4.2 WALKING THE DOG

  Limbs flailing, Tikum the Black Dog Kadlum cried for help as he descended into the black chasm. Expecting the worse from the long fall, he braced himself. After all, gravity was not the compromising kind.

  He cried out another foul curse as the rushing wind struck his bare face. This was finally it for him– the end of the joke of a life that he had. All the hogwash things he worked for and all the things he did not work for. All was going to end with a violent crash. But was it really a bad idea though? Tikum knew all to well that he was a failure. He was never a good son– his father knew it before he was even born (come to think of it, the old man never failed to remind him of all his shortcomings). He was never even close to becoming a bagani too (not that he wanted to be one, since most of the bagani he knew of were complete warmongering bastards and were mostly glory-hounds). And they mostly died like a dog too, bleeding out somewhere in the archipelago, fighting for someone who only saw them as meat-shields. Clearly not glorious and clearly not his style. He was in no way going to become a datu as well (which was a shame, since it would've been fun having the perks of being the goddamn chieftain). And finally, he clearly did not have it in him to even become just a decent man. Or so he thought before Ukok was born.

  He cursed. Even the way his life flashed before him was unsatisfying. Poor Tikum and poor Ukok.

  Tikum Kadlum sighed as deep as he could. He would've paid for anything and everything just to be a good father for Ukok. But, alas, all jokes must come to an end. Putting aside his own fear, he accepted his fate and waited for the inevitable end– an end that did not come as expected. Instead of splattering down the base of the dark crevice to his death, Tikum landed with a plunk into something soft. An hour-long minute passed, and he wasn't exactly sure what happened. His stark eyes move from side to side. He could breath but was he truly alive? Or did he even truly lived?

  He extended a tentative hand on the ground and felt it squiggle. It felt like a goatskin water bag filled to the brim. But it was still too dark to tell what it really was. All he knew is that it felt like he was caught between sleep and death.

  Tikum cleared his throat.

  "That didn't hurt as expected," he said as he struggled to stand on the uneven base of the mysterious cavern. He shook his head. He was now sure that the ground underneath his bare feet was not stone or soil. But what it was, he did not know, he no longer wanted to know. All that mattered was that he was still alive and kicking. Following his ears, he moved closer to the only sound that wasn't his drumming heart beat– a faint ticking echo coming from who knows where. It was strange and quite honestly terrifying to imagine what made it in the dimly lit hole he was in. He swallowed a curse. With a mind like Tikum, it could have been made by any of the foul creatures that resided in Vijayas' shadowed parts. It could be any of the ghoul in the surrounding islands too. Tikum whispered a potent curse. Was it a many-fanged aswang na lipad perhaps? Or a soaring manananggal, looking for its other half? Or maybe it was some pugot, searching for a replacement head. He looked up, massaging his neck. There was no moon or star above him only a slab as black as granite, so surely it wasn't a kagkag in a prowl. No, not that fiend. But no matter what it was, he secretly hoped it wasn't interested in a foul-mouth man like him.

  As he took a step, the ground beneath him shook and another eerie sound grew louder than the one before it. "Well, that's not pleasant," he said as the sound hummed longer than expected. It reminded him of a roar from a jungle beast trapped in the depths of a spiked pit that grew louder and louder. Never a good sign, especially with him still unable to see. Another subterranean shriek followed the first which made him step back. "I know the devatas don't exactly like me, but this is just-"

  His words were cut short by a very loud crash, made him jump back. It wouldn't have been so bad if he didn't squealed a bit.

  Terror-stricken, Tikum crouched down, palm flat on the ground. Fear was normal, he consoled himself. Now, he had to steady and prepare himself for what was to come. Whatever it was. He whispered a curse as dread fell on his shoulders like an invisible weight, dragging him down. The sensation was familiar. Too fucking familiar.

  He sighed. He felt it before when he fought Amburukay. He felt it when he betrayed Kihod. Magic. Magic of the dark kind was present around him. Thinking about his former master brought back unwelcomed memories.

  All this happened not just because Ambu chose wrong, but of Kihod's influence on Amburukay as well.

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  All the fighting, all the misfortune and all this running.

  He hoped the man never escapes his fate. Kihod should rot in his perpetual prison. The man was mad with ambition and the world was better off without him around.

  Another tremor came, waking Tikum from his reverie. Whatever the darkness hid, he was sure it was coming for him. But unlike his previous encounters with the unknown, this time he had no weapon but his wits alone. He swallowed the clump in his throat, goose-flesh behind his back rising. Another roar came and this time he recoiled, moving as fast and as far as he can from where he stood.

  It was too close.

  He cursed when he saw the two orange blazing lights from the distance, flying parallel each other like a pair of bulalakaw from the vast empty space above, going straight at him. Pivoting his heels, the Black Dog ran from the two orbs, gaining speed with every step. The circles of light were growing bigger by the second, illuminating the misshapen terrain around him. And finally the deep darkness turned to gray as he passed through a portal leading out of the darkness. He slowed for a moment, walls of solid rock flanked his side and above him a narrow crack showed the night skies. But it was not the heavens he was used to see. For the earth's ceiling atop was the color of emerald with sprinkles of diamond stars, streaked by purple comets that died far longer than they had the right to.

  Sprinting on, he could sense the rushing wind behind? him as though a gale was unleashed by Lihangin, the god of the winds, herself. Then, the curious light behind Tikum bathe everything in orange. Wary of it, he descended the uneven path in front of him. But the roar came once again followed by a more ominous sound. A sound that reminded Tikum of a thousand swords clanging against each other. He could see the unsettling sheen of metal reflecting on the wall at the corner of his eyes as the orange orb's light grew. He finally turned his head back as curiosity got the better of him and was just in time to see his pursuer rise up, exposing its taloned feet.

  As it ascended, its wings struck the narrowest section of the wall raining sparks below. Reaching the crack above Tikum, the thing's bulk shifted with unwelcomed grace. And there he saw that the orange orbs were the thing's eyes.

  "A bird?" Tikum said, raising a brow. For a moment, he just stood there awestruck, one feet still up in the air, jaw hanging open. Then, he cursed when he realized that the flying menace was swooping down towards him with its blade-like claws snapping. What struck the Black Dog was not the thing's size but its feathers. They were not the fluffy kind. Nor were they the soft variety. They were metallic and they didn't look friendly at all.

  Wanting to disappoint the giant bird of prey, Tikum hastened his stride, descending down the belly of the narrow chasm. His heart began racing when he realized that the orange glow above him was becoming stronger by the second. Which only meant that the thing was diving down for him, getting closer and closer. Before reaching the base a loud crash resounded behind him as his pursuer finally sunk its talons on the ground like harpoons to soft flesh.

  "Your aim's off," Tikum said under his breath as he moved as far away as he can from the bird of prey. "And what the hell did I do to you!?" A loud screech reverberated from above. "Oh, you want a screaming match? Well, say what... your brains must be the size of a grain if you miss me again."

  A span of silence pass before the thing replied with a loud roar, eerie and unnerving, all sounding like a complain in the Black Dog's ears. Then, it began to beat its wings, sending a gust of wind around it, striking Tikum's back. He stumbled and fell from the sheer force, cursing the fiend. Turning back, he saw the metallic monster flapped its wings for another climb.

  As the giant bird of prey rose higher the orange light that lit Tikum's way faded, leaving him with the twinkling jade sky above to illuminate his way. He was not sure if the darkness would help or worsen his situation. But in that moment he felt alone. No one was by his side. No Amburukay behind him, no Ukok beside him and as far as he could surmise, no escape too. That was what Tikum thought before a familiar scent wafted around him, assaulting his nose.

  "Gi-atay, what in Sulad's name is that?" he said as he scrambled up. It smelled like candle wax but it was so out of place that he thought his nose was playing tricks on him. Before he could think things through, sparks rain from up above. And there, high above, flanked by walls was his pursuer, shifting its bulk, preparing itself for another strike.

  Following the scent, Tikum made sure to avoid the next dive-attack. This time, the metallic menace took a chunk off the ground, upending the Black Dog, who could only curse at himself. He wasn't sure how long he could avoid all of them. So, with much urgency, Tikum Kadlum ran blindly towards the darkness and towards the candles scent. As he continued on, the smell of burning wax became stronger until he finally found its source. Hidden by an overhang and buried in a tunnel, the familiar glow of the candle's light waved at him. Eager to avoid his pursuer, the Black Dog threw caution in the wind and went inside. Inside the tunnel the glow of a thousand candles lining the carved walls seemed to resemble the stars in the sky. Tikum had to stop for a moment to adjust his eyes from the brightness. Much to his surprise the candle's light lit a curious scene- a surprise he did not see coming. For at the end of the tunnel four figures sat in a circle around a wooden table. Tikum had to stop to catch his breath before he could address? the group, who seemed to be busy at that moment.

  He cleared his throat. But before he could speak all four figures turned to his direction. Like an anvil falling from the sky, it struck him that not all of them were human.

  "Oh, look a visitor," one of them said. "Want to join us?"