The Illuminated Maiden

Chapter VI

It was the fifth village Tayag and his men visited, where they asked for the whereabouts of a woman who had just come of age, wanting to know if she passed through the settlement. They asked those on the streets drinking toddy, the drunkest of men who couldn't even give a proper answer. They knocked on the doors of residents, only to receive indifference and obliviousness. There were those who asked for money before providing information, but they had no reliable information to share.

Marching through the dirt pathways bordered by grass, through huts and houses of straw and lumber, he grew frustrated. His men felt the same way. Tayag checked both his blades attached to each side of his waist, and his pack that swung and dangled on his back. The clouds gathered, yes, but there was no wind, and so, everything remained humid. He tightened his red headdress which faced reverse, mostly covering the back of his skull.

He was bare-chested, which was common practice among warriors to display their prowess in battle through their tattoos. From his neck down to his torso, inches below where his golden earrings dangled, he had markings of lizard and serpentine patterns. Around his waist was his loincloth dyed red over cloth that covered his legs. He hadn't any sleep. His eyes were swollen and the area around his multiple eyelids blackened, visible, even with his clay-colored skin.

There were four of his men who followed him. He turned his head, seeing that one of them, a slender one with prominent sinews and hair that curled like vines, had his blade unsheathed, swinging it around as he walked. "Naliki," he called out in a full voice and looked around, seeing onlookers with worried stares, "keep your blade. We don't want to rouse trouble here." The warrior Naliki obliged and sheathed his blade. He spat out red fluid mixed with pieces of areca nut, leaving behind traces of red on the ground which resembled blood.

"This is pointless," muttered Tayag. "How many villages have we gone through, and still, they hadn't any clue."

"Maybe we should start looking within the forest?" suggested one of his men, who had his hair tied into a bun. "It's futile to ask villagers information that they couldn't cough out."

Tayag nodded. "You are right, Isatun. Perhaps it's time we head out. She could not have gone through the banwas of Hamabar, as they would recognize her. The princess is an intelligent one, after all."

"The other towns are far away," spoke the warrior behind all of them, a flat-nosed one whose hair flowed down to his waist. "It would take days to get to all of them."

"Yes," said Tayag. "While the princess is strong, Atan, she hasn't been exposed to the outside world where she hasn't been placed in a palanquin where no one could see her. I am worried about what's happened to her."

The Princess of Hamabar was unhappy. The Uray of Hamabar, her mother, died a few years back, before she had even come of age. The Datu of Hamabar engrossed himself in ruling his kadatuan, leaving the princess under the care of a noblewoman, a tumaw, who served as her mentor in acting more like royalty, and yet, Tayag, who was a good friend to the princess, also knew that she had the heart of an adventurer, perhaps a warrior. After all, he served as her instructor in swordplay, where they trained when no one was looking.

He and his men trekked deep into the forest, where the atmosphere became dank. In such part of the forest, it was a tad different from the rest of the woodlands of the Galang Valley, for the branches of trees and the lianas were covered in moss. The dew settling on leaves, trees, and the ground never evaporated. The humidity made it difficult for Tayag to breathe, as only warm air entered his lungs. He was sweating, and so were his men, scowling at the conditions as they ventured further.