Warning: This chapter contains disturbing content that may be distressing for some readers. Please proceed with caution.
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Twenty years ago, the Republic of the Philippines was embroiled in a war with the international terrorist group NPA-ONE on the island of Mindanao. It was a dark and tumultuous period in Philippine history, one that threatened to plunge the country into anarchy.
On a rainy night at the Mindanao Western Command Headquarters in Wao, Lanao Del Sur, General Jhonnes, an undercover officer in the Philippine National Police's intelligence division and a spy for NPA-ONE, crept along the city walls.
His police uniform and black face mask blended into the darkness as he made his way to a tree near the training grounds. The heavy rain pounded the ground, the sound almost drowning out his light footsteps. The silver moon had hidden itself behind thick clouds, casting a shadowy veil over the landscape.
With his expert evasion skills, General Jhonnes managed to avoid the notice of the soldiers as he leaned against the tree, ready to carry out his secret agenda.
"A short moment later, a man in a black suit appeared from the shade of the tree.
"General Jhonnes, it's been a while," the man said, smiling. He was a spy, just like the one who had infiltrated the army's networks, Colonel Mandodadato.
"Enough with the greetings. Report," General Jhonnes said.
"Yes, sir. The ground army hasn't made any noteworthy movements. They seem content to surround our allies alongside the marine forces," Colonel Mandodadato said.
"Do you have the numbers?"
"Yes, there are about 50,000 men deployed from every battalion and another 30,000 non-personnel," the colonel replied.
General Jhonnes nodded with satisfaction. "Well done. Anything else to report?"
"There's something that caught my attention," Colonel Mandodadato said, his tone turning somber.
"Go on," the general prompted.
"There's a terrifying girl who recently joined the army. She's ranked number one amongst the military graduates nationwide, and the rumors about her insane capabilities are true. It's also said that she's an adoptive child of your superior and favored by President Luna," the colonel said.
General Jhonnes was shocked and remained speechless for some time. He had never thought the rumors were true and felt foolish for not considering them earlier.
It was so obvious if he thought about it. Since the girl was overqualified in any school, even managing to tap the highest score in national IQ tests, of course the President would scout this genius and snatch her up for who knows what.
It was no surprise that the girl in question was perhaps being used by the President to test her wits and resolve the problem of terrorists in the region. Or rather, he should have thought of this first. This was a serious oversight.
After all, they had already witnessed the power of the super-genius while the country was her playground.
"Does she have red-eye color?" General Jhonnes asked.
"That's right... So you know about her?" Colonel Mandodadato replied.
There were no doubts now. General Jhonnes sighed and nodded. "Yes, she killed the Abu Sayaf leader after all. It caused a big stir for the NPA-ONE higher-ups, and a bit later, news about his death will spread throughout the country."
"She killed that vicious leader! How is that possible?!" Colonel Mandodadato exclaimed, his eyes wide with shock.
General Jhonnes quickly checked their surroundings. "Maintain a low voice. In the beginning, I thought I misheard it too. But regrettably, this is the truth."
"My apologies. Now I can understand why she was highly favored by the President. But for that girl to kill the Abu Sayaf leader... Is it possible!?" Colonel Mandodadato said, deep in thought.
General Jhonnes couldn't afford to linger on public grounds, and urged Colonel Mandodadato to speak with a click of his tongue: "What is it? If you have a clue, then tell me!"
"Ah, yes, sir. I heard from my superiors that the girl used to have no background and had earlier been given an identity, and I suspect that she might have been raised in the secret society everyone talks about!" the colonel said.
"The Secret Society of the PhilSecta...? If that is true, then things will become complicated," General Jhonnes said. Battling those secret agents would be a tedious affair.
The two of them became silent at this juncture. A voice as clear as a bell then interjected amidst the noise of the rain. "You, mister, know too much~."
"What!?" The sudden voice made both of them leap to their sides. They drew their hand-sized guns and turned around to find a girl drenched in the rain. "Who are you!?" Colonel Mandodadato yelled.
"Hey, I recorded all of your conversations; if you want to talk about me, let me join your little secret affairs," the girl said, flicking her wet hair and showing a charming smile.
"Red-eyed girl..."
"It's her," the colonel said curtly.
"As I thought," the general said, swiftly taking out his gun and shooting the girl without warning. His pistol was custom-made for surprise attacks and had been painted black to blend in with the dark, making it best to use once the user is cornered.
The eyes of normal people wouldn't be able to discern the kind of gun he raised in this dark spot. But the girl side-stepped it easily with little movements. And most surprisingly, the gun has a silencer on it and she knows at the moment he will trigger a shot. The general continued shooting at her chest, arms, and legs, but none of them found their mark. The bullets all disappeared into the dark as if he had used them carelessly. She dodged all of them... Interesting. As one would expect from a super genius," General Jhonnes thought to himself, licking his lips and closing in on the girl quickly.
The girl didn't move or even draw her licensed gun, just looking at him with a smile. This was the pride of someone who had absolute confidence in her prowess. When he thought this far, Jhonnes felt a sudden chill down his spine. A feeling he had never had before coursed through his body. It was different from killing intent and was something more horrifying. If he had to describe it with a word, it would be the feeling of imminent death.
"This feels bad! I have to pull away and see what she does," the middle-aged general thought, firmly believing in his instincts. He understood that it could be the difference between life and death, as he was also a soldier.
And the truth was, his intuition had already helped him escape from certain death several times. However, he was very close to the girl, and it might be more dangerous to take evasive actions now. And from the way the girl dodged his bullets, her riposte might prove fatal, General Jhonnes' mind starting to churn at high speed.
"Should I attack with the resolve to die? Or should I evade it at the risk of death? One of these two choices," he thought, trying to decide what to do.
In an instant, Jhonnes made his decision. When his pistol entered close range, he intentionally dropped the gun in his right hand.
"Why?..." the girl said, puzzled and looking incredulously at the weapon he abandoned, unable to tell the goal of this move. A hidden ice pick sprang out from his left sleeve, and he thrust it at the girl's throat. The attack from her blind spot was a brilliant plan, however...
"H-How is this possible?" Jhonnes said in despair as the girl turned her body to evade the attack and used her momentum to draw her sharp bolo from behind her back. Her move cut through bone and sinew, and the sound it made reverberated in Jhonnes's brain. He felt like he was in moving to another world, and his vision turned dark.
"Hmmph, that's an intriguing counterattack. Unfortunately, you are too slow. You need to work on your training and great determination to improve," Anna said as she sheathed her sword and whispered to the general, who was bisected at the waist.
Of course, the dead could never answer. This eerie scene made Colonel Mandodadato shiver. It wasn't because of the cold from the rain, but pure fear for the girl.
"I like rainy days... not the acidic ones, of course," Anna said, looking up at the sky and saying something out of the blue.
The colonel backed away with trembling steps and asked: "Wait a minute, what are you talking about?"
"Because no matter how much blood gets on my hands, the rain will wash them away. Don't you think that's great? The pleasure of killing is an art," Anna said, turning to the young man with dance-like steps. Her face, covered by the blood and the rain, had a bright smile.
She was a super genius named Anna Montes, the adoptive child of AFP Chief Conrado Cecilio, and the one who topped the NIQT nationwide. It is rumored that she has an IQ of over 400, and no one knew where she came from.
But aside from that, she was a typical beautiful Filipina girl in appearance, except for the bloody eyes she had. Her age was still unknown and everyone speculated that she was between 18 and 20 years old.
"WHHHHAAAAGHHH!!!" Mandodadato turned and ran.
Jhonnes, who was one of the most skilled amongst the terrorists, had been killed by the girl in seconds. Mandodadato had survived many battles and was confident in his abilities, but despite all that, he didn't dare challenge this foe.
"In the event of an emergency, I have already confirmed an escape route. There is only one thing I can do. Survive and report whatever intel I have to the NPA-ONE. I can't die to this demon here," he thought to himself.
However, the colonel fell flat on his face after running a few steps. The mud got into his throat, and he coughed intensely. He tried to get up, but his legs wouldn't move. When he propped up his body and looked at his feet, his legs below the knees were gone, and blood was gushing out.
"WHAAAAAGHHHH!!!" he screamed in pain.
"Pardon me, brother. I swung my long sharp bolo instinctively when you tried to run. Let me return these to you," Anna Montes said, jogging over and placing his legs before him.
"I heard everything you two were saying, so I know you are a spy. Urgh... I badly want to r*pe the life out of you, but I need your life for my mission... for the president too!" she said, kneeling and saluting, showing an innocent smile.
Her figure was just like that of a devil or an incarnation of one of the Bible's prominent devils. To escape from the pain and fear, the young man gave up his grip on consciousness.
---
Early morning in Wao, Lanao Del Sur, the PNP Headquarters and nearby camps were in chaos.
The reason was Anna Montes, the adoptive daughter of the old AFP Chief, Conrado Cecilio, who was holding the half-upper body of a man in her left hand and dragging a legless man with her right, leaving trails of blood on the floor as she walked boldly through the headquarters.
The policemen on standby at the entrance immediately informed Conrado, and Anna was quickly sent to an interrogation room for questioning.
Conrado and Anna sat opposite each other in the interrogation room, with a table between them.
General Jose Raulio, a young, thin man who was in his pajamas, stood behind Conrado with a smile. "Do I have to continue to sit here? I want to go back and sleep already," Anna said, pressing the button on the table. Conrado didn't answer, as they had had this conversation plenty of times already, and he had grown weary of it.
In his 50 years in the military, Conrado had seen all kinds of soldiers. However, he had never met a soldier like his daughter.
Less than a week after her graduation and stationed at this battleground, she had killed the notorious terrorist leader inside their circle and caught the spies who had already set down roots in the brigades.
There had never been a soldier who had produced such results. But Conrado couldn't just stand around in surprise. He heard footsteps and looked outside, and received some documents from the person who was walking briskly to the interrogation room.
Inside was the investigation report on the body left on the training grounds. The report confirmed that the lower body belonged to a NPA-ONE ringleader.
Jose Raulio reported that the evidence they had gathered was a relief, including the recorded video on his pad. He had also taken the precaution of having several elites hidden in the interrogation room, which turned out to be unnecessary as the colonel's condition was stable. Once he recovers, he will undergo further interrogation.
"We have secured the evidence," Jose added. "Private Anna is right, they are spies."
Anna stretched her back and grumbled, "It's finally over. I already told you so many times, Father."
AFP Chief Conrado scowled at her and said, "Watch your tone. Military regulations must be followed strictly. I can't just take your words at face value. I'm your superior!"
Anna quickly replied, "Yes, Sir! I hear and understand!" Despite her words, she looked unhappy as she puffed out her cheeks. Despite her impressive skills, at the moment she resembled a teenage girl.
Conrado felt a mix of emotions as he awkwardly smiled at her. He had a question on his mind and asked, "Private Anna, how did you uncover the spies?"
Anna puffed out her chest with pride as she replied, "Yes, Sir. I was strolling outside when I noticed someone acting suspiciously. I followed them and saw them whispering to another person. I recorded their conversation for evidence and realized they were terrorist spies. Don't you think I'm awesome, Sir?"
"How elegant of you to take a stroll in such heavy rain," Conrado remarked.
"Yes, Sir, I love rainy days!" Anna replied boldly.
"But didn't you know there's a curfew at night, and the rain is polluted nowadays?" Conrado asked.
"Oh, yes, Sir, I had forgotten about that," Anna said sheepishly.
Conrado couldn't help but furrow his brow at her response. He heard Jose Raulio stifle a laugh behind him and cleared his throat in protest. "Never mind, I will overlook your breaking of rules this time, but don't violate any more orders... Anyway, you did well this time. To be honest, the problem of spies has been troubling us."
"Yes, Sir! Thank you for your compliment," Anna said gratefully.
Conrado, the old man and AFP Chief, had long suspected that spies had infiltrated the military and police intelligence networks. However, with 50,000 troops and thousands of non-combatants, it was almost impossible to weed them out.
A representative from Conrado had already launched a secret investigation, but they had failed to obtain any leads. Anna's accomplishment far outweighed the violation of her orders, and Conrado felt ashamed both as her father and superior.
"Alright then, Private Anna. In return, we will give you a bonus salary shortly for your accomplishment. You are dismissed," Conrado said as he stood up, his countless medals swaying in sync.
However, Anna showed no intention of standing up and instead muttered, "Bonus salary... huh," with a sour expression.
"What's the matter? Not happy about your bonus salary?" Conrado asked.
"Yes, Sir, if possible, I want to become a personal secret agent of President Luna!" Anna said firmly.
For a moment, Conrado thought he had misheard her, but when Anna repeated herself, he realized he had heard her correctly. Instead of money, she preferred that specialized job, which made Conrado wonder if she had been raised by failures.
"Why do you want to become a secret agent of hers?" Conrado asked.
"Because I admire the President very much. Serving her at her side is my ultimate wish. That's why I worked very hard and became more intelligent. Also, I heard she created a secret society all by herself, PhilSecta! I want to become a member of that place!" Anna replied excitedly.
"I see. And what is this PhilSecta?" Conrado asked.
"Huh? PhilSecta is a secret society no one knows about," Anna said, looking surprised as if to say, "You don't even know that?"
Conrado suppressed his anger and glared at his daughter. "Of course I've heard the rumors about PhilSecta. I'm asking you who told you about it."
"Oh, it was nothing worth remembering. My apologies, Sir," Anna said nonchalantly.
Conrado slammed his fist on the table in anger, regretting his loss of control in front of Anna, who always seemed to be able to push his buttons.
As Conrado nursed his temples to calm down, Anna leaned towards him and asked, "Are you alright, Father?"
This only served to enrage Conrado further, and he almost yelled at her, but managed to swallow his words. He knew that Anna was the only person who could shorten his patience so quickly.
Jose Raulio patted Conrado's shoulders gleefully and stood before Anna. "AFP Chief, please calm down. Aren't you always composed? This isn't like you at all."
Anna looked at General Jose Raulio with a baffled expression. She only knew his name from an unofficial occasion.
"Private Anna, we must not assert our own agendas to the President. However, we will ask her executive secretary if the President has free time in her schedule and try to organize a formal meeting," Conrado said.
Anna reacted dramatically, her eyes shining like gems as she broke into a brilliant smile, the kind that is unique to young girls.
Conrado's anger dissipated as he was mesmerized by the beauty of his daughter.
Without making a sound, Anna jumped up happily from her chair, grabbed her father's shoulders, and shook him. Jose nodded with a smile.
"Haha, I see. In that case, we will send an official letter right away along with the bonus salary shortly," Jose said.
"Really!? That's great!" Anna exclaimed.
"Watch your tone and be aware of your place when speaking to your superiors!" Conrado reminded her sternly.
"It's fine, I'm dressed like this, after all, AFP Chief. It's okay to let loose a little. And to Private Anna, I look just like a big brother to her. There's no problem," Jose said with a chuckle.
As Jose is about five years older than Anna, it's fair to say that the three of them have a bond like a family.
"You make my life shorter..." Conrado sighed.
"AFP Chief, sir. This is an unofficial setting. And, Private Anna," Jose said, his tone becoming calm as he switched from his persona of a kind brother to that of a superior.
"...!"
"Despite how I'm dressed right now, I'm still in charge of the whole Mindanao western command. I have to set an example for everyone. You have to be careful with your tone when speaking to me during formal settings. Alright, you can go back and rest now," Jose said sternly.
"Yes, Sir! I understand. Private Anna will now go back and rest," Anna replied, saluting with a complicated expression. She muttered, "Military rules and etiquettes sure are complicated" as she opened the door. As she exited the interrogation room, she yelled, "Yes, I will finally meet her again!"
"She killed the AbuSayaf leader and apprehended spies... I thought she would be an inventor or researcher, but she's pretty enough to star in a play. She has an interesting personality too. As expected of the President when it comes to scouting the best talents and geniuses," Jose said with a faint smile on his face.
"General Jose Raulio Batombakal, this isn't funny. She has proven her abilities with this incident, but the way she holds herself is no different than an energetic, lawless kid. I will need to educate her properly as her father," Conrado said sternly.
"Well, this isn't the proper place to learn etiquette and common sense, so don't overdo it, Chief," Jose said as he left the room.
Conrado, now alone, collapsed onto his chair and let out a long sigh. The image of the spy's corpse he had seen before the interrogation flashed across his mind. It was the first time Conrado had seen a corpse that had been bisected along the waist. Anna's prowess and mental toughness were evident.
Conrado thought to himself that perhaps letting Anna Montes execute the plan that he had given up on might be a good option. He sat in his office, looking at his high-tech pad and muttered, "Honestly, President Luna could easily solve this problem in as little as a few days. Or is she giving us a chance to gain solid validation from the public?"