| “ | Travelers are everywhere. They're the faces that surround you every day... the world over... the ones you don't notice. Because you're too busy making a mess of all you have. | ” |
— Markos to Klaus about the Travelers.
| ||
Markos, of the Theodosian dynasty, a powerful witch and Leader of the Travelers, was a recurring character on The Originals, and the eventual husband of Katherine Pierce. He is the father of Nadia Petrova, the daughter he had with Katherine in the 1400s, though he was unaware of this, and the step-father to Adyelya and Håkon Mikaelson via his marriage with Katherine. Markos was born some time in the 5th Century into an important Roman Imperial Family, known as the House of the Theodosian, and was the youngest child and second son of Flavius Arcadius, a Roman emperor, and Aelia Eudoxia, a Roman empress consort by marriage; he was also the younger brother of Flacilla, Aelia Pulcheria, Arcadia, Theodosius II, and Marina.
Within his family, it was a long-kept secret that his branch of the family—and other certain family branches as well—had the ability to practice magic and were descendants of the Travelers. Eventually, Markos would break away from his family, during the fall of the Western half of the Roman Empire, leaving with members of the Travelers, to become the Leader over one of the divided factions of the Travelers.
At some point, while travelling throughout Europe, Markos was able to successfully bring together the divided and warring factions of the Travelers—a schism which began in the coven hundreds of years ago with the actions of Silas and Qetsiyah.
In the 1400s, Markos managed to track down Anton Petrov, who had escaped the Travelers and run away from the coven. Intending to kill Anton and his family, he instead met Katerina Petrova, who he fell in love with and began a relationship with, ultimately conceiving their daughter, Nadia Petrova, though this was something that Markos was unaware of. When Katerina's father discovered the relationship between Markos and Katerina, and who Markos was, he and his wife, Mariya, figured out a way to convince Markos away from the village and were planning to kill him.
However, Anton and Mariya only manage to magically wound and cripple Markos rather than kill him, which does indeed lead to his ultimate death at hands of the Brotherhood of the Five.
In season two of The Originals, Katherine marries Markos in order to help bring stability to the French Quarter, the witches, and to ensure that Markos and the rest of the Travelers would be bound to Adyelya, and therefore, would protect her and keep her safe. Originally, when Markos agrees to Katherine's terms, he does not care for his step-daughter, but he quickly grows to love her. His love for his step-daughter, Adyelya, leads to Markos and the Travelers sacrificing their lives for her in order to keep the Hollow from getting to Adyelya when she is older.
Markos is a member of the Theodosian dynasty and a member of the Petrova Family via his marriage to Katherine and his daughter, Nadia, and step-children. Through Katherine, Markos is also linked to the Harman Family. By birthright, Markos is a member of The Travelers, and later becomes the Leader of the Coven after reuniting the two factions. He is also a member of the Trinity Coven via approval and acceptance by Katherine.
Early History[]
Constantinople, Roman Empire, 5th Century (Byzantine Empire)[]
Markos was born into the royal House of Theodosius, a dynasty of the later Roman Empire, ruling in Constantinople; his parents were the eastern Roman emperor Arcadius and empress Aelia Eudoxia. Markos was the youngest child of six—Flacilla (397-400), Aelia Pulcheria (399), Arcadia (400), Theodosius II (401), and Marina (403)—and the second son, being born on October 6 in 404.
When the empress, Aelia Eudoxia, fell pregnant with Markos, it was very difficult and rough on her body; she had already previously suffered two miscarriages and stillbirths, outside of the birth of her five children, and as such she was bedridden most of her pregnant. When Markos was finally born, the childbirth process was too difficult for the empress and she passed away while giving birth—the death of his mother, with his birth, would be the start of Markos' difficult relationship with the rest of his siblings, especially his brother in particular.
Bulgaria, 1400s[]
Throughout The Vampire Diaries[]
Season Four[]
Season Five[]
Throughout The Originals[]
Season One[]
Season Two[]
Season Three[]
Season Four[]
Season Five[]
Throughout Legacies[]
Season One[]
In This is the Part Where You Run, while explaining a part of her family history to Landon, Adyelya briefly mentions to him that, at some point, her mother had married a powerful leader of a witch coven (Markos), who was also the father of her half-sister. Adyelya notes, from what she told, the situation and relationship between her mother and step-father was very complicated.
Personality[]
Physical Appearance[]
Markos had dark, brown eyes and black hair, which he would usually wear slicked back. He also seems to have the early European appearance to him, which is confirmed in The Originals, as he was born in Constantinople during the Roman Empire. He was also never seen smiling, but instead had a serious look on all the time. He had a tall stature and an athletic build, and usually wore dark-colored clothing.
Powers and Abilities[]
Markos was an ancient witch, and possibly one of the most powerful members of the Travelers, alongside Qetsiyah and Silas, especially considering what he was able to do: reunite the warring factions of the coven, track down all the members, and finding a way for the coven to practice magic despite the Curse on their coven.
He also has proven himself powerful enough to cast a powerful spell in the 5th century, tying it to the future doppelgängers of Silas and Amara. The spell was designed to bring them together and thus acted, to some extent, as a sort of love spell, which was active for the next fifteen centuries; it was even believed to be the doing of the universe by Qetsiyah, who is one of the greatest witches in history, when in fact, it was Markos' spell at work. The fact that Markos was able to keep his spell hidden away from the Spirits and Ancestors of the Travelers shows the power of his spellwork and capabilities. Furthermore, Markos was also able to begin discovering how the Curse could potentially be undone/
Upon his resurrection in modern times, he was quick to perform a cloaking spell upon himself that hid him from the Spirits, a Tracking Spell that would lead him to not only Elena and Stefan, but also Katherine (though his spell was blocked), and a spell that would cause both Elena and Stefan to see various visions of the lives of doppelgängers past.
Weaknesses[]
Markos had the typical weaknesses of a witch.
Name[]
- Markos is a variant of Marco (Latin), Marcus (Latin) and Mark (Latin). The meaning is "dedicated to Mars". Markos (Μαρκος) is also the ancient Greek version of the name Marcus (latin), it is also a Greek Biblical name. Additionally, Markos is the Spanish/Portuguese version of the name Marcus.[1]
Trivia[]
- Markos was considered to be one of the most powerful members of the Travelers following Silas and Qetsiyah.
- He is the father of Nadia Petrova, his daughter with Katerina Petrova.
- For the longest time, he was unaware of the fact that he had a daughter.
- He is also the step-father to Adyelya and Hakon Mikaelson via his marriage to Katherine.
- Markos first meets Nadia in season two of The Originals.
- He fell in love with Katherine during the time they spent together.
- Though Anton and Mariya did not kill Markos, they did magically wound him, which allowed for him to be defeated and killed by the Brotherhood of the Five. As such, it can be said that Katherine's parents had a hand in his death.
- Even while he was dead and on The Other Side, Markos was still Leader of the Travelers.
- Markos originally had plans for Stefan and Elena as they are both doppelgängers.
- He is the second person outside the Mikaelson and Petrova Family, after Cami, to know the truth about what really happened to Adyelya.
- This is due to his marriage to Katherine being necessary to help protect Adyelya and keep her safe.