Shiro's Return

Shiro's Return provides lore for missions completed in Guild Wars Factions. There are two separate versions, one for normal mode and one for hard mode, the hard mode version is blue and gold rather than blue and silver. (See Acquisition for locations and NPCs)

The entries or pages found in the book:

Acquisition

 * Factions
 * Kaineng Center
 * Anja [Luxon Bard]
 * Gorani [Kurzick Poet]

Entries
1. Vizunah Square
 * We arrived in Kaineng Center to find pockets of plagued citizens fighting guards and other occupants around the city. Mindless abominations rove in packs, killing any unfortunate enough to get caught in their wake. Master Togo, Mhenlo, and I met up and set out to find the source of the plague. Deep within Vizunah Square we found a spirit bound to the service of the dead traitor, Shiro Tagachi, which seemed to be causing the plague to spread. After we neutralized the spirit, Shiro Tagachi himself manifested and struck us down down in one fell stroke. After Shiro left our corpses lying in the dirt, strange beings called Envoys appeared and restored us to life. They told us that Shiro was also an Envoy, one who ferries the souls of the dead to the afterlife, but that he had been abusing his sacred powers. These Envoys did not have the power to stop the traitor, but in exchange for our restored lives, we all vowed to put an end to Shiro's evil machinations.

2. Nahpui Quarter
 * ''Before the Envoys left, they advised us to become Weh no Su, or "Closer to the Stars," which would help us fight these beings from the spirit realm. To begin this process, Togo sent me to see Nika, a descendant of the assassin Vizu who was instrumental in the battle against the traitorous Shiro two hundred years earlier in the Harvest Temple. Once I proved my worthiness to Nika, she directed us to Nahpui Quarter where I had to fight Celestial creatures representing the four major human vices. Suun the Oracle of the Mists did not think I would succeed, but I passed his test, so he sent us to Tahnnakai Temple where we might gain wisdom and guidance from the spirits of the ancient heroes of Cantha.

3. Tahnnakai Temple
 * ''By the time we reached Tahnnakai Temple it was too late. Shiro had already overwhelmed the spirits of the sacred temple and they were bound to do his evil bidding. Only Vizu resisted the immense power of Shiro's will. Mhenlo, Togo, and I raced through the temple, freeing the spirits from their bindings. We just barely made it to Vizu before she was fully consumed by the traitor. Vizu's grateful spirit told us of the time when she fought Shiro alongside the Luxon and Kurzick heroes, Archemorous and Viktor. Vizu informed us that if we truly wished to turn the tide on Shiro's evil we would need to gain the cooperation of the Luxons and Kurzicks. She was adamant that we would need the the [sic] power to wield the powerful Spear of Archemorous and the ability to harness the protection of the Urn of Saint Viktor to defeat Shiro.

4. Arborstone
 * We traveled to the land of the Kurzicks with Brother Mhenlo, and the Countess Danika zu Heltzer brought us straight to her father. Count zu Heltzer agreed to let Danika help us retrieve the Urn of saint Viktor from where it was ensconced in the Cathedral zu Heltzer. Unfortunately, the protections cast on the Cathedral had long since faded, leaving the structure unstable and its inhabitants crazed and unable to recognize their Kurzick masters. With Danika's guidance, we retrieved the Urn and escaped without any serious injury due in large part to the Urn's protective power. 

5. Boreas Seabed
 * ''Shortly after our success in Arborstone, Master Togo returned with news of a tournament that could put the Spear of Archemorous in our hands. We left immediately for Boreas Seabed where the Luxon clans had gathered for the great convocation. Elder Rhea presided over each round of the tournament. These were some of the toughest fights of my life, but in the end I defeated the opposing clans and claimed the honor of slaying Zhu Hanuku with the Spear of Archemorous. We then battled the great Kraken, and I marveled at the destructive power of the ancient Spear. Our celebrations were short-lived, though. Mhenlo returned with word of a massive afflicted army marching on Kaineng City. With our prizes safely in hand, we ran back to help turn the tide of battle.

6. Sunjiang District
 * In Sunjiang District we confronted Shiro again, this time employing the same strategies used to defeat him two hundred years before. We fought our way through the district, closing the rifts Shiro had created to bind spirits to his army. These spirits were more powerful than the previous ones we had fought, but we prevailed and battled our way to Shiro in the center. When he saw that we possessed the powerful relics of his mortal enemies, Shiro merged with his bound sprirts and attacked. We emerged from the skirmish victorious, but Shiro was nowhere to be seen. The Envoys appeared again and told us that the relics were no longer powerful enough to defeat Shiro, that the conflict between the Luxons and Kurxicks had caused the power of relics to fade. To restore the relics to their former glory, we would have to unite these two warring people. We decided to split up. Master Togo went back to the Luxons in Cavalon, while Mhenlo returned to the Kurzicks of zu Heltzer. I had to decide which to accompany.

7. The Eternal Grove
 * ''I befriended the Kurzicks and they have opened up and shown me the customs of their people. To better become acquainted with one of their most sacred rituals, I escorted three volunteers to the Eternal Grove and stood watch over them as they went through the transformation into Juggernauts. Luxon raiders attacked the sacred grove during the ritual but we repelled the attack long enough to keep the transforming Juggernauts safe. In the end, the Luxons surrendered when a horde of afflicted approached the grove. Then an amazing thing happened! The Luxons and Kurzicks banded together to beat back the afflicted. In the end, this battle proved to both sides that the only way to prevail against Shiro was to pool our combined strengths.

8. Gyala Hatchery
 * I just befriended the Luxons, and they allowed me to help them recover giant turtle eggs stolen by raiding Kurzicks. We retrieved the eggs and brought them straight away to the Gyala Hatchery just in time to catch a party of Luxons preparing to escort a batch of young turtles to the Leviathan Pits. We joined them and helped fight off more Kurzick raiders. As we neared the pits, the Kurzick attacks intensified. A massive battle raged over the destiny of the baby turtles until a horde of afflicted appeared behind the Kurzick lines. Caught in the middle, the raiders chose to join forces with the Luxon defenders and fight back this common enemy. Together the Luxons and Kurzicks defeated the afflicted and came to realize that they must put aside their differences to have any chance to defeat Shiro once and for all.

9. Unwaking Waters
 * Both Luxons and Kurzicks traveled with us to the Harvest Temple to seek an audience with the ancient dragon Kuunavang. Again Shiro beat us to it. Kuunavang had gone crazy from Shiro's affliction, forcing us to fight her. We managed to beat her back into the temple, whereupon Kuunavang regained control of herself and stopped attacking. The Envoys appeared again and revealed Shiro's true intentions. Shiro had been traveling across the land, corrupting everything in his wake, in a desperate attempt to find the components to a spell that would make him flesh once more. According to the Envoys, Shiro now had everything he needed except the blood of a member of the Imperial family, and he was headed for the Imperial Palace. I prayed to the gods that we would make it to the palace in time.

10. Raisu Palace
 * All of Raisu Palace was covered in Shiro'ken, the army of spirits bound to Shiro's will. Kuunavang had provided us with her celestial powers, which allowed us to wade through the horde of afflicted and Shiro'ken, but not in time. Shiro made it to the Imperial Sanctum ahead of us. As we entered, the traitor was poised to spill the blood of Emperor Kisu, but in a burst of speed, Togo rushed to his brother's defense, thrusting his body between Kisu and Shiro's blade. As I watched, Togo took a fatal blow meant for the emperor. Our sadness at his death was profound but brief, for Togo also had Imperial blood coursing through his body, and Togo's death meant we now had to face Shiro in a battle to save all of Cantha without the headmaster's wisdom or strength. I must prepare.

11. Imperial Sanctum
 * ''Our battle with Shiro was intense, but with the support of all Cantha, Brother Mhenlo, and the great dragon Kuunavang, we found a way to defeat the ancient foe of the Dragon Empire. Somehow our victory felt somewhat hollow knowing that the cost was so high. Master Togo was a true hero of Cantha and he will forever be remembered for his sacrifice. All of Cantha was thrown into mourning for the emperor's brother. I suppose I could go home and settle down but this adventure had [sic] opened my eyes to new horizons. I have decided I will continue my travels and see where they take me.

Rewards
The faction points are added to one of the allegiance titles, Luxon or Kurzick, depending on the NPC that the book is given to. See the list in Acquisition, above, for the NPC you should use.

Trivia

 * This book was introduced in the November 13th, 2008 update.
 * Shiro's guild emblem is at the bottom left of each page.