Hearts And Gunfires

ARC I: Agents of the Pentagon

           

May isang malakas na pagsabog di kalayuan mula sa kinatatayuan ko, but my face remained firm, my eyes set on the track my comrade leads. Under the blanket of the night, we took advantage of the explosions from the other side of the building, maintaining what looked like moving shadows from a distance. The three of us intend to make this swift.

Tumunog ang phone ko habang naglalakad. Kinapa ko ito at binuksan; bahagya pa akong nasilaw sa biglang pagsalubong ng ilaw sa mga mata ko, kaya't napahinto ako sa pag-usad. Ibinaba ko ang liwanag nito bago buksan ang bagong mensahe.

Galing sa team leader namin.

When I opened the media, I chuckled.

Nagsend lang pala si Flicker ng picture. Wow.

Selfie.

Ang daming time.

Bakit kailangan niya kasing magsend ng ganito ngayon? I can never understand how this guy has become this carefree, but moments like these have become so usual for us now, nasanay na ako. The sense of humor is odd, but hey, it's still sense of humor.

I squinted my eyes to see better, totally forgetting na nasa gitna ako ng backyard ng isang gang na sinusugod namin. I can see Flicker smiling, kaso against the light. Sa likod niya, a huge explosion came as a mixture of orange and gray smoke that lit up the other side of the building.

Napahagikgik ako bago naalalang nasa kalagitnaan kami ng isang misyon. When I looked up, my two comrades were already by the door, waiting for me. Napatakbo ako hanggang sa maabutan ko na sila, and I immediately smiled at the girl. Tinaasan niya ako ng kilay, which I just found cute, kaya biglang paliwanag ay ipinakita ko sa kanya ang screen ng phone ko.

"Ihahampas ko kayong dalawa sa barb wire, eh," she said, her amusement translating into a smile.

"Sorry na agad. Ganda mo po. Kinis ng balat mo parang perlas kumikinang."

"Thanks po," she answered, pailing-iling. The guy we're with also smiled at us in the dark. Pinitik niya ako sa noo at tumalikod na.

The three of us walked slowly until we were facing the massive door in front of us.

Sa ganoong klase ng pagsabog, dapat ay ilang minuto pa lamang ay may mga sasakyan na ng mga pulis na agad-agad na reresponde. Ngunit ang lugar na ito ay nasa dulong bahagi ng siyudad; lawless district at hinahayaan na lamang na ganito. After all, engaging in an area this big could cost the police a lot, so they opt to just leave it alone as long as the people who live here don't interfere with the peace and quiet of the inner city.

So what exactly am I, an ordinary teenager, doing here?

Ordinary? Well... nope. From the get-up to the set-up to the whatever-up, I don't pass as ordinary.

It's a little different for me, and for the seven others I came to this place with.

We are Agents of the Pentagon, and we are currently completing an operation: Rescue the Governor's Daughter.

Well... that explosion earlier was ours. We carry a grenade as anyone would a fruit basket. May iba pa: kutsilyo, shot gun, tear gas, brass knuckles... lahat ng pwedeng manakit.

This is my job.

Ang malakas na pagsabog na iyon ay hudyat na kailangan na naming gumalaw. Mabilis at matahimik, what we all need to do is to extract the hostage from captivity without creating a major ruckus, and we have officially begun.

Napahinto kaming panandalian. The steel door is locked.

But a problem? Nah. Itinapat lamang ng aking kasama ang palad niya sa malaking padlock na naroroon, maya-maya pa'y narinig na namin ang tunog ng mga bakal sa loob nito na gumagalaw – click.