"The Moon Shines On Death..."

Regrets

Mayari looked up at the red moon. It stood alone, in a clear starless night. Behind it, a shadow of a translucent ghost moon could barely be seen.

She felt bad that she abandoned her responsibilities as one of the last remaining moons, but she felt that this time around she owed it to herself to choose her own happiness over her obligations.

At first she had her doubts, but after much thought she came to the conclusion that it was not worth dying for.

To lose her life so people could see her glow at night just seemed too shallow, trivial, and unnecessary.

Besides, Haliya and Bulan could do that perfectly well without any help from her.

She was happy with her decision... until after she saw what happened to her youngest sibling.

Ashamed that she so easily threw away her obligations to her family, and to the world, she snuck out of the hut she shared with her loving husband to stare at her siblings who paid for her shortcommings, and cried silently.

Selfish.

Yes, that was the word. She chose the worst time of all to put her own interest before her obligations. She wept, and thought of her parents. Would they be proud of her?

She was a coward.

A weakling amongst all of her siblings, she was the most useless of all. Her glow was not as half as bright as Bulan's, and her heart not as pure as Haliya's. She neither came anywhere near Subang's wisdom, nor the twins Banolor and Banilig's courage. She was just plain worthless.

A soft sob escaped her lips as she cried on the steps of their small hut. She wished she could go back and fix things. Back to when she was a lot younger, to the age before she lost her left eye during a fight with their other sibling, Adlaw.

She should've known better back then. Adlaw was a lot bigger than her, yet she didn't back down when he started belittling her and the rest of their siblings. Adlaw said their light was too dim to even compete with his rays, and as such were useless and should relinquish the sky to him.

Mayari stood up to him, alone. She didn't tell their other siblings of what Adlaw had said, but she wanted to teach him a lesson. She challenged Adlaw to a hand to hand combat. She almost won over his towering form, until he used a blunt bamboo club to hit her with a force so strong... that her left eye popped out.

She paid the price for her arrogance. Her sight, including her light, became immensely diminished after losing an eye.

Adlaw was guilt ridden after seeing what he had done. He tried to heal Mayari, but the damage was too much to be fixed. He gave in to Mayari's demand, to share the sky equally. He would possess control of the sky during daytime, but would gladly relinquish it at night to the seven moons.

Such was their agreement. Sealed with Mayari's sacrifice.

Kaptan was angered by the incident, but could not punish Adlaw for it was Mayari who started the fight. And as their grandfather, he could not simply show he favored one of them over the other. He had to pretend he had no favorites... though everyone knew it was Bulan.

Mayari continued to cry, feeling sad as she gazed at the darkened sky. She was unaware that her husband has slowly gotten up from their warm bed to start looking for her. She tried to wipe her tears away when she heard him calling out to her.

"What are you doing out here my love? What has happened that you should shed tears at this late hour?" Makisig asked his wife, concerned to find her weeping.

"I am merely sad that the sky is so dark, and that only one moon is left to give us light." Mayari softly answered.

Makisig sighed. He sometimes could not understand his wife's connection to the moons, and why her moods were greatly influenced by the lights in the sky. He smiled, and sat beside Mayari, enveloping her in his arms as he lovingly kissed her tearstained cheek.

"The gods know what they are doing, we must trust them... that is all we mortals can do. Pray for their guidance and protection. Even with all the medicines, and knowledge we possess, our lives are still at their mercy. We must be patient, and submit to their will." Makisig said rocking his wife gently in his arms.

"The gods have a lot on their hands. It wouldn't hurt if we did things for ourselves from time to time." Mayari answered.

"Without the blessings of the gods, all our efforts will amount to nothing. We cannot change the seasons, nor control the weather.

"You have taught me much. It is because of you, my dear wife, that I have become a shaman. I am revered highly for my abilities to heal but, without the gods to grant my plea to help heal someone, nothing would happen. My efforts will be futile if the gods did not agree to heal the person I wanted to help. I am merely their instrument."

"I understand. Still, it is better to be proactive than merely wait for the good favor of these fickle minded gods." Mayari replied.

"Do not say such things dear wife, we might anger some god by accident. Though your beauty compares to that of a goddess, I fear we are but mortals, and as such should not be too proud to pit ourselves against the gods." Makisig smiled at Mayari.

She wanted so much to tell her husband that she was a goddess, but for now she needed to keep it a secret, and so she simply kept quiet.

Losing her powers only made it easier for her to blend in with the humans. Though most of her magical abilities were returned to her, Kaptan made sure that she was not as powerful as she used to be. The people accepted her. They did not doubt her in any way.

For fear of calling attention to her identity, she made it look like it was Makisig who possessed the knowledge in medicinal herbs and crop planting. She was content to supply him with information on what herb could cure which ailment. It was enough reward for her to see her husband respected and loved by the people they've come to consider as family.

"Come, we must retire. It is late. Tomorrow we start planting again. Our bed has turned cold since you left my side, I need you to stay beside me. My dreams are a lot more pleasant when you are in my arms." Makisig carried his beautiful wife back to their hut, smiling as he ascended the steps.

Mayari kissed her husband lovingly, and hugged him tightly as she gave her siblings a last glimpse before deciding how she could ensure their safety.

She needed to act, and she needed to do it soon. There was only one way to keep the Bakunawa from further threatening Haliya and Bulan.

She must turn the giant sea serpent...

into a mortal.