In the dark, void of any light, a figure of an old man stood quietly...
"What is this place?" Caught in my own mumble, I voiced out in the dark.
Did I seem to have returned to this strange place?
"It seems so." I, therefore, concluded after standing still for God knows how long.
Surprisingly, I felt very calm like a newborn baby tucked by his own mother, embracing me with warmth. And this unusual feeling came about when I decided to sit on that strange blue circle I just notice, not too long ago.
It suddenly appeared, but somehow it kind of had that vibe that attracts me, so I went to have a look.
.
.
.
***
Meanwhile, Argus who had reunited with his body is busily performing a ritual.
"To Our Loving Bathala, who continued to care and protect the earth silently like the Spirits of our Ancestors...
Let this Burning Sage, be a symbol of our faith and filial piety towards you, Along with Liadlao, the sun, and Libulan, the moon!"
Shouted in a slow but clear voice by a person beside Elder Shana.
[30] It was none other, but the Babaylan herself.
On this special occasion, the Babaylan who is said to be equal to Datu made her appearance.
If the Elder Shaman was regarded as second only to the Datu in terms of prestige, then the Babaylan is the title held firmly by the Highest among the elder Shamans.
That means, she is equal to the Datu himself but is not equal to the Dayang when it comes to authority, although her advice can sometimes still affect the final decision of the Datu.
Note: When the Aghorans first discovered Ophir, they called this group of women as a group of witches. They did not acknowledge their rights or Authority.
But in any of the tribal islands, these group of women held more power alongside with the Datu due to their practice of divination, they were respected and honored pretty well among the tribesmen.
These group of women is typically dressed in clean woven silk with patterns unique for their own tribe. Unlike the Datus and Dayangs, during ceremonies, they don't wear any golden ornamentals but instead were adorned with animal bones and different stones, particularly of pearls and rare shiny stones.
Now they are at the front row among the crowd of people, where a neat matt was placed beneath their knees especially prepared for them that separates them from the common tribesmen.
As the ritual gradually reaches its end,
All the tribesmen, both the adult and the young, regardless of gender knelt to the ground chanting the same words...
"May you bless the following days with your grace!"
With solemnity and reverence, each of them whispered in their hearts, their own wishes.
And in silence, they all prayed.
Argus who had experienced peculiar things had a serious look as he followed the crowd in their chants.
He now regarded the customs of their tribe more dearly compared from before as he performed them diligently.
This attracted the gaze of Amaya and Aryan, but he is totally oblivious to them.
"This flirtatious guy, Argus seemed to have at least a high regard to the spirits."
"Hmm, He is being serious with it too..." Amaya thought to herself.
The ritual continued until the sun was able to smile its brightest.
Noon will soon come.
It is one of the customs that the Tribesmen of Lumin's Tribe observed at each change in phase of the moon. Although the people from this tribe regarded the sun as their guide, they regarded the moon as equal to the sun.
Hence they also had a good relationship with the tribesmen from the Bulan's Tribe.
And now those people had come to gather in a ritual together with the Lumin's Tribe.
So the whole place is especially rowdy today.
Setting an intention and lighting the sage sticks with a burning candle, the embers glowed and the smoke filled the air...
With both hands, the Babaylan prostrated to the ground.
The ritual is about to end.
And Argus whose eyes had been closed all this time gradually opened it.
What greeted him are the densely packed grounds of the Village square.
At his side, he saw a different tribe that wore the exact layout from the Lumin's tribe, except their clothes had a different color. It was light like how the ocean reflected the sky and different embroideries decorated their upper Chaleco vests.
On the other hand, females had worn skirts with golden trim lines on their hemlines or golden linings. They each had different sized golden earrings and necklaces.
"These people are probably from the Bulan Tribe."
"Why are they still loyal to these Lumin Tribe bastards? Don't they know how our tribe suffered a tragic fate, all because of them?" Argus was then reminded of the night when their tribe got invaded and destroyed by the Lumin Tribe.
He could not help but form a knuckle on his fists.
Now, he was again thankful for Miguel, if not for his interference he probably had died starved on that Alipin Grounds.
Which then reminded him of Toto...
Staring blankly at the ground, he suddenly felt discouraged.
"That's just how weak and powerless, I currently am." Muttering inwardly, Argus with a pained expression, looked pitiful.
Luckily it did not take long before the Ritual finally ended and the people gradually dispersed, leaving the Alipins and Sulgos to take care of the cleaning of the deserted altar and the Village square.
And while cleaning the place, Argus had time to talk with a pretty young lady.
Actually, before he got demoted into being an Alipin when he was still a Ranoan, he had always been an Amorous Rascal.
He disturbed the neighbors all because of the beauties they hid on their huts.
He had no regard to age, as long as it was not too young that it can't even think for herself and fancied the lady, he pestered it and deliberately visited each hut.
Now that a pretty lady approached him first, Argus could not help but form some indecent thoughts.
And Amaya granted him the first move, unknowingly...
When Amaya noticed that Argus was then left alone, she immediately went close to Argus.
"It is my first time witnessing a grand ritual like this," Amaya whispered to Argus while wiping the used wooden plates.
In front of them. a table was neatly prepared and numerous foods and offerings were laid out just beside the burning sage.
"It did not feel grand to me." Argus simply replied. But his cheeks had grown red due to the embarrassment because Amaya is not courteous enough to observe that their distance is too close.
His elbows were basically poking fun and touching the ample bosom of Amaya, which the clueless Amaya did not take notice.
"Uhmm, excuse me. You are too close." Argus abruptly replied.
"You!" And Amaya simply called out before immediately running away from Argus.
Argus just scratched his head and continued their task.
He just happily murmured to himself "What an auspicious Bulalan Ritual this is... hehe"
And with that, Argus did a pretty good job on his first day after his return to his body.