Aurelion Aurelos

"Amare et sapere vix deo conceditur."Aurelion Aurelos (High Cipritine: [au̯rɛˈliː.ɔn au̯ˈreːlɔs]; 356 BCE - 254 BCE), historically styled as "Aurelion Imperator", was the last Imperator of the Pre-Aurelian Empire and founder of the modern-day Aurelian Empire, often incorrectly called the "Turian Hierarchy" by alien species. He is the most revered of all turian historical figures, posthumously deified for his reunification of the empire and the reformation of its hereditary monarchy into a hierarchical meritocracy. He is widely considered to be one of history's most successful military commanders, having presided over the largest spacefaring empire of the Early Council Era without ever losing a single battle.
Sometime after his coronation, Aurelion came into contact with one of the elusive Beings of Light, which directed him towards the location of an ancient prothean memory shard, hidden within Temple Palaven. When Aurelion took the shard into his hands, he received a vision which warned him about the reapers and their cycles of genocide. This vision spurred him to reunify the turians' shattered empire, in the hopes that unity would give his people a fighting chance against the coming harvest. 
Aurelion was haunted by his vision for the rest of his life. He rationalised it by convincing himself that he was a divine prophet sent to restore his people's legacy to protect them from the cycle. This belief profoundly affected his ability to live a normal life and develop healthy relationships with others. His forbidden love of Markus Abrudas nearly broke his resolve, for Aurelion wanted nothing more than to forget the horrors imparted by the shard and devote himself entirely to the man he loved. In the end, he was forced to choose between his divine duty to his people and his mortal love of Markus; he chose duty, albeit with great emotional pain. 
== Biography ==
=== Lineage and childhood ===
Aurelion was born in Pellus, the capital city of the planet Macedyn. He was the son of Heredus Verix and Polixena. He was born a member of the Imperial Family of Palaven and thus entitled to wear purple from birth. Like his father, he also held the title of 'Heredus' from birth, which roughly translates as "Prince" but more literally means "Heir [of the Blood]". Despite the grand connotations of such a title, Aurelion was rather distantly connected to the rest of the Imperial Family, being the mere second cousin of his predecessor, Glabius Imperator. This placed him as only thirteenth in line to the Imperial Throne, behind his more senior cousins, aunts and uncles. If future events had not come to pass, Aurelion would have likely lived out the life of a minor royal in pampered obscurity on Macedyn. However, the assassination of Glabius Imperator and the Massacre of the Heredi changed everything.
Being the child of a minor heredus, Aurelion enjoyed relative freedom whilst growing up. He received an education typical for a child of his station, studying military theory, philosophy, religion, critical thinking, and art, in addition to the compulsory core subjects. It was during his youth that he became a proficient player of the kyrix, a traditional Palavenean string instrument, similar to the lyres found in Earth's ancient Mediterranean cultures. Aurelion would later go on to compose many songs, the most famous of which is the ballad Frater Meus ("Brother Mine"), which he dedicated to Markus Abrudas while the pair were on campaign on Epyrus.
=== Sexuality and marriage ===
At the age of seventeen, Aurelion was wed to Septonia Halabrian, the daughter of the Consul of Macedyn. Their marriage was purely political, a power play devised by Verix and Septonia's mother to strengthen their own positions. Aurelion and Septonia had been promised to each other since infancy, each growing up knowing that they would one day be man and wife. Aurelion struggled to accept this future, especially after he had matured into an adolescent and begun to realise that he was not sexually attracted to women. After he turned sixteen and became a man in his own right, he attempted to persuade his parents to break the betrothal but his protests were ultimately ignored; his father insisted that it was his familial duty to better his family's status within the wider Imperial Family. 
Knowing that there was no way out, Aurelion became increasingly anxious at the prospect of having to mask his homosexuality for the rest of his life. While he had been able to conceal it well enough up until that point, he feared that the societal pressure and familial expectation for him to sire children of the imperial bloodline would inevitably reveal the truth. While it was true that he did care deeply for Septonia - to the point where he did genuinely feel romantic love for her and a desire to be with her, always - he knew that he harboured no sexual feelings towards her, or any other woman. Septonia was completely besotted with him and he feared that it would break her heart or, worse, push her away from him if he ever told her the hard truth. In his heart, he wanted so desperately to be with her in all ways, to be 'normal'. Just knowing that he couldn't be infuriated him, sparking a deep and ingrained self-loathing within him. Hating himself, Aurelion began to seek a 'cure', believing that if he brute forced the sexuality issue enough times that he would eventually learn to sexually desire the woman whom he romantically loved. He attempted to sleep with his mother's handmaiden, Nereida, several times but struggled to perform due to the lack of sexual feelings he had for her as a woman. Believing that he was merely a terrified virgin, afraid of being unable to satisfy his wife on their wedding night, Nereida tried to teach him how to please her, albeit with great difficulty. Aurelion eventually forced himself to lay with Nereida on the eve of his wedding and unknowingly conceived a child with her that night. This child - a daughter named Rea - would be the first of Aurelion's illegitimate children. However, Aurelion would not learn of her existence until the time she turned fourteen. 
The following day, Aurelion and Septonia were married. While he felt great joy at seeing the woman he loved so happy, he was also dreadfully frightened of hurting her should his heteronormative mask ever accidentally slip. He wanted nothing more than to confess to her, for them to be able to navigate this reality together, for her to still be able to love him in spite of who he was. Aurelion attempted to tell Septonia the truth when they had a moment alone together but, when she smiled up at him with her dark eyes and told him just how much she loved him, he found that he could not bear to. So instead he kissed her and told her that he loved her too. He managed to consummate their marriage, albeit with difficulty, excusing his awkward performance as merely "nerves". Septonia, being none the wiser, accepted this untruth, telling him that it would get easier with time. Aurelion only wished her words would prove true.
Married life was romantic between them, the pair enjoying being in each other's company. Aurelion would often surprise Septonia with spontaneous displays of affection, serenading her with songs he had composed on his kyrix and leaving freshly cut damael flowers on her dressing table. He even broke with tradition and allowed her to design their joint sigil, even though he was the more senior person in the marriage. As a wedding gift, he commissioned for her a necklace and pair of matching bracers, made from 24-carat gold, that were inlaid with cuprian tourmalines and iridescent squalus scales (the squalus being the sigil of her family). At her request, Septonia would later be buried wearing these gifts from her husband. While he may have been pretending in the bedroom, these loving gestures were all sincere on Aurelion's part; he truly did love her and wanted her to be happy. 
=== Assassination of Glabius Imperator and the Massacre of the Heredi ===
It is through his paternal lineage that Aurelion would come to inherit the imperial throne at just twenty years of age, following the murders of Glabius Imperator and all other Heredi at the hands of rebel colonial forces. 
=== Ascension to Imperator ===
=== Conquest of the Colonies ===
=== Death and Succession ===
=== Legacy ===
Aurelion transcended mortality in the eyes of his people, even after his death. He is the only Living Spirit of the centralised turian religion to have been deified before his death. He is commonly known as Deus Imperator, “God Emperor”, to the faithful. Most turian families keep shrines dedicated to Aurelion in their homes, in addition to the family shrines of their direct ancestors. The Aurelian Cult exclusively worships Aurelion as chief among all Spirits. While not an official branch of the turian religion, the cult has great cultural and religious influence with many high-profile followers; Achaeus Corinthus, duarch of Palaven, subscribed to the beliefs of the cult and considered Desolas Arterius II to be the vessel for Aurelion’s reincarnated spirit. 
When they are each inaugurated, the primarchae of the empire perform sacred rituals to invoke the spirit of Aurelion to ask him to grant them guidance on how to rule their territories with both strength and wisdom. The Primarchae of Palaven in particular style themselves as the “Heirs to Aurelion”, illustrating how they view themselves as mere custodians of a throne that belongs to Aurelion by right for all eternity; they are not heirs of Aurelion destined to surpass his past glory, they are heirs to Aurelion who serve him by preparing the way for his grand work’s continuation, within which the spirit of Aurelion becomes manifest. 
The image of Aurelion has been influenced by Caelus, the Titan of the Heavens, from Palaven’s ancient polytheistic religion. Like Caelus, Aurelion is always depicted as crowned in a halo of blazing starlight. He also often wears robes of white and blue, colours traditionally associated with Caelus’ dominion over the heavens. Statues of Aurelion will often mimic those ancient ones of Caelus, recovered in archaeological digs on Palaven. 
== Sexuality ==
Aurelion's sexuality is a hotly debated topic within the Hierarchy's academic sphere. Despite being married to Septonia Halabrian and being deeply in love with her, historical records written during his reign indicate that he certainly was not a faithful husband to her. Aurelion is known to have fathered three illegitimate children in his youth - Rea, Orian and Flavia - while with his wife he only ever fathered one legitimate child - Trebia. While it cannot be denied that Aurelion truly did love his wife, their relationship became strained after he was crowned Imperator. Despite his infidelity, Septonia chose to remain as his wife, caring for him after his duel with Quinteia Arterius left him with neural scarring and impeded his physical mobility. She also supported her husband through their mutual grief following the death of their daughter, each finding emotional comfort in the other. 
Septonia's premature death is said to have shattered Aurelion emotionally, who became racked with grief and feelings of guilt at her loss. Her death marked a turning point in his reign where he appeared to become more distant from his subjects, noticeably shifting public focus onto the younger generation of his family, particularly Pallix and Rea, whom he was training to be his heirs. When he died, several decades later, Aurelion left instructions to be buried with several items related specifically to his wife, including several pieces of her jewellery, a sunburst-engraved locket containing miniatures of her and their daughter, and his wedding hood. 
Controversially, some scholars have suggested that Aurelion may have been in a homoerotic relationship with Markus Abrudas, his second-in-command and closest confidant. Dr Rialla Ionis of Serrice University has argued that, while Aurelion felt affection for the women in his life, especially his wife, the lifelong connection he shared with Markus was both genuine and unconditional. She cites various handwritten letters sent between both men, claiming that the type of language they used is overly familiar and eludes to a mutual longing for one another. Despite her evidence, Ionis' claims have been repeatedly dismissed by both House Aurelos and House Abrudas, who state that Markus and Aurelion's relationship was one of fraternal love and respect.
After he ascended to the Aurelian Throne, Fidellion Victus started to receive visions of Aurelion’s life, which he believed were messages from Aurelion himself. Fidellion initially questioned his sanity and internally berated his arrogance, for daring to believe that a spirit as powerful as Aurelion would ever choose to converse with him directly. But, as time progressed, Fidellion came to embrace these visions as divine inspiration, although he did not share knowledge of their existence with anyone other than his second wife, Marcia, and his most senior duarch, Achaeus. Through these visions, he learned that much of Aurelion’s life had been misremembered by history and that the glorified image of their radiant god emperor was so far removed from who he truly was as a mortal man. He also learns about Aurelion’s sexuality and his love of Markus Abrudas, which was deliberately written out of history by Markus' son, Aurelion "Auri" Abrudas, thousands of years ago to protect his family's reputation. Fidellion eventually found himself in a moral dilemma; should he reveal the truth of Aurelion to his people, forever altering the image of their Last Imperator, or should he stay silent and preserve the comfortable lie that has persisted for millennia?
== Name and Titles ==
Aurelion's full name, including all titles and honorifics attributed to him, is Aurelion Imperator Aurelos, Lux Unitatis, Spiritus Vivus, Caesor Abrulorum, Restitutor Septemis, Restitutor Pax Galactica.
This translates as "The Golden Emperor Aurelion, Unifying Light, Living Spirit, Breaker of Chains, Restorer of the Seven, Restorer of Galactic Peace."
Aurelion's surname and titles are posthumous additions to his name. During his lifetime, he would have simply been known as "Aurelion Imperator", as the concept of family names (called nomen gentilicium) did not exist in turian culture before his death. Posthumously applying modern nomenclature to his name, he would have been known as Aurelion Verix Polixinus (Verix and Polixena being the names of his parents, used in the absence of any family names). Aurelos, the surname which is commonly attributed to Aurelion in the modern day, was originally an honorific bestowed upon him by his people that meant "The Golden". It is only after his death that his surviving relatives began to utilise this title as their collective family name, wanting to more closely associated themselves with the legendary imperator. Due to their use of the title Aurelos, House Aurelos is commonly referred to as "The Golden House".
Imperator Ultimus, meaning "The Last Emperor", is an honorific used in the scholastic sphere to refer to Aurelion, denoting his status as the last in a long bloodline of hereditary monarchs. Following his reign, every subsequent ruler of the empire has instead borne the title of Primarch and succeeded to the throne based on merit, as opposed to blood.
=== Pronunciation ===
Being Palavenian by blood and having ruled over the empire from Cipritine, Aurelion's name is officially pronounced according to the penultimate stress rule of High Cipritine, which places stress on the penultimate syllable of his name: "Ow-RAY-lih-on" ([au̯ ˈrei̯ lɪ.on]). 
Likewise, the official High Cipritine pronunciation of Aurelion's surname, or nomen gentilicium - Aurelos - is "Ow-RAY-los" ([au̯ ˈrei̯ los]). 
== Descendants ==
While claiming descent from Aurelion has become something of a national pastime for turians, several high-profile figures in turian society are irrefutably descended from him. Along with Markus Abrudas, he is a common ancestor for all blood members of House Abrudas, through his grandson Aurelion Abrudas. He is also the progenitor of House Aurix, founded by his illegitimate children; Flavia, Orian and Rea. House Arterius also shares the blood of Aurelion, as Pallix Arterius married and had children with Rea. 
Notable descendants of Aurelion include:
* Desolas Arterius I
* Saren Arterius
* Desolas Arterius II
* Janus Arterius
* Sarena Arterius
* Cassian Arterius
* Alasius Arterius
* Decian Arterius
* Nihla Arterius
* Sairus Arterius
* Desolas Arterius III
* Ilithia Arterius
* Maea Abrudas
* Gaius Abrudas
* Gidion Abrudas
* Marcia Abrudas
* Keirix Victus
* Adriana Victus
* Irixia Victus
* Gaius Victus
* Alasius Carteia
* Aurelion Carteia
== Trivia ==
* After being integrated into the empire, the volus granted Aurelion the posthumous title of Welm Urun, which translates from Iperian Volus as "The Golden One", to show respect to their new turian overlords. They renamed a gas giant in the Nura system after him, owing to the fact its golden cloud bands resembled the colouration of Aurelion's signature golden eyes, plating and armour, as depicted in turian art. The planet supplies Helium-3 to both the Vol Protectorate and the Turian Empire.
Category:Turians
Category:Males
Category:House Aurelos
Category:Historical figures
Category:Living Spirits
Category:Imperators
Category:Imperial House of Aurelos
Category:Aurelian Imperial Family