Chapter 34: Hustisya's Vengeance
The night was quiet, yet one facility outside Plaridel resembled a dark prison—a hidden tomb for those confined within.
Its walls, built of harsh concrete, were reinforced with barred windows. The air inside reeked of the sweat of over a hundred Filipinos—men, women, and even children—sitting on the filthy floor of each cell. Their hands were tightly bound with ropes that cut into their flesh with every movement.
These residents of Plaridel had been arrested on false charges, branded as Hustisya's accomplices in her fight against the Spanish colonial government.
They were seized and scheduled for punishment without evidence, without certainty; only the sheer fury of the colonists had brought them here. Children cried softly, their voices heavy with fear, clinging to their parents.
"Mama, I'm scared," a child whispered, sobbing. Their mothers, equally terrified, could only embrace their children, their hearts pounding with shared dread.
They managed only to stroke their children's heads while forcing weak smiles, trying to conceal their own terror. Meanwhile, the fathers sat in silence, their eyes burning with rage but utterly powerless to complain or free their families from that prison. The only question that plagued their minds was why this was happening to people like them.
Outside the facility, more than fifty police officers stood guard, their rifles at the ready, as if waiting for a command from above to open fire, their arrogant faces swollen with the pride of their authority. The facility's dim light was barely enough to reveal the pitiful condition of the captives.
That night, beneath the pale moonlight, a solitary figure landed on the building's roof. Hustisya, the envoy of Plaridel, had arrived, prepared to aid the people locked inside.
Her face showed no trace of fear; she stood tall, her red cape billowing in the cold night breeze. Her eyes blazed with a fierce determination, fueled by hatred and purpose. She knew the danger of her mission, but the cries of the captives echoed in her heart, giving her the courage to face any ordeal inside.
Using her power as an envoy, she vanished into the air, passing through the floor like a ghost. She moved silently across the ceiling, her movements swift and noiseless. In an instant, she settled onto a large steel beam above the third floor. From there, she spotted five police officers on patrol, their rifles slung over their shoulders, completely oblivious to the approaching danger.
Hustisya knew she had to act fast. Time was her enemy, and every second could endanger the captives. Seizing her opportunity, she launched her attack, using her power to remain invisible.
She silently approached the first police officer, covering his mouth with one hand while the other clamped down on his neck, twisting quickly to render him instantly unconscious. The officer fell silently to the floor, and she moved on to the next.
Within seconds, four more police officers were taken down, their bodies gently laid on the ground. Her heart was racing, but her mind was perfectly clear about her next steps. She peered into the cells, and her chest grew heavier at the sight—Filipinos bound by rope, crying children, and the elderly struggling to breathe in their distress.
She quickly grabbed a key from one officer's pocket and opened the cells, one by one.
"Make no noise, quietly use the fire exit," she whispered to the captives, her voice low but commanding. "Help one another get out. I will take care of the Spaniards." The captives nodded, their eyes filled with hope despite their fear. They helped each other, assisting the old and the young as they escaped toward the unguarded fire exit.
Meanwhile, Hustisya phased through the floor again, like a phantom gliding through the dark. She landed on the second floor, the soft sound of her arrival startling three police officers. Their eyes widened in recognition, and one screamed, "It's Hustisya!"
The first officer reached for his rifle, but before he could grasp it, Hustisya used her power. With a mere gesture of her hand, she controlled the rifle, sending it smashing violently against the wall. The officer froze in shock, and before he could react, Hustisya charged. She punched him in the stomach, forcing him to his knees. A quick strike to the back of the neck knocked the officer out, and he collapsed.
The second officer lunged, swinging a baton toward Hustisya's head. The woman dodged effortlessly, her body moving aside like the wind. She grabbed his arm, twisted it, and threw him. A powerful kick to the back sent yet another officer flying, and before he could get up, Hustisya gripped his neck and twisted, rendering him unconscious.
Another officer, having just ascended, stared in shock, quickly pulling the pistol from his waist and firing. But Hustisya was faster—she vanished in a flash like a ghost, and the bullet struck only the wall. She reappeared behind the officer, grabbed his arm, and snapped it instantly. He screamed in agony, but Hustisya silenced him by covering his mouth and twisting his neck, putting him to sleep like the others.
Within seconds, the second floor was silent again. Hustisya took a deep breath, her heart pounding, but her resolve unshaken. She phased through the floor one last time, landing on the ground floor—where she was instantly surrounded by over thirty police officers.
The ground floor was vast, filled with boxes and rifles ready for any attack. The officers immediately went on alert, swiftly aiming their guns at Hustisya, their faces a mix of anger and fear, their voices ringing with arrogance.
"Hustisya! Surrender now!" shouted one official, pointing his rifle at her head.
But Hustisya merely smiled, her voice cold and challenging. "Surrender? You are the ones who should surrender," she said, her voice echoing throughout the room. In the blink of an eye, she used her power to rip the rifles from the officers' hands. They flew across the room, slamming into the walls and the floor. The officers were stunned by the sight, and before they could recover, Hustisya lunged at them.
The first group of five officers charged her, armed with swords. Hustisya met them head-on, her body sliding between their attacks like a breeze. She dodged a sword strike and kicked one officer in the stomach, sending him down. She grabbed the arm of the second officer, twisted it, and hurled him toward two more officers who were moving in to attack.
She continued her assault, twisting necks to achieve unconsciousness, while her fist connected with another officer's face, fracturing bone. She moved so fast that the attacking officers' swords never even touched her. Seeing an opportunity, she snatched a sword from an officer's hand and flung it through a window.
The officers did not stop attacking, forming a circular line around the woman to corner her. But Hustisya was unafraid, challenging them bravely. She vanished like a ghost and reappeared behind an officer. As she materialized, she grabbed his head and broke the officer's neck, knocking him unconscious. She moved to the next officer, attacking continuously, her movements like a dance of shadows—unpredictable and unstoppable.
Moments later, the officers began to fall one by one—some kicked in the knee, others hurled across the room by her power. Their screams echoed, but none could escape Hustisya's wrath.
"Impossible, she defeated so many so fast, we can't handle this monster!"
The remaining officers attempted to flee, but Hustisya would not allow it. With a wave of her hand, she controlled the facility's doors, sealing them shut and trapping the officers inside.
"No one leaves," she said in a cold voice. She charged again, her fists and kicks striking like lightning, swift and merciless. She did not stop until every officer was down, some begging her for mercy, but her heart was burning with fury for the abused Filipinos of Plaridel. In a matter of minutes, the ground floor fell silent, filled with unconscious officers.
The battle at the facility ended that night, and the Filipinos successfully escaped to their homes, embracing each other as shouts of joy filled the air. Hustisya remained in the building, ensuring no one was left behind. Even in triumph, her heart was heavy with the suffering of her people, but she knew she had to be stronger and more determined than ever, for she knew much more awaited her in the days ahead.
"This must end," she whispered to herself.
Hours after the battle, in the mayor's office in Plaridel, Darus's anger raged like a wildfire. The mayor of Plaridel, a fat Spaniard with arrogant eyes, fumed upon hearing of his men's defeat and the captives' escape. He slammed his fist onto his desk, shattering a glass of wine. "How did this happen?!" he roared, his voice echoing through the room. "The Governor-General will hold me accountable when he learns the captives have escaped!" he said furiously. "Damn you, Hustisya! Find her! Don't stop until she is caught!"
The police officers stood silently before him, heads bowed in fear. But before the mayor could speak again, a noise erupted outside the office—shouts, footsteps, and the sound of crashing objects. The mayor stopped, his anger replaced by anxiety.
"What is happening out there?" he demanded, but before his men could answer, the door burst open, and a terrified officer rushed in.
"Mayor! An enemy has infiltrated City Hall!" the police officer shouted, his face pale with extreme fear.
"Who?!" the mayor asked, frantic with panic. But before the officer could answer, an invisible force seized him and hurled his body out the window, shattering the glass as he fell from the third floor.
Terror filled the room, and screams echoed in the office. In an instant, the door slammed shut and locked, as if controlled by an unseen power. "What is happening? Do something! Find out what's going on!" the mayor screamed.
Suddenly, the lights went out, plunging the room into darkness. The mayor shivered, trembling with fear. Moments later, the screams of his men blended with the sound of breaking furniture—tables, chairs, and the bodies of police officers slamming against the walls. His heart raced as he listened to the chaos in the room, but he could see nothing in the intense darkness. "Who are you?! Hey, all of you! Protect me!" he shouted, but his men did not reply; the place suddenly fell silent after the turmoil ended.
After a few more seconds, a voice broke the silence of the darkness. "Good evening, Mayor," Hustisya said, her tone cold yet mocking.
The mayor froze where he stood, his skin turning pale with fright. "Who are you?!" he asked, but Hustisya's only answer was a chilling laugh that echoed throughout the room.
A moment later, the lights abruptly turned on. He saw Hustisya sitting on his desk, her presence like a fierce tiger ready to strike. Her eyes burned with anger, and her smile was a dagger ready to pierce anyone. The mayor stumbled backward in shock until he fell to the floor, his hands trembling in fear as he saw the woman before him.
"Why are you here?!" he asked, his voice shaking with terror.
Hustisya laughed, a cold, contemptuous sound. "Why am I here? Weren't you ordering your men to find me? So, I came to pay you a visit," she said, her voice like ice, crushing the mayor's courage.
Realizing he could not win the fight, the mayor quickly stood up and reached for the pistol inside his desk, but before he could touch it, Hustisya's power snatched it away and hurled it out the window. The sound of breaking glass echoed, and as the mayor stared in disbelief, his eyes wide with shock and fear, he knew he had no escape from Hustisya.
"No one can help you now, Mr. Mayor," Hustisya said, her voice dripping with triumph. She controlled a gun from the scattered weapons on the floor, and it floated toward her hand. "How would you like your punishment to begin?" she asked, twirling the gun on her fingers.
The mayor trembled, his eyes fixed on the weapon. "You cannot hurt me!" he shouted desperately. "I am the mayor of Plaridel! You will be held accountable for this insolence! Only the law of Spain reigns in this country!"
But before he could finish speaking, Hustisya hit him in the face with the gun, sending him tumbling down and making his nose bleed. "I don't care about the law of Spain!" she shouted, her anger blazing throughout the room.
The mayor immediately grew angry and brazenly yelled at her, "You have no right to hurt me because you are just a low-class Indio!"
Hustisya's eyes widened with fury at the mayor's insult to the Filipinos, and she hit his face with the gun again. She grabbed his collar and shouted, "I am not an Indio! I am a Pilipino!" She blamed Spaniards like him for giving Filipinos a low status in society, for treating them like trash, and for abusing them in their own land. "So many Filipinos suffer because of people like you, and that is something I will never forgive!"
She dragged the mayor and flung him aside, sending him crashing into a cabinet and shattering the glass. Her voice rose with intense anger as she spoke of her hatred for the injustice in Plaridel.
"Spaniards have no right to rule Plaridel! This town belongs only to the Filipinos!" she screamed, kicking the mayor in the stomach repeatedly as punishment. She condemned the unjust treatment of the Filipinos and the policies that further oppressed the poor of Plaridel.
She grabbed the old man by the hair and slammed him onto his desk, continuing to pour out her resentment, mentioning the many fathers imprisoned on fabricated charges for crimes they did not commit. The mayor chose to stand up to try and escape, but the woman immediately punched him while furiously reminding him of the mothers and women who were dishonored by the devilish Spaniards. She grabbed the mayor's head and slammed it against the desk while weeping, reminding the old man of the children who were orphaned early because of selfish Spaniards who did not care about human life.
"Please, enough, stop this," the mayor pleaded.
The woman punched him repeatedly, her anger an unstoppable storm. She did not stop until she saw blood gushing from different parts of his body. Moments later, she threw him toward the window. The mayor was now motionless and unable to speak, his face covered in blood, his body almost a wilted vegetable.
Hustisya approached, her eyes burning with hatred. "What more can you do in your current state, Mr. Mayor? You can't take back the lives you stole from the Filipinos. All that's left for you to give is your life, so the Filipinos can finally get true hustisya," she said in a cold, merciless voice.
She grabbed his neck and dragged him out the window. In a flash, Hustisya floated upward, holding the mayor. She ascended high into the sky. From above, the whole of Plaridel was visible, illuminated by the moonlight.
"P-please, h-have mercy, don't kill me," he begged, crying.
But Hustisya's anger only intensified upon hearing his plea. "So many Filipinos beg for their lives every day here in Plaridel, yet you never listened to their cries!" she shouted. "You abused us, you exploited us, you stole our rights, and you murdered Filipinos mercilessly in our own land!"
She swore to him that she would not stop while there was a Spaniard left in Plaridel. "I swear I will return Plaridel to the Filipinos and end the evil of devilish Spaniards like you," she yelled, a dark aura enveloping her body, like a raging fire in the air. Her eyes were ablaze with anger and conviction.
"I will bring hustisya to Plaridel, and you will be the first payment for the sins of your race!"
She stared at the mayor with emotionless eyes, until she let go of him, and his body plummeted from a height of almost a hundred meters, falling like a discarded toy. Moments later, he crashed to the ground, bloody and lifeless.
A few moments later, Hustisya descended, appearing beside the mayor's corpse. Her face was blank, devoid of emotion, as the dark aura continued to swirl around her. Suddenly, a faint energy, like a spirit, rose from the mayor's body and entered Hustisya's. Her eyes blazed once more, and before the corpse, she swore: "All the guilty will pay, and nothing will stop the reckoning I will bring."
Hustisya vanished like the wind, leaving the scene. The night ended with her mission successful, but she knew this was only the beginning of a more intense phase in her fight.
End of Chapter.