A Gracious Host

World of Warcraft Insp || Ethereal Enthusiast || Follows back from safrona-shadowsun

[safrona-shadowsun]

Character Sheet: Saraj the Ethereal

Full Name: Saraj

Age: Unspecified

Birthday: Unspecified

Sexual Orientation: Unspecified

Relationship Status: Unattached

Religion: Business

Occupation: Host of ‘The Red Room’ in Silvermoon, a wine bar tied to the Empyrean Import’s network. Acts as a contact point for EI’s couriers in business. Inter-dimensional Trader.

Nationality: Ethereal.

► Background

Place of Birth: K'aresh

Hometown: ?

Education: Educated

► Physical

Faceclaim: Some inspiration drawn from Sebastian Michaelis of Kuroshitsuji, and Jaqen H'gar of the Game of Thrones tv series.

Eye Color: Unknown

Hair Color: Unknown

Height: 6ft 3in

Weight: Unspecified. Likely not very heavy.

Tattoos: Birthmarks, Scars, etc: None. Whatever marks came with the flesh are unremembered. Saraj’s wrappings and exotic voice are all that really identify him.

► Relationships

Spouse/Partner: None.

Family: Ethereals among The Consortium, some among the Nexus Stalkers such as the 'Locus Singer Myrrah’ of the Elysian Sojourn.

Close Acquaintances/Friends: Many professional partners, especially one Lady @safrona-shadowsun and her courier network, and the small circle of talented fleshlings that help to keep The Red Room functional.

What They Look For In Others: Saraj finds something interesting in all entities that give him the time of their company.

► Personality

Positive Traits: Smooth charmer, Helpful, Amicable, Professional, Highly Intelligent, Insightful, Loyal to a point, Organized, Open Minded, Romantic, Poetic, Flexible.

Negative Traits: Secretive, Seems to take little very seriously, Low key manipulative, flighty, Unreadable, Shameless, Assumptive, Often misinterprets customs among fleshling culture.

►Miscellaneous

Hobbies: Photography

First Book They Read: Unremembered

Favorite Book: A Map to the Stars, A map of the universe, as found in Ulduar.

Favorite Music Artist: Unknown as of yet.

Favorite Subject: Telemancy 

Habits: Loitering, quiet steps, airy laughs, straightening bandages

Notes

Open to Cross-Faction Rp

Dual Class: Considered a hybrid between Rogue/Mage with talents exclusive to each class.

Basically immortal.

Personally considers himself a genderfluid entity, but finds He/Him acceptable.

Open to pre-established interactions.

Rp exclusive to Tumblr and Discord.

[prismaticdragee]

thief 💎

[devils-queen]

666

[xalatath]

Asking an ethereal for nudes and they just send you a pic of an empty room

[nzoth-the-corruptor]

things we know about K'areshi language(s):

• Ethereal and broker alphabets have diverged from one another. [source: visual observation of assets]

• The priests are further noted to use a type of cuneiform script in religious texts. [source: Ways of the Priesthood]

• Ti seems to be a diminutive in the spoken language, based on its applications. The suns of K'aresh were named Meter and Ti'meter; and there are three named cosmic worms on K'aresh: Ramon'ta, Malek'ta, and Malek'ta's infant spawn Palek'ti.

• • If this is true, we can deduce that K'aresh was probably in a circumstellar orbit around Meter, instead of a circumbinary orbit around both, if their differentiation of their suns is based on observable size.

if you have any more information, let me know.

[nzoth-the-corruptor]

What do you think of the Ethereal's new model vs the original Burning Crusade design?

For the most part, I think the upgrade they got in TWW is very faithful to the original concept of the ethereals as incorporeal entities bound up in bandages. The energy inside of them looks amazing & not like the mass of solid glop the Void Ethereal model in Legion has, and the style of their wraps now actually look like they were purposefully tied on with care and precision instead of just someone hastily throwing bandages around a mass of swirling energy.

I also think it's interesting that Salhadaar, as the only recently bound Ethereal we see that received a custom model (which Naazindhri is binding new ethereals throughout her encounter, they just reuse old models) has some very tightly-bound bandages with no gaps; which might suggest that the gaps we see on regular ethereals are just a result of their wraps degrading due to wear & tear, and them just not fixing them up yet because it's not a problem yet & loombeast silk is probably pretty expensive, especially if what we see with the Soulbinder indicates that like. there's still ethereals being actively bound out of incorporeal states for various reasons who are obviously a higher priority than what is effectively a cosmetic concern.

Or maybe Salhadaar's soul senses it's supposed to be gone and they just had to tie it in there really tightly. We dunno.

yaaaas king, slay with your tastefully interwoven multicolored wraps

I do wish the models were slightly less dimorphic but like, as far as Blizzard goes the differences between the body types are pretty mild. Definitely am glad that Ky'veza got her foot in the door before the new models were ready and gets the same general silhouette the Legion model has, even if it comes with some crusty resolutions and a very sludgy inner body.

I like how a couple of the variants have wraps that resemble hair, but I think I have also decided that as a species the K'areshi were bald or furred prior to decorporealizing & that's why most of them do not try to portray themselves with hairstyles, whether through wraps, wigs, or energy hair.

Garments

The leather pants half of them wear now are ridiculous I'm sorry. Kind of look when you find one walking around with a giant collar, leather pants, big boots and nothing else but. hm.

Mostly the new garments are really good. I really like the, I'm not sure what to call this,

but it makes my neurons activate.

I'm not a fan of how bulky the armored variant of their outfits are, largely because I feel the general silhouette and fantasy of the energy being mummy lends much better to slimmer, sleeker armor & an agile combat style instead of the very heavy, clunky silhouette the armored variant has.

I also would have liked to see the OG mantelet-shoulderpads brought forward. We see traces of similar silhouettes on Naazindhri and Soul-Scribe's model but not on regular ethereal models.

The floating ornamental capes are interesting but I think they were slightly overused and should have been reserved for important named characters as a sign of their station instead of given to random spellcasters scattered around.

Animations

I miss the little warping thing the BC model does when it moves around but apparently it caused eye strain for some people so I can see why they didn't bring it forward. It was super cool though.

[dragontamer05]

Mm, no that's that not what it means

[nzoth-the-corruptor]

Narathe of the Wastelanders & Nexus-Princess Ky'veza

while you studied the raid mechanics, I studied the ethereal girls

[saraj-the-ethereal]

DwC August 2025

Day 1, 8/17

Ethereal/Calculate

@daily-writing-challenge

“So, will you be going back to K’aresh too, my friend?” The Nightborne’s question was a repetitive one ever since Enzo Viserus had learned that travel had been officially implemented to the ruins of the Ethereal’s homeland. So repetitive in fact that Saraj weighed whether the Nightborne’s mental faculties were fading. Fleshlings and aging were a temperamental state, it seemed.

“Your Saraj will be staying to serve in the Red Room. And the Consortium’s interest, as always.” the Ethereal confirmed with what was often the same amused sort of graciousness that defined the airy float of his voice. “It is of the rumor that the K’areshi Trust is progressing well without him.” A cocktail of arcane-fused wine was smoothly offered to the Nightborne assistant. Clearly Viserus needed a little ‘refreshing’.

The Nightborne in turn eyed the cocktail, and with a genteel chuckle took it. “Thank you, Saraj, whatever would I do without you?”

A day or two passed, and as Saraj exited void storage in the cellars, Enzo engaged him again. “Have you heard? The Courier is officially setting up trade contracts with that city of yours, Tazavesh! Several of our couriers and runners are K’aresh bound. Should be quite lucrative. No doubt you're in tow right along with them? You just let me know what I need to cover, and I’ll have our fine little bar taken care of.”

“There are no trades scheduled with Tazavesh that depend on your Saraj needing to be present,” the Ethereal again provided his buffer as he moved past with arcano-datapad in hand. “But a man’s generosity is appreciated. We shall let the couriers have their pay, no?”

The sun and moon traded partners on Silvermoon again, and this time Enzo Viserus was in deep talk with the energetic little vulpera courier at the Red Room. Saraj slowed in his step as he restocked the Red Room, and assured no chair or table was out of place.

“So yeah the spaceghosts are doing some baaaaaad stuff on Kresh,” Sylvea spoke, and then paused. “Well I mean, the voidy-kind of space ghosts.” She tilted her head as she tried to explain, her ragged, fox like ear flopping over the large, healthy one. “There were not-voidy space ghosts and Broke guys, and they were pretty okay! So they gave me some bombs!” The vulpera uttered her words with unhinged cheer, her toothy grin splitting her snout too sharply. “And I was told to deliver ‘em to the void ghosts and their big glowing machines! And I DID, and they exploded and it was GREAT.” 

Enzo chuckled, and crossed looks with the goblin server that had also paused at the bar to overhear the conversation. It was a distinctly bothered look from the goblin, but she put on a pearly white smile as the vulpera turned to beam at her. “Good for you, doll! You get em girlie!” Dezzie said with fake gusto, all the while taking the sweet dessert wines from the Ethereal that would be popular for the lunch time rush. The goblin quickly wandered away.

“That does sound very exciting. And dangerous,” Enzo remarked with sincerity, and glanced at the Ethereal with an almost calculating fashion. “It’s a wonder why our own resident ‘spaceghost’ has not attended to assure your and the other couriers safety!”

“Yeahh, there’s a lotta voidy spaceghosts that need explodin’. Lady Saf says they're tryin’ to explode the planet again or somethin’. But I’m good! I was born to explode all the things! I mean, not the ‘planet’. But you know. The bad guys.” The vulpera looked up with wide, curious eyes on the Ethereal now. “I bet there are space ghosts that miss you, Saraj. Doing…well, space ghost…things.”

“The Consortium’s goals lie beyond K’aresh, and to help Empyrean Imports flourish,” the Ethereal explained. “It is not your Saraj’s place to be on the remains of a dead planet, but to help engineer the protection of this one. And of course, serve our clients. Speaking of which..” the Ethereal gestured to the first lunch patrons of the day.

Charmed as always with Saraj’s voiced, sensible imparting, the staff of the Red Room eventually returned to their own devices. In the end, the many parts of Empyrean Imports were united and devoted to one congruent religion: business. And they paid their tribute on the daily.

But as the night would fall on Silvermoon, words would find the Ethereal’s attention from the Courier herself, across private channels.

“It’s confirmed. The Shadowguard remnant on K’aresh, they are fueling the summoning of Dimensius. Saraj…I heard this damn thing’s voice.” 

“It is only another cult of madness, Courier. Surely the sensible will persevere over the void addled as they always have?”

“You tell me, Saraj. You tell me, with a force of endless hunger that does not whisper in your own bones, but spans generations. Maybe space. Time. This…thing, it’s even beyond the Sha’s hunger. I could feel it.” The Courier took a breath, and calmed her voice. “But yes, maybe…maybe with enough connections, bodies here we can stop it.” She sounded as if she were trying to convince herself. “Just one of the reasons you should be here, really.”

“Do explain. Your Saraj would hope to not complicate contracts with the Consortium if unneeded. Again.”

“One of the technicians at an eco-dome here became very invested in knowing me when they overheard me speaking with you. Practically bounced at the name Saraj. It’s been some thousands of years since he took to his wrappings, but he somehow remembers the name “Saraj”. Saraj was a guard of some renown, apparently.”

“The name Saraj was quite a common name among the people of K’aresh, Courier.” Even as the Ethereal stated this frame of thought calmly, memory flashed like lightning through his own mind, blinding. A painful flash of hands, gripping, forcing, tying, binding, pleading, before screams were silenced into flesh evaporating oblivion. “Perhaps your guest remembers another Saraj.”

“Oh, clearly,” Safrona continued. “He said that the Saraj he knew had died with K’aresh, though he had been one of the few taught to bind his soul to survive Dimensius. Like many of those among the Protectorate, which they call themselves now.”

The Ethereal touched the glowing catch of his wrappings that kept his form in place, a gift once given on the day of the Devouring. He no longer recalled his own name, what he had looked like, what he had sounded like - he had been Unworthy. The years had fallen through like sand, and he had moved on from his dying world and its history to assure the Devouring would not happen again to another.

But he remembered Saraj’s name, face, and the sound of his voice, and he adopted them. He had become the one that saved the Unworthy. A memorial, of sorts, to a Protector long dead.

“A coincidence, your Saraj is sure.”

“Of course,” the Courier replied with a tone that feigned disinterest. He knew in time he himself might be invited to one of her Confession booths. He knew her too well not to follow the lead.

“In any case, I need you at least in Tazavesh. This city is not properly mapped for outsiders and I can’t tell any of these damn space ghosts apart. At least I know you. As for the Consortium, I'll pay double for your services as my retainer right now. They won't argue against gold."

Saraj chuckled sincerely, feeling for once, identified. “...I shall be there soon, Lady Safrona.”

Perhaps feeling K’aresh beneath his feet, he would recall the story of his namesake in full, and she would learn.

[ederiuss]

I drew a broker! Was a fun way to experiment Super happy with how he came together, might mean more WoW soon since I've been making huge leaps in figures/faces again

[eluviannaa]

In this week's written Umbral scene, our Ethereal, Zarath'anar, doesn’t have many lines, but I made sure the ones he does have are dialed up to 11. He’s from the Consortium, an Ethereal faction focused on trade and shady deals.

Most of my research is pretty focused but I absolutely loved digging into Ethereal lore. Usually, I dig further than I need to, obviously for context but also, you never know what threads will be useful later on.

For this, while the Consortium wasn’t front-and-center during Legion (the story's timeline), it still felt lore-consistent that he might be in Dalaran as a vendor at my imagined market—especially more so than other Ethereal factions in this context.

Writing Ethereal dialogue is a time—it adds another layer of formality, which feels a little different from the bits of high fantasy and poetry I usually do.

By nature, Ethereals are cryptic, mysterious, detached from mortal concerns, and more focused on broader cosmic forces. Some of my favorite lines from Void Ethereals like Locus-Walker, Saprish, and Ashaal really get at that :

"Our bargain does not require me to wait until you are ready." — Locus-Walker

While these scenes serve more as a script/draft for the comic, visuals being sparse, I'm excited to draw all of it! The scene was a bit long overall but we have a little time before I get to the panels in Act 2. I'd love to do a revision of this but as is, it was nice to finish it.

Excerpt from Act 2, Scene 5: Echoes

At the Ethereal’s stall, Eluvianna found a collection of odd trinkets and crystal fragments. The Ethereal, barely more than a shimmering silhouette, stood quietly behind the array. As a simple stone caught her eye, its surface swirled with colors that seemed to shift.

As she leaned closer to it, the ethereal inclined his head. “In all things, the Sin’dorei have an impeccable sense of timing,” he murmured, his voice carrying on the wind. Eluvianna glanced up from the wares, momentarily meeting his gaze—or where his eyes should have been.

“Am I… late?” Eluvianna asked, compelled to respond despite the uncertainty.

“Quite the contrary—you are early. And as such, perfectly on time.” He nodded with sincerity. “It seems the past is not doomed to repeat itself entirely.”

From the folds of his fabric, he produced a small, tightly wrapped package, offering it to her with a spectral hand. “As agreed.”

“I don’t recall meeting before. Perhaps you’ve mistaken me for someone else?” Eluvianna protested.

“Promises hold weight across all realities,” he replied, his voice like the air between worlds.

Despite her confusion, something in his words compelled her to accept the package. As she reached for it, he held it a moment longer, his grip firm but not unkind. “Alas, even I cannot glimpse the final patterns of the currents we navigate.”

Eluvianna furrowed her brow. “Currents?”

“Perhaps our paths will cross again when the echoes of this moment return,” his form shimmering faintly.

Somehow the words were familiar. Perhaps the echoes he spoke of were tied to her dreams. They had become more vivid, and last night they felt like a future destined. Though she had shrugged it off as merely a wish, she knew her studies had opened her mind to more. Just not quite any such path of an oracle.

[caladbolg]

drew my ethereal guy on wow priv server

[eluviannaa]

Screaming, crying, throwing up

From Ellie's post on bsky and wowhead.

[warcraft-shenanigans]

Locus-Walker

Their destroyed planted K’aresh in the background

[eluviannaa]

Questing in Undermine has been such a huge shiny. Especially since most of the Ethereals seem to be carrying blades, lord have mercy.

Every time Elu sees an Ethereal she's like...

DO THEY NEED A BESTIE?

BUSINESS PARTNER??

A PHILOSOPHICAL DISCUSSION ON ARTIFACTS????????

This is how new OCs happen.

[cieled]

Sebastian in the Book of Circus preview

[aleanissa]

@safrona-shadowsun

[safrona-shadowsun]

What if Saraj's contract remained the same and he stayed at Saf's side?

Saraj has the permissions to adjust his own contract of business with an individual, as long as it does not interfere or risk his duty to his own people and the Consortium. What made Saraj pull away temporarily was Saf’s Void shift on Argus. Considering their Ethereal’s history with the Void, she had suddenly become someone not to be trusted in the initial rumor of this shift of the Sin’dorei people. 

To date, he actually has reassigned himself to assist her after the Black Empire situation, when Safrona proved to bear the will enough not to be overtaken by another force and therefore could be trusted. Securing another contract however also came with the promise of certain terms of business being changed, such as Safrona becoming more of a moderator of a courier team, rather than manually carrying out all work herself. Saraj now man’s the counter at the Elysium Sojourn for Safrona, acting as a bartender...among other discreet roles.

If no adjustment had been made to Saraj’s contract, it’s likely he would be acting as some sort of spy for the Consortium with the purpose of gauging if a void elf like Safrona and the rise of her kind were a detrement to Azeroth’s survival, studying them to excise weaknesses should the Ren’dorei become problematic and need to be neutralized.

...in actuality, it may not be far-fetched that this may still be in the Ethereal’s wheel of duty to the Consortium. They really do not wish to see Azeroth get consumed like their own home world, after all.

{Thanks for the ask, @asharinhun! }