Chapter Summaries

Durotan used the Holy Souls of dead Orcs to awaken ancient Kobold Empire war machines beneath Lake Keslil and defeat the Yeti King’s forces. After discovering a silver-furred Kobold noble, he planned to restore the Kaisriel Empire, while Khadgar learned of the danger and resolved to end the war in Gadgetzan quickly.

• Durotan confronted the Yeti King on Lake Keslil after the Yeti King accused him of slaughtering a tribe.
• Durotan used the golden sphere to awaken ancestral Yetis beneath the lake, and they killed more than a hundred Yetis in battle.
• Durotan ordered the ancestral Yetis to settle down and awakened an ancient silver-furred Kobold, confirming the Kaisriel Empire’s noble class had existed.
• Durotan declared that Winterspring could help him restore the Kobold Empire and boasted that even the Lich King Arthas would be no great threat.
• Khadgar received the Yeti King’s letter, realized Durotan was more dangerous than Imperator Mar'gok, and decided to end the Gadgetzan war and return the army to Orgrimmar.

Anachronos hosted negotiations in Thunder Bluff as the Bronze Dragonflight’s strength waned, while Tyrande and Maiev plotted to use a frozen Kobold assassin against Durotan. The talks began amid disturbing Tauren feasts, and a hidden observer watched the guests.

• Mar'gok won Chen Stormstout’s friendship by bringing him a Tauren, and the two swore an oath of brotherhood the next morning.
• Tyrande warned Maiev that Durotan planned to revive the Kobold empire with a million holy souls.
• Maiev revealed Osaid, a trained Kobold assassin, and agreed to send him after Durotan and potentially other targets.
• Anachronos welcomed the negotiators in Thunder Bluff, where guests were served live Tauren and discussed the right of races to exist.
• A hidden observer watched the gathering and struggled to identify the different guests.

Chen Stormstout’s drunken outburst disrupted negotiations between the factions, while Velen arrived and openly declared himself the Holy Light’s spokesperson. As Velen demanded the deaths of Mar'gok and Durotan, Durotan prepared to demonstrate that the Holy Light brought destruction.

• Chen Stormstout threatened Taran Zhu and, after Taran Zhu threw him against a wall, threatened war against the Pandaren before proposing that Highmaul and Orgrimmar become brothers.
• Taran Zhu accused Highmaul of causing Draenor’s tragedy, and Mar'gok blamed Prophet Velen, with Durotan and Khadgar supporting his account.
• Taran Zhu summoned Velen, who admitted he served the Holy Light and argued that Mar'gok and Durotan had to die to save Azeroth.
• Mar'gok agreed to return the Hourglass of Time Shard, but Velen challenged him to swear that he had never prayed to the Holy Light.
• Durotan looked around and declared that he would prove the Holy Light brought nothing but destruction.

Durotan and Amado accused Velen of conspiring with the Burning Legion, while Velen denied the charges and blamed his son. Amado revealed that he was Illidan, who confronted Velen over his role in the Black Temple plot.

• Durotan accused Velen of arranging the Draenei's retreat and plotting to bring the age of Holy Light to Azeroth, while Mar'gok and Anachronos demanded answers.
• Velen claimed his son had betrayed him, but Amado testified that Velen had ties to the Burning Legion and manipulated events at the Black Temple.
• Amado explained that Velen had helped the Legion defeat Illidan and sought to make his son Rakeesh lord of Outland.
• Amado transformed into Illidan, revealed that he had infiltrated the Burning Legion on Argus Planet, and accused Velen of deceiving him.

Durotan interrupted “Illidan” as he tried to kill Velen, then accused him of serving the Burning Legion and offered Thrall’s testimony as proof. “Illidan” countered by claiming Durotan was actually Fenris and that Thrall had eaten the real Durotan and his wife.

• Durotan used the Ancestral Spirits to shove Taran Zhu into “Illidan’s” path, giving Velen time to break free and defend himself with a dragon claw.
• “Illidan” tore off Velen’s transformed arm, but a commanding voice compelled Anachronos to intervene and challenge the attempted execution.
• Velen accused “Illidan” of serving the Burning Legion, and Durotan claimed Thrall had told him Illidan’s Illidari secretly served Kil’jaeden.
• Anachronos and Chen Stormstout backed Thrall’s reputation, while Taran Zhu mocked Anachronos by reminding him Thrall had eaten his father.
• “Illidan” claimed the real Durotan and his wife had survived Gul’dan’s assassins but were later eaten by Thrall, then revealed that the present Durotan was Fenris.

After Osaid’s failed attempt to kill Durotan, the group decided to travel through time to verify Velen’s account of events at the Black Temple. As the party prepared to leave, Gagg recruited Osaid to assassinate Thrall in the past.

• Osaid attacked Durotan, but the white wolf pelt shielded him, and “Illidan” revealed that the real Durotan’s soul had been destroyed.
• Taran Zhu, Chen Stormstout, and Khadgar agreed to supervise Velen, who claimed that A'dal and Kil'jaeden’s envoy had divided Azeroth between them.
• Anachronos offered to take a group to the era when Thrall escaped Durnholde so they could verify Velen’s story, and Durotan, Mar'gok, and Velen agreed to go with him and Khadgar.
• Osaid secretly followed Durotan, but Gagg found him and revealed his golden-furred Kobold ancestry.
• Gagg asked Osaid to kill Thrall when Thrall escaped from Durnholde.

Robbie learned that Anachronos, Khadgar, Durotan, Velen, and another companion planned to enter year eighteen of the Dark Portal, so he and Krasus set out to arrive first. In the past, Blackmoore had secured control of Durnholde through brutality and now threatened a group of Peace Dove protesters led by Sir Chris of Stormwind City.

• Osaid hesitated over killing Thrall, but Big Candle Gagg urged him to judge Thrall for himself.
• Robbie learned of Anachronos's group's plan and decided to reach the Black Temple Timeline before them with Krasus.
• Blackmoore recounted how he took control of Durnholde, survived Uther's attack, and enslaved Orcs to fund the detention center.
• Blackmoore's adjutant told him that Peace Dove protesters, including young nobles, had arrived at the gates.
• Sir Chris accused Blackmoore of mistreating the Orcs, and Blackmoore threatened to feed him to them.

Blackmoore dealt with Peace Dove members at Durnholde and learned Medivh’s magic had implanted their beliefs. Later, Robbie and Krasus sought the gladiator champion Thrall, but found thirty-three Orc slaves called thralls, leaving them to suspect the legendary Thrall had come from Karazhan instead.

• Blackmoore let the Orcs devour Sir Chris after he declared that Stormwind City belonged to the Orcs.
• A Peace Dove woman and the other members refused to renounce their beliefs, and Blackmoore had them thrown to the Orcs.
• Blackmoore’s female adjutant said Medivh had used magic to implant the Peace Dove members’ beliefs in their minds.
• Blackmoore received a valuable Highborne crystal goblet from a Kalimdor merchant whose guest wanted to meet Thrall.
• The female adjutant showed Robbie and Krasus the thirty-three surviving Orc gladiators, explaining that thrall meant slave.
• Robbie and Krasus realized the legendary Thrall was likely raised by Medivh at Karazhan, not in Durnholde.

Anachronos encountered a powerful Jaina in Southshore, while Robbie and Krasus watched her confront the Silver Hand. Jaina’s effortless use of Holy Light left Robbie fearing that the Age of Holy Light had come in her future.

• Anachronos and Krasus waited in Southshore for Thrall, while Anachronos sent Khadgar, Durotan, Mar'gok, and Velen to investigate Durnholde.
• Anachronos recognized Jaina at an inn and suspected she had traveled from the future.
• Robbie and Krasus identified Anachronos and discussed testing Jaina’s strength.
• Alexandros Mograine ordered Jaina to leave the inn, but she struck him down when he tried to grab her.
• Jaina severed Isillien’s arms with unseen power and let the Silver Hand knights escape.
• Robbie identified Jaina’s power as Holy Light and warned Krasus that the Age of Holy Light had arrived in her future.

Khadgar and the others found no sign of Thrall in Durnholde, while Anachronos learned that Jaina had arrived from the future and wondered whether she had come for Arthas. In Lordaeron, Jaina confronted the tortured King Terenas and demanded to know where Prince Arthas was.

• Khadgar, Durotan, and Mar'gok reported that neither Durnholde's records nor its imprisoned Orcs revealed a Thrall, while Mar'gok learned that Blackmoore had no adopted son by that name.
• Anachronos told the group that Jaina had arrived from the future, and Khadgar asked where Prince Arthas was.
• Orgrim tortured King Terenas and demanded that he free the Orcs from the internment camps, while Uther healed the king and pledged the Silver Hand's service.
• Terenas told Uther that Sir Chris had been fed to the Orcs at Durnholde, and ordered him to urge Varian to ask Medivh to intervene against Blackmoore.
• Jaina appeared before Terenas, threatened to torment his soul, and demanded to know where Prince Arthas was.

Jaina searched for Arthas but learned only that Terenas had cast him aside, while Medivh advanced a plan to reshape the Orcs and prepare Ashkandi as a new leader. The chapter ended with Ashkandi promising to help Aiguleiya escape Karazhan.

• Jaina questioned Terenas about Arthas, but he said he did not know where his son was and suggested Uther might know.
• After hearing a children’s song praising Orgrim Doomhammer, Jaina decided to seek Arthas through the Peace Dove and declared that he must die for Azeroth.
• Medivh heard envoys accuse Blackmoore of abusing Orcs and murdering nobles, then began preparing the second phase of his human-nature experiment.
• Moroes reported that Ashkandi had mastered combat, scholarship, and magic, so Medivh decided to present him as Durotan’s son and give him a greatsword from the Iron Horse Brotherhood.
• Ashkandi told Aiguleiya that leaving Karazhan would only mean entering another cage, but promised to find a way to help him escape.

Ashkandi received a sword and agreed to become a leader for the Orcs, but insisted Aiguleiya be freed alongside him. Medivh approved the demand, intending to use Aiguleiya to test Ashkandi, while Moroes and Blackmoore began planning Ashkandi’s rise and the Orcs’ release.

• Ashkandi gave Aiguleiya a ring and promised they would never be separated.
• Moroes presented Ashkandi with a red greatsword, which he named Ashkandi, Greatsword of the Brotherhood, and told him he was expected to become king of the Orcs.
• Ashkandi agreed to Medivh’s plan on the condition that Aiguleiya be freed too, and rejected Moroes’s warning to abandon their friendship.
• Medivh approved Ashkandi’s request, hoping Aiguleiya would become the test that drove Ashkandi to kill his own brother.
• In the eighteenth year after the Dark Portal opened, Ashkandi and Aiguleiya left Karazhan for Tarren Mill in the Hillsbrad Foothills.
• Moroes arranged with Blackmoore to promote Ashkandi and release the Orcs, and Blackmoore recommended building his fame through an arena and a powerful gladiator victory.

Blackmoore staged a ten-bout arena event for Ashkandi before an audience that included several kings and Prince Kael'thas. Ashkandi dodged Homan Ironhoof's scythe until the Tauren charged at him in a berserk rage, leaving their fight unresolved.

• Blackmoore confirmed with Moroes that Ashkandi would face ten consecutive bouts and asked for a show that looked challenging.
• Kings Terenas, Varian, and Greymane and Prince Kael'thas arrived to watch the event.
• After a warm-up match, Homan Ironhoof entered the cage as Ashkandi's first opponent; Ashkandi brought his brother Aiguleiya and handed him his red sword.
• Ashkandi dodged Homan Ironhoof's repeated scythe swings until the Tauren grew exhausted.
• Ashkandi closed the distance, and Homan Ironhoof dropped his scythe and charged at him in a berserk rage.

Ashkandi defeated Watermodo in the arena, while Anachronos and the others investigated the Ogre’s suspicious past. Watermodo survived by abandoning his Ogre body, but Jaina confronted him and demanded to know who had sent him.

• Ashkandi killed Watermodo by draining the Ogre’s blood with Blood Magic, prompting Anachronos and Khadgar to question how Ashkandi’s rise might alter history.
• Mar’gok recognized Watermodo as a former Highmaul Court Mage who had stolen a Titan stone tablet, and Blackmoore explained that Watermodo had offered to become a gladiator.
• Anachronos, Khadgar, Durotan, Mar’gok, and Velen suspected Watermodo had entered the arena for a hidden purpose, possibly involving Thrall.
• Watermodo’s corpse was taken to the arena kitchen, where he emerged as a Water Elemental after using Elemental Body to escape his Ogre body.
• Jaina confronted Watermodo and demanded to know who had sent him, offering to spare him if he behaved.

Jaina enslaved Watermodo and ordered the Peace Dove Organization to find Arthas. At the Arena, Aiguleiya gave Ashkandi a stolen Super Titans Elixir, and Ashkandi used his newfound strength to defeat the Shadow Panther and challenge his remaining opponents at once.

• Watermodo confessed that Thrall had sent him, and Jaina enslaved him as her Water Elemental while clarifying that she was searching for Arthas.
• Jaina used King Terenas's authority to order the Peace Dove Organization to locate Prince Arthas.
• After the sixth duel, Ashkandi revealed that Watermodo's cold poison had injured his internal organs, and Aiguleiya offered him the stolen Super Titans Elixir.
• Ashkandi drank the elixir, healed his injuries, and gained greater strength and Blood Magic.
• Ashkandi tore apart the Shadow Panther in the seventh bout, alarming Kael'thas and impressing the Arena crowd.
• Ashkandi told the referee to send his three remaining opponents against him together.

Ashkandi defeated the Nerubian lord, the Gronn, and ten Orc gladiators before facing a Burning Blade Blademaster. The blademaster tried to kill Aiguleiya because he foresaw him causing a future of bloodshed, but Ashkandi protected his brother and prepared to fight.

• Blackmoore arranged a final challenge in which Ashkandi would fight a Nerubian lord, a Gronn, ten Orc gladiators, and a black-robed opponent while carrying chains.
• Ashkandi killed the Nerubian lord and the Gronn, then knocked down all ten Orc gladiators.
• The black-robed opponent revealed himself as an elderly Burning Blade Blademaster, and Ashkandi faced him with ten chains on his shoulders and no weapon.
• The Burning Blade Blademaster used an illusion to approach Aiguleiya, but Ashkandi rushed over and blocked his sword strike with the chains.
• The blademaster claimed a vision showed Aiguleiya bringing death and bloodshed to Azeroth, but Ashkandi refused to let him harm his brother.
• The Burning Blade Blademaster spun his longsword and prepared to attack Ashkandi.

After Ashkandi killed the Burning Blade Blademaster, Aiguleiya turned on him, exploiting a drug that paralyzed him and claiming victory in the Arena. Anachronos and Khadgar recognized Aiguleiya as Thrall, while Durotan approved of his ruthless victory.

• Ashkandi interrupted the Burning Blade Blademaster's Whirlwind and killed him with a broken sword, then comforted Aiguleiya.
• Aiguleiya declared that he and Ashkandi had to fight for the Arena championship and revealed his long-held resentment toward him.
• Aiguleiya used a failed Super Titans Elixir to paralyze Ashkandi, cut off his right arm and legs, and killed him by tearing out his heart and beheading him.
• Blackmoore and Moroes decided to proceed with the original plan and announce Aiguleiya as the champion.
• Anachronos and Khadgar recognized Aiguleiya as Thrall, and Durotan praised his ruthless conduct.

After the gladiatorial contest, Aiguleiya realized that winning had not brought him the future intended for Ashkandi, though he was told he was Durotan’s son. An Orc led him to Orgrim Doomhammer, who punished him for failing to recognize him and challenged his claim to leadership.

• Anachronos, Khadgar, and Velen discussed waiting to see Thrall’s future unfold, while Jaina told Watermodo that Aiguleiya had to face the price of growth himself.
• The contest ended without Aiguleiya being named champion, and he found that the Greatsword of the Brotherhood had disappeared.
• An Orc in chains called Aiguleiya the son of Durotan before soldiers whipped him, and Aiguleiya realized the revelation had been intended for Ashkandi.
• A free Orc brought Aiguleiya to a forest camp, where a stranger said he had intended to recruit Ashkandi as his right-hand man.
• The stranger attacked Aiguleiya, broke his shoulder and knee, and crushed his fingers before identifying himself as Orgrim Doomhammer.

After Orgrim tortured Aiguleiya, he survived by using a Super Titans Elixir and made his way to Durnholde Keep, where Taretha and her brother Falarin took him in. Still consumed by hatred and hunger, Aiguleiya attacked Falarin as soon as they were alone.

• Orgrim tortured Aiguleiya through the night, then left him hidden beneath leaves to suffer for days.
• Aiguleiya used the Super Titans Elixir concealed in his fang to regrow his limbs, skin, and eyes, and vowed revenge on Orgrim and the Orcs.
• Aiguleiya wandered out of the forest and collapsed near Durnholde Keep from hunger.
• Taretha and Falarin took the unconscious Aiguleiya home, and Taretha fed him porridge and explained her work with the Peace Dove.
• Aiguleiya asked for fresh meat, then hid a pair of scissors and lured Falarin close by offering to tell him about Medivh.
• Aiguleiya stabbed Falarin in the neck with the scissors and bit into him.

After escaping Taretha’s house, Aiguleiya sought out Grom Hellscream, hoping to join the Warsong Clan and build his own power. Iska brought him blindfolded to an underground cave, where Aiguleiya saw Hellscream asleep beside his battle axe.

• Aiguleiya attacked Falarin, and Taretha shielded him from Lieutenant Drak before he escaped through a window.
• Aiguleiya ran northwest and met a merchant caravan whose members praised Grom Hellscream and condemned Orgrim Doomhammer.
• Aiguleiya asked the merchants to help him meet Hellscream, while secretly planning to rise in power and take the Warchief’s place.
• At dawn, Iska and seven other Warsong Orcs bound Aiguleiya and carried him blindfolded to an underground cave.
• Iska removed Aiguleiya’s blindfold, revealing Grom Hellscream asleep on a stone bed beside his bloodstained battle axe.