Chapter Summaries

Nathanos and Broxigar traveled toward Neltharion’s lair, keeping watch for ambushes and discussing the danger posed by the Dragon Soul. During their journey, Broxigar challenged Nathanos to consider helping other freed Undead, leaving Nathanos unsettled by his own admission that he would rather trust the dead.

• Nathanos and Broxigar rode toward Neltharion’s lair, avoiding magic because Neltharion was wary of it and discussing the risk that Malfurion might expose himself.
• Nathanos spotted the open hills ahead as a likely ambush site, and he and Broxigar chose to stay alert while their Night Sabers rested.
• While keeping watch at night, Nathanos felt his hand briefly seem warm and alive, though it appeared unchanged when he looked at it.
• Broxigar asked Nathanos about his name and the Undead who had regained their freedom, prompting Nathanos to admit he did not know their circumstances.
• Broxigar urged Nathanos to help the other Undead and rely on the living, but Nathanos said he would rather trust the dead before recognizing that he did trust Broxigar.

Nathanos and Broxigar discovered Goblins mining ore to make armor for Neltharion, then killed them and used their knowledge to find a shortcut toward the black dragon's lair. They continued toward the lair, with Nathanos sensing that Neltharion was near.

• Nathanos heard voices and digging, then found Goblins mining ore in a mountain tunnel.
• A Goblin returned with news of another mine and said the ore was needed to make armor, while another warned not to discuss pay with a dragon.
• Nathanos ordered Broxigar to attack, and they killed all the Goblins.
• Nathanos recognized the ore as material for Neltharion's steel armor and concluded the Goblins could guide them to the lair.
• Nathanos and Broxigar set off toward the black dragon's lair.

Nathanos and Broxigar tracked Neltharion to a cavern where Goblins were forging armor for him and learned that he planned to hide the Dragon Soul. They followed him to a concealed chamber and found the disk’s hiding place, but a warning stopped Nathanos from touching the rock.

• Nathanos and Broxigar found a cavern where Goblins were forging armor while Neltharion held the Dragon Soul.
• Neltharion argued with the Goblin foreman, then agreed to hide the disk while his armor was being made.
• Nathanos and Broxigar followed Neltharion through the tunnels as he concealed the Dragon Soul behind a magically disguised stone.
• After Neltharion left, Nathanos and Broxigar approached the hidden disk, but an unseen voice warned Nathanos not to touch the rock.

Nathanos and Broxigar found the Dragon Soul’s hiding place in Neltharion’s lair, but Krasus warned them that an even more dangerous evil lurked in the chamber. After Nathanos touched the disguised stone and heard a terrifying roar, they withdrew and met Krasus and Malfurion, leaving Krasus asking to speak with Nathanos alone.

• Krasus contacted Nathanos and Broxigar, warning them that the secret chamber held something evil and that activating its mechanism would alert Deathwing.
• Nathanos touched the disguised stone and heard a savage roar that Broxigar could not hear, convincing Nathanos that a dangerous power lay within.
• Nathanos and Broxigar abandoned their attempt to take the Dragon Soul and left the cave without alerting Neltharion.
• Nathanos and Broxigar met Krasus and Malfurion at a mountain pass, where Krasus rebuked them for acting recklessly.
• Krasus acknowledged that they had found the Dragon Soul’s hiding place and asked to speak with Nathanos alone.

Krasus confronted Nathanos about his return to the past and pressured him into a deal to follow his orders alongside Broxigar. Nathanos left after warning Krasus not to betray him and remarking that Broxigar was different from him.

• Krasus questioned Nathanos about how he had returned to the era, and Nathanos refused to explain who had told him that the past could not be changed.
• Nathanos deduced that Krasus could no longer assume his dragon form, and Krasus realized Nathanos was not serving the Lich King.
• Krasus revealed that he knew Nathanos Maris's identity and had witnessed his lover bury him at Marius Farm, then offered to keep Nathanos's survival secret.
• Krasus demanded that Nathanos and Broxigar obey his orders, explaining that Malfurion was persuading Broxigar while they spoke.
• Nathanos warned Krasus that he would kill him if he broke his promise, then left through the portal after saying Broxigar was different from him.

Malfurion, Krasus, Nathanos, and Broxigar joined forces to seek the Dragon Soul in Neltharion’s lair. As Nathanos and Broxigar entered through a mining tunnel, they discovered Neltharion having Goblins hammer armor plates directly onto his wounded body.

• Krasus revealed that the Old Gods were a threat behind the Burning Legion and might be tormenting Nozdormu.
• Nathanos and Broxigar agreed to enter Neltharion’s lair with Malfurion’s approval while Krasus supported them from outside.
• Nathanos and Broxigar entered through an ore-hauling tunnel and spotted Goblins working frantically in a vast forge.
• Neltharion emerged and demanded that the Goblins bring him the newly forged armor before it had cooled.
• The Goblins laid the armor over Neltharion’s wound and hammered massive bolts into his flesh as he roared and laughed with excitement.

Nathanos, Broxigar, and Malfurion reached Neltharion’s hidden chamber and opened it, but the stone’s magic caused Nathanos to hallucinate and faint. Malfurion took the Dragon Soul, triggering an alarm that brought Deathwing’s furious howl echoing through the cavern.

• Nathanos, Broxigar, and Malfurion crossed the cavern while Goblins hammered armor onto Neltharion, then followed the winding passages to the hidden chamber.
• Malfurion revealed that Krasus had not told him how to open the chamber, so Nathanos touched the enchanted stone and endured its soul-rending magic until he could disable the mechanism.
• Nathanos hallucinated Arthas and Dath'Remar attacking him, then saw Alleria and his mother before fainting; Broxigar caught him as Malfurion entered the chamber.
• Malfurion found the Dragon Soul on a pedestal, took it, and prepared to leave with Broxigar carrying Nathanos.
• Neltharion’s hidden-chamber enchantment sounded an alarm when Malfurion left with the Dragon Soul, and Deathwing roared in rage.

Malfurion used the Dragon Soul to carve an escape passage from Neltharion’s lair, and he and Broxigar reached the mountainside with Nathanos. They hid from the pursuing Earthwarden, who searched nearby peaks without finding them.

• Neltharion heard the Dragon Soul being taken and charged after Malfurion, Broxigar, and the unconscious Nathanos.
• With Krasus’s guidance, Malfurion connected with the Dragon Soul and used it to burn a tunnel through the rock.
• Malfurion stopped Neltharion’s advancing lava with an icy gale, and the three companions climbed through the passage to the mountainside.
• Malfurion hid the Dragon Soul in a pouch while Broxigar led their dangerous descent, worrying that Nathanos might never wake.
• Neltharion flew overhead and blasted mountain peaks with lava as he searched for his treasure, while Malfurion and Broxigar concealed themselves in the snow.

Malfurion and Broxigar escaped Deathwing’s attacks but were ambushed by demons, and Malfurion used the Dragon Soul to defeat them. The disk’s whispers nearly drove him to attack Broxigar; after he resisted, an unknown Night Elf captured them and took the disk, greeting Malfurion as his brother.

• Deathwing attacked Malfurion and Broxigar, who fled through the mountains while trying to reach Krasus.
• The pair became lost and were ambushed by a Hellhound and two Doomguards; Malfurion used the Dragon Soul to destroy the demons.
• The Dragon Soul’s voices convinced Malfurion that Broxigar wanted the disk, and Malfurion aimed it at the Orc.
• Malfurion recognized the disk’s influence, stopped himself, and picked it up again wrapped in cloth.
• Spiked rocks trapped Malfurion and Broxigar, and an unseen attacker blinded Malfurion and knocked Broxigar silent.
• The attacker picked up the disk and greeted Malfurion as his brother.

Illidan betrayed Malfurion and Broxigar, taking the unconscious Nathanos for his own purpose while leaving them behind with the Dragon Soul. After Calygros carried Malfurion and Broxigar away, Illidan tried to wake Nathanos and discovered that something was keeping him in a coma.

• Illidan revealed his demonic transformation, bound Malfurion and Broxigar, and took Nathanos instead of the Dragon Soul.
• Illidan departed, and Malfurion picked up the Dragon Soul while Broxigar condemned his betrayal and urged them to leave before Neltharion arrived.
• Calygros found Malfurion and Broxigar, learned that Illidan had taken Nathanos, and flew them away with the Dragon Soul.
• Illidan tried several ways to wake Nathanos, discovered that something was preventing him from waking, and used fel energy to force him out of his coma.

Nathanos experienced a vivid dream of returning to his childhood home, where his mother and pregnant Alleria welcomed him back. Illidan’s attempt to restore Nathanos’s vitality left him asleep, and Nathanos chose to follow his loved ones into the dream rather than wake.

• Nathanos found himself alive at Marius Farm in the Eastern Plaguelands as it had been before its destruction.
• Nathanos heard his family inside the house and hesitated at the door, haunted by the memory of killing his mother.
• Illidan believed his fel energy had given Nathanos vitality, but Nathanos remained asleep in a beautiful dream.
• Alleria greeted Nathanos at the door, and he saw that she was pregnant.
• Daphne Marius came outside and welcomed Nathanos home, while she and Alleria held his face and hands.
• Nathanos crossed the threshold with them, accepting the dream and deciding he did not need to wake up.

Illidan struggled to wake Nathanos, who found himself in a vision of a past where his loved ones were alive and Arthas stood trial. Nathanos watched the judgment begin, torn between his hatred of Arthas and the realization that the Prince had not yet committed his future crimes.

• Illidan tried to rouse the motionless Nathanos with Fel energy but stopped short of using more power for fear of hurting him.
• Nathanos awoke in a memory-like scene at Marius Farm, where Alleria and his family treated him as a hero and told him Arthas was on trial in Stratholme.
• Nathanos rushed to the trial and saw Arthas bound before King Terenas, with Uther, Muradin, and other figures gathered around them.
• Arthas defended his actions and insisted Frostmourne had not taken control of him, while Nathanos recognized that the kingdom and its people were still alive and unchanged.
• Terenas ordered Uther to continue, and paladins began a Holy Light ritual that overwhelmed Arthas as he protested his innocence.

Nathanos challenged the Silver Hand’s judgment of Arthas, forcing the crowd to confront that they condemned him simply for becoming Undead. After Arthas told Nathanos he could not save anyone, Nathanos awakened beside Illidan and proposed discussing their cooperation.

• Nathanos interrupted Arthas’s judgment, and Uther identified him as the man who had captured the prince.
• Nathanos demanded to know what crime Arthas had committed, while Uther and the other paladins argued that his Undead existence shamed Lordaeron.
• Nathanos accused the crowd of refusing to see Arthas as human, but no one answered him.
• Arthas told Nathanos that he could not save anyone.
• Illidan gave up waiting for Nathanos to awaken and started to leave, but Nathanos rose and suggested they discuss their cooperation.

Azshara began the ritual to summon Sargeras as Illidan recruited Nathanos to sabotage the demons’ portals and aid Azeroth’s resistance. While the Well of Eternity erupted into a vast whirlpool and dragons arrived, Illidan and Nathanos prepared to attack Perotharn at the tower square.

• Azshara ordered six High Elf mages to begin the summoning ritual while Mannoroth absorbed the Well of Eternity’s power.
• Illidan revealed to Nathanos that he had brought him into the palace to help fight the Burning Legion and planned to close the demons’ portals.
• Illidan told Nathanos that resistance forces had gathered outside Sintalari and proposed taking control of the tower square.
• The Well of Eternity formed a massive whirlpool, and Mannoroth spotted dragons approaching with a figure carrying a golden disc.
• Illidan and Nathanos decided to attack Perotharn before Azshara’s mages noticed their actions.

As the final battle raged, Nathanos and Illidan shut down the last demon portal and split up to stop Azshara’s mages. Nathanos killed several mages but was trapped by Azshara, then faced a stranger who revealed he could control time and was not Nozdormu.

• Mannoroth committed all his forces to the battlefield as Garrid ordered the allied army’s final assault.
• Illidan destroyed the last fel crystal, killed Perotharn, and went toward the Well of Eternity while Nathanos climbed Azshara’s tower.
• Nathanos shot down four of Azshara’s mages, but Azshara stopped his arrow, immobilized him, and left with Varos.
• Nathanos discovered the Dragon Soul above the Well of Eternity and fought the two remaining mages until a mysterious voice caused them to age into ashes.
• A powerful High Elf appeared and told Nathanos that he was not called Nozdormu, though the real Nozdormu was trapped within the Well of Eternity.

Malygos sent Nathanos to join Broxigar as the dragons fought to stop Sargeras’s portal, while the Dragon Soul drew the attention of both Deathwing and a hidden power beneath the Well of Eternity. With the portal nearly open and Illidan’s plan still incomplete, Broxigar leaped into the portal to confront the demon army within.

• Malygos revealed himself as the King of Eternity and sent Nathanos on his drake to the battlefield, warning him to stay away from the Well of Eternity.
• Nathanos rescued Broxigar after the Orc fell while fighting a Felguard, and they discussed the dragons’ plan to use the Dragon Soul to stop Sargeras’s portal.
• Deathwing tore the Dragon Soul from its barrier before a black force from the Well of Eternity blasted him away, and Nathanos caught the falling disk and passed it to Rhonin.
• Nathanos told Broxigar that Illidan intended to draw the demons back into the Well and destroy it, while Sargeras’s portal continued nearing completion.
• Broxigar said farewell to Nathanos and plunged into the portal, entering the demon army’s realm with his battle-axe in hand.

Broxigar wounded Sargeras before dying, and Nathanos used the Dragon Soul to distract the Titan long enough for the portal to collapse and banish him. The Well of Eternity then imploded, shattering Kalimdor, while Nozdormu recovered the Dragon Soul and Nathanos flew north with the young dragon.

• Broxigar fought alone against the demons beyond the portal, wounded Sargeras with his battle-axe, and was struck down.
• Nathanos resisted the whispers from the Well of Eternity and took the Dragon Soul from Krasus to attack Sargeras's wound.
• The Dragon Soul distracted Sargeras, allowing the portal to collapse and trap the Titan beyond it.
• The Well of Eternity continued to implode, and Nathanos released the Dragon Soul as an Old God tentacle reached for it.
• The Old Gods' tentacle vanished when the Well of Eternity was swallowed, and seawater flooded the resulting void as Kalimdor shattered.
• Nozdormu seized the Dragon Soul and flew toward Mount Hyjal, while Nathanos and the young dragon headed north toward a moving continent.

Malygos brought Nathanos to Northrend and explained that the past could not be changed, while Nathanos’s arrival had altered the future and prompted Malygos to protect him. After finding Broxigar’s battle axe on the shore, Nathanos decided to return and tell the Horde’s chieftain what had happened.

• Malygos took Nathanos to the coast of Northrend and explained that Broxigar’s sacrifice had been part of history, though the past could not be changed.
• Malygos revealed that Nathanos’s birth had disrupted Nozdormu’s sight of the future and that Nathanos had changed Alleria Windrunner’s fate; Malygos had secretly protected him from Nozdormu.
• Malygos explained that an Old God’s remains beneath the Well of Eternity had seized Nozdormu, and that he had used Atiesh to bring Nathanos back in time.
• Nathanos asked whether the dead could be resurrected, and Malygos reminded him of the answer Medivh’s mother had given.
• Nathanos found Broxigar’s battle axe floating in the sea, saluted the fallen orc, and decided to return and tell the Horde’s chieftain his story.

Thrall learned that Broxigar had died after helping defeat the Burning Legion, and received his battle axe from Nathanos, who escaped on Malygos. In Darrowshire, Veronalara checked on the Undead survivors hiding from the Scourge and the Crimson Crusade, and found more than a dozen emerging from an abandoned inn.

• A shadowy visitor told Thrall that Broxigar had fallen after fighting the Burning Legion and facing Sargeras.
• The visitor left Broxigar's wooden battle axe with Thrall and vanished, while the Kor'kron guards slept under Sleep Magic.
• Thrall saw Nathanos riding Malygos into the night, carrying news and Broxigar's relic back to the Horde.
• In Darrowshire, Veronalara relieved Enya from watch and learned that the survivors were reluctant to leave their hiding places.
• Veronalara urged the Undead hiding in an abandoned inn to come out, and more than a dozen emerged.

An Elf in Ironforge recounted how The Witherer slaughtered his outpost and killed Commander Hoxbyr after returning from the dead. The Elf escaped and hid in Kaz'Modan, while The Witherer took Hoxbyr’s bow and left a blood-written curse behind.

• The Elf explained that he had fled to Ironforge to hide from The Witherer and began recounting his past in the Eastern Plaguelands.
• He described Commander Hoxbyr, his dark-magic bow, and how Hoxbyr had helped defeat Nathanos and burn him in his home.
• The Witherer appeared at the outpost, killed the guards, and confronted Hoxbyr about the burning of his house.
• Hoxbyr shoved the Elf aside, fought The Witherer, and was beheaded after briefly seeming to gain the upper hand.
• The Witherer took Hoxbyr’s bow, questioned the Elf about a report on unusual Undead activity near Darrowshire, and spared him.
• The Elf fled to Kaz'Modan and told his story to Vanas'hil while drinking to dull his fear.