Today was just another uneventful day in the Eternal Helka Forest—or so she thought when she opened her eyes and raised from the bed of glittering scarlet spider lilies.
Her surroundings were eerily serene and beautiful, akin to Elysium—the final resting place of the souls of the heroic and the virtuous. But despite all its allure, this dream-like place was a cage, and she was the songbird locked within it.
There were many questions in her mind—all of which unanswered.
'Who am I?
Why am I here?
How did I get here?
What am I? A ghost? A sprite? A fairy, perhaps? Or a demon?'
Nevertheless, although she does not know who or how she came to be, she was sure that she was anything but mortal.
In this incomprehensible place where there is neither day nor night—a place where time stands forever static—her curiosity doused, and she became indifferent to it all.
Her mind and soul, if anything, was a blank canvas—devoid of memories and emotions. She felt no fear, no happiness, no sadness, no anger…. nothing except a deep void of boredom.
When she first arrived, she had no form of entertainment whatsoever. For many eons she spent her passing days in utter boredom—that is until she could no longer withstand it.
It was during this bleak period had she decided to plunge herself into the crimson river of forgotten souls, hoping to swim across to the other side where they may be others like herself—lost and alone.
But her attempt was futile. For she swam and swam, the further the reach. The river seemed to have no ends. And when she had exhausted herself, she sunk deep under the river and lost all consciousness.
However, death did not come for her.
When she opened her eyes, she would find herself back in her cradle of spider lilies once more.
It was then, after her thousandth attempt at seeking death, did the two ravens appeared before her. The two crows beseech for her to stop such "troublesome" behavior. So, in exchange for her compliance, they promised to take her out of the Helka Forst to explore the greater Naraka. And from then on, these two silly birds became her restrainers who would accompany her wherever she goes.
Every day, when the red moon rises, staining the purple-gray sky crimson, would the crows appear and take her through the gateway to venture outside the Helka Forest.
Whenever she is out and about, she would often journey to the various areas of Naraka and observe the residents—souls, spirits, imps, reapers, and demons—in the realm of the dead. However, her favorite place was not the Courts but the island where the Goddess of Indolence resides.
She was quite fond of the Old Goddess. The Old Goddess took a liking to her from the moment they first met, and treated her akin to how a kind elder treats a favored grandchild. As a result, she viewed the Old Goddess as a grandmother figurehead. The two of them shared similar hobbies and forms of entertainment. One of their favorite pastime is to watch the souls of the slothful be pushed into the piranha-infested water.
With newfound freedom, she ventured out every day to watch, observe, and get to know the different residents of Naraka. Her dull and dreary days weren't so unbearable anymore.
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From yonder, she heard a crow's call. Looking up at the purple-tinted sky, she saw two familiar crows flying towards her direction.
She tilted her head, perplexed. 'Why had they come? It wasn't yet time for the hunt.....'
"M'lady, m'lady!" The crows cried out in unison.
"What is the matter Yugin, Xunin?"
"M'lady! Big news! Very big news!" Yugin said excitedly as he land on her shoulder.
"M'lady, Lord Yama has called for you! We must hurry!" Xunin interjected before bulldozing into his brother, Yugin, knocking him off her shoulder.
"Whaa~?!"
However, before she could even form a full sentence, the two crows flew around her body, circling around her like a rapid whirlpool, and within mere milliseconds, they vanished into thin air.
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The three soon reappeared in the darkest and deepest court of Naraka--the final place of judgement--where Yama resides.
The two crows quickly shifted, transforming into their human form on arrival and swiftly keeled down, daring not to look up in the presence of Lord Yama unless they wanted to have their eyes gouged out of their sockets.
Yama sat on his throne above a pool of torrential lava as he started down that the three persons. "Child, I called you here for I have an important mission that's suitable for you. Are you willing to take on this task of mine?"
Upon hearing Yama's addressing her as "Child", she trembled but managed to calm herself. Although inside she was somewhat anxious, she was even more so excited.
"Lord Yama, it would my honor if I can be of assistance to you," she replied. "What would you have me do?"
Yama was silent for a moment, before explaining. "Naraka is the ultimate realm of existence for souls and special beings at all levels of planes. And it is the duty of the Naraka to maintain the balance and order of all planes in existence, in which souls arrive and depart. However, the planes of each world are becoming more and more unstable, and untimely destroyed to various known and unforeseeable factors…."
Yama paused.
At this moment, though she could not see, she could feel that Lord Yama was heavy with thoughts.
With lengthen dead silence, she decided to ask the question that weighed on her tongue. "Lord Yama, if I may be so bold to ask…." She hesitated, looking for a sign of sorts, in which there were none, but she continued anyways and asked, "Why are calling me for this matter, and not the people from the Court of Soul Purification who oversees the stability of the planes?"
She prepared for a scolding, but instead of getting an earful of Yama's wrath, she heard grand laughter that reverberated through the entire court.
"Despite being without memories nor powers, you are still dauntless and inquisitive," Yama stated. "Therefore, I called for you to help with this issue. The people from the Court of Soul Purification are way in over their heads; moreover, some planes are so unstable that they dare not send their employees for fear that plane will immediately collapse due to external influences, causing a domino effect. However, you are a special. You are either a mortal soul, nor an entity that's bound to the laws of Saṃsāra—meaning that your manifestation is undetectable, and that your external influences will not cause any immediate instability to the world in which you are in."
She nodded in understanding of what Lord Yama was getting at. However, she had one last question. "My Lord, how do you expect me to "fix" the instability of the planes?"
"A good question indeed." Lord Yama nodded in approval, looking at her as if she was a good little seedling.
"The key factor to the planes instability is due to the "Red Strings of Fate" being severed; thus, creating chaos in the worlds original fate, and ultimately, causing to the collapse of the plane. One plane consists of many "worlds". As a result, when a world's original "fate" goes astray, bad events will occur, ending all life. However, one insignificant world won't cause the collapse of a plane. But if that world was important to the plane's foundation, it will lead a domino effect and destroy the other worlds that exist within the same plane. Hence, for this mission, you are tasked to go into the "vital" worlds and mend the Red String of Fate between the world's chosen children."
After hearing Lord Yama's explanation, she could help but lift a curious brow. "So, Lord Yama…in essence, you want me to go play Cupid? Is there any other way to stabilize the world and prevent the collapse of the plane?"
"Yes," Lord Yama replied after a slight pause. "You can either mend the Red String between the world's chosen children, or you can die heroically and leave the world as heavy as Mount Tai. Whichever of the two roads you choose to complete your task depends entirely on you."
"I see."
"Now that you understand, off you go."
Yama closed his eyes, then waved his hands, causing an immense flash of bright light to shoot out, devouring both her and her two companions (Yugin and Xunin).
***A/N*** If you like this story, please vote >.<