The Tomb of Sargeras : Old Friends The Tomb of Sargeras < br > by Robert Brooks Part Two : Old Friends Maiev Shadowsong ' s voice was cold . " Are you done , Archmage ? " she asked . " Almost . " Time was short . Khadgar sent out the last elemental with simple instructions . " Find Gul ' dan . " The creature , shaped like a teardrop and made entirely of arcane energy , floated away . More constructs just like it were already looping across this island , shoreline to shoreline , checking the shadows . A shame they weren ' t strong enough for a real fight , but Khadgar would know the instant any of them was destroyed . A few minutes ago , Khadgar had felt a hint of corruption , but it had passed . If Gul ' dan " had " been nearby , he had probably withdrawn . Pity . " There we go . My apologies , Warden . Now , let ' s talk about our search . " " Your search , not ours , " she said . " Ah , so the Watchers don ' t bother with trespassers any longer ? Good to know . " Khadgar kept his tone light . " If Gul ' dan is welcome here , then surely I have nothing to worry about . " Maiev was not amused . " If Gul ' dan truly is here — " " He is , " Khadgar said . " " If " he is , " Maiev repeated , " we will deal with him . After we discuss your failures on Draenor . " " Pardon me ? " " We lent you a Watcher . A loyal , stalwart sister who had distinguished herself time and time again , " she began . " Maiev — " " Yet after only a few months at your side , she turned traitor . Why is that , Khadgar ? What is it about you that drove her straight to the Burning Legion ? " " Ask Cordana when you next see her , " Khadgar said as calmly as he could . Maiev might as well have plunged a knife into his chest . " I have no doubt you can coax an answer out of her . That is not why I am here . " " She sent us reports , Khadgar , " Maiev said . " Cordana had concerns about your judgment . Serious concerns . " " There is no time — " " ' Reckless . Arrogant . Imprecise . Headstrong . Slow to accept advice . ' And those were just her first impressions . " Maiev and her Watchers stood motionless , severe , a wall of disapproval behind which no other emotion could be seen . " You may have changed over the years , Khadgar , but that seemed all too familiar . " " If you want to talk about past mistakes , we can , " Khadgar said . " It should only take a few months to go over mine . And a few more to go over yours . " Maiev ' s eyes narrowed , but Khadgar pushed forward . " We can do that later . For now , look to the south . " He pointed toward the ocean . " I ' m sure your Watchers have seen smoke over the water . That is what ' s left of the ship Gul ' dan stole . He burned it . Along with everyone on it . " The last scraps of humor had vanished from his voice . " Gul ' dan is here . You will start finding bodies very soon . " Khadgar saw the way the Watchers glanced at one another . " Ah . You already have . Anyone important ? " The warden ' s eyes bored into his . " A few Nightfallen . We sent Cordana with you to prevent this sort of disaster . " " The true disaster can still be stopped . History is " not " repeating itself , " Khadgar said . " " This " Gul ' dan didn ' t know how to get here . It wasn ' t even his choice to come through the Black Gate . " Someone is guiding him every step of the way " . " " Why ? To where ? The Tomb of Sargeras ? It is empty , " Maiev said . " Ner ' zhul took some of its power . Illidan took the rest . " Khadgar shook his head . " Maiev . You know what his masters want : an open door to Azeroth . They tried to create one there before . Perhaps they want to try again . " " That is not possible . " " Not for you or me , " Khadgar said . " There is no chance that the Legion is expending this much effort for a fool ' s errand . Gul ' dan is here to claim the tomb in their name . Help me , Maiev . You and your Watchers . Together we can stop him . Isn ' t this exactly what your duty demands ? " Maiev regarded Khadgar without blinking . A few moments passed . Then she made her decision . " To me , " she commanded . Her Watchers gathered around in an instant . Orders came rapidly . " Rally everyone to the < a href = " Vault % 0Aof % 20the % 20Betrayer " > Vault of the Betrayer < / a > . We may have to relocate all that is inside . " Khadgar was speechless . Maiev ' s troops saluted and responded in unison . " Yes , Warden Shadowsong ! " Without hesitation , they sprinted away , disappearing to the south . Not toward the tomb . Away from it . Khadgar said nothing . He couldn ' t . Maiev had just instructed her Watchers to leave . They would not help . " Maiev , what are you doing ? " he finally asked . Maiev faced him . With her subordinates gone , her words fell like a hammer on an anvil . " You failed to stop Gul ' dan on Draenor . You failed to stop him here . He stole a ship , did he ? Is it so difficult for a raven to track a slow , wind - driven vessel ? An ocean ' s worth of failures . " Khadgar couldn ' t believe what he was hearing . " The Burning Legion itself opposes us . You know nothing of what we faced on Draenor , " he said . But Maiev wasn ' t finished . " Gul ' dan sailed to the Broken Isles before you caught up with him . And then — what ? A little fire allowed him to escape and swim the rest of the way ? " " A little fire . " It had been a merchant vessel . Many passengers aboard . When Khadgar first spotted the ship , Gul ' dan had stacked the shriveled , desiccated corpses of the adults on the deck and had lined up all the children as living shields against him . And then , with a single spark of fel fire . . . The memory filled Khadgar with anger , and he spoke without thinking . " I forgot . You never suffer such setbacks . Remind me : how many of your sisters did you leave to die during your hunt for Illidan ? " There was absolute silence in the meadow . Each passing second widened the gulf between them . When Maiev responded , she spoke with finality . " Any help I would give you would be wasted . Moreover , you are wrong . There is nothing left in the tomb . Every remnant of power once stored there is now contained in Illidan ' s remains . " Those " are in the vault . " That " would be the Legion ' s true prize . " That " is where Gul ' dan would go . So my duty compels me there , to stop him , " she said . Khadgar bit down on a harsh response . He truly needed her help . " Warden Shadowsong , " he said , close to pleading , " you know the tomb . I don ' t . That may be a " critical " advantage . " Maiev turned away . " Good luck , Archmage . When you realize your error , you can find me at the vault . We have much more to discuss . " She ran after her Watchers . Khadgar didn ' t call out to her . " So be it , " he said softly . In moments , Maiev was gone , and Khadgar was soaring through the sky as a raven . He circled around the shipwrecks , trying to sense Gul ' dan . He couldn ' t . He felt no presences other than hiding Nightfallen . Either Gul ' dan had found a way across the bay , to Thal ' dranath , or he had fled north , toward Suramar and Highmountain . One of those possibilities was exceedingly more dangerous . Khadgar veered across the open water , winging toward the dark island with the ancient abandoned structure rising above it . For the first time in years , perhaps decades , he felt despair . Even charging through the Dark Portal on a suicide mission had not filled him with such dread . Then , the Iron Horde ' s aim had been clear : conquest . Khadgar ' s failure would have meant his death . Even success might have required the ultimate sacrifice . There was a certain peace in facing that . But the Burning Legion . . . Khadgar had studied it for so long , yet he had not uncovered its true goals . For the Legion , subjugating Azeroth was only a means to an end . What came after enslaving or incinerating every living creature ? He didn ' t know . And he feared the answer . That was one of the reasons why he had focused on Gul ' dan when he was on Draenor . You could learn much by how your opponents moved their pawns . " And the Legion has likely flung its pawn straight at the Tomb of Sargeras " , Khadgar thought . Maiev was partially correct : the place had been stripped of anything useful long ago . The lingering naga had been cleared out by the Kirin Tor , and the remaining artifacts of power , meager as they were , had been delivered into the Watchers ' custody . Intricate arcane locks and wards had been laid across the entire structure , strong enough to keep thieves , adventurers , and sinister agents out for good . It would take a highly motivated , highly " powerful " individual to break in . That meant Gul ' dan should have little trouble . It was just a matter of finding out how he planned to enter — BOOM . " Well . One mystery solved " , Khadgar thought . The muffled , distant noise reached his ears an instant before a powerful shockwave rattled the air . His raven eyes snapped downward , toward the island of Thal ' dranath , as the wind seemed to tremble around his wings . A dust cloud was rising above the Tomb of Sargeras . He dived toward it . The entrance lay in ruins , completely destroyed . Khadgar spiraled to the ground , feathers shifting into flesh and silver hair , his flexible , perching toes filling out into feet clad in soft - soled boots . It happened in a flash , as always . Among the tricks he had learned from his mentor , that was still his personal favorite . As his feet touched down , he spread his arms wide , sweeping away the lingering fog of dust and pulverized stone . All of the barriers — magical and physical — sealing the tomb away from the world were gone . Only fel residues remained . This was Gul ' dan ' s doing . Khadgar stood still . Listening . Sensing . He could feel the distant tingling of fel magic . Gul ' dan was already inside . Already working . It would be extremely risky to charge in alone , and it would take too long to search the tomb corridor by corridor . The interior was like a maze . There would be no easy way to follow Gul ' dan ' s footsteps . " Unless . . . " No . That was a stupid idea . Khadgar took a deep breath . Exhaled . It was still a stupid idea . But nothing better came to mind . " Well , then , " he said bleakly . " Might as well commit " . Khadgar sprinted inside and was immediately rewarded with pain . A dark pool opened up beneath his feet . Moaning voidwalker s reached through it from another plane of existence , clutching at his legs , their touch burning like frostbite , their grip strong enough to crush bone into powder . Khadgar slammed an arcane blast into their formless faces and stumbled free . Gul ' dan ' s trap had failed . His first trap . There would be many others , of course . " And that ' s good , " Khadgar murmured . When he found a room with branching corridors , he pushed energy down each tunnel . Fire exploded in the tunnel to the left . Perfect . Khadgar veered left and rushed through the flames . About a hundred yards ahead , there was another crossing . This time the north tunnel shimmered . Khadgar didn ' t even slow while slicing open that trap . Gul ' dan was being led on a leash . That much was clear . He would not have time to lay false trails . Khadgar kept running . He could follow Gul ' dan ' s traps . This plan wasn ' t so bad after all . Hallway by hallway , passage by passage , Khadgar continued to run . Gul ' dan ' s traps were flimsy , hastily created things . Khadgar refused to break stride . That saved his life when a giant bolt came from an unexpected direction . Had Khadgar been one step behind , the lance of whirling green fire would have pierced his heart instead of ripping the back of his cloak . As he ran deeper into the tomb , Khadgar noticed the elegant lines inscribed on the walls . Arcane runes ? It was a very odd place for them . They were unfamiliar , more advanced than anything Khadgar had ever seen . That was troubling . Some of them were glowing . That was " far " more troubling . Gul ' dan had no experience with the arcane . " Does he ? " Khadgar ' s thoughts raced . " What is happening ? " This place had been fortified centuries ago by Aegwynn , the most powerful Guardian to walk this world . Whatever she had done here was far beyond Khadgar ' s own skills . " And she was under Sargeras ' s influence when she did it . " That thought brought Khadgar to a dead stop . Another trap , only inches away , quivered and exploded . He shielded himself with an annoyed grunt and didn ' t feel a thing . One of the runes was carved into the hallway ' s ceiling . He studied it carefully . Yes , he had never seen its like , but the way its angles were curved , the way it channeled energy — it had a familiar purpose . A rune like this could be used as part of a lock . " Not a lock " , Khadgar realized with horror . This rune was one small part of a key . A massive , hidden key , layered into the structure of the tomb itself . The complexity of it was . . . cosmic . Khadgar could think of no other word . Trying to comprehend it from a single rune was like trying to study an ocean from a single drop of water . " Light help us all , " Khadgar breathed . There was no mystery as to what the key would open . The Burning Legion had tried to create a portal here long , long ago . It had failed . The Legion ' s power had been rendered inert . Every Kirin Tor scholar would agree on that . " The Burning Legion knows something you do not , or else its puppet would not be here " , Khadgar reminded himself . Had Aegwynn built this key intentionally ? Or had Sargeras worked through her , twisting her actions so subtly that she hadn ' t noticed ? Khadgar didn ' t know . All he could glean was that this rune had a deliberate purpose . If he were to tamper with it , it would probably block his power . Or it might throw it back at him . That sort of thing tended to be slightly fatal . He began running again . Gul ' dan was close . If Khadgar took out the Legion ' s only pawn on the island , the demons ' plans would be dust . The hallways soon curved in the same direction . Khadgar let them funnel him inward , toward the pulsing blasts of fel . There were no more traps . A narrow , ornate doorway led Khadgar into a towering chamber , its ceiling lost in the shadows above . And there , in the center , was his prey . Gul ' dan was crouched , making small gestures over a glowing tile on the floor . His head turned , and Khadgar saw his red eyes go wide with surprise . Khadgar stepped forward without hesitation . " It ' s been too long , old friend . " Lethal energy erupted from the archmage ' s hands . " I ' ve been looking forward to this . " Gul ' dan snarled . " Have you , now ? " Green fire met violet power . The Tomb of Sargeras trembled . The fight had begun .