Hard rain was pouring all over the trees and thick bushes on the outskirts of the town of Tiani. Night has fallen and the streets of the entire town was left empty. However, underneath the canopy of the healthy vegetation, one can see vague figures shaped like men hiding in cover, braving the storm as they lie in wait like statues in the rain.
"The town is clear. Let us move in and take the gold in there." suggested a man as he hid behind an old mango tree, holding his rifle close.
"No. Patience, my friend. Good things come to those who wait." rebuked another, as he scouted for enemies with his rifle's iron sights.
"We've been sitting in this damn rain for an hour, Telesforo! The time is ripe! We need to take action now!" the man angrily replied, his tone suggesting his patience has run thin.
"We cannot be rash about this, Pedro! The guardia civil may already be alerted to our presence. I don't like this silence one bit. We cannot be reckless!" Telesforo rebutted.
"Trying to justify your cowardice, eh? My men and I are going in. Feel free to watch us take this town from the safety of your bushes." Pedro replied as he readied his rifle and signalled his men to come with him. Slowly, the men in hiding are being reduced to almost half of their numbers as Pedro's men slowly part from Telesforo's group.
"Puta! Fucking bastard." Telesforo cursed under his breath. He then turned to his men. "Let's move somewhere where we can have good sight lines. There are trees north of here. Our brothers will need all the help they can get once they're inside the town. I have a bad feeling about this."
"Can't we come with them instead?" one of the men asked.
"I sense a trap. That's exactly what the enemy wants us to do. We will not give it to them." Telesforo replied.
And so the cabeza and his men snuck to the north, crouched as they moved. But it was not for long when a gunshot was heard from the distance, followed by screams and grunts of pain and death. Flashes of gunpowder can be seen from the windows of the houses garrisoned by government soldiers as a skirmish ensues.
"Ambush! Fall back! Fall back!" screamed Pedro as his men fell one by one.
"Fuck! I knew it. I told them not to rush it." Telesforo exclaimed with annoyance. "Brothers, let's move in and provide our comrades with cover fire as they withdraw. Use the high ground to our advantage!"
Upon giving his command, Telesforo immediately cocked his rifle and, taking a deep breath, aimed down his sights. One shot after the other, enemy troops that were caught in his crosshairs were either severely injured or dead. A chorus of rifle fire followed his example, and felled a few soldiers as well.
Minutes later, the sound of artillery fire whistled and a shell landed past their location, glancing Telesforo's men by almost three breadths. As a response, he and his men ducked for cover.
"What?! They've got cannons here?! Already?!" Telesforo cried as he returned fire. "Brothers, hold the line. Pedro and his men are still halfway through. Just hold on!"
Not long after, a volley of rifle fire began raining towards their location. "Return fire! It's coming from the northeast! They're trying to flank us! Return fire! Return fire!"
One of the cabeza's men tried to rise to fire back amidst enemy volley fire, but as he was reaching out to try to pull him back to the ground, he was too late. Two bullets pierced the man's body, and a solid thump sounded as he hit the dust.
"Damn it!" the cabeza exclaimed in anger.
A few feet away from Telesforo's group, Pedro can be seen with a handful of his men retreating as they returned fire.
"Hurry Pedro! Run for it! We need to get out of here now!" Telesforo cried as he fired back at the enemy.
As he and his men gained enough distance away from the enemy, Pedro began to run towards the position of his comrades.
"How the fuck did they know we're going to be attacking this place?!" complained Pedro
"This is not the time nor the place for such discussions. We need to go back to one of our hideouts." the cabeza replied. "We have lost so many in a single night. Let us be wise and retreat for now."
And at this, they began sprinting into the darkness.
As they ran, Pedro began to rant to Telesforo, blurting out what's on his mind.
"This is all your fault! If only you had come with us, we would never be outnumbered and-!"
A sudden right straight coming from the cabeza landed on Pedro's face, silencing him. Halfway through their trip, the entire band of tulisanes stopped on their tracks at the sight of their leaders quarelling. "Bobo! If we had joined you, then all of us would be dead!"
In his rage, Telesforo quickly pulled out his revolver and pointed it at the now downed Pedro. "If only you have listened Pedro, those men we have lost would still be alive!"
Immediately, Pedro's men drew their rifles and pointed it towards the cabeza, and likewise the cabeza's men towards them. Tension between the two sides increase as seconds pass.
However, after minutes of being still in the tense standoff, in a surprising turn of events, Telesforo withdrew his gun as he gave a big sigh. "This quarrel will bring us nowhere. Let us just head back to plan our next move. It would be best to retire for now." he proposed as he offered his hand to Pedro to help him up.
Upon seeing their leader yield, the cabeza's men lowered their weapons. Pedro's men did likewise as their leader rose.
"So many killed in a single night..." remarked Carolino, who was holstering his rifle, his voice gloomy, as if from a man who lost the will to fight.
"We were caught off-guard, Tano. That's what happened tonight. Stand fast, for we will not let this go unanswered." answered Telesforo in a tone that sounded like was reprimanding his own son. "The Spanish knew that we were coming, which only means one thing."
"And what is that, Father?" Carolino asked.
The cabeza paused, as if contemplating on his son's question.
"I am not sure. But there is a possibility that we have a traitor in our midst."