A Monster Was Born ✔️

Living Free (Part I)

Yoru felt his life behind the bars and breathed a heavy sigh. He had been here for a week and it was getting close to his trial. He felt anxious and insecure but he also knew he needed to stand up for what is right. He glanced at his inmate: a strong, muscular man with eyes that spelled trouble. He initially felt nervous about him but the man has been silent since he got here, occasionally mumbling words of nonsense under his breath.

Yoru tried asking him different questions. Where are you from? Why are you here? What is your name? But all he got was a glare which brought shivers down his spine.

It doesn't matter, he told himself. You have much more important problems to worry about. And it's true. He remembered his wife and children, borned ready for a bright future, their smiles and sayings already imprinted into his memory. How do they feel now that he had gotten them into this mess?

All that remained was the court case. He had to convince them this was a misunderstanding, a mistake, promise them he would never do such a thing again. That's the only way to be free, even if it meant lying to who he really was.

Yoru groaned and raked his head for ideas, feeling miserable limited to his cage. Meanwhile his inmate stared at the floor blankly, scratching his weathered hands against each other.

That night, as Yoru ate his peas and ham and wheat bread, an informant whispered in his ear with a tone like that of an undercover spy.

"Your trial will be held on January 23rd. Please meet with your lawyer tomorrow to prepare your case."

Over the weeks, Yoru and his lawyer worked the long hours. He was just what Yoru expected: calm, dignified, with a short haircut and glasses over his eyes. The paperwork stack that was organized was immense, much of it being verbose repetition. Still, the lawyer looked it over, dissecting the impact of every sentence and telling Yoru what he should say. Although he was calm, he never smiled, and Yoru wondered if he lost it within the seas of cases he solved.

Yoru hadn't been able to get sleep that night. He tossed and turned but his mind roamed and swallowed like wild bison on the plains. The idea of a trial both excited and frightened him, for he had no idea what he would say to the judge at that moment. A truth, a lie, or...something else. He knew the reason why he's in prison was totally unfair. What he didn't know was if he's ready for others to know what sort of unfairness it was, what sort of truth it was. He knew exactly what to say to have the judge dismiss him from what his lawyer told him, but was this really the right path?

Realizing his struggles of conflict, he closed his eyes and began dreaming of starlights and utopia. A world without troubles that was so close, yet so out of reach. Then, he fell asleep.

In his dreams, a room of light lined with gold tainted walls stood before him, shining magnificently in its brilliance and making him feel as small as an ant in a field of grass. A statue of a woman towered, her hand raised for the invisible audience standing beneath her, the motto underneath printed in script, "Lux et Veritas". Although the room was empty, Yoru felt the presence of thousands of pairs of eyes watching him in silent judgement, as though they were looking in from some other dimension.

"Order in the court," said a voice overhead.

With that, the eyes dropped from his gaze.

"We will start the trial when the defendant is ready. When that time happens, he shall pledge an oath to tell the truth and only the truth, for it is under His judgement that justice may be initiated."

"We will give 5 minutes of time for the defendant to prepare. If he is not ready by then, the fates will decide his path from now on."

"I'm ready." The voice from Yoru's throat surprised him. It was confident and bold, not the wavering anxiety he was used to. It was this dream, he decided. The scenes all called for truth to be told, all eager to hear his music and story reach the heavens. In such a place, there was no room for doubt or anger, since everything in this presence was absolute and certain.

"I swear an oath to tell the truth," He continued, never faltering.

The audience murmured in gossips and riddles. Then, among them, Yoru felt the stare of someone familiar to him.

"Your eyes do not deceive, please sing us your song and whisper the notes of your story."

And so he did.