David Xanatos
David Xanatos is the founder, owner, and CEO of Xanatos Enterprises. Once one of the Manhattan Clan's greatest enemies, but now their... host.
"Pay a man enough, and he'll walk barefoot into Hell." - David Xanatos, ("Awakening: Part Two")
Contents
History
Early Life
Xanatos was born in Bar Harbor, Maine, in 1955, the only son and child of Petros Xanatos, a local fisherman. [1][2] In 1975, he received a rare 10th century coin from a mysterious stranger (actually a member of the Illuminati), which he sold to a collector for twenty-thousand dollars. Xanatos then used that money to found Xanatos Enterprises, increasing his wealth until now he has become one of the richest men in the world. He also attended college at Dartmouth. [3]
At some point before 1994, Xanatos's mother died. Her death had an effect on him as well as on Petros and their relationship. [4]
In the course of time, Xanatos came into contact with Halcyon Renard, the CEO of Cyberbiotics. He and Renard quickly became determined rivals, particularly after Xanatos lured away two of Renard's most talented employees, Owen Burnett and Anton Sevarius. Also around this time, Xanatos and Renard's daughter Janine Renard a.k.a. Fox met, and became attracted to each other. He created the television series, The Pack and cast Fox in the lead, along with Wolf, Jackal, Hyena and Dingo; but Xanatos had larger plans for the Pack.
Not long after Owen entered Xanatos's service, becoming his right-hand-man, he revealed his true identity to the billionaire as Puck, and offered him a choice between a single wish from Puck, or a lifetime of service from Owen. Xanatos chose Owen, and Owen has served him very capably ever since.
At some point between 1975 and 1994, Xanatos obtained the Grimorum Arcanorum from Mary and Finella. [5] The two women also, with Brooklyn, arranged for him to meet Demona, Owen/Puck introducing the two to each other. [6][7] Demona informed Xanatos about Goliath and his clan at Castle Wyvern, and the two decided to awaken them, hoping that they could prove useful for many of his less-than-legal enterprises. [8]
Don't Disappoint Me
In 1993, Xanatos arrived in Scotland and journeyed to Wyvern Hill, visiting Castle Wyvern for the first time. The first thing he did upon entering the castle was to run up the stairs to the top of the main tower and remove some moss from Goliath's statue, admiring the gargoyle. He immediately ordered Owen to make the offer to purchase the castle and to start hiring construction crews. Owen warned his boss that the cost of the venture would be astronomical and finding such crews would be difficult as the locals considered the castle to be haunted; but Xanatos smugly reminded his majordomo "pay a man enough, and he'll walk barefoot into Hell." Over the next several months, the castle was disassembled, and relocated from the Scottish coast to the top of the newly constructed Eyrie Building in Manhattan, his personal headquarters in 1994. He also preserved and moved the rookery at Demona's insistence. Once all the gargoyles were placed upon the tower, Xanatos stood there waiting for the sun to set as a rainstorm moved in. Hoping to not be disappointed, he waited and sure enough, despite the initial shock, the gargoyles awakened much to his pleasure. He approached them and introduced himself, bringing them inside the Great Hall (a room that they were unwelcome in of when Princess Katharine ruled the castle) and told them that a thousand years had passed, that he first learned of the castle and the gargoyles when he acquired the Grimorum Arcanorum. When he was asked about the eggs, Xanatos told the gargoyles that the eggs were gone and that they were the last of their kind. When Goliath asked why Xanatos had done all this, Xanatos told the gargoyle that he was fascinated by the Magus's story and now that he knew it was true, he wished to be their friend - citing that there was much they could do for each other.
Their meeting was interrupted when a helicopter that Xanatos claimed he wasn't expecting arrived at the building and armed commandos exited it and held Xanatos up at gun point. Although Xanatos advised the gargoyles to stay inside, they emerged to protect the castle (as Xanatos knew they would) and engaged the commandos in battle. Armed with a particle beam, Xanatos fought at the gargoyles' side. But despite the valiant fight the gargoyles put up, one of the commandos emerged from the castle with a briefcase supposedly containing their prize. The commandos soon escaped in their helicopter. Xanatos thanked the gargoyles for their help, but Goliath was reluctant to befriend him as, for him, the betrayal of the Captain of the Guard was still too fresh, even when Xanatos admitted that he would need to work hard to earn their trust. Xanatos also told the gargoyles that he had many enemies and hoped the gargoyles would work with him to keep their home and his headquarters safe. Goliath agreed, much to Xanatos's pleasure. The billionaire acknowledged that humans had used them poorly in the past but promised that would soon change - telling Goliath to trust him. What Goliath was unaware of, however, was that the invaders were actually under Xanatos's employ and the entire theft was staged. ("Awakening: Part Two", "Idyll or Nightmare")
The attack on the castle drew the attention of the New York Police Department and Elisa Maza arrived at the building to investigate. Xanatos politely told her that he had just spoken with the mayor to offer his apologies for what happened, admitting the "exploding generator" story that Owen had given her earlier was meant for the press while the real truth was that his men repelled an invasion from a rival corporation trying to steal some of his new technology. When Elisa protested that Xanatos was a private citizen and not a country, Xanatos reminded her that Xanatos Enterprises was larger than many countries she could name. Xanatos was drawn away from his interview with Elisa, having answered her questions, and began to enact the next phase of his plan. Shortly before dawn, he summoned Goliath to his office to inform the gargoyle that the thieves stole a box containing three disks, explaining them as talismans so that the gargoyle would understand. When Goliath suggested that Xanatos use a detective, Xanatos advised the gargoyle that he couldn't go to the police because of the risk they would discover the gargoyles and lock them up for study, reminding Goliath that humans would fear him. Xanatos identified the culprits of the theft as a rival of his called Cyberbiotics and educated Goliath on the facilities the disks could be found in. But Goliath denied Xanatos's request as it would place his clan in unnecessary danger. Xanatos asked Goliath to consider his request as their enemies might use the stolen information for some terrible purpose... placing a hand on Goliath's back and planting a Scarab Radio Transmitter on him. After Goliath left, a hidden door opened revealing Demona who had been listening, and Xanatos assured her that everything was going according to plan.
In order to get Goliath to cooperate, Xanatos sent his commandos into Central Park to find Goliath and put a scare into him. They soon caught up with Goliath, who was being provided with a tour of the city by Elisa and tranquilized him, promising to hunt down the rest of the gargoyles. While the duo managed to escape, Elisa found the radio transmitter and, come sunrise, she fought off the commandos while Goliath slept. But Xanatos's plans were proceeding apace. Goliath returned to the castle that night convinced that the clan had enemies and now it was time to seal the deal. Xanatos summoned Goliath to the Great Hall again and reintroduced Goliath to his Angel of the Night. Demona lied to Goliath saying that she had also been placed under the sleep spell, and Xanatos corroborated the lie by telling Goliath that he acquired her for his private collection the previous year and thought to bring her to the castle to be awoken. Demona credited Xanatos with reuniting them and convinced a grateful Goliath to agree to help Xanatos. Convening them all in his office, Xanatos outlined their missions and watched, pleased, as they took off to invade Cyberbiotics. ("Awakening: Part Three", "Awakening: Part Four")
Each of the three teams of gargoyles was successful in bringing back the data disks, with Goliath and Demona returning last (after Demona had also destroyed the Cyberbiotics' Air Fortress) and presented him with the third disk - which Xanatos promised would benefit humans and gargoyles alike. After Xanatos left, he watched from a monitor Goliath and Demona argue about whether humans could be trusted, but Goliath chose to leave to go meet with Elisa despite Demona's protests. Believing that Goliath was too hard to control, Xanatos decided it was time to replace them with the Steel Clan robots, which he could now bring online thanks to the data on the disks that the gargoyles had stolen for him. He had hoped to keep the gargoyles under his thumb and have the robots under his control and considered it a pity. Owen suggested waiting until the gargoyles slept, but Demona encouraged Xanatos to test the robots now. Xanatos found this appealing and agreed. He soon unleashed the Steel Clan on the Trio, and was initially pleased with the robots. They were steel instead of stone, they didn't sleep during the day, they could fly instead of glide, and they were 100% obedient. However Goliath soon returned to the castle, after Elisa had brought him up to speed on Xanatos's manipulations, and with the help of Hudson and Brooklyn, they destroyed all five robots.
Believing that Goliath needed to be eliminated, Xanatos and Demona returned armed with weapons, and while Xanatos kept Hudson, the Trio, and Bronx in their place, Demona revealed to Goliath that she was the one who betrayed the castle to the Vikings a thousand years ago, giving Goliath one last chance to join her in her war against humanity. Xanatos listened to this, underestimating her threat due to his low opinion of fanatics and believing he could keep her under control. [9] When Goliath refused to join her, she tried to murder Goliath but the gargoyle was saved by the arrival of Elisa Maza. Demona's bazooka went off, damaging a castle tower, part of it collapsed and Xanatos was knocked out in the process. When Xanatos came to, Demona had vanished and a furious Goliath held Xanatos over the ledge threatening to drop him. Xanatos encouraged Goliath to do so, reminding the gargoyle that without him the gargoyles would still be gathering moss. Elisa pleaded with Goliath not to drop Xanatos as doing so would make him the same as Demona. Goliath didn't want that and released Xanatos, who was subsequently arrested by Elisa. ("Awakening: Part Five")
Xanatos was thrown in jail, initially on multiple felony charges that include grand theft and industrial espionage. Due to his wealth and international connections, he was considered a flight risk and held without bail. [10] In part because both he and Elisa wanted to conceal the gargoyles' existence, Xanatos and the D.A.'s office agreed to a plea bargain. He plead guilty to the sole count of Receiving Stolen Property. He was sentenced to six months in county jail including time served, with every hope that the sentence will be reduced to three months for good behavior. [11]
A Learning Experience
Despite being sent to county jail, Xanatos maintained control over his businesses - and manipulated his projects. Wishing to truly put the Pack to the test, and wanting to know what Goliath was truly capable of, he had an envelope of photographs sent to the Pack which piqued their interest in hunting the gargoyles. Goliath and Lexington defeated the Pack, and Fox and Wolf were arrested and sent to Rikers Island. Xanatos, however, found the test to be most informative. ("The Thrill of the Hunt")
He also set Project Thailog into motion by arranging for a Steel Clan robot to "accidently" injure Goliath. Owen tended to Goliath's wound with a First Aid kit, while also collecting DNA samples which were later given to Dr. Sevarius over at Gen-U-Tech Systems who began the process of cloning Goliath. ("Double Jeopardy")
When mob boss, Tony Dracon, stole an arms shipment of particle beam weapons from Xanatos Enterprises, Xanatos authorized Owen to retrieve the weapons by buying them back. But when Elisa Maza was shot, and Dracon was implicated in the shooting, Owen made sure Goliath found out in the hopes that the gargoyle would track down the gangster and recover the weapons without having to pay Dracon. Goliath, angrily, destroyed the weapons upon learning this. ("Deadly Force")
As Xanatos's release from jail approached, he and Owen pondered what to do about the gargoyles. When Owen suggested destroying them while they slept, Xanatos was reluctant to do so - considering it a waste. They were soon approached by a man in a prison guard uniform claiming familiarity with the gargoyles, calling himself Macbeth, and offering to clear the gargoyles out of the castle for a price. Xanatos agreed and hired Macbeth to do so - although Macbeth had plans of his own, hoping to lure out Demona. While the gargoyles did leave the castle, Xanatos returned - pleased to be home and intrigued by Macbeth's entrance into the game he was playing. ("Enter Macbeth")
He then went to Gen-U-Tech Systems to observe Sevarius's progress. The scientist had successfully cloned Goliath and began to accelerate the growth of "Thailog". ("Double Jeopardy")
Still Got The Edge
While settling back into his life, Xanatos sparred with Owen in the gymnasium and lost a judo match, a loss which caused Xanatos concern as Owen had never defeated him before. When the majordomo offered to pretend to lose, Xanatos threatened to fire him if he did such a thing. Xanatos rescheduled a meeting with the Emir before proceeding with his day, but the loss weighed on him. That night, he donated the Eye of Odin to the Museum of Modern Art, and was interviewed by WVRN reporter, Travis Marshall, whom suggested that this was done for good publicity after Xanatos's recent stint in jail. That night, after the museum had closed, Xanatos donned his exo-frame and flew to the museum, attacking and knocking out a security guard. As he flew off, a bullet fired by Matt Bluestone bounced off of him. But Xanatos achieved what he set out to, the urban legend about gargoyles was brought to the forefront and the city would be in a panic.
Goliath figured out that Xanatos was behind the theft and believed it to be the direct work of the Steel Clan. Goliath and the Trio arrived at the castle and confronted Xanatos who had been waiting for Goliath in the courtyard. Xanatos explained that soon all of the Big Apple would be hunting gargoyles but he offered Goliath and his clan a haven in a research facility he had up state. Goliath roared in anger, rejecting the proposal. Xanatos donned his armor again and led two Steel Clan robots after the gargoyles, hoping to follow them back to their new home; which Goliath also figured out. This new batch of robots were tougher than the five originals, and the gargoyles lured Xanatos and the robots to the Statue of Liberty where the robots were subsequently destroyed. Goliath (believing Xanatos's armor to be another robot) fought Xanatos to a stand still, and Xanatos retreated knowing he was outnumbered. But while Xanatos was not able to locate the gargoyles' new home, he had managed to recover the Eye of Odin and the city owed him a favor for donating it, he successfully tested his prototype exo-frame and, most importantly, he had feared he was going soft but the fact that he managed to stand up to Goliath in battle convinced him that he still had the edge. ("The Edge")
Knowing that Elisa Maza had the confidence of Goliath, Xanatos decided that he needed to get his hooks into her. He often spotted her tailing his limousine and so she asked her brother, Derek Maza (who worked as a helicopter pilot for the NYPD) to fly her as she followed him by air. But Xanatos spotted them and proceeded with his plan. He had earlier contacted Fox in prison and ordered her to arrange for Jackal and Hyena to steal the Coyote Diamond from the Diamond Exchange as Xanatos visited the outlet to purchase the diamond. After formally acquiring it, the twins attacked him and made off with the diamond, as the Mazas arrived in the helicopter. Xanatos prevented Jackal from taking the chopper out with a bazooka and they, in turn saved his life when Derek landed and Elisa drew her gun causing the two Pack members to flee. Impressed with Derek's skills as a pilot, Xanatos immediately offered the young man a job as his personal pilot and bodyguard - much to Elisa's annoyance. Derek accepted the job and began flying Xanatos right away, saving the billionaire's life when Jackal and Hyena made an attempt on his life under Fox's orders. Elisa confronted Fox in prison where Fox, under Xanatos's instructions, admitted to the detective that Xanatos had manipulated all of this, staging the theft and the attempted assassination all to get Derek Maza under his employ. Elisa and the gargoyles made their way to Xanatos's retreat, Xanadu, and captured Jackal and Hyena after they made one more attempt to assassinate Xanatos and as Elisa was finally ready to introduce her brother to the gargoyles, Xanatos had gotten there first which allowed him to control the narrative. Derek, despite a heart-to-heart conversation with his sister, chose to remain working for Xanatos - confident that even if she was right, he could handle it. ("Her Brother's Keeper")
He and Demona soon joined forces again to create the cybernetic gargoyle, Coldstone. Combining his science with Demona's sorcery, they succeeded in resurrecting the soul of "Othello" (and unknown to them at the time, the souls of "Desdemona" and "Iago"). To circumvent Coldstone's questions, Demona introduced Xanatos as her servant (which he didn't particularly care for). Blaming Goliath for the massacre, Demona and Xanatos sent Coldstone into Times Square to go on a rampage. Goliath soon arrived, as did Xanatos and Demona. Cracks began to show in this alliance because while Demona was eager for a final showdown which she hoped would result in the deaths of her enemies, Xanatos wanted the gargoyles alive. The battle was taken to the George Washington Bridge by both Goliath and Xanatos when Goliath appealed to the billionaire's "ownership" of the city. During the course of the battle, Xanatos's armor was damaged and he was forced to unmask revealing to the gargoyles that the "red robot" was actually him wearing an exo-frame. Coldstone decided that he didn't wish to kill his rookery brother and wondered if there was more for them than just survival even if Demona insisted that it was enough. Goliath attempted to remind all of them that gargoyles protect - it is their very nature, their very purpose. But Demona pulled the trigger and fired at Goliath - a blast that Coldstone took falling into the Hudson River. Before Demona could the kill the Trio, Xanatos disarmed her and the two villains fled after Elisa showed up with Bronx and Hudson, Xanatos carrying Demona away from the battle against her will. ("Reawakening")
True love is so much harder to come by
As 1995 continued on, Xanatos began laying the groundwork for many new schemes and pushed forward ongoing plans such as the ongoing programing of Thailog, Xanatos designed a subliminal education program that would teach the clone Xanatos's outlook on life, Machiavellian amoral scheming, and succeeding in the world of business. ("Double Jeopardy")
When Fox was denied parole, Xanatos began engineering a scheme to get her out of prison early. Designing a prototype humanoid robot that he had dubbed Coyote, and sent him to Rikers Island, teamed up with Dingo, to bust the Pack out of prison. Fox, who was in on the scheme, elected to stay behind and help a prison guard whom Hyena intended to murder. Coyote even bore a facsimile of Xanatos's face and voice, successfully fooling the Pack and the gargoyles until the robot was "unmasked" and destroyed, it's head rocketing back to its creator. Xanatos greeted Fox in a waiting limo as she was granted parole, warmly greeting her and explaining that the whole escape was staged to give Fox a shot at an early parole, plus he was able to test out Coyote. When Fox asked Xanatos about his revenge on the gargoyles, Xanatos slyly smile and reminded her that he believed that revenge was a sucker's game and that while he could build many more robots, true love was so much harder to come by. ("Leader of the Pack")
Since the Steel Clan had not lived up to his expectations, he embarked on other schemes to create his own gargoyles. In addition to the Thailog Project, Xanatos had commissioned Sevarius to create gargoyle-like creatures through mutation. Sevarius lured three homeless people (including Maggie Reed) to come work for him at Gen-U-Tech. But these people became test subjects for the mutagenic formula that Sevarius had concocted. Finally, Xanatos's long term plans for Derek Maza came to fruition - after Maggie had been forced to escape before being recaptured (the latest in many events), and with one of these mutates finally being spotted by the gargoyles, Xanatos visited Gen-U-Tech to "investigate" Sevarius's hiring of armed mercenaries (actually Xanatos's own commandos) and brought Derek with him when the younger man volunteered. While there, Xanatos and Sevarius put on a performance for Derek in which Sevarius outlined the project to create the mutates. Xanatos feigned outrage when he learned that humans were experimented upon and promised to restore their humanity, which caused Sevarius to perform his own outrage and pull a dart gun and fire it, a shot which Derek took (believing it had been meant for Xanatos), but the dart was soon revealed to be the mutagenic formula. Xanatos then proceeded to "force" Sevarius to work day and night to create a cure that the doctor claimed to have in his head - he had even offered to come clean about everything to Elisa when she arrived at Gen-U-Tech to investigate, but Derek didn't want to be seen until he was cured and had her waived off. That night Goliath and the Trio invaded Gen-U-Tech to rescue Maggie (who did not want to be rescued) and in the ensuing violence, Sevarius was kicked into a tank of electric eels for Xanatos to take the man's pulse and declare him to be dead. Derek Maza vowed vengeance on the gargoyles while Xanatos continued to promise a cure. With his experience as a helicopter and glider pilot, Derek quickly got the hang of his new wings and became the de-facto leader of the mutates. When the gargoyles arrived, the mutates stood firmly with Xanatos, and when Elisa arrived... Xanatos was ready for her to learn the truth as well. During the confrontation, Elisa figured out what had happened to Derek (who now called himself Talon), and when Talon and the Mutates fled, Elisa declared war on Xanatos. But Xanatos soon met in his office with Sevarius, happy with how the plan had proceeded and knowing that as long as Talon believed Xanatos was his only hope for a cure, that delusion would keep the mutate where wanted him. ("Metamorphosis") Shortly after this, he became a member of the Illuminati (currently a member of the lowest rank, Thirty-Six).
Having earlier supplied RECAP (another creation of the Scarab Corporation) to the police, Xanatos activated a computer program he had designed inside of Coldstone which had in turn activated the robot's self repair systems. When it emerged, Coldstone attacked the Goldencup Bakery Building which was, in actuality, a government installation which served to design top secret weapons. The Coldstone shell accessed the building's database to download the government's top secret defense specs but was infected with a powerful computer virus capable of wiping out any unfamiliar programming. RECAP and its robot probe were sent in and attempted to taze Coldstone, but the probe was destroyed in the process... exactly as Xanatos anticipated. While Xanatos Enterprises did recover the remains from the police, Xanatos managed to acquire the computer virus which he considered an even greater prize than the defense specs and a worthy trade off for sacrificing Coldstone. ("Legion")
On October 1st, 1995, Xanatos treated Fox to a fancy dinner in the castle and proposed marriage to her. While he presented his proposal as if it was a business offer, she agreed to it when he presented her with the Eye of Odin as an engagement gift. Over the next several weeks, the Eye would work its magic on Fox, transforming her into a monstrous beast, which would leave the building and tear up parts of the city in search of food. By Halloween of that year, after more and more sightings were reported, Xanatos began to suspect the creature was Fox when she came home disheveled and wearing nothing underneath a ratty trench coat except for the Eye. Xanatos had already drawn up plans and contingency plans for the situation and he began with Plan A. He approached Fox and asked for the Eye so he could have it engraved, and when he insisted, the Eye's magic transformed her into the werefox and she attacked Xanatos who called to Owen, the majordomo shot her with a tranquilizer dart that didn't work, but included was a tracking device. The same tracking device was also able to monitor Fox's vital signs and her metabolism was in danger of burning out and killing her by sunrise. Xanatos feigned apathy openly hoping to get the Eye back before suggesting they move on to Plan B. He had an anonymous tip called in to Elisa Maza about where to fine the werefox while Xanatos tracked her down in his exo-frame to Felice's Meats where he attempted to recapture her as Goliath and Elisa arrived he attempted to remove the Eye of Odin from her neck but was unable to do so.
Xanatos retreated to the castle as Elisa, believing the werefox to be another mutate and that Xanatos was after the jewel, suggested that they needed to assemble all the gargoyles and get it first; but Goliath grew suspicious and they followed Xanatos back to the castle to hear him explain Plan C to Owen: with the gargoyles determined to thwart him, they'd do all they could to get the Eye back from Fox before he could and thus would do all his work for him (which confused Owen as he believed Xanatos's main priority was the Eye and that it wouldn't be any easier to get it from the gargoyles), but Goliath and Elisa arrived and refused to be his Plan C. Xanatos then admitted the truth, that the werefox was Fox, that she had been transformed by the Eye of Odin, and he had no idea that it would do this to her. Goliath still refused to help even when Xanatos admitted that he loved Fox and only wanted to save her life. But Elisa wouldn't hear of it and she and Goliath left, refusing to participate. But Xanatos didn't give up and later that evening, Goliath agreed to help Xanatos. The three of them tracked Fox to a rooftop where Goliath restrained her while Xanatos ripped the Eye from her neck, restoring her humanity and saving her life. Goliath then demanded the Eye from Xanatos and he handed it over telling Goliath that the gargoyle now knew his weakness, but Goliath was disgusted that Xanatos would regard love as a weakness. ("Eye of the Beholder")
Twenty years after receiving the mysterious coin in the mail, Xanatos received a new letter that provided an account of how the coins were obtained in a letter written to him by his future self and sent from the past. Knowing what he had to do in order to fulfill history, Xanatos began preparing for his wedding and even invited his father (because he wanted him there and partially because he wanted to show his father that he was, indeed, a self made man). He donned his exo-frame and invited Goliath to meet him on the roof of the Goldencup Bakery Building. Not trusting Xanatos's intentions, Goliath attacked and the two engaged in a brief battle before Xanatos unmasked and invited Goliath to his wedding the following night, asking the gargoyle to be the best man. Goliath was shocked at this request and likely would have refused, but Xanatos sweetened the pot by telling Goliath that Demona would be there and assuring him that she had promised to be on her best behavior. Later that morning, Fox arrived by helicopter with Petros Xanatos - who was unimpressed by the sight of his son in armor. Petros took a look at the opulence of the castle atop the skyscraper and could only ask his son why needed all this; but Xanatos wanted it so he took it. As Xanatos gave his father the tour, Petros cursed the man who sent his son the coin twenty years ago, believing his son did nothing to earn what he had. Xanatos greeted his friend, Judge Roebling, and showed the judge and his father a video to prepare them for the best man and maid of honor. As Xanatos prepared for the wedding, he openly wore the emblem of the Illuminati upon his lapel and greeted Goliath when the gargoyle arrived. With both Goliath and Demona present, Judge Roebling married Xanatos and Fox, but Demona stormed off before the groom and the bride kissed, followed by Goliath. This was the moment that Xanatos had waited for and, rather than conclude the wedding with the traditional kiss, the two newlyweds pursued the gargoyles - much to Petros's disgust. Demona finally revealed the trap that she and Xanatos had set when Goliath presented his half of the Phoenix Gate and Demona reunited it with her half, using the time travel talisman to go back in time with Goliath, Xanatos, Fox, and even Petros in tow.
In the blink of an eye, the time travelers arrived in Scotland in the year 975. Demona fled and Goliath pursued her, while Xanatos led his wife and father to the rescue of the Norman Ambassador and his companion, who were surrounded by bandits. The three time travelers quickly dispatched the bandits and were thanked by the Ambassador, who spotted the emblem of the Illuminati on Xanatos's lapel and revealed his ring bearing the same symbol. Commandeering the bandits' horses, the travelers accompanied them to Castle Wyvern where the woman was revealed to be Princess Elena, there to marry Prince Malcolm. A grateful Prince Malcolm rewarded Xanatos by giving him a few gold coins (which Petros was suspicious of). Later that night, now clad in the finest of 975 fashion, Xanatos bid farewell to the Norman Ambassador and handed him a large envelope. When Petros demanded to know what his son was up to, Xanatos came clean with his father. The envelope contained two smaller sealed envelopes, the first to be delivered in a thousand years to a young David Xanatos of Bar Harbor, Maine. It contained one of the coins that Prince Malcolm had given him while the second envelope was to be delivered twenty years after the first containing a detailed account about how the coin was obtained. Xanatos declared himself to truly be a self made man and while Fox was proud of him, Petros remained unimpressed and more interested in how they'd get back home. Goliath returned, in control of the Phoenix Gate and carrying an unconscious and defeated Demona and angrily told Xanatos that fearing the damage he'd do was the only thing preventing him from leaving Xanatos stranded in the past. But Xanatos understood that Goliath wouldn't... because he didn't. They returned to 1995 and Xanatos asked his father if he had a good time at the wedding. Petros chose that moment to give his son a wedding gift, a simple American penny... as far as Petros was concerned, that was all Xanatos seemed to care about. ("Vows") [12]
Despite their role in his fortune, he withheld the details about the coin and instructions from the Society. ("Vows", "Invitation Only") [13]
Pursuing Immortality
Playing on Xanatos's desire to attain immortality, Demona approached Xanatos with a scheme to be put on television where she would cast a spell that would "steal one minute of life from every person that saw and heard the spell" on the promise that if they did this across Manhattan, added up it would equal centuries of time. Demona lied to Xanatos, telling him this was the secret to her longevity, and Xanatos took the gamble and allowed her to cast the spell from PackMedia Studios using equipment to override every broadcast channel and cable network. But Xanatos didn't trust Demona completely, as he didn't stay to watch the recording and reminded Owen to either watch or listen to her - but not both. Just before sunset that night, Fox was piloting Xanatos's helicopter back to PackMedia Studios and casually mentioned that Demona's broadcast wasn't "riveting TV". Xanatos was annoyed having warned Fox not to watch it at all. But as they were flying over the city, Owen called having just freed himself from iron bonds to warn Xanatos that the spell Demona cast wasn't what she said it was. As the sun set Owen turned to stone - as did Fox. The helicopter began to go down over the city, but Xanatos managed to gain control and bring it to a relatively safe landing. Satisfied that Fox wasn't damaged, he stepped out of the helicopter and was shocked at the city full of statues, crashed vehicles, and the quiet destruction. He grabbed a particle beam rifle from the helicopter and made his way to PackMedia Studios on foot. He arrived just before Demona and began ending her broadcast and saved Owen's life when she arrived to smash him. But their alliance had now ended, Demona attacked him with intent to kill him. Xanatos was forced to drop his weapon to prevent Owen's statue from falling to the ground and smashing allowing Demona to get the drop on him. The arrival of a man calling himself the Hunter ultimately saved Xanatos's life as Demona attacked the masked man before fleeing giving Xanatos the opening to completely shut off the broadcast, hoping that would settle things. But Owen remained frozen in stone. Shortly before sunrise, Goliath and Brooklyn arrived and Goliath was not too surprised to see Xanatos there but infuriated when he found out Xanatos was her partner in this sorcery. Xanatos admitted his culpability, he had wanted to believe what she promised. When Goliath considered making Xanatos pay for all the lives Demona ended that night, Xanatos asked the gargoyle if he wanted vengeance or a solution and the two of them shook hands as they agreed to work together to stop her. ("City of Stone" Part One, "City of Stone" Part Two)
As the sun rose, the gargoyles turned to stone while Owen became flesh and blood again, attempting to complete his phone call before realizing it was morning and he was standing in the same room as his boss. They immediately began work to reverse Demona's spell and Owen presented the translation of the Latin: "All who see this, all who hear this turn to stone throughout the night - until the skies burn." Xanatos calmly and smugly replied that all they'd need to do is set the sky ablaze and he had come up with an plan to so by sunset. Donning his armor and bringing out four Steel Clan robots, he and Owen began welding hypergolic gas packs to the robots when Elisa arrived to confront Xanatos over his involvement in the affair as the sun set and Elisa and Owen turned to stone. Goliath and the rest of the Manhattan Clan soon arrived and Xanatos explained the conditions of the spell and his plan to undo them as he handed out gas packs for the gargoyles to wear, and being quite annoyed at Bronx clawing at a 12th century tapestry he had hanging on the south wall. Xanatos advised the gargoyles to be out of the sky before the twenty-five minutes were up and the gas packs ignited. They all took off into the air and when Goliath actually expressed optimism that Xanatos's plan would succeed, Xanatos mentioned he was more worried about Bronx and the tapestry on the south wall. Alarmed, Goliath quickly called for the two of them to return to the castle where they both discovered Demona and Macbeth engaged on mortal combat and the very floor of the Great Hall collapsing below them. Xanatos quickly found out that Demona had accessed his computer and set the gas packs to detonate ten minutes prematurely, which wouldn't break the spell and would kill them all in the process. Demona had changed the access code as well, so they quickly went after her and Macbeth in the hopes of acquiring the code. But Demona and Macbeth were beyond reason - Macbeth even attempting to impale her on a piece of debris down in the [[Atrium (Eyrie Building}|atrium]] beneath the castle. Goliath and the Weird Sisters talked Macbeth down and the Sisters raised Demona placing her under a trance, slowly breaking her down until she confessed her own culpability in all the tragedies of her long existence and finally provided the code. Xanatos rocketed back up to the Great Hall and entered the code, stopping the detonation with seconds to spare. With the Weird Sisters, Demona, and Macbeth gone, Xanatos and the gargoyles watched as the sky was briefly set ablaze. The plan worked and with Demona's spell broken, everyone returned to flesh and blood. Xanatos greeted Owen with a handshake and he and Goliath both acknowledged that the other comes in handy now and then. ("City of Stone" Part Three, "City of Stone" Part Four)
Fox soon began her own scheme to take control of Cyberbiotics, and while sparring in the gymnasium; Xanatos was for all intents and purposes, giving Fox permission to not destroy her father financially, but she was okay with moving forward with the scheme as she beat her husband in a judo match. Moments later, Xanatos received a phone call from Fox's doctor with test results that she had not previously mentioned. Although the scheme to seize Cyberbiotics didn't succeed, Fox enjoyed the game itself as she announced her pregnancy. ("Outfoxed")
By now, Thailog, who had been out of the cloning pod and living at the castle for some time, decided to strike out on his own. First by accessing Xanatos's office and sending Sevarius an email instructing him to hire mercenaries to make it appear as if he was being stolen, believing Xanatos was behind this and Thailog was also in it, Sevarius proceeded. Xanatos witnessed the "abduction" of Thailog promising to make an example who whomever was behind it. That night he received a phone call telling him to come alone to the oil rig at Black Rock Point with $20 million in cash if he wished to retrieve Thailog. Xanatos deduced that Sevarius was behind this and went with the money and full intent to take vengeance on the doctor. When he got there and confronted Sevarius, the doctor was genuinely shocked that Xanatos was attacking him and after telling his side of the affair, Xanatos quickly and proudly figured out that Thailog had played them all. Thailog then captured Xanatos and locked them in the oil tank with Elisa and Goliath. Thailog announced his intent to kill them all and use the $20 million to proceed with his own plans. After Thailog left, Elisa, Xanatos and Sevarius figured out how to restore Goliath's strength with an electronic disk Thailog used to disable Xanatos's armor. They escaped and made their way to Xanatos's speedboat as the oil rig exploded and Goliath appeared without Thailog - assuming the clone had been killed. The gargoyle was disgusted when Xanatos dismissed Thailog as a mere "copy". But not too long afterwards, Xanatos figured out the truth - that Thailog wasn't dead, and that the clone had faked his own death to escape with $20 million. Xanatos regretfully admitted that he had created a monster. The entire experience discouraged him from trying to make his own gargoyle again. ("Double Jeopardy") [14]
Xanatos and Fox next decided to play a game of life and death with the lives of the gargoyles and the Pack in the balance. Xanatos sent the head of Coyote to approach Wolf, Jackal, Hyena, and Dingo to offer them upgrades. The Pack accepted with Wolf being mutated into a werewolf, Jackal and Hyena being implanted with cybernetic enhancements, and Dingo choosing to wear hi-tech armor. Coyote was also upgraded into a massive, hulking monstrosity. After the upgrades were completed, Xanatos assumed control of the Pack while Fox chose the gargoyles as her pieces. Both of them nudged and manipulated their pieces until the gargoyles (and by extension Fox) emerged victorious. When Fox asked her husband if she was angry, knowing he didn't like to lose; Xanatos took her hands in his and told her he had won for in her he had found a true equal before inviting her to play again. ("Upgrade")
Talon and the other mutates had, by now, returned to the Eyrie Building and began working with Xanatos in the hopes of finding a cure. When Goliath brought Elisa to the castle so she could see and speak to her brother, Talon violently attacked blaming Goliath for the mutates predicament. Xanatos helped Maggie talk Talon down by explaining that Goliath and Elisa weren't the enemy and were always welcome. When Elisa informed Talon that Sevarius had not died that night, Talon vowed to find the scientist and end him along with Goliath. Xanatos advised Owen to warn Sevarius to disappear, but it was too late - Sevarius had been abducted out of the parking lot of Gen-U-Tech and Xanatos assumed Talon had gotten to him first. When Talon confronted Xanatos in his office about the initial lie, Xanatos told Talon what he wanted to hear, that Goliath and Sevarius were in cahoots and Xanatos was pressuring Sevarius to come up with a true cure. When they discovered that Goliath had taken Sevarius and deduced that it was likely to Cyberbiotics' abandoned underground research facility, Talon took the other mutates and ran off. Knowing that the jig was up, Xanatos donned his armor and brought four Steel Clan robots and arrived in time to rescue Sevarius from certain death. Talon finally acknowledged that Xanatos had been manipulating him from the moment they met, and Xanatos didn't deny it. Placing more value in Sevarius's life than keeping Talon under his thumb, he coldly told the mutate "he's the scientist, you're just the experiment" before departing. ("The Cage")
Having recently acquired the Cauldron of Life, who's legend said that whoever bathed in it would live as long as the moutain's stone, Xanatos set out to once again attain immortality for himself and for Fox. He commissioned two robotic doubles of Macbeth and sent them out to attack the gargoyles and throw an envelope of powder at Hudson. When the gargoyles elected to sleep on a rooftop in downtown Manhattan, Xanatos abducted the sleeping Hudson and replaced him with a statue so that the gargoyles would think he was frozen in stone by magic and would be distracted searching for a cure. But Xanatos brought the real Hudson back to the castle and placed him in a hi-tech cage and managed to acquire a key ingredient for the Cauldron's brew, the stone skin of a gargoyle. However Xanatos also wanted to use Hudson as a guinea pig to test the cauldron promising to release him if the procedure was successful, but assuring the old warrior that if it wasn't he'd have given his life for science. When Hudson asked Xanatos why the billionaire selected him, Xanatos cited Hudson's age believing the gargoyle might even appreciate the opportunity. Hudson then pointed out that growing old terrified Xanatos, and the billionaire quickly and angrily denied it before lowering himself to belittling the gargoyle as useless to his clan anyway. The following night, as Xanatos prepared to dunk Hudson into the Cauldron, Hudson warned Xanatos of the price of immortality, but Xanatos wasn't interested feeling that death and old age were a price too expensive for him. The ever resourceful Hudson used a shard of stone skin as a weapon to escape, but wouldn't destroy the Cauldron as he didn't care what Xanatos did with his own life before reminding him what true immortality was. Impressed, Xanatos let Hudson go without attempting to recapture him. Later that night, to truly demonstrate his loyalty, Owen dipped his left arm into the Cauldron and it was magically transformed into a stone fist. Xanatos found humor in the legend and dismissed Owen for the evening. ("The Price")
After Goliath, Elisa, and Bronx disappeared, Xanatos was immediately a top suspect among the gargoyles and the Mutates. While Brooklyn didn't dismiss the theory, he was reluctant to approach Xanatos with the information that the three were missing. But Talon had assumed leadership of the situation in the face of a reluctant Brooklyn and they journeyed to the Eyrie Building to confront him. Xanatos was fascinated by the development and even allowed Talon and the gargoyles to search his files and the building as they came to realize Xanatos was telling the truth. Xanatos promised to use all of his resources to track Goliath and Elisa down, but Talon dismissed the offer... however Xanatos felt he had no need of their permission. Despite this, Goliath, Elisa, Bronx, and Angela traveled the world during the Avalon World Tour and became involved in Xanatos's schemes such as stopping Sevarius from capturing the Loch Ness Monster. Xanatos also sent the Pack to Egypt with the Emir to capture Anubis in order to secure immortality for himself. But the Emir only wanted to restore his son to life and when Jackal stole the power of Anubis and attempted to end all life on Earth, Goliath, Elisa, Angela, and Bronx arrived and helped defeat him. ("Kingdom", "Monsters", "Grief")
Xanatos personally got involved in a scheme to capture the Kachina Coyote and melted the Cauldron of Life down to use it construct Coyote 4.0. Traveling to Flagstaff, Xanatos purchased land containing a soil carving of Coyote, promising the local population that he was putting up a building to bring jobs and money. For weeks Xanatos pretended to be on the verge of destroying the carving, but the Kachina never made a move. When Xanatos decided to bulldoze the carving, the Trickster attacked and destroyed the bulldozers. Beth and Peter Maza arrived to investigate Xanatos (by now they were aware of the gargoyles and everything that Xanatos had done to Derek) and were blamed for the vandalism of the construction site and arrested in time for Goliath, Elisa, Angela, and Bronx to arrive in Flagstaff from Avalon. They agreed to help investigate Xanatos and Goliath and Angela were soon captured by Coyote 4.0. Xanatos pinned the two gargoyles to the ground with his staple gun and met Angela for the first time, explaining that he had planned to drop a vat of acid on the soil carving and the gargoyles. Goliath asked Xanatos to release Angela as she had done nothing to him, and while Xanatos admitted that neither had done anything he held a grudge over nor did he desire to kill them, he needed the death trap to be real and he needed to follow through in the hopes of capturing his true quarry. He also admitted he was having fun with his first real stab at cliched villainy. The Mazas and Bronx arrived and freed the two gargoyles and they all escaped as Xanatos sent his robot to capture the Kachina. The robot succeeded and brought the trickster back. Xanatos approached the Kachina prepared with demands starting with immortality. The gargoyles, Elisa and Beth arrived and Angela engaged Xanatos directly. A reluctant Peter Maza donned the dance costume of the Kachina Coyote which confused the robot into releasing the trickster, much to Xanatos's annoyance. The Kachina then tricked the robot into destroying the construction site bringing down on top of Xanatos and the robot. Xanatos emerged from the debris with the gargoyles growling in his face. Before flying away, Xanatos told Goliath that the last minute upsets the gargoyle kept handing him had become irritating. ("Cloud Fathers")
Fatherhood
In July of 1996 Xanatos gathered his father, Petros Xanatos and Fox's parents, Halcyon Renard and Anastasia, at the Eyrie Building for the birth of his and Fox's son, Alexander Fox Xanatos. As both sides of the proud family sat with the child, Owen pulled Xanatos aside and warned him not to leave either Fox or Alexander alone with Anastasia. Trusting his majordomo's judgement, Xanatos watched Anastasia like a hawk. When his mother-in-law dismissed Renard and Petros and offered to keep the baby while Fox slept, Xanatos insisted they had a nurse. But the exchange was interrupted by the arrival of Lord Oberon who expressed a familiarity with Anastasia that confused Fox. Anastasia revealed herself as Titania the queen of Avalon. She then revealed the history of her marriage to Renard and Fox's own magical heritage. Believing that Fox's potential was squandered, Titania did not want to allow the same thing to happen to Alexander and Oberon approved her desire to take the child. Xanatos gave Oberon one chance to reconsider before pulling a gun and firing on the Lord of Avalon. But Xanatos's technology was no match for Oberon's magic, and the Lord of Avalon took pity on the two mortals by granting them one hour to say good-bye to their son before they returned to take Alexander to Avalon forever. Xanatos angrily confronted Owen in his office where Owen admitted that he had known Anastasia was actually Titania and while he didn't know she intended to steal Alexander, he had feared the possibility and arranged for new security measures within the vicinity of the Eyrie Building as well as gave Xanatos knowledge about how to fight Oberon. Owen then departed, apologizing to Xanatos but regretfully admitting that he could not get involved in this battle.
With his father by his side, Xanatos activated the security measures, surrounding the entire skyscraper with a forcefield that came in handy when Oberon put the city to sleep and grew to the size of the building itself. Xanatos sent the Iron Clan after Oberon who provided a reasonable distraction. The tide continued to ebb and flow with the arrival of the Manhattan Clan. Goliath attempted to talk Oberon out of his course of action and to protect the Family Xanatos. Even Halcyon Renard, aboard the Fortress-2 came to the aid of Xanatos. But Oberon dispatched them all one-by-one before shrinking back down, flying beneath the building, and destroyed the force field. Before Oberon arrived at the castle, Xanatos and his father shared a brief moment of familial love and respect before being aided by Goliath, Brooklyn, and Angela. But they proved no match for the Lord of Avalon until Owen arrived and revealed himself as Puck to all assembled (save for Xanatos who already knew). Puck explained his actions and made an attempt to get Oberon to reconsider, but to no avail. The battle stopped when Oberon entered the bed chambers and was about to take the child when Fox unleashed a bolt of magical energy upon Oberon. However this gave Goliath the opening he needed, humbling himself before Oberon, Goliath explained that Fox's outrage proved that if she could tap her talent, so could Alexander with the right teacher and suggested Puck. Puck was happy to stay and train the child with Titania's endorsement. Oberon agreed and banished Puck from Avalon eternally, stripping him of all his powers save for when he was training or protecting Alexander. With the situation resolved, Goliath was about to return to his clan when Xanatos stopped him to thank the gargoyle for all of his help and acknowledging that he owed them all a debt of gratitude that he could never repay, but he promised that he would try. While Goliath was skeptical, he also acknowledged the future was unwritten. Xanatos watched them leave as he pondered that future. ("The Gathering" Part One, "The Gathering" Part Two)
Xanatos began making good on his promise by tracking down Coldstone to the Himalayas, disabling him, and bringing him back to the laboratory where he was originally created. He had also constructed two new robotic bodies he had called Coldsteel and Coldfire that were modeled after "Iago" and "Desdemona". After three attempts to transfer the two souls into the new bodies had failed, Xanatos knew technology alone couldn't compensate for the sorcery inherent in Coldstone's creation and even suggested that Owen transform into Puck and deal with this; but Owen reminded his boss that he was forbidden from practicing his magic without training Alexander. Xanatos took a break from the project to go out on the town with Fox, leaving Alexander in Owen's care. While they were away, Puck gave Alexander that magic lesson, involving the Manhattan Clan as well, and by the time Xanatos and Fox returned, the matter had been resolved even if Coldstone and Coldfire disappeared chasing Coldsteel to parts unknown. ("Possession")
Shortly after, thieves broke into Xanatos's East River Warehouse and attempted to steal a canister of D/I-7 but were foiled by Elisa and her new temporary partner, Jason Conover. Matt Bluestone questioned Xanatos (while he was playing with his son) about why the thieves might be after D/I-7 in the first place, but Xanatos had no answer as it was just a potent, concentrated disinfectant. Matt made no secret of his distrust for Xanatos but, as the detective left, Xanatos taught his son the word "harassment". Later that evening, Xanatos was visited by WVRN reporter, Jon Carter who claimed to be doing a segment on Manhattan's unique skyline. He mentioned the gargoyle statues that used to be part of the castle, but Xanatos just told the reporter that he had them destroyed. When Carter continued to ask questions about the urban myth about real life gargoyles, Xanatos asked if he was working for the Daily Tattler before leaving Owen to escort the reporter. Once Carter had left, Xanatos watched reviewed security footage of the reporter and caught him picking up a piece of stone gargoyle skin that must have been left by one of the gargoyles. Xanatos pondered the implications of what his would mean for Goliath. ("Hunter's Moon" Part One)
Those implications exploded, literally. Following the destruction of the 23rd Precint's Clock Tower at the hands of the Hunters, Jon Carter used footage of the gargoyles fleeing to expose them to the world and implicate them in the deadly attack. Owen posited that the gargoyles didn't destroy their own Clock Tower but Fox observed that anyone who saw that report were going to believe they did and now the entire city would be hunting them. Xanatos pondered his next moves and saw an opportunity to make good on his promise. When the gargoyles were surrounded on all sides at Saint Damien's Cathedral, Xanatos arrived via his helicopter and offered the gargoyles a ride, flying them back to the castle. While there, he was brought up to speed on what had happened - that Goliath had just saved the world from Demona. When Elisa arrived, Xanatos personally escorted her up the stairs of the main tower assuring her that the gargoyles were safe and that he had reinstated them to their ancestral home with "no catch, no plot, no strings." The feud was over. ("Hunter's Moon" Part Three)
Old Tricks
With the secret of the gargoyles exposed to the world, and rumors that Xanatos was harboring them, Xanatos avoided all requests from the press to comment promising that once he was reached, he would think of something. The gargoyles pondered their new situation, wondering if he could be trusted or if he was gearing up for another scheme. But, at the very least Goliath believed they could trust Xanatos not to destroy them while they slept. Xanatos ignored a phone call from Mr. Duval later that evening to spend time with his son. ("Nightwatch", "The Journey")
While Xanatos had planned a Halloween Masque in the Atrium of the Eyrie Building that would be attended by New York's richest and most influential to slowly introduce them to the gargoyles one step at a time. However, Martin Hacker approached him in his office, and while he assured Xanatos that the Illuminati approved of his plans, Mr. Duval had arranged an invitation to the White House to attend a dinner and meet with one of the Upper Echelon members. While there he briefly mingled with Ambassador Chung before being summoned to a private meeting with Quincy Hemings, who explained who he was and how his role as Chief Steward of the White House served the Illuminati and then gave Xanatos his first real mission from the Society. ("Invitation Only", "Masque", "Bash")
Upon returning to Manhattan, he summoned Coldsteel to assist him on a mission to steal the Stone of Destiny, agreeing to permanently disable the tracking device inside Coldsteel in exchange for his cooperation. He also constructed Coyote 5.0 to take part in the mission. Xanatos then flew, with Fox and Alexander, to London. While in London, Xanatos summoned Coldstone and Coldfire from the Himalayas before unleashing Coyote, Coldsteel, and Steel and Iron Clan robots on Lexington, Hudson, and the gathered London Clan. The robots were destroyed and he used a shoe box to initiate a bomb scare at the Coldstream Bridge. Coldsteel and Coyote approached the bridge, seemingly to steal the Stone for Xanatos, but Coyote was destroyed by Coldstone and Coldsteel was driven off, returning the Coyote Diamond within the robot to Xanatos who then disabled the tracking device. Xanatos was satisfied, Coldstone and Coldfire witnessed his attempted theft of the Stone fail - or did they? During the distraction, Xanatos replaced the Stone with a duplicate. He then intended to make a double switch and stiff the Illuminati, keeping the original for himself. But the Stone itself told him this was pointless: the Spirit of Destiny could not be contained in one vessel. As such, Xanatos handed the Stone over to Fleur. ("Reunion", "The Rock", "Rock & Roll", "Rock of Ages")
In 1997, when Talon confronted and accused him of abducting his wife Maggie and their newborn child, Xanatos admitted that while there was little that he wouldn't do to achieve his goas, he insisted that he wouldn't consider such tactics to pursue his own ends; not after experiencing his own son nearly being taken away. When Thailog and Sevarius were determined to be the most likely suspects, Xanatos joined Talon and the Manhattan Clan in rescuing Maggie at the Nightstone Unlimited Building. On the way there, Xanatos explained the origins of Nightstone Unlimited to Elisa and the gargoyles, how it was founded by Demona and Thailog but now Demona has seemingly abandoned it. They arrived at the building when Thailog activated the Great Minds Protocol to cover the building with a forcefield, technology stolen from Xanatos. Xanatos quickly disabled the forcefield and encouraged Coldfire to use her optics to find them, at which point she told Xanatos that he was very generous to those he wished to exploit. They entered the building and confronted Thailog, but the battle ceased with the birth of Michael Peter Maza who seemed to be an ordinary human. Thailog lost the motivation and invited them to leave, promising to bill Xanatos for the damages. ("Idyll or Nightmare", "Miracle Child")
After Goliath's capture and imprisonment by the Gargoyle Taskforce, Xanatos assured the rest of the Manhattan Clan that Goliath's legal representation was taken care of. A few nights later, Judge Roebling ruled in Goliath's favor and ordered his immediate release . . . in no small part thanks to Xanatos depositing a sizable fund into the the judge's Cayman Islands bank account. ("Underwater", "New Rules")
Following the theft of Puck's Flute, Xanatos participated in the Clan's hunt for Demona to prevent her from uniting the Three New Keys to Power but had no luck locating her. On Thanksgiving, Xanatos along with Fox and Owen were magically enthralled to obey Demona's commands. Demona used Xanatos to summon the Steel Clan to cover her exit, but Angela used the parameters of Demona's enchantment to order Xanatos to call the robots off. Xanatos, like the rest of the humans in the city, was released upon Demona's defeat and he and Fox happily checked in on their sleeping son - not yet aware of Demona's theft of Egwardo. ("Unequivocal Success", "Queen of All She Surveys")
Some time in the future, when the New Olympians reveal themselves to humanity, after they arrive at the United Nations, Xanatos will attempt to "make friends" with the New Olympians. Make trade with them, and if he gets the better end of the trade, well, that's business. [15][16]
Characteristics
Xanatos is a strongly practical man. He considers revenge foolish and beneath him; what motivates his various actions, instead, is his practical goals. One of these is to increase his current power and influence, and that of Xanatos Enterprises; it was for this purpose that he acquired or sought to acquire such operatives as the gargoyles, the Pack, and the Mutates (not to mention such employees as Owen and Sevarius). Xanatos favorite word is "acquire". Acquire things; acquire people; acquire power. . . anything he sets his sights on. What he can get by legitimate purchase, he'll buy; it's easier. What he can't buy, he'll take. . . by subterfuge if possible or force if necessary. What he can't take he might destroy, less out of spite than to make sure it won't later be used against him. But he hates waste, so he wouldn't make the latter decision lightly. In Xanatos's opinion, he acquired Manhattan long ago. It's his town.
Xanatos has no interest in taking over the world, for the simple reason that he doesn't see any need to; he's been able to accomplish the greater part of his goals under the current system.
Another goal of Xanatos is to become immortal, since he secretly fears old age and death – just as he fears anything that he can't control (the death of his mother may have contributed to Xanatos's fear of death and old age). [17] He has made several such efforts at it, including the Cauldron of Life incident, and employing the Emir to capture Anubis; these efforts all failed, however. Xanatos, indeed, will eventually die, at some point before 2198; however, in a deeper sense, he will gain immortality through his only child, Alexander. ("The Price", "Grief") [18][19]
Unlike many of the gargoyles' enemies, Xanatos's style as a villain may be best described as less "evil" than "amoral", in that he bears Goliath and his clan no malice or grudge, and indeed, regards them with a combination of interest and amusement. Xanatos evens considers Goliath to be a good guy, despite being a stiff. [20] His pursuit of them was motivated purely by a desire to make use of them for his plans, and he had no difficulty (from his point of view) making peace with them after they saved his son. His various scheming activities are based on accomplishing what he wants done rather than out of hatred or vengeance – although his plans rarely show much regard for the welfare of anybody else.
However, Xanatos is not completely heartless. He does love Fox very much (a revelation which took him by surprise) and their son Alex as well. Their marriage, indeed, will be a lasting one. [21] He also does have a strong regard, deep down, for his father Petros, in spite of their somewhat strained relations, and took care to invite Petros both to his wedding and to Alex's birth. While he'd prefer not to admit it, Xanatos does in fact care what his father thinks of him. [22] His familial devotion serves as the other side of the coin to the smirking, Machiavellian schemer. While there was a time he thought there was nothing that he wouldn't do to achieve his ends, after Oberon's attempt to steal Alexander, Xanatos would never stoop to kidnapping. ("Miracle Child")
Xanatos is cool, confident and arrogant without that arrogance being a weakness. Tall, handsome and erudite, over six feet tall and built like a football player or wrestler, but usually impeccably dressed in custom made suits. He wears his hair long, tied back in a ponytail, and sports a neatly trimmed goatee.
He is also a known art fancier with his own personal museum that houses the Star of Arabia, Coyote Diamond, was once home to the Eye of Odin, and he had also hoped to add the Stone of Destiny to his collection.
While Xanatos is mainly a planner and trickster, he's not afraid to go into battle himself when the situation calls for it. He is well trained in the martial arts, and for those occasions when he needs more than that, has a crimson battle suit in the shape of a Steel Clan robot to don. In this armor, he was even able to battle Goliath to a standstill. In all, Xanatos is a very formidable opponent, and one not to be taken lightly.
Xanatos is a Yankees fan. [23]
Appearances
Apocrypha
"Recruits"
Much to Goliath's consternation, Xanatos showed too much of an interest in Katana, Nashville, Fu-Dog, and Egwardo for Goliath's comfort. But much to his relief, Xanatos had taken Fox and Alexander up to Xanadu for the summer. . . at least until he returned to offer Batman and Iron Man a spot in his new club, "Rich Boys With Big Toys".
The Goliath Chronicles
In contrast to his canon counterpart, Xanatos as depicted in The Goliath Chronicles is more of a benefactor and friend to the Manhattan Clan.
When Alex was kidnapped by Pat Doyle, Xanatos refused to surrender a gargoyles. Later after Alex was saved, he spoke against Doyle and ordering his arrest. ("Ransom")
He helped in finding Bronx and bringing him back to the castle. ("A Bronx Tale")
Later on, while attending an Illuminati meeting, Xanatos sneaked into the cell holding Broadway to free him and the rest of the Clan when they are taken captive. He said that he found his membership distasteful, while finding it to be useful. ("To Serve Mankind")
In early 1997, he bribed several construction workers employed by John Castaway to modify a trap designed to kill the Clan, while suggesting to Goliath that they make a clean start elsewhere. ("Angels in the Night")
Production Background
Voice Actor: Jonathan Frakes
During the show's development, Xanatos was originally known as Xavier and he was the descendant of the wizard that originally cursed the gargoyles to sleep for a thousand years. According to Greg Weisman, he was, "rich, powerful and petulant. Very Captain Hook." [24] This idea of a descendant of an ancient enemy was eventually used for Wolf and Hakon in "Vendettas".
The name Xavier was eventually dropped because of the similarity to Professor X (Charles Xavier) in Marvel Comics X-Men. Still, Greg Weisman wanted a name with a similar sound to it. Thinking of Thanatos, the Ancient Greek God of Death, and since X and TH sounds are often interchanged, he tried the name Xanatos, which was quickly accepted by other crew members. Some time later, he checked the phone book and found that Xanatos was in fact a real name. The character's first name, David, was chosen specifically because the master gargoyle had been named Goliath, thus echoing the Biblical story of David and Goliath, but with the hero and villain roles reversed. [25]
Greg Weisman notes that General Wade Eiling (from the Captain Atom comic he worked on with Cary Bates) is a precursor to David Xanatos, explaining that both are examples of villains he can respect. [26][27] Wade Eiling's approach to having multiple contingencies in his machinations also was instrumental in the development of Xanatos's character, who often revealed his own contingencies in what became known as the Xanatos Tag at the end of many episodes. [28] Odysseus was also in Weisman's mind when developing Xanatos into a human trickster, particularly when the character became Greek-American. [29] Other characters that helped inspire Xanatos included Captain Kirk and Bruce Wayne. [30][31]
Coincidentally, Jonathan Frakes' wife, Genie Francis, was expecting at the same time as Fox. [32]
The timeline regarding Xanatos's Illuminati status was not yet settled in 2005, when Greg Weisman responded that he was already a member by "Awakening: Part Two". [33] By the time of the SLG comic, his induction was placed after "Metamorphosis" and before "Legion". [34]
References/Parody
In the third season finale of the Adult Swim series, The Venture Bros., their arch-enemy, the Monarch, dons a suit of armor he calls his "Deaths-Head Panoply." The armor bears several similarities to Xanatos's Steel Clan armor, except in gold and with a butterfly motif instead of a gargoyle.
The Adult Swim series Robot Chicken featured a short sketch in the show's eighth season featuring an extremely wasteful Xanatos pushing a sleeping Goliath (both animated Kenner Action Figures) off a building before slipping off himself thanks to New York's typical pigeon population.
Xanatos had a brief silent cameo in the Disney "Broken Karaoke" song "Evil As Can Be"
See Also
- David Xanatos at Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
- David Xanatos at Wikality, the Truthiness Encyclopedia
