Ayisha and I have been best friends for as long as I can remember. We met when she joined my class at eight years old, and from that moment, we were inseparable. We grew up in the same small town—I lived in the government quarters, while Ayisha’s family had settled just outside after her father started a business here.

Our quarters lay at the very edge of town. Beyond it stretched a seasonal pond, coming to life with the winter rains and vanishing under the summer sun. For years, Ayisha and I cycled across its dry bed, venturing towards the sparse woods that lay beyond. Those trees weren’t a dense forest, just a thin canopy of shade where all the neighbourhood kids played until dusk called us home.

Time moved forward, but our town remained unchanged—its streets, its houses, even the way the afternoon light slanted across familiar rooftops. Yet, we had grown. Now sixteen, taller and full of restless dreams, we often spoke of the day we would leave these borders behind for college and a world beyond the one we knew by heart.

One summer afternoon, Ayisha and I were at our usual spot between the pond and the woods, the place that had been ours for as long as we could remember.

Ring, ring. Ayisha’s phone rang, cutting through the silence of the forest.

She fumbled through her bag and answered the phone before the last ring ended. “Hi! Mom,” she greeted.

“Oh, really?” she continued. “Alright, alright. We’ll be there soon, don’t worry. We’ll leave right now.” She ended the call, her face carried a hint of confusion.

“What happened?” I asked, perplexed.

“Mom asked us to come back urgently. Looks like there’s a sermon happening at our temple, and the priest has reached out to the entire neighbourhood.”

“Now? It’s Saturday evening. Doesn’t it usually happen on Sunday morning?”

“Yes, now. C’mon, let’s hurry. We need to shower, change, and be there by 6 pm,” she said, climbing onto her cycle. Ready to leave, she looked at me, prompting me to follow suit.

With a reluctant sigh, I got onto my cycle. The two of us started pedalling back home as fast as we could.

***

Around 5:50 pm, I arrived at the temple assembly hall with my parents. They were also startled by the sudden summons and had to hurry here. It seemed like many had arrived ahead of us. My parents and I found a place to sit near one of the back benches.

Once settled, I searched for Ayisha. She was up ahead, near the front of the assembly hall. I looked around. The elders had fearful, anxious faces, while the youngsters were just perplexed. This added to my sense of foreboding. The familiar scent of temple incense did little to ease the pit in my stomach. I wasn’t sure what was happening, but it didn’t seem to be anything positive.

When the clock struck 6, the priest walked in, and all of us stood in salutation. Once he reached the stage, the entire crowd sat down again and settled. The hall was so quiet I could hear him clear his throat before he switched on the microphone.

“Hello, everyone!” he began. “Today marks one of the most important days in history. Today, we have received an Oracle.”

My mouth fell open in shock. It had been two centuries since we last received the Gods’ words. I glanced at my parents for assurance, but they, too, looked equally surprised.

As murmurs filled the hall, the priest put his hands together for one loud clap. This garnered everyone’s attention, and the room fell silent once again.

“Given the time crunch and the importance of this situation, I will get to the prophecy straight away. I want you all to listen to me very carefully until the end.”

I, along with everyone else, focused intently on him.

“As you know, we are the chosen few to serve the Great God—an experience denied to the others. Today, as the sun sets, so will our God. With that, the God will cease to exist and become part of the Universe once again.”

Many let out audible gasps. Though, no one dared to interrupt the priest as he delivered such important news.

We were Ambatians. We believed that our God governed over all the elements and the planets. When one God dies, another is appointed. This event, however, was thought to be millennia away.

Our God guides us throughout our lives, and we’ve always believed that under this guidance, the world would thrive. No matter where we went, our town remained the sacred ground where our God would materialise. Our priests are the specially chosen ones who can read the words of the God that appear in the holy fountain of the temple.

“Fear not! For the New God will be chosen from among us. One of us will ascend to the holy throne,” the priest continued.

“Who is that?”

“How can a mere mortal guide us?”

Several voices filled with fear rang out from the crowd.

“The chosen ones will become our protectors. Questioning the Oracle is questioning our faith. Believe in the Oracle’s words,” the priest’s voice boomed over everyone else’s, calming the crowd.

“There are ten people who were chosen as God’s envoys. When the time comes, one among the ten will be revealed as the true God.”

‘When will we know that? What will happen to the others? Why don’t we know who it is yet? Are we Godless until then?‘ Several frantic thoughts raced through my mind as I clutched my father’s hand in fear.

He placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder. I turned to face him, but the sight of his fearful expression made my heart sink. I had never seen him like this before. I quickly turned back to the stage, trying my best to appear as strong as possible.

“Today is the day of the new moon. When the full moon rises, so will the new God. I will now name the ten envoys,” the priest continued.

“Rohan, Meera, Arjun, Sanya, Dev, Nikita, …”

I looked in shock. These were all the names of my school batchmates. ‘Is one of these kids going to become the next God? They are either naive, spineless, or simply evil bullies,’ my thoughts were endless. I tried to focus as each of them stood up one by one.

“… Kabir, Tanvi, Vikram, and at last, Ayisha.”

My heart began to race when I heard the last name. I didn’t know if this was good or bad. I didn’t know what would happen to someone who didn’t become the God. I was scared, happy, and confused—all at once. I looked at her parents. They seemed as unsettled as I felt. I could see it in their eyes—they didn’t want their little girl to be taken away from them.

As the priest finished uttering the names, a gust of wind blew in from the church’s entrance. I watched as a dry leaf swept across the floor. Without thinking, I followed the path the leaf had come from and caught a glimpse of the world outside. Against the deep orange hues of the sunset, the reddening brown leaves glistened like uncut rubies. The lush green leaves from the afternoon had withered, along with the passing era. They waited for the new world to bloom, like autumn that precedes spring.

Crash!

I quickly glanced toward the source of the loud sound. The chandelier had fallen.

“Yaaaargh!” A guttural, panicked yell followed the crash, and everyone rushed to gather around the fallen chandelier.

My eyes drifted to the priest. He seemed to have an ecstatic smile on his face. “It has begun,” he announced.

Amidst the commotion, only a few of us caught those words. I saw Arjun panic and dash towards the exit the moment he heard that. ‘What could the chosen one fear?’ I wondered.

“Poor Meera,” my mom murmured in sadness. That’s when it hit me. The chandelier had fallen on Meera as she walked toward the stage. The priest’s words and Arjun’s hasty exit replayed in my head.

Then, it all clicked.

I looked at Ayisha. She was stunned, barely moving, her eyes locked on the red blood staining the floor. Her parents were practically dragging her towards the exit amidst the chaos.

Tears welled in my eyes as I realised the cruel fate that lay ahead for my best friend.

— To be continued…