The inhabitants were preparing themselves for the festival of the snake deity. These strange, slender people with big eyes and narrow noses almost seemed like reptiles themselves. 

They cared a lot about their celestial animal because it was the one they loved and related to most. They were treated the same way, being viewed as outsiders and the source of all evil. 

The women in the village were carrying water vases when they heard a loud noise at the village gate.

“Intruder! Bring me a pitchfork, and I'll take care of her!

“No! A hatchet! Get a hatchet! We're under attack!” A group of men shouted over each other.

Aya, the youngest of the village women, was trying to take a look. Shouting men created a wall that was difficult to pass through, but ultimately, she managed to investigate. 

She gasped. There was a woman lying on the ground. Her clothes were dirty, and she looked like she had been walking for a long time. Aya was able to catch a brief glimpse of her face before someone attempted to pull her back. “No, wait!” She struggled against the person who grabbed her. “Don't you see her face?”

The group of men suddenly got quiet. The unknown person looked up.
One of the men exclaimed,  “Mark of the Twilight Mother!”

Aya appeared beside her, offering a hand. She helped the stranger get up, but the stranger was silent. “Let's get her to the chieftain.” 

The group of pale people helped her get to the main hall. They walked by some shabby-looking tiny dwellings. The hot cobblestone was burning the mysterious woman's feet, as her shoes had nasty holes underneath. Each step brought her discomfort, but none greater than the one she had in her head.

She noticed a branch of herbs hanging by the door frame as they approached the main hall's entrance. The door squeaked loudly, and the smell of dust penetrated her nostrils. The inside was dark, but she could clearly see the silhouette of a person inside.

 
“Come in,” he said. It was a middle-aged man who was tall and round. He smiled at the mysterious woman, which made her feel like he had good intentions. “Who is this?” he asked. “What is her name, and what is she doing in here?”

Aya came closer to her. “We are uncertain. We're here to let you know that we found her at the village gate. She was alone, sire.”

The chieftain looked at the mysterious woman. “Hmm, so what is your name?” he asked again. She wanted to respond, but the only thing she remembered was Raajimera. She had a feeling that it was not her own, but her mind was empty. The mysterious woman looked down. A sudden flash of light lit her face. The chieftain squinted his eyes and lifted the hair from her forehead. “Oh,” he said to himself.

Aya looked at him and said, “What happened? Is it about the mark?”

“Well,” he started. “It seems like our prayers have finally been heard, We might have gotten the Snake Queen in front of us, but she doesn't speak. She seems to be in shock. ”

One of the men from the group shouted, “Snake Queen? Chieftain, are you sure?”

Raajimera didn't understand.

“She has to be treated as such if she is, but we can't be sure right now. Please provide her with the best clothes we have and feed her properly. I suppose if she rests, she will speak and relieve our uncertainty,” the chieftain said as he settled into his chair.

Aya grabbed Raajimera by the hand and led her outside. They appeared in front of a building that looked slightly better than the rest. Without a moment of hesitation, the young girl opened the door. 

The interior was lovely. All those fancy pillows and fancy ornaments. It was hard to believe it was still a part of the village. 

Raajimera sat on an ottoman at the side of the room. Aya opened the wooden wardrobe, which was located in the corner. She was trying to find something inside. Finally, a beautiful black outfit was presented to Raajimera.

“This is for you. You understand me, don't you?” Aya looked her straight in the eyes. Raajimera gave a nod and took the present. Despite this, she remained silent. 

Aya remarked with a cheerful tone, “If you are not ready to speak, I shall speak on behalf of both of us.” 

Raajimera looked at her with confusion.

“Right, ah. There is a folding screen if you need privacy.”

The strange woman nodded again and then disappeared. Aya began scouring the place for her gear. Her rummaging was interrupted by Raajimera's return.

“Here you are,” she said. “Please sit down and let me brush your hair.”

The strange woman returned to her previous spot. She felt awkward, but the kindness of this girl made her feel… warm inside?

Aya sat next to her with an adorned brush in her hand and grabbed a strand of her hair.

“So, how did you get that mark of yours? Can you recall?”

Raajimera shook her head in disagreement. 

“No? Do you know what it represents?”

The strange woman shook her head once again.

“Also no? Well, that's fine. I might be able to clarify things by telling you about our village. We worship one of the spirit animals here in Duskvale. The snake. She must have brought you to us after hearing our prayers. It's strange that you don't remember how you got it; it is a great honor to bear the mark of the snake. The Twilight Mother is a good deity. She listens to us and eases our pain, but our village is weak.” She paused for a while. 

Raajimera veered around, trying to catch a glimpse of her.

Aya caught her stare and remembered that she was supposed to speak.

“I'm sorry, I got lost in my thoughts,” she said. “Our village is one of the few places in this area that are still free. Hazyan Empire raids us from time to time. Terrible people. They hate us and our cult of the snake. They want to take over Duskvale. We have been praying to the Twilight Mother for months, hoping she would help us. We began to believe that she had abandoned us, and then you arrived. The Twilight Mother wouldn't send us a bad person; maybe with your help,” she interrupted.

Raajimera glanced at her and touched her hand with a bitter smile.

“We have always had this thing called a prophecy. The story revolves around a powerful duo of heroes, the Snake King and Snake Queen. It was believed that a snake ruler would appear and choose a partner among our people to lead our village to greatness. It is necessary for us to know if it is about you, but if it is, you will need to pick the Snake King out of our finest men.”

The strange woman wanted to tell her that she probably listens to too many stories around this age, but she didn't want to speak just yet. Aya would start asking questions about her story, and she didn't want to disclose them. She had no idea what her name was, but she refused to use the one given to her by Raa.

Aya finished brushing her hair, helped her get up, and led her to the mirror.

“You look good, don't you?” she asked.

Raajimera looked at her reflection. The outfit was beautiful, but as she admired it, her eyes wandered straight to her face. She touched her forehead. So this is what that cursed mark looks like. This was the first time that she had ever seen it, but she already hated it so much. This must have been why she remembers nothing. It was the damned snake goddess. She must have stolen her memories from her; after all, she wouldn't willingly give them up, would she? What kind of person was she to end up with this mark?

Aya interrupted her inner monologue when she touched her shoulder.

“Are you okay — ?”

Somebody knocked on the window. Aya opened it. It was one of the village men. 

“Hey, are you done? The chieftain told me to bring the both of you to a special feast. The food is almost ready; don't make us wait!”

“Have you heard? I hope you're hungry.” Aya smiled at her guest.

Raajimera didn't think about it until now, but her stomach was indeed empty. All that anxiety and confusion must have clouded her mind. She nodded. 

They got back out on the street. Everybody must have been at the feast already. The chieftain peaked from behind the wall of his office.

“Hurry! We are waiting for you!”

Everyone in the village must have put all of their house tables together. There were plenty of mismatched pieces of furniture bending under the delicious food. 

The villagers were sitting by the table, chattering happily. The chieftain asked Raajimera to sit on his right side. She was so hungry.

“Treat yourself,” he said. The woman didn't have to hear it twice. Her stomach was churning. 

Aya handed her a platter of succulent roasted meat. Apparently, table manners were among the things erased by the Twilight Mother. Raajimera was messy and got hiccups, but she ate quickly.

The chieftain chuckled. “You haven't eaten in a while, haven't you?”

Raajimera nodded and tried to find something to clean her oily hands with.  

A villager handed her a napkin.

“Please tell us about yourself when you can, but make yourself at home.”

She looked at him with misery in her eyes.

“There's no pressure.” The chieftain placed his hand on her shoulder. “You can eat whatever you wish. We're going to be dancing soon; you can either join us or not. It's okay if you want to stay here. We'll show you your new place after this feast is over. You're welcome to stay as long as you please.”

Raajimera felt uneasy, yet she resumed eating. She had more food, like meat, fruits, and vegetables. They tried giving her wine, but she didn't like how bitter it tasted.

She felt like she was about to roll like a ball. Eating quickly made her feel sick. When they asked her to dance with them, she refused. 

Aya noticed that she was not feeling well and told the leader. They decided to let her rest and relax. 

Aya escorted her to a room on the upper floor of their inn. The space seemed drab, but it felt cozy. Raajimera sat on the bed and brushed the fluffy blanket with her fingertips.

“I'll return to the feast if you don't mind. I'll give you some time to rest. See you tomorrow.” Aya looked at her with concern. 

Raajimera nodded and waved her hand at the girl.

The door was shut tightly. 

It was silent. She peeked through the window and noticed a group of seemingly happy people dancing around the bonfire. 

She let out a sigh and climbed back onto the bed. The mattress felt rough, but not too much. She covered her head with the blanket. Suddenly, she heard a faint thump.

“What was that?” she thought to herself and lifted her blanket. She was looked at by two beady reptile eyes.

“HI!!!” 

She came close to tumbling off the bed. It was a small snake, and it was talking to her. TALKING?

“Hello! I noticed you were here.” The snake said, “I know that you are now one of us. You can speak my language. Try it!”

“What?” She whispered. She was unaware that she could communicate with animals.

“Don't be scared; they won't understand it anyway.”

Raajimera was confused. The woman scratched her head. “How did you know about me?”

“Us snakes are connected into one big mental network. We can share information easily. I was notified that you were blessed by Raa. Congratulations!”

“Blessed? You mean, she stole my memories and gave me a mark?”

“Stole? No, no, no. She is not a thief. According to my knowledge, you two came to an agreement, and you were the one who initiated it.”

“Me? But why can't I recall it?”

“She turned you into a demigoddess; you can't achieve greatness with the weight of the past dragging you down, don't you think?”

“Demigoddess? But I am just a regular person.”

“No, that's who you BELIEVE you are. When you sealed your deal, what name did she give you? It's Raajimera, right?”

“…right.”

“Are you aware of its meaning? It means 'Raa's chosen'. She must have seen something in you that you don't.”

“If you know all of that, can you tell me who I was and what name I had before the deal?”

“Unfortunately, no. That information was lost during the process. From what I know, you can't get it back. Ever. Sorry.”

Raajimera looked downcast. “I want to be myself with my own name.”

“But you are. Your name is not what defines you. Listen, you can't get back to whom you once were, but you can build a bright future for yourself. You have to accept your new name to truly become one of us and be able to use your demigod powers. Do you know what my name is? It's Feng.”

“They named you Feng?”

“It's Fang, actually, but they call me Feng because I'm silly.” The snake swung back and hissed with its head upside-down, touching the ground. “And you know what? I just went with it.” The snake came back to its original position. “I don't care what they call me because I know who I am. Soon, you will as well.”

Raajimera patted the snake's head.

 
“Soon you will be the demigoddess you were meant to be, but let me tell you what.” Feng lowered its voice. “I've been in this village for quite a while. The goddess needs you to help them. You better start talking to them quick because, by the looks of it, they don't have much time left.”

Suddenly, Raajimera felt much sadder. Tears gathered in her eyes.

“Oh, come on, don't you cry.” The snake curled up beside her. “I'll be your friend, and I'll help you. Everything will be okay.”

Both of them fell asleep under the radiant moonlight, which glimmered into the room with timidity.