Thornshade
Deep within one of the more isolated reaches of the Golden Woods lies a tract of ancient woodland known as Thornshade. Few paths enter it, none pass completely through it, and those approaching its boundaries may find black feathers, animal bones and other simple warnings hanging from the trees. Thornshade belongs to Wadaranth Redwood. Or, at least, that is how Wadaranth would describe the arrangement. A Fey-Touched Wood Elf of considerable age, Wadaranth had inhabited Thornshade long before Dîmeril Laeghartha came to the Fey World and established herself at Merilrond. He neither recognised nor particularly cared about the authority which gradually grew around her. As far as Wadaranth was concerned, newcomers could organise themselves however they pleased, provided they left him and his woodland alone. For the most part, they have.
Even amongst Wood Elves, there is something unusual about Wadaranth. His connection to the Fey World runs unusually deep. He looks broadly Elven, but there is something subtly wrong about him. His skin has the weathered brownish cast and faint texture of old bark, while his extraordinarily dark green eyes show almost no distinction between iris and pupil. His long hair is commonly tangled with leaves, tiny roots and fragments of moss, and moss itself sometimes takes root upon clothing he has worn for long periods. He is difficult to age by appearance. There is something ancient about him without Wadaranth appearing conventionally elderly. Animals do not necessarily like him. Instead, they seem to accept him. Predators which might growl or flee at the approach of another humanoid frequently regard Wadaranth with little more interest than they would give a tree or boulder. To them, he seems to be something which simply belongs in the forest. His enormous black wolf companion, Grim, is rarely far from his side.
Wadaranth is an exceptionally accomplished Ranger, hunter and woodsman. He can disappear into heavy woodland with alarming ease and knows Thornshade with an intimacy that makes pursuing him through it extraordinarily dangerous. He favours the longbow and prefers ambush, stalking and patience to direct confrontation. A pair of handaxes provide weapons for those occasions when an enemy manages to come close. Wadaranth has little interest in fighting fairly. Indeed, he considers finding oneself in a fair fight evidence of poor planning. He is neither mad nor needlessly violent, but he possesses remarkably little compassion. Weakness inspires no sympathy in him, and he sees death as an entirely ordinary part of the natural world. Those incapable of surviving somewhere dangerous should, in Wadaranth's view, have possessed sufficient sense not to go there. It is a philosophy which Dîmeril finds particularly objectionable.
Dîmeril and Wadaranth have never been friends, but they have reached an understanding. Wadaranth recognises the boundaries of Thornshade: he does not hunt beyond them, threaten neighbouring communities, take livestock or interfere with travellers. In return, Dîmeril recognises Thornshade as one of the Reserved Places and warns others to leave it undisturbed. The two Rangers have more in common than either might comfortably admit. Both are Fey-Touched, fiercely protective of the wilderness and suspicious of those who would tame it. Their fundamental difference is one of compassion. Dîmeril believes strength brings a responsibility to protect the vulnerable; Wadaranth believes the vulnerable should learn to protect themselves. Dîmeril has built a life surrounded by friends, wards and community, while Wadaranth has progressively withdrawn from almost everyone.
Dîmeril neither likes nor trusts his morality, but she trusts his word. Thornshade was Wadaranth's home long before she arrived, and he has committed no offence against those under her protection. So long as he respects their boundary, she respects his. The arrangement is simple: Thornshade is left alone, and Wadaranth leaves everyone else alone.
Dîmeril occasionally visits the boundary of Thornshade, where she and Wadaranth exchange information about events and dangers within the Golden Woods. Their conversations are rarely friendly and sometimes argumentative, but useful information passes in both directions. On occasion, Rangers pursuing dangerous creatures have even found their quarry dead near Thornshade, one of Wadaranth's arrows providing the only explanation. When the Golden Woods were left behind in Warlderia, Thornshade came with them. Wadaranth has shown no interest in joining the Woodland Muster, and Dîmeril has made no attempt to recruit him.
Nevertheless, any invading force entering Thornshade would quickly become Wadaranth's concern. An enemy cutting his trees or occupying his territory would cease to be Dîmeril's problem and become Wadaranth's. There are few people in the Golden Woods whom Dîmeril would rather have hunting someone else.
Sorrowmere
Before the Golden Woods were left behind in Warlderia, Sorrowmere was a broad and beautiful Fey lake, surrounded by ancient woodland and fed by clear streams. Its waters were home to a Swanmay who had dwelt there for many years, swimming amongst its reed beds and wooded islands and taking flight across its waters in the form of a great white swan. The crossing into Warlderia changed everything. The Golden Woods did not arrive entirely intact. Sorrowmere was caught upon the edge of the transported lands, and much of the lake simply did not make the crossing. Where its distant waters and shoreline had once continued, the land now ended abruptly in great cliffs overlooking the sea. The lake emptied catastrophically over them. What remains of Sorrowmere is little more than a deep pool occupying the lowest part of the former lake bed. Around it stretch areas of damp meadow and drying ground where water once stood. Former islands rise incongruously amongst the grass, while stranded stones, dead reeds and other remnants of the old shoreline mark the extent of what was lost.
The Swanmay of Sorrowmere
The Swanmay survived the destruction of her home, but was terribly injured in the catastrophe. Swept amongst rocks and shattered trees as the waters escaped, she was left badly scarred along one side of her body. The same injuries appear in her swan form, where one wing remains twisted and damaged. She survived, but lost much of the beauty and grace for which she had once been renowned. Worse still, her supernatural bond to Sorrowmere endured. The lake may have almost vanished, but the remaining pool is still her lake, and she remains bound to it. Where once she possessed miles of open water, islands and hidden reed beds, she is now confined to a fraction of her former domain. From its edge she can see the sea beyond the cliffs, filled with the waters that once belonged to Sorrowmere.
The Swanmay has not borne her losses well. Once sociable and proud, she has become bitter, solitary and increasingly resentful of the world beyond her diminished home. Beauty particularly troubles her, as do displays of happiness and carefree affection. They remind her too readily of things she believes were taken from her. Dîmeril has attempted to help. Healers and others knowledgeable in Fey matters have examined both the Swanmay and the remains of Sorrowmere, but neither her injuries nor her bond to the surviving waters have proved easily remedied. Eventually she demanded that they leave. Dîmeril respected the request.
Sorrowmere is now counted amongst the Reserved Places, although its inclusion is rather different from that of places such as Thornshade or the Red Dell. The Swanmay does not roam the Golden Woods seeking victims, nor does she threaten neighbouring settlements. She simply wants others to stay away from what remains of her home. Dîmeril therefore discourages travellers from approaching the old lake bed and has instructed Rangers and Greenwardens not to enter unless there is a compelling reason. Her instruction regarding Sorrowmere is less a warning than an act of compassion: Leave her alone. She has lost enough.