He Whom I See on Syzygy

Chapter 1

MOMENTARILY, THE NIGHT becomes day. Lumiwanag ang mga daan at ang bawat kalye ay napuno ng mga tao, aso, at mga sasakyang nakahinto. Tumigil ang mundo saglit. Lahat ay nakatuon ang atensiyon sa bumubulusok na liwanag. Para bagang bumagsak ang buwan at gumuhit ng linya sa pagitan, and this line, somehow in some way, tears the fabric of this universe.

My radio occasionally blares nothing but static and I can hear faintly the news anchor delivering her story.

"Ang ganda—for the first time ever—nasasaksihan—"

This is too surreal for me. This is beyond what I expected. Habang dumadaan ang comet, may mga parang little shards na bumabagsak. Hindi ko alam kung anong phenomenon ito dahil never pa akong naka-witness ng dumaang comet or most of the videos I saw online were just a bright blue light. This one is so cinematic.

My eyes are trying to discern the sparkles. Para silang mga glitters na binagsak mula sa langit. For a moment, I questioned myself kung totoo pa ba 'to? Am I still in this world or panaginip ko na 'to? Na baka sa sobrang pagkamangha, nahimatay na pala ako and nahulog sa rooftop tapos all of these are just a mere fabric of my imagination—an epiphany.

Kinurot ko ang pisngi ko. Nasaktan naman ako. Nang hindi pa ako na-satisfy ay hinila ko ang isang hibla ng buhok ko.

"Putang—", nandito pa nga ako, nakakapagmura pa, e. Bawal na ata 'yan sa afterlife.

It was a perfect combination of blue and purple akin to the pictures I see of a galaxy. It left a mystical trail, auroral light-like waves. This is a very rare occasion daw and wala pang mga documented cases before; this is the first time in this lifetime. Sabi sa news, this is just a comet passing by. Malaki ang possibility na makakapasok siya sa exosphere ng atmosphere pero walang meteoroids or any fragments na makakapasok sa atmosphere.

Buti naman kasi sa laki ng comet na ito, magkakaroon pa ata ng wipeout of humanity if ever. Hindi pa rin totally nagsi-settle sa utak ko na I am witnessing history.

Humahalo ang tunog ng mga kuliglig at ang radyo ko na ngayon ay puro static na. Malayo ako sa siyudad. I have been planning this since last month. Nang makita ko sa isang post sa Facebook page na "Anything Cosmic" na may isang malaking comet na dadaan—they called this Sadame's Comet, a homage to Sadame Adachi, the one who discovered this comet half-century ago. It was expected na this year ito dadaan sa Earth and here it is, right in front of me. Mabilis lang ito dumaan pero ang mga curtains of light ay hindi pa rin nawawala.

I am at the rooftop of an abandon building na nakita ko online. Sabi sa page, ito daw ang pinakamagandang area na puwede mong makita ang pagdaan ng Sadame's Comet. Sinadya ko talaga maghanap ng lugar na walang masyadong tao dahil ayaw ko na crowded 'yong place.

Most of the people I know ay nasa may common area lang or nasa mataas na bundok. I choose this abandon place kasi malayo sa light pollution at ingay. Nakita ko lang 'to noong nag-pre-survey ako sa area. Tinuro lang din ng isang local farmer sa'kin.

Dati daw itong high school pero hindi na ginagamit. Nagtanong pa ako kung 'bakit', sabi niya, hindi niya exactly alam ang nangyari pero ang sabi-sabi may mga namatay daw. Hindi niya na pinaliwanag after niya sabihin 'yon and hindi ko na rin inusisa.

Hindi naman ako naniniwala sa mga multo or anything supernatural. I believe that everything has a definite explanation. Ilang beses ko na ring narinig 'yang mga school na dating sementeryo o may kababalaghan, kahit nga 'yong school ko ngayon, pero never naman ako naka-encounter.

I remember Manong and the way he told me that pseudofact. I actually traced sadness in there, para bang may naalala siya. Kinibit balikat ko na lang.

Bigla kong naalala na hindi lang pala isa kung 'di dalawang celestial phenomena ang makikita namin tonight. The moon was in its fullest form and I could feel its hugeness like it was just right in my face. Magkakaroon din ng syzygy of Jupiter and Saturn tonight– an alignment of heavenly bodies.

Although hindi kayang makita ng naked eyes, makikita mo with the help of a telescope. Good thing I did. So, I immediately go to my dad's telescope and look at its lens. Na-adjust ko na 'to kanina pa kung saan makikita ang mga planets. I just looked at it and tried to adjust here and there, and there it is another once-in-a-lifetime event.

They are actually behind the moon. Ang gandang tignan at isipin na I am all in the same straight line with the galaxy right now—na Saturn, Jupiter, the moon, the earth, and I are aligned as if the whole universe is conspiring to tell me that I am alive. Tiningnan ko ito ng maigi, sinusubukang iukit sa memorya ang pangyayaring ito.

Lumaki ang ngiti ko. As an astrophile, sobrang saya ko ngayon. Nakikita ko pa rin ang blue-purple curtain of lights and ang ganda niyang tingnan. I feel like I'm living directly in the painting of Van Gogh's Starry Night. I feel like it's moving, that I am someone's silhouette in that magnum opus. I feel so alive.

Nang napansin ko na parang tumahimik ang paligid, I immediately look at my radio. Hindi na ito tumutunog. I believe I bought a very durable battery for this one. Nawala na rin ang mga huni ng kuliglig. Tila tumigil ang pagkaluskos ng mga dahon sa puno. I averted my eyes to my surrounding; I suddenly feel a weird sensation. Parang may nagbago. I don't know what is it exactly pero the place stays familiar but the feeling isn't anymore.

I remember John Cage's '4 minutes and 33 seconds' piece proving that it is impossible to have total silence. Pero right now, I think it was debunked. It was pure silence. Parang tumigil ang lahat.

I immediately look at the sky to see the spectacle and I notice na parang bumagal ang kilos ng mga aurora lights. Sa 'di kalayuan ay may nakita akong parang maliit na blue light ang dahang-dahang bumababa papunta sa bundok. I can see it clearly in my naked eye. It was blinking different colors. I squinted my eyes trying to discern what it is and dahan-dahan lumapit para mas makita ito.

Nabalik lang ako sa aking ulirat ng biglang tumunog ang radyo at ngayon ay lalake ang nagsasalita. I also look at where I am and do'n ko lang napagtanto na nasa dulo na pala ako ng rooftop. I almost fall.

Umatras na ako at tinignang muli ang fragment ata ng comet na bumagsak pero nawala na ito. Kumunot ang noo dahil wala naman akong nabalitaan na possible na magkaroon ng meteoroid from this comet. I just shook my head at bumalik na rin ako sa puwesto ko, sa may telescope. Baka imahinasyon ko lang.

An hour had passed, the Aurora Borealis was now gone. Gumalaw na rin ang buwan at natabunan na ang syzygy ng Jupiter and Saturn.

The natural phenomena already ended—or so I thought.

I was still adjusting my mind at kinakapa ang sarili na baka panaginip lang ang lahat. Nang matansiyang gising nga ako, hindi na mawala ang ngiti ko. That was the coolest thing I have ever witnessed. No one can top that.

I turned my back and was about to pick up my recording phone to witness, once again, that spectacle, when I saw a silhouette at the other end of the school rooftop. I squinted my eyes to clarify whether it was a person or just my imagination. The distance wasn't helping because I really couldn't see clearly, so I moved closer.

Lumapit ako nang dahan-dahan hanggang sa gumalaw ito at umikot. The wind blows a cold air causing chaos amongst the cicadas. The moon never lost its brightness. It becomes my spotlight—our spotlight.

He smiled at naningkit ang mata niya ng magtama ang tingin namin. He is looking at me earnestly na para bang matagal niya na akong hinihintay. I can feel longing, sadness, and... grief?

Ang daming tumatakbo sa isip ko. I know that this is a person, may anino siya; may hulma. Lumapit pa ako para makita siya ng mas maigi. I close our gap and I feel like slowly and slowly he's unfolding in front of me.

"Sa wakas, nandito ka na."

And a loud bang bursts, shaking the earth.