Atumanus, a fledgling mage, was finally of the age to become an adventurer. As he stood outside Northshire Abbey, he thought about the future. He would adventure and raise enough gold to build a great tower with which to oversee the massive lands he would obtain.
He spoke with Marshal McBride to begin his journey down the path of the adventurer. McBride gave him his first quest, to help beat back Blackrock battle worgs to the west of the Abbey. As he killed his last battle worg, an apparition appeared before him. He dropped to his knees as the apparition spoke.
"Atumanus of Northshire, We have need of you."
"What use could you have for a lowly mage?"
"It is more about what use we could be to a lowly mage."
"What could this lowly mage do for you?"
"Nothing yet, but since you offer we will remember. For now, you destiny awaits you, if you are brave enough to pursue it."
"Where do I go, apparition?"
"Come to me at Booty Bay in Stranglethorn Vale."
"How do I get there?"
"South, Atumanus of Northshire, you go south."
The apparition slowly faded away as Atumanus watched on. Atumanus quickly ran back to Northsire Abbey and Marshal McBride to collect his few coins for killing the battle worgs and began his new quest. He made his first stop in Goldshire to collect food and water for the trip. He also sought directions to Booty Bay, since he had never been there and the apparition didn't give them to him.
He quickly made his way across Elwynn Forest in relative safety, resting near the famed Tower of Azora before moving on to the Redridge Mountains. As he reached Three Corners, he decided to stay at Tower Watch for the night before moving on.
At first light, Atumanus prepared to take the road south and hoping to avoid the giant tarantulas that hunted both sides of the road. It was then that he saw a group of adventures pass the tower, heading south. He quickly followed them, staying as close as he could without them considering him an annoyance.
Once across the river into Duskwood, he breathed a sigh of relief with these reluctant bodyguards just a few yards ahead of him. There was still danger, but it was a short run to Darkshire with the others running interference for him.
After his cross-country run, Atumanus reached the town of Darkshire. His first task upon reaching Darkshire was to go into the town hall and speak to Lord Ello Ebonlocke.
"Lord Ebonlocke, I am Atumanus. I am honored to be in your presence."
"Welcome, Atumanus, to the town of Darkshire."
"I am heading for Booty Bay. Can you assist me with directions from here?"
"No problem young adventurer. You take the road toward the west. Look for Watcher Dodds at a fork in the road. You take that road south."
"Thank you, Lord Ebonlocke."
Atumanus bowed and left the town hall and headed down the west road. Lord Ebonlocke could not figure out why such a lowly mage would want to risk his life trying to reach Booty Bay, but he gave him credit for the attempt.
Atumanus rested at watcher Dodds camp where he was offered a meager meal of roasted barn owl. He accepted his host's hospitality, but only stayed long enough to eat and to catch his breathe. He was soon once again heading south toward Stranglethorn Vale.
Atumanus was pleased when he arrived at the Rebel Camp in Northern Stranglethorn. After a short rest and buying a few more supplies, Lieutenant Doren sent two of his soldiers to escort Atumanus safely to Hemet Nessingwary's expedition camp.
From here, it was a dangerous hike south to Fort Livingston. The jungle was filled with tigers and gorillas, among other undesirable creatures, but Atumanus had little choice. As he ran along the road, he whispered to himself.
"I'm invisible. I'm invisible. They can't see me…oh crud, he sees me!"
He would pop a frost nova and blink away, running as fast as he could, hoping he would outrun whatever was chasing him. How he survived to reach Fort Livingston, he had no idea, but he was glad to see the wood walls that surrounded the Fort.
Atumanus reached Booty Bay at mid-day and stood on the dock looking out at the sea. This was the first time in his short life that he had ever seen the sea. To him, it was an awesome sight indeed. As he stood looked toward Janeiro Point, the apparition appeared to him again.
"Hello, Atumanus of Northshire, I see that you have made it."
Atumanus looked around and then asked, "They can't see you?"
"No, I am visible only to you, but while you have survived the first part of your quest, there is another part of the quest to fulfill."
"What do you now demand of me?"
"A boat docks here, and it will take you to Kalimdor. You will take this boat and we will speak when you arrive in Ratchet."
The apparition faded once more, leaving Atumanus standing alone on the docks. Atumanus nibbled on a bit of Rockscale Cod and a nice tall glass of ice cold milk. He then wandered back to the dock to wait.
Soon enough, a boat arrived and he boarded and took the boat across the sea to Ratchet. Upon arriving, Atumanus wandered about Ratchet waiting to hear from the apparition. He walked in and out of the stores and had a drink at the Broken Keel tavern. As He finished his drink, the apparition finally appeared.
"You have done well to get this far, Atumanus."
"Oh, there you are. I toured Ratchet while I waited."
"Have a hot meal and rest. It is a long distance to Lor'danel in Darkshore."
"How will I get there, apparition?"
"Follow the road, and turn north, but be careful of the Crossroads. In Ashenvale, you will come to a fork in the road, go west toward Astranaar. The road leads to Lor'danel. I will meet you there."
The apparition disappeared and Atumanus went to the inn to eat a hot meal and drink a flagon of mead. He then began the long trek north to Lor'danel. When he approached the Crossroads, he skirted the town, being careful not to draw attention to himself and continued north. He managed to avoid getting the attention of any roaming creatures and was glad to be entering Ashenvale.
When Atumanus reached Astranaar alive, the instability of the town told him not to spend too much time loitering around. He bought supplies and quickly left. While leaving Astanaar, Atumanus wished that the apparition had supplied him with enough money to fly, since flying is so much faster and safer than running.
Once Atumanus arrived at the edge of Darkshore, he breathed a sigh of relief because he knew he was close to his destination. As he spied bears off to the side of the road, he again mumbled to himself.
"I'm invisible. I'm invisible. They can't see me. I'm invisible."
Apparently this worked since Atumanus arrived in Lor'danel in one un-mauled piece. He wandered around Lor'danel, though there was little to Lor'danel beyond the inn. With little else to do, he went down to the shore and sat watching the waves roll up on the shore.
As he sat wondering what one of the crabs might taste like with butter, his friendly neighborhood apparition appeared once again. Atumanus rose to face the apparition.
"Greetings, Atumanus of Northshire. Welcome to Lor'danel. You are almost near the end of your quest."
"Since I assume this is not likely our destination, where do we go now, apparition?"
"Take a bird to Teldrassil. From there you will take a boat to Azuremist Isle. You will then travel east to Ammen Vale. This is the last leg of your quest."
Atumanus nodded and headed for the flight master as the apparition disappeared. He was excited to be flying, even if only the short distance from Lor'danel to Teldrassil. Landing on the island of the night elves, he quickly made his way down to the docks.
As he arrived on Azuremist Isle, Atumanus made his way passed the Draenei city of Exodar. He skirted the village of Azure Watch and crossed the river to Ammen Vale. His final destination was the crash site of the Draenei. As he wandered the crash site, the apparition finally appeared.
"Congratulations, Atumanus. You have finally reached your destination, alive and well, I see."
"But why am I here? Why did I have to come here?"
"We needed you to remain pure and unpolluted by humanity. Your thoughts must be untethered from your emotions. Your destiny requires it."
"What shall become of me now, apparition?"
"These people are not of this world. You will help them with their plight. Walking among them will be a good influence upon you."
"How long will I be here, apparition?" Atumanus asked.
"Until we return to you and tell you so."
"As you command, so shall I do."
The apparition disappeared as it had so many times before. With nothing else to do, Atumanus turned to these strange creatures. He walked up to Proenitus, determined to help them in their strife. As he began to assist the Draenei, he wondered how long it would be before he heard once again from the apparition.
Atumanus went to work helping the Draenei of Ammen Vale. Each quest brought him a few more coins and the occasional piece of armor. While he wasn't sure why battling creatures here in Ammen Vale was any real difference to battling creatures in Northshire, but who was he to debate the wisdom of an apparition. The day came for him to move on to Azure Watch.
Making his way to Exarch Meneclaous in Azure Watch, he began his long chore of continuing to do the bidding of the Draenei in this new place. He explored all of Azuremist Isle as he did everything the Draenei asked of him.
Having finished with Azuremist Isle, It was now time for Atumaus to make his way to Exarch Admetius as his attention turned to Bloodmist Isle and Blood Watch. With each mission completed, he gained in both treasure and skills.
It was hard work clearing Bloodmist Isle, but the Draenei appreciated Atumanus's help immensely. After he finished and there was no sign of the apparition, Atumanus tried some fishing outside of Blood Watch. After a few hours of fishing, Atumanus became aware of a presence.
The apparition said, "You have done well, young Atumanus. Are you prepared for your next mission?"
"Yes, I suppose I am."
"You shall make your way to Ashenvale, to the place called Forest Song. While there you shall quest for the Draenei, but you will only assist the Draenei."
"As you command, so shall I do."
Atumanus started his journey to Forest Song. On the way, he wondered why the apparition only wanted him helping the Draenei. Surely others were equally deserving of assistance, but then the apparition was specific that he only do the bidding of the Draenei.
Upon arriving in Forest Song, Atumanus found Architect Nemos and offered to do his bidding. He had but one request which led him to Vindicator Vedaar. He was sent after Gorgannon's Flaming Blade and Seeker's Fel Spear.
Atumanus began the ride back toward Forest Song. Just before he arrived, the apparition once more appeared before him. Atumanus looked all around to see if anyone else could see the apparition, but none showed any signs that they saw it.
"It is time, Atumanus of Northshire. You must return to the lands of your fathers, and from there you shall seek out the tomb of the one known as Ironbeard."
Atumanus hearthed back to Northsire, but before continuing on his mission, being level 22 now, he ran out to Eastvalle Logging Camp to train in riding and obtain him a horse. He then continued his trip to the Wetlands.
Heading back to the west, Atumanus headed for the human capital of Stormwind. He dawdled there somewhat checking out the sights. Before heading to the Deeprun tram for a quick trip to Ironforge, he stopped for an audience with King Varian Wrynn. Having never met a king before, Atumanus was sufficiently humbled.
Atumanus bought more rations while in Ironforge and began his trek across Dun Morogh. He passed Ambersill ranch, but did not stop. His goal was far from here and he was in a hurry to get there.
He did, however, stop at Bahrum's Post to look over his goods. It wasn't that he was looking for anything in particular. It was that he needed to take a break and what better place than a nice camp next to the road.
Atumanus finally mounted and rode through South Gate Pass and entered the Valley of Kings. From here, he made his way north to the Wetlands. It wasn't long before Atumanus was standing not far from Ironbeard's Tomb, which sits surrounded by slimes and oozes.
One by one, Atumanus slowly fought his way into the tomb, working his way toward the bottom of the tomb. Fortunately, several other adventurers entered the tomb so it became more of a follow the party than actually battling the whole ooze population.
With the slimes destroyed, Atumanus took a careful look around. The tomb had obviously been looted many ages ago, and little was left when the oozes moved in. Still, he was here and for a reason. As he stood there looking at the destruction, he spied a small alcove and felt something pulling him into it. As he stood there, he noticed it was empty, but his attention was suddenly drawn to the stones in the floor.
He tried to remove the stones, but they would not budge. They were simply too tightly laid down. He focused his fireblast spell on the stones until they heated enough to expand. He then instructed his water elemental to use its waterbolt spell to cool the stones suddenly. The expansion and contraction of the stones loosened them just enough.
Using a knife, Atumanus carefully pried up one of the stones and lifted it out of the floor of the alcove, revealing a leather sack. Looking inside, he found a large red stone. As he stood there looking at the stone, he heard the apparition speak.
"You hold an Eye of the Oracle in your hands. Do you not feel its hidden power? It is time. You must return the Eye of the Oracle to its rightful owner. Travel to Feathermoon Stronghold and seek the statue of the human that stands in the center."
"There's a human statue in a night elf stronghold? Why would they erect a human statue there?"
The apparition faded without giving him an answer; therefore, Atumanus began the difficult journey to Feathermoon Stronghold in Feralas. He hurried to Menethil Harbor and caught a flight back to Stormwind. From there, he took a boat to Teldrassil.
From here he made his way through Darkshore and into Ashenvale. Taking the passage, he entered the Stonetalon Mountains and continued south through Desolace. Finally, he arrived in Ferales and hurried to Feathermoon.
It was nightfall when Atumanus reached Feathermoon Stronghold. As he stood before the great human statue, he took the red stone from the sack and held it up to the statue. The stone began to glow a bright red.
As the Eye of the Oracle continued to glow, a mist flowed from the Eye and into the stone statue. Soon an apparition stepped out of the statue as the Eye of the Oracle disappeared. Atumanus stood motionless as the apparition spoke.
"I am Althoran. My essence was locked within the stone that became that statue. It is good to be out of my prison to breathe fresh air once more. But this is not the place for a long discussion."
The apparition moved to Atumanus and merged with him. The apparition then found a place in Atumanus' subconscious where it could reside undetected.
Atumanus suddenly found himself staring at the stone statue with no recollection of the red stone, or anything to do with the apparition. It was as if his memory had been wiped clean.
As Atumanus stood there, he wondered why the night elves would have a statue of some unknown human. As he stood staring at the statue, he felt a compulsion to return to Stormwind. He headed for the flight master to begin his long trip home.