Truth

A few seconds later, they emerged from the clouds. Rhonin and Falstad landed first. Alleria didn't disembark but instead rode on her Dragonhawk, surveying the surroundings. The dragon, after resting on the ground for a moment, also stood up, its eyes fixed intently on the humans and Dwarf.

"Rhonin... good... there's still hope... there's still a chance..."

The mage's expression froze. How did he know his name? Rhonin remained silent, racking his brains. The Red Dragon's voice sounded weak, as if he were about to die, yet he was still standing perfectly fine.

"You...?"

"Listen! I need to conserve... my strength! I see you... you... you might still be able to salvage something..."

"Master, you didn't tell me you knew a dragon!" the Dwarf whispered beside him.

"I don't know who he is either!" the monk explained, while staring at the dragon with a look of confusion.

"Perhaps I shouldn't have let you embark on this journey and dragged others into it," the dragon said gravely, his gaze fixed on Falstad.

Rhonin's eyes widened. "Krasus?"

The Red Dragon nodded with difficulty and said, "That was... the name I used when I was a human..."

"Krasus!" The initial confusion gradually turned into astonishment. Rhonin could think of nothing else to say but utter the other's name.

"I think it's time to be honest." The Red Dragon hesitated for a moment, but finally nodded. "That Orcs commander possesses an artifact... the Demon Soul. It has supreme power over all dragons, except Deathwing. But I believe you've already discovered that."

Rhonin recalled seeing Ner'zhul use Demon Soul against Deathwing earlier, but to no avail. "Why didn't it work on Deathwing?"

Krasus, in his dragon form, was clearly in pain; it seemed Rhonin's words had brought him back to one of the most agonizing periods of his life. How should he respond? Should he recount to Rhonin the fatal mistakes the Dragons had made in the past?

"Because that thing is his creation," came the soft female voice in response.

The mage turned around. At the same time, he heard the Red Dragon cry out in alarm.

A beautiful yet ethereal woman stood behind him. She wore a form-fitting outfit that resembled that of a female forest Ranger, and a faint smile graced her pale purple lips. Rhonin belatedly noticed that her eyes were closed, yet she seemed to see the mage or the Red Dragon before her clearly.

"Ysera..." the red dragon called out in a low voice with respect.

She didn't answer Krasus immediately, but continued to address Rhonin's questions. "Deathwing was the proposer of the Demon Soul's creation; he said it was to protect the world, so we believed him." She slowly walked towards the mage. "We trusted him so much, believed his every word and action, and even channeled a portion of our power into that artifact."

"But he didn't relinquish his power, he didn't!" a male voice suddenly said, the tone harsh and agitated. "Tell him, Ysera! Tell him what happened, tell him how that guy turned on us after the demons were defeated, using our power against us!"

On a giant rock stood an Elf with blue hair and silver skin. He wore a high-necked robe, also blue and white. His eyes gleamed faintly, and his dagger-like claws gripped the rock's surface tightly, carving cracks into it.

"There's no time for that. They'll only hear what he needs to know, nothing more, nothing less." She smiled faintly again. The more Rhonin looked at her, the more mysterious she seemed, as if he didn't even know if she was really standing in front of him.

"That's right. Deathwing didn't Consecration his own power; he just pretended to have made the same sacrifice as us. We only discovered this terrible truth when he insisted that he represented the future of dragons."

Hearing this, Rhonin suddenly realized that they all seemed to consider Deathwing as one of their former members. He turned to the red dragon. Krasus had guessed his confusion.

"That's right..." the heavily wounded dragon replied. "Just as you suspected, they are two of the legendary five guardian dragons." Their arrival seemed to have rekindled the Red Dragon's strength. "Ysera, the Dream Queen, and Arcanist Malygos." Krasus did not refer to Ysera as the Sleeper here.

"Deathwing is fleeing, we're wasting our time..." Then a third voice rang out, also a male voice. "Precious time..."

"Nozdormu, the Time Guardian, you've come too?" the Red Dragon exclaimed. "You've all come!"

A figure whose body seemed to be made of sand appeared beside Ysera. His Elf- like face was so withered that there seemed to be no flesh to conceal the bones beneath. Fine yellow sand filled the dragon-head shoulder armor on his right arm, and his jewel-like eyes stared at the Red Dragon and the mage, his expression growing increasingly impatient. "We have indeed come! But if this conversation is going to drag on for too long, I'd better go back! I still have much to gather, much to record—"

"You have so much more to say! You're so long-winded!" Malygos.

Nozdormu raised a withered yet powerful hand, pointing it at the tactless Malygos. Malygos responded by flashing out dagger-like claws. The two appeared poised to strike each other with magic and physicality, but Ysera stepped in just in time to stop them.

"That's why Deathwing was able to defeat us," she muttered to herself.

The two sides reluctantly retreated. Ysera turned to face the crowd, her eyes still closed.

"Deathwing once pushed us to the brink of destruction, but we united to fight him and finally succeeded in preventing him from ever using the Demon Soul again. We retrieved that artifact from him and buried it deep within the earth..."

"But someone found that artifact," the Red Dragon interjected. He was struggling to regain his strength, and hope was rekindling in his heart. "I believe he guided the Orcs to the artifact. He knows what those Orcs are capable of with its help. Although he himself cannot use the Demon Soul, he only needs to make others do what he wants to achieve his goals. And now... the Horde is clearly slipping out of his control; for example, those Orcs are trying to leave."

"No!" Ysera corrected, "That's exactly what he wants. Her egg, Alexstrasza's unborn offspring."

"Her eggs?" the Red Dragon asked in surprise. "Isn't his target the Queen?"

"It's those eggs. You know, his only mates all died early in the war," she said. "They all died because of Deathwing's Recklessness ... so now he desperately needs to expand his population, or perhaps he has some other, more sinister purpose."

"He wants to usher in a new era for the Dragons ..." Nozdormu spat. "An era for Deathwing!"

Suddenly, Rhonin noticed that all four dragons were staring at him, including Ysera, whose eyes were closed.

"We cannot touch the Demon Soul, human. And out of distrust, we have never allowed anyone else to use that artifact on our behalf. I know how much poor Calygros had placed in you, but we will not let him take on the task of restraining Deathwing."

"That is my mission!" roared the Red Dragon. "That is my chance to save the Queen."

"You will only sacrifice yourself in vain. Your body is too susceptible to the influence of that disc. Besides, there are other things that need your attention... Alexstrasza needs your help."

"Besides, Deathwing is our brother," Malygos said with a self-deprecating laugh. His claws dug deep into the stone. "That's why we're here!"

"So what do you want me to do?" Rhonin asked, his voice filled with both anticipation and nervousness.

Ysera turned to face him—her eyes were fully open. The human felt a sudden wave of dizziness. Dreamlike eyes were staring at him. "Mortal, you have the crucial task of retrieving the Demon Soul from that Orcs. Without the Demon Soul, Deathwing cannot fight us the way he fought Alexstrasza. And with it, you can set her free."

"But it can't be used against Deathwing," Calygros insisted. "And because of that damned disc, he's stronger than all of you combined!"

"We know the facts better than you do," Nozdormu said. "And you knew it perfectly well when you came to us for help! Now that we're here, aren't you satisfied?" He looked at his two companions. "Enough talk! Let's settle this matter!"

Then Ysera closed her eyes again. She turned to the Red Dragon and said, "Calygros, there is something you must do, and it is not a risk-free task. We cannot simply use magic to send this human to the Demon Soul, for he might very well fall at the hands of an Orcs's battleaxe. So you must take him there, and you must pray that the Orcs do not control you with that damned disc as you approach the battlefield." She walked to the weakened Red Dragon and stroked his nose. "Although you are the Queen's consort, you are still different from us Guardian Dragons, yet you managed to escape from the clutches of the Demon Soul ..."

"I've worked so hard to increase my strength for this day, Ysera. I thought my protective spell was good enough, but it still wasn't enough."

"We can help you with that." As soon as she finished speaking, Malygos and Nozdormu appeared beside her. Then, all three placed their left hands on Calygros's noses. "The Demon Soul has already taken so much power from us; losing a little more won't matter..."