Chapter Summaries

Deren and Aegwynn questioned whether the Shadowlands truly governed death across the universe, and Deren proposed creating another realm to collect souls if the Shadowlands were destroyed. They discussed White Jaina’s return and Aegwynn’s future, leaving Aegwynn curious about Medivh’s secret child and silently watching Jaina grow close to Deren.

• Deren argued that the Shadowlands might be only a later-born death realm for Azeroth, and Aegwynn agreed that it could have limited influence over death.
• Deren suggested destroying the Shadowlands might have little effect, then proposed creating another land of the dead to gather souls; Aegwynn recalled Zandalar’s death god.
• Aegwynn told Deren that White Jaina was waiting for news before returning through time and space, and that she had asked about the Orcs and Thrall.
• Deren described White Jaina’s timeline, including Garrosh’s destruction of Theramore and Jaina’s uneasy alliance with Thrall.
• Aegwynn learned that her future self died saving her grandson, and Deren hinted that Medivh’s secret could explain the grandson’s identity.
• Jaina served Deren tea with a flirtatious glance, which Aegwynn noticed as she wondered what trouble Medivh had caused.

Theramore returned to peace as Jaina visited Deren and shared soup with him and Onyxia. Their banter was interrupted when the recovering Sylvanas arrived with Vereesa to thank Deren for saving her life.

• Jaina said Sylvanas was recovering and visited Deren, where she praised the soup and learned Onyxia had helped make it.
• Jaina and Onyxia teased Deren about the tonic, his partners, and the possibility of questioning him together that night.
• Jaina asked Deren about Aegwynn's outing and Medivh, but Deren changed the subject and reflected on Medivh's mysterious fate.
• Sylvanas arrived with Vereesa, explained that her wounds had healed aside from lingering toxins, and thanked Deren for saving her.

After recovering from a Pit Lord’s assassination attempt, Sylvanas considered joining the war against the Orcs, but Deren and his companions persuaded her to stay in Theramore. Deren recruited her to help lure out the demon-corrupted Anasterian Sunstrider by arranging for Kael'thas and a borrowed elven baby to appear as bait, while Sylvanas teased Deren over compensation.

• Deren urged the injured Sylvanas to rest, and she blamed him for the dangerous plan that had nearly gotten them killed.
• Sylvanas said she wanted to fight the Orcs, but Deren, Jaina, and Onyxia persuaded her not to risk her life.
• Deren told Sylvanas that Anasterian Sunstrider had infiltrated Theramore and explained the plan to lure him out using Kael'thas and a baby presented as his grandson.
• Sylvanas agreed to find an elven baby for the plan and jokingly demanded compensation from Deren.
• Onyxia angrily defended Deren, and Sylvanas admitted that she found his confident manner irritating and wanted to make him call her queen.

Sylvanas admitted she wanted Deren to call her queen because his repeated rescues and the favors she owed him irritated her. Deren appeased her and urged her to recover and remain in Theramore, while Onyxia and Jaina also sought his attention.

• Onyxia, Vereesa, and Jaina challenged Sylvanas over her resentment toward Deren and her wish to make him call her queen.
• Sylvanas threatened to go to Ashenvale, so Deren called her queen and asked her to stay alive and protect herself.
• Vereesa joked that she wanted Deren to call her Little Princess, making Sylvanas deny she was serious.
• Sylvanas told Deren to forget her outburst, called him a good person, and left with Vereesa after he reminded her that Theramore and the Ranger Guard needed her.
• Onyxia teased Deren and asked him to call her queen, then Jaina stepped in and asked what he would call her.

Sylvanas brought Kael'thas, Verina, Deren, and Jaina to meet an Elf couple and their infant for a planned family act. Verina and Kael'thas held the baby, who took to them easily, while Deren explained Kael'thas's gentle manner; the chapter ended with the group seeing how naturally the king bonded with the child.

• Sylvanas led the group to an Elf family's home in Theramore to meet their three-month-old baby.
• Kael'thas asked the Elf craftsman whether his family was happy in Theramore and offered him the chance to return to Quel'Thalas.
• Verina became charmed by the infant and declared that she and Kael'thas should have a child of their own.
• Jaina prompted Kael'thas and Verina to hold the baby so they could test whether he accepted them for their planned act.
• Verina carefully held the infant, who giggled at her, and Kael'thas held him until he yawned contentedly.
• Deren told Jaina that Kael'thas's care for his subjects explained why the baby felt safe with him.

Kael'thas and Verina went shopping in Theramore in hopes of drawing out Anasterian, while caring for the borrowed baby they presented as their son. Anasterian met them and warmly welcomed his son, queen, and supposed grandson before Jaina and Deren arrived.

• Kael'thas and Verina prepared for their outing, tied the baby Finisole to Kael'thas with a carrier, and set out to attract Anasterian's attention.
• The royal couple strolled through Theramore while disguised Elf Rangers dealt with suspicious figures following them.
• After shopping, Kael'thas fed and changed the fussy Finisole at a restaurant, where Anasterian appeared and greeted him.
• Kael'thas introduced Verina as his queen and claimed Finisole was their child, explaining Verina's Sindra heritage and the ancient knowledge her people brought to Quel'Thalas.
• Anasterian praised Kael'thas and his family, and Jaina and Deren entered as Kael'thas said they had come to see Anasterian.

Jaina and Deren questioned Anasterian about his secret mission in Theramore, where he revealed that Kil'jaeden had sent him to investigate a suspected plot against the Burning Legion. Deren redirected Anasterian toward compiling rumors as his report, while Anasterian agreed to obey Theramore's laws and spend time with Kael'thas and his family.

• Jaina cleared the shop and confronted Anasterian about his presence in Theramore and the recent assassination attempt.
• Anasterian admitted that Kil'jaeden had sent him to investigate whether Theramore planned to attack the Twisting Nether and the Burning Legion.
• Anasterian said he had found no evidence during his month in the city and had learned that Varimathras was causing trouble there.
• Jaina welcomed Anasterian, gave him a Communication Crystal, and warned him to obey Theramore's laws.
• Deren suggested that Anasterian gather local rumors into a report for Kil'jaeden, and Anasterian agreed to stay longer with Kael'thas and his family.

Jaina and Deren suspected that Velen had leaked Deren’s plan to Kil'jaeden, though they considered the possibility of a third-party spy. They discussed using Anasterian as an ally and a controlled source of misinformation, then left the secret chamber after their conversation turned intimate.

• Jaina and Deren realized that Kil'jaeden may have learned about Deren’s plan after Velen heard it at the Hearthglen banquet.
• Deren and Jaina considered whether Velen and Kil'jaeden communicated directly or used a spy to pass carefully chosen information.
• Deren said winning over Old Sun King could help them reach Kil'jaeden, and he reassured Jaina that he would not sacrifice Sylvanas for the plan.
• Deren proposed feeding Kil'jaeden misleading information through Old Sun King and finding discreet ways for Old Sun King and Kael'thas to meet.
• Jaina and Deren continued their private discussion into the evening before leaving the secret chamber.

Deren and Jaina arranged a covert meeting route and devised absurd but plausible rumors about plans to blow up the Twisting Nether, which Anasterian would pass to Kil'jaeden. Jaina gave Anasterian the report and gifts, and he agreed to submit the rumors in batches while remaining in Theramore longer.

• Deren and Jaina set up a hidden passage between a baby supply store and a Goblin restaurant so Kael'thas and his wife could meet Anasterian without Theramore's demonic spies noticing.
• Deren gathered his household to invent rumors about the Twisting Nether, and Anveena, Onyxia, and Jaina each suggested ways to make the rumors sound convincing.
• Jaina organized the rumors into a report and arranged for them to spread, while Deren advised Anasterian to submit them in batches and include a plausible story about an experiment by Dalaran mages.
• Anasterian approved the report and agreed to pass it to Kil'jaeden while staying longer in Theramore to spend time with his family.
• Jaina gave Anasterian bags of gold and Fel Energy crystals as gifts.

Jaina and Deren persuaded Anasterian to accept their intelligence about a supposed plot against the Twisting Nether by claiming it could have exposed secret cooperation between Prophet Velen and Kil'jaeden. Anasterian left terrified of what he suspected and resolved to seek a long-term posting in Azeroth.

• Anasterian hesitated to accept Jaina’s gold, Fel Energy crystals, and intelligence files until Deren offered to explain the intelligence’s source.
• Deren claimed Theramore had asked Prophet Velen to search the Twisting Nether for Alleria Windrunner’s missing Expeditionary Force, and that Kil'jaeden had somehow learned of the request.
• Anasterian realized the information might mean Velen and Kil'jaeden secretly exchanged intelligence despite being enemies, and Jaina urged him to act as though nothing had happened.
• Anasterian accepted Jaina’s intelligence and promised to submit it to Kil'jaeden, then said he would seek a long-term posting in Azeroth to avoid the Legion.
• Jaina welcomed Anasterian to Theramore and encouraged Kael to visit him there.

After helping Jaina secure Anasterian’s cooperation, Deren was taken aside by Aegwynn, who was distraught over her unsuccessful search for Med’an and Medivh. In a secret chamber in Karazhan, she prepared to hear what Deren knew about their family and the strange Timelines.

• Jaina and Deren settled the matter with Anasterian, then worried that the borrowed elven baby’s secret would soon be discovered.
• Jaina planned to get more Love Potion from Aegwynn to help Verina and Kael’thas have a child.
• Aegwynn returned and privately took Deren to a beach, where she asked about Med’an and Medivh after failing to find them.
• Aegwynn explained that White Jaina had directed her to search the Swamp of Sorrows, where she killed Twilight Ogre Gugar but found no clues.
• Aegwynn brought Deren to a secret chamber in Karazhan, and he considered how to explain what he knew about Medivh, Med’an, and the altered Timelines.

Deren revealed to Aegwynn that he came from beyond Azeroth and had known its stories as picture books, then explained that contradictions in those stories could account for Med'an's absence from the current timeline. He began analyzing the inconsistencies around Med'an and Medivh, leaving Aegwynn listening as he questioned Garona's identity.

• Deren told Aegwynn that he was a soul from beyond Azeroth and had once read its stories as picture books.
• Deren explained that the many Azeroth stories had developed contradictions over time, and Aegwynn connected this to Med'an.
• Deren told Aegwynn that Jaina had searched the Swamp of Sorrows and found no trace of Med'an and Garona, suggesting Med'an did not exist in this timeline.
• Aegwynn asked Deren to explain what was wrong with Med'an's story and Medivh's situation.
• Deren began his analysis by arguing that Garona's existence as a half-Orc seemed illogical and unique.

Deren theorized that Garona’s mixed ancestry and Medivh’s resurrection reflected contradictions in the picture-book timelines, and Aegwynn realized she had lost track of Medivh. The chapter ended with Deren predicting that Medivh would return in a future story as a prophet, mentor, or bringer of disaster.

• Deren proposed that Garona’s birth was possible because some Draenei had modified or recreated their people using traits from native Orcs on Draenor.
• Deren argued that Med’an could not exist in the current timeline, though he had existed in White Jaina’s Timeline, and Aegwynn was stunned by the idea.
• After Deren complained of thirst, Aegwynn prepared tea and admitted that some things about her memories seemed problematic.
• Aegwynn realized she had lost track of Medivh, and Deren questioned the nature of the Medivh she had resurrected.
• Deren explained that Medivh vanished after the Scourge incident in the picture books and might return as a prophet, mentor, or sinner who caused catastrophe.

Deren told Aegwynn that the original storybooks gave her a tragic fate and that his arrival had changed Azeroth’s history. He warned that threats from beyond the universe might eventually come, but argued that they still had time to prepare and questioned how old Azeroth and the universe truly were.

• Aegwynn asked what happened to Medivh and learned that he had vanished from the changed Timeline.
• Deren told Aegwynn that the storybooks had her dying while trying to save Med'an, and explained how his actions had changed the Scourge’s defeat.
• Aegwynn accepted that the world had changed and agreed to keep Deren’s secrets.
• Deren warned that future enemies might surpass the Burning Legion and the Shadowlands, possibly coming from beyond the universe.
• Deren questioned the gaps in Azeroth’s history and the age of the universe, then argued that mortals had little reason to panic about distant cosmic threats.

Dranosh Saurfang received a mission from Regar to investigate the Mag'har Orcs, who had been scouting the southern outpost and threatening the territory's wheat harvest. He set out with companions and a Goblin trade party to infiltrate the area and learn what the Mag'har were planning.

• Goldmanpu Goldensong summoned Dranosh from the fields to Regar's office.
• Regar told Dranosh that Mag'har Orcs had been scouting south of the territory and ordered him to investigate their movements.
• Regar suggested Dranosh disguise himself as a Mag'har or travel with a Goblin trade party, and Dranosh chose to pose as the party's hired guard.
• Regar worried that the Mag'har would raid the nearly ripe wheat and considered harvesting it early.
• Dranosh set out the next morning with companions and a Goblin trade party for the southern outpost.

Dranosh traveled south through Nagrand to investigate Mag'har activity and learned that Dire Wolf Knights were searching for a fugitive rather than planning to attack Regar Territory. After trading with two riders, he and his companions continued on while the Orcs decided not to rob them.

• Dranosh reached a Regar outpost, where Karas reported that Mag'har scouting squads had passed through and might be searching for targets.
• Dranosh headed farther south and encountered Mag'har Orc squads along the way.
• Gordmanpu traded goods with two Dire Wolf Knights, and Dranosh exchanged a cowhide for supplies and daggers.
• Dranosh gave one rider liquor and learned that the Orcs were searching for a fugitive for a reward, not preparing to raid Regar Territory.
• After the caravan departed, the two Dire Wolf Knights considered robbing it but decided the group looked too dangerous.

Dranosh and his group continued scouting the southern grasslands before camping for the night. During his watch, Dranosh sensed danger, and Gale alerted him to something lurking in the tall grass.

• Dranosh agreed to search south for one more day after Gordmanpu complained about the journey.
• The group camped behind a rock windbreak, shared a hearty meal, and settled into their assigned rest and watch shifts.
• Dranosh fed Gale some of his saved jerky and reflected on his companions, his father, and the war in Ashenvale.
• During Dranosh's second patrol around the camp, Gale approached with raised ears and growled at a patch of tall grass.

Dranosh discovered a starving female Draenei Broken hiding near camp, fed her, and moved his party to avoid drawing trouble. After resuming their trade across the grasslands, the group sold goods to Horde hunters, and Dranosh refused to sell Gale.

• Dranosh found a female Draenei Broken hiding in the grass and questioned her while his companions guarded the camp.
• Dranosh gave the hungry Broken food and water, then handed her more wheat cakes before she left.
• Dranosh moved camp with his companions, fearing the Broken’s pursuers might find them.
• Dranosh and the Goblin trade party traded goods with scattered Horde hunters for pelts.
• Dranosh refused a Mag'har hunter’s offer to buy Gale, who turned away from fresh raw meat.

Dranosh and his party encountered two Wolf Riders escorting the Broken fugitive, who accused him of helping her and tried to extort a reward. Dranosh denied owing them anything, and the party prepared to leave without buying her, while the Wolf Riders offered to negotiate the price.

• Dranosh's party heard distant dire wolves searching for them, so Goldmanpu posed as a complaining merchant to make their group seem like a caravan.
• Two Wolf Riders they had met earlier emerged and revealed that they had captured the Broken fugitive Dranosh had helped.
• The Wolf Riders showed Dranosh a wheat cake from Regar Territory and accused him of aiding the fugitive, but he insisted he had simply traded with her.
• Dranosh claimed the Broken had spent the night with him in exchange for the cakes, then taunted the Wolf Riders about their relationship with their mounts.
• The brawny Wolf Rider offered to sell the Broken for ten Kodos, but Goldmanpu rejected the price and urged the party to leave.
• Dranosh refused to buy the Broken, and the Wolf Rider hurriedly said the price could be negotiated.

Dranosh and the Goblin caravan traded goods to take a hunted Broken from two wolf riders, then freed her and set off toward Regar's Keep. When she begged to join them, Dranosh refused to invite her but left her a chance to follow, and she staggered after the caravan.

• Dranosh refused the wolf riders' demands and pressed them to explain why the Broken had a bounty on her.
• The wolf riders revealed that the Steel Spike Tribe had offered two cows for the Broken, and the Goblin negotiated a trade of their remaining goods for her.
• The wolf riders handed over the Broken and departed with the Goblin's goods, while Dranosh ordered the caravan to make a forced march.
• Dranosh freed the Broken, gave her flatbreads, and told her to leave safely on her own.
• When the Broken begged to travel with the caravan, Dranosh said he could not interfere if she happened to follow the same route, and she staggered after them toward Regar's Keep.