Yorel of Firefalls
Yorel of Firefalls
he/him
Rise to Flame Keeper
Yorel grew up in the town of Firefalls, a sizable village not far from Din'Lux. His family was made up of merchants who owned several local shops, but from a young age Yorel had a keen interest in the Temple. He would often linger at the shrine, asking questions of the priests, and he soon befriended the daughter of the shrine's head priestess. That young elf's name was Selen.
Both Yorel and Selen became deeply devoted to the Temple of Ziva, obsessed with the ceremonies and sacred objects of the shrine. They dreamed of climbing the ranks of the Flame Keepers some day. With Selen's family's connections to the Temple, she was granted an apprenticeship with the Flame Keepers in Din'Lux. But she refused to go without Yorel, and, begrudgingly, her mother arranged an apprenticeship for him as well.
In Din'Lux, Yorel spent every waking moment studying the divine texts and serving the Flame Keepers in whatever way he could. Selen, however, was always one step ahead of him. Together they achieved their dream of reaching the highest rank of the Flame Keepers, but it was Selen who was selected as successor to the Hierophant.
In the Hierophant's Service
When the previous Hierophant became gravely ill, Selen was inducted as her successor. Her first act as Hierophant was to grant Yorel a place on the City Council and to place him at her right hand. In this position, Yorel gained great respect and power as the highest of priests. And as Selen's closest and most trusted friend, he also had the Hierophant's ear on every decision.
In most areas, they agreed. But it was Selen's wish to end the Great War with Dwar Fell. The Luminated Alliance was losing, many were dying, and Selen wanted peace. "Ziva wouldn't want this...doesn't want this," she said to Yorel privately.
Yorel protested. "You would have them desecrate the Holy Flame?"
Selen was on the verge of negotiating peace with Dwar Fell when the Starless Nights returned.
After the Return of the Darkness
Once Vath orchestrated a coup in the wake of the Starless Nights' return, the entire City Council was dissolved. Yorel's seat was given away to Sigra the Sickly, a warlord and a dwarf who weeks earlier wouldn't have hesitated to slit Yorel's throat. With the city under new leadership, Yorel lost much of the power he'd once commanded, although he still maintained his place as the highest-ranked priest in the Flame Keeper order.
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