Highlander Wiki
Register
Advertisement
Darius
Darius
Appeared in Highlander: The Series, Season 1, and in the novel Highlander: Shadow of Obsession
Statistics
Name Mryd
Aliases Darius
Born AD 38, western of Urals
First Death AD 83, fighting "Germanic hordes"
Teachers Ahasuerus the Parthian
Pupils Willem Caelius

Claudianus
The Messenger
Duncan MacLeod
Violane Armand
Victor Paulus

Origin Goth
Watchers Ian Bancroft
Status Deceased, Beheaded by James Horton in 1993, Quickening lost
Occupation Monk, Healer, warlord
Portrayed by  Werner Stocker

Darius was an Immortal monk, and former Goth warlord, as well as the teacher of Claudianus (aka Grayson ). Darius renounced war, and the Game, remaining on holy ground until his untimely murder by James Horton and his Hunters some 1,583 years later.

Personal History[]

Werner Stocker Darius1

Darius

Darius was born in 38 AD in the tent of a nomadic member of an obscure tribe in the western Ural Mountains.[1] In AD 45, when Darius was a 7 year old boy abandoned by his tribe, he was adopted by Gothic nomads.[2] From AD 47 to 55, Darius follows all the rites of the Goths to become a great warrior.[3]In AD 55, when Darius wanted to court a woman, he first had to compliment her father's horses.[4]

In 61 AD, Darius (Mryd) in his tribe, married a Gothic woman, the wedding celebration will last for a week. Time passes and still no child, the sorcerer casts a spell to make a baby, nothing is done.[5]

In AD 68, Darius became a warlord at the age of 30, elected by his Goth people.[6]

In AD 83, Darius met his first death as he led his people into battle against a Germanic Teutons who were attacking his homeland.[7] In AD 85, he was discovered by an Immortal named Ahasuerus the Parthian, a former Persian ruler who taught him about immortality.[8]

In AD 91, he adopted the name Darius, in reference to the sons of Ahasuerus the Parthian, by which he will be known for the rest of his life.[9]

From AD 92 to 170, Darius had traveled the world with his master Ahasuerus the Parthian, and lived among the Persians, the Chinese, and traveled to Africa. Darius tried to take the head of his teacher, he longed for world domination and desired to be the only immortal, but he failed, and his master left him alive.[10]Highlander: Shadow of Obsession.

From AD 103 to 410, Darius was a great and ruthless Goth warlord, always aspiring to world domination, selfish, manipulative and cynical, who despised the mortals; despite this, he was loved by his army. [11]

From AD 171 to 179, Darius lives among the Romans.[12]

In AD 180, Darius organized the settlement of the Goths on the shores of the Black Sea.[13]

In AD 198 Darius, builds the Empire of the Goths on the shores of the Dead Sea. Darius then led the invasion of Asia Minor and the Balkan Peninsula in AD 220. [14]

In AD 258, the Goths split into two: the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths. Darius stay with the latter.[15]

In AD 332, Emperor Constantine I defeats the Goth army of Darius on the Lower Danube and push him back to the Black Sea.[16]

In AD 350, Darius heads north with almost half of his army and founds Kiev the capital of his empire.[17]

In AD 365; Dacia, Darius, and his tribe attacked a farm where he found a new Immortal, resurrected under the hooves of the Gothic cavalry. Darius informs him of what he is and trains him. The man rejects his Roman name Claudianus and takes the name Gray's Son. He accepts Darius, who wears a gray wolf skin on his shoulders, is his real father and teacher. He became Darius’s second in command.[18]

In AD 382, Theodosius I Emperor of Rome granted the King of the Visigoths land in the Balkans in exchange for military services. Darius must comply with this law before his second in command Grayson arrives at the Black Sea but he was unhappy about it.[19]

In AD 395-409; Visigoths revolted again, raided Greece and Illyricum, invaded Italy and threaten Rome twice. Alaric I was their leader. Darius and his Goth war band were frequently Alaric's allies in war, and Darius fought at Alaric's side. He and his war band often shared winter quarters with Alaric and his people.[20]

In the autumn of 409, Darius, together with Grayson, led his war band to join Alaric at his winter camp in Cremona, Italy, in preparation for Alaric's planned attack on Rome. Darius carried on an illicit love affair with Alaric's pre-Immortal sister, Callestina.

In the summer of 410, Alaric, Darius, and Grayson besieged Rome and then plundered the empire. In the process, Callestina died her first death. Grayson, who loved her, taught her the way of the Immortals. When she approached Darius about being together forever, Darius rejected her. Heartbroken, she vowed revenge on him. Darius headed north with Grayson to take Paris. Alaric and his army left Rome and returned to Cremona.[21] Darius then led his army to the gates of Paris. He instructed Grayson and his men to wait while he faced off in single battle with Emrys, an ancient Immortal who stood at the gates against him. Darius defeated the Immortal, and received his quickening. It is the only know instance of a Light Quickening, and it altered Darius utterly. When Darius returned to his army, he gave up his sword and turned his army away. Grayson was shocked and left feeling betrayed. He returned to Alaric and married Callestina.

From AD 410 to 490, Darius became a Buddhist[22] In AD 493, he became a Roman Catholic monk. [23]

In AD 498, Darius in the kingdom of the Franks, in Paris, where he met The Messenger, who was to become his disciple for 146 years.[24]

In AD 530, observed by watchers and recorded in Paris, Darius is in discussion with a friend, the immortal Malcus of Ephesus, a monk for 320 years. They have known each other for 10 years.[25]

In AD 725, France, Darius and on horseback, found a 17-year-old immortal teenager named Marcellus towards the future Mount Saint-Michel, becoming his master, to give him the name of the archangel Michael.[26]

In AD 732, Darius made his young immortal student, Michael, a monk of the Benedictine order in St. Emmeran Abbey in Germany.[27]

On December 25, 800, Darius was in Saint Peter's Basilica in Rome when Pope Leo III named Charlemagne Emperor .[28]

In AD 915, The Darius Watcher first reported that Callestina (who was known at this time as Celeste) attempted to have Darius discredited and expelled from his order, but to no avail.[29]

Around 1170, Darius took up residence at a church on the Rue St. Jacques, Paris. Between 650 and 1750, Callestina would periodically come to Paris and attempt to have Darius discredited. At one point, she denounced him as a witch. Darius' parishioners flocked to his defense, and she was the only one discredited. Darius refused to denounce her in any way, wishing only that she would find peace in her life and forgive him for his treatment of her. In the mid-18th century, she left Europe.

In 1200, Darius would meet Immortal assassin and thief, Xavier St. Cloud, and tried to teach about peace and leading a good life. He failed. St. Cloud would return periodically to Paris to torment Darius with his crimes. In the 11th century, Darius met Hugh Fitzcairn, and later met Grace Chandel who was a healer and midwife.

In 1347, the bubonic plague, also known as the black death, struck Europe and killed a third of the population. It was particularly severe in cities, such as Paris. Darius felt the horror of the plague as mortals died around him and helped serve the sick and dying.

Around 1500; the Watchers' Fifth Chronicle disappeared. It was written in Old German, and told of battles, gods, and immortality. At some point it fell into the hands of Darius, who kept the Watcher secret to himself and hid the book in his rectory. [30]

In 1634, Darius went to a French abbey to meet an Immortal named Ursa. From 1774 to 1778, Darius was observed by Henri LaSalle. [31]

Association with MacLeod[]

H013-02

In 1804, Darius comforted his good friend, Sean Burns, as Sean's close friend and student, immortal Carolyn Mortimer and her mortal husband Jean-Pierre were beheaded by guillotine. Sean had wanted to be present for her, but knew that if any immortal were there, more could die as her quickening was transferred.

During the Napoleonic Wars during the reign of Bonaparte, Darius left Paris, compelled to help where he knew there will be much suffering. He used medical techniques, lost to modern man for centuries, in his attempts to ease the pain and suffering of both sides. While working behind the lines, he met Duncan MacLeod. With this meeting, he forced the young warrior to re-examine his beliefs in the rightness of his convictions, about the need and purpose of war. He invited the young Scot back to Paris when his tour of duty was over to learn more.

Duncan later would find a young Immortal prostitute named Violane Armand and took the girl to Darius.  In January 1816, three brigands broke into Darius' church, St. Julian le Pauvre, looking for silver plate and gold. Darius ordered them to take whatever they wanted but explained that he had no silver or gold in this church; he used pewter vessels. The leader of the men became angry, and killed the priest. When he revived a few moments later, Darius prevented MacLeod from killing the last of the three men. Unable to give up his sword or to live a life of total peace, a disillusioned Duncan left Darius for America, but remained friends with him, returning to visit the priest periodically over the years. During these visits, they drank mead or strange teas, played chess, and discussed military strategy and philosophy. That spring, Darius sent Violane to be trained by an Immortal friend of his, but she ran away after two years and returned to her former life in Paris as a prostitute. In 1842, MacLeod was forced to kill the murderous prostitute Violane on the streets of Paris. He sought forgiveness and understanding from Darius.

In 1854, Darius met Connor MacLeod.[32]

In 1924, Darius confessed his immortality to Brother Jacques, the last in a long succession of confessors in the order. The two quickly become friends, but even Jacques does not realize how old Darius is.[33]

In 1944, as the German occupation came to an end, Darius found a young German soldier planting a bomb in the foundations of his church. Realizing that the retreating Germans are preparing a flaming holocast, Darius grabs a shovel and kills the young man. His guilt almost overwhelms him. Brother Jacques buries the young soldier while Darius leaves the holy land to find Duncan MacLeod and with his help, prevent the fire and destruction of Paris. Darius does not speak to MacLeod about his actions, but believes that his time on Earth is now limited and that his hastening will be removed from the game for breaking his vow and defiling the sanctity of the holy land.[34]

In 1960, Ian Bancroft is appointed Darius observer. Aside from a brief period during which he was required to fulfill military duty in Vietnam, Bancroft remained Darius' Guardian until the immortal's death. Bancroft and others believe that Darius is mortals' and immortals' best hope for a positive outcome of the game. (From the episode They Also Serve.)

In 1968, During the student barricades, Darius helps his friend Duncan MacLeod (currently teaching a journalism course at the University of Paris) in his attempts to teach his students and friends that war and violence are not the way to change society. They discover that an immortal is helping to fan the flames of violence.[35]

In 1983, shortly after Duncan MacLeod explained his immortality to Tessa Noel, a young French art student, he introduced her to Darius. Until she met Connor MacLeod in 1992, Darius was the only other immortal MacLeod introduced to her. His understanding of immortals and their existence is skewed by his impressions of the holy man and he is not told about the game.

In 1990, Paris; the church of Saint-Julien the poor, Darius receives a visit from a very old immortal friend, the monk of the Benedictine order Michael, aged 1282 years. Two weeks later Darius introduces his Christian brother Michael to Duncan, Tessa Noel. [36]

In 1993, Darius placed a mortal agent in his old friend Grayson's arms smuggling organization. After he is discovered, the mortal ran to Darius' church, where Grayson murdered him just outside the fence. Grayson taunted Darius, urging him to leave sanctuary, take up his sword once more, and be the general he was meant to be. Grayson further warned that he will kill Darius' other students…one by one, until he sickened of the slaughter and faced him. Darius sent a bag of runes to MacLeod in America, warning him that Grayson was on his way and was hunting another of Darius' students, peace activist Victor Paulus. MacLeod sent Tessa and Richie Ryan to Paris and to Darius. After MacLeod saved Paulus, and killed Grayson, he joined Tessa and Richie in Paris, meeting with them at Darius' church. Darius detained Richie and regaled him with stories of his youth, reminding the young man that he was not always a priest.

Darius1815

Darius on the battlefield

A month later, Xavier St. Cloud returned to Paris, he entered Darius’s church and confessed to Darius that he had just murdered mortals in the process of robbing a jewelry store. Visited by the Paris police, Darius was bound by the seal of the confessional, and the need to keep secret Xavier's immortality from mortal authorities. He said nothing. MacLeod, who was visiting, understood the problem. By this time, Darius considered leaving holy ground and re-entering the world. Darius and MacLeod discussed war as a mental exercise and Darius worked on his model of the Battle of Gettysburg.

After her mortal husband, Paul, was murdered, Grace Chandel fled to Darius' church for comfort and protection. MacLeod was also there, and took her to his barge. When the police descended on the barge, Tessa and Richie took Grace back to Darius. Carlo Sendaro met with Grace there, with Darius' permission. Again, Duncan intervened to protect her. After Duncan eventually fought Sendaro, and took his Quickening, Grace stopped by the church to bid a fond farewell to Darius, and kissed his cheek.

In May, a band of renegade watchers led by James Horton, entered the church and beheaded Darius despite his being unarmed and on holy ground - the rules did not apply to mortals. Eventually MacLeod found out about the Watchers from a chronicle Darius had hidden in his rooms, and managed to stopthe Hunters from killing Fitzcairn.  MacLeod had Darius cremated and scattered his ashes into the River Seine. His death greatly affected the Highlander who was determined to find his murderer.

In 1999, Duncan Macleod with Joe Dawson, Methos, and Amanda, discover the history of Darius and his real name, Mryd, in a very old book of Lookouts. His past as a warlord, in AD 75 . Then he disappeared and reappeared around the year 95 under the name of Darius.[37]

Personality[]

In Highlander: The Series, Darius is depicted as tall and thin and always wearing "a rough Franciscan-type robe with a hood". The Watcher Chronicles – a collection of character profiles available as CD-ROM and bonus features from the Highlander: The Series DVD edition – describes him as "not the oldest or the strongest, [but], perhaps, the wisest. His genius lay not only in the military arts, but also in his knowledge of the contents of the human heart." Darius always understands people. His former friend and student Grayson admits that Darius is “a man (...) insightful into the soul of a person”.

As a late antique general, he is described as selfish, manipulative and cynical, a skilled commander and accomplished strategist. In Shadow of Obsession , Grayson remarks, "The whole world is just a toy to Darius." » Darius despises mortals: "They are born, they love, they fight, they die - and we continue." Darius is nonetheless a beloved general. He “always understood what his men needed – he knew them better than they knew themselves.”

After his change of life, Darius accepted his violent past, because "to deny what I was is to deny what I am." He still enjoys martial hobbies such as chess and recreating famous battles such as Gettysburg. In "Saving Grace", MacLeod tells him: "You can be a priest, but you still think like a warrior. » Darius considers that “war, in the abstract, is a great intellectual puzzle, but in reality it is only blood and tears”

As a peacemaker, Darius is described as loving and compassionate. The Watcher Chronicle observed: "There is a quality in this man that I have seen in no other, a feeling of peace - perhaps even a feeling of God." In Shadow of Obsession, Joe Dawson states: "All reports mention the feeling of holiness, the aura of peace that surrounded him. » Darius considers peace the highest human value and is always shocked and saddened by unnecessary death. The storyline of "Band of Brothers" has him saying: "In the face of violence, we must insist on non-violence... Guns have no power over the souls of men. Put down your guns. " He is actively involved in promoting and maintaining peace, "preaching his message to those who would become the peacemakers of their own generations", such as Victor Paulus. He also uses less obvious means like using MacLeod (who did not reject violence) to protect Paulus, or planting a spy in Grayson's organization.

To help humanity fight against violence, he studied Buddhism and Hinduism and is today a Catholic priest of the Franciscan Friars of the Poor. However, Darius believes more in the spirit than the letter of dogmas. MacLeod says of him: "I don't think Darius believes in religion or a set of rules, but in being his brother's keeper. I think that Darius, if he has to help humanity, he must honor his codes. »

Trivia[]

The actor who portrayed Darius, Werner Stocker, died in May of 1993. As a result, Darius appeared in only four episodes in the first season, although his image was used in later episodes and his influence felt throughout the series. Darius appeared in Band of Brothers, For Tomorrow We Die, The Beast Below, and Saving Grace. His image, based on his earlier appearances, was used in The Hunters, The Watchers, They Also Serve, Deliverance, and he was mentioned often in Armageddon. His church was also used in that episode as the site of Duncan's climactic battle with the demon Ahriman.

The original idea for the character of Darius was that he would be imposing in size and ugly, but the idea was dropped. It is said that the German investors of the show didn’t like the idea of Darius being ugly with a hunchback.

In 2008, David Abramowitz, stated that Darius was born in AD 38 in a nomad's tent in the western Eastern Urals, but he also said that he was a Goth who first died in AD 83, leading his tribe against the Germanic hordes the Teutons, and that Darius meets his master an Immortal named Ahasuerus the Parthian, circa AD 85.

Novel[]

The novel, Highlander: Shadow of Obsession , which was released in May 1998, attempts to correct the problem of his birthplace by ignoring all references in the television series and the CD to the nomadic tribes and mountains of the western Urals. In the novel Darius was born in AD 50, a North Goth.

Historical Note[]

Among the Goths, Sarmatians, and Huns, some information regarding the origins of Darius seems contradictory. That he was born in a nomad's tent in the Eastern Urals, but also states that he was a Goth. It is certainly true that the steppes of Central Asia east of the Urals have long been home to nomadic tribes of horse archers, known by various names over the years, but around the time of Darius' birth, the nomads reigning on the steppes were the Sarmatians. The Goths, who were a Germanic people, never lived east of the Urals at any time in their history. When Darius lived along the Vistula in what is now northern Poland.

In the 1st century AD, around AD 43, the last Sarmatian tribe to arrive in the steppes east of the Urals were the Alans (aka Alani or Halani). They would have been in the right place at the right time to have been the tribe of Darius. Interestingly, on the way to the Urals, the Alans first attempted to enter the Parthian lands of northern Iran. Goths living on the Vistula in northern Poland, Sarmatian tribe known as Alans living in the steppes of the southern Urals. In his play Thyeste, written probably between AD 40 and AD 45, Sénèque mentions in passing the “ferocious Alans”

In the 1st century AD, around AD 10, the Goths settled in the Vistula basin (called Gothiscandza by Jordanes) in present-day northern Poland along the shores of the Baltic, from Scandinavia (island of Gotland). From there, they migrated to the south-east from the middle of the second century, during the Marcoman wars. They fought and temporarily subdued the ancestors of the Slavs, who lived between the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea, and then settled in Scythia, a vast, ill-defined region that includes modern Ukraine and Belarus.

Etymology[]

Darius (in Persian داريوش) is a common first name in Eastern Europe. The original Persian name, Darayavahushn, is made up of two elements, the first meaning "to hold", "to possess", the second "the good", "the good". It is generally established that it therefore means "holder of the property".

Notable Quotes[]

  • Oh, I'm sure you're quite loyal to your convictions and compatriots. But I wonder what these men think about death, about convictions and compatriotism now?
  • Weapons have no dominion over the souls of men!
  • Well, it's not a sin for your mother to date your ex-boyfriend. Bad taste, perhaps, but not sin.
  • Pride doth go before the fall, and victory to those who hold the high ground.
  • War in the abstract is a great intellectual puzzle, but in reality, it's all blood and tears.
  • To deny what I was is to deny what I am.

References[]

  1. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  2. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  3. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  4. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  5. Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia, Trivia
  6. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  7. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  8. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  9. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  10. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM, Trivia
  11. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  12. Highlander: Shadow of Obsession
  13. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  14. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  15. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  16. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  17. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  18. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  19. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  20. Highlander: Shadow of Obsession
  21. Highlander: Shadow of Obsession
  22. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  23. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  24. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  25. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  26. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  27. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  28. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  29. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  30. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  31. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  32. the novel The Element of Fire
  33. Excerpt from the unfinished novel Barricades
  34. Excerpt from the unfinished novel Barricades
  35. Excerpt from the unfinished novel Barricades
  36. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
  37. The Watcher's Chronicles CD-ROM
Advertisement