Jun lifted his hand to his temple, a wave of horror crashing over him as he noticed the crimson stains on his quaking hands. A wail of anguish erupted from his throat, causing Eduardo to glance nervously around. Once he confirmed that no one was watching, he set to work, pulling Cecilia into the shadows to bind her tightly. In a fit of rage, Jun began to morph; his eyes became dark voids, two gaping chasms of despair. His hair bristled like a creature of the night, while his skin turned a ghastly gray, revealing twisted black veins beneath. His fingers elongated into deadly claws.
"You killed me! You swore to my mother that you would protect me! How could you betray her like this?" The child erupted in fury, swinging wildly at Eduardo, but his fists merely passed through the man, who remained blissfully unaware of his presence. Helplessly, he witnessed the monster who had ended his life restraining Cecilia, and in a fit of desperation, he fled the house. There was only one soul he could turn to for help, and he raced toward him.
Thirty minutes before the Twilight sets sail, the final preparations are about to be completed. "Captain, engines and systems functioning well beyond optimal." Chief Bustamante reports.
"Anchors and mooring lines?" Chris inquired as he inspected the lighted instruments within the bridge.
"All secured, captain." Chief Bustamante lingered behind the captain, despite delivering his report
Chris looked over his shoulder. "Is there anything else, Chief Officer?"
"Sir…Miss. Bermudez is not yet accounted for. We tried to pull her back, but it seems she is moving," Bustamante explained. "Maybe she is on her way here now. We can delay the ship until…"
But Chief Bustamante's words were cut short: "Belay that!"
"Sir, the consequence? For a crew member, every day they are not in their station, a month is added. To a human, it might be reversed?" informing the captain of the possible repercussions to their only human crew if they left without her.
Just then, Chief Murillo stepped onto the bridge. "Captain, we have a situation." She moves aside to reveal Jun from behind her and guides the boy to the captain. "Go on, tell them what you told me."
The boy approaches the captain slowly, afraid of his stern expression. Jun kept his eyes glued to his fidgeting hands, occasionally stealing a glance. "Well?" Chris asked, his voice low and deep
"Captain, please help Miss Cecilia. She's hurt, my stepdad tied her up, and he's going to take her to the mountain where he will bury her, along with my body. Please, sir, help her." Jun pleaded, wanting to help the only person who reached out to aid him.
Chris continued to adjust the instruments. "That's her problem." He continued to watch the monitor readings. He could feel the judgmental looks thrown at him.
Chief Murillo walked towards him. "Sir, remember what Triple-A told you," She whispered.
Chris shook his head and sighed, "This is turning out to be more trouble than it's worth." He turned to the boy. "What happened to her?"
"Miss Cecilia found my body, and because of that, my stepdad punched her on the head." Everyone gasped at the predicament that befell their human crew member.
"What?" Chris turned to his crew and assured them. "This is something easily resolved. Chief Bustamante, the bridge is yours." He then outstretched his arm as if reaching for something; light built up in his open palm, only to disappear. He tried again, but the results were the same. "She must be moving. I can't open a path to her location," Chris explained with annoyance in his voice, looking at his open palm that crackled with small jolts of electricity.
In that tense moment, Cecilia was slumped unconscious in the back seat of Eduardo's car, which had been speeding toward a desolate forest that few dared to visit. Jenny, the little puppy, was in the back with her, licking her face in a frantic attempt to wake her. As Cecilia's eyes finally opened, she scanned the dimly lit interior, and a jolt of fear shot through her. Realizing she was being transported against her will, she tried to sit up, but a sharp ringing in her head forced her back down. Her hands instinctively went to her head, only to realize she was tightly bound. "Where am I?" she croaked, her mind a chaotic blur.
Eduardo's eyes met his captive's in the rear-view mirror, a predatory glint in his gaze. "You should have listened to me. Now, I'll have to bury you alongside that brat," he threatened, his tone laced with menace.
Cecilia tried to loosen her hands from their restraints, but it was well secured. "You'll never get away with this! I'll make sure you pay for what you did to Jun!" she warned, her spirit unbroken.
"This isn't a drama; this is reality. And I assure you, I will end your life with my bare hands," he replied, his voice chillingly flat, sending a wave of terror coursing through her.
The car began to decelerate, making a sharp turn onto a muddy, uneven landscape. Cecilia felt her heart race, a chilling realization dawning on her: once the vehicle stopped, her life would be in grave danger. The ride was rough, and she noticed Eduardo struggling to keep the car steady. Acting on instinct, she started to kick the back of his seat. Each blow sent him lurching forward, loosening his grip on the wheel. "Stop it, you crazy bitch!" he yelled, but Cecilia pressed on, her very existence depending on those frantic kicks that threatened to unbalance him.
Eduardo twisted around, trying to regain control over his captive. But this prey was fiercely determined to survive. She kicked harder and harder until, at last, it happened. Eduardo lost his grip just as the car hit a series of bumps. The vehicle swerved violently, crashing into a tree with a bone-jarring impact.
Eduardo's head collided violently with the dashboard, knocking him out cold. Cecilia crumpled to the floor of the car, groaning as she fought to regain her footing. Once her mind cleared, she, with her hands tied in front, was able to loosen the rope around her ankles. She then sprang to her feet, flung the door open, and dashed out.
A few moments later, Eduardo stirred back to consciousness. Shaking off the disorientation, he glanced into the backseat, only to find it empty. Panic surged through him as he noticed fresh tracks in the mud. A wicked smile crept across his face as he took off in pursuit.
Cecilia sprinted toward a thicket of tall grass and dropped to her stomach, biting her lip to suppress any noise. Eduardo halted mere feet from her hiding place, then continued his relentless chase. As she carefully stood and darted in the opposite direction, her foot crunched on a dry twig, the sound piercing the air. Eduardo turned sharply, his gaze locking onto her as she fled.
Back in the Twilight, Chris still can't get a lock on Cecilia's location. "It's not working, she's still moving," he explained. He then glanced over the boy.
"You have to find her, sir, please find her. It's my fault she is in trouble." The child begged and cried.
Running out of time, Chris tried a different approach. He kneeled in front of Jun. "I want you to concentrate on your body, clear everything in your head, just picture your body," he urged the boy, hoping that the link between body and soul had not yet been severed.
Jun closed his eyes, thinking only of what Chris told him to. "I feel cold, I can't move…I'm inside something, it's suffocating!" Jun envisions himself tied inside a big black bag.
"That's it, don't lose that feeling, just give me a few seconds." The small crackling jolts of electricity in Chri's hands soon became a bright light. The light grew bigger and bigger until it engulfed the two of them. When the light vanished, so did Chris and the boy.
The two materialized seconds later beside the car. Jenny leaped into Jun's arms the moment she saw his master. Chris examined the car, "No blood" he looked at the trunk and saw the large black bag "This must be the boy" he thought, then he noticed two sets of tracks, heading in the same direction "She managed to run away, but he's right behind her" He followed the tracks hoping it would lead them to a still breathing Cecilia.