There was no denying that as Warchief of the Horde, Orgrim was indeed a remarkably decisive leader.
Upon realizing that his army lacked the strength to breach the town before him, Orgrim didn't hesitate for a second to abandon the siege.
Even though the town of Caer Darrow stood on the verge of collapse, he wasn't tempted in the slightest.
He knew well that without Gul'dan's restraint, no matter how brave his warriors were, they could not stand against the powerful human mage within the city.
The power of magic was always beyond the reach of ordinary mortals.
Since the road through Caer Darrow back to the Arathi Highlands was blocked, and the retreat was cut off by Alliance forces, Orgrim was left with only one option.
Climb the mountains.
Not by taking some rugged path around, but literally scaling the mountain, forging a new path where none existed.
If they stayed and engaged the Alliance head-on, Orgrim knew very clearly that there would only be one outcome: total annihilation.
But if they entered the Alterac Mountains and carved out a path where none had ever existed, there was at least a chance to preserve the core of their fighting force.
Had the road through Caer Darrow opened up to them immediately, nine out of ten might have returned to the Arathi Highlands alive.
But to forcibly find a new path and circumvent the Alliance's blockade, fewer than half the orcs might survive.
Though as Warchief, the Doomhammer was extremely reluctant to accept such losses.
Even so, he had to admit, it was the best possible outcome. There was no other choice.
Inside the town of Caer Darrow, the soldiers breathed sighs of relief as they watched the orcs retreat like a receding tide, many of them collapsing to the ground.
The relentless orc assault had pushed them to their limits.
Were it not for their resolve to protect their homeland, and the aid of Alaric and another powerful individual, they might not have held out.
Now that the orcs had retreated, the moment the tension left them, their bodies ached with exhaustion.
Some soldiers even fell asleep right there on the city walls, clutching their weapons.
The orcs' retreat also caused Alaric to halt the magic he'd been preparing.
He gazed in the direction Orgrim had gone and, after a moment's thought, understood where they were heading.
Just as expected.
The orcs had no choice. Not only did Doomhammer understand that, Alaric saw it clearly too.
But the Alterac Mountains were vast, and not even he could precisely track the orcs' path, so he had no plans to pursue them.
Besides, Orgrim would eventually return to the Horde's main force in the Arathi Highlands. Alaric wasn't worried about losing track of his target.
As for now, Caer Darrow likely no longer needed him. If he didn't seize this chance to slack off, when would he?
…
Not long after the orcs had left, cavalry led by Lothar and Alleria arrived outside Caer Darrow.
They'd apparently intended to pull a surprise flanking attack and inflict heavy losses on the Horde, but they were too late. The Horde had long since vanished.
After a fruitless search, all they could do was enter the city and rest.
The following morning, Alexandros Mograine finally arrived with Lordaeron's army.
Unfortunately, they too arrived to find nothing.
In the days that followed, the Alliance's task was to restore order in Alterac and reestablish a garrison to prevent the Horde from returning and causing more trouble.
Naturally, given that the royal house of Perenolde had perished at the hands of the orcs, and the former king of Alterac had previously betrayed the Alliance.
The Alliance temporarily revoked Alterac's sovereignty over the land and handed interim control to the Barov family.
After all, it was the Barovs who had blocked the Horde's escape route, refused to surrender like the other nobles of Alterac, and exposed the Horde's conspiracy.
They were clearly the most trustworthy family left in Alterac.
A portion of Lordaeron's forces under Mograine remained stationed in Alterac. Officially, this was because Alterac lacked sufficient military strength and needed Lordaeron's help with defense.
But both Alaric and Janice knew the truth, this was Terenas's first step toward seizing control of Alterac.
The arrival of the Horde had nearly destroyed half of Alterac.
Now, with the kingdom in ruins, Janice had become the pillar everyone relied on.
The young sorceress was now fully devoted to internal affairs, resettling civilians, comforting wounded soldiers, restoring defenses across the land, so busy she could hardly breathe.
As for Alaric, now publicly recognized as the Alliance's number two, he could not remain in Alterac much longer with the Horde continually in retreat.
According to Lothar's analysis, the failure of Orgrim's expedition would almost certainly lead to a sharp decline in his prestige within the Horde.
The resulting chaos, combined with the loss of elite forces, would leave the Horde weaker than ever.
For the Alliance, this was the perfect time to go on the offensive and deal a decisive blow.
As Alaric put it, this was the strategic counterattack phase.
Alaric, of course, had many responsibilities ahead.
This time, unlike when he took Jaina, Alaric didn't bring Ilucia with him.
The little girl was just beginning her studies, she hadn't even learned her first cantrip yet and was still at the fundamentals stage.
Alaric knew he would be far too busy in the coming days to instruct her, so he left her in Caer Darrow under the care of her mother Janice and her governess, Maricia.
Realizing they wouldn't see each other again for some time, Janice found Alaric the night before his departure, completely ignoring the presence of Alleria, Vereesa, Garona, and the others.
In the middle of the night, she took him to bed and indulged to her heart's content, enough to last her several months.
The next morning, Alaric finally bid farewell to the reluctant mother and daughter, and returned with Lothar and the others to the main camp in the Hillsbrad Foothills.
With their return, the entire Alliance once again sprang into action.
Kul Tiras's fleet coordinated efforts at sea, while Alliance supplies and reinforcements continuously flowed into the main camp and Stromgarde.
Once preparations were complete, the Alliance would launch a pincer attack on the Horde from both the Wall of Thoradin and Stromgarde, initiating a full-scale assault.
The Alliance intended to strike while the formerly powerful orcs were weakened and short on provisions, driving them back across the sea, perhaps even crushing them entirely, liberating the dwarves of Khaz Modan and the gnomes of Gnomeregan, and pushing all the way south to finally free Stormwind.
Strike not in vain, but in thunderous force.
Everything the Alliance had done so far, all the defense and holding actions, had been building to this moment of counterattack.
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