| “ | If this were hell, you would know it. Think of this as a waiting room. Lucky for you, I will be sending you back, but not before we discuss our partnership. | ” |
— Arcadius to Stefan in The Next Time I Hurt Somebody, It Could Be You
| ||
Arcadius, better known as Cade, was a recurring character and an antagonist who first appeared in the fourth episode of the eighth season of The Vampire Diaries. He was the world's first psychic who in death came to be known as the Devil and creator of Hell.
Early History[]
Prior to 750 B.C.[]
Arcadius was born in a village situated on an island in the Mediterranean. He was gifted with the ability to see into the minds of others as the world's very first psychic. He used his powers to empathize and help others which made his fellow villagers love him. However, when he used his powers to peer into a man's mind and saw his "impure" thoughts for a young woman in the village, he approached the man with an offer to help quell his "urges" using his gift. The man, however, was mortified and furious so instead he turned the villagers against Arcadius. Together with a mob of villagers, the man captured Arcadius and burnt him at the stake. In his final moments as he was set ablaze, Arcadius felt anguish and betrayal over being murdered by the very people he helped and let out a psychic blast that was so powerful that it created its very own dimension which would come to be known as Hell. Arcadius' soul resided in this new world of his and from then on he collected the souls of the wicked dead and feasted on them.
After 750 B.C.[]
After his death, other people born with the same gift as him were persecuted and exiled to the same island he once inhabited and left to die. At some point two psychics named Sybil and Seline lived on the island and unbeknownst to Sybil, Seline was tricking her into luring men to the shores with their powers, not for their cargo but to cannibalize their bodies. When Sybil tried to commit suicide after learning of Seline's lies and their cannibalism Arcadius approached them. He offered them eternal life provided that they feast on the flesh of mortals for eternity while he harvests the souls of their victims. Seline agreed on both of their behalves and the Sirens were born.
Throughout The Vampire Diaries Series[]
Season Five[]
In Gone Girl, Arcadius was not seen but is the reason behind Katherine Pierce's sentencing to Hell.
Season Eight[]
In An Eternity of Misery, Sybil reveals her backstory to Stefan while implying that this is what Arcadius wishes for her to do. She also reveals Cade's name and origins to Stefan. Through her flashbacks, Sybil informs Stefan that Cade was the world's first psychic. He was a kind man who used his powers to help his fellow villagers until one turned on him in fear, and rallied the village against him to burn him at the stake. In his dying moments, his anger at their betrayal caused him to unleash a psychic blast that created a new dimension that Cade's spirit controlled, a place that would be called Hell, where Cade punished the souls of the people who betrayed him as well as the souls of wicked people for eternity. Elsewhere as a bedtime story to Lizzie and Josie Saltzman, Seline tells them the story of Arcadius. He also called forth Georgie's soul to hell when she was killed by Seline.
In Detoured On Some Random Backwoods Path to Hell, Cade is summoned by Seline in an attempt to bargain for her and Sybil's freedom. She offers the twin siphon girls Lizzie and Josie Saltzman as replacements for the Sirens. Cade tells Sybil he is intrigued by the offer before Sybil makes a counteroffer. Sybil offers Cade the Salvatore brothers as the willing replacements for the Sirens as they are powerful vampires with bloody histories. Damon masterminded the deal and convinced Stefan to accept in order to spare Caroline and Alaric's twin girls. Sybil reveals she secretly altered the deal so Cade allowed her to still be an immortal Siren, but is no longer bound for Hell, while Seline must still go to Hell as revenge for leaving Sybil in the Vault centuries ago. Cade accepted Sybil's deal and granted Stefan a day left of freedom before his deal activates.
In The Next Time I Hurt Somebody, It Could Be You, after Damon stakes Stefan, Cade appears to Stefan behind the veil to discuss the deal that was made. When Stefan tries to tell him he's the wrong person, Cade says he's actually the perfect person and shows him why. He shows him the flashback of Monterey 1917 and how massacring the villagers gave him the claim on his soul. It's revealed that Seline had altered Stefan's subconscious and made her remorseful, which in turn made Cade want him as a new servant. When Stefan rejects becoming a Ripper again, Cade tells him there's one more stop. He shows Mystic Falls High School 2009 and how he corrupted Elena into a dark path. He reveals to him that he wants to feed on the souls of people who can be made wicked even though they were once good. When Stefan asks if he refuses Cade's offer, Cade tells him he'll become patient to wait for the twins to be of age and after hearing this, Stefan says he'll be a Ripper for a year. Cade wages that after a year with him, Stefan won't want to leave and while he thinks Cade is wrong, Cade tells him that's what makes the wager worthwhile.
In Nostalgia's a Bitch, Sybil and Seline are sitting in a diner arguing and trying to make amends, moments later Cade walks in and expresses his disappointment over their constant bickering. They are shocked to see him and Cade reveals that the bell rang enough to give him an appearance on earth. The Sirens attempt to convince Cade they could manage to work together, but he declines their offer and killed both sisters who are then consumed by hellfire.
In You Made a Choice to Be Good, he appears at a cafe looking at the options while standing behind Bonnie. He orders the straight drip that Bonnie suggested and before he leaves, he reveals that the barista, Anthony, has been stretching his check with his boss' wife and that it was the least of her needs, and as Cade walks out, Anthony and his boss start fighting.
He appears at the Salvatore house and he confirms to Damon that he's not a hallucination, grabbing the tray Damon had brought for Stefan. He reveals to Damon that he stepped through the boundary of Hell after the 11th bell ring and offers up some "motivation" for the two to do their work. He tells him to kill 100 people by sundown and if he can't offer up quantity, he'll take quality instead, meaning Caroline. He later shows up at the high school where the time capsule event was being held and talking to Damon about disobeying orders. He reveals to Damon that he knows that he's thinking of ways trying to kill him, but Cade shows that he can't die from fire, heart detachment, etc, asking if Damon's seen enough and disappears. Cade then kills 3 people at the Mystic Grill and when Caroline says nobody has to die, he tells her he begs to differ, smiling at his work. He watches as Matt leads the remaining patrons out the bar and asks where Damon is. He tells Damon he's doing the work for him and tells him he can end it now if he kills Caroline. Cade reveals that he gave the same option to Stefan, which was to kill 100 people or kill Elena, to which Stefan is now on his way to do. He watches Damon feed on an unknown woman and tells him he still has 97 more to go to fill his quota. When Damon tries to bargain again, Cade tells him the time for bargaining is over and to get to work.
In What Are You?, he arrives at the Salvatore house to offer his condolences to Damon as Stefan is now human and the agreement is now done. He tells Damon that he wants Stefan's soul at midnight and also requires Ethan Maxwell's journal, asking him if they have a deal.
Much later at night, Damon hands him the journal and Cade tells Damon that Stefan is now able to live the rest of his human life. When asked if anybody has ever earned their way out of Hell, Cade tells Damon that he doesn't want to give out any false hope and proceeds to burn the journal, throwing it into the fire and walks out.
In The Lies Will Catch Up To You, Cade is at a coffeehouse and sees that Bonnie has walked in. He tells her they share a kinship now due to her psychic abilities and when she asks how she can get Enzo out of Hell, he tells her to ask him herself and offers her a seat. He tells her he's going to teach her a lesson and that she had a psychic awakening after Enzo's death. He tells her in order to find Enzo, she must open her mind to him, offering his hands to show her. He tells her to remember the moment she lost him and how she felt as it happened. She tells him how she feels rage, he tells her to embrace it as it's the source of her power. He then tells her to focus and call his name, and she finds him. After she opens her eyes, he asks her what did she see and if she found him. He asks her why she is upset if she didn't find him and she tells him that she relived the pain of losing him, thanking Cade for the lesson and walks out, leaving Cade to watch her. He then shows up outside leaning against her car and she asks why he's following her. He tells her he's not done with her and he had been pondering as to what happened with Enzo's spirit. He tells her that her pain caused a psychic blast and made a dimension that was hidden even from him. He says that he has never seen another person do the same thing like he did, and then proclaims Enzo's soul belongs to him, putting his hands on her head. She gets his hands off and he states that not only is she hiding Enzo, but thinks Kai is out in the world. He then threatens that if she continues to harbor secrets from him, then she'll see why he's called the devil.
He later shows up behind the veil as Stefan is dying from being shot at by Dorian. He tells Stefan to let go as it would be easier on Caroline from being a burden for his grasp of redemption and cleaning up his mess. He tries to convince him to let go, but Stefan tells him he's stubborn and before he wakes up, Cade tells him that his decision is only human.
In It's Been a Hell of a Ride, Cade greets Damon in the crypt which contains Elena's coffin. He tells Damon that he's in limbo – neither dead nor alive but somewhere in between. Cade offers to return Damon to his body if he delivers the bone dagger to him. Damon refuses and Cade replies that he has a way to change Damon's mind.
Stefan and Damon are meeting Cade outside a waterfall and lake. They argue and Stefan plunges a syringe full of vervain into Damon, effectively stopping Damon. Stefan enters the cave behind the waterfall and sees Elena's coffin. Cade taunts Stefan by saying that he will not be able to kill Cade, even with the bone dagger. At exactly 8:00, Alaric begins to ring the bell while Stefan attempts to kill Cade. Cade overpowers him when the bell stops ringing (as Alaric took a phone call from Josie and Lizzie), and Damon enters the cave just then.
Cade offers Damon a deal: Cade will only take one soul – either Elena or Stefan. Damon must choose which person to save. With Elena's coffin on fire and Stefan on the ground bleeding and in great pain, Damon chooses himself to save both Stefan and Elena. Cade tells Damon that he (Damon) must die for Cade to take his soul. After Cade stops the fire around Elena's coffin, Damon stabs himself with a wooden stake.
In the in-between world, Cade looks for Damon, saying that it is useless to hide and Damon's soul belongs to him. He finds Damon and psychically pulls Damon toward him, only to be stopped by Bonnie. As Bonnie has the same psychic power as Cade, she says she will fight for Damon. Bonnie is losing and Stefan plunges the bone dagger into Cade's chest, destroying Cade, making him explode and ashes fall to the ground.
Personality[]
Initially, Arcadius was shown to be a nice, decent and sociable person. He smiled and walked among the villagers as one of them. He was fair and good-tempered. He also was a wise counselor who tried to use his psychic powers, specifically mind reading, to help people control their urges and tempt their impure desires until he was unjustly punished by his neighbors. As he took his last breaths, his outlook changed and he decided to make them all suffer for what they did to him.
Embittered by his death, Cade became more quiet and subdued in his dealings with others, no longer showing empathy. Now he had no qualms about tormenting others no matter how small or insignificant their "sin" was, even if such a deed was an accident. Cade was not reluctant to turn innocent children into the Siren's replacements.
Cade lacks any of his original optimism and faith in humanity. Due to his death at the hands of his own people, his personality changed and now he delights in human suffering. He tells Stefan that he wanted him as a servant ever since the Monterrey incident because he considers it a masterpiece. Cade doesn't just seek to punish and feed off the wicked but actively wants to corrupt those who would otherwise lead a decent and moral life. In his eyes, anyone who can be made wicked is already wicked and to this end, he enjoys tempting them from their moral path. In this regard, he lives up to his given nickname of "the Devil" which in some versions, is depicted as either a tempter and/or a fallen angel seeking to corrupt mankind.
Physical Appearance[]
Arcadius had an athletic build and a tall stature, and physically appeared to be in his early thirties. He had a full lower lip, dark brown eyes, and wide cheekbones.
Powers and Abilities[]
Arcadius' psychic blast
Arcadius possessed all the standard powers and abilities of a human/psychic, but at the moment of his death he had awakened a rare ability to create another dimension with a powerful psychic blast. An ability so unique that no other being with psychic powers has ever matched until Bonnie Bennett created her own psychic dimension at the moment of Enzo's death.
Seline claims that Arcadius was the first psychic, born with the ability to look into the minds of others. This gift gave him great empathy towards others but would eventually cost him his life.
In his final moments, he came to know true evil of men and upon his dying breath created an entire dimension with a psychic blast, an extreme display of power that altered the very cycle of life and death; this dimension was called Hell.
As a spirit, Arcadius resided within and ruled his own afterlife dimension. He was capable of calling forth evil souls and could even deny them entry into the Other Side, forcing them into Hell, forever punished for their wicked deeds no matter how small. Since he was called 'The Devil', it is unlikely that he had ultimate control over the souls that passed over into the Afterlife (those that found peace), however the means of this have not been established. Seemingly, he also had the ability to release souls from Hell, upon his own volition, specifically those that had escaped via the Founder's Bell.
He could inhabit the limbo between the afterlife to communicate with those temporarily stuck in limbo. With a body of water, human sacrifice and fire, he could be psychically summoned to the world of the living as an apparition. Even after his resurrection, he retained the ability to inhabit limbo via his psychic abilities.
Some time after his death, he was able to appear before Seline in a moment of her need and made a deal with her. He granted immortality, youth and beauty to her and Sybil, creating the first sirens, in return for the souls of humanity's worst. The only stipulation was for them to feast on human flesh in order to maintain their forms. He later extended the same gift of immortality to both Stefan and Damon Salvatore. However, in both cases, his subjects would still physically die, giving them the opportunity to converse with one another. Once finished, he was able to send them back, giving them their lives back.
Cade took advantage of the ringing of the Mystic Falls Founders Bell. Cade was able to "pay a visit on Earth" since it was only rung 11 times (1 time shy of unleashing hellfire) but sufficient enough to make cracks between the two planes of existence. Since he was dead and a spirit within his own dimension, it is currently unknown exactly how he was able to become 'flesh' as other escaped spirits were still tied to hell.
When he returned he was shown to have retained his psychic powers and his control over other spirits within Hell. In addition, he could control his own Hellfire, as his dimension was the psychic imprint of his own death. Upon his "resurrection", he was, seemingly, functionally immortal as he showed Damon that he was physically unfazed by fire or Hellfire and could rip out his own heart, while still functioning properly. Whether this was a physical manifestation or a psychic illusion remains to be seen.Weaknesses[]
Arcadius had the typical weaknesses of a human/psychic while he was still mortal.
As a spirit, he was still bound to the afterlife and could not physically interact with the physical plane.
After being resurrected from Hell, he achieved a form of immortality and could not be killed by conventional means. He could only be killed if stabbed by a weapon made from his bones. It has been suggested that the Cure could turn him mortal and suspectible to typical weaknesses of a normal human, although it was never put into practice.
Appearances[]
The Vampire Diaries[]
- Gone Girl (Unseen Phenomena)
- An Eternity of Misery (Flashback)
- Coming Home Was a Mistake (Mentioned)
- Detoured On Some Random Backwoods Path to Hell (First Modern Day Appearance)
- The Next Time I Hurt Somebody, It Could Be You
- We Have History Together (Mentioned)
- The Simple Intimacy of the Near Touch (Mentioned)
- Nostalgia's a Bitch
- You Made a Choice to Be Good
- What Are You?
- The Lies Will Catch Up To You
- It's Been a Hell of a Ride (Death)
- I Was Feeling Epic (Mentioned)
Legacies[]
- You Will Remember Me (Mentioned)
Name[]
- Arcadius is the latinized form of "Arkadios". It derives from an ancient Greek name meaning "of Arcadia". Arcadia was a region in Greece, its name deriving from "arktos" meaning "bear". This was the name of a 3rd-century saint and martyr.[1]
- Cade, in this case, derives from the name "Arcadius". Standing alone, it comes from a Welsh origin and is a diminutive form of Cadell. It means "small battle; spirit of the battle".[2]
Trivia[]
- He is the oldest known character in The Vampire Diaries universe.
- Cade shares some similarities to Qetsiyah:
- They both were some of the most powerful people of their respective species (psychic and witch, respectively).
- They both created a new race of supernatural species.
- They both created dimensions of suffering based on desires of revenge. Cade saw the true evil within the villagers that burned him alive while Qetsiyah sought to punish Silas for his betrayal.
- They both bestowed immortality upon great supernatural beings; Cade on two psychics (created Sirens) and Qetsiyah on a traveler witch (created Immortals).
- Cade can bestow powers on those that enter into a pact with him, such as making psychics into Sirens, and making normal vampires like the Salvatore brothers immortal. However, his immortality seems only to be the ability to send a soul back to their body after they are killed.
- Cade can also revoke the powers he grants to who he sees fit, as he used his powers to burn the two sirens, Sybil and Seline to death with no effort. He granted them their immortality, and proved that he could easily take their lives when he wanted to.
- Over the course of their run, several episodes contained the word "devil" in the title. Those include The Vampire Diaries ("The Devil Inside") and The Originals ("Chasing the Devil's Tail", "The Devil is Damned", "The Devil Comes Here and Sighs", "High Water and a Devil's Daughter" and "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea").
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