Chapter Summaries

Deren traveled with Ragnaros to a supply point on the Northrend coast, where the ship was repaired and the crew bathed together. Ragnaros accepted Deren’s offer of financial support but insisted he still accompany him to the Dragon Isles to secure Deathwing’s legacy.

• Ragnaros showed Deren the secret supply point and said Deathwing had left him a technique for safely crossing magical waters to his laboratory.
• Ragnaros’s men replenished supplies and repaired the ship while keeping Deren under watch, and Deren decided against trying to escape into the icy sea.
• Ragnaros arranged a communal bath aboard the ship, where Deren joined the naked crew and Ragnaros teased him about his body.
• Ragnaros promised his men three months off and visits to Stormwind City pleasure houses after the mission, then asked Deren to help fund the expedition.
• Deren agreed to provide money but asked not to go to the Dragon Isles, and Ragnaros insisted he come along because he intended to claim Deathwing’s legacy and become the Aspect of Earth.

Deren traveled with Ragnaros toward a hidden destination near the Dragon Isles while learning that the route led toward the Forbidden Reach. Jaina and Onyxia pursued them, approaching the ancient magical barrier as Onyxia felt an unexplained pull toward the land beyond it.

• Deren failed to persuade Ragnaros to abandon the journey, but secured promises of help with lodging, food, and gold in Stormwind City.
• Ragnaros revealed that they were detouring north toward a small island, and Deren recognized it as the Forbidden Reach.
• The ship neared a vast magical barrier surrounding the hidden lands east of Northrend, which Deren compared to Suramar’s Nightwell barrier.
• Jaina ordered the Theramore ship to follow the target vessel and discussed the hidden dragon realm with Onyxia.
• Onyxia warned that rescuing Deren was urgent, but admitted her dragon blood was drawing her toward the land beyond the barrier.

Deren and Ragnaros’s ship struggled through a magical storm near the Dragon Isles while Onyxia sensed a summons and flew toward its source. After Onyxia failed to cross an invisible barrier, the storm and magical pressure abruptly vanished, leaving Jaina to suspect Onyxia had triggered an ancient mechanism as they hurried to catch Deren.

• Deren sensed that the sea’s pervasive magic might be drawn from Azeroth’s leylines and worried about supplies and the Dracthyr as the ship neared the Forbidden Reach.
• Ragnaros’s ship entered the storm, and after magical backlash injured him and the rudder became uncontrollable, he seized the wheel and forced the ship onward.
• Onyxia sensed a summons from within the storm and transformed into a Black Dragon to investigate, but an invisible barrier repelled her attempts to pass.
• After Onyxia returned to Jaina’s ship, the storm and magical pressure suddenly disappeared, and Jaina suspected Onyxia’s bloodline had activated a dormant mechanism.
• Jaina urged Onyxia to leave the mystery for later and catch up with Deren, whose ship had continued ahead.

A Titan construct broke the magical storm surrounding the Dragon Isles, awakening the islands and alerting Alexstrasza and Nozdormu. Chromie was assigned to reactivate the guardian covenant, but after learning that Ragnaros had kidnapped Deren, she set off to join the rescue effort instead.

• A Titan construct climbed a beacon tower and activated its crown, collapsing the storm over the Dragon Isles.
• Alexstrasza sensed the Dragon Isles awakening and vanished from the Dragonblight Temple.
• Nozdormu appointed Chromie to light the islands’ Oathstones and reactivate the guardian covenant.
• Chromie learned from Sinestra that Ragnaros had kidnapped Deren and that Onyxia and Jaina were tracking him.
• Chromie traced Deren’s fate to Ragnaros, then agreed to meet Jaina and the others rather than charge into danger alone.

As the Dragon Isles awakened, Sinestra sent Chromie to protect Deren, while Malygos and Ysera dispatched Stellagosa and Mylune to represent their dragonflights. Ysera also asked Mylune to investigate Deren Losen, whose close ties to several Dragonflights had caught the Dragon Kings’ attention.

• Sinestra told Chromie to bring Deren back safely, and Jaina gave Chromie a protective charm from the Star Soul before Chromie vanished.
• Malygos summoned Stellagosa and sent her to the Dragon Isles with an azure sphere containing their history, telling her Alexstrasza would guide her.
• Ysera summoned Mylune and tasked her with traveling to the Dragon Isles to repair the Emerald Oathstone and renew the alliance with the Centaurs.
• Ysera warned Mylune that the Centaurs’ allegiance was uncertain and told her to bring part of the Green Dragon Legion.
• Ysera told Mylune about Deren Losen’s close connections to Chromie, Onyxia, and Stellagosa, then asked her to investigate him during her mission.

Deren and Ragnaros reached the newly revealed Forbidden Reach after the ancient magical storm around it vanished. Their hopes of being first to land were dashed when they spotted a battered Goblin ship already grounded on the beach.

• Deren and Jerry discovered that the storm and magical turbulence had abruptly disappeared, and they went onto the deck to investigate.
• Deren sensed that the barrier isolating the waters had broken as the Forbidden Reach emerged on the horizon, while Ragnaros celebrated the clear passage.
• Ragnaros questioned Deren about his advice to Theramore, but Deren deflected his suspicions with questions about the Dragon Isles' secrets.
• Ragnaros decided that Deren was indispensable and insisted on keeping him aboard for the expedition, frustrating Deren.
• Ragnaros sped the ship toward the island, but his triumphant mood faded when they saw a battered Goblin vessel already grounded near the landing beach.

Ragnaros discovered signs that another claimant had reached the Forbidden Reach before him and led his group ashore to investigate. Deren realized the island’s ancient inhabitants and dangers were beginning to awaken, while privately plotting revenge on Ragnaros for kidnapping him.

• Ragnaros's scouts found an empty Goblin ship with fresh Horde-style supplies, suggesting someone had arrived on the island within the past two days.
• Ragnaros asked Deren who might have reached the Forbidden Reach first, and Deren guessed that Deathwing had left other descendants and contingencies.
• Ragnaros revealed that Deathwing had stolen and altered Red Dragon eggs, sending some through the Dark Portal to Outland, which made Deren recognize how much Ragnaros knew.
• Ragnaros ordered Manu and several subordinates to guard the ship offshore, then returned Deren's Space Bag and led the others toward shore.
• Deren sensed that the island’s Titan seal had been lifted and worried that its ancient inhabitants and dangerous captives were waking.
• Ragnaros led the group onto the Forbidden Reach as Deren silently imagined hanging him from Theramore's city gate.

Onyxia, Jaina, and Chromie arrived on the island to rescue Deren and followed his trail toward its mountainous interior. Meanwhile, Deren continued behind Ragnaros, who found fresh hoofprints along the jungle path.

• Jaina used Eagle Eye to confirm Deren was not aboard the black-sailed ship and decided the group would teleport to the island.
• Chromie arrived after being confined by Nozdormu to revise reports, and Onyxia scolded her for missing Deren’s kidnapping.
• Jaina teleported Onyxia and Chromie to the island, where Chromie traced Deren’s fresh time trail toward the mountains.
• Onyxia recognized a magical fluctuation and suspected Ragnaros was heading for Deathwing’s old hideout; Chromie added a Time Veil to Jaina’s Mass Invisibility.
• Deren followed Ragnaros along a hidden jungle path, where Ragnaros found a fresh hoofprint in the mud.

Ragnaros and Deren tracked Ebyssian’s hoofprints to a battlefield, where Primalist Tauren ambushed them. Ragnaros killed or wounded most of the attackers, while their leader escaped into the forest.

• Ragnaros found fresh Tauren hoofprints and hurried with Deren and the Ravenholdt assassins toward the old man's laboratory.
• The hoofprints ended at a clearing marked by signs of a fierce battle, and Deren suspected Ebyssian had been ambushed by Primalists.
• Primalist Tauren Shamans attacked Ragnaros's group with elemental magic, killing two Ravenholdt assassins as Deren took cover behind a boulder.
• Ragnaros transformed into a Black Dragon and swiftly killed or badly wounded most of the attackers.
• The Tauren leader obscured the clearing with dust and vines, then fled into the forest with the surviving attackers.

Ragnaros took Deren after the fleeing Tauren, convinced they would lead him to the old man's laboratory. When they found a Primalist ritual at the Seal Gate, Deren recognized the danger and warned Ragnaros, but Ragnaros plunged toward it anyway.

• Ragnaros ordered Deren onto his back and flew after the fleeing Tauren leader.
• Ragnaros tracked the Tauren from above while Deren warned that their destination might hold a greater danger.
• The Tauren reached a mountain platform where Shamans performed a ritual around the glowing Seal Gate.
• Deren recognized that the Primalists were trying to open the Seal Gate and shouted for Ragnaros to stop.
• Ragnaros ignored Deren and dived toward the gate as the Tauren roared below.

Onyxia, Jaina, and Chromie discovered that Tauren had ambushed Deren and then Ragnaros, and they tracked Ragnaros’s flight toward a lightning-shrouded mountain. At the ritual platform, Ragnaros dived toward the gate despite Deren’s warnings as the Tauren attacked him.

• Onyxia and Jaina examined the battlefield and found signs of Black Dragon breath and powerful lightning magic.
• Chromie traced the timelines and learned that Tauren had ambushed Deren, then attacked Ragnaros and his group.
• Chromie located Ragnaros flying northeast with Deren, though chaotic magic prevented her from pinpointing their exact position.
• Onyxia transformed into a dragon and carried Jaina and Chromie toward the mountain ridge.
• Ragnaros ignored Deren’s warnings and dived toward the Tauren’s glowing ritual gate.
• The Tauren high Shaman ordered the warriors and Shamans to attack Ragnaros with lightning spells and weapons.

Ragnaros ignored Deren’s warnings and charged toward the unstable doorway, which exploded and sent the Black Dragon crashing down. Injured and stranded, Deren sensed a powerful, ancient presence approaching from the blast site.

• Ragnaros dodged the Tauren’s spells while flying toward the strange doorway, despite Deren’s pleas to turn back.
• Ragnaros blasted several Tauren warriors and a Shaman, then aimed for the doorway as its energy grew unstable.
• The doorway collapsed and erupted in blue-white energy, striking Ragnaros and sending him tumbling out of the sky.
• Deren was flung from Ragnaros and crashed into charged moss, suffering serious injuries.
• Deren felt an ancient, stormlike Dragon Awe as heavy footsteps approached from the explosion’s center.

Raszageth emerged from the Black Mist, declared her vengeance against the Aspect Dragons, and blasted Ragnaros away. After the Tauren High Shaman revealed Deren’s hiding place, Raszageth’s lightning burned away his clothes and forced him into the open.

• Raszageth asked the Tauren High Shaman about her kin, and he said the ancient rites had revealed where the other exalted lords were imprisoned.
• Raszageth mocked Ragnaros as an immature descendant of Neltharion and condemned dragons who served the Titans.
• Raszageth struck beside Ragnaros with lightning, sending the injured Black Dragon Prince flying toward the foot of the mountain.
• Deren hid in the grass, enduring the charge in the air as Raszageth proclaimed the start of her vengeance.
• The Tauren High Shaman told Raszageth that another creature had fallen nearby, and she found Deren hiding in the grass.
• Raszageth’s lightning net burned Deren’s clothes to ash, leaving him injured and naked in the open.

Deren tried to escape Raszageth by posing as a human merchant, but a Tauren High Shaman revealed that he spoke Draconic. Raszageth stopped him and threatened him with lightning unless he disclosed his true identity, purpose, and how he had learned the language.

• Deren claimed a Black Dragon had kidnapped him and presented a gold coin as proof that he was a human merchant.
• Raszageth accepted Deren’s explanation enough to dismiss him and warn him to leave.
• A Tauren High Shaman pointed out that Deren had spoken fluently in the Dragon Race’s language.
• Raszageth realized Deren’s Draconic was suspicious, blocked his way, and demanded an explanation.
• Deren claimed he had learned Draconic to trade with dragon lords, but Raszageth rejected his story and threatened him with a sphere of lightning.

Deren halted Raszageth’s attack by claiming he had come to save her and her imprisoned brethren, then challenged her belief that the Primal Incarnates protected Azeroth. Raszageth was left stunned by his question about whether Azeroth herself had chosen them as protectors.

• Deren shouted that he knew Raszageth’s true name and had come to save her and her imprisoned brethren, stopping her lightning attack.
• Raszageth demanded to know how Deren knew her name and who had sent him.
• Deren warned Raszageth not to reveal his secrets in front of her followers, and she silenced the Tauren High Shaman.
• Deren asked Raszageth whether Azeroth had personally asked the Primal Incarnates to protect her or acknowledged them as protectors.
• Raszageth froze in confusion at Deren’s question.

Deren challenged Raszageth’s belief that the Primal Incarnates had been protecting Azeroth with her consent, and raised the possibility that the Titans and Azeroth’s Soul were not what she understood. Raszageth began to waver as Deren urged her to reconcile with the Aspect Dragons, but she remained torn by anger and distrust.

• Deren asked Raszageth whether Azeroth’s Soul had ever acknowledged or consented to the Primal Incarnates’ claim that they protected her, and Raszageth insisted their mission needed no approval.
• Deren pointed out that Raszageth knew little about the Titans or the nature of their power despite fighting them for millennia.
• The Tauren High Shaman cited Tauren legends and Druid teachings about the Earth Mother’s vast, benevolent will, lending support to Deren’s claim that Azeroth had a consciousness.
• Raszageth conceded that Azeroth’s Soul might exist and that it might never have acknowledged the Primal Incarnates, but maintained that she still wanted to protect her.
• Deren argued that the Incarnates and Aspect Dragons shared the goal of protecting Azeroth and urged Raszageth to clear up their misunderstanding and consider reconciliation.

Deren challenged Raszageth’s hatred of the Aspect Dragons by arguing that the Titans were the true culprits behind the war and their transformation. He left her unsettled by suggesting the Aspect Dragons might have been protecting the Primal Incarnates.

• Raszageth rejected Deren’s call for reconciliation and recalled the losses her kin suffered in the War of the Scaleborn.
• Deren asked how the Primal Incarnates would have treated the Aspect Dragons if they had won, and used Raszageth’s answer to compare it with the imprisonment she endured.
• Raszageth argued that ten thousand years of imprisonment and the deaths and corruption of her companions were unforgivable.
• Deren pointed out that Raszageth’s real hatred was directed at the Titans, yet she had spent her rage fighting the Aspect Dragons instead.
• Deren proposed that the Aspect Dragons might have been protecting the Primal Incarnates, leaving Raszageth staring at him in turmoil.

Deren tried to make Raszageth question whether the Aspect Dragons had accepted Titan Power to protect the Proto-Dragons from the Titan Watchers. Raszageth rejected his argument and prepared to kill him, but Deren revealed an ancient seal that stopped her and stirred a vague memory in her bloodline.

• Deren argued that the Aspect Dragons might have served as a buffer between the Proto-Dragons and the Titan Watchers, who could have destroyed them if they had defeated the Aspects.
• Raszageth briefly considered Deren's reasoning and feared that the Titan Watchers might have erased the Dragon Race, but her resentment overcame her doubts.
• Raszageth accused Deren of using honeyed words to excuse the Aspect Dragons and charged a powerful lightning attack to kill him.
• Deren pulled an ancient, moonlit seal from the remnants of his Space Bag and shouted for Raszageth to stop.
• The seal's light surrounded Deren and dispersed nearby lightning, causing Raszageth to freeze as a vague sensation from her bloodline stirred.

Deren used the Seal of Elune to temper Raszageth’s hostility, then summoned Chromie with a Sand of Time as he struggled to survive. Chromie, Onyxia, and Jaina arrived, and Jaina began treating Deren while Raszageth assessed the reinforcements.

• Deren showed Raszageth the Seal of Elune, briefly reducing her rage, but she refused to be intimidated by his claim to be Elune’s Divine Envoy.
• Deren revealed a Sand of Time and called for Chromie to save him.
• Chromie emerged from a time rift and laughed at Deren’s naked, battered state.
• Onyxia and Jaina arrived through a Portal, and Onyxia demanded that Chromie help Deren.
• Jaina covered Deren with a robe, examined his severe injuries, and began healing him as Raszageth fixed her attention on Chromie.

Onyxia and Chromie confronted Raszageth while Deren recovered from his injuries, and Deren suggested the War of the Scaleborn had been deliberately manipulated. Raszageth withdrew into the storm, still vowing revenge against the dragons she called traitors.

• Raszageth accused the Bronze Dragons and Onyxia of conspiring against her, while Onyxia questioned her about the forgotten War of the Scaleborn.
• Onyxia prioritized getting the injured Deren to safety, but Raszageth refused to trust her and assessed the group as a threat.
• Chromie identified Raszageth as a Primal Incarnate and challenged her over her desire for revenge against the Aspect Dragons.
• After Jaina treated him enough to stand, Deren told Raszageth that someone might have instigated the War of the Scaleborn and used both sides as pawns.
• Raszageth rejected Deren's theory but flew into the northeast thunderclouds, warning that the storm would bring reckoning for dragons descended from traitors.