| Children of the Brook | |
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 Image from the Cataclysm reveal trailer. | |
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Leaders: |
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Secondary Leader(s): |
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Area of Operations: |
Stormwind City
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Population: |
~5-15 |
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Reaction: |
Alliance Horde |
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Status: |
Crippled |
| "To all of us, Liza was a savior who ferried the weak, the struggling, the displaced, and the distraught to the happiness of what life has to offer. Are we not happy for what she has given us?" |
The Children of the Brook, also known as the Mirstone Wolfcult, are a cult of Worgen from the town of Mirstone, formed after an outbreak of the Worgen Curse during the Mirstone Vampyr Trials.
Officially, the cult members refer to themselves as Children of the Brook, to honor the late Liza Brooks. Though originally based in the Hillsbrad Foothills, extensive losses suffered from the Mirstone Massacre and the Grimsbane Advance forced an exodus from the land. Since then, the Children now call Elwynn Forest their home.
Background[]
Foundation[]
Initially, the number of Worgen in Mirstone was exactly one, beginning with Liza Brooks. When Valythra Bloodmoon began hunting isolated people from the town to satisfy her bloodlust, paranoia swept the town as they feared they were being stalked by a vampyr, prompting them to kill one another out of fear of vampyr and vampyr thralls among them.
The Vampyr Trials slowed to a halt when Liza Brooks was accused of vampirism and due to be publicly executed. To prove that she was not a vampyr, she transformed into a worgen before the eyes of the crowd. The hatred and fear of undead was almost unanimous among Mirstonians, and people voluntarily requested to be turned into Worgen to avoid becoming vampyr themselves, and protect themselves from being fed upon.
Though it originally began to develop as a pack, several of newly turned Worgen became fanatical. They saw the pack as the only sure way of protecting themselves against undeath and the vampyr that hunted them. They began to draw in as many as they could into conversion, ultimately creating the foundations of a cult. The Wolfcult cemented its power with the murder of Alastor Vallen and the desecration of the town's church.
The Wolfcult targeted any individuals who were against becoming Worgen for whatever reason. Individuals who were considered averse to taking up the curse were kidnapped and detained within the town hall. Among these captives was the town's mayor, Victor Marcus, who was to be turned to further the Wolfcult's influence over the town. Before the captives could be turned, however, Valythra returned with aid from Kora Deathwhisper and sacked Mirstone, killing Liza Brooks and crippling the Wolfcult.
Following the Mirstone Massacre, their numbers were drastically reduced. With a town population of 69, almost 50 people were killed in the Massacre, leaving roughly 10 to 20 people to remain, some of which were not cult members.
Reclamation[]
Main Article: Grimsbane Advance
Pain and sorrow awaited those who survived the Mirstone Massacre. There was no home left for the people, and many had been scattered. Some survivors fled the town entirely to retreat to the Alliance territories, others were lost in the woods or attempt to reconvene with one another. The Wolfcult gathered whoever they could, establishing a minimal encampment to at least provide shelter.
Despite immense suffering at the hands of Kora Deathwhisper and Valythra Bloodmoon, the surviving Wolfcult members were incensed by the death of their idol, Liza Brooks. They perceived Valythra as the evil murderer of something sacred, and Kora and her horse as her herald; The Bloodied One, She Who Death Follows, and He Who Seeks Conflict, respectively. The two were named, marked as the nemeses of the Wolfcult, to be hunted and killed on sight if found.
Though they did not realize the Forsaken had raided the town for usable corpses, the Wolfcult was outraged to discover a month later that the Grimsbane Coven was beginning to converge upon Mirstone's ruins, desecrating the lands for their demonic rituals. Even the humans not afflicted by the Curse were furious, having suffered enough that the warlocks' desecration was just insult to injury.
Rage filled the hearts of the survivors of Mirstone, and the Wolfcult readily exploited it. With nothing left to lose and a desperate calling for vengeance, the remaining human population gave themselves to the Worgen Curse freely, allowing the Wolfcult to take them in as they prepared to reclaim their town from the Coven.
Exodus[]
Following the second battle for Mirstone, the town was now truly lost, and the Children reconvened to assess their priorities. It was decided that a new home was needed, but the events of the Fourth War had cost many Lordaeronians their home with Tirisfal razed and Lordaeron blighted. The alternative was to follow the Gilneans and find a home in the west.
Scouts were deployed to investigate Gilneas. In the meantime, much of the Wolfcult remained near Mirstone to recuperate from their battle with the Coven. To their aggravation, two more came to visit the ruined town, but these were not sacrilegious warlocks. Instead, it was two individuals, one worgen and his human friend: William Talbot and Lillian Smith.
The initial instinct to attack and cast them out was abandoned when Ellie Peyton recognized Lillian. She still held her in contempt for attempting to resist the blood of the wolf and decided that she would be successful in this event. Bringing a pair of wolf brothers with her, Ellie confronted William and Lillian. In the encounter that ensued, Ellie's wolf brothers were slain and Lillian escaped into the ruined town.
Ellie was ultimately killed in a vicious battle between wolves and a gunshot to the head. This finally roused the leader of the Children, a nebulous black worgen named Blackenmane, to take action as he entered the fray, tossing William aside and infecting Lillian with the curse through his bite. He then disappeared, declaring that Lillian would become a new wolf sister.
Blackenmane returned to the Wolfcult and brought news of Ellie's passing, with the assurance that there would be justice when Lillian transformed. They would help guide Lillian, and teach her the ways of the Children, as Ellie had wanted. Some, however, could not bear the loss of Ellie, especially after the string of defeats suffered since Mirstone, and journeyed to Lillian's home of Old Bay Village for revenge.
They too ultimately fell, leaving the Children weaker than they had ever been thus far. Lost and struggling, the Children were caught between their desires to see the Mirstone project they had begun as humans, or to survive their new culture as worgen, and journey south. Ultimately this saw a schism in values - some of the Children lingered in the north, while Blackenmane led the rest to the south into the Kingdom of Stormwind in order to convert new members, and rebuild their pack.
Known Members[]
- Blackenmane
- Ellie Peyton
- Alice Davies
- Oliver Simpson
Enemies[]
- Grimsbane Coven: When the warlock coven led by Gerard Grimsbane came to the ruins of Mirstone, they took advantage of the haunted destruction, using the tragedy of death and bloodshed to empower their rituals. The Children immediately retaliated in a losing battle, but made certain to guard the town against the warlocks' return.
- Vampyr: Vampires are at the root of the Wolfcult's founding, born out of hate and self-defense for their bloodthirsty predators. Due to the Bloodied One's infamy among their number, vampires as a whole have become nemeses to the Worgen of the cult.
Customs[]
Initially members of the Mirstone Wolfcult regarded the Worgen Curse as the ultimate inoculation against the rampant threat of undeath, which they believe pervades the entirety of the ongoing Blood War. For this reason, the Wolfcult began kidnapping people to forcibly turn them against their will, viewing it as protection. Indoctrinated members have come to fully accept their Curse, considering their humanity to be a thing of the past, and regard all Worgen as kin. Living much like a wolf pack, the Children treat each other with mutual respect and travel as one tight-knit family.
Members have also come to idolize Liza Brooks, the original bearer of the Curse within the town. Before the fall of Mirstone many came to shower Liza in affection, even carving statues in her honor. While members of the Wolfcult cherish all Worgen, individuals whose affliction can be traced back to Liza Brooks are held in high regard and considered greater priority in terms of recruitment and treatment.
The glowing yellow eyes all Children possess.
Oddly enough, all Worgen of the Children seem to possess glowing yellow eyes. Glowing eyes are not uncommon among Worgen, especially among ferals, though the yellow eyes are a singular recurring trait among Worgen turned by the Children. The Children have noted this and consider it to be an indicator of being linked to Liza through the Curse.