Chapter 1: Mythos
The Titans and the Shaping of the Universe
No one knows exactly how the universe began. Some theorize that a
catastrophic cosmic explosion sent the infinite worlds spinning out into the
vastness of the Great Dark - worlds that would one day bear life forms of
wondrous and terrible diversity. Others believe that the universe was created
as a whole by a single all-powerful entity. Though the exact origins of the
chaotic universe remain uncertain, it is clear that a race of powerful beings
arose to bring stability to the various worlds and ensure a safe future for the
beings that would follow in their footsteps.
The Titans, colossal, metallic-skinned gods from the far reaches of the
cosmos, explored the newborn universe and set to work on the worlds they
encountered. They shaped the worlds by raising mighty mountains and
dredging out vast seas. They breathed skies and raging atmospheres into
being. It was all part of their unfathomable, far-sighted plan to create order
out of chaos. They even empowered primitive races to tend to their works
and maintain the integrity of their respective worlds.
Ruled by an elite sect known as the Pantheon, the Titans brought order to a
hundred million worlds scattered throughout the Great Dark Beyond during
the first ages of creation. The benevolent Pantheon, which sought to
safeguard these structured worlds, was ever vigilant against the threat of
attack from the vile extra-dimensional entities of the Twisting Nether. The
Nether, an ethereal dimension of chaotic magics that connected the myriad
worlds of the universe, was home to an infinite number of malefic, demonic
beings who sought only to destroy life and devour the energies of the living
universe. Unable to conceive of evil or wickedness in any form, the Titans
struggled to find a way to end the demons' constant threat.
Sargeras and the Betrayal
Over time, demonic entities made their way into the Titans' worlds from the
Twisting Nether, and the Pantheon elected its greatest warrior, Sargeras, to
act as its first line of defense. A noble giant of molten bronze, Sargeras
carried out his duties for countless millennia, seeking out and destroying
these demons wherever he could find them. Over the eons, Sargeras
encountered two powerful demonic races, both of which were bent on gaining
power and dominance over the physical universe.
The eredar, an insidious race of devilish sorcerers, used their warlock magics
to invade and enslave a number of worlds. The indigenous races of those
worlds were mutated by the eredar's malevolent powers and turned into
demons themselves. Though Sargeras' nearly limitless powers were more
than enough to defeat the vile eredar, he was greatly troubled by the
creatures' corruption and all-consuming evil. Incapable of fathoming such
depravity, the great Titan began to slip into a brooding depression. Despite
his growing unease, Sargeras rid the universe of the warlocks by trapping
them within a corner of the Twisting Nether.
While his confusion and misery deepened, Sargeras was forced to contend
with another group intent on disrupting the Titans' order: the Nathrezim. This
dark race of vampiric demons (also known as dreadlords) conquered a
number of populated worlds by possessing their inhabitants and turning them
to the shadow. The nefarious, scheming dreadlords turned whole nations
against one another by manipulating them into unthinking hatred and
mistrust. Sargeras defeated the Nathrezim easily, but their corruption
affected him deeply.
As doubt and despair overwhelmed Sargeras' senses, he lost all faith not only
in his mission, but also in the Titans' vision of an ordered universe. Eventually
he came to believe that the concept of order itself was folly, and that chaos
and depravity were the only absolutes within the dark, lonely universe. His
fellow Titans tried to persuade him of his error and calm his raging emotions,
but he disregarded their more optimistic beliefs as self-serving delusions.
Storming from their ranks forever, Sargeras set out to find his own place in
the universe. Although the Pantheon was sorrowful at his departure, the
Titans could never have predicted just how far their lost brother would go.
By the time Sargeras' madness had consumed the last vestiges of his valiant
spirit, he believed that the Titans themselves were responsible for creation's
failure. Deciding, at last, to undo their works throughout the universe, he
resolved to form an unstoppable army that would set the physical universe
aflame.
Even Sargeras' titanic form became distorted from the corruption that
plagued his once-noble heart. His eyes, hair, and beard erupted in fire, and
his metallic bronze skin split open to reveal an endless furnace of blistering
hate.
In his fury, Sargeras shattered the prisons of the eredar and the Nathrezim
and set the loathsome demons free. These cunning creatures bowed before
the dark Titan's vast rage and offered to serve him in whatever malicious
ways they could. From the ranks of the powerful Eredar, Sargeras picked two
champions to command his demonic army of destruction. Kil'jaeden the
Deceiver was chosen to seek out the darkest races in the universe and recruit
them into Sargeras' ranks. The second champion, Archimonde the Defiler,
was chosen to lead Sargeras' vast armies into battle against any who might
resist the Titan's will.
Kil'jaeden's first move was to enslave the vampiric dreadlords under his
terrible power. The dreadlords served as his personal agents throughout the
universe, and they took pleasure in locating primitive races for their master
to corrupt and bring into the fold. First amongst the dreadlords was
Tichondrius the Darkener. Tichondrius served Kil'jaeden as the perfect soldier
and agreed to bring Sargeras' burning will to all the dark corners of the
universe.
The mighty Archimonde also empowered agents of his own. Calling upon the
malefic pit lords and their barbarous leader, Mannoroth the Destructor,
Archimonde hoped to establish a fighting elite that would scour creation of all
life.
Once Sargeras saw that his armies were amassed and ready to follow his
every command, he launched his raging forces into the vastness of the Great
Dark. He referred to his growing army as the Burning Legion. To this date, it is
still unclear how many worlds they consumed and burned on their unholy
Burning Crusade across the universe.
The Old Gods and the Ordering of Azeroth
Unaware of Sargeras' mission to undo their countless works, the Titans
continued to move from world to world, shaping and ordering each planet as
they saw fit. Along their journey they happened upon a small world that its
inhabitants would later name Azeroth. As the Titans made their way across
the primordial landscape, they encountered a number of hostile elemental
beings. These elementals, who worshipped a race of unfathomably evil
beings known only as the Old Gods, vowed to drive the Titans back and keep
their world inviolate from the invaders' metallic touch.
The Pantheon, disturbed by the Old Gods' penchant for evil, waged war upon
the elementals and their dark masters. The Old Gods' armies were led by the
most powerful elemental lieutenants: Ragnaros the Firelord, Therazane the
Stonemother, Al'Akir the Windlord, and Neptulon the Tidehunter. Their chaotic
forces raged across the face of the world and clashed with the colossal Titans.
Though the elementals were powerful beyond mortal comprehension, their
combined forces could not stop the mighty Titans. One by one, the elemental
lords fell, and their forces dispersed.
The Pantheon shattered the Old Gods' citadels and chained the five evil gods
far beneath the surface of the world. Without the Old Gods' power to keep
their raging spirits bound to the physical world, the elementals were banished
to an abyssal plane, where they would contend with one another for all
eternity. With the elementals' departure, nature calmed, and the world settled
into a peaceful harmony. The Titans saw that the threat was contained and
set to work.
The Titans empowered a number of races to help them fashion the world. To
help them carve out the fathomless caverns beneath the earth, the Titans
created the dwarf-like earthen from magical, living stone. To help them
dredge out the seas and lift the land from the sea floor, the Titans created the
immense but gentle sea giants. For many ages the Titans moved and shaped
the earth, until at last there remained one perfect continent. At the
continent's center, the Titans crafted a lake of scintillating energies. The lake,
which they named the Well of Eternity, was to be the fount of life for the
world. Its potent energies would nurture the bones of the world and empower
life to take root in the land's rich soil. Over time, plants, trees, monsters, and
creatures of every kind began to thrive on the primordial continent. As
twilight fell on the final day of their labors, the Titans named the continent
Kalimdor: "land of eternal starlight".
Charge of the Dragonflights
Satisfied that the small world had been ordered and that their work was done,
the Titans prepared to leave Azeroth. However, before they departed, they
charged the greatest species of the world with the task of watching over
Kalimdor, lest any force should threaten its perfect tranquility. In that age,
there were many dragonflights. Yet there were five flights that held dominion
over their brethren. It was these five flights that the Titans chose to shepherd
the budding world. The greatest members of the Pantheon imbued a portion
of their power upon each of the flights' leaders. These majestic dragons (as
listed below) became known as the Great Aspects, or the Dragon Aspects.
Aman'Thul, the Highfather of the Pantheon, bestowed a portion of his cosmic
power upon the massive bronze dragon, Nozdormu. The Highfather
empowered Nozdormu to guard time itself and police the ever-spinning
pathways of fate and destiny. The stoic, honorable Nozdormu became known
as the Timeless One.
Eonar, the Titan patron of all life, gave a portion of her power to the red
leviathan, Alexstrasza. Ever after, Alexstrasza would be known as the Life-
Binder, and she would work to safeguard all living creatures within the world.
Due to her supreme wisdom and limitless compassion for all living things,
Alexstrasza was crowned the Dragonqueen and given dominion over her kind.
Eonar also blessed Alexstrasza's younger sister, the lithe green dragon Ysera,
with a portion of nature's influence. Ysera fell into an eternal trance, bound to
the waking Dream of Creation. Known as the Dreamer, she would watch over
the growing wilds of the world from her verdant realm, the Emerald Dream.
Norgannon, the Titan lore keeper and master-magician, granted the blue
dragon, Malygos, a portion of his vast power. From then on, Malygos would be
known as the Spell-Weaver, the guardian of magic and hidden arcanum.
Khaz'goroth, the Titan shaper and forger of the world, bestowed some of his
vast power upon the mighty black wyrm, Neltharion. The great-hearted
Neltharion, known afterwards as the Earth-Warder, was given dominion over
the earth and the deep places of the world. He embodied the strength of the
world and served as Alexstrasza's greatest supporter.
Thus empowered, the Five Aspects were charged with the world's defense in
the Titans' absence. With the dragons prepared to safeguard their creation,
the Titans left Azeroth behind forever. Unfortunately it was only a matter of
time before Sargeras learned of the newborn world's existence....
The Waking World and the Well of Eternity
Ten thousand years before the orcs and humans clashed in their First War, the
world of Azeroth cradled only one massive continent, surrounded by the sea.
That landmass, known as Kalimdor, was home to a number of disparate races
and creatures, all vying for survival amongst the savage elements of the
waking world. At the dark continent's center was a mysterious lake of
incandescent energies. The lake, which would later be called the Well of
Eternity, was the true heart of the world's magic and natural power. Drawing
its energies from the infinite Great Dark beyond the world, the Well acted as
a mystical fount, sending its potent energies out across the world to nourish
life in all its wondrous forms.
In time, a primitive tribe of nocturnal humanoids cautiously made their way to
the edges of the mesmerizing enchanted lake. The feral, nomadic humanoids,
drawn by the Well's strange energies, built crude homes upon its tranquil
shores. Over time, the Well's cosmic power affected the tribe, making them
strong, wise, and virtually immortal. The tribe adopted the name Kaldorei,
which meant "children of the stars" in their native tongue. To celebrate their
budding society, they constructed great structures and temples around the
lake's periphery.
The Kaldorei, or night elves as they would later be known, worshipped the
moon goddess, Elune, and believed that she slept within the Well's
shimmering depths during the daylight hours. The early night elf priests and
seers studied the Well with an insatiable curiosity, driven to plumb its untold
secrets and power. As their society grew, the night elves explored the breadth
of Kalimdor and encountered its other denizens. The only creatures that gave
them pause were the ancient and powerful dragons. The great serpentine
beasts were often reclusive, but they did much to safeguard the known lands
from potential threats. The night elves discovered that the dragons held
themselves to be the protectors of the world - and agreed that they and their
secrets were best left alone.
In time, the night elves' curiosity led them to meet and befriend a number of
powerful entities, not the least of which was Cenarius, a mighty demigod of
the primordial forestlands. The greathearted Cenarius grew fond of the
inquisitive night elves and spent a great deal of time teaching them about the
natural world. The tranquil Kaldorei developed a strong empathy for the living
forests of Kalimdor and reveled in the harmonious balance of nature.
As the seemingly endless ages passed, the night elves' civilization expanded
both territorially and culturally. Their temples, roads, and dwelling places
stretched across the breadth of the dark continent. Azshara, the night elves'
beautiful and gifted queen, built an immense, wondrous palace on the Well's
shore that housed her favored servitors within its bejeweled halls. Her
servitors, whom she called the Quel'dorei or "Highborne", doted on her every
command and believed themselves to be greater than the rest of their
brethren. Though Queen Azshara was loved equally by all of her people, the
Highborne were secretly envied and disliked by the rest of the night elves.
Sharing the priests' curiosity towards the Well of Eternity, Azshara ordered
the Highborne to plumb its secrets and reveal its true purpose in the world.
The Highborne buried themselves in their work and studied the Well
ceaselessly. In time they developed the ability to manipulate and control the
Well's cosmic energies. As their experiments progressed, the Highborne found
that they could use their newfound powers to either create or destroy at their
leisure. The heedless Highborne had stumbled upon primitive magic and were
now resolved to devote themselves to its mastery. Although they agreed that
magic was inherently dangerous if handled irresponsibly, Azshara and her
Highborne began to practice their spellcraft with reckless abandon. Cenarius
and many wizened night elf scholars warned that only calamity would result
from toying with the clearly volatile arts of magic. Even so, Azshara and her
followers stubbornly continued to expand their burgeoning powers.
As their powers grew, a distinct change came over Azshara and the
Highborne. The haughty, aloof upper class became increasingly callous and
cruel towards their fellow night elves. A dark, brooding pall veiled Azshara's
once-entrancing beauty. She began to withdraw from her loving subjects and
refused to interact with any but her trusted Highborne priests.
A young scholar named Malfurion Stormrage, who had spent much of his time
studying the primitive arts of druidism, began to suspect that a terrible power
was corrupting the Highborne and his beloved queen. Though he could not
conceive of the evil that was to come, he knew that the night elves' lives
would soon be changed forever....
The War of the Ancients
The Highborne's reckless use of magic sent ripples of energy spiraling out
from the Well of Eternity and into the Great Dark Beyond. The streaming
ripples of energy were felt by terrible alien minds. Sargeras - the Great
Enemy of all life, the Destroyer of Worlds - felt the potent ripples and was
drawn to their distant point of origin. Spying the primordial world of Azeroth
and sensing the limitless energies of the Well of Eternity, Sargeras was
consumed by an insatiable hunger. The great dark god of the Nameless Void
resolved to destroy the fledgling world and claim its energies as his own.
Sargeras gathered his vast Burning Legion and made his way towards the
unsuspecting world of Azeroth. The Legion was comprised of a million
screaming demons, all ripped from the far corners of the universe, and the
demons hungered for conquest. Sargeras' lieutenants, Archimonde the Defiler
and Mannoroth the Destructor, prepared their infernal minions to strike.
Queen Azshara, overwhelmed by the terrible ecstasy of her magic, fell victim
to Sargeras' undeniable power and agreed to grant him entrance to her
world. Even her Highborne servitors gave themselves over to magic's
inevitable corruption and began to worship Sargeras as their god. To show
their allegiance to the Legion, the Highborne aided their queen in opening a
vast, swirling portal within the depths of the Well of Eternity.
Once all his preparations had been made, Sargeras began his catastrophic
invasion of Azeroth. The warrior-demons of the Burning Legion stormed into
the world through the Well of Eternity and laid siege to the night elves'
sleeping cities. Led by Archimonde and Mannoroth, the Legion swarmed over
the lands of Kalimdor, leaving only ash and sorrow in its wake. The demon
warlocks called down searing infernals that crashed like hellish meteors into
the graceful spires of Kalimdor's temples. A band of burning, bloodletting
killers known as the Doomguard marched across Kalimdor's fields,
slaughtering everyone in their path. Packs of wild, demonic felhounds
ravaged the countryside unopposed. Though the brave Kaldorei warriors
rushed to defend their ancient homeland, they were forced to give ground,
inch by inch, before the fury of the Legion's onslaught.
It fell to Malfurion Stormrage to find help for his beleaguered people.
Stormrage, whose own brother, Illidan, practiced the Highborne's magics, was
incensed by the growing corruption amongst the upper class. Convincing
Illidan to forsake his dangerous obsession, Malfurion set out to find Cenarius
and muster a resistance force. The beautiful young priestess, Tyrande, agreed
to accompany the brothers in the name of Elune. Though Malfurion and Illidan
shared a love for the idealistic priestess, Tyrande's heart belonged to
Malfurion alone. Illidan resented his brother's budding romance with Tyrande,
but knew that his heartache was nothing compared to the pain of his magical
addiction.
Illidan, who had grown dependent on magic's empowering energies,
struggled to keep control of his nearly overwhelming hunger to tap the Well's
energies once again. However, with Tyrande's patient support, he was able to
restrain himself and help his brother find the reclusive demigod, Cenarius.
Cenarius, who dwelt within the sacred Moonglades of the distant Mount Hyjal,
agreed to help the night elves by finding the ancient dragons and enlisting
their aid. The dragons, led by the great red leviathan, Alexstrasza, agreed to
send their mighty flights to engage the demons and their infernal masters.
Cenarius, calling on the spirits of the enchanted forests, rallied an army of
ancient tree-men and led them against the Legion in a daring ground assault.
As the night elves' allies converged upon Azshara's temple and the Well of
Eternity, all-out warfare erupted. Despite the strength of their newfound
allies, Malfurion and his colleagues realized that the Legion could not be
defeated by martial strength alone.
As the titanic battle raged around Azshara's capital city, the delusional queen
waited in anticipation for Sargeras' arrival. The lord of the Legion was
preparing to pass through the Well of Eternity and enter the ravaged world.
As his impossibly huge shadow drew ever closer to the Well's raging surface,
Azshara gathered the most powerful of her Highborne followers. Only by
linking their magics together in one focused spell would they be able to
create a gateway large enough for Sargeras to enter.
As the battle raged across the burning fields of Kalimdor, a terrible turn of
events unfolded. The details of the event have been lost to time, but it is
known that Neltharion, the Dragon Aspect of the Earth, went mad during a
critical engagement against the Burning Legion. He began to split apart as
flame and rage erupted from his dark hide. Renaming himself Deathwing, the
burning dragon turned on his brethren and drove the five dragonflights from
the field of battle.
Deathwing's sudden betrayal was so destructive that the five dragonflights
never truly recovered. Wounded and shocked, Alexstrasza and the other
noble dragons were forced to abandon their mortal allies. Malfurion and his
companions, now hopelessly outnumbered, barely survived the ensuing
onslaught.
Malfurion, convinced that the Well of Eternity was the demons' umbilical link
to the physical world, insisted that it should be destroyed. His companions,
knowing that the Well was the source of their immortality and powers, were
horrified by the rash notion. Yet Tyrande saw the wisdom of Malfurion's
theory, so she convinced Cenarius and their comrades to storm Azshara's
temple and find a way to shut the Well down for good.
The Sundering of the World
Knowing that the Well's destruction would prevent him from ever wielding
magic again, Illidan selfishly abandoned the group and set out to warn the
Highborne of Malfurion's plan. Due to the insanity brought on by his addiction
and the stinging resentment towards his brother's affair with Tyrande, Illidan
felt no remorse at betraying Malfurion and siding with Azshara and her ilk.
Above all else, Illidan vowed to protect the Well's power by any means
necessary.
Heartbroken by his brother's departure, Malfurion led his companions into the
heart of Azshara's temple. Yet as they stormed into the main audience
chamber, they found the Highborne in the midst of their final dark
incantation. The communal spell created an unstable vortex of power within
the Well's turbulent depths. As Sargeras' ominous shadow drew ever closer to
the surface, Malfurion and his allies rushed to attack.
Azshara, having received Illidan's warning, was more than prepared for them.
Nearly all of Malfurion's followers fell before the mad queen's powers.
Tyrande, attempting to attack Azshara from behind, was caught off-guard by
the queen's Highborne guardsmen. Though she vanquished the guardsmen,
Tyrande suffered grievous wounds at their hands. When Malfurion saw his
love fall, he went into a murderous rage and resolved to end Azshara's life.
As the battle raged inside and outside of the temple, Illidan appeared from
the shadows near the shores of the great Well. Producing a set of specially
crafted vials, Illidan knelt and filled each with the Well's shimmering waters.
Convinced that the demons would crush the night elves' civilization, he
planned to steal the sacred waters and keep their energies for himself.
The ensuing battle between Malfurion and Azshara threw the Highborne's
carefully crafted spellwork into chaos. The unstable vortex within the Well's
depths exploded and ignited a catastrophic chain of events that would sunder
the world forever. The massive explosion rocked the temple to its foundations
and sent massive quakes ripping through the tortured earth. As the horrific
battle between the Legion and the night elves' allies raged around and above
the ruined capital city, the surging Well of Eternity buckled in upon itself and
collapsed.
The resultant catastrophic explosion shattered the earth and blotted out the
skies.
As the aftershocks from the Well's implosion rattled the bones of the world,
The seas rushed in to fill the gaping wound left in the earth. Nearly eighty
percent of Kalimdor's landmass had been blasted apart, leaving only a
handful of separate continents surrounding the new, raging sea. At the center
of the new sea, where the Well of Eternity once stood, was a tumultuous
storm of tidal fury and chaotic energies. This terrible scar, known as the
Maelstrom, would never cease its furious spinning. It would remain a constant
reminder of the terrible catastrophe... and the utopian era that had been lost
forever.
Somehow, against all odds, Queen Azshara and her Highborne elite managed
to survive the ordeal. Tortured and twisted by the powers they had released,
Azshara and her followers were dragged down beneath the raging sea by the
Well's implosion. Cursed - transformed - they took on new shapes and
became the hateful serpentine naga. Azshara herself expanded with hate and
rage, becoming a massive monstrosity, reflecting the wickedness and malice
that had always hidden within her core.
There, at the bottom of the Maelstrom, the naga built for themselves a new
city, Nazjatar, from which they would rebuild their power. It would take over
ten thousand years before the naga would reveal their existence to the
surface world.
Mount Hyjal and Illidan's Gift
The few night elves that survived the horrific explosion rallied together on
crudely made rafts and slowly made their way to the only landmass in sight.
Somehow, by the grace of Elune, Malfurion, Tyrande, and Cenarius had
survived the Great Sundering. The weary heroes agreed to lead their fellow
survivors and establish a new home for their people. As they journeyed in
silence, they surveyed the wreckage of their world and realized that their
passions had wrought the destruction all around them. Though Sargeras and
his Legion had been ripped from the world by the Well's destruction,
Malfurion and his companions were left to ponder the terrible cost of victory.
There were many Highborne who did survive the cataclysm unscathed. They
made their way to the shores of the new land along with the other night
elves. Though Malfurion mistrusted the Highborne's motivations, he was
satisfied that they could cause no real mischief without the Well's energies.
As the weary mass of night elves landed upon the shores of the new land,
they found that the holy mountain, Hyjal, had survived the catastrophe.
Seeking to establish a new home for themselves, Malfurion and the night
elves climbed the slopes of Hyjal and reached its windswept summit. As they
descended into the wooded bowl, nestled between the mountain's enormous
peaks, they found a small, tranquil lake. To their horror, they found that the
lake's waters had been fouled by magic.
Illidan, having survived the Sundering as well, had reached Hyjal summit long
before Malfurion and the night elves. In his mad bid to maintain the flows of
magic in the world, Illidan had poured his vials, which contained the precious
waters from the Well of Eternity, into the mountain lake. The Well's potent
energies quickly ignited and coalesced into a new Well of Eternity. The
exultant Illidan, believing that the new Well was a gift to future generations,
was shocked when Malfurion hunted him down. Malfurion explained to his
brother that magic was innately chaotic and that its use would inevitably lead
to widespread corruption and strife. Still, Illidan refused to relinquish his
magical powers.
Knowing full well where Illidan's ruthless schemes would eventually lead,
Malfurion decided to deal with his power-crazed brother once and for all. With
Cenarius' help, Malfurion sealed Illidan within a vast underground barrow
prison, where he would remain chained and powerless until the end of time.
To ensure his brother's containment, Malfurion empowered the young warden,
Maiev Shadowsong, to be Illidan's personal jailor.
Concerned that destroying the new Well might bring about an even greater
catastrophe, the night elves resolved to leave it be. However, Malfurion
declared that they would never practice the arts of magic again. Under
Cenarius' watchful eye, they began to study the ancient arts of druidism that
would enable them to heal the ravaged earth and re-grow their beloved
forests at the base of Mount Hyjal.
The World Tree and the Emerald Dream
For many years, the night elves worked tirelessly to rebuild what they could
of their ancient homeland. Leaving their broken temples and roads to be
overgrown, they constructed their new homes amidst the verdant trees and
shadowed hills at Hyjal's base. In time, the dragons that had survived the
great Sundering came forth from their secret abodes.
Alexstrasza the red, Ysera the green, and Nozdormu the bronze descended
upon the druids' tranquil glades and surveyed the fruits of the night elves'
labors. Malfurion, who had become an arch-druid of immense power, greeted
the mighty dragons and told them about the creation of the new Well of
Eternity. The great dragons were alarmed to hear the dark news and
speculated that as long as the Well remained, the Legion might one day
return and assault the world once again. Malfurion and the three dragons
made a pact to keep the Well safe and ensure that the agents of the Burning
Legion would never find their way back into the world.
Alexstrasza, the Lifebinder, placed a single, enchanted acorn within the heart
of the Well of Eternity. The acorn, activated by the potent, magical waters,
sprung to life as a colossal tree. The mighty tree's roots grew from the Well's
waters, and its verdant canopy seemed to scrape the roof of the sky. The
immense tree would be an everlasting symbol of the night elves' bond with
nature, and its life-giving energies would extend out to heal the rest of the
world over time. The night elves' gave their World Tree the new name
Nordrassil, which meant "crown of the heavens" in their native tongue.
Nozdormu, the Timeless, placed an enchantment upon the World Tree to
ensure that as long as the colossal tree stood, the night elves would never
age or fall prey to sickness or disease.
Ysera, the Dreamer, also placed an enchantment upon the World Tree by
linking it to her own realm, the ethereal dimension known as the Emerald
Dream. The Emerald Dream, a vast, ever-changing spirit world, existed
outside the boundaries of the physical world. From the Dream, Ysera
regulated the ebb and flow of nature and the evolutionary path of the world
itself. The night elf druids, including Malfurion himself, were bound to the
Dream through the World Tree. As part of the mystical pact, the druids agreed
to sleep for centuries at a time so that their spirits could roam the infinite
paths of Ysera's Dreamways. Though the druids were grieved at the prospect
of losing so many years of their lives to hibernation, they selflessly agreed to
uphold their bargain with Ysera.
Exile of the High Elves
As the centuries passed, the night elves' new society grew strong and
expanded throughout the budding forest that they came to call Ashenvale.
Many of the creatures and species that were abundant before the Great
Sundering, such as furbolgs and quilboars, reappeared and flourished in the
land. Under the druids' benevolent leadership, the night elves enjoyed an era
of unprecedented peace and tranquility under the stars.
However, many of the original Highborne survivors grew restless. Like Illidan
before them, they fell victim to the withdrawal that came from the loss of
their coveted magics. They were tempted to tap the energies of the Well of
Eternity and exult in their magical practices. Dath'Remar, the brash,
outspoken leader of the Highborne, began to mock the druids publicly, calling
them cowards for refusing to wield the magic that he said was theirs by right.
Malfurion and the druids dismissed Dath'Remar's arguments and warned the
Highborne that any use of magic would be punishable by death. In an insolent
and ill-fated attempt to convince the druids to rescind their law, Dath'Remar
and his followers unleashed a terrible magical storm upon Ashenvale.
The druids could not bring themselves to put so many of their kin to death, so
they decided to exile the reckless Highborne from their lands. Dath'Remar
and his followers, glad to be rid of their conservative cousins at last, boarded
a number of specially crafted ships and set sail upon the seas. Though none
of them knew what awaited them beyond the waters of the raging Maelstrom,
they were eager to establish their own homeland, where they could practice
their coveted magics with impunity. The Highborne, or Quel'dorei, as Azshara
had named them in ages past, would eventually set shore upon the eastern
land men would call Lordaeron. They planned to build their own magical
kingdom, Quel'Thalas, and reject the night elves' precepts of moon worship
and nocturnal activity. Forever after, they would embrace the sun and be
known only as the high elves.
The Sentinels and the Long Vigil
With the departure of their wayward cousins, the night elves turned their
attention back to the safekeeping of their enchanted homeland. The druids,
sensing that their time of hibernation was drawing near, prepared to sleep
and leave their loved ones and families behind. Tyrande, who had become the
High Priestess of Elune, asked her love, Malfurion, not to leave her for Ysera's
Emerald Dream. But Malfurion, honor bound to enter the changing
Dreamways, bid the priestess farewell and swore that they would never be
apart so long as they held true to their love.
Left alone to protect Kalimdor from the dangers of the new world, Tyrande
assembled a powerful fighting force from amongst her night elf sisters. The
fearless, highly trained warrior women who pledged themselves to Kalimdor's
defense became known as the Sentinels. Though they preferred to patrol the
shadowy forests of Ashenvale on their own, they had many allies upon which
they could call in times of urgency.
The demigod Cenarius remained nearby in the Moonglades of Mount Hyjal.
His sons, known as the Keepers of the Grove, kept close watch on the night
elves and regularly helped the Sentinels maintain peace in the land. Even
Cenarius' shy daughters, the dryads, appeared in the open with increasing
frequency.
The task of policing Ashenvale kept Tyrande busy, but without Malfurion at
her side, she knew little joy. As the long centuries passed while the druids
slept, her fears of a second demonic invasion grew. She could not shake the
unnerving feeling that the Burning Legion might still be out there, beyond the
Great Dark of the sky, plotting its revenge upon the night elves and the world
of Azeroth.
To go to Chapter 1 : Click here
To Go to Chapter 2 : Click here
To go to Chapter 3 : Click here
To go to Chapter 4 : Click here
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