Gatecrash Investigation: A Wrinkle in Time [Documentary Transcript]

The trial of Garrosh Hellscream. The world's most wanted war criminal is due to answer for his many atrocities.

Lorewalker Pao: What a tense atmosphere it must have had! Needless to say, the whole thing was a powder keg ready to go off.

Suddenly, during Garrosh's crucial sentencing, a storm breaks out in the courtroom, with no apparent reason why. In the midst of the chaos, the Accused is nowhere to be found. Investigators are to uncover a minor flaw in the procedures and a plot to span the ages.

Anduin Wrynn: It felt quite surreal, to have held yourself as you died...

GATECRASH INVESTIGATION

This is a true story. It is based on "official reports" and "eyewitness accounts".

N.B. Spoilers for World of Warcraft: War Crimes after the jump

A WRINKLE IN TIME

The 31^st year after the Dark Portal. Azeroth's leaders gather at the Temple of the White Tiger in Pandaria, for the reckoning of one of their own. Garrosh Hellscream, former Warchief of the Horde, is on trial for countless atrocities accused of him.

Garrosh had single-handedly united the Alliance and Horde, officially at war with each other at the time, against him. He was captured in his own throne room, after a monumental siege on his seat of power, Orgrimmar. Despite this common goal, relations remain strained, and passions in danger of flaring up at any moment.

Taran Zhu says: You may bring in the prisoner.
The entire gallery turns its attention to Garrosh Hellscream as he is escorted into the courtroom.

Anduin Wrynn, Prince of Stormwind, is in attendance, and will later be called as a witness to give testimony.

Anduin Wrynn: Once fa'shua [judge] Taran Zhu said those six words, all focus went to the Accused. Given the name Garrosh had made for himself, the silence that followed was a relief. It was short-lived, though, before chaos erupted.
I must say, that in itself was rather frightening, people's cussing from the balcony and that. But it would have been much worse were the Shado-Pan not prepared.

The Shado-Pan are providing its security services to the trial and, anticipating the crowds, left nothing to chance. As a precaution, weapons were forbidden from the Temple during proceedings. To prevent spellcasting, a dampening field was maintained. And should all else fail and disorder ensue, unarmed monks stand by to haul brawlers away for confinement.

This court case is unique in that it was the first one to use the Vision of Time in presenting evidence. Chronormu, affectionately known as Chromie, was one of the operators.

Taran Zhu says: ...there will be a unique manner of presenting evidence.

Chronormu: So I was there to run it for the Accuser, and Kairoz[dormu] for the Defender. You see, it probes deep into the past to bring back images of events long happened. Highly realistic, but they're only images, and it's not like our past selves can kill us or anything. Just as well, since I very much like not dying...

Tyrande Whisperwind says: Do not fear, Your Highness. Seeing and hearing the bell rung in this manner does not have the same effect as actually being in its presence.
Anduin Wrynn says: Thank the Light.
Anduin Wrynn whispers a soft prayer.

Distressed and in the witness box, Anduin prays to the Light. It replies, and a wave of holy magic washes over him. This offers him a small relief for the grilling he is about to go through.

Baine Bloodhoof says: Please tell the court, Prince Anduin. Do you want Garrosh Hellscream to die for what he has done?
Anduin Wrynn says: No.
Baine Bloodhoof says: Why not?

Anduin Wrynn: Father had told me, "stick to the questions, don’t volunteer anything, Tyrande knows what she’s doing." All that advice went out the window when it was Baine's turn.
Anduin Wrynn laughs.
In all seriousness, it was quite an ordeal reliving my near death. But getting all my grievances out of the way was relieving, almost therapeutic, so I was grateful for it.

Anduin Wrynn says: Because I believe people can change.

After a few more days of courtroom drama, the jury, consisting of the four honoured August Celestials, are finally to present their verdict. This is the moment the gallery is waiting for; will Garrosh Hellscream, self-confessed war criminal, die for his wrongdoings? Will he spend his life in a dungeon cell, or even be set free? But first, his final right of reply. Per Anduin's request, he is restrained only by handcuffs.

Garrosh Hellscream says: I know exactly the magnitude and the consequences of what I have done.
Garrosh Hellscream takes a deep breath, although not like how Onyxia would.
Anduin Wrynn leans forward in anticipation of Garrosh Hellscream's next response.

As Garrosh gives his speech, Kairoz is busy with the Vision of Time. For some reason, Chromie is not present with him.

Garrosh Hellscream says: And now, here at this moment, when I am free to speak my mind and heart, I tell you true: I regret...
Garrosh Hellscream laughs.
Garrosh Hellscream yells: Nothing!
Anduin Wrynn's face sours as outrage erupts from the gallery.

Anduin Wrynn: I could not believe it; for a few seconds, my mind could not mentally process those words. Outraged cries were hammering my ears, as fa'shua called for order. There I sat, truly believing Garrosh would finally repent.
Anduin Wrynn sighs.
You will have to excuse me.

Garrosh Hellscream yells: Yes! Yes! I would destroy a thousand Theramores, if it would bring the Alliance to its knees!
The gallery continues with its disorder.
Varian Wrynn says: Anduin. Come on. Go’el wants to talk to us and I think I know why.

Anduin and King Varian Wrynn leave to talk to Go'el. Anduin would eventually go looking for Chromie. Hardly anyone has noticed, but Kairoz simply stands there, observing the commotion with not so much as a smile on his lips. Could he be up to something?
Fade to black.

Fade in from black.
The Vision of Time falls off its table and shatters on the floor. From it is unleased a tornado of golden, whirling light.
The gallery's shrieks of anger turn into those of terror.

A storm breaks out in the courtroom. Into its eye, Garrosh and Kairoz disappear, and from it emerge broken copies of the world leaders, apparently from alternate time periods. They proceed to attack those gathered.

The storm had a side effect; it has completely dissolved the dampening field, and those whom could cast magic are now able to. Shado-Pan guards rush in carrying in weapons for those whom could fight, and those whom could not were escorted out. Anduin, coming round from unconsciousness, quickly rushes to the battle-in-a-courtroom.

Anduin Wrynn: When I made it to the main floor, the whole thing looked rather surreal; everyone was doing battle with their selves. I soon found my own copy: frozen in horror, dressed in the coronation robes of a King of Stormwind and, ironically, clutching Fearbreaker [a mace]. Apparently, my alternate self eventually became King, but ended up proving too soft for the crown.
So I hurried on over, intent on giving him aid, when I was set upon by-

Chronormu: -Vol'jin.

Anduin Wrynn (alternate) yells: Behind you!
Anduin Wrynn darts to his left, barely missing the swing of a glaive.
Vol'jin (alternate) says: Ya be quick, little prince, but I be wearin’ yah ears just da same.

Chronormu: So I saw the two Anduins, over at the other side, trying to take down a rather spiteful troll. Couldn't blame Vol'jin; he's addicted to collecting ears. Anyway, I was in my dragon form by then, I went over, grabbed the teeny-tiny Vol'jin with my claw and threw him to the other side of the arena. Unfortunately, by then, I was too late, because-

Anduin Wrynn: -He was bleeding profusely onto his shirt, having been stabbed straight through the chest... I was cradling him in my arms, staring at that pale, still face... my face...
Anduin Wrynn sobs.
It felt quite surreal, to have held yourself as you died...

Averting the tragic, Chromie offers Anduin some vital advice.

Chronormu says: Acceptance will help their reality in this place grow tenuous.
Anduin Wrynn comforts Anduin Wrynn (alternate), the latter glowing pale before finally disappearing.

By counselling his alternate self, Anduin is able to return him to the time from when he came. Unfortunately, for the others, this task is much more difficult. Sitting high above the arena floor, the jury, the August Celestials do not help out directly. However, Xuen offers the combatants crucial advice.

Xuen says: Remember the sha! Remember the sha!

These three words prove instrumental for each others' victories against their selves. One by one, each copy returns to their own timeline, more at peace than before. However, this is not the only threat to the Temple of the White Tiger. Hellscream loyalist forces, consisting of Dragonmaw orcs and hired pirates, invade the complex.

Morale high, the defence gains the upper hand, and, realising that Garrosh is gone, the Dragonmaw retreat. Many are wounded, a few mortally, but Chi-Ji heals them to full health. Tragedy is averted.

As Pandaria lacks a central government, the incident falls within the jurisdiction of the White Tiger Clan. They call on the Lorewalkers for help, whom send Shado-Pan Chronicler, Lorewalker Pao, to lead the investigation.

Lorewalker Pao says: What happened here?

Lorewalker Pao: It is the role of a Lorewalker to record history for posterity. As Shado-Pan Chronicler, I am much more used to documenting the more... military side of things. When I heard of a civilian event at the Temple [of the White Tiger], I immediately jumped on it. Well, as high as a pandaren can jump on it... Anyway, apart from being appalled at the violence that just happened, this was something I definitely had to get to the bottom of, since, from what I could gather, history itself was at stake...

Go'el says: Kairoz. He did something to the Vision of Time.
Lorewalker Pao says: Oh my!
Fade to black.

Fade in from black.
A fight has broken out during Garrosh Hellscream's trial, leading to the Accused's escaping. Lorewalker Pao needs to find out why, to prevent it from happening again. He starts by interviewing those present.

Lorewalker Pao says: So, what exactly was Kairoz doing with the Vision of Time?
Go'el says: I do not know. He looked like he was making changes to it. If he was deactivating it, I am surprised he chose Garrosh's sentencing to do it during.

Lorewalker Pao: Indeed, it does seem odd the time he chose to work on it. All the evidence had been presented, after all...

Go'el says: I also saw him push it off the table.
Lorewalker Pao gasps.

Lorewalker Pao says: The moment I heard of such a deliberate sabotage, I knew I had to get Ms. Thai on it. Ancient artifacts is her specialty, after all.

Lorewalker Pao sends Ms. Thai after the remains of the Vision of Time.

Ms. Thai: Once [Lorewalker] Pao realised he needed the Vision of Time examined closely, he had to call on my archaeological expertise. Ancient artifacts are in pieces, the Vision of Time is in pieces... you get the idea.

Ms. Thai gets to the table where the Vision of Time once stood and realises it is no longer there.
Ms. Thai sighs.
Chronormu says: Hey! Ms. Thai! Looking for this?
Chronormu conjures the remains of the Vision of Time, which stay suspended in mid-air.
Ms. Thai says: Yes, thank you very much! You don't mind if I have a look at it?

The two take the broken pieces back to Ms. Thai's archaeology lab in the Seat of Knowledge, the Lorewalkers' headquarters in the Vale of Eternal Blossoms.

Meanwhile, Lorewalker Pao goes after the court transcript. It is a written record of everything said in the courtroom, and so should be a reliable account of what happened. Unfortunately, the pages are scattered all over the Temple, having been blown around during the magical storm. It will take some time to collect them and put them back in order.

Lorewalker Pao says: Well, that's no good...

What is left of the Vision of Time reaches the Seat of Knowledge. Here, Ms. Thai and Chromie take a close look at it, to see whether it collapsed spontaneously or, according to some witnesses, broke during impact.

When glass shatters, the forces open a small crack at the weakest point, from which the crack then spreads until the structure finally loses integrity and collapses. If there is a flaw in the glass, the crack is much more likely to begin there.

The two look for flaws in the hourglass vessel. After assembling the Vision of Time back together and poring over its surface details, they come to only one conclusion.

Ms. Thai stares at the reconstructed Vision of Time, in awe by its craftsmanship.
Ms. Thai says: Absolutely flawless...
Ms. Thai turns to Chronormu, Chronormu facing in kind.
Ms. Thai says: Chromie, this is a work of art!

Ms. Thai: After a very close look at the artifact's structure, we could not find any glassmaking defects on it whatsoever. This meant it could not possibly have broken itself because of what it had to contain.

Chronormu: No one else could've been prouder of something so elaborate. Kairoz had dedicated so much time and effort to it, from its blowing from molten, to its filling in the Timeless Isle, right down to the final tweaks.
...
Come to think of it, he always did like to tinker...

There is only one possibility: Kairoz had pushed the Vision of Time off the table, creating the storm. Now Lorewalker Pao must determine: why?
Fade to black

Fade in from black
Lorewalker Pao has found that, by breaking the Vision of Time, Kairoz could allow Garrosh Hellscream to make his escape. Now he has to figure out why he would want to set a war criminal free.

After many painstaking hours collating the pages of the court transcript, he is now able to read it from start to finish. What he finds causes some concern.

Lorewalker Pao: From the transcript, I found that two bronze dragons were operating the Vision of Time on behalf of the court: Chromie for the Accuser and, lo and behold, Kairoz for the Defender. Was it a coincidence that he was in Garrosh's defence team? Definitely something to look into.
Other than that, Shado-Pan security certainly had their hands full. What a tense atmosphere it must have had! Needless to say, the whole thing was a powder keg ready to go off.

Unfortunately, the usefulness of the transcript ends there. The scribe's job was only to record words said out loud, not actions or intentions that may have been displayed. He hits a dead end. Stumped, Lorewalker Pao calls Chromie in for an interview.

Lorewalker Pao says: Chromie! Glad you're here. Thanks again for helping Ms. Thai out with the Vision of Time.
Chronormu says: No problem! You wanted to ask me about Kairoz?
Lorewalker Pao says: Yes, actually... How did you know?

The interview proves very productive.

Chronormu says: You see, the Bronze Dragonflight has always preserved the timeways as they are, but there is a new faction rising that wants to, in their words, "change the future to something better". Kairoz is among them.
Lorewalker Pao says: And what about you?
Chronormu says: Definitely not.

Lorewalker Pao: Judging from what Chromie had to say, things are worrying, very worrying indeed. Here we have some bronze dragons using their Titan-given powers, not to defend history, but actually change it. As a Lorewalker, let me assure you how dangerous tinkering with time is-

Chronormu: -Especially considering how we [the Bronze Dragonflight] are now. Nozdormu had given up so much of our power taking Deathwing down, we can't see the timeways so clearly anymore. And who's to say what's "better", especially if we can't know cause and effect that much better than mortals?

Interviewing Anduin, Lorewalker Pao finds that Kairoz is not the only one in on it.

Anduin Wrynn says: Wrathion. He knocked out me and the Chus, while I was looking for Chromie.
Lorewalker Pao says: Umm, where did you find her?
Anduin Wrynn says: I found her locked in Garrosh's cell, while he was in the courtroom giving his final reply.
Lorewalker Pao says: Oh my! Why would he be in on it? Did he say?
Anduin Wrynn says: Not really... All he told me before I blacked out was that he was responsible for keeping Azeroth safe, that one day everyone could be united against a terrible enemy, and that the end justifies the means.

Lorewalker Pao: You have got to wonder how things are supposed to turn out, if Kairoz, Wrathion and Garrosh get their way. Maybe they are training Azeroth for a Burning Legion invasion?

We may never know.

As the investigation into Kairoz concludes, focus now turns to how the disaster could have been averted. On top of everyone's mind is why Kairoz was allowed to operate the Vision of Time in the first place. The answer is rather obvious.

Lorewalker Pao: Ask me to activate the Vision of Time and I wouldn't be able to get so much as the dragons [on the frame] to blink. It is a very complex device and I cannot even begin to comprehend how someone not a bronze dragon is supposed to operate it.

To the casual observer, it looks like simple handwaving is enough to get it running. Nothing can be further than the truth; elaborate time-based magic needs to be applied, that which would take an elven mage many years to master. Chromie and Kairoz were the only ones available at short notice to operate it.

Taran Zhu says: No one among you carries a weapon, and I have instructed that a dampening field be put in place-

A magic dampening field had been maintained throughout the proceedings, right up until the storm erupted. It should have been enough to stop the storm from forming; why did it not?

Chronormu: Believe it or not, the magic that brought you visions from the past is the same magic that drove the storm.

Lorewalker Pao: If the dampening field had to nullify the storm, it would have also stopped the Vision of Time from projecting its images. It was an exception they had to make for the running of the trial, an exception that led to the dampening field's itself failing.

By allowing the storm's energy through, the dampening field sealed its own fate. However, even without this exception, the dampening field may still have been deficient.

Author's note: I'm fully aware of this plot hole, but I'm going ahead with it anyway.

Tyrande Whisperwind says: Do not fear, Your Highness. Seeing and hearing the bell rung in this manner does not have the same effect as actually being in its presence.
Anduin Wrynn says: Thank the Light.
Anduin Wrynn whispers a soft prayer.

Anduin Wrynn: The prayer was to soothe the aches from my brush with death, aches that would never truly go away. I was fully aware of the dampening field in place, yet when I prayed to the Light at that time, it responded. I was quite surprised.

The dampening field should have prevented even holy magic from being casted, so why did it let this spell through? The field has dissipated since being overridden, leaving no traces behind. We may never know.

Anduin had requested that Garrosh confront the verdict restrained only by handcuffs; normally, he was escorted in full chains. This would definitely have allowed Garrosh a less hindered escape. Was this necessary?

Anduin Wrynn: I do regret that Garrosh was able to escape wearing only handcuffs, and through a fault of my own. However, I am not one to forsake a warrior's dignity.

Lorewalker Pao: I must say, even Shado-Pan security made a point about this. As dishonoured he is himself, Garrosh was entitled to face his fate like a warrior. Despite how you denounce him, he is still a master of his art, terrifying as it is, and this was respected by allowing his legs due freedom.

Garrosh would certainly have found it much harder to escape in full chains. However, such concessions are not likely to be abandoned any time soon.

The Lorewalkers report is critical of Shado-Pan security over the lack of supervision on the Vision of Time. To ensure this does not happen again, it makes several recommendations to the White Tiger Clan. Foremost is more rigorous supervision over artifacts of power.

Lorewalker Pao: Definitely, keeping a careful eye on something as powerful as the Vision of Time will prevent, or at least discourage, any untoward use of them.

Also, it requests that background checks be mandatory on those contracted from outside the court system.

Lorewalker Pao: By looking into the histories of those the courts bring in, their risks can certainly be known and taken into account.

And finally, an optional recommendation is made that the Accused be restrained throughout their trial, even through the final verdict.

As disastrous the outcome of the trial was of the most hated war criminal in Azeroth's history, a few heroes stand out: those that had to battle their selves to close the rift in time. In doing so, not only did they emerge victorious, they also recognised what truly matters in life. This made the final verdict all the more palatable.

Yu'lon says: Garrosh Hellscream would live, so that he would continue to learn.

Anduin Wrynn: You know, if we did not realise that we ourselves were not truly innocent, that any of us can turn out just like Garrosh Hellscream, everyone would have been fuming over what the August Celestials had decided. Especially Accuser Tyrande. Apparently-

Yu'lon says: It was not merely Garrosh Hellscream who was on trial.
Everyone looks at each other, somewhat confused.
Go'el says: We were too.

Bibliography

• Golden, Christie (2014), World of Warcraft: War Crimes, 1st hardcover edn, Gallery Books, New York.
• Stickney, Anne (2014), Know Your Lore: Wrathion's duty, blog post, WoW Insider, viewed 18 May 2014, <http://wow.joystiq.com/2014/05/18/know-your-lore-wrathions-duty/>.

Acknowledgements

• Inspired by Air Crash Investigation, a documentary about aircraft accidents produced by Cineflix and aired on National Geographic Channel.