I wake up with Sinag looking down at me again. He kisses my forehead and says, "Good morning, I miss you last night."

I groan. The way he looks at me. I know exactly what he needs. I push at his face and then turn over. "I want to sleep this time," I say and close my eyes.

Suddenly, Sinag goes under the blanket and pulls my legs. Then he positions himself between my legs and licks me.

"Sinag, wait, let me gather my wits first."

But he didn't listen, instead, his tongue teases me repeatedly down there, until I release. Without a second thought, he's on top of me again and he is in the same state he's been in for the last few nights and days that we are together. With the number of our lovemaking, I will be amazed if I still don't get pregnant after two weeks.

When he's done and is heaving on top of me. "I wish the same thing," he whispers. "I want to stay with you like this." I look at him. Same as him I am also catching my breath. "Every time we do it, I am falling deeper and deeper. I thought I should be tired of you by now, but perhaps, are you the one getting tired of me instead?"

I touch his face. "I'm not," I say, warming up to his confession.

"You sure, you won't?"

"I won't," I say and snuggle to him.

He places his arm around my shoulder and stares at the ceiling, while he unconsciously stroke my shoulder.

"But do you think you can loan me a horse?" I ask, "For later today?"

"So my lady starts to request things from me. From making her friend a Babaylan and now a horse?"

"You're the easiest person to ask for favors. There should be a benefit to being a Rajah's lover, don't you think so too?" I grin at him.

"Ah, my position is really enticing you, huh?"

I nod. I raise myself and look down at his face. "Can't I?" If he won't, then I could just ask Laya. Hopefully, he's being responsible and can be found in the barracks.

"And what are you gonna do with a horse? Slay a bakasi with it?"

"Maybe," I say and give him a light kiss on his mouth.

"You really know how to request from me," he says.

He reaches for my neck and pulls me down to him. We share another passionate kiss. I am about to pull back when suddenly, the door opens. Sinag withdraws and covers my nakedness. It's Isagani.

"Rajah Sinagtala, you should dress up and present yourself with the Fuhuan guests. They are expecting you this morning."

I giggle. It might be because yesterday, he's absent and only shows himself at night with the guests.

Sinag takes one last look at me. He brushes a strand of hair from my forehead and plants another kiss on it. "See you later."

He gets up and I watch him dress to his panggan and pants. He winks at me when he catches me staring. My cheeks heat up and I look away. But before he closes the door and leaves, he says, "Isagani, ensure that my love will be given a horse."

My love? I grin and flush at the same time. He does know how to make me giggle like a little schoolgirl.

Isagani looks back at me, trying to deduce what kind of plans I have. I smile at him and he looks away. He removes his necklace and places it on the nearest table.

"Use this to request for a horse. They'll know it's me," he says. Finally, shutting the door behind him. And I hope he will go along with my wishes.

I lay down on the bed for a few more minutes. Once I had decided, I get up and takes the necklace that Isagani left. I examine it. It is a simple pendant that looks like the number eight. The only difference is that it has an extra horizontal line in the middle. In total, it is composed of eight straight lines. I remember those lines. It's the symbol of Nayan slavery. Tala is given this symbol on her neck. One at a time for all her mischief. She got the last, eighth line because she sacrificed her life in exchange for Klyde's life, dooming herself and her entire clan to slavery for eternity.

I leave Sinag's room and go straight to the other side of the prohibited area—it's where the Fuhuan guests are staying. There's a lot of Cleaners but Cielo is not among them. Seems like Sinag really transferred her to the Babaylan's workgroup. I look around and then, scoot around the corner.

I stop when I see the prettiest woman I have ever seen in my entire life. She's coming out from one of the huge rooms. The woman is wearing a white robe that falls down her heels. Her hair is long, straight, and black as charcoal. It reaches up to her waist and is adorned with glittering gems. Her face is glowing as if her cheeks are in a permanent state of blushing. Her head is a perfect heart shape and her skin is flawless. Everything about her is perfect as if she's been carved to suit the very definition of beauty. So the rumors are correct. The women from the Mainland really have an ethereal quality in their beauty. I wonder why Sinagtala prefers me over these women.

I shake myself out of the dreamlike state when the woman is out of sight. I enter the room she left and take a deep sigh. This is it. Another step to my plans. Inside, the room is affluent. It is adorned like a five-star hotel. None of the simplicity that the other rooms on Sinagtala's castle are adorned with.

I look around. I need to find something that will give me a hint on how they travel from Fuhua to Hiraya. There's nothing but a dresser, a bed, and a couple of decorations in the room. All are for vanity, nothing important. Then my eyes catch something half-hidden underneath the pillow. I reach for it. It's a small, white ball made of metal. There's a button at the center. I press it and am surprised when a ten inches pole protrudes from it and opens up like how an abaca fan opens.

I exclaim when I realize it is a screen of a tablet. Only it's in a different shape. There are categories on the screen. One for personal vanity, files, and a menu labeled Ship. I press on it. A hologram of a ship appears in front of me. Out of surprise, I drop the contraption on the bed.

I breathe in and take it again. I press one room on the hologram and the inside opens up. My breathing speeds up. This is too surreal! Everything in it is strange and too futuristic. My gaze goes to the dresser. There is no mirror but there are a couple of cosmetics in it. I approach it and notice the label, Antiques from Earth.

Antiques? But these cosmetics are from my time! MAC, NovAge, and even Chanel! I lose strength on my knees and I slump on the ground. We are not in the past, rather we are in the future! And why does it say from Earth? Are we on a completely different planet? I laugh hysterically and I tear up. I get up, realizing that whatever I know is never enough to survive in this world. I scoff. Instead of having clarity, I become more confused. Damn. When and where the hell are we?