⚔️ Chapter 31: The Sugo's Heart in the Plaridel Darkness
At the edge of Plaridel, where the squatter area could be seen, stood patched-up houses that reflected the residents' poverty. As a massive manhunt swept through Plaridel, the police raided the homes of Filipinos, ruthlessly dragging people out and forcibly arresting those suspected of aiding "Hustisya" (Justice).
They brutally beat many of them to subdue any resistance during the arrests. Some Filipinos' faces were bloody and bruised, while children wept, clinging tightly to their parents.
"Have mercy, Sir! My father hasn't done anything wrong!" cried a nine-year-old girl as a policeman dragged away her father, Mang Tonio.
"Senior, we can discuss this, I'll pay a fee, just please don't imprison me," Mang Tonio pleaded.
A forceful slap landed on the man's cheek, drawing blood from his lip.
"Stop resisting and come quietly, indio!" the policeman roared, shoving Mang Tonio face-first onto the ground. His wife screamed, but she too was shoved and fell into the mud.
Across the way, Aling Rosa, an elderly vendor, stood trembling with fear. "I know nothing about Hustisya, I beg you, don't treat us this way!" she pleaded, but a policeman slapped her, sending her stumbling onto the dirt. Her grandchild screamed upon seeing the police abuse their grandmother, "Don't! Have mercy on my grandmother, she's sick!" but the policeman kicked the child, who was thrown back and writhed in pain.
The police continued their cruelty, seizing men and women, including young people like Isabela, a student, and Pedro, a farmer.
They also destroyed the shanties and tore down the tents, scattering the Filipinos' belongings across the ground. The homes of the Filipinos in that area were plunged into chaos, yet they could do nothing but weep and beg for mercy.
"If you do not surrender Hustisya, we will take all of you to prison!" shouted the police commander, a Spaniard who cast a sharp gaze at the women.
He grabbed a young woman, holding her face while scrutinizing her from head to toe. "Except for you. I will not give you punishment, but pleasure."
He pulled the woman toward his vehicle. As she struggled and screamed, he punched her in the stomach, forcing her to her knees.
The policeman grabbed her hair and dragged her toward the car. He ordered his men to arrest everyone present and charge them with aiding a terrorist.
The crowd screamed as the police blatantly arrested everyone there, young and old alike.
In the midst of the mayhem, a woman appeared atop a pole by the roadside. Her white hair shimmered as it danced in the wind, and her eyes burned with intense fury.
Ifugao leaped onto the roof of a shanty, gripping her magical fan.
Her heart was heavy with the oppression she witnessed; she couldn't believe what she was seeing. All she could think of now was saving the innocent people.
"Stop this!" Her shout echoed through the entire area, silencing the people.
The captives stopped crying, their eyes fixed on Ifugao. Her white hair seemed like a beacon of hope in the darkness that enveloped the area.
A man whispered, "It's Ifugao! The one who fought the terrorists in Pangasinan!" The murmurs spread through the crowd, filled with awe and hope.
"The hero of Pangasinan, is she here to save us?" another asked.
"You're the one in the news, fighting the rebels in the mountains, aren't you?" a policeman questioned. "Why are you here, Ifugao?"
Ifugao looked at them, her voice calm but authoritative. "I am here to warn you to stop oppressing the people of Plaridel."
But the police commander, a Spaniard with an arrogant smile, laughed. "Who are you to show such insolence here, indio? These people are criminals, conspiring to kill Spaniards! They are violating the government's law!"
Ifugao did not believe the policeman's words and continued to look at the captives—farmers, vendors, children—faces of innocence.
"You cannot accuse them of being criminals without sufficient proof," she said with a firm voice. "I implore you, release them or grant them due process and respect as citizens of this country."
"How dare you command us, indio!" the policeman sneered, his smile replaced by anger.
"We will not listen to the likes of you! You are a criminal just like them, you also oppose the Spanish rule. So it's only natural that you would side with your fellow criminals!"
"I am not a criminal," Ifugao replied, her courageous gaze unwavering. "I despise violence, and I believe I wouldn't need to fight you if you treated my countrymen justly."
But the policeman laughed again, joined by his men. "We need to discipline indios like you to teach you a lesson and learn to obey the law!" he shouted, pointing at the pathetic captives. "If you didn't break the law, you wouldn't suffer like this!"
Ifugao saw the bloody faces of the men, the bruises on the women's arms, and a child weeping while embracing her mother.
She heard the children pleading, "Please help my mother! I beg you!" A pang of sympathy shot through her chest, intensifying her anger, but she took a deep breath to calm herself.
"I will give you one last chance," she said calmly, her tone serious. "Treat them properly and grant them due process of law. Even if they have violated your law, you need to prove it without using violence."
The police commander merely guffawed, as if dismissing Ifugao's words. "We are the law here, indio! You are in Plaridel, Spanish territory! You have no right to boast here and command us what to do."
Ifugao closed her eyes, continuing to calm herself. Her heart was heavy because even though she wished to end everything peacefully, she knew it wouldn't happen due to the arrogance of the Spaniards before her. "If your heads are so hard, I have no choice," she said. "I may not be from here, but I will not be silent while my fellow Filipinos are being abused."
Blue energy emanated from Ifugao's body, and with a mere flick of her fan, it transformed into two arnis sticks, which she caught with confidence. "You will regret your arrogance," she declared, her eyes blazing with determination.
The police commander laughed in a challenging tone, mocking the arnis in her hands. "Your weapon is just a small piece of wood, indio? Are those toys?" he taunted, and his men chuckled. The police raised their guns and aimed at her.
Ifugao was surrounded by twelve policemen with their rifles pointed at her. "You are in our territory, Ifugao! You cannot fight us!"
Ifugao bravely challenged them. "Try me," she said with conviction.
The fight erupted as the first policeman fired. In a flash, Ifugao leaped sideways, the bullet missing and hitting a pole.
Her arnis spun in her hands like twin whirlwinds, and with a swift attack, she struck down the first policeman, his rifle falling into the mud. "What happened? She moves so fast."
His companions froze in shock, but quickly charged when their commander yelled at them.
The battle continued, Ifugao bravely confronting them. One of the policemen tried to slash her with a sword, but Ifugao spun one arnis, grabbing the man's wrist, then managed to kick the policeman, sending him flying into a vegetable cart.
Another charged from the right, rifle ready, but with a rapid spin, Ifugao struck his knee, causing the policeman to collapse to the ground, howling in pain.
They were helpless against her, tossed aside like toys with every blow. No matter what they did, Ifugao could evade their bullets, even at extremely close range.
Meanwhile, the Filipinos watching from the sidelines cheered at what they saw, their eyes shining with hope, though they dared not speak aloud. The children shouted, "You can do it, Ifugao!"
"Kill that indio monster!" the commander yelled, and three policemen simultaneously charged, firing their rifles. Ifugao leaped onto the roof of a shanty to evade the shots, while the bullets shattered the wooden walls beneath.
Seeing the policemen reloading, Ifugao threw her arnis, striking two policemen on the head, knocking them unconscious.
She jumped down, kicking another across the street, but as she turned, a bullet met her forehead, momentarily stunning her.
"She's hit!" the shooter yelled, but his joy was quickly replaced by shock as Ifugao turned to face him, unharmed, without even a scratch. "I-I-I know I hit her in the head!" the policeman stammered.
The arnis she had thrown earlier returned to Ifugao's hand on its own, and she immediately leaped up, kicking the policeman who shot her in the head, instantly knocking him out.
The policemen couldn't believe it, realizing that bullets couldn't penetrate Ifugao either. The police commander was furious and screamed, "Use the shotgun!" A policeman pulled out a large gun, its muzzle pointed at Ifugao.
While Ifugao was fighting two other policemen, treating them like children's toys, she didn't notice the shotgun aimed at her.
The policeman fired, the deafening blast echoing as Ifugao was suddenly thrown back by the impact to her body and fell to the ground. Fear gripped the captives, dread filling the silence as their expected hero lay motionless in the mud.
The policemen cheered, shouting victory, "The indio is dead!" But only seconds later, Ifugao stood up as if nothing had happened, with only a superficial scratch on her skin.
"No bullet or blade can kill a sugo like me," she declared, her voice filled with fierce resolve.
The faces of the policemen paled with terror, as even the shotgun had failed to kill their opponent. "Impossible!" the police commander screamed, but Ifugao didn't give him a chance to act. She attacked the commander, her arnis spinning like a whirlwind.
She struck one policeman's shoulder, making him fall, and snatched his rifle with her left hand to throw it far away, where it struck a tree.
Another tried to stab Ifugao in the back, but she parried the blade with an arnis, spun around and kicked his back, knocking him unconscious to the ground.
The Filipinos cheered, the children shouting as if in song, "Ifugao! Ifugao!" Two policemen attempted to flee toward their car, but Ifugao leaped forward, immediately punching one in the face and kicking the other, who slammed into a wall so hard that he was instantly knocked out.
The commander screamed in utter rage, "Don't leave me here, cowards!" In panic, he ran in a different direction, hiding behind a shanty amidst the trash cans.
Ifugao immediately pursued him, her steps calm yet purposeful. With a swing of her arnis, she knocked over the boxes to expose the hiding policeman.
"Your arrogance ends here," Ifugao said. The policeman tried to grab a sword and moved to attack, but with a swift blow to the head, the commander fell and was instantly knocked unconscious in the mud.
The battle ended without bloodshed. Ifugao freed the captives from their restraints and helped the elders like Aling Rosa to stand. Children ran to embrace their parents. "Go home," she said, "and rest. Do not come out tonight."
Ifugao ensured everyone left, standing in the center of the squatter settlement with her arnis planted in the ground. The people thanked her as they departed, their eyes full of hope.
The young boy approached her, his eyes shining. "Thank you, older sister Ifugao! It's good that you came!" he said, and Ifugao smiled as she ruffled the child's hair.
But suddenly, an unnerving presence engulfed the area. The air around her grew cold, making her body tremble. She immediately knew a powerful entity was close by, yet she couldn't see it.
Her eyes darted around, scanning the surroundings for the source of the presence, but the area was silent, with no trace of enemies, save for the faint rustle of the wind.
"Leave here now, hurry!" she urged the few remaining residents.
She leaped onto a pole, gripping her arnis tightly, searching for the source of the presence. She had felt that immense power once before when she faced a general in Pangasinan.
"Who are you? Show yourself!" she cried out, but it did not answer. Her heart pounded faster as she sensed this was no ordinary enemy.
After only a few seconds, a presence rushed in behind her. Before she could turn, a massive fist emerged from the darkness, striking her back like lightning. The force of the attack hurled her into a shanty, scattering wood and kicking up dust.
She felt the pain in her body—something she hadn't expected to endure. She knew that only a power originating from nature could inflict such severe pain on a sugo like her.
She immediately realized that another sugo must be responsible for the attack. She sensed another attack approaching, so she quickly stood up and leaped onto the roof of another shanty.
She scanned the surroundings for the gigantic fist, her eyes sharp, observing the darkness.
Ifugao released energy, and her arnis glowed with blue light, gradually turning into a red sword with a built-in gun, ready to meet the next attack.
In the surrounding silence, the presence intensified, seemingly challenging her. Suddenly, she noticed a shadow obscuring her position, as if a massive being were standing directly above her.
She looked up, her eyes widening in disbelief at the sight of a colossal fist made of roots and stone, the size of a bus, rapidly descending to crush her.
She tried to block the attack with her sword, which throbbed with her power, but the force of the fist was simply too great. Her feet sank into the roof, and the structure beneath her crumbled, sending her flying back inside the shanty.
The fist followed, entering the house to crush her, the sound of each punch echoing and causing widespread destruction.
After a moment, the fist flew away again, tightly gripping Ifugao, the fingers squeezing her. Ifugao struggled to break free, but it hurled her to the ground, her body carving a hole in the earth.
For the first time, she coughed up blood, stopping due to the agony she felt. But she knew she couldn't rest, sensing the gigantic fist was still nearby.
She stood up, tightly gripping her sword, its blade glowing with energy, ready to face the attack.
As the fist charged again, Ifugao unleashed an attack, her sword emitting a fiery energy that sliced the fist in two.
The parts of the fist fell to her sides, and silence once again reigned. She didn't know if the battle was over, but the presence of the sugo that commanded the gigantic fist remained.
She screamed, "Who are you? Show yourself! What do you want?" There was no answer to her questions, only deafening silence. After a few seconds, she heard the rustling of wheels to her left and turned.
There, she saw a human figure in a wheelchair, which made her heart uneasy. She didn't know why, but the presence of that person emanated the energy of a sugo.
This old man was wearing elegant white clothing, suggesting wealth. "Who are you? Did you attack me? Are you a sugo of the diwata?" Ifugao asked.
The old man merely smiled, silently observing her. Ifugao slightly lowered her sword to speak to him further but stopped when she noticed the insignia on his clothing. "Those markings... like the general in Pangasinan," she thought, recognizing the badge of a Spanish official. She realized the sugo before her might be an ally of the Spaniards.
She gripped her sword, instantly preparing herself for a fight, but she paused as she noticed her opponent's attack. She didn't anticipate the speed of the assault; time seemed to slow down as she saw two gigantic fists rushing toward her, emerging from both sides.
"I can't evade them," she thought. In an instant, the fists collided like clapping hands, crushing her between their palms. Silence enveloped the area as she remained trapped inside.
When the fists separated, Ifugao fell, her body weakened. She spat up blood, her arms trembling. Nevertheless, she forced herself to stand up.
As she slowly rose, a fist suddenly grabbed her, seizing her and throwing her into a shanty. As the sun set and darkness enveloped the night, a fist clutched her body and smashed her against a wall to ensure she wouldn't fight again.
The residents, hiding inside, lay prone on the floor in terror of being caught in the crossfire, praying out of fear and helplessness at the unfolding events.
Dust billowed around, and when the floating fist rose upward, it held the unconscious Ifugao, bloody, her white hair swaying in the wind.
The fist ascended higher, carrying her toward the darkness of the night. The surrounding Filipinos who witnessed the event were stunned by what happened to Ifugao, their hearts heavy with fear and full of questions. Who was behind this attack? Where was Ifugao taken?
"Ifugao... I hope you're okay," the child whispered, worried about his hero.
Plaridel was once again covered by the shadow of uncertainty and hope, as the people whispered pleas and prayers for the hero who had saved them.
End of Chapter