Chapter 64: Chaos in the Town of Cavite
A quiet night in General Trias, Cavite, was on the verge of becoming a theater of violence. Only minutes after the rebels moved, the silence of the town shattered, replaced by screams, explosions, and the acrid smell of burning buildings.
The Katipunan rebels, identified by red bandanas tied around their arms, moved like shadows in the dark—swift and merciless. Every building in their path fell victim to their fury; doors and windows were smashed, and properties were left to be consumed by flames.
Residents were dragged from their homes, faces masked in terror and confusion, as the rebels carefully separated the Filipinos from the Spaniards they intended to take captive. Despite the violence, there was a systematic goal: the Filipinos rescued from the houses were set free, while the Spaniards were taken as prisoners of war.
"Hey you! Why are you standing there?" a rebel barked.
"Wait, sir! I'm Filipino too, and I know some of the people you just released," replied a young man with striking blue hair.
"You're Filipino? Then why is your hair like that? You look like a Spaniard," the rebel countered suspiciously.
"Wait, just because I'm fair-skinned and have different hair doesn't mean I'm Spanish. Is it my fault I'm handsome?"
The rebels exchanged looks, unsure of how to proceed. Emil approached to handle the situation. "Quiet. To prove you're Filipino, answer this: If you have four thousand pesos and you buy seven apples at fifty pesos each and eighteen oranges at thirty pesos each, how much change will the vendor give you?"
The man paused, scratching his head. "Uh... are you serious? You're asking me math in the middle of a riot?"
The rebels grew angry. "Just answer it, or you'll get hurt!"
The man counted on his fingers, his face blank. Emil mocked him for his inability to calculate. "Don't tell me at your age you still don't know how to count?"
"Huh? What are you talking about? Do you think I'm stupid? It's not that I can't answer, but why is that fruit vendor so expensive?" the man complained. "Why would I ever buy apples from a shop that overcharges like that?"
One rebel reached out to strike him for being a smart-aleck, but Emil stopped him. "That's enough. Let him go."
The rebels obeyed, allowing the blue-haired youth to run away. "Why let him go? He didn't look Filipino," one asked.
"True, Filipinos are naturally brown-skinned and small-statured, but some carry Spanish blood. If he were a wealthy Spaniard, he wouldn't complain about the price of an apple. Therefore, he's one of us," Emil said with a chuckle.
In other parts of the city, the raid continued. The rebels expanded their territory, using captured Spaniards as human shields to deter the police. The tactic was effective; the police, though armed and trained, hesitated to fire for fear of hitting innocents.
The town fell under the control of the Katipunan, their presence like a thick cloud of fear over General Trias. On the main roads, rebels burned vehicles to create blockades, preventing reinforcements from neighboring towns. Smoke billowed into the air as the sounds of explosions echoed throughout the province.
Behind this chaos, the Sugo of the Diwata led the charge. Their presence gave the battle a terrifying weight, as their supernatural abilities far surpassed those of ordinary soldiers or police.
Soon, military vehicles arrived. Romeo arrived at the scene to lead the troops and contain the rebel expansion. His eyes burned with determination. "Incredible. They were bold enough to raid this place," Romeo whispered, observing the burning horizon. "They attacked the very heart of Cavite."
Romeo's men moved with precision, their training giving them an edge. They managed to intercept escaping rebels with swift accuracy. The rebels, though aggressive, could not hold their ground against Romeo's organized force and were forced to retreat.
However, amidst their gradual victory, a strange presence emerged. A thick, red mist began to spread from a dark corner of the town. This was no ordinary smoke—it smelled of cold metal, and the energy radiating from it sent a chill down Romeo's spine. He knew instantly: this was the work of a Sugo.
"Stay back!" Romeo commanded, his eyes fixed on the mist. His soldiers halted, rifles raised, though fear was etched on their faces.
From the thick fog, three figures emerged. Von, wearing a grim expression and a red bandana, stepped forward alongside Hulyo, the Sugo of Pasig, and a woman with shimmering red hair who filled Romeo with a sense of dread. Their auras rippled like waves of energy—they were Sugo, just like him.
"What is your plan this time?" Romeo shouted, his voice laced with anger. "Will you never stop tearing this country apart?"
Von smiled—a bitter, determined look. "We aren't tearing it apart, General," he replied calmly. "We are reclaiming the nation that belongs to us."
In a flash, thousands of balisongs (butterfly knives) gathered around Romeo, forming a living storm of metal. The knives streaked toward the trio, but before they could strike, a portal appeared in front of Von. The knives flew into the portal and vanished, swallowed by a black void.
"You're too hot-headed, General," Hulyo said with a smirk. Hulyo had the power to create portals to a vast sub-dimension, which the Katipunan used for rapid transport and escapes.
"A remarkable power to waste on this," Romeo said, his voice a mix of admiration and bitterness. "If you used that for good, you could help so many."
Hulyo's smile turned mocking. "Used for good? Forgive me, General, but we have very different definitions of that word."
Romeo closed his eyes, forcing himself to remain calm. "I have no wish to fight my fellow Filipinos," he said sincerely. "But I cannot allow your crimes to destroy the peace of this land."
He asked the three if they truly believed the Katipunan's actions were for the best. The question pierced the silence like a dagger. Von, knowing the excesses his group had committed, couldn't answer immediately. Instead, he challenged Romeo. "Tell me, General. What is your plan for the Filipinos the Spaniards continue to abuse? If you truly care, why have you done nothing for the poor?"
Romeo hesitated. He knew Von was right—he knew the cries of the oppressed, the homeless families, and the starving children. "I know," Romeo replied heavily. "Like you, I care for our countrymen. But that does not mean I must kill or destroy."
Von erupted in fury. "Caring is not enough without action! We tried to be quiet, to endure for the sake of your 'peace.' But for how long? Should we just stay blind? Is silence the only way to live?"
Von's words tore at Romeo's heart. Images of suffering flooded his mind—hungry children, grieving mothers. The pain in his chest sowed doubt regarding the peace he defended under the Spanish government.
"I don't know..." Romeo whispered, his voice failing him.
"You don't know?" Von spat. "Nonsense! You know things aren't right, but you stay blind because of the gold you receive as a lapdog for the Spaniards!"
Hearing the insult, Abby couldn't stay silent. "That's not true!" she screamed, defending her General. "You know nothing of the sacrifices General Romeo makes! He works every day to save our people, even when he knows it isn't easy!"
"If that's true, why do they still suffer?" Von challenged. "Why don't you hear their cries?"
"It's not that simple, Von!" Abby countered. "There is suffering everywhere, but it isn't something easily solved. We don't have enough power to change everything in a country run by Spaniards." She explained that Romeo does his best to uphold the law, but he cannot stop every individual Spaniard from doing wrong. "We have to accept that Spain rules the Philippines. If we go to war, they could slaughter every Filipino in an instant."
Von dismissed her explanation as cowardice. "If you accept being slaves, fine! But I won't! Martin is right—this country needs freedom to achieve true peace!"
Romeo let out a roar of fury. "Fools! You don't know what you're asking for! Do you want the country to run red with blood? If you follow Martin—a butcher willing to use people for his own ends—you are consenting to the death of countrymen in a war they didn't choose!"
Von didn't flinch. "Even if Martin is a butcher, he is the only one we can rely on to give us what we want! General, if we believed in you, could you end the suffering of everyone in this land?"
Romeo fell silent. He looked down, face full of disappointment at his own inability to fulfill such a promise.
"You are powerless, General," Von said coldly. "Maybe your heart is in the right place, and I try to understand you. I want a peaceful home too, but if we don't do this, who will help our people?"
The red mist thickened as Von's aura flared like fire. He sighed before speaking again. "Do your duty, General. But if you want to stop our revolution, you'll have to fight us—to the death."
From the mist, Von's companions appeared, and the fog began to coat the other rebels, transforming them. They became muscular golems—giant entities made of smoke but as hard as stone. Their eyes glowed with red light, intimidating Romeo's soldiers.
Romeo quickly prepared his men. "Get ready!"
But before they could move, holes opened beneath them—Hulyo's portals. Abby and Peter fell through. Romeo tried to reach for Abby, but the portal snapped shut.
"No! My comrades!" Romeo turned, only to be met by a massive golem fist that sent him flying. The impact shook the ground as he smashed through a wall, but he stood back up immediately.
Three red golems charged. Romeo's balisongs moved instinctively, forming a defensive shield. "What did you do to my people?" he hissed.
"Don't worry," Von smiled. "We are rebels, but we are selective with our killing. If your men behave inside Hulyo's dimension, they won't die."
The golems attacked with earth-shattering force. They were surprisingly fast for their size, but to Romeo, their movements were reckless. "They're desperate to hit me; they know nothing of true combat," he muttered. He began his counterattack, his punches and kicks flooring the giants. His knives acted like a metallic whirlwind, carving through the smoke bodies.
As the golems fell, the red mist dissipated, and they reverted to their human forms. "I trained and studied combat in Spain for over a year," Romeo said confidently. "They will only die if you keep pitting them against me." He raised his hand, beckoning Von.
"I have no personal grudge against you, Von. But I'll let you see if you can truly stand against the Spaniards. Viceroy Magellan is one of the 'Swords of Spain' sent here. It's embarrassing to admit, but he is three times stronger than I am. Prove to me now that you can defeat Spain."
Romeo's body was enveloped in a blue aura. In an instant, he lunged at Von. Von met the attack head-on. The collision of their fists created a shockwave that felt like a bomb blast, cracking the earth beneath them.
Von created giant golem arms from the red mist to block the balisongs, but Romeo unleashed a massive "peacock" construct made of thousands of knives infused with blue energy. The metallic bird rained sharp blades down upon Von.
Realizing his golems couldn't withstand the blades, Von dissolved into the red mist. "He can merge with the smoke; he won't be easy to catch," Romeo thought. Von's mist territory expanded over a hundred meters, making it impossible for reinforcements to help. Romeo noticed rebels disappearing—Von was likely relocating them via the mist.
Suddenly, a massive hand formed from the smoke and snatched Romeo, slamming him into a building. He crashed through the walls, sliding across the floor inside.
"The environment favors him here," Romeo muttered, rising to meet Von's fist. Romeo took the blow to the face, stepped back, and delivered a retaliatory kick. Von caught his leg and tried to slam him into the wall, but Romeo's knives formed a protective barrier just in time.
The battle turned into a deadly game of hide-and-seek within the smoke-filled room. Von attacked from every direction, appearing and disappearing. Yet, Von grew anxious; Romeo was parrying every strike as if he knew exactly where Von would emerge. His energy was draining fast.
"He's parrying me as if he knows my every move. If this continues, I'll run out of energy," Von worried. He tried to grab Romeo's neck, but Romeo caught his arm mid-air.
"He stopped it that easily?"
Von jumped back, but Romeo blocked his retreat with a wall of knives. Trapped, Von tried to generate more smoke, but Romeo grabbed his throat and slammed him against the metal blades.
"Did you think this would be easy?" Romeo's blue aura flared, and his eyes glowed like fire. Thousands of balisongs swirled around them like a hurricane, shredding the interior of the building. The sound was an orchestra of destruction. An explosion rocked the structure, and a plume of red smoke escaped.
"Dammit!" Von groaned, escaping the building covered in cuts. His energy-based protection was being bypassed by Romeo's Diwata-powered weapons. Standing in the street, he looked at his bleeding body. "I don't have enough time to heal. I have to defeat him before my energy runs out."
Romeo walked out of the ruins, cloaked in blue light. "What's the matter? You weren't prepared for that. Actually—you don't even know how to fight it, because you've never learned to properly control the chakra in your bodies."
The knives gathered to form a colossal knight, seven meters tall, wielding a massive sword.
"You rely only on raw power," Romeo said. The knight brought its sword down on Von. The impact leveled the immediate area, sending dust and smoke echoing through General Trias.
Meanwhile, inside Hulyo's dimension, Abby and Peter were stunned. The dimension was an endless void of darkness, lit only by glowing crystals that looked like stars. Before them stood a nightmare: a powered-up Ursarion, overflowing with energy.
It stood eighteen meters tall and ten meters wide, with snake-like tentacles that writhed. The tentacles were snatching up unconscious Spaniards from the floor and feeding them into the monster's mouth like toys. The screams of the captives echoed in the dark.
Emil and Hulyo stood before the two soldiers. "Do you see the weapon that will liberate the Philippines?" Hulyo asked. "This is our last hope."
"What kind of madness is this?" Peter roared, his aura flaring.
"Calm down," Hulyo said. "We are in my dimension. There are ten thousand sleeping people here; it would be a shame if they died in our crossfire." Hulyo raised his hands in a gesture of peace, admitting he wasn't a fighter and couldn't win against a trained soldier like Peter. But he added a warning: "If you kill me, this monster will be unleashed directly into the heart of Cavite, causing even greater slaughter."
Abby asked what the true plan was. Hulyo explained that the Katipunan was an alliance formed to maintain order in the towns. "We still believe we aren't enemies of other Sugo like you. Living in peace? We love that idea. But as long as the Spaniards are here, it's an illusion."
Hulyo looked at the Ursarion. "We don't like sacrificing lives; it's a crime before man and God. But we have no choice but to follow Martin. He has proven he can achieve what we cannot." He pointed at the beast. "Martin's power created this. It eats living beings and turns them into a power source. Right now, fifty thousand people are inside it. Martin intends to feed it one hundred thousand Spaniards before the final battle."
Abby and Peter were horrified. "One hundred thousand? You've lost your minds!"
Emil smiled bitterly. "It is madness. It is inhumane. But in five hundred years of occupation, millions of Filipinos have died from Spanish abuse. What is one hundred thousand Spaniards compared to the millions of us they have killed and will kill?"
Outside, Romeo noted that Von was no longer using his mist to escape. He was panting heavily. "Your red mist costs too much energy, doesn't it?" Romeo taunted. "You're down to physical strength. You can only last ten minutes in a fight; Spanish Generals are trained to fight for over an hour."
"Don't underestimate me!" Von lunged with a desperate punch. Romeo met him head-on, their exchange like a violent dance. Romeo took some hits, but they were weak. Von was slowing down.
After a few minutes, Von was spent. Romeo sighed. "I don't want to kill someone weaker than me. Surrender, Von. Work with me, and live in peace."
"Surrender?" Von spat blood. "I have a dream to reach. I want a world where I can be with the one I love every day until we're old, in a country free from danger. That only happens when the Spaniards are gone. I'll do anything to make that happen!"
He forced a final flare of red aura. Romeo admired his resolve but knew he had to stop the chaos, even if it meant killing a countryman. But before they could clash again, a portal opened.
Hulyo stepped out with Abby and Peter. "Sorry to cut this short, but we're out of time. Our work here is done."
Hulyo pulled Von into the portal. "I'll release your men later, General. So please, let us leave."
"You think I'll just let you escape?" Romeo's knives circled him.
"if i were you, I wouldn't do that," Hulyo warned. "Your comrades can explain what we discussed. I gave you a very valuable piece of information as a favor. Let us go."
Romeo looked at Abby and Peter, who were looking at the ground in disappointment. He didn't know what Hulyo meant, but his siblings' safety was his priority.
"This won't be the last time we meet, Great General. The big battle is coming. Do what is right for the country," Hulyo said before the portal vanished.
Romeo didn't pursue them. He ran to Abby and Peter. They apologized for failing to help and for letting the rebels escape with captives.
"Don't worry about it," Romeo said seriously. "What matters is you're safe. Join the rescue teams and help the people."
The busy night in Cavite continued, the scars of battle evident everywhere, while Romeo's mind remained heavy with the weight of an endless war.
End of Chapter