Delus the Scholar

"Lives have no value. They are slowly depleted with the flow of time, just like so many other things. And when they are gone they lose purpose. What was once important will be insignificant when you die. But knowledge... Knowledge is eternal. Time does not drain it, but feeds it. I dedicate my existence to it so that I too may remain forever. Forever studying its growing beauty."

- Delus's reply when told nothing is worth killing for.

Delus is a scholar who values knowledge above all else. He never knew his parents and was raised by Kud-Lei Kaynaresh, a librarian who claimed to have found him abandoned in a swamp. People who meet him often describe him as inhuman, emotionless and obsessed. He is constantly searching for new things to learn and spends most of his time exploring ruins, forcing mages to reveal their secrets to him, capture and study rare creatures or anything that grants him any kind of useful knowledge. He is a devoted servant to Hermaeus Mora.

Early Life
His place of birth and parents are unknown. The librarian Kud-Lei found him lying in a swamp and brought him to her home. She tried to find the parents of the newborn Argonian, but without any luck. She decided to take care of him herself and raised him as her assistant at the library. He quickly grew very attached to books, and was an exceptionally fast learner. At the age of ten he already spoke three languages. He was named "Delus" after the first word he said, which was an attempt to say "delusional" since Kud-Lei kept calling a regular customer that.

When Delus was eleven the library burned down while he was away to run some errands, and found his adoptive mother dead in the remains of his home. This would have been a very tragic event for most children, but Delus displayed no sign of sorrow. Instead he saw this as a signal that it was time to leave Black March. He claimed to have heard the gods whisper in his ear that this was his sign that he would dedicate his life to knowledge. As shown before his eyes, lives were nothing to base one's life on. Wives, children, friends... They would all die. He would not waste time on people, but transcend all knowledge, unravel every mystery and become omniscient. His purpose is unknown, but whatever it may be, it has kept him motivated all his life.

Life in Skyrim
He left Black March and traveled to Skyrim, hearing there were many unopened tombs, ruins and other things of interest to explore. He spent a few months doing just that, occasionally visiting cities to stock up on the supplies necessary to survive. He encountered many enemies during his investigations. He defended himself with a sword he had found in a tomb as well as his limited knowledge of Destruction magic, and quickly got used to the routine and became a skilled battle mage.

Despite his attempts to avoid socializing, he soon realized that Argonians were not welcome in Skyrim. When he came to Windhelm and saw the way Argonians were treated he killed a guard for yelling at a dock worker. His cold, impulsive murder spread through the hold and he became known as a dangerous killer. This resulted in many refusing to aid him in his research, and he was forced to learn how to deal with situations that would require many people on his own. It didn't take long before he got used to the complete isolation. He even learned to appreciate the lack of others, content with the company of the creatures that stood between him and his discoveries. However, his inability to see right and wrong quickly made him a wanted criminal in all holds. In all of Skyrim people would look at him and keep their distance, whispering about the crazy Argonian.

The College of Winterhold
Eventually Delus joined the College of Winterhold, one of the few organizations that still had a neutral opinion about him. Wanting to learn more about magic, he eagerly studied all schools of magic while still occasionally leaving to explore more of Skyrim. He held a towards his fellow student Onmund, as he had developed a dislike for all Nords during his time in the land. He would often practice spells on him when nobody noticed, and Onmund was always worrying about suddenly getting paralyzed.

In a few years Delus had surpassed all his teachers and left the college. He had nothing more to learn from the teachers, all the books had been read, and there was no purpose in staying.

Alduin's Return
Delus had recently left the college when the dragon crisis began. He found this intriguing, as he had read much about the dragons. Their magic, their culture, their language. He had been studying Word Walls for a long time with the goal to be able to speak perfect Dovahzul. Capturing a live dragon would give him a perfect teacher, as well as something to use for experiments.

While he spent his days crippling dragons and forcing them into submission, it came to his attention that a Dragonborn had risen. He had read about the Dragonborn and the power such an individual could wield. Delus saw this as an opportunity to learn more about the Voice and used his captive dragons for experiments where he would attempt to remove their soul in a fashion similar to the Dragonborn's, trying to make himself Dragonborn. He failed, realizing the solution had to be capturing the Dragonborn itself. It held the key to placing a dragon's soul in a mortal body. And he needed its power to master the Voice to a degree no mortal man could, all to get closer to his goal to achieve omniscience.

But the return of the World Eater also gave him an epiphany. If the world would come to an end, his work would have been for nothing. He therefore prioritized being able to travel between the planes of existence, both to ensure his own survival and to study other worlds. He knew that Oblivion held many powerful secrets. However, the world was not devoured by Alduin. The World Eater was slain, and despite Delus's efforts to find the Dragonborn they never met.

But the Dragonborn was no longer needed for Delus's research, for around the time when Alduin fell he cracked the riddle behind artificial Dragonborns. Using principles similar to those of soul gems and briar hearts he managed to imprison the soul of a dragon within himself, and his vast knowledge about the dragon language quickly made him a master of the Thu'um.

Cheating Death
When Delus was 35 he realized that the flow of time was working against him. He had to find a way to achieve eternal life. His first thought were the vampires. They were as sentient as the living, but they did not age. Yet Delus did not find the idea of vampirism inviting, so he looked for an alternate solution. He decided to do with the vampires what he did with the dragons and began to imprison vampires, trying to figure out what it was that stopped their aging.

After months of work and dozens of vampires he created an elixir that would grant eternal life. He drank this and thus secured his continued existence.

Hermaeus Mora
Years later, Delus traveled to Solstheim. He had heard many stories of this strange place and was not disappointed with what he found. He made many discoveries, and after serving Neloth of house Telvanni (with hidden despise for the Dumner wizard) he gained access to new spells and also made sure to memorize the way Neloth's Staff Enchanter was built, planning to create his own at a later date.

But then he found the Black Book in Neloth's home, and there he encountered the Daedra of knowledge and fate, Hermaeus Mora. He told Delus that he was the one who led him down the path of knowledge, the one who made him a scholar. That it was Delus's destiny to continue his endless search for knowledge, and Hermaeus would aid him in his quest if he proved himself worthy the trouble. Delus knew that Hermaeus Mora, as the Daedra who had almost all knowledge stored in his library, would be a valuable ally. He swore allegiance to the Daedric Prince, becoming Hermaeus Mora's loyal servant.

Delus soon located the rest of the Black Books and then continued to serve Hermaeus in exchange for more knowledge beyond the grasp of mankind. Words of Power he didn't knew existed, spells that others would find unnatural, secrets that no mortal had discovered before. Delus's devotion to the Daedric Prince made him an enemy of the Vigilant of Stendarr and increased the overall hatred his surroundings held for him. But he did not care, for he was learning more than ever.

Current Life
Delus is still striving towards his goal, not letting anything or anyone stand in his way. He is feared and hated by many, but others seek him to aid him in his research, hoping he will share his knowledge. But he never does; those who help him are slain once they outlive their purpose. His obsession, his great power and his eternal life makes him a force that will not stop until destroyed by an even greater force or until he achieves omniscience.

Personality
Delus is cold and calculating and has been described to "make a Dwemer Sphere seem human". He barely ever expresses emotion, and in the rare moments when he does they are always very vague. It is unknown whether he is hiding his feelings or if he truly has none. The one occasion where he always displays emotion, namely rage, is when a fellow Argonian is treated poorly. He is very protective of fellow Argonians and will kill anyone attempting to harm or offend his kin. Calling him "lizard" or anything else patronizing is considered suicide.

He is obsessed with knowledge and will stop at nothing to learn. At one point he killed an entire camp of bandits to get his hands on a book. He is especially interested in knowledge surrounding magic, magical creatures and other realms.

His high intelligence makes him think of others as fools and himself as being of average intelligence. He therefore feels contempt for most of the people he meets. He is also very deceitful, willing to tell any lie and then stab someone in the back if it gets him closer to his current goal. His vast knowledge of psychology and Illusion magic helps him persuade most individuals into doing what he wants them to do.

Character Form

 * Class: Scholar, Battle mage
 * Skills: Master of all magical skills, as well as one handed sword combat, Alchemy and Speech.
 * Spells: All Spells known to man and mer, and a few more as well.
 * Powers: Histskin, Thu'um Mastery, several powers given by Hermaeus Mora and others.
 * Equipment: Hooded Black Robes, Dragon Scale Boots, Ebony Sword (Enchanted), Aetherial Crown, The Gauldur Amulet

Trivia



 * Delus loves apples, especially green ones.
 * One of the mysteries Delus has not yet shown any sign of interest in pursuing is the one that should probably concern him the most: Who his parents are and where he comes from. He says "Not having roots lets me move more freely."
 * Some time after Delus became a servant of Hermaeus Mora, Miraak was defeated by the Dragonborn. Ever since this event Delus is trying to secretly form a plot to destroy or at least escape his master, should it ever be necessary.