Chapter Summaries

Unas and the Dwarves captured a Naga who revealed that her mother had captured Varian Wrynn, then reached Stormwind City and learned that Marshal Windsor was imprisoned after accusing Countess Prestor of being a Black Dragon spy. Unas planned to investigate the city and find a way to deal with Prestor while deciding how to protect Windsor and respond to Varian’s capture.

• Unas and the Dwarf Warriors subdued a six-armed Naga, and Unas ordered her taken to Stormwind City for questioning.
• The Naga revealed that her mother had captured Varian Wrynn, and Unas realized the captive king was Varian’s compliant personality.
• Unas handed the unconscious Naga to Ambassador Aoge-Leishan after the train reached the Dwarf District of Stormwind City.
• Aoge-Leishan told Unas that Varian had been missing for three months, the city was under martial law, and Marshal Windsor had been jailed for attempting to assassinate Countess Prestor.
• Unas learned that a prison riot might let him visit Windsor and confirmed that Countess Prestor was his main target.
• Unas asked Aoge-Leishan to arrange a tour of the other city districts so he could assess the situation and plan his next move.

Unas surveyed Stormwind City’s defenses and shortages before deciding to use the prison’s recruitment drive to rescue Marshal Windsor. As he joined the prison guards under a disguise, he grew suspicious of a human mercenary company that had also been hired.

• Unas and Gude traveled through Stormwind City, observed its martial law and the prison’s defenses, and heard Ambassador Aoge-Leishan explain that the city lacked enough troops to reinforce the jail.
• Unas decided that rescuing Marshal Windsor could help expose the Black Dragon Princess, but the next morning he learned that Naga had attacked the mine tunnel and demanded Nora Tidemist’s release.
• Unas healed the wounded Gnome technician Steelgrip, who reported that the Tides tribe had attacked and threatened to destroy the tunnel unless Nora was freed.
• Unas and Gude disguised themselves as Ironforge mercenaries and joined the recruitment drive led by Jailer Thelwater at Central City Prison.
• Unas suspected the cold, expressionless members of the Blackblade Mercenary Company were not human, while their leader, Captain Barbosa, insisted that his men stay together.
• Thelwater hired Barbosa’s company and assigned it to guard the outer gate and camp by the river, keeping the mercenaries outside the prison fort.

Unas joined the prison guard battalion and learned that the Defias Brotherhood had seized the prison while trying to rescue Bazil Thredd, leaving him waiting for a chance to reach Marshal Windsor. Elsewhere, Countess Katrana Prestor learned that Unas had entered the prison and ordered her agents to exploit the coming conflict to eliminate their targets.

• Unas and the Bronzebeard Dwarves joined the prison guards, where Captain Grace explained that the Defias Brotherhood had organized the riot to free Bazil Thredd and still held much of the prison.
• Unas learned that the prisoners had not surrendered after four days and suspected that a major assault would create a chance to find and rescue Marshal Windsor.
• Countess Katrana Prestor used Vandrin Bloodsoul's illusion and Charm to manipulate Aulbe Earl into recommending mercenaries for prison duty, then ordered an investigation into a female Naga held by the Dwarves.
• Vandrin identified Unas as the black-haired Paladin connected to Marshal Windsor and the Dark Iron Kingdom, so Katrana decided to leak information about him to SI:7 and let them test him.
• A messenger reported that Barbosa had been assigned outside the prison, and Katrana ordered her agents to proceed with their original plan to eliminate every chosen target when the robbers attacked.

During a coordinated attack on Stormwind City, an assassin killed Jailer Sel-Wat and tried to open the prison, while prisoners battered the iron door from the other side. Green revealed himself as an SI:7 agent and took command of the guards, ordering Captain Gude and his mercenaries to prepare to meet the prisoners’ first charge.

• Green secretly watched Unas and noticed the Dwarves deferred to the young man despite Captain Gude’s formal leadership.
• A squad leader reported fires near the harbor, and cannon fire soon confirmed that warships were attacking Stormwind City.
• The Jailer received reports of trouble at the harbor, the old barracks, and Tempest Keep before an assassin disguised as a soldier killed him and opened two of the prison door’s bolts.
• The guards killed the assassin, but prisoners struck the iron door and forced a gap open; a blast of flame killed the lieutenant and several soldiers.
• Green revealed his SI:7 badge, assumed command, and ordered the guards to form up and seek reinforcements.
• Green ordered Captain Gude to form his mercenaries and stop the enemy’s first charge.

Unas fought his way into the prison and reunited with Marshal Windsor, who revealed his escape plan with Bazil Thredd and the Defias Brotherhood. As Major Sophia led two battalions toward the fortress to support the plan, Gelin and the guards awaited reinforcements without realizing their true purpose.

• Gelin ordered Gude and the Dwarves to hold the tunnel entrance as the Ogres broke through the prison door, and Unas slipped past the battle into the prison.
• Unas defeated Hamhock and the attacking Ogres, then followed a soldier to Marshal Windsor, who was cooperating with Bazil Thredd to escape and kill the Countess.
• Windsor explained that Major Sophia planned to bring troops into the prison amid a riot, while Unas warned that an SI:7 agent had taken command outside and the harbor bombardment was still underway.
• Bazil Thredd dismissed the deaths of the Ogres as expendable and urged the group to wait for Sophia's forces.
• Gelin received word that two battalions under Major Sophia would arrive within a quarter of an hour, while Sophia rode toward the fortress, conflicted about her role in the rebellion.

Sophia took control of the prison and joined Marshal Windsor and Bazil’s Defias forces in an advance on Stormwind Keep, while Edwin VanCleef launched an assault on the city. As warnings reached SI:7 and Duke Bolvar Fordragon addressed the nobles, Katrana’s political maneuvering and the city’s defenses remained under threat.

• Sophia ordered the City Guard to take over the prison, arrested Green when he objected, and released Windsor and the Defias prisoners; Green escaped despite being wounded.
• Sophia armed the freed prisoners, and Windsor’s forces joined Bazil’s Defias in marching toward Stormwind Keep after green signal flares appeared.
• A girl in the sewers received the signal and prepared explosives, while Edwin ordered his fleet to fire three volleys and land on both sides of the city.
• Green reached an SI:7 hideout and warned his colleagues that Sophia, Windsor, and Bazil were leading criminals disguised as soldiers toward the keep; he learned that Shaw had gone to confront Edwin at the harbor.
• In Tempest Keep, nobles reacted to the harbor attack and the murders of five councilors, while Katrana welcomed the removal of her political enemies.
• Duke Bolvar Fordragon entered the hall with the young prince and requisitioned the nobles’ private troops under Duke Vishak to reinforce the front.

Bolvar assembled a force of nobles’ private soldiers to confront the rebellion, while the Countess slipped away from the keep. At the bridge, Duke Vishak’s troops fought Bakir’s criminals, and their duel left both commanders gravely wounded just as Defias’s main force arrived.

• Bolvar learned that Windsor was marching on the keep with thousands of prisoners and persuaded the nobles to contribute troops under Duke Vishak and the Countess.
• The Countess handed command to Duke Vishak, then secretly dismounted and vanished while a maid rode on in her place.
• Duke Vishak’s force advanced on the bridge, where Bakir’s criminals had been looting and fighting alongside Sophia’s city guards.
• Duke Vishak’s soldiers charged the criminals, who retreated in disorder before Bakir forced them to turn and fight.
• Bakir and Duke Vishak badly wounded each other in a duel, and a horn sounded to announce the arrival of Defias’s main force.

The Defias Brotherhood drove Duke Vishak’s forces from the bridgehead with naval cannons as VanCleef revealed his ambition to take Stormwind City and broke with Marshal Windsor. Meanwhile, the Black Dragon Princess negotiated a new exchange with Sara Tides outside the city.

• Duke Vishak retreated with his private soldiers after Defias reinforcements arrived and cannons destroyed the bridgehead fortification.
• VanCleef declared that the Brotherhood would rule Stormwind City, and Windsor ended their covenant, but Unas urged them to cooperate against the keep.
• VanCleef’s Goblin technicians fired twelve naval cannons, forcing Vishak’s soldiers to flee and allowing Defias to retake the bridgehead.
• Windsor and Sophia discussed waiting for the Black Dragon Princess and other city forces to challenge VanCleef, unaware that the Princess was outside Stormwind City.
• The Black Dragon Princess presented Sara Tides with her unharmed daughter and a ransom, while Sara returned a bound human man; the Princess proposed another deal.

VanCleef’s Defias army captured Stormwind Keep after blasting through its western wall, and Bolvar fled with the Little Prince while the nobles and Royal Guards were taken prisoner. VanCleef then began a massacre of the nobles, leaving Unas and Sophia to wonder where the Countess had gone.

• VanCleef’s Defias forces feinted at both gates, then used explosives to collapse part of the western wall and pour into the keep.
• Bolvar led the reserve guards to the breach, ordered a retreat when they could not hold it, and escaped with the Little Prince as the Defias seized the keep.
• The nobles and most captured Royal Guards surrendered, and the Defias gathered them in the Courtyard under VanCleef’s command.
• VanCleef declared an end to noble rule and urged the guards to take revenge; prisoners and guards began killing the captured nobles.
• Unas restrained Sophia from intervening as they watched the massacre with Marshal Windsor, and the two questioned where the Countess had gone.

VanCleef consolidated the Defias’ control of Stormwind City after massacring captured nobles, while the Black Dragon Princess prepared a counterattack and resistance forces rallied across the city. As the Defias faced setbacks on several fronts, Unas confronted Vanessa VanCleef while under house arrest.

• VanCleef ordered the noble corpses displayed around the city and tried to recruit Marshal Windsor, who warned that the Black Dragon Princess and the prince could threaten the Defias.
• The Black Dragon Princess blamed Vandrin Bloodsoul for failing to act and ordered him to activate their plans against the Defias.
• Barbosa forced the mercenary leaders to honor their agreement by killing a Warrior who refused to fight for Stormwind.
• The Defias negotiated neutrality with the Dwarves, surrounded St. Storm Cathedral, and sent troops to capture Old Town and the Trade District.
• Teachers and students from the military school and mercenary companies reinforced the city’s defenders, while Naga attacked the Defias fleet and VanCleef went to protect the harbor.
• Unas learned that his young minder was Vanessa VanCleef and stood up to confront her while Marshal Windsor and Major Sophia remained under house arrest.

Unas and his companions were taken to Stormwind Harbor, where the Defias fleet defeated the attacking Tides Naga. When nine refugee ships arrived, Unas led them away from the harbor, but the refugees faced both pursuing Defias warships and the sea monster Behemoth until Master Omar appeared.

• Unas defeated Vanessa in a brief fight, and a Defias messenger ordered them all to accompany VanCleef to the harbor.
• VanCleef's fleet drove Sara Tides and the Naga into retreat, and the Tides Chieftain ordered her warriors to lure Behemoth toward the Defias ships.
• When nine ships approached Stormwind Harbor, Unas recognized them as the refugee fleet and flew to warn them away from the Defias-controlled harbor.
• Unas and Luther turned the refugee ships around, but nine Defias warships pursued them and attempted to surround the fleet.
• Behemoth appeared, forcing the Defias ships to retreat while it turned toward the refugees; Master Omar teleported onto the ship and offered to intervene.

Unas’s fleet escaped the sea monster and stopped at a deserted island, where he planned to watch the fighting while investigating the Countess. In Stormwind, the Countess revealed the unconscious King to Master Hernan and Shaw, while VanCleef faced a sea monster, collapsing ships, and attacks on multiple fronts.

• Master Omar used Dragon’s Presence and a burst of flame to drive the sea monster away from Unas’s fleet, and Unas anchored at a barren island for supplies and a council.
• Unas told his allies that Defias had taken the keep and that VanCleef had killed the nobles, then suspected the Countess had summoned the Naga and sea monster; he sent most of his group toward the harbor while Luther, Hart, and Pafeman stayed behind.
• The Countess showed the unconscious King to Master Hernan and Shaw in a bank vault, and they confirmed his identity; Shaw promised to contact the Cathedral and mobilize the Silver Lion Knight Order.
• Behemoth overwhelmed damaged Defias warships, and VanCleef ordered deserters and then surviving sailors shot as the monster fed on those in the water.
• VanCleef learned that the Cathedral’s knights and the Trade District forces were attacking, so he sent Vanessa and Bakir to lead Defias troops against them and had Windsor and Sophia weakened and confined.
• VanCleef returned to defend the docks and ordered his captains to fire on swimmers approaching shore, but the already scarce ammunition and the crews’ reluctance made the second volley weak.

VanCleef’s plan to destroy Behemoth was interrupted when SI:7 and allied forces launched an assassination assault on the docks. Russell drove Behemoth from the harbor, but the Defias began turning the battle around, forcing the Black Dragon Princess to seek a quick end to the fight.

• Russell Blood Oath advised VanCleef to conserve the fleet’s ammunition and use the Dragon-hunting team to attack Behemoth when it surfaced.
• As VanCleef prepared to fire on Behemoth, SI:7 assassins and battle mages emerged from three portals and attacked the Defias leaders and guards.
• VanCleef rushed to protect Russell after Shaw attacked him, then fought Shaw in a running duel while Russell faced Vandrin Bloodsoul.
• Russell transformed into a demon, weakened Behemoth with curses, and struck it with Chaos Bolt and Rain of Flames until it fled the harbor.
• The fleet’s sailors landed and reinforced the Defias, surrounding the remaining portals and turning the battle against the attackers.
• With her assassination plan on the verge of failure, the Black Dragon Princess resolved to end the fight quickly.

The Countess forced Master Hernan to open a portal and send mages and her Blackblade Mercenary Company to the Warehouse District, but Hernan trapped her in a spatial vortex and escaped. After rejoining her forces, she pursued VanCleef, while Unas reached the harbor and secured passage through an agreement with Russell Blood Oath; the chapter ended as VanCleef charged the mercenaries surrounding him.

• The Countess threatened Master Hernan into opening a portal, then Hernan used it to fling her into the Warehouse District and sealed himself in Ice Block to suppress the explosive magic in his chest.
• The Countess ordered her forces to attack VanCleef, but the mages stayed behind to fight the Defias Pirates, so she and Barbosa headed toward the Warehouse District.
• Unas and his companions approached by ship, and Russell Blood Oath recognized Plugger's necklace and agreed to let them land so they could pursue the Countess.
• Vandrin Bloodsoul mistook VanCleef's disguised panther for the assassin and attacked, but VanCleef ambushed and wounded him while Shaw struck the panther.
• The Countess used a Crystal Ball to reveal VanCleef and her Blackblade Mercenary Company surrounded him; VanCleef charged through their weapons, vowing to kill.

VanCleef fought the Black Sword Mercenaries and the Countess until she impaled him, then tried to pass a hidden treasure map to Unas for his daughter. Unas and the arriving mages confronted the Countess, and Master Omar completed a spell to reveal her true form.

• VanCleef broke through the mercenaries’ defenses, but Barbosa transformed into a dragonbeast and cracked VanCleef’s leg before the Countess’s dragon breath set the warehouse district ablaze.
• The Countess trapped VanCleef on an earthspike and offered to spare him as her servant, but a golden flash brought Unas to the battlefield.
• VanCleef threw his dark gold dagger toward Unas, but the Countess intercepted and crushed it, revealing a coded map to VanCleef’s hidden treasure.
• Unas attacked the Countess with help from Perella and Huoye, and the Countess’s exploding Gravity Vortex sent them tumbling through the air.
• Blackbeard Oink and the Mage Academy’s spellcasters arrived, and Oink challenged the Countess about Headmaster Hernan’s attack at the bank.
• Master Omar finished his dispelling spell and commanded the Countess to reveal her true form as Onyxia.

Master Omar exposed the Countess as Onyxia, and Unas, Kressa, and Stormwind’s mages fought to stop the Black Dragon Princess from destroying the city. Onyxia fled toward the western sea after taking grievous injuries, but Unas and reinforcements pursued her and kept the battle going.

• Master Omar’s spell broke the Countess’s disguise, revealing Onyxia, who attacked the mages while Unas drew her away.
• Unas endured Onyxia’s attacks as the mages empowered him, and Master Omar struck her with Furl’s Scale-Shedding Spell.
• Unas interrupted Onyxia’s Meteoric Dragonflame Fall and wounded her belly, while Kressa attacked her organs and helped Unas escape her claw.
• Nesingwary’s dragon-breaking ballistae struck Onyxia, and she abandoned Varian Wrynn and fled toward the western sea.
• Unas and Kressa caught up with Onyxia, wounded her eye and horn, and continued fighting alongside Omar, Oink, the mages, and Gryphon Riders.

Unas defeated Onyxia and negotiated with Vanessa VanCleef, offering to resurrect her father in exchange for Defias concessions. After reviving VanCleef, Unas met the injured SI:7 leader Shaw, who asked to see Head Hernan.

• Onyxia ran out of dragon breath, and Master Omar's mages bound her wings with Wind Spirit Binding, sending her crashing into the sea.
• Russell Blood Oath revealed that the Defias ships were watching Onyxia, and he and Vanessa asked Unas to return VanCleef, whom Nightmoon had rescued and brought aboard the Dwarf warship.
• VanCleef awoke, spoke with Vanessa, and died; Unas then offered to resurrect him in return for Onyxia, Defias withdrawing from Stormwind City, an assassination, and other concessions.
• Vanessa accepted Unas's terms, and he used Redemption to restore VanCleef to life.
• Shaw woke and asked Unas to arrange a meeting with Head Hernan so he could confirm the king's safety.

Unas coordinated with VanCleef and General Jonathan to arrange a staged Defias retreat while other allies pursued the captured King Varian. As the retreat preparations advanced, Unas confronted the chained Black Dragon Princess and questioned her about Soul Splitting.

• Oink teleported Shaw to the Trade District after they learned that the bank vault had been emptied and King Varian was missing.
• VanCleef named Vanessa the new leader of the Defias Brotherhood, accepted his place as Unas's hostage, and ordered his followers to purge disloyal leaders.
• Shaw and Unas convinced General Jonathan to have the City Guard wait for a signal before joining a supposed surprise attack against Defias.
• Unas asked VanCleef to kill Archbishop Benedictus during the retreat, and VanCleef agreed.
• Unas confronted the chained Black Dragon Princess, dismissed her ransom offer, and asked about her Soul Splitting spell after she threatened that Varian could not be restored without her.

Unas forced Onyxia to reveal the spell that could separate a possessing demon from its host, then joined the operation to retake Stormwind Keep and clear Windsor and Sophia’s names. As the Silver Lion Knight Order left the Cathedral to pursue the retreating Defias, an assassin killed Archbishop Benedictus, and Adam led his Knights out to hunt the murderer.

• Unas threatened Onyxia with his sword until she gave him the splitting spell and VanCleef’s treasure map; Omar learned that casting it required a pair of twins and judged it could be altered to remove Bessarius.
• Unas admitted that a demon was connected to his soul, while Onyxia offered a spare dragon egg and the island’s old magic circle as the spell’s sacrifice and casting site.
• Adam saw Defias withdrawing and persuaded Archbishop Benedictus to let most of the Silver Lion Knight Order break out toward Stormwind Keep.
• Unas and Sophia staged a battle at the keep, defeated two Defias leaders, and sent the agreed signal before Adam’s cavalry arrived and joined them on the march toward the harbor.
• The Silver Lion Knight Order left the Cathedral’s defenses depleted, and a shadowy assassin entered the building and killed Archbishop Benedictus in the confessional.
• Adam learned of Benedictus’s death, realized the withdrawal report had lured him away, and led his Knights out to hunt the assassin and blame Defias.

The Defias fleet escaped after Stormwind’s victory, while an assassination attempt left General Jonathan badly wounded and the city in chaos. Unas traveled with Omar and Russell to the Black Dragon’s island to perform the soul-splitting spell, but the triplet egg and an enemy attack disrupted the ritual as the Black Dragon struck.

• General Jonathan survived an assassin’s poisoned attack at the Docks, and the old marshal formed a provisional administration to manage Stormwind City’s postwar crisis.
• VanCleef gave Unas the Regent’s signet ring and revealed that Bolvar was dead while the real Anduin had escaped toward the Burning Steppes.
• After two days of rest, Unas, Omar and Russell traveled with the Black Dragon to her island and found the magic circle and dragon egg prepared for the ritual.
• Omar began the soul-splitting spell, but discovered the dragon egg contained triplets, creating an unexpected third soul to fill.
• Enemies triggered Russell’s traps outside the cave, and the Black Dragon unleashed her strength and attacked Omar and the Felguards.