The season had changed its coat once again. Gone with the piercing cold and dove-white snow, everything was now the warm and lively color of the coming spring.
Months had passed since Azar became a human, and in that time, he had witnessed both the good and the bad that humans had to offer. He had become more acquainted with walking among humans, but he would rather not if he had a choice. While he was grateful toward those who had shown him that humans were also capable of kindness and care, they also showed him that they could be very cruel and heartless, even toward their own kind. Which made him look upon humans in a new light, but for the most part, a new but much lower view of them.
That was why he was glad that at the moment, he was traveling alone, through the unknown wood. The last time he contacted humans was a week ago when he stopped at a small village to find some supplies.
The food and silver he gained from his time at Oaktown were all drained. As a result, he was once again empty-handed. However, with his knives and experience, Azar could now hunt small animals and cook his meal, rather than rely on humans and silver for food. As such, his physical condition had gone much better after months of being well-fed and exercised.
Azar could finally start picking up the pace. During winter, he could not travel fast and far due to extreme weather conditions, but now, when the sky was clear and warm, Azar hoped that he could reach his destination faster.
And after what happened in Oaktown, Azar finally understood what Godlike luck ability looked like. That tree falling on his enemy came out of nowhere. Though Azar still believed that maybe he could have defeated all of them by himself, it felt good, knowing God was watching over him.
Peaceful, his journey had been, since Oaktown. The secret toward it was simply ignoring any contact with humans. Azar tried to minimize the time he needed to even step close to a human. And thus, he found that his life had been much easier. However, deep down, Azar understood that he wasn’t doing exactly what God wanted of him. He was supposed to live the life of a human, to understand them, to even help them to some extent, but what he was trying to do was avoid them, avoiding his problems.
But it was just so tempting for him. From sunrise to sunset, it was nothing around him but peace and quiet, no more suffering, no more contact with disgusting humans, no more potential threat from all those corrupted souls.
Each night, Azar looked upon the sky and wondered to himself,
“What’s going on in my kingdom right now?”
Though he was no longer the Demon King, he wasn’t even a dragon anymore, but his heart still ached for his people and kingdom. Inside his head, questions like “Who is leading my kingdom right now ? How is the war going ? …” kept popping up. And one night, it was just too much for him. He could not sleep. Azar sighed. The moon shined too bright tonight, he blamed. Finally, Azar decided to take a short walk to clear his mind.
Azar was sent there by God with the mission to save the world by leading mankind. However, ever since he stepped foot in the land of humans, he hadn’t helped a single human. In fact, all Azar did was receive help from them. God had proven that he had held his end of the bargain, and it was time for Azar to fulfill his. He kept telling himself that it was ok. God did tell them that his first mission was supposed to be 10 years long anyway. There should be plenty more chances for him.
Suddenly, in the corner of his ears, Azar heard an unusual sound, unlike anything he had ever heard before since he became a human. No animal Azar had ever known, living in woods, made that kind of sound. It was almost like a mixture of sound, laughter, and crying, like something that was both sad and happy at the same time. His instinct told him to stay away from the sound. It was like a classic ghost story where the main character stupidly followed the voice and got himself killed. But his curiosity got the better of him. Azar slowly and carefully headed toward where the voice came from. And when he saw the source of the noise, Azar understood why it sounded so weird.
“No, please ! !!!” a desperate pleading from a little girl. Her voice almost cracked, possibly due to screaming for too long. She was young, no older than Azar by the look of her. She had smooth pearl white skin, long honey blonde hair and piercing blue eyes. But Azar could not see her face clearly. It was because she was covered with dirt and bruises. And the cause of it was sitting on top of her.
“Don’t you just love it when they struggle, Darius ?”
“You know it, Ed. Come on, hurry up, I can’t wait !!!”
There were two older adult humans male, one sitting on top of her, while the other holding her by the arms. They looked like brothers by the similarity of their appearance. Both had curly short raven-black hair, a big nose, dark brown eyes, crooked yellow teeth, and their forehead already had some wrinkles. Those two weren’t much of a looker. Their faces gave Azar the instant sense of danger and evil, or was it just because Azar had not gotten used to how humans were supposed to look? Azar wondered. However, their shape was much better than the three crooks he faced back in Oaktown. They were both much bulkier. With many scars on their arms and faces, showing signs of skilled and experienced fighters, not just small-time criminals like those three.
Azar evaluated the situation he was in. Though he was somewhat stronger now since those first days, it would be very unwise of him to think he would be strong enough to win against two fully grown adult human males with good physical condition and fighting experience. Azar at the time was still just a small human boy, no older than 8 years old, as far as the last time he checked. So he decided that he wouldn’t want any trouble and just walked away this time. There would be many more chances for him to save someone, Azar kept on telling himself,
“And besides, what could humans do to a little girl of their own kind? Not even they could be so savage...”. But then Azar heard something disturbing, screeching at the corner of his ears.
“Come, sweety, give uncle Ed some sugar !” The man on top of the little girl leaned down tried to force a kiss on her. But the little girl, of course, refused and bit his lips in return. The man, Ed, pulled back and screamed as blood dripped down from his lips.
“You little BITCH !”
“Just wait until my father finds you! He will kill you all !” the girl shouted. But all she got in return was laughter from the two men.
“Your father !? Hahahaha ..” The man who was holding her arms, Darius, told her, “Don’t you realize it by now, Who do you think sold you to us huh !?”
The little girl’s face turned grim, and her eyes filled with dismay,
“No,... you’re lying, … he would never !”
“And you are only worth 50 silver,” Darius continued. “That's how much your life is worth !”
“You bit my lips you bitch !” Ed went mad and punched the little girl in the head senselessly.
From a good distance away, Azar was watching and listening to everything. His fists were clenched tight, so tight that his fingernails were cutting into his palms as blood was leaking down from his hands. His whole body was shaking in rage. He was breathing heavily like a mad bull ready to charge. His eyes were fixated on what was happening. And at the time, one thing was certain: those were the eyes of a dragon. Azar could not believe what those men were trying to do. She was only a child. How can humans be so cruel and disgusting? He felt tightening in his chest. He felt enraged because of the human’s action. But deep down, what Azar felt the most was the shame of what he was doing. Ever since he came here, Azar had forgotten his first lesson when he was a young dragon,
“No one is born brave, but life will give you the opportunity to become brave.”
It was his first lesson, teaching him that it was ok to feel scared, to be afraid. No one was destined to be brave, but you can not let fear take over and let them cloud your judgment. Times like those when you felt scared when you were afraid, those were the signs from the world, telling you that it was your chance to do something, to push yourself beyond your fear, to become brave.
Azar felt so ashamed of himself. He kept saying that it was ok and he was looking the other way only because it was logical. After all, they were human, and he was a dragon. But in reality, he was just lying to himself. It was because he was scared. A dragon was so afraid of humans, so scared for his life, that he let fear intoxicate his mind. He was going to let a defenseless innocent little child get hurt rather than stepping in. Azar grew mad. He punched himself in the face due to sheer embarrassment. It did not matter who he was or who she was, it was wrong, and someone needed to help her.
“That is enough! No more running! No more making excuses !” He grunted.
Back on the nightmarish field, Ed had punched the little girl senselessly, to a point where no one could tell what her face looked like anymore. Her face was covered with bruises and blood. The little girl was coming in and out of consciousness. She had stopped screaming after the fourth or fifth punch. Now she only managed to shed some tears, running down her bruised eyes.
“Come on Ed, don’t kill her. I haven’t got my turn yet.”
“But brother, she made me bleed !”
The two spoke like they had done nothing wrong. But then, in the corner of the eyes, they sensed something. Ed ducked back in a hustle, something just came at him from behind, and it had left a shallow cut on his left cheek. Darius dragged the little girl back away from the shadowy figure. Of course, it was Azar, both knives in hands, with ember eyes that were burning with all the heat of his anger, and blood was still dripping down his palms. But, however ominous and threatening Azar may look, he was still in a body of a human child, so both Ed and Darius reactions were
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“HAhaha !” They laughed their asses off at the figure of a small human child, with his blood dripping down his weapon, trying to look threatening.
“And who are you supposed to be !?” Ed jokingly asked, “The skinny knight ?!”
“Look Ed, this kid thinks he is some kind of hero !” Darius turned toward Ed. “And I think he cut his own hands by mistake.” They kept laughing at him.
“Oh good God, this is priceless !” Ed said.
“God is not on your side. Not tonight !” Azar chillingly answered them.
Darius said in a taunting tone. “Go home kid, before we kill you. Trust me, it would be easy, like breaking a toothpick.”
“What are you saying, brother? He cut my cheek, he is going to pay no matter what !”
Azar needed to think of something quick. His initial plan of a surprise attack had failed. And now, his first mission was to separate them from the little girl. Azar could not fight them freely, knowing one of them could harm her at any second. So instead, he needed to grab their full attention, make them mad and lose their interest in her for the moment. And Azar thought he knew exactly how.
“Look at you pathetic human, beating up a little girl….” Azar carefully took a step back first. “Does that make you feel strong ...? Does that make you feel valuable ...? I can’t ever understand you DISGUSTING and PATHETIC humans, why would you even do something like that to a little child ! What kind of joy do you find from it !?”
“Last warning, kid ….” The two humans reached for their weapons.
“If only you’re as wise as you’re corrupted. Then perhaps you might be able to see the light of tomorrow’s sun.” Azar stared into their eyes tauntingly.
They grabbed their axes and charged at Azar, who instantly turned his back and bolted toward the woods. Azar was easy prey for them. They had seen this a thousand times before, a defenseless little child running away from them. So the two were just mindlessly chasing after Azar into the darkness of the wood. However, those two were in good physical condition, and as such, they quickly caught up to Azar.
Azar stood his ground. He was blocked on both sides, and all he had left to rely on was his skill and experience.
The two took out their axes and dashed toward Azar simultaneously. Azar had been in that situation before, though, of course, not in a small human body. He stood still, seemingly unable to react. They came closer and closer, and only when they both started to swing their axes down did Azar start to dodge. His small and thin body also gave him a sort of an advantage. It was harder for them to hit him and easier for Azar to dodge. With a swift backward rollover, Azar managed to escape their charge unharmed. In addition, there was a bonus, their blind rage combined with Azar’s timing had caused them to hurt themself. Ed chopped down on Darius' shoulder while Darius swung at Ed’s thigh. They could not stop their momentum quick enough when they attacked the small and thin Azar and ended up injuring each other by mistake.
“Wow, you guys suck at this, don’t you.” Azar continued to taunt them, “Tell me, are those scars on you because of wars and combat, or are they because you two made a mistake !?”
Even more furious at Azar, the two charged at him together once more. But again, Azar just bought some time, running off in a different direction. However, this time, he knew that one of them was hit in the thigh, and sooner or later, he would drop back. And as Azar suspected, Ed’s thigh injury forced him to stay behind not long after the chase began. Only the injured Darius was chasing after him.
Not long after, Darious caught up with him, and Azar once again had to stand his ground. He was also tired at this point. The human body of the small boy was reaching its limit. Darius swung his axe like a mad man. Each time he attacked, Azar could hear the sound of the axe cutting through the air. It seemed like Azar was not so fortunate. Darius was injured on his left shoulder while he was right-handed. Azar started to sweat a bucket as he tried to dodge and block Darius’ vicious attacks. His human body had been holding on very well, but it was not good enough. Finally, after a couple of minutes, Azar was overpowered by Darius. Darius slammed his axe so hard that it knocked Azar's balance right off. A swift and powerful kick later, and Azar was sent flying back, smashing his body against a tree. Darius quickly ran at Azar and held him by the throat. He lifted Azar into the air like he had no weight at all.
“Any last word before I crack your head like a coconut, you little shit !?” Darius raised his axe.
While Azar was thinking about what he could do to get out of that situation, a sweet and alluring smell got his attention. Which made him wonder for a second what kind of tree he was under. Azar tried and punched Darius' injured shoulder, but it did nothing, his grip was still strong, and he choked Azar in return, squeezing the air out of Azar’s body.
“Wrong choice, brat! Time to die !” Darius began to swing his axe. But then, out of the blue, a big and spiky thing fell out of nowhere, hitting Darius straight on the head. Darius was instantly knocked out cold, letting go of Azar and crumbled to the ground. Azar took no chance. He grabbed hold of Darius' axe. With one good chop, Azar cleaved Darius' head clean off. Finally, Azar could sit and catch his breath.
Still gasping for air, Azar took a look at what had just knocked Darius out. And just as he thought, the smell, the outside texture, it was a big jackfruit, just like a rose, the more beautiful the flower, the sharper the thorns. Jackfruit was ellipsoidal and aggregate, composed of multiple “bulbs” of seed-containing flesh around a stringy core, all of which was enclosed by a bumpy rind. The flesh was very sweet and tender, making it a delicious and well-known fruit. However, it was covered with spikes on the outside and could weigh up to 40 pounds (18kg) and reach 2 feet long (60cm).
The one that hit Darius on the head was about half that maximum size. However, Azar noticed that jackfruit was supposed to ripe around summer or, for some, late autumn, but he was in the middle of spring. There shouldn’t be something as big as this one falling from that high. And once again, Azar quickly recognized the work of some mythical power. He looked up to the sky once more and smiled.
“I guess I owe you another one…” he raised his right hand and gave a thumb up.
The injured Ed had to make his way back to the injured little girl on the field. However, with all his heart, he knew for certain that Darius would make quick work of the little boy. So he instead got back to what he was about to do before Azar disrupted him.
He slowly walked toward the little girl lying motionlessly on the ground after that beating she took.
“Now where were we ?” Ed said in a chilling tone.
“We’re at the part where I'm about to kill you !” an irritatingly familiar voice came toward Ed’s ear. He turned around and saw Azar, a little sweaty and dirty but still very much unscathed.
“You !!? Where is my brother !?”
“Not your problem right now.” Azar coldly responded, “I am !”.
Ed just blindly charged forward. Azar was just a child, after all. What was there to be scared of? All of a sudden, Azar threw something at Ed. It was big and had an odd shape. Ed could not make out what it was in that dim night light. But then, when it came closer, Ed saw what it was, the hair, the scars, the eyes. It was Darius, his brother’s head. Ed’s leg was rooted to the ground as he screamed his lung out in fear. He was holding his own brother’s head. Ed’s head went blank, all he could think of was the image off his brother’s head, and he had forgotten he had an opponent in front of him. Taking advantage of Ed’s position, Azar dashed in and delivered a fatal blow. Azar hammered down and cracked Ed’s skull right in the middle with the same axe he used to kill Darius. There was almost no time for Ed to feel the pain of impact before Azar finished the job with the slit of the throat. Both brothers had died in the hand of the same person, or to be more accurate, a dragon.
Azar headed toward the injured little human girl in a hustle. Looking at her, all bruised and bleeding, Azar felt a sharp pain in his chest.
“Hey, kid! Are you still with me !? Come on, give me a sign !”
The little girl had almost no strength left in her body. Her tears were all but dried out. But her survival instinct still pushed through.
“He...lp… plea...sea”, the little girl muttered...
“It’s gonna be ok. I’m here now !” Azar tried to calm her nerves. But looking at her condition, he knew that her body was heavily injured. Multiple bone fractures in the face and skull, and based on the bruises on her body, possibly broken ribs as well. She was not going to make it. She had a couple of hours at best. She needed instant medical care, but Azar did not know how to. He no longer had any healing magic, nor did he know that level of medical care for a human.
“Ok listen to me, who are you !? Do you live near here !?” Azar desperately needed her to stay awake.
“Sasha… Olivera… I don’t know … where I am …” she whispered. That was not what Azar wanted to hear. The last time he saw a human town or village was nearly one week ago, back south. There was no way she was going to make it that long. But, on the other hand, the fact that those two humans took her here to do their inhuman bidding indicated that there should be some kind of a town or at least a house nearby.
“Please… I don’t … want to die … I’m scared…” the little girl pleaded to him.
Azar started to blame himself. If only he stepped in sooner, then maybe … He quickly shook his head and washed away those thoughts. But it wasn’t over yet. Azar carefully picked the young girl up and held her within his arms. He looked upon the sky and asked for guidance.
“God, listen, I know I made a mistake. But punish me instead, not this little girl” unknowingly, tears started to run down from his eyes. There was no special sign, but Azar still remembered one thing God had told him.
“Follow the North Star,” And that was exactly what he did. With all his strength, Azar ran toward the North Star.
“Please give me strength !” he shouted out to the moon. Azar ran and ran, even though he was gasping for air, even though he could feel her legs were shaking and tired. Azar kept on pushing through the pain.
“Follow the North Star.” he kept whispering those words. As time went by, the little girl, Sasha, was getting worse and worse. Her skin was losing color with every step he took, Azar could feel the warmth leaving her body, and her heartbeat was losing its rhythm. She now looked as pale as a corpse. As the two-hour mark passed, he could tell that she was getting colder and her breath was getting weaker. Yet, Azar still refused to give up on her. He started to shout for help while running. His legs were like they were running on fire at that point. Every muscle in his body was aching and begging him to give up. He was covered with scratches and blood from all of the injuries he received, trying to run through the woods at full speed with a young girl in his arms. His eyes were all teary, and he was gasping for every breath. And the pain he felt from his lungs with every breath he took was like getting his chest crushed by a hammer constantly. But then, at the exact moment when his legs were about to crumble, Azar saw a town.
Like a second wind, Azar found the strength back on his feet. He marched forward and started yelling his lungs out for help. He slammed on every door in that small town, but no one responded to him. It was late at night, and everyone was either asleep or just ignored the little boy crying for help. Azar still refused to stop. He had come so close. There was no way he was going to give up now. And then something caught his eyes. There was a building that had a very familiar symbol at the front. It was the same symbol that the female human priestess had on her the day he was killed. It was their symbol for God. He ran toward that building with all his strength and almost stumbled several times. He slammed on the door violently and screamed from the bottom of his lungs. Still no response, but he kept on shouting and slamming the door.
“COME ON! GOD! YOU PROMISED! HELP ME NOW !”
The door suddenly burst open, and a middle-aged female human stood before him. She was wearing a black and white rope, covering head to toe.
“What is the meaning of this !” she shouted at him. Azar pointed toward the little girl and told her.
“HELP !” he gasped for air and could barely put two words together. “SHE IS DYING! PLEASE !”
The female human quickly checked on Sasha. Her eyes widened in shock, and her face turned frightened.
“Sisters! Come quick !” She took Sasha's lifeless body into the building and called for help. More noise and more humans came toward her calling. Finally, Azar collapsed on the ground to sheer exhaustion.
After hours, they finally got Sasha's condition stable again. Then, the middle-aged nun suddenly recalled the little injured boy who had carried that girl here. He was injured as well, and he looked very pale. She feared for the worst as she was too focused on the little girl she had forgotten about him. But when she got to the front door, there was no one there.