PART VII

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(scene 1: after classes, at the halls with the students)

[fuen] You guys going home already?

[students] yes ma'am, we're going home together

[fuen] good. no more stopovers, okay? (students wave goodbye)

[fuen] how about you guys? (go to brian & co.)

[brian] I'm going straight home, jo, I can walk you home too...

[jo] how about you, mich?

[mich] my mom's picking me up, she's a little worried about the resent muggings, (looks at fuentez) she's a teacher herself, you see...

[jo] how about you, jhun?

[jhun] i'm going straight home too...

[brian] jhun's house in the other direction, who would you go with?

[fuen] that's okay, it's in the way of the apartment I stay in anyway... and I could use a good cup of coffee and some pansit ^_^

[jo] we'll see you tomorrow then (waves at her classmates)

[fuen] you guys take care of yourselves

[brian] bye ma'am villegas!

[mich] bye teacher!

(fuentez waves at her students and turns to jhun. he's looking at the 3 as they left)

[fuez] well, just the two of us now...

[igs] ma'am villegas!

[fuen] I spoke too soon... (looks at mr. ignacio and smiles) Mr. Ignacio, good afternoon

[igs] I was looking for you at the faculty room, I'm glad I found you here

[fuen] actually, I'm about to go home with jhun here...

[igs] I see... you must be worried about your students

[fuen] aren't we all?

[jhun] (looks at the 2) I can go home by myself... it's not so far from here anyways...

[fuen] non-sense! I did say I wanted something to eat!

[igs] ah, yes, your stepfather does have this eatery, right? It's well known around the area for it's delicious pansit! (jhun keeps eyes on ground and is silent) I'd like to tag along too, if you don't mind?

[fuen] well, if you have nothing better to do...

[igs] okay, let me treat you to some pansit (smiles at fuentez)

[fuen](sa isip) you little...

[jhun] let's go then... better to travel in numbers, right? (looks at fuen)

[fuen] Yes, that's right! (tries to smile then thinks:) but what if he turns out to be an assassin? he'd take out both the undercover cop and the heir in one shot!

[igs]it's nice to finally spend some time with you, amy, I've been looking forward to our little get-together, even if there's a student with us... (looks at jhun who ignors him, his earphones in his ears)

[fuen] actualy, I'm planning on some take-out, I've still got a lot of stuff to finish back home...

[igs] good, perhaps I can lend a hand...

[fuen] oh, don't bother, I'm sure you've got a lot of other stuff to do yourself...

[igs] no problem, your apartment isn't so far from my house, anyway...

[fuen] (stops in her tracks) ... how did you know where my apartment is?

[igs] ah... I just took a look at your record... I hope you don't mind... (looks a bit fidgetty)

[fuen] I'm really very busy, you know... (looks at ignacio suspiciously) I'm afraid I have no time for a visitor... (igs looks back)

[jhun] we're here... (takes off earphones) can I take your orders?

[fuen] one pansit kanton... (looks at igs frowning) for take out

[igs] I'll have the same...

(scene 2: on the road home) ignacio still following fuentez, fuentez pissed off...

[fuen] I said I can take care of myself (holding plastic with pansit canton as she walks briskly with a frown in her face)

[igs] but you mustn't forget about that mugger in the news, what if you ran into him?

[fuen] (sa isip) a mugger's definitely more welcome than you...

[igs] besides, like I said, I live near your apartment!

[fuen] okay, here's my apartment, you can go now, goodbye!

[igs] ... (gaze down) you.. don't like me do you?

[fuen] yeah, I don't.

[igs] I guess you like students better... young students like that jhun... that's why you're always hanging around with him... that's why you walk with him every afternoon... and just this morning...

[fuen] how did you know about...

[igs] you're always with that retard... you're even starting to look like him...

[fuen] look, Mr. Ignacio...

[igs] when you told me you would let me tour you around town, I was very happy, then you meet that kid and this happens...

[fuen] Mr. Ignacio...

[igs] I knew you liked me too, but I guess jhun was just in the way... so...

[fuen] Mr. Ignacio, please... (about to touch him on the shoulder, but igs sudddenly looks up and grabs her with both hands, pansit falls 2 the ground)

[igs] if you like students so much, I can be your student! (fuentez held on the shoulders, over powered) I can go back to school and wear a uniform? Don't you think that would be kinky? huh? huh?

[fuen] let me go!!! (tinuhod ang –toot- and flips him - judo)

[igs] oof! (falls on the ground and clutches crotch, fuen steps back, he then looks up, crazy smile in face, eyes bulging) that's right! just the way I like it! (he launches at fuentez who tries to block him but before he could reach her, a rock hits him straight in the face)

(fuentes looks at direction rock came from and sees a girl wearing school uniform standing under the shade)

[igs] who the hell are you?! (looks at fuen) another one of your students? I guess you really prefer younger boys... and girls... (about to hold fuentez again, but another rock hits his hand) ow! You little...! (he sets off to girl's direction, girl slowly pulls out a long makeshift blade – a sharpened slightly curved blade as long as her arm, one end wrapped in a long piece of cloth, the rest trailing down. Girl wraps the cloth around her hand as she held it. Ignacio freezes in his tracks)

[fuen] the asssassin!!!

[igs] wha— who— you're that mugger?! g-get me outta here!!! (steps back and stumbles to his feet)

(girl rushes to igs with great speed, fuentez just barely stops the blade from slicing igs with her bag (MAY DALA SYANG BAG LAGI) it gets thorn in half, the contents falling on the ground, together with her gun)

[igs] hiii!!! someone help! (runs away, he didn't notice the gun)

(girl ignores fuentez and goes after igs, but fuentez picks her gun just as quickly and aims at the girl)

[fuen] freeze! (girl didn't listen, she lifts the blade at igs once more as she leeps at him in mid air in a graceful circling motion)

(fuentez chocks the gun and shoots. The girl, without looking, changes speed in mid air and blocks the bullet with the blade (near the hilt where the metal is thicker)

[fuen] she's fast! (she aims again, girl looses interest at igs and looks at her)

[igs] help me!!! (keeps on running)

(fuentez shoots again, girl moves slightly, bullet misses by a hair's length... and smiles. she runs and disappears)

[fuen] stop! (runs after girl but she's nowhere in sight, she heads back to apartment, gasping for breath) at least I have an idea of what she looks like... I think...

PART VIII

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(scene 1: inside fuentez's room, infront of pc)

[fuen] a student, huh? I wonder what school... (types on keyboard) black skirt, white blouse with purple trimmings... looks awfully familiar thou... that's it! Holy Virgin Academy... this is mom's old school... no wonder the uniform looked familiar!

(she pulls out a locket and opens it, featuring her, the cop in the picture outside, and a fair woman in her mid 30's with short shaggy hair – locket looks vaguely familiar ^_^. she smiles)

[fuen] that's where you wanted me to study right? but daddy didn't have enough money to pay for the high tuition fee... (she places the locket back under her clothes) anyway, I've still got a lot of work to do... 1st, to contact HQ about the recent incident and to find out the identity of that assassin...

(she types some more on the pc when a notice pops up – mail)

[fuen] "sender: A. Friend"? (sender)what's this supposed to be? (opens msg there's an attachment. she opens it, it's a doc entitled) "D.P.P." – the Death Puppet Project? (monitor flickers as it runs automatically) Wait... how do I stop this?!

(show monitor showing human anatomy, brain, spinal cord diagrams – with lots of notes)

[shown in PC monitor, part by part]

human experimentation... enhance fighting skills by severing the branch of the spinal cord to the hypothalamus... removing ability of the person to feel pain... found ways to increase the cell's ability to multiply... the body is able to repair itself faster than normal... enhance other senses with the lose of the sense of touch...

(several pictures are on the screen now, lots of children in long glass tubes, wires connected to their bodies. monitor then shows pictures of experimentation, children lying on trays, dissections, and of a girl being electricuted, nakatirik ang mata, may O2 mask na suot, sa shoulder my heart shaped tatoo...

[fuen] Gina! (she half yelped as picture changes) shit, how do you rewind this thing... (tries to stop executable program w/ no avail. the monitor shows more pictures of children being experimented on, one of an open skull another of a body in a prone position, needles connected to tubes run along the spine... then a picture of 6 children with a black line across the eyes (censored), one still wearing a dextrose... all bald and naked seated along a long bench. the others show pictures of dead children. One was shot in the head the number 5 written beneath the pic. the other still in a death bed, eyes wide open, mouth agape with the number 4. Another pic shows a child (boy or girl) with cut wrists, no. 3. The next three, were then shown, half body pictures: number 1 looked sharp with a mole between his brows, a boy probably. Number 2 looked fragile with big beautiful eyes, looks like a girl. Fuentez gasped as the last child was shown... number 6 was a girl with a heart shaped mole on her shoulder. She was smiling at the camera... a crooked smile.

[fuen] Gina... it is you... (she said with certainty, even though a "thick black line" was drawn across each subject's face)

(scene: go's house) girl assassin enters room, her stomach still in bandage, she's wearing a bra and a skirt

[gina] father, my wound's all better now, see? (pulls off the bandage without flinching, showing raw scar tissue) can I go back to school tomorrow?

[go] well, if you think you're okay with it, then go ahead... I would like you also to ask some of your friends over...

[gina] really father? I can really ask them over?

[go] of course, I am particularly interested with your classmate jhun...

[gina] jhun? mich and jo like him... I think he's too plain.

[go] well it seems this jhun is the one we're looking for... and who would have thought that that bastard tiangson's grandson was in your class all these years!

[gina] you want me to kill him father? (grins)

[go] not yet. I want you to lure out your sister – the other death puppet.

[gina] my sister? but why?

[go] well, wouldn't you like to have a playmate?

[gina] no! she's so boring! she can't feel a thing!

[go] ok then, if you take jhun over and your 'sister' comes too, I'll let you play with some of the guards outside!

[gina] wheee! Father you're the best!

[go] ok now, be a good girl and get dressed, be careful not to re-open your wound.

[gina] (kisses go on cheek) thank you father... (skips out of room)

[go] (wipes cheek with disgust) tang.

[tang] yes boss?

[go] did you find the pipe?

[tang] I'm sorry sir, we've searched the entire tiangson estate, but even his former bodyguards have heard of no pipe...

[go] I'm sure it's just hidden somewhere... a death puppet can be temporarily immobilized by the mere sound of that pipe, it's the only way to take control of them. Tell the boys to search for it much further, or I'll let Daniella play with them!

[tang] yes boss... (disappears in the room's shadows)

[go] tiangson, you old bastard... I'll get that pipe yet and take control of your death puppet! (pulls out a small golden pipe with the number 6 engraved in it) or perhaps I could use number six's pipe on the others as well...