Gihlrael Wildbloom was born 450 years before the first coming of the Orcs in Azeroth, which is 475 years before the battle of Mt. Hyjal. Her family is an ancient kaldorei clan firmly devoted to Elune and to the protection of the elven lands since the days of the War of the Ancients.
The days of training
At 303 years of age she is chosen to become the next druid of the Wildbloom. Separated from her brother Menothras, she is sent to the slopes of Mt. Hyjal to receive her training. Her master is the Ancient of Lore named Kimu, who has great knowledge and wisdom. Kimu initiates the young elf to the way of druidism as well as teaching her philosophy and Azeroths long history. After 144 years of training, Kimu gives her the Book of Five Rings, from which the investiture of druid of five rings comes. The precepts kept in the book will be her guide for the rest of her life.
The Third War
Gihlrael spends peaceful days until the arrival of the Legion in Kalimdor. Being not as strong as her fellow night elves, she takes part in the defense of some villages in Ashenvale. Nevertheless, the march of the Legion appears unstoppable and she ends up being caught prisoner before the final battle at Mt. Hyjal. She is not killed, but rather deported in an undead prison camp somewhere in the Plaguelands, where the warlocks and necromancers of the Legion study her bond with nature (and those of many other night elves) in order to find more clues and refine their plan to destroy Nordrassil.
More freedom, more sorrow
After the defeat of the Legion she is freed from her imprisonment and decides to go back to her homeland and look for her old master. After a journey through the Barrens and the Stonetalon Mountains, she manages to reach northern Ashenvale only to find that Kimu has fallen prey to the venoms of Felwood. Her old master is now crazed, twisted and doesnt recognize his pupil anymore. Forced into battle, she challenges him and reluctantly ends his life. Wandering aimless and remorseful, she takes some rest in Silverwind Refuge, where she learns about Teldrassil, the Cenarion Circle and the Arch druid Staghelm. She feels anger growing in her heart. She had been taught that the druids were responsible for the keeping of all the creatures; why didnt the arch druid do anything to cleanse Felwood and let it rot in the corruption of the Legion? Her faith in the way of druidism gets weaker under the burden of these doubts. Only the memories of her brother Menothras help keeping her focused.
The need for explanations
After some days she resolves to reach Teldrassil and the Cenarion Circle. Along the road, she passes near the ruins of Stardust and encounters the druid Nyquarius Sharpthorn. Kimu had told her about Nyquarius back in the days of the training. Nyquarius is a very powerful druid, although his powers have been weakened after the destruction of Nordrassil, yet far more powerful than Gihlrael. He has a deep knowledge of the herbalist arts; he fought the War of the Ancients and saw the birth of Kimu as an Ancient of Lore. It was him the one who taught Kimu the foundations of druidic magic. This makes Nyquarius Gihlraels master, even if indirectly. Nyquarius warns her to abandon the way of druidism. Her tattered spirit is not what it takes to survive in those lands, nor trying to receive additional training in Teldrassil. He then commands her to turn back to Silverwind Refuge and live there in peace for the rest of her life. Gihlrael does not obey. She feels she has to go on: on one hand due to the hope to find her lost brother, on the other hand to extinguish the remorse for having killed her own master. Nyquarius struggles to persuade her to give up. He tells her she need to acquire a higher state of concentration if she wants to continue her learning of the druidic arts. A purer form of bond with the nature and the Emerald Dream named the Seventh Essence. Only through the acquisition of the Seventh Essence she will be able to attain a higher level of knowledge and the powers that will make her survive her future battles. But her mind is obscured with feelings and remorse and doesnt seem able at all to gain the higher consciousness of her. Eventually, Nyquarius resolves to an extreme measure. He sends her visions of her brother Menothras; visions of twenty years before. While Medivhs soul was completely owned by Sargeras and started luring Guldan with demonic visions, the powers of the fallen guardian of Tirisfal extended all over Azeroth and opened a breach in Menothras spirit. This was the chance for the spirit of the demon Karath-kin to put its malefic seed in the heart of the warrior. With the hope of joining her brother shattered, Gihlrael attempts an ultimate strike against Nyquarius, but the fight is unfair and she is eventually defeated when Nyquarius burns her with his most deadly technique: the starfire. Not without remorse, the powerful druid imprisons the body of the young druidess in a cage made of thorns and roots in the middle of the ruins of Stardust. The roots should have kept her body unflawed for all the years to come.
Death and rebirth
Gihlrael stays imprisoned for about five years, until the priestess Onathi, while wandering through Ashenvale, notices the cage made of roots and thorns, and frees the body of the druidess. After having brought her to Darnassus and healed her properly, Onathi entrusts the unconscious Gihlrael to Denalan, in Dolanaar. Gihlrael spends some months with Denalan, learning the love for growing flowers and trees, cooking and fishing. She was almost living a peaceful and calm life just like Nyquarius had told her five years before. But memories start to come back one after another, not counting the hope to see her brother again, a hope that has never died.
From there, the road to Shadowglen and Aldrassil was as short as ever