Temptation

Malfurion looked up. "Damn it, where is he going?"

No sooner had the Night Elf finished speaking Deathwing suddenly turned around and swooped down on them.

"Run!" Broxigar roared.

They leaped up and rushed toward a massive rock formation ahead. The Night Elf turned and saw the dragon's body growing larger and larger; it was clear he was getting closer and closer.

Just after they leaped onto the rocky outcrops, Malfurion heard a terrifying roar from the black dragon's mouth, foreshadowing another eruption of lava.

"Come here!" the Orcs pointed to a protruding rock. The rock might offer them some protection, but was it truly safe?

An explosion suddenly occurred on the hillside.

In the blink of an eye, the entire rock stratum disappeared, leaving fragments scattered everywhere. The air temperature suddenly rose, and the ice and snow melted away.

Deathwing hovered above the area, gazing at the destruction. Then the dragon flew closer to the ground. With a roar, he turned and flew away again, this time heading towards the mountain where his lair was located.

Behind the rocks, Malfurion and Broxigar, covered in dust and wet snow, struggled to their feet. The Night Elf coughed a few times, then checked the pouch. He breathed a sigh of relief when he touched the familiar disc.

Broxigar's heart remained heavy. "Deathwing will return, Malfurion. We must leave here before he comes back."

Shaking off the remaining snow, they continued their descent. They could still hear the black dragon's furious roars from time to time, but the dragon never reappeared before them. Neither dared to slacken their pace, continuing their ascent without stopping.

As they neared the bottom of the mountain, the Night Elf looked down into the valley. "I don't recognize this place. I feel we're too far from Krasus," he said, closing his eyes. "And I can't sense him."

"Nathanos said he might be in trouble, but the black dragon has already set out and is still raging. We can only pray that Krasus won't run into him."

"But no matter what, we have to find him."

The two then decided to walk to the bottom of the mountain first and wait for him later. Krasus's situation was probably not much better than theirs.

The towering mountains cast long shadows across the valley. Malfurion walked ahead, with Broxigar following behind. They were very close to the entrance to Neltharion's Lair, so they had to be wary of the Goblins.

They had to leave this place completely to reach their meeting point with Krasus, but after walking only a few yards in that direction, they found themselves at the edge of overlapping mountains, with no way forward. Malfurion considered using the Dragon Soul, but Broxigar reminded him that doing so would surely attract the attention of the black dragon.

"If we go in the other direction, we'll probably have to go in circles, but we'll still be able to get there," Malfurion said.

"Good."

They then took a different path, which meant climbing over rubble left by the black dragon's rampage. Fortunately, there were gaps everywhere, which helped them a lot.

Then, Deathwing's roar echoed in their ears again; he had returned. Malfurion and the Orcs huddled close to the base of the mountain, watching the dragon fly overhead. Deathwing carefully surveyed the area but still couldn't spot them. Only after the black dragon had disappeared into the distance did the two emerge from the shadows.

"A question suddenly occurred to me: we only see him, but where have all the other dragons gone?"

Without hesitation, Broxigar said, "They must be causing trouble elsewhere."

They hurried on their way, but the road once again played a cruel trick on them. Despite their best efforts, the Night Elf and Orcs drifted further and further away from their goal.

Malfurion grew somewhat frustrated. "I should have used this damn disc to take us to Krasus."

"In that case, Neltharion will appear in front of you in the next second."

"I understand, but..."

Before he could finish speaking, a fierce-looking guy in armor suddenly bumped into the Orcs.

At the same time, a ferocious beast resembling Night Saber pounced on the Druids. A pair of vicious suckers suddenly extended from its back, twisting as it charged straight at Malfurion's chest.

It is a hellhound.

Immediately following was the sound of clashing weapons, Malfurion realized that Broxigar couldn't escape quickly enough to come to his rescue. The monster clinging to him tried to bite off his head, Druids struggled desperately.

Before the Night Elf lay rows of yellowish fangs, still covered in bits of flesh and blood. Malfurion used one hand to lift the monster, while using the other to relentlessly punch the hellhound's jaw.

Malfurion had no time to think about Neltharion. Despite the risk, he reached into his pocket and started rummaging around.

His fingers brushed against the edge of a pocket—the one where the discs were kept—and several low voices immediately came to mind.

'Take it out, use it, unleash its magic...' the voice in your head said. 'This is your only hope, your only chance... Take that thing out... the Dragon Soul ...'

He even mistook it for Krasus's voice. Malfurion grabbed the pouch desperately, squeezing the Dragon Soul from it into his hand.

He immediately felt his confidence surge. The Night Elf glared angrily at the ferocious monster on his body.

"Go to hell, you monster!"

He touched the Dragon Soul to one of the Hellbeast's suction cups.

The hellhound's eyes suddenly bulged out. Its body swelled up, like a balloon, almost bursting. Moments later, the hellhound exploded. Fragments of the demon's body rained down on Malfurion, but he didn't notice. Standing up, the Night Elf looked around and saw Broxigar still fighting the enemy, but the enemy had transformed into two Doomguard. One of the Doomguard was already wounded, but the Orcs was clearly at a disadvantage.

Malfurion casually pointed the Dragon Soul at the demon he could see most clearly.

A golden light shot out from the disc, enveloping the Doomguard. He screamed in agony, then turned into a pile of dust.

Another Doomguard halted uneasily. This was exactly the opportunity Broxigar had been waiting for; the Orcs's enchanted axe cleaved into the demon's chest.

After the second Doomguard fell, Broxigar turned around. Malfurion, a smug smile on his face, walked towards his companion.

"Here you go."

But Broxigar didn't seem particularly happy. His eyes turned to the disc, which Malfurion had used once more. This action by the Orcs suddenly made Malfurion suspicious. The voices returned, even more violently than before.

'He wants the disc...he wants to possess it...it belongs to you...only you can use it to restore order to the world...'

"Malfurion!" the Orcs said, "Don't use that thing anymore."

"It just saved our lives!"

"You're relying on it, Druids ..."

Malfurion stepped back, raising the Demon Soul: "You want its magic! You want to possess it!"

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Broxigar shook his head. "I don't want it at all."

"You're lying!" the voices urged him on. "You want to take over the Burning Legion from Archimonde and his masters! You want them to conquer Kalimdor for you! I will not let that happen! You'll only succeed if the whole world is engulfed in flames!"

"Elf! Do you know what you're saying? Are you insane? What you just said was completely irrational."

"I will never let you have it!" He pointed the disc at the Orcs.

'We must kill him... we must kill those... those who want the disc... those who took the disc from you.'

Broxigar stood there motionless. He didn't charge at the Night Elf opposite him, nor did he even raise his battle axe to attack or defend. He simply stood there, gazing ahead, waiting quietly, as if entrusting his life to Malfurion.

The Orcs's gaze drifted to Malfurion's left, and the Druids glanced over casually. There lay Nathanos, seemingly Undead by the recent battle.

Suddenly, Malfurion realized his mistake. He had obtained the Dragon Soul with the help of the Undead and Broxigar, and now he wanted to kill Broxigar just to possess it.

After a moment of remorse, Malfurion threw the malevolent disc to the ground and took a few steps back. He looked at his companion, trying to find a suitable way to apologize to Broxigar for what had just happened.

The gray-haired Warrior shook his head, indicating that he did not want to blame the Night Elf.

"It's the Dragon Soul," he said in a low voice. "It's the culprit!"

"Indeed, he also has another name: Demon Soul."

"The Demon Soul? "Malfurion nodded, finding the name more fitting. He didn't want to touch the disc again, but they had to take it away. The Druids pulled a piece of cloth from his person, bent down, and picked up the Demon Soul again. He knew a thin piece of cloth couldn't truly stop the temptations, but it was all he could do. If he were to be controlled by the Demon Soul, they would pay with their lives.

He thanked Cenarius, Cenarius gentle yet wise teachings ultimately enabled him to resist the seductive voices.

"We must leave this place, Broxigar," Malfurion said, straightening up. "It seems the demons also covet this treasure."

Suddenly, spike-like rocks emerged from beneath their feet, surrounding the Orcs and Elf, rendering them immobile.

Broxigar roared and swung his battle axe at the rocks, but as soon as he broke one, another would spring up to take its place.

At the same time, Malfurion found himself unable to use the Dragon Soul, nor the Druids path Cenarius had taught him. His vision suddenly went dark; someone had blindfolded him from behind. Malfurion was startled, and the Demon Soul slipped from his hand and fell to the ground.

He heard Broxigar's angry roar and the sound of a battle axe striking stone. Then there was another bang, and the Orcs suddenly fell silent.

He heard heavy breathing nearby, Malfurion recognized it as the Night Saber's voice. The Night Saber's appearance made the Druids realize that their attackers were getting closer. However, the Burning Legion didn't use Night Saber; as far as he knew, only the Night Elf could.

Could this person be Night Elf?

Who is it?

"Thank you!"

Upon hearing this person's voice, Malfurion was suddenly startled.

He heard footsteps approaching. Then he heard a scraping sound. The man picked something up from the ground—the alluring golden disc.

"Not particularly striking in appearance, but that doesn't matter..." the man said, his voice confirming Malfurion's suspicions. "Hello, brother."