Thaddaeus

Information

Association(s): The Hand of the Naaru, the Exodar, the Alliance, the Argent Crusade

Race: Draenei

Class: Paladin

Age: 25,965

Sex: Male

Hair: White

Eyes: Thaddaeus' eyes hold an appeal of wisdom and reminscience.

Weight: 420 ibs

Height: 7'6

Appearance

Other: His common is relatively smooth for an older Draenei.

He is most comfortable with plate armor, and a tome of the Light at his side.

Personality

Alignment: Lawful Good

Though the years that Thaddaeus has lived has opened his heart and eyes to wisdom, he has become increasingly difficult to relate to, both to the mortal races as well as to some of his own kind. The old Paladin is very introspective, and he spends most of his time quietly scouring his own heart and mind for areas where evil holds influence on him.

Time has changed Thaddaeus' perspective over the years to be one of constant mindfullness of the past, to the point where he can oftentimes lose contact with the present. Conversation with Thaddaeus is slow and deliberate. He makes sure that he chooses his words carefully, and each sentence is constructed with thought. Even the conversations that Thaddaeus has with others seem to be echoes of ones that he has with himself.

Unfortunately, Thaddaeus has almost entirely lost his sence of humor. The constant undulations of life from happiness to tragedy and back again has perfected a sobriety in all he does - and it is his belief that humor makes light of subjects that are above banter. In many ways, small talk is a non-activity for Thaddaeus.

Thaddaeus' profuse reading has earned him the nickname 'the Reader', among his friends, both Draenei and mortal alike.

Thaddaeus is a redoubt of strength. His faith in the Light has been shaped over the course of many thousands of years, and he has experienced a healthy dose of despair along with the trials those years have brought. Although he is a figure of strength and endurance, he remembers his roots as an inexperienced boy who had to overcome many obstacles to reach where he is today, not only physically but also spiritually and mentally. Coupled with his faith in the Light, these obstacles have given Thaddaeus a gracious heart, and he continues to attempt to mirror that which he has continued to receive.

History

On Argus

Thaddaeus was born on the Eredar homeworld of Argus into the union of two prestigious and gifted Magi. Being the eldest son of an upper-class family, Thaddaeus was surrounded by the beauty and splendor of Mac'Aree. All of his needs and wants were met, and because of this Thaddaeus' character suffered. The young Draenei became fickle, self-centered, and unappreciative, and his parents did little to help him grow out of these things. Their overindulgent lifestyle only encouraged Thaddaeus' childlike pursuit of physical pleasure, and he too reveled in their way of life.

Being the son of two prominent Magi, Thaddaeus was groomed for the Arcane at an early age. He received good tutors and over time he became a capable student of magic. Because of his studies, Thaddaeus' ungodly character matured. His desire for glory and power became top priorities to him, and he replaced childhood appetites with adult ones, though these pleasures were far worse than the ones he had enjoyed as a child.

It would seem that everything was in place for Thaddaeus to have joined his wayward people in accepting Sargeras' proposal.

Oshu'gun and the Exile

However, when K'ure answered the prayers of the Prophet Velen, Thaddaeus was drawn to the enigmatic Naaru, not for its power, but because he had never been exposed to something as beautifully captivating as the Light. The Naaru emanated an aura of insight, and when Thaddaeus came into the K'ure's presence for the first time he was overwhelmed with the truth of who he was, and was nearly driven mad. He saw the monsters that festered within him, and he despaired to the point of self-loathing. And yet, the Naaru, graciously accepted all those who answered its call. Nothing Thaddaeus had gained or accumulated while on Argus could compare to what he saw in the Naaru, and he sold it all to follow it.

His parents, unable to part from the life they had built on Argus, were torn to shreds by their transformed colleagues and neighbors. Thankfully the rest of his siblings were able to join Thaddaeus on the Oshu'gun, where they too grew in the ways of the Light under K'ure with the rest of their exiled people: the Draenei.

Initially, Thaddaeus remained overcome by the depression of who he was on the Oshu'gun. The Light that naturally flowed from K'ure continued to show Thaddaeus the inner monstrosity that resided within the dank cesspit of his heart. In many ways, he came to realize that he must either change or destroy himself, for he couldn't bear the knowledge of who he was. It was in this moment, that Thaddaeus surrendered himself to the Naaru and to the Light, and changed the trajectory he had been on since his birth. It was through this experience, that Thaddaeus was transformed from who he had been on Argus into something entirely different. Over time, his desires changed along with his character. Gone was the self-centered child concerned only with its well-being; that child had died on Argus. In its place was a man who was transformed by the self-emptying love of the Light's grace, and he strove to mirror it more and more.

The Light had shown him who he was, but more importantly it had given him a hope for redemption.

Centuries passed as the Draenei fled from Kil'jaeden and the Eredar. Thaddaeus continued to grow in the wisdom and strength of the Light, both through the tutelage that the Draenei received from K'ure, but Thaddaeus also grew and learned from tragedy. Many of his kind were lost on their long trek through the cosmos, including most of his siblings. The Draenei were few, and Thaddaeus had grown close with those that had died on distant worlds as exiles of the universe. He became familiar to grief and tragedy, and even though K'ure's consoling presence was a reassurance of a kind, even the Naaru's wisdom and power seemed to dwindle in the face of despair and doubt.

And yet, Thaddaeus continued to meditate and grow. Eventually, he came to place his hope and happiness in the comfort of the Light's embrace, and its promise that it would one day deliver his people from the Legion as well as the darkness in their own hearts.

Draenor

The years continued to pass by as the Draenei ran from their corrupted brethren time and time again. Countless stars and planets were visited. But none of them was the sanctuary that the Draenei had longed for. When K'ure fell ill, the Draenei despaired, believing that their extinction was inevitable. However, either by design or by chance, K'ure crashed the Oshu'gun into the planet the Draenei came to call Draenor. At long last, the Draenei believed they had arrived to a planet they could call home.

As his people came to settle the planet, Thaddaeus eventually witnessed the construction of the Temple of Karabor, and came call it home. The Temple continued to provide him with silence and books, but he ultimately longed for companionship, and he found friendship with those that sought to follow the Light as he did. Many of the attendants and teachers he came to know as friends and mentors, and they continuously propelled him into a deeper and more absolute devotion to the Light.

Peace had come to his heart and mind, and Thaddaeus had thought that the haven that the Naaru had promised his people was here to stay. Then came War and Massacre and Desecration unlike Thaddaeus had seen for eons. And with it the familiar grief that had consumed him before.

The Orcs, in their newfound bloodlust and craze, pledged themselves to the cause of Kil'jaeden and resolved to eradicate the Draenei from existence. The war that resulted was disastrous and futile. The Draenei were unprepared to meet the brutality of the newly formed Horde, and were nearly extinguished. Had circumstance been different, Thaddaeus too would have been slaughtered upon the very steps of Karabor, trying to defend it. Though he was gravely wounded, Thaddaeus knew Karabor well, and was able to steal away when the Orcs were busy with plundering the spoils.

It was in Zangarmarsh that the Draenei fled to, and it became Thaddaeus' new haven as well. As the planet was torn asunder by Nerzhul's reckless magic, the Draenei still remained patient. It was in Zangarmarsh where they remained and prayed and waited...

Azeroth and Present Day

With the happenings of the Blood Elf arrival on Outland, Thaddaeus was among those that hijacked the Exodar, and sent it careening into space in the hopes of finding help. The crash on Azuremyst was a peculiar answer to that hope. When he arrived on Azeroth, Thaddaeus did everything he could to read up on the history of the planet, and he spent much of the time given to him alternating between the Exodar and Stormwind, optimistic about the mortal allies the Draenei had attained. Through his trips to the Stormwind Library, Thaddaeus had been caught up about much of known history, and therefore his thirst for knowledge continued, but also his thirst for the justification and healing of Azeroth to continue.

Because of his years of experience, Thaddaeus was among those that Velen dedicated to the cause of the Alliance. With the happenings of the Sunwell, and the attempted summoning of Kil'jaeden into Azeroth by King Kael'thas, Thaddaeus joined the Shattered Sun Offensive on the Isle of Quel'danas and fought alongside the Sin'dorei he had come to know as enemies on Draenor. He saw the reawakening of the Sunwell, and the beginnings of redemption among the Sin'dorei.

After Kil'jaeden was defeated, Thaddaeus returned to Azuremyst, where he helped his people settle and recover from years of exile across the universe. His stay was short-lived, for it was not long before news of the Lich King's attack on Stormwind traveled to Kalimdor. Thaddaeus answered the call to Northrend, and it was there that he met up with the Argent Crusade. The old Draenei was sent to Zul'drak, where he spent the large majority of the war fighting the advances of the Scourge in the hopes of saving the Drakkari Trolls from Ner'zhul's grasp.

The recent defeat of the Lich King could not have been timelier for Thaddaeus, for the post he had been stationed at was near to being overrun before Fordring successfully defeated Ner'zhul. Now that the war is over, Thaddaeus is likely to continue his studies and meditations. However, if the need arises, he is steadfast and willing to return to the field. For though Thaddaeus has grown wise and forgiving over the years, he is not incapable of calling on the Light to fight those he deems to have earned judgment.