Aemon Bayne

Sir Aemon Bayne is an elite knight that hails from Gilneas. Afflicted with the Worgen curse, he has used his bestial abilities and martial prowess on the battlefield with great success, aiding in the defeat of the great dragon, Deathwing. He currently defends Azeroth across space and time on the mysterious planet of Draenor.

Worgen Form
A hulking mass of rage and muscle, Aemon towers over man, orc and elf alike, when in his Worgen form. He is covered in thick, pitch black armor over leather, and it is rarely seen without being caked in blood. Aemon carries a variety of frighteningly large weapons, although he seems to favor wielding two molten Hellreaver polearms.

Aemon's face bears light scars, and his eyes glow a violent red. Save a few key areas, his body is covered in course fur, and his head sports a great, wild mane. A great gorget wrought of blackrock seems to double as a muzzle. Although, it doesn't appear to be enough of a barrier to stop him from sinking his visible, razor sharp teeth into someone he catches on his bad side. He has equally sharp claws that protrude from his plate gauntlets, leading some to reconsider disarming him.

As he is often at work, Aemon is most often seen in his Worgen form.

Human Form
When seen in his human form, Aemon often prefers to wear the lavish formal attire of his Native Gilneas, although his thick frame is not incapable of moving heavy plate armor.

Aemon, although not quite as handsome as his father, is still quite appealing. Standing a bit over the average human height, his body is sculpted from years of extreme training. His face is strong, masculine, and lightly scarred, with high cheekbones and a untarnished nose. However, his amber eyes are often described as fierce, unwaveringly so regardless of the situation. He keeps his black hair long, although he slicks it back away from his eyes and his jaw is covered in a thick beard.

Personality
Aemon is a warrior, through and through. Much like the orcs he faces on the battlefield, Aemon seeks blood and glory on the battlefield, in honor of himself and his people. Although he doesn't actively seek for a glorious death, Aemon is incredibly courageous, sometimes to his detriment, and revels in the very act of combat.

He, like other worgen, has been treated by the waters of Tal'doren, and must deal with his bestial urges. However, for the sake of his combat, Aemon chooses not to fight against those urges but to embraces them with open arms, as a Primal. Due to this behavior, he is known to be sexually overbearing on females of all races, and he is easily provoked, often over frivolous nonsense.

Despite all general aggression, Aemon retains a soft spot for his mother. They share a strong bond despite his affliction, and she is enjoys coddling the great beast with milk and cookies during his frequent visits.

Combat and Gear
In all stances, Aemon is guarded by extremely heavy plate armor. Although originally created by masterful Blackrock Orcs in the Iron Horde, Aemon had it reforged and enchanted to specially fit his form as both a worgen and a human. This armor covers the majority of his body, save his head and claws, which are both often used as weapons.

Primal (Battle) Stance
Following his transformation, Aemon became a powerful primal, a breed of warrior separate from others in its embrace of pure bestial rage. Although deceptively cunning, Aemon holds absolutely nothing back in combat, using whatever he has at his disposal to hack, crush, and mangle anything that dares challenge him. He is relentless and strikes with reckless abandon, taking blows to his armored frame without flinching while growing ever-more furious as the battle continues.

Aemon is a fan of two-handed weapons, and is often seen wielding one in each hand. He often searches the auction house for new weapons, or loots particularly interesting ones off of felled foes. Aemon keeps these blades and maces on rotation so that he never tires of one.

Defensive Stance
Despite his animalistic tenancies, Aemon is more than capable of protecting himself and his allies, if need be. While others were campaining in Pandaria, Aemon traveled across Azeroth and Northrend on a mission to discover the tale of his father. While learning of his father's heroic deeds, the knight decided to learn the art of defense, and inherited his mighty shield, The Ashen Bulwark.

Although his curse renders him unable to become a Paladin, Aemon is capable of lifting and manipulating his father's shield with strength alone, an impossible feat for many. Between his armor, his shield, and his fortitude alone, Aemon is an unshakable force in his defensive stance.

=History=

Early Life
Sir Aemon Bayne was born int an minor aristocratic family from Gilneas.

His father, Gareth Bayne was born a common tanner, but, after uncovering and defeating a budding sect of the Shadow Council within Gilneas, he was awarded lordship by King Greymane. Soon after, Gareth departed from his family, determined to represent his people in the Alliance. Aemon and his mother communicated with Gareth for months, and they were very proud to learn that he was representing Gilneas in the prestigious Order of the Silver Hand. Unfortunately, they stopped recieving letters shortly thereafter.

Aemon would spend the remainder of the Second War waiting for his father. The King continued to arm his borders, and for his mother, it seemed all hope was lost for his return by the time the wall was raised. To Aemon, however, his father was an unstoppable hero. He retained hope for his survival, and wanted beyond all things to be as strong as his Gareth was.

During much of his early childhood, Aemon was coddled and protected by his mother, who feared that she might lose him too. Although he loved his mother dearly, Aemon had little care for her restrictions, even at a young age. Determined to follow in his father’s footsteps, Aemon signed himself up in the Gilnean military as young as he could, so that he could be free to pursue his goals outside of his mother's control.

After a short while, Aemon managed to became a squire, inspiring his commanders with his unwavering dedication. To King Greymane, Aemon, although not as great a warrior as his father, was everything a Gilnean should be: hard-working, resourceful, and extremely patriotic. Genn often organized meetings between his son, Liam, and Aemon, in an attempt to set an example example. These dates were often cordial, and the two never became close.

By his late teens, Aemon had joined that Gilneas Royal Guard. He had been taught mainly to fight in a formal fashion by the Knights and fellow guardsmen, but the young squire would gain much experience over the coming years. Numerous threats loomed over Gilneas, the first of which, the Undead Scourge. As the Lich King's legions of marauding undead swept over Lordaeron, Gilneas came into sight. Aemon stood headstrong along with Liam at the Wall fending off that which attempted to break their defenses, and watching in horror as the denizens of Silverpine were torn apart by living corpses. In the end, however, Gilneas prevailed.

The undead at the other side of the wall were obliterated by a virtually unseen force, a Deus ex machina, in his eyes. Aemon's comrades told of these apparent saviors, these Worgen, as loping, wolflike humanoids that hunted and flayed their enemies in the shadows of night. Indeed, it was often mused that they brought fear in the hearts of the mindless undead. Despite his unease regarding these mysterious monsters, Aemon had a grudging respect for them against their common enemy.

The Worgen Crisis
However, Aemon had little time to celebrate. The worgen, somehow emerged in droves over the Wall, and quickly. What began as an outcropping of disappearances and grizzly murders within Gilneas’ walls rapidly became outright turmoil, and Aemon was ordered to route out the beasts and protect the nation's populace. However, the worgen proved dangerous, cunning predators, and were not so easily defeated.

While checking in with his higher-ups in Gilneas City, Aemon found its housing and factories ablaze. This time, Aemon found himself at odds with yet another enemy, Gilneas itself. The headstrong Lord Darius Crowley lead numerous dissenters of King Greymane's isolationist policy in open revolt against the crown. Although he loyally served his king during this time, Aemon began to question the morality of his actions as he as he slayed and imprisoned those he had fought alongside months ago. Aemon began to lose a great deal of his youthful fervor as he opened his eyes and ears to the criticism that Gilneas and King Greymane received. However, in the end, he resolved that law and order had to be kept in order to protect Gilneas from the Worgen menace. After Crowley was sent to prison once more, Aemon was commended by Greymane for his continued support and dubbed a Knight of Gilneas. Soon after, he was placed in charge of massively bolstering security, in the headlands and northern reaches of Gilneas City. Aemon was thrust into action when the worgen curse had reached epidemic force. The entirety of Gilneas was ravaged by hordes of worgen, however, Aemon, with a notably small force, was was able to defend the northern border of Gilneas city from its feral attackers for many months.

Starved, and slowly losing men, Aemon became desperate for a way to alleviate the constant pressure from worgen packs. Such an opportunity seemingly came when a scout told Aemon of a prominent alpha. If assassinated, he would plunge the worgen into chaos. Selflessly, Aemon offered to challenge the alpha on his own, placing his life above his men's. After a tearful farewell with his mother, Aemon was led by the scout into the darkest reaches of the wilderness. However, the scout turned on Aemon, catching him unaware, swiftly transforming into his bestial form and leaping onto his back. Aemon slayed the traitor, but not without sustaining grievous wounds. The knight languished in his folly, unable to return to his men within the city, who were likely beset by more traitors. He remained in the forest, where he believed he would bleed out. Instead, he rose more terrible than before, as a worgen.

Over the coming years, Aemon lost all that he was as a man. Free from regret, remorse, and his former self, Aemon became one with the land, and the beast within. He hunted alone, a rage and a bloodthirst filling his veins. When one or many worgen challenged him for territory, he dispatched them without a second thought. Feared and respected by human and worgen alike, he was given the name, Baynefang. It was a life free if expectations and aspirations, and a life lived in the moment. However, he felt a vague longing for something he loved, something he could never attain as a beast.

Suddenly, this life was brought to an end as he was trapped and sedated by hunters led Lord Crowley’s forces. The royal chemist, Krennan Aranas, delivered a treatment that enabled worgen to regain their humanity and identity. The treatment had limited results.

Although half-feral, Baynefang was given purpose, when he was reunited with his beloved mother. Determined to defend his mother and his homeland at all costs, the worgen knight cut through swathes of the vile and insidious Forsaken. Aemon only ceased his defense against Sylvanas after the Shattering, when he learned of a far worse threat, Deathwing.

The Cataclysm
After years of islolation, King Greymane decided it was in Gilneas' best interest to cast away their pride in favor of joining the Alliance. Aemon, like his father, was sent out Gilneas as a representative of his people, this time to battle the Twilights Hammer in their mad quest to destroy all of Azeroth. Baynefang was on the front lines against his enemies in Blackrock mountain, shortly after departing, and, while fighting alongside the Alliance, he began to learn of their ways. When the Zandalari began to mobilize their forces in Zul'Gurub, Baynefang defeated the powerful troll, Jin'do. Later, he found himself at Wyrmrest temple, crushing the forces of the Aspect of Death himself. After the horrific dragon was slain, he was awarded the title of “Destroyer’s End”.

Post-hour of Twilight
After the Hour of Twilight was abated, Aemon learned that his people, with the help of Alliance, had brought the Forsaken to somewhat of a standstill, and decided to travel the world, following in his father’s footsteps. He eventually learned that Gareth had become a Knight of the Silver hand, and later, a Paladin of the Argent crusade that heroically gave his life defending Highlord Fordring from the Lich King at the Frozen Throne, leading to Arthas’ ultimate defeat.

Infiltration of Draenor
By the time Aemon returned, he found Stormwind in panic, struggling against a massive onslaught of brown-skinned orcs. The worgen, emboldened by his accomplishments and that of his father, has cut through his enemies into the Dark Portal, wielding rage and blade against the Iron Horde.