They had not traveled far when Casser got off his seat in front of the cart. He looked inside the cart and found Wen and Eldion to be sleeping. He did not said a word and walked towards the side of the ancient road where there was a tree with overhanging branches. Perched on one of the branches was a white pigeon like those that he had inside the cage. Casser confirmed that it was one of his pigeons when he saw the string that was tied around one of its legs.
Carefully, Casser approached the branch and took the pigeon from the branch. The pigeon protested at having been interrupted, but let itself be handled by Casser without much resistance. Casser looked around him and at the cart. Then, he picked a small orchid bud that was growing on the tree branch. He carefully tied this around the pigeon’s leg before tossing the pige
“But why would he lie?” Mira asked more to herself than to Wen. Suddenly, she felt the branch that she was sitting on shake. When she looked down, she saw that Casser had climbed the tree and was reaching out to sit on the branch next to her.“Who lied?” Casser asked as he sat on the tree branch and faced Mira.“You did!” said Mira.Casser forced a laugh without taking his eyes off Mira. “What do you mean I lied?” Casser asked with a smile visible on his lips, but his eyes gave Mira a penetrating stare.“You said you’re afraid of heights!” Mira replied and she looked at the sunset to avoid Casser’s eyes.“And how did you know that I lied about being scared of heights?” asked Casser. This time, his tone sounded cheerful.“You mean aside from the fact that you are sitting precariously on that branch very high up from the ground?” said Mira with sarc
Mira was glad that the seats had been cleared earlier and that she could lie down properly. She took one of Casser’s garments and piled them on one end of the seat to make a pillow. She had just lain down to sleep when she noticed Eldion looking at her.“What is it Eldion?” asked Mira. “Can’t sleep?”“There’s just something bothering me,” replied Eldion. He looked at the space near the front end of the cart from which he took the empty pigeon cage to make space for feet. “Maybe it’s nothing, but I can’t get it out of my head.”Mira decided to sit up, sensing that whatever it was that was bothering Eldion could be important. “Do you want to talk about it?” Mira asked Eldion. “I’m not that sleepy anyway.”Eldion paused and looked at the front side of the cart that was normally open when they travel and through which he could see Casser as he guided No
Wen woke up from a gentle tap on her arm. She opened her eyes and saw Casser above her, rousing her to wakefulness. The lamp inside the cart had been extinguished by Mira before she went to sleep and it was dark. There was some light, however, that came from the fire outside and reached the leather cover of the cart such that Wen was able to immediately identify Casser.“I’m awake, Casser. Thanks!” said Wen and she sat up. Gathering the blanket she had thrown over her body, she got out and walked towards the fire while Casser took Wen’s place inside the cart. It was a cold night, but at least the sky was clear, as Eldion said. Wen sat on the protruding root of the nearby tree where Casser also sat in the last few hour. Wen saw that Noha was nearby, lying down on the ground and sleeping still. There were no
It was still dark when Eldion opened his eyes. He heard Casser snoring as he slept on the seat across from Eldion. Momentarily, Eldion felt an impulse to feel around his pillow for something before he realized that his pillow was just a bunch of garments that Casser was selling. As for that something that he was looking for, Eldion was not exactly sure. Whatever it was, he forgot about it as he came to his full consciousness. He decided to sit up and take a few breaths before getting out of the cart.Not far from the cart was the small fire where Wen was still seated. Eldion approached her and sat by her side. Wen was surprised that Eldion was already up.“It’s still too early. It’s not your turn yet,” said Wen as she poked the fire using a stick to spread the embers.“Is it? I don’t know what time it is,” said Eldion.Wen pointed up. “Well, the moon is still overhead. It’s about midnight a
Eldion listened to the sounds of the forest and noticed the change as night eventually turned into day. The occasional chirps of nocturnal birds and the hum of insects gradually died down and was replaced with cheerful songs of swallows as well as monkeys high up in the branches above. Eldion could not see the creatures, but found them reassuring. Soon, the surrounding forest became visible as the sun started to rise and brightening the sky.The cart wobbled a little and from its back climbed down Casser. He noticed Eldion sitting by the fire and gave him a quick wave. He then approached Eldion carrying a small metal pan on which were some dried fish.“Time to cook breakfast,” said Casser, lowering her arms and placing the pan on top of the large stones that surrounded the fire. Casser had placed the stones the night before to protect the fire from wind and they also served as a stove. Casser poked the embers and coaxed the fire to grow larger by pushing mo
Mira and Eldion squeezed through the thick bushes in pursuit of the giant lizard while Casser was not far behind, his taller frame making it more difficult to follow. Eldion placed an arm over his face to protect himself from the twigs while another hand pushed the branches away. Then, he heard a shout in front of him and realized that it was Mira. In a moment, he felt the ground give way under him and he found himself sliding on a steep incline of the ground.Eldion saw Mira in front of him and shouted in warning for her to get away. She had hardly moved her body to the side when a shout came from behind them and Eldion saw that Casser was likewise sliding down the slope towards him.Shaken, but otherwise uninjured, the three travelers looked around them and found that they were surrounded by broad green structures that looked like just one giant plant. Eldion stood up and brushed the dirt off his clothes. He looked up and saw the large opening through which the blue
Eldion felt a cool damp cloth over his face. It smelled slightly of mint along with a distinct floral scent. He felt as if his body were floating over a cool pool of water and he could hear faint dripping sounds along with the regular sounds of his breathing. He opened his eyes and saw a thin translucent fabric was covering his face. There were tiny openings between the threads that allowed him to breathe and he tried to see through them to discover where he was.Eldion remembered getting trapped inside the giant carnivorous plant that closed over him and his companions as tendrils reached out and coiled around his body. Then, he recalled how difficult it was to breath as the coils of the plants squeezed his body before he lost consciousness. He tried moving his fingers and realized that they were immersed in water. In fact, his
“When the debsina released its enzymes, it meant to kill its prey quickly and painlessly. The poison had been absorbed by your body through your skin. When I noticed that one of the debsina plants had closed its leaves and was filling up quickly with chemicals, I knew that it had captured something really big. At first, I thought it was a deer or a carabao, but I heard someone gasp and it sounded too human to be ignored. I immediately took out my knife and cut through the leaves to drain the enzymes. When I opened the leaves, I was shocked to see not a deer, but three humans bound by the debsina’s tendrils,” recounted Rolho to his small audience composed of five children and the three travelers who had just recovered from their ordeal with the carnivorous plant.Rolho and the children were all wearing white turbans that signify their status as healers-in-training. The children were amazed with Rolho’s story and a few