//------------------------------// // Chapter Eleven // Story: A Matter of Life and Death // by The Daughter of the Moon //------------------------------// When Blue Fire stepped out of his bedroom, most of the house was still grayscale. He could clearly see the spots where Tia stepped on, as they were the only patches of color in the house. "Hi, Blue Fire!" Red Flame said cheerily. "You're up early. Me and Shining are about to go." Red Flame and Shining had their uniforms on. Red Flame was sporting the scarf Blue Fire gave to him. "Actually, I think you'll be coming with us." said Shining Spear. "What?" Shining pulled out a letter from her pocket and gave it to Blue Fire. It had the seal of Rainum on it: a red raindrop. Blue Fire opened the letter. Dear Head Judge and Phoenix Four member Blue Fire, His Majesty, King Crimson Dusk, has requested your presence at Castle Regalious at 8 o'clock sharp. Please dress in your official Head Judge uniform and bear the Phoenix Four badge along with your attire. Captain Shining Spear and Colonel Red Flame will escort you. Cordially, The Desk of His Majesty, King Crimson Dusk Blue Fire froze. "What's a Head Judge?" asked Red Flame. "I've never heard of that position before." Shining added. "No no no no no no…" Blue Fire stammered. He pocketed the letter, ran off to his room, and locked the door. "Oh, well the question is, how could I not? After all, your father was the Head Judge for my father when he was instated as king, nearly 1,000 years ago, just as you are now, hm? Yes, very intriguing indeed…" Cerene's voice echoed in Blue Fire's head. "Dammit… Why did I ever agree to take that position?!" Blue Fire thought furiously. The Head Judge was the pony who led a trial of a criminal and determined whether they would be allowed to live or would be killed. And if he made the verdict that the criminal deserved to die, the Head Judge was the pony who carried out the death. There was a knock on the door. "Blue Fire? What's wrong?" called Red Flame's voice. "I'm, uh, j-just getting ready!" Blue Fire replied. "Okay, but hurry up!" Blue Fire sighed as he heard Red Flame walking away. "I guess I don't really have a choice." Blue Fire opened his closet. There was no sign of his uniform in there. "Rise up from the ashes." called Blue Fire. Suddenly, a uniform appeared on an empty hanger with a golden flame pinned on it. Blue Fire sighed. "Never thought I'd see you again." he said grudgingly, taking the uniform off the hanger and laying it on his bed. After he put on his suit, Blue Fire fastened several badges on the front of it. He dusted off the gold pin and put on his cloak. "I'm ready." Blue Fire thought, staring at his reflection in the mirror. Blue Fire went to the living room to meet Red Flame and Shining Spear. "Wow, you look so cool!" Red Flame gushed. "Nice badges." said Shining, examining the golden badge. "L-let's go, already." Blue Fire said brusquely, blushing. "Hey, who's going to watch the Reaper?" asked Red Flame as they were about to walk out of the door. "Oh…" "I think she can handle herself." said Shining. "I mean, you've seen her battle Shooting Star, right?" "Yeah, but--" "I think she'll be fine." Red Flame added. "…Fine." Blue Flame mumbled. "Let's just go." The group found a chariot surrounded by guards waiting outside for them. Shining whistled. "Fancy!" Shining exclaimed. "You must really be important, Blue Fire. They only use this kind of security for high-ranking nobles and the like." The guards saluted as Blue Fire stepped into the chariot. "Yeah, but I hate being treated like I'm royalty…" Blue Fire mumbled, laying back in his seat. "Why do they even bother? The Phoenix Five… Four can take care of themselves…" The chariot took off. Blue Fire felt the cold wind lashing against his face. It was nice. He hadn't left Snowfall in a long time. "So will I be excused for being late to my post?" Red Flame asked Shining. "Well, yeah, since you had a royal summons. Besides, I'm in charge here!" Shining replied cheerily. Blue Fire stared off into space for the remainder of the trip. He was thinking about his nightmare about Cerene. Surely he wasn't going to kill Tia, right? But if he did, the curse would be lifted from Rainum. Well… how could he trust that she would? She said that since she didn't have a soul, she couldn't feel anything. Why would she want to lift the curse if she couldn't feel compassion or guilt? "Hey, we're almost there!" said Red Flame, poking Blue Fire's side. Blue Fire sat up. They were flying over Belua Forest, which surrounded Rainum's capital, Woodbridge. In the center of Woodbridge stood Castle Regalious, a gargantuan palace made of crystal, diamonds, and white granite. It looked a lot like Tia and Cerene's colors... "Whoa, so cool!" Red Flame exclaimed. The chariot landed below the stairs leading up to the gates of Castle Regalious. Blue Fire stepped out, followed by Red Flame and Shining Spear. "Wow." Red Flame whispered, admiring the crystals glistening in the sunlight. "Looks like the entire guard is here." Shining commented. She was right; at least a hundred armed royal guards lined the steps to the gates. Blue Fire sunk in his cloak. "Why do they always make a big deal out of me just going out of Snowfall…?" he mumbled, frustrated. "They're just taking caution, because, you know, they quarantined you in Snowfall to prevent another…" whispered Red Flame. Blue Fire's heart sunk. How could he forget? One day when he was doing a judging, his anger got the better of him and he caused the entire capital to lose its color. He'd been removed from the Royal Guard and quarantined in Snowfall ever since. He still was a member of the Phoenix Five and was still the Head Judge, but whenever the king summoned him, he'd have to be closely guarded. "I feel like a criminal…" Blue Fire thought bitterly. As Blue Fire climbed the stairs to the gates, the guards saluted. Though Blue Fire could tell they did this merely because of protocol, not because they respected him or anything. "Wonder why the king called me here… Do I need to lead a trial or is this a matter of the Phoenix Five… Four?" thought Blue Fire as he stepped through the castle gates. "Please wait here." A guard told Blue Fire as he stood outside the entrance to the throne room. "We're just going to be out here." Shining said as she and Red Flame left the corridor. "Okay." Blue Fire leaned against the wall. "This is taking forever." Blue Fire thought. It had been at least half an hour since the guard told him to wait. Blue Fire looked around the corridor. "Well, nopony's here, so it can't hurt to just…" Blue Fire took a deep breathe. He pulled his hood over his head and wrapped his cloak tightly around him. "Haven't done this in a while." mumbled Blue Fire, charging up a spell. Suddenly, a blue flame ensconced Blue Fire, and the next moment, he was gone.