Whether 'the Varangian' is one man who has been an enforcer for the Manus for the last eleven centuries or is a title passed down from one who fulfilled this role to the next is a matter of some debate. In either case, the title dates back to the Varangian Guard, an elite unit of Norse, Anglo-Saxon, and Gaelic mercenaries who served the Byzantine Empire - and the Hand during their exiled endeavors to reform the Roman Empire - until the fall of Constantinople. In the modern era, the Varangian - or the present Varangian, at any rate - is the power behind a military contracting corporation known as Blackraven Securities, and is a supernatural bogeyman reputed to do the Hand's dirtiest work while keeping his own agendas and angles well-veiled in mystery.
“ANGIE! I LEARNED HOW TO MAKE A GLOWBALL! Praise me!”