Crystal Keeper

A tiny little creature has a great adventure

The realm known as Wisdom Island had always been a paradise, with its many elves and elemental sprites and the rare human or two. The ancient trees protected all and harmed none, giving freely the fruits of their branches and the protection of their massive trunks to any and all who required it; the nymphs who lived in the Eternal Forest made sure that every creature was safe from outsiders. But we are not concerned with the Eternal Forest today, our story takes place in a cave just outside of the boundary of this magical place. It is a relatively ordinary cave: there is one entrance, hidden in the shade of a grassy hill, the interior is cool and slightly damp, and the floor is a soft sand where one can sink one's toes to feel its tickle. The one unique thing about this cave was the fact that the deeper one went, the more crystal there was on the walls, until there were crystals jutting from practically every surface available.

Within the Cave of Crystals lived a small group of creatures who had made it their lives' task to care for and cultivate these crystals, which were a dark blue-green and glowed very faintly in the darkness. Now, these crystals were special for one very important reason, other than being very pretty to look at: they extended the lives of those who came into contact with them. The Crystal Keepers freely gave these Life Crystals to any who asked, but punished those who thought to sneak into their home and steal one from them. These Keepers were a peculiar people, they were human-like in appearance, except their skin color ranged from lightest lilac to deepest amethyst, and their hair was also every shade of green imaginable, tiny nubs for horns protruding from the tops of their heads; but they had also evolved their bodies to the point where they could attach crystals to their backs, almost like a faerie's wings. Except they could not fly, the crystals on their backs gave the Keepers the energy they required to leave their cave; for they could not survive for long outside without them. Their lives were tied to the Crystals just as surely as the Crystals extended those very lives. They were also less than 12” in height.

One such Keeper was a female named Suze. She was one of the three elders of the Keepers, and her horns were the longest of any other female in their tribe, except one, yet not one of them knew exactly how many years she had gathered; but she was an adventurous one, and often risked her life by going out of their home as often as she could. “Suze!” She would have cringed, if it were not beneath her dignity to do so, the woman turned from attempting to sneak back into the cave at hearing the voice of one of her fellow elders, a male named Bolz. It seemed he had been waiting just inside the entrance of the cave, impatiently awaiting her return from her latest adventure. “How long have you been out this time? We only just noticed you were gone,” his stern glance was made less effective by the fact that his face was barely visible in the gloom of the cave.

“I've been out since morning, Bolz, but I don't see how that's any of your business,” she breezed past him, feeling the last of the energy leave the crystals attached to her back. I should have taken a few extra with me. She frowned slightly, but tuned back into what the other Keeper was saying. “ . . . could have gotten killed! You're practically the last one of us who can reproduce, all the others are too young,” with a roll of her eyes, Suze tuned him out again. It was the same lecture he gave her every time so much as her big toe exited the cave: Their numbers were beginning to diminish, and she was one of two females that were old enough to be fertile and reproduce, the other being the last elder, named Kayna. Kayna, however, was past the fertile time, making it almost impossible for her to bear any young ones; her hair had even begun to turn pink about the roots, marking her lifetime near its end.

Those were not Suze's concerns, she was not fond of children and did not plan on producing any. There were plenty of younger females who would be able to reproduce within the next decade, so she pushed the issue and Bolz out of her mind. What she was concerned with was the fact that most of the more magical creatures in the forest were starting to diminish as well, and she had been trying to find the Great Tree, which was rumored to be the one who willed their entire island into being and gave life to all those who dwelled in it. She had not had any luck whatsoever in finding it, and it was starting to give her wrinkles. Not that wrinkles were a bad thing, but she was supposed to have a few decades before they began to show up on her face. Making her way into her living space, the elder detached the crystals from her back and carefully reinserted them into the sockets she had obtained them from that morning; the personal back crystals were what some would call 'rechargeable' so the cave would not lose so many due to one Keeper. Desolate, Suze lay her body on the spongy material of her sleeping niche and willed her mind to relax and rest; she would have to leave in the early morning again.

Early the next morning, Suze was up and ready to leave yet again to continue her search for the Tree. She even managed to avoid those who wanted to keep her inside the cave; if she didn't find the Tree and ask about the vanishing magical beings, then the Keepers would be the next ones to completely disappear. Her crystals firmly attached to her back, and a few extras in a pouch at her side, she set off at a brisk walk through the forest, hitching a ride from a nearby rabbit to speed her on her way. Thanking the creature, Suze looked around and was surprised to find herself in a part of the forest she had not previously explored. That's a little weird, I thought I had already been to this part of the Forest. Shrugging, she looked around the roots of the gigantic trees to gauge their ages, finding the oldest ones and sitting upon them, trying to feel if they had an individual consciousness; every tree in the forest shared a mind, except for the one Tree she was searching for. Her first pick was not the one, so she moved on. This procedure continued for most of the morning until she sensed a slight curiosity from the tree whose root she was perched on, and this was outside of the continuous green web of every other tree.

Suze felt excitement unfurl in her chest. I've finally found you! She felt the tree adjusting itself to communicate with her, and waited with her breath trapped beneath her throat. What is your business with me, little Catellych​? The Keeper was confused at the term, until she felt its definition blossom in her mind: Catellych was the name of her race, created to care for specific gems and minerals that grew beneath the earth! There might be more of them! But she kept her mind to task, she had a question to ask. “You're the Great Tree, right? The one that caused all life to exist here on the Island?” Suze felt overjoyed when she sensed the Tree's affirmation, though she sobered for her next question. “Why are the magical creatures starting to die? Even those of us who live with Life Crystals are starting to have less and less young ones.” The Tree seemed to shift, her bark extending slightly and groaning.

I am growing old and forgetful, Little One, and can no longer hold the magic of the Island together as well as I used to. I have not been able to encourage a seedling to grow and adopt my knowledge. She received images of countless little seeds dropping, but very few sprouting into trees, and yet those same little trees withered and died from being too close to the Great Tree. I have but one seed left, and that offspring must be planted away from me, somewhere that the soil has enough nutrients to sustain her for a long time. I will be able to teach her what she needs to know from here, but my time is running out. Suze felt panic start in her chest, if the Tree was dying, then it wouldn't be long until the entire Island was a barren wasteland, devoid of all life magical and otherwise. “What can I do? I'm only a very small Crystal Keeper,” her voice sounded even smaller and higher pitched than it usually did.

You can climb up to the crown of my trunk, and pick the seed protected in a nest of leaves, then take it to the nymphs of the forest, they will know what to do with it. Nodding her head, the little creature began the arduous task of climbing up the trunk of the Tree, stopping to replace her crystals twice before she reached the little clump of leaves where a tiny little seed was nestled. She pulled out a few strands of her hair and wrapped them tightly around the seed, tying it behind her neck and allowing it to hang in front of her as she descended. The way back down was much quicker, since she could slide down the branches that drooped all the way to the ground. “I'll take this to the nymphs!” She shot off through the underbrush, stopping every once in a while to stomp her feet in the pattern that would let any nearby rabbit know she needed its assistance. Before long, she was speeding on the back of a gray rabbit to the pond where all the nymphs gathered, feeling the seed lose a little bit of its potential the longer it went unplanted.

The rabbit burst through the last barrier of bush leaves and skid to a stop right at the edge of the water, almost sending Suze tumbling into the clear liquid. She was stopped by one of the nymphs, however, the graceful green lady who was the leader of the nymphs. “What is a little Keeper doing away from her home and trying to tumble into the water?” Her voice was like the wind and held a hint of laughter, her green eyes crinkled at the corners. Suze wasted no time, untying the seed from her hair and holding it up to the nymph. “From the Great Tree, it needs to be planted somewhere with enough nutrients to keep it alive long enough for the Tree to teach her and for a long time afterward,” she hoped the nymph believed her. There was no need to feel doubtful, as the queen instantly plucked the seed from Suze's hand with her eyes wide and her face a mask of shock. “The Tree said it needs to be planted as soon as possible.” She didn't want her trip to have been a waste.

Those words seemed to snap the nymph out of her daze and she visibly shook herself, gently laying the Keeper down next to her rabbit mount again so she could go home before her crystals lost their energy. “I will take care of it myself,” she leaned down and gave Suze a nymph's blessing, with a kiss to her forehead. “You have all of our thanks Keeper, I do believe you have just saved the entire Island,” without a pause, the queen of the nymphs rushed off, disappearing from view on her way to plant the little seed. Sighing, Suze climbed back on her rabbit and asked it to take her home as quickly as it could. She was once again inside the cave just as her crystals lost the last of their energy, and she once again ignored Bolz as he lectured her; she had just saved the lives of every creature on their Island, and her entire body hurt.

Laying back in her sleeping niche, she wondered if the seed was planted yet, but she had no more time to wonder as her eyes, turned green by the nymph's blessing, closed and she was deep in slumber.

Author's Note

Written for Sizzla on Menewsha ^_^