I. CHAPTER 10: DYING WISH

***The Imperial Capital of Manila, present day…***

A journalist raised her hand as the Duke of Batangas paused to take a water break. The lady serving as the emcee reminded her that it was not yet the time to ask questions, but the nobleman, seeing that she was someone close to his family, allowed her eventually.

“Milord,” the journalist began. “Based on your story, His Imperial Majesty was still alive when you found him, and this runs in contrast to the official version of the Regent’s office. According to them, the emperor was already dead when the guardsmen got to spot where he fell; are you saying the official narrative of the government is fake? Is the Regent lying to us?”

The Duke fell silent, which was captured by all the cameras present. Even the emcee felt the tension that suddenly filled the atmosphere after the journalist put up the question. Nevertheless, the nobleman smiled, and answered, “Well, we all know that the first casualty in every conflict is the truth, yes? While I believe that the Regent’s office might’ve got my story wrong, we are in the middle of war. Now is not the time for truth; we need to rally behind the Duke of Cavite as our very existence depends on the outcome of this conflict.”

Then, another media person raised his hand, this time, a reporter from a foreign news network. “Your Grace, if you are saying the official version of the emperor’s death is wrong, then does this mean there is already a designated successor for him?”

“I believe this is the point of this press conference, yes,” the Duke replied. “And, to dispel doubts on the authenticity of my account, I will tell you how we got there…”

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***BNKK Rodrigo Duterte, one of the Imperial Navy’s amphibious assault carriers, off the coast of Northern Zambales. November 23, 2278, 0700 hours…***

Having been one of the last units to be evacuated from Lingayen before it was finally stormed by the Ilocanos, the 4th Imperial Guard company under the Duke of Batangas rested on the flight deck of the carrier as the helicopters and drones from their ship carried out sorties meant to dissuade their enemies from pursuing. The nobleman himself watched the skies, not because of possible llocano air attacks, but he was simply grateful to be given another chance at life.

“…”

From his spot were his men, sleeping. Many of them suffered wounds, though those were not so grave compared to other guardsmen that took part in the final battle. The Duke was informed of units suffering almost 90% casualty rates, with a few literally annihilated down to the last man. Spitz’ company lost 85% of its members, including his three sergeants out of four.

And all of that just to recover one half-dead man.

“Hm? Sir?”

The Duke of Batangas was brought back to his senses by his sergeant, who smoked beside him. “Did I say that part loud?”

The NCO smirked and nodded. Then, he offered his commander a cigarette, to which the Duke refused. The sergeant reminded him, “Sir, whatever it is in your mind, keep it. The generals are pissed at our retreat; they are actively looking for someone to blame, especially from the junior officers.”

“Yeah. Same assholes that say they love His Imperial Majesty, are the very first ones on the ships out of Lingayen. Only our commander, General Santiago, had the guts to return and look for the emperor,” the nobleman chuckled. “But, I won’t trust my life in that Antonio Luna wannabe, now that we’ve seen how he performs in command level. I still prefer the old General Halcon; that guy will steamroll the Ilocanos even though he’s a hundred years old!”

“General Halcon has been dead for two weeks, Sir,” the sergeant reminded him. “And it’s like a relief for our Old Reliable; let the man rest, he already dealt with enough bullshit ever since he became the commandant of the Imperial Guards.”

“True. Can’t help it; you know our culture. Those who perform well are rewarded with additional work and slander. Just look at this ship, named after one of the most useless presidents of the fifth Republic. Guy kept yapping on murdering those who oppose him, which he always directed to his vice-president and her supporters.”

The two guardsmen shared a laughed, though they had to keep it down because of their ‘special passenger.’ The sergeant then continued, “Well, look on the bright side, Sir. You and Lieutenant Spitz saved our regiment from becoming fertilizer in Ilocano land.”

“Did you just remove your part in the rescue?”

The sergeant shook his head. “With all due respect, Sir, after all the things we’ve went through back in that damned beach, I realized I had enough of the army.”

“Understandable.”

“I don’t want those medals; I just like to come home in one piece. And I think I already served more than the number of years required to earn an ‘honorable dismissal.’”

“Your experience and expertise will be sorely missed by our company, but yes. I will write a satisfactory report on your performance, Sarge.”

The NCO smiled and bowed before the Duke. “Thank you for your magnanimity, Milord!”

Just as the nobleman was about to rest, however, an orderly came looking for him. “Your Grace, General Bautista is asking for you.”

The Duke never bothered to stand the moment he heard the name of the person. After all, General Bautista was the over-all commander of the Oriental invasion force upon the emperor’s death. “And what does the General of the Air Forces who should be covering us in Lingayen need from an abandoned guardsman like me?”

Sensing the nobleman’s hostility, the orderly revealed, “Milord, it is His Imperial Majesty himself that is asking for your presence, through General Bautista.”

“Ha?!” the sergeant blurted out. “ You mean, His Imperial Majesty regained consciousness?”

The orderly nodded. The Duke and his NCO exchanged bewildered stares before the former went to the emperor’s bedside.

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When the Duke of Batangas came down to the infirmary on the lower deck, he was immediately greeted by a show of the Imperial armed forces’ generals and admirals, gathered around the bed of the emperor. Some of them were openly weeping, to which, the nobleman couldn’t help but feel disdain. A few hours earlier, and these people hurried in getting out of the beaches, disregarding the whereabouts of His Imperial Majesty’s body.

Well, it’s not like he’s different from them. Still, the Duke will never dare put up a ‘fake show’ like that. He is just doing what he is trained to do, anyway.

“…”

Any case, the emperor was still alive and conscious, though barely keeping up the pace of his breaths, which was supported by a ‘breathing apparatus.’ There was a blood pack nearby; nevertheless, from the looks of it, Arthur Valiente refused it. He knew his injuries were beyond salvation, and he would rather have it given to the men who served him…a true soldier until the end.

A general, the head of the medical unit, leaned on His Majesty’s ear and whispered something. Then, the dying man looked at the Duke of Batangas, to which, the surgeon general gestured for him to come by the emperor’s bedside. The nobleman removed his peaked cap, and kissed his liege’s hand…or whatever was left of it.

“S-So…you’re…Lady L-Lira’s son,” the dying man greeted. “G-Glad you…s-survived the b-battle.”

“Your Imperial Majesty,” the Duke of Batangas replied. “Please, save your strength. Try to recover; your people need you!”

“I-I…am finished,” the emperor admitted. “I am…forever…g-grateful to y-you, and to…L-Lieutenant Spitz. I…It is…my d-dying wish to…to m-make sure y-you are r-rewarded f-for your efforts…to find me.”

The nobleman said nothing, and just answered with a snappy salute. However, His Imperial Majesty wasn’t finished yet…

“C-Captain Santos-Recto…”

“I’m only a lieutenant—” the Duke of Batangas was interrupted by the surgeon general, who whispered,

“His Imperial Majesty just promoted you.”

“Oh…”

“Captain…” the emperor called out to him once again.

“My liege!”

“I…I have one final mission for you…and Lieutenant Spitz.”

At that moment, the surgeon general gave him a ring. Much to the other generals’ shock, it was the purple signet ring of the emperor, one of the emblems of his authority. Even the Duke of Batangas was astonished by what he was given; he just stood there, like a statue.

“The…empire will…continue,” His Imperial Majesty’s voice was getting weaker. “F-Find…find Pauline…”

The mention of the name was enough to silence everyone in the infirmary, a stillness that drowned even the loud ‘ping’ of the electrocardiogram monitor. As the eyes of Arthur Valiente glazed, the Duke of Batangas could only stare at the signet ring, unsure of what to do with it next.

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***The Imperial Capital of Manila, present day…***

The journalists rushed to ask questions on the Duke of Batangas after he finished his story. As the lady emcee was swamped with requests to have their questions read before the nobleman, she pulled one of the papers just to appease the impatient crowd. “Miss Darlyn Sotto from the Imperial Inquirer asks, ‘So this Pauline the late emperor spoke of, did you already find her?’”

The Duke of Batangas shook his head. “Well, the Office of the Chamberlain under the Count of Sey is currently doing their job, but at this point, I believe we can’t afford to have a change of leadership. For now, the Duke of Cavite is doing his best to govern and prosecute this war against the Ilocanos. A change of leadership in the middle of this conflict might undermine our efforts to win.”

“Any idea of who is Pauline?”

“The Office of the Chamberlain is in-charge of that, my apologies.”

“So, Your Grace, it is clearly stated by the emperor that you and Lieutenant Marcel Spitz will give his signet ring to his successor. This is in direct contradiction with the official version of the government that claims the emperor tasked our Iron Duke, the Lord Axel Aguinaldo of Cavite, of governing the empire in his stead. Why did you tell us this story if you don’t plan to enact of the final wishes of His Imperial Majesty?”

The Duke of Batangas paused for a moment, as if remembering something, but he eventually continued. “My friend from the media, I will give you this; while I prefer that we continue on this prosecution of the war ‘till the end, I am looking at the future. The Lord Axel of the House of Aguinaldo is a capable individual, yet the late emperor trusted someone else to succeed him. Consider this an ‘insurance’ that certain forces within our government wouldn’t dare abuse their powers.”

Author's Notes:

BNKK - stands for 'Barko ng Kanyang Kamahalan' (Ship of His/Her Majesty), which is story-exclusive.  The original naval warship designation for Philippine Navy assets is BRP, which means 'Barko ng Republika ng Pilipinas' (Ship of the Republic of the Philippines).

Rodrigo Duterte - is the 16th President of the Fifth Philippine Republic, from 2016-2022.  He was infamous for making crass, misogynistic, murderous, and/or rude remarks on famous people.  Under his watch, CoViD pandemic hit the Philippines, thus initiating the longest lockdown in the history of that disease (two years).  He also started a bloody drug war that claimed thousands of innocent lives, as well as let foreign agents into sensitive Philippine installations.  Another legacy of his administration is the impunity of police abuses that extended even to the off-duty military men.