Sjorgün leaned down next to the deer carcass, a knife in his hand. He uttered a quick prayer for the animal, not to any god-really, praying to a god while he himself was one felt quite silly-but to the universe itself, the infinite and indifferent void that would outlast all of them, even the gods, for the animal's safe travels to the after life, before then beginning the grisly business of skinning the animal.
It only took him a few minutes, barely 3 or 2. Even the largest and meanest bear he could find in these woods only took him 5 or so minutes to skin and process. He gingerly rolled the pelt to clean for later, before then taking out another knife to begin butchering the animal for further use. Before he could, however, his attention was snatched away by the sound of something being knocked over.
Sjorgün turned, knife in hand, displeased at the fact something had actually managed to sneak up on him-but was met with the sight of something small and pink and pathetic looking at the now spilled contents of one of the salt barrels he'd brought with him. The god sheathed his knife at grumbled at the spilled salt, before then walking over to the barrel.
The small, pink creature looked up to him-a human, he realized. The god almost shriveled his nose in disgust. He did not like humans. They had a habit of trampling over his lands, slaughtering it's inhabitants and then complaining when they found nothing of the land to sustain themselves. His sister, gentler Frøya, was obsessed with them-but he absolutely could not stand them.
The child gaped at him, the vague approximation for what passed as a smile for its people. He grunted and picked up the now empty barrel, before then moving to the deer and beginning the process of butchering it.
~
It was some time before Sjorgün was out hunting again. Meetings with the council, his insufferable brothers and sisters, took some time and almost always yielded nothing productive, but as lord of the wilds he was of course obligated to attend. He travelled now with his lieutenant, the wolf god Glornir as they set out after a boar.
Glornir bent down and sniffed the ground, before then turning back to his master, frowning. "Boar's that way, I'm sure, but there's.. something else. I'm not sure what it is."
Sjorgün raised an eyebrow. It was rare that Glornir didn't recognize a scent. He walked over to his lieutenant and kneeled down on the ground, finding plenty of evidence of boar activity, rustled leaves and twigs, but nothing else.. strange.
"Well, let's find out then." He said, shrugging his bow from his shoulder. Glornir nodded and padded after his master, slow and steady now as they crept closer to their prey. An ear piercing shriek sounded above them, and they abruptly stopped. The gutteral sound of boar, mixed with something else...a cry.
A human child's cry.
Shit.
The god broke into a run and Glornir followed him-though mumbling something about complete disregard for stealth or other, Sjorgün didn't really hear-and then they burst out of the woods, to be greeted with an absolutely huge boar towering offer a sniffling, cowering child.
"PROTECT THE CHILD!" Sjorgün bellowed, and though Glornir grumbled he followed suit, oath sword to his master, putting himself between the huge boar and the child, who only wailed louder at the wolf god's approach, growling at the boar, daring it to come closer. The boar was about to oblige him, before an arrow whistled through the air and lodged itself into the beast's shoulder. With a shriek of pain it turned toward's it's assailant, murder in it's eyes.
Sjorgün set his jaw and unsheathed his hunting knife. The boar bellowed and charged, and with his superhuman reflexes the god side stepped and sliced through the boar's throat. Arterial blood gushed as the huge beast collapsed, it's breath growing labored and shallow before finally giving out.
Glornir walked over to the god, ignoring the wails of the child behind him. "Reckless.." he stated, more a growl than a coherent word.
Sjorgün rolled his eyes. "It's also the biggest boar we caught this month."
"With the biggest tusks, and hooves, and desire to trample and gore you!"
"Relax, old man. It's not like its anything I can't walk off." He turned away-deciding that the conversation was over-and unsheathing his knife to skin the animal-but his eyes landed on the child, looking up at him with fear and wonder in his eyes in equal measure.
The god grit his teeth and tried to ignore it, but that irksome, foolish urge to protect grew in him, like a troublesome weed. He sighed and sheathed his knife, walking over to the child, who backed away from him fearfully. Something about those eyes, fearful and wondrous, seemed so familiar..then it hit him.
The same child of before.
He sighed and leaned down to pick up the child, who only wailed louder. He did his best to ignore it.
"What are you doing..." Glornir demanded as he walked over.
"Taking it back to the cave. It'll die If we leave it out here."
"And that's none of our concern!" Glornir growled again. "If we took every single baby animal that was about to get eaten or trampled back, we'd damn near take every baby animal in the forest!"
Sjorgün didn't have an answer to that. Instead, he looked the wolf god dead in the eye, and said. "My decision on this is final. You are welcome to help me or not, wolf god."
Glornir visibly deflated, knowing now the conversation was over. Glornir had much leeway with the younger god-as he'd practically raised him-but it was impossible to changed Sjorgün's mind once he was set on something. Sjorgün's face blackened with guilt at his reaction. "Look, Glornir, I'm sorry, just...you know how you found me and my sister, back when we were babies?? Out in the woods? If you'd left us then-"
"You would've died." Glornir finished. "I very nearly did, you know." He said, chuckling, before then shaking his head. "You were always a stubborn child, you know that? But fine, if you wish to do..whatever it is you want, with the child, I shall help you."
Sjorgün beamed and nodded at the wolf. "Race to the cave?"
"What, with that wailing thing on your back? Do you want to attract every predator from here to Iskidian?"
Sjorgün looked like someone had slapped him in the face. "Well, no.."
"I thought so. The predator does not run. Now let's go before that things blows our eardrums off." He said, gesturing to the baby, and they walked back to the cave.
~
And so they ran the forest, Sjorgün, god of the hunt, and his lieutenant, the wolf god, and along their side, the first of the human hunters. Not just one who exploited the woods like her peers, but one who took only what she needed. The first of the human hunters, who would go on to teach her peers the way of the woods.
Unoriginalshitbag t1_j19qmye wrote
Reply to [WP] An abandoned child is stumbling through the woods, barely surviving. The god of the forest and hunt notices them and after a while can't bare watching the clumsiness anymore, deciding to train the child. by Shadrak_Meduson
Sjorgün leaned down next to the deer carcass, a knife in his hand. He uttered a quick prayer for the animal, not to any god-really, praying to a god while he himself was one felt quite silly-but to the universe itself, the infinite and indifferent void that would outlast all of them, even the gods, for the animal's safe travels to the after life, before then beginning the grisly business of skinning the animal.
It only took him a few minutes, barely 3 or 2. Even the largest and meanest bear he could find in these woods only took him 5 or so minutes to skin and process. He gingerly rolled the pelt to clean for later, before then taking out another knife to begin butchering the animal for further use. Before he could, however, his attention was snatched away by the sound of something being knocked over.
Sjorgün turned, knife in hand, displeased at the fact something had actually managed to sneak up on him-but was met with the sight of something small and pink and pathetic looking at the now spilled contents of one of the salt barrels he'd brought with him. The god sheathed his knife at grumbled at the spilled salt, before then walking over to the barrel.
The small, pink creature looked up to him-a human, he realized. The god almost shriveled his nose in disgust. He did not like humans. They had a habit of trampling over his lands, slaughtering it's inhabitants and then complaining when they found nothing of the land to sustain themselves. His sister, gentler Frøya, was obsessed with them-but he absolutely could not stand them.
The child gaped at him, the vague approximation for what passed as a smile for its people. He grunted and picked up the now empty barrel, before then moving to the deer and beginning the process of butchering it.
~
It was some time before Sjorgün was out hunting again. Meetings with the council, his insufferable brothers and sisters, took some time and almost always yielded nothing productive, but as lord of the wilds he was of course obligated to attend. He travelled now with his lieutenant, the wolf god Glornir as they set out after a boar.
Glornir bent down and sniffed the ground, before then turning back to his master, frowning. "Boar's that way, I'm sure, but there's.. something else. I'm not sure what it is."
Sjorgün raised an eyebrow. It was rare that Glornir didn't recognize a scent. He walked over to his lieutenant and kneeled down on the ground, finding plenty of evidence of boar activity, rustled leaves and twigs, but nothing else.. strange.
"Well, let's find out then." He said, shrugging his bow from his shoulder. Glornir nodded and padded after his master, slow and steady now as they crept closer to their prey. An ear piercing shriek sounded above them, and they abruptly stopped. The gutteral sound of boar, mixed with something else...a cry.
A human child's cry.
Shit.
The god broke into a run and Glornir followed him-though mumbling something about complete disregard for stealth or other, Sjorgün didn't really hear-and then they burst out of the woods, to be greeted with an absolutely huge boar towering offer a sniffling, cowering child.
"PROTECT THE CHILD!" Sjorgün bellowed, and though Glornir grumbled he followed suit, oath sword to his master, putting himself between the huge boar and the child, who only wailed louder at the wolf god's approach, growling at the boar, daring it to come closer. The boar was about to oblige him, before an arrow whistled through the air and lodged itself into the beast's shoulder. With a shriek of pain it turned toward's it's assailant, murder in it's eyes.
Sjorgün set his jaw and unsheathed his hunting knife. The boar bellowed and charged, and with his superhuman reflexes the god side stepped and sliced through the boar's throat. Arterial blood gushed as the huge beast collapsed, it's breath growing labored and shallow before finally giving out.
Glornir walked over to the god, ignoring the wails of the child behind him. "Reckless.." he stated, more a growl than a coherent word.
Sjorgün rolled his eyes. "It's also the biggest boar we caught this month."
"With the biggest tusks, and hooves, and desire to trample and gore you!"
"Relax, old man. It's not like its anything I can't walk off." He turned away-deciding that the conversation was over-and unsheathing his knife to skin the animal-but his eyes landed on the child, looking up at him with fear and wonder in his eyes in equal measure.
The god grit his teeth and tried to ignore it, but that irksome, foolish urge to protect grew in him, like a troublesome weed. He sighed and sheathed his knife, walking over to the child, who backed away from him fearfully. Something about those eyes, fearful and wondrous, seemed so familiar..then it hit him.
The same child of before.
He sighed and leaned down to pick up the child, who only wailed louder. He did his best to ignore it.
"What are you doing..." Glornir demanded as he walked over.
"Taking it back to the cave. It'll die If we leave it out here."
"And that's none of our concern!" Glornir growled again. "If we took every single baby animal that was about to get eaten or trampled back, we'd damn near take every baby animal in the forest!"
Sjorgün didn't have an answer to that. Instead, he looked the wolf god dead in the eye, and said. "My decision on this is final. You are welcome to help me or not, wolf god."
Glornir visibly deflated, knowing now the conversation was over. Glornir had much leeway with the younger god-as he'd practically raised him-but it was impossible to changed Sjorgün's mind once he was set on something. Sjorgün's face blackened with guilt at his reaction. "Look, Glornir, I'm sorry, just...you know how you found me and my sister, back when we were babies?? Out in the woods? If you'd left us then-"
"You would've died." Glornir finished. "I very nearly did, you know." He said, chuckling, before then shaking his head. "You were always a stubborn child, you know that? But fine, if you wish to do..whatever it is you want, with the child, I shall help you."
Sjorgün beamed and nodded at the wolf. "Race to the cave?"
"What, with that wailing thing on your back? Do you want to attract every predator from here to Iskidian?"
Sjorgün looked like someone had slapped him in the face. "Well, no.."
"I thought so. The predator does not run. Now let's go before that things blows our eardrums off." He said, gesturing to the baby, and they walked back to the cave.
~
And so they ran the forest, Sjorgün, god of the hunt, and his lieutenant, the wolf god, and along their side, the first of the human hunters. Not just one who exploited the woods like her peers, but one who took only what she needed. The first of the human hunters, who would go on to teach her peers the way of the woods.
And they called her Artemis.