Malkur Valos was the only child of the Dunmer wizard, Maros Valos. When Malkur's mother died in childbirth, Maros summoned a Golden Saint to protect and care for his son. Maros was killed in a mage's duel and Malkur's Daedric protector honored her commitment to the infant by taking him to Lord Sheogorath's realm.
The son of a powerful Dunmer wizard, Malkur is naturally gifted in the arcane arts and shares the distrusting, disdainful temperament of his race. Under the tutelage of the Aureals, Malkur acquired steadfast principles of honor, duty, and fidelity to his word. The inescapable influence of the Shivering Isles imbued him with a measure of unpredictability in his methods.
Eventually, Malkur was drawn to return to his native Tamriel, where his talent, honor, and innovation soon caught the attention of Vanus Galerion. When Malkur swore to uphold the principles and objectives of the Mages Guild, those principles and objectives became the unwavering core driving his every action, though that was not always apparent to superficial observers.
Gavis Velas, who died (3E 427) while avenging his brother, Ovis, is a descendant of Malkur Valos.