When Deathwing learned of their intentions, he unleashed Ragnaros and his fire elementals on Mount Hyjal once more. The rift to the Firelands tore open, and an army of ember and smoke poured into the forests.
As Azeroth’s defenders fought to hold back the firestorm, Deathwing turned his attention to Thrall. He had never imagined that a simple orc could threaten him, but this creature was different. Thrall’s meddling had unified the noble Dragon Aspects and saved them from destruction. Not only that, but the orc’s connection with the elements gave him extraordinary power over earth—Deathwing’s domain.
Deathwing called on a new weapon to end Thrall: the Druids of the Flame. They were led by Fandral Staghelm, the disgraced former leader of the Cenarion Circle.
Fandral had been locked in a barrow den for his attempted murder of Malfurion Stormrage and his dealings with the Emerald Nightmare. As the Cataclysm had unfolded, agents of the Twilight’s Hammer had helped him escape his bonds. The cult then presented him with an offer: if he served Deathwing, he would be granted the power to take revenge on the world for the death of his son, Valstann Staghelm.
Fandral had never recovered from losing his child. After his defeat in the War Against the Nightmare, he knew that resurrecting Valstann was impossible, and that fact had darkened his mind and soul. His only desire was to bring ruin to Azeroth, and the Twilight’s Hammer gave him the means to do so.
Ragnaros himself remade Fandral in flames, disfiguring the night elf but also granting him command over the element of fire. He became the Firelord’s foremost lieutenant and the first Druid of the Flame. Fandral recruited others to his side, mainly druids who were disillusioned with the Cenarion Circle. Like their new leader, these druids were reborn in fire.
THE BLACK PRINCE
Deathwing’s corruption had spread to nearly all members of his black dragonflight. They embodied his malice and thirst for destruction. However, there were some exceptions. After the Cataclysm, a red dragon named Rheastrasza had embarked on a dangerous quest to capture a black dragon egg and cleanse it of Deathwing’s influence. She succeeded.
The creature who hatched became known as Wrathion, the Black Prince. Though a whelpling, he was wise and powerful beyond his years. Free of Deathwing’s control, he saw with clear eyes what had become of the black dragons, and he recognized the threat they posed to Azeroth. Wrathion knew of only one way to purify the flight: death. He launched a brutal campaign to assassinate the world’s remaining black dragons.
When his bloody work was done, Wrathion stood as one of the last living black dragons.
Near Hyjal Summit, Fandral and his druids ambushed Thrall. They used the orc’s own shamanic power to shatter his spirit and hurl the pieces across the Elemental Plane. Each sundered portion of his essence embodied one of his raw emotions.
Thrall was thought dead by many of his allies, but not Aggra. She would not abandon the orc she had grown so close to. She convinced members of the Horde and the Alliance to seek out Thrall’s fractured spirit. Together, they made him whole again.
Meanwhile, Malfurion Stormrage rallied Hyjal’s defenders in a massive counterattack against the fire elementals. They drove Ragnaros’s army back into the Firelands, but they did not stop there. Malfurion knew that as long as Ragnaros lived, the creature would launch another invasion. There was only one way to protect Hyjal from his fiery touch.
The Cenarion Circle stormed into the Firelands and carved out a stronghold known as the Molten Front. Fire elementals constantly battered Hyjal’s defenders, but they held fast. Reinforcements from the Horde and the Alliance soon joined the Cenarion Circle. Slowly, they pushed deeper into the Firelands until they reached Sulfuron Keep, Ragnaros’s blazing citadel.
Secure in his own domain, Ragnaros thought himself beyond the reach of simple mortals. Yet so had Al’Akir. Like the Windlord, Ragnaros fell before the onslaught of Azeroth’s defenders. His greatest lieutenants, including Fandral Staghelm and most of the Druids of the Flame, suffered the same fate.
With the Firelord’s destruction, Hyjal was at last spared from his all-consuming flames.
THE LANDS OF AZEROTH FOLLOWING THE CATACLYSM
With peace restored to Hyjal once more, the Dragon Aspects finally turned to their original task. They gathered at the base of Nordrassil and channeled their energies into the World Tree. The effects were immediate. Nordrassil’s wounds healed, and new life pulsed through its limbs. Its verdant crown touched the heavens, and its roots burrowed to the deep places of the world.
Nordrassil’s life-giving energies cascaded over the surrounding woodlands. Among the charred trees that dotted the mountain, saplings pushed through the ash and unfurled new leaves.
The Dragon Aspects were pleased with their work, but there was much yet to do. They remained at Nordrassil and discussed how, or even if, they could defeat Deathwing. He was not the same creature they had fought in Grim Batol years ago. Void energies now coursed through his veins, making him nearly invincible. To defeat him, the Dragon Aspects would need to unmake Deathwing. They would need to destroy every portion of his essence.
Kalecgos theorized a way to do so. The Dragon Aspects would need to combine their powers and amplify them through some means. And he knew of an artifact that could accomplish this goal, an artifact specially crafted to contain their energies.
In the Second War, the orcs had discovered this relic and transformed it into a weapon. Not understanding its true origins, they had called it the Demon Soul, but it was known to Kalecgos and his kind by its original name: the Dragon Soul.
The other Dragon Aspects were wary of this idea. The Dragon Soul was a dangerous thing. Long ago, it had been enchanted so that none of their race could touch it without painful, and possibly fatal, consequences. Yet Kalecgos had a solution in mind: Thrall. He was not a dragon, and so he was immune to the relic’s enchantments. Not only that, but he could infuse the element of earth into the artifact, which would make Deathwing especially vulnerable to its power.
Kalecgos’s logic was sound, but the Dragon Aspects faced an even greater problem. The Dragon Soul was no more. The only way to use it would be to recover it from the past, an act that they could only perform with Nozdormu’s blessing.
For Nozdormu, retrieving the Dragon Soul went against the very purpose of his existence. His duty was to protect the sanctity of the timeways, not interfere with them, no matter how noble the reason. It was only after much soul-searching that Nozdormu realized that venturing into the past was the world’s sole hope of averting the Hour of Twilight.
Nozdormu knew that the first step to claiming the artifact was breaking the infinite dragonflight’s control of the timeways. That meant facing Murozond. As mighty as Nozdormu was, he feared that he would not have the strength to fight this warped future version of himself. It was through the Horde’s champions that he found courage. They, too, believed that the Dragon Soul was the answer to ending Deathwing, and they volunteered their lives to join Nozdormu on his quest.
Together, they ventured into a bleak sliver of the timeways, a future where Murozond and his infinite dragons had twisted reality beyond all recognition. Inspired by the iron will and bravery of his mortal allies, Nozdormu helped the Horde face his shadow self and end Murozond.
The victory was bittersweet for Nozdormu. Azeroth was safe, but he knew that he would one day fall to corruption and become Murozond. That fate was inescapable. He took heart in the fact that, when that terrible destiny came to pass, heroes would rise to strike him down and end his subversion of the timeways.
TIME ANOMALIES
The decision to take the Dragon Soul from the past was not an easy one for Nozdormu. His purpose was to protect time, not meddle with it. Nonetheless, he was prepared to do whatever was necessary to stop Deathwing. If the Hour of Twilight came to pass, there would be no timeways left for him to protect.
Plucking the Dragon Soul from the War of the Ancients caused disruptions in the timeways, but Nozdormu knew that they would be short-lived. After the artifact was used against Deathwing, it returned to the past, thereby restoring order to time.
With the timeways freed of the infinite dragonflight’s control, Nozdormu opened a pathway to the War of the Ancients, the era of the Burning Legion’s first invasion of Azeroth. Traveling to this period would be dangerous, but it was necessary. The Dragon Aspects needed the Dragon Soul in its purest form, not long after Deathwing had crafted it and convinced his former friends to infuse it with their energies.
This time, it was heroes from the Alliance who rose to the challenge. Alongside Nozdormu, they ventured into the broken battlefields of the past. Demons swarmed across a land smoldering in fel fire and choked with bodies. Narrowly, they avoided becoming victims of the war themselves. They helped Nozdormu recover the Dragon Soul and return it to the present.
The Dragon Aspects set out for Wyrmrest Temple to infuse the artifact with their combined might along with Thrall’s shamanic power. Their actions did not go unnoticed. Deathwing had agents throughout the world, and they had learned of the Dragon Soul’s return and the plans to empower it.
If his enemies succeeded, Deathwing would perish. And so, he released all his fury at Wyrmrest Temple.
Deathwing held nothing back.
The force of twilight dragons and cultists he had rallied at Wyrmrest Temple was larger than any army he had ever mustered. From the ground and from the air, his servants surrounded the sacred tower. Even N’Zoth sent its own minions to aid the assault. At the Old God’s command, nightmarish creatures called the n’raqi, or “faceless ones,” arrived at Wyrmrest Temple just as the Dragon Aspects and their allies did.
The noble Dragon Aspects and the champions of the Horde and the Alliance did not face these enemies alone. Members of the red, blue, green, and bronze dragonflights gathered at Wyrmrest Temple to fight for control of the area. They clashed with the twilight dragons, their winged forms blotting out the sun.
The costs on all sides were horrific. Hundreds of cultists and twilight dragons lost their lives, including the Twilight Father. Just as many of the temple’s defenders fell in battle.
Yet the red, blue, green, and bronze dragons did not die in vain. Their sacrifices allowed the Dragon Aspects and their allies to focus their wrath on Deathwing. For all his might, he could not best his unified enemies or prevent them from empowering the Dragon Soul. Thrall and the Dragon Aspects unleashed the artifact on Deathwing and drove him from Wyrmrest Temple.
Wounded and enraged, Deathwing fled toward the Maelstrom in the hope that he could reach Deepholm through its swirling depths. Taking refuge in the elemental realm was his only chance of escaping the Dragon Aspects and recovering from his injuries.
The defenders of Wyrmrest pursued Deathwing through the skies and slowly whittled away his strength. N’Zoth sensed that its servant was on the verge of defeat. The Old God’s plans were unraveling, and it made one final, desperate attempt to turn the tide. N’Zoth infused Deathwing with more of its power—more than the Old God had ever given the black Dragon Aspect before. The influx of energy was so great that Deathwing’s unstable body wrenched apart, and molten tentacles unfurled from his broken hide.
Thrall turned the Dragon Soul against this aberration. To ensure that it would destroy Deathwing, the Dragon Aspects sacrificed all their remaining power to the artifact. Their essences, combined with the element of earth that Thrall had woven into the weapon, seared through Deathwing. The explosive power annihilated his tormented mind and body.
In that moment, N’Zoth’s campaign to bring about the Hour of Twilight collapsed.
Azeroth was spared, but it had changed forever. The Cataclysm had reshaped the world and claimed countless lives. It would take years for Azeroth’s nations to recover from the damage. For some, there would be no going back to the way things had been before.
The Dragon Aspects had sacrificed their energies to overcome Deathwing. They would remain active in the affairs of the world, but with their powers diminished, they could no longer serve as Azeroth’s protectors. They passed that sacred duty on to new defenders.
They passed it on to mortals.
The age of Dragon Aspects and the Guardians of Tirisfal was over. The Horde and the Alliance had proved themselves capable of facing any force that threatened Azeroth.
The world was now theirs to watch over, but whether they were ready for this responsibility was another question. The cycle of hatred that had consumed the Horde and the Alliance remained unbroken. Vanquishing Deathwing did not cause the two factions to reflect on their warmongering. To the contrary, with the black Dragon Aspect and the Twilight’s Hammer defeated, the Horde and the Alliance now turned all their attention, all their wrath, on each other.
TO BE CONTINUED…
REBUILDING PARTS OF STORMWIND CITY AFTER THE CATACLYSM
A’dal, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4
Aedelas Blackmoore
Aegwynn, 1.1, 5.1
Aggra, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3
Ahn’Qiraj, 1.1, 1.2
Akama, 3.1, 5.1, 5.2
Al’Akir: the Windlord, 7.1, 7.2
Aldor, 5.1, 5.2
Alexandros Morgaine, 3.1, 4.1, 4.2
Alexstrasza, 1.1, 2.1, 6.1, 6.2, 7.1, 7.2
Alleria Windrunner, 1.1, 2.1
Amani, 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 5.1, 5.2, 7.1
Anasterian Sunstrider, 2.1, 3.1
Andorhal, 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2
Anduin Wrynn, 1.1, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 7.1, 7.2
Antonidas, 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3
Anub’arak
Anveena Teague, 3.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3
Archimonde, 1.1, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 3.1, 5.1
Argent Dawn, 3.1, 4.1, 4.2, 6.1
Argus, 1.1, 1.2, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6
Army of the Light, 1.1, 5.1
Arthas Menethil, 1.1, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 6.1, 6.2
Arygos, 7.1, 7.2
Ashbringer, 3.1, 4.1, 4.2, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3
Auchindoun, 1.1, 5.1
Azjol-Nerub, 1.1, 1.2, 3.1, 6.1
Baine Bloodhoof
Balnazzar, 1.1, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3
Benedictus, 5.1, 7.1, 7.2
Bilgewater Cartel
Black Empire, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 4.1, 7.1
Black Temple, 1.1, 3.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5
Blackrock Mountain, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 7.1, 7.2
Blood Knights, 5.1, 5.2
Bolvar Fordragon, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4
Book of Medivh, 2.1, 2.2
Brann Bronzebeard
Burning Legion, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 1.6, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 7.1, 7.2
C’Thun, 1.1, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 7.1
Cairne Bloodhoof, 2.1, 4.1, 5.1, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3
Cataclysm, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5
Cenarion Circle, 4.1, 4.2, 6.1, 7.1, 7.2
Cenarius, 2.1, 2.2, 7.1
Cho’gall, 1.1, 3.1, 3.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4
Coilfang Reservoir, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3
Council of Three Hammers
Cult of the Damned, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1
Daelin Proudmoore, 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 4.1
Dalaran, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3
Danath Trollbane, 1.1, 1.2, 5.1
Dar’Khan Drathir, 2.1, 3.1
Darion Mograine, 4.1, 4.2, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3
Dark Portal, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.2, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 6.1, 7.1
Darkspear, 2.1, 4.1, 4.2, 7.1
Daval Prestor
>
Deathwing, 1.1, 4.1, 5.1, 6.1, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5, 7.6, 7.7
Deepholm, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4
Demon Soul, 1.1, 7.1
Detheroc, 1.1, 3.1, 3.2
Dire Maul, 4.1, 7.1
Draenor, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, 5.2, 5.3, 5.4, 7.1, 7.2
Dragonmaw, 1.1, 1.2, 7.1, 7.2
Draka, 1.1, 1.2
Dranosh Saurfang, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4
Earthen Ring, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3
Eitrigg, 1.1, 6.1
Elemental Plane, 4.1, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5
Emerald Dream, 1.1, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 6.1, 7.1, 7.2
Emerald Nightmare, 1.1, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 6.1, 7.1
Exodar, 5.1, 5.2
Falstad Wildhammer, 1.1, 7.1
Fandral Staghelm, 4.1, 4.2, 6.1, 7.1
Firelands, 4.1, 7.1, 7.2
First War, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.4, 1.5, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1, 5.2
Forge of Origination, 6.1, 7.1
Forge of Wills, 5.1, 6.1
Forsaken, 3.1, 4.1, 5.1, 6.1, 6.2
Frostborn, 2.1, 6.1
Frostmourne, 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.4, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 3.1, 3.2, 6.1, 6.2
Frozen Throne, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5
Garrosh Hellscream, 5.1, 6.1, 6.2, 6.3, 6.4, 6.5, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.5
Gelbin Mekkatorque, 1.1, 2.1, 4.1
Genn Greymane, 1.1, 2.1, 7.1, 7.2
Geyah, 5.1, 7.1
Gilneas, 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 4.1, 7.1, 7.2
Gnomeregan, 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, 2.2, 4.1, 4.2
Go’el, see Thrall
Gordawg
Greymane Wall, 1.1, 2.1, 7.1
Grim Batol, 1.1, 1.2, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4
World of Warcraft Chronicle Volume 3 Page 26
