Dessa [Abridged]

The mythological tale of the daughter of Death and how she was a feared warrior who came to be a renowned hero.

There was once a time when monsters and beasts walked the land of Lady Gaia, and many humans were terrorized by them. Only when a hero would arise would the humans finally have the solace they so desired, and this man was praised even after death for the heroic deeds he would commit. The monsters would then hide in fear, and not show their faces for a long while until they knew there was no hero left to slay them. And so it came to pass that monsters and beasts began to walk the land again. For nearly a hundred years, the humans were terrorized once again, and they prayed to their gods that a hero would soon stand amongst them and save them all. And so one did.

Nobody had expected her to be the so called “hero”. She was merely a woman, and a savage one at that. She was Dessa, the daughter of Sir Mors and blessed by Sir Vaati, and she held no love or affection in her heart for others, she simply slayed beasts because she felt it was her duty. And slay them she did, though it may cost the people one or two of the citizens for her to sacrifice as distraction. People say that she was born from a long deceased mother, fitting for the Daughter of Death, and a somewhat rational explanation for her vile behavior. Nonetheless, the people were thankful that someone had come to their aid.

“Thank you, Dessa! You have our gratitude!” A few citizens cried out to her as she stood before one of the beasts that was slayed with her bare hands. However, they were wary and kept their distance from her, cowering back at a distance as to not provoke her in any way.

She stared at them with stone cold eyes, “It was merely my duty, I need no thanks.” Her gaze turned to the sky, “However, if I am to slay the mighty serpent that dwells in the mountains, I require my reward. If you will bring her to me, I will take my leave.”

“Yes Ma’am, of course!” One dashed away, frightened, and returned with a beautiful young woman smiling brightly, “May I present to you, Suna, daughter of Lady Chronos! You have slayed the beast that terrorized our town, and as reward, on request from the goddess herself, you may take her daughter’s hand for your deeds.”

Suna approached Dessa without fear, still beaming, “It’s nice to meet you. I hope you find me to be a suitable partner for you.”

Dessa left wordlessly, leaving the two men to quickly retreat back to their town, and Suna followed closely behind her eagerly. Dessa was silent until they reached a small house she had called home for as long as she would stay in the city, “Look...I don’t need you, I need the sword. It is the only thing that can slay the serpent, correct?” Suna confirmed happily, despite the harsh tone that was used on her. “Fine, then hand me the blade.”

But unfortunately for Dessa, Suna shook her head, “I cannot simply hand you the blade. It can only fall into the hands of the one for who I am destined; the one who gives their love to me. And I am afraid that the blade isn’t obeying me right now. Do you not love me?”

“I do not.” Dessa answered honestly, “Must I really waste my time with this?” Suna confirmed once again, and Dessa began to plan how to receive the blade without putting too much work into the task.

Their argument continued on for a long while. Dessa traveled the surrounding lands and slayed more and more beasts, then would ask for Suna’s blade. “Do you not love me? Then you will not receive my blade.” Dessa slayed wildbeasts, serpents, krakens, and she was still met with the same answer. Meanwhile, the mighty serpent that dwelled in the mountains took more and more lives, and the population of the nearby city had rapidly declined.

Along their journey, Suna would often force Dessa to stop and admire the beauty of the land of Lady Gaia, and the admirable qualities of the humans that the fourteen Princes had fashioned. She would also tell that, despite their distance, she was still Dessa’s wife and she loved her no matter what. In the ten years that passed, little by little, Suna managed to find a place in Dessa’s heart, and this opened Dessa to being much kinder to others as well.

Finally, Dessa had decided that it was time to slay the serpent. With a new care for others, she asked Suna for the final time for the blade. “Do you still not love me? The blade will not answer me, so I am afraid that you still cannot have it.”

“Fine, I will go without it, then. I will use the gift of fire given to me by Sir Vaati to slay the serpent.” Dessa tried to turn and begin to make her way to the mountains, but she was abruptly stopped by a distraught Suna, greatly saddened and in tears. “It cannot be helped, if I cannot have the blade. I will not allow anyone else to die.”

“But if you go without it, you will surely die, child of the gods or not!” Suna wept, holding onto Dessa tightly, “If you can prove your love for me, then the blade will surely answer my call. Do you love me, Dessa?” Dessa was saddened to see her wife in such pain, and kissed her tears away. She decided that the serpent could wait one more day, and that night, proved her love to her dear Suna.

The next day, closer than ever, the two awoke with vim and vigor. They told one another that they loved each other, then Suna summoned her blade. And sure enough, a light and a sword’s hilt emitted from her chest, and she grabbed hold of it and removed it from her body. “This is the Freya Blade, and it may only be used by my destined and the person that loves me. I grant this blade to you, dear Dessa.” She knelt and presented the blade to her wife, and Dessa took it proudly. She admired the blade, made from solid, hollowed glass, but cut like the finest steel and was just as sturdy. There was sand in the center of the blade; the binding pact that made Suna its sheath. Now that Dessa had the blade, she thanked Suna and they bid their farewells as the heroine left to finally slay the serpent and save the remaining townspeople.

Despite the difficulty of climbing the mountains, Dessa managed to make her way to the serpent’s lair. It was pitch black, cold, and devoid of hope. Dessa could hear the cries of a few people inside, and she called out to save them, “I have come to slay you, foul serpent! Reveal yourself to me!”

And so the serpent came, slithering out of the darkness with wriggling prey in hand, “Oh, another challenger? But this one possesses the Freya Blade. Perhaps I have found a suitable opponent to appease my boredom.” He moved to quickly devour the people in hand before battling. However, Dessa’s heart had changed greatly, and instead of letting the people die and attacking the serpent while it was distracted, she swiftly jumped up to save them. And save them she did, but not at the cost of having her right eye clawed from her face, rendering it permanently useless. Face now bloodstained, Dessa began her duel with the serpent.

Blinding the beast with her gift of fire, she used the opportunity to strike it down. The serpent cried out a hideous, pained cry, then finally collapsed lifelessly. The mighty serpent had been slain. Dessa cut off its head and offered it to her father, praying to him that the beast’s misguided soul could be forgiven. The people the heroine saved cheered with joy, but Dessa could feel her life slipping away with each drop of blood that fell. Once her offering had been made, she stumbled to the ground, dizzy and unable to see clearly. The townspeople all moved to help her, and she thanked them as they all made their way back to the town.

Upon their return, Suna immediately began to weep seeing Dessa on the verge of death. “Dessa, you cannot die! I love you, and I cannot bear to be without you at my side!”

“I love you as well, my dear Suna, but I am afraid that my father is calling for me. But do not let your heart be stricken with grief, for I will one day be reborn and will return to you once again.” Lying in Suna’s arms, she turned to the townspeople, “Thank you, everyone. I will be eternally grateful for the kindness you have showed me. One day, I shall return the favor.” Dessa breathed her final breath, and her body disintegrated into a flurry of black moths and flew up to the direction of the Overworld. As Suna cried, she vowed that she would continue to search for Dessa until they were together once more. At the same time, the survivors of the serpent’s huntings built an altar for the daughter of Death, and began to tell all the tale of the brave and caring heroine that had saved them.

Author's Note

This was my Final for my Mythology class that I took for my Fall semester. It took me a while to come up with an original myth, but I finally did it, and I got a pretty good grade on this too. The reason it's abridged is because I had a specific page count (Which I actually ended up exceeding slightly), so I had to shorten the shite out of the original version that I wrote. Anyways, I forgot to post this when I finished it, but here it is now. Enjoy~

All characters in this story are my own.

Notable Gods that made at least a mention are:
Lady Gaia - Goddess of Earth
Sir Mors - God of Death; Father of Dessa
Sir Vaati - God of Fire
Lady Chronos - Goddess of Time; Mother of Suna

[As a side note, the gods and goddesses in my universe are always referred to as either "Sir" or "Lady" before their names as a show of respect for them.]