Crestfall

CHAPTER 1: BEGINNINGS ∆∆∆ I woke up, only to find the credits already rolling. It's too late, I thought. The film just ended. I didn't have the chance to fully understand the story of the movie. *sigh* My drowsy habit took over me again. To top it off, I fell asleep in a sitting position. My habit knows no boundaries, huh? This afternoon, after buying my things for school, I ended up standing in front of a video rental shop. So I borrowed some money from my mom and bought a DVD. It was an English film about a boy who found out that he is the son of Poseidon, the God of the Seas in the Greek Mythology. I found the film interesting so I gave it a try. After dinner, I excitedly set up my DVD set and watched the film. I sat on the floor while my back's against the side of the bed. But I fell asleep in the middle (...I think. I don't remember, to be honest) of the movie. I stood up and flicked open the switch of my room's only source of bright light. The fluorescent lamp flickered once, twice, thrice, then it emitted a stable white light. I checked my cell phone for unread mails, but it doesn't have even one. I reached for the remote control for the DVD player. But before I could press something on the remote, someone ... *KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK* ... knocked on the door. "Come in." I let out a small breath. A five-year old girl entered my room. Her footsteps are so delicate that I can't even hear a sound out of it. She wore a yellow-green sleeveless blouse and a skirt made of jeans. Her hair was tied in a ponytail, which makes her very cute face even more cuter. She even has this pair of cat ears-like hairpins so she looked like those 2D girls that came out of her dimension to become a 3D version of herself. "You're still awake. Why?" I said while I clean up my mess in the bed. "I just want to check you, Kuya." Her very cute little voice said that. 'Kuya' is a term used here in the Philippines as a sign of respect for one's older brother, while 'Ate' is for older sister. So obviously, she's my little sister. "I'm fine. Go back to sleep. Tomorrow's your first day of school, right?" "Yes. But you are still awake, too. Tomorrow is your first day in college, right?" My eyebrows twitched as she laughed uncontrollably. Hey, you'll wake Mom and Dad. After I finished all the cleaning, I looked at the digital alarm clock sitting pretty on top of my small drawer beside my bed. 10:36 P.M. June 6, 2010. Sunday. I switched off the light and jumped to my bed. I can smell cheese powder from the sheets. "Hey. You better go back to sleep." I said while I cover myself with my yellow Sponge Bob blanket. But I noticed that she walked towards my bed, instead of going out through the door. Her petite body leapt up to the bed and laid down beside me. I also noticed her smile. It is a very weird smile. The one you see in a face of a serial killer while looking at his victim spurt out blood in his neck. "What are you doing, Sarah? You have your own room!" "It's so dark there. And I miss your hug. Nya~~~" She hugged my left arm and made a face like the one you see in a text message. I think it was like this: (:3) . "C'mon! How would I suppose to fall asleep if your like this?! Go back to your own room. Open the lights so th--" BOOOMMM!!! "!!!" Before I could finish my sentence, a very loud explosion hit my ears. That sound came from the window. Judging from the depth of the sound, the origin of the explosion was more or less a kilometer away from our house. As I was about to stand up and check what it is, I felt my left arm was caught up by something cold. Like a hand of a dead guy. I don't remember Sarah's hand will be this cold and huge. So I looked at my left side, and... "It's over, Kuya. Give me the fallen angel, then I'll let you live." "..." ... my eyes betrayed me. I saw my little sister's face, smothered with red liquid. Some of it was dripping to my sheets. It's blood. No wonder. Blood. Also, the serial-killer-kind-of-smile in her lips widened. You can see the killing intent in her eyes. This is not my sister. THIS IS NOT MY SISTER!!! I closed my eyes, and shouted on top of my lungs. "GET OFF OF ME, YOU DEVIL!!!" Then I opened my eyes. "..." "Kuya." Sarah's face was now full of tears. I felt my butt and I noticed that I'm sitting on a hard surface. The light is on. The TV was rolling the credits of the film I bought this afternoon. So it was a dream, after all. How realistic. "Why did you call me a 'Devil'? Do I look like one? I don't even have a horn! Uwahhh!! I-I just w-want you to wake u-up! Uwaaaahhh!!!" "H-Hey, don't cry. I had a nightmare. Sorry if I yelled. But, why do you want me to wake up?" I wiped my drool and looked at the time on my DAC. It is now 10:39 P.M. "Mom woke me up. She told me to wake you up, too. I don't know what they're up to." She wiped her tears with the back of her right hand. "Why would they suddenly wake us up? It's midnight!" Sarah just shrugged her shoulders. She really doesn't know everything. So I decided to go out of my room. I walked to the dining room, while Sarah clutched my shirt. I saw Mom and Dad sitting face to face. They were arguing about something. "Hey, Mom, Dad. What's going on here?" "Jared, something just fell from the sky and dropped to the town's park! I saw it with my own eyes! Your Mom won't believe me." Dad said the last sentence while his eyes were squinting towards Mom. "Fell from the sky, huh? What was it? A spacecraft? An extra-terrestrial ship that will be the trigger of an all-out alien invasion?! You must be out of your mind. Jared, ignore this man." Hey, hey. You shouldn't be like that in front of your kids, right? "Mom, stop. Dad, it should be a meteorite or something. It's not a big deal nowadays. You should hear it from the news. The meteorites falling are a part o--" "No! I'm pretty sure it is not a meteorite or a meteor or a comet or an asteroid! It is 'something'. Come! Let's check it." A chill ran down my spine when I heard him say the word "asteroid". If it is an asteroid, we should be extinct now, no? ∆∆∆ We arrived at our town's park. The crowd is too packed that we can't even go through the center of attraction - the huge fountain in the heart of the park. "It's too crowded." "Dad, it's obvious. You don't have to say it." We left Mom and Sarah in the house because: 1. Mom is an all-out non-believer of Dad, and 2. Sarah's still crying after I yelled at her. I didn't mean it, for God's sake! *sigh* Girls. A teenager made his way in front of us, but Dad halted him by clutching the boy's collar and showed him the upper front set of his dentures. I'm pretty sure he's trying his best to look scary. Dad, seriously, you're acting very weird. "Hey, kid. You gotta tell me everything you know about this incident. What happened? What was that thing that fell from the sky? Was it an extra-terrestrial ship that will be the trigger of an all-out alien invasion?! Tell me everything you know! NOW!" Wait. Mom said that a while ago, right? "Hey, hey. Dad. Stop it. You're scaring him." The boy held Dad's hands. I can see his body shiver. "I-I heard someone ... s-say it is a s-santelmo." "A what?!" I yelled. "Impossible." Dad said. He let go of the boy as his eyes widen. The boy ran off like crazy. A 'santelmo' is a legendary fictional creature in the Philippines. It is in a form of a fireball that chases humans near it. Folklores say that santelmos are born from the blood of a recently dead person. Well, it stayed as a legend. So Dad and I were kinda shocked when we heard from the boy that it is a santelmo. "You don't believe him, no?" I asked Dad. "Of course, not! I'm not that stupid. Santelmo is born in the place where a man died without justice. His blood will become a santelmo, but the fireball I saw came from the sky. What, somebody died airborne? Forget about that i***t. Let's go to the fountain." He pulled my arm and dragged me to the crowd. As expected of a paranormal and extra-terrestrial fanatic. Dad is so energetic now. Our municipal hall is located at the center of the town. Northwest of it will be the road to the forest. The forest leads to Mt. Amundok to the north. Southwest road will be a very long road towards Kampola City. The park was located east of the municipal hall. And the southeast road from the hall goes to the village where we live. There's a river flowing from the mountain. It will pass through the center of the forest, then through the north of the hall, then down to the road towards the park and the village, until it goes to Kampola and finally to the bay. So the road to the park and the village had a bridge for the river. Our town's geography was more of a fictional kingdom in a fairy tale, but we are actually not that kind. We have technology in our village. We don't use horses for transportation, we have cars. We don't have a king or a queen, we have a mayor and a vice-mayor. We just look like a remote town. The park tonight is full of people here and there. I overheard someone say that they heard an explosion in this part of the town. We managed to pass through the crowd and made our way to the fountain. Dad stopped his pace when we saw what the people were looking at. Of course, me too. "I knew it!" Dad snapped his finger. Dad, would you please pass me the information? What I saw was a luminous object in the center of a crater just beside the park's fountain. Dad looked at it as if it was a very rare treasure that was unearthed, but for me, it's just a stone. A very bright stone. "Dad, what do you think that is?" "It is a shard from the Star of Senea." I looked up and went silent for at least 3 seconds before I spoke again. "...Meaning?" "It is the StarLight." "..." Star-what? How would you spell that, Dad? And what is the Star of Senea? I haven't heard it from our History and Science class. And who the hell is Senea?! I just let my mouth open. I want him to notice that I don't understand what he said, but he was so fascinated that he already forgot my existence. I can almost see sparks fly from his eyes. Is that even normal? *sigh* I should have listened to Mom. The authorities just arrived. Their Crowd Control Unit ordered the people to immediately abandon the place so that the experts can investigate thoroughly. What exactly are they trying to investigate? That's just a meteorite who fell from the sky and accidentally fell here in our town. Not a big deal actually. But for my Dad - whose clinging to my arms like a chimpanzee - it was a very rare event. Dad, act upon your age. We look like a retarded father and son. As I was busy removing my Dad's vice grip-like arms away from my arm, someone called my name. "JARED!!" I looked back and saw an angel. No, it was just my imagination. I saw Ivan running towards us. He was wearing his usual jacket, and his usual smile. "Yo." "Jared, what do you think that stone is? Allen said it was a santelmo. Do you think it's true?" "Why on earth would I believe that?" "Nothing. An i***t like you would easily believe that idiotic belief. Hahahahaha!" HA-HA-HA. Laugh till you drop. I'll kill you after the 'drop'. "No, seriously. I wouldn't think it will be a santelmo. Santelmo is a fireball. That is a fluorescent stone." Fluorescent stone? Where in the hell would I find one of it? Dad instantly stood straight and spoke, "That is not a santelmo, you see? It is the StarLight." Here we go again. "Hello, Mr. Sandoval. I didn't notice you were here!..." Dumb a*s. Anyway, don't listen to him Ivan. Though, I know you are one of the brightest kid here in town. "...Wait, Tito, you don't mean the StarLight of the Senea's Star?!" "HELL YEAH!!!" WHAT?! They understood each other?! And, when did you start using that 'Hell Yeah' expression, Dad? Anyway, Ivan called Dad 'Tito' not because it is his name, but because here in the Philippines, it is a sign of respect to older men. 'Tito' is also used to refer the brother of your parents. 'Tita' is, obviously, the feminine version of it. "How did you know about that Senea...thing, Ivan?" I started to speak before they ignore my presence. "When I was young, my mom often read me fairy tale books before I sleep. Once, she read me a book about a nymph named Senea. Do I have to tell you the whole story?" "...No, thanks." I held up my hand indicating 'Surrender'. I give up. I'm starting to feel I'm surrounded by idiots so I'll be the bigger man. "No, kid. The story of Senea is true. It is not a legend. It is a fact. After the disappearance of Senea, her daughter, Leira, told the full story of her mother's mystery to a human. That human is the grandfather of Henry Lokiman, the author of The Legend of Senea's Star. So it is not really a legend or a fiction." Dad said matter-of-factly. "Oh. I didn't expect you knew this kind of things, Tito. Hahahaha!" "Right?! Hahahahaha!" Yep. It's confirmed. I'm surrounded by idiots. "Anyway. You ready for school tomorrow, Jared?" Ivan asked out of nowhere. We are now crossing the bridge towards the village. The time is 11:48. "Yeah. I think so. How about you?" "Not yet. I failed to buy a pair of shoes in Kampola yesterday. I helped my father repair the warehouse today. So I didn't have the chance to pay a visit in the city." "I see..." "So... see you tomorrow, Jared! Until then, Tito!" He waved his hand gracefully while walking backwards towards their house. ∆∆∆ I jumped to my bed immediately after arriving to the house. I ignored Mom and Sarah's questions. I just winked at Dad. It's a subtle way of saying "You take care of the ladies, old man.", in which he's able to quickly decipher. "Hah..." I'm exhausted after the walk from the park to the village. I looked at my DAC. 11:59 P.M. I should be sleeping by now, but because of Dad's fiction-themed mind, I was dragged to the town's park. "Hah..." I exhaled a long breath again. Wait, this is not exhaustion anymore. I really can't breathe! "Hah.. Hah.. Hah.." I quickly stood up and reached for the door. What is this feeling? I feel like my lungs are gripped tightly. I held the door knob and twisted it. But I can't. W-Wait! What's going on?! I opened my mouth to shout for help, but my voice box seemed stuck. "Hah.. Hah.. Hah.. Hah.." I'm at my limits. I think I can only stand for a minute now. Then suddenly, "Hello, mortal." ...I heard a mature female voice. It was coming from... "You seem like you are out of air. My, my. What a pity." "Hah.. W-Who are.. Hah.. you? Hah.." I can't find the origin of the voice, but my instincts say that she's on the other side of the window. I can't see someone. Even a shadow. If she's somewhat on the other side of the window, her voice would be a little raspy because my room is on the second floor and my window doesn't have any platform to step on. So she should have a hard time holding tight on the window, but her voice was so relaxed. It almost sounded like she was sitting on a couch while drinking some soda. "Right now, you are under my power, ~Suffering~. I will not let you go until you hand me the StarLight." What the hell?! "Hah.. H-How would I-I tell you.. Hah.. if you don't l-let me g-go? Hah.." "You are a smart human..." She muttered as I fell on my knees. I can't take it anymore! "...but not smart enough! ~Abyss Lightning~!" I looked up at the window and saw a purple light rushing towards me. "!!!" BOOGSH!! I took the hit on my neck and flew backwards. My back slammed to the wall, then I fell flat on the floor. "AARRRGGHHHH!!!" Damn! It hurts like hell! "Hahahahahaha!!!" The anonymous woman laughed loudly. Her laugh sounded like the one you hear from horror films. It really gave me the creeps. Even though my body was severely hurt after the attack, I forced my head to look up to the window... "Now, mortal. Where is the StarLight? You better start talking before I really kill you." So, she's just holding back a while ago?! After probably two seconds, I heard footsteps coming from the window side of my room. I can't see anything, but the footsteps are going nearer and nearer to me. I really have to do something before this monster kill me. No. This is a dream. I'm sure this is just another dream. An hour ago, I dreamt about my sister trying to kill me. It could be one of those nightmares, but... "Hah.. Hah.. Hah.." ...why does it feel so realistic? Why do I feel so much pain? Why can't I wake up?! "Hey. You're sweaty now. I'm not that bad, after all. Here. I'll give you some refreshments." No. No, please. "~Thundering Breeze~!" WHOOSH!!! A gust of wind blew towards my face. My eyes closed instinctively. WHOOOOOSHH!!! And this is not just a normal wind. I feel small electric currents pinching my face. It was tickling, but somehow, painful. "Hahahahahaha!!! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!" The evil laugh resounded inside my ears again. After a minute or two of those strong winds, it came to a halt. I slowly felt my face with my right hand. It hurts. I was still lying down on the floor. Wait a moment. It was almost six to seven minutes since this satanic shadow lady attacked me, and I have been shouting so loudly because of the tremendous pain. Then why did... "Now, mortal. Where IS the StarLight?" ...nobody knocked on the door and called out my name? What if... "I'm tired of playing with you, human. Give me the StarLight so that we can settle this off!" No. I doubt she would do that. It is only a minute between I entered my room and my exhaustion. She could never harm them in just a minute. Then why did Mom and Dad haven't knocked on my door? "HAHAHAHAHA! I used my power, ~Silence~, to omit the noise we are creating now. So your human parents and cute little sister can't hear us now. Hahahahaha!!!" Damn! She can read minds, too. "Yes, my dear. I can read mind, but only the pitiful minds of mortals like you." "Wait. Hah.. I don't have the StarLight. It.. Hah.. is now on the hands of the authority." I said. Even though I couldn't see who I am talking to. "What authority? WE, the Demarians, are the authority. No one can defeat us. So, you should hand me the StarLight, before Lord Rumario get down here and eat your pitiful souls." "I t-told you... Hah.. I don't have the StarLight." "Shut up. I saw you beside the crater..." Wait a second. "...and I saw your human father's eyes that were so fascinated by the sight of the StarLight." You thought that I have that stupid stone just because I was standing right beside the crater?! "IT IS NOT A STUPID STONE!!!!" Oops! I forgot she can read my mind. Suddenly, I felt my neck was gripped by some force. Now, I really couldn't breathe. "Hah.. Hah.." I suddenly noticed that my body was rising up away from the floor. In just three seconds, I was floating in the air vertically, my back towards the door. It seemed like my neck was about to snap. "WHERE! IS! THE! STARLIGHT!!!!" Before I could say goodbye to Mother Earth, some force struck me from behind. Then, BAGOOM! I fell down to the floor, at the same time, with the door. Wait, the door?! As my vision was slowly turning into pitch black, I heard a familiar voice... "JARED!!" ...then I heard the shadow lady's voice... "WHO ARE YOU?!" ...then... "Ugh." ...I fell unconscious.