Crujir didn't know exactly where Riverwood was. He only remembered that it was close to the path he was on when he escaped from Helgen with Hadvar, and which direction the Imperial soldier went from there when he left. He was hoping to find him there, as well as his uncle Alvor. A blacksmith would be of great help. He traveled on enthusiastically.
Along the road he passed two Imperial soldiers, one sitting on a horse. They were idly chatting. Cru acknowledged them with a nod as he walked by. Looking to his right, he saw an abandoned, moss-covered tower up the hill. Curiosity got the better of him, and he traveled up the hill toward the tower. Wondering if he would get lucky enough to find some good equipment again, he smiled.
The grass was tall, and there were trees all around the tower. It was quiet. His eye caught a glimpse of movement, and he immediately withdrew his new hunting bow and crouched. He saw what looked like leaves floating through the air. Sometimes they would move a few feet at once. He squinted his eyes and looked. It moved again. It looked like a small tree, wiggling around and rustling the grass around it.
A spriggan!
He had never encountered a spriggan before, but knew they were deadly. Cru crouched, prepped his bow, and took aim. He held his breath for a moment, and fired an iron arrow toward the tree-like creature. It immediately panicked, frantically searching for its attacker. It ran down the hill and noticed the Nord with the bow, already nocking another arrow. He fired again. He stood up, backpedaled, and fired a third arrow. Both shots were true, but the spriggan was only getting angrier. Not sure if he was ready to take on a tough, angry spriggan all by himself, Cru then turned around and sprinted toward the Imperial soldiers he passed just minutes ago.
Having gained a bit of distance, Cru turned around and plugged the spriggan with two more arrows. It appeared to be getting weaker. He hit it with another arrow. It collapsed for a moment, appearing to be defeated, but not dead. Cru stopped, thinking he had obtained his victory. Approaching the spriggan, he put his bow on his back and retrieved his sword. He moved in for the killing blow.
Then it healed itself.
Light swirled all over the spriggan's body, causing its leaves to rustle and branches to glow, and it sprang up, charging at the Nord who caused it so much pain. Cru immediately turned back around and sprinted toward the Imperial soldiers. Before he had time to stop and ask them for help, they were already preparing for battle. The soldier on the horse dismounted and armed himself with a longsword. The other one moved to the left side of the road, hoping to attack it from two sides. Cru moved to the right side of the road, and waited.
The spriggan sped toward the man to the left and began swinging wildly at him. The other soldier immediately responded with a hefty swing from his longsword. The horse panicked, raising its front hoofs in the air with a loud cry. Cru circled around and attacked the the angry forest creature from behind. It became confused, and began trying to attack all three men at once. In that moment of opportunity, three swords struck it down. They waited to see if it would get back up again. It did not.
“Well, that was close,” one of the soldiers said. “Stay safe, traveler.” Cru gave the soldier a knowing nod, and sheathed his sword. One of them mounted the horse again, and they proceeded down the road without another word. They sure handled that well. Cru gave a thankful sigh, and took some taproot from the spriggan. He wasn't much for alchemy, but he figured he could sell it for a bit of profit. The rest of his journey was met with little incident.
About a day later, he approached a familiar area. He paused and looked around. Aha! I recognize this place! He had arrived near where he first escaped Helgen. He continued down the road that would lead him to Riverwood. The road slanted downhill for a bit, and forked off by the riverbank. He knew that going to the right would lead him to Riverwood, remembering the direction of Hadvar's departure nearly two weeks ago. But just off to his left, he saw something peculiar. It was a stone platform, looking over the river. On the platform were three, cone shaped stones, as tall and wide as him, forming a semi-circle around the edge. He approached them slowly.
All three stones had perfectly circular holes in them near the top, more than large enough for a man to stick his arm though. The stone to the left bore the etching of a thief. The one in the center, an mage. The one to the right, a warrior. He stared at the stones in wonder. He was drawn to the stone on the right. He slowly reached up to touch the warrior stone. Then something strange happened.
After his hand made contact with the warrior stone's cool surface, the top began to glow with a magical aura, bluish white in color. Suddenly, a thin pillar of light shot up from the tip, reaching all the way into the sun-light sky, with no apparent end. Awe-stricken, The Nord did not move for quite some time as he stared up at the phenomenon before him. Moments later, he felt a sensation he had never felt before.
He suddenly became aware of a growing power inside of him. He felt alert. He felt strong and energetic. He felt invincible. Wow. This is incredible! A deer stepped into the river, causing a small splash. Cru spun around, sword in hand, before the water droplets returned to the ground. His reaction time was incredible. He couldn't believe it. With power like this, who needs more training? He stared at the stone in wonder for a while longer. He was overcome with joy, and happily sprinted off to Riverwood, feeling prepared for anything. It wasn't long before he saw the town in the distance. He was still sprinting, full of energy.
He slowed down once he crossed Riverwood's threshold, trying to figure out where Alvar the blacksmith might live. Off to his left, he saw a covered porch attached to the left side of a house. On the porch was a forge, a grinding stone, and other blacksmith's tools. It was a complete workshop. Just as he approached the front door, a familiar face appeared. Hadvar greeted him heartily
“Greetings!” he said, happy to see Cru had arrived. “I'm glad you are here.” Crujir didn't hesitate to inquire about the Empire. He asked about the war and what both sides were fighting for. Eventually, the conversation turned to the gagged man who sat next to him in the wagon just prior to the execution.
"You mean you don't know? That's Ulfric Stormcloak, the leader of the Stormcloaks.” Cru had been sitting next to the man that started the entire war. After some more conversation, Hadvar began to talk about the dragon. He was convinced that it wasn't a coincidence.
“Seems awfully convenient that a dragon showed up just before Ulfric was to be executed, sparing his life. Not to mention that there were several Stormcloaks popping up out of nowhere at the same time. If the Stormcloaks have figured out a way to summon dragons, we must inform the Jarl at Whiterun immediately. My duties here are keeping me for the moment, though. Would you travel to Whiterun on my behalf, and inform the Jarl of the danger?” Cru pondered for a moment, wondering if it was too early to take sides in the war, or if he should at all. Then again, this man saved his life, and he felt that he owed him for that. That, and dragons didn't seem like very good news for anyone.
“How do I get to Whiterun?” he asked Hadvar.
“You just follow the road north. You'll get there eventually. It's not far.” Cru agreed to take the message to Whiterun the next day. He was anxious to test his new combat abilities first. He couldn't stop thinking about how strong and alert he felt.
“Thank you, truly. Go see my uncle Alvar, the blacksmith. He will help you.”
Alvar was friendly enough. He offered some free supplies, mostly food and potions, to help Cru on his travels. He also agreed to let him use his forge any time. He offered to help him learn to forge his own weapons and armor, as well as improve them using the various tools in the workshop, but Cru was in a hurry to test the extent of his newfound power. He said he would gladly learn to use the forge another time. He thanked him for the supplies, and crossed the road to the Riverwood Trader, the local general store.
Upon entering the store, he saw the male clerk behind the counter arguing with a young lady. It quickly became apparent that she was his daughter.
“I said absolutely not! No adventures or anything of the like!” he was clearly displeased with her.
“Then tell me what you're going to do about it!” she yelled back. The two continued arguing, not aware that their new customer was listening in. The clerk finally noticed him and immediately shifted his attention to Cru. His daughter left the counter to sit across the room.
“Sorry about that. I didn't realize we had a customer. A family heirloom was stolen, and we're a bit upset about it.”
“A family heirloom?” Cru immediately sensed an opportunity.
“Yes, a golden claw. It looks sort of like a dragon claw. It's been in our family for generations. I always had it on display on this shelf, here.” He pointed to a shelf above the counter next to the wall. “Some thief broke into my store just to steal it. He didn't take anything else valuable, just the claw. I tracked him to Bleak Falls Barrow, but I dare not go in there. I'd rather keep my head.”
“I could help you, if you want.”
“You'd do that for a stranger?”
“Of course. Where is the barrow?”
Along the road he passed two Imperial soldiers, one sitting on a horse. They were idly chatting. Cru acknowledged them with a nod as he walked by. Looking to his right, he saw an abandoned, moss-covered tower up the hill. Curiosity got the better of him, and he traveled up the hill toward the tower. Wondering if he would get lucky enough to find some good equipment again, he smiled.
The grass was tall, and there were trees all around the tower. It was quiet. His eye caught a glimpse of movement, and he immediately withdrew his new hunting bow and crouched. He saw what looked like leaves floating through the air. Sometimes they would move a few feet at once. He squinted his eyes and looked. It moved again. It looked like a small tree, wiggling around and rustling the grass around it.
A spriggan!
He had never encountered a spriggan before, but knew they were deadly. Cru crouched, prepped his bow, and took aim. He held his breath for a moment, and fired an iron arrow toward the tree-like creature. It immediately panicked, frantically searching for its attacker. It ran down the hill and noticed the Nord with the bow, already nocking another arrow. He fired again. He stood up, backpedaled, and fired a third arrow. Both shots were true, but the spriggan was only getting angrier. Not sure if he was ready to take on a tough, angry spriggan all by himself, Cru then turned around and sprinted toward the Imperial soldiers he passed just minutes ago.
Having gained a bit of distance, Cru turned around and plugged the spriggan with two more arrows. It appeared to be getting weaker. He hit it with another arrow. It collapsed for a moment, appearing to be defeated, but not dead. Cru stopped, thinking he had obtained his victory. Approaching the spriggan, he put his bow on his back and retrieved his sword. He moved in for the killing blow.
Then it healed itself.
Light swirled all over the spriggan's body, causing its leaves to rustle and branches to glow, and it sprang up, charging at the Nord who caused it so much pain. Cru immediately turned back around and sprinted toward the Imperial soldiers. Before he had time to stop and ask them for help, they were already preparing for battle. The soldier on the horse dismounted and armed himself with a longsword. The other one moved to the left side of the road, hoping to attack it from two sides. Cru moved to the right side of the road, and waited.
The spriggan sped toward the man to the left and began swinging wildly at him. The other soldier immediately responded with a hefty swing from his longsword. The horse panicked, raising its front hoofs in the air with a loud cry. Cru circled around and attacked the the angry forest creature from behind. It became confused, and began trying to attack all three men at once. In that moment of opportunity, three swords struck it down. They waited to see if it would get back up again. It did not.
“Well, that was close,” one of the soldiers said. “Stay safe, traveler.” Cru gave the soldier a knowing nod, and sheathed his sword. One of them mounted the horse again, and they proceeded down the road without another word. They sure handled that well. Cru gave a thankful sigh, and took some taproot from the spriggan. He wasn't much for alchemy, but he figured he could sell it for a bit of profit. The rest of his journey was met with little incident.
About a day later, he approached a familiar area. He paused and looked around. Aha! I recognize this place! He had arrived near where he first escaped Helgen. He continued down the road that would lead him to Riverwood. The road slanted downhill for a bit, and forked off by the riverbank. He knew that going to the right would lead him to Riverwood, remembering the direction of Hadvar's departure nearly two weeks ago. But just off to his left, he saw something peculiar. It was a stone platform, looking over the river. On the platform were three, cone shaped stones, as tall and wide as him, forming a semi-circle around the edge. He approached them slowly.
All three stones had perfectly circular holes in them near the top, more than large enough for a man to stick his arm though. The stone to the left bore the etching of a thief. The one in the center, an mage. The one to the right, a warrior. He stared at the stones in wonder. He was drawn to the stone on the right. He slowly reached up to touch the warrior stone. Then something strange happened.
After his hand made contact with the warrior stone's cool surface, the top began to glow with a magical aura, bluish white in color. Suddenly, a thin pillar of light shot up from the tip, reaching all the way into the sun-light sky, with no apparent end. Awe-stricken, The Nord did not move for quite some time as he stared up at the phenomenon before him. Moments later, he felt a sensation he had never felt before.
He suddenly became aware of a growing power inside of him. He felt alert. He felt strong and energetic. He felt invincible. Wow. This is incredible! A deer stepped into the river, causing a small splash. Cru spun around, sword in hand, before the water droplets returned to the ground. His reaction time was incredible. He couldn't believe it. With power like this, who needs more training? He stared at the stone in wonder for a while longer. He was overcome with joy, and happily sprinted off to Riverwood, feeling prepared for anything. It wasn't long before he saw the town in the distance. He was still sprinting, full of energy.
He slowed down once he crossed Riverwood's threshold, trying to figure out where Alvar the blacksmith might live. Off to his left, he saw a covered porch attached to the left side of a house. On the porch was a forge, a grinding stone, and other blacksmith's tools. It was a complete workshop. Just as he approached the front door, a familiar face appeared. Hadvar greeted him heartily
“Greetings!” he said, happy to see Cru had arrived. “I'm glad you are here.” Crujir didn't hesitate to inquire about the Empire. He asked about the war and what both sides were fighting for. Eventually, the conversation turned to the gagged man who sat next to him in the wagon just prior to the execution.
"You mean you don't know? That's Ulfric Stormcloak, the leader of the Stormcloaks.” Cru had been sitting next to the man that started the entire war. After some more conversation, Hadvar began to talk about the dragon. He was convinced that it wasn't a coincidence.
“Seems awfully convenient that a dragon showed up just before Ulfric was to be executed, sparing his life. Not to mention that there were several Stormcloaks popping up out of nowhere at the same time. If the Stormcloaks have figured out a way to summon dragons, we must inform the Jarl at Whiterun immediately. My duties here are keeping me for the moment, though. Would you travel to Whiterun on my behalf, and inform the Jarl of the danger?” Cru pondered for a moment, wondering if it was too early to take sides in the war, or if he should at all. Then again, this man saved his life, and he felt that he owed him for that. That, and dragons didn't seem like very good news for anyone.
“How do I get to Whiterun?” he asked Hadvar.
“You just follow the road north. You'll get there eventually. It's not far.” Cru agreed to take the message to Whiterun the next day. He was anxious to test his new combat abilities first. He couldn't stop thinking about how strong and alert he felt.
“Thank you, truly. Go see my uncle Alvar, the blacksmith. He will help you.”
Alvar was friendly enough. He offered some free supplies, mostly food and potions, to help Cru on his travels. He also agreed to let him use his forge any time. He offered to help him learn to forge his own weapons and armor, as well as improve them using the various tools in the workshop, but Cru was in a hurry to test the extent of his newfound power. He said he would gladly learn to use the forge another time. He thanked him for the supplies, and crossed the road to the Riverwood Trader, the local general store.
Upon entering the store, he saw the male clerk behind the counter arguing with a young lady. It quickly became apparent that she was his daughter.
“I said absolutely not! No adventures or anything of the like!” he was clearly displeased with her.
“Then tell me what you're going to do about it!” she yelled back. The two continued arguing, not aware that their new customer was listening in. The clerk finally noticed him and immediately shifted his attention to Cru. His daughter left the counter to sit across the room.
“Sorry about that. I didn't realize we had a customer. A family heirloom was stolen, and we're a bit upset about it.”
“A family heirloom?” Cru immediately sensed an opportunity.
“Yes, a golden claw. It looks sort of like a dragon claw. It's been in our family for generations. I always had it on display on this shelf, here.” He pointed to a shelf above the counter next to the wall. “Some thief broke into my store just to steal it. He didn't take anything else valuable, just the claw. I tracked him to Bleak Falls Barrow, but I dare not go in there. I'd rather keep my head.”
“I could help you, if you want.”
“You'd do that for a stranger?”
“Of course. Where is the barrow?”
