Chapter 138: The Black Tide Approaches (Part Two)

The festivities throughout the Sun Temple continued unabated. Most of the elves lingered at the grand banquet hosted by the Council, while revelry carried on day and night throughout Sun City. Naturally, most civil officials remained at their posts, maintaining the order of daily life within the floating city.

“My lord, we have just received a report from the frontline commander, Lor’themar Theron. Large numbers of Amani trolls have begun moving again. According to observations from the front, the troll forces departed Zul’Aman and have massed at Zeb’Nowa. They appear to be preparing to launch an attack.”

The speaker was Eadones. The moment he received the message from the front, he had brought it to Patrick for consideration. As ambassador of military affairs, it had to be handled by the highest authority.

They had come. The second war he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

On the surface, however, Patrick could not show the slightest irregularity. He accepted the report and dismissed Eadones.

“Very well. I’ll take care of it.”

“Why would the trolls attack us now? It doesn’t seem to make sense.”

Since their marriage, Alleria had lived in the Tower of Sunlight as Patrick’s lawful wife. From time to time she went to inspect the ranger forces, but most of the time she remained in the tower, keeping him company.

“An action that appears unreasonable must have some particular purpose behind it,” Patrick replied. “But the front line lies just beyond Sun City. The trolls should know that the entire city is holding a celebration, which means a great many elves are gathered in the surrounding area. Unless they have some special plan, launching an attack now would be no different from throwing their lives away.”

Alleria agreed with her husband. “Their customs may be primitive, but the trolls still value their lives. It’s impossible that they would send such a large force to its death for no reason.”

“That makes this even harder to deal with. We absolutely cannot ignore it, but we need to find an appropriate way to respond.”

Patrick’s original plan had been to win over a large number of people when Orgrim invaded. That would allow Sun City to flourish further, while the number of soldiers under his command would continue to grow. Now that Alleria was at his side, the ranger forces were undoubtedly firmly under his control.

The mage forces, by contrast, were much more difficult to establish. The area around his Tower of Sunlight already supplied resources to the newly arrived mages and apprentices, but a powerful mage consumed an enormous amount of resources. The reason the tower currently seemed to operate with ease was that the mages Patrick had cultivated were still few in number, far too few to form a standard military mage corps.

…

All of this required the accumulation of time. Patrick believed, however, that the wandering mages and apprentices would eventually find a sense of belonging in Sun City. Compared with Silvermoon City, Sun City possessed greater vitality and grandeur.

“Why not leave it to the Council?” Alleria considered the matter, then offered an answer similar to Patrick’s, though more detailed and comprehensive. “I’ll forward this report to the Council through the Ranger Command. Let them make the decision. You can submit it to the king and the Council through the Mages’ Association, so they can make preparations as soon as possible. They should even begin transporting strategic supplies to the front.”

Alleria and Patrick had reached the same conclusion: the matter should be left to those above them. Her proposal, however, was more meticulous and thorough, and entirely in keeping with Patrick’s own intentions.

He merely wanted to use Sun City to grow stronger in the Ghostlands, slowly accumulate supplies, and attract more people. None of those things could be accomplished in a single day. Ensuring that Sun City avoided the threat soon to come—and survived the great war afterward—was Patrick’s foremost plan.

The floating city was only the first step. With it, they would possess a tremendous advantage in defense and be free from the threat of ground forces. That would allow Patrick to gather large numbers of elves under his command after the Second and Third Wars, while also reducing civilian casualties.

To be honest, after the Troll Wars, all of Quel’Thalas had grown weak through prolonged decay. Arrogance, luxury, and self-indulgence had permeated the lives of its elven people. Patrick had often wondered what had left Quel’Thalas utterly defenseless against the Scourge during the Third War. Was it really only because of Frostmourne? Had the betrayal of Dar’khan also played a part?

Perhaps not. The high elves had simply placed too much faith in their protective barriers, while blindly trusting the so-called Council. They failed to realize that the mages of the Council, who relied entirely on the Sunwell’s energy, possessed pitifully little combat experience. They took their allotments of Sunwell energy and devoted them all to absorbing power and strengthening themselves, remaining indifferent to everything else.

There was only one path to development, but the road to ruin was woven from countless causes and circumstances.

Patrick was lost in thought when Alleria added one final remark, drawing him back to the present.

“The trolls are attacking the Kingdom of Quel’Thalas, aren’t they?”

Patrick was momentarily stunned, then immediately understood.

“That’s right. The trolls are attacking the Kingdom of Quel’Thalas. We can let the kingdom make the decision and see how the Council responds. As for Sun City, we’ll begin preparing contingency plans. We must eliminate every factor that could threaten the floating city.”

Patrick lightly tapped the female elf on the nose. She truly was a clever woman.

“Even if something goes wrong, the decision-makers will be the Silvermoon Council. And we will already have done everything in our power to remedy the situation.”

Alleria was pleased by his words, but then thought of something else.

“Aren’t you also a member of the Council? Aren’t you afraid your reputation will suffer?”

“What is there to worry about? I’m not like those councillors who spend all day hiding in Silvermoon City. The floating city is our true core.”

…

Patrick’s orders were quickly passed down, and once again all the elves busied themselves on behalf of their lord.

Patrick knew that the trolls’ movements were only the beginning. Soon, the Horde army led by Orgrim would arrive and continue northward. After reaching Golden Branch Vale, Gul’dan would persuade Orgrim to take several defensive runestones before departing Quel’Thalas and rushing west toward the capital of Lordaeron.

The floating city operated with remarkable efficiency. Much of that was due to the system of assessments Patrick had established. One clearly defined rule stated that failure to act constituted a form of dereliction of duty. Any official who accomplished nothing would be demoted within the administrative hierarchy. This left those elves who sought only to avoid mistakes grumbling bitterly, but it also made the floating city’s administration exceptionally efficient.

Alleria had already instructed one of Patrick’s permanent councilors, Galind Shalong, to prepare the city’s defenses. With the Windrunner banner flying, commanding the ranger forces posed no difficulty at all. The ranger elves who had been enjoying the festival returned to their camps one after another, preparing for battle.

Now all they had to do was wait for the Council or the king to issue a decision.