Hojun came to Buhanggilog to take her brother, Tayang, back to Silla. She knew he was associated with Al-Wa, and her father asked her to bring Tayang back without trial. Deep down, Hojun believed that her brother needed to be punished. But out of fear of her father, and for the grand dream of Silla she set out to Dyak-ar-salaam, and traveled to the Luzokapital. Like her father she too, dreamt of Silla’s Golden Age. As-Z̆onghu̐a, Silla’s occupier, spent over a thousand years reigning. A millenia had passed since the Al-Qarakh House last ruled Old Silla.

But what relation did that have with Buhanggilog?

Hojun moved her feet. She pressed forward and threw a jab. The Kapitan sidestepped and caught her punch.

“Now that’s more like it, señora. I am more fond of fighting rather than negotiations.”

Hojun looked up at the man’s tall stature. “For a fighter you seem rather talkative.”

Those words were enough for him to grip her wrist even tighter. Hojun winced, her skin burning. It felt as if her hand would rip right off. She screamed and managed to break free. Hojun flew several paces back. Her knee skid across the pavement, tearing up her pants. On her wrist, red marks already began to show.

Again she threw herself at him. The Kapitan slugged her in the chest. She stumbled backward and spat on the ground. Her body was too frail. Hojun experienced a popping sensation within her torso, and a welling up in her throat.

He was too strong. Taller, muscular, and skilled than her. For so long she cherished her woman qualities, but in this moment, she sparked the thought of if she had been a man, would she be able to defeat him.

“Like I would ever think that…” Hojun clenched her chest, breathing erratically. “I…”

She dashed again at the Kapitan. In an instant she tackled him with all her might. Her feet dug into the ground, while the man barely moved an egem.

A Kamao’s eyes twitched with such ferocity. “We oughta protect the Doña!”

“For Pérez’s sake!”

“Yeah!”

Those with ranged weapons lifted them up and fired. The Kapitan of the Occident merely moved Hojun in the direction of the bullets. They impacted her back in excruciating pain. She winced harder than ever, as blood poured out of her backside.

She mustered up her breath. “Please don’t shoot anymore! I’ll handle this…”

“In the end, this is all it comes to.” The Kapitan’s fist plunged into Hojun’s abdomen. She staggered back several steps, unable to feel her breath, nor the outcries from behind her. Her vision flashed back and forth, only hearing the sound of her own heartbeat. Hojun’s blood burst from her mouth, soaking her coat and white polo shirt.

“Hojun!”

She slowly turned her head towards Jorge, whose worried expression she couldn’t see.

“Hojun, control your breathing! Breathe slowly! That’s what Alejandro taught me!”

Breathe. She stood inanimate, feeling the blood trickle down her elbow. Hojun inhaled, and exhaled. Her eyes saw a panorama of the street, and Hojun’s eyes focused in on the Kapitan.

She closed the distance and grabbed his arms. Hojun met a kick that sent her sideways. However, she blocked with the outsides of her arms. Both her and the Kapitan gave off a look of surprise. Hojun clinged to that momentum, and got back up.

When she breathed slowly, she noticed that she could perceive the man’s movements ever so slightly. Perhaps Hojun became more focused, or it steadied her nerve.

The man threw a punch. Hojun locked onto him and brought her arm down. She parried the fist and slugged him in the face. This time, she sent the man stumbling back. Hojun spun and kicked him.

“You think just because you breathe you got the advantage-”

He flinched to the sound of a cocking gun. Hojun didn’t want to waste any more time. She summoned a pistol with her Guizu Arcana and pointed it at his head.

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“It doesn’t matter. With you talking I could’ve blown off your head here and now.”

“Why you-”

He grabbed the handgun out of her hands, but her arms wrapped around his neck quicker. In a chokehold, Hojun felt her muscles go numb. She couldn’t back down now. Hojun squeezed with all her might with whatever strength was left in her body. Pangs of pain jolted throughout her, as the man struggled to breathe. After almost a minute of holding him in place, he finally tapped the floor. Hojun let go.

“Damn señora… You're stronger than I give credit for…”

“So can we cease this fighting? Like you promised.” Hojun narrowed her eyes at him, and that glare caused him to avoid her gaze.

The Kapitan looked at the other grunts, and they pulled down their vaquero hats. “The Oksidentanos involved here will leave.”

As they grouped together and turned around, Hojun called out to them. “Wait, I still have something to say to all of you.”

Everyone, the Oksidentanos, the Kamaos, and Bakalitos turned to her. She had gained favor of the Kamaos, scared the Bakalitos into submission, and earned the respect of the Oksidentanos. They were too tired, or scared to lift a finger against her, each plagued by their own values of their gangs.

“What we have fought here, was for nothing. There was no meaning to the clash of three gangs. Why are we shedding the blood of our brethren, your brothers, when the enemy is lurking like a snake in a garden?” She stood confidently, her blood-soaked polo already drying. “The true enemy is Al-Wa. And they plan to use Llorenç to gain control of your country. And that’s why we need to stop him.”

The Oksidentanos scratched their heads, as if they were ignorant of the situation. Maybe they didn’t know the details of their own scheme.

“Brethren?” one of the grunts asked.

“Yes, you are brethren separated by these bandanas and hats. If you were all born and raised here you are all Buhang, regardless of your ethnic heritage. But Al-Wa wants division and derision. Tayang… only wants violence.”

Soon after, Hojun had a coughing spell and fell to her knees. The wounds in her back began to catch up to her. The saharic particles hadn’t yet returned, so could not heal her condition.

“Then what do you want us to do then? They killed our men, and we did the same. The cycle will repeat endlessly…” The short captain of the Kamaong Batikan stepped forward.

Hojun tiredly raised herself back up. “I want all of us now, even just for this day… to march together and show Llorenç what Buhanggilog is.”

To her solemn goal, no one said anything and came forward. Jorge, Mister Gyeong, Seung-Hyeok, Tvuj all moved forward in unison. As Hojun’s vision blurred, she could see Suruj’s face calmly looking at everyone. Today was the day that they would take on Al-Wa. Today was the day that justice would be brought against Tayang.

A gunshot whirred through the street. Suruj arched over, grabbing his shoulder. In a daze, Hojun frantically scanned the area for whoever shot Suruj. That was when she felt it. That feeling she so dreaded.

“Everyone huddle together if you want to live!” She shouted, calling for all of them. Confusion spread among them, as they crowded together in a large ball. Hojun sensed that the particles had returned. “Tvuj, your wings!”

“Dihu Tsubasa!” The Azu girl’s wings sprouted from her back and encircled the entire group of everyone; Kamaos, Bakalitos, and Oksidentanos.

Hojun raised her hand over the sky. “Dihu Baohu! Everyone form a shield! Quickly!”

That feeling was getting stronger. She felt it in the pit of her throat, that malice that sought to destroy everything in sight. Several sahar shields were casted over them, as they chanted layer upon layer of defense spells in succession.

A sniper rifle materialized into Hojun’s hands. She cocked it while her eyes searched the buildings. Where was it coming from? After several sweeps she locked on with it on the fourth story of a building.

Hojun aimed and looked through the scope of her rifle. Her aim shook from the fatigue, yet she kept calm and had sights on it from below. “Dihu Beongae: Al-Qarakh Art, Gunfire!...”

Her weapon radiated a rainbow as bursts of light trickled down the barrel. Here it came. She squeezed the trigger with all her might.

A colossal beam of light shot out from the barrel. In a split second she saw the other one come from the fourth floor of the building. The two energy beams impacted each other. An explosion rocked the neighborhood, and she saw the other laser pass through hers and continue its projection onto them.

It pierced the shield quicker than anyone could process. It shattered through the sahar shields. It dissipated Tvuj’s wings. It whirred passed Hojun’s head before leveling the entire street.

Hojun lifted her head. Blood ran down the side of her head and entered her eye. Her eyes, scorching with anger, continued to stare at the familiar person that jumped down from the building.

Behind her, piles of mutilated bodies tipped over.

“Is everyone okay? Oy! What’s going on!”

“Anong nangyari?!”

“Ghh…”

Suruj’s face contorted, with all his rage tightening into a fist. The familiar person took strides toward them, while he rested his rifle on his shoulder.

“Yah. Long time no see, sis.” The man’s face drew into a nasty smile. “For those of you who don’t know me let me introduce myself. I’m Captain Tayang of Al-Wa, or otherwise known as Crown Prince Tayang al-Qarakh. I remember your face, Buhang.”

Hojun stared as Suruj walked over silently. Her brother, had arrived.