Varen Aquilarios (Online)

"I am the past and future both. I am despair and hope. The tapestry we weave is a complex one. You cannot hope to see its pattern in its entirety. Not yet."

- Varen to the Vestige

Varen Aquilarios, also known as The Prophet when the Vestige first meets him, is an Imperial sorcerer and the former Emperor of Cyrodiil. He is the founding member of the Five Companions.

Background
Varen is the son of a wealthy Colovian duke, and is a powerful military leader in his own right. When Leovic, third of the short-lived Reachman dynasty known as the Longhouse Emperors, assumed the Ruby Throne in 2E 573, he legalized Daedra worship across the Empire. This outraged much of the population, and prompted Varen to spark a rebellion.

Varen's Rebellion
Varen summoned the military forces of the Colovian Highlands. Secretly, he also contacted Abnur Tharn, who would later become one of his Five Companions, for assistance to "depose those foul strangers from the north". Varen based his rebellion out of the city of Bruma, and subsequently won many victories across Cyrodiil.

Later in the year, Varen and his army stormed the Imperial City, before breaking into the White-Gold Tower and driving his sword into Leovic's heart at the foot of the Ruby Throne, thus instantly killing him, and immediately declaring himself Emperor. For Abnur's loyalty and assistance in the rebellion, Varen agreed to take Clivia Tharn as his bride.

The Five Companions
Varen's rule went mostly without problems, but he was constantly worrying about him being an illegitimate ruler as he was not Dragonborn.



Believing that only a Dragonborn can rightfully take the Ruby Throne, he formed the Five Companions to find the Amulet of Kings after the Altmer sorcerer Mannimarco convinced him that he knew a ritual that would allow Varen to become Dragonborn. After hearing of this, he set out on a two-year quest to find the Amulet with his Five Companions: Varen himself, the half-giant warrior Lyris Titanborn, the sorcerer Mannimarco, Sai Sahan, a Redguard blademaster and the captain of his personal Dragonguard, and Elder Chancellor Abnur Tharn.

The Soulburst
The Five were able to recover the Amulet and begin the ritual in 2E 578. They gathered at the Temple of the One in the Imperial City and began to perform the ritual. At that moment, Mannimarco immobilized everyone present and revealed his true intentions; he was an agent of Molag Bal, and the ritual did not reignite the Dragonfires, but in fact did the exact opposite, destroying the ancient barriers shielding Mundus from the forces of Oblivion and thus allowing Molag Bal to begin the Planemeld, a forceful attempt to drag Nirn out of Mundus and into his own realm of Coldharbour. This event was known as the Soulburst, and it shook every corner of Tamriel.

Subsequently, Varen, Abnur and Lyris were all captured and brought into Coldharbour. Sai Sahan fled with the Amulet and managed to hide it in Sancre Tor before also being captured later on. Mannimarco summoned his Worm Cult and turned the Temple of the One into a sacrificial ground where dozens of souls were harvested and brought to Coldharbour.

The Vestige
In 2E 582, a mortal was captured, sacrificed and their soul was brought to the Wailing Prison in Coldharbour. Immediately after appearing, a projection of Varen, now a Soul Shriven sorcerer, appeared before them, giving the mortal the name of Vestige and telling them to find Lyris Titanborn. The Vestige was freed by Er-Jaseen, a member of an uprising of many prisoners in the prison.

As the Vestige journeyed through the prison, they grabbed a weapon and struck down Molag Bal's minions before meeting Lyris Titanborn. Lyris conceals Varen's identity, instead telling the Vestige that Varen's true name is lost, and he is instead known as the Prophet.

The two escape into the courtyard and destroy a Sentinel, a minion made to stop prisoners from escaping. They find that Varen's cell is warded off, so they seek Cadwell for help. Cadwell directs the two to Varen's cell.

Once Lyris and the Vestige reach Varen's cell, Lyris tells the Vestige that the only way to free Varen is for Lyris to take his place. Lyris then chants for her to take Varen's place in the cell, freeing Varen but imprisoning Lyris.

Varen, still concealing his identity, and the Vestige journey to a portal out of Coldharbour. They strike down the Guardian of the portal, and Varen restores the Vestige's corporeal form before they both return to Tamriel in different locations.

Trivia

 * Varen is voiced by Michael Gambon, best known for playing the role of Professor Dumbledore in the Harry Potter movies.
 * When the Vestige escapes Coldharbour and talks to Varen, he is voiced by Jim Cummings (only for that conversation). This is likely a placeholder as Zenimax had to edit the dialogue at the last minute before the game launched to fit in with the redesigned tutorial.