Any Night Elf with a certain level of Arcane attainment, whether commoner or noble, could apply to join the Moon Guard. However, this elite mage unit was indeed predominantly composed of Highborne.
Commoners rarely had the opportunity to come into contact with the Well of Eternity or the Arcane. Someone like Illidan, who was born a commoner yet managed to rise to a high position within the Moon Guard through sheer talent, was a rarity that might not appear once in centuries.
The Highborne indeed harbored a strong sense of superiority over the common Night Elf populace. Most of them hoped to remain in a privileged class forever, receiving the awe and worship of the masses.
No matter the era or the world, nobles and the upper class shared similar ideologies; once they detected the slightest sign of an uprising from the "lowly" commoners, these privileged classes—who usually bickered incessantly among themselves—would immediately unite against the external threat.
The conflict between the two major strata of the Night Elf Empire stemmed from this very source.
Due to the worship of Elune that had existed since the rise of the Night Elves, in the philosophy of the Highborne, the status of a noble (Arcanist) was approximately equal to that of a Priestess of Elune and far greater than that of the bottom-tier commoners.
However, as Cenarius introduced the path of Druidism into Night Elf society, ordinary commoners gained another avenue to acquire power.
Through the dedicated proselytizing of Archdruid Malfurion, an increasing number of commoners had joined the Druidic sects in recent years, and the strength of this emerging organization grew steadily.
The rise of commoner power naturally threatened noble authority. According to Shandris, over the past century, there had been more and more instances of Druids resisting the brutal rule of local lords.
As the pinnacle of all nobility, Queen Azshara naturally heard the pleas of her subordinates. Yet, Cenarius was backed by the many demigods of the holy Mount Hyjal; even Azshara herself dared not be too insolent toward them.
Under Azshara's forced tolerance, the contradictions deepened day by day.
Alarmed that their authority was being challenged, the Highborne intensified their efforts, managing their respective territories with even harsher methods. This approach naturally drew a strong backlash from the increasingly influential commoner factions.
It was exactly at this time that the Highborne's deep research into the Well of Eternity yielded new results.
Under the direction of High Councilor Xavius, the Highborne connected to the Twisting Nether through the Well of Eternity and unexpectedly established contact with the Burning Legion.
Sargeras had long been coveting Azeroth. The ignorant and fearless actions of the Highborne played right into his hands. Employing the same tactic he once used to deceive the Eredar triumvirate, Sargeras disguised himself as a noble "Bronze Titan" and extended an invitation to Azshara and the Highborne.
If beings as wise as Kil'jaeden and Archimonde fell for Sargeras' trickery, Azshara and the Highborne were naturally no exception.
Queen Azshara's motivation was purely the pursuit of immense power and supreme personal authority, while the Highborne viewed these so-called "divine messengers" as the hope for re-establishing the noble order.
Both sides, harboring their own hidden agendas, hit it off immediately. Azshara opened the Well of Eternity to a limited degree, allowing small numbers of Burning Legion demons to enter Azeroth.
The demons who first entered Azeroth obeyed Sargeras' orders, showing great restraint toward the mortals they viewed as ants. To a certain extent, they were even willing to follow the instructions of the Highborne, performing precise and bloody crackdowns on the more vocal commoner factions.
The submissive attitude of the Burning Legion greatly satisfied Azshara and the Highborne. They gradually increased the throughput of the Well of Eternity, allowing more and more powerful demon lords to enter Azeroth in succession.
However, as the situation developed in the direction Sargeras desired, the demons' behavior became increasingly insolent.
While they still maintained respect for Azshara—a Queen who wielded powerful Arcane strength and might even become the Legion's fourth pillar in the future—their true colors were gradually revealed when dealing with the rest of the Highborne.
A more rational portion of the Highborne noticed that something was wrong. They began to re-examine their relationship with these so-called "divengers."
Grand Magistrix Elisande of Suramar was one of them. As the atrocities committed by the Burning Legion around the city of Suramar increased, she began to doubt their motives, fearing that these brutal demons would not prioritize the interests of the Highborne.
After a period of investigation, she even petitioned Queen Azshara, suggesting a careful reconsideration of the relationship with the demons. However, these suggestions were ultimately blocked by Xavius.
With her pleas going unanswered, Elisande finally made a decision: the city of Suramar would no longer involve itself in the dangerous dealings between the demons and the Queen.
Under Elisande's orders, the mages of Suramar brought forth many artifacts they had unearthed over the years. Channeling the power of these artifacts, they destroyed all the fel portals in the vicinity of Suramar.
Using one of the Pillars of Creation—the Eye of Aman'Thul—Elisande created a source of magic called the Nightwell. With the immense power of the Eye, she constructed a powerful barrier around the city of Suramar.
From then on, Suramar was completely isolated from the rest of their kin, living peacefully within the haven created by the Grand Magistrix.
Coincidentally, it wasn't just the Highborne of Suramar who held doubts about the Burning Legion's methods.
Major Delier Star-Eye of the Moon Guard, who was leading the blockade of the Seat of the Sky, was another.
The Star-Eye family was a large noble house; Desdel Stareye, who once served as a leader of the resistance, was just one descendant of this family's branch in Suramar.
Delier's branch, however, resided in the capital, Zin-Azshari. Due to his distant relative Desdel serving as a resistance leader, Delier was frequently mocked and ridiculed within Highborne circles.
Ostracized by his peers, he was eventually sent away from the main battlefield to Lath'elazar at the Seat of the Sky to watch over the Priestesses of Elune.
Although this boring task frustrated Delier, it was precisely by being far away from Zin-Azshari—where his compatriots blindly sang the praises of the demons—that Delier was able to re-examine the so-called "messengers" from a more objective perspective.
There are no divine messengers at all. These brutal demons aren't here for the bright future of the Queen and the Highborne; they have their own ulterior motives behind the scenes.
Despite his growing suspicions, as the commander of this Moon Guard detachment, Delier prioritized his duty when faced with the charge of the Sisterhood's combat priestesses.
"Front-line battle-mages, prepare for impact and stray arrows! Activate Mana Shields and defensive spells! Create space for our comrades in the rear!"
"Yes, sir!"
Leading the charge of the combat priestesses was a silver-haired priestess riding a pure black Nightsaber, wielding a sharp moon-gladius.
Although her features were strikingly beautiful, the battle intent and lethal aura radiating from her made Delier dare not relax his guard for a second.
"Maiev Shadowsong? That lead-from-the-front momentum... as expected of the combat priestess leader. Let me see what you're made of!"
"Hah!"
As the rear lines of both sides exchanged spells and arrows, Maiev leaped from her Nightsaber's back. Her moon-gladius flickered with a faint black light as it clashed with Delier's flaming one-handed longsword.
Clang!
The backlash from the collision of two different powers created a gust that caused Andreas, positioned behind Maiev, to sway slightly.
"Starting off this intensely? It seems I can't slack off either."
Andreas, who had never learned horsemanship, sat awkwardly on the back of the galloping Nightsaber, hardly looking like cavalry.
As the priestesses beside him spurred their mounts into the charge, brandishing moon-glaives and shouting battle cries as they breached the Moon Guard's lines, Andreas instead leaped backward off his mount.
While mid-air, Andreas' hands rapidly transformed into a translucent energy state. A dark, flowing light that seemed to absorb all brilliance enveloped his body, allowing him to hover in mid-air in defiance of the laws of physics.
"Let's try this first."
His energy-form hands made a lifting motion from bottom to top. A minor earthquake suddenly shook the ground beneath the Moon Guard's defensive formation, and then a large number of deep purple vines burst forth from the soil.
"Binding 'magical boys' is a bit of a mood-killer, but for now, I'll let you experience the terror of tentacles!"