A Tale of Light and Monsters

Lustrebeasts are like dogs?

My eyes opened to a scenery of gleaming floating lights. There were many creatures I had never seen before, some I had seen in mythological books. Lustrebeasts. Hundreds and thousands. All living in that lush place, peace abounding. I felt safe for the first time since the days had begun growing dimmer and the nights darker; a great authority reigned there, the majestic Golden King.

The dream cut off abruptly as I actually woke up to a rambunctious animal dowsing my face in its saliva. Now, don't get me wrong. I love animals and I had been pushing my father to actually get proper pets for as long as I knew what dogs and cats were. However, saliva is disgusting and no argument can be made otherwise.

"aARGH!!!!" I sat up in horror, scaring off the slobbery thing and succeeding in slamming my forehead into a large tree branch.

In my agonised daze, I heard an amused voice approaching, the sound of crunching autumn leaves beneath his feet.

"Ouch... Are you alright? Do you always start all your mornings in such a lively way or do you just have a thing for trees?"

I decided not to retort. I didn't want to look any more foolish for dozing off first and waking up later than him contrary to all my caution and suspicion.

At this time, the unruly creature decided to snuggle beside me. It looked like a small dog but much rounder, its eyes buried under what appeared to be a mass of completely white fur or feather. It gave me a wet lick. I went stiff.

"Okay, that's enough now, Talli. You've had your fun. Thanks for the help, but you should head on now." Iatari sternly called to it (I could swear I heard a laugh underneath that). The creature whined sadly but obediently jumped down and sat in front of him. I was in shock at what came next. Iatari closed his eyes and as soon as he opened them once again, the dog creature thing was gone. My jaw dropped shamelessly and a sudden curiosity grew. Of course, before I could hide my shock, the sharp-eyed Iatari noticed and gave a wry smile before helping me down the tree.

"Sorry about that. Talli can be quite energetic but I promise he's a darling at least half the time. Besides, I needed him to check if last night Styghbeast had migrated to the other Realm. Unfortunately for us, it's still lurking about but-"

"Wait, wait. A second please." I rubbed my temples. "I might be mistaken but I ask you that give me leave to ask: are you implying, well, does that mean that dog- excuse me, Talli- is a Lustrebeast?"

"Maybe? Perhaps?" The tall dark-haired man shrugged nonchalantly. Ugh, he was about as bad as Thiango. I almost believed that he didn't know the significance of being able to summon divine beasts. By this time, I was fully awake and finally took in the details of my surroundings. It was a bright mild tempered morning, with a light wind and the smell of fresh dew still lingering in the air. There was a wisp of smoke also from a now whimpering campfire that had roasted squirrels resting on twigs around the fire. The onyx-haired foreigner had evidently taken the liberty to hunt for breakfast and prepare for the day contrary to me - clutter-brained Thafna, who was so naive in the presence of a stranger.

My deprived stomach rumbled in delight but my mind was split two ways. Did I trust this man enough to eat food he prepared in my absence? And those were SQUIRRELS. Only a single step away from that which shall not be named that every kitchen is privy to.

Before I could reconcile my thoughts, Iatari's brown eyes showed an understanding look at my hesitation albeit with a mischievous grin I had begun to learn to fear. He sat down at the small fire and closed his eyes. Curiosity encroached on my doubts and I waited wordlessly.

The wind picked up yet there was a silent calm. It had barely been ten breaths when I heard the sound of flapping wings. Suddenly, a dozen white birds filled our little camp, surrounding the tree, clutching an assortment of fruits and nuts.

Almost comically, they settled into an orderly queue in front of me and took turns dropping their precious cargo in my lap and giving me an awkward bow.

I must have had a truly incredulous look because Iatari burst out laughing. "What do you think? Impressive right? I didn't teach them that. Lustrebeasts are surprisingly impressionable. I believe they watched some noble house's ceremony."

"Aha! So you do admit now these are Lustrebeasts." One bird inquisitively landed on my shoulder and I could see the tell-tale bold rim of golden irises.

"I never said they weren't" was his reply.

As the last beast made its bow and took off, my heart sank in disappointment.

These creatures had become extremely scarce these past years as the Ring began to grow inward making the ever-dimming daylight too dangerous for the divine beasts to dwell. Now, Styghbeasts could even dare to remain in this Realm past nighttime.

The man in front of me suddenly seemed like a different person. I had been cautious for good reason but now they could be no better assurance of his integrity than being beloved by Lustrebeasts. I was too proud to admit that to him though.

My heart pounded in my chest and I was brimming with a thousand and one questions. Who was he? Was he really an adventurer from far-flung lands even with the Imperial ban on all combatants except the Army? How was it possible to not only draw out Lustrebeasts but even have them at your complete beck and call?

All the questions died in my throat as soon as they sprung up as I saw Iatari reach for the last squirrel stick. I snatched it quickly and took a hungry bite.

The whole bird performance was breathtaking and all that. Nevertheless, a bunch of fruits and nuts could not possibly satiate my growling beast of a stomach.