Mayari

Demons

    You were sitting on a moss-covered rock in the middle of the sea. Endless water surrounds you. The crescent moon shone brightly up above, highlighting your figure. Your long silver-blue hair flowed down from your head into the water below. Your markings were glowing on your skin. You looked so much younger than you were now. You were a living beacon. The embodiment of the siren from those Midgardian fairy tales Loki loved to read about.

    Where am I? Am I in her memories?

    You turned your head to your left as you spotted a giant, sailed ship heading towards you. You knew they heard your song. The waves of the ocean sends your call out to the farthest reaches of the world. As they neared closer to you, you started singing. A call for help. A song about a lonely maiden stuck out at sea. When the sailors helped you off the tiny rock, you compelled them and took control of the vessel. Your helpless act was all a ploy to get onto their ship.

    You led them to a set of islands to the south. The ship moored on one of those nearby islands, next to hundreds of ships alike, scattered along the shore. Their sailors on land were all confused. All compelled.

    "Great work sister. These men will do just fine." Apolaki said to you.

    "Thank you kuya. It is nearing sunrise. I will have to go back. Father might suspect something."

    "Go. He cannot know what we are planning."

    "Yes, kuya." You responded. You and your older brother left your separate ways. He was the sun god and needed to take care of certain things, things that he could not share with you. You trusted your older brother. Apolaki said that your father was limiting your potential. He only let you out at night, and let Apolaki out during the day. Both of you only meeting at sunrise and sunset.

    But you wanted to see the day. Everyone was out during the day when Apolaki was. He got to watch people in their daily lives. He got to see the farmers out in the rice fields. He got to watch the hunters stalk their kill to bring back to their families. He got to watch friends talk by the river as they washed their clothes. He witnessed young couples holding hands. He witnessed life.

    You couldn't witness anything at night, except the darkness that hides inside of people. You saw the seedier aspects of humanity. The secrets, the attempts to harm one another.

    Bathala, your father, was as powerful as the sky was wide. Apolaki said that your father wanted to keep you in the dark. To be of service with the moon. Apolaki said the only way to get your freedom and to see the day was to overthrow your father by waging war. It was the only way. Both of you together was not enough. You would need an army to slow Bathala down and possibly weaken him. Therefore you needed able-bodied men. Not from the village, your father would become suspicious. But any unfortunate soul who would wander too close to your paradise island. When your father was weak enough, both of you can imprison him, together.