• • • ☾︎ third person's pov
"HELP! PLEASE someone help me!" sigaw ng isang lalaking nakaporma nang parang isang businessman habang nakaluhod at nagmamakaawang 'wag siyang patayin. Pero wala. Wala na siyang magagawa dahil sa ngisi pa lang ng dalawang tao na nasa harapan niya, sigurado na ang kalalagyan ng buhay niya.
"Ha!" The guy in front of him chuckled as he aim the gun he's holding to the latter. "Help? Did you think of that when you extort money from those poor people? Halos wala na silang makain and there you are being a leech to them. Naisip mo ba 'yon?"
Hindi nakasagot pa ang lalaking nakaupo at napayuko na lamang dahil sa tindi ng presensiya na pinapakawalan ng dalawang tao sa harapan niya. Nanginginig din siya sa takot dahil nakaamba sa kanya ang baril ng lalaki habang nakamasid naman sa kanya ang babae.
Sa isip-isip nito, pagbabayarin niya ang dalawang taong nasa harap niya ngayon sa oras na makatakas siya sa lugar na iyon. Kampanteng-kampante siya na maililigtas siya ng mga tauhan niya at makakatakas mula sa pinagkulungan sa kanya. Ngunit ang hindi niya alam, mas mautak ang dalawang kaharap niya.
"Axle," the woman called the man, impatiently. "What are you waiting for? Bakit hindi mo pa siya tuluyan? A lot more calls are waiting for us."
"Later, my dear Jacinth," Axle brushed his hair. "This man deserves to suffer. He's a politician but he never cares for the townspeople."
Matalim na tinignan ni Axle ang lalaki ngunit loloko-loko nitong sinalubong ang kanyang mga tingin, tila hindi natatakot. Tila hindi kilala ang dalawang ito.
"Hah!" biglang sigaw ng lalaking nakaluhod, pinapakitang hindi siya nasisindak. "You think you can kill a high-ranking government official like me? Hindi niyo pa yata ako nakikilala?"
Axle smirked that scared the hell out of him. "Kami ang hindi mo kilala."
Bang!
The loud gunshot resonated the whole room along with the screams of pain of the politician as he tried to stop the bleeding of the wound on one of his legs.
"W-what the hell?" nauutal niyang sambit.
Axle grinned. "That's just one shot."
"W-why are you doing this? Para kuhanan ako ng pera?! Fine! Take everything I have, wala akong pake! You'll barely see the sun shine tomorrow anyways."
"Do you still think that it's about the money?" singit ni Jacinth. "Well mister, for your information, that's not what we want."
"T-then what?"
"It's justice. Justice for all the victims of this trashy system."
"And..." Axle trailed. "Remember this, once you see us, expect hell."
Loud shouts reverberated in the entire room. Hours passed before the agony pf the politician came to an end— when a bullet pierced right through his heart.
Axle washed the blood off his hands. Mariin niyang kinukuskos iyon na para bang maaalis niya ang mga kasalanang nagawa na ng kamay na iyon. Pero kahit anong kuskos niya, hindi na iyon mawawala pa. The bloodstains were like etched on his skin. The dirt were tattoed. The screams were recorded. The scene was made into a memory.
For them, this is what justice looks like. They've put justice in their hands without knowing they're making another crime again.
They're not sane anymore. And this is the meaning of HELP to them.
*𝐇𝐄𝐋𝐏#
They revived the hotline number, not for the depressed but for the OPPRESSED. The remade hotline number was made for the poor, for the discriminated, for those people who are treated unfairly. And they seek their own kind of justice.
Just the two of them.
Ring!
"Hello? This is *HELP#, how may I help you?"
END OF BOOK 1