Magus

The Magus in 994

The Magus was the wizard who cursed the gargoyles, trapping them in stone sleep. His real name is unknown, "Magus" being the Latin word for "wizard", and therefore a title.

History

The Magus was born in the year 966. By 984, he had already become apprenticed to the Archmage, though not for long, thanks to the evil sorcerer's banishment for treason. From there, he became the new court wizard for Castle Wyvern and chief adviser to its ruler (by 994, Princess Katharine). Like Katharine, he disliked the gargoyles, considering them unnatural creatures. During this time, he also fell in love with her, if in a somewhat hopeless manner.

In 994, the Magus was captured alongside the rest of Katharine's household when the castle fell to the Vikings. When the surviving gargoyles arrived to rescue the humans, Hakon furiously tried to kill Princess Katharine. The Magus mistakenly believed that he had succeeded, and, blaming the gargoyles for this, cast a spell upon them from the Grimorum Arcanorum, causing Hudson, the trio, and Bronx to turn to stone "until the castle rises above the clouds". When he discovered that Katharine was not dead, and that Goliath had actually saved her life, he repented of his rash action, but he could not reverse his spell, since Hakon had burnt the page with the counter-spell upon it. He did, however, at Goliath's request, place the same spell upon the gargoyle leader.

Afterwards, the Magus accompanied Princess Katharine, Tom, and the eggs to Kenneth II's court. When the following year Kenneth was murdered by Constantine, who then seized the throne and tried to force Princess Katharine to marry him to solidify his position, the Magus had to take action to protect both Katharine and the eggs. Using his magical knowledge, he smuggled them out of the castle and took them to Avalon. Their path was barred, however, by the Weird Sisters, who denied them entry and attempted to turn them into owls. The Magus reflected the Sisters' spell upon them, but knew that he could not bring the Grimorum Arcanorum into Avalon, it being an object of human magic. He entrusted it to Finella and Mary, while entering Avalon with the Princess and Tom.

There, all three of them raised the eggs together. The Magus noticed, with the passing of the years, that Katharine and Tom had fallen in love with each other. Because of his own love for the Princess, he was heartbroken, but remained on Avalon to raise the young gargoyles out of atonement for having turned the gargoyles to stone. He spent much time by himself when not raising them, and in the process, learned how to harness the intrinsic magic of Avalon, although he did not find it an easy feat.

When the Archmage and the Weird Sisters attacked Avalon, the Magus, while convinced that he lacked the strength to defy them without the Grimorum. But when Elisa came to the island with Goliath and Bronx and announced her intent to awaken King Arthur from his enchanted sleep, to recruit them for the defense of the clan there, the Magus accompanied her, and used the new magic that he had learned to defeat the two animated suits of armor that guarded Arthur's sleeping place.

In the battle that followed, the Magus fought against the Weird Sisters, and finally utilized his magical strength to transform the two suits of armor into a chain that bound them fast. However, the strain of this act was too much for him, and he died soon afterwards, laid to rest on the very bier upon which King Arthur had slept for over a thousand years.

Series Bible

Like Katharine, the magus was also young and immature, with more arrogance and magical power than wisdom. He had been apprentice to the Archmage, until the latter betrayed Prince Malcolm in 984. Then he had been promoted to court magician, probably before he was ready. In 994, he casts the spell that puts the surviving gargoyles to sleep, because he blames them for Katharine's death. But when he finds out that in fact, Goliath has saved her life, he regrets his rash actions and wants to make amends. But he cannot; his power has limits. On the plus side, he is very loyal to his princess.

Appearances

• "Awakening Part One" (First Appearance)
• "Awakening Part Two"
• "Long Way To Morning" (Flashback)
• "Reawakening" (Flashback)
• "A Lighthouse in the Sea of Time" (Mentioned Only)
• "City of Stone Part One" (Flashback, No Lines)
• "Avalon Part One"
• "Avalon Part Two"
• "Avalon Part Three" (Death of Character)
• "Ill Met By Moonlight" (Mentioned Only)

Production Background

Voice Actor: Jeff Bennett