Kabilang-buhay, The Afterlife???

Kali was shocked to find out that the voice came from the balete tree.

"There is no need to be so shocked. I'm Pinto't Tulay, you are?" The balete tree said as he materialized in front of Kali as an old man.

"You also have a name? W-wait a moment, YOU, YOU ARE THE OLD MAN FROM BEFORE!" Kali was astonished to see the old man from before, standing right before his eyes.

"Yes, I'm the old man you spoke with earlier. It's not so strange for me to have a name. You have a name, so why can't I have one? So, what's your name?" Pinto asked Kali with a wide smile.

"Ah- my name? I'm Kali." Kali answered.

"Oh, Kali? What a good name, befitting of a warrior!" Pinto was surprised to find out Kali's name.

"Warrior? Me? My name is good?" Kali asked, curious to know why Pinto said it.

"Yes, your name comes from Keris! The ancient blade of your race." Pinto explained.

Kali is genuinely surprised to know that his name is actually derived from the ancient blade Keris. Not knowing what to respond to Pinto, Kali remembered what he wanted to ask earlier, "How can you speak? Why is your name Pinto't Tulay?".

"I can speak, because like you, I am from nature. Everything from nature is constituted of nu, and everything that is made of nu has a soul. Everything from nature can speak, though existences different from humans can't voice out sounds like you do."

"So, those like us speak with our soul. I'm sure there are stories in your world where humans like you seem to understand what plants or animals feel. That is because those creatures speak to you humans directly with their souls."

"So, do you understand it now?" Pinto explained patiently to Kali how he can speak to him.

"Yes, I can understand it more or less now." Kali honestly replied.

"Do you still have any questions? It would be best if you ask all of them now. You might not be able to do so later when you embark on the boat." Pinto requested Kali.

"I do have questions I would like to ask you." Kali acknowledged Pinto's request.

He thought hard about what he wants to ask for a while until settling down with a few questions.

"You must have known that there were monsters outside when you talked to me before. What are those creatures, and why did you not help me?" Kali posed his first question.

"That's right, I know of it. The creatures that assaulted you outside are what you call malignos. They are evil spirits who feed on souls, especially human souls like you. They are agents of Kasamaan, and their goal is to wreak havoc in this world." Pinto grimly answered Kali's question.

"What is Kasamaan? Is it the enemy of Kaluwalhatian? What did you mean by ascending to Kaluwalhatian?" Kali further asked Pinto, bent on knowing the truth.

"Kasamaan is like what you are just thinking they are the evil of this world. And yes, Kasamaan is the enemy of Kaluwalhatian." Pinto clarified Kali's doubts then continued answering his questions.

"When I said ascend, it isn't actually ascending. What I meant by that is to be allowed to enter Kaluwalhatian. The home of the numerous Diwata (Gods/Goddesses) and Bathala (The Almighty). Entering Kaluwalhatian isn't an easy thing to do. You first need to become a Diwata yourself, and becoming one is nothing short of difficult." Pinto elucidated.

"I see. Hmmm... You talked about nu, but what about dalisay na nu? What is it?" Kali asked Pinto again, set on getting an answer to all of his questions.

"Dalisay na nu is the purest manifestation of nu. As a soul, most of your body is made of dalisay na nu, and only a small part of it is made of pandiwang-nu (nu of essence)." Pinto explained amicably.

Pinto was about to wait for Kali's next question when he suddenly remembered something. "Ah- Right! I saw earlier that you blinked out of a maligno's grasp. Have you noticed something?"

"Un. I was about to ask about it because I think some kind of substance was removed from my body." Kali admitted.

"I see. The substance that you feel removed out of your soul is exactly dalisay na nu. I helped you earlier to utilize it, so you were able to teleport without needing to learn mabalaghang-wika (magic spell)." Pinto told Kali looking at him haughtily.

"Any more questions?" Pinto added when he saw Kali just idling.

"I still have more questions. Just wait a moment. Let me think about it." Kali responded.

"Okay." Pinto agreed.

"Why is there an adarna here? And from what I see, there isn't just one enchanted creature in here. There seemed to be more." Kali told Pinto what he saw.

"You shouldn't be so surprised. Have you not wondered why my name is Pinto't Tulay?" Pinto asked as though hinting Kali to ask him about that.

"I just thought it was weird, but why is that? Why is your name Pinto't Tulay?" Kali gave in to Pinto's little trap.

"That is simple. My name is Pinto't Tulay because I am the door and the bridge to the kabilang-buhay." Pinto revealed with a smirk.

"Wait a minute. What is the relation of the afterlife to the mythical creatures being here?" Kali asked Pinto with apparent confusion.

"That has everything to do with it! I am the door and the bridge to kabilang-buhay and not the afterlife. I am also the sanctuary of these mythical creatures that once roamed around the earth. To these creatures, I am a sacred place, and I really am." Kali listened quietly to Pinto's revelations.

"The balete tree has always been the door to another world and a sanctuary to mythical creatures, but I am not just a balete tree. I am an agent of Kaluwalhatian, and as his agent, I have been given the privilege to be the carrier of ilog ng tadhana (river of destiny)." Pinto further explained.

"Did you know why I said kabilang-buhay is not the afterlife?" Pinto asked Kali, wanting him to notice the nuance in his words.

"Umm... yeah. I am doubtful of it, but I didn't want to interrupt you." Kali answered.

"Kabilang-buhay doesn't mean afterlife. What it means is another life." Pinto revealed.

"Souls just like you don't ascend to Kaluwalhatian. They embark at the balangay to travel across the ilog ng tadhana. At the end of the river of destiny, there is another world. The souls will have their memories wiped off and reincarnate." Pinto added.

"That is the real kabilang-buhay." Pinto ended with a smug smile on his face.

"I don't have any more questions. Wait for a little bit. I would like some time to digest all of this." Kali told Pinto as he quietens down.

Kali didn't know what to do with all the information Pinto told him, but he knows that these things may serve a purpose, or else Pinto won't say it to him. After a while, Kali memorized all the things Pinto explained to him when he remembered that he has one final question left, that he forgot to ask Pinto earlier.

"Actually, I have one more question. Can I ask?" Kali requested.

"Yes, what is it?" Pinto responded.

"Why did you bar me from stepping on the balangay earlier?" Kali asked.

"I barred you from embarking because I haven't told you all these things yet, as well as introduce to you what the other world is like.", Pinto explained.

"I didn't really want to embark. I am not yet dead. I can just go back to my body." Kali told Pinto, not perceiving the empathizing look Pinto had, plastered on his face.

"I am sorry to inform you, but you can't go back anymore." Pinto broke to Kali the bad news.

"HUH? I CAN'T GO BACK?" Kali exclaimed with a face pale in shock and despair.