Demons (The Demonata)

In Darren Shan's "The Demonata" series, demons are the main antagonists. There is at least one demon in every book.

Description

Behaviour

Demons at all time feel a compulsion to kill, something generally satified in the slaughter of their weaker fellows. They consider themselves to be superior to the human race, and view humanity as 'a stain on the universe'. For this reason, they appear to take particular pleasure in killing humans, often leaving other demons alone when faced with the oppurtunity to hunt mortal prey.

Familiars and lesser demons are considered to be 'mindless', stupid and animalistic in their behaviour, generally attacking randomly and killing relatively swiftly. However, the more powerful and intelligent Demonata seem to relish torture, and are also capable of formulating strategies to overcome their prey.

Appearance

The demons seen thus far in the series are all hideously deformed creatures. Most of them are a combination of creatures from our world, such as Vein, who is a combination of a dog, a crocodile, and a female human. It has been stated that they appear in such forms because they lack the imagination necessary to invent bodies of their own. They are a combination of magic and of age. Also, many have special abilities to kill their prey, such as spitting acid. They range in size from about a foot tall to the size of stars (see below).

Types of Demons

There appears to be a sort of class system among demons in the Demonata universe. They range from Fomorii/lesser demons, the lowest, to Demon Masters, the highest. There are also what are known as The Old Creatures, who are not really demons, but who maintain the highest authority over all other types.

1st tier demons (The Fomorii)

The Fomorii are what the ancient people of Ireland thought were the worst of all demons, as evidenced in Bec. They fought them usually during the night. However, the Fomorii were mostly weaker demons, and would often merge their bodies with those of the human dead and animals before fighting others. They are named after a race of demonic creatures from Irish legend.

2nd tier demons

Some are the size of stars, and some are only a few feet long. All of them are deadly, however. They tend to have animal qualities. Many serve other higher demons but care not for the lower demons. Lots of 2nd tier demons tend to dwell inside their own universes with demons of a similar type. Such examples of 2nd tier demons in the book would be Vein, Artery, or Gregor.

Demon Masters

These are the most powerful of known demons. They control entire worlds created by themselves where they envelop their own rules of both time and space. They are guarded by their own demons (referred to as 'familiars') however powerful or vile they tend to be. The main Demon Master featured in the book series is Lord Loss, a demon who feasts not on humans, but on their pain and suffering. Lord Loss also has the power to reverse the effects of lycanthropy.

The Old Creatures

It is not determined what the Old Creatures are - if they are demons or some other form of magical being. It is believed that they are not demons, but they are known to have been alive since the start of such known creatures. They are said to be the Creators, assumed to be the creators of the multiverse. It is also mentioned that they could possibly be the result of a higher more technically advanced society that evolved to such beings of high exhaltation. In the book Bec, it is said that they are dying out and moving on from Earth.

Worlds

There are thousands of demon worlds. They can be created by Demon Masters, but most demons just flip through existing worlds. In each world, time works differently. For example, one could spend a day in Lord Loss's world while years pass on Earth. Likewise, one could spend a month in a world and come back an hour after one left. Like the demons themselves, the worlds are often grotesque versions of landscapes on Earth (waterfalls made of blood, trees made of flesh and bone etc). The reason for this botched duplication of form is, again, due to the demons' lack of imagination and associated inability to create anything innovative.

Most other natural laws work differently as well. Magic is much stronger in the Demonata Universe, so magicians and mages can draw upon it to perform spells they would be unable to do on Earth. Also, many of the Demonata's worlds defy the laws of physics. For example, one race of demons lives on a pinnacle of rock that may be suspended in space, or may be balancing on the ground. Either way, it would be impossible on Earth. In one other world, it is possible to stand on the clouds; in another it is possible to walk on water.

List of Demons

Below is a list of named or featured demons in the series so far.

Named Demons

Lord Loss

*Description ; An eight armed demon master who enjoys suffering and sadness rather than pain and death.
*Status ; Still alive and serving Death
*About ; Lord Loss is a Demon Master who lives in a castle made from webs.
*Book ; "Lord Loss" (book 1), "Demon Thief" (book 2), "Slawter" (book 3), "Bec" (book 4), "Blood Beast" (book 5), "Demon Apocalypse" (book 6), "Deaths Shadow" (book 7)

Artery

*Description ; Has the body of a three year old, a head that is larger than an adult's, has pale green skin, no eyes just two eye sockets that have fire balls inside and has a swarm of insects on his head, varying from cockroaches to lice to leeches and has mouths on the palm of his hands.
*Status ; Artery was killed by Bec when she first came back. He was exploded into "a thousand pieces."
*About ; He is a familiar of Lord Loss and brother of vein.
*Book ; "Lord Loss" (book 1), "Demon Thief" (book 2), "Slawter" (book 3), "Bec" (book 4), "Blood Beast" (book 5), "Demon Apocalypse" (book 6)

Vein

*Description ; walks on all fours. Has the head of a crocodile, a body of a large black Labrador and has hands of a woman. And also very sharp teeth and wide white eyes.
*About ; She is a familiar of Lord Loss. Lord Loss appeared to kill her in Lord Loss when she attacked Dervish against orders.
*Book ; "Lord Loss"(book 1),"Demon Thief"(book 2),"Bec"(book 4)

Cadaver

*Description ; Has two long legs, a stumpy leathery body (although it feels like beetle brittle), four arms, thick hairy fingers and a dark green head that is a cross between a humans and a dogs. it also has long droopy ears.
*About ; Sent by Lord Loss to steal back Artery from Kernel Fleck. In return, Lord Loss rewarded Cadaver with a mouth. Cadaver is killed in book seven to activate the lodestone and allow Death passage into this world.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2), "Slawter" (book 3) & "Deaths Shadow" (book 7)

Cadaver (variations)

*Description ; The demon is green, slimy, with fierce yellow eyes, four long arms with claws at the ends, a mouth full of fangs. It has a wolfish like face with a few patches of hair here and there. Its on the cover of the third book. Darren Shan confirmed this demon to be Cadaver.
*About ; David A Haym used this demon on her film set to eat the young actor called Emmet
*Book ; "Slawter" (book 3)

Malice

*Description ; Has the head of a dung beetle but its as big as a dog. It has a narrow body, and is covered in spikes.
*About ; A familiar of lord loss. Grubbs slays it in Slawter.
*Book ; "Slawter" (book 3)

Gregor

*Description ; It looks like a giant cockroach with dozens of arms.
*About ; One of Lord Loss's familiars. It was released to cause havoc in Slawter. Used to destroy the barrier surrounding Slawter, killed Chai the mime and almost killed Juni Swan.
*Book ; "Slawter" (book 3)

pine

*Description ; Has the body of a huge scorpion but a face similar to a humans, dark yellow skin and a deadly stinger
*About ; A familiar of Lord Loss. It kills by using its stinger to cut a deep gash in its victim and then vomits out small eggs into the cut, they hatch the second they touch blood and when they hatch they start eating the victim until all that’s left in a matter of minutes is a red skeleton. They are usually put in the eyes and they work there way down inflicting as much pain as possible, he used the stinger on Kernel Fleck.
*Book ; "Bec" (book4), "Blood Beast"(book 5), "Demon Apocalypse" (book 6)

Femur

*Description ; looks like a large rabbit but it has an ugly bulge on its back and has long sharp claws.
*About ; Its a familiar of Lord Loss and squirts out flesh-burning liquid from its mouth that leaves its victim covered in boils, pus and a slow painful death.
*Book ; "Blood Beast"(book 5),"Demon Apocalypse"(book 6)

The Kallin

*Description ; long, black haired, spider like creatures which have no limbs. They slither like a worm and have wide mouths full of teeth. They are also blind.
*About ; They hunt in huge swarm
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2)

tar demon

*Description ; Huge
*About ; An extremely large fiery demon that flies through the sky and from a distance resembles a star.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2), "Demon Apocalypse" (book 6)

Comet demon

*Description ; A huge slug-like demon the size of a comet. it contains thousands of tiny furry demons in its mouth.
*About ; Lives in Lord Loss's chess board, magically powered to become a tool of Lord Losses.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2)

Un-named demons

Unknown
*Description ; has the body of a large chicken and three pig like heads.
*About ; It spits acid
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2)

Unknown
*Description ; Body of a bee, head of a human. Incredibly fast.
*About ; Chases actors in Slawter, killed by Juni Swan
*Book ; "Slawter" (book 3)

Unknown
*Description ; Snake like but with arms and claws. Heads could be either Tigers, Lions, Jackels or Vultures.
*About ; They inhabit a fiery, hot world that Kernel and his friends enter when running from the Kallin. Also mentioned briefly by Bill-E as the demon who murdered the actor Salit.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2) "Slawter" (book 3)

Unknown
*Description ; Its tentacles have large sharp blades sticking out of them and has dozens of eyes.
*About ; Attacked Dervish while he and his companions were inside Lord Loss's chess board.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2)

"fur-balls"
*Description ; tiny furry demons, they are weak but attack in thousands. They look like piranha.
*About ; They eat the remains of carcasses off the huge teeth of the Comet demon.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2)

Unknown
*Description ; They are blind worm like demons, they have no eyes
*About ; They eat rotten body parts and are blind.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (book 2)

Unknown
*Description ; It's blue, angular and has triangular eyes.
*About ; A very weak demon, it hides using its camouflage; it doesn't speak English instead its speaks an odd language that sounds like someone is choking. It is harmless.
*Book ; "Demon Apocalypse" (book 6)

Unknown
*Description ; It's a huge "universe demon" made completely of fire.
*About ; Its a universal demon. It takes up a whole universe. It can form itself into different shapes such as two fists.
*Book ; "Demon Apocalypse"(book 6)

Fomorii

Fomorii are related to demons but are much weaker and can be killed by non-magical weapons. They can only come out during night-time as they are at their strongest then (the following are Fomorii).

Unknown
*Description ; Body of a spider, head and tail of a dog. Has eight long tall legs and is covered in hairs.
*About ; The hairs on its legs can shoot out like arrows, attacks Bec’s fort.
*Book ; "Bec" (book 4)

Unknown
*Description ; Looks like a large eel, has very wide jaws filled with bear-like teeth. It has no eyes.
*About ; It is a water Fomorii, it lives in lakes and rivers. It ambushes its prey like a crocodile.
*Book ; "Bec" (book 4)

Unknown
*Description ; Half human, half boar. Has a long jaw and inside it's full of human teeth and tusks. Has yellow eyes and claws instead of hands.
*About ; It spits blood that burns like fire.
*Book ; "Bec" (book 4)

Unknown
*Description ; Has the body of a bear and the head of a hawk.
*About ; Unknown.
*Book ; "Bec" (book 4)

Unknown
*Description ; Similar to Sharks, but far more deadly.
*About ; Water Dwelling Demons that inhabit the moat in Lord Loss's Domain.
*Book ; "Demon Thief" (Book 2)

Footnotes