World of Warcraft: Chronicle Volume 1 (13 page)

A
s he dealt with the other keepers, Loken always expected that
Ra would emerge from the southern reaches of Kalimdor to investigate the goings-on in Ulduar. But much to Loken’s surprise, the highkeeper remained silent throughout these world-altering events.

Overcome with curiosity, Loken dispatched a contingent of his army to the distant bastion of
Uldum to investigate Ra’s activities. These titan-forged agents never found the missing highkeeper, but they did learn from the local
mogu,
tol’vir, and
anubisaths that Ra had mysteriously vanished.

These meetings would have a lasting impact. In journeying south, Loken’s forces had unwittingly spread the
curse of flesh throughout many of Ra’s faithful servants.

Unbeknownst to Loken and the titan-forged, Ra had experienced a revelation … one so terrible that it had driven him into seclusion. When the Pantheon’s power and memories had been infused in the keepers, Ra had reeled in confusion much like his siblings. Over time, however, he had concluded that this event was more than just an anomaly. The influx of power was the
last remnant
of the Pantheon’s spirits.

Ra struggled to accept the fact that the Pantheon had fallen. He extracted the lingering power of
Aman’Thul from himself and carefully stored it in a mountain vault near what would become known as the Vale of Eternal Blossoms. There, the highkeeper hoped to preserve what little was left of his beloved titan creator.

Ra then retreated into the catacombs beneath the land to meditate on what he had learned. With the highkeeper gone, his loyal titan-forged developed new cultures, wholly distinct from those of their northern kin. Most of the tol’vir congregated around Uldum, making the fortress their home. To the west, the anubisaths continued their sacred charge of watching over the prison of
C’Thun. Similarly, the mogu remained in the east, guarding the titan-forged vaults and machineries buried beneath the earth.

F
or many ages after
Loken’s betrayal, the titan-forged who were exiled from Ulduar spread across northern Kalimdor. The lumbering giants gradually trickled into the mountains and seas around the region, disappearing from sight. The
earthen tunneled into the deep places of the world, where they fought for dominance against a race of brutish and misshapen creatures known as
troggs. Many of the
vrykul remained aboveground, congregating into small clans. Some of these factions wandered the harsh northern landscape as nomads. Others established dwellings across the forested tundra of the region.

A tenuous peace existed between these groups of titan-forged, but it could not last. In time, malign forces moved to assert dominion over the lands once protected by the keepers. Among these forces were two of Loken’s own creations, the brutish fire giants
Volkhan and
Ignis.

Volkhan and Ignis saw the Storm Peaks surrounding Ulduar as a land ripe for conquest. Yet to seize the region, they required an army. To this end, the giants turned to the fierce
Winterskorn clan of vrykul.

Though many vrykul were warlike in nature, most avoided direct confrontation with each other. The Winterskorn proved to be an exception. These vrykul had developed a culture of violence and aggression, due in large part to their belief that they would one day ascend to the
Halls of Valor. They thrived on conflict, whether it was between members of their own clan or with nearby groups of titan-forged.

Volkhan and Ignis took control of the Winterskorn by force and stoked the fires of their battle lust. The giants fortified the metal hides of the vrykul with enchanted armor. Volkhan and Ignis also forged powerful weapons designed to shatter the iron and stone skin of the other titan-forged.

T
ROGGS AND THE
O
RIGINS OF
U
LDAMAN

Following the war with the
Old Gods, the keepers used the Forge of Wills to create new titan-forged to help them reshape the world. Yet their first designs proved too complex and overambitious. Rather than making the perfect servants, they had created stone-skinned savages known as troggs. The keepers quickly refined and perfected their designs. The next generation of titan-forged to emerge from the Forge of Wills would be known as the earthen
.

   
The keepers were troubled by the troggs, but they could not bear to destroy them. Instead,
Ironaya built a small subterranean vault, known as
Uldaman, that would act as a stasis chamber for the troggs. Some of them escaped imprisonment and wandered the newly ordered world. Others even found their way into the domain of earth in the
Elemental Plane,
Deepholm
.

But just as this new army embarked on its great conquest, anomalies began to appear in the Winterskorn. The vrykul’s metallic skin became brittle and weak. They had begun showing the first symptoms of the
curse of flesh.

Despite this setback, Volkhan and Ignis had no intentions of abandoning their campaign. They also knew that they could no longer rely on the Winterskorn alone to achieve victory. To strengthen the army, Volkhan and Ignis molded powerful molten golems and iron constructs of their own design.

This massive Winterskorn army marched first against the good-natured earthen, storming their underground lairs. The earthen were utterly unprepared to face such an overwhelming and organized force. Entire caverns were massacred to the last living creature. A small group of survivors escaped the onslaught and sought the help of
Tyr,
Archaedas, and Ironaya, who had thus far eluded Loken’s wrath.

Incensed by what they learned, Tyr and his companions immediately journeyed to the earthen’s cavernous home to aid the beleaguered titan-forged. Tyr himself led the bravest of the earthen in skirmishes with the Winterskorn, while Archaedas and Ironaya constructed defenses to ward off future attacks. In time, the earthen and their allies drove back the Winterskorn.

Although their attempt to conquer the Storm Peaks had failed, Volkhan and Ignis did not concede defeat. They returned to their blistering forges and created a new army—one even greater than before. Not satisfied with golems and constructs alone, Volkhan and Ignis crafted enchanted snares with which to enslave entire flights of
proto-dragons. These creatures would serve not as mounts, but as beasts of war. The giants outfitted their winged servants with fiery weapons to strike terror into the hearts of the earthen.

The Winterskorn’s next brutal assault shattered the earthen’s defenses and drove them from their refuge. The earthen scattered across the icy mountain passes, but they could not escape their foes. Vrykul and golems hunted the earthen on the ground, while proto-dragons assailed them from the skies. Even Tyr, Archaedas, and Ironaya were forced to flee from the Winterskorn’s fury.

Knowing that he and his allies could not defeat the Winterskorn alone, Tyr called on the five
Dragon Aspects for help. The noble Aspects grew enraged upon seeing so many dead titan-forged. Their fury only deepened when they learned that proto-dragons had been enslaved. Without hesitation, the Aspects took wing and unleashed their powers on the Winterskorn’s iron ranks.

Much as they had done in their fight against
Galakrond, the Aspects worked in unison to overwhelm the vrykul army.
Alexstrasza held the Winterskorn at bay with towering walls of enchanted fire.
Malygos drained the magical essence that fueled the constructs and golems, rendering them useless. He also shattered the enchanted snares that bound the proto-dragons and set the beasts free.
Neltharion raised mountains from the earth to corral and contain the vrykul and their giant masters. Lastly,
Ysera and
Nozdormu combined their powers to create a spell that would bring a decisive end to the conflict.

Ysera and Nozdormu enveloped the Winterskorn in a cloying mist that caused the titan-forged to fall asleep. These incapacitated creatures were then locked away in tomb cities across northern Kalimdor. They would not know the peaceful sleep of the
Emerald Dream. Rather, they would languish in a timeless, unconscious slumber for thousands upon thousands of years.

In the millennia to come, the curse of flesh would continue warping the sleeping Winterskorn vrykul. When they eventually awoke, almost every one of them would discover that they had degenerated into mortal creatures of flesh and blood.

W
ith the Winterskorn defeated, Keeper Tyr at long last turned his attention to Loken. So long as
Ulduar remained sealed off and the titan-forged were divided, more conflicts would arise. Tyr grimly concluded that unless he took action against Loken, Azeroth would spiral into an abyss of war and chaos.

But overthrowing Loken would require years of preparation. Tyr and his allies, Archaedas and Ironaya, concluded that they would first need to gather intelligence on Loken and his activities. To this end, they formulated a plan to steal the
Discs of Norgannon from the heart of Ulduar. The relics had been recording everything that transpired on Azeroth, including Loken’s betrayal. If there was any hope of undoing the damage caused by his schemes, it would be through the careful study of his actions.

Having devised a ruse to claim the discs, Tyr traveled to the gates of Ulduar itself. There, he called on Loken to relinquish control of Ulduar for the good of Azeroth, threatening dire consequences if he refused. Loken emerged from the fortress to convince Tyr that less drastic measures would suffice. A fierce argument erupted between the two keepers—exactly as Tyr had hoped. While Loken was distracted, Archaedas and Ironaya infiltrated Ulduar and stole the Discs of Norgannon.

Once they had secured the artifacts, Tyr and his companions escaped back into the icy crags and ridges of the Storm Peaks. They knew that Loken would soon hunt them down. Thus they prepared to journey south, where they hoped to find a refuge from which to plan their next move.

Before setting out, Tyr and his allies gathered great numbers of titan-forged who dwelled around Ulduar. A large group of peaceful vrykul afflicted by the curse of flesh, most of the surviving earthen, and many of the
mechagnomes agreed to take part in the journey. Tyr, Archaedas, and Ironaya saw these titan-forged as innocent victims of Loken’s treachery, and they promised to secure them a sanctuary before liberating Ulduar. The refugees traveled for many weeks, believing they had eluded Loken.