***Thirty Years Ago***

"You cannot defeat me." The boy pointed his practice sword at her.

Jaina laughed as she ducked behind a tree. She'd only been in Dalaran a few weeks, but had already learned a number of new spells; including a couple that she wasn't technically supposed to know yet but had discovered while reading late at night.

She didn't have a practice sword to properly duel this boy, but she could make one. It took a few moments while he taunted her; though an ice bolt made him yelp and dive for cover, giving her an extra minute to concentrate.

When she stepped out of cover, she held a sword of crackling arcane energy. It stuttered and sparked, but it would hold. She called out in a high voice. "Arthas! Come out and face me you jerk!"

Arthas popped out from behind a fountain, grinning at her as his blonde hair formed a mop on his head. "Ah, but it's not proper to duel a girl!"

A tiny ball of flame appeared in Jaina's hand and she flung it. Arthas's cloak caught fire and he yelped, dropping to the ground to roll the flames out. While he was distracted, Jaina charged forward and jumped on him.

It wasn't very lady like, but she was a mage first and a lady third. He kicked her off and hacked away at her arcane sword. It flickered with each hit, until it finally went out.

Arthas tried to pull his last strike but with nothing in the way to block or deflect it, the wooden sword smacked Jaina, leaving a red welt across her face. She cried out, curling up in a ball and holding her face.

"Jaina! I'm so sorry." Arthas knelt next to her, hands hovering over her shoulders. "We should take you to a healer."

Teary-eyed and sniffly, Jaina shook her head, sitting up. "You'll get in trouble."

"Let me see." Arthas took her hand and gently pulled it away from her face. "When Calia finds out, I'm doomed. But that's okay."

Jaina watched him carefully, not caring that he was seeing her crying as he studied the damage he'd done. "Is it bad?"

Frowning, the boy held his hand over Jaina's face. Golden light flashed in the space between them. Jaina felt the pain cool, and then disappear completely. He practically vibrated with excitement. "It worked!"

She closed her eyes, Arthas wiping her tears with his fingers. "Maybe I should have used a stick instead."

"No, that was amazing. You made a sword out of arcane magic." He beamed at her when she opened her eyes again. "One day, you're going to change the world, Jaina."

"You're the prince," Jaina pointed out. She let Arthas help her to her feet. "If anyone is going to change the world, it'll be you."

"How about I make you a deal."

Jaina folded her arms. "What kind of deal?"

"We can both change the world together."

A slow smile spread across her face as she studied his sloppy grin and that stupid mop of hair of his. Imperiously, she declared, "I accept your terms, Prince Arthas."

He held his arm out in the sort of manner befitting his station. "Would you allow me to escort you back to the tower, Lord Admiral?"

Jaina continued to affect a formal tone. "Technically I hold the rank of Captain."

Arthas stared at her. "Really?"

Jaina laughed and took his arm. "No! But I can order a bunch of sailors around back home if I wanted to."

"I was just trying to imagine you on the deck of a ship, ordering everyone around." He glanced at her.

"I think it's a good look for me," Jaina replied.

"Yeah. Me too."

***Now***

Anduin hated Durotar. He hated deserts in general. They were always so hot, the dust rough and coarse, getting everywhere. But in light of what had happened with the armada he had decided it would be best to meet in Orgrimmar rather than inviting Sylvanas to Stormwind. It was easier in general for some of the crews, too. Some of them were still recovering from the ordeal.

"All right," he said. "Tell us what happened."

Two champions stood in front of Sylvanas and himself in Grommash hold; the leader of the Horde expedition to the uncharted islands, and the champion Anduin had tasked with keeping an eye on them, Yukale Ravenwing.

Yukale bowed her head to them, then glanced at the Sin'dorei warlock standing next to her. "I think you should start."

"Naturally." Lomea Shadowbinder had a way of speaking that emphasized certain words and yet her tone was often as dry as Tanaris. The Sin'dorei warlock looked between King and Warchief.

Warlocks always made Anduin nervous, and this one's eyes were a shade of green that spoke to how attuned she was to Fel magics.

Sylvanas nodded once, and Lomea continued. "We established the beachhead, as ordered. Everything seemed to be going well but within a few weeks I started noticing unusual behaviour amongst my team. Hoping to avoid more workers going mad I decreased the maximum allowed time in the caves."

Anduin glanced at Yukale. "What about you?"

"We set up in a cove on a nearby island. They knew we were there. Sometimes we'd wave at each other, or someone would try to stab someone, you know, the usual." Yukale clasped her hands behind her back, rocking back and forth on her heels. "My people seemed fine, but some of the Horde coming out of those caves acted strangely. Erratically. Near the end they started attacking each other."

Lomea nodded. "It got worse once we broke the seal and gained access to the chamber beyond. The energy within was indescribable. Most of the workers went mad within the hour and that is when the Naga attacked."

"They were pinned between Naga coming in from the sea, and the corrupted workers rushing them from the caves," Yukale said. "I moved the Windwhistle to rescue them."

"We graciously accepted Alliance support," Lomea clarified, expression neutral.

Yukale leaned in towards the King and Warchief and whispered. "Rescued." She raised her voice to a normal level. "With Naga hot on our tails we set sail for Durotar. It was the closest friendly port."

"Most of the Naga gave up the chase." Lomea glanced down at her nails. "Those that did not quickly met their end."

"There was burning," Yukale translated. "So much burning. It smelled like fried fish for days, but with a pleasant fel aftertaste."

"Thank you for that delightful image," Sylvanas said, echoing Anduin's thoughts. "What about the ship."

"It was early in the morning. My sister was on day watch." Yukale unclasped her hands and fidgeted with her glove. Anduin noted what looked like a small compartment in the wrist. "Wraith's Shadow came out of the water like a breaching whale and she called out the alarm. I'd barely gotten out of bed when the first broadside hit us."

"It was too far away for the hunters to reach." Lomea conjured a green flame in her palm. "And it stubbornly refused to catch fire. I was able to summon an infernal to buy us enough time to escape."

"But you didn't get very far, did you," Anduin prompted, looking at Yukale when she nodded. "They caught you and disabled you, but left you adrift."

"Exactly, your majesty. And we knew we were bait for someone or something."

Lomea snuffed her flame out. "Any signals we sent would be intercepted, or force the Shadow to destroy us. Ravenwing's auntie had the brilliant idea to paint an ancient Kaldorei signal flag."

"We figured there was no way that ship could understand what the flag meant and we kind of hoped it would be recognized by someone."

Sylvanas was silent, and Anduin wondered what was going through her head. Based on the debriefing with Jaina, he was beginning to understand what they were dealing with. He didn't want to think about it or what it entailed for the Alliance and the world at large, but he was understanding it.

"Is that all, Warchief?" Lomea asked. "I would like to see to my … people. Many are injured."

"Girlfriend," Yukale translated, smiling innocently.

"You would look lovely in green," Lomea warned.

Sylvanas waved her hand in dismissal, and Anduin nodded for Yukale to leave as well. He turned to face his counterpart. "Naga. Dark energy in some kind of tomb. A corrupted sea-captain with an impossible ship." Folding his arms, he asked. "Are you going to tell me what the hell you were doing on that island?"

"Let us wait for my wife." Sylvanas tilted her head, flashing her teeth at him. "And I'll tell you all about what I was up to."

Anduin frowned, but didn't flinch away or back down. "She doesn't know? It was an island expedition to study magical artifacts, when she didn't say anything I just assumed her hands were tied."

"You've been listening to gossip, little lion. I haven't even suggested it." Her words hung in the air before she added casually, "Yet."

"What do you…" When her smile got wider, Anduin shook his head. "You know what, I don't want to know."

"Would you like some tips? I understand Draenei can be a little vanilla."

They weren't having this conversation. Anduin shifted uncomfortably, putting a few more inches between himself and Sylvanas. She threw her head back and laughed and it was the most disturbing sound he'd ever heard.

Jaina approached the Hold deep in thought. She was unhappy with the way the battle at sea had gone. Too many ships lost and too many sailors with them. They'd fished maybe a dozen people out of the water from Dreadnaught, fighting Naga the whole way.

Defiant had gone down with all hands. Banshee's Wail had sailed away with roughly a third of the combined crew of Teledrassil's Fury and Doomhammer's Legacy on board, as well as the Alliance and Horde champions from the Windwhistle.

Jaina had personally scuttled Yukale's ship before getting underway; it had already begun to sink and she'd sped it along, sending the old lady to her eternal rest.

She spotted Yukale leaving the Hold with a familiar looking Sin'dorei and Jaina realized she'd seen the woman once before, sunning herself in the Valley of Honor. With that memory firmly on her mind, she couldn't meet Lomea's eyes, instead focusing on Yukale as she passed and praying the heat on her face wasn't too obvious.

Anduin was leaning away from Sylvanas as Jaina strode into the Hold. He looked so uncomfortable and Sylvanas so smug that Jaina quickly put herself between them, pointedly taking Sylvanas's arm and pushing her to give Anduin a bit more space. "Children, behave."

Sylvanas rested her hand over Jaina's, offering no objection to the manhandling. "So what happens if I'm disobedient?"

Jaina bit her lip to keep from making an vastly inappropriate comment. It looked like Anduin was trying not to choke and she didn't want to make the situation worse for the poor man.

"How is mother?" Sylvanas asked.

"My mother is fine, thank you. She'll be off her feet for a few weeks, but will make a full recovery."

Smirking, Sylvanas removed her hand from Jaina's and pressed it lightly against her side. "And your recovery?"

Jaina missed the contact, and then hissed when the pressure aggravated her wound. "I'll be fine too."

"A pretty scar for me," Sylvanas decided, and Jaina thought she heard Anduin's eyes roll.

She grabbed Sylvanas by the wrist and pulled the hand away. "Okay, fill me in on the situation."

Anduin seemed relieved, and quickly brought Jaina up to speed. The additional context from Yukale and Lomea made Jaina uneasy, and a sense of disquiet settled over her. Finally, she asked, not sure she wanted to hear the answer. "Sylvanas, you need to tell us what that expedition was up to."

"Very well." Sylvanas started walking, Jaina still attached to her arm. "We will not speak of this here; there are already too many ears. Besides, we've never been proper hosts. We really should show King Wrynn our home."

"We've never even shown my mother." Jaina murmured.

"I know, I just like Anduin better," Sylvanas replied.

"I'm right here," Anduin pointed out.

Jaina glanced back at him with an apologetic shrug. Trying to control Sylvanas was like trying to control the sea. It wasn't possible and attempts to do so only ended in disaster.

Or at least, Jaina had learned when and where to pick her battles, and this wasn't one of them.

Varian bounded out of the bedroom as they stepped inside, purring his way around Jaina's ankles and greeting Anduin with equal enthusiasm. Or, as Jaina suspected Sylvanas would characterize it fondly for years to come, making an admirable attempt at assassinating the King by tripping him back down the stairs.

It was obvious from Anduin's expression that the residence was not at all what he'd expected. Jaina knew that Genn would grill him endlessly, and she didn't really care; there was nothing to hide here and it was generally a well-kept living space, except for the scholarly clutter.

Homier than it had been at first. Many more books and shelves in nearly every room, of course. And more color. Not just the darks and purples that Sylvanas preferred, but blue and red, silver and gold, and a little bit of Kul Tiran green for highlights.

Anduin stared for a particularly long moment at a ribbon hanging on the wall, and it took a moment for Jaina to remember what that was.

When Anduin looked at her quizzically, she shrugged and smiled. "I'm the best pig wrestler in Orgrimmar."

Dumbfounded, Anduin looked at the ribbon again, before following Jaina into the living area. He looked around, and then nodded. "Well. You definitely live here."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

He gave her a smile. "Sextant on the table, books scattered on many surfaces and a couple floating around. Chalkboard hiding in the corner with formulas that are already giving me a headache. Papers everywhere."

So perhaps it was more cluttered than she realized.

Sylvanas had an expression on her face that was almost indulgent, but it disappeared before Anduin could notice. For some reason, that made the heat rise to Jaina's face a lot more quickly than Anduin knowing her too well. She cleared her throat. "Well, we're out of earshot of everything."

Pouring herself a completely unnecessary drink, Sylvanas studied both of them. "I know you will share this with the other leaders of the Alliance, as I will need to share it with my own counterparts. But some time ago a Champion of the Horde discovered a box."

"I'm going to assume this isn't a normal box," Anduin prompted.

"Gold star for the king." Sylvanas pulled a folded up piece of paper from one of her pouches. Opening it, she swept a table clean and smoothed the paper on the table. "It drove my poor champion mad. He claimed voices whispered to him of unspeakable horrors, and granted him terrible dreams of darkness and decay."

Looking over Sylvanas's shoulder, Jaina saw a drawing of the box. It was carved with geometric patterns and circles at the center of each side. "What was inside?"

"I don't know. I can't get it open." Sylvanas stepped aside so Anduin could get a look as well.

"And how are you certain it hasn't driven you mad?" He looked at Sylvanas.

Returning his gaze, Sylvanas merely smiled. "I married Lady Proudmoore, perhaps that is proof enough."

Jaina scoffed. "Really?"

Anduin looked between them, then shook his head in disbelief. "Obviously you discovered something to link this box to those islands. We could have made it a joint operation."

"We could have, but I was interested in seeing how quickly you would notice and what sort of force you'd send to harass my people."

"I concede your point," he replied.

"A box with whispers, a chamber that drives people mad, and a captain and ship corrupted by the Old Gods." Saying the words out loud made ice form inside Jaina's stomach. She inhaled deeply, and then exhaled. "We need information from that chamber."

"Most of that expedition went insane or became corrupted," Anduin pointed out. "It takes a strong will or immunity to resist that corruption."

"Indeed." Sylvanas rested her palm on the table, next to the paper. "Those that survived had strong enough wills to resist, but I would not risk them again so soon."

"Forsaken." Jaina stared at Sylvanas. "Forsaken, and Death Knights. Undead are immune to corruption by the Old Gods."

Anduin nodded. "They can still be tempted, but they can't be driven mad the same way as most. Worgen might have some immunity as well."

Sylvanas grinned. "Greymane will not be happy."

"So we return to those islands with an expedition of Forsaken scholars, Alliance Death Knights, and a few Worgen volunteers," Jaina suggested. "And hope there is still something there to find."

Sylvanas held the ship model in her hand as she stared at the war table. Silently, she closed her fist around it, squeezing until the model was crushed. "I understand there are cracks forming between Whisperwind and the rest of the Alliance."

"Her pride was wounded by the implication that the Kaldorei need protection by Kul Tiras." Nathanos stepped up next to her. "The loss of her unfortunately named ship did not help matters."

Nodding, Sylvanas opened her hand and let the bits of wood drop to the table. "Speaking of that. Would you care to tell me how Captain Raze went rogue with my weapon?"

"I've been trying to find out, but he was lost when that leviathan claimed the ship."

She turned cold eyes onto him. "The existence of that ship would have drawn the ire of the Alliance. I thought it a risk worth taking."

"Raze must have made a bargain with the Naga and their masters," Nathanos mused. "Prey upon both Horde and Alliance. At least now it can be attributed to someone else."

"We were baited." Sylvanas leaned on the war table, eyes almost entirely black. "We were baited, and we fell for it. Five ships lost, and we nearly lost my favorite too. What's more, I could have lost you. I could have lost Jaina."

There was also the matter of the Lord Admiral of Kul Tiras, but Katherine wasn't very high on Sylvanas's priority list.

Nathanos's eyes narrowed, and he squared his shoulders. "It would take much more than that to eliminate either myself or your consort."

"We both know you would have been pleased if she'd been killed." Sylvanas straightened, running her fingers through her hair. "I am going to give you a list of names. Forsaken scholars, mages and warriors. A few Death Knight champions. You're going to lead a new expedition to that island, where you will meet with Alliance forces. I want answers, Nathanos. And I want them now."

He bowed deeply, then backed to the elevator. Sylvanas felt his eyes on her until the platform started to lower. She looked down at the table, then lifted her arms and smashed her fists into it, shattering it in half.

Sylvanas loathed not being in control, and the situation with Wraith's Shadow and N'zoth was well beyond her control at the moment. Shoving the remains of the table out of the way, Sylvanas stalked to the elevator, and then out of the Hold once she was on the ground floor.

The boy had returned to Stormwind hours ago and she assumed that Jaina would be with her mother, so Sylvanas expected to be alone.

As soon as she stepped inside, she could hear Jaina's heartbeat through the ground, and taste her breath on the air. She stood in the doorway, head tilted, listening. Quietly, she hung her cloak on the hook and removed her boots, then padded silently into the bedroom.

Jaina was laying in the bed, covers askew and doing little to hide the expanse of her skin. Sylvanas studied her, feeling her anger ebbing by the minute.

She slowly undressed, then pulled the covers aside and lay next to Jaina. Resting her hands over her stomach, Sylvanas stared at the ceiling, allowing the steadiness of Jaina's life to slow her thoughts. Her plans were secure, the compact intact, Jaina safe.

Sylvanas turned her head towards Jaina, then rolled to face her. Cautiously, she stroked her hair, and trailed her fingers along her cheekbone and she loathed Jaina in that moment. Loathed her pretty face and her beautiful voice and intelligence and that stubborn fire that burned within her, making her feel that uncomfortable warmth. She kissed her lightly, then rolled to face away and stew.

The bed shifted underneath her, and she felt Jaina's body against her back. Jaina's right arm slid around her waist, her lips brushing against the spot where her spine met her neck. Her breasts were soft and inviting, scorching at her skin and Sylvanas suddenly wasn't so sure anymore that what she was feeling was actually loathing.

"I'm okay," Jaina murmured.

Sylvanas dug her fingers into the bed so deeply she dug out feathers.