Lucien LaCroix & Nigel Bennett

A Tribute by Nick Starfields

One night, late one night, the cat stepped onto my remote control and changed the channel.

Some American cop show, I guess.

Then, this man walked into the scene and the rest, as they say, is history.

I was absolutely mesmerised by Lucien LaCroix.

I was fascinated absolutely and suffered through the horrendous plots of Forever Knight with a glad heart because of the character of Lucien LaCroix, portrayed so beautifully by Nigel Bennett, of whom I'd never heard before.

What is so wonderful about Lucien LaCroix?

As far as I am concerned, there are many things. His age and authority for one; I find that irresistibly sexy and a huge turn on.

But what's even better still, here we have a vampire who LOVES being a vampire.

No whining about lost souls. No snivelling about lost humanity. No lies about who is and what he does - Lucien LaCroix embraces his existence and his destiny, and he enjoys himself.

Finally, a vampire with a sense of humour!

Now, what makes him giggle with delight is not necessarily everybody's idea of a joke, but you have to admire a vampire who sets out to have a good time, not to be beaten by time or regret, that is for humans, and indeed, it is.

Nigel Bennett is the perfect man for the job of the ancient Roman general, and I loved this character so much that I used many of Lucien's and Nigel's traits, inflections, movements and intentions as the basic template for Lord Lucian Tremain from In Serein.

With what I've seen and heard about the feedback regarding Lucian Tremain, Lucien LaCroix and Nigel Bennett, I think we are dealing with more than just a random character - this is an archetype, it is that powerful.

I believe this entity that is at the core of all of these - and of Darth Vader, too, and many others that have fascinated from "the dark side" over the millennia of human artistry - is one of the "lost archetypes", something that does exist but became deleted, edited out from our Tarot Decks, so even though it still exists, our conscious bridge to talking about this, experiencing it or dealing with it by thought and speech has become lost in the process.

I called this lost archetype "The Executioner".

There are parts of us that *are* Lucien LaCroix, this is a human facet or aspect. It exists, and by denying its existence, nothing can be achieved, nothing can be resolved, and nothing can be learned.

I have had THE most extraordinary time possible from that night I first saw Lucien LaCroix and something went together in my head, in my energy system, with this archetype. My own Lucian Tremain was and is a love affair of splendid proportions - challenging, but fantastic and well worth it.

When the time came to write a vampire universe of my own, I created a "tribute to Lucien LaCroix" in the form of Gaius Levinius. This is an evolved form of the archetype portrayed by Nigel Bennett, and still the flavour is there, and you just KNOW that it is the same.

As a scientist, I have always had to document the genesis of any theory, process, technique; and it is absolutely essential to acknowledge just where the original seeds for any postulation of theory or research have come from.

In another way of saying it, there is a "golden line" of development - no-one lives in a vacuum, no matter what we might try and believe.

Lucian Tremain, the Lord of Darkness, and Gaius Levinius, Segar Vampire are evolutions of Lucien LaCroix, absolutely.

The simple fact remains that you can't evolve something meaningful from nothing.

The core of the lost archetype of the executioner is right there in Lucien LaCroix for all to see who wish to see it, who aren't afraid to face that, and who have the courage to begin to question THAT, try and understand it.

This has a dual purpose and includes those who once fell victim to THAT, just the same - it is to understand that the power of the executioner is something that ALL humans have inherited, need to deal with at some point, for without understanding it, acknowledging it and OWNING it absolutely, it cannot be controlled, and the decision to use this very particular power in a benevolent way cannot be made.

There's a Lucien LaCroix in all of us.

Those of us who know that, have a shot at a much more interesting life, and potentially, a much more vibrant eternity at that.

Nick Starfields

Author, In Serein Trilogy, Vampire Solstice

February 2006