Panic started to fill my whole body. It was hard to believe that after all this time, we were actually in grave danger. They were right under our noses and we were totally clueless. Just like puzzles put together, everything made sense. The encounter with the Rosarios inside the bus twice was not just a coincidence. It was planned. They were following us. They were following us all along! The question was how much of our ideas had they taken a note of? Was it many? Was it enough to spoil the whole plan and put into danger all the people we loved? Will it put Commander Hilda and Commander Lorry's lives into jeopardy?
As I continued to contemplate this terrifying realization, I felt every hair in my arms rise on their own free will and my heart pump in such a way that it could compete to the loudness of an actual strike of a bass drum. Every second that passed, my breathing had gone heavier and heavier. My mind had said nothing but the word, Shit! Shit! Shit! Slowly its tone in my mind turned louder and louder until it turned unbearable. It was so unbearable that it made the subconscious transform into something conscious when I finally shouted, "Oh shit! Shit!"
My voice was so loud that my companions instantly got up, extremely startled with my unexpected commotion.
"Mother of all bitches! Did something just happened?" Alexander asked as he rubbed his eyes.
"Al, we are being followed the whole time!" I answered worriedly. "They were right under our noses all along!"
"What made you say that?" Kate asked with a puzzled look.
"Look!" I handed her the phone.
Instantly, she grabbed it and read the message on the phone. After a few seconds, Kate's face paled as she widened her eyes and gasped, "Oh my!"
"Let me see that," Alexander spoke as he kneeled beside Kate. At the moment he read the message, he breathed heavily as said, "Holy fuck!"
"Guys, relax," Christopher comforted. "You are all safe here."
"How about our base in Tacloban City?" I asked worriedly. "They... They might be in danger!"
"Don't worry," Christopher assured. "Everything is going to be fine. I am going to tell this to Commander Hilda in the morning."
"I can't sleep in this situation," I shook my head. "This is terrifying. I-I should have known."
"Bro, you need to relax," Christopher rubbed my back. "Everything has a solution. Just calm down, especially that you need to be in tiptop shape when the ceremony happens by the morning."
"He is right," Kate nodded. "We can solve this... I hope."
"You guys get back to sleep," I looked at them. "Let me have some time to ponder this."
Kate sighed as he spoke "Ger—"
"Let's just hope that pondering this for a while will help me sleep sooner or later," I interrupted her with a sad smile. "Come on... Don't worry about me."
"Okay. Just wake me up when you need someone to talk to. Because by the looks of it, you really need one," Kate said sadly as she lay back on the carpeted floor and closed her eyes.
"Alright," I spoke softly.
Seconds later, Christopher lay himself back next to me as Alexander walked back towards the sofa. There, they closed their eyes and also went back to sleep.
For minutes, I sat on the carpeted floor as this realization repeated itself again and again inside my head. If only I just knew how to stop it, because honestly, I was so exhausted from everything that just happened. My whole body felt so heavy and my eyes were sore.
Come on, I said to myself. Let me sleep already!
Eventually, there came a time that my exhaustion was far stronger than my anxiety that I soon lay back down on the carpeted floor. My eyes were sorer than before, that it felt as if they were both on fire. Slowly and gently, I closed them. Then a gradual sense of relief was felt as the soreness began to fade. Deeper... Deeper... Deeper the sore went. Until coolness finally replaced its position. Moments later, my body started to release its tension and submit its weight completely to the mercy of the carpet. Relaxation started to crawl into every vein, muscle and skin. It felt good. It felt so damn good! Then earlier than expected, I finally drifted to the wonders of sleep.
~~~o0o~~~
Even before the sun had risen from the east and with only Christopher's flashlight to light our path, he guided us towards the Serenity Hallway. With that same skinny jeans and V-neck shirts we had worn since the time we got out of our Concepcion Base, I expected that we already smelled like rotten eggs. So I prayed that no one would acknowledge its horrifying presence and let us enjoy our "baptism" of finally being members of the Democrats.
The hallway was so silent that only our footsteps were heard. Then after a few twists and turns, the sound finally stopped as we eventually stood in front of this huge silver door that was carved intricately with wings. At the moment Christopher opened it, a loud creaking sound was heard as it reverberated from this extremely dark room. However, despite that vast darkness, we heard a lot of whispers as we walked slowly inside it. But these whispers were not as loud as my anxiety on the realization that just happened last night.
Calm down, I comforted myself. We can solve this. I know we will get to the bottom of this.
Unexpectedly, Christopher interrupted the anxiety I had felt when he turned his flashlight off and whispered, "You guys stay here. The ceremony is about to start."
We followed his command as the three of us held our hands together for comfort.
Moments later, a huge torch was lit in the middle of the whole place that slowly swallowed the vast darkness. The yellow flame flickered as its light revealed some of the Democrats' young and old faces and the place we were all in. Only then I realized that we were inside this huge silver foyer, with silver shimmering chandeliers hung above us.
Suddenly, our attention was stolen by a loud familiar feminine voice that confidently said, "We are united for a cause. We are not divided by our past... We are the Democrats!"
Then just like the rising of the sun at dawn, a ball of force field surrounded by lightning and three rocks slowly emerged from the torch, leaving the three of us with awed faces. Slowly and gently, it floated towards us until it stopped just a meter from where we stood.
Then, the loud voice continued with the words, "Witness, as the new recruits become real Democrats and fulfill what Eduardo, Eliza and Fidel had started."
Unexpectedly, a random Democrat on our right called our attention and instructed, "Strike a volt of lightning right on that spherical object."
"Oh! Right," I nodded.
"Together?" Kate asked with her eyes fixed on that floating object.
"Together," Alexander and I replied simultaneously as we both looked at her.
"At the count of three, let's strike it," I advised as we let go of our hands.
"Okay," Alexander nodded as we slowly raised our right hands toward the floating aim.
Seconds later, Kate took a deep breath and counted, "One... Two... Three..."
Then in a split second, we struck the floating object as we felt an immense bolt of electricity come out of our middle and index fingers. Upon impact, a loud cracking sound was heard as it reverberated in all the corners of the foyer.
With our eyes widened, we were amazed of what had been the result. The spherical object blasted, and with a yellowish misty look, it formed itself into the three animals that symbolized the three clans. As transparent as a spirit, each of them were surrounded by a yellowish light as they gleefully ran around the foyer. The snake slithered itself between the heads of the Democrats. On the other hand, the eagle's wings gently blew the hair of the others as it flew gracefully on top of them. On our right side, the tiger skipped just a few feet on top of the people and looked as if an invisible soil was there to set its large paws on. After a minute of their wonderful exhibition. The tiger ran towards the east, the snake crawled towards the south and the eagle flew towards the west. Surprisingly, as they made contact against the wall, they all blasted with a bright yellowish light, which in the end revealed to us three wooden doors.
"Wow," I widened my mouth.
In these doors, three identical men stepped outside together as each of them carefully held a black cape with an image of a white wing printed in the middle. Then with chins high and postures at its finest, they slowly walked towards us. As they placed the capes right above our shoulders, a loud "click" was heard and as we looked at it, the three of us were surprised to see that these capes attached firmly on our clothes without any use of pins or clips.
"Keep in mind that the capes and you guys are one," One of the men advised in a low calm voice. "You can pull it out easily if you want to. Imagine it as a part of your body that you can easily attach."
"Got it," I nodded.
As the men walked away, Commander Hilda revealed herself as she stepped outside from the crowd of Democrats on our left side. Then, she slowly and gracefully walked towards us with an identical cape that flapped gracefully on her back. The smile on her face was so sweet and gentle that I was a hundred percent sure that the heavens above us just opened in order for the angels to see her face like this. On her right hand, she held a wireless microphone that instantly made me realize that the loud voice we just heard a few seconds ago was actually her.
A few seconds later, she stood in front of us and with that gentle smile on her face, she raised the microphone in front of her mouth as she continued with the words, "The wing in every cape symbolizes the peace and unity for the years to come. On the other hand, the black color of the cape represents the secrecy of the league from any of the clans. From this day forward, you three will fight for the objectives of the wing. You three will keep this league as a secret, until the right time comes.
With an identical cape attached on his back, Christopher gleefully stepped outside a crowd of Democrats on our right and slowly walked towards us. Then loudly he asked, "Are you willing to fulfill your duties as members of The Democrats?"
"Yes we are," We answered simultaneously.
"Are you ready to risk your life for the peace and unity of the three clans?" Christopher asked again as he stood on the right side of Commander Hilda.
"Yes we are," We nodded.
"Congratulations, Gerald, Kate and Alexander Keminchov. You three are now official members of The Democrats!" Commander Hilda spoke proudly as she spread her left hand.
In an instant, loud cheers and claps erupted from the whole foyer. Some waved their hands in the air, while the others chanted the word, "Viva". The Democrats nearest to us on the other hand, gleefully walked towards us as they extended their hands to congratulate us one by one.
For the very first time in my whole entire life, I felt special. Honestly, there was not a single moment when the Concepcion teachers I had and my fellow classmates appreciated or congratulated my outstanding performances back when I was in the middle of my training years to be a professional warrior. Despite the wounds I felt and the bruises I endured, I excelled above others. But it seemed as if they were blinded about it and looked at me as equal as the others. Probably, that was the main reason why I did not give a damn to take note and remember their names. They did not matter to me at all. They had never seen that potential, except for Commander Lorry himself.
Even at the moment I was officially proclaimed as a professional warrior of our clan, no one greeted Alexander, Kate and I, but Commander Lorry alone, as he held the ceremony inside the Scale Section. No feast was held. No greetings of "Congratulations" were heard from our fellow men... Nothing... It was as if everyone did not care about us at all. It was as if everyone was only there to mind their own businesses. We were enclosed to a civilization that lived independently from each other to the extremes. I think it was the main reason why the only people I knew were my cousin Alexander, my sister Kate and Commander Lorry. No more. No less.
But here, everyone gave a damn as they gathered around us and greeted, "Welcome" or "Congratulations". Oh it felt so good to hear those sweet words come out from their mouths. It really did. With this crowd, I instantly felt a sense of belongingness, even though I had barely even known them. They had shown to me how much they cared to see a person voluntarily join their stand. As I compared these Democrats to the Concepcions that lived with me in Tacloban City, I honestly would prefer to live with the Democrats.
Moments later, Commander Hilda sneaked herself from the crowd of gleeful Democrats as she greeted, "Welcome to the Democrats!"
"Oh thank you so much," I smiled as she hugged us one by one.
"I'm sure that you guys will never regret your decision," She assured. "You are all now on the right path."
"We certainly are," Kate spoke kindly.
"I am so proud of you three," Commander Hilda wiped a tear from her face. "It honestly had been a year ever since a Concepcion showed up to join this league. I am so thankful that you had stopped the year-long drought!"
"Oh! It's good to hear that. But who was the last Concepcion who joined this league, Commander?" Alexander asked curiously.
"Her name is Patricia Panata," Commander Hilda answered. "I bet Christopher knows her, because they live in the same room with the other young members."
"Oh," I nodded.
"Too bad my son does not know that you three had changed your allegiance, because I never had the chance to call or text him yet. I'm sure that he is going to be happy about it too," Commander Hilda added with a sigh. "You know? At a very young age, he is trusted enough to keep our allegiance with the Democrats as a secret. He even did not tell his father about it."
In the middle of that conversation, Christopher unexpectedly sneaked himself against the crowd and said, "You three need to come with me... Like... Right now."
"Why?" Kate asked.
"Just follow me," Christopher answered.
With an effort not to be rude, I looked at Commander Hilda and asked, "Commander, can we follow Christopher?"
"Sure! Enjoy yourselves," She nodded happily.
"Thanks!" I spoke as we sneaked ourselves from the crowd and followed him.
He opened the silver door that we just got in earlier and led us back towards the Serenity Hallway. Our capes flapped gracefully on our backs as we walked from corners after corners, until we finally reached this black painted door. Attached to it were several strips of caution tapes, which at first glance looked as if a serious crime was about to reveal itself once we opened it.
Probably a murder, I thought to myself with a grin on my face. Or a suicide.
On the topmost part of this "Barricaded" door, a white colored text was printed. Due to the fact that it was not clear enough, I took a few steps closer and only then I realized that the text written on it was Room 73.
"I just told them about you guys before I led the three of you towards the silver foyer. And guess what? They could not hide their excitement of meeting you... Well, almost all of them," Christopher sighed.
"Well, why did they not meet us in the silver foyer?" Kate asked. "Why did they not witness the ceremony?"
"I guess they are just too lazy and waited for me to bring you guys to them," Christopher answered with a grin as he slowly opened the door.
As we took a peek inside, the first thing that had caught my attention was this huge yellow chandelier that was hung right in the middle of this wide orange room. Behind the said chandelier were several black fabrics, which were all printed with the wing-shaped emblem of the Democrats and orderly hung in a row. As I narrowed my eyes to have a detailed view of the walls, I was impressed to see that they were intricately decorated with wing sculptures. These said sculptures had given the room a sense of "heavenly touch". On the farthest corner of the room were twelve white beds. Six of them were arranged vertically on the left side, while the other six beds were arranged vertically on the right.
"They really show these Democrat symbols everywhere," I remarked as I fixed my glance back at the black fabrics.
"Yeah," Kate nodded. "Interesting."
Unexpectedly, a masculine voice with an Indian accent caught our attention as he said, "Oh! They're here!"
Quite shocked of what we had just heard, we instantly turned our heads together toward the nearest corner on our right. There we saw six teens who all sat comfortably on a sofa that was yellow in color and semi-circular in shape. They all had worn a white silky shirt and these were paired with black pajamas.
Sarcastically, a yellow paled guy crossed his hands and said, "Great! They're here."
"Shut up, Darwin! That is not the right way to accommodate our fellow Democrats," Spoke a tall tan skinned teenager as he stood up and walked towards us. He had a pointed nose and dark round eyes that looked at us with gentleness. His thin black lips slightly formed a crescent shape as he somewhat massaged his thin layer of beard. "Please forgive Darwin. He is just jealous."
"It's okay... I don't mind," I smiled as he stood in front of us.
"Anyway, I'm Brandon and it's nice to meet you guys," This Indian-looking guy spoke as he each shook our hands.
"It's nice to meet you too," I said.
"Guys, join us in the sofa," Offered the lady with a maroon dyed hair.
"Yeah. Come here," Added a guy with slanted eyes and pointed nose.
With their sudden offer, we could not help but reveal our shyness. But Brandon pulled our hands as he said, "Come on, guys. Don't be shy!"
"Okay... Okay... We're coming," Kate giggled awkwardly as we walked towards the yellow sofa and took a seat.
"I hope you guys are silent like me," Whispered the Mohawk guy on my left. His face was so pale that it seemed as if he had just recovered from a faint. He had a ring pierced on his left nose and his eyes were applied with a thick amount of eyeliner.
"Sorry... I wish I could, but nah," Kate flipped her hair as she bounced on the sofa.
"So, you are like me," Spoke a light skinned guy with a brownish hair, who sat beside the Mohawk guy. "An extrovert."
"I believe so," Kate smirked.
"If that's the case, we must keep in touch," He spoke as his dilated pupils almost filled the brown iris of his eyes. "I would love to be with a talkative girl. Anyways, I'm Scott... It's nice to meet the three of you."
"Nice to meet you too," Kate smiled as Scott tried to reach his hands for a shake. With a slight lean made, she held it and had given him the shake he desired.
"I hate giving a short introduction, but I'm Cole," The boy on Scott's left spoke. He had a slanted eyes and his nose was pointed. His pink lips were slightly thick and just like the Mohawk guy, he had a pale skin. His short hair was so messy that it seemed that he had not bathed for Eons.
"Hi!" Alexander waved his right hand as he leaned forward from Kate's right.
Beside Cole, I realized that there were three thick books which were piled on top of the sofa. Due to curiosity, I asked, "What are those?"
"These are Geometry, Algebra and Trigonometry books," Cole tapped the topmost book. "Ever since I've been here, I was left to study on my own. Due to the fact that we are not allowed to pursue our studies outside the Mansion."
"I see," I nodded.
"But you don't need to study that anymore," Scott sighed. "You're already a genius. As you have told us before, you are a Math Olympiad Champion on your high school days. Look... You have been looking on these books for about four damn years already. Give yourself a break!"
"I am doing this to refresh all the things I learned," Cole defended himself. "And the probability of you letting me change my ways is zero. So leave me alone."
"Oh alright, you mad-genius," Scott mocked.
Out of the blue, the Mohawk looking guy tapped my left shoulder and said, "By the way, I'm Alex and silence is my friend."
"Oh... That... Is... Interesting," I nodded slowly.
"Well, I can adapt to that silence soon," Kate looked at him with a smirk on her face.
"I am silent, but I can do a fantastic fight when given the chance," Alex spoke softly with a smirk.
"It's true," Christopher nodded. "He is such a pro in terms of battles."
"Oh! I am excited to see that," I smiled as I looked at Alex.
"Guys, I'm Patricia and Maroon is my favorite color," The lady said as she combed her Maroon colored hair.
"Yeah... Apparently, it's really obvious in so many levels," Alexander smirked.
"If you want any more facts about me, just call my attention," Patricia spoke confidently. "Always remember that I will soon become a superstar!"
"Oh whatever," Darwin rolled his violet colored eyes.
"Anyways, to further understand the profile of everyone, I'm going to introduce to the three of you the clans that these guys had been a member of," Christopher said as he looked at the three of us.
"Oh! That sounds cool," Kate nodded.
"Bring it on, Christopher," Alexander looked at him.
"Okay," Christopher smiled. "The teens who hailed from the Maria Clan are Scott, Cole and Darwin. In the bloodline of the Concepcions, we have Alex and Patricia. In the line of the Rosarios we have Brandon and I."
"Diversity is at its best," Patricia nodded.
"Yes it is and I certainly love it," Cole said as he looked at Patricia.
The acquaintance continued to sizzle when all of a sudden; a feminine voice was heard from the door who said the words, "Hi guys."
As I looked at the door, I felt my whole atmosphere start to slow down. My eyes got fixed to this lovely lady who had a blond hair, blue eyes and a white complexion. Her peach colored lips revealed a smile which I felt was a sign of delight to all of us. Moments later, my heart started to pound tremendously as I saw her walk towards the yellow sofa. To make things more intense was that she sat beside me! To reduce the awkwardness, I tried to avoid an eye contact with her.
Oh my goodness! I said to myself. Gerald, stay calm... Stay calm. Control yourself. Contro--
"Hi," The lady greeted as I sensed her head twist towards me.
I slowly looked at her and said, "Umm... Hi."
"Is there something wrong?" She asked. "You seem to be shaking."
"Oh!" I chuckled. "It's just normal."
"Are you sure?" She asked.
"Yeah," I lied with a smile.
"Oh guys, I almost forgot," Christopher spoke. "This girl is Hazel and she is a Rosario."
"It's nice to meet you, Hazel," Kate looked at her with a smile.
"It's nice to meet you too," Hazel chuckled.
"Now that you know all of us, it is your time for you three to introduce yourselves," Patricia said. "That will make things even."
"Okay," I said as I took a deep breath. "I'm Gerald."
"I'm Kate the glamorous," Kate spoke confidently.
"I'm Alexander, but you can also call me Al," Alexander smiled.
"The three of us hailed from the Concepcions," I clarified.
"Oh! That is awesome!" Patricia looked at me.
~~~o0o~~~
That acquaintance continued for two straight hours. Despite of this, we never got exhausted. Everyone exchanged thoughts, ideas or even random things. Honestly, it was an unforgettable event. Then, is as decided by everyone except for Darwin, the three of us were offered to stay with them in that specific room, because there were still vacant beds.
When everything was settled, I decided to leave them in that room and head towards the office of Commander Hilda to ask about a little history of the Democrats. As I slowly opened the blue colored door, I saw her sat comfortably on the white colored sofa. She was in the middle of her knitting activity when I walked towards her and asked, "Commander Hilda, can I ask you something?"
"Yes you can, Gerald. Sit beside me and tell me your concern," She smiled as she stopped to knit.
I sat next to her and said, "I had read a few letters made by Eduardo and Eliza."
"Oh! You are very lucky to read those messages which came from the pioneers of the Democrats," Commander Hilda looked at me.
"With this, can you give me a little historical background on what happened to Eliza and the whole league after Eduardo had committed suicide?" I asked kindly.
"According to the story of my fellow Democrats, Eliza got married to Fidel even if it was against her will. Then, they had a child named Miguel who got the power of lightning and telekinesis which was one of the rarest events that had happened in the history of the three clans. Because the plan of the three founders failed, Miguel continued their mission and tried to recruit as many people as he could in each of the three clans," Commander Hilda explained.
"Oh that is interesting," I said with a nod.
Then, Commander Hilda continued with the words, "Despite the growing number of members in this organization, Miguel never said, 'Let us get the crystallized heart and exterminate it.' Instead, he requested all the members to be patient and wait for the right time. According to Miguel himself, we are going attack only when the power of immortality is at its pre-activation stage."
"What does the pre-activation stage mean?" I asked.
"It means that the crystallized heart is a few days away to its 600th year," She answered.
"Oh I see," I nodded. "Anyway, why are you guys not revealing yourselves to the other clans?"
"It is all because of Miguel?" She answered.
"Huh? What did he say?" I asked.
"He simply wanted the element of surprise to let the other clans tremble before us. He also wanted to let them think that we don't exist until the right time comes," Commander Hilda smirked.
"Oh that is clever!" I nodded.
"When the pre-activation stage starts, that's the time when we will start to plan the whole attack. A few days before the planned attack, we will post a lot of propagandas nationwide to alarm them, but it will not include our league's name to keep the element of surprise in place. Then, hours before the immortalization, we will finally reveal ourselves through the ultimate attack," Commander Hilda explained.
"Oh I see," I nodded.
"While we hid ourselves in our own hermit kingdom, through the years, we used all the time to make machines that will greatly help us in the future attack. Miguel ensured that we are not only going to rely on our powers. We are also going to use certain technologies," Commander Hilda spoke.
"Well, underestimating our league will certainly be a wrong move," I chuckled.
"Exactly!" Commander Hilda said confidently. "But for now, the best thing to do is to keep this league as a secret to avoid the destruction of these poor machines," Commander Hilda clarified.
"Yeah," I nodded. "Can I see them?"
"Just be patient, Gerald. I'll let you see them soon," Commander Hilda smiled as she started to knit again.
"Okay... I will... Anyway, I have to go... Thanks for that info, commander and enjoy your knitting," I thanked.
"You are welcome, Gerald," She looked at me. "It is so nice to meet a newly recruited member who tries his best to learn everything he can to fully embrace this society."
"It must be done, commander. It must be done," I said as I gave her a nod and left.
At the moment I closed the blue colored door and walked along the Serenity Hallway, the smile on my face started to fade. Curiosity had started to overwhelm my whole mind.
I asked myself, What are these machines? What are its features? And most of all, why is she keeping it as a secret to me?