Ilaian Thorne

Ilaian Olympia Thorne (b. August 4th, 11 A.D.P) was born to a small family of tradesmen, in a village in Elwynn Forest. Growing up in a very temperate household, she was taught from a very young age by her father in the way of the hunt, and how to master the forests that had surrounded them. Throughout her entire childhood, and up into her mid-teens, she had trained, getting better and better as days went on. She grew up into a big provider for her family, and especially so when her father had disappeared in a hunting accident in the south, towards Stranglethorn.

As the threat of the Legion loomed overhead, she had thought to herself that she needed to take action for the greater good of the land, and enlisted herself into the Silver Hand as a squire. Before long, her bow had been replaced with a sword, and her tanned leather with chain and plate as she began to train under Knight-Templar Alexandria Williams.

Appearance
Ilaian stands at five-foot-nine, and can most commonly be found in her standard issue armor, a mixture of chainmail and plate. On top of that, her standard emblem is that of the Silver Hand, adding some much needed colour to the dull attire that she wears. Her eyes have a natural amber hue, which mix quite nicely with the dirty-blonde hair, loose strands falling down her face while the rest is pulled back into a high sitting ponytail.

Obviously never seeing the horrors of war yet, any visible skin on Ilaian is unmarked. Her arms have gotten a bit stronger throughout her training, with a tad of definition visible, and invisible should she have anything on top. She carries herself with an air of confidence, and it’s hard to catch her without her signature smile, or at least a pleasant look on her face.

Along the front of her armor, she carries a good deal of equipment on her person. A basic steel longsword sits in a sheathe over her back, while a dagger sits on her side. She made an effort to combine both her usual hunting attire, and her new equipment as a squire. The front of her belt also has a small vial rack attached to the front, for quick access to things she might need.

Personality
It’s very hard to break Ilaian’s good mood. With all of the bad happening in the world, and the general negative feeling throughout the city during the Third Invasion, she makes an attempt to be a bastion of happiness. She makes an effort to meet new people when she can, and greets them with a smile.

Strategically, Ilaian thinks as if she was still an archer. Looking for the prime locations to strike, as well as staking out any encounter should she still have the opportunity. Any talk about hunting is also an excellent way to strike up a conversation with Ilaian, and make a friend. In terms of friends, she’s willing to give any a chance, as long as they are pleasant to her back! Her trust could prove to be a negative trait, however, as she can become too trusting of people that should be considered the opposite of that.

Ambition is a large driving factor for Ilaian. Since enlisting, she likes to think of herself doing great things in the future, and that’s a big drive for her to do well in her training.

Early Years
Into a small household in remote Elwynn, Ilaian was born as the first daughter to Arber and Bronwyn Thorne, a hunter and tailor respectively. Arber had been a proud and practiced tracker and hunter, bringing it most of the food for the household, while Bronwyn was a tailor, selling her goods around the small village, and throughout the town of Goldshire. For much of her young childhood, things were relatively uneventful, with both of her parents practicing their trades, and bringing in an income for the house in the aftermath of the Second War. When Ilaian was three years old, she was greeted with a new brother, Corin, which put an early strain on the household. Bronwyn had put a slight halt on her tailoring while the two children had grown up, doing her best to keep them both taken of, and educated as they grew up.

By the time that Ilaian turned nine years old, her father made his first attempts to get her into his craft - the Art of the Hunt. Setting up some targets outside, there was a long stint of not many results, with Ilaian’s shots from the smaller bow barely hitting there they had been intended to go. Many day’s downtimes were used practicing on targets, which turned into Ilaian’s first ambition to chase after, even from such a young age. Over time, and many weeks of practice, Ilaian was finally bringing to hit her arrows on target, and where she had wanted for them to go. Throughout her childhood, she only visited Stormwind a multitude of times, mostly sticking to the area around her home, and Goldshire when they needed to buy goods. She had zero contact with the Light, or its practices, until the events of the Third War.

Many people had left for the war from Goldshire, and upon their return, they were joined by many priests and clerics, which could be seen around town. This was her first exposure to the Light, as she was able to see the healing power that it held, and how the soldiers that were wounded were getting better, and better. That thought stayed on her mind for awhile, before falling dormant in favour of her improvements in hunting. Into her teens, her shot was getting much more precise, being able to hit her intended target from a further distance every time, and eventually, was taken on her first formal hunt with her father. It was something simple, as the pair located a deer quickly, though it was her father’s arrow that had taken it to the ground. Ilaian’s arrow was far too excited, and arced over the creature’s body. Still, that only led her into her next drive.

More hunts led to increasing success, as Ilaian got towards her later teens, she was able to go out on her own, and come back with game she had gotten herself. It gave her a sense of pride, as she was finally able to give back to them with her own abilities. Ilaian’s brother had taken a much different path from Ilaian - as Ilaian grew into what her father had taught her, Corin had shown interest in the military, and began some basic training with soldiers in Goldshire. Almost none of the happenings in the world had affected Ilaian, save for the heightened tensions that shook the world during the time of Deathwing. With orcs piercing the area between Blackrock and Elwynn, and the constant threat of dragons overheard, Ilaian was hard-pressed to go out and hunt.

Her father had faced the same decision, and had set off towards Stranglethorn Vale with a group of his hunting friends for a grand hunt. The target, Ilaian didn’t know, though they had taken off, and Ilaian braves the forest that she temporarily didn’t trust. Things went relatively fine, with the house being held down, until news had traveled back from the hunting party. Most people had returned, save for Ilaian’s father. She desperately wanted answers about what had happened, though no one that had departed could give a straight answer, mostly because no one knows what happened. Arber had simply disappeared, and the group had searched before ultimately returning. The fact that Ilaian doesn’t know what happened to him, and if he’s dead or not being unknown, became a big driving factor for her success into the future.

Stepping Up
In the wake of Arber’s disappearance, Ilaian had now become the main provider for her family, and did her best to hunt as much as possible. The meat was used for her family, with any excess, alongside the pelts being taken into Goldshire to be sold. The fact that she was still doing good in his absence just made her happy, as she eagerly awaited his return. She’s still holding out on that thought that he simply got lost, and is somewhere else until he can finally make the trek back into Elwynn to find them all. Ilaian’s mother was also able to get back to her tailoring, which aided in making the home more stable.

In an effort to find new work, she had heard word of a trading company in Stormwind City proper that had use for a courier, and with her knowledge of the local land, she figured that it would be a good position for her. The work was simple, at first, with her delivering goods throughout the city, and throughout Elwynn and the surrounding area. Her other position within the company was dealing with the finances, which she was able to do well enough - she was educated in her home, and was able to read and write fluently.

Things had gotten weird, and Ilaian had a bad feeling as time went on that things weren’t as they seemed in the company, such as the money not adding up as she did work, or the nature of the jobs she was given being with little to no information. She was delivering things to people that seemed less-than-ideal, and kept away from the books more and more as time had gone on. Being big red flags for Ilaian, she had left the company before long, leaving that as a part of her past and doing her best to move on. Of course, she couldn’t explain what had been happening, and she just had done what she thought was best for herself.

WIP.