The One Who Called the Doma
---
The winds of Setali Beutell carried a soft hum through the crystal woods…
But in a dark, forgotten cave carved between the glowing roots of an ancient tree,
a lone figure sat still.
Eyes closed.
Breath steady.
Spirit trembling.
Defftomon sat on the cold earth, surrounded by silence, and whispered
"...Doma."
His voice was like a ripple in the void
barely a whisper, yet it reached beyond light and ocean.
---
High Above…
Above the land of Delltanoss,
the sky-ocean stirred.
At its surface, a great pack of Doma drifted silently
some running across the water's skin,
others seated in tranquil stillness.
These were no ordinary beings.
The Doma were spiritual guardians,
beings of immense size and grace,
charged with the task of guiding wandering souls and helping them find their true purpose.
Jet-black in color,
They were like hounds of heaven
their tails woven with light, their ears long and tipped with glowing strands,
and their eyes deep crimson, shimmering like stars in blood.
They did not speak
but when they bonded with a soul,
they could understand, feel, and even speak their language.
---
But one among them…
stood still.
Looking down.
Its gaze fixed not on the empty universe or the ocean or the heavens…
But on the very heart of Setali
The Divine Tree,
and beneath it... something calling.
It heard Deffto's voice.
And without a moment's hesitation,
it leapt.
---
The Descent
The Doma dove from the surface of the sky-ocean,
cutting through layers of water like a divine arrow
its long glowing tail leaving behind trails of color that painted the sky.
As it pierced through the lower clouds and descended into the air of Delltanoss,
light exploded across the heavens.
Every being below stopped.
Even the elders.
Even the children.
They looked up.
"A… Doma…?"
"But… who could have called it?"
"Who is worthy?"
The entire land was bathed in shimmering starlight,
and gasps echoed like soft thunder across the glade.
---
The Chase of Light
Without touching the ground,
the Doma ran through the air,
its paws gliding over wind currents,
racing toward a single point:
The cave.
Among the crowd,
Hobo Nor Sibion stood in silent awe.
He had never .. in his entire life ...
seen a Doma respond to a call this fast.
And never to someone… like Defftomon.
---
The Cave Within
Deffto was still seated.
Still whispering.
"...Doma...
Doma...
I know I'm grey…
But I… I still believe…"
He hadn't opened his eyes.
Not even once.
The cave was dim.
Quiet.
Cold.
Until it wasn't.
---
The Touch of Recognition
The Doma entered.
Floating.
Silent.
It did not roar.
It did not howl.
It simply approached…
Lowered its head…
And gently pressed its forehead against Deffto's.
And in that moment
A cosmic bloom exploded in silence.
Light burst from Deffto's skin,
flowing like rivers through his veins,
cascading through his limbs like awakened stars.
His once dull, pale form began to glow.
And then ... colors emerged.
Thousands… millions… of colors
never seen before by the eye
began dancing along his back,
his face, his wings, his tail
until even the walls of the cave began to pulse with radiant hues.
His tail shimmered with liquid light,
his hair floated in the glow like a girl's hair drifting underwater —
delicate, ethereal, dreamlike.
---
Deffto slowly opened his eyes.
He was still himself.
Still the same boy…
But now...
He wasn't grey anymore.
He was everything the light had forgotten.