Demons

**Demons** are a mysterious species who seem to reside alongside gods and other powerful creatures outside the fae and human realms.

## Abilities

Demons, possibly in conjunction with gods, were able to bar the Nightingale from parts of the underworlds.

## Characteristics (culture, habits)

At least some demons reside in the underworlds. It's unclear if it's their powers or their choice of residence that makes even powerful and ancient fae like the Nain Rouge distance themselves from those even associated with demons.

'There were rumours of the sorts of things that had happened during the last time gods and demons had spilled across the borders between the realms, the last time the balance and structure of the realms had fallen away. A Chthonic time, a dark time and with hardly any coherent tales attached to it; the only ones remaining those of horror, death, worldwide destruction.'

Memoryeaters like to attach themselves like ticks to demons and other underworld monsters to feed off their memories.

Demons were some of the creatures who regularly attacked Terho the Mouse-Lad while he was trapped in the underworlds, one of whom ultimately pushed Terho in the direction of the locked doors leading to the Nightingale's cage.

## Trivia

* While afrit are often called 'fire demons' and 'desert demons' in their true-forms, it's unclear if they're *actually* demons. Since Eran Iliakambar is an afrit-ambaros hybrid, and can transform into something similar to the afrit true-form, but seemed wary of demons, it seems the moniker is more of a comment on how an afrit's true-form makes other fae feel than a reflection on their actual biology.
* At least one of the Unseelie Court libraries appeared to have shelving decorated with little demons with impish faces.

## Folklore/Mythology

'A **demon** is a supernatural entity, typically associated with evil, prevalent historically in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore . . . In Ancient Near Eastern religions and in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered a harmful spiritual entity which may cause demonic possession, calling for an exorcism. Large portions of the Jewish demonology, a key influence on Christianity and Islam, originated from a later form of Zoroastrianism, and were transferred to Judaism during the Persian era.

In Western occultism and Renaissance magic, which grew out of an amalgamation of Greco-Roman magic, Jewish Aggadah and Christian demonology, a demon is believed to be a spiritual entity that may be conjured and controlled. The supposed existence of demons remains an important concept in many modern religions and occultist traditions. Demons are still feared largely due to their alleged power to possess living creatures. In the contemporary Western occultist tradition (perhaps epitomized by the work of Aleister Crowley), a demon (such as Choronzon, which is Crowley's interpretation of the so-called "Demon of the Abyss") is a useful metaphor for certain inner psychological processes (inner demons), though some may also regard it as an objectively real phenomenon. The original Greek word *daimon* did not carry negative connotations. The Ancient Greek word δαίμων *daimōn* denotes a spirit or divine power. The Greek conception of a *daimōn* notably appears in the works of Plato, where it describes the divine inspiration of Socrates. In Christianity, morally ambivalent daimons were replaced by demons, forces of evil only striving for corruption. Such demons are not the Greek intermediary spirits, but hostile entities, already known in Iranian beliefs.'

## References

1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 not\_poignant. "The NIghtingale and Terho the Mouse-Lad." *The Fae Tales Verse, Archive of Our Own,* 5 May 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1571246.
2. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 2 - The Seething Seas.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 22 May 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/8948719. Chapter 44: Nostalgia.
3. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 5 September 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/4957257. Chapter 8: Court.
4. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 26 December 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/6404462. Chapter 23: Confrontation.
5. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 3 March 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/7625663. Chapter 33: Confession.
6. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 18 June 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/4283271. Chapter 4: Suspicions.
7. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 17 July 2015. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/9893795. Chapter 52: Unravel.
8. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Ice Plague: Book 1 - The Forest of Fire.” *Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 16 September 2017. https://archiveofourown.org/works/12036105/chapters/27454425. Chapter 2: I'll Not Feel Pity.
9. ↑ not\_poignant. “The Court of Five Thrones.” *The Fae Tales Verse. Archive of Our Own,* 24 October 2014. https://archiveofourown.org/works/1749290/chapters/5561123. Chapter 15: Blight.
10. ↑ "Demon". Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demon. Accessed 2 April 2022.