It happened on a sweltering summer afternoon, as I returned home to my father's cottage from Dorum. I had spent the past year in Dorum apprenticing with a blacksmith, and the journey back was long and hot. The sun beat down mercilessly after a brief rainshower, leaving the air steamy and my linen shirt plastered to my skin. I was lingering near the city's eastern gate, hoping to hitch a ride on a merchant's wagon headed my way, when I heard a soft voice call out behind me.
"Excuse me…?"
I turned to find a woman standing there, not just any woman. She was breathtakingly beautiful, with sun-blonde hair in a neat ponytail and eyes as blue as a summer sky. Her figure was willowy and elegant, and she was wearing a flowing dress of pale blue silk, its style unlike any local fashion I knew. I blinked, momentarily at a loss for words. She looked to be around my age and height. And unless my eyes deceived me, two delicately pointed ears peeked out from amidst her golden hair.
An elf? Here? I thought, taken aback. Dorum was a human city; seeing an elf wandering its streets was rare enough, let alone one speaking to me of all people.
"Who… me?" I stammered, glancing over my shoulder. Surely this vision of a woman must have mistaken me for someone else.
"Yes, you," she replied with a disarming smile. "Could you spare a moment of your time?"
I had no particular schedule – Father would be happy whenever I arrived – and I'll admit my curiosity was piqued. "Alright. Just for a moment," I said. My heart was already thumping for reasons unrelated to the heat.
"It won't take long," she assured me. "First, please have a look at this." The mysterious lady produced a curious object from a satchel at her side. It looked like a flat disc of polished crystal engraved with runes. With a few graceful taps of her fingertips along its edge, the crystal began to glow. Light swirled from its surface, coalescing into an image that hovered before us.
–Bling!
A melodious chime sounded, and an ethereal voice echoed from the enchanted crystal.
"Brothers and sisters across the land." The illusion of robed figures appeared, wavering as if seen through smoke. "Would you believe that all the chaos of this world is orchestrated by one supreme being? Join the Sanctuary of the New Dawn and open your eyes to the radiant truth…"
I felt a chill tickling the back of my neck. The longer I watched, the more this seemed like some cult's recruiting pitch. The projection's quality was crude and flickering, but the fervor in that voice was unmistakable – and unsettling.
"…The Lord of Primordial Chaos shall lead us into a New Heaven!" the glowing figures proclaimed in unison.
Gods above… I grimaced inwardly. I should have guessed. A gorgeous stranger approaching me from nowhere, only to show me an overblown message about "chaos" and "salvation"? Of course, it had to be a cult.
The crystal's light faded, and the woman looked up at me, her eyes shining with expectation. "Well? What do you think?" she asked softly.
I forced a polite smile, swallowing my unease. "I'm sorry, but I'm not interested," I said as kindly as possible. I don't put much faith in… things like this. Thank you for showing me, but I must be on my way."
Her hopeful expression drooped. She wasn't used to being turned down. Rather than give up, she suddenly stepped closer and seized my arm. Her grip was like iron, belying her slender frame. "At least come with me for a chat," she implored, lowering her voice as if sharing a secret. "I sense a great destiny in your bloodline… The aura of your ancestors shines uniquely upon you. If you'll visit our chapter house, I can explain everything – your family's blessings, the glorious fate that awaits—"
Alarm bells went off in my head. I tried to pull away, but her fingers tightened around my wrist. She was far stronger than any normal woman – perhaps stronger than me. And she was trying to drag me off the main road.
"W-wait, hold on!" I blurted, digging in my heels. "Where are you taking me? Let go!"
She flashed an enticing smile. "Somewhere quiet, where we can talk further. Quickly now, this way—"
Somewhere quiet? No matter how lovely, I was going anywhere "quiet" with a stranger. My mind raced with horrifying possibilities. Perhaps she'd lure me down a side alley where accomplices waited to club me over the head. I could wake up bound and gagged in some secret shrine, slated for sacrifice. Or maybe I'd come on a ship bound for distant slave markets. My blood ran cold at the thought.
No. Not happening. Summoning courage (and a healthy dose of panic), I yanked my arm back as hard as possible. "I said NO!" I shouted, loud enough that a few passing townsfolk turned to look. "My family already venerates the true gods –we do not need your cult! Now unhand me!"
For a moment, the woman's placid mask slipped. Her grip slackened, and she blinked in surprise at my outburst. With the eyes of strangers upon us, she finally released my arm. I quickly put a few steps between us, rubbing my wrist.
The elf woman's cheeks flushed, whether in anger or embarrassment, I couldn't tell. "Very well," she said stiffly. Reaching into her satchel, she pulled out a small rolled scroll sealed with a wax emblem of that same spiral. She held it out toward me. "Have faith in the Primordial Chaos, and you shall find salvation. The Gate to the New Heaven will open soon – we must all be prepared, especially those chosen as disciples."
With that ominous parting line, the strange woman gave a curt nod and disappeared into the crowd. I stood in the road, shaken and perplexed, clutching the sealed pamphlet she'd given me.
Once I was sure she was truly gone, I exhaled and glanced at the scroll. The wax seal crumbled easily as I unrolled it. Inside, elegant cursive letters in midnight ink read:
"Brothers and sisters, pause and reflect.You, too, can be saved and ushered into the new world.All it takes is faith.Join us in proclaiming 'Long live Chaos!'Welcome, and rejoice, paradise awaits at the Sanctuary of the New Dawn."
I snapped the leaflet shut, my lips curling in disgust. Sanctuary of the New Dawn? Some crackpot cult. The promise of a "new world" or "new heaven" was as typical as it got for these fanatic groups. I didn't bother reading further. With a shake of my head, I crumpled the pamphlet and tossed it into the nearest gutter, where it belonged.
"What a load of rubbish," I mumble, trying to shake off the bizarre encounter. I was irritated, yes, but also relieved I'd escaped. Collecting my pack, I flagged down a merchant's wagon heading east and hopped aboard, eager to put the city – and that woman – far behind me.