#darea auster

❗Spoiler warning: this post will touch on some lore and plot points in the Dune universe, as well as up until the August update of Gladiator Chronicles (Season 2, Episode 4)

Since the very first time Gladiator Chronicles was teased to the RC player base, Frank Herbert’s acclaimed epic science fiction novel series "Dune" (1965)—one of the most famous science fiction works of the 20th century—was one of the similar media products listed. The first book of the series was later adapted to feature films "Dune" (1984, dir. David Lynch) and decades later "Dune: Part One" (2021, dir. Dennis Villeneuve).

The story begins with the head of House Atreides appointed a new position, causing the family to relocate from their homeworld Caladan to the planet Arrakis, beautiful and dangerous, with endless desserts, scorching sun, huge monsters, and an abundance of melange (also known as “spice”)—an extremely rare and valuable substance. The story follows Paul, the heir of the House Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, as he ascends and becomes the messiah.

What do Dune and Gladiator Chronicles have in common? Let’s break them down in points:

Arrakis is a desert planet where water is worth its weight in gold, somewhat similar to Rix’s home planet Paitrum. They are both scorching sandy planets prone to sandstorms. Rix even tells Graut that in his life he has only ever seen "an ocean of sand". However, plot-wise, Arrakis is closer to the planet that Rix has visions of, where he has to “come home” and where his "fate will be decided." In Dune, Paul Atreides often has visions of the future: in the very beginning of the 2021 movie we see his recurring dream of the planet Arrakis and his future lover Chani, an Arrakis native

top row: arrakis concept art (dune 2021) | middle row: paitrum (background from S1E1) | bottom row: backgrounds from rix's visions of the mysterious planet

Arrakis is the only source of a valuable substance—"spice", or melange. The properties of this substance are somewhat similar to scarium in GC:

Is a strong drug that can cause immobility and hallucinations

Is critical for faster-than-light interstellar travel

Prolonged exposure causes a mutation to the eyes (blue/pale)—see Caesar and Pontiff’s eyes in particular

Prolongs life, as stated in the next point with the hermits

Grants psychic abilities (foresight)—the clerics have seen Darea’s future and scarium is their source of energy

Spice is a waste product of huge sandworms in Arrakis, difficult to acquire hence its scarcity—Scarium is mined in mines and is so expensive and rare that it's considered "god imprisoned in a stone"

top: comparison between fremen eyes in dune and caesar & pontiff's eyes | middle: the cleric knowing darea's future | bottom: spice explanation by caesar in future scene (S1E3)

In S1E11, if you choose the option that the nomads are a small tribe on Paitrum (second option), the resulting dialogue matches the description of Dune’s Fremen (from “free people”): the native inhabitants of Arrakis who have learned to synthesize spice

rix's explanation on the nomads if you choose "a small tribe that lives on paitrum" (S1E11) [credit for screenshots goes to HIMEME on youtube]

Paul Atreides’s mother, Lady Jessica, is a representative of the Bene Gesserit Order—a pseudo-religious organization who used genetic experimentation, galactic political interference, and religious engineering to further their own agenda. The members, all women, are able to look through the memory of their ancestors, but only through the female line. In GC, Rix’s mother Agnes in particular seems to have psychic abilities (+ energy manipulation) and, judging by the season 1 finale CG, Rix's parents were clerics (specifically Augurs). As we know, the order of the clerics is sacred, and headed by the Supreme Pontiff. Genetic experimentation is a common motif in GC, starting from the gladiator chips, Darea’s prophecy (see second to last point), and Cassius’s children being slightly altered clones

top and middle rows: concept art for the bene gesserit order (dune 2021) | bottom row: GC CG from S1E11

Just like Paul, Rix seems to have some superhuman abilities and a “destiny” to fulfill. Paul Atreides is the long awaited end product of a lengthy Bene Gesserit genetic experiment to create a messianic superbeing with the clairvoyance necessary to guide humanity to a better future—the Kwisatz Haderach. In the very first episode of GC, Rix speared a hastat—a combat robot—to the disbelief of Stortia and Gars later on when Rix told them his story. Rix experienced visions of Agnes, where she told him to “come home” and that his “nature” is calling him. Rix continues to have other visions involving his family members and a mysterious planet. In one of these visions, Rix’s father also hinted that Rix survived scarium exposure because of his genetics

top row: rix and agnes CG from S1E3 | middle row: rix vision with his father from S1E7 | bottom row: stortia and gars not believing rix from S1E3

Though, in terms of the story, Lady Jessica would also parallel Darea. Lady Jessica was ordered to give birth to a girl who would later bear the Kwisatz Hadarach, but due to her love to Duke Leto Atreides (Paul's father), she chose to bear a son instead—and Paul turned out to be the messianic superhuman the Bene Gesserit order has been striving for. From Rix's conversation with Tori, Darea is prophesised to give birth to a savior who will unite the entire inhabited space and put an end to all wars. The clerics prophesied this, as did the sisters of the Bene Gesserit Order in Dune

darea and rix's shared vision scene from S2E4

Paul Atreides, who at this point in the story has become part of the Fremen, is now their messiah (Muad'Dib), and has successfully defeated his rival house, becomes emperor himself. In the future scenes in GC, Rix is having a conversation with Caesar, which hints at the clear end of the story. We can assume that either Caesar will voluntarily renounce power in favor of Rix, or the latter will have to kill the current emperor and usurp power

left: caesar's conversation with rix from S1E2 | right: paul atreides becomes emperor (1984 movie)

Oh and lastly, this hair choice during character setup before the story even starts

i can't recommend it enough, tbh