World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume 2 (World of Warcraft: Chronicle)

by Blizzard

  Though friendship between members of different clans went against longstanding tradition, the Frostwolf and Blackrock elders permitted Orgrim and Durotan to maintain their bond. One summer, the youths met at the border between Frostfire Ridge and Gorgrond. They had been warned not to stray beyond this point, but Orgrim and Durotan were not orcs prone to following the rules.

  They set out into the thick forests of Terokkar, where they were attacked by an enraged Highmaul ogre. Orgrim and Durotan were strong, but they could not match the ogre’s might. The brute descended on the youths, but he never had the chance to kill them.

  Rangari scouts had been tracking this ogre, who had strayed deep into draenei lands. The Rangari emerged from the woods and felled the brute with their arrows. The draenei hunting party’s leader, Restalaan, admired Orgrim’s and Durotan’s bravery, yet he knew they were in great danger from other ogres who were prowling the forests. He offered a safe haven in the nearby settlement of Telmor.

  Orgrim and Durotan were wary of the draenei, but they accepted the offer. They had never been inside a draenei settlement. Few orcs had. They were shocked by the draenei’s hospitality, but even more so by the wondrous technology and craftsmanship of Telmor.

  Orgrim and Durotan’s arrival in Telmor was also fortuitous for the draenei. Velen was in the city to meet with Restalaan. After hearing of the two newcomers, he requested an audience with them. Of late, Velen had been experiencing strange dreams of the orcs, in which he saw them united and marching for war. In some of these visions, the Prophet also saw a great shadow slowly creeping over Draenor.

  Due to his lingering injuries, Velen was not sure whether these premonitions had any truth to them, but he was determined to find out. While meeting with Orgrim and Durotan, Velen observed the two orcs carefully. Yet he did not find any darkness stirring in their hearts. Much to the contrary, the youths seemed proud and honest.

  Under Velen’s orders, Rangari scouts escorted Orgrim and Durotan back to the borders of Gorgrond. Their stay in Telmor had been short, but the two youths had learned much about the draenei. They returned home with tales of the hospitality that had been shown to them, and of the extraordinary sights they had seen.

  This event would mark one of the last peaceful encounters between orcs and draenei.

  For millennia after the draenei fled Argus, Sargeras and his Legion continued their Burning Crusade. Demons laid waste to countless worlds, burning entire civilizations from existence.

  Yet there was one world that turned the Legion back. Azeroth.

  Azeroth was an extraordinary place. It contained a nascent titan spirit, one destined to become more powerful than Sargeras himself. The Legion’s ruler knew that if it fell to the void lords, Azeroth would become a weapon that not even he could stand against.

  Sargeras was eager to conquer Azeroth before the void lords shrouded it in darkness. To do so, he launched a massive invasion of the world. Demons of all kinds flooded into Azeroth, slaughtering its inhabitants and inundating the wilds with fel magic. The War of the Ancients had begun.

  Then the impossible happened. Led by a noble race called the night elves, Azeroth’s native creatures overcame the invading Legion and banished it back to the Twisting Nether.

  The defeat infuriated Sargeras. He became obsessed with seizing Azeroth at any cost, and he plotted a second invasion. Many challenges faced the Legion’s ruler, not the least of which was bringing his demons to the world again. It was no simple task to open portals between the Twisting Nether and the physical universe that were large enough and stable enough for armies to pass through. It required astronomical amounts of energy.

  In the first invasion, the Legion had harnessed the power of Azeroth’s Well of Eternity. This enormous fount of arcane magic allowed the demons to craft a gateway to the Nether. Yet the Well of Eternity was now gone, destroyed by Azeroth’s defenders. Finding another way to breach the world was not impossible, but it would take time and great effort. What was more, Sargeras wanted to be certain that when the Legion did invade, it would face no heavy resistance. He wanted Azeroth’s inhabitants to be broken before his demons set foot on the world.

  An idea took shape in Sargeras’s mind. He and his Legion would find new weapons that they could use to soften Azeroth’s defenders before a proper demonic invasion force arrived. Sargeras ordered his followers to scour the universe for suitable races to corrupt and add to the Legion’s ranks.

  Meanwhile, the fallen titan focused his attention on Azeroth itself. He sought out a powerful individual there, someone who would serve as a vessel to begin the next invasion.

  THE SECOND WELL OF ETERNITY

  Though the Well of Eternity was destroyed, not all of its energies were gone. A night elf named Illidan Stormrage had stolen some of the fount’s water. With it, he created a new Well of Eternity.

  Sargeras and his Legion would eventually learn of its existence, but they would not be able to use this new source of power as easily as they had the first Well of Eternity. The second fount was capped by Nordrassil, a colossal World Tree enchanted to protect the Well’s energies.

  While the Legion was bolstering its strength for the next invasion of Azeroth, Kil’jaeden the Deceiver tasked a demon named Talgath with hunting the draenei. He visited dozens of worlds that the renegades had momentarily touched, but he was always one step behind his prey. After a series of failed attempts to capture the draenei, Talgath finally found evidence of their whereabouts.

  When the Genedar crashed on Draenor, the impact had sent waves of holy energy surging through the Twisting Nether. Talgath sensed this influx of power and investigated the strange phenomenon. His anticipation swelled as he realized that these energies had come from the naaru, the same ones who had helped Velen and his renegades escape Argus.

  For more than a century, Talgath tracked the contrails of holy power, until he reached the lush world of Draenor. He steeled himself for yet another disappointment, expecting to find that the draenei had once again slipped through his fingers. But this time was different.

  As he observed Draenor, Talgath saw the fledgling draenei civilization. Not only had they settled on the world, but their dimensional fortress lay in ruin. They were trapped.

  Talgath communed with Kil’jaeden and told him what he had found. The discovery of the draenei greatly pleased the demon lord. He had once been great friends with Velen. When the Prophet and his renegades had fled from Argus, Kil’jaeden saw it as a betrayal of trust, a grave insult that required punishment. At long last, the demon lord could make good his desires.

  Kil’jaeden commanded his servant to remain hidden and report on what he learned of Draenor. Talgath relayed information about the draenei and their way of life to Kil’jaeden, along with details of the orcs and the world’s other indigenous races.

  Though Kil’jaeden wanted to destroy the draenei outright, he stayed his hand. Sargeras had specifically tasked him and the Legion’s other commanders with finding new races to incorporate into their armies. Perhaps the orcs could serve that purpose.

  For the time being, Kil’jaeden ordered Talgath to continue watching Draenor and its inhabitants. The demon lord had much yet to learn about the orcs and their customs.

  Talgath spent time observing the orcs and their ways. The demon found that the creatures were incredibly resilient, and many were prone to violence. Though he watched all of the clans, he devoted his attention to those that held the most power and influence among their race. These included the Warsong, Blackrock, Bleeding Hollow, Shadowmoon, Thunderlord, and Frostwolf clans.

  In Nagrand, constant battle with the Highmaul ogres had shaped the Warsongs into fearsome nomads. A warrior named Grommash Hellscream led the clan. The Highmaul outnumbered the Warsongs, but that did not stop the clan’s bold chieftain from leading attacks against the ogres. Hellscream’s highly mobile wolf riders swarmed across Nagrand’s plains, using hit-and-run tactics to raid ogre settlements. Grommash and his people eventually shattered Hi
ghmaul’s hold on the region, seizing much of it for themselves. They pushed the ogres back within the walls of their stronghold, and the Warsong chieftain became a legend among the clans.

  This was only the beginning of the Highmaul’s woes. The ogres had a long history of enslaving orcs. For entertainment, they forced their captives to fight each other in brutal arenas. One slave known as Kargath led an uprising in Highmaul. He tore off his own hand to escape his chains, and he challenged his fellow slaves to do the same. Those who did joined Kargath as he rampaged through the city and spilled the blood of his masters.

  Kargath and these former slaves established a new clan called the Shattered Hand, and they settled in the Spires of Arak. Slavery had changed these orcs into a twisted and embittered people who knew only pain and torment. Kargath and his followers adopted bloody traditions of self-disfigurement and scarification. They attached weapons to the ends of their severed limbs, and Kargath himself earned the name “Bladefist” for starting this practice.

  North of the Shattered Hand territories lay Gorgrond, home of the Blackrocks. Their leader, Chieftain Blackhand, commanded enormous respect from orcs across the world. Though he was arrogant and power hungry, he was also a charismatic leader and a great fighter. His mighty soldiers would follow their chieftain to the ends of Draenor without hesitation.

  The Blackrocks boasted the largest, most organized, and best equipped orcish military in the world. The clan’s shaman had perfected the art of using elemental fire to shape blackrock ore, a rare metal found in Gorgrond. The Blackrocks worked their forges day and night, crafting enchanted weaponry and armor that were nearly indestructible.

  Like the Warsongs, the Blackrocks had long clashed with local ogre populations. By the time Talgath began observing Blackhand and his followers, the orcs had crushed their brutish enemies and driven most of them from Gorgrond.

  The Bleeding Hollow were much different than other clans. The highly superstitious orcs dwelled in the remote corners of Tanaan Jungle, where they practiced dark rituals. The Bleeding Hollow faced many threats, from botani and genesaur to ogres and arakkoa. These enemies had pushed the clan to the brink of extinction before a new leader came to power: Kilrogg Deadeye.

  Before becoming chieftain, Kilrogg had undergone a rite of passage to see the future. He gouged out his eye and was granted a vision of his own death. The gruesome ritual did not trouble Kilrogg. He lived his life without fear, for he knew the exact day of his demise.

  CHIEFTAIN BLACKHAND MAKES WAR ON THE OGRES

  Kilrogg murdered his father to take control of the ailing Bleeding Hollow clan. Under his leadership, the orcs stormed through the jungles and eradicated their old enemies.

  Talgath was intrigued to find that not all clans were so warlike. The Shadowmoon were relatively peaceful orcs. They were a spiritual people who inhabited Shadowmoon Valley, and many of their traditions revolved around shamanic practices. The clan’s shaman frequently traveled to the Throne of the Elements to commune with the world’s elemental spirits. They also revered the orcs’ dead ancestors, calling on them for advice.

  The wise chieftain Ner’zhul guided the Shadowmoon. He was respected by every clan, a rarity for the fragmented orc race. Ner’zhul acted as an advisor to all shaman, and he helped foster and maintain the loose bonds shared among the different clans.

  Then there were the Frostwolves, whom Talgath saw as an enigma of sorts. The clan lived in a rugged corner of the world known as Frostfire Ridge. The Frostwolves were exceptional fighters, but they did not seek to dominate the land. They lived in harmony with it. Chieftain Garad embodied the Frostwolves’ noble ideals of family and community. He believed that only by helping each other and standing united could the orcs survive in their harsh environment.

  Garad pressed his values onto his three sons, but not all of them accepted his teachings. The chieftain’s two youngest children, Ga’nar and Durotan, idolized their father and the clan’s ancient traditions. The eldest son, Fenris, was different.

  Fenris abandoned the Frostwolves and joined their rivals, the Thunderlord clan. Unlike the Frostwolves, the Thunderlords valued acts of bravery and valor above all others. They often embarked on dangerous adventures to kill Frostfire’s mighty gronn and magnaron. Fenris earned the renown he so craved, and he would eventually become the chieftain of the Thunderlord clan.

  For a number of months, Talgath continued watching the clans, specifically those that dwelled in Frostfire Ridge. Tensions were increasing between them and the local Bladespire ogres. The demon wanted to see how far the orcs would go to secure peace for themselves.

  Highmaul never recovered from the battles with the Warsongs and Kargath’s slave uprising. The ogres’ hold on Nagrand was broken forever. This turn of events greatly troubled the Bladespire and their leader, Imperator Kelgrok. Ogre influence was waning across Draenor. The imperator was determined to retain control of Frostfire Ridge. Rather than simply shore up the Bladespire’s defenses, Kelgrok sought to expand. And he had the perfect weapon to do so.

  Ever since the fall of the Gorian Empire, the ogre population had remained relatively low. To make up for their lack of numbers, Bladespire sorcerers had conducted cruel experiments to create new creatures whom they could use to fill their labor force. The most promising results came from selective breeding between ogres and enslaved orcs.

  The children of these forced unions were called mok’nathal. They possessed the strength of ogres and the intelligence of orcs. The Bladespire kept the mok’nathal in chains, and they bred them together to create even more servants. To maintain loyalty from the half-breeds, the ogres threatened to kill entire families if even one of their members rebelled.

  Imperator Kelgrok unshackled many of the mok’nathal and ordered them to make war on the orcs. They would form the bulk of the Bladespire’s army.

  The Bladespire forces rampaged across Frostfire and seized large tracts of resource-rich land from the orcs. Chieftain Garad called upon the region’s two other clans—the Thunderlords and the Whiteclaws—to unite with the Frostwolves against this new threat.

  Due to Fenris’s influence, the Thunderlords rejected Garad’s call for unity. They decided to deal with the Bladespire in their own way. Teams of Thunderlord orcs raided ogre settlements in the dead of night, slaughtering young and old alike.

  Yet the Whiteclaw clan did embrace Garad’s request for help. They felt an affinity toward the Frostwolves, with whom they shared many customs and traditions.

  Garad was declared leader of the Frostwolf and Whiteclaw army. He named his sons Ga’nar and Durotan as his lieutenants. With a formidable force now under his command, the chieftain struck at the Bladespire. The orcs didn’t win any decisive victories, but they did capture a number of mok’nathal and their elder, Leoroxx.

  When Garad met with Leoroxx, he was surprised by what he learned from his enemy. The Frostwolf chieftain had always assumed that the half-breeds served the ogres willingly. From Leoroxx, he learned of the mok’nathal’s cruel treatment at the Bladespire’s hands, and the specter of execution that constantly hung over their families. After much discussion, Garad and his prisoner came to an agreement. They would help each other destroy the Bladespire forever.

  Leoroxx returned to Bladespire Hold and incited open rebellion among the mok’nathal. The half-breeds rose up against their oppressors and set fire to the stronghold. As pillars of smoke billowed into the sky, Garad and his army smashed into Bladespire Hold’s outer defenses.

  The Battle of Bladespire dragged on for a full bloody day before the allied orc and mok’nathal armies drove the ogres from their fortress. In the heart of the burning stronghold, Leoroxx strangled Imperator Kelgrok with the chains that he had worn for so much of his life.

  The orcs had won, but at great cost. Hundreds of Frostwolves and Whiteclaws had died in battle, including Ga’nar. He had sacrificed his life, helping many young mok’nathal escape the besieged fortress. Ga’nar’s death broke his father’s heart. Thou
gh Durotan remained to carry on the family line, the Frostwolf chieftain would never recover from losing his second son.

  After the battle, Chieftain Garad offered Leoroxx and his people land in Frostfire to make a new home. The elder mok’nathal declined, knowing the orcs would never truly accept half-breeds.

  Leoroxx gathered his fellow mok’nathal and settled in a remote corner of Gorgrond. Resources were scarce, but they would be able to live in peace. They disavowed fighting and swore to take up arms only to defend their meager lands from threats.

  From Talgath’s observations, Kil’jaeden learned much of the orcs. They were a resilient, proud, and mighty race. They were also superstitious creatures who engaged in ancestor worship and honored the world’s elemental spirits. Kil’jaeden believed that these strong traditions would make the orcs easy to manipulate. If he could bend them to his will, he would use them to enact vengeance on the draenei before incorporating the orcs into the Legion.

  Talgath was infuriated when he learned of Kil’jaeden’s plans. The renegades were finally in his grasp. He had not endured millennia of hunting the draenei just so the primitive orcs could spill their blood. He demanded that his master reconsider.

  Kil’jaeden would have normally repaid such insubordination with death, but he understood Talgath’s anger. Still, the demon lord would not allow such disobedience to go unpunished. He ordered Talgath to leave Draenor. Kil’jaeden’s servant would play no part in the draenei’s downfall.

  With Talgath gone, Kil’jaeden focused on corrupting the orcs. He needed an agent from their race to follow his will, and he carefully searched for someone whom he could sway to his side.