Vaati (Total War)

''This article refers to the Druthulidi that assumed the name Vaati. You might be looking for the Minish Vaati.''

Vaati is a notable and powerful Druthulidi that survived the purge of the Golden Goddesses. It is named after its first host, Vaati, a Minish sorcerer. Vaati is believed to embody the rung of ego.

Characteristics
Unlike most Druthulidi, Vaati prefers to remain a swarm of extremely small insect-like creatures that infect and take control of other creatures, slowly morphing them into a larger form. Individual Vaati are little more than black spheres dominated by a single eye and rows of cilia. When a victim has been fully transfigured they maintain the notable eye but also display powerful tentacles, appendages, and in some cases, wings.

Personality
Vaati usually assimilates and maintains some level of personality from its victims. In turn Vaati's victims often display an increased sense of ego and self importance with a habit of taunting and boasting superiority. Though Vaati is physically genderless, it tends to prefer being referred to as male.

Vaati also has a massive inferiority complex compared to his stronger brethren, leading to his desire for the Wind Tribe's power so that he could increase his power.

Powers and Abilities
While tiny, Vaati is able to unsuspectingly enter a victim's body and slowly take control of them. Once established Vaati will begin a long process of converting and morphing the body into a larger form to suit its purposes. This process often takes several centuries, but Vaati is able to prolong the life of its victims and halt the process of ageing. Victims are often completely unaware of Vaati's influence and believe all of their actions are their own.

When its victims are fully transfigured, Vaati displays tremendous physical strength because of its size. In some case Vaati is also capable of flight with an array of wings that grows from its body. Vaati can also assimilate abilities from its victims, such as the use of magical powers from its current host.

Like the rest of his kind Vaati has the ability to travel between worlds, how he achieves this is unknown.

History


Prehistory
Before the Dawn of Hyrule, Vaati, like its Druthulidi cousins, conquered many worlds and seeded many with its spawn.

Alongside the other Druthulidi, Vaati (at that point not yet bearing this name) arrived in Hyrule after hearing the summons of the six traitorous First Sages. The Druthulidi initially allied with the First Sages against their loyal sister Sulkaris but quickly betrayed them and began to battle against the First Sages and each other for domination over Hyrule. Unlike many other Druthulidi, Vaati preferred subterfuge and would instead infect and take control of lesser beings. When the First Sages allied with Majora to deal with the other Druthulidi and Sulkaris, Vaati divided itself into a much smaller swarm and withdrew into hiding to escape Majora's wrath.

Ancient Age
Vaati arose from the earth in a dramatically weakened state and infected his first victim, a tiny Minish sorcerer from whom his name originated. Now in Minish form, Vaati set out to expand his powers so that he may manipulate the world at large. Displaying his abilities to the Darknut deity Zalunbar, Vaati was able to convince him to form an alliance against the Wind Tribe of the east. In return, Vaati promised to make Zalunbar truly immortal with the powers of the Wind Tribe, so long as he served it. Vaati would never make himself known to the Darknut people to give the illusion that Zalunbar was indeed their all-powerful ruler.

When the Sage Yaraxonal became aware that Zalunbar was cooperating with Vaati, she attempted to put a stop to him, but they were able to enlist the help of her husband Senturon and seal her under Ontheon. Zalunbar then sent Senturon and a Darknut army alongside Vaati in a crusade against the Wind Tribe, nearly destroying their race. On the brink of extinction, the Wind Tribe decided to ascend to the Heavens with their powers and leave Hyrule forever. With the help of King Gustaf and the Akkalans, Vaati and his armies of Darknuts were halted long enough for Siroc and the last of the Wind Tribe to escape. Senturon, enraged by how his people were used like pawns by Vaati, turned against him, but Vaati easily and brutally murdered him, then left with the rest of the Darknuts.

The Darknuts were furious with their loss, but Vaati was unfazed and simply began to seek alternate sources of power, avoiding the Hylians for fear of making an enemy of them.

Rise of Ganon
Vaati continues to maintain Zalunbar's control over the Darknut Legion. Though Darknuts can live many centuries, Vaati keeps Zalunbar from aging and maintains his god like status amongst his people. When King Ganon, ruler of the Moblins approaches the Darknut Legion for aid against the Kingdom of Hyrule, Vaati opposes the proposition for fear of becoming an enemy of the Hylians. When Ganon reveals that the power of the Wind Tribe, the Triforce, is still in Hyrule, Vaati accepts Ganon's proposal of alliance. In truth Vaati would likely turn on Ganon and steal the Triforce for himself.

Shortly before the attack against Hyrule Castle, Vaati encounters Dethl and Demise, two other Druthulidi he thought destroyed. Vaati begins to suspect that he and the other two were being set up by another force, and thus decides to withdraw his support after the fall of Hyrule Castle Town.

The Gerudo Wars
During the Gerudo Wars, Vaati forms an alliance with Twinrova and Agahnim and sets out to encourage the conflict between the various races of Hyrule. Vaati promises to aid Twinrova and Agahnim so long as the Darknut Legion was given control of Hyrule Castle after the Kingdom had been destroyed. Twinrova reluctantly agree and deem one city a fair trade for the aid of the Darknut Legion. When the Gerudo succeed in massacring Hyrule Prime and killing Princess Mahrala Zelda III, Vaati orders them to retreat so Onan and his Darknut forces take control of the city. Vaati attempts to locate the Triforce within the Temple of Time with the help of Agahnim, but both fail.

A few months after the sack of Hyrule Castle Town, the Sage of Shadows Impa is captured by the Darknuts and thrown into a newly-constructed arena, where, according to Darknut customs, she'll be given a Darknut weapon and put against Darknut warriors while Vaati, Agahnim and Onan watch the fight from VIP seats. After Impa defeats all three challengers, Agahnim's daughter, the young Princess Oraiya Zelda IV, appears and begs him to stop the war and tell the Darknuts to leave. When Agahnim says it's impossible, Zelda declares she no longer recognises her father, while the Sheikah and the imprisoned Hylian garrison openly revolt against the Darknuts.

After Agahnim is killed by Impa, Vaati orders Onan and the entire Darknut garrison to retreat west. In a last ditch effort to escape, Vaati captures Princess Oraiya Zelda IV as a hostage before fleeing back to Ontheon. There Vaati convinces Zalunbar to maintain a defensive stance.

Onan then reports to Vaati that he saw Agahnim growing two horns before his death. Vaati is terrified, realising that his suspicions about Majora's involvement were true after all. Majora then manifests before Vaati, laughing madly and repeatedly declaring that the mindless worship of idols, Vaati himself included, will stop in Hyrule, while the horrified Vaati can do nothing but cower. Just as Majora leaves Vaati alone, a combined Hylian-Goron army under the command of General Kazakk and Darunia arrives and invades the capital.

Amidst the chaos of the battle, the Black Knight Senturon, whom Vaati killed five millennia ago but was resurrected by the Fairies of Tarm without his knowledge, brings the Gerudo traitor Nabooru along with Link and Lana, two children working for Hylia, to the underground chamber where Vaati sealed the dissident Yaraxonal so long ago. Senturon breaks the rock surrounding Yaraxonal, who bursts out, confronts Vaati and kills his Minish host.

With the help of Yaraxonal, the Hylians and the Gorons defeat the Darknuts, opening a way into the Cathedral of Ontheon where Vaati hides, having transformed back into his true, monstrous Druthulidi form. Vaati desperately tries to convince Yaraxonal that he is Hyrule's only chance against Majora, but the angry Sage pays him no heed and makes short work of him.

With Vaati's death, and Zalunbar's following shortly afterwards, the Gerudo Wars come to a close.

It is possible some of Vaati's spawn on other planets have survived his death, though they would probably lack his memories and might as well be an entirely different person by the time they multiplied and regained sentience.

Trivia

 * Vaati is the second major recurring antagonist in Hyrule Total War, the first being Sulkaris, the third being Majora, the fourth being Veran and the fifth being Mido.
 * He is also the fourth primary antagonist, the first being Sulkaris, the second being Ganon, the third being Midna, the fourth being Vaati and the fifth being Agahnim.

Quotes about Vaati

 * It sees only itself in the world, those with life but mirrors to gaze into. It would make the world but a mirror, a mirror that would sing only its name. Ego is all that is found within, and it would fill every hall, every mountain, every river and all the lights of the sky with nothing but its name.