She sat before me, wrapped in grey smoke.
Her red painted lips pursing into a small smile
A knife was set on the table before us
I stared in her cold eyes and shuddered
Maybe this was a mistake
But it was too late now
Far, too late
“Why are you here?” she fondled the knife
I caught my breath and leaned on the truth
“Tell me, lola, how will the world end?”
“That question has many answers, iho,
As many as there are stars in the sky.”
Her wide smile tensed my muscles
Her eyes dug into my soul
“The answer will only bring ruin.”
“Yes,” I replied “but still I must know.”
“Very well then,” she said
She stood up and left the room
And I took a moment to look around
The grotesque trophies littered her hovel
Fingers and skulls and parts of other creatures
I dare not imagine
I sat down and stared at the knife left behind
It would have fetched a fair price in any market
If the red stains were removed
The woman came back
With a bowl of water
And a glowing stone
“Why do you want to know?”
She asked
“It is not important,” I replied
“Oh, isn’t it?
What secrets do you keep from yourself?”
“Please lola, answer my question.”
She took the knife
And cut her hand
Letting drops of blood trickle into the water
The glowing stone was set to the side
And its pale blue light cast shadows around the room
“I can see it,” she said after an eternity of silence
“What do you see lola?”
“I see its giant frame, larger than any island.
I see its feathers made of swords
And its iron claws
I see myself in its eyes”
The blue glow was brighter now
Casting even more violent shadows around us
“What is it, lola?”
“It comes from its cave guarded by blue smoke
And lies in wait
In the eastern horizon.”
The water in the bowl turned black
I could see the liquid splash violently
“I see the end of days,”
She spoke with a different voice now
Something old
Something dark
“So the little human wishes to know
How it will all end?” She said in her new voice
“Yes lola, I need to know.”
“Then look!”
She pointed to the water
The liquid was clear now
And I could see my reflection
But no, not just my reflection
I saw what she saw
I saw the sun and the moon
Consumed by darkness
I saw the hunger
That would never be satisfied
I cried then
To know that the world
Would know no hope
Not in the end
My tears mixed with the water
And it the blackness returned
“It can’t end that way,” I said
“I told you the answer would only bring your ruin.”
Her voice changed again
Now filled with pity
“I answered your question iho,
Now answer mine.
Why do you want to know?”
Our eyes met
And I could only say the truth
“I want to know when I
Will see her again”
“Who?” The woman asked
“My love, my life,” I replied
I was told by one like you
That I will see her
When the world ends
So I wait
Until that moment
When I can see her
“Fool that you are!”
Her words cut into my soul
“Worlds end every day
Are you sure it is not your end that you seek?”
“I do not know, lola.”
I started to cry again
And my tears dropped into the water
I could see the end more clearly now
How its beak ensnared the sun and moon
How it cared so little for the lives of man
I thanked the old woman and left her
To her thoughts
But before I reached the door
She said
“Do not chase the end, iho.
There is only sorrow in that path.”
“I know, lola.”
She said nothing else as I left
And I wrapped my sorrow
Around me
And remember
The feathers
The mirrored eyes
The treacherous claws
And smile
For I saw the end
And in the end
I saw her
Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Illustration by Harv Heinrich
FB: Harvibore
Inspired by the Minokawa description in Creatures of Philippine Lower Mythology. Ramos. 1971.
