The night before, Imelda was taking a shower while Willow, her roommate, was sitting on her bed talking to someone on the telemirror.
"Sorry, Sir. I know I shouldn't have answered her telemirror..."
"It's okay. You're Willow, right? Allan's daughter?" The voice of an older man said.
"Y-Yes... I'm her roommate." Willow said with a hint of embarrassment in her voice. "Let me knock on the door so she'll know—"
The bathroom door opened then Imelda, wearing only but a white towel made of cotton, emerged.
"Oh, here she is." She covered the mirror with her hand. "Imelda, I think it's your father..." she whispered then handed the telemirror to Imelda.
Imelda dried her hands with the towel wrapped around her torso then took the golden hand mirror from Willow.
"There you are..." The man in the reflection said. He had short black hair with a hint of gray. His black mustache almost covered his mouth. "Did she tell you that it was your father?"
"Y-Yes, Uncle."
Imelda's uncle laughed but then his laughter gradually turned into an awkward silence.
Imelda walked to her bed with the telemirror in hand. "Is there something you need from me, Uncle Pablo?" She said as she sat down.
"I just... I just wanted to know how your first day of school was. Nothing else, sweetheart." Pablo replied with reservation in his voice.
"Something tells me that my favorite uncle is lying to me." She said playfully. "Your voice changes when you lie, I know it." She put the telemirror on her bed and leaned it against her pillow to secure it from falling over. "Stay there, Uncle. The wind is cold, I better put something on."
"Okay. I'll look away."
"No need," she stood up and walked her way to the wardrobe. "You can't see me anyway from that angle." She chuckled.
"I'll wait for you downstairs," Willow said who was already standing by the door. "There's a nice restaurant by the marketplace that I want to show you."
"Thank you!" She mouthed.
"I think I know where she's taking you. You'll love the noodles they serve there." Pablo said after Willow closed the door.
"I know why you called, Uncle." Her voice suddenly changed as she stared at the picture of her parents stuck on the inside of the wardrobe door. "It's my parents' death anniversary, isn't it?"
"Sorry... I know you'd remember it without me reminding you. I just miss you."
"I miss you too, Uncle."
Pablo paused. "The girl... wait... Jane, right? Yes, how's Jane doing—"
Imelda, who had still nothing on but her towel, closed the wardrobe door. "She survived my outburst, Uncle. Unlike my parents... they... they—"
"Milly..."
"It was all my fault! It was all my fault, Uncle. I have no control over my—"
"Milly, listen to me. You were just a child! It wasn't your fault! Stop saying that, Milly!" Pablo's voice started to rise.
"Imelda, Uncle... I'm not a child anymore. Call me Imelda... please."
"Sorry, Imelda... I just... I just miss you so much. Then when I heard what had happened in Pesca Village, I can't stop worrying about you."
Imelda looked at his Uncle in the reflection of the mirror and saw his teary eyes. "Uncle, you have to stop worrying about me. What happened in Pesca Village was just an accident."
"I believe you. Does the girl know what happened?"
She opened the wardrobe again and picked a dress. "We haven't talked since it happened."
"We have to apologize to her and her family. I can send them flowers if that's okay with you."
She got inside her dress and then brushed her hair. "That's fine with me, Uncle."
"I'll do it tomorrow. I'll have someone find out where her family lives." Pablo cleared his throat. "One more thing. Tomorrow... You have Battle Tactics tomorrow?"
"You mean my subject? Yes, Wilda's my teacher, Uncle. I feel like I can learn a lot from her." She finished brushing her hair and then went back to the side of the bed to grab the telemirror. "Why?"
"I thought I asked Yanu to drop you out of that subject?"
"Drop me out? What do you—Is it because we have a tournament tomorrow? Is this the ultimate reason why you called?"
Pablo let a huge breath in. "You don't understand, Imelda. If you take off your ring there then you could lose control again!"
"Battle Tactics is a major subject, Uncle. If I want to be a fear farmer, I have to take it." She held the handle tightly.
"No. You're not going to attend that class."
"Uncle, please." She started to weep. "You have to let me..."
"No. My decision is final, Imelda," he said with a stern voice.
She sniffed as her tears reached her nose. "I will not take off my ring, Uncle."
Pablo did not answer right away. He massaged his forehead first then, "Then how are you going to fight the others in their original form?"
"You taught me the way of the katana, right? Ever since I was a child you wanted me to be able to protect myself and others without relying on my original form."
"Yes, and you are my best student."
"Is it settled then?"
"Promise me." He clicked his tongue. "Promise me that you will not take off your ring... ever again."
"I... I promise Uncle."
Pablo finally smiled his eyes lit up. "Remember what I taught you... Nothing can withstand a sword—"
"If the wielder's will to protect is stronger than his will to live." Imelda and Pablo smiled together. "I remember, Uncle. I have to go. I'm hungry and Willow is waiting for me."
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Imelda stood in the middle of the battleground with Dave just a few feet away. Her katana gleamed when a ray of sunlight hit it.
"Dave versus Imelda. Let the third match begin!" Wilda marked the start of the battle.
"Is she really going to use her sword?" Barbara, with dried blood on her school uniform, said to Carlo.
"I... I don't know. I've never seen her wield it. All I know is that she can't turn into a manananggal because she loses control."
"Imelda won't last five minutes against Dave if she doesn't turn." Sam butted in.
Dave took off his ring. Fur began to rise from the pores of his skin then immediately after, his skull structure started to change. His nose, along with his mouth, was pushed forward then fangs replaced his teeth. He knelt down as he cried in pain then his silhouette changed into that of a dog. He howled as his transformation completed.
Imelda flinched. The dog which was almost as tall as her, stood in front of her on his fours. She closed her eyes and then gracefully positioned her long sword at chest level. "Lotus Slash!" She opened her eyes and then swiped her katana horizontally toward Dave's head.
The dog dodged. It stooped its head almost to the ground and then growled.
"Wow! He's so fast!" Barbara exclaimed.
Sam smiled. "Dave is the fastest dweller I know."
"Come on, Imelda. You can do this..." Carlo whispered to himself.
Dave pounced at Imelda but he was met by her sword with a swiping motion to his collar bone. He wailed.
"It hit! Nice, Imelda!" Carlo shouted as Imelda's sword finally hit its target.
"Dave's got a thick hide. To him, her katana is just a needle." Sam said. "Let's go, Dave!"
Carlo stuck his tongue out then gestured childishly and provokingly at Sam.
Dave snarled then ran around Imelda who couldn't see him due to his speed.
"Ooh! This is Dave's Fang Barrage. He runs around his target at the speed of sound and then bites multiple times. He will be so fast that Imelda won't be able to dodge his attacks."
Carlo and Barbara looked at each other while Hanz was focused on the match.
"This is bad. How can she escape this move?" Carlo whispered to Barbara.
"We will see." She answered.
Dave's first bite connected to Imelda's left arm.
"Focus, Imelda! Listen!" Willow shouted from the other side of the arena.
Imelda glanced at Willow and then nodded at her. "Listen, Imelda." She mumbled to herself.
Dave went in for another bite and it connected to the same arm. His third bite left a mark on Imelda's right arm.
"If this goes on, she'll lose!" Barbara grabbed Carlo's arm.
Imelda's chin shook in pain. Just a couple of minutes into the match and she already has blood on her clothes. She closed her eyes and then jabbed her sword in front of her but it missed. Dave went for another bite and it connected to her right leg.
"I can't lose like this!" She held her sword in both hands and slid her foot back gracefully. "Dance of a Hundred Lotus!" She began spinning with her sword raised in front of her. As she did, blood splattered. The crowd wasn't sure whose blood it was but they still cheered.
Dave stopped running around Imelda and then howled in pain. He walked away from her with a limping hind leg.
"Take that, you mutt!" Carlo laughed.
"Hey—"
Carlo stopped laughing and glanced at Sam. "I'm so sorry I just got carried away."
"So she's a skilled swordsman. I could never have guessed." Hanz said.
"Me too! Who would have thought that a shy girl like her would be so good at using a katana."
Imelda stopped spinning and then walked slowly toward Dave with one foot behind her and her sword forward. "D-Did I h-hurt you? I'm sorry." She said.
Dave barked like he was insulted then pounced at Imelda throwing her to the ground with him on top of her. His front legs pinned her.
With her sword still in her hand, she tried to stab his stomach. "Ah!" She cried as she missed. Dave grabbed the hilt of the sword with his mouth and threw it away.
"It will be hard for Imelda to fight without a sword. If she wants to keep going, she has to turn."
The large dog grabbed Imelda by the neck with its mouth then shook his head profusely.
"Stop! Dave, stop!" Carlo shouted from above.
"Carlo, it's okay. I'm a manananggal. This pain is nothing compared to what I experience when I turn." Imelda said without pause. She wasn't fazed by what Dave was doing to her.
Dave growled then threw Imelda a good distance away from her sword. She rolled over like a dummy. Dave ran up to her and grabbed her again using his teeth and threw her vertically this time.
"Imelda you have to turn!" Carlo screamed. He flinched every time Imelda fell to the ground.
Dave grabbed her for the third time and threw her again.
"This is brutal!" Barbara ground her teeth.
"Dave could have easily grabbed her by the neck and killed her but he's not doing that because we have rules. He's giving Imelda a chance to yield by doing this." Hanz said.
"Imelda, yield!" Sam shouted. For the first time, he looked sympathetic toward her.
Dave continued to throw her into the air. Her face was already swollen.
"Imelda!" Carlo shouted.
"C-Carlo?" She mumbled to herself.
"Take off your ring!"
"But Uncle would be—"
"Take it off! Just follow my voice!"
"N-No, I promised..." Imelda said with her voice gradually getting lower.
"Listen to me Imelda, take the ring off!" Carlo kept shouting as the crowd flinched and looked away from the brutal show of strength.
Dave, once again, bit Imelda's already bloody neck then threw her in the air.
"I'm s-sorry..." Before her bruised body could hit the ground for the enth time, she pulled her ring off. "I'm s-sorry Uncle."
Carlo's eyes widened. "Alright! Here we go!"
Imelda landed on the ground feet first before she transformed. She raised her head and faced the sky with her arms spread out to the side—she started to transform. Fangs began to spring out of her teeth and her claws lengthened. She cried in pain when a pair of bat-like wings sprouted from her spine but her cry was even louder when her torso separated from her lower body. Her skin color turned to black like a decaying corpse and her ears grew larger—shaped like a bat's.
Imelda screeched as she flapped her wings. Her eyes scanned the arena and saw that everyone was looking at her some looked excited to see her and some were scared.
"Imelda! Can you hear me?" Carlo shouted then she flew up. "Over here! Can you hear me, Imelda?"
Dave sat in the center of the arena with her lower body not too far from him.
Imelda looked at Carlo and then started flapping her wings profusely toward him.
"Carlo watch out!" Barbara shouted.
The manananggal's eyes were locked onto him.
"Imelda, it's me." He said in a calm voice. Imelda was inches away from his face. "It's Carlo, remember?"
Imelda growled like a dog itching to rip his head off.
"You have to control it. You can hear me, can't you?"
She stared at him but her angry face was slowly relaxing.
"That's it... easy... easy..."
Imelda tilted her head as she hovered in front of him.
"Breathe in, Imelda. You can hold my hand."
Barbara, Hanz, and Sam, along with the rest of the audience couldn't believe how Carlo was able to calm her down.
"You've gotta... be kidding me." Barbara slowly mumbled with fear in her eyes.
Imelda was about to hold Carlo's hand when... "C-Carlo?"
"Yes, i-it's me. I knew you can hear me!"
"W-Where am I? Am I in manananggal form?" She looked at her arms and wings.
"Yes, you are! You were fighting with Dave before you turn—"
"H-How could this be? This... This feels..." She glared at her black hands that were in front of her. "This feels amazing!"
Carlo looked at Dave who was silently crawling toward Imelda's lower body.
"Imelda, your other half!" Carlo pointed.
Imelda immediately turned around and saw Dave attacking it.
"You have to finish this fight, Imelda. Show him what you got!" Carlo said then Imelda flew down to where her lower body was standing.
She looked around and saw her katana on the arena floor. She zoomed to where it was and then picked it up.
"W-Wait, she's going to wield her sword in her mananaggal form?" Sam said with wide eyes.
"That's badass!" Hanz said. Finally, he looked excited.
"Step away!" Imelda shouted behind Dave with her sword in both hands raised in front of her.
Dave looked back at her and then suddenly sprinted toward her with his giant fangs exposed.
"That's Dave's finishing move!" Sam exclaimed.
"Dance of a Hundred Lotus: Bat Style!" Imelda began spinning around like a ballerina in mid-air. "Nothing can withstand a sword if its wielder's will to protect is stronger than his will to live!" She recited as she met Dave in the air.
Dave's cry reverberated in the arena. Imelda stopped spinning when she saw Dave's body lying unconscious on the ground.
"Dave!" Sam shouted as he ran down from the audience's seat to the center of the arena.
"Is he okay?" Carlo said.
"I don't know. I hope Willow can heal him." Barbara said with a curious look.
"Imelda wins!" Wilda announced. "Finally, our last match of the day has concluded. Flora, thank you for the barrier of protection that you cast on Dave."
"Wait, what?" Sam looked up at Wilda who was standing over them. "Barrier of protection? That's babaylan magic right?"
"I've heard what happened to Jane so I asked Flora to cast a barrier of protection which only protects Dave from sudden death. As your teacher, I want my students to still be able to walk out of this arena with their limbs complete and breathing. Any more questions?"
Sam shook his head.
"Alright! Good job everyone and see you next time! Class dismissed." She walked as she placed her blowgun back in its holster on her shin.
"Imelda!" Carlo, who was already out of his seat and on the battleground, walked toward Imelda. "Are you okay? How does it feel?"
"Can I put my ring back on first? I just want to be sure."
"Of course!"
"What Wilda and Flora did was genius!" Barbara said.
"What I am most amazed about is the fact that Carlo was able to help Imelda through her original form and that Carlo didn't stutter." Hanz, for the first time, was able to construct a long sentence.
"Wow, look at you. I didn't know you can speak long sentences like that!" Carlo jokingly said.
"Enjoy it, coz it's not gonna happen again." He replied.
"Carlo!" Imelda was back in her human form. "I'm ready," she said as her long hair swayed to her movement.
"I-I..." Carlo stuttered. "You... You have to go to the infirmary so we can mend those bruises you have there."
"Okay. Wanna come with me?" Imelda
offered her hand.
"N-No, please. My heart will not be able to take it if we held hands." Carlo said. Hanz and Barbara laughed in the back.
"Understood. But we have to work on that." She winked at him.
"Holy shit! You're killing me, Imelda!" He screamed as they walked out of the arena together.
End of Chapter 10