This entry was first posted on my Patreon on October 20, 2024 and has been reproduced here in its original form.
Most immortals in Vulturesong have bodies that are, for the most part, malleable and reconfigurable at will. This is part of how they represent the metaphysical concepts that define their existence and what separates them bodily from their omnipresent source, the Architects. Kroza, Death itself, went a step further during her previous campaign in the mortal realm, designing and extracting weapons made of her own bony flesh to give to her champions to defeat the Damned. Over thousands of years, these weapons have been either long lost or scattered across the mortal realm — some preserved by mortals as sacred objects, some unrecognized and discarded.
Kroza’s weapons are meant to be only used against the Damned, and will only activate and obey those who are also armed with knowledge gleaned from her teachings. They cannot be wielded out of anger or fear (emotions of Suffering that strengthen their respective daemons) and either will not activate, become so heavy that they must be dropped (Kroza’s body being of high-density when Suffering), or in extreme cases, retaliate against their wielders.
The Torch is the first of these weapons introduced in the Vulturesong story, a lavathrower that is reclaimed by Cassica, a fire witch. The Torch until this point is kept as a decorative object inside the city of Ebennon’s weapons cache, having been donated by Cassica’s grandfather, a revered magic researcher and one of the dwindling number of humans who still uphold the teachings passed down by the original disciples of Death. The Torch has become increasingly unpopular over time, and despite the hopes that its presence would remind onlookers to prevent the wars it was used to end, most citizens have given in to superstition and regard the blackened, inert weapon as bad luck. Every few years Cassica asks her grandfather to withdraw the Torch so that she can be taught how to wield it, their conversations always leading to her disappointment.
The present-day story arc of Vulturesong begins just before the spiritual energy of the mortal realm finally unbalances enough to connect it to the Realm of Suffering. When this happens, the Daemon of Fear releases Kroza from their stalemate so that it can manifest in the mortal realm and spread the influence of Suffering. If left unchecked, this would eventually lead to the summoning of [Oblivion], the unspeakable anti-god that will negate all existence if one realm dominates over any other. Kroza emerges from her captivity in Hell and sings the Vulturesong, a shockwave of energy that serves as a harbinger for her as lord, guardian, and ruler of the mortal realm. While the Vulturesong is not intentionally harmful, few mortals remember her teachings on living virtuously and embracing their fears. Chaos erupts as many humans interpret the Vulturesong as the sign of the apocalypse.
This happens at a centennial festival in the forest of Narak where Cassica is performing a dance ritual, and the people most susceptible to the influence of daemons immediately mutate into Hellspawn at the Daemon of Fear’s appearance. The connection between realms becomes a portal that the Damned begin to seep out of and the Daemon of Fear, initially only a shapeless specter of evil, rips across the mortal realm in search of Suffering souls to consolidate power and take on a devastating physical form. There is plenty of material to work with, as only Death’s nearly-lost teachings and her presence can cleanse the souls of the dead of their emotional energy and recycle them back into the spiritual fabric of reality (this being the true Vulturesong).
As her neighbors turn into monsters and most other citizens lose their minds, Cass faces the newly-emerged Kroza. While initially stunned at Kroza’s tortured appearance, Cass recognizes her from her grandfather’s lessons as not the source of Fear, but as a lord that teaches her subjects that daemons exist only as a reflection of the hearts and minds of mortals and that individuals choose how much power that Suffering has over them. In this moment, Cass finally internalizes the importance of embracing Death as a valued teacher so that she can overcome the influence of Suffering and fight back against the Damned.
Despite their best efforts and strongest magic, both militia and mages fail to destroy any of the Damned, and the best they can do is draw attention from unarmed citizens. Realizing it’s her time to take up arms as the first new disciple of Death, Cass beelines to the weapons cache to take up the Torch. Small in stature but light on her feet and flexible, she dodges the militia and the guards that assembled to defend against the Damned minions destroying the city. Cass seizes the Torch and hauls it back out to the city square to take on the largest of daemons that have emerged from Hell. Drawing upon her love for her family, friends, and home and her willingness to sacrifice her life to defend them, she activates the Torch for the first time in aeons. The Torch explodes with a torrent of lava, melting everything it touches and ripping holes through the bodies of the Damned, which then collapse and crumble into dust, as they are but illusions only given power and substance by the minds they prey upon. Even though the Torch becomes nearly as hot as the lava it spews, Cass can withstand most of the heat as a fire witch, sustaining only moderate burns across her body before her energy drains. The fiery event is enough to scatter the Damned that remain, and as Cass loses consciousness, she catches a glimpse of Kroza approaching her.