- "Let's start with the fact that you're a necrobus, you sustain your life energy through violent sex acts -"
- – Carla Denton to Cull. [src]
A Necrobus - collectively known as the Clan Necrobi - was a creature which subsisted on the souls of human victims, typically through violent sexual encounters such as assault or BDSM. As a race, the necrobi were regarded as one of the natural enemies of Darkness wielders, as the latter’s enforced celibacy made them the antithesis of the needs of the clan.
Earlier in their people's history, the necrobi were a dominant species on the Earth's surface; presiding over small farms of human supplicants who would feed them their energies and worship them like gods. Over time, the necrobi were driven off by the Darkness and the Witchblade.
Now relegated to nocturnal predators starved for the sexual energies of the ever-growing masses of humanity, the Heart Necrobi made their havens in various shadowy places across the world, while Cull - one of their emissaries - searched for a means to at last destroy the Trinity.
History[]
Origins of the Clan[]
The precise origins of the necrobi remain unknown. They could very well have been creatures from another dimension, or they could've been a separate breed of beings that were created alongside homo sapiens. Either way, human beings were always their natural source of nourishment.
To this end, they sought to enslave mankind. As a means of maintaining order, the elders of the race organizing their starved kin into a proper clan and institutionalized their subjugation of the human population of the time period. These elders became known as the Heart Necrobi.
Although they kept their subordinates fed, housed, and sexually satisfied, these humans were little more than slaves and livestock to feed the growing clan; prisoners of their lecherous necrobi masters - subjected to their depraved and sadistic lust for domination and submission.
Fall of the Empire[]
At the height of their reign, before recorded history, the clan established an empire composed of factions of human cattle; allowing a steady stream of fresh souls. It wasn't until a Darkness wielder and a Witchblade bearer emerged among these slaves that the Necrobi Empire fell.
Having lived under the degrading watch of the necrobi their whole lives, these two were filled with hatred for their masters. Unable to be fed upon by the necrobi, and endowed with the powers of the Artifacts, these two laid waste to the empire and liberated their human servants.
Sensing the united power of these two wielders, the Angelus of that time period also emerged with her host of Warriors. This was one of the few moments in history when the Trinity worked - more or less - towards one goal: decimating the Clan Necrobi, albeit for their own reasons.
Survival of the Heart[]
Although their numbers were gravely diminished, the Heart Necrobi - now an amalgamated mass of orgiastic elders - survived this devastation; guarded and shepherded away by their devoted lieutenants. Among the ranks of this royal guard was Cull, an ambitious and conniving soldier.
Deprived of a steady stream of nourishment, the necrobi slowly dwindled into an endangered species; becoming shadowy predators comparable to vampires - stalking their victims and either seducing or molesting them to feed. This degradation only fueled their hatred of the Darkness.
As civilization flourished in their absence, the necrobi remained in the shadows where they fed and bred in controlled amounts to maintain their numbers. As the hordes of humanity increased by the millions, their ambient sexual energies were just enough to slate the starved clan.
End of the Clan[]
After Cull falls at hands of Jackie Estacado, Sara Pezzini and Carla Denton, the Darklings eradicate the remaining necrobi, making them practically extinct.
Powers & Abilities[]
Powers[]
- Soul Consumption: Necrobi were spectral predators, driven to consume human souls to fuel their bodies and remain healthy. This appetite seems to be parallel with their sex drive; as the necrobi were synonymous in function with succubi and incubi respectively in that they usually fed during coitus.
- Eternal Longevity: As long as they were nourished with living souls, the necrobi remained effectively immortal. The Heart Necrobi. as well as their lieutenant Cull, both predated recorded history at the time of their deaths; stretching back well over five thousand years to the fall of their empire.
- Enhanced Healing: So long as they retained fresh amounts of souls within their bodies, the necrobi could easily withstand close-range gunfire without showing any lasting injury. This was shown when Cull was shot in the back after absorbing all of the Heart Hecrobi's souls and was briefly hindered.
- Inhuman Strength: A healthy necrobus exhibited both a dramatically increased musclemass as well a subsequent increase in strength and fortitude. It seemed that their strength, more than just soul hunger, depended on their position in the clan; guards were typically the most superhuman of the clan.
- Host Crystallization: Interestingly, the necrobi could crystallize their victims's bodies - transforming their flesh into a cocoon of blue diamond. This was called the "Gift of the Necrobi" and was intended to preserve the extracted souls of the victims for later feedings or any other sordid purposes.
Abilities[]
- Seductive Aptitude: As creatures of lust, the necrobi were innate seducers; intended by their very nature to satiate their biological needs by copulating with victims and absorbing their orgasmic energy. As such, they were endowed with natural skills at seduction; able to either sway or solicit sex.
- Torture Technique: The necrobi exhibited a predilection for sadomasochistic torture in a manner strongly reminiscent of BDSM - employing chains, tasers, bondage gear, and whips to ensnare and torment their victims during their feedings. They enjoyed instilling these same fetishes in others as well.
Weaknesses[]
- Soul Deprivation: As they required the souls of living creatures to sustain themselves, the necrobi could starve if they went for prolonged periods of time without copulating and thus feeding. This effectively made the necrobi nymphomaniacs. Without souls, a necrobus would've weakened and expired.