Fear and Fire by John Paul Lama
The events were set in motion in a time before time, but for a young woman in search of answers, it began with a message.
Last Friday, Katherine Valloran received a PM from her best friend, Joyce Abesondra, about a spirit medium in a barrio in Quezon province in the Philippines. Apparently, Joyce overheard some old women in a carinderia in that barrio talking about a neighbor’s daughter who can see and talk to ghosts and other paranormal entities. One of the old ladies’ brother had died and because of the neighbor’s daughter, the old lady was able to speak to her brother. Joyce noted down the name of the neighbor and the daughter: Valentina and Rose Dimasilungan.
Normally, Katherine didn’t care about Joyce’s stories about the supernatural, but this time, she intended to investigate this story on her own and see if it was true or not, for two very important reasons. First, her husband Robert died in a car accident two weeks ago. She wanted to see, talk, and hear him one last time. Second, she was displaying early symptoms of pregnancy, and she wanted Robert to be involved in the life of their child, even if it meant just letting him name their child.
She left her home in Pasig shortly after sunrise on Saturday. The bus ride was a long one, and she couldn’t help falling asleep during the trip. The dream was the same one she had been having for days now. In it, she was in a forest on a mountain somewhere. It was late in the afternoon, and the setting sun colored the sky red and made everything look infernal. The smog over the mountain made it look like an erupting volcano, and an inhuman voice was saying to her: RELEASE ME.
* * *
She woke up with a start. She looked at her smartphone and saw that not only was it twelve thirty in the afternoon, but she was also almost at the barrio. She got off the bus at a gas station next to a motel. She checked into the motel first to drop off her luggage and have a place to spend the night then went to the barrio on foot. About fifteen minutes later, she reached the barrio.
It was a small, quiet town. It didn’t look particularly run-down or old; the houses were all made of brick and cement, the streets were all made of asphalt with no potholes, there were hardware and sari-sari stores. There was also a church, and she decided to start there.
The noontime mass had just finished when she reached the church. While waiting for the churchgoers to leave, she saw the priest’s name on one of the papers posted on the bulletin board outside: Father Prejido. She waited until the churchgoers had gone, and the priest was about to return to his residence.
“Excuse me, Father Prejido,” she said upon catching up with him. “Yes? Can I help you?” the priest asked.
“My name is Katherine Valloran. I am looking for someone in this barrio.”
“A relative?”
“No. It’s a spirit medium named Rose Dimasilungan.”
The priest’s expression suddenly darkened. “Are you some kind of reporter?”
“No. I’m just an HR Associate from Pasig. But my visit has nothing to do with my work, it’s personal-“
“How did you learn about her?”
“My friend visited here a week ago. She heard from some ladies at the carinderia about this girl named Rose who can speak to the dead.” “And why do you want to see her?”
She was getting annoyed. “If I tell you, will you tell me where she lives?” she asked
exasperatedly.
The priest though it over. “Yes.”
She sighed. “My husband died five weeks ago. I just want…to talk to him again.”
The priest’s expression softened somewhat. “I understand your grief. But what you plan on doing is…unsafe. It is better for you to accept your husband’s death and move on.”
Now she was more than annoyed. “Father, Jesus Christ died over 2000 years ago. Should everyone just stop trying to talk and listen to him?”
The priest wanted to point out the huge difference between talking to God and talking to one’s husband, but thought better of it. “She lives a few blocks from here. Get on the road in front of the church, go east a few blocks. Look for the house with only one floor, a black gate, and an atis tree at front.”
“Thank you, father,” she said with a sigh.
“Don’t. I have not done you a favor.” The priest then left to return to his residence.
* * *
On the way to the house, Katherine thought over what she learned about Rose based on her conversation with Father Prejido. He obviously did not tell her everything he knew about the girl. But he also acknowledged her power and feared it, otherwise he wouldn’t have called Katherine’s plan unsafe. He also didn’t want anyone out of town finding out and spreading the word about Rose’s power. But why?
Katherine put the question aside temporarily once she reached the house. She didn’t have to knock; there was a woman maybe ten years older than her hanging laundry on a clothesline on the other side of the gate.
“Excuse me,” Katherine said. “Are you Valentina, the mother of Rose Dimasilungan?”
The old woman’s face darkened at once.
“Leave my daughter alone.”
“I’m not here to hurt her. I’m just here to ask her some questions.”
“Are you some kind of reporter or vlogger?” Valentina asked, suspicious.
“No. My name is Katherine Valloran, and I’m here on personal reasons. I want to-”
“You want to talk to a dead relative.”
“How’d you know?”
“Whenever anyone comes here for a personal reason, it always has to do with them wanting to talk to a dead loved one.”
“Okay, I admit it. Can I talk to her now?”
The old woman thought it over then made a decision. “Come in. But I’ll speak to you first. If I’m satisfied with your answers I’ll let you speak to her.”
“Fair enough.” Katherine said. She followed the old woman to a sala with wooden furniture. As soon as they were seated, the old woman asked a question. “Who’s the dead relative you want to talk to?”
“My husband, Robert. He died five weeks ago in a car accident. He-”
“And how did you learn about my daughter?”
“My best friend was here last Friday. She overheard some women talking at a carinderia about an old lady who lost her brother but got to talk to him because of your daughter.”
“That’s Mrs. Reyes,” Valentina said as if remembering.
“Can I talk to your daughter now?” Katherine asked impatiently.
“I will allow it, on one condition.”
Katherine sighed. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have much money-“
“I don’t want your money. I want your silence.”
Katherine frowned. “What do you mean?”
“I will let you talk to her but you must never tell anyone about her.”
“Why not? Wouldn’t it be better for you if the whole world knew about your daughter’s power?”
Valentine sighed. “It may make us rich and famous for a while. But let’s be realistic. A lot of people will think she’s a fake. They’ll try to discredit her. And those who think she’s real will want to see a demonstration. Either way, they’ll make her out as some kind of freak. I don’t want her growing up with that kind of burden.”
Katherine was touched. “She’s fortunate to have a mother who cares about her so much.”
“Not so fortunate. Her father, Virgilio, died in the line of duty during a shoot out with some crooks two years ago.”
“He was a cop?”
“Yes. He worked in the city, not here. He was a good husband and father, and he made sure we would be provided for in the event of his death. As his family, we have a survivor pension, so we can afford not to work as long as we keep our expenses under control. That’s why she stays here instead of going to school and why I stay here instead of working.”
Katherine was sympathetic. “It must have been a shock to hear news of his death.”
Valentina was sobbing now. “Yes. But what was shocking was that I heard it from Rose before I heard it from Virgilio’s superiors or friends at the police station. She said he visited her and told her what happened to him, and that everything would be all right. I didn’t believe it until the police came and told me what happened to my husband.”
“Did you…try talking to your husband after that day?”
“Of course. And we did talk. All three of us. But only for forty days. Then he left for good.”
Katherine remembered a superstition about the soul having to go to the afterlife forty days after death. If that was true, then she didn’t have much time left to speak with Robert.
“I’m sorry to change the subject and put pressure on you, but can I talk to Rose now? I mean, I want to talk to my husband before he has to leave for good too. You can understand that, can’t you?”
Valentina looked at her then slowly nodded. “You wait here. I’ll tell her to come out of her room.”
“Wait. Why don’t we just go into her room?”
“I placed several religious artifacts inside her room. She says it keeps the ghosts and other paranormal entities out. If your husband is a ghost and he followed you here, he won’t be able to follow, let alone talk to you there.”
Katherine nodded and waited. Less than a minute later, Rose walked out of her room with her mother, only to stop as soon as she saw Katherine. Her facial expression instantly changed from mild curiosity to panic.
“Good afternoon, Rose,” Katherine said, standing up. “I’m-“
“Get out.” Rose said, not rudely, but fearfully. “I can’t help you.”
“But I commuted all the way from Pasig to get here. I can’t just return without answers.”
“Rose,” Valentina said gently. “This woman is in a situation similar to ours. Please be considerate.”
“I’ll try, mother,” Rose said. “But can you get us some merienda, please?”
“Of course.” Valentina said. She went to the kitchen to get some snacks. As soon as she was out of earshot, Rose moved close to Katherine and whispered to her ear: “Be at the gate of our house tonight at 9 p.m. I’ll give you something.”
Katherine understood the instruction but not the reason for it. Still, she decided to follow it.
When Valentina returned, Rose asked for the name of Katherine’s husband. Katherine gave it and waited for Rose to make contact. Sadly, she could not make contact with him, because according to her, Robert was not there. Why he was not there, she could only guess. However, she did prove to Katherine that she had a real supernatural power. She said that Katherine was pregnant, and that she wanted to get in touch with Robert to ask him for a name for their child. Katherine had to be content with at least knowing that Rose had a real power, at least until she met her later that night and found out what she had to give.
* * *
Katherine did return to the Dimasilungan residence at 9 o’clock that night. The streets, the whole barrio for that matter, seemed scarier in the night, but Katherine persisted. With only the light of her smartphone to illuminate her path, she made it back to the house, where Rose was waiting for her.
Katherine expected Rose to give her some kind of artifact, but all she gave her was a sealed envelope. “Don’t open it out here,” Rose whispered. “Open it someplace bright where you feel safe.”
“What is it?” Katherine asked, confused.
“Have you been having dreams of being in the woods on a mountain somewhere?” Rose asked out of the blue. “And someone asking you to release him?”
“Yes. How’d you know?” Katherine asked, astonished.
“You didn’t see him. But I did. He was with you when you first entered our house. He is with you now.”
“Who is?”
“I drew his picture and put the drawing in the envelope. You’ll understand once you see it. But don’t open it out here.”
“Why not?”
“He might get me,” Rose said fearfully. Her expression was the same one she had on her face when she first saw Katherine earlier: panic. Without another word, she returned to her room.
Katherine stood there for a few more seconds then hurriedly returned to the motel. She didn’t waste time going back to her room and opening the envelope. Inside were a letter and a folded piece of paper with a drawing. Excitement and apprehension flowed through her as she unfolded the paper. As soon as she saw the drawing, her excitement and apprehension turned into pure dread.
It was a creature with the head and torso of a man but with horns, legs, tail, and cloven hooves.
The drawing of the figure in Katherine’s dream that she couldn’t see, but Rose could.
The figure that Rose said was with Katherine right now.
The devil.
A notification from her smartphone snapped her out of her fear. She checked and saw it was a PM from Joyce.
“Hey. I heard you were in that barrio. Did you see that girl?”
“Yes.”
“Well? Do you think she’s legit?”
“I think she is.”
“Did she get Robert to talk to you?”
“No. But she sent me a picture of something she said was with me.”
“What?”
Katherine took a picture of the drawing and sent it. Joyce’s reply was immediate.
“Whoa. That’s freaky.”
“To say the least. What do you think I should do?”
“Don’t do anything until I’ve done more research on this. I’ll chat you tomorrow.”
Joyce then ended the chat.
Katherine frowned. That’s surprisingly level-headed of her, she thought before going to bed.
* * *
Katherine drifted to a very troubled sleep. She thankfully didn’t have the same dream as before, but she did have nightmares of the figure in Rose’s drawing. Katherine felt that the two were different. The latter were just figments of her imagination, but the former were signals…messages from someone…or something.
She woke up to a ringing sound in the distance. At first she thought they were church bells – it was Sunday, after all – but then she realized they were fire truck sirens. She immediately sensed something was wrong when the sirens headed to the direction of the barrio.
She took a quick shower, got dressed, and headed for the barrio. Her intuition was confirmed when she saw black smoke rising from the barrio, then it became shock when she realized that it was the Dimasilungan residence that had burned down. Even worse, the firemen confirmed that Valentina and Rose were both inside the house when it burned down.
For a few minutes, Katherine just wandered around town, not knowing what to do. Then she heard the church bells ringing and remembered Father Prejido. Knowing it was still Mass time in the church, she went to a carinderia first to eat some breakfast. There, while eating, she overheard some ladies gossiping about the fire.
I hear Valentina and that weird daughter of her is gone.
Good riddance to those freaks.
Hey, watch it. They let me talk to my sister when she died.
Katherine guessed that these were the old ladies that Joyce overheard last week, but she didn’t want to stick around to find out. Once she heard the familiar church bells signalling the end of mass, she paid for her breakfast and went to the church. She waited until the churchgoers were gone before going to Father Prejido again.
“Miss Katherine Valloran,” the priest said upon seeing her, in a not-too-pleased tone.
“You’re back.”
“Yes.”
“I take it you’ve already visited Valentina and her daughter yesterday?”
“And this morning. Unfortunately, their house burned while they were inside.”
“What?!!!” the priest exclaimed, unaware of this development.
“That’s not what I’m here for, father,” Katherine said. “I need your help with something.”
“What?”
Katherine took out the folded piece of paper. “Rose gave me a drawing of something that she said was with me. I need your advice on what I should do if this is real.”
“Why would my advice be relevant to the question of this drawing’s reality?” the priest asked.
“Just look at it.”
He unfolded the paper and looked at the drawing. His eyes immediately widened and he shoved the paper back to her.
“Is this some kind of a sick joke?!”
“I’m not joking, father. I’m asking for your help. Are you going to help me or not?”
Father Prejido thought it over for a minute. When he was studying in the seminary, he learned that faith and reason were not necessarily in opposition. Together, they could be used to serve God. Foregoing one or the other, such as by jumping to conclusions, almost always led to disaster. But when he saw first hand that girl and what she could do, his rational mind started taking a back seat to belief in the beyond. Others would call it superstition, but he believed that there are phenomenon in the world that could only be explained if there was a supernatural world. And that included the demonic.
But what was he to do here? If he told Katherine to tell everyone what Rose saw, there would be serious consequences, even for the Church. If God couldn’t stop evil from harming and killing a good mother and her daughter, what hope did the rest of the faithful have?
Then again…it was also entirely possible that the opposite effect just might be achieved. Fear of evil – not just abstract, societal demons like poverty and bigotry, but demons with physical form – would urge them to go back to their faith. The body may die but the soul will be saved. That good mother and her daughter truly died, but not in vain. This was all…complicated. But rushing never helped a complicated mess.
“You do not know what this drawing means. It could be just her imagination. Whatever you do, you need to think it through first. Do not jump to conclusions. Do not panic.”
Katherine, thinking that was the best advice she was going to get from the priest, sighed in resignation. “Thank you, father,” she said before leaving.
* * *
Katherine left the barrio shortly after her talk with Father Prejido. There was no point in staying anymore. Valentina and Rose were dead. And even if they weren’t, Rose made it clear she couldn’t get in touch with Robert. She boarded a bus heading back to Metro Manila feeling that she hadn’t really resolved anything…
Then there was the issue of the drawing. What was she to do? If it was real and it was with her, should she get an exorcism? Father Prejido sounded like he didn’t believe it, and if he didn’t believe it, how could another priest? She sighed. Maybe she should think it through first, do some research…
Suddenly, her smartphone rang again. It was Joyce.
“Good morning. How are you?”
“I’m fine. How about you?”
“Okay. I did some research on that picture you sent me.”
“And?”
“It’s not the devil. At least, I don’t think it is.”
Katherine frowned. “Who…or what is it then?”
“Are you familiar with the Greek satyrs?”
Katherine vaguely remembered the Greek creature from her English classes in high school. “Weren't they connected with the Greek god Dionysus?”
“Yeah. They were male nature spirits that had excessive desires for wine and women. But, to connect this with that drawing, they had goat’s horns, goat’s hooves, and a goat’s tail. It fits the description of the drawing you sent me.”
She sighed in relief and leaned back on her chair in the bus. “So there’s no demonic force at work here?”
“It’s hard to tell. These are supernatural forces at work. It’s not a science.”
“Thanks anyway. For everything.”
The two ended their chat. Katherine sighed. She had more questions now when she was leaving the barrio than when she was heading for it. Questions like, why was Robert not with her? Was the death of Valentina and Rose just an accident? What was that supernatural entity with her? Why was it with her? Was it the devil or a satyr? Why did it tell her RELEASE ME in her dream?
Her musings were stopped by a sudden cramp in her stomach, as if something was moving inside her...
