Chapter Summaries

Malygos exposed Nefarian’s experiments at Blackwing Descent, bringing all four Dragon Aspects and their flights to Blackrock Mountain. As the Aspects cornered Nefarian, the unfinished Chromatus emerged and withstood Malygos’s powerful attack, leaving the dragons facing a monster Dick recognized as a future threat.

• Malygos tore open Blackwing Descent’s roof, revealing the corpses of dragons used in Nefarian’s experiments and provoking Alexstrasza’s fury.
• Alexstrasza, Nozdormu, and Ysera joined Malygos, and the four Dragon Aspects sealed Blackrock Mountain and the Burning Steppes against escape.
• Nefarian unleashed Atramedes, Magmaw, golems, and drakonids, but the Dragon Aspects and their forces quickly destroyed them.
• Chromatus emerged from the ruins with five heads and parts from all five dragonflights, and Malygos recognized the remains of fallen dragon heroes in its body.
• Malygos struck Chromatus with an overloaded Arcane Storm, but the attack barely knocked it off course, and Dick pulled Jaina into Blackwing Descent as the Aspects realized the monster could withstand their magic.

Chromatus rampaged against the dragons while Nefarian drained his life to control the monster. Dick interrupted the ritual and confronted Nefarian, revealing how much he knew before declaring that he would kill him.

• Chromatus fought the Dragon Aspects and heroic dragons until their coordinated attacks wounded it and weakened its power.
• Ysera sensed that Chromatus was being controlled, while Dick and Jaina found Nefarian using his life force and three black dragons to drive it.
• Dick threw Anveena, transformed into a warhammer, at Nefarian, interrupting his control of Chromatus and saving him from being drained to death.
• Dick ordered Jaina to destroy the magic circle and approached Nefarian despite her warning.
• Dick revealed his knowledge of Nefarian's secrets and declared that the Blackrock King would be the first person he urgently wanted to kill.

Dick fought the weakened Nefarian, overcoming his final tricks and defeating the Blackrock King in a brutal battle. Before killing him, Dick answered Nefarian’s questions about Deathwing and the black dragons’ future, then gave him the eulogy he requested.

• Dick strengthened himself with holy blessings and drove Nefarian into his dragon form with a silver flail.
• Dick bound himself to Nefarian’s horns and battered the black dragon’s head until Nefarian rolled and changed back into humanoid form.
• Nefarian drew the Brotherhood’s Sword and tried to control Dick with a Word of Command, but Dick resisted and struck him with a devastating blow.
• Dick told the defeated Nefarian that Deathwing would die and that an uncorrupted black dragon would become his kind’s hope.
• Nefarian asked Dick for a eulogy, and Dick recited one before killing him with the greatsword.

Dick defeated Nefarian and ended the immediate Dragon Calamity, while the Dragon Aspects rewarded him and secured Chromatus's remains. When the Aspects sensed a demon at Icecrown Glacier and departed, Dick and Jaina stayed behind to claim the spoils at Blackwing Descent.

• Ysera confirmed that Chromatus was dead, and Alexstrasza explained that the monster's unnatural body and immense power could not be sustained normally.
• Dick brought Nefarian's corpse to Chromatus and told the Aspects that Deathwing and the Twilight Cultists had created the unfinished monster as part of their plan for the Hour of Twilight.
• Alexstrasza accepted the dangerous emerald orb and strengthened Dick, while Nozdormu infused him with bronze dragon essence, Malygos enhanced the Fire of Justice, and Ysera purified the Bloody Oak seed.
• The Aspects sensed a great demon at Icecrown Glacier and departed with the dragons and the two corpses.
• Dick and Jaina remained at Blackrock Mountain, and Dick declared that they would collect Nefarian's spoils.

Illidan and his allies attacked the Frozen Throne, where Arthas and the Scourge defended Ner'zhul. After Illidan defeated Arthas and shattered the ice, a crimson claw seized Ner'zhul's soul, and Illidan left the Crown on the throne before turning toward a new world to conquer.

• Illidan arrived at the Frozen Throne with Uther and Lady Vashj, while Arthas was joined by Anub'arak and Kel'Thuzad.
• Kel'Thuzad let Uther strike him, then used a black shortsword to drag Uther into the shadows and disappear.
• Illidan fought Arthas, overcame the Death Knight's frost and death magic, and blasted him to the platform's edge.
• Illidan shattered Ner'zhul's weakened ice prison, and a crimson claw seized the freed soul through a rift.
• Illidan placed the Crown on the Frozen Throne and left with Vashj, setting his sights on another world.

Dick negotiated Stormwind’s postwar plans with Archbishop Benedictus while recognizing the danger behind his proposals. He accepted Prince Anduin as his student and left for Theramore with the young prince.

• Dick traded information with Kanrethad and helped Plugger establish The Grim Guzzler as another source of demons for warlocks.
• Varian thanked Dick for saving Stormwind, while Dick worried that Benedictus’s influence could turn the kingdom toward Twilight.
• Benedictus proposed training paladins in Stormwind and recruiting veteran mentors, and Dick suspected he planned to use members of the Scarlet Crusade.
• Benedictus recommended Dick as Anduin’s mentor and arranged for the prince to stay temporarily in Theramore, where Dick agreed to teach him.
• Dick led Anduin aboard a ship for Theramore and assured the frightened prince that he would become a great paladin and king.

After two years out of the public eye, Dick lived quietly in Theramore, forging a sword for Anduin and preparing to visit Karazhan. Jaina then alerted him that Thrall had accepted a group of Blackrock Orcs, prompting Theramore’s leaders to gather as the Orcs arrived in Durotar.

• Dick forged a modest magical longsword for Anduin and learned that Med’an had invited them to Karazhan for his coming-of-age ceremony.
• Dick asked Anduin to persuade Lady Aegwynn to attend, promising to teach him Holy Light Unsheathed if he succeeded.
• Jaina contacted Dick and reported that Thrall had accepted the Blackrock Orcs arriving by ship at Durotar’s harbor.
• Northern Fortress scouts discovered more than thirty Goblin merchant ships carrying Blackrock Orcs, and Erigor reported their arrival to Theramore.
• Theramore’s senior officials assembled in the Royal Palace to discuss the Orcs, whom both sides regarded with deep suspicion.

Theramore learned that Thrall’s deal with the Bilgewater Cartel was bringing thousands of Blackrock orcs to Kalimdor, and Princess Caliea tasked Dick with negotiating while the kingdom prepared for conflict. Dick warned that a greater disaster was approaching as the red crystal around his neck began to awaken.

• Warren Manes reported that the Bilgewater Cartel had brought at least fifteen to twenty thousand Blackrock orcs, with two more shipments expected.
• Princess Caliea, Gath'riss, Dick, and Jaina discussed pressuring the orcs and readied their forces, but Caliea assigned Dick to negotiate before starting a war.
• Dick told Warren to help push sanctions against Gallywix and sent him to find Senxia, offering access to Theramore’s official trade channels as a reward.
• Jaina suggested using Kul Tiras’s Third Fleet, but Dick refused to involve official forces and warned that the orcs’ strength and ambitions were recovering.
• Dick felt the red crystal around his neck calling to its companions and realized that another war and disaster were coming.

Dick, Jaina, and Thrall argued over whether the Blackrock Orcs could take refuge in Kalimdor, and Dick refused to let them enter the region. Thrall realized he could instead send them to the Eastern Kingdoms, while Dick remained convinced that war between the Orcs and humans was only postponed.

• Dick watched the Orcs prosper in Durotar as Thrall, Varok, and Vol'jin arrived to meet him and Jaina.
• Vol'jin and Thrall explained that the Blackrock Orcs were near defeat and that the refugees seeking shelter were elderly people, women, and children.
• Jaina and Dick rejected Thrall's plan to settle the Blackrock Orcs in Kalimdor, and Dick warned that the Argent Dawn would prepare for war if they landed there.
• After Dick left, Vol'jin told Thrall that Theramore would not interfere if the Blackrock Orcs went to the Eastern Kingdoms instead.
• Erigor worried that Stormwind City would resent the refugees, but Dick said he would not intervene as long as they did not threaten Theramore.
• Dick privately suspected that conflict remained inevitable because the Orcs' violence could not be controlled.

Daelin Proudmoore arrived in Theramore aboard his enormous warship, Maritime Sovereignty, and greeted Caliea, Anduin, and Jaina. When Daelin confronted Dick about marrying Jaina, Dick declared he would marry her regardless of Daelin’s approval, and Jaina stood by him.

• Theramore prepared a grand welcome for Daelin, while Jaina and Dick worried about his visit and their future together.
• Daelin arrived aboard Maritime Sovereignty, whose immense size and armament astonished Dick.
• Daelin praised Caliea and Anduin, then gave Anduin his pistol, Fate.
• Daelin reunited with Jaina and praised her deeds before turning to confront Dick.
• Dick declared that he loved Jaina and would marry her whether Daelin approved or not.
• Daelin refused to agree, and Jaina clasped Dick’s hands and stood firmly beside him.

Dick, Jaina, and Liadrin discovered that a falling Black Crystal released rapidly growing Qiraji that devoured every living thing in the nearby sea. After Dick identified the insects as the race that had destroyed the Ancient Troll Empire, he warned that more crystals had fallen near Theramore and urged them to hurry to the Royal Palace.

• Dick and Jaina left the welcoming celebration with Liadrin and discussed Jaina’s reluctance to leave Theramore or become its princess.
• A Black Crystal fell from the sky toward Dick, Jaina, and Liadrin, and Dick recognized it as dangerous when the Red Crystal fragment on his chest began to burn.
• The Black Crystal melted into a swarm of Qiraji, and Dick, Jaina, and Liadrin fought off successive waves as the insects grew larger and stronger.
• The Qiraji devoured all the fish in the nearby sea within seven minutes, leaving the water filled with blood and bones.
• Dick identified the Qiraji as the insect race that had destroyed the Ancient Troll Empire and warned that more crystals had fallen near Theramore, urging everyone to return to the Royal Palace.

Hive Crystals unleashed Qiraji swarms in Theramore and Durotar, forcing the defenders to fight for their cities. Theramore contained its plague after Naisha hunted the Brain Bug, while Thrall sought magical reinforcements as Orgrimmar remained under attack.

• A Hive Crystal released Qiraji in Theramore's Royal Palace, where Daelin and the guards faced the swarm until Naisha and the Wardens intervened.
• Dick and the Young Lady joined the defense, and the Wardens searched for the Brain Bug while paladins, sailors, and spellcasters held the palace against the insects.
• After nearly thirty minutes of fighting and Naisha's signal, Theramore's defenders declared the insect plague over.
• In Durotar, Qiraji overwhelmed the Kor'kron Guard's line as Wolf Riders and Goblin Zeppelins attacked the swarm outside Orgrimmar.
• Cuiyige told Thrall that Vol'jin had taken Troll Headhunters to hunt the Brain Bug and warned that the insects were vulnerable to magic.
• Thrall ordered Cuiyige to bring the detained Burning Blade Warlocks from the Cleft of Shadow to aid Orgrimmar.

Twilight's Hammer cultists released a swarm of insects onto the battlefield in the Burning Steppes as revenge against the Dark Iron Dwarves, but the swarm struck Windsor's forces and the fleeing Blackrock Orcs. Windsor ordered his troops to form a defensive line as the insects closed in.

• Twilight's Hammer cultists carried a wooden crate toward the battlefield and opened it, revealing a strange purple-black crystal that melted when one cultist touched it.
• The crystal released a black swarm, and the tall, thin human cultist offered himself to it as his companions panicked.
• Windsor's forces broke through the Blackrock Orcs' defenses at the Ruins of Thaurissan and routed the remaining orcs.
• Windsor and General Jonathan saw a vast insect swarm pursuing both human soldiers and Blackrock Orcs, who fled together toward the human lines.
• Windsor ordered his troops to reform their defensive line and signal for help while Jonathan led the discipline squad forward.

Naisha explained the Aqir’s history and the War of the Shifting Sands to Theramore’s leaders, then warned that the Qiraji had launched five destructive crystals into the region. The Cenarion Circle invited Caliea and Dick to a joint conference in Moonglade, leaving Theramore preparing for war.

• Naisha told Daelin, Caliea, Dick, and the others that the Qiraji were Aqir, an ancient civilization that had fought the trolls and later emerged from ruins beneath Silithus.
• Naisha recounted how the Aqir captured Valstann, killed him before Fandral Staghelm, and fought the Kaldorei and dragons until the Dragon Aspects sealed them behind the Scarab Wall.
• Naisha identified Dick’s red crystal as one quarter of the Scepter of the Shifting Sands, and Dick concluded the Scarab Wall remained intact but might have weakened.
• Naisha explained that brain bugs commanded the weak-minded worker bugs and warned that the Aqir’s crystals could devastate entire regions; she urged Theramore’s leaders to prepare for war.
• A female druid delivered the Cenarion Circle’s invitation for Caliea and Dick to attend a Qiraji conference in Moonglade the next day, saying the Circle had invited everyone it could.

Dick, Princess Caliea, and their entourage arrived in Moonglade for a gathering of Azeroth’s factions, where Daelin and Varok Saurfang’s old hatred erupted into a fight before Remulos calmed them. The gathering’s many powerful attendees were revealed, leaving the parties poised to discuss matters of great importance.

• Naralex welcomed Princess Caliea and the Theramore party to Moonglade, and Lakes led Anduin away to see lion cubs.
• Daelin recognized Varok Saurfang and attacked him, prompting the two warriors to fight until Naralex, Zentabra, and Skycaller O'mulon separated them.
• Remulos used nature’s power to calm Daelin and Varok, then invited Princess Caliea and Thrall into the inner hall.
• Thrall apologized to Princess Caliea for the clash, and she assured him Theramore would honor its agreements and remain uninvolved unless attacked.
• Princess Caliea and Thrall entered the hall and found leaders and envoys from across Azeroth, including the Dragonflights.

Malfurion and Hamuul gathered Azeroth’s leaders to assess the Qiraji attacks, and the Zandalar Tribe revealed that it had repelled twelve Hive Crystals without losses. Chromie then warned that the Scarab Wall would collapse within three to five months, and Malfurion announced that a world-spanning war would come two years later.

• Dick entered the meeting hall with Jaina and Liadrin, where leaders and dragons welcomed him and invited him to sit with them.
• Malfurion and Hamuul opened the meeting, and representatives described Qiraji attacks and mounting losses across Azeroth.
• A Zandalar elder reported that his tribe had destroyed twelve Hive Crystals without suffering any losses, stunning the other leaders.
• The elder explained that the Qiraji were only workers and warned that stronger Aqir fighters could follow, while Malfurion said Zandalar priests would help fight the insect plague.
• Chromie warned that the Scarab Wall would collapse within three to five months, and Malfurion declared that another war would sweep across the world in two years.

The leaders agreed to join forces against the Aqir, while Daelin learned that Kul Tiras was under imminent threat. Dick surrendered the red crystal shard to the Dragons, but Kalecgos revealed that the blue shard had fallen into the Water Elemental Plane, leaving the effort to restore the Scepter of the Shifting Sands in danger.

• Malfurion called for a vote on sending troops to Silithus, and the gathered leaders, including Daelin and Thrall, agreed to join the campaign.
• Daelin and Varok postponed their personal feud until after the war, then Brigadier General Matthew told Daelin that Aqir had destroyed two islands and were approaching Kul Tiras.
• Krasus brought Dick to a secret meeting with the Archdruids and Dragons, where Dick handed Chromie the red crystal shard.
• Hamuul explained that the other shards were held in the Caverns of Time, the Nexus, and by Lord Eranikus, but Kalecgos admitted that the blue shard was inside a whale shark that had entered the Water Elemental Plane.
• Chromie attacked Kalecgos as the others realized they would have to retrieve the blue shard from Neptulon's domain within five months.

Dick arrived at Steamwheedle Port and left Senxia to continue searching for a sea route into sealed-off Uldum before riding toward Silithus. He found the Qiraji hive spreading across the desert and sensed a malicious presence watching him.

• Dick asked Lauren to bring Senxia to him and reminded Senxia to find a sea route into sealed-off Uldum.
• Senxia forced his crew to hurry toward Steamwheedle Port, threatening navigator Mr. Gibbs until he promised to make the harbor in thirty-five minutes.
• At Steamwheedle Port, Senxia used black vines to silence a nearby pirate ship, then gave it to Mr. Gibbs and ordered him to recruit Tony Twofangs as their navigator.
• Dick left the harbor on Astral Steed and rode across Tanaris toward Silithus, passing a vast Qiraji hive that threatened to spread toward Theramore.
• Dick reached Silithus and felt his arm react to the chaos beneath the land as a malicious presence watched him.

Dick entered Crystal Vale to obtain the Vial of Rebirth and summon the Elemental Lord of Air. After forcing Demitrian to cooperate and taking his elementium bars, Dick prepared to meet the arriving Elemental Lord.

• Dick rode through Silithus to Crystal Vale, where he found the deranged former Twilight Cultist Demitrian.
• Dick used the Fist of Tyr to purge some of the chaos energy from Demitrian and demanded the Vial of Rebirth and a summoning ritual in exchange for freedom.
• Demitrian agreed after Dick offered him a powerful fel trinket, then handed over the Vial of Rebirth.
• Dick forced Demitrian to surrender his elementium bars, which he planned to use for the Windseeker and the Hand of Ragnaros.
• The wind in Crystal Vale stopped, and Dick sensed that the Elemental Lord of Air had arrived.

Dick met Aishir, the Wind-Kissed Elf, and persuaded her that he could find and restore Prince Thunderaan. Aishir agreed to help him reach Molten Core and promised Skywall’s support against the Firelord if Dick brought Thunderaan back.

• Aishir appeared in Crystal Vale and crushed Dick and Demitrian with her wind until Dick pleaded for her to stop so he could explain how to find Thunderaan.
• Dick told Aishir that Ragnaros had sent forces to Molten Core and that Garr and Geddon could help reveal Thunderaan’s whereabouts.
• After asking the winds and confirming Dick’s account, Aishir revealed that Skywall needed Thunderaan to return and that the Wind Rider was turning back toward the Old Gods.
• Aishir agreed to contact Duke Hydraxis to help Dick enter Molten Core and warned him that Skywall would retaliate if he failed to bring Thunderaan back.
• Dick asked Aishir to attack the Firelands to draw attention away from his Dark Iron Dwarf allies, and she promised Thunderaan and the Four Winds Legion would help.