Variks the Loyal

Variks the loyal is one of the older members of the Aliens, known as the Elicksni, Guardians call the Fallen. Something I learned that surprised me is that Variks above all else, cares about his race. The Fallen themselves are not known to be a race that foster and watch out for each other. In this regard Variks is very different. But don't take Variks caring as weakness. He fought in the Reef wars alongside many of the Fallen Petra Venj and Queen Mora Sov would have you hunt for. Listen to what Variks would tell you:

They call me betrayer. They do not think I hear the words. "Bug." "Insect." "Fallen."

I hear. House of Judgment always hears. No choice. Has to. To keep Houses together. Had to. First , the Great Machine. Then, sky fell away. Whirlwind ripped away the past. All honor lost, all hope. Judgment not enough. Cannot keep Wolves from Kings, Scar from Winter. Fell to fighting. Fell to hate. Judgment gone. Others slaughtered, slain. Death and docking. "Keep Eliksni together," lost to pride and rage.

Traveled with the many houses before Wolves. We move, across the dark. Follow the Light. Advise Kells, worshiped Primes. House Judgment must survive, yes?

Found the Light. Too bright in Darkness to hide. House Winter, attack. House Devils, plot. House Kings, plan. House Wolves circle. House Judgment... wait.

Now at war. Fight for system, control the belt. Wolves Kell dead, dying.

Skolas wins control of House Wolves. Attack, attack, attack. Place of learning, place of healing, put to the burn. Then Siege of Pallas. Year of cruelty. Held the line to rescue butchers, murderers, Servitor. Ends with Wolf fleet scattered.

New tactics. Detonations. Blasts in civilian areas. Take the fight to them, he said. Cannot abide the hate. Uprising, they called it. Uprising on Cybele.

Reach out to Crows, to Queen. Cybele attack stopped. Skolas captured. Ended House of Wolves with words. Paladins find me hiding, cowering. Nowhere else to go. No one else to be. I become Variks, the Loyal. House Judgement envoy to Queen of Awoken.

No choice. House Judgment must survive. Yes?




Now there are several details in Variks speech. First he References the Great Machine and the Whirlwind. These are the Eliksni terms for the Traveler, and The Darkness. The Eliksni were once associated with the Traveler just as guardians are now. But Darkness came. Details of this are scarce. I don't think this went down like it did with Earth however. Variks makes it a point to say that they Fell from fighting and fell from hate. I believe that this is the reason we call the Eliksni Fallen. They quite literally fell from the grace and their sins made the Traveler desert them. Much of Variks House of Judgement were killed so the remaining members became advisors for the Kells. This would be smart move since a motive of house Judgement was to keep the "Eliksni together". This was part of a Eliksni pact. Stand next to Variks and he himself will tell you that he was a scribe in the House and had Much Respect.

So the Fallen came to our solar system and found the Traveler. They decided to try and take control of the system, but the most resistance came from the Reef and a small city on Earth, The Last City. In the Reef Wars The fallen lost the Kell of Wolves, Virixas. This was a major blow. The remaining members instead of focusing on the Awoken in the Reef, instead focused trying gain the Kells spot. Skolas would become the new Kell of the House of Wolves and had Variks as his advisor.

A funny side story is the Staff that Variks holds actually came from a fallen of the House of Devils. He will tell you "I took this staff long ago from devil captain, Vajis. Called Clever-headed. He was not as clever as Variks."

After the civil war for power within the Fallen for Skola's new Position, Variks saw this and decided it was time for a new course of action, he contacted the Awoken. He sent message that Skolas would take all his remaining forces and attack. This was known as the Cybelle Uprising. But thanks to Variks the Queen was ready. Once Skolas realized he had been betrayed he asked his trusted Advisor Variks to stand still, and then cut off his arms. Variks paid the price willingly I think because he disagreed with Skolas's tactics and saw the Eliksni killing each other only to try and win a war with the Awoken. The price of more Eliksni lives was to high. Variks became Variks the Loyal, Loyal to Queen Mara Sov. This is when the Events of the House of Wolves occurs. The Nine, not happy with Mara, Proceed to free Skolas. Skolas wants to lay claim to an Old Prophecy. A prophecy of a Long dead Great house, the House Rain. The Prophecy is that a Kell would Rise and become the true Kell of Kells, uniting all of the fallen in Peace.

The Queens move to Involve the Guardians worked. With Petra Venj and Variks assistance you are successful in capturing Skolas. Afterwards Variks reflected on the events of the House of Wolves Story.

Variks keeps a ragged piece of armor in his pod. It's human tech, Golden Age. Shattered in some ancient battle, pre-Collapse, and left to drift. He found it and he brought it to his quarters so he could sit on it. It's nothing like a throne. Variks doesn't want a throne. He sits on his ancient shrapnel, unmasked, and whittles at an amethyst with the dead edge of a shock dagger. Music plays (something ancient, pre-Whirlwind, beautiful). The ether in the air is rich and it fills him up with strength. Skolas has been captured, mad Skolas who would have ruined everything. Variks should be happy. He's not. With his little knife and his two arms and his stolen shining thing he feels like a Dreg. He feels ashamed.

He betrayed Skolas twice. At Cybele, and again, now. He will betray Skolas' dream ten times more. Variks will never be strong like Skolas, big like Skolas, a leader like Skolas. Variks will work for the Queen, oversee the Prisons, watch his fellow Fallen (they are Fallen, it's a good name now) fight and die as gladiators who want nothing except a chance to hurt Guardians. Even Skolas.

He tried to use the Vex, word has it. He tried to use their machines. Has that ever worked for anyone? Maybe one. Maybe a few: the Osiris cultists are Variks' favorite people. Maybe that's how you survive this alien star where dead gods slumber and dead heroes walk. You cozy up to powers you barely understand and make yourself useful, or at least inoffensive. You become a parasite, a scavenger, a servant. That's dreg strength. That's the strength that keeps Variks alive. It's nothing to be ashamed of.

Variks Role now is to remain the Warden for the Prison of Elders. His work in the Prison, setting up trial by combat, building an audience and a relationship with the Reef's scavengers and armories, will bring him a little closer towards rebuilding the House of Judgment. Skolas' fury has guttered out. The Fallen may yet accept peaceful, lawful rule. They may yet survive. They'll hang on. "We're very patient, yes?"

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