Alcra (Book no.1)

Clusters of tall trees are everywhere, and the vast body of soil is covered by a thick mass of white cold flakes. A harsh, cold wind is gliding all over the land which is covered by a cold environment. Inside a small wooden house, a lady has her eyes centered on the round glass window beside her while her hands are rubbing her inflated belly. “Look Alcrai, there is snow everywhere, you'll love it,” her red lip curves upward, “when you grow up, we'll build a castle made of snow, okay?“ Her upper and bottom eyelids move toward each other but her light smile lingers on her lip. The gentle snowflakes continue to fall from the skies; multiplying the layers of cold thick layers on the ground. A man is ambling in the middle of the vast body of cold land. Every time one of his boots lands on the ground, it deepens in the cold thick layer. He inhales deeply through his opened red lip. He tightens his grip on the handle of the hard wooden bag while his hazel eyes shift to his left side. He raises his hand to his back, there he grabs the handle of a hammer with a thick metallic edge. He bites his lip as he lifts the hammer from the belt around his back and twirls the hammer. A mug of a grey mammalian furry creature collides against the edge of the hammer. The creature, also known as the “wolf", bounces away. The wolf rolls on the snow, arises, and closes its snout. Its eyes are driven by resentment while it stares at the man. A little bit, it opens its snout and releases its breath. “I challenge you! Come closer if you want to see the other side,” the man rotated his hammer until it pointed at the grey alarming wolf. The wolf bends its lower body and it bounces toward the man's mug. He tightens his grip around the handle of his hammer and senses the cold moisture on his dark leather glove. The man scrambles toward the wolf and the wolf does the same. A couple of red fluids hit a frozen flower; flowing slowly towards the snow. The hazel eyes of the man move downward, and a smile manifests on his red lip whilst the wolf is laying on the ground. He moves his eyes nearby, he witnesses something. Then, he moves his feet alternately with less velocity in a certain direction and there he ceases his movement. The head of the deceased defeated wolf is laying on the snow with its blood flowing from its neck, its snout is open and its tongue is settled on the snow. “That'll what happens to the likes of you,” he swirls his hammer as he lifts it towards his back and pushes it back to the belt, “make sure you'll fight your size. From what I've witnessed, you aren't just a predator… You are indeed the worst predator that I've seen.“ He turns around and walks leisurely in a certain direction. He raises his hand to his cheek and rubs it, he can feel his cheek which is losing warmth. “I have to go back home,” he grins, “I'm sure that my daughter is waiting for his wonderful father to return from his voyage!“ He throws his hands upward and bounces many times after one of his feet lands on the ground. His eyes go wide as his eyebrows raise, and he halts and turns around. “Ah, s**t!“ he moves at full speed, “the head of the wolf! I forgot!“ His eyes broaden as his feet drift against the clumps of snow. The cold breeze flies over him, he raises his hand to his back and holds the handle of his ax. In front of his eyes, a large hyena with its canines plunged into the head of the wolf. Its eyes move toward the man, it releases its deep guttural sound. “Look, I won't hurt you,” he shifts his eyes to the head of the wolf, “but can you at least give the head of the wolf… to me?“ The hyena stares at the man, it opens its snout and the head of the wolf hits the thick layers of snow. The menacing brown furry predator releases its breath from its nose, and it turns around and scrambles in a certain direction. The man walks toward the head of the wolf; the head doesn't have much blood flowing from its neck, and its grey fur along its snout down to its nape has slight snow coating it. “Maybe, just maybe, would it be the best if I just let that hyena carry this head?“ he turns his hazel eyes in a certain direction and sees the body of the wolf, “but why would he desire to have the head? It's clear to my eyes that the body of the wolf has more flesh than its head.“ He settles his hand above his head, rubs it, and utters, “Now, when will I go back to our home… I'm very aware that after my precious daughter sees me, she will berate me for sure.“ The corners of his lip curve upward. “Okay! It's time to go home and prepare a flavorful adobong manok for our dinner!“ Inside a wooden house, the door moves forward, and the man from earlier steps inside the house. He moves his eyes everywhere only for his eyes to sparkle. “Oi! Oi! Oi! The house remains sterile!“ he raises his hands to his cheeks and presses them with little force, “So fond of her remaining in her place without littering the whole house!“ Multiple steps resound in the whole room where the man is. He switches his hazel eyes to the round entrance with a wooden frame, there, a cold feeling echoes in his whole body and every hair on his whole body arises. “Oh, father Joven! At least you've spoken your true belief!“ the lady at the round entrance throws her hands to her waist, “All those years, I believe in every word from your mouth. But you've deceived me, I'm very no… my heart's broken from your lie.“ Joven rolls his eyes as a smirk manifests on his lip. He ambles toward his daughter and ceases his movements beside her. His hazel eyes move on her head down to her toes. “Don't be so melancholic, daughter. Your cooking fulfilled your lack of straightening up the whole house,” he moves his hand to the bump on her belly, “how's my grandson doing? Is he a good boy? Oh! Oh! I know! Does he know who am I? Is he aware of how much I care for him?“ His daughter moves her dark eyes toward his face, and she sees the wide smile on his face, his eyes that are mimicking a smile along with his dark eyebrows. She bites her lip as her eyes close, and she moves her hand to her belly; caressing it. Joven raises his hands and put them on each of her shoulders, and then Joven and his daughter walk toward a room. They continue to walk until they reach the bed, Joven shifts his hazel eyes to her daughter. “I will just get you warm water, please rest here, Yema.“ Yema nods while her legs are trembling. Joven shifts his eyes down to her daughter's legs and he witnesses water flowing on it. “FATHER! HURRY!“ Yema yelled at her father. Her father rushes out of the room whilst Yema remains standing. Joven runs back to her daughter and he halts beside her. “What a foolish act of mine, I'm sorry.“ he raised his hands to each of her arms. Yema walks toward the bed while her father's hands are settled on her arms, and her father walks slowly with her until she is sitting on the bed. Joven moves his right hand to the back of the head of his daughter, and Yema with the guidance of her father's hand; moves her head along with her upper body downwards to the mattress. Joven moves at full speed towards the kitchen as if his life depends on it. Yema's eyebrows meet as her forehead scrunches; her eyes are closed and she screams. “HERE I AM!“ Joven ran back to the room. Yema spreads her legs as she raises the edge of her long dress. Joven puts down the round container on a chair beside the bed, and he kneels in front of her daughter's private part. The woman yells whilst her father grabs the scissors with long metallic blades from the container. “You're almost there!“ Joven speaks, “just hold on and… I don't know! Your countless scream makes me want to panic too! Shut up already, please!“ After some time… she's gasping for air, and she moves her eyes downward. Her father stands up while carrying a grey cloth. Joven's lip curves upward as his eyes broaden, he moves his eyes to her daughter's face. Yema lifts her eyebrows as her father chuckles. “I-It's a boy!“ he told his daughter. “C-Can I see?“ Yema smiled. Joven steps toward his daughter's side, and he extends the baby toward her. His daughter raises her hands and the infant who's covered in grey cloth lands on her hands. Yema moves the infant closer to her chest, her eyes wander on the infant's face. Her smile manifests into a grin. “He got his father's eyes but he got my beauty.“ Chuckling, Joven points his index finger to the infant. “Stop fabricating the truth, your son's just an infant, have mercy!“ “Oh shut it!“ Yema rolls her eyes, “Every human being are beautiful in their way.“ “Excluding you,” Joven smiled widely. “It's midnight, isn't it?“ Yema looks beside her and she sees the round window, “it's sad that we can't see the sun or the moon because when winter arrives: the sun just vanishes.“ “You're remembering him, right?“ Joven rubbed his chin. Yema's smile disappears from her lip, and her lip goes straight. “I was filled by his love and now I want to be filled with it once again. I just want to go back to taste his love and feel his tight embrace once again.“ Her eyes widen and she coughs, her father runs toward her side. Yema extends the infant toward Joven and he gently grabs the baby from her hands. Yema moves her hands toward her lip while her cough continues. After her cough disappears, Yema looks at her palm. “This can't be!“ Yema moves her eyes to her father whose eyes are locked on her. She nods at him. “I'm fine, it turns out that one of my teeth has departed from my mouth.“ “You scared me!“ Joven clicked his tongue. Yema shifts her eyes beside her as she settles her hand on her belly. Joven moves his hazel eyes to her daughter's hands. “You!“ “I am grateful that you stay by my side even if you're not my father in flesh,” Yema spoke. Joven moves his eyes down, and fluid begins to fill his eyes. He closes his eyes as fluid flow from them in a gentle stream. Yema lifts her hand close to her eyes. “I want to name him Alcrai Nicholas Seiran. Father, please take care of him,” her lip curves downward, “I-I want to remain living by my son's side… I want to see him grow up yet I want to rest.“ “Shh,” Joven tells her daughter, “d-don't stress yourself so much… with all my life, I will bestow my love for my grandson.“ Joven opens his eyes and looks straight at his daughter. “Remember the time that you have a hard time dealing with cooking one of my favorite dishes?“ Yema smiles little by little. “Is that Sinigang na Manok? I remember that dish.“ “Even if it tasted awful… I cherished every bit of it, just like how I love you as my daughter in flesh,” Joven smiled as tears fall quickly from his eyes, “so don't be afraid that your son will gain a hatred from your disappearance… I will tell him everything and how kind you are, and how you love him from the start.“ “T-Tell him that it was a glimpse of a lifetime seeing his face,” Yema raised her trembling hand to her father's upper clothing and pinches it, “Tell him also that he is my life… The root that connected me to being a more loving person.“ Her eyes close as she smiles slightly, and her hand bit by bit opens, and it moves down from the fabric of his upper clothing. The snow and ice in all lands soften and as each day has passed all of them manifest as a liquid. A young man is walking along with the groups of trees. He moves his fox-like blue-silver eyes upwards and quickly he covers his eyes with his hand. “The sun is so bright,” he utters, “I wonder, what is grandfather doing? Cutting trees or plunging the hoe into the soil? In front of a small wooden house, a tall man is swinging his ax on a piece of long thick wood. The young man from earlier halts near the man's position. “Lolo Joven, did I tell you to take a rest?“ the young man sighed. Joven raises his hand to his forehead and brushes the moisture from his forehead. He moves his eyes upward and sees the stare of the young man at him. “Alcra, I was just plowing the soil, no need to be anxious,” Joven says, “today is your mother—” “I don't have a mother, I only have a grandfather and that is you,” Alcra turned around and clenches his hands, “if you want me to see that woman as my mother, then she must show herself. If she can't show herself then I don't like to see her as my mother.“