The Journey of Sulayman and Indarapatra part 2
The second was Tarabusaw.
Nabi crawled from under the tree he was hiding. His family was dead, he was sure of hit. The adrenaline started to pump through his small frame. A boy should not have to see this, he shouldn’t have to run from the safety of his village, now drenched in blood.
The boy ran as fast as his small legs could take him. He thought of jumping into the river for surely the monster could not swim, but Nabi realized neither could he. His father was supposed to teach him how, but he was too young for it this summer. Now he may never know.
As the last light of the day petered out, Nabi finally felt safe. He stopped by a large boulder and rested his tiny frame against the rock. It was mercy that he was asleep when the brute found him.
From Mount Matutum the beast spread devastation and annihilation. Nothing and no one was safe from its tempestuous fury, so much so that even the land started to wither from the murders it had committed.
The earth would not be nurtured by the blood it had spilled and it cried out for justice.
Its wish was granted in the form of a hero.
After saving the land from the ferocity of the Kurita, Sulayman ventured to Mount Matatum to avenge the second beast’s victims. It did not take him long before he followed the blood to its source. He found the monster was slowly devouring the arm of a small child.
Sulayman surveyed his opponent. It was more beast than man, though he saw a glimmer of intelligence in the blood soaked eyes. Intelligence far more cruel and cunning than the most heinous criminal he had ever known.
“I will end this,” Sulayman made a vow.
And he kept his promise.
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Continued from the Kurita’s Tale
Written by Karl Gaverza
Copyright © Karl Gaverza
Inspired by “Mythology of Mindanao” in Philippine Folklore Stories. Cole. 1916. (Full text can be accessed at http://
Tarabusaw Illustration by Julius Arboleda