Torvin

Of all the druids in The Circle, Torvin was perhaps the darkest. He was not evil by any means, but there was an air about him that disturbed others. The fact that he was actually a giant brown spider who could assume human form definitely set him apart from the others in his perspective of nature. He lived a fair distance from the rest of The Circle, watching over the forest's arachnid inhabitants. While he was a loner, he wasn't rude or unfriendly.

Krek approached Torvin's lair, a small cave shaded by thick foliage and heavy webbing. His calloused feet touched thin, invisible strands that alerted the spider druid to his presence. What appeared to be a slender, deeply tanned young human male with bushy brown hair emerged from the cave. His drab-colored clothes were rough-hewn silk of modest design. The only hint to his true nature was the fact that his fingers were longer and thinner than those of a normal human. "Hello, Krek. What brings you here?"

"I would like to speak to you about something."

Torvin held up his hands, "I'm a spider. I'm the last person to ask about romance."

So, even Torvin knew. He had a point, though. Krek knew from countless overheard discussions about Lolth how female spiders treated their mates.

But that wasn't exactly why he was here.

"This isn't about Alya, not directly, anyway. I'm curious about this god you serve, Silvanus."

Torvin sat cross-legged on the ground before his cave, and motioned for Krek to join him.

"Are you searching for a deity?" He asked.

"Not particularly. I'm just curious about the gods of this world."

"Silvanus is a god of nature, but not of all nature. He dislikes death and destruction, even when it's natural, like storms. But at the same time, he allows us to fight, even kill those who would threaten the forests. It seems contradictory, and I suppose it is, but such is the nature of gods." He shook his head, "The Oakfather is much like a mortal druid. He seeks the perfect balance. He appreciates the necessity of predators to control the population of prey creatures. What he doesn't appreciate is the taking of pleasure of in killing, the blood-lust."

"But that is part of being a predator, isn't it?"

"Yes. But there is a difference between the satisfaction of a successful hunt and the joy of watching the pain and fear in a being's eyes as its life fades away." He paused, "There is a god called Malar, The Beastlord. He is a god of predation and the hunt. But he is also a god of blood-lust, he encourages his followers, not just to hunt, but to prolong the kill, to make it as bloody and vicious as possible. Naturally, this makes him an enemy of Silvanus. Unfortunately, even though he is the highest deity of nature, Silvanus has only limited authority over Malar. He can give him orders but he can't stop him as he represents a force of nature too."

"This Malar sounds a bit like Lolth."

Torvin shuddered slightly at the mention of the Demon Queen of Spiders. Natural, since he was a spider. "I have heard that they are allies. She will betray him, eventually. That's her nature. Malar is evil, but he is open and aggressive. He doesn't hide behind lies and masks, he's proud of his actions and wants everyone to know of them. He lacks the talent for deception that she has, he prefers to move openly.

"It must be difficult for predators like you and Alya to serve such a deity." Krek observed. "Why did you choose Silvanus over Malar or Lolth?"

"Lolth has twisted and perverted too many of my kin. All spiders know of her and many of us hate her. She had Zanassu killed and Selvetarm enslaved, leaving us without any other spider deities of our own. besides, having lived in The City of The Spider Queen, would you choose Lolth as goddess?"

"No. Then again, I used to serve Graz'zt." Krek admitted.

"Just because I'm a predator doesn't make me bloodthirsty or cruel. We must feed or starve. It's simply our nature." He cocked an eyebrow, "You served Graz'zt? The Sex Fiend? Does Alya know about this?"

"Yes. I told her."

"Listen, I may not know much about romance, but I know about people. I could live in a city, hunt intelligent creatures for food. Many of my kind do, it's a much easier life. But I chose to live in the forest and work toward the natural balance. You could have chosen to do anything you wanted with Alya, but you chose to protect her. From yourself. You don't have to live like a monster. I don't think you want to live as a monster. You have to remember that you can become anything you want." He paused, "Why did you stop worshiping Graz'zt?"

"Because he's an evil, sadistic nymphomaniac demon lord who cares only for himself." He smiled, revealing sharp white teeth, "Come to think it, he's a lot like me."

Torvin laughed.

"So, tell me, what's The Abyss like?" Torvin asked.

"Oh, just your usual every day sights: rivers of blood, rampaging hordes of demons, damned souls screaming in torment, winds that can flay you alive. It's pretty boring, actually."

"I don't think I want to visit. No offense."

"None taken." He smiled, "What's it like being a spider?"

"It's all I know, but I enjoy it. I can weave almost anything I need from my own webbing. I can climb walls and trees with ease. It's a good life, as long as you stay away from giant wasps and spider eaters. . ."

To be continued. . .

Notes:

Torvin is not a werespider, a human who turns into a spider, he is a large, intelligent spider who turns into a human.

Spider Eaters are 10' long creatures, vaguely resembling bees, with 20' wingspans. Females hunt spiders, paralyze them and lay their eggs in their bodies. They appear in The Monster Manual version 3 and 3.5

Not all female spiders devour their mates, sometimes even black widows will allow him to leave. It depends on a wide variety of factors, mainly hunger.