Elemental Altar

Mount Hyjal was filled with joyous laughter and celebration. When Belmont uttered those words, a flicker of displeasure crossed Nathanos's eyes, but he concealed it.

"The Shaman Guardian Dragons and the Earthen Ring, along with the Druids of the Cenarion Circle, have restored the World Tree Nordrassil. Ragnaros the Firelord, has been utterly defeated by the mortal alliance and is now within the Firelands."

An Elemental Lords died in his own domain, meaning he would not rise again. For Nathanos, in the distant Eastern Kingdoms, there was no sound of celebration. Despite the reports of victories spreading throughout Azeroth, as long as Deathwing breathed his last, he would not relinquish his desire to destroy the world. All victories would be futile before the Twilight Judgment.

"I also want to hear other good news..." The Witherer slid his not-so-clever fingers across the map on the table, adding, "And all the bad news."

Belmont nodded, turned to the next page of the document, and read, "News from Twilight Highlands: Cho'gall has been defeated, and the one who defeated him was Sylvanas."

Normally, the Witherer would be surprised to hear this news, but now he was just more curious about how many surprises the Female Elf could bring him.

"... Let's discuss how to deal with Deathwing next."

In a daze, Nathanos missed what Belmont was about to say.

"Thrall, the leader of the Earthen Ring and the former chieftain of the Horde, joined the council of the dragon guardians."

What was said in parliament?

For the first time, the leader of the Shadowblade showed a look of shame before Nathanos. "Our spies only heard that the blue dragons were responsible for finding a way to defeat Deathwing,"

"No matter how many mistakes the Blue Dragonflight has made in the past, the ancient treasury hidden deep within the Nexus remains an invaluable resource. If the information they seek is concealed within Arcane, the Blue Dragonflight will surely find the answer." The Witherer waved his hand; the Forsaken could not place all their hopes on the Titans' guardians. "Now tell me about our progress?"

"As per your orders, our spies in Deepholm have successfully collected a blood sample from Deathwing. The quantity is small, but it is sufficient for Nathos's experiments."

"Any results yet?"

Wrinkles stretched across Belmont's face. "Nathos's reply was: Things aren't looking good."

The expectation vanished from Nathanos's bloodshot eyes, replaced by a chilling glint. What did it mean that things weren't going well? Nathos was the leader of the Alchemist Association; in his domain, no problem could stop the Forsaken from obtaining answers. The Witherer had wanted to shout these words, but he held back, only expressing slight displeasure. "What exactly is going on?"

"It's less like blood and more like a highly adhesive liquid. Nathos used all sorts of methods—magic, potions, or some other external force—to try to bring the blood sample into a state of collapse. Several times he thought he was about to succeed, but after the blood churned and swirled, it returned to its original state."

"It seems Deathwing's body and his armor weren't just stitched together with steel bars," Nathanos quickly added. "It's not a complete loss. Tell Nathos to speed up the investigation."

"I'll take care of it right away."

The Witherer watched Belmont leave, then went to the window to gaze at the plains of Arathi Highlands. Perhaps because it was midsummer, the towering Thoradin's Wall stretched as far as the eye could see. As he pondered his next move, a voice, soft yet possessing unfathomable power, rushed towards him.

'The Witherer.'

The sound overwhelmed Nathanos's soul without him even realizing it.

'Come to me.'

"Who is it?" Nathanos looked down. The soldiers stationed inside Stromgarde patrolled in formation, seemingly oblivious to the voices. It appeared that the other party was someone who understood mental linking.

Come to the Elemental Altar, alone.

The opponent had actually revealed their location! The Witherer's instinctive reaction was to look towards the Elemental Altar. He had seen the Forsaken's defensive map when he returned to Stromgarde. Now was a time when manpower was needed, and Arathi Highlands were teeming with giant spiders and raptors. Therefore, apart from a few outposts around Stromgarde guarded by soldiers, the rest of the land was outside the Forsaken's control. The Elemental Altar was one of those outposts. Nathanos didn't know how this place came to be; perhaps it was left behind by Orcs had stayed there years ago, or perhaps it was created by Ogre. In any case, the Forsaken had no Shaman, so they paid little attention to the Elemental Altar.

However, since the other party had extended an invitation, he couldn't ignore it.

After donning his cloak and dismissing all his attendants, Nathanos rode an Undead horse toward the source of the sound, eager to find out what was going on. Who could be looking for him? That voice... it sounded familiar.

Several massive rocks stood within the Elemental Altar, inscribed with runes and adorned with colorful ribbons for blessings. Yet, there was not a single elemental creature, nor a single person capable of summoning elements. If there were any, perhaps they were too frightened by something to venture out into the shadows.

After the Witherer's mount stopped, he walked in alone, trying to catch the Whisperer's scent to determine his identity.

A soft female voice came from behind Nathanos, "Coming alone, no wonder Christalyssa said you have a lot of courage."

Based solely on the voice and the name mentioned in the words, the Witherer realized who the other person was. However, he was puzzled as to why she would come here when Belmont reported that the Guardian Dragons were holding a council at Mount Hyjal.

Despite some disbelief, all of Nathanos's doubts vanished when he turned around and saw her clearly. He could feel life right beside him, just like when he saved her in Twilight Highlands last time.

Under the night sky, the golden light in the eyes of Alexstrasza, the Lifebinder and the Queen of Dragons, shone brightly.

"You've got guts too, Queen of Dragons." Nathanos approached Alexstrasza, one hand behind his back subtly channeling dark power, so that if a conflict broke out, he could at least strike first. "Don't you know this is Forsaken territory?"

"Indeed, I can feel the loss of life on this land, where a war recently took place."

"So you're here to avenge them?"