KH Valen

Side character, Boa's father, eventual antagonist (kinda), well-loved and respected leader

King's Hammer

Male

43

Straight. His sister is a certified lesbian, and he's just over here like 'heck yeah, we can check out the ladies together.'
Not that he's had the most experience with serious relationships. He's a fairly cautious dater, and had a few shorter relationships that he didn't get emotionally invested in, (which may be why they ended, that's not the best thing to do with your partner, Valen), and two serious relationships that lasted longer.
One was with a lovely Sentinel lady that lasted almost a year before Valen's sister died and he broke it off because he realized he was being a terrible boyfriend whilst drowning in grief, and didn't want to hold her back (Also they'd just been growing apart in general)
The other was almost an enemies to lovers trope - except it eventually swung the other way again. The two got off on the wrong foot, and this lady was VERY easily offended, and then they eventually got to know each other via being forced to be in the same building up to five hours a day, and kinda fell in love, but then long story short, it wasn't a very emotionally intimate relationship, and Valen got very frustrated with that and it just fell apart.

Same as Boa, I don't really know, but since he's a warrior, mostly armor. Heavy armor. He's one of the fighters that really gets down in the middle of the brawling, so he needs that protection.

:)
I actually happen to know how much he weighs.
He's ~250 lbs

6'0" which is pretty much exactly average for his kind. (The average range is 5' 11" - 6' 1")

White. (Not of age, these people can be born with white hair)

Almost entirely shaved, except one short strip down the middle. He's got so much scarring, it was just easier to keep the hair cur then have it grow in super patchy.

A shortish, neat beard

He's got one blind white eye from when it got cut in half with a whip, but the left one is a very pale gold

Argentan

Valen's naturally on the tanner side.

Oohhhhh, he thicc
Except, with muscle, so...thikk? idk
ANYWAY he classes as a Super Heavy on the thiccness scale these people have, which means he's basically a tank; sturdy, powerful, and could probably out-pull a Clydesdale
Look out chirren, that's a lot of bicep
But, don't really be picturing body-builders, because he's got practical muscle, not showy muscle.

ALL the scarring. But within that, since that's absurdly common in his world, his missing eye is kinda a giveaway, the fact he's missing the top off his right ear, and his serious, almost sad resting face that melts away into the warmest smile the instant he sees you

Gardening, reading, hanging out with his friends, writing, (a little bit), playing with the neighborhood kids when he gets the chance, bringing home cute little gifts for his wife, just hanging out with her, playing with Ligra an Zei, the family Direwolves, etc.

With everything he's seen, you'd think he'd have PTSD. And he will. But right now, he's too in control of his mind to have reactions like that. One doesn't become a Sentinel Commander without having a will of steel and the aability to brush off horror. Which is why there's so few commanders, much less ones who have lasted as long as he has.

Upbeat and friendly, Valen always has a smile and a kind word to offer. He's people-centric, always looking out for those around him, and keeping tabs on who's going through what. Gentle and kind, he's good at getting people to open up to him, and at his age, with everything he's been through, he's often got quality advice for those who want it. One of the biggest believers in community and teamwork, he feels strongly that if someone in the team isn't feeling well, or there are even slight disagreements, the team will be endangered. While he is very understanding and empathetic, he's not always the type to go the sympathy route. Sometimes he believes that tough love is the better path forward, and can he be tough. If you're suffering, you've got gentle, loving Valen, but if you're stirring up trouble, or getting into fights, or not listening, you've got stern, firm Valen, who has no problem going hard on you if you need it.
He's also the first to whip around and give you a hug if you need it, even if it's Tough Love o'clock, because he still cares very deeply about you. He's forgiving, and once you apologize and fix your ways, he'll move on as though nothing ever happened. This lack of grudge holding is what many of his team members like most about him, since many of them were a little on the trouble-maker side when they first got assigned to him. He's unintentionally become a safe place for many Sentinels by having them assigned to his squad with some problem, and him just giving them the time, space, hugs, or hard work they needed. From Arven, who had such terrible anxiety and impostor syndrome his natural talent was withering, to Sasha, who, after three months of seeming like a normal Sentinel, finally broke down and admitted he was so scared of death he could hardly keep it together before a battle, Valen's quiet, calm presence has helped them manage their issues and become better Sentinels because of it.
He's mature and initially comes off as VERY collected, rarely losing his temper, because he doesn't really have a temper to lose. It takes a LOT for him to get seriously angry, though he may speak sharply from time to time. However, he has a difficult time not showing the emotions he feels, and he's generally easy to read, especially around those he trusts, which is almost 90% of the people he sees every day. They can always tell when something's up, and he really can't try and hide it. He's a terrible liar, and if you have a surprise you don't want some one to know, don't tell Valen about it either. He won't be able to keep it a secret for very long. Just in general, he's an honest individual who will take the fall if it's his fault without hesitation. Of course, that's a lot easier to do when you're a man of his standing, but y'know.
Respectful and devoted to his people, Valen does carry a distinct proud streak, well aware of his rank and value. He uses this sway well, uncompromising in his dignity, feelings of self-worth, and value. Even the king cannot subdue him when he feels he's being walked over. He'll firmly stand up for himself against anyone, if he feels he's being treated unfairly. Of course, this isn't always a good trait, as his unrelenting stance on this can occasionally get to the point where he and whoever he's arguing with simply can't make progress. Though even then Valen's temper remains in check, there have been a couple times him and the king have had...intense discussions, since the king is the only other person of high enough rank to technically be able to just make Valen do things. If ever there was a man more likely to say "With all due respect..." I should be very surprised.
He can be a bit too protective of his friends, making him occasionally overbearing, and when he makes his mind up, often there is no brooking any argument with him. He's stubborn, is the long and short of what I'm getting at here. Him, and all his family. (Honestly, that's just a common special trait). Used to being in a position of command, he can be bossy, though never rudely. If you have a problem with a command he's giving, he'll listen, but don't expect him to change anything. And you'd better not argue in the heat of battle. That's one of the few times he will ever, EVER yell at you. He'll ALWAYS take the fall before one of his teammates, and will hear no argument. (This is how he lost his eye, but more on that later)
He, being such a people person, hates being alone, and as such he's constantly seeking out company, even if just to sit in the same room reading or something. Being raised during an era of the Sentinels where you just kept your team around you at all times, no questions asked, he's uncomfortable being alone, and feels more endangered, even if he's in the heart of his home city. He's lost too many people in his life because they were alone to NOT have a strong attachment to company. He has a firm sense of right and wrong, and holds his job in the highest honor; it is the most important thing. He carries out his duties with unwavering pride, believing there is no higher calling than to serve his people.
Well-liked by most people he meets, he's charismatic and interested in others, spending time listening to them rather than talking about himself. He has firm beliefs that he will argue, however, and is unswayable on his opinions. He can be a tiny bit of a control freak, wanting to do stuff himself to either keep others safe, or if he thinks he's the only one capable. He has some problems delegating, though this is a flaw mostly from his youth that he's learned to let go of by now.

Cheering people up, directing a workflow, keeping a team whole and hale through any and all challenges (he actually has one of the best track records of the current set of commanders as far as deaths under their command), taking charge of any given situation, fearless calm in the face of crisis, a steady loyalty and sure direction, so on and so forth. As has been written about him in an accountance of a famous battle Valen was part of:
"As the fire cascaded from the sky and crashed through our defenses, only one was holding the troops together. Commander Valen stood unshaken, directing his men with the tranquility of the depthless lakes."
He's also great at making Ranir laugh, making his family feel loved and protected, and making anyone feel noticed and cared about.
He's the definition of his class as well. Methodical, patient and nearly unstoppable in a fight, he's great to have on your team if you're in a heavy tangle of combat, he's good at clearing out the field with that hammer of his and a powerful combat shotgun.

He's got an entirely unnoticed by himself belief in certain limitations and thresholds that he doesn't consider crossable. There's only so good a warrior can get, for example. One they've hit their peak, there's no point in trying to go further, you'd best just maintain what you have now, that kinda stuff.
He definitely has a hard time seeing the flaws in his culture, he only sees the levels of power they've achieved and their advancements, and doesn't question very much.
Thanks to some events of his life growing up, and the position his country was in, he can be wary of outsiders from other planets, and may tend to look down on, or be dismissive of people who like to play hero , and try and do things themselves (Disregarding that he himself swings a little that way, but hey, don't tell him that he'll argue that point all day long)

His fatal flaw is, and always will be, his family. He'll tell you his priorities are exactly as follows: Country, team, family. That's not true at all, his family is waaaaay above those other two.
But to be fair, he doesn't even know that about himself. He believes he would do what any Sentinel commander is supposed to do, and sacrifice everything for his king and his country. He's very, very, very wrong. And he will, eventually, learn exactly how wrong, and suffer for it.

Other flaws include:
Overprotective of his friends. When out on a mission, he hardly lets them out of his sight, and never lets anyone go anywhere alone. Back home, if someone has a problem, he's not the type to let them work it out on their own -- whether they want help or not.

His inability to be alone. I mean, he's not going to have a panic attack and die, but he goes probably too far out of his way to ensure he's got someone nearby at all times. Easy enough when you live where he does, but may get harder as life goes on.

His stubborn streak, both a good thing and a bad thing, he's going to be a VERY set in his ways old man someday. Probably the worst kind of boomer you could imagine lol Valen is that cultures version of Karen just kidding, but he's only going to sink deeper down into the ruts he's already started.

His social prowess may leave many people thinking he's flawless, and the fact that most of his life is dependent on social aspects, he may act flawless to any outsider. But spend a day talking to Ranir, and she'll tell you how terrible at cooking he is, how he set himself on fire with his own weapon once, how he's constantly tripping, and stubbing his toe, and cursing around their son before he can catch himself, or coming home burned out from the day and just,,, not being able to function, or struggling through a depressive period after every loss he sees, no matter how close he was to the person. Also those annoying moments when he just,,, falls in love with her all over again and has to spend the next three hours telling her as much with stars in his eyes. Sweet the first couple times, but eventually she's just kinda like 'Okay, that's great, I love you too, can I please go about my day'
Also, in the fifteen years they've been together, he's accidentally elbowed her in the face a LOT. She's just the perfect height, he lacks just enough ability to pay attention, and bam she's in a bad mood and he feels horrible

So yeah, he's also kinda a klutz, and doesn't have terribly stunning emotional regulation.

Family. Family, family, family, family.
Friends, also.
Then duty, then country. (Don't tell him that)
But also, duty and county are very important to him. Enough so that he's been able to trick himself and everyone else that they're his number one priority.

• When you're talking to him, he'll kinda tilt his head towards you as he's listening, and nod every once in a while.


• He's got a lot of breathing patterns he uses to keep himself calm and collected in a crisis situation, or when he wants to control his emotions.


• He'll touch or rub his blind eye when he feels nervous, especially if something feels reminiscent of the situation he received the wound from.


• When he's being challenged by someone - which does occasionally happen, he'll drop everything and give them his full attention, regardless of almost anything.


• The rare times he does lose his temper, he'll similarly drop everything and be like 'b r u h. Do we have a problem.' He really doesn't glare or shout, just kinda stare like 'yes? are you done?? can we move on please???'


• If he's in an argument he's uncomfortable with, say with Ranir, he'll usually busy himself with anything he can and generally try to physically ignore whoever he's clashing with, even as he verbally caries on the dispute. It's kind of his way of avoiding something he feels he can't back down from.


• He's got an absolutely award-winning smile. Just throwing that in there.


• His constant energy is Dad Friend tm. Low-key tired of your shit, but still game and willing to hear you out.

Again, kinda unsure on the food, so...skip

His library. He's collected quite the array of historical books, and he's endlessly fascinated by every one of them.

Exhunt, his war hammer. Has never let him down, and fits his fighting style perfectly.

Bees~
Also the direwolves, but come on, who doesn't?

Team leader on the front lines of the war with Hell, close advisor of the king

Welp. He's got plenty. But here's the plot-relevant ones:
King Novik: As one of the highest ranking and most senior Sentinels, Commander Valen is one of the king's closest friends, and has been for years.
Ranir: Hey, what's a wife if not a best friend? These two nerds love each other in every definition of the word.
Gor: Once serving on the same squad, the younger Sentinel and Valen grew quite close, and currently love to babysit each other's kids. Subsequently, Gor's entire family.
Sasha: Currently one of the youngest members of Valen's team, Sasha is endlessly cheerful and optimistic, which Valen has a great appreciation for, especially when around:
Arven: Who is a firm pessimist, also serving on Valen's squad. Sasha's best friend, and a notorious grumbler, Arven looks up to, respects, and loves Valen more than anyone else even the king
Arcane: One of the other senior commanders, they trained together in the Path camps, and attended the Night Parade on the same team. These two are old friends, who are always happy to see each other.
Queen Helix and Princess Exus: The king's wife and daughter also know and like Valen, and he's friendly with them as well.
Illkanax: The king's aged sister, technical heir to the throne should Exus be deemed unworthy by some nightmare, this sassy old lady was always salty that she never got the throne, and makes sure EVERYONE around her knows it. Her and Novik are forever arguing about something, and Valen's always there to mediate. Illkanax only admits to Valen that she loves Novik dearly, but she has him under oath never to tell.

Devout worshiper of the Maykrs, as is expected, loyal first to the Wraiths, as his oath demands. He's peacefully go with the flow, honoring both highly. He's grateful to the Maykrs for all they've done for his people, and ensures he shows it appropriately. He's like someone who goes to church every Sunday, but pretty much is satisfied with that.

Ranir, his love of loves. I could go ON about these two, but I shan't, out of respect for your time.

I'll explain how they met in his backstory, but they've always felt that they were meant to be together, by some wish of the Wraiths. They adore each other and are forever telling each other that. Yeah, they argue, and yeah sometimes they don't get along great, but they always come out okay.

Fun fact, Valen never flirted with her until after they got married. He was super respectful and distant at first, because of her job. He expected she'd never return his feelings strongly enough to abandon her post, and he loved her enough to respect that. Once he knew she was here to stay, then he started with the cheesy one-liners, and she loves hates it.

He's incredibly loyal and dedicated to the king, and what he says goes, as far as Valen's concerned. He trusts the Maykrs unconditionally, but if for some crazy reason the king split with them, he'd stick with Novik. (But don't be silly...there's no way that would ever happen, right???)

Night Sentinel Commander

He likes greys and blues, they're very aesthetically pleasing to him, even though he usually would wear pale golds and whites. Grey and blue look better on Ranir, so-
Wait. So that's why he likes them!

Valen was born as Valen Cooper's Son at the edge of the kingdom, near Illkana. His parents, knowing they wanted more for their children than their simple life, applied for him and his twin sister Ralli to become Night Sentinels upon their birth. They were accepted in, and they were raised knowing that. The two were about as close as siblings could be, and did EVERYTHING together. Ralli, being exactly three seconds older than him, hearkened herself as the ultimate authority in life, which was their main source of argument. She was a wild, energetic soul, comparative to Valen's quieter, softer presence. As such, in early life she actually overshadowed him quite a lot, constantly getting in trouble and dragging Valen along with her whether he wanted to go or not.
Although, to be fair, it was less of her strong-arming him into doing things, and more of him whisper-screaming at her to don't while she carried on her merry way regardless, at which point he would run out and follow her, trying to get her to stop while she ignored him.
They were each other's favorite people by a long shot, and all the other friends they made as youthful youths never came near how close they were with each other
Until the age of seven, he lived with them and learned the ways of his parent's wood crafting. These are skills he's carried with him for the rest of his life, whittling small figurines and tools. He carries it as a hobby more than anything else. He and Ralli were expected to help their parents with their trade, and were kept quite busy as such.
After he and Ralli moved to Sentinel Prime, he almost never saw his parents, since they lived so far away from each other. You can actually count the number of times he was able to visit them throughout his training, a grand total of seven times over the seventeen years of Sentinel training. He was always more saddened by this than Ralli, she was always a little more independent than him. But, what he always considered to be most important to him was her anyway, so as long as they were together, he was okay.
Raised in the Sentinel training camps, he was incredibly dedicated to his craft, enthusiastic about every aspect of the career. His parents, being huuuuge supporters of the Sentinel Order had really talked it up, and he was thrilled to be part of it. Ralli as well, despite all her eye-rolling.
They were taken into training at a very tense moment in Argenta politics, with there being a lot of concern over spies and potential invasion from the Kagent, the primitive swamp people who the Argenta had been at war with for a good century now. Once members of the early Argentan clans, the Kagent are a small tribe descended from the brothers and sisters who lost the civil wars in the early ages. Believed to have all died in the swamps they'd retreated to, this proved not to be the case when they re-emerged, thousands of years later, not only still alive, but looking to take the Argenta's land as their own.
If you've ever watched Moana, and that scene when the coconut people show up? Yeah, that's a very accurate account of what happened the first time the Argenta were invaded by them. The Kagent, though far outclassed in technology and militia, nearly succeeded in overwhelming the siege-city Exultia. Something historically impossible to do. The Argenta had to really scramble after that, and chased the invaders back to the swamp lands, where they held the line, and have been holding it ever since. They can't sally forth into the swamp, it's too treacherous and they'd be beyond out maneuvered, and they can't pull back, because the Kagent will just keep pushing.

This stalemate cause a LOT of concern, a problem neither King Novik's mother, nor king Novik had been able to solve. But it was getting worse in the modern day, when the Kagent's true secret weapon was revealed: Whitebreath. A terrible crystal floating in the air of the swamps, if breathed for too long, it proved fatal. Picture black-lung that miners get? Yeah, same kinda deal. They hadn't known about it until recently, since it was slow to develop, and only their longest serving swamp warriors were suddenly coughing up blood every time they tried to take a breath.
To make a long story short, the Kagent, having developed masks over their hundreds of years learning the swamps, were now able to push the weakening Argenta line. As chaos fell down upon the front, the Alchemists scrambling for something - ANYTHING - capable of filtering out the white crystals, there was an assassination, or an attempted one. King Novik was only saved by his own quick wits and senses, waking and throwing himself out of harms way a mere second before the knife would have skewered his face. They never found the would-be killer, and it threw yet more discord through the Argenta as they suddenly found themselves in the middle of an unintended witch-hunt, the kings nearest and dearest turning on each other, accusations flying, trust fraying.

And what does all this have to do with Valen? The Path Camps, normally fairly free-flowing and open doored, suddenly became quite the opposite. Teams stuck together, Path Masters shepherded their charges closely, both out of fear for their safety, and worry over their loyalty. Many children with Sentinel parents had to watch their mothers and fathers be thrown to the dogs as fear and anger ran uncontrolled through the kingdom. The Path Masters did their best to keep their charges sheltered from the disarray and on the route to becoming the warriors the kingdom so desperately needed. This inquisition would take years to subside fully, but as the Argenta started to get their feet under them again, the king and his family and guard began to crack down on the infighting and strife, tolerating nothing less than smooth unity. This took a lot of work and the king really having to remind a lot of people that he was in charge, and what he said went, period. Valen was well aware of what was happening, and it was cemented very firmly into him that if you didn't stick with your team, you were unaccounted for, and if you were unaccounted for, nothing good could happen. He began stepping out of his shell more and more, assuming positions of authority and directing people to ensure their safety.

He and Ralli both graduated the Sentinel Path at the top of their class, aged 19, with skill-sets that had already caught the king's attention, especially considering when he was still having to deal with. They were a natural choice for the Night Parade, and Valen not only saw himself through unscathed, but carried his entire team through to completion in a down-right unheard of show of leadership and skill. It was one of only three recorded cases of an entire team making it through the Night Parade. Ralli completed the Parade as the only survivor of her team, however, with her team being decimated by infighting. (Forgive my lack of specifics surrounding the Night Parade, I have yet to work out all the details of what it is)

Welcomed into the Night Sentinel Order with full honors, they quickly earned respect from the others, working together as a formidable team of Super Heavies. They rapidly became two of the best warriors of their generation, and both of them were invited by the king into his personal guard. However, it was not to last. When they were both twenty-three, they applied to the Commander Trials, and an unfortunate twist of fate gave Valen an injury he couldn't ignore, and Ralli went in alone. She was killed attempting the final stages of the Trials, a terrible fluke that should not have been possible. She should have passed easily, however one slip up cost her her life. Valen was absolutely destroyed by the loss, falling physically ill for months as he fell prey to infection while he was in shock. For a long time, it was a little touch and go, with the healers warning he may follow his sister out of grief alone. The king, who had been friends with both of them, spent every spare moment he had with Valen, praying to the Wraiths and the Maykrs to save his friend. And, happily, Valen pulled through, though it took him a long time to come back to himself fully. He carried the grief and trauma with him for many, many years after that, causing him to avoid re-applying for the Trials himself even though he was beyond qualified. The loss only reaffirmed his belief that teams should stick together, and he always wondered what would have happened if he'd been with her.

Valen met Ranir when he was twenty-seven at the Festival of Honor. She, being one of the Swamp Veterans, had been pulled from the front to be celebrated for her personal achievements, and Valen was there for similar reasons. The instant Ranir saw him she though holy shit, he's handsome and, being not shy in the slightest, went right up to him and introduced herself.
He, the second she gave a greeting, thought asdfghjkl she pretty and just barely managed to not make a fool of himself by tripping over his own tongue. They started hanging out, like, a LOT, and Valen asked Ranir's CO if she might be granted leave for a few months. Well, no one would say to a Night Sentinel, so she was able to stay for three months. Which got bumped to five. Then seven. Then ten. Then a whole year had passed. The entire time they were 'just friends, stop snickering like that or so help me-'
Of course, as much as they (mainly Valen) tried to convince himself this, the two were madly in love with each other. But nothing was ever said because...drumroll please...
A) Ranir, being a swamp soldier, lived faaaar away.
B) Swamp Soldiers are notoriously tight-knit, similar to Sentinel squads. Valen didn't want to ask her to leave her family, just as she was agonizing over that very choice.
and, most concerningly,
C) Swamp Soldiers often had short, brutal lives. Most didn't make it to 40, much less past it. Valen was a little hesitant about proposing to someone who could, in more than theory, be ripped away from him at any second. Swamp Soldiers almost never started families, for that exact reason. No one wants to be the mother or father who simply doesn't come home that some time, and leaves their family with nothing but the grief.

Fortunately for both of them, King Novik, upon Valen finally sharing all his agonies with him, was able to smack some sense into his friend, basically laughing in his face and saying 'dude, you two are so in love it's visible from space. Get married. She can live with us.'
And Valen was like ᵘʷᵘ ᵒᵏᵉ
And what do ya know, Novik was right, and when he finally summoned the courage to ask, they had a deep talk about it, and she agreed (she'd been predicting this moment, but had taken the cowards way out and waited for Valen to ask).
The two married and had their son Boa by the time Valen was twenty-eight.

Happily married ever since, he applied for the Commander Trials upon the recommendation of the king and encouragement of Ranir. That is to say, the king peer pressured him about it and when he ran home to Ranir she gave him no sympathy and was like 'bruh, do it.' This was a highly stressful time for him, since he had a family to consider as well as himself now, and the loss of his sister weighed heavily on him still. But his family rallied around him, didn't let him chicken out, and he passed the trials with flying colors. This helped him A LOT to move on from his sisters death, and regain a lot of the confidence in himself and his command he'd lost. He has been leading skillfully ever since, and has earned many traits and decorations throughout the years.

That basically covers the major events of his life. By the time he was in his thirties, the situation with the Kagent was back under control (aka, back to the stalemate it has always been), the spy had been found and ahem taken care of, and a time of peace overcame the Argenta lands.

Of course, Hell invaded when Valen was 40, but similar to the Kagent, the line hold strong in Hell, the proud, brave Sentinels keeping their country safe. Valen's team was captured at one point after they ventured a little too far into Hell, and interrogated for information about their country. Valen, knowing Sasha would never be able to handle the pressure, knowing that Arven was too psychologically susceptible, 'accidentally' let slip something about his position and closeness to the king, which meant the demons targeted him for information. He did his best to shield his company from the brunt of the torture, and before they could get rescued, that's when he lost his eye after he got slashed in the face by a whip. THAT hurt. He'd been able to handle pretty much most of the rest of it before then. That was a couple days in, and he was starting to lose his ability to grin and bear it. After another two days of no medical attention to his split in half eye, and more injuries on top of that, as WELL as trying to support his team, they finally got rescued, and he was out of action for half a year, physically and mentally recuperating. But over all, the war's going well, and nothing was given away by him or his team, (A couple red herrings were laid, perhaps), and he's back in action by now, three years later, all better, though a little more likely to give Ranir an extra kiss before he heads out. They're holding the line, and nothing's gotten through to their kingdom yet.
THAT'S not likely to change, right? Sure.

Yeah, they're going to break through, things are going to deteriorate, Boa's going to die, and Valen's going to be going through some stuff.
After his son's death, he was nearly driven mad with nightmares of his son's spirit being tormented in the Torture Mines, and when he was nearly at the end of his mental rope, a group of people he trusted confirmed that was EXACTLY what was happening to Boa, and basically fed into his hauntings until they felt he would do whatever they wanted him to do. They promised to 'bring back' Boa, in exchange for the keys to the Well of the Wraiths, something Valen was entrusted with, and should have never given to anyone, EVER.
Well, he couldn't take it anymore, and agreed, and they...kinda brought Boa back? They chained his spirit to a monster, but you know about that from Boa's pov. And then those same people, after having used and abused Valen enough, let him take the blame when the Wraiths were stolen.
VERY long, complex betrayal short, everyone, Valen included, now blames him for the murder of the king and the deaths and destruction of the Sentinels and their entire culture. Woot!
Also, Valen has no idea Boa's actually still alive out there somewhere. Feeling as though he's done enough, he refuses to give in to the temptation of suicide, living out his days in self-imposed exile in Hell, knowing the only thing he can do now is bear out his punishments with honor.
I know I wrote all of that in past tense, but it hasn't happened yet, and won't until he's 47, oops

Yep, still don't know the calendar...

The Sentinel Path - Graduate
The Night Parade - Completed
The Commander Trials - Completed

His father's name is We, (said EE-v-ee- eh) and his mother, and his mother is Etre (EH-treh). They're entirely unimportant to the plot, so, that's all I really know about them :)

Two Direwolves he found on the mountainside near his childhood home. He took them in and raised them, naming them Ligra (King) and Zei (Nobility - closest translation, they don't really have that in their culture? Maybe more like 'royalty'). They both love him and his family to DEATH and they're a pair of good boys.

Theme songs:
Brother - Kodaline
My Blood - Twenty-one Pilots
Melancholy Hill - Gorillaz
Glad you Came - The Wanted -- this is the epitome of Ranir and Valen's relationship.
Welcome Home, Son - Radical Face
Black Mambo - Glass Animals
Iron - Woodkid
This is War - Thirty Seconds to Mars
Bitter Water - The Oh Hellos
The Valley - The Oh Hellos
To be by Your Side - Nick Cave

Hogwarts house:
I think we ALL know he'd be a Hufflepuff, Gryffindor close second

Element he'd Bend
Well, according to the quiz I just took about that...He's the Avatar?
But also probably earth, maybe water, depends on his mood

I feel a little like I've been just ranting about how awesome he is this whole time lol So Imma try and balance that out a little more down here xD

A couple inconsistencies I'll try and clear up:
The whole 'can he manage his emotions, or not?? is he calm and collected, or fluid and expressive???'
His resting mood is calm and collected. That's what he feels most the time, and thanks to his training, he has a HIGH threshold for 'okay, I should start feeling other emotions now.' Those who hold the position of commander go through a lot of prep before the trials, because they are dangerous. Very few people attempt them, and few are allowed to. They have to be sure you know what you're doing, and know how to keep your cool. He's learned a lot from both times he went through that prep, and as such isn't just faking his calm. He really is just that hard to shake.
Now, he's also expressive in that when he's feeling good emotions, he never tried to learn how to control them, and never wants to. He probably could but what kind of manic would?
And if his negative emotions get bad enough to be able to shake him, they are...awful. Like, lose a twin sister, lose a child bad. Sure, he gets impacted by team losses as well, and so forth, but with those he can keep himself together enough to get through a work day. Going home is when he starts to let go of that control and crash.

He and Ranir actually fight a little more than you might think, because as much as they love each other they have different standards, different moral codes, and different needs for space. Valen can get clingy sometimes, and Ranir needs her breathing room. Ranir gets over things quickly, and finds it harder to know what to do with Valen when he's feeling bad for so long. Ranir needs her house to be clean and neat (come on, after living most of your life in a swamp, wouldn't you?) and Valen's a little more prone to just tossing his stuff around, which is one sure-fire way to rile her up. They disagree over Boa sometimes. Ranir thinks he's too soft and sheltered, Valen doesn't want his son to go through any of the stuff he and Ranir went through. Sometimes Ranir gets frustrated with how much Valen's gone, to which he'll point out, "I ain't got a choice, lady, we're at war, and this is my job," which is true, but doesn't help Ranir feel any better. She comes from a place where every time a person leaves your sight, you have a significant chance of never seeing them again. Valen has a harder time understanding that; the Night Sentinel's jobs are pretty cushy and safe compared to that. Sure, he could get killed in battle, but unlike the swamps, the Sentinels fight mostly on thier home terrain, where they are almost impossible to defeat.
However, despite that, what they're good at, is walking away from an argument, taking a breather, cooling down a little, and returning with the recognition of each others needs, wants, and opinions. They work things out, and they try their very best to be understanding and patient with each other.

Has Valen ever had a moment of clumsiness on the battle field? He will tell you no, of course not.
He has. He's tripped mid charge, face planted, slid up to fifteen feet because he hit a slippery patch everyone but him saw, and hit his head on things because he forgot how tall he was. Fortunately demons are more likely to laugh at you than take advantage of such a moment, and usually Valen ensures there's no witnesses to spread the tale.

Valen, being strongly opinioned, has a couple subjects you just...should not get hims started on.
One of which is certain historical events he has studied more than the average sane person would, and feels VERY strongly on how miss-interpreted they are by the common layman. He will go off.
The other of which, are the left-arm shoulder guards issued to the Sentinel soldiers. Not the Night Sentinels, of which he is, oh no, he has problems with an armor piece he doesn't even have to wear. Generally, on Sentinel armor of ANY kind, the left arm is more heavily armored than the right, since they don't really use shields, and need something to duck behind.
His problem is with the way the shoulder guard is raised, almost separated from the armor itself. He will NOT shut-up about that. It's not like it doesn't work, he just doesn't like how it's potentially sight-inhibiting.
A conversation that has happened on multiple occasions:
Valen, getting more and more wound up about this: Finishes part 1 of chapter 1, book 1, series 1 of his complaints with this piece of armory.
Any of his friends who don't know enough to just nod and smile: "But you have a raised shoulder guard too, Valen!"
Valen, turning on them with all the fury of a thousand suns: "mine's DIFFERENT!"
(Basically Mark at this timestamp: 9:21