Andreas watched the entire process of Huln adopting Ebysshian, feeling as though he were witnessing the gears of history turn with his own eyes.
However, the journey of bringing Ebysshian back to Rivermane Village was anything but smooth.
As a proud descendant of the Great Dragons and a direct bloodline of the Black Dragon King Neltharion, the newborn Ebysshian displayed a defiant and unruly nature from the start. Along the way, it repeatedly tried to gnaw on Huln's arm with its harmless teeth and occasionally spat out small puffs of fire that couldn't hurt anyone.
Had Huln been in his prime, his body—bolstered by Rage—would have been as tough as steel, or at least far too hard for a newborn Ebysshian to bite through. But currently, Huln was in a weakened state, his physical resilience no different from that of a non-combatant.
By the time the group returned to the already jubilant Rivermane Village, Huln's hands were covered in countless tiny tooth marks.
During the return trip, Igrul was the first to take his leave of Huln and Andreas. He needed to stay behind to organize his people and prepare to find a suitable new home for the newly liberated Drogbar.
After watching Huln being welcomed into the village as a hero of the Highmountain tribes, Andreas quietly slipped away into the cheering crowd.
With Igrul's consent, the Holy Hammer was brought back to the tribe by Huln. From then on, it would be enshrined by the Highmountain tribes as a supreme artifact. Unless they encountered a powerful enemy that absolutely could not be defeated otherwise, Huln would not allow anyone to use it lightly.
As the first mortal wielder of the Hammer, Huln understood the price of its use all too well. This weapon of peerless power was destined to be a final desperate measure—to be kept, for instance, as a safeguard against a resentful Neltharion should he ever attempt a comeback.
While Andreas had contributed to the expulsion of Neltharion, he hadn't truly altered the original course of history. Neltharion was still driven back by Huln, who risked his life to wield the Hammer of Khaz'goroth. The timeline remained largely intact... at most, it only made Neltharion harbor a deeper grudge against Andreas for ruining his plans twice.
After leaving Rivermane Village, Andreas transformed into a golden eagle to carefully patrol the skies over Highmountain. Now that the fallen Earth-Warder had been driven away, he was ready to get down to his true business.
Before saying his goodbyes to Huln, Andreas had asked the staying Gawin Skyhorn if there were any signs of other black dragons during the Great Battle. There had been none.
Andreas wasn't sure if the "seed" he had planted last time had taken effect, or if the other black dragons simply hadn't intended to help Neltharion in the first place. Regardless, a portion of the Black Dragonflight undoubtedly remained hidden within Highmountain.
While these black dragons—viewed as traitors by the other four flights—would eventually have to move away and live a life of hiding under the pursuit of their kin, for now, the other Dragonflights had not yet recovered from the heavy losses sustained during the War of the Ancients.
Due to the former presence of the black dragons, most of the Highmountain tribes lived at the foot of the mountains or by the rivers; the highest peaks had all been occupied by the Black Dragonflight. Without the protection of the Well of Eternity, Highmountain no longer enjoyed a perpetual spring-like climate, and many of its towering peaks were now capped with white snow.
As the altitude increased, the cold, thin air of the highlands made Andreas feel somewhat uncomfortable. To avoid missing any hidden dragon lairs and to prevent hypoxia from long-duration high-altitude flight, Andreas maintained a low-altitude search as he entered the central core region of Highmountain.
"Hmm?"
While gliding past a snow-covered peak in southern Highmountain, Andreas suddenly spotted a small cave, partially sealed by ice and snow, beneath the mountain range.
Such a small cave... surely it doesn't belong to a black dragon?
He hovered in the air for a moment of consideration. To be safe, he decided to check it out. As he flew toward the entrance, he made a surprising discovery.
Standing inside the entrance of this modest cave were four black dragonkin.
Dragonkin? With such a small entrance?
Andreas wore a look of utter confusion. The moment the golden eagle landed, he shifted into panther form, but he quickly realized that stealth was a foolish idea. Looking speechlessly at the clear paw prints he left on the snow, Andreas sighed and simply shifted into a bear form in plain sight.
"A Druid? What do you want? Halt immediately!"
A large-bottomed bear suddenly appeared at the cave mouth. The lead dragonkin captain immediately gripped his sword and shield, shouting a warning.
"Uhh, let me ask something first," the black bear spoke in a human tongue. "Didn't you see Neltharion flee in disgrace? Why are you still here instead of moving out?"
"Also, whose lair is this? Why does it need four dragonkin guards?"
The dragonkin captain pointed his longsword at Andreas and warned sharply, "I have no obligation to answer your questions. Leave now, or don't blame us for being impolite!"
"Hmm..." The black bear tilted its head in thought. "Fine. It seems you don't intend to tell the truth. I'll just subdue you first."
The captain was infuriated by Andreas's nonchalant attitude and the arrogance of his "subdue you first" comment.
"Insolent! Attack! Kill this insolent Druid!"
Following their superior's command, two dragonkin charged toward Andreas with weapons drawn, while a third caster began chanting a spell in the rear.
Clang!
Tough fur deflected the twin swords of the more agile dragonkin. The scout-type dragonkin clearly hadn't expected this and was momentarily dazed by the deflection.
Andreas seized the opportunity. The massive black bear transitioned from stillness to motion in a flash, striking the opponent's head with the back of his right paw. Infused with Shadow energy that eroded the soul, the undefended dragonkin fell unconscious instantly.
The other dragonkin, wielding a two-handed axe, arrived a moment too late, bringing the axe down toward Andreas's head. Andreas raised his left paw, striking the side of the axe head and using the momentum to redirect the heavy blow.
Just as he was about to use the same trick to knock out this slower heavy-hitter, the dragonkin captain activated a charge skill, rushing in front of Andreas and slamming a large shield toward the bear's head.
Simultaneously, the caster in the rear finished his spell. On this peak already shrouded in wind and snow, countless shards of freezing ice began to rain down in a small area around Andreas.
Blizzard? A fitting choice for this environment.
Before the captain's longsword could reach him, the chilled Andreas took a deep breath and let out a roar that shook the surroundings.
"ROAR!!"
The Shadow energy contained within the Intimidating Roar caused the three dragonkin to recoil in pain simultaneously, immediately interrupting the channeled Blizzard spell.
Taking advantage of this, Andreas used his massive weight to launch a Wild Charge at the caster, slamming the lighter dragonkin hard against the cave wall.
Having broken through the pincer movement of the two melee fighters, the black bear was now inside the cave. With one swipe, he knocked out the struggling caster. Andreas then ignored the two melee dragonkin behind him—whose expressions had changed drastically—and entered the depths of the cave.
At that moment, the voice of a hazy, half-awake young girl drifted out from within.
"Mmm... why is it so noisy? Randolph, what are you... uh?"
Having just opened her bleary eyes and lazily flapping her wings, the black dragon whelp suddenly saw a large black bear standing before her, its head tilted with a look of very human-like confusion.
"...A bear?"