Dustin smiled as his fingers traced the cloud patterns carved into his sword scabbard. He said calmly, "Since you have awakened from your slumber, why are you angry with mortals?"

His gaze swept over the white light surrounding Thymaleon. Those clear eyes seemed to pierce right through him, as if they could read the centuries written in his very bones.

Dustin's sword absorbed the sunlight's warmth, and the turquoise stones along its scabbard seemed to pulse with soft light. A gentle fragrance