The Blue Knight traveled to a place where the dead go, where the dead pass to another place and the doors of that place are where he went. He went to the door and asked what was there on the other side, past the door, by the door. At the door, Death came to talk with the Blue Knight and Death said that beyond the door was the place of the dead and to pass through he must die but that was not for the Blue Knight.
Then Death said that if The Blue Knight could wear Death’s Big Hat, but that there would be a price. The Price was high and to cut the Blue Knight’s life in half its allotted span. The Blue Knight said, ‘Can you tell me of this place of the dead so that if I occasion to despatch someone thither then I might know the destination and condition.’
Death spoke, ‘No, to hear this is not …..’ at that moment the Blue Knight stole Death’s Hat and went fast through the door that was the Door of Death and went into the place where he could not go.
Death could not pass after him without his Hat, so he folds his arms with waiting to take the Blue Knight’s life in measure.
When time enough had passed, through the Door of Death came out the Knight who was Blue and his face was white, deathly white. Death took his Hat and half his life from within him there that moment for his impudence and asked if he was satisfied with what he had seen.
The Blue Knight said, ‘Yes, I have seen the land of death, it has no colour and has a darkness inside, the dead stay there as still as if they are frozen and indeed a cold wind blows across the formless land. There is no sound to hear, if you look into the eyes of the dead there is nothing within and the wind blows inside them as well as out.
It seemed that there is no reason to this place, but while I was there something happened that shewed me to its purpose of this. Someone in the realm of life remembered one of the dead and this memory made, for an instant, that dead person to give the memory form and shape. When memory had gone that dead person was clear to see. So now I looked at the dead more carefully and I could discern that those who had not been remembered faded slowly away till some could be seen through, like looking through some falling water and it came clear that some had weakened and disappeared.
There is not any life after death as some have told, only the memory of life. Now that I know this, I shall never send people more through the Doors of Death lest it be to save the life of another. I shall tell all the Knights that I can meet about the Land of Death, that to which they send each other, is no heaven nor hell, just the absence of the flame of life. I shall persuade them to use their arms only in defence of the innocent.
Death, having listened, laughed long and left the Blue Knight alone.
The Guardians of the Cave 