FicWad

Vocabulary

tikbalang - pronounced tick-BAH-lang ("a" as in "father")

Bunsoy - emphasis on the second syllable

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I trudged through the forest for as long as I could, sometimes following a clearly marked trail, sometimes making my own trail by tramping through the undergrowth, but soon hunger and tiredness and the threat of complete disorientation in the darkness forced me to stop. Coming upon a clearing, I gathered some wood for a fire, set my lamp and sack down, and froze.

I'd been hearing it for some time, ever since I left the cave. A faint rustling noise that kept steady pace with me. At first I thought it was just the vegetation returning to their original positions after I'd disturbed them, but I wasn't disturbing any vegetation now. The noise came from my left, drifted to a point in front of me, then stopped. I stood still, squinting into the darkness, but when the noise didn't return, I allowed myself to relax. I built up a small campfire then sat down on the ground, opened my sack and took out the night's dinner: some rice packed in banana leaves, dried fish and a salted egg. I was fingering my cask, wondering if I could endure another sip of wine to wash my dinner down, when a crashing noise right in front of me made me jump.

My blood ran cold. A creature had appeared out of the darkness. It was at least two feet taller than me, and naked except for a dirty loin cloth. Its body was humanoid, thickly muscled and covered with coarse black hair, but its arms were longer and more powerful than a human's, and its legs even more so, ending not in feet but in a pair of hooves like a horse's. Its head was that of a horse, too--long, black and toothy, with flicking ears and a coarse mane running down its back. It even had a tail, which swished against the ground exactly like a horse's. Except that I knew of no horse whose eyes could glow that shade of green. Petrified, I stared up at the thing and nearly shrieked when it bared its large, yellow teeth at me. And whinnied.

"Some food, /Ate/," it said in a huffling voice, exactly as I imagined a horse would sound if it could talk human. It raised its enormous hands in a gesture that was instantly recognizable. "Please? I haven't eaten in days."

I gaped at it. "But you're a--aren't you a tikbalang/?" /Tikbalangs/, I knew from the lore, were one species of /lamang-lupa or dark elemental. The half-horse, half-man creatures grew up to nine feet tall and had a preference for the blood of living creatures, preferably that of their enemies. Herds of tikbalangs used to attack human villages in ancient times. And now here was a tikbalang looking at me appealingly, trying to sponge food off of me. "Tikbalangs are supposed to eat humans, aren't they?" I added, then cringed. Sweet Lady, I hope he didn't take that as an invitation.

The tikbalang wrinkled his nose, a startlingly effective expression in such an equine face. "Can't stand flesh or blood," he declared, shuddering. Then he hunched his shoulders and batted his eyes at me. "Please? I like salted eggs. I'm sooo hungry." When I remained speechless with disbelief, he shuffled toward me and plucked at my sleeve, chanting, "Please? Please? Please? Please? I'm sooo hungry."

I made a face. For a fearsome tikbalang/, he was rather irritating. When he made a grab for my egg, I instinctively slapped his hand away. Realizing what I'd done, I yelped and shrank away from him, fully expecting him to tear me limb from limb. To my shock, the /tikbalang mirrored my movements, squealing in panic and crumpling on the ground, one arm raised to his head as if to ward off a blow. "Don't hurt me!" he whined piteously. "I just wanted an egg, and Ate has so much food already. I'm soooo hungry!"

He began to make agitated, whinnying sounds. I winced at the noise, then, surprising the both of us, I began to laugh. I laughed and laughed until my stomach began to cramp. Looking hurt, the tikbalang began to crawl away, but I quickly reached out to touch his arm, keeping him from running off. "No, wait!" I gasped through my mirth. "Don't go. I'll share my dinner with you. I'm sorry I laughed. It's just that we looked so silly..." I couldn't go on, overcome once more by hilarity.

The horsey face grew even longer with surprise. "Ate isn't going to drive me away?"

I shook my head and dabbed at my eyes. "Oh, that was a good laugh. Here. We'll split the rice and you can have my egg."

He snatched the egg right out of my hand and swallowed it in one gulp then, before I could protest, proceeded to inhale every grain of rice on the banana leaf, including my sliver of dried fish. "Ate has anything to drink?" he mumbled with his mouth full. Bits of rice flew out of his mouth and stuck to my cheek, and he daintily picked them off and stuffed them back where they came from.

My mouth hung open. "You just ate my entire dinner!"

"And it made me thirsty, too. What's in here?" Without waiting for my answer, he uncorked the bamboo cask and took a gulp, then promptly began choking and flapping his scorched tongue.

I caught the cask before the wine spilled out. "Don't drink that," I said calmly. "It burns."

He blinked teary eyes at me. "Ate is trying to poison me."

"Ate is going to see what else she can eat now that you've finished this night's ration," I retorted, rifling through my sack and pointedly ignoring his pleading look. "I've never heard of a tikbalang who didn't like flesh and blood," I said conversationally. "What are you called?"

"Bunsoy."

"Bunsoy?" I looked at him, grinning. "You're called 'The Youngest'?"

Bunsoy gave me a wounded look. "Ate is laughing at me. She makes fun of me because I'm so small and puny."

I eyed him skeptically. "You're bigger than me."

"Yes, but you're a weak, scrawny human."

"Why, thank you," I muttered. He looked so mournful that I found myself trying to comfort him. "I'm not laughing at you, Bunsoy. In fact, I understand completely. I'm the youngest in my family, too, and I'm also one of the smallest girls in my town, so you could say we're in the same situation."

"Really?" Bunsoy's face brightened.

I smiled and nodded. "By the way, you don't have to call me /Ate/. My name is Amihan."

"Amihan." He gave me a toothy grin. "Amihan is nice and kind, not like the others."

"The others?" I leaned forward eagerly. "You've met other humans? A group of ten, led by a tall warrior and a beautiful priestess? Please, can you tell me where they are?"

Instead of answering, Bunsoy yawned hugely, curled up on the ground near the fire and closed his eyes. "I'm tired. Amihan will watch over me, won't she?"

"Wait, don't go to sleep yet! You haven't answered my question."

All I got was a loud, horsey snore. I sighed and followed his lead, arranging myself on the ground with my head pillowed on my arm. I'll ask him tomorrow, I decided, just before sleep claimed me.