Disclaimer: The story is based on Philippine mythology. All scenes in the story are strictly from the imagination of the writer.
The novel is under collaboration with PaperInk Publishing and will back a paperback copy next year, 2023.
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Prologue
The heat of the fire and the children's screams pierce the night. Cries for help reverberate in the chilling night of horror as the children of the other gods lead a massacre against the children of the villainous serpent.
The academy, a place that's supposed to be the safe haven of the children of mythical creatures, became a place of horror.
Axel, son of the sun god Apolaki, raises his Kampilan, a long sword with a forked tip. His power, passed onto him by his father, surges fire to the blades.
"Kill the children of the serpent!" He orders his followers in a voice that's full of confidence and strength. With his strength and being one of the children of the upper gods, he has many followers, both Enkantos (spirits or lesser gods) and demigods alike. Whether everyone followed him out of fear or admiration, no one could tell at the time because of all the frightened screams of the serpent's children.
The descendants of Bakunawa made an effort to fight, but they were aware that their efforts would be in vain. They could have defeated them with strength alone, but due to their size disadvantage and surprise attack, they were greatly outmatched.
One of the older teens, a boy with long black hair tied into a ponytail, grabs a child and hides him under the debris of what they once called their home.
"Sigren, hide here until it's safe." The bloodied teen looks over at his sibling, blood drips from his forehead from an injury he received from a diwata.
"Ingko, stay with me." Sigren grabs his older brother's arm just as he is about to leave. His golden, serpentine eyes, which all the descendants of Bakunawa share in common, are filled with tears. It wasn't just out of fear of getting killed; he also fears losing his older brother.
Ingko looks down at his younger sibling, feeling torn about staying with him or buying him time to escape. With all that's happening around them, he could not decide what would be the best course of action to ensure Sigren's safety.
"Sigren, Ingko!" A young girl screams, riding a wolf. She's young, just about the same age as Sigren. She hops down from the wolf in haste and sheds tears before throwing herself into the arms of Ingko.
"I'm sorry I could not tame a bigger one." She points at the wolf behind her. "But it can help you fight, right? You have to live. Axel is going to kill you. He's coming!"
Maya, the only offspring of Mayari, is probably the only demigod's child that he can consider a friend. She was always gentle and cared about the lives of the people and animals around her. To hear such words like fighting and killing from the young girl hurt Ingko to the point that he wants to strangle Axel. No child should see blood or think about going against their nature to fight someone. Ingko wants to scream and curse, but with two kids looking at him, all he could do was force a smile.
"Thank you, Maya. The wolf looks strong. Can it carry Sigren?"
Maya turns her eyes to the dark haired child with eyes like Ingko. Sigren is Maya's only friend who is close to her family, though the relationship is a little rocky since Sigren is more of a self kept child. Still, Maya is the only one that Sigren opens up to aside from him.
"Yes, Lobo can carry him." She answers, looking at Ingko. "But she can't fight if—"
"She's not going to fight. I want you to take Sigren as far away from this place as you can." Ingko shrugs off his jacket and makes Maya wear it. He pulls the hood over her head. If any of the demigods see her helping them, she might get into trouble. "Can you do that for me, Maya?"
"What about you?"
"I'll stay. I need to give your cousin a spanking for making you and Sigren cry, right?" Ingko tries to hide the murderous gaze in his eyes as he jokingly says the words.
"Ingko, no! I want to stay with you!" Sigren gets out of the rubble to grab his older brother, but Ingko carries him and Maya into his arms.
"Don't worry about your kuya. I will follow you both soon. In the meantime, Sigren, make sure to take care of Maya. You're strong, so that's your job." The children are speechless when Ingko suddenly embraces them tightly. They might be kids, but they can already tell the hug is both affectionate and a form of him begging them to follow his orders. "Ride Lobo and get out of here. Get Sigren out of the academy." He takes them to the wolf and places the children on its back. The two can only stare at their kuya(older brother), whom they respect and love dearly, as he gets his gunong, a small dagger, and heads towards the fight. "Sigren," He pauses to look back. "Live long, okay? Maya, I'm counting on you."
"Kill the serpent's descendants!"
Hearing the calls for murder in the air, Maya knows what she has to do. She suppresses her tears and turns to the wolf. "Get us out, Lobo!"
As the wolf carrying the two children ran to safety, that's when the blade of death struck every child of the Bakunawa.
While riding the back of Maya's tamed wolf, Sigren looks back just is time as Axel swings his kampilan with brute force towards Ingko. While Ingko tried to block it with his weapon, it was futile when he was facing the child of Apolaki. The kampilan breaks through Ingko's weapon, slicing off the sword and severing his brother's head from its body at the same time.
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YOU ARE READING
A Serpent's Revenge: Bakunawa's Bloodline
Fantasy"A serpent exacts vengeance on those who harm them. And they give it back a thousand times over." Over the years, an academy was built as a safe haven for the children of gods and other legends. The academy is there to help them control their powers...
