"Wait... you mean those monsters with scythes who look almost exactly like Burning Legion demons?" Illidan asked, a touch of surprise in his voice.
He was well aware of Rhodes's unique demonic unit. While they looked like demons, they originally lacked any fel energy until Rhodes infused them later. However, the combat prowess of those Archdemons was undeniably formidable, and their teleportation ability was perfectly suited for a Demon Hunter.
In terms of individual strength, they were powerful enough that only Illidan himself among his current subordinates could consistently defeat them; if they were further empowered, even Illidan might find himself struggling to parry their blows.
So, Rhodes still had many of these powerful Archdemons in reserve? Interesting—this guy was still hiding a few trump cards.
"Exactly. As they say, quality over quantity," Rhodes explained. "If you train 1,000 Blood Elves, your success rate might only yield 10 survivors. But from my side, I can provide you with four such Archdemons every month—that's 48 a year."
"That is an unexpected windfall indeed, Rhodes," Illidan replied. "You are right; those Archdemons are far more suitable for Demon Hunter training than Blood Elves or even Night Elves. With a success rate near 100%, they are the perfect choice. But you just want me to do your dirty work, don't you? You want me to train them, but I know full well the ultimate control remains with you. No matter who they are assigned to, one word from you and they would turn against me."
Illidan wasn't a fool; he saw exactly what Rhodes was plotting.
"Your goal is to destroy the Burning Legion, and so is mine. We have a consensus, don't we?" Rhodes said, stepping forward to sling an arm around Illidan's neck with a grin. "What's yours is mine, and what's mine is yours. No need to be so formal."
"Are you joking? I'm the one doing all the labor while you reap the rewards," Illidan said, his expression darkening. "Do I look like an idiot to you? 'What's mine is mine, and what's yours is mine'—how do you say that with a straight face, Rhodes? Believe me, I'm tempted to mince you with the Twin Blades of Azzinoth right now."
"Don't be like that, Illidan," Rhodes chuckled. "I promise you, these Fel Archdemons will be your greatest asset. You know I'm a 'Holy Light' guy on the human side; how could I possibly use Fel Archdemons in public?
They'll naturally be under your command. Don't treat me like a stranger. As long as you need them, they are yours to deploy. Unless you order them to hack me to pieces, they'll do whatever you tell them."
"I will agree to train them," Illidan said after a moment of reflection, finally nodding. "Until the Legion is destroyed, your 'Archdemon' Demon Hunters will serve me. However, once you are able to summon Fire Elementals permanently, you must teach me the method. Consider it compensation for my losses."
Though he knew Rhodes was getting a massive bargain, Illidan couldn't deny that Archdemons were the ideal candidates for Demon Hunters. Their innate teleportation skill was already borderline "broken," and when combined with the various abilities of a Demon Hunter and their natural affinity for Fel energy, the result would be perfect.
Still, he needed a tangible benefit. Rhodes's Fire Elementals could be infused with the Light, which meant they could likely be infused with Fel to become Fel Fire Elementals. Ten thousand years ago, Rhodes had used a similar trick to play the Legion for fools. Those summoned entities were permanent and sat outside Rhodes's standard "army" units, meaning Illidan could use them himself.
"Hahaha, you certainly know me well, Illidan," Rhodes said with a helpless shrug. "But honestly, I've been working on the permanent summoning of Fire Elementals, and I'm still hitting a wall."
Rhodes had experimented before. Fire Elementals could mutate into Holy Light Elementals, and similarly into Fel Fire Elementals. When summoning a Fire Elemental, Rhodes had attempted to inject Fel energy, successfully creating a Fel Fire Elemental.
Unlike the feminine appearance of the Holy Light Elementals, the Fel version appeared as an elemental demon, with its body wreathed in emerald-green flames. It lost the healing properties and the damage bonus against demons and undead, but it gained a new ability: Mana Burn, identical to the Felhunter skill.
This wasn't just absorbing mana; it was burning it. If a Fel Fire Elemental went all out, it could incinerate every drop of magical energy within a mage's body. Furthermore, they were a hard counter to Arcane magic, as Fel is its natural antithesis. It was via Fel Storms that Sargeras had been able to slaughter his Titan brethren.
In terms of raw combat stats, a Fel Fire Elemental was even stronger than its Holy counterpart: it had 45 Health, 10 Attack and Defense, and dealt 8–12 damage. With a Speed of 9, it was a solid Tier 4 or 5 unit.
However, Rhodes was still trying to integrate Archimonde's "Word of Chaos" into his Earth Elemental summoning to create a Fel Infernal Earth Elemental. He was stuck on that one; perhaps Illidan could help, but since Earth Elementals were Tier 5 magic, Rhodes couldn't teach the spell even with maximum scholar skills yet.
"You will succeed eventually, Rhodes. When you do, you must teach me," Illidan insisted. "Not just the Fel Fire version, but the Fel Earth version too—something like that life-giant spell you created with the Druids. You've mastered Earth Elementals by now, haven't you?"
"I have," Rhodes admitted. "But Earth Elementals are just meat shields; they lack the attack power and mobility of Fire. Besides, that spell is highly specialized. I can't just hand it over."
Illidan snorted. Just as he suspected, Rhodes already had Earth Elementals. What about Water and Air? he wondered. And then there were the Phoenixes. If the Light made them Holy Fire Phoenixes, surely Fel could turn them into Fel Fire Phoenixes.
Without hesitation, Illidan pulled Rhodes into a quiet corner and whispered his plan.
"Hahaha! That's a brilliant idea. I was actually thinking the same thing," Rhodes said, nodding seriously. Compared to Archdemons, his Phoenix production was higher. While Holy Fire Phoenixes needed the waters of the Sunwell, Fel Fire Phoenixes would require massive amounts of Fel energy or other rare catalysts. As Tier 7 units, they were in a league of their own.
"Once we take the Black Temple, we'll experiment there," Illidan said. "The Void energy is extremely potent there. We can siphon massive amounts of Fel from the Twisting Nether. And for the 'catalyst' you mentioned... after we defeat Magtheridon, we can try using his blood. The blood of a Pit Lord has miraculous effects—the Fel Orcs are living proof. I imagine it will work on your units as well."
"Deal. I'm actually getting excited," Rhodes said. "I have plenty of other 'goodies' besides Archdemons and Phoenixes. Once I get the permanent elemental summoning down, I'll share all of them with you—Fire, Earth, Air, and Water. I promise. Now, tell me the plan."
Rhodes felt that taking the Black Temple would yield some massive unexpected rewards.
Illidan didn't waste time and began deploying his forces: "A frontal assault would cost too many lives. The temple's defenses are primarily external. Vashj, lead your Naga through the waterways and sewage systems beneath the temple. Slink inside, cause chaos, and attempt to disable the energy core from within."
"As you command, Master," Vashj hissed.
"Rhodes, Kael'thas—you and your mages and Spellbreakers will suppress the demon sorcerers and defensive wards on the perimeter. Archmage Rhonin, I expect the Dalaran mages to assist them. As for the Paladins, your Holy Light is the ultimate bane of demons; you will lead the charge once the path is cleared."
"Against demons, we do not hesitate," the Blood Elves and Dalaran mages said firmly.
"The Light will purge the filth in our path," the Paladins declared, raising their weapons.
"Good," Illidan said. "Our first step is to close the portals surrounding the Black Temple to ensure the Legion cannot send reinforcements."
With the plan finalized, Rhodes and his followers set out with Illidan toward the Black Temple, beginning the war to unseat the Pit Lord Magtheridon.