Berenal Grayblade

Berenal Grayblade is the current leader of The Blades of Greymane, and one of the founders of The Bulwark. He is a large bulky man with prominent features across his tanned body, a plentiful beard and shining light blue eyes with a crescent scar alongside his left eye. Berenal is known for his confidence in the face of danger, as well as his perseverance in adverse situations. His holdings of land lay in The Headlands of the Kingdom of Gilneas, where he rules as Duke.

History
Berenal's life has been one of mostly hardships, from childhood to adulthood, he's always had a hard time keeping a grasp on things close to him.

Childhood


Born to Haverin Grayblade and Erleia Grayblade, Berenal lived a comfortable life in the city of Bannhurst. Born several years before the erection of the wall, Berenal had very limited experience of outside Gilneas, leaving it only on times when his family was visiting Lordaeron to visit his cousins in the region. Even then, any memories of this time are fleeting.

Things took to change with the erection of the wall, with the former lord of Bannhurst having been displaced, Berenal's father was rewarded the land for his valor and service to the kingdom of Gilneas. Bannhurst was a slum, the former lord, Lord Balfred Cobalstant, having taken to rewarding himself with any fruits of the labor within the town, which cost him his life and caused his house's extinction when the townsfolk eventually rebelled and slew him in the middle of the night.

By the time the Second War began near 1120 A.C., the Cobalstants had all but left the area to rot, having imposed overly high taxes and demands of the people that left most families starving. Led by Galen Hallowfield, the citizens of Bannhurst stormed Cobalstant Manor in a rage, slaughtering the lord Balferd Cobalstant and his family. With no Cobalstants remaining, House Grayblade, a North Headlands family that had been without land for quite sometime, was placed as the head of Bannhurst and given control of Cobal's Hold and Karnsburg as well as their minor holds.

Lord Haverin Grayblade had been a loyal servant of the crown, as had the rest of his family, for generations, and his economic and political savvy ways secured crucial contracts for Bannhurst and its holdings. Focusing Cobal's Hold as the mining production town of the area, and Karnsburg as the agrarian center, the two stayed out of competition with each other, allowing both towns to flourish, while Bannhurst resumed its position as commerce capital of the Headlands, having been industrialized to maintain a large holding of factories. The town was brought to the forefront by clever workings of contracts with specialists in the area, such as contracting the people of Rosefield to work in Karnsburg with their agrarian and druidic knowledge, while the hearty people of Brandon's Stead were contracted to work the plentiful mines near Cobal's Hold.

With the wall now closing off the towns of Pyrewood Village and Ambermill from the rest of Gilneas, those who had left those towns in search of a new home had come to the areas in southern Gilneas, seeking a new life, something the savvy Haverin capitalized on to increase Headlands population.

Following Bannhurst's example, Gregor's Crossing industrialized and formed a trade coalition with Bannhurst. Bannhurst would design and create the means for various machinations and Gregor's Crossing would finalize and improve on the designs then export them en mass with split profits going to each town. The coalition provided various sorts of crop harvesters to the rebuilding nation of Stormwind, while also improving on various gun designs.

Under Lord Grayblade, Bannhurst was revitalized in a short amount of years, and Cobalstant Manor was renamed to Grayblade Manor in their honor. As a gift, Galen Hallowfield gave the Lord Grayblade the last remaining Cobalstant Hearthstone, the signet of the ruler of Bannhurst, as a show of good faith from the people to their new leader.

It was this success that eventually led to the downfall of the town, and the start of the young Berenal's hardships. A group of Lordaeronian deserters had taken refuge in Gilneas to avoid being taken for their crimes. Taking the name the Seventh Skull Legion, the soldiers turned bandits ravaged the Gilnean country side, assaulting caravans and small villages to make their profits. Eventually turning to larger scale plans, they set their eyes on the now booming Bannhurst.

In the middle of the night, several assassins snuck into Grayblade Manor to assassinate the family. The now seven year old Berenal and his younger brother of two years, Eredin, had snuck out in the middle of the night to play with their friends. This would spare them the fate of their parents, as they watched from the windows as their mother and father fought, their father tossing the family's knife out the window in an attempt to kill a man standing near it. While the two were a formidable pair, the final assassin lit the house ablaze, trapping the two within the house. He too would fall by the family's dog, who would return into the house to die at his master's side.

With the manor ablaze, the brothers Grayblade were saved by a family friend, James Lanworth, and taken away to the town hall as the town was invaded. In a daring attempt, James rallied the townsfolk to rise against the oncoming bandit horde. The children of the village escaped by carriage, guided by several townsfolk and the elder runemaster Elderic.

With their escape, Bannhurst was destroyed, any bandits were slain but so too were the townsfolk. What should have gone to Berenal and his brother in inheritance and care taking were hidden away, causing a power grab in the ruined portion of the Headlands for many years, as well as the wealth of the Grayblade family going unclaimed. This left the brothers stranded on the streets of Gilneas City without anyone to care for them.

Gilneas City
Possessing only the family knife, Berenal and his brother Eredin took to the life of petty thievery and a hooligan lifestyle to survive. Imbued with magical potential at a young age, Eredin was susceptible to terrible headaches that often caused him to lash out in magical bursts. In several occasions, Berenal was nearly killed by his brother's outbursts, though the trauma would cause him to never remember these accidental attacks.

Desiring more for their life, Eredin came into contact with a demon lord seeking a hook into the world. Seeing the child's enormous untapped magical potential, the demon promised Eredin a better life through the power to claim what he desired. Being too young to understand the consequences, the child accepted the bargain and was possessed, lashing out against his brother in a final fit of rage before running off in the night. Wounded and dying, Berenal was saved by a chance encounter with the runemaster Elderic. Remembering the boy from the village, Elderic took in Berenal as his apprentice, nursing him back to health and acting as his caretaker for several years.

Though not as skilled with magic as his brother or mother, Berenal took to the art of runemastery as deftly as he could. Knowing his family came from a long line of huntsmen, Elderic arranged for Berenal to learn how to use a gun as well as hunt in the wilds. At the age of 16, Berenal began to train with mastiffs, taking up learning how to breed them as his family did before him.

With his life back on track, Berenal was gifted a pup by the name of Relekar. Having been the pup of a dog that was gifted to Elderic by Haverin long ago, the dog was of the same blood of the Grayblade's line of mastiffs. It was not too long after that Berenal was told he would be sent away. Questioning his mentor, he soon found that it was because of foresight his master had seen, his brother Eredin had broken into their home. While a skilled fighter, the now aged Elderic could not hold out against the demon empowered teen.

Buying Berenal enough time to escape with Relekar and some supplies, which included his runebook, Elderic was killed and Berenal was once again left with nothing to his name.

Return of House Grayblade
After a few years of oddjobs, Berenal ended up coming upon an unruly sight. A nobleman's son by the name of Galin Darkoak was being abducted. Fighting off his would-be captors with vigor, but ultimately outmatched. Never one to leave someone to such a fate, Berenal entered the fray alongside the man, his training with a gun and his knife skills proved useful as they dispatched the men with relative ease.

From there, Berenal and Galin became fast friends, aiding each other with their goals. Galin was a kind soul, having heard Berenal's plight he decided to help champion Berenal's cause to revive his house and earn what was rightfully his. The two seventeen year old men dedicated their time to uncovering hidden deals over the land and claim Berenal's legitimacy to the land.

After three years of their life searching, they found that the other nobles that had been a part of the conspiracy to claim the land had been killed, the last one being Balaforth Darkoak, Galin's own father. Confronting the man, he initially disputed against it, but overwhelming evidence forced his confession. Having been tailing the pair, Eredin made his appearance, mind controlling Berenal, forcing him to kill Balaforth and Galin before departing, leaving his brother with their blood on his hands.

Berenal was arrested with two counts of murder. Within his warped mind, Eredin saw this as an unfit way to eliminate his brother. Through unknown means, Eredin got Berenal's sentence to be shortened to a mere year.

Adulthood
At the age of 21, Berenal was released from prison to find his loyal dog waiting for him. Having found that his inheritance was also finally granted, as well as the Darkoak's land and holdings having been given to him, Berenal finally had the means to re-establish his family. His time in the prison however had dampened the idea from his mind, deciding that the life of a noble was not for him.

Despite pleas from Lord Xavier Gregor, his father's partner during the golden age of the Headlands, Berenal refused to return. It was only after continued pleas to at least appoint someone to manage the lands in his stead that Berenal called upon his right as Marcher Lord and issued regency to the House of Greyfield who would rule over the lands in his stead. Though not the answer the aged Lord was hoping for, he was forced to accept Berenal's decision.

Leaving the large area of the Headlands in the hands of the Greyfields and Gregors, Berenal took to the life of a mercenary, once again fulfilling odd jobs. Deciding this was not the route he wanted to take his life once again, he came upon the recruitment stand for The Blades of Greymane, one of the few remaining active Gilnean military regiments. Finding purpose for the first time since his friend's murder, he signed up and joined the Blades as a recruit.

The Blades
Under High Commander Haric, Berenal was assigned a squad and sent out beyond the wall to help combat the Scourge threat beyond the wall. His skills as a rifleman and devotion to the cause led to his promotion to corporal within two years time. It was during this time that Berenal first encountered the Worgen, the bestial wolf men summoned by Archmage Arugal at King Genn Greymane's request.

In his final days outside the wall, Berenal recieved a large scar across his left eye from the blade of one of the undead. Having been promoted to sergeant, Berenal and his group finally withdrew from beyond the wall to deal with the remaining Northgate Rebellion.

When the fighting finally ended, Berenal spent the remaining years with his squad rebuilding the damage in Gilneas City.

Outbreak and the fall of Gilneas
Now 26 years old, Berenal and his squad were preparing to leave Gilneas city to meet with the other Blades in Duskhaven when the worgen outbreak began. With the call to arms sounded, Berenal and the members of his squad rose quickly to meet the threat in the city. With their commanding officer slain by the wolf men, Berenal took command of the squad and helped lead the evacuation of the Merchant Square of Gilneas City.

With the Worgen bearing down on them, Berenal and his fellow blades helped hold the line as Darius Crowley and his Northgate rebels were freed to help with the call to arms. Unfortunately, Berenal did not see the evacuation of the city unscathed. In an attempt to save a mother and her child from the wolf men, Berenal held back a small horde of them as the family escaped what would be their demise. Ordering his fellows to continue aiding the evacuation of the city, Berenal laid in the ruins of the Military Quarter, eventually succumbing to the Worgen curse and becoming a Worgen himself.

Duskhaven
Awakening in Duskhaven, Berenal was informed that he'd been saved from the curse with barely anytime left, as he'd already began to under go the transformation to a true feral. His once verdant green eyes now a light blue, Berenal took the new wolvine form as it was, another stepping stone on the path of his life. He'd been informed that the Blades had moved out to deal with problems in the Northern sections of Gilneas, and he was the only one remaining in Duskhaven.

Aiding against the naval invasion of the Forsaken and the cataclysm wracking against the land, Berenal eventually made his way to Greymane Manor where he'd learned the Blades had fallen in battle. First responders to the destruction of the Wall, the Blades fought valiantly against the Forsaken invaders, but ultimately all of the order was slain in battle. With none left to take the mantle, Berenal was made High Commander of a defunct order.

Deciding to continue his work as a soldier of Gilneas, Berenal aided the civilian movements across Gilneas, eventually linking up with the feral worgen under Crowley and taking part of the ritual in Tal'doren. He was present for the retaking of Tempest's Reach and took part in the liberation of Emberstone. Most importantly, he was one of the many who'd risen to the occasion to fight in Gilneas City, witnessing the death of Prince Liam Greymane by the hands of the Banshee Queen Sylvanas Windrunner.

The most personal battle during this time came with the invasion of Keel Harbor. The orcish Horde had made landfall amongst the ruins in the Headlands where Bannhurst once stood, essentially desecrating the graves of those who had fallen there. When the call came to evacuate Gilneas, Berenal chose to follow his people to Darnassus and later Stormwind following their joining the Alliance. Before departing, he ensured the Headlands were secure; taking part in the daring rescue of Lady Sieglinde Greyfield before she could be murdered as the rest of the Greyfields had been.

In the destruction of Gilneas, the Headlands had been mostly leveled as well. Lord Xavier Gregor and what remained of the Greyfield family swore themselves to the Blades under Berenal's leadership. As such, he placed Lord Xavier, who'd suffered a crippling during the rescue of Lady Greyfield, in charge of maintaining the region. For several years, Gregor's Crossing would be the site of the majority of the rebuilding as it had suffered heavy damage. Without the proper resources to fund the rebuilding, it would take much time. Lord Xavier would never live to see the Headlands fully rebuilt, but his contribution during this time would eventually lead to its full restoration.

Reviving the Blades
Once in the city of Stormwind, Berenal found himself without purpose once more. The Blades were dead, Gilneas was a war field and he was the leader of a now dead order. Seeing that he was not the only Gilnean without purpose, Berenal took it upon himself to rally as many as he could under the once honored banner of the Blades, to revive it to aid in the reclamation of Gilneas.

Though a rocky start at first, Berenal found three people he could trust to help him make the Blades great again, Commanders Miliante, Marlone, and Nazja. The four rebuilt the Blades. It was during this time Berenal found his first love, Faieryn Listran, a Gilnean hunter who'd signed up in the Blades.

The two were inseparable for quite sometime, eventually leading to their engagement. In the coming days to their wedding, Faieryn mysteriously vanished without a trace, leaving Berenal to only have the Blades as the focus of his time.

Now possessing a sizable enough force, Berenal and his men marched across Silverpine into Pyrewood Village. Finding the village a smouldering wreck and the Bloodfang battling for control of Shadowfang Keep, the Blades lent their arms to the cause, eventually claiming Pyrewood Village as their base of operations and establishing themselves in the area.

Fall of Pyrewood
The Blades' time in Pyrewood without issue was shortlived. Seeing the Gilneans attempting to revitalize the village as a military camp, the Blades soon found them self assailed by Forsaken legions far beyond their numbers. Finally deciding to turn to the Alliance for aid, Berenal struck up an alliance with a division of the 7th legion and the League of Lordaeron, the very order his cousin was a part of before his turn to the Argent Crusade.

Alongside their new allies, the Alliance group held out against the Forsaken and eventually repelled them from Pyrewood. Unfortunately, the group failed to push the Forsaken out of the Sepulcher area, and the League was forced into a retreat. The Blades and Seventh fought on in the area until their losses were too great, a fire bomb causing the deaths of two loyal Blades members and the near loss of then Private John "Reaper" McCallan.

Withdrawing back into Gilneas, the Blades would continue to fight on in the area against the Forsaken, eventually withdrawing out of the area to re-bolster their numbers.

Gates of Change
Seeing the boon their new allies finally were, Berenal decided to open the Blades' doors to non-Gilneans for the first time. This recruitment proved fruitful, as sympathizers to their cause from other races soon joined. During this time, the man named Alexander Allen would be recruited, a Gilnean born man who'd later rise through the ranks as Berenal's right hand man. It was during this time that a Gilnean paladin by the name of Miraania Angylous was recruited as well. Berenal courted her for sometime, but they eventually ended their relatonship following the reclaimation of Pyrewood on mutual terms.

With their new numbers and the village once again reclaimed, Berenal and the Blades took time away from the battlefield to fortify the village. During this time, Berenal began a relationship with a woman by the name of Katariena, the woman who would eventually become his wife.

Berenal was also approached by former League of Lordaeron commander Pyros Blackburn. Having worked alongside his cousin, the man was brought into the fold of the Blades as well, aiding in the rebuilding of Pyrewood as the Blades' new home.

Regularly during this time, Berenal would lead his men in charges against the Forsaken in the area to keep them away from the still rebuilding village, eventually pulling back into Gilneas to Keel Harbor as Pyrewood's re-construction made the area uninhabitable for a short while.

Trip to Hyjal
Berenal left for Kalimdor on a spiritual journey to visit the Shrine of Goldrinn, following sustaining heavy injuries during a botched raiding attempt of a Forsaken encampment. It was during this time that the Twilight's Hammer continued their assaults on the sacred mountain of Hyjal. Aiding the Cenarions in any way he could, he eventually came across a lone servitor of Goldrinn fending off several ogres preparing to assault the shrine.

The wolf, Logrinn, was outmanned and being overpowered, but fought on with a valiant effort. Reminded of his first encounter with Galin, Berenal rushed into the battle, even though weakened. The two were able to overpower the ogres, Logrinn pledging an oath to Berenal for having saved his life. The spirit wolf would from then on follow Berenal in his pursuits if he could.

Following his return, Berenal married Katariena, eventually having a son named Liam Eredin Grayblade. The child was afflicted with the worgen curse, much to his wife's displeasure, but would only shift when upset. The pair lived a comfortable life, until his wife's infidelity with now Blade Champion Alexander Allen. Having found out about the affair early on, Berenal continued on with his wife for their son, and after she'd pleaded him to stay with her. Much to Berenal's further displeasure, Alexander would later marry Miraania.

The Blasted Lands
Berenal and the Blades eventually left the north to the small village of Surwich, which had been besieged by demons following the fall of their druid Marl Wormthorn. It was during this time that Berenal's wife Kataerina was murdered, leaving Berenal widowed and to raise his son without a mother.

Promoting Alexander to commander following Miliante's retirement, the Blades set out on a campaign to purge the Tainted Forest, eventually foiling a plot to resurrect Marl Wormthorn by the demons that had corrupted him. During this time, Berenal was possessed by a minor demon and had frequent fits of rage, lashing out against his fellow Blades members and began a slow descent into feralcy.

He was eventually purged of the demon, the experience resulted in Berenal under going strenuous mental training to help resist against mind controlling effects. During this time, Miraania Angylous was dismissed from the Blades for assaulting several members. Berenal and Alexander reconnected during this time and rebuilt their friendship after the incident with Kataerina.

It was during this time he'd tricked his brother Eredin into a pact with him, forcing Eredin to act as Liam's protector should anything go wrong. Eredin disappeared after a while, as there was no immediate danger to the boy's life present.

Eredin's Return and Departure from Surwich
While attending the wedding of a dear friend, Eredin made his return once again, attacking and nearly killing Berenal. He later proceeded to abduct him into parts unknown, leaving the Blades in the hands of his cousin Garrett and the other officers of the Blades.

Within a demonic realm, what seemed like years of torture occured to Berenal over a few days, eventually breaking free of his brother's hold after two weeks. Berenal went into a comatose state for near a month, having been recovered by the Blades and nursed back to health during this time.

During this time, Berenal's cousins Garrett and Willund Duskfield reconnected with him, Garrett took Berenal's stead in battles, delivering his orders to the soldiers on the field as they dealt with an ogre threat to Surwich.

Berenal eventually led his men back to Pyrewood once the threat was handled, having been informed that Pyrewood was finally reconstructed. There, the Blades mounted daring assaults against the Forsaken, eventually moving into Hillsbrad to begin attacks against the Forsaken's plague manufacturing in the area.

Hillsbrad
Once again the Blades teamed up with the League of Lordaeron, besieging the area with their combined might to take down the Sludgewerks. Having freed some of the human test subjects, Berenal and the League held their ground within against the feral undead subjects and the Forsaken. However, during the fight, Kerdic Lothinil was taken up by one of the val'kyr in the area, brought off to one of the towers to transform him into the undead.

Berenal alongside two members of the League led a daring rescue of Lothinil from the val'kyr who was attempting to transform him. Kerdic was left weakened, and the death of the val'kyr signaled the end of the battle. When the group prepared to march into the main building of the Sludgewerks, they found that the Forsaken had already begun fighting amongst each other, the Warden being accused of crimes by his own people. Having succeded in their mission, Berenal set the remainder of the fields ablaze to smoke their withdrawl from the area.

The League later departed from Hillsbrad to continue their own objectives, while Berenal led his men to Azurelode Mine. There, the Blades freed many of the captive humans from the mines as well as dispatching a large amount of the spiders the Forsaken had domesticated for war. With the mines and Sludgewerks out of the way, Berenal put forward a message for aid which was met by the Kingdom of Arathor under Coberan.

As the day arrived to assault Southshore, the Blades charged forth, Bloodfang allies already in the area ahead of time. Unfortunately, Coberan was nowhere to be found. Overwhelmed by the Forsaken, Berenal was forced to pull the Blades back into the ruined inn of Southshore. It was then when the horn of Arathor was sounded, Coberan's men finally arriving.

Despite their now much larger ranks, the Blades had suffered injuries that had effectively weakened them to the point that the battle was lost. Coberan immediately withdrew his men, leaving the Blades to die in Southshore. Berenal made the call for the Blades to withdraw by the docks, along the shore while he remained behind to cause a distraction.

Charging into the Forsaken lines, Berenal ended up causing a chain explosion using several charges he had on the plague vats, causing the Forsaken to be forced to abandon the area. Berenal was later found washed along the river, barely alive. Berenal was revitalized using the bond with Logrinn, causing his companion to enter a comatose state for several weeks in his stead.

Berenal led the Blades to one final area in Hillsbrad before their withdrawl, the dwarven fortress of Dun Garok. Within the fortress laid ruined war machines, but the supplies were still invaluable.

While the Blades took to gathering whatever supplies they could salvage from the fortress, Berenal repaired one of the siege engines, allowing the Blades to use it to escape the area once finished. However their rummaging through the ruins caused the spirits of the dwarves to rouse once more, resulting in a fight for their lives as they guarded the repair of the siege engine.

Return to Stormwind
Berenal later returned to Stormwind to recruit more men for the Blades. It was there where Berenal was introduced to a woman by the name of Aveleigh Rosette. The two of them began courting, having discovered she was infact an ex-Scarlet. Despite his poor experiences with the Scarlet Crusade, Berenal looked past it.

Berenal's recruitment efforts paid off, bolstering the Blades' ranks. While originally intending to return to the north, the Blades were once again petitioned to aid the town of Surwich.

Horde Assault on Surwich
Following the disappearance of the demons in the area, the Horde began to set their sights on the lower half of the Blasted lands. Finding the forest starting to recover from the demonic invasion and full of life, it would naturally have been a great boon to control, with the Gilneans being the only opposition in the area.

At the time, Surwich had little in way of defenses against the oncoming Horde invasion, and as such the Blades began training Wardens to defend the area.

Vying for Aveleigh's affection against several other suitors as well, Berenal began to shirk his duties to the Blades. It was only after the Blades were called back to Surwich to fend from a Horde assault that Berenal finally snapped out of it and came back to his duties in the Blades following his son's near death by the Horde. With the new generation of Surwich Wardens trained, the Blades returned to Pyrewood, preparing for the next bout with the Horde.

Eventually marrying Aveleigh, much to her father's displeasure, Aveleigh became pregnant with Berenal's second child. However, midway through her pregnancy, she fell into a coma, and Rose, the child, was delivered while she was in this state.

Aveleigh's half elven nature passed off into the child, as Rose had very prominent elven features, pointed ears and bright blue eyes at a young age. During this time, Leon, Aveleigh's father, attempted to take the child from Berenal, saying he didn't deserve to have her. Each time was met with hostility and Leon never succeeded as Aveleigh did eventually awaken from her comatose state.

While pregnant with a second child, Eredin made his final return, deciding to end the charade once and for all. Eredin abducted the infant Rose to draw the Grayblade family into the Blackwald. Cornering them in the woods, the brothers dueled, and during the combat Aveleigh was impaled in the stomach, killing the unborn child. It was during this battle that Eredin was finally slain, in his dying moments his demonic possession ended, and Berenal was able to speak with his real brother for the first time in twenty years before he passed away in Berenal's arms.

Berenal and Aveleigh's marriage was not amiable after long, she'd succumbed to infidelity once more with another member of the Blades. This caused their marriage to fall apart once news of this got out, and eventually Berenal ended up divorcing her. She later disappeared, the two not meeting again.

It was at this time that Commander Allen deserted from the Blades of Greymane, taking with him a large amount of dissenters to form the Grey Guard, an order that largely had no goal other than remaining in Gilneas. Berenal found the order to be a useless one full of those who weren't willing to take to the field to protect not just Gilneas, but the Alliance as a whole.

Commander Marlone and Nazja had also retired, leaving him to re-assign the ranks in the Blades. Berenal promoted a long time member, Sage Claymoore to the rank of commander, alongside Codenia Clytherow and Evan Riley. Pyros also came out of retirement and returned to his work with the Blades.

Return to Pyrewood
Following the return to Pyrewood, the Blades were relatively quiet for quite sometime. With the front slowing down and focus shifting to ending the terror of Deathwing, Berenal and several members of the Blades shifted their focus to aiding in the fall of the Destroyer.

Amongst the hundreds that followed to end the twisted Black Dragon's reign of destruction, Berenal could be found amongst them, fighting and giving his enemies the hell they deserved.

Following the death of the Destroyer, The Blades once again left Pyrewood to aid Gilnean settlements in Kalimdor, such as Farwatcher's Glen and Talonbranch Glade. For the most part, things had fallen into a soft lul in Berenal's life, and that of the Blades of Greymane.

It was also during this time he pursued a relationship with his longtime friend, Sage Claymoore. The relationship was one of the happiest he'd experienced, and they'd eventually wed following news of Sage's pregnancy. The relationship yielded a second, unafflicted, son by the name of James Elderic Grayblade, named in honor of Lanworth and his mentor Elderic.

Defense of Theramore
Berenal led his men to Theramore when the initial call went out for defense of the area. Alongside many other countless orders, Berenal and his men were amongst those defending the Isle from the onslaught of Horde.

Unfortunately during the fighting, Lilly Claymoore, Sage's adopted daughter, was slain after she'd been taken captive and sadistically murdered in capture, despite only being fifteen. The loss took a hard toll on Sage, who tried to block it out of her mind for over a week before finally accepting she was gone and going into mourning.

During the final battle, Berenal sustained a near fatal injury that ended up putting him out of commission for a month, much to his chagrin.

The Pandaren Front
In the aftermath of the Destroyer's demise, the Blades were called into a the new continent of Pandaria. Berenal, alongside a select group of the Blades, were sent into the Jade Forest in order to help with the Alliance front in the area. It was there that the Blades were assigned to scout and map out the continent, to make connections with the native races, and to help where ever needed on the new land.

Before the expedition was headed in full swing, Berenal led his men to the northern half of the Jade Forest, where Alliance forces had made landfall and were fighting a brutal battle against the arriving Horde. The Blades arrived to find the outpost nearly defeated, adding their numbers to the waning lines, the Blades held the area out against a massive Horde invasion before being forced to retreat from the over whelming amount of Horde and the Hozen that were also bearing down in the area, though at the time they were working against the Horde as well. Before their retreat, Tristan Dragonsblade, a major in the Blades, had been captured and executed by one of the orcish leaders. As the Blades pulled back, the Horde gunship was sent crashing out of the sky.

Berenal headed the expedition across Pandaria with his men, observing several events that would shake the foundation of the once virgin land such as the culmination of the battles in the Jade Forest and the Mantid invasion of the Valley of Four Winds. The expedition was called to a halt once the Blades had reached the Dread Wastes, pulling back to Kun-lai to help train some of the newer Pandaren recruits.

Grand Alliance Summit
Recalled back from Pandaria, the Blades attended a large Grand Alliance summit in the war room of Stormwind Keep. Berenal witnessed the disarray within the Alliance orders at this time, keeping mostly out of it. It was during this time that Berenal began to move his order in the direction of joining a defensive pact with several other northern orders. Having made a few more contacts, the Blades returned to Pandaria to aid with the various natives and their causes, in the hopes of strengthening the ties these natives had with the Alliance.

It was also during this time that the Blades joined the Silver Hand Council. With several paladins in his order, Berenal found that the few paladins of Gilneas had been lacking in proper training that he had seen of the paladins of the Alliance. Seeking to better the men in his order, Berenal went through the processes to get the Blades involved with the council to ensure his men were able to hold their own on the field and wield the powers they had been given properly.

Battle in the Dwarven Lands
The Blades ended up returning to the Eastern Kingdoms to help secure the supply lanes that were headed from Loch Modan through the Wetlands after having been contacted by one of the delegates from the Dwarven Vanguard. Dragonmaw Orcs had been acting up in the area, moving out with hostility into the area, intercepting caravans that were traveling to and from the northern reaches of the continent.

Assigned to aid in the northern section of the Wetlands, Berenal led tactical strikes against the Dragonmaw, burning and sacking their camps as well as claiming any supplies they came across that had been stolen by the Dragonmaw raiders. Meeting up with the Vanguard, their combined forces raided the main Dragonmaw encampment. Having secured plans for a northern invasion from Arathi, Berenal led the Dwarves and the Blades to the town of Dun Modr, which had already come under siege by the orcs.

Securing the town, the Alliance forces held a brutal battle on the Thandol Span which ended up causing a massive amount of destruction to occur to Dun Modr. A chance encounter with members of the Clergy of the Holy Light ended up quickening the Horde's defeat in the area, but explosions from the Horde's experimental siege weapon caused several missiles to launch into the town of Dun Modr.

Berenal led a relief effort to help save as many civilians as they possibly could, unfortunately the Blacksmith, where most of the civilians had hauled up for safety, was one of the areas that was hit by the missiles. A moderate amount of civilian casualties and a sermon held by Berenal's own cousin Chantale Corinthal marked the end of the battle. Berenal elected to keep the Blades in the area until Dun Modr was in workable condition again, and had sealed a lasting Alliance with the dwarves.

After several weeks of rebuilding, Dun Modr's physical damage was eventually repaired, just in time for the Blades to be called back to defend the oncoming Horde from the newly conquered Loch Modan. The Alliance once again beat back the oncoming Horde into Loch Modan, preventing a large scale invasion of Khaz Modan. While the Dwarven Vanguard continued to move to finish their work with the Horde, Berenal brought the Blades back to Pandaria once again to train the Blades in various martial combat techniques by their new Pandaren allies.

Northern Accord
After a month of aiding the Pandaren locals, Berenal was contacted by some of the orders he'd met at the summit. The defensive pact that was discussed in brevity in the aftermath of the summit was coming to fruition and the Blades had been invited to be a part of it. Still wary of the other orders of the Alliance, Berenal approached this accord with a great amount of skepticism, making a clear note that he would help so long as the Accord was still within the best interests of his order.

Berenal's skepticism of the accord caused him to be very uncomfortable with some of the details outlined within the document, a sentiment shared by another one of the accord members. This was later quelled following a revision that prevented the accord being abused in certain situations.

For the most part, the alliance was a silent one, having only called on its members several months later off the coast of Pandaria, despite having originally been informed that the location was to be Arathi. Due to the confusion, Berenal was only able to bring a small force with him to board the ships headed for Pandaria.

At this time, Berenal observed what he felt was zealous charges with little planning and disregard for the well being of his men. Keeping to his original word at the discussion of the Accord, Berenal and his men withdrew from the battle in disgust, and later from the Accord it's self. Despite the qualms from the other accord members, the decision to withdraw met little to no opposition within the Blades' it's self, which cemented Berenal's choice of action.

Lion's Landing
In the months following the Blades' departure from the Northern Accord, Berenal alongside several other orders had been called to aid with the preparation of the shores for the arriving Alliance fleet. Working with such orders as the Dwarven Vanguard, who had also departed from the Northern Accord, and the League of Lordaeron, the Blades headed the expedition to find the Horde encampment in Krasarang.

Along the way, Berenal and his men encountered a small scout party of Horde, and after a quick skirmish, the Horde were allowed to flee the area. Monitoring the fleeing Horde, Berenal discovered the location of the Horde encampment. Accidentally getting too close to the encampment, Berenal and his men were found and outnumbered. Given the ultimatum to hand over the Horde defector Tiraus Voltain, Berenal refused and brazenly attacked the Sunguard, giving the others a chance to escape. Berenal was then incapacitated, disarmed, and tortured for information that he refused to give up.

Due to the improper procedure used to disarm the man, Berenal was able to lead a daring escape alongside the other captured alliance soldiers, having drawn a dagger and taking Raserus Tal'therin hostage in the process. The former captives and their own captive later returned to the Alliance camp on the other side of Krasarang, battered and worn before handing over Raserus to Demitria Lothinil for interrogation.

Berenal took part, as did all of the others, in helping with the construction of Lion's Landing, the Alliance's base of operations in Pandaria before engaging the oncoming forces of the Horde. Through hard fought battles, the Alliance eventually pushed the Horde back to the newly founded Domination Point, where Berenal led a group around to flank the area by capturing one of the towers then assaulting from the rear. The attack was successful as the Alliance raided the encampment, eventually defeating the Warlord Bloodhilt in a massive attack. Though he was not killed, the blow left a mark on the Horde in the area and the day was won by the Alliance.

In the days following this, the Blades remained in Krasarang to help with the Alliance front in the area, helping secure resources and sabotaging the Horde's efforts in the area.

The Bulwark
Main Article: The Bulwark

In the month following Krasarang, Berenal called upon various the various organizations of the Alliance that he had grown to trust. Seeing that the warfront in Pandaria was mostly being handled by the main Alliance military, while other fronts still being waged in the world were being neglected, Berenal hosted a summit in Shadowfang Keep to create a coalition to aid these various fronts.

Kept in secrecy until the meeting, Berenal contacted the leaders of organizations such as the Dwarven Vanguard, the League of Lordaeron, Grey Haven, the Tainted Legion, the Violet Sanctum, the Scarlet Hammer, the Genome Project, the Clergy of the Holy Light, and the Lineage of the Moon. At the summit, Berenal pitched the idea of the Bulwark to these orders, in order to heed the call of the areas as a unified fighting force to deal with the Horde encroachments. Though initially dismissed by the League, Lineage and Violet Sanctum, the three eventually did agree to join by the time of the official signing of the Bulwark.

Within a month's time, the Bulwark set out on it's first campaign to Northrend, to deal with the remaining Sunreaver forces in the area following the purge of Dalaran. After making landfall in the Howling Fjord, the Bulwark set off to battle the arriving Horde that were attempting to evacuate the Sunreaver forces.

Since the Northrend campaign, the Bulwark remained in strong activity, acting in such areas as the Hinterlands and Silverpine to meet the Horde forces, having also recruited several other orders as well.

Disaster
Following the end of the Bulwark's Hinterlands campaign, Berenal's wife Sage Claymoore was in a teleportation accident. While attempting to master a new form of arcane teleportation, the ritual went haywire and ended up incinerating her. Leaving Berenal with their kids to take care of, Berenal secluded himself for several weeks, jaded against magic as a memorial service was held in her honor by the Blades.

Following this catastrophe, the Forsaken revived their front in Silverpine, laying siege to Pyrewood for the final time as they razed it to the ground, burning and scorching most of the area, forcing Berenal to draw the Blades back into Gilneas to Stormglen Village. There, the Blades re outfitted the village to act as their new base of operations.

With the Horde aggression on the border, and the need for a new foothold in Silverpine for the Alliance, the Bulwark was called in to deal with the threat, using hard shock tactics to get through the Horde blockade in the area, and setting up within the abandoned town of Ambermill.

End of the Bulwark
The Bulwark would see its end at the Second Battle of Andorhal, where they were able to successfully reclaim most of the city. The battle was the end of the organization as internal disputes led to two orders leaving, namely the League of Lordaeron; which ended most friendly relations between the Blades and the League. In the months that followed, despite their successes the Bulwark slowly fell apart as orders disbanded within. While never officially disbanded, the Bulwark was put on indefinite hiatus.

Following the end of the Bulwark, Berenal received troubling news from the Headlands, where the Blades had mostly left unattended in the past few years as Xavier Gregor handled its management without issue. Contacted by Adrian Gregor, Xavier's son, problems had arisen in the Headlands that required more than just the Sons of the Headlands division to handle.

Battle of the Bite
More information can be found at Battle of the Bite

WIP.

Elevation to Duke
Despite the strides made by the Triumvirate of the Headlands, the regional divisions of the region made management of the Headlands properly an arduous process that often required far more paperwork and formalities than what were required for the institution of new nobility or new land holdings. In addition, management of commerce and law were difficult as well due to the jurisdiction of the region being separated. Already functioning as though it were a duchy, the Lords of the Headlands put forward a petition to unbar the creation of the Duchy of the Headlands, that had been previously forcibly destroyed after the House of Cobalstant had led an uprising that led to the Kingdom of the Headlands forming. Due to this having been some centuries prior and the Grayblades holding no relation to the Cobalstants, the request was granted, formally re-introducing the region as a duchy rather than three separate regions all under the same lord as it was prior; which was extremely inefficient. As such, Lord Grayblade was granted the title of Duke and elevated past Marcher Lord. With the new title, it allows for proper reign over the region without confusion or disputes on rights of trade or border management, as well as the right to instate new nobility compliant to the goals of the Headlands without fear of installation of unwilling families that may disrupt the union formed. Despite being within his power to do so, the Triumvirate was not disbanded and remains as a sort of House of Nobles for the Headlands families.

Relationships
Berenal has been known to have had many a woman warm his bed at night, something he isn't ashamed of admitting. However, not many of them have actually been relationships.

Faieryn Listran
Faieryn was a Gilnean huntress Berenal met while rebuilding the Blades, the two had courted for quite sometime. Having proposed to Faieryn during a time of prosperity within the order, the two were near inseperable for quite sometime. Berenal would often go off with her on small trips around the forests to wander and hunt with each other.

She vanished mysteriously one day and her body later turned up several months after her disappearance, much to Berenal's dismay.

Miraania Angylous/Silverthread
Miraania was a Gilnean paladin and was the second person Berenal had any sort of long lasting relationship with. Theirs was mostly flirtatious and caring on their off hours. Despite having had a very close bond, the two did eventually seperate due to various reasons. Miraania eventually ended up marrying Alexander Allen, who would go on to have an affair with Berenal's own wife Katariena. After various outbreaks of violence against other Blades members, her friendship with Berenal eventually ended. She would later disappear, leaving Alexander.

Following the discovery of Pandaria, Miraania once again resurfaced, rejoining the Blades under a false name. Berenal would eventually discover her, and despite their bad ending embraced her back into the fold happily. She would later be killed and resurrected outside of Berenal's knowledge. Upon resurrection her will was bent to the control of a powerful shadowmage under Berenal's employ by sheer chance. Upon discovery of who she was, she was set free and rejoined the Blades while on the path of returning to her roots as a paladin.

Katariena Wicker
Katariena was an afflicted gilnean woman, Berenal's first wife and the mother of his son Liam Eredin Grayblade. Despite her outward appearance as a loving mother and wife, Katariena was prone to spurts of infidelity, especially with Alexander Allen. Upon discovery of this, Berenal threatened to leave her several times, only staying because of the child and her pleading. Though he'd only caught her with Alexander, others have stated to have seen Katariena with other men during her time with Berenal, much to his displeasure.

Katariena went missing following one of the campaigns and ended up being found sometime later dead. She was buried in Stormwind City, where Berenal visited her grave regularly until the news of how deep her infidelity truly was drove him to hate her memory.

Aveleigh Rosette
Aveleigh was a Lordaeronian scarlet half elf, Berenal's second wife, and the mother of his daughter Rose Grayblade. Aveleigh and Berenal's relationship was troubled early on with infidelity, her having another man on the side complicated things but Berenal persisted. Eventually she did leave the other man for Berenal, but their relationship was rather rocky for other reasons as well.

Her father, Leon Rosette, and herself were ex-scarlets, and her father disapproved not only of her relationship with a Gilnean, but with a Worgen as well. After Aveleigh was nearly killed in battle and entered a coma while pregnant with Rose, Leon attempted to take her body from the Blades custody, only to be fended off.

Leon would return several times to attempt to steal Rose from Berenal, each being met with hostility until Aveleigh's awakening. She'd suffered multiple mental lapses during her time following her coma, and had slipped once again into infidelity with another member of the Blades. Berenal had been fed up with her constant shifts away from him to the point he ousted her from his life, telling her to leave and divorcing her. To this day they still have not seen each other again, and Rose has remained with Berenal.

Sage Claymoore
Sage was a Stormwind born Kirin tor magus, Berenal's third wife and mother of James Elderic Grayblade. Having been close friends with Berenal for quite sometime, a romance blossomed one day sometime after both of them had divorced from their spouses. It was a tender and caring relationship, though sometimes strained by the times away from each other they'd spent and how often it would happen.

Unlike his previous two wives, Sage was extremely devoted to Berenal, even in times of absence. They eventually wed following the news of her pregnancy, living a happy life in Gilneas for the most part, both of them having children outside of each other.

Tragically, several months after the marriage Sage was killed in a magical experiment gone wrong that incinerated her body. The incident left Berenal jaded against magic for a short time. She had a memorial built by the Blades in Tempest's Reach that was sent off to sea, and her children are currently in the custody of Sage's uncle, with the exception of Sebastian, who is enlisted in the Blades and has taken Berenal's name, and James, who remains in Berenal's custody.

Caridis Delythie
Caridis is a Lordaeronian born Worgen woman who Berenal met shortly after the forming of the Bulwark and the death of his wife Sage. Though at first the two were merely flirtatious. Caridis initially sought the commander out for his skills in Engineering, as she was learning the trade and sought some aid in designing a Flying Machine. Eager to help, Lord Grayblade assisted Caridis with constructing her first (working) flying machine. Following this, the commander grew fond of her company and the pair was seen with one another in Silverpine Forest and Gilneas on and off. The two eventually spent a night together and following this spent several months apart.

Following the decline of Grey Haven, Caridis sought Berenal out shortly after the reclamation of Gregor's Crossing. Seeing as many of her old friends had suddenly vanished or gone onto other prospects, Caridis enlisted in the Blades. It wasn't long after until Berenal and Cari's relationship kicked back up, and eventually became official shortly after Karnsburg was secured from the Cobalstants. The two became inseparable, days often spent in each others company alone. Eventually, Caridis became pregnant with what would be Berenal's fourth child, and the first to be had out of wedlock.

Several months of dating later, Berenal proposed to Caridis in Gregor's Crossing, which she accepted. They were married several months later, where Tanya Seltara did the ceremony for the pair.

Physical Appearance
Berenal's appearance can be split into two categories, his human and worgen form. In both of his forms he possessed a multitude of scars, though most could be seen with greater ease in his human form, without the fur in the way.

Human
Often donning the guise of his human form outside of combat, Berenal stands at a hearty 6'4", weighing in at about 210 lbs. His physique is that of a militant man, having taken great care to maintain and support his form. While having a muscular appearance to him, he is not overly muscular, keeping a lithe enough figure to be agile on the field. His skin is a fair tan, having gained it from his work out on the field since departing Gilneas.

Upon closer inspection, one could see his light blue eyes which seem to slightly glow even in his human form. His left eye has a large crescent shaped scar on it, and though the eye remains undamaged, the scar still looks like it would have been extremely painful to have obtained.

His jet black hair sits loftly on his head, billowing down to a fair length and is connected on his face to his beard, neither of which is actually unkempt.

Though he leads a military order, upon closer inspection one would find Berenal is only in his twenties, stress from his life however can be evident at times.

Worgen
Berenal takes on the worgen form during intense combat and occasionally outside of combat. He continues to boast a muscular form, a bit larger than that of normal worgen, similar to those of the feral worgen.

His eyes glow their light blue, much more evident in this form than in his human one. The crescent scar on his left eye is still apparent, the fur of it's location much darker than that of the rest of his body as it snakes around the corner of part of his eye.

His fur is a dense jet black, his hair braided into a lock at some points and tied into a beard by a tie.

Weaponry
Berenal is known for his use of various types of weapons. From guns to bows to swords, the man has been known for a wide arsenal at his disposal, but prefers a few specific weapons when on the field.

Bite
Berenal's iconic weapon is his heavily modified rifle named Bite. Originally a simple hunting rifle, Berenal's constant modifications and switching of parts on the piece have left little of the original design in tact. A highly accurate scope, custom made ammunition, a mahogany wood stock and a barrel made of the finest metal money can buy, the weapon is truly an example of fine Gilnean craftsmanship. The gun is finished with a sharpened bayonet used for slicing, rather than stabbing as the blade is not longer than the barrel.

Bite was damaged and broken at the Second Battle of Andorhal by a member of the Kor'kron during final assault on the Forsaken's section of the city. The gun was repaired following the purge of Cobal's Hold and the retaking of Karnsburg. Berenal now alternates between using the gun and his sword Fenrus, depending on his equipment.

Fenrus
Berenal's second favorite weapon in his arsenal is a bastard sword named Fenrus. Finely crafted with a wolf motif along the hilt of the blade, the sword was gifted to him by Lord Xavier Gregor for his leadership and service to the Kingdom of Gilneas. Following Bite's being damaged at the Battle of Andorhal, Berenal took up Fenrus in order to continue defending himself on the field. The blade saw its first use during the Blades' return to the Headlands of Gilneas in order to reclaim Gregor's Crossing from the mercenaries that had besieged it.

During the push to reclaim the town's docks, Fenrus was shattered by a tauren mercenary, and was later repaired using Elven steel by Ranger Lady Aeriyth Dawnsorrow. This was done as an insurance measure for the blade to be even more durable should it break again. As the High Commander became more accustomed to plate mail armor, Fenrus slowly began to replace Bite as his primary weapon until the gun was repaired following the retaking of Karnsburg. Berenal now alternates between Fenrus and Bite depending on his choice of armor and equipment, preferring the gun when using chain mail, and Fenrus when using plate mail.

Ol' Faithful
An extremely old yet well maintained dagger knife that has been in the Grayblade family for generations. Designed with wolf head pommel, the knife has seen Berenal through many situations and he always keeps it on him at all times. It was used by Haverin Grayblade when the Grayblade Manor was raided, and was tossed out the window in an attempt to slay one of the home invaders. Berenal found the knife on the streets of Bannhurst before the evacuation and has kept it with him ever since then.

Faral'amir
Faral'amir was an elven runeblade gifted to Berenal by the Blood elven Death Knight, Alranthor Dawnbreaker. It was an extremely old, yet durable blade made of fine elven steel and engraved with several runes of unknown power. It was shattered during the Battle for Andorhal when Berenal deflected an oncoming blow meant for the League of Lordaeron soldier Alverdo Blackmoore. Following the battle, Faral'amir was reforged into a different weapon.

Cerberus
Following Faral'amir's shattering, Berenal had the blades' metal smelted with dwarven steel to create an entirely new longsword. Naming it Cerberus, the longsword can be found on Berenal's person at all times, bearing none of the runes of its predecessor. Cerberus is commonly used alongside a large spiked shield when used in battle.

Personality
Berenal is known to be a kind soul to those who have earned his trust, even to those who have not met him he will treat with proper respect. A strong believer in Alliance unification, Berenal is opposed to internal fighting within the Alliance, having seen how it weakened Gilneas as a nation, and how strong they stood against the Forsaken threat when finally reunited.

His opinions of those who cross him are usually harsh at first, but mellow over time and are eventually forgiving. Those who cross him a second time do not get such graces ever again.

He is not a political man despite his noble roots. This is not to say he doesn't know his way around in such situations, having been described as possessing a silver tongue, he just cares for the field of battle rather than the court of nobles.

Berenal is a worshiper of the light and venerates Goldrinn for his tenacity and virtues he exemplifies. Though not a religious man, Berenal has taken time on occasion to pray, normally at night when his children are asleep.