“Midnight”

PINIPILIT ko pa ring hanapin ang kasagutan kung bakit nandito pa rin si Trudeau. Akala ko ba ay ayaw na niyang ipagpatuloy ang misyong ipinataw sa amin ng Headquarters. Dahil siguro nabanggit ko ang pangalan ng kanyang kapatid ang naging rason kung bakit hanggang ngayon ay nandito pa rin siya.

Nakaharap kami ngayong dalawa sa lumalagablab na apoy na ginawa namin upang  magbigay sa amin ng ilaw at init sa malamig na gabi. Nakakarinig kami ng mga kaluskos sa bawat parte ng gubat pero nakakasigurado kami na hindi iyon Killer Lizard. Medyo malayo na ang aming tinakbuhan mula sa insidenteng nangyari kanina.

Hindi pa rin mawaglit sa aking isip ang pagkamatay ni Taki. Isa siyang matapang at tapat na agent ng Headquarters. Wala manlang akong pagkakataon na makilala siya at maging kaibigan man lang siya. Wala akong ibang pagpipilian sa mga oras na ito kundi ang pagtiyagaan ang galit at poot na pinapakita sa akin ni Trudeau. Hindi ko naman siya masisi kung ganun nalang ang turing niya sa akin.

A fire crackles were the only sound we could hear throughout the dark and gloomy night. Leaves making noise as the cold wind passed through the branches in front of us. There was no presence of Killer Lizard. I thought he was lost in the woods. It was the most hideous and freaking creatures I had ever saw in my entire life.

After I witnessed the death of my agent, I convinced myself that the creature was not made to exist on Earth. I do believe it was one of the experiment of CRYPTIC. Who else could it be? They were the most advanced organization inside the City. They had the power to create something that could lead our City into chaos, thanks to the remaining resources they possessed from the metallic orb. The pale skin of that creature gave me a tremble inside my flesh. The groan and scream of that monster tighten the air passageway inside my lungs. I didn't know why it freaked me out.

Whatever that creature was, I needed to kill it. I would not let that creature to stop my mission. I won’t let it to deter my promises to Headquarters. I knew could kill it, if it bleeds then it could die.

“You think you will kill that beast?” A sound of threat from Trudeau.

“You think?” I said dryly.

He looked like he wasn’t paying attention about what I said. He was just like mocking me inside his mind, treating me like a clown. I wanted to make amends with him, but he was the only one avoiding that. I didn't know how to put the pieces together and became friends again. Guess, glue was not enough to what’s  had been broken.

“Look, what I did wasn’t forgivable. I just wanted to save—” He cut me off.

“And you let her die?”

Those five words he had spoken was like a thousand knives piercing at the back of my body. Slowly making holes inside my flesh. Made me feel uncomfortable and unsettled. Memories of her sisters started to show up in my mind like a camera flashes. I was incarcerated from the trauma I had before when I accepted that mission. After that day, I blamed myself of what happened to his sister.

“What happened to you, Parang hindi ka pa rin makapaniwala sa nangyari,” he said with a sarcastic voice. Pretending he was incredulously shock. “You know what, even it’s  not okay with me to be with you tonight, or to be with you in this stupid mission, I still pretending that we were like friends after what you did, like before.”

“I—” At the second time around he didn’t let me speak.

“Every night, I wish that you were dead. I wish that you were the one who died in that mission instead of my sister. Thank you that you saved us from the hand’s  of CRYPTIC, thank you if you opened the door to us and gave us food in our table, a roof above our head, and clothes that covered our bodies but…” he paused, and I noticed that he was started to hold back the fluid leaking from his eyes, “But, I cannot forgive you. Never in my wildest dreams.”

He looked me sharply, and he just walked away from me; trying to be alone, and to control his emotions. I breathed out, trying to resolve the problem between us. He was like a younger brother to me. If only I could travel back in time and change everything, this wouldn’t be the outcome. I failed him. I failed a lot of people around me.

We both heard a noise near us. A noise of a waling creatures. We both felt the creepiness of its gait, and we both heard the mild growls. I was sure that it was the Killer Lizard. How many of them were lurking and wandering around in this forest. The forest wrapped in horror because of the unexplainable creatures? If it was the creation of CRYPTIC, I needed to find the answers so I could prove to my self that I was correct.

“Gear up, we need to move,” I said to him while picking up my stuff on the ground. He didn’t  say a word and he just obey my order.

There was no reception in our area so probably the headquarters must be on panic. We lost contact to them. They didn't know where we were, and they had no idea what was our situation, and what was our problem. To find RAPSCALLION, was the easiest one, but dealing with the creatures was another.

“You want me to walk in the middle of the night?” he said in a calming voice.

“I want you to finish our mission. It’s 12 midnight, we need to find the RAPSCALLION and sharpen your senses,” I said.

Walang tigil pa ring umuungol ang kakaibang nilalang na iyon sa kagubatan. Hindi malabong malapit lang ito sa aming kinaroroonan. Kung sakaling makita kami ng halimaw na iyon ay handa itong patayin kami. Dapat nga ay naibalita ko na ito sa headquarters pero dahil walang signal dito sa loob ng kagubatan ay hindi ko ito maipaparating sa kanila. Ang kailangan naming gawin ngayon ay manatiling buhay.

Naririnig ko sa likod ang pagdaing ni Trudeau dahil sa mga matatalim na bagay na dinadaanan namin. The way we were passing through had a lot of twigs, and that was the reason why Trudeau suffered a wounds in the different part of his body—tearing a clean cut on his shirt, and giving him a painful wound.

“Malayo pa ba?” he asked while the sun starting to rise. Giving a great light and silhouette to every trees around us.

Hindi ko siya sinagot bagkus ay binuksan ko ang ballpen na binigay sa akin ni General Diasque at lumabas doon ang hologram na mapa. Base sa aming nakikita ay mukhang matatagalan kami. Kakailanganin naming ng tatlong araw para marating ang kinaroroonan nila.

“Bakit ba kase hindi nalang bumaba ang hovercraft sa mismong kinaroroonan nila para sa ganun ay nandoon na agad tayo,” suhestiyon ni Trudeau.

“And that will give our enemy and RAPSCALLION a great attention. RAPSCALLION is a bold and deadly group, they might attack us without warning. So we should come there with peace. They don’t  hesitate to welcome us if we aren’t in our hovercraft.”

Hindi pa nga ako nakakatapos sa aking sinasabi nang biglang napatulala si Trudeau sa kanyang nakikita. Sinundan ko naman ang kanyang paningin at sa laking gulat ko ay nasaksihan ko ang mga cargo container sa aming harapan. Ang iba ang nababalutan na ng mga lumot at ang iba naman ay parang kakarating lang dito. Kung tama ang pagkakabilang ko ay mga nasa anim ang kanilang bilang. Apat sa cargo container ay nakabukas ang mga pinto.

Hindi ko masyadong makita ang laman dahil hindi ito naabutan ng liwanag mula sa araw. Ayoko namang pumasok para alamin kung ano ang nasa loob. Medyo iba ang pakiramdam ko sa lugar na ito. Ang misteryo rito ay kung bakit mayroong mga cargo container sa ganitong lugar. Walang malapit na pantalan sa buong Central City. Ang aking pagkakaalam ay napakalayo ng dagat. Ang isa pang misteryo ay kung sino ang naglagay ng mga cargo container sa gitna ng gubat.

“Mukhang kakarating lang ng isang ito,” mahinahong sabi ni Trudeau nang mapansin niya ang isang container na hindi pa nabubuksan at wala pang mga lumot na nakabalot sa buong container. “Sino kaya ang naglagay ng mga ganito sa kagubatan?” Pagtataka niya at agad na pumunta sa isang cargo container na nakabukas ang pinto.

Binuksan niya pa ito ng tuluyan at hindi ko pa rin maanigan ang laman sa loob.  Hinakbang ni Trudeau ang kanyang isang paa papasok sa loob ay gumawa iyon ng ingay sa buong kapaligiran.

“If I were you, I wouldn’t  do that,” pagbabanta ko sa kanya pero hindi ito nakinig.

“I smelled different. I think it’s  a toxic waste of a old factory,” he described the cargo container.

Dahan-dahan siyang umikot para humarap sa akin. Ang buo niyang katawan ay nasa bunganga na ng cargo ship. Gusto ko sanang alamin ang loob nito pero pinangunahan ako ng kaba.

“Nothing scary stuff in here,” sabi nito at gumawa ng ingay gamit ang pagtalon. Sumigaw pa ito na parang isang bata. “Disgusting, It’s leaking,” nandidiring sabi niya nang napansin niya ang isang likido na tumutulo sa kanyang kaliwang balikat.

“What’s that?” I asked him.

“I think it’s  kind of rain water.”

“I-I don’t think it’s a rain water.”

Dahil medyo kinabahan na siya sa aking tono sa pagsasalita ay dahan-dahan siyang tumingala sa kisame ng cargo container at doon niya nakita ang isang halimaw na pumaslang sa mga kasamahan namin. Nakakapagtaas ng balahibo ang utak nilang humihinga sa kanilang ulo. Idagdag pa ang maputi nilang laman at mahahabang kuko na kayang hatiin ang isang tao sa dalawa sa isang iglap lang.

“I-It’s that—”

“Killer Lizard,” pagdudugtong ko.
Dahan-dahang lumabas si Trudeau sa container at dahan-dahan ding lumabas ang napakaraming mga killer lizard. Nanlambot ang aking mga tuhod sa aking nakikita.

Lahat sila ay nakakatakot tignan. Nakakadiring pagmasdan. Nakakapanginig ng laman.

“I think it’s our end now.”

thank you for reading :)