Chapter Six: The Path of Arcana—The Journey Begins

The Mage Tower—a wizard’s sanctum, a lifetime’s pursuit, a treasury of discoveries and riches. It stands as the emblem of a mage’s status; a towering spire scraping the heavens proclaims its owner’s rank and mastery. Within, a mage finds a private library, research chambers, personal quarters, and vast stores of spellcasting materials. Every mage dreams of their own tower.

Mage Towers are chiefly of two types: the Fortress and the Urban. The Fortress Tower’s main purpose is battle and defense, offering immense offensive power to a stronghold, and bolstering its attacks. Multiple towers can be linked into a formidable magical nexus to ward off enemies. Urban Towers serve dual purposes—residence and research—most often acting as a mage’s home and laboratory, but are also equipped for combat.

Inside, the primary facilities are divided into living and functional categories. Living quarters house the mage, attendants, and apprentices, as well as meditation rooms, storehouses, and studies. Functional rooms include alchemy labs, libraries, study halls, reception rooms, grand halls, and workbenches. The materials, luxuries, and arcane tomes stored within are the measure of a mage’s foundation.

Regardless of classification, there is no doubt that the Tower of Daswither is among the finest—commanding intelligence, military, and civilian affairs east of Silvermoon City. It also monitors the region’s defensive magical wards and the stability of coastal barrier enchantments. To study here is to greatly advance one’s arcane prowess.

Patrick was momentarily dazed when he first beheld the Tower of Daswither. Gone was the small spire of his memory, with just a few cramped floors and a handful of floating staircases. In reality, the Tower of Daswither loomed like a five-story manor suspended in the air. Its facade was crowned in gold, its tower body gleaming white, adorned with red filigree—the signature livery of the high elves. Magical runes wreathed its surface, and filaments of arcane energy drifted outward. Even the ground-level teleportation orb was no longer tucked away in a lonely gazebo, but set within a complex akin to an administrative office, complete with reception rooms, negotiation chambers, and lounges.

“It’s just a floating tower,” Patrick mused. “Once, with the power of the Well of Eternity, they could lift whole continents. True skill for a mage lies in the flexible use of arcane power and mastery of mana.”

After a long silence, Lady Ellen’s voice cut through his thoughts. “With my aid in controlling energy, your arcane studies progress twice as fast. When you mimicked elemental magic with arcane simulation, without my help, a mage of your level could never have managed it.”

Damn it, Patrick thought sourly. Others cross worlds with powerful systems or ancient masters to guide them, cheating fate at every turn. Yet I, with this soul-bonded spirit, am subjected to endless ridicule. How is that fair?

Patrick stepped forward and said, “Please connect me to Arcanist Daswither. Here is my letter of introduction; I have some matters to discuss with him.” He handed the missive—written by his father, Old Phil Carbon—that requested Daswither allow his son to study in his mage tower for a time, to the attendant.

“Of course, please wait a moment,” the attendant replied. “Master Daswither is expecting you.”

“Master Daswither,” Patrick greeted, bowing his head in respect.

“Patrick, welcome to my tower.” Daswither closed his book. “The attendant has prepared everything. You’ll study here in my floating tower; your private chambers, complete with laboratory, reading room, and bedroom, await you. Welcome to the fold.”

Daswither’s handsome face was framed by slender golden eyebrows that quivered gently. High elves enjoyed long lifespans, and time left no trace on their features; Daswither looked like a vigorous man in his thirties, the kind who had accumulated wisdom and presence with age.

The accommodations arranged by the attendant were more than satisfactory—far better than Patrick had imagined. He had a private study, laboratory, and bedroom, plus a small balcony. The signature gold-trimmed, red-backed decor favored by elves was everywhere. From the balcony, Patrick could survey the entire Tower of Daswither and gaze upon the Azurewind Coast—a “sea-view suite” in its own right.

The laboratory was fully stocked with magical reagents and herbs. Patrick’s other purpose in coming here was to help Master Daswither prepare the necessary alchemical supplies. With the heavy population flow in this area, the supply of potions and enchantments often lagged, and Patrick’s father had conveniently assigned him here to study and assist.

After a busy day, Patrick found a moment’s rest on the balcony that evening. In Silvermoon, night always arrived the same way—magical streetlights twinkling as some elves’ nocturnal lives were just beginning.

Azeroth’s sky boasts two moons: the larger white Lady and the smaller blue Child. When the Child aligns with the Lady, the blue moon occludes the white, making it look as if the Lady is embracing the Child from behind. This astronomical event is called “The Twin Moons’ Embrace.”

The “Twin Moons’ Embrace” generates unique energies. Through a ritual, Kalecgos gained the power of the Guardian Dragon, officially succeeding the fallen Malygos as guardian.

Yet according to the story, Elune is the world-soul of Azeroth, a high-ranking Titan whose body is still gestating within the planet. How, then, could she be the so-called “Moon Goddess”? Moreover, the Moonlight Goddess prayer (the Moon Goddess’ orbital cannon) performed by Shandris Feathermoon inflicts arcane damage, which contradicts the night elves’ ban on arcane magic.

Perhaps Azeroth’s Moon Goddess is another unknown deity, and Elune is merely a Titan. This would explain why, when Aman’Thul discovered Azeroth harbored a world-soul, the Titans descended to impose order—creating the Well of Eternity and the leyline network.

The Well of Eternity—ten millennia before the war between humans and orcs—lay at the heart of a single vast continent, Kalimdor, surrounded by endless seas. Many races and creatures dwelled there, battling the harsh natural world.

At the center of this shadowed land lay a mysterious lake, the Well of Eternity, source of all arcane and natural energy in the world. Drawing power from the darkness beyond the world, it poured forth energy to nourish all living things.

The Well of Eternity fed Elune with its power, nurturing the Titan within so she might one day awaken as a true celestial being. Current evidence suggests Elune is a high Titan mastering soul, purity, and arcane power, while Aman’Thul, King of the Pantheon, commands time, fate, and space. He believed Elune would bring a new force of order to the Pantheon and the cosmos, maintaining their dominion.

The Well’s natural energy nourished Azeroth, ensuring the planet’s vitality and fostering life and souls until Elune’s emergence. The leyline system, however, served an even greater purpose. Its foremost function was defense: any being attempting to traverse the network had to relinquish all their power. Sargeras, when he forced his way through, was stripped of ninety-nine percent of his strength and, upon arrival, had to hunt dragons to recover before being slain by Aegwynn.

Without the leyline system’s protection, Archimonde and Kil’jaeden could have destroyed Azeroth directly from the Twisting Nether—as depicted in the lore, where Archimonde, standing in the Nether, scatters energy upon a planet, reducing it to cosmic dust.

The system’s second role is as the blueprint mechanism, jointly maintained by the guardian dragons such as Malygos and Ysera. The Focusing Iris is a key to infusing arcane energy into the blueprint, which contains the Titans’ primordial order—meaning the Titan guardians can reset all of Azeroth.

The Titans left behind three laboratories; Ulduar is the grandest, designed to develop perfect life forms. Evolution requires time, and since the Titans never linger long on one world, they periodically visit and observe progress.

High-ranking Titan servants were left to oversee the laboratories, with Loken as the chief administrator. Each main laboratory was fitted with an automatic defense: if the highest administrator died, the lab would send a crisis signal to the Pantheon.

At that moment, the Pantheon would dispatch the observer Algalon to inspect the planet. Based on his findings, Algalon would make one of two decisions: Code Alpha, indicating no major issues and the administrator died accidentally but the world continues to evolve per the Titans’ design; or Code Omega, signifying a grave deviation from the plan, requiring “re-origination”—the eradication of all life and a complete reset of the planet.