An example of a black-eyed demon
First, the basics. How can you recognize a demon? Demons can be recognized by looking at their eye color when they get angry. Most demons have black eyes and wreak havoc either for fun or as part of the orders they receive from higher-ranking demons. Red-eyed crossroads demons make deals, giving people whatever they want in return for their souls. Lilith, the white-eyed demon and arguably the Crossroads Queen, had the job of holding all the contracts on the deals made and of bringing on the Apocalypse, until she was killed.
All demons, no matter what color their eyes are, have only one goal in mind: the destruction of humans. All demons are humans who went to hell and had their humanity burned away by countless years of hellfire, giving them incredible, superhuman powers. A demon can grab a human, throw it across the room, and pin it to the wall, all through telekinesis. Some older, higher-ranking, more powerful demons can do similar things to lower demons.
All demons appear in their true form as a cloud of thick, black smoke that enters an unwilling human through the mouth or eyes. The victim of the possession is usually suffering from some emotional distress which allows the demon to worm its way into the victim’s mind and take it prisoner. Some stronger people can fight their way into consciousness for short periods, only to watch helplessly as the demons force their bodies to commit terrible crimes. Only the very strongest can take back control in spite of the possession.
Since demons are supernatural creatures, they can’t be killed by plain, everyday guns and knives. The only weapons that will kill them are a gun made by Samuel Colt in the late 1800’s, or a knife brought up from hell by a demon named Ruby, who was a witch in the Dark Ages before she died. Unfortunately, these weapons not only kill the demon; they also kill the demon’s “meat suit”, or host.
The best, safest way to dispatch a demon is to exorcise it. The demon can be kept still by tricking it into walking into a devil’s trap, a large, hexagonal symbol painted on the floor or ceiling and surrounded by many cryptic symbols. There are several variations. Once trapped inside, the demon cannot leave, although powerful demons can sometimes cause earthquakes strong enough to break the trap from the inside.
Demons cannot be harmed physically except by salt or holy water. Throwing water on someone or pouring salt down a person’s throat are two not-so-subtle ways of testing whether someone is a demon, as well as excellent torture methods.
Sometimes threatening the demon with exorcism is an effective torture in itself. There are several different exorcisms, all of them in Latin. One exorcism, which should never be used on more powerful demons, involves two parts, the first part freeing the demon from its host and making it more powerful, and the second part sending the bastard back to hell. Most other exorcisms make the demon leave and return to hell all in one swift motion.
Perhaps the most important thing to remember about demons is that anyone can be possessed, as long as they are suffering from some kind of emotional trauma. Even the best, strongest hunters can be possessed. A good protection to use is a charm that looks like a star inside a toothed circle. Recently, some hunters, most notably the Winchester brothers, have taken to tattooing an image of the charm on their chests.
Demons are probably the most dangerous things to hunt. They are difficult to detect, and obviously you can’t throw water on everyone you meet to see whether they are a demon or not. So keep a salt shaker and a flask of holy water handy at all times, watch everyone’s eyes, and know your friends. If anyone acts suspicious, prepare yourself for an attack, and pull out your book of exorcisms and devil’s trap patterns. But always remember: no matter how evil the demon is, there’s always a human inside, screaming to get out. Try not to hurt the person if you can avoid it. the hunter should never be more evil than what he or she is hunting.
*All of the information in this text can be found in the TV series Supernatural.
The anti-possession tattoo
