"Looks like he has returned to God's embrace. May his soul rest in peace," said the man in white robe and turban as he ran his right hand across the face of the deceased, closing his eyelid. The sombre atmosphere inside the old wooden house became split into two, as the families of the deceased wept while the villagers breathed a silent sigh in relief.
It was not because of his passing that the villagers were relieved of, but it was because it was a peaceful passing. Quite abnormal in the view of outsiders, but for this small village in the rural area of the country, who have more elderly population than the young, it was a blessing for someone who possessed ‘servants’ to pass in peace.
And the owner of this old but still well-kept traditional Malay house was known to have several of them. Which of course he profusely denied, because it is not accepted nowadays.
“Uhurm,excuse me Rashid. But are you sure that he had passed on? Without trouble?” the village leader asked.
“What do you mean by that, Mahmud? You like to see them suffer?”
“No, no, but you know, what about his ‘creature’. Don't those things usually refuse to leave their master’s body even after his passing?” stuttered Mahmud. Even while talking to Rashid his eyes never left the body of the deceased, afraid that it would do ‘something’.
“Don't be ridiculous. It’s rude to slander and talk bad about the deceased. Just be thankful to God that he passed peacefully,” sighed Rashid. He shook his head at Mahmud’s rude question.
“We’re not dumb, Rashid. Many of us have seen ‘them’, either prowling in his orchard or under this very house, growling at anyone who came close. I called you here to make sure you get rid of it!”
The two’s bickering attracted the attention of the whole room, so they immediately stopped their conversation. Alas, the topic of the ‘creature’ that Mahmud spoke did not escape everyone’s ears. Deep inside the villagers’ hearts, questions began to rise.
‘Will the creature’s appearance stop?’
‘Did the man let his creature loose?’
‘Or is it just rumors to slander this man?’
Meanwhile the conversation between Mahmud and Rashid continued when the two went down below the wooden house. The house was built elevated, so that below the house was an empty space where the owner put tables and chairs for guests. Traditionally, the elevated floor was meant to deter enemies or animals from easily coming into the house, while also making the house safe from floods in the rainy season.
“This is a mistake! That thing will wreak havoc in this village.As the village leader, it is my responsibility to keep the peace and safety of the village!”
“Really?” Rashid squinted his eyes. “”Then as the leader, would you inform the gravedigger that he will have a new body to bury, and I’ll go to the mosque to help prepare the body for the burial. The sooner the better.”
Rashid walked past Mahmud, but the latter grabbed his shoulder and turned him around and stepped into his face.
“Bury him? In this village’s cemetery? You’re out of your mind! We should never even help with his burial! He’s a sinner!” Mahmud hissed. Rashid however, stood his ground, looked at him straight in his eyes and spoke in a stern voice.
“It doesn’t matter what sins a man does in his life, as soon as he passes away, he will be treated as a fellow human and will be buried like a fellow human. Then it is up to God to judge him based on his behavior on this world, not me, not the villagers, and most definitely not you. What, you never committed sins before? Your sudden rise in wealth when you became the leader is from your work alone? Now you do your job and I’ll do mine, and hope that the body is buried without any complications before nightfall.”
He then shoved past Mahmud and walked away, attracting the gazes from the villagers up inside the house. Rashid was a gentle and kind man, so hearing him raising his voice was rare.
“Useless, I should’ve paid someone from the city to come and exorcise instead of relying on the Imam of this small village!” grumbled Mahmud, loud enough for several people to hear. But Rashid replied without looking back.
“There’s no creature to exorcise anyway. Either the owner managed to seal or throw them away in time before this, or by God’s forgiveness, something worse.”
Hearing this, Mahmud and several others’ eyes bulged. These ‘creatures’, even though demonic in nature, are very loyal and strict with their ‘contract’, and will fulfill their duties until the end of times. That’s why they won’t let their owner die and possess their corpse after their passing, because that means that the owner are not able to fulfill their end of the contract.
So that means that the owner usually throws away or seals these creatures when they don’t need their service anymore (because it's not that easy to break the ‘agreement’ peacefully) or if they aren’t able to, they will need the help from a shaman or an exorcist.
But if neither of these methods were done and the owner passed away with much difficulty, it can only mean one thing. And that made Mahmud and the others gulped.
“It was inherited by one of his descendants.”
