What Are Demons?

Some thoughts here.

1. They are ageless
2. They're Evil (with capital E)
3. They're highly varied in morphology, but generally humanoid . wasn't always a Catfish man, and has taken other forms IIRC from the Tahm Kench Q&A.
4. This is theorycrafting now.......but I believe all demons have an inescapable craving that drives them, and is what they embody

Despair is what he hungers for Agony is what she desires

"The Eternal Nightmare" That's right. Fear.

http://universe.leagueoflegends.com/en_US/story/for-demacia/

Lux awoke with a scream, her heart hammering in her chest and her breath coming in wheezing spikes. Terror filled her mind; a nightmare of clawed hooks dragging her beneath the earth, of fetid mud filling her mouth and darkness smothering her light forever. Lux blinked away the last afterimages, glimpsing retreating shadows out of the corner of her eye. Her mouth was filled with the taste of rancid milk, a sure sign of lingering magic

and later

Lux quickly saddled her mount and rode toward Fossbarrow’s northern gate. Dawn was already an hour old, but the town was still to fully come to life. No smoke rose from the forges, no smell of fresh bread wafted from the bakeries and only a very few sullen-looking merchants had their doors open for business. Demacians were hard-working, disciplined and industrious, so to see a frontier town so late to begin the day’s work was highly unusual. But if Fossbarrow’s people had endured a night like hers, she couldn’t blame them for being slow to rise.

In this story we have Nocturne possess several people, a classic demon ability.

"You mortals are always so quick to fear the things you don’t understand. So easy to fan those flames and draw forth the most exquisite visions of terror. (...) He can’t hear you. And even if he could, you know he’s right to fear what his own people would do if they discovered the truth. That he is the very thing they hate."

I believe Nocturne is the LoL equivalent of Diablo Lord of Terror. He was originally slain by Fossian Crownguard. But...he didn't stay dead. Which begs the question of whether demons can ever actually be "destroyed".

These three are the only "confirmed" demons. What follows is speculation

"The Demon Jester". In his old lore he claimed that he had been summoned from an unimaginably dark realm. Some have noted his similarities to Pagan the Court Jester of Asmodeus, in the Lady Death Comics and I've been told Shaco quotes him in some lines. Let's suppose he lives up to his title and really IS a demon. Shaco is an anagram for "chaoS". That's what he is a manifestation of. Shaco was speculated, in his old lore interview to embody the darkest aspects of mankind's desires. And perhaps that's what all demons are.

Now. The Darkin. Dark. Kin. Think about what that word means. A lot of people really DON'T want the Darkin to be demons, preferring them to be their own totally unique magical creature. But Tahm Kench at least, called Aatrox "Brother" (although it neednt be literal) and remarks on Aatrox hunger "War is a manly appetite, and your directness has my admiration."

War. He likes sewing the seeds of strife (one of his quotes), and thinks of Tryndamere as his masterpiece. He often takes the underdog side, and fights the uphill battles. It's not for any sort of gain, or profit, or even power. It's JUST because.

Slaughter. While Aatrox would fight alongside, and against seasoned warriors, "Death and war, this will be delicious." -is what Rhaast says as an interaction with Aatrox.

Then also consider again, the possession aspect. Darkin as far as we know are embodied in weapons. While those weapons are powerful, the Darkin can take over the person who wields them and consume them entirely. It could be speculate that perhaps the Darkin were free roaming demons, that were "sealed" within weapons. However if the will of the wielder is not strong enough, they could possess them and become free roaming again. Kind of insidious. Defeating a powerful demon and then picking up the sweet "loot" like a scythe or a sword and then being taken over. That's exactly what Kayn is dealing with.

"Rhaast has long awaited the perfect host in order to join its darkin brethren and lay waste to the world, but Kayn will not be easily dominated."

I don't know that Aatrox and Rhaast would exactly see eye to eye. They both kill, TONS of people, but they're very different. Rhaast says "We....have history", not that they are "friends" or even "brothers".

Now, the one thing against this is the idea of the Darkin "race". The Darkin were an ancient race. Specifically, there used to be a WHOLE lot more of them. We....don't know anything about where they actually came from. Aatrox first appeared in the Protectorate/Magelord war which might be the "Rune Wars". It's not clear. The confirmed "demons" all seem to be utterly unique one of a kind beings. We haven't seen any official demon hierarchies, or official "species" or subraces. But otherwise Darkin certainly seem to have an insatiable drive, ability to possess, are Evil, and are immortal. To say nothing of the clear demonic imagery used in their art. Darkin may or may not be demons. But at the very least it lets them use a certain style when they want to, without having to limit their ideas for evil entities.

Another thing....

"Angels to some. Demons to others." -Pinhead, Hellraiser

https://i.imgur.com/JVhQqxF.jpg

As Ezreal's research revealed, Aatrox has touched all cultures in Valoran. Maybe all of Runeterra. Many cultures relics and even stained glass windows in Demacian churches honor him even though his name has been forgotten. Justicar Aatrox represents the Demacian memory of Aatrox. One wonders.....if demons exist in Runeterra.......are there demonic cults?

We know there are dark mages and necromancers, lich lords and more. But thus far most of the beings listed seem too selfish, or too destructive to be venerated. To be worthy of worship implies an entity can provide followers with something without pulling a jackass-genie trope or slaughtering them (aside from virgin sacrifices with curvy daggers occasionally). Who would worship Tahm Kench? Who would worship Nocturne? Who would worship Evelynn?

Ok. Some people would worship Evelynn. They'd die. But I can imagine some people trying it. I figure if a cult were to exist it would be a bit like the followers of Zon-Kuthon in Pathfinder. The most extreme sadists and masochists imaginable. The thing is, such an organization could provide Evelynn a lot of "toys". And she's charismatic. But....somehow I think Eve's appetites are so strong she'd that no cult would last if she were to personally lead it. Then again...how often does a venerated Entity appear to worshippers of anything? Sure. It happens. But those are are only to certain people. Ultimately though, Churches are run by priests and cults by cult leaders. I suppose if Evelynn's legend were to grow, she might inspire some humans to follow her example. They could be lone serial killers, or small groups of sadists who might pray hoping for blessings while they hunt. Not that this means she would even know about them, or have the ability to give them anything. But that doesn't stop cultists from existing.

That aside. WHY does Evelynn have such a BORING name? I mean it has an odd we-can-copyright-it-spelling . https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evelyn_(name)

It's not a name like Nocturne (music inspired by night). Shaco (chaoS anagram). Or even Tahm Kench (Tahm meaning 'taste' in hebrew and Kench being a barrel for salting fish). Aatrox may or may not count, but it is a latin word meaning fierce, savage, or bloody. Which makes it a 'meaningful name' trope. Now of course if we stick to demon tropes, then all true demons would have 'true names' which would be kept secret, thus necessitating the use of other names. I kind of like the idea of demon characters having meaningful names. Tahm Kench took his name from a gambler, and trope invoked 'I Have Many Names' . I sort of wonder how Evelynn got her name. Maybe it was the name of the first person's agony she tasted? Maybe she killed an "Evelynn" and took her name.

Also an obvious question. WHERE do they come from?

I know what you're thinking. HELL! Or some dark dimension that leaks into our world. But the Void has all of those tropes covered. We don't know how demons are born. They might be a manifestation of humanity itself. They might just be apart of the natural magic of runeterra. Evelynn in her V.O. says that "I was born of a thousand screams. What's one more?" What if that was literally true, and a demon could be born of some unspeakable act of sadism so extreme it gained a life of its own ?