Azrythal, the Wight-Wyrm, was an ancient white dragon, a terror of the northernmost mountains of Norska, whose name was whispered with fear and reverence among the scattered tribes of the frozen wastes. For centuries, he ruled from his icy lair atop the frozen peak of Frostbane Crag, his presence an omen of death and ruin.
A beast of primeval fury, Azrythal embodied the relentless hunger of winter itself, his very breath capable of freezing warriors where they stood, his howl carried across the tundras like a harbinger of doom. The Unknown tribes both feared and respected him, offering sacrifices of flesh and gold to stave off his wrath. Yet, none could truly tame or challenge the frozen beast.
That is, until Varaghast Ghuul arose from the warring clans of Khaos, a warrior-king whose mastery of Unknown spirit-seeing and Khaos corruption would shackle the dragon’s very soul.
The Frozen Tyrant of Frostbane Crag
For over a millennia, Azrythal reigned as the apex predator of Norska, an unchallenged force of carnage and devastation. His hoard, buried deep within the heart of Frostbane Crag, was said to contain artifacts of frost-bound power, relics of lost kings, and the frozen remains of those who dared to challenge him.
Unlike many of his kin, Azrythal was not simply a mindless beast. He was cruel and calculating, known to toy with the Tribes of Khaos, demanding their worship and subservience before inevitably betraying them. Many who sought to parley with the great wyrm found themselves frozen solid, their shattered corpses added to his growing collection of trophies.
Legends say he once battled Borealis, the God of Winter, in a war for dominion over the northern wastes. Though the details of this battle are lost to time, the scars of their conflict remain, etched into the glacial cliffs and frozen fjords of the north.
Yet for all his raw elemental power, Azrythal would fall not to gods or rival dragons, but to a mortal warlord with a hunger for conquest.
Soul-Binding of the Wight-Wyrm
Azrythal’s reign ended in chains, his soul twisted into servitude by none other than Varaghast Ghuul, the rising Warrior-King of the Khaos Tribes.
In his bid to unite the warring clans under his iron rule, Varaghast knew he required a symbol—a terror great enough to command absolute obedience. He sought out Azrythal, scaling the perilous heights of Frostbane Crag, not to slay the dragon outright, but to break him in a way no other warrior had dared.
Utilizing his corrupted Fyrashan spirit-seeing magic, Varaghast engaged the dragon in a battle of wills and sorcery, binding the great wyrm’s very soul into a state of cursed undeath. Azrythal, once a being of frost and flesh, became a Wight-Wyrm, a monstrous revenant shackled to his new master’s will.
From that moment forth, Azrythal was no longer his own, his once untamed fury leashed by Varaghast’s dark power.
Mounted upon the undead dragon’s back, the Warrior-King of Khaos descended upon Skaeling City, his arrival marking a turning point in the war for Norska.
The sight of the Wight-Wyrm—a being once feared by all, now ridden by a mortal warlord—broke the spirit of resistance among the remaining Norskan tribes. In the face of such unholy power, the clans that had once challenged Varaghast’s rule bowed in fear, accepting his dominion as an inevitability.
With Azrythal at his side, Varaghast became the undisputed ruler of the Khaos Tribes, forging an army strong enough to challenge the great civilizations of the world.
The Aegis of Azrythal
But Varaghast Ghuul was not a warlord who shared power.
To him, alliances were temporary, servants were expendable, and even the greatest of weapons could be cast aside when their use had ended.
During his climactic battle against The Sunsations, Azrythal was pushed to his limits, forced into combat against the Rift-born magic of Solandir and the might of Kairus the Brass. As the battle raged, it became clear that even the undead Wight-Wyrm could falter.
Sensing that his creation had outlived its usefulness, Varaghast did what no other dragon-slayer had done before—he consumed the soul of his own dragon.
With his hand pressed against the wyrm’s frozen hide, Varaghast ripped the last remnants of Azrythal’s spirit from his rotting body, absorbing the frost-born power of the dragon into himself.
Azrythal let out one final, anguished roar, his undead body collapsing into a mass of frozen bone and decaying flesh, his legend ending in utter subjugation.
With his greatest weapon now nothing more than fuel for his own power, Varaghast continued his conquest, proving once and for all that he alone was worthy of absolute dominion.
Legacy
Though Azrythal’s body lies ruined, his legend remains:
- The Icebound Revenant – His corpse still lingers atop the ruins of Skaeling, his soul long devoured, but his bones still pulsing with necrotic frost.
- The Tyrant’s Mount – His name is forever tied to Varaghast’s rise to power, his enslavement marking one of the most infamous moments in Khaos history.
- The Last Roar – Some say his final cry of defiance still echoes through the mountains, a spectral warning to all who would dare bend dragons to their will.
Yet others whisper that the soul of Azrythal is not truly gone, that fragments of his essence still linger in the frostbitten winds, waiting for a time when his vengeance might yet be claimed.
For if a dragon can be bound, then surely, in time, it can be freed.