The highest commanders of the Alliance and the Horde began a one-on-one duel on the battlefield.
However, Orgrim quickly encountered his first problem.
Unlike him, who fought on foot, his opponent, Lothar, was mounted on a warhorse.
With the horse's aid, Lothar, who was originally inferior in strength to the Doomhammer, instead gained the upper hand in impact, speed, and height.
But Doomhammer swiftly resolved this issue.
He hurled the weapon in his hand, Doomhammer itself, forcefully in Lothar's direction.
The warhammer arced through the air, and the massive stone head struck the warhorse's skull with a brutal blow.
The horse collapsed, blood spraying from its shattered bones, its limbs convulsing.
Orgrim's ambush had a massive effect, but Lothar did not fall with his horse.
As the horse went down, he leapt aside with agility unbefitting his heavy armor, using the stirrup to launch himself. After clearing the obstacle, he directly faced Doomhammer.
The sounds of battle around them seemed to vanish. The two leaders raised their weapons and clashed in silence. Each had only one goal, to kill the other.
This was a contest of strength against strength, and also strength against skill.
Lothar was a tall and powerful human. Standing at the pinnacle of warriors, his years of training and experience made him even more robust than most orc fighters.
But Doomhammer was still taller, stronger, and younger than him.
Compared to Doomhammer, Lothar lacked youth and speed, but he possessed greater technique and experience.
Both wore heavy plate armor, the time-hardened Stormwind armor against the Horde's black plate.
Both wielded weapons no ordinary warrior could handle, the rune-etched royal sword Quel'Zaram and the ancestral warhammer that gave Doomhammer his name.
Both were sworn to victory, no matter the cost.
Lothar struck first. His longsword swept in from the side, bypassing Doomhammer's block and slicing a gash into the orc's armor.
The Horde's Warchief grunted in pain from the impact but quickly countered by smashing his warhammer downward. Lothar stepped back to evade the blow.
Yet Doomhammer twisted his wrist in an instant, where others would need space and time to regain strength, he ignored this and, with sheer power, swung his weapon upward, grazing Lothar's chin and knocking him off balance.
The next hammer strike followed immediately.
But Lothar raised his sword in time, striking the hammer's long handle and deflecting the attack.
For a moment, the two warriors clashed with all their might.
Doomhammer tried to slam his warhammer downward, while Lothar aimed to knock it aside. Their weapons trembled under the pressure, neither budging.
Then, Lothar shifted his blade and, using his superior technique, managed to knock the warhammer off course, though humans lacked orcish strength, they typically surpassed them in finesse.
He then closed the distance, using his full body strength to slam the sword's flat against the orc's face before Doomhammer could bring back his massive weapon.
The crushing blow nearly knocked the Warchief unconscious.
But Doomhammer swung his free hand violently, striking Lothar in the neck. Taking advantage of the Alliance commander's dazed state, he retrieved his weapon and regained his composure.
Alaric had remained near Lothar. Amid the chaos of battle, only he and a few others noticed the duel between the two leaders.
Alaric knew why, in the original story, Lothar lost to Orgrim. In terms of raw strength, the two were almost evenly matched.
In fact, Lothar's sword, Quel'Zaram, was even more powerful than Doomhammer.
However, Quel'Zaram, the legendary sword, razor-sharp and nearly indestructible, had a fatal flaw: it could not harm those of noble character.
When the wielder used it against a person of great virtue, the sword would lose its divine power.
And in the judgment of the blade, Orgrim himself was precisely such a noble person.
Though to the Alliance and humanity, he was an evil enemy who had committed countless crimes, one had to admit.
To the orcs, he was indeed a wise and selfless leader, whose every act was to ensure a better life for his people.
Quel'Zaram never judged a person's character by human standards. That was the very reason it shattered when used against Orgrim.
Alaric understood this and had always been prepared for it.
Bound by Lothar's chivalric code, Alaric could not interfere in the duel without cause.
However, he had long prepared a "Force Wall" spell, ready at any moment to separate the two combatants and prevent Lothar from suffering a fatal blow.
For this old friend, he had truly done all he could.
After a brief pause, Lothar and Orgrim once again closed in, swinging their hammer and sword.
Lothar blocked a full-strength strike from Doomhammer with his lion-headed shield. The impact bent him low, nearly bringing him to his knees, but his sword carved a deep gash into the orc's heavy breastplate.
Doomhammer staggered back a step, his lips twisted in pain and frustration. He tore off the damaged armor from his body.
At the same time, Lothar straightened up and tossed aside his now-useless shield.
Then, the two once again roared and charged at each other.
Without armor, Doomhammer's weapon swung faster, while Lothar, now wielding his sword with both hands, could more easily strike past the orc's defense.
Both took solid hits, Doomhammer received a deep, long slash near his abdomen, while Lothar was struck on his right side.
The two stumbled apart, preparing to launch a third attack, while around them, other orcs and humans fought their own battles.
Again and again, the two mighty leaders exchanged blows, each strike seeking out a weakness in the other's defense, each strike delivered with full force.
They closed in once more. Doomhammer landed a heavy punch to Lothar's chest, denting his breastplate and throwing the general off balance.
Before Lothar could fully recover, Doomhammer stepped back, gripped his massive warhammer with both hands, and brought it crashing down, a strike powered by every ounce of his strength.
Lothar raised his sword to block the ferocious blow. The blade took the full force of the impact, and shattered under the pressure.
History unfolded once again before Alaric's eyes.
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