-Alexi-

PAULIT ulit na umiling si Mr. Barri kasabay ng pag-unat ng labi nito upang kumurba ng isang ngisi. Hindi ko alam kung para saan ang nakakalokong ngiti na 'yon ngunit tila ipinapahiwatig nito na isang malaking kalokohan ang sinasabi namin at wala itong balak sumabay doon. The whole office is made of opaque walls so nobody can see us from the outside. This man should know he must response according to what we wanna hear or the two siblings with us might not have a second thought to shoot him when they lost their patience.

"Imposibleng 'yang sinasabi n'yo. What makes you think I can help you?" Nakuha pa nitong manuya. I can still sense his fear but he was trying to cover it up.

Reigan remained no reaction. He's just staring at Mr. Barri like he's some sort of prey he's observing. I couldn't help but be bothered by the dangerous aura that oozed toward him. It makes me wonder how it can naturally come off when he's being Al Capone himself. "Doc Sigmund told us"

"And you believe on that delusional doctor?" natatawa nitong sambit.

"He said you're Sonkan's asset in technology and most of it came from your invention. We need your help to find the way out" sabad ko. "Mr. Arellano revealed us all. Including the experiment"

He eyed each one of us with amusement on his face. "So it's you all, huh? You must be the people who bypassed the experiment room and free the test subjects there" biglang tumaas ang boses nito na naging sigaw. "Hindi nyo ba alam ang maaaring magiging kapalit ng ginawa nyo?! Those subjects aren't ordinary--"

Naputol ang sinasabi nito nang biglang sakmalin ni Reigan ang panga nito at pabagsak na hinampas ang ulo sa pader. It was strong but not that hard to make him passed out. All of us gasped on what he did. "We don't have time for a talk, mister. We risked to come here just to get an assh*le like you" we watched how Mr. Barri's head bled as his face contorted due to pain. Sa pagbitaw sa kanya ni Reigan ay dumausdos ang katawan nito sa pader. "So if you won't help us then there's no reason to keep you alive" tinutok sa kanya ni Reigan ang hawak na rifle. Siniguro nitong nakadikit ang dulo ng baril sa ulo ni Mr. Barri. Making sure the fear will be rightly instilled to him.

"Tch. My brother is harsh" Callista spit a comment as she clicked her tongue.

If there's one thing that Reigan or Al Capone good at since I first met him, that is making people scared. He can send chills down their spine without even trying. Making them realize that nobody in this room can be as scary as him. And I think that style is effective. Tarantang tinaas ni Mr. Barri ang ulo nito at yumuko na tila isang duwag na kuting.

"T-tutulungan ko kayo" he finally gave in. "Huwag nyo lang akong papatayin. H-hindi ko pa naliligtas ang anak ko. Hindi pa ako pwede mamatay"

Reigan's eyes filled nothing but blank. Feeling unguilty of what he did to the man he only met this night. He took a few steps towards the cabinet and got a face mask. He handed it to Mr. Barri. "Fix yourself"

Nakalabas kami ng office ni Mr. Barri at umaktong normal ang lahat. Mr. Barri seems cooperative because he can manage to walk gracefully even when there's a gun pointed at his waist. Kami ni Callista ay nasa magkabilang side ni Mr. Barri. Callista is the one who's leaning a gun on his waist while the two boys are behind us. We covered Mr. Barri's bleeding head with his hair and made him wear a facemask so no one would notice how tensed he was in case it became visible in his expression.

Some people in lab coats we passed by, stops walking to greet him. Now we were heading towards the elevator when someone, running like a surge, bumped us. Muntik na akong matumba dahil sa bumanggang 'yon. I lifted my gaze and looked at that girl. She didn't bother to look at the people she bumped into. Instead, she continues running, rushing towards somewhere as if someone is chasing her, and she needs to run as far as possible to save her life. Saglit kaming napahinto sa paglalakad para pakiramdaman ang paligid. Seconds passed and we heard gunshots.

It hasn't sunk yet to us what's happening so we stayed still on the middle, not walking or anything. Ang sunod sunod na putok ng baril ay nasundan ng sigaw.

"They're here" wala sa sarili kong sambit.

The next thing I knew, kasabay na din naming tumatakbo ang mga naka lab coats. May grupo ng mga lab employees ang nakapila habang nakaduko ang ulo na parang nasa earthquake drill sila. Some of the soldiers are supervising them, leading them towards the safest way. I heard one soldier shouting repeatedly, saying. "Kumalma lang po tayo. Lahat ay makakaligtas. Hindi kailangan magmadali"

The group of soldiers that helping the people to evacuate here are like check point on us. Kaya imbis na dumiretso doon ay sinenyasan kami ni Reigan na sa iba dumaan. We haven't seen any monsters around but we knew they're here. Isa din sa nakakadagdag ng pagkataranta ng lahat ay ang tunog ng red alert. The Red lights are spreading like small particles around the surroundings. It keeps flickering.

"We need to go downstairs" Reigan announced and took a few steps closer to us. Mahigpit nitong hinawakan sa braso si Mr. Barri. He's looking at him with menace in his eyes. "Stick with us if you want to stay alive. In case you run, I'll shoot you. I'd never miss a single bullet"

Mr. Barri must sense Reigan isn't a type of person who wouldn't have a second thought to kill someone so he just nodded like an obedient captive. Reigan fished out something from the pocket of his suit. Cuffs. Pinosasan nito ang dalawang kamay ni Mr. Barri paharap upang masigurong hindi ito makakatakas. Muli kaming tumakbo papuntang back exit. Nagsisimula nang may tumilapon na gamit mula sa kung saan. Everything is chaotic. We endeavour to pass through the panicking crowd and manage not to bump any of them. Biglang napapreno ang aming mga paa nang bumagsak sa harapan namin ang tumilapon na lalaki. A doctor. Tila may malakas na nilalang ang naghagis sa kanya kaya bumagsak siya ng gano'n. We heard him groaned as how we heard his bones disjointed or cracked. We're hesitating if we should help or leave him there but before we could even move, a creature appeared and lunged him. Para kaming natuod sa kinatatayuan habang pinapanood kung paano hilahin ng test subject na puno ng kaliskis sa balat ang braso ng lalaking doktor. My mouth just agaped upon the sight of them. He looks like a teddy bear being ripped apart, pulling his arm out of his body. Sobrang lakas ng nilalang na 'yon na hindi ito nahihirapang tanggalin ang buto nito. The male test subject showed his teeth and leaned it to the doctor's face. Kinagat niya ito at tinanggal ang mata. The poor doctor can't do anything but to scream for life.

"See that, Mr. Barri? That's the creature you guys created" Callista remarked. Mr. Barri is too stunned to speak. Nakatulala lang ito na tila hindi makapaniwala. Despite his quietness, I can see the fear in his eyes mixed with wonder. Probably, he didn't expect their experiment could be this terrible.

Our brain signaled us we should run, so we wasted no time and ran the other way before the monster's attention shifted to us. Reigan was still holding Mr. Barri's arm tightly even though his hands were cuffed. We run again to find the backdoor exit. My eyes were focused straight in the direction, trying not to be distracted by the dead people who were brutally killed. Narating namin ang backdoor at akmang papasok kami nang may sumulpot na halimaw sa harap amin. My feet stepped aback. It was a male test subject again. His scaled skin was brownish, and his tongue kept flickering like how his eyes were blinking sharply.

Tumalikod kami para tumakbo sa ibang direksyon ngunit dalawang halimaw ang naghihintay doon. Tinaas ni Kaiden ang rifle at akmang babarilin sila ngunit pinigil siya ni Reigan. "Don't just shoot them. They don't die that easy"

"They're strong" I seconded.

Tatlong subject ang nakapalibot sa amin. They took their steps forward, walking slowly in a circle. The five of us closed the distance to each other while our eyes alert, scrutinizing their move.

"Yan. Ganyan. Kailangan nyo ako protektahan. Hindi ako pwedeng mamatay" rinig kong sambit ni Mr. Barri na sinisiksik ang sarili sa likod namin upang magsilbi kaming shield sa kanya.

"Shut up, old man" Callista hissed.

"So how do they die?" Kaiden asked in a lower voice. His hands were raised, ready to shoot in case one of them attacked.

"Aim for the head" Reigan answered. "Always"

They're just standing there, observing us, which sends anxiousness in my heart. I just saw a test subject that can crawl on the wall and already witnessed how fast they can move. I don't know what skills they haven't unleashed on us, so their staring at us with their not-so-human eyes creeps me out. Hanggang sa isa ang tila hindi na nakatiis at sumugod sa amin. Reigan's reflexes rescued us by releasing a couple of bullets, trying to shoot the monster, but the female test subject jumped to the ceiling as if her hands had built-in glue so she wouldn't fall from above.

Kaiden followed. Sumabay din ito sa pagbabaril sa halimaw ngunit mabilis itong kumilos. The rest of the monsters attacked next. We're in front of the backdoor and one step close to get ourselves save but these monsters cornered us. We all look on the backdoor. None of us planned to run so we fight them. Tinulak ni Reigan ang halimaw na nakaharang sa pinto at dinaganan ito. He repeatedly hit the monster's head with his rifle until he finds a chance to shoot him. Meanwhile, Kaiden is dealing with the female subject. Mahigpit na hinawakan ni Callista ang kamay ko habang nakatingin sa test subject na nakalambitin sa kisame. Ang nakaposas na si Mr. Barri ay nakatayo lamang sa likod namin.

Mukhang naisip niyang kami ang ligtas niyang kasama ngayon at maaari lamang siyang mamatay kung tatakas siya.

"Cali, Alexi go to the backdoor now!" Reigan snapped our senses with his loud voice.

Bakas ang pagdadalawang isip ni Cali na pumasok sa backdoor ngunit sa huli'y sumunod din ito. Hila hila naming dalawa si Mr. Barri. Halos mapasigaw ako sa gulat nang makarinig kami ng putok ng baril. I turned my gaze at Reigan dahil sa baril niya galing ang putok na 'yon. He successfully shot the head of the test subject he's fighting with. Sunod niyang binalingan ang halimaw na kalaban ni Kaiden. Agad kaming pumasok sa backdoor ngunit hindi namin ito tuluyang sinara. We leave small gap enough for us to watch them while waiting.

"Bilisan nyo, kuya!" Sigaw ni Callista.

Napatay nila ang isang halimaw at ang tanging natira nalang ay ang test subject na nasa taas ng kisame. The female test subject jumped and attacked the two guys. Sinubukang barilin ni Kaiden ang halimaw na 'yon ngunit dahil hindi niya ito matamaan sa ulo ay parang hinihigop lang ng katawan ng test subject ang mga balang tumatama sa kanya. She's not bleeding and it doesn't affect her. Ngayon ay dalawa silang lumalaban sa babaeng test subject na 'yon. Naagaw ng halimaw ang baril ni Reigan at walang kahirap hirap itong binali. I blinked my eyes seeing how the rifle just divided into two. Kaiden tried to shoot her again but his gun didn't work. He uttered a curse when he realized he has no more bullets.

Ngumisi ang babae sa kanya. Sinipa niya si Reigan at sa pagsipang 'yon ay tumilapon ang likod nito sa bakal na column. Callista almost cried out seeing how his brother's face crumpled in pain. Ngayon ay na kay Kaiden na ang atensyon ng halimaw. She's gripping him on his neck, choking him until he slowly rises on the air. Narinig ko ang pag-usal ng malutong na mura ni Callista kasabay ng paglabas nito.

"Watch, Mr. Barri" sambit ni Callista bago lumabas sa back door. Mabilis nitong kinasa ang baril at sunod sunod na nagpakawala ng bala. Dahil doon ay napaharap sa kanya ang babaeng test subject. Sa pagharap nito'y saktong tumama sa noo niya ang huling balang pinakawalan ni Callista. I have a gun with me and the tip of it was pointed at Mr. Barri to scare him. I may want to help them but I have to keep Mr. Barri close to us.

Reigan fastly recovered himself from the kick and walked towards Kaiden, helping Callista to make him stand. Nakahinga ako ng maluwag nang masigurong wala ng sumunod na halimaw ang dumating. I gestured my hand to hasten them to go here. Bago sila tuluyang pumasok ay kinuha muna nila ang baril mula sa namatay na guard. Pinauna ni Reigan ang dalawa na pumasok sa backdoor at nagpahuli ito para siya ang magsara ng pintuan. We hastily go downstairs. Nakakailang baitang palang kami pababa nang marinig namin ang malakas na kalabog ng pinto. Lahat kami'y napaangat ng tingin doon. Someone's wrecking the door. Masyadong makapal ang bakal na pintong 'yon para masira ng ordinaryong tao kaya alam naming mga halimaw ang kumakalabog sa pintong 'yon.

Saglit na huminto si Reigan "Go ahead. I'll secure the door"

"We" Kaiden seconded as he glanced at his friend. "We will secure the door"

Tumango si Reigan bilang pagsang-ayon saka tumingin sa aming dalawa ni Callista. "Mauna na kayo sa baba. Guard Mr. Barri"

There was a disappointed look painted on Callista's face, and her lips wanted to utter a protest, but as she darted her gaze on us, me and Mr. Barri, she probably realized I couldn't handle it by myself in case our captive attempted to escape. I may have a gun with me but I don't trust myself enough in guarding Mr. Barri alone.

"Okay. Sumunod kayo agad" Callista agreed with resentment before dragging Mr. Barri downstairs.

Sumunod ako sa kanila. Kahit nakaposas si Mr. Barri ay mahigpit pading nakahawak si Callista sa braso nito para siguraduhing hindi ito makakatakas. We're starting to pace downstairs in a half-run manner. I pressed the button on my earbud to call Coleen and the others but I can't reach them. Sa kalagitnaan ng pagbaba namin ng hagdan ay tumigil si Callista. I heard her heaving a deep sigh. Tumingin ito sa akin at patulak na binigay si Mr. Barri "I'll follow them. I can't leave kuya and Kaiden there"

"This is all your idea so don't let him escape. Wait us here" she added before she turned her back and started to walk upstairs. Sinundan ko lamang ito ng tingin bago bumaling kay Mr. Barri. Hinawakan ko ito sa braso at tinutukan ng baril. Trying my best to look fierce to intimidate him.

"Nakapatay ka na ba, hija?" my head flinched to his direction, surprised by his sudden question but I didn't make it obvious. My face stays blank "Mukhang hindi ka sanay humawak ng baril" saka bumaba ang tingin nito sa baril na hawak ko na nakatutok sa kanyang tagiliran.

"If that's your way to distract me so you can escape, that won't work" I coldly replied.

"Let's see then" pagkasabi niya no'n ay nagulat ako nang tangkain niyang agawin ang baril sa akin ngunit mahigpit ang pagkakahawak ko dito. Bagaman nakaposas ay di hamak na mas malakas siya sa akin kaya madali nitong natabig ang katawan ko sa pader.

The side of my body was harshly slanted on the wall that my head almost hit on it while Mr. Barri trying to get the hand from my grip. Tinaas ko ang baril at sinigurong nakatutok ito sa taas upang walang matamaan sa amin kung sakaling pumutok ito. Patuloy niya padin inaagaw ang baril sa akin hanggang sa nakakuha ako ng pagkakataong atakihin siya. Tinangay ko ang bigat ng kanyang katawan at buong lakas itong tinulak sa railings ng hagdan. Dahil inaagaw niya sa akin ang baril ay sa pagsalampak ng likod niya sa railings ay nabitawan ko ang baril. I watched the gun fall downstairs, causing me to get distracted for milliseconds.

Bigla akong sinipa ni Mr. Barri sa sikmura na siyang ikinatumba ko. Impit akong napadaing habang nakasapo sa aking sikmura. Parang lahat ng sakit sa katawan ko mula nang tumalipon ako kanina sa experiment room ay bumalik. Hinawakan ko sa paa si Mr. Barri bago pa siya makababa ng hagdan ngunit agad ko din 'yong nabitawan nang paulit ulit niyang pinagsisipa ang kamay ko. Hindi pa ito nakuntento at binigyan pa ako nito ng malakas na sipa sa likod. I feel like I'm about to vomit a blood.

Mr. Barri gave me one last glance, smirking before he hurriedly ran downstairs.

"Hey, old man stop moving or I'll shoot you" my eyes flickered to the owner of the voice who appeared. It was Callista. Nakataas ang baril nito at nakatutok kay Mr. Barri. Ilang baitang sa hagdan ang pagitan nila at nasa bandang baba ng baitang si Mr. Barri. Lumingon ito at dahan dahang tinaas ang nakaposas na kamay. His smug smile remained on his face. Callista stepped down and took a few steps forward to Mr. Barri.

"Don't make me forget that we still need you, so we're keeping you alive," Callista said firmly. Wearing her fiercest look while holding the gun.

But Mr. Barri seemed mustered all his braveness when he suddenly lunged at Callista, pushing her to the stairs. He hovered on her top and tried to get the gun from her hand. I managed to stand despite my aching body. Hinawakan ko sa mag kabilang balikat si Mr. Barri upang hilahin ito mula kay Callista.

Callista kicked him. Sa pagsipa niya'y natanggay ang katawan ko na siyang dahilan kaya nahulog ako sa hagdan.

"Alexi!" Sigaw ni Callista. Mr. Barri was able to grip on the railings kaya hindi siya napasama sa pagkahulog ko. My body rolled over from the staircase. The fall wasn't that high but my head hit the wall. It wasn't hard enough to make me die but I could feel its bleeding. Now I can barely move myself. I feel so weak that I couldn't even breath properly. Pinagmasdan ko ang pag-aagawan nila Callista at Mr. Barri ng baril na parang nag ta tug of war. Mr. Barri's using all his strength. He's tall and his figure is bigger than Callista which is his advantage. Gusto ko man tumayo ngunit wala akong sapat na lakas.

Callista's back was being slammed into the wall, but she recovered immediately. She made a few attacks, but Mr. Barri's grip on the gun was unbreakable. Until I heard a gunshot.

The two people stayed still for a few seconds. Maging ako'y nahigit ang paghinga lalo na nang makita ko ang pagkatumba ni Callista. Mr. Barri remained standing.

And Callista's white coat begins to form a blood.

**********

Thanks for reading!