Sunday, October 9, 2011

DARANGEN: The Abduction of princess Lawanen

THE DARANGEN: Abduction of princess Lawanen
(Translated by Dr. Nosca Khalid)


The news of an impending invasion spread throughout the kingdom of Kadaraan. The people were jittery. The territorial guards were doubled.

          Mindalano sa Tonong, the king of Kadaraan was rightly informed that the land of the blooming flowers; the kingdom of Minalang is teeming with people in arms. The harbor is filled with anchored ships from Bembaran in pursuit of the lost princess. The rumor is; the invasion will begin as soon as the Rinayong; the flagship of Bembaran sails into the bay of the flower kingdom.
*
          Mabaning trotted in haste as if gulping the hills of Sendigan with ease. In his desire to reach Sagorongan a Ragat, he stopped every gypsy he met along the way asking how far more is he from his destination.

          He crossed over an arm of the sea roofed with a land bridge that leads to a highway. When he reached the other side, he climbed the top of a sloping trail. Alas! Spread before him was Sagorongan a Ragat. It is shrouded in smog. The center of habitation is lighted by a brilliant glow like a mirror’s reflected flash of lightning. It radiates with contrasting rays of various hues casting upon the sea a gleaming display of beautiful colors like an unfolding rainbow.

          The complex network of roads was impossible to trace. The bay is crowded with countless number of merchant ships convincing Mabaning of the obvious prosperity the kingdom of Kadaraan is blessed with.

          “The crowded city overshadowed almost everything in the land of Gibonen,” he thought, “except the beautiful architectural layout of Bembaran and the comfort of its spacious land.”

          He deviated from the trail and followed a course along the sun-drenched coast.

          “Behold! How handsomely that Madem walks,” admired the sea gypsies along his tracks.

          “I am going to blow up my cover,” he thought. “I must alter my style of walking and act exactly like the mountain-man of Kilaten. I must convince people, I am a genuine Madem.

          Shuffling his gait, Mabaning hobbled lamely swaying and lurching forward leaping over dried pools. He reached the lagoon and walked around the gulf following the seashore. He saw the stern of a ship sunk in the sea. It is obvious; most if not all aboard the ship must have perished.

          “Behold!” said Mabaning, “how it resembles the likeness of Kalipapa Da’ayaw. If my brother Mapendara sa Delim sailed this far then this sunken ship must be my ship.”

          “Excuse me my friends,” said Mabaning addressing a pair of sea gypsies. “May I know if anyone of you have knowledge of that sunken ship?” and he pointed towards the sea. “Could it be possible that an attacking ship has besieged Sagorongan-a-Ragat and king Dimasangkay did not even care to inform us?”

          “Yes,” answered by one the gypsies. “It is the ship sailed by Mapendara sa Delim, the prince of Gadongan. It sailed into the bay only yesterday while the sun was still above the mountains of Kadaraan. A courier was dispatched by Makarondaw sa Kadeg to investigate the origin of the ship and to find out the purpose of their sailing into the imperial waters of Kadaraan however, the alien ship unleashed a barrage of cannon fires sinking the courier ship instantly. Makarondaw sa Kadeg retaliated with a formidable firepower from land and from the warships guarding the harbors of Kadaan. The Kalipapa Daayaw fought back courageously sinking ten of the coast guards ships and setting the city on fire. Many people perished aboard the ships that were sunk. The smoldering ruins of the burned houses blemished the beautiful city of Sagorongan a Ragat. Although aided by the spirit guardians of Bembaran; the Kalipapa Da’ayaw could not surmount overwhelming odds. They fought valiantly but the enemy was simply countless in number.


Learning the demise of his ship, his brother and men; he walked off in despair doubling his grief.

          “Do not think of the dead,” he reasoned with himself, ‘lest you endanger yourself too.” He accelerated his pace. “Wait for my vengeance, you who speaks the alien barbarian’s tongue. I swear I will drown you all; you lost people of the sea. You shall pay and pay dearly for maltreating the kingdom of Bembaran.”

To be cont’d…

NLK



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