One evening, I was lazing on the grass with my lusus as we watched one of Alternia's moons. Days ago, she and I managed to kill a hoofbeast. We feasted like kings for days and today we both felt sluggish. I was content with just curling up in her thick white fur.
I was about to take a little nap before she suddenly jerked, as if she had seen something. She pulled away from me and got up before she hastily started walked away to somewhere. I assumed that she must have spotted an large animal and wanted me to stay back, so I simply laid there on the grass as she wondered off.
No sooner than that, I had drifted off to sleep. I do recall that I was chasing a sort of creature. It was fast and was able to evade my swipes at it, so I had difficulty trying to catch it. At the final moment, I managed to wound it where it collapsed to the ground. I was awestruck by the way it was screaming over and over again in pain. It was screaming like an animal I have never heard of before.
I woke up with a start. I laid there on the grass, sleep drunken until I realized that I was still hearing a scream. Apparently, that scream I dreamt of was real. I scrambled to my feet and sprinted over to where the sound was coming from. I could remember how excited I felt, thinking that my lusus must have caught an creature we have not hunted yet.
I eventually found my lusus, but I was stunned to find her sprawled on the ground with a massive amount of olive colored blood oozing out of her wound; a wound created by an arrow pierced deep inside her back. I am ashamed to admit that I merely stood there in place, watching my lusus scream and cry with horror and confusion invading my mind.
She looked at me, and uttered a low pained whine. I walked towards her after finally finding my feet, when I suddenly saw something flew through the air. Next thing I knew my lusus laid on the ground, her misery ended by another arrow shot in her head.
I heard a shuffle and a boy appeared. He appeared to be maybe three or four sweeps older than me, and was staggeringly muscular and tall. He had long, thick and messy hair with a helmet that covered most of his head besides his nose and mouth. He had long thin horns with the ends shaped like an arrow. In his hand he held a mighty bow, and strapped to his back was a quiver full of arrows.
We stared at each other for a moment before he finally spoke to me, "Is this your lusus?" I could not understand this language though. I only started backing away from him, wary of this stranger and his murderous weapon.
"Is this your lusus?" He repeated with firmness as he stepped closer to me. "Have I slain your lusus? My deepest apologizes, but when I saw it come straight for me with its claws retracted… I was only out on an errand."
I continued backing away as if he had not spoken, where he would walk closer with a long stride.
"You are now without a guardian, are you not? Come with me, you appear to be old enough to be of some use. You will not be culled if you can do something."
It was at that moment I could not stand to be stay. I turned and ran as fast as come, hoping to put as much distance between us as possible. However, I had not anticipated for him to run after me with his long powerful legs,. I certainly did not expected him to suddenly knocked me off of my feet and into the ground, where he held me down.
Despite all of my screaming and thrashing, he was able to hold me down with ease. Eventually I had stopped fighting him off and just burst into tears, as that is expected for a young troll like myself to do. Thick, wet olive colored tears rolled down my soft grey skin, and the only sound that could be heard in the forest was my loud sobs and wails.
I have cried plenty of times before, when I felt selfish and did not get what I want or when I got a scraped knee.
This time, however, was different. I felt so afraid, so vulnerable. I felt so weak and small compared to this troll. I have always thought that my lusus will never die - I have never thought of us ever dying - and yet here I have witnessed my beloved, slain. All of my childish beliefs were crashing down into a bottomless pit of grievance and fear, and my tears were my best way of expressing it.
The troll scooped up my tired body, and carried me off to who knows where. I did not care anymore, I only wanted to cry. I clung to him seeking for that familiar furry warmth I felt when I slept in my lusus's fur, but ended up with hard muscles with cold metal armor. Once in a while he would pet my hair, whisper to me soft words as I drifted off to sleep in his arms.
"You will be safe with me."