“Do you feel that brother?”
“I do.”
“Yet another soul desires to summon the King*.”
“They will not succeed.”
“No one ever will.”
“Not here.”
“We are victorious over the lesser spirits”
“We will not allow their taint to fester.”
“We own this land.”
“As one—”
“As two—”
“As three.”
——————————————————————————
A solitary black candle was the only thing keeping the darkness at bay. The sound of something being etched on the ground gave a small respite to the crushing silence.Samuel knew he had to be careful, even the smallest mistake when drawing the sigil could lead to disaster. He had a guide, of course, he made a stencil of it to be certain that the summoning would take place.
His shaky hands drew the circle, then the lines, then the crosses. The symbols were foreign to him, but they worked. At least, according to his friends they did. He took a deep breath and stared at the sigil. The black candle was flickering in the middle of the room. It was now or never.
Samuel focused on the sigil and started to speak. His voice was shaky, but there was a sense of conviction about it.
“Hail Great King*, Almighty and Powerful. Hail the ruler of 72 legions of spirits. Hail the three headed one. Hail the serpent in the garden. I come to you, beseech you to make yourself present to this lowly being. Show me where treasures lie. Give me the Ring of Virtues. Make me invincible.”
And then he stared, through the darkness, concentrating on the sigil in the candlelight. It seemed like hours, maybe even days had passed until Samuel felt something.It was a dark energy that enveloped him, a sort of pressure that weighed his whole body down until it hit his face. He could feel a dull ache in his eyes which made it hard to keep focus on the sigil.
The candle cast a giant shadow on the wall, a silhouette of a man that looked like he had three faces, all looking at different directions.
This was it. Samuel’s heart was beating so fast he thought he would die from the excitement.
He focused all his attention on the figure before him and prostrated himself before it.
The three heads spoke in unison. Their voice was like gravel.
“Why have you summoned me?” they said.
“Lord, I seek your dark blessings. I wish to rid myself of someone in my life. I wish to know the places of treasures that you guard. I wish to be taught your arts and sciences. I wish for you to destroy my enemies, I—–”
“Enough!” all three heads screamed in unison, “I am not here to grant your wishes. Stand up and face me! I am here to test you.”
There was a pregnant pause before Samuel answered. “What are your tests?” Samuel’s voice quivered. This was not what he had expected. All the other guys said that summoning a demon would make your wishes come true. He didn’t want do any sort of test.
The three heads spoke again.
“Offer the necessary sacrifices.”
“Yes! I have those!” Samuel quickly went to his bag and took out saffron and some lambanog. “I offer these to you, my lord.”
“These are–,” said the right head.
“Sufficient,” said the left head.
“What other tests do you require of me?” Samuel started to sound more confident. If the other tests were as easy as the this one then it would be nothing.
“You must—” said the center head.
“Show your devotion—” said the left head.
“Show your capability—” said the right head.
“Break your idols.” The three said in unison, “Burn them down.”
“I don’t understand,” Samuel was confused. What idols were they referring to?
“That thing—” said the right head.
“On your neck—” said the left head.
“Burn it,” said the three in unison.
In his rush to summon the demon, Samuel forgot that he was wearing a cross necklace. He cursed himself for being so stupid to forget such an important detail.
“I will do as you ask.” He ripped the cross from his neck and flung it to the other side of the room.
“Good,” said all three heads.
“This is not the end,” said the center head.
“You will still be tested,” said the right head.
“To gain our blessing,” said the left head.
“Anything my lord, anything—–” Samuel pleaded.
And then the lights turned on.
“Sammy, come down for dinner! And stop playing with those candles, you’ll burn the house down!”
In that instant Samuel felt the pressure around him dissipate into nothingness. The silhouette of the demon was nowhere to be seen.
Damn his sister! Dammit all to hell! He was so close to getting what he needed!
He vowed he would gain the demon’s favor soon. He only needed time.
———————————————————-
“A pity.”
“Yes, he would have been easy to mold.”
“I sensed conviction from him.”
“The kind that we could use.”
“Let us wait—”
“Let us wait—”
“Let us wait—”
“For we are eternal.”
“It is calling to us again.”
“So soon?”
“It is another that seeks the King.”
“And we will answer.”
“As one—”
“As two—”
“As three.”
——————————————————–
There was no darkness this time. The room was lit up with several black candles. The light served to heighten the cruel look on her face.
Sigils were etched all around, some were scratched into the walls, while others were painted on the floors. There was no grand monologue, not a single sound came from her.
The room started to fill with unseen pressure, causing its lone inhabitant to utter an involuntary gasp.
And then they arrived.
“Who dares—“
“Who summons—-”
“The great king.”
She did not hide, she did not falter. She stared at the three headed being before her and shouted, “You are not the king!”
For a split second, the three heads gave a look of what might have been surprise, but it was over in an instant.
“Who are you—”
“Dare to presume—-”
“Foolish mortal—”
“We will grind your bones into dust,” said all three heads. In an instant an unseen wind blew the candles out. And in the darkness, she could feel the overwhelming power surround her.
She smiled as she thought, ‘I was right’.
“You will pay—”
“Destroy you—”
“Crush your pitiful existence—”
The pressure was palpable now, causing her to go on her knees.
“Die—-,” Said all three as they moved towards her.
“I offer you this crocodile tooth and this oil!” She screamed.In an instant the pressure disappeared. She was able to stand up and look at the direction of the voices.
“You know—”
“The old ways—-”
“The offerings—“
“It has been so long,” said the three heads.
“I know who you are,” she stood strong, “I know what you have done.”
“You know us—–”
“Who we are—-”
“Who we were —”
“What we can do,” said the three, “What do you want from us?”
“I hold this oil in my hands. I seek your power.”
“Who will die?” said the three.
“Does it matter?” she answered.
“It does not,” was their reply.
——————————————————————————
“She knew.”
“The old ways.”
“The old power.”
“The sacrifices.”
“She called us—”
“By our true names.”
“She remembered—”
“When they forgot.”
“She saw—-”
“Past the illusion.”
“What we pretended to be.”
“…….”
“We are called again.”
“They seek the King.”
“They will not find him.”
“They never will.”
“For we are what we are.”
“And what we were.”
“As one—”
“As two—”
“As three.”
———————————————————————
*The King refers to Asmodeus, a king of demons in Judaic, Christian and Islamic lore. He “is strong, powerful and appears with three heads; the first is like a bull, the second like a man, and the third like a ram; the tail of a serpent, and from his mouth issue flames of fire.”
**Nagined is also spelled as Naguined or Nagime
Arapayan is also spelled Arapayam
Macarubac is also spelled Makabarubak
Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Story inspired by Miguel De Loarca’s description of Nagined, Arapayan and ‘Macbarubac as demons.
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/16501/16501-h/16501-h.htm
Nagined, Arapayan and Macbarubac / Makabarubak Illustration by Marius Lane Reonico
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