Consequences of Sundering.

Walking through the wastelands of Twisting Nether, I continued to escape from Burning Legion following close behind me. Thanks to shadow magic, I was able to keep Sargeras a few steps behind me. Along the way, many demons would attack me, as my life force was a delicacy to them.

The problematic thing was that without a connection to the Emerald Dream and this realm lacking any nature, every fight I needed to participate in drained my limited reserves of power. Having in the back of my mind that this situation couldn't continue forever, I decided to use the time I had left to my advantage.

The Twisting Nether is a realm that exists along with the Great Dark Beyond. Both were born from Light and Void, but the Twisting Nether was left alone, becoming chaotic because of different forces clashing.

The contrast between those two words had great value to me. The stable chaos and fragile order acted as warnings on how not to use my own power. It's better to learn from the mistakes of others than those you commit yourself.

The game of cat and mouse continued, but after years, I finally fell into Sargeras' hands. He took me to the Mardum, a plan on which he once sealed demons he defeated. I now stood before him, bound by chains and under the constant watch of elites from the Legions.

~"It's great to see you again, Yue."

-"I believe neither of us is happy about this meeting, Sargeras."

~"You are right. So, will you continue to oppose me?"

-"I won't join you."

~"So be it. For our past friendship, I won't seal you. I hope that you will live the rest of your existence in Shadowlands."

-"Sargeras, I understand your reasoning, but you are too extremist. If you put your efforts into repairing the world, you might already achieve what you want to do through destruction."

Sargeras heard my words but didn't respond to them, using his fire to burn me into ash.

Death is never pleasant, but in this world, it only results in entering Shadowlands. When I opened my eyes once again, I found myself under a giant tree glowing with dreamy blue lights. This was a place I was familiar with, as I visited it often when I was the god of Life.

~"I see you finally woke up."

-"Winter?"

~"Who else did you expect to see in Ardenweald?"

-"How long was I out?"

~"Millenniums."

-"Sigh. Happy to finally see someone familiar again."

~"Looking at you, you won't stay here long."

-"Sorry for that."

~"Come with me. I have something for you."

Winter Queen started walking toward the Hearth of the Forest, and I followed a step behind her. Along the way, numerous Fae were frolicking around, and if not for the presence of Wild Hunt, one would think that this was paradise.

-"Are you in conflict with some force?"

~"No, I mobilized Wild Hunt long ago and tasked them with carrying out an important mission."

-"Hmm? What could require so many."

~"I ordered them to gather something important in Great Dark Beyond."

-"What could be so valuable to mobilize your full force?"

~"Fool. We are almost here."

Entering inside the dream tree Tirna Achiad, known as Hearth of the Forest, I followed Winter to her throne room, where countless souls were suspended around. Looking at them, I instantly recognized what they were.

-"This..."

~"All shards of yourself. I spent tens of thousands of years to gather them. Of course, I won't give them for free."

-"You seem to have this all planned."

~"Yes."

-"Tell me then, what price do I have to pay."

~"I won't be left behind by Elune. You shall be my consort."

-"Are you sure?"

~"I'm certain."

-"Then please take care of me."

~"Likewise. Do you need help in restoring your form?"

-"Please."

Winter nodded and, using her power, started to reconnect shards of my soul. At the same time, moonlight shoon from outside, gathering into a figure of a Night Elf similar to Winter despite differences in race.

~"Don't forget about me."

~"Then make yourself useful, Elune."

~"Of course, sister."

Two of them joined their powers, uniting Life and Death to restore my celestial body. Under their careful guidance, all shards of my soul flew high into the sky, joining together to form a second moon.

In the sky over Azeroth, Blue Child started shining in a slight purple hue, enveloping the planet in the darkness of night. The sudden change in environment alarmed people living on the surface.

First to understand what was going on were Dragon Aspects, who were aware of my identity as Lo'sho. Tyrande also connected dots, as she often talked with Elune.

As my power returned to me, I also returned to my true appearance, becoming humanoid once again. When I was able to stand on my feet once again, I noticed a slight problem. This was the first time I took my human form in this world, and as many races were much higher here compared to other words, I was over a head shorter than either Elune or Winter.

After reminding myself how to use this form, I walked to two goddesses who were watching me with interest. Both of them were surprised by the form I took, as despite being similar to other races, my tails made me stand out.

~"Your appearance doesn't seem to be random. Is there something behind it?"

~"And here I thought you would take Kaldorei as your race."

~"I can't answer that question, Winter. Just know that this is my true appearance."

~"Can't? Does something stop you?"

~"Yes, until my strength reaches First Ones, I won't be able to tell you the truth."

~"Hmm... If you need help, just tell me."

~"There is something that I want you both to do. Can you slowly isolate your realms from the world?"

~"You are aware that this will harm them, right? If no souls enter Ardenweald, or spiritual energy the True Emerald Dream, they will start to wither."

~"Yes, I'm well aware of that. I want you to slowly sever connections so that they can be fully isolated in a short time when needed."

~"I'll believe in you."

~"Thank you. Elune, what about you?"

~"Of course I'll listen to you. Just don't forget to involve the Kaldorei in whatever plan you have."

~"Why do you mention them now?"

~"For your ten thousand years of absence, they waited for your return upholding values you instilled. Even after the calamity that happened on Azeroth not long ago, they remained steadfast in those convictions, remaining neutral guardians when the world descended into war."

~"There seems to be a story."

~"Let's just say that Kaldorei became true guardians of Azeroth, standing side by side with dragonflights."

~"I'll have to learn more about what happened."

~"How about going to Azeroth then? Winter, do you want to go with us?"

~"I have some matters to take care of."

~"I'll see you later then."

~"You better visit Ardenweald often, Yue."

I nodded to the Queen and walked toward Grove of Awakening with Elune.

When I emerged on the other side of the portal, many people were waiting for me, most of them kneeling from my and Elune's pressure. Controlling my aura so that others could move, I started to look around.

The exit was located near the top of Mount Hyjal, so this was the heart of the Kaldorei Empire, or at least it would be if not for the drastic changes I instantly noticed.

In place of one big continent, there were now multiple landmasses with powerful maelstrom where the Well of Eternity once was. Getting used to such drastic changes will take me some time, so I decided to focus on the people around me first.

First was Cenarius, who was powerful enough to stand despite the pressure. He looked between me and Elune with shocked eyes, as neither Ysera nor I ever told him about my true identity.

-"Mather? And... Father?"

~"Sorry for keeping you in the dark, but my identity as Exile of the Life is not a glorious title and can't bring danger to you."

-"You don't have to apologize, Father. I'm happy to see you back."

Nodding in acknowledgment, I looked at the people behind him. Aside from those that I didn't recognize, Lunara, Tyrande, Malfurion, Maiev, and Illidan were present.

~"Rise. Despite the change in my nature, treat me like you treated Malorne before. Just call me Yue, as this is my true name."

-"Yes, Your Excellency."

~"Despite all those years passing, your aura hadn't changed much, aside from growing more powerful. I'm truly happy to see you all again."

-"It's us who can't express joy from your return, Your Excellency."

~"Can you tell me what happened in those years that I was gone?"

-"When Well of Eternity was destroyed, a powerful eruption changed the geography of the Azeroth, but thanks to Your Excellency draining power from inside, there were few casualties, as Dragon Aspects shielded people from the aftermath."

~"Sadly, there was no other way but to destroy the Well, as Sargeras was close to entering the Azeroth."

-"After the Sundering, we isolated ourselves on this continent that we continued to call Kalimdor. Highborn of the empire changed their name to High Elves and continued to pursue Arcane. At the same time, because of Fel magic unleashed back then, some elven children were born tainted by it and become something akin to half-demons."

-"I took them under my wing, Your Excellency. Taught them how to control their power, and as their numbers grew, they soon started calling themself Illidari."

~"Illidari, huh? Just from that name, I can see their respect for you, Illidan. Continue to lead them toward a better future."

-"Yes."

-"Over the years, some of High Elves turned to Light magic and splintered themself from High Elves. Because of the tragedy that took place during the second invasion, they decided to call themself Blood Elves."

~"The tragedy during the second invasion?"

-"Yes. The Burning Legion unleashed the Scourge upon the Azeroth. Lich King reached the shores of Kalimdor and, before we could stop them, destroyed the city of Blood Elves, raising them back as undead."

~"That would explain so many undead auras I can feel."

-"After defeating the Lich King, those revived by him regained their cognition. After the goddess Elune helped them to break the spell that bound them, making them fully free, they named themself Darkfallen and established their community."

~"Hmm... I'll ask Winter to help you. As goddess of the Pantheon of Death, her blessing would be helpful to you."

~"How could I forget about it? I'll ask her about this later."

~"Don't worry about it. I'll talk to her when I visit Ardenweald."

~"OK."

~"Sorry for the interruption, Malfurion. Please continue."

-"The last Elven race are those who decided to enter Twisting Nether trying to rescue Your Excellency. They were influenced by Void and acquired its power. They became known as Void Elves."

~"So now there are Six Elven kingdoms?"

-"No, Your Excellency. After the Sundering, the empire ceased to exist. Tyrande and Sisterhood led the Elves, while Maiev and Watchers reorganized Sentinels. Members of the Cenarion Circle focused on restoring Azeroth to stability and keeping Kalimdor hidden from the outside world."

~"I see. Three forces became leaders of the Elves. While I wanted to keep you from becoming a political force, it was unavoidable, I guess."

-"Each race chooses a representative, and six of them act together to govern the general population. Those present here are said representatives."

-"I'm Valeera Sanguinar of Blood Elves, Your Excellency."

-"I'm Sylvanas Windrunner of Darkfallen."

-"I'm Vereesa Windrunner of High Elves."

-"I'm Alleria Windrunner of Void Elves."

~"Three sisters as representatives? But the Windrunner family sounds familiar. Your ancestor was one of the best generals of Sentinels, from what I remember."

-"Yes, our family was part of Sentines for generations."

~"While this is our first meeting, I hope that you will lead your people with both compassion and prudence. If you ever find yourself in need of assistance, feel free to come and seek advice."

-"Thank you, Your Excellency."

-"As Tyrande is often busy with matters of Sisterhood, her student Shandris Feathermoon acts as Night Elves representative, while the oldest of Illidari aside from Illidan, Kor'vas Bloodthorn, speaks for her people."

~"It's good that despite the calamity, you could not only recover but even learn from mistakes of the past."

-"It's thanks to your teaching, Your Excellency."

~"Don't diminish your achievements, Malfurion. Even the best teacher won't be able to teach one who doesn't wish to learn. I was just a little guidance along the way. Your hard work was what mattered."

-"Your Excellency, what will you do from now on?"

~"This depends on what you decide, Tyrande. I can't tell you my plans, but just know that I will have to leave Azeroth in the near future and probably won't be able to return ever again."

-"This..."

~"Don't decide yet. Think about this, as this decision will change your fate. Can you tell me some more about the rest of Azeroth?"

-"Your Excellency, under my orders, Wardens remained stationed on other continents. While we avoid encounters with other races, some stronger forces still have contact with us. Right now, there is a war between two fractions known as Alliance and Horde."

~"Can you tell me more about those forces, Maiev?"

-"Alliance consists mostly of Humans along with Dwarves and Gnomes while Horde is created by Orcs, Trolls, Tauren, and Forsaken. Alliance was the force that ruled the other lands before, but were attacked by Horde who escaped from the world destroyed by Burning Legion."

~"In the end, it all comes back to Sargeras, and as the undead joined his armies, Jailer probably cooperated with him."

~"Jailer? This is going to get more problematic then."

~"Elune, can you try to find Titans?"

~"I'll look for them."

~"It's good that you hadn't involved yourself in the war. The situation that could be solved with dialogue now becomes a conflict that won't end before one side is destroyed. A cycle of hatred is not easy to sever."

While speaking, I looked to the side as familiar auras were approaching. Moments later, five dragons landed and turned into humanoid forms before approaching me.

~"It's good to see you all healthy."

-"We can say the same to you, Yue. I can see that you regained your true power."

~"Yes. I was in the middle of getting to know the changes that took place in Azeroth. Maybe you want to add something?"

-"There is one thing. Elemental Plain is on the verge of breaking the ancient seal. We are already preparing our flights to respond, as it won't be able to last much longer."

~"One trouble after another. Elemental Plane is most pressing, so we will have to focus on it. Malfurion, I'll leave defending Kalimdor in your hands."

-"Yes."

~"Alexstrasza, I'll follow you to take a closer look at the seal."

-"You are always welcome to Dragons Isles."

~"Let's go then."

Using Arcane magic, I teleported us to where the seal of the Elemental Plane was located.