Former Enemies

Taran Zhu sat alone on the steps of the pavilion where he usually meditated, reflecting on what had happened to him. He had been dealing with the Alliance and Horde along the Emerald Forest coast when the worst, most humiliating truth struck him: he had been controlled by the Sha.

He truly had to thank Nathanos and the remaining Order of the Cloud Serpent guards who still retained their sanity for successfully defeating him and the Sha at the Shrine of the August Celestials.

Of course, this incident had still cost the Order of the Cloud Serpent dearly in both manpower and resolve. Though he and his disciples had been saved, many monks had lost their lives. The Sha of Anger and the Hate Sha had escaped. All in all, he had still failed.

This land had not been so turbulent in ten thousand years.

Taran Zhu looked over the damaged buildings around him. Since the Alliance and Horde had come to Pandaria, his eyes had been filled with exhaustion.

And no matter how one looked at it, Pandaria had already been struck by disaster. As a Pandaren, he had been deeply influenced by Shaohao, the last emperor. The Pandaren cherished peace and rarely involved themselves in conflict. That was why the Order of the Cloud Serpent had not directly driven out the troublemaking Alliance and Horde.

But were they supposed to simply let them continue doing as they pleased?

If only the celestials could offer him some insight now. Yet reports said that, apart from Xuen, the temples of the other three celestials had all come under attack.

"War truly gives no one peace."

Suddenly, a chill drifted over his fur. Taran Zhu realized he was no longer alone. He raised his head and saw Nathanos and Master Snowdrift