Black cannonballs, thick as a torrential downpour, soared into the heavens, momentarily eclipsing the sun. Beneath the desperate, flickering soulfire of the undead defenders on Lordaeron's crumbling walls, their putrid bones were pulverized into dust, mingling with the shattered remnants of brick and stone!
Soon, under the silent command of their unseen masters, the undead ranks recoiled from the ravaged battlements. Necromancers, their eyes glowing with malevolent energy, frantically directed the reassembly of scattered bone fragments, forming shambling skeleton soldiers to rejoin the futile defense. But the relentless artillery fire continued its thunderous assault, shaking the very foundations of Lordaeron, a promise of utter destruction hanging heavy in the air.
BOOM!
With a deafening crack, the first section of the northern city wall buckled and collapsed, followed in rapid succession by the second and third, succumbing to the overwhelming force.
The artillery fell silent, a thick cloud of white smoke billowing upwards, slowly dissipating into the morning sky.
"People of Lordaeron! Warriors of the Alliance!" Turalyon's voice boomed across the ravaged landscape, a rallying cry of righteous fury. "The undead Scourge has defiled our homes and twisted our loved ones into mindless abominations! But their evil cannot extinguish our thirst for vengeance! The Holy Light protects us, guiding us to reclaim our sacred city and restore Lordaeron to its former glory!"
"CHARGE! FOR THE ALLIANCE! FOR LORDAERON!"
Turalyon's roar unleashed a tidal wave of righteous fury. One hundred thousand Alliance soldiers, their ranks disciplined and unwavering, weapons held firm in one hand and shields braced in the other, surged forward towards the breached walls of Lordaeron.
Perched precariously on the jagged ruins of the collapsed ramparts, dense rows of undead archers frantically drew back the strings of their half-rotted bone longbows, unleashing volleys of rusty arrows towards the advancing Alliance army. A veritable storm of projectiles filled the air, transforming into a dense swarm of black dots that blotted out the remaining sunlight, whistling ominously towards their targets.
"RAISE SHIELDS!"
The clash of arrow against shield resonated across the battlefield, a metallic cacophony. The well-armored Alliance soldiers absorbed the impact with minimal casualties, continuing their inexorable advance, a wall of steel and determination pushing forward through the arrow storm.
As the distance closed, the Alliance's own ranged ranks – musketeers, archers, and mages – unleashed a devastating counter-barrage against the skeleton archers atop the ruined walls. Soon, the skeletal volleys from the royal city dwindled, their ranks thinning under the combined assault.
The Knights of the Silver Hand and the Templar Knights were the first to crash into the undead lines. Their holy exorcisms and radiant wrath turned swathes of the unholy abominations into shimmering ash, utterly and irrevocably destroyed. The infantry surging behind them were no less determined. They produced vials and jars from their belts, hastily smearing viscous concoctions onto their weapons. Any undead struck by these enchanted blades would remain permanently slain, their bone fragments unable to be resurrected.
Against the remnants of a minor royal city like Lordaeron, devoid of any demigod-level threats, Grand Marshal Galen found no need to personally wade into the thick of battle. Instead, a wiry, green-skinned goblin stood excitedly behind him, goggling at the devastating efficacy of the artillery barrage.
"Art is explosion, my boss!" the goblin shrieked gleefully.
Galen, glancing at the manic little creature, rolled his eyes. "Hexo, he ultimate art is self-destruction. Care for a demonstration?"
"Uh..."
The goblin's exuberant expression faltered. Ultimately, the allure of explosive artistry paled in comparison to the continued accumulation of gold coins. "Nah, boss, I think I'll stick to appreciating your art for now!"
"Hexo," Galen mused, his gaze still fixed on the crumbling city walls, "the power of artillery is undeniable. But I believe, as siege weaponry, its potential can be even greater." He surveyed his artillery battalion, a seed of a grander vision taking root. "It's time we expanded this into a full artillery regiment."
"But boss," Hexo protested, his brow furrowed in technical concern, "to make bigger booms, you need bigger cannons! That means heavier barrels, which means more strain on the poor grunts lugging them around!"
Large-caliber artillery… The thought sparked a memory within Galen – the monstrous warship built by the Defias Brotherhood in the Deadmines, a vessel intended to breach the very walls of Stormwind City. Its artillery was indeed massive, but its mobility was nonexistent, fixed to the ship's deck.
"Then we shall research a new breed of siege engine, Hexo," Galen declared, his voice imbued with a hint of enigmatic anticipation. "Have you ever heard of the Iron Star?"
In Galen's recollection, Hexo played a pivotal role in the advancement of goblin technology under his command, even indirectly contributing to the rise of the Iron Horde. Under Garrosh's strategic guidance, the Horde had aggressively pursued military modernization, transitioning from Thrall's era of traditional weaponry to an arsenal fueled by diverse goblin innovations. The airship Hellscream's Fist boasted formidable armaments and devastating firepower, but it was the destructive potential unleashed by the Iron Horde and other goblin contraptions during the siege of Orgrimmar that truly astonished. The Iron Star, however, left an even more visceral impression. During Garrosh's own trial by fire, that colossal iron sphere had hurtled towards him with terrifying speed and force, the shockwave of its explosion rattling his very bones! Furthermore, the Iron Star played a crucial role in Garrosh Hellscream's slaying of Mannoroth in the alternate Draenor!
Galen's description ignited a fervent spark in Hexo's eyes. This was the pinnacle of destructive beauty he had always envisioned!
"Boss, leave it to me!" Hexo exclaimed, his voice buzzing with manic energy. "Soon, I will forge this Iron Star! Goblin ingenuity will eclipse gnome tinkering, you'll see!"
Hexo's high-pitched laughter sent a shiver down Galen's spine. He couldn't resist a playful cuff to the goblin's ear. "Then you had best make haste, Hexo. I've heard whispers that since the High Tinker joined our ranks, the gnomes are on the verge of unveiling their first generation of mechs."
"No… What in the blazes is Gazlowe doing?!" Hexo sputtered, genuinely aghast. "My project was put on hold to free up manpower for his precious Sky Golem! How can he allow those pointy-hatted tinkerers to surpass us?!"
Galen strategically fostered competition among his talented subordinates. While he had supported Gazlowe's rise to prominence as a renowned trade prince among goblins, that was merely a goblin title. Within the Crusade, Hexo, this ambitious rising star, held significant importance. Hence, Hexo dared to openly challenge Gazlowe's priorities.
"Boss, your vision is clear. Time is gold! I'm heading back to the Crusader Fortress immediately!"
With a flick of his wrist, Hexo ripped open a shimmering spatial rift and plunged through, vanishing from Galen's side.
Hehe, Galen thought with satisfaction, competition breeds innovation. He was pleased to see Hexo's competitive spirit ignited.
The Sky Golem had indeed reached a functional prototype stage, but Galen remained unimpressed by the clunky, noisy contraption with its numerous aesthetic flaws. Its relatively low production cost, however, made it a potentially viable mass-produced model. What truly captured Galen's imagination were the war mechs of the future, towering, powerful, and heroic machines akin to the G-X Annihilator and Gelbin Mekkatorque's own war machine. With top-tier materials and sufficient firepower, they could become a mass-producible legendary fighting force! It was a pity that the mana mechs of Draenor were powered by fel energy, a stark contrast to the Alliance's principles. Otherwise, with some significant modifications, creating a Lightforged or Hercules-class Mekazod could also fulfill Galen's grand vision.