Eternal Promise: Fragments Of Us

SIDAPA

“SIDAPA, why are you swarmed by black butterflies?” Libulan asked. He just arrived, and the first thing he noticed were these butterflies that have been fluttering all over the place.

“Don’t mind them,” I said, and continued carving new lifeline marks again on the tree. “You’re allowed to sit,” I added when I saw him still staring at me, or rather the butterflies around me.

I met Libulan a week ago. He injured his leg when he fell down from the sky. He told me that he was hiding from the sea serpent, Bakunawa. For some reason, he asked if it was okay that we see each other again and I agreed without much argument.

?I admit, I was captivated by his beauty. He looked so perfect in so many ways. But again, I feel like I’m breaking the rules for harboring such feelings towards another God. And he’s a man, a very gorgeous one,」 I thought. I was almost done with the last mark when I heard something crack.

“It broke,” I said in horror as I lifted the broken machete in an eye level position. Its handle gave up.

Libulan came running towards me and peeped from my back “That’s a bad omen, Sidapa!” he exclaimed. Rather than worried, he looked like he was amazed.

“Move aside,” I said, but I already pushed him aside before he could even respond. I did it with the right amount of force, enough not to hurt him.

“Are you going to fix it?” he asked curiously, casually following me.

“Stay put,” I commanded, but Libulan let it slide.

“Can I watch you fix your machete?” he asked.

“No,” I refused, but he just ignored what I said.

“Why can’t I come?” He was disheartened, and stopped from his tracks.

I halted and faced him, feeling guilty for mistreating him. “I’m sorry. Fixing my machete takes time, and I don’t want to scare you,” I reasoned out.

He remained silent for a while. Then he stared at me before saying, “Okay. I’ll stay underneath the tree,” he said, and strutted his way back.

Sometimes, his mood swings scare me. But I can’t let him take over my emotions. I’ve been alone for all these years. I can’t allow a mere stranger interfere with my job, I thought deeply, and went ahead.

My machete is made out of my horn. If the machete got worn out overtime, I just had to replace it with a new one. Carving the lifelines with a broken machete could potentially mess up their entire life. In other words, they could get bad luck. So, Libulan had a point earlier.

But making a machete was also a painful process on my part. I had to cut off one of my horns. They would grow back but it took each horn a hundred years to regain its original shape. A machete could last at least 500 years, depending on the quantity of souls that I would receive during that timeline-the more souls, the more I had to carve new lifelines, eventually wearing out my machete.

Since the machete was once a part of me, that meant that my powers also flowed in it. That’s why I could tell how much longer it would last. But what happened tonight was unexpected. It broke out of nowhere. I estimated it could last another 300 years or more. The bad omen that Libulan mentioned could also have another meaning.

“I hope Libulan doesn’t freak out when he sees me later,” I said to myself, before I focused my energy on the broken machete, sucking back the remaining power that was left in it.

WHEN I came back, Libulan was happily humming a calming tune. I bet it was some kind of lullaby that Moon Deities often sang when the night was solemn. These lullabies brought peace to people who appreciated their existence. But not all Moon Deities were as calm as Libulan.

As far as I’ve known, they were believed to be sky warriors. Some low ranked gods not only admired their unparalleled beauty, but also their powers. I have seen some of them on random occasions, except for Libulan. Who would have thought I’d get to meet him in person?

“Libulan,” I called out. He stopped humming and looked my way, and his jaw dropped. Because of utter shock, he suddenly became wary of me. He trembled in fear as he slowly picked up a rock near him, and threw it at me. I got hit on the head, but I didn’t flinch an inch. I just got annoyed. “What are you doing?”

“Who are you?! What did you do to Sidapa?!” he scowled at me. Instead of being frightened by his menacing aura, I found it ridiculously cute.

To calm Libulan down, I mimicked one gesture that humans did when they surrendered in a fight or lost in a battle. I put my hands up in the air, but I totally forgot that I was still holding my machete. Fresh blood was still dripping from it. It was my own blood, and was necessary to complete its final shape. Libulan was horrified when he saw the blood and misunderstood.

“Libulan, it’s-”

“You killed Sidapa?!” he screamed, then he cried. A blinding light emerged on Libulan’s hand, forcing me to close my eyes. When I recovered from its intense glow, I opened my eyes again and saw him holding a silver spear. He pointed the spear at me, ready to pierce me with it. “Where is he?!”

“It’s me,” I said calmly.

Libulan loosened up a bit. “What?” He was still crying as if he lost something very important to him. That moved me a little.

“It’s me, Sidapa,” I clarified, and Libulan was relieved and put the spear away. It kind of dispersed into thin air.Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

Libulan quickly ran towards me and gave me a tight hug. “I thought you were killed. I’m so relieved!” he cried.

Everytime I made a new machete, I would transform into my semi-human and semi-God form. My height would be reduced to half. Only two of my horns would remain, located on the sides of my head. I would have a much more human-like body, with a burnt tan skin tone and some unique, white tattoo patterns. The black material growing out from my arms would still be there and my waist down, too. And I would grow out some thick, wavy black hair that stretched out just below my waist. This was one of the effects of letting my energy flow into the machete. This form was disadvantageous for me if I were to face a high ranked God or Goddess in a petty fight for showing off on who was stronger. Reverting to my original form would take a while.