Online:The Rat

The Rat is a Reachman found in the Imperial City. Rather than returning to the Reach after Emperor Leovic was deposed, he remained in the City and hid in the Imperial Sewers when the Daedra came. The experience has left him slightly deranged, but he possesses intimate knowledge of the City's hidden passages and will help you thwart Molag Bal's plans.
  

Related Quests



Quest-Related Events
The Watcher in the Walls
At your Alliance Rally Point in the Arena District, you will find a Bloody Scroll penned by The Rat. He offers to reveal a secret about Molag Bal's plots if you put on a show for him in the Arena, which is currently being used by the invading Daedra under the command of Dredaza the Ringmaster.
thumb|right|The Rat in the Arena
After defeating all the Daedra in the Imperial City Arena, The Rat will invite you to his little hideaway in the Arena Storage Room.
:The Rat: "Your delightful slaughter has impressed The Rat! Come, come! We have much to talk about!" 

Speak with him.
:'"''The Rat was entertained! Oh, most entertained! The Daedra … not so much. No, they weren't entertained at all."
:In your note, you claimed to have information about Molag Bal's plan for Imperial City. What is it?
:"Yes, yes! The Rat has ears to the ground. Ears to the walls! My little friends are everywhere and they hear secrets whispered by Daedra big and small. Tasty secrets. These Daedra plot and whisper, you see, and The Rat listens. He always listens."
:That's great. So what has The Rat heard these Daedra say?
:"They speak of the Dragonfires! They seek to snuff them out forever, oh yes. The Rat heard this quite clearly. No Dragonfires ever again. No more Dragon-God promises. No more Eight-blessed emperors in shiny hats. Just death and slavery, forever!"
:But the Dragonfires have already been extinguished.
:"For now. Only for now! Don't you know the story? When Alessia's heirs wear the Amulet of Kings, the fires will burn again! Even a mighty Daedric Prince must hide from such a light! Unless Molag Bal erases them, of course. Unless that happens."
:How could Molag Bal "erase" the Dragonfires?
:"You beg The Rat to share all his crumbs? No, no. The Rat has said enough! You want more, greedy one? Find the Drake of Blades. She's close, very close. Down in the sewers. She would like to nibble on this crumb, oh yes. Tell her the Prince's plan!"
:Fine. I'll speak to the Drake of Blades in the Imperial sewers.

You can speak to him again to learn about the mysterious mouse man:
:"No, no. You've had your fill. No more secrets. Off! Of with you!"
:Why do you call yourself "The Rat"?
:"Oh, The Rat doesn't call himself "The Rat." The people call him that. I call him that too, but that's because I'm a person. People get us confused sometimes. The Rat doesn't know why though … and frankly, neither do I."
:Where did you come from?
:"The sewers, of course. That's where most of the rats live. The Rat was tired of being down there though. A long, long time ago, before he was The Rat, he remembers being up here, in the city. He even had a friend. He was a trusted advisor."
:Advisor to whom?
:Oh, Emperor Leovic. He was a sharp one, such a good sense of humor … until he died of course. That's when his friends took him down to the sewers. The Emperor wasn't very fun anymore, but then the friend met The Rat. That made things better."
:You took Emperor Leovic's corpse into the sewers?
:"No, no&mdash;that wasn't me. That was someone else. I'm The Rat, you see? I didn't even know the Emperor before he died. And now, well, The Rat and the Emperor don't really get along anymore."

The Sublime Brazier
At the beginning of this quest, you will be tasked by the Drake of Blades with locating a Marked Barrel in the Imperial Sewers where The Rat has left a  . It can be found close to a District sewer grate in  .

Notes
The Rat is featured in Mycaelis Julus Answers Your Questions'', where he murders the sewer architect Mycaelis Julus and takes over the interview to answer lore questions.