Chronicle of Black Dragons - Překlad Path of Fire

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With both dragons primed for a clash, they are lured out to a field so that their champions and minions can battle each other. The Commander and any allies willing and able meet them on the battlefield and ensure that one side doesn't overtake the other. Eventually, both Jormag and Primordus are weakened and enraged enough that the two lunge at each other, destroying each other in the process. In the aftermath of their crash, both Braham and Ryland lose their champion status and return to normal. However, while Braham is relieved to be free of the influence, Ryland still holds a lot of anger. After a long fight with him against the Commander and both his parents, Ryland is killed and dies in Rytlock's arms.

After discovering Jormag's atrocities under the guise of "helping" with Primordus research, Aurene attempts to negotiate with Jormag through their Voice. Aurene and Jormag verbally spar which results in a stalemate. Responding to news of an Icebrood and Frost Legion attack on Caledon Forest, the commander finds whole villages of Caledon's residents frozen in ice. The Commander and Canach find surprise Tengu allies and defeat an Icebrood Giant outside the Aerie outside of the Dominion of Winds.

On return to the Eye of the North, the commander uses the scrying pool to witness Braham and the Spirits of the Wild on a journey to become Primordus' Champion. Braham and the spirits travel to the heart of Primordus' volcano lair, battling destroyers as they journey to the heart of the volcano. After defeating a gigantic destroyer, Braham and the spirits merge as Primordus' Champion in hopes of steering the dragon directly into battle with Jormag. Each of the spirits offer their unique power in combination with Braham to focus Primordus into attacking Jormag directly

The Commander gets word of a change in the leadership of the Flame Legion, which Crecia Stoneglow hoped would result in a united charr. Heading to negotiations at Bloodtide Coast, the Commander and Olmakhan allies are attacked by Icebrood, which are ultimately defeated after shoring up a nearby lighthouse as a defensible location.

Rytlock contacts the Commander to support saving the remaining Flame Legion in Fireheart Rise under direct attack from destroyers. As the battle culminated on the bridge outside of the Citadel of Flame, Braham joined the battle, transformed into a dragon champion. Forces of fire and flame clash on the bridge and the Commander and allies manage to prevail without harming Braham.

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Malice summoned the Commander back to Drizzlewood Coast with news of a plan to push north. The glacier blocking their path to Bangar had receded revealing a cave at the end of the western beach. With the coast guarded by Dominion, Malice devised a plan to clear out the beach and the cave to establish a base further north. The Commander, Crecia, Rytlock and Braham disguised as enemy soldiers to destroy Dominion cannons lining the beach. After defeating a Frost Legion centurion, the group met up with one of Malice's double agents. He told them about the mass conversion of Dominion into Frost Legion taking place in the heavily fortified Frost Citadel. They also learned that Jormag was inside the keep and was close to waking. The Commander continued to clear out the caves until they could join Malice in the camp that was already established ahead of them. The group questioned why Bangar would want to convert so many of his own soldiers, wondering if Jormag was actually the one in control. Awaiting Smodur's siege engines to join them, Braham went to investigate some norn ruins south of a possible entrance to the Frost Citadel while the others turned to fighting Bangar's army.

The Commander joined Braham at the ruins which turned out to be the location where the Spirits of the Wild first revealed themselves to the norn. A tall door leading into the enemy keep stood infront of the ruins. Braham hoped to open the door by using the power of the Spirits and offered to stay and study the ruins further. The Commander left Braham to take out enemy communication towers and sabotage the Dominion. While out, Braham discovered that he would need the power of all the Spirits, including the corrupted ones, in order to open the door to the citadel. The Commander was called back to camp shortly after finishing up in the field to solve another disagreement involving Smodur, and this time, Braham.

When the Commander made it back to the camp, Braham and Smodur were still arguing over strategy. Braham was worried that a direct assault would be too obvious and wanted to use the entrance at the ruins as a way of infiltrating the Frost Citadel. Believing Braham's mission to be both a waste of time and resources, Smodur prefered a full-on assault with all manpower focused on the keep's front door. The group was split between the two options with Efram leaning towards supporting Braham and Rytlock reluctantly agreeing with Smodur. Before the Commander could share their own views, the camp was hit by a suprise attack led by Ryland. Smodur was shot dead before anyone could react. After holding off the attack the group was left to find a replacement for Smodur as commander of the Iron forces. Because of Efram's recent experience fighting alongside Smodur and time constraints, Efram was given the important role of leading the United Legions army. Cinder decided that the group should be open to Braham's idea but that they could only wait until their own army was ready to march or else they would be giving Jormag too much time to wake. Braham agreed and he and the Commander returned to the norn ruins to continue their attempts at opening the door.

At the ruins, the Commander saw a vision of a shaman hiding the totems of three of the Lesser Spirits. Braham explained that they would need to be retreived to open the door. Leaving Braham behind to prove his worth to the other Lesser Spirits, the Commander sought out the lost totems. Each Spirit presented a challenge to test the Commander before they could obtain the totems. The missing totems were guarded by Ox, who tested the Commander's strength; Wolverine, who tested their comabat ability; and Eagle, who transformed the Commander into the bird-of-prey to test their speed in flight. Having gained the respect of each Spirit, the Commander returned to Braham to find Rytlock and Crecia eager to open the door. The Spirits gave the group a riddle through Braham who acted as a vessel from which they could speak. The riddle gave clues which helped the group rearrange the totems into an order that unlocked the power of the Spirit and opened the door to the Frost Citadel. In the process, Braham learned the truth of Owl's fate. Owl had not perished, as the norn had thought, from fighting Jormag during the norn exodus. She was in fact corrupted by the Elder Dragon and had locked herself away in the Sanctum of the Wild to avoid lending her power to the ice dragon. By opening the door, Braham had freed the corrupted Spirit, giving Jormag the power they needed to awaken. Regretting his actions, Braham followed Rytlock, Crecia and the Commander through the back door of the Frost Citadel while their allies outside led a frontal assault on the fortified keep.

As Efram and Malice blasted through the front doors, the Commander's small group slowly climbed up the citadel while cutting through Frost Legion soldiers. The Commander made it to the top with ease, but the room hosting Jormag was sealed off with a wall of ice. Crecia's magic wasn't strong enough to melt the ice which required a stronger flame to counteract Jormag's power. The group needed Efram to break through the wall, but the United Legions army was blocked off by thick walls of ice that would have taken too long to get through. In order to unite the two groups, the Commander grabbed a nearby charrzooka and blew a hole through the roof. Malice and Efram joined the Commander by flying through the hole and Efram was able to melt the ice blocking the final room with the help of Sohothin. As the allies charged into the room they found Bangar sapping the power of the Great Spirits of the Wild with the hopes of using it to control Jormag. As the Commander engaged Bangar, Ryland appeared and joined in on fighting the Blood imperator. With Bangar and Ryland in full combat, the Commander turned their attention to freeing the Spirits of the Wild from Bangar's control. Once the four Spirits were freed, the allies joined Ryland in attacking Bangar. Despite Bangar being outnumbered, he was saved by the waking of Jormag, but to his dismay, was chosen to become the new Voice of Jormag and became icebrood rather than the Elder Dragon's puppeteer as he had hoped. Instead, Jormag chose Ryland to become their champion. Accepting the offer, Ryland also became icebrood, but much stronger, and fled with the Elder Dragon leaving Bangar behind. Once gone, Jormag spoke through Bangar, promising many conversations in the future. The citadel began to collapse and the allies made the quick decision to bring Bangar, who had appeared to lose his voice, to the Eye of the North. On arrival, Aurene shared her concern over the waking of Jormag. Bangar was imprisoned and Aurene explained that he could be used to speak with Jormag, though it seemed that it could only be when the ice dragon desired. Without knowing what Jormag had planned, Aurene dismissed the Commander, explaining that she would contact them once they had a clue to the Elder Dragon's whereabouts.

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With a bloody civil war raging between the charr, Ryland proposed a parley to the newly-formed United Legions. Crecia extended the invitation to the Commander who was advised to have Rytlock bring them to the meeting. The Commander arrived in Drizzlewood Coast mid-meeting where Ryland demanded that the United Legions surrender and support Bangar's campaign. The allied charr legions refused, stressing the dangers of waking Jormag and being strongly opposed to rewarding the rogue Blood Legion Imperator for disrupting the fragile unity amongst the charr. Logan and Kasmeer arrived during the meeting with a troop of Seraph intent on repaying the charr for assistance given during the Siege of Divinity's Reach. However, at the sight of the sudden arrival of humans, Ryland called off the parley with both sides having gained nothing from the brief dialogue. With Ryland gone, the allies were forced to decide on a tactic to defeat Bangar's army. Malice and Smodur disagreed on strategy with Smodur eager to face the enemy head on while the Ash imperator was keen on a subtler approach. With the Commander's help, Crecia and the imperators established a military strategy. While the leader's of the United Legions were focused on regaining territory from Ryland, Rytlock and the Commander turned their attention to improving morale around the allied camps.

After completing a variety of tasks for the centurions in charge of support, the Commander was ready to get into the field and stop Ryland. Fortunately, Rytlock had overheard Dominion officers talking about "diving deep" while searching for enemy centurions, a secret reference to the hidden headquarters of the Steel warband. Crecia deduced that the base was somewhere in Breakroot Basin and accompanied the Commander, Rytlock and the allied imperators to the seemingly unoccupied territory to investigate. Upon locating the base, Malice and Smodur again disagreed on tactics. Malice sought a covert operation over Smodur's offensive approach to infiltrating the Dominion camp. Malice's allies agreed with her plan, however, once reaching the doors to the Dominion war room, the impatient Smodur drew his weapon and charged in ready for a fight. Despite a lack of team synergy, the allies defeated the Dominion forces and subdued Cinder Steeltemper, Ryland's second-in-command. Smodur wanted to kill her in order to showcase the United Leagions' strength, but Crecia pursuaded the others to keep her as a prisoner in order to coax Ryland back to the bargaining table. Smodur angrily returned to the field to fight while Malice set out to get the message of Cinder's capture to Ryland to recommence their parley.

While awaiting news from Malice, Rytlock and the Commander lent their aid to the Iron imperator. Smodur provided minimal information to his new helpers, leading them on a mysterious mission to charge a crystal provided by an allied Flame Legion Fire Shaman. After charging the crystal with the power of a flame core, the Commander delivered the device to a vent East of Petraj Overlook. Smodur disclosed that the device was a powerful grenade that would destroy Dominion resources below. However, after detonating the grenade, it was discovered that the 'resources' were in fact Dominion soldiers. Angry at being maniuplated by Smodur, the Commander and Rytlock went to survey the damage they had done. Among the casualties in the Dominion camp was one of Malice's personal guards, leading Rytlock to question the allegiance of the Ash imperator. Hearing from Crecia of Ryland's willingness to meet, Rytlock and the Commander returned to the hidden Dominion base to rejoin their allies.

Learning of Smodur's use of a searing crystal in the destruction of a Dominion camp, Smodur and Efram fought over the ethics of war. After the Commander stepped in to break up the fight, Ryland arrived ready to talk. Crecia appeared stronger in these negotiations now that the United Legions had taken most of the Southern Drizzlewood Coast. She asked Ryland to rejoin the legions after losing most of his warbandmates to the war and reasserted the dangers of waking Jormag. Ryland, seemingly interested in making an offer, demanded that Cinder be let go as a show of good faith, and Crecia mulled over his request. Outraged that this proposition was even considered, Smodur ended negotiations by plunging his dagger into Cinder's neck. Ryland charged at Smodur who was quickly protected by Crecia's magic. Feeling betrayed, Ryland fled towards Wolf's Crossing where the Commander and their allies encountered an icebrood-looking Varinia Stormsounder and the newly-founded Frost Legion. Once the Minister of Morale was defeated, the allies returned to the old Dominion hideout, angry at Smodur, and discussed plans for what to do next. Malice disclosed that she had double agents within the Dominion forces who could provide intel on Bangar's movements. The group agreed to keep fighting while waiting for an opening up North to continue their pursuit of Bangar and Ryland.

Aurene introduces the Commander to the Scrying Pool in the Hall of Monuments. She shares a vision of the past, letting the Commander experience what Ryland Steelcatcher's warband were up to between the events of the Prologue and Whisper in the Dark.

The Steel warband successfully guided their tank through treacherous terrain infested with Stone Summit Dwarves, but were unable to navigate through to the Bjora Pass.

Bangar Ruinbringer and Ryland then attempted to find a new path through the Darkrime Delves. During their travels, they came across Almorra Soulkeeper (who had been kidnapped by the Svanir under the influence of Jormag). Although they initially worked together to overcome the Icebrood, Almorra bickered with Bangar, and - acting on the orders of Bangar Ruinbringer - Ryland defeated Almorra. Bangar then finished her off and instructed Ryland to hide the body in the Darkrime Ruins.

Jhavi contacted the Commander some time after the liberation of the Raven Sanctum, passing on the information that Rytlock and Crecia had not reported in for days and Braham had headed westward on his own to search for them. The Commander followed suit, spying a spectral Wolf beckoning westward. On the way to Braham, the Commander discovered Eir's dire wolf companion Garm who was under attack by the Sons of Svanir, and he led the Commander to Braham after they had defeated the ambush. Reuniting with the norn who was just as surprised by Garm's sudden appearance as the Commander was, the pair and the dire wolf headed even further west to the remote kodan settlement of Still Waters Speaking. Several of the kodan there had begun to lose themselves to the whispers plaguing the region, especially as the settlement had already lost their Voice. Rytlock and Crecia were being held captive in the settlement due to the kodan suspecting them to be Bangar's spies, but thanks to Braham and the Commander who conversed with the settlement's Claw called Cloudseeker, the two charr were released.

Cloudseeker revealed that the whispers were coming from Drakkar, a champion of Jormag who had seduced Jhavi's great-granduncle Svanir to join the Ice Dragon's cause and led to the creation of the Sons of Svanir cult in the past. Leeching the power of the lost Spirits of Ox, Eagle and Wolverine and the magic of profane Idols of Jormag scattered throughout the region, Drakkar could heal itself and remained effectively immortal and thus impossible to defeat in its current empowered state.

After helping the kodan strengthen their base and purify points of power from Jormag's influence, Braham and Garm found a hidden shrine to Wolf and invited the Commander and Jhavi there while Rytlock and Crecia tracked the movements of Bangar's army. Upon meeting at the shrine, the group witnessed Wolf himself appearing before them and tasking Braham, who had become a chosen norn via fulfilling the conditions of an ancient prophecy by cracking Jormag's fang in the past, with purifying the fallen shrines of Ox, Eagle and Wolverine and convince the lost Spirits to lend their aid against Drakkar. To keep Jormag's champion from noticing what the party was up to, Jhavi volunteered to take a squad of Vigil and kodan to fight Drakkar who had tarnished her family's name.

Braham traveled to the shrines and purified them for a short while with the Commander and other spiritual norn's help. After each ritual, Braham confronted each of the lost Spirits who remained skeptical of his worth and challenged his beliefs. One by one, though, they agreed to help as Braham proved himself to them. Once the shrines had been cleansed and the idols of Jormag had been shattered, Jhavi and Cloudseeker's forces chased Drakkar into a nearby cave, so that it could no longer draw on the magic of the valley, while a party led by the Commander descended into the cave to corner the wounded dragon champion. However, Jormag's power remained strong, and Rytlock and Crecia both fell under the influence of the whispers, trying instead to attack the Commander than the dragon champion during the battle. The Commander was forced to knock the pair out before turning back to Drakkar whom Braham and the lost Spirits blasted and froze it in crystalline form.

Before the party could celebrate their victory, a fragment of Jormag's power, the Whisper of Jormag, emerged from Drakkar's corpse and revealed itself as the true source of the whispers. It initially offered to talk, but the Commander refused to listen. The Whisper successfully made Braham doubt himself in the ensuing battle, and even forced the Commander to fight themself in their mind before Bangar and Ryland suddenly arrived to help finish the vessel off with Braham's bow. Recovering from the mental onslaught, the party confronted Bangar who revealed that he would claim credit for defeating Drakkar and use the feat as proof that he alone could control Jormag and sway the legions behind him. When the Commander protested, Bangar shot them with a fiery arrow while claiming that a clash between the two of them had always been inevitable. Angered by the Blood Imperator's actions and worried about the Commander, Braham was finally able to embrace Wolf's blessing to Become the Wolf and attacked Bangar, only to wound Ryland who stepped in the way to protect his imperator. In the ensuing skirmish, Bangar and Ryland retreated back to their army while Crecia, Rytlock and Braham took the wounded Commander to safety.

While the Commander was passed out, Aurene sensed their distress and had the party move to the Eye of the North where she was roosting, with the Commander resting by the Scrying Pool. Upon waking up and reuniting with Braham, Crecia, Rytlock and Jhavi, the recovering Commander received answers from Aurene about what had transpired in the world since the battle in the cave and what Aurene had been doing in the meantime. With the Commander out of the way, Bangar had claimed full credit for defeating Drakkar, which began fracturing the charr legions even more. Aurene reminded the party, however, that Bangar was only one piece in a bigger whole, and she was still uncertain about Jormag's true motives, so she suggested that the party bide their time for the time being and let Bangar make the first move in order to figure out what they should do next.

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After Qadim's escape following the events in the Mythwright Gambit, Scholar Glenna and "the esteemed champions of the Forge" are told by Zommoros to follow his trail to the city of Adashim and seek the Key of Ahdashim. They find the Key has been shattered across the courtyard. After assisting in retrieving the pieces restoring the Key in the fountain, the Key explains the status of the city: Qadim killed the cardinals of water and fire, coearced air and earth into joining him, and currently sits in the center draining the ley line. As the raiders manage to defeat the cardinals, the Key absorbs their power to prevent it flowing to Qadim. After a grueling battle with Qadim the Peerless, he explodes into unbound magic which the Key gathers and then suddenly releases, saying all djinn will together share the burden.

Quite a while after Aurene got encased in crystal, Caithe contacted the Commander, asking that everyone gather around for a final moment. Upon arriving at the site, Caithe decides to remove part of the crystal shell, and Aurene's body started to glow. The Commander blasts the body a couple times, and Aurene is freed, speaking for the first time. It seems having eaten Joko's magic allowed her to come back from the dead. Everyone's resolve is renewed, and Gorrik gives the Commander the location of Kralkatorrik. The Commander mounts onto Aurene's back, and she opens a rift to chase after her grandfather. After flying through three of the gods' realms, and failing to force Kralkatorrik out with just opening a portal in front of him, Aurene manages to blast off one of his wings, and Aurene manages to open a portal back to Tyria. He crashes into the ocean southeast of Orr, buried up islands that had been torn out of the Mists. This new region is dubbed "Dragonfall".

Three distinct groups set up camps on this new landmass. Rytlock and Logan join up with the Mist Raiders, let by Gwen Thackery herself. The Olmakhan ride off to the southwest. A group of soldiers call themselves the Crystal Bloom, and head off to the west. Aurene keeps up assaults on Kralkatorrik to keep him down. Taimi joins Sayida on the latter's airship, circling the islands to watch the battle unfold. After scouting the island, Braham gives the Commander surveillance probes to place all about the islands. There are islands flowing under the island which feeds and heals Kralkatorrik. After placing the three probes, Caithe and Aurene call the Commander to a rocky outcropping in the southwestern island. There, Aurene had found the skyscales, a new type of dragon not ever witnessed before. The Commander approached and befriended one, feeding it unbound magic to better befriend it and then flies up onto the severed wing. The skyscale blasts open a crystal scab, then allows the Commander to gather some of Kralkatorrik's blood. With the help of Zafirah and two Zephyrites, the Commander manages to forge a True Crystal Spear to use against the elder dragon.

After some tests of the spear, including attacking a sore spot on Kralkatorrik's claw, the Commander enters a cave leading under the islands to shut off some subterranean leylines. Zafirah, Caithe and Rytlock aid the Commander, as does Aurene, while Logan and the other armies assault the body above. However, even though the body is dead, something still stirs inside the corpse. Aurene flies the Commander into Kralkatorrik's mouth, straight to his heart. Inside, Kralkatorrik is warring with his own Torment, including the invasive magic it had already absorbed from Zhaitan, Mordremoth and Balthazar. These magical spires inside are sealed by Aurene, before the heart is finally vulnerable to the Crystal Spear. With Kralkatorrik defeated, Aurene manages to ascend to become an Elder Dragon and flies off, as the rest of the crew flies back to Lion's Arch, having successfully defeating another Elder Dragon.

Caithe arrives in Vabbi and tells the Commander that it's time to discuss plans with Ogden. Shortly after meeting the stone dwarf, he instantly tells them both that they are heading to Thunderhead Keep, the location where the spear that was meant to kill Kralkatorrik was first forged. But first, the Commander and Aurene must undergo yet another trial in Glint's lair, with Caithe accompanying them to keep watch. In the lair, the Commander learns how to use use the resonance crystals and gets to try out the crystal spear. Aurene gets a vision of herself Branded, but the Commander assures her that that will not happen. With the trial complete, Glint teaches Aurene about Ascension and tells the Commander much about Kralkatorrik, like how he saw a vision of a world where he did not exist. After leaving the lair, Caithe mentions that it had been 2 days since they had both entered the lair, and they all head off to the Keep.

At the keep, nearly every allied force has gathered there to prepare for the assault on Kralkatorrik, from Awakened and Olmakhan to the members of the Pact. An Exalted stands by the forge, prepared to forge a new spear, but she needs oil that the dredge harvest to the south of the forge. The dredge's settlement has been attacked by Kralkatorrik, with Branded crystals choking various parts of their machinery. Then, a new mold is taken out of an old dwarven tomb in order to craft the new spears. Sadly, the new spears are far more fragile than the original spears, but many more can be crafted, so they can be distributed among the troops.

Moving into the inner chamber, a sourut sent by Glint informs the Commander about the situation in the Mists. Rifts start opening in the large chamber, but shortly thereafter, Aurene Brands the ground, but in a positive way. Caithe herself gets Aurene-Branded, and is able to speak on behalf of the dragon spawn, communicating: "I am not him." Unfortunately, Aurene's visions of the battle turn out to be accurate, and she is killed by Kralkatorrik.

There was a vision.

A promise—that we'd win.

My god is dead. Aurene, gone. The warmth of Balthazar's spirit is now just cold, lifeless crystal. Kralkatorrik took her from me, just as his Brand will soon take this world.

I thought that I had finally found...something. A hope that what I was holding on to was real. That it was pure and good.

Maybe it was.

Maybe what I had for that short time between my lowest point and the end of all things was as good as it will ever get for me.

Or maybe the vision that saw me standing there at her side during the final battle against Kralkatorrik was meant as a warning for me stay away.

There is no solace in what lies ahead. All I can do is look to the past, and I carry it with me wherever I go.

The rifle on my back is a symbol of what came first.

The first things I remember: the glare of the sun, the blistering heat of the desert, and my family's screams.

There are other voices, too. Deeper, guttural, crying out their praise for Palawa Joko as if the lich could hear their devotion across all of Elona. My mother and father, my sister and my brother—they hurried me out the door and into the vast desert with only my mother's rifle and a small bag, heavy with ammunition. Too heavy for a child, but not nearly enough for what lay ahead.

They told me to escape to Amnoon. Made me promise I would survive.

So I ran, and their screams became one with the desert winds howling at my back.

I fled north through the Scourgeway, through the Desolation and away from Joko—whatever that meant in Elona. Then I hit the Bone Wall. Nobody could sneak through the gate without going through at least three dozen Awakened...and these weren't the mindless boors that wandered through farms and villages, scaring up support for the lich. These ones couldn't be fooled. Couldn't be reasoned with. If you tried to slip through the gate with a flimsy excuse or poorly forged papers, you didn't go to prison.

You were killed on the spot.

I saw it happen as I was summoning the courage to try my own luck. The poor fool stumbled in front of me, insisting he had permission to cross with a small group of farmers working the Elon Riverlands beyond. The guards showed him no patience, no mercy. Maybe he was part of the group. Maybe he wasn't.

It was clear to me that I'd never get through on my own. I was trapped, wandering the Desolation.

I'm not sure how long I hid in the Desolation. I was alone with forty-six bullets left in that heavy bag my family placed in my hands. Some wild game lasted longer than others, but once I was out of ammunition...that was it. I needed to escape through the Joko Gate.

There were rock gazelle, of course. Sand eels and devourers—though missing a shot meant drawing their attention, which was dangerous. I learned not to do that.

One particularly desperate day, I even tried making a meal of a sulfurous ooze. The less said about that, the better.

If any of Joko's Awakened found me, they needed bullets too. But that was a waste. I learned to hide from them.

When I wasn't out hunting or trying to plot my way through the gate, I was left alone with my thoughts. All of them about the family I'd lost and everything that had been taken from me.

There had been the farm, chores, target practice in the morning—the routine of a simple life. A life that wasn't mine anymore.

Of course I wanted to mourn. Of course I wanted to grieve. But I couldn't. To grieve would take time. Effort. I couldn't waste it. I needed to survive. I needed to move on. I needed to get to the Elon Riverlands, to the Crystal Oasis, to Amnoon.

It would be thirty-one pulls of the trigger before I'd have that chance.

Find my center.

Breathe out.

Don't pull. Squeeze.

The CRACK of the bullet. The flame at the muzzle. The kick of the rifle. Then, the long silence.

The rock gazelle's silhouette disappeared from the horizon. It was done.

But there was already another silhouette in the distance. Awakened, I thought. I looked through the rifle scope and saw it was an Elonian—a woman, dressed in finery nicer than any I had ever seen. She was looking at the gazelle, checking to see how it fell. She turned in my direction and waved, sitting down on a rocky outcropping as if waiting for me.

I felt something. How long had it been since somebody acknowledged me? Weeks. Over a month at least.

I reloaded the rifle and pulled the strap over my head so it hung loose by my side. If she tried to take my kill from me, it would be easy to sling the rifle up into my ready arms.

As I got closer, the shock on her face was clear as the sky was blue. She shook her head, impressed, and gestured down at the dead gazelle. Flies were already congregating.

"This was you?" she asked.

"Yes."

"What's your name, girl?"

I remember her careful movements. Slow. Deliberate. Unafraid.

As I put myself between her and my kill, she explained that the gazelle wasn't mine, that it belonged to the shepherds who paid the Hamaseen good money to keep the herd alive. But her tone wasn't patronizing or malicious. She seemed...impressed? Amused? Nothing I'd expected.

"I don't know what the Hamaseen is," I'd insisted, "but it can't have this one. And neither can you."

She smiled then. "Not for nothing," she said. I remember that, because I would hear it many times after. She asked me who taught me to be such an incredible shot. I offered her no answer except for my silence, but she saw something in me—something I didn't mean to show.

She said she understood. That she was sorry.

I couldn't imagine how this stranger could possibly understand. I felt the fury and confusion building in me until she spoke the words: "The Joko Gate. You want to go through it?"

Not for nothing, of course.

She would take care of me. She would get me past the Bone Wall. She would forgive me for shooting the gazelle.

All I needed to do was pledge my aim to the Hamaseen.

Zalambur was quick to see my talent, and quicker to take advantage of it. If he didn't, in his mind, somebody else would. There were plenty of other members of the Hamaseen who asked for my aid, but Zalambur was the only one to demand it.

And Zalambur demanded only the best.

When he first laid eyes the old, battered rifle I carried, it didn't matter to him that I could hit anything I saw in my scope. He couldn't know what it meant to me. Against my wishes, he replaced my mother's rifle with a new one branded with the symbol of the Hamaseen. Its scope was twice as powerful, and capable of firing twice as quickly with half the kick.

He told me I would need it if I was to be his Deadeye.

I hated it. But also, I loved it. I don't know what happened to my mother's rifle, but Zalambur insisted it didn't matter. It was a thing. An instrument. A tool to be used, then discarded.

The new rifle served me well as targets soon turned from wild game to Awakened. Then to Elonians I didn't recognize. Then to Elonians I did.

Zalambur climbed the ranks of the Hamaseen atop a pile of my shell casings.

I was respected among the Hamaseen, but with that respect came fear. Even with all the power Zalambur offered, I felt something missing. There was an emptiness to it all.

I wouldn't know what that something was until I found the Zaishen.

For as long as I could remember, the Six Gods had no place in Joko's Elona. I'd never spent much time thinking about them. Zalambur and his Hamaseen associates weren't exactly...devout. And my own parents, as far as I remember, didn't pray to any of the Six.

So when Zalambur told me that I was going to be protecting a group of Zaishen priests as they traveled through the Joko Gate from the Desolation into the Elon Riverlands—the very same path I had traveled years before—I didn't think much of it. Zalambur sent me to work with many Elonian factions, after all. He always considered himself something of a caregiver to the oppressed suffering under Joko's heel. If there was a group out there capable of irking the lich lord, then Zalambur took great satisfaction in throwing his support behind them.

But looking at these priests, I wondered why Zalambur was wasting his time.

I met them in a small cave surrounded by acrid, toxic pools, somewhere east of the Helcoid Seeps. There were eight of them, all of them garbed in heavy robes dyed bright orange and black. Their leader, Atsu, had some sort of decorative mesh headwear that covered his face, like a helmet with no actual defensive purpose. I remember thinking it was silly.

To be honest, everything about the Order of the Zaishen seemed silly to me at first. Balthazar was a god of fire and war. How do you live your life by fire and war?

I was an agent of death and destruction within the Hamaseen, but I hadn't sought it out. It wasn't a part of me. After years of service, even with the power and prestige Zalambur offered, I still felt nothing but emptiness and the fear of the others in the Hamaseen. I could never be one of them, not truly—because if they crossed Zalambur, I was the one he would send to end them. People kept me at arm's length. Who would want that? Who would crave that?

I was wrong. I was wrong about everything.

Atsu, the priest, had done something I would never forget.

I had just taken down an Awakened patrol from high in the canyons above, to guarantee safe passage north. Atsu had asked to come with me to my perch, to "see me at work." Zalambur didn't want me to anger these priests, so I agreed—though I paid him no mind, refusing to let his presence distract me.

Find my center.

Breathe out.

Don't pull. Squeeze.

The CRACK of the bullet. The flame at the muzzle. The kick of the rifle. Then, the long silence.

Zalambur had expressed joy when he saw my skill with a rifle, knowing how he could use it to further his own ends. Most others expressed surprise or fear, knowing then that if they were marked, they wouldn't see their end coming.

But Atsu?

Atsu prayed.

"Praise be to Balthazar for this gift."

He prayed after each shot I took—four to take down the whole patrol.

I'd heard many different reactions to my prowess with a rifle, but never that it was some divine gift. I was...unprepared for that. When I tried to dismiss it, he seemed disappointed. Not that I was rejecting his gratitude, but that, in his own words: I was unaware of just how special I was. How special I was to Balthazar.

Then I felt something. I didn't know what it was at first, but it felt strangely familiar to me. A power. A presence. Had I felt it before? Had it always been there?

Atsu unsheathed his dagger and pressed the hilt into my palm. The Zaishen insignia—something I'd never seen before—was carved into the bottom. To me, it looked like two flaming wings carrying a bullseye.

He told me Balthazar praises those who act.

Balthazar praises those who step forward, not back.

Balthazar praises those who do not hesitate, both in life and on the battlefield.

And most importantly, Balthazar praises those who can take a life to save others.

To the Zaishen, it's never about killing, but killing to secure safety for the many.

Not to wage wars, but to win wars.

Not to kill, but to protect.

Atsu asked me what I was killing for as a Deadeye for the Hamaseen.

What had I become? Was this truly what I wanted to be? What I was meant to be?

No. No, it was not.

At least, I thought it wasn't. I wouldn't know the truth until...

Balthazar.

The Zaishen told me I was one of them, accepted me with open arms. I had been given a gift by Balthazar himself, they said. And I believed them. I felt Balthazar's presence that day. His power was there, all around me, guiding my hand. It had always been there, I realized—a shadow of a thought in the back of my mind. It wasn't until Atsu spoke to me in that cave high above the Desolation that I finally realized my true calling.

So I left the Hamaseen. Left Zalambur. Left it all.

But I kept the rifle.

Under Atsu's guidance, I donned the garb of the Zaishen. I learned the words Balthazar spoke to us long ago, when he helped humanity conquer Ascalon. I learned to listen to his voice deep within me and spread it to those who could not hear him.

The Zaishen did not fear me. The Zaishen did not want to use me for their own ends. The Zaishen simply were. And I simply was. I was a part of them—a part of something greater than myself, greater than any one person.

I was part of a family again.

I was a priestess of Balthazar.

And then my god came to Tyria.

I knew.

The moment I saw him, I knew this was my god. I knew this was the one I had pledged my service to. The one who had given me my gift. The one who had brought purpose and meaning back to my life.

But something was wrong. He stood before me, tall and imposing, power radiating from his physical form...but this power was different from what I had felt all those years before. His voice dissonant from the one I heard within me.

Still, I was blindsided when he betrayed us.

I tried to rationalize. I was even successful, for a time. Weeks passed where I convinced my Zaishen brothers and sisters to take up arms against both the Pact commander and the Branded.

I watched them throw their lives away.

I couldn't deny my god. The whispers I had once felt within me grew in volume and urgency. Whatever Balthazar asked of me, of the Zaishen, we readily gave him. We would sacrifice all our lives to rid the world of the Crystal Dragon.

The Zaishen joined Balthazar's Forged army and pushed into the Crystal Desert. We would destroy Kralkatorrik, and we would save Tyria from his vile Brand.

Nothing could stop us.

Until the commander did.

Argon Garrison. It was to be my final stand.

I knew I'd never kill the Crystal Dragon, but I had to do something.

There, with my fallen god's sword, I would end my life on my own terms. I would go down fighting, as Balthazar demanded.

I raised the rifle.

Find my center.

Breathe out.

Don't pull. Squeeze.

The CRACK of the bullet. The flame at the muzzle. The kick of the rifle. Then—

The sound of the metal CLANG reverberated through the training yard. I’d seen canisters like it all over the Crystal Desert, filled with paralyzing gas. The Forged used them to subdue any who thought they could surprise us from the caves and old ruins that peppered the landscape. And it was always easier to interrogate a living prisoner than a dead one.

With my god and his Forged defeated, there was little doubt the Pact was stocking their weaponry, taking it for themselves.

I would make use of it all one last time. If anyone tried to take the sword, they would either feel the bite of my rifle, or fall to the choking haze filling the garrison.

Then, there was a sound in the yard.

"If you're here to claim his sword, turn around!" I shouted down at the intruder. "You have no right to it. Leave now, and live."

But wait. Only one intruder? Who would be foolish enough to—

I looked through my scope.

It was...

It was the god-killer.

Instinct. That's all it ever is in a fight. I was angry. I wanted revenge.

And I told the commander that I wanted it. On the Pact. On Balthazar's enemies. They had killed my brothers and sisters, and the god that gave me purpose.

Later, much later, I realized this wasn't exactly true. While I did want revenge, it wasn't against the commander, or the Pact, or even my god's enemies.

I wanted revenge against my god himself. Against Balthazar.

Balthazar killed the Zaishen, my brothers and sisters. Balthazar sent us to die. Sent us to fight the Crystal Dragon. To give our lives for a war that could only end in Tyria's destruction.

And it was the commander who killed him before he could kill all of us.

The commander saved me and what was left of the Zaishen.

We remember Balthazar differently. He helped us discover our best selves. Helped us find a family.

I cannot let who he became—the one who betrayed all of that—shake my devotion.

My faith is not in the god himself. His flesh, such as it was. My faith is in what he made me feel—his power, his potential. A potential that lived on in Aurene.

Until she died.

I don't know how long I knelt before Aurene's still form, searching for something. For anything.

All I saw there was my own face, reflected back in the facets of Kralkatorrik's crystal. I began to think about those hours in Argon Garrison. I began to think about what I'd done. Atsu's words came back to me.

What are you killing for?

I should have asked that before. I should have thought about how Balthazar treated the Zaishen. How he treated me.

How he treated the Zaishen as his weapons to use as he saw fit.

His tools. Implements. Things to be used, then discarded.

A thousand fragmented faces looked back at me from the crystal. A thousand faces with the same pained expression. A thousand faces all trying to find an answer to Atsu's question.

When I was up in that garrison, I didn't know.

I wasn't trying to answer the question. With my dead god's extinguished blade drawn close, I realize only now I was trying to hold on to the purpose that had been taken from me.

I was lost, filled with despair. My god was dead. My family had become sworn enemies of Elona. The one who had given my life meaning was now being cursed as a pariah who had nearly doomed the world in a fit of madness.

I had spent my life telling others of Balthazar's virtues.

That Balthazar praises those who act.

That Balthazar praises those who step forward, not back.

That Balthazar praises those who do not hesitate, both in life and on the battlefield.

That Balthazar praises those who can take a life to save others.

That Balthazar's Zaishen did not take lives, but protected them.

These were the virtues of Balthazar. The virtues I had lived by. The virtues that had given me purpose and strength. And I would never be able to speak of them again.

When I was up in that garrison, I saw no path forward. Felt no purpose. I wanted everything to end. I wanted them to end me.

The commander showed me another way.

Zalambur and the Hamaseen used me as I had used my rifle, as a tool that fired bullets to increase one man's power over others.

Balthazar used me to strike against the Crystal Dragon, no matter what the consequences for the Zaishen.

But the commander? The commander saw me in a vision. A prophecy.

For the first time—for the only time—my destiny was firm. I didn't need to wonder if I had chosen the right path, or trusted the right people. I didn't need to know if my bullets or blade were being used for the right purpose.

Fate—not a person, not a god—had chosen me. I didn't need to worry anymore.

There was something else, too. In these last fleeting weeks, I saw what family and leadership is truly meant to be. Aurene, blessed with Balthazar's magic, yet benevolent and caring. She stood in front of those weaker than herself. She died protecting the commander. Protecting us.

Balthazar would never have done that.

I finally understood.

Balthazar is gone.

Aurene is gone.

Tyria is as good as gone.

But I remain. I still stand, along with the commander and the Pact. Along with the Zaishen.

Fate dictated I be there at the end of the world. If it is to fall to dust, then I will speak the tenets of Balthazar until the ground crumbles beneath my feet. I will shout the story of Aurene and her champion until the breath leaves my lungs and I fall into the void.

All the things I put my faith in have left me.

Now, in these final moments, I put faith in myself and in fate.

Nothing else matters.

It's strange. Here, at the end, all I can think about is the beginning.

You were so small once. A tiny, jewel-bright bird beginning to test her wings. Every time you took flight, it stole my breath away. I should've spent more time in those moments, little one. Now I'll never see you fly again.

And Kralkatorrik—the one who took you from me—has slipped through our fingers again. The end has come. Without you, what hope does Tyria have? My duty now is to bear witness to the end of all things. To stand beside your shell as I wait for reality itself to crumble away.

It doesn't frighten me. How could it? My world ended when your heart stopped beating.

The Pale Tree, the Dream, Ventari's Tablet—they taught us sylvari are born fully grown. But before you, I was a child. I considered myself the most important creature in the world.

I made so many mistakes.

I wonder if you still would've liked me back then. When I watched Cadeyrn beg the Pale Tree to change her ways. We were just beginning to see what the world was really like beyond the safety of our peaceful Grove, and it shook us.

Tyria was so big, so full of contradictions. Ventari's Tablet didn't explain why other civilizations—other people—have mothers and fathers. Why they follow the scripture of gods they can't see. Why some follow no scripture at all.

It didn't explain why the asura found Malomedies and pulled his brilliant mind apart, changing him forever with their torture in the name of science.

The firstborn clung to Ventari's Tablet, using its peaceful teachings as a shield. But the secondborn were frustrated, restless. And Cadeyrn, a child of the daylight, wanted action.

He wanted vengeance.

Cadeyrn stood before the Pale Tree and asked her to abandon Ventari's Tablet. The world had shown us its ugly face, he said, and the tablet prevented us from defending ourselves. He wanted us to display our strength. Show our thorns.

I remember thinking he was a fool. An empty-headed secondborn who could never understand the importance of a peaceful life. I hoped the Pale Tree's avatar would appear and tear him down for his ridiculous ideas.

Instead, he received only silence.

It was one of those moments where fate diverged. Where mere words could've changed the course of everything to come. If only I could have seen a glimpse of the future like you, I would have acted differently. I would have known that who I was then is not who I wish to be now.

Cadeyrn was wounded. Of course he was—he had spoken out, and the Pale Tree ignored him.

"I am the first of my generation," he insisted. "I deserve to be heard!"

I could've been gentle with him. Told him he mattered, that the Pale Tree heard and understood all her children. I could've been harsh and called him a traitor. Warned him his wild streak would endanger us all. They were both what he needed to hear.

But I was callous back then. And so, so shallow.

"Why should she care?" I said. "She has thousands of children now, Cadeyrn. You're either firstborn...or you're simply sylvari."

Worst of all: I believed my words. I thought I and the other firstborn were superior. Free from generational strife and political atrocities. Perfect and pure. In time, the Jungle Dragon would prove us wrong.

I wish I could go back and erase the smugness of my voice. Soothe the sting of what I said to Cadeyrn.

But I said it, and it changed him. My cruelty hardened his heart and planted the seed of resentment. Hatred. I know I wasn't the only one, but I helped set him down the road he would soon follow. To the creation of the Nightmare Court.

To Faolain.

From the moment we emerged together, Faolain and I were like twin leaves sprouted from the same branch. She had endless questions, and all I ever wanted was to find the answers for her. We ventured into the vast unknown together, saw beautiful and terrible things. We made the world our own.

I thought I had been created just for her. That she was born to discover, to change and shape everything she touched, and I was born to love her.

Maybe I really did love Faolain, in my own way. But I was so selfish then. I think I only loved the way everyone looked at me when I was with her.

She knew this. And she used it.

When I was young, I thought I knew everything there was to know. I was a firstborn sylvari—the tablet told us we were the purest creatures in the world. And I believed it, because I wanted so desperately to be unique. To be special.

We were just beginning to see our own insignificance in the world, and while it drove Faolain and made her hungrier, it caused me to turn inward, become even more arrogant. It masked my fear of not being important. Of becoming nothing.

It was the tiniest seed of a weakness, the desire—no, the need—to be exceptional. But Faolain found it. She had a knack for finding weaknesses. And for exploiting them.

In the beginning, she was sweet, even romantic. She took me to moonlit clearings, where fireflies danced around our feet. She wove summer flowers through my hair and held my face in her hands and told me I was the most beautiful, important person she would ever know. That I would make a difference. That she was proud of me.

I loved the way she looked at me, like I was the only creature in the world. I felt like she understood me, as no one else could. There was such admiration in her eyes, it became hard to look away. I needed her to be my mirror, because I couldn't see what she saw. I needed her love to feel whole.

Which was precisely what she wanted.

Depending on Faolain felt so natural, just like loving her. I was so young, so untested; I thought they were the same thing. I knew as long as I had Faolain, I could do anything. I was ensnared. I was her prey.

That was when things changed.

It's easy to look back now and say I should've seen what Faolain really was. What she was doing when she would ignore me for days at a time, seemingly out of the blue. When she would come back as if nothing happened and chastise me for getting upset.

But it's so difficult to recognize when you're under the murky water. She made it difficult.

She would starve me of the attention she had once lavished on me. She withheld it from me when she saw I was hungriest for it. And when I would finally get angry, she wilted. Acted as though I had wounded her. She made it my fault. Mine. Never hers. Not even ours together.

Faolain began hinting that I was becoming dull. She said that without her, I would be indistinguishable from other sylvari. Sometimes, she wondered out loud if she would grow bored with me. She knew exactly what to say. And I was so deep under the water, I believed her.

I would do whatever it took to regain her attention. I did favors for her, made myself perfect for her, picked fights with her. In my eyes, even her anger was better than her indifference. But none of it worked.

The only time she gave me her full attention was to scrutinize me.

Faolain picked me apart. The things she used to say she loved about me—my directness, my preference for listening over speaking, the way I brought her back when she pushed boundaries—now she criticized, even despised them.

She said I was holding her back. That she could be so much more without me, but she stayed with me out of pity. And just when I'd decide I was more miserable with her than I could ever be on my own, she would turn back into the loving, attentive partner I remembered from long ago. She would take me back to the clearing and weave flowers into my hair. Tell me I was still special, if only I could stop dragging myself down.

I wish I could say I escaped her in the end, little one. But she escaped me. In the Nightmare Court, she found a community of sylvari desperate for change, for something they could believe in. And she used them, too.

My freedom lay in staying behind when she left. I used the Pale Tree and Ventari's Tablet to give me the strength I didn't think I had, and they helped me move past her. The Pale Tree helped me to live well and fully, to never leave a wrong to ripen into evil. Those teachings gave me the peace I needed. They gave me a purpose where I had none.

But that was all a lie, too.

When Wynne revealed the truth of the sylvari to me—that we were created only to serve Mordremoth—I felt hollowed out all over again. The Pale Tree's words healed me and brought me out of the darkness, but they had been empty. A convenient lie she spun to give us meaning where there was none. We were not pure—we were simply tools to be directed at a target. I was meant to be used. Again.

I was so angry at the Pale Tree, at my mother. But now...now I understand why she hid the truth from us. A mother does whatever she can to protect her child, even if it means lying.

I wish I could take away the terrible knowledge you had to live with, little one. I wish I could undo your fate and make it my own. Everything I've been through, I would suffer it again just to spare you.

That's what love is.

Do you remember when we first met? You were still inside your egg, growing into the beautiful creature you would soon become.

Mordremoth spoke to me the same way the Dream did; not with thoughts, but with feelings. Desires. Impulses. I felt my second Wyld Hunt tickle the back of my mind: to protect Glint's egg. Protect you.

The feeling came so easily, wanting to keep you safe. I hadn't even seen your face, but I knew you were so, so special. Protecting you wasn't an order—it was an instinct.

But then the thoughts turned. Take the egg to the Heart of Maguuma, my impulse told me. I didn't know what I would find there, but the very fibers of my heart were pulling me forward.

Sylvari are not meant to question their Wyld Hunts. We were made to fulfill them. But I remembered what Wynne told me when she revealed the truth.

Trust no one. Not even the commander.

I tried to make sense of the notion blossoming in my mind—one that felt so much like it was my own. But I knew that Mordremoth's whispers were indistinguishable from my Wyld Hunt. Was I to just ignore my own desires? Did my instinct even belong to me anymore? Or was I being used, yet again?

I was more alone than I had ever been. The Pale Tree, the commander, Wynne... I trusted no one. Not even myself. It was just you and me and that horrible, endless jungle.

And so I focused on you. I devoted every part of myself to keeping you from harm. I understood your importance in the world, even if I wasn't certain of the future, but it was more than that. You were all I had. I couldn't lose you, too. Losing you would mean losing myself.

I think that was when I understood. I would never be significant, and that was okay. No sylvari—not Cadeyrn, not Faolain, or Wynne, not even the Pale Tree—mattered all that much. We weren't pure, perfect beings, and we weren't the most important creatures in the world.

You were.

And I would protect you with everything I had.

The Pale Tree protected me—protected all sylvari—the only way she knew how. She hid the terrible truths of the world from us and tried to make us feel safe and supported.

It made me believe I was chosen. Special. But it was never about that—it was about passing this feeling on to another. And I passed it on to you, my jewel-bright bird.

Protecting you didn't mean hiding the ugliness of the world from you. I wanted you to be strong in a way I never was, to meet your fate head-on with courage and confidence. I wanted—needed you to be ready.

So I stayed with you and taught you everything I'd learned. All my mistakes, my pain—it would help you grow. It was the most important thing I've ever done, and ever will do. You would save the world, the sylvari, the Dream—all of it.

But you were never just that to me. You weren't simply the dragon that would defeat Kralkatorrik. You were mine, and I was yours. You taught me how to love fully, without holding back. No matter how guarded I was around the others, you saw what no one else did: the warmth at my core.

I finally had a purpose.

I empathize now with the Pale Tree. She was a mother forced to send her children into the cold, unforgiving world, knowing the harm—even death—that would befall them.

But that mother must let her children fly, even fall—so they may learn. And you'd fallen before, only to get back up stronger and more certain. And I was always there to help you. I thought you were ready. I thought we would win together.

And now I've lost you. You were a part of me, and I of you. How does a heart beat when half of it is gone?

I wish I had done more to show you how much I loved you. How much you meant to me—to all of us.

I haven't heard from the commander in days. I wonder if our leader's heart has crumbled into dust, too. Now we have no plan. No ideas. Nothing left to do but mourn our lost hope—our lost child—and the terrible, beautiful world she tried to protect.

I hope I see you soon, little one, when the end comes.

We need to be with you for this, all of us. You brought so many people together, touched so many souls. We should face what comes together, one last time.

I can't do this alone—I need someone else to help me meet the end of all things, and the failure of all our plans and dreams. Someone who loves you like I do.

It's time I call the commander.

With its former leader defeated, Elona has 4 major groups interested in driving the fate of Elona from here on out. At the Fortress of Jahai, a conference is held with the Sunspears, the Order of Shadows, the Mordant Crescent, and the Free Awakened (Awakened freed from Joko's control and leading their own path). Talks were going well until Aurene crashed the conference literally by falling asleep in the main hall. Taimi calls for the Commander, who is Aurene's champion, to come and comfort her enough to leave the conference. Braham leads the way south into the Jahai Bluffs through a secret passage. Once Aurene is escorted away, the conference is about to resume until Archon Iberu plots a double-cross, having various Mordant Crescent cut off the exits from the room. Luckily, Koss appears and defeats Iberu. Then another disturbance arrives: the Shatterer has come back, and is attacking all those nearby. The Commander helps escort the various delegations out, then goes through the Fortress to rescue as many Free Awakened as possible from being killed again or Branded. On the other side of the Fortress, the Shatterer flies through a giant rift, a tear in reality leading into the Mists. Kralkatorrik has moved into the Mists, and has even knocked down General Almorra's airship.

Scattered around the Jahai Bluffs, a number of disturbances has changed the landscape. There was a replica Tower of Orr, with an eternal battle between Orrians and Flame Legion soldiers; a large field straight out of the Maguuma Jungle, complete with chak; and a strange cave with otherworldly mushrooms, that give strange visions from those who breathe in the spores too deeply. These disturbances are related to Kralkatorrik's meddling, and linked to creatures like the Branded Riftstalker. A nearby village had been the victim of the Brand just moments after the conference was disrupted, but then Braham managed to find survivors of this event. They had managed to hide in a stable carved out of solid rock, thick enough to prevent the Brand from penetrating it. This causes Koss to remember about a location nearby that the Sunspears used to use that was also deep underground.

Koss and his distant descendant, Kossan, lead Braham and the Commander deep into the former Sunspear sanctuary. The bad news is that the place had been overtaken by spiders, but the good news is that they are not Branded, despite the base being squarely in the Brand. The central flame is lit, intending to bring light and safety back to the cave, but the sticky webs have prevented Kormir's fire from reaching the other sconces. The spiders and their broodmother are killed after a fierce battle, just as refugees start to file into the cave. However, a rift had just opened up outside of the newly redubbed Sun's Refuge, threatening all within. The Commander and Braham go off to fight off the Branded invaders, and are shortly aided by Eir Stegalkin, Braham's mother, and Snaff, former member of Destiny's Edge who died after Kralkatorrik's first flight. They had come bearing a message for Aurene: it is time for her to kill Kralkatorrik and take his place as an Elder Dragon. However, Aurene receives her own vision: multiple visions of various allies fighting with her against the Elder Dragon in various locations. And yet, they all end the same: with Aurene dying. Upset by this, the dragon flies off and out into the open skies.

Watching the allied dragon fly off worries many of the refugees, but Blish assures them all that he has a plan. He thinks that he could build a tracker that he could use to track Kralkatorrik's movements through the rifts, if only he had a huge magical item, like perhaps Balthazar's Sword. Various Priory members have already been searching for it and plotted a flight path for where it should have landed after the god's defeat. However, a sniper had beaten the Priory scouts in finding it and stole it away to a nearby fort. The Commander goes in to retrieve it, and finds that the sniper priestess seems very familiar, but could not remember from where. Eventually, the priestess accepts defeat and throws herself at the Commander's feet, prepared to be kill. The Commander, however, shows remarkable kindness and spares her, only looking to retrieve the sword. The priestess, Zafirah, is humbled by this gesture. However, Blish notes that the sword seems to be unpowered. Rytlock is asked to use Sohothin to reignite the sword, which acts as if it had a mind of its own. However, everything was now in place for a journey into the Mists, to feed Kralkatorrik the laced bait.

Within the Mists, a mighty battle rages on, as Glint helps lead soldiers against the Branded there. Blish sets to work on putting the tracking device on the sword, while the Commander protects him. After several minutes of work, though, Blish tells the Commander to leave, as he still needs to make some final adjustments. This, however, was a lie. Blish instead sacrificed his golem body to be the power source for the tracker. He says his goodbyes to the Commander, and asks that Dragon's Watch no longer kept any secrets from each other. He says this, because Taimi had neglected to tell that her condition has come back, affecting her worse than ever, and she has an expiry date coming up soon.

But in the final moments of grieving, who should appear but Caithe, having much to tell the Commander.

Dessa gained access to a new fractal: the Deepstone Fractal.

The Fractal Explorers join a pair of tomb raiders, Kay and Torin, as they explore the lost treasure vault of the Deldrimor, Deepstone. However, as the party delved deeper into the vault, they've come to realize that the dwarven traps weren't designed to keep thieves out, but to keep something inside from leaving. The Explorers soon uncover the Light of Deldrimor by activating a crystal ward. The Light proved to not only be the key to disabling the rest of the dwarven wards, but also a powerful tool against the increasing numbers of shadow creatures harrying the party the deeper into the vault they went. At the very bottom of the vault, Torin's impatience leads him to be possessed by an ancient malignant entity, known as the Voice. Fending off the unnatural darkness with the Light of Deldrimor, the Fractal Explorers managed to defeat the entity, but only by killing Torin's body. The Fractal soon ends, leaving Kay grieving in the depths of Deepstone.

Gorrik had done some experiments and learned that the Scarab Plague only affects humans. However, after he talks about his experiments in public, and injects himself with the pestilence to prove it, he got all his possessions confiscated and himself locked in quarantine. The Commander, at Taimi's urging, shows up to his trial and pleads on his behalf, getting him released. The Commander, Taimi and Gorrik head to the docks to retrieve all of Gorrik's gear, including Blish who had been deactivated. Near the gear, Lord Faren greets the Commander, saying how Logan, as the new Marshall of the Pact, is sending a boat full of supplies to Amnoon to help relief efforts in the city. However, Joko had already released the Plague on the boat. The Commander dispatches the Plague and its Awakened victims, only for Joko to mockingly invite the Commander to come to Gandara, the Moon Fortress for "part 2" of his production.

Taimi recommends going to the Tomb of the Primeval Kings to get advice from the old Kings, since they had lived through the Scarab Plague themselves. After learning that Joko finally had the genuine article in his possession and was ready to release it on the world, Nahlah and Dahlah agree to lend their ghost army to fighting against the tyrant. They also reveal that they can smell the death on the Commander, meaning that the Scarabs will not find a suitable host in one who was once dead. Taimi and Blish prepare a small portal outside the Primeval Tomb, using the tech taken from Rata Primus, but Blish's golem arm accidentally falls through the portal.

On the other side of the portal, the Commander used Blish's severed arm to cloak and sneakily clear out all the Awakened in the nearby town to turn it into a new base in Kourna. Scouting out further, the main threats seem to be from the south and west, so Canach joins the Commander and brings with him both portable explosives and seeds that will quickly grow to make a giant vine wall. Once the base is secured, the army is sent through the rift, one group at a time. The entire army consists of Primeval ghosts, Olmakhan charr, Amnoon volunteers, Sunspear warriors and sylvari Thorn-Wall Shapers, along with Blish, Gorrik, Taimi, Braham and the Commander.

There are various tasks in Kourna that need to be completed before the Commander can assault the Moon Fortress. The insect Gorrik had been growing under his skin grew into a fairly large roller beetle that could be used as a new type of mount. A village north of the base had scarab eggs growing over the crops, and needed to be burned to prevent it from spreading further; it seems a loyalist in the village was following Joko's orders to spread the Scarab Plague. A heket tribe - Elonian hylek - to the east of the camp offer to help if their hunters could be returned, so that they can continue to feed themselves. Far to the south, a corsair ship crashed on the shore, but they are still able to send supplies to the main camp via catapults, backed up by non-humans and ghosts. After all that, Lord Faren got some crucial information to the front lines, risking being infected and getting seriously injured in the process.

Canach went on ahead to blow up the guard towers by Gendara's main entrance, while the Commander and the troops push across the bridge. Canach places an explosive on the door while the rest of the troops fight Awakened assaulting them from behind. When the door is finally blown open, third-generation troops start filing out from the breech. The door breech is barred briefly while the ghosts get ready to fight against the horde. Meanwhile, Braham leaps down and finds another way into the fortress: an entryway through the sewers. Progressing on this route, there are various traps lining the path. Braham finds a corpse that looks exactly like the Commander, then a few more. A signet ring, however, reveals this to merely be an illusion. Pushing back up the path, the Commander has to leap through various traps until reaching the Contaminarium. Near the end, Beastmarshall Oluwa Eranko protects the last room, thanking the Commander for the great victory fighting at the Grand Bazaar against Balthazar, but since Joko wills her to kill the Commander, she must obey.

As the Beastmarshall falls, the Commander heads into the Contaminarium, but falls into a trap. Joko taunts the Commander for a while, but Braham pushes the Commander out, getting trapped instead. Joko continues to mock the Commander for needing a friend to sacrifice himself to go on before fighting the Commander. He even offers the compliment that the Commander is a worthy rival. After a long battle, including vanishing for a while, summoning various protectors, activating traps, and flooding the room with the plague, Joko finally falls. When he does, the Awakened nearby seem stunned, unable to act without Joko's constant commands. However, this excitement is a bit too early, as Joko rises from where he fell and traps both the Commander and Braham. He proceeds to monologue, mocking the Commander about how easy it was to claim credit for the other's victory, and how the world will celebrate after Joko finally ends the menace. However, at the climax of the speech, Aurene lunges upon Joko and proceeds to eat its body. Palawa Joko is finally defeated, releasing a surge of energy, but nearly every ally except Gorrik is repulsed by the scene; Gorrik is merely interested in the new plague specimens.

With the destruction of Rata Primus' gate network, the Awakened invasions had slowed to a crawl. Surprisingly, however, they did not stop. Peacemaker Ninn requested further assistance from the Pact Commander in investigating the matter, suspecting that the destruction of the gate network has caused a malfunction, and suggested looking for Awakened in new locations. The Commander eventually found these Awakened on the isles of Southsun Cove. Upon investigating rumors and reports of locals in the area, the Commander eventually found device wreckage from Rata Primus and brought it to Ninn. After studying the debris for a day, Ninn compiled and filed a report on his findings.

Based on his research, Ninn concluded that there were a number of Awakened in transit when the gate network's entry point was destroyed. With no entry point or stable exit point, everything in transit was obliterated, however, a phenomena caused their remnants to be trapped within an interstitial state. This, in turn, is creating fractal-like copies of the Awakened that were in transit and killed, and will continue to repeatedly appear over the course of a few years until the anomaly fades.

Meanwhile, a travelling krewe of holo-news journalists have appeared in Southsun Cove, covering the Awakened invasions as well as asking a survey about people's favorite pet.

Dessa has unlocked a fractal focusing on Palawa Joko's conquering of the Elona region. You play from the perspective of the newly formed Mordant Crescent, with your character taking the form of an Elonian Human and former Sunspear. You participate in the assault of a village defended by Sunspears. The Sunspears here are led by Warden Amala. After an initial confrontation, Amala "kills" the party. The players are then revived as strengthened Awakened. The players hunt down the remaining sandbinders protecting the village's temple. The players and Joko's minions launch a joint assault on the Sunspears remaining in the temple. They succeed in defeating Amala. Joko tells Amala to join him. She refuses and he kills and Awakens her. Then he orders her to kill her former allies and the remaining survivors. The player can encounter her again in the standard timeline within the Living World Season 4 story-line and while attacking the Mordant Crescent Great Hall.

The Commander means to meet up with their guild on a plateau atop the Pillars of Supremacy. However, they don’t find their guild or the airship but instead, they find Balthazar. After a brief battle where the Commander is overpowered, Aurene arrives to try and defend the Commander but she too is overpowered by Balthazar. The last thing the Commander sees is Aurene in Balthazar’s chains before Balthazar finishes them off.

The Commander wakes up in a strange, dark landscape with no sense of where they are or even who they are. Nearby they find a figure behind bars who identifies himself as Palawa Joko and says that they are in the Domain of the Lost – he also informs the character that they have died. He came with Balthazar who then imprisoned him in the realm. After listening to Joko’s ramblings, a fellow spirit, Nenah, will introduce you to the master of the realm, a servant of Grenth by the name of the Judge. He will send the Commander on a quest to reclaim both their name and purpose so that he may determine their final fate.

After defeating all of the other spirits who claimed their name, the Commander follows a bird which guides them on a journey of visions of their past. Beginning with their first combat encounter it follows their encounters with various forces of Zhaitan on to the dragon itself, Scarlet’s War and her attack on Lion’s Arch, the events of Mordremoth rising and his decimation of the pact fleet, Mordremoth’s death, Aurene’s birth, and ending with the discovery of Balthazar causing the Commander to regain their memories.

The Commander returns to the Judge intent on convincing him to return them to the world of the living. The Judge does not have the power to return their spirit to their lifeless body but muses that you may be able to get the necessary energy by killing the Eater of Souls, a beast that has been preying on spirits since Balthazar left. The risk of losing that battle was that their spirit would simply cease to exist, but the Commander luckily defeats the beast. This opened a portal back to Tyria, but not before Joko tries to convince the Commander that they need him to defeat Balthazar. They tell Joko that they may need his army, but not him, and leave through the portal.

Back on the plateau where they died, the Commander awakes to members of their guild and the Phoenix Dawn's crew surrounding them. After convincing everyone that they were, in fact, alive, the Commander reveals their plan to disguise themselves in order to acquire an army big enough to rescue Aurene from Balthazar.

The Commander then visits Shadows Agent Kito to begin acting on their plan to disguise themselves as Archon Iberu to command Joko's warmarshals and armies. Based on Kito's intel, the best way to lure Iberu out of the Bone Palace would be to create the illusion of a Sunspear uprising by showing Sunspear propaganda in the villages and signs of Sunspear victories in Awakened camps south of The Bone Wall. The Commander replaces Joko portraits atop buildings in the Village of Purity with Sunspear propoganda, and clears out the nearby Awakened camps on the way to the Bone Palace posting Sunspear banners as they go. After placing many signs of an imminent Sunspear revolution, the Commander goes to the Bone Palace to wait for Iberu to show himself.

Near the entrance to the Bone Palace, the Commander meets up with Canach, Rytlock, and Kasmeer. Archon Iberu has been sighted en route to the palace to meet with Grand Vizier Utumishi, and the small team take Iberu out so that they can take his place. Kasmeer casts an illusion on the Commander to make them look like Archon Iberu, and the rest of the team to look like lesser Awakened. They enter the Palace without being exposed as impostors.

In the main hall of the Bone Palace, the Commander (disguised as Iberu) speaks with Utumishi and Wurmmarshal Osa Ekolo. The Commander instructs them to prepare for war against Balthazar. Utumishi is surprised to be ordered to prepare for war even though he is only in charge of civil affairs, and is initially doubtful of the return of Joko. However, Ekolo immediately pledges her loyalty and her troops to the cause. She also reveals the location of the other warmarashals, Troopmarshal Ogun in Vehjin, and Beastmarshal Eranko near the Necropolis. The Commander and Kas, Canach, and Rytlock successfully leave the palace without being revealed. After discussing the previous conversation, they decide to gather information on Ogun and meet up in Vehjin.

At Vehjin, Kasmeer disguises the group once more. Ogun informs the Commander that while he would lend his army, he can't due to a nearby Forged foundry with a portal that delivers reinforcements. Ogun also can't assault the foundry with his training recruits. The Commander offers to take some recruits and proceeds to destroy the portal, ordering Ogun to bring his troops to the Kodash Bazaar.

Afterwards, the group travels to meet Eranko. When the Commander arrives, Rytlock and Canach (disguised) are already speaking with the Beastmarshal, praising the Commander's riding capabilities. Eranko is intrigued, and introduces them to necromantic draining to speed up their mount. However, the Beastmarshal refuses to let her troops be led by someone she considers inept. In order to win her trust, the Commander must complete a race using the new skill.

With all three warmarshals pledging their troops, Dragon's Watch gathers at the Kodash Bazaar to prepare for the final fight. Rytlock gives the Commander Sohothin, claiming that Balthazar will only focus them and won't expect them to have it, giving the Commander the best chance to kill the god. The guild then splits up to defend the Bazaar. The Commander fights against waves of Forged until Balthazar's Warbeast, carrying Aurene, forces its way in. As the Commander follows the Warbeast, Taimi attempts to contact them, but cannot be understood. At the top of King Joko's Sky Garden, the Warbeast begins to attract Kralkatorrik. Once the Commander arrives, they destroy the Warbeast, freeing Aurene from it. Together, Aurene and the Commander kill Balthazar. The death of the god causes a massive release of energy, most of which is absorbed by Kralkatorrik, but Aurene receives some as well. Aurene then flies off, with Kralkatorrik following. After the fight, the rest of the guild arrives, and agrees to discuss everything back in Amnoon.

In Amnoon, the Commander meets Taim and informs her of Kralkatorrik's empowered state. A messenger arrives to announce a celebration in honor of the Commander, and along the way they meet Utumishi. They discreetly reveal that they were impersonating Iberu, and Utumishi hurries away. At the party, the Commander is asked for a speech. Afterwards, the group meet up at the docks to discuss what to do. The Commander proposes reforming Dragon's Watch, and Marjory Delaqua reappears. Kasmeer and Marjory apologize to each other before the ground shakes. A cutscene shows Kralkatorrik flying over the Crystal Desert, Branding everything underneath. Path of Fire ends with a shot of an adolescent Aurene roaring out.

Having acquired the springer, the Commander easily met up with their companions. Rytlock and Kasmeer noted that they didn't know where the entrance to Glint's lair was, as there's no actual entrance to be found. The team moved forward and encountered a Forged camp. After dispatching the Forged, they examined the area and noted that the Forged weren't just a hunting party. Carts of Branded crystals were found, along with a large cannon that seemed to be powered by those crystals, and parts of a large mechanical armored machine were laying around the camp. Combined with large tracks nearby, the team determined that the Forged must be building some sort of heavy war machine.

The team moved on and were ambushed by Branded. After defeating them, they noticed some crystalline essences nearby. Gathering the essences allowed a memory crystal to form, which Rytlock confirmed as memory of Glint, and listened as it spoke about Destiny's Edge and the need for the races to work together. The team fanned out around a caldera and searched for more memory crystals, encountering more Branded along the way. Three memory crystals were found, where Glint spoke of her freedom at the hands of the Forgotten, her turmoil over the suffering of Tyria's people from the Elder Dragons, and her own burden and the future burden of Vlast. After the third memory crystal was restored, a portal to Glint's lair appeared in the center of the caldera.

Upon entering the lair, Kasmeer remarked that it was where they had gone before, but the Brand had infested it. Rytlock noticed the Dragonsblood Spear, the weapon he had used in the failed attempt to kill Kralkatorrik. Soon after arriving, though, they faced a Facet Guardian that had been corrupted by the Brand, and destroyed it. Doing so revealed a final intact memory crystal of the moments prior to Kralkatorrik's awakening. Glint spoke of how she could not see beyond the upcoming battle where she had ultimately died, and that while the Forgotten told her much they did not tell her everything, hinting that perhaps the gods knew more than her. She also spoke of how she could only hope that her children could carry on her legacy. After some deliberation about whether Glint knew about the consequences of killing Elder Dragons, the team decided to destroy the dragonsblood spear to keep Balthazar from using it, a plan that Rytlock disagreed with as it left them with no method of killing Kralkatorrik themselves in the future.

After destroying the spear, the Commander spoke to a mourning Rytlock near Snaff's old golem. He told the Commander how he had met Glint in the Mists, where she taught him the abilities of the revenant, and that he had failed his guild and Glint. Kralkatorrik was still alive while Glint, Snaff, and Eir were all dead. He reiterated that he had to make things right. The team discussed their position and noted that despite stifling the god of war's plans, they were no closer to being able to take him down. Kasmeer noted that they needed guidance and made the argument that they should go to the Mists to ask the gods themselves. Despite Rytlock's reservations about returning to the Mists, the Commander agreed, and they began to head towards the Tomb of Primeval Kings, where a portal to the Mists was located.

At the tomb, the team deliberated their plan. On Kasmeer's insistence that they hope to find answers inside, Rytlock reiterated the idea that her answer is the human gods abandoned Tyria, which Kasmeer refused to accept. On approaching the entrance, they were met by Queen Nadijeh, the Primeval ruler who founded the Order of the Sunspears. Believing them to be more thieves, she fought Dragon's Watch and was ultimately defeated and let them pass. Inside, the team encountered King Wasi, a ruler who rallied the people during war. The team defeated him and gained entrance to the inner tomb, where they met the twin rulers Queen Nahlah and Queen Dahlah, the last of the Primeval dynasty.

Despite Kasmeer's insistence, the twins accused Dragon's Watch of being agents of Joko, and also revealed that Joko may be claiming the Primeval dynasty continued beyond the twins' death. They attacked the team, switching off and then attacking together. When defeated, Queen Nadijeh and King Wasi appeared to confront the team. King Wasi was unconvinced that Dragon's Watch were working with Joko, and asked the other rulers to consider that the Commander's team were not raiders. Queen Nadijeh asked them to demonstrate the proper respect for the tomb and the spirits within. the Commander did so, and promised to honor the memory of the Primeval dynasty, to prove they had no harmful intentions. Queen Nadijeh relented at this show of respect, and the team were allowed to pass through the portal to the Mists.

Upon entering the portal the team found themselves separated from each other, at a strange and desolate landscape. After searching the area, the Commander was able to reunite with the others and discovered a mysterious puzzle that had been hidden by a sandstorm. After completing the puzzle, apparently set as a challenge by the gods, a portal opened up. As the team entered the portal, they found themselves in a library unlike any other already seen where Kormir, the Goddess of Truth, was the only deity to be found.

At an audience in her sanctum, Kormir told the team that the gods had left Tyria completely to avoid a cataclysmic battle with the Elder Dragons. According Kormir, Balthazar refused to accept this decision and threatened the other gods if they went through with their plan. His reaction resulted on the rest of the Six stripping Balthazar of his power and chaining him in the Mists, where he remained until Rytlock unwittingly released him. Once freed, Balthazar set out to recover his lost power, defeat the Elder Dragons, and claim their magic for himself in order to take vengeance on the other gods for imprisoning him. Kormir then concluded by saying the other gods were long gone, and she was about to follow them, so they could not and would not help the team against Balthazar.

Kasmeer felt devastated by the news but she ultimately accepted that the time for prayers is past. The team learned that its their responsibility to defend the world now. Before leaving, Kormir provided the team with a single bit of guidance in the fight against Balthazar: to seek answers in the desert. With such bit of guidance, the team decided to split up and search: Kasmeer went north, Canach and Rytlock went ask Canach's contacts in the Order of Shadows, and the Commander headed south to scour the Riverlands.

After a long walk, the Commander found a promising lead on the answers: Kesho, a city built by the Forgotten. The city had been swallowed by the desert sands long ago, being considered a lost city by the locals, but the Commander was able to nail down its location in the middle of the deadly sulfurous wastelands. Upon entering the lost city, the Commander encountered a traumatized Exalted named Sadizi, as well as a host of dangerous Forged-Exalted hybrids. Sadizi told then these hybrids were created by Balthazar and Palawa Joko, the two villains together stole the Forgotten ritual that makes Exalted and used it as a means of forcing spirits into armored bodies to create Balthazar's Forged.

The Commander then learned more about the true purpose of Glint's legacy: to preserve Tyria's magical balance by replacing Elder Dragons with equally powerful but less predatory entities. The Commander also discovered why Balthazar was hunting Vlast: Kralkatorrik's blood is its unique weakness, meaning Vlast, Glint, the Dragonsblood Spear and Aurene were all viable weapons against Kralkatorrik. With this information, The Commander sent word to the guildmates and told them to meet up so they could return to Maguuma and protect the Crystal Dragon's last scion.

The Commander joined First Mate Fidus Foecrush at the airship and traveled with them to Elona across the ocean. While approaching the main city, the team made a stop to investigate smoke rising from a nearby pyramid. The Commander accompanied the team inside the pyramid where they discovered Forged attacking villagers. Once the Forged were defeated, Balthazar's Herald arrived. She welcomed the Commander and presented an offer. Balthazar would forgive the Commander for interfering with Jormag and Primordus, if they instead join him to kill Kralkatorrik. The Commander rebuffed Balthazar's offer, calling him a liar. Angered, the Herald killed all the remaining villagers, saying that each death only strengthens Balthazar's army. Once all the villagers were dead she left and the Commander chased after her, ordering the rest of the team to remain behind and protect survivors sent their way.

The Commander confronted the Herald near Seeker's Village. She taunted the Commander, revealing that the choice to be the Herald was forced upon her. She then continued to the village where the Forged had set fire to the buildings. After defeating the Forged, the Herald left through the nearby mines and closed the gate behind her. The villagers, led by Tasa and Aksim, asked for help to save the remaining villagers and stop their homes from being destroyed by the fire. Aided by the raptors in the village, the Commander rescued the villagers, who gave them one of their raptors. The gate was fixed and the Commander pursued the Herald while learning to handle the raptor. The Herald had disappeared though, and the Commander was instead directed by the miners in Talatat Quarry to the Free City of Amnoon, where refugees were fleeing.

When the Commander arrived at the gates of Amnoon, Captain Rahim stopped and spoke with them until Lady Kasmeer Meade and Rytlock arrived. As part of the human delegation, Kasmeer vouched for the Commander and confirmed access to Amnoon. Rytlock continued to avoid questions about what happened in the Mists, but had given a report to the citadel, and Kasmeer expressed her fear about confronting one of the gods she had grown up worshipping. After catching up with them, the Commander entered Amnoon and headed to the Amnoon Cavalier Station to speak again with Rahim.

Captain Rahim recognized that the Commander was there for Balthazar, and gave three leads to investigate for information: the Chief Councilor for information on the area, Deputy Ayoub at a refugee camp for help with information from the refugees, and Deputy Qais at the casino who might have leads into the local smugglers known as the Hamaseen.

The Commander sought out Deputy Qais who pointed them towards Zalambur for information regarding the Hamaseen. In Zalambur's Office, located in his casino, Zalambur revealed he knew who the Commander was, but before they could discuss more they were interrupted by the arrival of Archon Iberu of the Mordant Crescent. Iberu had heard Zalambur had been speaking against Joko, and as punishment (or intimidation), killed his security guard before commanding his Awakened to destroy the casino. Then Commander intervened and fought off the Awakened as Iberu left. Zalambur lamented that the Mordant Crescent now opposed him, and promised to provide any information he could to the Commander for the help.

When the Commander arrived at Chief Councilor Imann's office, it was learned that the city was surrounded by Balthazar's Forged troops nearby. The city considering allying themselves with others for aid, but were at an impasse on which they should choose. Representatives from the Mordant Crescent, corrupted former members of the Sunspears, had arrived offering aid, but it would require allying themselves with Palawa Joko, a powerful undead Lich. Another option was allying with Kormir's priesthood and the remaining Sunspears, ancient guardians of Elona who may bring hope to the citizens, but doing so would incur Joko's wrath. A final option was to remain independent as before, and step up recruitment of cavaliers to protect Amnoon. The councilors were deadlocked, each preferring a different option, so the Chief Councilor asked the Commander to provide counsel on which would be best.

With Rytlock preferring independence and Kasmeer preferring the Sunspears, the Commander discussed the options with the councilors. Afterwards, the Commander put their weight behind one of the options, which swayed the Chief Councilor to choose it over the others. Kasmeer pulled the Commander aside and spoke to them about why she supported Kormir and how Balthazar's goals may be noble even if his path was not.

Outside the city, the Commander found Deputy Ayoub in the refugee camp. Realizing that the refugees would be more willing to talk if they weren't hungry and scared, the Commander helped distribute food, water, and medicine to those who needed it, and drove off Zaishen and pests in the tents. The refugees were more talkative after, and the Commander listened to their stories. They had fled their homes, and many barely escaped being slaughtered by Forged as others died around them. One refugee informed the Commander that a dragon named Vlast had swooped in and saved them. Vlast was revealed to be the first scion of Glint, and brother of Aurene.

After gathering all of this information, the Commander found a suitably high location and reached out to Taimi. She was excited to learn the news of Vlast, and informed the Commander that she was downloading all the dragon lab info into Scruffy so she can leave. A letter was received from Zalambur informing the Commander that he had some information. The Commander, joined by Kasmeer and Rytlock, and discovered Canach in the casino who joined up with them. Zalambur informed the Commander that Balthazar was not chasing Kralkatorrik, but instead was hunting down Vlast for unknown reasons. Balthazar also made appearances at the Forged camps to rally his troops. The Commander determined that might be where they could catch Balthazar, and made plans with the guild to visit one of them. Canach and Rytlock volunteered to scout the main camp, while Kasmeer left to attend to something, leaving the Commander on their own.

The Commander returned to Captain Rahim who identified two small camps outside the city walls, to the north and to the east. The Commander traveled to each camp. In the northern camp, the Commander sabotaged Forged cannon emplacements, while in the eastern camp they instead gathered intelligence. They was learned that the Forged wear armor built to withstand fire, had built equipment to fit a large machine, and were collecting Brand shards for some unknown purpose. Having put a dent in the Forged forces, but not finding any info on Balthazar, the Commander headed to the Forged Foothold to meet with Rytlock and Canach.

Upon arriving, the three began their assault on the camp. The team had to contend with several Forged, and quickly defeat sentries to keep their approach undetected, while they made their way through the camp. Along the way, the Commander discovered strange scrolls from the Herald to the Forged soldiers. As they approached the inner gates, the team ran into Forged Officers. The Commander decided that if Balthazar wasn't there they should send a message by defeating all of the officers in that camp, a sentiment that Canach and Rytlock approved of doing. The team broke into the central area and defeated the officers and several Forged, before being confronted by a powerful Forged Bastion. Fighting through the reinforcements summoned by the powerful artillery unit, the team defeated the Bastion and moved on to the Temple of Kormir to meet up with Kasmeer.

When the team reached the Temple, they found Kasmeer there praying to Kormir for guidance. The temple held many refugees hiding from the conflicts. Kasmeer began to speak with the Commander on the events at the Forged camp when they were interrupted by a strange robed man who knew of the Commander and the search for Vlast. Speaking in private, the man introduced himself as Kito of the Order of Shadows, a group that splintered off from the Order of Whispers long ago. Before they could speak further, however, they were interrupted by the Herald of Balthazar who arrived to respond to the Commander's attack on the camp. After fighting for a short time, the Herald began attacking the refugees hiding in the temple. The Commander, remembering how the Herald had done the same on their first meeting, helped bring the refugees out of the line of fire and to safety. As the Herald came close to being defeated, she set fire to the temple and escaped. On Kasmeer's plea, the Commander broke off their chase and helped the priests to stop the blaze. Afterward, Kasmeer voiced her incredulity at the Herald's power and willingness to hurt innocents. Kito informed the Commander that the Order wants to work with them as they have similar goals, and to meet up at Makali Outpost to begin tracking the Herald.

The Commander headed north to the outpost, but found it under attack by Forged. Kito was focusing on getting the residents to safety, and informed Dragon's Watch that Balthazar was supposed to be in the area. The Commander led their team outside of the outpost and into the battlefield to fight the Forged and find Balthazar or Vlast or both. The guild discovered several spots of golden, Brand-like spikes and craters, which they determined was from Vlast as they looked like the Brand but was not corrupted. As they headed towards a plateau, Vlast's roar could be heard, and the team ascended to the top to find Balthazar and his Herald cornering Vlast. The Herald confronted the Commander, once again asking if they will accept Balthazar's offer before attacking again. During the fight, the Herald revealed that she had once resisted Balthazar's control but failed due to the pain. The Commander won the fight, but the Herald seemed to come to her senses at the end and before she died she pleaded with the Commander to kill her god.

On top of the plateau the Commander confronted Balthazar, who had captured and restrained Vlast, telling him continuing would force them to treat the god of war as the enemy. Balthazar dismissed them, but called Rytlock friend and said that he alone would be spared, confusing the Commander. The battle was short, but before Balthazar could strike down the Commander, Vlast somehow broke free and blocked the attack, killing him. As Balthazar retrieved his sword, Vlast turned to crystal and exploded.

Dragon's Watch awoke surrounded by the crystalline remains of Vlast, with Balthazar nowhere to be found. The Commander confronted Rytlock about being called "friend". Rytlock believed he had met Balthazar before, while he was searching for Sohothin in the Mists. Rytlock had finally located the sword, but the flames had gone out. He had found an old man chained nearby, who said he could reignite the flames. Rytlock had not asked his name, only asked to light the sword. In thanks, Rytlock broke the chains on the old man with the newly empowered weapon. A portal opened, which the old man informed Rytlock was a passage home. Rytlock believed the old man had followed him out, and now knows that the old man he freed from the chains was Balthazar. He promised the Commander he would make things right.

The Commander informed Canach and Kasmeer about Vlast's sacrifice, and how Balthazar seemed to have disappeared with no knowledge of his plans nor why he wanted Vlast in the first place. Kasmeer noticed a nearby crystal looked very similar to the old memory crystals they found within Glint's lair. As the Commander approached, they heard Vlast's voice speaking about his power and some weapon in a secret location. Rytlock and Kasmeer guessed that the weapon's location is Glint's lair, which should be nearby if they can get in. The Commander decided to check in with Taimi and see if they could collect more of Vlast's memory crystals while the rest of Dragon's Watch traveled to Glint's lair and performed recon.

The Commander learned from Taimi that Aurene was acting angry and troubled after Vlast's sacrifice, and Taimi promised to see if she could help calm Aurene down. The Commander traveled around the Desert Highlands collecting more of Vlast's memory crystals, but found that some were too high to reach. On a suggestion, the Commander traveled to Highjump Ranch and acquired a springer, allowing them to reach the remaining crystals. Vlast's memories spoke more about the weapon, of his longing to meet his sister, the struggles of following his mother's legacy, his fear of what would happen should Balthazar kill Kralkatorrik, and his hopes that his sister would find her path a better one than his. The task complete, the Commander headed to Prophet's Fall to meet the rest of their guild.

Following the realization that Balthazar has moved to the Crystal Desert, the conflicts there cause refugees to flee to Lion's Arch. Queen Jennah dispatched a delegation to Elona to help out. Captain Kiel reaches out to the Commander, intent on sending Dragon's Watch along with aid to Elona. When the Commander arrives alone, Kiel admits her doubts about sending one person against a god of war, but grants them passage to Elona on her airship, the Phoenix Dawn. While speaking with Deputy Turma nearby, the Commander learned that Kiel and Magnus were not working with the full council on the aid to Elona.