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“Dihu Chuansong.”
Hojun held Suruj by the collar as she focused her spell onto her destination. The black motorcade down below, to the buggy within. Using it consumed a severe amount of saharic particles, so Suruj manifested many inside himself as a backup. From the top of a high-rise, they lept up into the air and instantly found themselves inside a vehicle.
The contents of the datu buggy were better and extravagant than the jeepneys they rode on before. White lining ran down the frame of the interior, and the windows were nearly blacked out. Hojun and Suruj bounced onto the soft seats, and noted the minibar in the left hand side. The roaring sound of the crowd immediately turned faint.
“Huh, I was confident that I would see you again, ginang.” A familiar voice sat across from them. As they turned to see who the person of datu blood was, they were surprised.
“Llorenç… So you are the Oksidentano of datu blood?” Hojun kept her composure under control, and remembered the man’s name.
He tightened his fist and cocked his head. “I am not full-blooded datu. This is our second time meeting, yet I ought to be slandered?”
“We were never meant to get along in the first place.” Suruj interrupted him, taking the lead. He fixed his Khoitan hat. “Just like you, we can subdue you here inside this tiny pillbox, and you can do the same to us. So why don’t we have a chat?”
“About what?”
“About why an Oksidentano is trying to become the president. You do realize that the minute you claim candidacy, Al-Wa, and your barkada will gain control of the entire country.”
Llorenç did nothing but fold his legs. “You and your little justice team came to stop it?”
“Indeed. The Occident has ties to Al-Wa, and whoever has ties to Al-Wa will deal with us.” Hojun added in, pushing the tension away from them. “Do enlighten us, what is the goal here? To let the Occident reign Buhanggilog, or-”
“A foreigner has no right to meddle in our affairs. Say, you want me to tell you why I am here?” Llorenç went on, and stared up. “ Twenty-two years ago, there was a hard-working mother in the Kalykeño Ward in Dyak-ar-salaam. She fell in love with a datu, and they had a child. But when that child reached his double digits, there was a massacre. Do you know what that massacre is?”
“... The Kalyk-Khoitan Massacre.” Suruj quivered within his answer. That massacre…Hojun read that in 1968 a certain Khoitan tribe was exterminated.
Llorenç clapped his hands. “Ding ding, as expected of the Salamensé. You’re right. My mother was killed on that day because she was a Kalyk. The Buhang think Khoitan are terrorists, no?”
“I know that Buhanggilog did that day.” Suruj continued, “But-”
“The Buhang carries hatred for the Khoitan, just like the other two nations. Tasdaha exists for a reason. During the Golden Age, this country’s conquistadors conquered every square egem of sand in Alą̧̄utl.”
“That was eight centuries ago.” Hojun completely contradicted herself. She did it again. Silla had fallen about a decade before. Why was she justifying a former conqueror? “Buhanggilog is no longer the same country you see today.”
Llorenç leaned in closer. “Except but it is. Ginang, that genocide was just twelve years ago. Do you think the Buhang have changed all this time?”
“Yes, I do. I have seen the hospitality of the Buhang, something that once was cherished in their culture. I have seen the corruption that ensues in this tricity system, and the Kapulisan that are astray. The Buhang, just like humans, are constantly changing.” Hojun raised her voice, “But enough of that. Get straight to the point.”
“I simply want to get revenge on the Buhang.”
Those words dissipated into silence, only hearing the faint sounds of marching outside and the rumble of the buggy.
“I don’t know what mental gymnastics caused you to reach that conclusion… But it's all crap.” Suruj banged his arm on the seat. “The people are suffering since there is no one to govern the country, and you care about inflicting even more pain?”
“The ‘people’ that are suffering are the Khoitan. Let’s say that there was an available job position in a company. A Khoitan man, and a Buhang man apply to that company. The Khoitan man has studied in the university and is well-prepared for the job. Meanwhile, the Buhang applicant is nothing but a lazy bobo that is just trying to get money for some booze. Who do you think the company will pick?” Llorenç twirled his finger in the air, before pointing at Suruj. “The putang bobo, of course.”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
“That is just a social issue that is difficult to solve.” Hojun responded, “But placing blame on all on the Buhang is different. The ones that get the most attention are the Buhang that do bad things. But we can’t assume that all are of malicious intent.”
“You must’ve had the same experience then, Prince Hojun al-Qarakh?”
Her eyes widened at how he addressed her. Her fists tensed up, and the more she heard him speak, the more angry she got. “How does your analogy even tie in with me?”
“I mean, look at you. Most qualified to lead the Al-Qarakh House. Even I, just from our limited interactions, can tell how versed you are. But you lost to your very family member because he’s older, though the least suited to lead Al-Qarakh. Crown Prince Tayang.”
“Do you know where he is?!” Hojun yelled, and tried to stand up, only to bump her head on the buggy’s roof. Her Guizu Arcana began to activate. “If you don’t tell me where he is then I-”
“You don’t have the guts to kill anyone, ginang. Just like me.” Llorenç never once dripped a drop of sweat, nor ever let out a sound of nervousness. “Al-Wa is the one that gave us the funds for this motorcade and the candidacy, so it's obvious Tayang is in charge-”
The sounds of gunshots echoed around them, as screams muffled his voice. Suruj and Hojun darted their eyes around, as the buggy quickly came to a halt. Even Llorenç, who never showed a hint of nervousness, widened his eyes in surprise.
“What’s going on? Tvuj?”
“Tch. We have to head outside. Llorenç.”
Hojun looked over at him, to which he sighed and unlocked the buggy’s door.
“Ginang, I hope you prove to me that the Buhang are nothing more than disgusting filth. May we meet again.”
She forced the door open. Among the Oksidentanos they had broken formation; They all watched as two people were clearly duking it out. Hojun and Suruj hopped off the buggy and saw Jorge in a fighting stance.
“Jorge!”
“Hojun… I’ve gotten into a predicament…” Jorge wiped his lip, holding the pocket mirror. “There’s a couple of Bakalitos that came to mess with us.”
That was an understatement. As the crowd of civilians disappeared, more gangsters flooded out from the alleyways and corridors. They bore blue bandanas, and clustered together in a semicircle around Jorge. Some held firearms, others holding pipes, planks, and swords. The Kapitan that Suruj had defeated in Lungsod ng Laguna Sagar stood with bandages around his face, while he heeded to another higher official of the gang. A man with a brimmed cap and a blue bandana. He lifted his arm and the armed ones took aim. A crack of bullets thundered.
“Mahou Tsubasa.”
From above angelic wings flapped downwards and enveloped Jorge. The bullets bounced off and pattered to the ground. As the wings unwrapped itself, it revealed Tvuj who stood behind Jorge.
“So Bakal was here the entire time.” Tvuj extended her arm out, and Jorge looked at her taller stature.
Hojun shouted out. “Tvuj! Jorge! We need to stop Llorenç from reaching Katipunan Square!”
“It will take another thirty minutes before they reach it.” Suruj cracked his knuckles, his silver cloak fluttering in the wind. “In the meantime we better take care of the problem right here.”
Jorge slipped on Alejandro’s gauntlets. “I’m in. Hojun, you said that I shouldn’t hold back when fighting.”
“I did…” Hojun froze in place. She still held her doubts about dealing with the Bakalitos. She knew that Bakal was also here to stop the motorcade from happening.
“Well, I won’t hold back this time!”
The Bakalitos took up their guns and fired again. Tvuj shielded Jorge with her wings, and they inched forward. Suruj began to run into the fray. At that moment, Hojun knew she had to join in too.
The ones with melee weapons advanced with their blunts and swords. Jorge voided a quick swipe and slugged a man in the face. Another came at him from behind. Jorge twisted his torso and roundhouse kicked, and the weapon flew out of their hand. More flanked his side and cocked their weapons.
Hojun manifested her revolver and fired a few rounds. They dropped to the floor holding their legs.
“Alam Apoy!” A grunt chanted, and flames spewed from his hands.
She stepped forward and sang. “Dihu Quxiao.”
The flames sunk into her glyph and fired it back. The grunt became seared, but not enough to kill him.
“Alam Hiryok!” Saharic particles accelerated towards Suruj.
“Suruj! Here!” Jorge took off one of his gauntlets and tossed it over. Suruj caught it midair and quickly slipped it on. The gauntlet turned white as it became imbued with Suruj’s sahar. He punched the spell out of the air, dissipating into the environment. He drew close to the caster and sweeped his feet. The caster met a metal fist to the cranium.
“You fools!” The Kapitan of Bakal yelled out at them. “Do you realize that the Tagahatol is getting away? This is pointless!”
The Bakalitos did not listen, and waves of them kept on coming. Slowly, as Hojun realized, the onslaught started to become bigger. The sound of marching echoed from behind her and everyone. When they turned around, a sea of vaquero hats gradually flooded the streets,
“You all are interfering with the procession. Not to mention, Bakal are here.” One of the Oksidentanos called out to all.
Hojun, Jorge, Suruj, and Tvuj were surrounded by the gangs. The Occident behind them, and Bakal in front of them. Even with using sahar spells, Hojun’s sweat ran down her neck, and her breathing became tense. On all sides, there was no way out. And then they needed to stop Llorenç from reaching Katipunan Square.
“Well, we’ve got a lively situation on our hands.” A grin appeared on Jorge’s face as he smashed his fist and gauntlet together.
Suruj fixed his silver shemagh, and Tvuj brushed her bangs away. Hojun ejected her bullet casings, and blew the smoke from her revolver.