Chapter 44: Eldergleam Sanctuary

[22nd of Sun's Dusk 4E 201]

After the beautiful Gildergreen tree in Whiterun had been severely damaged by lightning, my new acquaintance Vilja and I had decided to travel to Eldergleam Sanctuary together. On the way, we had managed to retrieve a special tool called Nettlebane from Orphan Rock, and according to Danica we needed the tool to get sap from the mother tree.

We had spent last night in the Vilemyr Inn in Ivarstead, and today we hoped to reach our goal. We stopped for half an hour in the town Darkwater Crossing and chatted with the miners there while they ate their lunch just outside of the 'Goldenrock Mine'. Fortunately, none of them had a problem with my two well-behaved saber cat cubs, and they were allowed to stay at my side. One of the locals, a Nord lady called Anneke Crag-Jumper, told us a little bit about the small settlement:

"My parents and I were the ones who found the corundum mine here, a few decades ago. My parents have already died, but a few others came and stayed. They work the fields and my husband and I work the mine, and we all get along. The corundum here has a better purity than the one from open veins in the hold, and we get steady business from that. Also, the harvest from the fields in our small settlement is usually quite good, as we are close to the hot springs, and there is some fish in the river, too."

"Any trouble with the Civil War here?"

"No, not really. We are part of Eastmarch hold, so that Stormcloaks patrol the area, of course. Since the raid in Last Seed, when the legion had staged an ambush not far from here and actually managed to capture Jarl Ulfric together with some of his best soldiers, there has been more Stormcloak activity on the roads all around; they obviously don't want something like that to happen again. And, as a side effect, at least the main roads are safer now, with all of the patrols."

After some time of idle chatting she asked:

"Where do you plan to go from here? There's a gorgeous tree that grows right up through a cave to the northeast of here, and it's certainly worth a visit."

"Is that true?" I replied. "As a matter of fact, this is where we are heading for at this time, to a cave called 'Eldergleam Sanctuary.'"

"Yes, that's what it's called. You will sure like the place; it is quite beautiful."

"We are looking forward to getting there soon, indeed. So, how is life here in and around this village?"

Sondas Drenim, a male Dunmer, replied, while pointing to the south:

"Those falls... dangerous place. Derkeethus thinks he could find some good fish in the pools, and he plans to explore the falls south of here at some time. I hope that he's going to be careful when he does that, the area is rumored to be dangerous."

A young girl added:

"Derkeethus sometimes takes me diving way down deep in the river."

"So, who is Derkeethus?"

"He is an Argonian who lives with us, although he spends more time in the water than with us, of course; he is pretty nice and a good neighbor, and he sometimes gives us some fish. Hrefna and Derkeethus like to spend time with each other and are good friends."

Tormir, who turned out to be the girl's mother, added:

"It's tough to keep track of Hrefna. If her father wasn't such a snowback, he'd be around to help out. I am glad that the Argonian sometimes spends time with her."

She turned to Sondas and addressed him:

"Thanks for looking after Hrefna again this morning."

"Oh, it's no trouble. She's a smart little girl. Might talk your ear off, but she's fun."

"Well, I know she thinks the world of you."

"So I'll try to be a good influence, then."

Lunchtime was over now; the local got up to resume their work in the mines and on the fields, and Vilja and I took our leave.

From the small town, Eldergleam should not be far, according to both the map and my memory. We left in northern direction, and while we walked, Vilja continued to chat, rarely being quiet for more than a few minutes at a time. I kind of missed the option in her mod in the game, which enabled the player character to set a minimum time interval between her conversation attempts, but of course a real person did not have anything like this. While I pretended to listen and Hanni and Nanni frolicked around, I continued to practice my 'Conjure Familiar' spell. I had tried to cast it for weeks without any success, but suddenly something happened, and I saw a vague shape materializing; before I could look closer, though, it disappeared again. Maybe I was getting closer? I doubled my efforts, and after a few more unsuccessful attempts something popped up in front of me, looking similar to Hanni and Nanni.

"What is this?" Vilja squeaked. "Familiars look different, I thought."

"Me too, sure, but…" I did not know what to say. The apparition did not stay for more than about half a minute, but it did look like a small saber cat, about the size of my 'girls', rather than the expected ghost wolf. They had missed it, but when my cubs were back close to me and my magicka had partially recovered, I tried again, and sure enough, there was a small saber cat next to Hanni and Nanni, with light brown fur instead of a mostly white or off-white one. My cubs purred immediately and obviously liked it, and I used the time to touch my new friend; when it turned on its back to get its belly scratched, I also noticed that this was another female cub.

A saber cat as familiar! How cool was that? In the game, your familiar always was a ghost wolf, and I had frequently imagined this to be different. Specifically, my idea about a familiar had been a cub growing with time, and for some reason my imagination came alive now. I had used that fantasy of mine in a fan fiction story I had been writing in my previous life, where the hero could conjure a Pahmer familiar who he had called Pammy; the more he practiced, the longer the familiar would stay, and the Pahmer would also grow over time. Now, if this worked the same way here, once she and my real cubs were grown up, I'd have not only two, but three very formidable body guards. But wait – was she going to grow at all? She would in my imagination, but here I'd have to see; time would tell, and I'd need to practice a lot. Further, I wanted to give her a nice and fitting name, but needed time to think about one.

Vilja did not look happy at all, and she always made sure to keep her distance, both from the real and the conjured saber cat cubs. Well, maybe she was more a wolf type than a cat type. If I recalled correctly, from the time when I had played the game with her as a companion, she had once mentioned something about a tamed wolf, and earlier today she had mentioned something about wolves in and with her family. Also, in the 'Oblivion' game, I vaguely recalled that one could eventually get a wolf follower called 'Wolfgang' together with Vilja. So, maybe she was leaning in that direction and was not that fond of big cats; might that include myself, too?

Meanwhile we were getting close to the hill which looked familiar to me, and indeed, there was a cave entrance on the southwestern side, partially hidden under some trees.

"I am not fully sure, but I believe that this is it" I claimed. "Eldergleam Sanctuary!"

"Great – let's go inside and find out!" Vilja replied right away, and we entered the cave.

The first section was not so impressive, and we had to follow a few turns of a small passage, with only bare rock around us. It opened up into a larger cavern soon, and I knew right away that this was the right place. Right as I vaguely remembered from visiting the place while playing, we found ourselves almost in a different world; the harsh and bright sunshine was replaced by dimmed and muted cavern light, the rough grounds outside replaced by some soft plants, and the noise of wind and hot spring water replaced by whispering and almost magical cave sounds. The path lead on close to the right cave wall, and the large cavern ahead and to the left looked glamorous and simply amazing. It was obvious that this was an enchanted and magical place, in a good way. At the very far end, a huge tree was visible, partially hidden by mist – the legendary Eldergleam tree, as I assumed. Vilja was as impressed as I was, and we stood there for about ten minutes, just watching the scenery.

Eventually we moved on, and we saw three people standing around not far from us. We crossed the creek using the bridge and turned left, and we introduced ourselves. There was a woman, maybe a Breton, calling herself Anesia, a female Nord with the name of Asta, and a male Nord called Sond. Asta spoke first after the initial introductions:

"You are in Eldergleam Sanctuary – just a small glimpse of the beauty Kynareth has to offer. This is a wonderful place, isn't it?"

I nodded, fully agreeing, but Vilja was not so patient:

"Yes, but you see, I have got this bottle and a note, and my grandmother said that somebody in here might be able to help."

Asta looked at my companion and replied:

"That might be something for Anesia to look into. Anesia, could you come over for a moment, please?"

The other lady, who had kept back a little until now, stepped closer, and Vilja eagerly repeated her request.

"Maybe I can help you with that" the lady responded after she had looked at the bottle; "let us talk about it. Meanwhile, I need somebody to run a small errand for me. Do you think that your friend might be willing to help?"

Oh no! If I started this, I might get to be the errand boy for the foreseeable future. Quickly I told them off:

"Excuse me, ladies, but I have an important task here. That tree in the background, it is the legendary Eldergleam tree, isn't it?"

"Yes, my friend, indeed. Though no one has been able to get close to her for as long as I can remember."

"Why not?"

"As you can see, Eldergleam՚s roots are large and stretch far, blocking any path to her trunk. Though, believe it or not, there are rumors of a weapon that even Eldergleam herself would lift her roots for, more out of fear than respect."

"Ah yes, I have heard of that. As a matter of fact, I do have this weapon with me, but not for damaging the tree. The tree's offspring in Whiterun, the Gildergreen tree, was hit by lightning, and Danica, the priestess of Kynareth, believes that sap from Eldergleam might be able to revive it."

"The rumors were true! You carry the one weapon Eldergleam fears – Nettlebane. I beg of you, don't harm the tree! Nothing good can come of it!"

She was getting quite agitated now, and Hanni and Nanni reacting by growling a little. I got down on my knees to comfort and calm my cubs, and when that was done, I replied:

"Asta, I would really hate to harm the magnificent tree, believe me. But, how else can I get some sap?"

That was indeed the question; according to Danica, I needed to get some sap from the Eldergleam tree in here, but on the other hand, I also did not want to hurt or damage the tree. What to do?

"Maybe there is another way" the male Nord, Sond, offered while pondering my words. "Maurice, could you please join us for a moment?"

A male Breton, whom I had not seen before, came over; he introduced himself:

"I am Maurice Jondrelle, and I have devoted my life to Kynareth. Now, what have I heard? The Gildergreen tree in Whiterun was damaged?"

"Indeed; there was a bad thunderstorm a few days ago, and one flash of lightning must have directly hit it. Danica Pure-Spring, the main priestess of Kynareth in Whiterun, claims that the only way to revive it is to get sap from the Eldergleam tree in here."

"Oh, I am sad to hear about that. I have been on pilgrimages to Whiterun to see the Gildergreen tree a few times, and I fully agree that it must be restored. But, one cannot easily access the tree here in Eldergleam Sanctuary!"

"Yes, so I have been told, and I have managed to get my hands on a special tool to get access."

I pulled Nettlebane from my backpack and showed it to him, and he was almost as shocked as Asta had been before. He begged:

"You would violate this marvel of Kynareth՚s glory to fix the tree in Whiterun? That would be abominable, and I won't have any part of this!"

"But, what else can I do? That's what Danica asked me to do!"

"Hm, let me think about that for a moment."

The Breton appeared to deep in thoughts for a few minutes, and the he said:

"I can't believe that Danica really asked you to hurt the tree; we need to find a way to revive or restore the Gildergreen tree without damaging the Eldergleam here. So, yes, there might be something, some alternate way. It won't repair the tree back at the temple, but we could bring them a new one."

"A new one? Really?"

"Let me come with you, and maybe we can open up another option; let's see if this works."

I vaguely recalled that from playing and nodded. While Vilja conferred with Anesia on her own tasks and seemingly ignored the beauty of the cave and the tree, I went back to the path with Maurice. Some stone stairs led upwards, but soon the path was entirely blocked by giant roots. In theory, climbing across should be doable, but the roots moved slowly, and it was obvious that the tree had some special ability to protect itself. Prodded by Maurice, I got Nettlebane out of my backpack again, and just waving the special tool made the tree roots move back, allowing us access to more stairs. I needed to wave Nettlebane multiple times, but eventually we managed to get up to the small area where the huge and wonderful Eldergleam tree was rooted on. The tree stood on some kind of elevated platform and reached up almost to the cavern's ceiling, and it was a most impressive view. While I sat down and enjoyed the view, Maurice knelt down next to the tree and chanted some prayers to Kynareth and to the tree for maybe quarter of an hour, and when he rose again, he smiled and told me:

"I believe that I could get us something. Look here!"

He pointed to a small niche in the cave wall, and while I watched, a tree sapling grew from one of the main roots there. I could literally see it growing, which was amazing by itself, and when it had reached a size of about one meter, it stopped growing and magically detached itself from the root. The monk claimed:

"The sapling is yours to take, and I will come with you to make sure it is safely delivered to Whiterun. I want to see Danica understand that the true blessings of nature lie in renewal, not in slavish maintenance."

That was just fine for me. Carrying the sapling and paying full attention to the environment might be challenging, and Vilja would be stuck here for some time. I picked up the sapling, put it into some kind of sack with soil Maurice provided, and slowly we descended the path down to the others. Vilja looked a bit unhappy about my priorities, but she needed to bow to the situation, specifically as Asta told her that my mission was indeed important.

"Look, Vilja," I told her. "I got you here, and Anesia and maybe the other two will help you in finding out more about that mysterious bottle of yours. I would not have minded to stick along for some more time, but Whiterun is waiting for help with the city's trademark tree, and I really need to get the sapling back there."

"Yes, I understand" she said. "I guess I will just have to cope, and I am grateful that you got me here at least. Hopefully we will see again some time in the future!"

"Yes, I hope so, as well. Maurice and I will stay here for the night, but we will leave early tomorrow morning. Good luck with your bottle!"

It would have been quite nice to spend more time with the pretty Nord lady, but I really did not want to do tasks and errands for her all of the time. Rather, I would not mind to have some time for myself, to get a better view on what I was supposed to do in Skyrim and what my options were. But first things first; back to Whiterun on the next day, and then let's see.

While Maurice and I had been up next to the tree and had received the sapling, another young lady had joined the others, and Asta told us that her name was Amalee. Rather than Vilja, who seemed to be worried about nothing else but her bottle, Amalee looked around in the cave and specifically admired the Eldergleam tree; she had apparently not seen what Maurice and I had achieved, and I could hear her musing:

"Will you look at this tree? They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but it's remarkable how often those eyes are mine."

What? Was she implying that we did not admire the tree sufficiently? I was about to answer her, when she continued:

"Why aren't there more people here? Tours must be organized! Paintings commissioned!"

Really? Tours, like with buses full of tourists? No, I did not think so, and I interjected:

"Lady, I do not think that tours would be a good idea; would you really like to see this beautiful cave full of people?"

She did not seem to listen to me, though:

"It's our duty as adventurers to bring the people to the tree and the tree to the people!"

"I hope that you do not envision to cut it down and sell the pieces! But, I judge you as someone who appreciates nature, as I do as well."

"Oh yes, the water, the animals, the trees… all clay, which Dibella molds into indelible art."

Indelible art? What was that? That was not exactly how I saw it, but she continued:

"And at the heart of every explorer is an admirer of that beauty."

She had valid point, of course. Most of the daylight which had illuminated the cave was now gone, but glowing mushrooms on some of the walls and additional bioluminescence from the huge Eldergleam tree did not allow darkness to fully dominate the sanctuary. At night the cave looked even more impressive than during the day, I thought. Nevertheless I tried to slow the woman down:

"Amalee, I certainly appreciate the beauty of nature, too, specifically now with all of that natural light and all, and I am not saying it isn't nice. It may just not be quite as important as you seem to think."

"What could be more important than tribute to the Gods? Why worship them in dusty halls when we can come to these cathedrals of nature? We have to let people know that these places exist!"

"Well, I certainly agree with you on that, and I like the term 'cathedrals of nature'. I also like to worship and pray in those places."

"See? We have to shout it from the tabletops. Then the rooftops! Then the mountaintops! Every top, bottom, and middle! I am shouting all the time! Are you?"

She seemed to be a little bit out of breath now, and for a few moments I saw myself standing on the Throat of the World and shouting 'Visit Eldergleam Sanctuary!' from the top of my lungs. I smiled, and Amalee had certainly given me something to think about. Before I got to sleep, I looked for a quiet corner in the cave and spoke an evening prayer; this place felt holy, and I still had the very fitting expression 'cathedral of nature' in my mind. I also thought about another of Amalee's statements – 'paintings commissioned'. If I ever got to have a house of my own, it would be great to have a few paintings on the walls showing beautiful places in Skyrim, such as this Eldergleam Sanctuary. However, while I might eventually have a home, where would I be able to find somebody who could paint with great talent, somebody like Albrecht Dürer, who had grown up and lived in Nürnberg centuries ago? Or maybe somebody like that person in Cheydinhal in the 'Oblivion' game, who was able to create paintings one could get into? No, the latter was clearly not what I had in mind.

[Author's Notes: Those who know that quest of course know what to do and what the options are. B'lushona, though, may have done that quest once or twice in the game, but his memory has quite a few gaps, or at least he needs more time to remember.

Amalee has been added to the game by the mod 'Interesting NPCs'.]