I'm here without you, baby
But you're still on my lonely mind
I think about you, baby
And I dream about you all the time
I'm here without you, baby

~Here Without You-Three Doors Down~

They were not successful in removing the corruption from Garona. Khadgar tried everything he could, but the Fel was too strong, Gul'Dan's hold on her too tenacious. For several days he worked at it, each time thinking he was making progress only to be disappointed time and again. It was horrible for Cordana to watch, and after the last attempt she took to her bed with pain in her abdomen and a little boy who would not move around.

Khadgar summoned a healer from Sanctuary, he was beside himself with worry when his wife could not eat and seemed to be in more pain than was natural. Their son had ceased his usual activity.

"The Kaldorei are a sensitive people," Rashana told him. "What you are doing here is not good, and it is affecting both your mate and your son. There are too many negative energies at play in this Tower of yours."

She had given Cordana an elixir to relax her and allow her to rest, but she was concerned at how scant the baby's movements were.

"You must send her to Sanctuary for awhile," she suggested.

"Absolutely not," said Khadgar. "I will not have her away from my side, not with all of the threats present."

Rashana looked even more concerned. "Your mate lives with the reality of threats each and every day?" She stroked Cordana's forehead. "Poor sister. This is not right, not right at all." She turned to Khadgar and there was no softness in her eyes.

"You must let me take her home to her people. This will only get worse and she is only 8 months along. Cordana needs a peaceful place, away from the negativity of this Tower. She cannot live surrounded by war and death and demons!"

Khadgar gave a heavy sigh. "She is a Warden of the Enclave! This is what they do, this is what she has always done!"

"She is an expectant mother!" retorted Rashana, now growing angry. "It is your son she carries. Now I am understanding better why she was so upset when I told her she was with child. You humans are selfish and warlike, caring only so far as it does not affect your schemes and plans!"

Khadgar sat down on a nearby chair, hard. "You have me all wrong," he said softly and sadly. "Her well being and that of my son is the only thing I do care about. If you know and understand the Wardens, they are driven to succeed at their tasks, and Cordana has never wavered from her focus on our mission here. Yes, it involves death, war, demons and the Fel, but up until now, she has never wanted to do anything else. I am not forcing her to remain here, I do not force her to remain on duty. It is her choice and her will."

He stood up and walked back to the bedside. Bending down, he kissed his sleeping wife tenderly.

"I will go with you to Sanctuary and leave her there to be cared for. However, if she wishes to return, I will not deny her. I will speak with Jarrod Shadowsong and ask him to check on her daily and I will come as often as my duties here will allow."

Khadgar felt small and deflated, being up against something he could not simply hurl his magic at. Cordana had always seemed so strong and resilient, so focused and unyielding when it came to her duty. Now she seemed so fragile to him, so changed and so vulnerable.

He gently picked her up in his arms, her head on his chest. She awoke slightly and gave him a tired but puzzled glance, placing her arms around his neck.

"What are you doing, Khadgar," she asked softly.

"Taking care of you, as I promised I always would," he said.

She closed her eyes and murmured something than went back to sleep in his arms.

Khadgar felt the oppression lifting as he entered Sanctuary. Rashana was right, there was darkness at the Tower, negativity that you truly only felt once you left it. It was that damn assassin and her Fel chained mind, and he needed to do something about it, but he felt so lost without Cordana at his side. She was his grounding influence, his strength.

As he lay her down gently and covered her with a soft blanket, the Archmage wondered if he should ask Jaaral to take over Cordana's duties for awhile. But Jaaral was the Alliance base commander. He had duties on top of duties and although he would make the time to accede to Khadgar's wishes, it would eventually cause lapses in his own missions and that would be unfair. No, he had to put his plans on hold until Cordana was able to return to duty, and if she did not wish to, he would decide what to do then.

He kissed her gently, making sure the crystal portal gem was still around her neck. His wife must not be allowed to think for a moment that he had abandoned her. He made that perfectly clear to Rashana.

The Kaldorei healer was unsure about Cordana's mate. She sensed his kindness and his love for her, but beneath that was something else entirely. It was not evil or dark, but...intense. The human Archmage had an intensity about him that bothered her. She knew nothing about what he was doing there on that strange world, but after experiencing the energies at the Tower, she felt it was not something healthy. She would have to work hard to make sure Cordana didn't wish to return there, but in the end it was her life, and her choice to make. Ultimately the Warden's place would be at her mate's side, and Rashana hoped that it would be after the war had ended.

Khadgar teleported himself away. He was going to Dalaran, to the see the Council of Six.

Cordana awoke disoriented and called out for Khadgar. A gentle Kaldorei sire came towards her and brought her a chalice of water and helped her sit up.

"Where is Khadgar?" she asked. "And why am I here?"

"You are here to protect the life within you," he said softly. "My name is Skylar, and I will be here to help you."

She frowned at him. "Help me do what? I'm not an invalid, I am carrying a child, that is hardly a requirement for an assistant. Where is Khadgar?"

"Do you mean the human with the silver hair who brought you here?"

She nodded. "He is my mate. Where is he?"

"He will be back to visit you, when he can," said Skylar offering her a plate of fruit.

Cordana pushed his hand away. "Back? Where did he go? Back to Draenor...and he left me here?"

Just then Jarrod came walking up. "Hello Cordana," he said pleasantly. "It is nice that you will be so near to us. Your sisters have asked to come and see you."

She turned hard eyes on him. "What is going on, Jarrod? Why am I in Sanctuary? Why did Khadgar leave me here?"

She placed her hands on her belly, and little Khadgar gave a rather weak little kick. "What is wrong with my son? He is not moving very well!"

Jarrod sat beside her and took some of the fruit. "That is precisely why you are here," he said. "Something at the Tower is causing a disturbance in you and your child. Rashana strongly suggested that you come here for awhile and see how you feel. Do you remember what happened?"

Cordana took a deep breath and realized the air did feel different. She felt lighter and more alive. She began to remember how her son had not been moving much, and the pain she had started feeling. Then she remembered the dreadful assassin and the strange black and purple orb that they had gotten. She shuddered.

"Yes, I remember now, at least part of it. I do not remember coming here."

"You were unconscious, asleep due to an elixir," answered Skylar. "It was given to you to ease your pain. Your child is fine, there is no need to worry now."

As if to reinforce the sentiment, the baby kicked again. It was still weaker than she was used to, but it was better than nothing at all.

"Will Khadgar come and see me, as Skylar said?" she asked Jarrod. The sire nodded with a smile, and stood up.

"I must return to the Enclave," he said. "I will return each day to make sure you are alright. You can always come and see me if you wish."

She watched him walk away and turned to Skylar. "What if I wish to go home?" she asked.

"You are not a prisoner here, Cordana," he said with a smile. "You may come and go as you wish, but please consider the reasons why your mate brought you here. If there is something unbalancing you there, is it the wisest choice to return to it? I know you miss your mate but you will see him as often as possible. Right now, you must feel at peace enough to consider only your son, and not worry for anything else."

His words had merit, and she nodded. It would be nice to be able to walk around without the encounter suit, to not have to look over her shoulder all the time.

Maiev.

The name resounded in her mind. Perhaps it was not as safe and peaceful as she had thought. Would Maiev know that she was here? If she had been spying on Jarrod she would potentially follow him. Sanctuary did not feel as safe as she had thought a moment before.

Cordana reached out with her magic and bumped into the wards. Yes, they were still there. Khadgar's loving protections were in place and at the very least she would receive some sort of warning if something was not right. Whether or not she was able to deal with it effectively was another matter.

She lay down in the soft lichen and curled slightly. "I wish to rest, Skylar," she said softly. "It is nice to be in such a beautiful, peaceful place again."

"I know we have not always seen eye to eye," said Khadgar. "But I was hoping that in this case, it would be different. This situation with Garona has compromised my wife, and I do not have her at my side to assist me for the time being."

Jaina sighed heavily. "You are playing with dark magics Khadgar, and you know we do not condone such activities. You are fully aware of what can happen if you wade into those waters!"

"Of course I am aware!" he snapped, then immediately regretted it. "I am sorry...it is just that we are so close to having Gul'Dan's location revealed, and using the enemy's tools against them seems like a small price to pay. Please, help me free Garona's mind."

Kalec addressed him. "Archmage Khadgar," he said in his soft voice. "You spoke of Cordana being compromised. What has happened exactly?"

"She seemed to have taken ill, and I took her to Sanctuary on the advice of her people," said Khadgar.

"The Kaldorei do not fall ill as other races do. Is it her pregnancy that troubles her? Is it physical or emotional in nature? Forgive me for being so personal, Archmage, but I have valid reasons for asking, as you shall find out."

Khadgar touched the ribbons hanging from Atiesh, and ran his fingers over the carved raven at its top.

"Cordana was upset by my methods of trying to break Gul'Dan's hold on Garona's mind. She asked me to find another way, which I did by trying to pull the Fel from her using the Orb of Dominion."

Jaina shuddered upon hearing those words, but let him continue unimpeded.

"As I told you, the Orb in and of itself is not powerful enough, and I was unable to successfully use the Apexis crystals or the Abjugator stones to empower it further. After that last session, Cordana went to our bed, saying that our son was not moving very much, and she developed some pain, significant enough to warrant my going to Sanctuary and bringing her a healer. It was this healer who told me that removing her from the Tower was the best course of action."

The eyes of the entire Council of Six were on him and he could feel their derision. He had always been a risk taker, combining magics and techniques, trying different ways to achieve the same ends, and venturing into areas that none of the others dared. This put him at odds with them more often than not.

"We acknowledge that you are a brilliant mage, Khadgar," said Kalec. "However, I do believe the Kaldorei are correct in assuming there is something wrong with this situation. I am concerned about Cordana. Did she have extended contact with this Orb? Is she warded?"

"Of course she is warded!" Khadgar exclaimed. How could these people be so obtuse as to believe he did not protect his wife and unborn son? "Cordana and my child are warded independently. As to the Orb, the only contact she had with it was when I was channeling through it to Garona and she never touched it herself."

"What part did she play in these rituals, as I am aware she is not an arcanist."

"Cordana monitored Garona. She is not an arcanist in the pure sense of the word, but I have been working with her and we have both been learning one another's abilities."

"So Cordana was somehow tied, magically, to Garona's mind?"

Khadgar nodded. "It is a rather simplified explanation, but yes that suffices. Cordana was concerned that I was causing too much stress and pain on Garona and she wanted to monitor her closely to assure herself that it was not so."

Kalec nodded and looked at Jaina. Jaina said nothing, she looked down at her hands, then at Khadgar, then at the others.

"Archmage Khadgar," she said. "We believe you fail to see the repercussions this has had, and will have if you continue to meddle in dark magic. We must reconvene at a later date and give you our decision once we have carefully considered all aspects of your request."

Khadgar's expression darkened. "I do not have the luxury of time! Gul'Dan moves forward with his plans as we sit here on our hands doing nothing! I must free Garona of his control and learn what she knows!"

"What if she is unwilling to cooperate, Khadgar?" asked Modera. "She could shut down and refuse to tell you anything. She has been a prisoner in her mind for a long time, it is not as easy as freeing a bird from a cage."

"Getting her to talk will not be an issue," said Khadgar. "She will be aware that the Orb is in my possession."

None of the group liked the sound of that. While the Kirin Tor were not above questionable means to complete a necessary task, they were not sure that the methods the Archmage was alluding to were appropriate. It came down to the dark magic once more.

"Alright," said Jaina. "We understand what you are saying and what you are asking Khadgar, but we still must discuss this. We shall be in touch shortly."

He stood up, his entire demeanor dark and full of dissent. He said nothing, gave a cursory nod to the council and teleported away.