Chapter Text
‘Well… fuck.’
Not exactly the first words Blake thought she’d be thinking upon realising where she was, but then again it probably wasn’t an uncommon thing for someone to think.
She was dead, that much was evident. On instinct, her hand dropped down to her abdomen, where…
Blake suspired heavily in defeat. Even in death it seemed, there would be a reminder of his last act against her. Raised scarred skin perfectly where the blade merged with her stomach and tore through her. There was no blood now though, so at least that was a relief.
Ignoring that feeling for the moment, Blake’s eyes took in the space she found herself in. If she was going to be honest, she expected something… more of death? But no, it was just a black expanse when she first woke up and gently drifted down to the ground, like being lowered down on cables. Well, “just” was not exact either; it was the black space, and a little old lady in a deep inky blue robe.
“Come on,” the woman ushered, “the sooner we find you your place in this, the sooner things will make sense for you.”
Blake followed wordlessly. This woman was small, and it was almost like she was following after someone’s caring nona through this darkness. There weren’t any indicators of a path for her to follow, but she stepped where the older woman stepped to ensure she wouldn’t fall.
“How is this…?”
“Death.”
Blake paused her thought. “Excuse me?”
“My name is Death. People usually ask that first, so I thought I would introduce myself.” Blake continued to stare, confused and weary. “It’s been some time since anyone has passed through without questioning who I am straight away. I must say, I’m sort of impressed.”
“When you’re dealt the hand I was dealt, you tend not to question the why’s and why not’s, and you just move on with it to try and find out how to make the best of the situation.”
Death paused in its — her? — tracks, turning to look at Blake, and Blake in turn took in the visage of Death for the first time.
Blake had read so much in her life, and every time Death always seemed to be portrayed as something Otherworldly, a being of immense power and might condensed into something comprehensible to the one or ones that gazed upon it. Here? Death looked back with unnatural glowing sockets of silver-white, sure, but otherwise you couldn’t tell the difference between her and any other diminutive supercentenarian walking around. Well, that, and the skeletal feet.
The woman known as Death sighed. “Life can be cruel, and at times the stresses of the life gone can weigh one down. I could tell that your being here was not of your own doing, judging by the scar you looked for when you first arrived. But my job is not to judge you for that, nor is it to do anything of that ilk. I ferry those stuck in The Pre and usher them to the Front Deathk to see-”
“I’m sorry, did you just say ‘Front Deathk’ ?”
The cosmic grandma, as Blake had decided to call her (Deities above she hoped that Death couldn’t read her mind right now), sighed once more, only with mirth instead of a genuine remorse like last time. “I told those blasted people there about using my name like that.”
Blake hummed. “I kind of like it.” Made everything sound a little less intimidating, and honestly made her forget where she was in the first place.
“Well, that makes one of us.” Blake couldn’t tell as Death turned away, but she was certain she caught the beginnings of a smile as her face left the raven haired woman’s view.
“So… Death… how long have you been doing this?”
“Eons,” she replied matter of factly. “Eons, and yet no time at all. Longer than you can comprehend, yet barely the blink of an eye. Time beyond mortality tends to be a bit… wibbly wobbly.” Blake laughed out loud hearing Death say that phrase, so much so that she had to stop herself to properly get the laughter out of her system. How long had it been since she laughed like that? “Something funny?”
Wiping a tear from her eye, Blake looked up at the metaphysical concept made reality before her and explained, “I heard that being said in a TV Show years ago. I never thought I’d hear someone like you say it, that's all.”
“Oh, is it that silly time travelling show about the blue box and the gender confusing alien?” With a quirked eyebrow at the phrasing and a smirk, Blake confirmed Death’s guess. The entity growled with annoyance, and as it did, somehow the endless expanse of void seemed to darken, like casting a shadow against the night sky. “I say this because I know exactly where it is you’re going next, but you cannot let on that I spoke to you about your destination before you got to the Front Deathk, understand?”
“Okay, first: how do you know? And second: why can’t I say?”
“It’s part of my job to know, and it’s not part of my job to say. But don’t ever let those idiots convince you into trying their ‘Sunrise ‘til Sunrise’ challenge. I actually got some time off and partook, being the overly trusting entity that I was and am, and I ended up making a bet.” The words of disbelief were right on Blake’s tongue when Death interrupted. “Yes, I — Death — made a bet, and lost. Handily too, no thanks to those demons…”
Glorious golden orbs widened. ‘Demons?’ she thought. ‘As in…?’
“As in ‘Demons of Hell’, yes.”
“Oh fuck, you can hear my thoughts here, can’t you?” The little cane carried by Death shot out like a bolt from the blue, smacking the mortal over the knuckle of the closest hand. “Ow!”
“Word of advice, you are in my domain. When you are in the domain of an entity such as myself, I hear everything I need to. If I wanted to, I could snap my fingers and you’d never make it to check in, but that’s what Universal Judgement is for, and I’m not one to step on their toes for my own immediate fleeting benefit.” Death still saw the concern resting behind Blake’s eyes, the word ‘Demon’ still bouncing around her brain like an echo. “The demons are big softies, don’t stress yourself out - you may not be able to have a heart attack in the Afterlife, but the body still tries.” Blake eased her racing mind, the remnants of Death’s words still there but less focal than before. “Anyway, back to what I was saying; I lost a bet to those demons, and they went through a whole chain of command before they came up with what to do because I lost. I had to give someone a pass.”
“A pass?” she checked, her mind slowing down enough to register what had been said.
“A pass,” it confirmed. “I had to choose one random yet unobtrusive soul that came through The Pre and ‘lose them’, giving them a way back to the mortal world, but the catch was I had to ensure they took a phrase with them to let the demons know what had happened, and-”
“And the phrase was ‘wibbly wobbly, timey-wimey stuff!’” Blake pieced together, a grin forming on her features. “That’s brilliantly nonsensical.”
The cosmic gran- no, Death could hear her, she couldn’t call her that anymore… the concept made reality, pinched the bridge of its nose. “Yes, well I still feel embarrassed hearing others say it.”
The smile on Blake’s face shifted slightly to a look of curiosity. “Wait, why are you telling me this? You’re Death, you don’t need to say anything, only ferry those who have passed along.”
Death turned and smiled at her. “Because even someone like me — as old as time and as powerful as the Living Universe — could do with some simple water cooler talk every now and again.” She turned around and began walking away. “Follow the influx of other souls. The line may seem long, but I assure you, you’ll be there in no time.”
Blake’s eyes followed Death’s retreating form for a moment before she turned around again. Before her was not an endless sea of darkness, but instead a corridor of dark marble and fine golden designs. She took a step back at the sheer shock of it all, only to hit a wall behind her, one that was not there a second ago.
“Okay, Death is… kinda cool,” she admitted out loud as she looked around.
“I S N ’ T ︲ S H E ︲ J U S T ?”
Blake screamed on the sudden appearance of a powerfully commanding voice right beside her, along with a string of words that vaguely sounded like she was cursing. Blake stared at where the voice came from, and was greeted by a sight she would have struggled to believe she was seeing, if not for the conversation she had just had with the embodiment of Death itself.
The being before her was less corporeal than Death was. It was not a person (not by a long shot), though it did appear roughly humanoid in shape. But unlike a human, it seemed to expand beyond reason yet be confined, incomprehensibly large yet very present and wholly here.
And there was no skin on its body as she had, though this was not any one of the few horror stories she’d read or the very few horror movies she had taken the time to watch. This gave Death a run for its money in terms of ‘Concept given Form’. The entity sat there with a skin of deep midnight black sprinkled with the sparkle of billions of stars and galaxies, nebulae and clusters, all moving through and around it as if existence continued on within it. It looked more like it was superimposed than anything.
“I ︲ S E E ︲ Y O U ︲ H A V E
M A N A G E D
T O ︲ Z O N E ︲ I N
O N ︲ Y O U R ︲ S E C T O R ︲ O F
T H E ︲ U N I V E R S E ︲ W I T H I N
M Y ︲ B E I N G,”
it commented jovially.
“Y O U ︲ A P P E A R ︲ T O ︲ H A V E
A ︲ R E M A R K A B L Y ︲ K E E N ︲ E Y E,
B L A K E ︲ B E L L A D O N N A;
M A N Y ︲ A N ︲ I N S T A N C E
S I N C E ︲ I ︲ T O O K ︲ U P
T H I S ︲ P O S T,
I ︲ H A V E ︲ S E E N ︲ P E O P L E
C O M E ︲ H E R E ︲ A F T E R
T H E I R ︲ D E A T H S
A N D ︲ R E M A I N ︲ S T A R I N G
I N T O ︲ T H E ︲ I N K Y ︲ E X P A N S E
O F ︲ S P A C E
F O R ︲ H O U R S ︲ O N ︲ E N D,
T R Y I N G ︲ T O ︲ F I N D
S O M E T H I N G ︲ O F ︲ N O T E.
A N D ︲ Y E T
H E R E ︲ Y O U ︲ A R E,
I M M E D I A T E L Y
F U L L ︲ O F ︲ S U R P R I S E S
W I T H I N ︲ T H E ︲ F I R S T
M O M E N T S ︲ O F
B E I N G ︲ W I T H I N
T H E ︲ R E A L M ︲ O F
T H E ︲ M O R T A L L Y ︲ D E P A R T E D.”
Blake shook her head, backing away from everything. “I’m sorry, I should have…”
“Y O U ︲ H A V E
N O T H I N G ︲ T O ︲ A P O L O G I S E ︲ F O R,
B L A K E ︲ B E L L A D O N N A.
Y O U ︲ A R E ︲ O N L Y ︲ H U M A N,
A F T E R ︲ A L L.
A N D ︲ T O ︲ B E ︲ H U M A N
I S ︲ T O ︲ B E
I N N A T E L Y ︲ C U R I O U S
O F ︲ E V E R Y T H I N G
T H A T ︲ P E R M E A T E S ︲ Y O U R
T I M E ︲ I N ︲ T H I S ︲ U N I V E R S E,
N O ︲ M A T T E R ︲ W H E R E ︲ T H A T ︲ I S.
N O W,
S H A L L ︲ W E ︲ C O M M E N C E
T H E ︲ P R O C E E D I N G S?”
The giant celestial being flicked its hand open as if flicking open a pair of glasses, and sure enough a set of specs appeared in its hand.
‘Honestly, the fact this isn’t surprising me anymore should say a lot about the day I’m having.’
“A S ︲ W R I T T E N ︲ H E R E
I N ︲ Y O U R ︲ F I L E
--
N O ︲ N E E D ︲ T O ︲ W O R R Y
T H A T ︲ Y O U ︲ H A V E
A ︲ F I L E ︲ W I T H ︲ M E,”
it reassured, the slightest hint of a smile appearing in its cosmic features,
“A L L ︲ M O R T A L S
W H O ︲ D I E ︲ H A V E ︲ O N E
--
W E ︲ H A V E ︲ D O W N ︲ F O R
T H E ︲ S T A N D A R D ︲ U N I V E R S A L ︲ J U D G E M E N T
F I R S T,
A S ︲ I S ︲ C U S T O M A R Y ︲ W I T H
E V E R Y ︲ I N D I V I D U A L
W H O ︲ P A S S E S ︲ O N ︲ F R O M
T H E ︲ M O R T A L ︲ P L A N E
A N D
I N T O ︲ T H E ︲ A F T E R L I F E.”
There was a brief pause where the weight of everything started to pile up, and Blake was about to pose a question to this being before it jumped in, speaking to her casually as if they had been long equated.
“Y O U ︲ M E N T I O N E D ︲ T H A T
Y O U ︲ S P O K E ︲ T O ︲ M A R I A
I N ︲ T H E ︲ P R E,
H O W ︲ I S ︲ S H E ︲ F A I R I N G?
D I D ︲ S H E ︲ T A L K ︲ A B O U T
H E R S E L F ︲ A T ︲ A L L?
O R
W A S ︲ I T ︲ A L L ︲ B U S I N E S S
A S ︲ U S U A L?”
“I don't-”
“A P O L O G I E S ︲ I F ︲ I T ︲ S E E M S
A ︲ L I T T L E ︲ U N O R T H O D O X
T O ︲ A S K ︲ Y O U ︲ S U C H
P E R S O N A L ︲ Q U E S T I O N S ︲ L I K E ︲ T H I S
R I G H T ︲ O U T ︲ O F ︲ T H E ︲ G A T E;
S H E ' S ︲ N O T ︲ E X A C T L Y ︲ O N E ︲ F O R
"M E A N I A L" ︲ C O N V E R S A T I O N S
B E T W E E N ︲ C O L L E A G U E S,
E V E N ︲ T H O U G H
W E ︲ H A V E ︲ K N O W N ︲ E A C H ︲ O T H E R
L O N G E R ︲ T H A N ︲ M O S T.
S H E ︲ M I G H T ︲ H A V E ︲ S P O K E N ︲ T O ︲ Y O U
M O R E ︲ C A S U A L L Y.”
“Maria?” It took a moment before it's words clicked. “Death has a name, and it's ‘Maria’ ?”
“O H ︲ D E A R,”
the cosmic being chuckled lightly, a distant pair of quasars red shifting around where its cheeks would be,
“I ︲ M A Y ︲ H A V E ︲ G O T T E N ︲ M Y S E L F
I N ︲ H E R ︲ B A D ︲ B O O K S ︲ N O W
F O R ︲ L E T T I N G ︲ T H A T ︲ N U G G E T
O F ︲ I N F O R M A T I O N ︲ S L I P
W I T H O U T ︲ H E R ︲ S A Y I N G ︲ I T ︲ T O ︲ Y O U ︲ F I R ST.
S H O U L D ︲ Y O U ︲ M A K E ︲ I T ︲ T H R O U G H
T O ︲ A N ︲ A F T E R L I F E ︲ O F ︲ Y O U R ︲ C H O O S I N G,
P L E A S E ︲ D O ︲ N O T ︲ A C T I V E L Y
G O ︲ S P R E A D I N G ︲ T H A T
I N F O R M A T I O N ︲ A R O U N D,
I F ︲ Y O U ︲ W O U L D ︲ B E ︲ S O ︲ K I N D?”
“Okay, okay, can we take a pause? Please?” The being nodded, lifting the glasses atop its head. “I’m… a little overwhelmed right now. Can I at least get a more concrete explanation of things before this… Universal Judgement thing happens?”
“O F ︲ C O U R S E.
W H E N ︲ I ︲ A M ︲ I N V O L V E D ︲ I N ︲ M A T T E R S,
W E ︲ H A V E ︲ A L L ︲ T H E ︲ T I M E ︲ W E ︲ N E E D.”
The being slowed down, though the dancing lights that, on further and closer inspection seemed to be galaxies and nebulas within itself continued at their usual pace.
“W H A T ︲ I S ︲ I T ︲ Y O U ︲ W O U L D
L I K E ︲ T O ︲ K N O W,
B L A K E ︲ B E L L A D O N N A?”
“Well, I want to know where the whatever-this-place-is I am right now, and I would like to know your name. You retroactively introduced me to Death, but left yourself mysteriously anonymous.”
“H O W ︲ R U D E ︲ O F ︲ M E!
P L E A S E,
A C C E P T ︲ M Y ︲ A P O L O G I E S
F O R ︲ T H I S ︲ M I S D E M E A N O U R,
A N D ︲ A L L O W ︲ M E
T O ︲ P R O P E R L Y ︲ I N T R O D U C E ︲ M Y S E L F.
I ︲ A M ︲ E T E R N I T Y;
B E I N G ︲ O F ︲ A L L
A N D ︲ A L L ︲ B E I N G.
I ︲ A M
E V E R Y T H I N G ︲ T H A T ︲ E V E R ︲ I S,
T H A T ︲ E V E R ︲ W A S,
A N D ︲ T H A T ︲ E V E R ︲ W I L L ︲ B E.
I ︲ A M ︲ O N E ︲ O F
T H E ︲ F I R S T ︲ A N D ︲ T H E ︲ L A S T
O F ︲ T H I S ︲ U N I V E R S E,
T H-”
“Okay, cool, Many Titled One, got it. You got a name?”
Somewhere on its face, a supernova’s explosion rippled across the surface, the impression of a raised eyebrow in its wake as the stars parted and clumped.
“M Y ︲ M Y, ︲ S U C H ︲ S A S S.”
“Part of my charm, and I always said to myself that if I’m going out, I’m going out sassing.”
A soft hum escaped from the being; even such a soft sound like that reverberated through the woman.
“M Y ︲ N A M E ︲ I S
E T E R N I T Y.
I ︲ W A S ︲ B R O U G H T ︲ I N T O ︲ E X I S T E N C E
B E F O R E ︲ T H E ︲ N E E D ︲ F O R ︲ N A M E S,
A N D ︲ W H E N
T H E ︲ F I R S T ︲ C O G N I Z A N T ︲ B E I N G S
C A M E ︲ T O ︲ R O A M ︲ T H E ︲ C O S M O S,
T H E Y ︲ K N E W ︲ N O T ︲ W H A T ︲ I ︲ W A S,
O N L Y
T H A T ︲ I ︲ S I M P L Y ︲ W A S.
A N D ︲ S O
T H E I R ︲ T E R M ︲ F O R ︲ M E ︲ R E M A I N E D
"E T E R N A L"
F R O M ︲ T H E ︲ F I R S T ︲ A G E ︲ O F ︲ T I M E,
A N D ︲ W I L L ︲ R E M A I N
U N T I L
T H E ︲ F I N A L ︲ D Y I N G ︲ G A S P
O F ︲ T H E ︲ U N I V E R S E ︲ I T S E L F.”
“…that's way too formal. How about I call you Tary, instead?”
The newly minted 'Tary' smiled a celestial smile.
“'T A R Y'
I T ︲ S H A L L ︲ B E.”
It looked down at its hands, seeing as a glowing piece of parchment appeared with.
“W H A T ︲ W A S ︲ Y O U R ︲ S E C O N D ︲ Q U E S T I O N,
B L A K E ︲ B E L L A-”
“Look, if I’m going to be calling you 'Tary' for the small foreseeable future, you don’t need to ‘Blake Belladonna’ me every time you say my name. Just Blake will do.” Tary nodded in acknowledgement, then gestured, asking the question again. “Where am I, and ultimately, what is this Universal Judgement? Sorry, that's three questions.”
“I T ︲ M A T T E R S ︲ N O T.
A S ︲ O F ︲ R I G H T ︲ N O W,
Y O U ︲ S T A N D ︲ W I T H I N
T H E ︲ S C A L E;
M Y ︲ P E R S O N A L ︲ D O M A I N ︲ W I T H I N ︲ T H I S ︲ U N I V E R S E,
A N D ︲ W H E R E
M Y ︲ W O R D ︲ A N D ︲ W I L L ︲ I S ︲ L A W.
T H I S ︲ I S ︲ W H E R E
A ︲ S O U L ︲ I S ︲ J U D G E D
B E F O R E ︲ B E I N G ︲ S E N T ︲ O N ︲ T O
T H E ︲ F R O N T ︲ D E A T H K ︲ F O R ︲ P R O C E S S I N G
T O ︲ T H E I R ︲ R E S P E C T I V E ︲ A N D
C H O S E N ︲ A F T E R L I V E S,
I N ︲ T H E ︲ E V E N T ︲ T H A T
T H E Y ︲ W E R E ︲ J U D G E D ︲ T O ︲ B E
W O R T H Y ︲ O F ︲ S U C H.
U N I V E R S A L ︲ J U D G E M E N T
D O E S ︲ N O T ︲ D I S C R I M I N A T E,
I T ︲ C A R E S ︲ N O T ︲ F O R
O N E ' S ︲ C O L O U R ︲ O R ︲ C R E E D;
A S ︲ P E R ︲ I T S ︲ N A M E,
I T ︲ S I M P L Y ︲ I S
U N I V E R S A L.
O N C E ︲ J U D G E D ︲ H E R E,
Y O U ︲ W I L L ︲ P R O C E E D ︲ T O
T H E ︲ F R O N T ︲ D E A T H K ︲ A S ︲ M E N T I O N E D.
A N D ︲ T H E N,
Y O U ︲ W I L L ︲ B E ︲ S E N T ︲ O N
T O ︲ W H E R E
T H E ︲ U N I V E R S E ︲ H A S ︲ D E C I D E D
Y O U ︲ N E E D ︲ T O ︲ G O ︲ F O R
Y O U R ︲ A F T E R L I F E,
B E ︲ T H A T ︲ A ︲ G O O D ︲ P L A C E
O R ︲ A ︲
B A D.
L I K E ︲ T H I S,”
and Tary handed Blake a single sheet of paper, no larger than a business card between its giant fingers, yet similarly sized when it got passed off to her, as if the size was universal.
Huh, running theme.
“Wait, that was it?” she queried. “What was I judged on?”
With a grand gesture outwards, it offered a simple:
“T H E ︲ U N I V E R S E.”
The explanation was vague enough to where it kind of made sense, but also just so vague as to make absolutely zero sense if Blake were to put any thought into it.
“I ’ M ︲ S U R E
Y O U ︲ W I L L ︲ H E A R ︲ T E L L
O F ︲ H O W ︲ I T ︲ A L L ︲ W O R K S
I N ︲ D U E ︲ T I M E,
B U T ︲ F O R ︲ N O W,
Y O U ︲ H A D ︲ B E S T ︲ H U R R Y ︲ A L O N G.
T H E Y ︲ G E T ︲ R A T H E R ︲ C R A N K Y
W H E N ︲ I ︲ T A K E ︲ U P
T O O ︲ M U C H ︲ O F ︲ T H E I R ︲ T I M E ︲ W I T H ︲ A ︲ S O U L,
E V E N ︲ T H O U G H ︲ T H E ︲ C O N C E P T ︲ O F
T I M E ︲ I T S E L F
I S ︲ N O ︲ M A T C H ︲ F O R
E T E R N I T Y.”
“Okay… guess I’ll talk to you later, Tary.”
“I ’ M ︲ S U R E ︲ Y O U ︲ W I L L,
B L A K E.
O R ︲ N O T,
A C T U A L L Y.
I ︲ A M ︲ N O T ︲ S U P P O S E D ︲ T O ︲ L E T ︲ O N
T H A T ︲ I ︲ K N O W ︲ T H E
O U T C O M E ︲ O F ︲ Y O U R ︲ J U D G E M E N T,
B U T ︲ L E T ' S ︲ K E E P ︲ T H A T ︲ L I T T L E ︲ S L I P ︲ U P
B E T W E E N ︲ Y O U ︲ A N D ︲ M E.”
It winked at her, a section of the starry sky blinking out before the being itself disappeared as it turned back towards where she had come from, leaving nothing but an empty space before her.
Wordlessly, Blake trudged down the hallway she found herself in. The marble that lined the hallway’s giant pillars and floor glimmered with the lights that shone from everywhere and nowhere. Streaks of golden light cascading from higher points beyond sight, its polished black texture catching every spec of light and made Blake feel like she was walking on stars.
To be fair, considering the conversation she had just finished with Tary and what it looked like, it was not out of the realm of possibility to actually be walking on stars right now.
Gold artistry also danced along the pillars, depicting artworks of such detail that she could only begin to imagine the amount of time it took to craft such an image.
Now that she had this hallway to walk down, Blake slowly took the time to think about herself and about where she was. Earlier, when Death (it felt weird calling her Maria (yet it didn’t feel weird calling Eternity ‘Tary’? (why are there so many thoughts within thoughts all of a sudden?))) made her laugh, she felt the tears forming in her eyes, her stomach hurt from the laughter, her head grew light from the lack of oxygen.
‘Wait hold on, do I even need to breathe anymore?’
A beat of curiosity passed before intrusive thoughts won out and she began exhaling all of the capacity of her lungs.
As she remained there exhaling for as long as she could, and now that she took the time to look at herself, she was not herself.
The best way she’d probably be able to describe herself was that she looked like a ghost. Trapped in a permanent state of almost there-ness. The temperate air kept the shiver she felt coming from sending chills all over her, though the feeling of unease never faded from the moment she truly felt herself.
“Are you lost, my dear?” a soft voice queried, the slow reveal of the individual a stark contrast to Tary’s self-insertion into her space. The voice spoke maternally, but with youth still in its words. Blake cast her gaze towards the individual, coming face to face with another woman. Younger than her, probably appearing in her mid-twenties. Shorter as well, standing a few hairs shy of five feet tall, but with a similarly naturally sun kissed skin tone and a smile that told Blake all she needed to know about this young woman for the moment - she could trust her.
“Oh no, I’m not… not lost,” she lied as she finally took a breath in - she wasn’t holding back on breathing out, and yet she was going for a good couple of minutes on that one breath. Turns out, the answer is no, she did not need oxygen anymore.
“Ah, but you haven’t found your way yet. You’re almost there though. C’mon, let’s get the scariest part out of the way, then you’ll be able to see yourself and can worry about the aftermath of your judgement afterwards.” The woman gestured for Blake to follow, which she did instantly and without question.
As the pair walked down the hallway, the woman introduced herself to Blake as Topaz. She explained that she was a human soul, just like Blake was, and that she does like to wander from time to time to break up her Afterlife. It just so happened to be that Blake was the first person she truly saw after the few demons that stood guard near the doors.
Topaz couldn’t see her expression grow grim on mention of the demons again, but Blake felt it in her not-core.
Topaz walked Blake past countless other demons pacing about in the foyer - some (though not many) winged, others with long tails trailing behind them, all with at least a single set of horns on their heads - and eventually the duo made it to the end of the queue, standing before a giant desk and a giant creature behind it. This one was a lot less metaphorical than the first two ‘people’ Blake met, though his size could not be undenied. And with him being at least a little more of a corporeal entity than the other two’s living concept schtick, it made the size seem partially more impressive, if not for the immediate juxtaposition of her feelings towards him based on appearance alone.
Blake used to be so good at not immediately judging, what’s changed with her?
Spoilers: the answer was death. Death is what happened. (The process, not the old lady.)
Towering nearly 18 feet above her while still sitting down was a massive demon of burnt salmon skin in what appeared to be a loose fitting muted lilac suit with a white shirt and crimson red tie. The demon’s great big bushy beard and slicked back, shoulder length black hair helped frame his face and gave Blake something to stare at other than everywhere else, though his desk did intrigue her also, a rich orange-red colouration, almost glowing internally under the golden white light.
“Good day to you, Topaz,” the deep booming voice of the demon struck a nerve with Blake, one that told her in that moment to stay back and avoid him at all costs, but as her new compatriot greeted the demon before her, Topaz firmly rested a hand on her back and eased her forward to stand a little closer to the desk. “Now, Blake Belladonna, my name is Yemma. Do you know why you’re here?”
“Because I died?”
“Indeed. And it is my duty to present to you your fate for the Afterlife.”
Suddenly, Blake got cold feet at the thought. Metaphorically - right now she couldn’t really feel anything to get any sort of sensation. “Um, can we… not?”
“There isn’t really anything else to talk about here,” Yemma clarified. After a moment, a sly grin grew on his face, like he knew the outcome of what he was about to say before the words even left his mouth. “We could talk about my desk; it’s made of mahogany.” Many of the demons walking about began groaning, cursing in tongues that she both could and couldn’t understand, and even heard a few of them pleading with her not to get the man started.
“Ah- actually, I think I’m ready to find out my fate.”
“Are you sure? It’s a pretty neat desk; very expensive.”
“I’m sure,” she reaffirmed, though whether she believed the statement or not was another matter.
“Very well. Your papers, please.” Blake reached up towards him, and he met her halfway. Again, much like when she was handed the note by Tary, it seemed to perfectly fit into both of their hands as if the ideal size for both of them.
As Yemma took a quick look at the note, Topaz gave her a quick bump with her elbow. “You’re gonna be alright. No matter what happens here, it all happens for a reason.”
“But what if things go… what if I get sent to Hell or something?”
“It’s not all bad,” Topaz told her.
Blake turned and looked at her new Afterlife buddy. “It’s Hell!”
“And? Was your life entirely terrible, or were there good moments in there too? Hell is just like that.”
That made absolutely no sense to Blake, and she was just about to tell Topaz that before Yemma marked her paper with a resounding *THOOM* of the stamp he had resting next to him. “It is settled,” he announced. “Blake Belladonna…” he handed back the paper. She turned it over and stared at the new information stamped over the front of it in still drying ink.
PARADISE