The cavern was dark, and deep, but warm. Faint, crimson light glowed, adding to the warmth of the room. The cavern itself was huge; it could easily have held entire races quite comfortably. However, it was not humans, or elves that resided within this cavern, or the numerous chambers connecting it to even bigger caves. This was the home of dragons.
Inside this particular cavern were eggs. Hundreds of eggs. The shells had a reddish tinge to them, hinting at the dragon flight they belonged to. The eggs were larger than most, standing at half the height of a human. The figure studied the eggs, resting a hand on one. The eggs were hot to the touch. This was good – they would soon hatch, ready to serve the Master. Turning to the centre of the room, the figure began to chant. A tear in the fabric of the world began to open, forming a portal. As quickly as the figure could manage, it began to carefully roll the eggs through the portal. With each egg that left, the cavern grew colder, and the crimson light grew fainter.
It took time to get each egg through the portal. Time the figure knew was running out. It could sense the mother dragon beginning to feel the tendrils of the portal's magic, and it knew that soon she would come to the cavern. Half of the eggs were already through the portal when a roar erupted, shaking the very walls of the cavern. The figure stopped rolling the egg it was about to throw through the portal; and began to close it. The shaking grew worse as the dragon got closer to the cavern. The figure could hear the questioning roars of the mother, and the thunderous replies. The portal was not even halfway closed.
Blinding light tore through the cavern, and the figure hastily cast a bubble of protective magic around itself, as fire lit the room. The gigantic mother dragon snapped her jaws and bared her teeth; she would fight for her offspring. A low growl resonated through the cavern. Thinking quickly, the figure levitated the last egg toward the half-closed portal. The crimson dragon stopped growling. "Be careful, mother dragon. If you kill me now, this egg will fall through this portal. I know not where this half-portal will take your egg. And you will never find the hundreds I have already taken!" The figure's voice bore a strange hiss, that grew more prominent as it giggled maniacally. The wrath of this mother dragon would be nothing compared to the wrath of the Master if the figure failed. The dragon took a step forward, and the figure moved the egg closer to the portal, the egg resting precariously on the edge.
The dragon growled once more, and the figure knew it was a threat. Insanity took over, and the figure bumped the egg through the portal, before the entire thing folded in on itself. The egg was gone. The figure's giggling increased as the mother dragon roared, this time in pain. "You will surely pay for this! I will find you, and I will find my offspring. How could you do this to such innocent creatures? They have done nothing, nothing to you!" The dragon whimpered, clearly mourning the loss of her offspring already. "The Master willed it, Life-binder. Now he has your offspring. They will serve him nicely, yes?" And with that, the figure blinked away.
Korialstrasz found Alexstrasza several hours later, still in the egg-chamber, weeping. Watching a dragon weep is a strange sight, but as consort to the Queen, Korialstrasz was no stranger to his love's many emotions, especially sorrow. The red dragon flight had suffered much, the Queen herself only returning to the caverns they called home recently. Korialstrasz had launched a daring rescue of his beloved, enlisting the help of a human mage and elven ranger. He had heard that they had recently married, and Korialstrasz was happy that his two friends had found love with one another.
Korialstrasz turned his attention to the cavern. It looked so bare, so empty. Less than three hundred eggs remained. He walked to curl up beside his beloved, resting his head underneath hers, in an attempt to comfort her. "I… can't feel them." Korialstrasz looked at his Queen, and the pain in her eyes was unmistakable. "I can always feel my young. Always. Even when they are grown, they maintain their bond with me. But the eggs… I can only feel one, my love. One out of hundreds. Who could have done such a thing?" Korialstrasz knew better than to answer her. There were too many enemies that could have done this, and he did not wish to further the pain of the Queen. Instead he stayed with her, for hours, until her weeping finally stopped.
"Do you wish for me to send someone to search for the eggs, my love?" Alexstrasza looked at him, and shook her head. "No, Korialstrasz. I wish for you to search for our children. I trust only you with this task. You know the lands better than any of the flight. Start with the egg I can feel. Bring my offspring home to me, Korialstrasz. Bring them home." Sighing, Korialstrasz made his way out of the chamber. His work often took him away from Alexstrasza, but every time he had to leave, it broke him just a little bit more. He swiftly transformed into one of his many guises, that of the elven mage Krasus. Walking through the cavern, he began to make plans. He would need Rhonin and Vereesa's help on this mission. Trying to recall the last place he had known them to be, he almost walked right past Alexstrasza's sister, Ysera.
"Ysera. I didn't expect to see you here." Ysera turned to face him, eyes closed. "I sensed my sister's pain. I came to help." Ysera had a soft, melodic voice, and led the green dragon flight. She spent the majority of her time in the Emerald Dream, and only left in dire circumstances. "I am sure Alexstrasza will be glad of your company. I am on my way to try to recover our lost offspring." Ysera nodded, and took his hand. "Korialstrasz, I feel I must warn you. I have had visions. Visions of this very event, and its aftermath. If you go on this journey, you will be forever changed. Everything you know and love will be twisted and moulded into something new. Remember this, when you leave Alexstrasza, and your home." Taken aback, Krasus turned away from Ysera. Her visions were rarely wrong, but could be misinterpreted. Not noticing his reaction, Ysera continued to make her way to the egg chamber.
It did not take long to gather supplies for the short journey to Rhonin and Vereesa's home. Within the hour, Krasus was ready to leave, Ysera's message still resonating through his head. He could not imagine anything changing the way he felt about his Queen or his offspring. If Ysera thought the warning would make him reconsider hunting down whoever had stolen his young, she was greatly mistaken. He would go to the very depths of Azeroth to bring back the eggs.
Creating a portal out of the air, Krasus prepared to leave. He took one last look behind him. Alexstrasza had entered the chamber. He could see in her eyes that Ysera's warning had been passed to her as well. Neither needed words to express their emotions in that final moment. Letting his smile say goodbye for him, Krasus stepped into the portal.