Emperor Calus
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- "Grow fat from strength."
- — Emperor Calus
Calus is the former Emperor of the Cabal Empire, who was usurped by Dominus Ghaul many years prior to the Red War.
Biography
Reign
- "For centuries, I led the revels of my empire, and the stars themselves burnt sweet and clear. But in time the jealous and the tight-fisted rose up and sent me into exile."
- — Emperor Calus
Many years prior to the invasion of the Solar system, Calus led a populist revolution to eject the military aristocracy known as the Praetorate from power and became Emperor. By his side during the revolution stood his long-time friend and protector Shayotet, who stopped numerous attempts to kill Calus. Under his rule, the Cabal Empire became a seat of all-encompassing hedonism and revelry. His accomplishments during that time included redistributing Praetorate wealth to the people, granting citizenship to the imperial Legions, and putting down various alien threats such as the Sindu, the Clipse, and the Psions' OXA Machine. However, when the OXA machine was rebuilt by the savant Otzot, Calus was impressed enough by her genius to order the machine preserved and hold a festival in her honor, elevating Otzot to his court as Imperial Dreamer.[1]
His reign was not without personal troubles. Calus was wary of Umun'arath, his Evocate-General, for her paranoia and obsessive fixation on war. His own daughter and heir, Caiatl, grew up similarly despite his efforts. [1]
One of Calus's pleasures was the coliseum, and one day, an albino gladiator named Ghaul made his first appearance there. Ghaul's patient skill and unusual coloration soon made him a favorite of Calus's, and the Emperor eventually made him Primus of the Red Legion, where his talents would be put to better use. Calus grew to love Ghaul like a son, and believed they were kindred spirits who both envisioned a newer, more perfect world.[2] Ghaul's association with The Consul and members of the Praetorate worried him, but not enough.[3]
Behind his back, Ghaul was in fact organizing a coup with the Consul and some of Calus's closest friends and advisors: Umun'arath, Shayotet, Otzot, Moli Imoli, Iska'al, and Caiatl.[1]
Coup and Exile
Ghaul launched his coup in the dead of night. With the Emperor too popular to simply execute, Ghaul, his Red Legion, and the Consul arrested Calus and an unknown number of supporters in his own court and exiled aboard The Leviathan, taken far from the Empire along a pre-programmed course.[4]
On the Leviathan, Calus wallowed in despair for an unknown amount of time until a strange event shook him out of his stupor. The Leviathan had come up against an expanse of utter nothingness, shorting out the navigation systems and the course the conspirators had set. Calus looked into the void and came to an understanding, believing that it had chosen him to carry out a great victory on its behalf. From that point on, Calus was changed, and took control of his own fate. He sought revenge.[5]
With control of the Leviathan back in his hands, Calus set out on a long voyage of his own, "[plumbing] the secret places of the cosmos", visiting strange realms and old ruins. This cemented both his conviction that his hedonistic philosophy was correct and his intent to retake his empire.[1] Along the way, he gathered forces to strengthen his Loyalists. He created the Shadows as his elite champions, allied with aliens such as the Clipse[6] and the Sindu[7], and sent messages promising that whoever slew his conspirators would be given great wealth and glory. Eventually, he set a course for the Sol system, which the Red Legion was planning to assault. He sent his Shadows to assassinate Ghaul and failed, but he learned of other warriors in the system that might serve his purposes. [8] [9]
Trivia
- Calus is the third Cabal character to speak English fluently. The first being Ghaul and the second, The Consul.
- Calus inadvertently foresaw The Consul's death, as he wanted the Consul to die by his own weapons. Ghaul was The Consul's weapon in overthrowing Calus and when he killed the Consul during the Red War, Ghaul unknowingly fulfilled that vision.
- Calus could be considered among the most powerful Cabal the Guardians ever faced, rivaling Ghaul.
Gallery
Calus's crest on the Cabal Booklet
List of appearances
- Destiny 2 (First appearance)
- Cabal Booklet (Mentioned only)
References
- ^ a b c d Cabal Booklet
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Ghost Primus
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Conspirator
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Midnight Coup
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, It Stared Back
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Gauntlets of Rull
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Helm of the Ace-Defiant
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Shadow's Bond
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Robes of the Fulminator
- ^ a b Cabal Booklet
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Conspirator
- ^ Bungie (2017/8/9), Destiny 2: PlayStation 4, Activision Blizzard, Helm of the Ace-Defiant
- ^ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QCBJUGwKhmw