messenger of death

plural messengers of death

1. artsA figure or entity that presages death.
2. literaryAn arrow, bomb, bullet, etc., that causes or is intended to cause death when fired.

   1 more example

   Tarzan had placed the finest marksmen of the tribe in the surrounding trees, with directions never to reveal themselves while the enemy was faced in their direction. As a black released his messenger of death he would slink behind the sheltering stem of the tree he had selected, nor would he again aim until a watchful eye told him that none was looking toward his tree.

   1913, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Return of Tarzan, New York: Ballantine Books, published 1963, page messenger of death138