Dark

"Come on out, motherfucker!"

―Dark (from Aliens vs. Predator)

Template:Predator infobox Dark was an Elite Yautja from the Elite Clan. He was dispatched by his clan Elders along with Wolf and one other Predator to BG-386, to investigate a distress call sent by the Young Blood Pack. He subsequently became involved in a large-scale Xenomorph outbreak on the planet and also came into conflict with the United States Colonial Marine Corps. Dark is the protagonist of the Predator campaign in the 2010 video game Aliens vs. Predator.

Dark stalked and killed numerous Xenomorphs and Colonial Marines during his time on BG-386, and was one of few Predators to have successfully defeated a Praetorian in close combat. However, Dark is probably most well known for his relentless hunt of the BG-386 Predalien, which he ultimately killed in the bowels of the Yautja Pyramid on the planet. Dark was the only one of the three Elites sent to BG-386 to escape the planet alive.

Biography

Trials

Dark gazing over his hunting ground, eager to add more skull trophies to his name.

Dark's story began on an unknown planet (possibly the Yautja home world) where he undertook the trials required to become an Elite in the presence of his clan leader Spartan and Elites Wolf and Hunter. He quickly mastered melee combat, and then proceeded to learn how to use the iconic Plasma Caster weapon. With the trials completed, he was promoted to the rank of Elite and dispatched along with two others to BG-386, to investigate a distress call sent by five Young Blood Yautja who were taking part in their first hunt there. Upon arrival, the three Elites discovered a huge Xenomorph outbreak was taking place on the planet and found themselves in the middle of the battle between the Aliens and the United States Colonial Marine Corps, which had been deployed to combat the threat. After destroying the Marines' ship, the USS Marlow, the Elites landed on the planet and Dark quickly discovered the bodies of two of the Young Bloods in the jungle. He set their Wrist Gauntlets to self-destruct to vaporize their remains, ensuring their technology did not fall into the hands of the humans.

Hunting the Queen

Dark next tracked the Xenomorph Queen to the refinery at the human colony of Freya's Prospect. Upon reaching the refinery, he briefly spotted a Predalien, but the creature fled and Dark instead proceeded inside after the Queen. He fought through the Hive, only to find the scorched remains of the already-dead Queen, previously killed by a lone Marine. Spartan, the Elite who had sent Dark to BG-386, contacted him and informed him that he must hunt and kill the Predalien, which was an "Abomination". Dark escaped the burning refinery, but not before he discovered the body of one of the Elites who arrived with him. Dark took his Smart-Disc, before setting his deceased brother's Wrist Gauntlet to overcharge and explode.

Dark wearing the ancestral mask.

Faced with fighting the Predalien alone, Dark moved into the ancient ruins of a Yautja temple, which had once served as hunting grounds for his kind, to recover more advanced weaponry to aid him in his quest. He eventually discovered an ancestral Bio-Mask, which once belonged to a legendary Yautja. Dark put on the royal mask, and it revealed to him a holographic record of the very first "Serpent" victory made by the Yautja. Dark learnt that within the temple lay the ancient Yautja's Wrist Gauntlet. Taking the mask in place of his own, he proceeded to search for the Gauntlet, only to find that it had been stolen by Weyland-Yutani and taken to their research facility on the planet. Dark's mission was now to purge all humans from the planet by retrieving the Gauntlet and using it to destroy the colony entirely. After slaughtering Marines at a dropship crash site, he became trapped in an ancient Yautja Combat Arena, where he was forced to fight and kill a Praetorian and its Warrior minions single-handed. He succeeded, acquiring an ancestral Combi-Stick for his troubles.

Dark ventured further through the tombs and found himself outside the Weyland-Yutani facility, which was built over the top of a Yautja Pyramid. After infiltrating the base, Dark found the Gauntlet in one of the labs. He then escaped through an elevator that led underground to the Pyramid's interior, where the finale of the prophecy awaited him.

Fighting the Abomination

Finally, Dark arrived at the ancient tomb of his ancestor and witnessed the holographic record of the first successful capture of a serpent Queen, but was nearly caught off guard by a horde of Xenomorphs. After the battle, Dark discovered that not only was the legendary hunter his ancestor, but that he had been buried within the Pyramid next to the first serpent Queen too. Dark honorably placed the ancient Wrist Gauntlet on the coffin and set it to self-destruct.

Dark tossing the Abomination's body from the Pyramid.

The "Abomination" suddenly appeared and tackled Dark to the ground. The two fell into an ancient battle arena set amidst a lake of molten lava, where they began a fight to the death. Dark emerged victorious, and he dragged the Abomination's carcass to the very roof of the research facility above the Pyramid where he hurled it to the ground in a display of his superiority. With his mission complete and the facility set to explode, Dark escaped the planet aboard his ship. As he walked through the halls, the other Yautja bowed in his presence, in awe of the feats he had achieved.

Dark commanded the ship's navigational systems to plot a course for a planet that would be the site of their greatest Hunt yet: Xenomorph Prime.

Weapons and Equipment

• Cloaking Device
• Wrist Blades
• Plasma Caster
• Combi-Stick
• Smart-Disc
• Proximity Mines
• Bio-Mask
  • Vocal Mimicry
• Wrist Gauntlet
  • Self-Destruct Device
  • Sat-Com

Trivia

Dark without his mask.

• Dark is the only protagonist in Aliens vs. Predator never to visit the Freya's Prospect colony complex.
• Dark's name is taken from the multiplayer skin based on him in Aliens vs. Predator, as he is never named in the game's singleplayer Predator campaign.
• Dark's design and the Bio-Mask he wear for the first part of the game are based on the Jungle Hunter from Predator.
• Dark is the second Yautja seen to carry dual Wrist Blades (i.e. Wrist Blades on both wrists) instead of the typical single set. The first was Brawler, seen in Aliens versus Predator: Extinction.
• Traditionally, Yautja hunters take their victims' heads as trophies, but in the ending of Aliens vs. Predator's Predator campaign, Dark merely throws the dead Abomination from the top of the research facility without decapitating it first. This was most likely done to echo the legendary manner in which Lord disposed of the first ever Xenomorph to be killed on a hunt. It may also be because the Yautja view Predaliens as unholy and an insult to the Yautja race, and thus unworthy of even being triumphantly displayed as a trophy.
• Dark's in-game skin is re-used for the Young Blood Predator fought by Rookie in the Marine campaign; this seems odd, as every other member of the Young Blood Pack encountered in the game uses Claw's skin.
• Dark actually has 2 skins in the game. The first is the Dark skin received at Rank 1 in multiplayer, which is similar to the character's singleplayer appearance except with the full armor seen on the Predators in the first Alien vs. Predator movie. The second is the Lord skin, which is the last Predator skin unlocked. This is the same as the singleplayer Dark after he recovers the ancestral mask.
• Dark's skin in multiplayer could also be suffering from the Predator armor glitch except in reverse. While Dark's skin uses the full Alien vs. Predator gear, when the glitch is active, it is the same as the armor-less skin in campaign.
• Dark's campaign armor, before he acquired Lord's mask, was the same armor that was used in the demo.
• Dark and Prince are the only known predators to have survived a fight to the death with a Predalien, with Prince successfully slaying two.

Appearances

• Aliens vs. Predator (video game)

Gallery

Dark towering over a human.

Dark about to collect a trophy

Dark claims a trophy

Dark in the jungle.

Dark standing with his plasma caster.

Dark admiring his trophy.

Dark armed with his plasma caster

Dark's multiplayer icon

Dark seen in the jungle