Upon the death of the praetorian prefect Gaius Tattius Maximus, Victorinus was summoned to Rome to replace Maximus, along with Sextus Cornelius Repentinus. Both were present at the deathbed of emperor Antoninus Pius (7 March 161). Marcus Aurelius, who had held "imperium" with Antoninus Pius, promoted his brother Lucius Verus to the purple; he selected Furius Victorinus to be Verus' pretorian prefect, and the man accompanied Verus to the Eastern provinces in 162. Victorinus distinguished himself in the Parthian War, receiving "dona militaria" in the form of "three Crowns, four headless spears, and four siege standards". In Spring 168, Victorinus was one of the generals leading Roman forces north against the Marcomanni, who were attempting to cross the Danube and invade Roman territory. It was at this point that the "Historia Augusta" reports cryptically, "The prefect Furius Victorinus was lost and the army had perished." Anthony Birley notes that while "it has been often assumed that the prefect and the troops had been killed in battle", he points out that there is no other indication that the guard under Victorinus had been engaged in fighting. "On the other hand," Birley continues, "the other sources paint a consistent picture of enormous losses from plague among the armies of Rome." So it is possible disease took Victorinus' life, as well as destroying the army.