Chapter Summaries

Jaina discovered that Kalai's son had been tainted by an Old God through Abercrombie's potions, then followed clues to Winterstorm Academy. Meryl Winterstorm revealed that he had been working with an Old God and had prepared Kalai's son as a backup Vessel.

• Kalai told Jaina that he had given Abercrombie a vial of Lordaeron's plague and relied on his potions to ease his son's illness.
• Jaina detected a blood-red six-pointed star on Kalai's son's forehead and realized he carried the aura of an Old God.
• Jaina, Kalecgos, and Kites searched Abercrombie's former home, laboratory, and Eliza's grave, where Jaina found half a Winterstorm Academy token.
• Jaina confronted Meryl Winterstorm, who admitted he had taught Abercrombie alchemy and said Kalai's son was a rare backup Vessel for an Old God.
• Meryl told Jaina he had been working with an Old God and said he survived by playing both sides.

Jaina questioned Meryl about the Sixth Old Gods and the Scythe of Elune, while Meryl used a staged display of Void power to mislead her. After Jaina left with a plan to resurrect the king, Robbie revealed that he and Meryl had arranged the performance.

• Meryl claimed to serve the Sixth Old Gods and intimidated Jaina with a display of Void power, persuading her that the Burning Legion was no match for the Void Lords.
• Meryl told Jaina that Arthas was only a pawn and that the Sixth Old Gods was the stableman's son who had played with him as a child.
• Meryl revealed that the Scythe of Elune was in the Cathedral of Light in Stormwind City, held by Revil Kost.
• Meryl gave Jaina a supposed way to resurrect the king by turning him into an Undead and then a Faceless One, and Jaina left Winterstorm Academy relieved.
• After Jaina departed, Robbie emerged from hiding and praised Meryl's performance, revealing that he had helped stage the deception.

Jaina attempted to resurrect the false Varian, but the spell failed after Kites sabotaged the materials. Kites admitted he wanted to claim Stormwind’s throne, and Sylvanas arrived with Blightcaller and Archmage Antonidas, urging Jaina to accept his request.

• Kalecgos told Kites that Medivh had selected royal infants for their bloodlines and explained that advanced necromancy could sometimes restore an Undead soul.
• Jaina prepared the false Varian’s remains and Raven Hill materials, rebuilt the corpse, and tried to fuse the soulstone’s soul with it.
• The soul shattered, and Jaina found a venom-coated widow spider hair hidden among the herbs.
• Jaina confronted Kites, who admitted he had sabotaged the spell because he wanted to become king of Stormwind City.
• Jaina told Kites that Sylvanas still held the real King Varian’s soul, and Sylvanas entered with Blightcaller and Archmage Antonidas, saying Jaina should agree to Kites’s request.

Jaina and Sylvanas negotiated over King Varian’s soul and the political dangers of restoring him to power. They agreed to cooperate, with Sylvanas proposing that a Wild God protect Varian and help secure his throne.

• Jaina refused to surrender Kites to Sylvanas, but Sylvanas offered to let Jaina take Varian’s soul in exchange for the Night Watchman.
• Sylvanas warned Jaina that using Old God power to resurrect Varian could let C’Thun or Yogg-Saron control him, and Antonidas urged Jaina to abandon the plan.
• Jaina mocked Antonidas by recalling Thrall’s claim that he had eaten him, while Kalecgos tried to calm the argument by invoking Thrall and Elune.
• Jaina considered how the Black Dragon Princess and Bolvar had weakened the Wrynn family and questioned whether Varian could regain his throne safely.
• Sylvanas argued that Medivh could not secure Varian’s rule and proposed using a Wild God as the king’s protector.
• Jaina accepted Sylvanas’s offer to cooperate, and Sylvanas said she would choose a suitable demigod.

Robbie abandoned his plan to control Varian and instead arranged to summon Lo'gosh Goldrinn, while Sylvanas prepared an altar on Mount Hyjal for Kites to choose a Wild God. As Sylvanas began presenting the Wild Gods and warning Kites away from certain choices, the selection remained undecided.

• Robbie met Archbishop Benedictus in Stormwind City, where they discussed Thrall's demand for five hundred thousand humans and the danger Varian's return posed to their plans.
• Robbie proposed summoning Lo'gosh Goldrinn, whom he believed was not under Elune's control, and Benedictus gave him the Scythe of Elune.
• Sylvanas, Jaina, and Antonidas built an altar at Nordrassil's remains to summon Wild Gods for Kites.
• Kalecgos urged Kites to marry a High Elf and secure an heir, but Kites admitted that he liked Orc women.
• Sylvanas began preparing to present the Wild Gods to Kites and advised him not to choose Agamaggan or Cenarius.

Kites, posing as King Varian Wrynn, sought a Wild God’s blessing while Sylvanas and Antonidas oversaw the ritual. The Wild Gods offered powers at steep prices, and Tortolla and Aviana exposed each other’s hidden costs before Kites chose a blessing.

• Sylvanas coached Kites to seek power through self-interest, and Kites declared that he wanted to be king before she named him King Varian Wrynn.
• Sylvanas and Antonidas completed the altar ritual as Jaina watched warily and Kalecgos stood beside her.
• Malorne rejected Kites, and Ursol and Ursoc refused to bless a human king because humans had hunted their kind.
• Agamaggan offered battlefield strength in exchange for filling Stormwind with vines and making Quilboar nobles, while Cenarius demanded human souls for charm.
• Aviana offered gale powers and attraction to men in exchange for revering ravens, and Tortolla offered defense and long life for food.
• Aviana warned that Tortolla’s blessing would burden Kites with a shell, sleep, and feeding his family, while Tortolla revealed the hidden costs of Aviana’s blessing.

Kites rejected the conditions of the other Wild Gods and prepared to accept Ursol and Ursoc’s offer, but Lo’gosh appeared and promised him power and a path to rule the Eastern Kingdoms. Kites signed a contract with the wolf god, who ordered him to let the Scourge weaken Orgrimmar before striking.

• Ursol and Ursoc offered Kites strength and magic in exchange for protecting beasts and supporting Thrall and the Horde, and Kites agreed to their conditions.
• Robbie used the Scythe of Elune, summoning Lo’gosh and frightening away the Wild Gods; Sylvanas, Jaina, Antonidas, and Kalecgos escaped through Portals, leaving Kites behind.
• Lo’gosh promised Kites power, help taking the throne, and dominion over the Eastern Kingdoms in exchange for worship and the destruction of the Peace Dove cult.
• Lo’gosh demanded that Kites conquer Orgrimmar and offer him one in ten Orcs, and Kites agreed and signed the contract.
• Lo’gosh empowered Kites and warned him to wait while the Scourge devastated Orgrimmar, then attack when the Orcs were weakened.

After receiving Goldrinn’s blessing, Kites planned to claim Stormwind’s throne while Jaina advised him on consolidating power. Sylvanas countered by resurrecting the real Varian as a weak demon and sending him to Duke Bolvar, where Benedictus confirmed his identity.

• Goldrinn’s blessing filled Kites with power, and he declared himself both Varian and Lo’Gosh.
• Jaina and Kalecgos flattered Kites, and Jaina urged him to deal with Duke Bolvar and the Black Dragon Princess before challenging Thrall’s role against Arthas.
• Kites agreed to cooperate with Jaina, who opened a Portal and took him and Kalecgos away from Mount Hyjal.
• Sylvanas ordered Antonidas and Varimathras to resurrect Varian and turn him into a demon, despite Antonidas’s warning.
• Varimathras resurrected Varian with little Fel power, and Sylvanas sent him to Duke Bolvar before Jaina could act.
• Benedictus hurried to Stormwind Keep, where Bolvar showed him the restless young man and confirmed that he was King Varian.

Benedictus confronted Bolvar and the returned Varian over the Fel-made king and the rival king backed by Jaina, while Varian tried to secure his claim. Varian then frightened Anduin into offering help from his friend Med'an.

• Bolvar told Benedictus that Varian’s body had been created from Fel, and Benedictus warned Bolvar to leave Stormwind or face the new king’s wrath.
• Benedictus urged Bolvar to bargain with Jaina to protect the Royal Guard, but Bolvar refused to abandon his loyalty to House Wrynn and vowed to stop the false king.
• Benedictus challenged Varian over his past alliance with the Horde, warned that Jaina supported a rival king, and left Varian plotting how to save his throne.
• Anduin resented Varian’s return but hid his feelings as they spoke about the Defias Brotherhood and the Naga.
• Varian told Anduin that Jaina had betrayed them and would cost him the throne, frightening him with threats of a miserable life; Anduin said he could turn to his friend Med’an.

Varian tried to secure Thrall’s help in reclaiming the throne by promising that Stormwind would join the Horde. After Jaina agreed to the bargain and their conversation was secretly recorded, an obese female Orc told Garrosh that their chance had come.

• Varian urged Anduin to contact Med’an and deliver a letter to Thrall, arguing that House Wrynn’s survival mattered more than the common people’s lives.
• Anduin used the Rune Stone to summon Med’an, who read Varian’s letter and promised to deliver it to Thrall.
• Thrall told Jaina that Varian had offered terms he could hardly refuse, and Eitrigg handed her the letter.
• Jaina read that Varian had promised to make Stormwind join the Horde, then agreed to accept the offer with Thrall.
• Someone secretly recorded Thrall and Jaina’s conversation and passed it to an obese female Orc, who told Garrosh their chance had come.

Garrosh and Doras arranged to find Kites before Jaina could act, while Archbishop Benedictus reached him first and took him to Stormwind to confront the supposed false Varian. Jaina discovered Kites was gone and teleported to Dalaran to seek a reliable ally.

• Garrosh and Doras decided to support Kites against Thrall and hired a red-robed man to find him.
• Benedictus entered Kites's villa, revealed that Valeera and Broll Bearmantle had been watching him for Jaina, and asked about his view of the Scourge and Orcs.
• Kites said Stormwind should let the Scourge destroy the Orcs and then seize their lands, matching Benedictus's own intentions.
• Benedictus told Kites that a demon disguised as Varian had taken the throne and offered to bring him to Stormwind to expose the false king.
• Jaina arrived at the villa and learned that Benedictus had taken Kites; she then teleported to Dalaran to find an ally.

Rhonin agreed to keep Dalaran neutral while Jaina gathered influential leaders to mediate the crisis in Stormwind. Jaina, Tirion Fordring, and Magni Bronzebeard arrived in the city, where Bronzebeard was angered by the crowd’s praise of Saurfang.

• Jaina showed Rhonin Thrall’s threatening letter, and Rhonin declared that Dalaran would never submit to the Orcs again.
• Jaina persuaded Rhonin that Dalaran could travel to Northrend under the pretext of helping Alexstrasza against the Blue Dragonflight.
• After hearing Jaina’s account of Stormwind’s political crisis, Rhonin proposed that she recruit Tirion Fordring and Magni Bronzebeard, while Dalaran mediated through Khadgar.
• Jaina said she would side with the Orcs because she expected them to win, then took Tirion Fordring from Light’s Hope Chapel and persuaded Magni Bronzebeard to join her.
• Jaina, Tirion Fordring, and Magni Bronzebeard rode into Stormwind City, where Bronzebeard grew furious as people praised Saurfang and dismissed Tirion.

Varian agreed to give up House Wrynn’s shares in the Venture Company to secure Magni Bronzebeard’s support for Stormwind joining the Horde. Jaina’s magical barrier failed to stop Archmage Arugal from overhearing the deal, and Benedictus and Duke Bolvar learned that the kingdom’s missing tax revenue had funded Varian’s investment.

• Magni Bronzebeard privately resolved to claim House Wrynn’s wealth, then went with Tirion Fordring to meet Varian in Stormwind Keep.
• Jaina questioned whether Varian was truly prepared to have Stormwind join the Horde, and Varian said it was necessary to unite against the Lich King Arthas.
• Fordring described his vision of the Scourge’s victory and gave Varian a list of supplies for his Northrend expedition; Varian agreed to pay for them.
• Bronzebeard demanded House Wrynn’s shares in the Venture Company, and Varian reluctantly agreed after Bronzebeard revealed he knew about the family’s investments.
• Arugal overheard the conversation despite Jaina’s barrier, then Benedictus asked Duke Bolvar about Varian’s investment and learned that Bolvar had noticed missing tax revenue.

Varian's attempt to reclaim Stormwind's throne turned into a violent confrontation when Kites attacked instead of negotiating. Kites drove back the defenders and challenged Bronzebeard, while Bolvar intervened to prevent the fight from escalating.

• Benedictus and Bolvar agreed that Varian must be stopped from returning to the throne, and Varian entered Stormwind Keep with Marcus Jonathan and the City Guard.
• Varian and Kites faced off in the Throne Room, but Kites accused Jaina of treason and attacked Varian.
• Marcus blocked Kites's strike, Jaina shielded and pulled Varian away, and Kites rallied the City Guard by calling Varian a coward.
• Kites struck Tirion Fordring down, causing the City Guard to doubt that Tirion was genuine.
• Bronzebeard prepared to fight Kites, but Bolvar stepped between them and warned that Ironforge would be attacking Stormwind City.

Khadgar tried to settle the dispute over Varian by claiming the two kings were one person split by the Black Dragon Princess. The conflict took a new turn when a Black Dragon abducted Prince Anduin and escaped after swallowing Khadgar’s spell.

• Jaina tried to win Kites over by urging him to serve Thrall, but Khadgar and Rhonin arrived in Stormwind Keep.
• Khadgar claimed that the Black Dragon Princess had split King Varian into two people, one representing wisdom and the other courage, to provoke strife in Stormwind City.
• Jaina supported Khadgar’s explanation, while Bolvar and Benedictus looked displeased and Varian protested that the claim was false.
• Robbie restrained a fiery-bearded man in a hidden corner and prepared him to make an appearance as a little red dragon.
• A Black Dragon appeared in the throne room with Prince Anduin unconscious in its claw and swallowed Khadgar’s spell.
• The Black Dragon challenged the others to find it in Dustwallow Marsh, then flew away with Prince Anduin.

After Stormwind's heroes refused to confront the Black Dragon Princess, Tirion Fordring arranged a contest between the two claimants to Stormwind's throne and planned to fake the dragon's death with a head from Chromaggus. Archbishop Benedictus suspected the kidnapping was meant to guide Bolvar's agent Kites to Dustwallow Marsh, but Kites instead traveled to Ratchet, where Garrosh Hellscream welcomed him.

• Bolvar asked the assembled heroes to help rescue Prince Anduin, but Tirion Fordring, Magni Bronzebeard, and Rhonin each found reasons not to lead an expedition.
• Tirion Fordring proposed that the two kings compete to kill the Black Dragon Princess and claim Stormwind's throne, and Jaina agreed to contact the Horde.
• After leaving Stormwind Keep, Jaina questioned Tirion Fordring, who revealed he planned to pass off a head from Chromaggus as the princess's.
• Archbishop Benedictus agreed to the contest and suggested that Kites investigate Dustwallow Marsh, suspecting the kidnapping was meant to help them.
• Kites avoided Theramore, traveled through Booty Bay to Ratchet, and followed an Orc to a hidden basement.
• Garrosh Hellscream greeted Kites and called him the king of Stormwind City.

Kites met with Garrosh, who proposed an alliance against Thrall and offered to help him become king of Stormwind, while Kites named Jaina as his enemy. Meanwhile, Varian pressured Griftah to finish a fake dragon head, but a mysterious horn sounded and Griftah suddenly promised it would be ready the next day.

• Garrosh and Doras met Kites, and Garrosh revealed that he had arranged Prince Anduin's kidnapping without Saurfang's involvement.
• Garrosh offered to help Kites kill Varian and take the Stormwind throne in exchange for opposing Thrall's northern expedition.
• Kites agreed to work with Garrosh and named Jaina as the enemy he wanted destroyed, prompting Garrosh to vow to destroy her and Theramore.
• At a secret estate in Elwynn Forest, Griftah worked on the frozen Black Dragon head while Varian demanded that it be finished within three days.
• Griftah explained that the fake head needed to imitate a true dragon's majesty, and Varian threatened to execute him if he failed.
• A mysterious horn sounded, and Griftah stood straight and promised Varian the dragon head would be ready the next day.

Valeera, Broll Bearmantle, and Griftah killed Varian and used his body to create a convincing Black Dragon display, while Garrosh helped Kites claim credit for rescuing Anduin and slaying Onyxia. Jaina exposed the deception to Thrall, who demanded a way to exploit Kites’s weakness, and she said she had heard he liked female Orcs.

• Valeera stabbed Varian, and Broll Bearmantle explained that he had betrayed him to protect the Night Elves; Griftah then fused Varian’s body with the Dragon’s head.
• Garrosh arranged for Kites to take Anduin and a fabricated Dragon-slaying story to Booty Bay, intending to undermine Thrall’s position as Warchief.
• Jaina discovered the estate was empty, found the Magic Beacon on a rat, and learned that Kites had become Stormwind’s king after supposedly rescuing Anduin and slaying Onyxia.
• Jaina told Thrall what had happened, and he demanded that his followers find a way to exploit Kites’s weakness.
• Jaina said she had heard from Kalec that Kites seemed to like female Orcs.

Thrall ordered Agna to use the Beauty Orc Stratagem against King Varian, promising to make her the Warchief’s wife if she succeeded. Meanwhile, Kites began his campaign against the Peace Dove, whose influence had shaped his attraction to female Orcs.

• Vol'jin proposed sending a beautiful female Orc to exploit the Night Watch’s preferences, and Thrall chose Agna for the mission.
• Eitrigg seized Agna from the beach despite Varimathras’s protest, and Varimathras vowed that the Orcs and Stormwind would pay.
• Thrall offered Agna the position of the Horde’s Warchief’s wife if she seduced King Varian, and Agna accepted confidently.
• Kites sought to root out the Peace Dove, while Duke Bolvar warned that its influence extended across Azeroth and could bring the kingdom into conflict with major powers.
• Kites recalled that a poster of a beautiful female Orc had first awakened his admiration for Orc women.

Kites tried to address the Peace Dove’s influence in Stormwind, then attended Grand Duke Alpha’s banquet and encountered the Orc singer Agna. After Agna’s singing and a collapsing swing left Kites pinned beneath her, he fell in love with her.

• Kites resolved to root out the Peace Dove, but Duke Bolvar warned him that the Orc craze and the nobles’ profits made swift action dangerous.
• Kites attended Grand Duke Alpha’s banquet, where Tauren and Pandaren were served as the main courses, then withdrew to a secluded courtyard.
• Kites followed a female Orc’s terrible singing into the neighboring courtyard after the guards collapsed from hearing it.
• Agna’s swing broke as she sang, and Kites tried to catch her but was flattened beneath her; he then inexplicably fell in love with her.
• Agna introduced herself to Kites and described her birth among the red flowers of Nagrand, while Kites asked whether she was the most beautiful woman in Azeroth.