Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
Also Known As: Riders of the Apocalypse, Riders, Charred Council's Riders
Characteristics
Race	Nephilim
Gender	Male (Death, War, Strife), Female (Fury)
Size	Regular
Eyes	Orange (Death), White (Fury and War), Yellow (Strife)
Hair Color	Black (Death and Strife), Grey (Strife), Red (Fury), White (War)
Means of Travel	Mount, On foot
Status
Affiliation	Riders of the Apocalypse
Occupation	Charred Council's Executors
Relatives(s)	Nephilim (siblings), Absalom (brother), Lilith (mother)
Armament
Main Weapon	Harvester (Death's scythe), Chaoseater (War's sword), Mercy and Redemption (Strife's pistols), Scorn (Fury's whip)
Type of Attack	Melee, Range
Relations
Enemies	Abaddon, Corruption, Seven Deadly Sins

The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are the protagonists of the Darksiders series. They are well-known as the Council's enforcers since their mission is to keep the Balance in check.

They are known as War, Death, Fury and Strife.

History

“

Some of my earlier sins—my actions when I rode at the forefront of the Nephilim horde, before my brothers and I realized the extent of our transgressions and broke away—were committed in the name of beliefs and agendas to which I no longer subscribe. — Death to The Keeper of Oblivion, The Abomination Vault

”

Recruitment

The Riders are four of the Nephilim who refused to continue their bloody crusade over Creation with their brethren and swore their loyalty to the Charred Council. It is said that they also got new powers and abilities from the Council which made them much more powerful than their ex-allies.

First among their council given tasks was to travel to the Far Fields where they encountered a agent of the council in the The Horsemaster, a sagely warrior and master of the Phantom Horses which made their homes there who guided them through on acquiring their own horse mounts/companions: Ruin, Despair, Rampage and Mayhem.

Eden

The first actual mission the Charred Council gave them was to kill all the Nephilim. It was the price they had to pay to absolve themselves of theirs and their species crimes. According to the novel The Abomination Vault, they fought against their siblings many times before their final battle in Eden where the Riders united with the angels and destroyed the Nephilim's army. During that battle, the Nephilim as a race were exterminated.

Thus, the Riders became the last of the Nephilim in all of Creation, the souls of their brothers and sisters sealed away and entrusted to the Crowfather. They commit all sorts of missions (such as investigation, execution, punishment, espionage, fighting and so on) which they have to carry out. But their main mission is to protect the Balance even during Armageddon until the end of Creation all in the name of the council.

Creation of the Seven Seals

Through the Council the Horsemen became aware of a plot by the Demon lord Lucifer, thus Strife and War were sent to investigate the matter chasing down Lucifer's contacts, and usually executing them after a protracted battle, and through them slowly became aware of Lucifer's designs on Eden. Or so they thought, the two horsemen were reduced to little more than pawns, executioners of Lucifer's minions so that he might collect on their souls and refine them into the Animus, a mass of the worst traits of demon kind to infect humanity with.

By now the council had grown incensed from the repeated interference of the developing humans and towards this end Angel and Demon leaders were forcibly brought before the council and a new pact was signed with the Horsemen signed by Seven seals: At the hour that humanity stands ready to make angel and Demon alike their equal, The Seven Seals of the Apocalypse shall be broken, sparking the end war and calling the lords of heaven and dregs of hell to Earth so that the three Kingdoms can fight for the fate of creation.

Abomination Vault

Since the Early days of his service to the council Death has largely ignored the summons of his would be masters, traveling around and largely doing his own thing. Death spent the majority of that time gathering together weapons of mass destruction of his own design, The Grand Abominations. Death learned that he had competition around the time he finally decided to settle down, a army of constructs led by the rogue angel Hadrimon.

Death was joined in his quest by the Angel Azrael and his brother War alongside a garrison of Angels. With the others aid Death composed a plan to neuter his creations as a threat as well as well as gather together the ones the rogue angel had collected. The half dead living weapons were stored inside of the Abomination Vault hidden beneath his house. Death stated that over the next millennia he would transport the weapons to the Keeper of Oblivion and reduce the weapons to nothingness.

Apocalypse

Thanks to the machinations of the Angel Abaddon the seven seals were prematurely broken as a part of a plot to destroy Hell's forces while he believed Heaven still had a advantage. He was mistaken, Heaven lost badly against the demons and Abaddon himself fell from grace. War was brought to Earth by the Council, and then captured by them, stripped of his power, and imprisoned for a hundred years.

Though the Horsemen had served the council loyally they ultimately feared that they would sooner side with War than them, especially if they realized that he was innocent. Thus the Council used they chaos they allowed to be sowed to be end the horsemen.

Fury and the Seven Deadly Sins

Fury was sent to fetch the Seven Deadly Sins, unknown to her released and empowered by the Council. Unknown to the Council Fury was guided out of her unknowing execution by the actions of such enigmatic beings such as Ulthane, the Lord of the Hollows and even the sins Envy and Pride who tried to turn her to their cause. Fury's return to the council chambers was marked by a battle with Envy wielding the combined powers of the Seven Sins, and punctuated by a livid Council trying to kill Fury themselves.

Fury found new purpose in protecting the remnants of humanity, wherever she took them both they and her are far out of the Council's reach now.

Death and the Well of Souls

Death did not believe the Council's story about War for a moment, he immediately set off to find a way to restore man kind thus obliterating any further attempts to frame him. Death's journey led him to the Crowfather, who threw him to the Tree of Life and Death, which led him to the Well of Souls, which he sought to enter using the Key's to the Well of Souls kept by the Angels and the Demons.

Along the way he repeatedly clashed against Corruption, a toxic malevolent entity which corrupts and controls everything it comes into contact with. Once inside of the Well Death met the avatar of Corruption and the seed from which it was born, his elder brother Absalom, who was then slayed by his hand and the collected souls of the dead Nephilim were sacrificed to resurrect man kind.

War and Revenge

By now the Council was panicking, faster then they could react their targets were slipping out of their grasp, the only one they had left was War and they knew that once he was gone the demons would be free to do as they pleased. So they sent War, bound to The Watcher, to Earth, knowing that he would he would hunt and butcher the ones who framed him, and once they are dead the Watcher could drag War back to the council permanently enslaved as their enforcer.

Their gambit failed, War had the fortune of receiving a vision of his demise from the Tree of Knowledge and planned around it, using the Nex Sacramentum declared by Uriel to break the Watcher's hold on him before she shatters the Seventh seal and revived him. By breaking the last seal Uriel summoned the other three horsemen, each having done their own part to restore Man from the brink of ruin.

Pictures

Artwork of the Horseman.

War, Rider of the Red Horse, Ruin.

Death, Rider of the Pale Horse, Despair.

Fury, the Rider of the Black Horse, Rampage.

Strife, Rider of the White Horse, Mayhem.

Trivia

• The Horsemen are immortal. They could be killed but they cannot die of old age.
• The Riders have supernatural strength and agility as they are Nephilim but their powers were also amplified by the Council.
• Some of the Riders' weapons (Chaoseater for example) were created by Makers and were filled with energy by Death himself before they left the Nephilim's army.

Quotes

“

You’ve heard of the Horsemen, clearly. And just as clearly, you’ve heard nothing about them. Deadly, obscenely powerful, without mercy, and all that, yes, yes. I mean who they are. The Four Horsemen are the Council’s enforcers, yes. They’re also the last of the Nephilim. The Nephilim are dead! As a race, yes. But to the very last? Not quite. — Belisatra and Hadrimon, The Abomination Vault

”