ISLA PUTING BATO
2 Days After the Raid at Kubiz
11:00 pm
It's exactly eleven on the evening. I sent one of my men back to the Capitol to report the things that were happening on this island. We marched towards the forest to talk, not to battle them.
"You think this is really the right move, sir?" Tonyo asked.
"I don't know..." I replied as I parted the tall grass in front of me, "but as much as possible... I don't want this to end with a blood bath."
"That would be fun. Haha," Nemo interjected, this fucker again.
The villagers begged us to stay, to help them. To eliminate these terrorists. Tss, eliminate? It's an easy ask... especially if you're not the one swinging the blade, or pulling the trigger. I gazed at my hands as I marched. It's as if I still the sting of punching the body of that Penumbra terrorist. I hope he survived.
As we walked past the forest's entrance, a few more steps. Immediately, a foul stench of something rotten hits us like a decaying rat multiplied by a hundred. One of the nineteen soldiers who were with me spotted something.
"Lieu – lieutenant..." he hushed as I noticed his face turned pale.
"What's wrong?" I slowly went towards him. Told my men to lower their torches.
He pointed at the clearing just about ten paces away from us. We pointed the torches in that direction, and what we saw made us pause for a moment.
"What the hell is this!?" Tonyo uttered.
I swallowed as I stepped closer, trying to make sure that what I was seeing was true. The dancing light of the flame was cast on it. A shallow grave. Shallow yet wide. Flies circled it, humming like a symphony of death. Below them, countless bodies piled upon each other. Decaying maggots festering their flesh.
I heard some of my men's footsteps falter. They're soldiers, but like me, they're young too. For a couple of them, this was their first mission. I saw death countless times more than I can remember; some might even say too many for my age. But this was the first time I saw something as horrible as this – this, and the one on the bay -.
"They looked like villagers," Nemo said while standing beside me. He smirked and noted the clothes they were wearing.
I crouched and shone a light on one of them. Her face was bruised, while her eyes were infested with flies and their eggs. I stared at her clothing. Nemo's right, this one seems to be a villager. There's only truth here, those terrorists in this forest did this. My brows furrowed as they knitted together. Brutally killing two innocent men who just wanted peace is horrible, but killing hundreds!?
"Lieutenant... What will we do?" Tonyo asked once again.
I stood up, hardened my resolve. "We continue. But..." I paused. Drops of sweat once again drenched my forehead. Our mission was just to survey and gather intel. But, after seeing the poor villagers, this mass grave. Do they really deserve to live? I swallowed and ordered, "Their reign on this island ends tonight."
The air felt heavy, damp, and suffocating as we proceeded on our trek towards the terrorists' hideout. We moved low, in silence. The tension was so palpable that it was as if I felt their bodies tensing as we moved closer to our destination. I closed my eyes fewer times than usual. Every time I close my eyes, I see them. Their twisted bodies, the grave. Unconsciously, my hand gripped my kampilan's hilt.
The soft crunch of our boots on the soft soil of the forest matches the beating of my heart. The hideout loomed ahead, dark and still as we crouched like a predator waiting to strike. The weight of the moment pressed over my shoulders like an unseen hand.
"Sir..." Tonyo whispered, "I got a bad feeling about this..."
"Yes, Lieutenant." Another one said.
Sweat raced over my forehead down on my chin. They're right, something's really off. However, we continued as planned. I split the team into three. The assault team, planking team, and reserve. The main assault team will position itself on the main door, while the flanking team will cover all routes and make diversions. While the reserve will watch out for enemy reinforcements.
I myself will lead the assault team. We carefully inched closer to the hideout's entrance. I can feel the damp soil through my boots, the sounds of its moisture as it splattered. Several torches barely lit the terrorists' place. It has wooden fences made from bamboo. While light seeped through the tiny cracks of the wooden structure in the middle.
We prepared our weapons. The flanking team moved at three opposite sides, making sure exits were cut off. I raised my hand, and we quietly yet moved with urgency. I stepped forward and kicked on the door, splintering it. I immediately scanned my eyes around the cabin; there are at least ten terrorists here.
One of them tried to attack me, but I used the hilt of my kampilan to break his momentum. My right knee landed on his gut and he crumpled on the floor reeling from the pain. The remaining four arbikizers that were with me quickly moved and encircled them while pointing their rifles at them.
"This ends now! Surrender now!" I yelled, pointing my kamplinan at the ikugan that was with them. Have I miscalculated things?
"Where are the others!?" I asked, "The villagers said you have around hundreds of terrorists here!"
The man grinned, his smile wild like that of a feral dog, before bursting into laughter. I suddenly felt a chill crawl up my spine. My gut twisted as a sudden realization struck. The villagers, their insistence on all of us staying, the mass grave, and why they didn't tell us.
"Men! BE READY!!" I shouted.
We heard the reserve group signaling. In an instant, a scout rushed to deliver the news to me. They spotted a rising threat, a group of angry settlers, each armed with whatever weapons they could find. Some had come from the settlement by the beach, others from the nearby hill.
"Damn it," I muttered under my breath. "It's not the terrorist causing trouble here..." I paused, the weight of the truth settling in. "The whole island belongs to them!?"
"Too late. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!" The man yelled, and in an instant, the whole cabin blew into a blaze of unrelenting explosion.
Within a split second, I managed to get out of the cabin, carrying Tonyo. But the others... the others were not so lucky. I noticed Nemo looking at me. Grinning as if he saw something amusing.
"READY YOUR WEAPONS!" I shouted.
My men, both surprised and confused by what just happened inside, started to draw their weapons. Nemo grinned, madness gleaming in his eyes as he prepared for the fight. The rest of the reserve group followed suit, standing firm as nearly three hundred terrorists advanced on us, like a furious tide.
The battle erupted in an instant. Outnumbered, we did our best to hold our ground, while the terrorists' footsteps were heavy like a relentless beat of war drum their cries booming like thunder on a stormy night. Our reserve group quickly formed a tight circle, rifles raised, while planks of wood were hastily arranged for added defense.
But Nemo, this son of a whore... He raised his arms, Nu gathered around his body as he started calling on the wind with an intensity that shook the air around us.
"Nemo, stop!" My voice cut through the chaos. This didn't need to become worse than it already was.
Seeing him rush toward them, the terrorists laughed, pointing their crude weapons at him, mocking his 'folly'. As they closed in, they clashed with him. NO!! I know how this monster operates. I focused myself as I summon the Nu around me and my body. in an instant, I threw myself in front of Nemo just as he was about to unleash his full power. I grabbed his hand before the wind could be summoned. Nemo's jaw tightened, but his gaze never left mine.
He gazed on the place where I had been. Around ninety meters away from him. His smile twisted into something darker, more feral. "Now I understand your power..." he murmured, the madness in his voice was obvious.
"SHUT UP AND STAND DOWN!" I barked, trying to regain control.
But this fucker only laughed, the sound hollow and deranged. "HAHAHAHA, why should I? We're all going to kill them after all!" he said as if taunting me.
I was trying to find the right words to respond, but all things faltered. I felt pain running through me from my back. I stared down and saw a spear pierced through my side. I saw a flicker of surprise on Nemo's face.
The man holding the spear behind me sneered. "You Arbikizer dogs will pay for your treachery!!!"
"See, this is what happens because of your indecisiveness," he spat, "now stand down, and let me finish this."
Nemo cut the man in two as he rushed once again towards them. My vision started to blur as I heard a loud gush of wind and people crying as sounds of flesh tearing echoed throughout the forest. Why is it so cold all of a sudden?