The moment Gwen arrived at home that weekend, the door is opened by one of Antoine's creepy living mannequins, who immediately motioned her to the dining area. Being welcomed by the horrifying sight – which is something she is already used to – she started to feel that something might be wrong.
At sa huli, hindi nga siya nagkamali. Sa dining area niya naabutan ang amang si Matthew at si Antoine na tahimik at komportableng umiinom ng kape. The atmospheres of the two men seemed dark and ominous, and Gwen did not need to read their minds to know that something disadvantageous for her will happen.
Pinaningkitan ni Gwen ang dalawang lalaki nang mapatingin ito sa kanya. Isang sarkastikong tawa ang namutawi mula sa bibig ng dalaga bago inilagay ang isang kamay sa bewang niya.
"This is about me, isn't it?" tanong niya sa dalawang lalaki.
Tinapos na ni Antoine ang kapeng iniinom niya, bago tinanguan ang isa sa mga buhay na manikin para kunin ang walang laman niyang tasa. Pagkatapos noon ay napahinga siya nang malalim bago tumayo mula sa kinauupuan.
Nginitian ni Antoine ang ama, "Mauna na ako, Dad. I have some business to attend to."
Bago tuluyang umalis, nilapitan siya ni Antoine at bahagyang pinisil ang pisngi niya sabay sabing, "You deviant little thing..."
Gwen just squinted her eyes at her older brother, who did not let her respond and just went on his way.
Nang sila na lang ni Matthew ang maiwan, binigyan siya ng ama ng isang matalim na titig. "Maupo ka."
Tinitigan ni Gwen ang ama ng ilang segundo, bago muling nagsalita. "Kinailangan kong gawin iyon."
Matthew heaved a deep sigh, knowing that the girl already read his mind. "I said, take a seat."
The young lady's expression remained firm, but she still followed her father's orders and sat right on the place that Antoine occupied earlier. It is two seats away from the head of the table where Matthew sat. Even though Gwen looked firm and determined, she is still afraid of her father's temper, knowing that he can be a little blunt when reprimanding them.
"Ano ba ang iniisip mo at pumunta ka sa warehouse na 'yun, Gwen?" the man asked her sternly, "You could have been caught... That place is heavily guarded and is extremely dangerous for you."
"Ah, I almost forgot that you have the ability to locate anyone you came in contact with and know what they are doing right now... Nalalaman mo nga pala ang lahat ng mga ginagawa namin kahit hindi namin sabihin," napabuntong-hininga si Gwen at pinagmasdan ang ama, "Kung alam mo palang naroon ako, bakit hindi ninyo ako iniligtas? Pwede niyo namang gawin 'yun ah."
"If I did, then I'd make everything more complicated for you. Magtataka ang guwardiya doon kung bigla na lamang kaming lilitaw para kunin ka roon, hindi ba?"
The young lady frowned. "Why don't you just trust me, Dad? Kasama ko naman si Vladimir. He's a technopath and he could –"
"The two of you aren't the only metahumans there," Matthew responded, before heaving a sigh of despair, "You may be used to using your telepathic powers already, but will you stand a chance against dozens of metahumans in there? And Vladimir... Will you be able to protect him?"
Hindi nakasagot si Gwen, at piniling iwasan ang tingin ng ama. "Nag-ingat naman kami eh."
Matthew sighed in frustration before focusing his eyes on his only daughter. "I allowed you to enroll in Faircastle High School because you said you wanted to find out the truth with the Paramount Class... I agreed because I thought you wanted to gather information for the Sanctum. But I never allowed you to fight and destroy the program. Oo, hindi ganoon kalakas si Benjamin kung mag-isa lang siya, pero maraming metahumans na sumusunod sa lahat ng iutos niya. He has a legion of it, which includes some of the former members of the Paramount Class. Daniel may have some metahumans with him too, but that's not enough..."
"Pero kung tutulong kayo at ang iba pang mga miyembro ng Sanctum sa kanya, magiging mas madali ang lahat, hindi ba?'
"Hindi namin pwedeng gawin 'yun," Matthew's face darkened, "We can't sacrifice other metahumans just for Daniel's reckless plans... At hindi pipiliin ng Sanctum na lumaban para sa kagustuhan ng isa na maghiganti."
"It's not just a reckless plan, Dad... And it's not just for revenge..." Gwen clenched her fists, "Marami nang nasasaktan at napapatay si Benjamin. We have to avenge them. We have to protect thse who are left... Kung gusto mo, ipapakita ko pa sa'yo ang mga nakita ko para mas maintindihan mo kung bakit ako nagkakaganito –"
"Alam ko ang ibig mong sabihin, Gwen... Pero sa halip na kalabanin ang Paramount Laboratories, mas pinagtutuunan ng pansin ng Sanctum ang i-rescue ang iba pang metahumans na hindi pa nahahanap ng Paramount Laboratories," paliwanag sa kanya ng ama, "We can't just destroy their organization, and you know that. They're too powerful... A lot of metahumans will die. We can't just act irresponsibly for the sake of vengeance."
Gwen then looked directly into her father's eyes. "Fine. Just let me be then. Hayaan mo na lang ako na tulungan sila."
Matthew massaged his temples with his fingers as he helplessly looked at the young lady. "Why are you doing this, Gwen? Why do you keep on insisting on this?"
Gwen heaved a deep sigh, her fists clenched as her expression darkened. "I need to kill them before they kill me. Ayokong dumami pa ang katulad ko na biktima nila... Hindi kaya ng konsensya ko."
"At ginagamit mo si Jacob para doon? Is that why you made sure he gets into this? His grandmother is trying to protect him... She made sure Jacob enrols in Faircastle High School so that the Sanctum will find out about him. But now, you're dragging him into this."
"Hindi ko siya ginagamit. At isa pa, malalaman niya rin naman ang totoo. Either way or another, he's going to get involved. It's in his blood... He needs to know everything, because that's the only way he can protect himself. He has to know who the real enemy is," Gwen insisted, her voice starting to become louder because of the tension between her and her father.
Natigilan si Matthew, hanggang sa tuluyan na siyang sumuko sa pakikipagdiskusyon sa dalaga. "Hindi kayo tutulungan ng Sanctum, at hindi kayo kayang protektahan ni Daniel."
"Tinuruan mo naman akong protektahan ang sarili ko, hindi ba? Sinabi mo sa 'kin noon... Hindi ko kailangang manalo. Kailangan ko lang manatiling buhay."
Huminga nang malalim ang lalaki, at bakas sa mukha nito ang labis na pag-aalala. "Huwag mo 'tong gawin, Gwen... Please."
"Pero hanggang kailan ako magiging ganito? Hanggang kailan ako tatakbo? Kahit naman anong gawin kong pagtatago o pagtakas... Nahahanap pa rin nila ako. At kapag nahahanap nila ako, paulit-ulit nila akong susubukang patayin." ani Gwen na pinipigilan ang sarili na umiyak sa harap ng ama, "I hate the fact that I'm punished just for being born. I can't stay like this forever."
"But... You might die."
Gwen paused for a while, contemplating on what her father said. After a few seconds, she then spoke again.
"Then I'll die fighting."
"Gwendoline –"
"Alam ko kung saan ako nanggaling," Gwen said as she stood up from her seat, "Babalikan nila ako, Dad. Tapos isusunod siya... Pero bago pa mangyari 'yun, uunahan ko na sila."
In the end, Matthew cannot respond anymore, and just let his daughter leave the place. When he is finally left alone, he heaved a deep sigh as he placed his clasp hands on top of the table. He then stared at the seat that Gwen just left, before leaning back on his own chair and looking at the view outside the window.
********
Knowing that his father will be out for the whole weekend, Vladimir immediately went to Voltaire's study room first thing in the morning. Umalis na ang tatay niyang si Voltaire para dumiretso sa airport noong umagang iyon, kaya meron siyang pagkakataon na pakialaman ang mga gamit nito at mangalap ng impormasyon tungkol sa Paramount Laboratories.
Bago niya buksan ang pinto, agad niyang ginamit ang kakayahan para kontrolin ang mga camera na posbileng ininstall ng ama sa loob ng silid. His father is a very suspicious person, and never trusts other people, including his family.
The moment he went inside, he started to scan the files and folders on top of the table. Since he has the ability to analyse information fast, he immediately realized which files to check and which folders are not necessary in his search.
Kasama sa mga files na nakita niya ay isang proposal tungkol sa paglikha ng isang serum na nagpapalakas ng metahuman abilities, at gumigising din sa dormant metahuman genes na taglay ng carriers na walang manifested abilities.
Vladimir's brows furrowed at the contents of the file, and just went through the pages and scanned everything, storing all the information he saw inside his mind. After that, he went to check on the personal computer his father owned, and using his abilities, he turned it on without even touching it.
Iyon nga lang, nangangailangan ang computer ng isang password. Pero dahil isa siyang technopath, nagawan iyon ng paraan ni Vladimir, at nagawa niyang buksan ang computer na ginagamit ng ama. He even smirked a little, feeling amused upon realizing how handy his ability is in gathering information and intelligence.
Kahit hindi niya hinahawakan ang mouse na nakakabit doon, nagawa niyang tingnan ang mga files na naka-store sa personal computer nag ama. He checked every file and folder, trying to find out some more information. He is eager, making sure that he takes files and that might be relevant in his search, and started copying it.
Pagkatapos noon ay inilabas niya ang phone niya, at gamit muli ang kakayahan niya ay ikinonekta niya ito sa computer nang walang kahirap-hirap. Kasunod noon ay ang pagkopya niya ng mga pinili niyang files mula sa computer papunta sa sarili niyang phone. Habang ginagawa iyon, chineck niya na rin ang mga emails ng tatay niya para maghanap pa ng importanteng impormasyon na pwede nilang magamit.
Pero habang nasa kalagitnaan ng pangingialam sa mga files ng tatay niya, nagulantang si Vladimir nang makarinig siya ng malakas na busina mula sa labas ng bahay. Vladimir started to panic, and rushed by the window just to see his father coming out of the car and entering the house.
Hindi na mapakali ang binata noong mga sandaling iyon dahil hindi pa siya tapos sa pagkopya ng mga files sa phone niya. Kung basta lang siyang lalabas ng kwarto, hihina ang epekto ng abilidad niya at maaaring maapektuhan noon ang proseso ng pagkopya niya ng files. At isa pa, hindi na rin siya basta makakalabas pa dahil naririnig niya na ang pag-akyat ng ama sa hagdan.
Thinking that he is on a dead end, Vladimir then sat on the floor and hid himself behind the table. Mahigpit ang hawak niya sa phone, at nakapikit ang mga mata niya dahil sa tumitinding takot at kaba na nararamdaman lalo na't mas lumalakas na ang yabag ng mga paa ng ama. Malakas ang tibok ng puso niya, at pakiramdam niya ay tatalon ito palabas ng dibdib niya.
But just when he lost all hope, he started to calm down, and an idea finally crossed his mind.
Even though he is sceptical with his plan since he still has a hard time using his technopathic skills on machines and gadgets in far from him, he knew he has to try no matter what.
Huminga nang malalim si Vladimir at nagsimulang mag-concentrate. His mind started locating his father's car, and tried to mess with it. However, he is finding it really difficult, as he started to frown and he could feel pain inside his head.
Ikinuyom niya ang mga kamay, at halos mamuti na ang mga daliri niya habang ibinibigay niya na ang lahat para lang makontrol ang sasakyan ng tatay niya na medyo malayo ang kinalalagyan mula sa pwesto niya.
Pero pagkalipas ang ilang segundo, bago pa man makapasok ang tatay niya sa loob ng study room, bigla na lamang tumunog ang alarm ng kotse. The sound was so loud and abrupt that even Vladimir was surprised by it.
When he heard his father's footsteps again, now going farther away from the study room, Vladimir finally managed to get up from his hiding place and finish copying the files that he needed. After that, he utilized his ability again to turn off the computer like it was never turned on, before rushing to leave his father's study office.
Nanginginig ang mga kamay ni Vladimir nang pinihit niya ang door knob, at sumilip muna siya sa labas para tingnan kung may makakakita ba sa kanya kapag lumabas siya mula roon. Nang masiguradong walang tao sa paligid, mabilis niyang nilisan ang study room ni Voltaire at dumiretso sa kwarto niya at nagkulong doon habang pilit na kinakalma ang sarili.
Isinandal niya ang katawan sa pinto, habang patuloy ang malalim niyang paghinga para pahupain ang kaba at tensyon na nararamdaman niya. He is usually calm and collected, but since he grew up getting abused by his dad, he instantly changes into a coward young man because of their family's patriarch.
Saktong pagpasok ni Vladimir sa kwarto niya ay ang pagpasok muli ni Voltaire sa loob ng bahay. Tila mainit ang ulo nito habang patakbong umakyat sa hagdan at dumiretso sa study room niya. He forgot some files he was supposed to bring on his trip, so he immediately went back home and rushed to his study room to get them.
Pero nang hawakan ni Voltaire ang door knob, mabilis niya itong nabitawan at bigla siyang napaatras habang binibigyan ito ng isang nagtatakang tingin. He felt a strong, stinging pain from the metal, causing him to move backwards in confusion. Pakiramdam niya ay para siyang nakuryente, dahil ramdam niya ang kakaibang gulat na gumising sa buong sistema niya.
He profusely shook his hand as well, hoping the movement would ease the pain. The feeling was the same with the sensation of being electrocuted, which made Voltaire extremely baffled.
Napatitig siya sa door knob ng ilan pang segundo, bago muling sinubukang hawakan ito. Nang tumama ang balat niya sa makinis na bakal na iyon, wala na siyang naramdaman kaya pinihit niya ito para mabuksan ang pinto at makapasok sa loob ng silid.
Voltaire just shrugged the weird occurrence off, and went on with his way out of the house. Pero nang hahawakan niya na ang manibela ng kotse, napansin niyang may mga maliliit na paso sa kamay niya na humawak sa door knob kanina lamang.
He just shook his head in confusion, before starting his car's engine and finally leaving the place.