Chapter 2: AFTERMATH

"We'll handle everything from here... sir... ma'am!" The man said as he ushered both of us towards the black van.

We slowly made our way to the vehicle and nither of us were speaking. I was unsure whether it's from the shock of loosing one of our comrades tonight or the tiredness I felt from mana depletion, but somehow, silence seemed to be what I greatly needed right now.

I felt the van moved as soon as we sat down. Christian was taken by the medical team on a separate van, most likely to tend to his injuries, while Alexa and I shared the same van to head to our base.

The girl chose to grieve quietly as I watched the people outside. A small part of me couldn't help but feel annoyed seeing them get on  with their everyday life while not knowing the sacrifice Michael did to protect them tonight.

Ignorance is indeed a bliss!

I did not choose this life! In fact, none of us wanted this. Some may say that it's a blessing, an honour and a privelege but for me, it's nothing more than a curse!

I mean who would want to become a supernatural police force who fights evil being on a regular basis, risking our lives to protect humanity?!

Because that's pretty much who we are! Champions selected by the gods to keep the balance in the world. The balance of good and evil. Yin and yang. Light and dark. Peace and Chaos.

What pisses me off was if the gods and other dieties were so powerful, then why do they need a champion to represent them? Why can't they just come down to the human realm and fight the evil themselves?

I still clearly remember the day my life changed. I was twelve when a Babaylan dicovered me.

I ran away from an abusive caretaker in an orphanage the night I stumbled upon her. She was carrying out her mission when I accidentally witnessed her fight with a Manananggal. That was also the time I casted my very first spell out of fear. I didn't know how I did it, but somehow my body knew!

She took me under her wing and introduced me to the realm of Incantus. A world that exists on a different plane. A massive floating island in the midst of a vast space. A land filled with good supernatural beings.

She also taught me how to control and harness my power. She made me understand who I am and what my abilities meant. She told me that I was a champion just like herself and many others. She informed me of the god who has chosen me, Libulan, the patron god of the moon.

I let out a loud sigh as I rubbed the crescent symbol on my chest, which I initially thought was a birthmark but later found out was a proof of being chosen. Every champions has them.

Burried memories resurfaced. A collection of good and bad events that changed the rest of my life forever. From the day I took a solem oath to secretly protect humanity in the shadows and to the day I lost my mentor and foster mum in one of her mission, much like I lost a dear friend tonight.

"Where about to enter the portal." The driver has informed us before going in.....

♤♠️♤

ONE WEEK LATER

"Chris!" Alexa cheered as soon she saw the man. She ran towards him to give him a quick hug.

It took a week for his injuries to completely recover even with healing magic. That's why he could not attend Michael's funeral. From what we heard, apart from bruising and lacerations, he also had few broken bones in his body!

It's a miracle he survived at all.

"How are you?" I asked as our eyes met.

"A lot better..... thanks..... how's the.....-" he couldn't finish his question.

We all knew what he was asking, but somehow we couldn't bring ourselves to answer. Our loss were still fresh and the reality of losing one of our own to the enemy is just too much to bear.

The three of us went still. It was the commander's secretary who broke the awkward silence.

"The commander is ready to see you now." She informed us.

We all nodded before walking to his office.

♤♠️♤

"Sir!" We saluted in unison.

The older man saluted back before indicating for us to sit down. He looked rather tensed and serious. His aura screamed trouble. I can feel the tension inside the tiny room and it was almost suffocating.

"I've read all your reports and quite frankly, I almost couldn't believe that a single Sigbin has managed to kill one of our own....." he went straight to the core of the subject without any overtures.

"Sir if I may?" Christian interjected but was stopped by a single wave of the commander's hand.

The man exuded of authority and he certainly knew how to command his subordinates.

"No you may not. A lot of things has happened that night that you were not aware off." He said before reaching for the file in front him and handing it to us.

The three of us exchanged looks before accepting the file. We all looked confused and intrigued by what the commander has just said.

I quickly skimmed through the file and my eyes almost popped out of my skull after reading its content!

"Am I reading this right?!" Alexa exclaimed in disbelief.

I had to ask the same questions myself. According to the file, the other low ranking officers that were on the scene to clean up the place were all murdered after we left. There were no survivors and all of them died the same exact way.

A single stab wound to the chest directly where all their champion's mark were.

"Who would do this?" I could hear the anger in Christian's voice.

"We don't know yet. The matter is being investigated." The older man replied.

I went over the file for the third time.

"Did you notice anything suspicious before you left the scene? Something that might give us a lead?" The commander asked.

Both Christian and Alexa shooked their head.

"Red?" The man turned to me.

"N-no sir....-" I replied.

"Is something the matter?" He asked after seeing the confused look on my face.

"The report doesn't make sense." I pointed out.

"What do you mean?" Asked Christian before reading his file once again.

"Whoever the perpetrator was, he killed everyone by stabbing them through their chest but why would he or she stabbed Michael's chest too when he's already gone?" I explained.

I saw Alexa read through their file again just like Christian did.

"I tripple checked Michael's vitals and casted healing spells multiple times, so, I am certain that he died before we defeated the Sigbin!" I added.

"Are you sure? Maybe you made a mistake because.....-" Christian countered but I did let him.

"I'M SURE!" I insisted.

"Given the nature of this case, I am inclined to believe that there's more to this than what we're seeing." Stated the commander.

"What will happen now, sir?" Alexa inquired.

"We shall appoint your group a new team member but the selection process might take a while, so, until then, you three will be temporarily disbanded and be assign to help other teams." The man explained.

"For how long sir?" It was Christian.

"Three to six months." The commander replied.

"Six months?!" I repeated.

"Yes and these....." he paused as he took the second set of file on his desk and handed those to us "will be your new assignments...." he continued.