~ A Spriggan's Love ~
A long time ago, in the land of Skyrim, there was a magical, enchanted forest. The forest would run wild with hearty animals; both enormously huge, like the mammoths, and pityingly small, such as rabbits. The forest hummed with life, so much so even the trees looked quite alive. One of them was, actually. The Spriggan, a magical, plant-like being that traverse Skyrim's forests, also dwells within this magical forest. She would tend to the animals that had been hurt, and would provide a strong home for the bees that dwelled around her. She felt like a mother to Skyrim's forests, almost as a human woman would feel towards a child.
The Spriggan had everything she could have wanted; a babbling stream, full of nutritious fish, several trees that provided shade from the harsh sun, even caves and deep holes for her to live in. Although she had all of these wonderful things, which she loved dearly, she felt quite alone. She would wander through the tall trees all day, trying to avoid anything dangerous nearby. She had lived very close to a town known as Riften, and had enjoyed watching all of the humans' dilly dallies in their daily lives. She had learned of the things they usually did, and how she looked so much like them…in shape, perhaps.
Oh, how she longed to be a human, and to be able to enjoy things that humans enjoyed. She found herself studying the humans, and even trying to read one of their confusing scriptures called 'books'. The words looked all jumbled up, as if a child had written them. She had tried wearing clothes once too, but the bees that lived within her got too agitated from the fabric. No matter what she did, or wanted to do, she just couldn't be what she truly wanted; human.
One day, The Spriggan was feeling particularly depressed, when she heard the snapping of twigs behind her. Startled that a predator had come upon her, she quickly hurried away to her trees, camouflaging in the leaves. What she saw was indeed a predator, but not one she would be scared of. It was a human. Excited to have finally seen one so close, she edged closer and closer to the armored man. He was bent over, obviously examining something on the ground, possibly some tracks. She was overcome with a strange feeling that she had not yet experienced in her life, a feeling that dwelled within her hollow, wooden body. A feeling so passionate, she could not quell it.
She spent a very long time, just following the human and watching his actions. She had insisted her insect friends to try and be quiet as she was moving, for she did not want to alert the man to her presence. This went on for several hours; the man would pick at the ground a little, and then move on, The Spriggan eagerly following his every step. She loved his grace, and his intelligence of plants compared to hers. She knew every single plant that lived in Skyrim, and it seemed he did too.
As the sun drooped down below the trees, and soon falling beneath the horizon, the man returned to his city, leaving the Spriggan all alone. She felt utterly cold and lonely during the nights, for her friend would only come out during the day. She wandered the forests all night, lighting up the trees with her bright, greenish glow. Finally, an orange light bathed Skyrim as the sun pulled itself free of the horizons forced embrace, rising up to the tips of the Throat of The World. The Spriggan was very happy to see that the man had returned the next morning, to do the same as he had yesterday.
Happily following the man again, she once stopped to look at what he had been very closely examining. A large, three-toed track had been smashed into the earth, big enough to be a mammoth…but mammoths didn't have toes, especially clawed ones. A long and ragged howl pierced the air, startling the Spriggan out of her examination. She looked up, just in time to see a long, winged shadow pass across her face in the direction of the man. Oh no! That creature is headed for that human! The Spriggan thought with terror, tearing through the trees towards her friend.
When she arrived at the clearing, she was quite surprised to see the man triumphantly slashing at the giant lizard, leaving long, red lines across the beast's nose. Watching in paralyzed silence from the trees, she gazed on as the man finally destroyed the hulking monster, leaving its scaled body slumped in the dirt. What happened next surprised her even more than the first time, as the man seemed to actually suck up the beats soul! She had never seen anything like it, but before she knew it, the monster had been stripped of its flesh and skin, a pile of bones left behind.
Sheathing his long, blood-stained sword, the man continued along his path, as if nothing had ever happened. He continued to examine the trees and the ground, just as he had before.
W-Wow! That human is really, really strong! The Spriggan thought in amazement. She had a new-found respect for the human, knowing he could destroy anything that beseech his path, casting the wicked out into oblivion. He was a true hero.
Like a dazed puppy, bought with treats and wonders, she continued to follow the man through the woods she knew so well, even though it took on a new air when she followed him through it. She had once considered making herself known, but he would undoubtedly attack her as soon as she was seen. She had thought of leaving him gifts of beautiful flowers and herbs, but she couldn't think of any way to make them noticeable. Sadly, she had no other option than to follow the man without his consent. She was content just to follow him, after all.
One day, a great evil befell the man. Although he was strong, and often surprised the Spriggan with his might, he had been bested one day despite all his strength. He had wandered into the wrong part of the woods, and had been downed by what must have been 5 bears! The Spriggan had never seen so many bears together, for they were often fearsome towards each other, and quite territorial. As the man's armor was ripped from his body, long claw marks stretching his chest, he fell to the ground in a heap of humbled flesh. Suddenly fearing for her friend's life, the Spriggan slashed out at the bears, sending her bees after them and chasing them away. All the animals of the forest both respected and greatly feared the one Spriggan that resided there, so they fled without hesitation at her appearance.
The man was horribly hurt, blood dripping from his lips and parts of his body missing its skin. Giving out a whimper of terror, the Spriggan picked up the shredded human and carried him off, towards the woods she knew best. Making haste not to waste any time, she set him down on a flat rock and started gathering herbs. She knew that blue mountain flowers and orange butterfly wings were suitable for healing reagents, she gathered as much as she could and put them to use. Wrapping the man's remaining clothes around his wounds, the Spriggan patiently waited for him to awake.
It was a very excruciatingly long time before the man opened his eyes again, and when he did, he still looked very battered and weak. Moaning in pain, he reached up a hand to rub at his eyes, seemingly able to move his body. His eyes flickered open, the man suddenly aware of his surroundings. Looking to the side of his resting place, his eyes befell the Spriggan that had worked so hard to rescue him. He looked quite surprised at first to see a Spriggan beside him, almost leaping from the stone for his sword. Of course, the intelligent Spriggan had thought he'd take such an action, and had hidden his weapons and armor in a place only she knew of. He would only get them back if she returned them to him.
"G-Get back, Spriggan! I'm warning you!" the man yelled, waving his arms in the air, trying to scare her off. She had dealt with frost trolls before, and wouldn't be frightened so easily by hand waving. He suddenly doubled over in pain, one of his old wounds opening to reveal fresh blood staining his clothes. Worriedly, the Spriggan drifted over to him, pressing more blue mountain flowers into his wound with her claw-like hands. He still seemed frightened to see such a detailed creature before him, but relaxed some when he saw she was not trying to hurt him.
"You…you helped me?" he whispered, looking down in disbelief at his patched wounds. The Spriggan tried to speak to him, but her voice came out horribly raspy, like the sound of rocks smashing together, and bees alighting upon flowers. Shrugging her wooden, taproot shoulders, she left his side to retrieve something. When she returned, she held several apples as well as some raw fish in her wooden arms, setting them on the side of the rock.
"Are those for me?" he asked quietly, picking up one of the apples. Nodding her head curtly, the Spriggan merely enjoyed the fact that she was interacting with the man and sharing the same space with him. She never wanted him to leave, to go back to his city full of people. She wanted to take care of him forever, just as she had for all of her animals. She wished he would love her the same way she loved him.
"Ah…well…I've never really MET a Spriggan before, so…I'll just call you Spriggan then…" the man spouted, surprisingly bashful in the presence of a female creature. She was happy that she had a name at all, for her real name was a series of clicks and howls that no human would ever understand. "Well, my name is Jekyll."
She liked the way his name sounded when he said it, and knew she'd remember it forever. Almost twice as happy as she was before, now that they truly knew each other now, she doted over him as a mother hen would care for her chicks. She changed his bandages hourly, and brought different animals to see him, just to show him their majesty. He seemed happy for the time being, but she knew he'd leave when he was better.
Trying to show as best a smile as a wooden face could manage, she tried her best not to look menacing and territorial. He seemed generally comfortable with her presence, which surprised even her. She just wished she could speak to him in some way, just to ask him to come visit her. Just once, even.
Eventually, the time came for Jekyll to leave her care, leaving her to retrieve his things and send him off with a 'smile'. He waved warmly, making his way back in the direction of Riften. She already missed him, watching him walk off towards his city, leaving her and her forest behind. She didn't even know if he would visit her again. She tried not to dwell on it as she settled in for the night, just hoping he would make it back home safe. As a night longer than that she had ever experienced passed, The Spriggan felt fully rested and ready for another day with her friend, Jekyll. Eagerly waiting for the human to present himself, she saw a horned helmet through the trees, an indication of a human. Smiling a Spriggan's smile, she quickly hurried over to the man, but disappointedly saw that it wasn't Jekyll.
It was common for many humans to traverse Riften's woods, but she still felt quite betrayed that it wasn't the one she was looking for. Annoyed that she had still not seen the one she wanted by midafternoon, she slew the stranger in blind fury. She had killed many a passing stranger before, but they had all attacked her previously, so it really wasn't a bad deed.
Still wandering the woods as the sun once again slipped below the horizon, she felt outright rejected by her friend, for he had not shown up. She felt such a terrible sadness that she had not seen him again, she just could not restrain herself. Distracting the guards at the front gate, she slipped in through the door and alighted upon the wooden boardwalk. She was so close to him, she could feel it. He was probably in one of the houses right now. Silently walking across the old, worn out boards, she was surprised no one had seen her yet.
Sensing his presence most strongly inside a particularly happy looking home, she saw the man she had seen so many times before, Jekyll sitting at a table, enjoying a meal. What was strange was that there were other people inside the home, merrily enjoying meals along with him. There was a human woman, looking quite content with herself as she passed out grilled leaks and fried slaughterfish. Two children, a boy and a girl, swarmed around the table, grabbing at the food and laughing with their family. A deep, unrelenting sadness enveloped the Spriggan, to see the man she had fallen in love with happily enjoy his family, a family she was not welcome in.
Realization sweeping over her, she sadly turned from the window, as betrayed as anyone could ever feel. She felt so heart broken, even though she didn't even have a heart. Slowly walking along the boardwalk, she didn't even hear it when someone called out, alarmed screams echoing along the canal. Before she knew it, guards where upon her, trying to move her into a corner, but she wouldn't move. What vile creatures stood before her. Humans, the most disgusting of all creatures of Skyrim, able to destroy the most precious things in the world without a second thought, able to wipe clean any slate that had been built up. All humans did was destroy, never really building anything.
As she was dying, the bees fleeing from her chest, the green light slowly ebbing from her chest, she once again thought of the man she had once loved. A man that had carefully walked the forests, examining plants and tracks. A man she had admired so, a man she would never forget. A man she now hated.
~ A Spriggan's Love ~