It will be an honorable fight!" It was also a battle that could cost him his life, and it was just when Rhonin thought he had a chance to continue his mission. "We can't fight them! I must go to shore!" He heard Moloch muttering dissatisfiedly: "It is my mission to fight the enemy, mage!" But my mission is more important! " For a moment Rhonin thought the dwarf would actually drop him from the griffin.However, Moloch reluctantly nodded: "I will try my best, mage~ If they show a gap, we will fly to the coast with all our strength! Then I will let you go down, I hope we will have a good time!" "That's it!" Then neither of them spoke again, and at that moment, the two sides began to fight each other. The griffins, who were superior in speed and agility, began to circle the two dragons, and soon the smaller dragon became at a loss.However, due to the extra weight, their griffins could not reach the usual high speed.Falstad and Vereesa were nearly scraped off by a giant, blade-like claw, while Duncan and another dwarf were almost caught by the dragon's wings.Yet the paladin and his companion continued to fly close to the dragon—as if they wanted to take it down in an inventive hand-to-hand combat. It took Morlock some effort to free his storm hammer, and he danced in the air, yelling as if someone had set fire to his head.Rhonin could only hope that the dwarf would not forget his promise to him because of the excitement of the battle. The second dragon swooped down at this point, unfortunately it chose Falstad and Vereesa as targets.Falstad urged the griffin forward, but the griffin couldn't go any faster because it was still carrying Vereesa.The burly orc roared and pushed his reptilian mount along, swiping his massive battle-ax wildly. Ronin gritted his teeth.He couldn't just let them sacrifice, especially the elf ranger. "Moloch, follow the bigger dragon, we're going to help!" Although he was eager to obey the order, the dwarf immediately remembered Rhonin's previous request. "Then what about your mission?" "Don't worry, just go!" A wide grin appeared on Morlock's face.With a shout that set every nerve in the mage's body to tingle, he ordered the griffin to fly towards the dragon. Behind him, Rhonin was about to chant a spell.They only had a few seconds, and the dragon was close to reaching Vereesa... At this moment, Falstad suddenly made a sharp turn of his mount, which surprised Eragon.Unable to stop the castration, the behemoth rushed over the head, obviously not as maneuverable as its smaller opponent. "Hold tight, mage!" Moloch's griffin swooped down at an angle almost perpendicular to the ground, and Ronin tried his best to overcome the primitive sense of fear, and finished the last paragraph of the spell~ Now if he can catch his breath and cast the spell, then—— Morlock let out a battle cry, which caught the orc's attention.The orc frowned, turning his head to deal with the newcomer to the warband. The Storm Hammer collided passionately with the orc's battle ax... A burst of sparks flew over, almost causing Rhonin to let go.The griffin also let out a painful protest.Morlock almost fell out of the saddle. Their mounts reacted quickly, quickly climbing higher into the air, almost plunging into the thick clouds overhead.Moloch readjusted his sitting posture, "In the name of Eagle's Nest Mountain! Did you see that? There are hardly any men and weapons that can escape from the hammer of the storm! This will be an exciting battle !" "Let me try this first!" The dwarf's face immediately darkened. "Magic? What courage and honor is there in that?" "That dragon won't let you get close, why did you fight that orc? We just had better luck!" "Okay, mage! As long as you don't kill it directly, don't take my battle!" Rhonin didn't make any promises about it, mostly because that's what he wanted to do.He stared at the dragon that had flown up with them, muttering a powerful spell.Then, he looked up at the clouds above his head. A bolt of lightning burst out from there, hitting the pursuers behind. The lightning hit the dragon, but the effect was not as good as Luo Ning imagined.The whole body of the great beast shimmered from wingtip to wingtip; it let out a furious roar, but did not immediately fall.In fact, the orc, no doubt he was in pain, but only fell forward. Feeling a little disappointed with this result, Rhonin comforted himself: at least, he had wounded the dragon.It seemed to him now that neither he nor Vereesa was an imminent threat: the dragon's struggle would only keep it in the sky for a while. Rhonin put a hand on Morlock's shoulder. "Fly to the shore, go now, fast!" "Are you a fool, mage? Why did you ask me to fight?" "Now I tell you to go!" More likely because he wanted to get rid of the pissed-off passenger than because he believed in the magi's authority, Morlock reluctantly drove his griffin off the field again.The anxious mage looked around, looking for signs of Vereesa.Yet neither she nor Falstad he saw. Rhonin wanted to change his order again, but he knew he had to get to Khaz Modan as soon as possible.Two dwarves should be able to take care of that pair of monsters... They must be able to. Moloch's griffin had flown far away from the enemy, and Rhonin was thinking about going back.However, a huge shadow suddenly covered them. Ronin and the dwarf looked up and were immediately stunned. The second dragon was flying over them long before they were concentrating on fleeing. The griffin attempted to swoop down to escape the dragon's claws.It almost made it, but the dragonclaw caught its right wing.The griffin roared in pain, struggling desperately to continue flying.Rhonin looked up to see that the dragon's throat had opened—the beast wanted to swallow them whole. Behind the dragon came a griffin--Duncan and his dwarf companions.The paladin put on an awkward pose, as if he was still telling the dwarf what to do.Rhonin didn't know what the knight wanted to do, he just knew that the dragon's claw would catch him and Morlock immediately, and he didn't even have time to cast a suitable spell. Duncan?Centus jumped up. "Wow! Damn!" Moloch screamed strangely. This time, even the crazy Wildhammer dwarves were frightened by the courage and madness of others. It was only then that Luo Ning belatedly thought about what that paladin wanted to do.Any normal person would probably fall to their doom while making such a move, yet the seasoned knight landed on the dragon's neck with astonishing accuracy.He grabbed the dragon's thick neck and adjusted his position.The dragon and the orc finally came to their senses and knew what had happened. The orc raised his battle ax and wanted to slash at Sentus' back, but he avoided it by a hair.Duncan only glanced at him, then seemed to ignore the savage opponent entirely.He moved forward inch by inch, avoiding the dragon's clumsy bite. "He must be crazy!" cried Rhonin. "No, mage, he is a warrior." Rhonin did not understand why the dwarf's voice was so soft and respectful; until he saw Duncan, with his legs and one arm wrapped around the dragon's neck, and the other hand slowly drawing his shining sword .Behind the paladin, the orc crawled forward, his eyes glowing menacingly red. "We have to do something! Let me get closer!" Ronin demanded. "It's too late, humans! The epic carol will..." The dragon didn't try to throw Duncan off, probably out of fear of throwing off its rider too.The orc moves forward more cautiously than the paladin, and will soon be able to move to a distance where he can attack. Duncan sat near the back of the beast's head. He raised his long sword, obviously intending to stab the place where the dragon's spine and the skull joined. But the orcs attacked first. The ax dug into Ser Centus's back, the blade cutting through the light chain mail he had worn for the journey.Duncan didn't cry out, he just fell forward, almost losing his sword.At the last moment, the knight finally regained his grip on the sword. He managed to aim the sword at the place where he was going to stab, but he almost exhausted all his strength. Then the orc raised his tomahawk again. Ronin subconsciously released a spell. A flash as bright as sunlight exploded before the orc's eyes.The orc screamed and fell backwards, unable to sit still while losing his weapon.The desperate orc groped for a handhold, but he couldn't find it, and fell screaming from the side of the dragon's neck. The mage then turned his worried eyes back to the paladin, and Centus also looked back at Ronin with a mixture of gratitude and respect in his eyes.His back was smeared with red blood, yet Duncan sat upright, holding his sword high... The dragon, now realizing that it had no reason to stay still, shook wildly. Duncan?Centus drove the sword so deep into the soft spot where the dragon's neck meets its head that half of the sword was lost in the dragon's body. The red brute began to writhe uncontrollably, blood spurting from the wound, so hot it even scalded the paladin's hand, he was so burned that he let go of one hand and slid out. "Go save him, damn it!" Rhonin ordered Morlock again. "Go and save him!" The dwarf complied.But Luo Ning knew that it was impossible for them to catch up.Rhonin saw a second griffin coming from the other direction: Falstad and Vereesa.Although his mount was a bit overwhelmed, Falstad still hoped to save the paladin. At that moment, they could almost save Duncan.Falstad's griffin was getting very close to the crumbling knight.Duncan looked up, first Rhonin, then Falstad and Vereesa. He shook his head...then, he let go of his hands and fell straight to the sea. "No...!" Luo Ning stretched out his hand towards the distant figure.He knew that Centus was dead, that what had fallen was only a corpse; but that scene brought back memories of the mage's previous failed mission.His fear had finally come true: now he had lost a companion, though Duncan had asked to follow him. "Be careful!" Moloch's sudden warning brought Rhonin back from contemplation, and he looked up at the dragon, which was still writhing in pain in the air.Its huge wings flapped wildly and moved erratically. Falstad had just narrowly avoided one flapping wing with his griffin, and now Rhonin realized that he and Morlock could not avoid the other. "Fly up, you bloody beast!" roared Morlock, "Up..." Before the words were finished, the giant wing struck down with all its strength, tearing Luo Ning away from his position.Then he heard a scream from the dwarf and the wail of the griffin.Confused by the sudden situation, Rhonin didn't even notice that for a while he was still tossing upwards.Then gravity began to drag the semi-conscious mage down quickly... He has to cast a certain spell.Despite his best efforts, Luo Ning couldn't concentrate enough to recall even the first few words.He knew he was doomed this time. At this moment, darkness engulfed him.But it was unusually dark, Rhonin thought, and he might have died.However, a voice suddenly sounded in the darkness, evoking his seemingly distant memories. "I've got you again, kid! Don't be afraid...don't be afraid!" A huge reptilian claw encased Ronin, a claw so big that not even his body could fill the space in the claw.