Tales of the Other

The Entity at the Sea Village

Every year, the cliff claims a life to appease the spirit who lives in the sea. There is a village that grew close to the said place, and the spirit had a disdain on the strangers that trespassed its territory.

A friend of mine named Joel was a fisherman. He was the best swimmer among us friends, but one day, we saw him walking towards the cliff.

"There's a storm," I called to him. "You cannot fish in this kind of weather."

"I will not fish," Joel smiled. "I just want to take a swim, maybe catch a shellfish or two, if I'm lucky."

His face was serene, with smile natural and peaceful, he said farewell and walked away.

I never saw Joel again, not even his corpse. That was ten years ago.

My mother told me that the spirit incurred its wrath on our village because we entered its turf. Failing to do so would mean the end of our village, doomed to be swallowed by the thundering sea.

We were tempted to leave the village, but something rooted us here, the familiarity of home, as cruel as it may be. So, we stayed, for we don't want to leave, although we could.

Years passed and one by one, my friends leapt to their deaths from the cliff. Their funerals were subdued, a family mourning for my friends, empty coffins crowded by other villagers wondering if next year, they will be the ones to jump as a tribute.

I mourned for my dead friends, and life went on.

This year we felt the rage of the sea again, its waves crashing with the stony cliff. With the deaths of my friend and remaining family, I jave no more roots to my old village. Packing my clothes and other earthly possessions, I stared at my bare room, giving a quiet farewell to my former life.

The sky was dark when I left my house, and I heard the beautiful voice serenading me. I walked towards the source of the song, its ethereal melody charming me, the hopeful note of a better future. I set my bag on the bench and walked leisurely towards the songstress.

"Hey, where are you going?" one unfamiliar voice called at me, an annoying tune I want to shut off as politely as possible.

"I want to listen to a song," I smiled at the man, but he stared at me with his stony eyes. How can he not appreciate such music?

Nonetheless, he let me pass, and I continued my journey to find the one who serenades. I felt the man's gaze linger at my back. I felt that he wanted to say something, but relented anyway.

The cliff was close and the song became more enchanting. I smiled as I finally saw It down below, and with an excited breath, I leapt.

Coldness seeped through my bones and the sharp rocks pierced my flesh, but I felt no pain. All I heard was the song, and it was beautiful.