Chapter 45

Chapter 45

After successfully mastering a few of the geomancy spells that hed been learning from Hadix, Krivax should have been in a relatively good mood. Unfortunately, it was hard to feel happy when you were about to participate in a highly dangerous ritual

Participating in rituals was never something that Krivax would have had to worry about before the creation of the Anomalous Magic Research Division, but things had changed a lot over the past few months.

As Krivax walked through the tunnels of the nerubian enclave in Dalaran while making his way to the enclave's ritual chamber, he couldnt help but look around and take in those changes.

After all, the enclaves significant expansion significantly affected Krivaxs day-to-day life.

Where before the tunnels had been rather sparsely populated by a few nerubians who were sent to learn magic in Dalaran, they were now constantly active with Viziers and Initiates moving about their business. There were also several of the High Kings Dread Stalkers stationed in the enclave, presumably to surveil them, but Krivax couldnt see any as he made his way through the tunnels. Masruk, at least, was enjoying their company and he was definitely learning a lot from them.

Krivax had noticed that his friend was generally in a better mood recently now that he was let into the secret and had more people to spar with.

He had expected that Anubrekhan would be sent to watch over them as well given that he was one of the High Kings most trusted subordinates, but the Spiderlord was apparently too busy assisting with Azjol-Nerubs war effort.

Its a shame he isnt here. I think Id probably have an easier time getting along with Anubrekhan than most of the Viziers

It was likely Azjol-Nerub would have preferred to send even more personnel to the enclave, but there was a limit to what Dalaran would accept. If there were too many nerubians in the enclave, then they would eventually become an unacceptable security risk to the city. The only reason that they had actually been allowed to send so many Viziers was probably due to a combination of the ongoing war and the threat of Deathwing.

Dalarans nerubian enclave had now become the center of Azjol-Nerubs efforts to combat the Voids influence in the Eastern Kingdoms. Most of those efforts had been dedicated mostly to research for the first few months given that they needed to avoid attracting Deathwings attention, but circumstances had changed a few days ago

To be more specific, circumstances changed a few days ago when a massive wave of Void energy suddenly rippled over the Eastern Kingdoms.

Only those who were familiar with what the Void was knew what they were sensing, but even people who were magically insensitive reported feeling as if something horrible was going to happen. The feeling of an impending catastrophe had only gotten stronger since that moment, and Azjol-Nerub was working closely with Dalaran and the dragonflights to figure out what was going on.

Several Seers had attempted to look into the future in an attempt to gather information, but those who were lucky enough to not be driven insane had simply failed to learn anything definite. Everyone who was in the know could tell that Deathwing was likely responsible for whatever was happening. The predominant belief was that Deathwing had probably managed to release some kind of ancient Void-corrupted monstrosity, but it seemed like nobody really knew for certain.

Despite his metaknowledge, Krivax was just as ignorant as everybody else. The original timeline had already diverted so completely that much of what he knew had become completely useless.

I guess hoping that the insane Void-corrupted dragon wouldve been content to just spend the past few months twiddling his thumbs was a bit too optimistic

Daval Prestor had failed to do anything beyond what he was already doing, and everyone had started to hope that they would be able to find the Dragon Soul and confront him before he could put any of his plans into action. Unfortunately, it seemed like Deathwing was a few steps ahead of them and had managed to secretly pull something off under everyones collective noses.

It felt incredibly unsettling to know that Deathwing might have released some kind of ancient horror due to the choices that he had made.

After taking a moment to banish his pessimistic thoughts, Krivax decided to focus on the things that he could actually do to help rather than worrying about things that he couldnt change.

Once it had become clear that their Division wasnt making any progress in learning more, Krivax had made a suggestion to everyone that they should perform one of the more complex divination rituals created by the Order of Kaltut. The other Viziers would not normally listen to the opinions of someone as young as him, but Hadix had agreed with his suggestion and pushed for it as well.

They had already previously attempted to use this ritual to find the location of the Dragon Soul, but it had rather predictably failed to find anything. It was as if the Dragon Soul didn't exist in the first place as far as the magic was concerned.

There was no guarantee that the ritual would succeed this time around either, but everyone was starting to get desperate for information despite the obvious dangers of attempting to scry what was likely a powerful Void entity.

Krivax had wondered at first why Hadix hadnt used this ritual during all of the other times that he had been investigating the Void, but it apparently could only be cast through the cooperation of several mages on top of a powerful leyline nexus. Those things had obviously not been available in the Eastern Kingdoms in the past, but circumstances had obviously changed. It sort of made Krivax glad that the Order had been exposed and that people were now being forced to cooperate openly.

Krivax was pulled out of his thoughts as he finally reached his destination. Previously, Krivax had been too busy with his diplomatic duties to participate in any rituals, so it was actually his first time seeing a nerubian ritual chamber.

The cavern that had been dug out for the chamber was several times larger than any other room that Krivax had seen in the enclave. Geometric and carefully placed webbing had been weaved throughout the entire cavern using magic conducting silk, making the whole thing appear like it was some kind of three-dimensional arcane diagram to Krivaxs senses.

There were also four glowing obelisks in each corner of the room that were being suspended in the air through a combination of webbing and thin spars that looked similar to spider legs. Using his magical senses, Krivax could tell that the obelisks were drawing arcane energy from Dalarans leyline nexus and directing it into the ritual web.

Krivax looked up to the roof of the cavern and saw several Viziers making minute adjustments to the web.

After taking a moment to look around, Krivax spotted Hadix directing a few of the Viziers on the other side of the cavern. As one of the strongest members of the Order and the only one who had any experience with the Eastern Kingdoms, it was unsurprising that Hadix had taken up a leadership role in the new Division.

Hadix called him over the moment that he spotted Krivax, Vizier Krivax, your assistance in spinning the ritual weave would be appreciated over in this section.

Krivax quickly skittered his way onto the webs and began heading in Hadixs direction, using his magical senses to study the ritual weave the entire time. While the ritual weave in its entirety was beyond his ability to understand, nerubians generally tried to develop their rituals to be as logical and modular as possible.

The ritual weave was carefully spun with plenty of spaces within it where different weavings could be added or removed depending on the goal of the ritual without interfering with the base formation.

Vizier Krivax, I would like for you to take over for these fools in spinning these portions of the arcane modulation weaving, said Hadix, glancing disdainfully at the two Viziers who he had been directing. The two of you can go wait quietly for the ritual to begin. I dont want to waste any more time fixing your tedious mistakes.

Krivax glanced at the section that Hadix was referring to and found it to be rather simple?

Did they really have problems with this?

One of the Viziers, whose name Krivax hadnt actually learned, immediately took insult to Hadixs words, Vizier Hadix, you cant possibly be serious! Are you truly going to replace us with this hatchling?!

I trust this hatchling to correctly spin the weave more than I do you, Hadix said dismissively. While you two have spent the past century allowing your skills to deteriorate to an embarrassing degree while you played politics, Vizier Krivax has been constantly improving his skills with consistent determination. Ill listen to your complaints once you remember how to properly cast magic.

The pair of Viziers looked like they were about to argue, but a single caustic glare from Hadix sent them both storming off while silently fuming.

Vizier Hadix are you sure about this? Krivax asked with trepidation. Im sure that those Viziers must be a lot older than me. Shouldnt they be better at this kind of magic than I am?

Hadix snorted in amusement before answering. What youve failed to take into consideration is that there were many members of the Order who were recruited for reasons other than their magical ability. Those two have spent most of their lives as administrators, and the only magic that they consistently cast is likely a few cleaning spells.

Krivax hadnt actually taken that into account, but he still found their inability difficult to believe. As someone who wasnt really only six years old, he could actually conceptualize how much more life experience people who lived for centuries had compared to him. Had they really failed to pick up any magic at all in that time?

When he brought up his doubts to his mentor, the older Vizier actually had an explanation that Krivax had never considered before.

While the higher castes are given a significantly longer lifespan than most nerubians, our ability to retain memories is not increased to a proportional degree, Hadix patiently explained. "Even we Viziers, though shaped for intelligence and problem-solving, lack perfect recall. It's a trait the Queens have yet to consistently apply."

That didnt surprise him. Despite being equally malevolent, those who served the Burning Legion and those who worshiped the Old Gods rarely cooperated with one another.

The Twilight Hammer Clan was assisting with the Hordes ongoing assault on QuelThalas and was stationed relatively close to the front lines.

Malygos, however, found it difficult to care about any of this when he knew that the war would be ended as soon as the Dragon Soul was no longer a factor. The Dragonflights would not normally interfere with a mortal war, but there were too many greater forces involved in this conflict for them to ignore it.

It wasnt long before Malygos could sense the presence of the Void begin to increase as he approached his destination. He also started to notice several feral-looking orcs with pale skin walking aimlessly through the camp. Where the green-skinned orcs were full of Fel energy, these paler ones showed clear signs of being corrupted by the Void.

After another few minutes of walking, Malygos spotted the emblem of the Twilight Hammer Clan crudely painted onto what appeared to be a flag made of leather. Malygos felt a wave of disgust as looked at the thing; he was experienced enough to distinguish between the leather of an animal and the leather of a mortal.

Having found his target, Malygos strengthened the magic hiding his presence and walked into the camp of the Twilight Hammer Clan with a greater degree of caution. Neltharion was many things, but he was not an idiot. Malygos had no doubt that if the Dragon Soul was truly in the Twilight Hammer Clans possession, then it would be extremely well-protected.

Malygos fully understood the risk that he was taking, and the catastrophic consequences that would occur if he was captured. Just because he had decided to take that risk didnt mean that he would do so without caution. Hed sooner kill himself and obliterate the entire Horde in an arcane explosion rather than give Neltharion the satisfaction of placing chains around his neck.

Of course, it would be far sweeter to end Neltharions life with his own claws. Malygos wanted to watch the despair in his eyes as he saw all his plans and ambitions burn before him.

Malygos shuddered in barely suppressed glee at the thought and forced himself to focus on his current task. He began to thoroughly search the camp for any sign of the Dragon Soul, while also keeping an eye out for the clans chieftain. Unfortunately, the pale orcs hardly ever spoke and Malygos did not wish to risk searching through the minds of the Void corrupted creatures.

Doing so would almost guarantee his exposure.

It was thanks to the camp's nearly complete silence that Malygos found his attention being drawn when he heard somebody speaking. They were talking in the native language of the orcs, but it had taken Malygos a mere few seconds to learn the language after ripping it from the mind of an isolated orc scout.

Chogall! When is your disgusting little book going to provide us with more dragon corpses? Those damned gryphon-riding dwarves are slaughtering my warriors! I need more dragons!

Soon, Warchief. Soon. The great master was silent for a time, but they have now returned. The Twilight Canticle will lead the Horde to new dragon corpses soon.

Pray that it does, Chogall. My patience with you is nearly at an end.

Malygos watched as a large greenskin orc stormed out of a large tent with a furious expression. A distant part of his mind recognized the orc as the leader of the Horde, but most of Malygos attention was directed toward the tent rather than the irrelevant mortal.

Chogall was the name of Twilight Hammer Clans leader, and he was also the mortal who was most likely to be in possession of the Dragon Soul. After waiting a few moments to see whether or not Chogall would exit the tent, Malygos decided to go inside himself. The nature of his invisibility spell made it rather complicated to cast a silent teleportation spell and he didnt want to draw attention by disturbing the tent flap, so Malygos instead cast a spell that turned his body intangible and simply walked inside.

It only took a single look at Chogall for Malygos to be certain that the creature was one of Deathwings minions. Nobody aside from the Old Gods themselves would have been able to so thoroughly empower the ogre with the Void. Malygos had seen a few other examples of two-headed ogres during his walk through the Horde camps, but none of them quite looked like Chogall.

Not only did the mortal have several black spikes growing all along his body, but there were also multiple large eyes growing across his bare chest. It was a rather extreme example of Void corruption, and Malygos found himself surprised that the ogre was still moderately coherent.

He was so engrossed in studying the ogre that Malygos failed to notice the female orc until she spoke. Once she did speak, however, any thought of studying the mortal was banished from his mind and his undivided attention turned to her.

You did well placating the orc, Chogall, said the female orc. Father will be pleased to hear of your continued competence.

A black dragon! And shes one of Neltarions spawn!

Malygos could feel the world shrink to just him and the black dragon in front of him. He completely ignored whatever response came from the ogre as he imagined himself killing Neltharions child, just as his family was killed in front of him. Malygos didnt know whether or not the creature that was once his brother would even truly care if he did, but the call for vengeance nearly consumed all rational thought.

It would be so easy

While Neltharions children were all fairly powerful in their own right, Malygos had the advantage of surprise and he was much larger than they were. It would only take him a moment to reveal his true form and end her.

Kill her. Let Neltharion feel the pain of losing his daughter.

As Malygos pushed through the bloodlust and tried his best to rationally consider his options, he noticed that two more male orcs had entered the conversation. Most likely more of Neltharions spawn.

Malygos tried to focus on what they were saying, but he felt like his mind was in a fog and every thought led back to violence.

Kill them all. Take your revenge!

As had recently become a force of habit, Malygos subconsciously cast a spell on his mind to check for the Void and was shocked out of his murderous thoughts when the spell confirmed that he was being influenced.

No! I refuse to follow in Neltharions footsteps!

Malygos used all the willpower he possessed to pull himself back together and push away any thoughts of killing the black dragons in his midst. If he revealed himself in a mad attempt to kill Neltharions children, then it was incredibly likely that he would have found himself at the mercy of the Dragon Soul.

Malygos already knew that it must be here. There was no other reason for so many of Neltharions children to be present unless they had been ordered to protect it.

His theory was eventually confirmed after spending a few minutes listening to their conversation.

Have you made progress in controlling the artifact, Chogall? said the smaller of the male orcs.

Malygos wasnt familiar enough with Nelharions recent children to recognize him.

Of course. Im grateful for the honor that the great master has bestowed upon me by giving me such a sacred duty!

Hmph. So long as you understand your place, mortal. You will not like the consequences if you attempt to use it against your betters, said the larger orc.

A part of Malygos wanted to stay and see where in the camp they were keeping the Dragon Soul with his own eyes, but he knew that it would be too dangerous. His objective had already been completed, and it would be better to leave before anything unexpected occurred. He had gotten everything that he needed to finally achieve his vengeance against Neltharion, and he wouldnt allow his own recklessness to ruin everything.

As Malygos made his way out of the camp and felt the Void eating away at the spell keeping him hidden all the while, he knew that he had made the correct decision. Once he found a relatively isolated location, Malygos immediately cast a spell to teleport himself away so that he could bring the news to his siblings.

Now that the location of the Dragon Soul had been found, the time had come for them to finally launch their assault on Deathwing. The only thing that was left to do was organize the mortals and plan the attack.

And finally, this would all end.