Chapter 48: The Defence of Lordaeron

Kelrian said nothing as he plumped himself on the wooden bench. Zetai sat next to him and was chewing on a slice of bread. Together with two other rangers and three soldiers from Lordaeron they had watched over a section of the west wall. They had walked from one tower to the next tower and then back to the first one. They had done that over and over again within the past six hours. There were other groups who were patrolling the other sections of the wall. A total of fifty groups of six to ten soldiers.

Kelrian's group was halfway through their shift. Twelve hours of patrolling. Their shift had started at twelve o'clock midday and would end one hour after midnight. At the moment they had a break for an hour. They could eat and drink something, take a nap or do something else. They just couldn't leave the small barrack near the wall in case that the orc army would approach the city.

Most soldiers slept the rest of the day in these barracks to be fit when the siege would begin. No soldiers wanted to be tired when the battle would those who were patrolling when the orc army would approach would lack sleep but the thrill of battle and the adrenaline would keep them awake. Not to mention that priests and mages knew a spell or two to keep their comrades awake.

Kelrian had to admit to himself that he was a bit afraid. Afraid and worried. He was worried that the orcs would manage to win the battle. He had seen their gigantic army when they had walked through the mountain pass two days ago. They had far more warriors than Lordaeron even with their reinforcements. The orcs outnumbered them but the defenders could hide behind thick walls and shoot everything they got at the Horde while they would try to break through the gate with their battering ram.

Kelrian knew that the army of the high elves and another army which was led by the legendary warrior Anduin Lothar were on the way. He hoped they would arrive soon. The orcs wouldn't know what would happen to them if these two armies would flank them.

Nevertheless, Kelrian was worried. He was not worried about himself. He was worried about his loved ones. Sylvanas was safe in Silvermoon so was his mother and his younger siblings. Only his older siblings and his friends would participate in the upcoming battle. His siblings might not like him but he didn't want to lose them, no matter how they behaved towards him.

His sister hadn't insulted him the last time he had seen her. Even the way she had looked at him had been different. She didn't seem to hate him anymore which was a good sign. But she hadn't said anything to him nor had he said anything to her. They had refused to talk to each other and had avoided eye contact.

He was wondering if Seitor would behave like Sydori if he would meet him one day. Maybe he didn't hate him anymore and tolerated him instead. Just like Sydori. It could also be possible that he still hated him. Kelrian couldn't know how his brother thought about him. He would only find out when he would meet him one day.

Kelrian closed his eyes and enjoyed the warmth in the room. It was just six o'clock in the evening but it was already cold outside. He still hadn't gotten used to the mild climate in Lordaeron. He had never left Quel'Thalas before in his life, so his body had had no chance to get used to a different climate. His body was used to constant temperatures of plus twenty degrees and not to fluctuating temperatures. From minus three degrees to plus fifteen degrees was everything possible. At this very moment, minus two degrees were outside.

He had felt them. Despite his thick leather gloves, his hands had become cold. He had moved his fingers constantly to keep them warm as best as possible. He hated having cold fingers but cold toes were much worse. He couldn't move them as smoothly in his shoes as his fingers in his gloves so they had been cold most of the time. He had rubbed his hands together very often but he hadn't been able to do that with his feet.

At least he sat in the warm room now and could warm up. He could slurp hot soup and talk to the other soldiers. Zetai had never been a talkative person and that hadn't changed when his girlfriend had been killed. He was more the type of man who listened to what others had to say and comment that.

Kelrian could start a conversation if he wanted but there was nothing he had to say at this very moment. He hadn't spoken to Zetai about the troll queen yet nor had he talked to him about Salna's death. He could see the grief in Zetai's eyes whenever he tried to come to that subject but he always pulled back and stopped speaking whenever Zetai's facial expression reflected pain. Emotional pain.

Kelrian had decided to wait until Zetai would come to him and speak to him about his problems. He would listen to him and help him as best as he could if that day would come. If that day would ever come. They were still best friends even though Zetai had killed the troll queen. Kelrian wouldn't let Zetai down and end their friendship like the majority of Zetai's friends did. They refused to talk to him after they had heard about what he had done.

In Kelrian's opinion, Zetai had done a terrible mistake when he had killed the troll queen. A mistake that would have long-term consequences. For him, So'mi had deserved to die for all the crimes she and Zul'jin committed in the past. She had also ordered his execution so he didn't mind that she was dead. He just felt sad for the unborn child which had died with her.

Now that he would become a father in five months, the unborn child's death affected him more. He imagined from time to time what would happen if Sylvanas would lose their child. These thoughts were unbearable so he tried to distract himself whenever they came up in his mind. In the end, he stopped thinking about that scenario but he knew he couldn't banish these thoughts forever. They would return sooner or later. So will the fear about the well-being of Sylvanas and their child.

He had to talk to Zetai about his actions one day but he would wait until his friend would make the first step and come to him to talk about everything. It wouldn't work the other way around. Kelrian would listen to his friend and help him as best as he could. Maybe Zetai would even have a bad conscience one day and try to make up for what he had done. That was all Kelrian was hoping for.

"You saw the Warchief, didn't you?" Zetai asked after a while.

"I did. He led his warriors through the pass but he was protected by a magical barrier. There was no way we could have killed him from above, so we decided to follow the orcs until they stopped and built a camp near Stillwater Pond. Then our mage created a portal and we returned to Lordaeron and told the king what we saw," Kelrian told.

"So, they are not far away from us," concluded the red-haired man.

"A march of half a day at maximum."

"They will come for us soon."

Kelrian nodded.

"Are you afraid?"

Kelrian was silent, considering what he should answer. He was not afraid of losing his life for the greater good. He would defend this city with his life. As long as Sylvanas was safe he had no reason to be worried. He hoped he would survive the upcoming battle. He didn't want his child to grow up with only one parent. He would take care of himself but he would fight as long as he could stand.

He wouldn't hide behind the others and run away as soon as the orcs would approach them for the case they would break through the main gate. He would fight them until the very end. Even if it would cost his life. He was not a coward. He was a proud ranger and he will make sure his arrows will kill as many orcs as possible.

"A little, I guess."

Zetai nodded at him but didn't say anything in return.

"What about you? Are you scared?"

"Do I look like I'm scared? Was there anything that ever scared me?"

Kelrian turned his head to look at his friend. "No."

"See."

Kelrian nodded but didn't respond.

"I have nothing to lose. My sister is safe in Silvermoon. Since... Since Salna's death... Since her death, my sister is the only person I have left. I care about her. Well, I also care about my friends. Elena, Elonis, Vara and you. But my sister is the most important person in my life. As long as she is safe, I have no reason to be afraid. I just hope you will make it. You and the others are the only friends I have left so I hope fate will protect you and let you survive the war."

Kelrian nodded silently. He had noticed the small amount of sadness in his friend's eyes when he had said the name of his deceased girlfriend. That was proof enough that he was not an emotionless man. He had emotions like every other creature but he didn't like to show them. He hid them. It worked most of time but there were also moments where he couldn't suppress his emotions. Moments like this one. He always appeared strong and unshakable but the truth was that he was not. He was emotionally hurt but he wasn't showing it.

The death of his lover and their unborn child had affected him. Kelrian had the impression that Zetai wanted to talk to someone about everything and show how he felt. Kelrian would love to talk to his best friend and comfort him but too many people were in the same room so he wouldn't be able to do that at the moment. He would have to wait until he and Zetai would be alone. Maybe he would get the opportunity after the end of their shift, right before they would go to bed.

Zetai said something but it was drowned out by loud war horns. The war horns of the Alliance. Their sound can only mean one thing. The soldiers on top of the walls had spotted the orc army in the distance. The Horde was here.

The soldiers in the room got up quickly and left the room after they had grabbed their weapons. Kelrian and Zetai followed the others out of the barrack. They walked over to the staircase that led to the top of the wall. They stood on the west wall so they couldn't see anything from there. They had to go to the front wall to see anything. But they remained there because they had been ordered to stay there until they would receive a new order.

They stayed there for two hours in which nothing happened. They were just told that the orcs could be seen from the front wall and were coming closer. Another hour had passed as a human general from Lordaeron came to them. It was a female with short blonde hair who was one head smaller than Kelrian. She wore iron armour which was adorned in gold and blue and carried a sword and a massive shield in her hands.

"The orcs are about to attack the gate with a battering ram but they also have lots of ladders. It's not unlikely that they try to climb the west wall. You need to stay here and shot everything you got at the ladder carriers once they come in your range. Try to push their ladders away when they lean them against the wall. You can also use fire if they are made out of wood. You have to prevent that they reach the top of the walls. We will have a huge problem if they manage to do that."

Kelrian, his group and all the other soldiers who had gathered on this section of the wall nodded their heads. The general wished them luck, then she took the staircase and rushed away quickly. Kelrian regarded her for a few moments before he turned around and looked to the north. He couldn't see anything from this position. He couldn't see the orc army so he couldn't know how far away they were from the front gate.

He knew they had tens of thousands of warriors and a huge battering ram. He wondered how long the gate would withstand. He assumed that soldiers of the Alliance will swarm out of the city and fight the orcs who were pushing the battering ram once it will come too close to the gate.

They will try to buy enough time for the mages and rangers on top of the wall so they could try to destroy the massive battering ram. He knew that the defenders will tip hot boiling oil on the orcs and their ram. King Terenas had come up with that idea when he talked to Alleria, Vara, Kelrian and his advisors about the defence strategy. Kelrian also knew that the oil stock was limited. They didn't have as much oil drums as King Terenas had hoped for, so they had to use it wisely.

Kelrian noticed that his heart was beating faster in his chest than it normally did even though he couldn't see the enemy yet. He could only imagine that it would beat violently in his chest once he would see the orcs. If they would try to climb the west wall.

He was worried but also a little excited at the same time. He was looking forward to killing many of these green monsters. He had twenty-four arrows in his quiver, one of them was the one Sylvanas gave him. Her favourite arrow where her initials were engraved. There were enough mages on the walls and enough large pots which were filled with hundreds of arrows.

It was very unlikely that he would ever run out of arrows. He wouldn't need to use Sylvanas' arrow as long as he would stay on the wall. To him, it was a lucky charm like the necklace around his neck. He touched the piece of jewellery at this very moment and stroked over the smooth material with his fingertips. He closed his eyes and thought about Sylvanas. He thought about the first time they had met, the best moments they had shared before they came together and then he remembered the best moments they had shared after they came together.

He opened his eyes after a while, noticing that he felt a lot calmer. His heart was no longer beating rapidly in his chest and his skin wasn't tingling anymore. He was ready for battle so was everyone around him. But nothing happened at the west wall within the first few hours. He had no clue what was going near the gate on the north of the city. The orcs could have already started their attack or they were still running towards the city.

He couldn't know what was going on, he just hoped lots of orcs would die before they would reach the gate. He hoped the soldiers on the walls would prevent that the battering ram would destroy the gate. The defenders would have a huge problem if the orcs would manage to do that.

Three more hours went by in which nothing happened, but then shapes on the horizon could be seen. These shapes could only be warriors of the Horde. Many of them carried ladders which were either made out of wood or iron. Kelrian pulled his bow from his shoulder and nocked an arrow. Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw that the other archers did the same. The mages began to prepare spells with a very long cast time. They knew the orcs would need quite some time to come in their range so they had enough time to prepare their most powerful spells.

Half an hour passed. The orcs were almost in the range of the archers but barriers were wrapped around the groups of ladder carriers. The ballistae and catapults on top of the turrets were already firing at the attackers. A massive stone hit a group of twelve orcs, killing all of them. A ballistae bolt came in contact with one of the barriers which protected the many groups of ladder carriers. The barrier blocked the bolt but it dissolved in return. The unprotected group was hit by another stone before the orc mages were able to create another barrier. All of these ladder carriers were dead but there still were enough other groups with ladders out there.

Kelrian waited for Vara's command. Several hundreds of arrows flew through the air once the captain had given her archers permission to fire. Not every arrow hit its target. But nearly a hundred did, the rest either missed or were blocked by shields or dozen orcs died and more followed them after the second volley of arrows was fired. The attackers who carried shields held them in front of them or above their heads. There were many shields which were spiked with several arrows but were still not destroyed. The orc archers fired at the archers on top of the wall as soon as they were in range. Barriers protected them at the beginning but the orc shamans and mages managed to destroy them quickly.

The archers of the Alliance hid behind the battlements whenever they weren't firing arrows. But the battlements couldn't protect them forever. They had to leave their cover whenever they fired their arrows at the Horde. Not everyone managed to avoid the Horde's arrows and spells.

More arrows flew through the air, hit orcs, high elves, dwarves and humans. Mages cast spells. Fire rained down onto the green creatures, the feet of hundreds were frozen to the ground. Sharpe ice shards rained down on them, even larger ice blocks were thrown at them. Most of them killed at least five orcs at the same time.

But the spellcasters on the side of the Horde were not idle in the meantime. The fingers of dozens of shamans crackled whenever they formed lightings between their hands. Lighting strikes were fired at the defenders on top of the walls. Many died, one of the ballistae was destroyed.

Fireballs were thrown, earth elementals were summoned which tore pieces of hardened earth out of the ground and threw them at their enemies. Even the wind was manipulated so that half of the arrows from the side of the Alliance were diverted. Their flight paths were altered so they often missed their targets. Nevertheless, many orcs died before they even came close to the wall.

Kelrian fired arrow after arrow, hiding behind the battlements whenever he pulled out another arrow and nocked it. Then he came out, aimed for a short moment and fired, hiding behind the battlements once again. He did that for a while, killing more than two dozen orcs within the first hour. He refilled his quiver whenever it was almost empty.

The first group of ladder carriers was not far away from the wall. The barrier around them had been destroyed so dozens of orcs had moved in front of them and ran with them and covered them with their shields and their massive bodies. Several carriers still died but most of them had survived so far.

They ladder carriers came closer. They weren't in the range of the catapults and ballistae anymore so only the archer and spellcasters could kill and stop them. The defenders killed as many as they could but they weren't able to kill all of them. They couldn't prevent that the first ladder was leaned against the wall. Orcs started to climb on it but the defenders managed to push the ladder away, causing that it and the orcs landed on the ground. The noises of breaking bones and angry shouts were quietly hearable.

More ladders were leaned against the wall and the defenders gave their best to knock them off. Lots of ladders were pushed away but there were too many which leaned against the wall. There were also iron ladders which were harder to remove because of the hooks on their ends. More soldiers were needed to push them back. Sometimes even more than three soldiers were unable to push a ladder off because the orc mages had cast certain spells on it to make it a lot heavier so the soldiers couldn't remove it without the help of magic.

A few orcs managed to climb the walls before all ladders had been repelled once again. They managed to kill two soldiers and injure another but then they were killed in the end. Their bodies were spikedwith arrows and sharp ice splinters. The defenders poured oil over the dead orcs then three soldiers of the Alliance pulled up the first body and threw it over the battlement. Kelrian,who had held the tip of his arrow in a torch shot the ignited arrow at the body once it landed on his race members. The body got ignited quickly and the fire spread out rapidly. The loud painful screams of the orcs were music to the defender's ears. Orcs ran around in panic while the mages and shamans tried to extinguish the flames as fast as possible.

But the defenders weren't idle in the meantime. Those who didn't carry a bow, a crossbow or a gun threw large stones at the orcs who were still standing in front of the wall. Boiling hot oil was spilled over the orc army. The screams became louder and the scent of burned flesh rose in the air. Dozens of orcs died within a short amount of time but they were still too many out there. They tried to climb the walls over and over again but the defenders pushed their ladders away and even destroyed some of them.

More orcs died but also defenders who were hit by arrows and spells. Priests took care of the wounded after they had been dragged away by their apprentices and squires. The dead were also dragged away by the squires who were too young and inexperienced to fight. The healers managed to help some of wounded but they couldn't help everyone. Some of them died before the healers were able to close their wounds, some of them died even though the healers had closed their wounds while others died before the squires could have brought them to the healers.

Kelrian kept firing so did any other defender with a bow, a crossbow or a gun. Almost every arrow was a hit and half of these arrows were deadly. He aimed at the head of those who didn't wear helmets while he aimed at the necks of the ones who wore helmets.

Kelrian rolled to the side, avoiding a lightning strike at the last moment. The lightning strike hit a soldier behind him who hadn't seen it coming. The soldier was flung away and landed on the ground behind the wall. He may have survived the spell but there was no way he had survived the fall. The walls were over sixty feet tall so it was guaranteed that the soldier was dead. But there was no time to mourn or feel sorry. Kelrian would have landed there with him if he wouldn't have rolled away.

He couldn't have done anything to save the soldier but there was something he could do. He could kill the one who had cast the spell. He had not seen who had cast the lightning strike so he just fired at any shaman he saw. He was on the move all the time while he killed many orcs. While he was moving all the time, the chance that something hit him was smaller but it still existed. Another lightning strike came in his direction, it was so fast that he didn't have the time to dodge it. Fortunately for him, a yellow shining barrier appeared around him at the last moment and protected him.

He turned his head a little so he could see the person who saved him, out of the corner of his eyes. It was his brother Seitor who was casting another spell at this very moment, shielding a woman who stood not far away from him. Kelrian gave his brother a thankful nod, then he knocked the next arrow and fired, hitting a female orc right between the eyes. The orc was dead immediately because the arrow had pierced her brain.

Hours passed quickly. Thousands of orcs died trying to climb the walls. Dozens succeeded but were killed in the end. But they didn't die without a fight and killed dozens of Alliance soldiers in return. The orc corpses were ignited and thrown back at their race members. Stones came in contact with the heads of orcs, boiling oil burned green skin and flesh, magical flames consumed orcs but also humans, high elves and dwarves. Arrows from the rangers were reversed and sent back by shamans who manipulated the wind. Earth elementals threw large stones and damaged the battlements or hit soldiers. Soldiers from both sides died but the orcs lost much more soldiers than the Alliance.

More hours passed. The orcs managed to send more warriors to the top of the wall because fewer soldiers of the Alliance were there who could push the ladders away. Over a hundred soldiers of the Alliance who had stood on this section of the wall had died since the start of the battle. Only fifty archers, twenty mages, fifteen priests and nearly a hundred melee fighters stood on this section while thousands of orcs waited in front of the west wall.

Kelrian noticed that another orc was about to reach the top of a wall. The ladder the green creature was climbing on was not far away from him so he sprinted to it and released an arrow. He stood right above the orc so the brute green-skinned creature had no chance of avoiding the arrow which hit him in the left eye. He screamed out in pain and let go of the ladder. Kelrian kicked him in the chest, causing that the orc lost hold and fell, landing in the mass of orcs who were gathered around the ladder.

He knocked another arrow and shot. The next orc tried to dodge it without success. The arrow didn't hit his head but his left shoulder instead. A painful roar escaped the orc's lips. It was so loud that Kelrian feared the ear-drums of his sensitive ears would burst. Fortunately, they didn't. All the sounds he heard were just deaf for a few moments.

The orc tried to grab his foot but the ranger pulled it back at the last moment. Kelrian drew a dagger from his belt and rammed it in the orc's eye. The bald warrior's screams became much louder but Kelrian bore them. He pulled his sword from his belt and beheaded the orc, silencing him that way. The next orc reached the end of the ladder but he was hit by an arrow of another ranger.

Kelrian spotted Zetai who nodded at him and a mage next to him who cast a spell. Kelrian stepped away from the ladder and nocked an arrow. The wooden ladder was set on fire, loud screams were hearable as the flames spread out and started to consume bodies of the orcs which were hanging on it. Two orcs reached the top before the ladder collapsed. The first one was knocked away by a shock wave, causing that he was thrown off the wall and landed on the ground. The second one was not burning but was hit by numerous arrows. Nevertheless, he was still able to move. He ran towards Kelrian, raising his axe above his head. But Zetai tackled him and threw him onto the floor, preventing that he could harm his friend.

The muscular elf put the orc in the headlock and cut his throat quickly. He stood up and picked his bow up, shooting more arrows at the attackers who tried to reach the top of the wall. The defenders gave their best to prevent that the Horde would climb the walls but there were too many orcs and too many ladders. They couldn't prevent that more and more orcs reached the top. The orcs didn't hesitate to charge at the defenders who were physically weaker than them.

The battle was bloody. Limbs were separated, blood was spilt and innards were spread all over the floor. Throats were cut, soldiers were cut in halves by the massive axes of the orcs and heads were separated. People burned to death, got frozen in ice blocks which were later crushed or hit the ground after they had been thrown in the air by a gust of wind.

There were numerous ways of how soldiers died during this battle. The Alliance was losing too many soldiers over time while each dead orc on top of the wall was replaced by two equally terrifying orcs. The orcs got the upper hand slowly and it seemed that it was only a matter of time until the last Alliance soldier on this section would die. But fortunately for the defenders, reinforcements came from within the city.

Two squadrons of at least one hundred soldiers came to their aid. They climbed the walls and charged at the orcs. But they were not the only reinforcement Kelrian and the remaining fifty soldiers of Vara's squad received. Gryphons and dragonhawks came out of nowhere and attacked the orcs on the walls. Their riders cast spells or shot arrows while their mounts attacked the green brutes with their claws and beaks.

Archers and spellcasters from the ground fired at them so half of them began to focus on the orc shamans, warlocks, archers and mages who tried to bring them down. Lots of these beautiful creatures died with their riders. Death was unavoidable. Not everyone was as lucky as Kelrian who had only been grazed by an arrow until now.

He and the other rangers stayed behind the heavily armoured knights of Lordaeron who did their best to keep the orcs away from the ranged fighters. Their massive iron shields withstood against several blows of the orcs' mighty weapons. But these weapons were able to break through lots of shields and armours after some time. Numerous knights died. Whenever one was killed, another took his place in the line they had formed. They wouldn't let any orc through as long as they would live.

Hours quickly turned into days. The defenders were exhausted but they kept fighting. The blessings of the priests and spells from several mages gave them enough strength to keep fighting. Not to mention that the adrenaline kept them awake and also gave them the necessary strength to continue swinging their weapons. More reinforcements had come to replace dead and injured soldiers and strengthen the defence.

Kelrian had no clue how the situation at the gate looked like. He had no time to think about it because he was busy fighting. He only hoped the orcs wouldn't manage to break through the gate.

The soldiers of the Alliance wouldn't be able to hold them back if they would succeed. The orcs would charge through the city and kill anyone who would come in their way. Defenceless men, women and children. Even older citizens wouldn't be spared. The orcs knew no mercy and had no moral values. They wouldn't stop until they had left the city in ruins.

The only way to prevent that was to hold them off and prevent that the gate would be destroyed or opened from within. The defenders had to buy time until the reinforcements from outside would arrive. Anduin Lothar and his army were still out there so was the army of the high elves. The orcs wouldn't know what would happen to them once these two armies would flank them from behind.

The defenders didn't know when they would arrive, they only knew they had to hold out as long as possible. That was their only goal. To Hold out until the reinforcements would arrive. But that was easier said than done. More and more orcs climbed the walls the longer the siege endured. Numerous orcs died but that they were still superior in number. Thousands of orcs stood in front of the wall and waited that they could climb the wall. The defenders had been forced back by the orcs so they couldn't push the ladders away to prevent that more orcs would reach the top. It didn't look good for the defenders.

Kelrian stood near the staircase that led down. He shot arrow after arrow and killed many orcs. Those who didn't die were injured and killed by someone else. But it didn't matter how many orcs he killed. Each dead orc was replaced by another while no one replaced the fallen soldiers on the side of the Alliance. They became less and less as time passed.

His heart was beating rapidly in his chest. He didn't feel as secure as he had felt on the first day. He had never expected that the orcs would manage to climb the walls and overwhelm the defenders. He and the other defenders had done a good job at preventing the orcs from reaching the top of the walls within the first few hours. But the more defenders had fallen the easier it had become for the orcs to reach the top.

Kelrian knew the defenders couldn't withstand the orcs for too long. They would have to give up this section of the wall if no reinforcements would arrive. They would die if no one would come to their aid. He was scared. He didn't want to die. He didn't want to die by the hands of an orc. He didn't want to die in general. He wanted to survive so he could return to Sylvanas. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. He wanted to see his child growing up. There was nothing more he wanted than raising his child together with Sylvanas.

That was the future he wished for, but it didn't seem that he would have that future. It didn't look good for him and the other remaining soldiers. They had no chance against the superior number of orcs but they had to fight as long as they could stand. It was their duty to fight to their last breaths. They couldn't allow that the orcs would gain control over this section of the wall.

The Horde would climb down the walls and open the gate from within if Ranger-Captain Sweetblossom's unit and the reinforcements would fall. The rest of the orc army would enter the city and storm through the streets as soon as the gate would be opened. They would break in the houses and kill the innocent citizens. Men and children would die. Women would be raped and either killed or taken as prisoners. Houses would be raided and set on fire, streets would be devasted. The entire city would be plunged into chaos.

Lordaeron would fall if the soldiers on the wall wouldn't be able to hold the attackers back. Kelrian knew that there was no other way than fighting. They couldn't flee and give up the city. They had to fight and hope that the reinforcements would arrive soon.

Kelrian was about to pull another arrow out of his quiver as he noticed that there was only one arrow left in it. It was Sylvanas' arrow and he didn't want to use this one. He looked around quickly and rushed to the corpse of a fallen comrade whose torso had been pierced by a long spear. He didn't have the time to mourn for the loss of his comrade. He had to hurry. His heart was beating so fast in his chest that he feared it would explode the next moment. But it didn't.

He took the remaining five arrows out of his comrade's quiver and fired the first one at the nearest orc. He hit him in the left shoulder but that didn't seem to bother the massive orc who was more than a head taller than Kelrian. The orc turned around to look at Kelrian. His eyes were narrowed, his forehead was wrinkled and his sharp teeth were clenched.

It was unmistakable that the orc was very angry. He threw his massive axe at the elf who jumped to the side at the last moment, barely dodging it. His heart sunk in his boots as he saw the orc sprinting towards him. Two footmen in full armour stepped in his way but he pushed them away with ease as if they were nothing but bigstraw dolls. The soldiers landed on the floor and were defenceless but the orc ignored them. He had targeted someone else.

Kelrian shot another arrow at him but the orc caught it with his bare hand, breaking it as if it was nothing more than a toothpick. His green lips formed a mischievous smile as he spotted the heavily surprised expression on the ranger's face.

Kelrian shot another arrow, this time it was aimed at the orc's upper thigh. The arrow pierced through the leather armour and the orc's flesh but the brute didn't care at all. He made a large leap, landing right in front of the ranger. He carried no weapon in his hand so he grabbed Kelrian by the throat and lifted him above his head.

The orc opened his mouth and showed the ranger his massive and sharp fangs. He stared deep into his eyes as he started to strangle him. He was amused by the ranger's fear he could smell and see in his eyes.

Kelrian tried to get free but the orc's grip was too strong. He couldn't loosen his opponent's grip so he pulled his sword from his belt and tried to chop off the hand which held him but the orc grabbed his arm and held it in place.

The orc's grip on his arm became firmer and firmer.

*Crack*

The cry which escaped Kelrian's lips was not loud. Nevertheless, the orc smiled as he heard this painful sound. He had just broken the ranger's right arm with no effort. It made him happy to see the pain that was reflected by his opponent's face.

Waves of pain rushed through Kelrian's body. The waves become more intensive the longer the orc strangled him. Kelrian ran out of air, his lungs started to hurt and cried out for air. His heart was beating violently in his chest. He tried hard to get free but he didn't succeed. The orc was too strong and he was too weak because his strength was slowly leaving him. There was no way he could free himself. Not alone. Not without help.

But there was no one who could help him. The other soldiers around him were busy fighting so they couldn't help him. Most of them didn't even notice that the orc was about to strangle him to death.

Kelrian's vision began to blur out and he slowly lost the feeling over his body. He thought of Sylvanas and his unborn child. He thought of his family and his friends. He will never be able to see them again. Never. This was his last day. He wasn't ready to die. He didn't want to die but there was nothing he could do to prevent the inevitable. The orc was stronger than him so he would kill him.

Death was inevitable.

There was no way he would escape death.

His vision blurred out and everything around him became dark.