“Why have I been summoned?” The Oribig puffed their chest.
“Don’t bother preening, it will do you no good here.” Sumayang Galura flapped their wings.
“I do not accept your authority , I serve no one but my master Taganlag.”
“I am still the ruler of birds.”
“And I was there when the earth was new, before you or any other creature flew wing in the middleworld.”
“You may be older than I but my power is vast. I seek no quarrel with you, ancient one. I would just like to sate my curiosity.”
“And what does that entail?”
“I know your story. You journeyed past all the skies above at the order of the god that you serve.”
“That is true.”
“What did you see?”
“Ahh no one has asked me that in centuries. I still have fond memories of those anito.” The Oribig looked up, pensively.
“No other bird I know has gone past the last layers of the skyworld. What lies beyond?”
“The horrors of the cosmos cannot be described.”
“Then try.”
“Your impertinence knows no bounds.”
“I defer to your wisdom. Please.”
The Oribig laughed. “The ruler of all birds brought low by his inquisitiveness.”
“What was in the beyond?”
“Let me rest here. I shall tell you what I saw.”
=—————————————–=
The primordial ocean churned.
The creator, Taganlag, looked upon his dominion and felt wanting.
And thus, he came to me, his most loyal servant.
He asked me to go to the boundaries of the universe to get what you would call ‘soil’.
I was unfamiliar with what was asked of me and I inquired what it was for.
My master replied that he would use it to increase the size of the universe.
In those days the middleworld was not what it is now, having clearly set boundaries. There was no lower world then, just a flat plain without any layers.
My master had a grand plan to expand and populate this world with creatures known now as humans.
He bade me to go.
And I followed.
I flew to the top of the firmament and kept ascending.
Higher.
And higher.
I saw the majesty of the stars, the infinite dance of the cosmos filled me with awe.
The heavens were not filled with the celestial beast that now populated the vast crevices of creation.
No moon eaters.
No beasts with the world on their backs.
No nagas in the nebulae.
No gods in the skyworld.
I yearn for those days, but alas, time waits for no one and I needed to succeed in my mission.
I managed to find where the ‘soil’ was.
I did not expect it would have guardians.
Words fail to describe what those creatures are.
From what I have seen, they were ancient when the universe was young.
Beyond comprehension.
Beyond description.
I will not lie, they filled me with dread.
But I had a task to accomplish.
At the edge of the universe we fought.
It seemed that their number was legion, every one I vanquished more would spill out from their eldritch host.
At that point I realized the battle was futile and I could never win against their horde.
So I resorted to trickery, though most would call it cowardice.
I scooped up the soil and flew as fast as I could back to my master.
I still wonder why they did not give chase.
Maybe they were bound to that part of the universe?
I will not speculate.
All I knew that I was victorious.
I gave the ‘soil’ to my god and you know the rest.
But I still wonder what those creatures are.
Why did they guard the ‘soil’ with such ferocity?
Why did they not follow me?
I shudder to think if they would be bored with their charge and spill into the lands we now know.
But I knew one thing from our skirmish.
They can bleed.
=————————————-=
Sumayang Galura bowed their head.
“What an extraordinary story! From beyond the high heavens danger still lurks.”
The Oribig nodded. “Though I feel it in my feathers. The younger beings have touched upon the powers of these creatures.”
“Younger beings?”
“The new gods and their human servants.”
“What is their goal?”
“Who knows? But I will be there. Our battle is still not over.”
“I give you my thanks, elder, and I wish you well.”
“Yes, ‘king of birds’, I hope you will deserve that title sometime soon.”
And with that the Oribig flew back to Taganlag.
Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Inspired by the Oribig description in “The Creation” pg 96 of Philippine Folk Literature: The Myths. Eugenio. 2001.
Origbig Illustration by Mon Kenneth Labrador
