Tragedy and irony are themes that permeate Precentor political lore. One of the great tragedies of the modern era — made famous by songs and performances — is the tale of Titus Teuthus’ downfall at the hands of his dear friend and mentor, Tavarus Ultimo. The part of this story that receives less attention is the role played by Teuthus’ own sister and Ultimo’s wife, Aurelia Diron, 

The granddaughter of Titus Arcadius, Diron grew up in the Primarch’s court, learning firsthand what it was to exercise supreme power — how wielding it properly could create stability and abundance, and losing control inevitably results in chaos. As her grandfather slowly lost the faculties of his mind, and eventually his life, Diron learned to appreciate the importance of harnessing power. As her father, Titus Acheron, ascended to the Primarchy, she recognized the role she would have to play in ensuring the longevity of her family’s rule over the Tetrarchy. Naturally, she was drawn to figures that could aid her in that crusade, and none more so than her brother’s friend, Ultimo.

As Ultimo campaigned during the Nexonian Trial of Succession, he began an intermittent relationship with Diron, further strengthening the connections between their two families. At the height of the war, Ultimo proposed to Diron and, with her father’s consent, the two were wed. Upon the Trial’s conclusion and Teuthus’ appointment to Praetor, Diron began to finally believe that her family’s future might actually be secure. But as her brother became increasingly taken with the teachings of the Sullan Order, she saw how his ideological flirtations would imperil the Tetrarchy. Try as she might, however, there was no swaying Teuthus away from his chosen path. 

Heartbroken though she was when her brother rebelled, she was reminded of the chaos that attended the aftermath of her grandfather’s assassination and was moved to act. It was on Diron’s suggestion that her father appointed Ultimo to prosecute the war against the renegade Praetor. Were it not for Diron’s steadying hand in influencing her husband, Ultimo may not have been able to bear the emotional turmoil of waging war against his former friend and mentor. In many respects, it was Diron, not Ultimo, that ensured ultimate victory over the rebel forces. 

In the two decades since the end of the Titus Rebellion, Diron’s relationship with her husband has grown strained. Ultimo’s growing lackluster interest in governing and her father’s retreat from public life are increasingly reminiscent of her time spent in the waning days of her grandfather’s court, leaving her concerned about the Tetrarchy’s future. But where others abrogate their responsibilities, Diron steps in to pick up the pieces, much as she has always done.