TROIDS

Classification: Magical/Demonic creatures

Known Members: None by name

Affiliations: Chthon (master/creator), Dwarf;
   formerly Jinx, Lt. Frank West (host of a queen)

Enemies: Darkhold Redeemers (Sam Buchanan, Louise Hastings, Jinx, Victoria Montesi), Dr. Michael Morbius

Location/Base of Operations: Dwell within human beings

First Appearance: Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 (July, 1993)

Powers/Abilities: The Troids dwell within people, and feed on fear and hatred. They apparently dwell within almost everyone, and are unable to penetrate healthy skin to escape. They normally are released when their host is injured, and the skin is damaged, making a portal through which they can escape. They are magical creatures and cannot normally be seen by people. In fact, they cannot affect most people in any way, except for a select few, or those who have been granted the mystical ability to sense them.
The Queens of the Troids are few in number, but they produce millions of eggs, which also require damaged skin to escape their host. Those who don't host a Troid, host a Queen.

Traits: The Troids encourage those that can see them to commit acts of violence in an effort to generate fear and hatred, which allows them to grow.

Average Height: 3' (2'6" wingspan)
Average Weight: (Inside host) immaterial; (outside host) unrevealed)
Eyes: Red (multifaceted)
Skin: Green

History:
(Fear Itself: Fellowship of Fear#1) - The Troids were created by the Elder God Chthon and were inside most people.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 (fb) - BTS) - Lt. Frank West, of the Los Angeles Police Department, was up on charges, and rightfully so, for police brutality, specifically against minorities. The Dwarf and the Other, agents of Chthon, convinced West to make a deal, they would end his woes if he would invoke the power of the Darkhold (and sell his soul to Chthon in the process).

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 (fb) - BTS) - The Troids were summoned to help West when he used the Darkhold page.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2) - West was giving out another beating, and was surprised to see a Troid erupt from the badly bruised skin of his victim. The Troid explained to him that it was part of his deal with the Other, which enabled him to see and interact with them. Hundreds of Troids had been released through the skin of West's victims over the years.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 (fb) - BTS) - The Troids spied on Allen Torres, the U. S. Attorney General, and discovered he was having an affair with a 16 year old girl.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2) - They revealed this information to West, as he was finishing up his night with a prostitute. The prostitute, Carmen, was one of the few people who could see the Troids, and they pushed West to kill her.

   West blackmailed Torres, forcing him to drop the charges against him. However, West learned that he was the host of a queen, which was growing and spawning its young inside of him. It and its young were growing inside of him, but could not escape. Feeling them expanding, West panicked and tried to convince the people around him to beat him to let the Troids out. However, none of the people, some of whom had been victims of him before, were willing to stoop to his level and beat him. West went mad imaging millions of Troids eggs growing inside of him.

SECRET WARS III HAPPENED

(Crypt of Shadows III#1/3 (fb) - BTS) - At some point Jinx just knew how to cast the spell to summon the Troids and used it to get revenge for his grandmother's death by attaching them to her murderer Morbius.

(Crypt of Shadows III#1/3) - Victoria Montesi had a dream about a Troid awakening her and sending Morbius after her.

   In New York City Morbius saved a woman from some scumbag and was cheered on by the Troids, who started to crawl all over his body. Surprised by the insect-like beings he dropped his victim, who ran away. The woman he had saved ran away as well because she thought Morbius was crazy because he was seemingly talking to himself. The Troids promised Morbius to find more targets to brutalize, but Montesi, who had tracked down Morbius, shot one of them. Montesi confronted Morbius about dealing with the Troids, but Morbius assured her that he didn't use a spell. More Troids appeared and asked Morbius to deal with Montesi for them, but he had no intention to help them. Morbius' skin began to bloat due to a Troid Queen growing inside him and Morbius ordered Montesi to run away while pulling off and squashing one Troid. Moments later Morbius fell under the growing Troid Queen's control and lunged at Montesi, but Jinx then appeared and revoked the spell because it was never his intention to endanger his old ally Victoria Montesi as part of his revenge on Morbius. With the Troids banished Victoria left with Jinx after asking Morbius to leave him alone. A Troid was seen lamenting that everything was over again when the fun had just begun before addressing...you as their next target.

Comments: Created by Chris Cooper and Dan Lawlis.

I could believe that the Troids were offshoots of the Fear-Eaters, spawn of the demon Kkallakku.

This story could easily have been in one of Atlas or Marvel's Weird Tales type magazines.

The Troids received a handbook profile in the one-shot Fear Itself: Fellowship of Fear#1 (October, 2011).

Profile by Snood. Update by Markus Raymond (Crypt of Shadows).

Clarifications:
The Troids should not be confused with:

Lt. Frank West should not be confused with:


Carmen

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2) - Carmen was a prostitute regularly frequented by Lt. Frank West, who regularly threatened to arrest her if he caught her again working the street. After West spent another night with her, she saw the Troids speaking to him. When the Troids realized that she could see them they pushed West to kill her.

--Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2


Lt. Frank West

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 (fb)) - Lt. Frank West, of the Los Angeles Police Department, was up on charges, and rightfully so, for police brutality, specifically against minorities. The Dwarf and the Other, agents of Chthon, convinced West to make a deal, they would end his woes if he would invoke the power of the Darkhold (and sell his soul to Chthon in the process).

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 (fb) - BTS) - The Troids were summoned to help West when he used the Darkhold page.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2) - West was giving out another beating, and was surprised to see a Troid erupt from the badly bruised skin of his victim. The Troid explained to him that it was part of his deal with the Other, which enabled him to see and interact with them. Hundreds of Troids had been released through the skin of West's victims over the years. The Troids spied on Allen Torres, the U. S. Attorney General, and discovered he was having an affair with a 16 year old girl. They revealed this information to West, as he was finishing up his night with a prostitute. The prostitute, Carmen, was one of the few people who could see the Troids, and they pushed West to kill her.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 - BTS) - West blackmailed Torres, forcing him to drop the charges against him.

(Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2) - Back on the street West planned to dish out more violence, but his reckless driving led to an accident that left his partner Rizzoli dead. A crowd gathered to help, but West believed them to be rioters and pulled his gun on them. However, West learned that he was the host of a queen, which was growing and spawning its young inside of him. It and its young were growing inside him, but could not escape. Feeling them expanding, West panicked and tried to convince the people around him to beat him to let the Troids out. However, none of the people, some of whom had been victims of him before, were willing to stoop to his level and beat him. West went mad imaging millions of Troids eggs growing inside of him.

   Everyone left except for Victoria Montesi, Sam Buchanan, Jinx and Louise Hastings, who had come to town because Victoria had a vision about the Darkhold page used by West. He handed the Darkhold page to Louise while he explained what was going on and begged them to beat him up, but they didn't help him. Jinx filmed West going mad with fear as his body expanded (though it was probably only visible to West...and maybe the Darkhold Redeemers).

--Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2


images: (without ads)
Fear Itself: Fellowship of Fear#1, Troids profile (main)
Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2, p7, pan6 (head shots)
Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2, p3, pan5 (emerging from host)
Crypt of Shadows III#1/3, p6, pan1-2 (Troids crawling all over Morbius)
Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2, p7, pan3 (Carmen)
Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2, p9, pan7 (Lt. Frank West)


Appearances:
Midnight Sons Unlimited#2/2 (July, 1993) - Chris Cooper (writer), Dan Lawlis (pencils), Mike Esposito (inks), Hildy Mesnik (editor)
Crypt of Shadows III#1/3 (December, 2022) - Chris Cooper (writer), Ibrahim Moustafa (artist), Sarah Brunstad (editor)


Any Additions/Corrections? please let me know.

First Posted: 12/20/2001 (?)
Last updated: 10/15/2023

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