Oktofinitum

Chapter 20

MID - ASSESSMENT PART 5

Mirakov

A cold eerie chill ran down my spine.

Simula nang tumapak ako sa lugar na ito ay kanina pa ako nakakaramdam ng kakaiba ngunit tila pamilyar na kilabot na nanunuot sa kaibuturan ko. I don't know why pero parang pamilyar sa akin ang ganitong pakiramdam, tila ba naranasan ko na ito dati.

It was so nostalgic yet there's a part of me that resists the memory, na tila ba naalala ko ito pero ayaw ko nang alalahanin pa –a memory I am purposefully trying to get rid of. Gaige... Hindi ko alam pero bigla na lang sumulpot sa akin ang alaala niya, na tila ang pakiramdam na ito ay may kinalaman sa kanya pero parang imposible naman ata iyon 'di ba?

"So, ano? Hindi ka na in-denial?" Darren's words earlier before they entered the forbidden forest, however, came back to her. Pero may pamilya si Gaige sa mundo ng mga mortal, sila Aling Delia kaya ibig sabihin malayong may kinalaman ang nangyari kay Gaige sa mga kababalaghan sa mundong ito. Hindi ko pa man malinaw na naaalala ay may iilang mga bagay ang nagbalik na sa akin dahil sa naging laban namin ni Marienelle. One thing I was definitely sure of was that Gaige's death wasn't an accident, it was as if she was possessed or something.

I threaded carefully albeit a bit distracted from my own thoughts. Maraming sanga-sanga sa daan at bawat hakbang ay gumagawa ito ng ingay kaya naman nang makarinig ako ng ingay mula sa 'di kalayuan ay agad akong nataranta. Shit.

Ang tanging armas ko lang ay shuriken na natira ko mula sa laban namin kahapon. Anim ang nagamit ko noon kaya nasa bente na lang ang meron ako. Sana naman kumasya 'to. Although I admit that I am like them, I still have no idea what exactly my abilities are, and the announcer earlier clearly clarified that abilities do not work in this contest, so hand to hand or long range combats are the only possible ways to survive.

"H–hindi i–ikaw si..." napalingon ako sa pinanggalingan ng boses na iyon. Bagamat may kahinaan at tila naghihingalo ang boses alam kong malapit lamang iyon. Agad kong sinundan ang pinanggalingan ng boses at natigilan ako sa nakita. I hid behind one of the trees to conceal myself unsure of what was happening. It was Lady Jenny Mae and Lady Wendell. Except, the latter was choking the life out of her, why were they fighting each other? I thought they were friends? Ganito ba talaga ka-intense ang competition na 'to, to the point that it would turn us from each other's back?

Lady Jenny Mae was weakly calling for help and I was unsure of what to do. Bumalik sa akin ang mga alaala nang hinatid niya ako sa aking first class, it seemed like it was already a long time ago. I noticed then and there her obvious dislike of me –mortal me, rather. She even slapped me hard the other day to wake me up from falling unconscious, "H–help..."

I heaved a deep sigh and went out of my hiding place to reveal myself, "You! Leave my friend alone!" Lady Wendell then twisted her head towards me, I was taken aback at what I saw. Puti lamang ang mata niya at tila ba nagpuputukan ang ugat sa kabuuan ng katawan niya hanggang sa naging kulay violet na ito lalo na sa isa niyang kamay paakyat sa braso at sa leeg.

An image of Gaige looking exactly like that suddenly flashed before my eyes. Was that a memory?

"Oh... look who's come to rescue a friend, little mortal."

"From what happened yesterday, you should probably know..." With shaky hands, I took a star pinned in my hair and aimed towards her hands, "I'm not a little mortal because I can fight."

"Argh!" Dahil doon ay nabitawan niya si Lady Jenny Mae na agad namang bumagsak sa maputik na lupa at nabaling ang atensyon niya sa akin. Her eyes were so creepy it was giving me goosebumps, and as some black gooey liquid dripped down from her hands that was stabbed with a shuriken, she suddenly looked at me more intently and smiled demonically.