Demon (The Cave)
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The Demon are a subterranean type of life form that appeared in the movie, The Cave.
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[edit] History
The creatures were first discovered in ancient times by Christian knights in a Romanian cavern system. Deep underground, they fought the demonic beasts but were unable to defeat them. The knights traveled to the end of the the cavern system into a chamber filled with flammable gases. They escaped through this hell-like area. After the surviving knights reached the surface they erected a Church to prevent the creatures from escaping and to warn future generations of the monsters that lay below.
Many years later, a mercenary group entered the Church intending to gather some riches. However, an earthquake caused the entire group to fall into the cavern system and they disappeared one by one. Many years later another group of explorers attempted to chart the cave system. After an explosion occurred, the group was trapped within the cave and forced to fight off the demonic creatures that were present in the dark.
[edit] Spoiler Ending
It was eventually discovered in the movie that the 'demons' depicted on the Church walls were actually humans. They had been transformed by an insidious parasite present in all the animals in the underground ecosystem. The explorers are picked off one by one until they were led into the hellish region the knights themselves managed to escape through. The leader of the explorer expedition, infected by the parasite and transforming, managed to lead his comrades to safety at the expense of his own life. Only three people managed to escape back to the surface. The cave's exit was blocked after the volatile gases were ignited and the chamber collapsed. Presumably the creatures were killed or trapped once more.
Kathryn speculated that the creatures were incapable of surviving on the surface due to their unusual adaptations. At the end of movie she may have disproved her theory since she was infected herself and escaped the cavern system.
[edit] Biology
The demonic beasts are actually the result of an infestation by subterranean parasites. Infection begins through a simple scratch and slowly changes the host. They gradually mutate their hosts into creatures that can survive in the dark underground cavern system.
Infected humans slowly develop keener senses and the ability to decipher, if not understand, the demons motives. Early signs of the infection include the eyes turning black and paling of the skin. The latter stages of the transformation involve the complete loss of bodily hair and the development of a wet amphibious skin that enables the beasts to travel in the underground water system of the caves. The host also develops membranous wings under the arms and powerful teeth which add to the creatures demonic appearance. These wings allow them to fly from rock surface to rock surface - an excellent advantage over other humans or prey. In the end, they develop an amazing ability to climb and tend to travel from the ceilings of the caves. Sharp rocks protruding from the roof can be used to spear food, or as weapons which they break off and then hurtle to the ground, striking their intended prey.
The hosts also lose their eyes and develop a sonar based method of navigation which is hindered by gases in the environment. While this is an advantage in locating prey in the pitch black environment of the cave, it is also a disadvantage: strong sonic beams are painful to them.
It should be noted that despite their transformation into beasts, the creatures do retain part, if not all, of their intellect. They are capable of using advanced tactics to bring down prey and they enjoy 'hunting' as well as toying with their prey.
[edit] Other
A similar, if more human, creature is seen in the movie The Descent.
