Character Brief: Katia Tien

Katia Tien was born to Altus and Naya Tien in Northshire during the First War (1), while her father was away fighting the Orcish Horde. Her mother, Naya, and older brother Nikolas lived by the Abbey in Northshire for the duration of the war. Katia saw her father for the first time when he returned to Northshire to collect his family and flee to the north: the Orcs had turned the armies of Stormwind and were even at that moment marching on the Keep (4). Despite the turbulent circumstances, Katia took a quick and particular liking to her father and his gentle nature.

The Tiens sailed north to Southshore, with the refugees of Stormwind. Katia was only four when her family was banished from Alterac by her grandfather, Caiberd Layette, and when she was five said goodbye to her father as he marched to war for the second time. During the Second War (6), she helped her mother as she made bandages to send to the front lines.

After the Horde's defeat (7), Altus took his family to live in the Hinterlands, near his dwarf friend Dobrin Wildhammer, with whom Altus had been friends for years. With her brother, Katia learned much from her parents, from daily chores and tasks to basic education like reading, writing, and other subjects. The children were also instructed by their father in the ways of the Light, in the teachings of which Katia developed a particular interest. Naya taught her children about magic and the arcane arts, but Katia paid less attention to this (conversely, Katia's brother Nikolas showed more interest in his mother's magic instruction than learning about the Light).

When Katia turned 17, she left for the Monastery in the northern Tirisfal Glades to study the Light and become a priestess (18). She was well accepted by the clerics and priests at the Monastery, in part because she displayed great talent for using the Light's power. Katia eventually became a respected student to Sally Whitemane, one of the Monastery's most highly-ranked priestesses.

Katia was relatively sheltered from the Third War and the Scourge Invasion of Lordaeron (25). While better-trained and more seasoned priests, clerics and paladins went to aid the Alliance, Katia and many others stayed behind to continue training, largely in preparation should the Monastery come under seige. The actual war with the Scourge was short, as much of the Undead went to and were defeated on the far continent of Kalimdor. But sizable Scourge forces had been left behind in Lordaeron, and fighting continued. Though initially offered a chance to flee south to escape the fighting, Katia and many others chose instead to stay, believing it to be their responsibility to defend the Light against the dark and demonic armies of the Scourge.

As what remained of Lordaeron's forces battled the Undead, a faction was born from the zeal and fervor with which some of the Alliance soldiers fought. The Scarlet Crusade began in honor and nobility, as a force dedicated to the reclamation of all that the Scourge had taken. But many of the Crusade's leaders and soldiers soon became obsessed with their goals, to the point of fanaticism. Spurred on by an increasingly-paranoid leadership, the Scarlet Crusaders began to use extreme and radical methods to both fight the Undead and to protect themselves from infiltration by the Undead. Two events, in particular, helped to solidify the Crusade's identity as an extremist and fanatical faction. First, in the city of Hearthglen, a high ranking spiritual leader of the Crusade claimed the Scourge had tried to assassinate him. Grand Inquisitor Isillien told the people the Scourge had turned his servant into an Undead spy, despite the fact the servant still looked human. Isillien claimed, and convinced many, that the Scourge had somehow developed that ability to disguise their spies as the living, and were therefore much harder to detect. His claims led the Crusade to adopt many practices that were unethical, cruel and evil, though they were seen by the Crusade as necessary to protect itself from infiltration.

The second catalyst for the Crusade's proverbial fall from grace was the death of one of the Crusade's founders, Highlord Alexandros Mograine, at the treacherous hands of his own son Renault. Mograine's death left the Crusade in the hands of those who had been consumed by madness: Renault, Isillien, and others.

Renault Mograine was assigned to command the Crusade's forces at the Monastery. Though she didn't really like him, Katia felt that duty required her obedience to him. When Alexandros Mograine's trusted friend, High Inquisitor Fairbanks, came to the Monastery proclaiming Renault's treachery, some believed him and left (these would later be the founders of the Argent Dawn, a faction who also sought the defeat of the Undead but by more just and sane methods). A small part of Katia wanted to believe that Renault was capable of such treachery, but her trusted teacher Sally, now called High Inquisitor Whitemane, convinced her that Renault was true to the Crusade's cause, and was indeed the right man to take his father's place.

Katia remains to this day (29) at the Monastery, occasionally venturing out to assist the Crusade in keeping back the Undead forces, who took over and set up base in the Tirisfal Glades just south of the Monastery. Her mother and brother know where she is and where her allegiance lies, but while Naya remains quietly supportive of her daughter, Nikolas has made no attempt to hide his disdain for the Crusade. Katia has recieved several letters from him, asking her to look closely at what the Crusade does to both living and Undead, but his pleas have fallen on quiet ears. Fueled by anger at her father's death by the Scourge, and spurred on by the subtle whisperings of her mentor, High Inquisitor Whitemane, Katia is devoted to the Crusade and to the eradication of both the Undead and those who would oppose the Crusade.

Character Brief: Naya Layette Tien

Naya Layette was born the only daughter of Caiberd Layette, a noble in the Kingdom of Alterac (-26). Early on it was determined that she had arcane potential, meaning she had gifts which could allow her to be sorceress. On her 12th birthday (-14), Naya's parents sent her to become a sorcerer's apprentice in the Mage city of Dalaran. She learned at the feet of Arra Whiteleaf, a human sorceress from the village of Brill. She learned the ways of magic, showing a particular talent with fire. Naya was on track to become an instructor for young students once she had completed her training. But shortly after she turned 22 (-4), her life took an unexpected turn.

It was at that time that she first met Altus Tien, a priest of Northshire fulfilling diplomatic responsibilities. The two became fast friends, and with subsequent visits their relationship blossomed into something much more. After only a few months, Altus asked Naya to marry him, and she readily accepted. For the sake of their marriage, Naya decided that once married, she would leave her mage training behind. Sad but understanding, Arra used the time before the wedding to expedite as much of what remained for Naya to learn and declared her to be fully taught.

Naya and Altus were married in a small, discrete ceremony in Dalaran, for Naya's father was vehemently opposed to the marriage. Caiberd placed a lot of stock in the idea of nobility by birth, and felt that for his daughter to marry anyone not of rnoble Alterac blood would be treachery to the Layette family and heritage. When he learned of his daughter's marriage, he was furious. But Naya and Altus were happy, and left Dalaran to build a life in Northshire.

When Altus went to war against the Horde for the first time (0), Naya stayed in Northshire to care for their two-year-old son, Nikolas. She was newly pregnant with their daughter, Katia, who would be born while Altus was away. As the war drew to a close, Naya joyfully greeted her husband upon his return to Northshire, only to learn they had to leave immediately. The Horde was marching on Stormwind, and Northshire lay in its path. Altus and Naya gathered their children, a few precious belongings and what provisions they could and joined the masses evacuating from Stormwind and the kingdom of Azeroth (4).

They sailed north to Southshore, a main port of the northern kingdom of Lordaeron. Against his wife's advice, Altus took his family to Alterac, to seek refuge with Naya's father. Their reception was anything but warm. Caiberd treated his daughter and her family with the cruelest derision, even striking Naya across the face for what he called betrayal to her family. He banished Naya and her family from his home and lands, and warned them not to return to Alterac at all. They returned to Southshore, where Altus almost immediately was called on by his leaders to join the forces marshaling to repel the continuing Horde onslaught (5). Naya stayed with her children in Southshore for the duration of the war.

After the Horde's defeat (6-7), Altus and Naya moved to the Hinterlands north of Southshore at the invitation of Altus' dwarf friend, Dobrin. For the next fifteen years, they raised their children in peace. Altus taught them about the Light and faith, while Naya passed on some of the learning she recieved in Dalaran. Katia showed greater interest and aptitude for her father's teachings, while Nikolas was eager to learn all he could about magic from his mother. The children learned much from living in the Hinterlands, from both the dwarves at Aerie Peak and the elves at the Quel'Danil hunting lodge.

When Altus was reassigned to Tyr's Hand (22) in eastern Lordaeron, Naya went with him, leaving Nikolas with the elves; Katia had gone to the Monastary in Tirisfal to study. When the Scourge invaded Lordaeron (25), Naya watched her husband go to war for a third time. Shortly before the battle of Darrowshire, Altus sent a letter to Naya, asking her to leave Tyr's Hand and head south. He expressed his fear that the Scourge would not be easily contained, and worried lest the Undead invaders attack Tyr's hand. Naya did not recieve her husband's letter until after his death at Darrowshire, and by the time she had made preparations to leave, much of the area surrounding Tyr's Hand was held by the Scourge. However, Nikolas, at his father's request, made his way to the city and helped his mother escape through the mountains (26).

They made their way to Aerie Peak, from whence Naya flew south to Stormwind, returning to the city for the first time since leaving it more than 20 years before. There she found her former instructor from Dalaran, Arra Whiteleaf, who had come south to study at the Tower of Azora in Elwynn Forest. Naya, too, began to study anew the art of magic and the arcane, while trying to stay in contact with her son and daughter as much as possible. Naya visits the memorial built by Nikolas in Altus' honor at Northshire three times a year- once on each of their children's birthdays, and once on the anniversary of their marriage.

Like her husband, Naya is kind and slow to anger; however, she is passionate and impulsive, sometimes acting or speaking too quickly. She has a great love for her children, and lives in constant concern for their safety. She is calm in her demeanor, but the pain of her husband's death is often evident.

Character Briefs: Altus Tien

Priest-turned-Paladin from the Kingdom of Stormwind. Born in Goldshire, in his youth he began training as a student of the Brotherhood of Northshire, a clerical order that served as the religious foundation of Stormwind. When he turned 20, he was assigned as an apprentice to Agnitius, a priest who held diplomatic responsibilities in the Brotherhood. Altus traveled with his mentor all over the continents of Azeroth, Khaz Modan and Lordaeron. On one such trip to Dalaran, the mage kingdom, he met a young sorceress in training, Naya Layette and the two quickly became friends. On a subsequent visit, Altus and Naya began courting each other, and it was only some months before Altus asked Naya to marry him. Their courtship was not without some controversy, however. Naya's father was Caiberd Layette, a noble from the kingdom of Alterac. He felt that Altus, being the son of commoners, wasn't worthy to marry noble blood of any kind, much less his own daughter. Naya defied her father, however, and she married Altus in secret in Dalaran, away from her father and family.

After Naya left her studies to focus on her family, the family moved back south to Northshire, where Altus became an assistant record-keeper. Their first son, Nikolas, was born in their second year of marriage.

The Tien's family life had barely begun when the Horde first invaded Azeroth. Altus was called to war to assist Stormwind's soldiers, while Naya kept Nikolas safe at the Northshire Abbey. It was during the war that Katia, their daughter, was born. Stormwind eventually fell to the Horde, and Altus, along with his family, evacuated their home and headed north to Lordaeron. Landing in Southshore but finding no room for quarter, Altus sought aid and shelter from his father-in-law, Lord Caiberd. Naya doubted her father's generosity, but Altus held a faint hope that Caiberd would show kindness, if for nothing else than his daughter and grandson.

Altus' faith was misplaced, as Caiberd recieved the family with coldness. In front of his whole household, Caiberd belittles Altus for crawling to him like a beggar, and berated Naya for going against her bloodline and father's wishes. He called Nikolas and Katia mongrels of mixed blood, and hit his daughter for daring to bear such children. His wrath was sharp, and his words sharper as he cast them out of his home and banished them from his lands. Altus returned with his family to Southshore, where he learned that forces of the Seven Kingdoms, now known as the Alliance of Lordaeron, were being marshaled to counter the continuing Horde threat. Leaving his wife and two children, Altus joined the army once again. This time was different, however: the head of the Northshire clerics, Alonsus Faol, sought to make more out of his order. He appointed a cleric named Uther the Lightbringer to train some clerics and priests as soldiers who wield the Light in battle. Altus became one of these knights, called Paladins, and joined the Order of the Silver Hand (the Paladin's order).

Following the defeat of the Horde, Altus returned to his family. They were invited to live in the Hinterlands northeast of Southshore by Dobrin Wildhammer, a dwarf with whom Altus had become close friends both in his diplomatic travels and during the war. Uther assigned him to be the Silver Hand's liason to Aerie Peak, home of the Wildhammer dwarf clan. The Tien family lived in relative peace there for the next fifteen years, until Uther asked Altus to relocate to Tyr's Hand. Altus and Naya moved there; Nikolas stayed behind with the dwarves, and Katia had gone to the monastary in northern Tirisfal to study to become a priestess of the Light some years before.

When the Scourge began its attack on Lordaeron, Altus went to war for the third time. He was at Stratholme when Prince Arthas Menethil disbanded the Order of the Silver Hand. Though he of course wanted to destroy the Scourge and its plague, Altus sided with Uther. The Lightbringer sent Altus to Darrowshire under the command of Davil Crockford, a paladin native to that town- Uther knew the Scourge would strike there soon. Nikolas, who had joined his father shortly before Stratholme, went with him. The battle was fierce and favored the Alliance early, but in the end the fight against the Undead was futile. Altus fell in battle defending the Alliance soldiers as they retreated from the battle. Nikolas tried to retrieve Altus' body, but the Undead overran the battlefield too quickly. It is unknown where Altus' remains lie to this day.

For the next several months, Nikolas traveled everywhere his father had lived, building small monuments in Altus' memory. The largest of them stand at Northshire and at the Tien home in the Hinterlands.

Altus was always kind, slow to anger but quick to defend. He raised treated his family with firmness and love all at once. He believed wholly in the justice and goodness of the Light, trusting to hope that the Light would help him determine his fate.

Let Me Be Brief

Starting soon (tomorrow, hopefully), I will be posting brief character histories/descriptions for the main characters in the story. "Brief" should only mean a few paragraphs. And some weeks ago, to help me visualize the characters better, I started choosing which actor/actress I would choose to play which character if this were a movie. So, if such a choice has been made for the character, a picture of the actor/actress will be included.

Sorry for the long hiatus, and thanks for sticking with me. I think the story is really about to take off.