Chapter Summaries

After Mal'Ganis escaped east, Arthas led Rhode and their companions in pursuit, following the demon's trail through the Hillsbrad Foothills. A storm forced them to camp for the night, where Rhode's casual description of the Holy Light as a form of energy surprised Arthas.

• Arthas sensed that Mal'Ganis had fled east and insisted that Rhode assemble a squad to pursue him immediately.
• Rhode formed a five-person team with Lilia, Sally, Arthas, and Kienlo, while Calia remained at Westpoint Tower.
• The squad followed Mal'Ganis past Eastpoint Tower and Durnholde Keep, but his trail continued east and they could not catch up.
• Heavy rain forced Arthas and the others to camp beneath a broken wall, where they divided up the work of preparing food and shelter.
• Rhode told Arthas that the Holy Light was a form of energy, prompting Arthas to regard his irreverent explanation with surprise.

Rhode asked Arthas how he would handle plague-infected citizens in Stratholme and urged him not to let revenge lead him away from the Holy Light. The two prepared for the possibility of confronting the Cult of the Damned and Mal'Ganis, with Rhode determined to keep Arthas from repeating his future downfall.

• Rhode explained his view that the Holy Light and Shadow were energies that helped form the world, though Arthas disagreed.
• Rhode asked what Arthas would do if Stratholme’s citizens were infected with the Scourge plague, and Arthas said he would kill those who could not be saved.
• Rhode admitted he might make the same choice, while Arthas vowed to avenge the innocent citizens by finding the plague’s source.
• Rhode warned Arthas not to let hatred blind him or make him abandon the Holy Light for a crooked path.
• Arthas laughed off Rhode’s suggestion that he might turn to Shadow, and Rhode urged him to remember the Holy Light’s teachings.

Rhode cooked stone-grilled venison for the group, and Arthas grew more comfortable among them as they shared dinner and jokes. Afterward, they started a game of Gomoku, and Rhode lost to Sally, leaving him to perform a joke.

• Rhode prepared stone-grilled venison, which Arthas and the others enjoyed.
• Rhode teased Lilia by offering her a slice of meat as a reward, then giving it to Kienlo, and everyone laughed.
• Arthas watched the group joke together and felt warmth as they treated him like one of their own.
• Lilia suggested playing Gomoku, and Rhode proposed that the loser perform something.
• Sally beat Rhode at Gomoku, and he agreed to try telling a joke.

Rhode and his companions played Gomoku, and Arthas demonstrated the Holy Light before the group camped for the night. The next day, they followed the demon’s trail east, reached Thoradin’s Wall, and crossed into the Arathi Highlands, territory of the Kingdom of Stromgarde.

• Rhode told a ghost story that ended with the mage pointing out that Jack had put his clothes on backward, making everyone laugh.
• The group played Gomoku, and Lilia, Sally, and Kienlo performed their forfeits after losing.
• Arthas cast Holy Light on Rhode, who wondered whether his magic could combine fireball damage with healing or extra power against demons and undead.
• The group slept in their tents and set off at daybreak, following the demon’s presence east through the fog.
• The companions saw Thoradin’s Wall and learned about its history as a defense against trolls.
• The five-person party passed through an archway in Thoradin’s Wall and entered the Arathi Highlands.

Rhode and his companions encountered Lieutenant Valokar’s Stromgarde patrol while traveling toward the capital. After learning that a contagious plague had been reported at Northridge Farm, Rhode asked to join the patrol and investigate.

• Rhode introduced Arthas to Lieutenant Valokar as a Silver Hand paladin and Prince of Lordaeron, while Lilia tried to impress the patrol with Rhode’s titles.
• Valokar recognized Rhode for his victories against the Syndicate and welcomed him with respect.
• Valokar told the group that his patrol was heading to Northridge Farm after reports that someone there had contracted a contagious plague.
• Rhode stopped Valokar and asked to accompany the patrol to investigate the farm.

Rhode and Arthas investigated a suspicious plague at Northridge Farm and discovered a corpse infected with a sinister force. Rhode identified the corrupted disease as the Scourge Plague.

• Rhode agreed to investigate Northridge Farm with Lieutenant Varokar after Arthas could no longer sense the demon clearly.
• The group found the farm deserted and entered the farmhouse while Varokar’s soldiers stayed behind as lookouts.
• Sally found the mutilated corpse of Northridge, whose body had decayed far too quickly.
• Varokar touched the corpse and dark energy began corrupting his fingers, but Arthas drove it out with the Holy Light.
• Rhode recognized the force as a plague infused with fel and evil spirits and named it the Scourge Plague.

Rhode discovered that the Scourge plague had appeared in Stromgarde instead of Lordaeron and suspected the Cult of the Damned was active nearby. He and his allies found and fought a group of ghouls beneath a farmhouse.

• Arthas warned everyone that the corpse infected with the Scourge plague was contagious, and Rhode realized history had changed.
• Rhode heard chewing beneath the room, found a basement entrance, and illuminated a group of people feeding in the darkness.
• The group rose as ghouls, frightening Lilia and prompting Rhode to search the basement for other creatures or Cult of the Damned members.
• Rhode ordered everyone to retreat to ground level and attacked the ghouls with fireballs while Sally and Arthas struck them with Holy Light.
• Rhode, Sally, and Arthas killed the ghouls with their spells, burning or striking them down one after another.

Rhode's party found zombies near the granary and fought them while trying to locate the source of the plague. Lieutenant Varokar was splattered with infected blood, but Arthas detected no plague in him, leaving the group relieved and puzzled.

• Rhode extinguished the basement fire and led the party toward the granary, which he suspected was the source of the infection.
• Rhode destroyed an approaching zombie with a Fireball, and Lieutenant Varokar beheaded a second one with his Greatsword.
• Rhode destroyed the severed zombie head as it continued to attack, then Sally noticed that Varokar was covered in blood and pus.
• Varokar feared he was infected and asked Rhode to kill him before he could become a zombie.
• Arthas used the Holy Light to examine Varokar and found no trace of the plague, prompting Varokar to celebrate his survival.

Rhode examined the Scourge’s undead and confronted the Cult of the Damned Necromancer Amanenar at the Farm. Amanenar introduced himself and praised Kel’Thuzad’s power, then asked Rhode’s group why they had come.

• Rhode reasoned that Zombies seemed less infectious and weaker than Ghouls, while the Scourge used Necromancy and strange technologies to create more formidable undead.
• Rhode heard screams from the Farm hill, where Stromgarde soldiers were stationed, and saw Amanenar float down to confront his group.
• Rhode recognized Amanenar’s Cult of the Damned emblem and pretended to doubt that any Mage could surpass Dalaran, hoping to learn more about the Scourge.
• Amanenar said he had joined a more powerful side after witnessing Lord Kel’Thuzad’s strength, while Arthas and Kienlo watched him with anger.
• Amanenar noticed Rhode’s armed companions and asked what had brought the group there.

Rhode convinced Amanenar that he was a former Scholomance student who wanted to master dark magic, and Amanenar showed him Kel'Thuzad's devastating power. The chapter ended with Kel'Thuzad's spell destroying an entire forest.

• Rhode pulled Amanenar aside and claimed he was a Stromgarde noble who had studied dark magic under Malicia at Scholomance.
• Rhode demonstrated a rudimentary dark spell, persuading Amanenar that he was telling the truth.
• Rhode asked Amanenar to teach him powerful magic, and Amanenar offered to show him Kel'Thuzad's strength.
• Amanenar cast Image Projection, which showed Kel'Thuzad unleashing dark Frostbolts across a forest.
• Kel'Thuzad's Frostbolts froze the trees, and spreading shadows withered them into ash until the forest vanished.

Rhode decided to infiltrate the Cult of the Damned to uncover Kel'Thuzad's plans, and staged his friends' deaths to prove his loyalty. He left the farm with Amanenar under the alias Ronaldo.

• Rhode watched Kel'Thuzad demonstrate a plague-spreading spell and learned that Kel'Thuzad had arranged the farm experiment.
• Rhode told Amanenar he would join the cult and dispose of his friends, while secretly instructing Lilia and the others to pretend to die and go to Stromgarde afterward.
• Rhode used a carefully controlled Blizzard to freeze his five friends without harming them, making their defeat look real to Amanenar.
• Amanenar praised Rhode's magic and led him away from the farm beneath a dark veil.
• Rhode introduced himself to Amanenar as Ronaldo.

Amanenar led Rhode through a corrupted forest to a Mass Grave that served as the Cult of the Damned's headquarters. When Ghouls rose from the cemetery, Amanenar stopped Rhode from attacking and gave him a potion to keep them from attacking him.

• Amanenar led Rhode through a dark, misty forest to a cemetery beyond a burial chamber.
• Rhode discovered that the cemetery was a Mass Grave and the local Cult of the Damned's headquarters.
• A Ghoul emerged from the earth, and more Ghouls began crawling out across the cemetery.
• Rhode prepared to cast Blizzard, but Amanenar ordered him to stop and commanded the Ghouls to stand down.
• Amanenar gave Rhode a green potion that would prevent the Ghouls from attacking him.

Rhode drank a Necromantic Potion to pass safely among the undead and followed Amanenar into the Cult of the Damned's underground quarters. Amanenar assigned him a room, one book to study, and a stained Mage Robe whose previous owner had died while studying Dark Magic.

• Rhode drank the Necromantic Potion, endured a brief burst of pain and strange cries, and found that the Ghouls no longer treated him as an enemy.
• Rhode learned the potion lasted one week and that Necromancers could still order the undead to attack anyone who drank it.
• Amanenar led Rhode through a hidden black door and down a corridor to his room in the Cult of the Damned's underground quarters.
• Amanenar told Rhode to study the room's only book and wear a stained black Mage Robe as the Cult's uniform.
• Amanenar explained that the robe's previous owner had blown his head off while studying Dark Magic.

Rhode studied Kel'Thuzad’s textbook on necromantic spells and learned how Dark Magic differed from conventional magic. He began practicing its reversed Spell Model connections and managed to create a simulated Fireball wreathed in shadow.

• After Amanenar left, Rhode examined the books and decided to start learning Dark Magic from the basics.
• Rhode opened Kel'Thuzad’s textbook, which described necromancy as a form of arcane energy wielded through death, life, curses, and servants of death.
• Rhode learned that necromantic Spell Models used reversed connections compared with conventional magic.
• Drawing on his earlier experiments, Rhode reversed his Spell Model connections and produced a simulated Fireball wreathed in shadow.
• Rhode learned that beginner necromancy spells used simple geometric structures, while advanced spells relied on complex models that practitioners could simplify with magic circles.

Rhode read about necromancy’s summoning and potion-making branches, then turned to Kel'Thuzad’s personal notes. He learned that Kel'Thuzad resented Dalaran’s restrictions on magical research, leaving Rhode to consider what might have shaped the archmage’s fall.

• Rhode read that necromancers used Plague Potions to create undead and Necromantic Potions to defend against them, and he realized the advanced ingredients would be difficult to obtain.
• Rhode considered brewing protective potions for his allies but set the idea aside after seeing the rare herbs required.
• Feeling sleepy, Rhode flipped to the final pages of the book and read Kel'Thuzad’s account of how Gul'dan’s death knights strengthened the Horde.
• Rhode recalled Kel'Thuzad’s wish for a heartfelt hug and wondered whether a lack of affection had contributed to his fall.
• Rhode read Kel'Thuzad’s angry criticism of Dalaran’s hierarchy and its taboos against certain magical studies.

Rhode read Kel'Thuzad’s account of how the Lich King recruited him and taught him that necromancy could manipulate and preserve souls. The book ended before revealing more, leaving Rhode eager to learn the technique behind a Lich’s phylactery.

• Kel'Thuzad recounted how Antonidas forbade his necromancy research and threatened to banish him from Dalaran.
• A mysterious voice from the north called Kel'Thuzad to Northrend, where he climbed Icecrown Glacier and met the Lich King.
• Kel'Thuzad swore eternal allegiance to the Lich King in exchange for powerful knowledge and magic.
• The Lich King showed Kel'Thuzad how necromancy could summon souls and preserve them for rebirth in new bodies.
• Kel'Thuzad ended the book by promising a second volume about souls, while Rhode recognized the soul-storage tool as a phylactery and wondered whether he could use the technique himself.

Rhode spent two days pretending to improve the Plague Potion while secretly researching the Necromantic Potion. When Amanenar ordered the cultists to join the Syndicate in an attack on Stromgarde, Rhode learned that Nagaz expected little resistance and realized Arthas and Lilia might be in danger.

• Rhode persuaded Amanenar to let him stay in the tomb chamber by claiming he could improve the Plague Potion, while he secretly studied and tested the Necromantic Potion.
• Rhode convinced Amanenar of his dark-magic talent by demonstrating Shadow Fireball.
• Amanenar gathered his cultists and announced that Nagaz had ordered them to join the Syndicate's forces and attack Stromgarde.
• Amanenar told Rhode that Nagaz expected little resistance because he seemed to have someone inside Stromgarde.
• Rhode remembered that Arthas and Lilia were in Stromgarde and told Amanenar he would prepare and set out at once.

Rhode infiltrated Stromgarde by scaling the western mountains and slipping into a guarded castle. Inside, he discovered that the grim, bloodstained building was actually a prison.

• Rhode avoided Stromgarde’s patrols and circled the guarded main gate to reach the city’s western side.
• Rhode climbed the mountains, spotted a heavily guarded castle, and decided to search it for Lilia and the others.
• Rhode used Slow Fall, Blink, and Glamour to land on the castle roof and slip through a tower door unnoticed.
• Rhode descended the tower’s spiral staircase and found bloodstained corridors filled with distant screams, realizing he had entered a prison.

Rhode found Lilia, Arthas, Sally, and Kienlo imprisoned after Prince Galen Trollbane arrested them for reporting trouble at the farm. Arthas sensed a familiar aura around Galen, and Rhode suspected Mal'Ganis had possessed the prince.

• Rhode searched the prison passage and used reconnaissance robots to locate Lilia and the others in a cell.
• Lilia recognized Rhode's robot and spoke with him through the gap beneath the cell door.
• Lilia said a bad prince had arrested them, and Arthas explained that Prince Galen Trollbane had dismissed their report and accused them of spreading rumors.
• Arthas told Rhode that Galen seemed to carry a familiar aura, and Rhode wondered if Mal'Ganis had possessed him.

Rhode discovered that a demonic barrier kept Lilia and the others imprisoned, then left to find a way to stop the approaching attack on Stromgarde. As Syndicate forces gathered near the city, a patrol noticed something amiss by the Cult of the Damned’s cave.

• Rhode recognized that Prince Galen Trollbane was likely possessed by Mal'Ganis and realized he could not undo the demonic barrier holding Lilia and the others.
• Rhode escaped the castle when he heard a prison patrol approaching, but could not locate the Dreadlord possessing Prince Galen Trollbane.
• Rhode decided the imminent assault by the Syndicate and the Cult of the Damned was the most urgent threat and formed an idea to exploit their lack of trust.
• The Syndicate assembled a camp in the hills near Stromgarde and assigned patrols to guard the Cult of the Damned’s cave.
• A ten-man Syndicate patrol passed the cave entrance in the darkness, and one soldier suddenly cried out that something was wrong.