“And where are these ancient heroes who spoke of peace? They lie in the cold ground beneath our hooves, anguishing at the state of our world. Peace? I choose a different destiny… a different fate.
It is a time of change. Pawene ichnee pawene.”
-Arrindar the Vengeful
The Tale of Arrindar, as told to his people in his inaugural speech.
“The tale of our illustrious forebears has been all but lost through time. These last few chaotic years have thrown us all into disarray and anarchy. The great stories of our past have become nothing but mere distractions to us. Who among you knows of the first Arrindar?
It is as I feared - the past has been lost to you all.
It is from the past that we learn; that we evolve into greater beings. The story of Arrindar is my past. Our past. And from it we will grow stronger.
Arrindar Lighthelm was a High Elf priest, born into a time when the High elves were a strong and capable people. He, and his family, shared prosperity and wealth. Quel’’Thalas was his home, his dreams, and his entire reason for living.
And then came the Scourge.
Arrindar fought with every ounce of strength in his body. His city, once tall and magnificent, fell to the ground in a frenzy of screams and smoke and flames. He watched in agony as his beloved wife and young daughter were torn to shreds, fed to the hordes of ghastly creatures flooding into his once beautiful home. Indrael Sunspear, a devoted follower of Arrindar, found him here crouched over the torn bodies of his wife and child, screaming in anguish. Indrael pulled Arrindar to his feet, and together they left the ruin of their old lives behind.
Arrindar and Indrael fled with the last few surviving Highborne into the surrounding forests, Arrindar relying on his holy powers to help keep them alive for as long as it would take to allow them the slightest glimpse of freedom. It was then that Kel’Thuzad came into being, and the strength of his people faded. Broken and utterly defeated, Arrindar and Indrael led his people away from the ruins of Quel’Thalas, into the darkness of a world in war.
In the wilderness, he and Indrael found new strength. Feeding off of the energies of the forest, they regained a fraction of their power. They wandered from forest to forest, seeking shelter from the monstrosities the Lich King had set upon them. At every darkened glen hid a new horror, some new thing to bring terror into their hearts. Death and disease haunted them night and day. However, Arrindar and his people grew stronger, lighting the darkness with their hope of finding the rest of their people. With each new encounter, they grew mightier. Arrindar became known as ““Arrindar the Wise.”
After several long years of wandering, Arrindar suddenly stopped his people, and brought them together in a circle around a fire.
“My people,” he said, sorrowfully to them, “my people. What have we become? Are we merely prey to the Scourge? Are we merely the puppets of a mad man?” Upon saying this, the broken Highborn roared angrily, shaking the trees around them. Arrindar smiled.
“No, we are not. We have become something more through our allegiance to each other. We can shake the very foundations of Azeroth, should we so choose. Individually we are weak, but together as one - we are a force to be reckoned with.” The Highborn cheered, and the dark forest filled with a little more light.
“We must become stronger,“ he continued. “We must build alliances with those in the world who fight the same battle. But I can not do this on my own. We must work together, as one being. We will be as one. My people -- you are my eyes, you are my ears, you are my hands. Work with me, and we will bring peace again to Azeroth and prosperity to Quel’Thalas!” he roared into the dark forest, and his people roared back as one. This, my friends, was the first meeting of the Hand of Arrindar.
Arrindar, finding new strength in his people, founded four leaders to forge their path. He named these four individuals after the four guiding principles of his newly born guild: Wisdom, Life , Sacrifice, and Strength. These “Hands” of Arrindar led their people out of the dark forests and into the light of the world, where they recruited beings from all parts of Azeroth. Through these alliances, they grew, as Arrindar had predicted, into a force the world had not seen in many years. They brought wisdom, life, strength and sacrifice to the Horde, and for a time there was peace.
On Arrindar’s death bed, he called his loyal friend Indrael to his side.
“Indrael,” he spoke tenderly, “you were the strength I needed in my darkest hour. You have been a loyal friend, advisor, and indeed the Hand of Strength of our people. To you I pass my name, and my legacy.” And then, as Arrindar the Wise breathed his last breath, Indrael Sunspear became Arrindar the Strong.
And in this way, the title of “Arrindar” has been passed down from generation to generation. Arrindar is immortal through us, and his legacy is reborn with each who carries his name.
And so you have chosen me. The first Tauren to carry this name. And in this hour, I come to you with a question that has troubled me for many years. Has Arrindar’’s legacy been fulfilled? No, it has not. We have honoured the principles of Arrindar. We have life, we have wisdom, we have strength, and oh…how we have sacrificed. And do any of you see peace in this world? Where are these ancient heroes who spoke of peace? They lie in the cold ground beneath our hooves, anguishing at the state of our world. Peace? I choose a different destiny…… a different fate.
My people have suffered terribly and the hands of the wretched alliance. As Arrindar before me, I saw my wife and child ripped apart at the hands of monsters. But these monsters were men and elves, who we seek peace with. Peace. It is a naïve notion. The world has changed, and so must we. The Hands of Peace we have followed have failed us and so I will create us Hands of Judgement. It is time to bring the alliance to their knees, my friends. With the Hand of Power, Hand of Faith, Hand of Reckoning and Hand or Destiny, we will indeed be a force to be reckoned with!
It is a time of change. Pawene ichnee pawene.”
