by Efmer E. Agustin

(Waray version: An Babaye nga Naglulunó)

It was the wet season when she arrived at the barrio. Carrying a medium-sized bag, she marched one early morning towards the house of Mana Rosa, just near the store of the same portly owner. The store was by the roadside and Mana Rosa’s house was behind this store, a good number of steps inward. The house-for-rent was next to the owner’s house, about thirty meters away.

The rain had momentarily stopped, but the clouds hung threateningly about the sky. It was dim though the sun had already fully come out, and everything unsheltered on earth was soaked and dripping. Puddles were ever-present and there was no scarcity of mud. During these times of cold, most creatures that crawled would snooze in silent slumber. When it’s rainy and chilly, the bed was a very welcoming retreat. That’s why the midwives were overworked nine months later.

Matthew Jacob F. Ramos has made it his business to write stories about woven computers and rocketry in the midst of revolution, with works that have received accolades in the Carlos Palanca Memorial Awards and the Nick Joaquin Literary Art Awards. You can find his writings in The Philippines Graphic, Cha: Writing the Philippines, and The Geek Anthropologist.

His career as a speculative fiction writer became official when Matthew received his bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing from the Ateneo de Manila University. These passions allowed him to pursue advertising in a number of small startups throughout the Philippines, before becoming an officer of engagement at a national bank. Today he resides in Quezon City, using his corporate career to fuel his graduate studies into the relationship between islands and technology.

Jake published in Philippine Genre Stories in January 2012 under the Guest Editorship of Alexis “Exie” Abola, multiple Palanca winner and English professor at Ateneo de Manila University: The Tower And The Kite (Part 1) and The Tower And The Kite (Part 2). 

by Matthew Jacob Ramos

Until very recently, no one had ever made the mistake of confusing Biringan for Biri. Biringan was a city, said to have spires as tall as mountains and a skyline glittering with treasure. Another important difference was that no one was quite sure if Biringan even existed. Some elders claimed it remained hidden in the jungles of Northeastern Samar, concealed between the towns of Catarman and Calbayog. In one story, satellites from a Japanese mining company had even detected traces of gold and other precious metals within the region, only to be met with knitted woodland after days of fruitless searching. No further signs of Biringan’s whereabouts surfaced until a truly rare substance was unearthed from the offshore island of Biri: Uranium.

With more than ten years of experience as a practitioner in the field of communications, Marco Mañalac is a PR professional by day and superhero by night. When he’s not glued to his phone trying to catch up on all his anime backlog, he’s usually running, boxing, jump roping, or eating. An avid fan of comic books, Marco writes regular reviews for https://www.spidermancrawlspace.com/ and has published a few issues of his own indie title in the past. Please do check out the local comic book store nearest you and ask for copies of Mythopolis #1 to #3. 

As a reader, Marco has been a fantasy and science fiction fanboy since birth but has also recently taken a deep dive into the world of Dungeons & Dragons to play a more interactive role in the storytelling. But when his brain feels tired, video games often help. Always trying to push himself creatively, he’s taken a stab at writing short stories in the past year or so. Just like when he was doing professional theatre more than a decade ago, Marco still feels like an infant when it comes to creative writing, publishing his first story “THE HISTORY OF THE END OF THE WORLD BY THE LEAGUE OF RESEARCHERS” in Philippine Genre Stories 2023. But he’s always more than willing to give it a shot and here he is with “LEGACY OF THE BETRAYED: A BEDTIME STORY FOR DEMON CHILDREN”.

by Marco Mañalac

Artwork by: Tala Mayari

Gather ‘round, children! It’s time to sleep! Oh, I know, it’s a tad bit early for your tastes. But I won’t hear any of your complaints, now. No use whining. No use resisting. What I can do is aid you on your journey toward slumber.

How about I give you all a little bedtime story? Yes? You like that? Very well.

What kind of story would you like to hear tonight, my beloved spawns? Oh, something historical, you say? Impressive, how intellectual.

What’s that? A tragedy? How depressing!

Oh, yes, a love story sounds good.

How about this? I’ll give you all three! Now settle down, and tuck yourselves in, children! Those are comfortable beds made of human bones, and warm blankets made of human skin. I wish I had those when I was a youngling.

Ready? Everybody good? Okay, this will be a short tale, but a very important one for you. So, pay attention, because this is the very first time I am telling this story in its entirety.