A New Face, A New Beginning
1246 Words
The journey down the mountain took nearly an entire day.
By the time Astera reached the nearest town, the sun had begun to sink behind the distant peaks, painting the sky with shades of orange, crimson, and gold.
The bustling marketplace was overflowing with life.
Merchants loudly advertised their goods.
Blacksmiths hammered glowing metal.
Children chased one another between colorful stalls.
Travelers from every pack filled the streets, carrying supplies, laughing with friends, and bargaining over prices.
The rich aroma of roasted meat, fresh bread, herbs, and sweet pastries drifted through the evening air.
Life continued peacefully.
As though nothing had happened.
As though somewhere behind those mountains, a young woman hadn't been sentenced to a death no one had ever survived.
Astera lowered her head and quietly blended into the moving crowd.
Every unfamiliar face made her instinctively pull her hood lower.
She wasn't afraid...
Not anymore.
She simply couldn't afford to be recognized.
Soft footsteps echoed behind her.
She didn't need to turn around.
She already knew who it was.
The tiny dragon faithfully followed her through the crowded streets.
Its fluffy red-and-golden fur made it resemble an unusually round kitten more than a legendary beast.
Several children pointed at it excitedly.
"What a cute little animal!"
"I've never seen one before."
One little girl even tried to pet it.
The tiny dragon proudly puffed out its chest before hiding behind Astera's leg.
Astera sighed quietly.
"So you're brave only around me."
The little creature peeked out and gave a tiny chirp.
Despite herself...
The corner of Astera's lips almost moved.
Almost.
She quickly looked away.
Not now.
She couldn't allow herself moments like that.
Not yet.
After asking a few shopkeepers for directions, she found a small tailor's shop with rooms available upstairs.
The elderly owner welcomed her kindly.
"You look exhausted, young lady."
"I'd like to rent a room."
"Only for tonight?"
"For a few hours."
The woman nodded without asking questions.
"Second door on the left."
Astera thanked her softly before climbing the wooden staircase.
The room was small but clean.
A single bed stood beside the window.
A wooden table occupied one corner.
An old mirror rested against the wall.
The moment the door closed...
Silence surrounded her.
She slowly walked toward the mirror.
For several long moments...
She simply stared.
Ash still covered her face.
Her silver hair was tangled with soot and volcanic dust.
Several strands had been singed by the intense heat.
Tiny cuts lined her hands and arms.
Dark circles rested beneath exhausted silver eyes.
The girl reflected in the mirror looked older than she had only days ago.
Not because of time...
But because of pain.
She gently reached up and touched her own reflection.
"The girl everyone knew..."
"...is gone."
Slowly, she opened a compact metal case from her backpack.
Inside were dozens of tiny compartments filled with carefully labeled bottles, miniature tools, brushes, powders, gears, and crystals.
Each invention had been designed and crafted by her own hands over many years.
She picked up a small crystal vial filled with shimmering blue liquid.
"A temporary botanical dye..."
"I made it for disguises during field research."
She gave a bitter smile.
"I never imagined I'd need it to hide my own identity."
Carefully, she brushed the liquid through her long silver hair.
The transformation happened gradually.
Silver faded.
Deep ocean blue spread from root to tip until every strand reflected the color of calm seas beneath moonlight.
Next came a slim metallic styling device no larger than a fountain pen.
Tiny heating crystals inside it warmed instantly.
With practiced movements, she curled sections of her hair into soft waves, completely changing the shape of her face.
She then opened another compartment.
A few careful touches of makeup softened her sharp features.
Her eyebrows became slightly fuller.
The bridge of her nose appeared different through subtle shading.
Finally, she exchanged her clear spectacles for lightly tinted lenses that gave her silver eyes a deeper blue-gray hue.
She looked into the mirror once more.
The exhausted girl from the volcano had disappeared.
Someone else looked back.
Different.
Ordinary.
Forgettable.
Exactly what she needed.
"...Perfect."
"No one should recognize me."
A sudden crash shattered the silence.
Astera spun around.
The tiny dragon had somehow climbed onto the wooden table in pursuit of a basket filled with apples.
The table wobbled.
The basket tipped over.
Apples rolled across the floor in every direction.
The dragon froze.
It slowly looked up at Astera.
Then looked at the apples.
Then quietly placed one tiny paw over its own eyes...
As if hiding meant it couldn't be seen.
Astera stared.
A long silence followed.
Finally...
"...That doesn't work."
The dragon cautiously uncovered one eye.
Seeing she wasn't shouting, it happily chased one of the rolling apples instead.
Astera rubbed her forehead.
"I told you not to follow me."
The little creature ignored the scolding.
It walked over, gently rubbing its fluffy head against her boot before looking up with bright sapphire-blue eyes.
Astera looked away first.
"...I don't know where I'm going."
"...I don't know who I can trust."
"...I don't even know if I'll survive."
"So why are you following me?"
The dragon answered with another tiny chirp.
Then it curled up against her foot.
As if it had already decided she was home.
Astera remained silent.
She wasn't ready to care about anyone.
Not after betrayal.
Not after abandonment.
Not after hearing people she once trusted condemn her without hesitation.
Yet...
She remembered the tiny crack spreading across the egg.
The frightened little creature struggling to emerge.
The way it had looked at her before anyone else.
She slowly crouched.
"...Fine."
"But only until you're strong enough to survive on your own."
The dragon instantly sprang to its feet, spinning in excited little circles before accidentally bumping into her backpack.
Astera caught the bag before it fell.
"...You're going to be trouble."
Leaving the room, she returned to the lively marketplace.
She bought a tiny leather harness, a travel bowl, dried meat, fresh milk, and a warm blanket.
The merchant smiled knowingly.
"A gift for your pet?"
Astera hesitated.
"...Companion."
The word escaped before she could stop it.
She frowned at herself.
The dragon, meanwhile, buried its face in the bowl of milk with such enthusiasm that milk splashed all over its nose.
Astera silently handed it a cloth.
"You've somehow managed to wear your dinner."
The dragon blinked.
Ignored the cloth.
And proudly licked its own face clean.
"...Hopeless."
Night settled over the town.
Golden lanterns illuminated every street.
Music drifted from nearby taverns.
Families laughed together.
For the first time since everything had fallen apart...
Astera stood still.
She looked toward the distant volcano.
Its dark silhouette rose against the moonlit sky.
Everyone believed she had died there.
Good.
The dead weren't hunted.
The dead were forgotten.
She adjusted the straps of her backpack.
Her expression became calm.
Resolute.
"The girl they threw into that volcano..."
"...died there."
She turned toward the road stretching into the unknown.
"But I survived."
"And one day..."
"...I'll uncover the truth."
"...And I'll make sure no one ever decides my fate again."
Without looking back, Astera walked into the night.
The tiny dragon hurried after her, its little paws pattering across the stone road.
One girl.
One tiny dragon.
A new face.
A hidden identity.
And the first steps toward a destiny that would one day change the entire Wolf Realm.
- Writer
- chap_listContents
- likeADD