Kel'Thuzad asked this question because he had felt a calling that didn't quite align with the common narrative. Most believed the Lich King was merely a puppet created by the Burning Legion—that Kil'jaeden had captured the old Orc Shaman Ner'zhul, destroyed his body, bound his soul to a suit of armor, and cast him down upon Northrend.
But that story didn't add up. Did the Burning Legion truly possess such power? The Legion specialized in Fel magic. While they dabbled in Shadow, true Death magic was a niche reserved mostly for the Nathrezim. Given Kil'jaeden's cunning, he should have been able to mass-produce Lich Kings if the technology were his, yet he hadn't.
It suggested that only Azeroth could host such a being, and the bizarre domination power the Lich King wielded didn't belong to the Legion—it came from another Great Presence. Kel'Thuzad suspected he wasn't just serving a Lich King, but the architect behind him, a master of true Domination from the actual Realm of Death.
He wanted to see if Rhodes could answer correctly and, more importantly, if Rhodes could convince him.
"You've asked the right person. The Lich King's power doesn't come from the Burning Legion; it comes from the Shadowlands," Rhodes said with a cold smirk.
At this point in history, no one knew about the Jailer of the Shadowlands. But as a transmigrator, Rhodes knew everything.
Rhodes's words were like a massive boulder crashing into the stagnant lake of Kel'Thuzad's mind, sending ripples of shock through his skeletal frame. He actually knows. And what is this "Shadowlands"? He had felt a vague, blurred world of death, but Rhodes had named it with absolute certainty.
"The... Shadowlands?" The word was like glimpsing the silhouette of a grand cathedral through a thick fog. It was a mysterious domain that even a titan of the Legion like Kil'jaeden seemed to have failed to grasp—or perhaps intentionally ignored.
"Go on! Tell me, what is the Shadowlands?" Kel'Thuzad's voice carried an urgency he didn't even notice. Does Rhodes's necromantic technology come from there? Is that why he can ignore the Lich King's control?
During Straker's service to the Scourge, the Lich King had obsessively studied the mysterious traits that allowed Straker to buff his undead legions' attack and defense, but he had failed to replicate it.
Rhodes smiled. The fish was on the hook. Kel'Thuzad had no real loyalty to the Lich King; he was a sycophant for power, which is why he would eventually side with the Jailer in the original timeline.
"Kil'jaeden? That self-important Deceiver?" Rhodes scoffed. "He believes he used Fel and hatred to forge the prison of the Frozen Throne and the Helm of Domination. He is wrong. He merely 'borrowed'—or rather, was permitted to use—technology and core power from a place of absolute despair in the Shadowlands called The Maw. The one weaving the threads behind the scenes is the master of the Maw: Zovaal, the Jailer."
Rhodes dropped the bombshell, explaining the Jailer's identity. He mixed truth with his own narrative. While the Jailer was real, Kil'jaeden was largely a pawn of the Nathrezim, who were in turn agents of Sire Denathrius.
"The Jailer..." Kel'Thuzad whispered the name.
"Yes. Ner'zhul, and now Arthas, are merely his pawns—'Harvesters' placed on the testing ground of Azeroth. Their job is to use the power of Domination to create endless death and strife, funneling souls into the Shadowlands and eventually into the Maw to fuel the Jailer's strength so he can break the ancient cycle of Life and Death."
Rhodes's words shattered Kel'Thuzad's last bit of denial. He thought he had escaped the shackles of Dalaran for a grander system of power, but he had simply jumped from a small cage into a cosmic conspiracy.
Sandro chimed in, playing on their shared nature as seekers of knowledge. "Isn't it pathetic, Kel'Thuzad? You craved truth, yet you nearly became an accomplice in destroying balance.
Death isn't scary; being used is. But with our Master, there is another way. We study death to understand it, control it, and eventually... transcend it. The Master knows the secrets of the Shadowlands. You will no longer be a pawn kept in the dark."
"Lord Rhodes, what is the Jailer's goal?" Kel'Thuzad pressed.
"Zovaal is collecting souls for a secret purpose I cannot yet fully disclose—it involves powerful beings known as the Eternal Ones."
"Eternal Ones? Does that mean... immortal, unchanging beings?"
"You can think of them as beings whose life-tier is no lower than that of the Titans," Rhodes explained. "You know of Elune, whom the Night Elves worship? She is real, and she has a sister among the Eternal Ones. Zovaal was once one of them."
"I see... then, Lord Rhodes, is there an Eternal One standing behind you as well? Can you tell me more of the Shadowlands?"
"Whether an Eternal One stands behind me is not for you to know yet," Rhodes replied firmly. "As for the Shadowlands, I can tell you much—I might even take you there one day to witness true Death magic firsthand. But not yet. I have shown enough sincerity, Kel'Thuzad. Now, it is your turn to respond."
Kel'Thuzad bowed his massive lich form deeply before Rhodes.
"Lord Rhodes... you have shown me a higher level of knowledge. I am willing to serve you and become your humble servant."