Vynnaraen Dayflame

Vynnaraen Dayflame (Often called Vyn or Vynnar), son to Centurion Ra'lath Dayflame and Magistrix Velanea Dayflame, is a Warlock who serves under the Ninth Blood Legion of the Thalassian Military. He is known through various Warlock circles as a demon-speaker and master of tongues, often viewed as a pariah for the way he seems to "get along" with said demons rather than being harsh or sadistic towards them.

Most often seen with his Voidwalker, Zangtast, Vynnaraen is, to his knowledge, the last member of the Dayflame House to live. Whether or not there are others seems to matter little to him, for he's more than eager to earn himself a new name and place within Sin'dorei society.

House Dayflame
House Dayflame was never a high-ranked House in terms of social status, however their name was well-known by most others due to their trade. As one of the main pioneers for trade and acquisition, House Dayflame was often involved with procurement, shipping, securing, and moving just about anything the people required. Anything from necessities like foodstocks and clothes, to high-priced antiquities or military provisions, House Dayflame likely had an operation of sorts to facilitate the movement of goods.

Their main centre of their operations was located near Sunsail Anchorage, having a large base located at the port. Though this wasn't the Dayflame Manse (which is located on Sunstrider Isle), Vyn often found himself having to spend time there, rather than at "home". As such, he was often subject to matters of trade and dealing, forced to take up many languages as a child in order to assist with communication, as well as eventually take up the mantle of the House.

Behind the guise of being a trade house, however, House Dayflame was also a refuge for those who took part in more unsavoury schools of magic. A large portion of their financial income was invested into the research and study of magic, in an attempt to truly harness the gifts that they had, as Highborne. This is where Vynnaraen found himself delving into the study of arcanism, but more importantly, set him down the path to eventually becoming a Warlock.

Early Years
Vynnaraen found himself raised by various wet-nurses, caretakers, and hands, rather than by his own mother and father. The Centurion was often too busy with the matters of both the underground mage collective, as well as keeping up the business front. His mother was often travelling, acting as a sort of ambassador for the House. It was through her that the Dayflame House made so many connections.

He was raised on a strict notion of service, and earning the right to privilege. The Centurion often didn't recognize anything around him if it didn't warrant his attention, and Vynnaraen was no stranger to it. His father's rules were law in the household, and failure to comply was met with strict punishment. Behind closed doors, the Dayflame House was a rigid, military affair.

His first main turning point in his studies was when he was able to conjure his first Arcane Familiar. Affectionately named "Zangtang" due to the sounds it made when he summoned it, Vyn found himself often trailed by the familiar. Eventually, it would come to replace the various stewards he had, often ostracizing himself from the others because he seemed to favour these life forms around more than he did his own kin. He began to develop a knack for binding elementals and subverting them to his will, something that drew the eventual attention of his father. Thus, Vyn was expected to be both a businessman as well as continue his studies, his life becoming filled with loftier and loftier expectations.

Adolescence
As time went on, and as decades passed, Vyn began to become more and more prominent as a mage. While he was no prodigy by any means, he did devote himself to his craft, eventually becoming known for never being alone. He was also taking on more responsibilities with trade, building on his silver tongue and smooth attitude to help bolster his family's standing.

His father, now that he could see more potential in what had originally been a "mistake", began to pour more and more resources into the up and coming mage. Velanea began to use the connections she'd made to set him up with various teachers, all attempting to bring out the potential that Vynnaraen showed. Ra'lath, on the other hand, began to start to funnel some of his profits towards the young Dayflame's endeavours.

During these years, Vynnaraen found his father putting more and more stress on his actions, and his representation of the Household. And while a part of Vynnaraen thrived on having such clear-cut goals in mind, another part of him began to wonder about the idea of rebellion. It wanted freedom.

The Crumble
Things went awry when Vynnaraen was expected to marry the heir to the Lightvale House. The Lightvales were a respected, established part of the mage society, and it was planned that through their joint union, even more powerful children could be formed. The marriage was set around the young Dayflame's birthday.

What they hadn't expected was that Vynnaraen was already having secret trysts with the heiress' younger brother.

When word of that came to light, not only was the marriage cancelled and the Dayflame's connections with said House immediately broken, but all sort of wonder and investment Ra'lath had for Vyn were suddenly removed. Relations between the two became cold, and even Velanea soon drew herself away, leaving Vyn to his own again. No matter how successful he became with the House's trade, or how much he advanced in his studies, his parents were no more than Centurion and Magistrix to him, at that point. All attempts at trying to give him things had ceased.

The First War
Because of his already established position as Centurion, the first war had Vyn's father being enlisted, leaving him to head most of the House's obligations. Already established as a reputable tradesman, Vynnaraen kept the Dayflame House alive, often funneling resources to aid the war-effort. At that point, he hadn't so much become a successor as it was his duty, someting Ra'lath often drove into Vyn. Though he didn't partake, he did keep himself up-to-date on what was happening with the world.

When word of warlocks, and the powers that Gul'dan brought into the world reached his ears, he couldn't resist. Still maintaining that hidden, secretive group of mages, Vyn began to have them focus on trying to figure out what made the Shadow Council so effectively powerful. The Dayflame House became one of the first to began delving into the practice of becoming a Warlock, though this was highly secretive, and only known to those select individuals. Though they would only be able to touch the tip of the iceberg, this became the deciding factor of the House's downfall.

It was in the First War that Vyn's mother, Velanea died. Her soul taken by those very same warlocks they fought against, Vynnaraen began to study them for his own purposes.

The Second War
By the coming of the Second War, Ra'lath began to see the potential of the dark magics that Vyn had the House researching. At this point, Ra'lath had become so engrossed that he sent Vynnaraen to fight for him instead. Young, unused to combat, and completely out of his element, Vynnaraen treaded with both nervousness and trepidation. He was powerful, but he'd never actually applied his magics to the extent of full-scale war. He was certainly no Centurion.

Still, the structure and discipline required of him mirrored much of how his father had treated him for most of his life. He thrived under the rigid regulations and strove to prove himself, mostly to himself rather than for his name, however. He began to find his place, applying what he knew in theory and research on the field. More often than not, his familiars served to help protect and fight with his kinsmen, and he felt like that all that time spent studying and training was actually coming to fruition.

Word, however, came from home that something had happened to the Centurion in Vyn's absence. Moreover, the trade-side of the House was beginning to crumble. He was discharged in order to stabilize the House as well as their services to the military, and thus his time in the military ended early.

The Scourge and Outland
After the end of the Second War, Vynnaraen began to focus primarily on keeping the House together. His father seemed to be descending more and more into his research, leaving Vyn solely responsible for keeping up everything else in the House. The family played a very small part in the Scourge Invasion, mostly just fettering around goods and ensuring trade routes stayed open. It was like the Dayflame House was beginning to be snuffed out, much to Vyn's chagrin. The responsibility became overwhelming, and soon Vynnaraen began to feel like it was more of an obligation rather than a desire-- it felt like his father had bred him to take on this thankless job.

The Scourge Invasion only wrought more havoc upon an already fragile Dayflame House. The underground collective of mages, so deeply entrenched in their studies, began to slowly grow insane, succumbing to the loss of their Sunwell. The trade-side of the house was obliterated, and Vyn watched as everything he'd grown up with slowly fell before him. He hid with those mages, living in constant fear that one day, they'd be the next to turn. Their numbers dwindled, more and more eventually falling, and it was like all hope had died off.

When Kael'thas Sunstrider returned and brought hope to his people, it was only natural for Vynnaraen and his father to take what was left of the Dayflame House, and follow Kael'thas. He saw opportunity within the Prince, a chance at redemption, and a goal. A path to follow. He'd lived for so long with such clear things in mind that the breaking of his people had broken him too, and he was almost desperate.

The Taint
As with others who had followed Kael'thas, House Dayflame took part in saving Illidan. Vyn saw a fire rekindled in his father that had seemed dead ever since his mother had been killed, and in turn he also chose to serve with fervour. When offered the chance to overcome their addiction, both father and son zealously took part. They supported Kael'thas wherever and whenever they could, the last of the House offering life and mind towards his cause, all for the sake of an answer.

What came of it, however, Vyn can only look back upon with a deep sadness.

Time in Outland, as well as the taint of demons led Vyn's magic to be perturbed. Both he and his father found themselves drawn to the darker magics, and it was there that Vyn's mind became wholly "unlocked" to the idea of Demonology. Finding a new font of power within this source, Vyn became engrossed in the school.

His father, on the other hand, wanted more. Vyn watched as day by day, the elder became more and more thirsty, demanding more. He saw many correlations between his father as well as the descent of Kael'thas, beginning to question whether or not what they had done was right.

As Vyn is often quoted to say:

"I do not regret following Kael'thas into Outland. I do not regret ever having believed that there was hope, for our people ... my only regret is that he was not strong enough to overcome it ... but he gave us hope. A future. That is more than any other has yet to give me."

Remaining as a Remnant
Overcome with his newfound taste for Demonology and the powers that were available to him, Vynnaraen strived to become a paragon in the field. He'd heard stories, and seen what the likes of both Felblood, as well as those who had achieved Metamorphosis could do, and wanted that for himself. It gave him more goals to reach, and provided him with a direction in which to lead his life, rather than just going about anywhere.

He just had to deal with the ever-growing itch of a new addiction coming to light.

Vyn began to stray away from the other elves, instead delving in his own direction to try and seek the answers he wanted, as well as to sate the newfound urges that he had. He began to invest himself more and more into the art of Demonology, breaking off from the House as they followed Kael'thas to Tempest Keep. When word of the Keep's fall reached his ears, he assumed his father dead alongside the rest of the elves, but at that point Vyn didn't care.

He, instead, dove into the realm of demons, of the power they offered and the life that seemed to be now wholly within his grasp. For once, he felt like he had actual control, and that feeling was good.

And when all the traitors had been killed or brought back for trial, and the campaign against Kael'thas in Outland finished, that was where Vynnaraen remained. He continued to study, the realm now his to explore and grow in. There, he began to entreaty with more demons, creating more contracts with them and binding more to his command. It was co-existing with them that he began to truly understand their workings, and what shaped his mind to think of the demons the way he does now.

The Gap in Time
Unbeknownst to Vynnaraen, the longer he stayed in Outland, the more he became a slave to that hunger. He began to appear in and out of the realm, acting as a sort of liaison for other warlocks and those who delved into the craft. It was only when he came upon a foray of demons feasting on souls that he was able to realize that something was going on. Invited to feast with them, he gratefully accepted-- until one soul rang too true to him.

Seeing his mother's face, locked in torment and regret, broke Vynnaraen from the eerie sort of delusion he'd been under. She requested that he free her, that he end her cycle of torment, and she extended her apologies. Not wanting to accept them at first, stating that all she'd done was abandon him and leave him to deal with his father alone, she pleaded. It was not by her name, after all, that the Household was run, but his. All she had wanted, according to her torn soul, was for him to thrive. To live. To be happy. She told him that if he could not free her, that at least he free himself.

The invisible shackles suddenly became all too opaque for Vyn, and he strove to find a way out from the hellish prison. It was only through the help of the demons that were under his control that he was able to be free, opening a dark rift back into Azeroth proper.

When he came back, however, it seemed that more time had passed than he'd realized. He had missed all the events of the Lich King, the Cataclysm, and most of the events happening in Pandaria. Torn, unstable, and lost, Vynnaraen found himself against without purpose. He began to feel the full effects of what his time in Outland had done to him, his body suddenly going into withdrawal now that he was away from what had stabilized him for so long.

The Calming
Wandering through Pandaria, sure that he was going to fall prey to his insatiable hunger, Vynnaraen found himself within a small village of the Pandaren. There, they taught him the basics of meditation, and of their struggle with their inner demons, and the Sha. He found himself under the tutelage of a Mistweaver, the Pandaren giving Vynnaraen insight into how to battle his own struggles, and perhaps overcome his own hurdles.

Though it didn't serve as a permanent fix, Vynnaraen found himself now with a clearer mind than ever. He assisted in the end of the campaign in Pandaria, mostly just trying to fill the days with things to do rather than sit and waste away, left to battle with whatever was going on inside of his own mind.

Upon his return to Quel'thalas, he was surprised to find the Dayflame Manse still intact. Their base of operations by the Anchorage was gone, leaving him without anything to really take back up. The Dayflame name was dead, as far as the world seemed concerned, and he was alright with that.

The Sworn
The reputation and name of the Bloodsworn became something familiar to Vynnaraen, after he'd caught up with what he had missed. Now that he had no real purpose, and nothing to fill his days or distract himself, it was only a matter of time until he eventually succumbed to that hunger once more. Thus, he sought out the Legion, seeking out that structure and rigidity he'd so thrived on, in hopes that it could settle him once more.

It's given him purpose. A place to be.

It's given him hope.