The Call of the Wind, Children of Kyne, Volume I Options

[Kane]

I just finished up the long volume II of this series, so I thought I'd start posting them both here. This entry is one of my first real stabs at writing out a tale and one of only a couple I ever finished. The dialogue is a little stilted and the chapters are short (needed more practice) so it isn't a long read. If you are interested in reading it, I hope you enjoy! (PS, I'm too lazy to proofread this one and I wrote in 2018, so if there are any spelling or grammar errors, I apologize in advance!)



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Prologue

The morning dew lay gleaming on the lush, green undergrowth of Cyrodiil’s Great Forest as the morning sun shined through the branches of its lofty trees. Deep in the heart of the woodlands, sat a small clearing and at its center lie a large rock, covered in silky green moss. Here upon this stone, sat an impressively large brown hawk - it looked far out of place among the other birds of the province, but it was not without purpose. Sitting as still as the unmoving stone beneath it, a wanderer could have mistaken it for a small statue to some long forgotten god.
Nestling its head into her wing feathers, she waited impassively for her prey. Soon thereafter, a crashing could be heard in the forests nearby. Quite suddenly, a pale, sickly looking Colovian emerged from the dense brush and scampered right through the clearing without so much as a glance at the large hawk.

Craning her neck, she listened for the pursuer she was expecting.

And sure enough, the gentle footsteps of a practiced stalker could be heard approaching the clearing, following the rampant destruction of the woodland left in the wake of the panicked, clumsy runner. The hawk lifted her head and waited for this new, but nonetheless expected visitor.

Ah, I see this predator is much too clever to wander into a forest clearing. The professional that he is knows to avoid such a thing, as it is ripe for ambush. Perhaps a little encouragement is needed…

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The mercenary did not like what he saw ahead. Peering through the bramble, he intensely surveyed the clearing, looking for any sign of an ambush. The vampire he pursued had thus far been crashing through the forest like an ogre, but that may have been a ruse. Vampires, he had always thought, were usually much cleverer than this oaf was.

Hesitating outside the clearing was wasting time, but his instincts were kicked into overdrive as he approached it. Long ago he learned to trust those instincts, and many times they had been the difference between life and death. So there he sat, eyes darting around the forest opening, searching intently for signs of danger.

Quite suddenly, the once calm morning changed as a brisk northern wind began to flow through the woods, rustling the treetops and bringing a slight chill to the air. Our mercenary barely noticed the change in clime, until he heard the whispers on the wind. Startled, he relaxed his eyes, and instead strained his ears to the wind, where he swore a voice had whispered to him. The breeze fluttered once more, and this time he was positive…his name was carried gently on the wind.

Kirin...approach my child. Follow your instincts…and my voice…

Standing up nervously, he shouldered his composite bow, and walked boldly into the clearing. To his utter surprise, the hawk he’d mistaken for a statue hewn above the boulder stretched its impressive wings, and spoke to him with an undoubtedly feminine voice.

“It is time for you to return home, my child. Skyrim awaits you, and your destiny has come. Left behind will be your days of mercenary work and feeble pleasures. They matter not now, and only what you accomplish next will be of any consequence.”

This was unexpected, and temporarily froze Kirin, as a million thoughts raced through his mind. He settled on only one, though.

“And if I refuse?”

“It will matter not. The aspect of destiny is inescapable, and utterly final. Try as you might, it will simply catch up to you later, at a time when you may have less choice in its subtleties. Heed my words, and I promise you will not regret the choice to follow them.”

Kirin pondered on her words once more, and quickly realized what he was dealing with. One should not refuse the finality of the divines… He removed his helmet, and knelt on the grass before the large northern hawk.

“Lady Kyne, I see the wisdom in your words, and I pledge myself and my service to you.”

“Very well, young Kirin. Your time in Cyrodiil is at an end. Return to your fellow brothers and sisters of Skyrim, and your true journey shall begin in earnest.”

She then spread her wings once more, and took to the skies above Tamriel, flying ever northwards.skies above Tamriel, flying ever northwards.

This post has been edited by Kane: Dec 10 2024, 03:08 PM

[Kane]

Resurrection

The trip to Kynesgrove was an uneventful one. Kirin and Lydia mostly walked in silence, still in partial disbelief at their encounter beneath The Eldergleam. It seemed surreal in hindsight, but nonetheless, both of the Nords felt truly blessed to have been there. But Kirin understandably wished it had been a longer experience. He was able to ask the one question he considered most important, but a multitude of other questions for the Goddess remained.

‘Maybe next time,’ he thought.

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Darkness was beginning to overtake Skyrim, as the sun lowered itself gracefully into the western sky. Kynesgrove was just ahead of the two friends, and they soon were walking up the stone path towards the small town’s inn. Delphine awaited them outside of it, and quickly ran up to them as they approached.

“Something’s wrong,” she said.

That seemed to be an understatement. The innkeeper, Iddra, also came running towards them shouting about a dragon attack. In that same moment, the weather took a drastic turn, and the once clear evening turned into a fierce snow storm, with driving winds. With no time to waste, the three of them headed through town and started up the windy path to the summit above Kynesgrove. As they climbed, they could hear the roar of a dragon, and echoing of thunder as it spoke in its ancient language of power.

Once the ground evened out, they found themselves face to face with an unwelcome site. A massive black dragon that Kirin recognized immediately, seemed to be Shouting some sort of necromantic incantation at an old dragon mound.

And then, right before their very eyes, the ground shook as a skeletal dragon burst through the surface of its grave and crawled out towards its raiser.
“Alduin, thuri! Boaan tiid vokriiha suleyksejun kruziik?”

“Geh, Sahloknir, kaali mir.”

Kirin, Lydia, and Dephine watched on in horror and amazement as the newly risen dragon began to reconstitute itself, and was soon covered completely with its hide, as if it had never been slain. The great black dragon then turned its head and looked right at them.

“Ful, losei Dovahkiin? Zu'u koraav nid nol dov do hi. You do not even know our tongue, do you? Such arrogance, to dare take for yourself the name of Dovah. Sahloknir, krii daar joorre.”

He then flew off, leaving the newly raised dragon, Sahloknir, to attack the three onlookers. It was as harrowing a fight as any, but Kirin was getting the hang of fighting these beasts, and Lydia wasn’t far behind. Delphine seemed to struggle a little bit, but she held her ground and released arrow after arrow into the dragon.

Before long, it was ready to go right back into the burial mound from whence it came.

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A few days later, Kirin and Lydia sat around the dining room table at Elysium. They were due to meet Delphine back in Riverwood later that day, but needed the break and a long bath. Dragon fighting in particular had a way of upping the adrenaline levels and really making a combatant sweat quite profusely.

The home cooked meal was also a much needed event, and together they damn near prepared a feast for the two of them. Roasted leg of goat hit the spot nicely, followed by the coveted sweet roll and a stiff glass of Colovian Brandy.

“Anything we need to grab before heading back out, my Thane?”

Kirin groaned. He knew that at this point she was just teasing him, but ignored it for the most part.

“Nah. I just need to sharpen my blade on the grindstone before we go.”

Lydia nodded. “Yeah, me too. Dragon hide is tough, and I think I’ve just about ruined another steel sword. Do you think we have time to stop in Whiterun for a new one?”

“I suppose so,” said Kirin. “But do you really want to buy another one? At this rate, you’ll be out of gold within a month. Come out back with me when we’re finished here, and I’ll see what my stock of ore and leather looks like. I might be able to fashion something up for you.”