Journey's Dawn[]
Mina is a renowned traveler whose journals are widely read by the Aurorians of Astra. In one of her travel logs, Mina describes a regret she has held in her heart ever since she was a young girl. When she was growing up in a village along the banks of the Gold River, she formed a deep friendship with a knight from Lumopolis named Sheriozha, but, in the end, they had to go their separate ways. In this story entitled Journey's Dawn, the veils on both the Lumo Knights and Luminatics will be lifted one by one.
Introduction[]
After the caravan declined Mina's request to trade goods with them, she stood embarrassed in its shade, at a loss. It was then that a man in white armor saved her from her plight. Mina then learned his name—it was Sheriozha.
Volume IV: The Silver Knight (Volume II)[]
That was the first time I met Sheriozha. The sun flashed blindingly off his silver armor.
At the time, Sheriozha was thirty-something and had been hired to guard the caravan. He removed his helmet, revealing sweaty brown bangs and a thick, prickly beard, and he smiled at me with a set of pearly white teeth.
He wanted my bottles and gave me a sort of white bread called a "Lumopolis Ration Biscuit" in exchange. He told me that these were made especially for Lumopolis soldiers, and I wrapped them in the corner of my skirt.
I had gotten something truly amazing! My embarrassment melted away.
Sheriozha took a bottle off the rope and held it in his hand. Shimmering waves of heat raised from the hand holding the bottle, which contracted and twisted.
"Do you like puppies? I did when I was little," he said.
Sheriozha opened his hand to reveal a little glass puppy sitting inside. But even more than that, I was curious about the waves of heat that rose into the air. Sheriozha noticed my excitement and grinned.
"That's Luminatics. Do you want to learn?"
The caravan stayed for three days, and it was like the whole village came back to life. The chimneys smelled of smoking meats, children ran barefoot through the streets, old men got their canes and hobbled out of their dark houses, and even the waters of the Gold River seemed less cold. Sheriozha sat on the village stage and tried to teach me Luminatics. Sif sat beside me, following along or sometimes dozing off against me.
Sheriozha liked strolling through the village after dinner, and Sif and I followed. He almost never removed his armor or the sword and shield he had strapped on. Once, I sprinted forward, tapped on the engraved shield, and asked what it was.
"That's a tower shield," he told me. "A symbol of the Lumo Knights."
After three days, the caravan departed, and Sheriozha bid farewell to us.
A month after that, I could finally produce a fist-sized ball of water in my hand.
I had acquired a new destiny.