 Widow's Bite | |
|---|---|
| Main leader |
 Apari † |
| Formerly |
Tayo |
| Race(s) |
  Zandalari troll |
| Affiliation | Independent |
| Status | Unknown (Seemingly disbanded after Apari's death) |
|
The Widow's Bite were former followers of Shadra and later Yazma,[1] who in the aftermath of the Fourth War fell under the leadership of Apari.[2] The rebel group opposed the rule of Queen Talanji.
History[]
The Widows Bite were known to be worshipers of Shadra, and at some point took to worshiping Yazma. With the deaths of Shadra and Yazma, the Zandalari Empire assumed that they had been disbanded, unaware that in the aftermath of the Fourth War Apari had rallied them to her cause. Those who were exiled from the Zandalari due to being sympathetic to Yazma's coup with Zul were warmly welcomed into the organization.
They attempted to assassinate Talanji with poison during a Horde Council meeting but were thwarted by Zekhan, and the machinations of Bwonsamdi.[3] After Talanji returned to Dazar'alor, another assassination attempt was made by one of their war parties in the Heart of the Empire. After being overwhelmed by Talanji, the Horde ambassador Zekhan, Bwonsamdi, Mah'ral, and royal guards, they impaled themselves on their enemies blades to prevent capture and interrogation.[1] Upon receiving word of this second assassination attempt, Darkspear chieftain Rokhan arrived to aid Talanji, joining the fight against the Widow's Bite.[4]
The Widow's Bite also took to using propaganda to turn the public against Talanji, and killed those who remained loyal to the Queen like Seshi and Bezime.
Apari and her followers agreed to aid Nathanos Blightcaller and Sira Moonwarden on their mission to kill the loa of death, Bwonsamdi.[2] In order to weaken the protections around Bwonsamdi's shrines, Nathanos was forced to hand over something precious and irreplaceable to the witch. Thus, after a moment, he handed his officer's badge given to him by Sylvanas when they were among the living and warned Apari that if she failed to destroy the loa's shrines as promised, then the consequences would be severe.[5]
Widow's Bite agents within Dazar'alor openly attacked Thrall and Ji Firepaw when they arrived in the city to inform Talanji that they received intelligence about the Widow's Bite alliance with the Banshee loyalists. They, with the help of the Rastari and Rokhan, were able to deal with the attackers and revealed to Talanji the connection between their enemies.[6]
The Widow's Bite and the Banshee loyalists fought side by side and clashed with the Zandalari Empire in Nazmir, where they were discovered attempting to sacrifice children in order to weaken one of Bwonsamdi's shrines. Thanks to the courage of Zekhan, the children were saved, and due to their smaller amount of numbers, the Widow's Bite and their ally fell back.[7] In light of their alliance, Sira revealed that Lelyias was a skilled healer who could help Apari with her leg injuries, however, she refused. This vexed Sira who noted that the Widow's Bite were loyal to Apari, that they would fall apart without her leaving the loyalists with no reinforcements, and more importantly, to Sira, was they needed the witch to survive until the loa Bwonsamdi was killed.[8]
After successfully weakening several of his shrines, Nathanos and Apari gave the order for their forces to strike at the loa's Necropolis. Prior to the battle against the loa, Tayo, the Widow's Bite lieutenant, outraged and disgusted with Apari's actions in harming children, had decided to defect to the Horde, ultimately aiding them by revealing the traps Nathanos had set up. With the traps disabled, the Horde was in full force for the subsequent conflict that killed Apari. As Sira predicted, the death of their leader caused the Widow's Bite to fall apart. Many of the survivors fled the battlefield by jumping into the marsh and sea, unaware that Lor'themar Theron and Gazlowe were prepared to deal with this possibility of retreat. Following this collapse, Sira was captured and taken prisoner, and while Nathanos successfully escaped, he was filled with the knowledge that they had failed with Bwonsamdi's survival.[9]
With Apari's death and Tayo's defection, the organization seems to have disbanded with no central leader to guide them.
References[]
- ^ a b Shadows Rising chapter 7
- ^ a b Shadows Rising chapter 4
- ^ Shadows Rising, chapter 1
- ^ Shadows Rising, chapter 16
- ^ Shadows Rising, chapter 13
- ^ Shadows Rising, chapter 21
- ^ Shadows Rising, chapter 23
- ^ Shadows Rising, chapter 26
- ^ Shadows Rising, chapter 29