*Note this story is in Kinaray-a

Mayad man nga nars si Clarissa. Sa pagkamatuod, tana ang pinakamatandus kag dedikado nga nars sa tanan. Ugaring may mga hinuringhuring nga mabatian parte kana. Ang tanan abi nga pasyente nga ana gintatap, nagkaramatay. Indi na man sala ang mga hitabo pero pirmi lang may kon ano nga nagakatabo.

Pareho lang kay Mr. Pasamba, apendicitis man lang to sakit na kag nangin madinarag-un man gani ang operasyon, magluwas sa gamay nga inpeksyon nga pwede man mabulong ka antibiotic. Pero kang masunod nga mga semana, nagkumplikado dya kag wara na run masarangan ang ana ginabatyag hasta tana nga nabugtuan ka ginhawa.

Maathag nga nabatian ni Clarrisa ang mga paglibak kana.  “Tana kara nagpatay!” “Nagtawag lagi sanda sa morge kang naman-an nga tana ang nars.” “Sangka biktima liwan ni Clarrisa nga sinumpa.” Pero wara sa kilag ni Clarissa. Naman-an na nga kon magpakanubo lang tana kag himuon na lang ka husto ang ana obra, wara ti matabo nga malain kana.

Mas run gid ang parte kay Mrs. Bengzon. Karwa ka beses nga sala ang paglantaw ka doctor sa sakit na. Nagpangluya run dya sa mga wara nagakaigo kag indi kinahanglanun nga mga pagbulong. Nasapwan run lang nga patay run sa anang katre sangka aga. Si Clarissa man ang nakasapo.

Wara ti may nakita nga ebidensya ukon kamalamalahan sa autopsy. Wara ti sarabtun si Clarrisa sa kamatayun kang ana mga pasyente. Kag andut abi nga manabat tana? Natabuan na lang ang tanan. Wara lang tana pirmi sa husto nga lugar kag husto nga panahon.

Padayon lang si Clarissa sa ana trabaho.  Wara na ginasapak ang mga paglibak kag mga hinuringhurig parte kana. Basta ginahimo na lang ka husto ang ana obra, wara gid ti problema.

Hasta nga may hitabo kay Ms. Villamor. Wara gid nag-andam si Clarrisa, nadakpan tana kang sangka nars sa ana matuod nga itsura sa ibabaw kang nagatagumatayun nga pasyente. Nagsala si Clarissa gani tinapos na dya.

Indi kamaan kon paano na ipaathag ang natabo sa darwa ka biktima. Nakapinsar tana ka mayad nga paagi.  Mainarte tana. “Haraguy! Sa kaluoy na kay Ms. Villamor, ginpatay na dya! Ugaring wara siguro kadara ang ana konsensiya gani ginkutul na man ang ana kabuhi!” Ginplastar na ang tanan nga nagakaigo nga ebidensiya. Wara nabuhayan, ginpatihan tana ka hospital.

Gani si Clarrisa nga sinumpa nangabuhi sa ana ngaran. Ang ana mga pasyente may mga misteryoso giyapon nga hitabo nga naangut sa anda kamatayun. Pero para kay Clarissa mga kadimalasun lang ria.

Mayad tana nga nars nga nagaobra ka insakto. Amo lang ra ang dapat maman-an ka hospital.

=———————————————-=

English Version

Clarissa wasn’t a bad nurse, in fact she tried harder than anyone in the hospital, but there would always be the whispers. You see, every patient under her care eventually expired. Not that any of those incidents were directly her fault, there was always just something that went wrong.

Take Mr. Pasamba. It was an ordinary case of appendicitis. The operation went well except for a small infection that should have been able to be cleared by antibiotics. In the next few weeks complications from the infection were too much for him to handle, until eventually he passed away.

Clarissa could hear the talk from behind her back. “She’s the one that did it.”, “They called the morgue once they knew it was her.”, “Another victim of Clarissa the cursed.”, yet Clarissa was unscathed. She knew that as long as she kept her head down and did her job correctly she would be fine.

That was more than anyone could say for Mrs. Bengzon. She had been misdiagnosed twice and was weak from all the unnecessary treatments. She was found dead one morning in her hospital bed. Clarissa was the one who found her.

There was never any evidence of foul play, at least none that an autopsy could find. Clarissa was never held liable for any of the deaths of the patients under her care, and why should she? She was just always in the wrong place at the wrong time.

So Clarissa went on with her work, ignoring all the whispers. As long as she did her job, she would be okay.

That is, until the small incident with Ms. Villamor. Clarisse wasn’t careful and another nurse caught her in her true form, over the soon to be deceased body of her patient. Clarisse panicked and subdued the other nurse.

She didn’t know how she was going to be able to explain two victims, but then she had an idea.

Clarisse put on a show, “How terrible, the nurse felt so guilty euthanizing Ms. Villamor that she took her own life.” She had put all the necessary evidence in its place, and it didn’t take too long before the hospital believed her story.

So Clarisse the cursed followed through on her name, the patients she had still had mysterious circumstances attached to their deaths but that was just bad luck.

She was a good nurse that did her job. That’s all the hospital needed to know.

=————————————-=

*The Karay-a language, or Kinaray-a is an Austronesian regional language spoken by the Karay-a people, mainly in Antique in the Philippines, Iloilo and other provinces on the island of Panay, as well as portions of the SOCCSKSARGEN region in Mindanao. It is one of the Visayan languages, mainly along with Aklanon/Malaynon, Capiznon and Hiligaynon. As of 2015, there is an estimated 1,200,000 speakers of Kinaray-a with almost half of them are from Antique and Iloilo provinces.

Written by Karl Gaverza

Translation by Maaram

Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Translation Copyright © Maaram

Inspired by the Aswang na Gala legends

Aswang na Gala illustration by Lou Pineda
IG: https://www.instagram.com/blacknivalis

*Note this story is in Kinaray-a / Karay-a

Sangkap:

Binangon- ginagamit sa paglabo para tapuson ang aswang

Ikog ka Pagi- ginagamit para lupigun ang aswang. Nagatuga dya kang tuman nga kasakit.

Kalamansi- panagang para masiguro nga indi madagit ka aswang. Nagapabug-at dya para indi makalupad ang aswang.

Abo- ginaburibud sa utod nga lawas ka aswang para indi run magbalik.

Alibhon- ang dya nga dahon ginagamit para tabugon ang aswang. Mapuksi ka preska nga dahon kag ibutang sa imo nga bulsa.

Ahos – Indi ka agwanta ang aswang ka dapug na kadya. Magbalon pirmi.

Asin – Pareho man kang abo ang gamit. Pwede man magamit buribod sa mga lugar para tabugon ang mga kadu ti ginhawa.

Panagang ukon Panaming – Mga bagay nga nabenditahan, holy water kag anting-anting, makabulig gid sa pagtabog kang mga kadu ti ginhawa. Siguraduhon nga magpamangkot sa pari antes dya gamitun.

Pag-obra:

Madakup ang aswang paagi sa pagbutang kang tatlo ka bahul nga bato, pareho kon nagahimo kang sig-ang. Kon magtiktik run gani, isambita ka tudo ang Apostle’s creed. Kon rugto run ikaw sa bahin kang paglansang sa krus, puruta ang sangka bato kag ilubong ang sangka lansang sa lupa. Ang aswang mahulog kag magtupa sa mga bato kag rugto tana pagapatyun.

May ritwal ukon paobra para madura ang sumpa kang pagkaaswang. Dya amo ang pagpainum ka lemon kag tubig kag pagbitay nga suli  agud isuka ang rimo (daw buto ka pispis) sa anang busong. Dayon tuktukun ka pino ang rimo agud indi run mabuhi.

Padumdum:

Maggamit ka panagang para indi madutlan ka usog ukon indi maudum.  Dayon balbalun ka ikog ka pagi agud mangluya ang aswang kag amo ang paglabo ka binangon para tigbasun ang ulo.

Ang pag-usog ka aswang mapat-ud paagi sa pagpalimot (egg ritual). Kon makita ang mata kag dugo sa itlog buut hambalun, inaswang tana. Ginrimoan ukon gin-usog.

Ang pangontra sa pinalakad amo ang pagpaturo ka kalamasi sa pagkaun. Ang panuruk mo nga sinabawan nga isda kon paturuan ka kalamansi mangin tudlo kag dugo ka tawo.

Kon balbalun ukon silutan ang biktima, ang aswang nga nanghalit amo ang nagabatyag kang kasakit.

Pira lang dya sa mga pamaagi sa pagtapna kag pagdakup kang aswang. Duro pa nga mga ritwal ukon pag-obra ang ginagamit sa pagkontra ka dya nga mga tinuga.

Kabay pa ubayan ikaw kang Makaako sa imo nga dalanun.

Padayon.

=————————————————————–=

English Version

Equipment:
Bolo – used to give a final blow after incapacitating the aswang.
Stingray Tail – used to incapacitate the aswang. Causes great pain to them.
Kalamansi – A ward to ensure that the aswang cannot pick you up. It weighs them down.
Ashes – Used to sprinkle on the aswang’s body if they self-segment. Aswang cannot reattach if ashes are scattered on their other half.
Gabon/Sambong/Bukadkad/Subsob (Blumea Balsamefera) – This plant is used to ward off aswang. Pick it fresh and keep it in your pocket.
Garlic – Aswang cannot stand the smell of garlic. Keep some with you at all times.
Salt – Used in the same way as ashes. Can also be used to ward certain places away from aswang.
Wards – Blessed objects, holy water anting-anting are all useful to keep away the monsters. Make sure to see a priest beforehand.

=————————————————————–=

*The Karay-a language, or Kinaray-a is an Austronesian regional language spoken by the Karay-a people, mainly in Antique in the Philippines, Iloilo and other provinces on the island of Panay, as well as portions of the SOCCSKSARGEN region in Mindanao. It is one of the Visayan languages, mainly along with Aklanon/Malaynon, Capiznon and Hiligaynon. As of 2015, there is an estimated 1,200,000 speakers of Kinaray-a with almost half of them are from Antique and Iloilo provinces.

Written by Karl Gaverza

Translation by Maaram

Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Translation Copyright © Maaram

Inspired by various Aswang legends

Aswang Illustration by Patricia Ramos
FB: The Art of Patricia Ramos

*Note this story is in Karay-a / Kinaray-a

Nagtórok táy Manang Paula sa sulat nga tugyan ni Lolo Ambo kana. Luyag man daad nana nga tahaon ang mga handum ni Lolo na, túman gid tana ka budlay ang panag-on. Kinahanglan gid nana nga ibaligyâ ang lupâ agod to makabuul tana it igô nga kwarta agod to makasaylo tana sa diin nga may dyan it mayad nga sum-an ang anang pamilya. Nag pánaw táy Paula paagto sa kahoy kang Balete sa binit kang làtàgón. Warâ gid it iwag sa mga sangá kadyang gabii. Warâ tana it hinalung-ong kon buut hambalon kabáy ka rian malumbos run man ang mga tawo rudto sa kahoy.

“Pasayloha ako.” Naghurubag ang mga luhâ sa mga masluk ni Paula. “Man-an man nakun nga nag-saad táy Lolo Ambo nga warâ it matabô nga sayud sa inyo kahoy, kag nagpangabáy pa tana kanamun tanan nga iparig-unon ang saad nga ran, páy kinahanglan ko pillion ang labíng mayad sa akun pamilya. May balatian táy Lila kag indî run tamun makabàtas magbayad kang anang bulung. Indî man táy Roberto kasagap kang paramugunan. Sa… sangka iloy ako kag kinahanglan ko itugrô sa akun mga batâ ang kabuhî nga takus kananda.” Pinanas ni Paula ang mga luhâ sa bagiing na, “Patawada gid ako.”

Rudyan pa angod ang bulan sa kalangitan. Naglubas ang mga taknâ kag warâ may natabô. Warâ gid it pamaan, warâ gid it may makuon káy Paula nga namatî kana ang mga tawo sa kahoy. Warâ tana ka maan kon ano anang lauman, páy nagsarig tana nga may ihambal sanda kana. Bisan ano man.

Naghulat tana sa kahoy tubtob sa kaagahon kag sa madason, nag-agto tana sa anang balay kag nagsugod it pangbagtong.

Kang lumigad ang tatlo ka bulan, nagatorok táy Manang Paula sa anang mga kabataan kag nalipay gid tana makadalî kutub sa mabúhay nga tion. Nagadalagan táy Lila imaw kang anang mga pakaisa, nadumduman ni Manang Paula kon ano ka pígaw kon sulngon ang anang indáy nga nga gabatáng sa baratangán sa hospital kag naghambal tana it mahinay nga pangamuyô kang pagpasalamat. Nagpungkô tana kag nagsugod kang anang kinabatasan tagsa aga nga among pag basá kang pèríodiko.

Mabasahan sa headline na kadya “Ang Bag-ong Pag-uswag kang Pagrally kang mga Manugprotesta” nga bukun man it makatiringala, ang Construction Company ginpabangdan nga ginasudyot nanda sa mga local official nga pasapayan lamang nanda ang pagrangga sa palibot nga sanda tanda man ang nagahimô, páy máy ma-id-id nga dágway ang nagpatumbô kay Manang Paula sa anang purungkoan.

Tungud rian sa sangka maambung nga bahi nga nakapula nga naga pang-ulo sa mga nagaprotesta bátok sa sangka bulldozer.

Nagyuhum táy Manang Paula. Kon sa bagay, maámlìgan man nanda andang kaugalingon.

=———————————————————————-=

English Version

Manang Paula looked at the letter that Lolo Ambo left her. As much as she wanted to respect his wishes, times were hard. She had to sell the land to have enough money to move where it would be a better future for her family. Paula walked to the Balete tree in the edge of the field. There weren’t any lights in the branches tonight. She didn’t know if that meant the people in the tree were going toleave as well.

“I’m sorry.” The tears were starting to swell up in Paula’s eyes. “I know that Lolo Ambo promised that nothing would happen to your tree, and he asked all of us to keep that promise alive, but I have to choose what’s best for my family. Lila is sick and we can’t even afford her medicine anymore. Roberto can’t find a job. I… I am a mother and I need to give my children the life they deserve.”

Paula wiped away the tears from her cheek, “Please forgive me.”

The moon was still in the night sky. Hours passed and nothing happened. There was no sign, nothing to tell Paula that the people in the tree heard her. She didn’t know what to expect, but she had hoped that they would tell her something. Anything.

She waited by the tree until morning and afterwards, she went to her house and started packing.

Three months later, Manang Paula was looking at her children and she was happy for the first time in a long while. Lila was running around playing with her cousins, Manang Paula remembered how weak her little girl looked in the hospital bed and she said a soft prayer of thanksgiving. She sat down and started her morning tradition of reading the newspaper.

The headline read “Protesters Rally New Development” which wasn’t surprising; the construction company had been accused of bribing the local officials so they could ignore the environmental destruction they were causing, but a certain picture almost made Manang Paula jump out of her seat.

It was of a beautiful girl in red leading the protesters against a bulldozer.

Manang Paula smiled. They could take care of themselves after all.

=———————————————————–=

*The Karay-a language, or Kinaray-a is an Austronesian regional language spoken by the Karay-a people, mainly in Antique in the Philippines, Iloilo and other provinces on the island of Panay, as well as portions of the SOCCSKSARGEN region in Mindanao. It is one of the Visayan languages, mainly along with Aklanon/Malaynon, Capiznon and Hiligaynon. As of 2015, there is an estimated 1,200,000 speakers of Kinaray-a with almost half of them are from Antique and Iloilo provinces.

Written by Karl Gaverza

Translation by En

Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Translation Copyright © En

Inspired by ‘The Fairy of Balete Tree’ in Philippine Folk Literature: The Legends. Eugenio. 2002.

Mariang Ilaya Illustration by Laura Katigbak
FB: Rabbit Heart
IG: https://www.instagram.com/rabbitheartart/

*Note this story is in Karay-a/Kinaray-a

Sangka gabi-i, may sangka bukaw nga naglingling halin sa buho kang kahoy.  Dungan na kadiya ang pag-amat-amat kang hinay kang uran nga kaina pa wara naga-untat.

Tungod kay gutom, ginhumlad na ang ana nga mga pakpak kag naglupad, nagdapo sa kun diin dali tana makapangita kang ana nga karan-un.

Ginapanumdum na pa lang ang una na nga madagit kadiya nga gabi-i kag daw hindi run gid tana makahulat nga dunuton kag lamunon diya kang buo. 

Ang amo diya nga bukaw, may tama ka anting nga pamati-an, tama ka sagad kay biskan ang pinakahinay-hinay nga paghulag kang ana nga daragitun, ana gid nga mabatian dayon.

Sa ana nga paglupad, may sangka baryo kang mga tawo tana nga na-agyan, kag gulpi man may nabati-an tana nga huni nga man-an na gid kung ano.

Hindi na gid masal-an ang huni nga daw nagatabyug-tabyug kang “kik kik kik.”

Kalabanan, ginapabay-an na lang man ang mga huni nga diya kun ana nga mabatian, ugaring daw natingala gid tana kadiya nga gabi-i kapin pa kay daw naga-amat-amat run man ka tudo liwat ang uran.  Nadumduman na dayon ang mga gina-hambal kang mga mal-am nga mga bukaw nga wara man kuno nagapanakit kang anda nga lahi ang mga tinuga nga diya kay ang mga tawo lang man ang gina-tuyo nanda.  Hambal nanda, ang mga tinuga nga diya labug ti dila, naga-hapon sa mga bubong kang mga panimalay, kag nagahuni-huni para patalangun ang mga tawo.

Ginpirung kang bukaw ang ana nga mga mata kag ginpamatyagan kun sa diin ayhan nagahalin ang huni, ginapandumdum kun ano gani ang dapat na nga pangita-un.

Burubhay, naman-an na run gid man kun sa diin ayon naga-hinumtang ang tinuga.

Ana nga gin-agtunan ang lugar kag nagdapo sa bintana, ginalantaw kun ano ang mga masunod nga mga mahinitabo kadiya nga gabi-i.

May tatlo ka mga tawo nga iriringud naga-tururog.  Sangka bata, sangka babayi nga naga-busong, kag sangka lalaki. 

Biskan tudo ang uran, mabatian gid giyapon kang bukaw ang huni kang basa nga naga-turo sa busong kang babayi.  Nakita kang bukaw ang pag-tindug kang babayi kag gin-butangan ka inug-salo ang gina-turu-an kang basa.  Nagsaylo ang babayi kang pwesto nga ana nga turugan, ugaring nakita kang bukaw nga gin-sundan man giyapon tana kang basa nga sa busong na man giyapon naga-turo.

Burubhay, may nabatian liwat nga huni ang bukaw.

Tu-ay liwat.  “Kik kik kik!”

Daw hani-hani lang nga abi mo bala halin sa marayu ang huni.

Nagpangraramig ang pamatyagun kang bukaw.

Gulpi nag-bugtaw ang lalaki kag ang bata tungod sa huni, kag ang lalaki, abtik nga nag-buol kang binangon kag nagdalagan paguwa. 

Dali-dali nga naglupad ang bukaw paagto sa tubang kang balay agud lantawun kun ano ang himu-on kang lalaki.

Naga-hana-hana nga manglabo ang lalaki kang ana nga binangon sa kadul’man kag nag-singgit, “Kun hindi mo pag-untatan ang pamuloy-an ko, agtunan ta gid kaw sarum-an sa balay mo!”

Kag gulpi lang man nga nag-untat ang huni.  Gulpi nag-linung kag wara run ti iba nga mabati-an ang bukaw kung hindi ang hinay-hinay nga pag-turo kang uran sa tunga kang kagab-ihun.

Nag-halin ang tinuga nga wara naka-dawi kang ana nga panyapon.  Nagkara-kadlaw na lang ang bukaw kay sa ana nga pinsar, hindi gid ria matabo kadiya nga gabi-i. 

Naglupad run man parayu ang bukaw angud mangita man kang ana nga karan-un. 

Man-an gid man ayhan kang lalaki kun sa diin ang balay kang tiktik?

English Version

One night, an owl poked its head out of its tree hole. The rain was weakening into a manageable shower.

Hungry as it was, it stretched its wings and flew to the perches where it could find prey.

It imagined its first meal of the night, how it couldn’t wait to crush their prey and swallow it whole. The thought made it positively giddy.

Now the owl had a very good sense of hearing, in fact it was adept at listening for even the slightest hints of movement to catch their quarry.

As it flew over a human village it heard a familiar sound.

The unmistakable cadence of ‘kik kik kik’.

The owl would have ignored it as it always had, but it was curious and the rain was starting to get stronger. The elder owls told the young that these creatures are harmless to their kind, only targeting humans. They described in detail the long tongue, perching on the roofs of human houses and their confusing sound.

Closing its eyes, the owl concentrated to find the source of the sound, remembering what it should be looking for.

After a few moments it was confident that it located where the creature would be.

So, it stayed by the window and watched the events unfold.

There were three humans sleeping side by side. One child, a woman that was clearly pregnant and a man.

Even through the noise of the raindrops the owl could clearly hear the sound of some liquid dropping on the stomach of the woman. The owl saw her stand up and put a dipper where she was. The woman moved and found another place to sleep, but again the owl could hear the same sound of droplets hitting her stomach in a familiar tempo.

And then the owl’s ears piqued.

There it was. ‘kik kik kik’

It was almost like a whisper, as if the sound traveled great distances to settle on their ears.

The owl’s blood ran cold.

The man and the child both woke up to the sound and almost through instinct the man grabbed a bolo and rushed outside.

The owl flew to the front of the house to see what the man would do.

The man shouted “If you don’t leave my family, I will go to your house tomorrow!” All the while swinging his bolo through the rain.

And in an instant, it stopped, the owl could only hear the pitter-patter of the drizzle as it washed over the midnight moon.

The creature left, unable to get its meal, and the owl scoffed and told itself that wasn’t going to happen to it tonight.

As the owl flew to its hunting grounds it wondered.

Did the man really know where the tiktik’s house was?

=——————————————————=

*The Karay-a language, or Kinaray-a is an Austronesian regional language spoken by the Karay-a people, mainly in Antique in the Philippines, Iloilo and other provinces on the island of Panay, as well as portions of the SOCCSKSARGEN region in Mindanao. It is one of the Visayan languages, mainly along with Aklanon/Malaynon, Capiznon and Hiligaynon. As of 2015, there is an estimated 1,200,000 speakers of Kinaray-a with almost half of them are from Antique and Iloilo provinces.

Written by Karl Gaverza

Translation by Rolls Pagunsan

Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Translation Copyright © Rolls Pagunsan

Story inspired by a story told by Gil Geolingo

Tiktik Illustration by Gil Geolingo

“Don’t fall in love with me.”

Mabel’s eyes widened in surprise, it wasn’t what she expected Tonio to say, but she would play along.

“That may be the sweetest thing you’ve ever said.” She looked at him and they both knew that they were leaving the past behind. What was important now was what they did in this moment.

She didn’t care what their parents would say. She didn’t care that people didn’t like his family. The stories and rumors could throw themselves off a cliff.

She was happy. With him she was finally happy.

And that was all that mattered.

The birds stared as mute witnesses at the two lovers as they kissed passionately in the starlight. They dared not disturb the sanctity of the moment. Their time would come soon enough.

All they had to do was wait.

The couple stared into each other’s eyes and wanted so desperately for the moon to keep still, but time has no master. The first slivers of sunlight danced past the dense forest and found their place on Mabel’s shoulders.

“It’s too late now.” Tears were filling her eyes. “My heart’s already yours.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of—“ Tonio started

“I’m scared too.” Mabel took Tonio’s hands and pressed them against her heart. “You don’t think I hear them talk? Yesterday Lola Lena told me that your whole family was cursed and if I was going to be with you then that meant that I would be cursed too. But I just want the chance to love you.”

Tonio wiped the tears away from Mabel’s cheek.

“Please.” Her eyes were weapons he was powerless against.
He kissed her again in the morning sunlight and she knew she had her answer.

————————–————————–————————–————-

Tonio still remembered her taste, no matter how hard he tried to banish the memory from his mind.

It was so intoxicating, so exhilarating.

So delicious.

“No,” he thought “I can do this for her. Nothing is more important to me than her.”

He repeated the words in his head until it became something that resembled truth.

The birds were perched on a nearby balete tree. He could feel the weight of their stares bearing down on his soul.

He breathed in deep and chose to ignore the voices in his head that told him this was a mistake.

Today would change things, today would be the day he would run away with Mabel and they would begin a new life away from their families, away from this town.

“Away from the hunger.” He so desperately wished that would be true, but he had to accept that it would be part of his new life, a life that he chose willingly.

Tonio stood by the river and waited for his future bride. Everything in him told him to tell her that he was Malain it ginhawa – of a different breath, but she would never understand.

“My heart’s already yours.” He thought back to her words, when he could feel her heartbeat through her chest.

Already his mouth began to water, but he fought it off. He hoped she would get here soon.
————————–————————–————————–———————

“I keep telling that boy not to play with his food.”

Mabel didn’t know where she was, there was something covering her eyes. The voices around her sounded familiar but she couldn’t remember where she had heard them before.

“She’s too thin, barely enough for one meal.”

“Oh hush, you could stand to lose a few pounds.”

“Now sisters, remember why we’re here, the food can wait, what we need to do is to teach that boy a lesson.”

Mabel could feel something sharp press against her neck.

“Now which part would be best?”

“Remember what she said, sister?”

“Oh yes, that would be perfect.”

The only ones that heard Mabel’s final screams didn’t care, they had a job to do.
————————–————————–————————–————————–
The sun was setting as Tonio awoke from his nap.

The birds were gone from their perch and he knew that it only meant one thing. He ran back to his house praying he would find nothing.

There was a box waiting at his front door, on it was a card that read “We knew you were hungry.”

Tonio opened the box and wasn’t surprised at its contents. What surprised him was how quickly his mouth began to water.

His stomach rumbled and he realized he hadn’t eaten in weeks.

“Oh well,” he thought “No sense in letting this go to waste.”

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Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza

Inspired by the Aswang description in Amburukay. 2015. Sugidanon (Epics) of Panay. Caballero & Caballero-Castor trans Magos.

Aswang (Kinaray-a) Illustration by Kim Santiago
FB: Art of Kim Santiago
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kimsanti_/