Back then, the Alliance and the Horde had each sent an elite team to conquer Blackrock Spire, carrying the high hopes of their respective faction leaders. Both teams fulfilled their missions, returning almost simultaneously with the heads of Nefarian, the Black Dragon Prince, which were hung at the gates of Stormwind City and Orgrimmar, respectively.
Naturally, someone wondered why Nefarian had two heads.
After examination by Azeroth's foremost dragon researcher, the female dragon knight, and for further details, Lady Dragon Rider Jaina Proudmoore, both heads were found to be real.
The Alliance and the Horde both came to accept that Nefarian was a two-headed dragon.
Bishop Faxien explained with the utmost respect and care, "Your Highness surely remembers Blackrock Spire's most famous trophy, Ashkandi, Greatsword of the Brotherhood."
Shadow Anduin spun the Draenor Star without a change of expression. "Of course I remember. When that sword appears, brotherhood disappears. I recall it was awarded to an Undead mage, on the grounds that a mage chopping people up with a two-handed sword was very powerful, dealing even more damage than a Warrior."
Bishop Faxien said with an ingratiating smile, "The real reason was that the mage was the guild master's brother-in-law. Afterward, the guild disbanded, and the guild master was hacked to pieces and fed to the abominations in the Undercity. The mage who received the Greatsword of the Brotherhood was hunted by every guild on the continent of Azeroth. He fled on horseback for months, eating, sleeping, and fighting in the saddle every day. He wore out his saddle and inadvertently became the first adventurer in Azeroth's history to comprehend Man-Mount Unity."
Shadow Anduin's eyes lit up, showing keen interest.
Bishop Faxien continued, "Man-Mount Unity means becoming one with your horse, your bones and flesh growing together until the two become one. Usually, only the Undead can accomplish it, so General Tuyang Tusunpo, a human who mastered Man-Mount Unity, was truly exceptional. There is just one weakness: once separated from the horse, the rider will die. People call this condition Horseback Wind."
Shadow Anduin nodded and summed it up. "In other words, General Tuyang Tusunpo, the Argent Crusade's most powerful Paladin, died of Horseback Wind."
"Precisely. The autopsy report confirms it." Bishop Faxien's expression was grave. "Speaking of which, it had something to do with our hospitality. The Argent Crusade spends all year traveling through the ice and snow of Northrend, short of food and clothing, with little fat in their diet. We treated him to a meal of beef this morning, so indigestion was inevitable."
Udir, the Worgen Priest, almost laughed out loud. The report could not have been more absurd.
For Prince Anduin, however, the report was enough.
What he needed was an excuse good enough to fob people off, not to pursue the truth.
Prince Anduin pondered briefly, then gave his instructions in earnest. "Take note: this is a diplomatic matter, so our wording must be precise and proper. Tuyang Tusunpo died on the back of a frost wolf. Calling it Horseback Wind is highly inappropriate. It should be called Wolfback Wind."
"Your Highness is quite right." Bishop Faxien hurriedly wrote it down.
With the "truth" clear and the matter resolved, Prince Anduin relaxed. Full of enthusiasm, he began talking about the past and commenting on events ancient and modern.
"Tirion Fordring was originally one of the first five great Paladins. In terms of reputation and seniority, he was beyond reproach. In his early years, he lived on white maggot meat in the Plaguelands and suffered terribly. Later, there were fewer adventurers, and he didn't even have white maggot meat to eat. The Plaguelands of Lordaeron were the home base of the Argent Dawn and the Scarlet Crusade, but neither of them paid Tirion any attention. Do you know why?"
In his shadow state, Anduin loved telling stories just like King Varian.
King Varian's favorite stories were about his days in the arena. He never tired of recounting the blood and sand he had shared with Valeera and Broll Bearmantle, fighting life-and-death battles in the arena before finally winning the championship.
More than once, Udir had wondered whether a fury warrior, an assassination rogue, and a bear druid—such an unreliable combination—could really have reached the top of the arena.
Anduin had no similar experiences. He talked more about history, commenting on the influential figures of Azeroth's past and revealing interesting things about them.
Anduin's perspective on historical figures was a very interesting one.
As the saying went, important people cared only about costs and benefits; only little people concerned themselves with right and wrong.
Prince Anduin was, of course, an important person, and his perspective was different.
Seeing the puzzled expressions on both Udir and Bishop Faxien, Anduin said smugly, "Because Tirion's character left a great deal to be desired. What happened later proved it. The Lich King founded the Knights of the Ebon Blade, and to whitewash the Death Knights and gain the acceptance of the Alliance and the Horde, he urgently needed an upright, heroic spokesperson. So he approached Tirion..."
Udir could not help interrupting. "I remember the Knights of the Ebon Blade being founded by Death Knights who broke away from the Lich King."
Anduin was not annoyed at being interrupted. He chuckled and said, "The first person the Death Knights saw when they were born was the Lich King Arthas. Who do you think they were loyal to?"
Udir thought Death Knights probably weren't kittens or puppies that took the first thing they saw for their mother. Naturally, he was too embarrassed to contradict Anduin again and settled down to listen.
"The Lich King's terms were that he would resurrect Tirion's son, Taelan Fordring, and recommend him as an instructor for the Knights of the Ebon Blade. But halfway through the performance, Tirion refused to go on and demanded Mograine's Ashbringer. Mograine was one of the five great Paladins alongside Tirion, and they were close friends. Ashbringer was his most precious possession, yet Tirion showed no regard for their old friendship."
"What happened afterward?" Bishop Faxien could not help asking.
The history Prince Anduin recounted was always wildly different from the official version. On that subject, Bishop Faxien had once sought the advice of his senior, Benedictus, the former Archbishop of Stormwind City.
The latter's advice to him was: if you take it seriously, you lose.
"Afterward..." Prince Anduin narrowed his eyes and sneered. "The Lich King kept his promise and resurrected young Fordring, then personally directed a tragedy for Tirion in which father and son turned on each other..."
The fortress Town Hall.
Almost all the Brotherhood's officers had gathered, and everyone was in high spirits.
They were all talking about how generous Tuyang Tusunpo had been, bringing them equipment, mounts, and weapons, and even delivering them personally to their door. Ordinary bosses were rarely so generous.
When it came to looting corpses, the Brotherhood's members were professionals. One had found shoulder armor, another was carrying boots, some held belts, and others had gloves tucked into their waistbands. Almost nobody had come away empty-handed.
Hogger had been a little late getting started and had only managed to snag a sock, but he had made quite a bit by running the betting pool. Well rewarded, he boasted to Robbie in high spirits.
Cookie the Murloc hopped about with a brightly colored, indescribable item perched on his head, making Robbie think of Tuyang Tusunpo, stripped completely bare.
Strangely, it was a woman's... Could it be...
"Andenani gave it to me as a reward for helping scrub her back," Cookie explained.
What? Something that good happened? Why don't I ever run into anything like that? Robbie thought.
A bunch of light-fingered little thieves. They're a disgrace to the Brotherhood.
Robbie lamented the decline of public morals, looking down on the group countless times in his heart.
He also brought out his own loot and displayed it to everyone.
A pair of leather gloves inlaid with six gems, called Six Emperor Completion.
Holy Light Touch was a ranged skill Robbie had created himself, specifically for looting corpses.
As it turned out, the skill was highly practical. Robbie was very pleased to have snatched something good from the Brotherhood's quick-eyed, quick-handed old rogues.
Unfortunately, before long, howls of dismay rang out through the fortress council hall.
Tuyang Tusunpo's magnificent suit of silver-white Judgment armor, his weapon Quel'Serrar, and his Elementium Bulwark shield were all replicas. Everyone had expected as much; after all, the genuine articles were treasured in the royal vaults of the great races.
The problem was that they were terrible replicas. In four words:
They had cut corners.
At best, the items were a little more ornate than white-quality equipment, with no practical value whatsoever.
Robbie was secretly pleased with himself. He had anticipated this.
The Argent Crusade was based in the frigid Northrend, a godforsaken place as cold as the Arctic. What riches could there be?
Robbie was a Paladin, yet he had resisted the temptation of the Judgment armor set and taken the gloves first. None of the Brotherhood's officers could come close to matching his eye or his ability to read the situation.
Aside from Robbie's gloves, the most valuable piece of loot had unexpectedly turned out to be Cookie the Murloc's.
The Reaper 5000 harvester was an expert in this field. After careful analysis, he found a draconic aura on the indescribable piece of women's clothing. Given that Andenani was the granddaughter of Archmage Antonidas, and Jaina was Antonidas's most accomplished disciple,
The item's true owner went without saying, and it had enormous value as a collectible.
"I don't think Andenani would casually give away something so personal, especially to a Murloc," Robbie said, analyzing the matter seriously. "This is very likely meant to convey some kind of message."
Jaina's current official boyfriend was a dragon. As the king of the Blue Dragonflight, one of the five dragonflights, Kalecgos was simply a disgrace to dragonkind, a complete and utter weakling. He was often accidentally hit by Dwarf riflemen or Troll javelins and, as a matter of course, lost the ability to fight.
What was Andenani trying to say?
Unfortunately, discussing intelligence with this bunch of muscle-bound men in the Brotherhood would get him nowhere. Led by Hogger, the dissatisfied group had set their sights on the enormous frost wolf again. They planned to take it apart for components.
The frost wolf Tuyang Tusunpo rode was not a living creature but a mechanical construct. After examining it, the Goblin engineer Helix Gearbreaker determined that it was probably Mimiron's creation.
Mimiron, a great inventor and one of the four keepers, was universally acknowledged as the foremost craftsman on the continent of Azeroth. The flying mounts he made were always sought after on the black market, but never available at any price.
The mechanical frost wolf mount was immensely valuable, but it could not be brought into the open. Keeping it would cause trouble sooner or later, so they might as well dismantle it, sell the parts, and split the money.
With the Goblin engineer Helix Gearbreaker taking the lead and Captain Greenskin and the smelter Kil'negg assisting, the three Goblins clambered all over the frost wolf and soon reduced it to a pile of parts.
Mimiron's work was naturally extraordinary. The components were made of top-quality materials, and with a few additional materials, they could make several fine motorcycles.
When they opened up the central power unit, an ominous aura enveloped the entire Town Hall.
It was a green Orc skull, steeped in the aura of Fel.