New chapter up. Sorry for the delay. Only a few more chapters left on this one. I'm also majorly deviating from the game at this point, so I can get to a satisfying ending. You have been warned! Enjoy and thanks for reading.

Saurfang had given Kia a long robe with a hood, so as they marched through Orgrimmar, she would not be recognized by the general population. For her part, the queen walked in bravely. He admired her courage, if not her stupidity.

The warchief wasn't alone in her audience hall when they arrived, having the other representatives of the Horde races around her, including Baine. All eyes were on the newly escaped orc and his prize.

"Managed to escape the Alliance cell you were rotting in, I see." Sylvanas said mockingly from her throne. The seat looked wrong with the slight undead woman sitting in it. "The lion cub's security was lacking, was it?"

"It's easy to escape when your visitors are pathetically kind hearted." He said, pulling the hood down from Kia's head. "She came to see to my comfort. She proved very helpful."

Sylvanas stood, then laughed and bowed mockingly. "Welcome to Orgrimmar, Your Majesty."

Where Saurfang had said the title with respect only days earlier, Sylvanas's tone was taunting. She circled around Kia like a beast around its kill. She took a hand, reaching towards Kia's swollen belly. Kia Jerked back.

"Don't touch me!" Kia said, venom in her voice. Even as a prisoner, there was no fear in her voice or in her eyes.

Sylvanas laughed again. "Oh, my dear, I'm going to do far more than touch you..."

She paused, thinking. There was almost a twinkle in her dead eye.

Saurfang caught Baine's eye during the silence. The look the tauren gave him was one of pure anger. The orc didn't allow any emotion to show on his face. He'd play his part in all this lunacy. At least he knew he'd be able to catch a word with Baine, as long as the tauren chieftain didn't try to hurt him. The young king might just be right about having Baine's support. Saurfang shouldn't have been surprised.

The warchief stopped circling so she was facing Kia. "...but not yet. No, I will not touch you yet. You are much more valuable to me alive and unharmed. At least for now."

She looked to one of her guards. "Take her to the dungeons, but be careful with her. I do not want her or her child harmed. Store her in one of the above ground cells." She looked down at Kia. "Make sure she's...comfortable."

Two undead guards stepped forward and took the queen away. She didn't struggle or say any further words.

"Welcome home, Saurfang. You may have just turned the tides of this war…" She retook her seat. "...and made up for not killing the archdruid when you had the chance."

Saurfang only nodded.

It didn't take long for the capture of the Queen of Stormwind to reach Anduin's ears once Kia was in Sylvanas's hands. He knew it wouldn't. The warchief was striking a blow to all humans by gloating about the queen's capture. At least it sounded like she was keeping the queen alive, at least for the moment.

Anduin was in his war room once again, this time with Jaina. The mage was furious.

"How did Saurfang escape? And how did he kidnap Kia?" She shouted, pacing back and forth.

Anduin sighed. "He didn't and she wasn't." He said quietly.

Jaina stopped pacing and stood in front of Anduin, her eyes wide. "This was planned?"

Anduin nodded. "I let Saurfang go and Kia went with him willingly. The idea was for her to be captured."

Jaina was shocked silent for several minutes. When she was able to speak again, Jaina was more than furious. "Light, Anduin! This is your wife and your child we're talking about! How could you let her go!"

Thankfully, the door to the war room was closed and this room was designed to be soundproof, so Jaina's yelling wouldn't be heard by anyone outside the room. Their plan was contingent on secrecy.

Anduin scoffed. "I don't let Kia do anything. When she puts her mind into something, she doesn't take no for an answer. This plan is risky, to both her and the baby, but we had to do something."

"Please tell me there's more to this plan than Kia taking Sylvanas down from the inside?" She asked, taking a guess. "Kia was about ready to pop. She's powerful, but in absolutely no condition to fight. With this kind of stress, she could go into labor any day!"

Anduin nodded again. "I know. There is more to the plan, but it's hard to explain and best that you're left in the dark. I'm trusting people who you would never trust. The only other person who knows everything is Malfurion and he's not very happy about the plan either. If even one piece of the puzzle is out of place, I may lose my family. Events are in motion, they can't be stopped now." He leaned against the war room table, sighing deeply.

Jaina almost growled, but softened when she saw the absolute anguish in the king's posture. Anduin was betting everything on this plan, his family, his own sanity, his thorne, the fate of the Alliance...everything. "I pray to the Light you know what you're doing."

"So do I." Anduin replied softly, almost to himself.

To Be Continued...