Demons

"**Demons**", according to various mythologies and religions, are various malevolent spirits that solely exist to cause destruction. They would also be various dangerous, incomprehensible abominations that originated from the Void or the depths of Chaos.

Their appearance may vary between monsters to spirals, grotesque distortions, to even attractive forms -- but all of them are vile, malicious, and savage. They and their eternal cannibalism are the reason why the Void is known as the Eternal Feast.

## Six levels of contamination

According to the reports of Thelontris the Radiant, an einherjur of Odin, demons and creatures of chaos can be divided into several categories, by the level of their corruption to primordial Chaos:

* Evil and destructive spirits and deities (not corrupted, but who chose to be evil)
* Corrupted spirits and gods
* Beings corrupted into demons - those with some sentience or even any positive emotion
* True demons - lesser beasts that emerged from Chaos, their only thoughts consisted of destruction and devouring, even though they could be capable of doing anything positive. Because they are very obsessed with devouring and killing, they are also known as "devourers".
* Chaos beings - beings that emerged from Chaos
* great abominations - stronger creatures that emerged and embodied Chaos itself.
	+ Chaos, or primordial chaos, is simply the endless void where horrific entities endlessly form and devour each other, so every demon is a cannibal by nature.

In simple terms, a "true" demon would be nothing more than an animal, a mindless creature or beast who is more dangerous as it can distort the laws of physics in order to feed on whatever that it touches. A parasite against anything in existence, like other demons of the Void who constantly eat each other.

## In the Rabydosverse

Trisakoras, one of the emperors of the Celestial Empire, once attempted to become a demon through a great ritual, but he was slain by the einherjur Raldoxai, saving the Galaxy from endless destruction. But with the collapse of the Celestial Empire, more demons burst into the Galaxy without the defenses needed to keep them out.

Celestial technology is strong enough to destroy the structure of demonic entities, and magic-users are more effective in destroying chaos creatures.

In spite of their lack of religious belief, their lack of spiritual saturation allows atheistic fighters to have another advantage when fighting demons. Their souls would be more intact, and more resistant against demonic manipulation. If possible, they can also avoid being detected by demons, allowing them to even slay them. That may be why some civilisations usually hire atheists as exorcists or assassins, because their lack of magical saturation makes them more resistant to soul manipulation. Mages who happen to be atheists have weaker magic without proper training, but this also allows them to strategise their spells to defeat their foes.

Whenever they feel threatened by anything supernatural that seems too powerful for them, Porasonids invoke Kali Ma's name against their foe. As the Goddess of Eternity, even the mightiest demons are frightened by Her overwhelming power, which is enough to annihilate them simply by being near to Her. They also invoke Shiva, Ganesha, Murugan, Hanuman, Rama, and other gods, Who are also very powerful.

## Depictions in other cultures

Attempts to remove demons from their victims are known as "exorcisms", in the form of songs, dances, beatings, or using sacred objects to forcibly expel the demons from their victims' bodies.

According to Gauvajut-Vozonid mythology, demons were ruled and created by the four-headed dragon Illujankas, who had armies of larger dragons as their overlords to keep them in line. Nonetheless, his defeats by the thunder God Tarhunz threw his monstrous armies into disarray, causing them to fight and kill each other to take his place.

Any "dragon" is considered as a "demon" due to its association with Illujankas, so foreign shows had to translate their dragon characters as "raptors" (who are considered as enemies to demons) to avoid offending local norms.

According to Hindu teachings, Hanuman's name is most effective when fighting or exorcising demons, as it weakens their powers and causes them to be afraid. Another being who is strong enough to destroy demons is Durga, also known as Kali or Kalaratri, whose very presence annihilates their existence. Other methods used include images of the gods or holy scriptures, water from holy rivers, continuous playing of mantras (prayers or holy music), burning incense used for worshipping, and blowing sacred conches.

In Rinnarit art, demons are depicted wearing Roman clothing and cursing in a degraded form of Latin, and the devil Satan resembles Julius Caesar, Nero, or Jupiter. This was done out of hatred towards the Roman Empire, its persecutions of Christians, and the actions of the medieval Church.

## Notable demons in the Rabydosverse

### Gauvajut

#### Major demons

* Anu - A twisted tyrant who created the skies and filled it with monsters, dragons, and living lightning. He was overthrown and killed by his son Kumarbi.
	+ His lieutenants were Nurandir and Nuriskar, who created thousands of constellations and Celestials to populate the sky and fill it with stars. While they also became evil, their sons Suwarti, Irisken, Nauriskas, Tusarhil, Baransil, Urisallas, and Kwarasil rallied the stars against the corruptions of Chaos.
* Kumarbi - A wicked tyrant whose obsession with sensuality created more monsters. He once cut off Anu's ears and the top of his head to create more monsters. However, one of his monsters became a man, Tarhunz, and he ended Kumarbi's reign of terror by throwing a thunderbolt, splitting his head open.
* Tasmisu - Kumarbi's crown prince, he is the god of wild storms, disasters, and epidemics.
	+ According to some myths, Tasmisu and Nabarebi were the ancestors/creators of various alien races.
* Appilu - The god of diseases and sedition. Brother and enemy of Apaliunas.
* Nabarebi, Naubarbi - The goddess of diseases and feral monsters, and the chief wife of Tasmisu.
* Illujankas - A four-headed dragon who leads armies of demons. Also the god of Chaos, a corruption that exists outside the universe.
* Ullikummi - A stone golem that almost destroyed the continents.
* Sauska - The goddess of deviancy and lust. In ancient times, she was worshipped as the goddess of war and fertility, and sometimes she helped women warriors. But because of her taking both males and females as sex partners in myths, later Gauvajuts reviled her as the goddess of lust and addiction.
* Jarri - The god of disease and plagues.
* Marwirzi - The god of horrific deaths and tortures.
* Nikaruwa - The god of biological crimes and disfigurement. Curses the unborn to suffer from certain conditions.
* Munihalke - The god of vampires. One of Illujanka's many monstrous children, he never forgives.
* Idalu - The embodiment of wickedness and malice.

#### Minor demons

* lujankas - lesser dragons
* murundar - demons
* walkuwaz - monsters
* alwanzar - sorcerers
* surbuser - soul-eaters
* reskukser - cannibals
* kaskasar - barbarians
* munzaru - Chaos creatures
* wurehdas - demonic vampires. Every vampire will eventually become this, having a desire to devour and destroy all life and civilisation.
	+ According to Gauvajut lore, vampires can be killed not only be sunlight, but also with electricity and lightning bolts. This can be explained either as Tarhunz's lightning being too holy for them to resist, or because lightning is made of plasma, the same substance as the Sun and all stars.
	+ When a vampire dies, they are sent back to Illujankas, who judges them for their failures. Most vampires end up being eaten by Illujankas, and then they are destroyed forever.

### Heronoi

* Wikefoi - vampires.
* Paitejo - ice-cream men who hunt and kill people, feeding on their blood and making it into more ice cream. They are surrounded by ice and snow.

### Wonao

* Enchal (pl. Enchalau) - shadow demons who appear as humanoid outlines in negative colours. They represent the opposite of creation, feeding on living beings when they live under delusions or revel in cruelty.
* Ondurok - a spirit of a cannibal. The bodies of cannibals must be quickly burned or destroyed to prevent their evil souls from becoming these powerful monsters.
* Nōtmoli - ice demons from the north. This was also a name used against the Bujanski Slavs for being similar to Darroskei.

### Others

* Sôzarïl - a demonic civilisation that emerged during the Third Galactic Empire. They resembled humans, but they wore grey robes and wielded powerful, infernal magic.

## Hindu

The Asuras, a race of mighty beings, are sometimes known as demons because they opposed the Gods or Devas.

* Kalakeyas - a cruel clan of Dānavas, descended from Kālakā, the granddaughter of the ocean goddess Danu.
	+ Their name became a term Porasonids used against evil Ontemazei: "kalokei"
* Kālakanjakas - a monstrous clan of Asuras. They suffer from too much thirst.
* Susna - a snake demon of drought.
* Dasas - demons who live in towering fortresses and magnificient (but decadent) cities.
* Mahishasura - a shapeshifting buffalo demon who tries to rule with deceit. He was killed by Durga.
* Mara - a powerful demon who relishes destruction, cruelty, and oblivion. He once tried to corrupt the Buddha (another great teacher) but was defeated.
	+ His army, the macchusena, consists of ten infernal divisions: Lust, Aversion, Hunger and Thirst, Craving, Sloth, Cowardice, Doubt, Hypocrisy, False-Triumph, and Selfishness.
	+ He has three daughters: Tangha, Arati, and Raga, who represent thirst, restlessness, and desire.
* Macchusenas - ten demons and their associated monsters who served Mara as his army.
	+ Later folklore depicted them as cannibalistic barbarians.
* Nivatakavachas - underwater demons who were also skilled sorcerers, and who had a rivalry against the Kalakeyas to see who will cause the most destruction.
	+ Ravana and his sons tried and failed to bring them under his control. The Porasonids add that their powers made him envious of them.
	+ Thousands of years after Ravana's death, their terror was put to an end when they were finally destroyed by Arjuna.

* Rakshasas - the monsters and demons, created when Brahma was attacked. They tend to look like shaggy ogres.
	+ According to Porasonid folklore, asuras who turned themselves to evil become into rakshasas, losing their sanity in exchange for savage hunger and brute strength.

* Tadaka - an evil demon who attacks people in a forest. She and her sons, Maricha and Subahu, hunted and ate anyone who enters their forest for sport, and they were all killed by Rama.

* Bakasura - a demon with an insatiable appetite, to the extent that he also killed and ate those who fed him. He was killed by Bhima.
* Ravana - a mighty asura who was very skilled in music and writing. However, he instead abused the blessings of Brahma and Shiva to commit greater acts of cruelty. He was killed by Rama, Who had to stop him from destroying the world with his excesses.

## Trivia

* In Western popular culture, demons are often depicted as red people with horns. The author's depiction of daemons was most likely influenced by Warhammer, except they looked more abstract and grotesque. They were meant to represent the opposite of beauty, form, love, and wisdom - savagery, distortion, corruption, cannibalism, brutality, and destruction; so the demons in the Rabydosverse looked more like mouths, flowers, parasites, and diseased cells.
	+ In the Rabydosverse, the "demons" are more akin to cosmic parasites, more similar to animals made from diseases that infect universes. They may also be inspired by diseases and pathogens.

## See also

* Celestials, their arch-enemies
* Wights, their enemies and prey, along with the planets that they inhabit
* Hell, or Vjormoz, their nest