Aswang

An Aswang (ah-SWAH-ng; Tag. "monster") or Tik-tik (tik-TIK; Tag. onomatopoeia) is a ghoul-like Wesen that appeared in. They are indigenous to the Philippine Islands and exist within mainstream Filipino mythology.

After Dana Tomas asks Sam Tomas to pick up her refill of prenatal meds, she goes to bed to get some rest. Soon after she falls asleep, an Aswang climbs the tree outside her bedroom window. It opens the window slightly and extends its tongue until it reaches Dana's belly button. It begins to suck up the amniotic fluid. The pain causes Dana to wake up and she tries to pull the tongue out of her, but she has no luck. She falls weakly to the ground and the Aswang pulls its tongue out of her belly button, and climbs through he window. It climbs to the ceiling and again extends its tongue and puts it back into her belly button as she screams. A neighbor hears her screams and comes in her house to see what's happening. Dana tries to grab her phone, but knocks her bedside table down instead. She grabs an item off the floor and cuts the Aswang's tongue, causing blood to splatter on the ceiling and the Aswang to leave just before the neighbor enters the room.

The next day, Sam calls his brother in Manila from Dana's hospital room and tells him their mother, Lani is in Portland. His brother tells him he knew this would happen and Sam says he can't do this to Dana. Sam's brother says they don't have a choice, causing Sam to woge into his Aswang side. He says he won't do it, but his brother tells him he is delaying the inevitable. Sam tells his brother to find out where their mother is staying and hangs up.

That night, Wu has a dream of his grandmother telling a young version of himself the story of the Aswang. He wakes up and hears ticking. He looks at his window and sees an Aswang entering his room, but it turns out that he is still dreaming. He wakes up breathing hard from fear and looks around his room.

Later, Sam receives a call from his brother and his brother tells him which motel their mother is staying at. Sam heads to the motel to confront his mother. Sam tells her just because she found him, doesn't mean she gets what she wants. She tells him that if he doesn't help him, she'll die within a month. He tells her people die all the time. She replies back that the oldest son always gives up their first born so their mother can live a longer life. She says this is what Aswang have done for hundreds of years. Sam says he won't be a part of this tradition and as she begs him not to let her die, he gives her a plane ticket back to Manila, and leaves. After he leaves, Lani woges in anger and tears up the plane ticket.

After Dana is released from the hospital, Wu drives to her house and sits in his car to make sure she is safe, unknown to her. As he is sitting in his car, he sees a taxi pull up and Lani get out. He shockingly watches her as she starts climbing the tree outside Dana's window.

Inside the house, Sam hears a noise, so he goes to investigate. He sees Lani woged on the wall, but she knocks him down the stairs, knocking him out. Dana wakes up to the sound of Sam falling down the stairs. Before she can get out of bed, Lani walks in her room. Dana asks her when she arrived and Lani tells her Sam told her to come right away to help take care of her after her "accident." Lani tells Dana to go back to sleep and starts humming to her.

Back outside the house, Wu is examining the tree trying to figure out what happened. Inside, Lani opens up Dana's pajamas revealing her stomach. Lani woges and sticks her tongue into Dana's belly button. Outside, Wu walks up to the front of the house and looks through the window. He sees Sam lying on the ground and quickly breaks the door in. He checks on Sam, but he hears ticking coming from upstairs. He rushes to Dana's room, only to see Lani standing above her woged. He goes into shock at the sight of what he is seeing and Lani attacks him. While she attacks Wu, Nick and hank arrive to the house. They go inside and check on Sam. Hank calls for paramedics and they hear a thud upstairs. Wu kicks Lani of him, but she jumps back towards him and slashes the side of his face. Wu quietly screams as her tongue comes out, but Nick shoots her before she can do anything else to Wu. Wu sees her retract into her human form and starts freaking out. He asks Nick and hank if they saw her change, but Nick tries avoiding the question by telling him Dana is alive and to just breathe. Wu repeatedly says "it wasn't her" as he stares at Lani's body.

Wu checks himself into a psychiatric hospital because of what he saw. Nick and Hank visit him and tell him he saved Dana's life and that he is a hero, getting Wu to smile. A few seconds later, Wu imagines ticking and when he turns around, he begins to hallucinate and begins to scream upon perceiving an Aswang pouncing onto him.

Characteristics
When woged, Aswang are bald, ghoul-like creatures with pale grey skin and a bat-like nose. Their featureless, silver eyes glow faintly in the dark. The vertebrae along their backs enlarge to the point where they form a noticeable ridge, and they possess needle-like fangs and claws.

Aswang are notable for their black forked proboscis tongue that is able to stretch several times the length of their bodies. The tongue is designed to pierce flesh and can move solids in both directions through its long tube.

They are nimble climbers, and apparently very light, given the speed at how they can scale walls and trees. Their long claws and prehensile limbs make it possible for them to adhere over practically any surface, even horizontal ones like the ceiling. However, they aren't very strong, as Wu was able to kick away a fully woged Lani Tomas a fair distance with only one leg. Instead, they rely on their agility in combat, as well as their pouncing and their claws when confronting an adversary.

Behavior
Their tongues serve three purposes, each related to the grisly habit they are infamous for. After chewing Valerian root, Aswangs will use their tongues to pierce the naval of a pregnant woman, and inject the chemical properties into the woman tranquilizing her. From there the Aswang will use their tongues to suck the infant out of the womb, but not before sucking up a large amount of amniotic fluid. Under normal circumstances, there would be a high risk of the amniotic sack breaking, which would cause labor or a miscarriage. Since Aswang do not have this problem, it would mean their tongues are fine and precise as surgical tools. Traditionally, the eldest son of a female Aswang must give up his first conceived child for his mother to consume in order to extend her lifespan. Without doing this act, she will die within a month. The tradition dates back hundreds of years, but some Aswang believe it is too barbaric for modern times.

Aswang frequently make ticking sounds with their tongues, hence their alternate name, tik-tiks. Also when they woge, their voices have a slightly more shrilled sound.

Excerpt from Grimm Diaries
''After the midwife was able to quell the hemorrhaging, the young woman gained consciousness. She told me it was an Aswang that had caused the tragedy. She had been sold as a bride, to be impregnated so that her firstborn may be consumed as means for a prolonged, healthy life.''

''Aswangs use their long tongues to inject chewed up Valerian root to sedate their victims as they attack. These attacks are often incorrectly diagnosed as miscarriages, and for the process to work, the fetus must be a blood relative to the Aswang.''

I've also learned that Awang have an alternate name - Tik-tiks, due to the ticking sound they make with their tongue.



Trivia

 * Aswang is a generic term in the Tagalog language of the Philippines that refers to a demon, ghost, witch, or other monster. The aswang depicted in the legend told in is most like the , although instead of temporarily severing her body in half and sprouting wings to fly to the victim, Lani Tomas instead is a very adept climber. The name tik-tik is also given to this creature, but the flapping of her wings is said to produce the sound.