Familiars

The four of them all sat at a table together and began looking for books related to Asura. Most of the books in the library were short, one-shot novels probably just serving as more entertainment for the ride, however, they were able to find at least two books on Asura.

It took a bit of time to convince a sleeping fae to let them read the book it was using as a pillow, though. They had woken the cute guy up on accident, not knowing the fae could cloak themselves and seemingly turn invisible. The little owl kitten had almost clawed Niko's hand when he accidentally brushed it while reaching for the book.

They were learning lots of new things today.

One was about the many of the common familiars and a few rare familiars while the other was about how Asurians dressed. Finding the book about familiars was awesome in her opinion, but she kind of wished they could have found something about Asura itself instead of a clothing book.

"Well, let's look at this book about familiars first! Should we start by looking for something like Ralnor?" Caroline couldn't stand her curiosity anymore. What exactly was a familiar? How rare were they? Were they so common that even a maid could have one like the Blooming Leopard? 'Will I get one…?' She secretly wondered to herself. It wasn't just her though, the other three were also thinking of maybe having a familiar of their own.

Gus spoke first in his gruff sounding voice, "Yea. Ralnor seems really intelligent too so I wonder just how intelligent familiars can or can't be."

The rest of them nodded as Caroline began flipping through the book, getting a bit frustrated until she found a picture, well, rather a drawing, that resembled Ralnor. It was towards the end of the book! As she began reading the first few lines, she smiled as it was all about the Blooming Leopard familiar. "Ok, y'all I found it! I'll read it so everyone can hear it."

The Blooming Leopard is a rare familiar that is one with nature. If the leopard is in good health, it will be in constant bloom despite seasonal changes. If the leopard is injured or sick, it begins to wither and die.

It is a photovore, only requiring water and sunlight to survive, giving it a docile and sometimes even playful nature. Even so, if they were given a monster rank, they would be rank 6 out of 10. They can emit poisons to kill living things in mass or lace their sharp claws in poison instead to strike directly. A master of this familiar must be sure to give precise commands in order to ensure public safety.

"Dang," Caroline murmured, "I guess Nidrie warned us because even though Ralnor is a docile familiar, he can still be dangerous. Hold on, I want to see more general information about familiars here in Asura, that ok?"

After receiving the go ahead from the others, she flipped back to the front of the book where it talked about the basics. "I'll read this out too."

Familiars choose their own masters and are then bonded to them for life. They can come from either a breeder, the Asura pet market, or the wilderness of Asura but they do not pick a master easily and oftentimes will go their entire lives without one.

A master may reject the familiar before the contract is officially made. To make a successful contract, one must willingly give a drop of their blood to the familiar that chose them. If a familiar's master dies, then so does the familiar. The highest number of familiars recorded that one specific person can have is three. Currently there is no known way for someone to choose their own familiar.

There was a special bit of print that caught Caroline's eye as she read it.

All familiars are born loyal to the Cardinal Majesty of Asura and are unable to harm the Cardinal even if given a direct order by their master as they will follow the orders of the Cardinal Majesty. Those that know this all refer to the Cardinal with the title 'Master of All Monsters.'

"Does that mean that even though Ralnor is Nidrie's familiar, he can't disobey his majesty?" Emily asked with wide eyes. None of them had ever heard of his majesty having this title. They were more familiar with his war titles and accomplishments.

"I guess so, but I wonder how he is able to control them when he never made a contract with them." Caroline muttered. Her curiosity of Asura and the Cardinal simply kept growing the more she learned. Learning new answers just made her have more questions. But she was still wary and a bit fearful of the Asurian's leader.

The leader of Asura was said to be a monster unlike any other. Even if the Cardinal had brought the chaotic world under control…so much blood had been spilled. The rumors revolving around him were vast and sometimes a bit crazy, but they all shared one thing. He was the most powerful person on earth.

"After seeing Ralnor, and even reading his page, I was hoping I could get a familiar like him… but no familiar would ever choose me…" Niko spoke solemnly. He really had no confidence in himself.

"Hey hey Niko! Don't be like that! You won't know until you try! Maybe they'll let us see if any of the creatures want to bond to us as a part of the program?" Emily spoke excitedly before making eye contact with Gus. He didn't seem to think it was likely for them to get familiars either. "It could happen! Come on, Caroline back me up!"

Caroline smiled and nodded, "We don't really know what is going to happen tomorrow."

"Seeeee," Emily continued, "We should really just go play some games and enjoy ourselves today before the program starts tomorrow. Since we have no idea what's going to happen, we also don't know if we will be super busy! Let's go play some games!"

"I, um, I kind of want to stay here… but you guys can go…" Niko fidgeted, still holding the book about Asurian clothing in his hands.

Emily was about to protest before Caroline interjected, smiling, "You must really like books Niko! If we go play some games, could you tell us if you learn anything interesting from the books over here?"

Niko seemed relieved and he nodded, "I don't mind. I just really feel like reading."

Gus grunted, as if he didn't care about what he did next. He probably only wanted to know more about Ralnor too.

Emily clapped her hands together, "Ok, let's go play some Zario Kart X then! It's been awhile, but I bet I can crush everyone in this cabin easily!"

She tied back her curly locks of blonde hair in a ponytail and smirked, "You're on! You coming, Gus?"

"Sure," He shrugged. The three of them proceeded over to one of the consoles hooked up to a massive TV, leaving Niko to his books.

He watched them leave and heaved a sigh. He wasn't very good at talking to people. Then, his eyes flashed bright green and twisted and dark smile found it's way to his lips, "See you soon, puppy."