II. Frequently Asked Questions
Provided below are some brief answers to the most frequently asked questions about Mazoku in general. A more detailed analysis of each topic in depth will be explored later in this document.
What are Mazoku?
Mazoku are a ‘demonic’ or ‘monstrous’ race of beings created from chaos, composed of spiritual ‘miasma’ (bad vibes), and attuned to ‘negative’ energy, which they consume to fuel their essence. They manifest a physical body in the mortal world while the bulk of their true spiritual body resides on the astral plane, which makes them extremely difficult to damage with conventional physical means. Most Mazoku possess a full range of human-like senses, as well as the ability to sense various types of magical and spiritual energy.
What is a Mazoku true form?
A Mazoku’s true form is the shape that their astral body takes when observed directly. Generally the more powerful a Mazoku is, the more eldritch and bizarre their true form is likely to be, while less powerful Mazoku often have more comprehensible and biological-seeming true forms. Less powerful Mazoku are also less able to project a body on the physical plane with an appearance far from their true form.
How are Mazoku created?
The history of the Mazoku race began during the Shinma war, when the five Mazoku Lords were created by Ruby-Eye Shabranigdo as pawns in his apocalyptic battle. From there, each of the Lords created their own army of servants, both weak and strong, from portions of the Lords’ own power. While the great number of Mazoku were created at or around the time of the Shinma war, the five Lords, as well as any sufficiently powerful servant of theirs can create new Mazoku by the same method at any time they please.
How many Mazoku are there?
In total there are a few thousand Mazoku below the Lords and their direct subordinates; weaker Mazoku are much more plentiful than powerful. There are five Mazoku Lords; Hellmaster Phibrizzo, Dynast Grausherra, Deep Sea Dolphin, Demon Dragon King Gaav, and Beastmaster Zelas Metallium. All of Phibrizzo’s high level servants were destroyed during the Kouma war; very few Hellmaster-aligned Mazoku remain or have been created since then.
Can a human or other creature become a Mazoku?
Any creature with an existence that extends to the astral plane can theoretically be turned into a Mazoku. The energy that would typically be used to create a new Mazoku is instead co-mingled with the essence of the existing creature, infusing it with dark energy. A fully spiritual creature must be significantly weakened for the energy to successfully co-mingle or dominate the originating spirit; and a living creature must be forced to the brink of death in order to be turned, so that its existence is concentrated on the astral side where the Mazoku energy can take hold.
How do Mazoku feed?
Mazoku consume and gain sustenance from the energy produced by the ‘negative’ emotions of humans and other sentient creatures, for example feelings such as fear, anger, sorrow and hatred. Mazoku are able to absorb this energy ambiently; it is not required that the emotions be directed at them. However, Mazoku often deliberately provoke these types of emotions in people in order to feed off of them. A Mazoku who is able to feed in excess of sustaining themselves will grow more powerful, and more able to create other Mazoku subordinate to themselves.
Are Mazoku damaged by positive emotions directed at them?
There is no evidence that Mazoku are directly damaged or harmed by positive emotions being directed toward them, although some Mazoku may experience revulsion at the idea or consider it ‘cringe’.
Are Mazoku damaged by relying on others? Can Mazoku cast spells?
As purely spiritual beings, Mazoku are existentially tautological– their existence and power is maintained by their own belief in their existence and identity. This means that anything a Mazoku understands as an existential challenge to itself and its ego can be damaging and diminish them in power and ability.
Newer and less powerful Mazoku do not have the power and/or have not had the time to develop a complex understanding of their own existence, and are thus easily damaged by even small threats to their ego and self esteem. Mazoku like these are unable to justify the need to rely on the power of others to their own ego, and thus are unable to do so without experiencing harm. Older, more powerful Mazoku who have developed a more complex and nuanced understanding of themselves are able to comprehend the necessity of relying on the power of another, and accept the humility of such a situation without damaging their own self-concept and ego.
Because casting a spell by its nature invokes the power of another being or essence, most Mazoku are unable to cast spells in any conventional sense, but many have innate abilities that mimic (or fuel) the spells themselves.
Can Mazoku feel/express/experience positive emotions themselves?
There is ample evidence that any Mazoku is able to experience self-directed positive emotions such as joy, satisfaction, calm, contentment, pleasure, curiosity, excitement, amusement and affection. Outwardly directed or altruistic positive emotions such as gratitude, inspiration, kindness and love are on a more tenuous ground, and a weaker or newer Mazoku may be completely incapable of experiencing these, considering them antithetical to their ego, and thus self-damaging.
How do Mazoku spend their time?
When not under direct orders from a superior, Mazoku generally spend their time pursuing either pleasure, or power or both, in whatever way suits them personally. More powerful Mazoku often have elaborate schemes and false human identities under which to pursue their personal goals and desires, while lesser Mazoku spend their time on more bestial and direct pursuits of brutal violence, petty irritation, and physical gluttony.
What is the Red World?
The Red World is the world in which the Mazoku were created. It is one of many created by the Lord of Nightmares, and presided over by Flare Dragon Ceipheed as the power of law and Ruby Eye Shabranigdo as the power of chaos.
What was the Shinma war?
The Shinma war was the war between Shabranigdo and Ceipheed at the beginning of the world. During this war the Mazoku and the dragons were created. The war ended when a critically injured Ceipheed tore Shabranigdo into seven pieces and sealed them in human bodies, trapping them in the human cycle of reincarnation. Ceipheed’s lingering consciousness went dormant, and the four Shinzoku (Draconic Lords) were created from his remaining power.
What was the Kouma war?
Three thousand years after the Shinma war, Hellmaster Phibrizzo led a push to resurrect Shabranigdo and begin the war for the world’s destruction a second time. During this war the Mazoku barrier was erected cutting off one continent of the Red world from the rest, and one of the Shinzoku, one of the pieces of Shabranigdo was resurrected briefly, and Aqualord Ragardia, was destroyed. Before his destruction Ragardia re-sealed the piece of Shabranigdo, and additionally weakened Lord Gaav significantly enough to seal him in a human reincarnation cycle as well. Most of Hellmaster’s and much of Dynast’s armies were destroyed, and despite continuing to maintain the barrier they had erected, the Mazoku race went into a period of retreat and cold war.