The bustle of a street market is the same wherever you go, the sound of noisy vendors screaming their wares, of customers bickering over prices and of the odd dragon roar. Wait, a dragon???

Excitedly I make my way over to the caged creature that bears a striking resemblance to a dragon. Alpha seems unperturbed over the noisy atmosphere but as soon as he heard the creature, he perked up. He seemed to be looking around, searching for the creature. Everyone around me seemed unconcerned that I was holding a wolf pup in my hands, very odd.

"Come one, come all, see the magnificent spell casting lizard," said the thin man standing beside the cage.

Seeing me rush towards the creature, a man stopped me.

"Relax, it is not a real Sylverra, it is only a Dragon," he said nonchalantly, almost sneering at the man beside the Dragon.

BUT ITS A DRAGON, I screamed in my head, but staving off my curiosity I asked the man what a Sylverra was.

"Did your school not teach you anything? A Sylverra is the mightiest of Beasts, one that can perform spells, much like us humans, no other tamable creature can perform spells," he boasted his knowledge.

Pushing down my urge to question him about spells, I say," what does a Sylverra look like?"

"Oh it can be anything, a Sylverra is not a particular Beast but is a Beast with the capability to perform spells."

"So why cant that Dragon be a Sylverra?" I question

"That man has been coming here for 10 years, the so-called Sylverra has never shown any of its ability, all of us know it is not a real one. If he actually had a Sylverra, even people from further down The Road would come to forcefully take it away," he replies with ease.

"The Road?" I ask confused.

He looks at me suspiciously, "You don't know what The Road is?"

"Uhh, I didn't pay much attention in school," I reply, hoping my very weak excuse doesn't fall in shambles.

He looks even more suspicious but he decides to explain," The World of Lohmar is not shaped like many other planets, instead its territory extends straight down, it keeps going on and on, we call it The Road. The further you travel down The Road, the stronger you have to be to survive. Sylverras are very rare, even much stronger people from further down The Road would kill to get one.

I thank the man and I continue to walk to the Dragon, Alpha is staring at the massive creature, I think he is impressed with it but I might be wrong. The man next to the Dragon sees me approaching and motions me to come closer. I stand next to the man and ask him if the creature breathes fire.

He smirks and says, "it does what you want it to do as long as you can pay up."

I roll my eyes and answer resolutely, "I am not paying for anything."

The man, now thoroughly annoyed, tells me to screw off. Alpha growls at him and I take the very obvious cue and leave. After asking around, I am redirected to the Beast Sanctuary. It is a massive compound with different buildings placed around the area.

A huge forest is situated in the middle and the view from the entrance into the Sanctuary is breathtaking. If this is only one of the cities major attractions, how big is this city? Alpha seems really excited by the place, I wanted to come here to find out information on raising a Beast and what I should give it to eat. I stroke his furry head and tell him to relax.

"Stop, are you a member of the Sanctuary or is this your first time here?" asks a commanding voice.

I turn to the figure next to the gates and say," Member? Do I have to be a member to enter?"

"No, but you will have to pay a fee every time you enter the Sanctuary. The fee is 2 Energy Points, if you want to become a member, you will get lifetime access for free. The membership fee is only 5 Energy Points."

Not wanting to pay a one time fee every time, I opt for the membership. Quickly paying 5 Energy Points, I get handed a metal card with my name and picture on it. He took a picture of me using some sort of scanning device, it looked very sleek and futuristic. Thanking the man, I enter into the Sanctuary, I am astounded by the sudden amount of noise I hear. The shrieks of shrill birds, the trumpeting of towering elephants, and various noises of animals I cannot identify blend into a magnificent cacophony.

I look around to see numerous Beasts littered around the huge plains of the Sanctuary. My jaw slackens in astonishment, the sight is a spectacle to behold.

"Close your mouth kid," a female smirks as she speaks.

"What is this place? It seems like a haven for animals," I respond still in shock.

"This place? Why this is the Beast Sanctuary," she answers with obvious pride.

The woman is sitting on an ostrich-like beast with a long tail, it seems to be pawing the ground, excited to run.

I push down my excitement and ask her the question I came here to ask.

"What is that creature?," I ask in amazement

"Its a Taich, its pretty harmless actually but its used as a mode of transport, it runs very fast and can pull a lot of weight. My name is O'Lam by the way."

"Mine is Ashwin, nice to meet you. If you dont mind my asking, what is the Taich called?," I say as politely as possible.

"This Taich responds to the name March. What have you in your hands, is that a wolf?"she asks with increasing curiosity.

"I think so, I found him in the woods near the Elder City," I say rapidly.

"I dont think there are any wolves in Elder Forest, we might have to check its species later," she responds.

"I have a lot of questions about rearing and feeding Beasts, do you time to answer my doubts?" I question

"How about you come into the lodge, lets sit down and have a little chat," she says.

"Sure, lets do that."