1 Remember The Warning 1

"Show us another flipping jump!"

"Yeah, the one you just did. It was so cool!"

"I want to learn that move too. Show us again big brother!"

A group of four teenage boys surround a man in his early twenties standing in the soft orange light of the afternoon sun. His name is Saluk. Dirt and a bits of grass covered his already dirty clothes. He is an apprentice farmer adopted by the house of Minggud, a side family of the Lifetree clan.

"Ha ha ha. This is a treat to you lot for helping me finish my work early. Watch closely" Saluk grinned and braced himself to do another jump.

He slowly bent his knees and crouched like a four legged beast. Exhaling sharply, he sprinted a short distance and did a frontal jump, flipping four times mid-air.

"Woah!"

"Big brother sure is cool!"

"I wish i can do that too!"

"Ha ha ha! You youngsters are still too green for this kind of tricks. Your bones and muscles are still too soft like twigs. You still need atleast a couple of years to grow." Saluk answered with a big smile on his face.

"Please teach us big brother, i have been practicing to do that jump every morning secretly but i cant even make a single flip." one teenage kid said, brimming with excitement.

"I also tried to practice big brother's jump, but yesterday my mother saw me and hit me with her sandals silly." another kid said softly. as if afraid that her mother will suddenly show up from thin air.

"Nonsense! Your mother is just like everyone here in the village, they think that big brother is a weird and dangerous person. And that he is a bad influence to us." Another kid said.

"My parents told me the same thing too, that i should stay away from big brother Saluk and just focus on developing my magic vein. as if i will actually obey them. Ha ha ha." The youngest of the bunch said proudly. As if being near big brother Saluk is an achievement worthy of praise.

"Yeah, our magic vein will just eventually get stronger on its own as we grow. Who needs to train such a boring thing. Big brother Saluk's tricks is way cooler!" The oldest of the kids chimmed in.

Hearing the kids talk about him made Saluk smile to himself. All he can do is to scratch his head hopelessly.

This has always been his life. He is an orphan, He is aware of that. The house of Minggud that adopted him is nice, they do not treat him badly at all. His food, shelter and security all came from them and he is very thankful. The head of the house, his adoptive uncle only ask for him to take care of the herbs grown in this farm everyday, and that he will never remove the piece of black cloth that covered his eyes.

He can still remember his younger days in the house of Minggud, the time when the man who adopted him was still alive. That was around 18 autumns ago. He was then a small and skinny boy rescued from a shipwreck stuck in the shallows. Although his memories of that time was a little fuzzy because of his age then, but he could still somewhat recall the burning pain on his skin and the cold slaps of the sea waves hitting his body. He thought that he was going to die back then.

There are even nights that he dream about a big ship burning in the sea, he concludes that it must be from his past, and that his real parents died on that burning ship. His adoptive father has told him that he was the only one they found alive that night, and the actual cause of the tragedy was the demons attacking the ship.

"...is it true that big brother Saluk has no magic vein? Is the rumors true?" Saluk was pulled in to the present when he heard his name being mentioned by the kids again.

"Does it matter if big brother don't have it? Our magic can only be used on plants and weeds anyway. Everyone else can do that and you can't get a girl with it. I say that jumping and flipping midair is more epic."

"Okey you youngsters, it's about to go dark already, why don't we call it a day and have a nice one again next time?" Saluk said, noticing that the conversation is starting to drift somewhere uncomfortable to him. He patted the head of the youngest kid and started to walk away alone.

"Uhmm, yeah. I guess that big brother is already tired working today, let's go home for now." The oldest of the kids noticed it too and attempted to disperse the crowd.

"Thank you for today big brother, see you again tomorrow." Another kid said.

"But i have always been wondering, is big brother blind? But you can see us just fine, right? Big brother?" The youngest suddenly asked.

"Stupid, of course big brother can see us, he is just extra sensitive to the sun because he had an accident long time ago, that's why he has to cover his eyes." The older kid answered before pulling the youngest one and started walking away with the group.

"But, why can't he remove his blindfold now then, it is almost dark....."

"Jeez, what an annoying fellow. C'mon let's go home already." Another kid snapped at the youngest one.

Walking the opposite direction, Saluk did not stop until the conversation of the kids fade away with the wind. He can't help but shake his head and chuckled.

'Curse this eyes!' He sighed, and continued walking on.

Saluk has been working on the farm tending the herbs from the first rays of sunlight and should be back at the house on sunset. The kids will sometimes show up in the farm around afternoon when the sun starts to set and help him somewhat, and in return he has to show them a few of his 'cool' jumps. It has already developed into a routine and he is getting used to their company.

"Shit! It really is already dark, Tiyo Domam will be mad at me again. I'm in for another long lecture for sure if i don't hurry back." Saluk said and broke into a run.

------

In the house of the Main Family of the Lifetree clan, many elders can be seen working. Some are writing on bamboo scrolls and leather sheets, some elders are in some table, working on clay bowls mixing potions and herbs. It is already over an hour past sunset yet instead of taking rest, many elders are still working under oil lamps.

"Is there any update about the lady enchantress?" A middle aged man walked in, drawing the attention of everyone in the room.

The man is wearing a light leather shirt with a thin copper plating covering his chest, the clan crest is printed proudly on it, It resembles a standing tree with five braches being the one middle branch is longer than the rest. The middle branch has the color of the forest while the rest of the tree is black in a crimson cirle background. Gems around his neck can be visibly seen even in dim light produced by the oil lamp. An aura of authority can be sensed surrounding him. He is Moyan Lubaw

"Reporting to family head Moyan, we have finally recieved confirmation from the royal family that they will send the lady enchantress over in about two days from now." an elder working on the bamboo scrolls replied.

"We have also started to prepare the Village Hall as it will be her ladyship's residence in the duration of her stay." another elder voiced in.

"Two days from now and about a whole day on the way here..." family head Moyan mumbled, seemingly lost in thought.

"Rest assured that the lady enchantress will arrive here well before the harvest and keep us safe from those demons." the elder said again, nodding to himself.

"Assuming that nothing goes wrong before the lady enchantress and her entourage arrives here. We still have three days to prepare." Head elder Moyan said, then suddenly he seemed to remember something.

"Gather around fifty of our elite warriors and have them at the hall at daybreak. And summon Domam Minggud, i want to have a word with him tomorrow. " He said before leaving the room.

"Yes, Head Moyan!." The elders chorused.

The entire room fell quiet for about a minute after Moyan Lubaw left. The elders seemed to process the last sentence of the family head.

-----

"Domam Minggud? But he is the family head that looks after our medicinal and magical herbs. What does he have to do with the harvest season?" A bald elder suddenly said.

"This is not about that Minggud boy, is it? Does the main family think that the boy would cause trouble this time?" another elder working on the potions asked back.

"Elder Hagun, you can't just say such thing. I have seen the boy grow, and despite all the bad rumors about him, he is a rather responsible fellow." a white haired elder answered calmly, stroking his grey beard.

"That is just because the Minggud is having a tight leash on him. Elder Peto, you are just too kind too everyone." Elder Hagun said, shaking his haid.

"Elder Hagun is right. personally i think that keeping the boy in our village is a big risk we are all taking. He might be acting good and nice now, but how about in the future? He has the Demon's eyes!" The bald elder voiced in strongly.

"Elder Goyong, The old Babaylan had decided that it is fine for the Minggud family to adopt the boy. And Babaylans are rarely wrong. All these years and the boy has grown to be a young fine man. I'm sure family head Moyan will discuss about security or something else with Domam Minggud. Keep your wild ideas to yourself." Elder Peto answered back calmly.

"Let's just hope you are right. The coming demonic attack is already a big threat that i find it hard to sleep at night when i thinking about it." Elder Goyong Sighed and finally calmed down.

Their village was rather small with just a few thousand of population. But the village is one of the primary sources of food for the whole town. They are located with the open sea in the east, the road to the main town in the north and the mountainous forest in the west and south-west. Their food comes from the sea and there is a season every year that a large volume of fish feasts on the shallows for days. The village people knows this and they call it the harvest season. The villagers can produce up to a hundred carts worth of fish and if they are lucky, they can even catch a few rare aquatic beasts that can be turned into materials for making amulets and weapons or potions for nurturing magical veins. Every harvest season invites a large number of people, hunters and traders alike. So asking for the assistance of the lady enchantress to fend off the demonic attack was a good move from the main family.

The Babaylans has the ability to see into a person's general future to some extent by just physical contact. They can also predict certain calamities like earthquakes and typhoons. This time, a few days before his death, The old Babaylan warned them about the demons that will attack the village during this year's harvest season. The attack will come from the forest on the south and it will cause a lot of casualties if the situation is not handled properly.

This was the reason why the head family of Lubaw asked for the lady enchantress to come. Despite her old age, her magic can still manipulate large number of trees to attack or for defense. It is even said that a small part of an entire forest like this in their area can be put under her full control. If the Demons launch their attack from the forest, then the lady enchantress should be more than enough to wipe them all out.

Nodding to themselves, the elders went back to finish what they were doing and retire for the night.