This story is from a real-life experience by my own mother when she was just a teenager. At the time, smartphones were not as popular and the kids sought entertainment by physical outdoor activities such as playing tags, hiking, hanging out with friends and such.
My mother - along with her father, oldest brother and two of her female cousins - were trekking the jungles of Tasek Meradun forests. They went trekking for about an hour or so since her father did not want to go very deep into the jungle. At that time, my mother and the others did not know the reason so they just followed his directions.
After a while, they found a lake. It wasn't big but not small either albeit the water is very deep green in color. My grandfather decided to take a break and they all sat down on the logs or the dry leaves nearby the lake. My mother and her two cousins, Rana and Lana (not real names) chose to sit on a log that looked like it hovered on the lake but steady enough to hold the three of them.
They chatted about life and Rana, out of boredom, tapped her hands on the log perhaps to make some beat or rhythm. She realized that the log felt a little damp/moist and looked down. The so-called log looked like it was covered in a liquid-like substance; 'mucus' as the accurate description. She called for Lana and my mother's attention to the situation and they were all confused as to how the log could be covered in mucus.
Lana inched forward to take a good look at Rana's position but found herself almost sliding down to the ground. That's when they also noticed that the log was slippery and wobbly. It wasn't surprising for it to be wobbly since it was on the lake but slippery? It did not make sense.
My mother looked behind her and she finally realized that it was not a log at all. It was a giant body part of a snake whose head was snuggled under water. The slits of its eyes that emerged out of the water was a dead giveaway. They all froze because they did not want to wake up the giant snake. No, it was not an anaconda because my mother said it looked nothing like one. Plus, it's really gigantic.
My grandfather and my uncle who were sitting down with their backs to them were oblivious. The three of them did not know what to do. If they shouted, they might wake up the beast. If they just stood there, it might wake up eventually so they tried to walk backwards slowly. Then Rana stepped on a fallen branch.
They saw the eye slits seemed to move and they didn't wait for another second. They all screamed, surprising my grandfather and my uncle, then ran like their lives depended on it...literally. They didn't even care for the trekking stuff that was left behind.
When they finally reached home, they told my mother's grandfather about it. He just shook his head though he seemed to be bemused as my mother said. He told them about the seven lakes that resided along the jungles of Tasek Meradun which are each guarded by a Penunggu, translated as a supernatural Guardian from my language. In his words, they happened to stumble upon one but fortunately, it didn't harm them perhaps because they didn't do anything wrong.
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