Demona's Clan
Demona's Clan was a clan of gargoyles that formed sometime after 995 and was destroyed in 1057.
History
After the Wyvern Massacre, Demona roamed Scotland alone, finding food wherever she could, including human farms and food stores. Over time she encountered other rogue gargoyles and pulled them together to form a new clan. She quickly asserted herself as leader of the clan and appointed a second-in-command, though she did not give him much authority.
By 1020, Demona's clan consisted of six gargoyles, and she was the only female. Her clan inhabited caves and beyond those shelters, it seems unlikely they had any real protectorate. Demona led her clan in raids against humans for food, much to the dismay of at least some of her clan. ("City of Stone" Part Two)
The small clan continued it's struggle for survival unscathed for another two decades, but in 1040, Duncan and Macbeth discovered the clan asleep in a cave. Duncan prepared to destroy them in their stone sleep, but Macbeth begged him to spare them due to his history with Demona. Duncan seemed to agree, but later that day returned to the cave with some of his men and managed to destroy at least one clan member shortly before they woke at sunset. The clan battled their way free from the cave and went on to find a new lair.
Shortly thereafter, Macbeth negotiated an alliance with Demona, finally bringing a truce between Demona's clan and a group of humans, in this case, Clan Moray. Demona's clan fought in a major battle against Duncan's forces, proving crucial to Duncan's defeat. After the battle Demona and her clan were praised for their help and after Macbeth was crowned King of Scotland, he assigned Demona his primary advisor, hoping to usher in a new golden age between gargoyles and humans. ("City of Stone" Part Three)
For a time, Macbeth's hopes seemed to come to pass. Demona's clan survived at or near Castle Moray for seventeen years. During that time, more gargoyles discovered and joined the successful clan, by 1057 they numbered around two dozen. Demona divided them up into "cells" to insure that if one group was destroyed, the others would survive. Outside of her own cell, one cell was located in Sruighlea (now modern-day Stirling), Scotland. When Canmore and his English allies attacked Scotland that year, Demona's clan fought against them, holding them back. Sadly, Demona, in her paranoia, felt she and her clan were going to be betrayed by Macbeth and formed a deal with Canmore to betray Macbeth first. Canmore in turn betrayed Demona, and destroyed her entire clan, leaving her, once again, the lone survivor of the massacre of her clan. ("City of Stone" Part Four) It is unclear how Canmore managed to destroy the entire clan in a short time despite their being divided up. It is possible that because they had grouped together as an army they were easily tracked and destroyed.
Though no rookery or eggs were ever shown in connection with Demona's clan, it is possible they could have existed. Gargoyles laid eggs in 1008, 1028 and 1048. In 1008, the clan (if it had even been formed at that point) had only one female; Demona. Greg Weisman has confirmed that Demona never chose a mate from her clan, so we can assume no eggs were laid that year. In 1028, Demona was still the only female in the clan, so again, we can assume there were no eggs laid.
In 1048, however, the clan had expanded considerably, but was mostly adult males. No other female gargoyles were spotted among this clan, but it seems likely they existed. If so, there may have been some gargoyle eggs laid in 1048. In any event, if there were any eggs, Canmore probably had them destroyed as well.
Similarly, there don't seem to have been any gargoyle beasts in this clan either.
Demona once remarked that the Hunter destroyed the last gargoyle clan in Scotland. Though she was clearly incorrect because the Loch Ness Clan survived to the present, her statement is probably referring to her clan. Greg Weisman has said that following the clan's destruction in 1057, Demona did not encounter any other gargoyle clans in Scotland at least. This also seems to indicate her clan was the last gargoyle clan destroyed in Scotland, though it wasn't the last one to exist there.
Characteristics
As far as was seen in the series, the members of this clan shared the same physical characteristics as those of the Wyvern Clan and Avalon Clan including a variety of leathery wings, different shapes, sizes and number of brow horns, diverse coloration in skin and hair, and other features shown in gargoyles of their race. However, since Demona's Clan was a conglomeration of rogue gargoyles from numerous destroyed clans, there may have been gargoyles among the clan of different racial backgrounds, including members similar to those gargoyles found in London or Loch Ness. According to Greg Weisman, Demona was "pretty much" the only named gargoyle among her clan. [1]
Interestingly, the five members of Demona's Clan in 1020 (see picture above) had the exact same coloring as Goliath, Hudson, and the Trio though most other features were dramatically different. This is probably coincidence.
Known Members
- Demona
- Demona's Second
- Demon's Second's Mate
