TROUBLE IN A BOTTLE

By  RUSSEL LEE

Mechanic, Male, 40

       I throuht Toyols were native Malay ghosts

but it is seems they are internationally available.

       My speculation is the result of some infor-

Matio the aprentice at my garage has given

Me. He has a foster father in Hongkong who

Earns a lot of money. Everybody thinks Lady Luck

Has smile on him, but my apprentice, Peng,

Knows better.

        Peng once stayed at his foster fehter’s house.

There he saw two bottles on an altar. They looked

Very stranger, being painted completely black on

The outside. There were long thin slips of yellow

Paper pasted on them. He wasn’t sure  what they

Were, at first, but after careful observation, he

Learnt that they were homes for tiny “pixies” that

His foster father was rearing.

        You can send pixies on assignments to tor-

ment your enemies or discover their secrets. But

Each time you see them, you have to feed them

Food. They will grow into full-fledged ghosts later,

After which you grow more dependent on them

And they on you. If you ever do anything to offend

Them, they can punish you severely.

        Peng soon realised what they were when he

Saw his foster father always putting food, such as

Grains of rice, at the altar after every meal.

Whenever he went by, he never failed to notice

That the food really grew less. When he leaned

Closer to look, he could see tiny bites in the altar

Food. The thought of them made his skin crawl.

         On once occasion, he was in the sitting room

Alone. That was where the altar was located, just

Beside the main door. Being the sort who loves

Poking around, he touched the bottle to feel its

Texture. To his surprise, a powerful electrical flow

Passed though his body. He felt ill immediately

Afterwards. Peng was sick for two weeks. His

Foster father did not suspect anything at all and

thought he had caught the flu.

         I was very annoyed becaused there was no one

To help me at the garage. But when i heard his

Story. I forgave him. I thought it was fascinating,

That these pixies sounded exactly like toyols, ex-

Cept that toyols here are said to suck the blood of

Thier owners from thier toes. It would be inter-

testing to find out if there are any biological or

Spiritual links between them.