Part II
After the Cry of Pugad Lawin, a minor skirmish occured between the Katipuneros and the Guardia Civil around Pasong Tamo, forcing Andres Bonifacio to relocate to the hills of Mandaluyong to elude the pursuing authorities. It was then that Bonifacio revealed his plan; it calls for a direct attack at the heart of Manila, expecting to trigger a massive revolt. But sevaral members like Geronimo Cristobal, a corporal, expressed concerns about the Katipunan's capability to fight which forced Bonifacio to postpone the strategy for a while and concentrate on acquiring sufficient weaponry. Luckily, there are Katipunan members with connections inside the Spanish government to which the rebels used to a great degree. In a span of a few days, firearms and ammunitions started to pour in at the same time as the would-be insurgents then started to train in the ways of warfare.
On August 29th 1896, a ~5,000-strong Katipunan force launched a surprise attack against the Guardia Civil encampment in Pasig resulting in a minor victory for the rebels. They immediately proceed to Mariquina, aiming to capture a water treatment plant which could threaten Manila's water supply. As they crossed the Marikina River, the insurgents engaged several Spanish platoons igniting a brutal slugfest which saw several hand-to-hand engagements and street-to-street shootouts lasting for more than 3 hours. In the end, the Katipuneros lost ~1,700 men while the Spaniards lost only over 800 while they retreated in good order. The Battle of Mariquina will be the first of several pyrhic battles the revolutionaries are going to experience.
At the same time another rebel army, this time over a 20,000-strong unit, marched to San Juan del Monte with the objective of capturing its powder magazine. The insurgents are only a few meters away from the town's outskirts when they suddenly encountered a Spanish regiment, resulting into a close quarters battle. Outnumbering the defenders (but not actually outgunning since several Katipuneros are still without rifles), they slowly throw back the Spanish onslaught as they advanced deeper into the town. San Juan del Monte's second-line units were caught unprepared to counterattack, resulting in a rout. Several minutes later, the remaining colonial troops surrendered. The casualties on both sides are estimated from 2,000 to 5,000.
These significant victories inspired the other municipios to rise against the colonial government. Additional thousands of men from Las Piñas, Taguig, Pateros, Parañaque and Muntinlupa joined the Katipunan's cause.
The next morning in Malacañang Palace, numerous reports about the recent uprisings reached Governor-General Ramon Blanco y Erenas. Despite anticipating the upcoming hostilities, several Spanish divisions are still caught with their pants down. Frustrated at the current predicament, he ordered General Bernardo Echaluce y Jauregui, Manila's military governor, to quell this rebellion immediately before things started to get worse. Echaluce amassed an over 27,000-strong contingent under his personal command to deal with the Katipuneros. This force immediately marched out of Intramuros to San Juan del Monte. However this also made Manila more vulnerable to attack. By noon Bonifacio, now leading an over 40,000-men army, entered the capital city to give the Spaniards a rude awakening. The Battle of Manila is about to start.
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Note: In OTL, Bonifacio wants to attack Manila first but, obviously, he failed. Then the Katipuneros attack San Juan del Monte, which also failed. But ITTL, Bonifacio was persuaded to launch diverisionary attacks before proceeding to Manila. A large butterfly already.