Disturbed whispers lingered in the air. Almost everyone was up even if the sun was still asleep. A group of people was gathered around a particular house. The lady, who was very distressed, recounted to her curious audience what happened. As expected, the reactions were almost the same with hers. Theories suddenly rented the place. In the end, everyone agreed that it was probably a simple prank. The lady’s husband was and still a tax collector. Surely, some civilians must have held a grudge against him for his position? With this being relayed on, everyone went back to their respective houses and resumed their disturbed sleep.

 

The day then passed without any other mishap. Kwon Jiyong woke up around noon with his stomach grumbling. He gave a grunt. This was the downside of living alone. He was used to just staying in bed without doing anything and just wait for the servants to serve him a meal. Remembering that he’s now alone, he pushed himself up and quickly washed himself in the bathroom before heading out to put something into his complaining stomach.

 

He settled in a diner. While waiting for his meal to be served, he overheard some servers talking about an event that happened to the lady meat vendor.

 

“It’s not surprising, is it not?” a lady said. “They have corrupted hands and rotten attitude. Bah! Have you heard of how that lady treated the girl yesterday?”

 

“It’s true then?” another one came. “The old lady in the hill must have passed her sense of menace to the girl”

 

“I’ve seen the girl” a man now joined in. He was one of the customers. “She looked like someone who haven’t heard of the words water and taking a bath. I might even gamble a finger in saying that she doesn’t have a mirror or a comb up in that cottage of theirs”

 

Everyone burst out laughing. Jiyong managed a smile. He murmured a simple thank you to the server when his meal was finally served. His thoughts ran back to that of yesterday. He just arrived and got curious when he saw a group of people following an oddly looking girl. He was one of those bystanders who watched and didn’t do anything. When the lady meat vendor threw a pail of water at her, he finally had a good glimpse of her face. The very first thing he noticed was her unearthly beauty. He was surprised none of the townspeople noticed it, it was too impossible for her beauty to go unnoticed. But what intrigued him the most was the look on her face. The blankness of it when the woman threw a pail of water at her and the black horse unnerved him, he even had goose bumps because of it.

 

In the end, he decided to buy her a kilo of meat. It was almost a subconscious act. He wasn’t normally a helpful person but she’s not snobbish, either. With everything’s going on, it seemed to him that he finally found an amusement he could waste his time with. He wasn’t planning to reside in a simple town like this – he’s merely on a rebellious stage of his life. A place with no source of entertainment except the television and radio seemed to be the perfect place for him to hide. Besides, the people who knew him were well aware of how he’s all about amusing himself all the time. This would be the last place they’d think of to find him. After taking his meal, he decided to have a walk. As he walked, he saw a cottage resting on top of the hill from afar. With his hands inside his pockets, he started heading towards it.

 

 

 

 

 

Sandara has finished all her chores for the day. She was now sitting under a tree, with a pile of wood and tool around her. She was also holding one piece of wood and a tool on her hands. Every afternoon, she would always spend her time carving some random stuff under this tree especially if she has finished all her chores and her adopted mother has no extra errands for her. Sometimes she would go to the forest and picked up some woods or twigs. When she’s into it, she would sometimes go to the river found deep inside the forest and dip her feet in. She would watch small fishes swim here and there through the crystal clear water.

 

“I was hoping I’d see you today”

 

Her hands paused. With a blink, she looked up. Her head moved to the side as her eyes landed on the face that gave her the bag of meat yesterday. He was. . . smiling. Seeing him smile reminded her of something. She quickly jumped to her feet and ran towards the cottage without a word.

 

“Hey, wait! Where are you going?” he called. He was more than shocked to see her reaction, much more at how fast she ran off. He took a step forward, meaning to follow her but then, the girl came running back. Amusement lit his eyes when she abruptly stopped in front of him. She held something to his face, making him take a step back. The frown on his forehead cleared when he saw what she was holding. It was a wooden figure of. . . him!

 

“Is this for me?” he smiled.

 

“No” Sandara answered, wiping the smile off his face.

 

“Oh, I thought it’s for me”

 

“I’ll make another one for you” she said. She walked back to the shade of the tree and sat down on her previous position. She took a different wood before looking back at him. “Sit”

 

He should be offended with how the girl was ordering him around like he’s some sort of a pet dog but he didn’t feel anything near to being offended. Maybe because her voice and tone didn’t sound commanding. It was as if she’s merely stating a fact, it was close to being a dead and monotonous voice. Nevertheless, he sat down on the dirt a few inches away from her.

 

“So, what’s your name?” he asked.

 

“Don’t move”

 

A gush of strong wind passed by, blowing almost everything out of its place. Jiyong watched the girl’s face. She would glance up once in a while at him. Everytime she does, he’d flash a smile at her. She was beautiful, all right. Even through her long and unkempt hair, he can see that. But there was something in her face that closely resembled a warning sign. He just can’t point it out but there was something in her that’s warning him to think twice before doing or saying anything to her. Could it be the reason why the other townspeople treated and thought of her so cruelly?

 

“Do you live alone?” he tried again, wanting to have a conversation with her. She was making him extremely curious. Plus, he’s not used to being ignored and having a dead air around when he’s with a girl.

 

“No” she simply answered. He waited for her to elaborate further but she remained silent after that.

 

“Who are you living with?”

 

“My mother” she answered in that same blank tone.

 

“Oh, I see” he nodded quietly. “How about your father or siblings?”

 

“I don’t have a father” she told him. “I don’t have siblings, either”

 

He wanted to ask where her father was but thought better off it. It was too personal for a first conversation. His confidence is at its wavering point when it comes to her. “What do you do for living?”

 

She blinked then looked up. “I don’t understand”

 

“Occupation” he said. “Work or job”

 

She just blinked at him.

 

“What do you to earn money?” he digested.

 

“Nothing”

 

“How about your mother?”

 

“My mother said money is an evil thing”

 

“But how do you eat or buy some things?” he asked, frowning.

 

“Our Mother provides us with everything we need”

 

His frown deepened. “You said you don’t have siblings”

 

“True”

 

“But you said Our Mother. What does that mean?”

 

“It is as it is. You won’t understand”

 

“Let me be the judge to that” he said. He waited for her to explain but once again, she fell silent. She had her eyes on the task she’s doing now. Never had she glanced up at him again. He tried to open a conversation with a different subject but it’s as if he was faced with a person who’s deaf and mute.

 

Left with nothing to do or say to convince her to talk to him again, he let his eyes wandered around. There was nothing much to see except green, brown, green and brown again. A nature lover or enthusiast would have appreciated the beauty and precision of the place but not him. He was used to the noise of the city and how the lights come to life at night. It surprised him that there are some few who can live without electricity. Based from what the girl said, he’d assume they don’t have any source of entertainment. Also, there were no sights of posts or cables of electricity connected to the cottage. He imagined living that kind of life. The moment he did, a shudder quickly shook his frame.

 

“How do you keep yourself entertained in here?” he asked, attempting to open up a conversation again. “Don’t you ever feel. . . bored?”

 

A minute of silence passed between them. As much as he wanted to keep on going, his patience was starting to grow thin.

 

“No” she finally answered.

 

“Really?” he asked almost cynically but eagerly. “How so?”

 

“I have chores” she answered.

 

“And when you’re done with your chores, you carve stuffs from wooden log or something?”

 

“Sometimes” she breathed, looking up. “I’m done” she added, handing him the finished product.

 

He accepted it with surprise and disbelief. It was an exact figure of him in a sitting position with his hair being gently blown by the invisible wind. “Wow!” he exclaimed. “You could make money for this! You’re really good! How did you do this so flawlessly?”

 

“I don’t carve for money” she said, sounding empty as usual. “Money makes people do bad things”

 

“Not everyone” he corrected.

 

She tilted her head to the side and blinked at him. Jiyong could only stare back at her beautifully blank eyes. He suddenly straightened up when he saw something flashed in them – wonder. Out of nowhere, she started singing. The moment she did, everything seemed to go awfully quiet. Everything went very still too that impossible as it may seem, he cannot help but think even the wind paused and retreated to listen. The song was in a language he does not recognize but it sounded close to Latin. She had a beautiful voice as equally as unearthly to her face. He would have been astounded with it if only not for the unnerving and unsettling feeling her voice and the song were bringing. Every hair in his body rose up in response to the unearthly tune. The song combined with her voice sounded beautiful yet tragic and deadly. Yes, that’s how it felt. He felt sadness, grief, suffering but he also felt hatred, fear and. . . death. He quickly shook his head to drive the thoughts away. Surely, nobody can know and feel what death is until they’re officially dead? Which would be quite complicated since being dead means well, being DEAD. All sensations and feelings shall perish, just like how life would end.

 

“You should leave” the girl suddenly said.

 

It was his turn to blink blankly at her. When comprehension dawned on him, he got up to his feet and patted his bottom as the girl jumped to her feet as well. “You haven’t told me your name yet”

 

“Leave” she told him, ignoring what he said. “You should not return here too”

 

“But-” he tried to protest but the girl already ran back to the cottage. His brows knitted. His feet started moving forward. Just as he was about to reach the broken fence, he stopped. He wanted to quench the curiosity inside him but a sense o unknown reluctance filled him. What could be the reason behind it, he wondered. Could it be the way she talked about her mother? He recounted the conversation they had in his mind and tried to make some sense out of it. He now remembered there was something odd with the way she talked about her mother and the way she said Our Mother but he just could not figure it out.

 

He finally gave up after a while and just decided to come back another day. Maybe it was not the right time for him to come to their cottage, yet. He’s willing to take it one step at a time. As he started making his way down the hill, his eyes went down to the wooden figure on his hands. He chuckled to himself upon seeing how the girl perfectly carved the details of his face.

 

Unknown to him, two cloaked figures emerged from the forest just as he came out of sight. They whistled. After the fifth note, a figure came out from the cottage. They shared a tiny nod before the two cloaked figures retreated back to the forest silently.

 

 

 

 

 

Night quickly came. The moon was shining brighter than ever. Sandara took her eyes away from the bright orb in the sky upon sensing a presence behind her. She turned around and saw her mother smiling gently at her. The woman looked pale and weak but Sandara didn’t dare question as to why she was up and about. She knew how dedicated her adopted mother was. She knew that if given the honor and chance, her mother would willingly sacrifice herself for the one true Mother. The gender of sacrifices bears meaning. When a male is being sacrificed, it is for the purpose of asking forgiveness from their Mother and it also serves as a form of punishment. When a female is given, it only serves one purpose. It’s for the return of their Mother – for beauty and youth, they said.

 

“Let’s go” her mother quietly said. Sandara gave a tiny nod and let her mother out first. The usual chilly and silent air of the night hugged the both of them. The moment they entered the forest, she didn’t fail to notice the hostility charge in it. Something has changed. It’s as if the forest was not eager to let Sandara walk on its ground. It was awfully quiet, too. It made her curious. The findings made her wonder but just like before, she kept shut.

 

Before, her mother used to hold her hand to guide her deeper into the dark forest but now that she’s able to, she can walk side by side with the woman without struggling to keep up with the other. She was now trying to slow down for her mother to keep up. She knew the old woman hasn’t fully recovered yet to whatever unknown illness that has claimed her.

 

The crackling of flames and low murmurings were now getting audible – they were getting closer to the heart of the forest. A thought brushed Sandara’s mind. She had always known it since she was a just a child through the looks the others were giving her. “I am going to be sacrificed soon, too” she stated in a manner of talking about the weather.

 

Her mother was quiet for a moment. “Do you fear death now, Sandara?”

 

“No” she answered truthfully. “I’m merely curious as to when my time would be”

 

The woman heaved a sigh first before saying her response. “Yes, you will be. But you are different, special. Your body will not die so as almost everything. You will be sacrificed not through the means of death, but something more meaningful. I am more than privileged and honored to be chose to raise you”

 

“I do not understand”

 

“You will understand when the right time comes”

 

Sandara then fell silent. She wasn’t fully satisfied with her mother’s response but she wasn’t displeased, either. She then blinked and looked up ahead again. Her thoughts sinfully went astray for a moment. Her head moved to the side, wondering why the face of that person appeared in her head. Could it be because he was the first person she talked to for a lengthy of time aside from her mother? Could it be his smile? She does not know and she does not have any intentions of pursuing for answers, either.

 

They broke into a clearing where a fire was set ablaze at the four cornered parts of the clearing. There were five or six people occupying the space already. The others haven’t arrived yet, it seemed. As soon as Sandara and her mother joined the queue, they also joined the others on their knees. Together, they held their hands out with their palms facing upward. Incoherent cry of words filled the night. As minutes passed by, their number grew as well as the volume of their cries. Then, another cry joined them. It was different from the others. This particular cry was filled with dear, panic, distress and desperation.

 

“Please. . . let me go” a girl’s voice called. “Why are you doing this?”

 

Silence then veiled them except for this one particular girl whose cry seemed to grow louder and more desperate. Everybody else then went to their feet and formed a neat horizontal line.

 

“You must have known what happened earlier this morning” the speaker said. “Our Mother sent a message. We all know that this is the year of her return. We all know that any day from now, she will return to us. We will be gifted while the townspeople shall pay with their lives. And tonight marks our first sacrifice for the year. We-”

 

“You’re crazy!” the bounded girl cried. “All of you are crazy! Wait ‘til my friends and parents find out I’m missing. They will report to the police! They will-!”

 

“Nobody would dare to find you” the leader smiled. “I arranged everything already. Do you really take us as fools?”

 

“Lunatic!” the girl screamed. “Let me go! LET ME GO!”

 

“You should be honored” the leader went on. “Many of us here no, ALL of us would be more than glad and willing to be chosen, to be in your place”

 

“Please. . . . please. . . .” the girl cried on.

 

“Bring her to the table”

 

Four men then stepped forward. They carried the girl to the table. Each of them took hold of each of her four limbs to keep her on the sacrificial plate. The girl thrashed here and there but it was useless. The leader then pulled out a dagger. It wasn’t the usual dagger they use for the ceremony. It was somewhat special.

 

“As our Mother’s return drew nearer, the honor of giving the sacrifice to her is no longer mine. From now on, a sister of ours shall do the honor”

 

Sandara blinked at the leader as he walked up to her and went to his knees. With his head bowed, he offered the silver dagger to her. “It is now your duty” he said.

 

Sandara took the dagger and looked a tit. She turned it here and there, amused with how it glittered under the moon’s light. When the leader stood up and stepped aside, Sandara then walked to the up landing earth.

 

“No, please” the girl pleaded. “Have mercy!”

 

Sandara blinked at the other girl and held the dagger up with both hands. A heartbeat passed as everything outside her body went very still. Then, she brought the silver dagger down.

 

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