Nefarian flew away, and the bronze dragon beside him vanished as well. Strangely, she seemed to blink out of existence instantly against the pre-dawn sky.
Whether it was the combatants or the workers who had hidden in the cellar again, everyone finally breathed a sigh of relief. The nightmare was over.
For the sake of caution and to build rapport with Shadowbreak, Dabilly left two gryphon riders and all the Royal Priests to guard the site. After saluting, he took the remaining riders to patrol the perimeter of Goldshire before returning to Stormwind to report.
Wayne tossed his axe aside and collapsed onto the ground. The situation just now had been critical. If Nefarian had refused to bargain and chosen brute force, his immense power and class-specific spells would have overwhelmed them. Without the vending machine's support and exhausted from the fight with Onyxia, they would have stood no chance.
As a veteran World of Warcraft player, Wayne knew that if one ever faced Nefarian head-on, they first had to "strip" Onyxia—her dragon form, that is. Her scales could be crafted by master tailors into Cloaks of Overshadowing to resist Nefarian's Shadowflame, which was far more potent than Onyxia's "Deep Breath."
The others, feeling the weight of exhaustion in the sudden calm, sat down and began discussing the battle.
"Wayne, that Dragon Shout you used on Onyxia at the end... I've never seen that in the game. The incantation sounded strange too..."
Wayne waved a hand. "Too tired. Later, we'll talk later..."
Amy, sitting beside him, leaned in and whispered, "You just shouted some gibberish no one understands to bluff them, didn't you? I think Onyxia was so terrified today she would have believed anything you said."
Wayne's eyes widened. Was his acting really that bad?
Seeing his expression, Amy covered her mouth and laughed. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."
Her words reminded Wayne of the scene earlier. "With Onyxia's personality, she won't let this go. Sigh... in the end, must we still face the 'destined end' Chromie mentioned?"
Yes, that bronze dragon was the famous Chromie. Strictly speaking, the cute female gnome was just her humanoid visage; her kin preferred her true name—Chronormu.
The reason she had vanished instantly was that after Nefarian flew off, she used her power to briefly freeze time for everyone except Wayne. She thanked Wayne for showing mercy and not killing Onyxia before her predestined time. Wayne told her that he never intended to kill her from the start.
Chromie was surprised that Wayne knew why she had come and displayed a puzzling familiarity with bronze dragons. She had been unable to find Wayne's existence within the world's timeline, as if this human was destined not to be bound by the causal laws of time.
Before leaving, Wayne had asked Chromie about the future. She didn't give a direct answer, as foretelling the future could inadvertently change it. She only told him that her trip today hadn't been in vain and that her mission was proceeding as usual. Only after she flew out of sight did time resume, leading to the current moment of everyone resting and talking.
Old Marlin watched his daughter—hailed as the most beautiful woman in Stormwind's Mage District and admired by countless nobles and rising mages—sitting shoulder-to-shoulder with Wayne. It didn't sit well with him. Although Wayne was wealthy, handsome, and had proven his courage and wisdom in battle, the long-widowed father wasn't ready to see his precious daughter stolen away.
Just as he was about to make an excuse to pull Amy away, someone grabbed his elbow. He turned to see Andromath. "What are you standing here for? Aren't you tired after fighting all night?"
Marlin stammered, "I... this... over there..."
Andromath laughed, seeing right through him. "Why meddle so much in young people's business? If I had a daughter, would I be standing here hesitating like you?"
Since his superior had spoken, Marlin had to give face. He followed Andromath away, though he kept looking back at Amy and Wayne chatting and laughing.
"Old Chen, how did you suddenly burst in like that?" Wayne steered the conversation toward Chen Stormstout.
Chen patted his resilient, round belly and took a swig of strong liquor from his keg. Before he could speak, Li Li jumped in. "Oh! You finally asked!"
Chen laughed heartily. "She's told me eight hundred times on the way here that we must tell you our story in detail."
Li Li then began her "storytelling session."
As planned, the two had taken gryphons to Westfall. The brewing of Chen's "Thunder Beer" had reached a critical stage, but it was missing an indispensable ingredient: hops. Chen and Li Li had scoured most of Westfall for it, finally gathering enough. After grinding, mixing, fermenting, saccharifying, and filtering, the perfect Thunder Beer was finally born!
However, this attracted the starving Defias bandits from near Dagger Hills. They wanted to seize the barrels to sell them to smugglers for food money. Naturally, Chen and Li Li wouldn't allow it. The more Chen tried to reason with them, the more aggressive the bandits became. Finally, Li Li lost her patience and charged in, leading to the SI:7 report of "two people chasing twenty through their own base."
During the pursuit, Chen saw something incredible. South of Dagger Hills, in the waters of northern Stranglethorn, a massive wooden door slowly opened. Observing from a hidden ridge, they discovered a gargantuan shipyard hidden inside the mountain and the river. In the center of the dock sat a massive warship with a five-story command deck!
Under the command of a pitch-black Tauren, small boats transported crates of gunpowder and shells onto the ship. They boasted that the fleet was about to sail directly for Stormwind Harbor.
Chen wanted to signal for gryphon riders to report to Stormwind immediately, but Li Li felt that would take too long. At that moment, a hidden SI:7 strike team appeared and invited the powerful Chen to join them in a raid on the Deadmines.
Seeing the warship was nearly loaded, Chen hesitated but eventually agreed, confident in his own strength. Twenty people split into four teams to infiltrate the mines. Though the individual Defias were weak, the underground tunnels were a labyrinth. They fought from day to night to break through the defenses. Chen personally subdued the Ogre Taskmaster Rhahk'Zor and the black Tauren First Mate, Mr. Smite.
The SI:7 agents used captured cannons to bombard the warship in the shipyard, while the formidable Chen completely overwhelmed VanCleef in their duel. Finally, the thief, unwilling to let his dreams of revenge turn to ash, ignited all the explosives on the ship. Chen and Li Li escaped with the agents through a pre-dug secret tunnel back to Dagger Hills.
Amidst earth-shattering explosions, the warship and the shipyard were reduced to rubble. Later, the main SI:7 forces and the Westfall People's Militia found the remains of VanCleef and other rebel leaders during the cleanup.
Thus, although the events differed slightly from the script, the results—capturing Onyxia and destroying the Deadmines—were achieved. In Wayne and Mathias's plan, only two steps remained, which depended on SI:7's capabilities.
"Back to work! Back to work! We need to catch up on the schedule!" Barons' shout cut through the chatter. The workers picked up their tools and returned to the site. VanCleef's death meant the Defias Brotherhood was truly finished; the shadow hanging over these Stonemasons' Guild members had finally vanished.
As Azeroth's two moons, the White Lady and the Blue Child, began to set, the red sun rose in the east. At this moment, the hammers and shovels in their hands felt solid and steady.
Wayne stood up and stretched his neck, ready to head home for a long sleep. Just then, a guard on a fast horse galloped toward him.