Chapter 13
1152 Words
Sa patuloy na pagmomonitor ni Bianca sa Tier 3 logs, napansin niya ang kakulangan ng activity. The system was stable, so stable it was suspicious. Nakakaduda ang katahimikan ng kabilang kampo.
“She’s not sending anything out,” frustrated na sambit ni Bianca. “Walang outbound signals. No burner attempts. Walang kahit na anong bakas. Sa sobrang linis, ang boring.”
“She’s waiting for permission to break.”
Bianca frowned. “O baka naghihintay siya kay Mythos.”
Elise’s voice was calm. “Pareho lang din ‘yon.”
---
Carmela hadn’t spoken in hours. Mulat ang mga mata niya pero wala sa focus. Pinapanood siya ni Renzo mula sa observation room, magkakrus ang mga braso sa tapat ng dibdib. Hindi mabasa ang bukas ng mukha ng lalaki gaya ng dati. Na para bang hindi buhay na tao ang pinapanood nito kundi isang bagay.
“She’s dissociating,” bulong ni Renzo sa comms. “Lagpas na tayo sa paranoia. Unti-unti na siyang bumabagsak.”
Eliana’s voice came through, cold and clear. “Hayaan mo siya.”
Hindi na nakipagtalo si Renzo. Ini-off lang ng lalaki ang mic at pumasok sa kuwarto kung saan naroon si Carmela.
“You’re not the target,” mahinang deklara ni Renzo, sapat lang ang lakas ng boses para marinig ng babae.
Doon gumalaw ang mga mata ni Carmela. She looked at Renzo with disbelief in face. “Kung ganoon, bakit buhay pa ako?”
Naupo si Renzo sa tapat ng babae. “Dahil gusto ni Mythos na manood ka.”
“Manood? Ano’ng panonoorin ko? Ang unti-unting pagkawala ko sa sariling katinuan?” Carmela blurted and rose from her chair. “They’re playing with me, and you just do nothing but sit and watch me go mad! Are you Mythos?”
Hindi sumagot si Renzo. He just looked at her, neither confirming nor denying. Carmela screamed in a fit and lunged at him. Pero bago pa man mahawakan ng babae si Renzo ay bumukas ang pinto ng silid at pumasok ang dalawang attendant. Sinunggaban nila si Carmela at pilit na pinahihiga sa kamang naroon.
Renzo watched as the attendants plunged a syringe on Carmela’s arm.
---
Sa gitna ng board meeting sa EcoForm Technologies HQ, matatag ang boses ni Elise. Her posture was perfect. Pero sa ilalim ng mesa, abala ang mga daliri ng dalaga sa pagtipa.
Tier 3 cadence.
Ilang sandali pa ay nakatanggap si Elise ng sagot mula kay Bianca.
William’s Echo Protocol just pinged us. He’s listening.
Hindi nag-react si Elise. Pasimpleng itinabi niya ang cellphone at itinuloy ang presentation.
---
William was in his private office at Kintara Dynamics in Makati. Kailangang wala siya sa San Juan warehouse para isagawa ang mga bagay na kailangan niyang gawin habang nasa meeting si Elise. The new vault—Echo Protocol—was operational.
His analysts had flagged a new anomaly: a signal echo from Quezon City. Tier 3 frequency. But it wasn’t Elise’s.
It was Mythos’s.
Titig na titig si William sa waveform. Malinis iyon. Sobrang linis.
He opened a secure channel. “Trace it. I want a location.”
“Already done,” sagot ng analyst. “It’s bouncing through Vireon’s sandbox.”
Nakuyom ni William ang kaliwang kamao. A part of his chest tightened with the thought, but he chose to ignore it. If he’s a sane man, he should ignore it at all costs.
“Then Elise is either compromised—or she’s orchestrating.”
---
That night, Elise returned to the rooftop garden. Tahimik ang buong siyudad pero ang utak niya ay kabaliktaran ng katahimikang nasasaksihan niya. Nandoon na si William.
“Akala ko nasa Kintara ka,” sabi ni Elise.
“I thought you’d be at EcoForm,” balik ni William.
They stood in silence, the air between them charged.
“You’re building something,” Elise declared.
Hindi nagkaila ang binata. What for? Wala rin namang silbi kahit itanggi niya. Hindi si Elise ang tipo ng taong kaya niyang paglihiman. Malalaman at malalaman pa rin iyon ng babae.
“So are you.”
Elise turned to him. “Iniisip mong ako si Mythos.”
Lalong lumapit si William sa dalaga. Hindi kaagad siya sumagot, bagkus ay pinag-aralan niya ang mukha ng babae. It was like as if he would find the answers he wanted to hear just by watching her face. “I think you know more than you’re saying.”
Hindi umiwas si Elise. With a defiant tilt of her chin, she met his yes. “And if I do?”
William’s voice dropped. “Then I want to know why you haven’t told me.”
Elise looked at him—really looked. “Dahil hindi ko alam kung anong gagawin mo sa katotohang gusto mong marinig.”
Walang nagbago sa paraan ng pagtitig ng binate kay Elise. “Try me.”
Elise’s breath caught. For a moment, the silence between them wasn’t tactical or calculated, but rather it was intimate.
Pero kagaya ng dati, siya ang unang sumuko. Elise took a step back, something she knew William knew the meaning of. “Not tonight.”
William didn’t follow. But he didn’t leave either. Hindi pa man nagtatagal ang pagsasabwatan nilang dalawa laban kina Eliana at Paulo, William has already picked up the subtle hints and meanings in Elise’s behavior. Na para bang matagal na silang magkakilala. Na para bang sapat na ang simpleng pagtatama ng kanilang mga mata para maunawaan ang isa’t isa.
No need for words. Elise and William knew there was something brewing between them. Something dangerous, something that exceeds far beyond simple cooperation. Something that would cost them their lives.
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Nakatanggap uli ng panibagong mensahe si Carmela, hindi pa man nagtatagal nang magising siya mula sa sedative na itinurok sa kanya. Walang papel, walang pintura o tinta.
Just a whisper.
“You’re not the target.”
Napasigaw si Carmela. Hangos namang pumasok si Renzo.
“What did you hear?”
Carmela pointed at the wall. “They’re inside.”
Tiningnan ni Renzo ang mga camera. Wala. Pero bumaba ang temperatura sa lugar.
---
Back in San Juan, hindi mapakali si Bianca. Palakad-lakad ang dalaga sa harap ng nakaupong si Elise.
“Eliana’s pulling Carmela’s security,” sabi ni Bianca. “Hinahayaan niyang tuluyang mabaliw si Carmela.”
Elise didn’t flinch. “She wants Mythos to finish the job.”
“Eh, ikaw? Ano’ng gusto mong mangyari?” kalkuladong tanong ni Bianca sa kaibigan.
“Gusto kong mamili si Mythos.”
---
William received a new report. The Quezon City echo had shifted—now pulsing in sync with Elise’s Tier 3 rhythm.
Pinakatitigan ng binate ang data.
“She’s not just reacting,” bulong ng binata sa sarili. “She’s conducting.”
Muli siyang nagbukas ng panibagong directive: Phase Drift. A counter-rhythm. Isang pagsubok.
---
Sa rooftop, naramdaman ‘yon ni Elise.
A shift.
Ipinikit ng dalaga ang mga mata. Napangiti siya.
- Writer
