Flame 16 - The Six Symbols

Saglit pang napalingon si Judith Lovell habang nakatingin kay Katherine nang magkita sila sa NWPD. Hindi malaman ni Judith ang gagawin kaya huminga muna siya ng malalim at humarap sa katabi ng dalaga.

"Pupwede ko bang kausapin muna si Katherine?" she asked politely.

Opium shrugged and walked out of the police officer's room while his hands are inside his pockets. Agad namang tinuon ni Judith ang kamay sa lamesa at tumingin ng masama sa dalaga.

"What's the meaning of this? Bakit kasama mo ang bampirang iyon?! Out of all the people in this freaking city, siya pa! A vampire?!" hindi mapigilan ni Judith ang pinaghalong pagkadismaya at gulat.

"Aunt Judith, Opium Scatterella is my friend. Tutulungan niya ako to solve the riddles. At isa pa, hinahanap niya rin ang Oracle nila," paliwanag ng dalaga.

Minasahe ng Auntie niya ang noo dahil unti-unting nakirot iyon. "Katherine, Oracles help vampires! Oracles exist to protect their coven. Cronus is different. It protects OUR clan, OUR mission. And our mission is to keep the mortals unharmed from creatures like THEM!"

"Auntie, hindi sila ang mga iniisip mong nilalang. Opium is harmless. Hindi lahat ng galing sa Underworld ay mapanganib," she assured her.

"Pero—"

"Auntie, wala na akong clan. Tayo nalang ang natitirang Lovell sa mundo. And I'm the only burning flame that will protect the human world, but I can't do it on my own. Hindi ako ang pinakamalakas, that's why I seek the help of others, Auntie. I need help too and Opium is willing to help me. Please trust me and give him a chance. Don't judge him right up ahead." She smiled and held her hand tight.

Judith sighed and rolled her eyes. "Fine! Let him in." Tumango naman si Katherine at lumabas saglit para tawagin ulit si Opium.

Nilabas ni Judith ang Cronus at pinatong iyon sa lamesa. Kaharap ng pulis sina Katherine at Opium. Nagmamasid lang ang bampira habang inangat naman ng butler ang kanyang kamay tsaka may pinalabas na apoy.

Wala nang nagsalita pa at pinagmasdan lang na ipatong ng Silver Flame ang kanyang umaapoy na kamay sa ibabaw ng Cronus. Kagaya noon, nabalot ito ng puting apoy at padabog itong bumukas.

The bright white light shoots up in the air like smoke. Napatingala ang tatlo at sinubukang basahin ang ibinigay ng Cronus.

"Wait— these doesn't look like letters," Opium said as he stared at the smoke floating in thin air.

"I think you're right," pagsang-ayon naman ni Katherine.

May anim na simbolong iginuhit ang Cronus gamit ang puting usok na tila paikot ikot sa hangin. Sa ngayon ay walang ideya ang tatlo sa gustong ipahiwatig ng Cronus sa pangalawang babala nito. Unti-unting bumaba ang usok at ilang saglit pa ay nagsara ang mahiwagang libro.

"What kind of f*ckery was that? Anong gagawin natin sa mga symbols na iyon? We don't know what those are!" Opium exclaimed.

"Cronus never gives warnings that are easy to understand. We have to look for those symbols for us to fully understand what the Cronus is trying to say." Judith said as she stood up and carries the book.

"For now, we have to leave. Thanks Aunt Judith." Katherine hugged her Auntie. "Sorry about Cohen, dahil sa amin ni Krauser he was fired—"

"You don't have to feel sorry, hindi rin naman namin siya mapakinabangan."

Katherine smiled but she knows Cohen became very close to her Aunt Judith even if they just met. She's quite sure her Aunt Judith got sad upon Cohen's termination.

"Thank you, Officer Lovell." Opium bowed to Judith as a sign of respect. "I will do my best to help Katherine."

She smiled at the vampire, knowing that the heir of the most powerful coven bowed down to her as a farewell greeting, it shocked her a bit. "I have to give my full trust on you even though I am always in doubt. Sana hindi mo sayangin ang pagtitiwala ko."

Opium nodded at tsaka siya sumunod kay Katherine palabas ng office ni Judith Lovell. Nakarating sila sa reception area ng NWPD na abalang abala sa dami ng taong nagfa-file ng blotter at reklamo.

"Miss Lovell!" natigil ang dalawa sa paglalakad ng tawagin siya ni Officer Dawson. He ran towards her and smiled. "Naibigay mo ba kay Krauser ang envelope?"

"Yes," she lied. Matatandaang itinapon na iyon ni Katherine dahil ayaw na niyang mainvolve ang Master niya sa imbestigasyon.

"Thank you, and can you give this envelope too? Mga follow up reports yan. He might need that," masayang inabot ng pulis ang envelope kay Katherine.

Opium is amused on what he's seeing. He knows Katherine was lying and she can see that her conscience is struggling upon keeping up with her lies and alibis.

"Ah s-sige Officer Dawson," kinuha niya ang envelope at pilit na ngumiti.

"Officer Dawson, can I ask you a question? If you don't mind?"  Opium said with a mischevous smile.

"Sure thing, Mr. Scatterella,"

"I was wondering, why are you helping Vaughaun with these police reports? You know his father doesn't want him involved in any investigation."

The police officer scratched his head and smiled. "Krauser is like my younger brother, and he told me he can help people and I believed in him. May dignidad siyang tao dahil kapag alam niyang mali ang isang bagay ay itinatama niya iyon sa abot ng kanyang makakaya."

Opium and Katherine looked at the officer and smiled. "Yes, you're right. He is that kind of person," Katherine agreed and laughed.

"Naframe up ako noon sa isang murder but a young guy believed in me and helped me prove to the court that I'm innocent, that young guy was Krauser Vaughaun. I will always be grateful to him at tutulungan ko siya kahit pa matanggal ako sa trabaho."

Both of them chuckled and smiled at Officer Dawson. They can't seem to break that kind of motivation kaya hahayaan nalang nila iyon. All the while, mayroon palang espesyal na pagkakaibigan ang dalawa na hindi alam ng karamihan.

"I will give this envelope to Krauser," Katherine assured him before leaving.

Katherine opened the envelope as soon as Opium's car started. Tungkol na naman iyon sa mga nawawalang tao sa New Wellington Beach. May mga mangingisda na rin na naireport na nawawala.

"You really think mermaids are the suspects?" Opium said while his eyes were fixed on the road.

"Nope. Although I have never met a mermaid my whole life, I don't think they kill people. They exist about a hundred years ago so dapat ganoon na katagal na may mga ganitong patayan sa dagat."

"Good point. So? Are you planning on bringing your Master in this case then?"

"Hindi ko pa alam, he's still grounded. Next week ko pa siya makakausap."

Opium shrugged. Nagkataon na naabutan sila ng traffic light kaya napatigil ang kotse. Opium looked at Katherine seating on the shotgun and making herself busy reading the reports.

His eyes narrowed with one photo she's holding that was included in the reports. Kinuha niya iyon mula sa kamay ng dalaga.

"Hey! What are you—"

"This photo looks like—"

Parehong nanlaki ang mata ng dalawa at nagkatinginan sila. Ang litratong iyon ay kuha ng isang reporter na nagcocover sa New Wellington Beach at naireport nila na may kakaibang ilaw na nagmumula sa west coast ng dagat. Nakuhanan nila ng litrato ang pag ilaw ng dagat at tila isang—

"SYMBOL!" sabay na sigaw ng dalawa ng marealize nila.

The car behind them started honking dahil nakagreen na ang stoplight kaya pinatakbo na ni Opium ang sasakyan. "No way! That symbol lighting up the sea is one of the six symbols that were shown to us by the weird burning book!" Opium blurted out.

"You mean, Cronus, right?" she corrected him while rolling her eyes.

"Cronus shit whatever. Hey, we have to look for that symbol! Baka yun na ang babala na sinasabi nung libro!" Opium parked the car and looked at her.

"Go out there? In the middle of the sea? May nangyayari ngang disappearance doon tapos pupunta tayo?!"

"Oh please, I am the strongest vampire, you really don't need to be scared, Katherine," pagyayabang niya pa sa dalaga.

"Ang yabang mo! Tsaka paano tayo pupunta doon? Lalangoy tayo?!"

Opium chuckled. "Alam mo Katherine, cute ka sana kaya lang medyo hindi ka nag-iisip eh. Nasa harap mo ngayon ang pinakamayamang bampira sa buong siyudad, tapos namomroblema ka sa isang napakasimpleng bagay?"

"Opium, I want to shoot your mouth with silver bullets so you can shut the hell up. I am sure even the strongest and richest vampire here in New Wellington will die within seconds if I let you eat silver bullets, right?" inis na sabi ni Katherine sa hambog na bampira.

"Okay fine. I have a yacht. We can use that to search for the symbol," he answered with a monotonous voice after hearing her threat.

"Good. Let's meet up tonight." Katherine agreed.

"Sure. I'll text you."

Opium arrived at the Scar Mansion. Naabutan niya si Deborah na nagpapalit ng flowers sa vase. Ngumiti siya sa kanya. "Hi Deborah, si Dad nandyan na?"

"Wala pa! Kailan ba dadating si Lord Gifford? Bigla nalang siyang umaalis at ang tagal nawawala."

"Hindi ka na nasanay kay Dad, oh well, oo nga pala, aalis ako mamayang gabi ah."

Tumaas ang kilay ni Deborah at ipinatong saglit ang mga bulaklak na hawak niya. "At saan ka na naman pupunta Master Opium?"

"Basta, if anything goes wrong or if hinanap ako ni Dad, call me okay?" naglakad na papunta sa kitchen si Opium habang nakangiti sa kanilang nanny.

"Hay nako, lahat nalang tao sa bahay na ito ay basta basta nalang umaalis. Kawawa naman si Oraion," malungkot na sabi ni Deborah tsaka ipinagpatuloy ang pag-aayos ng bulaklak sa vase.

Nakarating si Opium sa kitchen at agad kumuha ng baso at isang bote ng dugo sa fridge. Mayroong supplier ng fresh animal blood sa Downtown New Well, kaya normal na ito na makita sa fridge ng mga Scatterella.

"Brother," biglang sumulpot si Olivia sa loob ng kitchen. Muntik ng masamid si Opium sa iniinom niyang dugo dahil sa pagkagulat.

"What the—Olivia! Quit showing up like that! Ginulat mo ako!" he said tsaka ipinatong sa lamesa ang baso.

Lumapit si Olivia sa kanya na nagpakaba sa dibdib niya. He hates it when Olivia is near him. Hindi niya maintindihan kung bakit ang bawat hibla ng kanyang laman ay nanginginig upon seeing Olivia's presence.

"You smell different," she said at lalo pang lumapit sa kanyang kapatid.

"O-Olivia—" he wanted to push her away pero hindi niya magawa. He hates the fact that he wanted to pull her closer even though he can feel his body trembling.

Sobrang lapit na ni Olivia sa kanya at inamoy nito ang dibdib ng binatang Scatterella. After that, she looked at him intently and raised her eyebrows.

"I can smell that Silver Flame girl. Magkasama ba kayo buong araw?!" lumayo ito at humalukipkip sa harapan niya.

"What—Olivia— I—"

Umirap si Olivia at tumalikod. Hinabol siya  ni Opium hanggang sa pintuan ng kwarto nito. Nilock niya ang pintuan at humiga sa kama.  Her smile faded and tears slowly filled her eyes. She buried her face in her soft pillow and wiped the tears from her face.

"I hate you! I hate you!" she whispered.

"Olivia! Olivia naman! Nagpasama lang siya saken! Please Olivia!" nagmamakaawang sabi ni Opium habang nakatok sa pintuan. "Aalis ako mamaya, I can't go hangga't hindi tayo nagkakaayos! Sorry na. Magpapaalam naman talaga dapat ako about going with her pero wala ka kanina, naglalaro kayo ng Polo ng mga kaibigan mo. You said I can't go near you kapag nandyan sila so I left without telling it to you. I'm sorry Via, please."

Naupo si Olivia sa kama at tumingin ng masama sa pintuan kung nasaan si Opium. "You could've texted me or call me," bulong nito sa sarili matapos marinig ang paliwanag ni Opium.

"Olivia..." malungkot na tumungo ang binata habang nakatayo sa harapan ng kwarto ng nakababatang kapatid.

He hates it the most when she's mad.

"Master Opium, may phonecall po kayo sa ibaba. Si Katherine Lovell daw ho," sabi noong maid na napadaan.

Napapikit naman si Opium dahil paniguradong narinig ni Olivia iyon. "S-Sige Manang, salamat," at agad namang bumaba para sagutin ang telepono.

"Hey, why'd you call? May problema ba?" tanong agad ni Opium after picking up the phone.

{"Yep, nawawala si Master Krauser. Sabi ni Wesley natakasan siya dahil tinakot siya ni Annielyn. I have to look for him, pero pupunta ako sa meeting place mamaya, wait for me."}

"Okay. You take care alright?"

{"Sure, see you, bye."}

He sighed and walked back to his room. Titigil pa sana siya sa tapat ng kwarto ni Olivia but he doesn't even know why he felt exhausted.

Sa Thompson Cabin Mansion namalagi si Krauser habang nagtatago kay Wesley at sa kanyang ama. Hanggang ngayon ay pinag-aaralan niya ang ruta papuntang Mermius. Ito ang nakatagong isla ng mga sirena sa New Wellington Coast.

Ang mga sirena ay nakatira sa isla na kinabibilangan ng buong angkan. Ang islang ito ay nakatago at napakahiwaga. Makakarating ka lamang sa isla ng mga sirena sa dalawang paraan. Una, ay ang pag-awit ng mga sirena. At ang pangalawa ay kung may sirenang maaaring magsama sa iyo sa isla na magtuturo ng daan.

At pag-awit ng mga sirena ay indikasyon ng kanilang pag-anyaya nila sa iyo na pumunta sa kanilang kaharian pero ang paraang ito ay mapanganib dahil ikaw ay nasa loob ng isang hipnotismo. May posibilidad na kapag ikaw ay nakarinig ng pag-awit ng sirena ay malunod ka habang papunta ka sa Mermius dahil wala ka sa iyong sarili.

"FINALLY! Nahanap ko na!" masayang sabi ni Annielyn habang hawak ang isang kabibe.

"Is this still working?" tanong ni Krauser habang tinitignan ang kabibe.

"I don't know. Never tried it again after our break up," Annielyn said and shrugged.

A Mermaid/Merman shell is helpful in calling out mermaids. Bawat sirena ay may nakalaang tunog ng kabibe, at ang tunog na iyon na pupwedeng malikha ng kabibe ay maaring makatawag sa kanila.

"Matatawag ko kaya si Lincoln gamit toh?" Krauser asked and tried blowing the shell.

"I'm sure it's still fixed. Kapag nagkita kayo, ibalik mo na sa kanya iyan. Gusto ko na talagang magmove on," she said and frowned.

Krauser chuckled and nodded. "Sure. Salamat dito." Tumayo na siya at paalis na nga mansion ng pigilan siya ng werepanther.

"Are you sure about this? Mapanganib ngayon sa coastal area."

"Kaya nga dapat malaman na natin kung ang mga sirena nga ang may gawa nito."

She let go of him at agad namang umalis si Krauser tsaka dumiretcho sa New Wellington Beach.

Magaling na si Krauser dahil ininom niya ang black deer blood na ibinigay ni Annielyn. Tiniis niya nalang ang lasa noon kaysa alagaan siya ni Wesley. Kaninang umaga ay pumunta siya sa kwarto ni Katherine pero hindi niya ito naabutan. Nakita niya sa trash bin ang envelope na galing kay Officer Dawson tungkol sa mga sirena. He called Annielyn and asked for help in escaping from Wesley which turned out successful. He was a bit disappointed with Katherine dahil mas pinili niyang sundin ang Dad nito pero hindi na siya nag-abala na komprontahin ang kanyang butler. He's planning to go to Mermius and investigate kahit pa delikado iyon with the help of the Merman shell from Annielyn's ex boyfriend, Lincoln.

Pinaandar ni Krauser ang kotse dahil madilim na at gagabihin pa siya sa kanyang paglalayag. Mas pinili ni Krauser na pumunta doon ng gabi dahil walang nagpapatrolyang coast guard.

Pumunta siya sa pangpang at kinuha ang float raft na hiniram niya sa Thompson clan. Tumingin siya sa mapayapang dagat at napanatag siyang makita na hindi ganoong kalakas ang mga alon.

May napansin siyang nakaparadang yacht sa may boardwalk. Lilipat sana siya ng pwesto malayo doon ng makita niya kung sino ang sakay ng yacht.

"Opium Scatterella?!" hindi siya makapaniwala nang lumabas ito mula sa loob ng yacht.

"Vaughaun?" hindi rin nagtagal at napansin din siya ng bampira. "Is that you, Vaughaun?"

Binitawan niya ang raft at lumapit sa yate ng bampira. Halos mabali ang leeg niya sa taas nito. "What the hell are you doing here?!" he asked.

"Ikaw ang dapat kong tanungin niyan! Your butler is looking all over for you! At isa pa, sabi ng butler mo grounded ka."

"You don't care! Answer me! Anong ginagawa mo dito?!" he angrily asked the same question.

"Well, your butler can explain," he smirked while pointing at his back.

Nalilito man ay tumingin sa likod si Krauser at nakita niyang nakatayo doon si Katherine. Mukhang hinihingal ito dahil sa pagtaas at pagbaba ng kanyang balikat pero habang nalapit siya ay nakita ni Krauser ang mga luha sa kanyang pisngi. Krauser was startled when his butler jumped at him and hugged him tight.

"YOU STUPID MASTER!!! SAAN KA BA NAGPUNTA?!" she yelled while still clinging on his neck. She buried her face in his chest and sobbed. "I was so worried about you!!!" marahang hinampas ng butler ang braso ng kanyang Master habang patuloy ito sa pag-iyak.

"I'm— I'm sorry—"

"Can we stop this scene and let's get going? We still need to go investigate," Opium cuts off the scene.

"Teka, saan ka pupunta? You're coming with Opium?" Krauser asked Katherine.

Katherine smiled and grabbed Krauser's wrist. "I'll explain later. We need to go," hinila niya ang Master hanggang sa makasakay sila sa yate.

"Let's go—"

"I'm coming with you, dear Brother..." natigilan si Opium nang makitang nakatayo din sa may boardwalk ang kanyang kapatid na si Olivia.

"O—Olivia?"

Hindi malaman nila Krauser at Katherine kung bakit biglang sumulpot ang isa pang Scatterella dito. Pero bago pa man makapagsalita si Opium ay sumakay na si Olivia sa yate at umupo sa loob.

"Is she coming with us, Opium?!" tanong ni Katherine.

Opium was obviously frustrated and combs his hair. "If Olivia wants to go, we have no choice. She gets what she wants."

Krauser and Katherine sighed and said, "Mukhang ander ka nga talaga ng kapatid mo."

* * * *

I smell a double date in the middle of the deadly sea lol. So, #TeamKK ba kayo or #TeamOO? Maraming maraming salamat sa positive feedbacks ninyo tungkol dito. Keep them coming po! I want to hear more from you! Kahit ano pa iyan, if I have errors or flaws sa plot, please point it out or clarify or educate me! I am willing to improve and learn more from you guys!

#SilverButler

Keep the votes and comments coming! x ♥