Blood Moon

Bagani

Disclaimer: The usage of Bagani in this story is far from its real meaning and is not associated with the real Baganis in Mindanao. Baganis are heroes who have been able to save lives by killing ten human threats or 100 snakes to keep their ancestral land safe. The usage of the word in this story is not intended to falsify its original message.

Legosi was in front of her in split-second, grabbing her arm from beneath her red cloak and pilling it close to his face. He turned it sideways and back, observing her hand closely. "Are you wounded?" He asked hurriedly.

"No, this isn't mine." She breathed heavily, turning her head towards the mountain. Her cheeks was also stained with blood and her raven hair clung to the sweat in her forehead. "There were too many to count and sure there are still others, we can still save some of them if we hurry." She looked at Legosi and her expressionless eyes showed a flash of desperation. "Grab horses, each one of you. We'll take the road towards the west side of the mountain." Legosi and Augustus shared glances for a moment before running towards the Chief's home. It didn't take long before they came back, each saddled on a large mount. Luna hopped on Rigel's back and caressed his neck. "To the west road, Rigel."

With a huff, he ran. Legosi and Augustus' horses followed closely, their conditioned hooves colliding with the rocky path with ease. The thunderous sound of their steps echoed on the small village, rousing some of the villagers from their sleep. The sound was ominous.

"Who were they?" Legosi asked Luna as they sped towards the west.

"They weren't familiar, certainly not from Leona." She replied with a loud voice. "Their skin was dark, like coal. They must've been seeking refuge from the Kingdoms in the west."

"Why would they need to run from their home?" Augustus asked, brows furrowed in confusion. "You'll know it when we get there." Luna's voice held bitterness, making the tension increase.

Augustus knew little about the Kingdoms in the west, he knew they were ruled by strong and power-seeking men. The turmoil inside their domain was surfacing now and it was obvious that Leona will be caught in the middle once the Kingdoms search for allies in their boiling war. The west was still being ran by the old ways constructed by the church, inequality and oppression spreading like wild far on its roots. Even so, Augustus could not think of a reason why people would want to run from their safest place, especially weeks before a blood moon. Unless, it wasn't safe anymore.

They were still a kilometer away from the west road when the smell hit Legosi like a sledgehammer. The rusty smell of blood invaded his nostrils and he felt a bile rising from his throat. This wasn't the smell of a demon, but a human, a terribly wounded one. Legosi urged his horse to get faster, his grip on the reins tightening. Slowly, the trees began to clear and the west road came to view. Legosi's breath caught in his throat and he brought his horse to a halt. Luna and Augustus came to stop behind him. Augustus took in the sight, growing faint by the second.

Bodies lay sprawled on the ground, mangled and torn beyond recognition. Each was meter away from each other, indicating that they were running away. One woman was holding a babe close to her chest, covering it in a protective embrace. But it seems that she was unable to break her fall as the lifeless child laid there, blood pooling around its tiny head. A heavy feeling grew on their chest as they came closer to the corpses, the smell of death in the air was like poison. "What were they running from?" Legosi asked.

"Better yet, why would they choose to travel weeks before a blood moon?" Legosi knelt beside one man who laid face down in the dirt. He placed a hand on his still warm but lifeless body and pushed his shoulder up until his face was clear to him. His eyes were wide in fear, his last emotion clearly showing on his frozen expression. But that was not what captured his eye. His brown eyes stared up at him, stunnjng him. It was the color of the warm earth, light brown and bright. It was emphasized greatly by the surrounding white on his eye, capable of holding your gaze captive.

"Who are they?"

"They are what we call Bagani, they are tribes men from the west. They have innate powers that could rival warlocks and witches alike." Luna walked closer to them and placed a hand on his neck. "They are usually exploited by their leaders, sent off to kill demons even at a young age. This must've sensed that this year's blood moon is too different for them to stay still. It was a huge risk coming here."

"If they stayed, they would've been sent off like disposable cats on a rat infestation. But now that they gathered enough courage to leave, they became food to the very thing they were escaping from." Augustus' fist clenched in fury and sadness.

Luna's hand traveled to the side of his neck, picking up something. When her hand came up, a chain of a necklace dangled on her finger. On it hung a round silver pendant. It had engravings on it, the sun carved in the middle beautifully. As she held the item, smoke rose up from it, burning her skin. She flung the necklace away and cradled her hand. Legosi looked at her in shock.

"Take it." She told Legosi, no sign of pain in her face.

"Why?"

"You will need it." She stood up and called to Augustus. "Let's split and search for survivors but don't go so far that I won't hear you, if something goes wrong, whistle."

She gestured for Rigel to come and rose up to the mountain.

"I'll go further down, Legosi." Augustus said before heading to the other direction. Legosi remained kneeling on the dirt, his eyes fixated on the dead man below him. He had very distinct features. His skin was a smooth earthly color, glowing in the morning sun's rays even in death. His eyes were rimmed with thick black lashes and his nose was rounded, complimenting the thick pair of lips he had. He had never seen anyone like them before. Even the women were beautiful, faces immaculate as if they had not suffered before death. It hurt to see them, Legosi felt a pulse of pain on his chest as he stared at their corpses. They sought sanctuary and this is what they got. He offered a prayer before carefully taking away the silver necklace the man wore.

He studied the pendant and the chain, wondering what it was about it that burned Luna's skin. With a sigh, he went around to look for survivors.

*****

"No!" The booming voice echoed on the large room, making everyone flinch. The King stood there, his eyes looking at them defiantly. "My name is King Xanadu, and you will address me as such." His thick accent made his words more threatening, every syllable rolling out like boulders down a mountain.

"The church had given you your christian name-"

"If anyone dares tell me what my name is, may he come forward and we shall duel. Winner decides what I will be introduced as." His larged hand gripped the hilt of his curved sword and the room fell quiet. He slowly pulled out the curved sword from its sheath and placed it on the neck oft he herald. The man went pale, shivering blatantly. "King Xanadu, it will do you well to remember that."

"Y-Yes, your highness." The man struggled in between gasps of breath.

King Xanadu looked at him for one more second before proceeding to his throne. The wood creaked as his heavy weight came crashing down unceremoniously on it.

King Harold puffed up his chest and raised his head, meeting King Xanadu's eyes. "Must you act this way? Even just for once, will you be capable of behaving yourself properly in our company, your highness?" He chastised him.

King Xanadu's eyes flashed and he tipped his head to the side, as if curious. "How should I behave myself in front of the villains that exploited and oppressed my people for hundreds of years then, King Harold?"

As if struck by lightning, King Harold froze on his seat. Some of the Kings seated in the circle grew red in the face. "We are here to discuss the matters of the incoming blood moon, so spare me from your pleasantries and let us get straight to the point." He spat.

King Ulysses let out a soft cough and all the attention went to him. "I'll be the first to report." He took out a scroll and spread the parchment on the oak table. "Demons have been swarming at my kingdom, they risen way earlier than expected and even with the extensive extermination conducted by my soldiers, they remain resilient."

Picking up the long stick, he pointed on one side of the large map that was spread on the table. They come from the south and their nightly hunts are getting more brazen and strategic."

"These demons also has barely any reactions to daylight. Unlike what we are used to, they can endure more than an hour of sunlight now. It's getting harder to purge them."

"Same goes for my Kingdom. I have called upon the experts and even they do not know the reason for this." He snapped his finger and whispered something to his servant. The man left the room with the other servants he brought.

Minutes later, the men re-entered. They were carrying a black coffin. Some men pushed the map aside and they placed the coffin in the table. The large curtains that covered the windows in the throne room were parted and the sunlight came in, bearing down on the black coffin in their midst.

"What is inside?" King Xerxes asked.

"For you to get a better view, I recommend that you rise from your seats." King Ulysses stood up and with a wave of a hand, the coffin was opened.

From inside the coffin, they heard a gurgling sound and rattling of chain. The Kings peeked inside and flinched, mortified by the sight of the demon bound inside. Only King Xanadu remained unperturbed.

The demon thrashed but the chains did not break, his long claws barely making any scratch inside the metal coffin. Thick saliva spurted out of its maw, making the nobles grimace in disgust. "As you can see, even in the direct contact with sunlight, it remains very…energetic. This is what our soldiers has been dealing with for the past few week. Isn't that right, King Michael?"

Captain William flinched as he stood beside the eastern king. "I heard news about the s*******r of your men by the hands of a behemoth. If we were to speak about demons, your country is the most unfortunate. They may be less in numbers here, but most of them are powerful, and if not, very tricky to kill." King Ulysses wore no expression on his face so it was hard to determine whether he was being scornful.

King Michael raised his head, his face blank. "Yes, I am aware. The times are changing indeed, these…disgusting creatures are evolving. We should as well."

"How do you suggest we do that?" King Harold's voice echoed in the throne room, his eyes scrutinizing the eastern king.

"Our witches. Each of our kingdoms has many talented witches and warlocks to spare, instead of making barriers for our kingdom alone, we should lend each other hand." He proposed.

"Are you saying we should share our arms and resources?" King Alexus' tone was sharp, his fist curling beneath the table.

"Yes," King Michael replied confidently. "Unless you think you can survive the next blood moons by yourself in the future. We can each survive this coming anathema, but who says the demon will stop evolving? What happens this year can be worsened next year. We must fortify our walls-"

"Or, you can start picking up your swords instead of sitting here like pigs for slaughter." King Xanadu cut him off, his silver eyes raking over the king with disgust. The other kings averted their eyes, choosing to look at anything else in the room but his silver eyes.

"For many years you hid inside these walls like scared little babes. You and the Kings before you could have nipped the root of the problem but instead you chose to live in your little paradise at the commoners' expense. Even your church is useless, claiming to be pacifists to avoid having their powerful priests sent into the battlefield, as if prayers alone could help." He let out a humourless laugh, mocking them.

"I am not intimate with your God, but I am very well sure he does not bless the cowards and the lazy."

******

Legosi walked towards the corpses, examining them one by one. None of them showed any signs of life. The smell of their blood was overwhelming and the sight of the dead children made him ache. Their long dark hair reminded him of someone close to him, making it harder to look at their dead eyes and desperate expressions.

As he was examining the corpse of a man, he heard a call. "Legosi! Augustus!" Luna's voice echoed down the mountain. He was quickly on his feet, running towards the direction of her voice. He pulled out his sword from its sheath, chanting his incantation until his blade glowed blue. He could hear Augustus following behind him. "Quickly!" Luna called out once more.

He picked up his pace, ignoring the ache on his legs as he ascended. When he finally caught up to her, she was standing with her arms spread, slowly backing away from something. Her hand was pushing Rigel back as he growled at something. He heard Augustus stood beside him, breathing heavily. "What's wrong?"

Luna's red hood was covering whatever it was that stood in front of her, so they couldn't see what she was backing away from. She continued to walk backwards slowly until something came to view. It was a little girl. She was small and frail, her tattered clothes hanging of her back loosely. She looked like she wasn't past four years of age.

Her curly hair framed her small face, tears brimming in her doe like eyes. She was breathing heavily while clutching a short blade in her tiny hands. There were wounds on her cheeks and arms, blood dripping down her body. "Back away, demon!" She yelled, her voice thick with an accent and shaking in fear. She looked fragile but the fire burning in her eyes was stunning.

Augustus came up slowly, sheathing his sword. "Calm down, child. She's not going to hurt you." The child jumped back, lifting her blade and pointing it to his face. Her face slackened for a moment but it went back to its scowl just as quickly. "Back off."

Augustus tried to calm her, lowering himself until he knelt. "We're here to save you, we're not here to harm you."

Still, the child was unconvinced. Suddenly she attacked and Augustus was taken by surprise. She raised her blade, its sharp point directed at his eye.

Before it hit its mark, a large hand gripped her arm and firmly jerked it back. "Stop."

Legosi's cold voice seemed to wake her from her reverie and her eyes lit up. She raised her head and looked at him eye to eye. The blade slipped from her small fingers, falling point first on the ground. Her small lips shivered and large tears spilled from her wide eyes. Sobs started to come out of her and she shook a*s he cried.

Legosi held the back of her head and brought her to his chest, lifting her up gently and cradling her. "Are you the only one alive?" He asked gently.

"Y-Yes." She replied in between sobs.

"Well, we should go." He said to Luna. She nodded her head in agreement. They descended and went over to their mounts. The child snuggled closely, her small frame desperate for warmth.

"You need to stay still, all right?" He whispered and the child nodded.

"Slow down the pace." Luna spoke, not turning to them. "Go, Rigel." With a grunt, the wolf ran.

With only one hand on the reins, Legosi rode the horse. He held the child firmly, careful not to let her slip. Halfway on their way home, the child became heavy on his arm. When he looked down, she was fast asleep, her face calm and relaxed. "You must have been so scared." He whispered. "I sure was too."

Even with all the jostling, the child remained asleep. Days of exhaustion and the mental stress she experienced were immense and now she felt safe, it all caught up with her. When the path finally cleared, they quickened their pace. When they arrived on Legosi's home, they settled her down on the bed and Augustus went to work. He cleaned out her wounds and bandaged them properly. All her wounds were minor and none had festered, but as he fixed the girl, the number of scars she had on her body enraged him.

"Why are baganis sent off like mercenary people against their will? Don't they have a kingdom of their own?" Legosi asked.

"They do now, there's a newly established kingdom in the west, ruled by King Xavier. He has been trying to rescue his men but the other kingdoms refuse to let go of such prized warriors." Augustus replied.

"They have a very close relationship with nature and were able to conjure spells without help from the church and prayers that did not originate from the church are scorned. Aside from that, they have a very unique skills passed down from generations to generations. So even if the church hated their accomplishments, they did not get rid of them, instead, they exploited them." Luna held no expression but her voice held a dangerous tone.

"I never heard of that." Augustus turned to her. "I thought the King were the ones responsible for this?"

"Do you truly believe that the emperor alone was to blame for this?" Luna's eyes flashed. Augustus felt uncertainty bloom inside his heart.

"The church's power years ago was immense, even an emperor cannot do as they wish without approval from the pope. They wanted to shame the people that dare do something they thought only they could do. The church is not as holy as it seems, Augustus."