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]

The Winds of Change

Kirin tried not to act surprised, but his facial expressions failed him miserably. Kyne had warned him, but he still couldn’t help but be baffled as he stood before yet another goddess – this time the Goddess of Love. His mind was racing by at a million miles an hour and unfortunately he couldn’t stop himself from blurting out the silliest of questions.

“Um…so does that make you my aunt?”

To his surprise, the Lady Mara laughed aloud at his remark.

“I suppose - in a way - it does indeed.”

Lydia rose from her kneeling position and smacked Kirin on the shoulder.

“Seriously, Kir? That is the first question you could think of to as a divine?” She then turned to Mara, “We are honored by your presence, Lady. To what do we owe your benevolent presence?”

“Now, now, Lydia. You mustn’t be so formal with me anymore than you are with Kyne. I know that you honor me out of respect, but that is not necessary. I have had your prayers over the last few months and that is all that I require.”

Kirin glanced sideways at Lydia just in time to see her blush. Wondering what that was all about he almost didn’t catch the wink flashed to him by Mara. Something told him that the Goddess of Love that stood before them was more deeply entwined with them than he ever expected.

“Back to business, then,” said Mara. “I am here to offer you my blessing, in exchange for fanning the fires of love that had begun to smolder throughout Skyrim. No place on Nirn should ever be devoid of love and the wonderful energy it binds us all together with. It is as intrinsic to the nature of Mundus as music is, and keeps the strings of reality bound tight. You two have done much for love in my name, and your own. I gift to you my boon – a protection against forces that would harm love – and ask that you yet return to my priestess Dinya. You must still be recognized formally for your efforts.”

A warm glow filled the souls of Kirin and Lydia as it enveloped them in the pure light of divinity. They could feel their life forces bolster as the energy swirled around them in the darkness of night, illuminating the area round them. After a moment, the light dissipated but the energy of life and love did not.

“It is done. Please return to Riften at your earliest convenience, and let Dinya know that your task is complete. In the meantime, know that with my blessing, I shall help you in your times of need if you ask. For now, I will seek out Kyne and let her know of this. Good luck on your journey, children…you will need it.”

Kirin and Lydia bowed in respect to the divine, and thanked her for her blessing and her love. Before she disappeared into the encompassing dark of night, she addressed them again.
“One more thing, children. Do not continue to quell the most important emotion of all. You will need it more than anything else in the coming times.”

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They set up camp after Mara had departed, but their late dinner around the crackling flames was a quiet affair. Neither of the two were brave enough to discuss the meaning of the Lady’s parting words, and instead they both dwelled on them in silence. Instead, they both drifted off to sleep under the bright starts of the night sky.

Morning came sooner than either Kirin or Lydia wanted it to. The day prior had been a long one, but they had a lot of traveling left to do – Riften was long way off and after that, a long backtrack to Ivarstead and High Hrothgar. Luckily, Whiterun was nearby, though…the carriage service down to Riften would speed things up considerably and take some of the travel burden off.

So to Whiterun is where they headed, but the two Nords did so in silence. Neither one of them had yet to talk about their meeting with Mara last night, and a passerby could have cut the tension with a butter knife. Onwards they quietly walked, as the warm sunny morning gradually turned to a cloud filled and dreary day, threatening rain at any moment. Within a few hours, the drops began to fall gently around them as the open plains filled with a thin mist.

And still Kirin and Lydia walked on in relative silence, only breaking from their somber mood at signs of trouble or hostile attackers. The weather only made matters worse, intensifying as time wore on. By midafternoon, thunder began to crackle in the distance and a strong wind blew to the west, directly impeding their march east. It was only then that Kirin took the hint…

“Lydia, let’s get out of this mess.”

He looked ahead for any kind of shelter, and was pleased to see the now deserted Redoran’s Reatreat just ahead of them.

“Make a break for the cave before this weather gets any worse. We have some things to discuss.”

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Inside the cave, the air was stale and smelled of dampness and mold. The bandits Kirin killed long ago on the Jarl’s orders had likely been dragged off by scavenging predators, leaving behind an empty earthly domicile. They headed deeper inside to the ending chamber and lit a fire in the stone pit near the back wall. One chair still remained and Kirin offered it to Lydia while he sat on the floor on the opposite side.

The silence endured once more as they warmed up around the blazing flames and nearly half an hour passed before Lydia broke it.

“So, why have we come in here, Kirin?”

“I think you know why. Also because I’m fairly certain that Kyne was behind the abrupt change in the weather that we just experienced. She obviously thinks we should talk about our encounter with Mara and I’m beginning to agree with that sentiment.”

Lydia shifted nervously in her seat and her face flushed once more.

“Lady Mara wouldn’t have given us those last words if they didn’t mean something,” said Kirin. “I don’t think I can hide it from myself or from you anymore, Lyds. Putting that amulet on yesterday brought everything bubbling to the surface and now it’s eating away at me.”

He glanced up at Lydia and was surprised to see the look of delightful shock on her face. It faded quickly and a coy smile soon played around the corners of her mouth. Just as Kirin was about to continue, she got to her feet, walked around the fire and sat down next to him before leaning in and giving him the one present she'd wanted to for a long time. A lingering kiss.