You are an elf, why should you help us?
"It has been a millennia, and you still believe the war rages?"
After what WE suffered? Our people have kept hidden here since our ancestors came to flee your chains!
"I was not one who chained you, ones like me let you free."
You're going to have to prove it.
"I think my friend and I can help. Please, it's time to let the hate finally end and come back into the light. You've lived here, in fear and darkness, far too long." -- Anon Guest
It was one of those little places that had been isolated from the rest of the world for an uncertain amount of time. Peaceful, idyllic, and entirely undeserving of the impending disaster billowing towards them. Wraithvine got ahead of it in the nick of time, expending all hir magical capability to halt it before he could harm the little vale.
Viewed from a safe distance - say, the central marketspace of the main town - it was quite the lightshow.
Iminar had been trying to hustle hir children further from the literal cloud of doom. Ze could only carry two of them and had to hustle the rest along. Praying that the rest of the panicking crowd wouldn't step on anyone. She'd looked back to yell at Luda, who was dawdling, and slowed to goggle at it. Just like Luda had.
The stampeding crowd also slowed, turned, and looked. Many, like Iminar, were half expecting to perish in the next instant. Like Iminar, they were all very surprised to learn that they were saved.
The crackling wall of magic and elements defied description, and changed too fast to be certain of what it was all made of. Or doing.
Someone had to be doing that, but Iminar couldn't fathom who might be coming to their rescue like that. None of the Wizards of their society had that kind of power. Was it all of them? Was it... a miracle from the gods?
She handed off hir children to hir spouse, picked up a weapon ze knew - just in case. Then dared venture towards the display. Nobody else followed hir example. This was the kind of magic that was only told of in stories. And those stories warned of an ancient evil.
If it was that ancient evil... then Iminar could at least warn hir people that it had found them. Ze'd have one chance with the polearm ze'd picked up. That would give hir a few seconds to run out of sight while the monster was recovering from its wounds.
The big threat collapsed. All that remained was a huge cloud of mist concealing everything beyond the reach of Iminar's polearm. Beyond that immediate area, Iminar only had shadowy shapes to warn hir of what lay ahead.
Eventually, there was the shape of a person. They had a wizarding hat, but beyond that... there were no details beyond that.
Iminar slowed even further, readying hir weapon for combat, but all this Wizard was doing was panting, and using a handy tree branch to keep themself upright. The way they were trembling, they were one cough or sneeze away from losing their grip.
They were not the shape of any Wizard Iminar knew.
If it was a monster, it would be easy to kill.
Maybe.
Iminar forced hirself to use hir voice. "Who--" ze almost said 'goes' but realise ze had come here. "--are you?"
"Just... a humble... traveller," the stranger managed. They tried to turn, and wound up flopping onto the ground. "In need of... a good rest." They slouched against the tree trunk. Just as some of the mist began to thin.
That... thing... leaning against the tree was not human!
The long, lanky, slender build. The hands, each missing a finger. The large, almond-shaped eyes. The oddly etherial beauty. There was only one monster it could be. An Elf!
Iminar flinched into pointing hir polearm at the beast. "Go no further," ze warned. "We've been ready for your kind for centuries. Ever since our forefathers escaped your hideous chains. We've been training. Building our forces. Learning to use the same vile tricks you pulled on us! We're ready for you. We will not be chained again!"
The monster just blinked at hir.
"As you will," it panted. "I'll not disturb you or your... people." Those hypnotising eyes drifted shut. "You're free. Do as... you wish." It went completely limp. After a few breaths, there was even snoring.
Iminar had never seen an Elf in hir life, and was shocked that one would sleep, let alone begin to drool when it did.
The hat fell off, displaying a messy bun that had grown out from a close cut. Elves were meant to keep their hair ludicrously long. They were supposed to have it all up in elaborate braids and twisted knots.
The hat somehow disgorged a luxuriously fluffy cat, which settled itself in the monster's lap. Purring up a storm as it treadled at the monster's legs.
It was the cat, more than anything, that made Iminar lower hir weapon. If a cat could love a monster then... maybe it wasn't a monster. Cats were well known for having limits for horseshit. Further, cats had a knack for choosing people based on how kind and gentle they were... especially towards cats.
Iminar scratched a message into a piece of birchbark and left it under the Elf's foot. You have one chance. Stay away from us. Then, not exactly knowing why, ze ran away from the scene.
Ze found some of the others of her town, also armed, also searching.
"Did you find anything?"
"It's impossible to find anything in this fog," said Iminar. "Let's go back. We need to sort out our mess." Ze prayed that ze had made the right choice.
[Photo by Leon Andov on Unsplash]
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