Carried by the calm rhythm of the sea, the boats bearing Kario and his group drifted forward. Every crash of the waves and every footstep pressed into the sand added to the anxiety tightening around their chests. All of them gripped their rifles and kampilan blades, as if bracing themselves for any danger that might rise to meet them. Each step they took was bound by caution, balanced precariously with hope, both weighing heavily against their unease.
"Sharpen your senses, men..." Kario whispered.
Slowly, they approached the prison where the Tunduvan slaves were being held under the polo. Kario raised his hand, then quickly moved toward the captives. The slaves' eyes lit up the moment they saw the rebels. Kario immediately signaled for them to remain silent, to make no sound at all.
The Supremo's eyes dimmed as he took in their condition. He forced his mind away from the pitiful state of his fellow Tunduvans and anchored himself instead to the task of freeing them. This was the role Mayari had entrusted to him for this battle. One by one, he led the slaves out. Some he supported carefully, afraid that their bodies, so thin, so fragile, might break apart, their bones giving way beneath their own weight.
Meanwhile, some members of his group checked whether anyone had been left behind.
"All accounted for, Supremo," one of them said.
Kario nodded, and together they moved out of the prison. When sunlight finally touched the slaves, their true condition became painfully clear to Kario. Bruises and wounds covered their bodies; many of them were little more than skin stretched over bone, their eyes sunken deep into their faces. Kario clenched his fists, struggling to keep his tears from falling.
As they made their way back to the boats, Kario ordered some of the rebels to sweep every corner of the camp. They gathered whatever could still be used—weapons and supplies—before returning to the four boats they had brought.
"Who are you?" one of the slaves asked.
"We are the Penumbra," one of the rebels answered.
"Nanay..." a child whispered, clinging tightly to his mother's arm. "Are we... are we safe now?"
Tears streamed down the woman's face as she answered her child, "Yes... yes, my love..."
Meanwhile, the ikugan woman who had earlier been watching Wan so intently climbed onto one of the boats as well. "Naya, at last... at last, we're free!" a Kalanget woman said to her, embracing her tightly.
While hope filled the hearts of those on the boats, the emotions engulfing outside the camp itself stood in stark contrast.
The night of their escape through the forest of Banahaw returned to Mayari in full force. Nemo's demonic grin. His blood-red hair. His laughter as he slaughtered the soldiers who had tried to protect her.
"PRINCESS!!!" Agni shouted at Mayari, while Wan desperately shook her, trying to pull her back to herself.
As Mayari remained slumped on the ground, Masala began to advance slowly. But before he could move far, Bay-an grabbed Masala's leg with both hands.
"Hey... where do you think you're going!?" Bay-an rose slowly to his feet and stretched out his arm.
Masala's soldiers moved quickly to intervene, but Masala raised his hand to stop them. Bay-an attacked again, but Masala sidestepped once more and drove a punch into Bay-an's side. The impact rippled through the rebel's entire body as Masala's fist struck his ribs. Even so, Bay-an did not fall. He forced himself to remain standing. He drew in a deep breath, enduring the pain, then tried once again to punch Masala.
Masala moved faster. He slipped aside, ducked low, and with full force slammed his fist into Bay-an's jaw. Bay-an's body arched upward before crashing to the ground.
"BAY-AN!" The rebels standing in front of Mayari shouted his name, their bodies blocking him from Nemo's and Masala's view.
They all knew Bay-an. He would never want them to interfere in his fight. Even so, he now stood on the brink of death. Every one of them tried to move forward to help, but Bay-an released a hoarse, drowning shout: "DON'T INTERFERE!!"
Masala turned toward Bay-an's collapsed form, who was now forcing himself back to his feet. The young soldier shook his head and spoke, "I'm asking you... Please stand down."
Masala's plea entered Bay-an's right ear and exited through the left without leaving a trace. Bay-an ground his teeth as he forced himself upright. His jaw had nearly shattered from the force of Masala's earlier punch. Despite his knees shaking violently from his injuries, Bay-an still managed to stand and assume a fighting stance. His breathing was heavy; iron tasted inside his mouth.
His vision continued to sway, the fact is, he had briefly lost consciousness when he had fallen earlier. As this unfolded, Kuroy backed away toward Mayari to ask what they should do next, now that the Arbikizers stood directly before them. Kuroy felt a chill crawl up his spine when he saw the princess's condition. She was vacant, unresponsive, breathing rapidly as if gasping for air.
"W-what's happening here?" the Kuroy asked.
"I—I don't know either," Agni answered. "What's happening at the front!?"
"The Arbikizers—"
"Fuck..." Agni muttered.
"We're all going to die here..." Kuroy whispered, his voice thick with frustration and rage.
Back at the front, Bay-an stood again. Masala had just struck him down once more with a punch to his left eye, which was now swollen shut. As this happened, Masala ordered his soldiers (except Nemo) to move in and capture the 'terrorists'. But before they could advance, arrows rained down upon them from the rebels positioned atop the cliffs.
"Enough..." Masala said to Bay-an. "I don't want this... the smell of blood on my fists, the sound my fists make when they hit your body..." Masala's voice was heavy, drenched in grief. "For the love of the gods... please stand down..."
"St-stand down?" Bay-an's voice was broken, barely audible through the blood filling his mouth. "STAND DOWN!!?" Rage filled every syllable of the word as Bay-an forced himself upright once more.
At last, he stood again, despite his body trembling from his wounds... but more than anything, from hatred.
"DO YOU THINK WE ALSO WANTED THIS!!??" Bay-an's words exploded with fury and sorrow.
"DO YOU THINK WE WILLINGLY CHOSE THIS PATH!!??"
His breathing was fast and ragged, pain tearing through him with every word he forced out. "WE DIDN'T WANT THIS! WE DIDN'T WANT TO BE BORN ENSLAVED BY FOREIGNERS!"
Bay-an's blood now mixed with his saliva and tears. "NOT ONE OF US WANTED TO BE ABUSED BY THESE FOREIGNERS—OR BY OUR OWN COUNTRYMEN!"
His nails dug deep into his palms. "THE WAY YOU SPEAK—YOU SOUND LIKE A MAGINOO! FUCK ALL OF YOU!! YOU'RE TRAITORS! YOU SOLD OUT OUR OWN KINGDOM! YOU'RE THE REASON WE'RE SLAVES IN OUR OWN LAND!!!"
With trembling hands, Bay-an reached for the Bakal na Pira embedded in his right hand. His comrades' eyes widened in horror when they realized what he intended to do.
"BAY-AN, DON'T!" they shouted.
Despite the tears streaming down his face, Bay-an smiled as he slowly stepped toward Masala.
"If I can't attain freedom in this life..." he whispered, "Then I'll embrace the freedom death brings..."
"FRIENDS! FORGIVE ME—BUT IT LOOKS LIKE THIS IS AS FAR AS I GO! LIEUTENANT... I'M TAKING YOU WITH ME TO SULAD!"
As he tried to close the distance between them, he began forcefully prying the iron pira from his right hand. Masala exhaled sharply, hiding the ache twisting in his heart from the words spoken by the 'terrorist' before him. He moved instantly.
In a single moment, Masala appeared in front of Bay-an. Using his kampilan, he struck downward at Bay-an's back. Bay-an's blood spilled freely, followed immediately by a powerful kick to his temple. All of it happened in less than one second. Bay-an collapsed, unconscious.
"Tch... soft," Nemo muttered. He leaned against a tree, casually watching everything unfold.
"PENUMBRA!" Masala shouted once more. "IN THE NAME OF THE DATU AND THE KINGDOM OF TUNDUN! I PROMISE YOU ALL A FAIR TRIAL AND HUMANE TREATMENT! I BEG YOU—SURRENDER NOW!"
"Fuck, fair treatment!?" one of the rebels shouted back.
Amid the chaos, a single passage cut through the fog enveloping Mayari's mind, slowly lifting her back toward reality.
"Fair trial!? Damn it, maybe I'd believe that if it were Datu Rakta saying it!" another rebel yelled.
That name 'Rakta' echoed inside Mayari's mind. Slowly, it pushed aside the image of Nemo. It was as if a loud knock struck the door of the room where Mayari's consciousness had been hiding. A hand slowly wraps around her amid the fear. And with it, a voice heard through the chaos:
"Mayari, my moonbeam. The worth of a leader is tested not by the moment they succeed, but by how they rise when the world tells them to stay kneeling."
Slowly, Mayari clung to those words. Slowly, her breathing began to steady. Slowly, with Wan's help, Mayari forced herself to stand. She knew how her father had died fighting. And she would not allow all the suffering she endured to reach this moment to become meaningless. She would not allow her father's killers to escape.
She pressed a hand to her chest and fought to calm herself. She was still trembling, yes. Fear was still there. But alongside it now was a fierce will, to break free from the situation they were trapped in.
"Hey... how are you?" Wan asked.
"P-Princess?"
"I—I'm okay..." Mayari answered softly.
Her father's death had been the greatest blow of her life, but now, it was also the forge that allowed her to rise again.
"Hey, what happened to you?" Wan asked.
"I—I don't know either..." Mayari replied. She looked forward, several meters ahead of them. "What's happening now?"
"We've killed all the soldiers from the camp," Kuroy replied, "but the problem is... standing in front of us now are the Arbikizers, and with them is Aslon's youngest son..."
Kuroy looked forward again. "They also have a baylan with red hair. It looks like he can control the wind..."
Mayari nodded, and her breathing tightened once more as Kuroy described Nemo. She forced herself to calm her heart and regulate her breathing again as best as she can. Beyond that, it felt as though a towering wall now stood before them.
"Sixty soldiers are facing us right now, Dayang..." Kuroy added.
Mayari knew it would be suicide if they tried to face the Arbikizers head-on. Wan was strong, but he had nearly died the last time he fought Nemo. If not for Wan's Pira breaking, the young man would likely be dead by now. And they had nowhere else left to run. The young woman shifted her gaze to the rebels in front of her—exhausted, wounded.
"How are the slaves?" Mayari asked.
"At this moment, Supremo should have already gotten them away safely," Kuroy replied.
"Good..." She then turned to Wan. "Wan, you saw him, right?"
"Who? Nemo?" Wan answered. "Yeah. Honestly, I'm itching to fight him... but it looks like you need me more right now."
Mayari felt her ears heat up and immediately looked away from Wan. "W-well..." Mayari said as she cleared her throat. "Kuroy, Agni, listen to me." The two stepped closer to her.
"Wan," Mayari continued, her eyes sharp and filled with resolve, "you want to fight him, don't you?"
Wan grinned. "Heh. What's your plan?" Mayari smiled. "I want you to show yourself to him. Make sure he sees you—and... cause chaos."
"I've got that covered, hahaha..." Mayari grabbed Wan's arm, whispered another instruction, and placed something into his hand. A trace of displeasure crossed Wan's face, but he nodded anyway. Without hesitation, Wan walked toward the front.
He stretched, bracing himself for the danger ahead. He took his arnis from his side and spun it in his hands.
On the enemy's side, Nemo's gaze immediately locked onto Wan. The world seemed to quiet for Nemo alone. Moments later, it was as if Nemo's heart erupted like a volcano upon seeing him.
"WAAANNN!!!" Nemo screamed, laughing like a man who had lost his mind. His eyes widened, and his grin stretched nearly ear to ear. "YOU'RE HERE!!! YOU'RE HERE!! LET'S DANCE AGAIN!!!"
"Dance?" Wan replied. "I'm here to kill you." He smiled and tightened his grip on his arnis.
As this unfolded, Mayari ordered Agni to signal Islaw to continue firing their remaining arrows to slow the Arbikizers down. She also instructed that they begin descending from the cliffs. Afterward, she turned her attention back to her companions.
"Friends, we escape on my signal!"
"Escape?" some of the rebels asked. "But Dayang—"
Before they could finish, Kuroy cut in.
"Dayang Mayari is right. It's stupid to force a victory in an unwinnable battle."
He looked back at Mayari. "Thank Kan-Laon, you're all right, Dayang."
"Thank you for understanding, Kur—"
A massive explosion cut Mayari's words short. A thunderous voice echoed across the entire area. Nemo moved instantly toward Wan, sending Arbikizers flying out of his way as if they weighed nothing.
"GET OUT OF MY WAY!!!"
"NEMO! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?" Masala shouted at him, shocked by Nemo's actions.
"MOVE!!!" Nemo's voice boomed like thunder. He began chanting rapidly, like a fanatic praying to his idols. His hand glowed, and in an instant, a double-edged sword materialized in his grip.
He tightened his hold on the hilt, then swung it upward toward Wan, who stared back at him with a grin.
"Damn, still so cool to watch..." Wan muttered, tightening his grip on his arnis.
"STOP! THAT'S ENOUGH!!!" Masala shouted. "STOP HIM! TOO MANY HAVE ALREADY DIED!"
Mayari smiled when she heard Masala's raised voice, "As expected..." she said to herself. "Agni, Kuroy. Let's go." Her command was calm. The two nodded, and Agni swiftly lifted Mayari into his arms.
Back at the front, the Arbikizers rushed to restrain Nemo, but he unleashed a powerful gust of wind that sent them flying away. Nemo leapt into the air, sword raised, while Wan prepared to meet him with his arnis.
When Masala saw this, he moved instantly, throwing himself between them. It was as if a storm exploded upon their collision. Masala caught Wan's arnis with one hand, while stopping Nemo's sword with his own kampilan in the other. He twisted sharply, using the force of impact to hurl Wan and Nemo in opposite directions.
Wan flipped through the air and landed in a crouch. Nemo rolled across the ground, stopping only when his sword carved a deep groove into the dusty earth.
Masala rotated his hands, a flicker of pain crossing his face. "Shit," he muttered while shaking them out. "Those two are monsters."
His eyes stayed on Wan, narrowing slightly as if trying to read the young man's origin. "But that one... who is he?"
Amid the chaos, the rebels moved quickly to carry Bay-an's unconscious body. One by one, they fled into the dense forest, away from the camp.
Mayari's gamble had worked. From a distance, she forced herself to look toward Wan.
"Thank you, Wan..." she whispered, already thinking of her next move.
Back with the others, Masala helped several of his men back to their feet. Meanwhile, Wan charged to meet Nemo, his arnis moving like the sails of a ship cutting through the air.
Nemo swung his sword with a savage roar. The sheer weight of his strike produced a shockwave that rattled the entire area. Wan dodged just in time, the ground where he had stood moments earlier cracked apart.
Nemo slashed again in wide arcs, the force of the wind nearly knocking Wan over. But Wan recovered quickly, stepping backward to gain distance. Through it all, the grin never left his face.
"You feel kinda slow..." Wan taunted.
"Slow?!" Nemo snarled, his voice trembling with rage. "I'll crush you where you stand!"
Moments later, when the timing was right, Wan smiled and pulled out a small sphere, the one Mayari had given him earlier. He hurled it hard into the ground.
Thick smoke instantly engulfed the entire area. Wan took advantage of it and escaped at once. Even Nemo was caught off guard. When he regained his focus, he violently swept his hand, using the wind to clear the smoke. But when it dissipated—
Wan was gone.
Nemo's brows slammed together as he roared: "WWAAANNN!!! WHERE ARE YOU!!! COWAAARRDD!!!"
He was like an erupting volcano, consumed by rage. Meanwhile, Masala finally let out a long breath of relief. Nemo quickly focused his attention on Masala. "You! Why did you interfere in my fight!?"
"Why?" the young soldier asked. "Have you forgotten why you're here!?"
"Tch. Because you're soft, all of them escaped," Nemo said, while several Arbikizers began to stand up one by one.
"What did you say!?" Masala grabbed Nemo's collar tightly.
"You think I didn't notice your hesitation while you were fighting Curly?" Nemo whispered, his tone dripping with mockery. "How slow you were in giving orders to your soldiers? What do you think they'll say when they find out what you did?"
Masala froze. Nemo's words cut deeper than he wanted to admit. He couldn't deny it—because of his hesitation, the 'terrorist' escaped. And deep inside his heart, he knew the reason for that hesitation. Like the Penumbra, he doubted the ability of his older brother, Datu Sula, to deliver justice under Iberia's law.
While the two argued, the remaining members of the Penumbra had already reached a hidden cave several kilometers away from Kubiz. Agni carefully laid Mayari down on a smooth, flat stone slab. The cave was cold and damp; moss coated the walls and floor.
From the cave's depths, a gentle rush of water could be heard flowing toward a spring that shimmered faintly whenever it caught the light. Stalactites hung like sharp teeth, and the smell of earth mixed with the scents of blood and sweat from the rebels.
The scattered shafts of light created long shadows, giving a spirit-like glow to the exhausted warriors gathered inside. Several minutes passed before Mayari slowly opened her eyes and sat up.
"F - friends..." Mayari said weakly. Agni and Kuroy moved quickly toward her.
"My lady/Dayang!" the two said at the same time.
"Wan!? Is he here already?" the young woman asked quickly.
"Not yet, my lady..." Agni replied as he offered her water. "Do you want us to look f—" before Agni could finish, a voice sparked Mayari back to life.
"Oi, I'm here... hahaha, were you worried?" the young man asked her.
Mayari dipped her head slightly. "Asshole, you took forever..." Mayari's restrained smile was hidden in the curtain of her bronze-colored hair.
"HAHAHAHA. You're fine alright, you curse like a sailor again." Wan teased as he walked closer to her.
Agni didn't like what Wan said, but even he couldn't deny he felt relief upon seeing the kid. To the soldier, Wan was an important piece in Mayari's game. Beyond that, he also knew Wan mattered to Mayari, even if the princess would never admit it.
Mayari rose slowly, while Kuroy and Agni decided to leave the two alone for the moment. Wan sat beside the young woman and said, "Your plan worked."
Wan smiled and picked up the bottle of water beside Mayari, then handed it to her, Mayari's expression shifted slightly when she saw Wan drink from her bottle of water.
"Nemo practically went insane when he saw me," Wan added.
Mayari lifted her gaze to the cave's ceiling. "From our brief encounter in Banahaw forest, it's obvious Nemo lacks control." Her tone was calm, but the exhaustion still clung to every word.
"Every movement he makes is usually driven by a surge of emotion, like a dog chasing a bone. But because of that, he's easy to read." Wan nodded as he listened. Mayari's stare sharpened. "Nemo is violent because that son of a bitch is thirsty, for a good fight, for chaos. When you two fought the first time, he almost died. And yet, I will never forget his smile when Hiraya and I left him behind."
Mayari took a deep breath. "People like him are the kind of crazy who aren't afraid to die, as long as they get to taste a good fight."
Mayari smiled, there was even a trace of amusement on her lips. "Nemo is the opposite of Masala," she added, her voice gentle while carefully laying out her thoughts. "Unlike that monster Nemo, Masala is bound by honor and discipline, traits he likely inherited from his brother. For him, every fight must have purpose. Meaning. That's why Nemo's rabid-dog madness is the complete opposite of what he believes."
Mayari paused, as if she meant to look at Wan, but she immediately pulled her gaze away when she saw Wan looking right back at her. Mayari scratched the back of her neck and continued.
"Now, add yourself into the scene," she went on. "A young warrior not far in age from Masala. What do you think Masala will do if you put together all the ingredients, I just told you?"
Wan's smile returned, but now it carried admiration. "He'll try to stop Nemo," Wan concluded. "Not just because it's the right thing to do, but because he sees it as protecting people like him... children who are victims of chaos."
"Correct..." Mayari sounded like a teacher pleased to realize her student was following her logic. "As I said, Masala doesn't like using violence. And beyond that, he doesn't know you're almost like Nemo too, someone who goes feral when facing a strong opponent..."
Mayari's eyes hardened slightly, then softened again. "Deep in Masala's heart, he's a good person. That's why he'll stop Nemo, not because Nemo is disrupting the mission, but because it's the right thing."
Wan whistled when he heard Mayari's explanation. "Tsss. You really figured all that out from just one meeting with Nemo?"
"It isn't measured by how long you've known someone," Mayari said. "It's in the space between reading their words and their movements, especially their silence... all of that reveals who they are."
"Nemo is chaos. Masala is order." Mayari inhaled deeply before continuing.
"Once, Lakay Kuyo told me strength alone isn't enough. You also need to know when you should fight... and when you should retreat."
Mayari lay back down again, as if their conversation had exhausted her. Meanwhile, Wan just smiled, staring at the young woman. Mayari noticed it—her cheeks clearly reddened, and her ears grew hot.
"Fuck, why?" Mayari asked, as if irritated.
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Meanwhile, at one of Tundun's ports, a galleon docked carefully. Aside from the goods it carried, a tall woman stepped out of it. The wind blew and danced through her long, wavy hair, which looked like a flowing stream of black.
Her green eyes immediately examined the entire area. It was as if she were a lion waiting for any animal she could devour. Her sharp nose was striking, and her red lips stood out against her pale skin.
She paused before stepping down and breathed in the breeze carried by the wind. Her lips curved upward, and she said, "So this is Tundun..." her voice carrying a tenderness that was chilling.
"Do you smell that, Argo? The scent of blood and death..." From behind her, another even paler man emerged from her shadow.
There were stitch-like seams on both of his arms. The same on his face—running from the right side to the left. The man's face showed no expression; even his golden eyes looked like the eyes of a doll, waiting for movement from strings tied to him. The woman's smile widened, and then she stepped down from the galleon.