Chapter One: A Game of Chess
~Henrietta Arturia~
This was just so romantic. Tell me about a happy ending and I would show you this picture. Every loose knot was tied up with the simple act of following their hearts. If only everything was just as easy.
Kasalukuyan ngayong nasa Montello High ang lahat ng pwersa ng Mafia Freniere. Ito ay matapos na i-lock down ng grupong tinatawag na Stones Organization ang eskwelahan at dakpin ang isa sa mga leader ng Mafia Freniere. All the reapers were on deck, riveted to the scene of our Mafia masters. Sir Algernon Freniere was confronting his son, Giovanni Freniere, and the girl he chose to save. Sebastian Freniere, Algernon's eldest son, was here, too. And right now, Giovanni's girl was challenging one of the very principles of the Mafia.
Binitiwan ni Mikhail--ang isa ko pang kasamahang reaper--ang babaeng iyon at agad itong tumakbo. Pinanuod ko siya habang papalapit kay Giovanni Freniere. I couldn't stop the envy that suddenly sprang in my heart. If I could just have an ending like hers. She was stupid and definitely far from the usual heroine of a love story but she still got her happy ending. And—uh—what was her name again?
Nadadala na ako sa nasaksihan dahil tila mababago na nila ang isip ni Sir Algernon. Maybe they would become the exception to the rules. Ngunit nasira ang lahat nang isang malakas na putok ng baril ang pumailanlang sa paligid. Everyone froze, including me.
"Take the big fish down before the game ends," wika ng matandang lalaki mula sa bukana ng sentrong building at saka tumakbo papasok nito. This old man was the mastermind of this whole mess. Principal Steins, the leader of the Stones Organization.
Sebastian looked like a man who lost his soul as he watched that unusual smile fade from Giovanni's face. Even I couldn't believe what just happened. I almost believed in happy endings. I almost kept my own hopes up. Until that stupid, old man ruined it in a blink of an eye. I suddenly, desperately wanted to rip his head off his body.
Agad na natauhan si Sebastian sa pagkabigla at tumakbo sa kinaroroonan ni Giovanni. This was the second time in a few short months that his easy arrogance seemed to fade from him entirely. He kneeled beside Giovanni na nakahiga sa lupa. Nakaluhod din sa tabi nito ang babaing iyon. Sir Algernon Freniere stood frozen—unmoving, looking at nothing. Ang pag-asang kanina lang ay nagsisimulang bumalong sa paligid ay napalitan ng luha at kadiliman.
All the reapers stood our ground. We were all waiting for one thing. We were waiting for his words. We were waiting for him to start the game. Ilang segundo lang ang lumipas at dumating ang hinihintay namin.
"Get them... All of them. But don't kill them just yet."
And in less than a second, all the reapers were running towards the building. A few of the Reapers were smiling. Because really, this was what we live for now. This was the life of a Reaper. Everyone was going to take this game seriously. The big catch would be the old man who shot the young Freniere.
But he wasn't my big catch. I was aiming for a different person.
"I know what you're thinking, Henrietta," wika ng lalaking tumatakbo sa tabi ko. Kaming dalawa ang nangunguna ngayon sa lahat. I glared at him. I was the fastest Reaper. Clearly, I hadn't been focusing enough because he was keeping up with me. Was he messing with me?
"I didn't know you could read minds," sagot ko kay Mikhail. He just smiled at me.
"You're trying to get the Novou," wika niya.
Of course, he knew my obsession with the Novou clan. And my obsession with winning. "Would you believe it? You actually read my mind! You must have predicted this too, then." In a swift movement, I kicked his left knee and punched his gut, causing him to stumble to the ground.
"You don't know the first thing about me," I whispered coldly at him at saka ipinagpatuloy ang pagtakbo. I didn't know if Mikhail had a stupid plan on surpassing or beating me but he would never succeed. Not when I was his opponent.
Mas binilisan ko pa ang pagtakbo. When I run, I become a blur but I could still see everything around me clearly. Nakakita ako nang ilang nakamaskara sa daraanan ko subalit pinili ko silang lagpasan. Hindi sila ang target ko. Ano bang iniisip nila? Nagbabalak silang tumakas? They should know that there would be no escaping the Freniere Mafia. Sir Algernon specifically told us not to kill them. I pitied them. They infuriated the Mafia head, now death was not going to be an ample punishment.
Isang grupo ang nakita kong tumatakbo, at sa gitna nila ay nakita ko ang ikalawang target ko. It was the old man who shot Giovanni. Umikot ako sa ibang direksyon upang salubungin sila at wala pang isang minuto ay nagawa ko nang humarang sa daraanan nila upang hintayin ang kanilang pagdating.
"Reaper!" Sigaw ng unang nakapansin sa akin at akmang tatakbo sa kabilang direksyon. Subalit mabilis ko silang naabutan at agad itinutok ang baril sa kanilang pinakalider.
"You can never run away if I was the one chasing you," bulong ko at saka ipinukpok ang baril sa batok niya, dahilan upang agad siyang mawalan ng malay at bumagsak sa paanan ko. Masama kong tiningnan ang mga nakamaskarang lalaki sa paligid ko. Apat sila. I could take them down. Subalit bago ko pa nagawa ang nasa isip ko ay mabilis na sumulpot si Mikhail at isa-isang pinatulog ang mga nakapaligid sa akin. Pinanuod ko lang siya hanggang sa mapatumba niya lahat.
"You're welcome," nakangiti niyang sabi.
"I caught the biggest fish," seryoso kong sagot at sinipa ang walang malay na pinuno ng Stones Organization.
"Of course you did. Congratulations," sagot niya. Hindi na ako muling nagsalita pa. Mikhail was one of the best Mafia Reapers. My relationship with him was like my relationship with any other Reaper—casual and civil. Mikhail always tried to talk to me but I couldn't trust him. He certainly couldn't trust me, either. No person should ever trust a Reaper because the truth was that we were the most untrustworthy people in the world. There was nothing good in us. We only live by the orders that come out of our master's mouth.
Muli kong naalala ang orihinal kong plano. I had to get the Novou. I started to step away nang magsalitang muli si Mikhail.
"Hey, are you just going to leave this fish here?" Nagtatakang tanong niya.
"Can you take him to Sir Algernon?" Tanong ko. He gave me an unbelieving look bago umiling.
"You know I could take the credit for catching this fish, don't you?"
Nagkibit-balikat ako sa sinabi niya. "Doesn't change anything," seryoso kong sagot.
"Tsk. Oo na. You still caught the big fish," pagsuko niya. I knew what Mikhail Petrov was up to. He wanted to defeat me more than anything. But he would never try to cheat. He was too proud. And I could use that pride to my advantage.
After a short nod, tumakbo akong muli sa kabilang direksyon. What was up with this school? It was enormous, classic and definitely dangerous. I wondered how everyone could bear to live and study in this maze. It was like a survival arena. Mabilis akong nakarating sa sixth floor. Tahimik ang paligid at walang kahit isang tao. Posible ring naunahan ko pa ang mga miyembro ng organisasyong iyon sa pagtakbo. Nanatili akong nakatayo at hindi kumikilos. Kailangan kong maramdaman ang lahat. Mula sa dampi ng hangin, mga walang buhay na bagay at lalo na ang presensya ng mga humihingang nilalang. And that was when I looked up. Someone was there. Nothing could beat an assassin's instinct.
Mabilis kong inakyat ang hagdan at ilang sandali pa ay nasa pinakamataas na bahagi na ako ng Montello High School. The tried to force me backwards but I held my ground. I knew someone was here. Inilibot ko ang paningin ko at agad ding nakita ang aking hinahanap. But he wasn't alone. He was with a student.
The Novou assassin was pointing a gun to a student who was standing at the edge of the building. The student could easily drop to the ground at any moment. There were only two choices for him, but with the same outcome. Either he got killed by Novou or he got killed by jumping off this height. Kalmado akong naglakad papalapit sa kanila. I had to get Novou.
"You can betray everyone but you can't betray a Novou and expect to get away with it," galit na galit na wika ng assassin. I wondered what this student did to him. The boy looked decent and formal. Paano kaya niya nagawang galitin ang isang Novou?
The student just smiled widely. "Mamamatay din naman ako sa araw na ito pero pipiliin kong hindi sa kamay mo," at saka tumingin sa ibaba.
"Oh, but a bullet would be faster than your falling body, Montreal," sagot ni Novou.
This was a stupid drama. Why can't he just pull the trigger? Why the hell can't he just jump then? That was when I decided to pull my own sleek, black pistol at itinutok sa direksyon ng Novou assassin. Mukhang agad na naramdaman nito ang banta sa buhay niya kaya ibinaling niya ang tingin sa akin.
"Oh? A Reaper. If you're going to save this guy, you're too late," he playfully said. Ano ba'ng sinasabi niya? He could kill the student for all I care. Kinalabit ko ang gatilyo ng baril.
Mukhang nasorpresa siya sa ginawa ko subalit agad rin siyang naka-ilag. The bullet hit his shoulder instead of his chest. I decided to shoot him again but he easily dodged. He must have realized that he could never win against me because he was wounded so he ran to the edge of the building and jumped.
No! This was infuriating. I ran after him subalit tuluyan na siyang nakababa. I watched his painful exit as he held on to the railings of the lower floors until he reached the ground. He was fortunate to land on the back side of the school. I initially thought he must have been dead when he didn't move. Subalit makalipas ang ilang segundo ay mabilis siyang tumayo at naglaho sa masukal na Nightwoods.
I could jump my way down and pursue him but decided against it. Alam ko kung kailan dapat isinusuko ang isang laro. And it wasn't like I was giving up. Never. I heaved a deep breath to suppress my frustration at saka ibinalik ang baril sa loob ng aking jacket. Agad kong naramdaman ang pares ng mga matang nakatingin sa akin. Sinalubong ko ang tingin niya. Pareho kaming walang imik na naglalaban ng titigan. Finally, he blinked at saka inilipat ang paningin sa ibaba ng building. He was about to jump off. I decided to pull him back. Natumba siya sa sahig ng rooftop. Kung ano man ang dahilan ng pagpapakamatay niya, I didn't really care. Dahil sa mga oras na iyon, I needed something from this guy.
"You have to come with me," anunsyo ko na ikinagulat niya.
"You're crazy! Just let me die! I deserve it," galit niyang sagot. Sa simula ay nakaramdam ako ng awa sa kaniya. He must have done something really terrible to hate his life. But I hid my pity and gave him a cold, icy stare.
"I don't care. I just need something from you. After that, if you still want to die, then I will take your life. For free." He just looked at me like he couldn't believe me. Hindi ko alam kung sumasang-ayon siya but it didn't matter.
I had decided. A plan was starting to form in my head. And I needed this guy to succeed. I would have to bring this guy with me.