The origins of the Moon Goddess, Elune, have always been shrouded in mystery. The information circulating in Azeroth only confirms that she is a True God, but no one has ever seen her true form; even the title "Moon Goddess" was a name the Night Elves took the liberty of bestowing upon her.
The Night Elves, having just undergone an evolutionary leap fueled by the energies of the Well of Eternity, linked Elune's descending will with the moon they worshipped. Thus, the title "Moon Goddess Elune" was born. The earliest priests even claimed that Elune slept at the very bottom of the Well of Eternity.
As it turned out, such ancient myths were complete nonsense.
Elune had never manifested a physical form in the material world. The early Night Elves could only sense the will of this True God but had never seen her likeness. According to the Night Elves' own interpretation, statues of Elune were shaped as a female Night Elf, yet the facial features of these statues remained perpetually blurred. Clearly, even the Night Elves themselves did not know how to carve Elune's countenance.
The fabricated legends regarding Elune didn't stop there. There was a widely circulated rumor claiming that the Forest Demigod, Cenarius, was the offspring of the strongest demigod, the white stag Malorne, and the Moon Goddess Elune.
The best lies are never the ones that can be seen through at a glance; rumors that successfully deceive the masses usually contain a kernel of truth. The fact was that Cenarius, a natural-born demigod, did indeed have a connection to Malorne, and the two publicly acknowledged their father-son relationship.
However, this matter had nothing to do with Elune; it was merely a forced association made by the common folk. Cenarius had never publicly acknowledged Elune as his mother. The entity who actually shared a mother-like relationship with Cenarius was Ysera, the Green Dragon Queen.
Andreas had once speculated about Elune's true identity. Since official sources had personally debunked the theory that she was Azeroth's world-soul, what exactly was she as a True God?
Xal'atath's accidental, blurted-out words opened a door to the truth that had long puzzled Andreas.
According to the records of the "Light's Heart" quest in Legion, the Naaru—that race hailed as the symbol of the Holy Light—were created by Elune, including X'era, the Mother of Light.
Andreas ignored Xal'atath's humble-toned calls; he was busy trying to string together the pieces of intelligence he had acquired previously.
While the Naaru represent the side of the Holy Light, their strength is... complicated. At the very least, I don't think they are on par with the Void Lords. They seem more equivalent to the lower-tier Old Gods.
Following that logic, as a being of a higher order than the Naaru, could Elune be a Lord of the Holy Light? ...Man, that name sounds stupid.
If he only deduced up to this step, the answer would likely be acceptable to most members of the Sisterhood of Elune, including Tyrande. But Andreas didn't stop there; he continued to think deeper.
The property that Light and Shadow can transform into one another has long been known to the world. Thinking from a different perspective, is it possible that Elune was once... or even now is... actually one of the Void Lords?
This terrifying speculation made Andreas shudder involuntarily.
No, no, I shouldn't think that way. At least within the scope of Azeroth's history that I know, Elune has never shown any malice toward this world.
A Lord of the Light? Or perhaps, a former Void Lord who converted to the side of Light due to a disagreement with her kin? Is that how her existence should be understood?
"Um, Divine Envoy?"
Managing to snap back from his horrifying conjectures, Andreas finally heard Xal'atath calling him.
Rubbing his aching temples, Andreas let out a weary sigh. "Go ahead, what is it?"
Xal'atath asked hesitantly, "Has Our Lord issued any new commands to those of us parasitizing Azeroth? Is there any possibility for me to regain my own complete body?"
Andreas rolled his eyes. "I don't know what you felt from that divine power just now, but what I can tell you is that your guess isn't correct. At least... not entirely."
...
Although Xal'atath was baffled by Andreas's vague explanation, with Elune's divine power acting as a deterrent, she at least didn't dare to recklessly pull any tricks in the shadows.
Tucking the scimitar into his belt, Andreas intended to try and challenge the seal of the Hammer of Khaz'goroth.
"Divine Envoy..."
Andreas impatiently interrupted Xal'atath's choice of address. "Don't call me that. And stop using that sickeningly respectful tone. Just call me by my name; it's Andreas."
"Uh... alright, Andreas." Xal'atath detected the displeasure in her new master's voice. Skilled at manipulating hearts, she quickly adjusted her attitude. "If you intend to take the Hammer of Khaz'goroth to defeat the Burning Legion, I advise you to temporarily abandon that plan."
Andreas, who was about to shapeshift, paused. "Why?"
As a veteran of Azeroth who had survived since the era of the Black Empire, Xal'atath's understanding of this world—and even of the Titans, the arch-enemies of the Old Gods—far exceeded that of Andreas.
"While each of the Pillars of Creation left by the Titans possesses immense power, ordinary mortals absolutely cannot manipulate them freely."
"I once saw a troll near Xandǔ who had accidentally obtained the Tidestone of Golganneth. Her strength among mortals was already the elite of the elite. Yet, when facing the newly awakened Kithikx, that troll priestess channeled the Tidestone for a single attack and died on the spot, bleeding from every orifice."
Xal'atath spoke meaningfully, "For mortals, the power of Titan artifacts is too great. The energy consumed when activating them is not something they can withstand. Once their own internal energy is exhausted, the energy consumed becomes the wielder's life."
"So, if you hope to rely on the Pillars of Creation to turn the tide, you'd better think twice."
Andreas frowned. He hadn't expected the price for using the Pillars of Creation to be so heavy. But upon reflection, it made sense; in all things, there is a gain and a loss. The Pillars of Creation indeed possessed a formidable power unmatched by any other artifact, but triggering them would inevitably consume a massive amount of energy. This burden was undoubtedly too heavy for mortals.
No wonder the legend of Huln Highmountain only goes as far as driving away Deathwing. It wasn't that he didn't want to create more legends, but because his body couldn't handle the burden of using the Holy Hammer and collapsed soon after?
After hesitating for a while, Andreas eventually decided to temporarily postpone his plan to take the Hammer of Khaz'goroth.
"Forget it. If it really comes down to a life-or-death situation, the Hammer isn't the only Pillar of Creation we have. Let it stay here for now. However..."
Turning back toward Neltharion's treasure pile, Andreas broke into a greedy smile. "Hehe~ Looting! I'm taking it all! Anyway, no one's here to compete with me. What's wrong with me taking a few pieces of high level gear?"