Kherubim

The Kherubim are an alien race that features in Wildstorm Comics and DC Comics.

Wildstorm
The Kherubim's true origins were largely unknown except that the fabricators of their race constructed devices known as the Planet Shaper Engines during the origin times. These were scattered throughout a region of space where their task was finding potential worlds for development. This was the process by which the Kherans had always advanced and spread with one of these machines arriving on the planet known as Khera. Following a period of dormancy, the seeding engine activated after the world it landed on was stabilized whereupon it began its own lifecycle. Once done, the Planet Shaper modified the local lifeforms namely the Titanthropes to serve as a suitable servitor species to serve the pure Kherubim who emerged from the seeding engine. (Majestic v2 #11) The Kherubim were noted to had arrived on Khera from space around a billennia ago when they migrated from a distant ancient planet that orbited a dying sun. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #24) Khera itself meant heaven in their language and the beautiful realm was ruled by the Kherubim. (Wildstorm Winter Special 2005) The process of seeding random worlds with Kherubim stock was to diversify their bloodline and provide healthy variety in new branches of their species. Thus, the Planet Shapers did not simply establish new colonies for the Kherubim but guided their evolution. Such a process occurred on the homeworld of the Daemonites and thus sparked the eternal enmity between the two species. (Majestic v2 #11) The war between Khera and Daemon was noted to had turned entire galaxies into warzones with worlds turned into battlefields. (Nemesis v1 #1)

In 2995 B.C, the Kherubim launched an attack against a Daemonite base located at Mount Vesuvius on Earth where their enemy intended to excavate the remains of the Creation Engine. In order to retrieve the device, Charis of the Adrastea was dispatched on an infiltration mission. However, she had to break her cover in order to save Lady Zanah from execution at the hands of the Daemonite Skarak. As a result, whilst the Kherans achieved a victory, the artifact was retrieved by the Brotherhood of the Blade. This was despite this being an operation launched by the Coda Sisterhood who were denied their prize. At this time, the Brotherhood of the Blade had a fortress situated in Sparta, Greece that served as the base for their operations. (Nemesis v1 #2) The Brotherhood was secretly responsible for forming an alliance with Daemonite renegades as both splinter groups believed their respective leaders had been using them to perpetrate a never ending war. These Kherans also saw a genetic potential within Humanity that held a greatness and with genetic engineering they could be turned into the greatest fighting force in the universe. It was believed they later returned to Khera decades ago but in fact went underground to pursue their own agenda. (Nemesis v1 #4)

Eons ago, it was claimed that Kherubim explorers engaged with Daemonite marauders around the planet Earth leading to both vessels crashing onto the world below. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #2) One of the losses was a Kherubim cache of weapons called the Haikyatu Armory which was believed to had been destroyed when it crashed on Earth thousands of years ago. (WildC.A.T.s v2 #1) The surviving Kherans were cut off from their homeworld and thus decided to assimilate themselves into human civilization. During this time, the Kherubim interbred with mankind leading to the birth of a number of Gifted Ones that became hybrid descendants of their race. However, they would come into conflict with their Daemonite foes who intended to conquer the planet. As a result, a series of Blood Wars were fought between the two races as they sought to establish their respective bases of power. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #2) Unknown to anyone, the Daemonite Wars ended around three hundred years ago when the Daemonites lost and their empire collapsed. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23) A millennium ago, Lords Emp and Entropy served as Kherubim Knights on Earth that attempted to protect Earth from danger. (WildC.A.Ts v1 #9) Around thirty years ago, the Kherubim suffered a terrible blow thus threatening the balance of power on Earth. Thus, the only way they believed they could secure an advantage was by acquiring the Gifted One descendants. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #2) At some point, the Kenyan managed to acquire the Haikyatu Armory making him a great threat to the world. (WildC.A.T.s v2 #1)

Meanwhile, on Daemon, their mortal enemies had been driven to bankruptcy by trying to keep up with the Kherubim's advanced technology. This led to food shortages amongst the Daemonites that tore their civilization apart and ultimately led to them surrendering to the Kherans. Khera itself imposed crippling war debt on Daemon and executed all the Daemonite nobility after expensive warcrime trials. This resulted in civil war in the Daemonite empire with refugees being accepted on Khera where they lived in shanty towns and survived on scraps given by the Kherubim. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #24) For many years, the power of the Pantheon was kept in place by the small but crucial vote. Events changed when the WildC.A.Ts arrived on the planet where they were seemingly welcomed by Khera. However, in truth, Zealot and Lord Emp were both taken as part of the political machinations of the Coda as well as the Pantheon. The Coda intended to detonate a bomb with the intention of killing both Zealot and Emp who would be sitting next to one another during a Senate opening. This was with the responsibility of the bombing being placed on the Titanthropes which would allow the Coda to assume dominance whereupon they intended to change their stagnant society by turning it into a more martial government. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #26)


 * In an alternate reality seen in Stormwatch v2 #9, the existence of the Kherubim was unknown on Earth and they were responsible for abducting and experimenting on Jack Hawksmoor. This version of the Kherans exiled Zealot to Earth around a thousand years ago as a warning to her party. Twenty years ago, a new government sent medics in order to genetically manipulate the human race to advance them to their level. This government was replaced by a new one who felt that the rising number of superhumans on Earth was a threat and sent a sweeper ship to break down the planet to the stone age. Jack Hawksmoor and a delegation of superhumans boarded the ship and died when it exploded thus saving their Earth from destruction.

Overview
Their species was described as being virtually immortal though children were rarely born. Only a rare few women were capable of conceiving and among them were only able to conceive during the first mating. As a result, only one in a thousand were able to conceive and out of ten thousand births only one was able to hold the spark of life. (Wildstorm Winter Special 2005) They generated a specific bio-aura that meant that it was possible to track them. (Majestic v2 #5) Kheran lords were capable of living in excess of over two thousand years. (Wild C.A.T.S. v2 #3) They were capable of interbreeding with humans leading to the birth of hybrid offspring known as Gifted Ones. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #2) A genetically engineered disease was once created that consisted of a bacteria taken from genes from merged Kheran DNA with that of the Daemonites. A toxin was taken from that virus which was used to infect Kherubim or hybrid Kherans with a form of insanity after entering into the brain. (Wild C.A.T.S. v1 Annual #1)

Whilst portraying a united front, Kherubim civilization was highly divided with many factions regularly engaged in espionage against one another with the goal of increasing their power share. (Nemesis v1 #2) Part of the reasons for the continued war against the Daemonites was because some believed that it created a climate of fear whereby which the noble institutions of the leading Kherans managed to keep their population focused on an external threat instead of the problems in their own society. Thus, some claimed that war was for political purposes which was why it was fought in primitive regions of the cosmos and had been fought for so long that both Daemonites as well as Kherubim had forgotten the reasons for the fight. (Nemesis v1 #4)Their existence was described as being similar to cuckoos as through the use Planet Shapers their kind spread to new worlds where they supplanted various species by turning them into servitor races to act under the Kheran elite. (Majestic v2 #11) High ranking members of the species were considered aristocrats who did not associate themselves with those beneath their station such as commoners. They applied ratings to the various races that made up their kind and genetic scans were required to provide an ID rating with a trans-human entity being labelled as class five. Classes one through five were allowed free access to Khera whilst those that were class six consisted of aliens such as Daemonites that were kept segregated in ghettos. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #22) These were known as the lower caste quarters. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23) Representation within their civilization was achieved in the Kheran Senate. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)

They were divided into numerous groups and factions that included:
 * Pantheon : One of the power groups consisting of high ranking Kherubim who were rivals of the Coda in the Senate. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)
 * Warlords : They were considered the most highly evolved of the Kheran nobility due to their indominable and invincible nature along with their abilities that allowed them to turn raze entire cities in the blink of an eye. (Nemesis v1 #2)
 * Coda Sisterhoood : Consisting entirely of female Kherans who were considered the most fierce that were relentless and showed no remorse on the battlefield. They preferred death before dishonor and based at Coda Prime with even high ranking commanders unable to interfere in their internal affairs. They were fierce rivals of the male dominated Brotherhood of the Blade. (Nemesis v1 #2)
 * Shapers Guild : The Shapers possessed a genotype that allowed them to reshape their bodies into a variety of battle forms. (Nemesis v1 #2)
 * Titanthropes : The Titans were a conquered species that were assimilated into Kherubim society who were able to increase their size and strength but risked entering into a berserker state as they grew. (Nemesis v1 #2) They considered themselves Native Kherans that suffered from discrimination as they were not provided schools and medicines by the Kherubim who were called as "coldeyes". Some considered themselves a valued part of Kheran civilization though Kherubim did not see them as officer material but instead relegated them to engine work. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #22) Their average lifespan was around 350 terrestrial years. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #26)
 * Brotherhood of the Blade : They lived for the thrill of killing and regarded all other emotions as a weakness with them instead forging their minds as well as bodies into hard, deadly weapons. They believed that the true soul of any warrior resided in the sword with their soldiers being known as bladesmen and had an intense rivalry with the Coda Sisterhood. Bladesmen were literally forged as they lacked any parentage or females but instead created in breeding hives that produced only males that were immersed in the arts of war from birth with all weaknesses be they physical, psychological or emotional being excised from them. Some were re-engineered with Shaper DNA to become Scimitars to become living metallic weapons.(Nemesis v1 #2, #4, #5)
 * Adrastea : A caste bred as slaves by an ancient dictatorship who possessed psionic skills and deemed a subspecies as well as an inferior caste that were denied any rights long ago. Eventually, they formed part of the criminal underworld amongst Kherubim where they channeled their abilities for activities such as assassination and espionage which were considered their specialties. (Nemesis v1 #2)

Other more extremist factions included the Titan Liberation Army who advocated a policy of bombings and more violent means of forcing the Kherubim to accept them as equals. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #24)

The traditions of the species were strict and unchangeable as callings were not chosen by an individual but rather fate chooses their roles in life. From birth, upper class female Kherubim were segregated from the males where they were trained in both religious ritual and the art of war. (Wildstorm Winter Special 2005) Every Kheran warrior received training in covert warfare which was part of their regimen. (Majestic v2 #5) Full blooded Kherubim Lords held the duty to pass sentence and execute threats. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #13) Due to the low birth rate, Kheran women that could bear offspring had to abandon the life of a warrior and adopt the life of a priestess with any breach of this being a sentence of death by the high council. During such arranged matings, a male was chosen from the ranks of the nobility and until first mating neither male or female saw one another. Following that point, they pair made love for the first time and last time. If the female bears a child, a momentous occasion was celebrated on Khera with a red flag was risen otherwise a black flag was shown if the offspring was born dead. (Wildstorm Winter Special 2005) High ranking Lords were capable of undertaking the rites to become a High Lord of the Kherubim. Such a process took months where the devotee prepared not only their body but their soul as well. (WildC.A.T.s v2 #1) This rite was known as the Ascension with the act taking the Kheran beyond their mortal form though this led to them physically changing into a more deformed appearance. (WildC.A.T.S. v2 #8) Whilst a leap of faith, it could not be achieved through personal will alone but required initiation from another who provided the suitable energy for the process to complete. This took the form of one killing another with the energy of the first ones death being so great that it killed the other participant. Among Kherubim, planned ascensions saw married Kherans slit the throat of their mate as part of the ceremony where both died in the process. (Wild C.A.T.S. v2 #10)

Psionic and empathic evidence was considered inadmissible within the Kherubim courts. (Nemesis v1 #2) Inbreeding amongst the Kherubim royalty was not unheard of with mating's between cousins or occasionally between siblings but never between father and daughter. (Wild C.A.T.s v4 #10) A number of pagan deities were present within Kherubim beliefs. (Wild C.A.T.S. v1 Annual #1) One deity that was called upon by the ranks of the Coda was Hecate. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #9) Their ancient race was noted to had developed their laws and customs from the laws of their deity Hecate. (Wildstorm Winter Special 2005) A spiritual state known as the Eternal Light was one that was sought by the High Lords. (Wild C.A.T.S. v2 #10)

Their language was a musical tongue who were expected to speak in this lyrical manner and their own words. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #22)

The ability of their constructs surviving great damage meant that some considered the Kherubim to be exacting craftsmen. (Zealot v1 #3)

Technology
The Kherubim held highly advanced technology that was so advanced that other races were driven to bankruptcy by trying to catch up to it. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #24) Small scaled devices included language patches that released memory molecules encoded with the major languages of Khera though syntax caused nausea. This allowed for outsiders within Kherubim society to speak and understand their language. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #22) Some of their constructions were encased in Kherubim war-ware that shielded its occupants from tracking technology. (Majestic v2 #1) Kheran warriors as part of their emergency tools in their armor harnesses had access to nanoflage suits that when worn made their users invisible. (Majestic v2 #5) One computer system used by their people was the Kheran Difference Engine that was programmed with constant intelligence upgrade and were powered by a battery two galaxies away that was the size of a small moon. These engines were able to process simulations that equaled lifetimes and were able to examine other realities in the multiverse. (Captain Atom: Armageddon v1 #2)

The Spartan Guard were robotic warmachines that were humanoid in form and programmed to revel in combat. (Nemesis v1 #2) These were considered examples of Kherubim wartech. (Majestic v2 #5) In the centuries that followed their creation, the technology for Spartans had gradually evolved to be more advanced. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #22) Among the various models of Spartan Guards included the Platinum series who downloaded into their android bodies at the stables of their lords. The mission directive of these machines was typically to serve as peacekeepers. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #26)

They were known to make use of semi-sentient drone craft that were able to serve as delivery systems in the battlefield. (Majestic v2 #7) Another ground based vehicle were Dagger-bikes which had stealth capabilities making them invisible to the naked eye as well as the most advanced detection equipment. (Nemesis v1 #1) Kherubim also made use of low-grav Warcrawlers that were similar to human tanks. (WildC.A.T.s v2 #1) Their starships operated by travelling through warpspace with this involving a displacement of pure energy. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #22)

As a species, the Kherubim knew the exact armaments needed in order to establish a planetary beachhead. (Wild C.A.T.S. v2 #6) Among the basic weapons held by Kheran weapons were the honor blade that were daggers filled with energy. (Zealot v1 #3) Kherubim masters were able to craft swords that could absorb the heat of a thousand suns and shave the rough edges off an electron. (Captain Atom: Armageddon v1 #4) The Shapers Guild crafted quantum-folded combat blades that emerged whenever the user needed them with these weapons being part of a Kheran warriors emergency cache within their armor harnesses. (Majestic v2 #5) Kusar blades were forged by the species to be able to slice through any object. (Majestic v2 #7) More high scale weaponry included High Blades imbued with artificial intelligence such as a level seven mineral consciousness and had names. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)

Kheran kill-ware included autonomous meson beamers and phase-lock motion-sensors as part of a full suite. (Majestic v2 #7) One weapon was the Genetic Concussion Grenade which created a blast radius where biological targets had their genetic structure destabilized thus warping their bodies leading to gruesome deaths. (Nemesis v1 #1)

One emergency tool carried in their armor harnesses for covert warfare included damper capsules that were ingested and masked the subjects bio-aura for upto three hours during which time they lacked any superhuman abilities being akin to a normal non-powered human being. (Majestic v2 #5) They were able to engage in long term genetic engineering projects that took centuries to accomplish and ones that were able to be concealed from detection. Their mutagens were capable of being entwined with normal DNA for century long breeding programs. The effects of the engineering project stayed in a dormant state until a specific trigger known as an Activator which could be a living person who initiated the process. (Nemesis v1 #4) Experiments on humanity even allowed the Kherubim to turn a human into an immortal. (Wild C.A.T.S. v2 #10) The Brotherhood of the Blade later re-engineered members of their own kind by mixing their DNA with that of captured Shaper warriors creating Scimitars. These bladesmen thus sacrificed their organic forms to become creatures of shifting metal that hunted in swarms and programmed to pursue their targets relentlessly. (Nemesis v1 #5)

One insidious form of biochemical warfare included bacteria bombs that upon detonation destroyed the nerve centers of the brain but left the bodies intact. Afterwards, the effects of the bomb started over a thirty mile radius where they reanimated the brain dead victims who were taken over by a doomsday armory such as the Haikyatu Armory. Thus, in effect, the user had a veritable army of the dead at their disposal for use in their wars. (WildC.A.Ts v2 #6)

Members

 * Lord Majestros :
 * Lord Emp :
 * Lord Entropy : A male Kheran with the power to alter the fabric of reality who the brother of Lord Emp where his wife Gwynith was killed. Unknown to him, his wife had become possessed by the Daemonite Brannoch the Dark and Emp had to kill her which led to Entropy swearing eternal enimity with his former friend. (WildC.A.Ts v1 #9)
 * Lord Khull Imperator :
 * Lord Vulk : A male Lord present on Khera and greeted Lord Emp when he returned to the homeworld. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #22)
 * Lady Zannah of the Red Lament :
 * Kenesha :
 * Charis : Female Kheran of the Adrastea who became the lover of Majestros despite her lineage and managed to gain entry into the Coda Sisterhood where she had a rivalry with Lady Zannah where she briefly served as Kenesha's bodyguard. She was later framed for betraying the Kherubim of Earth to the Daemonites and became known as Nemesis. (Nemesis v1 #1-9)
 * Master Motile Javen :
 * Lord Proteus : A male member of the Shapers Guild who inspired the Greek god and resided at a lodge on Khera where taught Warblade the various combat forms. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)
 * Lord Sebaeos :
 * Lady Kinnea :
 * Harmony : High priestess of the Coda and the mother of Zannah. (Wildstorm Winter Special 2005)
 * Promethos : A male Kheran who took Zealot as his lover when she was young and became a member of the Kherubim Senate. However, he harbored desires of founding his own empire and declared a traitor which saw Zealot reject him. He was present onboard the Kheran ship that was at Earth where he was imprisoned in a cell. After the Daemonites damaged the ship, he begged Zealot to free him which she did after which he took Savant hostage in exchange for escaping the vessel. Upon landing on Earth, humans saw him as a god and bastardized his name to Prometheus where he founded a paradise sanctuary in Greece that he called Olympus. He discovered a wounded Zealot after saving her from the Earth based Coda and attempted to gain her allegiance but she spurned him whereupon Promethos vowed revenge. Following that time, he founded and lost empires in his quest for revenge where he travelled to feudal Japan where he kidnapped Savant in order to get Zealot's allegiance once more and was responsible for killing Zannah's human samurai lover Taisho. He eventually survived to World War II where he aided Nazi Germany in the creation of a nuclear bomb he along with his weapon were destroyed by Zealot. (Zealot v1 #1-3)
 * Raven : A male Bladesmen who was sent to seduce Charis of the Adrastea and use her as part of their scheme to take over Khera. He was involved with betraying the Kherubim on Earth and framed Charis for massacre of the Coda in Greece. He later took the Human identity of William Raven who headed Raven Industries that operated as a weapons manufacturer. (Nemesis v1 #2)
 * Frida : A female Kherubim of the Coda Sisterhood who was in Greece, Earth in 2995 BC where she was killed during a Daemonite ambush on her peoples base. (Nemesis v1 #3)
 * Leo : male Spartan Guard who was on good terms with Hadrian and served Lord Vulk, Herm and Jup. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)
 * Pious : Male Spartan Guard who was on good terms with Hadrian and served Lord Vulk, Herm and Jup. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)
 * Innocent : Male Spartan Guard who was on good terms with Hadrian and served Lord Vulk, Herm and Jup. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)
 * Glingo : A female Titanthrope who spread leaflets to promote the rights of her race known as Native Kherans on her homeworld. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #24)
 * Baxa : Male Titanthrope and brother to Glingo, he was a member of the Titan Liberation Army. (WildC.A.T.s. v1 #23)

Television

 * In WildC.A.Ts the animated series, the Kherubim backstory is mentioned as being a noble race that helped save the galaxy from Daemonite control and one of their ships forced the vessel of Helspont to crash on Earth. However, the Kheran vessel similarly crashed on the planet that became occupied with pure Kherubim or their hybrid offspring that survived into the modern day in order to continue their hidden conflict with the Daemonites. They would ultimately be brought together by Jacob Marlowe after he learnt of the ancient war from the living computer Void and led to the creation of the WildC.A.T.S.

Appearances

 * Wild C.A.Ts v1 #0-22:
 * Wild C.A.Ts v1 Annual #1:
 * Majestic v2 #1-11:
 * Wild C.A.Ts v4 #10:
 * Zealot v1 #1-3:
 * Nemesis v1 #1-9: