| “ | In the history of the warriors known as Claymores, there have been three terrible instances of a Number One becoming awakened. | ” |
–God Eye Galatea, Chapter 45 | ||
Abyssal Ones (also known as Creatures of the Abyss or simply Abyssals) is the title given to certain Awakened Beings who're formerly No. 1 Claymores during their times in the Organization.
Prior to Clare's generation, there were only three known Abyssal Ones: Isley of the Northern Lands, Luciela of the Southern Lands and Riful of the Western Lands. Each of whom had their titles because of the lands they commanded: Isley is the leader of Alphonse, Luciela of Mucha, and Riful of Lautrec.
During the Claymores' Rebellion, three new Abyssals were born: The Elegant Hysteria, Cassandra the Dust-Eater, and Roxanne of Love and Hate.
History[]
There were originally three known cases of No. 1 Claymores' passing their limits and Awakening, they're called "Abyssal Ones" (深淵の者, Shin'en no Mono, lit. "Persons of the Abyss").
Each Abyssal One settled in one of the five regions of the island: Lautrec in the West, Alphonse located North, and South is Mucha.
The only two regions not under the control of the Abyssal Ones are the Eastern region of Sutare, which is where the Organization is based; and the central region of Toulouse, which itself appears to be neutral.
For an unnamed length of time, a peaceful status quo existed between the entities. Then Isley, the Abyssal One of the North, raised an army of Awakened Beings and expanded into the others' realms.
The Abyssal Ones[]
Empress Riful of the West[]
The Japanese "Rifuru", suggests "Riffle," corresponding to her awakened form. Riful is Claymore No. 1 of the first generation of female Claymores. She is the youngest Claymore to Awaken and lives in the West (Lautrec) together with her consort, Dauf.
In her struggle against Isley, Riful tries creating an army of Awakened Beings. She captures Claymores on a regular basis, whom she tortures and Awakens if possible. By the time she meets Jean's Awakened Being Hunting Party, thirty Claymores have already been slain.
Clare and Galatea get Riful's attention as possible "recruits", but she decides to wait for them to become stronger before turning them into her Awakened allies. She also warns that Isley will not be as gentle as she was when she defeated them (Scene 40). Riful has said that the only way to beat Isley, about whom Clare inquired earlier in their confrontation, is to join her. In her transformed state, she becomes jet-black and can disassemble her body into thin strips, and she uses this ability to either avoid sword blows or attack her foes.
During the post-timeskip arc, Riful attempts to recruit Audrey and Rachel, among others. She states that she is looking for Claymores who're skilled at sensing and manipulating Yoki. She needs them for "something interesting" that she found, believing it can even out the balance of power between herself and the Isley-Priscilla alliance.
Riful realizes something amiss about the story of Isley's defeating Priscilla, for she noted that Priscilla was much stronger than Isley, her, or Dauf. During this encounter, there is a rare instance where she reveals real anger.
Riful captures Renee after Renee leaves Raki and Priscilla in Doga village. She wants Renee to assist in Awakening both the partially merged Rafaela and Luciela and will let her go once the deed is done.
After Isley's death, the Organization sends Alicia and Beth, along with 11 Abyss Feeders, to kill Riful. She survives the Organization, but not Priscilla. When Dauf attacks Priscilla, she tosses out Riful's upper torso as a distraction (Helen says "A girl's... corpse?"). When Dauf glances at Riful's body, Priscilla destroys his right arm (Scene 102). However, during the skirmish between Priscilla and the Destroyer (Scene 132), right before the seven ghosts confront Cassandra, Riful's lower half of her body begins to regenerate. Chronos and Lars note that she is alive but, after paying closer attention, the former states that it's not the Abyssal of the West, but something similar to it. Lars later exclaims that the resurrected Riful has the power to further exceed the monster that exceeds the Abyssal Ones, that being Priscilla.
We cannot ignore the fact that since Riful and Dauf were lovers, this so called "resurrected" Riful may actually be their child since it's using the same abilities as Riful and Dauf. That creature emerged from Riful's lower body, so it might had been some kind of "slumbering" fetus that had awoken after the death of its parents.
White Silver King Isley of the North[]
Isley is Claymore No. 1 of the male generation of Claymores. His nickname "White Silver King" derives from his long silver hair. He refers to himself as "Isley of Alphonse" and Priscilla's "general." As an Awakened Being, he controls the north, but promises Priscilla to go south. Despite being an Awakened Being for more than 78 generations, Isley still remembers almost everything he ever learned about swordsmanship.
Priscilla[]
A story meant for public consumption: Isley defeats Priscilla when she rampaged through the north, then makes her his consort. The reality—Isley had half his torso destroyed by Priscilla. Priscilla reverts back to her human form during her fight with Isley. Realizing that her Awakening had caused her mind to regress, Isley returns to his human and swears allegiance to Priscilla. He promises to take her south to find her parents (Extra Scene 3). Thus begins the expansion beyond Alphonse.
While he has pledged his life to the more powerful Priscilla, he is far more intelligent and experienced than she is and often seems to be the dominant and active member of their partnership.
Northern Campaign[]
Isley amasses an army of Awakened Beings, raising a total of 31 soldiers, including former male Claymore No. 2, Rigardo. Later, an Awakened Being Hunting Party—lead by Eva, No. 7—is wiped out by this army. In response, the Organization begins the Northern Campaign, sending a task force of 24 Claymores to contain Isley. After two battles, all 24 Claymores are defeated.
Isley then splits his army, sending 11 against Organization headquarters in Staff. And 12 against Riful of the West (Scene 71). All 23 are killed, as Isley planned (Scene 62).
With both the Organization and Riful occupied, Isley moves against Luciela of the South, defeating her. His plan is twofold—by distracting Riful, Isley kills any chance of a team-up between her and Luciela, the only possible way to defeat Priscilla. In conquering Mucha, Isley keeps his promise to Priscilla—taking her south to find her parents.
During the Northern Campaign, Isley finds Raki and take him under his wing. Later, Isley agrees to become Raki's teacher and begins to instruct him in swordsmanship, commenting that Raki reminds him a lot of how he was in his own youth. But at some point during the Seven Year Time-Skip, Isley is hounded by a new weapon from the Organization. He meets his fate after the Seven Ghosts return south.
Mucha[]
In Scene 86, Helen and Deneve detect a massive yoki from an unnamed town in Mucha. Dietrich warns them to leave, citing the presence of "Demons," but the warning is ignored, as Helen and Deneve assume Dietrich meant Isley. Helen and Deneve decide to find him in town, hoping to catch a glance of him for a thrill.
However, Isley sees through the disguise the two Claymores use and attacks, forcing Helen and Deneve to fight for their lives. During the ensuing battle, the actual "Demons" appear—Abyss Feeders. Ironically, the Feeders are made from the remains of 11 Awakened Beings that Isley sent to attack the Organization. The Feeders attack Helen, Deneve and Isley. Dietrich intervenes, telling Helen and Deneve to keep still, as the Feeders detect motion. The three escape, while the Feeders attack Isley.
Isley hacks apart the Feeders, but they quickly regenerate and adapt to his tactics. Unlike his opponents, he cannot regenerate fast enough to effectively fight. Eventually, three of his legs are destroyed and his body collapses to the ground where he is eaten alive. He spends his last moments reminiscing about his time with Raki and Priscilla and wishes his life with his pseudo family could have continued just a bit longer.
The Failed Experiment Luciela of the South[]
Luciela is Rafaela's older sister and the Abyssal One of the South. Former Claymore No. 1, she Awakened after a failed "Soul Link" experiment, which cost her sister an eye. Taking place at Headquarters in Staff, her Awakening nearly destroyed the Organization, killing over half of the warriors and trainees.
Luciela fights Isley following his incursion into her territory, the southern region of Mucha whilst Rafaela watches.
After Luciela's defeat, Rafaela finds her kneeling exhausted in a stream, unable to assume her Awakened form. Rafaela embraces her sister, but breaks Luciela's back, killing her and discharging Yoki at the same time. As a result, the two bodies merged and become the entity known as The Destroyer.
In her Abyssal form, Luciela is a humanoid with feline-like hindlegs. Her cat-like head has a two jaws column. Luciela fights with foreclaws and two long, muscular tails extending from her buttocks. Tails have multi-fanged mouths along their length, and Luciela can morph similar mouths anywhere on her body.
The Interim[]
After the deaths of the original two Abyssal Ones except Riful, there has been one case of a living No. 1 permanently Awakening, Alicia. However, since she was killed almost immediately by Priscilla, the news of her Awakening never reached the Organization, so the term "Abyssal One" has never been officially used for her.
Black Alicia[]
Alicia is Claymore No. 1 of both Clare and Clarice's generations. With her twin sister, Beth, the twins are a successful attempt at "Soul Link," an Organization experiment to produce controllable Awakened Beings. Technically an "Abyssal One" as Alicia can revert back with Beth's help. However, since both of them Awaken to fight Priscilla, there is no one to preserve her human soul and she becomes a normal Awakened Being. Mere minutes after her Awakening, Priscilla calmly decapitates her.
The New Abyssal Ones[]
Shortly after the old Abyssal Ones' and Alicia's deaths, the Organization resurrected three of the strongest No. 1's in its history to crush the current Claymores' rebellion. During the ensuing battle, they Awaken - an eventual and intentional inevitability of their newly formed bodies - and are acknowledged by Dae and Rubel as the "new" Abyssal Ones.
Cassandra the Dust Eater[]
Cassandra is No.1 of her generation and is considered one of the eight most powerful former No.1 Claymores. During her lifetime, she was known as "Cassandra the Dust Eater." While battling the current single digits, she suddenly remembers the death of her friend at the hands of Roxanne and Awakens.
Her Awakened form is a large humanoid form supported by tentacles which help her stand up as she has no arms or no head. Her torso is joined with her humanoid form.
Roxanne of Love and Hate[]
A Claymore who assumed the No.1 position after Cassandra died. She was revived by Dae in order to stop the rebellion of the current generation's rebelling Claymores. Her body starts to Awaken on its own when the Awakened Cassandra devours all her limbs. After a lengthy battle with Cassandra, she is dismembered and then devoured.
Hysteria the Elegant[]
A No. 1 Claymore that was brought back to life. Hysteria's trademark technique holds the title of being the most beautiful technique in the history of Claymores. She is defeated by Phantom Miria, but despite the fatal injury, she Awakens along with Roxanne. Eventually, she is mortally wounded by the Awakened Roxanne and Cassandra and, after giving off an apparition of Priscilla, dies.
Possible Abyssal Ones[]
All of these are Claymores confirmed to have power rivaling that of a Number 1 but were not at the time of their awakening.
Rafaela[]
Rafaela was Luciela’s younger sister and one of the two claymores used for the first Soul Link Experiment done by The Organization. In order to create a controllable Awakened Being, the organization first attempted to have two regular biological sisters attempt to synchronize their Yoki with each other, with Luciela being the one to awaken, while Rafaela, the younger sister, would act as her anchor and help her maintain her human mind and pull her back from her awakening. Due to this, the organization made sure to train them both to possess equal strength to each other, this is seen where both Rubel and Luciela stated that if Rafaela herself awakened, she will also likely become an Abyssal One due to her power matching her sisters.
Black Beth[]
Beth was Alicia's twin sister, Claymore No.2 of both Claire and Clarice's generations, and equal in strength to her twin sister Alicia. Beth was successfully able to "Soul Link" with her twin sister, Alicia, to produce controllable Awakened Beings. She was impaled by one of the Parasitic Rods and Awakened, possessing the body of a large cat with a long, ridged, segmented tail and a head similar to that of the Luciela-like creatures spawned from the Destroyer. As Alicia reverted back to maintain the Soul Link, Beth should have been able to revert back to being human until Alicia also Awakened to fight Priscilla. Beth was killed mere moments after Priscilla decapitated Alicia.
Rosemary[]
Rosemary was originally ranked No.1 until Teresa took on that number, at which time she was demoted to No. 2. As an Awakened former No.1, she technically had the qualifications to be an Abyssal One as she likely possessed great power, though she was never officially recognized as such due to her defeat by Teresa.
Europa the Lazy[]
Europa was a single-digit Claymore of her generation and eventually became an awakened being. As noted by Chronos and confirmed by Galatea, Europa possessed the overall Yoki equivalent of a Abyssal One despite never being ranked as a Number 1 as a Claymore. As stated by Chronos, this was due to Europa’s lazy personality, which prevented her from reaching her full potential. She was among the group of awakened former single-digit warriors who gathered outside Rabona to witness the being whose power surpasses the Abyssal Ones. She was killed by Miata in the battle in Rabona.
Miata[]
Claymore No. 4 of the present generation. She is known as "Blood Eye" by her peers. Her powers lie in her keen senses and brute strength (she can kill Normal Yoma with her bare hands). She is extremely powerful despite being a child, and was even stated to have the potential of becoming No. 1. Later after using the Soul Link technique with Clarice, Miata managed to transform into her Awakened form, where she managed to easily overpower Europa and her overall strength and Yoki was compared to past Abyssal Ones.
Beyond Abyssal Ones[]
Priscilla[]
Priscilla was Claymore No. 2 of Teresa's generation. Initially assigned to assassinate Teresa with her fellow Claymores, Irene, Noel, and Sophia, she went beyond her limits and Awakened. Possessing tremendous power and regenerative capabilities, far beyond that of even the Abyssal Ones, she was the primary antagonist of the series. Priscilla was killed by an Awakened Teresa, who used Irene's arm and Clare's body to use the quicksword at 100% of its potential.
The Destroyer[]
The Destroyer is a term used to refer to the merged bodies of Luciela and Rafaela, accidentally Awakened by Clare. It initially appears as a massive, stationary giant resembling that of the Twin Goddesses, Clare and Teresa. However, its actual form is that of a large, dark, tar-like mass of Yoki capable of shifting into various forms and absorbing the life out of anything it touches.
Resurrected Riful of the West[]
A creature resembling Riful of the West both in appearance and yoki energy with traces of Dauf in skin and abilities, like a child of some sort of theirs. Suddenly appearing in a close forest from the lower part of Riful's tattered body, she challenges Priscilla. Seemingly being superior at first she actually just helps Priscilla expel the Destroyer out of her body. With a eerie porcelin doll smile when she now can fight Priscilla directly she transform into her true form and challenges Priscilla again for her head.
Teresa of the Faint Smile[]
After Clare understands Rafaela's final message, she "awakens", transforming into Teresa and allowing Teresa to take control. Even at only 10% of her yoma power, Teresa overpowers the fully-restored Priscilla, repeatedly hacking off the latter's limbs and even cutting the one-horned monster to pieces. With each cut and each lost limb, however, Priscilla regenerates more powerful replacements, until she becomes a colossal assortment of grotesque human appendages. Ultimately, Teresa decides to awaken. The ground shatters beneath her as she releases her yoki and Galatea comments how it seems as if the world is being swallowed by a vast sea. When the dust clears, Teresa looks upon herself and expresses surprise at how she didn't change much despite awakening—her legs only seeming lighter and her back becoming a little heavier because of two pairs of wings. As it is assumed that Clare is protecting Teresa's heart and keeping her human, Teresa has become the first controllable Awakened Being to go Beyond Abyssal Ones (and possibly to go Beyond even that, given the ease with which she annihilates Priscilla).
Titled strongest number 1 of the 8 strongest, even her original transcends those who can surpass an Abyssal One.
