POSSESSORPOSSESSOR
Real Name: Raphael Zoran
Identity/Class: Human mutant, possessed by demons
Occupation: Former stage and carnival performer
Group Membership: None
Affiliations: Nightfire and a Navajo tribe from Arizona (former pawns)
Enemies: Baphomet, Fraxix and other demons of Hell, Marduk Kurios (Satan), Son of Satan (now Hellstorm)
Known Relatives: The Great Zoran (father, deceased), Mrs. Zoran (mother, deceased)
Aliases: None
Base of Operations: Currently unknown; formerly Satan's realm of Hell; the deserts of Arizona; a carnival in the American midwest
First Appearance: Son of Satan#1 (December, 1975)
Powers/Abilities: The Possessor could generate
convincing illusions, read the minds, and influence the thoughts
of others. After absorbing the demons, he gained a great degree
of magical power, although he lacked the training to properly
utilize it. He could teleport, project blasts of fire, mutate
others, absorb the souls and bodies of others, access magical
portals, etc. The limits of his abilities were not seen. He could increase his
power by absorbing and controlling others, even a being as powerful as the Son of
Satan.
He grafted three crystals to his right palm: these were
sparkling, red, crystals he used to use in his stage act.
History:
(Son of Satan#2(fb)) - Raphael Zoran is
the son of "The Great Zoran", a mentalist who performed
at a carnival. His mother also worked at the carnival, as an assistant to his
father. "The Great Zoran" didn't actually possess any
psychic abilities, and the entire act was staged. What he did
possess was a thirst for alcohol and a willingness to take out
his frustrations on his wife and son. One night while he was
abusing his wife, he suddenly found himself surrounded by what
appeared to be demons. He realized what was really happening at
the same time as his wife: she actually did possess psychic
powers, and in a moment of desperation, she had generated
illusions as a subconscious defense. She was terrified for having
done it, and withdrew them immediately, by then Great Zoran was
even more furious. He was angry that she had powers he had always
wanted, and he realized that it was her powers which had made the
show a success. He attacked and savagely beat her to death.
Raphael witnessed the whole thing.
The Great Zoran continued his act with Raphael
now acting as his assistant. His father suspected that Raphael,
too, might possess some psychic powers, but could not bring them
to the surface. The two grew to hate each other, kept together by
their bond of mutual resentment. At age 15, Raphael's powers did
surface: He could cast illusions and bend the wills of others to
his. Raphael used his powers to take control of the relationship
with his father, taking over the act, and eventually casting him
aside. Raphael's act was a tremendous success, and he eventually
purchased the carnival. Despite his successes, Raphael felt
empty, enjoying only the non-reality of the illusions he created.
Two of Satan's demons came to Earth, in search of a victim to
possess, and they saw the empty Raphael as a perfect target. They
entered his form, but in the end, his psychic powers enabled him
to take control of the demons, trapping them in his body, and
using their powers for himself. That night he slew his father,
and vanished, seemingly without a trace.
(Son of Satan#3(fb))-Zoran, now taking the identity of
the Possessor, traveled to a Navajo tribe in Arizona. He sought
out the tribe's shaman and commanded the shaman to train him in
the ways of mysticism. The shaman recognized the evil in the
Possessor, and refused. Zoran, however, knew that the shaman
would train a young brave, and decided to return and take the
knowledge from that brave.
Zoran then traveled the world, seeking out mystics of all types
of sects, but they all refused him as well. He finally procured
several rare and ancient mystic tomes and used them to train
himself. He knew his abilities were but a fraction of what they
could be, but when he tried to increase them on his own, he was
driven mad by the uncontrolled power unleashed from the demons
inside him. He regained his senses after an unknown period of
time, and found himself outside of the mansion at Fire Lake, the
home of Daimon Hellstrom, the Son of Satan (who was working in
St. Louis at the time). Zoran entered the mansion, and made it
his own. As he recovered his strength, he read the diaries of
Victoria Wingate Hellstrom, and learned of the true nature and
history of the mansion. Zoran decided to test Hellstrom to see if
the stories were true, and if they were, to use him to become the
Lord of Hell.
(Son of Satan#1 (fb) - BTS) - The Possessor defaced the Fire Lake mansion.
(Son of Satan#1 (fb) - BTS) - The Possessor invaded Hell, tormenting the demons he encountered there.
(Son of Satan#1-3) - The
Son of Satan returned to Fire Lake and encountered the Possessor,
who assaulted him with a series of illusions. He revealed his
true nature, told Hellstrom that he would destroy him in the
future, take over his father's realm of Hell, and then vanished.
He teleported to Arizona, where he found the young Navajo brave
engaged in a visionquest. The Possessor slew the brave's shaman,
transformed the brave into Nightfire, and then enslaved the brave
and his tribe.
Hellstrom tracked the Possessor to Arizona, and made his way to
the local portal to Hell. There he found some of Satan's legions,
including Baphomet, as well as the Possessor and the tribe he was
controlling. The Possessor absorbed the soul of Hellstrom, taking
control of his powers as well to prepare for his assault on Hell.
Zoran, with Nightfire and his tribe at his side attacked
Baphomet and the demons of Hell, eventually drawing out Satan
himself to the struggle. However, this was the Possessor's plan
all along, to lure Satan to Earth, out of his domain in which he
was virtually all-powerful. With the realm of Hell devoid of a
leader, the Possessor transported himself through the portal and
attempted to take it for himself. Satan returned and confronted
him, but Daimon then fought back, allowing his own darksoul to
emerge within the Possessor. Its powerful energies consumed the
Possessor from the inside out, and he exploded in a burst of
flames.
Comments: Created by John Warner and Sonny Trinidad.
In case the images aren't clear enough, the Possessor had the faces of the two demons sticking out of the skin on the sides of his head...and when he possessed Daimon, his face was sticking out of the back of his head.
Daimon's darksoul was his demonic self which he always had to keep under control.
Thanks to David A. Zuckerman for a few corrections.
Clarifications: Raphael Zoran has no known connection to:
Appearances:
Son of Satan#1 (December, 1975) - John Warner (writer), Jim Starlin (pencils), Jim Mooney (artist), Marv Wolfman (editor)
Son of Satan#2-3 (February-April, 1976) - John Warner (writer), Sonny Trinidad (artist), Marv Wolfman (editor)
Last updated: 04/02/15
Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.
Non-Marvel Copyright info
All other characters mentioned or pictured are ™ and
© 1941-2099 Marvel Characters, Inc. All Rights Reserved. If you
like this stuff, you should check out the real thing!
Please visit The Marvel Official Site at: http://www.marvel.com
Special Thanks to www.g-mart.com for hosting the Appendix, Master List, etc.!