Tannen the Barbarian lived in 2991299129912, in a future civilization where people are ignorant of the technology that came before them. The Queen of Apocrypha tasked him with recovering the ruby begonia from the enchanted tower. When he saw Marty McFly and the Brown family arrive in the flying time train, he believed that Emmett Brown was a sorcerer. Since the Queen had kidnapped Clara, Jules, and Verne, Marty and Emmett agreed to recover the jewel in exchange for their lives.