Talia opened her eyes to see the night sky filled with stars.
She rubbed her eyes and looked around. With little to no light, she could barely make out the trees surrounding her. She was in a forest, which would be normal if it weren't for the fact she had slept in a bed.
"The time has come." A familiar voice called out, and she had to suppress a groan.
"Nice to see you too, Ms. Tala."
Ever since the whole thing back in the Diwata Site, her past self started haunting her dreams. Some nights she would confront her, telling her that she should 'kill him,' even training her for it, and some nights she would just sit nearby, mumbling about it. She had changed drastically, turning into a hollow, tired version of the cool magical woman she had first met.
She turned and faced the woman. "The time has come for what? What is it this time: 'we must find him or else', or maybe 'we have to kill him?"
If Tala was offended by her words, she didn't show it. "The power we hold is growing more wild as we speak, especially as it knows we are not its rightful host."
"But that's what we're working on, remember?" Talia said, getting up. "When we get to Kaluwalhatian, we'll find the talisman, I wear it, and I'll be okay again-"
"And what about Apolaki?"
Talia blinked. "Apolaki....the Apol guy?"
"He still possesses the other half. If we are not able to contain all of Bathala's powers, he will not be able to reincarnate."
She hadn't thought of that before. The deities around her always tried to avoid saying his name.
"What exactly happened?"
Tala tilted her head. "Excuse me?"
"They keep saying that there was a misunderstanding, but no one actually explains why Apol turned bad."
The woman looked at her, unblinking, then sighed.
"You must have realized by now that there is more than one pantheon in this country. Tagalog mythology might be one of the most well-known, but there are many other pantheons spread throughout the country, and they are closely intertwined. For example, Apolaki and Mayari are also revered by the Kapampangan. And take a look at Ribung Linti: he is the Visayan God of Lightning and Thunder."
"Right..." She always wondered why his name wasn't Kidlat. "If that's the case, then why is he here with us?"
"To help stop a war. We switched deities like him and Hanan for a short time, hoping that it would lessen the tension between us."
"The ties between pantheons have already been somewhat tense, but when we started being forgotten by our people...this caused chaos. There were many squabbles and battles as the gods fought to be remembered.
For a long time, Apolaki was the only one in our pantheon that was mostly remembered for who he truly was. With the rest of us struggling to maintain our identity, he was alone with no one there to help him.
"One could also say that it all started in the past when the first reincarnation of Bathala died. Apolaki and Mayari fought for the throne and it was put to a stop when he struck her in the face and blinded her in one eye. They became friends again, but the other gods started becoming wary of him. Whatever the case, Sitan must have come to him at this time. When everything was stable, he came back a changed man."
"Why won't the other pantheons help us?"
"Why would they?"
"Isn't Bathala's death a big thing, considering he is the god of all in our pantheon? Shouldn't they at least try?"
"Most of them are being forgotten, Talia. Belief is a very powerful thing, and due to our circumstances, even the other pantheons' Gods of All won't stand a chance against Sitan."
Silence enveloped the place. Talia tried to wrap her mind around the newfound information.
This was so messed up.
"When the time comes, would you be ready to do what needs to be done?"
"What needs to be done-" She cut herself off as she drew in a sharp breath, eyes widening. "I..it won't come to that. We'll convince him."
"And if you fail?" She looked at me pointedly.
"We're not going to kill him!" She stood up and faced Tala. "I'm not going to kill my half-brother. We will make him see reason. We won't fail."
They looked at each other before Talia looked away. The woman could be scary when she wants to.
"Very well," Tala finally said. "For everyone's sake, I hope you are right."
"...You should wake up now. An aswang is trying to eat the house owner's baby."
-*-*-*-*-*-
She had heard of many beautiful things about Kaluwalhatian, like how it was heaven.
It was the beloved abode in the sky and the court of Bathala. She had heard how the gods mingled together, in a peaceful and prosperous kingdom in the air, with nature that could only exist before industrialization. It would be the most beautiful place that Talia had ever seen.
And it would have been if the place wasn't on fire and mostly destroyed.
"...It can't be..."
"We're too late."
The whole realm was a total wreck. Everything was in ruins. Mountain forests were on fire. Plants were on fire. Fire and debris were scattered everywhere, as far as Talia could see.
"What kind of sicko would do this?" Maya said, shaking.
None of them bothered to answer that question, since all of them knew. Only one person would do this.
An explosion erupted in the distance. They looked to see a castle. It was the tallest and grandest out of all of them, and compared to the others, this one was relatively intact.
They ran towards it.
As they passed by the monuments, guilt flooded through her. If they had only been there earlier...
Wait a minute.
"Was that...the Malacanang Palace?" She stared at it in shock as it passed by. It was drastically griefed, but its infamous form could still be recognized.
"The Kaluwalhatian is based on the important landmarks of this country, past and present," Maya said offhandedly. She gestured to the last castle standing, "This one is the sweet spot of all the gods and the most likely place for the talisman."
As they went closer to the gates, they could see something, or rather someone from the distance...
It turned to them...it was a floating, disembodied creature with bat-like wings.
Of course. Out of all the mythical creatures in Philippine Folklore, it had to be a manananggal, and boy could it scream.
The manananggal charges at them from the sky swiping at Talia with it sharp claws.
Talia blocked the attack with her dagger. She then stabbed it a little for it being rude.
The mananaggal screeched, backing away from her and swooping upwards, but before it could get any farther, Ribu grabbed one of it wings and threw it against the castle's outer walls.
Maya thrust her kampilan in it's heart, making it evaporate in a cloud of dust.
Faint growling came from above, and Talia silently panicked.
Maya quickly waved her hand and it dimly glowed.
Small characters started to form from thin air and shimmered faintly, as if it knew they were trying to hide.
As there were sounds of wings swooping down, she could feel Maya's hand grasp her arm.
The sounds grew closer, and Talia could finally read the formed word-
'ᜋᜃᜉᜄ᜔ᜎᜑᜓ'
It said Makapaglaho, which it roughly translates to...
Invisibility.
A pack of manananggals slowed their descent, floating above the ground. They looked around, confused.
She looked down to see that as the word says, she was invisible.
...Dang, there really was a spell for everything.
"Don't go far away from me." Maya whisphered to her ear. "The spell only works on you as long as I'm touching you."
"AAAARGH!" An unholy shriek came from one of them, making Talia look. One of them was lowered down to cradle the dust of the monster they killled.
"THEY KILLED MY SISTER!"
She couldn't help but feel a little guilt. That was a woman? And she had a family-
"I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE THE ONE TO KILL HERRR!!!"
Never mind.
Growling, they looked up to the heavens and flew away, leaving them in pure silence.
And when they go away. Mayari mad.
Maya let go of Ribu and Tala, rushing to the main hall
"WaitStop," Ribu said, and Mayari went to a halt.
"This was our home, Ribu. They burned it down like it was nothing." She frowned at the castle with sudden melancholy. "Apol burned it down like it was nothing."
"..." Ribu sighed. "As much as I want to, we both know barging in and exposing ourselves isn't going to help.
We were lucky only a few monsters showed up. We have no idea how many monsters are in there. The spell would break."
"Fine."
They silently looked around the castle, trying to find a way in.
"We could try there?" Talia pointed to a window above them.
"Seriously?"
"Do have any better ideas?" Ribu snapped.
After a bit of struggling and curses, they managed to get themselves through the window.
They heard footsteps and Maya shoved all of them behind a statue.
"We're literally invisible-" Ribu hissed.
"Better safe than sorry-"
"This is plain evil, even for you monsters!" A voice said, and they stiffened.
Talia peeked a little to see who spoke...
"Uh, some monsters are holding a man with a half-face mask?" She whispered to them.
"A what?" Ribu's voice said. She heard some scrambling next to her, but he was pulled back with a huff from Maya.
"A face mask, but like, Phantom of the Operaish, and it covers the left side of his face.
"...Paul," Maya whispered grimly.
He started struggling harder, catching the attention of the monsters. "Stay still!" One of them hissed, but he relented.
Paul glanced in their direction and stopped at their direction, frowning. Talia gently took Maya's hand off her arm, gave a little wave, and his eyes widened.
"What are you looking at?" The monster growled, looking suspiciously at the statue.
Talia cringed and scooted back under the statue, Maya clasping her hand.
She could hear the clomps of their feet as they started towards them-
BANG! There were sounds of pummeling and people slipping, and Talia slowly looked again to gasp.
In a ludicrous fashion, a hard sleet of rain and snow dropped down from the sky, pelting the monsters through the window with scary accuracy.
"BAH!" They sputtered as they swatted at the raindrops. It was in no way fatal, but it was very annoying.
"SOMEONE CLOSE THAT CURSED WINDOW-"
Fuming, the monsters turned to the minor god-
But he was nowhere to be seen.
"Stupid gods." They cursed as they chased after the two-faced man.
They waited until there were no more sounds of hissing and growling, then they returned to the hallway.
"That's the God of Seasons for you," Ribu remarked with a laugh.
"What is he doing here?" Maya said, eyebrows furrowed. "Didn't we send out word for everyone to lay low?"
"He got approved last year, remember?" Ribu sighed. "Some of them must've gone here for refuge when the Batala realm collapsed."
"Don't worry, I'll go check on them," Ribu said. He broke free form Maya's grip, fully visible as he stood up. "I cam handle a few monsters. You guys should go. Try to find the talisman."
Maya agreed, as did Talia. A little backup couldn't hurt.
As Ribu went out of sight, Maya helped her get up.
"Let's look around."
Just to be safe, they ducked whenever they thought someone was coming and pressed themselves to the white walls.
They were able to sneak their way into the great hall to see someone kneeling before Apol, cowering.
"I'm telling you the truth!" They said fiercely, though their voice wavered. "No one knows where Mr. Allen kept the talisman-"
Apol turned to the minor deity, almost beheading them with his sword, and Talia had to stifle a gasp. He still had those engravings all over him. He looked fine, but it was clear that the powers took a toll on him too. He had dark circles under his eyes and he twitched ever so slightly.
"I suggest you help us find it, or else."
Suddenly, the door was abruptly opened, as a pack of wild women came.
Maya cursed, "It's them."
"MR. APOL," one of them said with a scratchy voice. "SOMEONE HAS KILLED THE GUARDS."
Another interrupted with a screech, "SOMEONE KILLED MY SISTER!!!"
"WE BELIEVE THAT THERE IS AN INTRUDER."
"MY SISTER DIED, YOU HEARTLESS-"
"WILL YOU ALL JUST SHUT UP!"
They all hushed as Apol breathed heavily.
He huffed. "Send people throughout the castle. Find them and bring them to me at all costs."
He waved dismissively at the minor deity, "And take care of this guy. I've had enough of him."
Maya rushed to his safety breaking the spell along with Talia.
"Hello, sisters." He smiled knowingly. "So nice of you to join us."
It was a trap, Talia realized, as she looked around them. There were many monsters in the great hall. They would be captured easily.
"Now," Apol said, never taking their eyes of them, "Where's the talisman."
"Where's your holier-than-thou master?" Maya retored.
"He's handling other important business."
"He can't enter this realm, can he?" Maya mused. "As long as some of Bathala's powers are in good hands, Sitan will never be able to cross his nemesis' abode."
Apol glared at them coolly, scoffing.
"I don't need him to deal with weaklings like you."
Apol creates a fireball as big as a small meteorite and shoots it at them. The monsters around the great hall charged at them, from duwendes as small as toddlers to kapres as tall as trees.
In a rush, Talia raised her hands and a translucent twinkling barrier appeared, blocking the fireball.
She mentally said thank you to her past self for the magic lessons, although they were more on killing people.
On the other side Maya was slicing up monsters. With every slash, a glowing white semicircle trail followed, hurting every enemy in their path. This opens up a path for the minor deity cocunut guy to break free from the horde
Talia runs up to him, and he holds her by the shoulders, crying out, "Thank you! Thank you so much—"
"Yay, thanks, I don't mean to be impolite, but who are you and what are you the god of?"
"Ah, of course." Despite the circumstances, he puffed up his chest a little. "I am Mangkukutud, the protector of coconut trees."
...Coconuts? Seriously?
"Okay, um...Mr. Mangkukutud, would you want to fight with us—"
"Oh, no no! I am no fighter. I was just trying to stall time for you guys."
"Well if that's the case, try to find somewhere safe."
"Okay!" He went for the door, but before leaving, turned and smiled at her. "Don't worry, little one. Anytime now, Bathala will come and save us all!"
...Oh. Wow, he needs to catch up on a lot.
Suddenly, she stiffened, looked at her left and barely dodged another fireball from Apol.
She returned the favor by pointing her dagger at him. It started to glow yellowish white, and rapid long trails of light shot at him.
Again, thank you past self.
It continues like this for a few more moments Maya and Talia fighting them well enough, but she had a feeling it won't last long. They were outnumbered 20 to 1.
But as they were cornered...a meager dwende waddled in the room
"MY LORD," He bellowed in a annoyingly high voice. "SOME OF THE GODS HAVE ESCAPED-"
He was interrupted as a lightning bolt hit him. Electricity spidered around the duwende. As he went still and faceplanted with a grunt, Ribu stood there, smiling.
"'Sup."
"Idiots." Apol grumbled.
Gods started charging through the door of the great hall giving valiant battle cries as they started hacking the monsters apart.
Taking a glimpse through one of the windows, Talia saw various gods wielding weapons battling against tht army of monsters. Claws and teeth were met with swords and spears. Even though they were outnumbered, each god that fell in battle took a dozen monters down with them.
...They were winning. They actually had a chance—
Someone roughly pulled her from behind, and she turned to come face-to-face with Apol. She gulped.
Both of them staggered simultaneously, and wisps of light came out of both of them. The wisps grew larger in size and intensity and it filled the whole room, blinding everyone.
A moment passed and the light disappeared, except for a single wisp.
The wisp floated, hesitating, before going out of the doorway.
A moment passed, and everyone went to follow it, monsters and deities alike.
-*-*-*-*-*-
The wisps lead to this office.
It was simple but has its own touch of elegance. There was a wide window in the end, showing the ruined view.
Funny...the layout of the room was very familiar, as if it was...
"Bathala's room." Maya mouthed.
The wisp stopped yet again. It lingered in the room, illuminating it with soft, tender light, then flew to a section of the wall. It then gave way, showing a doorway.
She stiffened. The light was leading to Bathala's talismam. She could feel it. Everyone could feel it, she realized, as all of them held their breath, waiting for someone to do something.
Apol made a break for the doorway, and Talia chased after him.
-*-*-*-*-*-
There was a pedestal, but it only served as decor since the talisman was floating.
It was a glowing necklace made of golden chains.
Its most striking feature, however, was the item embedded in its center. A luscious blue gem. Deep and mysterious, as if it held the powers of the universe, and given its origin, that could be possible.
Apol went for the talisman, but Talia hit him in the back with the flat of her dagger, surprising him momentarily, and snatched the talisman.
She felt a calm tingling sensation come over her body but she paid no mind to it as she dashed outside with Apol right behind her.
As she got to the other room, she saw that a fight had started outside.
She felt someone take a hold of her hand from the back and then she was hit straight in the gut by Apol's flaming fist, causing her to go flying back.
As she landed on the ground, she teared up a little as she spit out some blood.
What was it with this guy and fireballs? Why not a little sunshine, as his title suggests?
Shoot. Grasping the talisman tightly in one hand, she lifted her dagger to block his flaming sword. Not cool.
The tingling sensation became more prominent. She shivered a little, as newfound energy surging through her, and the talisman shined brightly in response. As she blinked, her entire perspective changed.
She wore a silky silvery gown that went just below her knees. Small crystals of light surrounded her. These stars helped her as she fought against Apolaki.
In this instance, she was not Talia. No, she was Tala in her former glory, fighting Apolaki, and one part of her loved it, while the other loathed the magical woman costume change.
It happened to the others as well. As they fought, she saw that Maya now donned an elegant navy blue dress. One of her eyes illuminated a cool and gentle light, and her kampilan was glowing as she cut through the monsters with ease. You'd think it would be hard to fight in a dress, but she barely broke a sweat and looked like she could do this all day.
Ribu dressed like a Filipino warrior. He wore a gray loincloth and was adorned with silver accessories and tattoos fit for a timawa. His ax crackled with electricity as he held it up and swung it down. A pungent smell of ozone arose, and lightning bolts shot out, striking the monsters around him.
The others had changed too, and they looked just as majestic. It was as if their true powers were awoken with the talisman's presence. They started to look like real gods.
She looked back and froze. Apolaki also changed his appearance. He was dressed in traditional maharlika garb with a red and gold theme. He gripped his sword tighter, and the flames around it grew.
But that wasn't all. There was something else, and it made her stomach churn.
His form was constantly shifting from himself to a completely different person. A man completely made out of obsidian and fire. Mangkukulam.
Final plot twist? Both of them were struggling for control.
So that's why he moved so sluggishly, as if he had no control over his body sometimes.
This continued on and on, flipping like a switch.
"...Apol?" She called out, cringing at the sight.
With a gasp, it switched into Apol, and it neld out longer this time.
He looked tired.
Apol looked at her, unwavering, almost pleading.
His voice came out as a whisper, but she heard it in full clarity.
"....Help."
"You have to give it to me."
"But-"
"They miss you."
"...What?"
"They talk about you like, all the time. Mostly to curse you, but it's obvious that they're sad about the whole thing."
"They really regret not being there for you."
He looked at her...face softening...eyes filled with guilt and hope-
He convulted violently and pushed her away with his flaming sword, snatching the talisman away.
She swatted at her dress but fell, as she felt the power leave her. All around, everyone stopped as he shifted to Mangkukulam. Holding the talisman up high, he looked at everyone, stopping at Talia.
"That...was pathetic."
Mangkukulam/Apol thrust his hands to the ground.
'ᜉᜄ᜔ᜆᜏᜄ᜔'
Pagtawag.
She stiffened. Summoning.
The spell was blistering. The remaining monsters screeched and ran away.
She felt two hands clasp on both her shoulders and pull her back. Mayari and Apol shielded her as everyone else grits their teeth from the impact.
She peeked from behind them to see a blazing circle of light forming on the floor. A figure was starting to appear inside, holding a wooden staff.
Mangkukulam laughed wildly. "Yes...yes!"
She notices that Mangkukulam is shaking. The talisman is resisting him, for it knows that this is not the will of Bathala.
She tries to call it.
And it answers.
It flooded her mind with memories of Apol killing Bathala and wielding his powers. He had done so with gusto, adjective.
It was asking her. What made her worthier than Apol? What makes her worthy of Bathala's power? He was far more powerful, and he had been the one to kill Bathala. In terms of experience and power, he was a far more suitable handler.
The question stunned her. What did make her worthy?
...The answer was easy. She wasn't worthy. Getting Bathala's powers was an accident. Anyone else could have been in her position, it was just a complete coincidence for her to be the one at that time.
But neither was Apol. No one else was worthy, except its original owner.
The memories stopped flooding through as she came to her conclusion.
And so she reached out to it again.
'I may not be as capable or as experienced as the others, but I can promise you that I will do everything I can to bring this power back to who it truly belongs.'
A moment of tense silence, then nothing. Her spirits fell as the man started to become clearer, and the room grew darker.
"Ack-" Mangkukulam instinctively dropped the talisman, grabbing his scalded hands.
It was almost comical. In a split second, the talisman swooped towards their direction, making Mayari and Apol rush away. It slipped into Tala's hands, fulling her to the brim with magic.
She locked eyes with the figure. They were cold and unnerving and showed no mercy.
Sitan.
The talisman glowed brightly. Wisps of light came out, surrounding her, and her body started to glow but was different this time. She could control it.
And she had just the right spell in mind.
'ᜉᜄ᜔-ᜀᜆ᜔ᜇᜐ᜔'
Pag-atras. Retreat.
Mangkukulam's spell shattered as he, along with the rest of the monsters, started to glow and become transparent.
"NO!"
He cursed as he tried to cast it again but it was no use, for he was almost gone.
"Why you-"
He staggered. "Enough." He said, but Apol's voice came out.
"You dare...after everything we did for you?" Mangkukulam's voice said, enraged and weak.
Mangkukulam/Apol held his head, screaming. White light surrounded them and everyone had to close their eyes.
A painful shriek rang out. They opened their eyes to see two figures sprawled across the floor. They were separated.
Apol lay unconscious, while Mangkukulam stood up, flinching as he did.
"You'll pay for this." Mangkukulam seethed.
He sent one last withering glare at them before his form fully vanished.
-*-*-*-*-*-
She found herself fidgeting in her seat as she waited for her class to end.
To be honest, with everything that's happened to her, she completely forgot about school, so her mind was completely blank. Thankfully, Maya and Ribu told her that they'd care of it, but you never know.
"Okay, students, class dismissed! Remember to study Chapter 9-" The teacher said, but he was drowned out by the excited chatter of students as they rushed towards the door.
Talia heard the teacher mumble, "Sure. Ignore me. Don't panic we have our pop quiz next week," and she giggled.
"Hey, loser!" A voice said and she turned to see Ryan.
"....Hey?"
Oof. She had to relearn socializing with kids too.
"I bet you just faked having food poisoning to skip school for a week."
"Food poisoning-"
"I can assure you that it's not fake, Mr. Cruz," Maya said, coming out of nowhere. She shot a strained smile at the boy. "By the way, aren't you supposed to be in class?"
Ryan flushed and quickly run along.
As soon as Ryan was gone, Maya winked at her. "Hey kid."
"Hi, ate Maya...did Ribu leave already?"
"Yeah, he was so stoked about it, he electrocuted one of his pals." Maya said with a chuckle, then smiked softly. "Hana's coming back soon too."
She lit up at that news and couldn't help but grin. She couldn't wait to tell her everything.
"Amd the talisman?"
"In safekeeping. Bathala's powers are stored within it, so the next reincarnation will appear in a few months or so."
It was the right thing to do. Even though the thought of wielding immense power was very tempting, everyone agreed that Bathala was the one who should decide what would happen with it.
"Do I still get to go to Batala?"
Maya laughed, "Of course! We'll still keep in touch with you, but it might be better if you stayed in a mortal school for the meantime."
She nodded, relieved. She could still have some sense of normalcy.
"I gotta go kid. Focus on school, alright?"
"Yep!"
As she waved goodbye to Maya and braced herself for her other class, one last thought slipped into her mind:
Her life will never be the same again.
-*-*-*-*-*-
Author's Note:
....
Well.
This was an interesting journey. More like a trainwreck, but I digress.
This is the very first time that I tried to complete a story. It was pretty hard trying to write this since this is the first draft and I had and still have no experience in writing.
I promise that I'll try to rewrite and revise this when I'm older and more mature.
With that out of the way...
Thank you, mom, for encouraging me to finish this and not unpublish this.
Thank you, brother. You edited and helped, I guess.
(Brother: ExsquEEZE ME I mAdE hAlF tHe plooott-)
Thank you, dad, for being my dad.
And thank you, dear person, for reading up to this point. I really appreciate it <3
....
Thank you hips, for not lying. Thank you arms, for always being by my side. Thank you Jollibee, nationalism go brrrr
Okay, baiiii!