Zerov

Art above by melfias.tumblr.com

> ***"Kindness is more important than wisdom, and the recognition of this is the beginning of wisdom."***
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A Draenei Vindicator originally from Outland, Z tries to upholds his values as best he can, regardless of the turns that the Game may take. He has sworn fealty to the Fool's King and his Queen, aligning himself with the Fool's Court. He no longer cares to play along with the Game, at this point he simply wants to end it for good. Typically, he's fairly easygoing, though he can be stubborn at times, especially when his mind is set on something.

http://vindicatorz.tumblr.com/

## History

Zerov was born among one of the worlds the Draenei visited while fleeing from the Legion, before they found Draenor. It was not very long after his birth that the Legion found the Draenei once more, resulting in them fleeing once more, but not before Zerov's father fell attempting to aid the escape of his family and friends. While he does not remember much of his life before his people found Draenor, his earliest memories include the fear and uncertainty he sensed from his family and people as they searched once more for a haven.

Once on Draenor, life seemed to take a much better turn for his family, and he began training in the arts of combat as many youth did, although his mother made sure his tutelage also included some of the arts. In this case, she began his instruction of what was once a family trade; jewelcrafting and jewelry-making. While he wasn't thrilled at first, he grew to find the craft rather calming, and could often be observed absently shaping rocks or jewels in his free time.

Zerov decided at a fairly young age that he desired to work towards becoming a Vindicator. Rather than choose to learn combat with two-handed weapons as many of his peers did, he opted to learn sword and shield instead. His training went rather well, although at the beginning his tutors questioned his potential, so clumsy he was with his shield. But through dedicated practice and training on his own time, he managed to get a handle on the concept.

His first actual combat experience, other than the other native creatures during training missions and exercises, was against the orcs during their early assaults on Shattrath. Despite his efforts, his mother fell assisting in the early retreat from the city, and Shattrath was eventually lost. Zerov and his younger sister, Allaana, assisted the retreat and fled with the majority of the remaining Draenei to Zangarmarsh, where they kept low and attempted to elude the orcs for as long as possible.

When the chance came however, they joined the group that journeyed to Tempest's Keep, where Zerov managed to assist in acquiring of the section known as the Exodar. While assisting those trying to board, Zerov received a rather nasty blade to the face, the only reminder now being the scar across the bridge of his nose. Allaana managed to get him on board with the assistance of one of his friends from his training, despite the blood elves' attempted defense of the keep, where a priest worked to heal the worst of the damage.

A sense of elation at the victory seemed to settle over the Draenei until they attempted to planeshift, the blood elves' last ditch effort to sabotage their plans taking immediate effect. Zerov does not remember much in terms of what happened up to the actual crash, but upon waking, his gaze was immediately drawn to the lifeless body of his sister, crushed under debris from the ship.

With the remaining Draenei attempting to rebuild some semblance of a society, Zerov made the decision to strike out and take this chance to explore this new world, and to sharpen his skills, though it was also likely a simple excuse to remove himself from the painful memories of the area. He felt as though his skills would be put to better use helping out this new 'Alliance' that they had come in contact with, especially when he heard that they were in conflict with both orcs and blood elves.

As such, Zerov has spent much of his time since arriving on Azeroth adventuring and assisting those in need. He has continued his work with jewels, as it is something he refuses to give up as it was a way to remain connected with the family that he'd lost along the way, as well as a way with which to make a little money to sustain himself. He only returned to the Outlands once, to briefly assist the remaining forces that had set up in Shattrath with their fight against the Legion for a small amount of time towards the end of the push, and has refused to return on his own since, as he finds it too painful at times to see what was once his home has since turned into.

It has recently come to his attention that his mother and sister from this 'alternate Draenor' were among the ones that survived, but he has yet to find the courage to seek them out, out of fear that they will not be as he remembered them in his timeline.

## Appearance and Personality

While Zerov is not quite as broad as many other draenei, he is just as imposing. Still considered young for his race, the youthful features of the vindicator are rather evident to the naked eye. Deep azure eyes bore into those they come into contact with, though his expression is nearly always one of calm cordiality. His long black hair is near constantly tied back, though the locks hang almost to his shoulder-blades when finally let down.

The draenei himself is actually considerably toned, a rather strict personal training regime in place to keep it as such. While his lean build does not offer as much in the way of raw strength that many draenei possess, he is strikingly more lithe than many assume at first sight. Occasionally, however, he may be observed limping slightly on his left leg, an old wound on his knee sometimes hindering his movement if he pushes himself too hard.

Z's skin is marred by countless scars, gathered and collected through years of battle and training. Across his torso lay a myriad of old wounds, large and small, the most prominent and recent of the scars evident in the smooth gash that travels from shoulder to hip. His facial features have not gone untouched over the years, made apparent at first sight by the gash over the bridge of his noes, as well as a sizable notch taken out of his right ear.

## Skills

Though sword and shield may be his primary choice for combat, Z is skilled with a myriad of weapons. His skills range from axes, hammers and swords of multiple varieties, to some limited archery training. Whenever the chance arises, he is more than happy to pick up a few tips and tricks with weapons he is not quite as familiar with from those that are. If weapons are unavailable, he has training with multiple styles of hand-to-hand combat, most of which deal with utilizing his height and strength against the opponent.

Outside of combat, Z is actually a rather skilled jewelcrafter, a past time that his father apparently enjoyed as well. While he does occasionally sell his wares if he is short on money, generally it is simply used as a way to pass time or make gifts for others. Aside from that he is fairly good at drawing, though he rarely ever does anything other than simple sketches. Though scarcely heard these days, Z has a surprisingly good singing voice. Most of the time, however, humming is the closest one may hear of it.

As far as vocabulary, he knows Draenic, Common, Darnassian, and some Dwarven, with limited knowledge of Orcish and Thalassian. For magical properties, his skills lie nearly entirely with the Light, as he has a seemingly hard time attempting to grasp any other sort of magical energies.