Charmed by the Unseen

Chapter 28: Lightning Saved the Day

The adrenaline rush I had at the moment was overwhelming. These ugly  and filthy monsters made my back shivering and my forehead sweating some very cold type of perspiration.

Tumakbo kami ng tumakbo pero masiyadong mabilis ang mga LiGwardiya. Mukhang wala silang planong patakasin kami. Hindi namin sila kayang maunahan pa ng matagal. Some ran around us in an incredibly fast speed. They were able to catch up and eventually get on ahead of us. We came to a full halt. We were surrounded.

We had no way out, no where to ran, no where else to go.

Nang mapalibotan kami, hindi na nag-aksaya ng oras ang mga LiGwardiya at agad maingay na sumugod sa amin. Nakataas ang matatalim nilang mga scimitars na parang pang-gapas ng palay. It shone dangerously when hit by sunlight.

The LiGwardiya charged violently. Their war cries echoing in the field, scorching the field of flowers. Me and my companions braced ourselves. The enemies were attacking on almost all direction. They were howling and snarling like wolves, ferioucious like lions and teeth bared and greeted, ready to pounce on us any moment from now.

I pulled out the only weapon I had with me. Hindi ko alam kung magagawa ako nitong iligtas but I didn't have much choice. I had to fight with this dagger once and for all.

The LiGwardiya were about a heartbeat away. And in a millisecond. They dispersed back to where they came from. Napalingon ako. Wondering what just happened. A strong powerful force tossed them away like ragdolls.

I shifted my head a little to my right. It was Juan Carlos who tossed them away with a super strong wind force. Tumilapon pabalik sa malayo ang mga kalaban, crushing lines of daises and roses. Pero hindi sapat ang ginawa ni Juan Carlos para patigilin o patayin sila. Though some of them remained lying flat on the ground, muli lang din silang nagsitayoan at parang walang pakialam na sumugod ulit. Sumisigaw ng mga salita na masiyadong masakit sa tainga. Ang tanging naintindihan ko lang ay rawr, gwak, rakk, khak. I don't know how to comprehend that at all.

"Dalikamata!" Juan Carlos yelled.

Dalikamata slightly turned to him and nodded. Then she started shooting her usual signature purple energy lights on ramdom LiGwardiya soldiers. Napayuko na lang ako ng ibaling niya sa akin ang isang kamay dahil may sumugod na direksiyon ko. Lahat ng natatamaan ng mga tira niya ay sumasabog at nagiging abo. One soldier ran with a sword aimed at us but Dalikamata threw him an energy light. He gave a loud scream and he exploded into purple dust.

Sa likod ko, Sarayan sprayed some sort of mega water guns on the charging monsters, causing them to trip and fall on the ground. Then he formed a swirling water which Juan Carlos lifted in the air and like the world's biggest flying puddle, dropped it on the ground and destroyed the monsters.

I felt very useless. Wala kasi akong ginawa kundi tumayo doon at tingnan silang nakikipaglaban. I felt so weak and unimportant. Kumbaga sa isang bahay, palamonin lang ako dito at walang kwenta. And I hated the feeling of not being able to contribute something on this battle.

I wanted to help but I didn't have anything else to offer. Pumulot na lang ako ng mga malalaking bato na nagkalat sa may paa ko at ipinambato iyon sa mga kalabang papalapit sa amin. One rock flew overhead and hit one charging LiGwardiya. It made him stop running and turned around vicously, probably wondering where the rock came from. I threw another rock, mas malaki ito kaysa sa nauna. With a stronger release, I threw it away and hit the filth for the second time. Natumba ito sa lakas ng pagkakatama. I grinned. Bull's eye! It shook it's head and gazed around, ginalit ko lang yata ito ulit. Tatayo na sana ito ng tamaan ng malakas na pwersa galing kay Dalikamata at nawala sa kawalan.

We continued on that stand. The three of them tossing, killing and destroying Maguayen's minions and me throwing rocks at them. It may sound unsure but I think we had the upper hand in this fight. Juan Carlos created a huge hurricane that kill most of the LiGwardiya's, shredding them to bits. Dalikamata made dozens of them explode into dusts and Sarayan kept drowning them inside water bubbles.

Pero nagkaroon kami ng problima. Kahit marami na ang namamatay, hindi pa rin sila maubos-ubos. They just keep coming back from the woods. Halos wala silang kataposan sa bilang. Hindi ko na mabilang kong ilang daan na ang naroon. Parami sila ng parami. Like rogue bees swarming, nothing seemed to stop them from coming up to kill us.

Everyone was busy around me so they weren't able to see what was happening in the woods. Or particularly, what was coming out of the woods.

"Uh..guys...I think you should see this" siko ko kay Juan Carlos. Napatigil siya sa ginagawa. Ganoon din  ang mga kapatid niya. The four of us stared into the creatures creaking and rumbling in the woods.

More LiGwardiya appeared, stronger and mightier than ever. They wore stronger armors, fiercer and meaner faces. And they carry a lot more weapons then the previous groups. I get it. The first surge were just pawns. Ganoon naman talaga, kailangan ipain ang mga mahihina. But the new arrival wasn't the bigger threat.

Behind the tall and sturdy trees, and towering branches emerged giant LiGwardiya's. There were about 20 of them. Dark-green skinned, bare chested, bald headed, and faces even more uglier than the usual ones. They have more ferocious snarls and growls and they thundered, making the ground shake. They charged slower then the small ones though but that didn't stop me from wanting to cower away.

"Haranta" I heard Sarayan speak. "Mukhang seryoso na talaga si Ina na mawala tayo sa mundo"

"Mas masahol pa siya kaysa sa mga tauhan niya!" Dalikamata yelled.

I couldn't help but wonder how Maguayen was able to digest everything that she is doing. Talagang wala siyang pakialam sa mga anak niya. Hindi ko maintindihan kung paano niya nasisikmura o nakakaya na ipapatay ang sarili niyang mga anak. Talagang wala siyang kasingsama. Wala siyang katulad. I would admit that I was actually hoping na trip niya lang talagang takotin ang mga anak niya. Pero sa nakikita ko ngayon. Hindi na ito biro. This was beyond reason. Beyond hope. Beyond evil...

"Sarayan, magtaas ka ng tubig mula sa lupa" Juan Carlos ordered. I've noticed him lately always giving orders on his siblings. No doubt the other two quite respects him

Sarayan gave him a nod and made a water spout rise from the ground, which Juan Carlos turned into a spinning water barrier. Pinigilan nito ang tuluyang paglapit sa amin ng mga LiGwardiya dahil masiyado na silang marami.

With the barrier now defending us, Juan Carlos made a number of filths float in the air. And with a heavy grunt, Dalikamata produced a super energy light and threw it on them, making them explode in the air and showered us with purple glitter.

The giant LiGwardiyas smashed the smaller ones away, shoving them like unnecessary stuff blocking their path. May hawak silang parang mga batota doon sa Tarzan at Barok which they swinged at the smaller soldiers. Some are even crushed beneath their feet. Pero walang pakialam ang mga ito kahit napapatay na nila ang mga kasamahan. They had one ultimate goal. And that's to end our lives.

"Umalis na tayo!" Sarayan yelled, "habang may oras pa! Hindi na natin sila mapipigilan pag nagtagal pa tayo!"

I saw Juan Carlos nodding. Then his back shimmered and his wings appeared behind his back. He unfolded them but avoid spreading them since the enemies started throwing catapults at us. Sarayan's wings also appeared. Juan Carlos grabbed my arm and we were ready to ascend into the air.

But then we encountered another problem. This time the enemies started firing spears which are dangerous for  the god's wings. Muntik pang tamaan ang kanang pakpak ni Sarayan kong hindi lang napasabog ni Dalikamata ang papalapit na kapahamakan.

Soon spears were raining down on us. Juan Carlos lifted both arms in the air and created a shield, big enough to cover us all. I could see his face contorting. Controling the water barrier by wind and keeping hold of the shield is straining him.

"Sayaran" he said, heavily grunting.

Sarayan helped him keep the shield in place. Both of them were struggling as Dalikamata continued firing shots from below us.

The spears kept hitting the bronze metal shield, leaving lumps on the surface. Napayuko na lang ako at napahawak sa ulo. How are we going to survive this?

The twins are slowly losing control of the shield. Probably because they had been using so much of their powers and it's weakening them. I did my best to help though I didn't have so much as having godly strength. Juan Carlos made his wings disappear since we wouldn't flying anytime soon.

"'Wag kang bibigay Aglawin!" Sarayan yelled. The weakness on Juan Carlos face was clearly visible now. It can no longer be denied.

Hindi na nakasagot pa si Juan Carlos because we were hit with something hard and metallic. It destroyed our defense and the impact caused us to be thrown away in separate directions.

I just have enough time to see what happened. One huge Haranta swinged it's axe on the shield, tossing us away. I landed in between tall lavanders and my butt really hurt on the impact. I got up just as a LiGwardiya slashed a sword at me.

My fear made me roll over before I was sliced to death. With an angry snarl, the LiGwardiya shifted one foot ahead and slashed again at my direction. I grabbed a rock the lied flat on my foot and throw it at the monsters where it bounced harmlessly on his forehead. Oops! Bad call.

I ran. The LiGwardiya was also running after me, following my every move. I wanted to lost him pero paano ko naman magagawa iyon gayong napaka-open ng lugar na ito?  Nilingon ko siya na dapat hindi ko ginawa kasi hindi ko nakita ang malaking tuod na nakaharang sa daraanan ko. At ayon nga, Ally's epic fail 101 achievement unlocked!

My forefeet hit the wood and I fell down into a steep slope na hindi naman kataasan. Nagpagulong-gulong ako sa damohan. Nahawi ko rin ang ilang linya ng mga chrysantemums. Ang katangahan nga naman. When I reach the bottom, I spotted a space that save me from getting butchered. My maliit na parang tunnel doon na pwedeng pagkasyahan ng dalawang tao. I wasted no time and crawled underneath it. I grabbed the grass para matabunan ako kahit paano. The sunlight created shadows overhead me. Nandiyan pa rin  pala ang LiGwardiya at tiyak hinahanap ako. It's snarl and growls felt like a spray of cold concontion on my face.

I managed not to create even a single whimper. Halos ko na rin pigilan ang paghinga ko. I saw the shadow slowly getting closer. Parang nasa mismong taas ko lang ito at parang nagpapalinga-linga ito sa paligid at inaamoy ako. Hays mabuti na lang talaga at hindi malala ang body odor ko hindi kagaya ni Brent. (Char! Joke lang! Please don't hate him)

Napasiksik ako sa maliit na tunnel ng lumapit ang anino. Oh no.

"Aahhh!"

Napasigaw ako ng may biglang sumulpot at sinilip ako sa kinaroroonan ko.

"Ally! Sinasabi ko na nga ba at nandiyan ka! Halika na!"

Kumalma ang nabulabog kong sarili ng makita si Juan Carlos. Phew! Akala ko ang LiGwardiya na 'yon. Inabot ko ang kamay at lumabas sa pinagtataguan.

Nothing changed at all. We were still in the middle of numerous monsters. Dalikamata and Sarayan were still fighting. Dalikatama flew in the air, lifting LiGwardiya's with her powers and clashed them together. The filths exploded like a canon ball.

It wasn't long before the other LiGwardiya spotted us. About 20 came charging at our direction. Looking down, I saw an abondoned sword lying on the ground beside a dead LiGwardiya. Walang pagdadalawang-isip na yumuko ako at pinulot iyon.

Juan Carlos saw me and gave me a smirk as if silently asking Do you even know ho to use that? Pero wala siyang sinabi. He shifted his attention back to enemies charging. But before they could reach, just as when I'm ready to strike with my sword, Juan Carlos wrapped one arm on my waist and we flew in the air.

The LiGwardiya's yelled angrily, na-badtrip siguro dahil nakatakas kami. I notice Juan Carlos. He didn't have his wings on. Kaya niya naman palang lumipad ng walang pakpak bakit nag-exist pa  'yon in the first place?

A spear went zooming just infront of my face. I was too shocked to react. Juan Carlos held my waist tighter before looking down at our enemies. Then with a dive, we landed just infront of Sarayan.

They had managed to eliminate the enemies but their numbers doesn't seem to get affected at all. One Haranta pounded the ground with his large foot.

"Mamatay kana!" Juan Carlos yelled and threw the sword at it. The blade flew fast like a zing of a bullet and hit the Haranta straight in the forehead. It's eyes rolled around and staggered violently before falling on the ground. Then surprisingly, the blade pulled inself out and flew back to Juan Carlos's   hands.

"Ahhhh!"

A loud scream made the three of us turned around. I probably have turned pale by now. Dalikamata fell on the ground, pinned down by a spear on her right shoulder. Isang Haranta ang nasa harapan niya at akmang titirahin siya ng isang malaking palakol. Before I could even scream her name, Juan Carlos flew towards her with an extremely fast speed. Like a hurricane, he swirled around the Haranta, so fast it was even hard to imagine.

"Sarayan, tulungan mo ako" I said.

Agad naming tinakbo si Dakilamata. Sarayan pulled out the spear, causing Dalikamata to scream in pain. We lifted her up but one LiGwardiya slashed at Sarayan, hitting him in the knee. Sarayan gave a grunt of both anger and pain before swinging his sword at the attacker, separating his head from his body.

There was a loud thud. The Haranta was successfully killed by Juan Carlos. It fell face flat on the grass. Yet just as the moment that he landed, Juan Carlos fell on his knees. Talagang nanghihina na siya. Sugat sugat na rin ang katawan niya. Yet he managed to get up and ran towards us. He even made the wind blew harder, dahilan para tumilapon ang mga kalaban sa malayo. At gaya kanina, pabalik-balik pa rin sila.

Though it bought us some time to recover, hindi pa rin namin napigilan ang paglusob nila sa amin. Juan Carlos and Sarayan prepared themselves trying to protect us from death.

"Ahh!" Dalikamata yelled in pain and grabbed on my shirt. Malaki ang sugat niya at walang tigil na dumudugo. I rumaged on my bag, looking for the healing vial pero wala na ito roon? Nasaan na 'yon? Bakit ngayon pa? Bakit?

I didn't have any other choice, I tore the hem of my shirt even if it exposes my belly part. I have to save Dalikamata. Ginawa ko iyong pam-bandage sa kanya. But as I was doing it, I notice she wasn't yelling anymore. Nakapikit na siya. No, she wasn't dead. She was just weak. Too weak to even speak. Nanlalata at namumutla na siya dahil marami na ang nawala sa kanyang dugo.

I didn't know what to do. Ang ginawa ko ay niyakap ko na lang siya. Death seemed enevitable by now. Hindi na namin ito matatakasan. The twins are now weakening, Dalikamata was bleeding and I couldn't even do something to help them.

Napaluhod si Sarayan sa harapan ko.

"Tumayo ka. Hindi ito ang oras para manhina" Juan Carlos urged and helped his brother up.

Pero hindi na rin kinaya pati siya. Tinamaan na rin si Juan Carlos sa tagiliran. His blood even spattered on me. He just gave it a small grunt and backed up again.

And that's when the skies turned dark and stormy. And from the heavens, lightning cracked and zapped the LiGwardiyas, frying and electricuting them to death.