Daeva
Daeva | |
---|---|
Powers and Abilities | Savage, animalistic demons that can travel through shadows and rip human beings apart. |
Vulnerabilities | Cannot manifest without shadows. |
Appearance | Invisible but for their shadows; seem to be humanoid. |
Episode(s) | 1.16 Shadow |
Daeva
In the Zoroastrian religion, a daeva is a demonic and destructive being. Daevas are combated by the ahuras who help to uphold the moral law.
Contents
History
Daevas are shadow demons, a special type of demon. They have existed for at least four thousand years, as their sigil predates the time of Jesus Christ's birth by about two thousand years. They are invisible to the human eye except for their shadows, which are humanoid. According to the Pad of Definitions, the natural enemies of daevas are ahuras, which have yet to appear in Supernatural.
Daevas appear to rank below black-eyed demons in the hierarchy of Hell, as they are compared to "demonic pitbulls" for other demons; they are used by other demons as invisible killers, akin to hellhounds. However, it appears that demons (at least black-eyed demons) must first bind daevas using special spells, lest the daevas attack them instead.
Characteristics
Powers and Abilities
- They are invisible; even when they manifest, only their shadows can be seen.
- They are capable of flight or at least levitation.
- They possess long claws.
- They have superhuman strength sufficient to literally tear a human apart.
Weaknesses
- A spell can bind daevas to the caster's will.
- Extreme light, which banishes daevas for as long as the light is present, by eliminating their shadows.
Episodes
1.16 Shadow
Meg binds a group of daevas in Chicago, Illinois using a black altar. She sends them to kill a number of people from Lawrence, Kansas in mysterious "locked room" murders in order to lure Sam and Dean to Chicago as part of her ultimate plan to capture and kill the Winchesters, most importantly their father John. Sam and Dean discover blood splatter at one of the crime scenes that Dean recognizes as a symbol in the shape of a "Z." For help in discovering what it means, he calls up Caleb, who tells him that the symbol is a Zoroastrian sigil for daevas. When Sam and Dean approach Meg to confront her, she sets the daevas on them and captures them after they've been knocked unconscious. Her hold over the daevas is temporarily broken when her black altar is destroyed by Sam; the daevas turn against Meg and drag her through a window to fall seven stories to the ground. She soon regains control of the daevas through use of an amulet and sends them after the Winchesters again in their motel room. The daevas' attack is cut short when Sam repels them using a flare, making it impossible for shadows to exist in the room with that much light. The Winchesters flee before the flare can die and let the daevas return.
Trivia
- Dean says that daeva translates to "demon of darkness."
- Unlike most demons (save Acheri Demons), daevas do not seem to possess hosts.