Chapter Summaries

Ye Ting led a mobile Alliance force into the Arathi Highlands, raiding Horde settlements and supplies while evading Varok Saurfang’s pursuit. Orgrim realized the raids threatened the Horde’s provisions, but the wolf riders he needed were unavailable because Rend and Maim Blackhand withheld their forces.

• Ye Ting assembled a fast-moving force under Alleria and Kurdran Wildhammer and led it into the Horde-occupied Arathi Highlands.
• After the force disappeared from Horde intelligence, Ye Ting’s troops destroyed an outpost near Northfold Farm and raided the farms and supplies at Refuge Valley.
• Orgrim recognized the danger to the Horde’s provisions and sent Varok Saurfang to hunt down Ye Ting’s army.
• Saurfang found the Alliance force, but Ye Ting repeatedly withdrew at a controlled distance, exhausting the Orcs while raiding settlements, farms, and warehouses.
• Orgrim wished he could use the Horde’s wolf riders, but Rend and Maim Blackhand refused to send the riders they controlled.

Orgrim assembled five thousand wolf riders under Varok Saurfang to ambush Ye Ting at Bouldergor, but Ye Ting attacked and burned the settlement before they arrived. Varok found Ye Ting's smaller force waiting outside the flames and believed he had finally trapped them.

• Orgrim formed a legion of five thousand wolf riders from several Orc clans and gave command to Saurfang.
• Ye Ting recognized that the exposed weakness near Bouldergor might be a trap but chose to attack the settlement anyway.
• Ye Ting concealed his army near Bouldergor, then attacked at night and seized supplies as the defenders and Orc laborers fled.
• Kurdran warned Ye Ting that nearly five thousand wolf riders were approaching, so Ye Ting ordered his troops to abandon most of the supplies and burn Bouldergor.
• Varok arrived to find Bouldergor ablaze and Ye Ting's roughly one thousand cavalrymen before him, and declared that the Horde could still trap them.

Ye Ting led the High Elf rangers in a tactical retreat to exhaust Varok Saurfang’s wolf riders, then had Alleria shoot at Saurfang. The arrow narrowly missed him but exposed the threat posed by the rangers’ mounted archery.

• Varok Saurfang judged the lightly equipped High Elf cavalry no match for his wolf riders and ordered them to charge.
• Ye Ting reminded the rangers of their planned tactic and led them in a retreat, drawing the wolf riders into pursuit.
• Ye Ting controlled the distance and pace of the chase while the dire wolves gradually tired.
• Alleria moved to the rear of the formation and fired an arcane arrow at Saurfang.
• Saurfang dodged the arrow, which struck the wolf rider behind him and exploded, and he realized what was wrong with the enemy force.

Alleria and the High Elf rangers used Ye Ting’s mounted-archery tactics to rain arrows on the pursuing wolf riders while keeping just out of reach. Saurfang finally suspected that the Alliance was deliberately baiting them, as the losses mounted and the chase continued.

• Alleria’s arcane arrow signaled the High Elf rangers to turn and fire at the wolf riders pursuing them.
• The arrows wounded Orcs and drove dire wolves into a frenzy, causing riders to fall and the Horde formation to collapse into chaos.
• Saurfang ordered the wolf riders to charge through the arrowstorm, unwilling to abandon the costly campaign or risk damaging Orgrim’s standing.
• Ye Ting kept the Alliance force roughly thirty meters ahead, relying on the dire wolves’ fading stamina and the warhorses’ greater endurance.
• After at least a thousand wolf riders fell and the distance repeatedly narrowed and widened, Saurfang realized the enemy might be deliberately keeping them on the hook.

Ye Ting’s mounted archers used hit-and-run tactics to decimate Saurfang’s wolf riders, then withdrew to Thoradin’s Wall after their victory. The Horde’s control of the Arathi Highlands weakened, while Orgrim’s declining prestige raised the prospect of internal turmoil.

• Saurfang ordered his wolf riders to retreat, but Ye Ting’s mounted archers turned and pursued them, shooting them from behind.
• Saurfang repeatedly turned to fight, but Ye Ting’s force kept its distance and wore down the wolf riders with arrows.
• Saurfang fled toward the main camp, and Ye Ting’s mounted archers continued the pursuit, killing or scattering many Orcs and dire wolves.
• Saurfang escaped with more than two thousand wolf riders, though his force had lost more than half its numbers.
• The mounted archers’ victory damaged Orgrim’s prestige and made the Horde reconsider how to defend the Arathi Highlands.
• Ye Ting withdrew to Thoradin’s Wall to rest and reorganize, hoping to avoid a Horde counterattack and give its internal unrest room to grow.

After the Horde stalled in the Arathi Highlands, Orgrim led an elite force east, and Ye Ting suspected the Orcs were heading for the Hinterlands. Alliance leaders dismissed his warning until the Wildhammer Dwarves reported that a large group of green creatures had entered the region through a mountain pass.

• Ye Ting's mounted archers drew attention across the Alliance, but most nations lacked the means or interest to establish similar forces.
• Ye Ting brought Jaina to the military camp and taught her while showing her the damage caused by the Orcs.
• The Horde failed to take Stromgarde or breach Thoradin's Wall, and Orgrim killed ten challengers to hold onto his position as Warchief.
• Orgrim sent Varok Saurfang to keep the Alliance occupied in the Arathi Highlands while he led the Horde's elite east in search of a way through the mountains and the Forest Trolls.
• Ye Ting warned that the Horde had likely turned toward the Hinterlands, but most Alliance leaders rejected his suspicion.
• The Wildhammer Dwarves reported that a large group of green creatures had crossed a pass through the Alterac Mountains and entered the Hinterlands.

Ye Ting and the Wildhammer Dwarves discovered that the Horde Orcs were searching Hinterlands for Forest Troll allies. After learning the Orcs’ intentions, Ye Ting devised a plan to use captured Troll trophies and magic to lure them into a favorable position.

• Ye Ting spotted the Horde forces moving through the forest near Aerie Peak and confirmed that they had entered Hinterlands.
• Falstad and Kurdran agreed that the Wildhammer Dwarves and their human and High Elf allies needed to drive the Orcs into open ground.
• Faland reported that the Orcs had split into small groups and were searching former Forest Troll settlements alongside unfamiliar Forest Trolls.
• Ye Ting and Alleria concluded that the Horde was seeking an alliance with Forest Trolls from across the sea.
• Ye Ting asked Falstad and Kurdran for captured Troll totems and banners so he could use them with magic to lure the Orcs.

Orgrim led the Horde into Poison Mist Gorge, believing its Forest Trolls could become allies, but discovered that the Troll signs were an Alliance trap. After finding a warning carved in Orcish, he ordered a retreat, only for the gorge entrance to collapse behind them.

• Orgrim searched Hinterlands for Forest Trolls and learned that signs of their activity had been found near Poison Mist Gorge.
• Orgrim marched the Horde into the gorge, interpreting its totems, markings, and footprints as evidence that Trolls were hiding there.
• Orgrim reached a barren clearing and realized the Troll evidence had been planted to lure the Horde into a trap.
• Orgrim read the Orcish warning, "Orgrim dies beneath this tree," and identified Sandor Liver as the likely enemy behind it.
• Orgrim ordered the Horde to retreat, but an explosion collapsed the entrance to Poison Mist Gorge.

Orgrim’s army was trapped inside Poison Mist Gorge after Ye Ting used gunpowder to collapse its entrance, and Gul’dan’s summoned Infernal was banished before it could clear the rubble. Sandor Liver appeared atop the gorge, confronting Orgrim as the Horde’s breakout stalled.

• Ye Ting’s gunpowder blast sealed Poison Mist Gorge and cut off the Orcs outside, whom the Alliance soon annihilated.
• Orgrim blamed Gul’dan for failing to detect the trap, while Gul’dan could sense no magic and guessed the Alliance had used Goblin-like devices.
• Gul’dan summoned an Infernal to clear the rubble, and the demon rapidly moved rocks aside.
• An Alliance mage banished the Infernal back to the Twisting Nether before it could free the Horde.
• Sandor Liver appeared atop the gorge, and Orgrim recognized him with hatred.

Orgrim led the surviving Orcs through Poison Mist Gorge while Ye Ting let them escape, intending to use them to create a crisis for the Alliance. A week later, Onyxia revealed that Orgrim’s forces had reached Alterac and that King Aiden was plotting to surrender, putting Lordaeron City at risk.

• Orgrim led twenty to thirty thousand surviving Orcs deeper into Poison Mist Gorge to escape the fire, while Ye Ting watched without stopping them.
• The Alliance found only thirty to forty thousand Orc corpses, classified Orgrim and the missing Orcs as missing, and celebrated its apparent victory.
• Nobles pressed Lothar to abandon the Alliance’s defensive strategy, while Jaina learned pranks from Ye Ting and frightened several noble heirs.
• Onyxia returned with secret intelligence that Orgrim and more than twenty thousand elite Orcs had appeared in Alterac and that Aiden Perenolde was conspiring to surrender.
• The chapter revealed that Alterac’s surrender could let Orgrim attack Lordaeron City, which was lightly defended.

Ye Ting explained to Onyxia that he had deliberately directed the Orcs toward Alterac because he saw the Horde as a warning to the Alliance and Azeroth. He revealed his broader concerns for the world, leaving Onyxia astonished by the scope of his foresight.

• Onyxia questioned Ye Ting about how he had predicted where the Orcs would appear, and he revealed that Poison Mist Gorge led to Alterac and that he had lured the Orcs there.
• Onyxia asked why Ye Ting had helped the Orcs enter Alterac, and he challenged her to consider why he had not asked the Dragonflight to defeat the Horde.
• Ye Ting told Onyxia that the Horde's emergence was a warning to the Alliance and Azeroth, then explained his predictions and concerns about the future.
• Onyxia reflected on Ye Ting's broad vision, including his awareness of Deathwing's plans, and felt relieved about the choice she had made.

Aiden Perenolde informed Alterac’s officers that he had made a non-aggression pact with the Horde and ordered them to clear routes through the mountains. After receiving Lord Anduin Lothar’s request for help, Perenolde killed the Alliance messenger.

• Aiden Perenolde told General Haas and the other officers that Alterac would leave the Alliance and let the Horde pass in exchange for safety.
• Perenolde defended the pact by arguing that the Horde could destroy Alterac and that the Alliance had abandoned them.
• Haas and the other officers accepted Perenolde’s orders to leave the southern roads unguarded, while soldiers would be sent to the northern passes as a cover story.
• Haas informed Perenolde that an Alliance messenger had arrived with a message from Lord Anduin Lothar.
• Perenolde learned that Lothar wanted Alterac’s army to reinforce Lordaeron, then stabbed the messenger to death.

The Barov family debated whether to accept King Aiden Perenolde’s offer to surrender to the Horde after Alexi Barov’s death left the family besieged at Caer Darrow. Janice knew the Alliance would ultimately prevail, but she struggled to decide between her sons’ competing positions as the Orc messenger returned.

• Alexi Barov died defending Caer Darrow, leaving Janice in control while Wilton and Alex contested the succession.
• An Orc messenger delivered Aiden Perenolde’s letter urging the Barov family to surrender and join the Horde.
• Alex argued that the Horde could win by crossing the Alterac Mountains and capturing Lordaeron City, while Wilton backed the Alliance and opposed siding with the Orcs.
• Janice recognized that the Alliance had not committed all its strength and would defeat the Horde, but she could not choose between her sons.
• The Orc messenger returned as Wilton and Alex began arguing again over the family’s decision.

Alex’s argument with Wilton over cooperating with the Horde ended in Wilton’s assassination inside Barov family Castle. Janice watched helplessly as an Orc killed her son and warned the assembled humans against opposing the Horde.

• Wilton mocked Alex for seeking favor with the Horde, while Alex argued that cooperation could protect humanity and the Barov family.
• Alex hinted that he had intended to save Wilton, but Wilton dismissed the danger and claimed he would not fear Orcs.
• An Orc suddenly appeared behind Wilton and stabbed him through the chest before Janice could intervene.
• The Orc warned that Wilton’s death was the fate of those who opposed the Horde, then pulled out his blade as Wilton died.

After Velton’s death, Alex tried to use his status as the last Barov heir to make the family surrender to the Horde, but Janice accused him of betraying the family and disowned him. Sandor Liver appeared as the Alliance’s special envoy and commander, leaving Alex terrified.

• Alex urged the Barov family to surrender to the Horde and ordered the servants and guards to open the gates.
• Janice accused Alex of disabling her anti-invisibility magic, contacting the Orcs, and helping an assassin kill Velton.
• Alex defended his actions as necessary for the family, while Janice declared him no longer a member of the Barov family and reaffirmed its Alliance allegiance.
• The servants and guards sided with Janice, leaving Alex without support.
• Sandor Liver appeared in the hall and identified himself as the Alliance’s special envoy and supreme commander of the Alterac battlefield.
• Janice recognized Sandor, and Alex nearly fainted when he realized who had arrived.

Ye Ting reflected on the Barov family’s altered fate and recognized the Orc who had seized Alex as a Burning Blade Blademaster. The Blademaster escaped with Alex after Ye Ting stopped Onyxia from pursuing him.

• Ye Ting considered why he had chosen the Barov family as an insider in Alterac and recalled how their history had changed after Alexi Barov died resisting an Orc raid.
• Ye Ting recognized the Orc as a Burning Blade Blademaster and identified his Wind Walk technique.
• The Blademaster grabbed Alex and broke through the Barov family guards to flee through a side door.
• Onyxia prepared to attack the fleeing Blademaster with a Fireball, but Ye Ting stopped her, allowing the Blademaster to escape with Alex.

Ye Ting chose not to pursue Alex Barov, seeing a chance to protect the Barov family and gain influence while letting the Horde’s plans be exposed. After Alex escaped, Janice grieved her sons and sought comfort in Ye Ting’s arms.

• Ye Ting explained to Onyxia that capturing Alex would force him to choose between punishing a traitor and preserving ties with Janice and the Barov family.
• Ye Ting argued that the Horde learning of his arrival would force it into a major battle for Alterac, which could expose the danger the Alliance faced.
• A guard reported that Alex had tricked the fortress guards into opening the gates and escaped aboard the Orc envoy’s ship.
• Janice arranged for the household to recover from the crisis, then brought Ye Ting to her study.
• Janice blamed herself for her sons’ fates, embraced Ye Ting, and continued leaning on him as she wept.

Ye Ting secured Janice Barov’s loyalty by promising to protect her and Ilucia, then offered the Barov family intelligence that could strengthen its standing with the Alliance. The chapter ended with Janice learning that Ye Ting’s maid Onyxia was a black dragon princess.

• Janice promised the Barov family’s wealth and loyalty in exchange for Ye Ting’s long-term protection of her and Ilucia.
• Ye Ting accepted Janice’s request to protect them, and Janice kissed him as an advance on his reward.
• Ye Ting offered the Barov family the intelligence about Orcs infiltrating Alterac and King Aiden’s surrender so they could report it to the Alliance.
• Ye Ting suggested that the Barov family send troops when the Alliance fought the Horde occupying Alterac, though Janice remained worried about their past conduct.
• Janice invited Ye Ting and Onyxia to dine and stay at the castle, then learned that Onyxia was a black dragon princess.

After losing one son and driving away the other, Janice visited Ye Ting in the middle of the night, grieving and seeking comfort. Ye Ting let her embrace him, and their encounter turned into a long, intimate contest between mages.

• Janice treated Onyxia as an honored guest and arranged a luxurious room for her.
• Ye Ting woke to find Janice entering his room in the middle of the night and silently watching him in tears.
• Janice climbed into bed and held Ye Ting as though he were one of her sons, and he allowed it out of pity for her grief.
• When Janice called him a little one and suggested he call her godmother, Ye Ting rejected the idea and pinned her beneath him.
• Janice initially defended herself with spells, then recovered and repeatedly challenged Ye Ting as their long night continued.

After spending the night with Janice, Ye Ting reassured her about their age difference and continued their relationship into the morning. He then met Ilucia Barov, the last surviving daughter of House Barov, in the corridor.

• Janice tried to leave before Ye Ting woke, but he pulled her back and used healing magic to ease her soreness.
• Janice called their encounter an accident and said their age difference meant they could have no future, but Ye Ting argued that mages could preserve their youth.
• Ye Ting began another intimate encounter with Janice, then left her to rest and met Onyxia in the corridor.
• Onyxia teased Ye Ting about his appearance and dragon form as she straightened his clothes.
• A little girl ran out of Janice's room and collided with Ye Ting, who recognized her as Ilucia Barov.