Have you heard the Tikbalang
Is coming for his lunch?
Have you heard the breaking
Of the bones he likes to crunch?

He’ll gorge on marrow, gut and gall
He’ll feast on heart and lung.
He loves the eyes and kidneys
But his favourite part’s the tongue.

He’ll gulp your every drop of blood
Right out a skull-shaped bowl.
And then to finish up his meal
He’ll gobble up your soul.
~Macabre Limerick loosely translated from Tagalong

In the lush and verdant islands of the Fillypines, there is a beast of legend more feared than any other. The Tikbalang.
The exact meaning of the name has faded into obscurity. It is described as a great grey bipedal beast with the head of a horse, with a wet, trailing head of ink-black mane, glowing eyes like hot coals and sharp, saw-like teeth. It stands on two legs so long that its knees reach its head when it squats, making it appear as if it walks on stilts. Its back is lined with jutting spines of bone that bristle when agitated, a noise not unlike shaking a rattle of beads.
The creature is a trickster deity and a cannibal, luring lost ponies to its den with bright lights it conjures from its own luminescent bile and eats them. Occasionally one can barter with the Tikbalang but his terms are rarely ever acceptable.
However, the four watchers of the Underworld in the Fillypines are benevolent Tikbalang, wise and dutiful, having abandoned their ways and undertaken the practice of sages, a custom adapted by the Water Buffalo seers that travel the continent, revered in Ghora. One can accept their food but must then indulge them in a game of their choice or serve as their water-bearer for a full season.

The origin of the Tikbalang King, Maninilong Aswang Laban Unglu Kukulam (Maluk, often shortened), is as follows.
At the end of the reign of the legendary Fillypino King, Datu Sambac of the line of Tag-a-Long, his eldest son, Vanda, was crowned Datu. His wife, Narra, had died giving birth to a baby filly and so he set about the first year of his reign choosing a wife. The two most beautiful mares among his palace were Aamrasa, a gentle, quiet maid, and Mutaya, a glamorous but unscrupulous mare. He picked Aamrasa. Mutaya, scorned, swore vengeance. Performing a dark ritual, she cursed the couple’s bed, causing Aamrasa’s unborn foal to poison her body. The new queen died in agony after a month of marriage and pregnancy. After she was buried, Datu Vanda married Mutaya. But as six months passed, the Tikbalang Maluk rose from Aamrasa’s grave, the product of the cursed miscarriage.
Maluk then set about cursing the line of Tag-a-Long. Over the years, Vanda and Mutaya’s children were tormented with nightmares, fevers, poxes, injuries and humiliations, one after the other. It started out as embarrassments, including one instance where the crown prince was chased across a military parade by wild monkeys and another where five of Vanda’s eldest daughters were brought to a row of potential suitors, opened the door to their carriages and somehow received their chamberpots falling on their heads.
Then the curses grew more grisly. The sons found themselves trying to force themselves on their sisters while asleep or attacked by wild animals in the gardens. One of the cooks went mad, butchered Vanda’s youngest son, served him up to his family in a stew who enjoyed it so much they asked for more. When Vanda asked the cook what was in the stew, he produced the colt’s severed head and attacked the dismayed king with his cleaver, killing six guards and a princess before being brought down. Finally, Vanda’s eldest daughter wandered off in the night and was found dead three months later, hanging upside-down from a mango tree, her womb ripped open. Maluk was merciless and seemed intent on carrying on his curse for eternity.

The legend states that Vanda discovered Mutaya’s scheming, blamed her for all that had transpired and ordered her to kill herself, which she did. The Datu went mad and confined himself to his palace, fearing Maluk’s wrath.
It was then his daughter from his first marriage to Princess Narra returned home after Mutaya had sent her away to the Water Buffalo Sages of Carabao. This princess, Seresa, sought out Maluk and challenged him. Maluk accepted and the gods of the underworld were called upon to judge the two. Maluk declared the line of Tag-A-Long had wronged him and his mother and so must suffer his wrath while Seresa countered that his wrath had been unwarranted and cruel, deserving of punishment for his actions.
The two debated in view of the gods and spoke through riddles. The details are catalogued in the Fillypino epic Alamat ng Tagalong: Ang Karunungan Ng Pahama-Ginang Seresa (Tagalong Saga: The Wisdom of Sage-Princess Seresa) But eventually, Seresa won with a simple yet piercing riddle.
‘Why does the fox hunt the chicks and eggs when already he has eaten the rooster and hen?’
Maluk was unable to answer. The question provoked either admitting he was either cowardly, cruel or driven mad by his lust for vengeance. The gods found him guilty and the ground opened up beneath him, dragging him down to Tartarus (Or the Fillypino equivalent)
Nonetheless, despite King Maluk trapped beneath the earth, Tikbalang are known to stalk the woods of the Fillypines, sometimes even prowling the streets of cities like Maneila and the crossroads through the Kabayo Forests. Like sphinxes, they like mind games and so only a scholar may defeat and drive away such creatures for they are unmatched in brute strength and can withstand nearly all forms of magic with minimal injury.

Their propensity towards destruction is largely based around the fact that they are born from miscarried foetuses and have, quite literally, never been shown love. They won’t harm priestesses, its claimed, and there are instances of them approaching virgin mares without aggression, as if attempting charm and courtesy but if the mare screams upon seeing them or reacts with distaste in any way, the creature will drag them to their dens unwillingly. If the mare reacts pleasantly to them, however, the Tikbalang will treat her gently, watch over her home and ask only to be hugged and sung lullabies to. There are instances of Tikbalang adoption in recent years and, once tamed, the creatures subsist on fruit, honey and cobwebs and can be taught how to speak and act like a pony fairly easily.
At the last consensus, there were between thirty and a hundred families that had successfully adopted Tikbalang in the Fillypines and its becoming a trend for tourists. However, the Datu and Sages fear King Maluk’s fabled return for he is the progenitor of all his kind and the loyalty of the benevolent Tikbalang will be put into question when he rises from the underworld.
In any case, whenever faced with a Tikbalang, one can simply take a note out of a certain cream-coloured pegasus’s book and ‘Show all things a little kindness’.

Very interesting. That can only be fluttershy

It's nice to revisit my childhood memories of being scolded for staying out late, with the old folks telling us these scare tactics of a horror story. I see, you did tour research, wow, Purple this is good, it really enhances the storytelling. Oh and all monsters bow down to the bearer of kindness

Fillypines and Maneila, I like those names, I'll be using this in remaking that damnable story:

Dear Princess Celestia,

Let me start by saying, it's been a long time since I've written a friendship report to you, and it feels like memories are dancing in my head. The charity theater, me and my friends prepared for was a success. We earned enough bits to rebuilt parts of Maneila.

Princess Celestia, let me ask you something, how many times are we blind to the tears of our own, than to the tears of another? Today I learned that taking responsibility of our actions, on how we approach a bad situation, is the key to help us blossom into the best ponies we can be. Hushing the gloomy voices down and taking charge of our choices, mistakes, along with our quarrels can make a difference on how we live tomorrow, because life is what we make it happen, and we have the ability to let go and change.

Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle

I've not structured it yet, or thought of plot points, but the lesson is based on this saying: Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it.

Purple you inspire me to use my culture in making that fic, to show a certain someone how different we all live.

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Sounds great, Cherry. Looking forward to it.
Glad I could do your memories justice. Let me there if there's anything I've missed.