353. Histoire bleue, 6

(Rose)

The heroess was brought in chains to a judgement court.

The land and the buildings were grey under a leaden sky.

The judge was a very tall figure, imposing, ghastly, under dim light, hooded and faceless. Blind, with the voice of a cavernous throat, it spoke like the figure of grim omens.

She's put on her knees to listen to her fate.

Behind the cold bench made of marble, the judge sat high. He was twice her size and appeared even bigger.

The heroess stood accused of corrupting the world with words of falsehood and refusing to enrol in the raging war.

She did not deny the claims.

And the judge sentenced her to death.

So she was put down, an arrow through the heart.

She died where she lied, and her body was dragged out of the hall.

The judge would pull his hood back when no one would look, and spit the pebbles inside his throat to change his voice.

The mortal man was using the guise of a holy figure to keep order in the fragile lands, at any cost. Even if it meant the sacrifice of his dear friends.

~

The heroess was venturing toward the land of the dead, with the other lost souls of the day.

Each night, all the departed of the day would sail to the other world.

Sometimes like in times of war, they were queuing toward the boats to the other world, delaying their departure.

The heroess helped the handicapped to climb inside the boats, the ones with lost limbs or missing head. She helped them, and missed her own sail.

The longer she would wait to pass, the worse her soul would rot. But she didn't seem to care.

This odd show lasted a few more days. Yet her soul was late to corrupt, and she kept helping others.

Until the real judge of death caught interest in her and the delay of her departure.

The figure was the same, but this one was far more real.

He questioned her, and didn't found vice or wrong ambition inside of her.

Therefore, the true judge had an idea.

J - There are wrongs to repair in the world that are annoying to me. You will do these labours in my name, and I shall set you free. Refuse, and I will have you sail to hell.

The heroess was not given a real choice, and agreed to the tasks.

She woke up the next dawn, within the tomb she had been buried in. A cave. A funeral dress, and the arrow still buried inside her heart.

She had a few tasks to accomplish, and for that, her heart began to beat again.

The judge granted her one million heartbeats to triumph over her challenges.

And so she began her labours, removing the arrow that wasn't in cold longer.

~

The first of the tasks was to defeat a demon corrupting the land with poisonous mists in the dew, turning all humans into monsters. Every morning, more senseless beasts replaced people, in the growing hubris from the demon to beat.

The heroess was strong and defeated the turned humans on her way to the demon, using but a single hand against them.

She forced the demon to retract its influence and to defend itself. With her might, she defeated the demon, but did not kill it whilst it was pleading for its life.

The heroess had overpowered the demon, but instead of destroying it according to the otherworldly judgement, she taught it the value of life, and the price of morality.

And thus, the demon was turned into an ally.

The second task was to stop another corruption spreading upon the land.

As since the false judge tried to rule his best, the land was plagued with necrosis, and demons rose inside of these miasma.

The heroess charged upfront again. Her might was strong, but the foe behind this woe was stronger.

She was wounded, but her unexpected ally defeated the demon in her stead, forcing it to retreat this day.

That monster would return vengeful someday, but its negative domain was saved, and soon cured back to normal. Thus the labour was still a success.

Her third task was to defeat an unfair ruler. The heroess had to use tricks instead of pure strength this time. In disguise, she ventured into the palace of the lord, until she found the place and time to poison him.

The poison revealed the real identity of the lord, resuming its true monstrous shape in front of his own guards.

The heroess joined the fight and helped striking the beast down, beheading the demon herself.

Her next task was to stop a ravenous beast preying on villagers, in a remote area of the land where life was painful.

The heroess set up a trap in the forest, to lure and catch the foe, but the beast was smarter. It went around all and every one of the traps, only to fall into the last lure.

As it jumped onto a seemingly lost and helpless woman, it met her strong fist and soon its sword.

The heroess struck it down with the flat side of her sword, knocking it down instead of slashing its flesh.

When the giant wolf woke up, it was saddled, and the heroess holding its reins with indomitable will.

The savage beast was soon tamed, and learnt obedience in its turn. It thus escaped death like the heroess before, and found more food for happiness in the other lands where the heroess rode it.

The next labour was to clear a cave leading to the most bountiful mines of ores in the land. The caves entrance had collapsed, with thousands still inside and soon to be stuck for their sailing to the world of the dead.

For this work, the true judge decided to help, because failure would mean a difficult time ahead.

The judge granted the heroess with the strength of a thousand men for a day.

Therefore she could clear the entrance by hands.

But instead, she chose to dig another one, where it would be safer and hold better. She did far heavier work solidifying the new tunnel than would have been clearing the collapsed entrance. She finished almost as her strength vanished, and had to finish digging the last rocks with her wounded hands. She accomplished it and was hailed by the people saved.

Then her next labour was to retrieve an ancient artefact of death, said to be able to kill thousands in seconds.

She climbed the most perilous mountains to reach it, and found the weapon of legends in the forsaken land.

However that task had been a trap, set by the judge whom began to fear her power.

The weapon was thought to destroy the heroess and exploded.

But the heroess was saved again by her unexpected ally.

The judge had enough.

He set her with the last task, to dethrone the enemy king of the war plaguing this land.

And thus, the heroess enrolled in the war she had refused in her living days.

She pierced the frontlines with brutal strength, assumed or stole the control of armies, and led them to the enemy domain in a rush, riding the beast.

The heroess fought fearlessly her way, knowing full well her game was rigged.

She still played, storming the palace of the king and reached him.

But again, refused to behead an enemy pleading for his life.

She captured him, and brought an end to the war with his help instead.

Then, as she returned a hero again to her homeland, the time of judgement came.

Facing the same grey building, the same judge as before, the heroess was yet again brought to her knees, in front of her judge.

She stood accused of killing lords, befriending enemies, and treason for releasing the enemy king.

And worst of all, she stood accused of corrupting the world again, this time by having escaped death itself.

The worst of crimes against nature was her rising from the grave.

The heroess acknowledge all the claims.

Because as she had to loudly claim, all these labours had been ordered by the judge himself.

And the true judge appeared to give its orders.

Now that peace was there in the land, the judge had time at hands to return to the world. For now there were less dead having to sail in sudden swarms.

The judges faced each other, accusing each other with growing wrath. In the end, the heroess was to choose which one to side with, as she broke free of her chains. The forces of both judges began to clash around her.

Would she side with the judge of life, or the judge of death?

Knowing full well that both had betrayed her.

The judge of the livings was unfair, had decided her death again, but was not to be ungrateful or invincible ever. She could become an honoured hero, would she save him now, or a ruler would she ambition to defeat him later.

The judge of the dead was somehow fair, but was tempted to cancel his promise of a new life for her. She could steal it by defeating him, or hope for it by siding with him.

As the fight in the palace of justice was raging on between the opposing forces;

the tempted heroess slain the false judge in the end.

She had to comply by her agreement with the real judge. She could not follow the path of betrayal and ambition, even if she were to be deceived in the end.

That had been her final labour and test.

Removing the false judge, and not betraying the real one.

The judge therefore found her worthy to be called a heroin, and set her free.

She had saved the land, and not tried to claim it for herself.

The beast was set free in distant wilds.

The friend went its own way with morals.

While the judge was again able to rule over both lands peacefully again.

The nearby kingdom's ruler, after his return, chose also to rule peacefully.

The heroin herself was free to live again, in a pacified world.

All that was left to triumph over, was the demon which escaped her.

So she sailed to the ends of the world where it had fled.

Lands of scorched earth and volcanoes, away from the sight of humans and gods.

There, the demon was trying to survive, heal its wounds, and scheme its return.

The heroin forced it into a corner, and to reveal itself. The demon complied, and begged for its life as well.

She saw through the trick and avoided its trap.

As for the first demon she had met, she forced it to open its eyes to morality, life and justice. But this one could not and refused.

The judge sentenced it, and the demon vanished.

The heroin had won.

She looked at herself and her triumph there.

And she wasn't happy...

~