The Lost Haven II: The Grand Domain

1: Free Fall

Alam niyo ba ung feeling na determined ka sa isang bagay then you suddenly regret it in the next couple of hours? Well, ganun ang feeling ko nga--

"Claire, dapa!" bigla akong tinackle ni Finn, isang volley ng gunshots ang dumaan sa aming direksyon. "Don't get distracted! Tatlong buwang walang lead ang police tungkol sa incident dito sa Metro, they'll immediately assume us as terrorists!"

"Wag mo nang ulitin!" I exclaimed.

Anyway, hinahabol kami ngayon ng mga police ni Clive Storm, desperado na silang makakuha ng suspect kaya maski kami, pinupunterya. They have no idea na mission naming huliin ang suspect na hinahanap nila.

The whole Metro is in ruins, this sure brings back dreadful memories pero kailangan kong mag-focus, our life is on the line.

Lumiko kami sa isang eskinita.

"Any better plan?" sabi ni Jake. "We directed the police's attention towards us so the two other groups could slip out to the Havens."

Nawala na sa ayos ung black wig ni Finn, he seemed to notice it and fixed it onto place, "This alley leads to the Old Manila."

You heard him right. Old Manila. Ang Metro kasi ay itinayo sa ibabaw ng Manila, and to remember our past heritage daw, they rebuilt this part of the Metro to look like Manila back when it was under the Spanish era, more than 600 years ago.

Ang hirap tumakbo  lalo na kapag puno ng debris at rubble ang tinatahak mo. Once in a while naa-out of balance ako dahil sa maliliit na bato, buti na lang nasa likod ko si Jake para i-assist ako.

"Thanks." sabi ko kay Jake habang binalik niya ako sa balanse for the 12th time. Nasa harap na namin ang Old Manila.

Bago pa siya mag-respond, nagsalita si Finn, "Less talking, more running. The Grand Tower is on the other side, after that, we go east to the Third Haven."

Easy for him to say. Punong-puno ng police ang buong lugar.

Grand Tower did not got the 'Grand' in its name for no reason, ito ang pinakamataas na building sa buong Grand Domain. Standing 700 meters high, makikita mo na ang buong Metro dito. I hadve no doubt na hindi ito mada-damage, after all, it's as sturdy as the walls of Grand Domain.

The Grand Tower is built for many purposes, meron itong mall, hotel, casino, waterpark, etc. Pero ang pinaka-importanteng role nito ay mag-serve as a meeting place for the Haven Leaders. Apparently, nasa huling floor ang conference room na iyon, doon nila pinag-uusapan ang mga plano nila tung sa mga Havens and so on and so forth.

"Paano tayo makakalusot?" I asked.

"We go through them." sabi n Finn.

"Yeah, right. A girl and two boys  with weapons walking through the ruins of Old Manila. 'Hey there! We're just passing through. Nagmamadali kasi kaming iligtas ang city na 'to from being overrun by clones.'" sinabi ko with full-force sarcasm.

Kinonsulta ko ang utak ko for suggestions. Pwede kaming mag-travel through the roofs, kung may mga bubong. Maybe we could stun them, pero mauuubos lang ang ammo. namin and the stun grenade will cause everyone to notice. Wala na akong maisip na maaaring gawin, wala naman kasing napag-aralan na ganitong scenario sa training namin.

Teka, wala nga ba?

Naalala ko ang simulation training namin dati. Isang survival activity sa isang wrecked and bombed city na puno ng armed bad guys. Ano nga ba ulit ang ginawa ko doon? Right, I made a diversion. Two diversions, actually. Habang nag-panic ang stimulation guys sa kung anong nangyari, nag-disguise ako sa isa sa kanila at lumusot papunta sa goal.