Durin led the group as they fled, with Medivh and Aegwynn close behind. Sylvanas and Liadrin supported Galen on either side, helping him keep pace. Aragorn, Aurelia, and Kroll covered their retreat.
Galen considered saying he could run on his own, but the softness pressing against his arm silenced him. He feigned weakness, leaning heavily on the two high elves.
Meanwhile, Paltiasstraz seized the seemingly lifeless Nekros and charged in the opposite direction. He intended to help the Queen break free and present the orc chieftain for judgment.
Galen's group abandoned any pretense of stealth, sprinting through the passage they had just traversed. Grim Batol's gates were breached, and the chieftain was nowhere to be seen. The fortress was in chaos, with countless peons fleeing.
Durin, wielding the Saffron Warhammer and the Storm Axe, carved a path through the enemy. Combined with arcane blasts and fireballs from the two mages, they cleared a route to the secret passage.
Nekros's adjutant, a scarred warrior, desperately tried to rally the remnants of the Dragonmaw Clan. Their only hope lay in escaping the fortress, either eastward into the mountains or towards the main orc force in the Wetlands.
Paltiasstraz threw Nekros down before his Queen. Her gaze filled with hatred as she fixed it on the old orc. Then, she opened her massive maw and unleashed a torrent of scarlet flames.
"No!"
Nekros's struggles were futile. Despite his half-warlock nature and any life-saving tricks he might have possessed, he was swiftly reduced to ashes by the Red Dragon Queen's fiery breath.
"Paltiasstraz, quickly help me destroy these chains! I can feel the Dragon Soul's influence waning. Your allies have succeeded!"
The Red Dragon Queen's eyes gleamed with excitement. Freedom was finally within reach. Facing her consort, Paltiasstraz, Alexstrasza abandoned any pretense of weakness, eager to leave this place of torment. She yearned to unleash her dragon breath upon the orcs.
As Paltiasstraz transformed into a dragon and shattered the chains binding the Queen, she noticed he seemed thinner than before. But she recalled how the Dragon Soul had gradually weakened her great consort and her four consorts. Perhaps Paltiasstraz had suffered the same fate.
As Alexstrasza rose to her full height and spread her wings, the Red Dragon Queen, imprisoned for two long years, was finally free. The Dragonmaw Clan's plan to use red dragon knights had failed.
"Paltias, guard the dragon eggs here. I'm going to vent my fury!" Alexstrasza declared, no longer able to contain her rage.
"Queen, my love, Neltharion is here! Tiranastrasz is trying to stop him, but he won't last long. We must help him!" Paltiasstraz urged, remembering Galen's instructions. He needed to guide the Queen toward Galen.
"Neltharion! That bastard!"
Alexstrasza roared in fury. The name alone revealed the truth. She understood everything now: why the Dragon Soul, so carefully hidden, had been found by the orcs; why the orcs knew of her lair; why they wielded the spells to control the Dragon Soul. Her enslavement and suffering were all orchestrated by that damned black dragon!
The Black Dragon King's intentions were now obvious: he wanted her, or her dragon eggs. Her consorts were either dead or scattered. She was the only suitable mother dragon left to breed for him, besides her sister.
"Where are they? I must help them!" Alexstrasza demanded.
"Just east of the fortress. We've erected protective barriers around the dragon eggs. Let's hurry!" Partiasstraz suggested.
Tiranastrasz couldn't hold the Black Dragon King for long. He was outmatched and weakening.
But he used his life to delay the Black Dragon King.
Neltharion raised the old dragon's corpse high, roaring in triumph.
Then, he cast Tiranastrasz' body aside and looked around. The humans who had stolen the Dragon Soul were gone. But it didn't matter. The earth would reveal their path.
Galen and the others burst from the secret passage and scrambled to the waiting griffons.
This time, Sylvanas took the reins. Galen wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. During their escape, he had removed his transformed armor, leaving his upper body covered only by a close-fitting dragon-scale lining.
Soft, yet possessing explosive power, Galen mused.
Then, he saw Sylvanas turn her head, giving him a reproachful look, and he quickly composed himself.
"Fly south!" he ordered.
Southwest of Northshire, Galen had prepared a surprise for the Black Dragon King.
Galen finally had a moment to examine the Dragon Soul.
It was a white-gold disc, barely a dozen centimeters across, about the size of his palm. A faint draconic phantom pulsed within it.
Galen cautiously channeled a trace of energy into the disc, testing it with Holy Light and magic. The Dragon Soul accepted both.
The disc shimmered with four colors: the red energy of life, the green energy of dreams, the blue energy of magic, and the bronze energy of time, constantly shifting and intertwining.
Long ago, the Black Dragon King had deceived his four siblings, claiming he was forging an artifact to destroy the Burning Legion. The four Guardian Dragons had poured their essence into the disc, and when it was the Black Dragon King's turn, he betrayed them.
He not only betrayed Malygos but also used the newly forged Dragon Soul to decimate the Blue Dragonflight, slaughtering Malygos's consort and countless others.
Malygos was the greatest victim, robbed of his power, his flight, and his beloved.
The Dragon Soul's light made Galen dizzy, and he thought he heard faint whispers.
He recoiled in alarm.
The Black Dragon King had forged the artifact under the Old Gods' influence. Who knew what taint lingered within it?
Roar!
Just as Galen and the others flew beyond Grim Batol's shadow, a roar echoed behind them.
The Black Dragon King was in pursuit!