Originally Posted by
TheLoadbearer
The Beyond the Dark Portal novel does raise questions about Arator. According to the book and its predecessor Tides of Darkness, which are the canon fleshing-out of the lore of WC2 and its expansion, Alleria and Turalyon had a one-night stand in Tides of Darkness, then she was cold to him until well into Beyond the Dark Portal until she finally opened up about her feelings to him.
On the other hand, Danath Trollbane in Outland recognized Arator, recalling a nickname, meaning they had to have had a very familiar relationship, one that was never shown in the books.
Most likely a goof on the author's part, and Blizzard themselves forgot about their tiny cameo of Alleria and Turalyon's godawful worst invention in all of fantasy half-elf spawn they put in BC. Or they liked it too much to have him change it, but liked Arator too much to change him either.
This has resulted in the following:
1. Alleria and Turalyon never being open lovers during their time on Azeroth, in fact, quite the opposite.
2. Alleria never being shown to be pregnant on Azeroth, at least outside the space between the two novels, during which she could have been pregnant and given birth to Arator.
3. Alleria never telling Turalyon about their son, Turalyon never asking, and generally no mention of him at all, nor any indication that Turalyon knew about him.
Which conflicts with BC's events that claim Danath (a mere comrade, not family) and the entire Sons of Lothar knowing Arator enough to have had a nickname for him, "Little Arator" (very original), meaning they would have had to know he was Alleria and Turalyon's son, that Turalyon and Alleria were carting their son around with them while fighting a war, and that Alleria allowed any indication that she had anything more than a professional military ally-relationship with Turalyon to be known by anyone.
There's also the iffy business about Arator being named something more like a human name by his mother, who wasn't fond of humans, and still wasn't as far as we know (except for Turalyon and other close friends), since Turalyon couldn't have been around when he was born to influence the naming in any way.
The best way I could think to rationalize Arator was that he was born in Outland and around the Sons of Lothar there, but that contradicts his own words and interactions with Danath.
So yeah, it's messy business that Blizzard should address, but they probably won't. Beyond the Dark Portal was published after Burning Crusade was already out, and has no mention of Arator and even makes it seemingly impossible for him to have been born when he claims, but since Blizzard has Turalyon and Alleria coming back in Legion and Turalyon knows about Arator (he could have been told by Alleria, I suppose), they're obviously not interested in clearing up the tangled mess.
It would be possible to assume that perhaps Alleria and Turalyon were secretly lovers still, and just didn't let anyone know and acted like they weren't when in public until Alleria couldn't pretend any longer when Turalyon was going to be in danger in Outland, and just showed Danath their son before then, but that's thrown out the window because Arator is recognized, with his personal childhood nickname, by some no-name drunk at the bar in Honor Hold, so yeah.
Maybe when they get to the volume of Chronicle that covers events around that time period, we'll find out, and they'll retcon the novel or something.
The novel would make it possible for Alleria to have had Arator in secret, not told Turalyon, and left him to be raised in Stormwind, where he may be distrusted for being half-elf, but wouldn't be looked down upon and been a second-class citizen in Quel'thalas with her family, but that can't be, because Arator seems entirely concerned only with Turalyon in Outland. He mentions his "parents" but never Alleria alone. He dreams of his dead father after the Legion has beaten the Army of Light, and talks about how he was only a baby when his father was deployed to Outland, only asks about Turalyon's whereabouts, etc.
He only ever mentions his mother when he introduces himself as "the son of Turalyon and Alleria."
I suppose it could perhaps be possible that Alleria had him in secret, left him in Stormwind with a friend she may have made there, perhaps telling them Turalyon was the boy's father, they raise him all those years, telling him about Turalyon, then during BC, they tell him that Turalyon is his father, and then he goes to Outland, but that only fixes the novel's lore being canon as well as Arator being canon, but still doesn't reconcile the dialogues he has with people in Honor Hold and how Danath and everyone in the Sons of Lothar and their grandmother knows him as "Little Arator" and knows who his parents are. Ugh. Messy. Too messy.
Maaaaaybe Danath and that drunk guy met Arator at some point without knowing he was Turalyon's kid? And recognized him with his nickname again in BC? And then were told at some point later on in Outland after the two had come out of the closet about their romance that Alleria had Turalyon's child and he lives in Azeroth raised in Stormwind?
Eh, it could possibly fix things a little bit, and might explain why Arator is so much more interested in his father than his mother, because Turalyon is probably more spoken-of in Stormwind than Alleria was, and when he learned that Turalyon was his father, it wasn't too hard to guess that the elven woman they made a statue of just a few yards away from that of his father is the mother, and the person Alleria left him to be raised by confirmed his parentage.
But that's a lot of gymnastics to explain it away. It does cover all bases, and would explain why Arator went to the place that was just the home of members of the entire expedition, rather than the place founded by his mother that bore her name (Allerian Stronghold) and was home to her closest friends who knew her possibly the best of any apart from Sylvanas and Vereesa, but I dunno. I guess it can just be my headcanon until Blizzard retcons something or has Arator say some gossip text like "My mom and dad were BOTH at my 5th birthday party, so try squeezing THAT into your little theory, hahahahahaha!!!"
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