THIRD PERSON
"Okay pa ba s'ya?" tanong isang tinig maskulado.
"Bumbero pala 'to, e," the one with a playful tone said.
"Umalis kayo sa kan'ya, he need proper ventilation. Ang lalaki ng pasa n'ya sa bandang beywang, ano nangyari dito?" tanong ng boses ng isang babae.
"Na-stuck s'ya sa maliit na bintana," now he was sure that voice came from Amethyst.
Troy tried to move his heavy eyelid. At first, his vision was a bit blurry until it adjusted. Unang bumungad sa kan'ya ang mga 'di pamilyar na mukha. Ang tanging pagkakakilanlan n'ya sa mga ito ay sila ang mga taong nagsagip sa kanila kanina sa parada ng mga patay. If they didn't come, for sure they were already devoured flesh per flesh. Nakita n'ya rin si Amethyst at Kington na tahimik na sumisimsim ng mainit na kape. Bakas sa kanilang maruruming damit at iilang galos kung paano sila nakipagtumbang preso sa mga halimaw.
He moved his body but overpowering pain hit him. Mahina ito napaungol sa sakit lalo na sa bandang beywang. "Shit," he cursed in pain. Parang sinuntok nang ilang ulit ito, nakakapanghina. Marahan n'ya itong hinimas-himas habang napapangiwi sa hapdi. Hindi ko na talaga isusuksok sarili ko sa mga masisikip na daanan!
"Wag ka masiyadong magalaw para hindi sumakit ang mga pasa sa beywang mo," the lady in front of him commanded. She was a dirtied scrub from the city's hospital which was very familiar to him. Her short hair was messy and she had thin eyeglass. Walang pakundangan nitong pinindot ang beywang ng binata dahilan para mapaungol ito sa sakit. "What the hell?! Masakit na nga!" He hissed but the woman remained her blank face. She was serious of what she was doing.
"Hahanap ako ng pain killer sa bag ko. We should also apply ice in the affected area," she said.
Hindi na umimik si Troy, bagkus ay nilibot ng tingin n'ya ang silid kung nasaan sila. Malamlam ang liwanag galing bumbilya, at nakasara ang mga bintana na tinatakpan din ng makakapal na kurtina. He also noticed how the room smelled like a flower--sampaguita to be exact. May maliit din na krus at imahen ni Hesus sa wooden table sa kanilang gilid.
"Nasaan tayo?" He asked, his face still wincing in pain. Bwisit na babae 'to! Masakit na nga e.
"Nasa Holy Cross tayo, bro!" nakangiting sagot ng isang binata na nakaupo sa may wooden table. Tingin nito ay matanda lang ito nang kaunti kay Amber. He had this playful sparkling smirk that complimented with his earpiercing. "Ligtas tayo sa loob ng tahanan ni Papa G!" natatawa nitong sabi.
"Quit it, Cody," suway ng isang lalaki kalbo na may kalakihan ang katawan. His skin was as slightly tanned. Malalim din ang boses nito na katulad ng naririnig ni Troy sa radyo. May nakasabit na shotgun sa likod nito. Maybe he was just being ready for a sudden attack of monsters.
"Why? Totoo naman, a! He's protecting us!" malakas pa itong tumawa na para bang may kung anong biro sa kan'yang sinabi na s'ya lang din ang nakakaintindi.
"'Wag mo s'yang intindihin," the mascular man said. "Ligtas kayo rito sa loob ng simbahan. May sapat namang pagkain dito at protektado tayo," wika nito. "Ako nga pala si Chad," magalang n'yang pagpapakilala. "'Yong siraulo naman na 'yon ay si Cody."
Tinuro n'ya ang babaeng nag-aasikaso sa mga pasa ni Troy. "She's my girlfriend, Mage. She's a licensed nurse, she knows what she is doing."
Kasama rin ba don ang pagpisil sa mga pasa ko?! paghaharumentado ni Troy sa isip.
"Ako naman si Troy," it was his turn to introduced himself. He was about to add something but a weird growling noise echoed across the room. His eyes widened.
T'yan ko 'yon!
Sa lakas no'n ay lahat sila napatingin sa kan'ya. "Sorry," nahihiya n'yang sagot.
"Gutom na si Papi Troy! May lugaw sa baba, ako na ang kukuha--!" akmang lalabas na si Cody nang sumulpot sa nakabukas na pintuan ang isang pari. Napakapormal at kagalang-galang itong tignan sa kasuotang kulay itim. His eyes were slightly sunken, maybe to his old age.
"Gising na pala ang mga bago nating kasama," wika ng matandang pari. Nakasiklop ang mga kamay nito habang naglalakad patungo sa kanila. Nginitian n'ya sila Amethyst at Kington nang madaanan. "Kamusta kayo?"
Troy didn't know what to do. Hindi s'ya relihiyoso pero tinuruan s'ya ng mga matatanda na magmano palagi sa mga pari. But his body was aching! He couldn't move.
"Kamusta ka, hijo? Nang dalhin ka rito nila Chad ay wala kang malay. Okay ka na ba?"
He could give a silent nod. He was being intimidated to that priest. "You're inside our church. We'll be safe here, basta manalig lang tayo sa Kan'ya," wika nito sa mahinahong paraan. "Ako nga pala si Father John."
Troy slightly bowed his head. Tinignan n'ya si Amethyst at Kington para humingi ng tulong, because obviously he is holy and I'm not! Hindi ito inimikan ng dalawa. Bwisit!
"Alright," it was Chad. "Bababa muna ako para i-double check ang mga barikada natin. There are still zombies outside. Cody, samahan mo ko?"
"Ako? No, no, no, pare! Ayoko--" it was too late for him when Chad pulled his arms and dragged him away.
"Sumama kayo sa amin ni Mage sa kusina," turan ni Father John. "Sigurado akong gutom na kayo."
***
Troy hadn't had his proper meal since yesterday, that was why after a porridge was served in front of him he immediately grabbed a spoon to savor it all. Wala na s'yang pakialam kung napapaso na ang kan'yang dila, basta mapunan lang ang bakante n'yang t'yan. Amethyst and King could only watch him.
Serve after serve, Troy was like a monster eating them in an instant. He made sure to have his stomach full. God knows kung makakain pa ulit ako.
"Oh, God, thank you," he uttered after a loud burped. Napasandal pa ito sa upuan. Sulit!
"Kumain lang kayo," magiliw na sabi ng pari. Habang pinapanood ang tatlong kumain ay nagsalita ito. "Kamusta ang sitwasyon sa labas?"
Troy, Amethyst, and King could only exchanged look. Hindi nila kayang gamitin ang mga salita upang ilarawan ang delubyong nangyayari sa labas. The carnage outside was beyond describable and salvagable.
The priests then blew a sigh. "May awa ang D'yos sa atin, sigurado akong magpapadala s'ya ng tulong para iligtas tayo. It all happened in an instant. Pagmulat ng mga mata natin nagpapatayan na ang mga tao. Hindi ko na alam ang mga nangyayari kaya pinagpapasa-D'yos ko na lang lahat," he said with dismay.
Nakikita ba ng D'yos ang nangyayari sa amin o nagbubulag-bulagan lang s'ya? King thought. Bibigyan n'ya pa ba kami ng pag-asang magkaroon ng ikalawang pagkakataon upang mabuhay or this is the punishment we will have until our death?
Sa kabilang banda, si Amethyst ay nakasilip sa bintana kung saan tanaw n'ya ang mga tuyong dugo sa pader at sa mga damo. She fear that that was happening was only the beginning but she knew already the fact. The fact that this was just beginning.
"By the way, may mga nakahandang kwarto para sa mga bisita ng simbahang ito. Pasens'ya na kung may kaliitan ito at kailangan n'yong maghati-hati sa kwarto. Nakabukod naman ang silid ng lalaki at babae," wika ng pare. It put sense of relief to the three survivors since they could now rest their backs in a soft matress and sleep without worrying about the zombies outside. "Okay lang ba 'yon sa inyo?"
The three nodded quickly.
Inside this church, Troy and his fellow survivors were safe... temporarily. It was the second day after the crazy epidemic hit the city. Immediate devastation was followed after that. The city was enveloped with fear and terror and there was no place to call a safe place. Everything here was temporary to sleep on because death would still find them.
Nothing would save them from damnation.
Even the people outside the city.
Simula kahapon ay hindi pa nawawala ang takot ni President Lustre para sa mga taong naiwan sa loob ng Pio. However, he knew that that was a good plan to isolate them from the neighbouring cities to avoid contact with the infection as they still identify the cause and the origin of the unknown virus. From here, he could clearly hear the cries of his people pleading for help, but he could not extend his arm. He just couldn't. And as a president, he knew it was his failure. Since yesterday, he was being called by the media to release a statement.
President Lustre could only say that the government was doing their best to end this chaos. The day was slowly descending, and there were little to no development. He already called Virology Science and Technology Institute of the Philippines. They deployed several drones to check the current condition of the virus infection inside the isolated city.
And it was worse than he expected. Nanlulumo na lamang s'ya sa harapan ng camera.
"Mr. President." one of his men approached him. "May gustong kumausap sa inyo, offering help with our dilemma."
Kumunot ang kan'yang noo. "Sino?"
"Galing pong Aeon Pharmaceuticals..."