With things at a critical moment, the World Guardian joins Ariane and Charos to discuss the problem- the eggs are about to hatch and Gielinor is almost out of time. Charos says that there's two major questions: first, can they stop the eggs from hatching, and second, can they stop the Elder Gods from touching them. The trio brainstorm ideas for a bit: destroying the eggs is possible, but a terrible idea; fighting the Elder Gods is out; there's nowhere the eggs could be hidden that the Elder Gods couldn't go... but there's two ideas that could work if they get some gods on their side: move the eggs to somewhere less full of anima, and then drain the anima so the eggs can't hatch.
However, there's an obvious problem: the Elder Gods will notice the eggs being moved, and they'll want them back, so they'll probably send people to get them back. Ergo, the eggs would need to be moved to somewhere very defensible, but away from people, and not out in the open. The World Guardian's out of ideas, but Azzanadra teleports in and says that he wants to help. For the first time in years, he has no orders to follow, but he's still a devoted follower of Zaros. However, he wants to make up for his actions at the Monolith, as he feels he betrayed his friends. And he has a solution for both of their problems: he'll move the eggs, now that he has the power, and he also knows where to move them to- Senntisten.
The World Guardian points out that Senntisten was destroyed. Azzanadra explains that it wasn't fully destroyed- Zamorak occupied the city and Saradomin built over it, but parts of it are still intact. He emphasises that everyone needs to stand together as one, asks the World Guardian for a private conversation at the Archaeology Guild, and leaves. Ariane and Charos discuss Azzanadra, with the latter saying that he can tell that Azzanadra wasn't lying, and the former asking the World Guardian to give him a chance.
At the Archaeology Guild, Azzanadra talks to the World Guardian about their friendship, such as it is. He says that while he counselled Zaros against turning against the World Guardian, he still followed orders because his loyalty to Zaros will always come first, and such he's not sure if it's possible for him to really have friends. However, he wants to regain the World Guardian's trust, he just isn't sure how. The World Guardian says that risking his life to shut the Monolith helped, and Azzanadra admits that he isn't sure about a lot of things now that he's a god and without orders, but what he is sure of is that they'll need allies.
He recommends asking Armadyl, Saradomin, Seren, Zamorak and Icthlarin, as they'll need both gods to siphon the anima and the gods' followers to fight the Elder Gods' armies. The player heads off on a recruiting mission, to mixed results: Icthlarin refuses to ally with a Mahjarrat, even temporarily, and doesn't think he has much to offer. Instead, he heads off on a journey through the universe to look for an alternate solution. Seren agrees to help, but leaves the council out of it because of her effect on them. Also, she seems focused on protecting the eggs, as opposed to recognising the threat they pose.
Armadyl is wholly on board, though he's uncomfortable with Seren's influence on the council. Saradomin also agrees, but he's not happy about working with Zarosians. Zamorak also agrees, though his reasons are more selfish than the others. It's not a perfect result, but it's enough to continue, so the World Guardian and 'Dr Nabanik' enter the archaeological dig site, deactivate the barrier and enter Senntisten. Azzanadra reminisces for a bit, and then picks a spot to place the eggs, an old cathedral that was named in honor of him. He identifies this part of the city as one of its more affluent areas, and it was never occupied by Zamorakians or Saradominists, so there might still be things that can help them.
Azzanadra teleports the eggs in, and the World Guardian realises that there's no going back now- even if they immediately teleported the eggs back to the Elder Halls, the Elder Gods would not be happy. Their allies will soon be arriving, so Azzanadra sends the World Guardian in search of magical wards that use ancient magic. He explains that normal magic comes from the Elder Gods, so they can't use that, but ancient magic comes from somewhere else, and putting the elements together may well manage to equal the kind of shield that using shadow anima would create, without endangering everyone in the process.
However, there's a catch, naturally: Senntisten is not a safe city to traverse without help. The darkness will quite literally kill people, but there's a way around it- activate its magical light sources to drive the shadows away. It takes a lot of running around and a bit of combat, but the World Guardian finds the wards and brings them to the cathedral. As each ward is placed, one of the godly allies arrives. First is Seren, who is very irate at Azzanadra for finding and entering the Elder Halls in the first place, as he went against the council's orders. However, she's still going to help, though she seems to think that she's protecting the eggs from harm, instead of protecting Gielinor from the eggs. Azzanadra brings up Seren tricking the Mahjarrat into killing each other for the Rituals and says that he no longer holds that grudge. Seren says that Helwyr and some elite elven fighters will be arriving soon.
Next is Saradomin, who flatly states that he's there to protect his people, because that's his job. He questions whether Zaros will still be loyal to Azzanadra once he learns of his ascension, and says that the Temple Knights will have to stand in for the White Knights, because they're protecting his kingdoms. However, Zilyana's on her way. Third is Zamorak, who's bringing K'ril Tsutsaroth and the Twin Furies, and wants Azzanadra to think about the possibility of the two of them working together to benefit the Mahjarrat, which he agrees to. Zamorak and Saradomin start insulting each other, but Azzanadra tells them to stop, because if anything goes wrong, they might wind up with three malformed Elder hatchlings, and Mah was bad enough. The other two concede that he has a point. Finally, Armadyl arrives. He's bringing Kree'arra and nobody else, because the aviansie's numbers are too low and he refuses to risk them.
A projection of Kerapac appears. He tells them that the Elder Gods know what they're planning and aren't happy, and while he doesn't want to stop them, he has to. His forces are massing, and the cathedral will fall. Once the projection's gone, the gods and the World Guardian discuss what it means: the Elder Gods will be attacking through proxies, not directly, and Kerapac's army is probably the Nodon dragonkin. They agree that Azzanadra will command the ground forces, the gods will siphon anima away from the eggs, and the World Guardian will do some world guarding.
Tropes:
- Creepy Monotone: An ominous voice is heard when you take damage from the shadows while exploring the area west of Senntisten's cathedral unprotected from the light orbs' light.
- Enemy Mine: Saradomin, Zamorak, Armadyl, and Seren all agree to set aside their differences and work together to stop the Elder Gods' eggs from hatching. Icthlarin doesn't join them due to his mistrust towards the Mahjarrat and instead offers an alternative means of assistance.
- Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: Kerapac would've joined the other gods in stopping the Elder Gods' eggs from hatching, but due to the World Guardian's actions in "Desperate Measures", he is now an agent of the Elders and is sending the Nodon, along with other agents, to reclaim the eggs by force.
- Nothing Personal: Kerapac states that he has nothing against the World Guardian when he announces that he is sending an army to reclaim the Elder eggs, and would've helped them with their plans. However, he reminds the World Guardian that they brought it upon themselves for stopping his plans to sacrifice Gielinor in the name of destroying the Elder Gods to begin with.
