Guimo: The Albularyo in Training

An Incident

A blood-curdling scream precedes the arrival of a wild-looking woman, whose limbs are bound by the muscular arms of four men. Despite their gigantic size, the men seem to be being overpowered by the woman whose voice is resonating all over Mt. Tancong-Vaca.

The middle aged men who gave me those stern looks clears a space at the center of the Kubo while the crumpled-faced man freezes as if seeing something unimaginable.

" Well, this qualifies as unimaginable," mumbles Guimo despite his shock and confusion.

The crumpled-faced man then looks at him and beacons him to come forward.

He is confused but decides to humor the old man. While he takes the few spaces towards him, the old man orders the four large men to release the deranged-looking woman. With that, the rest of the men shout their protests to the danger it might put all of them. But the old man silenced them with a snap of his fingers. That snap, they all understand, is a sign that he is not to be argued with.

With resignation, the men released the woman. But as soon as they remove their hands on her, her body starts to float until its almost touching the nipa roof. Her body gives a sort of spasm before it dangles itself upsideside down resembling a bat. Her eyes turns black and drool comes out of her mouth.

The men take on their combative stance, ready to tear the woman limb from limb.

The old man, however, looks at Guimo with that eyes that looks like it's keeping a universal secret. With his papery hands, he hands Guimo a piece of paper with scribbles on it- scribbles he can't understand. The old man then puts his right hand on his nape and tells him to speak.

Guimo opens his mouth and there came out words he does not recognize but he oddly understands.

He screams the last word and the woman falls to the bamboo floor with a deafening thud.