Ulong Dagger

Legendary Snake

Siti and Laksmi operate each raft of banana stems with Parman and Paijo as passengers.

They crouched down so that the raft would not run.

Unhindered the two rafts they had climbed had passed the second string thread and were now crossing the swamp by holding on to the third rope.

Many things raged in Parman and Paijo's mind but they refrained from remaining silent and saying anything. It's not good to talk a lot in such a spooky place so the advice of old people they've heard.

Here there is the sound of crickets and frogs singing natural songs, there is also an occasional water lizard due to the movement of fish, or water snakes that move to find prey.

Mud mixed water repeatedly swept their feet leaving an itch. Mosquitoes are like black clouds swarming and buzzing with noise following them.

Occasionally fireflies pass by giving a little extra light. The light felt so soothing in the midst of the sinister atmosphere of the dark swamp that seemed endless.

They had walked about fifties meters, and had almost reached the forest, suddenly the raft in front was stopped by Siti who was controlling it, Laksmi also helped stop the raft behind. In a faint look, Siti's hand was raised giving a warning to stop.

Parman and Paijo looked forward, and it looked both stunning and terrifying.

In the front, a giant snake appears. The snake was probably about thirty meters long, wrapped around a dead tree towering several meters in front of them. The body of the snake is larger than an adult hug, yellowish in color with black stripes along its body. The head of the snake stared calmly at them, its eyes yellow and glowing dimly in the dark. Part of its tail dangled down from the trunk of the tree and floated in the swamp. Its great scales glitter in the dim light of the crescent moon.

"Assalamu alaikum", whispered Siti in a calm voice, it was great that this woman thought Paijo and Parman, not shaking her voice to say hello, saying hello, parman and Paijo are already scared to death and try to refrain from plunging into the swamp to escape.

Siti and Laksmi are members of the army of the Inong balees instructed by my lord Nyak Tomb, who is, to help the struggle Datuk Baiduzzaman Surbakti his lord Ulong Dagger (Inong Balee is a Laskar consisting of widows of Acehnese fighters, namely the female troops subordinate to Admiral Malahayati. Malahayati or Keumalahayati itself is very famous for its toughness at sea and on one occasion managed to defeat the Dutch fleet and kill Cornelis de Houtman the leader of the fleet in a one-on-one fight). Their group (the lascars) had fought many battles against the Dutch for decades.

Besides being adept at fighting bare hands, these two women, Laksmi & Siti, are also adept at using various weapons including spears, arrows, and even bedil.

As time goes by those who had focused on the sea are required to also guerrilla, the result of these women can hide in the forest for months. Various terrible events have also been experienced during their time in the guerrilla battlefield.

This made these two female warriors so calm that they carried Parman and Paijo across the swamp.

The snake just silently stared, Siti still holding her hand in the air hinting for them to calm down. For a while they were still silent, waiting. It felt like a hundred years for Parman and Paijo to be there. Both of Paijo's legs were shaking so scared.

Then from the back there were many voices, Parman and Paijo looked back, there were many torches across the swamp where they had fled earlier. The meneer Jan's men have arrived and are making a noise. Siti and Laksmi did not want to turn their faces away from the giant snake guarding this swamp.

They believe there are other creatures of God. And everything is created with its own duty in this world. Perhaps these creatures exist to maintain the balance of nature, or guard this region from damage, or the impurities created by humans and other creatures.

That's why Siti said hello, to show they came in peace and would not do anything bad in the region.

Calmly the giant snake slid down from the tree then like it did not care to pass next to the raft they were riding. So close was the distance the giant snake moved gliding beside the raft. Paijo was flabbergasted as soon as he saw the Snake's head pass by his side. He closed his eyes and refrained from screaming out of fear.

While Parman still ventured to see the legendary snake that he had heard his story from the locals. Really big and long snake that passed, his movement although calm still make a ripple in the water that rocked the raft.

Paijo just dared to open his eyes as soon as the raft moved forward. Cold sweat washed over his body. Paijo looked back but the giant snake was no longer visible.

After the giant snake passed by Siti and Laksmi moved faster than before without looking back.

Before long they arrived at the edge of the swamp, then moved deftly into the forest. After walking for about a hundred meters. At the place where their large stone mound stopped for a while, Siti and Laksmi took some of the equipment they lived there.

Siti and Laksmi light two torches, then give two pairs of shoes to wear Parman and Paijo. "Thank you neng" said Paijo bowed respectfully, Siti smiled amusedly at Paijo's innocent behavior.

"Come on" said Siti taking Paijo and Parman to follow them after seeing them wearing straw shoes.

⚜️⚜️⚜️

"Meneer, there's a lot of tracks here, it looks like they're ruffling this place to blur the trail" reports a dark-skinned, thick-moustached temple. "Is there any chance of them swimming through the marshes?" ask Meneer Jan. The temples looked at each other hoping that someone would know. Finally they both shrugged their shoulders declaring not to know.

Some people directed torches to light up the swamp, but nothing looked suspicious there. Others walked down the swamp to the right and left for several tens of meters in search of any clues they could find.

The men who were with meneer Jan did not find the rope that was used to cross, he said, because Laksmi and Siti had reached the second string immediately lowered the first rope into the swamp so that the pursuer could not see, likewise after reaching the third rope they lowered the second rope into the swamp.

Long enough, Meneer Jan and his men stood at the edge of the swamp of confusion, not knowing where to look. Then a tile picked up a two-meter-long wooden branch. He tied the torch to the wood and directed it to the swamp.

The flaming torch fluttering in motion to the right and to the left illuminated the swamp until it was quite far away. The light glistened reflected by the swamp water. Various insects were seen coming into the torch light and burning.

They pay attention to the details of the swamp so that no clues may be missed.

Suddenly the water in the swamp churned, like there was a big fish moving in it. The turmoil was so great that those present could see it. "Look I It was. "said some man then "Dor. dor. dor.." Spontaneously the people there were mostly holding the gun.

The air became full of white gunpowder smoke, "enough, stop shooting" said Meneer Jan, then pulled the collar of one of his men, "why did you shoot beside my ear" he said angrily. The soldier who was scolded fell silent.

The torch-wielding centipede was wagging the torch to drive away the gunpowder smoke above the swamp. Another tile picked up a longer and larger wooden branch, with the help of his friend to hold the big branch, he poked the turbulent place earlier.

"Snipples" the sound of water, and slowly poking the head of the giant snake that had been seen by Paijo and his friends. At first it was just his head that appeared, but then his entire body appeared floating.

All of them were stunned, the snake was truly the largest snake they had ever seen. The atmosphere was suddenly silent, not even the sound of crickets and frogs that had been crowded was earthy.

And the next incident made more goosebumps. In the light of the torch light, the snake's eyes blinked twice. One unnatural thing is seeing a snake that can blink its eyes.

"Graans..Run..!!!" the native tile immediately sprinkled back towards the garden, Meneer Jan stared at the confusion seeing his people running around.

Only he survives there with the company's soldiers. Finally Meneer Jan decided that there could be no one crossing the swamp, he invited the soldiers to retreat slowly. Meanwhile, the Giant Snake was silent in a unmoved place, like challenging.

⚜️⚜️⚜️

On the way home none of his tile she met, making meneer Jan a long nag.

"Meneer, Meneer, Gawat.." a worker ran up to the group of meneer Jan who was turning from the swamp, "What is Yono?" snapped it.

The person called Yono bowed his tiredness then continued on with a huff of "I'm sorry, forgive me, host house..", not yet finished Yono spoke Meneer Jan immediately understood and immediately ran followed by his people, "unfair, if they ghosts can move around here and there as they please" he thought.

And that night, the location of the plantation owned by the airline managed by Meneer Jan was almost completely destroyed. The fire was burning brightly as if there was a big party, the light of the fire was visible in the distance, not just the wards, and the houses, the tobacco fields of acres were also burning.

Meneer Jan to the end his voice shouted and cursed here and there.

Once he arrived home he could no longer stand up and fell down in the yard to see his house that had been sunk in the fire.

His freed son and wife bonded as soon as he saw her running to come, and hugged her crying.

⚜️⚜️⚜️