On The Great Cycle and the Ruinous Forces
From The World Shaper comes a mirrored truth to His sister's: that all life must eventually end. Volcanoes erupt, plates shift, tornadoes rage and tear. Each is a natural consequence of forces and factors beyond mortal control, and thus they are hers. His path is a duty, one he fulfills with intensity. He is drawn to places of tension, or where his sister Rot has claimed dominion. Indeed, despite his presence and reputation, rarely does he have to push hard. His is the straw that breaks the camel's back, the spark that ignites the powder keg. He is the Natural Conclusion, the Reaper of Consequences.
Yet, this process is not sustainable; there can be no death without life. As such, many of his disasters act in ways that both end and promote life. Volcanic soil is by far the most fertile. Pine forests need devastating bushfire to release their seeds. In the place of destroyed buildings is built new, more durable buildings, or become areas that nature reclaims. Thus, he is as much a figure of renewal as outright destruction.
Whereas his sister's many children are uplifted amalgams of living concepts, Cataclysm's 'children' exist on a temporary basis. They are singular events and forces, rather than overarching archetypical rulers. They are born in their disaster, and die just as soon with it. From there, his children exist as shades of their former selves. They subsist on the scars they have left on both the land and the living. Once their impacts have worn away, once there is no one who consciously remembers the event, they cease to exist. Such is in accordance to Cataclysm's will; nothing can live forever.
Thus, one of Cataclysm's favored descendants are those of War. Months of political failings or mounting ambitions culminating in a pulled trigger or flipped switch. From there, life ends life, for the sake of preserving life. Bombed out towns are eventually either restored or remain as rotting shells of their former selves. All the better, wars can be seen as a series of combative disasters, lives tragically cut short. Each strike inspiring another until its eventual death, often clearly marked by the signing of treaties. Perhaps this is why historical wars remain in our mind, that despite his own nature, he does not wish to let his favored lineages disappear. Or perhaps, they are simply so scarring that we do not let ourselves forget them.
_Hopefully those two n
Post too long. Click here to view the full text.