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# Witches

Story
The night smelled of wet earth and iron. Rain drummed against the thatched roof, running in rivulets down the cracked windowpanes. Inside the cottage, a woman knelt before the hearth, her hands trembling as she traced a circle of ash upon the floor. Her name was Maerin, though few would dare to speak it now.
The fire guttered low, then flared a sickly green. The air grew heavy, and the shadows on the walls shifted though nothing moved. A voice seeped from the dark, smooth as oil.
"You called, little one."
Maerin did not look up. "You know why."
"I always know why," the voice purred. "You want your son back."
Her breath caught. In the corner, a small shape lay wrapped in linen, still and pale. The firelight painted his face in gold and shadow, and for a heartbeat he looked asleep.
"I will serve," Maerin whispered. "I will do whatever you ask."
The shadows thickened until the room itself seemed to breathe. The fire hissed, and something stepped from it, tall, indistinct, with eyes like coals. The demon regarded her with an expression that might have been pity, or amusement.
The contract was presneted, and signed in blood.
"Then rise, Maerin of the Vale," it said. "You are mine now."
The child's chest rose with a ragged gasp. His eyes opened-eyes that were not his. He turned toward her, and the smile that formed on his lips was warm.
Maerin gasped, but the demon only laughed.
"Do not thank me yet," it said softly. "He will live as long as you serve."
From that night on, storms followed her. Cattle died, milk soured, and children whispered of a woman who spoke to her shadow. Maerin no longer prayed for forgiveness. Each dawn she awoke to her son's voice, gentle and loving, asking herself what the demon required of her next.
And every command came harder than the last.

The bargain

## The Pact

Witches are mortals who have entered binding pacts with demons, trading their freedom for power. Whether driven by despair, greed, vengeance, or the thirst for forbidden knowledge, they all pay the same price, lifelong and total servitude. The pact is sealed in blood, unbreakable by mortal means. Both witch and demon are bound to it, each waiting for the other to falter.

## Infernal Gifts

The powers granted to a witch mirror the nature of their demon. A witch bound to a fire demon might command flame and smoke, while one serving a demon of pestilence may spread sickness or rot. These gifts come at a cost. Every use of power deepens the connection, allowing the demon greater influence over its servant's thoughts and desires. The witch becomes both vessel and weapon. The more power used, the more the way out is closed.

## Familiars

Witches often receive a familiar, a creature through which the demon keeps watch. Some take the form of cats, ravens, toads or serpents, but others are less natural, creatures of shifting eyes or whispering skin. While a familiar grants its witch some strength or insight, its true purpose is to observe and report, always watching for failure to serve. Through it, the demon sees all, hears all, and whispers its commands.

## The Burden of Servitude

Demons are not interested in souls, they crave obedience and the suffering that comes from it. Their joy lies in control and corruption. They love to turn the tables on their servants, ordering them to commit horrific acts, often against people they care for. A witch might be commanded to poison a friend, betray a lover, or burn their own home. Refusal is not an option, for the pact enforces obedience with pain that gnaws the mind and flesh alike. Even those who once sought power for noble reasons find their will eroded until only submission remains.

The demon will portion out the suffering, though. As long as the witch maintains servitude, the demon doesn't want to break its toy, just hurt it.

## The World's Hatred

Across Heroica, witches are feared and despised. To the common folk, they are living tools of evil. Temples condemn them as blasphemers. Witch hunters roam the lands with silver brands and holy fire. Even a rumor of witchcraft can lead to a pyre. Villagers hang charms of salt and iron, mutter prayers at crossroads, and avoid the gaze of strangers at dusk.

Some witches hide in plain sight. A few even try to twist their servitude into resistance, turning their powers against their demon's rivals. Such rebellion is dangerous, for the demon always finds a way to make its servant pay.

## Demons and Rivalries

Demons are creatures of chaos and cruelty, not unity. Each pursues its own cruel amusements, seeking to outdo others in acts of corruption and pain. Their witches become pawns in endless rivalries, sent to sabotage, corrupt, or kill. When a witch fails or outlives her usefulness, her demon may turn her into the final sacrifice, delighting in her despair. A witch may die never realizing they were only a piece in a greater infernal game.

## Theories and Fears

Some scholars believe witches are more than servants, they are anchors. Through them, demons channel fragments of their essence into the mortal world. Each pact weakens the barrier between realms. If too many witches live, it is said the veil itself could tear, allowing the demons to cross freely. Whether this is truth or superstition, none can say.

## Possible Secrets

### The Pacts Are Not Eternal

While witches believe their servitude lasts until death, some ancient grimoires suggest that pacts can unravel if the demon is banished or its true name erased from existence. A witch who learns this might seek forbidden lore to sever the bond-but demons guard their names with madness and blood.

### The Familiar's True Role

The familiar is not just a spy, it is a fragment of the demon's essence. If destroyed, the demon feels pain, and its hold over the witch weakens for a time. However, the witch feels the same agony, and may be driven to the edge of death. Some witches have tried to cage or drown their familiars, hoping to trap their demon's will. None are known to have survived long afterward.

### The False Rebellion

Some witches who believe they have broken free from their masters have in truth only been allowed to think so. The demon watches silently, letting its servant act "freely" until the perfect moment comes to command something unbearable. This illusion of freedom is one of their cruelest games.

### The Demon's Mark

Every witch bears an invisible mark placed by their demon. It cannot be seen by mortal eyes, but other demons recognize it instantly. This mark ensures no witch can ever escape to another master. Some demonologists claim the mark can be transferred through blood, allowing a witch's curse to pass on to another host.

### The Pact's Hidden Clause

Some scholars argue that the witch's servitude is not to the demon itself, but to whatever higher power commands it in the infernal hierarchy. If true, slaying or banishing the demon would not free the witch-it would only hand their soul to a greater and more terrible being.

### The Temple's Lie

There are rumors that certain high priests secretly employ witches, binding their demons to temple relics to channel their power for holy wars. The priests call it "containment," but the witches know better, it is merely servitude wrapped in sanctity.

## Adventure Hooks

### The Cursed Orchard

A remote village's crops wither overnight, yet one orchard still thrives, its fruit unnaturally large and sweet. The villagers whisper that the woman who tends it made a pact years ago. She claims her power keeps them fed, but each harvest night, someone disappears.

### The Demon's Game

A witch's familiar has escaped, wounded and terrified, begging for help from anyone who will listen. It claims the witch is being forced to commit unspeakable acts, and that if she dies, the demon will be freed into the world. The familiar might be lying, or worse, telling the truth.

### The Burning Road

A caravan of witch hunters travels from town to town, burning accused witches in public squares. Behind them, the earth is cracked and blackened, and strange things crawl from the ashes. Something follows their trail, feeding on the suffering they create.

### The Child and the Candle

A small child has begun performing miracles-healing wounds, lighting fires with his breath, and knowing things he should not know. His mother insists it is a blessing from the gods, but the local priest suspects her of witchcraft. When questioned, the child claims a "shadow man" visits him every night to teach him more.

### The Widow's Pact

In a lonely fishing village, storms strike only when a certain widow leaves her house. She says she prays for calm seas, but the storms are her prayers answered too well. Sailors fear her, yet her son was lost at sea, and the demon that answers her may still have him.

### The Witch's Debt

A desperate noble hires the adventurers to track down the witch who saved his life a decade ago. He owes her a promise, and now she has come to collect. The demon she serves has decided what the payment must be.

### The Price of Mercy

In a plague-ridden city, a witch offers healing for free, and the dying flock to her door. The priests call her a blasphemer, the people call her a savior. None know that every life she saves must be balanced by another taken in secret.

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