"Nekros, we need to speed things up!"
Zuluhed the Wicked, Dragonmaw Chieftain and tribal shaman, urged his assistant to hasten the hatching of the dragon eggs.
Deep within Grim Batol, a massive figure was chained to the wall in a vast underground hall.
A scarlet dragon huddled in a corner, its wings touching the ceiling, its tail drumming against the distant walls. If Galen were present, he might recognize this dragon as Alexstrasza, Queen of the Red Dragonflight.
Zuluhed, through a vision, had found a golden disk in the mountains. Sensing strong demonic power, he named it the Demon Soul. With his shamanic heritage, he unlocked its restrictive spells, but his shamanic powers couldn't activate it.
Ultimately, the Demon Soul responded to Nekros, a Dragonmaw shaman who had studied warlock magic!
"No problem, Chieftain. We just need to make this red dragon lay eggs faster!"
"Roar! You puny orcs want to exploit my children? You shall not!" Alexstrasza's massive head snapped around, her eyes, larger than the orcs, fixed on them.
"We need the red dragons for the Horde. You have no choice. You know what will happen if you refuse!"
Compared to his first visit, when Zuluhed was awed by the Red Dragon Queen's size and power, Nekros seemed much more at ease. He moved to the other side of the hall.
Dozens of white dragon eggs, with golden streams of light within, were there. Zuluhed grabbed an unhatched egg and smashed it in front of Alexstrasza.
"Roar!"
Alexstrasza's furious shriek shook the hall, but the thick chains held her firm.
Alexstrasza yielded. She would do anything to prevent more eggs from being destroyed.
"Chieftain, that should do it. What are Warchief Orgrim's orders?" Nekros, splattered with yolk, was satisfied.
"Warchief Orgrim needs two hundred red dragon knights. I've prepared the warriors; you provide the dragons!"
"You will not succeed!" Alexstrasza warned. "My children will rebel and win their freedom!"
"As long as we have this, we will succeed!" Nekros patted the Demon Soul at his waist and led Zuluhed to another hall.
This hall contained many fiery red dragons, mostly young.
"The two strongest red dragons will mate with the Dragon Queen for more eggs. You can take this first batch to train with the warriors!"
"Damn orcs, release our Queen!" A red dragon lunged at them, its claws gleaming!
Nekros calmly raised the Demon Soul. It emitted a faint light, and the dragon collapsed, screaming in pain, then struggled to rise, trembling.
"Pledge allegiance to the Horde, or I'll torture your Queen! She will die screaming!" Nekros shouted. The dragons were enraged but, fearing the golden disk, backed away.
Alexstrasza was the core of the Red Dragonflight. Most dragons were her offspring. By controlling her, the entire flight could be coerced.
Zuluhed was pleased. He had the chosen orc warriors bring leather reins and saddles, and each selected a red dragon to equip.
The dragons loathed this. For millennia, no one had dared to ride them. Now, the noble dragon race was humiliated!
Watching the two hundred red dragon knights take off, Zuluhed was satisfied. The Dragonmaw clan had found new, stronger flying mounts than the Draenor wyverns.
He had not disappointed Orgrim, who had asked for a secret weapon.
The humans have cavalry and fleets, but no air force! Zuluhed, skilled in training flying mounts, knew the importance of air superiority.
With the Dragonmaw clan controlling these dragons and the tribe's loyal warriors, Zuluhed envisioned a future where red dragon knights attacked humans from the sky, and dragons' breath destroyed human resistance, making the Horde invincible!
As an orc who followed the shaman's path, he loved his race as much as Orgrim, and wanted to defeat their enemies and secure this continent for the orcs.
The temporarily subdued young dragons communicated in flight, using dragon language.
"Lord Tyranastrasz, are we really submitting to these barbaric orcs?" a young red dragon asked, humiliated by the orc pulling its reins.
"We will only submit to Her Majesty Alexstrasza!" Tyranastrasz, the Red Dragon Queen's oldest and strongest consort, reassured them. "Let's bide our time. We're only fighting mortals. After rescuing the Queen, we'll kill these orcs as compensation!"
Younger dragons might not recognize the golden disk, but Tyranastrasz did. As an ancient who was among the first to be blessed by the Titans and participated in the first Burning Legion invasion, he recognized it as the Dragon Soul!
To fight the Legion, the five colored dragons, led by the betraying Black Dragon Aspect, poured their essence into the disk, creating an artifact of immense power.
They couldn't resist it now. They needed to find a way to save the Queen!
The opportunity was the Queen's youngest consort, his colleague, Korialstrasz, who was stationed in Dalaran. He had a human name: Krasus!