Enter the Horsemen. On horses. With deadly weapons and nerves of steel and bodies of solid muscle. These boys were meant to fight. Except, oops, one of them was female. Limos tossed a wrench into my plan. She’s mischievous that way.
So the Horsemen were born, and oh, the possibilities for their stories! Right away I envisioned some of the big events, while others came during the course of writing and revising. But all the while, I had a specific arc in mind, one that would keep our Demonica characters front and center and then take us right back to Underworld General.
As the Demonica/Lords of Deliverance world expanded, so did the need for another compendium. There are more characters, more species, and more supernatural abilities to keep track of. And, of course, there’s a short story to give you more background into how it all began. “Eternal Damnation” will take you back to the Horsemen’s very roots, when they were but a twinkle in Lilith’s evil eye.
Read on, Riders, and enjoy!
The Key Players
Born of a match between good and evil, four siblings stand between hell’s minions and everything they want to destroy. They are the Lords of Deliverance, and they must live their lives walking a line between two prophecies, one set forth by the Bible, and one penned by the prophets of the demon holy book, the Daemonica. Two prophecies, both ushering in Doomsday, but whether the Horsemen fight on the side of good or evil is yet to be determined…
First Horseman of the Apocalypse: Reseph aka Pestilence—Born to the evil succubus Lilith and the angel Yenrieth and given up as an infant to an Akkadian princess who believed herself to be a goddess. Reseph was spoiled, given everything, anything, and anyone he wanted. Though he had a rude awakening when he learned the truth about his origins and was cursed to be a Horseman, he never truly lost his carefree attitude or playboy lifestyle. He lives to have fun. His favorite things include country music, margaritas, women, and vacationing anywhere it’s warm.
Height: 6'8"
Hair: Very light blond
Eye color: Ice blue
Location of home: Caves in the Himalayans Mountains
Personal weapon/symboclass="underline" Bow
Tattoos/identifying marks: Stallion glyph on right forearm
Horse’s name and description: White warhorse named Conquest
Agimortus (trigger for breaking Seal): An event defined in prophecy
Weakness: Drawn to scenes of great disaster and disease
Armor: Plate metal armor that must be fed blood in order to stay strong
Most memorable historical event: The Black Death
Daemonica Prophecy: She of mixed blood who should not exist, carries with her the power to spread plague and pestilence. When battle breaks, conquest is seal’d.
Second Horseman of the Apocalypse: Ares aka War—Raised to be a warrior from the moment he was switched at birth with a human child, Ares lives to fight. The curse brought down upon him and his siblings that turned them into Horsemen made him even better at warmongering… and it also causes humans to become agitated and violent when in his presence. Because of this, he has lived apart from humans and keeps his distance when forced to deal with them. He is a fan of classical music, Greek food, and ouzo.
Height: 6'9"
Hair: Brown with reddish highlights
Eye color: Black
Location of home: Private island in Greece
Personal weapon/symboclass="underline" Sword
Tattoos/identifying marks: Stallion glyph on right forearm
Horse’s name and description: Blood bay stallion named Battle
Agimortus (trigger for breaking Seal): Death of person as defined in prophecy
Weakness: Drawn to scenes of large scale battles; close proximity to his agimortus-bearer dulls senses, strength, and weapons, softens armor
Armor: Leather made of Gerunti demon hide
Most memorable historical event: The Battle of Hastings
Daemonica prophecy: An angel’s mistake shall bring about War, and her death shall break his sword. But be wary, a hound’s heart may yet defeat.
Third Horseman of the Apocalypse: Limos aka Famine—Limos, the only female Horseman, is also the only one of the four to be raised by the mother that gave birth to them. Brought up by Lilith and betrothed to Satan, Limos became an expert at deception and lies. When she left Sheoul, the demon realm known as hell to humans, she found and united her brothers. She is a girly-girl to the core, preferring to dress in ultrafeminine, bright-colored clothes. Her favorite color is pink, she loves fruity drinks and flowers, and painting her nails is practically an obsession.
Height: 5'8"
Hair: Black
Eye color: Violet
Location of home: Secluded island in Hawaii
Personal weapon/symboclass="underline" Set of weight scales
Tattoos/identifying marks: Horse glyph on right forearm; set of scales on shoulder; navel piercing
Horse’s name and description: Black hell stallion named Bones
Agimortus (trigger for breaking Seal): Tiny cup
Weakness: Drawn to scenes of any mass shortage, usually food; unable to give herself to any man
Armor: Croix viper–skin, Samurai-style tunic and breeches
Most memorable historical event: Irish potato famine
Daemonica prophecy: A Horseman, should he drink from the Cup of Deception and Lies, will loose Famine to ravage the Earth.
Fourth Horseman of the Apocalypse: Thanatos aka Death—Of all the Horsemen, Thanatos was the most changed after he was cursed. Raised in a peaceful pre-Druidic clan, he grew up happy and well adjusted. When cursed as the Horseman who is fated to become Death upon the breaking of his Seal, he sank into an abyss of misery and pain. With the help of his siblings, he adjusted, but his inability to control his anger leads to death and destruction, requiring him to live a solitary life. The things he has done torture him, and the only escape is to have his emotions “transferred” to his skin in the form of tattoos. A serious bookworm, he has an extensive library and spends his spare time hunting for rare, ancient tomes to satisfy his thirst for knowledge—and his father. He loves classic rock, Mountain Dew, and pineapple upside-down cake.
Height: 6'8"
Hair: Shoulder-length blond, usually braided at the temples
Eye color: Pale yellow
Location of home: Castle in Greenland
Tattoos/identifying marks: Entire body is covered in tattoos, layered on top of each other, but each distinct; most prominent tattoos are stallion on right forearm, scorpion on neck; both nipples are pierced
Horse’s name and description: Pale dun stallion named Styx