| Classic | Battle for Azeroth | Shadowlands |
| Valythra Bloodmoon | |
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Race: |
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Gender: |
Female |
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Nicknames: |
Little Light |
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Birthdate: |
20 April, -225 L.C. (264 at Death) |
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Affiliations: |
Affiliations Mawsworn
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Family: |
Family Solyth Lunarlance † (Ancestor) |
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Date of Death: |
14 December 38 L.C. (Alive) |
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Alignment: |
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Signature: |
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Status: |
Undead |
| "I don't think she would do harm knowingly to one she cares about." "It's doing harm to those she doesn't care about that worries me." |
Valythra Alytheria Bloodmoon (née Solflame, born 20 April, -225 L.C.), also known as the Sick Child, was a San'layn Blood Princess. Following her third death, her soul was transferred to the body of Cirvala Grandream, and her body remained possessed by the Ascended. Under the Ascended's control, she has pledged herself to the ranks of the Mawsworn, while operating openly in the Shadowlands in the guise of a Maw Walker.
Originally wishing to emulate her family's traditions and serve her nation, Valythra spent much of her life suffering from a chronic heart illness that forced a more sedentary life. Though she found happiness in her passion for cooking and running her bakery, Suncrown Pastries, later years following the Third War led to Valythra becoming bitter and frustrated with her mortality.
During the Fourth War she willingly became a vampire through assisted suicide in order to overcome her illness and cheat death. She frequently struggled with the morality and consequences of her actions, her innate cruelty often clashing with her dwindling sense of humanity, with individuals such as Miralyne Valetender acting as a prominent factor in preserving the latter.
Eventually, she was executed by Lyraeni Sorrowsong while held in the custody of the Silverguard for various crimes, namely mass murder. However, her body was reanimated once more by the Ascended who previously occupied her form. Now, the Ascended wields Valythra's twisted body as a vessel to obtain power, in a constant internal battle against the soul of Raitaus Solflame.
Contents
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Biography[]
Early Life[]
Weakened Heart[]
Valythra Solflame was born as the second child of Raitaus and Zyanel Solflame, sister to Castus Solflame. Even from the moment of her birth, Valythra was underweight and prone to sickness. Having been born at night under the light of the full moon, she was to be named in honor of her ancestor, Solyth Lunarlance. However, Valythra's small size made Zyanel think back to her younger sister, Valytheta, who had been faced with her own challenges of the mind when they grew up, yet remained strong through the trials. Wishing that same strength and perseverance upon her daughter, Zyanel decided to name her in Valytheta's honor.
As a daughter of House Solflame, Valythra was expected to train herself to become resilient, living a life without indulgence or entitlement and undergoing rigorous training. Idolizing her father, she spoke of her desires to become as strong a warrior as he was. Raitaus believed that raising Valythra to live a life he had led would serve her well, strengthening her will, and staving off the complacency of most nobility. However, Valythra fell ill and frequently began coughing.
At the age of ten, a day came when Valythra attempted to train with her father only to double over, coughing up pink, frothy sputum. She was taken to priests who found that her heart had been failing and she may have been on the verge of death. Even after she was stabilized, her heartbeat was irregular and her lungs seemed to be experiencing a buildup of fluid. Realizing that attempting to raise Valythra as a soldier like him would only kill her, Raitaus and his brother Halorast Solflame spoke at length about what to do to care for her. Halorast advised that Raitaus abandon his attempts to train her and focus on caring for his daughter, while offering to take the girl under his tutelage to learn magic until she could be enrolled at the Falthrien Academy on Sunstrider Isle.
As Valythra's training to become a soldier stopped, Raitaus grew distant as he once again struggled to connect with a child who could not lead a life like his own. Despite his efforts to support her in other ventures, a disconnect between father and daughter began to grow. In order to prevent her from suffering a fatal attack, a Taliel priest - Leothis Sungleam - was assigned to serve as Valythra's retainer, constantly present with her in almost every activity every day.
Reckless Abandon[]
At the academy, Valythra was at least adequately successful in her academic endeavors but was by no means a prodigy. As the years went by and Valythra entered adolescence, she developed a flair for romance and courtship. The years went on into adulthood, and Valythra used promiscuity and alcohol to fill the void of what she began to consider a cursed existence.
Valythra showed no care for her academic progress. She was frequently harassed due to her diminutive size as well as her affliction. She felt robbed of her privacy with Leothis present, forcing her to constantly attempt to evade him. When she got the chance to escape the watchful eyes of her family and her retainer, Valythra engaged in reckless behavior such as drinking irresponsibly and engaging in sexual activities with reckless abandon. She was frequently set back in her academic progress, especially after courting a man named Dranis Sunjoy, with whom she enjoyed one of her few long-lasting relationships.
At one point, Valythra's relationship with Dranis resulted in her unintentionally becoming pregnant. Though they had never planned for parenthood, the two of them decided they would raise their child. Yet as the years went on, the relationship between them gradually soured until Valythra finally gave birth. Taxing upon her already weakened health, Valythra still tried desperately to support her newborn child. However, addictions to drugs and alcoholic behavior resulted in her child ultimately being taken from her custody, and given to Dranis to care for - the two shortly left Valythra afterwards.
Distraught and heartbroken, Valythra drank herself into a stupor and lapsed back into the self-destructive habits she had already practiced. She was found on a bench outside of Falconwing Square the next morning, and retrieved by her mother. Believing Valythra had simply fled the household for her escapades, she proceeded to lecture Valythra about her behavior. She called her actions "human vices" and asked, why she was intent on wasting her life on ephemeral pleasures, until Valythra revealed to her mother the truth.
She confessed that she had always hated living and felt that she could die on any day, and so she had simply sought to live as though today could be her last. Valythra broke down entirely, describing the life she and Dranis had begun together, and her failed beginnings as a parent. Despite the scathing tone she had taken earlier, Zyanel realized her daughter's pain and comforted her, seeking to reconcile with the daughter she felt she had lost months ago.
Despite her initial depression however, time allowed Valythra a spur of motivation, in which she blamed the seizure of her child on herself and her vices, believing she needed to make changes. She managed to discover something that truly compelled her interest - among the magics she was taught, Valythra had no interest in fiery flash and destructive potential. Yet as she attended her classes, there was a subject that caught her attention: Illusion magic. A magic that was dependent not upon the will to destroy, but instead upon the mind. The intricacies of illusion magic piqued her interest, and she began to study it in her spare time.
Years of Fulfillment[]
What began as interest became hobby. Valythra was a quick study of Illusion magic, and it became almost second nature to her as the years progressed. Her most advanced skills were in the use of invisibility and the conjuration of mirror images, though all of her images were incorporeal decoys. Nevertheless, they became tools for Valythra to evade harassment, and her ability to create illusions began to brighten her short life.
Zyanel and Halorast were both proud of Valythra for overcoming her vices and finding the strength of will to apply herself to her studied. Her advanced skill with Illusion magic was regarded as a major step forward, however her father remained distant for reasons Valythra could not discern. However, Valythra herself did not want to become a full-fledged mage, as she wanted to achieve a simple life where she felt at ease and not moments from potential death.
Valythra ultimately graduated from Falthrien Academy but did little to apply her magical talent. Desiring a life that would be safe and secure, with minimal danger from harassment, Valythra began to study the culinary arts. She discovered her true passion in the art of baking. Something so simple, so provincial, brought her everything she needed: a sense of purpose and fulfillment, bringing joy to others as well as herself. She used her talent for cooking to begin a pastry business known as Suncrown Pastries, based in Suncrown Village. Though her decision received little to no attention from her father, her mother and uncle supported her independence and business regularly.
Even as a baker, Valythra still practiced and studied her illusion magic in her spare time, developing over the years into a master of the craft. At some point, she entered a romantic relationship with Miralyne Valetender, affectionately referred to as "Arnud Thuash" by Miralyne, meaning "Little Light". While the intensity of the relationship itself may have differed between the two, Valythra was confident that she loved the woman like no one else. Despite her penchant for empty romances, Valythra was far more willing to commit to this particular relationship.
Their relationship lasted until Miralyne was deployed after the Second War to venture beyond the Dark Portal. Valythra remained loyal to Miralyne for decades, waiting for her partner's return, even though she never came back. She was optimistic about Miralyne's likelihood of return, yet as the years went on, the joy began to drain from Valythra's daily life. She began to feel a growing ache of loneliness, but continued to find meaning in her beloved bakery.
Fall of Quel'thalas[]
One morning, as Valythra and Halorast began to walk through the Eversong Woods, they were ambushed by a pair of flying creatures. Valythra alerted her uncle to them, who promptly defended the pair as they witnessed the Scourge marching across the land. He was able to destroy the adversaries who had attacked them but promptly took Valythra's hand to flee to the nearby Fairbreeze Village.
Upon arrival at the village, Valythra doubled over and vomited from the sight and smell of the approaching Scourge. A local medic treated her while Halorast consulted with the nearby guards. As he did so, a Scourge meat wagon fired a projectile of rotting flesh at a nearby structure, causing it to rain down upon both Valythra and the medic. The medic was killed by a protruding bone as Halorast immediately took hold of Valythra once again to flee. This time, Halorast realized that simply fleeing north would not suffice; they had to find a way to stay off of the Scourge's path.
Valythra screamed and sobbed, traumatized by the invasion and the death surrounding her as many Quel'dorei were killed. Halorast led her past the Sunsail Anchorage to the coast the Murlocs lived in camps. Driving off a smaller, relatively underpopulated camp of Murlocs before taking shelter. Valythra huddled tightly against Halorast continuously sobbing. They stayed at the camp for days on end before Halorast suddenly felt incredibly unwell. Upon checking Valythra's condition, he discovered that her eyes had become a dim white, rather than the sky blue they used to be.
Halorast attempted to carry Valythra to the Anchorage, hoping someone could help them, but there was no one there. The two collapsed, lying on the road for hours before a search party finally found them and helped them regroup with everyone else. Everyone suffered from a similar affliction of weakness, as the effects of the Sunwell's destruction became apparent.
After the Sunwell's destruction, Valythra became seemingly bedridden, sometimes even incapable of awakening while her mother cared for her. Her father slipped into a depression, with the House of Solflame going dark for a lengthy period of time.
After the fall of Quel'Thalas, the Quel'dorei were left in desperate need of a new source of magic. In response to the calamity that befell the elves, House Solflame established a new tradition stating that no family member would be allowed to be raised into undeath. Anyone who was raised was to be "euthanized" as soon as possible, and any family who died from that day forward would be cremated.
As the survivors of the invasion became the Sin'dorei, Valythra's father regained his strength to join the Prince Kael'thas Sunstrider in the ruins of Dalaran that would lead the Blood Elves into Outland and eventually into the fold of Illidan's Forces. The Sin'dorei's hunger for magic was eventually met with a solution through Fel.
The absence of her controlling father and the renewal of her strength through Fel magic gave Valythra unexpected independence. No longer overburdened by Raitaus' watchful eye, and with Halorast assisting in the efforts to repair and reclaim Quel'thalas, Valythra was able to pursue her own interests and agenda.
Valythra revisited her old home in Suncrown Village and her business, Suncrown Pastries. Still traumatized by the devastation, she was deeply affected even further to see how her life's work had been reduced to nothing. She became materialistic, wishing to compensate for her losses, leading to what would eventually develop into a dark habit of thievery.
Living in the South[]
This section is dedicated to Classic World of Warcraft.
Valythra as a Quel'dorei.
Quel'thalas was ruined, crawling with undead left behind by Arthas' destruction. Valythra was left with nothing in the wake of her business' destruction, as the Solflame family focused on funding relief efforts and reparations. Both Raitaus and Alytheria had departed with Kael'thas Sunstrider to the south and failed to return. Zyanel became acting matriarch of the House, despite her wishes, and was constantly busy with reclamation efforts. Alone and effectively penniless, Valythra did not know what to do.
Furthermore, the Scourge did not leave Quel'thalas. Undead became a regular threat, and though the events concerning Othmar Garithos had left a bad taste for the humans in Zyanel's mouth, she acknowledged that the human lands of the Kingdom of Stormwind were safer than Quel'thalas at the present moment. She decided that keeping Valythra in Quel'thalas put her in danger, and that she should be sent to the south to live among the humans in relative peace.
For the first time in her life, Valythra was to venture beyond the borders of her homeland, and the thought scared her. Nevertheless, she was escorted to the southern lands until she was brought to Stormwind City where she and her retainer would live. Valythra found work to make use of her skills as a cook, and she made a goal for herself to use this opportunity to gather as much money as she could to reopen Suncrown Pastries.
Returning Home[]
This section may be changed in the event that Burning Crusade content is made.
While staying in Stormwind, Valythra's retainer soon received word from Quel'thalas that Valythra was to return home immediately. The reason for her sudden recall was not given, though her retainer followed their orders and brought Valythra back to the Solflame Enclave immediately. Valythra said her farewells before beginning her journey north. They traveled by a privately chartered ship, followed by smuggling Valythra aboard an elven destroyer, much to her confusion.
Eventually the elves arrived in Quel'thalas, successfully returning Valythra to her family. Much had changed in her time living in Stormwind; Raitaus had returned from Outland and his service to Kael'thas Sunstrider, sharing the harrowing stories of their failures to avenge the fallen in Northrend, explaining that Valythra's grandmother, Alytheria, and her uncle, Salrin, were both lost to the Scourge in the cold north. Raitaus had survived, only to join Kael'thas' mad quest under Illidan Stormrage.
Raitaus escaped Kael'thas through Voren'thal the Seer and the Scryers, only to return to Silvermoon and find that the Blood Elves had joined the Horde and played host to the Forsaken. Raitaus was furious to learn that Quel'thalas had forgotten the scars of past wars, but his rage was even greater in knowing that the current regent, Lor'themar Theron, had exiled part of the population, and that Valythra would not have even been welcomed home had she not been smuggled through the nation's borders.
Zyanel abdicated her position as the head of her household to Raitaus, preferring to take action rather than play the role of a noble as her mother had. As the first patriarch of the House of Solflame, Raitaus distanced the House from Quel'thalas, its politics, and its allegiance to the Horde. Valythra was still permitted to socialize and work, of course, and with the money she had raised in Stormwind she was finally able to reopen Suncrown Pastries.
Yet it was not entirely utopian for Valytrha. The thrills of thievery had not been lost to Valythra, and she grew to covet her wealth as she accumulated it. Working during the day and stealing during the night, both professions were lucrative, but neither could placate a deeper despair that ate at Valythra from within. Time in Silvermoon began to feel lonelier than it ever had, for she continued to wait for Miralyne's return from beyond the Dark Portal. All the while, her sickness never abated, and no amount of gold or indulgence in her hobbies or passions seemed to lift her spirits.
An Irreversible Bargain[]
Alytheria's Return[]
As the Burning Legion returned to invade the planet once again, everyone across Azeroth had a vested interest in the conflict, including those among the Scourge. Alytheria Bloodmoon, Valythra's grandmother who had been lost to the Scourge, returned to his family and the Horde. Valythra, like all of Alytheria's descendants, revered her like nothing else in life. Valythra willingly committed herself to Alytheria. For her devotion, she soon revealed a great secret to her granddaughter, shedding her illusion to reveal her San'layn form.
Valythra was utterly amazed by the San'layn form and the strength it bore, viewing it as being magnificent to behold and unlike anything she had ever seen. As Alytheria demonstrated her strength and power, Valythra became envious, craving the power of the San'layn for herself after two centuries of living with weakness and vulnerability. To Valythra, the San'layn were a door to strength she had never once possessed.
Valythra as the Oculus.
Despite her wonder, Alytheria refused to turn her. She went on to found a spy network for the Horde. Seeking to win Alytheria's favor to become a San'layn, Valythra joined Alytheria's new organization as the Cloak, using her skill with invisibility and stealth to become the head of the Espionage agency. Alytheria became the Oculus to lead the network.
Despite the leadership being governed by family and personal bias, as a result, Valythra accepted her newfound duty with pride. A patriot of Quel'thalas, Valythra felt like she finally had an opportunity to serve her people, and she did. Years of expecting her to be a soldier denied her true calling as an infiltrator and an informant. She surpassed expectations as the Cloak.
Though Valythra performed well, Alytheria never conceded to Valythra's demands. She refused to teach her blood magic or convert her into a San'layn. Eventually, Alytheria disappeared, appointing Valythra as the Oculus without ever granting her gift. Unbeknownst to Valythra, Alytheria's goal was not to turn Valythra herself, but instead to give her a push towards actually seeking out the gift for herself. By dangling the metaphorical carrot in front of Valythra, she had planted a darker desire for more within her granddaughter.
The Birth of a Vampyr[]
Valythra among the Onyx Rose Order.
As Valythra was appointed the new Oculus, Alytheria Bloodmoon disappeared out of contact and could not be reached by any of the members of the network. For Valythra, this was the final straw placed over the course of centuries. The weight of past failures and loss broke under a final act of perceived abandonment, and Valythra succumbed to both despair and anger. She found herself holding her living situation in contempt, wanting nothing more than to be rid of her life, yet still too afraid to let herself die.
Determined to bolster her strength and not remain weak or dying, Valythra resolved to become the San'layn that Alytheria had refused to make her. In her efforts, Valythra located Tyrinade Moonsong, the Red Lady of the Onyx Rose Order. Valythra learned through eavesdropping that Tyrinade was a San'layn, and pulled her over for a personal request to be turned. Though Tyrinade was cautious and made certain that Valythra was not being reckless, and that this was something she wanted. When asked why she wanted to be turned, Valythra described feeling like she lived a life of perpetual weakness and disappointment and wanted something more.
Tyrinade agreed to turn Valythra, with the expectation that she should prepare herself and bring a sacrifice for the upcoming ritual. Valythra began her preparations, transferring ownership of Suncrown Pastries, appointing a substitute leader of the network - Valansera Lavier - and meeting with her mother one last time before her turning. Finally, on the day she was to be turned, Valythra took an Alliance prisoner named Allisiya Marson to the Onyx Rose's keep to be her sacrifice.
Valythra was escorted to the location of choice by the Onyx Rose, where her captive was imprisoned. Tyrinade took Valythra to the center of the chamber, where she asked if Valythra was still certain that she wanted to be turned. Upon replying yes, Valythra braced herself before Tyrinade took hold of the woman and bit her on the neck, draining her and killing her before filling her with the essence of the San'layn. Valythra's golden eyes turned a scarlet red as a result, and upon reanimating was immediately hungry for blood. Tyrinade promptly guided her to where Allisiya was held. Being the only living entity present, Valythra fixated upon her.
The human was released from her cage, and Valythra pounced on her, burying her newly grown fangs in the woman's throat and draining her of her blood. After she was finally able to sate her bloodlust, Valythra's cognizance returned and left her horrified of her deeds and what she had become, with seemingly no memory of how or why she had been turned. Confused and afraid, she was to be kept by the Onyx Rose in their keep for a prolonged period of time until they were confident she had developed self-control.
As Valythra struggled to control herself and learn, a brief crisis struck when Tyrinade returned to the Onyx Rose in a state of blood drunkenness. As the Onyx Rose lured Tyrinade to the basement of the keep, Valythra's hunger sought out one of the only living people present among the company, a paladin named Aradori Yuan. As the paladin stood within dangerous proximity of Valythra, the nascent San'layn could no longer control herself and attacking Aradori, biting her throat. The Onyx Rose removed and restrained Valythra, where she was kept under watch by the Death Knight, Gavarian Nightblade, to ensure she did not harm anyone else.
Valythra regaining her memories with assistance from Malaise.
While restrained in the basement, Valythra was visited by Malaise. Malaise, wanting to see Valythra return to her position as the Oculus, offered to help Valythra to recover her memories through an alchemical concoction. At the same time, it was suggested to Valythra that she learn the Scourge language and study in the Rose's library. As she did so, Malaise soon completed the potion that Valythra had been waiting for.
Valythra began to remember the entirety of her past but did not show the shift in personality or acceptance for her old life that Malaise expected. Malaise admitted that she secretly wanted the Oculus to come back from their efforts and that Valythra seemed reluctant to do so.
The day after, the Onyx Rose gathered to carry out a wedding for two of its members, with Valythra joining to observe the ceremony and enjoy the following reception. For the reception, Tyrinade offered Valythra a bottle of bloodwine to allow her to enjoy herself, provided she did not drink too much. Despite the warning, Valythra drank too quickly and became blood drunk, her reduced inhibitions bringing her lustful desires, compounded by her natural inclination to feed on blood.
Though she was tempted to feed on one of the few living attendees of the reception, Valythra was more fixated on the Death Knight, Gavarian. The fledgling San'layn began to court the man before drawing him to a private location, where she proceeded to kiss him. The two embraced as Valythra's blood drunkenness began to wane, and Gavarian brought her back to the keep of the Onyx Rose.
A personal conversation between Valythra and Tyrinade.
A few days later, Tyrinade brought Valythra to a meeting to introduce new members to Moranai Sunstrike's house. Enjoying her first real reunion with another person from her life, Valythra took interest when Tyrinade referred to her as her "penultimate achievement" and desired to know who seemed to be of greater success than her. Nevertheless, Valythra took great satisfaction in Tyrinade's pride.
Shortly after, Valythra decided to speak to Tyrinade in private, both to learn who her greatest achievement was and if it was possible to achieve an even greater power as a San'layn. During this conversation, Valythra learned of the Blood Royalty that the San'layn used to have, as well as gaining insight on the experiences of members of the Scourge. Though she had no guarantee that she would ever achieve Tyrinade's level of power, she was satisfied with what she had learned and to know that the Red Lady was proud of her.
One day, while idling by the fountain in Onyx Rose's keep, Valythra expressed her hunger for blood while contemplating the subject of Blood Royalty. Attempting to offer a solution, a member provided Valythra with a pair of bags containing blood, however, the blood itself was old and effectively devoid of the life essence required for sustenance. Upon consuming it, Valythra began to feel sick, requiring Gavarian and another Rosen to guide her to the pits for live blood.
While feeding live offered her a respite from her illness, Valythra remained weak and effectively bedridden.
The Purging of House Solflame[]
Main Article: Purging of House Solflame
As Gavarian and Valythra bonded, the former asked if she would ever return to the network as its leader. Though she took Malaise's interests into concern, Valythra felt as though being the Oculus was a genuinely unpleasant experience where she was forced to tell lie after lie. Furthermore, she was no longer loyal to the Horde and its network, but instead to Tyrinade. She decided that to be happy, she would stay with the Onyx Rose and shed her role as a Horde spy.
After a night of feeding, Valythra and Gavarian met behind a chapel. The two engaged in an amorous activity before Valythra mentioned a place that her family had owned, called the Solflame Enclave. Though it was closed off to undead, Valythra toyed with the notion of "reacquiring" the Enclave from her living family, with a strong implication of murder. Gavarian showed an interest in Valythra's future ownership of the Enclave and of House Solflame. With that, Valythra agreed to reclaim her name of Solflame.
Gavarian's venture to the Enclave resulted in a battle with Raitaus Solflame and the revelation that her family had been looking for her through missing persons notices. As she was being trained to summon Death Gates by Tyrinade, Valythra finally came forward to her asking for assistance in reclaiming her house. She requested that Raitaus and Halorast Solflame be killed and that Zyanel Solflame be driven away from Quel'thalas, with the Solflame Enclave left undamaged so that she may return to it.
While on a patrol with the Onyx Rose in the Eversong Woods, Valythra discovered a Quel'dorei man at a grave and immediately apprehended him. The man - Arlien Silvershield - was brought to the Onyx Rose crypts, where Valythra was tasked with his torture and interrogation. Tampering with his senses, Valythra caused immense pain through both physical torment and the use of sound. As the torture went on, Valythra became increasingly tempted by the man's heartbeat before Tyrinade finally ordered her to bite him.
Digging her fangs deep into his neck, Valythra unwittingly came close to enthralling the man before Tyrinade ordered her to stop and bring him before her. Tyrinade then proceeded to properly enthrall him and send him on his way back to the Alliance. Deeply fascinated by Tyrinade's ability, Valythra came forward asking to be taught, only to be told that she had come extremely close to doing it herself. Though Tyrinade herself did not use it often, she was willing to teach the neophyte as it was a part of being San'layn.
While the Onyx Rose saw to the deaths of two of the House's members - Zyanel and Halorast Solflame - Valythra began to improperly feed on accident, resulting in her becoming blood-starved. She proceeded to attack two of the living members of the Onyx Rose out of hunger, fighting off two other members before finally being subdued by Gavarian and Tyrinade. She was promptly restrained and placed in a muzzle to keep her from harming anyone else.
After recovering from her blood-starved state, she was again bound by a chain until she was deemed to be in control of her urges. She was brought to a meeting for the Silvermoon Magistrate where she sought to assist Tyrinade in the establishment of a San'layn Embassy. She was alarmed when a proposal was made to bar anyone bearing some form of corruption - including undead - from visiting the Sunwell. Outraged, Valythra made her stance clear before the topic was shelved and the meeting continued.
When the meeting ended and Valythra returned to the Onyx Rose keep, one of the higher ranking members discovered Valythra's recent incident in becoming blood-starved. The debate that ensued angered Valythra as she felt as though she was being ignored even further, and she stormed off to the pits to feed for the night. Not long after, Valythra accidentally overfed on one of the cattle and became increasingly fearful of Tyrinade's wrath.
The Onyx Rose finally laid siege upon the Solflame Enclave that Valythra desired, and in doing so killed Raitaus Solflame. However, Raitaus initiated a series of detonations that left the Enclave in ruins as the Onyx Rose escaped. Hysterical, desperate, and lost in denial, Valythra fled the Onyx Rose to return to the Enclave alone.
Having fled to the Solflame Enclave, Valythra became lost in her denial. Desperate to believe that her efforts to eradicate her family had been for nothing, terrified of her likely death at Tyrinade's hands, and still living in the shadow of Tyrinade's lich, Valythra began to delude herself into believing she had power.
She dressed in the noble garments of her family and proclaimed herself as the new Matriarch of House Solflame, deciding to live alone in the ruins of the Enclave. As onlookers gathered outside the destroyed Enclave, she began barring any means of entrance to ensure no one could enter uninvited. With no one to stop her, Valythra began to live in blissful ignorance of reality.
Arlien Silvershield attacks Valythra Solflame within the Enclave.
She soon came under attack by Arlien Silvershield, who infiltrated the Enclave to assassinate Valythra. The two battled, with Arlien slitting her throat and stabbing her in the stomach with a dagger, however, Valythra was able to feed on the man's life essence and ultimately subjugate him to her will.
Having sent Arlien away, Valythra continued to lose herself in her delusions as her hunger went untended. Nature began to reclaim the destroyed Enclave, animals such as birds, squirrels, and the like coming to investigate the ruins. Among the creatures that visited were bats, which Valythra held a fondness for. While alone in the Enclave, she spent much time with the bats that had come to live with her.
After three days without feeding and bordering on feral hunger, the Onyx Rose came to retrieve her, sending Gavarian Nightblade and Angelarria Dawnstriker to bring her back. She was reluctant to leave, firmly cemented in her delusions. Gavarian ultimately took her back to the keep by force.
Lessons Learned[]
Valythra remained trapped in the delusion that she was the matriarch of the destroyed House, bitter and angry over being brought back to the Onyx Rose by force. She confronted the lich whose shadow hung over her mind, believing she could finally cement their rivalry. Despite this, however, Tyrinade spoke with her regarding her recent departure and return.
During their conversation, Valythra revealed her true reasons for leaving the Rose to return to the Enclave. Feeling like a powerless failure, she could not stand to see her birthright reduced to nothing before her very eyes. She also revealed her jealousy of not being Tyrinade's ultimate creation, which the latter dismissed as being ridiculous and unfounded.
Despite her fears that killing her family would become nothing more than wanton murder, Tyrinade convinced Valythra that she should abandon her past to pursue what laid ahead of her. Shedding her mantle and her self-proclaimed title, Valythra accepted the loss of House Solflame and its property.
Having come to peace with herself, Valythra began to return to her daily life in the Onyx Rose; however, a newer member, a troll, had elected to deliberately make herself a tempting target to the San'layn, undergoing a meditative process that elevated her heart rate. Unable to restrain herself, Valythra nearly bit the troll before being startled by the presence of Kora Deathwhisper.
Valythra's lapse in control was made known to Tyrinade, who scolded her for once again slipping. Desperate to make amends for her repeated failures, Valythra finally mastered the creation of a Death Gate and participated in a lesson on demonic magics. She demonstrated wonderful skill, summoning felfire with ease and subjugating an imp to her will before retiring for the night.
The next day Valythra sat at the fountain in the Onyx Rose keep, joined by Angelarria and Gavarian. Providing the materials for her San'layn garments, Valythra asked the pair about whether or not she should change her name, asking for suggestions. Gavarian suggested sharing his own name, Nightblade, to which Valythra remarked that there were certain implications to them sharing a name.
Aware of the implications, Gavarian took a knee and proposed to Valythra for marriage. Valythra was taken aback, noting that they had only been together for little under two months. Though Gavarian was willing to tie the knot, and Valythra was subtly urged on to accept, she refused his proposal with a warm smile. With the proposal out of the way, Valythra decided she would claim the name of Bloodmoon for herself, going back to her grandmother Alytheria.
Mellectria Sunstrike showing Valythra how to hunt.
Valythra then attended a date auction in Winterspring, where she signed up to be auctioned for a date. During the auction Lanthelon Ashbinder took the center stage. Valythra immediately sensed the aura of death magic that clung to him despite his illusion and bid money on him. Eventually, when Valythra's turn came to step up, Arthalden Lightshard bid on her to her brief dismay. She could feel the Light magic radiating from the paladin and became nervous.
Befriending Mellectria Sunstrike, the two left the auction early to attempt to hunt in the region of Winterspring. Melle pointed out a nearby hare, letting Valythra take it and offering her gun. Despite this, Valythra slipped into invisibility and proceeded to seize the hare with her bare hands before digging her fangs deep into its neck, drinking its blood and life essence.
Reprimanding Valythra for her "hunting" Mellectria proceeded to demonstrate her own method of hunting, using her rifle to take down an elk and showing Valythra her hunting prowess as she treated the carcass before it was to be brought back. As she did so, Mellectria cut her finger, causing a continuous stream of blood that tempted Valythra. Nevertheless, the two were able to bring the elk back before Valythra returned to the Onyx Rose Keep.
Valythra soon joined Tyrinade in meeting with a member of the Flamebranded who was to be turned into a San'layn to correct a mistake made in their resurrection after death. Valythra was assigned the task of guiding the woman in transitioning into undeath.
Valythra and Tyrinade met in Falconwing Square with the Convocation of Quel'Thalas to discuss matters pertinent to Quel'thalas. After the meeting, Valythra spoke with Moranai Sunstrike in private. Though she had put her delusions behind her and no longer styled herself as the matriarch of the destroyed House Solflame, Valythra secretly yearned for the power of her title and the property she was due.
Valythra hoped to receive the backing of House Sunstrike on two fronts. Firstly, she needed their assistance in order to begin reparations on the destroyed Enclave, secondly to help legitimize her claim to the House despite being San'layn. Valythra secretly worried that both matters would need to be brought before the Magistrate and become a legal issue, all while having to conceal her culpability in her father's murder.
Valythra, tasked with guiding Aerophin Daermathor, who was to be turned into a San'layn, offered advice regarding how to properly feed and restrain oneself. In order to secure cattle for the woman's turning, Aerophin, Gavarian, and Valythra visited the Hillsbrad Foothills in order to track down the isolated town of Mirstone. There, they kidnapped three trappers and brought them back to the Onyx Rose.
The visit to Mirstone gave Valythra a moment of inspiration, realizing that its isolation made it ripe for the picking for cattle to feed upon. Later in the day, Aerophin was finally turned into a San'layn, and Tyrinade proclaimed the two of them to be sisters in blood. Proudly acknowledging Aerophin as her sister, she led the nascent San'layn out of the crypts to guide her.
Conquest of Zandalar[]
Return to Battle[]
Valythra and her accomplices responsible for freeing Tyrinade Moonsong.
After Valythra's struggles in guiding her sister in blood, Valythra answered the call to arms when the Alliance began to execute an attack upon Zandalar. She became immediately involved upon learning of Tyrinade's capture, assisting in an ambush that took advantage of an ongoing parley between the factions. In doing so she resumed her former identity as the Oculus.
Freeing Tyrinade from her bonds, Valythra battled against Tion Harrowmire, sustaining injuries from a fireball and a slash to the legs. These injuries were rectified when Valythra was able to bite the man and feed on a small amount of life essence before escaping the ship, having succeeded in her mission.
Valythra rejoined her comrades and began preparations to assist the Onyx Rose's involvement in the conflict on Zandalar. Though Valythra stepped away from the conflict to tend to matters back home, she soon returned to go out on a patrol to scout out the recent battle in Vol'dun.
Spotting a lone Death Knight - John von Hastings - out in the open, Valythra decided she would attempt to punish the man's foolishness by attempting to assassinate him. Ambushing him, the blows Valythra dealt would have killed a living man, but Hastings survived and threw the San'layn aside. Valythra planned on retreating, knowing that she could have only killed the man in a single strike from an ambush. Malaise soon joined Valythra in the battle, and the conflict temporarily ceased as the Hastings and Valythra threatened one another.
As Valythra refused to back down, Hastings charged forward and attacked again, the momentum of his runeblade carrying her into the air and nearly bisecting her. The attack left her incapacitated as she watched Hastings and Malaise battle. Despite her futile attempt to assist she finally decided that they could not battle the Death Knight head on. Malaise was soon cut in half by the Death Knight, prompting Valythra to open a Death Gate back to the Onyx Rose's keep. She dragged Malaise back, glaring at Hastings before disappearing.
Upon returning to the Keep, Valythra summoned her thrall and proceeded to drain him of all of his life essence, hoping to recover from her almost lethal injury. After helping Malaise into a wheelchair and bandaging her injury, Valythra was joined by Kora Deathwhisper who offered to educate her in Death magic. Using a subject for Mirstone for demonstration, Kora then etched an unholy rune into Valythra's wrist upon her request.
Valythra returned to the Onyx Rose Keep regularly to keep tabs on Aerophin to ensure that she remained well. During one such period of time, Valythra and Gavarian met after the latter's recent absence and used Valythra's newfound freedom to visit the Eversong Woods. There, Gavarian proposed once again to Valythra, and she accepted the marriage proposal. The two became engaged, though Valythra was to return to Vol'dun once again.
Capture and Torture[]
Valythra was once again deployed to scout out the Vol'dun wastes, where she found John Hastings again out in the open. She had a moment of inspiration, wanting to steal the Death Knight's runeblade and allowed greed and ambition to override her judgment. She lured the Death Knight into a cavern system where she proceeded to disarm him and successfully steal his runeblade. She threw it into a Death Gate to the Onyx Rose Keep but was attacked by Nerubians before she could escape. Captured by the Alliance, she was brought back to the HMS Tedrassil.
Aboard the Teldrassil, Valythra was visited by several others, including Soreka Blackblood, Andurius Soulrender, Lyraeni Sorrowsong, Miralyne Valetender, and others. The Alliance interrogated Valythra with different methods, some attempting to negotiate peacefully with her and others resorting to painful torture. Lyraeni replaced Valythra's engagement ring with a false one. John Hastings and Andurius Soulrender then isolated her in a magical field where they proceeded to torture her for information on the Horde and the Onyx Rose.
Using holy water and his own Worgen form, Hastings gradually broke down Valythra's will to resist and forced her to reveal what little she knew. During the torture, Valythra was heavily scarred, with Worgen claw marks on her chest and one on her cheek, her face and arms covered in burns from holy water, and her mark of Alytheria destroyed. Tyrinade sensed Valythra's distress and intervened momentarily, but Valythra was left in captivity for another day.
Starved by the captain, Valythra's hunger became maddening and she began to lose her grip on her own sanity. She became borderline feral, thrashing about and desperate to feed on anything living. Though Soreka attempted to feed her life essence, Hastings had a plan for the starved San'layn. Valythra was traded to Tyrinade in return for Hastings' runeblade, and brought to the Horde in Nazmir.
Valythra was immersed in a pool of blood in a secretive neophyte camp in order to recover, requiring three days until full recovery.
Second Death and Clarity[]
The process of recovery took Valythra three days before she recovered. She then assisted in a battle in which she bit and enthralled Miralyne, but was soon thrown off a cliff by Malithanore Vanyali. Her body broken from the fall, Valythra summoned her thrall to her side to feed on her life essence to regenerate. Though she successfully fed, Valythra was soon met with opposition from Gooldaro Chainbreaker, who inadvertently alerted Miralyne's allies to their position, resulting in a brief battle to save Miralyne from Valythra.
The San'layn managed to escape through a wormhole created by her thrall, with Gooldaro closely behind. Miralyne was captured by the Duskfall and had her influences purged, to Valythra's agitation. Valythra was determined to find her thrall once again, but ultimately reunited with Lyraeni Sorrowsong in a battle to free Gooldaro and Ro'go from the Alliance's hold.
The two of them battled before Valythra was quickly defeated by a runeblade strike through her chest, impaling and killing her for the second time. Her weapon stolen by Lyraeni and her body no longer reanimated, she was retrieved by the Onyx Rose and her body was stored within the crypts.
She was soon raised a second time by Tyrinade. Though her friends were generally pleased to see Valythra's return, Tyrinade immediately ordered Valythra that she was not to return to the front lines or to engage the Alliance forces until further notice. When Valythra attempted to inquire, Tyrinade told her to not discuss it in front of others and left.
The two spoke in private, during which Tyrinade revealed her disappointment in Valythra for secretly plotting to gain power and enthralling cattle as if she could not notice. The discussion left Valythra heartbroken and questioning her decision to become San'layn.
Following her second raising, Valythra was tasked with assisting the war effort whilst forbidden from ever engaging the Alliance on the front lines again. Though her time spent doing mundane chores distracted her from her ambitions, she lapsed back when surrounded by the dead following a massive Alliance assault. Due to an immense disconnect from the wishes of the living, Valythra boldly suggested raising the dead into undeath, to the great disapproval of others.
After being confronted with her apathy towards the living and viewing them as little more than cattle, Valythra was threatened one more time with the possibility of being defanged. Deeply perturbed, Valythra took time to herself to ponder her situation before sensing that her sister, Aerophin, was engaged in battle and rushing to assist.
Aerophin sustained grievous injuries but due to Valythra's actions was saved from her own second death. Aerophin offered to teach Valythra, and the latter began to struggle between her want for power and her better judgment. After a long talk with Tyrinade in which she admitted to viewing her maker as a surrogate mother, Valythra decided that she could afford to learn more, yet also return to a civilian life in which she would not be so tempted to pursue an agenda of power.
Little Light[]
No longer permitted to battle the Alliance on the front lines, Valythra began to return to her academic studies, focusing on learning more about language and various magics. As she did, she became troubled by what she identified as a dulling of the senses, her ability to taste and feel physical sensations slowly becoming difficult to distinguish. In a short time, she found that her ability to taste anything short of blood had been diminished. Distressed, Valythra desperately attempted to stimulate her sense of taste to no avail.
The San'layn began to weep for another part of her life lost to her but found that she was now incapable of shedding a tear. Valythra reasoned that her body had to be changing - or decaying - due to her recent second death. Comforted by her family in blood, Valythra began to openly regard Tyrinade as her mother to seek comfort in her changes.
As time progressed, Valythra finally began to settle in. No longer plagued by doubt about her choices or struggling with her morality, she was confident in herself and her condition. Noticing her progress, Tyrinade appointed Valythra as a representative for San'layn interests.
At some point after the battles in Zandalar, Miralyne Valetender was stranded in the Terrordale of the Eastern Plaguelands, and Valythra was both witness to her falling aircraft and able to sense her presence due to Miralyne's past enthrallment. Now that they were no longer on the front lines of war, Valythra hoped for a chance to properly reconnect with her past lover.
Though Miralyne threatened to kill Valythra, she stopped upon recognizing the San'layn and asked what had happened to her, lamenting the corruption of her "Little Light". Though Valythra denied that she had changed, Miralyne stated that the woman she knew would never have bitten, tortured, and enthralled her even for the sake of protection. Despite that, she insisted that Valythra did not have to be a cruel and murderous monster and that she could be the person she used to be.
The two shared their memories of their time together, and Valythra proceeded to help Miralyne survive and guide her out of the Terrordale. Having been saved (and spared) three times by Valythra, Miralyne told her that there was still a light within her that could be nurtured and brought back, and was worth saving.
The Bloodied One[]
Mirstone Massacre[]
Main Article: Mirstone Massacre
| "I hate stagnation, the idea of not progressing and getting stronger with each passing day is unnerving to me. I want to accomplish everything now, not in a century from now." |
Valythra during her time in the Onyx Rose, following the battles in Zandalar. Part of her face was kept obscured due to severe burn injuries.
Valythra met with Kora Deathwhisper in the Plaguelands to assist her in finding a sword within a castle, and in exchange would teach Valythra methods of empowering herself. The San'layn was able to execute the mission with stealth, infiltrating the castle despite the disturbing sights and haunting presence within. In exchange for the part she played, Kora brought Valythra to a runeforge.
There, Valythra asked Kora to completely cover both of her arms in a pairing of unholy and blood runes, to empower her blood magic and death magic. When they were done, they then began to work on forging Valythra's first runeblade. Using a light one-handed sword, Valythra successfully created a weapon that granted her blood magic greater potency. To commemorate the weapon's creation, and to test its power, Kora and Valythra decided to wipe Mirstone and its population away.
The two charged into the village and immediately began to massacre the population. Kora was challenged by Sanalellah Sunbringer, who had been helping the townsfolk with a rumored vampyr menace, stories that came in the wake of Valythra's initial preying upon the village. As the two dueled, Valythra used her runeblade and her blood magic to kill innocents in droves until she was challenged by the budding Mirstone Wolfcult, with Liza Brooks serving as their pack leader.
In the battle that followed, Kora nearly killed Sana before the paladin managed to escape. Though she was wounded, Valythra managed to strangle Liza to death, and the undead pair were victorious. Those who could be raised had been used as soldiers in the massacre, and the worgen simply remained dead on the streets. Valythra, hungry for blood, tracked down the mayor of Mirstone, Victor Marcus, to bite him and drain him of his life essence, killing both de facto and official leaders of the town.
Kora set the town ablaze and explained her hunger - a Death Knight's hunger for pain - to Valythra and how it shaped her views, with the phrase "Vae Victis" being a strong element of what guided her actions. With Mirstone destroyed, Valythra contemplated the name of her runeblade, and decided to name it after a vampyr legend - Arbitian, the Royal.
Flames of War[]
Main Article: Operation: Blackrock and Roll
With Arbitian forged, the weapon was eager to be fed with the slaughter of enemies and innocents alike, awaiting a bond between it and its master. Valythra began to map out her path to fueling the blade, planning to conquer even more innocent townsfolk as she had done to Mirstone. Hungry for more, she began to patrol the Eastern Kingdoms, moving down south in search of settlements to carve her way through.
In the Arathi Highlands, she encountered Fasha Tel’therun, who was leading the Hand of Vengeance in a march to Blackrock Mountain due to a recent call to arms. Though Valythra expressed interest in participating in the bloodshed that was to come, she ultimately failed to show up to the initial battles for the mountain. It was not until Tyrinade Moonsong, Valythra's mother, was captured that she made her appearance.
With Tyrinade's capture and imprisonment with magical restraints, her bond to all her risen undead was cut off, leaving them stranded and without the mental stability of their creator. This prompted erratic behavior throughout the Onyx Rose and resulted in Valythra's inhibitions becoming severely weakened. Her pride, recklessness, and bloodlust came front and center, becoming insubordinate and challenging the authority of all of her leaders.
After being pulled aside by at least four of her commanding officers to put her in her place, Valythra began to independently search for Tyrinade, scouting out the volcanic region for Alliance activity. During this time, she was hunted by Avaline Cinderspell, a member of the Duskfall Collective and the new beloved of Miralyne Valetender. Angered by Valythra's actions in Zandalar, Avaline proceeded to restrain the vampyr.
Valythra was secured by icy restraints, an anti-magic choker placed around her neck and partially drained of her blood, starving her for more. Despite this, Valythra used her undead strength and skill with a runeblade to almost match the Ren'dorei's magic before ultimately being bested, her bloodthirsty recklessness exploited in an attack from behind. During the battle, Valythra sustained further injuries with part of her face and hair being burned away.
Avaline revealed her motivations for the confrontation, reminding Valythra of her mistreatment towards Miralyne and calling her manipulative, stating that she has not changed, despite Miralyne's hopes. Avaline accused Valythra of being a thrall to Tyrinade, rather than her daughter, provoking the vampyr's rage and demanding that the battle between them be concluded with either her death or capture. Avaline departed, telling Valythra to realize right from wrong and that there would soon come a time when she would have to choose between Tyrinade and Miralyne.
Despite her heavy injuries, Valythra refused to die and crawled across the Burning Steppes back to the Horde encampment. She was present at the final battle, though defeated by Casylia and forced to retreat and join the wounded. With the Horde's narrow victory in the conflict, Valythra returned home with the rest of the Onyx Rose.
Insecure about increased damage to her once beautiful features, Valythra finally decided she could not stand to wear every single battle she participated in any further. She began by turning to fleshcrafters to help restore her damaged scalp and hair with a plan to restore the rest of her appearance.
Clash in Northrend[]
With her armor battered and destroyed after Zandalar and Blackrock, and no sign of imminent repair, Valythra recovered her armor from her days in the agency and began to wear that for the upcoming campaign in Northrend, to raid a reliquary of knowledge kept by the San'layn. She was present in assisting the Onyx Rose Order in moving their necropolis to the north and began carrying out scouting runs and gathering information.
The Onyx Rose deploys meat wagons to the Ziggurat.
The Onyx Rose set their eyes on a ziggurat that would be necessary to capture in order to secure the reliquary. The Rose moved on the ziggurat, only to be met with opposition by the Duskfall Collective. Negotiations failed, prompting the Onyx Rose and the Duskfall to battle. Valythra was eager to clash with Lyraeni once again, but was instead challenged by Garion Magnus, ensuing in a duel between two combatants that were almost evenly matched, up until Garion blasted her with an arcane orb just before the Rose's retreat was sounded.
Later in the night, Avaline Cinderspell used Valythra's blood to summon her to a private meeting location. What began as an attempt at diplomacy soon devolved into a confrontation of Valythra's beliefs and identity. Avaline appealed to her sense of morality and what integrity Valythra still held, but prompted the San'layn to panic, her mind ultimately shutting down as she tried to reject the attempts to pick at her loyalties and her beliefs. She ultimately fled the conversation to return to the Rose, leaving Avaline to pray that Valythra was still worth saving.
Unable to accept Avaline's words and desperate to speak to Miralyne herself, Valythra stalked one of the druids of the Duskfall Collective - Jalresae Loreseeker - with the intent of using her as a "diplomat" to the Collective, by enthralling her and using her to bait Miralyne out into a private area. The two fought until Valythra used a knife with paralytic poison to finally secure the druid and bite her, imposing her will upon the druid and taking over.
In opening up her mind to Jalresae in order to enthrall her, the two experienced a bizarre phenomenon of sharing memories that seemed to overlap. Jalresae's traumatic memories of demon hordes slaughtering her people, the Kaldorei, played in tandem with Valythra's trauma after the Scourge slaughtered the Quel'dorei. The ritual to become Illidari paralleled with Valythra's ritual to become San'layn.
The mental interaction left Valythra shaken and even intrigued in her new puppet, but she soon had Jalresae under her sway. The druid proceeded to heal her injuries on command, and then healed Valythra. To the latter's amazement, Jalresae was able to repair the damage to her face, restoring her to the "beauty" she had possessed before Zandalar. Satisfied, Valythra ordered the druid to return to the Collective, and then bring Miralyne on a scouting mission to a private location, where the druid would then signal her mistress.
The next day, Jalresae lured Miralyne to the Highborne ruins that Valythra had designated as the meeting location. Valythra emerged and was able to have a relatively private conversation with Miralyne, where she confessed her conflicted feelings about her past actions and not feeling certain that she could nurture the "Little Light" as Miralyne suggested. Despite this, Valythra was relieved when Miralyne revealed that she had no intent to separate her from the Rose and her new family.
The Onyx Rose Order and the Duskfall Collective unite to combat the Scourge.
The two planned to meet in the same spot by the next week, where they would establish a better means of communication. They returned to their respective factions, which had agreed to a truce in order to focus on the Scourge presence in the Borean Tundra. Both the Duskfall and Onyx Rose worked to besiege the Scourge reliquary and, upon retrieving what they came for, agreed to honor the truce further and not resume any conflict.
What Had Been Lost[]
A week after the brief venture to Northrend, Valythra and Miralyne met once again at the Highborne ruins. Miralyne came with two communication devices, one for both of them, that could be used to establish a long distance connection. The two took the opportunity to properly reconnect, however the conversation quickly became difficult for both of them. Valythra admitted that she hated living, yet could never bring herself to simply die; never suicidal, only dissatisfied with her existence.
After explaining how she had waited for Miralyne's return years after she had gone through the Dark Portal, Valythra finally revealed that she chose to become San'layn. Though she had hoped that their rekindled friendship would allow the confession to be easily processed, Miralyne did not take to the revelation well. Even as Valythra justified her turning, it led Miralyne into a brief bout of hysteria, lamenting that everything she had done was for nothing - Valythra was lost, the Horde continued to exist, and the people of Quel'thalas were scattered and on the verge of extinction.
Valythra attempted to reassure Miralyne by suggesting that she focus less on the broad scope of the world, and instead look inward to focus on herself, claiming that the problems of the world were far too large for any one individual to solve. Miralyne refused Valythra's suggestion, stating that a world of people who thought only of themselves would have no one left to think of the world as a whole.
With that, Miralyne decided it would be best for her to return to her people before her absence aroused suspicion. With Miralyne's departure, Valythra was left rather dissatisfied with the outcome of their meeting, realizing that she would need to be less narrow-minded to preserve a friendship with Miralyne, knowing that her actions while aligned with the Horde could cost her friend's trust if she was not careful. Despite her frustration, she left with a smile.
Days after their meeting, Miralyne's determination to salvage Valythra's old self began to eat away at the San'layn's certainty. She feared for the consequences of her past actions, wondering if they would come back to haunt her or, worse, jeopardize her friendship with Miralyne. Additionally, she began to look back on her romance with Gavarian Nightblade.
She could not deny that her relationship with Gavarian was one built on abuse and manipulation. Though she loved him, Valythra felt that her affection for Gavarian had become twisted into something that could no longer be called love. To her, it was something that Gavarian did not deserve to endure, and, after days of thought, she finally approached her fiance to suggest that they end their romance.
Though Gavarian agreed, the break up between them was abrupt and purely one-sided. It frustrated Gavarian and began to split Valythra's certainty, for she still loved her fiance, but also found that she retained feelings for Miralyne that were beginning to overshadow her affection. Becoming irritable and unable to properly cope with her decision, she began consuming large quantities of bloodwine to distract herself while she focused on her next objective.
Deciding to double down on her responsibilities as a representative of the San'layn, Valythra elected to participate in a pilgrimage to the sacred birthright of Quel'thalas, the Sunwell. Though there were concerns against undead being allowed to visit the Sunwell, it was permitted in a compromise that held undead pilgrims to the restriction of spectating from a balcony, rather than being part of the group.
Valythra joined Luneth Dawnseeker and several other Sin'dorei in their visit to the Sunwell and found she was the only undead individual present. Keeping quiet and to herself, she followed the group into the chamber and initially stayed back until the young Ela'thias asked if she would join them. Valythra asked if she was permitted and, to her surprise, found that she was allowed to join the group.
Valythra visits the Sunwell for the first time in her undeath.
Yet, when she did, she found that the experience was no longer the same. Where her fellow elves basked in the light of the Sunwell, feeling strength, calm, and reassurance through it, Valythra felt an oppressive heat wash over her body. Like standing before a great flame that threatened to devour her, Valythra stood there feeling like she was at risk of being burned by the holy energies within.
Despite this, Valythra stayed. Though she felt physically agitated, emotionally something was rekindled that had not been seen in some time. As the priest guiding the pilgrimage requested prayer for those who had been lost and had fallen in battle, Valythra uttered a prayer for the deceased, as she would have in life. When the pilgrimage came to a conclusion, Valythra joined several others in requesting a blessing from the priest, a custom she had forsaken up until now.
"You are one that does not walk the path of the Light. Though, that is not a sin for you have forged your own. You are a daughter of the land. To those whose loyalty remained with Quel'thalas. Although I cannot see into your future, know that you are welcome in your homeland."
Valythra had expected to be refused, thinking that no priest would ever wish to bless someone such as herself. To her surprise and relief, however, the priest accepted her request and beckoned her forward. Valythra kneeled before the priest, awaiting his words.
The priest gave his blessing: though Valythra was not one who walked the path of the Light, it was not in itself a sin, for she had forged her own path. A daughter of Quel'thalas, as much a child of the sun as any other, the priest declared that Valythra was welcome within her homeland.
The priest's words meant much to Valythra, as it was an acceptance that she had yearned to hear. Though it was only one individual, it truly felt as though she had made progress on this day. Grateful for the blessing, she departed from the Sunwell, taking one last look at it with a smile of contentment, pleased to have taken the opportunity to visit the birthright of her people once again.
Squire to Death[]
Depths of Vashj'ir[]
The Horde gathers for an underwater mission in Vashj'ir.
A call to arms was sounded as Azerite was discovered in the depths of Vashj'ir. The Onyx Rose Order joined the Horde ranks in traveling across the sea to the Eastern Kingdoms to battle for control over the Azerite.
Valythra served as a scout, using her undeath to her advantage by scouting underwater without the threat of drowning. At one point she was called up to participate in an underwater operation to retrieve Azerite supplies from an underwater wreckage. During this battle she defeated both Garion Magnus and Seriphene Vanyali, using potent blood magic to induce a stroke within Garion's brain and smashing Seriphene against a crate with a Death Grip. Valythra was later rendered unconscious by a human adventurer striking her in the jaw with the hilt of a sword.
After she recovered from her defeat, Valythra informed Tyrinade of Garion's defeat in battle as well as his presumed death. Tyrinade gave the order that she wanted Garion's body at any cost, prompting Valythra to venture out into the ocean once again to retrieve the wizard's corpse.
Alone in the Sea[]
Alone out in the ocean depths, Valythra returned to the site of the battle where Garion had faced his defeat. There, she found his body was absent, having left behind only a scrap of Garion's flamboyant clothing and his dagger. Valythra claimed the latter as a souvenir, while she used the blood in his clothing - as well as his blood that she had drunk - to scry his location, revealing that his 'body' had been reclaimed by the Alliance.
Valythra then concocted a plan that some might deem insane. Knowing that Tyrinade wanted Garion's body, no matter what, she devised a plan to infiltrate the Alliance fleet under cover of night to steal his body for the Red Lady. By the time she came up with the plan and traveled to the fleet's location, however, it was well into the morning. She would have to wait for night to fall once again, and so she spent roughly twelve hours beneath the tides, waiting.
As she waited, Valythra was alerted to the scent of blood in the water. She traveled to investigate, learning that two Naga had been killed. One, Sorilix, had been killed with an injury to the eye, hence the scent of blood, yet the other was killed by a peculiar sea creature that left the body perfectly pristine. Valythra was noticed by the creature, prompting them to stare each other down by the creature simply uttered the word, "Bold," and left her.
Curious as to how they had died and with time to spare, Valythra took the two Naga corpses and swam to nearby shore. There, she carried out an impromptu autopsy that revealed the cause of death for the serpent's victim, their brain having been severely affected. Believing there was potential for either a useful asset or a dangerous threat, Valythra sent the two bodies to the Horde aboard the Red Lady's Remorse along with a note explaining her findings.
Valythra washes up on Westfall's shores.
She promptly returned to her mission to retrieve Garion's body. Yet, as she began to climb the stern of one of the Alliance's ships, violent waves suddenly shook the fleet. The momentum of the tides, as well as the waves lashing at her body, caused Valythra to lose her grip, sending her flying into the ocean below. She was tossed about like a rag doll, battered against rocks and debris. Limbs were broken as she took hold of a ship's debris in the hopes it would carry her to safety. She soon slipped into unconsciousness afterwards, her inanimate body washing up on the shores of Westfall.
Found[]
Valythra is found by Kora Deathwhisper.
Despite being unconscious, her body unwittingly began to reach out to the two influences that it bore a connection to: Tyrinade Moonsong and Kora Deathwhisper. Tyrinade was preoccupied with the recent developments in Vashj'ir, leaving only Kora available to come to Valythra's aid. The Death Knight revived Valythra, much to the latter's confusion. Kora questioned the lack of appearance from Tyrinade and the Onyx Rose despite Valythra's trust in them, however the latter ultimately dismissed Kora's concerns.
Suffering from a broken limb and shattered bones within her body, Valythra sought out a nearby barn where homeless vagrants tried to survive. They found four thugs who were planning on robbing on local travelers. Though Valythra wanted to simply prey upon civilians, Kora counseled her against drawing attention and advised feeding off undesirables who would not be missed. Valythra fed from two of the thugs while Kora dispatched the remaining pair.
However, before they died, Kora's victims managed to attract attention with their screams, forcing Valythra and Kora to immediately vacate the premises and travel to Moonbrook to make use of the graveyard and create a Death Gate to the Remorse. Though Valythra had intended to heal from her wounds naturally over time using her healing factor, Kora grew impatient and forcibly repaired the damage.
Valythra becomes Kora's squire and swears fealty to the Ebon Blade.
Kora and Valythra traveled to the abandoned town of Moonbrook, where they found the graveyard. Valythra used the spirits of the dead to form a Death Gate to return to Vashj'ir, however Kora piqued her interest with an appeal to train Valythra and grant her greater power. Dismissing the Death Gate, Valythra decided to listen to Kora's suggestion. Agreeing to Kora's offer of power, Valythra knelt before the Death Knight, swearing fealty to the Knights of the Ebon Blade and becoming Kora's squire, officially marking her a Death Knight initiate.
Having further earned Valythra's trust and commitment, Kora then led Valythra to Acherus, where the San'layn would begin her training.
A New Path[]
Valythra trains to become a Death Knight under Kora's watchful eye.
After the oath, Kora opened a Death Gate to return to Archerus to formerly introduce the Ebon Hold to Valythra and to get her outfited with the standard armaments of an Ebon Knight. Kora showed Valythra around the lower levels of the hold, explaining what everything was before giving her what they originally sought. Turning to the pit, the Death Knight tossed the San'layn into the arena and summoned a handful of ghouls to test what Valythra was made of.
The San'layn struggled with the great sword, but was ultimately able to dispatch each ghoul before Kora leaped into the pit and swung at Valythra in order to teach her a lesson in being aware of her surroundings. Having completed what the Death Knight set out to do, Kora instructed Valythra to use her previously gifted knowledge of runeforging to engrave her training sword and then left the San'layn with instructions to get used to the weapon before their next training.
Despite her vow to train under Kora, Valythra was suddenly distressed at the possibility of not only her seeming desertion of the Horde, but also the risk that Miralyne was harmed in the violent tides of Vashj'ir. Abruptly she left her Death Knight training to return to the Red Lady's Remorse. There, she contacted Miralyne, learning that the Quel'dorei engineer had actually been in the Vashj'ir conflict, and though she had suffered from hypothermia and minor injuries she was recovering. Contented with Miralyne's answer, Valythra was able to return to her training in Acherus.
Too Far Gone[]
The Tournament of Ages[]
While training under Kora's supervision in Acherus, Valythra remembered that the Tournament of Ages was soon to commence. Though Valythra saw little purpose in attending the Tournament, she found the prospects of meeting Miralyne in person again alluring enough to personally attend. To avoid attracting hostile attention, she cloaked herself in a living illusion and attending the Tournament as a civilian.
Throughout the Tournament, Valythra's attention was drawn away from the Onyx Rose Order. She spent her days with Fasha Tel’therun and the Hand of Vengeance, and enjoying mundane things like collecting plush toys and spectating competitions. What she looked forward to the most, however, was the possibility of meeting Miralyne. Valythra did encounter Miralyne, who traveled in the company of a paladin named Anni. Due to her hidden undeath, Anni did not immediately react with hostility towards Valythra, allowing the two to actually bond somewhat. The night was pleasant up until the trio visited the Sword in the Skull, where they were met with Miralyne's new lover, Avaline Cinderspell.
Valythra reacted poorly to the conversation that followed, in which Miralyne and Avaline proceeded to engage in romantic banter, and idle comments were made against Valythra as a "monster". The San'layn panicked, collapsing into the snow, her illusion falling in the confusion and revealing her true nature. Despite it, Avaline kept the illusion active through her own willpower, and she and Miralyne helped Valythra to calm down.
For the next several days, Valythra was happy in a way that she had not been for some time. Time away from the Onyx Rose that was spent with the Silverguard reminded her of how fulfilling life could be with someone she genuinely cared about. Indeed, through the Tournament, Valythra's lingering feelings for Miralyne began to surface, reviving her old love for the Quel'dorei that was now complicated by her ongoing relationship with Avaline.
As happy as she was, Valythra's deeper nature compelled her to calculate methods by which she could kill Avaline without being discovered as the culprit and take Miralyne for herself. Beneath a mask of joy, Valythra was secretly plotting murder throughout the Tournament. Nevertheless, while she considered murder, she continued to bond with Miralyne, Avaline, and Anni. The more they bonded, the more Valythra felt a growing dilemma, knowing that her responsibilities within the Onyx Rose would make it impossible to truly be friends with Miralyne, forcing them to keep their friendship secret in the midst of a war.
The four later met in secret on the northern coast below the Tournament. During the secret meet, it became readily apparent that Valythra was uncomfortable, and Avaline suggested that it had something to do with her. Valythra denied it, and began to discuss what weighed heavily on her mind. She considered the possibility that Miralyne had been right all along, that she was becoming what could be judged as a monster. She decided that she could earn some trust if she was honest, and admitted that he had been calculated means by which she could kill Avaline.
Valythra had meant to earn their trust, but ended up with the complete opposite, with Miralyne reacting in shock at the revelation and Avaline and Annii immediately condemning her as a monster. Outraged by Avaline's remark that she was a monster, Valythra could not help herself and proceeded to attack Avaline. Miralyne stood between the two, causing Valythra to falter just as Anni blasted her away with Holy Light.
Weak and unable to resist, Valythra pleaded for the three to forgive her and understand her, but they refused. Even Miralyne stated that she could not bear to watch Valythra to become the monster she was turning into. Utterly broken, Valythra collapsed into the snow, simply doing what she could to drown out the sound of the three as they offered her a choice of either death or exile. She offered no answer, and the group decided that she was to be exiled, as death would attract the attention of the Peacekeepers.
Avaline conjured a void rift to bring Valythra to the Eastern Plaguelands, but Valythra refused. She had come with a growing desire to escape Tyrinade. Now that she was being forced to return to Tyrinade, she found herself wanting to stay away and escape. She begged Avaline to not send her back to Tyrinade, and the nature of her begging reminded Avaline of a past event in which an orphan begged to not be return to a cruel matron. Avaline changed her mind, agreeing to help Valythra. Anni followed suit, and the three decided they would offer Valythra the help she needed to break free from Tyrinade.
Avaline and Valythra meet during the Wonderlight Ball.
Later during the Tournament, Valythra attended the Wonderlight Ball. Though she did not attend with a date, she was met with company from friends and colleagues. She came to the Ball with Fasha, and was soon met by Kora, who interrogated Valythra as to why she had been absent from her training in Acherus.
After giving Kora a satisfactory answer, Valythra went to mingle with the people attending the ball. She shared a dance with her newly discovered distant relative, Sylaise Cinderwood, and discussed her future in leaving the Onyx Rose. When the dance concluded, she then went to dance with Avaline Cinderspell, as Miralyne did not attend the ball. Over the course of the dance the two connected, forgiving one another for past transgressions, and sharing revelations.
Valythra revealed her pact with Kithriel, which held her to a binding oath to help kill Avaline. Avaline, in turn, revealed that she had met Valythra once before, in her days as a baker. The night was formative for the two, shedding what was mutual hatred and creating the foundations of a friendship.
A God Am I[]
Main Article: Sorrow Hill Incident
Valythra prepared herself for her departure from the Rose, and to stay beyond Tyrinade's sight she was granted shelter in Avaline's home, the Crystal Spire, where no means of divination could breach its walls. Believing she owed it to her mother, Valythra brought Zyanel Solflame with her. The two stayed at the Spire for nearly a month before Miralyne contacted Valythra to explain that the ritual to free her soul was ready.
Valythra and Miralyne met with Anni at Uther's Tomb in the Western Plaguelands, where Valythra was to undergo a holy ritual not unlike a Sha purification. She would confront not only Tyrinade's hold on her soul, but also her inner demons that kept her bound to the Rose. The ritual literally personified both things, with Tyrinade herself manifesting as a representation of the hold on Valythra's soul. In a vicious battle between vampyr, Valythra was victorious.
The young San'layn swelled with pride upon seeing the defeated Tyrinade, even if it were merely a facsimile. Though she loved her mother, there was a twisted satisfaction to defeating the San'layn that hung over like a constant shadow, diminishing her importance and her status with raw power. Not long after the false Tyrinade fell, a new form took shape.
The new form that emerged was Valythra herself, yet different in that it represented all of the Valythra's suppressed ambitions. It bore terrible wings and armor, a warrior grown within Tyrinade's shadow and care. The Ascended Valythra spoke of only a single temptation, claiming that Valythra could become more than a pet vampyr for the Silverguard; she could be a goddess, one that would change the world.
From the moment that the Ascended emerged, Valythra was in awe. It was a reflection of what Valythra deeply wanted, to be like Tyrinade - more than Tyrinade, even. The Ascended sought to bring Valythra back to the Rose, where she could never be hurt again or looked down upon, without hiding her curse.
Valythra was enamored with the Ascended, but she realized that there was a flaw in its plan. She recounted the battle in Zandalar, where she had attempted to amass power while Tyrinade was preoccupied with the war effort, and paid the price with her second death. The Ascended attempted to persuade Valythra that she could outgrow Tyrinade, but Valythra was not convinced. She asked what was to become of Miralyne in the Ascended's grand scheme, stating that she loved her and could not stand to abandon her.
Valythra had bared her greatest weakness, and the Ascended took advantage of it. The Ascended suggested that, rather than hopelessly chasing Miralyne, Valythra could awe her with a display of incredible power. Though there was never a guarantee that it could work, Valythra had successfully negotiated out of abandoning Miralyne and felt nothing holding her back from sealing the deal.
In an unexpected turn of events, Valythra took the Ascended's hand and shook it. The Ascended proceeded to enter Valythra's body, existing as a voice in her mind that began to command her to feast from the nearby living. The act completely befouled the ritual, the Holy Light darkened with shadow and blood. Valythra momentarily masked the influence of the Ascended as Miralyne opened a wormhole to Dalaran, with both Miralyne and Anni leaving through it. Before Valythra could follow, however, Argent Crusaders arrived to investigate suspicious activity.
To preserve herself, the Ascended ordered Valythra to enter the befouled ritual circle to absorb the power within. She did so, and the result was a sudden rush of power, manifesting as a pair of bloodied, ethereal wings and a dark mist that exuded from her form. Though it was temporary, Valythra momentarily possessed more power than she could have ever hoped to achieve before.
Valythra began to do battle with the Crusaders that arrived, reveling in the newfound power. Zyanel, who had remained, observed her daughter's fall before finally resolving to take action. With Valythra's soul freed, nothing prevented Zyanel from attempting to possess her daughter and halt her madness. Her actions failed, however, for it was not Valythra's madness that drove the battle; it was a shadowy entity that now lived within the San'layn's body.
Zyanel battled the Ascended for control over Valythra, and ultimately lost. The banshee was consumed by the Ascended to languish within Valythra for an indeterminate period of time. Before she was consumed, Zyanel issued one last curse, spurning the woman that she believed was responsible for everything that had happened thus far.
The banshee's actions snapped Valythra out of her megalomania. Initially Valythra sought to resist her mother's possession, wanting to kill the Argents who attacked her, eager to feast as the Ascended commanded her to. However, upon realizing that she was not possessed, Valythra began to feel concern for what her mother had done, and finally she began to wonder what had become of her mother if she was not attempting to possess her. The confusion created a moment of weakness that the Argents quickly exploited, firing a blessed crossbow bolt into Valythra's chest.
The bolt struck where Valythra's wound from Lyraeni's runeblade was, and the blessed projectile began to bore a hole into the vampyr's chest. As the Argents began to interrogate her, the wormhole to Dalaran still remained open. Valythra claimed she was not Scourge and belonged to the Horde, indicating that her companions beyond the wormhole could explain why she was so close to holy ground.
One of the Argents entered the wormhole to speak to the pair in Dalaran and confirmed Valythra's story, bringing both Anni and Miralyne back to Sorrow Hill to assess the situation. As they did, however, the Ascended began to channel the power of the consumed banshee to urge Valythra to utter a banshee scream, an ear-piercing shriek to incapacitate all of the people gathered. Valythra fought the urge to scream, but ultimately could no longer resist it, and finally unleashed the power.
The banshee scream hurt all who were present, causing blood from the ears among everyone, including Miralyne. Though the Ascended urged Valythra to flee, the San'layn was guilt-ridden and remorseful for her actions, pleading with Miralyne to understand that she did not mean to harm her. Anni pushed Valythra away, telling her to stay back. The Argents declared that all three individuals were to vacate the premises or face arrest.
Anni carried Miralyne to the wormhole, with a heavy implication that Valythra should not follow them. The Ascended began to infect Valythra's thoughts with fears of abandonment and betrayal, terrified that there was a rift forming between her and Miralyne. Anni explained that this ritual was a chance to show her strides in redemption, and that she had failed. She would have to prove herself next time.
Miralyne encouraged Valythra not to give up, but also to remember Anni's words regardless of where Valythra went after the ritual. Valythra decided to leave, frustrated with everyone, even Miralyne, but above all she was frustrated with herself. She recognized that she was the cause of the problem, and that she had made everything worse. Promising to speak to Miralyne later, Valythra began to make a journey to Strahnbrad to find a graveyard to establish a Death Gate.
The Mirstone Hunt[]
After the time spent in Avaline's care and Anni's treatment, Valythra was finally free of Tyrinade's will, for better or for worse. She was once again her own individual, her soul belonging to her at last. Without Tyrinade looming within her mind at all times, there was no longer any form of inhibitor to keep her mind from running as it normally would, though over half a year with her mother inside her head had become the norm.
Valythra's mind now ran faster than she could process, causing her to become unfocused and prone to distraction or inaction. She coped with the difficult transition by focusing on returning to her responsibilities that had been abandoned after the Tournament of Ages, beginning with journeying to Acherus to catch up on her Death Knight training. She trained through the night, relentless in attempting to make up for lost time. Her instructor, Kora, approached and taught her techniques such as the half-sword.
Valythra raises her first undead steed.
Impressed by Valythra's determination to progress, Kora decided that Valythra would receive a reward. They traveled to the north of Gilneas, just beyond the Greymane Wall. Kora identified a courier mounted on a horse that would be passing along the road into Gilneas, and that Valythra was to kill the courier but leave the horse undamaged.
Valythra did as instructed, seducing the courier with her abilities of enthrallment before biting into his throat and draining him of his blood. Kora struck the horse down with a Death Coil, and the two left the courier's body behind while taking the body of the horse to a circle where life energy was concentrated. Valythra was instructed to create a circle of Death runes around the horse's body, before finally carving one more rune at the base of the horse's skull.
Channeling necromantic energies, Valythra began to reanimate the horse with Kora's assistance. With an incantation of the Scourge language, she poured the magic into the corpse and the horse was successfully reanimated, delivered to Acherus to be outfitted as a mount of a Death Knight should be.
Starspear Slaughter[]
Main Article: Starspear Slaughter
Valythra finally took advantage of her freedom to catch herself up on the recent happenings in the world. Having been absent for a significant period of time, she was unaware of what had happened to her friend, Xyntus Starspear. To Valythra's knowledge, Xyntus had simply disappeared from the Onyx Rose without warning, yet she soon came to learn that Xyntus had been captured by her mother from House Starspear and branded a traitor. Tortured and shamed in public, even the protections placed by the House of Sunstrike did not seem to save her.
Outraged, Valythra marched upon the Starspear Manor in a brutal entrance as she willingly gave in to the power of the Ascended, once again assuming the mock angel image. Xyntus broke free from her restraints, using them as weapons as the two San'layn began to slaughter those present within the manor, including patrons who were participating in a party held by the nobility. The slaughter concluded as Xyntus murdered her mother.
Valythra then attempted to communicate with Xyntus to convince her to leave together, however Xyntus refused. The Ascended wished to speak to her, and Valythra reluctantly gave control once again. During the conversation that followed, Xyntus was quickly aware that the Ascended was not Valythra herself, and claimed that Xyntus was dead, lost in the endless torture inflicted by her pains. The Ascended asked what Xyntus was to be known by, and she answered with the name Fife.
As Fife departed to make her way west, Valythra promptly departed as well to return to Acherus. Unbeknownst to her, the slaughter was pinned on her as well as Xyntus, leading to a 20 gold bounty on her head and her position as representative of the San'layn being revoked.
For Love[]
The Pact Invoked[]
Time passed since the events at Sorrow Hill, and much needed to be explained. Valythra returned to Avaline's spire, briefly conversing with the Ren'dorei and assisting her in shedding the shackles placed on her by her grandmother, Mara. As Avaline secluded herself after the event, Valythra called to Miralyne using their communicator with the intent of explaining what exactly had happened.
Valythra divulged everything, claiming that what happened at Sorrow Hill was not her fault and that she was instead controlled by the Ascended. Seeing an opportunity to learn more about Valythra's psychological development as well as San'layn as a whole, Miralyne offered to come to the spire personally to continue the conversation there. Valythra stepped into the lounge and was introduced to Coriena Nightcaller, a Ren'dorei of the Silverguard, like Avaline herself.
Miralyne arrived with multiple bags of blood of varying age and quality, from recently drawn to aged to the point of expiration. She expressed an interest in seeing how Valythra would react to each quality of blood, and Coriena added onto the experiment by asking about magical infusions such as Light, Fel, and Void magic. Valythra became irritated as she found herself suddenly being treated as a lab rat to sate others' curiosity, yet as she drained the bag contained the most recent blood, she was confronted with a revelation.
Avaline revealed Valythra's pact with Kithriel that required the latter to kill the former. This shocked Miralyne and prompted Valythra to withdraw out of guilt and mild fear, silently feeding, though her depression quickly faded due to the pleasure of feeding on the blood of a sentient being for the first time in possibly a month. After Coriena offered to test the effects of void on blood, the group was interrupted by the arrival of Mara.
The group was apprehensive around Mara, and soon she revealed herself to actually be a winged horror, some manner of demonic hellspawn. The Ascended took advantage of the soon-to-be dire situation to tempt Valythra into taking up her power to fight the Nathrezim. Distracted, she was impaled upon a spike of Felslate, and the Nathrezim reminded her of her pact to kill Avaline.
In need of more power, Valythra finally agreed to take up the Ascended's offer for power. She required more blood to truly gather strength, however, and took advantage of the damage Coriena had sustained to siphon blood from the battlefield. She unintentionally siphoned more blood from Coriena herself, causing the Ren'dorei to barely cling to consciousness while Valythra assumed a mock shadowform, darkness coating her entire body like a silhouette as her crimson eyes gleamed from within.
Kithriel herself made her appearance, revealing that she was in control of the spire's defenses. Though Valythra was able to take advantage of the weakened horror to finish it off by draining its blood, she was unable to fight Kithriel's will. Restoring some of Coriena's blood, she watched in impotent frustration as Kithriel tortured Avaline. Coriena pleaded with Valythra not to kill Avaline as the pact required, for Miralyne's sake, and the Ren'dorei's words drew Valythra to a disturbing and possibly damning possibility.
Valythra offered to kill Avaline as requested, with the goal of raising her as San'layn to cheat Kithriel's pact. However, due to her hesitation to kill Avaline, Kithriel decided to take her time in torturing the Ren'dorei. Before she could inflict any further damage, however, the true Mara appeared and stopped the warlock. Mara helped the grouping recover from their injuries, though Valythra was now angered by the revelation of the true background behind Kithriel's schemes.
Valythra exited her shadowy form, revealing that absorbing Coriena's blood had changed her once again. Her pupils had narrowed into predatory slits, the veins around her eyes darkening and her fangs continuing to grow in length. Valythra angrily accused the events of the spire of being nothing more than a cosmological joke that she had been dragged into, especially angry because she was preparing herself to do something potentially awful in turning Avaline.
Despite Mara's apologies and admission that she was guilty, Valythra resolved to depart the spire and not return. However, for Miralyne's sake, Valythra decided to help Coriena in transferring Avaline, Miralyne, and Tassarie to Coriena's territory, Seabreeze.
The Spider's Web[]
While Valythra spent time bonding with her niece, Sylvia, Valythra felt a rising disturbance from the Ascended within her that compelled her to abandon the young girl she had grown to care for. With Sylvia's urgency and comfort, Valythra was able to stave off the impulses of the Ascended, even as it attempted to forcibly control her. However, there was a growing discomfort surrounding them.
During the time that Valythra fought off the Ascended, she was distracted and left Sylvia exposed. Unbeknownst to her, a masked San'layn descended from mists and attempted to capture Sylvia before an undead bird struck out against him. Valythra inspected the bird for herself, and felt a deep unease as she detected a familiar presence from it. Realizing that they were being stalked by two different forces, Valythra suggested that they simply return to the Cinderwood.
Sylvia opened a gateway to the Cinderwood, however they were then accosted by hooded figures wielding weapons woven with Truesilver. Interrogating Valythra and Sylvia on what permission they had to be in the Cinderwood, Valythra explained that Sylaise had invited her to the Cinderwood, and were not servants of the "traitor son", Caier. It was revealed that not only was Sylaise gone and unable to be detected, but also that she played host to a potential threat: Alytheria Bloodmoon, Valythra's grandmother.
Stunned by the revelation that Alytheria had returned, Valythra wondered if the masked San'layn and Alytheria were linked, for two San'layn in one day felt like hardly a coincidence. Though she was reluctant to meet with Alytheria, she felt a need to speak with her. Sylvia expressed an interest in joining the venture, and Valythra brought her niece to meet with the elder San'layn. Valythra herself had many questions to ask.
Despite this, when they arrived to speak to Alytheria, they found that she had only expressed interest in meeting with Sylvia and completely ignored Valythra altogether. She admitted that she did not kill Sylaise, and that she had sent the masked San'layn, a man named Inkorkast. Sylvia offered Alytheria a home in the Cinderwood, which Alytheria rejected, citing "complications" that she refused to elaborate on, and that she remained in the Cinderwood for the sake of her plans.
Alytheria claimed that her plans were done for the sake of the betterment of others. When asked if Sylaise's potential death and Caier's likely ascension to ruler of the Cinderwood would change her acknowledgement of Sylaise's deal, Alytheria claimed that mere possibility without proof changed nothing. Sylvia requested Alytheria's aid in fending off potential enemies to the Cinderwood, though she initially declined.
However, Sylvia pleaded with Alytheria, explaining the importance of protecting family, family that actually seemed to care for both Valythra and even Alytheria herself. Alytheria seemed to express a change of heart, stating that she would need to establish a Death Gate network. Sylvia offered Alytheria a hug, and as the two embraced, Alytheria finally took note of Valythra's silence and withdrawn nature and offered her a place in the hug.
Alytheria revealed that she missed Valythra and was proud of her progress, even if it had not been expressed. As the family embraced, Sylaise's familiar, Pan, reached out to contact Lyraeni Sorrowsong to request her presence to kill Alytheria, Valythra, and Sylvia. Alytheria attempted to restrain Pan out of suspicion, though the group was interrupted by the sudden arrival of a new external presence.
The group was met with an elder witch, named Lady Seastar. This prompted Alytheria to confront the witch, however she soon admitted she wished to speak to Valythra in order to find the missing Sylaise. The spell to find Sylaise would involve a prick of Valythra's finger, as she had the aura of a witch about her. She expressed confusion, and the witch asked if Alytheria could sense the witch's aura about her. Instead, Alytheria revealed the Void that overpowered the presence of the witch's magic.
The sudden revelation of Void magic within Valythra's body became cause for concern, and the elder crone led Valythra into the Deep Wood. There, Valythra was delivered to an ominous pool, from which a necklace was formed. This necklace, supposedly, would help Valythra suppress her urges towards acts of evil or wrongdoing by calming her mind and bringing peace and clarity. Warily thankful, Valythra donned the necklace, and departed the Wood to Acherus.
The True Reliquary[]
Kora and Valythra discover the Library of Sitat'izar and speak to Nu'araknara.
Valythra returned to Acherus, diligent in resuming her studies on Necromancy. Her mentor, Kora approached her and commended her on her progress. However, during a spar the two had a conflict in regards to Valythra's emotions and desire for love. Kora dismissed these emotions, but Valythra refused to abandon her love for Miralyne. Eventually the two ended in a stalemate and Kora stated they would journey to Northrend next.
Kora's objective was to visit the Temple City of En'kilah in search of two things. One such thing was the body of her son, which still remained in full armor, trapped within a Nerubian complex. As Valythra was tasked with collecting his armaments, Kora proceeded to burn the body. With their task complete, the two moved onto the second objective.
Though the Silverguard and the Onyx Rose had come to En'kilah to pursue a reliquary of knowledge, both factions had actually overlooked the true hoard of knowledge that lie beneath the temple city, a Nerubian structure known as the Library of Sitat'izar. Using an inactive waygate, the two undead created a Death Gate that would transfer them to a level beneath the city.
The pair arrived in the antechamber of the Library, surrounded by hoards of Nerubian workers who maintained the Library and kept its pristine condition. They were soon met with the curator, Nu'araknara, who explained that the Library was open to all who sought knowledge first and foremost and was closed to those with ill intent. As Kora sought specific knowledge to take from the Library, a bargain needed to be struck: knowledge in exchange for knowledge.
Valythra receives her new armor.
Kora sought a tome of Necromancy that would reveal the ability to command legions of undead as well as preserve her soul, a form of Lichdom. In exchange for a fell tome written by the Nathrezim, Kora traded to the Nerubians knowledge of Wolfenhold in the form of an old hearthstone and a book. When Nu'araknara turned to Valythra, she idly commented that she was the fourth San'layn to visit the Library, referencing three others like her who had visited before.
Though she was initially confused and interested, Valythra was soon pressed to determine her own interests in the Library, if she too wished to make an exchange to the Nerubians. She consulted the Ascended in her mind to determine what might be wise to search for, much to Kora's impatience. Finally, the Ascended revealed its desire for a stone of scrying, which Nu'araknara produced in exchange for a dagger from Lordaeron given by Kora.
Some time passed and Kora saw fit to reward Valythra for her dedicated service and progress in the form of new armor and a blade awaiting her creation. The armor emphasized her vampiric nature, fueled with Blood Magic and engraved with the imagery of vampire bats. It was designed to complement her diminutive stature, instead focusing on preserving her speed rather than attempting to compensate for her frail constitution. The Runeblade was engraved and siphoned power from Valythra's practice weapon, creating a weapon of raw might and hunger that Valythra named Amorath, the Ravenous.
Valythra and Kora speak to a warlock in secrecy within Stormwind.
With their newly acquired items, Kora and Valythra set out to find a demonologist capable of translating the Nathrezim tongue. With Valythra disguised as an ordinary blood Death Knight of the Ebon Blade, the two traveled to Stormwind City in search of a scholar. They found a warlock who, through the aid of an Observer, was able to discern some of the contents of the tome. Despite this, however, it was impossible to find anyone capable of a full translation. Unsure, Valythra suggested the possibility of bringing the tome to Avaline.
As the day drew to a close, Kora now offered an opportunity for Valythra to sate her growing appetite for blood. They journeyed into the Elwynn Forest, discovering a band of six bandits, a majority of which Valythra slew without even drawing her weapon. After the two sated their hungers, they departed for Acherus, unaware of a witness.
In My Way[]
Valythra returned to Avaline's tower some time later, joyous with her newfound power and newly acquired items. She sought out Miralyne, yet found that the High Elf was nowhere to be found. She attempted to contact her on the communicator, however for the first time ever, Miralyne's communicator was now inactive.
Confused, Valythra returned to Acherus to use the seeing stone to look for Miralyne. However, all the seeing stone produced was visions of a turbulent ocean. The Ascended lent its power to reveal the true setting: wreckage and screaming in the waters of the ocean, only a hint of the crisis in Nazjatar. The Ascended then used the stone again to search for other locations, areas where power could be acquired.
Valythra refused to follow the Ascended's quest for power, instead determined to find and save Miralyne from danger. To dissuade Valythra, the Ascended produced the sensation of what the elves fought in Nazjatar: an ancient entity, their mere presence a crushing weight beyond Valythra's capacity to comprehend - an Old God, N'zoth. As the presence of the Corruptor threatened to crush her, the Ascended offer her an escape, which Valythra eagerly seized.
The Ascended convinced Valythra that she would need to seize greater power to combat N'zoth and save Miralyne. Valythra acquiesced and journeyed to Quel'thalas, taking a Death Gate to the Solflame Enclave in order to travel to find the domain of Magistrix Liali Manawhisper. There, Liali worked with experiments of Titan anima in a project to restore damage caused to the Ghostlands.
Valythra battles the Magistrix Liali Manawhisper.
Valythra sought to claim the anima. Arriving at the Manawhisper estate, she infiltrated the holdings in silence and came upon a spire that housed an orb of translocation. Before the spire were two young elves, infatuated with one another following a lecture from the Magistrix. One was short and wiry, with curly black hair, the other tall and shapely with golden hair. The resemblance was glaring to Valythra; a mirror of an older life between her and Miralyne.
Valythra panicked and begged the Ascended to put an end to the hallucination but there was none. As the two flirted, the Ascended offered to ease Valythra's pain, which she readily accepted. Her consciousness was trapped in her own body as the Ascended took control, and finally she regained control at the orb. She studied herself and found no proof of bloodshed, and she happily thanked the Ascended for its aid.
The orb delivered the San'layn to a grove where Liali worked her experiments with anima. Initially Valythra approached with her weapon sheathed and hands raised, asking Liali for the anima. However, the magistrix insulted Valythra repeatedly, drawing the vampire's ire and prompting her to raise her blade. The battle that followed was brutal and brief as Valythra defeated her swiftly before biting her on the throat and bleeding her dry.
With Liali dead, Valythra absorbed the anima. There was no immediate effect, to Valythra's mild disappointment, though the Ascended assured her that there would be changes in time. With that, Valythra took Liali's body and traveled back to Acherus.
Penance[]
The Festival[]
| "They are not responsible for your actions. For your betterment. They do not understand what you are. You chose to become this, for power. I was forced into this. The blood of your family, of the innocents you've slain - especially the more recent, is on your hands. And it demands retribution." |
Valythra returned to the Cinderwood to check on Sylaise, knowing that the Silverguard had returned from Nazjatar. To her relief, Sylaise was well, preparing for the upcoming Festival of the Waking Wood. Having endured recent events, she felt a need to express her thoughts regarding Valythra.
Sylaise admitted that she cared for Valythra's welfare, wishing to see her safe and happy. She offered a home and family to Valythra, which the latter accepted with marked hesitation. In response to her hesitation, Sylaise kissed her fingers and placed them against Valythra's forehead. It was a symbol of motherly love in the southern reaches of Quel'thalas.
Though she knew Alytheria would have disagreed with the notion of the dead and the living coexisting, Sylaise did not care and was certain in her decision to offer Valythra a home in the Cinderwood. After dodging the question, feeling undeserving of familial love, Valythra finally relented and accepted Sylaise's offer. Sylaise invited her to attend the upcoming Festival, where she would be introduced as Sylaise's daughter. Valythra quickly fabricated an identity, known as Bastael Cinderwood, one of Sylaise's daughters.
The Festival began, and the Silverguard were not the only ones to be invited. Individuals across numerous races, even from the Horde, were invited to participate and join the merriment. Though many of the Silverguard were displeased, the reality was that the Fourth War had drawn to a close. The revelation of the War's ending startled Valythra, as she had not realized what had happened in the world during her absence.
As the festivities continued, some things were amiss. Miralyne and Seriphene heard whispers, and soon the party came under attack by constructs. The attack came from none other than the Choir of Silence that Valythra had once saved Sylvia from. It was decided that the fight needed to be taken to the Choir. Though Valythra did not wish to break her illusion, she did not wish to abstain from the battle either. She departed and returned in her armor, disguised as a Quel'dorei Blood Death Knight.
Valythra aids the Silverguard in the Cinderwood.
The Silverguard trudged through the Deep Wood in search of the Choir of Silence, though immediately the Death Knight Lyraeni Sorrowsong was able to recognize Valythra for who she truly was. When the group had to sneak past constructs, the two undead traveled through the Shadowlands. In their secrecy, Lyraeni confronted Valythra and warned her to harm no one.
After a battle with a witch and their constructs, Lyraeni and Valythra shared another moment of seclusion beside a bonfire. As a witch sought to break down Sylaise's protective barrier over the group, Lyraeni and Valythra discussed their rivalry and how Lyraeni had been hunting Valythra for some time. Despite Valythra's insistence that she had become a better person and strove to change, Lyraeni was not convinced and remained determined that, once Valythra had left, the hunt would resume.
Events soon took a turn for the worse as three members - Volantus, Seriphene, and Miralyne - were repeatedly struck with whispers trying to steer them awry. Finally, during a battle with two witches, they were captured by vines that stole them away into the woods. Frantic and determined to save Miralyne, Valythra joined the others in an assault on the ruins of Cailleach.
The Silverguard's final push on the witches of the Choir.
The party gathered outside the door that led to their final confrontation with the Choir, but Valythra had gone four days without feeding. Her bloodlust began to stir, driving her to eye her allies as food. Desperate for blood, she finally confided in Sylaise and revealed that she hungered, and the witch responded by baring the flesh of her arm. Others in the Silverguard overhead their hushed conversation, warning Valythra against using further blood magic.
What she did, however, surprised the others as she sank her fangs into Sylaise's arm. Estelle Dawnfury, Sylaise's apprentice was at a loss for words as Caedori Morrowsky proceeded to insult Valythra, calling her unnatural and a monster. Nevertheless, Valythra consumed enough to keep her mind from slipping into a rabid hunger, and the party descended into the ruins.
There, the party found Seriphene and Volantus bewitched and Miralyne in the center of the room, where Volantus carved runes into her flesh. A battle ensued to free the three from the witch's control. Volantus was the first to be freed, but used his charmed state to attempt to kill Sylaise under the ruse of still being controlled by the witches. Seriphene dealt an even worse blow, killing Caedori with a single blow as the ranger attempted to free Miralyne.
During the battle, Valythra gave in to the whispers of the Ascended and assumed her shadowy form. However, Seriphene struck Valythra with so powerful a blast of lightning that it nearly killed the San'layn, forcing her out of the Ascended state. Determined to survive at any cost, Valythra approached the archmage and bit her, drinking her blood. Seriphene attempted to resist, but to no avail as Valythra was eager to drain her dry.
When Seriphene was finally freed from the bewitchment, Seriphene's husband Malithanore Vanyali blasted Valythra with frigid winds to remove her presence. As the Silverguard freed Miralyne last, Valythra tended to Sylaise's wounds. However, the ruins soon began to collapse, forcing the party to flee out of the complex. With everyone gathered, the party decided to return to Dalaran to tend to their wounded.
Valythra hesitated, knowing that if she went to Dalaran, she ran the risk of putting herself in danger she might not be able to escape from. However, Sylaise was bleeding out in her arms, and she had to save the witch who had offered her so much. The vampire steeled her resolve and took the portal to Dalaran.
Jailed[]
Valythra is jailed within the Violet Hold by the Kirin Tor.
Despite their success in freeing their stolen comrades, the Silverguard's victory was a Pyrrhic one, for they lost much in their battle. Those who survived returned to Dalaran, delivered to the infirmary for care. Valythra healed Sylaise's wounds, ensuring her survival and left her to recover in order to see to Miralyne.
Miralyne was also brought to the infirmary, lost in a coma. Valythra wept over her body, ignored by the Silverguard as they tended to their wounded. However, Valythra's presence would not go uncontested, for a witness saw her arrival in Dalaran and contacted the guards. Four magi of the Kirin Tor soon arrived to seize and arrest Valythra, binding her in anti-magic cuffs and a muzzle before teleporting her to the Violet Hold, placing her within a cell where she was suspended in the air.
Valythra is taken into the custody of the Silverguard.
Not long after her arrest, Valythra's transfer to the custody of the Silverguard was arranged at the request of Avaline Cinderspell. She was retrieved from the Kirin Tor and delivered to the Silverguard's keep by Seriphene and Malithanore Vanyali, Lyraeni Sorrowsong, and Volantus Dawnseeker. She was soon bound in a similar fashion to how she was held back in Dalaran.
Unbeknownst to the Silverguard, however, Valythra had enthralled Seriphene in the moment that she had bitten her within the Cinderwood. A telepathic link was established between the two that Valythra planned to use to execute an escape, however the plan shifted. The two began to communicate back and forth between one and another, with Valythra explaining her side of the story and attempting to turn Seriphene into an ally, possibly even a friend.
Valythra was interred within the Silverguard keep's prison, bound by anti-magic chains both physical and magical within an anti-magic field and suspended in the air, her mouth covered by a mask. Within her cell, she was incapable of taking any action, but the bond between her soul and Seriphene's remained, permitting the two to continue speaking. The entire time, Seriphene seemed to be Valythra's ally. Valythra continued to work her charm, attempting to persuade Seriphene to believe in her and see her way.
During her captivity, mechagnome prisoners in a nearby cell orchestrated their own escape attempt, which relied upon ensnaring Seriphene with a mind control chip and stunning Lyraeni. Seriphene was ordered to release Valythra, presumably with the intent of her escape serving as a diversion for the Silverguard to permit the gnomes' escape. However, Valythra chose to remain in her cell, prompting Seriphene to attack her.
Valythra's exorcism at the hands of Elannri and Lyraeni.
Valythra used her earlier enthrallment to bring Seriphene back into the Silverguard's sway, and was given a dagger with permission to fight the gnomes with the Silverguard. However, as soon as the threat was quelled, Valythra was ordered to release Seriphene and returned to her cell. Upon doing so, it was revealed that Seriphene did not trust Valythra at all, immediately condemning Valythra as a "bloodsucking bitch" and asking what she did to her. Despite Valythra's pleading that she enthralled Seriphene for noble reasons, the Silverguard remained unconvinced and returned her to her captivity.
While imprisoned, Valythra was interrogated about her past deeds, including the most recent deeds in the Starspear Slaughter. When Lyraeni presented proof of the deed, Valythra reluctantly revealed that she was possessed by the Ascended. Though she had no desire to be rid of the shadowy side of herself, she felt that it would at lease serve as a scapegoat to rid her of suspicion.
Now aware of this issue, Lyraeni and a fellow comrade, Elannri, carried out an exorcism to rid Valythra of the Ascended. Through the arduous pain, the Ascended fought to remain within Valythra before finally being forced to call upon Valythra for aid. The San'layn wished to keep the voice, but she knew that Miralyne, Avaline, and Sylaise would be far more proud of her if she rejected this dark side of herself. Reluctantly, she gave the final push that allowed the Ascended to be cast out from her being.
Death[]
Well over a month into her imprisonment, Valythra felt strange pains throughout her body. Aches of hunger were common when starved, but such pain was never felt in her core, deep within her bones. Furthermore, the runes on Valythra's arms began to pulse, as though she were practicing magic. Such peculiar systems were a puzzle to the Silverguard, forcing them to take action with what little information they had, including rationing the San'layn on half portions of only animal blood.
Soon came the fourteenth of December, the anniversary of Valythra's raising. The powers that be found this amusing, it seemed, as this day finally saw the changes that the Ascended promised. Mutating within her cell over the course of nearly two weeks, Valythra began to grow the wings of a Blood Princess, not unlike her maker. The revelation was considered alarming by several who realized that a sudden growth in power - while in prison, no less - made her only more dangerous than before, and all the more likely to receive a death sentence.
Others grew nervous of Valythra's sudden rise in power, some advocating for her immediate death and some attempting to offer her help. Xinatha, a Highborne loyal to the Silverguard, suggested that Valythra attempt to find peace in meditation to calm her mind and control her sudden growth. Though Valythra began attempting to control herself, not days later she was approached by Lyraeni, who declared that a trial would no longer be in order.
Realizing that Lyraeni would be killing her, Valythra began to beg for her life, hiding against the wall and screaming for Miralyne to help her. Others heard her cry, descending into the jail to witness the impending murder before Miralyne herself arrived and delivered her defense against killing Valythra, arguing that she was no less deserving of a chance to live and redeem herself than Lyraeni and the Ashen Knights.
Seriphene Vanyali arrived when Xinatha suggested transferring Valythra's soul to an alternate version of herself, immediately discouraging the idea with support that Valythra must be met with her final death. Having condemned that they could not have a final goodbye, Miralyne was permitted to enter Valythra's cell and embrace, exchanging their final words to one another in which Valythra confessed that she still loved Miralyne.
Miralyne issued a scathing threat to Lyraeni that promised to let Lyraeni be the next to die when her excuses for existing failed her in the eyes of the Alliance. As the Death Knight weathered the verbal assault, Lyraeni disabled the anti-magic field and ran her blade through Valythra's spine and heart, killing her and absorbing her soul into the blade.
Sorrow's Song[]
Valythra awoke to the sound of Miralyne's voice, informing her of what appeared to be a terrible nightmare. Valythra was overwhelmed with shock as she realized she had awakened in the Eversong Woods, and she was alive. Miralyne had been resting beside her underneath the night sky, and Valythra bolted to her feet on the grass as she inspected her form. She was no longer a San'layn, and quite possibly had never been a San'layn.
Confused by whether or not her "nightmare" was real or if this was real, she began attempting to piece together the nature of the setting she was now in. As she struggled to grasp reality, Miralyne urged for the two of them to return to their home to get some proper rest. Though she had yet to become certain of her circumstances, Valythra decided that even if she was dead, she at least deserved this. She deserved peace away from the fear, the running, the hiding, and all the hate she had endured. She deserved rest.
However, despite the normalcy of her dream world, Valythra's mind remained scarred from her traumatic undeath. Her apathy towards life and the welfare of others around her persisted, as she remained unfeeling towards anyone else around her. Thoughts of violence were commonplace, though these were usually quelled by Miralyne's presence. Accompanying these feelings was a subtle yet ever-present discontent for the mundane nature of her life, the cycle of waking and working gnawing away at her patience for something else.
In the end, however, the most trying experience was in realizing that she was, in fact, dead. She realized that there was no nightmare, and that this Quel'Thalas was not real. It was a false world, made to comfort her. Angry at whatever force had caged her in this false world, Valythra ran into the woods and pleaded to an unseen presence to explain where she was, and what had happened.
There was a long quiet before Valythra was met an ethereal eagle, which shifted into the form of a female ranger. The "Watcher" explained that Valythra was here as a mercy, saved from whatever hell awaited her for her atrocities. Valythra pleaded to be permitted to live again, stating that she did not want to go to hell, nor did she want the fake Quel'Thalas. However, she was told she would need to simply accept that she was dead, or take the chances of moving on to what fate had intended.
Resigned, Valythra chose to stay in Sorrow's Song. Her day ended with nothing extraordinary, and the next day began much like any other. Yet arriving at Suncrown Pastries for work, she realized how pointless everything was, and how much had all been wasted in reaching this point. So many lies she had stupidly fallen for, broken promises of safety, protection, family, and more. She saw no point to working or socializing in a world where she was actually dead.
In cold anger, Valythra started a fire that would burn Suncrown Pastries to the ground, leaving Suncrown Village to disappear. She would stay with Miralyne in their home, enjoying what company she could with the false image of the love of her life, for as long as she remained in the sword.
Beyond the Veil[]
Valythra's death was not quietly accepted. Individuals who deeply cared for Valythra were furious with the knowledge of her passing. As Alytheria Bloodmoon made the annihilation of the Ashen Knights her purpose, Valythra's mentor, Kora Deathwhisper was not content to simply accept her squire's fate. Seeking to rectify Valythra's untimely passing, she set out to claim power and gather followers who would aid her in her vengeance.
Recognizing Kora's motions to restore Valythra, the politicking Sanaeron Sanguire took advantage of an opportunity he believed would lend him clout among his fellows. To stake his involvement in the potential resurrection of Valythra, he sent the disgraced Duke, Drael Mastral, to act as a companion to Kora and liaison between her and the Bloodmoon Dominion. Though Mastral was wielded as little more than a puppet, Alytheria's attention shifted to watch the mission with growing interest.
Kora began the execution of her plan. As she accumulated her power, she set the stage for the heist to come by meeting with Miralyne Valetender and Coriena Nightcaller under the guise of a grieving mentor. After a subtle probing for the location of Valythra's corpse, Kora finally left a decayed rose for Miralyne to place upon Valythra's coffin - a trace of magic that would serve as a beacon for Kora to locate her squire.
Alytheria and Kora discuss Valythra's resurrection.
After fulfilling a favor for Janara Kessler in the retrieval of Felix Deichert, Kora found allies in the Kessler Estate. Dispatching their Syndicate mercenaries to assist, they followed Kora to Sorrow Hill, where a simple plan was detailed; the Syndicate would be responsible for assisting Kora in the retrieval of Valythra's corpse from within Miralyne's labs. Ultimately, they were successful, and Valythra's body was spirited away from Dalaran to a safe, hidden location.
Shortly after, Alytheria reached out to Kora herself, discussing the next steps in the plot to revive Valythra, now requiring her soul to join with her body. With the agreement that Kora would care for Valythra, Alytheria decided she would frame herself as responsible for the measures to restore her granddaughter, using her vested interest and resources to create a misleading trail for the Silverguard to follow, thus ensuring Valythra's safety.
Miralyne and Lyraeni summon Valythra's ghost.
The two agreed to hold Lyraeni's apprentice, Isira Lure'mil, in ransom to the Silverguard in exchange for Valythra's soul. However, with the theft of Valythra's body, the Silverguard took immediate action to address the act. Lyraeni Sorrowsong brought Miralyne to the Ashen Refuge, where the two intended to contact Valythra after her months within Sorrow's Song.
Valythra emerged from the sword, a ghost before Lyraeni. Immediately, Valythra became hostile as she realized the Watcher she had met in the sword before was really the Death Knight responsible for killing her. Furious, she promised to kill Lyraeni if she ever escaped her prison, only for her rage to be quelled by Miralyne's presence - though only momentarily.
Though Lyraeni and Miralyne tried to deliver their proposition, Valythra was largely resistant and still angered by her death. She levied accusations against them and promised vendettas, determined to get her revenge before she was finally forced to calm and listen to the words they had come to deliver. Miralyne and Lyraeni both agreed that it was time for her to return, and perhaps even redeem herself, if not as a San'layn.
Instead of returning as a San'layn, she would be granted a Homunculus form. Though she would not have her powers attained in her vampiric state or her extensive mutations, she would at least be able to pass as a living person once again, and maybe even find rehabilitation from her prior madness. Though still angered and in pain, Valythra did not wish to return to her false afterlife, not after reuniting with the real Miralyne. With some reluctance, she agreed to the process to be reborn as a homunculus.
Not long after, however, Alytheria and Kora made their move, kidnapping Isira and holding her hostage in the Hinterlands. Lyraeni was given an ultimatum, to either release Valythra's soul and Amorath, the Ravenous to Alytheria's custody, or suffer a total war upon the duchy of Quellorian. Lyraeni conceded, but not without a slight deception; rather than offering Valythra, Lyraeni gave Alytheria a blade containing the Ascended and Raitaus Solflame. Combined, they held the presence of a soul, and one that seemed to match Valythra herself.
Valythra and Xyntus reunite in Orgrimmar.
Content with the bargain that was struck, Alytheria gave the blades to Kora to do as she intended. Eventually, the Ascended was released, alongside Raitaus. Fighting even in their release, they both entered Valythra's broken form and inhabited it. The Ascended became the dominant power over the body, but could never stave off Raitaus' efforts to contain her. Nevertheless, the Ascended was pleased - a body of its own, no longer plagued by insipid things such as love and self-doubt. For once, the Ascended could make their own move.
One of the first moves the reborn Valythra made was to return to the Horde, and find her old connections in the Onyx Rose. One of the most damning decisions Valythra had made was rejecting the Onyx Rose in favor of the Silverguard, and the Ascended set out to find a reliable source of knowledge and power. Instead, however, she rediscovered Xyntus, who informed her of a newly founded mages' college known as the Atrium. Intrigued, Valythra decided to linger in Orgrimmar for a time, studying the current situation of the city and looking for any possible avenues to grow her strength once again.
After some time spent integrating into society and assuming Valythra's identity in full, the Ascended went further to assume Valythra's responsibilities as Kora's squire and as a Knight of the Ebon Blade to resume whatever studies Valythra practiced in her pursuit for power. However, something most fascinating to Valythra occurred: the shattering of the veil to the Shadowlands. As Acherus moved to the frozen wastes of Icecrown, Valythra joined the Knights in preparing to face the threat in the beyond, which new armor fashioned to accommodate her transfigured form.
The winged San'layn joined the Ebon Blade atop the Frozen Throne to join the first Maw Walker who would enter the Maw to save kidnapped leaders of the Alliance and Horde. Though this volunteer came with warnings that Valythra likely would never return from the beyond, the Ascended had other ambitions in mind.
Maw Walker[]
Valythra observes Torghast, Tower of the Damned.
The battle within the Maw was immediately apparent as a losing one, which many Death Knights falling to the Mawsworn or ending up in chains. Even the Highlord that Valythra fought beside, Darion Mograine, would find himself captive within the Maw's holdings. Valythra was no exception, believed to be taken in battle by Mawsworn Kyrian, wrapped in chains that carried her to Torghast.
As a mere squire, Valythra was simply counted as a casualty of the war likely held within the Tower to be tormented until her soul was finally destroyed. However, against all odds, Valythra seemingly escaped Torghast, presumably with the help of newcomer Maw Walkers. It was soon discovered that Valythra herself had the ability to travel between the Maw and Oribos, and thus she was identified as a Maw Walker herself.
With this knowledge, Valythra was put to task among the other Maw Walkers, aligning with a covenant and returning souls from the halls of Torghast. Valythra was successful in these endeavors, able to bring back what souls she could, but above all providing great information on Torghast and what occurred within. Meanwhile, when not serving the cause and freeing souls, Valythra answered to the Venthyr of Revendreth, assisting with the matter of the renegade Denathrius and helping deliver sinful souls to the care of Sinfall.
Unbeknownst to most, however, Valythra was not a true Maw Walker. Rather, the Ascended within swore fealty to the Mawsworn's insidious master, the Jailer. The San'layn became a double agent, deliberately released from the Maw to sabotage the Covenants' workings from within. As she joined the Venthyr Covenant, she collaborated in secret with the Venthyr Inquisitor Mabrante, who sought to harvest anima from the souls of those yet living on Azeroth. Valythra became Mabrante's middleman, taking the stolen souls from him to Sinfall under the impression that they had been tortured souls from within the Maw. In payment, Valythra would be granted at least one living subject to feast upon for blood.
In reality however, Valythra's return often came up short. Many of these souls were ultimately delivered to the Maw itself, cast off the edge of Revendreth. Others would be saved for harvest, sating not only the San'layn's appetite for blood, but also the Ascended's ravenous hunger for anima. By the end of this process, Sinfall would only receive small numbers of souls - often only five for every twenty collected.
However, from within the San'layn's body, the constant war for control never ended. Raitaus Solflame still inhabited the body alongsidde the Ascended, often grappling for control and interfering with the Ascended's cruel business, attempting to drive them both to the crushing oblivion. However, it was not until Valythra was driven into the Ember Ward that there was finally a revelation: in the Light, Raitaus was at his strongest, and nearly conquered the Ascended from within until their body was saved by Venthyr who pulled Valythra back into the shade away from the Light.
Legacy[]
Valythra became regarded throughout the House of Solflame as a butcher of their bloodline, hating her even though her culpability was never legally proven. It was widely believed by the Phoenix Society that she orchestrated her parents' murder to steal the inheritance of her nobility, and she was cursed as the enemy to House Solflame and all its allies. Those who survived her slaughter went into hiding as their house collapsed, in order to avoid her attention.
Her actions in Mirstone indirectly created the Children of the Brook, a Wolfcult of Worgen who named her the Bloodied One and condemned her for the murder of their apparent messiah. These Worgen would go on to commit a string of murders and conversions in the name of the faith they created to protect themselves from Valythra.
Exploiting the fear caused by the Purging of House Solflame and the Starspear Slaughter, Seden Stellare has been seeding a witch hunt in Quel'thalas to push the fear of a renegade San'layn further and compel citizens to ostracize their own people and drive them into the clutches of the Bloodmoon Dominion. The Dominion has also turned Valythra into something of a martyr in its propaganda, holding her as an example of how the world treats undead "without masters".
Valythra's passing was also the catalyst for the founding of the Knights of Death's Embrace, created by Kora with the goal of avenging her death.
Stories[]
- Weakened Heart : At the age of ten, Valythra suffers from an affliction that will plague her for the rest of her life.
- Halorast Solflame Remembers the Invasion of Quel'thalas : Valythra's uncle, Halorast Solflame, recalls the fall of Quel'thalas in which he and Valythra escaped the Scourge's march. (Submission for Project Memories Discord)
- Mirstone Massacre : Valythra Bloodmoon and Kora Deathwhisper put the town of Mirstone to the sword in a bloody massacre that changes everything. (RP between Kora, Sana and me written in literary form)
Appearance[]
Valythra is a diminutive woman, possessing a height of exactly five feet and an extremely slim frame, a combination of traits that have often been looked down upon. She is underweight, weighing only between eighty to ninety pounds. If her body were exposed, one would be able to identify her bones beneath her skin. Valythra has naturally curly black hair that reaches just past her chin, though it originally reached past her shoulders. In life, Valythra used to have fair skin, and golden eyes due to ties to the Sunwell.
Vampirism[]
Since her death and being raised as a San'layn, Valythra has become as pale as a corpse, with the irises of her eyes taking on a crimson glow, the sclerae of her eyes darkening to black. The pupils of her eyes have also changed, becoming narrow, vertical slits, akin to the eyes of many predators. Her features have also become significantly vampiric, most notably her extended canines that have formed into fangs that extend slightly past her upper lip, becoming visible at all times. The nails on her hands and feet have become dark grey, elongated and ending in a point, serving as claws. Her ears are no long elven, but instead have widened, becoming curled and more akin to a bat.
During her imprisonment by the Silverguard, Valythra's body experienced heavy changes, including the growth of wings as a characteristic of San'layn Blood Princesses. These wings match the deathly grey pallor of Valythra's body, with hooked claws protruding from the top, the webbed digits ending with long, sharp spines reminiscent to her claws. Her nose has become unnaturally upturned over time, slowly flattening. Her features has become progressively gaunt, exposing her cheekbones and causing her eyes to become sunken. Veins have darkened and become exposed across her pallid face and body, becoming more and more apparent as her changes progress.
Scarring[]
During service under Alytheria, she carried the mark of the organization on her right ankle, resembling a spider, though this mark was partially destroyed by Andurius Soulrender. Both of her arms are covered in "sleeves" of Scourge runes, which ignite with the use of Blood Magic or Death Magic.
Though once heavily scarred, Valythra's body now seems to preserve only two wounds that never heal: a vampire bite on her neck, inflicted by Tyrinade Moonsong, and a sword wound through the chest, caused by Lyraeni Sorrowsong. When Valythra is blood-starved, her body becomes emaciated to the point of appearing almost skeletal.
Possessions[]
Valythra typically chooses to wear dresses of some manner, which tend to range from colors of white to red to black, often having a Thalassian influence. Her most favorite, however, is her San'layn robes. These consist of black cloth garments and wearing dark red robes over them, with a similarly red cloak draped over her shoulders and trailing behind her. She is often seen wearing a pair of fingerless gloves to accompany this outfit and is always barefoot.
A blood medallion - a glass orb wrapped in a metal ring with a pair of fangs - is wrapped around her neck, capable of storing and preserving blood and the life essence it carries.
Her most prized possession was her runeblade, Arbitian. A curved blade with a cupped guard on the hilt, blood runes are etched along the blade to focus and empower her Blood Magic. However, this weapon has recently been replaced by a new creation she values for its raw might and power over Blood Magic, Amorath, the Ravenous.
Personality[]
See Cirvala Grandream for Valythra's personality.
The Ascended[]
Main Article: Ascended
| "We would be a goddess. Take my offer... take my hand, and we will forge this world anew." |
During a ritual to free her soul from Tyrinade's hold, Valythra's mental state took a drastic turn. Met with an "Ascended" version of herself that personified her darker ambitions and desires, Valythra accepted her Ascended self and the deal it proposed, as it claimed that they could achieve godhood. Since then, a presence lingers within Valythra's mind, often speaking to her. It exists as a separate entity within her body, capable of creating intrusive thoughts and in minor cases even possessing her body to some extent.
The existence of this side of Valythra has existed since the events of Conquest of Zandalar, essentially a projection of Valythra's megalomania and suppressed god complex. Only recently has it taken any form of shape as a distinct identity. The Ascended is not wholly part of Valythra, as it possesses a connection to the Void that Valythra herself does not.
Relationships[]
Color Key: Family Friendly Unfriendly Neutral Romantic
Raitaus Solflame - Strict and controlling, Raitaus often held Valythra and her life on a tight leash that kept her in place, resulting in her often feeling trapped within her own home and family and seeking relief outside her household. When it became clear that Valythra could not function as a soldier, Raitaus grew distant from his daughter, subjecting her to emotional neglect. Valythra ultimately came to resent her father, wanting to avoid him for the majority of her life and ultimately demanding his death after she became San'layn.
Zyanel Solflame - Valythra's relationship with her mother has always been rocky and unstable, shifting between an unconditional love between mother and daughter or casting blame upon Zyanel for not doing anything to intervene in Raitaus' abuse. Despite this, Valythra loved her mother enough to ultimately come to her the day before she was turned into a San'layn, and did not necessitate her death during the Purging of House Solflame.
Alytheria Bloodmoon - Like her daughter Zyanel, Alytheria was one of the few members of the family actively concerned with Valythra's development. She disapproved of Raitaus' neglect and realized that he was essentially "ruining" her granddaughter. After the fall of the Lich King and having become a San'layn, she began pushing Valythra to embrace becoming San'layn, and part of her strategy involved tempting her granddaughter before pushing her away. For this, Valythra did seek to become San'layn, but was angered by her denial.
Sylvia Solflame - Valythra's niece, who had fled her family to join an elven cult, Valythra originally meant to kill Sylvia the moment she was met with the revelation that she still had living family. Upon finding Sylvia she attempted to carry out her plan, causing her to suffer a stroke. However, Sylvia recovered, and the two began to develop a unique bond that appealed to Valythra's compassion. Eventually, Valythra abandoned the impulse to kill Sylvia, instead growing to care for her as family.
Miralyne Valetender - Prior to the Second War, Valythra and Miralyne were in a romantic relationship, with Valythra even being referred to as Miralyne's "Little Light". However, Miralyne's involvement in the war led to her deployment beyond the Dark Portal. Being apart for years, Valythra's attachment to Miralyne ultimately atrophied, and she completely forgot about her in the wake of the fall of Quel'thalas.
The two would not meet for decades until the Blood War, encountering one another on the front lines after Valythra had become San'layn. Initially, Miralyne regarded Valythra as a monster fixated on enslaving her, however realizing Valythra's identity she has since urged her friend to nurture the "light" within her and return to being the woman she once was.
Though such sentiments would typically fall on deaf ears, Valythra's care for Miralyne's welfare ultimately resurfaced after their battle in Nazmir. Since saving her in the Plaguelands, Valythra has been willing to take Miralyne's words into serious consideration and even modify her behavior in some ways for it.
Valythra Bloodmoon in her Death Knight Initiate armor as Kora Deathwhisper's squire.
Kora Deathwhisper - Initially meeting when Kora visited the Onyx Rose keep, Valythra paid Kora little mind until the Death Knight engraved an unholy rune into her wrist, empowering her use of Death Magic. Due to this, Valythra pursued a partnership with Kora in which she could ultimately achieve more knowledge and power. With this partnership, Valythra's arms were covered in Scourge runes and her first runeblade, Arbitian, was successfully forged.
The two went on to conquer Mirstone in a bloody display, with Kora explaining her philosophy of "vae victis" to Valythra. Though she questions Kora's sense of superiority over her, Valythra sees Kora as a useful asset and a partner in crime.
Moranai Sunstrike - As the woman who has given the San'layn protection within Quel'thalas, Moranai and Valythra interact often, the latter considering the magistrix a friend both to herself and her people. Though she was deeply upset by Moranai's confession to not trusting the San'layn, Valythra still regards her as a friend.
Gavarian Nightblade - Originally Valythra's romantic partner, the two first met shortly after Valythra's transformation into a San'layn. Their relationship began on a rocky start as Gavarian was assigned to be her guard while restrained in the basement; however, Valythra ultimately moved past the event. During a state of blood-drunkenness, Valythra courted Gavarian and kissed him. Despite coming out of her drunken stupor, their interactions continued and a romantic relationship emerged as a result. Though her feelings were compromised by her megalomania, Valythra put aside her want for a servant to love Gavarian. Recently Gavarian proposed to Valythra, and she accepted.
Unfortunately, months after the proposition, Valythra began to question herself heavily and the relationship between her and Gavarian. Realizing that their relationship was unhealthy, built on Valythra's abuse and exploitation, she ultimately broke off the romance in favor of becoming friends, though she found it difficult to remain committed to her decision.
Tyrinade Moonsong - The San'layn responsible for Valythra's reanimation, Valythra once held Tyrinade Moonsong in high regard. In the time after her turning, Valythra treated Tyrinade as her new family in lieu of what she had while living. For a time, Valythra acknowledged Tyrinade as her mother until she was pulled away from the Onyx rose by Miralyne, Avaline, and Sylaise. Since then, her familial feelings have begun to mellow, seeing Tyrinade as less and less of a mother figure, and instead acknowledging her as her "maker".
Lyraeni Sorrowsong - Responsible for Valythra's second death during the Conquest of Zandalar, Valythra has since held Lyraeni in contempt with a strong desire to return the favor; however, her failure to defeat Lyraeni and her death afterwards instilled a strong fear of Death Knights within Valythra for a significant period of time until she grew in power.
Children of the Brook - Though she is unaware of its existence, Valythra unwittingly created the Mirstone Wolfcult with the paranoia she created by feeding on Mirstone. Since the Mirstone Massacre, the Wolfcult has marked Valythra as their nemesis, the enemy of their culture who they plan to slay.
Volantus Dawnseeker - Since Valythra's imprisonment by the Silverguard, Volantus Dawnseeker has possibly been the most vocal advocate for her potential execution. Regularly dehumanizing Valythra and engaging in "scientific" evaluations of her curse, Volantus seems to share a mutual animosity with the San'layn, and both firmly believe that the other is deserving of an untimely end.
Miscellaneous Notes[]
- The name "Valythra Bloodmoon" is not recorded on any known census. The name "Valythra Solflame" remains Valythra's legal name and is the name most can identify her by.