17 Chapter 15: Underneath

Sidapa stood there silently as the king of the Danags, Hari Ramana, disrespected him with his presence. The proud king didn't bow to him nor show any sign of restraint when asking for his daughter's whereabouts. He remained calm despite the annoyance his visitor is currently giving him.

"Your daughter? I don't understand..."

The proud king sighed in annoyance, " I am not sure if you're still doing your job, but my daughter was slain by Gahum."

The king's tone set Sidapa's anger to rise off the roof, yet still, he remained to control it. He was looking for the perfect opportunity to get back at the king, and he won't hold back if he does. He took a deep breath and he sighed.

" I haven't seen your daughter here," he said calmly.

"Liar! We know this is where all Danags go in accordance with the treaty we made with the first Sidapa!"

Sidapa's temper is almost at its limit, but he remained stoic, " Hari Ramana, it is true, I haven't seen your daughter here. However...", he took out something from the shadows. The object was wrapped in a woven cloth and he gave it to Hari Ramana.

"What is this?", the king accepted the hefty object and passed it to one of his servants. The servant tried to unwrap it and dropped it in surprise with what he saw. Hari Ramana was petrified to see the severed burnt hands of his kin.

" What is the meaning of this?!" he exclaimed and not soon after changed back to his grotesque monstrous form.

The king's servant shrieked in horror when he saw the rainbow-colored scale located at the wrist of the severed talon.

"Princess! It's the Princess!" the servants chorused as they shrieked and weep at the fate of their royal mistress.

The king, unable to contain his anger, lashed out with his wings, releasing a strong gust of wind that blasted away Tagahatid and Calista off their feet.

"What is the meaning of this?! Lord Sidapa!" the raging king pointed his sharp talons at the death god.

" I don't know. When I came back from the Skyworld, this was what I saw," he answered blandly to the king.

"You dare! Say that to me? The first Sidapa and I made a pact! That we are to be protected from being extinct!", Hari Ramana unhinged his jaw. " You incompetent filth of a god!", he jabbed.

The fearless king was ready to attack along with his servants.

"I was told about that," Sidapa said. " But, it was also written in your deal that you must not cause any sort of disruption with the dealings of the death god."

Sidapa commanded his eldritch roots right before the Danags could make a move. He snared him with the roots and thorns of Sulad before hoisting them up in the air and slamming them to the ground, rhythmically like the banging of the drums in an orchestra, the overture to their demise.

Hari Ramana, the proud king, was now nothing but a broken, wounded, and disfigured creature. He tried to struggle from it, but the grip kept tightening. He spewed blood from his mouth and was already hard of breathing as he was slowly crushed by the weight of the roots.

Sidapa came closer to him as the king was steadily held to the ground, " Again, let me reiterate the clause, you will be protected from being extinct as long as you DO NOT disrupt any of the death god's dealings."

He hoisted him up to see the king's bloodied face. " You just broke that.", he slammed him again to the ground as the helpless servants of the king could only watch in horror while they slowly were being crushed by the roots.

" Your daughter attacked my katabang. Do you know what that means, Ramana?" he gestured his hand and lifted Hari Ramana again, only to be slammed over and over.

Hari Ramana was already running out of blood, " Mercy..." he whispered.

" Mercy? Mercy!" exclaimed Sidapa, " You came here and tried to threaten a god, and now you ask for mercy? You may have been a relative of the Great Saranggang Bagyon, but that was before you ate most of the island’s population!"

Sidapa then lifted the struggling servants high up for the king to see, " You were only saved by the first Sidapa because he thought of you as his playthings, especially when you were all demoted from Skyworld and thrown here!"

One by one Sidapa crushed the king's servants with the eldritch roots, making them explode, painting the ground red with blood and Danag pieces. Hari Ramana helplessly watched as his servants died in front of him.

Sidapa lifted Hari Ramana once more, but this time he loosened the grip to make him breathe his last.

"Tagahatid, may I borrow your, Sanggot?" he asked his alagad.

Tagahatid summoned his Sanggot from the shadows and gave it to his Master.

Sidapa weighed the Sanggot in his hands. He twirled it with one hand while patting the disgraced king's cheek in the other.

" I could've used my Sandata for you. You would've considered it an honor!", Sidapa said as he pointed the crescent blade on Hari Ramana's neck, " But, you're not worthy of that honor, you bottom-feeding scum."

"Mercy...ppplleeeaassee..." the king begged again.

Sidapa finally puts down his weapon after the king's pitiful plea. He stood there silently, looking at the king straight in the eyes and nodded his head.

"No." he raised Sanggot and struck the king, ending the royal bloodline of the Danags.

The king's head easily slid-off from his neck and rolled gently to the ground. Sidapa then let go of all of the bodies he entangled and gave the blade back to Tagahatid. He then looked at Calista and smirked.

" Look at what you made me do?" he pointed at the bodies on the ground. " It was worth it though. Thank you for finally giving me a reason to kill the bastard."

"Why did you do that, Master?" the doe-eyed katabang asked.

" They touched my stuff. I hate it when someone else touches my stuff."

He gave her a smile and walked back to the dark hallway.

"By the way, Lady Calista cleaned-up this mess! Don't help her Tagahatid." he waved and completely disappeared from their sight.

Sidapa had a very fulfilling day. He finally got rid of that pesky Danag royal and punished him in the process. He walked into his throne room with high spirits and even whistled as he went. He sat once again on his throne, appreciating the power and luxury that came along with it.

The moonlight had already kissed the throne room by the time Sidapa finished reading his book. He calmly stepped out of the throne room and went into his room where he picked up a glass jug filled with liquor made by the Diwatas of Makiling (exported product) and made his way to a hallway just adjacent to the fourth quadrant. It's a secret hallway going to the lowest chamber of Sulad.

There were a hundred doors located in that place. Each holding a portal that would lead you to different worlds of both humans and otherworlds. But he was not there to visit some other world, in fact, he already visited them all. This time it's different, he went for the last door at the end of the hallway.

He opened the door and revealed a beautiful garden filled with flowers that even the human world has not seen before. It basked in the gentle glow of the pale moonlight. In the middle of the garden was a small nipa hut.

It looked small and humble at far, but as you come closer you will notice how beautifully adorned the hut is as it's made of bulawan, a pure form of gold blessed by the gods of Skyworld.

The light reflected from the house danced in the chorus with the gentle caress of the moonlight. The house is a sight to behold and Sidapa had always loved how everything is so beautiful in this world, if only not for the owner of it.

He entered the hut where he was greeted by a beautiful woman. Her hair is long and adorned with shells and jewels that made it look like a canvas of the night sky. She had deep yet soft brown eyes. Her nose, aquiline and timid. Her lips are full and red as if she painted it with atsuete seeds. Finally, she dressed in a jewel-embedded marlota of crimson and a sarong embroidered with batik of the old. He greeted her with a simple bow, and she nodded in recognition.

"So, what brings you here?" she said.

Sidapa presented her the jug. Her eyes glimmered, seeing such a rare and vintage liquor.

" Are you bribing me?" she asked.

"No. I just wanted to celebrate something."

"Something?" she scratched her head.

" I have killed Hari Ramana."

Her eyes glowed in glee, " Finally he got what he deserved!", she offered her a seat.

Sidapa sat down on a golden bamboo chair and placed the jug on the table made of gold.

"So, would you care to tell me more?" the woman said as she slowly crept her hands into his chest.

"Now, now let's not rush things." He said as he brushed off the hands from his chest. "Let's drink first," he said.

"Much obliged. Let me get some glasses then!" she cheerfully replied.

"Thank you for your visit Lord Sidapa, I really appreciate such company." she said as she put her mouth near Sidapa's ears, "things can get lonely around here," she whispered.

He looked at her and dismissed her advances, "I am only here to talk.", as he smiled at her. " But thank you for your hospitality..."

"Lady Yawa."

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WRITER'S NOTES

Greetings Reader!

We are at the 15th Chapter already (how time flies!), I hope you enjoyed reading my novel and I hope you have immersed yourself into our rich lore.

There were still things on that chapter that I know made you scratch your head, so let me clarify them for you.

Hari- means king

Sanggot- is a crescent-shaped blade use for harvesting crops, such as rice and corn.

Bulawan- means gold.

And now for a goddess introduction...

Yawa or Namalitong Yawa- the Visayan goddess of temptation and discord who exiled herself in the underworld after her lover died.

There you go, new words to learn!

Thanks for your continued patronage. If you like this novel please don't forget to vote on it, leave a comment or a review and share it with your friends!

Pugay!