by Larissa Ione
Contents
The Introduction
The Demons
The Hospital
The Key Players in the Demonica World
The Reckoning (short story)
The Introduction
People often ask me how I came up with the concept of a demon hospital. Basically, I've always been a fan of both the paranormal and emergency medicine, and one day, while watching an episode of Angel, the idea popped into my head. See, Angel (a vampire, for those who have never watched the super-awesome show) got hurt, and he needed medical attention right away. But really, where could he go? Where could any supernatural creature go?
Clearly, there was a need for an underworld hospital, and Underworld General was born.
When I started to write the first book in the Demonica series, Pleasure Unbound, I knew right away that the Demonica world was going to be extensive. Keeping track of it meant lots of notebooks, computer space, and brain space. I'm not the most organized person on the planet, but I somehow managed to put together not only a glossary, but an inventory of demons.
As the list of demons grew, so did an idea...
See, I've always been a big fan of Dungeons and Dragons (when not writing, I'm glued to the computer and playing the fantasy role-playing game!) and some of the best D&D guides are the monster compendiums, which provide backgrounds, vital statistics, and descriptions of the monsters you might encounter in the world.
So I started on the Demonica compendium, and with each book I wrote, the compendium grew larger. Then I decided to include information about the hospital. And the key players.
And as readers wrote to me, asking questions about the characters, their pasts, and their futures, I found that I wanted to explore the world even more and give readers some extras. So I wrote a short story to show how Eidolon, Shade, Wraith, and Roag met... an event that shaped all of their lives forever.
"The Reckoning" takes place before Underworld General was even a spark in Eidolon's thoughts, and before Roag went completely mad.
And here we have it. More of the good, the bad, and the really, really ugly.
Hope you enjoy!
The Demons
Note: Most demons are invisible to humans unless they want to be seen, the humans are trained to see them, or the humans possess either magic or some inherent ability to see them. The notable exceptions to the invisibility rule are ter'taceo—demons who, by nature, look like humans, or who can take on human appearance. Seminus demons, for example, are ter'taceo.
When any non-ter'taceo demon dies in the human realm, it disintegrates within moments unless it dies in an area specially designed to prevent disintegration, an area built by demons, or some underground locales.
Most demons spend the majority of their lives in Sheoul, the demon realm deep inside the earth. When demons die, their souls are sent to Sheoul-gra, which is, in essence, a holding tank where souls wait to be reborn. Sheoul-gra is also where evil human souls are sent to either serve demon souls waiting to be reborn, or to be reborn themselves... as demons.
All demon species and breeds can be classified by their Ufelskala score—a number ranging from one to five on the scale of evil, with a score of five being the evilest of the wicked. It is important to note that the Ufelskala Scale judges "evil" by a species' or breed's love of pain, suffering, and death, but also on its awareness of its own behavior. So a demon animal that eats its prey alive, causing great suffering, may only score a two on the Ufelskala Scale, while a demon that doesn't kill, but instead merely torments for fun, might score a four.
Humans, for the most part, are unaware that demons walk among them, and that is the way most demons—and most humans—like it.
Acid Sprite—Delicate, rat-sized, moves faster than a human eye can track. Winged and colorful, they can be seen by human children who believe the sprites are fairies. They inhabit very dense, very wet European forests, where they hunt small rodents and make the most of their mischievous natures by tormenting human travelers. A favorite game is to ensure that campers and hikers become lost in the woods. While rarely fatal, an acid sprite's bite is toxic to humans and is often mistaken for a spider bite. Ufelskala Score: 2
Alu—Rare, ghostlike demon who appears to humans in the shape of a black dog. It has been known to carry diseases such as bubonic plague and leprosy. Usually found haunting graveyards. Ufelskala Score: 4
Baruk—Wrinkled, white-skinned creature that feeds exclusively on Umber demons. They inhabit caves world-wide, where they can hibernate for centuries until an Umber demon moves in. Though humans rarely encounter the baruk, when they do, the results are... messy. Ufelskala Score: 3
Bathag—Mine dwellers, violet eyes, pale skin, silver/ white hair. They possess power over the Earth and can cause earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and mine collapses. They like to live deep in gem and mineral mines, where they cause minor accidents to feed off the energy of those in pain. Ufelskala Score: 2
Bedim—Very attractive, sensual humanoid race. Dark skin, dark hair. Males keep females in harems. When harems grow too large for one male to service alone, harems are often shared with friends or "rented" out in order to keep females sated and calm. Ufelskala Score: 1
Bone Devil—Three feet tall, carnivorous. lives in forests all over the world. Eats its prey (usually deer) alive. One of the few demon species that exists exclusively in the human realm and never enters Sheoul. Ufelskala Score: 2
Charnel Apostle—A race of demon born into the Charnelist religion, which celebrates pain, violence, and bloody sacrifice. All charnel apostles top six feet tall as adults. Gray skin, black eyes, and hair composed of porcupine-like quills that extend down their back and along their broad, flat tail. They make their home high in the Mongolian mountains, using their magic to conceal their existence from humans. Ufelskala Score: 5
Croix Viper—Giant demon snakes with horns. They exist exclusively in Sheoul unless brought aboveground by another demon. Ufelskala Score: 2
Croucher—Three-eyed, scrawny creatures. The size of a small man, they live near dwelling entrances, waiting to pounce. Though they are invisible to humans, as most demons are, they are capable of powerful evil. They harm by bringing bad luck to a house, thereby causing bad illnesses and accidents, from falling down stairs to sudden death. Ufelskala Score: 4
Cruentus—Skeletal chests, thorny fingers, blunt, hairless snouts. Extremely vicious race that feeds only on fresh meat. They will hunt anything, including each other. Ufelskala Score:4
Daeva—Harmless to humans unless threatened. Thin, tall, and pale with lidless, glowing eyes, they appear more frightening than they are. They exist mainly in the darkest reaches of Sheoul and come aboveground to the human realm only at night, to gather trash for food and entertainment. Ufelskala Score: 1
Darquethoth—Very large, ebony-skinned demons with glowing orange eyes, mouths, and thick slashes in their skin. They live in the hot, inner regions of Sheoul, feeding off prey species who also reside there. A warrior race, they can be hired for any job that promises violence. Ufelskala Score: 4
Dree—Hunchbacked creatures with slimy gray skin and long tails. Loners, they live near lakes and streams, where they can easily catch their main source of food: fish. They are extremely cowardly, making them perfect minions for more evil demons who capture and force them to labor as slaves. Ufelskala Score: 1
Drekevac—Spindly, long-limbed, oversized head, fangs as long as a human's forearm. They enter buildings through open windows and sicken humans with their breath. Ufelskala Score: 4
Fallen Angels—Fallen angels fall into two categories: those who have entered Sheoul, and those who have not. Angels expelled from Heaven face two choices—they can enter Sheoul and become the most p
owerful of demons and lose all hope of ever returning to Heaven, or they can reside in the human realm and pray to someday earn the opportunity to return to Heaven. Ufelskala Score: Varies except for those who have entered Sheoul—these fallen angels are ranked as a 5.
False Angels—Males and females alike are flawlessly beautiful. Highly sexual, they enjoy pleasures of the flesh, but they are very particular in their choice of sex partners and will only engage in sex with the most attractive humans and human-appearing demons. A cunning and easily bored species, they make life interesting for themselves by tricking humans into thinking they are true angels, and then leading the humans astray from their chosen religion and into another. Ufelskala Score: 3
Gargantua—Massive, rare demons that live in the deepest ocean trenches and come onto land once every hundred years to mate. Mostly, they scavenge the carcasses of large mammals and fish that sink to the ocean floor, but they have been known to hunt squid and octopus, as well as to sink ships and devour the crews. Ufelskala Score: 2
Gerund—Thirty feet tall, T-rex jaws and claws as long as a man. Only a handful are believed to be in existence still, a result of long gestation periods and high infant mortality rates. They live underground in mountainous regions in the human realm, coming aboveground to gorge themselves on humans and animals once every fifty years. Ufelskala Score: 3
Grim Reaper—Very little is known about the Grim Reaper, except that he lives in a realm of his own, inaccessible to most. Ufelskala Score: Unknown
Griminions—The Grim Reaper's servants. Believed by some to function for demons as angels do for humans... escorting the souls of dead demons to Sheoul-gra. Ufelskala Score: Unknown
Guai (gwah-eye)—An Asian species, approximately four feet tall, stocky, and resembling a wild boar on two legs. Omnivores, these demons hang out near rice paddies, where they raid rice fields and eat the occasional snake or rat. Ufelskala Score: 1
Harpy—Best described as a "winged woman," or as a cross between an eagle and woman. The size of human women, harpies have the legs and talon-tipped feet of eagles, and wings instead of arms. Clawlike hands extend from the tips of their wings. Harpies are social creatures, living in groups in large wilderness areas, feeding on demon prey species. When females reach maturity at the age of one hundred, they can take human form once every ten years to mate with a human male. She will then lay a single egg, which will hatch two years later. The eggs, believed to impart immortality if eaten, are highly prized by some demon species and have become a black market commodity. Ufelskala Score: 1
Hell Stallion and Hell Mare—Black, horselike creatures the size of Clydesdales. These demon equines are carnivores that spit fire and kill with razor-sharp hooves. Few species can tame and ride hell stallions and mares, but once these horses give their loyalty, it is given for life. Ufelskala Score: 2
Hellhound—The size of a buffalo, hellhounds are massive black canines with paws the size of dinner plates, glowing red eyes, and a mouthful of bloody teeth. Unlike earthbound canines, hellhounds have catlike retractable claws, which they use to devastating effect. Their main method of killing involves first raping their prey and then disemboweling it and feasting while it still lives. Notoriously hard to control, hellhounds must be handled only by a professional—hellhounds are known to turn on their handlers with terrifying frequency. Ufelskala Score: 3
Huldrefox—A seasonal and social demon that emerges from Sheoul in the fall to raid farmers' fields that are ready to harvest. They especially enjoy gourds. They are a fragile, nonviolent breed, but with six-inch fangs and clawed hands and feet, they are capable of defending themselves when necessary and are extremely protective of their young, flossa, which emerge from eggs after six months. Ufelskala Score: 1
Imp—Around three feet tall, these demons are the worker ants of the underworld. By far the most common demons, they are treated more like beasts of burden than equals. They are thin, hunched over, with big heads and eyes that are disproportionately large for their faces. They eat anything they can put into their mouths. They breed like rats, giving birth to litters of four to eight young, many of which fall victim as meals for other species. Harmless to humans. Ufelskala Score: 1
Judicia—Justice demons. Humanoid in appearance, with dark hair, green skin, and white antlers. Males always wear long beards. Females shave theirs. Some Justice demons work within the Sheoul penal complex. Others are summoned by private individuals or species and breed councils for matters of justice. Justice demons possess the power of mind to inflict painful punishment as they see fit. Ufelskala Score: 1
Khilesh Devil—Looking like a cross between an alligator and a gorilla, this predatory species hunts in packs, often killing more than necessary. Their favorite food are Umber young, but they will kill any helpless demon unlucky enough to cross their paths. Khilesh devils live in Sheoul, but usually hunt in forests aboveground. Ufelskala Score:3
Khnive—Summoned demon tracker bound by its master to do his bidding until the spell times out. They smell strongly of decay and resemble giant, skinless opossums. When not being forced to track, khnives roam Sheoul in packs, scavenging for other species' leftover kills. Ufelskala Score: 1
Lava Beast—Elephant-sized demons that live within volcanoes. They are the only known species that can survive exposure to hot lava. Orange/red and black in color, they can blend into cooling lava flows. Thought to be the physical incarnation of evil humans killed in natural disasters, lava beasts feed on the negative energy produced by a volcano's destruction. Ufelskala Score: 3
Leonine Beast—Believed to be the first demons created as a cross between humans and animals. Some demon scholars are certain leonine beasts are the result of a failed attempt at creating lion shapeshifters. Whatever their origins, they resemble lions but are capable of walking upright. None exist in the wild—these creatures are kept only as pets by the most wealthy and powerful demon lords. Ufelskala Score: 2
Mamu—An Australian desert-dwelling species of man-eating, shapeshifting demon. These tall, pointy-headed ugly demons hunt for solitary humans. They either attack with large clubs or they wait quietly, disguised as an inanimate object, small animal, or another human. Ufelskala Score: 5
Nebulous Demon—These rare, malevolent spirits suck souls out of humans. They are shapeless, appearing as patches of fog or steam. Some breeds take only the souls of those who are comatose, while others prey mostly on children, the mentally ill, and the elderly, leaving them with no sense of right and wrong. The human souls are stored within the demon, providing it energy for as long as the human body lives. The souls can only be freed by killing the demon. Ufelskala Score: 4
Neethulum—An extremely intelligent and cruel race who breed, raise, train, and sell other species as slaves and food. Their uncommon beauty has given rise to the rumor that they are descended from fallen angels. They reside wherever they want to within the vast confines of Sheoul. Ufelskala Score: 5
Nightlash—Humanoid, with clawed feet and sharp teeth. Very tall, often topping seven feet. They will eat anything they can catch, and they hunt in family packs, mainly because they are all inbred. There are no social taboos with these demons. They reside only in Sheoul, usually the colder regions, but they consider all of earth their hunting ground. Ufelskala Score: 4
Obhirrat—Among the most hideous, vile demons in existence. At around seven-and-a-half feet tall, these snouted beasts have foot-long claws they click together when agitated, beady, red eyes, and snakelike tongues. Their skin is transparent, revealing their primary means of defense: live-flesh-eating maggots that squirm constantly beneath the skin. Few can look upon an Obhirrat without becoming nauseous. Ufelskala Score: 3
Oni—These rather stupid demons are troublemakers. The party animals of the underworld, they eat, drink, and have sex to excess. Onis may live in the human realm or the demon one, but they are always present at the sites of natural disasters, and they love to hang out in places where diseases reach epidemic proportions. Ranging in size from
half the size of a human to three times the size, they also vary in color, from pale peach to bright pink to blue. Their three fingers and toes on each hand and foot end in sharp talons. They boast three eyes, a flat face, and a gaping mouth full of fangs. Ufelskala Score: 3
Ramreel—Rumored to have been created from human and goat stock, these burly, small-eyed demons with curled horns tend to make their living by hiring themselves out as guards. As small kids, they train with blade weapons, giving them a head start in the crowded but lucrative security market. Ufelskala Score: 2
Rusalka—Freshwater species that can shapeshift into fishes and frogs. Rusalkas are female, pale green in color, with green hair. They are perpetually lonely, and they lure human men into the water to mate with them. Unfortunately, their partners always drown after they give up their seed, leaving the Rusalkas lonely once more—that is, until their eggs hatch nine months later. Despite the fact that they always kill their partners, Rusalkas are not evil; they never intend to drown their partners, and they always forget that it happened, so they can't learn from their mistakes. Ufelskala Score: 1