Ch 82 azaroth 7

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The very land was corrupted, saturated, with demonic energy. The bare stone and earth that couldn't support any plant growth was testament to that. In the distance a volcano towered over the land. But instead of normal looking lava, unnatural green lava spilled from its summit. The fel power of demonic magic tainted even the lava that pooled at the base of the mountain.

The sky and even the clouds were affected by the demonic taint. The whole sky was lit up in an unholy green.

In the distance, outside of the Wildhammer Stronghold, Carl could see the falling meteors of the golem like Infernal Attackers constantly striking down to besiege the Alliance forces in Shadowmoon Valley.

While Carl stalked the elementals that he needed to kill for the quest, he pondered on the situation present in this world. The demonic legions were relentless in attacking the land. They hated anything that wasn't tainted by the demonic presence, and they also hated anything of the demonic as well that wasn't subservient to them.

Carl had seen plenty of scenes recently of the demons infighting and jockeying for position and power when there were no external enemies to fight.

All in all, the concept of peaceful existence was a completely foreign concept to the demons.

Carl ambushed an Enraged Earth Spirit after dropping a totem that was supposed to suck up the uncorrupted essence of the elemental. After killing the elemental, Carl watched as the physical embodiment crumbled to the ground, while a glowing ball of light was sucked into the totem.

That was the last of the fire and earth elementals that Carl was tasked with collecting, so he summoned his Paladin mount and began threading through and jumping over the green lava pools on his way to turn in the quest.

While he was riding, he momentarily thought about how grateful he was for the bubblehead charm. Using a variation that only covered his mouth and nose allowed him to avoid breathing in the ash filled air in Shadowmoon Valley, while still having his eyes clear to see just fine.

And while his physique was more than strong enough to handle the ash and pollution, it just wasn't comfortable to breathe that crud in.

Carl briefly considered just how much work he would need to do to clean up the demonic taint from the land here in the Outlands, and he got a headache from the very thought.

Sure, there were some places that were tainted more than others, like Shadowmoon Valley, Hellfire Penninsula, and the Netherstorm. But even the normal looking and vibrant lands of Nagrand, Zangarmarsh, and some of Terokkar Forest had the taint sunk in deep into the land.

In order to do a proper clean up job, he would need a whole lot more than 45 Dragons and Dragonspawn in his army to be able to do anything about the demons and the demonic taint. He would need tens or even hundreds of thousands of people in his army to push back the demons to their portals and keep them there while the effort to shut their portals down was underway and the clean up commenced.

Maybe if he was stuck in this world for the rest of his life, it would be worth putting in the effort. But since he was only here for 10 years, he would simply take what he could from the world before moving on. He would strengthen his Dragon Flight, make them an elite force that was feared in the world, and encourage them to increase their numbers.

They would learn everything they could from this world in the time limit they had, and they would move on to the next.

Carl had only been barely paying attention to the various wandering Chimaera and elementals to avoid them while he had been thinking about this tainted land. His charger's speed with his Crusader's Aura's 20% speed increase had easily outpaced any aggressive wildlife.

Pulling the reigns of his charger to bring it to a stop in front of Earthmender Torlok, Carl quickly turned in the quest. He was pleased to see the golden light burst into being around him that indicated he had finally leveled up to 70.

Strangely enough, Carl could immediately feel the world's restraint on him once he felt inside to note the differences. He knew that the world would not let him gain more levels for now. It looked like he would be stuck at level 70 for the next four plus years.

It wasn't something totally unexpected to Carl. Ever since he had noted the video game elements that infused the world, including the level system, he had expected something of the sort when he reached the maximum level for the Burning Crusade expansion.

In four years time, when it was time for the Wrath of the Lich King expansion, he figured the world would allow him and the other adventurers to level to 80 while adventuring in Northrend.

Carl decided to pause his questing for now. He turned his mount and charged across the broken landscape back to the Wildhammer Stronghold. The various infernal attackers were occupied by the defenders, so he charged right past them and through the gates.

The grounds were occupied by a large number of Dwarves, and some Humans, Night Elves, Gnomes, and Draenei. He avoided trampling anyone as he rode over to talk to Ilsa Blusterbrew.

The female dwarf was the Riding Trainer in the area. Carl happily paid out the 4640 gold pieces to learn the fastest flying skill. He then forked over the 550 gold to Brunn Flamebeard, a nearby male Dwarf, to collect all the Gryphons available to use while flying.

No longer did Carl need to crawl slowly along the ground to keep up his disguise and keep his enemies from finding him! He could soar through the skies on his Gryphon at over 320% of the running speed!

Sure, it was slow compared to what Carl could do by himself, but it was much better than the 120% speed of a land mount.

Carl then pulled out his hearthstone and used it, sending him back to the neutral city of Shattrath. The city's magic kept the Alliance or Horde from attacking each other in a vain attempt to keep them focused on the threat of the demonic legion. It was a vain attempt, because the moment they were outside the city, the adventurers were once more at each other's throats.

On more than one occasion he had been ambushed by groups of Horde adventurers while questing. They died just as quickly as that first Rogue that attacked him outside of Gadgetzan did.

But the neutral city of Shattrath not only provided a meeting place for the Horde and Alliance. All races were allowed to seek refuge in the city. The Kurenai, natives of Nagrand. The Ethereals, energy beings of the Consortium. Even the humanoid bird refuges of the Arakkoa. All were welcome in Shattrath, presided over by the glowing, constantly shifting energy forms of the Naaru.

The only group not welcome was the demons of the Burning Legion, since they were bent on the destruction of everyone else. The damned party crashers ruin it for everyone.

Upon appearing at the inn in the Aldor Rise, Carl was face to face with Minalei, the inn keeper of the Aldor faction.

"The Naaru have not forgotten us." Minalei stated by rote while draping herself over her desk in a bored fashion.

"Hey there, Minalei. You say that to everyone that comes by?" Carl wondered aloud. Minalei startled at actually being addressed by him.

"Uh…yeah, pretty much. When I got hired I was told to be polite and welcoming to the customers. So, I use variations of generic greetings. 'Blessings be upon you', 'Greetings, friend', 'Open your heart to the light'. Those are just some of the phrases I was told to use." Minalei seemed a bit embarrassed to be asked that question, so Carl decided to let her be.

"Well, keep up the good work. And may the Light shine down on you." Carl chuckled as he made his way out of the inn.

"Thanks, you too!" Miralei called out as Carl departed.

Once outside the inn, Carl summoned up a Swift Red Gryphon. A second later, he was in the air, guiding the beast that was a cross between a lion and an eagle through the air. He flew east to the center of Shattrath City.

In the center of the city was a large building structure that was separated into four sections that rose up until in the center of the structure were four towers that came together into a peak. The four towers were each topped by a large claw like crystal. A beacon of light energy flowed out of the top, shooting up into the air, and coming down to encompass the entire city in its protective magic.

Carl directed his gryphon down and through one of the doorways into the building. In the center of the structure there was a model of Shattrath City on the ground, with the enormous Naaru, A'dal, floating above it.

The abstract glowing energy shapes of A'dal that constantly rotated, closed and opened, was difficult to focus on. A'dal seemed to be the one powering the city's protective magic, since the light energy streamed off him up into the ceiling and the pillars on top of the structure.

In one of the alcoves of the building there were three permanent portals to the capital cities of the Alliance, Stormwind, Darnassus, and Ironforge.

In the opposite alcove there were portals to the Horde cities: Orgrimmar, Thunder Bluff, and the Undercity.

In the alcove between them to the east was a portal for the newest additions to the Alliance and Horde. Exodar, the crashed city ship of the Draenei, and Silvermoon City, the home of the Blood Elves.

Opposite that alcove was an empty Alcove that was guarded by a Naaru by the name G'eras, as well as a troop of Draenei that were affiliated with the Sha'tar organization. Carl knew from his time in the game that in the future, there would be a portal in that alcove that led to the Isle of Quel'Danas, where the raid for the Sunwell Plateau would be located.

While Carl was looking over the inside of the building, there were many adventurers that were running or flying around the area. Some were completing quests, some were talking with each other. Others were selling drops they had gotten lucky to find, while others were gathering groups to clear dungeons of raids.

In short, it was a busy area that was full of people.

Carl guided his gryphon down to the portal to Stormwind. He entered the portal, and felt the wormhole effect take place as he was teleported to the Mage Tower in the human's capital city.

Once he arrived, Carl talked to Maginor Dumas to learn the level 70 spells he had available.

From the Arcane tree Carl learned Arcane Explosion, Arcane Intellect, Ritual of Refreshment, and Spellsteal.

Arcane Explosion was an area of effect AoE spell that burst out Arcane damage in a bubble around the caster.

Arcane Intellect was an intelligence buff that increased a person's magic damage as well as available mana pool.

The Ritual of Refreshment summoned a table that dished out Mana Biscuits. The Mana Biscuits would heal a person's Heath Pool, as well as restore their Mana Pool.

And Spellsteal is a piece of magic that could steal a beneficial magic spell from an opponent. In other words, Carl could steal other's buffs and use them himself for a few minutes.

From the Fire Tree Carl learned new ranks of Blast Wave, Dragon's Breath, Fire Blast, Pyroblast, and Scorch.

There wasn't anything new there, just upgrades to the spells he already had. Blast Wave was an AoE spell that burst out fire damage in a circle around him. Dragon's Breath was a weak imitation spell of a true Dragon's fire breath. Fire Blast was an instant cast fire damage spell. Pyroblast was a large Fireball that took longer to charge, unless some talents were procced that caused it to be an instant cast. And Scorch was a quick cast fire attack.

In the Frost Tree Carl learned a new rank of Frost Ward, which is a spell that absorbs Ice Damage and Ice Barrier which is a shield that absorbs a certain amount of damage. Any type of damage would be absorbed by the Ice Barrier, even physical attacks.

Once Carl finished learning the available Mage spells, he exited the tower through the portal. Summoning his Paladin mount, he galloped through the streets of Stormwind toward Old Town.

He met the Rogue trainer, Osborne the Night Man, and began learning the level 70 spells for Rogue.

From the Assassination Tree he learned a new rank for Garrote and Mutilate. Garrote was an attack from stealth that bleeds the target and prevents spells from being cast for a few seconds. Mutilate was an attack with both weapons that does increased damage and awards 2 combo points.

In the Combat Tree, that would later become the Outlaw Tree, Carl learned Shiv and a new rank of Sinister Strike. Shiv was an attack with the offhand weapon that applied the poison to the target. It awarded one combo point.

Carl learned a new rank of Deadly Poison, which when applied to a weapon poisons the enemy with a Nature damage poison that damages them over time.

And in the Subtlety Tree, Carl learned Hemorrhage, which was an attack that causes the target to bleed and suffer from increased physical damage. It also added one combo point.

With that training taken care of, Carl once more mounted his charger and made his way through the busy streets to the Cathedral Square, where he met the Paladin trainer, Lord Grayson Shadowbreaker.

In the Holy Tree, Carl learned a new rank of Consecration, the AoE holy damage spell. Holy Light, a healing spell that heals a large amount in return for a longer cast time due to charging up the mana needed. And Holy Shock, which was an instant cast spell that could heal a friendly, or do holy damage to an enemy.

In the Protection Tree Carl learned a new rank for Avenger's Shield, which was basically a spell to imitate Captain America when he threw his shield, hitting up to 3 targets with it. Blessing of Sacrifice was a short term spell that would transfer any damage done to a party member to the Paladin.

Blessing of Sanctuary was a buff that reduced damage taken, as well as damaging the enemy that attacks. There was also a version that lasted longer that required reagents to cast called Greater Blessing of Sanctuary.

A new rank of Devotion Aura increased the armor of Carl and any party members around him.

A new rank of Fire Resistance Aura would increase the resistance to Fire. Carl didn't personally need the fire resistance, but his Dragon Flight members might at some point in the future.

And Holy Shield increased the chance and ability to block with a shield while doing damage to any attacker while causing more threat to the target, ensuring they would focus on the Paladin.

In the Retribution Tree, Carl learned the spell Avenging Wrath, which filled the Paladin with Holy Power that increased the amount of damage he could do for a short time.

Blessing of Might was a buff spell that increased the recipient's attack power, increasing their damage. Greater Blessing of Might was the same buff that lasted longer at the cost of a reagent.

And Seal of Command would enhance all the Paladin's attacks with a certain amount of Holy damage. Using the Judgment spell caused a large amount of Holy damage, based on the Seal that was active.

Carl had made sure that he had all the specializations of each of the classes he chose, but there were some conflicts with the various spells of the different specializations. For example, some of the Rogue spells required him to dual wield weapons, use the off-hand weapon to execute the spell, or even use daggers to cast the spells. But in the Paladin class Protection specialization, a shield was required for the spell.

Since Carl didn't have more than two arms, he could only switch off dual wielding or being equipped with a sword and shield, based on what he was facing. So far as he was questing and running through regular dungeons, he hadn't really needed to equip a shield for added protection against attacks.

He had also played with the spells a bit to overcome some restrictions. Like the restriction that he could only use some of the Rogue spells with a dagger. Ambush in particular was an attack that Carl liked using to open up combat from stealth, but it required a dagger in the main hand, usually. After playing with the spells and the intent required of the spells, he was able to overcome those restrictions and use the Blue Orchid as a two handed sword to cast Ambush.

And now that he was level 70 he was going to be venturing into the heroic dungeons and raid instances. A party usually consisted of only 5 members, while a raid required between 10 and 25 members.

And while Carl was still confident in his powers and abilities he had gained through the Jump Chain, he was going to be a bit more cautious and prepare to act as a tank when he began facing enemies that required 10 or more adventurers to down.

With his training complete, Carl didn't bother hanging around in Stormwind city anymore. He cast a teleport spell from his Mage repertoire. While the teleport and portal spells were usually anchored in the capital cities, he had been able to finagle the spell so that he had a link to his Dragon Hold that he could teleport to whenever he wanted.

Carl naturally didn't want any mages other than those in his Dragon Flight to be able to simply pop into his stronghold, so aside from the normal wards, he had set up special protections so that only those attuned could create a teleport link to the Dragon Hold.

The wormhole effect lasted only a second before Carl arrived in the Portal room that he had set up. While he was moving through the Dragon Hold, Carl was internally frowning at how empty it seemed. So many of his Dragons and Dragonspawn had died in the Raid. He was still hung up on that nearly every time he walked these halls.

There were some eggs that would hatch soon, which was joyous news. That would replenish their numbers by a bit, but it would take some time before they grew up enough to be allowed out of the Hold. And when they hatched a rotation would have to be set up so that each team spent time with, protected, and taught the new generation.

Those who were not babysitting the new generation would continue rotating out to quest, level, and practice their martial skills. Carl didn't want to see the Dragon Flight grow soft once more and become easy pickings for their enemies.

Once he arrived at his rooms in the Hold, Carl spent some time reviewing the messaging system he had set up for the Dragon Flight. He smiled to see the spirited interactions between the members.

He was pleased to see that the first group finally reached level 60, winning the competition. It was the group that had Mortic, Joyce, Hilda (a rescued Dragon), and two Dragonspawn, Grund and Bronhilda.

One of the ways that Carl had paved the way for his Dragons and Dragonspawn was to ensure they were always equipped with the best equipment available. From the two one handed swords that dropped from Zul'Farrak that combined into the Purple Epic weapon Sul'thraze the Lasher, Carl had learned how to craft weapons and armor that could hold the amount of magical energy needed to make them Epic in quality.

As a result of that research, Carl made sure that his Flight members had epic quality gear as they leveled. Every few levels they got a new set that ensured they were always on the leading edge of power compared to their level. And that wasn't even counting their Ki and Profound Cultivation levels which made them that much stronger than their levels would indicate.

The practice of ensuring they were well geared had already saved them a couple times when some bored Horde adventurer had thought to take advantage of them due to their lower levels.

Little did that one Horde Hunter expect that the moment he attacked, one of the party members that was acting as a healer immediately began healing, keeping the party alive. The other three party members immediately attacked him in turn. And unknown to him, since he died so quickly, there were two more parties of five each that once they got the word made their way to the beleaguered party.

The ten Flight members that came to support the party under attack were left unfulfilled, since the first party had taken out the threat so quickly.

But just to be safe, they relocated to another area to continue questing. They didn't want to get distracted by hordes of Horde coming along to support the first idiot that attacked them. That would have wasted time that was better spent leveling up.

Not to mention that Carl didn't want to risk his Flight members not being subject to the resurrection ability that the Adventurers had. While this world had a mix of reality and game mechanics, Carl didn't know under which set of rules his Dragon Flight operated under. Their numbers were already low, so he didn't want to risk losing them to some immortal avatar game players who had nothing better to do than to resurrect over and over in order to take down his Flight members just once.

After looking through the recent messages and seeing that his people were doing good and were in high spirits, Carl began planning out what he would do next. Ever since he had gotten some memory perks and practiced Occlumency, his memories from his past life were much clearer and readily available.

Normally those memories were useless except as a slight guide for the plot of the world he was in, if he happened to have consumed the original work. And while that was still the case for the world he was currently in, there was quite a bit of information he had stored in his noggin about the various dungeons and what gear they dropped.

Even if he only glanced at the loot tables from the websites in his past life, that information was still stored in his head. So he already knew about the armor Dungeon Sets that dropped that was meant to prepare the adventurers to be able to go to the raids.

And Carl had spent some time gathering those Dungeon Sets that were associated with his classes. Some of the gear dropped from the dungeons in the Netherstorm, which presented a problem to Carl since he needed a flying mount to get there.

So Carl had cheated. He stealthed so no one would see him cheat and then flew himself up to the three dungeons, the Mechanar, the Botanica, and the Arcatraz, in order to complete the sets.

Obviously, Carl couldn't wear several different sets of Armor at the same time. But he never planned to do so. He had gathered the armor sets for reference for when he was going to enchant his own Profound Armor that he had gotten from the ATG world.

With the example of how the magic of Armor Sets worked, Carl had spent time deconstructing it. He had figured out how to enchant his Profound Armor to enhance all his stats: Strength, Agility, Intelligence, Spirit, and Stamina. Because he got the Profound Armor from the Jump Chain with CP, it was much more resilient and amenable to enchanting than the normal armor that existed in the World of Warcraft.

And Carl found that he could constantly upgrade the Profound Armor as he gathered higher level armor and learned the more powerful enchants that enhanced his abilities.

The best thing about practicing on the Profound Armor was that the Jump Chain guaranteed that anything that he purchased would be replaced if he lost or destroyed it. If he accidentally overcharged the armor or made a mistake and destroyed his Profound Armor, it would reappear in his Warehouse within 24 hours.

Ever since Carl discovered that little bonus, he had become more bold in experimenting with his armor and working to get the most out of it. Through experimentation and recording the experiments with his technology, Carl found the methods needed to, step by step, add more magic into a piece of armor. The way that he fortified the piece of armor with magic, while adding enchants step by step, was applicable not just to his Profound Armor, but also to the armor that he crafted with the materials from the various worlds he had visited.

And that was how he ensured that his Dragons and Dragonspawn had the best equipment available to them.

With his Profound Armor and the Blue Orchid maxed out on the enchantments that Carl could currently provide, he was ready to tackle the raid instances. At the moment, the only raids that were available were Karazhan, a 10 man raid, Magtheridon's Lair, a 25 man raid, and Gruul's Lair, also a 25 man raid.

He decided to start with the Karazhan raid. It was pretty much the entry level raid, and perfect for Carl to dip his toes in. Exiting through the front gates, Carl entered stealth and began flying south west.

Karazhan was located in the Deadwind Pass, between the Duskwood and the Swamp of Sorrows. The desolate pass was only sparsely populated by vultures flying around. Carl was surprised to see a small settlement of Ogres as he flew through the pass on his way to Karazhan. He hadn't actively remembered that there was anything beyond vultures present in the area, aside from the undead populating the abandoned settlement outside Karazhan.

Not wanting to be distracted by the small fries, Carl continued flying past them. He arrived outside the entrance to the raid, and as expected found that the portcullis gate was closed and locked.

There were three figures standing outside Karazhan. When he was playing the game, they would be considered NPCs, or Non Player Characters. But now that he was actually in the world, he had realized that they were just as alive as anyone else, even though the world's magic had gaming elements.

Archmage Alturus, Archmage Leryda, and Apprentice Darius were members of the Violet Eye faction, and they had a couple quests that would allow Carl to enter Karazhan.

"Greetings adventurer." Archmage Alturus greeted Carl.

"Hello, Archmage. I'm planning to enter Karazhan and clean up some of the enemies inside. Anything you can do to help me there?"

"Indeed, yes. But in order to make a key so you can enter, you need to do some things first. I'll need you to take some arcane readings of the nearby area. Take this Scrying Crystal to the nearby underground sources of water to take a reading on how much the arcane energies of Karazhan are spilling out. And while you're at it, kill some of the ghostly undead around the area. Bring me 10 ghostly essences to further study, if you would."

Carl smiled at the Archmage and nodded affirmative in response. After receiving the two quests, he made his way to the nearby ruins. There was an entrance in the cellars of one of the destroyed houses. The underground cavern was populated by ghosts and specters, which were easily dispatched and supplied the ghostly essences that Archmage Alturus was looking for.

In the underground cavern was a river. Standing in the knee deep water, Carl used the Scrying device to take the readings needed. Once he was done, Carl made his way out of that section of the cavern.

In the foundations of the ruined house just opposite that entrance was another ramp down into an underground cellar. Entering it and exploring, Carl soon found an underground well. He used the Scrying device on the well, and soon got the results that the Archmage wanted.

Before Carl left, he looked around the underground cellar that the well was located in, and saw that it looked like the remains of a wine cellar. There was a large wine rack with some bottles still placed there. There was also a couple enormous casks stacked against the wall.

Curious as to whether there was still wine in the casks, Carl knocked off the bung and looked in the hole. It looked like either the wine had dried up long since, or it had spilled out. There was only some dusty residue.

He then pulled down some of the bottles stacked in the wine racks and saw that there was still liquid inside. Pulling off the cork, Carl immediately recorked it. The smell had been atrocious!

From what he smelled, it seemed like some of the undead had been stuffing anything they found in the bottles in a mockery of their actions when they were still alive. The rotting gunky mess was completely disgusting.

"Yeah, shouldn't have expected anything to be edible or drinkable around so many undead, right?" Carl rhetorically chastised himself.

With nothing else to distract him, Carl soon turned in the quests that the Archmage gave him. The next part of the quest was to make a trip to the outskirts of the crater where Dalaran had once resided. He teleported to Ironforge and hired a Gryphon ride up to Southshore in the Hillsbrad Foothills.

It didn't take much effort for Carl to find Archmage Cedric in the ruins of the city that surrounded the crater where Dalaran once stood.

Carl was wondering about the Archmage title though. It seemed like quite a few people were able to obtain it, which made him wonder just how rare it was. Was it just a title like Professor? Or did it indicate how powerful they were in magic?

Since Carl had Archmage Cedric in front of him, he decided to ask him to assuage his curiosity.

"Of course the title Archmage is only given to the most prestigious and powerful mages!" Archmage Cedric sputtered in indignation. "Only the most knowledgeable and powerful mages, those who are acknowledged by their peers, are afforded the Archmage Title!"

"So that's how it is." Carl nodded in agreement, while secretly thinking the old man was full of it. He had already seen four Archmages in the past 20 minutes. And the one in front of him was only level 57, while the fourth was only level 40.

'It has to be politics.' Carl thought cynically to himself. If it was solely power, Carl should be easily able to get the Archmage title by revealing his skills. Not that he was going to do so, of course.

After passing off the report to Archmage Cedric, Carl was directed to report to Khadgar in Shattrath City. Summoning up his Magic, Carl soon teleported straight to the city.

Khadgar was standing in the middle of the city, near the model of Shattrath that A'dal was hovering over.

"Hey Khadgar. I've got a report from members of the Violet Eye faction for you." Carl got straight to the point. All the running around was beginning to irk him a bit.

"The Violet Eye, you say?" Khadgar murmured. Carl noticed that Khadgar didn't have the Archmage title equipped either. Khadgar finished reading the report and looked off into the distance with a troubled look in his face. "Gaining entry into Karazhan will be difficult. When it became apparent that I was stranded here in Outland, I split the key into three parts and placed them in safe places. Unfortunately, those places are no longer safe."

"Typical." Carl muttered.

"What was that?" Khadgar inquired.

"Oh, nothing." Carl lied. "So, where are these key fragments? I'll go fetch them."

"The first one is in the Shadow Labyrinth. Unfortunately the Dark Council now holds sway there, so it will be dangerous to venture there. Once you retrieve that piece and prove your capability, I'll inform you where the other two pieces are."

"Don't worry about it, I'll grab the fragment and be back soon." Carl easily accepted the test and quest.

Five minutes after Carl left, Khadgar was surprised to see Carl show up once more.

"Oh, did you need directions to the Shadow Labyrinth? I could tell you about the Dark Council and what kind of tactics they use so you can be prepared to assault their forces." Khadgar helpfully offered Carl.

"No need. I already got the key fragment." Carl nonchalantly stated.

"What?" Khadgar blankly stared at Carl. His joke wasn't funny. The Dark council was no laughing matter!

"Yeah, it's right here." Carl held the key fragment in his hand, showing Khadgar.

"What? How?" Khadgar's mind was blank for some time, confused about how Carl had finished so quickly.

"So, the next two pieces are where?" Carl asked the flabbergasted man, ignoring his question.

"Oh. Uh. The second piece is in the Steamvault. The third is in The Arcatraz." Khadgar faintly answered Carl, still a bit confused about how he had gotten the key so quickly.

"Thanks. Be right back!" Carl cheerfully said.

Five minutes later Carl came flying back in the building and landed in front of Khadgar. Khadgar was still looking blankly around, his world view having been shattered.

"Okay, I got the second and third pieces. What's next?" Carl showed off the other two key fragments.

"Oh." Khadgar gaped at the key pieces in Carl's hands. "Uh, to rejoin the keys, you need to travel to the Caverns of Time and enter the Black Morass. Meet Medivh there and he will use his power to meld the key back together."

Khadgar suddenly had an epiphany. Of course! The Keepers of Time could have done what Carl did! But then he slumped in realization that Carl wasn't a member of the Keepers of Time, and that straight laced, by-the-rules, organization wouldn't mess about with time just for a joke. There's no way they would let Carl play around with time using their abilities. So how had he retrieved the keys in only five minutes? Had he already grabbed the keys in a previous visit to the locations? But that was impossible! No one would be able to bypass the protective magics unless Khadgar himself cast the cantrip that would let them even see the container the key fragments were placed in. So how?

As Carl was leaving the building where Khadgar was standing in befuddlement, he chuckled in amusement to himself. The look on Khadgar's face totally made the use of a Time Turner worth it to speed run through the dungeon!

With but a thought, Carl had his ship teleport him to the Tanaris Desert through his spy satellite links. With his array of transport technology and spy satellites, he could be anywhere on Azeroth in an instant. He would occasionally go the old fashioned way that all the other player avatars had to go. But sometimes he was just too impatient to take the long round a bout way.

The Bronze Dragonflight's domain traits were Time and Thunder. They were the Keepers of Time. They protected the timeline, ensuring that no one can go and destroy the world by trying to change too much history.

The Black Morass dungeon instance was one example where the Infinite Dragonflight was trying to change a key moment in history. The last Guardian Medivh was possessed by the demon Sargeras and trying to open the Dark Portal to Draenor, which was the start of the invasion of Azeroth.

Waves of Dragons and Dragonspawn try to attack Medivh and interrupt the process and derail history. In order to help the Bronze Dragon Flight maintain the timeline, the party that enters the dungeon has to protect Medivh and defeat the waves of attackers.

There are 18 waves of attacks. In each wave a Rift Keeper will appear and maintain a portal that will allow attackers through. Kill the Rift Keeper, and the rift will close.

Every six waves there is a Boss that appears. The three bosses are Chrono Lord Deja, Temporus, and Aeonus.

Deja is a large two legged Dragonspawn, while Temporus and Aeonus are actual Dragons. Carl was tempted to turn back into his Dragon form to fight, but decided not to. Even though this was an instance dungeon in a semi-videogame world, he didn't want to give Medivh or Sargeras any ideas about his abilities and true nature.

He still had three enemies out there, and he didn't want to let leak his information before he was ready. He had plans that once his Dragons and Dragonspawn were max level and fully geared up, they would attack the members of the Cult of the Damned. He was keeping an eye on their bases and members, so he had up to date intel.

The other two enemies, Helya and the Iron Horde, weren't around just yet. He would continue to keep an eye out for them and their forces. But once they decimated the Cult of the Damned, they should have more breathing room to grow.

So in order to not chance leaking too much information about himself, Carl fought in his Night Elf shifted body. Medivh was busy channeling his magic to open the Dark Portal, and Carl fought the waves of attackers out of sight of Medivh, so he should be fine.

Once he had finished off Aeonus, Carl approached Medivh and turned in the quest, getting the master key back in return and a quest to return to Khadgar to show him the key.

This time Carl didn't use his Time Turner to mess with Khadgar, since he had been visiting the Keepers of Time. He wanted to keep Khadgar guessing how he did it.

Now that he finally had the key, it was time to enter and wreck Karazhan.