Nikolas Cassadine
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| Nikolas Cassadine | |||||||||||||
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 Tyler Christopher as Nikolas Cassadine. |
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| General Hospital | |||||||||||||
| Portrayed by | Tyler Christopher (1996-1999; 2003 - ) Stephen Martines (1999-2003) |
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| First appearance | 1996 | ||||||||||||
| Profile | |||||||||||||
| Gender | Male | ||||||||||||
| Date of birth | November 5, 1981 | ||||||||||||
| Age | 26 | ||||||||||||
| Occupation | Russian Prince/ Head of Cassadine Industries |
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| Residence | Wyndemere Castle Port Charles, New York |
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Prince Nikolas Mikhail Stavrosovich Cassadine [1] is a fictional character on the long-running American soap opera General Hospital. The role was originated by Tyler Christopher, who played the character from 1996-1999, and then after a four-year hiatus resumed the role in 2003 and is the current actor. Stephen Martines (under the stage name "Coltin Scott") played the role from 1999 to 2003, and Chris Beetem temporarily took over the character in December 2005.[2]
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[edit] Brief character summary
Nikolas is a Russian Prince and the current head of his family's legacy, Cassadine Industries. He is the son of Stavros Cassadine and Laura Spencer. A single father to son Spencer following the death of Nikolas' fiancė and mother of his son, Courtney Matthews, Nikolas was engaged to long-time love and former wife Emily Quartermaine, who was murdered the night they were to announce their engagement. It was part of the text message killer storyline.
Nikolas faces a constant struggle to define his own identity within the context of the history of the Cassadine and Spencer families. He and his half brother Lucky Spencer have both been victimized by the matriarch of the family, Helena Cassadine, in a variety of ways, and both have been caught in the crossfire between Lucky's father, Luke Spencer and his personal war with the Cassadines.
Recently, Nikolas had developed a potentially fatal brain tumor as a result of a drug forced upon him by Jerry Jax, who in a substantial departure from his early personality, has become a ruthless mercinary who now has a very murderous history. Nikolas was eventually operated on and the tumor was removed and he is currently recovering from that ordeal.
It is possible that the behavioral anomolies caused in the past by drugs he was given by Helena Cassadine earlier in his life and the drugs and subsequent tumor related to Jerry Jax may cause another drastic personality shift, which is being strongly hinted at in the current storyline.
In mid May of 2008, his character came to the rescue of Claudia Zacarra, who had been stabbed by Jerry Jax and dumped in the Port Charles harbor. Since Jerry was interrupted on the docks before he could complete the murder by also cutting Claudia's throat, she was able to survive in part due to the slowing down of her bleeding caused by hypothermia. She somehow made it to the shore of Spoon Island, which is now owned by Nikolas Cassadine, and was found by him during a brutal storm.
It appears that he will now be caught up in the turmoil surrounding the Zacarra family, as his half sister Lulu Spencer is involved with Johnny Zacara and the union is staunchly disapproved of by her brother Lucky.
[edit] Early years
Nikolas is the son of Laura Webber and the late Stefan Cassadine. His mother, Laura, had been kidnapped by Stavros as an act of revenge for the events that led to the death of his father Mikkos Cassadine. Laura and her husband Luke Spencer had been involved in these events and Stavros took Laura to the Cassadine family island in Greece where he held her prisoner until she agreed to be his wife. Although she fought against this at first, she initially agreed to it when the confinement became too much to bear. Stavros was a tyrant who had a nasty temper and a penchant for drinking and debauchery. To escape his tirades, Laura would often walk on the island. On one of these occasions she met Stavros' kind-hearted brother Stefan Cassadine and the two formed a close friendship. This friendship would soon turn romantic and when Laura discovered that she was pregnant, she hoped that he was the father.
Having a child changed Laura. Before she felt trapped and miserable on the island, but now she had a reason to have hope once more. When the child was born he was named Nikolas, after Tsar Nicholas II. His great-grandfather Mikhail was of noble blood and had been a close friend of the Tsar. It was only after Nikolas was born that Laura realized just what lay ahead for her son. The Cassadine family were Russian aristocrats, with connections to the royal Romanov family. They existed for hundreds of years in Russia until the Bolshevik Revolution forced them to flee to Greece. After that period they built a large economic empire of power and wealth. As the Prince Cassadine, when Nikolas came of age he would take his place as the head of the family and would have the power that came with it.
Despite all of this, Laura wanted her son to live a normal life. This made her continually curious about the life that she left behind in Port Charles and her husband Luke. Stavros had made Laura think that Luke had died but Stefan learned the truth and secretly passed the information to Laura. She wanted to see Luke, but worried about Nikolas. Stefan promised to watch out for him as Laura left to be reunited with her husband. After running away, Stavros followed her back to Port Charles only to die by falling down a flight of stairs. Laura fully intended to go back to the Cassadine island to get Nikolas, but his grandmother Helena Cassadine threatened Laura and her family with death if she tried. Although Laura initially stayed away, she couldn't bear to leave her child alone to that fate and tried to see him. As a result, Helena killed Laura's mother, Lesley Webber prompting Laura to leave Nikolas behind. She would never tell her husband, children, or anyone else about her eldest son, although she would never stop thinking about him.
After Stavros' death, Nikolas' welfare first fell to his grandmother. Not wanting him to end up like his brother, Stefan usurped the family power away from his mother and took custody of Nikolas when he was seven. Helena was then sent away and told to never come near him again. Not much is known about Nikolas's childhood. From the small hints that have been given he was a naturally curious, caring and emotional child who would spend time riding his horse, Sheba, and traveling the globe with his uncle. Although his childhood is considered a happy one, it was also filled with that of isolation from children his own age and the normal everyday things that children do. Although he grew up learning to love and respect his mother, Nikolas also bore a great resentment towards her for abandoning him. He carried this resentment with him until he was in his teens.
[edit] Teen years
Fifteen-year-old Nikolas first came to Port Charles after donating his bone marrow to his sister Lesley Lu, who had been diagnosed with Aplastic Anemia. Nikolas had known growing up that he had a half-brother, Lucky, but was unaware that he had a little half-sister. Curious, he left his hospital bed to see her. He developed an instant bond with her, the same of which cannot be said for his brother. The two met in their sister's hospital room and formed an instant animosity. Lucky hated Nikolas due to everything that he had ever been told by his father about the Cassadine's and for the fact that his mother never told him he even had a brother. The two would often fight and try to undermine the other's confidence with revealing family secrets. One such secret, that Helena killed Laura's mother Lesley, stunned Nikolas who ran away from home. Before leaving he sneaked into the Spencer home to say goodbye to his sister. Lucky caught Nikolas and the two engaged in a heated argument that resulted in Nikolas falling down the stairs and ending up in the hospital.
During his hospital stay he became good friends with Bobbie Spencer. Bobbie was by Nikolas' side when Laura told him that there was no place for him in her life, leaving him utterly devastated. Most of Port Charles met the Cassadines with suspicion given their past and Luke's constant ramblings. It was hard for Nikolas to find someone to confide in. That changed one New Years Eve when he was befriended by Emily Quatermaine. Nikolas had accompanied his aunt Alexis Davis to the Quartermaine residence but didn't want to come in. Emily, who had seen Nikolas around town, immediately went to speak with him and the two became fast friends. Emily and Nikolas spent a great deal of time together. He taught her fencing and horseback riding and she introduced him to hip-hop music, dancing and other normal teenage activities.
As time wore Emily became Nikolas's best friend and she began to develop feelings for him. Soon after, Laura discovered that her mother was indeed alive, having been saved by Stefan from his mother's plot, and was in a catatonic state resulting from a complication from the drug he used to fake her death. When Laura went to visit her mother, the house they were in exploded and both were presumed killed. This left Nikolas devastated and Luke held the Cassadines responsible. With the whole town against him, Nikolas turned to Emily, Bobbie, and another friend he had made while in the hospital Katherine Bell, to cope with his loss. However they soon realized that it had all been a lie and that Luke and Laura had faked the explosion and left for parts unknown. When they returned to town, they were met by everyone with great hostility, especially from Nikolas, who felt betrayed.
He was comforted by Bobbie, who had married his uncle Stefan and became his step-aunt. Although their marriage wouldn't last, she continued to be a source of maternal affection to him. For the first time people began to look past the Cassadine demeanor and see him for the young man that he was. Nikolas began to gain new respect from the people of Port Charles, including his brother, who after a series of events had come to see Nikolas in a new light. The two became friends and vowed to not let the events of the past and their families' feelings towards each other dictate how they felt about each other. Although she loved her son very much, Laura would continually hurt him by her inability to accept him into her life. Eventually, to spare him further heartache, Stefan drove her out of town and out of his life.
When Laura returned a year later, she was tired of Luke telling her to push Nikolas away and became determined to forge a relationship with her son. Although earlier in his life he would have met this gesture with mistrust, a recent near-death experience had left him eager to form that bond. A lot had happened while Laura was away, causing her relationship with her husband to be strained. When an accident was said to have killed Lucky, Nikolas was devastated and came to regret all the lost time he had with him. He drew closer to Laura and his sister, who in turn, did the same.
[edit] The Cassadine Prince
Nikolas' foray into adulthood was not easy. Almost a year after Lucky was believed dead, it turned out that he was indeed alive and had been held hostage by Helena. During Lucky's time with Helena he came to see Nikolas as his brother and cared for him as such. The two strengthened their bond and for the first time thought of themselves as real brothers. Nikolas would need his brother's strength when it was revealed that his father, Stavros, was indeed alive and had been kept within an inch of death by his grandmother. Soon Stavros awakened and plotted to reclaim what had been taken from him. After months of dirty deeds, Stavros would again die, this time doing it in order to save his son's life. When it was all said and done, Stefan had felt that Nikolas was old enough to take over the family legacy and he became The Cassadine Prince.
The first few years after taking over the reins of the family business were filled with great difficulty for Nikolas. Stefan, whom Nikolas had never been away from for very long in his entire life, had decided to leave for Europe. He was also haunted by his father's death, so much so that he would continually resort to Cassadine-like behavior, causing him to fear that he would turn out like his father. The biggest blow came when Laura, after accidentally killing her adoptive father Rick Webber had a complete mental breakdown and went into a catatonic state. Laura was eventually sent to a mental hospital for long term care. Nikolas took immediate custody over his mother's welfare and has been responsible for paying for her hospital stay.
His relationship with Lucky became strained over his brother's behavior. This led to a heated argument and Lucky, once again, almost killed his brother. Nikolas would survive and things began to get better for him. He rekindled the close relationship he had with Lucky and made it a point to be close to his sister in his mother's absence. During this time period he also began a romance with Emily, who had returned to town after spending time in California in a rehabilitation center after a bus accident. Emily had recently been diagnosed with breast cancer and Nikolas became the rock that helped Emily through it. When she had recovered, the two fell in love and began a long and rocky relationship. During the courtship Nikolas and Emily endured many hardships while she married Zander Smith, Emily's first love whom she wed believing that she would die and that she owed this marriage as her last gift to him. When Emily's cancer went into remission, she found herself conflicted between fidelity to Zander and her feelings for Nikolas. Eventually the two could no longer resist and slept with one another. Soon after, Emily ended her marriage with Zander to be with Nikolas. Zander would later become unstable as a result of the break-up and kidnapped Emily before taking his own life; other obstacles included Stefan's interference, which also ended in his suicide.
Just when it seemed that they had a chance at happiness, Nikolas was involved in a car accident. With a serious head injury he wandered away from the accident and found himself on the doorstep of a heartbroken war widow, Mary Bishop. Mary's husband Connor, a Marine who was serving in Iraq, had been reported dead; when the amnesiac Nikolas literally showed up on her doorstep, the emotionally fragile Mary took advantage of the memory loss and convinced him that he was her husband. Mary and Nikolas lived together for months while most of the town still thought him dead. When Emily learned Nikolas was alive, she tried to make him see the truth. However, with no memory of her he turned to the only thing that he knew and loyally chose to return to his "wife" Mary. Emily decided to keep the truth of his identity from him, not wanting him to end up like her brother Jason, whose own memory loss years earlier and her family's attempt to force him to remember resulted in an unrepairable rift. Eventually the truth came out and Nikolas reclaimed his memories and returned to his life. A devastated Mary, having lost her "husband" for the second time, mentally collapsed and tried to kill Emily. Eventually this led to a confrontation between the three of them that resulted in Nikolas shooting Mary. Although the wound was not fatal, Mary later died in the hospital when her medications were switched. Although no one was ever charged with her death, Emily, who at the time was a medical student, was said to have been the last person to have access to her medicine.
The relationship hit another blow when Helena tried to intrude on their romance, causing Nikolas to throw her off a cliff. Opting to plead guilty and not have Emily go through the pain and agony of a trial, Nikolas was soon convicted of murder and he was sentenced to life in prison. Before he was sent away, he and Emily married. Determined to prove his innocence, Emily worked to find evidence that Helena was alive. During this time, Connor Bishop turned up very much alive and out for blood. He undermined Nikolas' freedom by plotting with Helena to keep him in jail while Connor romanced Emily. Emily didn't fall for it, causing Connor to rape her. Devastated, Emily dealt with her pain through an emotional retreat which led Nikolas and despite wanting to help Emily through her ordeal, her emotional retreat became too much for Nikolas to bear and he became sexually attracted to Courtney Jacks. The two began commiserating on the docks which led to kisses and soon a sexual affair. Courtney was the sister of mob boss Sonny Corinthos, whom after a brief marriage to Jason Morgan had wound up marrying wealthy businessman Jasper Jacks. However, when she found herself unable to bear him a child, the two, like Nikolas and Emily, had grown distant. Deciding that they were much happier with each other than their spouses, Nikolas and Courtney decided to move on together. When Courtney learned that she was pregnant, it was uncertain whether Nikolas or Jax was the father as she slept with both of them within hours of each other. A DNA test was run and it was discovered that Nikolas was the father. Jax, however, unable to let go of his relationship with Courtney switched the test naming himself as the father. He later would say that he had decided to keep this a secret to protect Courtney and the baby from Helena.
[edit] Fatherhood
Despite Jax seeming to be the childs father, Nikolas and Courtney decided to raise the child together as a family. A dream that was interrupted when Courtney left town, after misinterpreting a close moment with Nikolas and Emily. Courtney, believing she would never truly have his heart, fled out of town to collect her thoughts. While she was away, she was kidnapped by Nikolas' evil grandmother, Helena, who wanted to raise her child as the Cassadine heir. Courtney managed to escape and returned in secret to Port Charles. As the due date neared, an outbreak of encephalitis hit the city and left both Nikolas and Courtney ill. The two were reunited and planned to continue with their plans to get married and raise her child. As her condition worsened, Courtney learned that in order to save her son, she had to undergo an emergency C-section and that it would come at great risk to her life. Despite the risks, Courtney had the operation and gave birth to her son, whom she named John Michael in honor of her father and Jax's. However, before she could hold him, she died as a result of complications from the operation.
Before Courtney's death, Jax admitted to her that he had rigged the paternity test to make him appear to be the baby's father, when in fact it was Nikolas. Angered, she wanted to tell Nikolas the truth but died before she could say anything to him. Jax made the decision that he would raise the child himself. Still reeling from his split with Courtney and the revelation that Nikolas was the baby's father, Jax decided to keep the child's paternity a secret. He continually toyed with Nikolas, who was devastated by Courtney's death, by permitting him to see her child and then changing his mind. Despite continually being plagued with doubt over his decision, Jax convinced himself that he was doing what was best for Spencer, rationalizing that Nikolas only wanted Spencer because he missed Courtney, or that Nikolas' family was too dangerous. When he became involved with Carly Corinthos, Jax had made the decision that he and Carly would raise Courtney and Nikolas's son.
As the months passed Jax and Carly's behavior in regards to the baby raised the suspicions of Courtney's physician, Dr. Meadows, who secretly ran another DNA test on the child. Robin Scorpio, a doctor and longtime friend of both Jax and Nikolas, discovered the truth about Spencer when those test results ended up in her mailbox instead of Dr. Meadows. Robin continually struggled with whether to keep Jax's secret, and therefore keep him safe from Helena, or to tell Nikolas, who secretly wished that John was his son. Her decision was made easier by Carly, a bitter rival of Robin's, who would continually attempt to undermine her relationship with Patrick Drake. It was Carly's behavior that eventually lead Robin to tell Nikolas the truth after learning she rigged a DNA test that Nik had ordered on John to make Jax appear to be the father. During John's baptism, Robin told a shocked Nikolas the truth and despite Carly's many attempts to convince everyone Robin was lying, a cornered Jax confessed.
Angry and betrayed that he was denied the precious moments of his son's first months, Nikolas blasted Carly and Jax for their behavior and reclaimed custody of his son, whom he renamed Spencer in honor of his brother Lucky, and sister Lulu. The baby's new name symbolizes Nikolas's wish to end the war between the Spencers and the Cassadines forever. Having a child was not easy but with the support of his extended family, Nikolas has taken up the fatherhood mantle with ease. When Helena became obsessed with making Spencer the 'Cassadine Heir' she had always hoped Nikolas would be, he didn't hesitate to take Spencer and flee town. When the threat from Helena had been dealt with Nikolas returned and began to get closer to Emily, who helped support Nikolas as he adjusted to his role as a father. Alfred, Nikolas' butler, noticed that there were still feeling between Nikolas and Emily and worked overtime playing matchmaker. Problems arose when Spencer's nanny Colleen McHenry, had developed feelings for Nikolas. She did her best to undermine their reunion and soon it was revealed she was working for Helena. Colleen, however, proved to be a worthy adversary and got the upper hand on Helena all the while her crush on Nik grew into a deadly obsession. Helena tolerated, even admired Colleen's ruthlessness, that is until her obsession caused her to harm Nikolas in order for her to be the one to take care of him.
Collen's downfall came when Alfred was poisoned and nearly died. This is when her actions became suspicious to Emily, who in turn, investigated and discovered that all the previous men Collen had worked for had ended up dead and that if she didn't do anything, Nikolas would be next. After managing to convince Nikolas of Colleen's motives, she was promptly fired, but not before planning her next move -- to kidnap Spencer.
After the Colleen fiasco Emily and Nikolas began to reconnect with one another. Nikolas was overjoyed with the news that his mother had woken up from her catatonic state. Nikolas had sadly witnessed his brother and sister's lives begin to unravel, and the presence of their mother deeply effected the siblings. Nikolas introduced his mother to Spencer and participated in Luke and Laura's wedding. Unfortunately, Laura's recovery was short lived, and her children sadly and painfully took their mother back to the institute, and said their goodbyes to one another. After witnessing how much life could change, and realizing how much he loved her, Nikolas professed his love to Emily. After a night in the stables Nikolas and Emily reunited, and made plans to spend the holidays at Wyndemere with Spencer, as a family. As the holidays drew near Nikolas consented to allow Spencer to play baby Jesus in the Christmas pageant, with Morgan and Michael. As the performance was about to begin, a weary Nikolas and Emily were in shock to discover Spencer had been kidnapped!
Nikolas, with the help of Emily, began his desperate search for Spencer. At first Nikolas blamed his evil grandmother, Helena. Nikolas saw Helena as the person most to gain by controlling Spencer. If Helena did have Spencer, she could raise him in a way that she had always intended him to have been raised. However as the search continued, Nikolas discovered that it was the recently fired Colleen, who had the child. Nikolas and Emily boarded a plane and began their journey in search of the crazed nanny and the baby. At one point it was believe that Spencer had died in a car accident, but it was later determined, that Helena made this up, and was really caring for the child. Her plan was to go to Russia and christan the child thus making him officially the Cassadine Heir. As the ceremony started, Nikolas and Emily rushed in and stopped Helena. After a fierce standoff Nikolas reclaimed his son and although Helena was able to escape before the authorities had arrived, Spencer was back with his family. While at the church Nikolas decided to make their newfound family official and baptized Spencer with Emily as his godmother.
[edit] Tragic Times
Shortly after Spencer was returned home Nikolas and Emily attended a fundriaser at the Metro Court. The evening was soon interrupted when a crew of masked men led by James Craig, burst in and held everyone hostage. They were after something that Lorenzo Alcazar had kept in the safe there. When the safe was locked due to a security measure, Mr. Craig held everyone there until they could find a way bypass the security system. During the crisis both Nikolas and Emily helped the injured Robin, who had been shot by Craig as an example for the attendants of what he would do to them if they didn't follow his orders. Tragedy struck for Emily when her father Alan, suffered from a series of heart attacks and would later die. As the police closed in, Nikolas managed to bring Robin to safety and although there was an explosion inside the hotel, Emily made it out as well. Nikolas stood by Emily's side in the wake of Alan's death, and the two began to forge inroads back to each other.
Just as things seemed to be settling back to normal, James Craig attacked Nikolas and injected him with an experimental poison. He told Nikolas that he needed to be injected with a counter agent every few hours to keep him alive. Craig did this because he wanted to use the Cassadine wealth and power to create a new life for himself in Port Charles. When Robin walked in on Craig taunting Nikolas, she became caught up in his game. For his amusement, Craig forced Nikolas and Robin to fake a romance. Although everyone believed that Nikolas dumped Emily for Robin, Emily believed that something else was going on. Eventually she discovered the truth and worked with Robin to find a way to counteract the effects of the poison that he was injected with. When Nikolas became suspcious of Craig's motives and questioned him, he fled town leaving Nikolas near death. It was then revealed that Craig was actually Jerry Jacks, the brother of Jasper Jacks, who had recently undergone plastic surgery. When his conscience got the best of him, Jerry returned and injected Nikolas with the counteragent. As a result of that Robin was able to find a permanent treatment.
As Nikolas recovered, he and Emily settled into their happy life together. Soon though, Emily began to notice that there was something wrong with Nikolas. At first it began as simple anger issues, with Nikolas becoming angry and yelling at people for no reason. As time wore on these fits progressed into violent outbursts in which Nikolas often acted physically on his anger issues (including beating up Logan Hayes who had cheated on his sister and stabbing Jerry who had poisoned him earlier in the year and left him for dead). After attacking Logan for a second time, Nikolas admitted to his butler, Alfred, that he was suffering from blackouts and was not in control of his actions. Although he wanted to keep this from Emily, he eventually let her in and the two decided to fight this together. The two went to Patrick Drake, who ran a battery of tests, but came up with no clue as to what was wrong with him. This left Nikolas' frustrated as his condition continued to worsen.
When Jerry informed his brother that Nikolas was the one who stabbed him, Jax and Carly wondered if Nikolas was behind the murder of Leticia Juarez, who was found strangled to death in their home. Both Carly and Jax believed that Nikolas, like many of his family, was suffering from some kind of mental illness and tried to get him to confess that he murdered Leticia. After nearly killing Carly during one of these blackouts, a scared Nikolas, feeling that he may end of dying as a result of this illness, decided to giving Emily one last magical night before they faced the reality of his illness. Inviting half of Port Charles to a gala honoring Alan Quartermaine, Nikolas proposed and the party soon turned into a celebration of their future together. Although happy, Emily had reservations since Nikolas was forced to postpone trip to see a specialist in Switzerland to throw the gala. Although in the beginning it was a joyous evening as friends and family celebrated Nikolas and Emily's engagement, the event soon turned into tragedy when Nikolas awoke next to Emily, who had apparently been strangled to death. Grief stricken and inconsolable he blamed himself for her death, even going so far as dreaming that he strangled her. Initially considered a suspect in her death, he was cleared of all suspicion after Georgie Jones was found murdered in the park, in a similar fashion as Emily.
As his grief intensified, Nikolas found himself face to face with Emily. A manifestation of his guilt and progressing symptoms of his illness Emily appeared to him as real as if she was actually standing before him. Her presence made Nikolas question his sanity, but ultimately just seeing her gave him great comfort he normally wouldn't of had. As he struggled through Emily's funeral, good friend Patrick Drake pulled a few strings and arranged for Nikolas to meet with the specialist he had an appointment with weeks before. Although he had to spend the holidays away from his family, especially his son, Nikolas time in Switzerland proved very beneficial. Upon returning home he gathered his family at Wyndmere and although reluctant and first due to fear, he told them that he had an inoperable brain tumor. Saddened and fearful by his diagnosis, Nikolas felt as if there was nothing that could help save his life. He crawled further and further into a pit of self despair relying only on the manifestation of Emily as a source of comfort. As both Robin and Patrick worked tirelessly to find a way to save Nikolas, his blackouts and rage episodes intensified. Patrick suggested that it would be best for Nikolas to have himself checked into the hospital for further treatment.
During this time Nikolas began to befriend nurse Nadine Crowell, the quirky sister of Jolene, a student nurse who had terrorized the hospital and was responsible for many deaths. Nadine was continually supportive of Nikolas recognized that he was having manifestations of Emily. Encouraging him instead of chastizing him, Nadine encouraged him to listen to what Emily had to say. Although he tried, Nikolas suffered another blackout, this time attacking a man who had been holding the ER of the hospital hostage with a bomb. Even though he was stopped by Jason and the bomb was fake, the incident encouraged him to do what Patrick had suggested. While in the hospital, Patrick told him that his tumor could lead him to have hallucinations and visions. Patrick told Nikolas that if he had the tumor removed any hallucinations or visions he experienced would cease, and Nikolas knew that Emily would be lost to him forever and left the hospital. Along the way he rain into Nadine, who realized that he was not only talking to Emily but could see her to. Nikolas finally admitted to Nadine what he had been hiding from everyone else and his fear that the surgery would cause him to lose Emily. Nadine told Nikolas that he had already lost Emily and enouraged him to enjoy the second chance with her. That when he had come to terms with it he should have the surgery and move on with his life, like Emily would have wanted.
Taking Nadine's advice Nikolas is trying to move past his grief and his guilt by trying to remember the events that surrounded Emily's death in the hopes that it will lead him to her killer and to some peace of mind. Nikolas then remembers seeing Diego Alcazar kill Emily. He goes out and finds Diego at Alcazar's warehouse. Diego and Nikolas fight on a catwalk. Diego then gets chains tangled around his neck by mistake and he falls over the catwalk and inadvertely kills himself. Nikolas wants to keep his hallucinations of Emily, so he gets Dr. Devlin to supply him with an experimental drug that will give him more time with Emily. In return Devlin wants $10 million in a Swiss bank account, Nikolas agrees. WIth approval from |Monica, Nikolas has started a program at General Hospital that takes care of patients without medical insurance. Nadine is worried though, that why should he start a program that he won't even be alive to see the first patient.
[edit] Letting Go Of Emily
On May 2nd, 2008, Nikolas finally realizes he does want to live, that he wants to watch his son grow up and to live a full life. He told Nadine that he was going to go through with the surgery.
A couple hours before the surgery, Nikolas went up to the roof of General Hospital. There, Emily visited him. They shared one last waltz back in the ballroom of Wyndemere and then Emily faded away. Later, as Nikolas was coming out of the anestethia after the surgery, Emily visited Nikolas one last time. She kissed him goodbye and left her engagement ring in his hand. When Nikolas woke up, the ring was in his hand.
[edit] Maladies and Hospitalizations
- Knocked down a flight of stairs after a heated argument with Lucky Spencer, sustained a serious head injury (1996).
- Shot in the throat with a bullet meant for Jason Morgan and suffered a stroke resulting in Broca's Aphasia, causing him to temporarily loose his voice (December 1997-March 1998).
- Hit by Skye Quartermaine's car sustaining some minor injuries (December 6, 2002)
- Fell during a fight with Lucky and hit his head on a stone statue (April 2003).
- Beat up by creditors wanting their loan repaid September 19, 2003.
- Assaulted by Zander Smith when Zander saw pictures of Nikolas and Emily Quartermaine kissing (September 2003).
- Beaten by Zander in the interrogation room at the PCPD (January 16, 2004).
- Presumed dead in the Port Charles Hotel fire (February 2004).
- Suffered a head injury and amnesia following a car accident (March 23, 2004).
- Shot by Emily while breaking into the Quartermaine Mansion (May 21, 2004).
- Drugged while institutionalized by Helena Cassadine at Shadybrook (August 2004).
- Fell ill during an encephalitis plague (February 3, 2006)
- Durgged by Colleen McHenry as part of her obsession with Nikolas (July 2006).
- Hit on the back of the head by a mercenary during the Metro Court Hotel hostage situation (February 2007).
- Drugged by Jerry Jacks resulting in respiratory collapse and subsequent coma (April-May 2007).
- Diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor (December 2007).
- Recovering nicely from brain surgery (May, 2008)
[edit] Romance
- Katherine Bell: Nikolas met Katherine, the older woman he developed a crush on, when he was in the hospital. Katherine rebuffed Nikolas's attempts to woo her and decided to remain friends. It pleased Nikolas greatly when his uncle Stefan fell in love with Katherine and planned to marry her. However an accident set up by Luke and Alexis to kill Helena backfired and killed Katherine instead. Devastated, Nikolas grieved for her. It wasn't until years later that she turned up alive, having been saved by Helena. When she returned, Katherine was very different than she had been before. This time Katherine had a crush on Nikolas and the two engaged in a secret affair. When the truth came out, both Laura and Stefan tried their best to end their relationship. Evidence began to emerge that Katherine was only interested in Nikolas to get back at his uncle and he planned to break things off. That is when Katherine pretended to be pregnant and convinced Nikolas to marry her. At their engagement party, Helena, who was tired of Katherine's games with her grandson, killed her for good. Nikolas mourned the loss of his unborn child until an autopsy showed Katherine had been lying.
- Sarah Webber: Nikolas's first romance in Port Charles, the two had met when she when she was volunteering at the hospital. Both were very alike in personality and despite the big differences in their lives managed to form a bond. It was while with Sarah that Nikolas began to rebel against his family legacy. He would continue to defy his Uncle Stefan's and followed his wishes, one of which was attending regular high school, despite the fact that he was already taking college classes, so that he could be closer to Sarah. However, despite never entering into a physical relationship, the two became very close. Sarah was soon devastated after a mob shooting, meant to kill Jason Morgan, injured and nearly killed Nikolas. After surviving the surgery, Nikolas suffered a stroke that left him unable to speak properly. Unable to deal with what happened to him, he emotionally retreated and pushed Sarah away. Eventually she had enough and they ended the relationship. Years later when Sarah returned to Port Charles, she still resented Nikolas for ending their romance.
- Robin Scorpio: Although the two never had a romantic relationship, they shared a crush that would develop into a deep and meaningful friendship. Robin was first introduced to Nikolas by Emily, who was trying to help Nikolas recover from his stroke but had been told by her family that she was too young to do so. Emily trusted Robin and felt that she could continue where she had left off. Despite protests from his uncle about her underqualifications, Nikolas and Robin bonded quickly over their unorthodox upbringings and love of France. Robin eventually would use French as a way to help him overcome the difficulty he had with speaking. As time wore on the two began to form a trust and eventually a mutual crush. Robin would be there when Nikolas was able to recover his speech and the two grew ever closer. Despite the blossoming feelings between them, Robin's feelings for her ex-boyfriend, Jason Morgan and her HIV positive status eventually led them to put the kibosh on romantic intentions. Since then the two have developed a deep and meaningful friendship with Robin being responsible for reuniting Nikolas with his son and continually being there for him in times of crisis.
- Gia Campbell: Gia was the sister of police detective Marcus Taggert and the two met after Nikolas made her his housemate. The two had an immediate attraction. Nikolas was most attracted to Gia's spunk for life while Gia like the air of mystery that surrounded them. Although they would become engaged and she would helped him through the ordeal with their father, the craziness of his family became just too much and she ended their relationship.
- Emily Quartermaine: Nikolas' second wife. The two met as teenagers and became very good friends, although Emily wanted so much more. Nikolas at the time only thought of her as a friend. Nikolas didn't fall for her until years later, when Emily had breast cancer. Nikolas pretended to be her fiancee so that she could spare her boyfriend, Zander Smith, the pain of watching her die. During this pretend phase Nikolas fell deeply in love with Emily and her old love for him was renewed. Eventually neither Emily nor Nikolas could deny their feelings and decided to file for divorce from their spouses and be together. The two had a drama filled courtship dealing with constant life-or-death situations. But, eventually their dreams were realized and they married. The constant danger finally caught up with them as Emily was raped by Connor Bishop. Her difficulty in moving past Nikolas uncanny resemblance to her rapist prompted Nikolas into Courtney Matthews's bed. After finally apoligizing to Emily for his poor response to her rape by his lookalike, they began to test the waters with her former husband and eventually the two decided to reunite. The two have managed to rekindle their relationship and remained together up until Emily's recent death.
- Lydia Karenin: Nikolas's first wife. The marriage was arranged by Stefan to help the family in a time of financial need. They did consummate the marriage and Lydia fell in love with Nikolas, but he was in love with Emily Quartermaine and divorced her to be with Emily.
- Mary Bishop: Mary's husband Connor was presumed dead in Iraq, so when she found an amnesiac Nikolas on her doorstep, desperation led her to tell him that he was Connor. They lived together for several months, and went through a "re"marriage before the truth came out. Despite being intimately involved, their relationship was based on Mary's deception and therefore was not legally a marriage.
- Courtney Matthews: When Nikolas wife Emily had a difficult time moving past a rape, Nikolas began to confide in Courtney, who was also having communication issues with her husband. The two met on the hospital roof, shared their concerns about their respective spouses and began to develop a friendship. When Nikolas became frustrated over Emily's difficulty in getting past his resemblance to her rapist, Nikolas and Courtney consummated their relationship. The affair ended both of their shaky marriages. After several attempts to end their relationship, they finally realized they had fallen in love with each other. Courtney died during the encephalitis outbreak, leaving Nikolas devastated. During their relationship they produced a son (originally thought to be Jasper Jacks') Spencer Cassadine.
- Nadine Crowell: Nadine, a nurse at General Hospital, came to Port Charles after her sister Jolene, ended up in a coma after taking revenge for the death of their father, who died unexpectedly during a routine surgery. She first met Nikolas when he stood up for her in front of people who were giving her a hard time because of the things that Jolene had done. Since then she has been supporting Nikolas during his medical crisis and is slowly finding herself becoming smitten with the Cassadine prince.
- Claudia Zacchara: After being stabbed by Jerry Jacks and left for dead in the water, Claudia washed up on Spoon Island and was found by Nikolas. A storm coming Nikolas could not get Claudia back to the main land. Nikolas spent the coming days nursing her back to health. The two are slowly building a friendship and even shared a kiss on June 2, 2008.
[edit] Actor history
- Tyler Christopher (1996-1999, 2003-present)
- Stephen Martines(1999-2003)
- Chris Beetem (December 2005, temporary replacement)
[edit] References
- ^ Stated on-air on July 23, 1998
- ^ soapcentral.com profile
