*Note this story is in Tagalog

Palubog na ang araw sa tabi ng bundok at ang daan ay nagiging padilim na ng padilim. Si Carlo at Che ay pabalik na sa kanilang bakasyunan pagkatapos ang isang araw na paglalakbay ng pagiging isa sa kalikasan. Ito na ang pangatlong beses sa loob ng maraming araw na napagdesisyonan nila na galugarin ang katabing bundok at ang mga local na gabay ay higit pa sa pagiging matulungin.

Naisip ni Carlos na maganda ito. Higit pa sa isang buwan simula noong napagpasyahan nilang magkabalikan at ang mga bagay ay patuloy na bumubuti.

Kahit papaano ay naisagawa nya ang pagbabayadsala para sa mga maling kanyang nagawa, o siguro ay napagdesisyonan nlng ni Che na patawarin sya. Ngunit ngayon ito ay parang katulad ng unang panahon. Noong nakakapagtawanan pa sla at nakakapaglakad-lakad at nahahawakan ang kanyang kamay. Hiniling nya na magpatuloy ito habang buhay.

Ang daanan ang mahirap na makita ngayon at natuwa ang magkasintahan na naalala nilang magdala ng mga lente at mga ulo lampara. Nasanay sila sa paggala sa labas at nagkakila pa sila sa mountaineering club ng kanilang paaralan. Para sa kanila, parating may magandang dulot ang pagiging handa.

“Nararamdaman mo ba un?” tanong ni Che.

“Wag mo nang ikabahala iyon, mabilis talaga bumaba ang temperatura sa lugar na ito” sagot ni Carlos. “Dapat ay malapit na tayo sa resort ngayon, magbigay o tumagal ng 15 minuto.”

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

“ano iyon?!” Inikot ni che ang kanyang lente sa paligid upang subukang mailawan ang mga puno.

“Marahil ay isa lng iyon sa mga ligaw na ibon. Wag kang mag alala, walang ano man ang makakapanakit saatin dito” malumanay na sagot ni Carlos. “Che? May mali ba?”

Nahulog ni Che ang kaniyang lente at nagsimulang tumakbo papunta sa ibang direction mula kay Carlos. Hindi nya alam kung ano ang nangyayari at umikot sya para makita kung ano ang tinakbuhan ni Che.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

Ang tanging bagay lng na narinig ni Che ay ang tunog ng hiyaw ni Carlos habang tumatakbo sya pababa sa daan. Inaasahan nya na maging mas mabilis si Carlos sa kung ano mang bagay iyon pero alam nya na iyon ay mapaghangad na pag-iisip.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

Nadarama na niya ito sa likuran niya.

=——————————————–=

English Version

It was sunset along the mountainside and the trail was getting darker and darker. Carlo and Che were headed back to their resort after a day’s journey being one with nature. It was the third time in as many days that they decided to explore the nearby mountain and the local guides were more than accommodating.

Carlos thought this was nice. It had been more than a month since they decided to get back together and things were looking up. He had somehow managed to atone for the mistakes that he had made, or maybe she just decided to forgive him, but now this was like the old times. When they could laugh and walk and he could hold her hand. He wished that this could go on forever.

The trail was getting hard to see now, and the couple was glad they remembered to bring flashlights and headlamps. They were used to going outdoors and they had even met in their school’s mountaineering club. To them it always paid to be prepared.

“Do you feel that?” Che asked.

“Don’t worry about it, the temperature drops really fast in this area.” Carlos replied. “We should be near the resort now anyway, give or take 15 minutes.”

“We’re more than 30 minutes away, I recognize this tree from the trek going up.” Che smiled, she always liked to remind Carlos who had more experience on the trail.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

“What was that?!” Che spun her flashlight around trying to illuminate the trees.

“It’s probably one of the wild birds. Don’t worry, there’s nothing here that can hurt us.” Carlos calmly stated. “Che? What’s wrong?”

Che dropped her flashlight and started running towards the opposite direction from Carlos. He didn’t know what was happening and he turned around to see what Che ran away from.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

The only thing Che heard was the sound of Carlos’ scream as she ran down the trail. She hoped that he would be faster than whatever that thing was but she knew that was wishful thinking.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

She could already feel it behind her.

————————–————————–———————–

*Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a quarter of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by the majority. Its standardized form, officially named Filipino, is the national language of the Philippines, and is one of two official languages alongside English.

Written by Karl Gaverza
Translation by Alexandra F. Opon
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Translation Copyright © Alexandra F. Opon

Story inspired by The Myths of the Philippines: The Terror of the Thalon. Gaverza. 2014.

Mhenamad Thalon Illustration by Leandro Geniston from Aklat ng mga Anito
FB: That Guy With A Pen

The post Mhenamad Thalon – Tagalog Translation appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

The Terror of the Thalon Part 2

Che was running out of breath. She didn’t know how long it had been since she had started running and it didn’t matter. Her heart was beating out of her chest, she could feel a stab of cold running through her spine and her clothes were soaked with a chilled sweat.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

The sound of the monster was following her at every turn. No matter where she ran, it was there, but she wouldn’t stop. Years of climbing mountains had honed her endurance and she had nothing to slow her down anymore.

Che tried not to think about Carlo. She had just left him there with that monster. If she ever survived this ordeal she would never forget what it looked like. The almost-human face, the human feet pointing backwards and the black fur were enough to activate her flight instincts.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

Carlos’ scream still echoed in her head. They had taken this trip to see if they could go back to what they had before. Carlo was happy, but she wasn’t. There were times when she wanted to tell him that it was over, that they already reached their expiration date, but one look at his smile and she lost the words. She didn’t want to take that away from him, not again.

The forest was silent for a moment. The monster’s sound faded into the background. Che hoped that this was a sign that she was free, but she didn’t want to take any chances. She gripped her Swiss army knife and hoped that it would be enough to defend herself.

Che realized that she had ran far down the mountain. She recognized the nearby stream from the trek earlier and she was thankful for a source of freshwater. She had thrown all her gear during the chase.

There was still no sign of the monster after what seemed to be an eternity of waiting. Che thanked God that she had escaped the beast, and then she remembered Carlo. He was up there, alone. She knew that he could run faster than her, but she didn’t know if he was alive.

Che started walking again. Her legs were sore and she was running on fumes, but this time she had no choice. She wouldn’t be the girl that left. Not again.

————————–————————–———————–

*The Thamad Thalon and Mhenamad Thalon look completely identical. The female Thamad Thalon is more dangerous as it eats humans that encroach on her territory while the Mhenamad Thalon would rather scare humans away.

Story continued from the Mhenamad Thalon’s Tale

Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Story inspired by Thamad Thalon ‘The Myths of the Philippines: The Terror of the Thalon’. Gaverza. 2014.

Thamad Thalon Illustration by Leandro Geniston from Aklat ng mga Anito
FB: That Guy With A Pen

The post Thamad Thalon appeared first on Philippine Spirits.

The Terror of the Thalon Part 1

It was sunset along the mountainside and the trail was getting darker and darker. Carlo and Che were headed back to their resort after a day’s journey being one with nature. It was the third time in as many days that they decided to explore the nearby mountain and the local guides were more than accommodating.

Carlos thought this was nice. It had been more than a month since they decided to get back together and things were looking up. He had somehow managed to atone for the mistakes that he had made, or maybe she just decided to forgive him, but now this was like the old times. When they could laugh and walk and he could hold her hand. He wished that this could go on forever.

The trail was getting hard to see now, and the couple was glad they remembered to bring flashlights and headlamps. They were used to going outdoors and they had even met in their school’s mountaineering club. To them it always paid to be prepared.

“Do you feel that?” Che asked.

“Don’t worry about it, the temperature drops really fast in this area.” Carlos replied. “We should be near the resort now anyway, give or take 15 minutes.”

“We’re more than 30 minutes away, I recognize this tree from the trek going up.” Che smiled, she always liked to remind Carlos who had more experience on the trail.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

“What was that?!” Che spun her flashlight around trying to illuminate the trees.

“It’s probably one of the wild birds. Don’t worry, there’s nothing here that can hurt us.” Carlos calmly stated. “Che? What’s wrong?”

Che dropped her flashlight and started running towards the opposite direction from Carlos. He didn’t know what was happening and he turned around to see what Che ran away from.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

The only thing Che heard was the sound of Carlos’ scream as she ran down the trail. She hoped that he would be faster than whatever that thing was but she knew that was wishful thinking.

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

KAO-KAO

She could already feel it behind her.

————————–————————–———————–

Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Story inspired by The Myths of the Philippines: The Terror of the Thalon. Gaverza. 2014.

Mhenamad Thalon Illustration by Leandro Geniston from Aklat ng mga Anito
FB: That Guy With A Pen

The post Mhenamad Thalon appeared first on Philippine Spirits.