Chapter 2
"I told you, it is not a good idea for us to volunteer to patrol here now. Haven't you heard the rumors?"
One of the two men snickered, "What? The rumor about the lost child in the forest?" He laughed so hard, he doubled up.
"Are you one of those loonies who listened to such baseless stories? If I will guess, it is one of those tiyanak(1) variation that one of the elders were circulating to stopped the kids from playing on the forest." There was indeed a tiyanak infestation in this forest years ago, but the elder already cleansed them all.
"Hoy! Don't speak like that! Do you know that evil spirits will come when you talked about them? Elder Asyang told me so."
"Haha! Are you a kid? Grow up! You are already 19 summers old."
"Why did I even bother following you here?"
The night was bright. The full moon was brandishing its light in the forest. Some other nights, the forest is so dark and gloomy. But that night was different. The moon was so bright and welcoming. The forest seemed friendlier than before. Or so it seems…
"Hmnp! Monster… If it were me, I will just sleep comfortably in my own home. This whole patrol is useless!"
"Hey! If Elder Asyang sent us out, it is not just a baseless rumor. She is not a no-nonsense woman. And if you saw one of the coffins…"
A few days ago, there was a sudden commotion in the ancestral cemetery. Many coffins on the left side near the forest was overturned. Some were left on the surface. He recollected the time they opened a casket in a desecrated grave. Everything is a mesh inside. Everything is destroyed except for a large banana trunk that should not be there. He felt chill crawl in his back again. He knew the person buried there.
"It could be a prank! Ahh! Superstitious people!"
"A prank?" he asked indignantly. "Why are you so negative about this? It is not like you haven't seen one."
"Yes, I have seen one so I know it is fake. Hmnp!"
Deep inside, he knew that it could be true; that there was a ghoul or spirit lurking on the forest. There was a strong feeling in him that says all those rumors are true. But he wants to be strong for his children. He wants his two boys to grow strong and brave!
"Ahh!! What is that?"
There was a sudden rustle in the bush, nearby. All this talk about that damned monster!
"It is nothing! Could be a wild animal. Stop frightening yourself!"
His heart was thumping so loud on his ears. He was so surprised that he felt cold and numb at the same time. He held tightly on the hilt of his kampilan(2), expecting an attack.
"Who is there!" he shouted.
He felt stupid asking that in the dark. But now, is not the time think about his pride.
Another rustling in the bush. They unsheathed their kampilan together. They stood ready to attack whoever is that in the bush. Slowly they rounded the bush. There is no sound in the forest but a total silence. As they moved closer to the bush, it rustle again. They paused and looked at each other. They tighten their hold on the hilt. Then a head peaked out from the bush.
A head of a small cow.
They released the breath that they didn't realize they were holding for a quite some time. They smiled a sigh of relief. They looked at each other. It is just a cow. A freaking cow! They breathed out a laugh. They were so foolish to be afraid of a cow.
A cow… a young cow… in the middle of the forest… at night….
Then a realization hit them hard. How can a young cow graze here in the middle of the forest? The entrance to the forest a thick mangrove. No cow could enter here, let alone at the middle of the night. Then how did the cow get in here?
They looked at the cow's head and realized something else. The bush is so small for a cow to hide its body, even a baby cow cannot have that small of a body. So where is the body and the tail of the cow?
The cow looked at them sharply, like it was a first time for it to see them. It opened its mouth, but there is no sound that came out. But the smell. The smell of the rotten decaying meat.
They stepped back and tried to escape. But it is too late. The cow shifted its form. It grew bigger and looked more sinister. Its eyes shallow; its mouth wide and grinning.
"AHHHHHHHHH!"
*****
Somewhere in the forest.
"Kuya(3)? Kuya! Where are you?"
A little kid, no older than 7 years old, was walking around at the middle of the night in the forest. His clothes were ratty and very messy.
"Kuya! I already picked your fruits. Let us have dinner!"
No response. The forest is too quiet tonight. Where is his older brother? Then a scream:
"AHHHHHHHHH!"
Notes:
(1) Tiyanak – In Philippine Lower Mythology, tiyanak or tianak is an dead unbaptized child or baby who returned to the mortal world to haunt as evil spirit.
(2) Kampilan – A prehistoric Philippine saber.
(3) Kuya – "Older brother", could be a blood relative or just any older guy.