Chapter Summaries

Rowan recruited Ansirem to lead the Morris Industries School of Magic despite Ansirem having lost control of arcane energy, then reviewed Southshore’s troop positions with Jaina and Lucille. Suspecting Blackmoore of betrayal, Rowan ordered an investigation while Jaina confronted him about his feelings for Lucille and Illucia.

• Rowan offered Ansirem a position as headmaster in Boralus, and Ansirem explained that a failed Levitation Magic experiment had left him unable to control arcane energy.
• Ansirem agreed to travel to Morris Town, where Rowan hoped he would work with Rhonin on magical industry and steam technology.
• Lucille showed Rowan and Jaina a map of Southshore’s troop deployments, revealing that Durnholde Keep’s garrison had not moved while orcs captured several camps.
• Rowan suspected Blackmoore might be aiding the orcs and ordered Lucille to investigate his background and service record.
• Jaina asked Rowan how he felt about Lucille and Illucia, and Rowan denied having feelings for them as she accused him of lying.

Thrall defied a staged arena match and defeated Kou Woke, who entrusted him with the Mok'Nathal Clan Emblem and a message for his son. Blackmoore let Thrall’s disobedience pass but ordered surveillance of Rowan’s associate, while Theresa recovered and worried about Thrall.

• Blackmoore ordered Drak to bring Thrall to the arena, where Thrall faced the two-headed ogre Kou Woke in a match arranged to fleece the spectators.
• Kou Woke mocked Thrall and knocked him down, but Theresa urged Thrall to fight, and Thrall defeated the ogre.
• Kou Woke gave Thrall the Mok'Nathal Clan Emblem and asked him to tell his friend that his father was still waiting for him.
• Blackmoore ordered a priest to treat Theresa and instructed Drak to watch Rowan’s Kul Tiran companion, killing her if necessary.
• Lynn Lucy treated Theresa and reproached Drak for using her to control Thrall; Theresa woke and asked whether Thrall was safe.

Aymark joined Goverilad’s forces as they searched for the orcs, while Saurfang’s army escaped toward the coast and struggled with the curse of demon blood. In Southshore, Rowan discovered that Lucille had been targeted by an assassin and ordered her to stay inside the Merchants’ Guild, then turned to Number Zero and Number Seven for their information.

• Aymark and Goverilad discussed the orcs’ movements, the slow arrival of reinforcements, and the need to find the orc army before another camp was attacked.
• Grom split the orc army, leading one group away while Saurfang guided the other toward the coast and Zuluhed’s ships.
• Saurfang learned that Gelk had succumbed to demon blood again and killed him to end his suffering.
• Rowan told Lucille that an assassin had targeted her because of her intelligence work and ordered her to stay inside the Merchants’ Guild.
• Lucille agreed to stay after Rowan admitted he was worried about her, and Number Zero and Number Seven emerged to provide him with information.

Garithos arrived in Southshore and ordered Mayor Maleb to expel Kul Tiras warships, while Rowan learned the reinforcements were led by Garithos and discussed the orcs’ plans. In Durnholde Keep, Zuluhed tried to persuade Drak to help Thrall escape, but Drak remained conflicted, leaving the rescue plan for the future.

• Garithos confronted Mayor Maleb over the Kul Tiras warships and ordered him to drive them from Southshore’s harbor.
• Number Zero reported the Horde’s attack on the Danshui Internment Camps, and Rowan apologized to Number Zero and Number Seven after criticizing their intelligence work.
• Rowan and Number Zero discussed the possibility of a Zandalari fleet attack, then learned that Garithos led the incoming reinforcements.
• Zuluhed entered Durnholde Keep through the sewers and met Drak, who questioned why Zuluhed wanted to rescue Thrall.
• Drak explained that he did not want Thrall turned into a tool, while Zuluhed decided that rescuing him would require patience and preparation.

Grom’s Warsong Clan used Eitrigg’s four-route river-crossing plan to evade Lordaeron’s army, while Rowan persuaded Number Zero and Number Seven to remain in Southshore and avoid provoking the Frostwolf Clan. Garithos blamed Durnholde’s officers for the failed pursuit as reinforcements and a fleet approached Southshore.

• Grom gave his coat and dinner to a cold orc child, and Eitrigg brought padded coats taken from a supply squad and intelligence about Lordaeron’s reinforcements.
• Eitrigg warned Grom against attacking Internment Camps Three directly and proposed four successive attacks across the Freshwater River; Grom approved the plan.
• After the Warsong Clan crossed the Danshui River by four different routes and eluded Garithos’s forces, Number Zero and Number Seven delivered the battle report to Rowan.
• Rowan convinced Number Zero and Number Seven to stay in Southshore, and he advised them not to investigate or antagonize the Frostwolf Clan.
• Jaina joined Rowan after the two agents left, and he joked with her until she blushed.
• Garithos berated Aymark and Goverilad for the failed interception, but Goverilad challenged his blame; Deputy Commander Hilton then told Garithos the fleet would reach Southshore the next morning.

Rowan took his Iron Battleships out of Southshore Harbor while Zuluhed’s Zandalari and Horde forces prepared to attack the Lordaeron fleet and rescue the orcs. As the fleets engaged under cover of sea fog, Zul ordered the opening cannon fire.

• Rowan sent Lucille and Illucia to Tarren Mill, then boarded a warship with Jaina and briefed her on their battle plans and retreat route.
• Rowan’s Iron Battleships departed Southshore Harbor at one in the afternoon, while more than thirty Lordaeron warships arrived from the east.
• Yazir reported Rowan’s departure and delivered Zuluhed intelligence about the Lordaeron fleet; Zuluhed ordered the Torga Fleet to hold position and instructed his forces to proceed to Southshore.
• Loti summoned Pa’ku’s winds to drive the Zandalari fleet forward, while Deloti prepared to lead the rescue mission and Zul took command of the naval attack.
• Zul used sea fog to conceal the Zandalari ships, arranged them into battle positions, and ordered the Rezan fleet to fire thunderstorm cannonballs at the Lordaeron fleet.

The Royal Fleet fought the Zandalari fleet near Southshore, but Garithos’s aggressive orders left his ships overwhelmed despite his personal victories. As the battle turned against Lordaeron, Rowan ordered his fleet to bypass the turtle-shell warships and head for the beach east of Southshore.

• Garithos rejected Hilton’s cautious advice and ordered the Royal Fleet to engage the fog-hidden Zandalari ships.
• The Zandalari fleet struck with lightning bombs and appeared on the Royal Fleet’s flanks, while Garithos concentrated fire on their magically shielded warships.
• Zandalari soldiers boarded the flagship, where Garithos fought Yazir and nearly killed him before Zuluhed intervened.
• Garithos defeated Zuluhed in their duel, but Zul’s arriving fleet sank Royal Fleet warships and shifted the battle decisively against Lordaeron.
• Rowan judged the Zandalari defenses and ordered Leonard to bypass them and sail for the beach east of Southshore.

Rowan’s Iron Fleet raced to stop the Warsong Clan from escaping Southshore, while Zuluhed and Zul prepared to kill Rowan. The chapter ended with Grom and Zuluhed waiting for the troll fleet to close in, but unable to find Rowan aboard the Iron Warships.

• Rowan led four Iron Warships past Torga’s divine fleet and toward the coast, forcing Zul to redirect ships to intercept him.
• Zul proposed a decapitation plan, and Zuluhed went to recruit Grom to assassinate Rowan while Zul returned to the naval battle.
• Garithos ordered the Royal Fleet to bombard the enemy without regard for Rowan’s ships, prompting Rowan to vow that Garithos would die.
• Leonard ordered the Iron Fleet’s rapid-fire cannons to strike the Warsong Orcs, killing dozens and forcing Grom and his soldiers to keep advancing under fire.
• Grom and Zuluhed reached the coast, where Grom agreed to target Rowan after Zuluhed argued that the human leader had to die.
• Zuluhed searched the Iron Warships with Far Sight but could not find Rowan, and he expected the approaching troll fleet to force Rowan into view.

Rowan fought to keep his iron fleet intact as the naval battle escalated and the enemy leaders began a decapitation operation. He trapped Zuluhed, Zul, and Grom in the Abyssal Scepter’s mist, then ordered his fleet to sink the Zandalari transport ships while they searched for a way out.

• A forest fire drove the Warsong orcs from cover as Rowan’s ships fought off the troll fleet, and Jaina used a Giant Sea Elemental to prevent a warship from capsizing.
• Rowan and Jaina teleported to Leonard’s ship, and Rowan ordered the fleet to target the Zandalari transport ships while drawing the enemy away from a trapped warship.
• Number Zero and Number Seven escaped the encirclement, while Fink followed Number Zero’s suggestion to ram a troll ship and protect the flagship.
• Jaina tried to teleport Rowan away from danger, but he stayed aboard as Zuluhed, Zul, and Grom arrived to kill him.
• Grom charged Rowan with Gorehowl, but Rowan escaped the strike and used the Abyssal Scepter to trap all three leaders in mist.
• Rowan ordered his fleet to sink the transport ships, while Zuluhed enchanted Gorehowl with lava so the leaders could try to smash through the deck.

Rowan negotiated a ceasefire with Grom after the lightning attack and the losses aboard his warship, while the Zandalari fleet withdrew. Rowan then retaliated against Garithos for abandoning and shelling his fleet, leaving Garithos injured and unconscious.

• Yazir ordered the remaining Lightning Burst Cannonballs fired at Rowan's warship, killing the Engine Room crew and badly injuring workers and gunners.
• Rowan dispersed the fog, confronted Grom, and persuaded him to halt the fighting; both fleets ceased fire and the orc and troll ships withdrew.
• Rowan sent Number Zero, Number Seven, and Ellen to the Royal Fleet's flagship while his warships approached Garithos.
• Garithos ordered the Kul Tiras fleet to keep away, and Rowan's Iron Warships sank his flagship with cannon fire.
• Number Zero and Number Seven attacked Garithos as he tried to retaliate, then escaped with the Kul Tiras warships.
• Garithos demanded return fire, but Hilton stopped him from pursuing the faster, better-armored ships; Garithos fainted from rage.

Rowan returned to Morris Town, reviewed its progress, and arranged support for workers and a new residential district while reassuring Kande about pressure from Kul Tiran factions. Meanwhile, Rhonin challenged Ansirem’s levitation research and discussed why he had left Dalaran before Rowan joined them.

• Rowan toured Morris Town, saw its improved roads, businesses, and living conditions, and ordered benefits for the families of soldiers killed at Southshore.
• Rowan visited the dessert shop, encouraged its workers with a gold coin, and planned to bring treats back for Jaina.
• Rowan praised Kande’s work, approved plans for a residential district, and assigned its funding to Hammer and Morris Energy.
• Kande showed Rowan Chairman Floyd’s agreement with House Vikress, and Rowan reassured him that their backing was strong enough to face hostile nobles and guilds.
• Rhonin found a flaw in Ansirem’s levitation formulas, questioned the spell’s usefulness, and explained why he preferred Morris Town to Dalaran.
• Rhonin urged Ansirem to retrieve Caitlin from the Bloodsail Buccaneers, and Rowan entered as they discussed Ansirem’s family.

Moss negotiated with Floyd over a steam-power technology transfer for the Ashvane Family as Rowan worked to draw House Ashvane away from House Stormsong. Just as Moss and Floyd reached an agreement, Tony Ma offered House Stormsong’s strengthening inscriptions, interrupting their deal.

• Moss reprimanded Marshall for sleeping on night watch, then ordered breakfast for his office.
• Floyd and Tony Ma argued over the Norwington Merchants' Guild’s expansion in Brendanna and Rowan’s challenge to Stormsong Valley’s established trade networks.
• Moss met with Floyd and Tony Ma to negotiate the Ashvane Family’s access to steam-power technology.
• Moss offered to send Iron Smelting Blast Furnace blueprints and technical personnel to Morris Town, and Floyd agreed to reduce the monthly payment from 200,000 to 180,000 gold coins.
• Tony Ma introduced the Tidal Conclave’s strengthening inscriptions, prompting Moss to withdraw his handshake with Floyd.

Tony Ma challenged the Norwington Family’s technology agreement by revealing House Stormsong’s Reinforced Inscription, while Rowan met Sataia and offered her a position as his adviser. Brannon and Faye agreed to return to the Storm Temple before joining Rowan, and Jaina confronted him that night about another pretty girl.

• Tony Ma warned Moss about the risks of the technology transfer agreement and presented House Stormsong’s Reinforced Inscription as a way to protect sailing warships from cannon fire.
• Tony Ma openly challenged the Norwington Family, and Moss agreed to discuss House Stormsong’s new product before deciding whether to proceed with the agreement.
• Faye introduced Sataia to Rowan and explained that the human warlock had learned shadow spells from the orc Drak'Sool on a deserted island.
• Rowan offered Sataia a job as his adviser, and Faye asked him to give her time to adjust to human society.
• Brannon and Faye agreed to return to the Storm Temple to settle their duties before coming back to work for Rowan.
• Jaina knocked on Rowan’s bedroom door and asked where he had found another pretty girl.

Rowan and Jaina spent the night together, and he pinned her hair into a bun according to a Kul Tiran tradition. Later, Rowan heard Byron’s report that House Stormsong had violently sabotaged his grain trade in Brendanna and resolved not to back down.

• Rowan reassured the jealous Jaina that Sataia was a human warlock, then spent the night with her without taking their relationship to its final step.
• Jaina asked Rowan to pin up her hair, explaining that Kul Tirans followed the tradition after a girl gave herself to the person she loved most.
• Byron returned to Morris Town and reported that House Stormsong’s Merchants’ Guild had assaulted and arrested merchants working with him, shutting down his grain-trading network.
• Rowan told Byron to suspend efforts for a week but insisted they would not yield to House Stormsong.
• Rowan recalled that Lady Ashvane planned to side with the Norwington Family and considered the chance to eliminate House Stormsong from the Family Council’s opposition.
• The Old Butler reminded Rowan that Chairman Floyd had been waiting, and Rowan asked for him to be shown in.

Rowan responded to House Stormsong’s reinforced warship inscriptions and mounting trade attacks by ordering a price offensive while pressing ahead with his military plans. At the Ground Technology Research Institute, he found Rhonin and Sataia arguing over how to balance explosive power and safety in a new shell, and told them to finish a working product quickly.

• Rowan learned that House Stormsong’s new inscriptions could strengthen wooden warships and that Moss had not rejected the Norwington Family’s technology transfer agreement.
• Floyd reported that merchants’ guilds were boycotting Norwington caravans and that workers had suffered more than a dozen attacks, but Rowan refused economic concessions.
• Rowan ordered Byron and Floyd to sell Morris Industries District light industrial goods at the lowest possible prices to pressure their competitors.
• Rowan sent Byron to work with Floyd on trade, where Floyd said Byron’s experience in Brendanna had inspired an idea for mobilizing ordinary people.
• Rowan visited the Ground Technology Research Institute and heard Rhonin and Sataia dispute whether the new shell should prioritize stable energy control or chaotic explosive force.
• Rowan told Rhonin and Sataia to complete a working shell quickly, provided it would not endanger their own people.

Rowan watched Rhonin and the Ground Technology Research Institute successfully test a long-range magical shell, which they named the Mage Hunter. At a Family Council meeting, Lord Stormsong put Rowan on the spot over Kul Tiras’s future warship development and the Norwington Family’s proposed technology-transfer agreement.

• Sataia invited Rowan to the Back Mountain test site, where Rhonin’s team fired a shell that struck a target five kilometers away and destroyed a stretch of forest.
• Rowan and the mages debated the shell’s significance and named the new weapon the Mage Hunter.
• At the Family Council, Kainings opened a meeting to compare the Norwington Family’s new warships with House Stormsong’s enhanced warships.
• Lord Stormsong called on Rowan to present his views first and pressed him to address the Norwington Family’s proposed technology-transfer agreement.

Rowan argued that Kul Tiras needed to reform its warships and defended the Norwington Family’s technology transfer agreement as the Family Council debated naval development. The meeting ended with a proposed combat test between the Two Great Families’ ships, while Rowan’s conflict with House Stormsong continued and Byron visited the Military Tribunal to ask about Lashius’s case.

• Rowan praised House Stormsong’s reinforced ships before challenging Lord Stormsong to explain their design, then described the industrial investment required for steam-powered and iron warships.
• Aidan and Talasha accused Rowan of putting profit ahead of Kul Tiras, but Rowan defended the technology transfer agreement and urged the attendees to consider the ships’ returns.
• Lord Ashvane proposed testing the Two Great Families’ ships in combat at Hook Point and ruled that the test would not affect future naval orders.
• Daelin asked Rowan to bring Jaina home, and Rowan agreed to return with her the next day.
• Rowan taunted Aidan with a supposed private textile deal, then mocked him for believing it and exchanged hostile looks with Lord Stormsong.
• Byron visited the Military Tribunal, where Eric greeted him deferentially, and asked how Lashius’s case was progressing.

Ellen finished investigating Sataia and invited her to travel to Boralus with him, while Eric brought Byron to a secret underground establishment that Byron condemned. The chapter ended as a man confronted Byron at the exit and Byron raised his glowing Holy Light Warhammer.

• Ellen and Number Zero found no suspicious energy around Sataia and agreed to end the investigation.
• Ellen gave Number Zero two untested Turbulence Elixirs, then sold Sataia an unstable intellect potion and offered to take her to Boralus.
• Eric took Byron to a hidden club near Pier One, where Byron was disturbed by its excesses and the treatment of the women there.
• Byron refused Eric's attempt to make him stay, condemned the club, and tried to leave.
• A dark-skinned man confronted Byron at the exit as Byron's Holy Light Warhammer began to glow.

Rowan agreed to help Tandred pursue justice against two nobles who had kidnapped and abused girls, while Daelin announced Rowan and Jaina would marry at next year’s Midsummer Festival. In Boralus’s underworld, Rhonin rescued Byron from Reki and attacked the Dark Mage, who offered information in exchange for his life.

• Tandred told Rowan that two noble heirs had kidnapped and abused girls, and that the authorities had ignored his reports.
• Rowan agreed to help Tandred bring the perpetrators to justice and resolved to strike at Kul Tiras’s privileged nobility.
• Daelin told Rowan and Jaina that they would marry at next year’s Midsummer Festival.
• At an underworld venue, Byron fought Reki’s Stealth Users, used Revealing Dust to expose them, and knocked one unconscious.
• Reki bound Byron with Chains of Ice and moved to blind him, but Rhonin arrived and teleported Byron away.
• Rhonin attacked Reki with an Arcane Blast, and Reki offered information in exchange for his life.

Archbishop Joseph investigated the curse afflicting Lord Arthur, identified a hidden dark force, and learned that three people might be suspects. At Morris Harbor, Number Six confronted Number Zero and asked about Number Seven, leaving her reason for seeking him unclear.

• Archbishop Joseph used Purify and Holy Star on Lord Arthur, discovered a concealed dark substance, and suppressed its influence.
• Lord Arthur recalled meeting Mathias Shaw, Reki Hank, and Sataia in Boralus, and Joseph asked him to investigate Reki Hank and Sataia.
• Joseph refused Lord Arthur’s payment and decided to remain at Vikress Estate while the curse was investigated.
• At Morris Harbor, Number Six surprised Number Zero in the watchtower and wrestled him to the ground.
• Number Six asked Number Zero whether he had seen Number Seven, and Number Zero said they had worked together all year.